TENNIS
Italian Open: Sania enters quarterfinals; Bopanna-Middelkoop pair loses
Rohan Bopanna in partnership with Matwe Middelkoop was beaten by the seventh seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski 7-6(3), 6-3 in the doubles second round of the ATP tennis tournament in Rome.
The Indo-Dutch team collected 90 ATP points and € 21,830 for entering the pre-quarterfinals.
Sania Mirza and Lucie Hradecka had an easy entry into the women’s doubles quarterfinals in Rome, as the Indo-Czech pair got a walkover from Elena Rybakina and Liudmila Samsonova.
In the Challenger in Kazakhstan, Arjun Kadhe, seeded second with Vladyslav Manafov was beaten 6-4, 3-6, 11-9 by Alexander Shevchenko and Denis Yevseyev in the doubles quarterfinals.
In the Challenger in Croatia, third seeds Sriram Balaji and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan were beaten 2-6, 7-6(4), 11-9 in the doubles pre-quarterfinals by Zvonimir Ballbic and Alexander Donski.
-Kamesh Srnivasan
Mydeen beats Om to set up final against Vaibhav
Levin Safoor Mydeen beat top seed Om Verma 7-5, 6-2 in the boys semifinals of the Asian under-14 tennis tournament at the Modern School courts, Barakhamba Road, on Thursday.
In the final, to be played on Saturday, Mydeen will play Vaibhav Charotia. The girls final will be betweenAleena Farid and Prachi Malik.
-Kamesh Srinivasan
TABLE TENNIS
India rules the roost in South Asian Junior Cadet Championships
India won 11 of the 12 gold medals on offer in the South Asian junior and cadet table tennis championships, which concluded in Male (Maldives) on Wednesday.
India did not field a team in the junior boys' event, but still boosted its overall tally with 10 silver medals to stamp its authority. The Indians won four singles and four doubles titles, besides three team gold medals.
P. B. Abhinandh, Suhana Saini, Payas Jain and Jennifer Varghese won the gold medals, leaving the silver to their compatriots.
-Team Sporstar
HOCKEY
TN, UP win big in Senior National Women's hockey
Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh registered identical 12-0 wins over their respective pool rivals at the 12th Hockey India Senior Women National Championship on Thursday.
While Tamil Nadu defeated Arunachal 12-0 in a Pool F match, Uttar Pradesh outplayed Gujarat by the same scoreline in Pool G.
In Pool F, Hockey Andaman & Nicobar forfeited its match, resulting in Hockey Karnataka getting a 5-0 default win.
Earlier, Andhra Pradesh outclassed Puducherry 16-0 in a Pool E match late on Wednesday.
-PTI
CHESS
Viswanathan Anand nominated for Deputy President of FIDE
Five-time World chess champion Viswanathan Anand has been nominated for the post of Deputy President of FIDE (World Chess Federation) by the incumbent President Arkady Dvorkovich for the elections to be held at the FIDE Congress during the Chess Olympiad here from July 28 to August 10. The FIDE General Assembly and Elections have been scheduled on August 7.
"The team (led by Dvorkovich) has done good work for chess in the last few years. I hope that we can work for a bigger and brighter future for chess," said Anand to The Hindu before embarking on the Grand Chess Tour to Warsaw (Poland) from May 17 to 24.
-TEAM SPORSTAR
GOLF
Tvesa has modest start, lies 51st in Bangkok
India's Tvesa Malik had a modest start as she shot 3-over 75 in the opening round of the Aramco Team Series – Bangkok to be placed 51st individually at the Thai Country Club on Thursday.
Tvesa, who is leading one of the teams comprising Nobuhle Dlamini, Annais Maggeti and amateur A Mitsuhashi, was lying tied 19th in the team segment and tied 51st in the individuals.
Tvesa had just two birdies, both on the front nine on a hot and humid day, and she gave away five bogeys, three of them on the front nine and two on back nine.
Maggeti was the best in Tvesa's team with a round of 1-over 73 and was tied 36th. Dlamini shot 75 and was tied 51st like Tvesa.
Team Hillier, led by Whitney Hiller sat at the top of the leader board with a one-shot lead after the first day.
The quartet of Whitney Hillier, Chonlada Chayanun, Krista Bakker and amateur Pattanan Amatanon combined for an excellent first round, making the turn in 8-under and having an equally good back nine to be 16-under-par for the tournament.
Hillier, whose mother is Thai, was pleased with how her team began their round.
Team Simmermacher is one shot back on 15-under-par after Magdalena Simmermacher, Charlotte Liautier, Isabella Deilert and amateur Sirapob Yapala all contributed during their round.
Two teams are tied for third place with Team Henry and Team Tavatanakit both on 14-under-par.
In the individual competition, local star Patty Tavatanakit got off to a blistering start firing a course record 66 (-6) to set the pace and hold a one-shot lead. Seven birdies and one bogey saw the Thai talent end the day at the top of the leader board ahead of Spain's Ana Peláez.
Last week's Madrid Ladies Open winner Peláez continued her good form and signed for a bogey-free 67 (-5) which included three consecutive birdies on her last three holes.
Five players sit two shots behind leader Tavatanakit with Moriya and Ariya Jutanugarn, Marianne Skarpnord, Maha Haddioui and Anne Van Dam all tied for third place on four-under-par.
In the team competition, Team Hull and Team Ariya Jutanugarn are in a tie for fifth place on 13-under, while Team Hall, Team Lampert, Team Van Dam and Team Morgan are tied 7th on 12-under-par.
The second round will see the conclusion of the Team event.
- PTI
It was a mixed day for the Indians in the opening round of the Asia Pacific Open Golf Championship Diamond Cup at Oarai Golf Club on Thursday.
Ajeetesh Sandhu, who has a win in Japan on their Challenge Tour, opened with a decent even par 70 and was placed tied 34th, while Rahil Gangjee had a rough day with 5-over 75, which means he will need a low second round to make the cut, which is likely to fall at around 1-over.
Sandhu, who began on the back nine of the course, had two bogeys on the 10th and the 14th but came back well to birdie the first and seventh to get to even par. Gangjee had five bogeys and no birdies.
Veteran Japanese golfer Hiroshi Iwata and his rookie compatriot Kaito Onishi carded five-under-par 65s to take the first-round lead.
American Berry Henson, Todd Sinnott from Australia and Japan's Shugo Imahira returned 66s - in what is the first Asian Tour event to be played in Japan since September of 2019, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Twelve players fired 67s including Japan's Yuto Katsuragawa, currently first on Japan's money list, and Keita Nakajima – the Japanese golfer who is the world's number one ranked amateur.
Both Iwata, a three-time winner on the Japan Golf Tour Organisation (JGTO), and Onishi, a professional since last year looking for his first victory, traded seven birdies against two bogeys. This week's tournament, which is jointly sanctioned with the JGTO, gives the winner an exemption into The Open at St. Andrews in July which is a major attraction for Iwata.
Thailand's Sadom Kaewkanjana, buoyed this week by receiving an invite to next week's PGA Championship, came in with a 69.
Two players made aces on par-3s on the first day. Thailand's Suradit Yongcharoenchai (70) holed his nine iron on the fourth while Japan's Naoyuki Kataoka (69) found the cup with his eight iron on 14.
- PTI
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