Here at the ESPN daily blog, we bring you all the news from the dynamic world of Indian sports, from the wide variety of Olympic sports to franchise leagues.
March has plenty of sporting action taking place - which you can find listed out in ESPN India's sporting calendar.
Srikanth's Swiss Open campaign ends in close semifinal loss
Kidambi Srikanth's long-awaited resurgence came to an end in the semifinals of the Swiss Open Super 300 after a narrow loss. The former world No 1 failed to capitalise on his chances, going down 21-15, 9-21,18-21 to Lin Chun Yi in a match that lasted an hour and 5 minutes.
Srikanth, who had reached a BWF semifinal for the first time since 2022, started strong against the younger player from Chinese Taipei and showed off his full range of deft touches and net play to take the first game. He was attacking close in at the net and getting in his winners with smart shots. Even when he lost his momentum and Lin reduced the big lead, he stayed in command and clinched it on his first game point with a trademark kill at the net.
The second game, though, was a completely different matter as all touch seemed to desert Srikanth after a very close start till 5-5. He committed error after error while Lin's attacks grew in confidence and the Indian quickly lost the plot and the game with only a single digit score to his name.
The decider was battle of small margins as both players began prolonging the rallies compared and were evenly matched when it came to directing play. Srikanth, with a loud crowd support from Indians despite the late hour in Basel, shored up his defence and took a slender 11-10 lead at the interval. But a nervy second half saw him make on too many errors at crucial points as Lin surged ahead from the tight 16-16 deadlock to 3 match points. Srikanth saved one but overhit the next to end it.
From one lens, this is a satisfactory outing for Srikanth who was struggling to string together back-to-back wins on BWF Tour and has broken that duck with a semifinal run. But seen though another, this will be a missed opportunity for the former world No 1 to reach his first final (non team) since the 2021 World Championships.
Two Indian para powerlifters qualify for Paris Paralympics
India will have a minimum of two para powerlifters at the Paralympics as Ashok Malik and Paramajeet Kumar made the cut earlier today. Ashok won silver with a new personal best of 196kg in the Men's up to 65kg at the Sharm-El-Sheikh tournament in Egypt, while Paramajeet bagged silver in the men's upto 49kg with a personal best of 166kgs.
Para Powerlifters shine in Sharm-El-Sheikh���� & qualify for Paris 2024 Paralympic Games
Ashok Malik, supported by @SBI_FOUNDATION , bagged��with a new personal best of 196kg in the Men's up to 65kg
Paramajeet Kumar wins�� in the Men's upto 49kg, with a personal best of 166kgs pic.twitter.com/UjnDImjY8p
- Paralympic India ���� (@ParalympicIndia) March 23, 2024
AIFF to felicitate Sunil Chhetri on his 150th international cap
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) will felicitate Indian football team captain Sunil Chhetri when he takes the field on Tuesday against Afghanistan, in what will be his 150th senior international match for India.
Chhetri made his senior debut on June 12, 2005, in a friendly match against Pakistan in Quetta. He was India's scorer in the 1-1 draw. Since then, he has made 149 appearances for the national team and scored a record 93 goals. A prolific goal-getter, Chhetri holds the unique record of scoring at least one goal in his first, 25th, 50th, 75th, 100th and 125th match for the Blue Tigers.
Commenting on Chhetri's achievement, AIFF President Mr. Kalyan Chaubey said: "It's been an awe-inspiring and staggering cruise that all of us have been fortunate to witness since 2005. Chhetri playing his 150th international match is an extraordinary accomplishment that will go a long way in keeping the Indian football flag flying high. He has been a great influencer who has motivated millions to play this Beautiful Game. I congratulate Chhetri for reaching this great height in international football."
ICYMI: Priyanshu Rajawat, Kiran George lose in Swiss Open QFs
India's bid to have three men's singles semifinalists at the BWF Swiss Open Super 300 fell flat on Friday evening, as Priyanshu Rajawat and Kiran George couldn't follow the act of Srikanth Kidambi, who beat Lee Chia Hao in straight games 21-10 21-14.
George started off positively against Rasmus Gemke, taking the first game 23-21. But Gemke did really well to stay in the match and won the second game 21-17. The Dane then outplayed George in the third game 21-15, to qualify for the semifinal.
Rajawat, meanwhile, was completely outplayed by Chou Tien Chen, as he fell to 21-15 21-19.
What's on today?
Swiss Open badminton: Kidambi Srikanth will be in action in the men's singles semifinals against Denmark's Lin Chun Yi
IPL: It's a double-header in the IPL today, with Punjab Kings facing Delhi Capitals (3:30 pm) after which KKR take on SRH (7:30pm)
What happened yesterday?
Swiss Open badminton: Treesa-Gayatri suffered a poor loss, Srikanth Kidambi is through to the semifinal
Badminton: India (M) drawn with Indonesia in Thomas Cup group, with India (W) drawn with China in Uber Cup group.
Table-tennis: G Sathiyan became the first Indian to win a men's singles trophy at a WTT Feeder Series event.
IPL: CSK beat RCB in the IPL 2024 opener at Chepauk, as Ruturaj Gaikwad's captaincy era got off to a winning start.
You can find all the details on what happened yesterday, here.