Coaches: The mentors behind India’s para-sport success

“Coaches aren’t there just to mentor or teach,” said Gaurav Khanna, referring to Suhas Yathiraj. “You need to identify talent and then convince them to hone it.” asg-reflektory.pl

“I was actually DM of Azamgarh when there was a competition organised in my area,” said Suhas. “I had gone to inaugurate it and, like you play casually, I was doing the same with the local players. That’s when my coach saw me play and asked if I wanted to play Para Badminton. I had never heard of it and said no, as I was busy with my day job and it wasn’t possible.

“Three months later, I called Sir and said I wanted to try my hand at it. After a few months, we travelled to China for my first tournament and I managed to do well there and win it. Had I lost there, I would have come back to India and no one would have known about Suhas LY, the athlete. Much credit goes to Gaurav Sir for getting me to where I am.”

A coach is not just a teacher. Rather, for some like Suhas, the coach is also a sounding board.

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Leading into Teachers’ Day, it is time to pause and appreciate the work that some of our coaches do, or have done, with and for our para-athletes over the last few years. Maybe that’s why Sumit Antil, soon after winning the gold medal in Paris, put it around the neck of his coach as a gesture of appreciation for all the hard work that had been done behind the scenes. Maybe for the same reason, Sheetal Devi decided to dedicate her medal to the “Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board”.

“You can’t let these young athletes be on their own,” said Khanna, Head Coach of the Para Badminton team. “When things don’t go well for them, people write them off. But that’s where the coach’s job becomes the most important. If I tell them as a coach that they can surely make a comeback, they feel better and think not all is lost.”

“Gaurav Sir was God-sent,” said a player who did not wish to be named. “He mentored me at my worst and maybe that’s why I am back playing.”

“As coaches, you live this life,” says Khanna. “You aren’t playing and yet you are very much out there, living every moment with the athlete. You know what’s going through their minds and you want to help as much as possible. It is a unique relationship. And yet, you need to know that it is the athlete who will win and you must give the athlete his or her space. As a coach, you need to be backstage and not become the centre of attention.”

To every coach, leading into Teachers’ Day, we celebrate you all for the work you do and hope we produce many more coaches in India, for that is a dire need. We need to coach our coaches and reduce our dependence on foreigners going forward if we are to become a stronger sporting nation.

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India all-rounder Deepti Sharma has acknowledged her team’s strong record against Pakistan ahead of their ACC Women’s Asia Cup 2026 clash later today. The Indians have won 14 of their 17 T20I meetings against Pakistan, and Deepti believes that record gives her side an edge.

India have already secured a place in the semifinals with a game to spare. They will now look to finish the league stage unbeaten, while Pakistan will be hoping to strengthen their chances of reaching the last four.

Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Deepti said India’s record against Pakistan was a sign of their consistency, but she did not want her team to take anything for granted.

“Look, there is no advantage as such. The only thing is that whatever we have won against them (Pakistan), whether it is the Asia Cup or any other matches, we are always one step ahead of them. And that’s it,” Deepti said.

The 29-year-old also pointed to the balance in India’s squad. She said the team’s batting and bowling units have both contributed well in the tournament and that players need to step up when their opportunity comes.

“The whole team is performing well. If you look at the bowling unit or the batting unit, I think both things are balanced. The one who has a good day, she tries to do better and take the game further. And those around her, they try to stay positive things so that they step in more in their game,” she said.

Deepti has also been among India’s key performers with the ball, taking six wickets in the tournament’s opening two matches. Her form will be important as India prepare for another high-profile game against Pakistan.

Also Read: India vs Pakistan, ACC Women’s Asia Cup 2026 Preview: When and where to watch?

Despite India’s advantage on paper, Deepti said the team would not be distracted by Pakistan’s bowling attack. Instead, the focus would remain on playing to their own strengths and maintaining the same approach that has worked so far.

“Look, our team is also good and their bowlers are also good. We know that. But we focus more on the strengths we have. And as I said, we want to play a good brand of cricket. That’s what we are focusing on,” she said.

“We just want to play good cricket. As a bowling unit, as a batting unit, the team should be as compact as we are playing in two games. That’s the mindset,” Deepti added.

The India vs Pakistan match will start from 8:00PM (IST) onwards at the Dubai International Stadium.

Seville [Spain], September 5 (ANI): Real Madrid suffered their first defeat of the La Liga season after losing 1-0 to Real Betis at La Cartuja, with Cucho Parrott’s second-half rebound proving decisive in a closely contested encounter.

Madrid started strongly and created two clear opportunities inside the opening 15 minutes. Arda Güler’s cross found Dean Huijsen, whose acrobatic effort was denied by the Betis goalkeeper, before Vinicius Jr.’s strike from a tight angle hit the post following another dangerous delivery from the Turkish midfielder.

The visitors continued to threaten, with Jude Bellingham creating a major chance just before half-time. The England midfielder’s through ball released Vinicius, who set up Kylian Mbappe inside the box, but Betis defenders blocked both attempts from the French forward.

Madrid came close again in stoppage time before the break when the Betis goalkeeper saved Bellingham’s header, while Huijsen’s follow-up effort struck the crossbar.

The tempo dropped after the interval, but Madrid remained dangerous. Mbappe missed a chance after Huijsen’s interception set him up in the box, while Thibaut Courtois denied Betis’ Deossa with a fine save.

However, Parrott reacted quickest to score from the rebound in the 80th minute after Courtois had stopped a header from a corner, giving Betis the lead.

Madrid pushed for an equaliser late in the game. Mbappe’s attempted chip struck the crossbar, while a goal from Jesus Fortea was ruled out for offside.

In stoppage time, Madrid were awarded a penalty after Vinicius Jr. was brought down inside the box. Mbappe stepped up, but goalkeeper Valles saved the spot-kick to preserve Betis’ advantage.

The result marked Real Madrid’s first defeat in La Liga this season, while Betis secured a memorable victory against one of the title contenders. (ANI)

(This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received. The Tribune assumes no responsibility or liability for its accuracy, completeness, or content.)

In the Women's T20 Asia Cup 2026 match against Hong Kong, Team India secured a dominating victory by 137 runs at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in the United Arab Emirates.

During the match, Team India's star batswoman Smriti Mandhana smashed 124 runs. Facing just 64 deliveries, the left-handed batswoman accumulated 14 boundaries and seven maximums.

With this, she surpassed legendary Team India cricketer Mithali Raj to become the highest run-scorer in women's international cricket. Speaking about the historic achievement, Mandhana said that she never imagined accomplishing the feat, and expressed happiness at having two Indian players at the top positions.

"Yeah, I mean, till I was batting, I didn't know what record it was because I didn't know the exact runs or all of that. But yeah, looking back, one of a very good day for Indian cricket, I would say. Of course, Mithali-di has been such a legend and a role model, and we've all grown up watching her bat," she said.

"So, to go past her in the tally of runs, I definitely never imagined to do that. But happy that there are two Indians at the top two," added Mandhana.

Currently, the Mumbai-born cricketer has 10,880 runs to her name in women's international cricket. Mithali has slipped to second position with 10,868 runs, followed by New Zealand's Suzie Bates with 10,740, England's Charlotte Edwards with 10,273 and West Indies' Stafanie Taylor with 10,007 runs to her name.

In the ongoing Women's T20 Asia Cup, Team India is placed in the first position on the points table of Group A with a net run rate (NRR) of +5.775.

Women's T20 Asia Cup 2026: List of records that Smriti Mandhana achieved

Mandhana became the leading century-maker in women's international cricket, moving to 18 centuries and surpassing former Australia captain Meg Lanning's tally of 17 tons.

She also became the first Indian woman to score two T20I centuries, going past skipper Harmanpreet Kaur.

Mandhana's record-breaking knock also saw her register the highest individual score in Women's T20 Asia Cup history, with her 124 against Hong Kong surpassing Chamari Athapaththu's unbeaten 119 against Malaysia in Dambulla in 2024.

(With PTI Inputs)

Bengaluru, September 4, 2026: The fourth edition of the Global Chess League (GCL), a joint initiative of Tech Mahindra and FIDE, promises to be a scintillating affair as world number one Magnus Carlsen returns after a year’s hiatus to strengthen defending champions Alpine APL Pipers, while two-time champions Triveni Continental Kings retain their core group with an eye on a third title in four years.

The Global Chess League has emerged as one of the most coveted team competitions in the world chess calendar and will be hosted in India for the second consecutive year. Season 4 has attracted some of the world’s best players for the nine-day competition, which will see six teams face off in a double round-robin format, with the top two teams advancing to the Grand Finale on September 13, 2026.

Speaking at a press conference ahead of the competition, Peeyush Dubey, Chairman, Tech Mahindra Global Chess League , said, ” We at the Global Chess League (GCL) have always believed that chess is a sport that a family can enjoy together. Chess can be a festival, and that is exactly the revolution that we are seeing. I am very happy to say that Season 4 of the Global Chess League is bigger and better in every single aspect than what we have seen. We have some of the best global players with us in Bangalore and some of the biggest companies in the world supporting this movement. ”

Apart from Carlsen, 2026 Candidates winner Javokhir Sindarov, Alireza Firouzja, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Viswanathan Anand and Ian Nepomniachtchi will lead their respective teams as icon players.

Carlsen played for the Pipers in the first two seasons, held in Dubai and London, but pulled out of the last season in Mumbai, where the team went on to deny Triveni Continental Kings a third consecutive title. The Pipers have strengthened their squad further, bringing in India’s first-ever Women’s World Cup winner Divya Deshmukh to join experienced campaigner Koneru Humpy on the women’s board, while Dutch GM Anish Giri and India’s Vidit Gujrathi will shoulder the responsibility on the other two men’s boards.

Asked about his return to the competition, the Norwegian Grandmaster insisted that he loves the format and is focused on doing his best to help the team retain the title. “I am a little bit surprised to be back, seeing as we had a couple of really frustrating years for the team – the first two years when I was playing. And then when I was away, the team won it all. So this time I’m just trying to do my best to not do any worse than last year,” said Carlsen.

The GCL has also worked on taking the overall experience of watching chess to the next level with every edition, and the fourth edition will witness several new innovations.

Gourav Rakshit, Commissioner, Tech Mahindra Global Chess League, said , “Our endeavour at the Global Chess League (GCL) is to really make this game come to life for audiences that may or may not understand it to the level that they need to. So we are bringing in innovations towards that particular end. Our philosophy is that chess doesn’t need drama to be manufactured. It’s our responsibility to bring that drama out in front for the audiences and screens.”

While spectators at the venue will continue to watch the matches and analysis on the big screen inside the playing hall and listen to commentary through personalised headsets, fans across the country can play along with the Grandmasters on the GCL app and test their own skills against the best in the world.

Apart from the main stream covering the entire match, fans can also focus on any particular board or player, while spectators can follow the reactions of other team members from the team dugout. This year, the league will also equip team coaches and captains with heart-rate monitors to track their stress levels during the matches.

Season 4 will kick off with a blockbuster opening match between PBG Alaskan Knights and Fyers American Gambits on Saturday, followed by Triveni Continental Kings taking on Ganges Grandmasters and CheQ Mumba Masters facing defending champions Alpine APL Pipers.
While Carlsen’s return to the competition has been the biggest talking point of Season 4, 15-year-old Turkish GM Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus will make his GCL debut for Alaskan Knights alongside legendary Indian Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand.

The 56-year-old Anand, who represented Ganges Grandmasters in the first three seasons, has moved to Alaskan Knights this year and will lead one of the youngest squads in the tournament, which also boasts India’s Arjun Erigaisi and Abhimanyu Mishra, who will make his league debut on the Prodigy board.

“It’s going to be an amazing experience for me to play with Vishy and Arjun. We have a very strong team and it’s my first time here. I am really excited to play here. I hope we can win the tournament, ” said Erdogmus.

Meanwhile, two-time champions Triveni Continental Kings have retained their established core, with Alireza Firouzja leading the team on the icon board and being well supported by Wei Yi, Alexandra Kosteniuk and Zhu Jiner.

Speaking about her team’s preparation, former women’s world champion Kosteniuk said, “I am very happy and excited to once again play for Triveni Continental Kings. It is a good feeling that we have won this title twice before, but it will be even nicer to add a third one here. So that’s what we are aiming for.”

CheQ Mumba Masters, led by Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, and Fyers American Gambits, led by Sindarov, are also confident of finding the winning momentum this season.

Maxime said , “Yeah, in general, I am very happy with our team and the team spirit we build. We build it every season, in and out. So I think that’s one of our big strengths. It hasn’t materialised on the board in the last three seasons, but I’m very happy with Mumba Masters and the trust they have in me. And I hope I can help them and give back some of that trust on the chessboard as well – not only in the team spirit, but also by helping us win the whole thing.”

Sindarov, who will be playing on the icon board in the GCL for the first time, said he enjoys the league’s format and now has the added responsibility of playing on the first board.

Fans across India can watch the matches live for free on the official Tech Mahindra Global Chess League YouTube channel. The broadcast will also be available on the Chess24 YouTube and Twitch channels, as well as Chess.com India. For the first time this season, Hindi-language commentary will be provided for the Indian audience.

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