BSTTA president felicitated in national ranking TT tournament
Swapan Bannerjee, the president of Bengal State Table Tennis Championship (BSTTA) was felicitated by the organizers of UTT second national ranking table tennis championship being held in New Delhi on Thursday. Bannerjee, speaking over phone from Delhi on the day commented, “I am honored to have been felicitated by the organizers of this second national ranking championship. I am also happy to watch our players performing in this tournament. Banerjee will return to Kolkata on Friday.
Rahul Todi wants viewers of CFL to get a feel of ISL-level production quality; the IFA secretary also elated
Rahul Todi, the director of Shrachi Sports, which is a commercial partner of IFA for the ongoing CFL premier Division, is aiming to offer the viewers of the CFL Premier Division a feeling of ISL-level production quality. Probably, after three decades, live-streaming of CFL Premier League Championship-round matches is being made with such modern equipment like ‘big–lens’ camera, ‘boxless cameras’. This high-tech equipment were used in the live streaming of the CFL and IFL Shield when ESPN was a commercial partner of the IFA in the late 90s. Todi, when asked about the development, commented, “As we have been associated with Kolkata and Bengal football, it is our commitment to uplift the production quality. I am happy to see that the football lovers who are watching through our SSEN app are delighted with the quality of production. It will be our continuous endeavor to uplift the standard of live streaming so that the viewers can have a feeling of the live-streaming quality that they see while watching ISL.” IFA secretary Anirban Dutta also agreed with Rahul Todi’s notion and said, “The quality of live-streaming of the Championship-round matches of the CFL Premier Division started today is superb. It can be compared to the production quality of the country’s top-tier league.”
Premier League unveils 74 FA Charges Against Chelsea during Abramovich era! Investigation launched
A recent report from the English media about the scam that happened during Roman Abramovich’s tenure has rocked English football. Chelsea are staring at a hefty fine after being slapped with 74 FA charges for breaching agent regulations during Chelsea’s previous owner Roman Abramovich’s era. The Football Association confirmed the charges in a statement released from Wembley earlier today. A Wembley statement announced the charges on Thursday morning. It said, “The Football Association has today charged Chelsea FC with breaches of regulations J1 and C2 of the FA Football Agent regulations, regulations A2 and A3 of the FA Regulations on Working with Intermediaries and regulations A1 and B3 of the FA Third Party Investment in Players Regulations.” “In total, 74 charges have been brought against Chelsea FC.” “Conduct that is the subject of the charges ranges from 2009 to 2022 and finally relates to events which occurred between the 2010-11 and the 2015-16 playing seasons.” “Chelsea FC has until 19 September 2025 to respond.” During Abramovich’s time in 2023, the Premier League launched an investigation. Through the investigation it surfaced that various payments were made without club officials knowing. The investigation initially focused on payments linked to the signings of Samuel Eto’o and Willian in 2013, along with the high-profile capture of Eden Hazard in 2012. Both Willian and Hazard had been pursued heavily by Tottenham but ultimately chose Stamford Bridge. Allegations suggest that so-called “off-books” payments, approved directly by former owner Roman Abramovich, were used to help secure those transfers. These suspected breaches reportedly came to light during the takeover process in May 2022. During the new owners Todd Boehly, Behdad Eghbali and the Clearlake consortium carried out due diligence. The findings were passed on to the FA, UEFA and the Premier League. In 2023, UEFA and Chelsea reached a settlement of £8.6m, but the Premier League inquiry has remained open. A fine from the league had been expected, though some rival clubs were pushing privately for harsher punishment. Now, however, the FA’s decision to bring forward 74 charges could overshadow any Premier League sanction. The sheer scale of the alleged breaches, spanning more than a decade, suggests that if penalties are imposed, they could be record-breaking. The current Chelsea owners are said to be fully cooperating with the investigation. Chelsea are also believed to have beaten Manchester United to Hazard’s signature. Reports suggest United refused to make a secret multi-million-pound payment to his agent.
A ‘new kid on the block’ in Indian tennis, named Dhakshineswar Suresh
Dakshineswar Suresh is the ‘new kid on the block’ in Indian tennis. The 25-year-old Madurai-born tennis player has been chosen as the singles player, along with Sumit Nagal, in India’s forthcoming Davis Cup tie against the formidable hosts Switzerland for the World Group I indoor tie, beginning on Friday. The six-foot-five-inch tennis player had drawn the attention of India’s tennis fraternity after drubbing Alejandro Tabilo, who was the world’s former 19th-ranked player, and achieved a special victory against legendary Novak Djokovic last year. India’s captain in the Davis Cup Rohit Rajpal when asked about his decision to field Suresh in a crucial Davis Cup match against Switzerland, revealed that he had convinced the coaches of Suresh in USA and they allowed Suresh to fly for Switzerland from the USA directly. Commenting on the reason behind selecting Suresh in the team, Rajpal said, “Dhakshineshwar has a powerful serve and it is going to be an asset in indoor court ties. There were visa issues so I had requested Dhakshineshwar’s coaches in US College to prepare him on indoor courts.” Rajpal also added that he was already impressed by Dakshineswar’s recent performance in a few international matches. “He defeated quite a few quality players recently on the tour,” stated Rajpal.
ICC to follow women empowerment, ALL Women’s ODI World Cup including the umpires!
In a symbolic step to go ahead, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has decided the upcoming Women’s ODI World Cup will be officiated entirely by women officials. The ODI will kick off at the end of this month in India and Sri Lanka. The tournament opens on 30th September in Guwahati, with the hosts, India, taking on Sri Lanka in the curtain-raiser. For India, the moment is even more special. Former cricketers Vrinda Rathi, N Janani and Gayathri Venugopalan will be part of the umpiring team, while GS Laksmi, India’s own trailblazer and the world’s first-ever female match referee, will feature in the four-member referee panel. The ICC noted that Claire Polosak, Jacqueline Williams and Sue Redfern will be making their third appearance as officials at a Women’s World Cup, while Lauren Agenbag and Kim Cotton will be taking charge for the second time. “The inclusion of an all-women panel of match officials is not only a major milestone but also a powerful reflection of the ICC’s unwavering commitment to advancing gender equity across cricket,” ICC Chairman Jay Shah said. “This development goes beyond symbolic value. It is about visibility, opportunity, and the creation of meaningful role models who can inspire future generations.” Eight international teams will compete in the tournament. The tournament will take place around five venues, including Colombo, and draw a conclusion on 2nd November. Officials: Match referees: Trudy Anderson, Shandre Fritz, GS Lakshmi, Michell Pereira. Umpires: Lauren Agenbag, Candace la Borde, Kim Cotton, Sarah Dambanevana, Shathira Jakir Jesy, Kerrin Klaste, Janani N, Nimali Perera, Claire Polosak, Vrinda Rathi, Sue Redfern, Eloise Sheridan, Gayathri Venugopalan, Jacqueline Williams.
Deepika bows out and Gatha rises in the Archery World Championships
India’s Olympian archer Deepika Kumari failed once again, crashing out in the round of 32 at the World Championships. With her exit, all roads now lead to Rome as the whole Indian archery fraternity turns its attention to the 15-year-old Gatha Khadake from Maharashtra, who has risen above expectations to become the lone Recurve archer from the country in the pre-quarterfinals. After a sixth-place finish in qualification, the four-time Olympian Deepika was outsmarted by Indonesia’s unseeded Diananda Choirunisa in a five-setter, ending her campaign early. With Deepika out, all eyes are now on Gatha, who in Friday’s round of 16 will probably face the toughest challenge in her budding career against reigning Paris Olympic champion and world’s number one-ranked Lim Si-hyeon. The 22-year-old Korean, in red-hot form, had eliminated Ankita Bhakat 6-2 with six perfect 10s across two sets. For India, the young Gatha remains their last hope and it remains to be seen if the debutant from Pune manages to win the country its first medal in the Recurve section, since Den Bosch in 2019. In this edition, India have won a historical men’s team gold and mixed team silver, both coming in the compound section. Gatha, the Maharashtra teenager, who made her senior debut at the Madrid World Cup in July, had already shown her potential by reaching the pre-quarters there. Earlier this year, she stunned everyone at the national trials by shooting 686 in qualification — the highest across genders — before sealing her berth as India’s third Recurve woman for the international competitions behind Deepika and Ankita. The rivalry between the veteran and the prodigy had rumbled since the National Games in Uttarakhand where they clashed in a tense shoot-off semi-final.
Ifa tries to conduct senior level IFA Shield after two years
Ifa plans to revamp the century-old Ifa shield. If everything goes the right way, after Durga Puja again, MBSG and East Bengal will face each other before the Super Cup. This time Ifa shield will be senior level tournament. Already the Indian Football Association had sought permission from Aiff. Ifa wants to get back the glory of this tournament again. Ifa secretary Anirban Dutta, sounds very much positive about this tournament. He told us, We had send a letter to the All India Football Federation and seek their permission for this tournament. Super will start on 25th October, so we have decided to commence this IFA Shield from the first week of October. We are very hopeful that three big clubs from Kolkata will participate in this tournament, and primarily we had reached few other clubs in India. They had shown their interest to participate. It will be a six-team tournament. Although Aiff does not give their green signal to Ifa officially, it’s been learned that verbally they had given their permission for this century-old tournament.
