India File

Ropar-based Chandel, 25, upstaged V Satyabhama clocking three hours, 16 minutes, 59 seconds. Indresh Dhiraj from Dadri in Haryana was third at 3:27:42.

Bankmen in final
KOLAR: Federation Cup runners-up Vijaya Bank, Bangalore and Indian Bank, Chennai, will lock horns in the final of the All-India basketball tournament for the Kribhco Gold Cup here tomorrow.

In the first semifinals, Indian Bank defeated ONGC, Dehradun 56-40, while in the second semifinals, Vijaya Bank overcame Central Excise and Customs, Kochi 71-51.

Smriti makes cut
NEW DELHI: Top Indian woman pro Smriti Mehrareturned a poor second round card of 77, but managed to make the cut with the final bunch of qualifiers in the $ 600,000 Safeway LPGA championship at Portland, Oregon yesterday.

Mehra, who fired a two-under 70 in the opening round, had an aggregate of three-over 147 to squeak through with four others as the cut was applied on that score.

Parikh leader
AURANGABAD: Valay Parikh of Gujarat and Y Pratibha of Tamil Nadu emerged sole leaders in boys’ and girls’ sections respectively in the National Sub-junior chess championships after the fifth round here today.

Though Parikh committed a mistake in opening move, he managed to level position in middle game and beat Akash Deep in 42 moves to maintain his winning record intact.

Both P Harikrishna of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu’s M R Venkatesh, the joint leaders along with Parikh after four rounds yesterday, had to concede half-a-point each after fifth round draws and have fallen to the second position, also shared by Sudhir Sinha of Bihar.