Rivaan Dev Preetham, Arshi Gupta dazzle at Indian National Karting Championship
Local lad Rivaan Dev Preetham (MSPORT) and Faridabad’s Arshi Gupta (Leapfrog Racing) delivered stunning performances to top the Junior and Mini Max categories, respectively, in the second round of the Indian National Karting Championship at the Madras International Karting Arena (MIKA) on Sunday.
The two defending champions, Rivaan and Arshi, underlined their talent by winning both Pre-Finals and Finals races in a commanding fashion on a day that witnessed hectic action with Mumbai’s Krish Gupta (Leapfrog Racing) and Bengaluru’s Zidaan Arshaan Anees (Peregrine Racing) winning the Finals in Senior and Micro classes, respectively.
In all, the second round attracted 75 entries with a record 32 in the Senior Max class.
Krish had to fight hard for his win in the Senior Max Final after starting mid-grid even as pole-sitter and winner of Pre-Finals, Pune’s Arafath Sheikh (Crest Motorsports) lost his track position early in the 18-lap race which also saw different drivers exchanging leads initially. However, in the latter part of the race, Krish surged to the front and kept his lead for a fine win with Rayo Racing’s Kiaan Shah (Rayo Racing) and Laksh Manish Bafna (Leapfrog Racing) filling up the remaining two podium spots.
Earlier, in the Pre-Finals, Arafath pulled off a stunning overtake in the last lap to edge out pole-sitter Laksh in a thrilling finish. Arafath’s teammate Arjun Chheda, also from Pune, was third with less than a second separating the trio. Three Bengalureans, Round 1 winner Rohaan Madesh, Rishon Rajeev and Akshat Misra, completed the top six in that order and in close formation.
In the Junior Max category, it was Rivaan Dev Preetham all the way. Having topped the Qualifying and the Heats sessions on Saturday, he started the day by winning the Pre-Finals race with a dominating performance as he spared 5.1 seconds to second-placed Hridaan Sanadhya while Swarnav Das came in third.
In the Finals, Rivaan came up with a repeat performance, comfortably winning the race untroubled, with Swarnav and Hridaan again completing the podium.
Similarly, Arshi extended her domination in the Mini Max category, as she virtually destroyed the field in both Pre-Finals and Finals. In both races, she enjoyed good starts and increased her lead with every lap, and her position as the leader was never threatened or challenged. Another standout performance in this class came from her teammate Rudrapratap Singh Shekhawat (Gurugram) who was placed third in the Finals despite starting last on the grid.
-Team Sportstar
Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20: Shivamogga win title despite Samit Dravid’s show
All-rounder Samit Dravid’s 4 for 36 and a run-a-ball 37 couldn’t prevent Shivamogga Yodhas from clinching its maiden DACCS Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20 title after defeating Bengaluru Blasters by four wickets in a thrilling final at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Chasing 186 for victory, skipper Luvnith Sisodia produced a match-winning 87 off 45 deliveries before Aneesh KV’s unbeaten 38 off just 19 balls guided the Yodhas home with two balls to spare.
Batting first after winning the toss, Bengaluru Blasters made an aggressive start through Bhuvan Mohan Raju (23 off 10) before Abhilash Shetty provided the breakthrough by dismissing the opener.
Captain Shubhang Hegde (31 off 31) and Dravid (37 off 37) steadied the innings with a 56-run partnership for the fourth wicket, but Shivamogga continued to chip away with regular wickets to reduce the Blasters to 127 for 6 in the 17th over.
The Yodhas made a confident start to the chase with Sisodia taking the attack to the Blasters bowlers from the outset.
The left-hander struck nine fours and four sixes in a sublime 45-ball 87, adding 68 runs with Naveen MG before sharing a rapid 53-run stand in 22 balls with Aneesh KV that swung the final decisively in Shivamogga’s favour.
Brief scores: Bengaluru Blasters 185/8 in 20 overs (Samit Dravid 37, Shubhang Hegde 31, Wahid Faizan Khan 29, Rohan Naveen 25 not out; Dhanush Gowda 2-38) lost to Shivamogga Yodhas 186/6 in 19.4 overs (Luvnith Sisodia 87, Aneesh KV 38, Naveen MG 24; Samit Dravid 4-36).
-PTI
Pondy Premier League 2026: Villianur remain unstoppable
Spinners Alim Shaikhlal Shaikh and Bharat Bhushan Sharma shared six wickets to derail Ossudu Accord Warriors’ chase in a low-scoring clash as defending champions Villianur Mohit Kings won by three runs for their fifth win in as many matches in the third Shriram Capital-Pondicherry Premier League at the Siechem Stadium on Monday.
Ossudu did well to restrict Villianur to 139/9 after opting to bowl first, and appeared to hold an edge as Impact Player Krishna Pandey struck 37, before faltering under pressure for their first loss in four matches.
Brief scores: Villianur Mohit Kings 139/9 in 20 overs (Piyush Sain 2-24, Sidak Singh 2-18, Rahul Rajeev 2-19, Sagar Trivedi 2-31) bt Ossudu Accord Warriors 136 all out in 19.3 overs (Krishna Pandey 37, Alim Shaikhlal Shaikh 3-13, Bharat Bhushan Sharma 3-19). Player of the match: Alim Shaikh.
-Team Sportstar
UPT20 Season 4 to begin on August 14; Raina returns as brand ambassador
The season four of UP T20 League scheduled in Kanpur and Lucknow will feature 34 games, starting August 14.
The 24-day tournament will have 13 double header matchdays, the organisers announced on Sunday.
The mini auction will be held in Agra on July 24 with 45 player slots available across the league’s six franchises.
The opening phase of the tournament will be played at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow, where 22 matches are scheduled across 13 days.
The second phase will shift to the Green Park Stadium, Kanpur, which will host the remaining 12 matches over 11 days.
Former India cricketer and Chennai Super Kings legend Suresh Raina will continue as the Brand Ambassador of the UPT20 League.
“Thanks to their encouragement, UPT20 Season 4 will, for the first time, be hosted across two cities, Lucknow and Kanpur. This landmark decision aims to expand cricket across Uttar Pradesh, make better use of the state’s sporting infrastructure, and bring the league closer to a larger fan base,” said the UPCA in a statement.
-PTI
9 Indians enter finals, 6 bronze medals secured in Asian U-19 Boxing C’ships
India continued its dominant run at the Asian Boxing Championships on Monday with nine boxers advancing to the finals across U-19 men’s and women’s categories, while six boxers secured bronze medals following the semifinal bouts here.
All eight Indian women boxers delivered outstanding performances to reach the finals.
Chahat (60kg) secured a commanding 5:0 win over Pei-Chun Tsai (TPE), while Anshika (75kg) registered an RSC win in the first round against An-Chi Tseng (TPE).
Megha Sheokand (80kg) advanced after her opponent from Vietnam was unable to continue (abandoned bout), and Prachi Tokas (+81kg) sealed her place in the final with an RSC victory in the first round against Shu-Shian Wang (TPE).
Along with earlier winners, India confirmed all eight finalists in the U-19 women’s category.
In the U-19 Men’s category, two Indian boxers progressed to the finals.
Aditya (55kg) delivered a strong performance, defeating Korea’s Hyeonmin Lee via RSC in the second round, while Shubham Rajput (90kg) secured a hard-fought 3:2 victory over Kyrgyzstan’s Aitbek Berdimuratov.
Six boxers signed off with bronze medals after losing the semifinals.
On Sunday, eight Indian boxers had advanced to the finals across men’s and women’s U-23 categories.
In the U-23 women’s category, five Indian boxers moved to the finals.
Nisha (54kg) defeated Hyeju Lee of Korea, while Nikita Chand (60kg) registered a win against Sarii Kokufu of Japan.
Kajal (65kg) sailed past Gulzina Melsvek of Kyrgyzstan on Sunday. In all the bouts, referees had to stop the contest due to the Indians’ overwhelming domination.
In the higher weight categories, Muskan (75kg) won 5:0 against Toirova Oysha of Uzbekistan while Priyanka (+80kg) recorded an emphatic 5:0 win over Panar Seiitkhankyzy Kazakhstan.
In the U-23 men’s category, three Indian boxers advanced to the finals.
Vishvanath Suresh (50kg) delivered a commanding 5:0 win over his Philippines opponent, while Ganga (55kg) edged past Japan with a 3:2 split decision.
Vanshaj (65kg) also impressed with a 4:1 victory over a Kyrgyzstan opponent to secure his place in the final.
India also added seven bronze medals from semifinal finishes.
In the U-23 women’s category, bronze medals were secured by Tanu (51kg), Prachi (57kg), Shivani (70kg), and Naina (80kg).
In the U-23 men’s category, bronze medals were won by Hitesh (70kg), Neeraj (75kg), and Ishan Kataria (+90kg).
-PTI
Divyanshi wins girls’ U-13 title in European Junior squash
Indian top seed Divyanshi Jain won the girls’ under-13 crown at the European Junior Open squash in Hamburg on Sunday, beating Egypt’s Talia Eslam 12-10, 11-9, 11-2 in the final.
Compatriots Aaron Arambhan (boys’ U-13) and Dhruv Johri (boys’ U-15) took bronze with semifinal finishes in their respective categories.
-Team Sportstar
Sanya Vats in Chennai HCL Squash PSA Challenger semis
Sanya Vats was the lone Indian to advance to the semifinals of the HCL Squash PSA Challenger Tour-Chennai at the Indian Squash Academy on Monday.
Fourth seed Sanya beat eighth seed compatriot Unnati Tripathi in four games in the women’s quarterfinals, and will take on Egyptian top seed Rouqaia Othman in the last-four stage.
-Team Sportstar
Doubles Dream of India is now ‘Tennis Dream of India’ by the Rohan Bopanna Tennis Development Foundation
The Rohan Bopanna Tennis Development Foundation (RBTDF) on Monday said that the Doubles Dream of India programme conceptualised jointly by the Pune Metropolitan District Tennis Association (PMDTA) and Rohan Bopanna and supported for the past several years by PMDTA and KPIT Technologies (along with support from Avendus and other institutions) is now transitioning to RBTDF and will be rebranded as Tennis Dream of India.
The program has helped seven players to breaking into the top 100 of the world doubles rankings.
This announcement reveals that the organisation will now support singles talent as well.
Tennis Dream of India will be based out of the Rohan Bopanna Tennis Academy (RBTA) facility in Bengaluru, giving the athletes access to world-class training infrastructure as they pursue their professional careers. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Tennis Dream of India will be based out of the Rohan Bopanna Tennis Academy (RBTA) facility in Bengaluru, giving the athletes access to world-class training infrastructure as they pursue their professional careers.
Former World No. 1 and two-time Grand Slam champion Rohan Bopanna, who is the Programme Mentor, said, “PMDTA, KPIT and Mr. Patil have been true partners in this journey from the very beginning, and their belief in Indian tennis talent has helped shape this programme into what it is today. As we take this next step forward, I want to thank Mr. Kishor Patil personally for his continued involvement, support and commitment and I’m delighted that he’ll now be guiding this mission even more closely as Director of RBTDF.
-Team Sportstar
Former World No. 1s headline World Padel League Season 4 squads
Mumbai’s SVP Stadium is set to welcome some of the biggest names in international padel from August 12 to 16, as the World Padel League (WPL) unveiled the six franchise squads ahead of Season 4.
Featuring former World No. 1s, Premier Padel champions, established tour winners and some of the sport’s brightest emerging talents, this year’s edition promises the strongest lineup ever assembled for the league.
The marquee names taking centre stage are former World No. 1s Paula Josemaría, Marta Ortega, and Carlos Daniel (Sanyo) Gutierrez, alongside Premier Padel winner Jon Sanz and experienced campaigners in Lucas Campagnolo and Luciano Capra.
-Team Sportstar
Aditi Ashok finishes T-56th as Korea’s Ryu wins another Major
Indian golfer Aditi Ashok faltered in the final round with a three-over 74 and ended a modest tied 56th at the 2026 Amundi Evian Championship.
South Korea’s Hae Ran Ryu clinched back-to-back Major after rolling in her birdie putt during the first playoff hole to win the Championship.
Aditi, who shot 70-70-69 on the first three days, was on the lookout for a good finish, but a bogey start and two more on the fifth and sixth proved costly.
She managed just two birdies on the third and the 13th against four bogeys for a 74.
Ryu, who won the 2026 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship just two weeks ago, defeated Canada’s Brooke Henderson in the playoff. It was a special moment for Ryu, who won the Amundi Evian Juniors Cup in 2015, at the same golf course.
-PTI
Average finish for Indian-origin players as Tom Kim wins Scottish Open
The Indian-origin contingent endured a disappointing finish as Sahith Theegala and Sudarshan Yellamaraju slipped down the leaderboard with underwhelming final-round performances in the Scottish Open golf tournament here.
South Korea’s Tom Kim completed an impressive return to the winner’s circle, producing a flawless bogey-free final-round six-under 64 to claim the title by two strokes over Australia’s Min Woo Lee.
Indo-Canadian Yellamaraju, who has been one of the rising stories of the season, was going great after rounds of 68 and a brilliant 65 lifted him into the top-10 midway through the event. Kim finished at 17-under-par, collecting his fourth PGA TOUR title and his first since successfully defending the Shriners Children’s Open in October 2023.
The 23-year-old endured a difficult final round in challenging conditions and carded a seven-over 77 to finish tied for 52nd.
Indian-American Theegala also failed to make significant progress over the weekend. Theegala closed with a one-over 71 to finish tied for 66th. It was another steady but unspectacular week for the 2024 Presidents Cup player, who continues to search for consistency after returning from injury earlier this season.
Former Scottish Open champion and reigning PGA Championship winner Aaron Rai was unable to make the weekend after rounds of 71 and 70 left him outside the cut line.
-PTI
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Published on Jul 13, 2026