Sports

Hove (England), Sep 19 (IANS) India batter Smriti Mandhana indicated she was disappointed at missing out on a One-day International century against England Women in the opening match win here, saying remaining unbeaten at the end of the game would have been great.

Mandhana, who was adjudged 'Player of the Match' for her brilliant 91 off 99 balls as India chased down the hosts' 227/7 in 44.2 overs for the loss of just three wickets to begin the ODI series on a winning note, said following the victory that batting in the 50-over format came naturally to her, while in T20Is she had to "put effort" to take care of the strike rate.

"I would've enjoyed it better with a not-out at the end. Thanks to the supporters for coming out, happy to put out a show for them," said Mandhana.

"ODIs are natural for me, T20s I have to put effort to take care of the strike rate. In ODIs I can just react. But I'm happy to lay the platform," said Mandhana, adding that winning the toss and electing to field first was the right decision taken by skipper Harmanpreet Kaur.

"I'm happy that Harman won the toss. I saw the pitch in the first innings and told myself to cut down on the back-foot play. But (I) didn't hold back too much. I want to say that this series for Jhulu di (Jhulan Goswani), her bowling was amazing. All our efforts in this series will be for Jhulu di."

The last match of the three-match ODI series here will be Jhulan's last for India.

Harmanpreet also added that winning the toss was important, given the conditions.

"We're happy with the support and the win. All of us showed the character which we discussed in team meetings. It was a crucial toss, the partnership between Jhulan and Meghna (Singh in bowling) was great. Credit to all the bowlers as they chipped through," said Harmanpreet.

On Deepti Sharma's incisive bowling (2/33 off 10 overs), the skipper said, "She is a very smart cricketer, she was doing exactly what was asked of her. The partnership between Smriti and Yastika (Bhatia) was great; we hope to continue the momentum. I want to give it all for the team, happy with the runs and with the stand alongside Smriti."

India had lost the T20I series to the hosts 1-2.

--IANS

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Belgrade (Serbia), Sep 18 (IANS) Commonwealth and Asian Games gold medallist and Olympic bronze winner Bajrang Punia claimed the bronze medal in the men's 65kg on the final day of the World Wrestling Championships 2022, here on Sunday.

Bajrang, who was wrestling with a bandage on his head due to the injury he sustained during his pre-quarter-final, produced a spirited fightback against Puerto Rico's Sebastian Rivera, after being 6-0 down early in the bout.

The 28-year-old eventually cut the lead and was trailing 8-9 heading into the last minute of the second period. The Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist then pulled off a two-point takedown in the final 20 seconds to turn the tables and win the bout 10-9.

It was Bajrang's fourth medal at the world championships. With his silver in 2018 and bronze medals in 2013 and 2019, he was already India's most successful wrestler at the world championships coming into this edition.

Earlier, he won his repechage round against the under-23 world championships silver medallist Vazgen Tevanyan 7-6 after being 4-1 down at the end of the first period.

On Saturday, Bajrang, who the CWG gold in the 2018 and 2022 editions, began with a 5-4 win over Cuba's two-time world bronze medallist Alejandro Valdes. Though Punia progressed to the next round, he suffered an injury and had to fight the next round with a bandage on his head.

Ace India wrestler then lost to former Pan-American champion John Diakomihalis of the USA in the quarterfinals but entered the repechage after Diakomihalis made it to the final.

At the world championships 2022, India had fielded a strong 30-member contingent that involved competitions for men's and women's freestyle along with Greco-Roman wrestling. India sent 10 wrestlers for each of the three categories.

While three-time Commonwealth Games champion Vinesh Phogat won a bronze medal in women's 53kg, Tokyo 2020 silver medallist Ravi Kumar Dahiya failed to clinch a medal in the men's 57kg category.

India also returned with two medals at the last edition of the world championships, which were held after the Tokyo Olympics. Anshu Malik won silver in women's 57kg while Sarita Mor won bronze in 59kg.

--IANS

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Chennai, Sep 18 (IANS) Czech teenager Linda Fruhvirtova won the last five games of the deciding set to capture her maiden WTA Tour singles title, beating third seed Magda Linette of Poland in three sets to complete her breakthrough week here on Sunday.

The 17-year-old Fruhvirtova beat No.3 seed Linette 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the final to lift her first crown on the tour.

Fruhvirtova was down 4-1 in the third set before collecting the last five games of the match.

Fruhvirtova took two-and-a-half hours to claim the come-from-behind win over Linette, a two-time singles titlist on tour. The teen avenged a loss to Linette in their only prior meeting, at Cleveland last year.

At 17 years and 141 days old, Fruhvirtova is the youngest titlist of the season on the WTA Tour so far. She is the youngest singles champion on tour since Coco Gauff won Parma last year at 17 years, 70 days old.

Sunday's match was a bold victory for Fruhvirtova, who converted half of her six break points while fending off seven of the nine she faced in the final, according to a report on the WTA Tour website.

Linette was the early leader as she broke for 5-4 in the first set with a forehand winner off of a drop shot. She then ran with that opportunity, holding serve at love to take a one-set lead.

Fruhvirtova turned the match around, earning her first break of the day for a 5-3 lead in the second set. She levelled the match by consolidating in the next game, closing out a set where she never faced a break point.

A forehand winner gave Linette the first break of the decider for a 3-1 lead, and after holding for 4-1 the Pole appeared to be in charge. But Fruhvirtova used powerful hitting to pull back on serve at 4-3, and the Czech teen moved ahead by a break at 5-4 with a sterling return, the report said.

Fruhvirtova never relinquished that advantage, converting her first championship point in the following game to seal her first title.

--IANS

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Mohali, Sep 18 (IANS) Ahead of the beginning of the T20I series against Australia, star Indian cricketers looked relaxed and decided to treat their fans to some cool dance moves, a video of which has gone viral on social media.

All-rounder Hardik and ex-captain Kohli showed off their incredible dance moves on Instagram as they shook a leg with each other in a hilarious reel posted on the photo-sharing application on Sunday.

The video begins with both of them, dead-serious in shades, syncing their steps to the beat, before Kohli breaks into a smile and peels off. The reel didn't take much time to become viral on the internet as fans enjoyed seeing the fun side of their favourite players' personalities.

"You know how we do," Hardik captioned the post while Virat replied by saying "Shakaboom".

Notably, both Hardik and Virat had impressive campaigns in the Asia Cup 2022 in UAE. Hardik took three wickets and struck an unbeaten 33 off 17 balls, leading India to victory over Pakistan in the Group stage match. On the other hand, Virat finished as the tournament's second-highest run-scorer behind Mohammad Rizwan with a tally of 276 runs in five matches.

Both players will look to continue their excellent form in the home series against Australia and South Africa before the much-awaited T20 World Cup.

The first match of the three-match T20I series between India and Australia will be played at Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali on Tuesday.

--IANS

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Mumbai, Sep 18 (IANS) The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and MPL Sports, the official kit sponsor of the national cricket team, here on Sunday unveiled the official jersey of the side for all India T20I men's and women's matches.

For the first time in Indian cricket history, the jersey was unveiled not by the national team, but by the Mumbai Under-19 women's cricket players along with some of the 'superfans' of the game.

The jersey comes in shades of the iconic and fan-favourite blue colour for a look befitting the champions of the game. Termed as 'One Blue Jersey', it will make its debut on the pitch during the first match of the upcoming T20 series against Australia on September 20.

The new one replaces the Billion Cheers Jersey at all T20 International competitions. However, the players will continue to sport the Billion Cheers Jersey in ODIs.

"The jersey pays homage to the legions of fans that span different genders and age groups, and transcend geographical borders," the kit sponsor said in a release.

"It is styled with a pattern of equilateral triangles - a universal symbol of the blend of energy, spirit and power - that celebrates the unswerving support of the fans who have stood behind the team through thick and thin," it added.

Combined with petals found in the BCCI's official insignia, the jersey embodies the loyalty and merit that the game demands. It will be available for purchase at kit sponsor's official website and at all leading e-commerce and retail outlets.


--IANS
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Abu Dhabi, Sep 18 (IANS) Zimbabwe beat PNG while Thailand registered a commanding victory against UAE on Day 1 of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup qualifier, here on Sunday.

In the first match of the day, UAE were reduced to 7/3 with the top three making 0, 2 and 1 after winning the toss and opting to bat first,

A promising half-century stand between Kavisha Kumari Egodage and Natasha Cherriath revived the innings for UAE, but Nattaya Bhoochatham returned to scalp the wicket of Natasha to break the partnership.

The innings seemed to be meandering towards a very ordinary total, but UAE managed 24 runs off the last two overs with Samaira Dharnidharka and Kavisha, in particular, upping the ante to take their team to 92/5 at the end of 20 overs.

The target was very short and Thailand piled on their agony by putting on 32 for the loss of no wickets in the Powerplay. Natthakan Chantham was the aggressor-in-chief for Thailand, racing away to 39 off 37 balls in an opening stand of 55. The partnership was eventually broken by Indhuja Nandakumar in the 10th over.

Opener Nannapat Koncharoenkai continued to push Thailand towards the target and remained unbeaten on 34 as they completed a dominating win on day one of the qualifiers.

Match 2: Zimbabwe v PNG

In the second match of the day, a three-wicket haul from Kelis Ndlovu and good spells from Nomvelo Sibanda and Precious Marange helped Zimbabwe bowl PNG out for 83 after being asked to bowl at the Tolerance Oval.

Tanya Ruma top-scored for PNG with a 25 off 35 balls from No 3, but none of the other batters managed to cross single digits as PNG struggled against some top-quality bowling.

In the run chase, Zimbabwe came out all guns blazing, the openers racing to 57 inside nine overs. Ndhlovu completed a brilliant all-round performance with her opening partner Sharne Mayers making an attractive 28-ball 33.

Zimbabwe sealed the run chase with eight wickets to spare with Ndhlovu unbeaten on 25 off 33 balls.

Brief scores:

UAE Women 92/5 in 20 overs (Kavisha Egodage 40 not out, Natasha Cherriath 26; Nattaya Boochatham 2/17) lost to Thailand Women 96/3 in 16.2 overs (Natthakan Chantham 39, Nannapat Koncharoenkai not out; Suraksha Kotte 1/4) by 7 wickets

Papua New Guinea Women 83 all out in 18 overs (Tanya Ruma 25; Kelis Ndlovu 3/18; Nomvelo Sibanda 2/9) lost to Zimbabwe Women 87/2 in 14.4 overs (Sharne Mayers 33, Kelis Ndlovu 25 not out; Kaia Arua 2/21) by 8 wickets

--IANS

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Surat, Sep 18 (IANS) Constructed in 1998, the Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Indoor Stadium in the heart of the city of Surat has been refurbished and all decked up for table tennis action in the 36th National Games from Tuesday (Sept 20).

Though Surat is not new to hosting mega sports events, the atmosphere at the 6800-capacity stadium is certainly going to be very different, even electric, as India's top paddlers battle for glory and gold.

The majestic stadium, inaugurated in December 1998, has been all decked up for the gala event with bright and colourful branding inside the stadium.

The local organisers have installed eight brand new tables and have laid out a made-to-order sports carpet from Meerut to give the players an international feel. Interestingly, the same carpet can be used for the badminton competition too later in the Games.

An air-conditioned dining area has also been refurbished for the players where they will be served not only sportsmen-friendly dishes but also Gujarati delicacies.

The TT schedule will include men's and women's team championships and five individual events -- men's singles and doubles, women's singles and doubles and mixed doubles.

This will be the second time that a major table tennis competition is being held at the PDDU, following the 20th Avadh Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships in 2015.

Local star Harmeet Desai and Gujarat's Devesh Karia were part of that Indian squad which won three gold, five silver and seven bronze medals to top the standings seven years ago, said the local organising committee in a release on Sunday.

"Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships was the first-ever international TT tournament hosted in Gujarat. We got a lot of praise from all quarters. The success of that event gave us the confidence that we can host more international meets in Gujarat," said Director of competition Kushal Sangtani.

"We are working with the SAG and the Surat Municipal Corporation, just like the last time, which has made our jobs easier," Sangtani added.

The first major sporting event at the stadium was the 3rd Asian Gymnastics Championship back in 2006 with a total of 105 gymnasts from 19 Asian countries competing for top honours.

"No one had ever heard of such a huge sporting event in Gujarat before. When I started, there were several doubters, but we pulled off a great event that set the ball rolling for sporting events in the future," said the tournament's organising committee secretary Kaushik Bidiwala, adding that the then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the competition and the stadium was full on all days.

The organisers are hoping for a similar response from the residents of Surat and have also tried to provide access to young kids as part of their attempt to popularise the game.

"Hosting the National Games is a once in a life-time-opportunity, so we are in touch with Surat's educational institutions and sports associations to send their kids to witness the event," said PDDU Indoor Stadium manager Hemang Jani.

--IANS

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Lahore, Sep 18 (IANS) Pakistan fast bowler Fatima Sana on Sunday has been ruled out of the Women's T20 Asia Cup scheduled to take place in Sylhet, Bangladesh from October 1 to 16, said a release by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

The PCB said Fatima twisted her ankle while featuring in the inaugural edition of the Women's Caribbean Premier League. "The PCB Medical panel after investigating the injury have advised her a four-week rest," said the release.

In the league, she represented Barbados Royals, picking three wickets in as many matches. She had also played for the side in the inaugural Women's 6ixty, a T10 tournament in the Caribbean, taking two wickets in five matches.

Fatima was also not part of the first phase of Pakistan's preparation camp for the tournament held in Lahore from August 30 to September 2. PCB further said her replacement in the squad, which was announced on September 7, will be announced in due course.

Meanwhile, the rest of Pakistan squad and the reserves will assemble at Lahore Country Club, Muridke later on Sunday to undergo a 10-day camp starting from Monday. The national side, led by Bismah Maroof, will fly out for Bangladesh on September 28.

Apart from Pakistan, the Women's T20 Asia Cup will see hosts Bangladesh enter the competition as defending champions apart from India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia and UAE. Matches will take place at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium.

Pakistan squad: Bismah Maroof (c), Aimen Anwar, Aliya Riaz, Ayesha Naseem, Diana Baig, Kainat Imtiaz, Muneeba Ali (wk), Nida Dar, Omaima Sohail, Sadaf Shamas, Sadia Iqbal, Sidra Amin, Sidra Nawaz (wk) and Tuba Hasan

Reserve players: Nashra Sundhu, Natalia Pervaiz, Umme Hani and Waheeda Akhtar

--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 18 (IANS) The recent Supreme Court judgement, which allowed BCCI to make amendments in its constitution to relax the much-debated and mandatory three-year cooling-off period, has paved the way for BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah to continue for another term in office.

As per the new order, the cooling-off period for office-bearers will kick in after two consecutive terms at either the BCCI or at the state association level. So the office-bearers can now have a maximum of 12 years at one go: Two three-year terms at the state association level and two three-year terms at the BCCI, and after this, the cooling-off period will be applicable.

Before joining BCCI in October 2019, both Ganguly and Shah had already served one term each at the state level, which meant that they would have been disqualified under the existing rule. However, the latest Supreme Court decision has come as a big relief for them.

According to reports, the 33-year old Jay Shah has the backing of many state associations and he could be the next BCCI president. The Indian board is soon going to call its annual general body meeting and notices will be issued to state associations for fresh elections.

With Shah taking the top position in the BCCI, former Indian captain Ganguly could take on the ICC chairman's role. However, only time will tell about these developments. Before the fresh election, IANS takes a look at the journey and background of current office-bearers in cricket administration.

Sourav Ganguly, President

Touted as one of the visionaries and legendary captains, Ganguly played his last match for India in November 2008. He entered into the cricket administration field as the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) secretary in 2014 and then president in late 2015.

He has been the president of the BCCI since October 2019

Jay Shah, Secretary

The 33-year-old Shah is the youngest office-bearer in the BCCI. Jay, who is Home Minister Amit Shah's son, has been with the Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) since 2009.

After serving as an executive board member of the Central Board of Cricket, Ahmedabad, starting 2009, he became the joint secretary of the GCA in September 2013. During his tenure as joint secretary, he oversaw GCA's construction of the Narendra Modi Stadium, in Ahmedabad, along with his father Amit Shah who was GCA president at the time.

Jay Shah became a member of the finance and marketing committees of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in 2015. He stepped down from the position of GCA joint secretary in September 2019.

The following month, he was elected as the secretary of BCCI and has been in the post since then. In December 2019, the BCCI selected Shah as its representative for future CEC meetings of the International Cricket Council. In January 2021, the Asian Cricket Council appointed Jay Shah as president.

Arun Singh Dhumal, Treasurer

Dhumal also hails from a political family with his elder brother Anurag Thakur currently being the Union Minister of Sports, Youth Affairs and Minister of Information and Broadcasting. Before joining the BCCI, Dhumal served as vice-president of Himachal cricket body, HPCA between 2012 and 2015 when Thakur was its president.

He also led a three-member ad-hoc committee which was formed to run HPCA in the wake of the Lodha panel recommendations to reform Indian cricket and also has the experience of representing HPCA in the BCCI.

Jayesh George, Joint Secretary

George has years of experience in cricket administration, having been part of Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) as its secretary, joint secretary, treasurer and the president as well. He was part of the KCA since 2005, before joining the BCCI.

Rajeev Shukla, Vice President

Shukla, an Indian politician, former journalist, political commentator and the former chairman of the Indian Premier League, was elected as vice-president of BCCI unopposed on Dec 18, 2020. The post of vice-president became vacant after Mahim Verma stepped down and returned to his home state, Uttarakhand where he was elected as secretary of the state's association once again.

--IANS
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Mohali, Sep 18 (IANS) Ahead of the T20I series against Australia, India captain Rohit Sharma confirmed that talismanic batter Virat Kohli will be the third opener in the side. Rohit also hinted at Kohli opening the batting in a few matches as the hosts begin their final leg of preparations for the T20 World Cup, to be held in Australia next month.

When India played in last year's T20 World Cup in the UAE, Ishan Kishan was the back-up opening option. But with him missing the bus for this year's T20 World Cup, Kohli is now being seen as a third opener, especially after he hit an unbeaten 122 off just 61 balls, laced with 12 fours and six sixes, at a strike-rate of 200 against Afghanistan in India's last Super Four match of Asia Cup 2022.

"I had a word with Rahul bhai (Dravid, head coach) that we might have to open with Virat in some matches as he's our third opener. We have seen that in the last match (against Afghanistan) and we are happy with what we saw of it. I don't think we are going to experiment a lot with that position," said Rohit in the press conference.

In that match, with Sharma resting, Kohli was promoted to opening the batting alongside KL Rahul. The duo shared a rollicking opening stand of 119 off 76 balls, with Rahul making 65 of those runs. Kohli, on the other hand, went on to slam his first century in international cricket in nearly three years.

"It is always nice to have options available for you. It is very important going into a tournament like the World Cup that you want flexibility. We only talk about it, but this is what actually means. You want the players to be in best shape batting at any position. Honestly, when we try and do something new, that does not mean that's a problem."

"For us, we understand the quality of all our players and what they bring for us; we understand that. But, it is an option for us, we will always keep that in mind. Since we have not taken a third opener, he opens for his franchise (in the IPL) and he has done really well, so it is a definite option for us," added Rohit.

Although Rohit called Virat as a definite opening option for India, he maintained that Rahul will be the first choice to open the batting with him. "But KL Rahul will open the batting in the World Cup, his performance sometimes goes quite unnoticed. He is a very important player for Team India and one must see his record for us in last two-three years, which is very good. One or two bad game can't overshadow his past records, which isn't right."

"For us, I just want to make it clear for everyone, we are clear in our thought process. We do not have any confusion. We are very clear what KL brings to the table for us, he is a quality player and is very important for us as well as a match winner. His presence at the top is very, very crucial for us."

After playing the first T20I against Australia on Tuesday in Mohali, India will play the second and third T20I in Nagpur and Hyderabad on September 23 and 25 respectively.


--IANS

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