Sultan Azlan Shah Cup Hockey Tournament: India maul hapless Poland 10-0, to face Korea in final
Ipoh (Malaysia), Mar 29: Striker Mandeep Singh continued his rich form and scored a brace to help India thrash minnows Poland 10-0 in their last league match of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament here Friday.
Already assured of a place in Saturday's summit clash against Korea, the Indians scored goals almost at will, leaving the Polish players in daze.
Besides Mandeep (50th, 51st minutes), drag flicker Varun Kumar (18th, 25th) also struck twice while Vivek Sagar Prasad (1st), Sumit Kumar (7th), Surender Kumar (19th), Simranjeet Singh (29th), Nilankanta Sharma (36th) and Amit Rohitdas (55th) were the other goal-scorers for India.
Five-time champions India, thus, maintained their unbeaten streak in the tournament, collecting 13 points from five league matches with the help of four wins and a draw.
With two strikes on Friday, Mandeep became the highest goal-scorer in the tournament with a total of seven goals while Varun took his personal tally to five goals so far.
It was expected to be a one-sided contest and it turned out to be so as India raced to a 2-0 lead by the seventh minute through Vivek and Sumit's goals.
The second quarter saw India strengthen their attack as they made space inside the striking circle. In good form, Sumit earned a penalty corner for India which was perfectly converted by Varun.
A minute later, Surender registered his name in the score sheet by scoring from a penalty corner created by Rohidas.
Though India lost forward Shilanand Lakra to a green card in the 24th minute, they secured another penalty corner and Varun was bang on target with a powerful flick to hand his side a commanding 5-0 lead.
Simranjeet then added to the team's tally when he worked with Mandeep after receiving a beautiful assist from Nilakanta Sharma to put the ball past Polish goalkeeper Mateusz Popiolkowski.
With a formidable 6-0 lead at half-time, India continued to dominate after the change of ends.
In the 36th minute, it was Nilakanta's turn to score after receiving a good pass from Sumit.
Though India managed only one goal in the third quarter, the team made a strong finish in the fourth quarter and scored three more goals.
The Polish goalkeeper, meanwhile, was impressive as he made some brilliant saves to keep Gursahibjit Singh and Simranjeet Singh at bay early in the fourth quarter.
A powerfully struck penalty corner by Rohidas too was well-saved by Popiolkowski.
India's eighth and ninth goal came off skilful displays by Mandeep. His first goal was scored after he intercepted Michal Raciniewski to take a direct shot on goal, while his second was well-assisted by Gurinder Singh.
India's 10th goal was scored after Surender earned a penalty corner with Amit making a good conversion.
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Pak cancels over 500 flights in last three days due to raging conflict in West Asia
Islamabad (PTI): Pakistan has cancelled more than 500 domestic and international flights over the past three days due to raging conflict in West Asia, leaving thousands of passengers stranded, according to a media report on Monday.
Along with passengers, air cargo services have also been suspended, halting the transport of various goods, including food items and other supplies. It is still unclear when flights will resume, The Express Tribune newspaper reported.
According to data from the Pakistan Airport Authority, more than 500 flights departing from and arriving at various airports across Pakistan have been cancelled, the paper said.
It added that the suspension of air cargo services has also disrupted the delivery of food and other goods, causing difficulties not only for passengers but also for industrialists.
Flights from Pakistani airports, including Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad, Peshawar, Quetta, Faisalabad, and Multan, operated by PIA, private airlines, and foreign carriers to Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Sharjah, Dubai, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and other countries have been cancelled.
Airport sources stated that some airspaces are closed, leading to the suspension of operations. Currently, there is no information on when flights will resume. Only flights to and from Saudi Arabia are continuing.
If the situation persists or worsens, air operations may face further disruptions.
According to Khawaja Ayub Naseem, a senior leader of the Travel Agents Association, fear and uncertainty are also causing many Umrah pilgrims to hesitate to travel.
Hundreds of pilgrims had booked tickets via Dubai. While ticket refunds are possible, hotel bookings are non-refundable. If the situation continues, travel agents could face losses amounting to millions of rupees.
While Pakistan's airspace remains fully available and secure, airlines have adjusted operations in response to the evolving security situation and restrictions in neighbouring airspace.
Karachi's Jinnah International Airport witnessed extraordinary activity over the weekend, with dozens of flights of foreign airlines diverted to Karachi, creating scenes reminiscent of the 1990 Gulf crisis.
According to aviation sources, a large number of foreign airlines were rerouted to Karachi as regional airspace restrictions and security concerns forced precautionary diversions. Several aircraft were temporarily parked during the day, while many others landed for refuelling.
In view of the extraordinary influx, the Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) on Saturday issued a formal NOTAM highlighting limited aircraft parking space at the airport and directing airlines and cockpit crew to ensure prior coordination before operating into Karachi.
A PAA spokesperson said overall, 27 flights were handled, including diversions, return flights, technical landings and rerouted operations.
Karachi airport alone managed 13 diversions, including technical refuelling stops. In addition, four diversions were recorded in the Lahore Flight Information Region, while two return diversions were handled at Islamabad Airport.
Three flights returned to their original or alternate destinations, while five rerouted flights transited through Karachi's airspace without landing and were provided alternate routes.
The sudden increase in traffic created operational challenges due to limited parking space, prompting airport authorities to caution airlines about possible delays.
The US and Israel launched joint strikes against Iran on Saturday, assassinating 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, alongside family members, including his daughter and grandchildren.
Since then, Iran has targeted multiple US bases in surrounding Gulf States.
