Usain Bolt loses 2008 Olympic relay gold in teammate’s doping case

Usain Bolt has lost one of his nine Olympic gold decorations in a doping case including partner Nesta Carter.

The IOC said Wednesday that Carter tried positive for methylhexaneamine, a prohibited stimulant, in re-investigation of tests from the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Carter and Bolt were partners on the triumphant 4×100-meter transfer group, which additionally included Michael Frater and Asafa Powell.

"The Jamaican group is precluded," the IOC said in an announcement. "… the relating awards, medalist pins and certificates are pulled back and might be returned."

The hand-off title in Beijing finished the first of Bolt's three gold decoration clears in the 100, 200 and hand-off at three straight Olympics.

Trinidad and Tobago is in line to get the gold award from 2008, Japan could be moved up to silver, and fourth-put finisher Brazil could get the bronze decoration.

Carter affirmed by video gathering to an IOC disciplinary hearing held in Lausanne on Oct. 17.

The IOC's decision expresses that Carter noted he was taking supplements in 2008 "prompted in this regard by his mentor, Mr. Stephen Francis."

"The competitor clarified that he had given a few examples for doping controls while he was taking Cell Tech and Nitro Tech before the 2008 Olympic Games and he had never tried positive for a restricted substance," the point by point decision expressed.

"He hence did not trust that these supplements could contain precluded substances. He didn't see how methylhexaneamine could have been found in 2016."

Despite the fact that methylhexaneamine was not particularly named on the 2008 rundown of disallowed substances, it "fell inside the extent of the general preclusion of stimulants having a comparative compound structure or comparable natural impact as the recorded stimulants," the three-part IOC board composed.

Carter can advance the authorize to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. In any case, the IOC board effectively foreseen one test in its composed decision.

"The Court of Arbitration for Sport ("CAS") has affirmed that the nearness or utilization of substances falling inside the extent of bland meanings of the disallowed rundown, can be utilized as a premise of building up hostile to doping rules infringement," the decision said.

TN Governor promulgates ordinance to conduct Jallikattu

The bill to supplant today's statute on Jallikattu will be tabled in State Assembly on January 23 when the main Assembly session starts.

Tamil Nadu Governor Vidyasagar Rao on Saturday proclaimed the statute for directing the state's well established bull-restraining sport Jallikattu following a three-year boycott. Boss Minister O Panneerselvam, meanwhile, has said the game will be held crosswise over Tamil Nadu tomorrow. He will likewise initiate the game at Alanganallur at 10 am on Sunday. Panneerselvam additionally expressed gratitude toward the Center for its support. "For the benefit of Government and individuals of TN, thank you for your support in empowering Jallikattu to be held in Tamil Nadu at the end of the day," he stated, including that since the law will keep going for six months, the administration will detail another law to that the game can occur without impediment.

Individuals In Chennai Celebrate Center's Nod To Jallikattu Ordinance

Reviewing his connection with the Prime Minister on January 19 on the issue, Panneerselvam said the Tamil Nadu

government had issued an Ordinance, empowering the lead of the bull-restraining sport, in the wake of acquiring the earlier guidelines of the President as conceived under Article 213 of the Constitution. "The Ordinance was proclaimed today by the legislature of Tamil Nadu and jallikattu is to be directed with standard intensity everywhere throughout the state with all the fundamental shields," he said.

Then, in spite of the law and arrangements in Madurai, nonconformists demand for changes in PCA Act as the last arrangement. They said no bulls will be taken to field on Sunday unless there is a transitory arrangement, which is an amendement in PCA Act. Meanwhile, state serves on Sunday will introduce the game in their particular locale at 11 am. The bill to supplant today's statute on Jallikattu will be tabled in State Assembly on January 23 when the main Assembly session starts.

Alanganallur is popular for leading jallikattu occasions. Area Collector K Veera Raghava Rao said everything is

prepared and they are sitting tight for the green flag from the legislature. Authorities said with the Collector assessing the setting, the game is probably going to be held in a day or two. The Center had the previous evening cleared a law on jallikattu, making ready for the Tamil Nadu government to proclaim it with an end goal to end the dissents that have incapacitated the state throughout the previous five days.

Jallikattu is a conventional occasion held in Tamil Nadu as a feature of Pongal festivities. Be that as it may, the peak court restricted it in 2014, mulling over the security of individuals and creatures required in the game.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni steps down as captain of India's ODI and T20I teams

HIGHLIGHTS

1.Dhoni had already retired from Test cricket in December 2014

2.India have won World Cup, World Twenty20, Champions Trophy titles under Dhoni's leadership

3.However, he will be available for selection for ODIs and T20Is vs England

Mahendra Singh Dhoni has stepped down as captain of India's ODI and T20 International teams, the BCCI said on Twitter.

The 35-year-old had already retired from Test cricket in December 2014. Dhoni had led India to the ICC World T20 tittle in 2007, to the World Cup victory in 2011 and lifted the Champions Trophy in 2013.
However, he will be available for selection for ODIs & T20Is vs England.

"Mahendra Singh Dhoni has informed the BCCI, that he wishes to step down as the captain of the Indian Cricket Team from the One Day Internationals and the T20 Internationals formats of the game," a statement from the board read.

"He will be available for the selection for the One-Day and T20I series against England and the same has been conveyed to the Senior Selection Committee."

Commenting on the development, BCCI Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Rahul Johri said: "On behalf of every Indian cricket fan and the BCCI, I would like to thank MS Dhoni for his outstanding contribution as the captain of the Indian team across all formats."

"Under his leadership, Indian team has touched new heights and his achievements will remain etched forever in the annals of Indian cricket," he added.Test skipper Virat Kohli is the front-runner to replace the wicketkeeper-batsman at the helm.

Dhoni has been in indifferent form lately and his leadership has increasingly come under the scanner after India lost successive series against Bangladesh, South Africa and Australia in 2015-16. Defending the World Cup in 2015, Dhoni led India to the semifinals before a crushing defeat to Australia. Dhoni had an ordinary time with the bat last year too. He, however, tasted plenty of success as captain of India's T20 team. Dhoni oversaw a 3-0 whitewash over Australia, a series win over Sri Lanka and the Asia Cup triumph. There was heartbreak in the World T20 when India crashed out in the semifinals against West Indies. Later in the year, Dhoni scripted series victories over Zimbabwe and New Zealand. Virat Kohli is likely to take over as captain after having successfully led India to the top of the ICC Test rankings. He was in superb form across all formats last year and scored a staggering 2595 international runs including 1215 runs in Test matches. The three-match ODI series against England will be the last chance Kohli has to prepare before India defend the Champions Trophy in June. India also play three T20 Internationals against England.

Right here ICC best Cricketer of the year

Ashwin become the simplest Indian in ICC's take a look at team of the yr and became also named the check Cricketer of the year.
India's most appropriate off-spinnerRavichandran Ashwin on Thursday became named the worldwide Cricket Council's (ICC) Cricketer of the yr, even as take a look at skipper Virat Kohli was chosen to guide the ODI crew of the 12 months. 

Ashwin became the most effective Indian in ICC's test team of the year and become additionally named the check Cricketer of the year. Batsman Rohit Sharma and all-rounder Ravindra Jadejawere named inside the ODI team. 
Pakistan captain Misbah-Ul-Haq received the ICC Spirit of Cricket Award, turning into the first player of his united states to win the award. 
South Africa's Quinton de Kock became decided on the ODI Cricketer of the 12 months. Afghanistan's Mohammad Shahzad was named the ICC associate/associate Cricketer of the 12 months at the same time as the West Indies all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite received the T20 worldwide overall performance of the 12 months. Bangladesh tempo sensation Mustafizur Rahman was given the rising Cricketer of the 12 months.
Legends Rahul Dravid, Gary Kirsten and Kumar Sangakkara selected the ICC check and ODI facets based totally on players' performances within the duration from September 14 2015 to September 20 2016. 
England's Alastair prepare dinner became named the captain of the check group of the year, which included four Englishmen, 3 Australians, and a participant every from New Zealand, India, Sri Lanka and South Africa. It changed into the 0.33 time cook has been appointed captain, at the same time as it the 8th time in nine years that Dale Steyn changed into selected. Joe Root, David Warner and Kane Williamson were chosen for the 0.33 successive yr. The check team: David Warner (Australia), Alastair cook (England, captain), Kane Williamson (New Zealand), Joe Root (England), Adam Voges (Australia), Jonny Bairstow (England, wicketkeeper), Ben Stokes (England), R. Ashwin (India), Rangana Herath (Sri Lanka), Mitchell Starc (Australia), Dale Steyn (South Africa), Steve Smith (Australia) .The ODI team of the year, blanketed 3 Australians, Indians, South Africans every, and one each from England and the West Indies. AB De Villiers has been decided on for the 6th time seeing that 2010, even as Starc has been picked up for the third time in four years. 
Starc and his team-mate Warner are the handiest two gamers to have been selected in each the check and ODI aspects in 2016. 
The ODI group: David Warner (Australia), Quinton de Kock (South Africa, wicketkeeper), Rohit Sharma (India), Virat Kohli, (India, captain), AB de Villiers (South Africa), Jos Buttler (England), Mitchell Marsh (Australia), Ravindra Jadeja (India), Mitchell Starc (Australia), Kagiso Rabada (South Africa), Sunil Narine (West Indies), Imran Tahir (South Africa).

Karun Nair becomes second Indian to score triple ton, India score highest team total in Tests

Eight years back, Virender Sehwag demoralised a star-studded South Africa unit as he made his way to second triple century in Test cricket. That was in Chennai where the opener smashed 319 runs for India, still the highest individual score for India. It took right more for an Indian cricketer to repeat the feat and where better than Chennai to do it.
Karun Nair became the second Indian to score a triple ton in Test cricket as the smashed unbeaten 303 runs off just 381 balls and powered India to their highest ever team total in Tests.
India declared their first innings at 759 for the loss of seven wickets in the fifth Test against England. The total gave India a lead of 282 runs as England had bundled out for 477 in their first innings on day two.
The visitors were 12 for no loss, still behind India by 270 runs, from the five bowlers they faced on day four in their second innings.

The day belong to the Nair, who blazed through the innings. The punished the England bowlers and once he got his double century he went into a different mode and dealt in boundaries.
Karun, playing only his third Test for India, became the first player to covert his maiden Test century into a triple ton. He reached the feat when he struck Adil Rashid for a boundary through point region and raised his arms to celebrate. That was his 32nd four and he struck four sixes as well.
Resuming the day at 71*, Nair went on to score his maiden hundred of just 185 balls and then converted that into a double ton off 306 balls.
India began the day at 391 for four but lost Murali Vijay for 29. Local boy R Ashwin joined Nair and then added 181 runs for the fifth wicket and also scored his 10th Test fifty to put his team in command.
Nair could have been dismissed twice but he was dropped at slips twice in course of his innings. He was dropped on 34 by Alastair Cook on day three and then on day four by Joe Root when the right-hander was
on 217s
Ravindra Jadeja then made a almost run-a-ball fifty and stretched India’s total past 700. After getting his 250, Nair took on every bowler. India declared as soon as he got to his triple ton.
England captain Alastair Cook was unbeaten on three with his opening partner Keaton Jennings on nine after a tiring day for the visitors.

Not a joke: NFL adding dodgeball in attempt to liven up Pro Bowl

The NFL will attempt to invigorate the Pro Bowl by adding a dodgeball game between their players.No, this is not a joke.This is real.The league announced Monday they are adding a skills competition to what they are calling a “re-imagined” Pro Bowl week leading up to the actual Pro Bowl on 29 January. The skills or as it might be better said “skills” competition will take place three days before year-end exhibition game between the NFL’s all-stars and will be run by the producers of the TV shows American Ninja Warrior and Hell’s Kitchen.


While there is extreme potential to turn the Pro Bowl into a sideshow so absurd that the whole idea of an all-star game might be killed for good, the Pro Bowl has been something of a joke for some time. Played for most of its ignominious history in Hawaii, players treated the game and the week before it as a vacation, making the game something of a glorified flag football contest. So many players drop out each year, creating such a deep pool of replacements that the idea of being a Pro Bowler has been devalued in the last two decades.The NFL has long struggled to find footing for the game, at times moving it to the mainland, playing it either a week before or a week after the Super Bowl and finally eliminating league designations in favor of two teams chosen pick-up style. None of these novelties have worked. The Pro Bowl has remained an afterthought for fans. Ratings have languished and the whole concept has seemed to be a farce. There was probably nothing else for the NFL to do than let reality TV producers take charge.

In addition to dodgeball, the “skills” competition will feature relay races, a game in which players will throw balls at moving targets and a best hands contest. The league said the night will include “quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, tight ends, linemen, linebackers and defensive backs”, presumably eliminating kickers and punters.The NFL has tried similar ventures in the past, most memorably a flag football game during which Patriots running back Robert Edwards blew out his knee, ruining a promising NFL career.

India U-17 team lose 0-1 to Orlando City in Brazil

India started their campaign in the Atletico Paranaense U-17 tournament on a bitter note as they went down to US-based club Orlando City SC 0-1, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) said on Tuesday.
India earned an early corner riding a bright start with Ninthoi coming close to opening the scoring in the 15th minute on Monday, AIFF said in a statement here.
Both teams went into the change-over goalless. (India U-17 World Cup team leaves for exposure trips to Brazil, Russia)
In the 47th minute of the game, Orlando found the back of the net from a blistering counter-attack.


Towards the end of the game, Abhijit, Joysana and Shubham Sarangi were introduced by coach Nicolai Adam to find the equaliser -- but in vain.
India will face tournament hosts Atletico Paranaense on Wednesday.

India vs England, 4th Test: Poor team selection

England have lost their series against India with a match to spare, and their loss at Mumbai's Wankhede stadium has been brutally embarrassing as they became the just the third team in the history of Test cricket to score 400 and then lose by an innings. It took India just eight overs to claim the final four England wickets to
wrap up victory, with Ravichandran Ashwin claiming all four to finish with match figures of 12 for 167. Ashwin and Virat Kohli made the biggest difference, but man for man, India were just better.

The mistakes that England made in this match, and in this series, were pretty obvious. It began with team selection. On a pitch that was bone dry and dusty on day one, England selected four seam bowlers. It did not take long for it to become obvious that this was the wrong way to go, but England have struggled to find the right balance throughout this series. In the first three Tests they picked too many spinners, in this Test they had one too many seamer.

It may seem strange to say a side had too many bowling options, but it is hard for a sixth bowler to have much of an impact in Test cricket. You will either have one bowler who is underused or you have to give fewer overs to the men most likely to claim wickets. Over this series, Alastair Cook has found himself doing both of these things, and neither has been successful.


In this Test in Mumbai it was Chris Woakes who was the man to be given virtually nothing to do. Woakes bowled just 16 overs out of the 183 that England sent down in India's massive innings of 631. There was a period in the middle of India's innings where Woakes was not given a bowl for 77 overs. While Woakes has a fine first class record as a batsman, you would not select him to do just that. He followed up his 11 runs in the first innings with a duck in the second. He won't have many joyful memories from his visit to Mumbai.

England are hugely fortunate to have two frontline bowlers who are capable of batting in the top six in Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali. That should allow them to balance their team brilliantly. Instead, they have managed to take that positive and turn it into a large seabird necklace. In the past they have been happy to bat Moeen at eight or nine in the order. This series, they have insisted on keeping him in the top six rather than bolstering a batting line-up that hasn't fired since the first Test in Rajkot. Even if he is batting at eight, having a batsman low down in the order is better than a bowler who doesn't bowl.

The make-up of England's squad has not aided them in this regard. They have two spare batsmen in the touring party, but both have struggled badly. Picking Gary Ballance for the Tests against Pakistan in the summer didn't make a huge amount of sense at the time. Ballance had done nothing to suggest the technical flaws that had seen him dropped had been ironed out, and his pitiful series in Bangladesh made him unpickable.

One of the positives of the Bangladesh tour was Ben Duckett's batting. He made two fifties in the ODIs and a second innings half-century in the second Test in Dhaka as an opener. Ballance's struggles meant that Haseeb Hameed was brought in to open and Duckett was moved down to number four. Whether Duckett would have done well opening is up for debate, but in the middle order he batted three times, scored 18 runs and was dismissed by Ashwin three times. After two Tests he joined Ballance as a long-term drinks carrier.

So when England were picking a team for the Tests in Mohali and Mumbai, they had nowhere to go from a batting point of view, and when given the chance to bring in a batsman to replace the injured Zafar Ansari, they called upon the services of Liam Dawson, another spin-bowling all-rounder. It wouldn't be surprising to see Dawson playing in the final Test in Chennai. England don't have many other options to try.

Having made 400 in their first innings, England would have been hopeful of at least drawing this match, even if winning the game was beyond them. It is rare to lose a match after getting that sort of total batting first, rarer still to do so by an innings. But again, the mistakes crept in. Cook captained on the fourth morning like a disinterested civil servant on his last afternoon in the office before retirement. Neither James Anderson nor Adil Rashid bowled in the first hour of play as Kohli and Jayant took a tricky overnight lead of 51 to a match-winning one of 205 before their partnership was broken. His future as leader of this Test side is up for debate.

Jayant was dropped on eight and went on to score 104. Kohli was dropped on 68 and finished on 235. Even with those drops England had chances to keep themselves in this match. They had India six wickets down with 307 runs on the board and they could have bowled them out for a total of around 400. Instead they allowed India's lower order to more than double the score. They went from a strong position to a match-losing one as Kohli and India's long tail ground England into Mumbai's red dust.

This tour was always going to end in defeat for England. The relative strengths of these two teams in these conditions made that inevitable. Until now, England have managed to stave off a truly embarrassing loss. In Mumbai they were on the wrong end of just that. Their best hope of staving off a 4-0 series defeat is rain in Chennai.

Rahane out of Test series, Manish Pandey called up

Manish Pandey, the Karnataka batsman, has been called up to the Indian Test team as a replacement for Ajinkya Rahane for the fourth Test to be played in Mumbai starting Thursday (December 8).

Rahane was hit on the hand while practicing in the nets on Wednesday and the blow resulted in an avulsion fracture on the right index finger.

The Mumbai middle-order batsman and India Test vice-captain has been ruled out of the remainder of the Test series against England.


BCCI confirmed the news through a media release, saying: "Ajinkya Rahane sustained an avulsion fracture on his right index finger and has been ruled out for the remaining two Test matches of the Paytm series 2016 against England. A ball stuck Rahane during the practice session today."

Rahane has not had the best of series thus far, with a top score of 26 in five innings so far, but his injury will still come as a big blow for the Indian side which has already suffered some injury setbacks.
Their pace spearhead, Mohammed Shami is a doubt for the Test, too, and a back-up in the form of Mumbai pacer Shardul Thakur has been called up. Shami has been suffering from a sore knee and a call on whether he can play in Mumbai will be taken on the eve of the Test.

"Mumbai medium pacer Shardul Thakur has been called as back up for India pacer Mohammed Shami, who is nursing a sore knee. The BCCI medical team is closely monitoring his progress and a decision on his participation will be taken before the start of the fourth Test match," the BCCI release said.

India squad:

Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli(c), Parthiv Patel, Karun Nair, Manish Pandey, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Jayant Yadav, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Karun Nair, Amit Mishra, Shardul Thakur

PV Sindhu pulls out of Macau Open badminton tournament

HIGHLIGHTS

* Sindhu won the Macau Open three times.
Saina will remain India's most prominent name in the draw.
* Sindhu wants to prepare for BWF Super Series Finals in Dubai.
* After two splendid performances at the China Open and Hong Kong Open, PV Sindhu has decided to give the Macau Open a miss.


Sindhu is the defending champion at the Macau Open, where she was seeded second behind Saina Nehwal this year. In fact, Sindhu has been a regular visitor at the Macau Open and has won three back-to-back titles from 2013 at the Grand Prix event.

"I wanted to take some rest after two back-to-back events in China and Hong Kong. So, I had to withdraw from the Macau Open and focus on the World Super Series Finals in December," Sindhu told India Today. (It wasn't my day: Sindhu after losing Hong Kong Open final )

Saina will remain India's most prominent name in the draw now as she takes on Indonesian Hanna Ramadini in the opening round.

For Sindhu, the last two weeks have been very satisfying as she clinched her maiden Super Series title in China and then followed it up with a silver at the Hong Kong Open, another Super Series event.

Sindhu returned home on Monday after her brilliant performances in the last couple of weeks and will be back to training for the BWF Super Series Finals in Dubai, which kicks off on December 14-18.

Only the world's top-8 players make the cut for the Super Series Finals. As per the BWF World Super Series rankings, Sindhu is placed at the 10th spot, but she will be placed higher when the new rankings are generated later this week.

Before the Hong Kong Open, only one spot was left for the season finale and there were a few names, including Saina, who were in contention for that lone spot. But Sindhu's second-place finish at the Hong Kong Open ensured that she will be the one to grab that sole spot for the Super Series Finals.

For Sindhu this has been a very satisfying year with the Olympic silver medal in Rio being the most important of the four events in which she has finished on the podium.

Saina Nehwal a win away from face-off with PV Sindhu

Saina Nehwal got a stiff workout — a typical long match with longer rallies — against Japanese Sayaka Sato as she headed into her first decisive Friday knockout in a long while, returning from surgery and rehab at Hong Kong on Thursday.


The 51-minute 21-19, 9-21, 21-16 win had got edgy at 15-14 in the third game, but the Indian showed her class in pulling away from a potential climactic scrap and entering the quarters.

Nehwal is a match away from running into compatriot PV Sindhu in the semis — which will be only their second international face-off, should both win on Friday. But the enticing duel aside, the Round 2 win was crucial for Nehwal’s confidence after she overturned another result in her opening round against Thai Porntip Buranaprasertsuk – a 56 minute contest.
It was normal service resumed as Nehwal — who’s been the epitome of consistency — made the familiar last 8, which until the injury was considered commonplace for her. The London Olympics bronze medallist and Worlds runners-up had shrugged off her Round 1 loss in China — her first match since her return — and looked to be getting into the groove.
“Another big victory today against world number 11 from Japan …Sayaka sato .Happy to see that I m improving every match” (sic),” she tweeted soon after.

Nehwal had said that her confidence of having beaten the Thai before had propelled her through the long match when the slow shuttles protracted the battle.
She next meets Hong Kong’s 23-year-old Cheung Ngan Yi, who made the semifinals in Denmark last month.

The Indian 26-year-old won their only previous match at last year’s World Championship.

Continuing her fine run from China, Sindhu was clinical in beating Hsu Ya Ching of Taipei 21-10, 21-14. The China Open champ meets Singaporean Xiaoyu Liang. The two had played a tricky 24-22 first game in a Commonwealth Games team event match, which Sindhu won eventually. Much has changed for the Indian since that 2014 hiccup, and she will hope to string another good week after the title triumph last week.
Her potential square-off with Nehwal is terribly exciting for Indian fans, though Sindhu would want the run to culminate in a second successive title.

There was good news for India’s men’s singles players with Sameer Verma following up on his shock win over Japanese Takuma Ueda with another over Kazumasa Sakai — a scorching 19-21, 21-15, 21-11 come-from behind victory for his first quarterfinal of a Super Series meet.
Finally, Ajay Jayram was convincing in his 21-18, 21-19 downing of Chinese Huang Yuxiang. “Good win today. The conditions here are tricky due to the drift. But I did well from both ends and control.

Murray caps rise to number one with Paris title

PARIS: Andy Murray celebrated his new world number one ranking with a first Paris Masters title on Sunday after defeating American John Isner 6-3, 6-7 (4/7), 6-4 in the final.

Murray, 29, replaces Novak Djokovic at the top of the rankings on Monday and claimed his eighth title of a remarkable season after extending his winning run to 19 matches.
"This has been an incredible journey for me to get to the top of the rankings," said Murray, who will move 405 points above long-time rival Djokovic.


It is the Briton's fourth title in succession after wins in Beijing, Shanghai and Vienna and his 14th career Masters 1000 triumph.
For Isner, who was chasing a first title of the season, it was his third appearance in a Masters final after finishing runner-up at Indian Wells in 2012 and Cincinnati in 2013.
"I have to congratulate Andy, first for the title, and then for getting to number one in the world," said Isner.

"That's an incredible achievement, you absolutely deserve it."

Murray entered his Tour-leading 12th final of the year having won all seven previous meetings with Isner, including straight-sets wins at Roland Garros in May and last week in Vienna.
The towering American had dropped serve just three times en route to the final but netted a routine volley to hand Murray break point in the fifth game.
His backhand then sailed long the following rally as Murray forged ahead, saving two break points on his ensuing service game before claiming the opening set.
Murray fought off four break points after rebounding from 0-40 at 3-4 in the second set, but Isner prevailed in the tie-break after a costly double fault from the second seed.
The Scot was then frustrated as he twice failed to convert break points during Isner's first two service games in the deciding set.
But Murray held firm and was rewarded when Isner faltered as he tried to stay in the match serving at 4-5 down.
The world number 27 dug himself out of a hole after trailing 0-30, but a backhand volley into the net presented Murray with match point.
Isner approached the net once more and Murray's return was again too hot to handle, leaving the new number one to hoist aloft the trophy.

Kabaddi World Cup 2016: India's do-or-die specialist

Deepak Hooda's obvious strength is his all-round ability. Deepak is equally able in his duties as a raider or a defender. However in season four of the Pro Kabaddi League, Deepak performed well for Puneri Paltan in the do-or-die raids. With India not having any other specific player in the squad for this role, Deepak could end up doing that job for India.

Part of the gold medal-winning Indian teams at the 2014 Asian Games and 2016 South Asian Games.

Form is temporary, but class is permanent. India's most in-form all-rounder going into the Kabaddi World Cup has both. With 126 raid points in the most recent Pro Kabaddi League season, Deepak achieved something very extraordinary. Despite playing in a team that has finished third for the last two seasons and has specialist raiders like Ajay Thakur, Nitin Tomar and of course Manjeet Chhillar, Deepak Hooda astonishingly managed to get promoted to the team's top raider position. Moreover, he played a key role in making the Pune team's defence impenetrable in the league for the last two seasons.

The 23-year-old has grown in stature with every passing season. With Telugu Titans in the first two seasons, he was a promising youngster, but with Puneri Paltan he moved toa higher level with his progress. Few have been able to outshine Manjeet Chhillar on a kabaddi court but Deepak did it in season fourof the PKL. If he continues to blossom at this rate, Deepak Hooda will soon be a household name.


Having faced challenges from a very young age, Deepak has tackled all of them head-on. Hailing from a village in Rohtak district in Haryana, Deepak lost his mother at the young age of three. He grew up shuttling between school and his father's farm, before tragedy struck him again when he was in class 12th. His father passed away leaving the responsibility of his sister and her two kids onhis young shoulders.Many would have given up their passion and education to earn their daily bread, but Deepakwasn't willing to go down that path. "I had seen many players from my village play kabaddi and get a good job. So I continued playing kabaddi. I used to get up at 3 am in the morning travel, 28kms to the training center, come back and then go to a school to teach as that was my only source of income. Then I used to go to the field sometimes before once again rushing to the training center for practice by 6 pm." Deepak revealed to Firstpostinan exclusive interview.From those testing times, Deepak has come along way. After spending three years away from education, he went back to college and is currently in the final year of his Bachelor of Arts course.Deepak's aspirations and dreams did not die despite his difficult childhood. That hunger in him to achieve more still drives him.

The all-rounder now wants to represent India for another ten years and win more trophies, starting from the 2016 World Cup in Ahmedabad. His recent form and newly-developed abilities in a 'do-or-die' raid make him a god bet for a starting spot, but the in-form all-rounder will be a lot more than just a do-or-die specialist.

Ryder Cup 2016 standout on many fronts: Curtis Strange

Curtis Strange has played on five U.S. Ryder Cup teams and captained another, but the 61-year-old American says this week’s 41st edition of the biennial matches at Hazeltine National stands out.“It keeps getting bigger and better. Thisyear, it’s phenomenal. Look at all the people. I’ve never seen such a mass of humanity,” Curtis Strange told Reuters with a chuckle during Saturday’s fourballs.“The grounds can handle it, the golf course can handle it.

And the play has been out of this world, I think.”Crowds estimated at 50,000 have turned out for the match play competition that brings out the best in players and the partisan passions of their fans.“That’s what this thing is all about, it’s the big roars,” said Strange. “And when you go over there, it’s the other side with the big roars.”Cheering on your team, and dressing for the part, helps make the magic of the event, but sometimes behaviour can cross the line into breaches of golf etiquette including unsportsmanlike heckling.

Strange noticed the uptick in disruptive behaviour.“It only takes a few, doesn’t it,” said Strange. “They’re policing it pretty well, I understand, but there’s a lot of people to police.“You want to see the fans root really hard for their team but be polite to the other. Overall, it’s been like that, but there’s a few. You hate to see it. You want to respect the other team, they are our guests, in our country.”“But you’ve got to remember, every hole is a different 5,000 or 10,000 people. It’s the Ryder Cup.”Emotions at this Ryder Cup have been fuelled by a losing streak as Europe have won the last three competitions and eight of the last 10.SCATHING LAMPOONINGSome fans were set off by a scathing, published lampooning of U.S. golf fans by the brother of European player Danny Willett, whose match Strange was following at Hazeltine.“I really feel for Danny Willett this week.It’s none of his doing, he’s a nice young man, a great representation of his team. You hate to see it. But you have to give him credit, he’s handled it well.”Strange said the heckling was a shame,since there is such good will between the players in these times.“In my day, there was some animosity because we didn’t know the guys so well,” he said.“But now they all play together. They’re all friends. They play the world golf championships together, they play the majors together and that’s if they don’t play over here.

Half their team plays onthe U.S. tour.“They have the same thing in common, trying to be the best they can be.”Strange remembered when the U.S. totally dominated the Ryder Cup and it was a much lower profiled event.“The first year it was a big thing over here was in 1987 after we lost in ’85 over there at The Belfry. I was on both teams, and came back to Muirfield Village in ’87 and there it was 25,000-strong out there every day.“Whereas in 1983 there was 2,000 people at Palm Beach Gardens. It got big after that.”At Muirfield Village, under captain TonyJacklin, Europe posted a 15-13 victory for its first triumph on U.S. soil, one that helped turn the Ryder Cup into the showcase event it has become in the world of sports.

F1: Alonso to get 30-place penalty for using new engine

Rules permit a driver to use no more than five complete power units and their constituent components over the course of a season.Running the upgraded power unit will result in Alonso taking on new variants of five of the six components that comprise it, which will cost the Spaniard 30 places on the 22-car Sepang grid.

The double world champion took a similarly hefty engine-related penalty in last month’s Belgian Grand Prix at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit, where he also exceeded his permitted allocation of power unit parts."We knew these penalties would come," said Alonso, who lost some of his allocation of power units to reliability issues earlier in the season."One of the best places was Spa because of the conditions of our engines at that point.


The second best was maybe Malaysia because the weather could play a big factor in the race..."Honda, engine suppliers to the Woking-based McLaren squad, have made steady progress aftera difficult renewal of their once-dominant partnership last season.The upgrade they have brought to Malaysia this weekend is the latest in a spate of enhancementsthey have been making to the engine over the course of the year.The latest change features a lighter engine block and a redesigned exhaust aimed at boosting the power unit’s efficiency, a Honda spokesperson said.Alonso will run it during Friday's opening practicesession, with Honda deciding whether to leave it in the car for the second 90-minute session in theafternoon.They will revert to their old-specification power unit for Saturday’s qualifying and the race.Alonso finished seventh in Belgium, despite having started dead last, and is targeting another points finish on Sunday."That's the target for both cars," he said."Even if I start last then hopefully we can recover places quite soon."The 35-year-old, who took his first pole position inMalaysia and has won the race three times, is 11th in the drivers’ standings.Team mate Jenson Button, celebrating his 300th grand prix start this weekend is 19 points adrift in15th.

India Beat Bangladesh men's Asia hockey game

what was almost a replay of the opening game, the two teams treated the fans to a thrilling nine-goal encounter with India emerging triumphant in the end to be crowned the champions.

In what was almost a replay of the opening game, the two teams treated the fans to a thrilling nine-goal encounter with India emerging triumphant in the end to be crowned the champions.India got off to a quick start and kept the ball in their possession as they searched for an opening to penetrate the rival circle.

Their approach paid off as they won their first Penalty Corner in the 6th minute itself. After an initial error, India recovered and improvised to take a shot on goal, but the attempt went in vain.While India held the possession, Bangladesh waited for the counter. From a counter, the home team won a PC, and after the initial save by Pankaj Kumar Rajak, M Roman Sarkar netted the ball to give the hosts the lead.

India were quick to score the equaliser through Shivam Anand, who picked up a pass on the edge of the circle and cut back in, running past two Bangladesh defenders to execute a perfect reverse flick into the net.India earned one more PC but yet another error denied them a goal.

From a counter Bangladesh ran through the midfield, before a cross from the left found Mohammad Mohsin, who deflected the ball to give the hosts a lead again to go into the break 2-1 up.

After the break, India levelled the scores via Hardik Singh's PC before Dilpreet Singh netted the ball to hand the visiting team a 3-1 lead.

In a topsy turvy game, almost a replay of their opening encounter, Bangladesh equalised with Mohammed Ashraful Islam scoring a goal in the 60th minute.But Ibungo Singh Konjengbam fired India back in the front again.

Bangladesh also fought back and Mahabub Hossain levelled the scores after a quick counter in the 64th minute.

With the scores tied 4-4 and the threat of a shootout looming, a quick counter saw Abhishek in the box and his deflection guided India to the title with just seconds to the hooter.

Hardik Singh was named the Man of the Match, while Pankaj Kumar Rajak was named the Best Goalkeeper of the tournament.

National Ranking Table Tennis Championships: Manav, Moumita claim Junior titles

Indore: Putting his quarterfinal loss in Youth Boysbehind, top-seed Manav Thakkar of PSPB outplayed West Bengal’s Jeet Chandra to lift the Junior Boys title with a 4-0 verdict even as Moumita Datta, making amends for her state mate’s loss, defeated Maharashtra’s Manushree Patil 4-2 for the Junior Girls crown in the 11Even Sports National Ranking (Central Zone) Table Tennis Championships starts at the Abhay Prashal here today.


Manav had just about 10 minutes break after his Youth Boys quarterfinal in which he lost to Delhi’sUtkarsh Gupta 4-3. Forgetting the disappointment, Manav stepped into the show-court arena with all determination to play the Junior Boys final and it was visible from the word go as the end-result showed.

After leading 3-0, Manav was pushed to the wall in the fourth game when Jeet led 10-7. But Manav, who is known to come out of any tricky situation, did the impossible and won the four game 12-10 . In fact, he was unstoppable before that even for a player of Jeet’s calibre who is equally adept at attacking.

Never did any of them relented from attacking and the final made everyone’s day, including Manav’s who was able to go home with at least one title after being in contention for a double.

Moumita Datta played a far superior g’ame to her Maharashtra opponent Manushree Patil and deservingly lifted the winner’s trophy.The intense final began with the players matchingeach other with strokes and the first game went into deuce before Moumita winning it on extended points. Then it was the turn of Manushree to win the next with the minimal point. It was then that the West Bengal paddlers upped the ante and took the next two games to go 3-1 up. But the Maharashtra girl fought back well to lead 8-0 but Moumita closed in on and yet lost fifth game very closely. In the sixth, Moumita surged into a good lead and kept hitting forehand winners to shut out Manushree.

RESULTS:

Junior Boys: Final: Manav Thakkar (PSPB) bt JeetChandra (WB) 11-9, 11-4, 11-7, 12-10; Semifinals: Manav Thakkar (PSPB) bt Manush Shah (Guj) 9-11, 11-3, 11-8, 11-9, 12-10, Jeet Chandra (WB) btParth Virmani (Del) 6-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-8, 14-12.Junior Girls: Final: Moumita Datta (WB) beat Manushree Patil (Mah) 12-10, 9-11, 11-9, 11-6, 9-11, 11-5; Semifinals: Moumita Datta bt Shailu Noorbasha (AP) 9-11, 11-6, 11-8, 11-5, 11-5, Manushree Patil bt Srushti Haleangadi (Mah) 5-11, 11-8, 11-4, 11-9, 12-10.

Elsewhere, Indian hockey team thrashes Pakistan 3-1 to enter U-18 Asia Cup final

New Delhi: The traditional India-Pakistan rivalry took place when the two sides locked-horns in the semifinals of the Under-18 Asia Cup hockey tournament.Amidst the ongoing tussle between the twocountries, India secured a convincing 3-1 triumph over arch rivals Pakistan to setup final clash with Bangladesh.

The two teams have enjoyed success before in the competition, India having been twice—winners in 2001 and fifth in 2009. Pakistan have also twice been part ofthe tournament, it in 2009 and finishing with Bronze in 2011. In the ongoing tournament, the two teams have had a contrasting set of results. Pakistan have brushed past a relatively inexperienced and easy pool with ease, beating Chinese-Taipei 6-1 in their opener and China 6-0 in the next game. They won their final game against Hong Kong 14-0 to top the group.India faced a tough challenge against the hosts in the opening game of the tournament and went down 5-4 in what wasarguably the most exciting match played yet. Brushing off that loss, they defeated Oman 11-0 to take their first points of the competition.India took the lead in the seventh minute through Shivam Anand's strike.It was the Indians who were more clinical in front of the goal, as three minutes from half time they doubled their lead through a penalty corner conversion by Dilpreet Singh(32nd minute).After the change of ends, India continued to assert their supremacy and controlled the possession.

Soon India earned another penalty corner and from the resultant effort secured a penalty stroke but Waqar, in front of Pakistan goal, saved the try to keep his sidein the game.Within minutes though, Nilam Sanjeep Xess (46th) converted another penalty corner to give India a comfortable 3-0 lead.Pakistan managed to pull a goal back through Amjad Ali Khan (63rd) but it provedto be too little too late as India held on to emerge 3-1 victorious.India will meet hosts Bangladesh in the final tomorrow.Soon after the win, Sports Minister Vijay Goel took to twitter to congratulate the Indian colts for their triumph over Pakistan.

Ashwin becomes No. 2 in ICC Test Rankings, top place in sight

Courtesy his 10-wicket haul in the Kanpur Test against New Zealand, India off-spinner R Ashwin today gained a place to be second in the latest ICC Rankings and another good performance in the second match in Kolkata will propel him to the coveted top spot.Ashwin’s match haul of 10 for 225, that helped India notch a 197-run victory in the first Test, saw him overtake England’s James Anderson by one point.He is now within seven points of number-one ranked Dale Steyn of South Africa, who leads the Rankings for Test Bowlers with 878 points.


A strong performance in the Kolkata Test, starting Friday, will potentially seeAshwin top the bowling charts for the second time in 2016 after first claimingthe number-one position last year following the Boxing Day Tests.Ashwin also contributed with a useful innings of 40 to consolidate his position at the top of the list of all-rounders. Ashwin has reached a career-best rating of 450, opening up a 66-point gap with second-placed Shakib Al Hasan of Bangladesh.

New Zealand captain Williamson has similarly edged England’s Joe Root by one point with innings of 75 and 25 in Kolkata to reach 879 points in the Rankings for Test Batsmen, which is led by Australia captain Steve Smith with 906 points.However, to move ahead or edge even closer to Smith, Williamson will have to produce strong performances in the remaining two Tests.There was not much to cheer for other New Zealand batsmen apart from Williamson, but for India, opener Murali Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara made significant gains.Vijay and Pujara, who became the first Indian pair in 10 years to notch century partnerships in both innings of a Test match, moved up from joint-20th position to joint-16th position.Other Indian batsmen to move up were Lokesh Rahul, who gained five ranks to reach 57th position, and Rohit Sharma, who gained two slots to reach 52nd rank.Victory in its 500th Test means India is now one victory away from reclaiming the ICC Test Championship mace from Pakistan.

India had entered the series trailing Pakistan by one point and needed to win the series to move ahead of its traditional rival.Meanwhile, India’s Ravindra Jadeja, who took six wickets in the Kanpur match and also contributed with the bat in the lower order, gained a place ofto be seventh.Ajinkya Rahane dropped out of top-10 after losing three positions to be 11th and India captainVirat Kohli, who struggled to score in both the innings isnow at number 20, a, loss of four positions.

Novak Djokovic withdraws from China Open

Novak Djokovic says he has withdrawn from the China Open because of an elbow injury.The defending champion says he is “extremely disappointed” to miss the tournament in Beijing, where he has won four consecutive titles and has 29 victories in a row.

The 29-year-old Djokovic says he “will continue with my rehabilitation and hope to be able to return to the ATP Tour as soon as possible.”The U.S. Open finalist has had a poor midseason, losing at the Olympics and Wimbledon in the early stages.


He has reportedly had physical and personal issues which reflected on his recent results.