Page 594 - Sports

England Lions reach 303-5 against India A on day 1

England Lions overcame a mid-innings stutter to reach 303 for 5 at stumps on day one of the first unofficial Test against India A here Thursday. Sent into bat by home skipper Ankit Bawne, the Lions got off to a solid start with openers Ben Duckett (80) and Max Holden (26) sharing a 82-run stand in 23.3 overs. Duckett, in particular, played with a lot of assurance as the visitors negotiated the opening hour without any loss. Navdeep Saini struck the first blow in the 24th over when he had Holden nicking a delivery to keeper K S Bharat. Sam Hain then joined Duckett and added 44 runs before the opener was bowled by Shardul Thakur with a delivery that came in. Duckett hit 15 fours during his 118-ball knock. Hain held fort even as Test discard Ollie Pope (8) and captain Sam Billings (9) fell with India A fighting back. Kerala All-rounder Jalaj Saxena then ended Hain's 167-ball vigil, having him caught behind for 61. Steven Mullaney (39) and Will Jack (40) then defied the India A bowlers, ..

Confident that Indian Davis Cup team will travel to Pakistan: AITA Secretary Chatterjee

The All India Tennis Association (AITA) secretary general Hironmoy Chatterjee is confident that national team will travel to Pakistan for their Davis Cup away tie as forfeiture can lead to a two-year suspension from the global governing body ITF. Having relegated to zone group after their loss to Italy in the Qualifiers, India were drawn against their neighbours for an away Asia-Oceania Zone Group 1 fixture. The Indian cricket team has not been allowed by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to travel to Pakistan for any bilateral contest since the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. But it would not be a problem in case of tennis, Chatterjee said. "We are affiliated to the International Olympic Council (IOC). Tennis is an Olympic sport. According to the Olympics solidarity programme, any body, which is under IOC is supposed to participate in all the events. This is World Cup of tennis," Chatterjee told PTI. "Cricket is ruled by an autonomous body (BCCI) and it is not an Olympic sport. It .

Golfer Tvesa wins 3rd leg of Hero women's Pro Tour

A calm and steady Tvesa Malik carded one-over 73, which fetched her the first title of the ongoing season in the Rs 8 lakh third leg of the Hero Womens Pro Golf Tour at the Kensville Golf and Country Club here on Thursday.

I-League: East Bengal beat Neroca 2-1, stay in title race

City football giants East Bengal remained firmly in title contention by recording a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over Neroca FC in a crunch I-League encounter at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan here on Thursday.

Esqueda brace keeps East Bengal title hopes alive

A fit-again Enrique Esqueda struck twice with his clinical headers as East Bengal came from behind to down NEROCA FC 2-1 and continue their surge for a maiden I-League title here Thursday. In a half-an-hour of brilliance, the Mexican, who had suffered a rib injury, turned it around for East Bengal single-handedly with his goals in the 67th and 86th minutes after coming off the bench. East Bengal found the going tough at the Saltlake Stadium, conceding a third minute goal with former Bengaluru FC striker Chencho Gyeltshen scoring on his debut from a Katsumi Yusa assist. But as it turned out Esqueda, who had also struck a brace in the first leg, once again proved to be the difference. At fourth place, East Bengal (28) are now two points behind second-placed Chennai City FC, the two teams with 14 matches each, even as debutants Real Kashmir lead the table with 32 points from 16 matches. Having blanked them 2-0 in the first leg with Esqueda scoring both the goals, East Bengal thus did a ..

Bajoria, Poddar make Pune Finals

City golfers Anant Bajoria and Devvrat Poddar clinched the final qualification spots of the Kolkata leg of the Mercedes Trophy 2019. Anant carded a nett score of 70.6 while Devvrat carded a nett score of 72.8 respectively on day 2 of the Kolkata qualifications. Anant and Devvrat will now be competing at the National Finals of the tournament to be played at the Oxford Golf Resort in Pune from March 27-29 along with two other qualifiers from Kolkata. Over 200 golfers participated on the two days of the Kolkata qualifications.

India should look to attack NZ with 2 regular spinners: Kumble

Legendary Anil Kumble feels that India should attack New Zealand with two regular spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal in the upcoming matches of the ongoing three-match T20 series. A strong comeback will be expected from India after the hammering from New Zealand in the series-opener when the two teams square-up in the second T20 International at Eden Park in Auckland on Friday. The visitors went 0-1 down after suffering an 80-run loss in the first game. "India needs to bowl to their strengths which did not reflect during the (first) match. The bowling side should have been led by an experienced bowler like Bhuvneshwar (Kumar), who has the capacity to swing and take early wickets with a new ball in favourable conditions," Kumble, a Star Sports Select Dugout expert, was quoted as saying. The 48-year-old former Karnataka and India spinner, who has 619 Test wickets to his name, suggested that team management could try pairing Krunal Pandya with other experienced spinners. "The ...

ISL: Pressure abounds as Jamshedpur host Mumbai (Preview)

Jamshedpur FC will play out of their skin as they host Mumbai City FC in an Indian Super League tie at the JRD Tata Sports Complex here on Friday.

Has West Indies cricket managed to rediscover its glorious era?

After years of being down in the dumps, West Indies cricket seems to have rediscovered some of the spirit of their illustrious predecessors.

Tvesa wins third leg of Hero WPGT by a huge 15-shot margin

A calm and steady Tvesa Malik carded one-over 73 to claim her first title of the season in the third leg of the Hero Women's Pro Golf Tour here Thursday. Tvesa, who started the day with an eight-shot lead, almost doubled that as the rest of the field floundered on a difficult scoring day at the Kensville Golf & Country Club. Tvesa, who won the Hero Order of Merit last year, secured the win by a huge 15-shot margin. She had back-to-back bogeys on seventh and eighth and her lone birdie of the day was on Par-4 12th. She finished with a string of six pars. Her 73 gave her a 54-hole total of even Par 216, as Amandeep Drall (80) ended at 231. The 15-shot win for Tvesa was the second largest ever in the history of Hero Women's Pro Golf Tour and next only to the 16-shot win Vani Kapoor pulled off in June, 2016 at the Eagleton Golf Resort. Amandeep, who started the day eight shots behind Tvesa, was never in the picture as she opened disastrously with three bogeys in first four holes. She ..

I-League: Chennai aim to regain top spot as they face Arrows (Preview)

Chennai City FC, who after quite a while find themselves a rung below the top spot on the I-League points table, take on the dangerous Indian Arrows on Friday in a bid to regain the pole position.

Dharma, Aman enjoy joint halfway lead; Gaurav shatters course record

Bengaluru's M Dharma and Patna's Aman Raj moved into joint lead after the second round of the season-opening Golconda Masters Golf Championship here Thursday. Dharma and Aman, who were both placed overnight tied second, shot rounds of seven-under-64 for the second day in succession at the Rs. 40 lakh event to surge into the joint lead at 14-under-128. Noida golfer Gaurav Pratap Singh, meanwhile, produced a phenomenal 10-under-61 to shatter the course record at the majestic Hyderabad Golf Club (HGC) and lie at tied fourth. Bengaluru's Chikkarangappa, a two-time international winner, too fired a 64 on Thursday to occupy third place at 13-under-129. However, Gaurav hogged the limelight with his spectacular and error-free 61 that catapulted him 36 places to tied fourth at 11-under-131. The 34-year-old, a former winner on the PGTI, went one better than the previous course record of 62 first set by Ajeetesh Sandhu in 2016 and then equalled by Amardip Malik on Wednesday this week during ...

Gayle returns to Windies squad for England ODIs

West Indies recalled veteran batsman Chris Gayle on Thursday for the first two one-day internationals against England in preparation for this year's World Cup. The hard-hitting, 39-year-old Gayle last played for West Indies during a home series against Bangladesh last July, and could renew an explosive opening partnership alongside Evin Lewis. Lewis and Gayle both missed the recent ODI series in India and Bangladesh but have been included as part of a 14-man squad that saw left-handed batsman Nicholas Pooran called up for the first time. West Indies and England will contest five one-dayers following the conclusion of the Test series, in which the hosts hold an unassailable 2-0 lead ahead of the finale in St Lucia on Saturday. "As we continue our Cricket World Cup preparations, the upcoming series against the top ranked ODI side is a great opportunity for us to gauge where we are as a team," said West Indies chairman of selectors Courtney Browne. "This allows us to identify any areas ..

All-rounder Mulder added to South Africa Test squad

Batting all-rounder Wiaan Mulder has been included in South Africa's squad for two Test matches against Sri Lanka, starting in Durban. Mulder, 20, was added to the 13-man squad which beat Pakistan in all three Tests in a home series earlier this season. "Wiaan has been part of our strategic thinking in developing a batting all-rounder for the Test squad for some time," said selection convener Linda Zondi in announcing the squad on Thursday. Mulder was part of the Test squad for a series against Australia last season but did not make the starting eleven. He suffered an ankle injury during a one-day international against Zimbabwe last September but made a successful return to first-class cricket for the Lions franchise last month. A notable omission is fast bowler Lungi Ngidi, who is recovering from a knee injury sustained during a limited overs tour of Australia in November. Ngidi has been training with the South African limited overs squads in recent weeks but Zondi said the selectors

Vani Kapoor makes a solid start at Vic Open on LPGA

India's Vani Kapoor Thursday produced a solid two-under 71 on her LPGA debut at the ISPS Handa Vic Open, which is co-sanctioned by Australian LPGA and US LPGA. Vani, who came through the qualifiers and a play-off to get a berth into the tournament that is being played simultaneously with the men's event with equal prize purse, shot 71 with birdies on second, fifth and 13th to lie tied 37th. The only blemish in her card was a bogey on ninth at the Par-73 Creek Course. With three Indians figuring in an LPGA Tournament for the first time ever, Aditi Ashok (73) at the Par-72 Beach Course was T-108th and Diksha Dagar had six-over 78 on the Beach Course. England's Felicity Johnson, twice an Australian PGA pro-am winner in regional Victoria in recent weeks, brought home a bogey-free course-record 64 on the Creek Course. She hit 17 greens in regulation, birdied three of the par-5s and had a lot of gimme birdies. Her score late in the day eclipsed long-time leader Su Oh, while Canadian ...

I-League: Chennai City gear up to regain top spot vs Arrows

Chennai City will be eyeing to regain their pole position in the I-League table when they take on the young Indian Arrows in their 15th round I-league encounter here Friday. Chennai City are currently placed second with 30 points from 14 matches behind Real Kashmir, who are on top with 32 points from 16 games. Full points will once again take Chennai on top, having played a game less than Real Kashmir. In the first leg, Chennai had pummelled the Arrows 4-1, courtesy Spanish sniper Pedro Manzi's first hat-trick of the season. He has gone on to register another during the course of the campaign while scoring 13 goals thus far and remains the Floyd Pinto coached Arrows' primary threat on Friday. The Arrows have creditably bounced back since that first game and today find themselves in a respectable seventh position on the table with 16 points from as many games. They have also notched up a best-ever record of five wins in the process, to go with 10 losses and a draw. Given their recent ..

ISL: Jamshedpur FC faces Mumbai City, eyes top four

Jamshedpur FC will look to break into the top four with a superlative performance when they clash with Mumbai City FC in an Indian Super League fixture here on Friday. The race for a semi-final spot has reached a critical stage and Jamshedpur FC know they have to stitch a winning run, starting with their clash against Mumbai. The Men of Steel are currently fifth on the table (20 points) and are three points off the fourth spot. With just four games left to play in the league, Jamshedpur FC cannot afford to drop points and lose ground in the race for the play-offs. "In the last three matches, we lost 2-1 against ATK, had a draw against FC Goa and won against Delhi Dynamos. We have only conceded three goals in these games so I don't think the defence is an issue," said coach Cesar Ferrando, whose side has won only one of their last five matches. "We should cut out those counter-attacks earlier, but I don't think you can blame the defence for that." The absence of star forward Tim Cahill

Men's National Hockey: Punjab, Railways, PSB and PSPB enter semi-final

Defending champions Punjab along with Railways, Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB) and Punjab & Sind Bank entered the semi-finals of the 9th Senior National Hockey Championship here Thursday. Punjab beat Haryana 3-0 in the first quarter-final with India internationals Akashdeep Singh and Ramandeep Singh finding the target. Akashdeep scored twice in the 46th and 54th minute respectively while Ramandeep scored the opening goal in the 25th minute. In the second quarter-final, Punjab & Sind Bank (PSB) pipped Air India Sports Promotion Board 3-2. Gaganpreet Singh struck a brace in the 9th and 59th minute. Satbir Singh (42') was the other goal-scorer for Punjab & Sind Bank while Abharan Sudev (23') and Mohammed Raheel Mouseen (45') scored for Air India Sports Promotion Board. In in the third quarter-final, PSPB crushed Mumbai 5-0 with Hardik Singh (39', 52'), Harmanpreet Singh (40'), Affan Yousuf (44') and Talwinder Singh (60') scoring the goals. In the final last eight ...

India 'A' women's hockey team to face France 'A' on Friday

The India 'A' women's hockey team will look to gain much needed exposure when it takes on France 'A' in the opening match of four-game series here Friday. The Indian team, led by skipper Salima Tete, comprises of players from the Indian Development Women's Core Group and will look to put their skills to test against a France side who have a mixture of youth and experience in their 21-member squad. "We are all very excited to be playing at home in Lucknow and Gorakhpur against a French team who will give us tough competition in the four Matches," said India 'A' women's hockey team coach Baljeet Singh. "These matches will help us in developing these players to play together as a unit, and to understand the different strategies that we want to implement. "The fact that we are playing in-front of home support makes it even more exciting for the girls as it will be a proud moment for them." Singh said playing such matches will help in the development of the players. "When it comes to the ..

VCA announces Rs 3 crore prize money for victorious Ranji team

The Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) Thursday announced a cash reward of Rs 3 crore for its victorious Ranji Trophy squad, which defended the title by defeating Saurashtra in the final on Thursday. Vidarbha lifted their second successive Ranji Trophy title with a comfortable 78-run win over Saurashtra in the final, proving that their maiden triumph last year was no "fluke". "The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) gives Rs 2 crore (as prize money) and we (VCA) will be giving Rs 3 crore additionally (to the team). So, the total purse will be Rs 5 crore," VCA President Anand Jaiswal told PTI over phone from Nagpur. Jaiswal also said that the association has "postponed" the event to celebrate the Ranji Trophy success, due to the Irani Trophy game, that will be played in the city from February 12. "We will fix a date for a felicitation ceremony and the prize money will be given to the players during the event," the VCA chief stated. Vidarbha is only the sixth team in the ...