Indian sports wrap, June 6: Volleyball Federation of India elections set to be held

VOLLEYBALL

VFI elections on June 7, overseen by Ad-Hoc Committee led by Rohit Rajpal

The Volleyball Federation of India (VFI) is set to conduct its long-awaited elections on June 7, 2025, at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, New Delhi, in accordance with a directive from the Delhi High Court.

The federation was overseen during this time by an ad-hoc committee comprising Rohit Rajpal (Chairman), Stephen Bock (FIVB representative), Alaknanda Ashok, and Mr. Gopinath.

A total of 66 representatives from 33 States and Union Territories affiliated with VFI will vote to elect a new governing body. Twenty-nine candidates are contesting for 12 key positions, including five seats on the Executive Committee. These include: President (1), Vice Presidents (2), Secretary General (1), Treasurer (1), Joint Secretaries (2), and Executive Committee Members (5).

The presidential race will see Anand Shankar Rajhans (Bihar), Prem Singh Bajor (Nagaland), and Virender Kanwar (Himachal Pradesh) face off. For Secretary General, the candidates include Mohammad Akram Khan (Chhattisgarh), Nilesh Vishnu Jagat (Maharashtra), and Ramanand Choudhary (Rajasthan). Hari Singh Chauhan (Madhya Pradesh) and Prakash Borah (Assam) will contest for Treasurer, with six candidates in the fray for the two Joint Secretary posts and eleven for the five Executive Committee positions.

Voting will be conducted from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM, followed by counting at 3:30 PM. The election is being overseen by Justice P. Krishna Bhat (Retd.), appointed as the Returning Officer by the court. To ensure full transparency, official observers from the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, and the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) will monitor the proceedings.

– Team Sportstar

ICE HOCKEY

India finishes third in IIHF Women’s Asia Cup

Indian ice hockey team beat Kyrgyzstan on Friday to finish third in the IIHF Women’s Asia Cup.

It registered three wins (two in overtime) and two losses in the competition held in Al-Ain, UAE.

The side finished behind Philippines and Iran in the tournament which consisted of six countries playing in a round-robin format.

– Team Sportstar

CRICKET

Abhishek Bachchan part-owned European T20 Premier League to officially launch in 2026

The European T20 Premier League (ETPL), partly owned by Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan, will officially launch in 2026, following unanimous approval by the Board. The decision comes after extensive consultation with key stakeholders across cricket, business and media.

The initial 2025 window envisioned for the tournament provided a solid base. However, conversations with franchise aspirants, broadcasters, sponsors, and governing bodies made it clear that 2026 gives ETPL the best chance to succeed.

Sanctioned by the ICC on November 27, 2024, the ETPL represents a landmark collaboration among the cricket boards of Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands, a united effort to grow the game and elevate European cricket on the world stage.

-Team Sportstar

BASKETBALL

Basketball Federation of India, ACG Sports to launch professional leagues for men and women

The Basketball Federation of India and ACG Sports announced a professional league for men and women in 5×5 and 3×3 formats here on Friday.

Jeremy Loeliger, the former CEO and commissioner of Australia’s National Basketball League, will be in charge of the development of the league, bringing international standards of governance, competition, and commercial aspects in a new role as director of ACG Sports.

ACG will launch a residential high-performance centre within the year. The academy will feature world-class facilities and attract coaching talent from the USA and Australia. It will offer a comprehensive training programme for players, coaches, and referees, including nutrition, mental wellness, and academic balance.

-PTI

St. Teresa’s College to host all-Kerala basketball tournament as part of centenary celebrations

Kerala is a force to reckon with in women’s basketball in India, having thrown up gems like Leelamma Santhosh-Thomas, Prasanna Kumari and Geethu Anna Jose, but it all began at St. Teresa’s College in Kochi.

More than 65 years ago, St. Teresa’s young girls played on a mud court at the college, and also at the Annie Besant Park nearby and later at the Ernakulam YMCA. That was the first time women’s basketball was being played in an organised way in Kerala.

“In 1961, we produced the first women’s basketball team in Kerala,” said Sr. Tessa, the Director of St. Teresa’s College on Friday.

GOLDEN GIRLS

That was the start of a wonderful journey, and slowly, St. Teresa’s College began to power Kerala and Indian basketball. The late Raji Thampi, who led Kerala to its first Senior National title in 1985, and former India captain Prasanna Kumari were some of the finest stars who emerged from the college.

“We won the Mahatma Gandhi University basketball title regularly for some 20 years, sometimes six years in a row,” said Maya Joseph, a former National-level sprinter and hurdler who was the head of the St. Teresa’s physical education department during those golden years till 2002.

In 1993, when Mahatma Gandhi University won the National varsity basketball title for the first time, nearly half the team, including captain Maya George, were from St. Teresa’s.

Kerala Sports Council coaches K.V. Alexander, Thomas Fenn and V.V. Paul, in various periods, played a big role in St. Teresa’s rise.

CENTENARY TOURNAMENT

Now, as part of its centenary year celebrations, St. Teresa’s College will be hosting an all-Kerala inter-collegiate basketball tournament from June 9 to 11. The event, organised by the St. Teresa’s Physical Education Department and the college’s sports alumni, will feature six teams, including Changanassery’s Assumption, Kozhikode’s Providence and Irinjalakuda’s St. Joseph’s.

STAR WALK

A ‘Star walk’ by the Teresian sports stars, which will see some of the college’s biggest names in Kochi, and a friendly veterans match will also be held on the tournament’s final day.

St. Teresa’s is no longer a powerhouse in women’s basketball, but there is hope for the future.

“We are training our school girls at our college, and they are doing very well,” said K.M. Thomas, the current head of the St. Teresa’s physical education department.

-Stan Rayan

MOTORSPORT

Rahil, Savion grab pole positions

Hyderabad businessman Rahil Pillarisetty ended a four-year wait for a pole position as he topped the qualifying session in the premier Pro-Stock 301-400cc category to kickstart his campaign in the first round of the MRF MMSC fmsci Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship 2025 at the Madras International Circuit, on Friday.

Later, riding under dark rain clouds, Bengaluru’s Savion Sabu put the hammer down to qualify for pole position in the debut class, the Pro-Stock 165-200cc.

Equally impressive was Aizawl’s 22-year-old Lal Nunsanga who grabbed pole position in the Novice (Stock 165cc) class. It was his first pole in six years, the last being in the Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup.

Mohamed Mikhail from Thiruvallur, a graduate from the Idemitsu Honda India Talent Cup, also qualified for the pole position in the Stock 301-400cc (Novice) class.

– Team Sportstar

ARCHERY

Archery World Cup: Indians fail to reach medal round

Indian archers put up disappointing performances as none could reach the medal round at the Archery World Cup Stage-3 in Antalya on Friday.

– Team Sportstar

TENNIS

Women’s ITF: Shrivalli eases past Julia in pre-quarterfinals

Shrivalli Bhamidipaty sustained her strong game and eased past Julia Fliegner 6-4, 6-1 in the pre-quarterfinals of the $60,000 ITF women’s tennis tournament in Sumter, USA.

Shrivalli, who had ousted the top seed in the first round, also made the doubles semifinals with Katherine Sebov of Canada.

In the $15,000 women’s event in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Vaishnavi Adkar set up a semifinal against top seed Ksenia Laskutova and made the doubles final in partnership with Punnin Kovapitukted of Thailand.

-Team Sportstar

GOLF

Vani Kapoor wins eighth leg of Hero WPGT 2025

Vani Kapoor won the eighth leg of the Hero WPGT 2025 – her fourth win of the tour. Vani carded four consecutive back-nine birdies to take the title at the BGC course here on Friday.

At the start of the final round, Vani was tied with amateur golfer Saanvi Somu, with Gauri Bishnoi one stroke behind. Saanvi fell off the pace with three bogies on the front nine.

Vani recorded a crucial par in the eighth hole, where her competition dropped a shot. A terrific back-nine helped Vani zoom ahead with a five-under 205 overall.

Amateur Zara Anand carded a three-under 67 to finish second overall, three strokes behind the champion.

Neha Tripathi (one-under 209) took third spot, followed by Gauri (par 210).

“The third day started slow. I knew the quality of my game was good, but I was just waiting for everything to click. After getting the four birdies, I had a cushion, so I just played some relaxed golf at the end,” Vani said.

With a total winning of ₹11,88,000, Vani leads the Hero Order of Merit 2025.

-Ashwin Achal

TABLE TENNIS

UTT Juniors: U Mumba goes top of table

Prateek Tulsani and Ananya Muralidharan put U Mumba on top of the table with a 6-3 victory over Jaipur Patriots in the last league match of the Dream UTT Juniors table tennis tournament at the EKA Arena on Friday.

U Mumba topped the table with 29 points and will meet Jaipur Patriots yet again in the semifinals, as the latter qualified with 26 points.

The other semifinal will be between Dempo Goa Challengers and Kolkata ThunderBlades which qualified with 27 and 26 points respectively.

-Kamesh Srinivasan