Indian sports wrap, February 21: Pune Half Marathon winner Pradhan Kirulakar fails dope test

ATHLETICS

Last year’s Pune Half Marathon race title winner Pradhan Vilas Kirulakar has been provisionally suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) after failing a dope test.

Kirulakar, who had won the Pune Marathon in December 2024 with a time of 1 hour 4 minutes and 22 seconds, tested positive for performance-enhancing drug meldonium.

“A notice of allegation has been issued after his dope sample showed the “presence/use of a prohibited substance (Meldonium) (Article 2.1 and Article 2.2),” the AIU said.

The AIU is the independent agency of the World Athletics which manages all aspects of the anti-doping programme for international level athletes.

The use of Meldonium came to light after tennis star Maria Sharapova tested positive for it and got suspended in 2016.

Meldonium is prescribed by physicians to help protect heart tissue by regulating metabolism. It has also been used by neurological clinics to treat patients who have asthenia — an abnormal lack of energy.

Last month, the AIU had announced the provisional suspension of another Indian long distance runner Madhuri Kale for the “presence/use of a prohibited substance Mephentermine.”

– PTI

BASKETBALL

FIBA Asia Cup 2025 Qualifiers: Iran thrashes India 106-55 in Tehran

India remained at the third spot in Group E of the FIBA Asia Cup 2025 Qualifiers after losing 106-55 to higher-ranked Iran in Tehran.

Mohammad Amini (33 points) did the bulk of the scoring for the home team. For India, Amritpal Singh (18 points) was the top scorer.

India’s group also has Qatar and Kazakhstan.

India has six points while Iran is at the top of the group with nine points after five rounds. Both Qatar and Kazakhstan have a game in hand.

India will be up against Qatar in Doha on Monday.

India needs to finish in the top two of its group to guarantee a place in the 16-team Finals. If India places third, it will enter a playoff round with the five third-placed teams from the other groups for the remaining four spots.

– Team Sportstar

INBL Pro League: Chennai Heat dominates Mumbai Titans

Chennai Heat came up with a dominant performance to outplay Mumbai Titans 86-69 after leading 46-32 at halftime in the INBL Pro basketball league at the Thyagaraj Indoor Stadium on Friday.

It was a remarkable reversal for Chennai, which had lost to Mumbai earlier in the league by 15 points.

With its fifth victory in nine matches, Chennai joined Gujarat on top of the table with 10 points. Punjab, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Delhi teams were locked in the second place with eight points each.

– Team Sportstar

TENNIS

Qatar Open 2025: Bhambri-Dodig pair knocked out in semifinals

Yuki Bhambri, in partnership with Ivan Dodig of Croatia, was beaten 7-6(3), 6-3 by Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool of Britain in the doubles semifinals of the ATP 500 event in Doha, Qatar, on Friday.

Yuki and Dodig won 180 ATP points and $45,750.

– Team Sportstar

Pune Open ATP Challenger 2025: Jeevan-Vijay pair reaches doubles final

Alexis Galarneau of Canada edged out defending champion Valentin Vacherot of Monaco 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(3) in the quarterfinals of the Pune Open ATP Challenger tennis tournament at the Balewadi Stadium on Friday.

In the semifinals, Galarneau will play Brandon Holt of USA who knocked out Billy Harris, the top seed and finalist of the last tournament in Delhi, in three sets.

The other semifinal will be between Khumoyun Sultanov of Uzbekistan and Dalibor Svrcina of the Czech Republic.

The Indian interest was kept alive as top seeds Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Vijay Sundar Prashanth made the doubles final, beating Niki Poonacha and Courtney Lock in straight sets.

The Indian pair will play second seeds Blake Bayldon and Matthew Romios of Australia in the final on Saturday.

– Team Sportstar

AITA Ranking Tournament: Jaya, Dalwinder clinch titles

Qualifier Jaya Kapoor capped her fine run by beating Vidula Amar 6-4, 6-4 in the women’s final of the HPCL-Mittal Rs.200,000 AITA ranking tennis tournament at the CLTA Complex in Chandigarh on Friday.

Former national champion Dalwinder Singh beat Vatsal Manikantan 6-1, 7-5 for the men’s title.

– Team Sportstar

Asian under-14 tournament: Kabir, Khushi crowned champions

Kabir Parmar beat Naman Borah 6-3, 6-1 in the boys’ final of the Asian under-14 tennis tournament at the Gujarat University Tennis Centre in Ahmedabad on Friday.

Khushi Kadian won the girls title.

– Team Sportstar

GOLF

Ahlawat shoots 70 to lie 45th in Kenya

Indian golfer Veer Ahlawat was cruising along when three late bogeys saw him card a one-under 70, leaving him tied for 45th after the opening round of the Magical Kenya Open on the DP World Tour in Nairobi.

The Indian, who is a rookie on the Tour, was cruising at four-under through his first nine holes at the Muthaiga Golf Club, but ran into three bogeys in the last four holes.

India’s other representative in the field, Shubhankar Sharma (71). was Tied 65th.

John Parry and Benjamin Hebert posted rounds of bogey-free eight-under par rounds of 63 to take a share of lead.

Ahlawat had a great first nine, which was the back stretch of the course. He birdied the 10th, 14th and 15th before landing an eagle on the 18th. In between he dropped a shot on the 16th. He was 4-under for the back at 4-under 31.

However, all that good work went in vain as Ahlawat dropped four bogeys including three in last four holes. He also picked a birdie at 7th hole and totalled 1-under 70.

Shubhankar had four birdies against four bogeys.

England’s Parry, who has already won on the 2025 Race to Dubai, set the target early in the day and it was only matched by Hebert, who birdied his final hole to join him on eight under, one clear of South Africa’s Jayden Schaper.

Schaper was also bogey-free in his seven-under 64, with Denmark’s Jacob Skov Olesen and Korean Wooyoung Cho sharing fourth on six under.

– PTI

Bogey-free Sneha pips Vani with a 25-foot putt to win 3rd leg of Hero WPGT

Sneha Singh played a brilliant bogey-free five-under 66 to pip Vani Kapoor at the finish line in the third leg to grab her second straight title in the 2025 Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour in Pune on Friday.

Vani, who had a similar 66 a day earlier, faltered in the final round with a one-over 72 at the Poona Club Golf Course.

Sneha, who trailed by five at the start, capped the week with a monster 25-footer for the fifth and winning birdie of the day.

For Sneha, who is coached by her father Sanjay, it was a milestone as she won her tenth title on the WGAI.

“Getting to 10 (titles) is indeed great. To win twice in three starts is a big morale booster,” said Sneha.

Sneha birdied the first and the ninth as Vani had three bogeys and two birdies. At the turn, Sneha from being five shots behind at the start, had cut the lead to just two.

With none of the others making a charge, Sneha kept closing in on Vani with a birdie on the 10h and there was just one shot between them. When Vani dropped a shot on the 12th, they were level at 4-under for the tournament.

Sneha moved ahead for the first time with a birdie on the 14th, but Vani caught up on the very next hole, the 15th to tie for the lead. The duo parred the 16th and the 17th.

Even as a play-off looked likely, Sneha holed a 25-feet uphill putt for a final birdie. Vani managed only a par. That gave Sneha a second win in as many starts.

While Sneha and Vani were battling it out for the top prize, Amandeep Drall (75) slipped to tied fifth, and Hitaashee Bakshi with a bogey free 2-under 69 finished sole third.

Vidhatri Urs (70) finished sole fourth with three birdies against two bogeys.

Behind the fifth placed Amandeep was Kriti Chowhan in sixth place and Seher Atwal was seventh.

Amateur Mannat Brar and Agrima Manral were tied for eighth and four players including first round leader, Shweta Mansingh, Durga Nittur, Shagun Narain and Neha Tripathi rounded off the Top-10.

Sneha was tied fifth in the opening event of the season in Golmuri and then won the second leg in Tollygunge. She is now on top of the Hero Women’s Order of Merit with winnings of Rs 4,48,400 and Rhea Purvi, who was 17th this week in Pune, was second with Rs 2,73,000.

Vani Kapoor, Amandeep Drall and Kriti Chowhan are placed third, fourth and fifth respectively.

The fourth leg will be held at the Bombay Presidency Golf Club, Mumbai next week and Sneha will be looking for a hat-trick of wins.

– PTI

Queens of Golf to be held on March 8

As many as 20 professional women golfers will team up with same number of senior corporate executives and sports celebrities during the inaugural Queens of Golf, a Women’s Celebrity Pro-Am Golf event, to be held on the Women’s Day, March 8.

Hosted in partnership with the Women’s Golf Association of India, the one-day event will be held at the Classic Golf & Country Club in Gurugram, featuring a unique Pro-Am format, where participants will have the opportunity to team up with a professional woman player for a round of golf.

Additionally, professional women golfers will compete in a stroke-play format for individual awards, showcasing their skills and competitive spirit.

“We are indeed delighted to partner with the Queens of Golf for the inaugural edition of the Women’s Celebrity Pro-Am, to be staged fittingly on Women’s Day. This is not just a golf event, it is a celebration of women’s empowerment through sport and a means to showcase the immense depth of their talent,” Women’s Golf Association of India President Kavita Singhsaid in a release.

“It is also heartening to see the steady increase in the number of corporate sponsors stepping forward to help the cause of women’s golf in India. I wish the event all success and am sure this will be the first of many more to follow.”

– PTI

Gujarat Open: Sandhu wins second title in two weeks

Gujarat Open champion Yuvraj Sandhu with the winner’s trophy.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Yuvraj Sandhu unleashed a flawless seven-under 65 fare on the final day to bag the title in the INR 1 crore Gujarat Open golf tournament at the Glade One Golf Resort in Ahmedabad on Friday.

It was the second title in two weeks for the Chandigarh pro, following his triumph in the season opener in Kolkata. It was another cheque of INR 15,00,000 that put him on top of the Order of Merit.

The 27-year-old Yuvraj had led by one shot overnight, and made seven birdies in the last round to beat Saptak Talwar of Delhi by a five-shot margin. Saptak pocketed INR 10,00,000.

In winning back to back titles on the PGTI, Yuvraj followed Manu Gandas who had accomplished the feat last in December 2022.

“The key to my performance in the first two weeks has been staying calm. I have been working on this aspect for some time now”, said Yuvraj.

Yuvraj’s room mate Arjun Prasad shot 9-under 207 in the 54-hole competition, which featured nine holes in the first two rounds, to be joint third with Kshitin Kaul. The two won INR 5,49,800 each.

“Arjun has been my room mate for the last two years. Having him on my side as my playing partner today made me very comfortable. We were chatting from tee to green, sharing food and having fun,” said Yuvraj.

– Kamesh Srinivasan

POLO

Gen. Sparrow Cup: Jindal Polo Estate beats Army Service Corps

Siddhant Sharma scored six goals to guide Jindal Polo Estate to a 7-6 victory over Army Service Corps (ASC) in the Gen. Sparrow Cup polo tournament at the Jaipur Polo ground on Friday.

In the final, Jindal Polo Estate will play Jindal Panther at the Jaipur Polo ground at 4 p.m. on Sunday.

– Team Sportstar