The 2020 Formula One (F1) season will be Sebastian Vettel's last with Ferrari as he refused to sign a new contract extension. The Italian team then went on to sign Mclaren's Carlos Sainz as his replacement.
On the other hand, football returned to Germany with the resumption of the Bundesliga and Lucian Favre's Borussia Dortmund immediately made an impact in the Revierderby against Schalke.
Here's a wrap-up of all the major sports news and updates from the week (May 11 to 17) that passed:
CRICKET
The last couple of months have been challenging for the cricket boards across the globe, with no action due to the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. However, a headway could be reached on May 28 after the International Cricket Council’s Board meeting. All the stakeholders of the affiliated member boards are set to join the meeting via video conferencing to discuss the roadmap and plan a strategy for the future. ( REPORT )
Pakistan’s tour of England, scheduled for July 2020, is likely to go ahead after talks held over biosecurity arrangements. A final decision is yet to be made, however. ( REPORT )
Sri Lanka Cricket has requested the BCCI to seriously consider India’s tour of Sri Lanka for its scheduled series in July. India is scheduled to visit Sri Lanka for three one-dayers and as many T20 internationals in June-July. The tour is currently under threat due to the COVID-19 pandemic. ( REPORT )
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International cricketers could return to the field for the first time since March in the inaugural T10 Vincy Premier League (VPL) tournament in the Caribbean from May 22, according to a report on Friday. The VPL is due to start next Friday in St Vincent and will be the first professional tournament to be played under new temporary laws, including banning the use of saliva on the ball due to the coronavirus pandemic. ( REPORT )
Cricket West Indies chief Ricky Skerritt has said that the COVID-19 pandemic has put the region’s already ailing cricket body into “Intensive Care Unit” and it will have to go for cost-cutting measures to ride out the financial crisis. ( REPORT )
Sachin Tendulkar has settled a lawsuit with an Australian bat maker he accused of failing to pay him millions of dollars under a licensing agreement. Spartan Sports group apologised to Tendulkar for using his name and image after he terminated a deal with them, according to a joint statement. ( REPORT )
FOOTBALL
The Women's Super League season is unlikely to restart due to logistical and financial constraints. If the league doesn't restart, a champion is likely to be announced based on the method followed by the League Two.
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All Spanish league clubs can begin group training sessions this week despite stricter lockdown restrictions remaining in place in parts of Spain because of the coronavirus pandemic. ( REPORT )
Serie A teams will be allowed to resume group training from Monday, Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte has announced. As part of further easing of lockdown measures, Conte gave the green light for team training to take place next week. ( REPORT )
The Bundesliga resumed its season and Borussia Dortmund thumped Schalke 4-0 during the weekend's fixtures. ( REPORT )
The 2023 Women’s World Cup host will be picked by FIFA’s ruling council on June 25. ( REPORT )
The AIFF executive committee unanimously decided to implement the ‘3 (foreigners) + 1 (Asian) recruit rule’ for I-League matches from 2020-21 season. The apex body said the Indian Super League organisers, FSDL, will work with the AIFF and present a plan on the way forward for foreign players in the next couple of months. ( REPORT )
Premier League players do not want to be seen as guinea pigs in the Project Restart plan, Professional Footballers' Association chief executive Gordon Taylor has said. ( REPORT )
The FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in India has been rescheduled for February 17 to March 7, 2021, the governing body announced. ( REPORT )
French women's football giant Lyon will be declared league champion for the 2019-20 campaign, collecting the title for the 14th consecutive year after the season was ended due to the coronavirus pandemic. ( REPORT )
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The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has nominated defender Sandesh Jhingan and women’s team striker Bala Devi for the Arjuna Award . ( REPORT )
TENNIS
There will be no ATP Tour action until at least August, while the WTA Tour season is also on hold for an extended period. ( REPORT )
Ankita Raina and Divij Sharan are set to be nominated for the Arjuna award by the national tennis federation. ( REPORT )
There’s a possibility of the 2021 Maharashtra Open being shifted from its scheduled early February start. ( REPORT )
HOCKEY
Indian hockey great Balbir Singh Senior's condition has been stabilising but remains critical, his grandson Kabir revealed on Saturday. ( REPORT )
India’s World Cup-winning hockey goalkeeper Ashok Diwan, who was stuck in the United States due to the travel ban imposed for containing the spread of coronavirus pandemic, returned to the country on Friday. ( REPORT )
Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju assured the Olympics-bound Indian hockey teams a return to practice once the protocols are set. ( REPORT )
Hockey India has made it mandatory for all players and staff of member associations to download the government’s Aarogya Setu app to be eligible for tournaments. ( REPORT )
TABLE TENNIS
Indian table tennis star Manika Batra is beating the lockdown blues with meditation, workouts and books. ( REPORT )
MOTORSPORT
Sebastian Vettel’s decision to leave Ferrari at the end of the year triggered a set of moves that will see Carlos Sainz Jr. taking over from the German in 2021 and Daniel Ricciardo slipping into Sainz’s seat at McLaren. ( REPORT )
The 24 Hours of Le Mans race was due to be held across June 13-14 but has been postponed to September 19-20 due to the coronavirus pandemic, allowing for a simulated version of the classic endurance test to take its original spot on the calendar. ( REPORT )
BADMINTON
India’s national badminton coach Pullela Gopichand wants BWF to come up with “radical” solutions to restart the sport smoothly in the post-COVID-19 world, suggesting that conducting more tournaments at a single venue could be the way forward. ( REPORT )
An Indonesian badminton legend has claimed the Southeast Asian nation's sports ministry is full of corrupt “rats”, after admitting his role in a bribery case. ( REPORT )
The BWF is unlikely to go ahead with its plans of introducing synthetic shuttlecocks next year in international tournaments in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. ( REPORT )
SHOOTING
Shooters Saurabh Chaudhary, Abhishek Verma, Manu Bhaker and Elavenil Valarivan have been nominated by the National Rifle Association of India for the Arjuna Award. ( REPORT )
BOXING
Former Youth World boxing championship gold medallist Nikhat Zareen has been waiting for a decent government job. ( REPORT )
ATHLETICS
The International Olympic Committee has created a fund of $800 million to tackle the financial hardships created by the coronavirus pandemic which also forced the postponement of Tokyo Olympics until 2021. ( REPORT )
European cross-country champion Robel Fsiha has been banned for four years after “artificial testosterone” was found in his sample. ( REPORT )
SAI has formulated a detailed draft of the Standard Operating Procedure to be followed before reopening of its training centres later this month. ( REPORT )
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