Egyptian Open: Abhay claims career-best win, Velavan exits
New Delhi, Sep 13: India’s Abhay Singh notched up the biggest win of his career with a straight-game victory over world No. 17 Gregoire Marche of France in the opening round of the Egyptian Open, a USD 366,000 PSA World Tour Diamond event in Giza. The world No. 38 and multiple-time national champion prevailed 12-10, 11-9, 11-3 in 36 minutes to register his best result in terms of opponent’s ranking. Abhay, who trains at the Indian Squash Academy in Chennai, will next face 10th seed Youssef Ibrahim of Egypt in the round of 32. However, there was disappointment for reigning national champion Velavan Senthilkumar, who went down to Britain’s world No. 28 Jonah Bryant 8-11, 11-5, 9-11, 1-11 in his first-round match. (PTI)
World Championships: Indian wrestlers falter on opening day
Zagreb (Croatia), Sep 13: Indian wrestlers endured a disappointing start to their campaign at the World Championships with all four grapplers bowing out on the opening day of competition, here Saturday. In the men’s 61kg freestyle, Udit lost tamely to Taiyrbek Uulu of Kyrgyzstan, failing to open his account in a 0-2 defeat. Competing in the 70kg division, Rohit went down narrowly 4-5 to Begijon Kuldashev of Uzbekistan despite putting up a spirited show. His hopes of a repechage entry ended after the Uzbek wrestler crashed out in the next round. In 86kg, Mukul Dahiya was outclassed 0-10 by American star Zahid Valencia, who advanced comfortably to the quarterfinals. Dahiya remains the only Indian with a possible repechage chance, dependent on Valencia’s progress to the gold medal bout. Valencia has already reached the semifinals. In the heavyweight 125kg category, Rajat Ruhal was beaten 2-5 by Vlagyiszlav Balcajev of Hungary. Although Ruhal managed a takedown, he could not sustain the momentum and conceded points on counter-attacks. (PTI)
Aditya, Naisha prevail in thrilling U-15 finals of National TT C’ships
New Delhi, Sep 13: Aditya Das outlasted fellow Bengal paddler Rishaan Chattopadhyay 3-2 while Maharashtra’s Naisha Rewaskar staged a spirited fightback to edge another Bengal player, Ahona Ray, by an identical margin to clinch gold medals, in the Under-15 boys and girls sections of the UTT National Ranking Table Tennis Championships here on Saturday. Aditya, after making a strong start, slipped to a 1-2 deficit but clawed back in the fourth game to force the decider. Holding his nerve, he converted his second match point to secure another crown in his budding career with a 11-4, 7-11, 11-13, 11-3, 13-11 win. Naisha reaped the rewards of her perseverance after Ahona drew first blood. The Maharashtra girl showed remarkable grit to edge out her rival 8-11, 11-6, 14-12, 2-11, 11-9. (PTI)
English cricket figure under police probe for alleged sexual assault
London, Sep 13: A prominent personality in English cricket is under police investigation over allegations of drink spiking and sexual assault involving two women. According to a report in The Daily Telegraph, the man, said to be in his 40s, was interviewed under caution by Scotland Yard in June following a complaint linked to an incident at a pub in south-west London’s SW6 district, which includes Fulham and Parsons Green. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is yet to comment. “We are currently investigating allegations of spiking and sexual assault against two women that took place on Thursday, 22 May at a pub in the SW6 area,” the Metropolitan Police said in a statement. “Two women are believed to have been spiked with one also allegedly sexually assaulted. A man in his 40s was interviewed under caution on Thursday, 5 June. Enquiries remain ongoing and no arrests have been made at this stage.” The case has emerged at a time when cricket’s authorities are under pressure to address misconduct in the game. Chris Haward, managing director of the Cricket Regulator – the independent body tasked with handling disciplinary cases – stressed last month: “Removing sexual misconduct from the game is a priority.” In the past year, the Regulator has charged two coaches in unrelated incidents. (PTI)