Month: April 2024

Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi took a night off to watch the Miami Heat.
Eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi — along with teammates Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets and Luis Suárez — arrived just before tip-off of the Heat playoff game with the Boston Celtics on Monday night.
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Messi’s group — some clad in Heat attire and Busquets wearing a Heat hoodie — arrived in the players’ parking garage, then were brought in through a VIP entrance before making their way to their seats in a suite atop the lower level.
Messi has been to the arena before for at least one other event, but never before had arranged to be at a Heat game since moving to Miami last year.
Lionel Messi attended alongside teammates Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets and Luis Suarez. Megan Briggs/Getty Images
Inter Miami is 6-2-3 so far this season in Major League Soccer play, occupying first place in the Eastern Conference and with the most points of any team in the league.
Messi had two goals and an assist in Inter Miami’s 4-1 win at New England on Saturday, and has multiple goal contributions in five straight matches — the first MLS player ever to do that. He has nine goals and seven assists in seven matches with Inter Miami this season.
Messi, who led Argentina to the World Cup title in 2022, has more than 800 goals in his career for club and country, making him one of the greatest scorers in soccer history. He scored twice in the 2022 World Cup final against France, a match that ended 3-3 with Argentina prevailing 4-2 on penalty kicks.

Bayern Munich 2 – 2 Real Madrid (Sane, Kane; Vinicius x2). Heres our quick reaction at the final whistle. Still to come: Player ratings, post-game podcast, post-game quotes, stats breakdown, and a ton more.
In a pulsating clash between two European giants, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid played out a thrilling 2-2 draw in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie. The match showcased the best of both sides, featuring intense pressing, tactical adjustments, and moments of individual brilliance.
The encounter began with Bayern Munich asserting their dominance, employing high-intensity pressing and launching waves of attacks in the opening 15-20 minutes. Real Madrid found themselves pinned deep in their own half as the Bavarians unleashed a relentless assault. However, the resilient defense of Real Madrid, marshaled by the composed Toni Kroos, managed to withstand the early onslaught without conceding.
Kroos, despite being closely marked, showcased his class and vision, orchestrating Real Madrids transitions from defense to attack with precision. It was his exquisite assist that unlocked Bayerns defense, setting up Vinicius Jr to give Real Madrid the lead against the run of play:
As halftime approached, Bayern Munichs head coach Thomas Tuchel made astute tactical adjustments to shift the momentum in his teams favor. The introduction of Raphael Guerreiro for Leon Goretzka injected fresh impetus into Bayerns attack, while Leroy Sanes switch to the right wing added a new dimension to their play.
Sane proved instrumental in Bayerns resurgence, as he cut past Ferland Mendy to slot home a crucial equalizer at the near post. Moments later, Bayern were awarded a penalty after Jamal Musiala was fouled in the box by Lucas Vazquez. Harry Kane stepped up and coolly converted from the spot to give Bayern the lead.
However, Real Madrid, unbeaten in the competition thus far, refused to capitulate. They responded emphatically, with Rodrygo winning a penalty after being brought down by Kim in the box. Vinicius Jr stepped up and dispatched the penalty with confidence, ensuring the match ended in a pulsating 2-2 draw.
The tie is delicately poised for the second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu on May 8th. Well break down tonights match in much more detail in the coming hours. Join Managing Madrids Mehedi Hassan and Kiyan Sobhani live on YouTube after the game:

The Senior Selection Committee on Tuesday picked Indias 15-member squad for the upcoming ICC Mens T20 World Cup 2024, which will be hosted in the West Indies and USA.
India will begin their World Cup campaign against Ireland on June 05, 2024 at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York, followed by the marquee clash against Pakistan on June 09, 2024 at the same venue. India will then play USA and Canada on June 12 and 15 respectively.
Indias T20 World Cup Squad

• Rohit Sharma (Captain)
• Hardik Pandya (Vice Captain)
• Yashasvi Jaiswal
• Virat Kohli
• Suryakumar Yadav
• Rishabh Pant (WK)
• Sanju Samson (WK)
• Shivam Dube
• Ravindra Jadeja
• Axar Patel
• Kuldeep Yadav
• Yuzvendra Chahal
• Arshdeep Singh
• Jasprit Bumrah
• Mohd. Siraj
• Reserves Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan

Indias Schedule T20 World Cup 2024

The rise of Shivam Dube continues. The Chennai Super Kings all-rounder out jumped into contention for a place in India’s T20 World Cup squad following a blazing season with the five-time IPL champions. Dube, who has played 21 T20Is for India since his debut in November of 2019, was on Tuesday, selected in India’s T20 World Cup squad picked by the BCCI, marking the beginning of a fresh chapter in the already promising career of the 30-year-old.
Shivam Dube (L) and Rohit Sharma during last year’s IPL(AFP)
Dube revealed he had trouble sleeping thinking about whether or not he would get selected. In a video uploaded by the BCCI, which interviewed Dube before India’s squad of 15 was announced, the CSK all-arounder touched upon what captain Rohit Sharma told him during the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan earlier this year in January. It was almost as if Rohit had an inkling that Dube will indeed make it to the 15. And three months later here we are.
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“There are a lot. I cannot sleep thinking about it. When I came for the Afghanistan series, Rohit bhai told me ‘bowling bhi daalega, batting bhi milega tere ko (You’ll bowl and get to bat as well). You just have to show what you are capable of. So that is what I was focussing of because if the captain tells you that they want to see you perform, it motivates you. When I was playing, all I was thinking about was how I could perform better and help my team,” Dube said.
In the ongoing IPL 2024, Dube has muscled three half-centuries, putting on an incredible show with his big-hitting en route to scoring 350 runs at an average of 58.33 and a strike-rate reading 55.83. The Impact Player rule hasn’t allowed Dube a chance to roll his arms over yet, but he is a handy bowler with military medium pace capable of giving breakthroughs. He may not be as bankable or quick as let’s say Hardik Pandya, but on slow, low and two-paced wickets in the West Indies and USA, Dube the bowler promises to be India’s X-factor at the World Cup.

Harshit Rana has been fined for code of conduct (X.com)
Harshit Rana, one of the emerging fast bowlers in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), will not play for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) when they take on Mumbai Indians in Match 51 of the IPL 2024 at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.
The 22-year-old has also been fined 100% of match fees after the Delhi Capitals’ fixture, which they won by seven wickets, for breaching ‘IPL Code of conduct.’
After dismissing Abhishek Porel on Monday, Rana gave him a half-hearted flying kiss and gave an angry send-off. The IPL governing committee looked into the matter, and, hence, charged him for that.
“Mr Harshit Rana, Bowler, Kolkata Knight Riders has been fined 100 per cent of his match fees and suspended for one match for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct during Match 47 of the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 against Delhi Capitals at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata on April 29, 2024,” an IPL statement read. “Rana committed a Level 1 offence under Article 2.5 of the IPL’s Code of Conduct. He admitted to the offence and accepted the Match Referees sanction. For Level 1 breaches of the Code of Conduct, the Match Referee’s decision is final and binding.”
Rana was earlier given a warning after giving a flying kiss to Mayank Agarwal as a send-off. He was penalised as well, although it was not as hefty as it was yesterdays penalty.

Rohit Sharma walking back to the pavilion (AP Photo) 
Rohit Sharma registered yet another failure with the bat, this time on his 37th birthday during Mumbai Indians (MI) away Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 match against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). 
The senior opening batter was dismissed for just a boundary to his name by LSG fast bowler Mohsin Khan in the second over of the innings.
Rohit Sharmas latest failure marked his third single-digit score in succession, considering he was also dismissed for scores of just six and eight against Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Delhi Capitals (DC) respectively in the last week.
Apparently, an Indian cricket fan had rightly predicted the cricketers exact score roughly nine hours prior to the launch of the contest. 
The fan in question had taken to X (formerly Twitter) on the morning of April 30 to predict that the legendary Mumbai Indians opener will be dismissed for exactly 4 (5) by one of the LSG bowlers.
A social media user by the name @Jaffa25_ took to the microblogging site on the morning of April 30 and boldly predicted Rohit Sharmas exact score against the LSG franchise. 
After his prophecy was finally realised owing to LSGs Mohsin Khan, the tweet soon went viral and took the entire social media by storm.
On a side note, Rohit Sharmas latest batting failure means that the cricketer now has three successive single-digit scores to his name this IPL 2024 season.
His early dismissal, coupled with the collective failures of captain Hardik Pandya and Tilak Varma, ensured that Mumbai Indians managed to list just 144-7 against LSG bowlers at Lucknow. 
Nehal Wadhera top-scored in the innings with a fluent 46 and Tim David bashed a sizzling 18-ball 35 at the death. Opening batter Ishan Kishan, meanwhile, scored a sluggish 36-ball 32 at the top of the order.