Ordos, September 11
Goalkeeper S Sreejesh stole the limelight with two crucial saves as India defeated arch-rivals Pakistan 4-2 via penalty shootout in a nerve-wrecking final to clinch the inaugural Asian Champions Trophy hockey tournament here today.

The high-voltage summit clash was marred by Pakistan coach's unwarranted action of constantly abusing Indian players from the roof of the stadium. Whenever there was an infringement from the Indian side, he used the 'F' word liberally. And whenever the umpires blew against India, he hollered 'Thank You'.

Rajpal Singh, Danish Mujtaba, Yuvraj Walmiki and Sarvanjit Singh scored for India in the penalty shootout while Muhammad Rizwan and Waseem Ahmed sounded the board for Pakistan after both the sides were locked goalless in the normal and extra time.

India started the shootout on a wrong note when Pakistan goalkeeper Imran Shah saved the shot from Gurwinder Singh Chandi. Sreejesh then came to the fore with a save off Haseem Abdul Khan.

It was then Mujtaba's turn and he neatly sent the ball past Shah to give India 1-0 lead. Pakistan equalised when Rizwan scored but Indian captain Rajpal slotted the ball home to give his side 2-1 up. Then came the crucial save by Sreejesh as he stopped Shafqat Rasool from scoring, advancing and taking the shot on the pads. Yuvraj made it 3-1 and the Pakistan veteran Waseem cut the scores to 3-2 but Sarvanjit's conversion past Shah ensured India ran out champions.

Earlier in the match, both India and Pakistan had ample opportunities to finish off the match in regulation time. Pakistan earned seven penalty corners to India's one but they failed to beat the Indian defence and the goalkeeper Sreejesh.

Asian Games champions Pakistan were initially more attacking pushing the Indian defence back. Shakeel Abassi made some fine runs into the Indian striking circle but V Raghunath stood out with his tackling and clearances. The Indian forwards had a couple of counter-attacks which the Pakistan defence managed to clear.

It was a tense match with a few skirmishes between the players. SV Sunil was the first to be shown the green card for a rough tackle. Pakistan had their first penalty corner in the 14th minute which Sreejesh charged out and saved. India was losing the ball consistently in the midfield. The players were hasty and failed to keep the ball to ensure the passes went right.

In the 29th minute, India had their first penalty corner but Ignace Tirkey failed to trap properly and thus wasting the opportunity. Pakistan had a bunch of penalty corners in the second half and they were to blame themselves for letting the match drift to the shoot-out. — PTI

New Delhi, September 11
Indian Olympic Association acting president Vijay Kumar Malhotra congratulated the Indian hockey team for their victory over Pakistan in the Asian Champions Trophy at Ordos today. He said it was a shot in the arm for Indian hockey as the team had finished outside the medal bracket in the Asian Games in China last year.

Malhotra said the win has made the nation proud. "It is reflective of their steely determination and hard work that has been cro]wned with the inaugural Asian Champions Trophy". He said the victory will be a stepping stone for India to reclaim the lost glory in the game and will give a shot in the arm for their preparation for the Olympic qualifiers to be held in Delhi in February next year.

"It was a great team effort with each member contributing to the win. The win has given immense satisfaction to millions who are anxiously waiting for India to qualify for the 2012 London Olympics. It will inspire everyone in the country, particularly the players and Hockey India to put in more efforts and focus on their preparations for the Champions Trophy and Olympic qualifiers," he added.

London, September 11
The fourth ODI between India and England ended in a tie at Lord’s here today. Set to score 281, England had reached 270 for the loss of eight wickets after 48.5 overs when rain forced play to be called off. According to the D/L method, 270 was the par score at that stage and the umpires declared the match a tie.

England were served well in their chase by superb knocks from Ravi Bopara (96 ) and Ian Bell (54) and later down the order Tim Bresnan and Graeme Swann played exciting cameos to keep England in the hunt. For India, RP Singh claimed three wickets.

Earlier, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Suresh Raina led a superb Indian fightback with brilliant half centuries as the visitors posted a competitive 280 for five. Put into bat, India were wobbling at 110 for four in the 26th over but Dhoni (78 not out) and Raina (84) resurrected the Indian innings by sharing 169 runs for the fifth wicket from 23.5 overs to give their side a defendable total, the highest in the ODI series so far. The duo ensured that no wicket fell till the last over and they made England bowlers toil. — PTI

New York, September 11
Rafael Nadal must overturn a five-match losing streak against Novak Djokovic this year if he is to successfully defend his US Open title and clinch an 11th career Grand Slam title.

World number one Novak Djokovic saved two match points as he climbed out of a two-set hole to beat five-time champion Roger Federer on Saturday to reach the US Open final. The top-seeded Serb, who had also saved two match points en route to a semifinal win over Federer at Flushing Meadows last year, triumphed 6-7 (7/9), 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 7-5.

BRIEFLY

Rai claims thrilling victory
HONG KONG: India's Himmat Rai claimed an enthralling five-way play-off victory with a glorious 25-foot birdie putt on the sixth extra hole at the ISPS Handa Singapore Classic on Sunday. Rai, 24, was one of five players who tied on nine-under-par 271 in regulation play, the largest number of competitors in a play-off in Asian Tour history. "I can't believe that I've pulled it off," said Rai, who picked up $47,550 for his maiden Asian Tour title. "The playoff was splendid. This is immense. I hit a solid putt. I was lucky it went in. It's very sweet and special." — AFP

Poonia enters final
New Delhi: Promising boxer Rahul Poonia continued his good show at the ongoing Commonwealth Youth Games in the Isle of Mann by advancing into the final of the light flyweight category today. However, there was disappointment for India in the middle weight category as the reigning Youth National Champion Surender Singh lost his semifinal bout to Grant Quigley of Scotland to settle for a bronze medal. — PTI

Sirsa Sizzlers defeat SA
Sirsa: Helped by an unbeaten knock of 73 by Shivam Sharma and a hard-hitting 66 by Vikas Lamba, Sirsa Sizzlers defeated South Africa’s Alberton Cricket Club by seven wickets in the first one-day match of the Chaudhary Devi Lal Trophy here today. Put in to bat after the Sirsa Sizzler captain Digvijay Singh won the toss, the South Africans were bundled out for 189 runs in the 33rd over of the 35-over match. Vikas Lamba took three wickets and Deepak Chaudhary sent back to two rival batsmen for the Sirsa Sizzlers. — TNS

Sri Lanka fight for survival
PALLEKELE: Sri Lanka put on a determined batting display on Sunday to improve their chances of forcing a draw in the second cricket Test against Australia. Sri Lanka, who were shot out for 174 in the first innings, moved to 223/2 in their second knock before bad light ended play an hour early on the fourth day at the Pallekele International Stadium. Former captains Kumar Sangakkara (69) and Mahela Jayawardene (38) were together at the crease, having put on 95 valuable runs so far for the third wicket. — AFP

Dhampur, Manyawar in final
New Delhi: Favourites Dhampur Sugar Mills from Delhi and Manyawar from Mumbai today entered the team event final of the HCL International Bridge Tournament being played in Noida. In the semi finals, held on Saturday night, Dhampur easily defeated Formidables, also from Delhi by 104-47 International Match Points (IMPs), while Manyawar beat Khandelwal from Nagpur 95-78 after a keen fight. The other semi-final saw Manywar represented by, Rajesh Dalal, Anil Padhey, Raju Tolani and Ajay Khare taking a lead of 26-16 after the first session. Khandelwal fought back strongly to take am eight-point lead in the second session 50-42. — TNS