Sindhu loses to Marin in 3 games, settles for silver

August 20, 2016

Rio de Janeiro, Aug 20: P V Sindhu's gallant attempt to win a coveted gold medal for India ended in heart-break when she went down fighting against Spain's Carolina Marin and settled for a silver medal in the women's singles badminton competition at the Rio Olympics here Friday.

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The 21-year-old Indian, who has been simply unstoppable in the tournament so far, crumbled under the tremendous pressure created by the two-time World Champion from Spain to lose 21-19, 12-21, 15-21 in a high-intensity final that lasted for an hour and 23 minutes at the Riocentre here.

Sindhu thus became the fourth Indian to win a silver at the Olympics after shooters Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore (2004, Athens) and Vijay Kumar (2012, London) and wrestler Sushil Kumar (2012, London).

The two-time World championship bronze medallist also became the fifth woman player from India to win a medal in Olympics history and the first to clinch a silver. She is also the youngest India to win a medal at the Olympics.

Weightlifter Karnam Malleshwari (2000, Sydney), boxer MC Mary Kom (2012, London), shuttler Saina Nehwal (2012, London) and wrestler Sakshi Malik (Rio, 2016) are the other women players from India to clinch a medal in the quadrennial sports spectacle.

Sindhu, in fact, trailed 16-19 in the opening game before reeling off five straight points to clinch it. She was then outclassed in the second to lose it tamely.

In the decider, the lanky shuttler from Hyderabad trailed 1-6 at one stage and caught up at 10-10 but could not keep the tempo after the short break as Marin simply changed gears to surge to Spain's first gold medal in badminton.

In their last five meetings in the last two years, Marin has beaten Sindhu four times with the Indian gaining an upper hand during the Denmark Super Series last year, but today she could not repeat the feat.

The hyper-aggressive Marin mixed power with precision to dominate the rallies with her acute-angled smashes interspersed with clever drops to catch the Indian often on the wrong-foot.

Sindhu struggled with the length of her strokes as gave away many points by hitting long and wide but she fought tooth and nail till the end only to come second best.

In the opening game, the Spaniard grabbed a 11-8 lead at the interval. Sindhu could not vary the pace of the rallies even as Marin came with some razor-sharp net play to extend the lead to 15-11 at one stage.

A net error and a long shot gave Sindhu two points to narrow the gap and kept breathing down the neck of the Spaniard till 15-17.

Sindhu, then, engaged Marin in an engrossing rally and grabbed a point with Marin hitting the 'bird' out. The Indian lost a video referrel to allow Marin open up a two-point lead again at 18-16. A short lift by Sindhu was converted into a winner as Marin led 19-16.

Marin hit two wide shots and also struggled with a net dribble as Sindhu clawed back to 19-19 and then grabbed the lead for the first time when Marin found the net.

Sindhu then made an exceptional return and pushed the shuttle to the back court which the Spaniard failed to return and the Indian girl let out a war cry having won the game from a losing position.

Stung to the quick the ever-yelling Marin came up with cylinders blazing in the second game and surged to a 4-0 lead. Sindhu could not drew her rival into rallies and also struggled with her forehand flicks as Marin entered the break with a massive 11-2 lead.

After the interval, Sindhu tried to break Marin's rhythm but the Spaniard was always a step ahead as she dominated the rallies and came up with some surgical cross court slices and smashes to lead 17-9.

Sindhu was erratic with her stokes and it was one such down-the-line smash that took Marin to 19-12. An over-the-head return from the baseline helped the Spanish girl reach game point and she sealed it next with a drop to the forecourt.

Marin continued to dominate the rallies with her speed and accuracy in the decider, blowing holes in Sindhu's defence to lead 6-1.

The Indian grabbed a few points with a cross-court return, a down-the-line smash and a backhand flick from over the head. Marin also gifted a couple of points by finding the the net as Sindhu closed down the lead to 8-9.

A long shot by Sindhu was followed by a body smash before the Indian closed a long rally in her favour to draw parity at 10-10. Marin, however, once again entered the break with a slender 11-10 lead.

Marin extended the lead to 14-10 but a fighting Sindhu never gave up and narrowed the gap to 14-16 with the Spaniard committed some unforced errors.

In the end, a superb cross court drop caught Sindhu off guard as Marin reached match point at 201-4. The Indian saved one when her rival hit long but she failed to negotiate a return off the next as Marin screamed her heart out and sprawled on the court.

Japan's Nozomi Okuhara bagged the bronze medal after London Olympic champion Li Xuerui pulled out with a knee injury that she suffered during the semifinal match against Marin yesterday.

In men's singles, Malaysia's Lee Chong Wei set up a summit clash with China's Chen Long after exorcising the ghosts of the last two Olympic finals with a hard-fought win over long-time nemesis Lin Dan 15-21, 21-11, 22-20 in the semifinal encounter.

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News Network
January 23,2020

Jan 23: Quinton de Kock has been named as the new captain of the South Africa One-Day International side, taking over from Faf du Plessis, who is dropped altogether from the three-match series against England next month.

Du Plessis led South Africa in their disastrous 2019 World Cup campaign and has hinted at international retirement from all formats following the Twenty20 global finals in Australia later this year.

"We all know the quality of the player that Quinton de Kock has grown to become," CSA director of cricket Graeme Smith said in a statement on Tuesday.

"Over the years we have watched him grow in confidence and become one of the top ODI wicket-keeper batsmen in the world. He has a unique outlook and manner in which he goes about his business and is tactically very street smart."

De Kock leads a 15-man squad with five uncapped players in seamers Lutho Sipamla and Sisanda Magala, left-arm orthodox spinner all-rounder Bjorn Fortuin, opening batsman Janneman Malan and wicketkeeper-batsman Kyle Verreynne.

Magala, leg-spinner Tabraiz Shamsi, seamer Lungi Ngidi and hard-hitting opening batsman Jon Jon Smuts must pass fitness tests before they can join the squad.

Fast bowler Kagiso Rabada will be rested for the series, while allrounders Chris Morris and Dwaine Pretorius have also not been able to force their way in.

"The road towards the 2023 Cricket World Cup starts now and we want players doing well in our domestic structures to see the rewards of the hard work that they have put in," CSA Independent Selector Linda Zondi added.

The first ODI will be staged in Cape Town on Feb.4th, with the second in Durban three days later and the final match of the series to be held in Johannesburg on Feb.9th.

Squad: Quinton de Kock (captain), Reeza Hendricks, Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen, David Miller, Jon Jon Smuts, Andile Phehlukwayo, Lutho Sipamla, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi, Sisanda Magala, Bjorn Fortuin, Beuran Hendricks, Janneman Malan, Kyle Verreynne.

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News Network
June 15,2020

Melbourne, Jun 15: Star Indian all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja is the best fielder in the game right now, according to Australian batting star Steve Smith, who also rated KL Rahul as the most impressive among the younger crop.

Smith, who answered questions sent in by his fans on Instagram on Sunday, also said the Indian Premier League is his favourite tournament to play in.

Jadeja known for his quick and sharp fielding tactics has earned praise from several former players and respect from the current stars and Smith is no different.

Asked who the best fielder in the current lot of players Smith simply replied stating it was Jadeja.

When quizzed about which Indian player has impressed him the most, the Australian batting mainstay said: "KL Rahul. Very good player!"

Rahul, who has played 36 Tests, 32 ODIs and 42 T20Is for Indian, has become a regular member of the national team in white-ball cricket. Besides showcasing his skills with the willow, Rahul also bears the responsibility of being the wicketkeeper in the limited overs format.

Asked Mahnedra Singh Dhoni, Smith responded saying the former Indian skipper is a "Legend! Mr Cool". While he called the current captain Virat Kohli a "freak" when it comes to batting ability.

The Rajasthan Royals batsman, who rated his first innings his 144 at Birmingham in the first Ashes Test last year as his favourite Test knock till date, said the Indian Premier League (IPL) is his favourite tournament.

"Tough to beat the IPL. Playing with and against the best players from around the world."

India is scheduled to travel to Australian for a full series later the year and the 31-year-old said : "Can''t wait. Going to be awesome."

Asked about his opinion on India batting great Rahul Dravid, Smith said "what a lovely gentleman and seriously good player."

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Agencies
August 6,2020

New Delhi, Aug 6: The BCCI on Thursday suspended the IPL title sponsorship deal with Chinese mobile phone company Vivo for the event's upcoming edition amid heightened tensions in Sino-India diplomatic ties.

The BCCI sent out a one-line statement, without giving details, saying that Vivo would not be associated with the IPL this year. "The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and vivo Mobile India Pvt Ltd have decided to suspend their partnership for Indian Premier League in 2020," the statement said.

Meanwhile, Vivo released its own statement saying that the two entities "have mutually decided to pause their partnership for the 2020 season".

Vivo won the IPL title sponsorship rights for five years from 2018 to 2022 for a reported sum of Rs 2,190 crore, approximately Rs 440 crore per annum.

The two parties are now working out a plan in which Vivo might come back for a fresh three-year period starting 2021 on revised terms.

However, a top BCCI official offered a different view. "Here we are talking about diplomatic tensions and you expect that after November, when IPL ends and before the next IPL starts in April 2021, there would be no anti-China sentiment? Are we serious?" a veteran BCCI official said on conditions of anonymity.

The anti-China sentiment in the country peaked after the violent face-off between the Indian and Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh. India lost 20 soldiers in the clash, while China also acknowledged unspecified casualties.

The stand-off at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) caused outrage across India with several calls for boycotts of Chinese companies and products.

The BCCI is now likely to float a tender for new IPL title sponsors as mandated by its constitution. The glitzy T20 league starts on Sept. 19 in the UAE, forced out of India due to the rising COVID-19 cases.

The new development is in stark contrast to what came out of Sunday's IPL's Governing Council meeting, where it was decided that Vivo, along with all the other sponsors, will remain on board.

This was after the BCCI had announced in June that all sponsorship deals pertaining to IPL will be reviewed in the aftermath of the clash in the Galwan Valley.

However, after Sunday's meeting, there was a huge backlash on social media about the BCCI holding on to Vivo.

Both parties then began thrashing out an amicable separation plan, at least for this season.

However, the end of this deal could spell losses for the franchises as they get a substantial share from the sponsorship pool. Half of the annual Vivo sponsorship money is distributed equally among eight franchises, which comes to Rs 27.5 crore.

"As of now, it will be very difficult for the BCCI to match the sponsorship amount at such short notice. Therefore, both BCCI and the franchises should be prepared to lose out on some money -- BCCI more but each franchise from Vivo's exit will potentially lose 15 crore," the official said.

"This year will be difficult for everyone but the show must go on," the official said.

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