Nitin Sharma

Referee Alireza Faghani, gestures as France's Ousmane Dembele (7) argues during the World Cup Group I soccer match between France and Senegal in East Rutherford, N.J., near New York, Tuesday, June 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Steve Luciano) Somewhere in Qom, south of Tehran, there is a poster of Alireza Faghani standing with Donald Trump and Gianni Infantino, all three of them giving a thumbs-up after last year’s Club World Cup final. In the original photograph, Faghani is wearing a medal.

Dhiraj Bommadevara after winning the title in the Antalya Archery World Cup Stage 3 on Sunday. (World Archery) Ten years back, Dhiraj Bommadevara‘s mother Revathi had sold her mangalsutra and more jewellery to get a second-hand bow for her son. On Sunday, the Vijayawada archer emotionally recalled that sacrifice after winning the men’s recurve title and combining with Kumkum Mohod to fetch the mixed team gold at the Archery World Cup Stage 3 in Antalya.

It’s Sunday evening at the Gandhi Sports Complex Ground, first constructed in 1932, where the assistant curator Raju is approached by some players of a local cricket league. “Abhishek Sharma ethe hi khede ne? (Does Abhishek Sharma also play here?),” they wonder. Raju points to the adjoining Badminton Hall behind the stadium. “Hanji, te ground toh bahar chakke uss badminton hall te marda si (Yes, and he would hit sixes landing at that badminton hall outside the stadium),” he said.