Royal Premier League Season 2 gets underway in Pulwama amid huge crow…

Pulwama (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], August 20 (ANI): The Royal Premier League witnessed an exciting night cricket match at the Sports Stadium in Pulwama, Jammu and Kashmir as the second season kicked off on Wednesday, drawing thousands of spectators who gathered to support and encourage local cricketing talent. amunra-opinie.pl

The match turned into a vibrant sporting spectacle as cricket enthusiasts from different areas arrived at the venue to watch the players showcase their skills under floodlights. The enthusiastic crowd cheered for the teams throughout the game, creating an energetic atmosphere.

The growing popularity of night cricket matches in Kashmir reflects the increasing interest in the sport among local youth. With proper lighting and improved facilities, players are getting more opportunities to participate in competitive matches beyond traditional daytime games.

Night cricket is gradually emerging as a new attraction in Kashmir, providing young players with more opportunities to pursue their passion for the game while bringing communities together through sport.

Pulwama MLA Waheed ur Rehman Para praised the youth-led cricket event for creating a joyful atmosphere and bringing together young people from across Jammu and Kashmir. He said such sporting events can help provide hope and happiness to youth while easing stress and fostering a positive sporting culture in the region.

“Look, it’s a very good thing that once again in Pulwama, we are amidst a joyous atmosphere and we’re seeing how the youth have taken an initiative. And it’s a people’s initiative. Irfan (orrganiser) made an effort so that the youth here get an atmosphere of joy, an event like this which is also giving hope and happiness to the youth of Kashmir," the Pulwama MLA told ANI.

“From Kupwara, Kishtwar, Keran, Doda–young people are standing here right now at 10:00 PM, they’ve come from far away to make each other happy. And they feel that this is our event, this is our program. So I think it’s a huge victory for all of us and happening in Pulwama right now, it’s a huge message to every cricket lover," he said further.

Para said sporting events can help ease stress among Kashmir’s youth by creating moments of joy, hope and togetherness.

“Our endeavor will be to create a sporting atmosphere in Jammu and Kashmir, because there is so much stress, worry, hopelessness, and resentment among our youth. Somehow, through such small events, we feel that, you know, there’s something to celebrate, there’s something to laugh about. This is an attempt to heal our people and also create events of happiness for the young youth of Kashmir," he said.

League organiser Irfan Ahmad said Season 2 has received strong support from Pulwama’s youth and public, adding that praise from Prime Minister Narendra Modi has further motivated him to improve the event and build on its success.

“Today our second season is about to begin, and God willing, the entire Pulwama district is ready. The youth here are fully prepared and they have full support. We will try our best this year to make this event even better than last year. The public here wants such events to happen, especially considering the hype it currently has all over India. So I am deeply grateful to the people for that," he said ahead of the first match.

“When our Prime Minister praises an event or an individual, naturally a person gets motivated. So I’ve been very motivated by that and I think about my work, how to move forward, how to make it better day by day. Otherwise, my effort will remain at the ground level. As you all know, just look at the crowd now, there are hundreds of thousands of people here. So this is all due to my hard work, the people’s prayers, and everyone’s support," he added. (ANI)

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Leeds [UK], August 20 (ANI): England pacers Ollie Robinson and Josh Tongue shared an unusual piece of cricket memorabilia after taking five wickets apiece on the opening day of the Leeds Test against Pakistan, with the pair having the match ball cut cleanly in half so both could keep a piece.

According to the ICC website, it marked the first instance since 2006 of two England bowlers claiming five-wicket hauls in the same innings, with Ollie Robinson and Josh Tongue agreeing to split the match ball between them as a memento.

Robinson said he and Tongue decided to split the match ball as a memorable keepsake, noting that two bowlers taking five-wicket hauls in the same innings is rare and having half a ball each would make for a unique memento.

“We were walking off and I was like, to Tonguey, I think we should split it. He said it and I said, I think we should do that, it’d be quite cool. It’s one of those things, you don’t have too many half-of-cricket-balls, so it would be something we never forget. It’s not very often two guys get five-for in the same innings, so a nice gesture and something to remember," the ICC website quoted Robinson as saying.

Coming to Day 1 of the England vs Pakistan Test, the Three Lions seized control, dismissing Pakistan for 171 before reaching 112/2 at stumps.

The day belonged to England’s pace attack, with Robinson and Tongue claiming five wickets apiece to share all 10 Pakistan wickets.

After England opted to bowl at Headingley, Robinson struck with the very first delivery, removing opener Azan Awais for a golden duck. He then trapped Pakistan captain Shan Masood leg-before for 5, leaving the visitors struggling at 6/2.

Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq steadied Pakistan’s innings with a 91-run third-wicket partnership. However, Tongue broke the stand by dismissing Imam for 42.

Robinson then returned to remove Saud Shakeel for 5 and Shafique for 61, while Tongue dismantled the lower order by dismissing Salman Agha for 21, Ali Usman for a golden duck and Mohammad Rizwan for 12.

Pakistan were eventually bowled out for 171 in 48.1 overs, with Robinson finishing with 5/51 and Tongue claiming 5/46.

England’s opening combination of Ben Duckett and Emilio Gay provided a positive start, putting on 36 runs in nine overs before Pakistan fought back through Mohammad Abbas and Mohammad Ali.

The hosts slipped to 48/2, but Root and Cox combined effectively to put England back in control. The pair added an unbeaten 64 runs, with Root on 37 and Cox on 23 at the close of play. (ANI)

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Pennsylvania [US], August 20 (ANI): Star Argentine footballer Lionel Messi, on Wednesday (local time), scored his first goal since his father Jorge Messi’s death earlier this month. Messi’s goal came in his team Inter Miami’s 2-2 draw with Philadelphia Union in the Major League Soccer (MLS) match at Subaru Park in Chester, Pennsylvania.

Messi’s goal came in the 26th minute. Messi evaded his marker before firing a left-footed strike into the net to put Miami 2-1 ahead in the first half, with his teammates quickly surrounding him in celebration. However, it was Union’s Neil Pierre who scored in the 58th minute to equalise.

MAGIC from Messi as @InterMiamiCF take the lead over the Union! pic.twitter.com/lJ5tpDMUIA

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) August 20, 2026

Notably, the draw brought an end to defending MLS Cup champions Miami’s three-match losing streak.

Jorge Messi, 68, died at a clinic in Rosario on Saturday after a prolonged illness, leaving the Argentine football icon facing a deeply personal loss.

In a heartfelt message on social media after Jorge’s death, Messi recalled his father’s unwavering support, their shared World Cup dreams and the pain of losing him, admitting that he is struggling to imagine life without him.

In a post on Instagram, Messi uploaded a picture with his late father and wrote a heartfelt message for him.

Messi expressed deep grief over his father’s death, saying he still struggled to accept the loss and felt Jorge had left too soon. He recalled how his father urged him to play in the 2026 World Cup despite his worsening health, while Messi remained hopeful that Jorge would recover enough to attend the tournament’s final.

“Dad, I still can’t believe you’re gone. It hasn’t sunk in–or rather, I don’t want it to sink in. It’s so hard to imagine that I won’t see you again, that we won’t talk anymore. I know you were suffering and that this is for the best, but you left too soon. We still had so much left to enjoy together. You kept asking me to play in that last World Cup, but just days before it started, your condition took a turn for the worse. It was the first time you wouldn’t be at a tournament, but Mom kept telling me you’d improve and be well enough to travel. I kept telling you we’d make it to the final so you could come," Messi wrote in the post.

Messi captained Argentina to the final of the World Cup 2026 but lost to Spain in the final, failing to defend the title. (ANI)

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Despite going down to India in the first Test here, head coach Gary Kirsten was pleased to see Sri Lankan players embracing the challenges that the red-ball format offers. The 165-run defeat to India was Sri Lanka's second defeat in three Tests after going down to the West Indies by an innings and 217 runs at North Sound, Antigua in June.

"I'm particularly excited by being involved with Sri Lankan cricket. I think there's some great players here, but the team still needs to develop. It is sometimes tough when you don't play Test match cricket to understand how you need to play that," Kirsten said in the post-match press conference.

"This is now our third Test match in the space of a couple of months and I can already see the team developing and we're starting to build some shape into the team. "But we need to be able to turn it into a performance at some point. But as I said, we're kind of building that and developing that as best we can," he added.

Kirsten was happy to see the fight Sri Lanka offered despite getting reduced to 99 for five in the initial part of their first innings, and then dragged the match to the fifth and final day. "From being 99 for 5 at the beginning of the third day, to then taking the Test match into the afternoon of the fifth day was particularly pleasing. There was a bit of fight and that we were keen to try and stay in the Test match.

"We still believed even this (Wednesday) morning that we could make something happen, either win the Test match or certainly draw it. So, I was really pleased with the energy and the attitude of the team around that. "But I think if you look at the Test match, we battled with the bat, especially in our top order, in both innings and that probably cost us," he added. Kirsten lauded young batter Sonal Dinusha, who made a 100 and 84 across the Galle Test.

"His love for Test cricket and playing that way is particularly pleasing to me to watch and we certainly would encourage, you know, all our players to have that Test match mindset and attitude. "I think the challenge for the modern players, especially in Sri Lanka, is you don't play much Test cricket. At least now, we've got another six matches to go within the next six months or so.

"So it's great to get into the Test match game a little bit and then to understand how to score runs and bat for long periods of time and have an influence on a game over a long period of time," he said. However, Kirsten's update on injured Sri Lankan players did not offer an upbeat scenario to the hosts ahead of the second Test.

"Kusal Mendis has got a proper hamstring injury. He's not going to be available for a while. Pathum Nissanka as well and Dinesh (Chandimal) are also not available for the next Test. "So, we're missing a few guys from that perspective but it creates a great opportunity for young players to come in and stake their claim. In fact, players that have got really good first-class records in this country. So it's a good opportunity for them," he noted.

Former India head coach Kirsten also lauded Devdutt Padikkal for playing a proper Test match innings, handing advantage to India. "I think India did really well in their first innings. Devdutt Padikkal played one of the better Test match innings that I've seen. He didn't play too aggressively, but just played within himself and just batted for a long period and was a good lesson for any Test match batsman," he said.

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