Indian sports activities wrap, January 22: Bhambri suffers defeat in first spherical in combined doubles at Australian Open

TENNIS

Bhambri suffers defeat in first spherical in combined doubles at Australian Open

India’s Yuki Bhambri and his American companion Nicole Melichar-Martinez crashed out of the combined doubles competitors within the Australian Open after shedding to the German-Chinese language duo of Tim Puetz and Zhang Shuai in Melbourne on Thursday.

Bhambri and Melichar-Martinez misplaced 6-4, 7-6(3) to the sixth-seeded pairing of Puetz and Shuai.

Bhambri’s marketing campaign within the 12 months’s first Grand Slam is, nevertheless, not over but as he stays in fray within the males’s doubles occasion.

N. Sriram Balaji and his Austrian companion Neil Oberleitner made probably the most of a last-minute entry as alternates as they took down the French-Australian duo of Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Jordan Thompson 7-6(4), 3-6, 7-6(8) to achieve the second spherical in males’s doubles.

Balaji and Oberleitner will face El Salvador’s Marcelo Arevalo and Croatia’s Mate Pavic, the fourth-seeded duo, within the subsequent spherical.

-PTI

Junior Australian Open: Diya Ramesh, Samarth Sahita lose in second spherical in singles qualifiers

Diya Ramesh and Samarth Sahita each misplaced the second spherical of singles qualifiers on the Junior Australian Open in Melbourne on Thursday.

Japan’s Azuna Ichioka took down Diya 6-3, 6-2 within the women’ occasion.

In boys’ singles, 14th seed Samarth went down 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 to third-seeded German Oliver Majdandzic.

-Staff Sportstar

WTA Mumbai Open: Lulu Solar, Darja Semenistaja headline record of worldwide stars for 2026 version

Former Wimbledon quarterfinalist Lulu Solar, Latvia’s Darja Semenistaja and some different worldwide gamers are set to take part within the fifth version of the Mumbai Open WTA 125K occasion.

Other than New Zealand’s Solar (World No. 86) and former champion Semenistaja (World No. 98), the occasion can even function Frenchwoman Leolia Jeanjean (World No. 103), Australia’s Kimberly Birrell (World No. 76), Chinese language Taipei’s Joanna Garland (World No. 117) and Dutchwoman Arantxa Rus (World No. 130) in the primary draw.

Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew (World No. 197), final 12 months’s runner-up, can even be enjoying once more.

General, the match will function eight gamers ranked contained in the High 150 in the primary draw.

The fifth version of the match will start with the qualifying rounds going down on January 30-31. Following the qualifiers, the primary draw will begin from February 2. All matches will happen on the Maharashtra State Garden Tennis Affiliation (MSLTA) stadium.

-Staff Sportstar

Kshitij enters semis

Sixth seed Aradhya Kshitij of India lived as much as his billing as he overcame unseeded compatriot Tavish Pahwa in a hard-fought boys’ singles quarterfinal on the DKS ITF Juniors (J200) match on the purple clay courts of the DKS Sports activities Complicated in Kolkata.

Pahwa made a powerful begin, taking the opening set 6-3. Nevertheless, Kshitij responded with composure, claiming the second set by an an identical margin to stage the competition.

The deciding set noticed a number of service breaks from each gamers earlier than the sixth seed held his nerve to shut out the match 6-4 and ebook a spot within the semifinals. Kshitij will subsequent face high seed Eyad Reda Mohamed Sherif of Egypt for a spot within the last.

Within the different semifinal, eighth seed Alexey Shibaev of Russia will tackle unseeded Dongjae Kim of Korea.

– Staff Sportstar

SHOOTING

After sweeping 50m Rifle 3P trials, Tilottama claims 10m Air Rifle Girls Trial 1

After a dominant displaying within the 50m Rifle 3 Positions occasions earlier this week, Tilottama Sen continued her exceptional run on the Nationwide Choice Trials 1&2 Group A, claiming the highest spot within the 10m Air Rifle Girls (ARW) Trial 1 on the Dr. Karni Singh Capturing Vary in New Delhi.

Shahu Tushar Mane of Railways took the highest spot within the males’s occasion whereas Vijayveer Sidhu claimed high in 25m Fast Fireplace Pistol T2.

Sen entered the ultimate because the eighth and final qualifier, having scraped via with a rating of 630.8, however rose steadily to complete on high with 253.4. Railway’s shooter Sonam Uttam Maskar, who had certified fifth with 631.2, mounted a powerful problem to Tilottama however settled for second place with 252.8 within the last. Madhya Pradesh’s Nupur Kumrawat with 230.5(631.2) claimed the third place.

Tilottama Sen (centre) continued her exceptional run on the Nationwide Choice Trials 1&2 Group A, claiming the highest spot within the 10m Air Rifle Girls (ARW) Trial 1
| Photograph Credit score:
Particular Association

Mane secured high spot within the 10m Air Rifle Males (ARM) T1 Ultimate, ending with 253.9. Mane, who had certified fifth with 632.6, steadily constructed momentum to emerge on high in a carefully contested last. Haryana’s Arshdeep Singh took the second place with 251.1, whereas third rank went to Maharashtra’s Parth Rakesh Mane, who added 230.5 within the last after qualifying fourth with 632.9.

Olympian Sidhu shot 31 hits within the T2 last to safe the highest spot within the 25m Fast Fireplace Pistol Males. Nationwide champion Suraj Sharma, who dominated the qualification spherical with 588-22x, needed to accept second place after hitting 29 within the last. Finishing the rostrum was Punjab’s Udhayveer Sidhu, who amassed 25 hits within the last to assert third place.

– Staff Sportstar

MORE SPORTS

CISF recruits highest-ever sportspersons; Mandaviya asks them to ‘hold enjoying’

The Central Industrial Safety Power (CISF) on Thursday commissioned the largest-ever contingent of 324 sports activities personnel in a single go along with an purpose to safe extra medals in varied nationwide and worldwide occasions, together with the Olympic Video games.

The trainees, together with 171 girls, handed out of the Regional Coaching Centre of the drive situated in Deoli city of Tonk district. The city is about 165 km south of state capital Jaipur.

Union Sports activities Minister Mansukh Mandaviya flew down from Delhi to officiate because the chief visitor of the occasion.

He took salute of the regimental passing out parade and requested the brand new CISF entrants to “hold enjoying” and try in the direction of making India a top-10 sports-playing nation by 2036.

India is bidding to host the 2036 Olympic Video games in Ahmedabad, the town that can even conduct the 2030 Commonwealth Video games.

The 324 personnel had been recruited in 2025 after the central paramilitary drive performed its largest-ever sports activities quota recruitment drive since its elevating in 1969.

Eighteen amongst these personnel have gained gold medals in worldwide sporting occasions whereas 56 have earned the identical laurel in nationwide occasions, the drive has said.

The sportspersons who handed out on Thursday are becoming a member of the drive within the rank of Head Constable, one rank above the conventional entry-rank of constable. This was accomplished to draw extra personnel.

CISF director common (DG) Praveer Ranjan mentioned the drive is taking all measures to “encourage” sports activities and sportspersons.

The trainees underwent a four-month coaching in regulation, unarmed fight, weapon dealing with since they joined the centre right here in September, a senior officer mentioned.

The CISF, which has a power of about two lakh personnel, is primarily tasked to protect over 70 civil airports, the Delhi Metro and various different very important installations within the authorities and personal area.

It’s a Central Armed Police Power (CAPF) below the union residence ministry.

-PTI

GOLF

Sandhu, Sharma battle

Francesco Molinari sparkled with a surprising 7-under 65 to guide by two photographs on a windy opening day on the 2026 Hero Dubai Desert Basic.

Play was suspended at 5.50pm native time resulting from darkness, with 9 gamers to finish their first rounds on Friday morning.

It was patchy debut for India’s Yuvraj Sandhu, who impressed and upset in equal measure. He had an early birdie on thirteenth, his fourth gap, however misplaced a ball on the Seventeenth.

He incurred two penalties on approach to a triple bogey. But he appeared to have survived that as he birdied he 18th, first and second in a row to get again to 1-under in troublesome situations.

Then got here one other disastrous stretch from fourth to the ninth and he bogeyed 4 instances to complete 3-over. He’ll want a low spherical to get into the weekend.

The seasoned Shubhankar Sharma, who like Sandhu is on the sponsor’s exemption from Hero, was 2-over via 16 holes when play was suspended. He had three bogeys in opposition to one birdie.

– PTI

Ridhima Dilawari opens four-shot lead in second leg of Hero WPG Tour

Ridhima Dilawari closed the second day with a bogey, however earlier than that, she produced 4 birdies in a row, serving to her to a spherical of 3-under 69 to go along with her first spherical rating of 70 in Ahmedabad.

Ridhima, who final gained at Zion Hills Nation Membership in Bengaluru in July 2025, is now 5-under for 2 rounds and prolonged her lead over the sector from one shot to 4 photographs on the Hero WPG Tour.

Mendacity second is novice Zara Anand (72-71) at 1-under 143.

Jahanvi Bakshi (73-71), whose eagle on the Par-5 fifth made up for the bogeys on the second and the fourth, picked up one shot on the Par-3 eleventh and carded 1-under 71 to be Tied-third alongside Amandeep Drall (72-72).

For the current, Ridhima, who has been dividing her time between the Hero WPG Tour and the IGPL, appears to have constructed a giant lead of 4 photographs, however behind her, there are as many as eight gamers inside three photographs of one another.

Amandeep gave the impression to be headed for a very good day as she had 4 birdies in opposition to two bogeys via 17 holes. She bumped into bother on the final gap and the double bogey dropped her to even par for the second straight day.

Newbie Lavanya Gupta had a roller-coaster of a day. She started with a nightmarish begin with two bogeys and a double bogey in a row on the primary three holes. She recovered with birdies on the fourth, fifth and the eighth however one other bogey on the ninth meant she turned in 2-over.

4 birdies and no bogeys on the again 9 gave her an outstanding 70 after a 75 within the first spherical. She was in a tie for fifth place with Nayanika Sanga (73-72) at 1-over 145 every.

Vani Kapoor and Saanvi Somu shot a second straight 73 every and had been tied seventh alongside Sneha Singh (71-75), who slipped within the second spherical.

Newbie Janneya A Dasanniee (79-72), Rhea Purvi (76-75) and Lavanya Jadon (75-76) rounded off the High-10 as they had been tied tenth at 7-over 151.

Final week’s winner, Jasmine Shekar (79-74), was Tied-Seventeenth.

The reduce fell at 159 and 27 gamers made it to the ultimate spherical.

-PTI

CYCLING

Bajaj Pune Grand Tour 2026: Cameron Scott Takes Stage 3 Glory as Luke Mudgway Tightens Grip on General Lead with Yellow Jersey

Stage Three of the Bajaj Pune Grand Tour 2026 unfolded as probably the most demanding chapter but within the race’s narrative, pushing riders to their limits throughout the Western Ghats Gateway. The peloton rolled out from the Saswad Municipal Council at Chandan Tekadi at 12:30 pm, flagged off by Ajit Pawar, Deputy Chief Minister and Maharashtra and Guardian Minister of Pune.

Because the riders surged into Baramati and approached the end at Vidya Pratishthan, Pencil Chowk, the stage got here all the way down to a ferocious dash after hours of attrition. Rising strongest was Cameron Nicholas Scott of Li Ning Star, China, who clocked at 03:04:13.

Scott’s acceleration proved decisive within the last metres, edging out Georgios Bouglas (03:04:13) of Burgos Burpellet BH, Spain, who had led for lengthy stretches, solely to be caught within the last kick. Timothy Dupont (03:04:13) of Tarteletto–Isorex, Belgium, accomplished the rostrum, whereas, Zeb Kyffin of Terengganu Biking group, Malaysia, completed fourth.

Peloton at KOM throughout stage two of the Bajaj Pune Grand Tour 2026 held within the Metropolis of Pune on the twenty first January 2026.
| Photograph Credit score:
Particular Association

Simply behind the main quadruple, Clement Alleno (03:04:13) of Burgos Burpellet BH, Spain, crossed the road in fourth, having topped the general King of the Mountains standings and successful the Polka Dot Jersey. Stage One and Two winner Luke Mudgway (03:04:13) couldn’t match the tempo on the sharp finish this time, ending sixth.

Regardless of lacking out on the rostrum, Mudgway restricted his losses expertly as he gained the Inexperienced Jersey for the Greatest Sprinter, and extra importantly, retained the ‘Yellow Jersey’ as total Basic Qualification chief.

After three phases, Mudgway sits atop the final classification with a cumulative time of 07:36:10, holding a slender 14-second benefit over Carter Alan Bettles of Roojai Insurance coverage Winspace, Thailand. Yorben Lauryssen, of Tarteletto–Isorex, Belgium, stays firmly within the combine, simply 17 seconds off the lead.

With three phases accomplished, the Bajaj Pune Grand Tour now turns towards its conclusion. Stage 4, the Pune Satisfaction Loop, will cowl 95 kilometres with an elevation of 578 metres, threading via the town’s fashionable avenues and historic landmarks, together with Shaniwar Wada. Technical sections and a possible high-speed end promise one final alternative for drama. The Yellow Jersey stays on Luke Mudgway’s shoulders, however with gaps measured in seconds, the Bajaj Pune Grand Tour’s last chapter continues to be broad open.

-Staff Sportstar

Revealed on Jan 22, 2026