10 SPORTS NAGPUR n Saturday n November 23 n 2024 TheHitavada

SATWIK-CHIRAG PAIR MOVES UP,

‘Shooting’s depth is unmatched’ LAKSHYA BOWS OUT IN QF
GURGAON, Nov 22 (PTI) The 42-year-old further hockey, cricket, wrestling from programme of the games very better and keep improving our
stressed the importance of its roster in a big blow to India’s small and that is what resulted medal count at the Olympics,”
SHOOTING has flourished in strategic planning, attention to medal prospects at Glasgow. in shooting not having a Bindra said.
the country over the last detail, and continuous evolu- Pointingoutthatthedecision presence in the next
decade and now boasts an Manu can become
unmatched “depth of talent” in one of the greatest
the sport, remarked the leg-
endary Abhinav Bindra. Bindra further said Manu has
Manu Bhaker led the way the potential to win multiple
with an unprecedented dou- Olympic medals and establish
ble bronze as Indian shooters herself as one of India’s great-
soared to a new high, return- est shooters.
ing with their best-ever haul of “Manu is a very young ath-
three medals from the Paris lete and has a wonderful career A file photo of
Olympics. ahead of her, the world is like Satwiksairaj
“Thedepthoftalentavailable a canvas for her. She had an Rankireddy (L)
in the sport of shooting does- incredible Olympics in Paris. and Chirag
n’t exist in any other sport in “She has a tremendous Shetty.
this country,” Bindra, the first amount of character, and a lot
Indiantowinanindividualgold of mental fortitude to not just SHENZHEN (China), Nov 22 (PTI) the quarter-finals to bow out of
medal at the Olympics in be an athlete but a great ath- the competition.
Beijing 2008, told PTI Video in lete. INDIAN men’s doubles pair of In the opening game, Satwik
an exclusive interview at the “She has the ingredients to Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and and Chirag looked in good touch
ArtemisHospitalhereonFriday. continue to perform and win Chirag Shetty produced a solid as they were up 11-8 at the break,
“There are so many sporting multiple medals at every level, show to outwit second seeds which they extended to 16-10
athletes performing at the including the Olympics. If she Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup with a flurry of fast-paced angled
national level and at the world Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra taking his shot. (File) continues to put in the work Rasmussen of Denmark to returnswhichdominatedtheral-
level. This clearly shows the thentherearetremendouspos- progress to the semi-finals of the lies.
amount of progress the sport tion of the ecosystem to sus- toreducethescaleoftheGames Commonwealth Games. sibilities ahead of her.” China Masters Super 750 bad- Satwik and Chirag kept a firm
has made in the last tain the momentum in future was made for sustainability, “But that is something not Bindra also hailed Manu’s minton tournament here grip on the rallies to maintain the
decade or so.” Olympic performances. Bindra said this is “not perma- permanent and I hope that resillienceafterreturningemp- on Friday. lead, grabbing six game points.
India’s achievement at Paris “I hope that the momentum nent” and hopes that shooting Shooting as a sport does make ty-handed at her debut Playing their first tournament A massive smash from
Games also ended a 12-year continues, and the strategic will return in the future. a comeback. I don’t think this Olympics in Tokyo. since the Paris Olympics, Satwik Rasmussen and a net error from
drought at the Olympics, with planning continues because I “The whole Commonwealth isaneraofboycott,itwassome- “I think what was wonderful and Chirag, who had reached the Chirag delayed the inevitable
Manu, Sarabjot Singh, and think the performance at the movement is going through a thing back in the 80’s and we to see was her resilience after final in the last edition, regis- before the former sprayed one
Swapnil Kusale securing three Olympics has a lot to do with difficult time, many hosts have have moved on from that. she had a very difficult Games tered a 21-16, 21-19 win over the wide to hand the opening game
bronze medals. the detailing of planning. withdrawn which has resulted “I don’t think that it is an (Olympics) in Tokyo. World No 2 pair in 47 minutes. to the Indians.
“Therewasabitofalullwhere in many problems in the option, the talent in the sport To come back and show The Asian Games gold medal- The second game was more
in two Olympics we didn’t win Shooting CWG Commonwealth movement,” of shooting is immense and the resilienceandpersistence,turn lists will face either eighth seeds competitive as the Danes dom-
any medals but that is part and absence not Bindra said. sport can continue to perform it around and win two medals Japanese Takuro Hoki and Yugo inatedtheflatexchangestomove
parcel of the sport. There are “Theorganisationthencame as medal winners and athletes shows she has a tremendous KobayashiorKorea’sJinYongand to7-5aftertheinitialduel.Satwik
big learnings that the athletes permanent up with a solution to keep the who are performing at a amount of character, and a lot Seo Seung Jae in the last four was called for a service fault at
have had, the federation made Olympic movement alive, the great level. of mental fortitude to not just clash. 8-8 but the Indians managed to
which resulted in good results The 2026 Commonwealth solution lies in sustainability “I don’t have any doubts that be an athlete but a great In men’s singles, Lakshya Sen grab a 11-10 lead at the interval.
in Paris,” Bindra said. Games has dropped shooting, and keeping the whole we will continue to perform athlete,” Bindra concluded. suffered a 18-21, 15-21 loss in 53 Followingatightbattle,Satwik-
minutes against third seed Chirag moved to 16-15 before
Anders Antonsen of Denmark in the rivals inched to 17-16.

Sinner guides Italy into last four PR Sreejesh’s

Indian colts SMAT becomes
depart for Oman
centre stage
MALAGA, Spain, Nov 22 (AP) Australia, the Davis Cup run-
ner-up the last two years,
FIRST-RANKED Jannik Sinner advanced when Matt Ebden and BENGALURU, Nov 22 (PTI)
won matches in singles and Jordan Thompson beat the sur-
doubles to lead defending prise,last-minuteAmericanpair- FRESH from winning the bronze NEW DELHI, Nov 22 (PTI) ing to get picked up in the IPL
champion Italy to a 2-1 come- ing of Ben Shelton and Tommy medal in the Sultan of Johor auction after getting released by
back victory over Argentina, Paul6-4,6-4inthatquarter-final’s Cup, PR Sreejesh-coached PRESENCE of a few frontline Gujarat Titans.
earning a return trip to the Davis deciding doubles match. Indian colts on stars like Hardik Pandya, Considering his lofty pedigree
Cup semi-finals. The Shelton-Paul substitution Friday departed for Mohammed Shami and its co- and skills, Shami will certainly
“I’m here trying to do the best for Paris Olympics silver medal- Muscat to defend existence with the IPL mega auc- find a taker in the auction room,
I can in the singles,” Sinner said ists Austin Krajicek and Rajeev the Junior Asia tion has given the latest edition but a couple of power
on Thursday. Ram was announced about 15 Cup title. of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, spells in the SMAT will add more
“If they put me on the court in minutes before the doubles India, who defeated beginning across venues from gravitas to his profile when his
doubles, I’ll also try my best.” match began. Ebden and John arch-rivals Pakistan 2-1 to lift the Saturday, a meaty context. But name is read out by the auc-
On Saturday, Italy will face Peers beat Krajicek and Ram in title last year for a record fourth interestingly, the players are tioneer. Similarly, Shreyas Iyer
Australia in a rematch of last the Summer Games final time, will open their campaign not sewn by a common auction (Mumbai), who had led Kolkata
year’s final, but this time it will in August. against Thailand on November thread in the country’s premier Knight Riders to title in IPL 2024,
only be for a chance to play for 27 in their Pool A fixture. domestic T20 tournament. andYuzvendraChahal(Haryana)
the championship. Australia They will next face Japan on Pandya need not to will be looking to boost
eliminated the US 2-1 earlier
Thursday to reach the final four
3 Nigerian banned November 28 and ChineseTaipei
onNovember30.Theirlastgroup
worry about impress-
ing the IPL scouts after
their already impres-
sive IPL CV with fine
at the team competition for the stage match is against Korea on finding a place in efforts in
third consecutive year. LONDON, Nov 22 (AP) December 1. India need a top- Mumbai Indians’ the tournament.
Theothersemi-final,tobecon- two finish to secure a semi-final retention list ahead of A quick rewind to
tested Friday, is the Netherlands THREE Nigerian tennis berth. Pakistan, Malaysia, the auction on Shah Rukh Khan’s val-
against Germany.The Dutch got players ranked outside the Bangladesh, Oman, and China November 24 and 25 in ue rising a few rungs
past Rafael Nadal and Spain in top 1,000 who were linked to constitute Pool B. Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. after guiding Tamil
the quarter-finals earlier in the a match-fixing syndicate in Confident of a positive start, But Shami’s outing for Bengal Nadu to SMA title with a final ball
week,sendingthe22-timeGrand — plus the title at the ATP Finals chance to practice on the Davis Belgium were all suspended captain Amir Ali said they have ismulti-dimensional.Theveteran six against Karnataka a couple of
Slam champion into retirement. last weekend in Turin, Italy. First Cup competition court before and each was fined $10,000, prepared well and are deter- pacer will be eager to come up seasons ago will validate
Italyfellbehind1-0inthequar- he overwhelmed Sebastian Baez taking on Baez and stretching the International Tennis mined to reach the final. withafineshowtofurtherunder- that point.
ter-finals when Argentina’s 6-2, 6-1. Then Sinner teamed his streak to 22 sets won in a row. Integrity Agency announced “We have been preparing rig- line his fitness after recently tak- Along with these established
Francisco Cerundolo defeated with 2021 Wimbledon runner- “In three minutes, he was per- Friday. Henry Atseye, 35, orously and are ready to face the ing seven wickets for his state in and budding stars, an array of
Lorenzo Musetti 6-4, 6-1 on an upMatteoBerrettiniinthedecid- fectlycomfortableoncourt,”Italy admitted to six violations of challenges ahead,” Ali stated in a Ranji Trophy match against players, who have been pushed
indoor hard court at the Palacio ing doubles match to win 6-4, 7- captain Filippo Volandri said. anti-corruption rules from a Hockey India release. Madhya Pradesh. behind, such as Karun Nair
de Deportes Jose Maria Martina 5 against Andres Molteni and “He’s a special one.” 2017-18. Sylvester “We all understand the impor- It’s a chance for him to con- (Vidarbha), Krunal Pandya
Carpena in southern Spain. Maximo Gonzalez. Volandriswapped outhisorig- Emmanuel, 26, and tance of this tournament and the tinuetocharthiswaybacktotop- (Baroda) and Deepak Hooda
But then in stepped Sinner, “He carried me today,” Sinner inaldoublesteam,SimoneBolelli Christian Paul, 29, did not opportunity to showcase our level cricket, and his efforts here (Rajasthan)toowill dreamtores-
whose season already includes said about Berrettini. and AndreaVavassori, for Sinner respond to their charges. skills on the big stage. Our focus will also have a bearing on him urrect their sagging IPL careers
two Grand Slam trophies — at After arriving late to Malaga and Berrettini, and the change isongivingourbestfromthevery boarding the flight to Australia. with some excellent outings in
theAustralianOpenandUSOpen from Turin, Sinner did not get a paid dividends. first match.” The 34-year-old will also be look- the event.

Messi hails Flick’s vision

BARCELONA, Nov 22 (AP) dence, they respond in this fash-
Guardiola extends
contract with
Manchester City
Hamilton sets Vegas pace
LAS VEGAS, Nov 22 (AP)
ion because they know the club MANCHESTER, Nov 22 (AP)
HANSI Flick has Barcelona click- better than anyone and know SEVEN-TIME Formula 1 cham-
ing again, and the best player in howtheteamwantstoplay.Good PEP Guardiola committed him- pion Lewis Hamilton paced both
the club’s history has taken things are happening just like self to Manchester City for of Thursday night’s practices at
notice. with the previous generation.” another two years and quickly the Las Vegas Grand Prix just two
Lionel Messi praised Flick’s Xavi, Flick’s predecessor until set his sights on weeks after one of the worst
willingness to give Barcelona’s he was fired last season, was the adding to his races of his career.
youth players chances to play. first to tap into this rich new vein record-break- The Mercedes driver was
Thatbethaspaidoffhandsomely of budding talent by giving starts ing reign. despondent over his perform-
and invigorated a Barcelona side to Yamal when he was just 15. Guardiola ance in Brazil when he intimat-
that is playing its best soccer Xavi also opened the door for ended uncer- ed after the race he wasn’t even
since Messi’s tearful exit three defender Pau Cubarsi and mid- tainty about his sure he wanted to finish the final
years ago. fielder Fermin Lopez to join the future by signing a three races of the season.
“It makes me proud to see how Lionel Messi senior squad. Flick has contin- contract extension on Thursday Hamilton is moving to Ferrari at
theteamisrepresentednow.This uedalongthat samepathdespite that would prolong his tenure as the end of the season.
Barça is spectacular,” Messi said Messi and other members of being a complete newcomer to City manager to 11 seasons. “I didn’t really want to come
in an interview with Catalan tel- his great Barcelona team like the club. Instead of pressing the “I have said this many times back,”HamiltonsaidinLasVegas Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz, of Spain, drives during a practice
evision TV3 on Friday. Andres Iniesta and Xavi club to sign a holding before, but I have everything a of his Brazil performance, where session for the Formula One US Grand Prix auto race, Thursday, in
Hernandez were themselves midfielder upon his arrival, manager could ever wish for,” he struggled with the handling Las Vegas. (AP/PTI)
SUDOKU SOLUTION products of the club’s
famed training system.
theGerman manager took
several youth players on
said the 53-year-old Catalan
coach, whose current deal was
of his car, called it “undrivable”
and“thebumpiestrideever”after to come back after that weekend, second practice sessions
Lamine Yamal now Barcelona’s pre-season due to expire at the end of this finishing 10th. but I think that’s only natural. It’s Thursday in Las Vegas. He was
leads a new group of summer tour. From season. “Hopefully now we can “If this is the last time that I frustrating when you have a sea- followed in second practice by
products of La Masia that experience, he add more trophies to the ones get to perform, it’s a shame it sonlikethis,whichI’mprettysure championship contender Lando
academy. found Marc Bernal, we have already won. That will wasn’t great, but (I’m)grateful for I won’t have again, or at least I’ll Norris of McLaren and Mercedes
“Thishappenedwhen who played well at the be my focus.” you,” Hamilton said on his team work towards not having again. teammate George Russell.
I arrived at the club at age holding position until he Guardiola has overseen a peri- radio after the race. “It wasn’t a great feeling in that Max Verstappen, who only
13,” Messi said. “I think it rupturedhisACLafterjust odofunprecedenteddominance Hamilton clarified those moment but I’m here, I’m stand- needstofinishthreepointsahead
is great that these kids Hansi Flick three games. since joining City in 2016. He has remarks in LasVegas, explaining ing strong, and I’m going to give of Norris on Saturday night, was
have had these chances Then, Flick dug deeper goneontowinsixPremierLeague how frustrated he was by the it absolutely everything for the 17th in the second practice.
over the past couple of years. and found a true gem in Marc titles in seven years at the Etihad Brazilian performance. last few races.” Hamilton and Russell went 1-2
When you give them the oppor- Casado, who has taken Stadium and also won the “In the moment, that’s how I He proved he could bounce in the opening practice, with
tunity and show them confi- the position by storm. Champions League. felt,” he said.“I didn’t really want back as he led both the first and Norris third.