Page 1612 - Sports
Bopanna-Roger-Vasselin out of Rome Masters
India's Rohan Bopanna and his French partner Edouard Roger-Vasselin crashed out of the Rome Masters after losing their second round match to Pablo Cuevas and Marcel Granollers, here today. The seventh seeded Indo-French pair lost 6-7(5) 4-6 to their unseeded opponents in one hour and 32 minutes. Bopanna and Roger-Vasselin have one more week to prepare for the French Open with events lined-up in Geneva and Lyon, next week. Reaching the semi-finals at the Monte-Carlo Masters in April is the best performance of the season so far for Bopanna and Roger-Vasselin.
Rajput appointed interim head coach of Zimbabwe
Former India coach Lalchand Rajput was today appointed as interim head coach of the Zimbabwe cricket team. Rajput replaced former Zimbabwe pacer Heath Streak, who was sacked in March after the team failed to qualify for the next year's World Cup. "They contacted me yesterday. It is a good opportunity for me to take Zimbabwe cricket ahead," Rajput told PTI. Zimbabwe Cricket also tweeted the development. "ZC has named Lalchand Rajput as Zimbabwe's interim head coach. The 56-year-old former India cricketer is a highly qualified, vastly experienced and well-respected coach who was in charge when India won the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 in 2007. We wish you all the best! #Welcome," Zimbabwe Cricket tweeted. Rajput, who played two Tests and 4 ODIs, is considered a stalwart in Mumbai cricket He opened batting for the domestic giants. He was the manager of the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led Indian team which lifted the inaugural T20 World Cup in South Africa. He was also the Indian team manager ..
U16 tennis nationals at CCI
The Yonex Sunrise 12th Ramesh Desai Memorial Under 16 Tennis Nationals for boys and girls are to be played at the Cricket Club of India tennis courts from May 19 to 26. The boys' singles will be a 64-player draw for both the qualifiers and the main event, while the girls competition will be a 48-player draw for the qualifiers and the main event, a media release said today. The doubles event for both boys and girls will be a direct 16-pair draw. All the top-ranked players will be vying for the top honours and the 200 AITA ranking points. The first round losers will get 20 AITA ranking points. The qualifying rounds will be played on May 19 and 20. The main draw will commence from May 21.
Lama to lead Indian rugby outfit
Sujai Lama of Services will lead a 26-member Indian team at the Asian Rugby Championship Division 2 Rugby 15s to be held in Pattaya, Thailand from May 20 to 26. Pradeep Jadhav is the lone player from Maharashtra in the team, which has nine players each from Services and Haryana, three each from West Bengal and Delhi and one from Karnataka, a media release said today. Tooru Jinguuji of (Japan) has been appointed coach of the team. India, Chinese Taipei and hosts Thailand will face off in a triangular series and battle for top honors at this championship. India will launch their campaign with a match against Thailand on May 20 followed by the second match against Chinese Taipei on May 23. The Indian team is supported by Societe Generale, the financial partner of Rugby India and is participating under the aegis of the Indian Rugby Football Union (IRFU), the governing body for the sport of Rugby in India. The Team: Sujai Lama (captain), Jitendra Kumar, Suresh Kumar, Rohit ..
IPL: Unchanged RCB put to bat by Sunrisers
Sunrisers Hyderabad skipper Kane Williamson on Thursday won the toss and put Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) to bat in what is a must-win Indian Premier League (IPL) game for the home side.
Golfer Baisoya shines at Asia-Pacific Classic
Honey Baisoya of India shot five-under-par 67 to take the joint second spot at the end of the first round of the $300,000 Asia-Pacific Classic golf tournament here on Thursday.
Svitolina beats Kasatkina, advances to Italian Open quarterfinals
Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina, world no.4, on Thursday made a strong comeback against Russia's Daria Kasatkina and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Italian Open.
Zimbabwe recruits Rajput as interim head coach
Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) on Thursday named former India opener Lalchand Rajput as the interim head coach after ex-national skipper Heath Streak was sacked from the position in March.
Honey Baisoya lying second in China; one shot behind leader
Honey Baisoya fired a 5-under 67 in the first round to lie Tied-second in the Asia-Pacific Classic at St Andrews Golf Club, here today. Baisoya, one of the young stars in Indian golf with six wins in last two and a half years on the Indian PGTI Tour, had six birdies against one bogey. Baisoya, 27, had a great streak of five birdies in a span of six holes starting from 10th. Baisoya is among of a group of 11 players with matching 67s to share second place. Other Indians in the field are S Chikkarangappa (72) in T-57 and further behind are Viraj Madappa (76) and Himmat Rai (78). I'm feeling great about the tournament. I was quite frustrated in the beginning, as I was one-over-par after three holes. I missed a short putt on the second hole. Then, I hit my tee shot into the hazard at the third hole and made a good bogey. At that point, I gave myself a target of five-under-par, so I'm happy to have achieved that," Baisoya said. It was a good bogey because I managed to find my ball in the ..
Sri Lanka's Mathews, Lakmal cleared for West Indies tour
Sri Lanka's former skipper Angelo Mathews and medium pacer Suranga Lakmal have been declared fit for the three-match Test series against the West Indies, the cricket board said Thursday. The 30-year-old all-rounder and Lakmal were doubtful after a spate of injuries. They were, however, included in a 17-man squad for the tournament which begins on May 30 with a three-day warm-up match. "A fitness test was carried out this week and the duo has been given the clearance to go ahead with the tour," Sri Lanka Cricket said in a statement. Sri Lanka will miss opener Dimuth Karunaratne who fractured a finger while batting in the nets earlier this month as he prepared for a limited-overs domestic tournament.
Struggling Lahiri desperate to make amends at Byron Nelson Classic golf
Shrugging aside his disappointment of missing the cut at the PLAYERS Championship last week, India's Anirban Lahiri will be out to prove a point when he tees off along side Ricky Barnes and Sung Kang at the Byron Nelson golf tournament here. Lahiri has been struggling with some parts of his game, notably on the greens this year as he fell outside the top-100 in world rankings last week for the first time in more than four years. Though Lahiri missed the cut in the 2017 edition, he was tied 46th in 2016, when he had superb rounds of 65 and 66 on second and fourth days. And he will feed off those memories to turn around the season for him. Though Lahiri started the wrap-around season well with two top-10 finishes in CIMB Classic and CJ Cup@Nine Bridges late in 2017, he has scored below expectations in 2018. Through 10 starts this calendar year, he has missed four cuts, two of them in last two starts and made six, but not registered a single top-10 finish. His best has been tied 26th in .
Harbhajan asks India to shed apprehensions about pink ball Tests
India must embrace day-night Tests and shed its apprehensions about the pink ball matches, seasoned spinner Harbhajan Singh suggested today. India have refused to play the Adelaide Test against Australia later this year under lights, inviting criticism from a number of players, including Mark Waugh and Ian Chappell. "I don't know why they don't want to play day-night Test matches. It's an interesting format and we should try it. I am all for it," Harbhajan told PTI during an interaction today. "Tell me what's the apprehension of playing with pink ball? If you play, you can adjust. It may not be as difficult as it seems ," India's third-highest wicket-taker in Tests said. The CoA has backed the Indian team's demands of not playing pink ball cricket for next 18 months. "I believe every team wants to win the series and that's why we want to give our team the best possible chance," CoA chief Vinod Rai had said at a function today, which was also attended by Harbhajan. When told that ...
Flamengo advances to Copa Libertadores knockouts
Brazilian club Flamengo advanced to the knockout stage of the Copa Libertadores, South America's premier club football competition, with a 2-0 victory here over Ecuadorian side Emelec in Group D action.
BWF to decide on new scoring system
The future of badminton and the prospect of change will be in focus at the Badminton World Federation's meeting in Bangkok this weekend.
Halep advances to Italian Open quarterfinals
Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, world No. 1, on Thursday advanced to the quarterfinals of the Italian Open, a WTA clay court tournament held in Rome, as American Madison Keys had to retire with a right rib injury.
Iconic goalkeeper Buffon to leave Juventus after 17 years
Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon announced on Thursday that he will be leaving the Italian football club after 17 years, a long career that has seen him become one of the world's most recognizable faces in the sport.
Banned Warner set to play club cricket in Sydney
Former Australian vice-captain David Warner, who is currently serving his one-year suspension handed by Cricket Australia for his involvement in ball-tampering scandal, is all set to start his road to redemption by featuring for Sydney's Randwick Petersham.Confirming the news, club president and former fast bowler Mike Whitney said that the tainted opener has made himself available for at least first three matches of the club in the Sydney Premier Cricket season."We're delighted to have him. He's one of the best players Australia has had since World War Two. He's been speaking to one of our club officials and he has committed to the first three or four rounds of the season. Why it is only three or four rounds at this stage, I don't know," cricket.com.au quoted Warner, as saying.Besides committing himself for the start of the season, Whitney would also be engaged in pre-season training with the club's youngsters."Everyone is excited to have him. He will be great in the changing rooms ..
Youthful England have to believe - Southgate
England manager Gareth Southgate insisted his 23-man squad is built to win now rather than building for the future, despite picking his country's third youngest ever squad for a World Cup. Veteran goalkeeper Joe Hart and Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere were among the big names to miss out on Southgate's squad, whilst 19-year-old uncapped Liverpool full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold was included. "We are not picking young players because we are trying to buy ourselves time, we are picking young players because we believe they are the best," said Southgate on Thursday. "Maybe it is brave to take players without the number of caps, but we have to give these guys belief." Former England striker Gary Lineker joined a host of pundits in calling on Southgate to "write off" any hopes of lifting the World Cup in Moscow on July 15 in favour of blooding youngsters. However, Southgate said he resisted the temptation to name en even younger squad by ruling out the likes of Fulham's Ryan Sessegnon ..
Italy great Buffon calls time on 17-year Juventus career
Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon announced today that he will leave the Turin giants after 17 years but did not, as expected, declare the end of his playing career. Buffon, 40, captained Juventus to a seventh straight Serie A title and fourth consecutive Italian Cup triumph this season. "To end this adventure with two new victories was important," the Italian told a press conference at the Allianz Stadium. "Saturday will be my final match with Juventus." The former Parma goalkeeper will make his 640th Serie A appearance against Verona in Turin. Buffon said he would like to take more time to reflect on his future which could be either on or off the pitch. "What am I going to do? Saturday, I'm playing a match and it's the only thing that's certain," he continued. "Until 15 days ago, I was sure to stop playing, but I received some exciting proposals, both on and off the pitch. Off the pitch the most interesting was made to me by (Juventus) president (Andrea) Agnelli." "Next week, ...
We achieved training targets meant for US trip within India: Nieva
They couldn't make it to the trans-atlantic Michael Johnson Centre due to visa hassles but the "setback" didn't come in the way of Indian boxers achieving their training targets at an institute within the country, High Performance Director Santiago Nieva said today. Speaking to PTI at the end of a fortnight-long camp at the JSW Sports' centre of excellence in Bellary, Karnataka, Nieva said the focus was on strength and conditioning besides some technical aspects and he is satisfied with the results achieved. The 19 Indian boxers, including the likes of recent Commonwealth Games gold-medallists Vikas Krishan (75kg) and Gaurav Solanki (52kg), were supposed to train at the famed Michael Johnson Performance Centre in Texas during this period. But denial of visa led to the cancellation of that trip. "Of course, not being able to go there counts as a setback but we cannot keep dwelling on what didn't work out. I like to move forward and the JSW Performance Centre provided us good facilities