Indian Sports Report, February 19: Sumit Nagal leaves the ATP Delhi Open

TENNIS

Delhi Open: Nagal takes a bow, doubles top seeds Banthia-Donski advances to quarters

Top Indian tennis player Sumit Nagal was eliminated from the ATP Delhi Open after losing in the second round to sixth seed Federico Cina of Italy on Thursday.

In the doubles draw, top seeds Siddhant Banthia (India) and Alexander Donski (Bulgaria) advanced to the quarter-finals.

Cina, an 18-year-old ranked No. 225 in the world, broke Nagal in the opening game and maintained the lead, taking the first set 6-4. The Italian then raced to a 5-1 lead in the second set and looked set to reach the last eight.

However, Nagal, number 297, saved three match points in the seventh match and narrowed the deficit to 5-4. Cina remained calm and held serve in the 10th game, sealing a 6-4, 6-4 win in one hour and 40 minutes.

In doubles, Banthia and Donski won 6-2, 6-3 against Francis Casey Alcantara and Courtney John Lock.

Indian wildcard duo Divij Sharan and Karan Singh also reached the last eight, beating Bulgaria’s Dimitar Kuzmanov and Kazakh Denis Yevseyev 7-6(5), 6-4.

Somdev Devvarman remains the only home singles champion in the tournament’s history, having won back-to-back titles in 2014 and 2015.

There have also been two all-Indian doubles champions in the past, with Saketh Myneni-Sanam Singh and Yuki Bhambri-Mahesh Bhupathi lifting the trophy in 2015 and 2016 respectively.

– Team Sportstar

Vaishnavi Adkar storms into the quarter-finals

Vaishnavi Adkar kept the Indian challenge alive as she stunned Japan’s Mai Hontama in a three-set thriller to reach the quarter-finals of the women’s ITF Bengaluru Open, a $100,000 event, at the SM Krishna Stadium in Bengaluru on Thursday.

Vaishnavi, the 21-year-old wildcard currently ranked 690th in the world, defeated world number 220 and eighth seed Hontama 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(8) in 2 hours and 49 minutes to set up a last-eight clash with fourth-seeded Australian and world number 148 Taylah Preston.

However, India’s No. 1 Sahaja Yamalapalli had a day to forget as the world No. 416 was defeated 6-0, 6-0 in just 58 minutes by top-seeded Australian and world No. 109 Talia Gibson.

Shrivalli Bhamidipaty, another local wildcard and world number 543, fell 6-2, 6-7(7), 6-1 to third-seeded Belgian and world number 124 Hanne Vandewinkel.

– Team Sportstar

BASKETBALL

Hindustan University wins KCG Verghese Basketball Memorial tournament

Hindustan Institute of Technology and Science (Team A) won the men’s title while KPR, Coimbatore, clinched the women’s crown at the 35th Dr KCG Verghese Memorial Inter-University Basketball Tournament held in Chennai.

The Sports Directorate of Hindustan Institute of Technology and Science organized the tournament for men and women at the Air Jordan Basketball Complex, Bay Range Campus. The three-day event, which was held in the memory of the founder and chairman of the institute, Dr. KCG Verghese, consisted of twenty teams, twelve in the men’s division and eight in the women’s division.

In the men’s category, St Joseph Bangalore City University finished second, while SRM University secured the third position. Hindustan Institute of Technology and Science (Team B) finished fourth.

In the women’s category, Vels University finished second and the University of Madras in third place. Hindustan University finished fourth.

Prizes worth Rs 2 lakh were distributed during the farewell ceremony. In each category, the winner received Rs 30,000 along with trophies and medals, while the runner-up got Rs 20,000. The third and fourth placed teams received Rs 15,000 and Rs 10,000 respectively.

The ceremony was attended by chief guest Renjini Peter of Southern Railway and former India international Jayasankar Menon, along with Vice Chancellor Dr Vikas Misra and sports advisor Abraham Varghese.

-Team Sportstar

GOLF

DP World Players Championship: Gandas joins Shaurya at the top of the leaderboard

Manu Gandas shot a six-under 64 in the third round to join Shaurya Bhattacharya at the top of the DP World Players Championship leaderboard at the par-70 Tollygunge Club on Thursday.

Gandas (66, 69, 64), who was in seventh place overnight, earned an eagle, five birdies and a bogey for a total of 11-under 199. Shaurya Bhattacharya (64, 62, 73) managed his two birdies against five bogeys.

Om Prakash Chouhan (69, 67, 64), Akshay Sharma (69, 67, 64) and Sanjeev Kumar (68, 65, 67) were ranked third with 200.

-Team Sportstar

TO SHOOT

India’s top 10m air rifle shooters take part in the 16th RR Lakshya Cup in Navi Mumbai

India’s top 20 10m air rifle shooters will be in action at the 16th RR Lakshya Cup 2025, scheduled for February 21 and 22 at the Lakshya Shooting Club, Karnala Sports Academy, Panvel, Navi Mumbai.

The invitation-only tournament will feature leading junior and senior athletes and will be conducted in accordance with international competition standards. The event offers equal podium opportunities for men and women.

The prominent names who will compete include reigning national champion and World Cup medalist Kiran Jadhav, ISSF World Cup medalist Sonam Maskar, reigning national champion and junior world champion Parth Mane, former national champion Rajshree Sancheti and Asian Championships gold medalist Ojasvi Thakur.

The senior champion will receive INR 1.5 lakh along with the rotating Silver Trophy, currently held by Navy’s Kiran Jadhav. The junior champion will receive INR 75,000, while additional cash prizes will be awarded to other podium finishers.

In addition to prize money, athletes are also eligible for shooting equipment and accessories from equipment partner Capapie Sports and accessories partner Tiro Sports.

-Team Sportstar

FOOTBALL

India U17 men’s team will play two friendly matches against Myanmar in Yangon

The Indian U17 football team will play two friendly matches against Myanmar in Yangon on March 3 and 5.

The Blue Colts, who are preparing for the AFC U17 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia, have already played four international friendlies this year: two against Tajikistan (in Goa) and Türkiye (in Antalya).

After returning from Türkiye, Bibiano Fernandes’ team continued to train in Goa. It leaves for the capital of Myanmar on February 28.

Like India, Myanmar has also qualified for the AFC U17 Asian Cup. It topped Group C of the qualifiers, finishing above Oman, Syria, Afghanistan and Nepal.

India will take on Australia (May 6), Uzbekistan (May 10) and South Korea (May 13) in Group D of the AFC U17 Asian Cup.

-PTI

Published on February 19, 2026