SV Sunil in doubt for hockey World Cup
bhubaneswar: In a major setback for the Indian hockey team, star striker S V Sunil has been all but ruled out of next month's World Cup after suffering a knee injury. Sunil suffered the ligament injury on his left knee on October 4 during India's ongoing preparatory camp here. He will require four to five weeks to recover from the injury, which virtually shuts the door on him for the World Cup to be held here from November 28 to December 16. "I suffered the injury while diving for a ball during training on October 4. I have consulted specialists here and the MRI revealed it is an Lateral Collateral Ligament injury (LCL) injury," Sunil said at the Bhubaneswar airport. Sunil is flying to Delhi on Thursday to consult Hockey India's official doctor B K Nayak after which his availability for the World Cup will be known.
Shubhankar makes solid start at CIMB
kuala lampur: Indian golfer Shubhankar Sharma sunk in five birdies on the back-nine to card a five-under 67, making a solid start at the CIMB Classic here. The 22-year-old, who was recently bestowed with the Arjuna Award, was in tied 14th place, four shots behind the surprise leader Bronson Burgoon (63) of USA. A record four Indians are taking part in the only PGA Tour event in Southeast Asia. Fiji International champion Gaganjeet Bhullar was the next best placed Indian -- tied 26th at three-under 69. Anirban Lahiri, who has a good record at TPC Kuala Lumpur in the past, also started well and was three-under par at the turn, but two double bogeys on the back nine saw him finish the day at a disappointing even-par 72 while Rahil Gangjee finished on five-over 77.
Chennai to host T20 Int’l against West Indies
hyderabad: The third T20 International between India and West Indies, scheduled in Chennai on November 4, will be held as per schedule after the Committee of Administrators accepted the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association's request of sticking to the old formula on complimentary tickets. "We are awaiting a confirmation mail from the BCCI and I can tell you that match will be happening in Chennai. There had been extensive discussions and COA has understood our rationale behind sticking to the old formula of membership passes. It's a great news for cricket lovers in Chennai," a TNCA official told PTI Thursday. Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association gave up their hosting rights before the second ODI, on October 24, was shifted from Indore to Visakhapatnam.
Bajrang seeded third at World c’ship
new delhi: CWG and Asian Games Gold medallist Bajrang Punia is the only Indian wrestler from a strong 30-member squad to get a seeding at the upcoming World Championships as he has been seeded third in the 65kg category in men's freestyle competition. Going by his form, Bajrang will be a strong medal contender at the World Wrestling Championships, scheduled to held in Budapest, Hungary, from October 20 to 28. The United World Wrestling (UWW) has introduced the ranking-points based seeding system for the first time for the World Championships. Bajrang has 45 points in the ranking list released by the world body. In the past, wrestlers were pulled into the brackets via a random draw of lots. Recent ranking tournaments such as Tbilisi Grand Prix in Georgia and Yasar Dogu International in Istanbul have been used to determine the ranking points for the World Championship.
Vipasha shocks Bhakti at fenesta nationals
new delhi: In a giant-killing effort, Vipasha Mehra knocked out top seed Bhakti Parwani 0-6, 6-0, 6-4 to move to the semifinals of the girls under-16 event at the Fenesta Open Junior National Tennis Championship on Thursday. It was a remarkable turn around by Vipasha who had struggled to get on board in the opening set.Also advancing to the last-four was fourth seed Sunskriti Damera, who eased past Bela Tamhankar 6-2, 6-2. Sanjana Sirimala rallied past Rutuja Chaphalkar 7-6(4), 6-3 . In the last quarter-final, Gargi Parwar was tested in the first set before she thumped Kasish Bhatia 7-6 (5), 6-1. In another tough match, Denim Yadav outgunned Sushant Dabas 6-3, 2-6, 6-4.
