West Indies have recalled seasoned batsmen Kieron Pollard and Darren Bravo to the T20 International squad for the three-match rubber against India after explosive opener Chris Gayle “declined selection”.

Chanderpaul Hemraj, the 25-year-old left-hand batsman, has been included in the Windies team for the five-match One-day International (ODI) series, while Oshane Thomas, a 21-year-old right-arm medium pacer, and Fabian Allen, an aggressive right-hand batsman and left-arm spinner, found themselves in both the ODI and T20I squads.

According to a release from West Indies Cricket, star all-rounder Andre Russell was not included in the ODI squad due to fitness concerns, but he is in the T20I set-up, as are Pollard and Bravo. Alzarri Joseph, who has been named in the ODI squad, will undergo a fitness test before leaving for India.

Jason Holder will captain the Windies in the ODI series while Carlos Brathwaite will captain the team for the T20I series against India.

Commenting on Gayle’s decision to opt out of the tour, Courtney Brownie, Chairman of the selection panel, said: “We will be without our stalwart, Chris Gayle for this Indian tour and the next tour against Bangladesh as he has declined selection at this time, however, he has made himself available for the selection for the visit of England to the Caribbean and the CWC in 2019.”

“As we continue our World Cup preparations, the upcoming tour of India provides a great opportunity to expose some of our young talent.”

“Opener, Chandrapul Hemraj, all-rounder Fabian Allen and fast bowler Oshane Thomas will get their opportunity to showcase their skills, along with Sunil Ambris, who is returning to the fold,” Brownie added.

Explaining the reason behind announcing the squad so early, Johnny Grave, Chief Executive Officer of the Windies, said: “The team will have a camp before the start of the ODI series in Guwahati, so we had to select the squad before the start of the Super50 Cup, in order to organise flights and visas.”

“With the CPL finishing last month, there was no reason to delay announcing the T20 squad,” he added.

Squads:
ODI: Jason Holder (Captain), Fabian Allen, Sunil Ambris, Devendra Bishoo, Chanderpaul Hemraj, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope, Alzarri Joseph, Evin Lewis, Ashley Nurse, Keemo Paul, Rovman Powell, Kemar Roach, Marlon Samuels, Oshane Thomas.

T20I: Carlos Brathwaite (Captain), Fabian Allen, Darren Bravo, Shimron Hetmyer, Evin Lewis, Obed McCoy, Ashley Nurse, Keemo Paul, Khary Pierre, Kieron Pollard, Rovman Powell, Denesh Ramdin, Andre Russell, Sherfane Rutherford, Oshane Thomas.

U.P. Yoddha held off a monumental comeback from Tamil Thalaivas to win 37-32 on the second day of the Pro Kabaddi tournament at the packed Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium here on Monday.

Leading 18-4 at halftime, U.P. Yoddha were expected to canter to victory but Tamil Thalaivas, led by India captain Ajay Thakur, staged a marvellous fightback to lose by five points only despite being 19 points in arrears at one stage in the second half.

Recovering from a sloppy start, Thakur pocketed 12 points (nine raid points, three bonus points) to sizzle the mat in the dying minutes of the game with back-to-back successful raids.

The experienced Manjeet Chhillar was excellent too defensively, picking up four tackle points as Tamil Thalaivas came close to pulling off a improbable triumph.

For U.P. Yoddha, Prashanth Kumar Rai (eight points) and Shrikant Yadav (five points) starred in attack while Narender (four tackle points) did the job defensively.A

There was only one team from the beginning as Tamil Thalaivas — who won by 16 points against Patna Pirates on Sunday — looked colourless and lacking ideas.

Thakur, who bagged 14 points in the previous game, unsuccessfully tried to skip past U.P. Yoddha defenders early on as the visitors raced to a 4-0 lead.

U.P. inflicted an all out on Tamil Thalaivas to lead 10-0 and even went to extend their advantage to 12-0 before Prashanth was sent out of the mat to make it 1-12.

Thakur then followed it up with a successful raid to make it 2-12 but his joy was shortlived as Shrikant sent the India captain out of the mat.

To make matter worse, Jasvir Singh failed to wriggle past Pune defenders immediately to leave his side haplessly reeling at 2-14.

At halftime, U.P. Yoddha led 18-4.

It was one way traffic from the start of the second half too, as U.P. Yoddha effected a second all out to further stretch the lead to 22-5.

Tamil Thalaivas tried to fashion a comeback after the all out and did remarkably well to trim the gap to 19-27 riding an all out at the halfway mark of the second period.

Thakur and Chhillar were at the heart of the comeback, the pair using their reservoir of experience to inflict an all out and cut the gap to nine points.

However, UP Yoddha maintained their composure
and didn’t give too many opportunities to Thalaivas to make a comeback.

Thakur achieved a super 10 in the 38th minute as Tamil Thalaivas trailed 26-33. Tamil Thalaivas inflicted an all out in the 29th minute as they trailed 30-34. U.P. Yoddha managed to held firm in the last few minutes to ensure the win.

IANS

Indian para athletes dished out commendable performances to bag 11 medals, including three golds, on the second day of the 2018 Para Asian Games here on Monday.

Javelin thrower Sandeep Chaudhary clinched India’s first gold of the Games in the men’s F42-44/61-64 category in the morning session, before middle distance runner Raju Rakshitha (women’s T11 1500m) and swimmer Jadhav Suyash Narayan (men’s S7 50m butterfly) clinched two more golds later in the day.

With a best throw of 60.01 metre, which Sandeep managed in his third attempt, he clinched the yellow metal. The silver went to Sri Lanka’s Chaminda Sampath Hetti, while Iran’s Omidi Ali settled for the bronze.

India’s medal tally swelled further with the addition of two more silver medals after Ramya Shanmugam and Radha Venkatesh finished second in women’s F46 javelin throw and women’s T12/13 1500m race, respectively.

India also won a silver in para-powerlifting, through 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Sakina Khatun in women’s 50 kg category, while shooting para sport gave the country a silver and a bronze.

Indian para swimmers also fetched three more bronze medals adding to the gold from Narayan.

In the later part of the day, 2016 Rio Paralympics silver medallist Deepa Malik settled for a bronze in women’s F 53/54 javelin throw with an effort of 10.15m.

With Monday’s 11 medals, India occupy the eighth spot in the medal tally with 3 gold, 6 silver and 8 bronze.

IANS

Reigning Olympic champion Carolina Marin was on Monday bought by debutant PBL franchise Pune 7 Aces, while Indian stars Saina Nehwal and P.V.Sindhu were picked up by Hyderabad Hunters and North Eastern Warriors respectively during the Premier Badminton League (PBL) auction here on Monday.

Saina, the London Olympics bronze medallist, was bought as the icon player by the North Eastern Warriors for Rs 80 lakh. She had earlier represented the Awadhe Warriors for the past three editions.

“PBL Season 4 is coming up. I am really happy to know that I am with the North Eastern Warriors. So, really looking forward to play,” Saina said in a Twitter video.

Sindhu, the Rio Olympics silver medallist, will feature for the Hyderabad franchise after the defending champions picked her up for Rs 80 lakh, while Rio gold medallist Carolina Marin of Spain also went for the same price to Pune. World No.9 Sung Ji Hyun was snapped up by Chennai Smashers, also for Rs 80 lakh.

Among the big names in men’s badminton, former World No.1 Victor Axelsen of Denmark was picked up by Ahmedabad Smash Masters for Rs 80 lakh, while World No.6 Kidambi Srikanth joined Bengaluru Raptor for the same amount.

H.S. Prannoy was bought by Delhi Dashers after a bidding war with Mumbai Rockets for Rs 80 lakh, while South Korea’s Sung Ji Hyun and Lee Yong Dae also went for the same amount to Chennai Smashers and Mumbai, respectively.

The Awadh Warriors spent Rs 70 lakh to bag the services of South Korean Son Wan Ho while Pune bought Denmark’s Mathias Boe for Rs 50 lakh.

Teenaged sensation Lakshya Sen was bought by Pune for Rs 11 lakh while another youngster Satwiksairaj Rankireddy went for a whopping Rs 52 lakh to the Ahmedabad Smash Masters.

IANS

India skipper Virat Kohli and his teammate Jasprit Bumrah maintained their top spot in the latest ICC ODI rankings for batsmen and bowlers respectively.

Kohli remained at the first place in the batsman’s chart with 884 points and is followed by his deputy Rohit Sharma, who has 842 ranking points.

Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan is placed fifth in the list carrying 802 points.

Coming to the bowling rankings, pacer Bumrah has 797 points to his name and leads the list.

The death-over specialist is followed by young Afghanistan sensation Rashid Khan, who has 788 points, while Indian chinaman Kuldeep Yadav is placed third with 700 points.

South Africa bowlers Kagiso Rabada and Imran Tahir have also advanced within the top-10 of the rankings after their side’s 3-0 home series triumph over Zimbabwe.

Pacer Rabada, who is also ranked second in Tests, has moved up three spots to take sixth position after grabbing five wickets in two matches, while formerly top-ranked leg-spinner Tahir’s player of the series effort of 10 wickets, which included a hat-trick in the second ODI, has seen him progress three places to seventh position.

Meanwhile in the team’s rankings, England topped the chart with 127 points, while India is placed second with 122 points.

New Zealand (112 points), South Africa (110) and Pakistan (101) grabbed the third, fourth and fifth spot respectively.

England will have to win the away series against Sri Lanka, starting October 10, to retain their number one ranking. Their failure to win the series will give India a sniff at the top spot when they will take on the West Indies in the five-ODI series from October 21.

However, if both England and India win all their matches in the upcoming series against Sri Lanka and the West Indies, then they will gain a point each to finish on 128 and 123 points respectively, thus retaining a difference of five points.

IANS

India’s wait for a gold medal at the ongoing 2018 Para Asian Games ended on Monday as javelin thrower Sandeep Chaudhary topped the men’s F42-44/61-64 event.

With a best throw of 60.01 metre, which Sandeep managed in his third attempt, he clinched the yellow metal beside extending India’s medal tally to six.

The silver went to Sri Lanka’s Chaminda Sampath Hetti, while Iran’s Omidi Ali settled for the bronze.

Sandeep suffers from limb deficiency, difference in leg length and impaired muscle power.

India had won a total of five medals, two silver and three bronze, on Sunday.

Chennai Former champions U-Mumba led for large parts but eventually succumbed to the grit of local rivals Puneri Paltan and settle for an entertaining 32-32 draw in the opening day’s second game of the Pro Kabaddi tournament here at the packed Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium on Sunday.

After inflicting the only all out of the match in latter stages of the first half, U Mumba pulled away from 20-20 at one stage early on in the second period to lead by two points in the dying seconds of the tie.

But a successful raid from Monu followed by the Pune defence hacking down U Mumba’s star raider Siddharth Desai to the mat dashed U Mumba’s hopes of starting afresh after a dismal previous season where they lost four of their last five matches to miss out from the qualification scenario for the playoffs.

Nitin Tomar racked up 15 raid points for Pune while Desai scored one less for U Mumba as both the Maharashtra sides fought tooth and nail till the final whistle in an exhibition of fitness shown by both sets of players.

With the result, U Mumba have now failed to get past Pune on five occasions in the last six meetings.

There was nothing to choose between teams for much of the first period barring U Mumba inflicting an all out on their local rivals who frittered their three-point lead at one point (9-6) to trail 14-18.

However, two successful raids from Nitin Tomar coupled with Siddharth Desai failing to get the better of Pune defence helped Pune end the half at 18-20.

Post the breather, Monu helped Pune take the first point with a successful raid. Abhishek Singh faltered for U Mumba to level proceedings at 20-20 but Rohit Baliyan restored his side’s lead to two points.

In form Siddharth then scored a super raid to stretch U Mumba’s lead to four points (21-25) but Tomar kept Pune in the game till the end and his efforts paid off when first Monu raided successfully followed by the Pune defence hacking Siddharth to the mat to level proceedings.

(IANS)

Bengaluru, Oct 7 (IANS) Late goals in the Hero Indian Super League match 9 at the Kanteerava Stadium on Sunday saw Jamshedpur FC hold Bengaluru FC to a 2-2 draw.

Nishu Kumar’s stunning volley at the stroke of half-time put the hosts ahead. However, youngster Gourav Mukhi made history when he came on for Jamshedpur FC as substitute and scored on his debut to equalize in the 81st minute.

Later, Sunil Chhetri’s header in the 88th minute put the hosts ahead. However, Jamshedpur’s Sergio Cidoncha’s effort in added time (90+4) denied the hosts a win at home.

On Sunday, Tim Cahill and Michael Soosairaj got their much-awaited debut in the ISL as Jamshedpur FC head coach Cesar Ferrando named an attacking side to take on last season’s finalists.

Carles Cuadrat’s Blues were unchanged from their 1-0 win over defending champions Chennaiyin FC.

Ferrando’s side started the game on the front foot but the first real threat came from the home side 12 minutes into the match.

The visitors piled up the pressure as the first half progressed but their final delivery into the box lacked clarity.

Just near the half-time, the ball fell to Nishu Kumar outside the box who unleashed a stunning strike into the top left corner of the net, leaving the visiting goalkeeper Subhasish Chowdhury helpless and stunned.

The hosts went into half-time with a 1-0 lead.

Later, when 19 minutes was left on the clock, 16-year-old forward Mukhi replaced Jerry Maiwa to become the youngest ever player to make his debut in ISL. Ten minutes later, the youngster produced a moment of brilliance to bring Jamshedpur back into the game.

Just when the visitors thought they were done for the day, Harmanjot Khabra’s long ball into the box from the right flank was headed into the net by Chhetri to put the hosts back into the lead in the 88th minute.

However, Jamshedpur FC pulled one back right at the death. Arques’s cross into the box in the added time saw Cidoncha place his effort into the far post to ensure that they pick a crucial point away from home.

The hard fought draw earned kept Jamshedpur FC unbeaten run here at the Kanteerava Stadium.

Ravindra Jadeja’s unbeaten ton guided India to a mammoth total as the hosts declared their first innings at 649/9 at tea on the second day of the first Test against the West Indies here on Friday.

Jadeja (100 not out) batted with the tail-enders and completed his brilliant ton which contained five boundaries and as many sixes. This is his first Test hundred.

Continuing the second session from 506/5, skipper Virat Kohli (139) was dismissed after adding 19 runs more to his score. He was dismissed by Sherman Lewis. His 230 balls innings was laced with 10 boundaries.

Jadeja then played with lower-order batters — Ravichandran Ashwin (7), Kuldeep Yadav (12), Umesh Yadav (22) and Mohammed Shami (2)– and completed his first ton in Tests which was highlighted by blitzkrieg hitting towards the end.

The West Indian bowlers were thrashed all around the park by the left-hander. For a brief period, Jadeja was joined by Umesh who also slammed two huge sixes.

For the West Indies, Devendra Bishoo picked up four wickets while Sherman Lewis chipped in with two wickets.

Earlier, in the first session, Kohli brought up his 24th Test century while wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant missed out on one after a blistering 92 as India put up 506/5.

IANS

Skipper Virat Kohli brought up his 24th Test century while wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant missed out on one after a blistering 92 as India put up 506/5 at lunch on day two of the first Test against the West Indies here on Friday.

Kohli, who was 72 not out overnight, became the second fastest to 24 Test hundreds behind only Donald Bradman, who took 66 innings to Kohli’s 123.

The right-hander took time to get to the milestone as the aggressive Pant (92 off 84), who resumed at 17, went all guns blazing.

A second Test hundred in his fourth Test was for the taking but Pant tried to hit a six and failed to pick the googly to top-edge the ball for a simple catch to Keemo Paul at backward point.