Paes returns to Davis Cup
New Delhi: Veteran tennis star leander Paes makes a return to the country's Davis Cup team as India named a four-member squad for the World Group play-off tie at home against top seeds Czech Republic from September 18-20.
42-year-old Paes is back in the team after missing the 3-2 victory over New Zealand in March. He will be joined by Rohan Bopanna, Somdev Devvarman and Yuki Bhambri, who played a decisive role in Indian's victory over New Zealand in the Asia-Oceania Group I tie in Christchurch. Young Saketh Myneni who played in the doubles in New Zealand was dropped to make way for Paes. Myneni, however, has been named a reserve along with Ramkumar Ramanathan by the All India Tennis Association selection committee. Team: leander Paes, Rohan Bopanna, Yuki Bhambri and Somdev Devvarman.
FIFA official on scout mission
Aizawl: FIFA's Regional Development Officer for South and Central Asia Shaji Prabhakaran on Thursday said that Mizoram was among the seven states in India where the governing body would launch the ‘State Football Association Development Project'.
Prabhakaran told reporters here that the world football governing body would give logistical and financial support to the Mizoram Football Association (MFA) to formulate and undertake plans to develop football in this north eastern state.
Bengal beat Pune in PKl
Bengaluru: Substitute Sunil Jaipal was the unlikely hero for Bengal Warriors as he scored eight invaluable points including two bonus in eight raids to guide his team to a 31-28 win over Puneri Paltan in the second Star Sports Pro-Kabaddi league here on Thursday. The Warriors thus avenged their 29-33 defeat that they suffered against their opponents in the first leg at Jaipur. This is Kolkata's third win which takes their tally to 21 points while Pune move to 14 points. The result makes no difference in their standings.
Indian Shooters falter
Gabala: Indian shooters performed disappointingly at the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup here on Thursday, with the men's 10 metre Air Pistol team and the women's 50m Rifle 3 Positions squad failing to qualify for the finals of their respective events. In the 10m Air Pistol event, Gurpreet Singh was the best performer among the Indians, coming up with a score of 578 to be placed 18th in the qualification round. Jitu Rai took the 20th spot with a score of 576 while Omkar Singh (575) finished 24th. later on, the women shooters did nothing to improve the mood in the Indian camp, as they also faltered in the qualification round of the 50m Rifle 3 Positions event. lajja Gauswami came up with a score of 579 to finish at the 27th spot.
Saweety settles for silver
New Delhi: India's Saweety Boora settled for a silver medal as she lost her light heavyweight (81 kg) category final bout against home China's Yang Xiaoli in the Asian Women's Boxing Championships in Wulanchabu on Thursday. Saweety fought with tremendous heart and motivation throughout the contest, but Xiaoli's clever use of range allowed her to dictate the pace of the bout.