Correct Answer :   Manchester

Manchester United’s six-year wait for a trophy is over after beating Newcastle 2-0 to win the League Cup on Sunday (26th Feb 2023).

United manager Erik ten Hag has wasted no time in guiding the club to silverware just 10 months after being hired.

Casemiro headed United in front in the 33rd minute of the final at Wembley Stadium and Sven Botman’s own-goal made it 2-0 in the 39th.

It is United’s first trophy since winning a League Cup and Europa League double under Jose Mourinho in 2017. The victory keeps alive Ten Hag’s four-pronged challenge this season, with his team in contention for the title and still competing in both the Europa League and FA Cup.

For Newcastle, the wait for a first major domestic trophy since winning the FA Cup in 1955 goes on. The Saudi Arabian-backed club mounted a fightback in the second half, but could not find a breakthrough goal.

Source : Indian Express 

Correct Answer :   Ankit Gulia

Indian Greco-Roman wrestler Ankit Gulia has won a bronze medal in the Ibrahim Moustafa ranking-series in Alexandria, Egypt (25th Feb 2023).

The 19-year-old Ankit, who lost 9-0 to Georgian Otar Abuladze, got the better of Nurzhigit Keneshbek Uulu of Kyrgyzstan 9-0 in the repechage round.

The Indian grappler won the medal after Iranian 67kg Olympic champion Mohammadreza Abdolhamid Geraei withdrew from the bronze medal match due to an injury. Geraei suffered the injury in one of his earlier bouts..

Source : AIR

Correct Answer :   Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh were crowned champions of the 13th Hockey India Senior Women National Championship 2023 in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh, after defeating Maharashtra 5-1 in the Final.

Madhya Pradesh relied on penalty corners to overcome Maharashtra in today’s (26th Feb 2023) Final with Diksha Tiwari (2’, 4’) converting two early in the game.

With just enough time left, Lalrindiki (25') scored to give Hockey Maharashtra some hope, but Manmeet Kaur (38'), Preeti Dubey (42'), and Aishwarya Chavan (42') scored for Hockey Madhya Pradesh to clinch the title.

Jharkhand wins bronze :

* On the other hand, Jharkhand defeated Haryana 2-1 in the third-place match.

* Roshni Dungdung (25') scored to give her team a slender lead, Reshma Soreng (59') doubled the lead at the very end, but Haryana's Devika Sen (60') pulled one back to give her team a sliver of hope, but they failed to capitalise on this opportunity, and the match ended in Jharkhand's favour.

* Albela Rani Toppo was seen competing for every single ball, and her outstanding performance on the day earned her the Player of the Match Award.

* "The game was on edge throughout but the team kept their composure all along, believing that we can make amends for the loss yesterday. Receiving the Player of the Match Award is something I will remember for the rest of my life, but it is all because of my teammates' support; I couldn't have done it without them," she said after the game.

Best player Awards :

Best Goalkeeper - Sonal Minj (Hockey Jharkhand)
Best Defender - Pratibha Arya (Hockey Madhya Pradesh)
Best Midfielder - Manashri Narendra Shedage (Hockey Maharashtra)
Best Forward - Albela Rani Toppo (Hockey Jharkhand).

Source : The Bridge

Correct Answer :   Daniil Medvedev

Daniil Medvedev won the Qatar Open on debut when he defeated Andy Murray 6-4, 6-4 in a final matchup of former No. 1s on Saturday (25th Feb 2023).

* Medvedev converted fast starts in each set. He reached 4-1 in the first and 3-1 in the second.

* Murray fought back but Medvedev stifled him and earned his 17th singles title.

* “Sometimes we were playing bad, then suddenly both of us were playing amazing,” Medvedev said. “I’m happy to win.”

* Medvedev also won in Rotterdam last weekend and his winning streak is at nine matches..

Source : Indian Express

Correct Answer :   Australia

Australia won the Women's T20 World Cup for the sixth time when they beat South Africa by 19 runs in the final at Newlands on Sunday (26th Feb 2023).

Australia's previous victories came in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2018 and 2020.

Opening batter Beth Mooney anchored the Australian innings, scoring an unbeaten 74 in a total of 156 for six.

South Africa were never up with the required run rate and were restricted to 137 for six despite opener Laura Wolvaardt hitting 61 off 48 balls.

Wolvaardt and semi-final heroine Tazmin Brits struggled to find gaps in the field and scored only 17 runs before Brits was caught at mid-on off Darcie Brown off the last ball of the fifth over.

Marizanne Kapp hit two boundaries but was out for 11 and South Africa captain Sune Luus was run out for two. At that stage the home side needed another 103 runs off 56 balls.

The left-handed Mooney played a measured innings, scoring her 74 runs off 53 balls while a succession of partners batted aggressively.

Ash Gardner and Grace Harris both batted ahead of captain Meg Lanning and appeared to be under instructions to go for their shots.

South Africa's bowlers performed steadily and were backed up by enthusiastic fielding. Stalwarts Shabnim Ismail and Kapp both took two wickets each.

But Australia showed their quality in defending their total with athleticism and commitment that put the South African batters under constant pressure.

Brief scores :

Australia 156-6 in 20 overs (B. Mooney 74 not out; S. Ismail 2-26, M. Kapp 2-35) v South Africa 137-6 in 20 overs (L. Wolvaardt 61).

Result : Australia won by 19 runs

Toss : Australia.

Source : Mint

Correct Answer :   New Delhi

* Sports Secretary Sujata Chaturvedi on Friday (24th February 2023) inaugurated the three-day All-India Taekwondo Championship in New Delhi.

* The championship is being organised to commemorate the 50th year of diplomatic ties between Korea and India and to revitalize Taekwondo that has been stagnant since the pandemic, and to lay the foundation for the future as a major sports event between the two countries. 

* The Sports Authority of India (SAI) is co-hosting the event with Korean Cultural Centre India and Korea National Sports University. 

* Speaking on the occasion, the Sports Secretary expressed hope that this sporting event will further strengthen the ties between the two countries.
 
* The Taekwondo Championship is being held at  Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in the national capital and has been divided in two parts - Poomsae and Sparring called Kyorugi.

* Only elite Taekwondo players registered in 79 regional centers and regional training centers of Sports Authority of India will participate in the sparring category and the Poomsae category is open to the public anyone with a Kukkiwon-certified Taekwondo dan certificate can participate..

Source  : AIR

Correct Answer :   Spain

Sergio Ramos announced his retirement from the Spanish national team on Thursday (23rd Feb 2023).  Ending his 18-year old career with the Spanish National Team, where he won every possible silverwares.

* The 36-year old appeared in 180 matches, the most number of games played by any Spanish player and scored 23 goals.

* He was won the FIFA World Cup in 2010 and two back to back Euros in 2008 and 2012 and was the captain of the national team for 5 years.

* Ramos revealed that the current head coach Luis de la Fuente called him up and said that the former Real Madrid man will no longer be in his future plans regardless of his performance.

* The charismatic defender last featured for his nation back in 2021.

* The centre-back made his debut for Spain in 2005 and earned 180 caps for La Furia Roja.

Source : India

Correct Answer :   Carlos Alcaraz

Top-seeded Spanish player, Carlos Alcaraz, claimed his first title since his landmark U.S. Open win by defeating Cameron Norrie in straight sets at the Argentina Open tennis tournament 2023.

Argentina Open title 2023 :

* Argentina Open trophy at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club on Sunday (19th Feb 2023) evening.

* After missing the Australian Open due to injuries, Carlos Alcaraz returned to the court in style and won his seventh ATP title and his first since the US Open 2022.

* Alcaraz defeated Cameron Norrie in the final, marking his first ATP tournament since November 2022.

* The victory made Alcaraz the first Spanish player to win the title in Buenos Aires since Rafael Nadal in 2015.

Men's Doubles : In the men's doubles category, Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini won the title by defeating Nicolás Barrientos and Ariel Behar in straight sets with a score of 6–2, 6–4.

* Winner of Men's Singles : Carlos Alcaraz
* Runner-up of Men's Singles : Cameron Norrie

* Winner of Men's Doubles : Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini
* Runner-up of Men's Doubles : Nicolás Barrientos and Ariel Behar

Correct Answer :   Aiden Markram

* South African all-rounder Aiden Markram has been appointed as the new Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) Captain ahead of IPL 2023.

* He replaced Kane Williamson, who was released by Sunrisers Hyderabad, after which the franchise was looking for a new captain.

* Markram recently won the SA20 title to Sunrisers Eastern Cape in January 2022.

* IPL 2023 will start on March 31, in Ahmedabad. In the first match, the Gurjarat Titans will be facing the four-time champion Chennai Super Kings.

Correct Answer :   Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar

In Shooting, India's Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar on Wednesday (22nd Feb 2023) claimed the gold medal in the men's individual 50m rifle 3 positions competition at the ISSF World Cup 2023 in Cairo, Egypt.

The 22-year-old Tomar, who had also won a gold in the Chagwon World Cup last year(2022), won 16-6 in the gold medal contest to comfortably beat Austria's Alexander Schmirl.

* Earlier, India's Tilottama Sen had won a bronze medal in the women’s 10m Air Rifle.

* India is placed comfortably on top of the medal tally with four gold.

* Hungary is in second position with two gold medals.

* 10m air rifle mixed team : Rudrankksh Balasaheb Patil and R Narmada Nithin

* 10m air pistol mixed team : Varun Tomar and Rhythm Sangwan

* Men's 10m air rifle : Rudrankksh Patil.

Source : AIR