Page 662 - Sports
Nishikori happy after speeding to Japanese fourth-round double
Kei Nishikori was delighted with a straight-sets win Saturday, after two previous five-set battles, as he raced through the third round of the Australian Open to complete a Japanese double. The in-form eighth seed felt his way into the first set against Portugal's 44th-ranked Joao Sousa before romping away to a 7-6 (8/6), 6-1, 6-2 win in 2hr 6min. He was preceded onto Margaret Court Arena by countrywoman and US Open champion Naomi Osaka, who fought back from a set down to battle past Taiwan's Hsieh Su-wei. The 29-year-old Nishikori has won all three of his first week matches on the same Melbourne Park second showcourt to reach the last 16 of the Australian Open for the seventh time in nine appearances. "I love to play this court, I'm very comfortable here," said the 2014 US Open finalist after delighting a large contingent of Japanese fans. "It's great to play here, especially after Naomi today." Nishikori and Sousa had each survived two five-set epics before their third-round ...
Kohli meets Roger Federer, finishes Australian summer in style
After leading India to two historic series victories Down Under, India skipper Virat Kohli wrapped up his Australian summer in "style" by meeting legendary tennis star Roger Federer at the Rod Laver Arena here Saturday. Kohli, who donned the spectator's hat alongside wife Anushka Sharma, watched defending champion Novak Djokovic beat Denis Shapovalov in the men's singles third-round match and Serena Williams storm into the fourth round of women's singles. Kohli took to social media to post a picture of Federer, himself and Anushka. "What a day at the Australian open. An amazing way to finish the Australian summer. Forever grateful #ausopen," Kohii tweeted. The official twitter handle of the Australian Open also tweeted a picture of the trio, who were all smiles captioning it as "three legends, one photo." Federer, who is the defending champion at the Australian Open, has already sealed a place in the last 16 of the competition with a win against American Taylor Fritz on Friday. Kohli
Hazlewood ruled out, uncapped Richardson called up for SL Tests
The Australian vice-captain Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the upcoming two-match Test series against Sri Lanka due to a back injury.Hazlewood was rested for the concluded three-match ODI series against India, which Australia lost 2-1. He, however, was part of the recent Test series against India.It is the second time in this season that Hazlewood has missed Tests with a back injury; he had previously sustained a stress fracture of the back in May last year. He had also suffered a back injury in September 2010 and subsequently missed the away Test series against India."Josh has reported some back soreness over the last few days and scans have revealed a very early stage stress fracture in the same lower back area as his previous injury from last summer," ICC quoted the Australian physiotherapist David Beakley, as saying.Beakley, however, sounded confident of Hazlewood's availability for the World Cup to be held in England and Wales later this year.The fast bowler has been ...
Australian Open: Svitolina beats Zhang to enter last 16
Ukraine's Elina Svitolina defeated former quarterfinalist Zhang Shuai of China to reach the round of 16 at the Australian Open on Saturday.
Sevastova through to round of 16 at Australian Open
Anastasija Sevastova booked herself a spot in the second week of a Grand Slam for the fifth time in her career on Saturday after routing China's Wang Qiang in straight sets at the Australian Open.
Ethiopians, Kenyans to battle for top honours in Mumbai
A host of top-class distance runners from the African continent, including pedigreed nations Ethiopia and Kenya, have descended here to show their worth and fight for the cash prizes in the USD 405,000 16th Tata Mumbai Marathon to be run on Sunday. Ethiopian runners took both the men's and women's titles 12 months ago and Abera Kuma and Amane Gobena, from that nation, are the pre-race favourites to take the top individual prize of USD 45,000. Kuma comes to Mumbai as the fastest man in the field with his 2:05:50 personal best set in the Rotterdam Marathon last April. "I have been training very well again and I feel I can run faster than that time. Maybe it will be difficult to run as quickly as that here, but I am in good shape," said Kuma ahead of his debut race here. There is a bonus of USD 15,000 for creating a new course record in the race and Kuma, with a personal 10,000m best of 26:52.85, is targeting the record of 2:08:35 set by Kenyan Gideon Kipketar in ...
Khelo: Chandigarh win Kabaddi boys under-21 gold
The kabaddi competition at the Khelo India Youth Games came to an end with a thrill-a-minute final encounter in the Boys Under-21 category. The only final not to feature Haryana, saw Chandigarh edge out Tamil Nadu with a 'Golden Raid' which is used to break ties after extra time, a media release issued Saturday said. Chandigarh got off to a good start and even inflicted an All-out on their opponents in just the eighth minute of the game. Tamil Nadu then fought back, inspired by a brilliant super raid by Radha Krishnan, as the first half ended at 17-17. Tamil Nadu led for most of the second half but it was Chandigarh's turn to fight back who hung on as nothing could separate the teams at 36-36 at the end of the second half. The match then had to be decided by two extra halves. At 40-39 in the second half of extra time, Tamil Nadu finally thought they had come through, but there was one last twist as Chandigarh were awarded a technical point after Tamil Nadu substitutes ...
Nishikori enters last 16 in Australian Open
Japan's Kei Nishikori defeated Portugal's Joao Sousa in straight sets on Saturday to book his place in the fourth round of the Australian Open.
Serena advances to last 16 in Australian Open
Serena Williams used the 18-year-old Dayana Yastremska's inexperience to her advantage as she overpowered the Ukrainian to make it to the fourth round of the Australian Open on Saturday.
Lahiri shoots 65 to rise to T-21st at Desert Classic
Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri made a smart comeback on the second day, cruising to a seven-under 65 to rise from overnight 70th to Tied-21st at the halfway mark of the Desert Classic here. Lahiri, who shot 70 on the PGA West's Nicklaus Tournament Course on the first day, is now nine-under for 36 holes at the event, which is played like a Pro-Am. Phil Mickelson birdied four of his last five holes Friday to take a two-stroke lead into the weekend in his first event of the year. After shooting a career-low 12-under 60 at La Quinta Country Club, the 48-year-old Mickelson had a 68 on Nicklaus Tournament Course to get to 16-under. Curtis Luck was second after a 66 on the Nicklaus layout. The 22-year-old Australian rebounded from a bogey on the par-3 eighth with a closing birdie on the par-4 ninth. Lahiri, who missed a lot of makeable putts on the first day at the Stadium Course, had five birdies on the front nine. He started with a birdie on second and then dropped a shot on third. He got ...
Saina loses to Marin to end India's campaign at Malaysia Masters
Saina Nehwal's impressive run at the Malaysia Masters came to an end following her straight-game loss to reigning Olympic and world champion Carolina Marin of Spain in the women's singles semifinals, here Saturday. The 28-year-old Indian, who had won the title in 2017 and was a runners-up in the 2011 edition, went down 16-21 13-21 to fourth seed Marin in a 40-minute match to bring an end to India's campaign at the first World Tour Super 500 tournament of the season. Tied 5-5 ahead of the clash, Saina had made a good start to the match leading 5-2 at the start but an aggressive Marin reeled off seven straight points to turn the tables before grabbing a 11-9 lead at the break. The Spaniard extended it to 13-9 before Saina clawed back at 14-14. However, Marin produced a determined effort to reach the game points after gathering six points on the trot. She easily sealed the first game in 20 minutes with a measured return at the Indian's fore court. In the second game, Marin was more ...
Vidarbha rout Uttarakhand to reach semis
Reigningchampions Vidarbha routed minnows Uttarakhand by an innings and 115 runs in their Ranji Trophy quarter-final here Saturday and made to the semifinals. India pacer Umesh Yadav (5-23) and slow left arm orthodox bowler Aditya Sarvate (5-55) grabbed five wickets each to dismantle them for 159 in the second innings and script a memorable win. Trailing the hosts by 274 runs in the first innings and resuming the day at the overnight score of 152 for 5, Uttarakhand needed to bat out their skin to salvage a draw. But their innings folded up very quickly as they lost their last five wickets for only seven runs. It was an abject surrender by Uttarakhand as their lower middle order and the tail failed to put up any fight. First innings centurian Saurabh Rawat fell for a duck after being trapped in front of the wicket by Yadav. Before that Sarvate sent back Malolan Rangarajan (2) to the pavilion. Ater Rawat's departure, Vidarbha bowlers blew out the tail to help their team ...
In the name of Kabaddi, Punjab youth stay back in Canada
Traditionally a tough, rural sport practised by 'pehlwans' in villages across the length and breadth of India, kabaddi has been flying high in recent years due to the money and glamour brought in by the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL).
Windies stand by Pybus appointment, refer critic to ethics body
West Indies cricket chiefs insisted they were standing by the decision to name Richard Pybus as their new head coach despite a storm of criticism which greeted the Englishman's appointment. Pybus, who previously worked as director of cricket for the West Indies from 2013 to 2016, will coach the team for the forthcoming series against England, the World Cup and the visit of India in July and August. "Following a meeting of the board of directors, the organisation affirmed that the appointment of Pybus was made with the support of more than two-thirds of its board to ensure the team had strong leadership ahead of the busy cricket season this year," said a Cricket West Indies (CWI) statement. Pybus, who has had brief spells as coach of Pakistan and Bangladesh, was blamed by former captain Darren Sammy for causing the West Indies squad to strike on the 2016 India tour. "Moses led God's children out of Egypt and a 40days journey took them 40years because of stubbornness.The 2019 worldcup ..
Frustrated De Bruyne raring to go for Man City
Pep Guardiola takes reigning champions Manchester City to struggling Huddersfield on Sunday, with the Premier League's bottom side facing the prospect of finding themselves on the receiving end of Kevin De Bruyne's frustration. Arguably City's standout performer in their record-breaking title campaign last season, the Belgian's season has been badly interrupted by two lengthy spells on the sidelines with knee problems. Now fully fit, De Bruyne has cut a frustrated figure on occasion, most notably when substituted during his team's emphatic 9-0 victory over League One Burton in the semi-final of the League Cup last week. De Bruyne ran down the tunnel after being replaced in that game and, according to reports, watched the final exchanges from the City dressing room rather than from the bench, as club protocol dictates. Coincidence or not, De Bruyne found himself left out of the starting line-up for City's next game, the 3-0 victory over Wolverhampton on Monday, although the fact he was
Australian women's coach sacked ahead of football World Cup
Australia's women's football coach Alen Stajcic was sacked Saturday just months out from the World Cup amid concerns over "workplace" and "player welfare" issues. The move comes despite guiding the Matildas to as high as fourth in the FIFA world rankings in one of their most successful eras since being appointed in 2014. Football Federation Australia chief David Gallop said he had lost faith in Stajcic. "The ultimate responsibility for driving change and leading a high-performance environment that puts the team in the best possible position to achieve what they are capable of, rests with the head coach," he said. "We no longer have confidence that Alen is the right person to lead the team and staff." The women's World Cup takes place in France in June and July, while Australia are due to play New Zealand, South Korea and Argentina on home soil in the Tournament of Nations from February 8. Gallop cited two recently conducted confidential FFA surveys to evaluate the standard of the team
Osaka and Svitolina taken to the brink at Australian Open
Japanese US Open champion Naomi Osaka and sixth seed Elina Svitolina survived big scares but displayed fighting qualities to pull back from the brink at the Australian Open on Saturday. On day six at Melbourne Park, fourth seeded Osaka looked down and out against Taiwanese veteran Hsieh Su-wei before battling back to win 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 and set up a last 16 meeting with Latvia's Anastasija Sevastova, who beat China's Wang Qiang in straight sets. Pliskova struggled with a painful shoulder complaint that required treatment at every change of ends, and medical timeouts, before somehow beating China's Zhang Shuai 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 as the temperature rose in the centre court sunshine. They played ahead of Serena Williams making another bow on Rod Laver Arena as she gathers steam in her bid to win a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam title. The American great takes on unseeded Ukrainian teenager Dayana Yastremska. Misfiring world number one Simona Halep is also in action, testing herself against ...
Mickelson maintains two-shot Desert Classic lead
Five-time major winner Phil Mickelson followed up his spectacular first-round 60 with a four-under par 68 to hold a two-shot lead after two rounds of the Desert Classic. Mickelson birdied four of his last five holes on the Nicklaus Tournament course, one of three par-72 layouts in use in the US PGA Tour tournament in the California desert east of Los Angeles. He overcame a double-bogey six at the par-four 18th -- his ninth of the day which saw him make the turn at even par for the round. Mickelson's 16-under total of 128 put him two strokes in front of Australian rookie Curtis Luck, who grabbed his eighth birdie of the day at his final hole -- the ninth -- to post a 66 on the Nicklaus course and a 14-under par total of 130. Canadian Adam Hadwin and American Steve Marino shared third on 131. Marino had five birdies and an eagle hole-in-one on the par-three seventh on the way to a seven-under par 65 at the La Quinta course. Hadwin had seven birdies and one bogy in a 66 at La Quinta, ...
Iran coach Queiroz set for Colombia switch after Asian Cup
Iran coach Carlos Queiroz said Friday that he was "honoured" to be courted by Colombia, who want the former Real Madrid boss to join them after the Asian Cup. But the Portuguese, who has been Iran coach for eight rollercoaster years, insisted that he remains committed to bringing Asian football's biggest prize back to the country for the first time in more than 40 years. "There's no doubt that Colombia expressed its interest and confidence in me," Queiroz told AFP in an interview before Iran face Oman in the last 16 at the weekend. "It is an unbelievable national team with fantastic players and a very high FIFA ranking (12) -- it's prestigious, an honour and something that makes me very proud. "But at the moment my responsibility is with Iran," added the 65-year-old, who almost steered Iran to the knockout stages of last year's World Cup in Russia. "After the Asian Cup I will take into consideration for sure Colombia's invitation." Despite Team Melli's strong World Cup showing, ...
Moscow data could expose '300-600' doping cases: McLaren
Richard McLaren, the Canadian lawyer whose 2016 bombshell report exposed state-sponsored doping in Russia, suspects "hundreds" of doping cases could be contained in the latest data retrieved from Moscow. On Thursday, WADA said they had "successfully retrieved" data from the Moscow laboratory at the heart of the affair. "It's pretty much anyone's guess as to what that number is," McLaren said when asked how many doping cases he expected the new data to reveal. "My thinking would be in the 300-600 possible range." WADA had demanded the data be handed over to complete its probe into the 2011-2015 scandal which eventually saw Russia's athletics team barred from the 2016 Rio Olympics and exiled from the 2018 Winter Olympics. In September, WADA conditionally lifted a ban on the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA), paving the way for its reinstatement. One of the conditions was access being granted to the data by the end of 2018. But when a WADA team arrived last month, Russian authorities ..