Indian sports News- September 30th
September 30, 2019
Bytes: Athletics World Championship, ATP Challengers cup, 3rd T20I washed off, Vijay Hazare Trophy, Sports Physiologists, India draw against GB, India thrashes Spain, Junior woman’s squad probables announced, Maldives International Challenge, Pro Kabaddi League, Peerless FC close to CFL dream, India wins SAFF Under-18
YoGems makes sure that you won’t miss a thing in the field of sports, so here is a quick recap to all the happenings from the last 24 hours:
Athletics:
World Championship- India’s 4x400m mixed relay team finished seventh in the final race of the World Championships on Sunday in Doha. The team of Muhammed Anas, V K Vismaya, Jisna Mathew and Tom Nirmal Noah clocked 3 minute 15.77 seconds to finish seventh in the field of eight countries. This was also the season best timing for the Indian team. Anas ran the first leg for India in lane number 8 and was trailing early in the race. Vismaya, who ran the second leg, was the final runner to pass the baton to third-leg runner Jisna. The Indian runner collided with another athlete and lost precious time at that moment. Noah tried to recover some time but India managed only a seventh place ahead of Brazil. Indian team had already qualified for the Tokyo Olympics by qualifying for the finals of this race at the World Championships. They finished third in their heats and seventh overall on Saturday with a timing of 3:16.14 to qualify for the finals. United States raised the heat in Doha as they won the gold medal with a worlds record timing of 3:09.34 in the event which was making debut in the championships. Jamaica won the silver medal after clocking 3:11.78 while and Bahrain finished third with a timing of 3:11.82.
Jamaican sprint queen Shelly- Ann Fraser-Pryce surged to an unprecedented fourth 100m crown and US legend Allyson Felix broke Usain Bolt’s gold medal record tally as the returning new mothers lit up the World Championships in Doha, Sunday. Fraser-Pryce and Felix, both racing in their first major championships since taking time off from the sport to have children, lit up a pulsating day three of competition even if the action was played out inside a near-empty Khalifa Stadium. The 32-year-old Fraser-Pryce, who skipped the 2017 championships to give birth to her first child, delivered a barnstorming run to take the 100m in 10.71sec.
Tennis:
ATP Challenger- India’s Sumit Nagal won the $54,160 ATP Challenger tournament in Buenos Aires on Sunday with a 6-4, 6-2 victory against eight seed Facundo Bagnis from Argentina in the final. This is Nagal’s second ATP Challenger title and it saw him climb 26 places in the ATP Rankings that were released on Monday. He is now ranked a career-high 135 in the world. The seventh-seeded Indian had defeated fourth seed Thiago Monteiro from Brazil 6-0, 6-1 in the semi-final of the clay court tournament. Before that, he had got the better of Pedro Sakamoto, Jose Hernandez-Fernandez and Francisco Cerundolo in his first three matches. The seventh-seeded Indian had defeated fourth seed Thiago Monteiro from Brazil 6-0, 6-1 in the semi-final of the clay court tournament. Before that, he had got the better of Pedro Sakamoto, Jose Hernandez-Fernandez and Francisco Cerundolo in his first three matches. The 22-year-old right-hander is in the middle of a strong finish to the 2019 season. He grabbed headlines recently when he took the first set off 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer in their opening round match at the US Open. He is the second highest-ranked singles tennis player among Indian men, behind Prajnesh Gunneswaran who is occupying the 81st spot.
Cricket:
IndvsSA- The third women’s Twenty20 International between India and South Africa was abandoned on Sunday, without a ball being bowled due to a wet outfield in Surat. Persistent rain meant the outfield was unplayable even when the drizzle did stop and the toss could not take place. The game was supposed to start at 7 pm local time but after inspecting the conditions at 7:30 pm, the umpires decided to call off the game. This is the second consecutive match in the series which has been washed out. The second T20I was also abandoned due to rain on Thursday. The hosts managed to defend 130 in the series opener with spinner Deepti Sharma producing a match-winning effort, ending with phenomenal figures of 3/8 in four overs including three maidens. The fourth T20 is scheduled on Tuesday, to be held in the same stadium.
Vijay Hazare Trophy- Chhattisgarh continued its winning run in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, beating Andhra by 56 runs in the Elite Group A game in Karnataka on Sunday. Asked to bat first, Chhattisgarh, who had stunned defending champions Mumbai on Saturday, could manage 268/9 in their allotted 50 overs at the Alur cricket stadium II near here. After opener Jiwanjyot Singh (16) fell early, Shashank Chandrakar (54) and one-down Ashutosh Singh (75) rallied the innings with their 50-run stand for the second wicket. Brief scores: Chhattisgarh 268/9 (Ashutosh Singh 75, Shashank Chandrakar 54; Prithvi Raj Yarra 3-63) defeat Andhra 212 all out (D B Prashant Kumar 44, K V Sasikanth 35; Shashank Singh 3-37) by 56 runs. Chhattisgarh 4 points, Andhra 0 points.
Kerala 227/9 (Sanju Samson 36, Rahul P 35; Ajay Dev Goud 3-52) beat Hyderabad 165 all out (Tanmay Agarwal 69, J Mallikarjun 24, K M Asif 4-34) by 62 runs. Kerala 4 points, Hyderabad 0 points. Goa 266/8 (Aditya Kaushik 117, C M Gautam 40, Rahul Shukla 6-33) beat Jharkhand 224 all out (Ishan Kishan 43, Anukul Roy 40; Darshan Misal 4-35) by 42 runs.
Goa 4 points, Jharkhand 0 points
Sports psychologist- A year after a disappointing exit in the ICC Women’s World T20 and five months ahead of the next T20 World Cup, Indian captain in the shortest format Harmanpreet Kaur has asked for the appointment of a travelling sports psychologist, reported the New Indian Express. “We have requested the BCCI for someone like a sports psychologist, who can travel with us,” Kaur told the newspaper in Surat during the ongoing India-South Africa T20I series. “We have spoken to coach as well. Nowadays, the pressure is high. You need someone to discuss things when they are not fine.” Kaur has said that she turns to her father when faced with tough situations but not everyone in the team will have a support system. The T20I captain, however, said that it was necessary to appoint someone who will gel with the entire team.
Hockey:
IndvsGB- Indian women held hosts Great Britain to a 1-1 draw in the second match of their Tour of United Kingdom held in Marlow on Sunday. Lalremsiami scored the equalizing goal in the 32nd minute after Great Britain had taken an early lead in the match. India were out of the blocks quicker, and earned a couple of penalty corners within the first two minutes. Britain’s custodian Maddie Hinch was at hand to ensure India didn’t get an early lead though. Soon it was Great Britain, who reciprocated, winning a penalty corner from a swift counter. Despite a smart save by the Indian defence, an infringement meant the hosts were awarded a penalty stroke, which was duly converted in the 8th minute, giving them a 1-0 lead. It was that slender lead they took into the first break. In the third quarter, India finally restored parity after Lalremsiami finished off a counter attack to draw the scores level. With both teams locked at a goal apiece and all to play for, the game opened up. Neither the defence caved though as the teams went into the final quarter tied at 1-1. India are scheduled play their third game on Tuesday, October 1.
IndvsEsp- Dragflicker Harmanpreet Singh scored a brace yet again as Indian men’s hockey team thrashed Spain 5-1 for their third consecutive win in Antwerp on Sunday. Harmanpreet (41’, 51’) and Ramandeep Singh (35’) scored in the second half after Akashdeep Singh (5’) and SV Sunil (20’) had put India ahead at the half-time. It was not a great start for the Indian team though, as they went a goal down in the third minute through Spain’s opening attack. Iglesias Alvaro scored the opening goal of the match to put the pressure on the Indians.
However, high on confidence from their two wins in the opening two matches, India responded with a quick equalizer in the fifth minute as Akashdeep Singh scored a field goal to make it 1-1. India will face world number two Belgium on Tuesday. They beaten the hosts 2-0 on Thursday in their tour-opening game and then hammered Spain 6-1 on Saturday.
Junior squad- Hockey India on Sunday named a 33-member probables list for the junior women’s national coaching camp, beginning on Monday at the Sports Authority of India in Bengaluru to prepare for a tour of Australia. Players will report to coach Baljeet Singh Saini for the camp that concludes on October 26. India is scheduled to play a Three-Nations Tournament starting December 3 in Australia, where the team will play against the hosts and New Zealand.
Probables:
Goalkeepers: Rashanpreet Kaur, Khushboo and F. Ramengmawii
Defenders: Priyanka, Simran Singh, Marina Lalramnghaki, Gagandeep Kaur, Ishika Chaudhary, Jotika Kalsi, Sumita, Akshata Dhekale, Usha, Parneet Kaur.
Midfielders: Baljeet Kaur, Mariana Kujur, Kiran, Prabhleen Kaur, Preeti, Ajmina Kujur, Vaishnavi Phalke, Kavita Bagdi, Baljinder Kaur, Sushma Kumari.
Forwards: Mumtaz Khan, Beauty Dungdung, Gurmail Kaur, Deepika, Lalrindinki, Jiwan Kishori Toppo, Rutuja Pisal, Sangita Kumari, Yogita Bora, Annu.
Kabaddi:
Pro Kabaddi League- Haryana Steelers beat Gujarat Fortune giants 38-37 in a nail-biting Pro Kabaddi encounter to secure a place in the Season seven playoffs on Monday. Vikas Kandola was once again the star for the home side, picking up a Super 10, as the Steelers produced a successful tackle in the buzzer raid of the match to edge the thriller at the Tau Devi Lal stadium in Panchkula. Gujarat, on the back of a massive 29-point victory against Tamil Thalaivas, started the match strongly. Rohit Gulia and Sonu impressed with their raids while at the other end a tight Gujarat defence ensured Haryana’s Vikas Khandola was not given space to wreak havoc. Rohit Gulia’s three-point super raid in the early minutes set the pace for Gujarat who edged Haryana in all departments to clinch an all-out in the 9th minute of the match.
In another match of the day, Naveen Kumar was once again the star for Dabang Delhi KC as they ousted Puneri Paltan from the Pro-Kabaddi League with 60-40 victory in the earlier on Sunday. Naveen, the talented raider picked up his 17th consecutive Super 10 as Delhi produced a near-flawless performance to end the Paltan’s campaign in this season’s Pro Kabaddi. Delhi, as expected, started on the front foot, with their raider-in-chief Naveen Kumar looking unstoppable. The 19-year-old raider picked points at will, pulling out the acrobatic moves in the process, as the Delhi side inflicting an all-out on Pune in the 7th minute of the match. Pune were badly missing the services of their raider Pankaj Mohite, who missed out due to a fever. Their raiders struggled as Ravinder Pahal (completed 50 tackle points for the season) and Joginder Narwal, the corners for Delhi, also got into the game with successful tackles. On Monday, U Mumba would look to inch closer to qualification when they face struggling Tamil Thalaivas. In the second game, the league’s top two teams Dabang Delhi and Bengal Warriors clash in a crucial game for the top spot.
Badminton:
Maldives International Challenge- Indian shuttler Kaushal Dharmamer clinched the men’s singles title at the Maldives International Challenge with a straight-games win over Siril Verma on Sunday. The 23-year-old from Mumbai, who won the Myanmar International Series earlier this month, registered a comfortable 21-13 21-18 victory over his compatriot in a match that lasted 35 minutes. The final day of the competition saw Indians competing for the title in four of the five events. However, apart from Kaushal all others ended on the losing side. In the women’s doubles event, the duo of Ashwini Ponnappa and Sikki Reddy ended runner-up after going down 10-21, 21-17, 12-21 in a hard fought battle to the Japanese pair of Sayak Hobara and Natsuki Soni. Saipratheek Krishnaprasad and Ashwini Bhat went down 11-21 15-21 to Thailand’s Chaloempon Charoenkitamorn and Chasinee Korepap in the mixed doubles final. Para badminton world champion Pramod Bhagat won another double crown, this time at China Para-Badminton International in Hangzhou (SL 3 men’s singles and doubles title with Manoj Sarkar).
Football:
CFL- Football club Peerless SC face a nervous wait to find out if they will be crowned champions of the Calcutta Football League after East Bengal’s match against Calcutta Customs was called off due to poor field conditions. In a tantalisingly poised title race, that gave three teams a chance to be crowned champions on the final day, Peerless SC who were leading the table at the start of the day did their bit by beating George Telegraph 2-0. The result meant Mohun Bagan’s slim chances of defending their crown were over despite the Mariners beating Kalighat MS 3-0 in their final fixtures. The two results meant Peerless finished on 23 points, three ahead of Mohun Bagan. However, with East Bengal’s match called off, Peerless have been forced to keep their celebrations on hold as the Red and Golds could still have a slim chance to win the title if they beat Calcutta Customs by a six-goal margin. A Peerless triumph would also end the East Bengal-Mohun Bagan duopoly on the CFL, with competition getting a winner apart from the two giants for the first time since 1981 when Mohammedan Sporting triumphed. So till the time IFA take a call on the East Bengal game, Peerless will be forced to keep the champagne on the ice.
SAFF U-18- The Indian football team lifted the SAFF Under-18 Championship for the first time when they defeated Bangladesh 2-1 in the title clash in Nepal on Sunday. India surged ahead as early as the 2nd minute when Vikram Partap Singh sped past his marker and banged it in. The match-winner came in injury time when the nippy Ravi Bahadur Rana scored off a screamer from about 30 yards. Yeasin Arafat reduced the margin for Bangladesh in the 40th minute. “I had maintained that it will take a moment of brilliance to end this SAFF Championship, and it was fitting that Ravi finished if off with a wonderful strike,” head coach Floyd Pinto stated moments after the final whistle. While the U-16 team went on to qualify for the AFC U-16 Championships, this team will play the AFC Qualifiers in November in its quest to qualify for the AFC U-19 tournament.
