Mumbai Mar 24 PTI Former India skipper Sunil Gavaskar believes Ravindra Jadeja will be ready to take over the mantle of Chennai Super Kings captaincy if the iconic Mahendra Singh Dhoni decides to take a game or two off in the upcoming IPL Dhoni who has been the CSK captain since the leagues inception in 2008 could be playing in his last IPL this season He has already retired from international cricket The way Ravindra Jadeja has matured as a player over the last few years the way he is making the adjustment as far as his game is concerned and the way he reads match situations has been absolutely fantastic If in the odd game MS Dhoni decides to take a break I wont be surprised if the mantle of captaincy will be handed over to Jadeja Gavaskar said during a Gameplan episode aired on Star Sports the official broadcaster of IPL Defending champions CSK will open their campaign against last editions runner-up side Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium here on Saturday Gavaskar handpicked last IPLs leading run scorer Ruturaj Gaikwadm to play a key role in CSKs title defence Ruturaj Gaikwad is another player who has very little areas to improve There is nothing really required as far as Gaikwads improvement is concerned He has got all the shots in the book but the most impressive aspect is his shot selection he said Whatever shot he plays he doesnt get cowed down He is not afraid to play the lofted shot when required and his shot selection has been very good in the IPL So there is very little that Ruturaj Gaikwad needs to do All he needs to do is keep on scoring runs similar to last season PTI SSC SSC AH AH

Lucknow Jan 23 PTI Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu eased past young compatriot Malvika Bansod in straight games to win her second womens singles title at the Syed Modi International badminton tournament here on Sunday Playing in a depleted field due to multiple COVID-19 cases top seed Sindhu hardly broke her sweat to get past Bansod 21-13 21-16 in a lop-sided title contest The final lasted just 35 minutes It was former world champion Sindhus second Syed Modi title after having annexed the BWF World Tour Super 300 event in 2017 Before that seventh seeded Indians Ishaan Bhatnagar and Tanisha Crasto clinched the mixed doubles title with a straight game win over compatriots T Hema Nagendra Babu and Srivedya Gurazada Bhatnagar and Crasto inflicted a 21-16 21-12 on the unseeded Indian duo in the summit clash that ended in 29 minutes Earlier the mens singles final between Arnaud Merkle and Lucas Claerbout was declared a No Match after one of the finalists tested positive for COVID-19 It was expected to be a one-sided womens singles match between world number seven Sindhu and young Bansod ranked 84th in the world and it turned out to be exactly that Sindhu used her vast experience and skills to great effect as Bansod found it extremely difficult to adjust to her opponents game from the onset The Tokyo Olympics silver medallist took off from the word go and raced to a 7-0 lead in no time The ace shuttler used her height and reach to great effect to increase her lead to 11-1 at the break After the break Bansod tried to up her game and collected a few points to close the gap but it was no match for a much superior Sindhu who closed out the first game with consummate ease The second game however produced a better contest with Bansod trying her best to lift her game and she did that too but it was not enough to challenge Sindhus class Sindhu used her height to mix her smashes with pinpoint drop shots which Bansod failed to counter as the Olympic medallist raced to a 11-4 lead at the break Sindhu continued in the same vein even though Bansod tried her best to forge a comeback and in the process secured four points on the trot to reduce the deficit to 17-12 Bansod managed to pick up four more points but lacked the temperament and class as Sindhu closed out the contest without any fuss PTI SSC SSC AH AH

New Delhi Oct 27 PTI Indias inspiring show at the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics reflected in an unprecedented 11 recommendations for the Khel Ratna award including that of champion javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra as the selection committee also named 35 athletes for the Arjuna honour here on Wednesday Apart from 23-year-old Chopra who became only the second Indian to win an individual Olympic gold silver medal-winning wrestler Ravi Dahiya boxer Lovloina Borgohain who won a bronze were recommended for the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award countrys highest sporting honour Seasoned hockey goalkeeper PR Sreejesh and womens cricket team Test captain Mithali Raj were selected along with iconic Sunil Chhetri who is set to become countrys first footballer to receive the honour All five gold medallists from the Tokyo Paralympics -- Avani Lekhara shooting Manish Narwal shooting Sumit Antil athletics Pramod Bhagat badminton and Krishna Nagar badminton -- were also rewarded for their performance as they also made the cut in the list which will now be sent for approval to the Sports Ministry India sent its biggest contingent to the Tokyo Olympics with as many as 121 athletes presenting their challenge and the country achieved its best ever show by winning seven medal including one gold two silver and four bronze medals Three of those medallists wrestler Bajrang Punia shuttler PV Sindhu and weightlifter Mirabai Chanu have already won the Khel Ratna award At the Paralympics India returned with 19 medals including five gold eight silver and six bronze medals Last year five athletes were picked for the Khel Ratna while four were selected after the 2016 Rio Games but Indias phenomenal performances in the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics has resulted in unprecedented numbers of recommendations The announcement of the national sports awards was delayed in order to consider the performances of para-athletes in the Tokyo Paralympics held from August 24 to September 5 The committee also recommended 35 athletes for the Arjuna award eight more than last years picks Cricketer Shikhar Dhawan para table tennis player Bhavina Patel para shuttler Suhas Yathiraj and high jumper Nishad Kumar are among those selected for the Arjuna award which is given to outstanding performers Dhawan in fact became the 57th cricketer to receive the Arjuna award All members of the historic Tokyo Olympics bronze medal winning mens hockey team who have previously not won the award have also been recommended for the Arjuna recognition Womens hockey team members Vandana Katariya and Monika who were instrumental in the teams brilliant performance at the Tokyo Olympics Bhavani Devi who was the first fencer from India to qualify for the Olympics boxer Simranjit Kaur wrestler Deepak Punia pistol shooter Abhishek Verma boxer Simranjit Kaur kabaddi player Sandeep Narwal womens tennis player Ankita Raina are among others to get recommendation According to information received the Dronacharya award has been accorded to athletics coaches Radhakrishna Nair and TP Ouseph and hockey coach Sandeep Sangwan among others The Khel Ratna award carries a prize purse of Rs 25 lakh and a citation while the Arjuna award winners will get Rs 15 lakh each and a citationPrior to 2020 the prize purse of Khel Ratna was Rs 75 lakh while Arjuna award was Rs 5 lakh PTI SSC SSC AT AT

New Delhi Sep 30 PTI Olympic bronze medal-winning Indian hockey player Rupinder Pal Singh on Thursday announced his retirement from international hockey with immediate effect to make way for youngsters I would like to inform you about my decision to retire from Indian hockey team The past couple of months have undoubtedly been the best days of my life Standing on the podium in Tokyo along with my teammates with whom I have shared some of the most incredible experiences of my life was a feeling I will cherish forever Rupinder wrote in a statement posted on his official twitter handle I believe it is time for me to make way for young and talented players to experience every great joy I have felt in these last 13 years of representing India The 30-year-old Rupinder regarded as one of the best drag-flickers of the country represented India in 223 matches Rupinder was an intergral part of the Indian hockey team that won bronze medal in the Tokyo Games this year ending a 41-year-old medal drought for the eight-time Olympic champions PTI SSC SSC KHS KHS