Here are all the major developments in Indian sports on Sunday, October 16.
GOLF
Bhullar grabs one-shot lead in Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational
Gaganjeet Bhullar shot a solid four-under 68 to lead by one shot after the penultimate round of the Rs 1.5 crore Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational in Chandigarh on Sunday.
Bhullar has a three-day total of 14-under 202 at the Chandigarh Golf Club.
Bengaluru’s Chikkarangappa S struck a 67 and local favourite Karandeep Kochhar carded an error-free 68 as both players were hot on the leader’s heels in tied second place at a total of 13-under 203.
Second round leader Abhijit Singh Chadha, another Chandigarh golfer, slipped to fourth place at 11-under 205 after shooting a 72 on Saturday.
Bhullar (69-65-68), a winner of 11 international titles, gained one spot from his overnight second position as a result of his steady effort that featured five birdies and a bogey.
He sank early birdies on the first and third from a range of eight to 12 feet. After his bogey on the fourth, Gaganjeet created a few opportunities on the front-nine but could only manage a birdie on the sixth as he missed a few short putts.
On the back-nine, Bhullar made a couple of good par saves and birdies on the two par-5s, 13th and 16th, including a great up and down on the latter, to end the day as sole leader.
Bhullar, who originally hails from Kapurthala but is now based in Chandigarh, said, “I struck it well and hit a lot of regulations today but didn’t hole as many putts as the last round. It was a steady round as I just conceded one bogey.
“My past experiences have taught me that whenever you are in contention over the weekend, minimizing unforced errors gives you an opportunity to climb up the leaderboard. That was the goal today.
“I play this golf course four times a week. In the past two years I have spent a lot of time in Chandigarh. That’s the reason that I feel at home playing here.” Chikkarangappa’s (65-71-67) round featured seven birdies and two bogeys and lifted him two spots from his overnight fourth position. He managed to pull himself out of trouble on a few occasions.
Chikka, the 2018 champion, extracted birdies in situations where he found the bunker, trees and the rough.
Karandeep (65-70-68), the 2020 champion, brought in a card of 68 to move up one spot from his overnight third place.
Among the seven players bunched in tied fifth at a total of eight-under 208, were Chandigarh-based golfers Akshay Sharma and Amrit Lal as well as prominent names Rahil Gangjee, Rashid Khan and Khalin Joshi.
Among the other big names, Jyoti Randhawa was tied 13th at six-under 210, while Ajeetesh Sandhu and Udayan Mane were both tied 28th at four-under 212.
The two amateurs who made the cut, local golfer Brijesh Kumar and Bengaluru’s Aryan Roopa Anand, were both tied 52nd at three-over 219.
- PTI
Abhijit in lead, Bhullar second at Jeev Invitational
Chandigarh, Oct 15 (PTI) Home advantage coupled with a stellar round helped Chandigarh’s Abhijit Singh Chadha fire the day’s joint best round of 7-under 65 to take the overall lead at 11-under 133 in the Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational here.
The 5th edition of the Rs 1.5 crore Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational is being played at the Chandigarh Golf Club.
Another Tricity-based golfer Gaganjeet Bhullar stormed his way into contention shooting the day’s joint best round of 7-under 65 to be placed second on the leaderboard with an overall score of 10-under 134 after 36 holes.
Abhijit, who was trailing Gaganjeet by a shot at T2 till the 15th hole, sprung his way to the top after a perfect chip-in on the 16th for an eagle. Gaganjeet trailed the leader by just a shot with the help of eight birdies, most of which came before he took the turn.
Overnight leader and another local player Karandeep Kochhar (70) was placed third with an overall score of 9-under 135 while former champion Chikkarangappa S (71) was fourth with a score of 8-under 136.
The final two rounds of the tournament will see a total of 55 golfers including two amateurs take the field after the cut was set at 1-under 143. Some of the prominent names to miss out on the final rounds included tournament host Jeev Milkha Singh, SSP Chawrasia and Viraj Madappa.
Bhullar (69-65) carded eight birdies and a bogey in round two. Bhullar, who ended India’s four-year long victory drought on the international stage with his win on the Asian Tour few months back, made one 15-feet birdie conversion and landed most of his other birdies by hitting it within 10 feet.
- PTI
Aramco Team Series: Tvesa finishes T-48, Aditi T-58
Indian golfer Tvesa Malik rounded off her week at the Aramco Team Series with an even par 72 to finish T-48.
The round which included two birdies against a double bogey saw Tvesa finish T-48 in her last engagement ahead of her own home event, the Hero Women’s Indian Open next week.
Aditi Ashok, who started from the tenth had five bogeys against two birdies in her 3-over 75, finished a disappointing T-58. She is also headed home for her National Open, which she won in 2016.
World number eight Lexi Thompson fired a final round of 69 (-3) to win the individual title. The Major winner began the day with a one-shot lead over compatriot Nelly Korda and started brightly with a birdie on the first.
Thompson then dropped a shot at the third but bounced back with a birdie on the next hole before making another bogey on the ninth.
- PTI
Pro Tennis League: Wimbledon champion Matthew Ebden drawn into Gurgaon Sapphires
-Kamesh Srinivasan
Wimbledon doubles champion Matthew Ebden was drafted into Gurgaon Sapphires team for the Pro Tennis League, in the auction hosted at the RK Khanna Stadium on Sunday.
The newly crowned national champion Manish Sureshkumar along with Ishaque Eqbal, Riya Bhatia and Aman Dahiya got into the Proveri Super Smashers team for the eight-team competition.
Davis Cup coach Zeeshan Ali was taken by Rajasthan Tigers, as the teams have a mix of professional players apart from juniors and seniors.
“It is a good chance for everyone. Pros like Matthew Ebden and Ramkumar Ramanathan will impart knowledge to the youngsters”, said Zeeshan.
“The PTL is a great platform for the youngsters to rub shoulders with pro players and gain experience”, said Davis Cup captain Rohit Rajpal.
“We are excited to host the best of players in this edition of PTL. Our main motive is to promote the youngsters and build a healthy tennis ecosystem”, said the promoter of the event, Aditya Khanna.
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