Bangalore :

Uttar Pradesh’s despondent body language was a dead giveaway on a day when their hopes evaporated as swiftly as the moisture on the KSCA pitch. At 15 for three within 40 minutes of play hosts Karnataka looked dead and buried. Yet by the end of the first day’s play in the Ranji Trophy quarterfinal, it was UP that looked broken and disjointed.

Ranji Trophy Tracker

Karnataka, powered by two brilliant centuries by Robin Uthappa and Karun Nair and a rollicking unbeaten 89 by CM Gautham, dramatically turned the tables in one of the finest fightbacks seen on this venue. At close, the hosts were 297/5.

UP, who opted to bowl first on a green top laden with moisture were over the moon when they plucked out Karnataka’s three heavy run-getters, KL Rahul, R Samarth and Manish Pandey, all without opening their account. That brought the in-form Karun Nair, who had opened the batting against Delhi and made a century in challenging circumstances, to join forces with an unusually circumspect Uthappa.

Amit Mishra, the pick of the three-pronged medium-pace attack, was getting the ball to move disconcertingly. The alternate strips of grass and bald pitch challenged the batsmen. Deliveries that hit the turf seamed and skidded through while the rest went at a different velocity.

“The plan was to just hang in there. We were not concerned with the scoring but sought to see off the new ball and the moisture on the pitch,” explained Uthappa as Karnataka took all of 23 overs to crawl to 50.

Uthappa, though, was the more assertive partner. He eschewed risks, but still came up with some spanking drives and leg glances while Karun got his eye in and made it count. The pair added 120 runs for the fourth wicket.

Brief scores: Karnataka 297-5 (Robin Uthappa 100, Karun Nair 100, Gautham 89*, Amit Mishra 2-70, Ali Murtuza 2-87)

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Sports> Domestic Cricket> Amit Mishra / by Vedam Jaishankar, TNN / January 09th, 2014

There is a positive change in the sports scene in India and this is just the beginning…S.R. Suryanarayan in conversation with squash player Joshna Chinnappa.

Having watched her father play since she was a toddler, Joshna says she had taken to squash like fish to water. “I also had a choice of playing tennis or badminton, but I stuck to squash because I began loving the sport,” said the national women’s champion and currently a top 20 player in the world. Like those who have nothing to do with cricket, Joshna too is envious of the way cricket and cricketers garner so much space in the media and other activities of public interest. But she says that it has not affected the growth of other sports in the country nor the progress of such sportspersons. “Look at Saina Nehwal, wrestler Yogeshwar and other achievers in various sports. They are getting recognition even in the Olympics,” Joshna says. But yes, the champion player would be happy if there was proportionate rise in the coverage of such achievements in the newspapers.

Changing scene
Joshna talks of a talent in her own sport, Mahesh Mangaonkar, a youngster from Mumbai who recently won a PSA tour event (akin to winning a professional tournament in say tennis or badminton) but which got very little publicity. “It was a significant win and deserved more,” she said. But then, Joshna admits that unlike 10 or 15 years ago, when squash hardly found mention, things have changed vastly. “We have three players (Dipika Pallikal, Saurav Ghosal and myself) in India who are in the top 20 in the world rankings and our players have been regularly making an impact in various international tournaments,” she says, adding that it has ensured a certain visibility for squash now. Recognition too has been coming, stating that she received the Arjuna award last year.

What has heartened her is the increasing number of juniors taking to the sport and for this, she acknowledges the presence of the Indian Squash Academy in Chennai as one prime reason. “For two years now, there has been an overwhelming response for the junior national championship. This is a good sign,” she says. “There is much more accessibility to the courts now and this helps in maintaining consistency in performances.”

Looking back, Joshna does not regret one bit choosing squash for a career. “I like the sport. I enjoy playing it and my hard work is also paying me well. I am sure this must be true of every sport and sportsperson,” she says. Like many other squash players in the world, Joshna too keenly looks forward to seeing the sport in the Olympics!

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus> Nxg> Think Tank / by S.R. Suryanarayan / Chennai – January 08th, 2014

Opening batsman Robin Uthappa is all set to return for Karnataka’s Ranji Trophy quarterfinal tie against Uttar Pradesh from January 8.

The right-hander, who featured in a couple of matches for Karnataka in the league phase before suffering a hamstring injury, will replace Mayank Agarwal at the top of the order.

Agarwal, who has been relatively successful in his first season with 380 runs from seven matches, has been selected to feature in Karnataka’s Col CK Nayudu (under-25) Trophy quarterfinal match against Himachal Pradesh at Dharamsala on January 5 instead.

“The under-25 quarterfinal is important too so we decided that it would be better to have Mayank playing at Dharamsala instead of making him sit on the reserve bench here,” said chief selector Sudhakar Rao.

Karnataka squad: R Vinay Kumar (captain), CM Gautam (vice-captain/ wicketkeeper), Robin Uthappa, KL Rahul, Manish Pandey, Karun Nair, R Samarth, Shreyas Gopal, Ronit More, Abhimanyu Mithun, HS Sharath, Abrar Kazi, Ganesh Satish, Amit Verma, KP Appanna. Batting coach: J Arun Kumar. Bowling coach: Mansur Ali Khan. Manager: B Siddaramu. Physio: M Vasanth. Video analyst: Santhosh. Logistic manager: A Ramesh Rao.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Sports / Bangalore – DHNS, January 02nd, 2014

Their two-year bans over, the relay runners who brought doping shame to the country in 2011 are now back on track and in the national camp.

But, M.R. Poovamma doesn’t feel any threat. The Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games are lined up between July and October in Korea and Scotland next year and Poovamma feels that three of the berths in the six-member 4×400 women’s relay team, which includes two reserves, are almost confirmed though there are many more girls now in the fray.

“There should be some changes because the banned athletes have come back. But, I think Anu Mariam, Tintu Luka and I will be there in the relay team,” said the Asian championship 400m silver medallist on the sidelines of the All-India Public Sector Meet here on Friday. “The fight will be for the other berths.”

Poovamma, Tintu and Anu, along with Nirmala, won the Asian championship relay gold in Pune in July and they also ran in the world championship in Moscow in August.

Exudes confidence
The country’s fastest one-lap runner now, Poovamma is confident that India will get gold in the mile relay in the Asian Games in Incheon. But, she has a bigger goal.

“We have been getting the relay gold almost every time, we are sure of it but my main aim will be in getting the individual 400m medal,” said the 23-year-old, who hails from Mangalore. “Commonwealth, I can expect one of the three (medals) and Asian Games, I can try for a gold.”

She clocked her personal best, 52.75s in the recent Federation Cup in Patiala and hopes to bring it down to 51.50 year.

“During training, I am much better than what I was last year so I think I can run much faster, probably my best,” she said. “I’ll try my best to break the national record (Manjeet Kaur’s 51.05 which came in 2004) but my target next year is 51.50 and I think it’s achievable.”

There is talk in the circuit that Tintu could be running the 400m along with the 800m next year and Poovamma feels that the Kerala star’s presence will boost the one-lapper in a big way.

“If Tintu takes up 400m seriously, it will push me to much faster timings. She’s a good athlete, she has been giving us good competition…when something like that happens it will help the sport in a big way.”

More testing
With athletics coming under close scrutiny, Poovamma says that there is a lot more testing these days. “Now, I am in the Patiala national camp and the NADA usually comes once in two months,” she said.

“They are more strict than before. We don’t know when they’d come. After the Asian championship, I have been tested twice or thrice in Patiala in the last six months.”

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sport> Other Sports / by Stan Ryan / Kochi – December 20th, 2013

Tennis – Sania says she has not played with him due to fallout of the Olympics controversy.

Tennis – Indian tennis stars Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza say that they will play mixed doubles again together soon, although for now they are committed to playing with different partners at the Australian Open.

In an interview to the India Today magazine, Sania says that the two have not played recently due to the London Olympics controversy.The two had played at the Hopman Cup a few years ago, representing India and nearly made the finals.

“One of the main reasons has been the Olympics. It has messed up a lot of things, especially in terms of partnerships. After that Wimbledon performance, I decided to play with Mahesh because we were targeting to play together in London Olympics. That is where friendship helps; we understood each other’s decisions and found different partners. It was just wrong timing that we didn’t play together again. But we’ll certainly play again. There was never any conflict between us. In the beginning of the row, I didn’t say anything because it was between the boys. Rohan never mentioned me. But when my name was dragged into the debate, I had to speak up. It affected my relationship with Mahesh for a brief period but we soon got back to normal.”

When asked about playing together again, Sania says, “As of now, we are committed to playing with other partners at the Australian Open. If we win with others, we might not get the chance. But we could well play the French Open or Wimbledon together. It’s all about what the situation would be then.”

source: http://www.tennisworldusa.org / Tennis World / Home> Tennis Stories / by Prakash / December 21st, 2013

Top Indian shuttler Jwala Gutta, who on Monday won the women’s doubles title at the 78th Senior National Badminton Championships, said that she and her partner Ashwini Ponnappa “are the best”.

The 2011 World Championship bronze medallist has had a tough year fighting a court case against the Badminton Association of India (BAI) for recommending a life ban on her for leading her side — Krrish Delhi Smashers — to almost forfeit a match during the Indian Badminton League (IBL).

“I am extremely delighted. We are the best and there is no doubt about it now and we remain the best for quite some time now. I still need to get fitter and hope we continue to fight like this in every match. I enjoyed my match today (Monday),” said Jwala, who won her 10th national women’s doubles crown.

Jwala’s entry was withdrawn by the BAI from a couple of tournaments due to the above mentioned case. Now with the title, she hopes to be back in the Indian team.

“I don’t have to prove anything. I have my credentials behind me. The day me and Ashwini play in India at the national level, it is really difficult for others to compete against us. We are internationally more exposed and experienced and I am happy we played here,” added the Commonwealth Games gold medallist.

“This is the last tournament of the year and to end it with a high note feels great. All eyes were on me and I am glad I lived up to it,” added the 30-year-old.

source: http://www.dnaindia.com / DNA / Home> Sport> Report / Place:New Delhi, Agency:DNA / Monday – December 23rd, 2013