Himank Negi

Snippets of an intense game of chess with Arjuna Awardee @TaniaSachdev after an interview. Although, it just lasted for 4-5 moves before she won it, yet it was a big pressure match😄 #Chess #chessgame #chessbaseindia #champion #legend

In today’s Punjab, the crack of a gunshot doesn’t launch an athlete into a sprint. It scatters a crowd. It sends people diving into the very soil that was just churned up by the thick, muscled feet of kabaddi players. But in Ranchi, far away from that heavy, fractured atmosphere, the crack of the starter’s gun did something different for Gurindervir. It freed him. He didn’t fear the sound; he welcomed it. He embraced it. This wasn’t the messy, blood-soaked soil of home, and Guri wasn’t a kabaddi raider. Though, in a way, maybe he was - attacking a time, a record, we all once thought was unchartered territory. In a country where life moves slow, Guri pushed us into interstellar territory, promising a journey that’s practically galactic. That starter’s gun cleared the air for him. In just ten seconds, that boy did more for Punjab’s youth than decades of governments, bureaucrats, and those self-proclaimed NRI sympathizers spinning tall tales from the comfort of their Western homes. Back home, a young man inherits a completely different soundtrack. It’s the low, constant thrum of anxiety as he stares at maps and visa forms. It’s the generator humming in the background while steroid-pumped boys defend and raid in kabaddi circles, a sport now held hostage by slick promoters and gang lords. All while the state grieves, watching its future slip right through its fingers. Without even knowing it, Guri has guided the youth toward the synthetic rubber lanes. Just four feet wide, where the only real violence happens against the starting blocks. If your transition at the forty-meter mark is fluid enough, you win. Think about it: maybe life can be solved by these straight, white lines. They bring these kids into focus, letting them release all that raw energy. These lanes have become a sanctuary. Punjab’s youth are running from a landscape that is actively devouring them. It’s feasting on their ambitions and tearing apart their dreams. It pushes them into corners until, out of sheer despair, some pick up a gun, and the broken ones pick up a needle. All while the people in power treat the state like a stand-up comedy gig. But when Guri ran, exploding out of those blocks, he was running both toward and away from time. He ran with a fury. The lane held him steady, while everything fracturing outside of it just couldn’t keep up. In a state that has always measured athletic glory by the width of a shot-putter’s shoulders or the heavy, muddy grip of village tradition, Guri isn’t just holding his ground. Every single stride away from that block is a stubborn refusal to let the streets of Punjab drag him down. In that single, fluid act of vanishing into speed, he isn’t running away from reality. He’s running toward a new horizon. And he’s showing Punjab and the whole damn country that sometimes, just running in a straight line pays the highest dividends. #punjab #punjabification #Punjabi #athleticsindia #Gurindervir #fedcup2026 #fedcup

VIDEO | At a Punjab village known as much for its fight against drugs as for its growing football culture, a grassroots academy has quietly emerged with focus on one simple idea -- keeping children on football fields and away from the streets. Youth Football Club (YFC) in Rurka Kalan, Jalandhar district, believes in developing players from the ground up, hoping to make a contribution, however small it may be, in the growth of Indian football which is currently grappling with myriad problems like uncertainty over domestic league structure, lack of commercial partners, salary delays, etc. The academy, which recently bagged India’s runners-up finish at the Street Child World Cup 2026, currently trains nearly 250 children free of cost during the season while also taking care of hostel, food and dietary requirements for several youngsters. #Football (Full video available on PTI Videos - ptivideos.com)

@toi_gauravG @IPL @TriumphKnights @T20Mumbai @surya_14kumar @mipaltan GG finally posting Surya🤟🏻😇

India's T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav is fit & fine, and is not mood to take a break after the @IPL he will play for @TriumphKnights in @T20Mumbai and is keen to travel to Ireland & England for the T20 series! @surya_14kumar @mipaltan

VIDEO | Jaipur: Fast bowler Prince Yadav's coach Amit Vashisht says he is proud of his protege after the pacer earned his maiden India call-up in the ODI series against Afghanistan and revealed how he first crossed paths with the 29-year-old speedster from Delhi currently playing in the Indian Premier League for the Lucknow Supergiants. "It feels great as a coach; we have a population of 150 crore people in this country, and to be selected among the 15-member squad is a huge achievement. In my 22 years of coaching, I will never forget this day in my life." "I was going by my bike and stopped over to see a tennis cricket tournament, and there was this boy who was bowling accurate yorkers consistently. I was adamant about coaching him, and at first, he was reluctant to play with the leather ball. He was 18 years old when he came to me, and I told him I guarantee you if you work hard, you will become a successful bowler. Switching from a tennis ball to a leather one was a bit difficult at first for him, but I made him practice for 2-3 hours a day and Pradeep Sangwan had a fitness training session with him, and when he bowled Travis Head last year, I told him you are going to play for India soon." #PrinceYadav #IPL2026 (Full video available on PTI Videos - ptivideos.com)

VIDEO | IPL 2026: Fans are ecstatic over Delhi Capitals toppling Rajasthan Royals in the game played tonight in Delhi. Abhishek Porel and KL Rahul hit fluent half-centuries as Delhi Capitals overhauled a competitive Rajasthan Royals total to register a five-wicket victory in their Indian Premier League clash on Sunday. #IPL2026 #DCvsRR

VIDEO | IPL 2026: Fans in Delhi eagerly await Sooryavanshi's show as their team prepares to face Rajasthan Royals. (Full video available on PTI Videos - ptivideos.com)

IPL 2026: "His talent has earned him a chance," fans upbeat as teenage prodigy Sooryavanshi earns India A call-up for SL tri-series. (Full video available on PTI Videos - ptivideos.com)

VIDEO | Basketball’s growing footprint in India received another endorsement from former Detroit Pistons star Isiah Thomas, who said the country has both the talent and investment needed to emerge as a strong market for the sport. Speaking on the sidelines of the BudX NBA House in New Delhi, Thomas praised the increasing participation of young players and the efforts being made to develop basketball in the country. “The future is bright. You have a lot of young people playing right now. Not only are they playing, but you've invested in the game,” he said. Olympic gold medallist DeMarcus Cousins echoed similar sentiments but stressed that India’s rise in basketball would require patience, infrastructure and systematic development. “To start talking about a gold medal, that’s a huge jump, but the potential is there,” Cousins said. (Full video available on PTI Videos - ptivideos.com)

VIDEO | Delhi: India Basketball League (IBL) commissioner Jeremy Loeliger believes cricket could play a key role in accelerating basketball’s growth in India, saying the league plans to explore cross-sport collaborations involving leading cricketers and athletes. “Back in Australia, after the Boxing Day Test, we had players from the Australian Test cricket team coming over after stumps and sitting courtside at the basketball game on the same day. That’s what we want to replicate here. I think once young Indians see that cricketers think basketball is cool, a lot of them will follow in their footsteps. The basketball market here is just ready to catch fire. From a basketball point of view, all of the macroeconomic indicators are there, the population growth among Gen Z and Gen Alpha, who are the core digital audience, the core basketball audience, and the core fans of the culture surrounding the game. It’s all growing here at once, and that’s such a special opportunity. We want to create a professional league here so that ‘seeing it and therefore being it’ becomes more local,” he said. (Full video available on PTI Videos - ptivideos.com)

VIDEO | Delhi: "Want to repeat same heroics and mindset of ODI WC win in ICC Women's T20 World Cup," says women’s World Cup–winning cricketer Kranti Gaud. (Full video available on PTI Videos - ptivideos.com)

VIDEO | Delhi: Former India captain Kapil Dev refrained from offering an assessment of young batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and the growing trend of 250-plus totals in T20 cricket, saying he is not best placed to comment on the modern game. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has dazed the cricketing world with his batting blitz and fearless approach, taking on world-class bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins from the outset. Speaking on the sidelines of the Mahajan Imaging Lab Inauguration event here, the 1983 World Cup-winning skipper said he follows the sport as a television viewer and believes it would be unfair to analyse players or evolving formats without being closely involved. “I haven't seen that. I am just like you guys. I watch cricket at home on TV, and it would not be fair for me to pass any comments. I get information from whatever you write or show. The ones like Sunil Gavaskar, Ravi Shastri, or Harsha Bhogle are the ones who cover cricket on the ground and are the best people to take opinions from. I don’t know much about it," he said.

VIDEO | IPL 2026: Fans are disappointed as they could not see much of Virat Kohli in a low-scoring game between DC and RCB. #IPL2026 #DCvsRCB

VIDEO | New Delhi: India's double Olympic medallist shooter Manu Bhaker is brimming with confidence ahead of the new season, determined to reignite her competitive spark after a quiet spell following her Paris Games glory. With the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics qualification cycle kicking off this year, Manu has her sights firmly set on the Asian Games and the World Championships -- targets she believes will restore the competitive edge that powered her to two bronze medals at the 2024 Olympics. "We have the Asian Games (in Japan) and the World Championships coming up at the end of this year, so definitely we are looking forward to the two major competitions," said the 24-year-old pistol ace on the sidelines of an event, marking 75 years of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), here on Monday. (Full video available on ptivideos.com)

VIDEO | Delhi: IPL 2026: RCB fans disappointed as they do not see much of Kohli; DC loyals call for change. (Full video available on PTI Videos - ptivideos.com)

VIDEO | Delhi Capitals fans' pins hopes on inform batter KL Rahul to shine against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their IPL encounter at the Arun Jaitley Stadium as the DC Toli recites special chants for KL Rahul.

I was there and had to control myself.

I can never understand a journalist asking a shooter about 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. What is the point? Never heard cricketers being asked about Manu Bhaker or anyone else. There was no relevance and no connection. Hilarious and sad also

VIDEO | Delhi: Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya unveils new logo of National Rifle Association of India, celebrating 75th anniversary.

In conversation with @PunjabKingsIPL player #xavierbartlett

VIDEO | Punjab Kings' pacer Xavier Bartlett believes the IPL’s ‘Impact Player’ rule adds value to the game, saying it creates opportunities for players as he drew parallels with the Big Bash League’s X-factor rule, under which he got early opportunities in his career. “I think it’s a good thing because it gets you into the game. I’d rather do what I did, bowl that one over. It sort of held me in good stead and got me some exposure,” Bartlett said. #IPL2026 (Full video available on PTI Videos - ptivideos.com)