Page 1827 - Sports
Miami Open: Del Potro downs Nishikori to enter quarters
Argentine tennis tornado Juan Martin del Potro virtually erased Japan's Kei Nishikori from the map, taking just 72 minutes to smash his rival 6-2, 6-2 and move into the quarter-finals of the Miami Open here.
Puig beats Sakkari to enter Miami Open quarters
Puerto Rico's Monica Puig earned a ticket to the quarter-finals of the Miami Open tennis tournament, her best performance to date in the Florida tourney, defeating Greek player Maria Sakkari 6-3, 7-5.
Santosh Trophy: Kerala brush aside Maharashtra to reach semis
Kerala continued their dominance in the 72nd Santosh Trophy as the five-time champions eased past Maharashtra 3-0 in a Group A fixture played at the Sailen Manna Stadium in Howrah last evening to seal their place in the semi-finals of the competition.Kerala, who were leading 2-0 at the interval, scored through goals by Rahul Raj and Jithin MS in the 24th and 39th minute before Rahul KP completed the score line 58thminute.The first half saw Kerala completely dominate proceedings with a number of attacks in the opening quarter. But strikers Afdal VK, Anurag PC and Jithin Gopalan were all denied by Maharashtra keeper Aditya Mishra.Having missed a host of chances Kerala finally broke the deadlock in the 24th minute after their skipper Rahul Raj converted from the spot. The penalty was awarded to Kerala after Maharashtra defender Pramod Pandey brough down Afdal inside the box as the striker had clear look in front of the goal.Kerala further increased their pressure and attacked the ...
Wagner bounces New Zealand to innings victory
New Zealand pulled off a dramatic win by an innings and 49 runs over England in Auckland on Monday, wrapping up the rain-affected first Test with 18.5 overs to spare. It is only the 10th time New Zealand have beaten England in the 102-Test history between the two countries. As fortunes fluctuated on the final day in scenes reminiscent of the cliffhanger finish the last time the two sides met on Eden Park, five years ago, Ben Stokes lined himself up to be the hero England so desperately needed. But with his dismissal for 66 on the stroke of dinner in the day-night Test, New Zealand went into the final session with the task of mopping up the last three wickets, while England still needed 69 runs to makes New Zealand bat again. Five days after all seemed lost for England when they were rolled for a paltry 58 in their first innings, New Zealand settled the outcome with the tourists all out for 320. For three consecutive sessions in England's second innings, New Zealand changed the flow of
Coach's exit disheartening but focussed on defending CWG gold: Pallikal
All that could go wrong has gone wrong for Indian squash in the last four weeks but a "disheartened" Dipika Pallikal has chosen to take it in her stride as she aims to defend the doubles gold alongside Joshna Chinappa in the Gold Coast Games beginning April 4. The acrimonious exit of foreign coach Achraf El Karargui days before the CWG has affected the team's preparations but medal hopefuls Pallikal, Chinappa and Saurav Ghosal remain optimistic of their chances in all three events -- singles, doubles and mixed doubles. Pallikal and Chinappa especially worked intensely with Karargui over the past two years. The squad gathered in Chennai on March 19 and will depart for Gold Coast this weekend. "I cannot speak for others but it (not having a coach) is disheartening. I have been training with him for over two years and it is hard not to have him in your corner during the Games. Having said that, we are all professionals and we realise we have a very important job at hand, that is to ...
How top sports leagues promote unhealthy eating behaviour
Top sports leagues may be contributing to the escalating obesity epidemic among children and adolescents as the majority of food and beverages marketed through sponsorship of these events are unhealthy, says a US-based study.
Yuki pulls out of Davis Cup tie
India's highest ranked player Yuki Bhambri has pulled out of the Davis Cup tie against China owing to a minor abdominal tissue tear. The selection committee has picked World No. 246 Prajnesh as Yuki's replacement as he is the next best singles ranked player. After losing to hosts Canada 2-3 in the World Group play-offs in September last year, top seeds India, who got a first-round bye, will yet again play an away tie. India will face China in the Asia/Oceania Group 1 second round at Tianjin, China on April 6-7. The visitors, who enjoy a dominant 3-0 head-to-head record against China, last played them in 2005. The other singles players in the squad include Ramkumar Ramanathan and Sumit Nagal. While Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna will represent India in the men's doubles. India have made four successive attempts to climb into the World Group since 2014 having lost to Serbia, the Czech Republic, Spain and Canada. The pull-out comes as a setback for India as Yuki, ranked 107, has created .
Federer to skip clay-court season post Miami Open shock
Twenty-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer will not feature in this year's French Open after confirming that he would skip the whole of the clay-court season.The Swiss tennis star's decision to not go for the 21st Grand Slam title comes after he slumped to a 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) defeat to Australian qualifier Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round of the ongoing Miami Masters.As a result, Federer, who had been the oldest number one in the men's rankings, will lose his top spot to long-time rival Rafael Nadal when the updated ATP rankings will be release on April 2.However, Federer confirmed that he would not be playing to retain his numero-uno spot any time soon, missing the clay-court season for the second year in a row."Yeah, I decided not to play. I didn't play great last week either, I felt, overall. Nothing new, in my opinion. I'm trying to figure things out, so... I have time now," the ATP quoted Federer, as saying.Federer further insisted that though he is a positive thinker,
Santosh Trophy: West Bengal beat Chandigarh 1-0 to reach semis
West Bengal edged past Chandigarh 1-0 to confirm their place in the semi-final of the ongoing 72nd Santosh Trophy here at the Mohun Bagan ground last evening.Bidyasagar Singh scored the only goal of the match in the 18th minute to seal all three points for the Eastern state.Bengal started the match as favourites against minnows Chandigarh. The defending champions had won their last two matches 3-1 and 5-1 against Manipur and Maharashtra respectively. Chandigarh, on the other hand, had collected just one point from their first three matches and were already knocked out of the competition.The home side saw just one change in their starting XI. Star striker and captain Jiten Murmu was left out of the squad due to illness. Rajon Barman replaced him with Tirthankar Sarkar leading the side.Meanwhile, there were two changes in the Chandigarh XI. Pawandeep Singh and Manvir Singh made way for Prateek Joshi and Nitish Mehra.Bengal completely dominated proceedings right from kickoff and enjoyed .
Defiant Stokes holds New Zealand at bay
New Zealand captured the vital wicket of Ben Stokes on the last ball before dinner to have victory in sight with one session remaining in the first Test in Auckland today. England were 300 for seven with only three wickets remaining, needing a further 69 runs to make New Zealand bat again. Stokes played a defiant innings of 66 until he was undone in a short-ball barrage from Neil Wagner. With the dinner break in sight he lost patience with the rising Wagner deliveries and clipped the ball to Tim Southee who took the catch running backwards at point. Stokes, at the crease since the start of the day, had batted through 188 deliveries in an attempt to save the Test for England who have been on the back foot since their paltry 58 in the first innings. Chris Woakes, who joined Stokes after Moeen Ali fell on the last ball before tea, was on 38 at dinner having added 83 with Stokes for the seventh wicket. Woakes has had an element of luck with edges through and over the slips cordon early in
'Cruel betrayal': Cricket's heart broken in Australia
Being Australia's cricket captain is widely seen as the second most important job in the country behind prime minister. Many would argue it holds even more prestige. This high esteem, and Australians' deep love of the game helps explain the stunned disbelief that has greeted skipper's Steve Smith's admission that he cheated, and even worse, that it was planned. In an astonishing development, the captain said he hatched a plot to tamper with the ball in the third Test against South Africa, which saw team-mate Cameron Bancroft use yellow sticky tape on Saturday in Cape Town to try and alter its condition. He was caught on camera and comically tried to hide the evidence by stuffing it down the front of his trousers. Everyone from former Test greats, to the Australian Sports Commission, and the public condemned what happened, with the story dominating front pages, television news and coffee shop chatter. Even Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said he was "shocked and bitterly ...
Aditi earns Major berth with T-14th finish at Kia Classic
Indian golfer Aditi Ashok turned in a brilliant seven-under 65 to sign off tied 14th at the Kia Classic, earning herself a spot in the season's first Major for women -- the ANA Inspiration this week. Overnight tied 20th, Aditi, who carded 70-72-71 on the first three days, saved her best for the last at the Aviara Golf Club, sending down eight birdies against a bogey in the final round. That took her to 10-under 278 and she ended six spots behind the winner, Eun-Hee Ji of Korea (67). It was also an early birthday present for Aditi, who turns 20 on March 29, when the ANA Inspiration tees off. Eun-Hee Ji won with an ace on Sunday's closing stretch to capture her fourth career win on the LPGA Tour at the Kia Classic. She aced the 166-yard par-three, 14th hole and got a brand new 2019 Kia Sorrento. Ji carded a final round five-under 67 to win by two strokes ahead of Cristie Kerr and Lizette Salas. Aditi opened with a birdie and then dropped a shot on the sixth. But birdies on seventh and ..
Bopanna-Vasselin knocked out of Miami Open
Indian tennis ace Rohan Bopanna and his French partner Edouard Roger-Vasselin suffered a major blow as they crashed out of the Miami Open after going in the second round of the men's doubles event here on Monday.The Indo-French duo failed to replicate their opening-round performance and slump to a 6-7 (5-7), 2-6 defeat at the hands of the American pair of Steve Johnson and Sam Querrey in a round-of-16 clash.With the win, Johnson and Querrey will now lock horns with the winner of another last-16 encounter between the South Korean-Canadian team of Hyeon Chung-Denis Shapovalov and the Colombian pair of Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah.Earlier, Bopanna and Roger-Vasselin bounced back from a set down to register a brilliant 4-6, 6-2, 14-12 win over the duo of France's Adrian Mannarino and Russia's Daniil Medvedev in the opening round of the men's doubles event.
T20 tri-series : Indian eves opt to field against Aussies
The Indian women's cricket team won the toss and elected to field first in their third match of the ongoing T20I Tri-series against Australia at the Brabourne Stadium here on Monday.After suffering two back-to-back defeats in the tournament so far, the Indian women's cricket team will look to bounce back in the tournament in order to keep alive their hopes of making it to the finals .The Harmanpreet Kaur-led side are not having a good tournament. The home side kicked off their T20I triangular series with a six-wicket defeat against Australia in the opening match before they went down to 50-over World Cup winners England by seven wickets in the second game.India, who lost the second T20I despite setting a huge target of 199 runs, will once again rely on their batting unit, but they would also expect their bowlers to come up with an inspiring performance as the home side look to take avenge of their opening match defeat to Australia.Australia, on the other hand, have one victory and one
Venus outlasts Bertens to book Konta clash
Three-time winner Venus Williams saved three match points in a three-set victory over Kiki Bertens on Sunday, lining up a fourth-round clash with reigning champion Johanna Konta at the Miami Open. Williams, ranked eighth in the world, labored nearly three hours to beat 29th-ranked Bertens 5-7, 6-3, 7-5. The 37-year-old American was cruising with a 5-0 lead in the opening set, but she squandered three set points as Bertens reeled off seven straight games to snatch it. The second set was another streaky affair, but Williams gained a decisive break for a 5-3 lead and fought off a break point in the next game to force the decider. The seven-time Grand Slam champion would have to dig deep when she fell 1-4 down to her Dutch opponent in the third. Bertens served for the match at 5-3 but was unable to convert two match points as Williams broke to put the match back on serve. Williams would face one more match point against her own serve in the next game, but she held on as Bertens appeared ..
Coach Van Marwijk chases first Australia win
Bert van Marwijk aims to get Australia's World Cup preparations back on track in Tuesday's friendly against Colombia in London. Australia manager Van Marwijk endured a miserable start to his reign as the Socceroos were routed 4-1 by Norway on Friday. The Dutch coach, who has taken over from Ange Postecoglou, saw Jackson Irvine give his side a 19th minute lead in Oslo. But a hat-trick from LA Galaxy striker Ola Kamara and Tore Reginiussen's strike sealed an emphatic win for Norway, who are ranked 20 places below Australia and did not qualify for the World Cup. It was the worst possible way for van Marwijk and his players to get acquainted ahead of the World Cup, which starts in Russia in June. There is little time for van Marwijk to make his mark before Australia face France, Denmark and Peru in the finals, having qualified by eliminating Syria and Honduras in play-offs. The 65-year-old has three more friendlies and a 30-day training camp in Turkey to shape his new team. Their next ...
Sponsors 'deeply concerned' over Australia cheating scandal
Cricket Australia was under mounting pressure to act decisively from key sponsors today who voiced "deep concern" over a cheating scandal that has rocked the sport and damaged its reputation. Captain Steve Smith admitted he hatched a plan to change the condition of the ball during the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town Saturday, throwing the game into turmoil. He was stood down from his role as skipper for the remainder of the match then banned for one game by the International Cricket Council, with CA conducting its own investigation. The crisis couldn't have come at a worse time for the governing body, which is renegotiating a lucrative TV deal, with the existing Aus$600 million five-year agreement expiring at the end of the year. There are concerns that broadcasters could use the controversy as a bargaining chip. Sponsors of the team made clear Monday they were not happy, amid fears of the fallout on their brands. "This is deeply disappointing and certainly not what ...
Forward places up for grabs as Spain take on Argentina
Two of the World Cup's leading contenders will meet in Madrid on Tuesday but neither Spain nor Argentina have yet settled on a forward line for this summer. For Argentina and Jorge Sampaoli the question is who best to stir Lionel Messi, with the two-time winners again boasting an embarrassment of riches up front, while showing little indication they know how to deploy them. The supporting trio of Gonzalo Higuain, Sergio Aguero and Angel di Maria could reunite in Russia but they have disappointed together before, when all were younger and arriving in better form. Meanwhile, Paulo Dybala, one of the game's most exciting young forwards, faces a fight for inclusion after being left off Sampaoli's latest list, and Mauro Icardi is expected to find his 26 goals for Inter Milan this season insufficient to make the squad. Argentina may have to continue their search at the Wanda Metropolitano without their key component as Messi has been struggling with pain in his hamstring and adductor. He ...
Clarke says Smith needs forgiveness over ball-tampering
Former captain Michael Clarke urged a furious sporting public today to forgive Steve Smith over the cheating scandal that has plunged Australian cricket into crisis. He said Australia needed to move on from the anger over Smith's ball-tampering plot in the third Test against South Africa and work on restoring the sport's battered reputation. But Clarke acknowledged many fans would struggle to find sympathy for Smith over his role in a plan to have batsman Cameron Bancroft change the condition of the ball by illegally rubbing it with sticky yellow paper. "I do feel for Steve Smith. 100 percent he has made a major mistake and he and a lot of other people I think are going to have to suffer the consequences," Clarke told Channel Seven. "That's fair enough. But I think it's important that we do over time forgive as well." Australian cricket fans have long regarded the national team's style as hard but fair, even though many take issue with the boorish behaviour of some players in recent .
New Zealand snare three to have England on the ropes
New Zealand had England fighting for survival at 217 for six with two sessions remaining in the first Test today as Ben Stokes played a lone hand to salvage a draw for the tourists. At tea on day five of the day-night Test in Auckland, with 63 overs remaining, England were down to their last four wickets and still 152 runs from wiping out their 369-run first innings deficit. Stokes, who batted through the first session of the day, was on 26 having patiently played through 86 deliveries. England resumed the day at 132 for three and lost three wickets in the first session with Moeen Ali out on the last ball before tea for 28, lbw to Trent Boult. The umpire's first instinct was not out but the decision was overturned on review. At the start of the day, England added 10 runs in five overs before Dawid Malan jabbed at a Tim Southee delivery going across his body and was caught at second slip for 23. Jonny Bairstow was dropped twice as he dominated in a 39-run stand with Stokes -- one a ...