Sports

New Delhi, Sep 11 (IANS) Schools from Nagaland, Manipur, Chandigarh and Jharkhand entered the semifinals of the 61st Subroto Cup Boys U-14 tournament, after registering their contrasting victories here on Sunday.

It began at Subroto Park Football Ground (SPFG) early in the morning with Greenwood School, Dimapur, Nagaland, overwhelming Mingmang Nalbari High School, Assam, 7-0. Yilasielie scored a hat-trick for the winners getting on board in the seventh, 22nd and 35th minute of the game. The other goals were scored by Limathung (12), Yiselie (19), Kevespa (37) and Vibito (50).

Heirok Higher Secondary School, Imphal, Manipur, then swept NNMHSS, Chelembra, Kerala, 6-0 to win the second quarters on the same ground. L Bikramjit (06, 26) and J. Likson (28, 33) got a brace of goals while A. Seitam (10) and A. Johnson (50) got the other two.

Action then moved to the Ambedkar Stadium where Government Model High School, Chandigarh, beat Government Chawngfianga Middle School 1-0. Tines scored the winner for the Chandigarh team.
In the fourth and final quarter-final Barway High School, Chainpur in Gumla, Jharkhand, also won 1-0 against MIHMYNTDU RC EVE SEC School, Meghalaya. Samir Soren scored the winning goal in the ninth minute of the match.

The semis are lined up for September 13, 2022. In the first at SPFG, Greenwood, Nagaland will take on Heirok, Manipur. In the second at the Ambedkar, Government Model, Chandigarh will clash against Barway, Jharkhand.


--IANS
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Monza (Italy), Sep 11 (IANS) Indian driver Jehan Daruvala raced to his fourth Formula 2 win in the championship's main Feature race at Monza race track on Sunday.

The 23-year-old started sixth on the grid but used a mix of strategy, race craft and tyre management to capitalise on a safety car and red flag-interrupted race and clinch a comfortable win.

The win was Daruvala's first this season. It comes after the Red Bull-backed racer went from fifth to third in Saturday's Sprint race, making it two podiums from two races this weekend and eight this year.

It was also his sixth top-three finish at Monza and second win at the track after the Indian won their last year.

"What a weekend. It's been a long time coming. We've had the win taken away from us for one reason or another on more than one occasion this year. But we've kept our heads down, kept believing, kept pushing and we've finally done it. And what a venue to do it at too," said Daruvala.

"Monza is up there with one of my all-time favourite tracks and standing on the top step of this incredible podium, out over the main straight with the Indian national anthem playing out, feels so, so special."

Daruvala made a good getaway, but starting on the dirty side of the grid got bogged down after the initial start. He kept sixth as the field went through the first chicane but lost a place to Juri Vips as he lifted in anticipation of a safety car after an opening-lap shunt involving Ralph Boschung and Theo Pourchaire.

The safety car wasn't deployed until later, however, and Daruvala was forced to defend from Jack Doohan on the run to the second Roggia chicane.

The pair went wheel-to-wheel in the braking zone with Logan Sargeant making it three-wide into the chicane. Doohan, with Daruvala on the inside and Sargeant on the outside, had nowhere to go and ended up colliding with Jehan.

The Indian racer, however, suffered only minor damage and carried on as the safety car was finally deployed. Racing resumed at the end of Lap 5 with Daruvala running seventh. But a crash for Calan Williams at the Ascari chicane brought the safety car back out on Lap 8.

Daruvala seized the opportunity to pit, with the perfectly timed stop eventually moving him up to third once his other rivals had pitted. That left him perfectly placed to battle for the win as the red flag was deployed to allow track workers to clear away Williams' stranded Trident and carry out repairs to the barriers.

The race resumed after a ten-minute stoppage. Daruvala went on to put on a masterclass of tyre management and race craft as he bided his time at first before piling the pressure on race leader Richard Verschoor and second-placed Marino Sato.

He passed Sato on Lap 18 of 30 and was hot on Verschoor's heels. But the Trident racer, struggling with tyre wear, dived into pits with just five laps to go, handing Daruvala a lead he would keep until the chequered flag.

The championship will return to its last and final round of the season on the November 18-20th weekend alongside the Formula One season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

--IANS

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New York, Sep 11 (IANS) The organisers of the US Open 2022 surprised World No 1 Iga Swiatek by putting her favourite 'tiramisu' inside the winners' trophy, ending the Pole star's prolonged search for the dessert after winning the championships.

The 21-year-old clinched her first US Open title on Saturday night after defeating Ons Jabeur 6-2, 7-6(5) in the final. It was her seventh title of the season.

Close observers of Swiatek's trophy ceremony routine have noticed her habit of looking inside the trophy while she's on stage, feigning her disappointment each time she came up empty. It wasn't the same this time.

After speaking to reporters at her champion's press conference, Swiatek was told to check the trophy again, which had already played a comical role in her interview as she strained to look around it when speaking to reporters.

To Swiatek's delight, she finally found what she's been looking for: her favorite dessert, tiramisu.

"Oh, my God. Are you kidding me? Wow, who did that?.Thank you. I really appreciate it. Especially since I didn't have anything to eat," Swiatek said.

The USTA's Managing Director of Corporate Communications, Chris Widmaier explained, "We notice you always check your trophy. This time we wanted you to find something."

Iga has lifted a lot of trophies this season. Asked about comparing her two major wins this season at Roland Garros and US Open, the star player explained about the pressure and expectations.

"I don't know if it's more than the second win at Roland Garros because back then the pressure was really on and everybody was kind of expecting me to win," said Swiatek.

"Here I managed to lower my expectations, and also I feel like people were not expecting a lot from me on hard courts. So mentally I think Roland Garros was a little bit tougher. But tennis-wise and physically here for sure it was tougher," she added.


--IANS
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New Delhi, Sep 11 (IANS) The right-arm pace duo of Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel, who missed the 2022 Asia Cup in the UAE due to injuries, are all set to make a return for India's campaign in the T20 World Cup campaign in October-November.

A report in Cricbuzz says both pacers have cleared their fitness test, which is central in their bid to make a comeback to the national side.

"Both Bumrah and Harshal did not feature in India's failed campaign in the Asia Cup because of different injuries -- Harshal was out with a side strain and Bumrah was out of action since July due to a back injury.

"It has been learnt that the two have regained their full fitness and bowled normally at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru recently. The two are believed to have finished their rehab," added the report.

Earlier, on August 8, when India's squad for Asia Cup 2022 was announced, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had said that Bumrah and Harshal were at the NCA.

"Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel were not available for selection owing to injuries. They are currently undergoing rehab at the NCA in Bengaluru."

With Bumrah and Harshal all set to return to the Indian team, it means that a pacer and a spinner will have to make way to accommodate the fast-bowling duo.

Amongst the pacers, Avesh Khan might be out of the team while in spinners, leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi could be out too. But the report said the final decision will be taken by the selection committee after consulting with the Indian team management.

"There is no immediate information if Mohammed Shami, whose exclusion from the Asia Cup team has been widely criticised by experts and commentators alike, will be considered at all.

The selectors, however, will see the progress of Bumrah and Harshal in the upcoming home T20I series against Australia and South Africa. Both will be made to play the matches against the visiting sides," added the report.

The report also added that the selection committee might be meeting on September 15 to select India's squad for the T20 World Cup in Australia, which is starting from October 16 and ending on November 13.

Apart from accommodating Bumrah and Harshal, there will be talking points on including Deepak Hooda as well as requiring two keeper-batters in Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik.

"Having undergone a knee surgery recently, Jadeja is clearly out of reckoning which means Axar Patel could retain his place but there will be discussions on Deepak Hooda and the need for two wicketkeepers -- Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik. It may not be a surprise if both are selected once again but, again, it will be a call taken after picking the brains of coach Rahul Dravid and skipper Rohit Sharma," concluded the report.


--IANS

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New York, Sep 11 (IANS) Polish tennis star and world No. 1 Iga Swiatek added a third Grand Slam singles trophy to her cupboard, defeating Tunisia's Ons Jabeur 6-2, 7-6 (5) to win the US Open crown for the first time on Sunday (IST).

Following Ashleigh Barty's surprise retirement in March this year, Swiatek was thrust into the role of No.1 at the age of 20 then, but she has since handled the pressure very well, proceeding to win 37 straight matches, including the French Open.

On Sunday at the Flushing Meadows, rather than being intimidated by the No.1 ranking, the Polish tennis ace -- now 21 years old -- seemed quite inspired.

"I needed to stay composed and focus on the goals," Swiatek was quoted as saying by WTA. "It's New York -- it's so loud, it's so crazy. It's really mind-blowing for me. I'm really proud I could handle it mentally."

Against Tunisia's Jabeur in the final, the match came down to a tight second-set tiebreak. Down 4-5, the Pole fired a forehand winner that hit the line. When Jabeur's forehand sailed long two points later, she had closed another deal.

Swiatek's success on hardcourts has come as a revelation this season as the player, considered a clay court specialist, has won three successive WTA 1000 events on the hardcourts in Doha, Indian Wells and Miami.

This US Open crown underlines her versatility. Swaitek is only the third woman player in the last 15 years to win multiple majors in a season on different surfaces, joining retired American legend Serena Williams and Justine Henin.

"At the beginning of the season I realised that maybe I can have some good results on WTA events," Swiatek said. "I also made it to the semifinal of Australian Open. But I wasn't sure if I was on the level yet to win actually a Grand Slam, especially on US Open where the surface is so fast.

"It's something that I wasn't expecting for sure. It's also like a confirmation for me that sky is the limit. I'm proud, also surprised a little bit, just happy that I was able to do that," she added.

Swiatek's awesome form has seen her win her last 10 finals in straight sets.

This is the champion's seventh title of the year. She's the first woman to do so since Serena in 2014 and the first No.1 seed to take the title since Williams eight years ago.

Swiatek also became the youngest woman to win her third major title since Russia's Maria Sharapova (20 years) in 2008. She is also only the ninth player of the Open Era to win her third major before turning 22.

The previous eight are -- Sharapova, Justine Henin, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Martina Hingis, Monica Seles, Stefanie Graf and Chris Evert, according to WTA.

The two-time French Open champion also became the first player to win two majors in a single season since Germany's Angelique Kerber in 2016.

"I think in general (Swiatek just plays) better at the right moment, at the important points," Jabeur said. "She knows exactly what to do. I feel like she improved a lot from last year until the beginning of this year again."

"For sure, the weather changed because it wasn't that hot in the second part of the tournament. It was helpful. Sometimes we have many things actually to think about on court. Sometimes I wasn't able to do it every time, so I was making a lot of mistakes. Then I finally accepted that I'm going to make those mistakes. It's not going to be like on slow surface where I can build a rally, then be really calm and just finish," said Swaitek.

"It's going to be more risk and less control, for sure. So I accepted that. That was the thing that actually let me be more free," she added.

On Monday when the latest WTA Rankings are released, Swiatek and Jabeur will be ranked, No.1 and No.2 respectively. They have scored the most victories on the WTA Tour over the past two years and are also one-two in the Race to the WTA Finals leaderboard. Both players were appearing in their second major final of the season.

Upon receiving the USD2.6 million winner's check, Swiatek got a laugh from the crowd in Arthur Ashe Stadium when she said, "I'm really glad that is not in cash."

--IANS

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The Oval, Sep 11 (IANS) Ollie Robinson's five-wicket haul (5/49) and Ollie Pope's fifty (67) helped England take slim advantage over South Africa at the end of day three of the third and final Test despite the fight back by visitors bowlers, here on Saturday.

After bowling out South Africa for 118 in their first innings, England were 154-7 at stumps on Day 3, leading by 36 runs with Ben Foakes (11) and Ollie Robinson (3) unbeaten at the crease.

With the first day being washed out and the second day getting suspended, the third and final Test finally kicked off on Day 3 and it was the England bowlers who stamped their authority.

Ollie Robinson drew the first blood by disturbing the stumps of South Africa skipper Dean Elgar in the second over of the game. In the very next over, Sarel Erwee was done by the late movement produced by James Anderson, edging the ball to the gloves of Ben Foakes for a four-ball duck.

Robinson continued to trouble the South African batters, with Keegan Petersen his next victim. Stuart Broad got in on the act in his very first over, luring Ryan Rickelton into a drive and into the safe hands of Foakes. The wicketkeeper was in action three balls later when Robinson found the outside edge of Kyle Verreynne.

Robinson and Foakes combined again to dismiss Wiaan Mulder with an enticing ball outside off. With just 36 runs on board, the Proteas had lost half their side.

The sixth-wicket pair of Khaya Zondo and Marco Jansen added as many runs as the first five wickets did, doubling South Africa's score with a 36-run stand. They took South Africa safely to lunch without losing any further wickets at 69/6.

But England came back strongly in the second session, breaking the partnership in the first over after lunch. Broad did Zondo with a surprise short ball to expose the tail.

The rest of the batting did not provide much resistance and folded for 118. Robinson scalped Jansen to complete his five-for while Broad picked up the wickets of Keshav Maharaj and Anrich Nortje to complete his four-wicket haul.

In reply, Alex Lees' 13-run cameo off 6 balls got England's innings off and running before he was trapped in front of the stumps by Marco Jansen. The South African pacers were awry in their lines and lengths and were punished by Ollie Pope, who found the boundaries with ease.

Jansen got yet another batter trapped leg before wicket, with Zak Crawley departing after his cautious stay at the crease. Pope and Joe Root put on a quick 41-run stand that came off just 47 balls. It took a stunning catch from Petersen to bring an end to Root's innings, with Jansen once again getting the wicket for the Proteas.

Thereafter, South Africa made the most of the short rain break and scalped the wickets of debutant Harry Brook and captain Ben Stokes. Between the two wickets, Pope got to his ninth Test fifty but fell soon after for 67.

Rabada claimed the wicket of Broad in what turned out to be the final over of the day after bad light forced early stumps on day three.

Brief scores: South Africa 118 (Marco Jansen 30; Ollie Robinson 5-49, Stuart Broad 4-41) trail England 154/7 (Ollie Pope 67; Marco Jansen 4-34, Kagiso Rabada 2-78) by 36 runs.

--IANS

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New Delhi, Sep 10 (IANS) BCCI president and former India skipper Sourav Ganguly has lavished praise on Virat Kohli, saying that the star batter is "more skilful" than him as a player.

Kohli, who went through a dry run of form, recently rediscovered his lost mojo during the Asia Cup 2022, where he hit his first international century after 1020 days. His ton (122 not out) versus Afghanistan was his first in the 20-over format as he touched the three-figure score in nearly three years - his last hundred coming in a Test match against Bangladesh in November 2019.

Notably, both Ganguly and Kohli played an aggressive brand of cricket as captains but the current BCCI president feels captaincy should not be compared.

"I don't think that (captaincy) should be the comparison… The comparison should be in terms of skill as a player. I think he is more skilful than I'm," Ganguly said of Kohli in the 'Ranveer Show' on YouTube.

"We played in different generations, and we played a lot of cricket. I played in my generation, and he will continue playing, probably playing more games than I did. Currently, I have played more than what he has but he'll get past that. He is tremendous," he added.

Asked whether he gave Kohli any advice when he was struggling for form, Ganguly said, "I don't get to see them. The poor guys travel a lot."

The 50-year-old also spoke about how every player goes through media scrutiny.

"Everybody has been under media scrutiny. Just the names keep changing over a period of time. I won't get to know half of it because I didn]t read so much. I would enter a hotel and the first thing I would say at the reception, 'Boss, don't put the newspaper under my door in the morning'," he said.

"But now, obviously, it's a lot more; social media is on your computer and phone. But I think cricketers find a way to shut that off," he added.

During his playing days, Ganguly too went through many ups and downs, especially after his face-off with then-India coach Greg Chappell. The former left-hand batter said that cricketers should take the setbacks positively.

"I didn't go through any trauma. I just had good days and bad days. I had less pressure, a bit more pressure and too much pressure… I don't consider it as trauma," said Ganguly.

"Young people should also look at it that way. I can say it now because I'm a bit more experienced. But the young ones should look at it as an opportunity and move on," he added.

The veteran explained how the game has changed over time.

"The game is different. It has gotten faster, shorter, more sixes, more boundaries, and not many deliveries left outside the off stump. The game has changed," Ganguly said.

--IANS

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Dubai, Sep 10 (IANS) Pakistan leg-spin all-rounder Shadab Khan insists that winning against Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup final and claiming the trophy is the real deal for his team. The final of Asia Cup 2022, to be held at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday, will see Pakistan and Sri Lanka face each other for the fourth time in the final of the multi-nation event.

While Pakistan have won three and lost two matches in the tournament so far, Sri Lanka have been on the winning side four times while losing just once. In the overall head-to-head equation in Asia Cup, Sri Lanka have won 11 matches while Pakistan have prevailed over them just five times. A win on Sunday will take Sri Lanka's Asia Cup titles from five to six, while for Pakistan, it will increase from two to three.

"We are a great team, but in order to become a champion side, we need to win this tournament and other high-profile series. I have said before that champion teams handle pressure well and prevail in clutch moments, and this is what we will aim for on the Sunday Finale. Winning against Sri Lanka and claiming the Asia Cup title is the real deal for us!" said Shadab on the official website of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

The momentum is firmly with Sri Lanka as they have emerged victorious in four of their last five contested T20Is against Pakistan. Shadab feels that Pakistan have done well to reach the final despite losing their opening match of the tournament to India by five wickets and complemented his team-mates for playing crucial roles in getting crucial wins in the tournament despite losing players like Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jr and Shahnawaz Dahani before and during the tournament.

"When we lost the first match of the tournament against India, we were confident we will rise. And rise we did. Rizwan played exceptionally well against Hong Kong, followed by a comprehensive bowling display that helped us earn a confidence-boosting win. Nawaz demonstrated great all-round skills against India in the Super Four match, and although, I was the player of the match against Afghanistan, those two sixes by Naseem Shah will be eternally remembered!"

"Amidst Shaheen's absence and some of o'r batters' problems in searching for form, there was a general perception that Pakistan might get knocked out of the tournament at any stage. But the essence of cricket is based on teamwork and not individualism."

"We have also observed that after the Men"s T20 World Cup 2021, various players from our team have stepped up and shown the determination to unleash their talents, making it a well-known fact that all the 11 players who take the field are match-winners."

Shadab went on to appreciate the leadership of prolific batter Babar Azam though he himself has been short of runs in the tournament. "Babar Azam has taught us a lot, and besides the excellent team culture he has developed, I think the best facet of his leadership is the fact that he has inculcated the never give up attitude among us. Even if we find ourselves in hopeless situations, we are fully charged to fight till the last ball."

Shadab signed off by saying that they would like to bring smiles to the faces of people badly affected by devastating floods in Pakistan by winning the Asia Cup on Sunday. "Due to the unprecedented weather conditions, one-third of Pakistan is currently underwater."

"Since we're away from our beloved homeland, watching the devastating calamity from afar makes it even more painful for us. We would like to win this tournament to bring lively smiles back on the faces of the people affected by the flood."

--IANS

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Dubai, Sep 10 (IANS) Former Australia all-rounder Shane Watson has lauded South Africa skipper Dean Elgar for being on the cusp of reaching the 5,000-run mark in Test cricket, saying that it is a great effort for an opening batter to score that many runs in the longest format of the game.

Elgar needs 66 runs in the final Test against England at The Oval to get 5,000 runs in Test cricket. Currently in 78 Tests, Elgar has 4,934 runs at an average of 39.15, including 13 centuries and 22 fifties since his debut in the format in 2012.

"It's a brilliant effort. For an opening batsman to score five thousand runs, it's a great effort. There's no question about that. He's a tough, gritty batsman, knows his game inside-out, knows how to be really effective, and 5,000 runs -- there's not a lot of people in the history of Test cricket who have not been able to do that," said Watson on The ICC Review show.

With Elgar predominantly being a Test specialist for South Africa (he has just eight ODI appearances), Watson feels the free schedule allows the 35-year-old to preserve his body and continue piling up the runs in the longest format of the game, possibly for next four-five years as well.

"Only playing Test cricket, there's enough downtime to be able to stay fresh and keep that freshness for the next four-five years. I'm sure he'll be making the most of that. He certainly can play for another four, five years I think, with his performances still being very high, and he's a great leader around the group as you can see with his captaincy as well."

"He's still got a fair way to go, I believe. It's a big series (against England away from home), and as captain of South Africa, he's doing a brilliant job. It's an incredible achievement, that's for sure."

South Africa are continuing their push for a spot in the World Test Championship final, and a possible win over England at The Oval will move them level with Australia on top with 70 per cent points. Though South Africa haven't won a Test series in England in their last three attempts, Watson feels there is a belief in the Proteas under Elgar's leadership to change the trend.

"He's always talking pushing the limit to how good they can be, and not just being happy and settled with what's going on right now. We've seen that in the England series so far, especially with the first Test match. They've got a seriously good team."



--IANS

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Melbourne, Sep 10 (IANS) Australia white-ball skipper Aaron Finch, who will retire from One-day International (ODI) cricket following the third and final match against New Zealand at Cairns on September 11, believes there is no reason why batting stalwart Steve Smith cannot replace him in captaincy duties in the 50-ver side.

Smith was the Australia skipper till the Test series against South Africa in 2018 where he was stripped of his role following the ball-tampering scandal involving him, vice-captain David Warner and Cameron Bancroft.

Smith and Warner were banned for a year following the scandal, also called 'Sandpaper-gate'. Smith has since returned to the leadership role, being appointed deputy to Test captain Pat Cummins ahead of the Ashes series at home late last year.

The retirement of Finch, whose indifferent form in ODIs is one of the reasons behind the 35-year-old bidding adieu from the 50-over format, has brought into focus the ODI leadership issue as Australia prepare for the ODI World Cup in India next year.

With Test skipper Cummins making it clear he is not interested in white-ball captaincy, Smith has emerged as the likely choice.

"I don't think (appointing Smith as captain would be an issue)," Finch was quoted as saying by The West Australian on Saturday.

"He captained a (Ashes) Test match in Adelaide after Pat (Cummins) was out with COVID. So I think that's all been put to bed," added Finch.

Finch believes Cummins could also manage the workload of captaining the side in all three formats but playing so many matches would be tough on the pace bowler.

Cummins has been rested from 28 of 65 matches in the past four years, according to the report.

"It's pretty hard but I think if anyone can manage it it'd be Pat (Cummins)," Finch said. "He is an unbelievably resilient person. He has shown brilliant leadership of the Test group and I've loved working with him. He takes everything in his stride. He's got all the tools to do that."

--IANS

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