Current Affairs December 2019 - Sports

1 - Virat Kohli regains no.1 spot in ICC Test rankings

India captain Virat Kohli regained the top spot in the latest International Cricket Council’s (ICC’s) Test rankings. Kohli, with 928 points, is now five points clear at the top against Austalia's Steve Smith. Kane Williamson of New Zealand is third in the list followed by India's Cheteswar Pujara. David Warner is 5^th in the list.

West Indies captain Jason Holder has consolidated his position at the top of the all-rounders' list. Among the bowlers, Jasprit Bumrah is the highest-placed Indian at the fifth position. Pat Cummins of Australia topped the bowler's list followed by South Africa's Kagiso Rabada.

2 - David Warner hits triple century against Pakistan

Australian opener David Warner hit a triple century during the second Test against Pakistan in Adelaide. Warner scored an unbeaten 335. With this, he joined an elite group of 10 players to reach the milestone.

Warner passed Sir Donald Bradman and Mark Taylor's mark of 334. Former opening batsman Matthew Hayden has the highest Test score by an Australian with his 380 not out against Zimbabwe in 2003. West Indies great Brian Lara is the current world record holder with his unbeaten 400 against England in 2004.

3 - Senior Wrestling National Championships

Star wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik registered convincing wins in the finals to claim gold medals at the Senior Wrestling National Championships in Jalandhar. While Phogat beat 20-year-old Haryana’s Anju 7-3 in the 55 kg category, Olympic bronze medalist Malik defeated Radhika of Haryana 4-2 in the 62 kg category.

In the 68 kg category, 35-year-old Haryana wrestler Anita Sheoran stunned Commonwealth Games bronze medalist Divya Kakran. Punjab’s 35-year-old Gursharan Kaur claimed the title in the 76kg category, with a 4-2 win over Pooja of Haryana.

4 - Sourabh Verma lost to Wang Tzu Wei in men's singles final of Syed Modi International

Chinese Taipei's Wang Tzu Wei won the men's singles final of the Syed Modi International tournament held in Lucknow. Wei defeated Sourabh Verma of India in straight sets by 21-15, 21-17.

Carolina Marin won the women's final after she won over Thai challenger Phittayaporn Chaiwan. Russia's Rodion Alimov and Alina Davletova won the mixed doubles final against Marcus Ellis and Lauren Smith of England. Jung Kyung Eun and Baek Ha Na of Korea won the women’s doubles final while He Jiting and Tan Qiang of China won the men’s doubles.

5 - New Zealand won MCC’s Spirit of Cricket award

New Zealand's outstanding display, both on and off the field, in the epic ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019 final at Lord's has earned them Christopher Martin-Jenkins Spirit of Cricket award for 2019. New Zealand players were awarded for their level of sporting conduct that was fitting for such a fantastic final.

Christopher Martin-Jenkins Spirit of Cricket award was created in 2013, in memory of Martin-Jenkins, the former MCC president and BBC Test Match Special commentator, to honour his longstanding passion to see the game played in the right spirit.

6 - Lionel Messi won Ballon d’Or for 6^th time.

Lionel Messi won a record-breaking sixth Ballon d'Or. In 54 appearances of 2019, Messi managed an astonishing 46 goals and 17 assists while for Barca alone he hit 41 goals and 15 assists in 44 matches, which included seven doubles and three hat-tricks.

Messi's first season as club captain brought a third consecutive La Liga title. He also claimed his sixth Pichichi Trophy as the division's top scorer, with 36 goals in 34 matches.

7 - Lewis Hamilton won Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

Six times world champion Lewis Hamilton bagged the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2019. It was his 84^th career victory, fifth in Abu Dhabi and 11^th of the season. Red Bull's Dutch driver Max Verstappen stood 2^nd in the race. Charles Leclerc stood third and ValtteriBottas stood at 4^th position.

The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is a Formula One motor race. 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix race took place over 55 laps of the 5.554-kilometre Yas Marina Circuit on Yas Island.

8 - FICCI India Sports Award 2019

Indian women's hockey team captain Rani Rampal and ace pistol shooter Saurabh Chaudhary won the Sports Person of the Year awards at the FICCI India Sports Awards 2019.

The other key winners are:

9 - WADA bans Russia from international sporting events for four years

The World Anti-Doping Agency, WADA, banned Russia for four years, from participation in global sporting events, including the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. WADA accused Moscow of falsifying data from an anti-doping laboratory.

The Russian flag and national anthem have also been banned in global events. The independent McLaren report released in 2016 revealed the significant extent of state-sponsored doping in Russia, notably between 2011 and 2015.

10 - Indian junior women's team won 3-nation hockey tournament

The Indian junior women's team won the three-nation hockey tournament. The Indian team finished top on the point table, with seven points from four matches. They were ahead of Australia on goal difference. New Zealand finished third.

The tournament was held from 3^rd December 2019 to 8^th December 2019 between Australia, India and New Zealand. It was held in Canberra, Australia.

11 - Anthony Joshua reclaimed world heavyweight crown

Britain's Anthony Joshua reclaimed his world heavyweight crown from Andy Ruiz. Joshua had suffered a stunning knockout defeat to Ruiz in New York in June 2019. He produced a masterclass performance to regain his IBF, WBA and WBO titles in emphatic fashion at Ad Diriyah in Saudi Arabia.

The fight was billed as the Clash on the Dunes. Joshua had previously held the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO titles between 2016 and June 2019. Joshua is ranked as the world's best active heavyweight by BoxRec.

12 - India’s R. Praggnanandhaa won London Chess Classic

R. Praggnanandhaa from India won London Chess Classic FIDE Open 2019 champion with a score of 7.5/9 and a rating performance of 2699. Anton Smirnov also scored 7.5/9 followed by Aravindh Chithambaram at third place.

Recently, R. Praggnanandhaa became the World Youth Champion under-18 when he crossed the live rating of 2600 by winning the super strong Xtracon Open in Denmark. Praggnanandhaa will feature upcoming event at the Sunway Open in Sitges, Spain.

13 - Suniel Shetty signed as anti-doping brand ambassador NADA

Actor Suniel Shetty was selected as the brand ambassador of National Anti-Doping Agency NADA. Since the World Anti Doping Agency had suspended India’s National Anti Doping Lab on the account of non-compliances with the International Standard for Laboratories (ISL), Indian athletes’ fear of doping tests to be carried out outside India.

More than 150 athletes failed dope tests in 2019, out of which bodybuilders make up more than one-third of these offenders. Suniel Shetty’s celebrity status will help keep sports clean and deter the players from the menace.

14 - 2019 South Asian Games concluded in Nepal

13^th South Asian Games 2019 concluded in Nepal. India finished on top with 312 medals comprising 174 gold, 93 silver and 45 bronze. Host Nepal remained second and Sri Lanka got third place.

Summary of Event:

• Over 2700 athletes participated at the event.

• In women’s boxing, India’s Pinki Rani brought first gold in 51 kg category.

• India won gold in women’s team and silver in men’s team of squash.

• In 91 kg boxing, Narendra brought sixth Gold for the country.

• In Basketball Indian men’s and women’s teams clinched gold each.

• India won gold in Judo mixed event.

15 - BWF World Tour Finals 2019

The BWF World Tour Finals 2019 was held in Guangzhou, China. World number one badminton player KentoMomota lifted his 11^th title of the year as he defeated Anthony Sinisuka Ginting in the final of the BWF World Tour Finals 2019.

Other Winners:

16 - FIH unveiled new world ranking system for 2020

The International Hockey Federation (FIH) unveiled a new world ranking system for 2020 in Lausanne, Switzerland. It will come into effect from January 2020. For a better reflection of current performances, the new ranking will be match-based instead of tournament-based calculation.

The outgoing world ranking system was in existence since 2003. It was originally devised to allocate teams into pools at tournaments. The old model allowed nations to earn ranking points two to three times per year.

17 - Rohit Sharma becomes La Liga's first Indian brand ambassador

Rohit Sharma became the first non-footballer in history to be named the brand ambassador of the La Liga. The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera Division commonly known as La Liga (La Liga Santander for sponsorship reasons with Santander), is the men's top professional football division of the Spanish football league system.

The English Premier League is the most followed competition in India, while Bundesliga and Serie A are also making efforts to capture the attention of Indian audiences.

18 - Ben Stokes honored with Sports Personality of the Year 2019 award

England cricketer Ben Stokes was named as BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2019. England cricket team was awarded the Team of the Year 2019. Jos Buttler's run-out of Martin Guptill won Greatest Sporting Moment of the Year.

Ben became fifth cricketer to win the award. Past cricketer recipients’ of this award include Flintoff, David Steele, Jim Laker and Sir Ian Botham. Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton and athlete Dina Asher-Smith were voted second and third respectively in BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2019 voting.

19 - Belgium crowned FIFA Team of the Year

Belgium was crowned FIFA 'Team of the Year' for the second successive time. Red Devils team was on top spot. World champions France remained in the second place ahead of Brazil in third, England at fourth position and Uruguay moved up to fifth on the back of a two-spot rise. China dropped one place to 76^th.

Qatar was ranking's Mover of the Year. Qatar jumped a year-high 38 places, followed closely by fellow climbers Algeria (up 32 ranks) and Japan (up 22 places).

20 - Mirabai Chanu won Gold in 6^th Qatar International Cup in Doha

Former world champion weightlifter, Saikhom Mirabai Chanu, won the women's 49kg category goldmedal at the 6^th Qatar International Cup in Doha. Chanu bagged gold with an effort of 194kg in the Olympic qualifying event. The 24-year-old Manipuri lifted 83kg in snatch and 111kg in clean and jerk.

Indian weightlifter, Jeremy Lalrinnunga, from won the silver medal in men’s 67 kg weight category. RakhiHalder clinched bronze medal in women’s 64kg category.

21 - Abhinav Lohan won Bengaluru Open Golf Championship

Abhinav Lohan won the PGTI title. It was Lohan's first title on the TATA Steel PGTI and second win of the year as he had also emerged victorious at the PGTI Feeder Tour event in Lucknow. Chandigarh's Karandeep Kochhar finished runner-up. M Dharma and Rahil Gangjee took third and fourth places.

Lohan thus became the fourth Indian golfer to register his maiden title on the TATA Steel PGTI this season following the likes of Kshitij Naveed Kaul, Priyanshu Singh and Veer Ahlawat.

22 - India stays at 108^th rank in latest FIFA Ranking

The Indian men's football team remained static at 108^th spot in the year-ending FIFA rankings. India, however, lost 11 places throughout the year. With 1187 total points, India is placed at 19^th spot among Asian countries headed by Japan 28^th.

2018 World Cup runners-up Belgium ended on top for the second successive year. World champions France remained in second place ahead of Brazil. England was fourth while Uruguay moved up to fifth spot.

23 - Sweden beats India to win U-17 tri-nation tournament final

Sweden won the U-17 Women's Football Tournament as they beat hosts India 4-0 in the final played at the Mumbai Football Arena. The Tri-nation tournament was organised by AIFF as preparation for the upcoming 2020 FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup hosted by India. The third nation to participate was Thailand.

The award-winners at the end of the tournament are as follows:

• Most Valuable Player: EvelinaDuljan (Sweden)

• Most Promising Player: Shilky Devi (India)

• Highest Scorer: Monika Bah (Sweden)

• Best Goalkeeper: Elin Svahn (Sweden)

24 - Zeena Khitta won Women's National 10m Air Rifle

Zeena Khitta of Himachal Pradesh won the gold in the women's 10m Air Rifle event at the 63^rd National Shooting Championship. Mehuli Ghosh won the silver medal while Apurvi Chandela won the bronze medal.

Reigning Commonwealth Games champion Shreyasi Singh won the women's Trap Gold. Rajeshwari from Punjab claimed the team gold in Women's Trap along with teammates Inaya Vijay Singh and Prabsukhman Kaur. Varda Sharma of Delhi won the Junior Women's Trap competition to win gold. Among the teams, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and West Bengal won two gold medals each.

25 - Nadal and Barty named 2019 ITF World Champions

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) announced Australia's Ashleigh Barty and Rafael Nadal of Spain as International Tennis Federation’s (ITF) World Champions in singles for 2019. This awards will be given at the 2020 ITF world champions 2^nd June, in Paris.

Other recepients were as follows:

26 - Manu Bhaker, Anish Bhanwala clinch five gold medals at National Championships

Commonwealth Games champions Manu Bhaker and Anish Bhanwala clinched gold medals at the 63^rd National Shooting Championships in Bhopal. Bhaker, representing Haryana, clinched four gold medals (individual and team events in senior and junior) in the women's 10-meter air pistol.

Anish won individual gold medal in the senior men's 25 meter rapid fire pistol event.

Devanshi Dhama bagged the silver in the senior women's 10-meter air pistol event while Yashaswini Singh Deshwal won the bronze medal in the same event. Manu Bhaker and Yashaswini have already secured quotas for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

27 - Indian weightlifter Rakhi created two new national records

Indian weightlifter Rakhi Halder created two new national records on her way to a bronze medal in the women's 64kg weight category at the Qatar International Cup. The Commonwealth Championship gold medalist obliterated the senior national record in both snatch and total lift with her personal best effort of 218kg (95kg in snatch + 123 kg in clean and jerk).

At the Commonwealth Championship in June, Halder had clinched the gold with a combined effort of 214kg (94kg+120kg).

28 - Maisnam Meiraba Luwang won Bangladesh Junior International Badminton Series

India's shuttler Maisnam Meiraba Luwang has won the Men's singles Bangladesh Junior International Badminton Series 2019 in Dhaka. He beat Ken Yong Ong 21, 14, 21-18 in the final.

Meiraba had also clinched the boys' singles U-19 title at the Woncheon Yonex Korea Junior Open International Challenge in November 2019. In women's singles, Indian shuttler Treesa Jolly lost to Thailand's third seed Krittaporn Jiantanet 21-12, 16-21, 21-16 in finals.

29 - Kohli finished as top ranked batsman in ICC Test rankings 2019

Indian skipper Virat Kohli finished as the top ranked batsman in the latest ICC Test rankings issued for 2019. With 928 points, Kohli was 17 points ahead of Australia's Steve Smith who occupied the second spot followed by New Zealand skipper Kane Willamson at number three with 864 points. Cheteshwar Pujara retained his fourth place but Rahane slipped to seventh.

Jasprit Bumrah retained his sixth spot in the list headed by Australia's Pat Cummins. In the ICC World Test Championship, India topped with 360 points followed by Australia at 2^nd place and Pakistan at 3^rd place.

30 - MS Dhoni named captain of CA’s ODI team of the decade

India's World Cup-winning former captain MS Dhoni was named the captain of Cricket Australia's (CA) ODI team of the decade, compiled by Cricket Australia. 3 Indians formed part of the 11-man Cricket Australia's team. MS Dhoni handles the wicket keeping duties in CA's ODI team. India captain Virat Kohli and opener Rohit Sharma form part of team.

Journalist Martin Smith compiles the ODI team of the year for Cricket Australia. ViratKohli is the only Indian cricketer to have found a spot in Cricket Australia's Test team of the decade.

31 - Virat Kohli named in Wisden cricketers of the decade list

Indian skipper Virat Kohli has been named in the Cricketers of the decade list alongside four others by the Wisden Cricketers' Almanac. Apart from Kohli, South African duo of Dale Steyn and AB de Villiers, Australia's Steve Smith and women's all-rounder Ellyse Perry also found a place in the list of five cricketers of the decade.

Kohli, who has scored 5,775 more international runs than anyone else in the last 10 years, has been the best batsman over the last decade. He is also third in the list of leading run-scorers of all time behind Ponting and Tendulkar.