by Tanish Prabhu
Action from the international sports circuit gets us enthused like nothing else. India’s prodigious teenager Anahat Singh’s junior squash world championship title is the first for an Indian and breaks down the barriers in more ways than one. No one expected India led by super confident Shreyas Iyer to struggle in N Ireland and England before he broke the pattern and registered a T20I series win in Zimbabwe. Read on…
ANAHAT SINGH’S MAIDEN WORLD JUNIOR SQUASH TITLE BOOSTS INDIA’S YOUNG GUNS
India’s individual sports scene is in turbo-charged mode, with Anahat Singh’s historic rise as the first Indian to win the World Junior Squash Championship coming close on the heels of PV Sindhu becoming the first Indian to clinch the Japan Open badminton title.
Anahat’s achievement is particularly exceptional as it has broken Egypt’s long-standing dominance over the World Junior Squash Championship. The 18-year-old Delhi-based player became the first non-Egyptian to win the prestigious title in 13 years, underlining the significance of her triumph on the global stage.
Anahat has instantly emerged as an icon and a source of inspiration for young squash players across India. Her remarkable success is expected to encourage more youngsters—especially girls—to take up the sport and dream of excelling at the highest level.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has consistently acknowledged and celebrated major sporting achievements by Indian athletes, congratulated Anahat on her historic world championship triumph. In a post on X, the PM stated:
“A historic feat at the 2026 World Junior Squash Championship. Proud of Anahat Singh for winning the Gold Medal and becoming the first Indian squash player ever to win the World Junior Championship title. This accomplishment will further popularise squash among the youth.
@Anahat_Singh13″.
AFTER INDIA’S 2-SERIES LOSING STREAK – SHREYAS IYER CLAIMS FIRST WIN AS CAPTAIN IN ZIMBABWE
India T20I captain Shreyas Iyer has claimed his first series win as India demolished Zimbabwe 3-0 in Harare.
Iyer was picked as captain after leading Punjab to the 2025 IPL final and nearly followed it up in the 2026 IPL as well. He replaced 2026 World Cup-winning captain Suryakumar Yadav, but had a difficult start to his captaincy stint after a back-to-back series loss to Ireland (0-2) and England (0-4) last month.
Fifteen-year-old teenage sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi has been in the headlines over the weekend after he finished the series with a staggering 151 runs which included two half-centuries and a best score of 81 in the final T20 match.
Suryavanshi was selected for the Northern Ireland and England tour but was given the opportunity against England. We saw a glimpse of what he can do outside of India in different conditions and different wickets, but the runs came quickly in Zimbabwe, and it is the start of something big in his highly-anticipated long, glittering career.
As for his batting partner, Abhishek Sharma, the batting conditions have not suited him outside of India. Each time he faced the ball, he swung his bat too hard and missed, losing his wicket quite cheaply. Gautham Gambhir and BCCI selectors aren’t in favor of Sanju Samson as his international career may have come to an end without any explanation from the former party.
If not Sanju Samson for future tournaments, then who is the perfect replacement for Abhishek Sharma if he is dropped from the team?
ASHES 2027 FIXTURES ANNOUNCED, SOUTHAMPTON TO HOST FIRST-EVER TEST
On Thursday, the England Cricket Board announced their 2027 summer of cricket
fixtures, with the Ashes Series starting on the 18th of June at Trent Bridge.
Southampton will host the first ever men’s Ashes test match. It will be the fourth test. The Ashes in 2027 will be the final series played by most cricketers from both teams. It was supposed to be Ben Stokes’s farewell series, but he stepped away from the game in June after the test series against New Zealand and just two weeks ago, Brendon McCullum was sacked as test coach, allowing him to continue on in white ball formats.
It does pose the question as to what England
Cricket will look like without those two who changed the way England play cricket and what new methods will be used in the longest longest format of the game. Joe Root is now the most experienced cricketer for England in a team that is mildly experienced. He isn’t far off that milestone moment that has been in Sachin Tendulkar’s hands for 13 years.
It is a once in a lifetime opportunity that we get to see this feat achieved. The big question remains. When Root gets to that milestone, whether it is during the Ashes or just beyond that, what is next for the generational cricketer? The likes of Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins have served Australian Cricket for over a decade, having been
involved in several Ashes series and winning a lot more. Now at the twilight of their careers, the stage is set. Will 2027 be the last year for some of the greats of the game?
2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES IN PROGRESS IN GLASGOW, (BUT) WHO IS WATCHING?
The 2026 Commonwealth Games have commenced, but who is really paying
attention? In 2021, Melbourne was announced as the venue to host the Commonwealth Games in 2026 by then premier Dan Andrews. It would have been the first time since 2006. Shortly after, due to several significant COVID
cases and the money spent on emergency supplies, Andrews announced that they
cannot afford to hold the competition, forcing the city to bow out.
It was disappointing and now that it is on, who is really paying attention to it? Here in Australia, Channel 7 have broadcast rights to the games and so far, Australia has done extremely well – 39 medals in total, 17 gold, 9 silver and 13 bronze. Most of the medals have come
from our champion swimmers. Australia’s dominance continued on the court in
3×3 basketball in both men’s and women’s competitions, winning five straight
games in a row as finals are around the corner.
For India, they have won 4 medals and counting. Strangely, Lovlina Borgohain has already won a medal at Glasgow 2026 after receiving a quarter final bye in the women’s 75kg event, with both losing semifinalists in boxing awarded bronze medals. However, Lovlina will be eager to convert it into gold in her next match. Jhandu Kumar registered India on the Glasgow 2026 medal table after clinching bronze in para powerlifting. Weightlifter Rishikanta Singh was the first para-athlete Indian to win a medal as he won a silver in the men’s 60kg category with a new games record.
