Page 2099 - Sports
Relieved Rafa survives test as Dimitrov ousts Kyrgios
Rafael Nadal battled through a huge test to make his 10th Australian Open quarter-final today as Grigor Dimitrov ousted Nick Kyrgios to join him and Caroline Wozniacki kicked into full gear. On an overcast and muggy day at Melbourne Park, the Spanish world number one was up against his most dangerous opponent yet in pocket-rocket Diego Schwartzman, one of the smallest men on tour. The Argentine 24th seed endeared with his astonishingly powerful groundstrokes before Nadal prevailed 6-3, 6-7 (4/7), 6-3, 6-3 in almost four hours on Rod Laver Arena. It kept alive his push for a 17th Grand Slam title and also ensured he will remain number one when the new rankings come out after the tournament. "It was a great battle," said Nadal, who is chasing his second Melbourne title after beating Roger Federer in the 2009 final. "Of course, I feel little bit tired, but I was able to keep fighting until the end." He will play sixth seed Marin Cilic for a place in the semi-finals after ...
Australian Open: Paes-Raja crash out
Veteran Indian tennis star Leander Paes and his compatriot Purav Raja crashed out of the men's doubles competition at the Australian Open following a straight sets loss to Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah here on Sunday.
Kapur finishes tied 23rd, Garcia claims title in Singapore
India's Shiv Kapur went through a rough patch on the front nine and carded a disappointing three-over in the fourth and final round to finish tied 23rd in the USD 1 million SMBC Singapore Open, here today. Kapur was the best-placed Indian at three-under while compatriots Jyoti Randhawa and Gaganjeet Bhullar shared the 27th spot. Meanwhile, Sergio Garcia of Spain put on a masterful display of golf as he carded a three-under-par 68 to romp to a dominant five-shot victory. The 2017 Masters Tournament champion built his one-shot lead at the start of round four into a five-shot advantage after nine holes on Sentosa Golf Club's Serapong course and had just three bogeys during the week. Randhawa (73) and Bhullar (70) were tied 27th at one- under while Arjun Atwal (72) and S Chikkarangappa (73) finished tied 47th and 60th respectively. Kapur birdied the third, 12th and 16th while he double bogeyed the fourth, bogeyed fifth, eighth, 13th and 15th. Garcia's day got off to a great .
We showed great character, says England captain Morgan
England skipper Eoin Morgan praised his team's character after they defeated Australia by 16 runs to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match One-Day International (ODI) cricket series here on Sunday.
U19 World Cup: Kiwis beat Proteas to top Group A
New Zealand produced a strong all-round performance to defeat South Africa by 71 runs in a Group A match of the ICC U19 World Cup here on Sunday.
Dimitrov ousts Kyrgios to reach Open quarters
Bulgaria's world No.3 Grigor Dimitrov won a gripping four-setter to knock Australia's big hope Nick Kyrgios out of the Australian Open today. Dimitrov downed the 17th seeded Kyrgios 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (7/4), 4-6, 7-6 (7/4) in 3hr 26min and will face Britain's Kyle Edmund in the quarter-finals on Tuesday. Dimitrov stepped up his campaign after a couple of indifferent wins in the earlier rounds to avenge his defeat to Kyrgios in the semi-finals of this month's Brisbane International. He won all three tiebreakers in a charged night match atmosphere on Rod Laver Arena before a capacity home crowd willing their player on. "Playing against Nick is always tricky, two weeks I lost against him," Dimitrov said. "He was serving and playing unbelievable and he fought really hard. It's one of those matches that you have to be locked in and try to get any opportunity you have. "Even when I was serving for the match I felt that I was not finding my spots very well and I'm just glad I got ...
Deepan shocks top-seed Garayev, shares lead with Karthik
Chennai-based Grandmaster Deepan Chakkravarthy upset top-seeded GM Timur Garayev of USA to move into the joint lead with five points, at the end of the fifth round in the 10th Chennai Open Chess tournament here today. Joining Chakkravarthy on top of the table is FIDE Master Karthik Venkataraman (India). Sharing third spot with 4.5 points are GMs Sergei Tiviakov (the Netherlands), Adam Tukhaev (Ukraine), R R Laxman (India) and Dutchman Roeland Pruijssers, among others. Showing aggression from the word go, Chakkravarthy played a flawless game to outplay top seed Timur of USA. The Sicilian Dragon game lasted 30 moves. Five more rounds remain in the 267-player tournament that concludes on January 25. Important results (round five) (Indians unless specified): J Deepan Chakkravarthy (5) beat Timur Gareyev (USA) 4, R R Laxman (4.5) drew with Adam Tukhaev Adam (Ukr) 4.5, Macros Llaneza Vega (Spain) 4 lost to Karthik Venkatraman (5), Sergei Tiviakov (Ned) 4.5 beat Hafiz Arif Abdul
Leganes holds Deportivo Alaves 2-2 in La Liga
Leganes on Sunday managed a 2-2 away draw against Deportivo Alaves in the 20th round of the Spanish league, gaining a single point in the La Liga table.
Windies' cricketer leaves U-19 World Cup part way
West Indies wicketkeeper Joshua Persaud has left the ongoing Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand after his mother's demise.Persaud's mother died in a car accident in the USA after which he left New Zealand on Saturday to return to Guyana to be with family, reports ESPNcricinfo.The 17-year old, has not featured in any of his team's three group-stage matches.Meanwhile, another player of West Indies Raymond Perez also left New Zealand following an ankle injury. He will be replaced by Jamaica's Brad Barnes.Defending Champions West Indies did not make it to the knockout stage as they lost two of their three group matches..
Paes-Raja crash out, but Bopanna advances in Aus Open
Veteran Leander Paes and Purav Raja today crashed out even as Rohan Bopanna and his Hungarian partner Timea Babos outplayed their opponents to progress to the pre-quarterfinals at the Australian Open, here today. While Paes and Raja suffered a straight-set defeat at the hands of Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah of Colombia in the men's doubles pre-quarterfinals, Bopanna and Babos easily edged past Australian pair of Andrew Whittington and Ellen Perez in the mixed doubles first round. The unseeded Paes and Raja were beaten 1-6 2-6 by their 11th seeded opponents in a contest that lasted one hour and nine minutes at the Melbourne Park here. Paes and Raja failed to capitalise on any one of the five break points -- two in the first set and three in the second -- they got in the match while the Cabal-Farah duo converted four out the 10 they had. The Colombian duo broke the Indians twice in both the sets to easily grab the match and make it to the quarterfinals. The Indian
Wounded India get down to business again ahead of third Test
Looking to salvage pride in the third Test beginning here on Wednesday, team India got down to business at the Wanderers today with a practice session that lasted just under four hours. India had lost the first Test in Cape Town by 72 runs, and then were beaten in the second match at Centurion by 135 runs to surrender an unassailable lead. The players enjoyed three days off after that hurtful loss, taking time to visit various safari and theme parks in and around Johannesburg. Today, they were back sweating in the nets, in a bid to end this series with their heads held high as the world's no.1 Test ranked side. Noticeably, skipper Virat Kohli, who had a fiery press conference in aftermath of the Centurion loss, was in a jovial mood as he chatted around with his teammates and local net bowlers during practice. After a customary warm-up game of football, the players got down to working on their skill sets. Fielding coach R Sridhar was the first to put in a serious shift, ..
DBYC downs Pondicherry Police
DBYC (Basin Bridge) came back from a goal down to beat Pondicherry Police 2-1 in the Don Bosco-Fr McFerran Trophy All India football tournament here today. Senthamizh put the Pondicherry team ahead, with a goal in the 17th minute. DBYC got the equaliser in the 51st minute when Ravi found the back of the net. Annamalai scored the winning goal in the 61st minute. DBYC meets ASC, Bengaluru, in a second-round fixture tomorrow.
Indian Arrows face stern Churchill test tomorrow
A stern test awaits young Indian Arrows when they take on a resurgent Churchill Brothers in a Hero I-League match, here tomorrow. Churchill Brothers, who are lying at second-last spot in the 10-team event, made a host of changes in the new year romping in four foreigners in a bid to rekindle their struggling form. And Churchill now look a settled side as they remained unbeaten in their last three matches but still remained three points below Indian Arrows, who are placed seventh. A win tomorrow will ensure Churchill remain above relegation zone and also above Indian Arrows in the seventh place. Osagie Monday, who has scored a goal in their win against Shillong Lajong, has been a pillar in the heart of the Churchill defence. New comer Dawda Ceesay along with Mechac Koffi have combined well upfront. But playmaker Kalu Ogba is doubtful after he limped off in the first half against Shillong Lajong. Kalu has been the fulcrum of the team attack and coach Alfred Fernandes ...
Axelsen, Ratchanok claim singles titles at Malaysia Masters
Reigning world champion Viktor Axelsen of Denmark and Thailand's Ratchanok Intanon claimed the men's and women's singles titles at the Malaysia Masters badminton tournament here on Sunday.
Hockey: PNB win men's B division title
Punjab National Bank (PNB) were crowned the winners of the 8th Hockey India Senior Men National Championship (B Division) after they defeated Canara Bank 2-0 in the final here on Sunday.
PNB beat Canara Bank 2-0 to lift Sr National Hockey title
Punjab National Bank (PNB) today defeated Canara Bank 2-0 in the final to win the eighth Hockey India (HI) Senior Men National Championship 2018 (Division B, here today. In anoher match, Central Secretariat outclassed Bengaluru Hockey Association (BHA) 10-1 to finish finish third. The final match saw both teams keeping it tight at the back which meant that it was tough for the forwards to find a goal in the first two quarters. The scores remained 0-0 at the half-time, but it was PNB who broke the deadlock in the 38th minute when Sukhjeet Singh found the back of the net to give his team a much deserved 1-0 lead. Canara Bank tried to attack as they looked for an equaliser, but PNB' defense was up to the task. The latter's resolute defending saw them keep out Canara Bank's efforts in the final quarter. PNB also kept attacking their opponents and were finally rewarded with a second goal in the 57th minute when Satender Dalal found the back of the net to secure a 2-0 win for .
Syed Mushtaq Ali: Punjab win in super over, Mumbai beat Jharkhand
Punjab edged past Karnataka via super over in a Group A Super League tie of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 cricket tournament at the Jadavpur University campus ground here on Sunday.
IPL: Governing body assures Stokes's replacement if needed
Amid uncertainty over England cricketer Ben Stokes's participation in the Indian Premier League (IPL) following the legal proceeding of charges of affray against him, the IPL governing body has assured a replacement for the all-rounder if needed.However, no replacement would be provided for the former England vice-captain if he misses the league in between.Stokes has to be present in the court on February 13 after being charged by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in connection with a brawl outside a Bristol nightclub last year.Stokes' name has featured into the marquee set, with the highest base price of Rupees 2 crore, for the IPL auction which is to be held on January 27 and 28 in Bangalore.He had missed the Ashes series against Australia after being suspended indefinitely by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) pending the outcome of a police investigation into the Bristol incident.Stokes has not played any competitive cricket since his arrest in the Bristol incident on ...
Kashmir's water sports athlete now eyes international events
National-level water sports player Maria Jan, who has already earned a name for herself in the state, now wishes to represent India on an International level.Maria, who lives in Khanyar area of Srinagar city, has won gold and other medals at Junior and senior level national championships like Canoe Sprint National Championship, Polo and Dragon Boat Championship.Talking to ANI, Maria said, "I started playing sports seeing other girls. I then joined the water sports club at Nehru Park. It was initially difficult to convince family because I was a girl but later I convinced them."Maria added that she had faced a lot of social stigma when she stepped in sports but overcame all and continued to focus on her passion.She also praised the efforts of her coach Bilquis Mir for her success.Maria said that she had taken inspiration from Indian ace badminton player and Olympian PV Sindhu and following the Rio Olympic silver medallist's footsteps, she too wishes to represent India on international .
'Breezeofthesouth' wins the main race
'Breezeofthesouth' ably ridden by AkshayKumar won the T Chandrasekhar Reddy Memorial Cup, the chief event of the Hyderabad Monsoon Races held here today. Winner was trained by R H Sequeira Trainer Arjun Anne and Jockies Deepak Singh, Akshay Kumar scored a double each. Two first favourites obliged in card of eight events.