World's leading sports broadcaster ESPN Star Sports will showcase Wimbledon live besides bringing the thrilling motor-racing action from the British and Canadian Formula One Grand Prix races and the Moto GP, through the month of June.
     The month will be rounded off with live action from the FIFA Asian Football Qualifiers and the much awaited golf major - the 2013 US Open Golf Championship.
     The action from the third grand slam of the year will be telecast live on ESPN and STAR Sports 2, starting June 24.
     With a star-studded expert panel featuring Vijay Amritraj and Alan Wilkins the coverage of Wimbledon 2013 will bring a new viewing experience for fans nationwide.
     "With such premium sporting action across sporting genres, our aim is to take the viewership of sports to a whole new level - be it through our quality of talent, look and feel of the presentation or through innovative production led enhancements which help in creating an immersive experience for sports ...

Sports action gets hotter on ESPN Star with Wimbledon, F1

PTI Automatic

The sporting action on Star Sports this summer just got better with channel announcing acquisition of the TV rights for the FIFA Confederations Cup which kicks off from June 15 in Brazil.
     The quadrennial event, which is world's second most important men's global football competition, will bring together eight strongest international teams.
     All the 16 matches of this marquee tournament involving hosts Brazil, World Champions Spain, Mexico, Uruguay, Japan, Nigeria, Italy and Tahiti will be broadcast live on STAR Sports and ESPN from June 15-30.
     Speaking on the occasion, Vijay Rajput, Chief Operating Officer, ESPN Software India Pvt Ltd, said: "We are incredibly proud and happy to present this mouth-watering array of premium sporting content in the month of June which will keep sports fans glued to their TV sets."
     STAR Sports 2 and Star Cricket are currently broadcasting ICC Champions Trophy live from England and Wales with English and Hindi commentary.

Star Sports bags broadcast rights of Confederations Cup

Parveez Rasool, who made an impressive IPL debut for Pune Warriors recently, will be the star attraction of the first-ever Jammu and Kashmir Corporate Cricket Premier League (JKCPL) scheduled to begin next week.
     "The Corporate Cricket Premier League is scheduled to begin on June 15. The bidding for players will take place on June 10," secretary of JKCPL Abdul Qayoom told PTI.
     He said 12 corporate houses of the state have registered their franchises with the JKCPL and key players have been allotted to them.
     "The franchises have paid the registration fees of Rs three lakh and entry fee of Rs two lakh each to participate in the league," he said.
     Qayoom said the key Ranji players and Under-25 players from the state have been allotted to different franchises to ensure balance of the teams.
     "Parveez Rasool will play for Kanwal Tigers owned by Kanwal Group of Companies while Abid Nabi is the key player for Ahad Nawabs. Dhruv Mahajan will feature for Sumla Bulls while 

Rasool to star in J&K Corporate Cricket Premier League

Two-time defending champions they might be, but Australia are looking more vulnerable than ever as they brace up for their Champions Trophy Group A opener against confident Ashes rivals England here tomorrow.
     Their patchy form aside, Aussies have a major worry to deal with as skipper Michael Clarke's long-standing back problem has flared up once again, making him a doubtful starter for tomorrow's match.
     The inspirational skipper is a crucial cog in the Australian scheme of things given that his batting form has more often than not been the difference between a win and loss for the team in the past few months.
     England, on the other hand, would be looking to flourish in familiar conditions even though they endured an ODI series loss to a rather weak New Zealand just before the Champions Trophy.
     But an overall assessment of their ODI stats would reveal that since 2010, England have won 23 and lost only 11 of the 37 matches they have played at home.
     A look at the .

Vulnerable Aussies up against England in CT's Group A opener

South African skipper A B de Villiers blamed "unforced errors" and "miscommunication in the heat of the battle" for the 26-run loss to India in their Champions Trophy here.
     De Villiers said losing Morne Morkel in the 34th over of due to a strain in the left leg was also quite a "shock" because he was the lynchpin of his team's seam attack.
     Opener Shikhar Dhawan bludgeoned his way to a maiden ODI century as a rejuvenated India kicked off their campaign with a comfortable victory here yesterday.
     "But I still feel our boys fought back well to restrict India (to 331)...It could well have been 370," he told reporters in a post-match chat.
     Talking about the "unforced errors" and "miscommunication in the heat of the battle", de Villiers recalled the dismissal of key batsmen like Robin Peterson and David Miller to silly run outs. Peterson's exit at the team score of 155 for three proved to be a turning point.
     "The run outs proved to be costly but you can't do much ...

Unforced errors cost us dear: AB de Villiers

Indian batsman Shikhar Dhawan said the trick to getting his maiden ODI century in the Champions Trophy opener against South Africa was patience, conceding that it was "quite a job" adjusting to the conditions at the Swalec Stadium here.
     Dhawan slammed a brilliant 114 that helped India score an imposing 331 for seven against South Africa in the opening match of the tournament yesterday.
     "I am happy with the knock I played but happier because we won a game that was actually getting quite close," he told reporters in a post-match chat.
     There was another 'maiden' experience for Dhawan. When the team left Indian shores, it was almost certain that the left-handed Dhawan would open the batting with Murali Vijay.
     But the decisive 127-run opening stand almost certainly means Dhawan's partner for the rest of the group matches will be Rohit Sharma, who scored a polished 65.
     "It was nice to play with Rohit. He is such a pleasure to watch and really runs the singles very ..

It was quite a job adjusting to conditions: Dhawan

New Zealand batting great Martin Crowe today said the cancer he was diagnosed with last year was under control and he was cutting all ties with cricket to reduce his stress levels.
     Crowe said he believed worrying about cricket, particularly the axing of his protege Ross Taylor as New Zealand captain late last year, exacerbated his lymphatic cancer, leading to a large tumour in his stomach.
     After five months of chemotherapy, the 50-year-old said doctors had told him his cancer had shrunk to safe levels, although there was always the possibility of a relapse.
     "All through my left side the lymph nodes have gone back to their normal size," he told RadioSport.
     "The big tumour I grew over the Taylor affair from nothing over 20 days, which was four by three centimetres (1.6 by 1.2 inches), has reduced down to one and a half centimetres (0.6 inches)."
     Crowe said the impact that the controversial decision to drop Taylor in favour of Brendon McCullum had on his health ..

Crowe to cut cricket ties after cancer scare

South African skipper A B De Villiers said losing Morne Morkel in the 34th over of the Champions Trophy opener against India due to a strain in the left leg was a "shock" because he was the lynchpin of his team's seam attack.
     Opener Shikhar Dhawan bludgeoned his way to a maiden ODI century as a rejuvenated India kicked off their campaign with a comfortable 26-run victory here today.
     "But I still feel our boys fought back well to restrict India (to 331)...It could well have been 370," he told reporters in a post-match chat.
     De Villiers put the loss down to "unforced errors" and "miscommunication in the heat of the battle".
     South Africa lost key batsmen like Robin Peterson and David Miller to silly run outs. Peterson's exit at the team score of 155 for three proved to be a turning point.
     "The run outs proved to be costly but you can't do much about them. When the players are trying to do their best and your heart is pumping, the heat of the battle makes you make 

Losing Morne was a shock: De Villiers

Shikhar Dhawan put it down to "patience" as the trick to his maiden ODI century at the Swalec Stadium here today as India started their campaign in the ICC Champions Trophy on a winning note.
     Dhawan slammed a brilliant 114 that helped India score an imposing 331 for seven against South Africa in the opening match of the tournament.
     "I am happy with the knock I played but happier because we won a game that was actually getting quite close," he told reporters in a post-match chat.
     There was another 'maiden' experience for Dhawan today morning. When the team left Indian shores it was almost certain that the left-handed Dhawan would open the batting with Murali Vijay. But today's decisive 127-run opening stand almost certainly means Dhawan's partner for the rest of the group matches will be Rohit Sharma, who scored a polished 65.
     "It was nice to play with Rohit. He is such a pleasure to watch and really runs the singles very well. We adjusted to the conditions very ...

Patience was key today, says Dhawan

Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said the Men in Blue showed plenty of "controlled aggression" as South Africa buckled under pressure in the ICC Champions Trophy opener here today.
     Chasing an imposing target of 332, South Africa were all out for 305.
     "The boys played with plenty of aggression, but it was controlled," Dhoni said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
     Expectedly, the skipper was full of praise for openers Shikhar Dhawan (114) and Rohit Sharma (65), who laid the platform with a 127-run stand after India were put in.
     "Rohit batted well along with Shikhar, gave us a good platform, but we lost too many wickets during the middle. Going by our position around the 35th over mark, we were short by at least 25 runs."
     "You talk about giving guys consistent chances, last ODI Rohit played, he did as an opener, selectors also backed us up, they said let him play all three games as an opener, it worked for us," he added.
     Asked about the Indian ...

Boys showed aggression, but it was controlled: Dhoni

Opener Shikhar Dhawan bludgeoned his way to a maiden ODI century as a rejuvenated India kicked off their campaign in the ICC Champions Trophy with a comfortable 26-run victory over South Africa here today.
     Chasing an imposing target of 332, South Africa were all out for 305. The Proteas lost three top wickets for six runs in the group B match.
     The star of the show was Dhawan, who made 114 of a mere 94 balls to set the tone for India. The left-hander had scored 185 on his Test debut against Australia in March.
     South Africa, who ran neck-and-neck in terms of runs with India till at least the 35th over, paid the price for losing far too many wickets after at least three middle-order batsmen frittered good starts.
     India, on the other hand, profited after their openers Dhawan and Rohit Sharma (65) laid a solid foundation with an opening stand of 127. This was the biggest difference between victory and defeat. Dhawan was adjudged Man of the Match.
     Robin Peterson's ..

Dhawan slams maiden ton as India start campaign with win

India defeated South Africa by 26 runs in their opening match of the ICC Champions Trophy here today.
     Sent into bat, India scored 331 for seven and then bowled out South Africa for 305 in exactly 50 overs.
     Brief scores:
     India: 331 for 7 in 50 overs (Shikhar Dhawan 114, Rohit Sharma 65; Ryan McLaren 3/70)
     South Africa: 305 all out in 50 overs (Ryan McLaren not out 71, A B de Villiers 70, Robin Peterson 68; Ravindra Jadeja 2/31, Bhuvneshwar Kumar 2/49, Ishant Sharma 2/66, Umesh Yadav 2/75).

India beat S Africa by 26 runs in Champions Trophy opener

Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif believes the scheduling of the Champions Trophy after the Indian Premier League is unfair to the players and may lead to fatigue and injuries.
     "It is very hard on the teams. One day you are playing a warm up game and after just one-days rest you are to play a tournament match. It is unfair on the players. It involves a lot of stress and pressure," Latif said.
     "Most of the main players who will represent their countries in the Champions Trophy played in the IPL and such a hectic schedule can lead to fatigue and injuries," he added.
     Latif said the participating teams should have played against counties instead of each other in the warm-up games.
     "Instead of having competing teams play against each other in warm up matches it would have been better if the participating teams were made to play against counties," he said.
     Talking about the Indian team, Latif supported the decision by the Indian team management to promote Rohit ..

Latif critical of Champions Trophy schedule

Maria Sharapova survived a gruelling test to reach the French Open final for the second straight year on Thursday with a 6-1 2-6 6-4 defeat of Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka.
     In a disjointed match opposing two of the biggest hitters in women's tennis, the defending champion opened the semi-final in style, then lost her way for a set and finally, on the back of a brief rain delay, resumed control.
     Azarenka, bidding to become the first woman since Jennifer Capriati in 2001 to win the Australian and French Opens in the same year, can count herself unlucky to have seen her momentum halted by the rain, but Sharapova was marginally the better player.
     The second seed will now play either top seed Serena Williams or Sara Errani of Italy, who she beat in last year's final in Saturday's championship match.
     "I really had to play to the end today and I am extremely happy to be back in the final," said Sharapova.
     "(The rain delay) gave me a little bit of time ..

Sharapova back in French Open final

Former Bangladesh coach Jamie Siddons is not surprised by Mohammad Ashraful's involvement in match-fixing during the second season of the Bangladesh Premier League, but said he feels "sorry" for the ex-captain.
     Siddons also revealed that he had informed the Bangladesh Cricket Board Board and the ICC about such a possibility, but said he did not elaborate on the matter.
     "I made my thoughts known a while ago to the cricket board and the ICC, so I wasn't surprised at all. It's disappointing but I don't think it's surprising. It's a powerful beast the underworld gambling," Siddons said.
     "I feel a bit sorry for him but I don't condone it at all," Siddons was quoted as saying by 'The Dominion Post' today.
     "He's a great young kid so I'm really disappointed for him. He probably got roped in as a 15-year-old when he first started by some other people."
     Siddons was coach of the Bangladesh team from the end of 2007 till April 2011, during which Ashraful was the captain ..

Feel sorry for Ashraful but not surprised: Siddons

Former Pakistan captains Shahid Afridi and Rashid Latif reckons it's not their national team but India that has emerged as the early front-runner to win the ICC Champions Trophy.
     Both the players said today that India, with their strong batting line-up, could pose a tough challenge to any team.
     "India's strength is their batting and they can pose problems for opposing teams, but a lot will depend on the conditions they encounter during the tournament," Afridi said.
     Latif supported the decision of the Indian team management to promote Rohit Sharma to open the innings.
     "The Indian thinktank has taken a wise decision because Rohit is a class player and this will allow him to play through an innings and pace his batting," Latif said.
     "I think Rohit can follow in the footsteps of Sachin Tendulkar who blossomed in one-day internationals once he was promoted to open the innings. Rohit has a lot of talent but so far he has batted low down the order.
     "This has ...

Batting makes India strong contender: Afridi, Latif

With betting charges against Rajasthan Royals co-owner Raj Kundra giving a new twist to the IPL scandal, a rattled BCCI was today forced to convene yet another Emergent Working Committee meeting in New Delhi on Monday to take stock of the crisis which has grown with each passing day.
     Hours after it came to light that Kundra has allegedly confessed to betting in the IPL matches during his 11-hour interrogation by the Delhi Police, the BCCI said the issue would come up for discussion in the Working Committee meeting and strict action will be considered if required.
     "Raj Kundra issue will be discussed in the Working Committee, which is going to be held on June 10 and after we hear the details, if it demands any strict action, we will look into it," BCCI's Working Group chief Jagmohan Dalmiya told a press conference here.
     The raging IPL scandal has shown no signs of subsiding with more embarrassing details tumbling out every passing day with Kundra's confession being the ...

BCCI calls another meeting following betting charges on Kundra

Olympian Sudha Singh of Uttar Pradesh booked her berth in the Moscow World Championship with a new national mark in 3000 meter steeplechase for women in the 53rd National Athletics championship here tonight.
     The day also witnessed Kerala men quartet comprising Anuroop John, Ranjith KG, Shameer and Rahul G Pillai winning the 4x100 meter relay in meet record time.
     27-year-old Sudha Singh, hailing from Rae Bareli and working in Central Railway, achieved the feat with a superb effort of 9 minutes 45.60 seconds.
     It turned out to be a surprise for Sudha when she learnt that she had done a 45 plus to qualify for the world championship.
     Sudha crossed the Moscow World Championship 'B' standard of 9:48 secs. With little more effort, Sudha could have achieved the "A" standard, which is 9.43plus.
     Harayana's Kirantiwari (10.32.94s) and Priyanka patel (UP-10.45.32s) claimed silver and bronze medals respectively.
     2010 China Asian games title winner, Sudha, who made it ..

Sudha books berth in Moscow World Championship

Karunoday Singh put paid to the aspirations of Vijayakant Malik to make the semifinals of the B R  Adityan-GNC ITF Men's Futures Tennis Championships here today.
     Top seed Sriram Balaji scored a confident straight sets win over Mohd Fariz, while second seed Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan seemed to be in spot of bother against Kaza Vinayak Sharma with the score being 5-all. Kaza could not continue and had to retire due to cramps.
     In another quarterfinal match, eigth seeded Karunoday Singh upset the finalist of last week and third seed Vijayant Malik in three sets. A fresh and calm Vijayant used Karunodhay's pace craftily to force errors form the latter to take the first set 6-4.
     Thereafter, Karunodhay combined aggression with consistency as Vijayant wilted under constant pressure to go down 3-6 2-6 in the next two sets. Karunodhay will meet Jeevan in the semifinals. Karunoday had beaten Jeevan in the quarterfinals in the Futures event held last week.
     Results: N Sriram Balaji .

Karunoday upsets Vijayanth

BCCI's newly-appointed interim secretary Sanjay Patel is confident that he will do justice to his post in the short time that is available before the Annual General Meeting in September.
     "It's an interim arrangement but the majority of the senior BCCI officials showed faith in me which in turn encouraged me to take up this role in this challenging time. I am fully confident that I will perform the duties to the best of my abilities and do justice to the role," Patel, who is the secretary of Baroda Cricket Association, told PTI.
     Asked how difficult it will be to take up this role at a juncture when Indian cricket has been rocked by betting and spot-fixing scandal, Patel answered: "Agreed the time is difficult but we will have to work hard to regain the faith of millions of cricket crazy fans who have been shaken by this controversy.
     "Our endeavour will be to clean up the mess and I can assure you that guilty won't go unpunished."
     Patel also informed that the ...

It's an interim post but I will do justice: Patel

Grandmaster Pantsulaia Levan of Georgia tied with two others on points at the end of the final round and was declared the winner on the tie-break rule in the Rs 21.5-lakh prize money 6th Mumbai Mayor International Chess Tournament here today.
     Levan (ELO 2563) finished level on 8.5 points with countryman GM M Mekheil (ELO 2645) and GM Amonatov Farrukh (ELO 2616) of Tajikistan before pipping the others for the title.
     However, all the three players had to share the winner's purse and pocketed Rs 2.58 lakh each.
     Indian GM Akshayraj Kore missed out on the chance to finish with the same number of points when he failed to capitalise on an advantage in the middle game and was held to a draw by IM Swayams Mishra at the NSCI Stadium here.
     Kore and Mishra finished among a bunch of six players in joint second spot to earn Rs 49,333 each for their efforts.
     Results: GM Pantsulaia Levan 8.5 drew with GM Amonatov Farrukh 8.5, GM Andriasian Zaven 8 drew with GM Mchedlishvili ..

Page 5045 -