Perth likely to host India’s first Test against Australia

Melbourne

Perth is set to host the opening Test of the five-match series during the much-anticipated India’s tour of Australia later this year. According to a report, Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney have also been picked as the venues for the blockbuster series. The Adelaide Test will be a Day-Night affair. The series is likely to start in late November.

Pune

Hockey Nationals: Haryana to face Odisha in quarters

Manipur progressed to the quarterfinals with an 11-2 win over Uttarakhand in a Pool G match as the league stage of the senior women’s hockey National Championship concluded. In the quarterfinals, defending champions Madhya Pradesh will face Bengal, hosts Maharashtra will face Manipur, Jharkhand will play Mizoram and Haryana will take on Odisha.

Basel

Sathish advances but Sameer loses in qualifying

India’s Sathish Kumar won his men’s singles qualifying matches in the Swiss Open badminton tournament, while the seasoned Sameer Verma lost his second qualification match.

Sydney

Australia postpone T20 series against Afghanistan

Cricket Australia today postponed a three-match T20 International home series against Afghanistan’s men’s team in August this year, citing the “worsening” conditions for women and girls in that country.

London

Unadkat to return to county side Sussex this year

Left-arm pacer Jaydev Unadkat will return to the English club side Sussex for the final five games of the County Championship campaign. Last season, the 32-year-old, who has played four Tests for India, had played three of the final four County Championship matches for Sussex, taking 11 wickets at 24.18, which helped the side register a third-place finish in Division 2.

Buenos Aires

Messi out of Argentina friendlies due to injury

Lionel Messi will not play in Argentina’s two friendlies in the United States this month due to a right leg muscle injury, the Argentine Football Association said. The captain was injured last week while playing for his Inter Miami club in the CONCACAF Champions Cup. Agencies

Paris

Mbappe’s reduced game time with PSG will benefit France

Kylian Mbappe’s reduced playing time with Paris St Germain in recent weeks could be good news for France as it may keep him fresh for the European Championship and Olympic Games, manager Didier Deschamps said. The France captain has played the full 90 minutes in just three matches since February 14. “It’s important to be physically fresh for a major competition. In any case, all the players will arrive at the end of the season feeling a little tired. If that fatigue can be reduced a little (all the better),” Deschamps said. Mbappe, who has been linked with a move to Real Madrid, has said he hopes to participate at this summer’s Paris Olympics but a move to the LaLiga leaders may prevent him from doing that. France under-23 coach Thierry Henry said that Real had turned down a request to release players for the Games. “Real Madrid’s stance on the Olympic Games is a bit outdated,” Deschamps said. “But businesspeople are the ones who decide. If it’s not on an official FIFA date, if they say no, the answer is no.” Reuters