Page 683 - Sports

Schwartzman beats Molleker to move to Australian Open 2nd round

Argentina's Diego Schwartzman on Monday defeated Germany's Rudolf Molleker 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-0 to move to the second round of the Australian Open.

Hernandez, Martins join Atletico's preparation for Girona

France defender Lucas Hernandez and Portugal winger Gelson Martins joined Atletico Madrid's group practice at the club's facilities in Majadahonda on Monday as the team prepared for the upcoming Copa del Rey clash against Girona.

Khelo India: Ex-world youth boxing champion Shashi in quarters

In a battle of heavyweights, former world youth champion Shashi Chopra won a close battle against current champion Sakshi Choudhary to advance in the Under-21 women's feather-weight section (57kg) at the Khelo India boxing competition here Monday. Shashi, being the more experienced and taller than her opponent, boxed like a pro right from the first round, while Sakshi tried to overpower her with speed and aggression. However, in the end it was the former champion who moved into the quarter-finals with a 3-2 verdict, a media release said. Meanwhile,Maharashtras Under-17 boys advanced with easy wins. Akash Gorkha defeated Manipurs Laishangbam Singh 4-1, while Laisharam Singh got the better of Mizoram's Lalnunzira 5-0. Meanwhile, Akolas Sohail Ramzam crashed out of the tournament with a dislocated shoulder during his light welter (63kg) bout against Arjun Sharma of Manipur, the release said.

Murray bows out of his last Australian Open after tough battle

Andy Murray fought hard for more than four hours on Monday at round 1 of the Australian Open but lost to Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-7 (4), 6-2.

Murray to make career decision 'in next week' after Open exit

Andy Murray said he would make a decision on further surgery that could end his career "within a week" after battling to a gutsy, epic five-set defeat in the Australian Open on Monday. The Scot fought to the very end before losing his Melbourne first-round match 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 6-7 (4/7), 6-2 to Roberto Bautista Agut. Murray, who has said he will retire this season because of chronic hip pain, seemed finished at two sets and a break down to the 22nd seeded Spaniard in the first round but somehow battled back to force a fifth set. "Amazing. That was incredible, thank you so, so much to everyone that came out tonight," the three-time Grand Slam champion said after being swept along on a wave of vociferous support. "Honestly I've loved playing here over the years. If this was my last match, an amazing way to end. I gave everything I had and it wasn't enough tonight." Murray announced at an emotional press conference on Friday that he would retire at Wimbledon this year, but conceded

Draw gives Mizoram, TN semi berths in U-21 girls football

Mizoram and Tamil Nadu played out a 2-2 draw and qualified for the semi-finals from Pool A in the girls U-21 football competition of the Khelo India Youth Games here Monday. Trailing 0-2 till the 39th minute, Mizoram came back strongly to draw parity thanks to an 81st minute spot kick converted by D Vanlaliiriattiri. S Priyadharshni put Tamil Nadu ahead in the 11th minute, while Sandhiya P made it 2-0. Gladys Zonunsangi reduced the margin in the 39th minute, a media release said. Tamil Nadu topped the pool with seven points, while Mizoram were second with five points. In an inconsequential match, Odisha drubbed Himachal 12-0. In the girls Under-17 Pool A, Odisha recorded their third straight win, defeating Kerala 5-1, and with nine points made the cut for the knockout stage. Despite the defeat, Kerala also made it to the last four with a better goal difference ahead of Maharashtra. The hosts trounced Himachal 18-0, but that was not sufficient as Kerala had beaten ...

Chennaiyin 'B', KBFC Reserves share points in goalless draw

Chennaiyin FC 'B' drew 0-0 with Kerala Blasters FC Reserves in the opening game of the I-League 2nd Division match here Monday. Pragyan Gogoi missed a penalty for KBFC in the second half as both sides failed to find the finishing touch in front of the goal. CFC 'B' got off to a bright start and almost opened the scoring through Rohmingthanga in the seventh minute. The Mizo striker won the ball in the KBFC half and drew a sharp save from Sujith in the opposition goal. Chennaiyin had to make a change soon after, with Ajin Tom coming on for the injured Hendry. CFC B began the second half with intent as Bedashwor tested the keeper with a curled effort from the left. KBFC, however, posed a threat on the counter attack, keeping the CFC defence on its heels. KBFC had a chance to open the scoring just past the hour mark. After CFC keeper Sayak Barai was deemed to have brought down substitute John Jacob Kattookaren, Pragyan Gogoi hit wide from the spot kick. With 15 minutes to go, .

Khelo: Cheema & 0.2-pt gap deny Sidhu twins joy of double gold

Chandigarh twins Vijayveer Sidhu and Udhayveer Sidhu were within a fifth of a point, that is 0. 2 points, of winning both the gold medals in shooting at stake at the Khelo India Youth Games here Monday. Coming in the way of that dream was World Junior Championship bronze medallist Arjun Singh Cheema of Punjab, who edged out Vijayveer Sidhu in the Under-21 final by the slenderest of margins. Later, Udhayveer Sidhu won the Under-17 gold comfortably, a media release said. Vijayveer Sidhu made a gallant bid to upstage his rival with two very good shots for 10.5 and 10.7 in the climactic moments. But even though his team-mate got only 9.9 and 9.8 with his last two shots, Cheema had done well from the start of the final to hold on to a victory by a wafer-thin margin (241.2-240.9) in the Under-21 final, it said. Later, Udhayveer Sidhu made light of qualifying in sixth place and kept challenging leader Rajkanwar Singh, again of Punjab, until he crumbled in the last four ...

Kerala and Patiala play out exciting 4-4 draw

: Kerala and Patiala played out an exciting 4-4 draw in a Pool 'E' match in the 9th Hockey India Senior National Hockey Championship for men 'B' Division here Monday. In other matches, Hockey Coorg beat Steel Plant Sports Board 2-1 and Sports Authority of India defeated All India Police Sports Control Board 2-1. There were also wins for Hockey HIM over Assam Hockey 5-1 and Hockey Madhya Bharat walloped Goans Hockey 9-3. With the league stage nearing completion, the standings saw Hockey Maharashtra top Pool A, Sashastra Seema Bal claim honours in Pool B, Central Secretariat (pool C), Bengaluru Hockey Association (D). In the first match today, Kerala Hockey and Hockey Patiala were involved in an intense battle for supremacy. S Shijin (11th, 17th, 40th minutes) with a hat-trick helped Kerala take a 3-1 lead. Rana Robindeep Singh, who scored in the 33rd minute, found the back of the net again in the 48th minute. Rahul Sharma's 49th minute goal through a penalty corner ...

Chennai City FC beat East Bengal 2-1, continue march towards I-League title

Spanish striker Pedro Manzi continued his goal-scoring spree, inspiring Chhenai City FC to a 2-1 win over East Bengal to consolidate the side's top position in the I-League here Monday. Manzi scored his 11th goal of the I-League season in the 48th minute and Romario Jesuraj netted the other in the 70th minute after Laldanmawia Ralte had given East Bengal a ninth minute lead. Chennai City are now firmly perched on the top of the league standings with 27 points from 12 matches, a clear five points ahead of second-placed Churchill Brothers. They had beaten East Bengal with the same scoreline in the first leg in Kolkata. East Bengal, on the other hand, remained on 19 points and at sixth position. Their hopes of a first ever I-League triumph are fast fading away. Both teams made one change to their starting eleven from their previous game. East Bengal coach Alejandro Garcia was forced to replace Lalram Chullova, red-carded in the game against the Indian Arrows, with Samad Ali ...

Khelo India: Haryana emerge champions in U-17 men's hockey

Haryana defeated Punjab 1-0 in a closely contested final to emerge winners in the Under-17 men's hockey competition of the second Khelo India Youth Games here Monday. The all-important goal for Haryana came in the 40th minute and they successfully prevented their northern neighbours from seeking parity or overhauling the score line. It was a nervy encounter for both the teams for most part of the first two quarters, but it was Haryana who finally managed to break the deadlock when they scored through a penalty corner which was converted by Sahil Sharma, a Hockey India statement said here. Punjab threatened to breach the Haryana defence in the closing stages but could not find the equaliser and had to settle as the runners-up. In the bronze medal match, it was Odisha who came out on top as they defeated Uttar Pradesh 3-2 in the penalty shootout after all the four quarters went goal-less. Meanwhile, in the Under-17 women's competition, Haryana defeated hosts Maharashtra ...

Halep remains on top of world tennis rankings

Romania's Simona Halep continued to lead the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) rankings released on Monday with 6,642 points, followed by Germany's Angelique Kerber.

Struggled a bit with sun and it cost me: Prajnesh

India's Prajnesh Gunneswaran Monday said he "struggled a bit with the sun" and that it "cost" him a lot of games at the Australian Open, ending his maiden Grand Slam appearance in a first round exit. Prajnesh, currently the country's number one singles player, lost to American Frances Tiafoe in straight sets 7-6 (9-7) 6-3 6-3 at Melbourne Park on Monday. "It was a good experience. I played a good match overall, had chances in all sets. I struggled a bit with the sun, (it's) different in Australia for some reason. Found it hard to adjust the serve from one side of the court," Prajnesh told PTI. The World No.39 beat the Indian qualifier in a match that lasted an hour and 52 minutes. He said that next time he will find a way to adjust. "Usually it's tough for the right handers earlier in the day. Noon to 2 maybe for the lefty's. He (Tiafoe) had some issues in the first set with that. As the match went longer. "That's what I noticed. It got harder for me." Prajnesh fought hard in the ...

Sreesanth disapproves of remarks made by Hardik, Rahul

Former Indian pacer S Sreesanth Monday took a dim view of sexist remarks made by cricketers Hardik Pandya and K L Rahul on a popular TV show even as he hoped the "match winning players", currently under suspension, will be back in action soon. Sreesanth, however, also said that there are others who have made "bigger mistakes" than the duo. "What happened was wrong. They (Pandya and Rahul) said some wrong things. But there are others who have made bigger mistakes than these but are still playing. They are in different fields and not only in cricket," he told reporters here while responding to a query over a controversy fuelled by Pandya and Rahul. The remarks made by the duo during the television show, Koffee with Karan are perceived to be sexist and "crass". Taking a serious note of the incident, the BCCI suspended both the cricketers pending an enquiry. "Whatever happened was very bad. But at the same time, the World Cup is around the corner. Both Hardik and Rahul are .

Tensions rise as Nadal backs under-pressure ATP boss

Rafael Nadal Monday threw his support behind ATP Tour chief Chris Kermode as he fights to save his job, and hit out at not being consulted by the players' council over such an important issue. Britain's Daily Telegraph reported at the weekend that a move was under way to topple the Briton among a section of players unhappy at the way the game is being run. The ATP players council, headed by Novak Djokovic, met in Melbourne on Saturday and reportedly voted 5-4 against Kermode continuing in his role when his contract expires later this year. Asked for clarity in a press conference Sunday, Djokovic attempted to defuse the situation, saying: "I don't know where you got that information, a 5-4. "That information is completely confidential, so I can't speak about anything that we spoke about in that room." Nadal said Djokovic had not been in touch to sound him out about Kermode. "I am not in the council any more, and at the same time, nobody from the council side came to me and asked me my .

Ranji QF: Champions Vidarbha take on debutant Uttarakhand

Reigning champions Vidarbha, who topped the combined Group A and B standings, will fancy their chances when they take on Uttarakhand in the quarter-final of the Ranji Trophy beginning here Tuesday. Uttarakhand became the only team from the plate group to make it to the last-eight of the coveted domestic tournament. However, with an experienced batting line up led by veteran Wasim Jaffer and skipper Faiz Fazal, the hosts go into the match, to be played at the Vidarbha Cricket Association's Stadium in Jamtha on the city's outskirts, as favourites. Age has not slowed down Jaffer as the 40-year-old batsman continues to be in rich form, having already slammed three centuries this season. Vidarbha coach and former India stumper Chandrakant Pandit would be hoping that Jaffer would live up to his billing and play a vital role. The role of skipper Fazal, who opens the innings, is equally paramount. But if Vidarbha has had a successful run last year and have topped the two ...

India can secure ODI series against Australia, says Bhuvneshwar Kumar

India right-arm pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar on Monday said that it is "not impossible" for his team to secure the ongoing three-match ODI series against Australia.In the pursuit of a 289-run target, India slipped to a 34-run defeat in the first ODI. As an outcome, India also went down by 0-1 against Australia."We have been in this situation before in India, so we know it is not impossible to win the series. We are preparing in a manner to win the next two matches. It is a kind of knock-out for us. We can't afford to lose this match," ICC quoted Bhuvneshwar, as saying."We are not thinking anything different from how we have been thinking for the last couple of years. We just want to win the match and everyone is positive for that. It was one of those matches where the top order didn't click. It can happen when you play too much cricket. So it was just one of those things, it is very rare for us," he added.Bhuvneshwar, who did not feature in the four-Test series due to a combination of ...

India retain No. 1 spot in ICC Test team rankings

India have retained their number one spot in the updated ICC Test team rankings, released on Monday.Following their 2-1 victory over Australia in the four-Test match series, India are leading the list with 116 points.South Africa have overtaken New Zealand and England to attain the second position after sweeping their home series against Pakistan 3-0. The Proteas have gained four points to reach 110 points, two points above England.Pakistan have lost one position, slipping behind Sri Lanka to take the seventh place. The Sarfraz Ahmed-led side that started the series with 92 points, are now on 88 points and three points less than Sri Lanka.New Zealand are one point behind England at 107 points. The English side will have to win their upcoming three-match series against West Indies, starting January 23 to remain ahead of the Black Caps.

KWK: Mumbai Police troll Hardik Pandya, K L Rahul's over sexist comments

Seems like not only women, but Mumbai Police was also offended by Hardik Pandya's and KL Rahul's sexist comment on 'Koffee With Karan.'Taking to their Twitter handle, Mumbai Police took a jibe on the two and gave a piece of advice to them. "How to be a great player? On Field: Maximum Score; Off Field: Maximum Respect for Women," they wrote.Along with the caption, they uploaded a picture of a cricket pitch which read, "How to be a great player? On Field: Maximum Score; Off Field: Maximum Respect for Women."Both Pandya and Rahul were called out for their 'crass and misogynistic' comments about women on the Karan Johar's show.This also led the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) pulling the cricketers out of an ongoing tour of Australia. Even though both of them issued apologies, Committee of Administrators chief Vinod Rai found their clarification half-hearted. They are now replaced by Shubman Gill and Vijay Shankar in the squad for the Australia and New Zealand tours.On ...

Pakistan seek cure for batting struggles after South Africa sweep

Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur said on Monday he was determined to find a solution to his team's problems against fast, short-pitched bowling. Speaking after South Africa completed a 3-0 series clean sweep by winning the third Test by 107 runs at the Wanderers Stadium, Arthur said he wanted to build a team able to play in all conditions by the time they started their campaign in the world Test championship in September. "We play Sri Lanka in the United Arab Emirates in September then we play Australia in Australia straight after that," he said. "We have to have our skill sets perfect to manage the bouncing ball. I want to get our batsmen into Australia three or four weeks early, to have camps there to get them ready." Man of the series Duanne Olivier sparked a Pakistan collapse as the tourists lost their remaining seven wickets for 120 runs to be bowled out for 273 at lunch on the fourth day. Olivier effectively ended Pakistan's hopes when he took two wickets off successive balls in the