Indian sports wrap, October 6: Bopanna, Darderi headline Tennis Premier League Season 7

TENNIS

The seventh season of the Tennis Premier League (TPL) is scheduled to take place from December 9 to 14 at the Gujarat University Tennis Stadium in Ahmedabad.

The event will be headlined by two-time Grand Slam champion Rohan Bopanna, World No. 29 Luciano Darderi (Italy), World No. 38 Corentin Moutet (France) and World No.39 Alexandre Muller (France), leading a stellar line-up of global stars joining forces with India’s finest players.

The competition will feature eight franchises –  GS Delhi Aces, SG Pipers Bengaluru, Gurgaon Grand Slammers, Chennai Smashers, Yash Mumbai Eagles, Hyderabad Strikers, Gujarat Panthers and Rajasthan Rangers – with the player auction set to take place on October 9 in Mumbai.

Bopanna will represent SG Pipers Bengaluru while Darderi is set to play for Rajasthan Rangers, with Moutet leading the Gurgaon Grand Slammers. Other marquee players include Muller and Arthur Rinderknech for Gujarat Panthers and Hyderabad Strikers, respectively.

The lineup also includes Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Damir Dzhumhur (former World No. 23, current No. 67) leading Yash Mumbai Eagles, Argentina’s Tomas Martin Etcheverry (World No. 58) representing GS Delhi Aces, and rising Czech star Dalibor Svrcina (World No. 91) joining Chennai Smashers.

-Team Sportstar

Fenesta Open National Tennis Championship: Prakaash, Hruthik & Tavish cruise into second round

Sixth seed Hruthik Katakam beat Rudra Batham 6–2, 6–1.
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

The boys’ u-16 singles main draw at the ongoing Fenesta Open National Tennis Championship saw three seeded players, Prakaash Sarran, Hruthik Katakam and Tavish Pahwa record dominant wins to march into the next round at the DLTA Complex in New Delhi on Monday.

Sixth seed Hruthik Katakam beat Rudra Batham 6–2, 6–1 in a clinical display that lasted 1 hour 10 minutes. Hruthik did not face a single break point throughout the match, breaking Batham’s serve five times across two sets to seal a convincing win.

Supported by DCM Shriram Ltd., and held under the aegis of the All India Tennis Association (AITA) and the Delhi Lawn Tennis Association (DLTA), the Fenesta Open is India’s largest domestic tennis championship, drawing top contenders from across the country.

On the other hand, eighth seed Tavish Pahwa delivered a composed performance to beat Gyansh Manchanda 6–3, 6–1. Pahwa broke serve midway through the opening set and carried that momentum into a one-sided second set, showing his class and shot-making from the baseline.

– Team Sportstar

ITF Winston-Salem: Dhakshineswar Suresh defends title

Dhakshineswar Suresh defended his title at USD 15k ITF event in Winston-Salem on Sunday with a straight-sets win over Shunsuke Mitsui of Japan.

World No. 616 Dhakshineswar beat World No. 849 Mitsui 6-0, 6-3 to win the second pro title of his career.

– Team Sportstar

GOLF

Sharma finishes T-61 in rain-hit Dunhill Links

India’s Shubhankar Sharma carded 1-under 71 and finished tied 61st at the Alfred Dunhill Links with inclement weather having reduced the tournament to three rounds and 54 holes.

Sharma played the final round at Carnoustie Golf Links and made two birdies against one bogey. He finished with a score of five under par, and it was his first cut since the Hero Indian Open.

Robert Macintyre added to his Ryder Cup triumph with another title this week. Macintyre shot a third consecutive round of 6-under 66 to win by a margin of four strokes.

On the final day, he played at the Old Course at St. Andrews and much like he did the two previous rounds in the week, he made seven birdies and one bogey to win comfortably.

-PTI

Rayhan misses out narrowly to finish T-20th, earns limited status on Korn Ferry

Indian-origin golfer Rayhan Thomas was unlucky with his final drive on the 18th hole of the fourth round of the Compliance Solutions Championship and missed a chance of getting into the Top-10 before the Tour Championship.

He finished tied 20th. With rounds of 64-65-68-68, Rayhan totalled 19-under and finished 88th on the standings.

A place in the Top-75 of the standings would have earned Rayhan a chance of getting into the Tour Championships next week, from October 9-12 at French Lick Golf Resort in French Lick, Indiana.

In the final round, Rayhan started very well despite an early bogey on the third. He birdied four times in a row from fourth to the seventh holes and turned in 3-under. Two more birdies on the 13th and the 16th took him closer to the Top-10.

However, an errant drive on the 18th, which he had birdied in the first round cost him a double bogey and he dropped to T-20th.

At 88th place, Rayan will earn a conditional status on the Korn Ferry Tour, which means he will get a limited number of starts but can then move up in priority via re-ranking. Otherwise, three wins on the Korn Ferry next year can earn him a ‘battleground’ promotion to the PGA Tour.

Upon conclusion of the Korn Ferry Tour Championship, the top 20 players on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List will earn PGA TOUR membership for the 2026 season.

Additionally, the player who finishes No. 1 earns exemptions for the 2026 PLAYERS Championship and 2026 U.S. Open.

Adrien Dumont de Chassart won the Compliance by seven strokes, which catapulted him from No. 26 to No. 6 on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List to effectively secure one of the 20 PGA TOUR cards available through the Points List.

-PTI

Arjun Prasad, Thangaraja headline field as Bengaluru Open golf returns after six years

Defending champion Abhinav Lohan, Arjun Prasad and Udayan Mane will be among the leading contenders when the Bengaluru Open tees off at the Karnataka Golf Association on Tuesday, marking the tournament’s return to the PGTI calendar after a six-year hiatus.

The Pro-Am event will be held on October 11.

The fourth edition of the event carries a prize purse of Rs 1 crore and features 126 golfers — including 124 professionals and two amateurs.

The leading Indian professionals in the field include Arjun (currently No. 2 in the PGTI Order of Merit), Shaurya Bhattacharya, Udayan, Angad Cheema, Lohan and Viraj Madappa, to name a few.

The local challenge will be led by Bengaluru-based professionals Rahil Gangjee, Khalin Joshi, Chikkarangappa S, Akshay Neranjen, Manoj S, Mari Muthu R and Varun Muthappa.

The two local amateurs in the field are Tanish R Gowda and Siddharth Paruthi.

The prominent foreign names competing include Sri Lankans N Thangaraja and K Prabagaran, Bangladeshis Jamal Hossain and Badal Hossain, Italy’s Federico Zucchetti, Nepal’s Subash Tamang and American Koichiro Sato.

-PTI

SQUASH

Senthilkumar, Chotrani advance in New York

India’s Velavan Senthilkumar and Veer Chotrani advanced to the round of 16 in the Open Squash Classic, a USD 74,000 PSA Bronze event, in New York on Sunday.

Reigning National champion and world No 45 Senthilkumar defeated Pakistan’s Md Ashab Irfan 11-2, 11-8, 14-12 in the opening round, while Chotrani rallied to beat compatriot Abhay Singh 6-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-5 in what was their first meeting on the tour.

Ramit Tandon, the eighth seed, received a first-round bye.

-Team Sportstar

BOXING

BFI Cup 2025: Ankushita, Arundhati bag gold as Elite Women’s competition crowns winners; Husamuddin, Vishwanath reach finals

Former youth world champions Ankushita Boro and Arundhati Choudhary were among the standout performers as the women’s finals concluded at the inaugural BFI Cup 2025 in Chennai.

The medallists at the BFI Cup 2025.
| Photo Credit:
Special arrangement

Ankushita (Assam) showcased her trademark aggression to edge Rajasthan’s Parthavi Grewal 3:2 in the 60–65kg category, while Arundhati (Services) stamped her class in the 65–70kg weight category with a commanding 5-0 win over Sneha (AIP). World Championships bronze medallist Parveen Hooda (SAI) also emerged victorious, defeating Priya (Haryana) 3-2 in 57–60kg final as the Elite Women’s competition crowned its champions across all ten weight categories.

Other women’s finals saw Nivedita Karki (Uttarakhand) claim in the weight category 45–48kg title with a 3-2 win over World Championships silver medallist Manju Rani (Railways), while Bhavna Sharma (Railways) outclassed Savita (Railways) 5-0 in the 48–51kg weight category.

Maharashtra’s Khushi Jadhav edged Divya Pawar (AIP) 3-2 for 51–54kg gold, and Himachal Pradesh’s Vinakshi Dhota defeated Mushkan (AIP) 5-0 in the 54–57kg weight category. Monika (SAI) bagged 70–75kg crown with a 4-1 win over Nishu (Haryana), Babita Bisht (AIP) triumphed 3:2 against Komal (Punjab) in the 75–80kg class, and Ritika (SAI) sealed in 80–80+kg title by overpowering Shivani Tomar (AIP) 5-0.

On the men’s side, S. Vishwanath (Services) entered the finals with a commanding 5-0 win over Gopi Mishra (Services) in the 47-50 kg weight category. However, Asian Games gold medallist Amit Panghal (Services) suffered a narrow 1-4 defeat to teammate Ashish (Services) in the 50-55kg kg semi-finals, while World Championships bronze medallist Mohammad Husamuddin (Services) continued his fine run with a 5-0 win over Mitesh Deswal (Railways) in the 55-60 kg bout.

-Team Sportstar

MORE SPORTS

CM Trophy Games 2025: Coimbatore shines in football final

The fifth day of the Chief Minister’s Trophy Games 2025 saw Coimbatore clinched gold medal at the college boys football finals, topping the league table with 7 points (2 wins, 1 draw). The final standings saw Chengalpattu secure Silver, while Kanyakumari took Bronze.

In weightlifting, the college girls categories saw fierce competition and exceptional individual performances. In the 69kg category, Harshika C from Chengalpattu delivered a winning total lift of 189kg (Snatch – 82kg; Clean & Jerk – 107kg) to capture the Gold. She edged out Sivaranjani J from Tiruvallur by just one kilogram, despite Sivaranjani achieving a higher Snatch of 87kg. The Bronze went to Bharani Priya S from Coimbatore, who totalled 171kg.

Meanwhile in artistic gymnastics (WAG – Vault), Chennai gymnasts swept the podium. Diya Hariprakash impressed judges with a score of 11.85 to win Gold. Meghana Manoj and Krishnaveni A, both also representing Chennai, earned Silver (11.07) and Bronze (10.95) respectively, marking a clean sweep for the city.

– Team Sportstar

ARCHERY

Rajputana Royals stays unbeaten, Kakatiya Knights registers first win on Day 5 of Archery Premier League 2025

The fifth day of the Archery Premier League (APL) saw the Rajputana Royals registering its fifth straight victory while the Kakatiya Knights woke up from its slumber to register first victory amid rainy and windy conditions at New Delhi’s Yamuna Sports Complex on Monday.

While the Mighty Marathas defeated Prithviraaj Yodhas 6-2 in the first match, the Knights edged out Chola Chiefs 5-3. The last match of the day, between the Royals and Chero Archers went down to the wire and was decided in shoot-off after the scores were tied at 4-4 at the end of four sets.

-Team Sportstar

Published on Oct 06, 2025