In the All India Inter-University Baseball Tournament, Mumbai University's team has managed to claim a bronze medal. The tournament was organised at the Savitribai Phule Pune University from January 2 to 6. A total of 64 students across the country participated in the event. The Mumbai University team performed well and managed to clinch a medal after many years in the baseball event. The side registered victories by 10-0 against LMCT Bhopal, 10-0 against Jalgaon, 4-1 against Amravati University, and 5-1 against Nanded. In the qualifying matches, the Mumbaikars delivered a top performance and secured a 2-0 victory to seal the berth in the final four stage. They clinched a bronze medal by handing a defeat by 3-2 to Delhi University. Coach Nandan Parab played a crucial role in the team's success in the All India Inter-University Baseball Championship. Mumbai University players also showcased immense determination and skills throughout the tournament. The team consisted of the likes of Chaitanya Bhamale, Tushar Lalwani, Chirag Sonawane, Ajay Khedkar, Shantanu Surve, Gaurav Lalwani, Ashish Pandey, Surya Kaunder, Vaibhav Khatikmare, Anish More, Asrar Sheikh, Mehul Tate, Mihir Khuman, Prathamesh Shinde, Ritik Yadav and Vedant Naik. Satish Rajguru was the team manager. Following the success in the tournament, Mumbai University's Vice Chancellor Prof. Ravindra Kulkarni, Pro-Vice Chancellor Principal Dr Ajay Bhamre, Registrar Dr Prasad Karande and Director of Sports and Physical Education Dr Manoj Reddy congratulated the players and extended their good wishes.
08 January,2026 03:01 PM IST | Mumbai | Aditi AlurkarA prominent member of India's shooting coaching staff, Ankush Bhardwaj, has been accused of sexual harassment by a minor shooter, prompting the national federation to suspend him. NRAI (National Rifles Association of India) confirmed that an FIR has been filed against Bhardwaj in Faridabad. "NRAI has suspended him and we will issue a show-cause notice," NRAI secretary Rajiv Bhatia told PTI. "He has been suspended on moral grounds. Now, he has to prove himself innocent. Till the inquiry is not completed, he will not be associated with any coaching activity," he added. Bhatia said NRAI had recommended Bhardwaj for a place in the 37-strong coaching team after the Paris Olympics in 2024. "It was on the recommendation of the NRAI that he was appointed by SAI as one of the coaches. It is a case of sexual harassment which happened in Surajkund," said Bhatia. Bhatia did not say when the incident took place but according to the FIR filed by the victim, she was targetted last month after a training session at the Karni Singh Range. The girl, who has been training with Bhardwaj since August last year, stated that she was left traumatised by the incident and spoke up in front of her mother on January 1 after being persistently probed. Bhardwaj, a former pistol shooter, had served a doping ban in 2010 for the use of a beta-blocker during his competitive days. 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.
08 January,2026 02:56 PM IST | New Delhi | PTINational record-holder and Asian Games gold-winning Indian middle-distance runner Jinson Johnson announced his retirement on Wednesday, after a 15-year career shaped by “relentless training, quiet struggles, and painful injuries”. View this post on Instagram A post shared by jinson Johnson (@jinson__johnson) The 34-year-old has not competed since winning a 1500m bronze in the Hangzhou Asian Games in October 2023. His best moment was winning the 1500m gold in the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games with a time of 3 minutes 44.72 seconds. He also won a silver in the 800m race in the same tournament. “From a boy with dream started the journey from Kolkata and reached up to Asian Games podium in Hangzhou 2023. Thank you Athletics,” Johnson wrote on his Instagram. During the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia, Johnson broke Bahadur Prasad’s 23-year-old 1500m national record (3 mins 37.86 secs). He improved on it in 2019 (3 min 35.24 secs). 3 mins 35.24 secs The 1500m national record time set by Jinson Johnson during the ISTAF Berlin meet in 2019 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
08 January,2026 08:58 AM IST | New Delhi | PTIIndian shuttlers have been handed a tricky draw at the India Open Super 750 tournament here later this month, with former world champion PV Sindhu set to face Vietnam’s Thuy Linh Nguyen, against whom she had lost twice recently, in the women’s singles first round. Lakshya Sen, the 2022 champion, will open his campaign against compatriot Ayush Shetty. The tournament will be played from January 13 to 18 at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium. 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
08 January,2026 08:52 AM IST | New Delhi | PTIIndian top seed Anahat Singh finished as the runner-up in the women’s U-19 category at the British Junior Open after she succumbed to French second seed Lauren Baltayan here on Tuesday. Anahat lost 9-11, 11-7, 3-11, 9-11. This was her ninth time featuring at the tournament across various age groups. The Delhi-based player had a breakout year in 2025, reaching her highest world ranking of 28 in just her second season on the Professional Squash Association (PSA) Tour. She also defeating two top-20 players during the season. 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
08 January,2026 08:50 AM IST | Birmingham | IANSMick Schumacher, son of F1 legend Michael, may not be in the best position professionally, having failed to secure a Formula One seat for the upcoming season, but his personal life seems to be on the right track with reports suggesting that he is dating Portuguese model Clara Ramos. German newspaper Bild recently published photographs of the former Haas driver with his arms around Ramos at a golf course in Camp de Mar on the Spanish island of Majorca — Schumacher also owns a villa there — with a report suggesting the pair are dating. Ramos, who has 1.13 lakh followers on Instagram, is also a PHD student at the University of Barcelona. Interestingly, it was reported last year that Schumacher’s ex-girlfriend Laila Hasanovic also found new love in tennis superstar Jannik Sinner.
08 January,2026 08:48 AM IST | Mumbai | A CorrespondentReturning from a prolonged injury lay-off, PV Sindhu began the new season on a winning note along with the formidable men’s doubles pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy as they entered the second round of the Malaysia Open Super 1000 badminton tournament here on Wednesday. The 30-year-old former world champion, who had opted to withdraw from all BWF World Tour events in October last year to recover from a foot injury, defeated Chinese Taipei’s Sung Shuo Yun 21-14, 22-20. The 18th-ranked Sindhu will face Japanese World No. 9 Tomoka Miyazaki in the Round-of-16. Later, the duo of Satwik and Chirag saw off Chinese Taipei’s Yang Po-Hsuan and Lee Jhe-Hue 21-13, 21-15. 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
08 January,2026 08:45 AM IST | Kuala Lumpur | PTIThe New Year appears to have heralded new love for National Football League (NFL) superstar Tom Brady. The seven-time Superbowl champion was seen enjoying his time at a yacht party in the Caribbean waters near Saint Barthelemy with social media influencer Alix Earle on New Year’s Day, leading to speculation that the two are dating. American magazine Cosmopolitan stated that the two were seen engaging in public displays of affection during the party. Brady, 48, was previously married to model Gisele Bundchen (2009-2022), and have two children together: Benjamin Rein Brady (16), and Vivian Lake Brady (13). The former quarter-back also has a son — Edward Thomas Moynahan (18) — with Hollywood actress Bridget Moynahan. The pair dated each other from 2004 to 2006. Meanwhile, Earle, 24, was in a relationship with NFL player Braxton Berrios, but they recently broke up after two years of dating. She had previously dated baseball player Tyler Wade for three months in 2022.
07 January,2026 08:56 AM IST | Mumbai | A CorrespondentSergio Pérez said being a teammate of Max Verstappen was ‘the worst job there is in Formula 1.’ Pérez partnered the Dutchman for four years at Red Bull before being dropped at the end of 2024. Pérez is returning to F1 this year with new team Cadillac. “I was on the best team, but it was complicated because being Max’s teammate at Red Bull is the worst job there is in F1,” Pérez told a podcast with Oswaldo Trava that was posted on YouTube on Sunday. “At Red Bull everything was a problem; if I was faster than Max it was a problem, If you were too slow it was a problem, a very tense atmosphere was created,” Pérez said. Pérez’s best season was 2023 when he was runner-up to Verstappen. Verstappen won the championship again in 2024, but Pérez finished eighth and was released by Red Bull. 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
07 January,2026 08:54 AM IST | Mexico City | AP | PTIFormer world billiards champion Manoj Kothari, one of the most influential figures in Indian cue sports, died on Monday following a massive cardiac arrest at a hospital in Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu, a family member said. Kothari was 67. He is survived by his wife, son Sourav Kothari — also a former world billiards champion — and daughter Shreya Kothari. Kothari, who is the current chief national coach, was being treated at a Tirunelveli hospital for more than a week and suffered cardiac arrest around 7.30am, the family member said. He served as the chief coach of the Indian billiards team from 2011. Kothari’s highs . Won IBSF World Billiards Championship in 1990. Won World Doubles Billiards Championship in 1997 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
06 January,2026 12:06 PM IST | Kolkata | PTINovak Djokovic announced on Sunday he was leaving the professional players’ union he co-founded in 2020, citing “concerns regarding transparency and governance” within the body. The Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA), founded by the current world No. 4 and Canadian Vasek Pospisil, took legal action in March 2025 against tennis governing bodies, denouncing “anti-competitive restraints and abusive practices.” The action also highlighted the “unsustainable schedule” for players, with tournaments scheduled 11 months out of 12 by both the men’s ATP and women’s WTA. “After careful consideration, I have decided to step away completely from the Professional Tennis Players Association”, Djokovic posted on social media. “This decision comes after ongoing concerns regarding transparency, governance, and the way my voice and image have been represented. I am proud of the vision that Vasek and I shared when founding the PTPA, giving players a stronger, independent voice — but it has become clear that my values and approach are no longer aligned with the current direction of the organization.” 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
06 January,2026 08:25 AM IST | Paris | AFPADVERTISEMENT
