Page 720 - Sports
Bopanna-Sharan clinch ATP tour title at Maharashtra Open
Indian tennis pair of Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan overcame the British duo of Luke Bambridge and Jonny O'Mara to clinch the ATP tour title in men's doubles event at the Maharashtra Open.The home favourites, who won 72 per cent of service points (38/53) and converted three of four break points, produced a dominating 6-3, 6-4 victory over the British players in a match that lasted 63 minutes on Saturday evening.This was two-time champion Bopanna's 18th tour-level trophy, while for Sharan it was his fourth trophy from five tour-level doubles finals.Taking it to Twitter, Sharan said: "Champions in Pune Ecstatic to win my first ATP title in India. Was an amazing experience to have the support of a packed home stadium. Congratulations @MaharashtraOpen on a greatly run tournament. @rohanbopanna @ATP_Tour @IndianOilcl @head_tennis @Media_SAI.""It's a dream start to 2019 for the pair of @rohanbopanna - @divijsharan as they win the men's doubles title at the Maharashtra Open. Many ...
4th Test: Rain washes off first session of Day 4 (Lunch Report)
The first session of the fourth day of the fourth and final test match between India and Australia here on Sunday was washed off due to rain, and the umpires called for lunch.
Morning session on day four lost due to rain and bad light
Incessant rain and bad light prevented the start of play on day four of the fourth Test between Australia and India here on Sunday. At the Sydney Cricket Ground, play couldn't commence at the scheduled early 10 am local time start due to bad light and wet conditions from overnight heavy rain. The light improved in some time and the two umpires stipulated 11 am local time as the start of play, but rain arrived to prevent that from happening. The inclement weather didn't relent until lunchtime and the morning session was completely washed out. Australia were reduced to 236-6 at stumps on day three when bad light had stopped play. On days one and two, Cheteshwar Pujara (193) and Rishabh Pant (159 not out) helped India to a grand first innings' total of 622-7 declared. India have an unassailable 2-1 series' lead after winning the first Test in Adelaide by 31 runs and the third Test in Melbourne by 137 runs. Australia had won the second Test in Perth by 146 runs.
Khattar slams Manu Bhaker on tweet
Shooter Manu Bhaker will get award money as per the rules of the department but tweeting over it was not good said Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Saturday.He further outlined that 'nobody should have a problem with the rules'.Haryana Chief Minister's statement comes after a Twitter spat erupted between Haryana sports minister Anil Vij and shooter Manu Bhaker over a cash reward promise.The war of words between the duo started after the 16-year-old athlete took to Twitter questioning Vij about the Rs. 2 crore cash reward the latter had promised after she won a gold medal at the 2018 Youth Olympics at Argentina.Bhaker, citing a state government's notification that mentioned the award money for gold medal winners' as Rs 1 crore, tweeted, "Someone in Haryana is really playing with Youth Olympic games cash prize!!!!! @narendramodi @mlkhattar @anilvijminister @Ra_THORe @AshokKhemka_IAS ... Is it really for encouraging or disheartening players ...... Please ....Let me play ...
PKL-6: Bengaluru coach projects Rohit as next India captain
Elated at lifting their second Pro Kabaddi League (PKL)A trophy, Bengaluru Bulls head coach Randhir Singh on Saturday projected his winning skipper Rohit Kumar as the next India skipper -- an opinion echoed by the hero of the summit clash Pawan Kumar.
Haryana sports minister seeks apology from Bhaker but IOA chief slams him
Haryana sports minister Anil Vij Saturday demanded an apology from international shooter Manu Bhaker, disapproving the "manner" in which she expressed her displeasure at not receiving the promised cash reward of Rs 2 crore for winning a gold at 2018 Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires. Bhaker, however, got support from none other than Indian Olympic Association President Narinder Batra who asked Vij to stop "intimidating and threatening" the shooter. The 16-year-old Bhaker, who won multiple gold in her maiden senior World Cup, Commonwealth Games, besides the top prize at the Youth Olympics last October, on Friday reminded the Haryana sports minister of the promises made after her Youth Olympic success. Bhaker had posted screen shots of Vij's tweets on her twitter handle, in which he had promised her cash award to the tune of Rs 2 crore on behalf of the state government. Reacting to the tweets, Vij said: "She should have first spoken to the sports department rather than airing her issue in .
Bengaluru Raptors inch closer to semifinals as Srikanth remains unbeaten
Kidambi Srikanth and B Sai Praneeth combined to take the Bengaluru Raptors to a win over the Saina Nehwal-led North Eastern Warriors at the Premier Badminton League Season 4 here on Saturday. Saina's scintillating performance in her Trump match could not make much of a difference to her team's fortunes as the Warriors slumped to their second consecutive defeat. Bengaluru skipper Srikanth took the court against Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk of the North Eastern franchise. The two are tied 2-2 in their head-to-head record on the international circuit and the Thai had even won their last encounter. But that mattered little as Srikanth was on song throughout this match, notching up a 15-11, 15-12 win -- his fourth win in as many matches this season. Breaking away from 6-6, the former World No. 1 did not face any more resistance from Tanongsak in the opener, except for the last few points. An attacking Srikanth then wrested the momentum from Tanongsak, who was leading 8-7, to wrap up the ...
Pakistan avoid innings defeat, delay South Africa victory charge
Half-centuries by Shan Masood, Asad Shafiq and Babar Azam enabled Pakistan to avoid an innings defeat and take the second Test against South Africa at Newlands into a fourth day. Pakistan were bowled out in the last over of the third day for 294 on Saturday, leaving South Africa 41 runs to win. A provision for an extra half hour was not used because only 20 minutes or five overs of play would have been possible. Masood hit a composed 61 and Shafiq and Azam both played aggressively to score 88 and 72 respectively. Dale Steyn and Kagiso Rabada both took four wickets to get South Africa to the brink of victory. Steyn drew level with Richard Hadlee of New Zealand in tenth place on 431 wickets on the all-time Test wicket-takers list. Masood and Shafiq shared the most enterprising partnership of the match when they put on 132 in 132 minutes off 168 balls for the third wicket. Steyn broke the stand when Masood was caught behind by wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock and Philander followed up ...
Pawan's heroics help Bengaluru clinch PKL-6 title
Bengaluru Bulls registered a stunning comeback, thanks to star raider Pawan Sehrawat, to edge past Gujarat Fortunegiants 38-33 and lift the Pro Kabaddi League Season 6 title in a nail-biting summit clash at the jampacked NSCI Stadium here on Saturday.
PKL Season 6: Sehrawat stars as Bengaluru Bulls clinch title
Raider Pawan Sehrawat starred for Bengaluru Bulls as they defeated Gujarat Fortunegiants 38-33 in a pulsating final to lift their maiden Pro Kabaddi League title here on Saturday. Sehrawat accumulated 22 points in his 25 raids and turned the match on its head as he single-handedly took the southern outfit to a memorable win. Their second-best player was Sumit Singh (3 points). It was heartbreak for Gujarat yet again like the last season, when they ended up as runners-up. Pawan was the difference between the two teams as he pulled back his side into the game after trailing 9-16 after the first half at the NSCI Dome at Worli. A resurgent Bengaluru, courtesy Pawan's show, inflicted all-out not once but twice on the Gujarat team to move ahead and then held their nerve to come out triumphant. Earlier, Bengaluru opened their account by sending off Gujarat's star raider Sachin Tanwar in the opening minute. Gujarat's raider K Prapanjan made it 1-1 after a successful raid. After Gujarat went ..
Solskjaer's winning start at Man Utd continues in FA Cup
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer enjoyed a fifth successive win since taking over as interim manager of Manchester United when his side beat Reading 2-0 in the third round of the FA Cup at Old Trafford on Saturday. The former United striker had already guided the Red Devils to a run of four Premier League victories since being appointed coach after Jose Mourinho was sacked last month. That winning sequence continued against second-tier strugglers Reading, with the third round marking the entry into the FA Cup, the world's oldest senior knockout football competition, of England's top-flight clubs. United, last season's losing finalists, were 2-0 up before half-time, thanks to goals from Juan Mata and Romelu Lukaku but Reading had their chances against a still suspect defence, although Solskjaer had made nine changes to his team. - 'Wasn't the best' - ===================== "You can't ask for more than going through but the way we played wasn't the best," Solskjaer told the BBC. "They controlled it .
Federer says Novak man to beat in Melbourne
Swiss champion Roger Federer kept up his impressive early season form after another flawless week of singles performances at the mixed teams Hopman Cup in Perth -- as he declared Novak Djokovic the man to beat at the Australian Open. Federer will be aiming for a third successive Australian Open and looked in impressive touch in claiming a second Hopman Cup, winning all four of his singles matches as he prepared for the year's first Grand Slam in Melbourne later this month. The 37-year-old used the Hopman Cup as his launching pad for winning the past two Australian Opens, the first of which in 2017 ended an almost five-year Grand Slam drought for Federer. Speaking after he easily accounted for world number four Alexander Zverev, the last player to beat him in singles in Perth back in 2017, Federer played down his chances of a third successive Australian Open title. Although the 6-4, 6-2 win over Zverev in the Hopman final reversed a loss to the German in London in November, Federer ...
Qatar football team heads to political rival UAE for Asian Cup
Qatar's 23-man football squad for the Asian Cup left Doha on Saturday, heading circuitously to the United Arab Emirates on a sports quest which could ultimately be overshadowed by politics. The tiny gas-rich state's participation in Asia's biggest football tournament comes at a highly sensitive time in Gulf relations, as host UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have imposed a political and economic boycott on Doha since June 2017. Officials and players have vowed to put politics to one side during the almost month-long tournament. "In the end this is football," Qatar's goalkeeper Saad al-Sheeb told AFP. "We just control ourselves and play football," he said. But the tournament -- which pitches Qatar against Saudi in Abu Dhabi on January 17 -- could prove to be a flashpoint. Even the Qatari team's journey is a reminder of the politics involved -- the squad has to fly via Kuwait, because of a ban on direct flights imposed against Doha by the UAE, Saudi and Bahrain. The team's route is ...
'Young man's game' - Aussie boss backs youthful Roos at Asian Cup
Australia's coach said his young Socceroos had the energy and verve to spring a surprise at the Asian Cup after injuries and retirements forced the defending champions into major changes. Graham Arnold said last year's World Cup, where teenage French striker Kylian Mbappe ran riot, showed football was a "young man's game" and that he expected his players to prove it by beating Jordan in their opening game on Sunday. "Pressure is just a word," said Arnold, who has been hit by injuries to key players Aaron Mooy, Daniel Arzani and Scottish-born Martin Boyle ahead of Australia's title defence in the United Arab Emirates. "We have the utmost belief and confidence in what we're doing. Yes, four years ago is a long, long time. Mile Jedinak, Timmy Cahill and ex-players have retired and moved on, this is football," he said on Saturday. "We have great depth in our squad, new players coming in, young players. Young players have energy, young players have enthusiasm, and I believe that the game ..
Federer wins third Hopman in dramatic fashion
Roger Federer became the most successful player in Hopman Cup history when he led Switzerland to a 2-1 win in an enthralling final of the mixed teams tournament in Perth Saturday. In what is tipped to be the final edition of the unique tournament, the best was saved for last as Federer became the first player to win three Hopman Cups, teaming with Belinda Bencic to make it successive titles in Perth. For the second year in a row, the Swiss beat the German pairing of Alexander Zverev and Angelique Kerber by claiming a deciding mixed doubles rubber which was loaded with drama. It was Switzerland's fourth title overall, behind only the United States with six, and Federer first won the Hopman Cup back in 2001 when he teamed with Martina Hingis. The 37-year-old gave the Swiss the early ascendancy with a straight sets win against Zverev, before Kerber squared the tie by beating a dogged Bencic to set up the mixed doubles decider. Federer was a dominant figure in an extraordinary doubles ...
We will play for a win against Thailand: Gurpreet
Indian goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu Saturday said that his side will play for a win against Thailand in their opening match of the Asian Cup football here on Sunday. Speaking at the pe-match press conference, Gurpreet said, "It will be a challenge for us tomorrow against Thailand, but the boys are ready to face them and we will play for a win." "We have worked really hard in the last four years to be here and we will try to put on the best show possible. The boys have been doing the hard work on and off the pitch, we will make sure that the work does not go in vain," he added. India have been drawn in Group A along with hosts UAE, Thailand and Bahrain, after qualifying for only the fourth time in their history. India last qualified for the continental showpiece in 2011. The country finished runners-up in 1964. "As a team, we have proved that we can win and we are a difficult team to play against. We are concentrating on the challenge ahead and will take one match at a time," ...
Women's National Boxing: Kalaivani, Nikhat enter finals
S. Kalaivani of Tamil Nadu and Nikhat Zareen of Telangana entered the finals in their respective weight categories at the women's National Boxing Championship here Saturday. Railways' Sonia Lather, too, entered the final beating Sandhyarani Devi of AIP 4-1 while Shashi Chopra of Haryana downed Manipur's KH Shamim Banu 5-0 to clash in the 57kg class final tomorrow. This clash should be really interesting because one is a world champion medallist and the other a world youth championships medal winner. Earlier, Haryana's Pinki Jangra had little difficult in putting it across her Railways rival, Meenakshi, winning the semifinal bout 5-0 and looks the favourite for the title against Nikhat Zareen. With 20 bouts scheduled for the day, the best bout in light fly class with Kalavani taking on Haryana's Sanju. The Haryana girl, with an open guard, invited the opponent to charge at her. And Kalavani did precisely that and landed quite few combination blows, hitting the target areas. For Nikhat,
Mumbai Rockets qualify for semifinals as Sameer Verma remains unbeaten
Sameer Verma remained unbeaten in five matches as Mumbai Rockets registered a resounding 5-0 victory over Chennai Smashers to qualify for the semifinals of the Premier Badminton League Season 4 here Saturday. Mumbai dominated the tie right from the start by winning the first two matches through Anders Antonsen and their mixed doubles pair of Pia Bernadeth and Kim Gi Jung. Sung Ji Hyun then won Chennai's first match of the day before Sameer Verma completed the win for the Rockets. The Verma vs Parupalli Kashyap clash, which was the fourth rubber of the tie, was the biggest talking point of the day. With the Mumbai brigade looking up to the BWF World Tour Finals semifinalist to close out the win for the Rockets, trouble brewed for the two-time runners-up early on in Verma's Trump match. The in-form Verma kept struggling with Kashyap's footwork and precise placement. Just when it looked like he might get beaten for the first time this season as he trailed 12-15, 5-8, the 24-year-old got .
Wild Boars players to watch India vs Thailand match in Asian Cup
Three Wild Boars players, who captured the world's attention when they were miraculously rescued from a flooded cave in Thailand last year, will watch India's Asian Cup campaign-opening match against Thailand here Sunday. The three players and their assistant coach will see the India vs Thailand Group A game at the Al Nahyan Stadium on the invitation of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). "Representatives from Wild Boars Football Academy will have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to witness their Thai football idols in the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019. Three Wild Boars players as well as their assistant coach, will see Thailand's opening game against India," the AFC said in a statement. "There will also be a meet and greet for the group with their national heroes and they will receive a behind-the-scenes stadium tour before experiencing VIP access during what promises to be a decisive contest." AFC President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa said: "The courage and perseverance of the
This Indian team doesn't go out with mindset of losing by fewer goals: Constantine
The Indian football team set to compete in the Asian Cup has got rid of their old mindset of finishing as respectable losers since he took charge for the second time, feels head coach Stephen Constantine. Addressing the pre-match press conference ahead of India's campaign opener against Thailand in the Asian Cup on Sunday, Constantine said his players would try their best to qualify for the knock-out rounds. "I think it is the mentality of the players," he said when asked what was the biggest change in the team since he took over in 2015. "When I arrived (in India) four years ago, it was like go and play the game and not lose by too many goals. That has changed over the four years. We are not going to a game thinking about losing. We go out there thinking we are going to win and that is the biggest change," said the 56-year-old Constantine. He said the workload of the players have also increased over the four years and the players have given "phenomenal" effort in training and in ...