Hangzhou: Sutirtha Mukherjee and Auhika Mukherjee’s giant-slaying run ended with a bronze medal at the Asian Games after the Indian duo lost the closely-fought women’s doubles semifinal 3-4 to Korea here Monday.

Sutirtha and Ayhika brought the match on even-keel after trailing 2-3 but the Koreans Sugyong Pak and Suyog Cha outgunned the Indians in the decider, winning 7-11 11-8 7-11 11-8 11-9 5-11 11-2 in 60 minutes.

The match ended when Sutirtha’s forehand crashed on the net.

Sutirtha and Ayhika had shocked the reigning world champion Chinese pair of Chen Meng and Yidi Wang in the quarterfinals.

With this defeat in the women’s doubles, India’s table tennis campaign ended at the Games. This is the only TT medal that India won at this edition of the Games.

Hangzhou: The Indian Speed Skating team, consisting of Sanjana Bathula, Karthika Jagadeeswaran, Heeral Sadhu, and Aarathy Kasturi Raj, clinched a bronze medal after clocking an impressive 4:34.861 in the finals of the 3000 m relay, at the Asian Games, here Monday.

The Indian quartet completed the race in 4 minutes and 34.861 seconds, earning them third place. The gold medal went to Chinese Taipei with a time of 4 minutes and 19.447 seconds, while South Korea claimed silver with a time of 4 minutes and 21.146 seconds.

Meanwhile, the Indian men’s quarter of Aryanpal Singh Ghuman, Anandkumar Velkumar, Siddhant Kamble, and Vikram Ingale bagged another bronze medal by clocking in at 4:10.128 in the men’s team relay.

Chinese Taipei (4:05.692) and South Korea (4:05.702) were in first and second positions respectively.

More details awaited.

Kolkata: Two-time Inter-zone semifinalists Mohun Bagan Super Giant will aim to consolidate the top spot when they face Maziya Sports & Recreation of Maldives in a group D South Zone AFC Cup fixture here Monday.

The Indian Super League defending champions began their AFC Cup group campaign with a 4-0 rout of Odisha FC.

The Maldives outfit also won their opening round match — a 3-1 victory over Bashundhara Kings of Dhaka.

Mohun Bagan and Maziya both have three points each but the Kolkata heavyweights lead group D with a better goal difference and the Juan Ferrando-coached outfit will look for another win to brighten their qualification hopes.

With only the South Zone group winners advancing to the Inter-Zone semi-finals, there will be no room for error in Group D, and Ferrando’s wards will look to continue their charge.

Dimitri Petratos has been prolific up front for the Mariners, while Sahal Abdul Samad and Liston Colaco have also found their mojo, striking a goal each in their win over Odisha FC.

The Mariners, who have assembled a star-studded side this season, have started to come on their won after winning the Durand Cup and the focus for Ferrando’s men will now be on to make the Inter-zonal semis for a third time on the trot.

Mohun Bagan will come to the match on the back of a 1-0 win over Bengaluru FC in the Indian Super League with Hugo Boumous scoring the winner. This was the defending champions’ second win in the tournament.

“Obviously, we need to improve. I believe that paying attention to many details in situations like this is necessary to better control the space,” Ferrando said after their ISL match on September 27.

“After the match was tied at 0-0, we improved significantly after going up 1-0. However, the team struggled to control the spaces, so we must work on maintaining that control. This is why we need more training sessions,” the Spaniard said.

On head-to-head, Mohun Bagan have beaten their Maldives’ rivals three times in six outings, which included a 5-2 win in the last season.

Maziya will rely on their forward Vojislav Balabanovic who was also on the scoresheet in their win over the Dhaka outfit.

Hassan Nazeem, Ali Fasir will be the other key players for the Milomir Seslija-coached side.

Kick-off: 7.30pm.

PTI

Hangzhou: Avinash Sable became the first Indian man to win the gold medal in 3000m steeplechase at the Asian Games while shot-putter Tajinderpal Singh Toor defended his title with an amazing final throw to beat back the challenge from his Saudi Arabian rival here Sunday.

Sable, the 29-year-old national record holder, earned India its first gold medal in athletics, completing the race in 8:19.50 seconds.

Sable rewrote the previous Asian Games record of 8:22.79 held in the name of Iran’s Hossein Keyhani set at the 2018 Jakarta Games.

Sudha Singh had won a gold in women’s 3000m steeplechase in the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou.

Toor, the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games gold medallist, came up with a mighty throw of 20.36 metres on his sixth and last attempt to overhaul his Saudi rival Mohamed Daouda Tolo’s distance of 20.18 metres.

Toor, however, could not break his own Asian Games record of 20.75m set in 2018 Jakarta. But the 28-year-old’s final throw was way too good for his Saudi rival to overhaul in his final attempt.

In the 1500m for women, India’s Harmilan Bains won a silver while Ajay Kumar Saroj and Jinson Johnson won silver and bronze respectively in the men’s 1500m.

Earlier, the toast of the nation in the last edition, Indian heptathlete Swapna Barman’s one “last shot” at glory at the Asian Games turned into a nightmare as she struggled with injuries to virtually go out of medal reckoning after the javelin throw event.

The defending champion, who boasts of a personal best of 52.55m in javelin throw, managed a throw of just 45.13 in the penultimate event of the gruelling two-day competition.

Javelin throw was one of the two events Swapna had won in 2018 en route to becoming the first Indian heptathlete to win an Asian Games gold.

Overall, Swapna was ranked fourth with 4840 points, 11 points behind her nearest rival Jingyi Liu of China ahead of the 800m race, which is the last segment of the seven-event competition.

The other Indian in the fray, Nandini Agasara notched a personal best of 39.88m in javelin throw that took her overall ranking to fifth place.

Earlier in the day, Swapna Barman leapt 5.71m in the long jump, while Nandini Agasara had a season-best 5.94m jump.

With her career ravaged by a spinal injury, the six-toed Indian athlete had contemplated retirement last year. But she took one last shot at glory and came to Hanghzou in her title defence bid.

This year she won the Inter-State meet and also bagged a silver medal in the build-up to the Asian Games. She also avoided surgery so as to ensure that she does not miss her training despite a bad back.

“But her body condition could not cope up and she failed to get a good start,” her coach Subhash Sarkar told PTI.

“She was expecting a good result in high jump but a fourth place finish shattered her and she couldn’t recover from there,” he added.

Swapna had a jump of 1.70m, which was nowhere close to her personal best of 1.87.

“The poor start has affected her morale and it showed in today’s javelin throw event. It’s as good as over,” Sarkar said of Swapna’s prospects this time.

Earlier, India’s Amlan Borgohain finished at the third position after clocking 21.08 seconds in the men’s 200m heats and advanced to the semifinal.

The first three athletes in each heat make the cut for the semi-finals. The top four times from all the heats who have not made the cut will also advance to the semifinals.

The sprinter from Assam, currently the country’s fastest, holds both the men’s 100m and 200m national records.

However, Jyothi Yarraji failed to make the cut for the women’s 200m final. The Indian had a timing of 23.78s.

Yarraji, however, is in contention for a medal in women’s 100m hurdles.

PTI

Hangzhou: World Championship bronze medallist boxer Parveen Hooda assured India of a medal and also grabbed a Paris Olympic quota by moving into the 57kg semifinals, but Nikhat Zareen bowed out in the semifinals at the Hangzhou Asian Games here Sunday.

Parveen, who won the bronze medal in the 63kg at the 2022 World Boxing Championships, moved past Uzbekistan’s Sitora Turdibekova by unanimous verdict in the quarterfinal.

However, Zareen, competing in the women’s 50kg category, had to settle for bronze after losing to Rakast Chuthamat of Thailand.

The Thai girl won 2-1 on split decision in the semifinal contest. Zareen had won the first round, but her rival emerged the victor in the two following rounds.

Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Jaismine Lamboria, however, crashed out of the 60kg contest after conceding a second round RSC (referee stops contest) to North Korean boxer Won Ungyong in her quarterfinal bout.

Parveen, the reigning Asian champion was in her elements from the word go, using her long arms to throw punches from a distance and control the proceedings.

She switched between the left jab and the right cross to unnerve the 21-year-old Uzbek.

Parveen fought a strategic bout as after going on the offensive in the opening round, she waited for Turdibekova to come forward, only to pummel her with accurate scoring punches.

Turdibekova did make a strong comeback by landing several blows on Parveen, but it wasn’t enough to convince the judges to rule the bout in her favour.

After winning the first round 5-0, Jaismine asked for her headgear to be adjusted but once that was done, the Indian lost concentration as she was hit by a series of hooks and jabs by Won.

Jaismine lost energy, becoming a standing target for Won as the referee gave the Indian three standing counts in less than a minute before calling off the contest.

The two-time world champion Nikhat Zareen (50kg), Preeti Pawar (54kg), Lovlina Borgohain (75kg ) and Narender Berwal (+92kg) have already secured Olympic quotas in their respective categories.

In women’s events, the semifinalists in the 50kg, 54kg, 57kg, and 60kg, as well as the finalists in the 66kg and 75kg, will qualify for the Paris Olympics.

The gold and silver medallists in each of the seven weight divisions in the men’s event will receive Olympic quotas.

PTI

Hangzhou: India’s strength in singles discipline helped it beat the mighty Republic of Korea in the men’s team badminton competition and storm into the final for the first time in the history of the sport in the Asian Games.

India defeated Korea 3-2 in the semifinal Saturday, riding on wins by singles players HS Prannoy, Lakshya Sen, and Kidambi Srikanth won their matches while the doubles pairs of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty and MR Arjun/Dhruv Kapila lost their matches.

This is the first time that India reached the final of the Asian Games Men’s team badminton competition and will take on China, who brushed aside Japan 3-1 in the other semifinal played in the Badminton Stadium at the Binjiang Gymnasium.

India won the bronze medal thrice in men’s team competition in 1974, 1982, and 1986. PV Sindhu’s silver medal in singles in 2018 is the only one that India has ever won in Asian Games badminton.

HS Prannoy, India’s in-form player, started the ball rolling by beating Hyeokim Jeon 18-21, 21-10, 21-10 in a 78-minute encounter. Korea then used its superiority in doubles play to win the next two matches.

Satwiksairaj Rannkireddy and Chirag Shetty, the Indian doubles pair ranked in the top-10, lost to the Korean combination of Kang Min Hyuk and Seung Jee Seo, the pair snapping at their heels in the latest rankings, in straight games, 13-21, 24-26 in 83 minutes.

Lakshya Sen put India ahead again by beating Yungyu Lee in straight games, winning 21-7, 21-9 in just 44 minutes. But Korea pulled level once again when Wonho Kim and Sungseung Na defeated MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila in straight games, winning 21-16, 21-11.

It was now left to Srikanth in the third singles and the former World No.1 and World Championship silver medallist did not disappoint as he defeated Geonhyeon Cho. coming back after losing the first game to win 12-21, 21-16, 21-14 in 9 minutes to seal a memorable victory for India.

This will set up India for a confident display in the individual competitions as they are expected to win more medals and add to the 1 silver and nine bronze medals India has won in the Asian Games so far.

IANS

Hangzhou: China’s national anthem was played twice on the Hangzhou Asian Games tennis court, for young stars Zheng Qinwen and Zhang Zhizhen respectively.

“The national flag on our shirts means a lot,” said 20-year-old sensation Zheng, who triumphed at her first Asiad in the women’s singles, reports Xinhua.

“We tennis players compete in Grand Slams or other tournaments around the world every year, only with a few opportunities to actually represent our own country in international events,” the US Open quarterfinalist noted.

The Hangzhou Asiad coincide with China’s Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays which last from September 29 to October 6. Although players are not able to enjoy the holidays, they can see more spectators rooting for them on spot.

“Sincere thanks for the crowd supporting us all the time. We really cherish the journey here,” Zheng said after defeating compatriot Zhu Lin 6-2, 6-4 in the final to seize the women’s singles gold.

The 29-year-old Zhu was in tears during the award ceremony, but not for the loss.

“People who know me may not be surprised. I am a somewhat emotional person, sincerely moved by the cheers for us at that moment,” Zhu explained.

The Mid-Autumn Festival carries people’s good wishes for reunion, harmony, and a better life, while the National Day holiday arouses patriotism. All the feelings and emotions converged in the venue and touched China’s athletes who play tournaments overseas most of the time.

“Home crowd fully supported us, cheered for us, which feels so different from when we play abroad, so heartwarming,” Zhu said. “We secured the gold and silver in advance and staged an excellent final for the audience. I am satisfied with my performance in Hangzhou.”

Standing atop the podium, Zhang Zhizhen felt proud and pointed to the word ‘CHINA’ on the back of his shirt, receiving another round of cheers.

The 26-year-old clinched his first Asiad title with a 6-4, 7-6 (7) victory over Japan’s Yosuke Watanuki Saturday, which also marked the first men’s singles gold medal for China at an Asian Games in nearly three decades, after Pan Bing won the event in 1990 and 1994.

Besides his own goal of pursuing new heights, Zhang hopes to see more Chinese children take to the sport of tennis and embark on the professional road, “It’s difficult, but worth a shot.”

“Chinese tennis will always strive for the better. The next generation of Chinese tennis players will outperform us,” Zhang said.

“Some excellent players missed Hangzhou Asian Games. We should continue to train hard and improve ourselves,” he added.

As the Asiad champions, Zheng and Zhang obtained the berths to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, while Zhu is still chasing for an Olympic spot.

“Without doubt, we will make our utmost efforts at the Olympic Games for China,” Zheng Qinwen said.

IANS

Hangzhou: The Indian shooting squad set itself up for a final hurrah in the shooting competitions at the Hangzhou Asian Games here with the Men’s Trap Team picking a gold medal and the women’s team adding a silver and taking their tally to 21 medals in all, including seven gold.

They were in the hunt for more medals in the men’s and Women’s individual competitions.

The Men’s Trap team of Kynan Chenai, Zoravar Singh Sandhu, and Prithviraj Todaiman bagged the gold medal with a Games Record score of 318 as it finished ahead of Kuwait and China, who took silver and bronze medals with scores of 358 and 354 respectively.

Chenai led the scoring for India with 122 points from a possible 125 at the end of the qualifying event with Sandhu second with 120 points. Todaiman had a score of 119.

The Indian men overcame a tough challenge from Kuwait, that included in its ranks the double gold medalist in skeet Abdullah Al-Rashidi, and China but triumphed in the end.

Chenai qualified for the final as the top ranked shooter while Sandhu too made it after coming through a shoot-off with three others as all four had a score of 120. He finished tied at second position.

In the Women’s Trap Team competition, the Indian trio of Manisha Keer, Rajeshwari Kumari, and Preeti Rajak finished second behind China to claim the silver medal.

The Indian team produced a combined score of 337, finishing behind The Republic of Korea who shot a World Record score of 357. Kazakhstan bagged the bronze medal.

In a boost to the women’s team, Manisha Keer made it to the final in the individual section with a score of 114.

IANS

Hangzhou: Indian golfer Aditi Ashok bagged the silver medal after she was unable to hold onto her seven-shot lead and shot 5-over 77 in the final round of the, here Sunday.

Meanwhile, the team also slipped from first to fourth and ended without a medal.

Though it was a major disappointment for the Indian team, the individual silver medal for Aditi was the first-ever golf medal for India in Asian Games.

It was a difficult day for scoring, as only six players shot under par and only two went into the 60s. One of them was the 21-year-old Arpichaya Yubol of Thailand, who like Aditi plays on the LPGA Tour. Yubol shot 68 in the final round and won the gold ahead of the Indian.

The Indian women’s team also fell from the top spot to fourth and out of medals. As Yubol took gold, the silver went to Aditi and the bronze medal was claimed by Korea’s Hyunjo Yoo (65) who had the best round of the final day.

In the men’s section, Anirban Lahiri (65-67-74-68) was T-12, SSP Chawrasia (67-72-68-75) dropped to T-28. Khalin Joshi (70-69-69-73) was T-27 and Shubhankar Sharma (68-69-76-73) was 32nd. The men’s team also ended seventh.

The Indian men ended seventh, as Korea took the gold, Thailand were second and Hong Kong third.

In the men’s section, Hong Kong’s Taichi Kho (62-60-70-69) was 27-under as he held on to his third-round lead to win gold. Korea’s PGA Tour winner, Sungjae Im (66-65-66-65) took silver at 26-under. Taipei’s Chien-Yao Hung (65-63-67-69) at 24-under.

The 25-year-old Aditi, who had rounds of 67-65-61 on the first three days, crashed to 77. After 19 birdies two eagles and just one bogey in the first 54 holes, she gave away four bogeys and a double bogey against just one more birdie in the final round. She dropped from overnight 22-under to 17-under.

In contrast her playing partner, Arpichaya Yubol of Thailand, compiled a superb 68 in difficult scoring conditions on a day, when just two players carded below 70. Yubol (67-65-69-68), trailing Aditi by seven shots, rose from 15-under to 19-under and beat Aditi by two shots.

Korea’s Hyunjo Yoo (68-73-66-65) at 16-under finished third for the bronze medal as she raced past a bunch of better-known names with six birdies on the back nine in her round of 7-under 65.

With Aditi crashing in the final round, the Indian team, which was leading by one shot after three rounds, also slipped off the podium and was fourth.

India’s other two players, Pranavi Urs (75) and Avani Prashanth (76), also had a rough day in the final round. Pranavi finished 13th and Avani was T-18.

Korea won the team gold with a massive margin of 25 shots as they totalled 74-under, with Thailand (51-under) second and Hong Kong (50-under) finished third. The fancied Chinese finished sixth.

Meanwhile in the men’s team, Anirban Lahiri showed recovery after being hit by the heat, as he shot 68 in the final round, but his teammates were way off. Lahiri was the top Indian at T-12, while the team was seventh.

IANS

Hangzhou: A groin strain has been troubling Neeraj Chopra for some time now but the Olympic champion does not want the thought of injury to affect him as he gears up to defend his Asian Games title.

Chopra played most part of the season with a groin strain but still won the world championships title in August in Budapest and went on to finish second in the Diamond League finals on September 16.

“I have come back here after training and doing rehab in a relaxed manner in Switzerland. I hope to give my 100 per cent and defend my Asian Games title,” Chopra told reporters here.

“A little bit of groin issue is still there, it happened last year also. I was feeling better but it happened again. I have to take care of this very well and then prepare for the Paris Olympics. This kind of thing happens for athletes who compete at the top level.”

The 25-year-old javelin thrower had suffered a groin injury (adductor muscles) while training abroad in between his two Diamond League titles in Doha (May) and Lausanne (June 30). He missed action for one month and skipped three top competitions.

He rested and trained for nearly two months after June 30 without taking part in any competition, going straight for the World Championships.

But he did not recover completely from the strain and had that in mind during the world championships and following Diamond League finals.

He said the challenge throughout the season was how to keep his mind away from the injury and focus more on his game.

“I was struggling during the world championships and I was trying to divert my mind from the injury and focus on the throw.

“My strength is on the speed in the run-up but my biggest problem this time was I could not throw with full run-up even during training because of this injury. But still I am very happy with my performance this season. I want to take away this thought of injury from my mind.”

Chopra reckons that elite sports persons carry minor injuries here and there and it is about managing them,

“Javelin involves some unnatural movement and so there will be some pull or tightness here and there. In sports, you don’t get 100 per cent of what you think. I feel we should not run from situations, and should accept challenges. I can’t leave the Asian Games (because of a groin injury).

“Top sport spersons always have minor injuries here and there but you should know how to manage the injuries, how to divert it from the mind and focus on the game.”

From cricketers to shooters, foreign athletes and scribes to volunteers and officials, Chopra is the cynosure of all eyes at the Athletes Village here as all of them want photos, selfies and shake hands with the Indian superstar.

“There is always a positivity because I can meet all the Indian athletes here. Cricket is a part of the Asian Games and I feel good meeting with the athletes. I speak to them, takes photos with them.

“I went to the stadium also yesterday. Weather is a bit rainy but I am hoping it wil all right when my event nears. I am happy that the stadium is big and nearly full.”

When asked about his opponent Arshad Nadeem of Pakistan, Chopra said, “Athletics is a global sport. During the world championships, a lot of people asked that Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem was also playing and what is my view on that.”

“It is not a one-on-one competition. Athletes from many countries are playing. I feel good whether I am playing with athletes from Germany or Czech Republic or Pakistan. When we are on the field, we always push each other that we should do well. We are good with each other off the field, that is the message of sports.”

Chopra said that he did not use his own javelin during the Diamond League Finals in Eugene, USA, on September 16 where he had finished second.

“I travelled without my own javelin for the first time while competing in the Diamond League finals in Eugene. We had to change two flights and sometimes it happens that javelin is left behind.

“So, I thought I will use whatever is available during competition but it was not that good one, it was a new one, from a new company, a hard javelin which has not been used earlier. Everybody struggled there.”

His coach Dr Klaus Bartoneitz said his team will create plans for enhancing Chopra’s performance.

“It is a bit of science and some arts. It’s a combination of speed and strength.”

PTI 

Hangzhou: Sutirtha Mukherjee and Aihika Mukherjee shocked world champion Chinese pair Chen Meng and Yidi Wang to enter the women’s doubles semifinals, assuring India a historic table tennis medal at the Asian Games here Saturday.

In the quarterfinals, Sutirtha and Aihika won 11-5, 11-5, 5-11, 11-9 and the victory over World No. 2 Chinese duo is all the more significant because India have never won a medal in the women’s doubles event in the Asian Games.

The Indian players never allowed their superior opponents to settle down right from the go.

The Chinese duo was expected to roll over their opponents, and it happened precisely the opposite, as the Indians won the first game in just 8 minutes.

The trend followed in the second game too, as the Indians wrapped it in just 9 minutes as the Chinese players committed several unforced errors, particularly on the forehand.

The home side players mounted a brief fightback, winning the third game.

But the Indians regrouped quickly to assert themselves in the fourth game.

The epic winning moment came when Meng sprayed her forehand into the net.

Earlier, Commonwealth Games gold medallist Manika Batra produced an error-filled game to make an early exit in the quarterfinals of the women’s singles table tennis competition.

Manika went down against world No. 4 Yidi Wang of China 8-11, 12-10, 6-11, 4-11, 14-12, 5-11 and her defeat also marked the end of India’s campaign in the singles event at the Hangzhou Games.

The ace Indian paddler lost the first game 8-11, as she showed a distinct weakness on her backhand.

Even when she won the second and fifth games, it was more about the Chinese player making unforced errors in her eagerness to close out the points.

The classic example came in the fifth game when the Chinese sprayed an easy forehand while leading 11-10, which allowed Manika to claw back.

But in the sixth game, Wang regained her focus and peppered Manika’s backhand with powerful shots that the latter failed to reply properly.

Manika tried to fight back with a couple of powerful forehands but Wang’s astonishing retrieving ability left the Indian frustrated.

Fittingly, a backhand error from Manika that brought the match to an end.

Wang’s laser-guided forehand found Manika fumbling as her backhand return sailed well wide of the table.

Earlier, India’s men’s double pair of Manush Shah and Manav Thakkar also bowed out in the quarterfinals.

They were beaten by South Korean pair Woojin Jang and Jonghoon Lim 8-11, 11-7, 10-12, 11-6, 9-11 in the last eight.

The Indians were leading 6-2 in the fifth game which later transpired to 9-9, but they squandered the chances to go down against the Koreans.

“We fought really well. We took the game to 9-9 in the last set. We were very close to winning but we have to take the learnings and move forward,” said Manush after the defeat.

On the experience of playing against the World No. 1 Korean pair, Manush said: “They are probably the toughest opponents. We had some strategies and moves that we wanted to execute, and which we did. But in the end, we couldn’t prevail.”

PTI

Hangzhou: Top seeds India upstaged traditional rivals Pakistan in a sensational duel to claim the gold medal in the men’s team squash event at the Asian Games here Saturday.

The hero of the day was Chennai’s Abhay Singh, who kept his composure and raised his game to get the better of Noor Zaman 3-2 in a seesaw decider, in which the 25-year-old Indian saved two gold medal points to emerge triumphant and throw his racquet in the air.

This was after the seasoned Saurav Ghosal brought the Indians back into the contest with a 3-0 win over Muhammad Asim Khan after Mahesh Mangaonkar lost the opener to Iqbal Nasir by an identical margin.

India thus avenged their defeat to the same opponent in the league stage of this edition of the continental showpiece.

India last won a men’s team squash gold in the 2014 edition of the games in Incheon, while the Pakistanis last claimed gold in 2010 in Guanzhou.

PTI

Guwahati: Ravichandran Ashwin Saturday conceded the upcoming World Cup could be his last for India after the veteran spinner replaced Axar Patel in the hosts’ 15-member squad for the event, starting October 5.

Ashwin, who enjoyed a successful outing against Australia featuring in the first two ODIs of the recently-concluded series, was named as the replacement of Patel who has been sidelined due to quadricep strain.

Ahead of India’s first warm-up match against defending champions England here Saturday, the 37-year-old Ashwin made the admission in a pre-match chat.

“Being in a good space, enjoying this tournament will keep me in good stead. This could be my last World Cup for India, so enjoying the tournament is of utmost importance,” Ashwin told Star Sports.

“I would have said that you were joking. Life is full of surprises. Honestly, did not think I would be here. Circumstances have made sure I am here today, the team management have shown trust,” said Ashwin while talking about his inclusion in the Indian squad.

Ashwin has played 10 matches for India in World Cup history with his last appearance coming in 2015.

He has bagged 17 wickets in the competition at an average of 24.88 and an economy of 4.36 with his best figures being 4/25.

Apart from Virat Kohli, Ashwin is the only member of the current Indian side who were also a part of their World Cup winning campaign in 2011.

Ashwin said dealing with pressure would be crucial. “All you can do is turn the ball both ways, and I think I can do it. Dealing with pressure is paramount in these tournaments, and it will dictate how the tournament goes,” he said.

Hangzhou: Ace Indian lifter Mirabai Chanu’s Asian Games campaign ended in heartbreak as the Olympic medallist fell on her back to injure herself, finishing fourth in the women’s 49kg event here Saturday.

Chanu, who was under pressure after a disappointing snatch outing, went for a 117kg clean and jerk lift which would have won her the bronze, but failed to clear it twice.

In her final attempt, she fell flat on her back and had to be lifted off the stage. She left the weighting arena limping.

In the snatch section, she could only lift 83kg and failed twice in her attempt for 86kg. In the last snatch, she failed to rise from a squat position and fell forward while the bar fell at her back.

Six lifters logged a better snatch than her.

Hangzhou: Rutuja Bhosale raised her game in nick of time while seasoned Rohan Bopanna stayed solid with his big serves as India came back from a set down to win the tennis mixed doubles gold at the Asian Games, here Saturday.

The second-seeded Indian team rallied to win the title clash 2-6 6-3 10-4 against Chinese Taipei’s combo of Tsung-hao Huang and En-shuo Liang.

The victory ensured that India will return with at least one tennis gold from the Asian Games in an otherwise disappointing campaign in which the country managed to win only two medals – the other being men’s doubles silver.

The two-medal show is India’s worst at the Asian Games since the turn of the century.

In 2002, India had returned with four medals from Busan and in the following editions the country won four (2006, Doha), five (2010, Guangzhou), five (2014, Incheon) and three (2018, Indonesia) medals.

The men’s doubles team of Saketh Myneni and Ramkumar Ramanathan had won a silver on Friday but other players faded at different stages of the tournament.

No singles player from the country could make it to the medal round with Sumit Nagal and Ankita Raina exiting early.

The Indian tennis contingent also struggled in other team events with the biggest disappointment being the early exit of medal favourites Bopanna and Yuki Bhambri in the men’s doubles.

Hangzhou: Commonwealth Games gold medallist Manika Batra produced an error-filled game to get knocked out in the quarterfinals of the women’s singles table tennis competition at the Asian Games here Saturday.

Manika went down against world No. 4 Yidi Wang of China 8-11, 12-10, 6-11, 4-11, 14-12, 5-11 and her defeat also marked the end of India’s campaign in the singles event at the Hangzhou Games.

The ace Indian paddler lost the first game 8-11, as she showed a distinct weakness on her backhand.

Even when she won the second and fifth games, it was more about the Chinese player making unforced errors in her eagerness to close out the points.

The classic example came in the fifth game when the Chinese sprayed an easy forehand while leading 11-10, which allowed Manika to claw back.

But in the sixth game, Wang regained her focus and peppered Manika’s backhand with powerful shots that the latter failed to reply properly.

Manika tried to fight back with a couple of powerful forehands but Wang’s astonishing retrieving ability left the Indian frustrated.

Fittingly, a backhand error from Manika that brought the match to an end.

Wang’s laser-guided forehand found Manika fumbling as her backhand return sailed well wide of the table.

Earlier, India’s men’s double pair of Manush Shah and Manav Thakkar also bowed out in the quarterfinals.

They were beaten by South Korean pair Woojin Jang and Jonghoon Lim 8-11, 11-7, 10-12, 11-6, 9-11 in the last eight.

The Indians were leading 6-2 in the fifth game which later transpired to 9-9, but they squandered the chances to go down against the Koreans.

“We fought really well. We took the game to 9-9 in the last set. We were very close to winning but we have to take the learnings and move forward,” said Manush after the defeat.

On the experience of playing against the World No. 1 Korean pair, Manush said: “They are probably the toughest opponents. We had some strategies and moves that we wanted to execute, and which we did. But in the end, we couldn’t prevail.”

Later in the day, India’s Sutirtha Mukherjee and Aihika Mukherjee will face China’s Meng Chen and Yidi Wang in the women’s doubles quarterfinals.

Bengaluru: Royal Challengers Bangalore Saturday announced the appointment of Australia’s Luke Williams as their head coach for the second edition of the Women’s Premier League.

RCB had parted ways with Ben Sawyer after the team finished last in the five-team inaugural edition this year in March, managing just two wins in eight matches.

“I look forward to working with a playing group that will host a number of the most exciting players in Indian and world cricket, as we look to bring a bold and exciting style of play and success to our huge and passionate fan base,” Williams said in a statement.

The 43-year-old Williams coached the Adelaide Strikers to win the Women’s Big Bash League 2022-23. They also had reached the final on previous two occasions.

As their assistant coach, Williams played a vital role in the Southern Brave side winning The Hundred women’s competition this year.

Williams was also associated with the South Australian Scorpions team in the fifty overs’ Women’s National Cricket League. They ended as runners-up on two occasions.

Additionally, he was the head coach of the Australia A team during their England tour earlier this year.

Hangzhou: A groin strain has been troubling Neeraj Chopra for some time now but the Olympic champion does not want the thought of injury affect him as he gears up to defend his Asian Games title.

Chopra played most part of the season with a groin strain but still won the world championships title in August in Budapest and went on to finish second in the Diamond League finals on September 16.

“I have come back here after training and doing rehab in a relaxed manner in Switzerland. I hope to give my 100 per cent and defend my Asian Games title,” Chopra told reporters here.

The 25-year-old javelin thrower has Olympic qualification in his mind.

“A little bit of groin issue is still there, it happened last year also. I was feeling better but it happened again. I have to take care of this very well and then prepare for the Paris Olympics. This kind of thing happens for athletes who compete at the top level.”

He said the challenge throughout the season was how to keep his mind away from the injury and focus more on his game.

“I was struggling during the world championships and I was trying to divert my mind from the injury and focus on the throw.

“My strength is on the speed in the run-up but my biggest problem this time was I could not throw with full run-up even during training because of this injury. But still I am very happy with my performance this season. I want to take away this thought of injury from the mind.”

Hangzhou: India’s Sarabjot Singh and Divya TS settled for a silver medal in the 10m air pistol mixed team event, losing the finals to Chinese pair at the Asian Games here Saturday.

The final score read 16-14 in favour of Chinese shooters Zhang Bowen and Jiang Ranxin in the shoot-off for gold.

India thus has won 19 medals in shooting, including 6 gold, 8 silver, and 5 bronze, from the continental Games.

Sarabjot had shot 291, while Divya scored 286 to aggregate 577 and finished ahead of China (576) in the qualification round.

But in the shoot-off for gold, the Chinese pair turned the tables on the Indians, emerging winners after trailing the Indian duo for much of the finals.

Hangzhou: Pressure will be on Mirabai Chanu to nail the much-awaited 90kg snatch lift for a shot at that elusive Hangzhou Asian Games medal when the weightlifting competition gets underway here Saturday.

But it will not be an easy task for the Manipuri to find the podium at the continental event, which features lifters from weightlifting powerhouses like China, North Korea, and Thailand.

Chanu has been a frontrunner in the 49kg event for sometime but the Indian now finds herself outside the 90kg elite club, playing catch up with her rivals.

While she’s still among the top three in the clean and jerk section, her personal best standing at 119kg, Chanu’s continuous below-par performance in snatch has started hurting her total weight.

As many as seven lifters have breached the 90kg mark and four of them — China’s two-time world champion Jiang Huihua, North Korean Ri Song Gum, and the Thai duo of Thanyathon Sukcharoen and Surodchana Khambao — will be competing to stand on top of the podium at the continental event.

Chanu’s best effort in snatch stands at 88kg while the world record is 96kg.

“We are aiming to cross the 90kg mark (in snatch) at the Asian Games. It’s been a while since we have been trying to get over that line,” India head coach Vijay Sharma had told PTI.

The Tokyo Olympics silver medallist has prioritised the Asian Games this year as it is the only tournament where the Manipuri hasn’t medalled.

She had finished ninth in the 2014 edition and was forced to miss the 2018 Games due to a back injury.

The other Indian lifter vying for a podium finish is Bindyarani Devi in the women’s 55kg event.

The 24-year-old won silver at the Asian Championships in May behind Chinese Taipei’s Chen Guan-Ling, who is the favourite to win the gold.

PTI