The Hindu

The final fits the bill in every way; the best side against the host, which also happens to be the second-best team; the games oldest rivals

Co-hosts Canada are in uncharted waters, while Morocco are trying to establish themselves as one of the mainstays of the World Cup

At 15 years and 99 days, Vaibhav became India's youngest international cricketer, surpassing Sachin Tendulkar, who had made his debut at 16 years and 205 days against Pakistan in 1989

The South American giants have never beaten the European side, drawing twice and losing twice in four previous meetings, including a 2-1 defeat at the 1998 World Cup

The close contest highlighted Argentinas vulnerabilities, leaving fans across the state in a frenzy as they celebrated their teams narrow escape from elimination.

Here are the key talking points from the World Cups first-ever Round of 32

India finished at the eighth spot out of nine teams with 19 points from 16 matches

Mexican fans unite in celebration in hopes of winning the World Cup

Seven of the record nine African nations in the knockouts were eliminated in the Round of 32; yet, even in defeat, African teams acquitted themselves well at the World Cup

Sam Curran has not played test cricket since England's home series against India in August 2021, and has since featured exclusively in white-ball formats

Having fallen a little behind after the second day, Praggnanandhaa reserved his best for the last three rounds and defeated Ivan Saric of Croatia, Deac Bogdan-Daniel of Romania and Anish Giri of the Netherlands to finally catch up with Alireza

As Messi, Ronaldo, Djokovic and Kohli enter their last chapters, their sport is set to change dramatically

Arias struck in the 14th minute, guiding home a cross from substitute Luis Suarez, and Colombias disciplined defence did the rest as Nestor Lorenzos side extended their unbeaten run

In a different era, Hyderabad was a powerhouse of football with players like Peter Thangaraj, Tulsidas Balaram, Syed Abdul Rahim, Victor Amalraj and a host of other kicking ball and making their mark. The peak of that success story was in the 1950s

The tiny African nation put on a fight for the ages with stunning goals against the World Champion, but its fairytale run ends in the Round of 32

Nestor Lorenzos Colombia have quietly established themselves among the tournaments most convincing teams, combining defensive solidity

The first game was abandoned after India posted a healthy 189 for 7 at the Chester-Le-Street in Durham, riding on half-centuries from Abhishek Sharma and skipper Shreyas Iyer.

Messi, the World Cup's top scorer of all time, becomes the first player ever to make 30 appearances at the tournament

Hossam Abdelmaguid rolled in the winning spot-kick after Harry Souttar and Lucas Herrington missed from 12 yards for the Australians as Egypt recorded their first win in a World Cup knockout match

FIFA did not confirm nor deny that the kick-off time had been changed

Australia will try to shrink the game into duels, second balls and defensive concentration, while Egypt will seek enough rhythm and craft to prise it open

With a tricky tour of Sri Lanka in August and a blockbuster home series against Australia early next year, India needs its spinners to deliver if it wants to contend for a spot in the World Test Championship final. Just how healthy and varied are the teams stocks?

Chepauk Super Gillies signs the 25-year-old for 14.45 lakh

Tazmin Brits hopes to make the South African Olympic team after a road accident sidelined her from the 2012 London Olympics, where she competed in javelin

The competition will feature 24 teams divided into six groups across five host cities. As in recent years, Kolkata will remain the tournaments hub

Gustavo Alfaros side has already authored the shock of the tournament by dumping out Germany

The 14-year-olds immediate objective is to continue improving by competing regularly in strong tournaments against elite opposition

It was very bad refereeing, Zlatko Dalic told reporters, saying he felt his team should have been given more free kicks.

The 35-year-old forward retires with the second-most appearances for Algeria (119) and the second-most goals (40)

Germany's defeat to Paraguay in the Round of 32 marked a third consecutive disappointing World Cup campaign

Spain goalkeeper Unai Simn has the longest shutout streak in World Cup history

Forecasters say the hottest World Cup tournament match so far this year could hit Saturday afternoon, during the knockout round game between France and Paraguay in Philadelphia

Ireland stunned India 2-0 recently at Belfast to register their first ever series win over the reigning T20 world champions in any format.

Breel Embolo and Dan Ndoye scored to ensure Switzerland advances; the team will meet Ghana or Colombia in the next round

The World Cup clash will not be the first time that current Swiss coach Murat Yakin has faced Petkovic, with the two pitted against each other when coaching in the Swiss league

The game ended in controversy as Croatia thought it had tied things up 2-2 in the very last moments, but Mario Pasalic was called offside as VAR ruled no goal

Leao joins the Portugal attack alongside Ronaldo and Neto against unchanged Croatia

In the mens draw, top seed Velavan Senthilkumar bowed out after a disappointing semifinal defeat to second seed Yassin Shohdy of Egypt

Once the skipper Laura Wolvaardt fell to a superb catch by Sophie Ecclestone off Linsey Smith, the South African innings fell apart

Spain have now outscored their opponents 8-0 while continuing their run as one of two teams yet to concede at this World Cup, alongside Mexico