Kakara enters Word C’ship semis
New Delhi: Left in disarray due to international termination, Indian boxing had reason to cheer on Monday as Shyam Kakara (49kg) booked a ticket to this year’s Youth Olympics besides assuring himself of a medal by entering the World Youth Championships semifinals in Sofia, Bulgaria. On a mixed day, Shyam defeated Venezuela’s Yoel Finol 2-1 in a thrilling contest, to advance to the semifinals, a prerequisite to make the cut for the Youth Olympics to be held in Nanjing, China from August 16-28. However, it was heartbreak for Gaurav Solanki (52kg) who lost 0-3 to China’s L V Ping. Though he is out of medal contention, Solanki will fight it out for an Olympic quota place on Tuesday. First to take the ring was Shyam, who will next face Kazakhstan’s Shalkar Aikhynbay. The Andhra Pradesh boxer had to ward off stiff resistance from his opponent before coming out trumps in the draining bout. (PTI)
Busy schedule forces IBL dates rethink
New Delhi: Taking into account the busy international schedule, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) is planning to hold the second edition of the Indian Badminton League early next year. The inaugural edition of the cash-rich tournament in August 2013 was a grand success with badminton lovers, the corporate world and even the players lapping up the concept. BAI was planning to hold the second edition from September 30 to October 15. But scheduling has been a problem this year with major international events like the Commonwealth Games in July and Asian Games in September raising doubts over the availability of top players throughout the duration of the tournament. BAI vice president – administration TPS Puri said, “The first edition of the IBL was a grand success and badminton lovers are eagerly awaiting the second season. However, we want to ensure that all the top players are available for the tournament and that looks difficult this year due to the busy international schedule. Though a final call is yet to be taken, we are considering the option of holding the tournament early next year.” (PTI)
Dhoni ‘the only leader in team of captains’
Abu Dhabi: Although Chennai Super Kings is home to four international captains this Indian Premier League, New Zealand skipper Brendon McCullum insists that MS Dhoni is the sole leader of the pack and says he has lots to learn from his India counterpart in his first year with the franchise. “At CSK there is only one captain and that is M S Dhoni. He is the sole decision-maker when it comes to the on-field matters. There is not much team talk about that,” said McCullum when asked about his role in the team alongside other international captains in Dhoni, Faf du Plessis of South Afria and Dwayne Bravo of the West Indies. “However, as experienced leaders, we are expected to do small things off the field like guiding the younger players and helping out the team-mates with things they need assistance with. On the field there are smaller things like we must not wait for the captain to wave his hands at us asking to step a bit closer or further. We should be able to figure those things out with our experience,” he was quoted as saying by the tournament’s website. (PTI)