Day 7, Tokyo Olympics: Medal Assured for Lovlina; Sindhu & Hockey Teams Win
2020 Tokyo Olympics: Indian men's hockey team win 5-3 vs Japan. Novak Djokovic knocked out by Alexander Zverev.
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Boxer Lovlina Borgohain's assures India a medal, SF bout on 4 August at 11 am
PV Sindhu defeated Akane Yamaguchi in the QF and will face world number one Tai Tzu Ying in the semi-final
Archer Deepika Kumari ousted in quarter-finals
Women's hockey team beats Ireland, QFs still a possibility
Shooters Manu Bhaker, Rahi Sarnobat fail to make it to the final
Avinash Sable creates new national record in Men's 3000m Steeplechase, misses out on final
India's men's hockey team finished their group stage with a 5-3 win against Japan.
Mixed 4x400m Relay: Round 1 Heat 2
India’s team of Muhammad Anas Yahiya, Revathi Veeramani, Subha Venkatesan and Rajiv Arokia were knocked out after finishing last among the 8 teams in their heat.
The United States will not be among the teams competing in the finals as they have been disqualified.
Hockey: India vs Japan: India Win 5-3
Q4: Japan came out attacking again as they looked for an equaliser, allowing India to use the open spaces well. And Nilakanta, who had a good game up until them, finally got his goal with 9 minutes to go. India led 4-2 before another PC came their way a couple of minutes later but could not extend their lead further.
With 4 minutes to go, Gurjant redirected Varun's pass off a PC to extend the lead to 5-2. Just the prep India needed ahead of the quarter-final.
Japan however continued to give it their best shot and scoring a third through Murata with 80 seconds to go.
India however held on to register their 3rd straight win in Pool A on their way to the QF.
Hockey: India vs Japan: India Leads 3-2
Q3: After the break, the hosts came out looking for a second goal and 3 minutes in Kota Watanabe equalised. But India hit back right after with as Shamsher gets a deflection through his stick to put the ball safely past the goalkeeper, to put India back in the lead - all this in the first 5 minutes of the quarter.
There were no further goals with India continuing to be in the ascendancy.
Hockey: India vs Japan: India Leads 2-1 at HT
Q2: India continue to dominate the hosts and extend their lead early on in the second quarter when Gurjant Singh found the back of the net from close range. Kenta Tanaka pulled one back for Japan but India went into Half-time with their noses ahead at 2-1.
No Golden Slam for Novak Djokovic
World Number 1 Novak Djokovic was beaten by Alexander Zverev in the semi-final 6-1, 3-6, 1-6 in 2 hrs and 3 minutes.
Zverev will now face the winner of the second semi-final between Karen Khachanov and Pablo Carreno Busta. Djokovic, meanwhile, is still not done with the Games as he will appear in the mixed-doubles semi-final alongside Nina Stojanovic, facing Russians Aslan Karatsev and Elena Vesnina.
Hockey: India vs Japan: India Leads 1-0
Q1: India were the stronger side from the get-go, not allowing Japan give Sreejesh too much think about. Some slick moves from India pushed Japan back into their half further before a PC was converted by Harmanpreet. India ended Q1 with a 1-0 lead, looking to finish the Pool with 4 wins.
Hockey: India vs Japan
This is India's last match in the group stage and they are assured of 2nd place. The top 4 move into the quarters. India will hope to keep their momentum going against the hosts, who are bottom of the group.
PV Sindhu vs Akane Yamaguchi - Q/F
Game 2: The Indian continued to dominate her opponent in the second game, absorbing some early pressure before racing away 11-6 lead in 14 minutes.
After the break, the Indian continued to be a step ahead even as Yamaguchi tried her best to fight back, cutting down the lead to 2 at 15-13. The Japanese continued to pick off the points taking the lead at 15-16 after a couple of intense and well contested rallies.
Yamaguchi led 18-16 after that before Sindhu brought it back to 18-18. The Indian then saved to game points in emphatic fashion to take it to 20-20.
Sindhu rode the momentum and eventually wrapped up the intense contest at 22-20 in a match that lasted 56 minutes.
Sindhu moves into the Semi-final of the singles competition.
PV Sindhu vs Akane Yamaguchi - Q/F
Game 1: Yamaguchi races away to a quick 4-2 lead using the depth of the court well to trouble the Indian. Sindhu however clawed back with the help of a little luck and a drop shot. At the break in the first game, Sindhu leads the game at 11-7.
Once the momentum was on her side, Sindhu started racing away with the first game and Yamaguchi found harder to keep up. Sindhu eventually took the first game at 21-13 in 23 minutes.
PV Sindhu vs Akane Yamaguchi - Q/F
Sindhu has a 11-7 head-to-head record against the Yamaguchi. Sindhu had last beaten Yamaguchi at the All England Championship in March this year.
The contest is being played at Court 1 in the Musashino Forest Plaza.
PV Sindhu vs Akane Yamaguchi - Q/F
It's the big one we've all been waiting for. PV Sindhu takes on local favourite Akane Yamaguchi in the quarter-final.
Up Next - Badminton: It will be PV Sindhu who will face Japan's Akane Yamaguchi in their singles quarter-final match at 1.15 pm.
Meanwhile, an Olympic silver medallist has a message for pugilist Lovlina Borgohain.
Sailing Update: Vishnu Saravanan finishes 9th in race 9 of the men's one person dinghy-laser event. He is currently 20th in the overall rankings. Race 10 to follow soon.
Earlier, Nethra finished Race 9 of the women's one person dinghy-laser radial event on the 37th spot and Race 10 on the 38th spot. She is 35th overall.
KC Ganapathy and Varun Thakkar finish 17th, 11th and 16th in Race 7, 8 and 9 of the Men's Skiff - 49er event. Currently placed 17th with three more races to go.
Archery: Set 3 begins. Kumari fires a 7. An 8 for San. An 8 for Kumari now. San shoots a 9. Kumari follows it up with a 9. San An shoots a 9. Wins Set 3 26-24. Wins the match 6-0. Deepika Kumari's journey ends. San An is through to the semi-finals. A comprehensive win for her.
This was Deepika's best-ever individual finish at the Olympics.
Archery: Kumari to start proceedings in Set 2. Fires a 10. San shoots a 9. Kumari shoots a low 7 again. A 10 for San in shot two. The seven is going to hurt Kumari. Another 7 for Kumari. San too scores a 7 but wins the set 26-24. Goes 4-0 up.
San An fires three 10s in a row in Set 1 to finish with 30. Kumari starts with a 7 but follows it up by two 10s. It's not enough though. Loses the first set 27-30. San An goes 2-0 up.
Archery: Deepika Kumari's quarterfinal clash against Korea's San An, seeded number one, is about to begin.
Golf Update: Anirban Lahiri sits tied-18th through six holes. He is on-par for round two and 4-under overall. Udayan Mane is tied-59th through 13 holes. He is on-par for round two and five above overall.
Hockey: The Indian women's team finally get their first win. After 14 failed PCs, Navneet Kaur scored the winner for India in the 57th minute. India currently placed fifth in Pool A with one win and three losses after four games. Their last group match will be against South Africa. QF dream remains alive.
Hockey: Another save by McFerran. Saves it with her stick. And GOAL FOR INDIA. 1-0. FINALLY! Rani's reverse hit is deflected in by Navneet Kaur to the back of the net. A top-four finish in this group is still possible. Last few seconds left in the game.
Hockey: Q4 begins. India need to score. A green card for Salima Tete. Both teams trying hard to break the deadlock. Attack by Ireland but an excellent save by Savita. Less than 5 minutes left in the game. Has been an energetic quarter with a lot of runs but still no goals. Deirdre Duke shoots and another great save by Savita.
Hockey: India has had 14 PCs so far and it's still 0-0. A special mention for Ireland goalkeeper Ayeisha McFerran who has been amazing in this game. End of Q3 and it's still 0-0.
Hockey: Salima Tete on the attack. A good run by her. But to no avail. Sharmila Devi on the run. Shoots. But its saved by McFerran with her left hand. 0-0. Over 5 minutes left in Q3. Vandana Kataria takes a shot at goal. It has no power. Hits the Ireland defender. PC for India. A different strategy by India this time. Saved again by the defender. On the attack again. Conversion remains a problem.
Hockey: Shot at goal by Rani Rampal. Another PC for India. A poor shot at goal. 0-0. India ask for a referral after a PC is awarded to Ireland. PC for Ireland. Saved by the defender and now India is on the attack. Lalremsiami passes the ball to Navneet Kaur who hits it wide. Wasn't in control of the shot.
Hockey: Start of Q3. Shot at goal by Rani Rampal. Saved by the defender. Gets deflected to Neha who is milimetres shot of getting a touch. Video referral for India. Attacking start by India. No advice possible. India keep the referral. Match continues. India still on the attack. A PC for India now.
Hockey: India has fired 11 shots at goal as compared to Ireland's 4. They have also had 10 PCs and 13 circle penetrations but have failed to convert. Ireland has enjoyed a better possession though. It is a must win game for India.
Hockey: PC for India. Grace takes a shot at goal. Gets rebounded to an Ireland player. Another PC for India. Grace again. Another PC for India. The players seem to be struggling in the heat. Fail to convert it. McFerran at her best. Won't let the ball go in. Another PC for India. Grace again. Does not take a direct shot. Passes it to a player near the goal who tries to deflect it in but fails as the ball hits the sidebar. Hooter goes off. 0-0. Dominant performance by India so far in the match. But they need to score.
Hockey: Q2 begins. Better start by Ireland. PC for Ireland but Savita saves Lizzy Holden's shot. Lalremsiami shoots towards goal. Saved by McFerran.
Ireland ask for a video referral. Has been upheld. A PC for Ireland. Over 5 minutes left in the quarter. Fail to convert it. India on the attack now.
Lovely run by Selima Tete. A weak shot at goal by India.
McFerran has made some impressive saves so far in the match.
Hockey: India-Ireland finish Q1 of their Pool A match 0-0. It's a must-win match for India. The women have started well. But failed to convert their PCs.
Athletics: Dutee Chand clocks 11.54, finishes 7th in the Women's 100m Round 1 Heat 5. Fails to qualify. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce tops the heat with 10.85.
BREAKING: BOXER LOVLINA BORGOHAIN ENTERS SEMI-FINALS. ASSURES INDIA ITS SECOND MEDAL.
Will face Turkey's Busenaz Surmeneli, current world number 1, in the semi-finals on August 4.
Boxing: Round 3 begins. Borgohain is up by 2 points on 3 cards. The pressure is on Chen. She needs a dominant performance. Lovlina looking confident. Chen lands a right to her face. Just a minute left now. A few seconds left. Lovlina knows she has won it. Judges award Round 3 to Lovlina. Wins by split decision. 4-1.
LOVLINA ASSURES A BRONZE FOR HERSELF AND 2ND MEDAL FOR INDIA.
Boxing: Round 2 begins. Borohain gets in a couple of body shots. A close match. A timeout. Just a minute left. Clever and effective play from Lovlina. Lovlina's team can be heard shouting, encouraging her. Judges award Round 2 to Lovlina. This time a unanimous decision.
Boxing: Lovlina Borgohain's Women's Welter 64-69kg Quarter-final Bout against Chinese Taipei's Nien-Chin Chen begins.
Lovlina in Red. Has a slight height advantage. Gets in a good couple of punches. Lovlina ducks and Chen almost slips. Chen gets a good solid right-hand in. Lovely footwork from her. Is quick on her feet. Both had their moments though. Judges award the round to Lovlina 3-2.
Athletics: MP Jabir finishes 7th (last) in Men’s 400m Hurdles Round 1 Heat 5 with a time of 50.77.
Boxing: Sudaporn is quick on her feet. Gets in a solid bodyshot. The result seems inevitable. The Thai pugilist is able to duck Simranjit's shots easily. In the last minute of Round 3. Gets in a couple of shots to the face with ease. Is aggressive and confident in her approach. As expected, Sudaporn wins by unanimous decision (5:0). One sided match, to say the least.
Boxing: Round 2 begins. Sudaporn lands a few right in the centre of Simranjit's face. The southpaw is cleary dominating. Judges award Round 2 to Sudaporn as well.
Boxing: Simranjit Kaur's Women’s 57-60kg Round of 16 Match against Sudaporn Seesondee of Thailand begins.
Simranjit playing it safe and smart. Gets a few hard right punches in. Has the height advantage. Sudaporn retaliates with a body shot and then a couple of shots to the head. Few seconds left. Judges award the round to Sudaporn.
A busy hour ahead!
8.18 am - Boxing: Simranjit Kaur vs Sudaporn Seesondee (Thailand) in the Women’s 60kg Round of 16 Match
8.27 am - Athletics: M P Jabir in Men’s 400m Hurdles Round 1 Heat 5
8.35 am - Sailing: KC Ganapathy and Varun Thakkar in Men’s Skiff 49er Race 7, 8 and 9; Nethra Kumanan in Women’s Laser Radial Race 9 and 10
8.48 am - Boxing: Lovlina Borgohain vs Nien-Chin Chen (Chinese Taipei) in Women’s 69kg Quarter-final Bout
9.15 am - Hockey: India vs Ireland in Women’s Pool A Match
9.17 am - Athletics: Dutee Chand in Women’s 100m Round 1 Heats
Hockey Update: Indian women's hockey match against Ireland, which was to start at 8.15 am IST, has been delayed due to heavy rain. Will start at 9.15 am.
Shooting: Both the Indians fail to qualify to the final. Disappointing! The event is still going on, but there are 11 shooters with a better score than Manu (12th) and only the top 8 qualify. Rahi in 30th place.
Bulgaria's Antoaneta Kostadinova is at the top of the table with a 590 in both the rounds. She is followed by ROC's Vitalina Batsarashkina at 586. Germany's Doreen Vennekamp is 3rd with a 586 as well.
Shooting: Bhaker finished the two stages of the 25m Pistol Women's Qualification Round with a total score of 582 (292 in Precision and 290 in Rapid). Currently in 11th place.
Sarnobat had finished with an overall score of 573 (Precision: 287 + Rapid: 286). Ranked 32nd.
Shooting: Bhaker starts Series 3 with two 10s, a 9 and another two 10s. A low 8 followed by four 10s. Finishes Series 3 with a 97, which takes her score in the rapid stage to 290, higher than Rahi's score of 286.
Manu finishes both the stages with a total score of 582: 292 in Precision and 290 in Rapid. Is currently ranked 11th. Not the final ranking as the event is still going on.
The final will be held later in the day.
Shooting: Excellent start for Bhaker in Series 2. Seven 10s in a row. Follows it up with three 9s. Finishes Series 2 at 97. Total score in rapid stage after first two series is 193. Currently in 12th position. The top 8 shooters will qualify to the final.
Shooting: Manu Bhaker is in action in the 25m Pistol Women's Qualification Rapid Stage.
Finishes Series 1 with a 96 (7 10s, 2 9s and an 8).
Archery Update: Deepika Kumari to face Korea's San An in the quarter-finals at 11.30 am.
Athletics: Avinash Sable finishes 7th in the Men's 3000m Steeplechase Round 1 Heat 2 with a time of 8:18.2. That's a national record for him! Broke his own national record of 8:20.20, which he had clocked at the 24th National Federation Cup Senior Athletics Championships in March.
However, he has failed to qualify. Misses qualification by just one place. So close! Three runners, who were in the top three of their heat, will feature in the finals despite having timings slower than Sable. If he was in Heat 3 and not 2, he would have qualified. Pity!
Finishes 13th out of 44 overall. Qualifies for the 2022 World Championship to be held in Oregon, United States.
Avinash finished the first 1000m with a time of 2:46.6, was 6th.
Avinash finished 2000m with a time of 5:33.6, was coming 7th.
Archery: Shootoff time! Ksenia scores a 7. Deepika fires a 10. Wins shootoff and match 6-5. Enters quarter-finals. She will face the winner of the contest between Korea's An San & Japan's Ren Hayakawa. The quarter-finals will be held from 11:15 AM to 12:00 PM.
Archery: Ksenia starts Set 5 with a 9. A low 7 for Deepika. Ksenia fires a 10. Deepika too manages a 10. Ksenia with a 9 in her 3rd shot. Deepika manages an 8.
Ksenia wins Set 5 28-25. The overall score is 5-5. Going to be a shootoff.
Archery: Ksenia starts Set 4 with a 9. Deepika too fires a 9. An 8 in her 2nd shot for Ksenia. An 8 for Deepika as well. Ksenia follows it up with a 9. Deepika too posts a 9. It's a tied set. 26-26. Both will get a point each. Deepika is up overall at 5-3.
Archery: Ksenia starts Set 3 with a 9. Deepika fires a 10. Another 9 for Ksenia and a 9 for Deepika. A third 9 for Ksenia. Deepika too fires a 9.
Deepika wins set 3 28-27. Goes 4-2 up.
Archery: Ksenia starts Set 2 with 9. Follows with a 8 and a high 10. Finishes at 27.
Deepika starts strong with a 10. Follows it up with a 9 and a low 7. Total in Set 2: 26.
Ksenia wins Set 2 27-26. The score is 2-2 after two sets.
Archery: Deepika Kumari's Individual Round of 16 match against ROC's Ksenia Perova begins. Some support for Deepika in the stands.
Ksenia starts Set 1 with a 9. Deepika too starts with a 9. Another 9 for Ksenia. Deepika hits a 10 in her second shot. A low 7 for Ksenia in her third shot. Deepika manages a 9. Wins Set 1 28-25. Goes 2-0 up.
Golf Update: Anirban Lahiri had finished Round 1 with a score of 4-under 67 and was tied 9th. Meanwhile, Udayan Mane shot a 76 and ended in 60th position.
Shooting: Four 10s and a 9 for Rahi in her first five shots. A low 7 in her sixth. Follows it up with four 10s on the trot. Finishes Series 3 with a 96. An overall score of 286 in Rapid stage and a combined (Precision + Rapid) score of 573. Placed 32nd. Her journey ends there.
ROC's Vitalina Batsarashkina finishes Series 3 with a 294 and a total of 586. The top 8 will qualify to the final.
Shooting: Rahi finishes Series 1 of the Rapid stage with a score of 96, comprising 7 10s, 2 9s and a low 8.
Finishes Series 2 at 94. Starts well with three 10s. The fourth is a low 6, which will hurt her. Follows it up with a 9, four 10s, and another 9 for a total of 190 after the two series. Is currently 32nd. Not looking good.
Shooters Manu, Rahi in Action
Good morning to all. Welcome to The Quint's live coverage of Day 7 of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Thursday was the best day for the Indian contingent since Mirabai Chanu's silver medal on day one. Let's hope they can continue the good run today. The good news: Several athletes are just one win away from increasing India’s medal tally.
We start the day's proceedings with the 25m Pistol Women's Qualification Rapid Stage in which Manu Bhaker and Rahi Sarnobat are in action. Manu had scored 292 in her three Precision Series yesterday and is ranked 5th, while Rahi managed a 287 and is placed 25th.
Bhaker Eyeing a Place in the Final
Shooters Manu Bhaker and Rahi Sarnobat will be in action in the 25m Pistol Women's Qualification Rapid Stage at 5.30 am. Manu had scored 292 in the three Precision Series on Thursday and is ranked 5th, while Rahi managed a 287 and is placed 25th. Both need to come up with a strong performance in the rapid stage. The top 8 athletes will qualify for the final, to be held at 10.30 am.
Archer Deepika Kumari will face ROC's Ksenia Perova in the Women's Individual Round of 16 match at 6 am. The winner will advance to the quarter-finals, which will be held later today, followed by the semi-finals and the final.
The athletics competition will also get underway today, where Avinash Sable will be in action in the Men's 3000m Steeplechase Round 1 Heat 2 at 6.17 am, Dutee Chand in the Women's 100m Round 1 at 8.10 am, MP Jabir in the Men's 400m Hurdle Round 1 - Heat 5 at 8.27 am, and Alex Antony, Sarthak Bhambri, Revathi Veeramani and Subha Venkatesan in the 4x400m Relay Mixed Round 1 Heat 2 at 4.42 pm.
The Indian women's hockey team will be desperate for a victory when they take on Ireland in their fourth Pool A match at 8.15 am. The women have lost their first three matches to Netherlands (1-5), Germany (0-2), Great Britain (1-4).
All eyes will be on pugilist Lovlina Borgohain who will take on Chinese Taipei's Nien-Chin Chen in the second quarter-final of the women's welter event at 8.48 am. A win would ensure a medal for her and the country.
Shuttler PV Sindhu will face her first real test in this Olympics when she takes on Japan's Akane Yamaguchi during their quarter-finals clash at 1.15 pm. The 24-year-old from Fukui, Japan, is a 2018 World Championships bronze medallist and a 2018 Asian Games gold medallist. It's bound to be an exciting match. Agile, with quick reflexes, Akane tends to tire out her opponents with her excellent shot-making prowess, while Sindhu uses her height and power to her advantage. Sindhu and Yamaguchi have faced each other 18 times, with Sindhu winning 11 of those encounters. The last time they played each other was in the quarter-final match at the All England Open, where Sindhu beat Akane 16-21, 21-16, 21-19. Both the women topped their respective groups.
The men's hockey team will face hosts Japan in their final pool match at 3 pm. The men-in-blue are currently placed second behind Australia in Pool A with three wins and one loss out of four games. They had made it to the quarter-finals with their 3-1 win over Argentina on Thursday. The top four make the last-eight stage from each group. The quarter-finals are on Sunday.
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