Here are all the major updates, scores and results of Indians from the world of sports on Sunday, March 17.
TENNIS
Ramkumar triumphs, wins 21st singles title
Ramkumar Ramanathan cruised past Karan Singh 6-2, 6-2 in the final of the $25,000 ITF men’s tennis tournament at the DLTA Complex on Sunday.
It was the 21st singles title in the professional circuit for the 29-year-old Ramkumar, who was ranked a career-best 111.
Except for dropping serve once, the 409th ranked Ramkumar rarely put a foot wrong in the match. He did not give any chance for the 20-year-old Karan, who had done very well to beat a bunch of good players, including the top seed Evgeny Donskoy, along the way.
Starting with the Davis Cup against Pakistan in Islamabad, followed by the four Challengers in Chennai, Bengaluru, Pune and Delhi, apart from the PSPB tournament last week, it was the seventh successive week of competition for Ramkumar.
He had used all his experience to keep himself in competitive shape right through, and dropped only 27 games in all in five matches this week.
Ramkumar also did well to seek the guidance of coach T. Chandrasekaran, who accompanied him for all the tournaments, starting with the Challenger in Chennai.
THE RESULTS (FINAL)
- Kamesh Srinivasan
Shrivalli loses singles final in Indore
Second seed Dalila Jakupovic beat Shrivalli Bhamidipaty 6-3, 6-2 in the final of the $25,000 ITF women’s tennis tournament at the Indore Tennis Club on Sunday.
It was the second singles title in a row for the 32-year-old Dalila following her double crown last week in Nagpur.
After Shrivalli’s fine run, when she had beaten the top seed Irina Bara of Romania, Viktoria Morvayova of Slovakia, Justina Mikulskyte of Lithuania and Polina Iatcenko of Russia, dropping one set along the way, it was an anti-climax for the local fans, who had taken every available seat.
However, as the secretary general of the All India Tennis Association (AITA), Anil Dhupar, put things in perspective during the presentation ceremony, the 22-year-old Shrivalli had been admitted in the hospital overnight with high fever, heat stroke and dehydration apart from an upset stomach. She was discharged only in the morning, and had very little time for any preparation to play the final with full energy.
In such a situation, it was brave on the part of Shrivalli to have stepped on court and make a fight of it, even though the crafty Dalila gauged her level of strength with repeated drop shots.
Within the constraints, Shrivalli did play better as the match progressed, but could not capitalise on her chances. She could convert only one of nine break points in the match.
In contrast, the experienced Dalila played sharp, moving the opponent around the court all the time, and converted five of six break points to clinch the contest in just over an hour.
It was the eighth singles title in her career for Dalila, who was ranked a career high 69 in 2018. She did not drop a set in the whole tournament and conceded only 24 games in all to her five opponents.
THE RESULTS (FINAL)
- Kamesh Srinivasan
GOLF
Diksha rides a roller-coaster to make cut on Epson Tour
Diksha Dagar had six birdies and an equal number of bogeys as she carded an even-par 71 to make the cut at the IOA Golf Classic here.
The Indian, who had shot 3-over 74 in the first round, totalled 3-over and made the final round on the line, as the cut was applied at 3-over.
Diksha, who is planning to play a few events on the Epson Tour, will also get some starts on the LPGA events, which are co-sanctioned with the Ladies European Tour (LET).
A two-time champion on LET, Diksha had a fine start in the second round with birdies on the first and third. She dropped a shot on the fourth, but a birdie on the sixth meant she had the momentum. However, back-to-back bogeys on the seventh and the eighth and a par on the ninth, meant she turned in an even par.
On the back nine, there were birdies on the 10th and the 11th, bogeys on the 13th and the 14th, followed by a birdie on the 16th with a bogey on the 17th as she ended the roller-coaster ride with even par.
Diksha is coming off two top-10 finishes on the Ladies European Tour, and will also play at next week’s Epson Tour event, before getting back to the Ladies European Tour.
- PTI
SHOOTING
Lakshya Cup: Himanshu Talan beats Mohit Gowda
The medallists of the Lakshya Cup air rifle competition, (from left), Mohit Gowda, champion HImanshu Talan and Gurjant Singh, with the chief guest Dr. Pierre Beauchamp in Mumbai on Sunday. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Himanshu Talan beat Mohit Gowda by 2.2 points to win the 14th RR Lakshya Cup air rifle competition at the Karnala Sports Academy in Panvel on Sunday.
The title fetched a cash prize of Rs.150,000 for the army shooter.
In the mixed competition open for both men and women, Gurjant Singh won the bronze ahead of Ananya Naidu and Sonam Maskar. Qualification topper Anannya (631.9) finished eighth behind Sandeep and Kiran Jadhav, the other two finalists.
Dronacharya awardee and Olympic finalist Suma Shirur had promoted the gender neutral concept way back in 2008, keeping 60 shots for the combined event, when women shot only 40 as per the international rules then.
Only in 2017 did the international shooting federation, ISSF make it equal for men and women with 60 shots, and eventually brought in mixed pairs competitions in the Tokyo Olympics.
Over the years, some of the top shooters like Deepak Kumar, Divyansh Singh Panwar, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Rudrankksh Patil and Shriyanka Sadangi have used the Lakshya Cup as a stepping stone for their glittering career.
In the junior section, Ojasvi Thakur won the title, a half point ahead of Talwar Singh, and pocketed Rs.75,000. Ajay Malik won the bronze, while qualification topper Parth Mane (631.7) placed sixth.
The High Performance Director of the National team, Dr. Pierre Beauchamp, was the chief guest.
The results:
Seniors: 1. Himanshu Talan 251.2 (628.9); 2. Mohit Gowda 249.0 (629.5); 3. Gurjant Singh 228.2 (628.6).
Juniors: 1. Ojasvi Thakur 252.0 (626.6); 2. Talwar Singh 251.5 (627.9); 3. Ajay malik 229.8 (628.4).
- Kamesh Srinivasan
FOOTBALL
Real Kashmir FC surrender a point to Delhi FC on home turf
Real Kashmir FC had to settle for their third consecutive draw in the I-League as they were held 1-1 by Delhi FC in a crucial match on their home turf on Sunday. Both goals came in the second half.
Delhi FC took the lead through Gurtej Singh (52’) early in the second half before conceding an own goal in the latter stages (82’) of the match to take home a point.
The draw did little to boost Real Kashmir’s chances in the title race, but they have only to blame themselves for missing a host of chances.
The Ishfaq Ahmed-coached side find themselves in the second spot in the standings with 36 points from 20 matches after the match. They have 10 wins, six draws and four defeats against their name.
-PTI
BILLIARDS
Advani eyes another dominant run at CCI Billiards Classic
Defending champion Pankaj Advani will look to continue his dominant run when he leads a talented group of Indian and international cueists at the CCI Billiards Classic beginning here on March 21.
Offering a total prize purse of Rs 10.15 lakh, the tournament, organized by the Cricket Club of India, will kick off at the Sir Wilson Jones billiards hall here.
Advani, India’s most successful cueist with 27 World Championship titles to his name, has been in stellar form with three consecutive wins at CCI in the past year.
He secured the CCI Classic Snooker title in January 2023 and successfully defended it earlier this month. Additionally, he claimed the CCI Classic Billiards championship last April, demonstrating his dominance at the venue.
Challenging Advani are top Indian players such as National champion Dhruv Sitwala, National runner-up Sourav Kothari, and Maharashtra No. 1 Mahesh Jagdale, along with several other talented contenders.
The tournament has also attracted five international players, including Peter Gilchrist of Singapore and Englishmen David Causier, Peter Sheehan, Chris Taylor, and last year’s runner-up Rob Hall.
Former world champions like Rupesh Shah, Ashok Shandilya and Devendra Joshi will also be in contention.
The tournament format includes 24 seeded players in the main draw, who will be joined by eight qualifiers. The players will compete in round-robin league matches, with the top two from each group advancing to the knockout stage.
The championship winner will receive a prize of Rs 250,000 along with a trophy, while the runner-up will be awarded Rs 150,000.
-PTI
CYCLING
HCL Cyclothon: Vishwajeet, Chayanika win men’s and women’s elite race
Vishwajeet Singh and Chayanika Gogoi of Railways won the men’s and women’s elite race in the HCL Cyclothon that was flagged off at the Gaur Chowk on Sunday.
Harshveer Sekhon of Punjab and Dinesh Kumar of Air Force finished second and third respectively, in the elite men’s competition.
Swasti Singh of Odisha and Muskan Gupta of Gujarat were the second and third-place winners of the elite women’s race.
The Cyclothon had many age groups and categories, catering to professionals and amateurs, carrying an overall prize purse of 33.6 lakh rupees.
More than 2500 cyclists, including 150 professionals, from across the country took part in the event that was geared to promote cycling as a healthy lifestyle choice.
“We are thrilled by the overwhelming response and success of this year’s HCL Cyclothon, with a significant increase in the number of participants from last year. We are proud to support an initiative that promises not only physical well-being but also a sense of community and healthy competition”, said Sundar Mahalingam, president of Strategy at HCL Corporation.
The Chairperson of HCL Tech, Roshni Nadar, and Shikhar Malhotra, Director of HCL Corporation, also participated in the amateur race of 27 kilometres and 55 kilometres respectively.
More than 100 policemen, residents and 50 college girls from nearby villages also pedalled alongside the cyclists to promote the cause.
-Kamesh Srinivasan
HOCKEY
Senior Women’s National Championship: Haryana, Odisha and Mizoram win
Haryana, Odisha and Mizoram registered victories in its respective matches of the Hockey India Senior Women’s National Championship on Sunday.
Thanks to its wins, Haryana and Odisha sealed its berth in the quarter-finals.
Haryana put on another dominant display to crush Pudducherry 22-0 in a Pool D match to earn its second consecutive win of the tournament.
Odisha defeated Chandigarh 6-1 in a Pool E contest, while Mizoram triumphed over Rajasthan 20-2 in a Pool F clash.
In Saturday’s final two matches, Tamil Nadu beat Gujarat 6-0 and Uttarakhand triumphed against Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu in a Pool G match.
- PTI
POLO
Jindal Panther-Delta Polo: Rajasthan Polo Club wins final
Salvador Jauretche scored four goals in guiding Rajasthan Polo Club to an 8-7 victory over Jindal Panther-Delta Polo in the final of the Northern India championship at the Jaipur Polo ground here on Sunday.
Mare Winter was adjudged the ‘best polo pony’ and Jaisal Singh was declared the ‘’most valuable player”.
The results (final): Rajasthan Polo Club 8 (Salvador Jauretche 4, Padmanabh Singh 2, Jaisal Singh 2) bt Jindal Panther-Delta Polo 7 (Siddhant Sharma 4, Naveen Jindal 2, Simran Shergill).
-Kamesh Srinivasan
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