Latest news with #INDRANILMUKHERJEE
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Arsene Wenger backs Arsenal to win PSG tie
Arsene Wenger believes Arsenal can beat Paris Saint-Germain to reach the Champions League final, though he's warned against any silly mistakes that could swing the tie. Photo by INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP via Getty Images Ex-Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger was asked about the Gunners' Champions League semi-final tie against Paris Saint-Germain this week, and the former manager insisted that his old club are capable of reaching the final in Munich. Advertisement 'I believe that Arsenal has the potential to do it,' Wenger said. 'But of course once you go to the semi-final, Paris Saint-Germain is a very good team as well. Everybody is excited about it, so let's see and hope. 'The teams who go through to the semi-final, they have some qualities, you know? Then it's down to the form of the day, to the main players who can show their efficiency on the day, a little bit as well that you have no sending off or stupid reaction at some stage. 'Overall, I believe Arsenal is very solid defensively, and over two legs that has a big importance.' Photo byArsenal will certainly hope their defensive prowess is enough to pull them through, having only conceded more than one goal in a Champions League game once this season – the dead rubber last-16 second leg they were already leading 7-1. Advertisement Aside from that unusual match, the Gunners have performed very well at the back, including keeping a clean sheet against PSG in the League Phase of the competition. But PSG's current side are one of the most exciting attacking outfits around, and they'll give Arsenal a sterner test than the one they faced in October. Photo byIf the Gunners hope to progress to the final, they also need to find a way to replicate something like the nine goals they scored against PSV or the five they scored against Real Madrid. That's what killed those two ties, and relying on just scoring once or twice and keeping clean sheets is a dangerous game to play.
Forbes
16-04-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
Pomona To Host Cricket At Los Angeles Olympics, As Hopes Dashed For Rival Cities
Cricket's venue for the 2028 Olympics has been determinde (Photo by INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP via Getty ... More Images) Cricket's 128-year Olympic return is taking shape with a temporary venue in Pomona, 30 miles east of Los Angeles, to stage the six-team competitions at the 2028 Games. After much intrigue, as numerous cities expressed interest in hosting the cricket events, the LA28 organizing committee announced that the site will be at the Fairgrounds, officially known as Fairplex, which is a 500-acre complex that has hosted the Los Angeles County Fair since 1922. 'Although cricket is a hugely popular sport, it will be a fantastic opportunity to expand traditional boundaries when it features in the Olympics in the fast-paced, exciting T20 format that should appeal to new audiences,' International Cricket Council chair Jay Shah said. It comes on the back of last week's announcement that cricket will feature six teams each in the men's and women's T20 competitions in Los Angeles. A total of 90 athlete quotas have been allocated for each gender in cricket, which means every team can name a 15-member squad. Cricket's Olympic comeback will be in Los Angeles after much speculation that it would be played outside of Southern California, possibly on the east coast to better suit the large South Asian television audience. There were a number of cities hoping to play host. The splashy unveiling of the iconic Oakland Coliseum as a venue for the upcoming Major League Cricket season naturally linked it with the Olympics. Oakland Coliseum will host nine matches in this season's MLC (Photo by) Cricket administrators in Seattle had also been keen, despite not yet having built the requisite infrastructure for the Orcas, the city's MLC side. There is some pessimism over whether cricket can build a post Olympic legacy in the U.S. - the sport's target market - given that the Pomona venue will be a makeshift venue. It is reminiscent of New York's pop-up cricket stadium that was built within a few months for last year's T20 World Cup matches. The $30 million modular stadium in Long Island was torn down immediately after the tournament with the city's MLC franchise yet to have a home ground. Billionaire Mukesh Ambani, the owner of MI New York, reportedly has plans to build a world-class facility in the famous city. Cricket was played at a temporary stadium in New York during last year's T20 World Cup (Photo by J. ... More Conrad Williams, Jr./Newsday RM via Getty Images) The back-to-back announcements has shone considerably light on the competitions, but how the teams qualify has yet to be determined and will be up to cricket's governing body to determine. It has been mooted that Olympic spots would be allocated to the top six in the men's and women's T20 rankings at a cut-off date. The U.S. as host nation are likely to get an automatic slot although possibly in just one gender. Some influential administrators are pushing for qualifying tournaments. "If you look at the other major sports, the qualifying tournaments are so exciting and adds so much drama," ICC board director Tavengwa Mukuhlani, who has been part of the ICC's Olympic working group since late 2020, told me last year. "It's fairer, with every country having to fight for their place in the Olympics." It is not known when the ICC will make a decision on the qualifying issue.
Forbes
10-04-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
Six-Team Formats Set For Cricket At Los Angeles Olympics, But Unknowns Remain
Cricket will make its Olympic return in Los Angeles (Photo by INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP via Getty ... More Images) In an announcement that was widely flagged, but will still disappoint some, cricket will feature six teams each in the men's and women's T20 competitions at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. While other key details remain unknown, such as the qualifying system and venues, it does start to build momentum behind cricket's Olympic return after a 128-year absence from its sole appearance in 1900. Eyebrows had been raised among administrators when it was mooted that cricket, deemed by some metrics as the world's second most popular sport, would get such a small allocation of teams. It is considerably lower than rival global sports soccer, which will boast 16 women's teams and 12 men's teams in Los Angeles, and the 24 combined teams for basketball. 3x3, a truncated version of basketball, also will have 12 men's and 12 women's teams. A total of 90 athlete quotas have been allocated for each gender in cricket, which means every team can name a 15-member squad. The small number of teams is due to a strict quota of athletes and keeping in line with the International Olympic Council's efforts in keeping costs down. There are 12 Full Member cricket nations - who have status in five-day Test cricket and are granted more funding and power in cricket's tiered membership. It means some of cricket's best and most iconic nations will miss out on Olympic spots. Cricket also boasts considerably more depth at the T20 level - a fast and furious game lasting around three hours - with 20 teams contesting last year's men's T20 World Cup, where notably rising cricket nation U.S. upset Pakistan in Dallas. U.S. beat Pakistan at the T20 World Cup (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images) The U.S. as host nation are likely to get an automatic slot although possibly in just one gender. There is still a lot to be sorted out. A qualification format has yet to be officially locked in, but it's been mooted that Olympic spots would be allocated to the top six in the International Cricket Council's men's and women's T20 rankings at a cut-off date. That has angered some administrators. Zimbabwe Cricket chair Tavengwa Mukuhlani, who has been part of the ICC's Olympic working group since late 2020, believes T20 qualification tournaments - not rankings - should determine which countries make the cut for Los Angeles. "If you look at the other major sports, the qualifying tournaments are so exciting and adds so much drama," he told me last year. "It's fairer, with every country having to fight for their place in the Olympics." Venues have yet to be determined, with the cricket competitions possibly extending beyond Los Angeles. The iconic Oakland Coliseum, the former long-time home of the Athletics and Raiders, is in the mix and will host nine Major League Cricket matches in June as the new home of San Francisco Unicorns, a franchise backed by Silicon Valley venture capitalists. The Oakland Coliseum will host cricket matches this summer (Photo by) MLC's future at the Coliseum is unknown - it is currently a one-season arrangement - but hopes are high that it can be extended long-term and perhaps even be used as an Olympic venue. "I certainly hope the Coliseum could be an Olympic venue," Unicorns co-owner Anand Rajaraman told me. "It is the best stadium in America for cricket. A lot of it depends on what the Olympic Committee want to do, but from a cricket point of view it is the best option." As I reported previously, Seattle is also vying to be in the mix although have not yet developed cricket infrastructure. The east coast is a possibility too due to a more favorable time difference with the lucrative Indian market. New York did stage eight T20 World Cup matches in June at its $30 million modular stadium in Long Island. The cricket ground was torn down immediately after the tournament, but billionaire Mukesh Ambani, the owner of MI New York in the MLC, reportedly has plans to build a world-class facility in the famous city. Expansion is set for MLC with two teams to be added to the six-side tournament in 2027. Philadelphia, Atlanta and Chicago are on the shortlist with infrastructure a key staple and the successful cities could also be in the running to host Olympic matches. The U.S national teams are expected to host numerous international nations during the home 2028 season ahead of the Olympics.
