Firstpost Spodcast Episode 89: Virat Kohli leads India to victory, Sameer Verma defends Syed Modi International title and more

Let’s take a quick look at the sporting headlines making the rounds right here on Spodcast, your sports update on Firstpost. On this day in 1932, the 26th of November, Don Bradman completed 10,000 runs in first-class Cricket in 126 innings. Let’s now take a look at the present day happenings in the world of sports today. Cricket news right off the bat! In the India vs Australia T20 Internationals, captain Virat Kohli once again led the way with a superb knock of 61 runs off 41 balls helping India win the third T20 International by six wickets and draw the three-match series 1-1 on Sunday. Australia won the opening T20 by four runs while the second game was a washout, putting additional pressure on India who came here at the back of winning six T20 series in a row. In Women’s Cricket, spinner Ashleigh Gardner shone bright as the Aussie women cricketers cruised to an eight-wicket victory over England in the final of the Women’s World T20 on Saturday. Spinners Ashleigh Gardner and Georgia Wareham took five wickets between them to limit England to a lowly 105 off 19.4 overs, before Gardner led Australia’s chase as they reached their target of 106 with 29 balls to spare. The Aussie women’s cricket team can now proudly boast of winning its fourth Women’s World Twenty20 championship, after winning three successive tournaments in 2010, 2012 and 2014. Badminton news now and Indian Sameer Varma made India proud by beating China’s Lu Guangzu in the men’s singles finals to retain the title at the Syed Modi International World Tour Super 300 in Lucknow on Sunday. The 24-year-old from Madhya Pradesh showed immaculate defence and a never-say-die attitude to achieve a well-fought 16-21, 21-19, 21-14 win in the finals against 22-year-old Lu, who won the Australian Open and Canada Open this year. Meanwhile, a reversal of roles in Women’s Badminton, as Former champion Saina Nehwal failed to produce her best, losing in straight games to young Han Yue of China in a one-sided women’s singles final at the Syed Modi International World Tour Super 300 on Sunday. In the world of tennis, Croatian Marin Cilic beat France’s Lucas Pouille in straight sets on Sunday to give Croatia an unassailable lead in the Davis Cup final. Cilic won 7-6, 6-3, 6-3, to dethrone defending champions France and secure Croatia’s second Davis Cup, 13 years after their first. Pouille took Cilic to a tie-break in the first set but could not mount a challenge in the next two, losing in two hours, 19 minutes. Football news, and Arsenal seems to be on fire as they extend their unbeaten run to 17 matches. Sealing a 2-1 win at Bournemouth on Sunday, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s goal helped Arsenal see off a determined Bournemouth side. Arsenal coach Unai Emery’s side took the lead through Bournemouth’s Jefferson Lerma’s bizarre own goal before Josh King equalised on the stroke of half-time. Aubameyang netted his eighth league goal of the season midway through the second half to lift the fifth-placed Gunners within a point of the top four in the battle to qualify for next season’s Champions League. And finally as we round off this update with some Formula 1 news, new five-time world champion Lewis Hamilton rounded off a successful season and claimed his 11th win of the season on Sunday when he drove his Mercedes to a well-judged triumph in an incident-filled season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The 33-year-old Briton, who started from his 83rd pole position, came home 2.5 seconds ahead of his main title rival four-time champion German Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari. The win came after a race that began with a horrific opening lap crash from which Nico Hulkenberg escaped unhurt, his blazing Renault car having barrel-rolled into the barriers.