Sania, Leander, Sumit: India's three musketeers shine at Wimbledon

July 13, 2015

London, Jul 13: Leander Paes, Sania Mirza and Sumit Nagal brought a lot of cheer to the country's tennis fans as India took home three titles at Wimbledon this year.

india shine

A vintage Leander Paes clinched his 16th Grand Slam trophy, winning the mixed doubles of the Wimbledon Championship with the legendary Martina Hingis through a dominating victory over Alexander Peya and Timea Babos in London on Sunday.

The seventh seed Indo-Swiss pair drubbed the fifth seed Austrian-Hungarian team 6-1 6-1 in the lop-sided summit clash which was over in just 40 minutes. It was Paes' eighth mixed doubles title and the second with Hingis.

"Coming out and playing like that on one of the most prestigious courts that we've grown up with and winning a title like that, again for the second time in a Grand Slam without losing a set, that is really special," Paes said after the Wimbledon crown.

Indian junior tennis player Sumit Nagal and Vietnam's Nam Hoang Ly beat Reilly Opelka of the US and Akira Santillan of Japan 7-6(4), 6-4 to win the Wimbledon boys doubles title on Sunday.

The 17-year-old Nagal and Ly, seeded eighth, defeated the American-Japanese fourth seeds in an hour and three minutes on No 1 Court of The All England Club.

The New Delhi-born, right-handed player had also entered the boys' singles competition. However, he was ousted from the category in only the opener when he lost to Argentinean Juan Pablo Ficovich in three sets.

The official Twitter account of the Rashtrapati Bhavan congratulated the winners. "Congratulations @Leander, Sumit Nagal on winning mixed and boys doubles titles in #Wimbledon2015, proud moment for India," it posted.

A day ago, India's tennis queen Sania Mirza created history by becoming the first woman player from the country to win a women's doubles Grand Slam trophy as she clinched the Wimbledon title with Swiss partner Martina Hingis in London.

Hingis, 34, and 28-year-old Mirza came from a set down and 2-5 behind in the final set to beat Russian duo Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina 5-7, 7-6 (7/4), 7-5. It was the top seeds' first Grand Slam title as a team having only decided to play together in March this year.

"Every kid that picks up a tennis racquet this is about winning Wimbledon or playing at Wimbledon one day.

"I hope it inspires a lot of girls and makes them believe they can be Grand Slam champions too," Mirza said.

With three Indians rising to the occasion, Indian tennis fans and the fraternity had a lot to rejoice about.

This was India's most significant triumph at the All England Lawn Tennis Club since Vijay Amritraj's two quarter final appearances in 1973, when he lost to eventual champion Jan Kodes, and in 1981 when he was beaten by his rival Jimmy Connors in a five-set thriller.

The former world no 16 made such an impact on the game that he is fondly remembered as part of the "ABC" of tennis, standing alongside legends Bjorn Borg and Jimmy Connors.

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June 2,2020

Jun 2: Former West Indies captain Daren Sammy has spoken strongly against the killing if George Floyd in USA, and has now urged the ICC & all the other boards in the world to come together and fight the evil.

In a series of tweets Sammy wrote how the blacks have been suffering for a long time.

“For too long black people have suffered. I’m all the way in St Lucia and I’m frustrated If you see me as a teammate then you see #GeorgeFloyd Can you be part of the change by showing your support. #BlackLivesMatter,” Sammy wrote.

He also wrote, “@ICC and all the other boards are you guys not seeing what’s happening to ppl like me? Are you not gonna speak against the social injustice against my kind. This is not only about America. This happens everyday #BlackLivesMatter now is not the time to be silent. I wanna hear u.”

“Right now if the cricket world not standing against the injustice against people of color after seeing that last video of that foot down the next of my brother you are also part of the problem.”

Earlier, West Indies star batsman Chris Gayle has said racism exists in cricket too, saying he gets the 'end of the stick' even within teams.

"Black lives matter just like any other life. Black people matter, p***k all racist people, stop taking black people for fools, even our own black people wise the p***k up and stop bringing down your own! I have travelled the globe and experience racial remarks towards me because I am black, believe me, the list goes on," Gayle wrote in his Instagram story.

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May 5,2020

May 5: Former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar says he is interested in becoming India's bowling coach if there is an offer, asserting that he is capable of grooming "more aggressive, fast and talkative" pacers.

Akhtar expressed his willingness in an interview on social networking app 'Helo'.

Asked if he would like to be associated with the Indian bowling unit in future, he responded in the positive. India's current bowling is Bharat Arun.

"I will definitely. My job is to spread knowledge. What I have learned is knowledge and I will spread it," Akhtar said.

One of the fastest bowlers to have played the game, he added, "I will produce more aggressive, fast and more talkative bowlers than the current ones who will tell-off the batsmen in a way that you will enjoy a lot."

He said he has always wanted to share his knowledge among budding cricketers and that he is looking to produce more aggressive bowlers.

He also added that he would like to "coach" IPL franchise Kolkata Knight Riders, for whom he has played in the cash-rich T20 league's inaugural edition.

The former pacer also spoke about his early interactions with Indian batting great Sachin Tendulkar in the 1998 series.

"I had seen him but didn't know how big a name he was in India. In Chennai, I got to know that he was known as a god in India.

"Mind you, he is a very good friend of mine. In 1998, when I bowled as fast as I could, Indian public celebrated with me. I have a big fan following in India," Akhtar said.

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April 27,2020

Mumbai, Apr 27: The pressure to replace iconic Mahendra Singh Dhoni behind the stumps was "immense" due to high expectations from fans says K L Rahul, who has been doing the wicket-keeping duty for India in the limited overs format for some time now.

Dhoni quit Test cricket in 2014 and has not played for India in the limited overs format since last year's ODI World Cup in England.

Rahul kept the wickets in the limited overs series against Australia in January this year and also during the team's tour to New Zealand.

"I was nervous when I was doing it for India because of the crowd pressure. If you fumble, people feel that you cannot replace MS Dhoni. The pressure of replacing a legendary wicket-keeper like MSD was immense as it involved people accepting someone else behind the stumps," Rahul told Star Sports on its show 'Cricket Connected'.

Rahul, who has played 32 ODIs and 42 T20Is, said keeping the wickets is not alien to him since he dons the gloves during the Indian Premier League (IPL) and also when he plays for his Ranji side Karnataka.

"People who follow cricket know that I haven't been away from wicket-keeping for too long as I donned the gloves in the IPL and every time I played for Karnataka," the 28-year-old said.

"I am always in touch with wicket-keeping but am also somebody who is more than willing to take up the role if the team needs me to," he stressed.

Dhoni's career is a matter of intense speculation. Many former players feel that it won't be easy for Dhoni to make it to the national squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup, scheduled to be held in Australia. 

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