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Super CSK thrash royals
Chennai Super Kings’ Suresh Raina plays a shot during their match against Rajasthan Royals in Chennai on Wednesday. — AFP
Indian ODI squad for WI on May 13
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MI deliver knock out punch to Pune
KKR eye revenge against Kochi
DC, Delhi battle for survival
India chase hat-trick of Azlan Shah titles
Barca see off Real, Enter final
Schalke face United
Jagpal Memorial Basketball begins
Punjab government ignoring sportspersons, says wrestler
Sania-Elena advance
Ferrer through to Madrid 3rd round
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Chennai Super Kings cruise to a eight-wicket win over Rajasthan Chennai, May 4 After restricting the Royals to 147 for six, Raina (61, 51 balls, 3x4, 1x6) and Hussey (79 not out, 55 balls, 8x4, 1x6) didn't face problems from RR bowlers during their century partnership. When Raina was finally dismissed, CSK were just three short of a win. Earlier, the star performer for the Royals with the bat was Rahul Dravid top scoring with a fluent 66 (51 balls, 10 fours). Though Chennai's chase got off to a rocky start, with local boy Murali Vijay being rapped on the pads in the second over off Johan Botha, in-form Hussey and Raina, who seemed to have got back the touch that had deserted him for some time steadily shepherded the team to victory. The duo showcased a commendable mixture of caution with aggression as they rotated the strike as well as dispatched the loose deliveries to the boundary. Hussey registered his fourth half century of the tournament while Raina got his second one on trot. The highlight of their partnership was the running between the wickets as they easily converted ones into twos and twos into threes. Rajastan's cause was not helped by sloppy fielding that saw three overthrows and at least one chance to run out Raina go abegging. Raina was on 47 then and a wicket could have put pressure on CSK at that critical juncture. While Raina repeatedly clipped the ball to third man during his knock, Hussey played shots all round the ground. A six and a four off left-arm spinner Nayan Doshi was the highlight of his innings. With 327 runs, Hussey has moved up in the list to be among the top two run-getters with Sachin Tendulkar leading the pack. Fittingly, he finished off the match with a cross batted pull to midwicket off Siddarth Trivedi. But things looked starkly different for Chennai earlier in the day, when the Royals threatened to pile up a huge score raking up 81 runs in the first 10 overs of their innings. However the next 10 overs saw only 66 runs being added with CSK bowlers claiming six wickets in the bargain. Dravid played fluently before holing out to deep midwicket off Suraj Randiv trying to up the ante. The other significant contributor was his opening partner Watson, who made 32 (26 balls, 5x4). Watson was an ideal foil for Dravid, but none of the other batsmen crossed 20. — PTI Scoreboard
Chennai Super Kings
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Indian ODI squad for WI on May 13
Mumbai, May 4 The meeting will be held a day after Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni would have led Chennai Super Kings against the Delhi Daredevils at home. Super Kings' next fixture is against Kochi Tuskers Kerala, also at the M A Chidambaram Stadium, on May 18. The Indian squad, which is scheduled to leave for the Caribbean on June 1, will start the tour with a Twenty20 international against the West Indies at the Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain in Trinidad on June 4. The five ODIs follow the conclusion of the one-off Twenty20 game at the Queen's Park Oval (June 6 and 8), Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in North Sound, Antigua (June 11 and 13) and Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica (June 16). After the conclusion of the limited-overs games, India will take on the West Indies in a three-match Test rubber from June 20 to July 10, with the matches scheduled at the Sabina Park, Kensington Oval in Bridgetown (Barbados) and Windsor Park in Roseau, Dominica. The team for the Test series would be picked later. — PTI
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MI deliver knock out punch to Pune
Mumbai, May 4 The match was pretty much over as a contest by the 12th over of the Pune innings, as the asking rate kept climbing up and wickets kept tumbling. Despite a gritty half-century by Manish Pandey, and some lusty hitting, including two sixes, by skipper Yuvraj Singh, the Pune Warriors never really looked like overhauling the score. This is their seventh straight loss in the current edition of the IPL. Eariler, T Suman blazed his way to a 16-ball 36 and Kieron Pollard (29) provided the late fireworks as Mumbai Indians recovered from a sluggish start to post a challenging 160 for seven. Mumbai had managed just 65 runs for two wickets after 10 overs but found an unlikely hero in Suman, who hit three sixes and as many fours to lead the fightback. Pollard played a useful cameo (29 off 21), with two fours and as many sixes to help Mumbai go past the 150-run mark after being invited to bat. Pune bowlers had done an exceptional job early on and leg-spinner Rahul Sharma returend incredible figures of 4-0-7-2 but the good work was undone when Suman and Pollard had their way. Pune captain Yuvraj Singh accounted for Mumbai's most productive duo of skipper Sachin Tendulkar (24) and Ambati Rayudu (27). As in earlier games, the opening partnership did not yield too many runs for Mumbai as the new partner for skipper Tendulkar, Australian youngster Aiden Blizzard (6) perished in the third over to leave them at 18 for one. — PTI Scoreboard Pune Warriors
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Kochi, May 4
Kolkata lost by a mere six runs when the two teams squared off at the Eden Gardens on April 20, but fortunes have turned dramatically for both sides since then. While Gautam Gambhir's Kolkata sit pretty at the top of the table after six wins and just three defeats so far, Mahela Jayawardene's Kerala managed to end a three-match losing streak in their previous outing against a lowly Delhi Daredevils. In form, Kolkata started as clear favourites with a formidable batting line-up and an equally intimidating bowling attack. Gambhir's men have been a dominant force in the event rarely floundering, which is a far cry from the shambolic form they displayed in the first three seasons of the IPL. The willow-wielders have done their job well with Jacques Kallis, Gambhir himself and Manoj Tiwary in reasonably good touch. Yusuf Pathan is the only one struggling, but the hard-hitter made amends with a blazing unbeaten 47 against Deccan Chargers yesterday. The bowlers too have delivered the goods with Brett Lee, despite being in the twilight of his international career, spearheading the pace attack impressively. He has found good support in Laxmipathy Balaji and Iqbal Abdulla, while Shakib Al Hasan has been in fine form leading the spin attack. Kochi, on the other hand, have been inconsistent so far. The tournament debutants impressed all by beating big teams such as the Mumbai Indians during the event, but on most occasions, they have failed to click as a unit consistently. After three successive losses, they sprung back to life by beating Delhi and the team's Sri Lankan skipper Mahela Jayawardene hoped the victory brings some consistency in his side's performance. "We would love to have that consistency in Twenty20, but we have lost some games in the last two overs. Hopefully, with this win we can get some momentum," Jayawardene said. That, however, is easier said than done for a side which relies too heavily on New Zealander Brendon McCullum in batting. — PTI
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Hyderabad, May 4
A win in tomorrow's clash is a must for both Deccan and Delhi to keep their hopes alive of advancing further in the tournament and salvage prestige. Both have played nine matches and won three each, thus having the same six points with less than half a dozen matches in hand to rise in the table. Though they are facing a lowly Delhi on home turf, the task will not be easy for the Kumar Sangakkara's men, as they go into the match after suffering a 20-run loss against table-toppers Kolkata Knight Riders here last night. Chargers would be hoping to break the sequence of defeats at home and revive their campaign tomorrow with skipper Sangakkara issuing a warning to the team's international players to shoulder the responsibility and come good in the remaining matches. "It is a bit frustrating and not good for us. We take a lot of pride with the way we play our cricket and to lose as many games as we have done, it really hurts. It's very disappointing," Sangakkara said. — PTI
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India chase hat-trick of Azlan Shah titles
Ipoh (Malaysia), May 4 Five-time gold medallists at the Azlan Shah Cup, India were adjudged joint winners along with South Korea last year when the final was disrupted by bad weather. The Indians had earlier won the cup outright in 2009, and they currently share the tournament record of five titles with Australia, who are seeking to test their new crop of players ahead of next year's London Olympics. The seven-nation round-robin tournament, which will end with a title showdown on May 15 between the top two placed teams, also features Pakistan, Asian Games silver medallists Malaysia, Great Britain, South Korea and New Zealand. — PTI
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Barca see off Real, Enter final
Barcelona, May 4 Marcelo gave Real some hope with an equaliser 10 minutes later but their challenge petered out against the three-times European champions. "There has been a great deal of effort behind this, a team that returned from the World Cup almost without having a break," Barca coach Pep Guardiola told Spanish television referring to the players who were world champions with Spain last year. "Just let us enjoy this moment," he added, when asked about the controversy of recent weeks. Bad blood had boiled up between the Spanish giants around four meetings in three competitions in 18 days and the final game of the series was again marred by diving. Barca's success was payback for last month's King's Cup final defeat, as well as giving them a measure of revenge over Real coach Jose Mourinho. The Spanish World Cup-winner was finally beaten when Pedro raced on to Andres Iniesta's through ball and slotted into the corner. Real got their first goal of the tie when fullback Marcelo followed up to score after Angel Di Maria struck the post but there was no way back for the nine-times winners. World Player of the Year Lionel Messi, who scored both goals in the first leg and is the competition's top scorer with 11, was a near-constant threat to the Real goal in the first half and was twice denied by superb Casillas saves. The Argentina forward released striker David Villa into space in the 34th minute but Casillas was equal to his Spain team mate's curling shot. As the match wore on, Mourinho's assistant, Aitor Karanka, and the Real players appeared powerless in the face of the relentless Barca tackling and possession and they managed just one shot on target to Barca's six. "We have to lift our heads up and be proud," Real captain Casillas said in an interview with Spanish television as the Barca players celebrated wildly on the pitch. English Premier League club Manchester United will defend a 2-0 lead over Schalke 04 when they host the Bundesliga side in Wednesday's other semi. The final is at London's Wembley stadium on May 28 where Barca won their first European title in 1992. — Reuters |
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Manchester, May 4
The German side stunned holders Inter 5-2 in the first leg of their quarter-final at the San Siro and need to produce something similar to make amends for a woeful performance at home to United last week. "Tomorrow we will show we can play better than we did last week and that we have learnt our lessons," Schalke coach Ralf Rangnick told a news conference on Tuesday. "In football you can get the chance so we will see what happens... When we played in Milan against Inter people didn't give us much hope either." The Bundesliga team's task is immense at a stadium where United have not lost for more than a year and have conceded only three goals in Europe this season. United repeatedly tore apart Schalke's defence last week and on home soil, they could prove even more devastating, even if manager Alex Ferguson will rest players. — Reuters
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Heat down Celtics
Chandigarh, May 4 LeBron James led all scorers with 35 points. In Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant scored 26 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder evened their series with Memphis by beating the Grizzlies 111-102 in Game Two of the Western Conference semifinals. The Heat's Big Three was too much for the Celtics. James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh combined for 80 points, offsetting a slow night from the bench. Wade scored 28 points while Bosh added 17 points and 11 rebounds. The Celtics were led by Rajon Rondo's 20 points and 12 assists. Thunder even series
After scoring just 16 points in a Game 1 loss, the Thunder's bench tripled that amount and put Oklahoma City firmly in control with an 18-6 run to start the fourth quarter. Russell Westbrook scored 24 and his backup, Eric Maynor, added 15 for the Thunder. Mike Conley scored 24 for Memphis, which cut a 21-point, fourth-quarter deficit to six in the final minute. The Thunder lost starting power forward Serge Ibaka, who blocked the most shots in the NBA in the regular season - to an apparent right leg injury with 2:09 remaining in the game. He hobbled to the locker room after fouling Conley. |
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Jagpal Memorial Basketball begins
Chandigarh, May 4 Teams from The Rashtriya Military School, Chail, Sherwood College, Nainital, Daly College, Indore, Welham Girls’ School, Dehradun, Yadvindra Public School, Mohali, Vivek High School, Chd, Convent of Jesus & Mary, Shimla, and others would be vying for honours in the three-day tournament.— TNS
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Punjab government ignoring sportspersons, says wrestler
Patiala, May 4
Sharing her disappointment with The Tribune, Gursharan said she had been representing Punjab for over ten years now but no one till date has paid any heed to her achievements. “I joined Punjab Police in the year 2000 as a constable and since then I have won seven medals in various international tournaments, which include gold at the Bhagat Singh International Tournament recently where I defeated the Commonwealth Games bronze medallist and six silver medals during other tournaments,” Gursharan said. “While my counterparts have been promoted as Deputy Superintendents of Police (DSPs) in others States, I am still working as a head constable. To top it all, I have not received any financial aid from the government till date. Though the government has been promising perks for national medals, but I have not received a penny till date. Now the question is how long my family will support my sports career.” When questioned about her future plans, she said she didn’t have any plans. “I wish I was born in Haryana and could play for them. This is the last year I am playing for Punjab and if my efforts go unrecognised, I will quit the game. I would rather shift to Canada or America, because at least your future is secure.”
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Madrid, May 4 The unseeded Indo-Russia combination recorded a 3-6 6-1 10-2 win over their opponent in the first round of the euro 3,500,000 clay court event. They will next take on Russia's Nadia Petrova and Australia's Anastasia Rodionova. —PTI
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Ferrer through to Madrid 3rd round
Madrid, May 4 Ferrer, seeded six for the clay event in the Spanish capital and runner-up to world number one and compatriot Rafa Nadal at last month's Monte Carlo Masters and Barcelona Open, will play Sergiy Stakhovsky for a place in the last 16. Ukrainian Stakhovsky edged past big-serving American John Isner 7-5 4-6 7-6 earlier on Tuesday in a match featuring only one break of serve for each player. Former world number four Juan Martin Del Potro continued his comeback from a wrist injury with a 6-1 3-6 6-3 first-round victory over Russia's Mikhail Youzhny, the 13th seed, at the futuristic Magic Box arena. Fifteenth seed Fernando Verdasco, another Spaniard, was upset 7-6 7-5 by unseeded Lu Yen-Hsun of Taiwan, while local wildcard Marcel Granollers eliminated Russia's Nikolay Davydenko 7-5 6-2. France's Gilles Simon won a tight match against Croatian Ivan Ljubicic 7-5 7-6 to set up a second-round meeting on Wednesday with fourth-seeded Briton Andy Murray. Nadal, who was given the usual bye into the second round for the top eight seeds, opens his campaign against former Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis on Wednesday. Second and third seeds Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer play their opening matches against Kevin Anderson of South Africa and Spain's Feliciano Lopez respectively on Wednesday. Lopez ended the hopes of Canada's Milos Raonic with a 4-6 7-6 6-4 victory on Tuesday, when Anderson saw off Belgium's Olivier Rochus 6-2 6-4. — Reuters
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Chennai, May 4
Barcelona's slick football at a rain-swept Nou Camp had Real Madrid chasing shadows for long periods again as the Catalans reached the Champions League final after a 1-1 draw sent the 2009 winners through 3-1 on aggregate.
Barca, in the final for the second time in three years, built on their lead from an ill-tempered first leg in Madrid when Pedro rifled in after 54 minutes.
Next in the line is eight-time national champion wrestler Gursharanpreet Kaur from Taran Tarn, who had won a silver medal during the 2003 Commonwealth Championship. Gursharan, who has been representing Punjab since 2000, is a head constable with Punjab Police and despite winning various medals at national and international levels, has not yet been promoted.