India finish seventh in Asian Youth Games

SINGAPORE: Swimmer Aaron Agnel D'Souza won a bronze on the last day of the inaugural Asian Youth Games as India finished seventh in the medal's table
with 11 in their kitty on Monday.

D'Souza added a bronze to the gold he had won in 200m freestyle by finishing third in 100m freestyle with a timing of 51.52 secs to take India's medal tally to five gold, three silver and three bronze.

India were represented by 48 athletes in the Games and took part in seven disciplines -- athletics, swimming, diving, shooting, table tennis, beach volleyball and basketball.

Athletics contributed eight medals (four gold, two silver and two bronze) while swimming gave India three medals (one gold, one silver and one bronze).

China topped the table with 52 medals (25 gold, 16 silver, 11 bronze) while Korea were second with 51 (18 gold, 16 silver, 17 bronze). Thailand finished third with 20 medals (11 gold, 7 silver, 2 bronze).

Source:TOI

Dravid recalled for Champions Trophy

CHENNAI: The selectors finally took a step that clearly indicated that they were worried with India's batting following the T20 World Cup and the West Indies series.

They have brought Rahul Dravid back into the fray for a spot in the ODI side by including him in the 30-member probables list for the Champions Trophy, and if sources close to the selection committee are to be believed, it's not just for filling up the numbers.

The Indian batsmen's frailty against short-pitched bowling was there for everyone to see during the T20 World Cup and the selectors believe some solidity is required in the middle-order.

Even though India won the series against the West Indies, the general belief among the decision makers is that it is all due to "one match winning effort (from Yuvraj)."

It was clearly indicated that Dravid would surely be considered when the final 15 was selected for the Champions Trophy. The veteran right-hander may not fit into skipper MS Dhoni's scheme of things but given the recent performances of the Indian team, the selectors may well take a stern stance.

The fact that the Champions Trophy will be played in South Africa, where the pitches will afford steep bounce, has also gone in Dravid's favour. But will there be a chance to see what kind of form Dravid is in before the final team is selected?

"Do we need to do that for a player of Dravid's stature? We know what he is capable of," the source shot back.

Another player who found himself out of favour was all-rounder Irfan Pathan. By not picking him in the list of 30 probables, the selectors have indicated that they are looking ahead, at least for now.

Champions Trophy probables:

MS Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Yusuf Pathan, Abhishek Nayar, Ishant Sharma, Zaheer Khan, RP Singh, Praveen Kumar, Harbhajan Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Ravindra Jadeja, Dinesh Karthik, Munaf Patel, R Ashwin, M Vijay, Amit Mishra, Ajinkya Rahane, Dhawal Kulkarni, S Badrinath, Ashish Nehra, Virat Kohli, Bhuvneshwar Kumar Singh, Wriddhiman Saha, Pankaj Singh.

Squad for Emerging Nations Trophy:

S Badrinath (Capt), M Vijay, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli (Vice-Capt), Manoj Tiwary, Ishant Jaggi, Abhishek Nayar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar Singh, R Ashwin, Amit Mishra, Wriddhiman Saha, Naman Ojha, Pankaj Singh, Dhawal Kulkarni, Pradeep Sangwan, Sudeep Tyagi.

Soruce:toi

Federer is world No.1 again

PARIS: Roger Federer's Wimbledon triumph on Sunday has seen him regain the world number one spot from arch-rival Rafael Nadal.

The Spaniard went top after last August's Beijing Olympics on the back of his win there and at Wimbledon in July.

He consolidated that by winning the Australian Open at the start of the year but lost to Robin Soderling in the fourth round of the French Open and then withdrew from the defence of his Wimbledon crown through injury.

Federer, who lost to Nadal in Melbourne, won both the French Open and Wimbledon to chalk up a record 15 Grand Slam titles, one more than Pete Sampras.

Dhoni, Nehra best performers in West Indies

New Delhi, July 6 (PTI) India paceman Ashish Nehra made a memorable comeback after four years, topping the wicket takers list, while skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni became the highest scorer in the four-match ODI series against West Indies.

By virtue of amassing 182 runs from three innings with an average of 91, Dhoni became the numero uno batsman of the series that India won 2-1 yesterday.

Nehra bagged six wickets from three outings to finish the series with an economy rate of 5.84.

The left-arm Delhi pacer, seeking to consolidate his place in the national side, capitalised on humid conditions in the West Indies to make the batsmen's life miserable.

Nehra shared the wicket takers list along with West Indian pacer Dwayne Bravo.

They are followed by young West Indian pacer Ravi Rampaul, India all-rounder Yusuf Pathan and the hosts Jerome Taylor, all picking up four wickets each.