New Delhi, May 22
India created history today as the women's badminton team assured itself of a bronze medal after winning the quarterfinal against Indonesia 3-0 in the 25th edition of the Uber Cup at the Siri Fort Sports Complex, here.

The Indian women had lost to Indonesia in the quarterfinals in 2010, and failed to qualify for the knockout stage in the last edition in China. This time, however, they didn’t look in the mood to let the opportunity slip away again.

The shuttlers, led by World No.8 Saina Nehwal, produced an all-round display of methodical badminton to book a semi-final date with Japan on Friday.

Olympic bronze medallist Saina led India into the semi-finals with a remarkable come-from-behind victory over Lindaweni Fanetri to put the hosts ahead, 1-0.

World No.11 P V Sindhu then made it 2-0 after emerging victorious against Bellaetrix Manuputty in a marathon battle, which lasted one hour and 24 minutes.

Delhi Commonwealth Games gold medallist pair of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponappa too fired in the doubles competition, prevailing over Greysia Polii and Nitya Krishinda Maheshwari 21-18 21-18 to etch their names in the history books.

In the first singles, Saina produced one of the most sensational comebacks of her career when she rose like a phoenix from 7-15 down to first level the score at 16-16, and then surged ahead to 19-16. Saina moved well across the court, constructed points with a combination of long rallies and deft drops and engaged her rival in cross court winners.

At 7-15, one wouldn't have expected Saina to reel off nine consecutive points to level the scores, but the World No.8 gave glimpse of her grit and determination to make impressive inroads into her rival's game and emerge triumphant.

In the second game, the Hyderabadi shuttler did not give the Indonesian World No.23 much leeway and extracted point after point in a jiffy. Saina came out with all guns blazing against Fanetri. She moved well across the court and played an aggressive game to close out the tie in 45 minutes.

"She is a tricky player with good strokes at the net and hard smashes. So I was expecting a top fight. It takes time to catch up with her. Sometimes you don't start really well and today was that day. At the start, I was hurrying up a lot. But I got my focus back and in the second game she got tired. I just played my game without looking at points. It's always good to beat another top player," said Saina, summing up her win.

Sindhu strikes

The second singles between World No.11 Sindhu and World No.24 Manuputty left the vociferous crowd inside the Siri Fort spellbound. It was quality badminton from both the players, and they found themselves engaged in a tussle akin to a tug of war.

After pocketing the first game, Sindhu lost her focus in the next and the Indonesian girl pulled ahead after a long exchange and finished the set quickly with a drop shot at 21-10.

It was the decider which tested the grit and tenacity of both the players. Atmosphere became electrifying when shots from both the players got faster and the pair tumbled over quite a few times trying to retrieve the shuttle. Crowd cheered relentlessly for Sindhu as the 18-year-old Hyderabadi shuttler kept her nerve and won the tie 21-16, 10-21, 25-23 in one hour and 24 minutes.

Jwala-Ponnappa magic

In the first doubles, the 36th ranked pair of Jwala and Ashwini came out all guns blazing against the higher ranked opponents, World No.9 Polii and Krishinda, to beat them convincingly. As the game wore on, the Indian duo hit harder, engaged the rivals in long rallies, and also ensuring they were in position to unleash the baseline smashes.

"It was a very good win. We had to win somehow because we knew that the next singles and doubles match would be tough for us. We were defending really well and making some fine moves. Ashwini, who is not so good at soft strokes, played a smart game and delivered for the team. We will give our 100 per cent against Japan tomorrow in the semi-finals," said Jwala after her victory.

Results

Uber Cup: (India beat Indonesia 3-0) Saina Nehwal beat Lindaweni Fanetri 21-17 21-10; P V Sindhu beat Bellaetrix Manuputty 21-16 10-21 25-23; Jwala Gutta/Ashwini Ponappa beat Greysia Polii/Nitya Krishinda Maheswari 21-18 21-18)

Kolkata, May 22
The interim president of the BCCI-IPL, Sunil Gavaskar, on Thursday admitted that two cricketers had been approached by bookies during the tournament and the matter had been reported to the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit officials (ACSU). Gavaskar revealed this when specifically asked if any players had been approached for any fix/malpractice during this year’s IPL. Gavaskar answer was: “There have been a couple and it’s been reported to ACU. They are looking into it.”

Gavaskar also said that the issue regarding Brendon McCullum being approached by the bookies is something to be concerned about but assured that no leak of the cricketer’s discussions with the ACSU had happened from the IPL.

“I can assure you that the leak did not come from the IPL. I don’t know where it came from. It’s an issue to be concerned. I have to say we have got an Integrity Officer (IO) attached with every team this time. It has made it a lot easier for the players to communicate,” Gavaskar told the mediapersons.

“Sometimes (in the past), the players didn’t know what to do. Okay, there was a number to contact. But a lot of people (players) were thinking, ‘If you contact, does your number come under their list?’”

“The anonymity and confidentiality aspect was something the players were not sure about. Now with the IO attached with every team, it has become a lot easier. If there is an approach, people go and tell the officer so that he takes it forward.”

Gavaskar and his colleagues in the IPL Governing Council are trying to chalk up an elaborate roadmap in order to help young and talented cricketers handle their nascent careers, which can be derailed to the sudden stardom and money.

“I called up Sachin, Rahul, VVS and Anil Kumble – the four legends of the game — maybe only the second day after taking over. They are contemporary cricketers, they know the current pressures, tensions and situations. We had a tremendous interaction. One of the things that came through was that a lot youngsters need to be guided on how to go about handling their careers,” Gavaskar stated.

McCullum disappointed at leaks, has no regrets

Christchurch: New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum says he has never been involved in matchfixing and is “very disappointed” his testimony to an International Cricket Council corruption probe had been leaked to the media. “Let me be clear I have never ever fixed a cricket match,” McCullum said in a statement before he appeared at a media conference in Christchurch on Thursday. “I am 100 percent behind the fight against corruption in the sport.”

McCullum reported the approaches to the ICC's Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU). ICC chief executive Dave Richardson said on Wednesday he deeply regretted McCullum's statements being leaked to the media.

“With regards to my testimony and the fact it has been aired in public I'm obviously very disappointed about that,” McCullum told reporters. “I can't go into the specifics of what's going into the investigation or my involvement in it ... but I will continue to fulfil my role in the investigation.” McCullum said he “no regrets” in making his statements and still had faith in the people he dealt with at the ACSU. — Agencies

Ranchi, May 22
David Warner pulverized a listless Chennai Super Kings attack into submission with some breathtaking strokeplay as Sunrisers Hyderabad won by six wickets to keep slim chances of qualifying for the IPL play-offs alive.

Courtesy Warner’s 45-ball-90 and an equally effective unbeaten 64 off 49 balls from Shikhar Dhawan, Sunrisers crossed the mark with two balls to spare taking their points tally to 12 with a match still left. However, if Rajasthan Royals win their next match and take their points tally to 16, Sunrisers' last game will be rendered inconsequential. — PTI

Scoreboard

Chennai Super Kings:

Smith lbw b Sharma 47 (28)

Du Plessis run out 19 (11)

Raina c Finch b Sharma 4 (7)

Hussey not out 50 (33)

Dhoni not out 57 (41)

Extras (lb 7, w 1) 8

Total (3 wickets; 20 overs) 185

Fall of wickets: 1-33, 2-68, 3-77

Bowling:
B Kumar 4-0-36-0
Steyn 4-0-43-0
K Sharma 4-0-19-2
Rasool 4-0-35-0
Pathan 3-0-34-0
Sammy 1-0-11-0

Sunrisers Hyderabad:

Warner b Hastings 90 (45)

Dhawan not out 64 (49)

Ojha c Negi b Raina 19 (18)

Finch run out 7 (3)

Sammy c du Plessis b Jadeja 0 (3)

Venugopal not out 4 (1)

Extras (lb 1, w 3, nb 1) 5

Total (4 wickets; 19.4 overs) 189

Fall of wickets: 1-116, 2-168, 3-176, 4-184

Bowling:
M Sharma 3-0-33-0
Ashwin 4-0-29-0
Hastings 3-0-29-1
Jadeja 3.4 -0-42-1
Negi 4-0-38-0
Raina 2-0-17-1

MOM: David Warner

Kolkata, May 22
Kolkata Knight Riders continued to sizzle with Robin Uthappa and Sunil Narine playing leading roles as they booked the IPL playoff berth after shutting doors on Royal Challengers Bangalore with a 30-run victory at the Eden Gardens today.

Continuing his dream run, Uthappa played the sheet anchor role in his unbeaten 83 from 51 balls (10x4, 1x6) in a 121-run partnership off 70 balls with Shakib Al Hasan (60 from 38 balls) to help KKR post a towering 195/4.

This was Uthappa's fifth half-century this season as with a tally of 572 runs, the KKR opener usurped the Orange Cap from Glen Maxwell (533), who was holding on to the pole since the start of season seven in Abu Dhabi on April 16.

Defending the massive total, off-spinner Sunil Narine joined the party and executed the role of wrecker-in-chief to perfection, grabbing 4/20 to hand KKR their sixth successive win, a milestone they had only achieved in their triumphant 2012 season.

After Umesh Yadav gave the breakthrough removing Chris Gayle (6), who got out to a dubious lbw decision, Yogesh Takawale and Virat Kohli kept RCB in the hunt in their must-win match with an 85-run partnership but Narine struck twice in his third over scalping both the dangerman to keep them in check.

He returned the same way in his fourth over, this time claiming another two prized sclaps of Yuvraj Singh (22) and AB de Villiers (13) to turn the match around.

KKR were reduced to 56/3 in the seventh over at the sun bathed Eden Gardens after Virat Kohli put the home team up front but Uthappa defied the heat to take the attack to the opposition. — PTI

Scoreboard

Kolkata Knight Riders:
Uthappa not out 83 (51)
Gambhir c Takawale b Starc 4 (4)
Pandey c Starc b Dinda 13 (12)
Pathan run out 22 (13)
Shakib b Ahmed 60 (38)
Doeschate not out 6 (3)
Extras (b 1, lb 1, w 4, nb 1) 7
Total (4 wickets; 20 overs) 195
Fall of wickets: 1-5, 2-23, 3-56, 4-177
Bowling:
Starc 4-0-32-1
Dinda 4-0-38-1
Ahmed 4-0-33-1
Muralitharan 2-0-19-0
Yuvraj 2-0-21-0
Chahal 4-0-50-0

Royal Challengers:
Gayle lbw b Yadav 6 (9)
Takawale b Narine 45 (36)
Kohli c Morkel b Narine 38 (31)
Yuvraj c Vinay b Narine 22 (12)
De Villiers b Narine 13 (130
Rana not out 19 (12)
Starc not out 12 (8)
Extras (lb 8, w 1, nb 1) 10
Total (5 wickets; 20 overs) 165
Fall of wickets: 1-7, 2-92, 3-93, 4-129, 5-133
Bowling:
Morkel 4-0-21-0
Yadav 4-0-45-1
Narine 4-0-20-4
V Kumar 4-0-44-0
Shakib 4-0-27-0

Chandigarh, May 22
One would expect any team to be a little wary of facing Kings XI Punjab, the form team of this season, given how their batsmen have dismantled the bowling attack of all their opponents.

Rajasthan Royals, who face Kings XI on Friday, too have suffered at the hands of the big-hitting Kings XI batsmen, especially Glenn Maxwell, in their previous encounter.

Yet, there seems no hangover of that drubbing on the Royals. “In T20 it’s all about the day. If things start going your way, you can run away with the game. The Kings XI of course have an attacking batting line-up, but then we know what happened in the last game against Mumbai... They couldn’t get going,” said Vikramjeet Malik, a medium-pacer in the Royals’ squad.

The point the pacer was trying to drive home was that T20 is a matter of chance, and any team could win or lose on any given day.

While that’s largely true, it would be a unfair to attribute Kings XI’s amazing run to chance alone. Their success has come on the back of some amazing knocks by Glenn Maxwell and David Miller, and then the likes of Virender Sehwag, Manan Vohra and Wriddhiman Saha too have made their presence felt.

And thanks to their batsmen blowing away the opponents, Kings XI are already in the play-offs. For Royals, though, a lot is riding on this game. Currently positioned 4th, they desperately need a win to nail a play-off spot. And they would want to settle the issue on Friday itself, for leaving it for the last game could push them into a tight spot.

New Delhi, May 22
Delhi Daredevils, who are already out of the reckoning for this year's Indian Premier League playoffs, have performed below par for the major part of their campaign, feels the team's top run-getter Jean-Paul Duminy.

“We need to put in a big performance (tomorrow against Mumbai Indians). We know we were below par for at least 10 games. We have nothing to lose and will go out and give it our best shot,” said the South African batsman.

“We have done well in patches. It's about putting good performance, in terms of the whole game, together. We have done only one thing right at most times. If we had batted well, we had not bowled well and if we bowled well we had not bat well in that game. If we can get all three disciplines (including fielding) right we would give ourselves a good chance,” he said. — PTI

Patiala, May 22
What was believed to be the best bout of the day at the Commonwealth Games trials turned out to be a nightmare in its last few seconds for Preeti Beniwal (60 kg) as the doctor announced her unfit for the bout and declared her opponent, Pavitra, the winner. Preeti insisted on boxing on, saying that she was perfectly fine, but the doctors maintained that she was not fit, and this led to a complete chaos in the ring.

Challenging the decision, Preeti’s father Sube Singh, a boxing coach in Haryana, said it was an attempt by the selectors to oust his daughter as they wanted someone else in the CWG team.

The argument got heated up, with Preeti refusing to leave the ring and her father also stepping inside and refusing to leave. Blaming the selection committee, he said, “I have been witnessing this since years now but have somehow kept quiet, but we cannot take it any more.”

A senior coach, requesting anonymity, said: “When there were only a few seconds left for the bout to finish, they should have allowed Preeti to play as her injury was not that serious.”

However, an executive member of AIBA, Kishen Narsi, said it was a medical decision which can’t be challenged. “The bout was stopped by the doctor as he thought the injury could be vision impairing. He could not let the child take the risk. Still, we are consulting an international doctor for further opinion,” he added.

Vijender rocks

Olympic medallist Vijender Singh once again proved his mettle with his usual poise, relaxed attitude and confidence as he drubbed his opponent, Jagat Singh, who literally struggled to connect his punches. 

CWG Trials: Results

Men: Shiva Thapa bt V. Durga Rao, Hasumuddin bt Aman Indora (56 kg); Rohit Tokas bt Dheeraj, Akhil Kumar bt Vikas Malik (60 kg); Mandeep Jangra bt Vijay, Manjit bt Jaideep (64 kg); Vikas Krishnan bt Sukhdeep, Vijender bt Jagat Singh (75 kg); Dinesh Kumar bt Manpreet Singh, Amritpreet Singh bt Jasveer Singh (91 kg); Satish Kumar bt KP Singh, Praveen bt Narender (+91 kg)

Women: MC Mary Kom bt Vanlal Duati, Pinki Rani bt Sonia Lather (51 kg); L Sarita Devi bt Pwilao Busamatary, Pavitra defeated Preeti Beniwal (60 kg); Pooja Rani bt Seema Poonia, Neetu Chahal bt Monika Sauna (75 kg)

Chandigarh, May 22
The hype around the World Cup is gradually building up, and the Jalandhar sports goods industry too is trying to cash in. In the run-up to the event, the Indian sports good industry has exported footballs worth Rs 29 lakh to Brazil. Conventionally, Austaralia, Ireland , Hungary, Europe, New Zealand are big markets for Jalandhar-made products. Rattan Brothers, a manufacturer, claims to have exported 80,000 pieces till April end. “We still had orders for 70,000 balls but we can’t deliver it on time so we have restricted ourselves to 25,000 balls in the next one month,” said Tilak Sinder, export director, Rattan Brothers.

Industry sources say two big multinationals have placed bulk orders for their promotional campaigns in Jalandhar as it is the main manufacturer of footballs, far ahead of ahead of Meerut.

Tarun Dewan, executive director of the Sports Goods Export Promotion Council, said: “As per our records the export of inflatable balls to Brazil between Oct 2013 to March 2014 has been Rs 29 lakh.” There are seven manufacturers — four from Jalandhar and three from Meerut — who have taken orders to suppbly balls for promotional campaigns etc in Brazil only.

Rattan Brothers was the only manufacturer from India to export footballs for promotional events in the 2010 World Cup. This time four more manufacturers have sprung up in the city.

“It is not a very profitable deal but helps in expanding business, and if you deliver a quality product on time you can bag new orders,” said another manufacturer, not wishing to be named.

In 2011 when Lionel Messi came to India for Argentina vs Venezuela friendly, Jalandhar-based Freewill Sports Pvt Ltd provided the match ball. Khel Udyog Sangh president Ravinder Dheer said, “Such events galvanise demand, which is a good sign. This year also we are seeing the same effect.”

New York, May 22
Serena Williams can match Steffi Graf’s record of 22 Grand Slam titles and is favourite to take another step towards that milestone at next week’s French Open, according to Chris Evert.

World No. 1 Williams, 32, has 17 singles majors on her CV and if she retains her French Open title she would join Evert and Martina Navratilova in second place on the list. Despite being the wrong side of 30, Evert believes Williams is still improving on clay and is now prioritising Grand Slams.

“I think she’s peaked pretty well for the French Open,” Evert said. “I think her priorities really are the Grand Slams this year. She knows what her place in history is now.” — Reuters

BRIEFLY

AIBA jabs at IOA secretary for not being truthful
New Delhi: Furious with the Indian Olympic Association Secretary General Rajeev Mehta, the International Boxing Association today said his claims that the IOA was not kept in the loop while approving the group to run Indian boxing were “ill-informed” and created a “misunderstanding”. “AIBA would like to correct ill-informed comments made by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) Secretary General Rajeev Mehta following the approval of Boxing India as provisional new AIBA member,” the AIBA said in a statement. “AIBA president Ching-Kuo Wu and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president, N Ramachandran, met in Lausanne to discuss issues related to boxing in India. AIBA received full support from the IOA with regards to the selection of the new AIBA member for India,” AIBA said.

Tadvi wins silver on Day 2 of Youth Oly qualifier
Bangkok: Distance runner Kisan Tadvi won a silver in boys' 3000m race as India bagged just one medal on the second and concluding day of the 2014 Youth Olympics Asian Area Athletics Qualification event on Thursday. Tadvi clocked 8 minutes 27.87 seconds to settle for a silver behind Bahrain's Abdo Abdi Ibrahim (8:26.39). China's Liu Hongliang was third in 8:33.46. The Indians had bagged four medals yesterday, including a gold from Ajay Kumar Saroj who won the boys' 1,500m race.

Ankita enters ITF singles quarters, doubles finals
New Delhi: India's number one singles player Ankita Raina enjoyed a superb day at the USD 25,000 ITF women's event as she reached the singles quarterfinals and the doubles final with Omani partner Fatma Al Nabhani, on Thursday. The Indian rallied to beat China's Yuxuan Zhang 4-6 6-4 6-1 in the second round of the hard court tournament at the Tianjin International Tennis Center. Ankita then qualified for her second doubles final of the season and first ever doubles final abroad in a USD 25,000 event when he along with Fatma upset fourth seeds Wen-Hsin Hsu from Taipei and Chen Liang from China 6-2 6-2. Ankita and Fatma dropped serve early to be down 0-2 but reeled off 11 games in a row to not only pocket the first set but also take a commanding 5-0 lead in the second. They lost one serve but easily clinched the issue. Ankita now has opportunity to win her second doubles title of the season, having won the USD 10,000 Aurangabad event with compatriot Prarthana Thombare in January. — Agencies