England won Nat West Cricket Series

England beat Australia in the fifth and final one-day international cricket played at Old Trafford on 11 July 2012 to complete a 4-0 victory in the NatWest cricket series played in England. The English team was led by Alistair Cook while the Aussie team was led by Michael Clarke. England allrounder Ravi Bopara starred in England’s final victory and was given the Man of the Match award. He claimed two wickets and made 52 not out off 56 balls. Ian Bells of England was given the Man of the Series Award. The victory marked the third series white wash for Australia over the last 40 years. The Australian team is still the world no.1 ODI team. Earlier the team had suffered clean sweeps against New Zealand (0-3) in 2006-07 and against England (0-3) in 1997.

Former BCCI President Purushottam M Rungta passed away

Former President of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Purushottam M Rungta died on 12 July 2012 after long sickness. He was 84 years old. He was commonly known as Bhaiji to cricketers and administrations. He was President of BCCI for three years from 1972 to 1975 and Vice- President of BCCI from 1963 to 1972. He was also BCCI treasurer  for six months in the year 1992 after the resignation of Madhav Matri from BCCI treasurer when he lost to Manohar Joshi in Bombay Cricket Association election. After that former BCCI President  Madhavrao Scindia named P.M.Rungta as the treasurer of the BCCI. He also managed the affairs of Rajasthan Cricket Association for many years.

England beat Australia 4-0

England beat Australia in the fifth and final one-day international cricket played at Old Trafford on 11 July 2012 to complete a 4-0 victory in the NatWest cricket series played in England. The English team was led by  Alistair Cook while the Aussie team was led by Michael Clarke. England all-rounder Ravi Bopara starred in England’s final victory and was given the Man of the Match award. He claimed two wickets and made 52 not out off 56 balls. Ian Bells of England was given the Man of the Series Award. The victory marked the third series  white wash for Australia over the last 40 years. The Australian team is still the world no.1 ODI team. Earlier the team had suffered clean sweeps against New Zealand (0-3) in 2006-07 and against England (0- 3) in 1997.

West Indies beat New Zealand 4-1

West Indies defeated New Zealand 4-1 in the five match one day series. The fifth one-dayer between West Indies and New Zealand had plenty of similarities to Saturday’s fourth ODI at Warner Park: West Indies chose to bat, the top order stumbled, one of their Twenty20 stars made the slowest ODI half-century of his career to anchor the innings, and then some pyrotechnics from Andre Russell took the home side towards 250.
New Zealand skipper Ross Taylor smashed a fine century but it was not enough to prevent the West  Indies wrapping up the one-day series with a 24-run win in fourth match. Taylor, playing in his first match of the series after injuring his shoulder in an earlier Twenty20 international between the two sides in Florida last month, made 110 off 115 balls. It was an innings which included six 4s and five 6s for his sixth one-day century.

Sri Lanka Wins Series with Pakistan

Sri Lanka won its first Test series in three years after the final  Test against Pakistan ended in a thrilling draw in Pallekele on Thursday. The host made a brave bid to chase down a target of 270, reaching 132 for two by tea on the fifth day, before it was pegged back by a three-wicket burst from offspinner Saeed Ajmal. Dinesh Chandimal scored 65 and the prolific Kumar Sangakkara returned unbeaten on 74 as Sri Lanka made 195 for four before the game was called off with nine overs remaining at the Pallekele International Stadium. The rain-hit  second Test in Colombo was drawn, while the entire second day’s play in Pallekele had been washed out. Earlier, Asad Shafiq remained unbeaten on 100 as Pakistan declared its second innings at 380 for eight half-anhour before lunch to attempt a series-levelling win.

Brett Lee calls it a day

Australian pace bowler Brett Lee on Friday announced his retirement from international cricket after a 13-year career, saying his body and mind were no longer up to the stresses of touring. The 35-year-old said a calf muscle strain that forced him home from Australia’s recent one-day tour to Britain was the final straw after a string of setbacks caused by  injuries. “I woke up this morning and just felt like I was ready,” Lee said. His original plan had been to play at September’s World Twenty20 tournament in Sri Lanka as his international swansong, he  added. “I think, in a team, you have to have 100 per cent commitment — mentally and physically,” he told a press conference at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Wimbledon Open 2012

Wimbledon Open Men’s Singles 2012

Swiss (Switzerland) Tennis maestro Roger Federer beat British player Andy Murray 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 to win the Wimbledon Open Championship Gentlemen’s Singles Final 2012 in London on 8 July 2012. Federer, with this victory also reclaimed the world No. 1 ranking surpassing Pete Sampras’ record of 286 weeks at the top of the game. Federer had defeated Djokovic in the semi-finals, while Murray had beat French Jo-Wilfreid
Tsonga to make to the final of the tournament. In quarter-finals Federer had defeated Mikhail  Youzhny of Russia and Murray overcame David Ferrer of Spain. The Wimbledon Open marked 17th career Grand Slam for
Federer, who had earlier claimed the Wimbeldon title on 6 different occasions from 2003 to 2007 and again in 2009. Only William Renshaw’s and Pete Sampras have  got the distinction of winning the coveted Wimbledon singles title on seven occasions. Bunny Austin was the last British man to win the Wimbledon Open Titles in 1938. No  other British player has been able to win the title since 1938.

Important Information

• The 14-day sporting event which had commenced on 25 June 2012 concluded with the Gentlemen’s Singles Final on 8 July 2012.

• Serena Williams of US beat Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland to claim Ladies’ singles title.

• The mixed pair of Mike Bryan and Lisa Raymond defeated Leander Paes and Elena Vesnina to win the mixed doubled final.

• The men’s doubles final was won by Jonathan Marray and Frederick Nielson who defeated Robert Lindstedt.

• In Ladies’ Doubles final the pair of Serena Williams and Venus Williams emerged victorious as they defeated Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka.

• Wimbledon, which is one of the oldest and most prestigious sporting events in the world, has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. Played on a grass court, Wimbledon is one of the four  major grand slam tournaments in the world. Other three grand slams are Australian Open, French Open and US Open.

Wimbledon Women’s Women’s Singles 2012

Ace US tennis player Serena Williams beat Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 in Wimbledon women’s singles Title at the All England Club in  London on 7 July 2012. William, the world no.6, beat the third seed, Radwanska who was playing her first grand slam final and striving to become the first Polish to win a Grand Slam. Radwanska made a  history by becoming the first Polish tennis player to reach a grand slam
final. Serena had defeated defending champion Petra Kvitová  in the quarter finals and secondseeded Victoria Azarenka in semifinals clash, while, Agnieszka Radwanska had defeated Maria Kirilenko in the quarterfinals and Angelique Kerber in the semifinals. The Wimbledon victory holds a great importance for Serena  Williams who was out of the game for nearly 1 year as she suffered a dreadful foot injury and underwent a surgery for blood clots in her lungs. Serena, had claimed the Wimbledon women’s singles title on four occasions in the past including 2002, 2003, 2009 and 2010. In a career marked by 18 grand slam finals, Serena has to her credit
14 singles titles, which comprise all grand slams.

Wimbledon Women’s Doubles Title 2012

Serena Williams along with her elder sister Venus Williams also claimed the Wimbledon women’s doubles Title on 7 July 2012. The pair beat Czech duo Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka 7-5, 6-4. It was their fifth Wimbledon doubles title together,while, their first doubles tournament together in past two years.

Vijay Kumar bagged Silver in Olympics 25 Metre Rapid Fire Pistol Event

In a nerve-wracking battle for Olympic medal in the individual 25 metre rapid fire pistol event, Indian shooter Vijay Kumar  clinched the silver on 3 August 2012. Kumar hit the target 30 times  out of 40 attempts in theseries comprising eight rounds of five shots each. Leuris Pupo of Cuba, whi clinced the gold clinched scored 34 out of 40. Chinese marksman Ding Feng bagged the bronze. Born on 19 August 1985 in Hamirpur district of Himachal Pradesh is presently a Subedar in the Indian Army’s 16th Dogra  Regiment. He booked his place at the London Olympics when he won a silver medal at the shooting World Cup in Fort Benning, US in 2011.
The persevering shooter has more than 20 international medals and 75 national medals to his credit. He  had won 3 gold medals and one silver medal in the 2010 Commonwealth Games held in Delhi. 2006 Commonwealth Games held in Melbourne saw him winning two gold medals in two separate shooting events. In one of the major achievements in 2009 ISSF World Cup held in Beijing he bagged Silver missing the gold by mere 0.1 point. Acknowledging his excellent track record and medal winning performances, the India government awarded him with the Arjuna Award in year 2007.

Gagan Narang won Bronze in the men’s 10 meter air rifle event at London Olympics

Ace Indian Shooter won India its first medal in the London Olympics 2012 after he clinched the bronze medal in the men’s 10 meter air rifle event on 30 July 2012. While Abhinav Bindra, who had won a gold medal in the Beijing Olympics 2008, failed to qualify for finals and finished sixteenth. Romania’s shooter Alin George  Moldoveanu claimed the gold medal with a total score of 702.1while Italy’s Niccolo Campriani clinched the silver with a score of 701.5. Narang came third with a total score of 701.1. It was third time when Gagan Narang was participating in Olympics. In previous Athens and Beijing Olympic games he could not turn his performance into medal. This was India’s third medal in shooting events in the history of Olympics. Earlier Rajyawardhan Singh Rathore and Abhinav Bondra had won India silver and Gold medal respectively in 2004 and 2008 olympic games. Narang’s bronze also marked India’s tenth individual medal in the history of Olympic games. Gagan Narang, who hails from Amritsar in Punjab was conferred with the Padma Shree Award in 2010. Considering his tremendous contribution to the field of sports, in year 2010, Gagan Narang was chosen for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, the highest sports award in the country.

Spain won UEFA Euro Cup Football Championship 2012

Spain beat Italy 4-0 in the final to win UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) Euro Cup Football Championship 2012 at the Olympic Stadium in Kiev, Ukraine, on 1 July 2012. Spain which had earlier defeated Germany 1-0 in 2008 Euro Cup not only defended the title but also created a record by becoming the first team to claim two consecutive titles in tournament’s 52-year long history. Spain and Italy had defeated
Portugal and Germany respectively in their semi final matches. Iker Casillas was the captain of Spanish side, while the Italian side was led by Gianluigi Buffon. Spain midfielder Andrés Iniesta of Spain was declared the man of the match given his match winning performance, while Fernando Torres was given the Golden Boot as he scored three goals in the Spain’s title winning campaign. Torres also became the first ever player in the history of the  tournament to score in two separate European Championship finals.

Maradona Sacked

Former Argentina World Cup-winning captain Diego Maradona has been sacked as coach of United Arab Emirates club Al Wasl. The 51-year-old, who agreed a two-year contract with Al Wasl in May 2011, was dismissed following a meeting of the club’s board on Tuesday. Al Wasl failed to win any silverware under Maradona during his season at the helm, slipping to eighth in the 12- team UAE Pro League from sixth the previous season.

Hockey India signed a multiyear broadcast agreement with ESPN STAR

Hockey India on 30 July 2012 signed a multi-year broadcast agreement with ESPN STAR Sports to exclusively broadcast all international hockey test matches under Hockey India to be played  in India for the next 5 years. Under the agreement the ESPN STAR Sports will also exclusively cover Hockey India League (HIL), which is expected to be launched in January 2013. The Hockey India is coming up with a professional hockey league that will see the best of Indian and international hockey players showcase their sporting skill. The first edition of the league  is expected to be played in the month of January 2013. At least six franchise hockey teams will participate in the league and will feature 33 hockey matches to be played in prime time in state-of-theart stadia across the country. All teams will play each other on a home and away basis (30 league matches) followed by 2 semifinals and the final.

Sushil Kumar named India’s Flag-bearer

World champion and Olympic bronze medallist, wrestler Sushil Kumar, was chosen as the flag-bearer of the Indian contingent at the opening ceremony of the Olympics in London on July 27. Making the announcement at a
send-off function organised by one of the principal sponsors of the Indian contingent, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) in the  capital here on Sunday, the acting president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), Prof. Vijay Kumar Malhotra, said that the choice was made after four Olympic medallists were short-listed for the honour. “We have four Olympic  medallists in the contingent.Leander Paes has already carried the flag. Abhinav Bindra and Vijender Singh have competition early in the Games,” explained Prof. Malhotra. Sushil will be training in Belarus and his competition will be only on the last  day of the Olympics, on August 12.He will specifically be flown to London for the opening ceremony and back to Belarus to continue with his training.

Coca-Cola Squash Open Championship 2012

Gaurav Nandrajog won Coca-Cola Squash Open Championship 2012 on 29 July 2012. Gaurav defeated Sandeep Jhangra with the score of 3-2. The score of the five sets were 7-11, 7- 11, 12-10, 11-8, 11-7. The Game was held in Kendriya Vidyalaya Squash Courts, R.K.Puram, New Delhi. In Semi-finals Gaurav Nandrajog defeated Laxman Joshi with the score of 3-0. The score of the three sets were 11-3, 11-4, and 11-4. Sandeep Jhangra had celebrated his victory with Bronze Medal in Asian Games 2010 for the category of Team Championship. In Semi Finals, Sandeep had defeated Karm Kumar with the score of 3-0. Third Position was  secured by Karm Kumar. Karm defeated Laxman Joshi with the score of 3-0. The scores of the three sets were 11-6, 11-6 and 11-4. Karm  Kumar became the first Champion of the 105 Tournament which was
organized by Indian Squash Professionals (ISP). Karm defeated Rishi Jahan with 3-0 in the final Match.

6th Leiden International Chess tournament

England’s David Howell won the 6th Leiden International Chess  tournament at 7.5 points on 15 July 2012. The tournament was held at Leiden, Netherland from 7 July 2012 to 15 July 2012. The grandmaster and Asian champion Parimarjan Negi ended the tournament with 7 points out of nine possible points and was second in the 6th Leiden  International Chess tournament. He defeated Netherland’s Benjamin Bok in the ninth round
(final) of the tournament. He was announced as the Indian youngest Grandmaster at the age of 13 years on 1 July 2006 after drawing with  Russian Grandmaster Ruslan Sherbakov. He also won the 11th Asian continental chess championship held in from 4 May 2012 to 14 May 2012 in Vietnam. Third place of the Leiden tournament was shared by two Indian Grandmasters S Arun Prasad and M.R. Lalith at 6.5 points.

European Grand Pix 2012

Formula One (F1) racer Sebastian Vettel defeated Lewis Hamilton by 1minute 38.086 seconds and won European Grand Pix 2012, Valencia on 24 June 2012. Vettel became the first F1 repeat winner of the season. Vettel is from Red Bull’s team and Hamilton is from McLaren. There were 57 numbers of Laps on the Valencia Street Circuit in European Grand Pix 2012. The circuit length was 5.419 km had the race distance of 308.883 km. There were 12 teams participated in European Grand Pix 2012.  Sebastian Vettel is a German Formula One racer. He was born on 3 July 1987. He won the World Championship in 2012 and 2011. Vettel also won youngest-ever World Drivers’ championship runner-up. He also secured Red Bull’s first pole position and race win in the team’s history.

Three Russian Female Athletes were Suspended

Russian Athletics Federation on 3 July 2012 decided to suspend  three Russian female athletes with the European Marathon Champion, Naiva Tulamanova.The three women are Svetlana Klyuka, Yevgenia Zinurova,
Lithuania’s Zivile Balciunaite. European Marathon Champion 2010 Naiva Tulamanova was banned for two years. While Second winner in 800 meters European Champions in 2006 Svetlana Klyukaand 2011 European 800 indoor winner Yevgenia Zinurova, were suspended for anomalous indexes in their biometric  passports and Lithuania’s Zivile Balciunaite was disqualified and banned for using steroids. The suspensions of Yulamanova and Klyuka have been backdated to February. The ban for Zinurova began from September. All the three were suspended to compete in Russian championships as well as from London Olympics.

Scottish Open India’s Jeev Milkha Singh birdied the first play-off hole to defeat Italy’s Francesco Molinari and claim the Scottish Open golf title on Sunday. Jeev, who had been five shots off the lead going into the final round, hit a five-under 67 to finish on 17 under . Molinari held his nerve to birdie the final hole for a par 72 to send the tournament into the play-off. Back on the 18th,  Molinari left his birdie putt well short while Jeev confidently held his testing attempt to add the Scottish Open to his wins at the  2006 China Open, Volvo Masters and 2008 Austria Open.

30th Edition of Summer Olympics inaugurated in London

Summer Olympic games 2012 inaugurated at Olympic Stadium at the Olympic Park in East London on 27 July 2012. Queen Elizabeth II officially declared the commencement of the 30th Olympics Game,
popularly called the London Olympics, amidst the sparkling fireworks. The games, which will conclude on 12 August 2012, will see nearly 10500 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees participating in as many as 26 sports events. London was selected to host the 30th Summer Olympics on 6 July 2005 after it defeated bids from Moscow, New The York City, Madrid and Paris during the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London
also got a distinction to host the modern Olympic Games three times. The city had previously host the games in 1908 and in 1948. Below are some of the major facts related to London Olympics 2012

1. 100 heads of states were present at the three and a half hour long opening ceremony

2. More than 10000 performers participated in the opening ceremony

3. The opening ceremony was directed by celebrated Hollywood director Danny Boyle

4. Motto of the London Olympics is - Inspire a Generation

5. 10500 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees participating in as many as 26 sports events India at London Olympics 2012 Champion wrestler and the winner of bronze medal in Beijing Olympics 2008, Sushil Kumar was the official flag bearer of 83-member Indian contingent at the opening ceremony of Olympics. India has sent 83-member team in the London Olympics 2012, which is the highest ever sent by Indian Olympic Association in the Olympics.

99th Edition of Tour de France Bicycle Race Bradley Wiggins of Britain became the first cyclist of the country, to win the coveted Tour de France Cycling race on 22 July 2012. Team Sky rider Wiggins is the first cyclist to have won both the Tour and an Olympic track cycling gold. His Sky teammate and fellow Briton, Froom Christopher came second. Their teammate and fellow country man Mark Cavendish was declared the day’s winner as he won the final stage of the race. Wiggins, 32, was given the yellow jersey at the end of the event. The rider with the lowest aggregate time at the end of each day is given the yellow jersey. One of the most
successful Olympian of Britain, Wiggins won a bronze medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and three medals (1 Gold + 1 Silver + 1 Bronze) at the 2004 Athens Olympics, and two golds at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Wiggins is the first and only person in history to win the Paris-Nice, the Tour de Romandie, Critérium du Dauphiné and Tour de France in one single season. Tour de France The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race event held in France and nearby countries. The first The Tour de France was held in 1903. The race which lasts three weeks, covers around 3200 kilometres. Mauris Garin was the winner of the first edition of tour,
while Lance Armstrong of USA had won the race for 7 times, the highest individual win.

Use Players’ Experience The Union Sports Minister Ajay Maken goaded ONGC and other such organisations like the Railways to give a career in sports for the sportspersons in their fold, rather than make them work like
normal employees at the end of their playing career. He said that it was important to use the experience of the players as coaches in places near their home. “It is important to make correct use of their services,” said Maken. The Sports Minister congratulated the 81 athletes who had qualified for the Olympics, passing through a stringent selection process, from a core group of 720 probables, who were trained by 121 national coaches and 29 foreign coaches, along with 65 other support staff with a budget of about Rs. 200 crore. “Our players are second to none in the world,” said Maken. The Chairman and Managing Director of ONGC, Sudhir Vasudeva announced that ONGC would extend the cash award of Rs. 25 lakh for gold in Olympics, Rs. 15 lakh for silver and Rs. 10 lakh for bronze, not only to 20 per cent of its employees figuring in the Indian squad, but to all members of the contingent.