Updated : Aug 31, 2025

Team Sportstar

BASKETBALL

India begins FIBA U-16 Asia Cup campaign with loss

The Indian men’s national team opened its FIBA Under-16 Asia Cup campaign with a defeat, suffering a 75-93 loss against Lebanon in Mongolia.

India will next play Australia in its second Group A fixture. Bahrain is the other team in this group.

Only the four group winners will directly qualify for the quarterfinals, while the second and third-placed teams will participate in the playoffs.

The top four teams in the competition will qualify for the FIBA U-17 World Cup.

- Team Sportstar

BADMINTON

Kazuma clinches double crown at India Junior International Grand Prix

Indian pair of Aanya Bisht and Angel Punera produced a spirited performance to clinch the girls’ doubles title with an upset win over fifth-seeded Japanese duo Aoi Banno and Yuzu Ueno at the Yonex Sunrise India Junior International Grand Prix Badminton Tournament on Sunday.

The unseeded pair rallied from a game down to beat the Japanese duo 21-23, 21-12, 21-17.

There was further joy for the hosts in the mixed doubles, where Vansh Dev and Shravani Walekar outplayed C Lalramsanga and Taarini Suri 21-12, 21-13 to lift the crown.

In other results, Japan’s Kazuma Kawano secured a memorable double, bagging both the boys’ singles and doubles titles.

In the boys’ singles final, ninth seed Kawano stunned second seed Hyuga Takano 23-21, 18-21, 25-23 in a marathon contest that lasted one hour and nine minutes.

The girls’ singles title also went Japan’s way with Yuzuno Watanabe overcoming 10th seed Yurika Nagafuchi 16-21, 21-13, 21-17 in an all-Japanese summit clash.

In the boys doubles, Kazuma Kawano teamed up with Shuji Sawada to get past another Japanese pair of Shunsei Nemoto and Nagi Yoshitsugu 21-15, 21-18.

-PTI