Hockey News

At Men's Hockey World League - Finals 2015, Raipur, India

Pool B
India l Netherlands 0-0 (1-3)
Goal Scorers - Chinglensana Kangujam (IND) 47' PC and Mink van der Weerden (NED) 36' PC, Mirco Pruijser (NED) 43', Roel Bovendeert (NED) 54'

The Netherlands sealed top spot in Pool B after comfortable 3-1 win over India ... Dutch side were better on the field though we managed to hold them goalless till half-time ... We finishes on the fourth place that means we will have tough match against Pool A group winner.

Snooker News

At £732K 2015 UK Championship, York, England

[R2] Aditya Mehta (IND,64) l (3) Neil Robertson (AUS,3) 2-6 (67-58, 0-84 (51), 51-65, 0-114(114), 11-96(51), 5-93(93), 88-0, 0-120 (120))

Aditya lose his match in 8 frames against WR #3 Neil Robertson ... Aditya had really tough match against regaining Champion of Champions tournament winner Australian Neil Robertson ... Aditya started well after winning tight first frame but afterwards Niel took control of the match ... He won next five frames scoring one 100+, one 90+ and two 50+ breaks in that ... Aditya won 7th frame but against Niel scored 100+ break for completing victory in style.

Badminton News

At $120K 2015 Macau Open,

Women's Singles Final
(5) P.V. Sindhu (IND,12) bt (6) Minatsu Mitani (JPN,18) 21-9 21-23 21-14

Sindhu completes hat-trick of Macau title after final win in 66 minutes against Japanese girl Minatsu Mitani ... In ther only previous meeting Mitani defeated Sindhu so this was tough final ... In the first game Sindhu opened 5-1 lead which she increased to 16-5 ... Sindhu kept that advantage for winning this game comfortably ... In the second game both players were neck to neck and were exchanging lead ... Sindhu had 2 match points at 20-19 and then 21-20 but she missed both and Mitani won 3 points in a row for taking match into the decider ... Sindhu recovered in the third and again took early lead 5-2 and then 9-3 ... Mitani came close to 7-10 but Sindhu didn't gave her any chance ... Mitani saved 3 match points but Sindhu had big lead as she converted 4th match point.

Hockey News

At Men's Hockey World League - Finals 2015, Raipur, India

Pool B
India dw Germany 1-1 (0-1)
Goal Scorers - Akashdeep Singh (IND) 47' and Niklas Wellen (GER) 6'

Lot more improved performance by us against Olympic champion Germany ... But other hand we missed too many chances which could converted this draw in a win ... Germany scored early goal but we kept attacking and got equalizer by Akashdeep in the fourth quarter ... We need to remove deadwood from the team if we want to see consistent performance from this team ... Still we r in danger of finishing bottom of the group and facing mighty Aussie in the quarter-final.

Badminton News

At $120K 2015 Macau Open,

[SF] (5) P.V. Sindhu (IND,12) bt (2) Akane Yamaguchi (JPN,10) 21-8 15-21 21-15

Sindhu scores three games win over top-10 Japanese opponent Akane Yamaguchi in 63 minutes ... In the first game from 5-2 Sindhu won 12 points in a row to lead 17-2 ... Sindhu kept that advantage for winning it ... In the second game Sindhu opened 6-2 lead but Yamaguchi caught her at 11-all after winning 3 points in a row from 8-11 ... Sindhi again took 14-11 lead but this time also Yamaguchi caught her at 14-all ... In that time unforced errors were creeping in Sindhu's game ... And Sindhu lost 7 points in a row from 15-14 to lose the game ... In the decider from 4-2 Sindhu opened 14-5 lead ... After that Yamaguchi tried comeback and she reduced Sindhu's lead to 14-17 ... This time Sindhu kept her cool and converted 2nd match point for important win.

Hockey News

At Men's Hockey World League - Finals 2015, Raipur, India

Pool B
India l Argentina 0-3 (0-2)
Goal Scorers - Gonzalo Peillat (ARG) 3' PC and 60' PC, Joaquin Menini (ARG) 24' PC

Men's Hockey World League Final is started at Raipur ... India are in tough group with Netherlands, Germany and Argentina.

Indians has terrible start as they lose convincingly against Argentine team ... In the match we played poorly and Argentina took advantage of it ... Our players failed to defend which earned 9 penalty corners for Argentina and we managed to earn only single penalty corner ... Argentinian team converted 3 of those for easy win.

Badminton News

At $120K 2015 Macau Open,

[QF] (15) B. Sai Praneeth (IND,34) l Soon Huat Goh (MAS,82) 16-21 23-21 12-21
[QF] (7) H. S. Prannoy (IND,19) l Ihsan Maulana Mustofa (INA,40) 21-18 19-21 11-21

[QF] (5) P.V. Sindhu (IND,12) bt Yufei Chen (CHN,91) 21-13 18-21 21-14

[SF] (5) P.V. Sindhu (IND,12) vs (2) Akane Yamaguchi (JPN,10)

Sindhu needs three games to beat lower ranked her Chinese opponent ... After losing the second game Sindhu came back strongly to beat Chinese ... Next she is facing top-10 Japanese opponent Yamaguchi.

Other hand Sai and Prannoy perform as per their seeding but lose in the quarters against lower ranked opponents ... Prannoy was up with a game before losing next two games.

Snooker News

At £732K 2015 UK Championship, York, England

[R1] Aditya Mehta (IND,64) bt Sam Baird (ENG,67) 6-5 (20-81(81), 12-112(112), 24-68(58), 32-61, 91(90)-2, 72-68, 67(51)-26, 116(87)-0, 70(50)-51, 22-79(74), 97-31)

Much needed moral boosting win for Aditya in this difficult season ... In this match he was 0-4 frames down before making comeback ... He won next five games before losing 10th game ... But Aditya recovered for winning the decider 11th frame.

Badminton News

At $120K 2015 Macau Open,

[R3] (15) B. Sai Praneeth (IND,34) bt Andre Kurniawan TEDJONO (INA,64) 21-15 21-6
[R3] (7) H. S. Prannoy (IND,19) bt Bin QIAO (CHN,81) 12-21 21-11 21-19

[R2] (5) P.V. Sindhu (IND,12) bt Lindaweni FANETRI (INA,26) 21-17 21-18

[QF] (15) B. Sai Praneeth (IND,34) vs Soon Huat GOH (MAS,82)
[QF] (7) H. S. Prannoy (IND,19) vs Ihsan Maulana MUSTOFA (INA,40)

[QF] (5) P.V. Sindhu (IND,12) vs Yufei CHEN (CHN,91)

Terrific convincing win by Prannoy against his tricky opponent Andre Kurniawan Tedjono, who was also former top 20 player ... Sai also scores excellent comeback win against his Chinese opponent ... Sindhu also overcome tricky challenge of Indonesian Fanetri in straight games.

Tennis News

At $75K+H ITF Women's Tennis Tournament 2015, Toyota, Japan

[QF] Elise MERTENS (BEL) / Ankita RAINA (IND) l Akiko OMAE (JPN) / Peangtarn PLIPUECH (THA) w/o

Ankita and her partner give walkover to their opponents.

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At $15K Thailand F8 Futures,

[QF] (3) Sumit NAGAL (IND,463) l (8) Puriwat CHATPATCHAROEN (THA,783) 46 67(3)

Doubles
[SF] (3) Sumit NAGAL (IND)/ Mick LESCURE (FRA) l (1) Pruchya ISAROW (THA)/ Nuttanon KADCHAPANAN (THA) 26 36

Bad loss in straight sets for Sumit against lower ranked Thai opponent ... Sumit needs to improve his overall game for succeed on higher level ... In the doubles also Sumit and his French partner lose against top-seed Thai pair.

Badminton News

At $120K 2015 Macau Open,

[R2] (15) B. Sai Praneeth (IND,34) bt Artyom SAVATYUGIN (UZB,205) 21-11 21-8
[R1] (7) H. S. Prannoy (IND,19) bt Chia Hsuan LIN (TPE,299) 21-19 21-15
[R1] (9) Ajay JAYARAM (IND,24) l Guipu LIN (CHN,149) 11-21 17-21

[R1] (5) P.V. Sindhu (IND,12) bt Hyo Min KIM (KOR,25)

[R1] (2) Jwala GUTTA (IND)/ Ashwini PONNAPPA (IND) l Yuki FUKUSHIMA (JPN)/ Sayaka HIROTA (JPN) 16-21 15-21

[R3] (15) B. Sai Praneeth (IND,34) vs Andre Kurniawan TEDJONO (INA,64)
[R3] (7) H. S. Prannoy (IND,19) vs Bin QIAO (CHN,81)

[R2] (5) P.V. Sindhu (IND,12) vs Lindaweni FANETRI (INA,26)

Disappointing loss of Jwala and Ashwini against lowly ranked Japanese pair in straight games ... They need to pick up their game so preparing on right track for Rio Olympic ... Also disappoint by Ajya's loss against lowly ranked Chinese player ... He need to remove inconsistency from his performance for keeping his Rio dream alive.

Tennis News

At $75K+H ITF Women's Tennis Tournament 2015, Toyota, Japan

[R1] Ankita RAINA (IND,253) l (3) Stefanie VOEGELE (SUI,120) 26 46

Expected loss of Ankita but I also feel she need to play one or two $10K easy tournaments for boosting her confidence and earning enough points to remain in top 300.

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At $75K Toyota Challenger, Japan

[R1] John Paul Fruttero (USA)/ Purav Raja (IND) l (1) Sonchat Ratiwatana (THA)/ Sanchai Ratiwatana (THA) 57 36

So with this loss Purav's 2015 season get over ... He will remains in 90s and hopefully with regular partner move into top 50 in 2016 season.

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At $15K Thailand F8 Futures,

[R2] (3) Sumit NAGAL (IND,463) bt (Q) Maksim MALYSHEV (UKR,1992) 61 60

[QF] (3) Sumit NAGAL (IND,463) vs (8) Puriwat CHATPATCHAROEN (THA,783)

Doubles
[QF] (3) Sumit NAGAL (IND)/ Mick LESCURE (FRA) bt Punn BODHIDATTA (THA)/ Suthinan TANTHASERANEEWAT (THA) 61 63

Another dominating performance by Sumit ... He literally demolished his Ukrainian opponent losing a single game ... In the doubles also he is in the semis ... In the singles quarter next he is facing local top 800 player Puriwat.

Badminton News

At $120K 2015 Macau Open,

[R1] (1) K. Srikanth (IND,7) l Christie JONATAN (INA,40) 16-21 21-23
[R1] (15) B. Sai Praneeth (IND,34) bt Fikri Ihsandi HADMADI (INA,147) 21-18 23-21
[R1] (7) H. S. Prannoy (IND,19) bt Sukamta EVERT (INA,179) 21-15 16-21 21-18
[R1] (9) Ajay JAYARAM (IND,24) bt Chun Hei TAM (HKG,394) 21-6 25-23

[R2] (15) B. Sai Praneeth (IND,34) vs Artyom SAVATYUGIN (UZB,205)
[R1] (7) H. S. Prannoy (IND,19) vs Chia Hsuan LIN (TPE,299)
[R1] (9) Ajay JAYARAM (IND,24) vs Guipu LIN (CHN,149)

[R1] (5) P.V. Sindhu (IND,12) vs Hyo Min KIM (KOR,25)

[R1] (2) Jwala GUTTA (IND)/ Ashwini PONNAPPA (IND) vs Yuki FUKUSHIMA (JPN)/ Sayaka HIROTA (JPN)

Shocking loss of Srikanth in straight games ... He really need to take break and come out of injuries to improve his game.

Tennis News

At $75K+H ITF Women's Tennis Tournament 2015, Toyota, Japan

[R1] Ankita RAINA (IND,253) vs (3) Stefanie VOEGELE (SUI,120)

Doubles
[R1] Elise MERTENS (BEL)/ Ankita RAINA (IND) bt (4) Ksenia LYKINA (RUS)/ Sofia SHAPATAVA (GEO) 62 64

tough first round match against top-125 player in the singles but in the doubles she and her Belgian partner start with upset win over 4th seed pair.

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At $75K Toyota Challenger, Japan

[R1] John Paul Fruttero (USA)/ Purav Raja (IND) vs (1) Sonchat Ratiwatana (THA)/ Sanchai Ratiwatana (THA)

Tough match for Purav and John in the first round.

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At $15K Thailand F8 Futures,

[R1] (3) Sumit NAGAL (IND,463) bt (Q) Punn BODHIDATTA (THA,1719) 60 62

[R2] (3) Sumit NAGAL (IND,463) vs (Q) Maksim MALYSHEV (UKR,1992)

Doubles
[R1] (3) Sumit NAGAL (IND)/ Mick LESCURE (FRA) bt Kazuma KAWACHI (JPN)/ Issei OKAMURA (JPN) 63 46 10-3

[QF] (3) Sumit NAGAL (IND)/ Mick LESCURE (FRA) vs Punn Bodhidatta (THA)/ Suthinan Tanthaseraneewat (THA)

Dominating winning start in the singles for Sumit against local qualifier ... Next he is facing another qualifier ... In the doubles also Sumit and his French partner start with the win.

Tennis News

At $7M Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, London, Great Britain

Final
(8) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Florin Meargea (ROM) l (2) Jean-Julien Rojer (FRA)/ Horia Tecau (ROU) 46 36

Rohan-Florin fail to repeat their earlier matches performance in the final against new #1 pair Tecau and Rojer for losing the final in straight sets ... Still overall creditable performance for Rohan-Florin as they qualified for Tour Finals at last place.

Hockey News

At the 8th Junior Asia Cup 2015, Kuantan, Malaysia

Final
India bt Pakistan 6-2 (3-1)
Goal Scorers - Harmanpreet Singh (IND) 10' PC, 15' PC, 30' PC and 53' PC, Armaan Qureshi (IND) 44', Manpreet Singh (Jr.) 50' and Muhammad Yaqoob (PAK) 28', Muhammad Dilber (PA) 68'

Matching its meticulous planning and methodical approach, India boys won the 8th Junior Asia Cup majestically, thumping Pakistan down to 6-2 at Kuantan ... Our boys dominated match throughout the period .. Again Harmanpreet showed his penalty corner supremacy scoring four goals.

Tennis News

At $7M Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, London, Great Britain

[SF] (8) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Florin Meargea (ROM) bt (3) Ivan Dodig (CRO)/ Marcelo Melo (BRA) 64 62

Rohan-Florin r in their first ATP World Tour Finals final with convincing win over 3rd seed Melo-Dodig ... After winning the first with single break advantage Rohan-Florin dominated the second ... From 2-all they broke Melo in 5th and Dodig in 7th for winning this set and the atch comfortably ... Rohan was very good with his serve and returning and Florin matches him with his shot making ... Almost perfect match for our pair.

Tennis News

At $7M Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, London, Great Britain

Ashe/ Smith Group
(8) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Florin Meargea (ROM) l (5) Simone Bolelli (ITA)/ Fabio Fognini (ITA) 46 61 5-10

In their last group match Rohan-Florin lose against 5th seed Italian pair ... After losing the first set Rohan-Florin made strong comeback for winning the second set comfortably ... But they failed to keep momentum in super tie-break ... Still Rohan-Florin will qualify for the semi-final with topping this group as Italian pair was already out of semi-final contention.

Badminton News

At $350K Yonex Sunrise Hong Kong Open 2015, Kowloon (Superseries)

[R1] (6) K. Srikanth (IND,5) l Houwei Tian (CHN,10) 16-21 21-15 22-24
[R1] Ajay Jayaram (IND,25) l (1) Chen Long (CHN,1) 17-21 12-21
[R1] H. S. Prannoy (IND,21) l Kento Nishimoto (JPN,59) 15-21 21-18 6-21

[R1] PV. Sindhu (IND,13) l (1) Carolina Marin (ESP,1) 17-21 9-21

[R1] Jwala Gutta (IND)/ Ashwini Ponnappa (IND) l (8) Kyun Eun Jung (KOR)/ Seung Chan Shin (KOR) 12-21 15-21

These were tough matches for our players in Hong Kong but wasn't expected all lose their first round matches.

Another heart breaking loss for Srikanth, who is in danger of soon finding himself outside top-10 ... In the first game from 10-all Houwei took control for winning it ... In the second game Srikanth took 4-1 lead and throughout maintained that advantage for winning it ... The third game was close one ...Srikanth was 0-4 down but crawl back to 3-4 and then from 8-10 Srikanth won next 6 points for sizable 14-10 lead ... After that Houwei came back to catch Srikanth on 14-all ... After that both players exchanged lead ... Srikanth save 1 match point at 19-20 and then Srikanth had match point at 21-20 but he failed to convert ... Srikanth saved another at 21-22 but failed to save third match point for losing this match in 73 minutes.

Sindhu and Ajay loses one-sided matches against their respective WR #1 opponents ... Prannoy had realistic chance but he also flattered in the third.

Another disappointing one sided loss for Jwala and Ashwini against Korean pair.

Squash News

At $325K Men's World Squash Championships 2015, Bellevue, Washington, USA

[R2] (16) Saurav Ghosal (IND,17) l James Willstrop (ENG,24) 7-11, 7-11, 7-11 (41m)

Saurav lose in straight game against his training partner and former WR #1 James Willstrop ... I was hoping Saurav's first win over James as he lost all 8 matches which they played previously ... James is coming out of surgery and now 32 yrs old but he had different idea ... The first game was closely fought but James took control after making Saurav run around and keeping him on the back foot ... After winning first game James were control in next two ... He was leading 10-4 when Saurav saved 3 game balls before losing the second ... In the third also James took 10-4 lead and this time also Saurav saved 3 match balls before losing the match..

Tennis News

At $7M Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, London, Great Britain

Ashe/ Smith Group
(8) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Florin Meargea (ROM) bt (4) Jamie Murray (ENG)/ John Peers (AUS) 63 76(5)
(1) Bob Bryan (USA)/ Mike Bryan (USA) vs (5) Simone Bolelli (ITA)/ Fabio Fognini (ITA)

Rohan-Florin score another upset win over 4th seed Murray-Peers to secure semi-final place ... After winning the first set comfortably Rohan-Florin were stretched in the second but they kept composure for winning tie-break.

Tennis News

At $50K Yokohama Challenger, Japan

[R1] Divij Sharan (IND) / Andriej Kapas (POL) l. (3) Yan Bai (CHN)/ Zi Li (CHN) 16 46

What can say? Wrong selection of partner in these Japanese challenger series.

Badminton News

At BWF World Junior Championships 2015, Lima, Peru

Junior Men's Singles Final
Siril Verma (IND,450) l (6) Chia Hung Lu (TPE,106) 21-17 10-21 7-21

Siril Verma loses the final in 50 minutes against Taipei's Chia Hung Lu after winning the first game ... In the first game Siril matched with Lu's game but after that Lu proved too strong for him ... Still creditable performance by Siril, who participated in this World championship as unseeded.

Squash News

At $325K Men's World Squash Championships 2015, Bellevue, Washington, USA

[R1] (16) Saurav Ghosal (IND,17) bt Ryan Cuskelly (AUS,20) 7-11, 11-8, 11-7, 11-3
[R1] (Q) Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu (IND,71) l Nicolas Müller (SUI,25) 5-11, 11-2, 4-11, 9-11

[R2] (16) Saurav Ghosal (IND,17) vs James Willstrop (ENG,24)

Saurav is having tricky match against similarly ranked Aussie opponent Ryan Cuskelly in the first round but he overcome challenge in four games after losing the first game ... Saurav made excellent comeback against Ryan for this win ... In the second round he is facing Britisher James Willstrop ... This is really trickuy match for Saurav against former WR #1.

Harinder Pal gives fighting performance in his loss against top-25 Swiss player ... After losing the first game Harinder made strong comeback for winning the second game convincingly ... He failed to keep momentum in the third which he lost cheaply ... Though he tried in the fourth but Nicolas kept his focus for completing win in four games.

Tennis News

At $7M Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, London, Great Britain

Ashe/ Smith Group
(1) Bob Bryan (USA)/ Mike Bryan (USA)
(4) Jamie Murray (ENG)/ John Peers (AUS)
(5) Simone Bolelli (ITA)/ Fabio Fognini (ITA)
(8) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Florin Meargea (ROM)

(8) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Florin Meargea (ROM) bt (1) Bob Bryan (USA)/ Mike Bryan (USA) 64 63
(4) Jamie Murray (ENG)/ John Peers (AUS) bt (5) Simone Bolelli (ITA)/ Fabio Fognini (ITA 76(5) 36 11–9

Rohan-Florin r in Ashe/ Smith Group ... And they start with impressive win over top-seed Bryans in their first match ... Rohan-Florin score convincing straight sets win to increase their chances of qualifying for semi-final.

Badminton News

At $700K China Open 2015, Fuzhou (Superseries Premier)

Women's Singles Final
(1) Saina Nehwal (IND,2) l (6) Xuerui Li (CHN,7) 12-21 15-21

Saina loses her match easily against her nemesis Xuerui Li in 39 minutes ... In the first game Saina was up 4-1 but after that Xuerui won 6 points in a row to lead 4-7 and after that Xuerui kept increasing lead for winning it comfortably ... In the second game Saina started with 4-0 lead which she increased to 12-6 but Xuerui won next 7 points to catch Saina ... After 15-all Xuerui again won next 6 points to comple the victory ... Considering recent injury stricken performance of Saina we can say this was decent performance from Saina as she was defending lot of points as defending champion.

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At BWF World Junior Championships 2015, Lima, Peru

[R1] Siril Verma (IND,450) bt Niels Veenstra (NED,1485) 21-7 21-9
[R2] Siril Verma (IND,450) bt Thomas Baures (FRA,772) 21-5 21-13
[R3] Siril Verma (IND,450) bt (9) Kantaphon Wangcharoen (THA,161) 21-13 21-13
[R4] Siril Verma (IND,450) bt (3) Anders Antonsen (DEN,152) 21-12 18-21 21-15
[QF] Siril Verma (IND,450) bt (10) Satheishtharan R (MAS,625) 21-15 21-14
[SF] Siril Verma (IND,450) bt (14) Adulrach Namkul (THA,228) 21-15 21-14

[F] Siril Verma (IND,450) vs (6) Chia Hung Lu (TPE,106)

Siril Verma becomes first Indian boy to reach World Junior championship final ... Before this from Indian only Saina Nehwal won in 2008 and she was runner-up in 2006 ... Also Aparna Popat was runner-up n 1996.

Siril score upset win over four seeded players but in the final he is facing Taipei's Chia Hung Lu, he defeated Siril early this year at Asian championship.

Squash News

At $325K Men's World Squash Championships 2015, Bellevue, Washington, USA

[Q2] Mahesh Mangaonkar (IND,57) l Andrew Wagih Shoukry (EGY,72) 6-11, 5-11, 8-11 (34m)
[Q2] Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu (IND,71) bt Chris Hanson (USA,84) 11-4, 12-10, 11-4 (32m)

[R1] (Q) Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu (IND,71) vs Nicolas Müller (SUI,25)

I was thinking our both players will qualify for main-draw but Mahesh has disappointing straight games loss against Shoukry ... Other hand Harinder win his match in straight games ... In the first round he is facing top-25 Swiss player Nicolas Müller.

Squash News

At $325K Men's World Squash Championships 2015, Bellevue, Washington, USA

[Q1] Mahesh Mangaonkar (IND,57) bye
[Q1] Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu (IND,71) bt Faraz Khan (USA,164) 11-4, 12-10, 6-11, 11-6 (47m)
[Q1] Supreet Singh (IND,396) l Jaymie Haycocks (ENG,83) 5-11, 7-11, 8-11 (31m)
[Q1] Ramit Tandon (IND,262) l Steven Finitsis (AUS,86) 7-11, 11-7, 2-11, 9-11 (53m)

[Q2] Mahesh Mangaonkar (IND,57) vs Andrew Wagih Shoukry (EGY,72)
[Q2] Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu (IND,71) vs Chris Hanson (USA,84)

[R1] (16) Saurav Ghosal (IND,17) vs Ryan Cuskelly (AUS,20)

Mahesh and Harinder r in the final qualifying matches for World championships ... Mahesh having tricky match against former top-50 Egyptian opponent and Harinder is facing local player.

Saurav is 16th seed and facing similar ranked Aussie opponent Ryan Cuskelly in the first round.

Badminton News

At $700K China Open 2015, Fuzhou (Superseries Premier)

[SF] (1) Saina Nehwal (IND,2) bt (7) Yihan Wang (CHN,8) 21-13 21-18

[F] (1) Saina Nehwal (IND,2) vs (6) Xuerui Li (CHN,7)

Saina scores straight games solid win over Yihan Wang in 41 minutes ... In the first game Saina opened early 9-5 and then 11-7 lead but Yihan caught her at 11-all ... From 14-13 Saina won next 7 points in a row for winning this game ... The second game was closely fought both players were neck to neck though Saina took couple of points lead couple of times but both time Yihan caught with her ... From 16-17 Saina won next 3 points to open 19-17 lead and then again winning next 2 points after losing another point for important win ... In the final she is facing another former WR #1 Chine girl Xuerui Li.

Tennis News

At $10K USA F32 Futures, Niceville, Florida (clay)

[QF] (SE) Rishab AGARWAL (IND,970) l Jean-Yves AUBONE (USA,571) 63 36 26

Rishab fails to keep momentum after winning the first set against Jean-Yves Aubone ... He lost last two sets quite easily.

Badminton News

At $700K China Open 2015, Fuzhou (Superseries Premier)

[QF] (1) Saina Nehwal (IND,2) bt Nozomi Okuhara (JPN,10) 21-16 21-13

[SF] (1) Saina Nehwal (IND,2) vs (7) Yihan Wang (CHN,8)

Saina scores comfortable win over WR #10 Nozomi Okuhara in 42 minutes ... In both games Saina took control early for straight games win ... Saina was very accurate near the net and played some good smashes ... Next she is facing her nemesis Chinese Yihan Wang for place in the final.

Football News

At the 2018 World Cup Pre Qualifiers, India, Bangalore

Group D
India bt Guam 1-0 (1-0)
Goal Scored - Robin Singh (IND) 10'

Indian registered their first victory in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers ... Robin Singh's early strike was the difference as India had to battle their way to victory after being reduced to ten-men when Sehnaj Singh was sent off in the 41st minute.

Tennis News

At $75K Sparkassen ATP Challenger, Ortisei, Italy

[QF] Ramkumar Ramanathan (IND)/ Matteo Volante (ITA) l (2) Tomasz Bednarek (POL)/ Denys Molchanov (UKR) 36 46

RamK and his Italian partner lose their match in straight sets against 2nd seed opponents.

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At $50K Kobe Challenger, Japan

[QF] Andriej Kapas (POL)/ Divij Sharan (IND) l (1) Sanchai Ratiwatana (THA)/ Sonchat Ratiwatana (THA) 46 36

Divij-Andriej lose in straight sets against Ratiwatana twins.

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At $10K Egypt F39 Futures, Sharm El Sheikh

[R2] (8) Sasi Kumar MUKUND (IND,554) l Santiago Fa RODRIGUEZ TAVERNA (ARG,1088) 67(6) 46

Surprising loss of Sasi against 16 yrs old Argentine.

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At $10K USA F32 Futures, Niceville, Florida (clay)

[R2] (SE) Rishab AGARWAL (IND,970) bt (WC) Patrick DACIEK (USA,1198) 46 63 62

[QF] (SE) Rishab AGARWAL (IND,970) vs Jean-Yves AUBONE (USA,571)

Another impressive comeback win by Rishab after losing the first set ... Some how I feel Rishab likes to play long matches as this match was also played for two and half hours ... In the quarters he is facing top-600 Jean-Yves Aubone.

Badminton News

At $700K China Open 2015, Fuzhou (Superseries Premier)

[R2] (1) Saina Nehwal (IND,2) bt Jing Yi Tee (MAS,34) 21-10 19-21 21-19
[R2] PV Sindhu (IND,13) l (5) Shixian Wang (CHN,6) 21-18 18-21 16-21

[QF] (1) Saina Nehwal (IND,2) vs Nozomi Okuhara (JPN,10)

Saina scores three games victory over Jing Yi Tee ... After comfortably winning the first game Saina and Tee were neck to neck in the second but from 17-18 Tee took control for winning it ... In the decider also both players were neck to neck till 17-all ... Saina won next 3 points and converted 3rd match point for completing win ... Next Saina is facing Japanese girl Nozomi Okuhara in the quarters.

Sindhu blew up a big chance of upsetting Shixian Wang ... After winning the first game she was 13-7 up in the second ... But from here Sindhu lost the plot ... She lost next 8 points to found herself 13-15 and then lose this game ... Shixian kept control in the decider for completing the win.

Tennis News

At $75K Sparkassen ATP Challenger, Ortisei, Italy

[R2] Ramkumar Ramanathan (IND,255) l (1) Ricardas Berankis (LTU,82) 57 26

RamK loses in straight sets against Berankis ... In the first set RamK had chances which he failed to convert but after losing this set RamK was outperform by Berankis.

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At $75K ITF Women's Tennis Tournament 2015, Dubai, UAE

[R2] Ankita RAINA (IND,250) l (7) Ipek SOYLU (TUR,166) 57 26

Ankita lose in straight sets against her Turkish opponent but in this match Ankita failed to convert 11 break points and that cost her the match.

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At $10K Egypt F39 Futures, Sharm El Sheikh

[R1] (8) Sasi Kumar MUKUND (IND,554) bt Gibril DIARRA (AUT,1005) 64 62

[R2] (8) Sasi Kumar MUKUND (IND,554) vs Santiago Fa RODRIGUEZ TAVERNA (ARG,1088)

Sasi starts with comfortable win against former top-700 Diarra ... Next he is facing 16 yrs old young Argentine.

Badminton News

At $700K China Open 2015, Fuzhou (Superseries Premier)

[R1] Ajay Jayaram (IND,25) l (1) Long Chen (CHN,1) 12-21 11-21
[R1] (5) K. Srikanth (IND,5) l Yun Hu (HKG,14) 12-21 18-21
[R1] H. S. Prannoy (IND,21) l (Q) Kai Guo (CHN,141) 14-21 21-17 19-21
[R1] (1) Saina Nehwal (IND,2) bt Yu Sun (CHN,11) 22-20 21-18
[R1] PV Sindhu (IND,13) bt Ksenia Polikarpova (RUS,52) 21-14 21-9

[R1] Jwala Gutta (IND)/ Ashwini Ponnappa (IND) l Naoka Fukuman (JPN)/ Kurumi Yonao (JPN) 16-21 11-21

[R2] (1) Saina Nehwal (IND,2) vs Jing Yi Tee (MAS,34)
[R2] PV Sindhu (IND,13) vs (5) Shixian Wang (CHN,6)

Saina scores good and confident boosting win over WR #11 Yu Sun in her opening match ... In the first game both players were neck to neck early but Sun took lead after winning 4 points in a row from 9-10 to 13-10 ... Saina made excellent fightback from 14-18, Saina won 6 points in a row to lead 20-18 ... Sun saved 2 game points but Saina converted 3rd game point for winning this game ... In the second game Saina kept couple of points advantage from the start, at one time she was leading 13-10 ... Sun caught her at 13-all but Saina again opened 4 points lead after winning 4 points in a row from 15-all to 19-15 ... Sun reduced lead to 1 point 19-18 but Saina won next 2 points for winning this match in straight games ... Next Saina is facing Malaysian girl Jing Yi Tee.

Expected comfortable win for Sindhu against her lowly ranked Russian opponent ... Next is challenging match for Sindhu against Shixian Wang in China.

Poor straight games loss for Srikanth against Yun Hu ... Srikanth was defending champion so he was defending 11000 points so with this loss he will be slide down around 8th place in next week's rankings ... Also hoping better fighting performance by Ajay in his loss against Long Chen.

Prannoy lose against below 140 ranked Chinese qualifier Kai Guo in three games ... After losing the first game Prannoy fought back to win the second ... In decider Prannoy took early 8-2 lead but Kai reduced that lead slowly and caught Prannoy at 12-all ... From 12-14 Kai won next 6 points to lead 18-14 but Prannoy also tried fight back from 15-19 to win next 4 points for 19-all ... But Kai won next 2 points for handling Prannoy one of his worst defeat.

Jwala-Ashwini fail to raise their game against Japanese pair and lose the match in straight games.

Tennis News

At $75K Sparkassen ATP Challenger, Ortisei, Italy

[R1] Ramkumar Ramanathan (IND,255) bt (Q) Viktor Galovic (CRO,593) 76(6) 75

[R2] Ramkumar Ramanathan (IND,255) vs (1) Ricardas Berankis (LTU,82)

Doubles
[R1] Ramkumar Ramanathan (IND)/ Matteo Volante (ITA) bt Mirza Basic (BIH)/ Petru-Alexandru Luncanu (ROU) 62 62

[QF] Ramkumar Ramanathan (IND)/ Matteo Volante (ITA) vs (2) Bednarek (POL)/ Denys Molchanov (UKR)

Hard fought win for RamK against Croatian qualifier Galovic ... In the first set RamK missed three break point chances on Galovic's serve but he kept his cool for winning tie-break ... In the second set both players exchanged break before RamK took crucial break for winning this match Next his is facing top-seed and top-100 Ricardas Berankis.

In the doubles also RamK and his partner Volante start with very comfortable win ... Next they r facing 2nd seed pair.

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At $75K ITF Women's Tennis Tournament 2015, Dubai, UAE

[R1] Ankita RAINA (IND,250) bt Marina MELNIKOVA (RUS,188) 63 62

[R2] Ankita RAINA (IND,250) vs (7) Ipek SOYLU (TUR,166)

After longtime, exactly after 10 matches first round losing streak in international matches,Ankita scores impressive win against top-200 Russian girl ... Before this match Ankita lost two matches against Melnikova bi=ut this time she manages to turn it around ... Next she is facing top-175 Turkish girl Ipek Soylu.

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At $50K Kobe Challenger, Japan

[R1] Andriej Kapas (POL)/ Divij Sharan (IND) bt Yuya Kibi (JPN)/ Takuto Niki (JPN) w/o

Divij-Kapas move into the quarters without playing ball as their opponents give walkover.

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At $10K USA F32 Futures, Niceville, Florida (clay)

[R1] (SE) Rishab AGARWAL (IND,970) bt Leandro PORTMANN (ARG,890) 63 61

[R2] (SE) Rishab AGARWAL (IND,970) vs (WC) Patrick DACIEK (USA,1198)

Dominating winning start for Rishab against his Argentine opponent Leandro Portmann on clay ... Next he is facing American wild-card player Daciek, who scores upset win over 7th seed Japanese player in the first round.

Badminton News

At $700K China Open 2015, Fuzhou (Superseries Premier)

[R1] Ajay Jayaram (IND,25) vs (1) Long Chen (CHN,1)
[R1] (5) K. Srikanth (IND,5) vs Yun Hu (HKG,14)
[R1] H. S. Prannoy (IND,21) vs (Q) Kai Guo (CHN,141)
[R1] (1) Saina Nehwal (IND,2) vs Yu (Sun (CHN,11)
[R1] PV Sindhu (IND,13) vs Ksenia Polikarpova (RUS,52)

[R1] Jwala Gutta (IND)/ Ashwini Ponnappa (IND) vs Naoka Fukuman (JPN)/ Kurumi Yonao (JPN)

Tough matches for our most of the players ... Sania and Srikanth having chunk of points to defend as they r defending champions ... In the doubles also Jwala-Ashwini having tricky match against similarly ranked their Japanese opponents.

Tennis News

At $125K Hua Hin Challenger, Thailand

Doubles Final
(1) Andre Begemann (GER)/ Purav Raja (IND) l(2) Hsin-Han Lee (TPE)/ Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) w/o

Due to Purav injury top-seed pair gives walkover to Taipei pair in the final.

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At $75K Sparkassen ATP Challenger, Ortisei, Italy

[R1] Ramkumar Ramanathan (IND,251) vs Qualifier

RamK is facing qualifier in his first round.

Tennis News

At €3.8M BNP Paribas Masters, Paris, France

[QF] (8) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Florin Meargea (ROM) l (2) Ivan Dodig (CRO)/ Marcelo Melo (BRA) 57 76(4) 10-12

Rohan-Florin lose close match against 2nd seed Melo and Dodig after losing first set ... Their chances of qualifying for ATP World Tour Finals solely depend upon Melo and Dodig ... If Melo-Dodig pair win the Paris Masters then our pair will qualify, otherwise Vasek Pospisil and Jack Sock will qualify.

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At $125K Hua Hin Challenger, Thailand

[SF] (1) Andre Begemann (GER)/ Purav Raja (IND) bt Tristan Lamasine (FRA)/ Nils Langer (GER) 62 60

[F] (1) Andre Begemann (GER)/ Purav Raja (IND) vs (2) Hsin-Han Lee (TPE)/ Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE)

Purav and Andre r in the final with very comfortable win ... In the final they r facing 2nd seed Taipei pair.

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At $10K Egypt F38 Futures, Sharm El Sheikh

[QF] (7) Sasi Kumar MUKUND (IND,551) l (3) Marko TEPAVAC (SRB,391) 16 26

Tepavac prove too strong for Sasi.

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At $10K USA F31 Futures, Alabama

[QF] Rishab AGARWAL (IND,968) l (Q) David BIOSCA GIRVENT (ESP,1880) 62 36 46

Rishabh lose against Spanish qualifier in another long match.

Tennis News

At $10K USA F31 Futures, Alabama

[R2] Rishab AGARWAL (IND,968) bt (7) Jared HILTZIK (USA,581) 46 64 76(1)

[QF] Rishab AGARWAL (IND,968) vs (Q) David BIOSCA GIRVENT (ESP,1880)

Another upset win by Rishab against top-600 American player ... After losing first set Rishab made excellent comeback for winning next two sets in this 3 hours and 12 minutes long match ... Next he is facing Spanish qualifier David Biosca Girvent, who scores upset win over top-500 American player Wil Spencer.

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At $10K Egypt F38 Futures , Sharm El Sheikh

[R1] (7) Sasi Kumar MUKUND (IND,551) bt Federico BONACIA (ITA,1210) 75 63

[R2] (7) Sasi Kumar MUKUND (IND,551) bt (Q) Vit KOPRIVA (CZE,1208) 76(7) 36 63

[QF] (7) Sasi Kumar MUKUND (IND,551) vs (3) Marko TEPAVAC (SRB,391)

Expected winning start for Sasi ... Next he faced talented Czech teenager Kopriva ... After winning first set in dogfight Sasi lost second set ... But he recovered to win the decider ... In the quarters he is facing tough challenge of top-400 Serbian player Tepavac.

Squash News

At $150K Women's Qatar Classic 2015, Doha

[QF] Joshana Chinappa (IND,20) l (5) Omneya Abdel Kawy (EGY,6) 8-11, 11-9, 11-7, 10-12, 6-11 (50m)

Joshana misses opportunity of upsetting Omneya Abdel Kawy in the quarters ... She was up 2-1 games after losing first game ... And she had chance of finishing in fourth game but Kawy took advantage of Joshana's missed chances to win this ... After that Kawy dominated to win the final game.

Tennis News

At €3.8M BNP Paribas Masters, Paris, France

[R1] (8) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Florin Meargea (ROM) bt Juan Sebastián Cabal (COL)/ Robert Farah Maksoud (COL) 67(3) 64 10-5

In Paris Masters Rohan-Florin starts with comeback win over Colombian pair after losing first set in tight tie-break ... This is important win for our pair in respect to their qualification for Tour Finals.

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At $125K Hua Hin Challenger, Thailand

[R1] Yuki Bhambri (IND)/ Divij Sharan (IND) l Tasuma Ito (JPN)/ Toshihide Matsui (JPN) 36 46

[QF] (1) Andre Begemann (GER)/ Purav Raja (IND) bt (PR) Peter Gojowczyk (GER)/ Amir Weintraub (ISR) 64 62

Purav and Andre reach into semi-final with another comfortable win.

Yuki's poor week ends with his doubles loss ... He and Divij lose in straight sets against Japanese pair.

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At $10K USA F31 Futures, Alabama

[R1] Rishab AGRWAL (IND,972) bt Leondro PORTMANN (ARG,888) 75 75

Rishab is showing improvement in his game ... Good win on clay against higher ranked South American.

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At $10K ITF Women's Tournament, El Kantaoui, Tunisia

[R1] Kyra SHROFF (IND,997) l (7) Laetitia SARRAZIN (FRA,657) 57 16

So this week turning into disappointing as Kyra also fails to repeat last week's performance.

Tennis News

At €3.8M BNP Paribas Masters, Paris, France

[R1] Leander Paes (IND)/ Rafael Nadal (ESP) l Dominic Inglot (GBR)/ Robert Lindstedt (SWE) 36 46

Another one of unsuccessful partnership for Lee as he and Rafa lose in straight sets against Inglot and Lindstedt ... Lee need to find regular partner for keeping his Rio Olympic dream alive.

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At $125K Hua Hin Challenger, Thailand

[R1] (3) Yuki Bhambri (IND,89) l Yuichi Sugita (JPN,159) 06 retd.

Doubles
[R1] (1) Andre Begemann (GER)/ Purav Raja (IND) bt Cheng-Peng Hsieh (TPE)/ Tsung-Hua Yang (TPE) 62 64

[QF] (1) Andre Begemann (GER)/ Purav Raja (IND) vs (PR) Peter Gojowczyk (GER)/ Amir Weintraub (ISR)

Yuki retires from his match after losing first set without winning a single game ... In this match he struggled with minor injuries and failed to continue ... So with that most probably he is planning to finish his season after playing the doubles here with Divij

Purav and his German partner Andre start with straight sets win over Taipei pair ... Next they r facing experienced doubles players.

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At $10K ITF Women's Tournament, El Kantaoui, Tunisia

[R1] Kyra SHROFF (IND,997) vs (7) Laetitia SARRAZIN (FRA,657)

Hoping for repeat or better performance from last week ... After reaching semis of the singles Kyra also lifted the doubles title with her partner.

Squash News

At $150K Women's Qatar Classic 2015, Doha

[R2] Joshana Chinappa (IND,20) bt Yathreb Adel (EGY,25) 16-14, 11-8, 11-8

[QF] Joshana Chinappa (IND,20) vs (5) Omneya Abdel Kawy (EGY,6)

Joshana scores straight games win over Yathreb Adel ... Joshana won tightly fought first game in extra points and then won next two tight games for entering into the quarters ... In the quarter final she is facing another Egyptian girl Omneya Abdel Kawy.

Tennis News

At $7M BNP Paribas WTA Finals 2015, Singapore

Women's Doubles Final
(1) Sania Mirza (IND)/ Martina Hingis (SUI) bt (8) Garbine Muguruza (ESP)/ Carla Suarez-Navarro (ESP) 60 63

[SF] (1) Sania Mirza (IND)/ Martina Hingis (SUI) bt (3) Hao-ching Chan (TPE)/ Yung-jan Chan (TPE) 64 62

Sania wins her consecutive second WTA Finals without losing a set ... This time with her evergreen partner and legend Martina Hingis ... After cruising through first set Martina-Sania faced a little resistant in second ... Still with Sania's amazing shot making they completed victory ... Before that they easily overcome challenge of Chan sisters in the semis ... After service down 2-3 in first set they took control of the match for comfortable win.

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At $50K Pune Challenger, India

Singles Final
(1) Yuki Bhambri (IND,105) bt (2) Evgeny Donskoy (RUS,100) 62 76(4)

Yuki scores straight sets win over Evgeny Donskoy to lifts his second challenger title of the year and first title in India ... This overall fifth challenge title for Yuki from nine challenger finals ... In the final Yuki dominated first set for winning it with double break ... In the second set Donskoy took first break in 6th game to lead 2-5 ... Yuki broke back when Donskoy was serving for the set in 9th game, 4-5 ... In tie-break Yuki had 4 sets point with early mini-breaks, 6-2 ... Yuki converted 3rd match point for excellent win ... This title win will push his ranking career high top-90.

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At €3.8M BNP Paribas Masters, Paris, France

[R1] Leander Paes (IND)/ Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs Dominic Inglot (GBR)/ Robert Lindstedt (SWE)
[R1] (8) Rohan Bopanna (IND)/ Florin Meargea (ROM) bye

In Paris Masters Lee is playing with Rafa and they r facing Inglot and Lindstedt ... Rohan-Florin r 8th seed and they require good performance for qualifying for ATP World Tour Finals.

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At $125K Hua Hin Challenger, Thailand

[R1] (3) Yuki Bhambri (IND,105) vs Yuichi Sugita (JPN,159)

Doubles
[R1] (1) Andre Begemann (GER)/ Purav Raja (IND) vs Cheng-Peng Hsieh (TPE)/ Tsung-Hua Yang (TPE)
[R1] Yuki Bhambri (IND)/ Divij Sharan (IND) vs Tasuma Ito (JPN)/ Toshihide Matsui (JPN)

Yuki is having tricky match against his Japanese opponent Sugita ... In the doubles Yuki is playing with Divij and they r facing Japanese pair ... Purav is top-seed with his German partner Andre Begemann and they r facing Taiwani pair.

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At $10K ITF Women's Tournament, El Kantaoui, Tunisia

[SF] Kyra SHROFF (IND,943) l (3) Yana SIZIKOVA (RUS,544) 36 64 16

Kyra lose her semi-final match but gives fighting performance against top-550 Russian opponent.

Golf News

At $7M CIMB Classic 2015, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (PGA Tour 2016)

T21 Anirban Lahiri (IND) 70 67 67 70 -14 $78,400.00
73 SSP Chawrasia (IND) 72 74 74 71 +3 $13,580.00

I was expecting at least top-10 finish for Anirban on his familiar course where he lifted European tour title ... Anirban finishes on tied for 21st position which gives hin 49.00 Fedex points.

Squash News

At $150K Women's Qatar Classic 2015, Doha

[R1] Joshana Chinappa (IND,20) bt (1) Raneem El Welily (EGY) 11-9, 11-6, 4-11, 11-9 (39m)
[R1] (12) Dipika Pallikal (IND,19) l Yathreb Adel (EGY,25) 5,11, 7-11, 7-11 (26m)

[R2] Joshana Chinappa (IND,20) vs Yathreb Adel (EGY,25)

Joshana becomes first Indian to beat current WR #1 Raneem El Welily in four games ... Nobody expected this, in first two games Joshana played aggressively and took advantage of Raneem's unforced errors for winning it ... Raneem made strong comeback for winning third game ... In the fourth also Raneem took early 9-5 lead but Joshana raised her game for winning next 6 points in a row for terrific upset ... This was laos Joshana's first win over top-5 player ... Next she is facing another young Egyptian girl Yathreb Adel, who scored upset win over Dipika in straight games.

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At $150K Men's Qatar Classic 2015, Doha

[R1] Mahesh Mangaonkar (IND,51) l Charles Sharpes (ENG,61) 14-12, 9-11, 6-11, 7-11 (68m)

[R1] Saurav Ghosal (IND,16) l Fares Dessouki (EGY,19) 7-11. 8-11, 3-11

Disappointing results n men side as Saurav lose his first round match against similar ranked Egyptian player Fares Dessouki in straight games ... Before that Mahesh also lost in qualifying first round against lower ranked British opponent.