Page 2023 - Sports

CCI Snooker: K'taka cueists Kushal, Ahmed advance to 2nd round

Karnataka cueists Kushal Chandrashekar and Shaikh Najeeb Ahmed made bright winning starts by posting easy wins in their respective first round encounters in the Rs 12.25 lakh prize-money CCI All India Open Snooker Championship 2018, played here today. Chandrashekhar took time to get off the blocks and tamely lost the opening frame to Nayan Bhuva of Gujarat in a first round tie. But, the Karnataka challenger quickly got into a groove and bounced back in style by winning the next three to clinch a 3-1 win, with the frame scores reading 16-57, 56-12, 54-48 and 59-14, a media release issued here said. On another table, Ahmed also had a hesitant start and conceded the opening frame to Punjabs Shivam Rana before pulling through at 3-1. Ahmed recovered well and started striking the balls perfectly to close out the match, winning at 30-45, 60-39, 63-45 and 42-25. Meanwhile, Anas Chandiwala of Surat and Ashish C. Shah from Baroda recorded contrasting first round victories to ..

It's been one difficult journey, says Shaw

Prithvi Shaw today termed his journey from Virar to Mount Maunganui a "difficult" one and said words can never express the emotions that he felt while guiding the Indian U-19 team to World Cup glory. "Becoming World Cup captain I can't express in words the feeling and thanks to everyone," said Shaw, who guided the Indian team to its record fourth World Cup title after beating Australia at Mount Maunganui in the final. "It was a difficult journey for me starting where I used to live in Virar. All credit to my dad he was the only who took me (everywhere). He used to take me to matches practices and it was far away from my home in Virar." Shaw comes from Virar, a small down in Palghar district near Mumbai and the youngster walked down memory lane and retraced his journey from his home town to New Zealand. "It used to take two hours, the journey from the train and it was difficult in those days. In the past two three years I am working hard to play for India Under 19," said .

Saurashtra, Vidarbha post wins in Vizay Hazare

Sheldon Jackson hit a century while India Test star Cheteshwar Pujara made a half century as Saurashtra beat Chhattisgarh by 32 runs in a Vijay Hazare Trophy group match here today. Put into bat, Saurashtra rode on Jackson's impressive 107-ball 106 and Pujara's 60 off 92 balls to post 286/7 and then restricted Chattisgarh for 254/9 to run away with all four points from the Group D match. Opener Robin Uthappa and Ravindra Jadeja, who batted at number four, contributed 9 and 23 respectively for Saurashtra. In another Group D match, India pacer Umesh Yadav was among the wickets as Vidarbha beat Jharkhand by seven runs. Electing to bat, Ranji champions Vidarbha rode on half centuries from Jitesh Sharma (79), Sanjay Ramaswamy (77) and Apoorv Wankhade (51) to score 300 all out and then restricted Jharkhand to 293/7 in 50 overs. Saurabh Tiwary (65) and Kumar Deobrat's (60) half tons went in vain for Jharkhand as they fell short by seven runs. Besides Yadav (2/69), Rajneesh ...

All-India Open Tennis tourney:Kirrtane stuns fifth seed Sandhu

Seasoned pro Nitten Kirrtane of Maharashtra defeated fifth seed Hardeep Singh Sandhu of Punjab in the men's singles event JVPG Anirudh Desai All-India Open Tennis Tournament 2018 on the opening day. Kirrtane handed a straight sets defeat to Sandhu at the AITA Ranking Rs 22 lakh prize-money tournament which commenced at the Juhu Vile Parle Gymkhana. The Pune-based 43-year-old Kirrtane, showed that age has no bearing and hardly counts as he put to good advantage his vast experience to outshine the 23-year-old Sandhu without much of an effort. The left-handed Kirrtane pounced on every single opportunity to punish his young opponent as he waltzed to a fluent 6-3, 7-6(3) win to serve a warning to the rest of the field. Sixth seed Prajwal Dev of Karnataka had an easy first round romping to a straight sets 6-3, 6-1 win against his state mate Niki K. Poonacha to book his place in the second round. In women's competition, top seed Mahak Jain of Madhya Pradesh brooked no ...

We didn't play our number one game in final: Dravid

Coach Rahul Dravid today said his players did not play their "number one game" in the final of the ICC U-19 World Cup, notwithstanding the eight-wicket drubbing of Australia en route to winning the title. Dravid, though, promptly added that his team fully deserved the title triumph. "We did not play our number one game in the finals, that we played in the quarterfinal (versus Bangladesh) and semifinal (against Pakistan). Just the fact that they played the finals was an experience," Dravid said. The former India captain was speaking after the team's arrival here from New Zealand where the tournament was held. "I'm really happy that the 15 boys got to wear World Cup medal. They deserve it. It's been a lot of sacrifices, the way they played in the World Cup. "The way they jelled, the quality of cricket they played - all these give you a lot of satisfaction. We were under pressure in a few games, but there were people who stood up and delivered." The batting legend added that

Badminton Asia Team tourney:DSPORT bags India broadcast rights

DSPORT, a sports TV channel by Discovery Communications India, today said here that it has acquired the exclusive India broadcast rights for the upcoming Badminton Asia Team Championships 2018. The annual continental event in its 38th edition would feature Asian badminton powerhouses, competing as a team rather than individuals, it said in a release. The 38th edition will see a total of 245 elite Asian shuttlers battling it out from February 6-11 at Alor Setar, Kedah, Malaysia. The event also acts as the qualifications from Asia for the prestigious Thomas & Uber Cup 2018, it said. The Badminton Asia Team Championships would be broadcast LIVE and Exclusive on DSPORT between Feb 9-11, 2018, it said. "This would be the first time when DSPORT would be broadcasting an elite badminton championship, with Indian supertsars participating as a team. 19 top Indian shuttlers would be representing Team India at the elite team championship," the release said. Some of the prominent

Shyam Bhatia Foundation donation boosts rural cricket in SA

Plans for development of cricket in rural areas of the country by Cricket South Africa (CSA) got a major boost today with a 50-bag cricket equipment donation from the Shyam Bhatia Cricket for Care Foundation. "This is a tremendous gesture by the Shyam Bhatia Foundation," said Edward Khoza, CSA Cricket Services Manager. "Rural cricket is a very important part of our development pipeline and it urgently needs resources so that we can fulfil our vision of making cricket a truly national sport accessible to all," he said. Khoza said the equipment will be distributed through the CSA Members (provincial affiliates) for the development of cricket within the rural regions of the country. Each bag contains three arm guards, six cricket balls, three cricket bats, two helmets, a pair of wicket-keeping gloves, three pairs of batting leg-guards, three pairs of batting gloves, three thigh pads, and abdominal guards. "For me, cricket is a way of life," said Shyam Bhatia, Chairman of the

Vidarbha continue winning run, beat Jharkhand in Vijay Hazare opener

Ranji Trophy champions Vidarbha extended their purple patch this domestic cricket season, edging past Jharkhand by seven runs in their Vijay Hazare 2018 50-overs tournament opener here on Monday.

'Adaptability key to Chahal-Yadav duo's success in SA'

Ravichandran Ashwin feels "adaptability" has been the key to success for spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav in the first two ODIs in South Africa. Chahal and Yadav have bamboozled the South African batting line up with their wrist spin in the first two ODIs in Durban and Centurion to help India take a 2-0 lead in the six-match series. "I think there is a bit of novelty factor there. It is not about wrist finger or finger spin, it is about the ability to adapt," said Ashwin when asked about the success of Chahal-Yadav duo in South Africa. "When T20 first started people thought there was no place for spinners. Then, finger spinners dominated literally for 10 years and then wrist spinners started doing well, which is good. It is more about adaptability," he said. Ashwin is a regular in India's Test squad but has lost out his place in the limited-overs side since the ICC Champions Trophy in England last year. But Ashwin said he was not losing sleep over his ODI ...

India have task cut out at Asia Team Badminton Championship

With H S Prannoy injured and Saina Nehwal pulling out, India will have a tough task at hand when Kidambi Srikanth and P V Sindhu lead the men's and women's teams respectively at the Asia Team Badminton Championship starting here tomorrow. The Asia Team Championship will also act as a qualifier for the Thomas and Uber Cup tournaments to be held in Bangkok from May 20 to 27 with the teams finishing at the semifinals qualifying for the prestigious tournament. Indian men's team, which has been clubbed with Maldives and formidable Indonesia in Group D, will open its campaign in the tournament with a clash against Philippines tomorrow. The onus would be on Srikanth, B Sai Praneeth and Sameer Verma to win the three singles in the absence of Prannoy, who is on way to recovery after developing corns in his feet. The women's team will be without the services of Saina, who decided to skip the event to prepare for the All England Championship to be held from March 14 to 18 at ...

I-League: High-flying Churchill a threat to Aizawl (Preview)

Fresh from their upset win over Minerva Punjab FC, Churchill Brothers have another big task cut out for them against defending champions Aizawl FC in an I-League clash at the Tilak Maidan here on Tuesday.

Unmukt slams ton with broken jaw, powers Delhi to easy win

Opener Unmukt Chand did not let a broken jaw stand in the way as he slammed a sublime century and powered Delhi to a 55-run victory over Uttar Pradesh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy here today. Chand was dropped from the semifinal and final of the Ranji Trophy after a poor run of form, but regained his confidence with a half-century in the title clash of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament, which his team won. Sent into bat after UP won the toss, Delhi rode on Chand's 116 off 125 balls to notch up a competitive 307 for six in the allotted 50 overs. A former U-19 World Cup winning captain, Chand was injured in the nets, just before the start of the match. But he showed courage and belted 12 boundaries and three sixes during his stay in the middle. Chand's opening partner, Hiten Dalal, was the next best scorer with 57 off 64 balls, hitting eight fours. The two added 107 runs for the first wicket, laying a solid foundation for Delhi to make a big total. Dhruv Shorey and Nitish ..

Sub-Jr Women Hockey C'ship: Assam, Coorg qualify for final

Assam and Coorg register comfortable victories over Vidarbha Hockey Association and Uttarakhand respectively to progress to the finals of the 8th Hockey India Sub Junior (Women) National Championship 2018 (B Division) here on Monday.In the first semi-final clash, it was Assam who produced a convincing attacking display to snatch a 7-1 victory over Vidarbha Hockey Association. Assam started the match well as they scored the first goal in the 9th minute and went on to take a 5-0 lead at half-time.In the second half, Assam scored two more goals while Vidarbha Hockey Association could only score a consolation goal in the 60th minute through their skipper Himanshi Gawande. Goals for Assam were scored by Khushboo Prajapati (12', 31', 54'), Maxima Xalxo (9', 27') and Elina Tigga (22', 49').The second semi-final was a well-matched encounter between Coorg and Uttarakhand as the two teams kept fighting till the end in order to progress to the final. Both the teams scored a goal each in the ...

Chhattisgarh, Hockey Him, Gangpur win in women's national

Chhattisgarh, Hockey Him and Hockey Gangpur-Odisha scored emphatic wins over their respective rivals on day five of the eighth Hockey India Senior Women National Championship 2018 (A Division), here today. Chhattisgarh Hockey registered a comfortable 5-1 win over The Mumbai Hockey Association Ltd in their Pool A match, while Hockey Him beat Hockey Bhopal 4-0 in Pool B. Hockey Gangpur-Odisha later spanked Hockey Rajasthan 7-4 in a Pool C encounter.

'CAS ruling should clear Russian Olympians of all suspicions'

Recent decisions made by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on the appeals of Russian athletes against their life-time Olympic bans should clear national Olympians of all suspicions, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.

Shankar, Gandhi star in TN victory; Mumbai, AP start with wins

Tamil Nadu rode on centuries by captain Vijay Shankar and M Kaushik Gandhi to post a 76-run win over Gujarat in the opening match of the Vijay Hazare Trophy Group 'C' league here today. The home side posted 311 for 8 in 50 overs thanks to the 219-run partnership between Shankar (100) and Gandhi (127) and held off a late challenge by Bhargav Merai (101) to restrict Gujarat to 235 all out in 45.1 overs. Test stars Murali Vijay and Ravichandran Ashwin had mixed fortunes with the former being dimissed cheaply while the off-spinner returned figures of two for 38. Sent into bat by Gujarat captain Priyank Panchal, the home side lost Test star Murali Vijay early, when he was caught behind by Dhrun Raval off Chintan Gaja for 11. Opener Gandhi and one-drop batsman B Aparajith (16) put on 31 runs before the latter was caught by H P Patel off medium-pacer Bhargav Merai for 16. Gandhi, who survived a few chances, made the most of it and played some good shots all-round the ...

B'desh, Lanka batsmen up in rankings post Chittagong Test

The high-scoring draw in the first Test between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka saw batsmen making impressive gains in the latest International Cricket Council (ICC) player rankings released on Monday.Five centuries and six half-centuries were scored in a match which saw Bangladesh posting 513 and 307 for five, and Sri Lanka amassing a colossal 713 for nine declared in their only innings.Sri Lanka opener Kusal Mendis, who was the top scorer in the match with 196, has vaulted 12 places to claim 23rd position, while Dhananjaya de Silva, who contributed 173 and featured in a 308-run second wicket stand with Mendis, has lifted eight places to occupy 38th spot.Roshen Silva's 109 has moved him from 106th position to a career-high 78th spot.Mominul Haq, who became the first Bangladesh batsman to score two centuries in a Test while hitting 176 and 105, has risen 15 places to 27th position.In doing so, he has become Bangladesh's fourth highest-ranked batsman after Tamim Iqbal (21st), Shakib Al Hasan .

ISL 2018: Bengaluru look to turn tables on Chennayin

Two-time champions Bengaluru FC will look to strengthen their top position when they square off with Chennayin FC in a top-of-the-table clash in the Indian Super League (ISL) here at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Tuesday.Even though both Bengaluru FC and Chennaiyin FC are comfortably settled in the top two positions in the league standing, there still will be a lot to play for when they face each other.Second-placed Chennaiyin FC are currently four points behind table toppers Bengaluru FC but John Gregory's men have played one game less than their southern rivals.Chennayin had defeated Bengaluru 2-1 at their home and a win tomorrow will see the Chennai team cut the lead to just one point. But, it will not be easy. Bengaluru FC come into this game with three consecutive wins under their belt. And this time, Bengaluru will look to turn the tables on Chennai.Mindful of the task at hand, Chennaiyin FC coach John Gregory told reporters that for him, the season actually starts now."For ...

Bengaluru, DSK Shivajians to fight for final spot (Preview)

Bengaluru FC and DSK Shivajians will face each other in their semi-final clash of the All India Football Federation (AIFF)-organised Nike Premier Cup at the Sports Complex here on Tuesday.

For now, enjoy the success of Indian cricket (Column: Just Sport)

Indias cricket is on a high, how dramatically the fortunes have swung within a couple of weeks! The turnaround began with the winning of the third Test against South Africa at the Wanderers and they carried their form and exuberance into the six-match One-Day series to take the first two games.