Page 694 - Sports
Quick learner Halep ready for Slam crown number two
World number one Simona Halep Saturday admitted losing the 2018 Australian Open final was a painful moment, but it taught her how to better handle pressure situations which she has since put to good use. The Romanian was targeting a first ever Grand Slam title in that match against Caroline Wozniacki and looked on track to win before folding in the third set. Halep had won her service game and then broke the Dane to get a 4-3 lead. She served for what would have been a 5-3 advantage but Wozniacki broke then held serve for lead 5-4. The fired-up Dane went on to break again and win 7-6 (7/2), 3-6, 6-4, leaving Halep crushed. "I didn't want to think that much about that match because it was really painful to lose it," she said at Melbourne Park when asked to reflect on what went wrong. "But I learned some things from that match. That break (at 4-3) broke me a little bit in that moment. "Now I know how to manage better if that happens again. "She was better at that moment and maybe ...
Top 10 target for Kyrgios, but Raonic comes first
Australian Open home hope Nick Kyrgios declared Saturday that he could break into the world's top 10 if he can get "right physically and mentally". But first the world number 51 will need to get past the "unbelievably tough" Canadian 16th seed Milos Raonic in a blockbuster first-round encounter when the year's opening Grand Slam begins on Monday. Kyrgios rose to a career-high 13th in 2016, but has steadily slipped down the pecking order since. He cut short last season in October after an elbow injury, admitted he was working on mental health issues and then suffered a spider bite over Christmas. But he was in an upbeat mood as he spoke to reporters at Melbourne Park on Saturday ahead of squaring off against the former world number three. "If I get right physically and mentally... realistically I could be top 10. That's a fact," said Kyrgios. "Right now I'm not even thinking about that. I want to just enjoy my time in Australia, the Aussie summer. I want to play good tennis and be ...
Sydney ODI: India to bowl first
India have been asked to bowl first against Australia in the opening ODI of the three-match series here at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on Saturday.Following the toss, Indian captain Virat Kohli said had he won the toss, he would have opted to bat first. However, he is confident of doing either.'We are always looking to improve things as a side. We need to bowl well as a unit. As a batting unit, the middle overs are key to try and build a score of 350-370," Kohli said.Australian captain Aaron Finch, on the other hand, said the middle overs are key for the hosts to improve their campaign, adding: "Just playing spin well and keeping wickets in hand at the end to load up."The pitch looks good as it is dry with a tinge of green grass but has some bare patches as well.The hosts have named spinners Nathan Lyon and Glenn Maxwell, leaving out Adam Zampa. Meanwhile, pacer Peter Siddle will be returning after an eight-year absence from the format.India have opted for spinners Kuldeep Yadav ..
1st ODI: Australia opt to bat vs India (Toss)
Australia skipper Aaron Finch won the toss and opted to bat against India in the first One Day International (ODI) of the three-match rubber at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) here on Saturday.
Finch wins toss, elects to bat in first ODI
Australia skipper Aaron Finch won the toss and elected to bat in the first One-day International against India, here Saturday. The hosts have handed debut to Jason Behrendorff. India won the preceding four-match Test series 2-1. Teams: India: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli(c), Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni(w), Ravindra Jadeja, Kedar Jadhav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami and Khaleel Ahmed. Australia: Aaron Finch(c), Alex Carey(w), Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, Nathan Lyon, Peter Siddle, Jhye Richardson and Jason Behrendorff.
KWK Controversy: Pandya, Rahul given 7 days to offer explanation on conduct
Indian cricketers Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul have been given seven days to offer an explanation about their alleged misconduct and indiscipline to the BCCI informed the Supreme Court Appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA) on Friday."The duo is now called upon to provide an explanation as to why they should not be proceeded against for misconduct and indiscipline under Rule 41 of the BCCI Constitution within a period of 7 (seven) days. This is without prejudice to the BCCI's rights and contentions, all of which are hereby expressly reserved," read a press statement by the CoA.The CoA in accordance with the BCCI has decided to suspend Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul from playing any form of cricket after their comments on a TV show. The duo will now return to India and an inquiry and proceedings will be made against them for misconduct and indiscipline that have been initiated under Rule 41 of the BCCI Constitution."In terms of Rule 41(6) of the BCCI Constitution, the players are hereby
Hardik, Rahul suspended pending probe, asked to return (Intro Roundup)
All-rounder Hardik Pandya and opener Lokesh Rahul were on Friday asked to go home from the three-ODI series against Australia starting in Sydney on Saturday after being suspended for their controversial comments during a television talk show.
Hardik, Rahul suspended pending probe, to be sent home (Roundup)
Chances of participation of all-rounder Hardik Pandya and opener Lokesh Rahul in the three-ODI series against Australia, starting in Sydney on Saturday, are bleak as the duo has been suspended for their controversial comments during a television talk show.
Khelo: Maha marches ahead in medals race
Hosts Maharashtra marched ahead of the rest as they took their gold tally to 32 while Delhi, despite the efforts of their judokas and swimmers, were left eight behind at the end of Friday as the Khelo India Youth Games went into the first weekend. Maharashtra are close to a century with 32 gold, 24 silver and 35 bronze medals -- total of 91, while Delhi with 24 gold, 17 silver and 20 bronze are second. Lying in the third spot is Haryana with 18 gold, 20 silver and 26 bronze medals, a media release issued here said. Hosts Maharashtra bagged seven gold from athletics, three each from swimming and wrestling besides two each from judo and weightlifting. Delhi had a fine day at the pool with four gold and another three from judoka. In shooting, there was a big upset, as Telanganas Dhanush Srikant upstaged two-time Junior World Cup bronze medallist Punjabs Arjun Babuta in the mens under-21 10m air rifle final. Even though Maharashtra and Delhi were bagging medals in the race ..
Khelo: Nithin scorches Balewadi track to win fastest lad title
BespectacledBalakumar Nithin of Tamil Nadu set the Khelo track alight here with a personal best-equalling 100m dash in the boys Under-21 category on Friday. Nithin clocked 10.76 seconds, the same as when he took bronze at the All-India Inter-Universities Championship in Moodbidri and raised his right arm aloft, aware that he had sealed what seemed like an improbable win after 70m. A sluggish start saw him trailing badly but the Chennai-based 19-year-old was eventually a comfortable winner, a media release said. The line-up at the start was formidable since it included national junior champion Ajith Kumar and silver medallist M. Karthikeyan, Nithin's state-mates, and bronze medallist Nevil Francis Fernandez of Kerala. None of them was among the medals tonight. Four other runners dipped in under 11 seconds in what was a fast race. Karnatakas Prajwal Mandana lost the lead and earned silver, one-tenth of a second behind Nithin. The Mohammed Riaz-trained sprinter drew ...
Khelo: Mixed fortunes on shuttle court for hosts
Mens Under-21 top-seed Aman Farogh Sanjay of Maharashtra breezed into the semi finals of the Khelo India Youth Games badminton championship with a 21-5, 21-8 win over Pranav Prasanth of Dadra and Nagar Haveli here on Friday. In the womens event though, there was a shock in store for the host state with the exit of Purva Barve who was pegged to win the tournament but was knocked out by Unnati Bisht of Uttrakhand in a tightly-fought quarter-final of the U- 21 girls section. Purva lost 15-21, 21-17, 17-21. Overall, the Maharashtra contingent fared well with Malvika Bansod also qualifying for the U-21 girls semi-finals with a 21-18, 21-9 win over Aadya Variyath of Kerala. The match of the day was in the U-17 womens doubles between Sakshi Asrani and Ankushka Mehta of Rajasthan and S. Kalaiyarasi Muthu Kumar and S Venkatesh of Tamil Nadu in which the former prevailed 25-27, 25-23, 21-19. Priyanshu Rajawat of Madhya Pradesh defeated fourth seed Abhimanyu Singh of UP 20-22, ...
Khelo: Haryana dominate wrestling with five golds
Wrestling powerhouse Haryana continued their domination on the third day of the Khelo India Youth Games 2019 here on Friday. The state grapplers, who have already won 11 gold medals, added a further five along with six silver and four bronze medals. So far, Haryana lead the tally with 43 medals under their belt with 16 golds, a media release said. However, UPs Bharati Bhagel denied Haryana a clean sweep in the girls segment, winning gold in the 55kg weight category in the U-21 age group. Overall, Maharashtra had good day in the ring, winning three gold, two silver and two bronze medals.
Khelo football: Goaspoil Manipurs party
Goaspoiled Manipurs partyby handing them a 1-0 defeat in the boys U-21categorywhile thegirls from the North-Eastopened their campaign with thumping wins in the football competition of the Khelo India Youth Games in Puneon Friday. Manipur girls proved too strong for their rivals in boththe U-17 and U-21 categories, defeating Chandigarh 10-1 in the former category and Jharkhand 12-0in the senior event. In a keen contest, Goa took the lead in the 20thminute throughVeegan, who converted a spot kick. Manipur threw everything they had atGoa goal but failed to find the equaliser, allowing the Goans to open their campaign with the full three points. In the boys U-17section,Kerala downed Uttar Pradesh 4-2, Maharashtra outplayed Odisha 4-1 with goals from Sufiyan Faheem Shiekh (3) and Aman Vishal Khanna (1) and in U-21 boys action Punjab overpowered Karnataka 3-2. Result: Boys U-21: Goa bt Manipur1-0; Punjab bt Karnataka 3-2. Boys U-17: Kerala bt Uttar Pradesh 4-2; Maharashtra bt
Khelo: Delhi swimmers dominate, K'taka and Maha follow
In-formDelhi girl Prachi Tokas surprisedfavourite Khushi Dineshof Karnataka in the girls U-17 Freestyle event to win her second successive gold as Delhi swimmersdominated the pool at theKhelo India Youth Games here Friday. Of the 11 golds at stake on Friday,Delhi won four, Karnataka andMaharashtra three eachand Tamil Nadu one, a media release said. For Khushi, it was a second successive silver medal after the 200m freestylewhile Prachi Tokas earned her first gold in the 800m freestyle on Thursday. In the women's U-21 400m freestyle, Tamil Nadu's Bhavika Dugar claimed her second gold in comfortable fashion clocking 4:41.43. In the boys U-17s, Swadesh Mondal gave Delhi another second gold winning the 400m medley. He timed 4:47.13 for the top podium finish. In the last event of the day, Delhi's Anurag Singh won a fourth gold for his state with victory in the 1500m free style in the boys U-17 category with a time of 16:40.54. In between, Delhi U-17 girlswonthe 4x100 m ...
India most hardworking team in Asian Cup, says former coach Savio Medeira
Former Indian football team coach Savio Medeira believes that Indian team is the most-hard working team in the ongoing AFC Asian Cup."We may be a bit weaker than other teams in terms of technique. But the sheer effort these players put in, I don't think any other team works that hard. It's visible the players have been running their socks off on the pitch," AIFF quoted Medeira, as saying.India, who kick-started their tournament with a 4-1 victory over Thailand, lost their second match 0-2 against the UAE. The former coach, however, asserted that Indians are playing positive football, which is an encouraging sign for them."India have been playing positive football. Not just in these two matches (in the AFC Asian Cup), but also in the friendlies against China, Jordan, and Oman. Although it was a loss yesterday (January 10) against UAE, the encouraging sign was that they created so many chances," he said."We need to be a bit sharper and more focused inside the box, and put away the ...
MCA panel speaks to Ranji players, coach following dismal show
The dismal show of the Mumbai Ranji team, which was knocked out in the league stage, came under the scanner of the Mumbai Cricket Association Friday. A meeting of MCA's Cricket Improvement Committee (CIC) was held here where panel members spoke to senior players, coach Vinayak Samant and support staff. Among the senior players who gave their inputs were Dhawal Kulkarni, Siddhesh Lad, dropped batsman Akhil Herwadkar and Surya Kamar Yadav. CIC members Raju Kulkarni, Kiran Mokashi, Sahil Kukreja along with senior MCA officials were present at the meeting, a source in the association said. Samant suggested that focus should be on club cricket and U23 cricket, and players for Red Ball and White Ball cricket should be different, the source said. Another MCA source said that Lad too suggested that the focus should be on club cricket. "We all agreed that the will to succeed is not there, it's missing, I would say. We asked them why are they not playing like the old Mumbai ...
Bengaluru Raptors beat Awadhe Warriors to enter PBL-4 final
Unbeaten Kidambi Srikanth combined with B.Sai Praneeth to guide the Bengaluru Raptors to a win over the Awadhe Warriors in the first semi-final of the Premier Badminton League (PBL) Season 4 at the Kanteerava Indoor Stadium here on Friday.
Get ready for the next game: Indian football team coach after UAE debacle
A day after the Indian football team went down to hosts United Arab Emirates in their second Group league match of the ongoing AFC Asian Cup, head coach Stephen Constantine expressed that the team now "needs to get ready for the next game" against Bahrain."We have to pick ourselves up and get ready for the next game. We need to aim for a win and get something from that game. Hopefully, we can get the result to qualify," AIFF quoted Constantine, as saying.Indian skipper Sunil Chhetri also echoed Constantine's words. "We are still in the running. We are ready to face Bahrain. As a team, we are united. We are ready to fight. That's our game plan against Bahrain," Chhetri maintained.Against UAE, the Indians muffed some gifted opportunities, hit the bar twice and eventually went down 0-2.Referring back to the match, Constantine explained, "I said to the boys you did not lose this game. You have shown what you are capable of. Even they (UAE players) were surprised and did not believe that ..
Sohail rubbishes black magic theory, says injury forced him out of SA
Pakistan batsman Haris Sohail Friday rubbished reports that he was under a spell of black magic, saying he returned midway through the South Africa tour due to a knee injury. "Such reports have also disturbed my family a lot. I have faced a knee injury problem again and that is why I had to miss the Test series in South Africa," Sohail said. A section of the Pakistan media had claimed that the return of Sohail was linked to supernatural encounters. The batsman has been facing such questions ever since a reported "spooky" experience in his hotel room in Christchurch during the 2015 World Cup. The Pakistan Cricket Board also made it clear that Sohail had a knee problem and he would start his rehabilitation program at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore from Monday under the supervision of doctor Sohail Saleem. "The disappointment of missing out on the Tests was compounded by some misreporting in a section of the press. I want to assure all my fans, colleagues and selectors that I am .
Misbah-ul-Haq to play in Grade Two cricket ahead of PSL
Former Pakistan cricket team captain Misbah-ul-Haq is all set to participate in Quaid-e-Azam Grade Two tournament for his home team Faisalabad ahead of the Pakistan Super League (PSL).The 44-year-old had led his side to a victory in the 2017 edition of the competition and helped Faisalabad team qualify for the country's premier first-class tournament Quaid-e-Azam trophy. But the team, later, lost six straight games following which they were relegated.Misbah said that helping Faisalabad regain their Grade One spot is his biggest motivation behind playing in the competition, adding that their aim is to qualify for the first-class tournament again. He further admitted that the tournament would help him prepare for the PSL."The biggest motivation for me is to help Faisalabad regain their Grade One spot. We were relegated last season and our aim is to qualify for first-class cricket again; this is what we can strive to do for our region," ESPNcricinfo quoted Misbah, as saying."Such events .