CRICKET
All-round Karan Lal powers Siliguri Strikers to victory
Karan Lal’s excellent all-round showing, including a blistering 64-ball 145, propelled Servotech Siliguri Strikers to an emphatic 73-run win over Adamas Howrah Warriors in the Bengal T20 League at the Eden Gardens here on Thursday.
Strikers rode on Karan’s awe-inspiring highest-ever individual score to register BTL’s highest team total, 231 for two. It wrapped up Warriors’ innings for 158 to secure its third win as Karan contributed two wickets with his off-spin.
The 25-year-old settled down before unleashing the carnage. With a high back-lift and impressive bat speed, he plundered seven fours and 14 massive sixes. He displayed maximum aggression – hammering off-spinner Writtick Chatterjee for 6, 4, 6, 6, 6, 4 – in the 15th over.
While recording the most number of sixes in an innings, Karan executed spectacular pulls apart from glorious drives on the off-side.
With his mother in attendance, Karan added 117 runs with captain Sudip Chatterjee (58, 42b, 6×4, 1×6) and 114 runs with Vishal Bhati (27, 14b, 3×4, 1×6) before falling in the last ball of the innings.
Opening the bowling, Karan bowled Ankit Chatterjee in the first delivery and later dismissed Shashank Singh.
“I wanted to play such a knock. I’ve worked on my bat speed and six-hitting skills,” said Karan.
The scores:
Men: Servotech Siliguri Strikers 231/2 in 20 overs (Sudip Chatterjee 58, Karan Lal 145, Vishal Bhati 27 n.o.) bt Adamas Howrah Warriors 158 in 19.2 overs (Writtick Chatterjee 27, Shakir Gandhi 40, Karan Lal 2/29, Akhilesh Yadav 3/19, Shivamm Bharati 2/21).
On Wednesday: Rashmi Nes Medinipur Wizards 74/3 in 6 overs lost to Novus Royals Purulia 75/3 in 5.5 overs (Ankur Paul 30).
Women: Adamas Howrah Warriors 154/4 in 20 overs (Ankita Chakraborty 52, Sujata Dey 70) bt Shrachi Rarh Tigers 137/8 in 20 overs (Bidisha Dey 60, Disha Chandak 3/22, Remondina Khatun 2/29); Servotech Siliguri Strikers 43/5 in 5 overs bt Kolkata Royal Tigers 33/5 in 5 overs (Sushmita Ganguly 2/9, Ananya Halder 2/11).
-Team Sportstar
Amaravathi Royals, Bhimavaram Bulls secure wins in Andhra Premier League
Amaravathi Royals registered a 15-win against Vizag Lions in an Andhra Premier League clash at the ACA-VDCA Stadium here on Thursday.
Royals, put to bad first, rode on S.D.N. Prasad’s unbeaten half-century (54 n.o., 45b, 2×4, 4×6) to set a 182-run target. In reply, Lions failed to get meaningful partnerships going and eventually fell short of the target.
On Wednesday, Bhimavaram Bulls and Vijayawada Sunrisers played out a thriller, with the former coming through with a three-wicket win.
K. Ashwin Hebbar’s blistering century (124, 58b, 8×4, 10×6) helped Sunshiners post a challenging 214 for 6. Bulls lost wickets in regular intervals and the chase looked to be unraveling, before an 83-run partnership between B. Munish Varma and M. Dheeraj Kumar put them on the road to victory.
The scores:
Amaravathi Royals 181/9 in 20 overs (S.D.N.V. Prasad 54 n.o.) bt Vizag Lions 166/9 in 20 overs (M. Toshith Yadav 3/26).
Vijayawada Sunrisers 214/6 in 20 overs (K. Ashwin Hebbar 124) lost to Bhimavaram Bulls 217/7 (M. Dheeraj Kumar 56).
-Team Sportstar
GOLF
Sunit Chowrasia claims PGTI back-to-back titles
Sunit Chowrasia of Kolkata carded a final-round of one-under 69 to secure a three-shot victory at the inaugural DP World PGTI NexGen Vijay Kumar Memorial tournament here on Thursday.
Sunit (70-62-69), the nephew of Indian golfing stalwart SSP Chawrasia, entered the final day with a two-shot advantage following his bogey-free eight-under 62 in round two and closed the week at nine-under 201 to lift the trophy.
The victory marked the Kolkata golfer’s second title of the season and his second consecutive win on the DP World PGTI NexGen, having also triumphed at the Alpha Sports Academy Golf Championship hosted by Patna Golf Club in March before the DP World PGTI NexGen tour’s two-month break.
Starting from the par-4 first hole in the shotgun format, Sunit endured a shaky beginning with a bogey on his opening hole. However, he quickly regained control with birdies on the par-5 third and par-4 fifth.
In a roller-coaster final round that featured five birdies and four bogeys, Sunit managed to stay ahead of the chasing pack and seal the title.
Reflecting on his victory, Sunit said, “It feels amazing to win back-to-back tournaments. It was a little nervy out there today, especially on the back nine, but in the end, it was worth every shot.
“I’m really happy to get another win and continue the momentum.” He added, “The start wasn’t ideal, but I stayed patient and recovered well with birdies on the third and fifth. There were a few momentum swings during the round, but I managed to make some important up-and-downs and stay focused under pressure.” The win earned Sunit Rs 3,17,875 and propelled him from sixth to the top of the DP World PGTI NexGen Order of Merit with season earnings of Rs 6,86,518 from four starts.
Sunit also revealed that one of the first calls after his victory was to his famous uncle SSP Chawrasia, an Olympian and six-time international winner, who has played a key role in supporting him through his career.
Pawan Kumar of Delhi (67-68-69) also returned a one-under 69 to climb from overnight third to finish runner-up at six-under 204. Pawan earned Rs 2,67,875 and moved to 10th on the NexGen Order of Merit with season earnings of Rs 2,98,563 from two appearances.
Lucknow’s Rajesh Kumar Gautam (68-69-68) secured a solo third-place finish at five-under 205. The 37-year-old local professional collected Rs 1,70,375 and climbed to second on the NexGen Order of Merit with season earnings of Rs 6,81,060.
Gautam now trails Chowrasia by just Rs 5,458, setting up a fascinating battle for the top spot heading into the final event of the season.
Delhi’s Ajay Baisoya (68-70-68) registered his best result of the season, finishing fourth at four-under 206 in only his second appearance of the year.
Another Delhi golfer, Wasim Khan (71-68-68), finished fifth at three-under 207.
The winner of the 2026 DP World PGTI NexGen Order of Merit will earn an exemption on the main tour for the 2027 season.
-PTI
Riya Jadon moves ahead in WPGT’s seventh leg
Riya Jadon, who turned professional this season, emerged as the standout performer on the opening day of the seventh leg of the Women’s Pro Golf Tour, closing the day at 3-under 67 here on Thursday.
The 17-year-old Gurugram golfer, who trains at the DLF Golf Academy, was one stroke ahead of the experienced Tvesa Malik after the first round, with Anvvi Dahhiya and Vidhatri Urs being the only other golfers to score under-par, with 69 each at the par-70 Jayachamaraja Wadiyar Golf Club.
Amandeep Drall and Karishma Govind shot even-par 70 each.
Riya, who won the IGU Pune Ladies Championship in November last year, turned pro earlier this season and finished tied for third in the third leg of the tournament in Pune, where Tvesa Malik emerged as the winner.
-PTI
Aaron Rai, Theegala to feature in a mix of top talents and newcomers at Canadian Open
Aaron Rai, winner of the PGA Championship and Sahith Theegala will tee up at the RBC Canadian Open at the TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley – North Course.
Rai became the first Englishman since Jim Barnes in 1919 to win the PGA Championship. Rai was -19 in the Memorial and is now looking at the remaining two Majors, the US Open and the Open at Birkdale.
Apart from Rai and Theegala, there will be further Indian connections through Sudarshan Yellamaraju and Jeevan Sihota, who made his way into the draw through a qualifier.
Theegala who was once on the cusp of breaking into the top 10 of the OWGR rankings had a difficult 2025.
He finally returned being injury-free at the start of this year and has racked up multiple top 10 results and shown flashes of the brilliance that once made him one of the most promising players in the world.
Yellamaraju earned his spot on the PGA Tour by finishing in the top 20 of the Korn Ferry Tour points list in 2025.
His rookie season has been outstanding as the self-taught player has missed the cut only three times in his 16 appearances that includes two top 10 finishes as well.
-PTI
ICE HOCKEY
Dehradun to host National Ice Hockey Championship
The National Ice Hockey Championship, featuring Under-12 and Under-15 categories for both boys and girls for the first time, got underway on Thursday for nearly a month-long run that will conclude on July 8.
Being organised at the Himadri Ice Rink , the championship will serve as a key platform for talent identification, athlete development and national team selection.
The introduction of the Under-12 and Under-15 categories is part of Ice Hockey Association of India’s (IHAI) Long-Term Athlete Development Programme.
Participating units include Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Sikkim and host state Uttarakhand.
-PTI
MORE SPORTS
Second edition of CM Trophy concludes in Odisha
The second edition of the CM Trophy 2.0 concluded successfully yesterday, marking another significant milestone in Odisha’s efforts to strengthen the grassroots sports ecosystem and identify promising young sporting talent across the state.
The tournament featured competitions in four disciplines — football, kho kho, kabaddi, and volleyball—for both boys and girls.
The age categories included Football (U-15), Kho Kho (U-14), Kabaddi (U-16), and Volleyball (U-14).
-Team Sportstar
Published on Jun 11, 2026
