Indian women wrestlers at the World Wrestling Championships

♦ Indian women wrestlers delivered an impressive performance at the 2025 U17 World Wrestling Championships in Athens on 31 July 2025, securing a total of five medals, including two gold, two silver, and one bronze.

♦ The historic campaign was kick-started by Rachana, who made headlines by winning India’s first-ever gold in the women’s 43 kg freestyle category with a commanding 3-0 victory over China’s Xin Huang. Soon after, Ashvini Vishnoi ♦ added to the glory by clinching another gold in the 65 kg category, defeating Uzbekistan’s Mukhayyo Rakhimjonova 3-0.

♦ In the 57kg category, Moni took silver after a close loss to Kazakhstan’s Madkhiya Usmanov, a 5-6. 

♦ India’s second silver came from Kajal, who put up a strong fight in the 73kg final but lost to China’s Wenjin Qiu. 

♦ In the 49kg category, Komal Verma secured a bronze, defeating Anhelina Burkina of UWW 8-3.

India will host the 2025 Chess World Cup

♦ India will host the 2025 Chess World Cup from October 30 to November 27, the International Chess Federation (FIDE) said on 21 July 2025.  

♦ The tournament will feature 206 players in a knockout format, with the top three earning spots in the 2026 Candidates Tournament, which determines the challenger for the World Chess Championship.

♦ Since 2021, the World Cup has followed a single-elimination format.

♦ Each round spans three days: two classical games, followed by tie-breaks on the third day if needed.

♦ The top 50 seeds receive byes in the first round, while seeds 51 to 206 compete in a top-half vs. reversed lower-half draw.

♦ India has hosted several major chess events in recent years, including the 2022 Chess Olympiad, Tata Steel Chess India, the 2024 World Junior U20 Championships, and the fifth leg of the 2025 Women’s Grand Prix.

Murali Sreeshankar

♦ Star Indian long jumper Murali Sreeshankar clinched the gold medal in the men's long jump at the Meeting Maia Cidade do Desporto 2025 in Maia, Portugal, on 20 July 2025.

♦ He claimed the title with a best jump of 7.75m.

♦ Poland's Piotr Tarkowski also logged 7.75m on his fifth attempt, but Sreeshankar claimed the top spot to a superior second-best mark - 7.69m from his third jump - compared to Tarkowski's 7.58m. Australia's Chris Mitrevski rounded out the top three with a best jump of 7.68m on his last attempt.

♦ The Meeting Maia Cidade do Desporto is a World Athletics Continental Tour bronze-level meet (category C) in Portugal.

Jannik Sinner

♦ Italy's Jannik Sinner won his first Wimbledon men's singles tile on 13 July 2025.

♦ He defeated Spain's Carlos Alcaraz in the final with 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 at the All England Club. 

♦ The No. 1-ranked Sinner earned his fourth Grand Slam title overall, moving him one away from No. 2 Alcaraz's total as the two young rivals separate themselves from the rest of the pack in men's tennis.

Iga Swiatek

♦ Poland's Iga Swiatek won the 2025 Wimbledon women’s singles title on 12 July 2025.

♦ She defeated America's Amanda Anisimova in the final with a 6-0, 6-0 victory.

♦ This is Swiatek's first Wimbledon title and sixth Grand Slam.

♦ The match, lasting 57 minutes, was the first ‘double bagel’ Wimbledon final since 1911.

♦ Swiatek already owned four trophies from the French Open's red clay and one from the U.S. Open's hard courts, but this is first title of her professional career at any grass-court tournament.  

♦ Winner (Iga Swiatek): Swiatek earned £3,000,000 (approximately $4.07 million USD), an 11% increase from 2024. Runner-Up (Amanda Anisimova): Anisimova received £1,520,000 (approximately $2.06 million USD), an 8% increase from the previous year.

♦ The total prize money fund for Wimbledon 2025 was £53.5 million, with equal payouts for men’s and women’s singles. 

Indian Premier Leagues (IPL)

♦ According to the latest brand valuation study by Houlihan Lokey, the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) business valuation increased 12.9% year-on-year to $18.5 billion ( Rs.1,57,716 crores) in 2025.

♦ The IPL’s standalone brand value jumped 13.8% to $3.9 billion ( Rs.32,721 crore), buoyed by record viewership, rising ad revenues, and robust investor interest.

♦ In a significant reshuffling of franchise rankings, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) dethroned Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to become the most valuable IPL team following their maiden championship win this season.

♦ RCB’s brand value rose to $269 million from $227 million in 2024. Mumbai Indians (MI) moved to second place at $242 million, while CSK slipped to third at $235 million, hurt by a bottom-of-the-table finish.

Sakshi

♦ Sakshi bagged India’s first gold medal at the second World Boxing Cup at the World Boxing Cup – Astana, Kazakhstan on 6 July 2025.

♦ She defeated USA's Yosline Perez in the women’s 54kg final. 

♦ Sakshi was one of four Indian boxers competing in the first session of the finals and was the only one to top the podium.

♦ Meanwhile, Meenakshi narrowly missed out on gold in the 48kg final after a close bout against Kazakhstan’s Nazym Kyzaibay.

♦ The local favourite edged her out in a 3-2 split decision.

♦ In the men’s 85kg final, Jugnoo suffered a 0-5 defeat to Kazakhstan’s Bekzad Nurdauletov.

♦ In the women’s 80kg category, Pooja Rani also returned with silver after losing by the same margin to Australia’s Eseta Flint.