SQUASH
Joshna advances, Dipika falls in New York meet
Joshna Chinappa saw off Egyptian wildcard Kanzy El Defrawy while qualifier Mariam Metwally surprised India’s 13th seed Dipika Pallikal in the first round of the Tournament of Champions squash tournament here.
The match held late on Saturday evening saw Mariam scripting a straight game win over Dipika with scores of 11-7, 12-10, 11-6.
For Joshna, the other leading lady of Indian squash, it was a positive start. The 15th seed set aside the aspirations of Kanzy but only after surviving a scare. Joshna won 8-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-7 in what proved a tough 59-minute tussle.PTI
Tennis
Wawrinka starts season with fourth Chennai title
Top seed Stanislas Wawrinka ( below ) beat Croatian youngster Borna Coric on Sunday to capture the ATP Chennai Open for a third straight year, kicking off the new season in winning style.
The Swiss world number four overcame Coric in the $480,000 season-opening event with a 6-3, 7-5 win in the nearly 90-minute final, claiming his fourth victory since 2011 in the southern Indian city.
Scores of Indian fans at the Nungambakkam tennis stadium cheered wildly as the popular Wawrinka, making his eighth appearance in Chennai, outplayed his 19-year-old opponent – the youngest finalist on the ATP Tour in eight years.
“I was expecting (a) really tough match. He’s young, he’s really good,” said the two-time Grand Slam winner.AFP
Raonic confident of Grand Slam success
Big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic ( above ) said he was confident of Grand Slam success this year after stunning Roger Federer to win the Brisbane International on Sunday.
Raonic, 25, broke the 17-time Grand Slam champion once in each set to take the final 6-4, 6-4, only his second win over Federer in 11 meetings.
Federer had been improving every round after starting the tournament with a slight illness but was no match for Raonic, who served powerfully and came to the net at every opportunity.
The win gave Raonic his eighth title on the ATP tour and reversed the result of last year’s final, won by 34-year-old Federer in three tight sets.
The Canadian said later the win showed that he could challenge for a Grand Slam title after enduring a tough year in 2015 due to injury.AFP
Kvitova, Radwanska pull out of Sydney International
Defending champion Petra Kvitova and second seed Agnieszka Radwanska ( right ) are the latest stars to have troubled build-ups to this month’s Australian Open after pulling out of the Sydney International on Sunday.
Third-seeded Czech Kvitova will not be able to defend her Sydney title after succumbing to a gastrointestinal illness, which plagued her in China last week.
Poland’s Radwanska joined Kvitova after withdrawing from the Sydney tournament with a left leg injury.
Their withdrawals from the final lead-up tournament to the year’s first grand slam event came after injury problems at other Australian tournaments for the world’s top-four ranked stars – Serena Williams (knee), Simona Halep (Achilles), Garbine Muguruza (foot) and Maria Sharapova (forearm).AFP
Cricket
Afghanistan rout Zimbabwe
Afghanistan’s Mohammad Shahzad smashed the fourth highest score in Twenty20 international history on Sunday when he made 118 in his side’s 81-run rout of Zimbabwe.
The 27-year-old opener carried his bat having already hit Afghanistan’s first ever century in the format, reaching his hundred off 52 balls with eight fours and eight sixes.
Zimbabwe were eventually all out for 134 on Sunday with 11 balls to spare as Afghanistan swept the two-game series having won the first match by just five runs on Friday.AFP
Basketball
Nets fire Hollins
Head coach Lionel Hollins ( above ) paid the price for the Brooklyn Nets’ dismal start to the season on Sunday after being fired following the team’s latest defeat. Hollins was axed while general manager Billy King was reassigned in the wake of the Nets loss on Saturday to the Detroit Pistons.AFP
Badminton
Sindhu leads Chennai’s win over Hyderabad
Star shuttler P V Sindhu ( below ) clinched an exciting Trump match as Chennai Smashers scored a 4-3 win over Hyderabad Hunters in a Premier Badminton League (PBL) clash at the Gachibowli indoor stadium here on Sunday night. Local girl Sindhu beat her Hyderabad rival Supanida K 15-8, 14-15, 15-5 to seal the issue in favour of Chennai.PTI
