Only five points separate Sahara Force India and McLaren in the constructors championship and as Singapore Grand Prix approaching, the Indian F1 outfit is targetting a good qualifying to catch the British team.
     Force India have been struggling to find a balance with new tyres, introduced by Pirelli, and Team Principal Vijay Mallya says they are hopeful of finding a solution soon.
     "It is going to be a close fight, but the good news is that McLaren still aren't that far ahead. They only scored one point in Monza, so they are definitely catchable," Mallya said.
     "We need to perform better ourselves, that's very clear. We're working hard to find more performance, but at the same time we've made it quite clear that we will not compromise next year's programme. It's always a balancing act, but we know what we need to do," the liquor baron added.
     Adrian Sutil said a good qualifying was key for them to continue to fight for the fifth position.
     "We've got to qualify ...

McLaren are still catchable: Force India

PTI Automatic

Put in to bat, Kandurata Maroons posted 168 for three against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the qualifying match of the Champions League Twenty20 at the Punjab Cricket Association stadium here today.
     Brief Score:
     Kandurata Maroons: 168 for 3 in 20 overs (	Kumar Sangakkara 61 not out; Ishant Sharma 2/20).

Maroons set Sunrisers 169 to win

Otago Volts registered an eight-wicket victory over Faisalabad Wolves in the opening match of the Champions League Twenty20 qualifiers at the Punjab Cricket Association stadium here today.
     Brief Scores:
     Faisalabad Wolves: 139 for 8 in 20 overs (Misbah-ul-Haq 46; Ian Butler 2/23)
     Otago Volts: 142 for 2 in 17.5 overs (Brendon McCullum 83 not out; Samiullah Khan 1/18).

Otago Volts beat Faisalabad Wolves by 8 wickets

Punjab XI enhanced their chances of making the semi final of the 88th MCC-Murugappa Hockey tournament when they thrashed local outfit Indian Bank 7-0 in their penultimate league match at the Mayor Radhakrishnan stadium here today.
     Later, in a Group-A tie, joint winners and title contenders Indian Oil Corporation thrived on a hat-trick by Didar Singh to quell the challenge of debutants Steel Authority of India, Rourkela 5-2.
     Both IOC and Punjab have so far maintained clean slate in different groups and have a match to go in the tournament.
     Their positions in the groups would be decided when Punjab plays Air India and IOC take on Army XI.
     A win for Air India would help Punjab make the cut tomorrow itself otherwise they have to wait for the outcome of Air India's match against Bharat Petroleum on Thursday.
     IOC also faces the same fate as Indian Overseas Bank too have won three matches and if they lose against Army tomorrow, it will develop a three way tie but IOC 

Punjab XI on course to reach last four

It was a rare sight, but a positive one, with a handful of Indian fans cheering for the Pakistani cricketers, who were playing as part of Faisalabad Wolves, in their encounter against Otago Volts of New Zealand, in the first qualifier of the Champions Trophy CLT20 here today.
     As the match commenced on a hot afternoon, there were just a few fans who turned up and the strength did not improve much as the event progressed at the PCA Stadium here.
     However, some of the fans were backing the Pakistanis and applauded every time Wolves skipper Misbah-ul-Haq hit a six or a boundary.
     Batting first, the Wolves, Pakistan's T20 champions, set a target of 140 for the Kiwis to chase.
     They fans also clapped when Samiullah Khan and Saeed Ajmal got a wicket.
     In today's tie, the Wolves were comprehensively beaten by eight wickets.

For a change, Indian fans cheer for Pakistani T20 team

India A captain Yuvraj Singh today pointed out the lack of partnerships and good bowling show from the West Indies A for his team's loss in the second unofficial ODI at Chinnaswamy stadium here.
     "I think they (WI) all bowled in very good areas and didn't allow us to score freely, and that set the game for them. When pressure is there it is tough to score and I think we never had good partnerships to register a win," Yuvraj told reporters after his side lost by 55 runs.
     The three-match series is levelled at 1-1.
     Yuvraj also expressed disappointment over failing to overcome the target despite boasting off a strong batting line-up.
     "When the guys are not going to get runs, you can never win games," he said, adding that the top order should have batted better to get to a target of 280.
     "If we don't get partnerships, we will not reach the goal. Therefore, it is important that we start well in the next game," the skipper said.
     Asked whether it would be prudent .

Lack of partnerships, good WI attack done us in: Yuvraj

East Bengal rode on substitute Ryuji Sueoka's second-half strike to scrape past Semen Padang of Indonesia 1-0 in their home-leg of AFC Cup quarterfinals at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan here today.
     Sueoka, who replaced Reisangmei Vashum in the 55th minute, brought the 40,000-odd crowd on their feet with a 71st minute strike as his curling shot from the edge of the box found the Semen Padang net.
     Eyeing their maiden semifinal berth, East Bengal will face the Indonesian outfit in the return-leg of the quarterfinals at the Agus Salim Stadium in Padang on September 24.
     Goan heavyweights Dempo FC are the only Indian side to have made the AFC Cup semifinals in the 2004-05 season.
     The win must have brought relief to their newly-appointed Brazilian coach Marcos Falopa who was under pressure after taking over the reins from a hugely successful Trevor James Morgan.
     The red-and-gold brigade did not have a convincing start as they relied on long balls. To make ...

East Bengal pip Semen Padang, eye semis berth in AFC Cup

Faisalabad Wolves' captain Misbah-ul-Haq has won the toss and elected to bat against Otago Volts in the first qualifying match of the Champions League Twenty20 here today.
     Teams:
     Faisalabad Wolves: Ali Waqas, Ammar Mahmood, Asif Ali, Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Khurram Shehzad, Imran Khalid, Mohammad Salman, Ehsan Adil, Saeed Ajmal, Asad Ali, Samiullah Khan.
     Otago Volts: H Rutherford, N Broom, B McCullum (capt), A Redmond, J Neesham, N McCullum, D de Boorder, I Butler, N Wagner, N Beard, J McMillan.

Faisalabad Wolves win toss, elect to bat

Former BCCI vice-president Rajiv Shukla today said that the board has not yet decided which city will host Sachin Tendulkar's much-anticipated 200th Test during the two-match series against West Indies in November.
     "BCCI has not yet decided which city will host Sachin Tendulkar's 200 Test. Many state associations have shown interest in hosting the much-hyped match but BCCI is yet to arrive at a decision. Every association wants that Sachin achieves the historic feat at its stadium," Shukla said.
     "Kolkata and Mumbai are the strong contenders. Eden Gardens has a sitting capacity of one lakh, while in Mumbai we have around 65,000," he added.
     Asked if Kanpur can host the historic Test, Shukla said: "Kanpur's Green Park stadium has a small sitting capacity (30,000) and it is unlikely to host the 200th Test."
     Shukla, however, hoped that Green Park stadium will host one of the ODIs between India and West Indies, and said that the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) ..

BCCI yet to decide Tendulkar's 200th Test venue: Shukla

The uncertainty over India's proposed cricket tour of South Africa persisted and a final decision in this regard will only be taken after the BCCI's AGM in Chennai on September 29.
     The BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel and Cricket South Africa CEO Haroon Lorgat had a meeting yesterday on the sidelines of the ICC's Chief Executives conclave but the discussions failed to break the deadlock.
     Lorgat said he remained hopeful of a solution.
     "I am happy to say that we had a constructive meeting and I would like to thank Sanjay for his friendliness and support in trying to find a way forward," Lorgat said in the CSA release.
     "After listening to Sanjay, it is clear that we will now have to wait for the BCCI's AGM to be completed before any tour schedule can be confirmed," he said.
     Lorgat, whose run-ins with the BCCI began during his days as ICC Chief Executive officer, said the Presidents of the two Boards will meet after the BCCI AGM.
     "Our Board Presidents are also in .

Lorgat-Patel meeting fails to break impasse on India's SA tour

Skipper Brendon McCullum led from the front smashing an unbeaten 83 as Otago Volts from New Zealand comfortably beat Pakistan's Faisalabad Wolves by eight wickets in qualifying round match of the Champions League Twenty20 here today.
     Opting to bat, the Misbah-ul Haq led side could manage only 139 for eight in the wake of some controlled bowling from the Otago bowlers.
     Pacers Ian Butler (2/23), James McMillan (2/24) and James Neesham (2/26) all bowled well with only Misbah making a significant contribution with 46 off 34 balls.
     In reply, McCullum hit an unbeaten 83 from just 65 balls studded with nine fours and two sixes, besides sharing a 41-run stand for the second wicket with Hamish Rutherford (25) before putting on an unbeaten 101-run partnership with Derek de Boorder (30 not out).
     Otago lost opener Neil Broom for a duck but Rutherford (25) and McCullum quickly stamped their authority.
     While McCullum adopted a cautious approach at the start, left-handed ...

Skipper McCullum powers Otago Volts to a comprehensive victory

The Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) will select a 15-member Para table tennis team to represent India at the Asian Para Table Tennis Championships to be held in China from October 16-20.
     With the sports ministry and the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) entrusting the selection job to the national body, the TTFI has organised a two-day trials at Abhay Prashal Stadium in Indore beginning today.
     A total of 33 paddlers - 28 in men's section and eight in women's category - have turned out for the first-day trials conducted by the Madhya Pradesh Table Tennis Association under the supervision of former national champion and national selector Manjit Dua.
     According to Dua, all the paddlers participated in trials in 10 classification sections, taking into consideration their disabilities with international umpires R C Mouriya and M I Purania conducting matches.
     This is the first time that the TTFI was organising the trials.

Trails for Asian Para TT championships begin

Electing to bat, Faisalabad Wolves posted 139 for eight against Otago in the opening match of the Champions League Twenty20 qualifiers at the Punjab Cricket Association stadium here today.
     Brief Score:
     Faisalabad Wolves: 139 for 8 in 20 overs (Misbah-ul-Haq 46; Ian Butler 2/23).

Wolves set Otago 140 to win in Champions League qualifiers

Admitting that Santosh Trophy National Championships has lost its relevance, the All India Football Federation today said that it was looking into whether to continue the tournament or not.
     "Santosh Trophy is not serving any purpose. From the footballing perspective, I don't think that Santosh Trophy has much relevance. We have to look into that (whether to continue or not)," AIFF Secretary General Kushal Das said.
     Das also expressed unhappiness at the way the clubs in the country were spending overwhelming percentage of their annual budget in buying players and warned that they will not be allowed to play in the next I-League if they don't fulfil the licensing criteria by next year.
     "Some of the licensing criteria is difficult to implement like having a stadium for each club. But certain things like youth development, proper administration are non negotiable. If clubs fail on that, from next year, the license will not be granted," he said.
     "90 per cent of the ...

AIFF mulling over Santosh Trophy's future: Secy

BJP leader Gopinath Munde has become the latest senior politician from Maharashtra to evince interest in being part of Mumbai's cricket administration.
     A local club today sent a letter to the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA), saying the former Deputy Chief Minister would represent it at the biennial elections of the association's office-bearers scheduled on October 18.
     However, it's not known whether Munde, deputy leader of BJP in Lok Sabha, would be contesting the elections after his name was forwarded to MCA by Stylo Cricket Club from Mazgaon as its representative at the polls.
     The interest in the elections shot up yesterday when the Mazgaon Cricket Club sent a letter to the association, saying Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, who belongs to Congress, would represent the club, fuelling speculation he would contest against former MCA chief and NCP leader Sharad Pawar for the President's post.
     Incidentally, both these clubs are owned by the same ...

Now, Gopinath Munde pads up for MCA elections

ONGC today booked their maiden Durand Cup football tournament final after they prevailed over Indian Navy 1-0 in a hotly-contested second semifinal match here.
     Striker Henry Ezeh scored the match-winner in the 53rd minute at the Ambedkar Stadium.
     ONGC play Mohammedan Sporting Club of Kolkata in the summit clash on Thursday.
     The final match will be played under floodlights and start at 1745 hrs.
     Indian Navy dominated possession but could not penetrate ONGC's well-organised defence. ONGC used a lone striker, Nigerian Henry Ezeh, and he got good support from the flanks.
     New recruit Lavino Fernandez's cross from the left in the 53rd minute led to a goalmouth scramble and Ezeh found the net as Indian Navy defenders struggled to clear the ball. Despite Indian Navy's constant pressure, the goal proved decisive.
     In the 79th minute, ONGC defender Karan Atwal was red-carded by referee Ratheesh Kumar, when he was slapped with his second yellow card. But ONGC ...

ONGC to take on Mohammedan Sporting in Durand Cup final

Powered by Jonathan Carter's brilliant all-round show, West Indies A comfortably defeated India A by 55 runs in the second unofficial 'ODI' at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium here today.
     The 25-year-old left-hand batsman Carter smashed his way to a breathtaking 133 off 132 balls to help West Indies reach a fighting total of 279 for six. In reply, India were all out for 224 in 48.4 overs with Carter grabbing two for 33 in 6.4 overs with his right-arm seam-up stuff.
     The most successful Caribbean bowler was pacer Miguel Cummins who had impressive figures of 4/31 in 10 overs to show for his efforts.
     Carter got the first and last wickets of the Indian innings in Robin Uthappa and Jaydev Unadkat. The Indian batsmen failed to fire collectively as there wasn't a single half-century in the innings.
     Skipper Yuvraj Singh again top-scored with 40 (58 balls, 3x4, 1x6) but once he was dismissed by left-arm spinner Nikita Miller in the 28th over, the writing was on the wall. The India .

West Indies A beat India A by 55 runs to level series at 1-1

Tennis legend Boris Becker has said he is considering becoming Germany's Davis Cup team captain after Patrik Kuehnen today announced his resignation from the start of 2013.
     "I only want to speak to Patrik first before I say anything concrete," the 44-year-old Becker told SID, an AFP subsidiary, having been part of the German team which won the Davis Cup in 1988 and 1989.
     He was also Germany's Davis Cup team manager from 1997 until 1999.
     Becker won six Grand Slam titles during his career and in 1985 won the Wimbledon title aged just 17.
     Having had a public fall out with Germany's top ranked player Philipp Kohlschreiber earlier this year, Kuehnen announced he is stepping down via email on Wednesday.
     "In recent weeks, I have had the impression that I am lacking the necessary support and backing of the German Tennis Federation (DTB)," said the 46-year-old in a statement.
     "I therefore do not trust the basis for further cooperation and at this point, I end my ..

Becker eyes Germany's Davis Cup captain role

World Championship silver medallist wrestler Amit Kumar today rued that a bad umpiring decision at the fag end of his bout cost him a deserving gold medal in the final of the 55kg category against Iran's Hassan Farman Rahimi.
     Asian Champion Amit Kumar had to settle for a silver after going down 1-2 against Rahimi on the opening day of World Wrestling Championships yesterday at the Papp Laszlo Arena in Budapest, Hungary.
     Talking to PTI over phone from Budapest, the 19-year-old Asian champion said he was "disappointed" to have narrowly missed the opportunity to equal the record of two-time Olympic medallist and countrymate Sushil Kumar -- the only Indian to have won a gold in the World Championships in the 2010 Moscow edition.
     "It was a tough final against Rahimi and we both fought tooth and nail. The referee gave me a warning for engaging in defensive and shadow wrestling. In reality, it was the other way round as the Iranian was getting back on my moves. He was more ...

Poor refereeing cost me gold medal: Amit Kumar

Indian Grandmasters Vidit Gujrathi and S P Sethuraman registered victories to jump to joint second spot on 3.5 points after the end of the fourth round of World Junior Chess Championship here.
     While Gujrathi outclassed Jurab Javakhadze of Georgia, Sethuraman got the better of Vahe Baghdasaryan of Armenia in their fourth round encounters.
     On what turned out to be a good day for the Indian boys, Gujrathi made most of the opportunities in a complex game against Javakhadze from the black side of an irregular opening.
     Getting his knight posted in the center of the board, Gujrathi exerted pressure and the Georgian did not have a chance.
     Sethuraman also fought for the blood out of a Semi-Slav defense and won a pawn with precise calculations. The technicalities were far from easy but the Indian made them look like child's play when his two passed pawns marched down in the ensuing Bishops and pawns endgame.
     The other Indian Grandmaster in the fray, Sahaj Grover also ...

Gujrathi, Sethuraman jump to joint second in World Jr Chess

All-rounder Irfan Pathan was today ruled out of the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy, starting later this month, due to an injury.
     Irfan  has been replaced by Kerala medium-pacer Sandeep Warrier in the India Red squad to be led by his brother Yusuf Pathan.
     "Irfan Pathan has been ruled out of the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy, due to injury," BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel said in a statement.
     "The All-India Senior Selection Committee has replaced him with Sandeep Warrier in the India Red squad," he added.
     Irfan, who has been regularly troubled by injuries since playing a crucial role in India's ODI series win in Sri Lanka last year, was earlier ruled out the India A squad for the ongoing unofficial limited-overs series against West Indies A due to injury.
     A hamstring injury had earlier curtailed Irfan's Ranji season, before another injury ruled him out of the tri-series in the West Indies in July.
     The Challenger Trophy played between three teams -- India Blue, ...

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