Hyderabad Sunrisers may have barely given you a moment to cheer, but there’s another city team that is certainly worthy of your attention — meet the Hyderabad Skykings. The city’s very own American football team.

After playing American football in India in February, they are all set to match their skills against professional footballers in the US. The team of 10 players, aged between 22 and 27, is now heading to the US to play against Oklahoma City Thunder, and are certainly kicked about it.

Sai Santhosh Sandri, the 22-year-old BCom student and the youngest player of the team, says, “It is a great opportunity for our future. Since Thunders is a professional team, we will learn a lot of new things there and get a global experience. There’s an India vs Pakistan match lined up in August, so this experience might enhance our chances of getting selected in the team.”

Naveen Kumar Kunku credits the growing popularity of contact sports in India for his interest in the game. A former rugby player, who started playing American Football three years ago, Naveen says, “More and more people are ditching cricket to be part of other sports like boxing, rugby and others. Since this game is very similar to rugby -the only difference being you can go for forward passes in rugby — I moved into this.” For many, the game’s aggression is a big draw. Sudheer Yadav Boini says, “This game is all about aggression that is what I love about it. All we need to play this game well is agility, strength and speed.” But since the game is full of aggression, injuries are frequent.

“Yes, but that is common in all other games too. Even Sachin Tendulkar and Sania Mirza get hurt. So, there’s no need to stop yourself from playing due to fear of injuries. We have protective gear like helmets, shoulder pads and other equipments,” says Sudheer.

There are also precautions taken to minimise chances of injuries.

Ashok Pentatiah Kunku, physiotherapist of the team says, “It is a high-octane sport so players have to practice a lot. Muscle soreness and spasms are quite common. So, we make sure players warm up properly before and after the game as it helps in preventing injuries.”

Though the game is still in its nascent stage, it is certainly gaining popularity. Coach Praveen Kumar Reddy Chintala says, “The game is getting popular in Hyderabad as well as India. When we last played at Gachibowli stadium in February this year, we got a huge crowd for the game. So, the fan base is expanding.” And if you aspire to be part of the team, there’s a chance for you too.

“Every month, we do a selection for freshers in different categories depending on their skills. We prefer people who have some sports background like handball throwers, runners, wrestlers, and more,” says Praveen.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Hyderabad / Charu Sharma, TNN / August 16th, 2014

Hyderabad:

Life’s been a steady flight for former left-arm spinner R. Sridhar. From his Ranji Trophy days that began in the late 1980s to being named the fielding coach of the Indian team on Tuesday, the hard-working Hyderabadi has been on the ball, and climbed the cricketing ladder ceaseless.

He’s inexplicably thrilled about the big assignment but knows that the tough job has only just begun. Contractual obligations prevent Sridhar from speaking to the media now, though.

He is currently in Chennai as head coach of the Andhra senior team participating in the ongoing Buchi Babu tournament.

Having been a coach at the National Cricket Academy frequented by cricketers, Sridhar enjoys a good rapport with all the players. His association with newly-appointed assistant coaches Sanjay Bangar and Bharathi Arun is also well known he has worked with them on the coaching units of Kings XI Punjab and India U-19 sides respectively.

Sridhar has a good track record as coach at the India U-19 level he was instrumental in preparing and encouraging his charges to play to their strengths, which translated well for the team. The Indian colts won the World Cup in 2012 and followed it with title triumphs in the Asia Cups of 2012, 2013 and 2014.

The 44-year-old adopts an uncomplicated approach to coaching. “The key is not to impose yourself on the player. More than knowing his game, you’ve got to understand and connect with the person first. Once you do that, coaching becomes very easy you give the player options and see what suits him best, for each individual is different. It’s like handwriting. No two people can write alike, each has got his own flair. You have to nurture that,” Sridhar had reasoned in an earlier interview to this newspaper.

Those words come from having extensively coached at various levels. After playing 35 first class matches for Hyderabad and taking 91 wickets, Sridhar turned to coaching in 2002. After three years of working at the grassroot, he started the process of his accreditation as a certified coach in 2004 and completed the three-level course in 2007. By the time he was incorporated into the NCA, Sridhar had already put in four years of junior cricket three years as head coach of the Hyderabad U-19 side and one year in charge of the U-16 squad.

His first big break came when the Indian team turned up at the NCA for the 2011 World Cup preparatory camp. The same year, he was appointed fielding coach of the India U-19 side, and has been making persistent progress since.

source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Sports> Cricket / DC / Moses Kondety / August 20th, 2014

This is the kind of performance which will obviously make us all dream big, she says

For long, Mithali Raj has been a quiet performer, diligently pursuing her passion – cricket. And, on Saturday evening, this 31-year-old led the country to only its fourth-ever Test win when they defeated England by six wickets at Wormsley in the one-off Test.

“This great Test win, which honestly I was not expecting when we left for the England tour, should ensure greater recognition and respect for women cricketers,” says Mithali over the phone from England.

“Being part of two of India’s wins (of the only four India won) is definitely a great feeling. But this one is more special than the Taunton win last time around for the simple reason that we were playing a Test after a gap of eight years,” the happy Indian captain points out.

In a way, Mithali completes the formidable list of outstanding women sportspersons from Hyderabad– Sania Mirza (tennis), Saina Nehwal, Jwala Gutta, P.V. Sindhu (badminton), Nikhat Zareen (boxing) and Mithali (cricket).

Going by the statistics too, Mithali leaves her contemporaries far behind – averaging 52.16 in the nine Tests and 50.43 in the 148 ODIs she played since 2002.

“I am honoured to lead India to this great win and I must thank my parents, coach RSR Murthy (SCR) and John Manoj sir (whenever she is in the city she trains at the St. John’s Foundation) for having so much faith in me,” Mithali remarks.

“This is the kind of performance which will obviously make us all (the entire Indian team which has interestingly eight Test debutants against England in that great win) dream big. It’s a great motivator for every one of us. The winning feeling is something totally different,” she says.

Former India batting great V.V.S. Laxman was one of the first to tweet what he felt was a “very significant win” and congratulated Mithali.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Hyderabad / V.V. Subrahmanyam / Hyderabad – August 17th, 2014

Hyderabad :

The colour made the difference. Otherwise, the medals tally was the same. In the 2010 Delhi Games, India had won four medals. So too in Glasgow.

It was two gold, one silver and one bronze in Delhi. However, Indian shuttlers could bag only one gold, one silver and two bronze medals this time.

However, there will be ifs and buts on India’s show. Surely, the last-minute withdrawal of Saina Nehwal cost India a gold medal. But there were hopes that if Saina was not there, then young world championship bronze medallist PV Sindhu had the chance to retain the gold for the country instead.

But Sindhu fell to Canadian Michelle Li in the semifinals to finally end up with a bronze medal in her maiden venture. However, Parupalli Kashyap’s long wait for a championship medal was finally over. “I feel very happy for this Hyderabadi boy. He has a good game but somehow falters at crucial times. But this time there was no stopping him. He deserves the gold,” said former international Sanjay Sharma, adding, “it was not his fault if Lee Chong Wei (World No 1) pulled out like Saina.”

But Sharma was not happy with the overall performance, particularly with India failing to win a medal in the team event. “It was the biggest disappointment. We don’t have depth in doubles unlike in the singles where there is some bench strength. If India has done well in the team events in the recent past, it is surely because of Jwala Gutta, who has been a force to reckon with in the doubles for India. She has done yeomen service as far as doubles is concerned for India. But then we can’t depend too much on her every time,” he said.

Former national coach Vimal Kumar, too, agreed that doubles is surely going to be the Achilles’ heel in any team event. “The singles in the recent past was not an issue but it is the doubles that is the biggest problem for India. Jwala and Ashwini (Ponnappa) have won laurels in women’s doubles but where are the men’s and mixed doubles combinations. It hurt India and will continue to do so in future tournaments. India has to do a lot of catching up to improve their doubles combination. I think the Badminton Association of India (BAI) has to give more emphasis to doubles by grooming young talent for future tournaments,” he opined.

Sharma said if India have to think of any team medal, then BAI should make concerted efforts to groom a strong doubles combination. “When we could not win any medal in CWG, which has more of a depleted field, then India stand no chance in Asian Games and other big events. It should start planning in the right earnest for the 2016 Rio Olympics,” he added.

The former doubles specialist said the CWG gold could propel Kashyap to greater heights. “It is a huge boost to Kashyap’s confidence. We could see a pumped up Kashyap in World Championships and Asian Games where the field is much stronger.”

Vimal feels that Kashyap is always a better player in individual events. “In team events, he is under some sort of pressure. But in individual events he plays more freely. He was impressive in the individual event and I liked the way he handled the pressure, specially in the semifinals and final.

“Remember, in terms of standard of the game, CWG is not of high quality as there are no Chinese, Indonesians, Danes or Japanese players. But this win came at the right time. He will have a much tougher time at the Worlds and Asian Games,” said the former chief national coach.

Sindhu, according to Sharma and Vimal, faltered. “It is a good learning experience for Sindhu. But I thought she had a good chance to win a gold medal but then she failed to capitalize on the golden opportunity,’’ said Sharma, who is now a TV commentator on the game.

Vimal felt Sindhu has to improve her defence. “I think it is time she should depend on instructions. She should make the match analysis by herself and improve on her defence. She need to have more variations in her game,” said the present Prakash Padokone Badminton Academy coach.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Sport / by N. Jagannath Das / August 05th, 2014