Nasheman News : India’s non-playing captain Mahesh Bhupathi on Wednesday said the absence of his longstanding doubles partner Leander Paes won’t be felt in the latter’s own backyard when India take on Italy in a Davis Cup World Group qualifiers tie at the Calcutta South Club here on Saturday.
Paes, who became the most successful doubles player in the history of Davis Cup with a record 43 wins, was dropped from the squad with the new selection committee, led by Rohit Rajpal, saying they went largely by the rankings.
Asked if India would be at a disadvantage sans Paes in his own backyard, Bhupathi dismissed it: “No, it’s not.”
Bhupathi said it’s a captain’s ‘dream’ to have left-hander Prajnesh Gunneswaran in the side as it helps in the team balance.
Prajnesh, who is the country’s highest ranked singles player, will spearhead India’s challenge against the higher-ranked Italians led by World No.18 Marco Cecchinato, who upset Novak Djokovic in the French Open quarterfinals last year.
The 29-year-old Prajnesh, who started 2018 as World no.243 and ended it as No.104, won two ATP Challenger titles and also upset now World No.27 Denis Shapovalov on grass at the Stuttgart Open last year.
“Prajnesh has got a big serve, big forehand, and he’s a left hander. I think it’s the captain’s dream to have that kind of variation in your side,” Bhupathi said at the pre-draw press conference here.
Bhupathi drew a parallel with cricket.
“In cricket, the opening pair wants to go left and right. And on day one I’m going left right. I think it’s a great variation to have.
“And for me it’s even a bigger bonus that Prjnesh is now almost near top-100 in the world. So he’s obviously brimming with confidence.”
Contrary to widespread criticism over the new format, Bhupathi said the shortened arrangement would give India an edge over Italy who are ranked 10th, nine places above the hosts.
“When you’re trying to beat players who are better than you it’s always easier to do it in two sets rather than three out of five. So, when it comes to playing big teams, who are constantly in the world group, I think this change in format is great for the Indian team,” he said.
Bhupathi predicted that India would have Prajnesh, Ramkumar Ramanathan and indisposed Yuki Bhambri inside the top-100 by the end of this year.
“I think all of them between 65 and 70, honestly. I mean, we all know that Yuki, if he stays healthy, he has that in him.
“Prajnesh literally has nothing to defend till end of March so there’s only one way to go up for him and Ram is up and down, he can lose 10 first rounds in a row and all of a sudden he’s in the final Tour event. So you know, he’s a bit of a wild card but you know that’s the dream scenario.
Bhupathi was also asked about the Italians practicing at the central court with a combination of what seemed like Marco Cecchinato and Andreas Seppi ahead of the spirited Matteo Berrettini.
“That may be the pattern on day one. But we are not ruling out any surprises,” he said of world number 53 Berrettini who had beaten the top-ranked Indian in Chengdu ATP in China last year.
ISL: Delhi, Kerala hunt for win and some pride
New Delhi, Jan 30 (IANS) Two Indian Super League (ISL) clubs, who find themselves on the wrong end of the table, will meet when Delhi Dynamos host Kerala Blasters at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Thursday.
The Dynamos will be hoping to start 2019 in the same fashion as they ended the last year with a much-needed 3-1 win over Chennaiyin FC.
“I think it’s very important to win the first game after the break. We ended the year after winning our first game against Chennai. We have worked hard in the past couple of games and are excited to start the tournament again,” said head coach Josep Gombau.
Struggling for goals and points, the club has been busy in the transfer window with Andrija Kaludjerovic, Pritam Kotal and Siam Hanghal exiting the club, while Mexican attacking midfielder Ulises Davila has been roped in.
“I think Pritam (Kotal) was an important player for us. He was our captain and a player who used to regularly feature in the playing 11. But the club and player found a deal with ATK. So, we will have to focus on the players we have in our squad now,” he added.
While scoring has been an issue for Gombau’s men, they have also leaked goals at the back and hold the joint second-worst defensive record in the league. The victory over Chennaiyin was the first of the season with the club yet to win at home and that will be something Gombau will be mindful of.
Interestingly, both sides have scored 13 goals each and have also conceded the same number of goals (21). A win for Delhi will take them above Kerala on goal difference.
There was nothing to separate the two sides when they met in Kochi in October last year with Kaludjerovic cancelling out CK Vineeth’s goal for the hosts. Surprisingly, both the goalscorers have now left their respective clubs. Vineeth has joined Chennaiyin on loan for the rest of the season, along with Halicharan Narzary.
Like Delhi, Kerala too have made significant changes during the break. Baoringbao Bodo has been roped in from Gokulam Kerala along with Lalthuammawia Ralte from FC Goa.
Unlike Delhi, Kerala Blasters have already played a game since the resumption of the league.
“I believe that the results until now are not according to the level of the team. My first game was just after two days of my arrival. I am sure that the players know me better now and I know them better than before,” Vingada said.
Since the win against Atletico de Kolkata (ATK) at the end of September last year, the Blasters have been in freefall and have failed to win a single game in 12 attempts. Now, as they take on another struggling outfit, maybe it’s time for the tide to turn.
4th ODI: Boult carnage help New Zealand outsmart India
[Nasheman news] Hamilton (New Zealand) Pacer Trent Boult’s carnage with the ball helped New Zealand outsmart India by eight wickets in the fourth and penultimate One Day International match here on Thursday.
Although the hosts had already lost the five match ODI rubber but this moral boosting victory over the visitors in under three-and-half hours, might help New Zealand in the preparations for the ICC Cricket World Cup.
Electing to field, Boult’s five wicket haul and Colin de Grandhomme disciplined bowling wrecked havoc on India’s batting line-up to bowled them out for 92 and then batters applied themselves to overhaul the target in just 14.4 overs.
Boult’s 5/21, his fifth five wicket haul, is the second best figures for New Zealand against India in the limited overs format. Previously it was pacer Shane Bond (6/19) in 2005 in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.
Chasing 92 runs, New Zealand lost their first wicket in the fourth delivery of their innings. Martin Guptill (14) slammed two boundaries and one six in his four ball stay. Pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar dismissed the New Zealand opener.
Kane Williamson (11), who seemed good in the middle was next to depart. Thanks to Bhuvneshwar’s brilliant delivery which found the edge of Williamson’s bat and landed in wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik’s gloves. He was dismissed in the seventh over when the scoreboard read 39.
Henry Nicholas (30 not out) and veteran batsman Ross Taylor (37 not out) then applied themselves perfectly and completed the proceeding with ease.
Despite having a long batting line-up, India failed drastically as only two batsmen — Shikhar Dhawan (13) and Hardik Pandya (16) — only managed to have a double-digit score.
Towards the end when India were reeling at 55/8, chinaman Kuldeep Yadav (15) and leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal (18 not out) forged a small but crucial 25- runt partnership to help India reach 80 runs. Chahal was also the highest scorer for India.
Put in to bat openers Dhawan and Rohit Sharma (7) started the proceeding on a positive note, forging a 21 run stand before Dhawan was dismissed by Boult in the sixth over.
From that point, Boult’s carnage began. In the very next over, skipper Rohit was also sent packing by the pacer. Rohit played 23 balls and got caught and bowled.
Middle-order batsmen Ambati Rayudu (0) Dinesh Karthik (0) and Kedar Jadhav (1) were dismissed by Grandhomme and Boult.
Debutant Shubman Gill (9) also failed to live up to the expectations as the youngster got caught and bowled by Boult.
Hardik, however tried to stabilise things in the middle with the lower order batsmen but in the process he was sent back to the pavilion in the 20th over.
Kuldeep, Bhuvneshwar Kumar (1), Chahal and Khaleel Ahmed (5), then tried to help India get past 100 run mark but failed in doing so and as a result the visitors were bowled out in just 30.5 overs overs.
Brief Scores: India 92/10 (Yuzvendra Chahal 18 not out, Hardik Pandya 16; Trent Boult 5/21) against New Zealand: 93/2 (Ross Taylor 37 not out; bhuvneshwar Kumar 2/25)
Dominant India inch closer to whitewashing New Zealand
Nasheman News : A confident India will aim to maintain their winning streak when they take on hosts New Zealand in the fourth contest of the five-match rubber at the Seddon Park here on Thursday.
The Indian team has already taken an unassailable 3-0 lead and will now be led by stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma as Virat Kohli has been rested for the last two matches.
The men in blue have been in great form recently. The Indian opening pair of Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit will once again lead the Indian batting attack and the duo have been the leading run scorers of the rubber with 169 and 160 runs respectively.
Both the openers have been in fine form with two fifties in three games and will try to replicate their past performance. In the absence of Kohli, the middle order responsibility will be on Dinesh Karthik, Ambati Rayudu and Kedar Jadhav.
All the batsmen have done well in the series. However, Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s participation is under the scanner as the stumper suffered a ‘rare’ injury, pulling his hamstring.
In the bowling department, the spinning duo of Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav have been the major threat for the Kiwi batsmen. The two have been successful in picking up wickets at regular intervals and have also been economical.
In the pace attack, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami have been equally impressive.
On the other hand, Ross Taylor has been New Zealand’s key run scorer in the series with 139 runs and has scored a century in India’s previous meeting at this ground. Also, Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson has shown some resistance against the Indian bowling attack.
A lot will also depend on openers Colin Munro and Martin Guptill, who have failed to click so far.
In their bowling, Ish Sodhi has been replaced by Todd Astle for the last two games and the all-rounder is likely to make his way into the playing XI.
Pacer Trent Boult, who had four wickets in the last two games, has been the most effective for the Kiwis. He, along with Lockie Ferguson and Tim Southee, will shoulder the responsibility in the pace attack.
With the visitors already sealing the series, the men in blue will aim to continue their dominance while the hosts will try to salvage some pride.
Teams:
New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Colin Munro, Kane Williamson (Captain), Ross Taylor, Tom Latham (Wicket-keeper), Henry Nicholls, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Todd Astle, Lockie Ferguson, Trent Boult, Colin de Grandhomme, Tim Southee, Matt Henry
India : Rohit Sharma (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Shubman Gill, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni(w), Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Vijay Shankar, Ravindra Jadeja, K Khaleel Ahmed
Davis Cup: We have no room for excuses now, feels Bhupathi
Nasheman : Playing on grass which is what they wanted, India do not have any excuses now going into their Davis Cup World Group qualifiers tie against higher-ranked Italy at the Calcutta South Club, feels non-playing captain Mahesh Bhupathi.
The grass courts of South Club were chosen as the venue as Bhupathi was keen to play on grass considering that the Italians are solid hard court players.
“We definitely felt that this is our best chance to beat Italy on grass and not on hard or clay because of their strengths.”
“So we’ve got the grass now I don’t think we have any room for excuses anymore,” Bhupathi said at the pre-draw press conference on Wednesday.
The Indian team coached by Zeeshan Ali and boasting of the seasoned doubles pair of Rohan Bopanna-Divij Sharan, in-form singles players Prajnesh Gunneswaran and Ramkumar Ramanathan came in early to get used to the courts here.
The hosts trained at the Gymkhana Club for the first five days before hitting the South Club practice court, which coach Ali felt was on the slower side.
Asked how much of an advantage it would be during match days, Bhupathi said: “We will know about that on Saturday if the advantage played out for us or not. It’s been extremely cloudy and overcast in the last two days and that also is a factor into the conditions of the court. Today it’s sunny and hot so it’s a bit quicker. we don’t know what’s going to happen on Friday and Saturday.”
Italy will be without their top player Fabio Fognini but have two players in the top 50 — Marco Cecchinato (19), Andreas Seppi (37) — along with Matteo Berrettini (53), Thomas Fabbiano (85) and doubles world number 138 Simone Bolelli.
The Indian challenge will be spearheaded by Prajnesh who recently achieved a career-best ranking of 102 alongwith Ramkumar (133) who is good on grass. In doubles, Bopanna and Sharan clinched the Maharashtra Open last month in Pune.
“There is a belief that everyone can contribute to hopefully upset the Italians over the weekend.”
“But when we keep referring to the word ‘underdogs’ it’s just you know what’s put on the statistics and on paper and on the current rankings. That’s how the sport is. When a team is playing another team in any sport, one team is underdogs one team is favourites. We are going in as underdogs, that’s the bottom line,” Bhupathi maintained.
Asked whether the Italians have an advantage over the Indians in the doubles rubber, Bhupathi said: “Honestly, I think one of the last matches I played in my career, I lost to Bolelli and Seppi in Dubai, and they won the tournament. That was a (ATP) 500. They have got the experience. Bolelli won Grand Slams… one 500.”
India competed in its first Davis Cup in 1921 but has yet to win the Cup. India finished as runners-up three times (1966, 1974, 1987). India last played Italy in 1985 when the former won 3-2 in the first round. Overall, Italy lead the head-to-head count 4-1.
ICC Women’s Championship: Mandhana stars as India thrash New Zealand
Nasheman News : Jhulan Goswami’s 3/23 and half-centuries by Smriti Mandhana and Mithali Raj helped India thrash New Zealand by eight wickets and take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match ICC Women’s Championship one-day international series here on Tuesday.
Like the first match, New Zealand struggled against India’s bowlers. Apart from Amy Satterthwaite, who scored a gritty 71 runs, no other batswomen contributed handsomely as Goswami led the charge and restricted the hosts to a modest 161 at the Bay Oval here, according to an ICC release.
Coming in to bat, India’s Mandhana (90 not out) dominated the proceedings, forging an impressive 151-run partnership with Mithali Raj (63 not out off 111) for the third wicket.
But the victory was set up by the bowlers. Goswami’s opening over accounted for Suzie Bates for a duck, and that was a big blow for New Zealand. Then, Shikha Pandey trapped Sophie Devine in front for seven.
When Ekta Bisht removed Lauren Down and Amelia Kerr for 15 and 1 respectively, the hosts were left tottering at 38/4. Maddy Green looked to knuckle down with her captain, but fell to Poonam Yadav after a 28-ball 9.
Satterthwaite took the lead and stitched together a relatively brisk 58-run stand with Leigh Kasperek before finally being dismissed by Yadav. There were some handy contributions from the lower order, but Goswami helped end the resistance, dismissing Kasperek and Lea Tahuhu for 21 and 12 respectively.
Goswami finished with 3/23, while Bisht, Deepti Sharma and Yadav chipped in with two wickets each.
India’s chase had a rather wobbly start, though, with Anna Peterson and Tahuhu accounting for Jemimah Rodrigues and Deepti Sharma early. Unfortunately for the hosts, that was all the success they were allowed.
Mandhana just picked up from where she had left off in the first ODI, when she had scored her fourth century in the format. Once again, she scored freely and found a solid partner in captain Raj at the other end.
Raj scored relatively slowly, but hit a couple of sixes off Kasperek, and as the target came in sight she too scored boundaries more regularly.
Mandhana remained unbeaten and her knock featured 13 fours and a six. Raj scored 63 from 111 deliveries, including two sixes and four fours. Her second six brought the winning runs for India.
With the win, India have moved to No.2 on the Championship table, on 12 points after 11 games, ahead of New Zealand on net run-rate.
I-League: Mohun Bagan to play for pride against struggling Gokulam
Nasheman News : Their slim chances of getting back into title reckoning now almost gone, a deflated Mohun Bagan will look to salvage pride when they take on relegation-threatened Gokulam Kerala FC in an I-League encounter at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan here on Wednesday.
Mohun Bagan suffered their second successive derby defeat on Sunday against arch-rivals East Bengal in a match where they were totally outplayed.
Khalid Jamil’s men, placed sixth in the points table having 21 points from 14 games, will now look to gather the maximum points from the remaining fixtures and finish in a respectable position. They are nine points adrift of league leaders Chennai City FC.
“We are not thinking about the past. The last match was not up to the mark, but we must go ahead,” Jamil told reporters here.
Asked about the club’s target now, Jamil said: “We will take one match a time. I can’t think too far ahead now. All I can say is tomorrow’s match is very important.”
Jamil conceded that East Bengal were the “hungrier” side on Sunday and they need to learn from their mistakes.
“It’s not difficult to motivate the players. They are professionals and are ready for tomorrow’s game.
“East Bengal were the hungrier side. We should learn from the next game and move on.”
Mohun Bagan will be without star midfielder Yuta Kinowaki who suffered a calf injury minutes before the derby kick-off.
Sukhdev Singh and Sourav Das are also doubtful for the Gokulam tie while defender Arijit Bagui and midfielder Shilton D’Silva are expected to start.
Coming to the visitors, Gokulam are currently in the tenth position with 11 points from 13 matches. They have won only two matches this season and have been subject to several changes in the middle of the season.
After Antonio German, defender Fabrizio Ortiz left the club midway through the season.
There was also an addition in the coaching department as Gift Raikhan left Aizawl FC to join the Southern club as their technical director.
“We are fighting for relegation. So the motivation is high. We need three points very badly,” Raikhan told reporters.
Raikhan brought in former Neroca FC midfielder Fabien Vorbe in place of Ortiz.
The Haitian central midfielder has already joined the side and has travelled with the team to Kolkata to face Mohun Bagan.
After Raikhan came on board, Gokulam managed a 1-1 draw against defending champions Minerva Punjab in their last match.
In their last meeting, Gokulam managed to hold Mohun Bagan to a 1-1 draw in their first match of the season in Kozhikode.
Sharapova wins her 1st WTA match in Russia in 13 years
Moscow, Jan 29 (IANS) Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova claimed her first WTA victory in her country in 13 years in the first round of the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam winner, beat Daria Gavrilova of Australia 6-0, 6-4 to make the second round on Monday. She will next face her compatriot Daria Kasatkina. Sharapova had only met Kasatkina once when she won in straight sets in Montreal in August, reports Xinhua news agency.
Sharapova has rarely played the Russian tour events during her career, and when she has she’s never got past the quarterfinals.
Tennis: Prajnesh, Ankita achieve career-best rankings
Nasheman News :Indian tennis players Prajnesh Gunneswaran and Ankita Raina on Monday achieved their career-best rankings of 102 and 168 respectively.
Prajnesh jumped seven places to be at 102 while Ankita vaulted 35 places to sit at 168.
Women’s singles player Karman Kaur Thandi dropped five places to 210.
In the ATP list, Ramkumar Ramanathan dropped two places to 133 while Saketh Myneni also dropped four places to 260.
In the doubles, veteran player Rohan Bopanna (37) and Divij Sharan (40) dropped three places, and Leander Paes dropped 19 places to be at 78.
Bengaluru, Mumbai to host TVS Ladies One Make Championship selection rounds
Nasheman News : Two-wheeler giants TVS Racing on Monday announced that the selection rounds for the 2019 edition of TVS Ladies One Make Championship will be held in Bengaluru and Mumbai on February 9 and 23, respectively.
The selection sessions will include a full-day training school conducted by national champions of TVS Racing to ensure riders are familiarised with their race-tuned TVS Apache RTR 200 4V Race Edition 2.0.
Based on their best lap timings, physical fitness and racing abilities, the top 15 riders will be selected from each city.
The final round of selection will take place at the Madras Motor Race Track (MMRT) in Chennai on May 4.
The Bangalore selection round will be held at Meco Kartopia in Hennur and the Mumbai round at Island Sports Gokart Track in Wadala.
Speaking on the occasion, B Selvaraj, Team Manager, TVS Racing said: “We are the only manufacturer in India committed to women’s racing with 4 consecutive seasons of the TVS Ladies One Make Championship. We introduced this initiative to train and equip talented women riders to enter the mainstream racing arena.”
“With each passing year, I am delighted to see the increasing number of participants, which is a testimony to our effort of creating a gender-neutral space for motorsports in India. I wish all the women participants the very best and hope to see them excited about professional racing,” he added.
The team will compete in five rounds for the championship astride the race-tuned TVS Apache RTR 200 4V Race Edition 2.0.
Post the final selection round in Chennai, the racers will undergo specific training under the aegis of the national champion riders from TVS Racing to improve physical fitness and hone their racing skills before the Indian National Motorcycle Racing Championship (INRC) begins in June.
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