NBA suspends LA Clippers owner Ballmer, fines team over Kawhi Leonard…

Los Angeles [US], September 3 (ANI): The NBA has imposed the biggest punishment in its history on the Los Angeles Clippers and team owner Steve Ballmer after a year-long investigation found that the franchise circumvented salary cap rules to benefit star player Kawhi Leonard, according to The New York Times. ipltable.lol

As part of the punishment, the Clippers will forfeit five first-round draft picks from 2029 through 2033 and have been fined USD 30 million.

Ballmer has also been suspended for one year for knowingly attempting to help Leonard secure off-court business opportunities, according to the New York Times.

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The league said Ballmer approved a business deal between the Clippers and Aspiration, an arrangement that investigators found was linked to Leonard’s sponsorship agreement with the company.

NBA investigators said the Clippers attempted to bypass league rules by arguing that it was permissible to connect players with business partners when the player or their representatives requested such introductions. The NBA did not find that persuasive.

The Clippers, in a statement, refuted the findings of the investigation, which was funded by Ballmer, and said they would challenge the punishment. However, a source familiar with NBA rules said the team has no right to appeal or seek arbitration over the penalties.

“We vehemently reject the NBA’s findings, which are the result of a heavily biased investigation seeking to justify a predetermined narrative rather than facts and evidence," the statement read, as quoted by The New York Times. “For the past year, we cooperated fully and in good faith, and we will now fight just as hard to demonstrate our innocence."

In a two-page letter to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, David N. Kelly, an attorney from O’Melveny & Myers representing the Clippers, described the league’s investigation as a “witch hunt."

Kelly claimed that NBA officials had privately informed team executives that investigators found no agreement involving Aspiration to channel money to Leonard. In a two-page letter addressed to NBA commissioner Adam Silver, David N. Kelly of the law firm O’Melveny and Myers called the investigation a witch hunt.

The attorney representing the Clippers claimed that the league told team leaders privately that investigators found no agreement to funnel money to Leonard through Aspiration. Instead, Kelly contended, the league is punishing the Clippers under a new theory that they introduced Leonard to team business partners, the New York Times report added.

“This process was designed to substantiate a predetermined outcome," wrote Kelly. “We are exploring every legal remedy to address this gross injustice," the letter concluded, as quoted by the New York Times.

The announcement brings an end to a lengthy investigation that initially focused on whether the Clippers had violated the NBA’s salary-cap rules through Kawhi Leonard’s endorsement deal with Aspiration. The scope of the probe later widened as the investigation progressed. (ANI)

(This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received. The Tribune assumes no responsibility or liability for its accuracy, completeness, or content.)

Sri Lanka Women defeated Indonesia Women by 75 runs in the ongoing Women’s Asia Cup on Wednesday. Sri Lanka posted 124/7 after batting first, before bowling Indonesia out for just 49 runs in the second innings. Sri Lanka’s bowlers dominated the chase and sealed a comfortable victory.

Nilakshika Silva: Sri Lanka’s Backbone with the Bat

Sri Lanka were struggling at 37/4 with their innings in danger of falling apart. In that difficult situation, Nilakshika Silva became the backbone of the Sri Lankan batting. Coming in when her team needed someone to steady the innings, Silva took responsibility and kept the scoreboard moving. She mixed caution with attacking shots, finding boundaries whenever the opportunity came. While wickets continued to fall at the other end, Silva held the innings together and gave Sri Lanka hope of posting a respectable total. Her knock became even more important as Sri Lanka crossed 100 runs. Silva accelerated towards the end, smashing a four and a six in the 19th over to bring up a well-deserved 50 off just 35 balls. Her innings included three fours and a six, coming at an impressive strike rate of 142.85. Eventually she was dismissed right after the sixer leaving SL 112/7.

Indonesia’s Bowlers Put Sri Lanka Under Pressure

Indonesia produced a disciplined bowling performance to keep Sri Lanka on the back foot throughout the innings. Ni Luh Dewi led the attack with an impressive 3/32, removing Chamari Athapaththu, Kaushini Nuthyangana and Nilakshika Silva, Sri Lanka’s key batter after her fighting fifty.

Sang Maypriani also made a big impact, finishing with 2/19 and dismissing Sanjana Kavindi and vice-captain Harshitha Samarawickrama. Her tight bowling in the powerplay and middle overs prevented Sri Lanka from building momentum.

Sofia Velic chipped in with 1/21, dismissing Kavisha Dilhari for 6, while Ariani added 1/23. Together, the Indonesian bowlers consistently picked up wickets and restricted Sri Lanka’s scoring, ensuring they never managed to fully recover after their early setbacks.

Chamari Athapaththu Creates History

Chamari Athapaththu produced a historic spell, becoming the first Sri Lankan woman to take a T20I hat-trick. She had earlier been on a hat-trick in the same innings but missed out. Later, she got another opportunity and completed it in style.

Athapaththu first dismissed Maria Corazon and Rada Rani in successive deliveries to put herself on a hat-trick. She could not complete it then, but returned later to take three more wickets.

She dismissed Sakarini, Ni Ariani and Sang Maypriani before trapping Dara Paramitha lbw to complete her hat-trick.
Athapaththu finished with astonishing figures of 7/5 in 3.3 overs, completely destroying Indonesia’s chase and sealing Sri Lanka’s victory.

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Dhaka [Bangladesh], September 3 (ANI): Litton Das will captain Bangladesh in the men’s cricket tournament at the Asian Games 2026, with the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announcing a 15-member squad for the competition, which begins on September 17, according to the ICC.

The squad features the return of several key players from the team that faced Zimbabwe in July, including captain Litton Das and Najmul Hossain Shanto.

Bangladesh secured a podium finish at the previous edition of the Asian Games, claiming the bronze medal behind silver medallists Sri Lanka and gold medallists India.

Alongside India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, Bangladesh earned direct qualification for the 2026 tournament, with hosts Japan also securing an automatic spot. Nepal, Malaysia, Hong Kong, China and Oman completed the line-up after progressing through the qualifying tournament.

Bangladesh’s most recent T20I assignment came during their tour of Zimbabwe, where they secured a 2-1 series victory in the three-match series.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh pulled off one of the biggest upsets in Test cricket as the Najmul Hossain Shanto-led side defeated Australia by nine wickets in Darwin last month.. The historic victory made Bangladesh only the third Asian team, after India and Pakistan, to win a Test in Australia.

Bangladesh squad:

Litton Das (c), Tanzid Hasan, Parvez Hossain Emon, Mohammed Saif Hasan, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Tawhid Hridoy, Musaddek Hossain Saikat, Yasir Ali Chowdhury, Rishad Hossain, Shak Mahedi Hasan, Nasum Ahmed, Shaif Uddin, Shoriful Islam, Mustafizur Rahman and Hasan Mahmud. (ANI)

(This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received. The Tribune assumes no responsibility or liability for its accuracy, completeness, or content.)

India Women vs Hong Kong Women Women’s Asia Cup 2026 Group A: Harmanpreet Kaur’s India Women cricket team will go up against minnows Hong Kong in their second Group A match of the ACC Women’s Asia Cup 2026 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Thursday. The Indians got their campaign off with a massive 94-run win over Thailand in their opening game of the tournament last week.

A win over Hong Kong will almost ensure a berth in the semifinals ahead of their all-important clash against arch-rivals Pakistan women team on Saturday. There were, however, a few concerns for India after they collapsed from 108 for 2 at one stage to 137 for 9 – losing 7 wickets for 29 runs. “We are playing T20s so it’s not that every time we will be executing our plans. There will be times when we will probably not execute the plans as great as we would have wanted to and so there will be a downfall,” Indian bowling coach Aavishkar Salvi said in the pre-match press conference in Dubai on Wednesday.

Indian opener Shafali Verma was the top-scorer in their opening match against Thailand with 64. “If you see, there was a comeback also. They came back really well (and) stretched the partnership at the end. Those important runs were contributed from the lower-order batters, which probably created that 160 mark and then after that, you saw how they bowled in the game,” Salvi said.

Hong Kong, on the other hand, began with a heartbreaking six-run loss to Thailand in their opening match of the Asia Cup last week. Chasing 121 to win, the Hong Kong side ended up with only 114 for 7 in 20 overs.

– , ️

Mithali Raj breaks down what makes Harmanpreet Kaur truly unstoppable, exclusively on Legends Talk ️

Watch India vs Pakistan in the #DPWorldWomensAsiaCup2026 on 5th September from… pic.twitter.com/olcG6t3Dob

— Sony Sports Network (@SonySportsNetwk) September 2, 2026

Here are all the details about India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7…

When is India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7 going to take place?

The India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7 will start on Thursday, September 3.

Where is India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7 going to take place?

The India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7 will be held at Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

What time will India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7 start?

The India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7 will begin at 8pm IST. The toss for the match will be held at 730pm.

Where can I watch India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7 on TV in India?

The India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7 will be available LIVE on TV on Sony Sports network channels in India.

How can I watch India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7 in India?

The India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7 will be available for live streaming on SonyLiv website and app in India.

India Women vs Hong Kong Women Asia Cup 2026 match no 7 Squads

India Women: Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Pratika Rawal, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Bharti Fulmali, Richa Ghosh (wk), Deepti Sharma, Prema Rawat, Nandani Sharma, Shree Charani, Kranti Gaud, Gunalan Kamalini, Renuka Singh Thakur, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav

Hong Kong Women: Kary Chan, Mariko Hill, Yasmin Daswani (wk), Maryam Bibi (c), Marina Lamplough, Shanzeen Shahzad, Joyleen Kaur, Shing Chan Dorothea, Ruchitha Venkatesh, Alison Siu, Charlotte Chan, Kaur Mahekdeep, Hailey Wong, Iqra Sahar, Natasha Miles