QPlay: Sachin at Rashtrapati Bhawan, Shami in 30-man Squad vs SA

Shami, Ojha in probables for SA series, Virat Kohli co-owns Federer’s IPTL team, women’s semis at US Open rescheduled

1. Shami, Pragyan in 30-member Probables Camp for SA series

Pacer Mohammad Shami recuperating from shoulder surgery and left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha, back with a remodelled action, were among the 30 players called by the BCCI’s senior selection committee for a preparatory camp ahead of the South African team’s upcoming tour of India.

India play South Africa in three T20, five ODI and four Test match series.

30-man probables list: M S Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Stuart Binny, Wriddhiman Saha, Naman Ojha, R Ashwin, Amit Mishra, Harbhajan Singh, Ishant Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron, Karun Nair, Suresh Raina, Mohammed Shami, Axar Patel, Pragyan Ojha, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohit Sharma, Karn Sharma, Ambati Rayudu, Dhawal Kulkarni, Kedar Jadhav, Manish Pandey.

2. Kohli Joins IPTL Side ‘UAE Royals’ as Co-owner

Joining the IPTL bandwagon, India Test captain Virat Kohli has become the co-owner of the UAE Royals, which will be led by Swiss great Roger Federer.

Federer had played for Micromax Indian Aces in the inaugural season and this season he will be joined by Goran Ivanisevic, 2001 Wimbledon Champion Ana Ivanovic, Daniel Nestor, Kristina Mladenovic and Tomas Berdych.

I am a huge fan of Roger Federer and with him joining the UAE Royals, my decision to be on board with the team was firm. The UAE Royals feature some of tennis’ greatest players and I am confident about the prospects of the team in the IPTL.
– Virat Kohli

3. Rain Forces US Open Women’s Semis to be Postponed

The US Open women’s semi-finals scheduled to be played on Thursday evening have been been postponed to Friday instead due to threat of rain.

Both the men’s and women’s semis will now be played on Friday, said tournament officials. No Indians were in action on day 11 of the year’s final Grand Slam.

4. Vijender to Make Pro Debut on Oct 10, Opponent Not Yet Known

Star Indian boxer Vijender Singh will make his much-awaited professional debut on October 10 even though his opponent for the bout is yet to be decided.

The 29-year-old, who ended his amateur career in July by signing up with the UK-based and Francis Warren-owned Queensberry Promotions, was supposed to make his debut this month but that had to be postponed owing to a legal tussle with his employers -- Haryana Police.

“All-action Vijender Singh’s first fight will be over four rounds in the middleweight division, against an opponent to be confirmed shortly. Singh will be competing in one of the hottest weight classes in world boxing with elite fighters Gennady Golovkin, Miguel Cotto, Andy Lee and Billy Joe Saunders all campaigning at 160 lbs and he aims to be in their position one day,” Queensberry Promotions said in a statement.

5. Sachin and Swachh Bharat Ambassadors at Rashtrapati Bhavan

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ambitious ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’ nears completion of its first year, President Pranab Mukherjee hosted an event at Rashtrapati Bhavan bringing together all the Swachh Bharat ambassadors.

At the event, the President urged the stakeholders to build “affordable and sustainable Swachh infrastructure” while stressing at the same time that the mission’s success is “equally dependent on each individual’s actions”.

“Swachh Bharat ambassadors have a huge potential to influence the public to adopt safe sanitation practices and integrate them into their daily lives,” the President said addressing the gathering on the occasion which included master batsman Sachin Tendulkar, industrialist Anil Ambani and UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav.

6. Dhoni Moves SC In ‘Vishnu God Row’

Cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni moved the Supreme Court on Thursday, against the  Karnataka High Court order in a case filed against him for allegedly “denigrating” a Hindu god by posing as Lord Vishnu on a magazine cover.

The Special Leave Petition filed by Dhoni, challenging the Karnataka HC order which had refused to quash the criminal proceedings pending against him before a trial court in Bengaluru, will come up for hearing on September 14.

The High Court had last month observed: “A celebrity and a cricketer like Dhoni should know the consequences of hurting religious sentiments of people. He should have known the consequences of doing such ads.”