Paes-Stepanek suffer defeat in 2nd match at World Tour Finals
London: Leander Paes and his Czech partner Radek Stepanek lost their second Group B match to David Marrero and Fernando Verdasco on Wednesday, a defeat that made their road to semifinals at the year-end ATP World Tour finals tougher. The seventh seeded Indo-Czech pair fought hard before losing 4-6, 6-7 (5) to their Spanish rivals in one hour and 29 minutes. Now Paes and Stepanek, the US Open winners, must beat Marcel Granollers and Mark Lopez for making it to the next stage without any favour from other teams. The Indo-Czech pair had beaten Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares on Tuesday. With their win, Marrero and Verdasco became the first team to qualify for the semifinals with two wins in as many matches. They are sitting atop the table in Group B. The top two teams in each group will qualify for the semifinals. (PTI)
Kiwis end B’desh tour with T20 win
Dhaka: Colin Munro and Anton Devcich hit half-centuries and Tim Southee grabbed three wickets as New Zealand ended their Bangladesh tour with a 15-run victory in the Twenty20 match in Dhaka on Wednesday. Munro returned unbeaten on 73 off 39 balls after debutant Devcich had smashed 59 off 31 balls to lift the Black Caps to 204/5, their second-highest total in Twenty20 cricket behind the 214/6 against Australia in 2010. The tourists, beaten in all three one-day internationals after a drawn two-Test series, restricted Bangladesh to 189/9 in front of some 35,000 disappointed home fans at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium. (AFP)
Magnus Carlsen relaxes at resort
Chennai: World chess title contender Magnus Carlsen, who checked into Taj-Fisherman’s Cove beach resort here, spent most of his time by the pool side and played tennis and badminton, said a resort official on Wednesday. “He was at our property Nov 4-6. Carlsen spent most of his time relaxing by the poolside, enjoying a game of volleyball on the beach as well as tennis and badminton,” the hotel official told IANS preferring anonymity. The official added that Carlsen prefers his food to be medium spicy. “He particularly relished spaghetti aglio olio with bacon, whole wheat croissants and cheese omelette with green chillies, while indulging in fresh mango juice during his stay,” the official said. Carlsen was served specially curated meals from the all-day diner Seagull and the Mediterranean specialty cuisine restaurant – Upper Deck, the official added. The official said three premium indulgence sea view cottages and one superior charm room were booked by Carlsen and his eight-member team that included family personal chef and security personnel. Carlsen is challenging the reigning world chess champion Viswanathan Anand. The first match is slated for Saturday here. (IANS)
Best chance to win Indian Open: Shiv
New Delhi: A motivated Shiv Kapur of India believes this is his best opportunity to fulfil one of his main career goals of winning the 50th Hero Indian Open which starts on Thursday. The Indian won in Dubai last week to earn playing rights in Europe for the next season, but admits that a win at the Indian Open will be even more satisfying as it celebrates its golden jubilee on his home course at the Delhi Golf Club (DGC). Kapur will be joined by an elite field at the Asian Tour event, including Arjun Atwal, the Asian Tour number one in 2003, PGA Tour winners Daniel Chopra of Sweden, Michael Thompson of the USA and David Gleeson of Australia, the 2011 Hero Indian Open champion. Fresh from a satisfying but mentally exhausting win in Dubai, Kapur is determined to win the title, which he terms as the fifth major tournament for all Indian golfers. “Every year I sit here and keep telling all of you that it is always my dream to win the Indian Open. It is the fifth Major for all of us and I would love to win it, more so because it is held at the Delhi Golf Club,” said the 31-year-old. “Obviously, the Indian Open being in its 50th year makes it more special. The fact that I’m coming into this week with a little bit of form will help my chances. It will mean a lot more than winning last week,” he added. (IANS)