Chandigarh Sports News

London, July 9 Roger Federer needed just 16 minutes to win the opening set in a 6-0 7-5 6-4 defeat of France’s Adrian Mannarino to reach his 16th Wimbledon quarterfinal on Monday. Eight-time champion Federer will be playing in his 53rd Grand Slam last-8 when he takes on Kevin Anderson, who beat Frenchman Gael Monfils 7-6(4) 7-6(2) 5-7 7-6(4). Top seed Federer, 36, has now won 32 consecutive sets at Wimbledon, just two behind his record set from the third round in 2005 to his title triumph in 2006. Federer boasts a 4-0 career record against Anderson and 9-4 over Monfils.  Monfils and Anderson have yet to get to the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, although the French shotmaker may just be the slight favourite as he has a 5-0 winning record over the big South African. Meanwhile, Rafa Nadal reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the first time since finishing runner-up in 2011, with a regulation 6-3 6-3 6-4 win over Czech Jiri Vesely in one hour and 53 minutes.  18 in a row Ser...

New Delhi, July 9 Ace drag-flicker Rupinder Pal Singh and striker Akashdeep Singh have been included in the 18-member hockey squad for next month’s Asian Games in Indonesia, where India would be the defending champions.  The squad features just two changes from the Champions Trophy squad that won a second consecutive silver medal in Breda, the Netherlands, recently. While Rupinder, who was rested for the Champions Trophy, returned to the side in place of Jarmanpreet Singh, Akashdeep replaced an injured Ramandeep Singh.  Sreejesh to lead The team will be led by veteran goalkeeper PR Sreejesh, and Chinglensana Singh has been retained as the vice-captain. “We have a great mix of players who have shown their abilities in recent tournaments. But it is unfortunate we will be missing Ramandeep Singh’s experience as he is ruled out of the Asian Games due to a recent knee surgery,” said chief coach Harendra Singh. — PTI Squad Goalkeepers: PR Sreejesh (Captain), Krishan B Pathak...

Oneida (US), July 9 Aditi Ashok shot her best total of the year but still finished tied-35th at the low-scoring Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic golf tournament.  The 20-year-old Indian shot a 1-under 71 yesterday for a total of 12-under 276. Aditi had a total of five birdies, two bogeys and a double-bogey in her 71. But her total of 12-under was 19 shots behind Sei Young Kim, whose final round of a 7-under 65 saw her post a record total of a 31-under 257.  Kim shattered the 72-hole scoring record, which she previously owned along with Annika Sorenstam, who totalled 27-under in 2001. Kim, 25, played the finest four round stretch in the history of the LPGA and shot  63-65-64-65.  She was streets ahead of the field as she won by nine shots with Carlota Ciganda in second spot at 22-under while Anna Nordqvist, Emma Talley and Amy Yang were tied-3rd at 20-under. Lahiri ends tied-39th  White Sulphur Springs (USA): On course for a creditable finish at tied-6th, Anir...

New Delhi World champion weightlifter Saikhom Mirabai Chanu may have to compete in the 49kg class in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics instead of her current 48kg category as the international federation recently decided to introduce new categories in the sport. The executive board of the International Weightlifting Federation, in its meeting in Tashkent on July 5, decided to introduce seven weight categories for both men and women in the Olympics and 10 new classes for both men and women in other international championships. There will be no change in weight categories in the Asian Games. Tampere (Finland) Hima Das favourite to win gold in World U-20 C’ships  Hima Das will start as the favourite to win the women’s 400m race gold in the IAAF World U-20 Athletics Championships which begin tomorrow. It is a rare occasion that an Indian sprinter lines up in a global championship as the one to beat, with the 18-year-old Das being the U-20 season leader in this quartermile event. Also looking...

Bristol, July 8 Rohit Sharma's superb unbeaten century led India to a seven-wicket win over England in a run-filled third and final T20 International on Sunday to earn the touring side a 2-1 victory in the series. Sharma struck five sixes and 11 fours off 56 balls as India chased down the target of 199 with eight balls to spare to finish on 201/3.  England made a flying start after being put in to bat, with Jason Roy (67) and Jos Buttler (34) sharing an opening stand of 94 in under eight overs. Roy smashed seven sixes and four fours before Alex Hales (30) and Jonny Bairstow (25) chipped in with useful contributions to lift the hosts to an imposing total of 198/9. Unfortunately for England, the Indian batsmen also enjoyed the bright sunshine and short boundaries in Bristol. Lokesh Rahul (19) was brilliantly caught by Chris Jordan running back from mid-on and the all-rounder took another outstanding catch to dismiss India captain Virat Kohli off his own bowling for 43. But Sharma...

New Delhi, July 8 India’s premier gymnast Dipa Karmakar today clinched a gold medal in the vault event of the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Challenge Cup at Mersin, Turkey. Returning to action after an injury lay-off of nearly two years, the 24-year-old scored 14.150 points to win the top prize. Rifda Irfanaluthfi of Indonesia clinched the silver with 13.400 points, while local gymnast Goksu Uctas Sanli took the bronze with a score of 13.200.   Dipa had suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury after the Rio Olympics, which needed a surgery. She was hopeful of making a comeback at the Commonwealth Games, but the rehabilitation took more time than expected, forcing her to skip the Gold Coast event.  Patra finishes fourth Rakesh Patra missed out on a medal in the men’s rings event as he finished fourth with a score of 13.650. Turkey’s Ibrahim Colak won the gold with a total score of 15.100, while Romanian Andrei Vasile (14.600) and Dutchman Yuri van Gelder (14...

Bishan Singh Bedi Rameshwar Dayal Singh was a cricketer all his life, literally speaking! He passed away on July 7 after a brief turmoil in his pancreas. RD, as he was popularly known, was a rare breed who genuinely served cricket as against many who make cricket their own fiefdom. I truly consider RD an institution within an institution — a cricketer within the truest frame of cricket. My memories of RD go back to the majestic Khalsa College Amritsar days, when he opened for the college with the kind of gay abandon as is familiar today in the T20 format. We didn’t have much clinical appreciation of cricket then, so reaching the top was merely a question of luck, which it still is, and it is digested in varying degrees. Born and brought up in the precincts of Amritsar’s Khalsa College, RD was an ‘Ambarsari’ through and through. What I used to admire most in him was his almost religious respect for cricket. Fate brought him to Punjab Agriculture University (PAU) Ludhiana as a cricke...

LONDON, JULY 8 Roger Federer and Serena Williams will be expected to maintain their flawless progress at Wimbledon as the title favourites head into the fourth round looking to survive the tournament’s giant-killing carnage tomorrow. Federer has been in imperious mood in pursuit of his ninth Wimbledon crown, while Williams is rounding into form just as the seven-time champion’s rivals have collapsed all around her. The status quo has been challenged like never before in the women’s singles, with nine of the top-10 seeds crashing out before the Wimbledon last 16 for the first time in the Open area. In the men’s draw, third seed Marin Cilic, fourth seed Alexander Zverev and sixth seed Grigor Dimitrov have all fallen. But it’s business was usual for Federer as the defending champion took his consecutive sets won at Wimbledon to 29 in a third round dismissal of Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff. Federer goes past Connors  Federer’s 175th win from 200 career grasscourt matches saw him o...

Beckenham, July 8  A splendid batting performance from India A raised visions of victory before West Indies A managed to hold on to a draw in the four-day ‘Test’ yesterday. After a batting debacle in the first essay where they were shot out for 133, India’s batsmen posted 609/6, riding on a career-best 188 from Prithvi Shaw, a 137 by Ravikumar Samarth and an equally useful 93 by skipper Karun Nair. This was after trailing by 150 runs in the first innings. Needing 360 to win in 76 overs, West Indies managed 245/7 in the stipulated overs with Jermaine Blackwood scoring 61. Navdeep Saini took two for 41 in 14 overs.  Brief Scores: India A: 133 and 609/6 decl (P Shaw 188, R Samarth 137, K Nair 93); WI A: 383 and 245/7 (Blackwood 61, Cornwall 40; N Saini 2/41, S Nadeem 2/81). — PTI  https://ift.tt/2zirwnn

SILVERSTONE, july 8 Sebastian Vettel won the British Grand Prix for Ferrari on Sunday to deny Lewis Hamilton a fifth successive home victory and move eight points clear at the top of the F1 standings. In a thrilling race with two safety car periods, reigning champion Hamilton went from pole position to the rear of the field before finishing second for Mercedes in a superb fightback. Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen was third, after incurring a 10-second penalty for tangling with the slow-starting Hamilton at the third corner of the opening lap and sending the Briton spinning. The win was Vettel’s fourth of the season, 51st of his career, and once-dominant champions Mercedes’ first defeat at Silverstone since 2012 before the V6 turbo era started. Hamilton was on a charge from the first lap, back up to seventh already after nine laps but still 26 seconds behind his fellow four-times world champion.  The appearance of the safety car on the 33rd lap, after Sauber’s Marcus Ericsson crashed, ...

Harare Opener Fakhar Zaman (in pic) smashed a career-best 91 from 46 balls as Pakistan defeated Australia by six wickets in a record run chase to lift the Zimbabwe T20 Tri-Series trophy at the Harare Sports Club. Australia won the toss and elected to bat on a flat track in the final, posting 183/8 in their 20 overs with the innings anchored by opener D’Arcy Short’s stylish 76 from 53 balls. Pakistan were in trouble early on in their reply as they lost their first two wickets with just two runs on the scoreboard.Brief Scores: Australia: 183/8 (Short 76, Finch 47; Amir 3/33); Pakistan: 187/4 (Fakhar 91, Shoaib Malik 43*)   LA ROCHE-SUR-YON, France Tour de France: Sagan takes Stage 2 and overall lead  World champion Peter Sagan won a crash-marred second stage of the Tour de France and took the overall leader’s yellow jersey with a perfectly-timed sprint. The Slovak beat Italian Sonny Colbrelli and France’s Arnaud Demare, who were second and third, respectively. Colombian Fer...

London, July 8 Roger Federer and Serena Williams will be expected to maintain their flawless progress at Wimbledon as the title favourites head into the fourth round looking to survive the tournament’s giant-killing carnage tomorrow. Federer has been in imperious mood in pursuit of his ninth Wimbledon crown, while Williams is rounding into form just as the seven-time champion’s rivals have collapsed all around her. The status quo has been challenged like never before in the women’s singles, with nine of the top 10 seeds crashing out before the Wimbledon last 16 for the first time in the Open area. In the men’s draw, third seed Marin Cilic, fourth seed Alexander Zverev and sixth seed Grigor Dimitrov have all fallen. But it’s business was usual for Federer as the defending champion took his consecutive sets won at Wimbledon to 29 in a third round dismissal of Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff. Federer’s 175 th win from 200 career grass-court matches saw him overtake Jimmy Connors as th...

Ringing in his 37th birthday sporting a thick, grey beard, Mahendra Singh Dhoni was reminded that he was "getting older" through a song by his daughter Ziva. "Happy birthday papa, you are getting older," sang Ziva to her father. In a video posted by the official Twitter handle of BCCI, everyone from Virat Kohli to Ziva and wife Sakshi sent their wishes to the former India World Cup-winning skipper. After the match was over, 'Captain Cool' celebrated the occasion with his wife and daughter and was joined by his teammates as he cut the cake. Also present was Bollywood actor and Kohli's wife Anushka Sharma. https://ift.tt/2zlLrC1

Oneida (USA), July 7  Aditi Ashok carded seven birdies against two bogeys for a 5-under 67 that moved her to tied-22nd from tied-54th at the Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic.   Aditi was 8-under and eight shots behind the leader, Sei Young Kim. The South Korean had six birdies in her first seven holes en route a 7-under 65 to take the lead. Kim was 16-under through 36 holes with 18 birdies and led by four shots over Yu Liu.  Aditi, starting from the 10th, had a bogey on the 11th, but quickly recovered with birdies on the 13th and 14th. She added one more on the 18th but dropped a shot on the 17th. On her second nine, she birdied the third and ended the day with three in a row from seventh to ninth. Liu, who turned in a 9-under 63, was in second at 12-under and there were five players in a tie for the third at 11-under.  Lahiri T-16th after 9 holes White Sulphur Springs (USA): After rocketing to second place with a solid 61 yesterday, Anirban Lahiri stumbled in ...

Silverstone, July 7 An emotional Lewis Hamilton put Mercedes on pole position for his home British Grand Prix on Saturday after giving his all to stay ahead of Ferrari's Formula One championship leader Sebastian Vettel in a knife-edge qualifying. The difference between the four times world champions came down to just 0.044 seconds at the end, with Vettel 0.057 faster after their first flying laps around a sizzling Silverstone circuit. Hamilton, who will be chasing his fifth successive home win on Sunday to retake the lead from his German rival, was shaking as he parked up, leapt out and punched the air. His lap of one minute 25.892 seconds was a track record. “I gave it everything I could, but it was so close with these Ferraris," he said, addressing the crowd with their Hamilton banners and flags. "I was just praying I could do it for you guys." Vettel, who had suffered a cricked neck in final practice that left him unsure whether he would be able to take part in...

Vinayak Padmadeo Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 7 The Indian Olympic Association (IOA), under fire for axing a few sports disciplines from India’s squad for the Asian Games while being lenient on a few other sports, made a course-correction on Saturday. After a protracted meeting between the IOA top brass and officials of a few sports federations, the axe fell on a few disciplines. Martial art sambo and triathlon bore the brunt as most of their athletes were axed after IOA decided to recheck their records. In the original squad announced by IOA, six Sambo athletes — two male and four female — were included. The number has been cut down to one — India’s sole representative in the discipline would be Shrikant. In triathlon, all four athletes named in the original list have been dropped. IOA president Narinder Batra told The Tribune that rechecking the details of the athletes had showed a misrepresentation of their records. “It turns out a few of them had last competed over six...