Firstpost Spodcast Episode 115: Gujarat Fortunegiants enter PKL final; Kevin Anderson-Gilles Simon semis showdown and more

Welcome to Spodcast, the sports update on Firstpost.

The sixth season of the Pro Kabaddi League has reached the last stages. On Thursday, Gujarat Fortunegiants, who have been phenomenal through the season, booked a place in the final after a thrilling victory over UP Yoddha. In a seesaw of a qualifier where fortunes swung both ways, Gujarat held their nerve and pulled off some stunning raids and tackles to win 38-31.

The Fortunegiants will face Bengaluru Bulls in the final on Saturday.

In tennis news, last year’s finalists of the Maharashtra Open will meet once more in the semi-final this year. 2018 edition winner Gilles Simon and runner-up Kevin Anderson will square off after contrasting wins in their respective quarterfinal matches. Anderson defeated Jaume Munar of Spain 6-3, 6-3 convincingly to reach his second consecutive semi-final at the tournament. Simon, on the other hand, had a difficult quarterfinal against compatriot Benoit Paire.

In the other quarterfinals, Steve Darcis of Belgium defeated fourth-seed Malek Jaziri 7-5, 6-2 victory while 39-year-old Ivo Karlovic defeated Ernests Gulbis 7-6(5), 7-6(5). Indian fans were treated to a thrilling contest in men’s doubles. Rohan Bopanna and his partner Divij Sharan saved as many as six match points in an absolutely thrilling match against Leander Paes and Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela to qualify for the semifinals.

In Premier League news, Manchester City edged past Liverpool to remain in the title race by inflicting The Reds’ first Premier League defeat of the season with a 2-1 victory at the Etihad on Thursday.

In cricket news, former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has asked Australian fans to show some respect to Virat Kohli after the Indian captain was booed again at the Sydney Cricket Ground when he walked out to bat. Kohli has received similar treatment from Australian fans in all the Test matches and Ponting, expressed his disappointment at such behavior, as did Australian batsman Travis Head. Ponting told the media, “If it was booing then it’s absolutely disgraceful. I said that in the Perth Test as well. Show some respect.”

The man famous as the one who shaped Sachin Tendulkar’s near flawless technique with a cricket bat was given a tearful goodbye by his most famous disciple. Tendulkar, along with other cricketers who were coached by Achrekar - Vinod Kambli, Balwinder Singh Sandhu, Chandrakant Pandit - took part in the procession to the crematorium, where his body was consigned to flames. Mumbai cricketers like Atul Ranade, Amol Mazumdar, Ramesh Powar, Paras Mhambrey, Ranji coach Vinayak Samant, Nilesh Kulkarni, Vinod Raghvan, were also present along with fans to pay respect to one of Mumbai cricket’s most towering figures.

There was a bit of controversy surrounding Mr. Achrekar’s funeral. There were demands for a state funeral but that did not happen. Maharashtra Housing minister Prakash Mehta, who represented the state government at the funeral, said Achrekar not being given a state funeral was “sad and unfortunate.” He said, “It is somebody’s mistake and communication gap. I, as a government representative, I’m sorry. This is very sad. I will check what happened.”