‘Sanju Samson not only one who failed’: Ajit Agarkar targeted for snu…

India cricket team star Sanju Samson‘s childhood coach Biju George lashed out at the selectors and the team management for snubbing him from the squad for the Zimbabwe T20Is. The Keralam wicketkeeper-batter, who was dropped from India’s playing XI in the series against England after three consecutive failures, failed to find a spot in the squad for the next T20I assignment. While a BCCI source claimed that the move was aimed at giving youngsters opprtunities, George felt so otherwise and launched a scathing attack on the selectors.

‘Sanju Samson wasn’t the only one who failed’

Speaking to the Times of India, Samson’s childhood coach pointed out that the star wasn’t the only one who failed, adding that it was unfair to mete out such a treatment to a player who had won the T20 World Cup for India. The wicketkeeper-batter’s coach also wondered when Sanju could prove himself next after being left out of the tour to Zimbabwe, while questioning the logic of giving youngsters chances. hilogame.news

“I agree he failed in three matches. But he was not the only one who failed. Right? With this talent, there is no question about his calibre. There is no question that he was your match-winner. He won you the World Cup. Now, how can you do this to him?,” George questioned.

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Samson has been consistently inconsistent in his T20I career. At the start of the year, he performed poorly in the series against New Zealand, scoring 46 runs in 5 matches. He then became India’s T20 World Cup 2026 hero, having played knocks of 97*, 89 and 89 in the knockout stages. He was named the Player of the Tournament. Then, Samson scored 477 runs in 14 IPL 2026 matches. After that, he registered scores of 0 and 5 against Ireland, and 1 against England in the 1st T20I before he was dropped.

Samson’s coach claimed that the move to drop the T20 WC Player of the Tournament and the WC-winning captain was a ridiculous move. He added that neither the selectors nor Ajit Agarkar would have retained their jobs had Sanju not played those three brilliant knocks.

“Actually, if you look at it, had Sanju not played those three consecutive brilliant innings, neither the selector would have retained his job, nor would the chief selector. The entire team would have been sacked. Right?”Now, the guy, the captain who won you the World Cup, the player who was the Man of the Tournament, have been dropped, which is ridiculous,” George added.

The post ‘Sanju Samson not only one who failed’: Ajit Agarkar targeted for snubbing star for Zimbabwe T20Is appeared first on Inside Sport India.

France vs Morocco FIFA World Cup 2026 Quarterfinal: France captain Kylian Mbappe continued his golden run of form in FIFA World Cup 2026, scoring a goal and providing an assist to Ousmane Dembele, as his side hammered Morocco 2-0 in the quarterfinal match at Gillette Stadium in Boston on Thursday. Mbappe became the youngest to play in 20 World Cup matches and also the youngest-ever footballer to score 20 goals in the tournament.

The Real Madrid striker jumped back to the top of the Golden Boot race ahead of Argentina’s Lionel Messi with 8 goals and 3 assists in the FIFA World Cup 2026 so far. But Mbappe gave his fans a major scare as he left the game early due to an injuy scare – a right ankle issue.

Two-time World Cup winners France became only the third team ever after Germany (4 from 2002-2014 and 3 from 1982-1990) and Brazil (3 from 1994-2002) to reach three successive World Cup semifinals. The 2018 World Cup winners had reached the final four years back in Qatar where they had lost to Argentina.

Mbappe managed goal and an assist after missing a first-half penalty kick, while Barcelona star Dembele also scored in France’s win. “There’s only one way to relax, and that’s by winning. Until we’ve done that, we don’t let up. We’re in the semifinals and we’re very happy, but there’s still a long way to go,” Mbappe was quoted as saying by AP news agency.

WATCH Kylian Mbappe score against Morocco in the FIFA World Cup 2026 quarterfinal HERE…

Dari sudut yang sudah tertutup, Kylian Mbappe masih menemukan setitik ruang untuknya membuat tembakan on target dan menjadi gol.

Di pertandingan yang ketat dibutuhkan teknik tingkat tinggi untuk mengubah keadaan.pic.twitter.com/ZjbYlqzLHu

— PanditFootball.com (@panditfootball) July 9, 2026

Mbappe’s goal in the 60th minute was the 20th of his World Cup career and came in his 20th match at the tournament, moving him only one behind Messi. Dembele scored his fifth goal of the tournament in the 66th. France have become only the second team after 24 years to have two players with 5-plus goals in the tournament.

The last team to achieve this feat were Brazil in the 2002 World Cup, where Ronaldo had scored 8 goals and Rivaldo had 5 goals to his name. Mbappe went down to the ground in the 76th minute, about 13 minutes after being hit hard by a Moroccan defender and was taken off for a substitute a minute later.

After the match and with both shoes on, Mbappe ran and jumped in celebration with his teammates. “I took a knock to the ankle, but I’m fine. At that point, JP (Jean-Philippe Mateta) was in better shape than I was to play the final minutes,” Mbappe said.

France will face either Spain or Belgium in the semifinals at the AT & T Stadium in Dallas on Tuesday. The French had beaten Morocco by the same score in the semifinals of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar when the Atlas Lions became the first African team to make it that far. France can become only the third nation to play in the final of three consecutive World Cups.

“It is a confirmation of how we’ve played so far,” said France coach Didier Deschamps after the match. “Having great players. Excellent players. My credit goes to the players. But maybe I do my job well. The only truth is the one on the pitch.”

Mbappe got his 20th goal of the tournament with a perfectly placed shot just inside the far post after Morocco failed to clear the ball. France’s second goal came after Mbappe took a pass and tapped it back to Dembele. The French skipper kept running forward and took defenders with him, opening space for Dembele’s shot.

“He’s our captain and he has an incredible mentality. We’re expecting even more goals from him,” Dembele said.

ફિફા વર્લ્ડ કપ ૨૦૨૬ હવે તેના અંતિમ તબક્કા તરફ આગળ વધી રહ્યો છે. રોમાંચક ક્વાર્ટર ફાઇનલ મેચમાં ફ્રાન્સે મોરોક્કોને ૨-૦થી હરાવીને સેમિફાઇનલમાં ગૌરવપૂર્ણ સ્થાન મેળવી લીધું છે, જ્યારે આ હાર સાથે મોરોક્કોનું વર્લ્ડ કપ જીતવાનું સપનું ચકનાચૂર થઈ ગયું છે. સમગ્ર મેચ દરમિયાન ફ્રાન્સનું પ્રભુત્વ જોવા મળ્યું હતું અને મોરોક્કોની ટીમ એક પણ ગોલ નોંધાવી શકી નહોતી.

ફ્રાન્સ-મોરોક્કો, એમ્બાપ્પેની પેનલ્ટી મિસ અને રોમાંચ

મેચનો પ્રથમ હાફ અત્યંત રોમાંચક રહ્યો હતો. બંને ટીમોએ ગોલ કરવા માટે ઘણી તકો ઊભી કરી હતી, પરંતુ કોઈ સફળતા મળી નહોતી. મેચની ૨૪મી મિનિટે ફ્રાન્સ પાસે લીડ મેળવવાની સુવર્ણ તક હતી, જ્યારે મોરોક્કોના ડિફેન્ડરે પેનલ્ટી બોક્સ (D) ની અંદર કિલિયન એમ્બાપ્પેને ફાઉલ કર્યો હતો. ફ્રાન્સને પેનલ્ટી એનાયત કરવામાં આવી, પરંતુ મોરોક્કોના ગોલકીપરની ચપળતા અથવા નસીબના જોરે એમ્બાપ્પે આ પેનલ્ટી ચૂકી ગયો અને પ્રથમ હાફ ૦-૦ની બરાબરી પર સમાપ્ત થયો.

ફ્રાન્સનો વળતો પ્રહાર

બીજા હાફમાં ફ્રાન્સે રમતની ગતિ બદલી નાખી અને માત્ર ૬ મિનિટના અંતરાલમાં બે ગોલ કરીને મેચ પોતાના નામે કરી લીધી. ૬૦મી મિનિટ: પ્રથમ હાફની ભૂલ સુધારતા, કિલિયન એમ્બાપ્પેએ શાનદાર ફિલ્ડ ગોલ કરીને ફ્રાન્સને ૧-૦ની લીડ અપાવી. ૬૬મી મિનિટ: ફ્રાન્સના આક્રમણને ચાલુ રાખતા ઓસ્માન ડેમ્બેલેએ બીજો ગોલ ફટકારીને સ્કોર ૨-૦ કરી દીધો. આ બેક-ટુ-બેક ગોલ બાદ મોરોક્કો દબાણમાં આવી ગયું અને અંતિમ સીટી વાગવા સુધી વાપસી કરી શક્યું નહીં. ફ્રાન્સે ૨-૦થી આ મેચ જીતીને સેમિફાઇનલની ટિકિટ મેળવી લીધી.

સેમિફાઇનલમાં કોની સામે થશે ટક્કર?

ફિફા વર્લ્ડ કપ ૨૦૨૬ની સેમિફાઇનલમાં પહોંચ્યા બાદ હવે ફ્રાન્સનો મુકાબલો સ્પેન અથવા બેલ્જિયમ સામે થશે. આ બંને ટીમો વચ્ચેની ક્વાર્ટર ફાઇનલ મેચ બાદ વિજેતા ટીમ ફ્રાન્સ સામે ટકરાશે. બુધવાર, ૧૫ જુલાઈના રોજ ભારતીય સમયાનુસાર (IST) રાત્રે ૧૨:૩૦ વાગ્યે મેચ રમાશે. ફિફા વર્લ્ડકપમાં પોર્ટુગલ બહાર થતા રોનાલ્ડોને જોવા આતુર તેના ચાહકોમાં ઉત્સાહ ઘટયો છે. છતાં મેસ્સી અને એમ્બાપ્પેની શાનદાર રમત લોકોના આકર્ષણનું કેન્દ્ર બની રહી છે. ફ્રાન્સે મોરોક્કોને હરાવીને સેમીફાઈનલની ટીકીટ મેળવી લીધી છે. હવે તેની સામે કઈ ટીમ આવશે સ્પેન -બેલ્જિયમની મેચના આગામી પરિણામો કહેશે.

આ પણ વાંચો : FIFA World Cup 2026 : ક્વાર્ટર ફાઇનલ માટે 8 ટીમ નક્કી,જાણો સંપૂર્ણ શેડ્યુલ

Rohan Chowdhury

The FIFA World Cup is nearing its business end as the world awaits the last eight. With some outstanding performances and a fair share of controversies, the North American World Cup has made several headlines. This World Cup has seen multiple underdogs punching above their weight, and the same has been true in the business world. Several non-official sponsors of the tournament, through their unique marketing strategies, have certainly produced a Cape Verde-like performance, punching well above their weight.

The Air Transat campaign from Canada and the Levi’s Stadium branding initiative are prime examples. Some fall under the traditional definition of ambush marketing, while others were proactive, innovative decisions that helped brands gain a competitive advantage over their rivals.

One such campaign emerged from Colombia just before the start of the tournament. We all know how World Cup jerseys become highly sought after. Whether it is the traditional home colours or the creative away and third kits, team shirts are always in demand among fans.

However, the prices of these football kits have risen exponentially over time, especially during the World Cup. Speaking from personal experience, as someone who has been buying jerseys for years, I can vouch for the fact that prices have skyrocketed in Kolkata. A player-version jersey that would normally cost around ₹999 is now selling for about ₹1,400 through online Instagram stores, while some brick-and-mortar retailers are charging close to ₹2,000, subject to bargaining. Put simply, everyone wants a share of the World Cup frenzy.

In a country like Colombia, which ranks 33rd in the world by GDP and remains a developing economy, buying official Adidas merchandise is beyond the reach of many fans, with a jersey costing around $150.

Recognising both the strengths and limitations of the market, Cerveza Aguila, the official beer partner of the Colombian national football team, came up with a brilliant strategy to maximise its impact in a truly unique way.

How?

Its marketing agency, DAVID Bogota, in collaboration with DAVID Madrid, made official jerseys more affordable for fans. They launched a campaign called “Resize The Price”, allowing supporters to customise their jerseys with the Aguila logo on the front. In return, Aguila subsidised part of the jersey’s cost. The bigger the logo, the lower the price the customer had to pay.

Customers could choose the size of the logo while purchasing either at fan zones or through the Aguila website. This gave supporters multiple pricing options, with jerseys ranging from $80 to as little as $20 for the largest logo.

In a video report by Revista P&M, the overwhelming response from fans was to “make the logo bigger”. Reportedly, 10,254 customers registered for the jerseys, which were available on a pre-order basis, and 93 per cent opted for the largest logo, bringing the price down to just $20.

In a market where brands usually pay hefty sums to secure a place on a jersey as the title sponsor (although international match jerseys cannot carry sponsor logos), Cerveza Aguila effectively paid fans to wear its logo. It was a brilliant piece of marketing and an outstanding sports marketing case study.

The campaign also won a Gold Lion at the 2026 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in the Entertainment Lions for Sports category – and deservedly so.

At a time when buying an official jersey has become a luxury, forcing many supporters to turn to counterfeits, Aguila made authentic merchandise accessible to thousands of Colombian fans through one of the most creative campaigns of the World Cup.

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The post When Fans Paid Less and a Brand Won More: How Aguila Resized the Price appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.