Sports Shorts: Ajax midfielder Nouri out of danger after collapsing on pitch

A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Sunday

Ajax Amsterdam midfielder Abdelhak Nouri is out of danger but "kept asleep" in hospital after collapsing during a pre-season friendly against Werder Bremen in Austria, his club said on Sunday.

The 20-year-old required medical attention on the pitch on Saturday before being airlifted to hospital.

The game was abandoned, with Ajax tweeting soon after that Nouri had heart arrhythmias, a condition whereby the organ beats either too fast or too slow.

A later statement said the reasons for his collapse were unclear and that he was being kept in intensive care but "out of danger".

"Since arriving at the hospital he has been thoroughly examined. He had a weak heart beat and is being kept asleep to allow for optimal treatment and care," the club added.

Nouri made 15 appearances for the Dutch club last season, including three in the Europa League, though he did not play in the final, a defeat to Manchester United.

He is a Dutch youth international having been born in Amsterdam to parents of Moroccan descent.

The incident comes a little over a month after Ivory Coast international Cheick Tiote collapsed in training with Chinese club Beijing Enterprises and died on June 5.

Harikrishna holds world no.6 to draw in Geneva FIDE Grand Prix

Indian Grandmaster Pentala Harikrishna held world no. 6 Shakhriyar Mamedyarov of Azerbaijan to a thrilling draw in the third-round clash of the Geneva FIDE Grand Prix in Geneva.

The world no. 22 Indian, playing with white pieces, attacked from the onset and found himself in a winning position but a slight miscalculation saw him surrender the advantage to the second seeded Azerbaijan player.

"I was playing a good game and got into a winning position but played the wrong move to give away the win," Harikrishna said.

"Instead of playing Kh2 on the 28th move, the precise move to win would have been Nc5," he added.

Harikrishna is tied second with two points, courtesy a win and two consecutive draws.

The 31-year-old from Guntur will take on another Azerbaijani Grandmaster and table topper Teimour Radjabov in his fourth round encounter later on Sunday.

"Teimour has been playing really well in this tournament so far. He is a solid player and I will look to play my normal game and see how it goes," Harikrishna said ahead of the clash.

Indian women's hockey team hold South Africa 0-0

Brilliant goalkeeping by Savita saw India hold hosts South Africa 0-0 in their first match of the Women's Hockey World League Semi Final in Johanesburg.

India made a strong start with a structured game, a better ball possession in the first 15 minutes.

There were also some crucial circle penetrations made in the first quarter that fetched them a PC in the 12th minute of  the match.

However, a fiercely struck flick by India's dragflicker Gurjit Kaur was well-defended by South Africa's first runner to deny India an early lead.

With the second quarter starting with the score reading 0-0, South Africa bounced back into the game with an  improvised attack. They made two brilliant attempts on goal.

There was plenty of action in the third quarter with hosts South Africa, backed by a roaring home crowd, and the  support paid off when the home team scored through a field goal by Stephanie Baxter.

However, a clever call for video referral by India denied South Africa the goal as it came off the back of the stick.

India continued to keep the pressure on the hosts with a strong defence to keep them from making successful forays into the striking circle.

The final quarter witnessed both teams build up frantic pace, as both India and South Africa pushed for a goal. India won their second PC in the 47th minute but striker Rani's attempt at scoring a PC was denied by South Africa’s first runner who deflected the ball rather perfectly.

Though South Africa won their only PC of the game in the dying minutes, Tarryn Glasby was kept from converting the goal. India did well to hold hosts to a 0-0 draw and share the points.

India will take on USA on Monday.