West Ham United call up Odisha winger Rahul KP Indian football has endured a tough year, with the India national team managing only a single victory over the last 12 months, with their most recent match ending in a disappointing goalless draw against Bangladesh in the AFC Asian Cup third round qualifiers.  However, in a ground-breaking moment for the country, Odisha’s bright winger Rahul KP has been presented with an official invitation to represent English Premier League side West Ham United at the 7 vs 7 The Soccer Tournament (TST) later this week.  The tournament is set to take place in North Carolina, United States, between June 4 and 9, and will feature a total of 48 teams from across the globe, including players from the UK, Spain, Brazil, Mexico and Nigeria, among others. You can keep up with all the live football action from across the globe via our football livescore tool here on SportyTrader. Rahul will become the first Indian player in football history to play for a top-flight English Premier League team, and his call-up not only signifies a massive achievement for himself but is also a significant moment for the state of Odisha and all of Indian football.  Following his call-up, the 25-year-old winger shared a video message via social media, saying:  “Hello, Hammers fans, it’s Rahul KP here. I’m excited to play for West Ham United at TST this summer. See you soon. Come on, you Irons.” Rahul came through the ranks of the All Indian Football Federation Elite Academy and made his professional debut for Indian Arrows in 2017 before signing for ISL outfit Kerala Blasters in 2019, where he went on to score eight goals in 87 appearances.  TST set to light up North Carolina TST will be held throughout the upcoming week and will be staged in Cary, North Carolina. The competition will feature clubs from all across the globe, including the likes of European giants Atletico Madrid, Villareal and Borussia Dortmund, along with UK representatives Bournemouth and Wrexham. A total of 48 teams will enter the competition and will be split into 12 groups of four teams each. West Ham have been drawn into Group G, which includes Brown Ballers FC, Tenfifteen FC and Villareal CF. The Hammers will face Brown Ballers FC in their opening game on June 4.  The tournament will also see several celebrity personalities and former football greats in attendance, such as former Manchester City star Sergio Aguero, former Manchester United winger Nani, and former NFL star Pat McAfee.  At the end of the group stage, the teams that occupy the top two spots in the group, along with the eight third-placed sides with the highest points tally, will progress to the knockout rounds, which commence on June 6.  Check out our football predictions

Shreyas Iyer vs. Virat Kohli – A new champion will be crowned at 2025 IPL The 2025 Indian Premier League has been one of the most captivating in recent history, and we are set for another history-making moment on June 3, when one of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru or the Punjab Kings will be crowned champions for the first time ever.  Having stormed into the final with an incredible performance in Qualifier 1, the team from Bengaluru is installed as early favourites, but by a very slender margin. Our Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Punjab Kings prediction is online, so be sure to check it out to get our expert’s thoughts on this contest.  Despite featuring in every edition of the IPL since the inaugural season in 2008, neither RCB nor PBKS (formerly Kings XI Punjab) have ever lifted the trophy. RCB have been beaten finalists three times in the past, while PBKS have only reached one previous final. Punjab bounced back from their shocking performance in Qualifier 1 by producing arguably their best showing of the season on Sunday afternoon to beat the five-time champions, the Mumbai Indians, by five wickets, thanks to a masterful effort by skipper Shreyas Iyer.  Batting first, Mumbai posted a very defendable target of 203/6, with Suryakumar Yadav confirming one of our IPL predictions for the match, top-scoring with 44 runs off 26 deliveries, while Tilak Varma also posted 44 from 29 deliveries.  In response, the Kings were dealt a couple of early blows, with Prabhsimran Singh dismissed in the second over for just six runs and his opening partner Priyansh Arya following him back to the pavilion three overs later.  However, PBKS’ captain Shreyas Iyer strode to the crease at number four and smashed 87 runs off 41 deliveries at a strike rate of 212.20 to lead his side to victory. Josh Inglis (38 off 21) and Nehal Wadhera (48 off 29) also played crucial supporting roles to get their side over the line.  RCB and PBKS’ journey to the 2025 IPL final  It is perhaps fitting that the final of the 2025 IPL will come down to the two best teams in the competition this season. PBKS and RCB finished the group stage in first and second, respectively, locked on 19 points apiece, but separated only on net run rate. There too, there was very little to separate the two teams, with the Kings posting a NRR of +0.372, while the Royal Challengers were +0.301. Both teams had identical records of nine wins, four defeats and one no-result from their 14 group-stage matches. In the knockouts, though, it was the side from Bengaluru who hit the ground running, as they smashed the Kings by a massive eight wickets and with 10 overs to spare after bowling out the Punjab outfit for a mere 101 runs in Qualifier 1 on May 29.  That result forced PBKS to feature in the crucial Qualifier 2 against the Mumbai Indians, who were the fancied team in the contest ...

Gill surpasses Virat Kohli to huge batting milestone The Gujarat Titans will watch the final two matches of the Indian Premier League from the stands, having lost their crucial Eliminator match by 20 runs to the Mumbai Indians at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Friday evening.  However, despite the defeat, the team will take plenty of positives from their performances this season, particularly that of their opening pair Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan, who are in the top three run-scorers in the competition.  Gill, the skipper of GT, is having an excellent season and etched his name in the history books last week when he and Sudharsan put on a sensational opening-wicket stand of 205, leading their side to a thumping 10-wicket victory over the Delhi Capitals.  The 25-year-old batter scored 93* off just 53 deliveries, a knock that took him past 5,000 runs in T20 cricket. Gill reached the incredible milestone in just 154 innings, making him the second-fastest Indian batsman to do so.  Virat Kohli, who is set to feature in his fourth IPL final on June 3, held the second place, having taken 167 innings to reach the landmark figure, while KL Rahul still holds the record, bringing up his 5,000 runs in just 143 innings.  Kohli and co will face either PBKS or MI in the final, and our Punjab Kings vs Mumbai Indians prediction suggests that the five-time champs are fancied to make it through to the showpiece event in Ahmedabad. Gill set to lead Indian Test tour to England  This year is turning into a memorable one for the Gujarat Titans skipper, as his excellent displays leading his franchise team have also led to him being handed captaincy of the Indian national team for their upcoming Test series against England. Gill was announced as India’s new Test captain following the double-retirement shock of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, with Rishabh Pant set to take up the vice-captaincy, while Jasprit Bumrah was overlooked largely due to his ongoing injury issues. Speaking after the announcement, Gill said:  “To be able to get this opportunity is a great honour and it’s a big responsibility. I’m looking forward to this exciting opportunity and the upcoming series against England is going to be an exciting one.” The Men in Blue will depart to the UK in mid-June to face the Three Lions in a five-match Test series that we will be covering from the first match, which gets underway on June 20 at Headingley Cricket Ground in Leeds.  More cricket news

Mumbai Indians peaking at the perfect time  After finishing bottom of the league table last season and losing four of their first five games of 2025, few would have expected that we would still be talking about the Mumbai Indian’s heading into the penultimate match of this year’s Indian Premier League.  However, here we are, with the five-time champions now set to face PBKS in Qualifier 2 on Sunday, June 1, at the Narendra Modi Stadium for a spot in the final. Our Punjab Kings vs Mumbai Indians prediction is already live, so don’t forget to check that out. MI produced one of their best performances of the competition on Friday, when they held off the Gujarat Titans to secure a 20-run victory in the Eliminator, successfully defending their first innings total of 228/5.  What is most exciting for Mumbai fans is that their team have been finding form with each passing game, and that was evident again on Friday, when Rohit Shama scored 81 runs off just 50 deliveries at the top of the order – his best innings of the 2025 IPL. Jonny Bairstow, who was brought in as a replacement for Will Jacks, made an immediate impact for his team, smashing 47 runs off 27 balls, and together with Sharma, the opening pair gave their team a solid 87-run opening-wicket partnership.  New Zealand speedster Trent Boult picked up two wickets, but was expensive, going for 14 runs per over, while the pick of the bowlers was Jasprit Bumrah, who strangled the Gujarat batsmen and ended with a very economical 1/27 in his four overs. Check out our cricket predictions Gujarat Titans run out of steam after fast start In the middle of May, the Gujarat Titans were the favourites to win this year’s IPL according to most online betting sites after demolishing the Delhi Capitals by 10 wickets to record their ninth win in 12 matches, making them the first team to secure their spot in the Playoffs.  Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill chased down 199/3 with a stunning opening-wicket partnership which propelled the pair to the top of the Orange Cap standings, but that also proved to be their final victory in the competition.  GT lost their penultimate group-stage match by 33 runs to the Lucknow Super Giants, but their slide in the betting market began after getting embarrassed by the Chennai Super Kings in their final match by 83 runs.  Sudharsan, perhaps, could be exempted from the reasons behind the Titans’ dip in form, as the 23-year-old top-scored in each of the team’s final four games in the competition, including the Eliminator, where he smashed 80 off 49 deliveries.  However, GT’s bowlers were largely ineffective during the back-end of the campaign, and while Prasidh Krishna overtook Noor Ahmad for the Purple Cap with two wickets against Mumbai, he also shipped 13.25 runs per over in the match.  With the side from Gujarat now eliminated, it all comes down to Qualifier 2 on Sunday, with the ...

Ndidi chooses standout African players and opens up on Foxes’ EPL struggles It’s been tough being a Leicester City fan over the last decade, as season-on-season brings the Foxes supporters a rollercoaster of emotions, ranging from immense joy to massive disappointment. In 2015-16, the Foxes managed the almost unbelievable achievement of winning the Premier League title as 5000/1 outsiders and went on to claim the FA Cup title in 2020/21, having not featured in the final since 1969.  However, the very next season, the team was relegated from the top flight, and despite making it back to England’s top tier at the first time of asking, heartbreak struck again, as they suffered the drop this season, which confirmed our Premier League prediction around the relegation scrap.  Despite this, Super Eagles midfielder Wilfred Ndidi took the time to speak to the media to discuss the Foxes’ struggles in 2024-25, revealing that one of the main reasons behind their downfall was giving up too quickly, especially after conceding the first goal in matches.  Asked to identify his top three African players of the 2024-25 Premier League season, Ndidi confirmed:  “Ola Aina, Mo Salah, and then I would say Alex Iwobi. Not because he is Nigerian. All I know is he has great character. It’s amazing. He’s that guy that’s got zero problems. I’m not saying he doesn’t have one, but he’s just trying to solve people’s problems with his own way of vibes. He’s done really, really well. He’s also one of the fastest players I’ve seen. He doesn’t look it, but he is.” Ndidi also praised Nottingham Forest for their excellent season, in which they secured European football, while picking out Matheus Cunha as one of the players he felt was the most challenging to come up against this term. Check out our football predictions Ndidi discusses plans for Nigeria national team In terms of international football, Ndidi mentioned that he is eager to return to the Super Eagles setup for the Africa Cup of Nations, but also admitted that their 2026 World Cup qualification campaign remains their primary focus.  “It’s a privilege to represent Nigeria. It’s an honour. Once you’re called up, it’s a goosebumps kind of feeling. The national team games—it’s one thing where your family back home are really proud. But we’re focusing on trying to qualify for the World Cup first. That’s the most important thing right now.” Eric Chelle’s side are languishing in fourth place in Group C of their qualifiers, having only won one of their six matches to date, which sees them trailing current group leaders South Africa by six points with four games left to play.  The CAF World Cup qualifiers are set to resume in September, and the Super Eagles have two crucial matches against Rwanda and Bafana Bafana on the horizon, both of which they must win to keep their qualification hopes alive heading to the October games against Lesotho and Benin. More football news

Phil Salt puts finishing touches on a polished RCB performance After finishing in first and second place, respectively, during the group stage of the 2025 IPL, the Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru contested Qualifier 1 on Thursday, with the winner earning direct entry to the final on June 3.  Despite participating in every edition of the IPL since 2008, neither side has ever managed to win the competition, with the Kings only reaching the final once, while the Royal Challengers have finished as runners-up on three occasions.  Punjab entered Qualifier 1 as marginal favourites, having topped the league phase, but they suffered their worst collapse of the competition, as RCB’s bowling unit bundled them out for a mere 101 in 14.1 overs, which also confirmed one of our IPL predictions for this match.  After winning the toss and electing to bowl first, Yash Dayal picked up the wicket of Priyansh Arya with just his second ball before veteran paceman Bhuveneshwar Kumar knocked over Prabhsimran Singh for 18 runs the following over.  Alarm bells began sounding for the Kings as early as the fourth over, when Josh Hazlewood was introduced to the attack and claimed the prized scalp of Punjab skipper Shreyas Iyer for just two runs. The Aussie quick then followed up by dismissing Josh Inglis in his second over.  Punjab’s top four batsmen were all back in the pavilion for a combined total of just 31 runs. While Marcus Stoinis tried to stop the rot in the middle order, wickets continued to tumble around him with regularity and the Kings were eventually bowled out with 5.5 overs to spare.  During the chase, the Royal Challengers lost Virat Kohli early to Kyle Jamieson, and Mayank Agarwal fell to Musheer Khan for 19, but Phil Salt smashed 56 of 27 deliveries to get his side over the line in just 10 overs, securing their first final appearance since 2016.  The crucial Eliminator is on the cards on Friday afternoon at the New PCA Stadium, and our Gujarat Titans vs Mumbai Indians prediction for that match is online now, so be sure to check it out ahead of the toss.  RCB send IPL records tumbling in Qualifier 1  Not only did RCB produce one of their most dominant performances in the IPL in recent memory in Qualifier 1, but they also smashed several records and inflicted a few unwanted ones on the Punjab Kings too.  First off, RCB’s victory with 10 overs to spare (60 balls) is the biggest such win in the IPL Playoffs ever, surpassing the previous record held by the Kolkata Knight Riders, who beat the Sunrisers Hyderabad with 57 balls to spare in the 2024 final.  Next, Phil Salt brought up a significant personal milestone on Thursday, as he surpassed 1,000 IPL runs with his knock of 56. He reached the 1,000-run milestone in just 576 deliveries, making him the third-fastest to do so behind Andre Russell (545) and Travis Head (575). The match between PBKS and RCB lasted ...

KL Rahul becomes fastest Indian to 8,000 T20 runs  The Delhi Capitals entered the 2025 Indian Premier League having made their intentions clear during the IPL mega auction last year when they brought in several high-profile players, including the likes of Mitchell Starc and KL Rahul.  DC splashed out a massive ₹14 crores for Rahul, who captained the Lucknow Super Giants last season, and the India international repaid the franchise’s faith by ending the league phase as the team’s top run-scorer with 539 in just 13 games, averaging a shade over 53.  While the 33-year-old’s performances were not enough to get his team into the Playoffs, the 2025 campaign was a memorable one for him in a personal capacity, as it saw him etch his name in the history books thanks to his incredible batting.  Against the Gujarat Titans on May 18, Rahul blasted an unbeaten 112* in just 65 deliveries, which saw him surpass Virat Kohli to become the fastest Indian to 8,000 runs in T20 matches, doing so in just 224 innings, 19 fewer than King Kohli needed to achieve the feat.  Kohli and RCB are set to contest the crucial Qualifier 1 on Thursday, so be sure to check out our Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru prediction for our expert’s thoughts on how this match could pan out.  Unfortunately for Rahul, the match against the Titans ultimately ended in disappointment, as the Capitals were unable to break the stunning opening partnership of Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill, who secured the victory for GT with all 10 wickets intact.  Still, DC’s wicket-keeper batsman’s achievement now stands as the third quickest globally, bettered only by West Indian master blaster Chris Gayle and Pakistan’s elegant former skipper Babar Azam, who reached the same milestone in 213 and 218 innings respectively.  Additionally, Rahul’s ton against Gujarat saw him become the first player in the history of the IPL to score a century for three separate franchises, having done so with the Punjab Kings and Lucknow Super Giants in previous seasons.  Fastest Indian batsmen to 8,000 T20 runs KL Rahul needed just 60 deliveries to bring up his century against the Gujarat Titans last week, and in doing so, also joined some exclusive company of fellow countrymen who have surpassed 8,000 T20 runs in under 300 innings. Here are the Indian batsmen who have reached this milestone the quickest.  KL Rahul – 224 innings Virat Kohli – 243 innings Shikhar Dhawan – 277 innings Suresh Raina – 284 innings Suryakumar Yadav – 255 innings  Rohit Sharma – 294 innings Rahul will not travel with the Men in Blue for their Test tour in England next month, but he will certainly be in contention for a spot in the squad when India take on Bangladesh in a three-match ODI series in mid-August.  More cricket predictions