Sports, Karnataka State – Page 3

NATIONAL / KARNATAKA: SPORTS/ CRICKET: Shubha Satheesh, The First Woman Cricketer From Mysuru Playing For India

‘Want to do well for Team India in T20, ODI and Test’.

When we talk about cricket, the conversation often centres around the men in the game. However, the women who have taken up the sport have repeatedly proven their worth. Be it Jhulan Goswami, Mithali Raj, Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, or Rajeshwari Gayakwad, all have grown to become inspirations not just for young girls but for boys as well.

Mysuru, a hub of cricket for decades, has also contributed to Indian cricket. Until now, the legendary Javagal Srinath was the only player from Mysuru to play for the Indian team.

Joining him now is Shubha Satheesh, the 24-year-old all-rounder who made her debut for the Indian Women’s Team against England in the only Test match played at the D.Y. Patil Stadium in Mumbai last year.

Shubha was also part of the triumphant Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) team that won the Women’s Premier League recently. She will be joining the Indian team camp to prepare for the upcoming home series against South Africa.

Shubha is the daughter of M. Satheesh and K. Thara, residing in Rajarajeshwari Nagar in the city. Star of Mysore caught up with the talented cricketer during her recent visit to Mysuru. Excerpts…

Star of Mysore (SOM): When did you start playing cricket and what inspired you to take up the sport?

Shubha Satheesh: I started playing cricket in 2011. I used to play with boys in my locality, and one day, I was invited to play at BEML, where my father works. That’s when one of my father’s friends mentioned women’s cricket. Later, my father took me to Bengaluru, where I joined a cricket club and started playing professionally.

SOM: How did you feel when you entered the Indian dressing room?

Shubha Satheesh: It was an amazing feeling, very difficult to express. Everyone was so relaxed and supportive. I got to learn from my seniors and everyone who was part of the team.

SOM: There are players like Rajeshwari Gayakwad and Shreyanka Patil from Karnataka playing for the country. How did you feel joining them?

Shubha Satheesh: We have been playing together for years now. It felt like a continuation of the game for us as we already knew each other.

SOM: You were also a part of the RCB team. What do you have to say about that experience?

Shubha Satheesh: It was a great feeling to play alongside some of the best players, including those from different countries. Besides being a part of the team, the moments with RCB fans gave me a unique and wonderful experience at the stadium.

SOM: Now that you have made your debut for India, what is your next goal?

Shubha Satheesh: My goal is to continue doing well for Team India in all three formats (T20, ODI and Test). With the home series coming up against South Africa, we will be camping in Bengaluru to prepare for our matches. Later, our target is to win the ICC T20 Women’s World Cup to be held in Bangladesh later this year.

SOM: What was the reaction of your parents when you were selected for the Indian team?

Shubha Satheesh: They were very happy when they heard about my selection. My parents have always told me, and continue to tell me, to play good cricket and do well for the country. —VNS

source/content: starofmysore.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: KARNATAKA / SPORTS : Cheppudira Arun Machaiah Appointed As Joint Chief Of Karate India Organisation (KIO). First Kannadiga to achieve Highest Post of KIO.

Former MLC and International Karate expert from Kodagu, Cheppudira Arun Machaiah has been appointed as the new Joint Chairman of the Technical Commission of Karate India Organisation (KIO).

Director of World Shitorio Karate Council and President of All India Shitorio Karate Organisation, Arun is the first Kannadiga to achieve the highest post of KIO.

source/content: starofmysore.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: KARNATAKA: SPORTS – FIRST: Karnataka govt launches ‘India’s First ever International Stand up-Paddling (SUP) event’, Mar 08-10 Mangaluru

The Government of Karnataka officially launched India’s first-ever International Stand-Up Paddling event here.

The announcement was made in the presence of UT Khader, Speaker of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly, Dinesh Gundu Rao, Minister of Health and District In-Charge Minister of Dakshina Kannada, Govt of Karnataka, and Dhananjaya Shetty, Chairman, Surfing Swami Foundation.

Additionally, the occasion featured the unveiling of the India Paddle Festival logo.

The three-day SUP championship is scheduled to take place at Sasihithlu Beach from March 8-10, 2024, preceding the launch of the 2024 APP World Tour.

Speaking on the occasion, UT Khader said, “We need more of these events in Dakshina Kannada to highlight the beauty of our coastline, culture and cuisine. We are excited to host the inaugural India Paddle Festival in Mangaluru.”

Meanwhile, Dhananjaya Shetty said, “On behalf of the surfing community, I would like to express my gratitude towards the Government of Karnataka for stepping up and supporting us to host the country’s first-ever International Stand-Up Paddling event. We take pride and immense pleasure in hosting the event on such a grand scale, and we will leave no stone unturned to make this event a grand success.”

source/content: daijiworld.com (headline edited)

KARNATAKA: SPORTS / CRICKET: Bengaluru teen 19-yr-old Prakhar Chaturvedi smashes Record with 404* in Cooch Behar Trophy final

Having recently come to the fore, Prakhar Chaturvedi, the 19-yr-old B’luru cricketer who broke Yuvraj Singh’s 25-year-old record for the highest individual score in a Cooch Behar Final, on the historic knock, and his next course of action.

Earlier last month, the finale of the Cooch Behar Trophy saw Karnataka lift a historic maiden title after defeating Mumbai with a mammoth first-innings lead. And equally historic was the unbeaten innings by a teenager from Bengaluru – 404 runs off 638 balls – which not only helped Karnataka sail through to the title but also broke Yuvraj Singh’s 25-year-old record for the highest individual score in a Cooch Behar Final.

“Honestly, it’s still sinking in! Throughout the innings, I was just trying to stay focused on each ball, build partnerships, and contribute to the team’s victory. During lunchtime when I was playing at 299, my friends told me that the old record was 358. So it was in the back of my mind after I crossed 300, but my main goal was to play my best and help us win,” says Prakhar Chaturvedi, who, a few years earlier, was not picked for the Karnataka U19 zonal tournament.

“I was determined to play for Karnataka, so the only way was to score as many runs as possible in the U19 league and zonal.

So, I worked hard for the next eight to nine months, and last year, I was the highest run scorer in the U19 league. When I got the opportunity to play zonal, I was the second highest run scorer of the tournament and it helped me in state selection,” adds the 19-year-old who is currently pursuing a degree in BA economics online, studying when his schedule permits.

Having started his cricketing journey at the age of 11, Chaturvedi grew up watching some of the biggest players of this generation, yet considers Sir Vivian Richards, the legendary West Indies cricketer, his role model. “I have been growing up watching Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and MS Dhoni. Though I have only watched them play on TV, I have picked up some of the tricks of the modern game from them.

However, I consider Sir Viv Richards to be my role model. I have learnt from him the pure joy of playing the game, the freedom to swing hard and trust your skills, and the feeling of owning the field like it is your backyard. Cricket, especially long innings, demands mental strength,” he adds.

Meanwhile, despite his historic knock, Chaturvedi remains grounded about his prospects. “I know this is the beginning and there is a long way to go. I have a lot to learn and improve, but it motivates me to work even harder and achieve even greater things in the future. The next five years are very crucial. I would say that the next two-three years are very crucial for my preparation.

I am yet to get exposed to the highest level of competitive cricket. So, my focus is to learn and adapt as quickly as possible and perform wherever I get the opportunity. I am currently representing Karnataka U23 at the CK Nayudu Trophy and I want to perform well in this tournament. I am a firm believer in process and taking one step at a time,” he says.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

WORLD RECORD: NATIONAL: KARNATAKA: World No.1 Ranking will Inspire ‘Gen-Next’ of Indian Tennis, says Rohan Bopanna after Achieving the Feat

Bopanna is set to become the oldest tennis player to achieve the world No. 1 ranking in men’s doubles after reaching the semifinals of the Australian Open along with his partner Matthew Ebden of Australia.

Rohan Bopanna feels that his ascent to world No. 1 in doubles rankings at the twilight of his career is perfect boost that Indian tennis needed just when it was falling off the radar.

The 43-year-old, who had entered the tournament with a career-high ranking of world No. 3, and Ebden recorded a comfortable 6-4 7-6(5) win over sixth seeded Argentinian duo of Máximo González and Andrés Molteni in the quarterfinals that lasted an hour and 46 minutes here.

Bopanna will be crowned the new numero uno spot on Monday after the end of the tournament.

“It (the feat) means a lot not to just me but for Indian tennis also. You need something to inspire the next generation. Sumit (Nagal) also had a great Australian Open. He won a round,” Bopanna told PTI in an exclusive interview from Melbourne.

And the star player said the feat came with a lot of sacrifices.

“Extremely proud of this (world no.1 ranking in men’s doubles). It’s a special moment. Lot of sacrifices have gone into this. My coaches, family everyone. My family is travelling with me, so different feeling,” he said.

In fact, he is more happy that for the past week, Indian tennis has been in the news.

“Nothing at all was happening in Indian tennis. You (journalists) also did not have much to write about, so this has happened at the right time.” Earlier, Rajeev Ram of the USA was the oldest player to be ranked world no. 1 when he had achieve the top ranking in October 2022 at the age of 38 for the first time in his career.

Ebden, on the other hand, is set to reach the world no 2 spot.

Bopanna twice reached the US Open final but never won a men’s doubles major.

He, however, has a mixed doubles trophy at the French Open when he and his partner Gabriela Dabrowski of Canada won the crown at the 2017 French Open, defeating Anna-Lena Grönefeld and Robert Farah in the final 2–6 6–2 12–10.

But Bopanna’s desire to win a men’s doubles title at the Slam still remains unfulfilled, something which we wants to achieve before hanging up his racquet.

“That’s a personal goal (winning men’s doubles title at a Grand Slam). It’s no one else’s goal,” he said.

For the veteran, it is always one step at a time.

“When you reach second round, next you want is third round then fourth, quarters, semi-final. So, yes I have been in two Slam final and now want to win but it’s a natural. You always try to go one better,” Bopanna said about his future goal.

Bopanna, who had achieved the highest of world No. 3 for the first time in 2013, is the fourth Indian after Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi and Sania Mirza to take the world number one rank in doubles.

He also didn’t forget to acknowledge the contribution of his long-time coach Scott David of the USA in his breathtaking journey in the game.

“I am probably fifty world number one of coach Scott David. It’s a proud moment for him also. I switched to doubles in 2010 and since then I have been with him only,” Bopanna said.

Bopanna and Ebden have been one of the most consistent pairs on the tour over the last 12 months. The duo reached the final of US Open 2023, their best result so far in Grand Slams.

En route the semifinals here, the second seeded Bopanna and Ebden, had to over come two close contests in the first and third rounds to book their place in the semifinals.

Their first hurdle came in the opening round against wildcards James Duckworth and Marc Polmans of Australia, whom Bopanna and Ebden defeated 6-7(5) 6-4 6-7(2).

Their next steep challenge came in the third round where they overcame 14th seeds Wesley Koolhof of the Netherlands and Croatian Nikola Mektić 7-6(8) 7-6(4).

And Bopanna attributed the ability to finish close matches to his experience on the circuit.

“Experience is a great factor in getting those wins. Ever since, I started focussing only on doubles in 2010, it has taken me 13-14 years to reach this. I have been a journeyman,” said Bopanna, who will take over the top position from USA’s Austin Krajicek, who and his Croatian partner Ivan Dodig lost in the second round.

The Indo-Australian pair will play unseeded Tomas Machac of Czech Republic and Chinese Zhizhen Zhang in the semi-finals.

His former Davis Cup teammates Mahesh Bhupathi and Somdev Devvarman termed it as one of the greatest stories in Indian sport.

“Rohan Bopanna getting to World Number 1 today after 20 years on tour in my opinion is one of the greatest stories in Indian Sport!!!,” Bhupathi wrote on ‘X’.

“Bops first told me he was contemplating retirement 5 years ago, then 4 years ago, then 3 years ago…Moral of the story is…. Who cares… He’s number 1! Couldn’t be happier for the Bopanna family! rohanbopanna is the best story in indian sport,” Devvarman wrote.

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.

source/content: telegraphindia.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: SPORTS / EQUESTRIAN: Karnataka State Police Team’s V. Shylendra, Commandant KARP Wins Gold in 42nd All India Police National Equestrian Championship

V. Shylendra, Commandant, KARP Mounted Company, Mysuru, has won the gold medal in the National-level Equestrian Competition ‘Hacks’ event in the 42nd All India Police Equestrian Championship and Mounted Police Duty Meet – 2023 held at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy in Hyderabad, Telangana State, from Dec. 26, 2023 to Jan. 5, 2024.

A native of Chitradurga, Shylendra represented Karnataka State Police team with the horse named “King’s Power” and has won the individual gold medal after 12 years for Karnataka.

The last individual gold medal in this event was won in the year 2012.

source/content: starofmysore.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: KARNATAKA: SPORTS: Khelo India Women’s Kickboxing League Held For First Time In Mysuru and in Karnataka

Khelo India Women’s Kickboxing League was held for the first time in Karnataka on Dec. 23 and 24 at the Sports Pavilion of University of Mysore here.

Over 10 districts and 300-plus players, coaches, referees, officials and parents took part in this two-day mega event organised by K. Santhosh, President of Karnataka Kickboxing Sports Association, sanctioned by WAKO India Kickboxing Federation and Sports Authority of India.

The championship was jointly inaugurated by Manjula Manasa, former Chairperson of Karnataka State Women’s Commission; Pushpalatha Chikkanna, former Mayor; K. Santhosh, President of WAKO India Karnataka; Pooja Harsha, General Secretary and Chairman of WAKO India Women Committee and Harsha Shankar, Treasurer and Asian Kickboxing Bronze Medallist.

source/content: starofmysore.com (headline edited)

Mangaluru lad Yuvaraj D Kunder bags 2 gold medals in CBSE National Roller Skating Championship

Yuvaraj D Kunder who is studying in 6th Standard at St Aloysius Gonzaga School has bagged 2 gold medals in CBSE National Roller Skating Championship 2023-24 held at Gurugram Haryana from November 24-26. He is the one of the few to attain national championship in rollers skating from Dakshina Kannada with 2 gold medals out of the 2 allotted events per athlete.

He had also bagged 1 gold medal in 60th National Roller Skating Championships – Speed Skating – 2022-23 held at Bengaluru during the year 2022/23.

He is trained under Mahesh Kumar and Shravan Mahesh from Mangalore Rollers Skating Club.

Besides, he had bagged a gold medal in national level championships held by RSFI India in 2021-22 and has become an inspiration of achievement for the modern youth.

Yuvaraj is the son of Dheeraj Kotian and Veena Dheeraj.

Speaking to daijiworld.com, Dheeraj said, “It is a proud feeling that my son Yuvaraj has bagged two gold medals in the CBSE national level skating. Meanwhile, he has broken his own record in 300 meters completing the same in 31.71 sec. Last year, Yuvaraj had bagged a gold medal at RSFI India national level skating championship. Yuvaraj started training when he was 4.5 years under Mahesh Kumar. Since the last four years, he has entered the state level. Last year, he made it to the national level. In the last six years, Yuvaraj has bagged 22 gold, 7 silver and five bronze medals.”

source/content: daijiworld.com (headline edited)

WORLD / NATIONAL/ KARNATAKA: WORLD RECORD SPORTS : Sibling Sisters, 10-year old Ovee Malve and Ruchi Malve from Bengaluru become World’s Youngest Certified Scuba Diver Sisters

Their interest in scuba diving stemmed from those videos and they started swimming and later training for scuba diving.

A day after turning 10, Bengaluru-based Ovee Malve set a world record of becoming the youngest certified scuba diver.

With this, both Ovee and her sister Ruchi, daughters of Bangalore Mountaineering Club founder Neeraj Malve, have become the youngest certified scuba diver siblings in the world. Neeraj himself has been a scuba diver for 16 years now. Ovee achieved the feat in Puducherry at 7.18 am on October 11, becoming the youngest Professional Association of Diving Instructors-certified open water diver.

Elated and proud, Neeraj said he understands that adventure sports are not easy, especially at a young age. He never pressured his children and ensured that they underwent proper training. The daughters were water babies since they were little and were fascinated with his scuba diving videos.

Their interest in scuba diving stemmed from those videos and they started swimming and later training for scuba diving, he said. Ovee enrolled for a junior open water diver course at Temple Adventures, Puducherry and trained under coach Shreya Mehta.

Her sister Ruchi (14) trained under Shaurya Tarni of Dive Goa in Goa. Ruchi enrolled for the Junior Open Water Diver certification course on October 27, 2022 and received the Scuba Schools International certificate on October 30, 2022. At the age of 10 and 13, both Malve sisters have become the world’s youngest scuba diver sisters.

Previously, a Mumbai-based boy, Dwit Nandu, at age 10 set the world record around 8 am on August 25, 2023.

Both the sisters underwent two-day rigorous training which included a 200-metre nonstop swimming and floating for 10 minutes without any support.

They studied five chapters of theory about performing underwater skills in confined waters, passed a written exam and successfully performed four dives in open water up to 18-metre depth to earn their open water diver certification.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL & KARNATAKA: SPORTS / GOLF: Kavery Muthanna Represents India As A Golf Official At Asian Games

Mukkatira Kavery Muthanna, a resident of Mysuru, is currently serving as a member of the officiating team in the game of golf at the ongoing 19th Asian Games, which are taking place in Hangzhou, China.

She holds a role in the Technical Rules Official team, which consists of 24 referees from various countries. The official rounds are scheduled to take place from Sept. 28 to Oct. 1 at the West Lake Golf Course in Hangzhou, featuring 121 players.

Kavery Muthanna is well-qualified, having completed the Level 3 Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar (TARS) under the R&A. (R&A is a leading body within the world of golf and engages and supports activities to ensure it is a thriving sport for all on a global scale.)

She has actively officiated various amateur and women’s professional golf tournaments in India, showcasing her expertise in the field. Her experience also extends to her role as a Rules Official at the 36th National Games in 2022, held in Ahmedabad.

In addition to her involvement in golf and sports officiating, Kavery Muthanna is part of the Kavery Education Trust in Virajpet and serves as its Chairperson. She is married to Mukkatira Manju Muthanna and is the daughter of Guddanda Kanthy and Nanda Ganapathy.

source/content: starofmysore.com (headline edited)