Page 658 - Sports
Nadal powers past Berdych into Australian Open quarterfinals
Rafael Nadal pounded former Australian Open semi-finalist Tomas Berdych 6-0, 6-1, 7-6(4) on Sunday to book his place in the Australian Open quarterfinals for the 11th time.
Spanish coach an advantage against Muguruza, says Pliskova
Czech Republic's Karolina Pliskova said that having Spaniard Conchita Martinez as her coach gives her an advantage over Garbine Muguruza in the Australian Open round of 16.
PCB to probe Pakistan's poor Test performance in SA: Mani
Pakistan Cricket Board will set up an inquiry to find out the reasons behind the national team's poor performance in the recent three-Test series against South Africa, said its chairman Ehsan Mani. Pakistan suffered a 0-3 defeat to South Africa in the Test series and Mani said that recent results are disappointing and understandably cricket fans were also upset with the Test performances. Talking to the media in Islamabad, Mani said that after the tour to South Africa is over, the PCB would have an inquiry into the team's poor Test performances. "No doubt everyone is disappointed with the way our team played in the Test series in South Africa. We will do our best to find out the causes of defeat by holding an in-depth inquiry," Mani said. Pakistan was whitewashed by the South Africans and before that they lost a three-match Test series to New Zealand in the UAE by 1-2. A well-informed source in the board told PTI that Mani had already spoken to the head of the cricket committee, ...
Ankita wins first singles title of 2019 season in Singapore
Indian tennis player Ankita Raina on Sunday won her first singles title of the 2019 season and eighth overall after trampling top seed Arantxa Rus in straight sets in the final of the USD 25,000 event in Singapore. Coming into the tournament after competing at the Australian Open Qualifiers, Ankita demolished world number 122 and the Dutch top seed 6-3 6-2 in one hour and 23 minutes. Ankita toppled four seeded players in the tournament starting with Dutch eighth seed Lesley Kerkhove in the second round. The gritty 25-year-old followed that up with wins over second seed Uzbek Sabina Sharipova and third seed Conny Perrin from Switzerland. The 50 points earned from the title triumph are likely to catapult Ankita to a career-high singles rank of 168 when the new WTA list is issued on Monday. "I've been working on my serve for a long while now and I think it's starting to help. I also feel there's more power in the strokes. It definitely helped playing the Grand Slam as the first ...
Australian Open: Nadal storms into quarter finals
World number two Rafael Nadal entered the quarter-final round of the ongoing Australian Open after streaking past Tomas Berdych of Czech Republic in the men's singles event here on Sunday.The 32-year-old registered a comprehensive 6-0, 6-1, 7-6(4) win over Berdych in their pre-quarters clash that lasted two hours and five minutes.Nadal, who made it to his 11th Australian Open quarter-final, looked at ease in the clash and barely missed any chances as Berdych failed to put a solid fight.The first set was a complete cakewalk for Nadal who won straight first nine games to take a 3-0 lead. He never let the momentum slip out of his grip and won the opening set 6-0 in a clinical fashion. Berdych seemed to have no appropriate reply to Nadal's accuracy and it continued throughout the match.While the second set saw Nadal continuing with her dominant momentum, the deciding set witnessed some grueling competition between the two players. The Spaniard, however, passed the final hurdle with ...
Sharapova knocked out of Australian Open
Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova crashed out of the Australian Open after being defeated by Ashleigh Barty of Australia in the pre-quarters round of the women's singles event here at the Rod Laver Arena on Sunday.The 31-year-old, who had made it to the final 16 after beating defending champion Caroline Wozniacki, was thrashed 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 in a match that lasted two and a half hours.In a close first set, both the players took turns to dominate the situation. As the scoreline read 4-4, Sharapova got her way and secured a crucial point before sealing the set with an ace.The Russian, however, could not sustain the momentum in the second set and conceded an easy defeat at the hands of the local girl.The final set saw Barty gaining an initial lead of four points indicating towards a one-sided show in the decider. But Sharapova surprised the spectators with her gritty and determined shots to level the score 4-4. At a point when the set seemed to be going in Sharapova's Kitty, the ...
Archery: Gupta, Hooda's golden touch lifts Haryana to top
SachinGupta and Paras Hooda won the boys Under-21 and Under-17 recurve golds, respectively, to lift Haryana to top of the medals charts at the archery competition in the Khelo India Games here on Sunday. Haryana finished with a total of seven medals, including two silver and three bronze. Gupta emerged a comfortable winner over favourite fellow Army Sports Institute trainee B Dhiraj of Andhra Pradesh, by beating him 6-2 in the under-21 category. Hooda, 13, showed mental toughness to come back from 2-4 down to beat team-mate Rahul by winning the last two sets, a media release said. Meanwhile, Maharashtra's Sakshi Shitole and Isha Ketan Pawar won the girls Under-21 recurve and girls Under-17 compound gold medals, respectively, to help the home state take the second spot with four medals, including a silver and a bronze. Jharkhand's Anita Kumari scored a thrilling one-point victory over Asian Games silver medallist Muskan Kirar (Madhya Pradesh) in the girls Under-21 ...
Lagat, Worknesh clinch men's and women's titles
Cosmas Lagat of Kenya and Worknesh Alemu of Ethiopia surprised pre-race favourites to win the men's and women's crowns respectively in the USD 405,000 Tata Mumbai Marathon here on Sunday. Lagat, winner of the Sevilla Marathon in 2016, made the 42.195-km race in this coastal city his own over the last 10 km to storm his way home in 2 hours, 9 minutes and 15 seconds, the second-best in the 16-year history of the race. The course record of 2:08:35 of his own Kenyan compatriot Gideon Kipketar, done in 2016, just about survived the long-legged Lagat's onslaught after he had left behind all his rivals, including pre-race favourite Abera Kuma of Ethiopia well behind his wake. In second place was Aychew Bantie of Ethiopia in 2:10:05 while Akalnew Shumet, also from Ethiopia, took the third spot in 2:10:14. The man with the best time going into the race, Kuma, finished seventh in 2:13:10 after he was with the lead bunch of ten runners, including some pacers, on the sea link after
Sudha, Rawat attain qualifying marks for world championship
Asian Games medallist Sudha Singh attained the women's qualifying mark for this year's world championship in Doha along with Nitendra Singh Rawat, who dipped under the men's mark, as both finished on top among host country's runners in the Tata Mumbai Marathon here on Sunday. Sudha Singh also set a personal best of 2:34:56 while finishing a creditable eighth overall, well under the qualifying mark of 2:37:00 set by IAAF for the September-October Doha World Championships. The woman athlete, a 3000m steeplechase specialist and winner of gold and silver medals in the 2010 and 2018 Asian Games, finished just ahead of former champion Dinkesh Mekash of Ethiopia who was in 9th spot in 2:36:31. Her earlier personal best in the marathon was 2:35:35 that she clocked while finishing 19th in the 2015 Beijing World Championships. The Indian Railways athlete also bettered the national course record of 2:37:29, which previously stood in the name of O P Jaisha since 2015. This was her .
Khelo: Haryana beat Jharkhand to win gold in U-21 Girls Hockey
Playingto a plan, Haryana beat Jharkhand3-0 to win the U-21 Girls Hockey gold in the Khelo India Youth Games on Sunday. Earlier Punjab beat Odisha2-1 for the third place. Haryana, who led 2-0 at half time, attacked well and defended their citadel efficiently giving Jharkhand no chance to create any serious problem from them. Yet, Jharkhand fought till the end, a media release said. The winners took the lead in the 10thminute when Mahima Chowdhary struck. Seven minutes before the second half, Haryana struck again and this time Amandeep Kaur made a solo run from the left and with a super reverse shot beat the onrushing goalkeeper to send the ball into the cave. Haryana raised their tally in the fifth minute of the second half with Amrinder Kaur scoring the third goal to virtually seal the final in her team's favour, the release added. Results: Girls U-21: Final: Haryana beat Jharkhand 3-0 (Mahima Chowdhary, Amandeep Kaur, Amrinder Kaur) Bronze medal play-off:Punjab beat .
Cuban coach Drake sees good future for women's boxing in India
Former Cuban boxer Romain Romero Drake says Indian women boxers are doing a great job lately, and he sees a bright future for the young generation of pugilists who took part in the Khelo India Youth Games. Drake, now an international boxing coach who is training boxers of the Madhya Pradesh State Boxing Academy for last three months, was also part of Indian women's coaching team in 2014, when the Indian contingent participated in the Commonwealth Games at Glasgow. India's Sarita Devi had won a silver while Pinky Rani returned with a bronze medal at that time. "What I admire in Indian women pugilists is that they are quite disciplined. They have a good posture and strength. In the last four years, Indian women boxing has come a long way. More facilities are available and players are getting a good exposure," Drake was quoted as saying in a media release on Sunday. Haryana and Manipur were already into women's boxing, but other states like Madhya Pradesh are also doing a ..
Mumbai Marathon: Lagat, Alemu clinch men's and women's titles
Cosmas Lagat of Kenya and Worknesh Alemu of Ethiopia surprised pre-race favourites to win the men's and women's crowns respectively in the USD 405,000 Tata Mumbai Marathon here on Sunday. Lagat, winner of the Sevilla Marathon in 2016, made the 42.195-km race in this coastal city his own over the last 10 km to storm his way home in 2 hours, 9 minutes and 15 seconds, the second-best in the 16-year history of the race. The course record of 2:08:35 of his own Kenyan compatriot Gideon Kipketar, made in 2016, just about survived the long-legged Lagat's onslaught after he left behind all his rivals, including pre-race favourite Abera Kuma of Ethiopia, well behind his wake. In second place was Aychew Bantie of Ethiopia in 2:10:05 while Akalnew Shumet, also from Ethiopia, took the third spot in 2:10:14. The man with the best time going into the race, Kuma, finished seventh in 2:13:10 after he was with the lead bunch of 10 runners, including some pacers, on the sea link after 19 .
Kerber stunned as Barty muscles past Sharapova and into quarters
World number two Angelique Kerber was sensationally bundled out of the Australian Open Sunday by a women playing the event for the first time, as Ashleigh Barty muscled past Maria Sharapova to make the quarter-finals. On a hot day on Margaret Court Arena, the German Wimbledon champion was left stunned by American Danielle Collins who humiliated her 6-0, 6-2 in under an hour. Ranked 35 in the world, she is little known on the WTA Tour after playing much of her tennis in the US college system and was making her debut in the main draw at Melbourne Park. She had never won a Grand Slam match before this year. "I may not have won a Grand Slam match before this but I tell you, it's going to keep happening," said 25-year-old Collins. "I better have many more of these." Collins said she held no fears about facing three-time Slam champion Kerber. "I just go out fearless, just give it my all." Her reward is a last-eight clash with either fifth seed Sloane Stephens or Russia's Anastasia ...
Mickelson maintains two-shot lead in Desert Classic
Five-time major champion Phil Mickelson fired six birdies in a six-under par 66 to maintain his two-shot lead in the US PGA Tour Desert Classic. The 48-year-old American heads into Sunday's final round chasing a 44th US PGA Tour title and his third in this event in the California desert east of Los Angeles. His 22-under par total of 194 put him two strokes clear of Canadian Adam Hadwin, who fired a bogey-free seven-under par 65 for 196. Mickelson -- who launched his week with a sparkling 60 on the La Quinta course, one of three in use this week -- kept his foot on the accelerator on the tougher Stadium course on Saturday, where a chip-in at the sixth hole launched a string of three straight birdies. "Every now and then you just need that putt, chip, something to fall and give you a little momentum," Mickelson said. He was one stroke behind Hadwin's clubhouse lead when he rolled in a 34-footer for birdie at the 13th and regained the lead when he drained an 11-footer at the 14th. A ...
Witsel winner keeps Dortmund six points clear in Bundesliga
Borussia Dortmund restored their six-point lead over Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga as Axel Witsel netted in their 1-0 away win at fourth-placed RB Leipzig. Second-placed Bayern, the defending champions, had trimmed Dortmund's lead to three points on Friday with an impressive 3-1 win at Hoffenheim as Leon Goretzka scored two superb first-half goals. Leipzig suffered their first home league defeat this season and Dortmund's victory was all the more impressive without captain and playmaker Marco Reus, who twisted an ankle in training on Friday. On the first weekend of the Bundesliga after the winter break, Dortmund claimed the winner on 19 minutes when the ball fell to Witsel from a corner and the Belgium midfielder reacted fastest, firing home off the underside of the crossbar. "I am happy to score, like I did in the first game," said Witsel, who scored his first Bundesliga goal against Leipzig in last August's 4-1 win in Dortmund. "But I am more happy with the three ...
PSG claim record home win with 9-0 thrashing of Guingamp
Kylian Mbappe and Edinson Cavani both scored hat-tricks as Paris Saint-Germain romped to their biggest-ever home win with a 9-0 Ligue 1 thrashing of Guingamp. The runaway league leaders exacted sweet revenge on bottom club Guingamp, who had ended their bid for a sixth straight League Cup title earlier this month in Paris. It was PSG's largest victory at the Parc des Princes, beating an 8-0 win over Dijon 12 months ago, but fell narrowly short of equalling their biggest win in total -- a 10-0 French Cup thumping of Cote Chaude in 1994. The capital club, who lead second-placed Lille by 13 points with two games in hand, have dropped just four points in their opening 19 matches of the season as they bid for an unbeaten league campaign. Neymar also scored twice as PSG's front three took their combined tally for the season to 58 goals, while Mbappe extended his advantage in the Ligue 1 scoring charts having netted 17 times in only 14 appearances. Coach Thomas Tuchel did see Marco Verratti ..
Love match: Everyone's crazy for Monfils and Svitolina
A blossoming romance between new tennis power couple Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils has fans baying for more, with the pair obliging by setting up a joint Instagram account. Ukrainian sixth seed Svitolina revealed last week that she is dating French star Monfils after he was spotted in her player box at the Australian Open. "He's there for me, he's supporting me, and I'm there for him as well," she said. "He understands, I understand, what we're going through. It's great." The news sent social media into overdrive and the pair have now launched a joint Instagram account 'g.e.m.s life' - Gael Elina Monfils Svitolina -- which quickly racked up thousands of likes. The pair posted a video montage of the two of them going about their daily lives together and did a Q&A with fans. Asked who initiated the relationship, they put up a picture pointing at each other. Australian player Daria Gavrilova called for other big-name tennis couples to follow suit in a post of the site. "I wanna ...
Arsenal beat toothless Chelsea to blow Champions League chase open
Arsenal blew the race for a top-four Premier League finish wide open as first-half goals from Alexandre Lacazette and Laurent Koscielny saw the Gunners beat Chelsea 2-0 at the Emirates Stadium. Chelsea remain in pole position for a return to Champions League football next season in fourth, but are now just three points ahead of Arsenal and a surging Manchester United, who beat Brighton earlier on Saturday to stretch caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's winning streak to seven games in all competitions. Maurizio Sarri's men risk being caught after a fourth defeat in 11 league matches that underlined the need for a striker, as the club close in on signing Gonzalo Higuain on loan from Juventus. Sarri again opted to start without a recognised centre-forward, with a largely anonymous Eden Hazard preferred in middle of a front three against an Arsenal defence that had kept just one Premier League clean sheet since September. By contrast Arsenal boss Unai Emery's selection was ...
Casemiro wonder goal helps Real Madrid defeat Sevilla
Casemiro's stunning long-range strike and a late goal from Luka Modric earned Real Madrid a 2-0 win over Sevilla and a much-needed boost to their flailing title challenge in La Liga. Madrid began the day 10 points adrift of leaders Barcelona, a gap that will be restored if the Catalans defeat Leganes on Sunday, but this victory should inject a timely shot of confidence. Casemiro's bending effort in the 78th minute and Modric's injury-time finish settled a compelling contest of third against fourth but Madrid were dominant in the second half and, in the end, deserved the points. It means they move above Sevilla and behind Atletico Madrid, who stay second after running out 3-0 winners away at bottom-club Huesca. Diego Simeone's side remain Barca's most tenacious challengers but for Real, this was their most impressive result in weeks, following a run of only two wins from five matches. "Beating your direct rivals is always worth more than three points," coach Santiago Solari said ...
Mumbai Marathon 2019: Runners hit streets
Runners, amateurs and veterans have started running on the busiest roads of Mumbai to compete and complete India's biggest and prestigious Tata Mumbai Marathon 2019.With many first-time runners geared up for the 16th edition of the Mumbai Marathon on Sunday early morning, over 46,000 including some of the world's best runners hit Mumbai streets on Sunday early morning.The IAAF Gold Label Race was flagged off from outside the landmark Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) by Six-Time World Boxing Champion and the event ambassador Mary Kom. The total prize money awarded will be USD 405,000.Along with the Mary Kom, the event was graced by South African Comrades Marathon champion, Bruce Fordyce. Popularly known as the 'Comrades King', Bruce has been the winner of South Africa's gruelling ultra-marathon for an unprecedented eight consecutive years, and nine times overall.Ethiopia's Abera Kuma is leading the men's field, while the women's field is headlined by the defending women's champion ...