Mbappe's solo effort in FIFA World Cup final to Shane Warne's death: Heartbreaking moments from world of sports in 2022

10. Djokovic denied entry at Australian Open! | Serbian tennis legend Novak Djokovic was deported by Australian authorities on the eve of the 2022 Australian Open due to his unvaccinated status. Djokovic had refused to get vaccinated against COVID-19 due to personal reasons. However, Australian regulations required everyone entering into the country to be vaccinated. The 35-year-old appealed the decision in the court. However, he was ultimately deported from the country. As a result, the eight-time Australian Open champion was unable to defend his title and his rival Rafael Nadal went on to win a record 21st Grand Slam title. (Image: Reuters)

9. Post-World Cup exit riots in Belgium! | The Belgium national football team was ranked number two in the FIFA rankings heading into the FIFA World Cup 2022. In the previous edition of the competition, the Red Devils had finished third. As the so-called ‘Golden Generation’ kicked their tournament off, they failed to last long and faced a shocking elimination at the group stage itself. The elimination came days after one of the team’s key players, Kevin De Bruyne, mentioned publicly that the team were too old to win the World Cup. After Belgium were eliminated, riots broke out in the Belgian capital of Brussels and Antwerp. Dozens of fan-turned-vandals were detained by the local police as the nation’s football faithful could not believe their eyes. (Image: Reuters)

8. Italy fail to qualify for the World Cup... again! | The football faithful in Italy were engulfed by elation and jubilation when their nation lifted the UEFA Euro 2020 title. However, the elation turned to anger and frustration as the reigning European Champions failed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. This was the second consecutive time that Gli Azzurri failed to qualify for the mega event. The four-time World Champions were beaten by North Macedonia in their playoff game in Palermo. The Italians are the third-most successful nation at the grandest stage but the back-to-back playoff debacles in 2017 and 2022 have resulted in them being absent from football’s biggest stage for eight years. (Image: Reuters)

7. Sebastian Vettel's retirement! | Four-time Formula 1 champion Sebastian Vettel turned off the engine and hung up his boots at the end of the 2022 F1 season. Vettel’s first F1 victory came behind the wheels of a Toro Rosso at the 2008 Italian Grand Prix. The German became the youngest racer to win a Grand Prix at the age of just 21. Two years later, he clinched his first Formula 1 title and then went on to become the youngest quadruple World Champion at the age of 26. Vettel achieved this feat with the Red Bull Racing team. He left the team and joined Ferrari, where spent five years, before joining the Aston Marting Racing team with whom he retired at the end of season this year. Vettel is renowned for his racing on track and his participation in off-track causes and protests. (Image: Reuters)

6. Ronaldo and Neymar leave the World Cup stage in tears | Labelled as one of the greatest footballers of all time by many around the globe, Cristiano Ronaldo, was playing in what was potentially his final World Cup before Portugal were eliminated in the quarter-finals of the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar by surprise-package and giant-slayers Morocco. After becoming the first player to score in five different editions of the World Cup, the 37-year-old could not finish his illustrious career with his hands wrapped around the coveted golden trophy. After the full-time whistle, Ronaldo was spotted walking briskly towards the tunnel as he could not hold his tears back. A day before the Portugal-Morocco tie, Brazil, who were the overwhelming favourites to win the tournament were dumped out of the competition by a spirited Croatian team. With Brazil's chances over, another football great, Neymar jr., also left the World Cup stage shedding tears. (Images: AP)

5. Nadal forced to pull out of Wimbledon! | Tennis legend Rafael Nadal, vying for his first-ever calendar slam, was forced to retire from Wimbledon due to an injury before the semi-final. Nadal emerged victorious after a thrilling five-set battle against American youngster Taylor Fritz in the quarter-final, winning the fifth set tie-break 10-4. However, the encounter aggravated his abdominal tear, resulting in a heart-wrenching withdrawal from the tournament. As the Spaniard retired from the competition, Australian Nick Kyrgios got a walk-over in the semi-final round and made it to his first Wimbledon final. (Image: Reuters)

4. England beat India at the T20 World Cup! | Pre-tournament favorites India did not know what hit them in the semi-final of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2022. The Men in Blue were in scintillating form during the group stage of the tournament during which they won four out of five games, including a thrilling victory over arch-rivals and neighbours Pakistan. However, England shrugged off a slow start to the tournament to storm into the finals, beating India by ten wickets in the semis. Jos Butler and Alex Hayes displayed top-notch batting skills to maul the Men in Blue with four overs to spare. The English won the crucial toss and chose to bowl and batted beautifully to break a billion Indian hearts. (Image: Twitter-T20 World Cup)

3. Roger Federer’s retirement! | Tennis legend Roger Federer announced his retirement from the sport at 41 years old. The 20-time Grand Slam champion, who ruled the men’s tennis game in his prime, said that injuries and surgeries had taken a toll on his body and thus decided to retire from the tour. The undisputed King of Grass played his final tournament in London at the Laver Cup for Team Europe. The final match of his career was a doubles match alongside his best rival, Rafael Nadal. The match was followed by an emotional and tearful goodbye to one of the best players to have ever graced the game. (Image: Reuters)

2. The Kanjuruhan Stadium disaster! | More than 130 people tragically lost their lives due to a riot and stampede that broke out at the Kanjuruhan Stadium in Malang Regency, East Java, Indonesia at the start of October. Around 180 people were injured during the match between arch-rivals Arema FC and Persebaya Surabaya. The stadium acts as a home ground for both teams but during the clash, the catastrophic events turned the derby into one of the world's worst stadium disasters. Weeks later, after quite a few protests, the government revealed that a significant of deaths were caused by "excessive" and "indiscriminate" use of tear gas. After that, a decision was made to demolish and rebuild the Kanjuruhan Stadium with President Joko Widodo vowed to thoroughly transform the sport for the football-crazy nation of Indonesia. (Image: Reuters)

Kylian Mbappe's solo superhuman effort goes in vain |  French football star Kylian Mbappe produced one of the greatest solo shows in the final of the FIFA World Cup 2022. As France locked horns with Argentina in the final of the FIFA World Cup 2022 at the Lusail Iconic stadium in Qatar, France were trailing 0-2 with only 10 minutes left on the clock. That was when Mbappe scored two goals in space of three minutes to help France draw level and push the match into the extra-time. In extra time France again went behind as Lionel Messi scored and Argentina were this time only two minutes away from victory. But France or more specifically Mbappe was not to give up. Les Bleus won a crucial penalty in the dying minutes of the match and Mbappe showed no nerves to convert from the spot and complete his hat-trick. Mbappe thus became the first player to notch a  hat trick in the final since England's Geoff Hurst did the same in 1966. Mbappe made his team and the French football fans believe that France could defend their title. But it was not meant to be as Argentina edged past France in the penalty shoot-outs that followed. Mbappe's three goals in the final were enough to make him win the prestigious Golden Boot award. But the image of a distraught Mbappe walking past the glittering World Cup trophy was enough to tell to the world the enormity of heartbreak for the Frenchman. (Image: AP)

1. Shane Warne and Andrew Symonds’ death! | The sudden demise of two legends of Australian cricket and two icons of the world of sports sent a wave of disbelief and grief across the globe. In March this year, a suspected cardiac arrest led to the untimely death of legendary Australian spinner Shane Warne. The 52-year-old was one of the most decorated players in the history of the sport. After his demise, Warne's statue outside the Melbourne Cricket Ground became a makeshift memorial. Just two months later, the news of Andrew Symonds passing on after an automobile accident broke the news. Aged 46, the Australian all-rounder died after being involved in a single-vehicle road accident. The nationwide "Fishing Rods for Roy" tribute campaign saw cricket fans across Australia leave fishing rods and cricket balls in front of their houses.