Sports

Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah has been honored with the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year 2024, recognizing his exceptional performance across all cricket formats.

Bumrah becomes the first Indian pacer to win this award, joining an elite list of Indian cricketers that includes Rahul Dravid (2004), Sachin Tendulkar (2010), Ravichandran Ashwin (2016), and Virat Kohli (2017, 2018). 

Bumrah played a crucial role in India’s T20 World Cup victory in 2024, emerging as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker. Additionally, he dominated Test cricket with 71 wickets in 13 matches, the highest by any bowler in 2024. Despite strong competition, Bumrah also won the ICC Men’s Test Cricketer of the Year award.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 38th National Games in Dehradun on January 28, 2025. The event, held at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, marks the 25th anniversary of Uttarakhand’s formation and features over 10,000 athletes from across India.

The theme for this year’s games is “Green Games,” emphasizing sustainability with eco-friendly medals and a tree planted for each medal winner.

The National Games of India is a prestigious multi-sport event where athletes from various states and union territories compete in disciplines such as athletics, boxing, and swimming.

Jasprit Bumrah has been awarded the ICC Men’s Test Cricketer of the Year 2024 for his outstanding performance. He took an astonishing 71 wickets while bowling 357 overs in 13 matches, at an average of 14.92 in 2024.

Renowned for his yorkers and consistency, Bumrah was instrumental in India’s success across formats, including the ODI World Cup and major Test series.

India’s opener and vice-captain, Smriti Mandhana, has been named the ICC Women’s ODI Cricketer of the Year 2024 for her exceptional performance.

She scored a career-best 747 runs in 13 innings, leading the Women’s ODI run charts, surpassing players Laura Wolvaardt (697), Tammy Beaumont (554), and Hayley Matthews (469).

This is her third ICC recognition, having won in 2018 and 2022 as well.

Indian Grandmaster Iniyan Panneerselvam, 22, secured the title at the 9th Johor International Open chess tournament in Malaysia on 24 Jan 2025. With a total of 8.5 points in nine rounds, Iniyan outperformed 84 participants from 8 countries, including four International Masters and one Grandmaster.

His victory in the final round against Vietnamese GM Nguyen Van Huy sealed his dominating performance. Iniyan finished 1.5 points ahead of his closest competitor.

On 18 January 2025, the BCCI announced a 15-man squad for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and the ODI series against England. Key players like Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Shami are included.

ODI Series against England: Matches on 6, 9, and 12 February 2025.

ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Begins on 19 February 2025 in Dubai. India in Group A, playing: Bangladesh on 20 February, Pakistan on 23 February, and New Zealand on 2 March. All matches will be held in Dubai.

India Squad for Champions Trophy 2025: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill (vice-captain)

Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja.

Indian Women’s and Men’s Teams: Both teams won the inaugural Kho Kho World Cup on January 19, 2025.

Women’s Final: India defeated Nepal 78-40 at Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, New Delhi.

Men’s Final: India defeated Nepal 54-36 at the same venue.

Dominant Performance: The Indian teams showcased strong strategies and aggressive play, keeping their opponents on the defensive.

Acknowledgments: Women’s team coach Sumit Bhatia praised Nepal’s effort, while Captain Priyanka Ingle credited the win to the players’ and coaches’ hard work and dedication.

National Sports Awards 2024 conferred by President Droupadi Murmu on 17 January 2025 at Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi.

Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award:

• D. Gukesh (World Chess Champion)
• Manu Bhaker (Olympic double medalist)
• Harmanpreet Singh (Men’s Hockey Team Captain)
• Praveen Kumar (Paralympic gold medalist)

Dronacharya Award: for Coaches:

• Subhash Rana (Para-shooting)
• Deepali Deshpande (Shooting)
• Sandeep Sangwan (Hockey)
• S. Muralidharan (Badminton)
• Armando Agnelo Colaco (Football)

Arjuna Award: Given to 32 sportspersons, including:

• Jyothi Yarraji, Annu Rani (Athletics)
• Nitu, Saweety (Boxing)
• Vantika Agrawal (Chess)
• Hockey players: Salima Tete, Abhishek, Sanjay, Jarmanpreet Singh, Sukhjeet Singh
• Para-athletes: Rakesh Kumar, Preeti Pal, Ajeet Singh, and others.

Lifetime Arjuna Awards: Recipients: Sucha Singh (Athletics) and Murlikant Petkar (Para-swimming).

MAKA Trophy: Awarded to Chandigarh University for being the top-performing university in the Khelo India University Games.

India’s Record-Breaking Victory: In Women’s Cricket, India achieved its largest-ever win by 304 runs against Ireland in the 3rd ODI in Rajkot, Gujarat, on 15 January 2025. India won the three-match series 3-0.

Historic Batting Performance:

India score 435/5 in 50 overs—its highest-ever ODI total and the fourth-highest in Women’s cricket history.

Smriti Mandhana scored 135 runs off 80 balls, registering India’s fastest ODI century.

Pratika Rawal scored her maiden ODI century with 154 runs off 129 balls, forming a 231-run partnership with Mandhana in 26.4 overs.

Richa Ghosh added a quick 59 runs off 42 balls.

Ireland’s Response: Ireland was bowled out for 131 runs in 31.4 overs.

On January 13, 2024, Ira Jadhav from Mumbai became the highest individual scorer in Women’s Under 19 One Day Trophy history. The 14-year-old prodigy played an unbeaten inning of 346 runs off 157 balls against Meghalaya at the Alur Cricket Stadium in Bengaluru.

Her extraordinary performance, which included 42 fours and 16 sixes, led Mumbai to a monumental total of 563 for 3 in 50 overs. Ira’s achievement surpassed the previous record held by Smriti Mandhana, who scored 224 runs off 150 deliveries in 2013 while playing for Maharashtra. This remarkable feat has set a new benchmark in women’s domestic cricket and highlighted Ira’s immense potential as a future star.

The BCCI has announced a 15-member squad for the five-match T20I series against England, starting on 22 January 2025 in Kolkata.

Suryakumar Yadav will captain the team, with Axar Patel as vice-captain. Mohammed Shami returns to the squad after over a year, joined by players like Sanju Samson, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, and Tilak Varma.

After the T20I series, England will also play three ODIs, which serve as India’s final preparation for the Champions Trophy starting on 19 February 2025. The ODI squads are yet to be finalized, and BCCI plans to request an extension for submitting the Champions Trophy 2025 squad, which is due on 12 January.

The inaugural Kho Kho World Cup 2025 began on 13 January 2025 at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, New Delhi, supported by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA).

The tournament features 20 men’s and 19 women’s teams. India’s men’s team, led by Pratik Waikar, is in Group A alongside Nepal, Peru, Brazil, and Bhutan.

The women’s team, led by Priyanka Ingle, is in Group A with Iran, Malaysia, and the Republic of Korea. The top two teams from each group will advance to the quarter-finals, with the finals scheduled for 19 January 2025.

Anahat Singh, a 16-year-old top-seed Indian squash player, won the Under-17 Girls’ Singles title at the British Junior Open 2025 in Birmingham, England, on 6 January 2025.

She defeated Malika El Karaksy of Egypt in the final with a score of 3-2 (4-11, 11-9, 6-11, 11-5, 11-3), coming from behind twice.

This is Anahat’s third British Junior Open title, following victories in the Under-11 category in 2019 and Under-15 category in 2023.

Earlier in the tournament, she beat Ruqayya Salem (3-1) in the semi-finals and Nadia Tamer (3-0) in the quarter-finals.

In 2024, Anahat won nine PSA Challenger titles, the most by any woman globally.

In the 67th National Shooting Championship 2024, Varun Tomar of the Indian Army emerged as the national shooting champion by winning the Men’s 10-meter Air Pistol finals at Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range in New Delhi on January 5, 2025.

His teammate, Pradhyumn Singh, won the Silver medal, while Aakash Bhardwaj from Rajasthan secured the Bronze medal.

Varun Tomar also triumphed in the Men’s Junior 10-meter Air Pistol event, winning the Gold medal, with Nikhil from Uttar Pradesh winning Silver and Pradhyumn Singh taking Bronze.

In the Men’s Youth 10-meter Air Pistol event, Chirag Sharma from Uttar Pradesh won the Gold medal, Dev Pratap, also from Uttar Pradesh, won Silver, and Mayank Choudhary of Rajasthan secured the Bronze medal.

Inaugural Kho Kho World Cup: Scheduled in India from January 13 to 19, 2025.

Participation: Features 21 men’s teams and 20 women’s teams from 24 countries.

Trophies: Men’s trophy is blue (trust and determination), women’s trophy is green (growth and vitality).

Mascots: Tejas and Tara, gazelles representing speed, agility, and teamwork.

Significance: Aims to establish Kho Kho as a global sport.

The National Sports Awards have been announced on January 2, 2025.

Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award Recipients:

• D Gukesh: World Chess Champion
• Manu Bhaker: Double Medalist in Paris Olympics
• Harmanpreet Singh: Indian Hockey Team Captain
• Praveen Kumar: Gold Medalist in Paris Paralympics

Arjuna Award:

Total recipients: 32 sportspersons, including:

• Athletes: Jyothi Yarraji, Annu Rani
• Boxers: Nitu, Saweety
• Chess Player: Vantika Agrawal
• Hockey Players: Salima Tete, Abhishek, Sanjay, Jarmanpreet Singh, Sukhjeet Singh
• Para-Sportspersons: Rakesh Kumar (Para-Archer), Preeti Pal, Jeevanji Deepthi, Ajeet Singh, Sachin Khilari

Lifetime Achievement Arjuna Awards:

• Veteran Athlete Sucha Singh
• Veteran Para Swimmer Murlikant Petkar

Dronacharya Award for Coaches:

• Subhash Rana (Para-Shooting)
• Deepali Deshpande (Shooting)
• Sandeep Sangwan (Hockey)
• S Muralidharan (Badminton)
• Armando Agnelo Colaco (Football)

Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar: Awarded to the Physical Education Foundation of India

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy: Awarded to Chandigarh University, Lovely Professional University, and Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar

Award Ceremony: Awards to be presented by President Droupadi Murmu on 17th January 2025 at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

In the World Blitz Chess Championship 2024, Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi shared the title after their final match ended in a tie in New York on 31 December 2024.

World Blitz Chess Championship 2024 – Open Section:

• Carlsen led 2-0 and needed just a draw in the third game to secure the title.
• Nepomniachtchi leveled the score 2-2, forcing tiebreaks.
• After three draws in sudden-death games, Carlsen proposed sharing the title, which Nepomniachtchi accepted.

Women’s Section: Ju Wenjun from China defeated Lei Tingjie in the final to win the World Blitz Championship, completing a double after drawing five games.

India’s Performance: R. Vaishali, India’s lone hope in the knockouts, overcame an initial loss in the quarterfinals against China’s Zhu Jiner, winning 2.5-1.5 after four games. In the semifinals, Vaishali lost to Ju Wenjun in a one-sided match, 0.5-2.5.

West Bengal clinched the prestigious Santosh Trophy national football championship title by defeating Kerala 1-0 in the final held on December 31, 2024, at the GMC Balayogi Athletic Stadium in Hyderabad.

This victory marks West Bengal’s record-extending 33rd title in the tournament’s history.

The match-winner came in the added time of the second half when Robi Hansda scored from close range after Aditya Thapa‘s header into the box.

The team, led by coach Sanjoy Sen, showcased incredible performance throughout the tournament, overcoming the absence of key striker Naro Hari Shrestha due to injury.