Sports

Moscow, Jun 22: Lionel Messi sloped off down the tunnel in Nizhny Novgorod with his head bowed, knowing Argentina face the humiliation of a group-stage exit at the World Cup in Russia. The Barcelona star was silenced by a far superior Croatia side in a brutal 3-0 defeat that left the South Americans needing an unlikely series of results to keep their hopes of reaching the knockout stages alive

Nizhny Novgorod, Jun 22: Croatia eased into the World Cup knockout stage after handing woeful Argentina a 3-0 drubbing thanks to second-half goals by Ante Rebic, captain Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic in their Group D match on Thursday. Rebic made the most of a goalkeeping error, Modric fired home a superb long range effort and Rakitic completed the rout to leave the hopes of twice world champions

Rostov-on-Don, Jun 21: Uruguay booked their place in the World Cup knockout stage along with Russia on Wednesday, as Luis Suarez scored the winner on his 100th international appearance in a 1-0 victory over Saudi Arabia in Rostov-on-Don. The South Americans take on the hosts in their final Group A match on June 25 with top spot on the line, while Egypt and Saudi Arabia have been eliminated after

Jun 21: Cristiano Ronaldo powered-home a fourth-minute header to give Portugal a 1-0 World Cup victory over Morocco that took them top of Group B on Wednesday and meant the unlucky North African side become the first to be eliminated from the tournament. Ronaldo's fourth goal of Russia 2018, following his hat-trick in the 3-3 draw with Spain, took the European champions to four points. Iran have

Kazan, Jun 21: A scrappy second half goal by Diego Costa broke a Persian stonewall and lifted Spain to a 1-0 win over a courageous Iran in a nerve-jangling World Cup clash on Wednesday. Costa claimed his third goal of the tournament in the 54th minute at Kazan Arena but the striker hardly knew about it, the ball deflecting off his legs from an attempted clearance by hapless Iran defender Ramin

Nottingham, Jun 20: England posted the highest total ever scored in a men's one-day international of 481 for six as they thrashed Australia by 242 runs at Trent Bridge on Tuesday to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in a five-match series. Alex Hales (147) and Jonny Bairstow (139) both hit hundreds as, for the second time in two years at Trent Bridge, England posted a new record ODI score following

Rostov-on-Don, Jun 20: Cristiano Ronaldo will hone in on Morocco on Wednesday after his stunning hat-trick in Portugal's World Cup opener, while 2010 winners Spain play Iran in Group B. The five-time world player of the year bagged a sublime treble against Spain in the heat of Sochi on Friday in Russia 2018's stand-out match so far, the 51st of his glittering career. "I'm very happy, it's a nice

Moscow, Jun 20: Senegal became the first African team to win a match at the 2018 World Cup on Tuesday when they beat Poland 2-1, helped by two shocking errors in the European side's defence. Poland defender Thiago Cionek stuck out a leg and deflected Idrissa Gueye's wayward shot into the net in the 37th minute before goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny rushed unnecessarily out of his area and allowed M

Saransk, Jun 20: Japan beat 10-man Colombia 2-1 in Group H on Tuesday to become the first Asian side to beat a South American one at the World Cup. Asian teams had managed three draws in 17 matches against South American sides but the four-times Asian champions made their extra man count after Colombia midfielder Carlos Sanchez became the first player to get a red card in Russia. His sending-off

Saint Petersburg, Jun 20: Host nation Russia have one foot in the last 16 of the World Cup after a resounding 3-1 win over Egypt on Tuesday despite the return from injury of Mohamed Salah. After a tight first half in a rain-drenched Saint Petersburg, Egypt captain Ahmed Fathy scored an own goal before goals from Denis Cheryshev and Artem Dzyuba sealed a win that raises Russian hopes of defying pre