World Of Magic for feature event

World Of Magic may score in the Ettukudi Plate (1,000m), the feature event of the races to be held here on Saturday (Oct. 31).

MADURAI PLATE (Div. I), (1,000m), maiden 2-y-o only (Terms), 1-00 p.m.: 1. Classic Solitaire (2) Ross 55, 2. Power Of Liberty (1) Shahar Babu 55, 3. Silver Medallion (7) Rajendra Singh 55, 4. Supreme Asset (3) Kabdhar 55, 5. Crown Of Stars (4) Prem 53.5, 6. Ever So Special (6) N. Rupa 53.5 and 7. Song To Remember (5) M. Venkatesh 53.5.

1. Silver Medallion, 2. Ever So Special, 3. Supreme Asset

MADURAI PLATE (Div. II), (1,000m), maiden 2-y-o only (Terms), 1-30: 1. King Dazzler (2) Prem 55, 2. Regimental Hero (6) Rajendra Singh 55, 3. Spartacus Supreme (4) Ross 55, 4. Gift Of Knowledge (3) N. Murugan 53.5, 5. Queen Of Queens (7) N. Rupa 53.5, 6. Splash Of Love (1) Kabdhar 53.5 and 7. Star Destination (5) M. Venkatesh 53.5.

1. King Dazzler, 2. Regimental Hero, 3. Queen Of Queens

ETTUKUDI PLATE (1,000m), rated 80 & above, 2-00: 1. Sky's The Limit (1) Venkatesan 60, 2. Blushing Romeo (4) Babul 59, 3. Exclusive Dancer (3) Rajendra Singh 59, 4. Flames Of Desire (5) Prem 59, 5. Flash Of Genius (2) M. Venkatesh 59 and 6. World Of Magic (6) Ross 59.

1. World Of Magic,

2. Blushing Romeo

MALWA STUD PLATE (1,200m), rated 40 to 65, 2-30: 1. Master Act (3) Bopanna 61.5, 2. Classy Lassy (9) M. Venkatesh 60.5, 3. Apache Summit (2) Venkatesan 60, 4. Compromise (6) Ross 56.5, 5. Majesterian (7) Rajendra Singh 56, 6. Her Royal Empress (10) Kabdhar 55, 7. Phoenix Force (8) N. Rupa 53.5, 8. The Ministerian (5) Prem 52.5, 9. Appalache (4) K.V. Baskar 51, 10. Steely Dan (1) Anzar Alam 50.5, 11. Theology (11) Manikandan 50.5 and 12. Admiral (12) N. Murugan 50.

1. Majesterian, 2. Classy Lassy, 3. Phoenix Force

BOBBILI CUP (1,000m), 3-y-o only, which have won three or more races are only eligible (Terms), 3-00: 1. Baratheon (1) Babul 62.5, 2. Razzle Tazzle (5) Rajendra Singh 62.5, 3. Call Me Classy (4) Ross 61, 4. Flash Of Elegance (2) M. Venkatesh 61 and 5. Princess Empress (3) N. Rupa 61.

1. Princess Empress,

2. Call Me Classy

RATHANAGIRI PLATE (1,000m), rated 60 to 85, 3-30: 1. Supreme Regime (9) Md. Hesnain 62.5, 2. Forest Flair (7) N. Rupa 60, 3. Hall Of Glory (4) C.A. Brisson 60, 4. Sweety Girl (8) Hari Krishnan 55, 5. Rajsamman (3) Bopanna 53, 6. Lady Pimpernel (1) Prem 52, 7. Speedy Girl (2) Kabdhar 51, 8. Alerio (6) Shahar Babu 50, 9. Star Craft (10) Noorshed Alam 50 and 10. Transonic (5) Tanveer Alam 50.

1. Hall Of Glory,

2. Forest Flair, 3. Star Craft

CHEPAUK PLATE (Div. I), (1,200m), rated 20 to 45, 4-00: 1. Maracana (16) Stephen Raj 60, 2. Front Line (4) Anzar Alam 59, 3. Trump Card (1) S. Manohar 58.5, 4. No One Like Me (7) K. V. Baskar 57.5, 5. Chamak Challo (17) Sham Kumar 55, 6. Schumii (11) Manikandan 54.5, 7. She's No Angel (5) C. Murugan 54.5, 8. Ancient Warrior (14) S.S. Azad 54, 9. Fantastic Strike (9) Md. Hesnain 54, 10. Prince Vailiant (3) C.A. Brisson 53, 11. Pride N Glory (15) Kabdhar 52.5, 12. Bernabeu (8) Mukesh Kumar 51.5, 13. Aflame (6) Hari Krishnan 50.5, 14. Aviator (12) N. Murugan 50, 15. Colourful Prince (10) Noorshed Alam 50, 16. Emerald Star (13) M. Venkatesh 50, 17. Patriotic (2) Shahar Babu 50 and 18. Sweet N Smart (18) Tanveer Alam 50.

1. Pride And Glory, 2. Sweet N Smart, 3. Prince Vailiant

CHEPAUK PLATE (Div. II), (1,200m), rated 20 to 45, 4-30: 1. Flash Dance (16) Ayaz Ahmed 60, 2. News Wings (18) C. Murugan 58, 3. Ashwa Prayag (10) S.S. Azad 55, 4. Establish Predator (9) Anzar Alam 54.5, 5. Samburu (6) K.V. Baskar 54.5, 6. Touch And Go (15) Manikandan 54.5, 7. The Phenomena (8) Zulquar Nain 54, 8. Always A Dot (14) Stephen Raj 53.5, 9. Dancing Duke (3) Md. Hesnain 53, 10. Star Excelsior (12) C.A. Brisson 53, 11. Baby Darling (5) S. Manohar 52.5, 12. Secret Weapon (11) B. Ananda 51.5, 13. Ashwa Prajot (13) Kabdhar 51, 14. Bourbon Rock (4) Tanveer Alam 50.5, 15. Indispensable (7) N. Murugan 50.5, 16. Mars (2) Shahar Babu 50.5, 17. Pride Of The Hills (17) N. Rupa 50.5 and 18. Splendid Light (1) Noorshed Alam 50.5.

1. Splendid Light, 2. Ashwa Prajot, 3. Pride Of The Hills

KRISHNA PLATE (1,000m), rated 00 to 25, 5-00: 1. Casanova (3) Zulquar Nain 62.5, 2. Starstatus (7) Anzar Alam 62, 3. Two Oceans (8) Mainikandan 61.5, 4. Deck Of Cards (14) C. Murugan 61, 5. Domain Anna (12) Shahar Babu 61, 6. Entertainer (18) Kalyan Singh 60.5, 7. Legendary Warrior (1) K.V. Baskar 60.5, 8. Royal Turn (5) N. Murugan 60.5, 9. Specialist (15) Sham Kumar 59.5, 10. Boogie Woogie (11) Tanveer Alam 59, 11. Christmas Cake (16) Md. Farhan Alam 58.5, 12. I Love You (17) S. Manohar 58.5, 13. Blazing Berry (9) Akbar 58, 14. Land Of Kings (2) B. Ananda 58, 15. Saphira (4) Bopanna 57.5, 16. Morals (10) Noorshed Alam 55, 17. King Of Rhythm (13) Md. Hesnain 54.5 and 18. Capable Guest (6) Md. Shoaib Alam 54.

1. Starstatus, 2. Legendary Warrior, 3. Royal Turn

Jkt: 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9; Mini Jkt: 6, 7, 8 & 9; Tr: 7, 8 & 9.

Rajat Paliwal struck his eighth Ranji Trophycentury

GOING STRONG:Rajat Paliwal's resolve to convert good starts helped him this time against Saurashtra.– File Photo

Rajat Paliwal struck his eighth Ranji Trophycentury to enable Services score 254 in its first innings on the opening day of the Group C match against Saurashtra at the Palam ground here on Friday.

Saurashtra, 19 for no loss from 10 overs, was well served by seamers Jaydev Unadkat (six for 80) and Saurya Sanandiya (three for 62) after the visiting side opted to bowl.

Paliwal, 23, has been Services’ principal run-getter since his debut four years ago. He had warmed up this season with scores of 92 against Goa and 70 against Jammu & Kashmir.

“I had missed those hundreds and was keen not to mess it up today. I was fortunate to have the company of Yashpal (Singh) who guided me during a crucial phase,” said Paliwal.

Coming together at 59 for three, Paliwal and Yashpal (55 not out, 155b, 7x4) added 112 runs for the fourth wicket before the former was caught in the slips when attempting a cut.

His 121 was compiled off 142 balls with 19 fours and a six.

THE SCORES:

SERVICES — 1ST INNINGS: Anshul Gupta b Sanandiya 1, Soumik Chatterjee c Aarpit Vasavada b Sanandiya 16, Ravi Chauhan c Sagar Jogiyani b Unadkat 5, Rajat Paliwal c Vasavada b Unadkat 121, Yashpal Singh (not out) 55, Vikas Hathwala c Avi Barot b Unadkat 7, Shashank Sharma c Jogiyani b Unadkat 11, M. Khalid Ahmed c Mohsin Dodia b Unadkat 16, Shadab Nazar lbw b Unadkat 0, Raushan Raj lbw b Sanandiya 1, Diwesh Pathania c Punia b Makwana 4; Extras (b-1, lb-10, nb-4, w-2): 17; Total (in 69.1 overs): 254.

FALL-OF-WICKETS: 1-3, 2-8, 3-59, 4-171, 5-183, 6-199, 7-219, 8-219, 9-226.

SAURASHTRA BOWLING: Jaydev Unadkat 23-4-80-6, Saurya Sanandiya 17-0-62-3, D.S. Punia 7-1-30-0, Ravindra Jadeja 9-2-29-0, Kamlesh Makwana 3.1-0-14-1.

SAURASHTRA — 1ST INNINGS: Mohsin Dodia (batting) 5, Avi Barot (batting) 14; Total (for no loss in 10 overs): 19.

SERVICES BOWLING: Pathania 5-3-10-0, Nazar 4-2-5-0, Raj 1-0-4-0.

Paliwal hits century

GOING STRONG:Rajat Paliwal's resolve to convert good starts helped him this time against Saurashtra.– File Photo

Rajat Paliwal struck his eighth Ranji Trophycentury to enable Services score 254 in its first innings on the opening day of the Group C match against Saurashtra at the Palam ground here on Friday.

Saurashtra, 19 for no loss from 10 overs, was well served by seamers Jaydev Unadkat (six for 80) and Saurya Sanandiya (three for 62) after the visiting side opted to bowl.

Paliwal, 23, has been Services’ principal run-getter since his debut four years ago. He had warmed up this season with scores of 92 against Goa and 70 against Jammu & Kashmir.

“I had missed those hundreds and was keen not to mess it up today. I was fortunate to have the company of Yashpal (Singh) who guided me during a crucial phase,” said Paliwal.

Coming together at 59 for three, Paliwal and Yashpal (55 not out, 155b, 7x4) added 112 runs for the fourth wicket before the former was caught in the slips when attempting a cut.

His 121 was compiled off 142 balls with 19 fours and a six.

THE SCORES:

SERVICES — 1ST INNINGS: Anshul Gupta b Sanandiya 1, Soumik Chatterjee c Aarpit Vasavada b Sanandiya 16, Ravi Chauhan c Sagar Jogiyani b Unadkat 5, Rajat Paliwal c Vasavada b Unadkat 121, Yashpal Singh (not out) 55, Vikas Hathwala c Avi Barot b Unadkat 7, Shashank Sharma c Jogiyani b Unadkat 11, M. Khalid Ahmed c Mohsin Dodia b Unadkat 16, Shadab Nazar lbw b Unadkat 0, Raushan Raj lbw b Sanandiya 1, Diwesh Pathania c Punia b Makwana 4; Extras (b-1, lb-10, nb-4, w-2): 17; Total (in 69.1 overs): 254.

FALL-OF-WICKETS: 1-3, 2-8, 3-59, 4-171, 5-183, 6-199, 7-219, 8-219, 9-226.

SAURASHTRA BOWLING: Jaydev Unadkat 23-4-80-6, Saurya Sanandiya 17-0-62-3, D.S. Punia 7-1-30-0, Ravindra Jadeja 9-2-29-0, Kamlesh Makwana 3.1-0-14-1.

SAURASHTRA — 1ST INNINGS: Mohsin Dodia (batting) 5, Avi Barot (batting) 14; Total (for no loss in 10 overs): 19.

SERVICES BOWLING: Pathania 5-3-10-0, Nazar 4-2-5-0, Raj 1-0-4-0.

'Surprised’ Bhambri beats Ward

TENNIS / Granollers-Menendez-Maceiras duo wins title

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED:Adrian Menendez-Maceiras and Gerard Granollers came back from a set down to beat Divij Sharan and Maximilian Neuchrist.— PHOTO: N. SUDARSHAN

The transition from the junior to the senior tour in tennis is akin to that of a caterpillar into a butterfly. It’s a time for growth. Ever since Yuki Bhambri won the junior Australian Open in 2009, he has been in this stage of metamorphosis.

Friday’s straight-set win over James Ward, which sent him into the final of the $50,000 KPIT ATP Challenger, will give him a chance to define another reference point in that journey.

The top seed beat the 28-year-old Brit 7-6(6), 6-3 to set up a Saturday evening meeting with Russian World No. 100 Evgeny Donskoy, who beat compatriot Alexander Kudryavtsev 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.

After his quarterfinal victory over Ti Chen, Bhambri had confessed his inability to keep up consistently high levels of play and was even a tad surprised as to how “he was still in the tournament”.

Against Ward too he had such phases. Presented with multiple break-point opportunities in the very first game and then in the fifth, he squandered all. After having been up 5-1 and then 6-2 in the first set tie-breaker he let the Brit claw his way back and only won 8-6.

However, as he pointed out later, he never let them slip out of hand.

“I came back very quickly,” he said. “He was hitting close to two aces a game. He tried to shorten points; he sliced, hit drop shots. But it was one of the better matches I played.”

After having taken the first set, Bhambri went ahead 4-1 in the second. In his three service games, he lost just two points. Ward too wasn’t as consistent as he would have liked to. He was constantly moved around by Bhambri so that he got less time to unleash the murderous forehand of his.

He struggled with his concentration also. Twice he remonstrated with the umpire about the crowd making a noise mid-point and even asked them if they could “shut up”.

Even amidst this, he managed to get back on serve at 3-4, before three backhand errors in the very next game handed Bhambri the advantage again. The 23-year-old Indian finished off the match by redirecting a fierce return down the line for a forehand winner.

Earlier in the doubles final, the Spanish duo of Gerard Granollers and Adrian Menendez-Maceiras came back from a set down to beat the Indo-Austrian pair of Divij Sharan and Maximilian Neuchrist 1-6, 6-3, 10-6.

After being neck and neck for most part, a streak of five straight points early in the 10-point match tie-breaker swung the match for the Spaniards.

THE RESULTS:

SEMIFINALS: Yuki Bhambri bt James Ward (GBR) 7-6(6), 6-3; Evgeny Donskoy (Rus) bt Alexander Kudryavtsev (Rus) 6-4, 4-6, 6-4

DOUBLES: FINAL: Gerard Granollers & Adrian Menendez-Maceiras (Esp) bt Divij Sharan & Maximilian Neuchrist (Aut) 1-6, 6-3, [10-6].

Rathore takes top two spots

MS Rathore won both the first and second positions, astride Lancelot and Savanah respectively, ahead of Sehaj Virk on Christy, in the World Dressage Challenge, judged by Carlos Lucas Lopes and Freddy Leyman, at the Army Equestrian Centre (Delhi Cantonment) on Friday.

The elimination rounds had witnessed 90 prominent riders on October 25 and 26.

The top 40 had qualified for the final stage.

THE RESULTS: Advance dressage: 1. MS Rathore (Lancelot), 2. MS Rathore (Savanah), 3. Sehaj Virk (Christy).

Medium dressage: 1. Rohit Dagar (Arjuna), 2. Mahbub Khan (Flirt), 3. Jitender Singh (Winner).

Elementary dressage: 1. Rajesh Pattu (Cleo), 2. Rohit Dagar (Arjuna), 3. Rakesh Kumar (Victory Lap), 4. Mahbub Khan (Dancer).

Senior preliminary dressage: 1. Girdhari Singh (Aryan), 2. Rajesh Pattu (Gabbar), 3. Pradeep Jindal (Henobal), 4. Sangram Singh (Suleman).

Children preliminary dressage: 1. Samarah K. Malaney (Cleo), 2. Anchita Puri (Sound), 3. Pranay Khare (Basanti), 4. Lakshya Dhingra (Taraka Power).

Kyra moves into semifinals

Kyra Shroff beat Kassandra Davesne of France 6-4, 6-3 in the quarterfinals of the $10,000 ITF women’s tennis tournament in El Kantaoui (Tunisia).

In the semifinals, the 23-year-old Kyra will face third seed Yana Sizikova of Russia. The Indian made it to the doubles semifinals as well, partnering Daiana Negreanu of Romania.

Sasi Kumar Mukund was beaten in straight sets in the pre-quarterfinals of the $10,000 ITF Futures in Egypt.

In the ITF grade-4 junior tournament at Nonthaburi (Thailand), National junior champion Zeel Desai reached the singles final and won the doubles title along with Napharat Sawangkaew of Thailand.

The Indian boys — Vasisht Cheruku, Alex Solanki and B.R. Nikshep — lost early in the ITF grade-2 junior tournament at Incheon (Korea).

However, Nikshep and Christian Alvin Edison of Indonesia reached the doubles semifinals where they were beaten 10-8 by Yu Hsiou Hsu of Chinese Taipei and Vorachon Rakpuangchon of Thailand.

THE RESULTS:

$10,000 ITF women, El Kantaoui, Tunisia: Quarterfinals: Kyra Shroff bt Kassandra Davesne (Fra) 6-4, 6-3.

Doubles (quarterfinals): Daiana Negreanu (Rou) & Kyra Shroff bt Claudia Cianci (Por) & Hana Mraz (Slo) 6-1, 6-3.

$10,000 ITF men, Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt: Pre-quarterfinals: Andrea Vavassori (Ita) bt Sasi Kumar Mukund 6-3, 6-4.

ITF grade-4 juniors, Nonthaburi, Thailand: Girls (semifinals): Zeel Desai bt Pichayatida Jandaeng (Tha) 3-6, 7-5, 6-1.

Doubles (final): Napharat Sawangkaew (Tha) & Zeel Desai bt Maia Bernadette Balce (Phi) & Viktoria Morvayova (Svk) 6-1, 4-6, 10-7.

ITF grade-2 juniors, Incheon, Korea: Boys doubles (semifinals): Yu Hsiou Hsu (Tpe) & Vorachon Rakpuangchon (Tha) bt Christian Alvin Edison (Ina) & B.R. Nikshep 3-6, 6-2, 10-8.

Sania and Hingis ease into the semifinals

The world’s top women’s pairing of Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis continued its rampaging form and extended its monster winning streak to 20 matches in a row after reaching the semifinals of the WTA Finals here on Friday.

The top-seeded Indo-Swiss pair took just 90 minutes to get past the challenge of fourth-seeded Timea Babos of Hungary and Kristina Mladenovic of France 6-4, 7-5 in their final round-robin match and finish on top of their group with a 3-0 record.

By virtue of this win, Sania and Martina had avenged their loss to the same pair the last time they played in Rome this year.

Saina and Martina lifted their game just at the right time and made full use of the only two breaks of the match they got. They got break point opportunities at 4-all in the first set and 5-all in the second, and grabbed the chances.

Muguruza, Kvitova make it

Meanwhile in singles, Garbine Muguruza continued her dream debut by completing round robin playwith a perfect 3-0 record to advance to the semifinals after a hard fought 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 victory over Petra Kvitova.

By topping the White Group, the Spaniard set up a showdown against Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska while Kvitova (1-2) received a huge boost from her Czech Fed Cup teammate Lucie Safarova (1-2), who beat Angelique Kerber to help her advance. Germany's Kerber (1-2) only needed to win a set in Friday’s second match to move on but the already-eliminated Safarova (1-2) found her best form of the week to blast the German off the court.

THE RESULTS: White Group: 2-Garbine Muguruza bt 4-Petra Kvitova 6-4, 4-6, 7-5; 8-Lucie Safarova bt 6-Angelique Kerber 6-4, 6-3.

Doubles: 1-Martina Hingis & Sania Mirza bt 4-Timea Babos & Kristina Mladenovic 6-4, 7-5. — Agencies