Guangzhou, November 26
India ended their athletics campaign in the Asian Games with a bagful of medals with the women's 4x400m relay quartet winning the gold to bring down curtains with a bang on the penultimate day of the competitions here today.

India emerged from the track and field events with five gold, two silver and four bronze medals, one of their best efforts in Asian Games history, though below their performance in 2002 Busan Asian Games where they had a 7-6-5 medal haul. Having started their campaign with a golden double in the women's 10,000m and 3,000m steeplechase through Preeja Sreedharan and Sudha Singh on the first day, the 4x400m relay team of Manjeet Kaur, Sini Jose, AC Ashwini and Mandeep Kaur ended the campaign by clinching the gold in 3 minutes, 29.02 secs at the Aoti Main Stadium.

Mandeep staved off a determined challenge from Kazakhstan's last runner Olga Tereshkova, the individual 400m gold medalist, to finish strongly after her teammates Sini and Ashwini, the 400m hurdles gold medalist, had given India a sizeable lead from the second stage of the race. Kazakhstan, with two 40m individual medalists running for them, were edged out to the second spot despite clocking a national best time of 3:30.03 while hosts China took the bronze in 3:30.89.

“We knew we could expect a strong challenge from Kazakhstan. I and Sini Jose were under pressure to increase the lead after the first lap (by Manjeet). I am extremely happy we did it. And this is my first Asian Games and back home in my village in Kundapur taluk (Karnataka) everyone is bursting crackers and distributing sweets. It feels like a miracle,” said Ashwini, the double gold medalist.

Experienced one-lapper Manjeet Kaur said that she could not practice for the last 15 days because of chest congestion. “But for missing my practice I would have won the 400m gold too,” she said, adding “today all of us wanted to win gold for India.” It was the fifth gold from the athletics arena for India following gold medals by Ashwini in the 400m hurdles and by Joseph Abraham in the corresponding men's event and the opening day's heroics by Preeja and Sudha.

Preeja, however, could only get a silver despite making a great effort to catch Bahrain's eventual gold winner Mimi Belete in the women's 5000m while compatriot Kavita Raut got the bronze as India won one gold, a silver and a bronze from the last day action for the country.

No Indian is competing in the men's and women's marathon, the last athletics event to be held tomorrow. Preeja who led a 1-2 of Indians with Kavita in the women's 10,000m on day one, was in the lead bunch of six runners led by Japan's Kayoko Furushi, silver medalist in 2006 Doha Games, along with her teammate as the two kept up the challenge with easy strides. — PTI 

Thailand's Chonlada Chaiprapan is taken down by India's Sanahanbi Devi Kangabam, left, and Bai V Tejeswini on Friday. India won the match to take the gold medal. — AP

But it was not enough to earn them a gold as overall India proved to be a better side with six lonas against two of their opponents and 28 outs to stamp their supremacy in the sport.

Women thrash Thailand

Asserting their supremacy in the sport, India trounced Thailand 28-14 to clinch the inaugural women’s kabaddi gold medal in the Asian Games here today.

India took control of the game very early with aggressive tackling and dismissed the entire Thai team for a two-point bonus before taking a commanding 17-7 lead at the halfway stage of the one-sided final at the Nansha Gymnasium.

National coach Balwan Singh termed the triumph in the first appearance at the Games as a “good team effort”.

“We are proud to have won the gold for the country in a tough competition,” he said.

“Our defense was very good. We had studied the rival’s game. They were very fast but could not wriggle out of our grasp when making raids into our territory,” he said. Manager Kumar Vijay said the team did not want to take things easy after the nerve-wrecking one-point semifinal victory over Iran. — PTI 

Guangzhou, November 26
World number one Vijender Singh (75kg) clinched an unprecedented second boxing gold for India at the ongoing Asian Games while two others settled for silver to round off the best ever campaign by the country’s pugilists at the quadrennial mega-event, here today.

It was sweet revenge for Olympic and World Championship bronze-medallist Vijender when he blanked reigning world champion Abbos Atoev of Uzbekistan 7-0 at the Foshan Gymnasium. Atoev had beaten the 25-year-old Indian at the World Championship semifinals last year but this time Vijender plugged the loopholes which led to that loss and emerged a clear winner.

However, V Santhosh Kumar (64kg) and Manpreet Singh (91kg) settled for silver medals after losing in the finals. While Santhosh lost 1-16 to Kazakhstan's Daniyar Yeleussinov in finals, Manpreet went down 1-8 to Mohammad Ghossoun of Syria to take India's silver tally to three in boxing after Dinesh Kumar (81kg) had finished second yesterday.

Indian boxers thus ended their campaign with two gold — the first coming through Vikas Krishan (60kg) yesterday, three silver and two bronze medals — Suranjoy Singh (52kg) and Paramjeet Samota (+91kg). Santhosh opened the proceedings for India today and found himself on the backfoot from the very start. Too defensive and somewhat intimidated, the Indian could neither prevent his rival from connecting punches nor create any noteworthy attacking chance. — PTI 

Guangzhou, November 26
Rollersports fetched India a couple of unexpected bronze medals with Anup Kumar Yama bagging one in men’s single free skating before combining with Avani Panchal to finish third in the pairs skating event here today.

Anup totalled 244.2 in his singles routine for which he fetched 123.6 on technical merit and 120.6 for artistic impression. In the pairs event, Anup and Avani combined for a score of 222 which included 112.5 points on technical merit and 109.5 for artistic impression.

In the men’s singles event, Japan’s Shongo Nishiki clinched the gold medal with 253.8 (127.2+126.6), while Chinese Taipei’s Chen Cjia Yeh settled for silver with a score of 248.4 (125.4+123.0).

The pairs gold went to Yawen Lin and Yunqin Tang of China with a score of 245.4 (123.3+122.1). The silver went to the pair of Tzu Hsia Weng and Li Hsin Chen which scored 237.6 (120.3+117.3).

Grappler Suman loses bronze play-off

Carrying an injury into the bronze medal play-off, Suman Kundu failed to add to India’s medal tally as the woman grappler was overwhelmed 0-5 by China’s Chen Meng in just 22 seconds here today.

Referee stopped the 63kg freestyle bout moments after it started, ending all Indian hopes. After winning 10 gold, five silver and four bronze medals at the Commonwealth Games, the grapplers could win only three bronze medals at the Asian Games. — PTI

Brisbane, November 26
Mike Hussey anchored a mid-innings revival to push Australia towards England's first innings total when rain ended play on the second day of the opening Ashes Test at the Gabba today. The veteran left-hander dispelled doubts over his place in the team after a lean trot to spearhead Australia's fightback following the loss of four wickets in the post-lunch session. When rain forced play to be abandoned, Australia were 220 for five with Hussey unbeaten on 81 and wicketkeeper Brad Haddin not out 22.

Hussey showed the beneficial effects of his restorative 118 for Western Australia in the leadup Sheffield Shield game last weekend to carry on his form renaissance with an enterprising knock of 13 fours and a six off 144 balls. The 35-year-old campaigner survived a near catch in the slips off his first ball to share in an unbroken 77-run partnership for the sixth wicket with Haddin to refuel Australia's charge after England's first innings 260. Hussey blunted the English push after Australia had been rocked by the loss of four wickets after lunch to slump to 143 for five. Pacemen Steve Finn and James Anderson were England's heroes bowling the tourists back into contention straight after lunch. Anderson claimed the prized wicket of master batsman Ricky Ponting for 10 with the second ball after lunch. Ponting attempted to glance down the leg-side only to get a fine edge to Matt Prior. — AP

Brief Scores:

Australia 5 for 220 (Hussey 81*, Haddin 22*) trail

England 260, by 40 runs