Indian sports wrap, September 17: Akash Madhwal, Suchith among players set for Uttarakhand Premier League

File photo: Akash Madhwal will represent Rishikesh River Kings as its icon player. | Photo Credit: EMMANUAL YOGINI

CRICKET

Pace bowler Akash Madhwal, all-rounder Suchith J and several of Uttarakhand’s prominent cricketers will headline the third edition of the Uttarakhand Premier League, with the squads for the seven-team competition finalised following the Players’ Draft in Dehradun.

The UPL, organised by the Cricket Association of Uttarakhand, will be held from September 21 to October 1 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Raipur, Dehradun.

Madhwal will represent Rishikesh River Kings as its icon player, while Suchith has been retained by USN Indians. Avneesh Sudha (Nainital Tigers), Yuvraj Choudhary (Haridwar Elmas), Tejasvi Jaiswal (Tehri Titans), Kunal Chandela (Dehradun Warriors) and Mayank Mishra (Pithoragarh Hurricanes) are the other icon players among men.

The women’s competition will feature Mussoorie Queens, Bageshwar Aerial, Pithoragarh Hurricanes and Dehradun Warriors, with Raghavi Bisht, Prema Rawat, Nandini Kashyap and Sweta Verma named as the respective icon players.

-PTI

SNOOKER

Delhi State 6-Red champion Abhishek Ahuja advanced to the semifinals of the 49th Delhi State 15-Red Snooker Championship with comfortable victories at the Cue Due Academy in Okhla here.

Ahuja defeated Asif Malik 3-0 before getting the better of Anuj Uppal 3-1 to book his place in the last four.

In the quarterfinals, Shoaib Khan defeated Lalit Dahiya 3-0, while Sandeep Gulati beat Gurpreet Singh 3-1.

The championship is being organised by the Delhi Billiards and Snooker Association (DBSA).

-PTI

BADMINTON

Assam dominates opening day as Mizoram, Manipur advance in North East Inter-State Badminton Championships

Assam asserted its dominance across multiple categories on the opening day of the North East Zone Inter-State Badminton Championships 2026, registering convincing victories in the girls’, boys’, women’s and men’s team events in Shillong on Wednesday.

In the Girls’ Team Championship, Assam began its campaign with a comfortable 2-0 win over Sikkim before defeating Arunachal Pradesh by an identical margin in the evening session to move into the next stage.

Mizoram also impressed, blanking Tripura 2-0 and later overcoming Manipur 2-0. Manipur edged Nagaland 2-1, while Arunachal Pradesh secured a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Meghalaya.

The Boys’ Team Championship witnessed Assam and Arunachal Pradesh emerging as key contenders.

Assam defeated Tripura 2-0 and later overcame top-seeded Mizoram 2-1 in a crucial tie. Arunachal Pradesh opened with a 2-1 win over Meghalaya before beating second-seeded Manipur 2-0. Mizoram had earlier registered a 2-0 victory against Sikkim, while Manipur defeated Nagaland 2-0 in its opening fixture.

In the Women’s Team Championship, Assam produced back-to-back 3-0 victories over Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh to underline its credentials.