Page 6 - Indian Sports

Asian Games: Indian men go down against HK, settle for silver in bridge

The Indian men's team stumbled on the final hurdle against Hong Kong, and settled for a silver medal in the bridge competition at the Asian Games here on Friday. India, a gold and two bronze-medal winner at the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games, lost to Hong Kong 152-238.1 in the gold-medal match at Hangzhou. The Indian team consisting of Sandeep Thakral, Jaggy Shivadasni, Raju Tolani and Ajay Prabhkar Khare could not challenge the Hong Kong outfit at any point during the six sessions, spread over two days. Indian men were trailing 1-2 after the first two sessions, and they made a woeful start, losing the day's first session 32-42 to Hong Kong. Trailing 1-3, India needed to win the second session on the day, but Hong Kong emerged a clear 38-17 winner to all but seal the gold with a 4-1 lead.

Asian Games 2023: Battling nerves key for India in men's hockey final

The Indian men's hockey team will have to battle nerves and handle pressure effectively when it takes on defending champions Japan in the final of the Asian Games here on Friday, in its pursuit of reclaiming the gold medal at the continental showpiece after nine years. India last won the men's hockey gold in the Asian Games in 2014 in Incheon, South Korea and would be gunning for their fourth yellow metal in the quadrennial extravaganza and secure a direct ticket to next year's Paris Olympics. The last time India won the Gold at the Asian Games was back in 2014 in Incheon, South Korea. World no.3 India have claimed the Asian Games Gold medal thrice since the inception of Field Hockey at the Asian Games, winning the title in 1966, 1998 and in 2014. And going by their form and world ranking, India are clear favourites to win the gold here and add to their nine silver and three bronze medal at the Asian Games. It was a disappointing outing for India in the last edition of the Games in

Asian Games October 5 schedule: India vs China in hockey SF, medal events

India's historic run at the Asian Games 2023 will continue on October 5 when the women's hockey team will face China in the semi-final, women's and men's archers and wrestlers will also be in action

Asain Games 2023: India rout Bangladesh 55-18 in men's kabaddi group stage

The Indian men's kabaddi team, who are a record seven-time champions, began their campaign with an emphatic 55-18 win over Bangladesh in a group fixture at the Asian Games here on Tuesday. In their bid to regain the Asian Games gold medal, the Indians, who slipped to a bronze at the 2018 edition, took a 24-9 lead at the half-time. Naveen Kumar Goyat and Arjun Deshwal spearheaded their raids in style to inflict the first all-out in the 12th minute. Bangladesh managed to inflict two supertackles in the first half on Pawan Sehrawat and then on Goyat but that proved insufficient as India took 12-point lead inside 20 minutes. Bangladesh faltered in their raids as the Indians extended their lead in the second-half and sealed the issue. The women's kabaddi team, who were the last edition's silver medallist, endured a disappointing start after being held to an unexpected 34-34 draw by Chinese Taipei on Monday. In the men's event India find themselves clubbed with Bangladesh, Chinese Taip

Asian Games 2023: Verma, Deotale set up all-Indian final in compund archery

Reigning world champion Ojas Deotale blazed his way to the final with a perfect score of 150, while veteran Abhishek Verma also shone bright to set up an all-Indian gold medal clash and assure the county of a top-two finish in the men's individual compound archery at the Asian Games, here on Tuesday. Seasoned Jyothi Surekha Vennam also advanced into the women's individual final at the expense of world champion Aditi Swami, as the compound archers led India's charge at the continental showpiece. India have thus confirmed three medals in archery, matching their best-ever feat of 2014 Asian Games in Incheon where they have won one gold, one silver and one bronze. The Indian archers also remained in the hunt for a podium finish in seven more events across recurve and compound sections. Fresh from winning the senior World Championship crown in Berlin two months back, Deotale was up against South Korean seventh-seed Yang Jaewon. But the 21-year-old Indian did not give his rival any chan

Asian Games 2023: Lovlina enters 75 kg final, Preeti settles for bronze

World champion Lovlina Borgohain (75kg) locked an Olympic quota for herself by moving to the final while young Indian boxer Preeti Pawar (54kg) signed off with a bronze medal at the Asian Games here on Tuesday. Borgohain, the Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist, cleverly managed her bout against Asian Championship silver medallist Baison Manikon of Thailand to take a unanimous decision win and book her ticket for next year's Paris Games Preeti, on the other hand, put up a good show but lost 0-5 to reigning flyweight champion China's Chang Yuan. She has already secured an Olympic quota. Both Southpaw boxers showcased their high skill and ring IQs in the opening three minutes. While Preeti looked to poke and peck with a right hook, the Chinese kept landing right hooks. At one point, the 19-year-old Indian landed a double jab, followed by two right hooks and two body shots to score crucial points. But Chang replied aggressively with a right cross and a flurry of jabs. The Chinese boxer w

Asian Games 2023: India pairs enter mixed doubles quarterfinals in squash

Two Indian pairs advanced to the quarterfinals of the mixed doubles squash competition with dominant wins over their respective opponents in the pool matches at the Asian Games, here on Tuesday. In a Pool A match, Dipika Pallikal and Harinder Pal Singh Sidhu breezed past Japan's Risa Sugimoto and Tomotaka Endo 2-0 (11-5 11-5), while Anahat Singh teamed up with Abhay Singh to beat Hong Kong's Tsz Wing Tong and Ming Hong Tang in 2-0 (11-10 11-8) in Pool D. In the quarterfinals later in the day, the pair of Dipika and Harinder will be up against Jemyca Aribado and Andrew Garica of Philippines. The other Indian duo of Anahat and Abhay will play South Korean combination of Yang Yeonsoo and Lee Dongjun. Later in the day, veteran Sourav Ghosal and Tanvi Khanna will be in action in their respective singles quarterfinals. While Sourav will face Japan's Tsukue Ryunosuke in the men's last-eight round, Tanvi will play another Japanese in Satomi Watanabe in women's singles event.

Asian Games 2023: Sunil Singh and Arjun Singh win historic bronze in Canoe

Salam Sunil Singh, son of a fisherman, and Arjun Singh, born to a factory worker, grew up 2000km apart from each other. But there is a binding thread an unending passion for water sports unhindered by their difficult formative years. The 24-year-old Sunil from Moirang, Manipur, and the 16-year-old Arjun, who grew up in Roorkee, combined that passion to land India a bronze medal in men's double canoe 1000m event at the Asian Games on Tuesday, a first for the country since the 1994 event. The duo clocked 3:53.329 seconds to finish third here. In the 1994 Hiroshima edition, India had bagged a bronze in the same event through Siji Sadanandan and Johnny Rommel. For Sunil and Arjun, the medal was the culmination of the hard work they had put in despite the crushing odds in their lives. "My father (Iboyaima Singh) is a fisherman and every morning and evening he would row his boat out and catch fishes at the Loktak Lake and that is our family's source of income. My mother (Binita Devi) is

Asian Games 2023: Yarraji fails to qualify; Borgohain in semi-final of 200m

Indian athlete Jyothi Yarraji failed to qualify for the final of the women's 200m event after she finished third in her heat with timings of 23.78 seconds at the Hangzhou Asian Games on Sunday.

Asian Games 2023: Jyothi, Aditi power India to top-spot in women's compound

Seasoned Jyothi Surekha Vennam edged out her South Korean rivals to top the qualification, while world champion Aditi Swami secured the fourth spot to also make the cut, and power India to grab the top-seeding in the women's compound archery at the Asian Games here on Sunday. As action got underway in the discipline in the continental showpiece, the script unfolded as per expectations with the Indians dominating the compound section. The country also had an inspiring show in the Olympic-discipline recurve section, where veteran Atanu Das finished fourth, while promising youngster Dhiraj Bommadevara was the next best Indian at sixth spot to make the cut in the men's section. As a result, the Indian men's recurve team qualified as the third seeds with 2022 points. Recurve heavyweights South Korea topped the qualifiers with 2048 points, while Chinese Taipei (2030) took the second spot in the standings. The women's recurve and men's compound qualifiers are slated in the second-half of

Asian Games 2023: Aditi Ashok clinches historic silver in women's golf

India's star golfer Aditi Ashok created history by clinching a first-ever medal in the women's individual event at the ongoing 19th Asian Games on Sunday

Asian Games 2023: India win gold in men's trap team, women claim silver

The Indian triumvirate of Prithviraj Tondaiman, Kynan Chenai, and Zoravar Singh Sandhu won the gold medal in men's trap shooting at the Asian Games here on Sunday. Just before that, the trio of Manisha Keer, Preeti Rajak and Rajeshwari Kumari claimed the silver medal in the women's trap team event, adding to the Indian shooting contingent's best-ever show at the Games. The Indian men combined to shoot 361 in the qualifications and finish ahead of silver medallists Khaled Almudhaf, Talal Alrashidi and Abdulrahman Alfaihan (359) and host nation China's Yuhao Guo, Ying Qi and Yuhao Wang (354), who settled for the bronze. Shooting last, Alrashidi tried his his best and scored 24 points but that was not enough to surpass the Indian total. Meanwhile, the Indian women's team totalled 337 to take home the silver medal behind China's Qingnian Li, Cuicui Wu and Xinqiu Zhang, who combined to shoot a world and games record score of 357 to finish on top of the podium. Kazakhstan's Mariya ...

Asian Games 2023: Limaye eliminated, India last in cross country equestrian

The Indian team on Sunday finished last in a five-team field to crash out of equestrian cross country after rider Ashish Limaye was eliminated here at the Asian Games. The Indian team consisting of Vikas Kumar, Apurva Dabhade and Limaye finished with a total penalty score of 1070.80 which was significantly higher than other competitors. Limaye had topped the dressage discipline in equestrian eventing competition on Saturday. In the cross country event, while Kumar had total penalties of 41.20 and Dabhade had 29.60, Limaye was eliminated for missing two jumps. "This happens in high-level sports. He is a good rider. He has experience. He jumped the first two fences and after the combination he turned left to go outside (the route), forgot to turn right," said Indian coach Rodolphe Scherer after the event. "I told him afterwards and he said he was 'stupid' but I do not think he was stupid. Big pressure on the brain. That can happen in your life. I am very sad for him that it happened

Asian Games 2023: Neeraj Chopra wants to take his mind away from injury

A groin strain has been troubling Neeraj Chopra for some time now but the Olympic champion does not want the thought of injury affect him as he gears up to defend his Asian Games title. Chopra played most part of the season with a groin strain but still won the world championships title in August in Budapest and went on to finish second in the Diamond League finals on September 16. "I have come back here after training and doing rehab in a relaxed manner in Switzerland. I hope to give my 100 per cent and defend my Asian Games title," Chopra told reporters here. The 25-year-old javelin thrower has Olympic qualification in his mind. "A little bit of groin issue is still there, it happened last year also. I was feeling better but it happened again. I have to take care of this very well and then prepare for the Paris Olympics. This kind of thing happens for athletes who compete at the top level." He said the challenge throughout the season was how to keep his mind away from the injury

Asian Games 2023: Beating China would have enhanced shooters' confidence

Indian shooters beating the Chinese in their own den at the ongoing Asian Games has enhanced their "self-belief" and given them the confidence that they can beat the "best in the world", said pistol coach Samaresh Jung following the country's marksmen's sizzling performance at the continental showpiece. Jung, who is in Hangzhou with the Indian contingent, added that the success of the band of young shooters at the Asian Games was a significant "milestone" in their sporting journey. "They (shooters) need to believe that they can do it, and now they have seen it. Beating a powerhouse like China in China is a big thing and it would certainly enhance their self-belief. This made them realise that they can beat the world," said Jung, who had won five gold medals at the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games, earning him the sobriquet 'Goldfinger'. "It is the beginning of their journey as they are just 18, 19 or 20-years-old. They have a long way to go but this Asian Games would be the milesto

Asiad 2023: Sarabjot, Divya settle for silver in 10m air pistol mixed team

India's Sarabjot Singh and Divya TS settled for a silver medal in the 10m air pistol mixed team event, losing the finals to Chinese pair at the Asian Games here on Saturday. The final score read 16-14 in favour of Chinese shooters Zhang Bowen and Jiang Ranxin in the shoot-off for gold. India thus have won 19 medals in shooting, including 6 gold, 8 silver and 5 bronze, from the continental Games. Sarabjot had shot 291, while Divya scored 286 to aggregate 577 and finish ahead of China (576) in the qualification round. But in the shoot-off for gold, the Chinese pair turned the tables on the Indians, emerging winners after trailing the Indian duo for much of the finals.

Asian Games 2023 TT: Manika enters prequarterfinals; mixed pair knocked out

Star Indian paddler Manika Batra entered the pre-quarterfinals with a dominating win over lower-ranked Nepal's Nabita Shrestha in women's singles at the Asian Games here on Thursday. Manika, a 2018 Commonwealth Games gold medallist and a bronze winner in mixed doubles at the Jakarta Asian Games, blanked Nabita 4-0 (11-5, 11-4, 11-3, 11-2) in just 20 minutes to set up a clash with Thailand's Suthasini Sawettabut. However, Sreeja Akula faced a humiliating defeat to North Korea's Songgyong Pyon 0-4 (6-11, 4-11, 13-15, 9-11) to bow out of the competition. In the men's doubles, Indian duo of Manav Vikash Thakkar and Manush Utpalbhai Shah defeated Mohamed Shaffan Ismail and Moosa Munsif Ahmed of the Maldives 3-1 (11-8, 9-11, 11-6, 11-2) to enter the round of 16. Another Indian pair Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Sharath Kamal Achanta, outplayed Mangolian combination of Ser-Od Gankhuyag and Manlaijargal Munkh-Ochir 3-0 (11-5, 11-3, 11-3) in just 13 minutes. However, India's mixed pair of Sath

Asian Games 2023: Indian Cyclist David Beckham finishes 8th in men's sprint

Indian cyclist David Beckham Elkatohchoongo's hopes of winning a medal at the Asian Games ended after he lost the quarterfinal match in men's sprint event at the Asian Games here on Thursday. David lost to Kaiya Ota after finishing 2.395 seconds behind the Japanese in the first race and 0.046 seconds in the second race at the sprint quarterfinal heat 2. He will now compete for 5th8th place in the event. Among others, Niraj Kumar finished in seventh place with 24 points in the men's Omnium Scratch race 1/4. In women's sprint, Triyasha Paul finished 0.722 seconds behind her opponent, Mina Sato of Japan, in the 1/16 final. Later in the day, the Indian will compete against South Korea's Hyeonseo Hwang in the repechage round, which gives her another shot of making it to the quarterfinals. In the qualifying round, Triyasha Paul finished at 15th place to sneek into the top 16 but compatriot Mayuri Dhanraj Lute ended at 17th positions to miss out. India had won its last medal in cycling

Asian Games 2023: Pranati Nayak 8th in Gymnastics Women's Vault final

Indian gymnast Pranati Nayak signed off with a dismal eighth-place finish in the Women's Vault final at the Asian Games here on Thursday. The 28-year-old from West Bengal, a two-time bronze medallist at the Asian Championships, came up with a score of 12.350 after her two vaults. North Korea's Changok An and Sonhyang Kim won the gold and silver medals respectively, while China's Linmin Yu claimed the bronze. The only Indian gymnast at the Asian Games, Nayak faltered with her landing and received a penalty to score 12.100 in the first vault. In the second vault, she showed better execution to produced an improved 12.600 but it was not good enough to keep her in medal contention.

Asian Games Swimming: Indian relay teams enter final with national records

The Indian men's 4x100m and women's 4x200m freestyle relay teams sailed into the finals with new national records at the Asian Games here on Thursday. Srihari Nataraj, Tanish George Mathew and Vishal Grewal clocked 3:21.22s to finish fifth in the heats to qualify for the final of the 4x100m freestyle relay event. They rewrote the previous 'Best Indian Time' of 3:23.72s set by Nataraj, Sajan Prakash, Virdhwal Khade and Anil Kumar Shylaja in 2019. The quartet of Dhinidhi Desinghu, Shivangi Sarma, Vritti Agarwal and Hashika Ramachandra (8:39.64s) followed suit by notching up the 'Best Indian Time' in women's 4x200m freestyle relay. The Indians finished eighth in the 10-team heat to move to the final. The four women swimmers bettered the 8:40.89s mark set by by Hashika, Dhinidhi, Vihitha Nayana and Shirin at the nationals earlier this year. In swimming, timing is considered a national meet record when it has been achieved at the National Aquatic Championships. Hence, the timings clo