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This year’s competition features several compelling storylines: the ongoing battle between Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo for the title of the best player in the world; defending World Cup champion Germany’s repeat bid; and the Cinderella stories such as the upstart Iceland team and Egypt, which is making its first World Cup appearance in nearly three decades. Then, of course you have storied countries such as Brazil and England attempting to add to their lore....

Although it has finally ended, the memories that came along with the tournament will last forever. It was a thrilling experience to watch France battle it out through the knockout phase, edging past the likes of Argentina, Uruguay, and Belgium before finally defeating Croatia to take home the coveted trophy. Apart from producing new world champions, the World Cup also witnessed a lot of incredible attackers who lit up the competition with their amazing exploits in front of goal....

With a fierce display in the group stages, only losing to a Belgium side 1-0 with both nations fielding a weakened squad as they had both already qualified, a 6-1 smashing against Panama and a win against Tunisia in each of their other two group stage matches, England fans are singing out that football is coming home, and here’s why. Harry Kane’s form Without a doubt, the shining star in this England side, Harry Kane is the leading the race for the Golden Boot having scored 6 out of England’s 11 goals so far in the competition....

When you’re working to a budget it can be incredibly frustrating trying to pack the best players into the team and sacrifices in one area will almost certainly be required to strengthen another. The key is to strike a balance that will yield the greatest possible points return, but that is easier said than done. With World Cup fantasy football games building up to a finish, Goal is here to help you choose the best back line for your team....

This will be the 132nd ODI being played between these two countries. In the past 131 matches, it is Pakistan who leads India 73-54 head to head. Four of their matches ended in a no-result. But when it comes to the World Cup it is India who has always emerged victorious against matches. India has a 6-0 win record against Pakistan in the World Cup. On that note, let us take a look at some of the key stats from ODI matches between these two teams....

If you could bet on a team scoring heavily in the first innings, it had to be England. Against England, India faced a tough challenge to chase 338, something India hadn’t had till now. Ind-Eng match was one of the most anticipated match of this WC. While the Indian fans will be disappointed with this defeat but if we look beyond it could well and truly be a blessing in disguise....

A woeful 2018 saw them lose a string of ODIs, the fiasco surrounding ball tampering led to the loss of two of their best in Steve Smith and David Warner, and the team looked to have entered a rebuilding phase. This was a far cry from the triumphant side that won the Cup on home soil four years ago. Always in the reckoning That perception slowly began to change with a hard-fought 3-2 series win against a very powerful India side away from home....

In case you didn’t know… Rohit Sharma along with Virat Kohli are the two pillars of Indian batting in the ongoing World Cup. Virat had elected to bat first after winning the toss. Rohit was looking in fine touch today and had smashed a six and a boundary in the first six overs. The heart of the matter However, just as Rohit was looking all set to get a big one, he got a jaffa from Kemar Roach....

Jasprit Bumrah gave India a solid start with the ball. He removed both the openers and bowled a top class opening spell. The middle order had no clue against the leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who picked four wickets including two wickets in one over. South Africa managed to reach a decent target with the help of their lower order. Chasing the modest target, India lost both Dhawan and Kohli early....

In case you didn’t know… After losing the first 2 games, Afghanistan met the mighty New Zealand side in their 3rd match which was played on 8th June. The side did not have a good outing with the bat as they scored only 172 runs on the board. The target was too small for the star-studded batting line-up of New Zealand. But, in Afghanistan’s innings, Rashid Khan got injured after taking a huge blow on his head while trying to duck Lockie Ferguson’s bouncer....

His omission was criticized by many experts, including India’s former selector Kiran More, Sourav Ganguly, Sunil Gavaskar and many more. Now after a chain of events, he has finally been drafted into the team, but not the way one would have wanted him to. He has come as a replacement of Shikhar Dhawan, who was in sublime touch with the bat. Pant has an uphill task ahead of him. He will have multiple roles to play, starting from the number four slot and stretching to the finishing role....

That is visible in the development of the World Cup ball, which has gone from a leather-bound pig’s bladder to the high-tech, synthetic spheres we see sold in stores and marketed around the world today. The ball has also played its part in setting the course of World Cup history. From a half-time ball change that influenced a final to the “supermarket” model despised by goalkeepers, here is Goal’s history of the official World Cup football....

Franco Dragone, known for his work with Cirque de Soleil and superstar singer Celine Dion, will direct the opening and closing ceremonies at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Dragone’s company said in a statement Wednesday that the contracts had just been signed in Paris after months of negotiations. The bar for such events has been set higher and higher in recent years, with the Beijing Olympics ceremonies of 2008 widely-acclaimed as among the most dramatic, only for the London Games last year to also to wow the world....

Rains bring smile on the weathered faces of farmers, kids come out with their paper boats, football fans hit the field and make those sliding tackles fearlessly, avid readers sit on the window reading their favourite novel, adventurous trekkers head out to get a spellbinding view of the nature and some have a sumptuous dose of their favourite beverage and snack. But the cricket fans do mind rains. The most awaited tournament of this year - the World Cup 2019 is proving to be wringing wet with rains resulting in four matches so far ending in no-result as of 18th June....

Tottenham midfielder Winks completed 90 minutes in his first senior international appearance as England completed their unbeaten qualifying campaign with a 1-0 win in Lithuania. Called up to the squad as a late injury replacement, Winks repaid Gareth Southgate’s faith with a composed display ahead of England’s three-man defence in Vilnius. And the 21-year-old is now focused on adding to his four Premier League starts in order to stake a claim for a place at Russia 2018....

Kush Kumar, seeded in the 3-4 bracket, made his appearance after a first round bye and lived up to the expectations with a quick 11-0, 11-7, 11-4 win over Luke Michael Mannion of Zimbabwe for a third round entry here Sunday. Later, Dhingra defeated Nilis Lindgren of Sweden 11-1, 11-3, 11-4 in a first round match. However, Velavan Senthilkumar lost to American Patrick Rooney in four games and Vijaykumar Meena went down fighting to Colombian Andres Felipe Herrera in five....

Most of the time, only a handful of those privileged enough to participate in the prestigious event are considered the elite of a given draft class, and their roles on their respective national teams vary from prominent to insignificant. That shouldn’t be the case this year, as 15 of our top 100 prospects for the upcoming draft — including nine of the top 15 — are not only expected to suit up for the two-week-long tournament but should be given critical roles with their respective squads....

Canada is coming off a silver medal in the 2021 tournament. Led by Dylan Cozens and Devon Levi, the team went undefeated in group play and made it all the way to the gold medal game. They suffered their only loss of the tournament in that matchup, which came against the United States. The team is looking to get back onto the top of the podium, as it will be led this summer by Ducks prospect Mason McTavish, Blue Jackets draft pick Kent Johnson and 2023 draft standout, Connor Bedard....

“I tried everything I could to be ready here as I really wanted to play,” Halep said. “But unfortunately the back is still causing me pain and I don’t want to take any unnecessary risks.” The 27-year-old’s appearance in Moscow and the WTA Finals had been in doubt when she withdrew from Beijing two weeks ago and was diagnosed with a herniated disk in her back. Halep, who has already qualified for the WTA year-ending finals in Singapore, said she needed more time to recover completely from her back injury....

During a story questline unlocked via the Valdrakken Accord Renown chain in Dragonflight, called The Silver Purpose, players help the Aspects delve into the secrets left behind by Tyr, the Titan Keeper responsible for empowering the dragonflights. The events of the questline point toward the fallen Keeper making a return in some fashion in the future. RELATED: World of Warcraft: Dragonflight Cinematics Reveal Fate of Malfurion and the Green Dragons...