Short Corner 8212; Chandigarh

Usha, Gurmeet win bronzeNo gold, no silver, only a spate of bronze. But what came with it and does not show on the medal tally was plenty...

Usha, Gurmeet win bronze
No gold, no silver, only a spate of bronze. But what came with it and does not show on the medal tally was plenty of guts and lots of splendid personal performances. At the end of the day, the count was five bronze medals, two Indian national records, three personal bests and one man who has finally got Milkha Singh into his sight. If PT Usha8217;s story is one of a remarkable comeback at an age where most Indian women would have been confined to the kitchen and raising families, Gurmeet Kaur8217;s tale is no less.

Chinese sweep
The Chinese women, except for a temporary halt in the women8217;s 400m and high jump, continued their golden march, while the men8217;s medals continued to be scattered around more evenly. The Chinese girls picked up four of the six women8217;s gold on stake on the scond day of the 12th Asian Athletic Championships, but the truly world-class performance on this day came from a Sri Lankan duo. And it saw the Island nation pick up a splendid 400m double for men and women.

Lord of Lord8217;s
The usually taciturn Michael Atherton gushed: 8220;I do not think even W G Grace would have played like Sachin,8221; and the British media heaped encomiums after Sachin Tendulkar came up with yet another exhibition of his masterly batting at the Lord8217;s on Saturday.

Airlines through
When the going gets tough, the tough get going. True to the saying Indian Airlines, down by two early goals, came into their own to pack off Karnataka 3-2 and moved into the semifinals of the 76th Madras Cricket Club-Murugappa Gold Cup Hockey Tournament on Monday.

Sweden in semis
Jonas Bjorkman carried defending champions Sweden into the semifinals of the Davis Cup after sealing their tie against Germany with a thrilling five-set victory over Nicolas Keifer.

O8217;Meara reaps
Mark O8217;Meara drew on all his vast experience to win the Open Championships. by beating little-known fellow American Brian Watts in a dramatic four hole play-off on Sunday. After 18 years of trying to join the highest ranks of his profession, the 41-year-old has suddenly collected two Majors in the space of three months 8212; the oldest player to perform such a feat in the modern era.

The Indian genius, who led his Rest of the World side to an eventually easy win over the Atherton-led MCC XI with a rivetting 125, was accorded a standing ovation by the 30,000 strong gathering.