Author: Abhishek Shukla

Owner of Sports India Live.
by Abhishek Shukla

Sanil proves left is right; Manika snatches her 3rd title

Ajmer, November 29: Left proved right in a long time. And Sanil Shankar Shetty defeated Arjun Gosh 4-2 in the men’s singles final to lift his maiden title in the 49th Inter-Institutional Table Tennis Championships at the MCC Indoor Stadium here today.

The women singles crown went the way of Manika Batra after she managed to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat to beat Reeth Rishya, who wilted under pressure after leading 3-1, to win 4-3.

Sanil, who ran into a fine form in the event here, was destined to own the trophy and Rs. 88,000 in prize purse, after the top-seed and title favourites Manav Thakkar was consumed yesterday by Arjun from AAI.

The AAI paddler failed to repeat the form he hit in the quarters and semifinal yesterday and overawed by the occasion of a big final began badly as Sanil took the lead. But the fighter in him, kept Arjun going when he first levelled the score and went 2-1 up. That was all he could as Sanil proved a better finish in such a moment and seized every opportunity that came with blistering down-the-line drives and superb angled serves to wrap up the next three games.

Reeth could have joined her husband to present themselves a post-wedding gift and celebrated their success in a big way. But that was not to be.

For, Reeth could not have got a better opportunity than the one today. An improved Reeth assessed her opponent’s strengths and, without falling into her traps, played with controlled aggression to go 2-0 up, including winning the second extended game calmly. Manika, with her international experience to boot, took her first game soon after and mounted pressure. Yet, Reeth was up to her task and stayed focused to lead 3-1.

With everything on her platter, she just needed to step on the gas pedal for one final assault on the top-ranked Indian in the world at No. 61. But the increasing pressure and some loose shots took their toll on Reeth and playing a subdued game she gave in. That was the chance Manika was looking for and she grabbed it with both hands to surge ahead.

After making 3-3, the top-seed knew how to go about the task. Without giving any further leeway, Manika rode luck and completed the last point with a lot to spare in the decider for her third title in the Institutional competition. Her last two titles came in the events held in 2011 (Burnpur) and 2015 (New Delhi). Incidentally, this was the only domestic appearance she has made this season and the win was worth Rs. 77,000.

Reeth, of course, would rue her missed opportunity but can take heart from the fact that the runner-up position could act as a trigger in her future title ambitions.

Results:

Women Singles: Final: Manika Batra (PSPB) bt Reeth Rishya (PSPB) 11-13, 14-16, 11-7, 7-11, 11-3, 11-5, 11-5.

Men Singles: Final: Arjun Sanil Shetty (PSPB) bt Ghosh (AAI) 11-6, 6-11, 9-11, 11-8, 11-7, 11-6.

by Abhishek Shukla

Jitender Yadav, Tsetan Dolkar promise to make ATMCM 2019 a memorable event

Gurgaon, November 29: Jitender Yadav, a 23-year-old physical education student from Nangloi in Delhi, will bid fair to complete a hat-trick of victories while doughty 25-year-old Ladakhi Tsetan Dolkar could well be the woman runner to beat in the fifth Apollo Tyres Millennium City Marathon on the iconic Sikanderpur and Golf Course Road underpasses here on Sunday.

Nearly 2500 runners – a 26 per cent increase from last year – will take part in the marathon, half-marathon and 10km Speed Challenge while several thousand will take part in the Joy of Running (5km) event. The races will be flagged off from Cyber Hub, taking the marathon and half marathon runners to Sector 54 before winding back to the Sector 42-43 Metro Station for the U-turn.

“We are delighted that the route has been certified by Association of International Marathons & Distance Races (AIMS) and the event is one of the handful recognised by the Athletics Federation of India,” said Race Director Abhishek Mishra, who is also the founder of Tabono Sports & Events Pvt Ltd which organises the annual running event in Gurugram. “We are growing and will keep evolving with time.”

The increasing participation by women runners is fair reflection of the growing popularity of the event, he said. “From a mere five women runners each in the marathon and half-marathon two years ago, we saw the numbers rise to 11 and 20 last year. This time, we have 25 women running the marathon and nearly 120 women in the half marathon,” he said.

“At Tabono Sports, we have always placed the requirements athlete ahead of everything else. It is such sharp focus that was the reason for us to separate the finish line for the timed runners from those taking part in Joy of Running event (5km). There will be a number of aid stations along the route to help runners stay hydrated,” Mr. Mishra said.

Mr. Mishra believes the event will be highly competitive. “We have a fairly high quality of entries that will ensure a very good event,” he said. “There are many familiar names like Jitender Yadav, Tsetan Dolkar, Romila Pundir, Nikita Seth, Kalpana Deka Saha, Sushma Sharma, Harshita Koul, Anju Chaudhari, Anita Yadav and Sheethal Rao.”

Besides, a bunch will be running for the fifth year in-a-row. “We are delighted that pediatrician Dr. Anjali Nayar,  Data Security Council of India Chief Executive Office ,Rama Vedasree, fitness advocate Latika Goel as well as retired CPWD engineer Satish Saxena, revenue official Pankaj Arora and the CFO on a break Aditya Mishra will be running the event again,” Mr. Mishra said.

Jitender Yadav finished third in 2:44:04 on MCM debut in 2016, the self-taught runner won the next two editions run with several slopes to negotiate in 2:45:27 by a good eight minutes from his nearest rival and in 2:50:57 by a reduced margin of just over two minutes. “Since running on the inclines increases the load on the body, I am careful there,” he says.

Jitender Yadav, who uses the prize money won in events to finance his scholastic pursuit, says he has been inspired by India’s top marathoner T Gopi and women’s national record holder OP Jaisha. “I want to win competitive races. There is so much more satisfaction in winning close battles,” he says, acknowledging the support he receives from his benefactor, Kanika.

Tsetan Dolkar returns to MCM after having finished second in the 2016 edition a mere four seconds behind her friend Jigmet Dolma who holds the event record at 3:22:18. Tsetan Dolkar will miss running alongside Jigmet Dolma, representing India in the South Asian Games in Kathmandu, but she will not miss the Ladakhi flavor while seeking to claim the event record.

The Ludhiana-based Amandeep Kaur will be another runner who is seeking a hat-trick of MCM titles. She won the women’s 10km Speed Challenge in 2017 in 40 minutes 10 seconds and followed it up last year with a victory in 43:43. Anju Chaudhari, who drew from winning her category in the 10km Speed Challenge in 2017 to secure a podium finish in half marathon last year, will be back, too.

One of India’s fastest amateur runners Shailja Singh Sridhar, who clocked a personal best of 3:20:00 in the New York Marathon recently, will be among the runners as will the event’s brand ambassador Milind Soman who intends to run the half marathon after flagging off the race. Their presence will lend additional energy to the event.

by Abhishek Shukla

Chennai Club 300 moved to Knockout Round in the 2nd KSTBA Open Trios Tenpin Bowling Tournament

Chennai Club 300 top the table in Round 2 and moved to Knockout Round in the 2nd KSTBA Open Trios Tenpin Bowling Tournament currently underway at Amoeba, Church Street, Bangalore.
Led by International medallist Shabbir Dhankot of TamilNadu, team bowled consistently in Round 2, scoring 561, 592, 553 and 529 and finished at the top with total pinfall of 6781 and team average of 188.36.
At the end of Round 2, Chennai Turkeys finished in second position with total pinfall of 6727 and team average of 186.86. Gujarat Rollers (6725 at an average of 186.81) and Bowling Bohemians Bengaluru (6712 at an average of 186.44) finished in 3rd and 4th position respectively.
Highlight of the day is the performance from International Medallist Dhruv Sarda (DEL) who scored total pinfall of 920 at an average of 230.00 in 4 games in Round 2. This performance helped his team Delhi Tornados move up to 5th position at the end of Round 2.
Earlier today, top 18 teams based on total pinfall from 24 games in Round 1 moved to Round 2. Each team played a block of 4 games in Round 2. Top 8 teams based on total pinfall from Round 1 and 2 moved to Knockout Round.
Knockout Rounds and Finals are currently in progress.

by Abhishek Shukla

Indian Junior Women’s Hockey Team leaves for the 3-Nations Tournament

Bengaluru, 28 November 2019: The Indian Junior Women’s Hockey Team left from the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru on Thursday to take part in the 3-Nations Tournament in Canberra, Australia. The Indian Junior Women’s Hockey Team is scheduled to play two matches each against Australia and New Zealand, which will be held from 3rd December 2019 to 8th December 2019. 

The Indian Junior Women’s Hockey Team Coach Baljeet Singh Saini expressed that the 3-Nations tournament will serve as perfect preparation for the Junior Asia Cup.
“The Indian Junior Women’s Hockey Team is very confident to take on Australia and New Zealand. We have a good side and the team has been training well. The 3-Nations tournament is very important for us since this competition will be the perfect preparation for the Junior Asia Cup, which will be held in Japan in April next year. We are looking to book a place in the Junior World Cup through a good performance at the Junior Asia Cup. Australia and New Zealand are tough opponents and it’s going to be a good competition for us, but I feel, the tougher the competition, the better it is for our team,” said Indian Junior Women’s Hockey Team Coach Baljeet Singh Saini.
The Indian Junior Women’s Hockey Team will play their first match against New Zealand on Wednesday, 4th December 2019 at 1230hrs IST in Canberra, following which they will play against Australia on Thursday, 5th December 2019 at 1230hrs IST. The Junior Women’s Hockey Team will then face New Zealand and Australia for the second time on 7th December 2019 and 8th December 2019 respectively. 

The Indian Junior Women’s Hockey Team will be certainly looking to take their game a notch higher after an impressive performance in a five-match series against Belarus in June. The Indian Junior Women’s Hockey Team drew the series 2-2 after winning the last match 6-0 against Belarus, earlier this year.

by Abhishek Shukla

FIFA-LOC Delegation inspects IGAI Stadium in Guwahati for FIFA U-17 WWC India 2020

The FIFA delegation along with members of the Local Organising Committee visited the Indira Gandhi Athletic International Stadium, and had a comprehensive look at the stadium and the training facilities.

Delegates from the football’s governing body were satisfied with the conditions in Guwahati. FIFA’s Project Lead for FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup India 2020, Mr Oliver Vogt remarked, “We are very happy to be back after 2017. We know the passion for football in this part of the country, and are confident we will repeat the success of 2017 if Guwahati is picked as a venue for FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup next year.”

Tournament Director of the LOC, Ms Roma Khanna said, “It is really good to be back in Guwahati. As we know, this region is bursting with affinity towards football, as well as talent. We had a fantastic Tournament in 2017, but that was the benchmark. The support from all stakeholders has to be even better. The infrastructure from 2017 is in place, but some modifications need to come in.”

“Since the infrastructure is in place here, what the message should now be is about celebrating women’s football. Let us take this message, and reach out to as many people. This World Cup has the potential of changing women’s football in the country and we’re confident that we’ll be able to do that with the support of all the stakeholders.”

“The Hon’ble Chief Minister and the Government of Assam are very keen for this Tournament to happen in Guwahati, and are full geared to give whatever support is needed,” added Mr Avinash Joshi – IAS, Principal Secretary, Sports & Youth Welfare Department, Govt. of Assam.

The FIFA-LOC delegation will travel to Bhubaneswar tomorrow to inspect the facilities in the capital of Odisha.The FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup India 2020 will be held between 2nd and 21st November. 

by Abhishek Shukla

2nd KSTBA Open Trios Tenpin Bowling Tournament to start in Bangalore

Karnataka State Tenpin Bowling Association (KSTBA) is organizing its 2nd KSTBA Open Trios
Tenpin Bowling Tournament, from 28th to 30th Nov at Amoeba, Church Street, Bangalore.
44 teams comprising of 132 bowlers from 12 different states will be competing in this three-day
event.
International medallists Shabbir Dhankot (TN), Akaash Ashok Kumar (KAR), Dhruv Sarda (DEL),
Shoumick Datta (KAR) and Defending Champions “Xtreme Strikers Bengaluru” led by Former
National Champion Vijay Punjabi (KAR) will be seen in action.
Total prize money at stake will be 3.35 Lakhs.
• Winning team will take home Rs 1,20,000 + Medals
• Runners-up will take home Rs 75,000 + Medals
• Third and Fourth position will take home Rs 35,000
• 5th position to 8th position : Rs 15,000 each
• Team with highest average in a block of 4 games: Rs 10,000
Round 1 and Round 2 will be played on classic format whereas Round 3 and Stepladder round will
be played on Baker format.
All participants will compete on WTBA 3rd Philippines Open 2019 (43”) oil pattern.

by Abhishek Shukla

Dhruv Sarda felicitated on winning Silver medal

Tenpin Bowling Federation of India [ TBF(I) ] felicitated Dhurv Sarda at a function organized at Amoeba Bowling Center, Church Street, Bangalore, who won the Silver Medal in the Singles Event at 25th Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships-2019 held in Kuwait last month.
Dhruv Sarda was awarded an incentive of Rs. 3 Lakhs by TBF (I). Dr. Ajay Singh, President, TBF (I) did the honors.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Ajay Singh said “I am really proud of this achievement by Dhruv who won the Silver Medal. We missed the Gold Medal by a whisker and year 2020 will be the year to look forward with solid plans in place to target more Medal events”.

by Abhishek Shukla

AAI pair sends second-seeded PSPB duo packing

Ajmer, November 27:  A pair comprising junior players, Yashaswini Ghorpade and Vanshika Bhargava, from the Airports Authority of India (AAI) taught a few lessons on tenacity to the second-seeded duo of Krittwika Sinha Roy and Mousumi Paul from PSPB before entering the quarterfinals of the 49th Inter-Institutional Table Tennis Championships at the MCC Indoor Stadium here today.

The AAI combine, with a remarkable comeback, defeated the PSPB pair 3-2 and will next take on No. 7 seeds Mamata Prabhu and Senhora D’Souza of Bank of Baroda Sports Control Board tomorrow.

Fortunately, all other seeded combinations made it to the quarters, but both the No 3. Seeds Amrutha Pushpak and Nikhat Banu of RBI and No. 4 Shruti Amrute and Sagarika Mukherjee, respectively, survived to stay in the hunt after they were taken the full distance by their opponents.

Yashaswini, who was selected to represent India in the World Cadet Challenge in Poland last month, and her partner Vanshika were hopelessly placed after the first two games with the renowned PSPB players putting them in all kinds of pressure with a 2-0 lead.

But the AAI duo resurrected itself and slowly clawed their way back after making it 2-2. In the decider, it was touch and go at deuce but Yashaswini and Vanshika converted the last two crucial points to send their opponents packing.

No. 3 seeds Amrutha and Nikhat were comfortably placed at 2-1 but surprisingly let Prajakta Tipale and Mrunmayee Mhatre from LIC pair take the fourth game. That brought them back in some big trouble but the third-seeded duo stopped their opponents to win 3-2. It was a similar case for the left-right combination of Shruti and Sagarika from the Railways as the No. 4 seeds had to really fight in the decider to stop both Hely Shah and Garima Goyal of CRSB.

In men’s doubles, all the top eight seeded pairs stormed into the pre-quarterfinals and the third seeds from PSPB, Sourav Saha and Jeet Chandra did not have to enter the area as their rivals from Major Ports, Soumik De Sarkar and Manoj Mandal, gave a walkover. The top-seeds, Sanil Shetty and Sudhanshu Grover accounted for Arnab Sarkar and Souvik Banerjee from West Bengal 11-8, 11-9, 11-7 while second-seeded AAI duo of Sushmit Sriram and Akash Pal defeated Soham Bhattacharya and A. Sen Choudhary of Canara Bank 11-7, 11-3, 11-2. And, as was to be expected, all other seeded pairs had easy passage into the round of 16.

Results:

Women’s Doubles (PQF): Ahyhika Mukherjee/Sreeja Akula (PSPB) bt Eesha Joshi/Poulami Das (AI) 11-7, 8-11, 11-3, 11-8; Surbhi Patwari/Munmun Kundu (AAI) bt Frenaz Chipia/Shanmathi Satyamoorthy (FCI) 11-8, 12-10, 11-7; Pooja Sahasrabudhe/Anika Das (PSPB) bt Sayani Bose/Shailu Noorbasha (MC&IT) 11-5, 11-39-11, 11-9; Shruti Amrute/Sagarika Mukherjee (RSPB) bt Hely Shah/Garima Goyal (CRSB) 11-8, 9-11, 11-4, 5-11, 11-6; Amrutha Pushpak/Nikhat Banu (RBI) bt Prajakta Tipale/Mrunmayee Mhatre (LIC) 11-13, 11-9, 11-6, 10-12, 11-9; Kaushani Nath/Moumita Dutta (RSPB) bt Manisha Seal/Sangita Mahadani (MC&IT) 11-9, 11-5, 10-12, 11-8; Mamata Prabhu/Senhora D’Souza (BBSCB) bt Riti Shankar/Sanya Sehgal (Har) 11-4, 11-8, 11-7; Yahaswini Ghorpade/Vanshika Bhargava (AAI) bt Mousumi Paul/Krittwika Sinha Roy (PSPB) 10-12, 9-11, 11-6, 11-8, 12-10.

by Abhishek Shukla

Hockey fiesta returns to Odisha; Bhubaneswar and Rourkela to host the 2023 FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup

Bhubaneswar, 27 November 2019: To mark the one-year anniversary since the commencement of the Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018, a spectacular event was held in Bhubaneswar today, which saw Hockey India announce the cities of Bhubaneswar and Rourkela as the venues for the 2023 FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup, a bid which was yet again won by Hockey India.

The mega announcement by Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha Shri Naveen Patnaik was made in the presence of dignitaries including Honourable Sports Minister, Government of Odisha Mr. Tusharkanti Behera, Chief Secretary Government of Odisha Mr. Asit Kumar Tripathy, FIH President Dr Narinder Dhruv Batra, Development Commission-cum-Additional Chief Secretary, Government of Odisha Mr. Suresh Chandra Mahapatra, Hockey India President Mohd Mushtaque Ahmad, Chairman of Hockey Promotion Council Padma Shri Dr. Dilip Tirkey, Secretary-cum-Commissioner, Department of Sports & Youth Services, Government of Odisha Mr. Vishal Kumar Dev, and Director, Department of Sports & Youth Services, Government of Odisha Mr. R Vineel Krishna, were among other top officials from Hockey India and Government of Odisha. The Indian Men’s Hockey Team, currently based in Bhubaneswar for National Coaching Camp, were also present during the announcement. 

On this momentous occasion, FIH President Dr. Narinder Dhruv Batra said: “On behalf of FIH, I would like to extend our sincerest thanks to the Government of Odisha and Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha Shri Naveen Patnaik in particular for their great and permanent support to hockey over the years. This really is remarkable and contributes to grow our sport not only in India but in the world also. Our thanks also go to Hockey India for their dedication and efforts to put together an unforgettable event.”

The precision in which the Odisha Men’s Hockey World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018 was conducted, and the grandeur of the marquee event drew several accolades from the hockey fraternity worldwide. The unparalleled support by Government of Odisha towards the development of hockey, their vision to provide state-of-the-art infrastructure like none other in the world, and the government’s willingness to invest in the event were some of the key reasons to name the State as the venue for the prestigious event in 2023. 

Thierry Weil, CEO, FIH resonated Dr Batra’s views and stated: “We are glad to come back to Odisha where everyone, from the fans to the teams and the officials, had such a great experience a year ago. Conscious of the costs generated by the organization of such world events, we think that using existing facilities – especially when they are of the quality of those provided in Bhubaneswar – is a real advantage. Also, the income-generation potential of the bid submitted by Hockey India will contribute to the development of hockey worldwide, which is the first mission of the International Hockey Federation. Furthermore, we will work closely with Hockey India on the sustainability and legacy aspects of the 2023 FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup.”

As a State that is rapidly gaining popularity as the Sports Capital of India, announcing the return of the World Cup to Odisha on the one-year anniversary of the FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup 2018 which ensured top-class infrastructure, safety parameters for traveling teams, delegates and fans from across the globe, it was imperative to consider Odisha as an ideal venue for the FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup in 2023. “When we decided to bid for the 2023 FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup, we had about five states that showed interest in hosting the coveted event in 2023. Having successfully hosted the 2018 Men’s World Cup here in Bhubaneswar, it was important for Hockey India to raise the bar further and ensure the next event is bigger and better than what world hockey saw in 2018. Hockey India shares an excellent working relationship with the Government of Odisha whose vision for the sport aligns with ours. In terms of economics involved in hosting an event of this magnitude, Government of Odisha’s support was unmatched and I am confident the world will witness yet another incredible World Cup in 2023,” stated Mohd Mushtaque Ahmad, President, Hockey India.  

In a bid to contribute towards the growth of the sport in India, Honourable Chief Minister Shri Naveen Patnaik also announced at the event today that all 17 blocks of Sundargarh district would be equipped with synthetic pitches, and the event also saw the Hon’ble Chief Minister lay down the foundation stone for a staggering 17 synthetic pitches in Sundargarh district– which is a breeding ground for hockey in India. An ambitious Hockey Grassroots Program by Hockey India too was announced during the event today, which will see the federation closely work with the Department of Sports and Youth Services, Government of Odisha for the development of the sport at the grassroots’ level. It was also announced in the event, a permanent facility will be constructed near the practice pitch of the Kalinga Stadium for establishment of a High Performance Centre.

Hon’ble Chief Minister Shri Naveen Patnaik expressed his delight at Odisha hosting the 2023 edition of the tournament, “Odisha has always been the cradle of hockey, and with the successful organising of the Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018, we showcased a very different side of our state. We have always had a very passionate crowd which supports the sport of hockey, and with the presence of world-class, top-of-the-line facilities in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela, it swells my heart with great pride that Odisha will once again be celebrating the festival of hockey when we host the FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup in January 2023.”

The 15,000 plus fans present at the stadium for today’s announcement, roared with excitement when the Hon’ble Chief Minister announced the World Cup would be returning to Odisha in 2023.

The Government of Odisha further placed emphasis on their commitment towards the sport, as they announced that the Kalinga Stadium, Odisha, will be part of the full-fledged Hockey High Performance.

by Abhishek Shukla

X1Racing League: Indian motorsports to witness history this weekend

New Delhi, 27 November 2019: Indian motorsports will witness history when the world’s first-ever motorsports league commences at the Buddh International Circuit in Delhi NCR on Saturday, 30 November 2019. The X1Racing League, a franchise-based motorsports competition founded by racers Armaan Ebrahim and Aditya Patel, will see six teams fighting it out for the title. A total of 30 international and domestic racers have been drafted in six teams for the first edition of the competition.
The X1Racing League is set to be hosted between November 30-December 1 at the Buddh International Circuit in Delhi NCR and, on 7 December and 8 December at the Madras Motor Race Track in Chennai. 

“X1Racing will provide a great platform for Indians to experience motorsports. We want young Indian drivers to have access to motorsports through the X1Racing League. The main reason behind organising the X1Racing League is to inspire young Indians to take up motorsports as a career,” said Armaan Ebrahim.
Mathias Lauda, who will be racing for the AD Racing Delhi Team, explained the kind of impact the X1Racing League will have on India.
“I think the franchise-based format is a great format for motorsports. It works for all the other big sports like football and so on. Hopefully, the X1Racing League will grow over the years. A new format where international and domestic drivers race together will make the competition very interesting,” said Lauda.

Gaurav Gill, who will also be racing for the Delhi Team, said that this League is unique because the racers in the competition come from different racing backgrounds.

“This X1Racing League will be unique because all the drivers in the competition will come from different disciplines of the sport such as Formula Racing ground, GT background or sports car racing. It will be interesting to see how all of us compete against each other,” said Gill.
DG Races’ Alex Yoong is excited to compete in a team-based motorsports tournament.
“In motorsports, we hardly get to compete as a team, so I am looking forward to it. I think the X1Racing League is a great idea. We have seen the franchise-based tournament has worked for cricket. We’ll have to see how it works for motorsports in India,” said Yoong.
The X1Racing League will have six teams comprising of five drivers and two cars in each team. Of the five drivers in each team, there will be one international male, one international female, one India international and two domestic racers. One of the domestic racers will represent the team in the race.

Each round will take place over two days, with each day starting off with a practice session, followed by qualifying and three back-to-back races. Every round will have six different races and each race will last for 30 minutes and will have three unique team-based race formats per day.

by Abhishek Shukla

NBA AND FANCODE ANNOUNCE LEAGUE’S FIRST LIVESTREAMING PARTNERSHIP IN INDIA

MUMBAI, Nov. 26, 2019 – The National Basketball Association (NBA) and FanCode – a multi-sport aggregator platform offering a wide spectrum of content, commerce and community engagement – today announced the league’s first partnership to livestream NBA games and programming to fans in India.

NBA fans who subscribe to FanCode will have live and on-demand access to select games throughout the 2019-20 NBA season, including regular-season games, the Playoffs and The Finals. 

“By offering NBA games on FanCode, we will further connect with millions of fans in India who enjoy NBA daily fantasy by offering them features like fantasy research, game recaps, news, live scores and much more,” said NBA India Managing Director Rajesh Sethi.  “As the demand for NBA programming and content continues to grow in India, we are committed to providing fans with new and personalized ways to connect with the NBA.”

“We’re thrilled to partner with the NBA, one of the world’s premier sports brands,” said Yannick Colaco, Co-Founder of FanCode.  “Basketball fans will now have comprehensive coverage of the NBA on FanCode, including livestreams of all the biggest games, scores, features, news coverage and fantasy research.”

FanCode, owned by Sporta Technologies which also owns Dream11, the NBA’s official Fantasy Gaming Partner in India, has over 10 million app installs.  Games streamed live on the platform will be the same that would be available for fantasy gaming on Dream11.

by Abhishek Shukla

Unbeatable PSPB teams crowned yet again

Ajmer, November 26: In what were thoroughly one-sided and dreary final affairs, the men and women squads of Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB) lifted the silverwares in the 49th Inter-Institutional Table Tennis Championships as they sent their rivals packing with an identical 3-0 margin of victory at the MCC Indoor Stadium here today.

This was the 18th occasion that their men’s squad has claimed the title, while their women counterpart for the 16th time.

The dominance of the PSPB sides was a foregone conclusion in an event of this stature. Yet, one expected some fireworks from their opponents, the Railways Sports Promotion Board (RSPB), which never came in either final.

Of course, there were a few shades of individual brilliance in specific games of rubber, but the threat perception was long taken out of the question once the PSPB men and women had taken a comfortable lead in either case. So strong were the two that the third singles for them were a mere formality.

Archana opened in a grand manner, taking a 2-0 lead against Railways’ Takeme Sarkar. However, the latter fought back well to level the score to give a glimpse of her team’s surge. Nevertheless, she missed the bus by a long shot and proved to be very poor in the third game. In a meek surrender, she was guilty of giving away as many as five negative points on the trot, making things so simple for Archana, who won the game 11-1! That’s precisely where the Railways first line of defence ended.

Manika Batra, except for the stretched first game, didn’t have to toil against Sagarika Mukherjee who allowed her to complete the formality easily. Sutirtha Mukherjee, too, toyed with Moumita Dutta before finishing the third singles in 17 minutes flat.

As for the men’s team final, the script did not change much except when A. Sharath Kamal, playing the third singles, dropped a game to Anirban Nandi of Railways. But that was perhaps the only aberration. Yet, the PSPB men were never under any threat as the seasoned Sharath, who gave a long rope, did not allow the rubber go the other way. Of course, he played some loose shots and that could not take away the aggression or his single-minded devotion towards his team’s cause.  

Earlier, Amalraj began in a whirlwind fashion, making Anirban Ghosh pay for trying to be aggressive. The fast-paced rubber saw quite a few rallies but Amalraj, with his endgame perfection, simply put it across his Railways rival.

Then it was time for the Indonesian Open winner, Harmeet Desai, to make it purely a PSPB affair against Ravindra Kotiyan, who was not at all in his elements. Soon after, Sharath made his appearance for the third singles with a big round of applause from an appreciative crowd and fellow players.

In Youth Boys, the PSPB team defeated AAI 3-0 in their last league match to retain the title and also join their Girls squad, who won on the second day, to qualify in each section for the Junior and Youth Nationals, to be held at Jammu from December 2.   

Results (TEAM):

Women: Final: Petroleum Sports Promotion Board bt Railways Sports Promotion Board 3-0 (Archana Kamath bt Takeme Sarkar 11-6, 11-6, 5-11, 9-11, 11-1, Manika Batra bt Sagarika Mukherjee 12-10, 11-8, 11-9, Sutirtha Mukherjee bt Moumita Dutta 11-6, 11-4, 12-10).

Men: Final: Sports Promotion Board bt Railways Sports Promotion Board 3-0 (Anthony Amalraj bt Anirban Ghosh 11-7, 11-6, 11-4, Harmeet Desai bt Ravindra Kotiyan 11-8, 11-4, 11-4, A Sharath Kamal bt Anirban Nandi 11-9, 4-11, 11-9, 13-11.

Youth Boys: Final standings: 1. PSPB, 2. AAI, 3. Canara Bank, 4. Air India, 5. FCI.

Youth Girls: Final standings: 1. PSPB, 2. RSPB, 3. Air India, 4. AAI.

by Abhishek Shukla

Rajasthan Royals School Girls’ Cup to start from Wednesday

Jaipur, 26 November 2019: In a bid to further strengthen the sport at the grassroots level in the state, IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals today announced the launch of a first-ever school level competition for girls in the state, named Rajasthan Royals School Girls’ Cup, which is scheduled to be held from 27 – 29 November 2019 at the Jaipuria Cricket Academy.
The Rajasthan Royals School Girls’ Cup will be a T20 competition to be contested between U-19 girls’ teams from four schools – Mayo College Girls’ School (Ajmer), St Teresa’s School (Jaipur), Jaipuria Vidyalaya (Jaipur) and Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls’ School (Jaipur). The tournament will follow a round-robin format, with the four teams playing each other once in the group stage, followed by the top two teams contesting in the Final match on 29 November 2019 at 1300hrs IST.
Ranjit Barthakur, Executive Chairman of Rajasthan Royals, spoke highly of this new initiative, “With Rajasthan being a well-known hub for talented young players, we started this initiative to give a platform to the young girls from the state. We know there is no dearth of talent in the state, and it’s imperative that the budding cricketers get access to top quality competition and comprehensive training.  We are very delighted to be part of empowering women’s cricket in the region.”
Rajasthan Royals’ official girls’ talent pool, Royal Sparks, will also be actively featuring during the competition, with two members – Manasvi and Yashasvi Katta – set to represent the Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls’ School, while other Sparks will be a part of event operations team in order to gain valuable match-day operations’ experience.
The tournament will see fierce competition between the four sides with a total of seven players from Mayo College Girls’ School, Ajmer and Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls’ School, Jaipur, having already been part of the School Games Federation of India (SGFI) national camps and having made it to the national team in the past.
Rajasthan Royals’ Fielding Coach, Dishant Yagnik believes that the tournament will give much-needed match exposure to the girls. “Our objective with the Rajasthan Royals School Girls’ Cup is to ensure that the participating young players are playing in a professional set up as early as possible, and are getting the relevant opportunities to showcase their skills. We are hoping the tournament will potentially give them a launchpad to be a part of the Royal Sparks,” said Yagnik.

by Abhishek Shukla

Fitness will be a determining factor at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, says Sjoerd Marijne

Bengaluru, 23 November 2019: Back in the Sports Authority of India, Bengaluru for National Coaching Camp, it is business as usual for the Indian Women’s Hockey Team albeit with greater focus now on a podium finish at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. Following a review meeting earlier this week, the team will bank on their ‘fearless attitude’ as they approach the next seven-eight months of preparations for the quadrennial extravaganza. 

“The review meeting earlier this week was not all about ‘well done, congratulations’ but it was more about how we almost threw away the second match. I expressed my anger without mincing any words. The way we played the first two quarters in the second match against USA in the Olympic Qualifiers was something we never want to repeat again,” stated Sjoerd Marijne, as he recalled the exchange of views about the team’s performance against USA during the review meeting involving players and support staff. 

“A major take away from that match was the team’s ability to fight back. That is the quality I really like about this team. They will never give up and they have on several occasions shown that burning desire to win and to play at home against a strong team calls for a lot of nerves,” he added. 

In the coming months the team have a rigorous regime starting with a tour of New Zealand in January 2020. “We have chartered out our plans for the next seven months and we have a clear vision of what we need to improve on and the level we seek to achieve ahead of the Olympics. While we play some very good teams in the lead up to the Olympics where we look forward to achieving consistent performance, it is very important to keep the players’ minds and legs fresh. We have decided to be based out of SAI, Bengaluru all along because this feels like home for us and every minute aspect such as the environment we train in, and support system we have here plays a major factor in our preparations,” Marijne explained. 

Please find attached photos of the Indian Women’s Hockey Team. 

by Abhishek Shukla

Sathiyan-less PSPB still good for another title

Ajmer, November 23: The Institutional Table Tennis Championships, getting underway from tomorrow at the MCC Indoor Stadium and the Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB) team will miss the services of G. Sathiyan.

This is the first time in many years that the top-ranked Indian has skipped an event of such importance, the second highest in terms of ranking points. Not that the world at No. 30 needs to prove anything to anybody, but the spectators will certainly miss the enjoyment of watching him play.

Sathiyan, competing in the only domestic event—the Public Sector tournament at Thiruvananthapuram last week—had helped his team ONGC to title before taking a flight to Chengdu where he had lined-up a week-long training session with Taipei’s Shen Yaohuan, prior to the commencement of the World Cup Championships from November 29 to December 1.

His exploits in recent times, particularly his sixth position at the Asian Championships in Yogyakarta (Indonesia), is too well known. He had narrowly missed his maiden men singles title in a hotly-contested final at Cuttack early this January. This did pave the way for A. Sharath Kamal to enter the Hall of Fame with nine singles title and subsequently the Padma Shri, the first ever paddler to achieve the feat. And we all will miss another riveting contest.

Of course, the world No. 36 will be there to lead the PSPB team in men with the likes of Indonesia Open gold medallist Harmeet Desai, silver medal-winner Anthony Amalraj, Manav Thakkar and Sudhanshu Grover who are adequate enough to help them get yet another title in the long history of Inter-Institutional championships, which will enter the golden jubilee year in 2020. But an intense singles final between two stalwarts will be missed.

The same cannot be said about their women’s squad which will be spearheaded by Manika Batra in the company of old warhorses Madhurika Patkar, Sutirtha Mukherjee, Krittwika Sinha Roy and Archana Kamath. Manika, the golden girl in 2018, has not played a domestic tournament this year and her performance abroad, too, has not made any big ripples. The other members, including Archana, have been inconsistent and that is a concern for PSPB. 

They will essentially face a tough time against the RBI paddlers who, in recent times, have made a mark for themselves, the Railways, AAI, Audit and other banking institutions represented by players drawn from Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal—all of whom on their day can bring down the current PSPB squad from its high pedestal.

In other words, there is ample opportunity for the 13 women teams to qualify for the Senior Nationals as the top two teams in each category make the cut. Similarly, among the 18 men squads one can anticipate a fierce fight among all contenders to book their Hyderabad Nationals berth along with the PSPB, the favourites for team title.

The men’s teams will be divided into six groups of three each and women squads will be split into four groups of three and four teams.

There are two spots at stake—one each for Youth Boys and Youth Girls—which the five Youth Boys and four Youth Girls squads will try to grab to be eligible to participate in the Junior and Youth Nationals, to be held at Jammu from December 2.

All their matches will be played in the league format and whoever tops the league chart qualify for the nationals.

Other than these attractions, there are gold medals to be won in all three doubles—men, women and mixed—with the additional incentive of prize money for the pairs that do well.

Overall, the total prize purse of round Rs. 6.25 lakh to be won with the men singles winner taking home Rs. 88,000 and Rs. 77,000 for the women singles gold medallist.

“The first three days of the championships will witness matches in team events, with the singles and doubles starting from Day 4. The matches will be played on Stag Americas tables with the flooring provided by the manufacturers and DHS balls will be used during the championships,” said competition manager Ganeshan Neelakanta Iyer.

He also said that veteran Anil Dubey will be the referee for the event and his deputy will be Mangesh Mopker. They will be leading a technical team of 35, comprising Blue Badge, international and national umpires.

The championships, organized by PSPB, will be inaugurated at 10 a.m. tomorrow.

by Abhishek Shukla

Saurav loses in close fight

London: Indian ace Saurav Ghosal almost pulled off a stunner but the five game quarter final thriller against the top seed Mohamed ElShorbagy of Egypt ended in the latter’s favour late on Friday in the Channel VAS squash championship, a PSA World Tour gold event being held in Surrey.

The Egyptian just about managed to beat the seventh seeded Indian 5-11,11-9,11-9, 10-12, 12-10 and it took him 85 minutes to complete the task and in the process saved a match ball and some anxious moments.

by Abhishek Shukla

Chhetri rises to give Bengaluru 1-0 win over Blasters

Bengaluru: Bengaluru FC asserted their dominance over Kerala Blasters with a 1-0 win against Eelco Schattorie’s side at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium, in Bengaluru, on Saturday. Sunil Chhetri’s header in the 55th minute was the solitary goal in a result that sends Carles Cuadrat Blues to second place on the table with nine points from five games. A packed Kanteerava witnessed the clash as 27,083 spectators thronged the stands, a record attendance for a Bengaluru FC game in the city.

Cuadrat’s only change to the side that started against Chennaiyin FC two weeks ago, was one in defence. Rahul Bheke, who sustained a muscle injury while on international duty didn’t get the green signal from the medical team, prompting the Blues’ boss to start Albert Serran alongside Juanan Gonzalez in a back-four that had Harmanjot Khabra slot in at right-back.

Kerala, meanwhile, began the game with Bartholomew Ogbeche and Raphael Bouli in attack, ahead of two lines of four where Schattorie decided to leave new signing Vlatko Drobarov and Sahal Abdul Samad on the bench.

Usually fluent from the get-go, Bengaluru took more time than usual to build a rhythm of any sort, in a first half that neither side could claim they owned. The hosts did create a few half-chances, but they remained just that.

And when the Blues did put the ball in the back of the net, it was taken away by an erroneous call from the assistant referee. Chasing down a ball on the right, Udanta sent in a cross that Raphael Augusto powered in with a header in the 28th minute, only for the goal to be disallowed as Ranjit Bakshi’s assistant deemed the ball to have rolled out of play when the winger whipped it in. The replays, however, showed it was the wrong call.  

Needing to do things differently if they were to take control of the game, Bengaluru started the second half just the way Cuadrat would have ordered them to at half time. The ball was moved around with more composure and in a matter of minutes, Kerala were panicking at the back. Bengaluru sensed a breakthrough and Chhetri delivered it in the 55th minute, meeting Dimas Delgado’s take from the corner with a diving header that TP Rehenesh could only watch fly into the corner.

Looking to gain a further stronghold on the game, Cuadrat introduced striker Semboi Haokip for Khabra. The change saw Nishu move to the right-back position, Ashique slot in at left in defence and Chhetri go wide left.

The Blues were close to getting a second in the 74th minute when Augusto looked to place a cut-back from Udanta past Rehenesh. But the Kerala ’keeper did really well to keep the goal-bound shout out with his foot. Bengaluru kept pushing forward for a second and could have had one late in the game as Rehenesh’s miscued clearance allowed Augusto to send Dimas free, but the Spaniard’s shot from inside the box was blocked away.

Bengaluru next travel to face Hyderabad FC on November 29th.

by Abhishek Shukla

AIFF, NADA COLLABORATE TO INTRODUCE FIRST-EVER COUNTRY-WIDE ANTI-DOPING WORKSHOPS

NEW DELHI: The All India Football Federation (AIFF), in collaboration with the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), is set to conduct Anti-Doping Awareness Workshops for all footballers, along with the support staff of all clubs taking part in the Hero Indian Super League and the Hero I-League.

The Mass Athlete Awareness Program Against Doping, which is a NADA educational programme, is set to be a regular fixture from 2019-20 onwards. The NADA-designed programme will be introduced to Indian Football for the first time, and will be held on Saturday, November 23 in Bellary, and on Sunday, November 24 in Bengaluru. The workshops will get underway this month.
 

The programme has been created in order to spread anti-doping awareness among sportspersons and support staff, including all the stakeholders in the Indian Football community, with the aim of decreasing the incidences of doping amongst the Indian athletes and promote fair play.

With a higher awareness about anti-doping, India can take the important step towards eradicating doping from the beautiful game.

by Abhishek Shukla

COACHES HAIL ‘REVOLUTIONARY’ A LICENSE COURSE

NEW DELHI: On Wednesday (November 20, 2019), 12 coaches passed the AFC A Certificate Course after completing three challenging modules – the first of which took place in April earlier this year. Among the successful candidates was former Indian national team captain and current assistant coach Venkatesh Shanmugham, who stated that the course was “challenging yet enjoyable”.

 

He said, “With the updated curriculum, the course was a challenging experience for all of us and also enjoyable at the same time. The increased length of the course — almost 6 months — enabled us to learn more. The exchange of ideas with all the fellow coaches was a great experience as well.”

 

Former India captain and renowned centre-back Gouramangi Singh successfully passed the course as well, calling it “demanding” and mentioned that it “prepared them perfectly” for the real job.

 

Gouramangi, who was named the AIFF Player of the Year in 2010, said, “The course was demanding and had us committed for 6-7 months across three intense modules. From what I understand, there were a lot of positive changes in the practical methodology and theory content from the previous versions — which has been adapted according to a modern approach. I really believe that this course prepared us perfectly for the real job of coaching.”

Firmin D’Souza, who led India to victory last year in the 2018 SAFF U-15 Women’s Championship, was also among the coaches who passed with flying colours and he hailed the course as “revolutionary”.

“The curriculum has improved by leaps and bounds, which has been nothing short of revolutionary. A lot of opinions were shared over these months as we all learned from each other. Along with the theoretical aspect, we learned a lot about the application and practical part of the game,” he said.
 

The coaches reserved a special word of gratitude for the course instructors as well. “The instructors were interactive and empowered us to learn and grow. I would like to thank Savio (Medeira) sir and the other instructors for their invaluable contribution in making us better coaches,” Firmin stated, echoing his colleagues’ sentiments.  

One Championship
by Abhishek Shukla

Rahul “The Kerala Krusher” Raju defeated Pakistani newcomer in ONE Championship

22 November 2019 – Singapore: The largest global sports media property in Asian history, ONE Championship™ (ONE), returned home to the Singapore Indoor Stadium to deliver yet another incredible martial arts spectacle. ONE: EDGE OF GREATNESS played host to the world’s most amazing martial arts athletes, as they took to the ONE Championship ring to showcase their skills.

Rahul “The Kerala Krusher” Raju scored another big win for India as he notched an impressive submission victory over Pakistani newcomer Furqan “The Lion” Cheema. Raju displayed an all-around attack, using his striking to set up his unstoppable takedowns. In the second round, Raju unloaded a crisp combination before once again taking Cheema down and from there, transitioned into a rear-naked choke to force the tap. 

In the main event, reigning ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Champion Nong-O Gaiyanghadao of Thailand retained his World Title with a knockout victory over countryman Saemapetch Fairtex.

Muay Thai icon Nong-O Gaiyanghadao of Thailand put on a performance for the ages as he dominated compatriot Saemapetch Fairtex en route to a knockout win to retain the ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Championship. Nong-O showed exactly why he is considered a legend in the sport, lighting Saemapetch up in the early going, which led to a pair of massive knockdowns in the second round. The challenger battled back valiantly in the third round, as Saemapetch delivered his own punishing combinations. In the fourth round however, Nong-O ended the night with a stiff right straight that caught Saemapetch off guard and turned the lights off almost immediately. 

In the co-main event, Singapore’s own Amir Khan snapped a three-bout losing streak, notching a hard-earned split decision win over fellow former ONE World Title challenger Ev “E.T.” Ting of Malaysia and New Zealand. The hometown bet Khan found success early in the bout as he made good use of his Muay Thai skills to pick Ting apart with strikes. Ting rallied back in the succeeding round, putting the pressure on Khan with his wrestling. After three rounds of back-and-forth action, it was Khan who earned the victory on two of the three judges’ score cards.

American Troy “Pretty Boy” Worthen kept his unbeaten record intact with an impressive technical knockout win over China’s “Rock Man” Chen Lei. The former NCWA Wrestling Champion put his grappling superiority on display, taking Chen down at will and keeping full control on the mat. Worthen continued to impose his will in the second round, taking Chen down before getting mount and unloading a flurry of ground-and-pound, forcing the referee to step in and stop the bout. 

Former ONE Strawweight World Champion Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke of Thailand returned to the winner’s circle with a spectacular third-round technical knockout victory over Pakistan’s Muhammad “The Spider” Imran. Dejdamrong dictated the pace all match long, as the multiple-time Lumpinee Stadium champion picked Imran apart with stiff jabs and thunderous leg kicks. Dejdamrong turned the intensity up a level in the third round, dropping Imran with sharp knees before finishing things off with a ground-and-pound storm. 

Multiple-time Karate World Champion Colbey Northcutt of the United States was successful in her ONE Championship debut, edging out Indonesian athlete Putri Padmi to take home a hard-earned unanimous decision. Northcutt came close to ending the bout in the opening round, locking in submission attempt after submission attempt, but Padmi showed tremendous heart by surviving each one. Northcutt went on to dominate the bout the rest of the way, putting on a striking clinic to coast to a decision win after three rounds of action. 

Former ONE Strawweight World Champion Alex “Little Rock” Silva of Brazil overcame a game effort from China’s Peng Xue Wen, winning by submission in the second round. Silva had difficulty getting past Peng’s wrestling in the early going, and was getting tagged on the feet. In the second round however, Silva’s grappling began to take over. It wasn’t long before the Brazilian was able to take full mount and secure an armbar to force the tap.

Thailand’s Petchmorakot Petchyindee Academy returned to action on a high note, stopping England’s Charlie “Boy” Peters. Petchmorakot dropped Peters with a clean hit in the second, but the latter survived and made it back up to his feet. The end was not far however, as Petchmorakot put the finishing touches with a series of powerful knees to send Peters again to the canvas.

Vietnam’s Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat continued his impressive run in the ONE Championship ring, turning in a dominant performance over Japan’s Yuta Watanabe. Nguyen came out to a blistering start, as he knocked Watanabe down twice in the first round. Just moments into the second, Nguyen connected on a head kick that ended matters instantly as he scored a highlight reel knockout.

Japanese bantamweight contender Shuya “Stealth” Kamikubo spoiled the highly-anticipated return of Brazil’s Bruno “Puccibull” Pucci. Although Pucci had a strong first round with various submission attempts, Kamikubo turned to his wrestling from the beginning of the second round. The Japanese warrior never looked back, and dominated the rest of the way en route to a unanimous decision.

Kicking off the action at ONE: EDGE OF GREATNESS were ONE Super Series featherweight contenders Liam Nolan and Brown Pinas. The two locked horns in a fiery Muay Thai contest that went right down to the wire. Nolan started the bout on the offensive, but Pinas came alive in the second. In the end however, all three judges scored the bout in favor of Nolan to win by unanimous decision.

Official results for ONE: EDGE OF GREATNESS
ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Championship: Nong-O Gaiyanghadao defeats Saemapetch Fairtex by Knockout (KO) at 1:46 minutes of round 4
Mixed Martial Arts Lightweight: Amir Khan defeats Ev Ting by Split Decision (SD) after 3 rounds
Mixed Martial Arts Catchweight (68.5 kg): Troy Worthen defeats Chen Lei by TKO (Strikes) at 4:56 minutes of round 2
Mixed Martial Arts Catchweight (81.0 kg): Rahul Raju defeats Furqan Cheema by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 3:00 minutes of round 2
Mixed Martial Arts Strawweight: Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke defeats Muhammad Imran by TKO (Strikes) at 1:21 minutes of round 3
Mixed Martial Arts Flyweight: Colbey Northcutt defeats Putri Padmi by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
Mixed Martial Arts Strawweight: Alex Silva defeats Peng Xue Wen by Submission (Armbar) at 4:45 minutes of round 2
Muay Thai Featherweight: Petchmorakot Petchyindee Academy defeats Charlie Peters by Knockout (KO) at 1:48 minutes of round 2
Muay Thai Flyweight: Nguyen Tran Duy Nhat defeats Yuta Watanabe by Knockout (KO) at 0:30 minutes of round 2
Mixed Martial Arts Bantamweight: Shuya Kamikubo defeats Bruno Pucci by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds
Muay Thai Featherweight: Liam Nolan defeats Brown Pinas by Unanimous Decision (UD) after 3 rounds

by Abhishek Shukla

First Pink Ball test match touches 60,000 fans beyond 22 yards with Breast Cancer survivors

22nd November 2019, Kolkata: On the historic day of India witnessing a new milestone in the game of Cricket, with the first-ever Pink ball Day-Night Test Match at Eden Gardens, Global Cancer Trust, a Kolkata based registered Non-Governmental Organization, made a unique attempt to bring smiles on the faces of breast cancer survivors. Today during the break, 20 breast cancer survivors who have valiantly battled and endured this disease were felicitated by BCCI President, Sourav Ganguly and Abhishek Dalmiya, secretary of Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB). Cricketing legends Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble, VVS Laxman and the first Bangladesh team which played test against India, were present during the occasion.

Speaking on this special occasion, Dr Vikash K Agarwal, Eminent Oncologist and Chairman of Global Cancer Trust commented, “It is a matter of great prestige that breast cancer survivors are being felicitated on this monumental day in Indian cricketing history by the Hon’ble Prime Minister of Bangladesh and Hon’ble Chief Minister of West Bengal in front of so many spectators at Eden Gardens. It is a once in a lifetime moment that will surely be etched in their and our memories. We would like to extend our heartiest gratitude to Mr. Sourav Ganguly from BCCI and Mr. Abhishek Dalmiya from Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) for bringing joy to the lives of the survivors. We could not have asked for anything better.”

The colour pink that is synonymous with breast cancer has also emerged as the central theme of the much-awaited match at the iconic stadium with stands and corridors getting hues of pink and cricket graffiti. Global Cancer Trust also handed over 30,000 pink caps to all the spectators who were present on the first day of the historic test match at Eden gardens. The survivors who have fought this grave disease successfully, shared their stories and emotional experiences with those present.

Global Cancer Trusthas been working for the last 10 years with cancer patients. They have conducting awareness seminars and diagnostic camps spreading information about cancer to people from all walks of life. Global Cancer Trust has also organised a limited over cricket match for the breast cancer survivors on the third day of the Test match which will be held at Eden Gardens.

About Global Cancer Trust: Global Cancer Trust (GCT), a registered Non Governmental Organization, was founded in 2010 under the leadership of Dr Vikash K Agarwal, an onco surgeon who guides the organization with his philanthropic and visionary idea with the able support of many other selfless likeminded people. The exponential rise in the occurrence of cancer diseases in our society, especially in the young generation, motivated us to lend our efforts to prevent our society from the ill effects effects of cancer.We have been conducting awareness seminars and diagnostic camps spreading information about cancer to people from all walks of life

by Abhishek Shukla

Every Indian Hero I-League player a possible Blue Tigers candidate: Igor Stimac

NEW DELHI: The 13th edition of the Hero I-League was launched in a glittering ceremony in New Delhi on Thursday (November 22, 2019) and presenting the trophy on the occasion was senior national team head coach Igor Stimac, who spoke about the upcoming 2019-20 campaign and stated that every Indian player in the competition is a “possible candidate” for the senior national team.

“I am very excited about the upcoming games in the Hero I-League. I came here (at the launch) to send a good and positive message to everyone involved in the competition. I will keep coming to watch the matches whenever I can,” Stimac stated.

He continued, “The players need to know that each player in the league with an Indian passport is one of the possible future candidates for the national team. It’s up to them — how they perform for their respective teams, how they present themselves and how many points they win for their clubs.”

The head coach also mentioned how most of the players in the Blue Tigers unit came through the ranks in the Hero I-League and offered his assurance that he will support the players as much as he can.

“Most players in the Indian senior national team came through the Hero I-League. I look forward to seeing the players in action and supporting them in what they do as much as possible. I want to assure them that they should not feel lonely or forgotten because they have great importance for Indian football and its future,” the Croatian mentioned.

The Hero I-League 2019-20 begins on Saturday, November 30, as Aizawl FC host Mohun Bagan at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Aizawl, Mizoram, at 2 PM IST. All matches will be broadcast on DSport.

Please find the full list of Hero I-League 2019-20 Fixtures here: http://www.indiafooty.com/i-league/

by Abhishek Shukla

Apollo Tyres Millennium City Marathon route released

Gurugram, 22 November 2019: The Apollo Tyres Millennium City Marathon, to be held on December 1, will be more enticing this time for runners as the route, certified by World Athletics (till recently known as the International Amateur Athletics Federation – IAAF), envisages a bit more time on the iconic Golf Course Road underpass.

MCM Race Director Abhishek Mishra, himself an UltraMan finisher, says the feedback from runners about the underpass has been so overwhelmingly positive that there was no hesitation in adding extra distance. “This also assists the Gurugram Police and the Gurugram Traffic Police to ensure a smooth flow of traffic,” he says.

The race route does not take the runners towards Sector 56 for the U-turn at the halfway mark for the half marathon. The route provides for an extra U-turn for the half-marathon and two for the full marathon near the Sector 53-53 rapid metro station after having taken a turn into the other carriageway near the AIT Chowk.

“Over the years, one of the highlights of the Millennium City Marathon is the hassle-free run that the participants can have, with the Police ensuring that traffic does not impede the runners at any point of time,”  the Race Director says. “We take pride in enabling every runner, including the last one, also have the same experience.”

There are adequate sections at road level so that the runners can see daylight, too.
The other big decision that Tobono Sports, which organises the Millennium City Marathon, has made is to locate the finish points for the timed runs and the fun runs at different place. “It will ensure that those seeking to sprint to finish in the timed runs (full marathon, half marathon and 10km) do not have to jostle with those who participate in the 5k run,” Abhishek Mishra says.  

“While the start-finish line is the same for 5k runners, the timed runners will complete their distances in front of Cyber Hub. We believe that this innovation will be welcomed by all runners, especially those seeking to improve their times on an IAAF-certified route and in an Athletics Federation of India-certified event,” Abhishek Mishra says.

The safety aspect of the race has always been praised by runners, especially since the route is closed for vehicular traffic till after the last runner crosses the finish line. The number of hydration stations, first-aid points and ambulances on stand-by will give runners the confidence that they will be well provided for.

by Abhishek Shukla

Aadarsh, Pritha are Sub-Junior National Table Tennis Champions

Dharamshala, November 22: Aadarsh Om Chetri kept Delhi’s flag flying high when he downed Divyansh Srivastava of UP 4-2 in a tough Sub-Junior Boys singles final to lift the trophy in the UTT 81st Cadet and Sub-Junior National Table Tennis Championships at the Indoor Stadium here today.

But Pritha Vartikar of Maharashtra denied gold to Delhi when she stopped Lakshita Narang’s march in the final with a hard-fought 4-2 triumph.

Tamil Nadu made a harvest of nine medals—six gold, including in three team events, one silver and two bronze medals—while Maharashtra finished behind them with three gold, one silver and two bronze medals. It was perhaps the first time that Delhi failed to win a team medal but the individuals did well to keep it going for the national capital.

Aadarsh had to endure an attacking Divyansh who cashed in on several edges, particularly when the Delhi boy seemed relaxed. Even in the sixth game, he came close of a deuce point but Aadarsh stopped him with two crisp shots for the gold.

It was rather surprising that Preyesh played a completely subdued semi-final and could not perform the way he is expected to, leading to his downfall as the UP’s Divyansh Srivastava picked up a perfect momentum right from the word go. Somehow top-seeded Preyesh was unable to unlock himself from the clutches of his rival and forgot his own natural game which has benefited him all through. It was also not the first time that the TN boy, despite wonderful performance throughout the National ranking events, getting bogged down in the nationals.

Aadarsh, on the other hand, had to really counter a calculated Havish who was comfortably placed at 2-0. But the Delhi boy came into his own and started reaping the fruits soon after as he managed to stop the left-handed Maharashtra boy then and there.

Pritha was in her zone in the final as she hardly allowed Lakshita get a grip. Yet the Delhi paddler made valiant efforts to take the second and fifth games but with a 3-2 lead, the Maharashtra paddler, who had just one title win this season, wrapped it up quickly to end Lakshita’s ordeal.  

Pritha, showing remarkable improvement within a year, matched the guiles of Haryana’s Suhana Saini, the top-seed. With a 2-0 cushion, the boot was on the other leg and Suhana had to take the initiative. But then the Haryana girl did put up a better fight in the next two games but could not stop the inevitable happening. Like Preyesh, she too failed at an important national semi-final.

Delhi’s Lakshita Narang avenged her earlier lost too Taneesha Kotecha in national ranking events when she upped her game to the next level after being 0-2 down. The determination of Lakshita reflected in her game as she first levelled the score before dropping one more game. But she finished it off in style and converted to her advantage all the good rallies to take the fifth and sixth games.

Abhinand, Jennifer are champs

P.B. Abhinand added the sixth gold medal—the only individual gold—to the Tamil Nadu kitty when he defeated Priyanuj Bhattacharyya of Tamil Nadu 4-1. The PSPBA paddler, who has three National Ranking titles to his credit this season, was not good on the day in spite of making it 1-1 after a bad start. However, he did stretch Abhinand in the fourth and fifth games which the TN boy won to complete the task.

Earlier, Abhinand arrested the surge of PSPBA boys as three of them had made it to the Cadet Boys semi-finals. The Tamil Nadu boy accounted for Divyaj Rajkhowa in a tough match, winning it 3-2, even as Priyanuj disposed of his academy mate Sehgal Singh, also by the same margin.

Jennifer Varghese of Maharashtra scored a come-from-behind 4-2 win to claim the gold medal in Cadet Girls final against Delhi’s Vanshika Mudgal. The Delhi girl, playing an exemplary game, had Jennifer on tenterhooks as the former led 2-0. But the Maharashtra paddler, who made it to the second final this season—she won her maiden crown at Thane—pulled up her socks to outwit her opponent. Slowly clawing her way back she claimed the singles trophy.

But the biggest surprise was Vanshika’s maiden entry into any finals this season. The talented Delhi girl defeated Anika Gupta, having upset India No. 4 Nandini Saha of West Bengal 3-2 late last night. Her confidence was evidence today when she played an attacking game against the UP girl. She will take on Jennifer Varghese, India No. 3 and a real good talent from Maharashtra, who defeated M. Hansini from Tamil Nadu 3-1. Hansini, India No. 5, had been a revelation throughout this season and the little girl had beaten No. 1 Diya Bramhacahry in the quarters.

Redemption time

In Sub-Junior Boys doubles finals, Preyesh redeemed himself in the company of Navaneeth Kutty to win the gold as did their girls—Kavyashree Baskar and Nehal Venkatasamy. The TN boys defeated Delhi’s Aadarsh Om Chetri and Aditya Jain 3-1 while Maharashtra duo of Taneesha and Pritha went down 1-3 to Kavyashree and Nehal.

Results:

Sub-Junior Boys Singles: Final: Aadarsh Om Chetri (Del) bt Divyansh Srivastava (UP) 11.8, 11-13, 11-9, 15-17, 11-3, 11-9.

Semi-finals: Divyansh Srivastava bt Preyesh Raj Suresh (TN) 11-9, 11-4, 12-10, 11-4; Aadarsh Om Chetri bt Havish Asrani (Mah) 11-13, 5-11, 11-5, 12-10, 11-8, 11-8.

Doubles Final: Preyesh Raj Suresh/Navaneeth Kutty (TN) bt Aadarsh Om Chetri/Aditya Jain (Del) 1-9, 11-7, 13-11.

Sub-Junior Girls Singles: Final: Pritha Vartikar (Mah) bt Lakshita Narang (Del) 11-8, 9-11, 11-6, 11-9, 6-11, 11-6.

Semi-finals: Pritha Vartikar bt Suhana Saini (Har) 11-5, 11-5, 11-8, 11-7; Lakshita Narang bt Taneesha Kotecha (Mah) 8-11, 6-11, 11-9, 11-9, 6-11, 11-6, 11-6.

Doubles Final: Kavyashree Baskar/Nehal Venkatasamy (TN) bt Pritha Vartikar/Taneesha Kotecha (Mah) 10-12, 11-7, 11-8, 11-4.

Cadet Boys Singles: Final: P.B. Abhinand (TN) bt Priyanuj Bhattacharyya (PSPBA) 11-6, 9-11, 11-8, 12-10, 12-10.

Semi-finals: Priyanuj Bhattacharyya bt Sehgal Singh (PSPBA) 5-11, 12-10, 11-7, 10-12, 13-11; P.B. Abhinand bt Divyaj Rajkhowa (PSPBA) 11-8, 9-11, 11-8, 11-13, 11-7.

Cadet Girls Singles: Final: Jennifer Varghese (Mah) bt Vanshika Mudgal (Del) 3-11, 10-12, 12-10, 11-8, 12-10, 11-7.

Semi-finals: Jennifer Varghese bt M. Hansini (TN) 1-8, 6-11, 15-13, 12-10; Vanshika Mudgal bt Anika Gupta (UP) 11-5, 11-6, 11-5.