Rupinder keen to perform well in HI league

New Delhi, Penalty corner specialist Rupinder Pal Singh said he would be aim to be a standout performer . The 23-year-old drag-flicker has been a significant contributor to the Delhi Waveriders in both the seasons and played a major role in steering his team to win the second season of the tournament. Rupinder said, “Playing for a team which has been the champion in the last season, I am much more confident and geared up to play our first match against UP Warriors. With an advantage of a good defence line up, I am looking forward to a successful tournament for my team and aiming to retain the title.”

London

Chelsea stroll to victory over West Ham UnitedLeaders Chelsea kicked off a hectic holiday programme in the Premier League with a dominant 2-0 victory over West Ham United. A John Terry tap-in and Diego Costa’s drilled shot sealed the points for Jose Mourinho’s side although the scoreline disguised a gulf in quality between the two sides who were separated by only three places. West Ham ground out a 0-0 draw in the corresponding fixture last year when Mourinho accused them of playing 19th century football but once Terry had scored after 31 minutes they offered little and could have lost by a bigger margin. Chelsea moved to 45 points from 18 games, six more than champions Manchester city.

Cairo

Toure on target for fourth straight African honourManchester City’s Yaya Toure (top) will be favourite to collect a record fourth successive African Footballer of the Year crown after he was named in the list of final three nominees by the Confederation of African Football. The Ivory Coast midfielder faces competition from Borussia Dortmund forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, as well as Nigerian goalie Vincent Enyeama, who plays for Lille.

Kathmandu

Plan to take Hughes’ bat to Mount EverestIn a unique tribute to Phillip Hughes, the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) is planning to place a bat belonging to the late Australian cricketer on top of the Mount Everest. CAN has written a letter to Cricket Australia (CA) and they are working on the initiative. In the letter addressed to CA chairman Wally Edwards, CAN outlined how it wanted to honour the fallen Test opener with a 63-over tribute match. — Agencies