Page 2199 - Sports
Anand third in World Blitz Chess; Carlsen wins the title
Two days after he won the World Rapid Chess Championship, Indian chess Grand Master (GM) and five time World Champion Viswanathan Anand on Saturday established again that he is a force to reckon with third position at the King Salman FIDE World Blitz Championship at Riyadh.
Marcelinho's hat-trick helps Pune blank Northeast 5-0 in ISL
Brazilian striker Marcelinho produced a superb hat-trick as FC Pune City scripted a 5-0 drubbing of NorthEast United in an Indian Super League (ISL) match at Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex Stadium, here today. Brazilian striker Marcelinho scored a fabulous hat-trick after Ashique Kuruniyan had opened the account in the eighth minute and Adil Khan hammered the final nail late in the game as Pune City took a giant leap in standings. Pune have now moved to the second spot with 15 points from eight matches and are just a point behind league leaders Chennaiyin FC. NorthEast United suffered their fourth successive defeat in the Hero ISL and are just above Delhi Dynamos at the bottom of the league table. The Highlanders have four points from seven matches and have not picked up a point since defeating Delhi Dynamos for their only win on December 2. The match was all over as a contest inside the first 45 minutes when Pune City grabbed the chances that came their way. The .
Saina, Kashyap guide Awadhe Warriors to 4-3 win in PBL
Saina Nehwal scripted a sensational comeback win over Canada's Michelle Li to guide Awadhe Warriors to a superb 4-3 victory over newcomers North Eastern Warriors in the third Premier Badminton League (PBL) here today. The Lucknow-based team, who had opened their campaign with a 4-3 win over defending champion Chennai Smashers in the PBL opener at Guwahati, continued their rampaging run, winning the first three matches -- including their Trump match -- in the five-match duel to take an unassailable 4-0 lead. World No 10 Saina, who clinched her 2010 Commonwealth Games gold medal at the same venue, continued her love affair at the Siri Fort Sports Complex with a 6-15 15-13 15-13 triumph over world No 21 Li, who is interestingly the reigning Commonwealth Games champion. Earlier, Hong Kong's Tang Chun Man and Denmark's Christinna Pedersen clinched Awadhe's Trump match against North Eastern's Kim Gi Jung and Prajakta Sawant 15-14 15-13 after a hard-fought battle to put their .
Anand wins bronze at World Blitz Chess Championship
Viswanathan Anand continued his excellent run bagging a bronze in the World Blitz Chess Championship following his gold winning performance in the Rapid section only a couple of days back. After ending the first day of the Blitz category on a disappointing note when he suffered a loss at the hands of Ian Nepomniachtchi of Russia, Anand was a class act on the final day as he won against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave of France. World Classical champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway proved his mettle as he carved out win after win on the final day. Coming into the final day, Carlsen had seven points from eleven rounds and the champion ended with an overall tally of sixteen points scoring a whopping 9/10 on the final day. Anand too had seven points and his 7.5 points in the last 10 games was good enough for a tied 2nd place with Sergey Karjakin of Russia. Karjakin was a bit out of shape as he could muster just 5.5 points on the final day and ended on 14.5 points like Anand. This truly ...
Saina, Kashyap secure wins for Awadhe Warriors in PBL
Saina Nehwal scripted a sensational comeback win over Canada's Michelle Li to guide Awadhe Warriors to an unassailable 4-0 lead over newcomers North Eastern Warriors in the third Premier Badminton League (PBL) here today. The Lucknow-based team, who had opened their campaign with a 4-3 win over defending champion Chennai Smashers in the PBL opener at Guwahati, continued their rampaging run, winning the first three matches -- including their Trump match -- to beat the North Easterns here. World No 10 Saina, who clinched her 2010 Commonwealth Games gold medal at the same venue, continued her love affair at the Siri Fort Sports Complex with a 6-15 15-13 15-13 triumph over world No 21 Li, who is interestingly the reigning Commonwealth Games champion. Earlier, Hong Kong's Tang Chun Man and Denmark's Christinna Pedersen clinched Awadhe's Trump match against North Eastern's Kim Gi Jung and Prajakta Sawant 15-14 15-13 after a hard-fought battle to put their team 2-0 ahead. In ..
Kohli believes balanced Indian team ready for Proteas test
India captain Virat Kohli on Saturday expressed confidence that his team was a balanced side capable of getting an elusive Test series win against South Africa.
Will answer Sushil in next bout: Parveen Rana
Wrestler Parveen Rana, who has accused Sushil Kumar of cheating in the trail bout for 2018 Commonwealth Games, said that he will take the revenge of his defeat in the next face-off with the Olympian.The selection trials yesterday at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi took an ugly turn when a scuffle broke out between the supporters of Sushil and Rana.The incident took place minutes after Sushil qualified for the 2018 Games, which is to be held in April next year, following his 7-3 victory over Parveen in the semi-final bout.Rana has alleged that Sushil' supporters beat him and his elder brother post the match for daring to take the mat against the former.Talking to ANI, Rana said, "I played a good bout yesterday (against Sushil Kumar), but there was a lot of cheating there and due to that I was made to lose".He added, "Now I am waiting for our next bout in the pro wrestling league where I will perform even better. I have forgotten the thing that happened and now focusing on
Vincenzo Montella presented as Sevilla's new coach
Vincenzo Montella of Italy was on Saturday presented as Sevilla's new coach, succeeding Eduardo Berizzo, who was dismissed last week.
Serena Williams loses on comeback
A slow moving Serena Williams suffered defeat on her comeback from a maternity break as French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko powered to victory in the "first to ten points" final set at the Abu Dhabi exhibition tournament here today. The 36-year-old Williams looked static and far from full fitness just four months after the birth of her first child and Ostapenko, a 20-year-old Latvian, won 6-2, 3-6, 10/5. "The first match is always really hard after a break," Williams said. "I was just glad to be here," she said. The former world No.1 who gave birth to a daughter in September is hoping to defend her Australian Open title when the tournament gets underway January 15.
I-League: Newcomers Gokulam to host defending champions Aizawl FC (Preview)
Newcomers Gokulam Kerala FC will host reigning champions Aizawl FC at the EMS Corporation Stadium here on Sunday.
Federer ends memorable 2017 with win at Hopman Cup
Roger Federer ended a memorable 2017 the way he started it with a singles win at the mixed teams Hopman Cup here today. His straight-sets victory over Japan's Yuichi Sugita showed Federer was sharp for his upcoming Australian Open title defence, capping off an extraordinary year in which he claimed two Grand Slam titles and climbed back to number two in world rankings. It also gave Switzerland the lead in their Group B tie against the Japanese, before Belinda Bencic sealed the tie for the Swiss with a straight-sets win over Naomi Osaka. Federer started his 2017 campaign in Perth and given the success which followed, the 36-year-old was keen to replicate his preparation for Melbourne by returning to the Hopman Cup. Speaking after his 6-4, 6-3 win over the 40th-ranked Sugita, the Swiss star said he was entering the new season more confident in his game than the last. "I feel much more in a rhythm," he said. "Last year, I was like I hope I'm going to be able to hit my first .
Gokulam Kerala host defending champions Aizawl FC in I-League
Newcomers Gokulam Kerala FC will host reigning champions Aizawl FC in their I-League match at the EMS Corporation Stadium here tomorrow. The two teams are approaching the tie from completely different scenarios but both will look forward to taking away with nothing less than all three points. While debutants Gokulam Kerala went down to heavyweights East Bengal 0-1 in Kolkata, the Aizawl side got the better of Minerva Punjab FC at home, thanks to goals by Kareem Omoloja Nurain and Andrei Ionescu in the second half. Gokulam coach Bino George sounded elated on his team's return to home after the away trip. "It always feels great to be back at home. Our last home game didn't go well but a lot has changed since then. We're now going to face the champions and we're really pumped up to prove our worth against the champions," George said. He said that the injuries to his foreign players were putting the team composition in a real jeopardy. "Injury to foreigners have been the ...
Nagal, Gunneswaran advance in Tata Open qualifiers
Indian Davis Cuppers Prajnesh Gunneswaran and Sumit Nagal entered the second round of the qualifying event at the Tata Open Maharashtra, here today. Gunneswaran started off with a 6-4 6-1 win over Jayesh Pungliya while Nagal thrashed seasoned doubles specialist Divij Sharan 6-2 6-3. Others who won their matches are Joao Souza, Ricardo Ojedalara, Carlos Taberner, Ilya Ivashka and Thiago Monteiro all securing victories to qualify for the next round of qualifiers. In his opening round qualifiers, Gunneswaran secured the first set by winning points on his first service. In the second set, Gunneswaran did not give the youngster any chance of making a comeback as the former wrapped up the match in straight sets. Spain's Adrian Menendez-Maceiras also advanced to the second round of Qualifiers as he beat India's Shahbaaz Khan 6-2 6-0 in straight sets. Brazil's 29-year-old Souza also started on a winning note as he beat South Korean Soonwoo Kwon 4-6 6-3 7-6. Spain's Ricardo Ojeda
Warm-up pitch wouldn't have been close to Test track: Kohli
India captain Virat Kohli today justified his team's decision of not playing a warm-up game ahead of Test series in South Africa as the track on offer would not have been even "15 per cent" of what will be at the Newlands. "You are never sure whether you are getting quality practice games or not. We would rather have practice sessions that are in our control," Kohli said during his media interaction after the team's first practice session. "If you look at the wicket we are playing on right now, it's not even going to be 15 per cent of what we will get in the game," the skipper said. "There is no point wasting two days, guys going in, scoring quick fifties and coming out. We would rather have them do two sessions like today, get into the Test match zone and and test ourselves," Kohli added. The Indian captain also emphasised on being in a right mental space before starting a series, which does not necessarily come from performing well in warm-up games. "It doesn't matter .
Sushil, supporters booked by Delhi Police
Indian wrestling star Sushil Kumar and several of his supporters were booked by Delhi Police on Saturday following a complaint by fellow grappler Parveen Rana.
The series is not just about my duel with AB: Kohli
He has the highest regards for his Royal Challengers Bengaluru teammate and Indian skipper Virat Kohli simply does not understand why every Indo-South Africa series to be billed as a battle between him and AB de Villiers. "It's not like only two guys are playing in this series. AB is a great friend of mine. I respect the way he plays the game and I have always respected him as a person as well. But, when we are playing against each other it's not that we cross the line with each other, we are just not like that," Kohli said when asked about his duel with the premier Proteas batsman. Kohli also reminded that merely getting De Villiers out won't ensure a Test match victory for India. "It's just that we want to get AB out and the opposition will want to get me out or Pujara or Rahane. The mindset I don't think there is any different in terms of the mindset in any of the batsmen in the side. "Every player wants to be the stand out batsman and make contributions towards the
Team India up for challenge against SA: Shastri
The current Indian team has the experience and bench strength to challenge the might of South Africa in the Test series starting January 5, chief coach Ravi Shastri said today. Addressing the first press conference after arriving in South Africa for the three-match Test series, Shastri said adaptability to foreign conditions will be the key to success for the visitors. "All I can say is the team is up for the challenge. If you asked me four years ago, I would have said no. But this team has gained in experience," said Shastri. "The beauty of this team is it does not matter which opposition it is. We respect all opposition. We look at the pitch and adapt to those conditions. "You have got bench strength in your fast bowling department which is the key in taking 20 wickets," he added. Asked whether India's fast bowling strength will give the curators second thoughts about preparing spicy pitches, Shastri said, "For us every game is a home game. Even this is a home game for
Have come a long way but under no delusions: Kohli
The team has come a long way since their last tour of 2013 but even then skipper Virat Kohli is under "no delusion" as he knows what to expect when the much-anticipated Test series against South Africa starts on January 5. "We are prepared about what we are going to get here. We are under no delusions as to what we are going to be presented with. Come 5th of Jan, we are ready for it," Kohli said, exuding confidence during his media interaction after the team's opening practice session. India have never won a Test series in South Africa, having toured the country since 1992 and the current team has 13 players, who were here during the last tour in 2013-14. "We have come a long way in the last four years in terms of where we stand in understanding our game. From a personal point of view, I know my game much better than four years ago. I have had many highs and lows. The team is very comfortable with where we stand, individually with our skill sets and as a team," Kohli ...
Maharashtra Open: Yuki Bhambri to face Arjun Kadhe in opener match
India's top-ranked tennis player Yuki Bhambri will play his opening draw of the Maharashtra Open against local lad Arjun Kadhe.In the doubles draw, announced on Saturday, defending champions Rohan Bopanna and Jeevan Neduncheziyan will face compatriots Leander Paes and Purav Raja.Meanwhile, top seed and world no. 6 Marin Cilic was handed a bye in the first round.Defending champion and world no. 20, Roberto Bautista-Agut, world no. 41 Benoit Paire and 2017 US Open finalist South Africa's Kevin Anderson were also given a bye in the first round for India's only ATP World Tour stop.Wildcard entrant Ramkumar Ramanathan will be playing against world no. 106 Roberto Carballes Baena in a tough first round encounter.In other major clashes, world no. 42 Dutch player Robin Haase will be starting his campaign against Slovenia's Blaz Kavcic in what could be one of the most mouth-watering first-round contests.Frenchman Gilles Simon will be looking to bounce back from his disappointing form of last ..
Alfie invited at Kolkata Open Snooker Championship
English professional Alfie Burden has been invited to the annual snooker championship 'Kolkata Open 2018' which is set to begin from next week.