Indian sports wrap, June 23: Olympian Dhinidhi Desinghu wins 200m women’s freestyle title in National Aquatics Championships

SWIMMING

Olympian Dhinidhi Desinghu wins 200m women’s freestyle title in National Aquatics Championships

Teenage Olympian Dhinidhi Desinghu and her Karnataka state-mate Shoan Ganguly secured women’s 200m freestyle and men’s 200m medley crowns respectively with ‘India best’ times in the National aquatics championships at the Kalinga Stadium Aquatic Centre here on Monday.

Dhinidhi, who had a disappointing outing on Sunday, fought back to better her two-year-old meet record by clocking 2:02.97. The World championships ‘B’ qualification mark is 2:02.37.

The 15-year-old surged ahead after the first 50m to establish a clear lead and win comfortably. “I felt a little nervous. Am happy I did well in my main event,” said Dhinidhi.

Ganguly, who had timed a below-par 2:09 in the state meet a month ago, trained hard under his father-cum-coach Surajit Ganguly’s guidance to record 2:04.34. “I targeted ‘India best’ time and am thrilled to achieve that,” said Ganguly.

M.S. Yadesh Babu achieved his personal best of 28.35 for the men’s 50m breaststroke title. “This is a result of my consistent training,” said Yadesh, on his maiden National title.

In 4x100m mixed freestyle relay, Karnataka – comprising Rujula S., Latisha Mandaana, Akash Mani, Tanish George Mathew – took the yellow metal with a new meet record of 3:41.18. Tamil Nadu claimed the silver after Maharashtra, which finished second, was disqualified.

Tamil Nadu, consisting of Pramiti Gnanasekaran, Yadesh, B.Benedicton Rohit, Deeksha Sivakumar, won the top honour in 4x100m mixed medley relay with a meet record.

– Y.B. Sarangi

45th VK Pahuja annual swimming bulletin features interview of first paralympic gold medallist Murlikant Petkar

The 45th edition of the VK Pahuja annual swimming bulletin was released at the India International Centre in New Delhi on Monday.

VK Pahuja, the doyen of aquatic statistics had started the compilation and his daughter Dr. Meenakshi Pahuja, Associate Professor at Lady Shri Ram College and a renowned swimmer, has been meticulously sustaining the good work every summer. The latest edition spans 460 pages of records and interesting articles, a ready reckoner for the swimming fraternity at all levels.

The first copy was presented to swimming coach and former Administrator of Sports Authority of India, KV Sharma. Many coaches and swimmers were felicitated on the occasion.

Apart from local, national and international records, and results, the bulletin has an interview of the first paralympic gold medallist swimmer, Murlikant Petkar.

Dr. Meenakshi has been supported by her sister Dr. Supriya Pahuja and brother Priyank Pahuja in bringing out the bulletin, which has a section that carries details of Indian participation in the international arena for the last 90 years.

– Kamesh Srinivasan

HOCKEY

Hockey India Masters Cup: Tamil Nadu, Odisha reach men’s semifinals

Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu outclassed Hockey Punjab 8-2 and Hockey Association of Odisha secured a commanding 6-2 victory over Hockey Andhra Pradesh in their respective quarterfinals in the men’s category at the inaugural Hockey India Masters Cup at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium in Chennai on Monday.

The women’s category concluded its pool stage matches after Odisha beat Haryana 3-2 and Punjab defeated Tamil Nadu 3-0.

– Team Sportstar

TENNIS

Sumit Nagal loses in opening round of Wimbledon qualifiers

Sumit Nagal went down 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 to Italy’s Giulio Zeppieri in the first round of Wimbledon qualifiers on Monday.

Apart from World No. 294 Nagal, no other Indian man or woman was ranked high enough to enter the singles event at the grass Major this year.

– Team Sportstar

BOXING

India Tops Medal Table with Full Haul at Seychelles National Day Boxing Tournament

All seven Indian boxers, who participated in the Seychelles National Day Boxing Tournament, at the Paradise Arena in Mahe, struck medals.

Comprising medal-winners from recent Elite Nationals and National Combined Championships, the Indian contingent secured three gold, three silver, and one bronze medals, topping the charts with one more gold than Mauritius.

In the gold medal bouts, Himanshu Sharma (50kg) was awarded a walkover, while Ashish Mudshaniya (55kg) claimed a well-earned 4:1 split decision. Gaurav Chauhan (90+kg) edged past his opponent in a tense final, sealing gold with a hard-earned 3:2 verdict.

The silver medallists—Anmol (60kg), Aditya Yadav (65kg), and Neeraj (75kg)—all fought their finals valiantly before going down by identical 2:3 split decisions, underlining the competitive quality of their performances. Kartik Dalal (70kg) added to India’s tally with a bronze.

– PTI

SNOOKER

Chawla, Gupta book knockout berths at Asian 6-Red Snooker Championship

Reigning IBSF champion Kamal Chawla powered into the pre-quarterfinals with an all-win record from his group in the Asian 6-Red Snooker Championship in Colombo on Monday.

In his third and final Group ‘C’ match, the Indian ace outclassed Ming Wa Man of Hong Kong 4-0.

Later, national champion Paras Gupta joined Chawla in the last-16 stage. Pushpender Singh, the third Indian in the fray, however, failed to make the cut.

– PTI

CHESS

Aurionpro International Grandmaster Chess Tournament: Neelotpal, Gharibyan and Lalit joint leaders after penultimate round

Neelotpal Das came up with a smart finish to pip Arsen Davtyan in 51 moves in the eighth round of the Aurionpro Grandmaster chess tournament at the World Trade Centre in Mumbai on Monday.

He was joined by Mamikon Gharibyan and Lalit Babu with seven points on the leaderboard.

On the top board, Mamikon executed a cameo in the climax with the black pieces to outwit overnight leader Aleksej Aleksandrov in 35 moves.

Lalit Babu stayed in the hunt for the title with a clinical 39-move victory over Alexei Fedorov.

– Team Sportstar

GOLF

Tame finish for Bhatia as Ryder Cup captain Bradley wins Travelers title

Akshay Bhatia had a tame finish with two double bogeys in the final round for a card of 4-over 74 that saw him finish in Tied-54th place in the Signature event in the United States.

Bhatia, who had rounds of 70-70-68-74 was 4-over 282 for the week.

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Indo-British Aaron Rai (70) was Tied-17th with cards of 68-73-63-70 at 6-under.

Meanwhile, U.S. Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley came back from three shots behind with four holes to play and birdied the 18th hole for a 2-under 68 to win the Travelers Championship in his hometown.

-PTI

Indians falter on final day – Amandeep, Diksha and Tvesa finish 46th

Amandeep Drall, who began the week with a stunning 8-under 64, finished the Tipsport Czech Ladies Open with rounds of 72-73 and ended T-46th at the end of the tournament.

It was Amandeep’s first cut of the season and the second start of the year after losing her card last year. Amandeep will now play the Amundi German Masters next week.

Also finishing in similar 46th place were Diksha Dagar (68) and Tvesa Malik (68), while Hitaashee Bakshi (74) was T-62 and Sneha Singh (72) was T-65.

South African Casandra Alexander carded a final round of 10-under 62, including a chip-in for an eagle on the 18th at Royal Beroun to secure a two-shot victory. Cassandra’s 62 was a course record.

-PTI

Saptak falters in final round and slips to tied-38

Saptak Talwar struggled in his final round at Golf Bluegreen de Pleneuf Val Andre in the Blot Play9 on the Hotel Planner Tour as he shot a round of 9-over 79 to drop down from tied-6 to tied-38 in the standings.

In the playoff, two time DP World Tour winner Morrison held his nerve to make par and win his first title in 10 years.

-PTI

Kochhar finishes sole second in Morocco

Indian golfer Karandeep Kochhar produced a bogey-free final round 7-under 65 but fell agonisingly short, finishing one stroke behind Filipino Aidric Chan to sign off with a runner-up finish at the Morocco Rising Stars Marrakech.

Seeking his first win outside India as a pro, Kochhar finished 17-under with rounds of 70-67-69-65, while Chan shot a 7-under 65 in the final round to be 18-under at the Samanah Golf Club.

The win secures Chan a spot in next month’s International Series Morocco, which has a prize pool of USD 2 million.

-PTI

FOOTBALL

Mayakkannan signs contract extention with NorthEast United FC

NorthEast United FC, on Monday, announced that midfielder Mayakkannan Muthu Irulandi has signed a contract extension that will keep him with the club till the end of the 2028 season.

Mayakkannan joined Highlanders at the start of the 2024-25 season from an I-League side, Sreenidhi Deccan, and quickly became the mainstay of Juan Pedro Benali’s midfield.

Mayakkannan, 28, made an immediate impact upon his arrival as NEUFC clinched the Durand Cup in a historic undefeated campaign. In the 2024-25 season, NEUFC played a total of 33 games across competitions — Durand Cup, ISL, ISL Playoffs and Super Cup, out of which, Mayakkannan featured in 31 games.

In the season, he played the most minutes for the club (2,972 minutes), covered the most distance (337.5 kms), and had the most tackles (2.6 tackles/per game).

“To start my NorthEast United FC journey with the Durand Cup triumph was a moment to cherish in my career, and I am delighted to extend my stay till 2028. I’m grateful for the trust the club has shown in me, and I am proud to continue this journey with the Highlanders,” Mayakkannan said.

-Team Sportstar

ATHLETICS

Yuvaraj smashes 110m hurdles record in National Junior Athletics meet

Tamil Nadu’s S. Yuvaraj smashed the junior national record in 110m hurdles on way to winning gold in the 23rd National Junior (U20) Federation Athletics Championships in Prayagraj on Monday.

On a day when seven track and field records, including two in women’s section, were broken, hurdler Yuvaraj clocked a time of 13.69 seconds, improving upon the junior national record of 13.74 seconds set by Tejas Ashok Shrise in 2021.

In fact, all three medal winners in 110m hurdles eclipsed the national record, with Sandeep V. of Reliance taking home the silver (13.70 seconds) and K. Kiran of Kerala bagging the bronze (13.70 seconds).

In men’s discus throw, Ujjawal Chaudhary (JSW) stamped his authority with a winning throw of 59.51m, which came in his fifth attempt, bettering his own national mark of 59.34m set in March in Mumbai.

– PTI

WRESTLING

Indian Greco Roman wrestlers bags four medals in Asian under-17 championships

Indian Greco Roman wrestlers bagged four medals, including a gold, at the Asian under-17 championships in Vung Tau, Vietnam, on Monday. Hardeep (110kg) secured a gold, while Aditya Jadhav (48kg) took a silver. Ritesh (60kg) and Nitin (92kg) claimed bronze medals.

– Y.B. Sarangi

CRICKET

Eagle Nashik Titans soar over Raigad Royals to clinch MPL title

Eagle Nasik Titans aced a stiff chase of 191, beating Raigad Royals by six wickets to clinch its maiden Maharashtra Premier League (MPL) title here.

India U-19 World Cup star Arshin Kulkarni had blown hot and cold this season, but he delivered in the crunch fixture with a scintillating 77 in 53 balls (5×4, 4×6) on Sunday.

Along with opener Mandar Bhandari (28), Kulkarni put on 62 runs in seven overs to give Nashik a brisk start. Kulkarni single-handedly maintained the required run rate until he perished on the fourth ball of the 18th over to Tanay Sanghavi.

Atharva Kale, who was dropped at deep midwicket by Neeraj Joshi on the very next ball, made Nashik pay dearly. Kale was given another life when he was on 10.

Kale (23 not out) Ranjit Nikam (31 not out) applied finishing touches as the Titans overhauled the target with five balls to spare.

Earlier, Siddhesh Veer came agonisingly close to his second hundred of this MPL season with a brilliant unbeaten 99 (59 balls), laced with 11 fours and four sixes as Royals made 190 for four.

-PTI

RUGBY

Hyderabad Heroes return to top of table; Delhi Redz win at RPL

Hyderabad Heroes produced a scintillating display of rugby, as it went back to the top of the points table, after swatting aside the challenge of the Chennai Bulls by a scoreline of 28-7 at the Andheri Sports Complex in Mumbai on Monday.

The Heroes were in fine form and dominated the Bulls, who were out of the blocks at good speed, and took the lead when Terry Kennedy scored a try, and Joaquin Pellandini added two more to the cause.

However, after that, the Hyderabad Heroes cranked up the style – Javed Hussain and Motu Opetai scored a try each, and Manuel Moreno converted on both occasions.

In the first game of the day, the Delhi Redz won handsomely against the Bengaluru Bravehearts, registering its third win of the tournament.;

The Redz were calling the shots in the game early on and scored important points to surge into the lead. Matteo Graziano and Rajdeep Saha scored a try each, before Iowane Teba brought the Bravehearts right back into it with seven points of his own.

Wolfram Hacker and Terio Tamani added a try each in the final quarter, and Tamani converted both his kicks as well, giving the Hyderabad Heroes a clinical win on the night. The win will see the Heroes move up to the top spot on the points table

-Team Sportstar