Kohli senses end after roaring back to form with IPL century

New Delhi: Virat Kohli said his love of cricket keeps him going but admitted his career "is going to finish one day" after ending a mini slump in form with a match-winning IPL century.

Regarded as one of the most accomplished batsmen of his generation, the 37-year-old Kohli is a hero to hundreds of millions of Indian fans.

"Cricket is absolutely something that I truly love," he said. "I just give my heart and soul out there on the field, whether I'm fielding or batting, because it's going to finish one day." truewildgame.com

Kohli bounced back from two consecutive ducks to hit an unbeaten 105 and lead defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a crucial win on Wednesday.

He scored his ninth hundred in the Indian Premier League -- but first this season -- as Bengaluru chased down 193 with five balls to spare against Kolkata Knight Riders.

Kohli also became the fastest player to 14,000 runs in T20 cricket.

He achieved the feat in 409 innings, bettering Chris Gayle's 423.

Kohli, who has retired from Tests and T20 internationals, guided Bengaluru to their maiden title on the 18th attempt last year.

"I just love batting, even after all this. That is my core feeling," Kohli said on Wednesday after being named player of the match.

"What an honour to be playing at this level, what an honour to be competing with the very best in the world still," he added.

"This is all I've done, all my life."

Kohli is third on the batting charts in this IPL season with 484 runs including three fifties and one ton, at an average of 53.77 in 12 matches.

'Joy still there'

Kohli's 60-ball knock was laced with 11 fours and three sixes, as he equalled Jos Buttler's record of three IPL centuries in successful chases.

Called "King Kohli" for his prolific run-scoring, the opener got off the mark with a single in the first over of the chase, punching the air in mock celebration after his successive ducks.

He raised his fifty in 32 balls, and then his first hundred of the season.

"I want to make the most of every day that I'm on the field, and just enjoy myself, and have a lot of fun," he said.

Kohli said he enjoys being tested.

"I look forward to a pressure situation, look forward to scenarios where I'm feeling a bit of heat," he said.

"Then I challenge myself to say, 'you know what, just go for it'", he added.

"And, when you cross the line, it makes you a better player. I just love hitting the ball in the middle of the bat. And that joy is still there."

The number India 18 jersey worn by Kohli is by far the most popular piece of merchandise worn around grounds across the country.

He ended his T20 career with a match-winning innings in the 2024 World Cup final victory in Barbados.

New York: Madonna, Shakira and K-pop megastars BTS will headline a Super Bowl-style half-time show at the World Cup final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, FIFA said Thursday.

Coldplay's Chris Martin is curating the show, which is a first for a football World Cup final but has raised concerns about how long half-time will be.

The biggest-ever World Cup, with 48 teams, kicks off on June 11 in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino announced in March last year that there would be "the first-ever half-time show at a FIFA World Cup final".

He did not say at the time who would be performing or how long the show would last.

"This will be a historic moment for the FIFA World Cup and a show befitting the biggest sporting event in the world," he said on Instagram.

The move mirrors the show held during the final of the 2024 Copa America in Miami, when Colombian star Shakira performed at half-time at the Hard Rock Stadium.

There was also a half-time show at last year's FIFA Club World Cup final, also at MetLife Stadium, which stretched the break in excess of the regulation 15 minutes.
Infantino added that FIFA also planned to "take over" New York's Times Square on the final weekend of the World Cup.

The half-time extravaganza will support FIFA's Global Citizen Education Fund, an initiative working to raise $100 million for children worldwide during the World Cup.

Shakira last week teased the new official song for the World Cup, releasing a brief video of the track filmed at Brazil's iconic Maracana Stadium.

The singer -- who also created the 2010 World Cup anthem "Waka Waka" -- announced the song, titled "Dai Dai" in a post on her Instagram account.

In the 67-second video, Shakira appears on the pitch at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro, where she performed in a free concert at the city's Copacabana Beach before two million people.

Holding the "Trionda", the official match ball of the 2026 World Cup, Shakira performed excerpts of the song in English, joined by dancers dressed in the colors of teams including the United States and Colombia.

The song was produced with Nigerian artist Burna Boy and is set for official release on Thursday. The clip, also shared by the FIFA World Cup account, ends with the message: "We're ready!"

Shakira has a long association with the World Cup, performing at the 2006 and 2014 World Cup finals in addition to producing "Waka Waka" for the 2010 tournament.

Doha, Qatar: Qatar swimmers enjoyed another golden day at the Hamad Aquatic Centre, clinching five more gold medals with record-breaking performances as hosts Qatar leapt to the top of the 4th GCC Games Doha 2026 standings.

Qatar’s 3×3 men’s basketball, showjumping and fencing teams added three more gold medals as the home contingent wrapped up the second day with a total of 29 medals, including 11 gold, 10 silver and eight bronze medals.

Saudi Arabia slipped to second with nine gold, eight silver and four bronze medals, while Bahrain followed with three gold, five silver and three bronze.

After bagging three gold and two silver medals on the opening day, Qatar made a clean sweep in yesterday’s events.

Saadeddin, who won the 800m freestyle on Tuesday, opened the day by securing gold in the men’s 400m freestyle with a Games record time of 3:50.80 seconds. It was a Qatari one-two finish, as Emile Fouzai took silver in 3:56.05, with Bahrain’s Robert Bonsall winning bronze in 3:57.97.

Mohamed Mahmoud reigned supreme in the men’s 50m breaststroke, claiming gold in 28.38 seconds - another Games record. Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Alotaibi (29.32) finished second for silver, with Qatar’s Hamza Shalan (29.53) earning bronze.

In the men’s 100m freestyle, Ali Tamer Hassan set a new Games record of 49.78 seconds to win gold. Emad Addin Zaben (50.58) of Saudi Arabia secured silver, while the UAE’s Hussein Abdelsalam (51.84) took bronze.

Abdalla Elghamry sparkled in the men’s 200m backstroke, winning gold in 2:05.91 to set another Games record. He won comfortably ahead of Saudi Arabia’s Ali Alessa, who took silver in 2:07.88, while Kuwait’s Abdullah Sultan settled for bronze in 2:12.23.

“I am surprised with my time. It was a tough contest and the other competitors brought the best out of me. Ali Alessa was really impressive. I loved the crowd which was special,” said Elghamry.

Qatar capped a successful day in the pool by clinching the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay gold, finishing ahead of Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

Members of the gold-winning Qatar men’s 3×3 basketball team celebrate on the podium with Qatar’s women’s 3×3 basketball team who won the bronze.

Qatar excel in 3×3 basketball

At Al Gharafa Hall, Qatar’s men’s 3×3 basketball team beat Bahrain 20-11 in the gold medal match.

Their campaign featured group-stage victories over the UAE (22-9), Bahrain (21-15), Kuwait (21-7) and Saudi Arabia (19-12), before defeating Saudi Arabia again 21-11 in the semi-finals.

Saudi Arabia later claimed bronze with a 13-9 win over the UAE.

Qatar’s women’s 3×3 basketball team secured bronze, beating Kuwait 11–9 in the playoff.

“Winning the men’s gold and women’s bronze at Doha 2026 is a historic achievement that reflects the progress of Qatari basketball at the national team level,” said Qatar Basketball Federation President Mohammed bin Saad Al-Mughaseeb.

“The women’s bronze is particularly significant as it marks our first medal in Gulf Games history, highlighting the success of our development programmes and the growing base of the sport.”

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Team showjumping, fencing golds for Qatar

At the Qatar Equestrian Federation indoor Arena, Qatar clinched team showjumping gold with a combined time of 206.37 seconds despite four penalties. Team UAE took silver in 208.89 seconds with eight penalties, while Kuwait secured bronze in 209.44 seconds after collecting 12 penalties.

At the Aspire Dome, Qatar secured gold and silver in the men’s foil event, with Ali Owaida overcoming compatriot Khaled Hussein in the final. The UAE’s Faris Alblooshi claimed bronze.

Qatar's Ali Al-Obaidali claimed the silver medal in the men’s 10-ball singles.

Al-Obaidali seals silver; strong show in taekwondo

Qatari cueist Ali Al-Obaidali claimed silver in the men’s 10-ball singles after a 5-7 defeat to Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Baabad in the final at the Qatar Billiards and Snooker Federation Hall.

Al-Obaidali had earlier outclassed UAE’s Mahmoud Charif 7–2 in the semi-finals.

Meanwhile, the Qatar taekwondo team added two silver and three bronze medals at the Aspire Dome.

Ali Alarimi won silver in the men’s +80kg category after losing to Saudi Arabia’s Ali Alkhaibari 2–0 in the final.

Qatar’s Maram Fatnassi also claimed silver after being edged 2–1 by UAE’s Amna Alloghani in the women’s -67kg final.

In the women’s +67kg category, Qatar’s Noor Mohammed settled for bronze, with Saudi Arabia’s Dunya Saber winning gold and UAE’s Salma Alketbi taking silver.

Qatar’s Mohammad Awadalla claimed bronze in the men’s -68kg category, while Njoud Al Fahad added another bronze in the women’s -57kg category.

Bowling and table tennis medals

Qatar’s bowling duo of Talal Al-Marri and Bader Al-Sada secured silver in the doubles event, finishing second overall with 2,481 points from six games. Saudi Arabia’s Prince Mohammed bin Sultan Al Saud and Abdulmajid Al-Aslani took gold with 2,652 points, while Kuwait’s Mustafa Al-Mousawi and Faisal Salim claimed bronze with 2,467 points.

In table tennis, Qatar added bronze in the team competition, finishing third on four points after a 3–0 win over Oman and 3–1 defeats to Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. Saudi Arabia won gold with six points, Bahrain took silver with five, and Oman finished fourth with three.