|
|
|
|
|
Srikanth smashes Super Dan
|
|
|
It’s my gift to Gopi, says Srikanth
Kohli puts Lanka out of their misery
New league on the
block
Morkel sets up SA win in second ODI
Rashid wins by a stroke in Thailand
isl
world championship
atp world tour finals
Vancouver Lions enter semis
|
|
Srikanth smashes Super Dan
Fuzhou (China), November 16
While sixth seeded Saina won her second Super Series title of 2014 by overcoming Japanese Akane Yamaguchi 21-12, 22-20 in 42 minutes, Srikanth stunned the five-time World Champion Chinese 21-19, 21-17 in 46 minutes at the Haixia Olympic Sport Centre. Srikanth, on the eve of the summit clash, had said that it was his childhood dream to play 'Super' Dan in a final, that too in his own backyard. Come Sunday, he not only fulfilled his dream but went one step better by ousting the legendary Chinese in straight games to earn his first win in three outings against
Dan.
Srikanth, ranked No.16 in the world, took off well by going into a 9-4 lead in the first game. However, Dan, in his usual style, took time to get into his rhythm before closing the gap at 15-all. It was neck-and-neck till 19-all but Srikanth held his nerve to take the next two points and bag his first ever game against Dan, arguably the greatest ever shuttler. The second game was a tighter affair with Dan also coming out with tougher competition. However, the Indian youngster matched the Chinese great to take it to 15-all. The 21-year-old Hyderabadi, just like the first game, came out with his best strokes just when it mattered the most to clinch six of the next eight points and earn the biggest win of his career. "Great wins! It is fantastic for both of them and Indian badminton. For Srikanth, it was a big match and at the end of it he kept his nerve to earn the big win. Overall, he has played some high level badminton throughout the tournament," said chief national coach Pullela Gopichand. Earlier in the women's singles final, Saina totally dominated her World No. 35 Japanese opponent in the first game. At one point the World No. 5 Indian took seven successive points to take a 15-7 advantage. It was only a matter of time before Saina sealed the game in her favour. However, the 17-year-old Akane upped the ante in the second game and Saina had to come out with her best to keep the Japanese in check. The Indian was given a scare when the unseeded Akane reached game point at 20-19. But Saina doused the lead and won the next two points to bag her first China Open title. “She has played really well. It was a complete performance from her. She has been getting some very good results recently and this will give her the confidence of doing well in the future," said Gopichand. — IANS
|
|
It’s my gift to Gopi, says Srikanth
Fuzhou (China), November 16 "To beat Lin Dan in a final is a dream come true. I just played my 100 percent because there was nothing to lose. Before coming here, I was playing well. When I beat my compatriot
R.M.V. Gurusaidutt in the first round, I felt confident because it's always tough to beat a player who knows you well. I just wanted to win each round that I played," said the 21-year-old
Srikanth. "As I got close to a second game win, I just told myself to focus on the next point, since I have lost a few matches while leading. Today's my coach Pullela Gopichand's birthday, so this title is a gift to him," said
Srikanth. For 'Super' Dan, the defeat was his first in a final since the 2012 Korea Open to Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia. "I'm glad to be in the final, it's a pity I could not win. I was injured during the last month, so getting into the final made me happy. Srikanth played positively. The loss of the first game affected my mood. I hadn't practised the last few weeks, so I could not adjust my game," Dan said.
— IANS |
||
|
Kohli puts Lanka out of their misery
Ranchi, November 16 Opting to bat, Sri Lanka rode on their skipper Angelo Mathews' unbeaten 116-ball 139 to put up a challenging 286 for eight at the JSCA International Stadium Complex before Kohli (139) guided India home with eight balls to spare. Kohli struck 12 fours and three sixes during his 126-ball knock as India boosted their confidence ahead of the upcoming tour of Australia. A screaming Kohli sealed the issue by hitting Mendis for a six over long-on after completing his 21st century, the fourth this year. Incidentally, Mathews too scored the same number of runs in setting up a respectable score but the day belonged to his Indian counterpart as India geared up to the Australia tour before the World Cup with a memorable series triumph. Chasing a fighting 287, India looked in firm control with Kohli and Rayudu (59 from 69 balls) putting on 136 runs for the third wicket, but the latter was unfortunately run out, triggering a mini collapse. Lanka almost forced a twist in the tale after Mendis (4/73) claimed the wickets of Stuart Binny and R Ashwin in successive deliveries as Kohli remained stranded at the other end. The collapse that began with Rayudu's wicket meant India lost five wickets for 81 runs but Kohli held his nerve and took on Mendis, stepping out to hit a big six and a four to turn the match in India's favour. Virat said he was a little worried and annoyed when batsmen were throwing away their wickets. “There needs to be more application. Akshar Patel played a composed innings, he listened to me. The ball wasn't quite coming on. It wasn't easy once the ball got old. I was running out of partners and that is something others need to learn from this on how to maintain composure.” — Agencies Scoreboard
Sri Lanka Dickwella c Rayudu b Kulkarni 4 Dilshan b Binny 35 Chandimal c Rohit b Patel 5 Jayawardene c Rahane b Ashwin 32 Mathews not out 139 Thirimanne c Rayudu b Ashwin 52 Perera c Jadhav b Patel 6 Prasanna c Patel b Kulkarni 0 Mendis c Karn b Kulkarni 0 Extras
(b 4, lb 2, w 7) 13 Total (8 wkts; 50 ov) 286 Fall of wickets:
1-32 2-45 3-73 4-85 5-213 6-258 7-285 8-286 Bowling Kulkarni 8-0-57-3 Binny 8-1-28-1 Patel 10-0-45-2 Ashwin 10-1-56-2 Karn 10-0-61-0 India Rahane b Mathews 2 Rohit b Mathews 9 Rayudu run out (Chandimal/Eranga) 59 Kohli not out 139 Uthappa c Mathews b Mendis 19 Jadhav b Mendis 20 Binny st Chandimal b Mendis 12 Ashwin lbw b Mendis 0 Akshar not out 17 Extras (b 4, w 7) 11 Total
(7 wkts;48.4 ovs) 288 Fall of wickets: 1-6 2-14 3-150 4-180 5-215 6-231 7-231 Bowling Mathews 7-1-33-2 Gamage 4-0-25-0 Eranga 7-0-45-0 Prasanna 10-0-42-0 Perera 3-0-20-0 Mendis 9.4-0-73-4 Dilshan 8-0-46-0 MoM:
AD Mathews |
|
New league on the
block
Chandigarh, November 16 Champions Tennis League, which promises to be the first big spectacle in India, is also being pitched as a great opportunity for youngsters. How it is going to promote tennis at grassroots level is completely inexplicable. There is only one positive visible at the moment and that is the game may get more popular in the country due to big players coming to India. There is also hope that youngsters watching the matches may get inspired by the big names. “Until you give the current crop of players a chance to play with big names, you can not expect to take their game to the next level. It is good that a start has been made in India. Top players will at least come to India and play here. That’s about it,” said a Chandigarh-based coach. The scheduling of the tournament with 13 matches in 10 days spread across six cities makes it a roller-coaster ride. Time and again, the USP of the tournament is said to be its domestic nature. However, Saketh Myneni (Pune Martahas) is from Andhra Pradesh; Sanam Singh (Delhi Dreams) is from Chandigarh; Ramkumar Ramanathan (Bangalore Raptors) lives in Barcelona and has roots in Chennai; Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan (Hyderabad Aces) is from Chennai; Somdev (Punjab Marshalls) lives in US. Clearly, the connect is missing with every team. The two domestic players who will travel with every team, but not play, too are not necessarily from the same region. The sincerity with which the franchisees pursued the local talent is evident when a CLTA player, who is arguably the best player (U-16) in the region, says, “I do not know when, where and how domestic players were selected.” He is not alone but the sentiment gets echoed in players’ response, time and again. Punjab Marshalls owner Gurpreet Singh, a real estate businessman, says, “We have a Child to Champion programme where we will be spotting talent in towns and villages. We will provide one coach to a cluster of three to four schools and this model will be replicated at the district level too. This will begin immediately after the league.” The amount of money to be spent for the grassroots development is unclear. The owner says, “I cannot give you the exact amount but it will not be much.” Champions Tennis League
Teams
|
|
|
Morkel sets up SA win in second ODI
Perth, November 16 Although losing both openers cheaply in reply and stumbling to 153-7, captain AB De Villiers (48) and David Miller (22 not out) ensured a regulation victory with over 22 overs to spare and levelling the five-match series 1-1. Australia's innings began disastrously, with Morkel having the dangerous David Warner caught behind for a duck before the same bowler caught Aaron Finch for eight at mid-on off the bowling of Dale Steyn (3-31). Shane Watson (11) and Steven Smith (10) also went cheaply before George Bailey (25) and Australia's top scorer Mitchell Marsh (67) steadied the innings with a 58-run partnership. Brief Scores: South Africa: 157/7 (de Villiers 48, Hazlewood 5-31) bt Australia 154 (Marsh 67, Morkel 5-21, Steyn 3-35) by 3 wkts.
— Reuters |
|
Rashid wins by a stroke in Thailand
Chiangmai, November 16 Khan was trailing by three strokes after the Thai started with a birdie on the opening hole but he kept his composure and picked up four shots in six holes from the ninth to climb back in contention. “This win is really special because it is my second win this year and first outside of India,” Khan told reporters after his victory. “It was a really good week. I recovered very nicely on the back nine. I was confident with my game and I played very well on the back for three days. So heading on the last few holes, I was very confident I could win the tournament.” The 24-year-old Thanyakon, eyeing his first Asian Tour win, had a roller-coaster round during which he mixed four birdies with three bogeys. Randhawa, an eight-time Asian Tour winner, sunk two consecutive birdies on the 14th and 15th holes to put Khan under pressure but missed a birdie chance on the 18th and an opportunity to force a playoff.
— Agencies |
|
Delhi lose 0-1 to Kerala
NEW DELHI, November 16 Second-half substitute Penn Orji scored the all-important goal in the 61st minute as Kerala notched up their third win in nine matches to jump to the third spot in the league standings. Delhi made as many as six changes in their starting line-up from the one that lost against FC Goa in their last match. Captain Alessandro Del Piero was on the field after sitting out a match but it was the same old story for the home side as they slumped to their fourth loss. Del Piero had his best day on the field since the start of the league but the other forwards failed to fire. The Italian legend was on the verge of scoring his first goal of the tournament through a running header in the 39th minute off a fine cross from the right by Junker. But, teammate Adil Khan, who was also going for the ball, stood in the way and blocked it, unintentionally though. The ball went towards the right corner and was cleared by defender Cedric Hengbart. — PTI
|
|
Anand still has a fighting chance
“The games in the coming days will be evenly fought. Carlsen will continue to play for a win,” said world No.23 and Indian Grandmaster P Harikrishna, adding that Anand still has a chance. World No.7 and Grandmaster Anish Giri said that “so far Anand seemed still somewhat shaky but Carlsen didn’t look at his best either, as was clear from the last game”. However, Harikrishna disagreed with Giri: “True the sixth game was not good for Anand. But in Rounds 3, 4 and 5 he played very well. Anand is playing normally and trying to win every game.” Grandmaster RB Ramesh said, “Anand is playing fast and taking risks unlike the way he played last year in Chennai.” Referring to Anand’s 26th move when he was presented with an opportunity of converting the difficult game into a win on Saturday, Ramesh said: “We normally trust our opponents that they would not make such wrong moves.” “When you don’t expect a gift, you don’t look for it,” Anand had said after the sixth game. The Grandmasters were of the view that Carlsen was perhaps feeling the pressure of Anand’s playing style. According to Ramesh, if Anand loses one more round then it could be said the match is over. “Anand is in a difficult position right now, he has to forget about the blunder, have a good rest and bounce back with fighting chess,” Giri added. With 3.5 points at the end of the sixth game, Carlsen has a one point lead over Anand. Carlsen will have the advantage of playing white on Monday. It will be interesting to see how Anand, now a wounded tiger, would respond. — IANS
|
|
|
Djokovic wins as Federer withdraws
London, November 16 The 33-year-old Swiss, who spent nearly three hours late on Saturday beating compatriot Stanislas Wawrinka in a gruelling semifinal, announced his decision on court as the O2 Arena filled up for the expected final. Federer, who was bidding for a seventh title at the year-ender, apologised but said he was not “match-fit” after developing a back problem. “I hope you understand I wanted to come out personally and excuse myself for not playing ... I can’t compete without a back at this level,” he told the crowd who still warmly applauded, despite their obvious disappointment. ATP president Chris Kermode, standing alongside Federer, then announced that Andy Murray, who failed to qualify for the semifinals after being thrashed by Federer on Thursday, would play Djokovic in a one-set exhibition match instead. Federer hopes to play for Switzerland against France in the Davis Cup final which starts on Friday. — Reuters
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
Chiangmai, November 16
Punjab Marshalls: Greg Rusedski, Leander Paes (in pic), Garbine Muguruza, Somdev Devvarman
Chennai, November 16
