New Delhi, September 13
India’s hopes lie with PV Sindhu, the 19-year-old who has decisively put Saina Nehwal in the shadows. Sindhu has a 1-1 win-loss record against the world No. 1, Li Xuerui of China; against the world No. 2, Wang Shixian, Sindhu has a very impressive 4-2 win-loss record.

Can Sindhu end India’s 28-year drought for a badminton medal in the Asian Games? Can the Indian shuttlers repeat their Glasgow magic in the Asian Games?

The answers will be found in the Gyeyang Gymnasium in the South Korean city of Incheon, which hosts the Asian Games. If the answers are to be ‘yes’, Sindhu, Nehwal and Parupalli Kashyap would need to pull off the performances of their lives.

If the Glasgow Games and the World Championships are any indication, it’s only Sindhu who can inspire any confidence about India doing well in Incheon. Asian players dominate the world rankings. In world badminton, Asia is the superpower — and in Asia, China lords above all else.

China picked up five of the seven gold medals in the Guangzhou Asian Games in 2010. They are expected to do much the same thing.

Only two players from one country can enter the Asian Games. This reduces China’s power a bit in the singles events, but it will still be a Herculean task for India to get a medal. Remember, world No. 1 Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia and Li Xuerui of China would be there.

Lee, China's Lin Dan and Chen Long, the reigning world champion, are the strong favourites among the men. Defending Asian Games champion and world No. 2 Wang Shixian and local favourites Sung Ji-hyun and Bae Yeon-ju make the women’s section a veritable minefield.

Not surprisingly, Indians desperately want a favourable draw. Indian shuttlers have shown promise in major events like the World Championships, CWG and Super Series, but when it comes to the Asian Games, they have little to show. India have won seven bronze medals since 1962, only one of them coming in the singles, won by the late Syed Modi in 1982. India last won an Asian Games badminton medal in 1986, the men’s team winning it.

Saina Nehwal

Of the top 10 male players in the world, seven are from Asia. World No. 7 Saina and world No. 10 Sindhu are among the seven Asian women in the top 10. If India get a medal, it would most probably be won in the women's singles.

Sindhu was expected to win gold in Saina's absence at the Glasgow CWG, but she settled for a bronze. In the World Championships, the 19-year-old beat Wang Shixian in the quarterfinals but lost to a Spaniard, Carolina Marin, in the semis. As for Saina, she won the Australian Open in June but has tasted defeats at the hands of all her higher-ranked opponents in the last one year.

The women's doubles event was India’s, but Jwala Gutta has pulled out due to a sprain in her right knee. Her withdrawal has left Ashwini Ponnappa facing a crisis of partners. Ponnappa will be without her regular partners in both events — women's doubles and mixed doubles. Tarun Kona, who was to partner her in the mixed doubles, has been dropped.

P Kashyap and Kidambi Srikkanth will be shouldering the responsibility in the singles. Again, China, South Korea, Malaysia and Japan are expected to dominate in singles.

New Delhi, September 13
Pusarla Venkata Sindhu is widely seen as the next big thing in Indian badminton after Saina Nehwal. She is regarded as the natural successor to the throne of Nehwal, the London Olympic bronze-medalist, who has been battling poor form this season. Sindhu has 5-3 win-loss record against China’s No.1 and No.2 .

That belief was strengthened even more when Sindhu clinched her second consecutive World Championships bronze medal in Copenhagen, that too, less than a month after winning bronze at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

The World Championships bronze made the 19-year-old Hyderabadi the only Indian shuttler to win multiple medals at the event. Add two more major medals to her kitty that she won at the Asian Championship and the Uber Cup, it has been a thoroughly successful year for the rising superstar of Indian badminton.

Yet, the lanky shuttler yearns for more as she embarks on her maiden Asian Games journey to Incheon to end the country's 28-year-long medal drought at the quadrennial event. Her nemesis in the past — Chinese, Korean and Malaysian shuttlers — will all be present in full force to renew their women’s singles rivalry with her. “I am ready for the challenge. Asian Games is going to be a tough tournament as all the top Asian players will be participating. I am confident of giving my 100 percent in my maiden appearance,” Sindhu told The Tribune.

Sindhu said she is working on her defence and strokeplay after small errors in the World Championships semifinals cost her match against eventual winner, Spain's Carolina Marin. "I would look to rectify those errors and ensure that such mistakes don't happen again. You need to rectify and come back with improved performance. Sometimes you play brilliantly, sometimes you just fail to give your 100 per cent. You face ups and downs and learn from those mistakes. It was disappointing to lose against Marin, but overall, I am happy with my bronze," she said.

World No.10 Sindhu beat reigning Asian Games champion and world No.2 Chinese shuttler, Shixian Wang, in the quarterfinal of the World Championships. For Sindhu, such wins over a top-ranked player instill more confidence in her. “It was special to beat Shixian. It was a great win as I played well in that particular match. Defeating a Chinese player always gives you a lot of confidence. The win has come at a right time for me as, apart from China, other strong players from Japan and Korea will be there. I am positive about my chances," she said.

For a player like Sindhu, it has been observed that she starts a tournament on a high note, but often tends to lose focus in the quarters or semis. This was the case at the Uber Cup, CWG and World Championships, where she could have gone on to win gold or silver, but faltered at the final hurdle. When asked from the point of view of not being consistent enough, Sindhu replied that is something she has been working on. "I am focused on my training and fitness. I know I have to be more consistent," she signed off.

Patiala, September 13
Indian archers are expecting a richer medal haul in the Asian Games as compound archery, considered as their forte, makes its debut in the quadrennial event.

The medal prospects of Indian archers have increased manifold, but Asia is home to some of the world’s best archers; and if the last year’s World Championships results are any indicator, India’s compound archers, especially the men, stand a good chance of making a golden debut.

But Indian archers’ performance has been inconsistent over the years. More often than not, they have missed their mark in big events. Will it be different this time?

They disappointed in the 2012 London Olympics but made a comeback at the World Cup and World Championships in the next two years.

The exclusion of archery from the 2014 Commonwealth Games was a major shock for archers, who had won eight medals at 2010 Commonwealth Games, including three gold, one silver and four bronze.

In the 2010 Asian Games, India won just three medals, including an individual silver by Tarundeep Rai and two bronze medals in the team events.

This time Indian archers are competing in all the categories, including individual (men and women) and team events. The coaches and Archery Association of India (AAI) officials are expecting to double the medal count from the previous edition. The fact that Indian teams are amongst top three Asian nations gives a psychological boost to the archers.

The current Indian team consists six Olympians — Deepika Kumari, L Bombayla Devi, Pranita, Jayanta Talukdar, Rahul Banerjee and Tarundeep Rai. They have beaten top archers and are themselves well-known names, but they somehow fail in big events. Incheon is another chance.

India’s main competition will be against South Korea, Iran and China.

In the recurve category, Deepika and Bombayla Devi are strong medal prospects in the individual event. In the men's section, Jayanta Talukdar, Rahul Banerjee, Atanu Das and Tarundeep Rai will be aiming for top honours. In compound archery, Abhishek, Rajat Chohan, Sandeep, Jyothi Surekha, P Lily Chanu and Trisha Deb are very strong contenders.

Abhishek had won three gold in the World Championship last year, becoming the first ever Indian to win three medals in a single international tournament. Rajat Chohan is currently ranked No. 1 in Asia and was the lone Indian to qualify for the finals of this year’s World Cup in Switzerland. Sandeep won one gold and one silver at the 2013 World Championship. Women archers P Lily Chanu and Jyothi Surekha had also won mixed team gold and bronze medals during at the World Championship and World Cup, respectively.

As far as team events are concerned, all teams have been performing remarkably well in the past two years and the chances of a podium finish are very bright.

“All archers are in great form and have performed exceptionally well at all international competitions. They have already outclassed the world's best players in the recent past, which has added a lot to their confidence,” said one of the coaches.

Abhishek Verma, ranked No 19 in the world, feels that they have done the groundwork to make a mark in the Asian Games. They’ve got their eye at the target — they’re ready to embrace glory.

squad (Men)
Akshay Dewalkar/Pranav Jerry Chopra (World No.37), Kidambi Srikanth (World No.23), Parupalli Kashyap (World No.28), RMV Gurusaidutt (World No.35), Sumeeth Reddy/Manu Atri (World No.34), Sourabh Verma (World No.37)

September 20
Women team championship begins, medal event on September 22

September 21
Men's team championship starts, medal event on September 23

September 24
Individual events begins

Men: Compound archers
Abhishek Verma, Govindas Singh Thokchom, Rajat Chauhan, Sandeep Kumar

Compound archers
Jayanta Talukdar, Rahul Banerjee, Tarundeep Rai, Atanu Das

Women: Compound archers
Trisha Deb, P Lily Chanu, Purvasha Sudhir Shende, Jyothi Surekha

September 22-26
Preliminary events begin

New Delhi, September 13
The Sports Ministry today succumbed to the pressure mounted by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and named team managers in five more disciplines that the country will compete in at the Asian Games. The Ministry has allowed Praveen Jolly (athletics), Balbir Singh Kushwaha (Kayaking and canoeing), S M Bali (Handball), M V Sriram (Rowing) and V S Dahiya (Sepaktakraw) to accompany their respective squads.

Others included in the contingent include men's team hockey coach Jude Felix, women's hockey physiotherapist Gaurav Mehra and video analyst Amutha Prakash.

The Ministry, however, dropped Dr. Vece Paes, Leander's father and the team doctor for the tennis contingent. His name was excluded at the SAI's behest after Leander Paes pulled out of the event.

London, September 13
A late looping header from Martin Demichelis rescued a 2-2 draw for Manchester City at Arsenal on Saturday after moments of sublime skill from Jack Wilshere and Alexis Sanchez had turned the match in the London club's favour.

Champions City had a stranglehold on the encounter after Sergio Aguero put them ahead in the first half, but Wilshere burst into the box and chipped Joe Hart after the break and Sanchez showed superb technique to volley Arsenal ahead. That had threatened to prove decisive until Demichelis rose highest in the area to guide a corner into the net and spoil an industrious but wasteful debut from Arsenal's new signing Danny Welbeck.

It was the second consecutive match where City had failed to win and left them on seven points from four matches, while Arsenal, who won only one Premier League game against the top five last season, are a point behind. "I am satisfied because I thought this year it would be very difficult for us to defend our title," said City manager Manuel Pellegrini.

It was an unfamiliar looking Manchester City midfield with no stranger sight than former Chelsea great Frank Lampard making his Premier League debut for the champions in the absence of Yaya Toure. The hosts dominated the early battle for possession and should have taken the lead on 13 minutes when Welbeck raced on to a misplaced pass from David Silva but attempted an audacious chip over Joe Hart and struck the inside of the post.

If he wanted a lesson in ruthlessness, it was provided by Aguero 15 minutes later, with the Argentine timing his run to perfection to meet Jesus Navas's cross and apply the killer blow with a tidy sidefoot finish. — Reuters

Atlanta, September 13
This is one shot even the great Rory McIlroy had no chance to hit. His golf ball landed in a spectator's pocket. McIlroy's tee shot on the 14th hole of the Tour Championship on Friday drifted to the right, clattered into a tree and dropped straight down.

A dozen or so fans tried to figure out where it was before one man realized it was in the front right pocket of his shorts. The world's No. 1 player was entitled to a free drop under Rule 19-1-a -- "Ball in motion stopped or deflected by an outside agency" — and rules official Robby Ware first had to make sure the man had not moved from when he discovered the ball in his pocket. The tough part was how to get the ball out. "I wasn't going in there," McIlroy said with a laugh after a 65 left him two shots out of the lead. "I know how sweaty my pockets are. I'm not going in anyone else's."

Someone in the gallery suggested the spectator keep the ball until Ware said, "He's going to need that one."

McIlroy took a drop as near as possible to where the man had been standing, knocked it onto the green and escaped with par. — PTI

New Delhi, September 13
Five-time world champion MC Mary Kom today made a sensational claim that Glasgow CWG selection trials were “fixed” and the organisers had conspired against her to ensure that Haryana girl Pinki Jangra emerges the winner in the 51kg flyweight category.

Mary Kom also accused the organisers of racial discrimination on account of her ‘northeast’ background.

“Am I not a part of this country? I was being discriminated against in the selection trials and I realised that when referees conspired against me to make sure Pinki wins,” Mary Kom told The Tribune.

“I was hurt when Pinki said that ‘I twice defeated Mary Kom, the ‘so-called’ world champion and Olympic medallist’,” Mary Kom said.

Asked when did she realise that the organisers were conspiring against her, she said, “They declared the other winners after 2-3 minutes, but when it came to my bout, it took them 15 minutes to arrive at a decision. I could sense that I was a better player in the ring. The referees had a word with the judges, after which, they declared Pinki the winner.”

Bathinda, September 13
The Yo Yo Tigers, owned by rapper Honey Singh, edged out fighting Punjab Thunder 61-58 in a nail-biting finish at Government Rajindra College Astroturf hockey stadium here today.

Tigers had the game under control all the time, were swift in both defence and attack, and held the slender lead from the start. Tigers got off to a good start but Punjab Thunder took a 28-21 lead. Tigers fought back and moved into top gear in the second half as they bridged the lead and raced past their rivals. The fight throughout the match was intense and close. Tigers however manage to take the lead and held on to it to clinch the match.

Manminder Singh Tigers was adjudged the best raider. His scored 20 points for the team in 21 raids. He was also named the man of the match. Yadwinder Singh of Punjab Thunders with five stops was declared the best stopper.

Dharamsala, September 13
The president of the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA), Anurag Thakur, today alleged that the state government was not responding to the cricket body’s requests for 
providing security for hosting an India-West Indies ODI here on October 17.

He said that the HPCA had to notify the BCCI about the arrangements within a week, failing which the match might be shifted to another venue.

Thakur, who presided over HPCA’s annual general meeting, said the state body was planning a district-level league in the state and that each coaching centre in the state would get a gymnasium.