Sports: The week that will be (15th Oct – 21st Oct)

We’re into the third week of October amidst groans from football fans about the international break, failures of the IPL teams in the Champions League and Sebastian Vettel turning the drivers’ championship on its head.

Cricket:

The CLT20 continues with it’s group stages as the four teams from IPL try and keep up with the challenge they face from throughout the world. Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians are yet to get off the mark here and it would take something special to motivate them enough to take this tournament seriously after a grueling cricket season the players have had.

The Titans, Auckland Aces and the Highveld Lions and Sydney Sixers look the strongest to go through to the semi finals. With the dearth of International Cricket, the CL T20 remains the only place where we can see top cricketers play.

CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRCA – OCTOBER 15: Martin Guptill of the Auckland Aces (R) in action during the Karbonn Smart CLT20 match between Kolkata Knight Riders (IPL) and Auckland Aces (New Zealand) at Sahara Park Newlands on October 15, 2012 in Cape Town, South Africa.

Football:

The following are the FIFA 2014 World Cup qualifying fixtures -

FIFA World Cup European Qualifying (Timings in IST)

Tuesday, 16 October 2012:

Russia v Azerbaijan, Group F, 9:30 PMBelarus v Georgia, Group F, 10:30 PMIsrael v Luxembourg, Group F, 10:30 PMAndorra v Estonia, Group D, 11:30 PMCyprus v Norway, Group E, 11:30 PMLatvia v Liechtenstein, Group G, 11:30 PM

RAMAT GAN, ISRAEL – NOVEMBER 19: (ISRAEL OUT) Yossi Benayoun of Israel during the international friendly match between Israel and Ivory Coast on November 19, 2008 at Ramat Gan Staduim near Tel Aviv.

Wednesday, 17 October 2012

Bosnia-Hercegovina v Lithuania, Group G, 12:30 AMCroatia v Wales, Group A, 12:30 AMCzech Republic v Bulgaria, Group B, 12:30 AMFaroe Islands v Rep of Ireland, Group C, 12:30 AMRomania v Netherlands, Group D, 12:30 AMUkraine v Montenegro, Group H, 12:30 AMHungary v Turkey, Group D, 1:00 AMIceland v Switzerland, Group E, 1:00 AMMacedonia v Serbia, Group A, 1:00 AMSan Marino v Moldova, Group H, 1:00 AMSlovakia v Greece, Group G, 1:00 AMAustria v Kazakhstan, Group C, 1:05 AMAlbania v Slovenia, Group E, 1:15 AMBelgium v Scotland, Group A, 1:15 AMGermany v Sweden, Group C, 1:15 AMItaly v Denmark, Group B, 1:15 AMPoland v England, Group H, 1:30 AMSpain v France, Group I, 1:30 AMPortugal v Northern Ireland, Group F, 2:15 AM

DONETSK, UKRAINE – JUNE 23: Adil Rami of France battles with Pedro of Spain during the UEFA EURO 2012 quarter final match between Spain and France at Donbass Arena on June 23, 2012 in Donetsk, Ukraine.

International Friendly:

Tuesday, 16th October 2012Japan v Brazil, 13:10 6:30 PM

The English Premier League finally comes back into action after the International break and we all heave a collective sigh of relief Here are the fixtures this weekend (all timings in IST).

Saturday, 20 October 2012

Tottenham v Chelsea, White Hart Lane, 1815

Fulham v Aston Villa, Craven Cottage, 2030

Liverpool v Reading, Anfield, 2030

Manchester United v Stoke, Old Trafford, 2030

Swansea v Wigan, Liberty Stadium, 2030

West Bromwich Albion v Manchester City, The Hawthorns, 2030

West Ham United v Southampton, Upton Park, 2030

Norwich City v Arsenal, Carrow Road, 2300

Sunday, 21 October 2012

Sunderland v Newcastle United, Stadium of Light, 1900

QPR v Everton, Loftus Road Stadium, 2130

LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 15: Florent Malouda of Chelsea is tackled by Kyle Walker of Spurs during the FA Cup with Budweiser Semi Final match between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea at Wembley Stadium on April 15, 2012 in London, England.

Tennis:

The 2012 Erste Bank Open in Vienna, Austria runs from October 15 to October 21. The ATP 250 event has a total financial commitment of €550,000 with the singles event winner getting €87,870 and the winning doubles team receiving €26,700. Last year’s finalist Juan Martin Del Potro is the top seed of this event and will attempt to boost his chances of qualifying for the year-end ATP World Tour Finals in London. Here are the top eight seeds of the 2012 Erste Bank Open – Vienna:

[1] Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG)[2] Janko Tipsarevic (SRB)[3] Tommy Haas (GER)[4] Jurgen Melzer (AUT)[5] Fabio Fognini (ITA)[6] Robin Haase (NED)[7] Benoit Paire (FRA)[8] Xavier Malisse (BEL)

TOKYO, JAPAN – OCTOBER 05: Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia plays a backhand in his quarter final match against Miros Raovic of Canada during day five of the Rakuten Open at Ariake Colosseum on October 5, 2012 in Tokyo, Japan.

The Kremlin Cup 2012 in Moscow, Russia begins on October 15 until October 21. This ATP 250 tournament has a total financial commitment of $742,150 with the singles event winner getting a $121,520 paycheck while the doubles champion gets $36,950. Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov is the top seed of this event. Former champions in the draw include Viktor Troicki of Serbia and Nikolay Davydenko of Russia (three-time winner).

Here are the top eight seeds of the 2012 Kremlin Cup:

[1] Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR)[2] Andreas Seppi (ITA)[3] Viktor Troicki (SRB)[4] Thomaz Bellucci (BRA)[5] Nikolay Davydenko (RUS)[6] Denis Istomin (UZB)[7] Carlos Berlocq (ARG)[8] Tatsumo Ito (JPN)

SHANGHAI, CHINA – OCTOBER 11: Alexandr Dolgopolov of Ukraine serves to Andy Murray of Great Britain during the Shanghai Rolex Masters at the Qi Zhong Tennis Center on October 11, 2012 in Shanghai, China.

The 2012 If Stockholm Open in Stockholm, Sweden begins on October 15 2012. This ATP 250 event has a total financial commitment of 550,000 with the singles event winner getting € 87,870, and the winning doubles team set to receive € 26,700.

London contender Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France will lead the pack as the top seed of this event. The Frenchman is aiming to win his third ATP World Tour title of the year and solidify his chances to qualify for the year-end event.

Here are the top eight seeds of the 2012 If Stockholm Open:

[1] Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA)[2] Tomas Berdych (CZE)[3] Nicolas Almagro (ESP)[4] Florian Mayer (GER)[5] Feliciano Lopez (ESP)[6] Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)[7] Marcos Baghdatis (CYP)[8] Jarkko Nieminen (AUT)

Badminton:Saina Nehwal will be making a comeback at the Denmark Open Super Series Premier.It will be her first appearance at an event since her Bronze winning medal performance at the London Olympics.She is seeded third and will be fairly fresh after having missed two Super Series events in China and Japan.In the men’s section, India will depend on Ajay Jayaram and Sourabh Verma to make an impact.