New Delhi, November 27
Recuperating from a ‘non-malignant tumour’ in his left lung, flamboyant Indian batsman Yuvraj Singh said he is "absolutely fine" and would be returning to cricket very soon. The 29-year-old left-handed batsman withdrew from the upcoming ODI series against the West Indies after revealing that he is being treated for a tumour in his left lung.

After his mother Shabnam made the revelation in a formal statement yesterday, Yuvraj tweeted that he would be returning sooner rather than later. "Overwhelmed with ur love n support. I am absolutely fine, just need to get match fitness and training will be back soon," he tweeted.

Yuvraj has been troubled by health issues since the World Cup, which India won, and has played just one Test match in England after that. "Reports and scans then showed us that Yuvraj was dealing with something really serious. A golf-ball size lump was found over his left lung and doctors advised us to go in for more detailed scans."

"The initial reports suggested that Yuvraj had what, in medical terms, is called a abnormal tumour called lymphoma over his left lung. The danger was, we were told, that it could be malignant," Shabnam had stated.

"When he returned from England... detailed scanning, and biopsy reports indicated that the tumour is non-malignant and non-threatening and can be treated through proper medication and therapy. In medical terms, Yuvraj is now in a much better state and on his way to a full recovery," Yuvraj's mother Shabnam said in a statement.

Shabnam further said Yuvraj did not want to rush his return to the side and that's why he informed BCCI about his unavailability for the West Indies series. "Now his entire focus is to re-gain his full fitness. He is already preparing himself to play the one-day series in Australia. He doesn't want to rush things, he wants to be hundred per cent fit before resuming his cricket for India." — PTI

Mumbai, November 27
India spinner Pragyan Ojha today broke into the top-15 of the ICC rankings for the first time in his career following a strong show against the West Indies in the third Test, in which he took seven wickets.

Six of his seven wickets came in the second innings of the West Indies and he jumped 11 places to 15th place, just ahead of Australia's Peter Siddle.

However, India paceman Ishant Sharma slipped three places to 20th position after taking just one wicket in the match. Out of action pacer Zaheer Khan remained static at number six.

Meanwhile, India continued to be second placed in team rankings but closed the gap on England at the top of the table to seven points. India gained one ratings point for the 2-0 series win and moves up to 118 ratings points.

In the ranking for Test batsmen, Sachin Tendulkar (6), Rahul Dravid (8) and VVS Laxman (14) lost a place each while Virender Sehwag was unchanged at number 19. — PTI

Patiala, November 27
Vikas Krishan (69kg) carried his good form from the AIBA World Championships to the London Boxing International Invitational, a Olympic boxing test event at London's Excel Centre today. The Indian welter weight boxer continued to ride his purple patch as he made a place in the finals of the event with a brilliant victory over Azerbaijan boxer Ismet Eynullayev. With this win, the 19-year-old is now assured of at least a silver medal finish in the tournament.

The 2010 Asian Games gold medallist, who also bagged a bronze medal at the World Championships along with an Olympic quota, was at his destructive best as he devoured his opponent with as much brain as brawn. Vikas defeated Ismet and went on to secure his place in the finals with a 9:6 triumph on points.

Asian Games silver medallist Dinesh Kumar (81kg) had to settle for a bronze medal after losing his semifinal bout against Yamaguchi Florentino of Brazil, a silver medal winner at the 2011 Pan American Games.

Earlier, the Indian camp experienced a major setback in the form of world champion MC Mary Kom, who suffered a defeat at the hands of Argentine Pamela Paoloa Benavidez in the quarterfinals. Mary, the five time world champion was clearly not in her best form, but managed to be at par with Pamela after the first two rounds of play (6:6). But in the third round, Pamela squeezed one point lead and subsequently increased the margin in the fourth. In the end, Mary lost on points 9:13.

In the women’s division, Arafura Games silver medallist Pooja Rani (75kg) lost to Dariga Shakimova of Kazakhstan (10:14). Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Amandeep Singh (49kg) went down against Birzhan Zhakypov also of Kazakhstan (7:15) in the men’s event.

Chandigarh, November 27
With a little bit of chitchat and a lot of swing the Rotary District Golf Tournament was played at the Chandigarh Golf Club here on Sunday. Around 50 Rotarian golfers from Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh participated in this prestigious golf tournament. The team of Rotary Chandigarh Shivalik comprising Col. Iqbal Singh, Bachittar Singh and Ashu B Singh was adjudged the Best. Prizes were given away by Manpreet Singh, Rotary District Governor.

The tournament was played on the stableford format. Sandeep Sandhu was declared ‘gross winner’ and DS Malhotra the runner-up. AK Sachdeva was announced ‘nett winner’.

There were other individual prizes as well, wherein Dr GS Kochhar, District Golf Chairman, was the winner of 9-holes and Sarabhjeet Singh was the runner up. The ‘nearest to the pin’ award was given to Sandeep Sandhu and ‘straightest drive’ was won by Bachittar Singh.

Sao Paulo, November 27
Sebastian Vettel won his 15th pole position of the Formula One season at the Brazilian Grand Prix, breaking former world champion Nigel Mansell's 19-year record.

Vettel, who has already won the F1 title this season, finished in one minute 11.918 at the 4.3-kilometre Interlagos track. The 24-year-old German drew level with Mansell after winning his 14th pole at the Abu Dhabi GP two weeks ago.

Vettel's Red Bull teammate, Mark Webber, was second with a lap of 1:12.099. Jenson Button of McLaren was third in 1:12.283 and teammate Lewis Hamilton will start fourth after finishing in 1:12.480. Two-time world champion Fernando Alonso was fifth for Ferrari.

Vettel parked his car and put his finger up to show who was number 1 again, his trademark celebration that has been present all year long. "This is really special, it's different from the other poles," he said.

Mansell set the record with Williams in a 16-race season in 1992, winning nine times to claim his sole F1 drivers' title. He failed to start from pole at races in Canada and Hungary. He had six consecutive poles to start the season and five straight to finish.

Vettel broke the record in 19 races. He failed to win pole in Spain, England, Germany and South Korea. His worst starting position was third, in Germany.

With the title having already been decided since the Japanese GP, the fight for second place is at stake in Brazil. Button, Alonso and Webber still have a chance to finish runner-up. Button has a 10-point lead over Alonso and an 18-point advantage over Webber.

Vettel dominated the season with 11 victories, but it was Hamilton who won the last race in Abu Dhabi after a tire failure forced Vettel to retire on the first lap. Red Bull also has already won the constructors' championship, with McLaren finishing second and Ferrari third. — AP

Patiala, November 27
National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) has served a notice to all the 52 players who were found positive during the 2nd Pearls World Kabaddi Cup to get their B sampling done and in case they fail to get this done, they might have to serve a ban of 
two years.

These 52 players include 10 from England, nine from USA, eight from Canada, seven from Spain, six from Australia, six from Italy, two from Norway and one each from India, Germany, Pakistan and Argentina.

Giving information in this regard, Director General of NADA Rahul Bhatnagar informed that NADA had collected 218 samples during this tournament, out of which 52 samples were found positive, which is nearly 25 per cent. "We have served a notice to all the players and have asked them to get their B samples done. In case they fail to get the B samples done, they might be banned for two years as per the rules of NADA and WADA. As of now, they will not be allowed to take part in any national or international tournament," he added.

Bhatnagar further informed that in case these players fail in their B samples also, they will have to appear before NADA'S Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel to defend their case.

Meanwhile, Deputy Director, Punjab Sports Department, SL Lotey said the sports department had left no stone unturned to ensure that Punjab's mother game kabaddi should become dope free and they were sure that the players would come forward for their B samples also.

BRIEFLY

Desisa wins Delhi Marathon
New Delhi: Last edition's runner-up Lelisa Desisa of Ethiopia survived stiff competition from the Kenyans to clinch the men's title, while Kenya's Lucy Kabuu emerged victorious in the women's elite category at the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon here today. It was never an easy task for Desisa, who clocked 59 minutes and 30 seconds to cover the stipulated 21.097 km, as Kenya's Geoffrey Kipsang looked certain to take the honours till the last minute but faltered in the final lap of the race. Kipsang, who was matching Desisa's pace most of the distance, failed to accelerate towards the end and clocked 59 minutes and 31 seconds to settle for silver. — PTI

Pak appeal ITF decision
Islamabad: The Pakistan Tennis Federation has appealed against the International Federation's decision to move the country's Davis Cup tie against Lebanon from Lahore next year. "It is very disappointing for this to happen because we had made all our preparations for the Davis Cup tie and had even sent our full security plans to the ITF to keep them abreast of what we were doing," PTF secretary, Mumtaz Yousuf said. The ITF has announced that due to security concerns about playing in Pakistan, the Davis Cup tie has been shifted to Lebanon. — PTI

Afridi, Waqar bury hatchet
Karachi: Shahid Afridi's dispute with former coach Waqar Younis that cost him the captaincy of Pakistan's cricket team has been resolved after the two met up during the recent series against Sri Lanka in the UAE. Waqar confirmed that he met Afridi during the one-day series against Sri Lanka in Dubai and had a discussion on the differences between them. The dispute between the two star players erupted into the open after the Pakistan team's tour to the West Indies this year. Afridi, who was captain of the one-day side, on returning home lambasted Waqar for interfering in his domain and making his job more difficult. — PTI

Aisam not to pair with Rohan
Karachi: Pakistan's top tennis star Aisam-ul-Haq has confirmed he will not be pairing with India's Rohan Bopanna on the international circuit for the next six months as both want to focus on the London Olympic Games. "We want to cement our places in the Olympic Games and have decided to play with new partners in the doubles," Aisam told the media after he returned home last night. Aisam will pair up with Jean-Julien Rojer for the Australian Open after Bopanna decided to partner either Mahesh Bhupathi or Leander Paes ahead of the Olympics. — PTI

Hockey: Sandeep, Sunil star
Johannesburg: Drag-flick specialist Sandeep Singh and striker SV Sunil scored two goals each as India dished out a fast-paced and entertaining hockey to beat South Africa 7-4 in the Champions Challenge here today. Sandeep converted two penalty corners in the 14th and 35th minutes, while Saravanjit Singh (29th) and Tushar Khandekar (41st) scored one apiece. Rupinder Pal Singh made no mistake with a 65th minute penalty stroke as India surprised the rival defence on several occasions and ran away with a well-deserved victory. — PTI

Ryder hits a record 16 sixes
Brisbane: New Zealand batsman Jesse Ryder today equalled a first-class world record for the most sixes in an innings when he hit an incredible 16 sixes against Australia A here. The left-handed Kiwi equalled the record set by Graham Napier and Andrew Symonds as he scored 175 off only 137 deliveries in the New Zealand's second innings score of 467 for six. In addition to 16 sixes, Ryder also hit 11 boundaries and scored 140 out of 175 in only 27 scoring shots. — PTI

Harmeet Kahlon shines
Chandigarh: Punjab's Harmeet Kahlon, who plays out of Chandigarh Golf Club, secured his best finish of the season on the Professional Golf Tour Of India (PGTI) with a 10th place finish in the 10th Tata Open Golf Championship 2011 that concluded at Jamshedpur on Sunday. Arjuna Awardee, Harmeet had scores of 65, 74, 70, 72 for a 4-day total of 3-under par for the Rs 50 lakh prize money event. Vinod Kumar of Delhi upstaged fancied Jyoti Randhawa to win his Maiden Title on the PGTI tour with a cumulative score of 8-under par. Harinder Gupta of Chandigarh Golf Club finished in 19th place with a total of one-under par. — TNS

Anand finishes joint 6th
Moscow: World Champion Viswanathan Anand finished tied sixth after signing peace with Boris Gelfand of Israel in the ninth and final round of the Tal Memorial Chess tournament here. This was a rare result for the world champion who played out all draws in the strongest tournament of the year featuring a 10-player double round robin tournament. Playing with black pieces against his next World Championship challenger Gelfand, Anand drew in 29 moves in Queens' Gambit Declined. — PTI