Indian sports wrap, September 27: India to play two friendlies against Myanmar ahead of AFC U-17 Asian Cup Qualifiers

FOOTBALL

India Under-17 team to play two friendlies against Myanmar ahead of AFC U-17 Asian Cup qualifiers

The Indian Under-17 football team will play two friendlies against Myanmar ahead of the AFC U-17 Asian Cup Uzbekistan 2027 qualifiers from November 11 to November 20 which will be held in Kuala Lampur.

Both friendlies will be held at the Starcity Sports Club in Thanlyin, Myanmar. The first friendly will take place on October 4 while the second match will take place on October 7.

The two matches will be the Blue Colts’ first international friendlies since beginning their preparatory camp under head coach Mehrajuddin Wadoo in Margao earlier this month.

India has been drawn in Group E for the Qualifiers. The Blue Colts will face hosts Malaysia, Palestine, Singapore and Guam.

Myanmar, who qualified for the AFC U17 Asian Cup 2026, will provide India with relevant preparation ahead of the 2027 Qualifiers.

India also played two friendly matches against Myanmar in Yangon in March 2026. The Blue Colts won the first match 2-1 before the second ended in a goalless draw.

Head coach Mehrajuddin Wadoo said, “These matches will be an important part of our preparation for the qualifiers. Myanmar are a good opponent at this age group, and like India, they also qualified for the AFC U17 Asian Cup this year. Playing two international matches away from home will give us a good opportunity to assess the players and work on different aspects of our game before November.”

-Team Sportstar

CRICKET

S. Dinesh Kumar Appointed Chairman of TNPL Governing Council

Dinesh Kumar has been appointed Chairman of the TNPL Governing Council following the TNCA Annual General Meeting held on September 27, 2026.

The TNCA General Elections for the 2025–2028 term were held in November 2025, with the association and key office-bearer positions decided through that process.

At the time, the TNPL Governing Council continued to be constituted through nomination, with S. Balakrishna and Yusuf Y. Laila serving on the Council for the 2025–26 season.

The current election represents a change in this process, with the two positions now being filled through an electoral process.

Dinesh brings extensive experience in cricket and cricket administration in Tamil Nadu.

He has previously served as a member of the TNPL Governing Council, a Tamil Nadu age-group selector for the Under-19, Under-14 and Under-12 teams, and on the TNCA League Sub-Committee for approximately five years. His experience across these roles has given him exposure to various facets of Tamil Nadu cricketing ecosystem, including player development, selection and league administration.

As Chairman, Dinesh will lead the Governing Council as the TNPL continues to strengthen its sporting structure, player development and administration, while expanding its commercial potential and position within Indian domestic cricket.

With the completion of the election process, Dinesh and V. V. Sankapani will serve as members of the TNPL Governing Council.

MOTORSPORT

Ishaan Madesh, Saishiva Sankaran share honours in Indian National Racing 4W Round 2

Bengaluru’s Ishaan Madesh found his form for his first win of the season in the MRF Formula 2000 class as the second round of the MRF Indian National Racing Challenge 4W – 2026 concluded at the Madras International Circuit, here on Sunday.

In the MRF Formula 1600 class, Visakhapatnam’s Bhuvan Bonu won two of the three races and finished second to Gyan S from Chennai in the other.

Ishaan, who last drove the F2000 several months ago when he won the championship, and missed the first round last month, finished second and third in the two earlier races this weekend, but came into his own in Race-3 to end Pune teenager Saishiva Sanakran’s streak of five consecutive victories across two rounds. Saishiva won Race-1 yesterday and Race-2 today, before yielding to Ishaan’s pace in the third outing.

“Yes, I salvaged my weekend with this win. I went out on new tyres which gave me better grip than the others who were on old tyres. So, I could push and take the lead at Turn-1, passing Saishiva (the pole-sitter) on the outside. Thereafter, I had the pace to extend the lead for this win. I came here on Saturday without enough seat time, so, I am happy with my performance in the last race,” said Ishaan.

Meanwhile, Nellore’s Viswas Vijayaraj who spearheaded DTS Racing’s dominance in the Formula LGB 1300 (Open) won all three races this weekend. In the Junior section, Bengaluru’s Shatveer Shetty won Race-2, while three Sri Lankans from Colombo, Aadam Junaid, Kaveen Diyyan Rajapksa and Saurika Livindu completed a podium sweep for Momentum Motorsports in Race-3.

Chennai’s Alisha Abdulla marked her return to racing after a five-year break due to marriage and motherhood, with two podium finishes, including a win, in the MRF Saloons (Toyota Etios) category. However, she was stripped of her victory following a disqualification for an infringement. Hemachandran R from Puducherry, winner of the previous race, was promoted to P1 for a double. Coimbatore’s S Gokula Rathinam had won the first race.

In the Volkswagen Polo Cup, Mumbai’s Pratik Sonawane won two of the three races while Aman Nagdev from Noida topped the other. Thrissur’s Diljith TS and his DTS Racing team-mate Lal Kattikulam Bharathan, won one race apiece in the Super Stock class.

The results (Final, all 8 laps unless mentioned):

MRF F2000 (Race-2, 10 laps): 1. Saishiva Sankaran (Pune) (16:06.547); 2. Ishaan Madesh (Bengaluru) (16:13.734); 3. Swarnav Das (Pune) (16:23.293). Race-3: 1. Ishaan Madesh (Bengaluru) (12:54.597); 2. Saishiva Sankaran (Pune) (13:03.529); 3. Krishay Gutte (Mumbai) (13:06.041).

MRF F1600 (Race-2, 10 laps): 1. Gyan S (Chennai) (17:35.235); 2. Bhuvan Bonu (Visakhapatnam) (17:35.549); 3. Shivansh Bejoy (New Delhi) (17:39.506). Race-3: 1. Bhuvan Bonu (Visakhapatnam) (13:57.878); 2. Gyan S (Chennai) (14:10.759); 3. Shivansh Bejoy (New Delhi) (14:17.501).

Formula LGB 1300 (Race-2, 10 laps) (Open): 1. Viswas Vijayaraj (Nellore, DTS Racing) (18:56.086); 2. Liron Jaden Samuels (Tirunelveli, DTS Racing) (18:57.614); 3. Vinith Kumar (Tirupur, DTS Racing) (18:58.572). Race-3 (6 laps): 1. Viswas Vijayaraj (Nellore, DTS Racing) (11:37.984); 2. Liron Jaden Samuels (Tirunelveli, DTS Racing) (11:38.576); 3. Dhruvh Goswami (Bengaluru, Meco Racing) (11:40.965).

Junior (Race-2, 10 laps): 1. Shatveer Shetty (Bengaluru, Meco Racing) (19:21.666); 2. Aadam Junaid (Colombo, Momentum Motorsports) (19:36.677); 3. Dhrihan Dagha (Mumbai, Meco Racing) (19:39.313). Race-3 (6 laps): 1. Aadam Junaid (Colombo, Momentum Motorsports) (11:51.860); 2. Kaveen Diyyan Rajapksa (Colombo, Momentum Motorsports) (11:57.336); 3. Saurika Livindu (Colombo, Momentum Motorsports) (12:08.053).

Super Stock (Race-1): 1. Diljith TS (Thrissur, DTS Racing) (16:33.904); 2. Lal Kattikulam Bharathan (Thrissur, DTS Racing) (16:42.711); 3. Deepa S John (Thiruvananthapuram, DTS Racing) (16:46.485). Race-2 (10 laps): 1. Lal Kattikulam Bharathan (20:55.028); 2. Diljith TS (20:55.156); 3. Deepa S John (21:16.563).

Volkswagen Polo Cup (Race-1): 1. Pratik Sonawane (Mumbai) (15:37.630); 2. Aman Nagdev (Noida) (15:41.744); 3. Neel Shah (Mumbai) (15:42.456). Race-2 (10 laps): 1. Aman Nagdev (Noida) (19:37.328); 2. Neel Shah (Mumbai) (19:39.604); 3. Pratik Sonawane (Mumbai) (19:41.239). Race-3: 1. Pratik Sonawane (Mumbai) (15:35.740); 2. Aman Nagdev (15:37.678); 3. Neel Shah (15:37.901).

MRF Saloons (Toyota Etios) Race-1: 1. S Gokula Rathinam (Coimbatore) (17:17.519); 2. Hemachandran R (Puducherry) (17:22.108); 3. Aakash Vivek (Chennai) (17:26.603). Race-2 (10 laps): 1. S Gokula Rathinam (Coimbatore) (21:36.324); 2. Alisha Abdulla (Chennai) (21:38.817); 3. Hemachandran R (Puducherry) (21:39.781). Race-3: 1. Hemachandran R (Puducherry) (17:19.350); 2. Aakash Vivek (Chennai) (17:19.676); 3. S. Gokula Rathinam (Coimbatore) (17:22.886).

-Team Sportstar

Published on Sep 27, 2026