Saina, Jwala-Diju reach quarters at China Masters

Saina Nehwal survived a mighty scare from unheralded Ayane Kurihara of Japan before advancing to the quarterfinals of China Masters Super Series badminton tournament in Changzhou.

Saina Nehwal survived a mighty scare from unheralded Ayane Kurihara of Japan before advancing to the quarterfinals of China Masters Super Series badminton tournament in Changzhou.

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The fifth seed Indian saw off unseeded Kurihara 21-11, 18-21, 27-25 in a marathon encounter that lasted for one hour and 12 minutes. V Diju and Jwala Gutta also notched up a 21-19, 21-17 win in a second round clash in the mixed doubles competition. However, Parupalli Kashyap lost to Peter Gade in men's singles.

Jeev begins well
Macau: Jeev Milkha Singh got off to a good start with a three-under 68 to be placed tied eighth after the first round of the Rs 3.5 cr Macau Open golf. Jeev had a bogey-free 68 that put him in tied eighth, two shots behind the four leaders and in the middle of a jam that has top 18 players within 2 shots of each other.

More flak for AIFF
Kolkata: East Bengal general-secretary Kalyan Majumdar hit out at the All India Football Federation (AIFF) over the organisation of the Federation Cup. “This is another proof of how football is neglected. This is worse than an event organised by amateurs. Right now, maybe 2% of people here know that it will kick-off on Saturday.”

Scrumhalf Mike Petri scored the only try as the United States' greater experience of playing at a higher level made the difference, with kickers enduring miserable night in soggy conditions.