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It’s payback time for India
Put managers back in squad, IOA requests Ministry
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Chucking: ICC going hi-tech
Upset with draw, Pallikal slams organisers
Indian eves continue dismal show at World C'ship
Chaos mars BI election
EPL: Arsenal take on Man City
JCT pip CRPF 2-0, BSF beat Dalbir FA 2-1
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It’s payback time for India
Bangalore, september 11 India last qualified for the elite 16-nation Group in 2010 but were knocked out in the first round by this very Serbian team the next year in Novi Sad, where the visitors suffered a 1-4 rout. Now is the payback time but it is easier said than done. Despite the absence of Djokovic, Janko Tipsarevic and Victor Troicki, the visiting side poses a serious challenge to India, whose players are struggling on the circuit of late. India's top singles player Somdev Devvarman has had forgettable last six months during which he struggled to cross the first and second rounds on the ATP circuit. On the other side, Dusan Lajovic, who will spearhead Serbia's singles challenge, is in great shape having played top-tier tournaments with reasonable success. The world No. 61 has lost only four matches where he was competing against players, ranked lower than him. Most of his defeats have come when he was contended by players ranked between 30 and 40. Somdev, though, is coming into the tie match-sharp after reaching both singles and doubles finals of the Shanghai Challenger. He has spent considerable hours on court while competing and his ability to stretch his opponents is beyond doubt. At Davis Cup, Somdev has always come up with his best and India would hope that he manages to give them one point on Friday. He had lost against Lajovic when they competed last year in Italy but that was on clay, a surface which suited Lajovic more than the Indian. India must target Serbia's second singles player Filip Krajinovic, ranked 107. If Somdev and Yuki Bhambri can tame the 22-year-old, India have a golden opportunity to re-enter World Group. Krajinovic is also a tough customer with two Challenger titles to show this season and a couple of good performances at the top level but he is one link India could hope to break. Yuki, who began the season well by winning the Chennai challenger, missed the good part of the calendar due to a heel injury. He has not played many matches after his comeback in late July and it remains to be seen how he fares now. However, with an expected full house at KSLTA Stadium cheering on Somdev and Yuki, the Serbians are sure to feel the heat. If Krajonovic can be defeated on the opening day, India will have the opportunity to take the lead on the second day when Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna will clash with Nenad Zimonjic and Illija Bozolzac. The presence of Paes, the most successful player in the history of Indian tennis, is a boost for India but it remains to be seen how he combines again with Bopanna as they have not played together for long. Zimonjic and Bozolzac had beaten the formidable pairing of the legendary Mike and Bob Bryan in Serbia's 2013 Davis Cup campaign even as later they had lost to Canada and the Czech Republic. Zimonjic has played with Paes as a partner on the circuit and had a phenomenal 2005 when they won two titles and reached the final of three other apart from ending runners-up at the year-end finals. “I have played against both Leander and Rohan. Both are great players. It will be tough for sure,” he said. — PTI The Draw * Friday (singles): Yuki Bhambri vs Dusan Lajovic (3 pm); Somdev Devvarman vs Filip Krajinovic. * Saturday (doubles): Leander Paes/Rohan Bopanna vs Nenad Zimonjic/Ilija Bozoljac, from 6.30 pm. * Sunday (reverse singles): Devvarman vs Lajovic, (4 pm), followed by Bhambri vs Krajinovic. ‘Doubles can’t win you Davis Cup match’Former India ace Vijay Amritraj today disagreed with the country's top singles player Somdev Devvarman's take that India's Davis Cup chances against the mighty Serbia will hinge on the doubles pair of Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna. “Let me put it this way. You cannot win a Davis Cup tie solely depending on doubles. You would rather lose 1-4! But you can win a Davis Cup match with good singles performance. There are four singles matches. The bottomline is you have to win three out of five rubbers. It doesn't matter how you do it,” said Amritraj. “I think the key element will be winning one of the first two singles on the first day. We have to win one of those ... which I think we can,” he said. On Yuki Bhambri playing the first singles, Amritraj said he would have ideally wanted Somdev to play the first match and beat Serbia's No 2 player. “I would have loved to see Som playing the first match and we go up 1-0. That would have been the ideal script I would have liked to write.” ‘Tennis is slowing down, becoming boring’ Slobodan Zivojinovic, the first Serb to become a global tennis star, says nothing could have been better for the game than Marin Cilic and Kei Nishikori competing for the US Open title since the modern game has been deprived of “action” due to the top four's domination. Zivojinovic, known as Bobo, was a true entertainer in his days. His Australian Open quarterfinal win over American great John McEnroe in 1985 is still a part of tennis folklore. He first came to India in 1988 when he beat Ramesh Krishnan and Vijay Amritraj for Yugoslavia's 3-2 win in a Davis Cup tie. And now he is traveling with the visiting Serbian tie, starting tomorrow. Zivojonovic says dominance of the top-four in the last few years made the game predictable, which was not good for the sport. “World is getting faster and faster, you have sports with more action. If you don't see action, young kids do not like it. They go for extreme sports. Every match is the same. Time to time, you see them doing well. The top-four guys were there for years in Grand Slam finals, so nothing is new. It's getting boring. Tennis is slowing down, there is no action. If you break the racquet, you get penalties,” he rued indicating that the game needs characters to draw the attention of new audience.
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Put managers back in squad, IOA requests Ministry
New Delhi, September 11 “Nothing can be done to the list as it has been cleared by the PMO. This is the final list as the Sports Ministry has also refused the IOA and NSFs' request to send managers at their own cost,” a top SAI official told The Tribune. A senior IOA official said that coaches cannot perform the duties of managers and athletes might end up facing difficulties. “Why can't the Ministry allow us to send managers and the team doctors for the tennis contingent at our own cost? Coaches can't double up as managers as there are some functions which only a manager can perform,” IOA official told The Tribune. Meanwhile, the names of Naseema Mirza and team doctor for tennis contingent, Vece Paes, could be dropped from the list of officials after seasoned stars Leander Paes, Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna opted out of the quadrennial event to concentrate on the ATP and WTA Tour events. The All India Tennis Association's (AITA) failure to inform the Sports Ministry and SAI about their withdrawal before finalising the Asian Games list has left the two bodies shocked. The Sports Ministry is of the view that when Leander and Sania have opted out of the Games, there should be no reason that Vece Paes and Naseema Mirza should be part of the squad
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Karachi, September 11 Geoff Allardice, the ICC's general manager of cricket, revealed that there has been lots of progress in using the technology but stumbling blocks remain to deploying it in matches. The ICC has been working with Australian researchers to develop the wearable inertial sensors that can measure bowlers' actions against the permissible limit for over two years. The programme has reached key milestones and is now in its third and final phase but challenges remain, believes Allardice. He said that there is a fair bit of work to do before they are going to be able to use them in a match setting. Allardice also said that this next stage is probably going to take 18 months to two years. — PTI
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Upset with draw, Pallikal slams organisers
New Delhi, september 11 Pallikal and her Chennai teammate Joshana Chinappa are drawn to meet in the quarterfinals of the Asian Games despite the competition handbook clearly mentions that two players belonging to the same country cannot be in the same half of the draw. Both Pallikal and Joshna recently won India's first-ever squash medal at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where they bagged the gold in the women's doubles. “It's no coincidence that we have been drawn in the same half. This is not happening for the first time. It is a sad affair, hope the rules come into place. It is disheartening to be in the same half and it is going to be a tough match. I hope the message reaches the concerned people and the draw can be changed,” Pallikal said. India faced a similar situation at the 2006 Doha Games when Saurav Ghosal and Ritwik Bhattacharya were drawn in the same half. Ghosal went on to beat his countryman in the quarters to secure a bronze. Same story was repeated in the year 2010 when at Guangzhou Games, Ghosal was in the same half of the draw with Siddharth Suchde, who lost to his senior pro in the last-eight stage. A semifinal appearance is enough for securing a bronze at the Asian Games. “It seemed the draw has been manipulated for three consecutive Asian Games to deprive India of a chance to win the medal,” the world No.12 said. Hopeful hockey team leaves for Incheon
The Indian men's hockey team departed for South Korea from here Thursday to participate in the Incheon Asian Games from Sep 19 to Oct 4. The 16-member team will be led by captain Sardar Singh with goalkeeper P.R. Sreejesh as his deputy. They will open their group phase campaign against Sri Lanka Sep 21 followed by Oman Sep 23, Pakistan Sep 25 and China Sep 27. The top two teams will qualify for the semi-finals. “We are aiming for a clean sweep and with the confidence in the camp I feel that we will be able to achieve the goal. Our first match against Sri Lanka is crucial as starting a tournament on a winning note will boost the morale of the team,” Sardar said. Chief coach Terry Walsh said his boys are confident of winning the gold. “The team is all pepped up and confident of winning the gold. With the same team like the Commonwealth Games, they are in sync with each other's game and hope to continue their seamless play yet again at Incheon,” said Walsh. |
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Narang misses out on Olympic quota
Granada, (Spain), September 11 After coming through the tough qualifying, Narang could total only 124.2 by the time the top 5, including the three medallists, were decided in the finals. Five Olympic quotas were on offer in the event. Another Indian, Hariom Singh, could not make it to the finals after finishing 45th in the qualifying. Rai, who had already sealed a berth in the 2016 Rio Games with his silver medal-winning feat in men's 50-metre pistol event two days ago, failed to qualify in 10-metre air pistol as he was placed 10th in the final qualifying, with Prakash Nanjappa a shade better at ninth at the CEAR Juan Carlos I shooting range. Both shot 181 each but Nanjappa had more X (bull's eye). Earlier, in the final elimination round of 50-metre rifle prone event, multiple medallist Narang was seventh after aggregating 625.5 with a series of 104.6 104.2 103.4 104.2 105.4 103.7. The Indians had been off to a poor start in the tournament with Beijing Olympic gold winner Abhinav Bindra failing to qualify in his pet event on the opening day of the competitions. A day later though, an in-form Rai shot his way to a silver medal and earned an Olympic quota to bring the cheer back in the Indian contingent. As many as 64 Olympic quotas are on offer in the ongoing championships. — PTI
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Indian eves continue dismal show at World C'ship
Tashkent, September 11 While men's freestyle wrestling ended with none of the eight Indians making it to the podium, the women also failed to make a mark so far in the tournament. Two wrestlers crashed out in the qualifying round itself today, while one failed to progress beyond the first round of the main competition. In female Wrestling 75kg category, Bulgaria's Stanka Zlateva outplayed Anshu Tomar 5-0 in the Round of 16. Nirmala lost 0-5 in the qualifying round bout of 53kg Female Wrestling against Sumiya Erdenechimeg of Mongolia, failing to make it to the proper competition. Another Indian in the fray, Sarita, also met with the same fate as she was defeated by Ecuador's Lisset Antes by a similar scoreline in the qualifying round of 58kg category. — PTI
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Chaos mars BI election
New Delhi, September 11 The three-way fight for the position of secretary general between Maharashtra’s Jay Kowli, Delhi’s Rohit Jain and Haryana’s Rakesh Thakran witnessed unsavory scenes as all traded charges of manipulation against each other. The infighting left returning officer Justice (retired) DK Deshmukh with no other option than to leave the elections mid-way. It has to be noted that Jain was a candidate backed by the state units, which still make up the suspended Indian Amateur Boxing Federation (IABF). Indian Olympic Association (IOA) also secretly backed Rohit, representing Delhi Boxing Association, without openly coming out in his support. While Sandeep Jajodia was elected unopposed as president of the new body, Kowli was named the secretary general after he polled 32 votes as against Jain’s 27. Thakran got just four votes. Assam’s Hemanta Kumar Kalita was elected treasurer of the new body, defeating his nearest rival Manipur’s Khoibi Salam by 30 votes. Salam got 15 votes, while Tripura’s Dr Rupak Debroy managed just 8 votes. Apart from these positions, 10 vice-presidents were also elected, along with executive committee members. IOA and the Sports Ministry did not send their observers to the elections, which also put a question mark on the entire process. The Ministry’s decision to stay away from the elections has raised a question mark over Boxing India getting the recognition. AIBA-appointed observer Kishen Narsi submitted his election report to Cliodhna Guy, the world body’s legal department official, later in the evening. Even though the results were declared on Thursday, a final decision on whether Boxing India will be recognised as a permanent body will only be taken by AIBA after going through the reports submitted by Narsi and Guy. It has been learnt that a decision in this regard will only come in October. The drama started after Jain’s request was turned down by Boxing India to allow him to see his ballot papers after Kowli was declared the secretary general. Jain alleged massive rigging in the polls and lodged an official complaint with Boxing India. It was, however, turned down by the officials. Rohit then approached the two AIBA observers, but they also refused to take up the matter. Newly elected * President: Sandeep Jajodia * Secretary general: Jay Kowli * Treasurer: Hemanta Kumar Kalita Controversy * Rohit Jain, a contestant for the post of secretary general, alleged rigging in the polls. He lodged an official complaint with Boxing India but it was turned down.
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London, September 11 A month after demolishing City 3-0 in the Community Shield at Wembley, seventh-placed Arsenal have failed to reach the same high notes, drawing their last two league matches and losing French striker Olivier Giroud to injury. While a shortage of strikers cannot be blamed for City’s inconsistent start, manager Manuel Pellegrini said they lacked a creative spark when they slipped to a surprise 1-0 home defeat by Stoke City last time out. In a bid to ease their attacking woes, Arsenal snapped up Danny Welbeck on the final day of the transfer window and the former Manchester United striker is confident his style of play will fit in perfectly at The Emirates. Along with Giroud, midfielder Aaron Ramsey, who has scored in two of Arsenal’s three Premier League games this season, could miss Saturday’s clash after twisting his ankle in Wales’ 2-1 win over Andorra on Tuesday. Champions City, so potent in front of goal last season, head to north London with in-form forward Stevan Jovetic, who scored two goals against Liverpool, struggling with a hamstring injury. — Reuters Sturridge injury infuriates Liverpool manager Rodgers
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers criticised the England set-up on Thursday after striker Daniel Sturridge injured himself while on international duty.
Sturridge, 25, strained his thigh in a training session last Friday, forcing him to miss England’s 2-0 win over Switzerland in their opening Euro 2016 qualifier on Monday. He is likely to be sidelined for around two weeks. The training session took place around 36 hours after Sturridge had played in England’s 1-0 friendly win over Norway and Rodgers believes the player should have been given more time to recover. |
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JCT pip CRPF 2-0, BSF beat Dalbir FA 2-1
Hoshiarpur, September 11 JCT Academy created numerous chances throughout the match. They found the first goal in the 45th minute when Rajbir Singh fired in a thunderous strike. CRPF came out with much more purpose in their game, creating a couple of scoring opportunities. But the JCT defence nullified each attack, leaving CRPF frustrated. JCT sealed the match in the 80th minute as Shamsher Singh slotted in a rebound In the other match, BSF beat Dalbir Football Academy 2-1. Kamal Kishore scored the winner in the 88th minute after Santosh had cancelled N Henry’s opener for BSF. After this round, BSF have eight points, while JCT have seven points from four matches so far in the league.
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the most ferocious Davis Cup challenges at home as nothing less than their best would be required to challenge world No. 2 Serbia, who will test skill and strength of the hosts even without world No. 1 Novak Djokovic from Friday.
The Central government's decision to strike down the names of 23 managers from a total of 28 disciplines has not gone down well with the Indian Olympic Association
(IOA).
India's top squash player Dipika Pallikal blasted the Asian Games organisers for pairing her and compatriot Joshna Chinappa in the same half of the singles draw, saying the “disheartening move” has robbed the country of a chance to get two medals in the women's event.
The exercise to elect a new boxing body in the country turned out to be a stormy affair on Thursday after a contestant for the post of secretary general levelled charges of manipulation against the new federation ‘Boxing India’.
