Maria Sharapova Grand Slam Title 2014

Maria Sharapova Grand Slam Title 2014

Russian tennis sensation Maria Sharapova won her fifth Grand Slam title after beating Simona Halep in the French Open women's singles final on Saturday, bringing her level with Martina Hingis on the all-time list, 10 years after she won her first major at Wimbledon

Maria Sharapova won her second French Open title in three years at Roland Garros on Saturday, defeating Romania's Simona Halep 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 6-4 in a gripping final, the first to go the full distance in Paris in 13 years and the second longest on record. (Maria Sharapova vs Simona Halep French Open Final Highlights)

It was the 27-year-old Russian's fifth Grand Slam title, bringing her level with Martina Hingis on the all-time list, 10 years after she won her first major at Wimbledon 2004.

Sharapova, who completed a career sweep of all four Grand Slam titles in Paris in 2012 before losing to Serena Williams last year, also moved to number two on the all-time prize money earnings, with only the American ahead of her.

But it took all her legendary grit and resolve to recover from the agonising loss of the second set on a tie-break after she had stood just two points away from the title at 5/3.

"It's the toughest Grand Slam final I have ever played," said Sharapova.

"I can't believe that at 27 I have won the French Open more times than any other Grand Slam."

The consolation for Halep, whose meteoric rise to the top bracket in women's tennis over the last 18 months has projected her as a potential champion, was that she will climb to a career-high third in the world rankings.

"I wish to have many more (Grand Slam finals), but this will be special for me all my life. I had two incredible weeks here and I played my best tennis," she said

The two finalists reached the championship match in starkly contrasting styles.

Fourth-seeded Halep did not drop a single set in her six matches, while seventh-seed Sharapova needed to battle back from first set losses in her three previous outings.

But experience was massively on the Russian's side. This was her ninth Grand Slam final dating back 10 years, while Halep was playing in her first at the age of 22.

Sharapova also towered over her opponent at 1.88 metres (6 feet 2 inches) compared to Halep's 1.68 metres (5 feet six inches).

Earlier before the final, Maria Sharapova agreed that the French Open has shown that a new wave of women's tennis talent is on the rise, but at just 27 she says she has no intention of rolling over just yet.

Sharapova said that she has been impressed by the new blood on show in Paris. "I think this tournament has showed and displayed that throughout the whole two weeks," she said Friday.

"I got a chance to play against two of them in this tournament, and both played at a very high level. I think that shows many good things to come from the young generation."

The Russian should know what it takes to accumulate success at a young age, having staged a spectacular burst onto the world stage in 2004 when, as a raw 17-year-old, she demolished Serena Williams in the Wimbledon final.

Since then she has had her ups and downs with Grand Slam successes and world number one status, but also injuries and loss of form.

Currently though she is playing some of the best tennis of her career, having won back-to-back titles in Stuttgart and Madrid in the buildup to Paris.

On Saturday, she showed she is not yet done with her career and her tally of Grand Slams by winning her second French Open title, in a year where all the top three seeds in Serena Williams, Li Na and Agnieszka Radwanska crumbled in the first week itself.

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Himachal tragedy: Bodies of five students recovered

At least 24 engineering students, including six girls, are feared to have been washed away this evening in River Beas near Thalot on Manali-Kiratpur Highway, 40 km from Mandi, police said on Sunday.

The sight seeing trip to Himachal Pradesh turned tragic for the Hyderabad students who were taking photographs on the bank of the river.

Gushing waters of the Beas swept them away after water was suddenly released from the reservoir of 126 MW Larji hydropower project.

The incident took place around 7 pm near Thalot, 61 km from Mandi, when the students from the Hyderabad-based engineering college VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering & Technology, Bachupally, Nizampet, were trying to click photos on the bank of the river.

The students drowned when water from Larji dam was suddenly released without any warning.

Rescue operation

As the tunnel joins river Beas, the students were thrown into the middle of the river. While some managed to reach the bank, others were swept away. Some students were drowned while trying to save others, police said.

"Exact number of students who were swept away is not known as the rescue operation is still on. They were trying to click the photos near the Larji dam tunnel when the dam staff suddenly released the water from the dam located on other side of the tunnel. The students were unaware of the water threat. The flow of the water was so strong that they did not get a chance to reach the bank. While some were washed away and were thrown into river Beas, some even tried to save themselves by climbing on rocks. They were drowned as the water force increased. Some were saved by locals by throwing ropes," Kuldeep Rana, Additional SP, Mandi, said.

Another police official said that when the water was being released, the locals also raised the alarm but the dam staff ignored the same.

No warning was issued before releasing the water.

According to the police, there were 61 people, including students and staff, who were on their way to Manali in two college buses. There were 13 girl students.

Local administration swung into action after the police was informed by the locals.

The darkness hampered the rescue operation which continued till late night.

People living along the two sides of the river bank downstream of the dam have been alerted to inform the police about any person sighted by them.

Massive search operations have been launched to trace the missing students but there was no success due to darkness.

The incident has sent shock waves and parents and friends of the missing students are making frantic calls to know about their whereabouts.

This is the second major accident in the state in less than three months.

Nearly two months ago, 15 people were killed and nearly two dozen injured when their overloaded mini- bus rolled down a 400- feet deep gorge in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district. The bus was on its way from Milla village to Paonta Sahib.

In another accident in 2013, all 21 people travelling by a private mini-bus were killed when the vehicle skidded off the road and rolled down more than a 500-foot deep gorge in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district.


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Chandrababu Naidu takes oath as first CM of new Andhra Pradesh

     Chandrababu Naidu takes oath as first CM of new Andhra Pradesh
 

 Nara Chandrababu Naidu, 64, took oath as the first chief minister of the residuary state of Andhra Pradesh on Sunday at 7.27 pm, thus completing the bifurcation of the state.

At a function attended by lakhs of people, Governor E S L Narasimhan administered the oath of office to Naidu on the 70-acre grounds of Acharya Nagarjuna University, that falls between Vijayawada and Guntur cities.

Naidu will have two deputy chief ministers. They were sworn in along with 17 other Cabinet ministers. N Chinnarajappa, MLA from Peddapuram, and K Krishna Murthy from Kurnool are likely to be the deputy CMs. Two BJP MLAs, Kamineni Srinivas and P Manikyala Rao, have been accommodated in the Cabinet.
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Dr P Narayana, who runs the popular Narayana Group of educational institutions, has also been made a minister.

Political observers said Naidu had played a masterstroke by inducting the BJP in the ministry, ensuring that the Centre pays attention to the development of the state he leads.

All districts of the state have got representation in the Cabinet except Kadapa, which is a YSR Congress Party bastion. Two MLAs each of East Godavari, West Godavari, Guntur and Anantapur, and three of Krishna district are now ministers.

Keeping his election promises, the first decision of Naidu as CM was to sign a file related to waiver of crop loans and loans to women self-help groups and weavers. A committee will be constituted to frame guidelines for the loan waiver, and will have to submit its report in 45 days.

Naidu also signed files related to closure of belt shops (illegal liquor vends in villages), enhancement of pension to Rs 1,000 a month to old people and widows and up to Rs 1,500 in two slabs for physically-challenged, and implementation of NTR Sujala, a scheme for supply of clean drinking water to villages. “We will supply mineral water to needy villages at Rs 2 per 20 litres,” he said.

In another decision, the retirement age of state government employees was raised from 58 to 60 years.

As Naidu’s name was called to take oath at Sunday’s ceremony, there was pandemonium in the assembled crowd, with slogans being raised and lakhs springing to their feet.

Although Naidu had personally invited newly sworn in Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao and YSR Congress Party leader Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy to the swearing-in, both stayed away. While KCR cited a tight schedule, Jagan said he did not want to be part of the “pomp and extravagance” of Naidu’s oath-taking.

But the extravagant show with folk and cultural programmes did see senior political leaders, film stars and business

Chandrababu Naidu Signs Five Files at Swearing-In

Guntur, Andhra Pradesh:  Soon after taking oath as chief minister of Andhra Pradesh late Sunday evening, Chandrababu Naidu signed five files to fulfill his poll promises.

Mr Naidu announced the setting up of a committee to work out modalities to waive loans of farmers, women self-help groups and weavers.

The Telugu Desam Party chief said the panel would submit its report in 15 days. He assured the people that he would implement the report in 45 days.

At the swearing-in, Mr Naidu signed another file to increase monthly pension of the aged and widows to Rs.1,000. The handicapped will get pension of Rs.1,500.

He also announced closure of all 'belt shops' or illegal liquor outlets.

Amid thunderous applause from the massive crowd, Mr Naidu said his government would also implement the NTR Sujala Sravanti Scheme, under which people will get 20 litres of mineral water for Rs.2.

Lauding the role played by government employees for a united Andhra Pradesh, he promised to increase their retirement age from 58 to 60 years.

New Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu Vows to be 'Coolie No One'

Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief N Chandrababu Naidu was on Sunday sworn in as the first chief minister of Andhra Pradesh post its bifurcation at a function at Nagarjuna Nagar, 18 kilometres from Vijaywada.

"I will work as 'Coolie No.1' to rebuild the state into a Swarna (golden) Andhra Pradesh, a sunrise country and a knowledge hub. I will strive to make AP the No.1 state in the country with your participation and co-operation," Mr Naidu said as he dedicated TDP's victory in the elections to the Telugu people.

Governor ESL Narasimhan administered the oath of office and secrecy to Mr Naidu at 7.27 P.M., the auspicious time set for the occasion.

Several Union ministers, chief ministers and top leaders of the BJP and other NDA parties were present on the occasion. Mr Naidu took his oath in Telugu amidst thunderous cheers by party workers.

His Cabinet with 19 ministers, including three women, was also sworn in at the function. The first meeting of the Cabinet is scheduled to be held in the port city of Visakhapatnam although the date for it has not been fixed yet, Mr Naidu said.

He paid obeisance at the statue of Telugu Talli (reverential mother of Telugus) on the dais before taking oath. Braving the blistering heat, lakhs of people attended the ceremony on a sprawling 70-acre open site opposite Acharya Nagarjuna University. Union ministers Rajnath Singh, M Venkaiah Naidu, Anantha Kumar, Kalraj Mishra, Prakash Javadekar, Nirmala Sitharaman, Harsh Vardhan and Piyush Goyal attended the function.

Among the chief ministers in attendance were Parkash Singh Badal of Punjab, Manohar Parrikar of Goa, Vasundhara Raje Scindia of Rajasthan, Raman Singh of Chhattisgarh and TR Zeliang of Nagaland.

Veteran BJP leaders LK Advani, Murali Manohar Joshi, Tamil Nadu minister R Vaidyalingam, MDMK chief Vaiko, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) leader Abhay Chautala, Akali Dal MP Naresh Gujral and a host of other dignitaries also attended the event.

Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha, PJ Kurien, and Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal were also present.

Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi was the star attraction at the event along with Telugu film stars Pawan Kalyan, NTR Junior and Kalyan Ram.

Art of Living guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, badminton great Pullela Gopichand, top industrialists like G Mallikarjuna Rao of GMR Group and a host of other VIPs, too, attended the function.

In all 19 ministers, including two from TDP's ally BJP, were sworn in tonight along with Mr Naidu. Senior legislators KE Krishna Murthy, Yanamala Ramakrishunudu, Ayyannapatrudu, Devineni Umamaheswara Rao, N China Rajappa, Palle Raghunath Reddy, Pattipati Pulla Rao and Bojjala Gopalakrishna Reddy, who remained loyal to the party through the thick and thin, were inducted into the new state's first cabinet.

Krishna Murthy and Rajappa are tipped to be designated as Deputy Chief Ministers in keeping with the election promise made by Chandrababu Naidu.

Ganta Srinivasa Rao, who served as a Cabinet member in the previous Kiran Kumar Reddy government but returned to TDP on the eve of the recent elections, was also made a minister.

Women legislators Paritala Sunita, Kimidi Mrunalini and Peethala Sujatha, too, found place in the Council of Ministers.

Educationist P Narayana, who is not a legislator yet, was also sworn in. He is expected to be soon nominated to the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council.

BJP MLAs Kamineni Srinivas and P Manikyala Rao were also given Cabinet berths with TDP making its ally a partner in the government.

Former Union minister the late K Yerran Naidu's younger brother and three-time MLA Atchannaidu was made a minister for the first time.

First-time MLAs Ravela Kishore Babu and Kollu Ravindra also made it to the Cabinet as per the caste equations. Ravela belongs to the Scheduled Caste community while Ravindra is from a backward caste.

Of the 19 ministers, two are from the SC community while seven belong to backward castes. Barring Kadapa, all remaining districts have been given representation in the Cabinet.

Yanamala and Kamineni Srinivas were the only ministers to take oath in English; the others all took their oath in Telugu.

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