GOLF

Diksha leads strong Indian charge with 66 as three finish inside top 30 in Czech Ladies Open

Indian golfer Diksha Dagar continued her rich vein of form on the Ladies European Tour, producing a superb six-under 66 to spearhead an impressive Indian challenge in the opening round of the Czech Ladies Open here.

Fresh from a strong performance at last week’s Dutch Ladies Open, Diksha carried that momentum into the Czech Republic, finishing the day tied ninth and just three shots behind Welsh leader Lydia Hall.

Diksha’s excellent start was complemented by fellow Indians Pranavi Urs and Vani Kapoor, who also enjoyed encouraging opening rounds to give India three players inside the top 30.

Pranavi carded a five-under 67 to be tied 14th, just one shot outside the top 10, while experienced Vani opened with a four-under 68 to share 26th place.

Hitaashee Bakshi also finished under par with a one-under 71, though she was tied 76th in the tightly-packed field. Ridhima Dilawari was tied 112th after a one-over 73, while last week’s Dutch Ladies Open joint third-place finisher Avani Prashanth endured a disappointing start, carding a three-over 75 to be tied 123rd.

Diksha once again looked comfortable from the outset, producing one of the most aggressive rounds of the day. She reeled off four consecutive birdies from the second hole to race to four-under through five holes. Another birdie on the seventh took her to five-under before a bogey at the ninth slightly slowed her momentum.

The 24-year-old quickly regained control after the turn. Although she dropped another shot on the 12th, she finished in style with three birdies over her final four holes. Birdies on the 15th, 17th and 18th ensured she signed for an excellent 66, featuring eight birdies against just two bogeys.

Her latest effort continues an encouraging run of form after last week’s impressive showing in the Netherlands and keeps her firmly in contention heading into the remaining rounds.

Pranavi also built on her recent confidence following a tied-fifth finish at the Dutch Ladies Open. The Mysuru golfer mixed six birdies with just a single bogey in a composed five-under 67 that left her within touching distance of the leading group.

Vani relied on her trademark consistency to post four-under 68. She collected five birdies during the day while conceding only one bogey, placing herself well for the weekend.

At the top of the leaderboard, Lydia Hall enjoyed the best round of her Ladies European Tour career. Playing in her 292nd LET event, the Welsh golfer fired a stunning nine-under 63 to claim the outright lead. Her remarkable round included eight birdies, an eagle and just one bogey.

Hall led by a single stroke over Spain’s Blanca Fernandez, Switzerland’s Vanessa Knecht and England’s Esme Hamilton, all of whom returned impressive rounds of eight-under 64 to remain within striking distance.

-PTI

Saptak Talwar lines up potential Top-5 finish

Indian golfer Saptak Talwar moved up to tied fifth on the leaderboard with a two-day total of 5-under par, three shots behind joint leaders Pablo Ereno and John Gough at the Blot Play9 here.

Talwar carded a second-round 3-under 67, registering five birdies against two bogeys. Starting on the back nine, he picked up three shots in the first four holes with birdies on the 10th, 11th and 13th before dropping a shot on the 14th to make the turn at 2-under for the day.

Talwar, who had opened with a 2-under round, dropped another shot on the sixth hole before making par on the seventh and finishing with consecutive birdies on the eighth and ninth to sign off with a 67.

Ereno (64-68) and Gough (63-69) shared the lead at the Golf Bluegreen de Pléneuf Val André with identical totals of 8-under par. They held a one-shot advantage over Charles Huntzinger (66-67), who was third at 7-under, while Tom Gueant (64-70) was fourth at 6-under.

Gough followed his opening-round 63 with a 1-under 69 to retain a share of the lead, making four birdies and three bogeys. Ereno, who started the day tied for second, joined Gough at the top after carding a 2-under 68, featuring two birdies, two bogeys and an eagle.

-PTI

Bhatia surges into contention with sparkling 62, Scheffler threatens history at Travelers

Akshay Bhatia produced one of the best rounds of the week to vault into contention at the Travelers Championship, firing a flawless eight-under 62 that lifted the Indian-origin American into a share of third place here.

Bhatia’s bogey-free display moved him to 12-under for the tournament, just four shots behind world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, whose sensational second-round 60 gave him a commanding lead at 16-under.

Norway’s Viktor Hovland occupied second place at 14-under, while overnight leader Eric Cole slipped back into a tie for third alongside Bhatia after returning a 65.

The impressive charge helped Bhatia emerge as the leading Indian-origin player in the elite PGA Tour field. Aaron Rai remained well placed after a steady two-under 68 took him to seven-under overall and into a share of 22nd, while Sahith Theegala bounced back from a disappointing opening 74 with a three-under 67 to make progress, although he was still tied for 65th at one-over.

Bhatia, who has shown flashes of his immense potential throughout the season, looked in complete control from the outset. He picked up early birdies on the second and third holes before adding two more on the sixth and eighth to reach the turn in four-under.

The left-hander maintained the momentum on the inward nine with birdies on the 10th, 13th and 15th before capping a memorable afternoon with another gain at the 18th. The blemish-free card underlined the quality of his ball-striking and putting as he climbed firmly into the title race heading into the weekend.

While Bhatia’s round was outstanding, Scheffler produced the performance of the day. The world No. 1 fired an astonishing 10-under 60 featuring 11 birdies and just a lone bogey to open a two-shot cushion over Hovland.

-PTI

CRICKET

Chambal Ghariyals make double in MPL T20 Scindia Cup

Chambal Ghariyals completed a dream campaign in the Madhya Pradesh League (MPL) T20 Scindia Cup 2026, defeating Royal Nimar Eagles by 31 runs in the final at the Holkar Stadium here.

The triumph marked a historic double for the franchise after the Chambal Ghariyals women’s team had earlier lifted the title with an unbeaten record, here on Friday.

The men’s team followed suit, finishing the tournament unbeaten as well following consistent performances.

After being put in to bat, Chambal Ghariyals made full use of the opportunity, posting a formidable 224/5 in their allotted 20 overs.

Apurve Dwivedi and skipper Shubham Sharma shared a superb 83-run partnership for the third wicket.

Dwivedi was the aggressor during the stand, smashing 51 off just 25 deliveries, including five sixes.

Shubham anchored the innings and found excellent support from Tripuresh Singh. The pair added another valuable 47 runs before the captain departed after a composed 57 off 38 balls.

Tripuresh remained unbeaten on 43 off 24 balls, striking three fours and three sixes.

Royal Nimar Eagles were restricted to 193/7 in their 20 overs as Mayur Patel was the standout bowler, returning impressive figures of 2/21 from his four overs.

-PTI

You inspire millions of young girls: Minister Goyal hails Indian women’s cricket team’s spirit

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal hailed the Indian women team’s spirit ahead of the crucial T20 World Cup match against Australia here on Sunday, saying the players have inspired “millions of girls” across the country.

India need to win against the Aussies at the Lord’s to ensure a spot in the ICC event’s semifinals.

“You inspire millions of girls, millions of children in the country,” said Goyal, who is in the UK to review the implementation of the bilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

The Minister also attended a special reception for the squad at India House here in London on Friday night.

“Sports is one of the areas that these days in our business arrangements we usually also engage with governments to work on developing together,” said Goyal.

“We have talked about encouraging sporting partnerships, coaching, and other ways in which we can work together, so that more and more children around the country can benefit from these business engagements.” He hailed India’s rise as a cricketing nation.

“The UK was the original cricketing country, but I think India seems to become the most preeminent cricketing nation, and I must compliment all of you for this wonderful merit that you have displayed, and for the glory that you bring to our nation,” he said.

P. Kumaran, the High Commissioner of India to the UK, welcomed the squad and Deputy High Commissioner Kartik Pande moderated an interaction with the team members.

During the session, skipper Harmanpreet Kaur said she enjoyed “performing under pressure.” “Whenever I enjoy myself on the field, I always feel relaxed, always enjoy the moment… I enjoy performing under pressure,” said Kaur.

-PTI

Published on Jun 27, 2026