France beat Spain to win 2021 UEFA Nations League title

• World champions France won the UEFA Nations League title with goals from Karim Benzema and Kylian Mbappe earning them a 2-1 win over Spain at the San Siro stadium on October 10. 

• Though Spain controlled a large share of the ball possession, the reigning world champions came from behind as they did against Belgium in the semifinal.

• Mikel Oyarzabal scored a goal in the 64th minute to put Spain in the lead.

• The French response was swift, with Benzema unleashing a brilliant curling shot into the far corner to make it 1-1. Mbappe struck with 10 minutes remaining to win the title for France.

• Italy claimed third-place in the Final Four tournament by beating Belgium 2-1 in Turin.

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Chhetri scores 77th goal, equals Pele’s record

• Indian captain Sunil Chhetri equalled the legendary Pele with his 77th international goal as his 83rd minute strike helped India beat Nepal 1-0 and saved his side from the verge of elimination in the SAFF Championships in Male.

• The 37-year-old Chhetri, playing in his 123rd match for India, struck a late goal to place himself on even keel with the Brazilian great (77 goals from 92 matches).

• He is now sharing the third spot with UAE’s Ali Mabkhout (77) in the list of highest scorers among active footballers, behind Cristiano Ronaldo (112) and Lionel Messi (79).

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India tops medal tally at ISSF Junior World Championship

• Indian shooters topped the medals tally at the ISSF Junior World Championship in Lima with 40 overall medals, including 16 gold, 15 silver and 9 bronze.

• Anish Bhanwala, Adarsh SIngh and Vijayveer Sidhu combined to win the gold medal in the men’s 25m rapid fire pistol team event.

• Manvi Soni bagged the junior double trap gold medal ahead of compatriot Yeshaya Hafiz Contractor (90). The bronze was won by Hitasha (76).

• Vinay Pratap Singh Chandrawat claimed the gold medal men’s double trap event with a score of 120, while the silver went to Sehajpreet Singh (114) and the bronze to Mayank Shokeen. 

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Phase 2 of Malabar 2021 to be held in Bay of Bengal 

• The Indian Navy will participate in the second phase of Malabar exercise from October 12-15 with the Japan Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF), Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and the United States Navy (USN). 

• The exercise will be conducted in the Bay of Bengal. First phase of the exercise was conducted in the Philippines Sea from August 26–29, 2021.

• Nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier Carl Vinson will be part of the second phase of the exercise from October 12-15.

• The Indian Navy will deploy its frontline warships INS Ranvijay and INS Satpura, a submarine and a fleet of P8I long-range maritime patrol aircraft.

• Besides the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, the US will also deploy Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser USS Lake Champlain and Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Stockdale.

• After taking its maiden voyage in 1983, USS Carl Vinson was part of several major operations including Operation Desert Strike, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Southern Watch and Operation Enduring Freedom.

• Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force will deploy helicopter carrier JS Kaga and Murasame-class destroyers JS Murasame while the Royal Australian Navy will be represented by HMAS Ballarat and HMAS Sirius.

• Following India’s invitation, Australia participated in the Malabar exercise last year that effectively made it a drill by all four member nations of the Quad or Quadrilateral coalition. Australia participated in the first phase of the Malabar exercise this year too.

• This the 25th edition of Malabar exercise.

• The Malabar exercise started in 1992 as a bilateral drill between the Indian Navy and the US Navy in the Indian Ocean. Japan became a permanent member of the exercise in 2015.

• This annual exercise was conducted off the coast of Guam in 2018 and off the coast of Japan in 2019. Last year, the exercise was hosted in two phases in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea.

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