Meiraba wins second BWF jr title
Dhaka: India's Meiraba Luwang lived up to his top billing to win the Bangladesh Junior International Series 2019 on Sunday. Top seeded Meiraba beat Ken Yong Ong 21-14, 21-18 in the final lasting 38 minutes. Meiraba had defeated another Malaysian, M Fazriq Mohamad Razif, in the semifinals. He was one of the five Indians in the main draw.
Blundell to open in 2nd Test
Melbourne: Tom Blundell is all set to open for New Zealand in the Boxing Day Test against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) after replacing Jeet Raval at the top of the Kiwi batting order. The visitors tried out Blundell at the top in their practise game against Victoria XI ahead of the Test and the 29-year-old didn't disappoint as he slammed an unbeaten half-century. After being confirmed a place in New Zealan'd playing XI, Blundell said: “I feel like I can do a good job wherever. This game I've been given the opportunity to open, so I'm really looking forward to Boxing Day.”
Nadal edges Tsitsipas in final
Abu Dhabi: Spanish world No 1 Rafael Nadal rallied for a narrow 6-7 (3-7), 7-5, 7-6 (7-3) victory over Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship, an exhibition event in the UAE capital. The match between two players, who will be among the shortlist of favourites at next month's Australian Open, fully lived up to the expectations. Earlier, Djokovic topped Russia's Karen Khachanov 7-5, 6-3 in the third-place match.
Akbar to lead B'desh in U-19 WC
Dhaka: Wicketkeeper-batsman Akbar Ali will lead Bangladesh's 15-member squad that is set to travel to South Africa for the 2020 U-19 Cricket World Cup. Ali also led Bangladesh U-19s in their recent home assignment against Sri Lanka. They claimed the five-match youth one-day international series 4-0, after the first game was abandoned without a ball bowled. Tawhid Hridoy, who has scores of 82*, 123*, 115, and 111 in his last four appearances for Bangladesh U-19s, has been named as Ali's deputy.
Sandhu finishes 11th in Pattaya
Pattaya: India's Ajeetesh Sandhu shot four-under 67 to end Tied-11th as Jazz Janewattananond signed off from his 2019 Asian Tour season with a commanding five-shot victory at the Thailand Masters on Sunday. It also marked a barren year for Indian golf and this was the first time since 2001 that no Indian emerged winner on an international Tour. The last two years have seen Indians win six titles both in 2017 and 2018.
Cory Wallace wins MTB Kerala 2019
Karachi: Adapting to the tropical conditions that stand in contrast to the winter chill in their countries, Canadian Cory Wallace rode to victory on Sunday at the 6th edition of Mountain Terrain Bike by finishing first in men's international category. The women's segment too wove a similar narrative when German Naima Madlen Diesner emerged the topper.