Indian sports wrap, October 9: Nitin Sinha stuns defending champion Sureshkumar to reach Fenesta Open final

Nitin Sinha prevailed 6-7(6-8) 6-3 6-1 after a three-hour battle against his regular doubles partner, recovering from losing the opening set to set up a title clash against sixth seed Maan Kesharwani. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

TENNIS

Nitin Sinha stuns defending champion Sureshkumar to reach Fenesta Open final

Third seed Nitin Kumar Sinha stunned defending champion and top seed Manish Sureshkumar in a three-set thriller to reach the men’s singles final of the 31st Fenesta Open National Tennis Championship in Bengaluru on Friday.

Sinha prevailed 6-7(6-8) 6-3 6-1 after a three-hour battle against his regular doubles partner, recovering from losing the opening set to set up a title clash against sixth seed Maan Kesharwani.

Kesharwani booked hi place in the final with a 6-3 7-5 win over unseeded Suraj Prabodh in the other semifinal.

Sinha and Sureshkumar later teamed up to win the men’s doubles title, beating Rohith Gobinath and Srikar Doni 6-3 6-2.

In the women’s singles, top seed and two-time former champion Vaidehee Chaudhari will face second seed Shruti Ahlawat in the final after both registered comfortable straight-set wins.

Chaudhari defeated fourth seed Sonal Patil 6-3 6-1, while Ahlawat brushed aside Soha Sadiq 6-0 6-1.

Lakshmi Arunkumar and Samhitha Chamarthi claimed the women’s doubles title with a 5-7 6-1 10-5 victory over Aishwarya Jadhav and Aakruti Sonkusare.

In the boys’ under-18 singles, fourth seed Om Ramesh Patel battled for three hours and 16 minutes to beat 15th seed Yashwin Dahiya 6-7(3-7) 6-1 7-5. Patel will meet 10th seed Ribhav Saroha in the final after the latter defeated Srikar Doni 6-3 6-2.

Top seeds Praneel Sharma and Aditya Mor won the boys’ under-18 doubles title with a 6-2 6-1 victory over third seeds Raghav Sarode and Om Ramesh Patel. Third seeds Sanmitha Harini and Savitha Bhuvaneswaran clinched the girls’ under-18 doubles crown, beating fourth seeds Sree Syleswari Velmanikandan and Riddhi Shinde 6-4 7-5.

-PTI

CUE SPORTS

Commonwealth Cue Sports C’Ships 2026 Day 3: Dhvaj Haria, Anupama Ramachandran and Revanna Umadevi secure final berths

Indian cueists Dhvaj Haria, Anupama Ramachandran and Revanna Umadevi secured places in the finals on Day 3 of the Commonwealth Cue Sports Championships 2026 at the Veer Savarkar Sports Complex in Ahmedabad. While Haria advanced to the Men’s Snooker final, Ramachandran and Umadevi set up an all-Indian final in Women’s English Billiards. Several other Indian players remain in contention, continuing to battle it out on the tables as the Championships head into the medal matches on Saturday.

In Men’s Snooker, Dhvaj Haria produced an impressive performance to defeat Darren Morgan of Wales 3-1 in the quarter-finals before overcoming fellow Indian Laxman Singh Rawat 3-1 in the semi-finals to book his place in the final. Rawat had earlier progressed with a 3-0 victory over England’s Craig MacGillivray. Aditya Mehta also advanced to the semi-finals after defeating England’s Ross Vallance 3-0 in the quarter-finals.

In Women’s Snooker, Ishika Shah defeated fellow Indian Snenthra Babu 3-0 in the quarter-finals, while Shruthi Lakshminarayanan recorded a 3-0 win over Canada’s Simone Lloyd. Keerthana Pandian also progressed with a 3-0 victory over England’s Gillian Hayes. Shah’s campaign came to an end in the semi-finals after she went down 0-3 to England’s Rebecca Kenna.

India continued its strong showing in English Billiards, with Anupama Ramachandran and Revanna Umadevi advancing to the Women’s final. Ramachandran defeated England’s Mhairi Roberta Mackay 1-0, while Umadevi secured a 1-0 victory over Australia’s Julie Watson to set up an all-Indian final.

In Men’s Heyball, Paras Gupta registered a 9-3 victory over Scotland’s Craig Brown in the second round, while Uzair Khan defeated Malaysia’s Tan Zhong Wei 7-4 to advance. Shivam Arora, however, went down 2-9 to South Africa’s Jason Theron. In another second-round encounter, Malaysia’s Mohd Hassan defeated South Africa’s Kurshan Moodley 9-2.

In Men’s 10-Ball Pool, Divya Sharma continued his campaign with a 9-6 victory over fellow Indian Kushal Chandrashekar in the second round. Earlier, Sharma had edged past Canada’s Darcy McGinley 9-8. Lalrina Renthlei also recorded a 9-3 victory over Kelly Yambi before losing 5-7 to England’s Mark Foster in the following round.

In Women’s Blackball, Gianna Rego went down 1-5 to England’s Emma Cunningham in the second round. Cunningham subsequently advanced to the final after defeating South Africa’s Prudence Nkosi 5-1, while Spain’s Naiga Rukia secured her place in the final with a 5-2 victory over Australia’s Kolbe Poole.

With the Championships approaching its conclusion, attention now turns to Saturday’s medal matches, where Haria, Ramachandran and Umadevi will look to convert their final berths into Commonwealth titles. Other Indian cueists will also continue their campaigns, aiming to add to the country’s medal tally as the four-day competition reaches its climax in Ahmedabad.

CRICKET

Delhi Capitals School Cup returns with 38 teams

The JSW-GMR co-owned Delhi Capitals announced the second edition of the DC School Cup, returning after a hugely successful inaugural edition in 2025 that established the tournament as one of the most exciting and immersive school cricket experiences for young cricketers across Delhi-NCR.

Building on the overwhelming response from schools and players last year, the tournament returns on October 9 with a significantly expanded field of 38 teams - 32 boys’ and six girls’ teams and 66 matches across four venues, bringing the Delhi Capitals experience to more young cricketers across the region.

The tournament has grown from 20 teams in 2025 to 38 teams in 2026, with an expanded league and knockout format culminating in the Final in early November. With four grounds this year, the DC School Cup will operate at a larger scale while maintaining consistency in matchday execution and presentation.

All schools will play in different coloured kits, and the tournament’s latter stages will feature live commentators, music and more, further elevating the experience for participating players and schools.

The first edition also demonstrated the tournament’s potential as a pathway for emerging talent, with two players going on to be selected for Season 3 of the Delhi Premier League. This year, the DC School Cup will build on that with the introduction of the DC Future XI, recognising standout performers from across the competition. Ten young players will also get an opportunity to experience a Delhi Capitals training session.

Speaking about the second edition, Mr. Sunil Gupta, CEO, Delhi Capitals, said, “The first edition of the DC School Cup showed us how much talent and enthusiasm exists among young cricketers in Delhi-NCR, and the response made it clear that there was an appetite for a bigger platform. This year, we wanted to make the tournament bigger, but also make the experience more special for every child who takes part. For many of them, cricket is something they grow up watching, talking about and dreaming about, and we want to bring that world a little closer to them.

“Whether it is wearing special kits, competing in a proper tournament or getting a glimpse of what it is like to be around a professional team, we want to give young players experiences they will remember. The two players from last season’s School Cup who went on to the Delhi Premier League show what these opportunities can lead to, and we hope to create many more such moments through this year’s edition,” he added.

As part of the tournament experience, the Captain’s Meet has already brought together captains from the participating schools, with each receiving their official designed DC School Cup playing kit ahead of the competition. With matches spread across four venues, the tournament will feature structured match operations, medical support, dedicated player and team areas, live commentary, matchday branding, player recognition, content and photography, creating a professional sporting environment for participating schools.

The second edition of the DC School Cup represents the next step in the franchise’s commitment to school cricket and grassroots talent development in Delhi-NCR, building on the success of its inaugural edition to create what aims to be the region’s most engaging and memorable school cricket experience.

RUGBY

New Zealand U-20 sides to visit India for series

New Zealand U-20 Boys & Girls team will be visiting India from 22nd to 28th October to play a rugby series with Indian U-20 teams at the Rajgir Sports Complex, Rajgir.

The visiting squads - Tama Toa, the men’s team, and Hine Toa, the women’s team - comprise 24 young Māori players selected from across New Zealand and will be supported by a six-member management group. The programme will include joint training sessions, squad-based match activities and cultural and community engagements alongside the Indian U-20 squads, culminating on 27 October, with four competitive Sevens matches.

The programme will feature a men’s match between India and New Zealand, followed by the women’s match and two mixed matches bringing players from both teams together.

MOTORSPORT

Saishiva Sankaran, Ishaan Madesh impress in MRF Formula 2000 class

Saishiva (in white car) has won five races on the trot across two rounds before yielding ground to Ishaan who got into his stride with a fine win after missing the first round.  | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

The MRF Indian National Racing Challenge 4W is fast proving to be a nursery of young talent and this will be highlighted yet again in the third round which will be held at the Madras International Circuit on October 10-11 with 41 entries in fray and a schedule of nine races.

In the two rounds this season, teenagers from across the country have blossomed forth. Some of them, like Pune’s Saishiva Sankaran (18) and Ishaan Madesh (17) from Bengaluru have enhanced their reputation as budding racers with pleasing performances in the MRF Formula 2000 class.

Saishiva has won five races on the trot across two rounds before yielding ground to Ishaan who got into his stride with a fine win after missing the first round. The two will be locked in another tussle marked by close and clean racing.

At the other end of the spectrum, freshers like Visakhapatnam’s Bhuvan Bonu (16) and Gyan Satish (16) from Chennai, have emerged as front-runners in the MRF Formula 1600 category. Bhuvan has notched four wins in six outings, with Gyan Satish topping the other two.

Likewise, the other single-seater category, the Formula LGB 1300, has more than its share of teen talent, spearheaded by 16-year-old Sri Lankan Kaveen Diyyan Rajapaksa, winner of four of the six races in Junior section. His compatriot, Aadam Junaid topped one race as did Bengaluru’s Shatveer Shetty who at 15 is among the youngest participants. Nellore’s Viswas Vijayaraj, the lead driver for DTS Racing team which has dominated the Open class, has been in imperious form, winning all six races, be it from pole position or mid-grid (reverse grid).

The touring and saloon car categories, boasting of grids packed with experience, have witnessed competitive racing. The contests are expected to be much tighter with the leaders looking to consolidate their positions on the points table and putting some distance from the chasing pack.

Chairman of the Event Vicky Chandhok, while welcoming the competitors to the third round, said: “It augurs well for the future that an increasing number of youngsters have taken to the sport and showcasing their talent. These young guns are very competitive and fearless, thus leading to thrilling races where the outcome is in suspense until the chequered flag.”

GOLF

BMW Golf Cup 2026 India winners set to represent the country at the World Final

BMW Group India on Friday announced the winners of the 16th edition of the BMW Golf Cup 2026 final, held at DLF Golf and Country Club, Gurugram. Anish Bhujle – Category A and Vikas Mahajan – Category B emerged victorious in their respective handicap categories and will represent India at the BMW Golf Cup World Final scheduled to be held in South Africa in March 2027.

The national final brought together 40 leading amateur golfers who qualified through regional tournaments held at spectacular golf courses across Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Vadodara, Jaipur, Bengaluru, Lucknow, Patna, Kolkata and Gurugram. This season attracted 2,300 participants, the finalist competed for national honours and the opportunity to represent India at the pinnacle of the BMW Golf Cup.

01 Image (L-R) Winners of BMW Golf Cup 2026 Anish Bhujle - Category A and Vikas Mahajan - Category B | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

At the final, Anish Bhujle from Mumbai claimed the title in Category A for handicaps upto 12, while Vikas Mahajan from Muradabad won the Category B for handicaps 13-28. The two champions will form Team India at the BMW Golf Cup World Final, competing against leading amateur golfers from participating nations.

BMW Golf Cup, one of the world’s largest amateur golf tournament series can trace its roots back a quarter of a century to a British-based initiative that ran on its own for five years before going international. The tournament started as the BMW Invitation Tournament in UK. It has now developed into a global series with 1,000 qualifying tournaments involving 100,000 players in up to 40 countries. The best players from each nation qualify for the highlight, the BMW Golf Cup World Final, where the individual titles are contested in three categories.

The BMW Golf Cup 2026 has two categories, A (for handicaps up to 12) and B (for handicaps 13 - 28). The winners of the individual handicap categories qualify for the National Final. The winners in each of the two handicap categories in the National Final qualify to take part in the World Final of BMW Golf Cup.