Top seed Sameer, who won the Swiss Open earlier this year, had to dig deep into his reservoir to outwit compatriot Pratul Joshi 16-21, 26-24, 21-7 in 55 minutes. In another quarter-final, Gurusaidutt, a former Commonwealth Games bronze medallist, recovered from a game down to beat Malaysia's Lim Chi Wing 13-21, 22-20, 21-11 in 59 minutes.
Ace Indian discus thrower Vikas Gowda has qualified for the Rio Olympics after the world athletics governing body, the IAAF lowered the entry standards "to have more athletes" taking part in the track and field events in the 2016 Games.
Unfazed at being ousted from the Asian Athletics Association, scam-tainted Suresh Kalmadi said losing the presidential re-election bid to Qatar's Dahlan Jumaan Al-Hamad has actually given him a chance to work at the "grassroots" level.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Saturday
Pournima Zanane had been suffering from cancer for the past two years and also underwent extensive treatment for the same.
Caster Semenya put aside the controversy over a planned rule change in athletics regarding hyperandrogenism to win the women's 1,500 metres
The emotional and financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic is weighing on Indian shuttler HS Prannoy's mind and he believes that the already "bleak" scenario would only get worse if things don't take a turn for the better in one and a half month's time. The coronavirus outbreak, which has killed over 40,000 globally, has put countries in lockdown and halted sports, including badminton, across the world. It has also triggered financial and mental woes across the world.
Hockey India on Saturday sacked national coach Roelant Oltmans after a string of unimpressive outings at the international level.
India has always been a difficult place to work for foreign hockey coaches due to difference of opinion with national federations and bureaucratic hurdles.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday.
Determined to keep the Olympic dream alive despite the long-standing administrative mess, a spirited Indian boxing team, featuring the likes of M C Mary Kom and Shiva Thapa, will take off on Monday night for the Asian Qualifiers in Qian'an City, China. Ten men and three women form the 13-strong team which will be in action from March 25. In the men's competition, only the top three boxers in each weight category will make the Olympic cut with the third spot decided via a box-off between the two bronze-medallists. In the women's draw, only the gold and silver medal winners will qualify for Rio de Janeiro. In the absence of a recognised federation, the Indians will once again compete under the flag of the International Boxing Association (AIBA). "It is going to be a very tough tournament because not many from the Asian region qualified during last year's World Championships. I am expecting around 30 countries and more than 250 boxers to be there at this event," national coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu told PTI ahead of the team's departure.
The Sports Ministry dropped para-sports coach Satyanarayana from the list of this year's Dronacharya awardees due to a criminal case pending against him, but made no changes to the names recommended for the Khel Ratna and Arjuna awards.
It is learnt that Bhanot has been recommended by the Athletics Federation of India to contest the AAA elections to be held on June 1 prior to the Asian Athletics Championships at Wuhan in China from June 3 to 7.
'An athlete is never tension-free,' India's champion athlete tells Rediff.com's Laxmi Negi.
Despite the short notice to prepare for a major meet, the 20th Asian Athletics Championships, scheduled at Pune from July 3-7, will be among the best-organised, declared Athletics Federation of India president Adille Sumariwalla in Mumbai on Friday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday
Terming the government's claim of allocating grants to IOA as 'misleading', the top sports body has asked the Sports Ministry to stop the practice as the money was only meant for meeting the expenses of the athletes during the multi-sporting events.
They showed big hearts. They were unfazed by the stature of their rivals and that's what is very important. You respect your rival but don't get intimidated by his CV, says India's High-Performance Director Santiago Nieva.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Wednesday
National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) President Raninder Singh took upon himself the blame for the shooters' dismal outing at the Rio Olympics, saying it was a mistake on his part to allow the athletes to train with personal coaches.
Chandela shot an astonishing 252.9 in the eight-women final, finishing 1.1 points ahead of silver medallist China's Ruozhu Zhao (251.8) points.
Tainted Indian sports administrator Suresh Kalmadi has been made Life President of the Asian Athletics Association for his "work in the development of athletics in the continent" during his 13-year tenure as the head of organisation from 2000.
Woman shooter Heena Sidhu created history by becoming the first pistol exponent from India to win a gold medal at the ISSF World Cup finals in Munich, Germany.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday
Where stalwarts like MC Mary Kom failed, Sonia Lather brought home a medal.
Star Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat on Friday said she does not have much time to grieve over her Tokyo Games debacle and is gearing up for future challenges while young Anshu Malik suggested that a sports psychologist should be attached with the team to help them overcome nerves at big stage like the Olympics.
Impressed by India's performance at the Doha International Tournament, Aussie boxers want exchange programme with India, claims coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu
For seven years, Lee Chong Wei, one of badminton's finest athletes, took cordyceps tablets from unmarked containers on the advice of a mysterious friend without any knowledge of how they were capsulated or stored.
'I am only saying that whoever between me and Narsingh is better, should represent the country at the Olympics' 'Trails took place in the past, before the 1992 and 1996 Olympics. Last time, there was no competition, thus the trails did not take place. There was no one to challenge me in my weight category last time. But this time, the situation is different'
The year-long suffering she faced following the controversial "gender test" in 2014 has hurt promising sprinter Dutee Chand so much so that she still feels that she may get trapped and her resurrected career may be in ruins again. Two years ago, Chand's dreams of representing her country at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games came crashing when an indefinite ban was imposed on her, barring her from taking part in women's competitions due to her higher levels of testosterone (hormones primarily produced by male). Dutee fought the case at the Court of Arbitration for Sports in Switzerland which upheld her appeal, citing no clear cut link with higher levels of these hormones with enhancement in performance. She returned to competitions last year and broke the national record in 100m dash recently. "I'm not able to trust anyone. I am scared that I might get trapped again. I hardly have any friends," Dutee told reporters on the sidelines of the GAIL Indian Speedstar event. "I prefer to train alone at SAI camp in Hyderabad. I don't train at national camp at NIS Patiala. Some of the 4x400 relay members don't like me," she added.
Chanu has decided to present her case before the hearing panel of the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) in Hungary.
A tough draw will put their grit to test when the three-member Indian boxing team begins its Olympic campaign, aiming to lift the gloom that pervades the sport back home owing to the long-standing administrative mess.
The 59-year-old Batra is one of the few sports administrators to head a national Olympic committee while heading an important international sports federation.
Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore says the corporate sector is very much willing to support development of sports and athletes in India but it needs to be given the assurance that the money is going in right hands.
Four 20km race walkers -- two men and two women -- have already been named from the separate national championships held in New Delhi in February.
...Set house in order soon or Indian archers will compete under world body flag
Indian Women's Hockey team leaves for Argentina tour.