Sindhu loses another final, this time at India Open

Agencies
February 5, 2018

New Delhi, Feb 5: Defending champion P V Sindhu stumbled on the threshold of glory once again, suffering yet another narrow defeat in a pulsating final, this time against American Beiwen Zhang to finish runner-up at the India Open Super 500 tournament, here today.

Playing her second tournament of the new season, Sindhu came agonisingly close to clinching the title before losing 18-21 21-11 20-22 to Zhang at the Siri Fort Sports Complex.

It was Sindhu's fourth loss in a major final in the 2017-2018, which includes defeats at World Championship, Hong Kong Open and Dubai Super Series Final last year.

Crestfallen after the defeat, Sindhu skipped the mandatory press conference. In fact, Saina Nehwal too had left media awaiting after losing the quarterfinals on Friday.

Sindhu always played long matches against Zhang -- all of them going to the decider and it was no different as the duo engaged in a fierce battle of supremacy till the last point.

Sindhu had won twice and lost once at the Indonesia Super Series Premier last year against the American.

Sindhu, however, looked a little rusty early on today as Zhang grabbed an early 3-0 lead.

The American then netted a shot and also hit wide as the Indian made it 3-3. Zhang moved to 5-4 but Sindhu unleashed a smash to draw level.

A couple of smashes by Zhang helped her to open a three point lead but a tight net dribble and then a return at her rivals forecourt saw Sindhu again draw level.

At the break, Sindhu had a slender two point advantage after Zhang hit out twice.

After the interval, Zhang drew parity at 12-12 following a miscued shot near the net by Sindhu. The duo moved neck and neck till 15-15.

Zhang then produced a smash which left Sindhu flat on the court. The American grabbed another point to again open up a two point lead, before leading 19-16.

Sindhu won a video referral next and Zhang then misjudged a return at the forecourt as the Indian narrowed the margin to 18-19. But Sindhu's return went wide twice as Zhang pocketed the opening game.

In the second game, Sindhu changed gears and zoomed to a 8-2 lead early on, riding on unforced errors by her rival.

Sindhu then hit out and netted her return as Zhang grabbed two points but the American struggled with a net return and hit wide as Sindhu grabbed a 11-4 lead at the mid game interval.

Sindhu tried to counter her opponents acute angled strokes with better court coverage and pushed Zhang to make too many unforced errors to lose the second game.

In the end, it was a beautiful drop which helped Sindhu reach 20-11 and she roared back to the contest after Zhang hit out again.

In the decider, Zhang and Sindhu split the initial eight points before the American unleashed two smashes on both the flanks and then produced a precise return on the line to lead 9-4. At the breather, Zhang managed to held an 11-9 advantage.

After the lemon break, Zhang hit out twice to allow Sindhu to draw level again. The lead changed hands too frequently as the duo reached 14-14.

Sindhu tried to place the shuttle in difficult positions and reached 15-14 after producing a smash but a weak return next gave the lead to Zhang.

With Sindhu also sending a forehand return wide, Zhang opened up a two point lead at 18-16. But Sindhu again clawed her way back at 19-19 by punishing Zhang for a poor return and pushing the shuttle at the back after leaving her opponent out of position.

A tight net play followed by a smash helped the Indian grab a crucial match point at 20-19. But an anxious Sindhu again faltered with a weak return and Zhang then unleashed a smash to turn the tables.

Sindhu then hit the shuttle out as Zhang celebrated.

"I had nothing to lose and pressure was on Sindhu. I played a lot of smashes and an attacking game which I generally don't. This is my first major title and I am really happy. I guess it is the best moment of my career," said Zhang, who played without any coach for the last seven years.

Earlier, All England Championships finalist and fourth seed Shi Yuqi of China walked away with the men's singles crown after beating world no 7 and third seeded Taiwanese Chou Tien Chen 21-18 21-14 in a 47-minute duel.

Fifth seeded Danish combo of Mathias Christiansen and Christinna Pedersen prevailed 21-14 21-15 over Indonesian pair of Praveen Jordan and Melati Daeva Oktavianti in a 37-minute match to claim the mixed doubles crown, their first title together.

Third seeded Indonesian pair of Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu, who are ranked world no 7, defeated second seeded Thailand combo of Jongkolphan Kititharakul and Rawinda Prajongjai 21-18 21-15 in a 58-minute match to clinch the women's doubles title.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 2,2020

Madrid, Mar 2: Real Madrid won El Clasico and might have saved their season as they ended their slump in the best way possible last night by beating Barcelona 2-0 and returning to the top of La Liga.

Vinicius Junior's deflected finish and a stoppage-time goal from Mariano Diaz decided a frenzied contest at the Santiago Bernabeu, where Madrid found new life after a Champions League defeat by Manchester City had left them on the brink of crisis.

"It's been a tough week," said Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane. "We talked about how we had an opportunity this weekend and we took it."

Victory put them one point clear at the top of the table and shifts focus back to Quique Setien's Barcelona, who were outfought and, at times, outplayed.

"The reality is we lost a lot of confidence with the ball," said Setien. "We entered a nervous spell and that's when the goal came."

Lionel Messi's rasping shot was saved by Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in the first half but it was the Argentine's opposing captain, Sergio Ramos, who was thrashing his arms in celebration after the final whistle.

His reaction was an indication of the importance of this victory, not only for the effect it has on the standings but on the dynamic of the title race, which had seemed to be switching firmly in favour of Barca.

Opportunity missed

Cristiano Ronaldo, now of Juventus, was watching from an executive box and Madrid could have done with him during a period in which they had won only one of their last five games.

Zidane said on Saturday this match would not decide who lifted the trophy in May but a Barca win and a five-point gap might well have been difficult to close.

Yet from the start Barcelona seemed keener to kill the game than win it, playing for time in the hope of keeping the contest tight, when they might have been better off attacking their opponents' fragility.

The Madrid we faced in the first half was one of the worst Madrids I have faced at the Bernabeu. I don't say it as a criticism, we also have our problems, but we've missed an opportunity.

--Gerard Pique, Barcelona defender

There was more tension than creativity in the early stages as Fede Valverde crashed into Arthur Melo before fellow Spain full-backs Dani Carvajal and Jordi Alba were both booked after a disagreement.

Madrid had the better of the play and regularly broke at speed through Vinicius down the left but constantly they failed to make the final pass, with Isco once left with his head in his hands after Marcelo opted not to pull the ball back.

Slow Barca

Barcelona's passing was slow and their lack of urgency obvious. At one point Messi bent to tie his bootlaces and re-spotted the ball before taking a corner.

But the visitors also created chances as Antoine Griezmann drove over from Alba's cutback and then Madrid had Courtois to thank for two excellent saves.

First, Arthur held off Toni Kroos to go clear but his finish was blocked by teh foot of Courtois and then the Belgian palmed away Messi's shot after he had skipped in behind Madrid's defence.

Ramos was lucky to get away with an error that allowed Nelson Semedo to break past him while Alba risked a second yellow when he checked Valverde but referee Mateu Lahoz was unmoved.

Barcelona were sloppy after half-time and Madrid should have capitalised. Instead, Isco's header beat Marc-Andre ter Stegen but not Pique on the line and Karim Benzema volleyed over after a sloppy pass from Arturo Vidal.

Vidal was replaced by Martin Braithwaite, Barca's emergency signing, and he sprinted in behind Marcelo twice in his first minute.

But Madrid remained in the ascendancy and in the 71st minute they took the lead.

Benzema came short and pointed right to encourage Vinicius to run in behind. Kroos found him and Vinicius's shot deflected off the sliding Pique to beat Ter Stegen at his near post.

The game opened up as Barcelona chased an equaliser. Marcelo celebrated when Messi's surge through was stopped by Raphael Varane. Pique headed Messi's cross over at the near post. Messi picked up a yellow card for a frustrated slide on Casemiro.

In injury time, Ter Stegen ventured up for a late free-kick but it was Madrid that struck again. Mariano sped past Semedo and finished from the angle.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
January 15,2020

Dubai, Jan 15: India skipper and batting mainstay Virat Kohli was on Wednesday named captain of the International Cricket Council's ODI and Test teams of the year, capping off a memorable season for the world No.1.

Apart from Kohli, there were four other Indians who were picked in the ICC's Test and ODI Teams of the Year.

While the Test team featured double-centurion Mayank Agarwal, opener Rohit Sharma, speedster Mohammed Shami and left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav found a place in the ODI side.

Kohli enjoyed a tremendous run in both the formats in 2019. The 31-year-old hit his seventh Test double hundred on the way to a career-best unbeaten 254 against South Africa in October last year.

It was a breakthrough year for opener Agarwal, who smashed two double tons, one century and went beyond the fifty-run mark twice. He hit a career-best score of 243 against Bangladesh in November.

Kuldeep, too, enjoyed a memorable year as he joined the golden list of bowlers with two hat-tricks. The chinaman claimed his second ODI hat-trick of his career against the West Indies last month.

In the absence of Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, Shami rose to the occasion making the best in the business hop, skip and jump with his pace, swing and bounce through the season. He scalped 42 wickets in 21 ODIs over the last 12 months.

The ICC's Teams of the Year 2019:

ODI Team of the Year (in batting order): Rohit Sharma, Shai Hope, Virat Kohli (captain), Babar Azam, Kane Williamson, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), Mitchell Starc, Trent Boult, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav

Test Team of the Year (in batting order): Mayank Agarwal, Tom Latham, Marnus Labuschagne, Virat Kohli (captain), Steve Smith, Ben Stokes, BJ Watling (wicketkeeper), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Neil Wagner, Nathan Lyon.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
June 3,2020

Colorado, Jun 3: Formula One boss Chase Carey has said that races will go ahead even if a driver tests positive for coronavirus.

His remarks come as organisers revealed a revised 2020 calendar and the schedule for the first eight races was put in the public domain.

"An individual having been found with a positive infection will not lead to a cancellation of a race. We encourage teams to have procedures in place so if an individual has to be put in quarantine, we have the ability to quarantine them at a hotel and to replace that individual," the official website of Formula One quoted Carey as saying.

"Some things we'd have to talk through and work through. The array of 'what ifs' are too wide to play out every one of them, but a team not being able to race would not cancel the race. I do not think I could sit here and lay out the consequences," he said.

Carey added the organisers will be having the necessary procedures in place so that the race does not get cancelled if a driver ends up testing positive for coronavirus.

"But we will have a procedure in place that finding infection will not lead to a cancellation. If a driver has an infection, teams have reserve drivers available," Carey said.

"We would not be going forward if we were not highly confident we have necessary procedures and expertise and capabilities to provide a safe environment and manage whatever issues arrive," he added.

The Formula One 2020 season will be beginning with the Austrian Grand Prix in July.

F1 currently expects the opening races to be closed events but hopes that fans will be able to attend again when it is safe to do so.

The season will kick off with the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring on July 5, followed a week later by a second race on the same track.

The Hungarian Grand Prix will follow a week after that, before a break. There will be then two back to back races at Silverstone, followed by the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona.

The Belgian Grand Prix will follow that, with the Italian Grand Prix at Monza a week later on September 6.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.