Indian sports wrap, July 22: Anahat Singh enters Round of 16 at World Squash Junior Championships
Anahat enters pre-quarters
India's teen prodigy Anahat Singh entered the pre-quarterfinals at the World Junior Championships on Tuesday in Cairo after beating France's Ines Guyot 3-0.
She will meet Brazil's Laura Souza Bezerra Da Silva on Wednesday for a place in the quarterfinals.
In the boys' category, Arihant K S, Yusha Nafees, and Aryaveer Dewan entered the Round of 32, which will be played later today.
- Team Sportstar
GOLF
Vani seeks more success in 10th leg as Jasmine eyes another win in Hero WPGT
Vani Kapoor, a four-time champion on the Hero Women's Pro Golf Tour this season, and last week's winner Jasmine Shekar have been drawn together for the first round of the 10th leg at the Zion Hills Golf County.
They will have the talented Vidhatri Urs as the third player in the group.
Thirty seven players, including seven amateurs, will tee off in the event that carries a prize purse of Rs 16 lakh.
Other leading professional players in the field are Ridhima Dilawari, Seher Atwal, Sneha Singh, Amandeep Drall and Neha Tripathi, who was runner-up to Jasmine in the last leg.
Vani leads the Order of Merit with Amandeep Drall, Sneha Singh and Jasmine Shekar trailing behind her in that order.
- PTI
FOOTBALL
Iker Guarrotxena extends contract with FC Goa
FC Goa on Monday announced that Spanish forward Iker Guarrotxena has extended his contract with the Club by a year, keeping him with the Gaurs until the end of the 2025-26 season.
With 14 goal involvements for the club last season, the highest for the club. He first joined the club in the 2022-23 and scored 13 goals in his debut season.
His consistency on the pitch makes him a reliable presence for the team, having been called 'a complete player, who is both decisive and dangerous' by Head Coach Manolo Marquez. The 2025-26 season will be his third for the club.
ARCHERY
Parneet tops rankings
World championships team gold medal-winning archer Parneet Kaur topped the compound women's individual rankings in the qualification round at the World University Games in Essen, Germany, on Tuesday.
Parneet, who scored 701 points, was one of the two archers to score more than 700.
Madhura Dhamangaonkar was sixth with 687 points, while Avneet Kaur was 22 nd with 673.
In the recurve men's division, Aryan Rana collected 640 points to be at 29th spot. Vishnu Chaudhary (627) and Mrinal Chauhan (622) managed 42nd and 47th places respectively.
- YB Sarangi
TENNIS
Sumit Nagal beats Jay Clarke Tampere Challenger Open first round
Alternate entrant Sumit Nagal beat top seed Jay Clarke of Britain 7-6(4), 6-1 in the first round of the €91,250 Challenger tennis tournament in Tampere, Finland.
In the €596,035 ATP event on clay in Kitzbuhel, Austria, Sriram Balaji and Rithvik Bollipalli progressed into the quarterfinals without playing a match. The first round opponents of the Indian pair, the top seeds Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz of Germany, withdrew with an injury.
The results: €91,250 Challenger, Tampere, Finland
Singles (first round): Sumit Nagal bt Jay Clarke (GBR) 7-6(4), 6-1. €91,250 Challenger, Segovia, Spain
Doubles (pre-quarterfinals): Clement Chidekh (Fra) & Roy Stepanov (Isr) bt Robin Bertrand (Fra) & Adil Kalyanpur 6-4, 6-3. $30,000 ITF women, Monastir, Tunisia
Singles (first round): Vaidehee Chaudhari bt Julia Adams (USA) 6-4, 6-2.
-Kamesh Srinivasan
Maaya Rajeshwaran, Rethin win best player awards in TNTA annual day function
Rethin Pranav and Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi were the winners of the T.K. Ramanathan award for the best player of the 2024-25 season (₹30,000 each) in the Tamil Nadu Tennis Association (TNTA) annual day function at the Madras Cricket Club (MCC) in Chennai on Tuesday.
Speaking at the event, TNTA president Vijay Amritraj said that there has been significant interest among the players to participate in the second edition of the Chennai Open, a WTA 250 event, set to take place from Oct. 27 to Nov. 2.
'I think it will be a good (player) field because the previous week is in Tokyo in Japan (Toray Pan Pacific Open Tennis - WTA 500). So, they will be on their way here. There are two other tournaments (Jiangxi Open, Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open) as well in China at the same time (as the Chennai Open). But again, there has been a lot of interest (among the players) in coming to our own city,' he said.
He added that there's a plan to set up video screens (for streaming the Chennai Open matches) across the city to enhance public engagement.
'We hope to have LED video screens across the city, so that people can actually sit on the Marina Beach or in T. Nagar or wherever and have snacks and watch the matches, which I think will be a great boost for our sport and create even more interest in the State,' he said.
The award-winners
T.K. Ramanathan award (Best player of the 2024-25 season): Rethin Pranav, Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi.
President award for the most promising youngster: Ishaan Sudharshan, Hemdev Mahesh, Deepthi Venkatesan, Diya Ravikumar Janaki
Justice P.S. Kailasam Memorial award for performance in junior Nationals: Boys: Singles: u-18: Winner: Kandhavel Mahalingam; Runner-up: Varun Verma.
Doubles: u-12: Runner-up: Ronnie Vijay Kumar
Girls: Singles: u-18: Winner: Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi; Runner-up: Diya Ramesh.
Doubles: u-14: Runners-up: Deepshika Vinayagamurthy and A.S.R. Bawyasri; u-16: Runners-up: Sanmitha Harini Lokesh and Savitha Bhuvaneswaran; u-18: Doubles: Winner: Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi.
Performance in National c'ships: Men: Singles: Winner: Rethin Pranav.
Women: Singles: Runner-up: Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi; Doubles: Runner-up: Sai Samhitha Chamarthi.
Performance in National Games (Dehradun): Men: Manish Suresh Kumar (singles and doubles bronze, team gold); V.M. Ranjeet (team gold); Abhinav Sanjeev Shanmugam (doubles bronze, team gold); Lohith Aksha Bathrinath (mixed doubles and team gold); K.S. Dheeraj (team gold)
Women: Lakshmiprabha Arunkumar (mixed doubles gold, team bronze); Janani Ramesh (team bronze); Mirudhula Palanivel (team bronze); Diya Ramesh (team bronze)
Performance in Deaf & Hard Hearing c'ship: Men: Prithvi Shekar (Australian Open singles champion and doubles runner-up).
Performance in Wheelchair Tennis Nationals: Karthik Karunakaran (singles winner, doubles runner-up); Mariappan Durai (doubles runner-up); Balachandar Subramanian (doubles winner).
Representing India: Davis Cup / Fed Cup / u-12, u-14, u-16 / Wheelchair: Ramkumar Ramanthan, Sriram Balaji; BNP Paribas World Cup Asia Qualifying: Karthik Karunakaran, Mariappan Durai, K. Sathasivam; Billie Jean King Cup u-14 & u-16: Diya Ramesh (Junior Billie Jean King Cup Asia Oceania Final Qualifying, Kazakhstan).
Muthukrishnan Memorial award for most promising and performing player (Boy): Varun Verma.
Nagamani Mahadevan award for most promising and performing player (Girl): Diya Ramesh.
32nd Sanmar TNTA Chennai City club tennis league: Veterans (60+): Winner: MGC; Runner-up: Cosmopolitan Club-A;
45+: Zone-A: Winner: MCC-A; Runner-up: Besant Nagar Club-B; Zone-B: Winner: BNC-B; Runner-up: Nungambakkam Tennis Club-A; Zone-C: Winner: Anna Nagar Club; Runner-up: Madras Race Club.
Regular: Zone-A: Winner: MCC-A; Runner-up: NTC-C; Zone-B: Winner: GNC-A; Runner-up: Anna Nagar K Block-A; Zone-C: Winner: Presidency Club-A; Runner-up: BNC-B; Zone-D: Winner: MCC-M; Runner-up: Gandhi Nagar Club-C; Zone-E: Winner: Besant Nagar Club-C; Runner-up: Madras Club-B; Zone-F: Winner: Presidency Club-B; Runner-up: YMCA Kilpauk.
16th UCAL-TNTA Chennai inter-club league-cum-knockout c'ship: Winner: MCC; Runner-up: BNC
- Prasanna Venkatesan
World University Games: Vaishnavi Adkar to become second Indian to win a tennis medal after reaching semis
India is assured of a rare medal in tennis as Vaishnavi Adkar made it to the women's singles semifinals while most of her compatriots across sports failed to make a mark in the World University Games in Berlin on Tuesday.
The 20-year-old Vaishnavi beat home favourite Sina Herrmann 6-1, 6-4 in a dominant display in the women's singles quarterfinals. She will face Eszter Meri of Slovakia in the semifinals on Thursday.
She will become only the second Indian to win a medal in the World University Games, after Nandal Bal clinched a silver in men's singles in the 1979 edition in Mexico City.
Under the rules, two bronze medals are awarded in tennis competition in the WUG.
- PTI
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Hindustan Times
13 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
BAI, BWF readies Guwahati for World Junior Championships
NEW DELHI: More immigration counters, sufficient number of practice courts, smoother traffic, blocking hotel rooms, setting up the competition venue, implementing a new scoring system — these are some of the pointers that will keep the Badminton Association of India (BAI) and Badminton World Federation (BWF) occupied as Guwahati gets ready to host the World Junior Championships from October 13-19. Representational image of badminton. (Getty Images) This will be the second time India will host the event after the 2008 edition in Pune where Saina Nehwal was crowned the girls' singles champion — the only Indian to achieve the feat. 'We are fulfilling all the requirements of BWF. Roughly 600-700 players and officials will come to Guwahati. 39 teams (federations) have already confirmed for the team event. For the individual competition, shuttlers from 10-12 more countries will add up to make it a total participation of shuttlers from 50-55 countries,' BAI secretary general Sanjay Mishra told HT. 'We have blocked hotel rooms. BAI president (and Assam chief minister) Himanta Biswa Sarma had a meeting with state officials regarding making traffic smooth for players as some hotels are a little away from the venue. He has already given orders to the state departments concerned.' A BWF team was recently in Assam's main city for a recce of the venue, BAI's National Centre of Excellence which was inaugurated in 2023. The NCoE will host the team event from October 6-11 followed by the individual competition from October 13-19. 'The NCoE is a readymade badminton facility that is well equipped to welcome the best emerging badminton talent from around the world. This includes the practice facilities. We will work closely with BAI and the local organising committee to ensure player and entourage arrivals, accommodation, and transport run smoothly,' BWF secretary general Thomas Lund told HT. 'There are several exciting innovations that will be implemented in Guwahati as part of our long-term considerations for innovation in events and event delivery. An updated relay system will be introduced in the mixed team tournament while the individual championships will trial the 3x15 scoring system as part of BWF's wider testing and analysis programme.' For the team event, each tie will be decided over best-of-three games with each game played to a total of 45 points and comprising five matches (men's and women's singles, men's and women's doubles, and mixed doubles). It is important for India to put up a good show as it is due to host the senior World Championships next year, the venue for which is to be decided. The India Open — the biggest annual event India hosts — was criticised in January by Danish shuttler Mia Blichfeldt, who slammed the 'unhealthy and unacceptable' playing conditions, complaining about air pollution and dirt after falling ill regularly during her India visits. France's Thom Gicquel had complained about the playing conditions and pollution levels in the national capital. There have been a few instances of food poisoning too over the years. 'The BWF team was 100% satisfied with the hotels, the 3,500-seater venue and sufficient practice courts (12). We have also requested for increasing the number of immigration counters because many players will come from Malaysia or Singapore, which have direct flights to Guwahati. For those coming via New Delhi, we have put together a meet-and-greet team. There should not be a problem of any kind,' said Mishra, the former junior national coach. The 2009 BWF World Championships in Hyderabad — the only time India hosted the event — wasn't without problems after the England squad withdrew citing security concerns. They were joined by two Austrian shuttlers later. Lund said: 'To achieve such lofty ambitions for the tournament, a lot of planning and collaboration between BWF, BAI and the Guwahati LOC has taken place. Last year (in Nanchang), we had 457 competitors from 39 teams. This year too, we'll roughly have the same numbers. 'The team relay format posed some technical and logistical complications last year and we have taken onboard those learnings to ensure all facets are running smoothly, particularly for players and technical officials. We will run 3-4 sessions a day to get through the matches, which means a lot of staff, officials and volunteers on hand.' Asked about the challenges, Mishra said they are usually venue related, like washrooms, playing halls, lighting, etc. 'The venue is our biggest plus point. At NCoE, everything is perfect. BWF has already approved it.' Apart from the India Open, a Super 750 event, India also hosts a few Super 300 and Super 100 tournaments. In 2014, they hosted the Thomas and Uber Cups. 'We feel BAI are well placed to meet the current technical requirements to host a championships of this level. Of course, together we are entering slightly unknown territory with the scoring system innovations. All parties will be focused on this during the first week of the event,' said Lund.
News18
23 minutes ago
- News18
Gill will keep doing well for Indian cricket: Gambhir
Agency: PTI Last Updated: New Delhi, Aug 5 (PTI) India head coach Gautam Gambhir was all praise for skipper Shubman Gill leading from the front during the just-concluded England series as he expects him to shine brightly in years to come. Gill played a massive role in India's creditable 2-2 draw, scoring 754 runs with four hundreds in the five-match series. 'I think Gill has done a fabulous job, that's all I can say and he will keep doing well for Indian cricket," Gambhir told reporters on his arrival from England on Tuesday. While he had a role in making tactical calls, Gambhir didn't want to take any credit for the superb show in England. 'We are really happy. I think the boys deserve every bit of it because they way the fought since the last two months in all the five Test matches. They deserve all the plaudits." Mohammed Siraj is getting praise from all and sundry but the coach said that he can go on waxing eloquent about all others who made significant impact at various points during the series. 'Look he (Siraj) has been really brilliant, not only him the entire team has performed brilliantly and it is really difficult for me to mention one name. 'These guys have, be it Shubman, be it Siraj, Jaddu, Washi, Jaiswal, I can stand here and talk for the next 20 mins about the individual performances. I think the boys have been brilliant in the last two months," Gambhir said. PTI KHS KHS APA APA (This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed - PTI) view comments First Published: August 05, 2025, 22:45 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
News18
23 minutes ago
- News18
Chennai Grandmasters: Erigaisi face stiff challenge from Gujrathi, Giri
Last Updated: Chennai, Aug 4 (PTI) India No. 1 Arjun Erigaisi will face tough competition from seasoned compatriot Vidit Gujrathi and Netherland's top player Anish Giri during the expanded third edition of the Chennai Grandmasters chess tournament, starting here from Wednesday. The event, which carries a winner's purse of Rs 1 crore, will be competed for the first time over nine rounds in classical round robin format across Masters and Challengers segments. This year's Masters field includes a powerful mix of global and Indian talent. Alongside Erigaisi and Liang, the opening round will see top-seeded Dutch GM Anish face American GM Ray Robson, while Gujrathi, Vincent Keymer, Nihal Sarin, and others are all set for high-stakes match-ups. World No. 5 Erigaisi will open his campaign against American prodigy Awonder Liang. While the highly-anticipated clash between two Indian grandmasters Erigaisi and Gujrathi is set for Round 8 on August 14. The tournament, which was played over seven rounds in the previous two editions, will see participation from 19 Grandmasters and will offer crucial FIDE Circuit points. The points will be vital for securing a spot in the 2026 Candidates Tournament, just like it helped eventual world champion D Gukesh to enter the Candidates. Erigasi, who has broken into the elite 2800 FIDE rating club, will also face strong challenge from promising Sarin and Germany's 20-year-old Vincent Keymer, who was D Gukesh's second during last year's World Championship. But his toughest competitor will be Giri, who brings a wealth of experience and a super-solid style that makes him one of the tournament favourites. Apart from the established names, India's Pranav V and Karthikeyan Murali too are capable of effecting some stunning results. As for the format, the latest edition marks a significant expansion, growing into a 20-player event split into two distinct 10-player sections: the Masters and the Challengers. This new structure provides a direct pathway for rising stars to compete at the highest level, with the Challengers winner earning a guaranteed spot in the 2026 Masters. Meanwhile, the Challengers section features some equally exciting talents in D Harika, who was a part of the gold winning women's team at the 45th Chess Olympiad last year. R Vaishali, Harshvardhan GB, Abhimanyu Puranik experienced Grandmaster Adhiban Baskaran, who is known for his aggressive style, will also be in contention. Round 1 Pairings: Masters: Arjun Erigaisi vs Awonder Liang, Anish Giri vs Ray Robson, Vidit Gujrathi vs Jorden Van Foreest, Vincent Keymer vs Nihal Sarin, Pranav V vs Karthikeyan Murali Challengers: Leon Luke Mendonca vs Harshavardhan GB, Abhimanyu Puranik vs Adhiban Baskaran, Vaishali Rameshbabu vs Iniyan P, Dronavalli Harika vs Diptayan Ghosh, Pranesh M vs Aryan Chopra. PTI APA KHS KHS view comments First Published: August 05, 2025, 22:45 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
