Nadal wins record 4th Rome Masters title

ROME: Rafael Nadal won his record fourth Rome Masters title Sunday, beating defending champion Novak Djokovic 7-6 (2), 6-2.

It's the third clay-court title in three weeks for the top-ranked Spaniard, following victories at the Monte Carlo Masters and the Barcelona Open.

Nadal extended his winning streak on clay to 30 matches, stretching back to an opening-round loss to Juan Carlos Ferrero in Rome last year.

By failing to defend his title, Djokovic will lose the No. 3 ranking to Andy Murray on May 11, when last year's points drop out. The 21-year-old Serb has been No. 3 since August 2007.

Nadal broke an Open Era tie with Thomas Muster, who won three Rome titles in 1990, 1995 and 1996. Jaroslav Drobny and Martin Mulligan also each won three titles before the Open Era.

Chris Evert holds the women's record at the Foro Italico with five titles.

Rome is a key warmup for the French Open, which begins in three weeks with Nadal the four-time defending champion.

Nadal broke serve in the opening game of the match but Djokovic had his chances in the first set before losing control for good in the tiebreaker, sending a weak backhand drop-shot attempt into the net on Nadal's third set point.

Djokovic then double faulted to hand Nadal a 4-2 lead in the second set.

The match was a far cry from the Monte Carlo final two weeks ago, when Djokovic became the only player to take a set from Nadal on clay this year.

The match was played in alternating conditions, with wind swirling around inside the stadium when the sun disappeared for periods behind clouds.

Djokovic started off with a series of errors as he tried to flatten out his groundstrokes and go for winners to end rallies early. As the match wore on, he waited longer in rallies before going for winners with approach shots to the corners.

Still, Djokovic appeared unsure of his tactics at times. On one occasion in the first set, he attempted a serve-and-volley, but then retreated and watched Nadal's winner sail by him, out of reach.

Nadal uncharacteristically missed a few forehands at the end of the first set to let Djokovic pull even at 5-5, but Djokovic then missed a routine backhand into the net to drop his serve again and smashed his racket onto the clay, drawing a racket abuse warning from the chair umpire.

Nadal improved his Rome record to 22-1. His won his first two titles at the Foro Italico in 2005 and 2006 with epic 5-hour victories over Guillermo Coria and Roger Federer, respectively, then beat Fernando Gonzalez in straight sets in 2007.

Nadal improved his tour-best record to 38-3 this year, winning five of the eight tournaments he's entered.

It was Nadal's 15th Masters Series title, one more than Roger Federer and two shy of Andre Agassi's record of 17.

Source:TOI

Karthikeyan 2nd in sprint, ends championships at 12th spot

Brands Hatch (Great Britain), May 3 (PTI) Team India's Narain Karthikeyan finished second in the sprint race but had to pull out of the feature race with a crash to finish the A1GP World Cup of Motorsports at the 12th position with 19 points here today.

It was a bitter sweet day for Karthikeyan in the final race of the championship after the Mexico City leg was cancelled due to swine flu scare.

He registered his first and only podium finish this season with the second place finish in the sprint but was unlucky to be involved in a crash in the feature category.

Karthikeyan bagged eight points for his second place finish in the morning behind championships winner Team Ireland's Adam Carroll, the highest in the 12 of the 14 races he took part this season.

The former Formula One Indian driver could have improved his championships position had he not involved in a three-way crash in the first lap of the feature race in the afternoon with cars of United States and China, which eventually resulted to his retirement from the longer race.

PTI

Bangladesh pick two rookies for World T20

Bangladesh on Monday selected two uncapped top-order batsmen and recalled three bowlers for the World Twenty20 championships in England next month.

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chief selector Rafiqul Alam said Shamsur Rahman, 20, and Mohammad Mithun, 18, had been rewarded for their good batting form in domestic cricket.

"Shamsur has been batting tremendously in recent years," said Alam. "He can bat at number three which has been a weak link in our batting. He is also a brilliant fielder.

"Mithun also scored heavily in the leagues. He is a hard-hitting batsman and can also double up as wicketkeeper," he said.

The selectors recalled experienced left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak, who was reported for a suspect bowling action in November and suspended by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Razzak, 26, reworked his action and was cleared to play international cricket in March.

"Razzak is our top spinner and has got a lot of wickets. He is an obvious choice in the team," said Alam of the bowler, who has 111 wickets in 81 one-day internationals and seven wickets in five Tests.

Seamers Shahdat Hossain and Syed Rasel were also recalled, while frontline batsman Mohammad Ashraful was retained as captain.

Bangladesh are drawn with Ireland and India in the preliminary round of next month's event which will be played in London and Nottingham from June 5-21.

Bangladesh's squad:

Mohammad Ashraful (capt), Mashrafe Mortaza, Tamim Iqbal, Junaid Siddique, Raqibul Hasan, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Naeem Islam, Abdur Razzak, Shahadat Hossain, Syed Rasel, Mohammad Mahmudullah, Rubel Hossain, Shamsur Rahman and Mohammad Mithun.

Coach: Jamie Siddons (AUS)

Sorce:cricbuzz

Safina to face Kuznetsova in final

STUTTGART, May 3: World number one Dinara Safina overcame a first set scare here on Saturday to outclass unseeded Italian Flavia Pennetta 3-6, 7-5, 6-0 and book her place in the WTA Stuttgart final.

Safina, who will play Russian compatriot Svetlana Kuznetsova on Sunday, turned her semi-final around in the second set after calling for her coach Zeljko Krajan, going on to recover from 3-1 down to win the second 7-5.

In the third set plucky Pennetta, who beat last year's finalist Nadia Petrova and Jelena Jankovic en route to the semi-final, tired badly, having made the last four of the doubles competition, and failed to offer much resistance.

Nadal advances to semi-finals of Rome Masters

ROME: World number one and top seed Rafael Nadal progressed to the semi-finals of the ATP Rome Masters clay court tournament after a gruelling victory against sixth seed Fernando Verdasco on Friday.

The scoreline did not do justice to a keenly contested match that lasted 1hr 50min and in which Verdasco had more than enough chances to cause an upset.

The final statistics told the story of a match in which the former three-time champion Nadal took his opportunities while Verdasco let his slip by.

Verdasco hit 20 winners to just six by Nadal but made more than twice as many unforced errors -- 41 to just 20 from the world's best player.

And both men forced six break points throughout the match but while Nadal converted four of his, Verdasco managed only one break.

The 25-year-old sixth seed started badly, double faulting to hand Nadal a break in the opening game.

However, he hit straight back as Nadal played a dreadful service game and was broken to love.

The top seed soon clicked into gear, though, and broke Verdasco twice more to take the set.

The main difference in the opener was that Nadal was massacring Verdasco's second serve, winning 78 percent of the points when his compatriot missed his first service.

In the second set Verdasco had plenty of opportunities to get his nose in front but he missed three break point chances in the first game and two more at 2-2.

Even so, he was trading wilfully with Nadal from the back of the court and but for his high unforced error count he looked capable of beating the king of clay.

But at 4-3 to Nadal, Verdasco missed two simple volleys as he gifted his compatriot a break, despite having led 40-15.

He called for the trainer at the change of ends and his knee seemed to be giving him some pain, so it was unsurprising that he wilted easily in the final game.

Nadal took his win streak on clay to 28 matches since he was beaten here a year ago in the second round by Juan Carlos Ferrero.

Source:TOI

West Indies struggling in final Test warm-up

cocktail of poor weather and poor form hit the West Indies' preparations for next week's first Test against England as the tourists finished the rain-hit opening day of their four-day match against England Lions on 76-4.

Chris Woakes did the damage, the Warwickshire seamer bolstering his burgeoning reputation with a return of 4-26 as the West Indies struggled to cope in conditions that gave the bowler every encouragement.

Just 3.1 overs had been possible in the morning session but that was enough time for Woakes to have Lendl Simmons caught behind trying to drive off the front foot.

Fellow opener Devon Smith went in similar fashion and Woakes went on to capture the wickets of stand-in captain Denesh Ramdin and the experienced Ramnaresh Sarwan.

The tourists had made four changes to their line-up following their rain-affected match against Essex earlier in the week.

Seamer Andrew Richardson, Narsingh Deonarine, Lionel Baker and Dale Richards dropped out.

They were replaced by Sarwan, Ramdin and left-arm spinner Sulieman Benn, while seamer Jerome Taylor was brought in for his first match of the tour after arriving from the Caribbean on Monday.

Soruce:http://www.cricbuzz.com/component/latest_cricket_news/

Tendulkar is the best: Warne

Never short of praise for Sachin Tendulkar, legendary Australian spinner Shane Warne says the Indian maestro is the best batsman he has played against for the way he handles expectations of a billion people and bad umpiring decisions.

Warne, who had named Tendulkar as the numero uno batsman of his era in his book 'Shane Warne's Century', said it was hard to pick between the Mumbai maestro and West Indian Brian Lara, and it was the overall conduct of the Indian which was the deciding factor.

"Over the years there have been a lot of wonderful batsmen, so it is pretty hard to pick between Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar," Warne said.

"But I think given the way Sachin handles everything and the expectations that he carries every single time that he walks out to bat, and the way he handles bad decisions and the way he just carries himself."

"I would have to say Sachin Tendulkar was the best batsman that I have played with in my 20 years of playing international cricket," he said at a function here.

Flanked by Graeme Smith and some other Rajasthan Royals players, Warne also spoke about his South African 'bunny'. "My biggest bunny, I suppose, would have to be Darryl Cullinan (South African). I was once asked who I would like to bowl to for a living. I said I would be a very rich man if I was to bowl to Cullinan," he said.

© PTI

Nadal breezes into third round of Rome Masters

ROME: World number one Rafael Nadal coasted into the third round of the Rome clay court Masters on Wednesday after breezing past home favourite Andreas Seppi 6-2, 6-3.

The Spanish top seed spent just 1hr 19min on court as he continued his unbeaten run on clay this season.

The victory over his world number 37 ranked opponent went some way to erasing memories from last year when Nadal fell at this stage as he lost 7-5, 6-1 to countryman and former world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero, although he was carrying a foot injury at the time.

That was his only defeat on clay last season, his only defeat in this tournament - which he won from 2005-07 - and one of only two defeats on clay in the last four seasons. The other was to Roger Federer in the Hamburg final in 2007.

He has lost only four times on clay over the last five seasons compiling an incredible 143-4 record with 23 titles on the surface during that period.

He was barely troubled in the first set and while Seppi hung in doggedly in the second, Nadal needed only a single break to seal it.

He got that courtesy of a delicate drop shot on break point in the eighth game and he followed that up at the start of the final game with a sublime backhand cross-court pass on the run and stretch after a Seppi drop shot that had looked good enough to win the point.

Thereafter Nadal easily served out the match.

He now has a 34-3 record for the season including 12-0 on clay and a 26 match unbeaten run on the dirt since that Ferrero encounter here last year.

He is looking for his fifth title of the year and third in Masters Series events. He currently sits joint second in the list of Masters tournament winners with Federer on 14, three behind Andre Agassi.

Source:TOI

Brasa likely to join Indian team for Asia Cup

BANGALORE: Spanish super coach Jose Brasa is likely to join the Indian hockey team for the Asia Cup in Kuantan, Malaysia next month. Brasa, who had to endure a longish period of negotiations with the central government, will take over as the national coach once the work visa is issued to him.

"Brasa's work permit has to be issued by the external affairs ministry," the sources said. "He has agreed to all terms and conditions and we are keen that he joins the team for the May 9-16 Asia Cup."

SOURCE:TOI

Djokovic beats Montanes at Rome Masters

ROME: Novak Djokovic overcame a lapse midway through the first set and started off the defense of his Rome Masters title by beating Albert Montanes 7 -6 (5), 6-0.

Djokovic, who needs to win the clay-court tournament again to hold on to the No. 3 ranking, wasted a 5-2 lead and was broken while serving for the first set at 5-3. After missing three straight forehands to fall behind 4-2 in the tiebreaker, the Serb slammed his racket onto the clay.

After the outburst, Djokovic regained his focus and won four straight points to take control of the tiebreaker, then cruised through the second set in 25 minutes.

Earlier this month, Djokovic lost to top-ranked Rafael Nadal in the final of another important clay-court tournament, the Monte Carlo Masters, where he was the only player to take a set from the Spaniard.

After Monte Carlo, Djokovic began working with Thomas Muster's old physical trainer, Gebhard Phil-Gritsch.

Before his match, Djokovic put on an impression of Italian entertainer Fiorello, walking onto the court with a gray wig. The match started late due to several rain delays at the Foro Italico and finished early Wednesday morning.

Earlier, Tommy Robredo rallied to beat two-time Grand Slam champion Marat Safin 2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2 in the first round.

Safin was broken when he served for the match at 5-4 in the second set and the Russian didn't even bother to move when the 13th-seeded Robredo hit a returnable serve to close the match out.

"At the end of the third set, I knew that if I was tough mentally I could beat him," Robredo said. 'It was a great comeback."

The start of the match was delayed for nearly two hours by rain, then was interrupted a further 2 hours with Safin ahead 4-2 in the first set.

The 20th-ranked Safin dictated play at the start with his powerful groundstrokes, but began to make more mistakes as the match wore on, finishing with 39 unforced errors to Robredo's 38.

Safin led 36-27 in winners but the former top-ranked player has still not advanced past the third round this year.

Both players slipped and fell on occasion due to the slippery conditions.

"The shoes would pick up so much clay that it was like ice skating," Robredo said. "There was no grip at all."

Robredo leads the tour with 17 wins on clay this year. He won clay-court titles in February in Costa do Sauipe, Brazil, and Buenos Aires, Argentina, and is coming off a quarterfinal appearance in Barcelona, Spain.

Robredo will next face Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany, who also came back from a set down, eliminating Simone Bolelli of Italy 4-6, 6-1, 6-0.

Andreas Seppi of Italy eliminated Sam Querrey of the United States 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, while 28th-ranked Mardy Fish, the last American in the draw, defeated Igor Andreev of Russia 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (2).

Andy Roddick is taking a break from the tour after getting married, and 14th-seeded James Blake was eliminated in straight sets by Romanian qualifier Victor Crivoi on Monday.

Seppi will next face three-time Rome champion Nadal, while Fish will play sixth-seeded Fernando Verdasco.

Two matches on outer courts were suspended due to darkness. Florent Serra of France led 16th-seeded Radek Stepanek 6-5 in the first set and Paul-Henri Mathieu of France led 11th-seeded David Ferrer 6-3, 0-1.

Andy Murray's match against Argentine qualifier Juan Monaco was postponed until Wednesday.

The Rome Masters is a key clay-court warmup for the French Open, which starts May 25.
sOURCE:TOI

Collingwood wants Twenty20 captaincy

LONDON (Reuters) - Paul Collingwood wants to captain England at this year's Twenty20 World Cup even though he is not considered good enough for a starting place in his Indian Premier League (IPL) team.

Collingwood is favourite to lead hosts England after test and one-day skipper Andrew Strauss was left out of the squad for the June 5-21 tournament.

"Yes, I am interested. It would be an exciting challenge to lead England in a tournament on home soil," he wrote in the Daily Telegraph on Tuesday.

"But I am still waiting to hear, just like the other players. The squad is due to be announced on Friday, so I am sure everything will be tied up by then."

The second edition of the lucrative IPL was switched to South Africa due to security concerns and logistical issues surrounding the ongoing Indian general elections and Collingwood has mixed emotions over his team's performance so far.

"I have enough to think about out here in South Africa. The good news is that my fellow Delhi Daredevils have given us a 100 percent record in the Indian Premier League after three games.

"The bad news is that I've not been in the starting XI yet, and only an injury to one of the four first-choice overseas players is likely to change that.

"AB de Villiers and Tillakeratne Dilshan are both among the leading run-scorers, while the bowlers, Daniel Vettori and Dirk Nannes, have been on the money too."

England have struggled in the one day game for many years and despite inventing the Twenty20 format, have quickly fallen behind in that area too.

Having Collingwood and England team mates such as former captain Kevin Pietersen playing in the IPL should, in theory, improve their understanding of the game ahead of the World Cup.

"Twenty20 may seem like a frantic game but I have yet to see anyone in the Daredevils lose their composure, even when a couple of early wickets have gone down," Collingwood said.

"It's so important not to panic. The same point was proven by Ravi Bopara when he scored a match-winning 84 for Punjab Kings XI on Friday.

"I think he is only just beginning to discover what he is capable of as a batsman.

"He stayed calm and timed his surge very well. That sort of experience is invaluable because it teaches you what sort of target you are capable of chasing -- and often it is higher than you realised."

Source:http://www.cricbuzz.com/component/latest_cricket_news/Story/13474/collingwood-wants-twenty20-captaincy/

Sandeep to lead 18-man squad in Asia Cup

NEW DELHI: Sandeep Singh will lead a 18-man squad as India defend their Asia Cup hockey title in Kuantan, Malaysia, from May 9.


There were four changes to the side that won the Azlan Shah Cup earlier this month. Ignace Tirkey, Sarwanjit Singh, Bharat Chhikara and Shivendra Singh have been replaced by V Raghunath, Vikram Pillay, Rajpal Singh and Hari Prasad. Shivendra, who has been recovering from a shoulder injury, has been put on the stand-by list.

India will attempt to lift the Asia Cup title for the third time after having won it in 2003 (Kuala Lumpur) and 2007 (Chennai).

The winner of the Asia Cup will get an automatic entry to the 2010 World Cup in New Delhi.

Squad:

Goalkeepers: Baljit Singh, Adrian D'Souza

Full Backs: Sandeep Singh (captain), Dilip Tirkey, V.Raghunath

Midfielders: Gurbaj Singh, Sardar Singh, Ajitesh Roy, Vikram Pillay, Prabodh Tirkey, V.S.Vinaya

Forwards: Tushar Khandker, Rajpal Singh, Prabhjot Singh, S.V.Sunil, Arjun Halappa, Hari Prasad, Gurvinder Singh Chandi

Standbyes: P.R.Sreejesh, Sarwanjit Singh, Bharat Chhikara, Shivendra Singh

PooL A: South Korea, Japan, Malaysia and Sri Lanka

POOL B: India, Pakistan, China, Bangladesh

Fixture (India's matches):

May 9: India vs. Bangladesh; May 10: India vs. Pakistan; May 12: India vs. China; May 14: semi-finals; May 16: Final

Source:http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Sandeep-to-lead-18-man-squad-in-Asia-Cup/articleshow/4448787.cms

Jeev rises to 36, Randhawa slips to 113 in golf rankings

NEW DELHI: Jeev Milkha Singh rose a place to 36th in the latest golf rankings but missing the cut in the Ballantine's Championship cost Jyoti Randhawa three places as the lanky pro slipped to 113rd.

Randhawa missed the cut at the Ballantine Championship, co-sanctioned by European and Asian Tours, with a below-par two-day total of 149 to slip from his previous week's 110th place.

However, Jeev, who took a break last week after missing the cut in Verizon Heritage on the PGA Tour, moved one placed up the ladder.

Among other Indians, Arjun Atwal is placed 244th, while SSP Chowrasia is ranked 358 in the official ranking.

Source:http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Jeev-rises-Randhawa-slips-in-rankings-/articleshow/4454830.cms

Bolt thinks he can lower 100m record to 9.4 seconds

BOSTON: Jamaican Usain Bolt has his sights set on smashing his already electrifying 100 metres world record, the triple Olympic champion said on Sunday.

"I think I could definitely go faster, 9.5," Bolt, whose record is 9.69 seconds, said.

"I think I could go 9.4, but I think the world stops at 9.4."

For 2009, Bolt, who broke the 100 and 200 metres world records and helped Jamaica to the 4x100 metres relay record at the Beijing Olympics last year, hopes to win similar titles at the world championships in Berlin in August.

But his ambitions do not stop there.

"I want to be a legend in sports," the 22-year-old told reporters earlier at a news conference.

"I want to just keep the level of competition high ... so when I face the media every year, they will say Usain was the only guy to, ever, every season be on top -- that's my aim."

He brushed aside recent comments from British sprinter Dwain Chambers that he could be Bolt's key challenger in Berlin.

"As soon as you start focusing on one person, then you start losing," said Bolt.

"If I focus on beating Asafa (Powell), what about Tyson Gay?

"The only thing I have fear of is getting injured. I don't fear people."

The sprinter's traditionally fearless approach to his diet, however, has been curtailed by coach Glen Mills.

The pre-race chicken nuggets he downed in Beijing will take a back seat to more wholesome fare such as pasta and potatoes, Bolt said.

"I'm an only child of my mom," Bolt said with a sheepish grin. "If I don't have to worry about something, I don't."

Source:http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

Irfan powers Kings XI win over Royals

Cape Town, April 26: All-rounder Irfan Pathan struck a valuable 39 and then picked up two crucial wickets to fashion Kings XI Punjab’s convincing 27-run victory over Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League match here today.

Riding on a 51-ball 60 by Kumar Sangakkara and an equally important 33-ball 39 by Irfan, Kings XI Punjab first posted a modest 139 for six after electing to bat first and then restricted the Rajasthan Royals at 112 for seven in the stipulated 20 overs.

Chasing 140 to win, Rajasthan Royals lost half their side within seven overs for 36 runs, thanks to a disciplined piece of bowling by pacers, Irfan (2/26) and Yusuf Abdulla (3/21) and leg-spinner Piyush Chawla (2/22).

Irfan started the proceeding, striking twice in his very first over, removing openers — Swapnil Asnodkar (3) and Graeme Smith (2) — to leave the Rajasthan Royal struggling at nine for two in two overs.

Abdulla then followed Irfan’s footsteps and dealt two more severe blows when he had Rob Quiney (7) and Dimitry Mascarenhas (4) back into the pavillion in his second over.
New man Yusuf Pathan (10) tried to break the shackles and hammered two fours in the fourth and sixth bowl off Irfan’s second over. But he too perished at short fine leg off Piyush Chawla in the 6.4 over.

Double finish for Force India in Bahrain Grand Prix

Sakhir, April 26: Force India today achieved its modest target of a double finish in the Bahrain Grand Prix with Giancarlo Fisichella bringing home his car in 15th position, followed by teammate Adrian Sutil.

Starting 17th on the grid, Fisichella gained four places from his starting position on the first lap and had graduated to 12th by his first pit stop on lap 15.
The Italian then moved up to 10th and by the midpoint of the race was racing with Renault and McLaren cars.

The Italian, however, had increasing discomfort in the closing stages of the race with his seat and he finished the race 15th.

Sutil had a strong race from 19th on the grid and the German was 11th by his late first stop, thanks to an aggressive strategy.

Australia will not travel to India for Davis Cup tie

MELBOURNE: Australia will not send its Davis Cup team to India for next month's tie because of security concerns, Tennis Australia (TA) said on Satur day, knowing the country could now face a year-long ban and substantial fine.

Australia can't justify Davis Cup pull out: Gill

TA had appealed the International Tennis Federation's (ITF) decision to keep the May 8-10 Asia/Oceania group I tie in Chennai, citing security concerns.

The ITF on Friday, however, rejected the appeal and upheld the decision of the Davis Cup committee to keep the tie in the southern Indian city, which is considered by Indian authorities to be a safe destination.

The ITF had based its original decision to keep the tie in India after a review by its security consultants.

"The ITF decision has left us with no other option," Tennis Australia president Geoff Pollard said in a statement.

"We cannot send the team. It is extremely disappointing.

"It would be irresponsible of us to send our players into an area of such high risk. Davis Cup is very important to us but some things are more important than tennis."

Security in the sub-continent has been called into question following the ambush of the Sri Lanka cricket team's bus in Lahore, Pakistan, last month.

The incident triggered concern that sport could become a target for more attacks in south Asia. India also remains nervous after Islamist militants killed more than 150 people in a three-day attack in Mumbai in November.

The Indian cricket board moved the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 league to South Africa after the government said providing security would be a problem due to clash of dates with the general election.

Davis Cup captain John Fitzgerald said he was angry with the ITF's decision and pointed to events surrounding the election that suggested security forces were being stretched.

"It is just irresponsible. Surely some thought must be given to the players' safety," Fitzgerald said.

"I believe they say the election is not a cause for concern, the IPL moving is not relevant and that an ATP tournament held in January shows it is safe to play in Chennai.

"So what about the fact that dozens of people are being killed along the campaign trail of the election? A train was hijacked this week, but that does not alter their thoughts? Did the IPL move for no reason?

"This decision makes no sense. We have worked so hard to get back in to World Group contention, to have it snatched away like this is gut wrenching."

Under Davis Cup rules, TA now could be banned from the competition for 12 months and face a substantial fine.

Three weeks ago the ITF banned the city of Malmo from hosting future Davis Cup ties for five years and fined Swedish tennis officials $25,000 after the host nation decided to stage the World Group tie against Israel behind closed doors.

Soruce:http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4447027.cms

Davis Cup completely safe in India: Chidambaram

NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Saturday assured that the Davis Cup tie between Australia and India in Chennai will be "completely safe" while also promising a fool-proof security for the May 8-10 event.

Australia will not travel to India for Davis Cup tie
Australia can't justify Davis Cup pull out: Gill
No comparison between IPL and Davis Cup: Cricket board

Reacting to Australia's withdrawal from the Asia-Oceania Group I tie, citing security concerns and describing India as "area of high risk", the Home Ministry issued a statement, making it clear that Davis Cup was a small affair to be safely conducted in India during election time.

"Davis Cup is one match, one visiting team, one venue, one small stadium, three days. India and the event are completely safe. Fool-proof security can and will be provided," a Home Ministry release quoted Chidambaram as saying.

Australian Davis Cup captain John Fitzgerald denounced the ITF decision to reject Tennis Australia's plea to shift the match and go ahead with it in India, pointing out the Indian Premier League Twenty20 cricket tournament was not moved to South Africa for no reason.

"It is just irresponsible. Surely some thought must be given to the players' safety. I believe they (ITF) say the election is not a cause for concern, the IPL moving is not relevant and that an ATP tournament held in January shows it is safe to play in Chennai... Did the IPL move for no reason? This decision makes no sense," Fitzgerald said in a statement.

Tennis Australia President Geoff Pollard said in a statement "We asked for the tie to be moved because we have major security concerns for the players, particularly during the (Indian) election. It would be irresponsible of us to send our players into an area of such high risk."

Source:http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Davis-Cup-safe-in-India-Home-Minister/articleshow/4448401.cms

Yuki enters semi-finals of BHEL Futures ITF

NEW DELHI: Yuki Bhambri came up with his best performance in an International Tennis Federation (ITF) event on Thursday, entering the $15,000 BHEL Futures semi-finals, at the DLTA complex.

The 16-year-old Indian wildcard, who never crossed the quarter-finals stage, overcame an indifferent start to get the measure of 24-year-old Rohan Gajjar, 6-4, 6-4, in their first meeting.

Both players have a big serve and a potent forehand to back up. So, it all boiled down to the errors and Yuki committed fewer mistakes than his opponent.

The junior Australian Open champion was broken early in the first set, but he broke back immediatley. He then broke Gajjar again in the ninth game before finally serving out the set.

In the second set, the Delhi youngster affected the decisive break in the seventh game of the second set with a whipping forehand winner followed by brilliant pass.

A clever drop in the tenth game brought up two match points for Yuki and he sealed the set and match as Gajjar netted a return.

Yuki, however, wasn't satisfied with his performance.

"I committed a few errors. I got broken in the second game. It was a little windy out there and it was difficult to control the light-weight balls, but then a win is a win," said Yuki, who has not dropped a set so far.

"I guess both Rohan and I enjoyed playing against each other. We play similar kind of tennis, so we both were trying to attack the other's backhand. I have been trying to bring variety in my shots besides working to perfect my volleys. Today, thankfully, I played them well."

Yuki next plays Japanese Masato Hatanaka who upset seventh-seeded Sean Thornley of England, 7-6(6), 6-1.

In another quarter-final match, fifth-seeded Vishnu Vardhan upset third-seeded Goran Tosic of Montenegro with a 6-2, 7-5 win and next plays top-seeded Raven Klaasen of South Africa who beat American Adam El Mithdawy, 6-4, 7-6(4).

sOURCE:http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

Rajasthan Royals pip Knight Riders via 'Super Over' drama

Cape Town, Apr 23 (PTI) Newlands Stadium witnessed intense drama as Rajasthan Royals pipped Kolkata Knight Riders via 'Super Over' in an edge-of-the-seat thriller in the Indian Premier League here today.

Put into bat, Rajasthan Royals had earlier managed 150 for six, a total they owed largely to Yusuf Pathan (42) even though it was Abhishek Raut (21 not out) who provided the late charge for them.

Chasing a victory target of 151, Chris Gayle (41) sizzled at the top while Sourav Ganguly (46) too shone as the Knight Riders managed exactly 150 for eight in their allotted 20 overs.

In the 'Super Over', Knight Riders managed 15 runs off Kamran Khan's over with Chris Gayle scoring 13 off it before being dismissed in the final ball.

In reply, Rajasthan Royals scored 18 off Ajantha Mendis' first four balls with Yusuf Pathan hitting 6,2,6 and 4 to seal the win.

Earlier defending the modest total, Royals captain Shane Warne sprung a surprise by opening the attack with Yusuf Pathan but it was his former Hampshire mate Dimitry Mascarenhas who drew first blood by removing a struggling Brendon McCullum (3). PTI