Dubai, April 18
A blazing 115-run stand between Glenn Maxwell (95) and David Miller (54no) helped Kings XI Punjab pull off a sensational six-wicket win over formidable Chennai Super Kings in their opening Indian Premier League match here on Friday.

Maxwell hammered 95 off 43 balls while Miller made an unbeaten 54 off 37 to propel their team past Super Kings’ imposing 205 for four with seven balls to spare at the Sheikh Zayed stadium. Virender Sehwag (19 off 10) and Cheteshwar Pujara (13 off 10) started Punjab's chase aggressively before departing in quick succession.

Offie Ravichandran Ashwin, who trapped Pujara in front of the stumps, earned his second lbw by foxing Akshar Patel (2), leaving Punjab at 53 for two in sixth over. That brought together two of the world's most dangerous batsmen in the middle — the big hitting Miller from South Africa and the innovative Maxwell of Australia.

The deadly duo did not disappoint as they took the Super Kings bowlers to the cleaners. Maxwell scored the bulk of the runs in their 63-ball stand. The Australian all-allrounder enthralled the crowd with his switch hits and hoicks over mid-wicket. Like Miller, who was dropped off Ravindra Jadeja in the ninth over, Maxwell also had luck on his side. The result could have been different had the Australian not been dropped twice.

His whirlwind innings comprised 15 fours and two sixes before he missed a Dwayne Smith yorker in the 16th over with Punjab still needing 39 off 26 balls. Miller got into the groove after Maxwell`s fall and got his side closer to the target by smashing Jadeja for two consecutive sixes. With captain George Bailey (17 off 10) at the other end, Punjab eventually strolled to a morale-boosting victory.

Earlier, Super Kings kicked off their IPL-7 campaign with a flurry of fours and sixes as Brendon McCullum (67 off 45) and Smith (66 off 43) hit blazing half centuries. An entertaining 123-run opening-wicket partnership between McCullum and Smith, and a 11-ball 26 cameo by skipper MS Dhoni ensured Super Kings posted a mammoth score on a good batting surface.

McCullum brought up his fifty with a boundary off Rishi Dhawan. The openers sent a lacklustre Punjab attack on a leather hunt, helping Super Kings reach 100-run mark in 10th over. While McCullum was at his dominating best, Smith was steady at the other end, making sure that the loose deliveries did not go unpunished.

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Dubai, April 18
Ajinkya Rahane smashed a fine half-century to lead Rajasthan Royals to a four-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad. While Rahane's knock wasn't as swashbuckling as that of Glenn Maxwell or Brendon McCullum's in the other contest of the day, it was, however, equally significant for it came against arguably the best attack in the IPL.

A target of 134 runs wouldn't cause much trouble to any team but Sunrisers, with their stingy attack, could make the opposition huff and puff even while chasing a small total. That's exactly what happened in this game too — Royals almost lost the plot after Rahane departed for well made 59.

Amit Mishra and Dale Steyn struck a few quick blows to turn around the game but Stuart Binny, who struck an unbeaten 48, held his nerve and smashed boundaries at crucial time to ease the pressure. In the end, James Faulkner finished it for Royals with two consecutive boundaries in the final over.— TNS

Dubai, April 18
A confident Royal Challengers Bangalore would look to carry on their winning momentum when they take on title holders Mumbai Indians, who would be low on belief after the opening thrashing in the Indian Premier League, here tomorrow.

Star-studded RCB opened their IPL 7 campaign on a resounding note as they crushed a new-look Delhi Daredevils by eight wickets in Sharjah last night.

Down with a back injury, RCB did not have the services of the explosive Chris Gayle last night but it hardly made any impact on RCB's chase. RCB's best finish was the runners-up trophy in 2011 but this time around the team would be hoping to ride on the performances of the big boys to clinch their maiden IPL title.

RCB's bowling was considered their weak link but against the Daredevils yesterday, their bowlers did just enough to restrict the opponents to a modest 145 for four. While Mitchell Starc generated pace upfront even though he went for a few runs, Albie Morkel and Varun Aaron were right on their money.

In fact Aaron (9 for one in 3 overs) bowled a misery spell but Bengal pacer Ashok Dinda leaked runs. The star of the day was young leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who was adjudged man-of-the-match for his spell of 4-0-18-1. Mumbai Indians, on the other hand, have plenty of work to do both in their batting as well as bowling departments after their 41-run loss to Kolkata Knight Riders in the tournament opener. Barring Zaheer Khan (1/23) and the ever-reliable Lasith Malinga (4/23), Mumbai's bowling performance against KKR can be termed as pathetic. — PTI

New Delhi, April 18
India suffered their second successive defeat of the European hockey tour, losing to The Netherlands 2-4 in the fourth build-up game played at The Hague.

The hosts started the proceedings on an attacking note as Mirco Pruyser successfully pumped in a goal as early as in the 9th minute of the game, which was soon followed by strikes from Glenn Schuurman and Tristan Algera in the 15th and the 28th minutes respectively.

The Netherlands went into the half-time with a comfortable 3-0 lead.

It was only in the second-half that India were able to open their account. The visitors pulled a goal back through SK Uthappa in the 37th minute, before skipper Sardar Singh sliced in a field goal three minutes later to reduce the margin.

The Indian team tried hard to restore parity and even made some attacking moves to penetrate the rival’s defence, but it was Dutchman Billy Baker, who stroked in the final goal in the 60th minute to seal the issue in his team’s favour.

India had earlier thrashed Leiden Hockey Club 7-0 in the first build-up game at Oegstgeest before playing out a 3-3 draw with HGC Hockey Club in the next game of the tour. The visitors had tasted their first defeat of the tour when they went down 1-2 against Belgium in the third build-up game. India will play their fifth and the last build-up game against The Netherlands on Saturday.

Result: The Netherlands: (4) Mirco Pruyser (9th minute), Glenn Schuurman (15th minute), Tristan Algera (28th minute) and Billy Baker (60th minute) beat India: (2) SK Uthappa (37th minute) and Sardar Singh (40th minute).

New Delhi, April 18
India rode on strikes from Soundarya Yendala and Sunita Lakra to beat Ireland 2-1 in the second women’s hockey Test and claim the three-match series at Dublin.

Soundarya opened the scoring for India, when she converted a penalty corner in the 18th minute. Soon after, Sunita doubled the visitors’ advantage at the near post from a field goal in the 20th minute. India dominated the first-half until Nicola Evans pulled one back for Ireland just before the half time.

In the second-half, both India and Ireland fought hard and concentrated on tightening their defence. Both the teams played a calculated game but could not breach each other’s citadel.

The final game of the Test series is scheduled to be played later Friday. India had earlier defeated Ireland 3-1 in the first Test of the tour, organized as part of the team’s preparation for the FIH Champions Challenge-1 beginning April 27 in Glasgow.

Result: India: (2) Soundarya Yendala (18 min) and Sunita Lakra (20 min) beat Ireland: : (1) Nicolas Evans.

Chandigarh, April 18
SSP Chowrasia carded a two-under-par 70 to tie for the 18th place as just five Indians made the cut at the $2.75 million Malaysian Open, currently underway at the Kuala Lampur Golf and Country Club.

Chowrasia carded a double-bogey on the first but a four-under on the back nine with birdies on the tenth, 14th, 16th and 18th holes saw him finish at two-under-par for the day and three-under-par 141 for 36-holes.

Anirban Lahiri and current Asian Tour Order of Merit co-leader Rashid Khan carded two consecutive rounds of 72 and were tied at level-par 144. Chiragh Kumar, who was amongst the 42 players who had to complete their first round this morning, carded a two-over-par 74 for 18 holes but a two-under-par 70 in the second 18 saw him tie at 144 after the completion of 36 holes. Shiv Kapur, who carded a 76 in the first round, was the last player to make the cut, which was applied at one-over-par 145 after he shot a 69 today.

It was a forgettable week for some of the top Indian professionals like Jyoti Randhawa who followed his first round 76 with a 70 today but missed the cut with a total of two-over-par 146. Jeev Milkha Singh attempted a comeback with a one-under-par 71 in the second round but could only improve his two-day total by one shot, hence ensuring his exit at four-over-par for the week.

Arjun Atwal carded rounds of 75 and 74, while Digvijay Singh carded a 74 in the first round and followed it up with a 75. Both players were tied at five-over-par 149 for the tournament at the halfway stage.

Meanwhile, Gaganjeet Bhullar carded two consecutive 75s to miss the cut at six-over-par 150. On a day where consecutive rounds seemed to be the order, Himmat Rai carded a 77, following up on a similar score in the first round to finish down the leaderboard with a total of ten-over-par 154.

Lee Westwood, who has gone two years without winning a tournament, displayed his determination to win as he continued to lead at 13-under-par 131, three strokes clear of Antonio Luscana.

However, Spaniard Pablo Larrazabal made headlines after he had to jump into the lake on the fifth hole to get rid of hornets that attacked him while he was playing.

Mumbai, April 18
Former Test off spinner Shivlal Yadav, the Supreme Court-appointed interim president of the BCCI for non-IPL related matters, is to chair the Emergency Working Committee meeting of the Board here on Sunday.

“I will be chairing the meeting,” said Yadav when queried on the issue. The BCCI website indicated former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, the Supreme Court-appointed interim president for IPL-related matters, as the chairman of the Working Committee.

“I don't know whether he will be attending the meeting as he's in Dubai overseeing the organisation of IPL,” said the Hyderabad-based Yadav when prodded further. The future course of action of the BCCI in the wake of whatever had transpired in the Supreme Court's hearing on April 16 concerning the allegations of spot fixing and betting in the IPL is the item on the agenda, 57-year-old Yadav said.

The apex court had turned down N Srinivasan's fresh plea to return to the Board's helm of affairs and said the Chennai business tycoon cannot head the BCCI till he came out clean in a probe conducted against him and 12 others, including India-capped cricketers, whose names have been mentioned by Justice Mudgal Committee report in the IPL corruption scandal.

A bench of justices A K Patnaik and F M Ibrahim Kalifulla, however, had expressed reservations over a SIT or CBI probe, saying that institutional autonomy of the Board has to be maintained and a committee constituted by the BCCI to look into the issue would be preferred. — PTI

New Delhi, April 18
Neeraj Parasar (64kg) clinched a superb come-from-behind victory over Romania's Andrei Ninel Gheorghe to enter the quarterfinals even as the country's women pugilists bowed out of the World Youth Boxing Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria, on Friday.

Neeraj, the reigning national champion rallied to beat Gheorghe 2-1 in the pre-quarterfinal bout to bring some cheers into the Indian camp after three losses in the day. However, the other Indians in fray today disappointed. Sathish Kumar (56kg) lost 0-3 to Cuba's Javier Diaz Ibanez in the second round.

The women's challenge ended with both Jamuna Boro (60kg) and Manju Bombariya (75kg) losing their respective prequarterfinal bouts. — PTI

Rio De Janeiro, April 18
Brazil will spend USD 10.8 billion on infrastructure projects for the 2016 Rio Olympics in an effort to ensure South America`s first Games are delivered on time, organisers have announced.

The figure will take the total projected spending for the Olympics to 36.7 billion reais (USD 16.3 billion), exceeding the USD 15 billion cost (at today’s exchange rate) of the 2012 event in London.

Last week, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) drew up a list of urgent recommendations to revitalise flagging preparations after Francesco Ricci Bitti, the president of the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations sounded the alarm over slow progress. In addition, visiting Rio on March 21, IOC executive director Gilbert Felli had expressed concern at the lack of a detailed budget.

Despite the authorities moving to do just that the figure does not include 28 of 52 projects overall as laid down by the Public Olympic Authority (APO). These include the cost of the delayed Deodoro zone in the northwest of the city where 11 municipal facilities are projected to cost 900 million reais (USD 400 million) while the other 17 projects do not yet have a price tag.

With Brazil already having shelved a slew of urban mobility programs which had been slated to coincide with this year’s World Cup, Rio authorities, now investing 25 per cent more than planned in the 2016 event, are anxious to deliver on transport, a sector requiring major overhaul. — PTI

Shanghai, April 18
Lewis Hamilton returned Mercedes to the top of the timesheets on Friday by setting the fastest time in the second practice session for the Chinese Grand Prix.

Hamilton completed 25 laps of the 5.4 kilometre Shanghai International Circuit in the afternoon to end the day with a best time of one minute 38.315 seconds. His teammate Nico Rosberg was third, the German lapping four tenths of a second slower than Hamilton's benchmark at the circuit. — Agencies

Monte Carlo, April 18
David Ferrer defeated fellow Spaniard and World No. 1 Rafael Nadal 7-6 (7/1), 6-4 in a hotly disputed quarter-final at the Monte Carlo Masters on Friday. Ferrer, 32, who reached a career-high World No. 3 ranking last year, outlasted his rival and good friend in a marathon 75-minute first set to seize the advantage.

He then broke Nadal's serve twice to lead 5-2 before a lapse in concentration allowed the Mallorcan left-hander to claw his way back into the set.

However, on his second attempt to serve out for the match, Ferrer used a series of powerful baseline shots to keep Nadal pinned to the back of the court and closed out the victory on his first match point.

Nadal had reached the final in each of the last nine years — he won the tournament a record eight times in a row before losing last year's championship match in straight sets against Serbia's Novak Djokovic. Nadal's only other defeat in Monte Carlo dates back to 2003 when he was beaten in the third round by Argentine Guillermo Coria. Ferrer meanwhile ended a 10-game losing streak against Nadal, including the 2011 Monte Carlo final.

BRIEFLY

Abhijit Kunte shocks Ni Hua in Asian opener
Sharjah: Grandmaster and former national champion Abhijit Kunte scored a crushing victory over fifth seed Ni Hua of China in the first round of 13th Asian Continental chess championship on Friday. Kunte, who is fresh from a splendid show at the recently concluded Kolkata International open tournament, got off to a flier thanks to some imaginative display in the opening, and carried it well right till the end of the game at the Sharjah Chess club. The Catalan opening by the Indian led to a small advantage and some wily manoeuvres by Kunte forced Ni Hua to go on defensive. It was a relentless display by Kunte as he dominated with a passed pawn on a queen side and later took two pawns to the seventh rank to finish the game in 41 moves.

Arvind loses in semifinals of New Zealand Open
New Delhi: German Open champion Arvind Bhat today crashed out of the New Zealand Open after suffering a straight-game defeat to the top seed, Jen Hao Hsu of Chinese Taipei, in the semifinals of the USD 50,000 Grand Prix event in Auckland. The fifth seeded Indian went down 14-21 9-21 in a 33-minute contest. Arvind fought back from 2-5 to 6-6 in the first game but Jen broke off at 9-9 and never gave the Indian another chance to claw back.

Sushil, Yogeshwar skip Asian Championship again
New Delhi: Olympic heroes Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar have decided to skip the Senior Asian Championship for the second year running even as an upbeat Indian wrestling contingent is set to leave for the championship scheduled from April 22 to 27 in Astana, Kazakhstan. “The team is leaving for Astana in a couple of days, but Sushil and Yogeshwar will not be a part of the squad. Apart from them, all other top wrestlers of the country will participate in the competition,” said Raj Singh, Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) secretary. “There is no specific reason for the two opting out. They pick and choose their competitions,” he added.

Raj Singh chef-de-mission for Commonwealth Games
New Delhi: Wrestling Federation of India secretary general Raj Singh will serve as Chef-de-Mission for the Indian contingent at the Commonwealth Games to be held in Glasgow, Scotland from July 23 to August 3. Former international shooter Raja K S Sidhu has been named as his deputy, the IOA said in a release. As chef-de-mission, Raj Singh will be the Indian's team representative and spokesperson at the quadrennial event. Indian Kayaking and Canoeing Association president S Reghunathan will be the chairman of the Preparatory Committee for the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.

Lanka players asked to clear availability for England
Colombo: With the contract dispute between Sri Lanka Cricket and the players yet to resolved, the selectors have asked players to come clear on their availability for the forthcoming tour of Ireland and England. Chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya said the players had been asked to inform about their availability for the twin tours beginning May 6 and ending on June 28. Sri Lanka will engage Ireland in two ODIs in Dublin on May 6 and 8 before starting the England tour with two T20 matches.

Liverpool embark on title advance at Norwich
London: Liverpool visit Norwich City this weekend, determined to maintain focus on the task in hand despite growing national excitement about their bid to be crowned Premier League champions. Last weekend's pulsating 3-2 defeat of title rivals Manchester City left Brendan Rodgers's side two points above Chelsea at the summit and needing four wins to guarantee a first league title since 1990. It was Liverpool's 10th successive win and the thrilling nature of their late-season burst, coupled with the emotion generated by the 25th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster, has seen them cast as the neutrals' favourites.

French Open prize money goes up to $34.5 million
Paris: The prize money at the French Open will rise to more than 25 million euros ($34.5 million) this year, an increase of 3 million euros ($4.1 million) from last year. The men’s and women’s champions will receive 1.65 million euros each, 150,000 euros more than 2013, and losing finalists will receive 825,000 euros, a raise of 75,000 euros. Tournament Director and French Tennis Federation Director Gilbert Ysern says, “This notable increase in Roland Garros prize money is part of the plan that was put in place for 2013 until 2016.” There are also notable increases for losers in the second, third and fourth rounds. Last year, the prize money went up from 18.7 million euros to 22 million euros. The tournament begins on May 25.

Delhi Cricket Club register big victory
Chandigarh: Delhi Cricket Club beat Sunrises Cricket Club by five wickets in the first match of the first Under-19 Cricket Tournament organized by DelhiCricket Club on Friday. Batting first, Sunrises Cricket Club scored 214/5 in 30 overs. Yuvraj Singh played an unbeaten knock of 119 runs in 90 balls. Akash Yadav scored 37 runs in 58 balls. For Delhi boys, Sunmit Bhaskar and Sudhakar picked two wickets each. Delhi Cricket Club chased down the total in 29 overs. Gurkirat Singh scored 75 runs in 65 balls and Narender Kanyal hit 80 runs in 43 balls. Deepak also chipped in with 23 runs in 22 balls. For Sunrises, Himanshu and Kshitj Sharma took two wickets each. — Agencies