Bhupathi-Lidstedt suffer upset defeat; Somdev too bows out
New Delhi: The top-seeded pair of Mahesh Bhupathi and Robert Lindstedt made a shock first round exit from the Thailand Open while Somdev Devvarman crashed out of the Malaysian Open. The Indo-Swedish pair of Bhupathi and Lindstedt lost 6-2, 3-6, 8-10 to Daniel Gimeno-Traver of Spain and Paolo Lorenzi of Italy in just 59 minutes. It was Bhupathi’s first tournament after the US Open, where he was knocked out in the first round along with German partner Philipp Petzschner. The Indian challenge is still alive in the tournament as Leander Paes is also playing in the doubles event. Paes and his Italian partner Daniele Bracciali have been seeded second and they will open their campaign against James Cerretani and Adil Shamasdin. Meanwhile, in Kuala Lumpur, Somdev lost his first round match to fellow qualifier Matteo Viola in straight sets. The Indian lost 3-6, 3-6 to his lower-ranked Italian rival after one hour and 15 minutes. While Somdev is ranked 98, Viola is 140 on the ATP ranking charts. It was first meeting between the two players. (PTI)
Murray on the mend after back op
London: Wimbledon champion Andy Murray is on the mend after undergoing minor surgery on his back. The 26-year-old Scot gave the thumbs up sign lying in his hospital bed in a picture he posted on his Twitter account to show he was in good spirits after the operation. The world number three announced last week that he had decided to have a minor operation to sort out a disc problem in his lower back that has been bothering him for most of this year. That means it is unlikely he will play again this year missing the last four tournaments of the season in Asia, Paris and the World Tour Finals in London. Instead he will aim to regain full fitness in time to begin his preparations for next year at his Miami base in early November. (AFP)
India U-16 boys gear up for Lebanon
Kuwait City: After playing out a 1-1 draw against Tajikistan, the Indian under-16 football team faces a stiff challenge in the Lebanon team in their second match of the AFC Qualifiers here on Tuesday. The result against a very powerful Tajikistan would have surely helped India’s confidence going into the match and the coach, too, sounded optimistic. “Our boys have settled down and will go out and play. We are confident about their potential,” Head coach Goutam Ghosh said. “We had our moments against Tajikistan and we need to capitalise on them. It was the first-ever AFC match for the boys,” he said. Lebanon won their first match against Bhutan 4-2 only to go down to hosts Kuwait 1-5 in their second match. “It was a bad day for us. But we have to come back strongly,” Lebanon coach Ibrahim said. (PTI)
Webber slams ‘comical’ taxi ride rap
LONDON: Australian Mark Webber has branded as “comical” the reprimand he was given for hitching a ride on Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari after Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix. The reprimands for the Red Bull driver and Alonso have been a talking point since the weekend with Webber also collecting a 10 place penalty on the starting grid for next week’s Korean Grand Prix because of two previous offences. Webber told his 765,000 followers on Twitter on Tuesday that for the pair “to receive reprimands for our actions after the race it is comical to say the least. Great moment, and fans loved it. And while I’m at it, contrary to reports, there was no interaction at all with any track officials after we put the fire out.” The Australian had retired on the last lap at the Marina Bay street circuit after his car ran out of water and the engine caught fire. He then ran back on the floodlit track to wave down Alonso’s Ferrari, which other cars had to weave to avoid, on the slowing down lap and ride to the pits on it. Alonso made light of the incident, posting on Twitter an altered poster for the 2004 movie ‘Taxi’ with his and Webber’s names at the top and their faces super-imposed on driver and passenger in a New York yellow cab. “Ey @AussieGrit! Ready for Hollywood..?” enquired the Spaniard. (Reuters)