Page 1214 - Sports

Real Madrid intensifies training ahead of La Liga clash vs Girona

Spanish football giants Real Madrid's squad had an intensive training session on Thursday under coach Julen Lopetegui in preparation for an upcoming La Liga match against Girona.

Heartbreak for Indian rowers after favourites flop at Asian Games

The Indian rowing contingent had a disastrous day at the Asian Games, having missed out on as many as four medals including in fancied events like men's single sculls and double sculls here. Gold contender Dattu Bhokanal was a major disappointment as he finished sixth and last in the single sculls final, clocking 8:28.56. He was consistently within the seven-minute mark in the run-up to the Games and his performance even in the Heats was nowhere close to his below par effort today. The fact that he had given up in the middle of the race had chief coach Ismail Baig fuming. The gold, silver and bronze went to China, Korea and Japan respectively. When asked what went so horribly wrong in the 2km race, Bhokanal said: "I don't want to give any excuse. It just did not go as per plan. I have still got one more event to go." The other members of the contingent said Bhokanal has not been keeping well and that could be the reason for the drastic drop in performance. "Even last night, he had ...

Natraj creates national record twice but finishes 6th, Khade 8th

Srihari Natraj twice bettered his national record in the 200m backstroke but could finish only sixth in the final while Virdhawal Khade ended last in the 50m butterfly in the swimming competition of the Asian Games here today. Natraj moved to the final by improving upon his own national mark with a timing of 2:02.97 and further cut it down to 2:02.83 in the final. There may not be a medal for young Natraj, a class XII student, but he returns home with three national records. Apart from 200m backstroke, he also set national records in 50m backstroke (26.19) and 100m backstroke (55.86), which is his pet event also. "It is encouraging. I now know what I need to do, it was a good learning experience," Natraj, who trains at Ramakrishna Hegde Swimming Pool in Bengaluru, told PTI. "In the heats, I was slow in the first 100m, here I was much faster in the first 100m. Earlier, I would focus on either speed or stamina but now I have to figure out how to get both. I need to get more serious and .

Asian Games: Indian Kabaddi team suffer shocking semi-final defeat

Indian men's Kabaddi team had to settle for a bronze medal after suffering an unprecedented semi-finals defeat in the ongoing 18th edition of Asian Games as they went down 18-27 against the Iranian side.The semi-final defeat is a major upset as it is for the first time in the history of the Asian games that the Indian side has failed to qualify for the finals.After leading the first half 11-10, the Indian team lost four quick points to their Iranian counterparts which put the opposite side on the driving seat.After that, Indian raider Rahul Chaudhari collected some crucial points but defending Champions were still lagging 14-17 in the second half.The game took a complete overturn when Iranian players went on to get a massive ten-point leads with a few minutes remaining in the game.Iran, who had suffered a crushing 25-27 defeat against India in 2014 Asian Games, went on to qualify for the final and will now take on Korea in the gold medal match.Meanwhile, women's Kabaddi team cruises ..

State-Level Gymnastic Championship in Manipuri motivates gymnasts

Manipur organised a gymnastics tournament for the first time with an aim to encourage young aspiring gymnasts. The parents of gymnasts took an initiative and organised the state-level championship so that their children can hone their skills and prepare for various national and international events.The popularity of gymnastics has grown tremendously across the nation and especially in Northeastern states since Dipa Karmakar from Tripura became the first Indian female to compete in the Olympics. Like any other sports, gymnastics requires precision, focus, and determination. But lack of infrastructure is preventing youths of the region reach their maximum potential despite being talented.Realising the need Manipur Gymnastic Parents Association organised a state-level Gymnastics Championship in the main Stadium Khuman Lampak."It is the first state-level invitation gymnastics championship. We have organized this championship with a motive to develop and reconstruct gymnastic speed in ...

Quadrangular Series: Pandey, Rayudu's knocks help India B, India A win

Unbeaten knocks of Manish Pandey (95) and Ambati Rayudu (62) helped India B and India A register victories against South Africa A and Australia A respectively in separate quadrangular one-day series matches here today. While India B won the rain-hit match by 30 runs against South Africa A under the Duckworth-Lewis method, India A registered a five-wicket win over Australia A. Batting first, South Africa B were 231 all out in 47.3 overs with Senuran Muthusamy top-scoring with a 55 and he was ably supported by Farhaan Behardien (43) in the match played at Alur, 40 kilometers from here. In reply, India B chased down the target with 27 balls to spare as they reached 214 for five before the heavens opened up, forcing the umpires to declare the result by applying D-L method. Prasidh Krishna bagged four wickets for 49 and leggie Shreyas Gopal claimed three wickets for 42 in 10 overs. Sidharth Kaul, Navdeep Saini and Deepak Hooda chipped in with one wicket each. India B started the chase by ..

I was not being able to give my best in T20s: pacer Jhulan

India's ace woman pacer Jhulan Goswami, who announced her retirement from T20I on Thursday, said she now wants to focus on One-Day Internationals only, adding it was becoming difficult to continue playing both formats simultaneously.

Ask them to talk to me if anyone tells you to change grip: Tendulkar to Shaw

Sachin Tendulkar himself was a child prodigy and it didn't take him long to gauge Prithvi Shaw's immense talent. So much so that he told a eight-year-old Prithvi that no coach should change his natural technique. "I asked him not to change his grip or stance, irrespective of any future instructions from his coaches. If anyone asks you to do so, tell them to come talk to me. Coaching is good, but overcooking a player with tweaks is not," Tendulkar said on his app '100MB'. "It is so important not to change anything when you see such a special player. It is God's gift to have a complete package," Tendulkar added. Shaw has been included in the Indian Test squad for the final two Tests and Tendulkar is happy that he saw the spark when he watched the eight-year-old bat for the first time. "Around ten years ago, one of my friends asked me to take a look at the young Prithvi. He asked me analyse his game and give him some advice. I had a session with him and gave couple of pointers on how to .

Jhulan retires from T20 Internationals, says "too slow" for format

Veteran Indian women's team pacer Jhulan Goswami today announced her retirement from T20 Internationals, effectively ruling her out for the ICC World T20 in West Indies in November. She played 68 T20 Internationals and took 56 wickets at an economy rate of 5.45. The 35-year-old will only play ODIs (as India don't play Test cricket), in which format she is the world's highest wicket-taker with 200 scalps from 169 games. "It's not an overnight decision. I have been thinking about this for a long time. The game has become faster but I have become slow. I am getting older," the 35-year-old told PTI, minutes after the announcement was made by the Board. Of late, her lack of wickets in shortest version was coming under the scanner and her big-hitting abilities at the back end was also on the wane. A trigger would have been the underwhelming performance at the Asia Cup where India lost to Bangladesh twice, including in the final. Goswami, who opened the bowling, got only one wicket in four ..

Painful to accept, repercussions can be huge: Former India captain Anup Kumar

India's shocking ouster from the gold medal contention in the 18th Asian Games kabaddi will have "far-reaching implications", feels two-time Asiad gold medallist and former captain Anup Kumar. Owing to their defeat to Iran in the semifinals, this is the first time that India will not be playing an Asian Games final since the inception of the sport at the Beijing edition in 1990. "I am too stunned to react at the moment. It will take some time to accept that this has exactly happened. But let me tell you there will be far-reaching impact of this result and repercussions will be huge," Anup, who led India to a gold medal at the Incheon Games told PTI today. He was the captain during the last edition when Iran nearly pulled off an upset win before India managed to hold onto their gold. Didn't we see the tell-tale signs? "Yes, we did," Kumar said. "And I don't think that the boys were not sincere. But possibly we didn't factor in that Iran has improved in leaps and bounds over the years. .

Asiad 2018: Iran beat India in kabaddi semis to script history

Iran scripted history in the annals of world kabaddi by stunning India 27-18 in the semi-finals of the 18th Asian Games here on Thursday.

Asiad Boxing: Six get bye into pre-quarters, Sonia in QFs

Six Indian boxers, including two-time medallist Vikas Krishan and Sarjubala Devi, got byes into the pre-quarterfinals, while one got a direct entry into the last-eight stage after draws for the Asian Games were unveiled here today. World and Asian silver-medallist Sonia Lather (57kg) made the quarters without a fight to be just one win away from fetching a medal at the Games, where M C Mary Kom picked up the lone boxing gold in the last edition. In the men's draw, five out of seven in fray, got first-round byes. Commonwealth Games gold-medallist Gaurav Solanki (52kg) and Manoj Kumar (69kg), who won a bronze in the CWG, are the only ones, who will fight in the round of 32 tomorrow. While Gaurav will open against Japan's Ryomei Tanaka, Manoj will be up against Bhutan's Sangay Wangdi in his opening clash. CWG silver-medallist Amit Panghal (49kg), bronze-winner Mohammed Hussamuddin (56kg) and Dheeraj Rangi (64kg) and Vikas (75kg) will open their respective campaigns on August 27. Vikas is

Nightmare at Theatre Garuda: India out of Asiad kabaddi gold contention

India's nearly unchallenged domination of the Asian Games kabaddi competition ended today with the men's team failing to make the final for the first time, left shell-shocked and battered by an ever-improving Iran in the semifinals here. For the first time in its history, India ended with a bronze medal in its indigenous sport, in which a gold is taken for granted every four years at the Asiad. The 18-27 loss, which left some in the Indian camp in tears, and others stone-faced, ended a reign of domination dates back to the 1990 Asiad. It was a nightmare that unfolded for India at Theatre Garuda where the Iranians played like champions and India seemed completely out of sorts. The writing was perhaps on the wall given that Iran had come close to upstaging India in the 2014 finals in Incheon. Considered another Asian powerhouse, Iran had finished runner-up in the last two Asian Games and will square off for gold as firm favourites against Korea, a team that beat India in the group stage

Rahi left personal setbacks behind to emerge gold winner

Rahi Sarnobat overcame personal setbacks including her then coach's death and a manor injury to script history yesterday by becoming the first Indian woman shooter to clinch gold medal in the Asian Games. Her personal coach Anatoli Piddubnyi died in 2015. "Not only Rahi, but we all felt bad after he died, as he was with us for three years and had almost become a family member. After Anatoli's death, we did not think of appointing a new coach for four months," her father Jeevan Sarnobat told PTI. "In the same period, Rahi had suffered an injury and was advised rest. She needed to stop practising. We kept supporting her," added her father. "She was deeply upset by the coach's death. But she did not dwell on it and moved on. With her injury too, once she was told that rest was necessary, she did not keep worrying (about getting back to the sport)," he said. The injury kept her out of action for more than a year. The 27-year-old shooter pipped Thailand's Naphaswan ...

BCCI names women's squads for Sri Lanka tour

The BCCI on Thursday announced the Indian women squads for the upcoming limited overs tour to Sri Lanka, where they play three One-day Internationals as part of the ICC women's championship and five T20 Internationals.

Aadil gives India flying start in Asiad golf, lies second; team also 2nd

Aadil Bedi gave the Indian men a flying start with a bogey-free 69 that placed him and the team tied second at the end of the first round of the 18th Asian Games men's golf competition here today. Bedi was one shot behind the reigning Australian Amateur champion, Keita Nakajima of Japan, one of the favourites. Bedi is tied for second with local Indonesian Naraaje Emerald Ramadhan Putra, Malaysian Ervin Chang and Korea's Cho Hoy-young, all of whom carded 69 each. With Dubai-based Rayhan Thomas, the top-ranked Indian, carding 1-under 71 after being 3-under through 13 holes and Kshitij Naveed (73) the team was lying second, five shots behind the highly favoured Japanese. The three best cards from Japan totalled 208 and that included a 4-under 68 from leader Nakajima. India's first total was 213 which was one better than Koreans at 21 and Thailand at 215. China and Indonesia were tied fifth at 217. India's fourth player, Hari Mohan Singh, a long hitter, had an off day with 5-over 77. In ..

Fit again Mansi back in India squad for tour of Sri Lanka

Pacer Mansi Joshi made a comeback to the Indian women's ODI and T20 Internationals squad for the upcoming tour of Sri Lanka. Mansi last played for India in the 2017 ICC Women's World Cup and a knee injury kept her out for more than a year. She recently made a comeback at the Women's Challenger Trophy. India will play 3 ODIs as a part of ICC Women's Championship along with five T20 Internationals. The ODIs will be held on September 11, 13 and 16th at Galle and Katunayake. The five t20 Internationals will be held on September 19, 21, 22, 24 and 25. India Squad for ICC Women's Championship 3 ODIs vs Sri Lanka: Mithali Raj (Captain), Harmanpreet Kaur (vice-captain), Smriti Mandhana, Punam Raut, Deepti Sharma, D Hemlata, Jemimah Rodrigues, Veda Krishnamurthy, Tanya Bhatia (wicket-keeper), Ekta Bisht, Poonam Yadav, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Jhulan Goswami, Mansi Joshi, Shikha Pandey India Squad for 5 T20Is vs Sri Lanka: Harmanpreet Kaur (Captain), Smriti Mandhana (vice-captain), Mithali Raj, ...

Indian women's volleyball team suffers 0-3 loss to Kazakhstan

The Indian women's volleyball team suffered its third defeat on the trot with a 0-3 drubbing at the hands of Kazakhstan in the Asian Games here today. The Indians lost 8-25 19-25 23-25 in the one hour and eight minute Pool B match. India remained at the bottom of the five-team pool without opening their account so far. Minimol Abraham had 10 spikes to her name while Anusree Kambrath Poyili had nine. India had lost to South Korea and Vietnam in their earlier pool matches, both by 0-3 margin. China is at the top of the table with nine points and an all-win record from its three matches.

Ind-Eng 4th Test: Vince recalled as cover for injured Bairstow

England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) selectors on Thursday recalled batsman James Vince as a cover for injured wicketkeeper-bat Jonny Bairstow for the fourth Test, starting in Southampton on August 30.

I do not have anything against Yo-Yo test: Ambati Rayudu

He is certainly disappointed at missing out on the limited overs leg of the England tour after failing Yo-Yo test but Ambati Rayudu has nothing against strict fitness benchmark laid out by the Indian team management. "I was disappointed with myself that I could not clear the test. Nothing against the test at all as everybody has to attain a certain fitness level playing for India. To be honest, I believe in it," Rayudu told reporters in post-match press conference here. "I was disappointed with myself as to why I could not clear the test so I worked towards it and cleared it," Rayudu added. He made an unbeaten 62 runs, which was instrumental in India A's five wicket win over Australia A in a quadrangular one-day series encounter at the Chinnaswamy stadium here. Asked what went wrong two months back during the fitness test, Rayudu said he does not think anything went wrong as such. "I cleared it a few days back and I also got a call up and am happy to be back in the scheme of things," .