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Sports organiser Sirajuddin M Alamgir receives "Doctor of Sports" degree from Indian private uni
General Secretary of the Chattogram Divisional Sports Association. member of Bangladesh Olympics Association (BOA) and former Director of Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) Sirajuddin Mohammad Alamgir achieved an honorary Doctorate Degree from Global Human Peace University (GHPU) of India on Saturday (June 18). Founder and Chairman of the GHPU Dr P Manuel handed over the "Doctor of Sports" award to Sirajuddin M Alamgir at a convocation ceremony in Chennai on Saturday.Alamgir, who completed the BA (Hons) and MA Degree from Chittagong University and took BP Ed from National University, now serves as Deputy Director of Physical Education and Sports Science Department of Chittagong University.
He also acted as senior vice president of Bangladesh District and Divisional Sports Organizers' Parishad and senior vice president of the Bangladesh District and Divisional Football Association.Meanwhile, BOA Secretary General Syed Shaheed Reza, president of Bangladesh District and Divisional Sports Organisers' Parishad & former Chittagong City Mayor AJM Nasiruddin and Secretary General of Bangladesh District and Divisional Football Association Tarafder M Ruhul Amin congratulated Sirajuddin M Alamgir for his feat
Youth Chess:Sajid shares top slot in U-12 group
Sakline Mostafa Sajid of Bangladesh shared the top slot in the Under-12 age group of the Western Asian Youth Chess Championship' 2022 with Gautam Krishna of India after the third round matches held at Ukulhas Island of the Maldives Saturday morning.
The third round matches of all the age groups were held on Saturday (June 18) morning.
In the Open U-8 age group, Safayet Kibria Azaan of Bangladesh is in the second position jointly with Palliya Guruge Kemindu Sehas of Sri Lanka securing two and a half points from three games.
Four Bangladesh players--Md. Sajidul Haque in Open U-14 group, Aiyan Rahman in Open U-10 group, Ishrat Jahan Diba in Girls U-14 group and Warsia Khushbu in Girls U-10 group-- collected two points each from three matches.
After the day's 3rd round, Bangladeshi Woman FIDE Master Noshin Anjum in Open-18 group, Syed Ridwan in the Open U-14 group and Kazi Jarin Tasnim in the girls' U-16 group secured one and a half points each.
Read: Prizes of Inter-Bank Chess Tournament distributed
Candidate Master Manon Reja Neer in Open U-18 Group, Mohammad Saker Ullah in Open U-16 Group, Rayan Rashid Mughdha in Open U-8 Group and Jannatul Ferdousi in Girls U-16 Group got one point each from three games.
In the day's third round matches, Sakline beat Bozorov Javokhir of Uzbekistan, Azaan beat Asmi Muhammad Azad of Pakistan, Warsia beat Mukhiadinova Nifufar of Uzbekistan, Diba beat Pragnya HG of India, Ayan beat More Laksh of Nepal. Zarin beat Mirlan Kyzy Azaliia of Kirgizstan and WFM Noshin beat Mujahid Bin Yazeed of Maldives while CM Neer lost to FM Begmuratov Khumoyun of Uzbekistan, Ridwan lost to Sahib Singh of India, Jannatul lost to Wijesinghe of Sri Lanka and Mugdho lost ot Palliya Guruge Kemindu Sehas of Sri Lanka.
The 4th round matches of the meet will be held Sunday from 9 am local time.
Archery World Cup: Bangladesh to leave for France Sunday
A 10-member Bangladesh team will leave Dhaka for France Sunday to participate in the Archery World Cup stage 3 in Paris during June 21-26.
The team of seven archers (three women), one manager, one coach and one sponsor representative, will leave the capital around 6pm on a flight of Etihad Airways.
Read: Archery League 1 : BKSP emerge champions in Recurve Div, Police in Compound Div
Bangladesh will compete in men's team recurve, men's singles recurve, women's team recurve, women's singles recurve, and mixed team recurve.
The qualifying round of the competition will begin on June 21.
Bangladesh team
Archers Ruman Shana, Hakim Ahmed Rubel, Abdur Rahman Alif, Sagar Islam (men's recurve team) Diya Siddiqui, Nasrin Akhter, Famida Sultana Disha (women's recurve team) Officials Martin Frederick (head coach), M Rashiduzzaman Serniabad (team manager), Rubaiyat Ahmed (sponsor representative).
DRU ludo competition: Samina champion, Lisa runner-up
Samina Khatun Roshni became the champion, and Maksuda Lisa of Voice of Asia finished runner-up in the ludo competition of the "Walton-Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU) Summer Sports Festival 2022" held in Dhaka Thursday.
Nargis Jui of Bangladesh Television earned third place in the competition.
DRU President Nazrul Islam Mithu and General Secretary Nurul Islam Hasib inaugurated the competition in the morning.
The men's singles carom competition will be held Sunday.
Also read: V-Day Carom: Robin emerges men’s singles champion
Western Asian Youth Chess: Bangladesh Chess team leaves Dhaka for Maldives
An 18-member Bangladesh chess team left Dhaka for the Maldives Wednesday to participate in the Western Asian Youth Chess Championships 2022 for under-8, 10, 12, 14, 16, and 18 age groups' open and girls' division, starting Thursday in Ukulhas Island of the Maldives.
The Bangladesh team of 14 players will compete in the meet to be played in three methods – standard, rapid and blitz.
The players are CM Manon Reja Neer, WFM Noshin Anjum (open under-18), Kazi Zarin Tasnim (girls' under-18), Mohammad Saker Ullah (open under-16), Jannatul Ferdousi (girls' under-16), Md Sajidul Haque and Syed Ridwan (open under-14), Ishrat Jahan Diba (girls' under-14), Sakline Mostafa Sajid (open under-12), Aiyan Rahman (open under-10), Warsia Khusbu (girls' under-10) and Raiyan Rashid Mughda and Safayet Kibria (open under-8).
The winners of the championship will be awarded gold, silver and bronze medals.
READ: Maharashtra Int'l GM Chess: Bangladeshi GM Enamul Hossain Razib shares 3rd place
The participants of the competition also have opportunities to gain direct titles of the international master, women's international master, FIDE master, female FIDE master, candidate master and female candidate master.
Earlier, the Asian Chess Federation appointed Md Haroon Or Rashid, the International Chess Arbiter of Bangladesh, as the chief arbiter of the championship, and he reached the Maldives Tuesday.
Archery League 1 : BKSP emerge champions in Recurve Div, Police in Compound Div
BKSP Green team clinched the Bangladesh Archery League-1 recurve title securing 12 points from seven matches with six wins and a defeat at the Archery Training Centre of Shaheed Ahsanullah Master Stadium in Tongi on Thursday.
Bangladesh Army Archery Club finished runners-up in recurve division with 10 points from seven matches with five wins and two losses.
Bangladesh Police Archery team emerged champions in the compound division of the Archery League-1 collecting 12 points from seven matches with six wins and one loss at the same venue on Thursday.
Boarder Guard Bangladesh (BGB) became runners-up in compound division securing 12 points from seven matches, also with six wins and one loss.
A total of eight teams competed in both the recurve and compound divisions of the league, Bangladesh Archery Federation (BAF)
Participating teams are : BKSP, BKSP Green, Bangladesh Air Force, Army Archery Club, ASPT Archery Club, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), Bangladesh Police Archery Club and Narail DSA.
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.”
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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.”