Team India players chill in mountains ahead of Lucknow`s clash

On the sidelines of the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan, some of Team India’s star cricketers opted to refresh their batteries, chilling out in the mountains of Himachal Pradesh, following their win in the first match in Dharamsala recently.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Yashasvi Jaiswal (@yashasvijaiswal28)

In an Instagram post shared by Yashasvi Jaiswal, the likes of Nitish Kumar Reddy, KL Rahul, Arshdeep Singh, and Prince Yadav, among others are seen enjoying a dip in a river flowing down one of the picturesque mountain ranges in the backdrop.

All-rounder Deepti Sharma says she relishes the pressure that comes with ICC tournaments after delivering a match-winning performance in India``s opening Women``s T20 World Cup game against arch foes Pakistan here. Having endured underwhelming series against Australia, South Africa and England, Deepti ended her lean patch in style with career-best figures of 5/10 as India began their campaign with a commanding 64-run victory here on Sunday. Her spell was the best by an Indian bowler in the history of the Women``s T20 World Cup and was the third-best bowling figures overall in the tournament. The performance came less than a year after Deepti``s five-wicket haul in the ODI World Cup final, which helped India clinch their maiden 50-over World Cup title.

"I like the pressure conditions and ICC tournaments; I feel I have started again from where I had finished, so it feels good. I``m focusing on my process...the same things I do in practice I am applying in matches," Deepti said at the post-match press conference. "These things help me and the only thing is that I have to keep moving forward, and not stop and day by day have to keep improving." The 28-year-old was a part of the Indian team that reached the ODI World Cup final here in 2017. Reflecting on her journey since that time, Deepti said, "When you look at young Deepti and now senior Deepti it feels very good. Looking back at the earlier matches and the 2017 World Cup, I learned a lot from that World Cup and I learn from every match where the errors are happening and where I can be better.

"Then I regularly talk to Avishkar sir about what always helps me; I watch my videos, so I think there is always learning from every match - it doesn``t matter whether you are winning or not. "You are considered a good player only when you think about how to improve even your good qualities, and every match is important to me and I``m just enjoying it. So it feels good," she added. Against Pakistan, Deepti dismissed opener Gull Feroza Ayesha Zafar, Aliya Riaz, Nashra Sandhu, and Tasmia Rubab, while scoring an unbeaten 12 of 9 balls.

"I kept my plans very simple and just had self-belief that whenever such situations arise, I``ll have to step up. And since the wicket was slightly turning I was hitting my good balls and landing them well, and it was just about bowling back-to-back in the good areas. "On today``s pitch speed was very crucial, so I was varying it in every over, and that helped me." Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur rescued India with a 91-run partnership after the Women in Blue were reduced to 2/18.

"I think unbelievable batting by Smriti and special mention about that partnership, Smriti and Hari, they batted really well. "From there we got the momentum because initially we lost early wickets, but we always thought that we have a good batting line-up so we contribute and how they batted is commendable." India will next take on debutants Netherlands. "I think they played today and it``s a good team and first time they``ve qualified for the World Cup and we are not taking that game lightly, but it``s a few days until that game and now we are looking good, we are doing good and we are just focusing that each and every match is important for us and we will play our positive cricket.

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever

Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha delivered a performance for the ages as the World Cup debutants held European champions Spain to a remarkable 0-0 draw, securing one of the biggest results in the nation’s football history.

The 40-year-old goalkeeper was at the heart of the upset, producing seven crucial saves to deny Spain and earn the Player of the Match award. However, it was his emotional reaction after the final whistle that stole the spotlight, as tears streamed down his face while Cape Verde’s players and supporters celebrated the historic point.

Speaking after the match, Vozinha revealed that his emotions were tied to family members who could not share the moment with him.

“I cried because I grew up with my grandparents. Unfortunately, they were not here. They died a few years before. They were everything for me, everything for my life,” he said.

The veteran goalkeeper also spoke about his mother, who was unable to travel to the United States to watch him play because of visa issues and financial constraints.

“And also because of my mum. She didn’t manage to be here because of the visa. Because of the money you have to pay for the visa, we didn’t manage on time. I would like her to be here,” he added.

Despite his individual heroics, Vozinha was quick to praise the collective effort that helped Cape Verde frustrate one of the tournament favourites.

“Our best weapon is our unity. Regardless of the player who arrives today, or the player who is 10 or 15 years old, the way we treat our family is our greatest strength,” he said.

The goalkeeper rejected suggestions that Cape Verde had arrived at the World Cup simply to enjoy the occasion, insisting that the team had come to compete on the biggest stage.

“Everyone thought that we came here just to enjoy the World Cup, but no. We know that we have teams that we will always respect because this is our first time, but we are here to compete, and we are here to fight for our country.”

For Vozinha, whose real name is Josimar Dias, the draw represented the fulfilment of a lifelong dream. The goalkeeper did not turn professional until the age of 25 and admitted that there were moments when he considered ending his international career.

“I started playing professional football when I was 25 years old. It was too late for a person like me,” he said.
“I thought about leaving the national team, but then I continued because of this dream.”

Facing relentless Spanish pressure throughout the contest, Vozinha stood firm to preserve a famous clean sheet and help Cape Verde claim a historic point. Yet the veteran insisted the achievement belonged to the entire squad rather than himself.

“The performance is a performance for everyone. I am the man of the game, but this award is for all my colleagues, because without them, nothing is possible,” he said.

Follow REVSPORTZ for more updates.

The post “We Are Here to Fight for Our Country”: Emotional Vozinha Leads Cape Verde to Historic Draw Against Spain appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.

Saudi Arabia vs Uruguay FIFA World Cup 2026 Group H: Uruguay gave it everything but still had to settle for one point each with Saudi Arabia in their opening Group H match of FIFA World Cup 2026 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Monday as their clash ended in a 1-1 draw. Uruguay put up a record-breaking show in the second half of the game but could only manage an equalizer from World Cup debutant Maximiliano Araujo to take one point from the clash.

Uruguay attempted 22 shots on goal in the second half of their game against Saudi Arabia. The last team to attempt more shots in a half of a FIFA World Cup match was East Germany against Chile in 1974 – 24 – but that came in the first half of the match.

WATCH Maximiliano Araujo score equalizer against Saudi Arabia HERE…

Atuação do Maximiliano Araújo, meia lateral uruguaio, vs a Arábia.

Foi especulado no Chelsea durante o jogo, antes e fazer gol por sinal.

pic.twitter.com/qYIhiIjxBK

— Leo Menezes (@lmenezescfc) June 16, 2026

But the ‘La Celeste’, former World Cup champions, were not pleased with the final result of the game. “We gave it away. We have to be honest,” Uruguay midfielder Federico Valverde said in Spanish after his side played to a 1-1 draw.

“We gave away the first half. We didn’t play the way we had trained. It wasn’t what we were aiming for. We rushed things too much. We wanted to win the game in the very first minute. Sometimes you need a bit more patience and just play our game. We improved a lot in the second half,” Valverde added.

Uruguay had started strongly with Araujo, making his debut on the World Cup stage, forcing a smart save from Mohammed Al Owais before the Saudi goalkeeper produced an even better stop to deny Federico Vinas’s diving header. Saudi Arabia’s goalkeeper Mohammed Al Owais made 9 saves vs Uruguay – the most by any goalkeeper at the 2026 FIFA World Cup so far.

Only Dominik Livakovic (11 vs Brazil, 2022) has made more saves in a single World Cup game in the last three tournaments.

Abdulelah Al-Amri scored on a rebound in the 41st minute for Saudi Arabia and Araujo got the equalizer in the 80th, firing a rebound past goalkeeper Al-Owais from close range.

With Saudi Arabia defending deep in their own half after the break, Uruguay’s intense pressure finally paid off with 10 minutes left in normal time. The Saudi goalkeeper couldn’t hold onto a sharp header from Viñas, allowing Araújo to capitalize on the loose ball and score.

Belgium held to 1-1 draw by Egypt

A star-studded Belgium team featuring the likes of Romelu Lukaku, Kevin de Bruyne and Thibaut Courtois were held to a 1-1 draw by Egypt in their Group G match of FIFA World Cup 2026 at Lumen Field Stadium in Seattle on Monday.

Lukaku entered the field in the 66th minute against Egypt on Monday and the veteran striker made immediate impact by a scoring chance that led to an equalizing own goal, but that was all Belgium could manage.

“No game’s an easy game in the World Cup,” coach Rudi Garcia said in French.

Belgium were expected to handle an Egypt squad that had never won a World Cup game much more easily than this. But the Red Devils were outmaneuvered in the first half, with the speed of Egypt’s younger players. “We know that we had a bad start in the match,” captain Youri Tielemans said.

For the Pharaohs, Emam Ashour had open the scoring in the 20th minute of the game. But Mohammed Hany conceded an own-goal set up by Belgium’s Lukaku in the 66th minute.