L Devendro Singh and Paddy Barnes of Northern Ireland, having gone at each other with primeval ferocity for nine minutes, trying to knock each other's head off, fell into an embrace of brothers. The fierceness of the contest, the aggression, was over. The gold medal bout was over. They were again the pals they became two years ago, when they trained together in Belfast.

The light-flyweights (49kg) are the quickest of the boxers; they throw their punches with lightning speed, and they need to duck and weave to evade the rain of punches coming their way.

Today, Barnes did it better that Devendro, but only just. Two years ago, they had fought during the London Olympics - that was a very close bout, Barnes barely winning it. Devendro is ranked No. 3 in the world in the 49kg category; Barnes is ranked No. 3 in the world in the 53kg category, for he fought in that weight division last year, and had to lose weight to drop a division. Both ranked No. 3, and both were almost equals tonight.

The three judges gave the first two rounds to the Irishman, 10-9 and 10-9; the Indian got the third round by a split decision - two judges voting 10-9 for him, the third one giving it to Barnes 10-9.

"I took a lot of hard blows from him today too," Barnes, speaking in his very thickly accented inner Belfast accent, told this correspondent later. "I knew he's a very difficult opponent, and I won a very close bout today. He showed why he's ranked No. 3 in the world. I think he's going to have a great career in the future."

Devendro came off the ring smiling, too. There are several challenges that have blocked his way since the two fought in the Olympics in 2012. "We've trained together in the past, and here we met up and had a brief chat," Devendro said later. "But then, inside the ring, there's no friend!"

The fact that the Indian boxing federation was suspended by the international governing body meant that the Indian boxers haven't had much practice. "You know, it's very difficult to prepare a boxer for these competitions if you can only pitch these boxers against domestic level competitors at home," Gurbax Singh Sandhu, the Indian boxing coach, said later. "But I'm very happy with the way Devendro boxed today!"

Akashdeep Singh (C) celebrates a goal with Manpreet Singh (L) during their semifinal clash against New Zealand in Glasgow on Saturday.

Glasgow, August 2
Four minutes before the end of play, leading 3-2, it seemed the time was just ripe for another heartbreak, another hard-luck story for the Indian hockey. It seemed that circumstances were conspiring to create the perfect tragedy for India — Sardar Singh, the captain and the inspirational leader, was banned for this match.

India conceded a goal in the second minute of the game, and then were down 0-2 after the 18th. It was wet, cold and blustery, and the Indian players seemed cold and miserable. But they fought back hard, scored three in a row — one in the first half, two in the second — and looked strong going into the final minutes of the game.

Then, four minutes before time, Manpreet Singh received a yellow card — he was out for the rest of the game. It seemed that a cruel twist of fate was coming India’s way, after all. New Zealand had 11 men against nine of India for four minutes. New Zealand pressed hard, but the Indian defence wasn’t breached.

As rain felt lightly at the Glasgow National Hockey Centre, India didn’t have to shed tears, after all. It wasn’t the familiar old tale of late hard luck. India won the semifinal 3-2, and are through to the final — where Australia are waiting. It would be a completely different level of opposition, a much higher degree of struggle than today.

The absence of Sardar Singh, and the terrible beginning, conceding a goal in the second minute, could have broken the team. For many months, India’s chief coach has said that the team is steadily improving, and today was one huge test they faced, against a team ranked No. 6 in the world — India are No. 9. He was delighted that Indians came through today’s challenge with honour.

New Zealand took early possession and 96 seconds into the game, they scored.

Indian attempts to level the scores were met with tight defending by the New Zealanders. It got worse when, in the 18th minute, New Zealand were awarded a penalty corner. Nick Haig’s first attempt, a drag-flick, was blocked; he got the ball back on the rebound and this time, a falling Sreejesh failed to parry the ball. 2-0 to New Zealand.

India fought hard and finally, in the 28th minute, they earned a penalty corner. R Raghunath struck the drag-flick, Dean Couzins managed to prevent the ball from going in — but with his body rather than his stick. Penalty shot ordered — Rupinder Singh, stand-in captain in the absence of Sardar, hit the ball into the bottom corner.

India attacked with increasing confidence and urgency in the second half; in the 42nd minute, Ramandeep Singh came up with a touch of brilliance. Manpreet Singh had sent the ball down the middle into the D; Ramandeep deftly deflected the ball in with a flick of his stick — 2-2.

India completed the good work when in the 47th minute, Akashdeep Singh got the ball in the circle and, with a stunning movement, shot the it into the top of the goal with a reverse-flick even as he fell, diving. India created moves thereafter, but also defended strongly. They held on.

“This win is dedicated to Sardar, we wanted to win this for him,” Ramandeep said later. Next up are Australia, who beat England today.

Glasgow, August 2
Dipika Pallikal and Joshana Chinappa, India’s squash supergirls, have won gold in the women’s doubles event. It’s a historic first-ever gold for India in squash in the Commonwealth Games, and they beat a British pair in the final — this last fact made the win very special. The two are delighted, but they’re not over the moon.

They wonder if the win registers even minimally in the Indian sports fan’s consciousness; they fear that once the euphoria of the “historic first” is over, squash would remain marginalised and anonymous.

Jenny Duncalf and Laura Massaro of England may both be over 30, but they have some other right numbers with them. They were the top seeds here in the doubles competition. Jenny was the world No. 2 in the singles in 2009, while Laura is actually the current world No. 2. Combined, they’re 61 years old — but they also have a total of 23 singles title. They’re that good. Beating them, before a crowd that was predominantly supporting the Englishwomen.

Yet, it turned out to be a rout — the Indians won 11-6, 11-8 in barely 28 minutes.

In the first game, the Englishwomen won the first point, but once the Indian girls got on the board, Dipika and Joshana never lost the lead. It was neck-and-neck until 5-4 in the game, but Jenny and Laura could win only two of the next seven points to lose the game in just 11 minutes. The second game was two minutes longer, but this went a bit differently — the Englishwomen had opened up a 7-2 lead, and the two Indians showed great mental strength as they allowed their opponents just one more point after that, wrapping up the game 11-8 before an audience that was vociferously supportive of the Englishwomen at the Scotstoun Arena here.

That was the kind of support Dipika and Joshana can only dream about. They know that gold won’t change much for squash.

“We don’t get any recognition,” Dipika said later. “Squash is a fringe sport, but I’m hoping that this win will do some good for the sport. I hope it will attract more sponsors and better infrastructure. So, this gold is not just for the country, it’s for the whole fraternity!”

“The sport has really come up over the years but there’s little exposure,” Joshana added. “But this is a historic feat, this should not just fade away.”

The Englishwomen said they knew that the Indians were dangerous opponents, and conceded that they were the better pair today. “We knew they were dangerous, and today they were a bit more positive than us today,” Jenny said. “Both of them have good court awareness, and they really work well together — they have good hands, they have pace and they have good hitting. Congratulations to them.”

Laura was left regretting letting go the lead in the second game. She said that the Indians adapted well to their own tactics. “We changed our tactics at the end of the first game, and that took them a little by surprise,” she said. “But they adapted and we didn’t adapt quickly enough. In doubles, it can end very quickly and there is a lot of pace in the game.”

Dipika and Joshana want to win more in singles — but the doubles gold is a golden bonus. They’re basking in the glory, as long as it lasts.

Hoshiarpur, August 2
Much to the joy of budding football players in Punjab, former national league champions JCT are all set to revive their football team after a gap of three years.

JCT, who had dissolved their football team in 2011, today announced that they will re-enter the I League fray with a second division team. “We have decided to bring back our football team,” JCT Ltd Chairman Sameer Thapar said. “We have also decided to establish a football academy in collaboration with Arsenal Soccer Schools and India On Track (IOT),” added Thapar.

The academy will come up at JCT Complex in Hoshiarpur and will initially induct 60 trainees in the age group of 10-16 years.

“We are excited to work at the grassroots level. Together with IOT, we want to nurture talent in the region,” Thapar said.

Thapar added that JCT will use the expertise of IOT-Arsenal Soccer Schools to run the team professionally.

Thapar, who’s also president of the Punjab Football Association (PFA) said that PFA has changed the format of the Punjab State Super Football League which commences on August 25.

He said that from this year, a total of 56 matches would be played in different cities. JCT will play a pivotal role by providing necessary funding and introducing attractive prize money, Thapar added. “The champion team would receive Rs 4.40 lakh, the runners-up team would receive Rs 3.30 lakh and the second runners-up would receive Rs 2.20 lakh.”

The inaugural match of this league, between Punjab Police and BSF, will be held at Guru Gobind Singh Stadium on 25th August.

Glasgow, August 2
P Kashyap stood just a win away from a historic gold while PV Sindhu and RMV Gurusaidutt managed a bronze each in the badminton competition of the Commonwealth Games.

Delhi Games gold medallist pair of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa too were on course to defend their women’s doubles title after winning their last-four match at the Emirates Arena.

World No. 22 Kashyap played out of his skin to avenge his loss to England’s Rajiv Ouseph, who had beaten him at the 2010 Delhi Games and also dumped him during the mixed team event here. In an energy-sapping one hour and 23 minute match, Kashyap bounced back from a game down to edge out world No. 26 Ouseph 18-21 21-17 21-18 and assure himself of at least a silver medal.

Jwala and Ashwini notched up an easy 21-7 21-12 win over Lai Pei Jing and Loo Yin Lim. The duo will take on world No. 18 Malaysian combo of Vivian Kah Mun Hoo and Khe Wei Woon in the final.

However, it turned out to be a bitter-sweet day for top seed Sindhu, who is playing her first Commonwealth Games, as she suffered a heartbreaking loss in the women’s semifinal match to Michelle Li of Canada, settling for a bronze in the end. After going down fighting to Michelle 22-20 22-20 in the last-four encounter, a crestfallen Sindhu managed to get her act together to beat Malaysia’s Jing Yi Tee 23-21 21-9 in a 34-minute bronze medal contest.

Gurusaidutt, too, earned India a bronze later in the day when he eked out a hard-fought 21-15 14-21 21-19 win over Ouseph. Guru had lost 21-16 19-21 15-21 to Derek Wong of Singapore in his semifinal.

The highlight of the day for India was Kashyap’s gritty performance against Ouseph, which conjured up hopes of seeing an Indian male shuttler winning a gold for the first time in 32 years.

“He is a very tricky player and we have played against each other earlier. He is one player who can take four-five points on a stretch. He keeps on coming and retrieving the shuttle,” Kashyap said after the win. “My tactic was to keep him engaged in a long rally and see if he commits mistakes. It was about who cracks under pressure first. I could not keep him on long rallies in the first game but was able to do it in the second and third.” — PTI

New Delhi, August 2
Tennis ace Leander Paes will spearhead the Indian challenge at the Incheon Asian Games as the national selectors today named a 12-member contingent for the September 19 to October 4 quadrennial event.

All India Tennis Association (AITA) also picked established stars Somdev Devvarman, Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza to lend stability to the squad. The men’s team also includes Yuki Bhambri, Saketh Myneni and Sanam Singh while Divij Sharan has been kept as a reserve.

In the women’s section, Ankita Raina, Prarthana Thombare, Natasha Palha, Sneha Devi Reddy, Rishika Sunkara and Shweta Rana have been selected. Anand Amritraj has been named captain of the men’s team while Sania’s mother Nasima will lead the women’s team. Zeeshan Ali is the coach and Vece Paes the team doctor.

Somdev had won the gold in the singles competition in the last edition of the Asian Games held at Guangzhou.

Manchester, August 2
Ishant Sharma has been ruled out of the fourth Test and Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s ankle is resting in an ice bucket. That, and the fact that India need to win another Test match to win the series, could well be a blessing in disguise for MS Dhoni.

While Dhoni was pro-active in the first two Tests by playing a fifth bowler, he seemed to be back to his conservative self in the third Test match, once India had claimed the series lead. He opted to sit on the lead by playing an extra batsman, a decision that he defended rather naively in the press conference.

But now, with the Indian bowling stocks falling due to injuries, the Indian captain’s choice is restricted. From the outset, the Indian skipper has been reluctant to play his off-spin bowler, Ravichandran Ashwin. But due to the heavy workload on the fast bowlers, the inclusion of Ashwin in the XI could now have become mandatory.

Given Dhoni’s preference for spinners who turn the ball away from the batsmen, it is a mystery why Ashwin has been omitted — England have six left-handers. While Ashwin’s record outside the Subcontinent is dreadful, the fact of the matter is that with a dry summer being forecast, the pitches are likely to aid turn. This was proven by Rangana Herath of Sri Lanka earlier in the summer.

Had India managed to draw the third Test, it could have led to Dhoni persisting with a conservative strategy of playing four bowlers. Now with the need to win another Test, Dhoni could well have a positive mindset in all aspects — from team selection to strategies to attitude.

Since arriving on these shores, Dhoni has been desperate to overturn India’s poor record outside the Subcontinent. The Indian captain adopted an affirmative approach and was rewarded with a victory in London. The minute he turned unadventurous, it backfired in his face. The gamble he took needs to be revisited.

In hindsight, the third Test loss and the injuries will persuade the India captain to be an assertive leader once again. The defeat in Southampton was probably a blessing in disguise. 

New Delhi, August 2
Left red-faced after the ICC ICC judicial commissioner Gordon Lewis found England seamer James Anderson “not guilty” of pushing Ravindra Jadeja during the Trent Bridge Test, the BCCI has gone a bit on the backfoot as they are yet to decide on their next course of action.

“We are expected to receive a detailed copy of the order that was passed by the Judicial Commissioner either by today or tomorrow. We will only be able to take a call in this regard after receiving the Order copy,” BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel said. — PTI

BRIEFLY

Darwin (Australia)
Rishi, Akshar lead India ‘A’ to series victory
Rishi Dhawan (56) and Akshar Patel (45) put up a splendid rearguard action under pressure as India ‘A’ clinched the Quadrangular series with a narrow four-wicket win over Australia ‘A’ here today. Chasing 275, India ‘A’ were in a spot of bother after losing their top-order for a mere 51 runs and then reeling at 182 for six but Dhawan and Patel combined for a match-winning 93-run stand for the unbeaten seventh wicket. Dhawan scored 56 off 55 balls while Patel hit 45 off 38 balls as India ‘A’ chased the target with just eight balls to spare. Before that stand, Kedar Jadhav (78 off 73) and Manoj Tiwary (50 off 75) had kept the Indian team in the hunt with their fighting half-centuries before being scalped by Ben Cutting (3/46).

Brief Scores: Australia ‘A’: 274/5 (White 137, Huges 51; Kulkarni 3/51); India ‘A’: 275/6 in 48.4 overs (Jadhav 78, Dhawan 56*; Cutting 3/46).

Stanford (USA)
Serena in Stanford last four, Venus exits
Serena Williams came from a set down to book her place in the Stanford Classic semi-finals with a hard-earned 2-6 6-3 7-5 win against fifth-seeded Serb Ana Ivanovic on Friday. Serena, whose sister Venus was beaten in three sets by Germany’s Andrea Petkovic earlier in the day, initially struggled on a fast playing surface but gradually found her range to seal victory in just under two hours. — Agencies

Washington 
Canadian Raonic uses big serve to beat Johnson
Second seed Milos Raonic relied on his powerful serve to blast his way through his quarter-final match against American Steve Johnson at the Citi Open in Washington on Friday. Wimbledon semifinalist Raonic took a while to get going but was unstoppable once he found top gear, pounding down 16 aces to beat the unseeded Johnson 7-6(2) 6-2. The Canadian will meet another unseeded American, Donald Young, in a semifinal after Young upset South African Kevin Anderson 3-6 7-6(3) 6-2. — Agencies