Sindhu enters final of Malaysia Grand Prix
New Delhi: Top seed P V Sindhu stormed into the final of the women’s singles event at the Malaysia Grand Prix Gold badminton tournament with a straight-game win over Sapsiree Taerattanachai of Thailand in Kuala lumpur on Friday. Sindhu needed just 34 minutes to get the better of her third-seeded opponent, 21-17 21-11 in the semifinal clash. The 17-year-old Indian shuttler, who was in a full flow against the Thai girl, will face fifth seeded Gu Juan of Singapore in the final.
Desai shines in Asian U-14 tennis series
Pune: Zeel Desai completed a grand double as she won the singles and doubles titles in the Om Dalvi Memorial-ATF Asian U-14 series tennis tournament here on Friday. Desai defeated Pareen Shivekar 6-4, 6-3 in the singles final. Second seed Desai, who had finished runners-up here last year, played solidly from the baseline to stop Shivekar’s giant-killing run in the tournament. later, she teamed up with Prinkle Singh to defeat Shivani Ingle and Sama Sathwika 6-7 (3/7), 6-3 (10-7) to complete the double crown. She earned 300 ATF ranking points for her singles triumph and 200 doubles ranking points.
Atwal struggles in US tourney
Athens, US: Indian golfer Arjun Atwal continued to struggle for form as he managed just one birdie against five bogeys in a card of four-over 75 in the first round of the $ 600,000 Stadion Classic here. That card put him in danger of missing yet another cut. Atwal, tied 129th, is having problems with his form this season and has missed cut in two of the four starts with a best of 45th. Bhavik Patel, an American of Indian origin, continued his good form and carded a flawless three-under 68 in the opening round to be tied seventh, alongside Daniel Chopra, whose father is Indian. Chopra carded an eventful 68 with six birdies and three bogeys.
EB take on Dempo in inconsequential tie
Vasco: Aiming to keep a theoritical chance alive, East Bengal will have no option but to win against Dempo SC in the 25th and penultimate round of the I-league, if they have to stay in contention for the title. With four draws in a row, East Bengal have slipped to third place with 43 points from 23 matches, eight points behind leaders Churchill Brothers. They now need to win all their three remaining matches and also pray that Churchill Brothers lose all pending ties, if they are to aspire to lift the I-league title. A draw on Saturday at the Tilak Maidan Stadium here would mean the Bengal outfit is out of the title race.
Chandigarh wins Nike MUPC
Jamshedpur: Chandigarh Football Academy won the North & East leg of Nike’s Manchester United Premier Cup under-15 defeating Manipur 2- 1 in the final at the Keenan Stadium here on Friday. Chandigarh team came from behind to win the final after Buanthanglum had put the North-East team ahead in 22nd minute of the match. Forward Mubashir restored the parity in the 29th minute while Amarjeet Singh scored the winning goal for Chandigarh in the 37th minute.
PNS/Agencies