Sports
Laksiri, Issadeen win open men’s and women’s titles
Air Force Open PSA Satellite Squash Championship-2022
Reigning national champions Ravindu Laksiri and Fathoum Issadeen won the men’s and women’s titles of the Air Force Open PSA (Professional Squash Association) Satellite Squash Championship-2022 which concluded at the Squash Complex of Sri Lanka Air Force Base Ratmalana on Saturday.
Nine-time national champion Laksiri, who recently won his first PSA international tour, continued the good form to defeat Pakistan’s Farhan Zaman in the men’s final.
The tournament favorite, Farhan Zaman, a former world No. 47 and gold medalist at the South Asian Games 2016, was on his way to victory after taking the first two sets at scores of 11/7 and 11/9. However, Laksiri made a great effort to win the third set at 12-10 before continuing to win the next two sets at 13-11 and 11-6 to secure the Air Chief Marshal P H Mendis challenge trophy.
In the Women’s Open final, Yeheni Kuruppu from Visakha Vidyalaya battled against the three-time national champion Issadeen who could secure the Air Chief Marshal Harry Gunathilaka memorial trophy.
The finals of the Women’s Open and Men’s Open categories and the awards ceremony were live telecasted on Rupavahini Channel Eye. The occasion was graced by Commander of the Air Force, Air Marshal Sudarshana Pathirana as Chief Guest along with Chairman Air Force Squash, Group Captain Pujana Gunathilake, Secretary Air Force Sports Council and Vice President Sri Lanka Squash Federation as well as Organizing Committee Head of Sri Lanka Squash Tournaments, Group Captain Eranda Geegane, Secretary of Sri Lanka Squash Federation Eranga Alwis, Members of the Air Force Board of Management and other distinguished guests from Sri Lanka Air Force and Sri Lanka Squash.
Summary of results
Girls’ Under 13
1st Place –
Ifra Shasmin Booso (St. Paul’s Girls School Milagiriya)
2nd Place –
Punsara Nirushi Wickramasinghe (Anula Vidyalaya Nugegoda)
3rd Place –
Thedara Liyanage (Sirimavo Bandaranaike Vidyalaya)
Boys’ Under 13
1st Place –
Manuth Sandira Dassanayake (Geteway International School)
2nd Place –
Linuka Silva (D.S Senanayake College)
3rd Place –
Thevan K Gunawardena (St Joseph College Maradana)
Girls’ Under 15
1st Place –
Punsara Nirushi Wickramasinghe (Anula Vidyalaya Nugegoda)
2nd Place –
Nethmi Wickramasinghe (Ladies College Colombo)
3rd Place –
Ifra Shasmin Booso (St. Paul’s Girls School Milagiriya)
Boys’ Under 15
1st Place –
Matheesha Wijesekara (Royal College Colombo)
2nd Place –
Bihandu Nanayakkara (Geteway International School)
3rd Place –
Tharul Pinwatta (Royal College Colombo)
Girls’ Under 17
1st Place –
Adhithi Gunasekera (Ladies College Colombo)
2nd Place –
Irudinithi Wood (Lindsay Balika Vidyalaya)
3rd Place –
Miyuni Misara Weerasinghe (Sirimavo Bandaranaike Vidyalaya)
Boys’ Under 17
1st Place –
Matheesha Wijesekara (Royal College Colombo)
2nd Place –
Mohamed Rilwan (St Joseph’s College Maradana)
3rd Place –
Tharul Pinwatta (Royal College Colombo)
Girls’ Under 19
1st Place –
Chanithma Sinaly (Sirimawo Bandaranaike Vidyalaya)
2nd Place –
Irudinithi Wood (Lindsay Balika Vidyalaya)
3rd Place –
Anargi Perera (Visakha Vidyalaya)
Boys’ Under 19
1st Place –
Nevndu Lakman (D.S Senanayake College)
2nd Place –
Thinura Randina (Nalanda College Colombo)
3rd Place – Seniya Jayatilleke (Royal College Colombo)
Men’s Over 35
1st Place –
Leading Aircraftman DE Silva HAS (Sri Lanka Air Force)
2nd Place –
Staff Sergeant KG Prabath (Sri Lanka Army)
3rd Place –
Corporal Dissanayake DMR (Sri Lanka Army)
Men’s Over 40
1st Place –
Group Captain Eranda Geeganage (Sri Lanka Air Force)
2nd Place –
Fleet Chief Petty Officer ACC Kumara (Sri Lanka Navy)
3rd Place –
Commander WJS Fenando (Sri Lanka Navy)
Men’s Over 45
1st Place –
Abdul Cader
2nd Place –
Group Captain Duleep Hewavitharana (Sri Lanka Air Force)
3rd Place –
Colonel Kaminda Silva (Sri Lanka Army)
Veteran Over 50
1st Place –
Abdul Cader
2nd Place –
Mevan Rajeeve
3rd Place –
Air Commodore Upali Wijeweera (Retd – Sri Lanka Air Force)
Women’s Novices
1st Place –
Senuji Jayarathne (Sirimavo Bandaranaike Vidyalaya)
2nd Place –
Dahami Peiris (Kotelawala Defence University)
3rd Place –
Sadini Rathnayake (Kotelawala Defence University)
Men’s Novices
1st Place –
Private Dilan AJAI (Sri Lanka Army)
2nd Place –
Private Rathnayaka RMSVP (Sri Lanka Army)
3rd Place –
Private T Supun Jayanath (Sri Lanka Army)
Men’s Plate
1st Place –
Lance Corporal Ekanayaka RMSLK (Sri Lanka Army)
2nd Place –
Leading Aircraftman Edirisinghe EAHM (Sri Lanka Air Force)
Womens’ Open
1st Place –
Fathoum Issadeen
2nd Place –
Yeheni Kuruppu
3rd Place –
Chanithma Sinaly (Sirimawo Bandaranaike Vidyalaya)
Men’s Open
1st Place –
Ravindu Laksiri
2nd Place –
Farhan Zaman (Pakistan Air Force)
3rd Place –
Shamil Wakeel
North Korea has held the Pyongyang International Marathon for the first time in six years, welcoming some 200 foreign runners to the streets of the reclusive country’s capital.
The marathon, which was launched in 1981, took place annually in April to celebrate the birth of its founding leader Kim Il Sung.
Before Sunday’s marathon, the race was last held in 2019, wherein 950 foreigners participated. North Korea sealed itself off the following year, when the Covid-19 pandemic hit.
North Korea has been slow to reopen since, allowing only Russian tourists into its capital since last year.
Runners have had to enter the country as part of an organised tour group, as was the case before the pandemic.
Koryo Tours, a Beijing-based travel agency listed as an “exclusive partner” on the event website, offers six-day marathon tours at 2,195 euros ($2,406) including flights to and from Beijing.
“The Pyongyang Marathon is an extremely unique experience as it provides an opportunity to interact with locals,” the agency wrote on its website.
Sunday’s marathon route took participants past landmarks across the city, including the Kim Il Sung stadium, the Arch of Triumph built to commemorate Kim Il Sung’s role in resisting Japanese rule, and the Mirae Future Scientists’ Street said to be a residential district for scientists and engineers.
Pictures online show the stadium – where runners start and finish their race – filled with spectators, many of them cheering and waving gold-coloured paper flags.
Pak Kum Dong, a North Korean runner, told Reuters news agency: “The eyes of our people on me helped me to bear the difficulties whenever I feel tired.”
There is no publicly available information on race results.
North Korea had only statred to scale back Covid-19 restrictions in the middle of 2023.
In Feburary, it allowed some Western tourists into the remote, eastern city Rason, but suspended those tours just weeks after.
[BBC]
Noor Ahmad, the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) left-arm wristspinner, continues to head the Purple Cap table with ten wickets from four games. His spell of 4 for 18 in CSK’s first game against MI, remains his best so far.
DC’s Mitchell Starc who picked up his maiden five-for in T20s, against SRH remains second on the list with nine wickets in three games.
GT’s Mohammed Siraj equalled Starc’s tally on Sunday night with his own IPL best, albeit he has played four games to Starc’s three. Siraj picked up 4 for 17 against SRH to hand them their four successive loss, and was named the Player of the Match.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) suffered another batting malfunction, this time on a slow, black-soil surface at home, crashing to their fourth successive defeat in IPL 2025. Having lost Travishek in the powerplay, SRH waited until the 13th over to see the first six of the innings, and managed only one more after that Mohammad Siraj caused irreparable damage right from the start, ending with his career-best IPL figures of 4 for 17.
Pat Cummins’ cameo (22* off nine balls) and then his dismissal of Jos Buttler for a duck in Gujarat Titans’ (GT) chase of 153 gave SRH some hope, but that faded away once Washington Sundar clattered 23 off nine balls in the powerplay. Earlier in the day, GT didn’t need Washington with the ball, but his attacking enterprise at No. 4 settled their chase on a slow pitch. Washington fell agonisingly short of a maiden IPL half-century, but his captain Shubman Gill ushered GT home, with an unbeaten 61 off 43 balls, along with Sherfane Rutherford.
Siraj had sparked the Border-Gavaskar Trophy to life when he gave Travis Head a send-off in Adelaide last December. Four months on, Siraj was bowling to Head for the first time in T20s, and the battle lasted just five balls. After Head scored two fours off Siraj, the fast bowler struck with his trademark wobble-seam delivery, having him chip a catch to midwicket for 8.
Abhishek Sharma hit four fours before Siraj had him miscuing a catch to mid-on in his third over of the powerplay. It was Siraj’s 100th wicket in the IPL and sixth in the powerplay, the most by a bowler in that phase so far this season, with an economy rate of 6.27.
Siraj then returned in the death to york both Aniket Verma, the last recognised batter for SRH, and Simarjeet Singh, their Impact Player.
With both Head and Abhishek gone early,Rashid Khan, who was coming into this game on the back of figures of 4-0-54-0, could afford to ease himself in. He started fairly well by giving away just 10 runs in his first two overs, but when he erred in length, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Heinrich Klassen dispatched him to the fence. Rashid finished with 4-0-31-0, going wicketless for a third successive game, and with tournament figures of 1 for 143 in 14 overs at an economy rate of 10.21
Left-arm fingerspinner Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, on the other hand, showed remarkable control over his length and variations. He claimed the big wicket of Klaasen by knocking him over with a quick dart, which skidded off the pitch, for 27 off 19 balls. Sai Kishore also had Reddy holing out for 31 off 34 balls and finished with 4-0-24-2.
That SRH passed 150 was down to Cummins’ late blows. He was the only SRH batter in the top eight to have a strike rate of over 160.
It appeared like GT had handed a franchise debut to Washington to primarily match his offspin up with SRH’s left-hander heavy top order. But with Siraj dominating the powerplay and Sai Kishore taking care of the middle overs, GT ended up not using his offspin.
Washington then walked out to bat at No. 4 after his childhood friend B Sai Sudarshan and Buttler fell cheaply in successive overs. Washington took advantage of the last over of the powerplay, smoking Simarjeet for two sixes and two fours. It provided a throwback to Washington of 2016, when he opened the batting, alongside Abhinav Mukund, in the TNPL and showed the intent to hit over the top. Just like that, Washington dumped SRH’s Impact Player out of the attack.
Washington continued to attack even after that. When the ambidextrous Kamindu Mendis darted one on the stumps with his right hand, Washington manufactured swinging room and laced him over extra-cover for four. Washington seemed set for a fifty until he holed out one shy of the landmark in the 14th over.
Gill, who had already crossed 50 by that point, finished the job along with Rutherford, who hit an unbeaten 35 off 16 balls.
Brief scores:
Gujarat Titans 153 for 3 in 16.4 overs (Shubman Gill 61*, Washington Sundar 49, Sherfaine Rutherford 35*; Mohammed Shami 2-28, Pat Cumminss 1-26) beat Sunrisers Hyderabad 152 for 8 in 20 overs (Abhishek Sharma 18, Ishan Krishan 17, Nitish Kumar Reddy 31, Heinrich Klassen 27, Aniket Verma 18,Pat Cummins 22*; Mohammed Siraj 4-17, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore 2-24, Prasidh Krishna 2-25)by seven wickets
[Cricinfo]
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