Alex Hales fell just short again of becoming the first England batsman to score a Twenty20 international century as he made 94 in the second Twenty20 against Australia today.
     The opening batsman's innings was the centrepiece of England's 195 for five at Chester-le-Street as they looked to level the two-match series at 1-1 after a 39-run loss at Southampton on Thursday.
     Pakistan-born leg-spinner Fawad Ahmed, wicketless on debut at Southampton, took his first international wickets, including two in the last over, to finish with three for 25.
     Hales, who made 99 in a T20 international against the West Indies at his Nottinghamshire home ground of Trent Bridge last year, shared an opening stand of 111 with Michael Lumb (43).
     That partnership equalled England's best for any wicket against Australia in a T20 international, with Craig Kieswetter and Kevin Pietersen having put on 111 for the second wicket in England's 2010 World Twenty20 final win over their arch-rivals in ..

Hales leads England to 195-5 against Australia

PTI Automatic

Captain Misbah-ul-Haq scored a steady half-century and effected two crucial run-outs as Pakistan clinched the one-day series against Zimbabwe with a sizeable win in Saturday's third and final match.
     Misbah's 67 proved to be the top score in the game as Pakistan posted a total of 260 for six, before bowling Zimbabwe out in 40 overs to win by 108 runs and complete a 2-1 series victory.
     The series decider had been cast into doubt after Zimbabwe's players threatened to boycott the match over unpaid salaries and match fees, but the home side took the field after setting a new ultimatum for the first Test on Tuesday.
     For a side with off-field distractions, the Zimbabweans started surprisingly well in the field after Brendan Taylor had won the toss and asked Pakistan to bat on a slow surface.
     The tourists made a circumspect start with openers Ahmed Shehzad and Nasir Jamshed putting on 66 for the first wicket at a sluggish pace, and the innings became stilted when Jamshed .

Misbah leads Pakistan to series victory

The Sports Minister Jitendra Singh today ordered an inquiry into triple jumper Renjith Maheswary's doping controversy, which resulted in his Arjuna award being put on hold.
     "I have ordered an inquiry. There is a due diligence process that has to be followed. But I am expecting a report by Monday or latest by Tuesday," said Jitendra Singh after the Sports Awards ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here.
     "It is extremely unfortunate that Renjith's award has to be put on hold and that too on the day of the ceremony. I wanted the inquiry to be over before the awards function but there wasn't enough time," he added.
     Hours before Maheswary was to be presented the Arjuna Award, the athlete was told under dramatic circumstances that he will have to wait for the coveted honour till an inquiry on whether he had failed a dope test five years back.
     And only if he comes clean after an inquiry, he would be presented with the coveted award at a later date.
     Athletics ...

Sports Ministry orders inquiry into Maheswary fiasco

Angry Pakistani hockey fans took to the streets to express their anger and frustration at the performance of the national team after it failed to make it to the next year's World Cup, here today.
     Protests were held in some parts of the city and other places after Pakistan team lost to South Korea in the semifinals of the Asia Cup yesterday.
     The loss meant that for the first time since 1971, when the World Cup was instituted, Pakistan will not be among its participating nations.
     In Azam Basti here around 300 women and children took out a protest march in which the women advised the players to wear bangles instead of playing hockey.
     Waving hockey sticks, which had colourful bangles, on them the female protesters said hockey had reached its lowest ebb in the country due to bad administration and inapt players.
     "I think it would be better if these players wear bangles now after the way they have shamed us in the Asia Cup," said Rabia, a housewife.
     In Lahore, .

Pak hockey fans protest against players, officials

Former players today called for the sacking of Pakistan Hockey Federation officials after the country failed to qualify for the World Cup for the first time in history.
     As the beleaguered PHF officials tried to cope with Pakistan hockey's one of the darkest hours, Olympians and fans have called for immediate changes in the hockey body.
     "I don't understand why the President and Secretary of the PHF are taking so long to resign. What more do we have to bear before they step down or are be sacked?" asked former Olympian and captain Shahnaz Sheikh.
     Hockey remains Pakistan's national game despite cricket overtaking it as the most popular sport in the country.
     But yesterday's loss to South Korea in the semifinals of the Asia Cup ended Pakistan's chances of qualifying for the marquee event to be played in The Hague, Netherlands.
     Pakistan needed to win the Asia Cup title to qualify for the mega event.
     "What is heartbreaking is that now all the other top Asian ...

Former Pak hockey players demand sacking of PHF officials

Sepaktakraw Federation of India (STFI) today slapped a provisional suspension on the Manipur unit in its executive committee meeting here for expelling four players who are doing national duty in the ongoing Sepaktakraw World Super Series.
     Akash Singh, a member of Indian men's team, and Kh Bijeta, Kh Omita and O Chaoba of women's team, were expelled for 10 years by All Manipur Sepaktakraw Association (AMSTA) for taking part in the national camp without informing it.
     A livid STFI today met here and decided to suspend AMSTA provisionally.
     STFI Secretary Yogender Singh Dahiya told PTI that AMSTA has been asked to fulfil three conditions, failing which the provisional suspension will be made permanent.
     "The STFI Executive Committee decided to provisionally suspend AMSTA for expelling the players who are doing national duty. We have also asked them to fulfil three conditions by September 7, failing which the suspension will be made permanent," Dahiya said.
     "AMSTA ..

Sepaktakraw federation suspends Manipur unit

Senior BCCI official and union minister Rajiv Shukla today expressed his happiness for talented Virat Kohli being conferred with the prestigious Arjuna award today.
     "I was immensely delighted to witness Virat being conferred with the prestigious Arjuna Award today. The award serves as a true testament to the exhilarating performances exhibited by him consistently in all forms of the game," Shukla, who was present at the Rashtrapati Bhavan during the ceremony stated.
     Shukla also took the opportumity to praise Kohli's captaincy during last month's tour of Zimbabwe where he led the side to a 5-0 series victory.
     "It is also noteworthy to heap praise on his cricketing nous which was displayed during the Virat-fuelled Zimbabwe tour success," Shukla said.

Delighted to witness Virat receive Arjuna award: Shukla

Riding on Prashant Gupta's (103) unbeaten century, Uttar Pradesh defeated TNCA President XI by five wickets to clinch the Buchi Babu Memorial Cricket tournament here today.
     Resuming at 59 for no loss, the Mohammad Kaif-led side surpassed TNCA President's total of 207 in 78.5 overs, with just five wickets down.
     Opener Gupta smashed eight fours and four sixes in his 243-ball knock to see his side through.
     Gupta shared a valuable fifth-wicket partnership of 104 runs with Akshdeep Nath (47).
     For TNCA President XI, left-arm spinner R Aushik Srinivas took four for 51 while off-spinner M Sharukh Khan claimed a wicket.
     Baba Indrajith was adjudged the Player of the tournament. Former Aussie speedster and MRF Pace Academy bowling coach Glenn McGrath gave away the trophy and awards.

UP win Buchi Babu Memorial tournament

Former New Zealand all-rounder Chris Cairns today said that Sachin Tendulkar should continue playing Test cricket for another year to groom Virat Kohli as a leader and other youngsters.
     "Tendulkar should keep going for another year. I don't know, but Kohli needs to get more experience in his company. Kohli is going to be a great player and next captain," Cairns told PTI in an interview here.
     "Tendulkar's presence in the Indian side is important as there are not enough experienced players in the side, especially after the retirement of Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman," he said.
     "When Tendulkar hangs his boots for good, it would be sad for the young Indian players including Cheteshwar Pujara and Kohli to miss his experience in the middle," the Kiwi added.
     Asked if he were to be an Indian captain would he still give a chance to Tendulkar, who has been struggling for form of late, Cairns said, "Even if he is operating below his benchmark, he is still better 

Tendulkar should play another year to groom Kohli: Cairns

Japan eked out a hard-fought 3-1 win over debutants Oman to finish fifth, while Bangladesh managed to avoid the wooden spoon by thrashing minnows Chinese Taipei 11-3 in the classification matches of the 9th Asia Cup hockey tournament here today.
     By virtue of this win, Japan finished a place higher than their sixth position during last edition of the event in 2009 while Bangladesh secured the seventh spot in the eight-nation tournament.
     Playing under persistent drizzle and damp conditions, the 16th ranked Japanese had to toil hard for the entire duration of 70 minutes to earn a win against an opponent who are ranked 20 places below them in the FIH rankings.
     For Japan, Kei Kawakami (8th, 70th minutes) scored two goals, while Shinji Kawauchi (61st) scored the other. Oman's lone goal came from a penalty stroke converted by -Rajab Basim Khatar in the 39th minute.
     Earlier in the day, Bangladesh registered their first win the tournament by thrashing Chine Taipei 11-3 to ..

Japan finish 5th, Bangladesh avoid wooden spoon in Asia Cup

Defending champion Kush Kumar defeated his training partner Deepak Mishra to lift the under 19 boys title while Lakshya Ragavendra claimed the girls' crown at the 5th Indian Junior Squash Championship here today.
     This was Kush's third consecutive Indian Junior Open Title.
     Kush, who recently became the Asian Youth Games Champion, volleyed and dropped to perfection making Deepak scramble all over the court.
     Lakshya claimed her first girls under 19 title routing second seed Urwashi Joshi from Maharashtra.
     Lakshya's hard hitting abilities rattled Urwashi who had no answer through out the match.
     The biggest upset of the day was when Krish Kapur from West Bengal seeded 5/8 defeated second seeded Robin Singh Mann from Delhi in a close four-game encounter.
     Krish & Robin rallied extensively to share the first two games. Krish won the decisive third game in extra point and won the fourth game comfortably.
     The prizes were given away by Srivatsan ...

Kush, Lakshya win titles at junior squash championship

Former India seamer and Mumbai coach Balwinder Singh Sandhu feels that veteran pacer Zaheer Khan should be picked for India's tour of South Africa later this year as his years of experience at the international level would come in handy.
     "Given a choice between an in-form youngster and a fully fit Zaheer Khan, I would pick the latter. Zaheer has the experience and has got performances to back his claim. He is a proven performer. In South Africa, Zaheer will prove to be useful," he told reporters on the sidelines of book launch on the victorious under-19 team that won the World Cup in Australia last year.
     The book titled 'Teen Thunder Down Under' has been written by journalist Gaurav Joshi.
     Elaborating on Zaheer, Sandhu, a member of the 1983 World Cup winning squad said,"He (Zaheer) is an intelligent bowler. His training and match schedule is ready I believe. He will play matches before he is picked to go to (South Africa) and match-fitness is also important. Zaheer is ..

Zaheer should be picked for tour to South Africa: Sandhu

The Indian men's sepaktakraw team came back from behind to eke out a thrilling win over Iran and storm into the semifinals of the World Super Series here today.
     The team of Akash Singh, Sandeep Kumar and G Jiteshor Sharma defeated the Iranians 3-1 (9-15 15-11 17-16 15-10) to book a semi-final spot against second seeds Malaysia, who defeated Singapore 3-0 to claim their place in the last four.
     India, seeded fifth in the tournament, thus took one step closer to finishing in the top three of ISTAF Super Series.
     The semifinals and final will be held tomorrow at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex here.
     Despite losing the first set, India showed they meant business when they led from the start to the end of the second set.
     A series of errors in the third set saw the Iranians take an 11-5 lead, until Akash unleashed his arsenal of spikes to level the score at 12-12.
     Both teams traded points until the explosive striker Akash settled the set with a spike to give the 

Indian men's team in semifinals of Sepaktakraw Super Series

India went down to host Turkey in straight sets in a 5th-8th classification match at the World Junior Men's Championship in Ankara, today.
     India lost 18-25, 23-25, 20-25 at the Baskent Volleyball Hall.
     India will now take on Argentina, who lost to Iran in another match, for the 7th-8th position play-off tomorrow.
     Turkey, led by their skipper Gokhan Gokgoz, controlled the situation on the court early and won the first set by 25-18.
     India improved their performance and took the lead in the second but Kumar Sohan's seven points in the set were not enough to get them back into the game. Turkey's better blocking in the conclusive moments was the decisive factor.
     The locals stepped up their blocking efforts even further to control the scoreboard in set three and clinched the tie.
     Metin Toy scored 15 points for Turkey while Gokgoz collected 14 for his side. Sohan with 14 points was the best scorer of the match for India.

India lose to Turkey in junior men's volleyball

A Pakistani judicial board has extended by a month the detention of the prime accused in the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team here in 2009.
    	The Judicial Review Board headed by Justice Nasir Saeed Sheikh of Lahore High Court accepted the Punjab government's request to extend the detention of Zubair alias Naik Muhammad.
   	Six policemen and two civilians were killed when about a dozen militants attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team's bus near Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore in March 2009.
   	The cricketers were on their way to play a Test against the Pakistani cricket team. Six Sri Lankan players were injured in the attack.
	The banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan was believed to have carried out the attack.
    	During a hearing yesterday, the Judicial Review Board heard arguments by officials of the Punjab government and the counsel for Zubair.
   	An official appeared before the board and pleaded the government's case. Zubair was also produced before the board.
  	The counsel for ..

Lanka cricket team attack: Prime accused's detention extended

Robbed of some sheen due to selection controversies this year, the National Sports Awards were presented today to the country's top athletes and coaches with shooter Ronjan Sodhi getting the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna -- the country's highest sporting honour -- while cricketer Virat Kohli was among the Arjuna awardees.
     A loud applause greeted the ace shooter as he received the Khel Ratna award from President Pranab Mukherjee in the presence of a host of Ministers, dignitaries and sports celebrities.
     But there was some drama just hours before the awards when long-jumper Renjith Maheshwary's Arjuna award was held back after reports emerged of him being a dope-tainted athlete.
     Sodhi became the seventh shooter to be honoured with the prestigious award. Interestingly, it is for the third consecutive year that the Khel Ratna award has gone to a shooter.
     Sodhi, who had a disastrous outing at the London Olympics last year, is a former world number one. He was a double trap ...

Sodhi conferred Khel Ratna; Arjuna awards for 14 others

Defending champions and favourites India will be aiming to start their SAFF Championship campaign on a winning note against arch-rivals Pakistan here tomorrow.
     Irrespective of the sport, an Indo-Pak rivalry always invokes a lot of passion and pride among those who play as well as those who follow the game.
     The SAFF championship has been a happy hunting ground for the Indian football team having won six out of the nine editions of the tournament and having never lost to Pakistan in the championship.
     Out of 30 matches that two teams have been pitted against each other, India have won 17 matches while Pakistan have got the better of the two teams on only five occasions. Eight were drawn matches.
     On Sunday at the floodlit Dashrath Stadium, expect a keen contest but more importantly there will be a battle within the main encounter.
     It will be between the two best players of either side: Indian captain and their primary striker Sunil Chhetri trying to get past one ..

India aim to continue domination against Pakistan

Hours before he was to be presented the Arjuna Award, triple jumper Renjith Maheswary was told under dramatic circumstances that he will have to wait for the coveted honour till an inquiry on whether he had failed a dope test five years back.
     It is learnt that Sports Authority of India officials have told Maheswary that he would not be receiving the award today and if he comes clean after an inquiry, he would be presented with it at a later date.
     Maheswary told reporters after meeting Sports Minister Jitendra Singh that he had been asked to wait till Monday.
     "I met the Minister and clarified my stand. The minister has asked me to wait till Monday. They have not withdrawn my name from the list of awardees. They are holding it for some clarifications," said the national record holder.
     "I have been told (by officials) that it would be better not to attend the presentation function as the award had been put on hold," said Maheswary who is in Delhi with his family ...

Renjit Maheswary's Arjuna Award put on hold

Steady half-centuries from Misbah-ul-Haq and Ahmed Shehzad allowed Pakistan to apply a late flourish and reach a competitive score in the third one-day international against Zimbabwe in Harare today.
     Misbah's 67 was particularly crucial to the Pakistani cause, as he battled through some early challenges before helping to lift his side to a total of 260 for six.
     The series decider had been cast into doubt after Zimbabwe's players threatened to boycott the match over unpaid salaries and match fees, but the home side took the field after setting a new ultimatum for the first Test on Tuesday.
     For a side with off-field distractions, the Zimbabweans started surprisingly well in the field after Brendan Taylor had won the toss and asked Pakistan to bat on a slow surface.
     The tourists made a cautious start with openers Shehzad and Nasir Jamshed putting on 66 for the first wicket at a slow pace, and the innings became stilted when Jamshed departed and Mohammad Hafeez was ...

Misbah, Shehzad carry Pakistan to 260

A double-bogey on the 16th hole was the lone blemish on Daniel Chopra's card as he turned in a four-under 68 to be tied 58th after the second round of the Hotel Fitness Championships golf tournament here.
     Chopra knocked off six birdies to take his total to three-under 141. The Indian-origin Swede squeezed inside the cut line with a birdie-birdie finish.
     Chopra finished 21st on the Money List as the regular season finished last week. The current week is the first of the four-tournament Finals introduced this year on Web.Com Tour this season.
     Trevor Immelman, a former Masters winner, Michael Putnam (63), the current leader on Web.Com Tour, and 21-year-old Patrick Cantlay (66) share the lead at the halfway stage with totals of 11-under 133.

Daniel Chopra makes cut on Web.Com Tour

SSP Chowrasia was the lone Indian golfer to make the cut at the ISPS Handa Wales Open after Jeev Milkha Singh and Shiv Kapur fell by the wayside at the halfway mark of the tournament here.
     Chowrasia, a two-time winner on European Tour but winless since 2011, shot one-under 70 and was even-par for two rounds. He was lying 20th at the end of the second round.
     Shiv Kapur (72-77) and Jeev Milkha Singh (76-75) missed the cut, which fell at four-over 146.
     In the third round, Chowrasia found a birdie on the very first hole and moved inside top-15, but had 16 more holes to play.
     Home favourite Liam Bond took full advantage of his late call-up by taking the lead at The Celtic Manor Resort.
     The Welshman was one of the few under par players from round one to shoot better than 71 again on a firm course.
     Bond went one better than the first round's two-under 69 as birdies on fifth, eighth, 11th, 14th and 15th more than made up for bogeys at the seventh and 18th.
     ..

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