The national tennis federation on Monday named former India player and chairman of the its selection panel, Rohit Rajpal as India's non-playing captain for the upcoming away Davis Cup tie against Pakistan, signalling end of Mahesh Bhupathi's era.
There was speculation that veteran Leander Paes could be considered for the job after the 46-year-old made himself available following pull-outs from top players and skipper Bhupathi.
The November 29-30 contest in Islamabad has already been rescheduled once owing to security concerns raised by India.
The All India Tennis Association (AITA) decided to appoint Rajpal at its Executive Committee (EC) meeting which was followed by Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Chandigarh.
"Former President Anil Khanna and incumbent Praveen Mahajan proposed Rohit Rajpal's name and everyone agreed. Rajpal will go to Pakistan as non-playing captain and this arrangement is only for this tie, as of now," an AITA source said.
The source added that Bhupathi, whose term 

Rohit Rajpal to be India's non-playing captain for Pakistan tie, "end" of Bhupathi era

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Kedar Jadhav conjured up a well-calculated 86-run knock before left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem claimed four wickets as India B lifted the Deodhar Trophy with a comprehensive 51-run win over India C in the final, here on Monday.
Electing to bat, India B recovered from early jolts to post a competitive 283 for 7, courtesy well-compiled fifties by Jadhav and Yashasvi Jaiswal (54) and a 33-ball 45 from Vijay Shankar down the order.
The bowlers led by Shahbaz Nadeem (4/32) and Mohammed Siraj (2/43) then joined the party as India B restricted India C to 231 for 9 to complete the victory.
India C lost skipper, 20-year-old Shubman Gill (1), who on Monday became the youngest captain to lead a side in the Deodhar Trophy final, surpassing Virat Kohli's 10-year-old record.
After Gill's departure, Mayank Agarwal (28) and Priyam Garg (74) added 54 runs before the opener was sent back by Nadeem in the 12th over.
In the next over, Virat Singh, who had scored a superb 76 in the last match, was run out 

India B lift Deodhar Trophy on back of Jadhav, Nadeem

Manchester City captain David Silva looks set to miss the top of the table clash with leaders Liverpool on Sunday due to injury, said City manager Pep Guardiola.
The 33-year-old Spanish attacking midfielder in his last season with the club suffered a muscular injury towards the end of the first-half of Saturday's 2-1 win over Southampton.
Guardiola, whose side trail Liverpool by six points in the table, disclosed no more about the nature of the injury but it normally entails an absence of just under two weeks.
"David Silva was injured," said Guardiola. "Five minutes before the first half ended he told me he had a muscular problem.
"When he has a muscular problem and cannot play more minutes it is because he has something and when it is a muscular problem it is always a minimum of 10-12 days."
Guardiola, whose side also faces a Champions League clash with Italian outfit Atalanta on Wednesday, admitted Liverpool's home record of not having lost at Anfield since January 2017 was a ...

City skipper Silva set to miss Liverpool clash

Kidambi Srikanth has decided to give China Open a miss but top Indian shuttlers P V Sindhu and Saina Nehwal will have their task cut out when they begin their campaign at the USD 700,000 event, beginning here on Tuesday.
Former world number one Srikanth was pitted against reigning two-time world championship and numero uno ranked Kento Momota of Japan in his opening round but he pulled out of the tournament.
Srikanth will now feature at the Hong Kong Open World Tour Super 500, next week.
Sindhu and Saina will once again be India's best bet as they look to put up a good show this week.
All eyes will also be on men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, who had reached the finals at the French Open last month.
Both Sindhu and Saina had made early exits in three successive tournaments at China, Korea and Denmark before somewhat regaining form with a quarterfinal finish at the French Open and the duo will be desperate to go deep in the draw.
Sixth seed Sindhu, who ...

Srikanth pulls out; Sindhu, Saina eye title at China Open

The Madhya Pradesh sports  department has decided to extend insurance cover to all  players representing the state at the national level, an  official said on Monday.
He claimed Madhya Pradesh is the first state to  provide insurance cover to its players.
At present, 822 students/players enrolled in various  sports academies of the state are covered under medical,  accident and life insurance policy.
"Necessary steps are being taken to provide benefits  of medical, accident and life insurance cover to all players  representing the state at the national level," sports director  S L Thaosen said.
This will benefit the players who, due to poor  financial conditions, fail to get proper treatment in case of  injuries during competitions or practice sessions, he said.
Such a situation leads to untimely exit of talented  players from sports, he noted.
"In view of this, it has been decided to provide  medical, accidental and life insurance cover to the players.  Information is being sought ...

MP athletes playing at national level to get insurance cover

A documentary on Real Kashmir FC has bagged the prestigious British Academy of Film and Television Awards (BAFTA) Scotland Awards 2019 at a glittering ceremony in Glasgow, Scotland.
The documentary narrates the journey of former Rangers ace David Robertson as the coach of Real Kashmir FC, which in its first season finished third in the I-League, which is currently India's second tier football league.
The hour-long film, which was aired by BBC Scotland earlier this year, won in the 'Single Documentary' category.
The director of the show, Greg Clark was also nominated in the 'Director  Factual' category but he missed out of the award to Matt Pinder, who was adjudged winner for his film 'Murder Case'.
Real Kashmir had a fairytale journey in their debut I-League season in 2017-18 as the team scripted some memorable wins against top sides including East Bengal and Mohun Bagan as they finished with 36 points from 19 games.

Documentary on Real Kashmir bags 'BAFTA Scotland' Awards 2019

Former India player and chairman of the national tennis federation's selection panel, Rohit Rajpal, was on Monday named India's non-playing captain for the upcoming away Davis Cup tie against Pakistan.
There was speculation that veteran Leander Paes could be considered for the job after the 46-year-old made himself available following pullouts by top players and captain Mahesh Bhupathi.
The November 29-30 contest in Islamabad has already been rescheduled once owing to security concerns raised by India. The All India Tennis Association (AITA) decided to appoint Rajpal at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Chandigarh.
"Former President Anil Khanna and incumbent Praveen Mahajan proposed Rohit Rajpal's name and everyone agreed. Rajpal will go to Pakistan as non-playing captain and this arrangement is only for this tie, as of now," an AITA source said.
The AITA has requested the International Tennis Federation (ITF) to shift the tie to a neutral venue and the world governing body is ...

Rohit Rajpal to be India's non-playing captain for Pakistan tie

The Asia Pacific Golf Summit (APGS), which has come to India for the first time, began here on Monday and is supported by the Ministry of Tourism.
The 13th edition of the summit is being held at the DLF Golf & Country Club till November 6.
The annual event will see international speakers discuss various operational and business aspects of golf in the context of the summit's theme which is "A 5G Mindset For Golf's Future In Asia."
"We have considered India as a possible venue since 2012 and are delighted that it's finally happening in a nation as vast and diverse as India,"  said Mike Sebastian, Chief Executive Officer of the Asia Pacific Golf Group, the owner and producer of APGS.
"We believe that we have a venue and a country that is going to lead the thrust and growth of golf in Asia and together with China and the rest of Asia," he added.

Asia Pacific Golf Summit gets underway in Gurugram

Punam Raut starred with the bat before spinners put up a fine performance to set up India's comfortable 53-run win over West Indies in the second ICC Women's Championship ODI here.
India were able to defend a modest 191 by bowling out West Indies for 138 in 47.2 overs and level the three-match ODI series 1-1 here on Sunday night.
The spin troika of - left-arm orthodox Rajeshwari Gayakwad (2/27), leg-break specialist Poonam Yadav (2/26) and off-spinner Deepti Sharma (2/25) returned with two wickets each to restrict the hosts to below-par score.
Opting to bat, India began on a shaky note with openers Priya Punia (5) and Jemimah Rodrigues (0) departing cheaply, leaving the side reeling at 17 for 2 in nine overs.
However, Punam (77), who was the top scorer for India, and skipper Mithali Raj (40) and vice-captain Harmanpreet Kaur (46) steadied the ship putting up a modest target on the board.
Punam and Mithali shared a 66-run stand, scoring four boundaries each before Sheneta Grimmond ...

2nd ODI: Indian women level series, beat West Indies by 53 runs

The first president of the World Anti-Doping Agency Dick Pound has called for "tougher" treatment of athletes and nations who are found to be doping but remains optimistic about the fight against cheating.
"Many sports now know that someone is looking over their shoulder," the 77-year-old Canadian told AFP ahead of the 20th anniversary WADA meeting in Katowice.
Pound, a former Olympic swimmer, has long beaten a vocal and often controversial path in the bid to uncover the drugs cheats.
He led WADA from its inception in 1999 to 2007 and remains an Olympic Movement representative on the WADA Foundation Board.
He is proud of what WADA has achieved but regrets missed opportunities to take the fight deeper.
"What I find the most disappointing is the reticence in going in really hard against the those who sign up to the World Anti-Doping Code but only go halfway in implementing it," he says.
"After 20 years, everyone knows the code, everyone knows the rules and they aren't always applied. We 

Former WADA president Pound calls for 'tougher' action on doping

Novak Djokovic says he is ready for the "big task" of trying to win the ATP Tour Finals in London and claim the year-end world number one spot for a record-equalling sixth time.
The 16-time Grand Slam champion sealed his fifth Paris Masters title on Sunday with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Canadian Denis Shapovalov, but will be usurped by the injured Rafael Nadal at the top of the rankings on Monday.
Nadal said he will fight until it is "impossible" to be fit for the start of the season-ending championships on November 10.
If the Spaniard does not play or fails to win a round-robin match at the Finals, Djokovic must claim two group-stage victories and make the final to pass him.  Djokovic would also be sure of the year-end top ranking should he win the tournament and Nadal does not reach the semis.
"There's always a chance that I win all my matches in London, that I play well. I have done it in the past, and I like playing there," said the 32-year-old, who has won five ATP Finals ...

Djokovic ready for 'big task' to grab 'fantastic' year-end No. 1

Brendon Todd fired a nine-under-par final round of 62 to win the PGA Tour's inaugural Bermuda Championship on Sunday.
The journeyman US professional surged to victory by four shots at the Port Royal Golf Club course in Southampton after a spectacular birdie blitz on the front nine.
The 34-year-old, whose only other PGA Tour win came at the Byron Nelson in 2014, reeled off seven consecutive birdies during a remarkable display to reach the turn at seven under.
Three more birdies on the back nine took him to 10 under before he dropped a shot on the final hole, leaving him with a 24-under-par score of 260.
"I'm overcome with emotion right now, so excited. I haven't even thought about the tournaments I'll get in," said Todd, who earns a two-year exemption on the back of the victory.
"I've really enjoyed this tournament. The golf course was in great shape and it fit my eye really well." Todd's final day fireworks were too much for overnight leader Harry Higgs, who had started the day two ...

Todd wins in Bermuda with final round birdie blitz

Twenty years after its formation, the world anti-doping agency WADA meets for its fifth world conference in the Polish city of Katowice from Tuesday to Thursday.
Officially, the business of the meeting is to adopt a new anti-doping code and to elect a new president.
However, it is the long-running saga over Russian state-backed doping and institutionalised cheating which will dominate proceedings.
AFP Sport looks at the business in hand in Poland.
-- Shadow of Russia doping --
=============================
It's the scandal which refuses to die but the burning issue over potential new sanctions for Russia is not even on the agenda of WADA's executive committee on Monday and Thursday in Poland.
The affair, which has dominated the global anti-doping fight -- as well as creating splits in how to deal with it -- for the past five years, reappeared in September due to suspicions of manipulation of the electronic data from the former Moscow laboratory handed over to WADA investigators in ...

Russian scandal clouds WADA summit

Borussia Dortmund and their under-fire coach Lucien Favre hope to maintain the 'feel-good' factor from back-to-back wins as they chase Champions League revenge at home to Inter Milan on Tuesday.
A below-par performance saw Dortmund crash to a 2-0 defeat in Milan nearly a fortnight ago, sparking reports Jose Mourinho was waiting in the wings to replace Favre unless results improved, which the club subsequently denied.
The German media piled into Favre after forward Lautaro Martinez give Inter a first-half lead, then had a late penalty saved, before winger Antonio Candreva raced clear to seal Dortmund's defeat at the San Siro.
Dortmund were short of ideas against a water-tight defence and only Roman Burki's fine save from Martinez's penalty attempt prevented a rout.  However, Dortmund have since improved.
A goalless draw at Schalke last weekend was backed-up by dumping Bundesliga leaders Borussia Moenchengladbach out of the German Cup in midweek before trouncing Wolfsburg 3-0 on ...

Dortmund to sustain 'feel-good' factor against Inter

They may be one of Europe's most devastating teams at their best but another collapse in La Liga last weekend has shown Barcelona can be a soft touch.
Their 3-1 defeat by Levante on Saturday reopened old wounds from Anfield and Rome and suggests they have not learned from either of those collapses.
Levante scored three times in seven minutes after half-time exposing Barcelona's inability to regroup during a spell of intense pressure  -- a familiar weakness since coach Ernesto Valverde came to the helm in 2017.
Most clubs in Europe would gladly take winning two league titles and a Copa del Rey in that time but Barcelona are a team concerned with details, the small margins that could define a good season or a great one.
Barca play Slavia Prague on Tuesday in the Champions League, when victory at Camp Nou against Group F's weakest team will ensure the frustration and failings from Levante swiftly fade.
But fragility persists that can be exposed by elite opponents when it matters most, as 

Barca's fragility casts doubts on Champions League credentials

Mario Balotelli on Sunday thanked his fellow players and supporters for their support after he was racially abused by Hellas Verona fans, the latest in a series of ugly incidents that have blighted the early weeks of the Serie A season.
Brescia striker Balotelli scored in a 2-1 Serie A defeat at Verona that leaves his hometown side in the relegation zone, but his performance was overshadowed by his fury at Verona's notorious supporters, who have a long track record of far-right politics and open racism.
Despite denials of abuse from Verona, a video published on Twitter by a fan showed a number of supporters clearly directing monkey chants at Balotelli before the Italy international booted the ball at them in the stands.
The 29-year-old, who was born in Palermo to Ghanaian parents but was raised just outside Brescia, then had to be held back by players from both teams to stop him from leaving the field of play.
"Thanks to all the colleagues on and off the field for the solidarity ...

Balotelli thanks support after being racially abused at Verona

Cenk Tosun's header eight minutes into stoppage time salvaged a 1-1 draw for Everton against Tottenham in a match overshadowed by a broken ankle suffered by Everton midfielder Andre Gomes.
Spurs' Son Heung-min was shown a straight red card for his foul on the Portuguese international, but the injury occurred as Gomes's momentum saw him crash into Serge Aurier.
"It is a bad moment for us as a group and as a team. It's more than a football game, this is the most important thing right now," said Everton manager Marco Silva.  Tottenham led 1-0 at that stage thanks to Dele Alli's strike just after the hour mark.
The injury to Gomes proved a turning point with Son visibly upset even before he was shown a red card.
"He (Son) is devastated and in tears," said Alli. "It's not his fault. Son is one of nicest people you've ever met. He can't even lift his head up, he's crying so much."
Later Sunday, Everton confirmed the 26-year-old former Barcelona star Gomes had broken his right ankle and will 

Gomes suffers horror ankle injury, 'devastated' Son sees red as Everton deny Tottenham

Bayern Munich on Sunday sacked coach Niko Kovac, a day after the German champions suffered a historic 5-1 loss against Eintracht Frankfurt -- their worst Bundesliga defeat in a decade.
"FC Bayern Munich have relieved head coach Niko Kovac of his duties," the club said in a statement.
The "mutual decision" was taken following talks with club president Uli Hoeness, chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic and Kovac himself.
"The performances of our team in recent weeks and the results have shown us that there was a need for action," said Rummenigge.
"We all regret this development. I would like to thank Niko Kovac on behalf of FC Bayern for his work, particularly for last season's double win." Assistant coach Hansi Flick will take charge of the team "until further notice", the statement added.
The 48-year-old former Croatia international said it was the right move for the side who sit in fourth place in the table after a series of disappointing matches.
"I ...

Bayern Munich sack coach Niko Kovac

Lewis Hamilton clinched his sixth world title, but not in the style he hoped for on Sunday when he finished second behind his triumphant Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas in an eventful United States Grand Prix.
The 34-year-old Briton fought with ferocious determination to win from fifth on the grid, but was unable to resist the Finn, who started from pole and, with a two-stop strategy, had fresher tyres in the critical final laps.
After leading twice, Hamilton was passed by Bottas with three laps remaining and then resisted Red Bull's Max Verstappen to take his 150th podium finish and his 31st successive finish in the points.
It sealed his sixth title, leaving him one adrift of Michael Schumacher on seven.  Hamilton added the 2019 title to previous triumphs in 2008, 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2018.
"I can't believe it, thanks a lot," Hamilton said over the team radio as he moved out of a tie for five titles he held with Argentina's Juan-Manuel Fangio.
He added: "It's just overwhelming if .

'Overwhelmed' Hamilton wins sixth world title, closes in on Schumacher record

Lewis Hamilton paid tribute to the late Niki Lauda after wrapping up his sixth world title on Sunday, claiming the Mercedes team mentor was with him "in spirit".
Triple world champion Lauda passed away in May at the age of 70 and the Austrian legend was very much in the mind of 34-Hamilton after he secured the 2019 title.
"I miss him so much and I know he would take his cap off here today," said Hamilton.
"I am sure he is here in spirit." Hamilton added he felt this season had been his hardest year to date in fighting to win the championship.
"Behind the scenes, we have worked so hard and it is so challenging to us all," he said after finishing second at the United States Grand Prix to teammate Valtteri Bottas.
"And every message of support is important from everyone, so much that people don't believe. That is why I try to put out messages that are positive. We all struggle and if it helps just one person then it is worth it."
Earlier, he admitted: "It's overwhelming if I'm honest. It 

Hamilton hails Lauda in sixth title celebrations

Charles Leclerc said he had no idea why Ferrari slumped so dramatically at the United States Grand Prix where he finished a distant fourth and team-mate Sebastian Vettel retired with a suspension failure.
The Italian team had reeled off six successive pole positions before their arrival at the Circuit of the Americas where Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas took pole and won the race, followed home by newly-crowned six-time world champion and team-mate Lewis Hamilton.
"I was not expecting that," said Leclerc. "It did not seem right.
"The first stint was extremely hard and I believe this was the main problem of the race, but to be completely honest I have no explanation.
"The front left felt very weird. We need to analyse that because I've never had this feeling before. I'm pretty sure something was not right on this stint.
"Then on the two others the pace was not as bad." Vettel said he had no explanation for his car's breakdown.
"I had a decent start, I was just on the dirty side -- and then .

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