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Conway’s Chennai connect began several years before he became a part of CSK

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Charismatic New Zealand batter Devon Conway is making waves in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for Chennai Super Kings and, while the world may know him as a cricketer who migrated from South Africa to New Zealand, little is known about his other Chennai connect that happened nearly five years back.

The prolific run-getter’s association with the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side might have started after he was picked in the IPL mega auction this year, but many years back it was a former first-division cricketer with India Cements, Sriram Krishnamurthy — now a coach in New Zealand — who spotted him.

Sriram was then the batting coach of Wellington Firebirds when Conway moved from South Africa to Wellington in 2017 in search of a better growth in the sport.

“In a lot of sense, I know what it feels like to move to a certain place, especially New Zealand,” Sriram told CSK website. “The nervousness that you have when you move from one country to another, it takes time to settle in,” added the former cricketer, who himself moved from Chennai to the UK and then to Australia before eventually settling down in New Zealand in 2015, coaching several sides there.

“Moving from South Africa to New Zealand for good with the unknown of whether he (Conway) would realise his dream of becoming an International cricketer — it was a big decision. I had to give him as much information as possible,” said Sriram.

“Devon was different. He outlined his desire to do well for his club team first. There was a real desire from Devon’s side to say that ‘look I will do my hard work and along the way if I’m rewarded, that’s great’. That stood out for me straightaway. He was willing to put in that work without doubting himself or thinking too far ahead of what it could lead him to. This tells me that he’s a very strong personality.”

Interestingly, Sriram and Conway didn’t get to work with each other apart from a few indoor sessions in the initial few months as the former was away on New Zealand A tours. By the time they worked closely, in 2019 with Wellington Firebirds, Conway was already establishing himself in the New Zealand cricket circuit.

Conway made a dream Test debut, scoring a double ton at Lord’s against England early last year. He now averages more than 50 in each of the three formats in his brief international career.

Sriram says he was surprised when he came to know that Conway had been picked by CSK at the mega auction.

“I was surprised he got picked by Chennai Super Kings. I knew he was going to be picked, that was definitely a no brainer for the sort of player he turned out to be in International cricket over the last 12 months. I’ve had scouts from other franchises ask me about Devon. So I knew he would get picked… I was pleasantly surprised that he was picked by CSK!

“I’m happy that Devon is a part of CSK. I also know he’ll thrive in a team like CSK because his game is such that when there is calm around him, he possibly transcends the normal. He plays cricket at another level.”

Sriram said he was looking forward to watching Conway in the IPL next year, especially at Chepauk, the hub of Chennai cricket.

“Who knows with Covid and everything relenting, maybe next year, when IPL games are happening all over the country, how good would it be for me to be in Chennai and support him at Chepauk. And also to have the opportunity to take him to my house and show him around Chennai as well if possible. It would be a cool story.”

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‘I Don’t Follow Records,The Records Follow Me’: Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Bold Statement After Scoring 900th Goal

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Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 900th career goal during Portugal’s Nations League match against Croatia on Thursday. The goal came in the 34th minute from a cross by Nuno Mendes, making it 2-0 for Portugal at Estádio da Luz. Portugal won the match 2-1.

Ronaldo also took to social media and reacted to the history 900th goal milestone, stating that “I dreamed of this and I have more dreams. Thank you all!.

In the video he made yet another strong statement which said, Don’t Follow Records,The Records Follow Me”. He also gave a subtle hint that he isn’t thinking about hanging up his boots anytime soon.

Talking about the goal Ronaldo tapped in a simple volley and was visibly emotional as he celebrated the milestone. In the celebration, Ronaldo raised his hands to his face and dropped to his knees.

Speaking about the same he said, “It was emotional because it’s a milestone. It seems like any other milestone, but only I know, and the people around me, how hard it is to work every day, to be physically and psychologically fit, to score 900 goals. It’s a unique milestone in my career.”

With this achievement, Ronaldo leads the all-time goal-scoring chart, surpassing Lionel Messi, who has 859 goals. Ronaldo is the first male footballer to reach the 900-goal mark in official matches. After the game, Ronaldo expressed his pride, acknowledging the hard work and dedication required to hit this milestone.

At 39 years old, Ronaldo has scored 131 goals for his national team and has tallied 450 goals for Real Madrid, 145 for Manchester United, 101 for Juventus, and 68 for his current club, Al Nassr. He also scored five goals for Sporting Lisbon, where he began his career.

Next Target 1,000 Goals

Ronaldo, while speaking on his Youtube channel expressed his desire to perform excellently at the highest level. “I want to reach 1,000 goals,” the 39-year-old stated, projecting that he could hit this target by the age of 41.

He emphasized that staying injury-free is crucial for achieving this monumental goal, viewing the 900-goal milestone as a significant step on the path to 1,000.

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Meet Seven Months Pregnant British Archer Jodie Grinham Who Won Bronze Medal at Paris Paralympics

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Para-archer Jodie Grinham finished third in the women’s compound event, securing her first individual Paralympic medal, all while carrying a baby. The 31-year-old, born with no fingers and half a thumb on her left hand, made history as the first openly pregnant woman to compete in the Paralympic games Her bright pink hair stood out as she became emotional after winning the bronze.

Despite concerns that the baby might move and affect her shot while at full draw, Grinham remained focused. She and her coach spent considerable time preparing for this, practicing how to adjust if the baby moved during a shot.

She shared “Even during matches today, I’d be at full draw, feel that sensation, and it’s almost like you acknowledge it and go, ‘I know you’re there. Mummy loves you. I’ll cuddle you in a minute.’ Then I’d carry on with my process,”

The media attention surrounding her achievement astonished Grinham, but she embraced it as an opportunity to send a powerful message. she admitted “I didn’t realize how much of an inspiration this would be, how much people were interested and affected by it,”.

“I didn’t want people to just see a pregnant lady at the Games. I wanted them to think, ‘Wow, a pregnant lady can compete at the highest level and win a medal.’ I wanted to show that anything is possible. If you want to do it, just go and do it.”

Jodie Grinham’s performance in Paris Paralympics 2024

Grinham’s victory came as she defeated her Paralympics GB teammate and defending champion, Phoebe Paterson Pine, to claim the bronze medal. Turkey’s Oznur Cure Girdi won the gold, while Iran’s Fatemeh Hemmati took silver.

It could get even better for Grinham, as she is set to compete in the mixed team compound event with Nathan MacQueen on Monday.

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India At Paris Paralympics 2024 Day 2 Live: Shooter Manish Narwal Adds Silver Medal To Nation’s Tally

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Updates:

6 pm: Shooter Manish Narwal finishes second in the Men’s 10m Air Pistol SH1 category to clinch the silver medal for India. This is the country’s fourth medal in the Games.

5.20 pm: The Men’s 10m Air Rifle SH1 Final is underway with Manish Narwal competing for India. Narwal had finished fifth in the qualification round with a score of 565.

5 pm: Shooter Manish Narwal has qualified for the final of the men’s 10m air pistol (SH1) competition in fifth place. Narwal shot a total of 565 to enter the 8-man final.

4.54 pm: Third medal for India in the day as Preethi Pal wins the bronze in women’s 100m T35 category with a Personal Best timing of 14.21s. She has become the first Indian woman to win a medal in a track event at the Paralympic Games. China’s Zhou Xia (13.58) and Guo Qianqian (13.74) won the gold and silver respectively.

Notably, the Women’s 100m T35 category, which is for athletes with cerebral palsy, has seen remarkable performances.

3.50 pm: Avani Lekhara and Mona Agarwal have bagged the first 2 medals for India at the Paris Paralympics. Lekhara clinched the gold in 10m air rifle Standing SH1 while Agarwal finished third to take the bronze.

Avani, who is wheel-chair bound after a car mishap left her paralysed below the waist when she was 11-years-old, has become the first Indian woman shooter to back-to-back Paralympic medals.

1:44pm: Avani Lekhara and Mona Agarwal qualify for the finals of Women’s 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1. Avani finishes second with a total of 625.8 points, while Mona finished fourth with a total of 623.1

1:27 pm: Karam Jyoti and Sakshi Kasana in Women’s Discus throw F55 final. Event to begin shortly

12:55 pm: Manasi Joshi loses to Oksana Kozyna 21-10, 15-21, 11-8 in Women’s Singles SL3 Group A match. Para shooters Avani Lekhara and Mona Agarwal remain in contention to qualify for finals

12:47pm: Mona Agarwal and Avani Lekhara begin their qualification round in Women’s 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1

12:35pm: The match between Manasi Joshi and Oksana Kozyna has now entered the final set

12:00 pm: Manasi Joshi begin her match against 2022 world champion Oksana Kozyna of Ukraine

Preview

After mixed day of results on Day 1 of Paris Paralympics, all eyes will be on a couple of gold medallists from Tokyo Olympics. Avani Lekhara who won gold in Women’s 10m Air Rifle Standing SH1 will be in action in the qualification event.

Manish Narwal will look to defend his title in Men’s 10m Air Pistol SH1 Qualification. The finals of both the Para shooting event will be held on the same day. Mona Agarwal and Rudransh Khandelwal will be also in action in those events respectively.

In Para-Badminton group-stage action will continue with Manasi Joshi facing a must-win match after losing her opening match on Thursday.

Krishna Nagar will begin his title defence in Men’s Singles SH6, with many more Indian athlete’s competing in events across the various categories. India had won 19 medals in the Tokyo Paralympics in 2021 and will be looking to surpass that tally this year.

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