Maha take 1st innings lead over Assam
Guwahati: Left-arm spinner Akshay Darekar scalped six wickets to help Maharashtra bundle out Assam for a meagre 152 and take a massive 209-run first innings lead in their Ranji Trophy Group C match, here on Tuesday. In reply to Maharashtra’s first innings total of 361, the hosts fell for 152 as Darekar finished with impressive figures of six for 53, while Shrikant Mundhe chipped in with three for 17. Assam kept losing wickets at regular interval even as Darekar and Mundhe wreaked havoc. Niraj Patel was the only batsman who managed to show some resistance, top scoring with 40. Maharashtra, in their second innings, reached 16 for no loss with openers Harshad Khadiwale (0) and skipper Rohit Motwani (10) at the crease when the stumps were drawn. Earlier, resuming on 343 for eight in their first innings, Maharashtra could add just 18 runs in the morning by losing two wickets in the process. Brief scores: Maharashtra: 361 & 16 for no loss (Rohit Motwani batting 10). Assam: 152 all out (Niraj Patel 40, Amit Sinha 20; Akshay Darekar 6/53, Shrikant Mundhe 3/17). (PTI)
Pakistan beat India in U-19 Asia Cup
Dubai: Skipper Sami Aslam (108) made a magnificent century as Pakistan colts held on to their nerves to pull off a narrow two-wicket win over India in the Under-19 Asia Cup here on Tuesday. Pakistan chased down a challenging 251 with just three balls to spare and registered their third straight win of the tournament. Riding on Ricky Bhui’s quick-fire half-century, India scored 250 for seven off their quota of 50 overs after electing to bat at Dubai International Cricket Stadium. (PTI)
Junaid’s 5 keeps Pak high in 1st Test vs SL
Abu Dhabi: Paceman Junaid Khan grabbed five wickets and Bilawal Bhatti finished with three as Pakistan enjoyed the better of the opening day of the first cricket Test against Sri Lanka, here on Tuesday. Junaid claimed his fourth five-wicket haul, taking figures of 5-58, while Bhatti took 3-65 in his first Test as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 204 after Misbah-ul-Haq won the toss and opted to bowl first on a greenish Sheikh Zayed Stadium pitch. By the close on the opening day Pakistan reached 46-1 with debutant opener Ahmed Shehzad not out on 25. Fellow opener Khurram Manzoor ran himself out after making 21, leaving Pakistan trailing by 158 runs but with nine first-innings wickets remaining. (AFP)
Rusty Serena wins opener in Brisbane
BRISBANE: World number one Serena Williams looked rusty in her first competitive match of the season ahead of the Australian Open but battled through to beat Andrea Petkovic 6-4, 6-4 at the Brisbane International on Tuesday. The number one seed won in 98 minutes to reach the quarter-finals but her 36 unforced errors and 55 percent serving accuracy showed how much Williams has to work on with the first grand slam of 2014 less than a fortnight away. Williams next plays ninth-seed Slovakian Daniele Cibulkova who defeated Japanese veteran Kimiko Date-Krumm 6-3, 1-6, 6-3. Williams’s slated semi-final opponent Maria Sharapova has a bye to the last eight after Australian Ashleigh Barty pulled out with an adductor injury. On the other side of the draw, fourth seed Jelena Jankovic beat Ukrainian Elina Svitolina 6-1, 6-3, keeping the Serb on course for a semi-final meeting with defending Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka. In the men’s tournament, home favourite Lleyton Hewitt held off a spirited challenge from young compatriot and qualifier Thanasi Kokkinakis. The 17-year-old saved 10 of 12 break points in the first set before succumbing 6-3 and was 5-3 up in the second, only for the veteran to win four straight games to take the match. The twice grand slam winner faces sixth-seed Feliciano Lopez in the third round, after the Spaniard defeated Mikhail Kukushkin of Kazakhstan in straight sets. There was an upset in the men’s game when Dmitry Tursunov, the seventh seed, went down to Sam Querrey in straight sets 7-5, 6-4. Marin Cilic had to battle from a set down to defeat Denis Istomin 6-7 (3), 7-6 (5), 6-4. Number one seed Roger Federer will play his first match on Wednesday Jarkko Nieminen. (Reuters)
