Hello and welcome to Sportz Point's LIVE Coverage of the Paris Olympics 2024. Today, we will bring you all the updates of Day 2 (28th July) of India at Paris Olympics 2024 as PV Sindhu, HS Prannoy will be in action in Badminton while Manu Bhaker will look to become first Indian female shooter to win a medal at the Olympics.

This is Koushik Biswas, who will be joined by Abhishek Goswami later to give you all the updates on Day 2 from our web desk.

Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for all the Updates. You can join our Telegram Channel as well. 

Read Also | Paris Olympics 2024 Day 2 (28th July) schedule for Indian athletes

The Ultimate Table Tennis 2025 season is set to take place from May 29 to June 15 at EKA Arena in Ahmedabad, the organisers announced on Friday.

This will be the sixth season of India's premier table tennis league, featuring eight teams with top Indian and international table tennis stars. The defending champions, Goa Challengers, will aim for a third consecutive title.

The tournament which started in 2017, has seen Indian Table Tennis stars like Sharath Kamal, Manika Batra, Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, Manav Thakkar and Sutirtha Mukherjee, alongside international stars like Olympic silver medallist Petrissa Solja AND Tiago Apolónia

8 teams will be divided into two groups and every team will have six players in their squad. Each tie will have five matches. Last season. Goa Challengers defended their title against Dabang Delhi TTC in Chennai. 

Read Also | Manika Batra creates history- First Indian to reach the WTT quarterfinals

Ultimate Table Tennis 2025 Schedule & Venue

• Tournament Dates: May 29 – June 15, 2025
• Venue: EKA Arena, Ahmedabad
• Final Match: June 15, 2025

UTT 2025 Format & Rules

• Teams: 8
• Players per Team: 6 (including 2 international stars)
• Groups: 2 groups of 4 teams each
• League Stage: 5 ties per team
  • 3 matches within the group
  • 2 matches against randomly selected teams from the other group
• Knockouts: Top 4 teams advance to semi-finals
• Final: June 15, 2025

Each tie consists of five matches:

• 2 Men’s Singles Matches
• 2 Women’s Singles Matches
• 1 Mixed Doubles Match

Teams in UTT 2025

Streaming Details

The streaming details of the UTT 2025 have not been announced yet. 

PUMA has roped in the Indian Badminton sensation PV Sindhu as its new brand ambassador, partnering in a multi-year deal. 

The German Sports Apparel brand has chosen India as the first country to expand its orbit in the world of sports, marking its official appearance in Badminton. 

Ahead of the announcement, PUMA has executed a pioneering move, changing its brand signage to 'PVMA'  at several official stores in the country for almost a week.

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by PUMA India (@pumaindia)

PV Sindhu becomes the new brand ambassador of PUMA 

PV Sindhu is undoubtedly one of the greatest Indian badminton icons of this generation, surging the excitement of the game into millions of fans in India. The two-time Olympic medalist has achieved numerous accolades throughout her career, popularizing the game among Indian sports fanatics.

Sindhu has not only become the first Indian to conquer five badminton world championship medals, but also she has earned noteworthy honours such as the Khel Ratna, Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan, and Arjuna Award.

However, Sindhu's unparalleled achievements have injected interest among the youth, and PUMA has adopted the plan to capitalize on the popularity of the 29-year-old. 

According to the Google-Deloitte Think Sports report from 2024, India has a growing fanbase of Badminton, which stands at nearly 57 million. 

PUMA adopted an unprecedented marketing strategy to draw the interest of Indian sports fans, changing their brand name to 'PVMA' in several stores and many billboards across India for almost a week.

This move left the netizens and fans wondering as some speculated the possibility of onboarding PV Sindhu, whereas the partnership has been made official today. 

Many PUMA stores across India have changed their logo and branding to “PVMA”.
This change can be seen in the Indian website as well.

What’s happening? 👀 🚨 pic.twitter.com/ecPbCe2WzW

— sid (@immasiddx) January 11, 2025

However, The partnership between PUMA and Sindhu will debut at the India Open 2025 in New Delhi. This exciting collaboration will bring a high-performance badminton range soon, featuring specialized footwear, apparel, and accessories. 

Sindhu has expressed her elation regarding this move, stating the following.

I’m excited to join the PUMA family, a brand that shares my belief in the power of sport to inspire. This partnership with PUMA India isn’t just about being part of something bigger—it is an opportunity to connect with those who value pushing boundaries and embracing challenges.

“Badminton has always been a platform for growth and self-discovery for me, and through this collaboration, I hope to encourage others, especially women, to take risks, believe in themselves, and strive for more—both on and off the court,

Karthik Balagopalan, Managing Director of PUMA India, said:

PV Sindhu is a legend and a trailblazer, and we are proud & delighted to welcome her into our PUMA family. She is the most followed badminton athlete in the world. Her extraordinary legacy in Indian sports which includes a lot of historic firsts has not only placed India on the badminton map globally but has also inspired millions, pushed the boundaries, and paved the way for future generations of athletes.

“As we make our first-ever step into badminton, this association will further our goal to increase PUMA’s footprint in the rapidly growing sports landscape in the country, inspiring more youngsters to take up the racquet-sport,

Four players, including Manu Bhaker, who won two Olympic medals at the Paris Olympics 2024, and World Chess Championship winner Indian Grandmaster D Gukesh will be honored with the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award 2024. The National Sports Award 2024 has been announced by the Sports Ministry on Thursday.

Also Read: Beatrice Chebet becomes the first woman to run 5km under 14 minutes in Barcelona

Apart from Manu and Gukesh, Indian men's hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh and Paralympian Praveen Kumar will also be given the Khel Ratna Award 2024. 

The award ceremony will take place on January 17, 2025, at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.

Khel Ratna Award 2024: Winners List

Manu won double medal in Paris Olympics

Manu Bhaker, 22, became the first player from independent India to win two medals in the same Olympics when she won bronze medals in the 10m air pistol individual and mixed team events at the Paris Games in August. On the basis of his two medals, India won a total of 6 medals in the Paris.

18 year old Gukesh is the new youngest world champion

18-year-old Indian Grandmaster Gukesh Dommaraju became the youngest world champion and was also instrumental in the Indian team's historic gold medal in the Chess Olympiad last year. He defeated defending champion Ding Liren of China in the final.

Gukesh has become the first player in the world to win the title at such a young age. Earlier in 1985, Russia's Garry Kasparov had won this title at the age of 22.

Harmanpreet-led India won bronze in Paris

Under the captaincy of Harmanpreet Singh, the Indian hockey team won a medal for the second consecutive Olympics. They won the bronze medal in the Paris Olympics and the gold medal in the Asian Games 2022. At the same time, Harmanpreet has won the title of Player of the Year at FIH Awards three times.

Praveen won Paralympic gold with a record in high jump

Para high jumper Praveen Kumar surprised everyone by winning the gold medal with an Asian record in the men's high jump at the Paris Paralympics. Praveen, who won a silver medal in the Tokyo Paralympics, gave the best performance of his career in the T64 event and registered his name in history by clearing a height of 2.08 meters.

The World Number 30 Manika Batra stunned the table tennis arena by defeating World Number 14 Bernadette Scoz from Romania, becoming the first ever Indian to reach the WTT quarterfinals in France.

A four-time Commonwealth medalist and an Olympian, Manika Batra, survived a 5 point defeat in the second set, winning the rest two later. On Friday, against Scoz, she saved two game points in the third game to keep herself ahead. finally sealing the tie in the next game, converting her second march point.

Manika won 3-1 (11-9, 6-11, 13-11, 11-9) in 29 minutes against the eighth-seeded Scoz in a round-16 match. Nevertheless, Manika enjoys a safe lead against Scoz- 6-5.

Read Also: Commonwealth Games 2026: A trailer for permanent shut down?

Manika Batra to face Tianyi

Manika Batra will play the quarterfinal on Saturday. There she will meet the World number 21 Qian Tianyi from China.

Tianyi reached the quarterfinal after defeating Wang Yidi by 3-0 (11-7, 11-9, 13-11) in another R-16 match.

In the first round, Manika's first prey was USA's Lily Zhang, against whom she won in a straight set of 3-0 (11-4, 11-8, 12-10)

The other Indian in queue in women's singles, Sreeja Akula, however, got defeated by World No. 13 Adriana Diaz of Puerto Rico. Diaz defeated Akula by 2-3 (11-6, 7-11, 1-11, 11-8, 8-11)

On Tuesday, the organizers of the Glasgow Commonwealth Games 2026 confirmed that only 10 sports will be played in limited venues to keep the finances in check. 

A previously proposed event, that had a minimum of 20 disciplines was reduced to half, which has sparked disappointments amongst many Indians. The reason is quite simple. The Indian-dominated sports like badminton, hockey, cricket, and weightlifting have been axed. 

Not only that, a sport like squash, which gets major highlights in the CWG due to its absence in the Olympics, has been eliminated.

The IOA (Indian Olympics Association) president, PT Usha, too expressed her despondency towards the decision. But, why? 

The point is, how relevant are "Commonwealth Games," previously known as "British Empire Games," in a decolonized era?

The Idea behind Commonwealth Games

A brainchild of revered Canadian sportswriter and editor Melville Marks Robinson, the Commonwealth Games had its origin in 1930, bearing an essence of still-accepted colonialism. A total of 54 countries, who were once colonies of the British Empire, participated in this event.

The 2022 version, however, saw 72 nations participating.

Inspired by the 1911 Inter Empire Championships, this unique event has been hosted across nine countries. Australia and Canada lead with five editions each. 

Standing in 2024, when the phrase "third-world country" seems nonexistent, who would ever succumb to the pre-established boot-licking attitude toward the English, that too spending some billion dollars for hosting?

Finance definitely raises eyebrows, but the motto it has been carrying for so long should come into question, even in countries like India.

U-turn from Australia to Glasgow

Australia, a country that has hosted the event at least five times, has denied hosting it. Initially, it was Victoria's assignment to conduct the event. However, the arrangement costs skyrocketed from an estimated Aus$2 billion to an alarming Aus$7 billion.

Premier Daniel Andrews, in the press conference in Melbourne, clearly stated that he would never dare to pluck in a huge sum from the funds of hospitals and schools for a sporting event. 

The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) scrambled to find a replacement, offering Malaysia £100 million to step in. Even with such a hefty financial contribution, Malaysia turned down the offer, citing insufficient preparation time and the prohibitive costs of hosting the event.

Even Canada's Alberta province last year withdrew its support for a bid for the 2030 Games.

Financial Suffering

The rejections have somehow brought in a raw, uncut picture to the world. The sentiments, accompanied by the suffering, take a long time to recover.

Countries are unwilling to foot the massive bill for an event, even when provided with financial assistance. The event brings in little to no economic return and dwindling global interest.

The Commonwealth Games, which seemed like a prestigious event, has been a burden — a relic of the past whose significance is diminishing in a world with far more pressing priorities.

Glasgow steps in

Following the repeated rejections, there was a point when the Commonwealth Games future looked uncertain for the 2026 version. Countries backing out brought clouds of a postponed tournament before its centenary year in 2030.

At that point, Glasgow stepped in. Glasgow had its experience of hosting a CWG, as it did in 2014. This time, it made the event easy.

Glasgow decided to host a severely pared-down version of the CWG in 2026, with 4 venues in an 8-mile radius. Not only that, the number of participants will also be restricted.

Birmingham's Commonwealth Games: A Legacy of Financial Strain?

Birmingham stepped up to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games when Durban withdrew, promising a grand event to boost the city. However, financial issues soon arose, leading to political tension and public concern.

Max Caller, former adviser to Birmingham City Council, called the decision to host the Games "a mistake" amidst longstanding financial problems. Hosting the event diverted attention from the council’s critical issues, including a £760 million bill for equal pay claims and a botched IT system that may cost £100 million to fix.

While the Games were an "amazing event," their financial aftermath sparked debates, with citizens worried about budget cuts affecting essential services. Community centres, libraries, and even the famed German Christmas Market could face closures as the council struggles with bankruptcy.

But is finance the real concern?

India had hosted the 2010 CWG, followed by financial turmoil in the country. It took years for the country to overcome. India has now successfully bid for the Olympics 2036. 

Hosting the Olympics has also led to never-ending financial scars for many countries. Athens is a prominent name in that. 

But yet, countries hardly step back to host it. Is it really the finances or the pride that pushes them to bid for the Olympics?

Will India suffer from the reduction?

In the idealistic world of sport, India shouldn't. In such a situation, the question comes: how relevant is CWG to the sporting world? 

With the rising popularity of the Asian Games that have dominated countries like China and the Olympics, which is the oldest and largest form of multidisciplinary sports event, CWG falls short in both glamour and relevance.

The limited exposure giving year-old consolation to the country with an "international medal" has been falling short repeatedly in the Olympics. The count of CWG medalist athletes who have earned a medal in the Olympics is relatively low. A Mirabai Chanu, a PV Sindhu, or a Neeraj Chopra is countable. 

When at one corner, it is justified to be upset knowing that Indian dominance has been restricted, then at the other corner, another question gets tossed—why does India need going-to-be-abolished events to prove its excellence? 

India, which takes pride in being a sporting excellence and a country that tried to push cricket hard in the Olympics, should think if it's really dominant or not.

Does Commonwealth participation assure greatness?

Usain Bolt, at his peak point in his career, decided to participate only in the 4x100m relay in Glasgow (2014). Not only that, he was nowhere in New Delhi (2010) too, despite India's desperate request to have him.

Sir Chris Hoy, too, stayed away from the Delhi games because a win wouldn't have added any decorated feather to his already stellar career.

In the harshest reality, a hundred medals won't assure at least 50 medals in the Asian Games itself. Olympics are out of reach!

Medal tally for India in CWG, in its popular sport