Friends Union pip Railway Police

B D Narayankar

KHADKI: Friends Union Club won an exciting encounter beating Railway Police 2-1 in the Rosary Education Group Nine-a-Side Hockey Tournament played at Ammunition Factory Ground on Thursday.

The day’s goal machine, Ibrahim Sheikh scored twice in the win, blitzing Railway Police defense with his pace and power.

The Friends Union’s win was built around some clever moves of their forwards who created chasms in the opponent’s defense despite their inconsistent performance in the tournament so far.

Friends Union dominated possession in the early part of the game, penetrating Railway Police’s circle consistently, but could not break their crowded defense. However, Ibrahim broke the deadlock 18 minutes into the first half when he ran in hard, dodged a couple of defenders, before scoring a goal.

Five minutes into the second half, Ibrahim blew the game apart with a second goal that silenced Railway Police supporters and gave Friends Union 2-0 lead when left-winger Kunal Jagdale fired into the circle and Ibrahim deflected the ball into the goal.

A consolation goal scored by Santosh Patil of a penalty corner in the 38th minute did not dampen Friends Union celebrations as they ended the game with 2-1 victory.

In yet another exhilarating match, Metro XI dug their way in to vanquish Super XI 2-1. Agile Sanjay Pollaiah struck for Metro in the opening minute of the game. Manish Yadav notched second goal up in 27th minute.

Super XI were bit unlucky to have missed some chances early on. They failed to raise the level of their game when it mattered the most and clearly, they were a bit unorganized side who simply did not have ammunition to fire when it mattered the most.

Next match between Hockey Lovers and Indian Sports ended in 1-1 draw.

While Pranay Jasun scored in 13th minute for Hockey Lovers, Kunal Premalu scored for Indian Sports in 22nd.

City cops whip Rakshak

Photo: Parag Jadhav
A Green Meadows mid-fielder zooming past Poona Police counterpart

B D Narayankar

KHADKI: After a spate of drawn matches yesterday, Poona Police thrashed Rakshak Sports 4-0 in the Rosary Education Group Nine-a-Side Hockey Tournament played at Ammunition Factory Ground here on Wednesday.

Commendable as the show of Poona Police was before the motley crowd, the fact that Rakshak Sports could not utilize its strength to give a fight to their opponents must be flayed.

Poona Police created some openings thanks to quick sallies of their frontline players who grabbed the opportunity to score when the ball was there to hit.

Mark Anthony made a brilliant move into the opponent’s D hoisting Poona Police in the lead through Mark Anthony.

Four minutes into after scoring the first goal, Amit Rajput creamed in the second goal for the cops in 17th minute.

The pressure extended to Rakshak Sports was quite evident as their defenders faltered in locking up the holes. They also conceded far too many penalty corners. Prakash Sapkal and Prakash Devar succeeded in converting two penalty corners into goals in 33rd and 36th minute.

In another exciting match, Super XI prevailed upon Green Meadows 2-1.

Santosh Musale scored first goal for Super XI in 3rd minute on Ganesh Shirke’s pass. The second came through Ganesh Shirke in the 18th after breaking into the rival’s defense.

Green Meadows weaved several patterns, but could only get one past the Super XI goalkeeper in 37th minute through Rahul Zora.

Meanwhile, Goodwill routed Old Boys Association (OBA) 3-0. Rocky Anthony struck twice in 12th and 18th minute. Umesh Pillay scored third goal in 21st.

RESULTS: Friends Union 1 (Randeep Bhatti) drew with Priyadarshini Sports Centre 1 (Shailesh Sawant); Poona Police 4 (Mark Anthony, Amit Rajput, Prakash Sapkal, Deepak Devar) bt Rakshak Sports 0; Super XI 2 (Santosh Musale, Ganesh Shirke) bt Green Meadows 1 (Rahul Zora); Goodwill 3 (Rocky Anthony 2, Umesh Pillay) bt OBA 0.

(bapun@sakalherald.com)

Tushal aiming high

Photo by Mandar Deshpande


B D Narayankar

DECCAN: Tushal Thawani is well nigh towards clinching yet another title if he really plays well tomorrow against Rohit Bisht in the semi-finals of the PYC ATF U-14 Series on Thursday.

An affable person that he is, Tushal can be as aggressive on the court when he is reeling off some forehand winners. And can also be a down-to-earth lad while appreciating the finer points of his rivals.

Being as humble as he could be, he told Maharashtra Herald he was enjoying every bit of the ATF Series held in Pune. “The ambience of my town has given me immense confidence and I feel relaxed on the court,” he said.

Asked whether Rohit could make any noise in the semis tommorrow? Tushal said: “I had a very good game against Sai Teja Palandugu. I made him make a few errors early on. If I play continue to play like what I have played today against Rohit, I believe I can make a mark in the finals.”

On coach Nandan Bal’s influence on him, Tushal said: ‘’He is probably the best coach I have with me. He wants to make sure I play attacking game ever time I go out to play. “Even more endearing is that he travels with us for important matches in any part of the world.”

On his take on aggressive tennis, Tushal said: “I think that’s how tennis is played today. I relish playing hard-hitting shots.”

“Hitting shots is not all about brawns, but timing and positioning. If your positioning is wrong, you will not get the sting in your shots,” he said.

And what do you do to get that positioning right? “I do two things. During tournaments, I practice a lot on the court along with my six-footer assistant coach who digs in the ball hard at you. That’s something special as I get to learn all about power play. When off-the-court, I do a lot of physical exercise to keep myself fit and strong,” Tushal said.

When chips are down what you do in a match situation? “I look at positive things. I believe that the opponent might not win the next game. This keeps me going. If I not hopeful, I may not succeed.”

(bapun@sakalherald.com)

City lad Tushal advances into semis

Photo by Sashank Sane
Ronit Bisht in action


B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

PYC GYMKHANA: Dumping three weeks of disaster, city lad Tushal Thawani scripted a fantastic win against his opponent Sai Teja Palandugu 6-3, 6-1 in the PYC ATF U-14 Series played here on Wednesday.

With this win, Tushal sailed into semi-finals and will compete with Rohit Bisht to reach finals on Thursday.

Tushal did not show any signs of nervousness of taking on third seed Sai. He played a cautious game restricting his shots. After taking an early two games lead in the first set, Tushal played hard tennis swishing the ball back and across to perfection.

Another hallmark of Tushal today was he did not commit any double faults in the entire match.

The second set was a cakewalk for him. He thrashed Sai 6-1 with a forehand winner, which his rival failed to connect.

TUSHAL STANDS GOOD CHANCE

With this win, Tushal is fancying his chances of winning the tournament. But, he is aware of beating Rohit Bisht first in the semis.

Rohit and Tushal met four times earlier and on three occasions, the former had prevailed upon the latter. Tushal won the only match at Jamshedpur in the recent past.

Hemant Bendre, a well-known tennis coach, fancied Tushal’s chances of beating Rohit. “Tushal is an attacking player and Rohit a retriever. On these courts, Tushal could give Rohit a run for his money,” he said.

ARJUN, ANIRUDDHA CRASH OUT

Other two city lads Arjun Kadhe and Aniruddha Darp crashed out of the tournament after losing to Ronit Bisht 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 and Devpriya Jaiswal 6-2, 6-2 respectively, who advanced into the semis.

While Aniruddha surrendered to his opponent without much spunk, Arjun handed some anxious moments for Jaiswal in the second set, which he eventually won 6-4, before going down fighting 4-6 in the first set.

CITY GIRL GOES DOWN FIGHTING

City girl Namita Bal (sixth seed) went down fighting against Natasha Palha (fourth) from Goa in an exciting match.

After pulling off a win 6-3, 8-10, 9-7, Palha had all praise for Namita saying that her rival had all the shots in her book and played exceedingly well to whack me out in the second set tie-breaker.

“As the match went on in the third set, Namita started to improve her tennis game by game. She could have won the match in the third set tie-breaker, but for her miss-hit she lost the match,” Palha said.

Green Meadows, Metro match drawn

Photo by Parag Jadhav

A Central Railways' striker zooming past Vikram Pillay mid-fielder

B D Narayankar

KHADKI: Green Meadows came from one goal down to draw the match against their rivals Metro XI in Rosary Education Group Nine-a-Side Hockey Tournament at Ammunition Factory Ground here on Tuesday.

Buoyed after a fabulous victory against Hockey Lovers last night, Metro XI stepped up their game nonchalantly. This approach, however, cost them as they had to be satisfied with sharing points with Green Meadows.

Things started to happen for Metro in the first half. They were brimming with confidence in the company of Pollaiah brothers – Rakesh and Sanjay – famous for their speed and dribbling skills.

In fact, Sanjay opened Metro’s account in the 14th minute when he swept the ball in after snaking through Green Meadows’ barricade.

Only two minutes into the second half, Green Meadows’ mid-fielder Shyam Sharma brought up a fantastic save blocking a cracking shot aimed at the goal by Sanjay.

In 28th minute, Green Meadows finally opened their score line through Shyam cracking a devastating shot on a beautiful Rishikesh Kulkarni’s pass from the right corner.

Green Meadows and Metro spurned a good number of chances to surge ahead. In the 30th minute, Mahesh Bhendwar of Green Meadows earned a penalty corner, but his teammates did not convert it due to clumsy stick work.

Soon after, Chenmay’s penalty corner hit was well blocked by a couple of Green Meadows’ defenders.

The last five minutes saw Green Meadows push forward and create some good attacking play. The attack style, however, did not pay off.

In yet another match, Vikram Pillay Academy drew with Central Railways 1-1. Goals for both the teams came in the second half after a boring first half’s match.

Asish Bhosale put Central Railways ahead in the 26th minute of the match. Four minutes hence, Vikram Pillay retaliated with vengence and scored the equaliser through Vikas Pillay.

RESULTS: Green Meadows 1 (Shyam Sharma) drew with Metro XI 1 (Sanjay Pollaiah); Vikram Pillay Academy 1 (Vikas Pillay) drew with Central Railways 1 (Asish Bhosale); Friends Union 0 drew with Goodwill Sports Club 0.

(bapun@sakalherald.com)

Arjun, Aniruddha among last eight

Photo by Sashank Sane

Aniruddha ready to smash forehand winner

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

DECCAN: It was the day of honour for the city as two of its sons pulled off stunning victories against a couple of seeded players in the PYC ATF U-17 Series played at PYC Hindu Gymkhana here on Tuesday.

In the biggest upset of the day, Arjun Kadhe shattered top-seed J P Mohit Mayur’s dreams to qualify into tournament quarterfinals, thrashing him 6-3, 6-3 in straight sets. In yet another upset game, Aniruddha Darp streaked ahead fifth seed Sharan Patil of Bangalore 0-6, 6-3, 6-4. With these wins, both have entered the last eight stage.

Such was Arjun’s determination to win today that he told to his father-coach Jayant Kadhe that he would not prefer to sort out his technical mistakes on practice courts after losing to Mohit. Arjun began his campaign on a high note smashing backhand and forehand winners with great timing.

After winning the first set, Arjun had a tough time in the second set. From 1-3 down, he found his range to reel off the next five games as mistakes crept into Mohit’s game

Aniruddha, on other hand, had a great game, winning it from down under. He showed some character in putting his game on the track after he was routed in the first set 0-6.

Throwing this woeful memory into the shelves, Aniruddha implemented coach Hemant Bendre’s advise on rallying, instead pushing hard at the net. That worked as he forced Sharan to commit many unforced errors. A whipping crosscourt into Sharan’s back corner gave Aniruddha match point as the former netted a forehand. His win over Sharan confirmed his impressive recent form on clay.

While Aniruddha has a better chance to move into the last four since he would be taking on a relatively unknown Devpriya Jaiswal, Arjun has an arduous task of defeating second seed Ronit Bhist.

Arjun, however, can take umbrage under the fact that Ronit wobbles in crisis as his results of the last two games of the main draw suggests.

In the girl’s section, there were no upsets today. Parminder Kaur, who surprised many after beating top-seed Sri Lankan Sherene Wijwsinghia, sailed into quarterfinals, beating her opponent Samanauz Dhasti 6-2, 6-0.

Fourth seed Nastasha Palha had no qualms in ousting qualifier Urmila Gunuganti 6-0, 6-0. Also sixth-seed Namita Bal defeated unseeded Shruti Archita 6-2, 6-0 without much resistence.

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WINNERSPEAK

Aniruddha Darp

“Practising with six-footer Udhav Velinkar (my friend) last night paid off. I felt Sharan’s serves a less powerful than Udhav,” Aniruddha Darp told Maharashtra Herlad after defeating fifth seed Sharan Patil here on Tuesday.

“I lost the first set trying to hit winners. But in the second set, I regained confidence after toning down my game, concentrating more on rallying than power play,” he said.

“Sharan was striking the ball hard and playing well. I gained an upper hand by inducing him for long rallies and unforced errors,” Aniruddha said.

“I was neither cowed down by the fact that I was playing a seeded player. I don’t care who am I playing. I just go out and play my game,” he blurted.

Central Railways prevail

Photo by Parag Jadhav

A Central Railways' striker barging into Priyadarshini's danger zone

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: The gloomy weather had no influence on hockey-lovers as they watched an extra-ordinary match between Central Railways and hosts Priyadarshini Sports Centre which the former won 1-0 in the Rosary Education Group Nine-a-Side Hockey Tournament played at Ammunition Factory Ground on Monday.

Both teams picked up their game in the last 15 minutes of the match. It was great to watch supporters cheering for their respective teams. Outstanding among Central Railway players were Sachin Kamble and Ashish Bhosale, who showed their class along with speed while unlocking opponent’s defense.

Equally good was Priyadarshini’s Shailesh Garware, making attempts to drill holes into Railways defense, without much success. His teammates could not match his pace and were wanted in trapping the ball.

Sachin put Central Railways ahead in 15th minute of the first half. He ran into the box and gave a hurried pass to right-winger Ashish Bhosale who centered the ball back to Sachin who made no mistake dragging the ball in.

In the same minute, Sachin could have given Central Railways their second goal, but his stinging shot hit the side bars and cleared the playing area, giving Priyadarshini a free hit

It could have been worst for Priyadarshini if Salil Sheikh would not have pulled off two beautiful saves in 30th and 33rd minute.

In yet another match, Super XI trounced counterpart Indian Sports 2-0. Santosh Musale scored the first goal in 16th and Ganesh Shirke second in 33rd minute of the game.

BOX

The first match of the day was marred by a controversy that led the organisers to keep the fate of the match in abeyance. The decision to replay the match will be decided by the organising committee on Tuesday.

The controversy erupted when Ramakant Karle of Railway Police rushed toward umpire Sikandar Sheikh, objecting his awarding a goal to Old Boy’s Association.

After heated arguments, Sikandar consulted his associate umpire Kiran Khairale, who disallowed the goal. Then OBA players protested and walked of the ground.

RESULTS: Central Railways 1 (Sachin Kamble) bt Priyadarshini 0; Super XI 2 (Santosh Musale, Ganesh Shirke) bt Indian Sports 0; Metro XI 2 (Vinod Kelappan, Rakesh Pollaiah)

Upsets galore at ATF Series

Parminder Kaur ready to smash a forehand winner

Photo by Sasank Sane

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

DECCAN: At the start of the main draw of PYC ATF Under-17 Series, conditions at the PYC Hindu Gymkhana and Deccan Gymkhana courts was gloomy as gray clouds were hovering around these venues. But, as luck would have it, for some players, their day was resplendent after staging a series of upsets against seeded-players. There were three upsets in the girl’s and one in the boy’s segment.

In the boys section, city lad Advait Sadwilkar knocked out Wildcard Rajat Solanki 7-5, 6-2. In the girl’s, Parminder Kaur out-classed tournament top-seed Sherene WijWsinghia of Sri Lanka 6-1, 6-2, Zainab Ali Sajjad beat seventh seed Ravina Shetty 6-3, 6-1 and Riddhi Hegde prevailed upon eighth seed Madhuri Petere 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.

Carrying an injury on his shoulders from past four days, Adwait began his low-key campaign with forcing too many errors in the first set, as he was not getting his backhand, forehand cross-courts and serves properly. He shook his head with grimace and stared at his parents for guidance. Probably keeping these options aside was a better option for him to move on to capture the hearts of the people gathered to watch some good tennis.

Soon Adwait found his rhythm and bounced back in the game forcing his rival to battle it out for the first set in the tiebreaker. Adwait won 7-5 down under with an exquisite down-the-line shot leaving Rajat grunting to react for the ball.

The first-set win boosted Adwait’s confidence and he began playing aggressive tennis. As a result, Rajat gifted away the first three games through many unforced errors. This set up Adwait to clinch a victory with forehand return shot.

In the biggest upset of the day, Parminder trounced her Sri Lankan rival Sherene comfortably in straight sets. She had no difficulty in negotiating the top-seed. Though Sherene played a better game, inconsistency did her in.

Parminder utilised her rival’s unforced errors to her advantage and pocketed the first three games of the first set that gave her immense confidence to win. After beating Sherene and gaining confidence, Parminder has the better opportunity to sail into the third round as her next opponent is Samanauz Dashti, a qualifier.

RESULTS: First Round: Boys: J P Mayur Mohit bt Pratik Agawne 6-2, 6-3, Arjun Kadhe bt Anvit Bendre 6-2, 6-2, Rohan Bhatia bt Abhishek Alla 3-6,6-4, 6-3, Ronit Bisht bt Rakshay Thakkar 4-6, 6-4, 6-2, Adwait Sadwilkar bt Rajat Solanki 7-5, 6-0, Devpriya Jaiswal bt Ishan Priyadarshi 6-2, 6-2, Aniruddha Darp bt Neehar Yerawdekar 6-2, 6-3, Sharan Patil bt S.M Abdullah 7-6 (8-6) 6-1, Tushal Thawani bt Om Dalvi 6-2, 6-0, Vishal Passi bt Raghav Lakhotia 7-6(7-2) , 6-1, Vinod Gowda bt Alla Sirkar 6-3, 6-4, Sai Teja Palladugu bt Yash deshpande 6-3, 6-4 , R Ramkumar bt Chandrashekhar Anand 6-1, 6-1 , Karan Kurup bt Arnav Kishor 6-2, 6-1; Girls: Parminder Kaur bt Sherene Wijwsingha 6-1,6-2, Samanauz Dashti bt Lavina Chawla 6-4, 6-4, VKC Vishesh bt Mrilani Alla 4-6,6-4, 7-5, Zainab Ali Sajjad bt Ravina Shetty 6-3, 6-1 , Natsha Palla bt Pooja Narayana 6-1,6-3, Urmila Gunaganti bt Kony Chatterjee 6-2, 6-1, Archita Shruti bt Prutha Ingawale 6-0, 6-1, Namita Bal bt Avanee Gosavi 6-1, 6-2 , Riddhi Hegde bt Madhuri PAthere 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, Aryali Chavan bt Pallavi Krishnaraj 6-4, 6-4 , Sanskruti Jangale bt Aishwarya Nunes 6-2, 6-2, Ankiyta Raina bt Aarzoo Malik 6-4, 6-2, Vaidehi Bhagwat bt Shruti Jaiswal 6-4, 6-0 , Jeni Patel bt Ekta Singh 6-2, 6-2 , Prarthana Thombre bt Sidhhi Umarje 6-0, 6-0.

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WINNERSPEAK: ADWAIT

“Until I won the match, I didn’t knew my opponent Rajat Solanki was a seeded player,” told Adwait Sadwilkar after registering a win in his first round of the main draw of the PYC ATF Under-14 Series on Monday. Speaking to Maharashtra Herald, he said it was not easy to clinch the first set. “I played cautiously after forcing lot many errors. I didn’t hit the ball hard to earn points,” he added. “My shoulder injury was bothering me and could not get my shots properly. But, I picked up my momentum after I put my match-worries behind,” he said. After pulling off the first set in the tie-breaker, I went on the rampage and played aggressively pushing Rajat on the backfoot, who committed lot of mistakes,” Adwait said.

Eyeing for international fame

Photo: Anand Chaini

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

PUNE: He is an epitome of great tranquility. But he has a fire razing under his belly -- to officiate in an international hockey tournament. But time is running out for him. He has just three years to fulfil his ambition which no other national hockey umpire from the city has achieved.

Come August and Sridharan Thamba will travel to Chennai to officiate in the U-21 National Hockey Championship.

He, so far, has officiated in four major national level tournaments like Junior National Hockey Championship at Jabalpur in 2004, U-21 Asia Cup Zonal matches at Mumbai in 2005, All India Gold Cup at Nanded in 2006 and U-18 National Hockey Tournament in 2007.

People think that like in cricket, hockey umpires also get paid well. Sometimes I have to spend my own money to be a little more comfortable while traveling. Photo by Anand Chaini
“Otherwise, I am very happy with whatever the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) and Mahatarshtra Hockey Federation (MHA) gives me as allowance for my food and accommodation,” he said.

The MHA umpire has had to tread an arduous journey to be an acclaimed national hockey umpire. With his unemotional style of umpiring, even even the worst behaved players rarely provoke him.

“Cards, sometimes, are solution to problems on the field. The situation is controlled instantly. If the teams are plaint, the whistle is the best weapon to keep their tempers cool. I, however, believe that cards can solve the biggest of problems,” Sridharan argued.

There are times when umpiring becomes a little difficult. There is a world of difference between officiating local and national matches. “It is difficult to handle the situation in local matches as many of the players and my officiating partners will not be knowing the finer rules of umpiring. I need to explain the reason for giving decisions,” he said.

Knowing that an umpire’s job is thankless, why did you take it up? “First and foremost, I want word ‘international’ tagged to my name. I aspired to be an international hockey player, but could only play for my state. I also want to achieve something which no other national umpire from the city has achieved. With the blessings of Dhanraj Pillay, Ramesh Pillay and Victor Ellis of

MHA, I fancy my chances. Secondly, for ‘paapi pet ka sawal hain’” Sridharan said. Though he had a family engrossed in football and hockey, he preferred the latter for Krishnan was his Godfather-uncle. “I owe my life to my uncle for he is the reason for me to achieve what I have achieved today. I cannot ever forget Victor Ellis,” he said.

Vishal’s two late saves push Poona Police into quarters

Published May 18

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Two late saves by Vishal Gajarmal in the penalty shootouts and hat-trick by Prakash Sapkal powered Poona City Police into the quarterfinals of All India Dr Ambedkar Memorial Hockey Tournament played at Ammunition Factory Ground on Thursday after trouncing Vikram Sports Academy (VSA) 7-6 in the penalty shootouts after the score was 3-3 at full time.

In the first half, Poona Police did all the running and attacking. In 5th minute, their forwards created space for an opportunity and got a penalty stroke after VSA defender Amit Pandey was faulted for dangerous tackling. Prakash Sapkal blazed in the first of his four goals, giving an early lead to his team.

Poona Police did not stop there, but continued their show of urgency and powered their second goal through Sapkal in the 27th on Vinod Nimbore's cross.

VSA gallantly fought back in the second half. They earned a penalty stroke in the 36th minute and Navneet Sorankar made no mistake in converting it into a goal.

Soon after in the 41st minute, VSA scripted another goal through Vineet Nimal who scooped the deflected ball past goalkeeper Vishal Gajarmal. VSA struck again in the 51st minute, Navneet Sorankar executing a wonderful goal, putting his team ahead Poona Police 3-2.

VSA’s excitement, however, was short-lived as in the next minute Sapkal scored an equaliser 3-3 for Poona Police.

Except Deepak Devar, Datta Shinde, Umesh Pulgam, Wajid Sheikh and Prakash Sapkal scored penalties for Poona Police. And two saves from Vishal Gajarmal of Poona Police wrecked havoc for VSA, whose strikers -- Alwyn Alexander and Miraj Sheikh -- failed to convert penalties. Other penalty scorers for VSA were Navneet Sorankar, Vikas Pillay and Bhakti Thakur.

Kolhapur XI storms into semis: Meanwhile, Kolhapur XI stormed into semi-finals after beating Metro XI 1-0. The winning team will either meet Super XI or RPF Mumbai. The lone goal of the match was scored by Deepak Malawe on Ashok Chopre’s pass in the 10th minute.

RESULTS: Poona Police 7 (Prakash Sapkal 4, Datta Shinde, Umesh Pulgam, Wajid Sheikh) bt VSA 6 (Navneet Sorankar 3, Vinit Nimal, Vikas Pillay, Bhakti Thakur); Kolhapur XI 1 (Deepak Malawe) bt Metro XI 0.

Badave helps RCA win

Published May 16

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

PASHAN: Vaibhav Badave gave a convincing victory to his team Rajput Cricket Academy after notching up a strokeful innings of 111 runs not out with 16 hits to the fence and three towering sixes behind square-leg umpire. Rajput Cricket Academy chased 150 runs put on by Deccan Gymkhana at the rate of 7.9 per over after losing four wickets in the Late Kasturi Rangachar Memorial Under-19 Cricket Tournament played at NCL Ground here on Tuesday.

Badave bludgeoned almost all Deccan Gymkhana bowlers to the park pulling, hooking and lofting over the bowlers head. As soon as he arrived in the middle, he took charge and showed sings of aggression. The unexpected attack played on the bowlers’ mind and they bowled to his strength on the legside.

The Rajputs received early blows when two of its top-order batsmen were back in the pavilion at the score of four. But kudos to Badave, he tore the bowlers apart from the first ball without bothering much about the precarious situation of his team was in.

What was bemusing was – he plundered 82 runs in boundaries and scored 80-odd runs in the 106-runs partnership with his partner Rahul Gaikwad who scored 19.

For Deccan, Rahul Tripathy was the best bowler scalping 2 wickets for 19.

Earlier, Deccan piled up a total of 150 for 8 in 25 overs.

RANJANE WINS: In a separate game, it was a bowlers’ day out for both Ranjane Cricket Academy (RCA) and Western Pune Cricket Academy (WPCA).

RCA registered a 55-runs win against WPCA after they won the toss and decided to bat first. They scored 159 runs for 9 in 25 overs and bundled out WPCA for 104 runs. After losing first three wickets for 65 runs on the board, a 65-runs partnership between Shankar Katke and Abhijit Ghadage put RCA somewhat on the track.

Just when they were looking ominous, Ghadage (26) was unnecessarily involved in a run out. Medium pacer Prashant Pol produced a beautiful delivery to get rid of RCA top-scorer Katke for 52 and thereafter RCA fell like pack of cards losing five wickets for 22 runs and completed their innings at 159 for 9 in 25 overs.

Spinners – Rushabh Rathod and Rohit Sonawne – raced through RCA innings claiming two wickets each in the death when the batsmen tried to accelerate.

The good show put up by WPCA bowlers and fielders was wasted by their batsmen as none of them reached double figures, except Prashant Pol (30 runs) and Dinesh Chikkagouda (13).

WPCA’s start was horrible with Dinesh wasting 18 balls in his entire innings. This show had lot of impact on Prashant who played some extravagant shots. He ultimately fell to off-spinner Rohit Karanjekar reaching out to a well-flighted ball that beat him hitting his pad before disturbing the furniture.

RCA tweakers bowled their hearts out claiming eight wickets. Rohit Karanjekar hauled five wickets for 27 runs and Vipul Raut three for 11 in mere 2.4 overs. RCA bowlers ran through WPCA innings once Pol (59 runs) left the scene.

SCORES: Deccan Gymkhana 150 for 8 in 25 overs (Rahul Desai 37, Shoumit Bhide 38, Vikrant Nimhan 27 n o, Ganesh Raut 3 for 26, Sagar Parki 2 for 38, Wasim Inamdar 2 for 19) lost to Rajput Cricket Academy 151 for 4 in 19.1 overs (Vaibhav Badave 111 n o, Rahul Tripathy 2 for 19); RCA 159 for 9 in 25 overs (Shankar Katke 52, Abhijit Ghadage 26, Amol Jagdale 2 for 22, Rohit Sonawne 2 for 26) beat WPCA 104 all out in … (Prashant Pol 39, Rohit Karanjekar 5 for 27, Vipul Raut 3 for 11, Shivam Malhotra 2 for 16)

Knights, BEG win

Published May 23

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Knights XI trounced Rupali 3-0 in the PDFA Senior Division League matches played at Range Hills Ground on Tuesday.

Knights outplayed their rivals with sheer power and pace. They converted the half chances into goals, thanks to the poor defense of Rupali XI. Savio Prakashan broke in wonderfully in the danger zone after dodging two Rupali defenders, before scoring the first of his two goals of the match.Savio once again walloped a beautiful centre kick into the goal in 40th minute.

This time it was Michael D’Cruz who scored a splendid third goal for his team.

In another game, BEG beat Phoenix 3-0 in a one-sided game. Robert Anthony scored the first goal in 35th minute. Second goal was scored by B B Singh (40th) and third by L L Kunjis (45th).

SCORES: Knights XI 3 (Savio Prakashan 2, Michael D’Cruz) bt Rupali 0; BEG 3 (Robert Anthony, B B Singh, L L Kunjis) bt Phoenix 0.

Falcons smash Kirkeeans

Published May 22

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: CMS Falcons outsmarted Kirkeeans 3-1 in the PDFA Senior Division League matches played at Range Hills Ground on Monday.

Makarand Sawant scored the first goal for Falcons in 9th minute, and Rajiv Raj the second in 10th. Syed Sheikh, retaliated with a vengeance in the same minute, reducing the margin 2-1 for Kirkeeans.

Mitra Sahi spoiled the party of Kirkeeans, who were just finding their foot in the game, by crushing the final goal for Falcons.Meanwhile, Chetak knocked out Jolly Ranges 3-0 in another match.

All goals came in the second half. Rahul Bhalodkar scored the first in 36th minute and Kartik Malgekar the second in 40th minute.Anirudh Dast floated in the third goal for Chetak.

RESULTS: CMS Falcons 3 (Makarand Sawant, Mitra Sahi, Rajiv Raj) bt Kirkeeans 1 (Syed Sheikh); Chetak 3 (Rahul Bhalodkar, Kartik Malgekar, Anirudh Dast) bt Jolly Ranges 0.

Fatima overpowers Commandos 2-0

Published May 19

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Fatima overpowered Commandos 2-0 in a scintillating match played in the PDFA Senior Division Super League Football matches played at Range Hills Ground on Friday.

After the barren first half, Shanu Jacob, struck twice for Fatima in the second. He put his team in the driver’s seat in 40th minute, kicking the ball in the goal after receiving an extraordinary cross from his compatriot. He struck again in the 45th with brute force, thundering past the spell-bound Commandos goalkeeper.

The losing side, who had fairly good outings in earlier stages of the tournament, was off-colour today, not converting chances coming their way. More than anything else, it was an Herculean task for them to breeze into their opponent’s defence.

Fatima, right from the start played an attacking game, pushing themselves into the opponent’s scoring zone. They had total control over the ball and their ball possession was absolutely superb.

Meanwhile, K P XI and Range Hills Young Boys match ended in 1-1 draw. Manish Malvadkar put Young Boys into lead in the last minute of the first half. In the third minute of the second half, Amit Chavan (23rd minute) retaliated well and scored an equalizer for K P XI.

RESULTS: Fatima 2 (Shanu Jacob 2) bt Commandos 0; Range Hills Young Boys 1 (Manish Malvadkar) drew with K P XI 1 (Amit Chavan).

Parshuramians hold RSC in a thriller

Published May 17

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: In an exciting match, Parshuraman’s came back from behind and managed to draw the match 2-2 with Rahul Sports Club (RSC) in the PDFA Senior Division Super League Football matches played at Range Hills Ground on Wednesday.

The first half belonged to RSC playing attacking football scoring in the 12th and 18th minute of the game. Sandeep Chavan centered the first goal and Ranjit Pillai the second.

Parshuramans recouped in the half time and chalked out a strategy to give a fitting reply to RSC. They had many chances squandered, but did not lose the tempo of launching a non-stop attack on RSC defense. They, end the end, netted two late goals (both by Rohit Ghadge)– in 45th and 58th minute.

Meanwhile, Aryans thumped Poona Socials 5-2 in another game. Ashutosh Gujar scored thrice for the winning team in 12th, 42nd and 45th minute. Other two goals were scored by Eloysis and Amar in 45th and 7th minute.

For Poona Socials, Raman Nair and Naresh More struck in the 8th and 11tth minute.

SCORES: Parshuramans 2 (Rohit Ghadge 2) drew with RSC 2 (Ranjit Pillai, Sandeep Chavan); Aryans 5 (Ashutosh Gujar 3, Eloysis, Amar) bt Poona Socials 2 (Raman Nair, Naresh More).

Pinkesh, Abhinay emerge winners in Pune leg of biking championship

Published May 20

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

GOLIBAR MAIDAN: This is not the sport for the slow and steady, but for bikers with grit, skill and control. And these qualities were inherent in Pinkesh Thakkar and Abhinay Virkud, who were declared winners of the Pune leg of the Castrol Power1 Throttle Max pre-qualifying round held here on Saturday.

In the 126 – 250 cc category, Pinkesh, on Suzuki Fiero, scored 58 points, seven points more than Ganesh Lokhande, who had mounted TVS Fiero.

Pinkesh continued his good form on the bike after performing exceptionally well in the in the first round of MRF National Supercross held in Pune last Sunday.

He came second in the Indian Motorcycles Group B 125 cc upto 250 cc 2\4 stroke, Indian Motorcycles (Locals) Group B 110 cc upto 250 cc 2\4 stroke and Foreign Motorcycles (Intermediate) Group A upto 250 cc 2 stroke and and 450 cc 4 stroke.

In 125 cc category Abhinay (57) had to really battle it out. He managed to scrape past Shamim Khan, who rode Yamaha YBX 125 with one point difference.

Last year national winner Rustom Patel of Mumbai crashed out of the competition coming a poor third in the 126-250 cc category scoring 49 points.

The two winners will now head for the national Castrol Power1 Throttle Max Throttle finals to be held in Indore on June 16.

Around 40-odd bikers participated in the event that has elapsed into its second year. The event included test of skill over three different courses -- an open straight stretch on dirt track, obstacle course and a wiggle-woggle section.

Pinkesh and Abhinay had to give everything with them to qualify for Indore finals.

This year, the event has been extended to twelve cities covering Guwahati, Coimbatore, Bangalore, Kolkata, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Delhi, Pune, Ludhiana, Mumbai and Ahmedabad. Two winners (one from each category—- upto 125 cc and 126 cc) from each city will represent the city at the Castrol Power1 Throttle Max Nationals finals at Indore on June 16.

The All India Castrol Power1 Throttle Max champions will be taken to Malayasia to watch the Malaysian Grand Prix along with actor and Castrol’s brand ambassador-John Abraham, a passionate biking hunk.

Commenting on his victory, Pinkesh said, winner of 250 cc category said, “The unique feature of this challenge is that it is not just about speed, but about biker’s skill and control over the bike.”

Dynamites shine as they defeat Roopali

Published May 26

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Dynamites played an outstanding soccer to prevail upon the dogged and determined Roopali XI 2-1 in the PDFA Senior League Football matches played at Range Hills Ground on Friday.

Roopali, played the dominating first 10 minutes with great character, but they could not maintain the same tempo falling to the counter-attack launched by Dynamites thereafter.

The first goal for Roopali came of Suneesh Anand chip after a delightful angling cross from the right-hand corner.

In the next minute, Dynamites had a wonderful chance to equalise through Kiran Sharma. He took a kick without any power behind it that made goalkeeper Anup Jadhav's task easier to save the goal by collecting the ball.

However, in the final minute of the first half, Dynamites rallied back superbly and blazed in a stunning goal through unmarked Asish Nair from the left-hand corner after receiving a wonderful lobbed pass from the right corner.

Going into the first half 1-1, Dynamites had a golden opportunity to take a lead against their rivals in the first minute of the second half. Kiran Sharma drifted in a curving shot that bumped before the goalkeeper, but luckily cleared the post.

Soon after, Roopali too squandered their opportunity with Suneesh Anand aimed a shot from 40-yard outside the box after wonderfully unlocking Dynamites defense.
They squandered yet another chance in the form of Jitendra Bagade who kicked the ball early in the air.


In 45th minute Dynamites produced a superlative move, catapulting Abhijit Bhosale to kick a drifter, curving over the hapless Roopali goalkeeper.

RESULTS: Dynamites 2 (Ashish Nair, Abhijit Bhosale) bt Roopali 1 (Suneesh Anand); City Club 3 (Imran Sheikh, Robert Anthony, Cedric S) bt Jolly Range Hills 1 (Robin Anthony); Deccan 1 (Bharat Shirolkar) bt Knights XI 0.

Super XI pip Rakshak Sports

Published May 26

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Super XI staged a superb rally to emerge 3-2 winners against Rakshak Sports in the Priyadarshini Nine-a-Side Hockey Tournament being sponsored by Rosary Education Group at Ammunition Factory Ground on Friday.

In a gripping encounter, the Super XI displayed great character to bounce back into the game from 2-0 in the first half to force 3-2 in the second half.

While Mangesh Salunke (16th minute), Omkar Desai (17th) scored for Rakshak Sports, Super XI replied through Ganesh Shirke (26th), Nitin Salvi (32nd) and Srikant Bohare (35th).

The Rakshaks looked strong, sturdy and solid in the first half, but Super XI came surging back with a brilliant second-half display that underlined their speed and fitness to triumph from the verge of defeat.

VPA WIN: Meanwhile, the match between Vikram Pillay Academy (VPA) and Friends Union, tipped as the best match of the day, did not arouse interest as VPA registered a one-goal win over their rivals.

In the very first minute of the match, Raju Sawant from the right-hand corner forced Friends Union defender Sanjay Shailendra to stretch forward and save the ball from sailing into the goal.

VPA missed many chances coming their way. In the 10th minute, strong and burly-looking Dawood Ghadiyali swated the ball that popped up, giving an opportunity to Cyril Barnard to reverse scoop, but failed. He, however, managed to earn a penalty corner through a dangerous play from one of the Friends Union defenders.

The saga of missed chances did not end there. It was Sagar Karat, this time, who missed to score on Vinod Pillay’s push of the third penalty corner of the match.

Just when the spectators were getting used to the missed opportunities, Cyril Barnard romped home through a penalty corner in the 30th minute on a deflection created of a fantastic dragging-pass by Vinod Pillay.

METRO PREVAILS: In a one-sided game, Metro Sports defeated 3-0 Indian Sports Club in the third match of the day.

RESULTS: Super XI 3 (Ganesh Shirke, Nitin Salvi, Srikant Bohare) bt Rakshak 2 (Mangesh Salunke, Omkar Desai); Priyadarshini Sports 1 (Sachin Pawar) bt Old Boy’s Association 0; Metro Sports 3 (Vinod Kelappan 2, Rakesh Pollaiah) bt Indian Sports 0; VPA 1 (Cyril Barnard) bt Friends Union 0

Sangam scrape past Ghorpadi TU

Published May 25

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

TILAK ROAD: Sangam XI trounced Thuderkatz 2-1 in a thrilling encounter in the PDFA Senior Division Super League matches played at SP College Ground on Thursday.

Raju Nikam, Sangam XI striker, produced an exquiste kick that zoomed past the ears of diving Thuderkatz goalkeeper. He braced up the pace in the next couple of minutes, putting tremendous pressure on his opponents.

He finally succeeded in putting yet another goal for his team in 25th minute.

In the second half, however, Thunderkatz (Elton Lima) overcame their spate of bad luck and romped home a consolation goal in the 40th minute.

Meanwhile, Poona Socials beat Ghorpadi Tamil United 1-0 in another match. Yaqub Sheikh scored the goal in 20th minute.

At Range Hills Ground, both the matches ended in a one-all draw.

While Khadki Blues drew with CMS Falcons, Indrayani with BEG, Kirkee.

Both the matches could not evoke interest as the proceedings became drab in later stages of the matches.

The teams were unable to trap the ball neatly when their was an opportunity to breeze in the goal. They also failed to run directly at defenders causing problems to them.

RESULTS: Sangam XI 2 (Raju Nikam 2) bt Thunderkatz 1 (Elton Lima); Poona Socials 1 (Yaqub Sheikh); Khadki Blues 1 (Javed Sheikh) drew with CMS Falcons 1 (C C Mathews self goal); Indrayani 1 (Manoj Balkishan) drew with BEG, Kirkee 1 (N L Kunji).

Railway Police prevail upon Vikram Pillay

Published May 25

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Holding their game back at right time, giving slick passes and sewing intricate moves into the opponent’s danger zone – were some of the hallmarks of Railway Police (Pune) when they defeated Vikram Pillay Academy 3-1 in the Nine-a-Side Hockey Tournament conducted by Priyadarshini Sports Centre at the Ammunition Factory Ground on Thursday.

The seasoned Railway Police held back their game after scoring their first goal inside 10 minutes of the first half and in the second half, they studied their ship sensibly, blazing in two more goals, after tiring out the young turks of Vikram Pillay Academy.

However, the self-imposed restriction of Railway Police in the first half cost them a goal.

Perhaps the strongest point of Railway Police of converting penalty corners came in handy for them when forward Jitendra Chande drafted in the first goal into the right-hand corner of goalkeeper Sandeep Pal on a freakish deflection of the stick of one of his striker.

Immediately, Railway Police could have popped in their second goal, but was frittered away by Cyril Bennate, failing to trap a stinging pass by Rajesh Mari from just outside the box.

Taking advantage of Railway Police strategy to hold their game back, Vikram Pillay turks made a tricky move with Cyril Bennate dragging in a powerful hit into the Railway Police defense. Next moment, Akash Pillay pounced on the deflection and scored the equalizer for his team in the 16th minute.

After the scores were level 1-1 in the first half, Railway Police increased their pace and most of the time meandered into the opposition’s box.

They finally were lucky to pick the hole when Datta Shinde barged in with ominous pace, dribbling past two defenders and scooping the goal over the right-hand corner of Sandeep Pal, giving 2-1 lead to Railway Police.

The third goal was bludgeoned by Chande in the 38th minute after stopping the rolling ball coming his way on a penalty corner push from Rafiq Sheikh.

Pune Police, meanwhile, romped home, in a one-sided affair, thrashing Hockey Lovers 5-0 in the inaugural match.

The second match between Central Railways and Goodwill Sports Club ended in a goal-less draw.

Rakshak Sports trounced Indian Sports 1-0 in the third match of the day.

RESULTS: Railway Police 3 (Jitendra Chande 2, Datta Shinde) bt Vikram Pillay Academy 1 (Akash Pillay); Pune Police 5 (Amity Rajput 2, Mark Anthony, Vinod Nimbore, Umesh Pulgam) bt Hockey Lovers 0; Central Railways 0 drew with Goodwill Sports Club 0; Rakshak Sports 1 (Rohit Pise) bt Indian Sports 0.

Sun shines on Ghorpadi after a fine win over Rahul

Published May 24

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Ghorpadi Young Ones' routed Rahul XI by four stunning goals in the PDFA Senior Division League match played at Range Hills Ground on Wednesday.

Ghorpadi striker Kevin Joseph produced a wonderful kick that flew past Rahul goalkeeper and into the top right-hand corner of the goal that ignited the spirits of his team.

Perhaps the most noticeable aspect of Ghorpadians was that they kept pressure on the rivals and paced up their attack in the second half, creaming in three more goals.

Another good thing witnessed was that the strikers latched on to every ball and ran directly at defenders causing all sorts of problems to them.

In the 35th minute, Ghorpadian strikers forced their opponent goalkeeper remain static at the centre and Ajay Avale crashed the goal from eight yards out.

Rahul defense could not stem the tide for so long as Ghorpadian strikers continued with their slick, passing football, which paid of again in the 36th minute when Kamlesh Mehta netted the third goal for his team from outside the box.

Rohan Sonawne, in 38th minute, received a ball rolling into his path, producing neatest of finishes to put Ghorpadians 4-0 ahead.


Meanwhile, Parshuramians trounced Sky Hawks 2-0 in another match.

Newton Periera drilled a shot just wide of the goalkeeper in the 20th minute of the first half.
Parshuramians, having started their second half brightly, found a new gear with a different formation.

Abhishek Wakankar drifted one inside Sky Hawks' goal in the 40th minute.

In yet another match, City Club beat convincingly Chetak XI 2-0. Imran Sheikh and Robert Anthony scored the goals in 35th and 55th minute respectively.

RESULTS: Ghorpadi Young Ones 4 (Kevin Joseph, Ajay Avale, Kamlesh Mehta, Rohan Sonawne) bt Rahul 0; Parshuramians 2 (Newton Periera, Abhishek Wakankar); City Club 2 (Imran Sheikh, Robert Anthony) bt Chetak XI 0.

Sudden-death goal gives Parshuramians the Trophy

Published May 23

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

WANOWRIE: Niranjanpurkar scored the magical goal for Parshuramians in the sudden death to lift the Darius Irani Nine-a-Side Football Tournament crushing Deccan ‘A’ 7-6 in a thrilling encounter at Mathurawala Ground on Tuesday.

At the end of the match, both teams were level at two goals each. Parshuramians scored their two goals in the first half and Deccan ‘A’ two in the second.

The two early goals - first in the 5th minute (Rahul Ghadage) and second in 7th (Abhishek Wakankar) - by Parshuramians -- did a world of good for the team’s confidence. They dominated the first half with better game.

Deccan ‘A’ could easily had gone on defensive after conceding two goals. They, however, came out all guns blazing in the second by putting their past behind.

First they fortified their defense and slowly unleashed their attacking game towards the end. The strategy worked and were successful in floating in two goals.

After Bharat Pirole had put the first for Deccan ‘A’, Amit Navale kept the team’s hope alive by netting in the equalizer.

In penalty shootouts, Rohit Ghadage, Abhishek Wakankar, Rahul Ghadage, Ajit Korage and Niranjanpurkar scored for Parshuramians and Prashant Pardeshi, Chetan Kamble, Fiaz Razzaq and Amit Navale for Deccan ‘A’.

SCORES OF THE FINALS: Parshuramians 7 (Rahul Ghadage 2, Abhishek Wakankar 2, Rohit Ghadage, Ajit Korage, Niranjanpurkar) bt Deccan ‘A’ 6 (Amit Navale 2, Bharat Pirole, Prashant Pardeshi, Chetan Kamble, Fiaz Razzaq)

Maharashtra Police lift Ambedkar Trophy

Published May 23

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Unlike yesterday’s game plan, Maharashtra Police played an attacking game right from the word go much to the chagrin of Kolhapur XI, who until today played excellent hockey, even beating Rashtriya Chemical Fertilisers, probably the strongest team in the All India Dr Ambedkar Memorial Hockey Tournament.

In a one-sided final match played at Ammunition Factory Ground on Tuesday, Maharashtra Police walloped Kolhapur XI 6-1. ‘’We had a plan up our sleeves to play an attacking game and score at least a goal inside 10 minutes from the start of the play,” Wahid Pathan, captain of Maharashtra Police, told Maharashtra Herald.

Azam Sheikh put in a beautiful reverse flick into the goal beating Kolhapur goalkeeper Satyajeet Chile after receiving a pass from Sandeep Nagrurkar in 8th minute of the match. ‘’The goal put us on the driver’s seat and pushed our opponent’s on the backfoot,” Wahid said.

After achieving their first target, Maharashtra Police began playing freely and latching on to the ball floated in by their strikers and mid-fielders on every given opportunity. Niyazullah, the centre-half, crunched in the penalty corner, giving 2-0 lead to his team in 17th minute.

Kolhapur XI had a golden opportunity just before the first half. Imran Sheikh struck the penalty corner, but was well saved by seasoned goalkeeper Wahid.

Continuing their attacking game, Maharashtra Police scored their third goal in the first six minutes of the second half. Amol Bhosale creamed in the goal on goalkeeper Satyajeet’s deflection. For the next six minutes, they did not allow Kolhapur XI to dominate and in the process soaked out their confidence.

The next two goals came in quick session. One in 47th and second in 48th minute. The first was a penalty corner from Sandeep Nagrurkar and the second probably was the best goal of the tournament. Azmat Sheikh angled in the ball on a blazing cross from Rahul Mehkare.

After taking 5-0 lead, Maharashtra Police relaxed a bit and conceded the lone goal (Deepak Malai) to Kolhapur XI in the 50th minute.

Rahul Mehkare scored the sixth goal for Maharashtra Police in 53rd minute thus sealing Kolhapur XI’s fate.

As far as Kolhapur XI performance was concerned, they appeared a disjointed team. One of their key players – Mukund Rajput -- had a pretty ordinary day. He was the main architect for Kolhapur XI to reach the finals. Without any substantial contribution from him, his team faultered in launching an attack.

SCORES: Maharashtra Police 6 (Azam Sheikh, Niyazullah, Amol Bhosale, Sandeep Nagrurkar, Azmat Sheikh, Rahul Mehkare) bt Kolhapur XI 1 (Deepak Malai)

Tanmay, Sagar reign in low-scoring game

Published May 22

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

POONA CLUB: In a cricket-crazy ambience at Poona Club, you need not be at the ground to know which way the game is swinging. It’s enough, from outside, to know the match situation on hearing the screams of celebration from the members of the winning team when their bowlers had done the trick. But such was the situation that one could not miss an exciting game between Nasik Cricket Academy (NCA) and Maharashtra Club played at the ground here on Monday.

NCA trounced Maharashtra Club after asking them to chase 104 runs to win. The latter fell short by seven runs after playing all 30-stipulated overs scoring 94 runs losing 9 wickets in the Poona Club U-15 Cricket Rolling Trophy Tournament.

Barely had Maharashtra Club settled down after bowling out the opposition for a paltry 103, NCA pacer Prashant Nanthe sent back opener Naushad Sheikh for naught with a sensational delivery. Then, Waris Syed, bowling a beautiful line and length along with Nanthe, sent back Karan Sapar for zero.

That left the floodgates open for NCA bowlers to strike terror. In the midst, Anil Gugle (4), batting under tremendous pressure, ran himself out, trying to steal a single.

But, the day really belonged to NCA tweakers. They purchased five wickets between them. Left-arm spinner Tanmay Gunjal, who was troubling the batsmen early, got rid of Nikhil Dharne (3), Chandan Paranjpe (1) and Ranjeet Deshpande (4) on the trot. He finished with match figures of 3 for 16.

Right-arm leggie Sagar Thorat, on the other, got tailender Mayur Bhosale (1) and opener Suraj Maheshwari for 35.

NCA could have bowled out Maharashtra Club cheaply in the range of 60 to 65 runs, but for 33 extras, the rivals could come close to 104-runs target. Their bowlers gave away as many as 28 wides in a low-scoring game. The story does not end there, even Maharashtra Club bowlers sent down 33 wides.

Finally, the NCA batting. They had a bad start losing 4 early wickets for 7 runs. Thereafter, they fought for every run, thanks to some superb bowling display by Maharashtra Club’s Naushad Sheikh (3 for 35) and Chandan Paranjpe (3 for 16).

Parinay Shewale was the top-scorer for NCA followed by Tanmay Gunjal and Sachin Nikam 13 runs each.

SCORES: NCA 103 all out in 21.4 overs (Parinay Shewale 24, Naushad Sheikh 3 for 35, Chandan Paranjpe 3 for 16) bt Maharashtra Club Suraj Maheshwari 35, Tanmay Gunjal 3 for 16, Sagar Thorat 2 for 5).

Maharashtra Police to play Kolhapur XI in finals

Published May 22

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Mahindra’s ‘F’ United were trapped into the game plan of Maharashtra Police. The latter played a waiting game in the first half to tire out the young legs of ‘F’ United and launch a counter attack in the second, which they did, beating their rivals 1-0 to enter into the finals of the All India Ambedkar Memorial Hockey Tournament played at Ammunition Factory Ground on Monday.

Maharashtra Police utilised all their experience to back themselves in a situation which any other team could have succumbed under pressure. The greatest advantage they had was the ability to play in both types of turfs which ‘F’ United did not have. United could have been a tough proposition for Maharashtra Police on astro-turf.

Knowing this well, Maharashtra Police played attacking hockey in the second half, not letting United forwards to barge inside their danger zone. Suddenly, they earned a penalty corner which Maharashtra Police defender Niyazullah crunched one past goalkeeper Sudhir Dixit who needlessly fell flat as he saw the ball flying over his head.

The goal put United team on the backfoot, bringing them under pressure that put their game out-of-gear. Ramesh Pillay, former international player and Dhanraj Pillay’s brother, said: “The inability to play on dirt turf had done the United boys in and they could not match the experience of Maharashtra Police.”

In the next 10 minutes, ‘F’ United had a good chance to score the equalizer, but was denied by goalkeeper Wahid Pathan after flinging himself to his right, not before taking the hit on his helmet vicer, which gave a bit of a bother to his teammates. He, however, stood up next moment to block the hits.

The United also had a golden opportunity just before the first-half’. Azaz Qureshi crunched in from the right into the centre with magnificent stick work and gave a pass to Chungkhei Melban, the left-out, who frittered away the chance.

Maharashtra Police will be very happy to have stormed into the finals, but they have not taken Kolhapur XI easily. So far, Kolhapur XI has emerged the best team in the tournament after beating the strongest team of the tournament - the Rashtriya Chemical Fertilisers being coached by Ramesh Pillay.

Maharashtra Police, on the other hand, rely on experience and wait-and-watch-and-attack policy that they had exhibited right throughout the tournament.

SCORES: Maharashtra Police 1 (Niyazullah) bt Mahindra’s ‘F’ United 0.

Deccan ‘A’ to take on Parshuramians in finals

Published May 22

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

WANOWRIE: Deccan ‘A’ and Parshuramians sailed into the finals of the nine-a-side Darius Football Tournament played at Mathurawala Ground here on Monday.

Deccan ‘A’ beat Poona Police 3-2 in a close encounter. All the three goals for the Deccans came in the first half and Poona Police posted two late goals.

A brilliant goal from Sharad Pawar in the 10th minute gave Deccan ‘A’ the lead. Soon after in the 14th, Amit Navalli posted the second after exchanging passes with his partners in the scoring zone. The third came in the 19th when Mangesh Padumale crunched in breaking the Poona Police defense.

Poona Police then bounced back in the second half. They launched a late attack netting two goals. Bapu Raikar scored the first goal for them in the 24th and the second in the 34th by Rajesh Manglikar.

In yet another semi-finals, Parshuramians thrashed Thundercats 1-0, thanks to the self-goal scored by Umresh on a powerful kick of Rahul Gadage.

SCORES: Deccan ‘A’ 3 (Amit Navalli, Sharad Pawar, Mangesh Padumale) bt Poona Police 2 (Bapu Raikar, Rajesh Manglikar); Parshuramians 1 (Umresh, self goal) bt Thundercats 0.

Vishal’s two late saves, push Poona Police into quarters

Published May 18

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Two late saves by Vishal Gajarmal in the penalty shootouts and hat-trick by Prakash Sapkal powered Poona City Police into the quarterfinals of All India Dr Ambedkar Memorial Hockey Tournament played at Ammunition Factory Ground on Thursday after trouncing Vikram Sports Academy (VSA) 7-6 in the penalty shootouts after the score was 3-3 at full time.

In the first half, Poona Police did all the running and attacking. In 5th minute, their forwards created space for an opportunity and got a penalty stroke after VSA defender Amit Pandey was faulted for dangerous tackling. Prakash Sapkal blazed in the first of his four goals, giving an early lead to his team.

Poona Police did not stop there, but continued their show of urgency and powered their second goal through Sapkal in the 27th on Vinod Nimbore's cross.

VSA gallantly fought back in the second half. They earned a penalty stroke in the 36th minute and Navneet Sorankar made no mistake in converting it into a goal.

Soon after in the 41st minute, VSA scripted another goal through Vineet Nimal who scooped the deflected ball past goalkeeper Vishal Gajarmal. VSA struck again in the 51st minute, Navneet Sorankar executing a wonderful goal, putting his team ahead Poona Police 3-2.

VSA’s excitement, however, was short-lived as in the next minute Sapkal scored an equaliser 3-3 for Poona Police.

Except Deepak Devar, Datta Shinde, Umesh Pulgam, Wajid Sheikh and Prakash Sapkal scored penalties for Poona Police. And two saves from Vishal Gajarmal of Poona Police wrecked havoc for VSA, whose strikers -- Alwyn Alexander and Miraj Sheikh -- failed to convert penalties. Other penalty scorers for VSA were Navneet Sorankar, Vikas Pillay and Bhakti Thakur.

Kolhapur XI storms into semis: Meanwhile, Kolhapur XI stormed into semi-finals after beating Metro XI 1-0. The winning team will either meet Super XI or RPF Mumbai. The lone goal of the match was scored by Deepak Malawe on Ashok Chopre’s pass in the 10th minute.

SCORES: Poona Police 7 (Prakash Sapkal 4, Datta Shinde, Umesh Pulgam, Wajid Sheikh) bt VSA 6 (Navneet Sorankar 3, Vinit Nimal, Vikas Pillay, Bhakti Thakur); Kolhapur XI 1 (Deepak Malawe) bt Metro XI 0.

Super XI sail into quarterfinals

Published May 17

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: In a day where 14 goals were scored by two separate teams in the All India Dr Ambedkar Memorial Hockey Tournament played at Ammunition Factory Ground on Wednesday, Super XI became the first team to storm into quarterfinals after convincingly beating Indian Sports Club (ISC) 7-0 in a one-sided game.

In yet another game, Vikram Pillay Sports Club (VPSC) knocked out Friends Union Club (B) 7-0. They will now play Poona City Police on Thursday, which is tipped to be a big game.

Super XI played quality hockey making brisk moves and creating opportunities to score by outpacing ISC defenders. Amar Kadam put Super XI ahead with a steaming hit into the goal through a penalty corner in the 4th minute and did not fail to repeat the feat in the 20th.

Today’s star was Super XI forward Rohidas Musale who scored four goals. He registered his first goal in the 8th minute on Santosh Musale’s pass. He again broke in, in the 17 minute, sprinting ahead and positioning himself, hitting the ball into the goal, leaving ISC goalkeeper wonder-struck.

Musale struck for the third and fourth time in 37th and 50th minute on Jitendra Chandy’s pass. The seventh goal was the best goal of the match that came when Srikant Bhokre hit a stinging goal from the left flank on a cross-flicked by Prashant Gokhale in 57th minute from the right flank.

ISC, on the other hand, had a bad day. Their forwards Amol Lokrey and Praveen Muthaiah miscued many shots in the D. They could not convert half chances into goals due to lack of coordination and passes. Their defense had holes and Super XI picked them up to their advantage.

Meanwhile, VPSC registered a stinging victory against FU. They outplayed their younger opponents without any difficulty.

Of the seven goals scored by VPSC, three were scored by S Navneet in 3rd, 23rd and 51st minute. Other goals were blazed in by Cyril Bernard 2, Dawood Ghadiyali and Alwyn Alexander.

SCORES: Super XI 7 (Rohidas Musale 4, Amar Kadam 2, Srikant Bhokre) bt ISC 0; VPSC 7 (Navneet 3, Cyril Bernard 2, Dawood Ghadiyali, Alwyn Alexander) bt FU ‘B’ 0.

Super XI sail into quarterfinals

Published May 17

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: In a day where 14 goals were scored by two separate teams in the All India Dr Ambedkar Memorial Hockey Tournament played at Ammunition Factory Ground on Wednesday, Super XI became the first team to storm into quarterfinals after convincingly beating Indian Sports Club (ISC) 7-0 in a one-sided game.

In yet another game, Vikram Pillay Sports Club (VPSC) knocked out Friends Union Club (B) 7-0. They will now play Poona City Police on Thursday, which is tipped to be a big game.

Super XI played quality hockey making brisk moves and creating opportunities to score by outpacing ISC defenders. Amar Kadam put Super XI ahead with a steaming hit into the goal through a penalty corner in the 4th minute and did not fail to repeat the feat in the 20th.

Today’s star was Super XI forward Rohidas Musale who scored four goals. He registered his first goal in the 8th minute on Santosh Musale’s pass. He again broke in, in the 17 minute, sprinting ahead and positioning himself, hitting the ball into the goal, leaving ISC goalkeeper wonder-struck.

Musale struck for the third and fourth time in 37th and 50th minute on Jitendra Chandy’s pass. The seventh goal was the best goal of the match that came when Srikant Bhokre hit a stinging goal from the left flank on a cross-flicked by Prashant Gokhale in 57th minute from the right flank.

ISC, on the other hand, had a bad day. Their forwards Amol Lokrey and Praveen Muthaiah miscued many shots in the D. They could not convert half chances into goals due to lack of coordination and passes. Their defense had holes and Super XI picked them up to their advantage.

Meanwhile, VPSC registered a stinging victory against FU. They outplayed their younger opponents without any difficulty.

Of the seven goals scored by VPSC, three were scored by S Navneet in 3rd, 23rd and 51st minute. Other goals were blazed in by Cyril Bernard 2, Dawood Ghadiyali and Alwyn Alexander.

SCORES: Super XI 7 (Rohidas Musale 4, Amar Kadam 2, Srikant Bhokre) bt ISC 0; VPSC 7 (Navneet 3, Cyril Bernard 2, Dawood Ghadiyali, Alwyn Alexander) bt FU ‘B’ 0.

Ultimate Blues prevail

Published May 16

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Ultimate Blues clinched 2-0 win against KP XI in an engrossing match in the PDFA Senior Division Football League played at SRPF Ground here on Tuesday.

Ultimate Blues thundered their first goal in the 10th minute through a superb kick taken by Stewart and the second was posted by Edwin in the 40th.

Ultimate Blues played superbly throughout the game and increased their pace intermittently when required. KP XI also raised their bar, but did not match the prowess of Ultimate Blues.

Meanwhile, the second match between Ghorpadi Young Ones and BEG played at Range Hills Ground ended in an a goal-less draw.

SCORES: Ultimate Blues 2 (Stewart, Edwin) bt KP XI 0; Ghorpadi Young Ones 0 drew with BEG 0.

Bapu Raikar strikes twice as

Published May 15

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: In an interesting encounter, Pune Police pipped out Commandos 2-1 in the PDFA Senior Division Super League Football matches played at Range Hills Ground here on Monday.

For Pune Police, Bapu Raikar struck twice in the 12th and 18th minute in first half of the game. The losing team played a good game in the second and posted one goal in the 30th minute when S Ansari banged one in past the diving Pune Police goalkeeper.

They continued their attacking game till the last minute, but could not succeed in scoring an equalizer.

Meanwhile, Rahul Sports Club trounced AFK 1-0 in another game. The lone goal came from Prakash Satane in the 10th minute of the match. The winning team, thereafter, failed to increase their lead, thanks to their cautious approach.

RESULTS: Pune Police (Bapu Raikar 2) bt Commandos 1 (S Ansari); Rahul Sports Club 1 (Prakash Satane) bt AFK 0.

Chess selections from May 16 to May 19

Published May 14

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

PUNE: The Central Maharashtra Chess Association will be organising the Central Maharashtra chess selection tournament at Gupte Mangal Karyalaya here from May 16 to May 19, Pune District Chess Association President Satish Desai said.

Top six players from the tournament will qualify to represent Central Maharashtra in the Maharashtra chess selection tournament for National B to be held at Aurangabad from May 28 to June 2, Desai said in a press release issued to this newspaper on Monday.

Players from Pune, Ahmednagar, Nasik, Jalgaon, Dhule, Raigad and Nandurbar districts are eligible to participate, he added. For entry, query and further details contact: Joseph D’Souza – 9850218662, Rajendra Konde – 9822303540 and Vivek Bhagwat – 9371267694.

Vikas, Nachiket lead victory charge

Published May 24

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

PASHAN: It was worth waiting for, because Vikas Navale and Nachiket Kulkarni of Chavan Cricket Academy produced some lusty hitting not seen in any of the Late Kasturi Rangachar Memorial Cricket Tournament being played at NCL Ground, scoring a record-of-sorts 246 runs for 6 wickets in stipulated 25 overs to clinch victory against WPCA, who could muster up only 97 runs for 8 wickets in reply.

Chavan batsmen tore WPCA’s weak bowling attack to shreds soon after their top-order batsmen were packed off to the pavilion when the score read 39 runs on the board.

It was a sheer aggressive batting by Vikas (92 runs) and Nachiket (69). They had a mammoth 153-runs stand for third wicket. Soon after Vikas arrived in the middle, he blazed two glorious shots, giving signs of what is to come from his bat.

He sent down shivers in the WPCA camp by belting eight boundaries and three towering sixes. Nachiket too opened up, scoring 69 runs with seven boundaries and a huge six.

Both of them hammered Hari Om Dhumal, Vardhaman Lodha and Sagar Waidande out of the park. Most expensive being Hari Om, giving 62 runs in five overs.

In reply WPCA, began their run chase rather poorly. They lost wickets at regular intervals, trying to accelerate the run-rate.

In the midst, Nitesh Sapre (52 n o) top-scored for WPCA standing his ground while watching his teammates losing their wickets at the other end.

Meanwhile, Rajput Cricket Academy (RCA) continued their winning streak by defeating Ingulkar Cricket Club (ICC) by six wickets.

Chasing 136 runs put by ICC, RCA got those runs with 27 balls to spare. Rahul Gaikwad top-scored with 51 not out for RCA.

Earlier, RCA pacer Rushikesh Ghatkal bagged hat-trick by removing Agnay Hemade (7), Nikhil Mate (0) and Praful Choudhary (0), crippling ICC score to 44 for six at one stage.

Devendra Gujar top-scored for ICC with 64 runs.

SCORES: ICC 135 all out in 24.2 overs (Devandra Gujar 64, Rushikesh Ghatkal 3 for 13, Sagar Parkhe 2 for 40) lost to RCA 136 for 4 in 20.3 overs (Rahul Gaikwad 51, Sagar Parkhe 28, Suraj Gupta 1 for 15); Chavan Cricket Academy 246 for 6 (Vikas Navale 92, Nachiket Kulkarni 69, Sagar Waidande 3 for 42) bt WPCA 97 for 8 in 24.2 overs (Nitesh Sapre 52 n o, Bharat Purohit 2 for 24, Manish Kothari 2 for 4, Vikas Navale 2 for 24)


BRIEFLY

GAJANAN Rajurwad, Loukik Jadhav and Mihir Sawant of Poona District Football Association (PDFA) had the distinction of attending U-21 West Zone National Football Championship held at Mandla in Madhya Pradesh from April 26 to May 6.

Meanwhile, Anjuna Turumbekar, Priyanka Gurav and Maya Ingawale of PDFA represented Maharashtra in the 15th Senior Women's National Football Championship held at Rourkele in Orissa from April 26 to May 13, according to a press release.

Rajputs beat Ranjane by 6 wickets

Published May 23

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

PASHAN: Chasing 161 runs to win, Rajput Cricket Academy romped home, winning by six wickets against Ranjane Cricket Academy in the Late Kasturi Rangachar Memorial U-19 Cricket Tournament played at NCL Ground on Tuesday.

Rajput openers Rushikesh Ghatkal and Amit Khandulge gave a solid start to their team building 67 runs partnership for the first wicket.

First to go was Ghatkal of Vipul Raut after scoring 31 runs. When the total reached 80, Rajput lost two quick wickets within the span of 10 runs. Amit Khandulge, who was blazing away with 61-glorious runs, involved himself in a run out and Sagar Purkhe threw his wicket trying to send the ball over the ropes. He was stumped of Vipul Raut’s bowling.

When Vaibhav Badave arrived at the crease, things were not looking rosy for Rajputs. But he picked up the challenge and consolidated the innings with his partner Rahul Gaikwad. Both established a match-winning 58 runs partnership for the fourth wicket.

When Badave departed, Rajput were placed at 148 runs needing another 13 runs to win, which Gaikwad and Ganesh Raut got those comfortably.

Batting first, Ranjane Cricket Academy belted 160 for 8 in stipulated 25 overs. They had bad start losing an early wicket when the score read six. Yesterday’s star batsman Suraj Khenat gave a catch of Amit Khandulge’s bowling.

However, Ranjane batsmen put on a 55 runs partnership for the second wicket. Suddenly, the score was looking good at 80 for 2. The good work was further carried on by top-scorer Muddazar Sheikh (80) and Abhijit Ghadge putting on 83 runs for the third wicket. But, the next six batsmen lost their wickets cheaply for 16 runs, of which three were involved in terrible run outs.

SCORES: Ranjane Cricket Academy 160 for 8 in 25 overs (Muddazar Sheikh 80, Shankar Katke 30, Abhijit Rajput 3 for 8) lost to Rajput Cricket Academy 161 for 4 in 23 overs (Amit Khandulge 61, Vipul Raut 2 for 30). WPCA 113 all out in 24.2 overs (Atul Shedge 25, Atul Mulase 2 for 25) lost to Deccan Gymkhana 114 for one in 15.2 overs (Amoth Taskar 48, Avdhoot Dandekar 42 not out)

Sudden-death goal puts Maharashtra Police into semis

Published May 19

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: All eyes were on Alkesh Yesulkar. He had a tinge of confidence after having played a superb game in the middle. Finally he did it what was required of him. He struck one into the net to register an exciting for Maharashtra Police against Poona Police in the sudden death of the All India Dr Ambedkar Memorial Hockey Tournament played at Ammunition Factory Ground on Friday.

Maharashtra Police overwhelmed Poona Police 5-4 in the penalty shootout after both the team failed to score any goals in the allotted time. With this win, Maharashtra Police sailed into the semi-finals and would either play Green Meadows or Mahindra Sports Club.

Poona Police, after a magnificent show yesterday against Vikram Pillay Academy, failed to put up a good show against their Mumbai compatriots. They had a poor start in the penalty shootout when Datta Shinde scooped over the pole. Deepak Devar, however, brought cheers back to his team when sent in an equalizer 2-2 for Poona Police.

When the scores were equal 4-4 in the shootouts, Prakash Sapkal, the last match hero, hit the ball straight to Maharashtra Police goalkeeper Wahid Pathan, who punched the ball outside.

Maharashtra Police outplayed their rivals with sheer power and pace. They had plenty of chances, but could not sail the ball into the net, thanks to some freakish stops made by the defenders of Poona Police.

In the first half, Amol Bharsule broke in wonderfully dribbling into the Poona Police scoring zone after dodging two of their defenders, earning a penalty corner, which was spilled by them in the 30th minute.Poona Police had a good chance to take the lead in the first minute of the second half when Umesh Pulgam walloped a beautiful centre from the half that should have been trapped by Prakash Sapkal who was marked by only one Maharashtra Police defender.

Sooner, Maharashtra Police earned the penalty corner, but Niyaz Sheikh wasted Vijay Tatale’s pass taking a poor aim at the goal. It was again Tatale who gave a splendid passing shot to Azmat Sheikh on the left flank who had just to tap the ball to his centre forward mate, but took a selfish hit.

RESULTS: Maharashtra Police 5 (Alkesh Yesur 2, Azmat Sheikh, Vinod Shelonkar, Niyazullah) bt Poona Police 4 (Umesh Pulgam, Deepak Devar, Wajid Sheikh, Prakash Sapkal).

Meadows down disjointed Priyadarshini

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

KHADKI: Green Meadows overcame a spirited but disjointed Priyadarshi 2-0 to gain vital points in the All India Dr Ambedkar Memorial Hockey Tournament played at Ammunition Factory Ground here on Tuesday.

Goals by Rishikesh Kulkarni (54the minute) and Atul Kalate (57th) set up the tone for Green Meadows while Priyadarshini missed so many opportunities inspite of a good show put up by their forward Randip Bhatti.

Green Meadows raised the level of their game when it mattered most
and clearly, they were the fitter and better organised team than Priyadarshini who simply did not have the ammunition to counter their opponents.

The barren first half did not reveal what Green Meadows had in store for Priyadarshini in the second. But the glimpse of their attacking game gave indications to Priyadarshini that it would not be an easy going in the next 35 minutes of play.

And the Meadows unleased their attack after failing to make any headway in the first half. They constantly attacked the opponents danger area. Priyadarshini defenders made valiant efforts to save goals. But as the match progressed, they could not sustain the blazing game of Meadows.

A two-goal blitz in the span of three minutes in the second-half effectively closed the game in Priyadarshini's favour.

Prashant Gaikwad came up with a perfect centre hit to Sachin Bhondave who deflected the ball to right winger Rishikesh Kulkarni who flicked home the first goal for Meadows.

Rushikesh Mukherjee weaved a fantastic diagnal pass to Atul Kalate. From the centre of the D he blazed one into Priyadarshini's goal, taking the score to 2 goals to nil.

Priyadarshini made a few concerted attempts at Meadows goal, but could not beat their goalkeeper who easily parried the attempts.

Meanwhile, Metro Sports Club trounced Friends Union Club (FUC) 2-1 in an exciting encounter. The first goal was scored by Manish Yadav on a pass from Vijay Singh in the 21st minute. But, FUC retaliated and scored the equalizer through a beautiful combination of Kunal Jagdale and Ibrahim Sheikh in the 31st minute.

Sheikh gave a wonderful pass to Kunal who made no mistake in flicking the ball home. However, Shoib Ansari’s solo goal in the 55th minute sealed the fate of FUC. Shoib scooped the ball in after the ball deflected of the right goal post to the left.

SCORES: Green Meadows 2 (Rishikesh Kkulkarni, Atul Kalate) bt Priyadarshini 0; Metro Sports Club 2 (Manish Yadav, Shoib Ansari) bt Friends Union Club 1 (Kunal Jagdale).

Rugved topple’s Dhananjay

Published May 18

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

PUNE: Unrated Rugved Gupchup upset international player Dhananjay Pandit in the fourth round of the Central Maharashtra Chess Selection Tournament 2007 played at Gupte Mangal Karyalaya here on Thursday.

Chinmoy Kulkarni, Hrishikesh Salvekar and Kapil Lohana with four points were leading the points table after the completion of fourth round. The selected players will represent Central Maharashtra in the Maharashtra Chess Selection Tournament for National B to be held at Aurangabad from May 28 to June 2.

ROUND FOUR RESULTS: Sohan 3 lost to Chinmay Kulkarni 4; Mihir Bhadkamkar 3 lost to Hrishikesh Salvekar 4; Kapila Lohana 4 beat C N Bhadbhade 3; Pinak Jedhe 3.5 beat Parikshit Vemulkar 3; Rugved Gupchup 3 beat Dhananjay Pandit 2; Neel Jambhekar 2 lost to Salil Rabade 3; Rajas Bhalerao 3 beat Roshan Joshi 2; Sunil B Joshi 3 beat Vishwas Bhuskute 2; Rahul Bora 2 lost to Abhishek Korpe 3; Rajat Mehta 2 lost to Tushar Chandgude 3.

Jedhe upsets Pandit

Published May 17

Jedhe upsets Pandit

B D Narayankar

bapun@sakalherald.com

PUNE: In major upsets, unrated Pinak Jedhe and Sunil Joshi defeated international chess players Dhananjay Pandit and Salil Rabde in the first and second round of the Central Maharashtra Chess Selection Tournament 2007 organised by the Central Maharashtra Chess Association in the city on Wednesday.

Jedhe, however, could not do a miracle for himself in the second round, but managed to draw the game with international player Atul Pendse. As many as 14 chess players are leading the points table at the end of the second round.

SECOND ROUND RESULTS: Dhawal Deshmukh 0-1 Chinmay Kulkarni, Supreet Deshpande 0-1 Hrishikesh Salvekar, Kapil Lohana 1-0 Sayali Dixit, Sunil Joshi 1-0 Salil Rabde, Atul Pendse 1\2 –1\2 Pinak Jedhe, Rajat Mehta 1-0 Gaurav Agarwal, Appa Ranaware 1-0 Gaurav Agarwal, Nandan Bedekar 0-1 Abhishek Korpe, Sachin Shirke 0-1 C N Bhadbhade and Mihir Bhadkamkar 1-0 Rupesh Purohit