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Bangladesh Archery League-1 begins on Thursday in Tongi
The 8-team Bangladesh Archery League-1, an annual event of the Bangladesh Archery Federation (BAF), begins on Thursday (June 9) at the Archery Training Centre of Shaheed Ahsanullah Master Stadium in Tongi.
The competition will begin at 9 am on Thursday.
A total of 22 men and nine women will compete in the Recurve Division while 25 men and eight women will compete in the Compound Division.
READ: Archery WC: Bangladesh recurve men's team eliminated from pre-quarterfinal
Men’s singles, men’s doubles, women’s singles and mixed doubles of the Recurve Division while men’s singles, men’s doubles, women’s singles and mixed doubles of the Compound Division are included in the league.
Participating teams are : BKSP, BKSP (Green), Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), Bangladesh Air Force, Army Archery Club, ASPT Archery Club, Bangladesh Police Archery Club and Narail DSA.
Foot pain leaves French Open champ Nadal's future uncertain
Rafael Nadal's painful left foot was numbed by multiple injections to two nerves throughout the French Open, the only way he has found to deal with a chronic condition he acknowledges puts his tennis future in doubt.
At any other tournament, Nadal said, he would not have persisted through what he called such “extreme conditions.”
Also read:Nadal improves to 18-0 with win over Opelka at Indian Wells
Ah, but five simple words uttered after he strung together the last 11 games of a 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 victory over an overwhelmed Casper Ruud in Sunday's intriguing-for-a-handful-of-minutes final at Court Philippe Chatrier explained Nadal's mindset: “Roland Garros is Roland Garros.”
And so even if Nadal, a French Open champion for the 14th time now at age 36, is in obvious ways different from Nadal, a French Open champion for the first time all the way back in 2005 at age 19, that desire to give his all, no matter what, to “find solutions" — one of his oft-used phrases — remains the same.
He is the oldest champion in the history of a tournament that began in 1925, and his hair is thinning on top. The chartreuse T-shirt he wore Sunday had sleeves, unlike his biceps-baring look of nearly two decades ago. The white capri pants that ran below his knees back in the day were long since traded in for more standard shorts; Sunday’s were turquoise.
Here’s what hasn’t changed along the way to his 22 Grand Slam titles in all, another record, in addition to his between-point mannerisms and meticulous attention paid to the must-be-just-so placement of water bottles and towels: That lefty uppercut of a topspin-slathered, high-bouncing forehand still finds the mark much more frequently than it misses, confounding foes. That ability to read serves and return them with a purpose still stings. That never-concede-a-thing attitude propelling Nadal from side to side, forward and backward, speeding to, and redirecting, balls off an opponent’s racket seemingly destined to be unreachable.
Nadal is nothing if not indefatigable, just as he was in consecutive four-hour-plus victories earlier in the tournament — including against Novak Djokovic, the defending champion and No. 1 seed — and again on this afternoon, even while competing on a foot devoid of any feeling.
“When you are playing defensive against Rafa on clay,” said Ruud, a 23-year-old Norwegian who was participating in his first major final, "he will eat you alive."
Nadal said afterward he will try other methods of helping his foot — including, even, a way “to burn, a little bit, the nerve” — over the next week to see whether that might allow him to enter Wimbledon, where he has won two of his men’s-record 22 Grand Slam titles. Play begins at the All England Club on June 27.
If these new treatments do not work, Nadal said, then he will need to consider having what he termed major surgery — and, eventually, a “decision about what’s the next step in my future.”
“It’s obvious that with the circumstances that I am playing (in),” Nadal said, “I can’t and I don’t want to keep going.”
During the trophy ceremony, Nadal thanked his family and support team, including a doctor who accompanied him to Paris, for helping him, because otherwise he would have needed to “retire much before.”
“I don’t know what can happen in the future,” Nadal told the crowd, “but I’m going to keep fighting to try to keep going.”
He played so crisply and cleanly Sunday, accumulating more than twice as many winners as Ruud, 37 to 16. Nadal also committed fewer unforced errors, making just 16 to Ruud’s 26. After trailing 3-1 in the second set, Nadal would not cede another game.
Also read: Spanish Tennis Maestro Rafael Nadal Wins Record 21 Grand Slam Titles
“After that moment,” Nadal said, “everything went very smooth.”
Sure did.
The view from the other side of the net?
“I’m just another one of the victims," Ruud said, “that he has destroyed on this court.”
One of the most indelible memories Ruud will take away from this day was hearing the announcer recite the long list of years Nadal had previously won the French Open: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020.
“Never stops, it seems like,” Ruud said. “That takes like half a minute.”
When the players met at the net for the prematch coin toss, the first chants of “Ra-fa! Ra-fa!” rang out in the 15,000-seat stadium. Ruud would later hear folks in the stands do drawn-out pronouncements of his last name, so it sounded as if they might be booing.
Nadal is 14-0 in finals at Roland Garros, 112-3 overall. When this one ended with a down-the-line backhand from Nadal, he chucked his racket to the red clay he loves so much and covered his face with the taped-up fingers on both of his hands.
No man or woman ever has won the singles trophy at any major event more than his 14 in Paris. And no man has won more Grand Slam titles than Nadal.
He is two ahead of Roger Federer, who hasn’t played in almost a year after a series of knee operations, and Djokovic, who missed the Australian Open in January because he is not vaccinated against COVID-19.
For all that he has accomplished already, Nadal now has done something he never managed previously: He is halfway to a calendar-year Grand Slam thanks to titles at the Australian Open and French Open in the same season.
But if he can't play at Wimbledon, which he has won twice, that doesn't really matter much.
Ruud considers Nadal his idol. He recalls watching all of Nadal’s past finals in Paris on TV. He has trained at Nadal’s tennis academy in Mallorca.
They have played countless practice sets together there with nothing more at stake than bragging rights. Nadal usually won those, and Ruud joked the other day that’s because he was trying to be a polite guest.
The two had never met in a real match until Sunday, when a championship, money, ranking points, prestige and a piece of history were on the line. And Nadal demonstrated, as he has so often, why he’s known as the King of Clay — and among the game’s greatest ever.
“It’s something that I, for sure, never believed — to be here at 36, being competitive again, playing in the most favorite court of my career, one more time in the final," Nadal said. "It means a lot to me. Means everything.”
36th National Snooker: Al Amin emerges champion beating Asif Imran
Mohammad Al Amin of Q and U Billiard Club emerged champion in 36th National Snooker Championship'2022 beating Asif Imran of Rack and Break Billiard Center by 6-2 frame in the final played at the Rubel Aziz Billiard Room of Banani Club Limited in the capital on Friday.
Later, the prize-giving ceremony of the tournament was held at the Banani Club's Banquet Hall Friday night, followed by a gala musical show. The tournament was sponsored by City Bank Ltd and American Express and organized by Banani Club Limited under supervision of the Bangladesh Billiards and Snooker Federation (BBSF).
Read: Maharashtra Int'l GM Chess: Bangladeshi GM Enamul Hossain Razib shares 3rd place
Abdullah Al Islam Jakob, MP., chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on the Ministry of Youth and Sports was the chief guest at the Friday's closing function and handed over prizes to the champions and runners-up team..
President of the tournament's co-organizer Banani Club Limited Rubel Aziz and President of the Bangladesh Billiards and Snooker Federation (BBSF) Muhammad Abdullah were also present om the occasion.
Champion Al Amin received prize money of Tk 5,00,000.00 (five lac) while runners-up Asif Imran got Tk 2,50,000 (two lac fifty thousand) as prize money. Tournament's highest breaker Ziaur Rahman Azad of Dhaka Club also awarded with Tk 1,00,000.00 (one lac).
Read: Asia Cup Hockey: Bangladesh suffer 0-8 defeat to Pakistan
Some 143 players from 21 teams across the country took part in the event.
Participating clubs were Dhaka Club Limited, Gulshan Club Limited, Uttara Club Limited, Banani Club Limited, Dhaka’s California Pool and Snooker Club, Bangladesh Billiard Center Limited, CTG Club Limited, Narayanganj Club Limited, Dhaka’s Breakers Pool and Snooker, Dhaka’s Q and U Billiard, Dhaka’s Rack and Break Billiard Center, Cumilla Club, Comilla City Club, Sylhet IT and Billiard Zone, Bangladesh Cue Sports, catholic club ctg, Golden break billiard, house of billiard, Sportex, Time pass 2.
What is it about French Open clay that makes for surprises?
Why is the French Open more likely to produce first-time and one-time Grand Slam champions than the Australian Open, Wimbledon or the U.S. Open? Why are there so many surprising results at Roland Garros? What distinguishes its red clay from the surfaces used at the three other major tennis tournaments?
THE CLAY
The French Open is the only Grand Slam tournament held on clay courts — which actually aren’t made of clay, but rather the dust from red brick on top of a layer of crushed white limestone.
Wimbledon, which begins this year on June 27, is famously contested on grass. The U.S. Open, which starts on Aug. 29, and Australian Open, held in January, each uses a different type of hard court.
The softness and speed-absorbing grab of clay courts slow down shots more than the other surfaces do, dulling speedy serves and groundstrokes. The clay’s grittiness magnifies the effect of heavy spin (think of 13-time Roland Garros champion Rafael Nadal’s uppercut lefty forehands), creating higher arcs as the balls rebound off the ground.
“Clay is a completely different surface from hard courts and grass,” said Tamara Zidansek, who reached the semifinals in Paris a year ago while ranked 85th. “It’s such a specific surface.”
Because booming serves and quick-strike forehands relied on by so many players are not as effective on clay as hard or grass courts, there is an increased reward for strategy, for switching speeds and spins, for drop shots.
Read: Asia Cup Hockey: Bangladesh suffer 0-8 defeat to Pakistan
“On clay, you have to hit a lot of balls to win matches. If you’re not quite 100 percent confident, it really shows up,” said International Tennis Hall of Fame member Martina Navratilova, who won two of her 18 Grand Slam titles at the French Open. “It’s harder to win matches when you’re not playing well.”
Katerina Siniakova, a Grand Slam doubles champion who beat then-No. 1 Naomi Osaka in the third round in Paris while ranked 42nd in 2019, described the effect of clay this way: “You have to really win the point. It’s not as easy as the hard courts to win a point, because it’s not so fast. A more creative player can play better on clay and use it as an advantage for them. You can’t use as much slice or drop shots on hard courts.”
ENDURANCE
Points tend to be longer. So do matches: Women’s matches in Paris last year averaged 1 hour, 39 minutes, 42 seconds; that’s 3 minutes longer than at the U.S. Open, more than 6 minutes longer than at the Australian Open, and more than 8 minutes longer than at Wimbledon. Men’s matches — which are best-of-five-sets; women’s are best-of-three — averaged 2 hours, 39 minutes, 24 seconds in 2021, 11 minutes longer than at the Australian Open and 6 minutes longer than at Wimbledon. Matches at the 2021 U.S. Open averaged 2 hours, 50 minutes, 35 seconds, but were shorter than at Roland Garros in previous years over the past decade.
THE ELEMENTS
All surfaces can be effected by the temperature, but clay courts tend to alter more in extreme heat and cold — Nadal’s quarterfinal win over No. 1 seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic in Paris on Tuesday night was contested with the temperature in the 50s Fahrenheit (teens Celsius) — or on a damp or breezy day.
“Grass does change a little, but I feel like the clay is alive. You have to play with it,” said Felix Auger-Aliassime, a semifinalist at last year’s U.S. Open. “Sometimes the clay is more dry and the bounce is going to be different. Other weeks, it’s very humid and very soft and it plays differently. The whole clay swing, from one week to another, the conditions change a lot.”
Read: Maharashtra Int'l GM Chess: Bangladeshi GM Enamul Hossain Razib shares 3rd place
It can be as simple as wind blowing dust off the top of the court at Roland Garros, creating patches that are thicker or thinner.
“I feel like people sometimes forget, because it’s red and it looks the same, but they don’t see the amount of clay,” said Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Belinda Bencic, who grew up mostly playing on indoor hard courts in Switzerland. “They don’t see how it changes. They don’t see how fast it is or how hard. You can’t see that on TV.”
MOVEMENT
Footwork is crucial on clay, which allows players to slide into shots. The trick is to do that properly.
Bencic, for example, says her open-stance way of hitting and lack of play on clay growing up make that aspect harder for her.
“My movement is not really made for clay. I have a huge advantage on grass because of my stance,” she said. “I have to think about it on clay. It doesn’t come naturally.”
THE SPECIALISTS
Some players, particularly from Europe or South America, learn the sport on clay. Folks agree that can be a significant advantage.
“You get a lot of guys that it is ... their ‘home’ surface, kind of what they grew up playing on. That’s what suits their game and so they’re much more comfortable on it than I am,” said Taylor Fritz, an American seeded 13th in Paris who lost to Bernabe Zapata Miralles, a Spanish qualifier ranked outside the top 125. “And maybe I wouldn’t lose to lots of these people on a hard court, but on a clay court, on any given day, there’s definitely more people that I could lose to.”
THE SEASON
There are far fewer events on clay than hard courts. The ATP calendar for 2022 includes 39 tournaments on hard courts, 12 on clay and eight on grass. The current WTA program for this season shows 30 on hard courts, 14 on clay and seven on grass.
So it stands to reason that pros might prefer to focus their efforts on the more frequently used surfaces.
Also, as Djokovic explained, there is an adjustment when the European clay-court circuit that leads up to the French Open arrives.
“Historically it always has required some time and several tournaments to really feel comfortable playing on clay,” he said. “Rarely did I feel my best on clay in the first or second tournament in the season.”
Maharashtra Int'l GM Chess: Bangladeshi GM Enamul Hossain Razib shares 3rd place
Bangladeshi Grand Master Enamul Hossain Razib shared the 3rd position in the First Maharashtra Open Grandmaster Chess Tournament with 14 others players securing three points each after the 4rd round matches held in the Indian town of Pune in Maharashtra, India on Thursday (June 2).GM Razib drew with Indian IM Ramnathan Balasubramaniam in the 3rd round game on Wednesday while he beat Indian FM Ayush Sharma in the 4th round match Thursday morning.
Read: Asia Cup Hockey: Bangladesh suffer 0-8 defeat to PakistanA total of 142 players from 13 countries, including 20 grandmasters, 5 women grandmasters, 29 International Masters and 8 Women International Masters are taking part in the event.
Asia Cup Hockey: Bangladesh suffer 0-8 defeat to Pakistan
Bangladesh conceded a humiliating 0-8 goal defeat against former World Cup, Olympics and Asia Cup champions Pakistan in the 5th place deciding match of the Hero Asia Cup Hockey '2022 at the GBK Hockey Field in the Indonesian capital Jakarta on Wednesday (June 1).
After the match, Bangladesh, which achieved their ever-best world ranking of 27 in the FIH Men's Field Hockey a couple of days ago, had to satisfy with the 6th place in the eight- nation Asia Cup Hockey' 2022.
In the day's keenly contested final, South Korea clinched the prestigious Asia Cup Hockey crown for a record 5th times after 1994, 1999, 2009 and 2013, beating formidable Malaysia by 2-1 goals at the same venue Wednesday evening.
Jang Hyun of South Korea was adjudged the best player of the Tournament while Razie Rahim of Malaysia named as the highest scorer of the Tournament scoring 13 goals..
Earlier, In the day's 3rd place deciding match, last time champions India finished 3rd in the just concluded Hero Asia Cup beating Japan by 1-0 goal at the same venue Wednesday afternoon.
With the frustrating defeat in the day's 5th place deciding match, Bangladesh's losing record against four times World champions, three times Olympics and Asia Cup champions Pakistan has continued, since their first meeting in 1982.
Earier, Pakistan beat Bangladesh 9-0 in 1982, 1-0 in the Asia Cup in Dhaka in 1985, 6-0 in 1999, 8-0 in 2003, 10-0 in 2007, 7-0 in 2017 and 6-2 in Dhaka in 2021.
In the match against Bangladesh, Mubashar Ali struck two, Ali Rizwan, Afraz, Abdul Shahid, captain Umar Bhutta, Ajaz Ahmed and Ghazanfar Ali scored one each for Pakistan, which dominated the first half by 2-0 goals.
Earlier, Bangladesh finished 3rd in the four-team Pool B of the Asia Cup Hockey 2022 beating Oman by 2-1 goals in group match and entered the dream battle of 5th place beating hosts Indonesia by 4-2 goals in a classification match last Sunday.
Pakistan, which finished 3rd in the four-team Pool A of the Asia Cup, entered the 5th place battle beating Pool B bottom team Oman by 5-2 goals in another classification match last Saturday.
Prizes of Inter-Bank Chess Tournament distributed
The prize distribution ceremony of the Inter-Bank Chess Tournament’ 2022, organised by Bangladesh Chess Federation and co-organised by Like Mart and Sports Bangla was held at the Chess Federation Hall-Room of the National Sports Council Tuesday afternoon. Chairman of the Palli Sanchay Bank M. Akram-Al-Hossain was the chief guest at the day’s function and later he distributed prizes among the winners.
Also read:Inter-Bank Chess Championship prize distribution ceremony Tuesday
Deputy Managing Director of Sonali Bank Limited M. Mojibur Rahman, General Manager of Janata Bank Limited Masfiul Bari, President of the meet co-organiser Sports-Bangla Arifuzzaman Arif, among others, were present at the function, chaired by vice president of Bangladesh Chess Federation KM Shahidullah. Champions Janata Bank Limited received a cash prize money of Taka 1,00,000 (one lac) ,runners-up Sonali Bank Limited got Tk 50,000 (fifty thousand), and the 3rd ranked BRAC Bank richer with Tk 25,000 (twenty five thousand) in addition to trophies and medals.
Also read: Asian Online Chess: Bappi Sarkar of Bangladesh stands 6th Besides, all the participating teams were awarded with the trophies.
Asia Cup Hockey: Bangladesh take on mighty Pakistan on Wednesday
Bangladesh will play former World Cup, Olympics and Asia Cup champions Pakistan in the 5th place deciding classification match of the Asia Cup Hockey '2022 on Wednesday (June 1).
The match will kick-off at 12:30 pm Bangladesh time at the GBK Hockey Field in the Indonesian capital Jakarta.
Also read:Asia Cup Hockey: Bangladesh beat Indonesia 4-2, play Pakistan on Wednesday
In the last meeting, four times World champions, three times Olympics and Asia Cup champions Pakistan outplayed Bangladesh by 6-2 goals in the Asian Champions Trophy in Dhaka last year.
Bangladesh never won any match against Pakistan since their first meeting in 1982.
Pakistan beat Bangladesh 9-0 in 1982, 1-0 in the Asia Cup in Dhaka in 1985, 6-0 in 1999, 8-0 in 2003, 10-0 in 2007, 7-0 in 2017 and 6-2 in Dhaka in 2021.
Bangladesh, which achieved their ever-best world ranking of 27 in the Men's Field Hockey, published by FIH very recently, entered the dream battle of 5th place after beating hosts Indonesia by 4-2 goals in another classification match last Sunday.
This was the 4th consecutive win for Bangladesh against Indonesia within last two months.
Bangladesh beat Indonesia 7-2 in the AHF Cup Hockey in Jakarta last March, again defeated Indonesia 3-1 in the Asian Games Hockey Qualifier in Bangkok early this month and beat Indonesia last by 2-1 goals in a preparatory match ahead of the ongoing Hero Men's Asia Cup Hockey' 2022.
Also read: Asia Cup Hockey: Bangladesh concede 1-8 goal defeat against Malaysia
Earlier, Bangladesh finished 3rd in the four-team Pool B of the ongoing Asia Cup Hockey securing three points from three matches after beating their traditional rivals Oman by 2-1 goals.
Pakistan, which finished 3rd in the four-team Pool A of the Asia Cup, entered the 5th place battle beating Pool B bottom team Oman by 5-2 goals at the same venue last Saturday.
Inter-Bank Chess Championship prize distribution ceremony Tuesday
The prize distribution ceremony of the Inter-Bank Chess Team Championship 2022 will be held at the National Sports Council Tuesday.
Palli Sanchay Bank Chairman Md Akram-Al-Hossain will hand out prizes to the winners of the competition organised by the Bangladesh Chess Federation, Like Mart, and Sports -Bangla.
Also Read: Asian Online Chess: Bappi Sarkar of Bangladesh stands 6th
Janata Bank became unbeaten champion in the inter-bank chess tournament, securing 13 points.
Sonali Bank finished runners-up with 9 points.
Asian Online Chess: Bappi Sarkar of Bangladesh stands 6th
Two Bangladeshi players --Bappi Sarkar and Syed Ejaz Hossain became 6th and 7th in the Visual Impaired Open Group of the Asian Online Chess Championships for Players with Disabilities.
Both Bappi and Ejaz both scored three points each from five games and Bappi finished sixth and Ejaz seventh in the tie-breaking system.
Marufa Azad Sukanna of Bangladesh bagged three points from five matches and was placed 4th in the Disability Women's Group.
Also Read: KIIT Int’l Chess: Bangladeshi GM Ziaur Rahman finish 15th
Sharmi Roy of Bangladesh finished 9th with one point.
The three-day event took place on the online chess platform Tornelo.