Manav, Moumita claim Junior titles

Indore, September 28, 2016: Putting his quarterfinal loss in Youth Boys behind, 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’s Utkarsh 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 game to her Maharashtra opponent Manushree Patil and deservingly lifted the winner’s trophy.

The intense final began with the players matching each 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 Jeet Chandra (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) bt Parth 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.

TTFI release

Manav-Jeet showdown in Junior Boys final

Indore, September 28, 2016: Top-seed Manav Thakkar of PSPB decimated Gujarat’s Manush Shah 4-1 to enter the Junior Boys final of the 11Even Sports National Ranking (Central Zone) Table Tennis Championships starts at the Abhay Prashal here today.

Manav will take on Jeet Chandra in the final later tonight along with the girls match. The second-seeded West Bengal player defeated Delhi’s Parth Virmani 4-1, in an equally one-sided second semifinal.

Both the boys’ semifinals did not raise the kind of interests which the girls semifinals did. Yet, it must be said to the credit for both finalists that they never gave any leeway to their opponents and were just keen to wind up as early as possible for adequate rest before the final.

In a field thrown open to the unseeded players—not a single seed sprouted—in the Junior Girls section, two unseeded players made the occasion memorable for them winning their semifinal matches. In the first, West Bengal’s Moumita Datta defeated Andhra Pradesh’s Shailu Noorbasha 4-1, while it was Manushree Patil of Maharashtra, who downed state mate Srushti Haleangadi 4-1, in the second.

Moumita, who hasn’t had a steady season last year, was at her best today when she took on the Andhra girl. Both prone to attacking, Moumita committed fewer mistakes, particularly on her backhand, whereas Shailu’s error percentage increased by the game. For instance, Shailu looked good when she used the flanks to attack, forcing Moumita on the back foot in the first game which the former won.

After sizing her up and pulling her socks up, Momita did well to level the score in the second with blistering forehands, including some special winners down the line. This opened her out as she adopted the same method in the next three to stop Shailu on her tracks even as the Andhra girl was making more and more mistakes either at the net or failing to keep the ball on table.

A similar pattern was noticed in the Manushree-Srushti match as the latter opened with an easy win.  Yet, Manushree had an upper hand at least until the fifth game when Srushti cashed in on Manushree’s accurate shots deserted her suddenly to give a breather to her state mate. Nevertheless, she kept a slender lead but came down to a solitary point when Srushti made it 10-11 with a timeout. But the one-minute break only helped Manushree who received from Srjushti only to kill it with a precise forehand to the right corner for the match point.

Even in women’s singles, only two seeds—Manika Batra and Madhurika Patkar—survived while all others fell by the wayside on a hot afternoon. Top-seed Suthirtha Mukherjee, also title winner at the Institutional championships, went down to former national champion Paulomi Ghatak 4-3 in a thrilling pre-quarterfinal. She will meet in quarters Divya Deshpande who accounted for Krittwika Sinha Roy 4-3 after the latter squandered away a comfortable lead. Manika Batra beat Railways’ Anandita Chakraborty 4-0 and Ayhika Mukherjee handed out a similar verdict to Mouma Das from top half.

Reeth Rishya downed third seed Pooja Sahasrabuddhe 4-3 to earn a quarterfinal meeting with Ankita Das, who beat Archana Kamath 4-3 while K. Shamini won 4-1 against Takeme Sarkar and Madhurika Patkar beat Pooja Sharma 4-0 to complete the quarterfinal line-up from the bottom half.

RESULTS:

Junior Boys: Semifinals: Manav Thakkar (PSPB) bt Manush Shah (Guj) 9-11, 11-3, 11-8, 11-9, 12-10, Jeet Chandra (WB) bt Parth Virmani (Del) 6-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-8, 14-12.

Junior Girls: Semifinals: Moumita Datta (WB) bt Shailu Noorbasha (AP) 9-11, 11-6, 11-8, 11-5, 11-5, Manushree Patil (mah) bt Srushti Haleangadi (Mah) 5-11, 11-8, 11-4, 11-9, 12-10.

TTFI release

Ananth, Priyanka, Manushree enter main draw

Indore, September 27, 2016: Ananth Devarajan, celebrating his singles entry in the forthcoming World Junior Championships at Cape Town, South Africa, topped his group to enter the men’s singles main draw in the 11Even Sports National Ranking (Central Zone) Table Tennis Championships starts at the Abhay Prashal here today.

Drawn in group 23, he blanked out Delhi’s Sameer Sahni 12-10, 13-11, 9-11, 11-5. Ananth and Sameer having won against Saiel Wadwekar fromMadhya Pradesh, it was imperative for them to win the crucial match between the two. Ananth emerged triumphant with an emphatic 3-0 win. Earlier, Sameer struggled against local boy Saiel before winning 11-9, 9-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-5.

In group 24, Sanish Ambekar from Maharashtra pitch-forked himself to the top spot from original third position in the group with two wins over rivals Mohit Verma of Haryana and Subendhu Show from West Bengal. For Sanish, it was rather easy against the West Bengla paddler but Mohit from Haryana gave some anxious moments as he managed to take a game off Sanish who won 11-9, 11-6, 9-11, 11-5. But Airports Authority of India’s Anirban Ghosh failed to qualify from group 31 when he lost his third-round match against Arnab Sarkar 9-11, 11-6, 7-11, 10-12, giving a clear main draw passage to the West Bengal player.

Manush Shah from Guajrat, placed in a four-man group 37, emerged on top with three fine wins, his notable 3-0 triumph coming against Akash Nath of West Bengal which paved his way into the second stage. Zubin Taraporwalla from Maharashtra, too, qualified with an all-win record in group 40. Other group qualifiers included Ayush Tayal from Haryana, Shreyas Telang from Karnataka, E. Prabhakaran from RSPB and Asif Haque from RBI. But for these players, all original group toppers had made it to the main draw.

In women’s singles, RBI’s Sweta Parte exited without making an impression, thanks to Railways Ashlesha Trehan who pushed her way into the main draw with a fine 3-0 win. She had earlier beaten Kefira Rodrigues of Goa 3-0. Manushree Patil from Maharashtra beat two of her group rivals in Shreya Ghosh (RSPB) and Assam’s Adrija Sharma to enter the women’s singles stage 2. But for these surprises, all top players expectedly went through the motion to qualify.

With 24 joining qualifiers joining the eight top-ranked players in Junior Girls, Maharashtra led by example with six of their players joining fourth-seeded Shruti Amrute, who got a direct main draw entry, to swell their number to seven in a field of 32 in the knockout stage. In comparison, North Bengal and Delhi have four paddlers making the necessary cut and leaving other states way behind.

The biggest surprise is that Rajasthan’s Priyanka Pareek has been seeded No. 1 for the first time, thanks to her nail-biting title-winning performance in the North Zone at Chandigarh. Priyanka beat West Bengal’s Prapti Sen 4-3 in the Junior Girls final.  

In the first round match later today, the left-hander takes on qualifier Priyanka Sarkar from North Bengal. Tamil Nadu’s Selenadeepthi Selvakumar and Abinaya Ramesh are behind the Rajathan girl at No. 2 and 3, while Shruti Amrute is followed by another Tamil Nadu girl, Yashini Sivashankar at No. 5. Manushree Patil, the winner of West Zone title last season, is at No. 6 with Varuni Jaiswal (Telangana) and Kushi Viswanath (Karnataka) following the Maharashtra girl, in that order.

Both Manushree Patil and Priyanka also qualified for the women’s singles main draw which showed that they are slowly but surely making inroads into untried territories.

Manav Thakkar has rightfully occupied the No. 1 spot in seeding in the Junior Boys with West Bengal’s Jeet Chandra behind him at No. 2 and they are followed by UP’s Sarthak Seth and Gujarat’s Manush Shah at No. 3 and 4 respectively.

All the eight seeded players and a few lucky ones have been given first-round bye with only 16 players play first-round matches. Of the eight, the best turned out to be the one between Tamil Nadu’s R. Santosh Kumar and Rohan Jamadagni from Karnataka. The Tamil Nadu paddler won 3-2 after some struggle to enter the second round.

Results (Main Draw):

Junior Boys: Round of 64: Jayabrata Bhattgcharjee (NB) bt Tejas Kamble (Mah) 5-11, 14-12, 11-9, 11-8, Hardikar Mandar (Mah) bt Ayan Pal (WB) 4-11, 11-7, 13-11, 11-13, 11-9, Harsh Shristava (PSPBA) bt Abhirup P Roy (NB) 9-11, 11-6, 8-11, 11-8, 11-7, H. Jeho (PSPBA) bt Samrat Chakraborty (NB) 7-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-4, Anukram Jain (PSPBA) bt Sai Tejesh (Telg) 11-5, 11-8, 11-6, Snehit Suravajjula (Telg) bt C. Kapil Somaiya (PSPBA) 17-15, 11-7, 13-11, Harshvardhan Lahoti (Telg) bt Ajaysingh Patil (Mah) 11-8, 6-11, 11-4, 11-2, Santosh Kumar. R (TN) bt rohan Jamadagni (KNT) 7-11, 11-3, 9-11, 11-8, 11-7.  

TTFI release

Costantini back at helm as chief table tennis coach

Massimo Costantini 

Indore, September 27, 2016: Hoping for a change of good fortune, the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) has re-appointed Italian Massimo Costantini for a two-year period up toSeptember 30, 2018. He takes charge as chief coach of the national team from October 1 but having arrived in New Delhi a couple of days ago, the foreign visited the venue of the ongoing National Ranking (Central Zone) championships to have a close look at the players.

Max, as his fondly known and called by players, was with the Indian team from early 2009 till the end of the 2010 Commonwealth Games, guiding India to five medals including a men's doubles gold and a silver in the women's team event.

Soon after leaving India, Max has had a long-tem stint with a US club and guided some its players to glory. He was also the US team coach at Rio Olympics.

The federation had roped in Peter Engel in 2013 but the German’s contract was not renewed at the end of the Asian 2014 Games. Since then, table tennis did not have a foreign coach.

However, a conscientious decision was taken with support from the Sports Authority of India to bring back Max, who is known for his excellent rapport with the Indian players.

"All the players know him well and have a very good understanding with him. This was one of the reasons for bringing him back. And this time Costantini will focus on the junior and youth teams and will also have a say in selection matters. We are investing on youngsters and have to prepare them for major Games ahaed," said Dhanraj Choudhary, secretary general of TTFI.

The 58-year-old has his agenda clear. “I have an onerous task of bringing back things on track. I have been entrusted with a big responsibility and I am hopeful I will live up to the federation’s expectations,” said Max soon after his arrival here.

‘I am expecting a brief from TTFI soon so that I can straightaway start working. The TTFI wanted me to visit this event here so that I can look for promising talents,” added the coach.  

TTFI release

Manav, Ananth and Archana make World Juniors cut

Indore, September 26, 2016: Manav Thakkar, Ananth Devarajan and Archana Kamath maintaining impressive track records, with sustained world rankings obtained through participation in global junior circuit events abroad, have made it to the singles events of the World Junior Championships to be held at Cape Town in South Africa in November-December later this year.

All the players made the ITTF cut based on their September world ranking with Manav at No 40 and Ananth at 43. Archana is ranked No. 49, thanks to her triple-crown performance in Morocco Open at Agadir in July.

Though our teams performed below expectations at the Bangkok Asian Juniors, the Junior Boys and Junior Girls had done reasonably well to enter the quarterfinals with a good chance of reaching the medal round. But, unfortunately, it was not to be.

But from among the junior team members both Manav Thakkar and Ananth Devarajan have qualified while none of the girls that went to Bangkok came anywhere close to consideration. However, it was Archana who was selected by the ITTF—she was overlooked by selectors when the squad for the Asian event was picked—based on her own strength and rankings.

The three players got the right to participate in the World Juniors after meeting the criteria established for the individual events, being among the best 14 players from September 2016 world rankings.

Despite our Boys team’s misfortune at the Asian Juniors, an Indian squad can still make the grade as it has been put on the waitlist as a second reserve behind Chinese Taipei. Of the five teams have that made it to the Cape Town championships through qualification in the continental event at Bangkok there is a possibility of DPR Korea not sending its team to South Africa for political reasons, as it did last year.

This really throws open the door for Taipei. But India could be next in line if and when there is a pullout from another team, even if it is from a different continent. As per regulations, TTFI fills such slots with other reserve teams in order to make the minimum number of squads at the World Juniors. It also means that the TTFI can make up a team from among the players who have already got in owing to their rankings or, alternatively, have a new set of payers as a team. The members, thus selected, can also compete in singles.

Apart from the continental slot, the boys’ team can also make the grade through world rankings, said Dhanraj Choudhary, Secretary General of TTFI. “Our boys’ team rankings are better and it can qualify even otherwise,” he said. “It is a good opportunity for the Indians to showcase their talent in championships like these,” he added.

Talking on future preparations, the secretary-general said that TTFI has plans afoot for investing heavily on youngsters keeping in mind the 2024 and 2028 Olympics. “We have high hopes on players like these. They are our future hopes. Look at Fan Zhendong, the title winner at Hyderabad World Juniors four years ago. Today, the Chinese is a force to reckon with and the proof of it came when he beat reigning Olympic champion Ma Long in China Open,” said Choudhary, to reiterate the point that why TTFI was keen on youngsters’ performance.    

TTFI release

Favourites ensure safety but some struggle for top spots

Indore, September 26, 2016: With only two rounds scheduled in men’s and women’s singles first stage matches on the opening day some of the top names in the women’s section, more or less, sealed their main draw places in the 11Even Sports National Ranking (Central Zone) Table Tennis Championships starts at the Abhay Prashal here today. However, a confirmation will come only tomorrow.

In women’s singles, most players in the latter groups completed two rounds and their safe passage into the main draw will now depend on the last match as only the group topper moves up. West Bengal’s Manisha Mukherjee in group 32 scored two clear wins but had to struggle against Delhi’s Kritika Malik. Manisha won 13-11, 6-11, 11-7, 9-11, 12-10. With that loss, Kritika is tied in second position with Maharashtra’s Srushti Haleangadi who, like the Delhi girl, has 1-1 record and the match between the two is more of an academic interest only.

The others that had collected four points and are just a step away from qualification and they are Iti Sharma (HP), Harshavardhini (AAI), Sanya Sehgal (Har), Archana Kamath (AAI), Maria Rony (Kerala), Anuska Dutta (RSPB), Mansi Dshpande (Mah), Priyadarshini Das (WB), Sreeja Akula (AAI), Selenadeepthi Selvakumar (TN), Moumita Datta (WB), Ritika Kundu (NB), Takeme Sarkar (RSPB), Sukanya Bose (RSPB), Priti Mokashi (Mah), Saswati Ghosh (MP), Manushree Patil (Mah) and Ashlesha Trehan (RSPB). All these players have a third-round match tomorrow before the knockout phase begins.

Local girl Saswati Ghosh, who is making her maiden appearance for MP, made an impressive start beating Rutuja Khopkar of Maharashtra 7-11, 11-4, 11-4, 13-11 but found a big hurdle in West Bengal’s Mrittika Halder which the former had to cross. And the MP girl did that with a hard-fought 3-2 (7-11, 11-5, 4-11, 11-5, 11-6) to post two crucial wins. She has a match against No. 1 player in her group 21, Rupsa Bhattacharya of Railways, who is lying behind, having lost her second match to West Bengal rival Mrittika 2-3.

Similarly, the fight for top spot in group 22 will be between Sukanya Bose of Railways and Priti Mokashi of Maharashtra as they have two wins each and their direct showdowntomorrow will decide the group leader. Priti had a tough time against Riya Dutta of West Bengal before subduing her 11-7, 11-9, 12-14, 17-15, the last two games went into several deuces.

Three AAI girls—Selenadeepthi, Sreeja and Archana—held on to their top group positions so far but tomorrow can be a different day for both Moumita Datta from West Bengal and Selenadeepthi in group 24. But for Akula, who scored 3-1, 3-0 triumphs over Tanaya Dutta and Sumana Saha in group 25, and Archana, who defeated Koumudi Patankar of Karnataka 3-0 and got a walkover from Sangita Mahadani of West Bengal, the passage seems easy now.  

But in the men’s singles, the group toppers are yet to play their second round matches for a clear picture to emerge in Stage 1. But indications are that there will hardly be any disappointment on this count as they are expected to go through, leaving the second spots to lesser players in their respective groups.

Meanwhile, the top eight ranked players—Suthirtha Mukherjee, who is sure to get the top seeding, Madhurika Patkar, Pooja Sahasrabuddhe, Mouma Das, Mousumi Paul, Shruti Amrute, Manika Batra and Krittwika Sinha Roy—have been given direct main draw entry will begin their campaign from tomorrow when the group qualifiers join them.

Even as the men and women players get a breather after two rounds, the Junior Boys will play a couple of rounds to wind up the day’s proceedings.

TTFI release

PGTI marks 10th anniversary with adoption of anti-doping rules

New Delhi, September 24, 2016: Indian professional golfers will now come under the ambit of international anti-doping rules as the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI), ‘the official sanctioning body of professional golf in India’, which marks 10 years of its inception today (24th September, 2016), recently took the initial steps in implementing the international doping guidelines.

With anti-doping regulations and framework already being in place on most of the international golf tours, Indian golfers playing at the international stage had already been subject to the said rules and procedure in the past.  

As golf became part of the Olympic fold with the 2016 Games in Rio, the need for having an anti-doping structure on the PGTI tour became even more imperative.

The PGTI’s objective of enforcing international anti-doping rules on its tour has been to provide a level-playing field to all professionals and conform to global standards in this sphere.

The PGTI thus took the initiative of introducing its members to the concept of doping over a year back. Players were educated about the ‘Do’s and Don’ts’ of doping through a series of workshops and the distribution of exhaustive literature on the subject.

Over the last one year, PGTI’s initiatives have helped spread awareness on the subject among Indian professionals. The players have been informed about the harm that doping does both to the sport and the individuals concerned.

The deck has now been cleared for the actual implementation of the anti-doping rules later this year when golfers will start undergoing random dope tests on a regular basis.

Mr. Uttam Singh Mundy, Director, PGTI, said, “As an internationally-recognized tour, the PGTI strives to match global standards in all spheres of the sport of golf. This includes the essential anti-doping mechanism which has today become an integral part of professional golf.

“The adoption of international anti-doping rules and procedure by the PGTI will help create an ideal learning environment for Indian professionals with stress on ethics, fair play, honesty, sportsmanship and equal opportunity for athletes. The PGTI’s anti-doping mechanism, due for implementation later this year, will go a long way in further raising the stature of the tour and upholding the ‘spirit of the sport’.”

PGTI release

All-win record puts Bangla team in Subroto Cup quarterfinals

Jharkhand vs Madhya Pradesh match

New Delhi, September 19, 2016: In a battle for supremacy in pool B, the boys from Bangladesh Krida Siksha Protisthan (BKSP) walked out of the Ambedkar Stadium with all guns blazing, having grabbed the lone quarterfinal spot in the 57th Subroto Cup International Football Tournament here today. They posted an all-win record in the league stage, keeping their reputation intact.

BKSP join teams from Manipur, Jharkhand and Afghanistan in the quarterfinals to be played tomorrow. In the first match, Pinjabati will take on BKSP while in the second, it will be between Utkramit High School and Esteqal Afghanistan and both knockout games will be played at the Ambedkar Stadium.

In their last pool engagement, BKSP defeated The Air Force School (TAFS) 8-0 to edge out Ashoke Nagar Boys Senior Secondary School from 24 North Parganas (West Bengal) who beat Holy Spirit Institute from Margao (Goa) 2-0. What weighed in favour of BKSP was the 3-2 triumph over the West Bengal schoolboys yesterday.

Morsalin and Usuf Ali scored a brace each for BKSP while A. Rehmat, Abbdul Kader, Mohammad Rakib and Tuhidul Islal struck a goal each to complete what a routine a winning habit for the team. On the other hand, S. Afzal and Arindam Roy scored for the West Bengal squad in their match against Goa.

In these one-sided pool B matches, Bangladesh boys outscored in every match, making them a real contender for title. But it remains to be seen how well they fare tomorrow in the quarters where they will take on the boys from Manipur. No doubt, both have the wherewithal and how they face the crunch situation—they were never in trouble against their opponents so far—will push one of them in while the other out.  

In other inconsequential matches both at Ambedkar Stadium and NWC grounds, St Xavier’s Higher School from Chhattisgarh scored 16 times without getting a reply in pool D, MSP Higher Secondary School from Kerala, helped by Shigil’s brace, beat Kendriya Vidyalaya (Gorakhpur) 2-0 in pool C while Utkramit HS from Jharkhand, having already qualified, completed the formality when they downed Emerald Heights International School from Indore 6-0.

For Chhattisgar, Neel Bhushan Singh struck seven times, while contributes came from Akash Lakra, Rahul Kumar Gupta, Arsridul Moha, B.S. Rajawade and Salimon Toppa. For Jharkhand, Ratan Hansda hit target four times, including a hat-trick, while Rahul Hembrom and Chhutur Kisku opened their accounts.

With the school from Punjab not reporting for the tournament, AFBBS were given walkover in pool D. Joydeep Gogoi, with another hat-trick, did well for the Betkuchi outfit from Assam against the Government School from Lakshadweep, with Shakti Moran joining the party in yet another inconsequential game.

Photo and release Subroto Cup committee 

Manipur, Jharkhand seal quarterfinal berths

New Delhi, September 18: Pinjabati High School (Sandakhong), Manipur, scored yet another easy 5-0 win over The Cathedral & John Connon School (Mumbai) to top group A and grab their quarterfinal berth in the 57th Subroto Cup International Football Tournament here today.

In the match played at Ambedkar Stadium, the boys from Manipur showed a glimpse of what they are capable, not just in the league stage, but in the later stage of the tournament.

The authoritative way in which they played against the Maharashtra side, it was a lesson for others to learn as their strikers knew how to keep relentless pressure which only aided their cause. H. Nong’s brace along with strikes from Rakesh, Th. Nani and Prenzchandra’s just sealed the fate of the Mumbai squad which had no clue to stop their rival’s surge.

Utkramit High School, Jharkhand who got a walkover from Car Nicobar also qualified for the quarterfinals booking their place from Pool C.

Car Nicobar despite giving their entry did not make their appearance from Day 1.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Krida Siksha Protisthan staked their strong claim with a 3-2 win over Ashoke Nagar Boys School from 24 North Parganas in pool B. If they manage another win tomorrow over TAFS, they should make the quarterfinal cut. For the Bangla side, Mohammad Rakib, Abdul Kader and Mohammad Habibur fired in a goal each while S.K. Abdul struck a brace for the losers.

Joydeep Gogoi’s hat-trick, the first ever this year, helped Assam’s Betkuchi High School beat Reliance FYC from Mumbai 3-0 in a Pool A game at the NWC, while in pool C Kerala’s MSP Higher Secondary High School (Mallapuram) overcome Madhya Pradesh’s Emerald Heights International School (Indore0 5-0 and Delhi’s Air Force Bal Bharti School earned their first win in pool D when they convincingly defeated Sri Lanka’s Kurenagala Defence Services School 13-0.

With pool D topper Estegal from Kabul having already qualified for the quarterfinals, AFBBS win today must utmost serve as a consolation for the Delhi side, but the Mallapuram school’s win over Indore boys would give the Kerala school some satisfaction as it, the winners a couple of seasons ago, has a reputation to maintain. However, the win for the team has come too late in the tournament to undo the earlier damage.

If Mohammad Hanua, Vyshav (2), Vipin and R. Santosh scored for them, it was Manav, Utkarsh, Saksham, Rayad and Pratick scored with Manav striking it rich with the maximum for AFBBS.

Even Joydeep’s hat-trick may well be considered only as a personal milestone as Betkuchi’s triumph at NWC would not take them any far bettering their average as Manipur’s Pinjabati High School is all at ease with four successive wins.  

Sikkim’s Namchi Sports Hostel downed The Air Force School (Subroto Park) 5-0 in another inconsequential match with Sairose Chetteri contributing three goals while P. Yanzen and substitute S. Guruang finishing it in style.

Photo and release Subroto Cup committee 

Rashid Khan steals the show on final day of PGTI Ahmedabad Masters

Ahmedabad, September 16, 2016: Delhi’s Rashid Khan stole the show on the final day of the PGTI Ahmedabad Masters presented by Kalhaar Blues & Greens as he registered an exhilarating come-from-behind victory over last year’s champion Khalin Joshi of Bengaluru.

Rashid, who began the day, trailing third round leader Khalin by three strokes, posted a resolute three-under-69 in round four, to come up trumps at the end with a final tally of 12-under-276. Khalin shot a final round one-over-73 to finish runner-up at 11-under-277 at the Rs. 30 lakh event.

Rashid Khan (67-69-71-69), lying overnight second, made the early breakthroughs on day four as he erased the three-shot deficit between Khalin Joshi (68-65-71-73) and himself by the sixth hole. The three-shot swing came as a result of Khan gaining shots on the first and sixth, the latter from 15 feet, and Joshi dropping a bogey on the sixth.

At this stage, the contest between the two long-time friends, 25-year-old Rashid and 24-year-old Khalin, seemed set for a nail-biting finish.

But Rashid lost some momentum and conceded a one-shot lead to Khalin when he mixed two bogeys with a birdie over the next four holes. Khan missed the green on the seventh and 10th that led to the two bogeys.

Both the players birdied the 11th, but Rashid got back to level terms when he picked a second straight birdie on the par-5 12thwhere Khalin missed out from the centre of the fairway.

The buzz among the professionals who had finished their rounds was that the par-5 14th hole would be the decider and that is exactly what happened. Khan went two in front on the 14th after making an up and down for birdie even as Joshi, who struggled with his hitting in round four, missed the fairway and bogeyed that hole.

There was no looking back for Rashid from there on. A bogey on 16 didn’t do much damage to his round as he coasted to a one-shot win thereby dousing Khalin’s hopes of defending his title. It was his second win within a span of 40 days and his seventh overall on the PGTI.

Rashid said, “The wind was up today and I knew a round of four or five under would do the job for me. I was very confident about my putting going into the last round as I had been very consistent on the greens all week. I had done well from a range of about 10 to 12 feet and not made a single three-putt in the previous three rounds. I managed to keep that record intact on the final day.

“This has to be one of my best wins so far. It was great to turn it around despite being three behind after round three. I think the two-shot swing in my favour on the 14th was the turning point of the day. However, it was a tough fight till the end.

“I feel I’m in the winning zone now and the few things that I worked on this year are shaping up well. I really enjoyed myself here at the Kalhaar Blues & Greens as the course was in great condition and presented quite a few challenges. I look forward to coming back here next year,” added an elated Rashid.

The win that also accounted for Khan’s second title of the year, lifted him from fifth place to second position in the Rolex Ranking as he took home the winner’s cheque worth Rs. 4,50,000.

Panchkula’s Shubhankar Sharma continues to lead the rankings with season’s earnings of Rs. 16,42,680. Rashid has closed the gap on the leader, as his total earnings now stand at Rs. 15,89,910. Khalin Joshi moved up from fourth to third (Rs. 14,81,400) after his runner-up finish in Ahmedabad.

Bengaluru’s Chikkarangappa, who shot the day’s best score of 67, finished tied third at eight-under-280 along with Sri Lankan Anura Rohana (69).

Om Prakash Chouhan of Mhow aced the 11th during his final round of 73. He claimed fifth place at seven-under-281.

Shubhankar Sharma secured joint sixth place at three-under-285 to continue in the lead in the Rolex Ranking. Chandigarh’s Ajeetesh Sandhu also took a share of sixth place.

Ahmedabad’s Varun Parikh, the lone amateur to make the cut, bagged the trophy for the best performance by an amateur at the event. He finished overall 38th at 15-over-303.

Prize Presentation Picture Caption:

Rashid Khan receives the winning cheque and trophy from Mr. Dinesh Shah, Chairman, Navratna Organisers & Developers Pvt. Ltd. (2nd from right), Mr. Devang Shah, MD, Navratna Organisers & Developers Pvt. Ltd. (2nd from left), Mr. Pranav Shah, MD, Navratna Organisers & Developers Pvt. Ltd. (extreme right) and Mr. Uttam Singh Mundy, Director, PGTI (extreme left).

PGT release and photo

Khalin Joshi maintains three-stroke advantage in third round

Khalin Joshi 

Ahmedabad, September 15, 2016: Reigning champion Khalin Joshi of Bengaluru maintained his three-stroke lead in round three of the PGTI Ahmedabad Masters presented by Kalhaar Blues & Greens. Joshi, who brought in a card of one-under-71 in the penultimate round, took his tournament tally to 12-under-204.

Delhi’s Rashid Khan also fired a 71 to hold on to his overnight second place at nine-under-207.

Khalin Joshi (68-65-71), the second round leader by two shots, was off to yet another terrific start as he birdied his first two holes for the third successive day. Joshi then scrambled for a bogey on the fourth before quickly recovering ground with another birdie on the fifth.

There seemed to be a twist on the back-nine as Rashid Khan (67-69-71) closed the gap to one stroke after an eagle-birdie run on the 12th and 13th. Rashid came extremely close to achieving a rare albatross on the par-5 12thwhere his approach from 200 yards out landed within a foot of the flag for a tap-in eagle.

Both Khalin and Rashid bogeyed the 14th with the former limiting the damage with a 12-feet conversion after hitting his second shot out of bounds. But Joshi, who closed the day with birdie-bogey on the 17th and 18th, was back in the driver’s seat with a three-shot cushion at the end of the day as Khan conceded a disastrous double-bogey on the 18th where he found the slope of the water hazard and had to take a penalty drop.

Joshi said, “I didn’t shoot a low number but it was a decent round since the playing conditions were tough today. The wind was up, the tees were pushed back and the pin positions were not easy either. It was tough to commit to a shot.

“I’ve enjoyed some splendid starts this week and that has set it up well for me in each round. However, for the second straight day today, I closed the round with a bogey. So I’m a tad disappointed with that.

“The good news is that, I struck it better in round three as compared to the first two days. I’ll not go out there in the final round thinking about defending my title as that will only put further pressure on me. I just need to play my best and that should do the job,” added Khalin.

The stage is thus set for a fascinating duel between the 24-year-old Khalin and the 25-year-old Rashid, two golfers who have played a lot of golf together in their formative years.

Om Prakash Chouhan of Mhow too maintained status quo on day three as he held on to his overnight third position courtesy a 71. His total stood at eight-under-208.

Panchkula-based Rolex Ranking leader Shubhankar Sharma was in fourth at six-under-210 while Sri Lankan Anura Rohana was a further shot back in fifth place.

Noida’s Vikrant Chopra produced the day’s best score of 67 to move up 17 places from overnight tied 28th to 11th position.

Ahmedabad’s Varun Parikh, the lone amateur to make the cut, returned an 80 on Thursday to be placed tied 41st at 11-over-227.

PGTI Press release and photo

Defending champ Khalin Joshi storms into three-shot lead

Khalin Joshi of Bengaluru 

Ahmedabad, September 14, 2016: Defending champion Khalin Joshi of Bengaluru raised hopes of retaining his title at the PGTI Ahmedabad Masters presented by Kalhaar Blues & Greens after shooting a top-class seven-under-65 on day two, the week’s best round so far. He thus stormed into a healthy three-stroke lead at the halfway stage as his total moved to 11-under-133.

Delhi’s Rashid Khan occupied second place at eight-under-136 after his second round of 69.

Khalin Joshi (68-65), lying overnight tied third, one off the pace, began the day with birdies on the first and second, with the latter witnessing his third chip-in of the week. The 24-year-old’s birdie blitz continued on the seventh, eighth, 10th, 11th, 12th and 14th as he seemed to inch towards his last year’s course record of nine-under-63, which he shot in the final round.

However, the last four holes saw Joshi make two bogeys thanks to missed opportunities from close range, against a lone birdie. Khalin finally ended with a classy 65.

Joshi said, “I’ve been doing well with the putter over the last two days. I sank two birdies from 20 to 25 feet today. However, I feel, I need to stroke the ball well on the greens. I’ve enjoyed fantastic starts on both days and that has helped my cause.

“I like the greens here and the layout of this course also suits my eye as I mostly play the draw from right to left. I landed it quite close on a few occasions today for birdie tap-ins,” said Khalin, who won a PGTI event in Mewat, Haryana, last month.

“The confidence is high since my last win but I need to improve in a couple of areas in the last two rounds. I’m not very comfortable with the irons going into the flag. I also didn’t close the round well today. If I can address these troubles, I’ll be in with a chance,” Joshi, a three-time winner on the PGTI, added.

Rashid Khan (67-69), the overnight joint leader, slipped to second place on a day he struck five birdies and two bogeys. Khan, despite struggling with his wedges, made the turn at two-under, he then drained a 25-footer on the fourth and followed that up with another birdie on the next hole to move to a promising four-under for the day.

Rashid, however, did not finish well, as he found the water on the eighth to drop his second bogey of the day.

Khan’s playing partner Om Prakash Chouhan (69-68) of Mhow returned an eagle, three birdies and a bogey during his round of 68 to end the day in third at seven-under-137.

Delhi’s Kapil Kumar fired an incredible eight birdies in his round which were to an extent negated by a bogey and a double-bogey. He carded a 67 to move into fourth at six-under-138.

Chandigarh’s Ajeetesh Sandhu (68) was a further shot behind in fifth place.

Chikkarangappa (67-76) of Bengaluru, the overnight joint leader with Rashid, dropped to 14th place at one-under-143 after a forgettable 76 in round two.

Ahmedabad-based amateur Varun Parikh (72-75) followed up his opening round effort of 72 with a 75 on day two to take his tally to three-over-147. Parikh, placed tied 28th, was the only amateur and local player to make the cut.

The cut fell at seven-over-151. Fifty professionals and one amateur made the cut.

PGTI press release and photo

Chikkarangappa, Rashid Khan share the spoils in round one of PGTI Ahmedabad Masters

Chikkarangappa S 

Ahmedabad, September 13, 2016: Bengaluru’s Chikkarangappa S and Delhi’s Rashid Khan lived up to their reputation of being the tournament favourites at the PGTI Ahmedabad Masters presented by Kalhaar Blues & Greens, as they began the week with first round scores of five-under-67 to be the joint leaders.

Defending champion Khalin Joshi, another Bengalurean, and Patna-based rookie Aman Raj and Jaipur’s Vishal Singh shared the third spot as they trailed the leaders by one stroke.

Reigning Rolex Ranking champion Chikkarangappa, the winner of PGTI’s last event in Bengaluru, continued his hot streak as he posted a solid opening round of 67 at the picturesque Kalhaar Blues & Greens on Tuesday.

Chikka, high on confidence from his win last week, was on the button right away, as he began the tournament with a 15-feet birdie conversion on the first. He followed that up with four straight birdies from the fifth to the eighth, where he sank three, 12 to 18 feet putts, and also set up a tap-in from the bunker.

The two-time winner on the Asian Development Tour then had a rollercoaster back-nine. Chikka dropped a shot on the 11th but came back with an eagle chip-in on the next hole. The 22-year-old then conceded a double-bogey on the 13th as a result of finding the water. However, he finally managed to pull one stroke back with a birdie on the closing 18th.

Chikka said, “Even though I won last week, I had struggled with my putting. But I’m happy that today I regained my touch with the putter. I’m also hitting longer thanks to my improved fitness and strength.

“I was going really well till the turn, having been 5-under. I think I could’ve taken advantage of that position and finished better. Nonetheless, I realize it’s going to be a tough week to score low, so I’m quite happy with my first round effort.

“One needs to hit it well off the tee here and place it nicely on the fairway as the water hazards come into play on almost every hole. If you’re driving it around 270 to 280 yards, you have a good chance of avoiding trouble. I feel that’s going to be my strength this week,” added Chikka, a winner of nine titles.

Two-time Asian Tour winner Rashid Khan, also displayed fine form with the putter on day one to match Chikka’s 67. Rashid, who won a PGTI event in Noida last month, drained six birdie putts from a range of 10 to 15 feet. He dropped a lone bogey on Tuesday.

“The win in Noida was a big morale-booster for me. I’ve carried the confidence from that performance into this week. In between, I also had a decent outing at the European Masters in Switzerland which had a world-class field. The tied 41st finish there, helped my confidence soar further,” said a confident Rashid.

Khalin Joshi had a dream start to the tournament as he reeled off birdies on his first three holes (10th to 12th). Joshi had two consecutive chip-ins on the 10th and 11th before he picked up another stroke on the par-5 12th. He followed that up with a bogey and two more birdies for a well-deserved four-under-68.

Vishal Singh, like Khalin, also made five birdies and a bogey, while rookie Aman Raj produced six birdies and two bogeys, to join Joshi in tied third place.

Bengaluru’s Udayan Mane and Mhow’s Om Prakash Chouhan were tied sixth after rounds of three-under-69.

Ahmedabad-based amateur Varun Parikh shot an even-par-72 to be tied 19th. Parikh was the highest-placed local golfer at the end of round one.

PGTI release and photo