Oz-Kiwi decider washed out

Wellington: New Zealand opening batsman Mark Richardson today announced his retirement from cricket after returning home from his fruitless tour to Australia. Richardson, 33, had a woeful Test series against the Australians, scoring just 48 runs from four innings.

Rastogi causes major upsets

Mumbai: Unseeded Karan Rastogi of Mumbai caused two major upsets accounting for top seed Sunil Kumar Sepaiya and fourth seed Vishal Uppal both from Delhi on way to the men8217;s singles final of the ABN Amro tennis challenge here. In the quarter-finals Rastogi ousted the top seed 6-4, 6-1 while in the semi-finals he sidelined Uppal 6-4, 6-2.

Dope taints Punjab Games as well

Patiala: The Indian Punjab squad suffered a big embarrassment today when the Indo-Pak Punjab Games organising committee decided to withdraw medals from women cyclists Gurpreet Kaur and Kulwinder Kaur, who have been at the centre of a dope controversy. The duo8217;s samples, taken during the national mountain bike meet held in Anandpur Sahib from October 15 to 17, showed traces of anabolic steroid dihydropindestroneacetate dhea in more than the permissible limit. 8212; Agencies