Wednesday, December 30, 1998
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S P O R T | Wednesday, December 30, 1998 |
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India have edge over Kiwis WELLINGTON, Dec 29 — India had a slight edge in a tantalisingly poised second Test after yet another day of absorbing cricket in which despite one more brilliant century by Sachin Tendulkar, the visitors faltered but fought back to prise four Kiwi wickets out cheaply here today. SA take unbeatable 3-0 lead over WI DURBAN, Dec 29 — South Africa cruised to a nine-wicket victory in the third Test today to take an unbeatable 3-0 lead over West Indies on their first post-apartheid tour of the republic. Mark Waugh seeks legal advice MELBOURNE, Dec 29 — Australian cricketer Mark Waugh is seeking independent legal advice before agreeing to appear before a Pakistan judicial inquiry into match fixing. |
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Asiad
hockey girls dismayed |
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North
Zone lose by 8 wickets |
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India have edge over Kiwis WELLINGTON, Dec 29 (PTI) — India had a slight edge in a tantalisingly poised second Test after yet another day of absorbing cricket in which despite one more brilliant century by Sachin Tendulkar, the visitors faltered but fought back to prise four Kiwi wickets out cheaply here today. At stumps on the penultimate day, New Zealand were left struggling at 73 for four chasing a tough 213 runs for victory after India suffered a late order collapse to be restricted in the second knock to 356 on a slow Basin Reserve track increasingly responding to spin. Resuming at 179 for three, India were going great guns at 297 for four with the tried and trusted pair of Tendulkar and skipper Azharuddin (48) blazing away. But an easy dismissal of Tendulkar soon after his 17th century triggered off the decline of the innings and India were bowled out at the stroke of tea. The Indian bowlers, however, had the hosts in serious trouble striking straight away. With the very third ball of the innings, pace spearhead Javagal Srinath sent back opener Matthew Bell even before the Kiwis could open their account. Srinath also struck a body blow to the home team when a lifter from him struck Nathan Astle fracturing his left hand. The injury between the thumb and index finger could, according to doctors, put the Kiwi all rounder out of action for four weeks. It was, however, announced that Astle would bat on the final day tomorrow, if necessary. India owed this position to Tendulkar’s first Test ton on Kiwi soil and his 97-run fifth wicket partnership with Azhar. The New Zealanders’ problems began when Bell struck a bouncing delivery from Srinath and ended up giving a simple catch to short leg Rahul Dravid who made no mistake. The Kiwis advanced to 42 without further hiccups with Matt Horne and skipper Stephen Fleming playing sensible cricket before leg-spinner Anil Kumble came in for his first spell and castled Fleming (17), who offered no stroke. Kumble then picked up Horne (31) trapping him leg before the wicket after the Kiwis had lost Nathan Astle, retired hurt for one, when he was badly hit by a Srinath lifter in the webbing between the thumb and the forefinger. New Zealand were left dumbfounded when ever-active Dravid displayed good piece of close-in fielding to get Adam Parore run out. Parore, flicked Kumble to forward short-leg and in a flash Dravid returned the ball to keeper Nayan Mongia, who removed the bails with the batsman out of the crease. The day started with India resuming on their overnight score of 179 for three. The visitors reached 290 for four by lunch with Tendulkar and skipper Mohammad Azharuddin giving good shape to the innings. Tendulkar was in his element, hitting a splendid 113 (13x4, 2x6, 151b, 200m) in his 63rd Test and 96th innings. He punished Daniel Vettori, hitting him for three fours and a straight six that struck the sightscreen. The maestro’s 97-run fifth wicket stand with his captain took India to a promising 297 for four before they suffered a dreadful collapse, losing their last six wickets for 59 runs to be bowled out for 356 in an extended tea session. Kiwi speedster Dion Nash inflicted the most damage, accounting for both Tendulkar and Azharuddin (48) and was probably lucky with both dismissals. Tendulkar played a loose shot outside the off stump when to Nash’s first delivery with the new ball, flicking it into the hands of Fleming at slips. Nayan Mongia (2) departed in similar fashion soon afterwards to a Simon Doull delivery as Fleming kept himself busy in the slips. Azharuddin, who held one end with solid batting, was squared up by a beautiful leg-cutter from Nash. He was given out caught behind — a questionable decision by umpire Edward Nicholls as TV replays showed he had missed the delivery altogether. A disbelieving Azhar walked off the field shaking his head in disapproval. The last bit of resistance from the Indians came from Anil Kumble (23) and Javagal Srinath (27 n.o.), who put on 42 runs for the eighth wicket before Daniel Vettori removed Kumble and the Indian innings folded up. Scoreboard |
SA take unbeatable 3-0 lead over WI DURBAN, Dec 29 (Reuters) — South Africa cruised to a nine-wicket victory in the third Test today to take an unbeatable 3-0 lead over West Indies on their first post-apartheid tour of the republic. The home side were set 146 for victory on the fourth day after dismissing West Indies for 259 in their second innings in the sixth over of the day. Opener Gary Kirsten, with 71 not out, guided the home side to victory as they reached 147 for one 45 minutes before tea. South Africa won the first Test in Johannesburg by four wickets — their first Test win over West Indies — and the second in Port Elizabeth by 178 runs, a win achieved within three days. West Indies resumed their second innings on 246 for eight and quickly succumbed. In the third over Ambrose was caught by Hansie Cronje at mid-on for five, which provided Shaun Pollock with his fifth wicket of the innings. He finished with five for 83. Allan Donald finished with three for 62 after ending the innings by bowling Courtney Walsh for three. Ridley Jacobs was left undefeated on 15. South Africa’s victory surge was given the perfect start by Kirsten and Herschelle Gibbs, who put together a 97-run stand for the first wicket. The opening pair were virtually untroubled in taking South Africa to within 49 runs of victory. However, two balls before lunch Gibbs swept a delivery from leg-spinner Rawl Lewis high into the air towards mid-wicket where Darren Ganga waited to take what was a simple catch. But wicketkeeper Jacobs came sprinting from behind the stumps to claim the catch — and spilled it. The opening partnership ended 25 minutes after lunch when Gibbs was trapped in front by off-spinner Carl Hooper for 49. Kirsten went on to score his 17th test half-century, in 126 minutes, off 123 balls and with six fours. Franklyn Rose, who took career best figures of 7-84 in the first innings, shared the new ball with Curtly Ambrose. The West Indies attack suffered a serious blow in the 18th over when veteran fast bowler Walsh left the field with an injured hamstring having bowled just four overs. South African batsman Jonty Rhodes was named Man-of-the-Match for his defiant 87 in the first innings. The teams now move on to Cape Town, where the fourth Test starts at Newlands on New Year’s day. Scoreboard Wallace c Boucher b Donald 1 Murray c Gibbs b Kallis 29 Chanderpaul c and b Pollock 75 Lara c Gibbs b Terbrugge 79 Hooper c Boucher b Pollock 2 Ganga c Gibbs b Pollock 5 Jacobs not out 15 Lewis c Boucher b Donald 0 Rose c Gibbs b Pollock 22 Ambrose c Cronje b Pollock 5 Walsh b Donald 3 Extras (lb-12, nb-9, w-2) 23 Total (82.2 overs) 259 Fall of wickets: 1-17, 2-41, 3-201, 4-201, 5-204, 6-213, 7-214, 8-245, 9-252. Bowling: Donald 20.2-4-62-3, Pollock 27-6-83-5, Terbrugge 13-4-28-1, Kallis 10-1-31-1, Symcox 12-3-43-0.
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Mark Waugh seeks legal advice MELBOURNE, Dec 29 (AP) — Australian cricketer Mark Waugh is seeking independent legal advice before agreeing to appear before a Pakistan judicial inquiry into match fixing. While Waugh is seeking advice from lawyers outside the Australian Cricket Board, leg-spinner Shane Warne and former team manager Alan Crompton are happy to give their evidence to the inquiry in public. Waugh, Warne and Crompton will testify before the Pakistan commission in Melbourne on January 8. The players were requested to provide evidence to the inquiry after admitting taking money from an illegal Indian bookmaker for providing information on weather and pitch conditions during Australia’s tour of Sri Lanka in 1994. The bookmaker scandal involving the players has been placed on an International Cricket Council meeting agenda for January 10-11 and a bloc of subcontinent countries — India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka — will lobby the ICC to slap life bans on the Australians. The pair were fined by the ACB in February 1995 but the action was kept secret until three weeks ago. The ACB believes no further action should be taken against Waugh and Warne.
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Asiad hockey girls dismayed AGROHA (Hisar), Dec. 29 — The women hockey players who represented India in the Bangkok Asiad feel dismayed over the indifference of the Haryana Government towards sport. Five members of the national squad who are from Haryana told TNS here that while the Prime Minister honoured them, there was yet to be any word from the Haryana Government. The five players were yesterday felicitated by the Haryana State Women's Hockey Association at the conclusion of the 17th Haryana Hockey Championship. While three of the girls are already working for the Indian railways the other two are yet to get absorbed. Mrs Sampat Singh, president of the Haryana State Women's Hockey Association, regretted the indifference of the State Government towards sport. She said,"While it is matter of pride for all of us in the country, the Haryana Government is yet to wake up." Mrs Sampat Singh drew the attention towards the treatment meted out to the sportspersons in Haryana. She made a strong plea for absorbing all these players in various departments in the state. She pointed out that most of these girls was absorbed by the Indian Railways. When it came to a match between Haryana and Railways, Haryana was defeated at the hands of its own players. Pritam Thakran, who captained the Asiad squad, pointed out that while the Punjab Government had announced a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh each for the medal winning players and also given one plot to each player, the Haryana Government had not even issued a word of appreciation. She said the Haryana Government should feel proud that a team which won silver medal after 16 years had five players, including the captain, from Haryana. Those states from which only one or two players participated in the games have already announced awards for them. Besides Pritam Thakran who is from Gurgaon, the four others are Kamla and Sunita Dalal, two sisters from Chirhi village in Rohtak, Sandeep Kaur and Surinder Kaur from Shahbad.
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Stunning 12-run win for England MELBOURNE, Dec 29 (Reuters) — England completed an astonishing 12-run win over Australia in the fourth Ashes Test today, taking the last seven Australian wickets for 32 runs at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. After being dismissed for 244 in their second innings, England bowled the Aussies out for 162. Paceman Dean Headley finished with six for 60 including four wickets in 14 balls. Darren Gough and Allan Mullally also picked up two wickets each as Australia collapsed from 130 for three in a lengthy final session. Gough grabbed his two in the final three balls to give the touring side a remarkable win against the odds on the fourth day of a Test in which the first full day was lost to rain. Australia lead 2-1 and have already retained the Ashes. They need to win or draw the fifth and final Test which starts in Sydney on January 2 to secure a record sixth series win. England started the day at 65 for two and despite half centuries from captain Alec Stewart (52), Nasser Hussain (50) and Graeme Hick (60), their total of 244 yet again did not appear big enough. Australia appeared to be cruising to victory at 130 for three but Headley, who took match figures of eight for 176 on his Test debut against Australia at Old Trafford last year, turned the match on its head with a devastating spell. He picked up the wickets of Mark Waugh (43), Darren Lehman (4), Ian Healy (0) and Damien Fleming (0) to reduce the home side to 140 for 7 before adding the scalp of Matthew Nicholson (9). Gough cleaned up Stuart MacGill and Glenn McGrath to complete the win. Australia’s collapse was as dramatic as it was quick with four of their last five batsmen making ducks, leaving Steve Waugh, who made a magnificent 122 not out in the first innings stranded on 30. Australia had suffered an early hiccup in their run chase when they lost their two openers for 41. Michael Slater fell in the sixth over when Headley trapped him leg before wicket while Mark Taylor was out hooking at Mullally. However, Mark Waugh and Langer, who was dropped by Hick in the slips with just one run to his name, looked to have steered Australia to victory with a 62-run stand. It ended with the score on 103 when Langer, on 30, was brilliantly caught by Mark Ramprakash at square leg diving away to his right after he had struck a full-blooded pull shot from Mullally. From then, it was all downhill for Australia. England’s batsmen had performed reasonably well earlier in the day, compiling a string of respectable partnerships, even though no one went on to make a big score. Stewart added nine runs to his overnight score of 43 before he departed in the first session, caught by Slater at bat pad off leg spinner MacGill. Hussain and Ramprakash, England’s most successful batsmen in the series, put on 49 for the fifth wicket before Ramprakash was clean bowled by test debutant Nicholson for 14. Hussain, who reached his fourth half century of the tour in the over before lunch, also shared in a 51-run partnership with Hick before he was caught by Slater off Nicholson at backward point for 50. The lower order also contributed to the score — a rarity in this series — but England’s last real hopes for a big total faded when Hick was bowled by Fleming for 60. Mullally, who has made five ducks in the series, provided some entertainment at the end of the innings with an adventurous innings of 16, which ultimately proved decisive. He smashed three boundaries during his short stay at the crease, including two off McGrath, before skying a mis-timed pull shot. Slater, who would have equalled the world record for the most catches in a Test innings by a fielder of five if he had taken the chance, was stationed underneath the ball as it plummeted to the turf. But he was denied his moment of glory when McGrath, furious at Mullally’s success against him, reached over Slater to take the return catch. Nicholson and MacGill both finished with three wickets. SCOREBOARD Australia (IInd
innings): |
North Zone lose by 8 wickets CHENNAI, Dec 29 (UNI) — Holders West Zone and South Zone defeated Central and North Zones, respectively to gain full points in the round robin league matches in the Col C.K. Nayudu Inter-Zonal Limited Overs Cricket Tournament here yesterday. While West survived some anxious moments before handing out central their third straight defeat by four wickets, South Zone cantered home to a eight-wicket win against North. Electing to bat, Central notched up 192 for nine in 50 overs, thanks mainly to half centuries by Asif Murutuza (55, 99 balls, 2x4) and Manoj Srivatsava (50, 50 balls 2x4). West bowler left arm spinner Rajesh Pawar picked wickets at regular intervals to finish with five for 32. Medium pacer Swapnil Hazare and off-spinner Firoz Bhambaniya shared four wickets between them. Vivek Gandhi (42, 87 balls 2x4) and Niraj Patel (48, 59 balls 2x4) played cautiously to shape West Zone’s victory. In the other match, after restricting North to 194 all out in 50 overs, South Zone hardly faced any difficulty winning with 16 balls to spare. Opener Rollen Barrington (26) and Rajat Bhatia (69, 124 balls 7x4, 1x6) launched a perfect platform, adding 63 runs in 19.5 overs, before Bhatia and skipper Y. Venugopal Rao (73 not out, 83 balls 8x4) consolidated it with a 85 run stand for the second wicket in 20.4 overs. However, Rao and Santosh Yadav (13 not out) scored at a scorching pace to see South through without further loss by adding 49 for the unfinished third wicket in a mere 6.5 overs. While both South and West have two wins from as many matches, North Zone have only one win in three matches, while Central Zone remained at the bottom of the league having lost all their three matches. The other team, East Zone have a win and a loss from two matches. Brief scores: Central 192 for nine in 50 overs (Asif Murutuza 55, Manoj Srivatsava 50, Sunil Dholpure 34, Swapnil Hazare 2 for 49, Rajesh Pawar 5 for 32, Firoz Bhambaniya 2 for 32) lost to West Zone 193 for six in 47.4 overs (Vivek Gandhi 42, Dheeraj Jadav 26, Niraj Patel 48, Musi Raza 2 for 35). North Zone 194 all out in 50 overs (Ajay Ratra 45, Sohail Rouf 30, Rajat Bhatia 2 for 39, Amrish Kumar 2 for 30, U. Bhaskar 2 for 27, C.M. Shyam 2 for 34) lost to South Zone 197 for two in 47.2 overs (Rollen Barrington 26, Rajat Bhatia 69, Y. Venugopal Rao 73 not out).
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Injured Srinath concedes match MUMBAI, Dec 29 (PTI) — Highest ranked Indian in the fray, wild card Prahlad Srinath conceded his men’s singles first round match to Syed Fazaluddin after trailing 1-2 in the third set due to a toe injury on the second day of the $ 50,000 prize money ATP Challenger Tennis here today. Two more seeds — second seeded Sabau Razwan of Romania and fifth seeded Oleg Ogorodov of Uzbekistan — bit the dust even as the 380 ranked Srinath threw in the towel after dropping his serve in the third game of the deciding set after he had won the second set 7-5. Fazaluddin had won the first set 6-3. Earlier, unseeded Kentaro Masuda of Japan, who is ranked 353 in the world, shocked second seeded Romanian 6-0, 6-3 in 55 minutes with a fine attacking tennis while another unseeded player Julian Bulter of France upset fifth seed Oleg Ogorodov 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (8-6) in marathon two hours and 38 minutes. Third seed and winner of the Ahmedabad leg, Anthony Dupius of France ranked 253rd in the world, sailed into the second round when his countryman and first round opponent Olivier Malcor conceded the match due to chest pain. Dupius was leading 1-0 in the second set after taking the first set 6-1. Qualifier and younger brother of US Davis Cupper Maliva Washington, Mashika (ranked 402), too had a good day beating 293rd ranked Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia 6-2, 7-5 in one hour 33 minutes to move into the second round.
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Soccer coach Nayeemuddin sacked BANGALORE, Dec 29 (UNI) — The All India Football Federation (AIFF) today decided to relieve coach Nayeemuddin of his duties and hire the services of a foreign coach in preparation for pre-Olympic tournaments. Making the announcement here, AIFF president Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi said the contract with Nayeemuddin ended with the Asian Games. Indian performance in Asiad, though they failed to make it to quarterfinals, was good but lack of international exposure let them down. There was no doubt about the commitment Nayeemuddin had for the game, he added. He said negotiations for a foreign coach were on through FIFA and expressed confidence of getting a competent foreign coach by middle of January. A panel of coaches would be identified afterwards, he added. The two-day meeting of the AIFF discussed the manager’s role and responsibility in the third national football league and evaluated the performance of the team in the just concluded 13th Asian Games in Bangkok. He said Ranjit Gupta and Armado Colaco would be in charge of youth development programmes for under 16 and under 19 respectively. P.P. Laxmanan would be in charge of pre Olympic qualifying rounds.
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Ajay knocks out Navdeep SANGRUR, Dec 29 — Ajay Kumar of Sangrur knocked out Navdeep Singh of Bathinda in the Punjab State Sub Junior Boxing Championships which is in progress here. In a one-sided bout Sangrur's Ajay Kumar with his powerful punches knocked out Navdeep Singh in the first round. Results: (A-7, Karamjit Singh (Bth) b Pritpal Singh (Bnl), Hardeep Singh (Mansa) b Ajay Kumar (Bnl) Sarabjit Singh (Sunam) b Rajiv Kumar (Asr). A-8: Ajay Kumar (Sang) b Navdeep Singh (Bth), Gurtej Singh (Sunam) b Gurpreet Singh (Dhuri), Harpreet Singh (Muktsar) b Vijay Kumar (Sang) Pawan Kumar (Hsp) b Harsimranjit Singh (Fer). A-9: Ashotesh (Domeli) Nachatar Singh (Mkt) Mohd Habib (M.K.) b Niraj Kumar (Sang) Parampreet Singh (Pta) b Amandeep (Mansa) Gurpreet Singh (Pta) b Gurvinder Singh (Pta). A-10: Vicky Singh (Sang) b S.P. Singh (Fdk) Manpreet (Domeli) b Anurodh (Asr) (B-4) Amandeep (Khanna) b Manpreet Singh (Fzr) Rupinder Singh (Pta) b Jastin Disudin (Fdk) Sukhjinder Singh (Fdk) b Amrinder Singh (Pta) Naveen Sharma (Sang) b Saurav Bansal (Rpr). B-6: Swaran Singh (Sunam) b Sukhwinder Singh (Asr) Pawan Kumar (M.K.) b Surinder Singh (Pta) Narinder Singh (Sang) b Ranjit Singh (Talwandi Saboo), Pankaj Kumar (Fzr) b Rupinder Kumar (Pta) B-7 Munish Kumar (Bnl) b Damandeep Singh (Hsp) Atul Kumar (Ropar) b Rattandeep (Pta) Umrinder Pal (Dhuri) b Amandeep Singh (M.K.). B-8: Sunny Sandhay (Sunam) b Valaiti Ram (Bnl) Vikram Mohan (Moga) b Karminder Singh (Pta) Sudesh (Hsp) b Sutantar Pal (Bti) Gopal Singh (Pta) b Rajinder (Khanna). B-11 Davinder Singh (Bti) B Balbir Singh (Hsp) Satnam Singh (Khanna) b Sandeep Singh (Dhuri). C-4: Arun Singh (Hsp) b Narinder Singh (Ropar) Amardeep (Fdk) b Sanjay Singh (Moga) Sarabjit Singh (Sunam) b Raj Kumar (M.K.) Kasham Ali (Sang) b Baldev Raj (Asr) C-5 Sikander (Pta) b Gobind Saini (Fdk) Raman Kumar (Sang) b Pavitar (Domeli). C-6: Surjit Singh (T.Sabem) b Karamjit Singh (Dhuri) Gurlal (Asr) b Birdavinder Singh (Bnl).
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Nisha takes lead THALASSERY, Dec 29 (PTI) — Third seed Nisha Mohota of West Bengal emerged sole leader with six points defeating Kerala’s Sasinas Haritha in the seventh round of the 13th National Junior Girls’ Chess Championship here today. M.R. Sangeetha of Tamil Nadu and Neha Singh of Bihar shared the second spot with 5.5 points each. Maharashtra’s top seed Swati Ghate and second seed Pallavi Shah suffered shock defeats today. While 10th seed Chitra Shridhar of Karnataka outclassed Swati, P. Sivakami of Tamil Nadu prevailed over Pallavi. Nisha adopted alekhine defence against Sasinas Haritha who began well to claim a pawn on 15th move. But Nisha escaped from her shaky position when Haritha bungled her ‘A’ file pawn in the middle game. Haritha resigned on the 40th move. Chitra Shridhar employed
the karo-cann defence and helped her ‘D’ pawn
forge ahead which put Swati in trouble. The international
woman master was forced to resign after 63 moves. |
Punjab spikers outclass HP CHINSURAH(WB), Dec 29 (PTI) — Title aspirants Railways stunned defending champions Kerala to romp into the men’s semi-final of the 47th Senior National Volleyball championships at the packed central ground here tonight. Displaying grit and determination, the railwaymen came roaring back into the quarter-final encounter after losing the first set to edge past their opponents 8-15, 15-11, 15-9, 15-11, after an intense 115-minute struggle to set up a pre-summit clash with last year’s losing finalists Punjab, who outclassed Himachal Pradesh in straight sets 15-6, 15-3, 15-7. Formidable Tamil Nadu, who outclassed Orissa 15-6, 15-10, 15-7, would lock horns with Services, who stormed past Karnataka 15-4, 15-1, 15-10, in the other semi-final tomorrow. Railways also cruised into the semi-final in the women’s section crushing Chandigarh 15-3, 15-7, 15-3 in only 54 minutes and would take on Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu girls overcame mid-match blues to get past Maharashtra 15-4, 13-15, 15-12, 15-3 after a 100-minute tussle. Hosts West Bengal, who finished runners-up at Vishakhapatnam last year, also bowed out of the competition going down 15-6, 8-15, 14-16, 15-8, 12-15 to Andhra Pradesh after a 108-minute ding dong battle. In the semi-final Andhra
Pradesh would meet Kerala, who breezed past Punjab in
straight sets 15-5 15-5 15-6 to reach the last four. |
Haryana edge past Services NEW DELHI, Dec 29 (PTI) — Former champions Haryana entered the Ranji Trophy super league from North Zone, edging past Services by a lone point after the last league match between the two ended in a draw at the Harbaksh Stadium here today. Haryana claimed three points from the tie after conceding a 90-run first innings lead, but logged 22 points to move up as the third team from North Zone behind Delhi and Punjab. Services needed a win to advance and despite gaining five points from this outing, could muster only 21 points to finish fourth and go out of reckoning. On the final day, Services bowled out Haryana for 236 and then declared their innings at 90 for six to set Haryana a target of 181 while giving their bowlers nearly two sessions to bowl out the opposition. But Haryana batsmen were cautious to be 61 for two when play was called off into the 10th mandatory over. Services captain Chinmaya Sharma’s declaration gamble nearly paid off when medium-pacers J.P. Pandey and Syed Javed reduced Haryana to 2-4 in the second over. But Nitin Goel (24 n.o) and Rajesh Puri (32 n.O) prevented further setbacks. Haryana, 151 for seven overnight in their first innings, reached 236 thanks to resolute batting by Parinder Sharma (32), Sanjay Dalal (31) and Pankaj Thakur (29 n.o). SCOREBOARD |
Kidambi emerges sole leader JALANDHAR, Dec 29 — On the fifth day of 28th National Junior Chess Championship international masters K. Sasikiran of Tamil Nadu and Tejas Bakre of Indian Airlines drew on top board with 4.5 points each after a well-fought game, while S. Kidambi of Tamil Nadu beat Satyapragyan of Orissa to emerge as sole leader with five points. Vikas Sharma of Punjab scored an impressive win over Sushant Bannerjee of Mahrashtra and was following the leaders with four points. Satyapragyan of Orissa playing with carookan opening tried to force a draw by exchanging pieces early in the game. But Kidambi of Tamil Nadu on his 16th birthday was unusually fierce, bamboozled his rival and landed him in zugzwang position forcing him to resign in 46 moves. Talented Hydrabadi player Rishipal Singh played an excellent game in English Opening to baffle his opponent former national U-14 champion Vikramjit Singh of Manipur. Rishi encashed on mistake of Vikramjit Singh on move 8 to capture a pawn by brilliant 10) Qd 511, yet missed a simple winning line on 26th move made a blunder allowing his opponent to escape with a draw. Neelotpal Dass again drew his last three games. R. Karthik of Tamil Nadu playing black was battering Calcuttian players from early game but got under time pressure, made weak moves and allowed Neelotpal Dass equality. On board eleven, Vikas Sharma of Punjab came back in top reckoning by defeating S. Banerjee of Maharashtra in an Kings Indian Sciench opening in just 37 moves. Sushant played a nice technical stroke in middle game by offering a knight on 84 for capturing white's Queen for three pieces. Vikas sensibly declined the offer, created a good outpost for his knight at 5 attacked the king side of his opponent who bowed to the unrelenting pressure in 37 moves. Points: At the end of the fifth round's S. Kidambi (TN) 5, Tejas Bakre, I.M. Sasikiran 4.5 points, Rishipal Singh, Vikramjit Singh, R. Karthik, V.R. Kamble, Vikas Sharma, P. Harikrishna, T. Karthekeyan 4 points, Satyapragyan, Neelotpal Dass, Anurag, Naveen Jain, Pramod N. Beenish Bhatia 3.5 points. The results at the end of
fifth round: |
Seeded players sail through JALANDHAR, Dec 29 — Top seed Subjit Saha of Bengal made short work of G. Jitendra (AP) and won 21-18, 21-7 as all the seeded players won their respective matches easily on the fifth day of the 60th Junior National and Inder State Table Tennis Championship currently underway at Raizada Hans Raj Stadium here today. Second seed Ranabir Dass of Bengal beat Sunil Thuja (Haryana) 21-18, 21-7, third seed Sikhant Das (Bengal) defeated his team mate Sujai Dass (Bengal) by 21-14, 21-15, while fourth seed Prithvi Dass Bose cruised past Ankar Mahajan of Maharashtra 21-13, 21-7. Host Punjab's campaign ended in the boys section when their both players Manish Bhardwaj and Bakul Aggarwal succumbed to their superior Bengal rivals. The results: Boys singles (First round): G. Jitendra (A.P.) beat Abishak Puri (Delhi) 21-15, 13-21, 23-21. Sunil Ahuja (Haryana) beat Aditya Mahagoankar (Mah) 21-19, 21-18. Sujai Dass (Bengal) beat Nimesh Patankar 16-21, 21-19, 21-17. Kallol Ganguli (Bengal) beat Swapnil Namjoshi 21-17, 21-15. Ankar Mahajan (Mhr) beat N. Arun Karnataka 21-17, 21-12. Anilrban Tarafdar (Bengal) beat Amit Aggarwal (Chd) 21-12, 21-16. Pinki Dass (Bengal) beat Bakul Aggarwal (Punjab) 21-10, 21-17. Boys singles (second round): Subajit Saha (Bengal) beat G. Jitendra (A.P.) 21-18, 21-7. Ranabir Dass (Bengal) b Sunil Ahuja (Haryana) 21-18, 21-7. Pankaj b Chutia (Assam) beat T. Arundhar 21-18, 21-24. Jayant Chandra (Bengal) b G. Vinod (TN) 21-16, 23-21. Soumtadeep Roy (PSCBA) b Anirban Tarafdar 21-17, 21-10. Subham Chowdhary (Bengal) b Munish Bhardwaj (Punjab 21-15, 21-10. Aruvaya Ganguli b Mansa P. Dass 21-19, 21-23, 21-10. Eric Fernande (Maha) b Ravish Vaid (J&K) 21-9, 21-12. Anal Kashyap (PSCBA) b Pinki Dass (Ben) 19-21, 22-20, 21-15. Sukanta Das (Bengal) b Sujai Das (Bengal) 21-14, 21-15. Selva Mathu Kumar (Pond) b David Zodinpui A (PSCBA) 21-17, 21-9 Anirban (Bengal) b Anil Mohan (Knt) 21-9, 21-13. Prithvi Raj Bose (Bengal) b Ankur Mahajan (Mhr) 21-13, 21-7. Saurav Chakravati (Bengal) b Kallol Ganguli (Bengal) 21-12, 21-15. Subajit Saha (Jr. PSCBA) b Sanjeev Kumar (U.P.) 21-8, 21-13. A. Sarath (TN) beat Amit Dass (Bengal) 21-14, 21-15.
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Anil, Deepak to clash in final CHANDIGARH, Dec 29 — Anil Sharma and Deepak Goel today qualified to clash for the finals in both the billiards and snooker events of the Haryana State Billiards & Snooker Championship being played simultaneously here. Anil again had to struggle hard to overcome the tough resistance of Honey Bhalla in the snooker semi-finals. Anil claimed the first frame 57-19 by producing fine potting but then Honey turned the tables by winning the second frame with a margin of 18-60. In the third frame the situation again got reversed as Anil mustered a lead right from the beginning and stuck to it till the end 62-39. In the fourth frame both scored side-by-side but Honey finally won it 48-34 margin. The last frame was one sided as Anil ran through it convincingly 60-25 to win the match. In the Billiards semi-finals, Anil played a lacklustre match with Rakesh Gupta but was successful in edging him out by a close margin 310-260. Both played much below their regular game but Anil being more consistent managed to make best use of the openings to clinch the match. Deepak, on the other hand, played inspired game to win both of his semi-finals. In snooker he subdued Sunny Bhalla in a closely fought match. Deepak, though started on low pace by losing the first frame 19-60 without much of fight but then came back aggressively to edge past Sunny in the second frame 63-53. The third frame was played on a cautions note as both resorted to safety but Deepak managed to win on the crucial black ball 42-38. ne the situation again got reversed as Anil mustered a lead right from the beginning and stuck to it till the end 62-39. In the fourth frame both side-by-side but Honey finally won it 48-34 margin. The last frame was one sided as Anil ran tl ran t²___-ù(The fourth frame was mearly a formality as Deepak completely demolished his opponent with 71-9 score to clinch the frame and the match. In billiards Deepak triumphed over Lalit with a huge margin of 475-290 to set up his clash with Anil in the final.
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Chopra wrecks J&K JAMMU, Dec 29 (PTI) — Brilliant incisive bowling by off spinner Nikhil Chopra (5/27) enabled Delhi crush Jammu and Kashmir by 168 runs in their last North Zone Ranji Trophy league match here today. Chopra, who took four for 38 to bundle out Jammu and Kashmir for 125 after Delhi managed a poor 148 in their first innings, improved upon his effort to bundle out the hosts, set a stiff target of 268, for 100 runs in their second innings. Chopra, who also scored a
fine unbeaten 82 in Delhi’s second innings of 245
for eight declared, returned superb figures of 9-65 for
the match as Delhi reached the super league stage on a
confident note. Earlier, Chopra, overnight 24, came up with a fine effort with the bat to set Delhi on course for victory. He hit seven fours and two sixes in his unbeaten 82 (129b) Brief Scores: |
Hockey players to be honoured CHANDIGARH, Dec 29 — Ramandeep Singh Grewal, Baljit Singh Dhillon and Baljit Singh Saini, all members of the Asian Games champion Indian hockey team, will be felicitated on the third and last day of the Budhewal Rural Sports Festival on January 5, Mr Balwant Singh, a former international and organising secretary of the festival, announced here today. Mr Balwant Singh said that efforts are being made to invite Chiranjeev Milkha Singh also to honour him. The three-day festival starting on January 3 will feature all traditional sports, including bullock cart races, kabaddi, tug-of war besides competitions in hockey and other sports. The Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, is expected to preside over the concluding function where all players and others will be honoured, Mr Balwant Singh added.
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Cricket tourney LUDHIANA, Dec 29 (FOSR) — Dharender Gogna (38) and Vaneet (3 for 21) fashioned New Star Club's two wicket win against Manjit Club to enter the final of the first Indian Cricket Cup tournament at the Dugri Road ground here today. In reply to Manjit Club's 118 for 7 in 20 overs, New Star Club made 119 for 8 in 19.2 overs. The second semifinal between Dixon Club and LCC XI was tied as both the teams scored 132 runs for 8 wickets each in the allotted 20 overs. The match will be played again. APS XI triumph LUDHIANA, Dec 29 (FOSR) — APS XI registered 7-wickets victory over SDP Coaching Centre in the sixth Veera Devi Memorial Cricket Tournament at the Chandigarh Road focal point ground here today. Brief scores: SDP Coaching
Centre 89 all out in 22 overs (Ravi Kanojia 27. Goldy 3
for 8.) APS XI 90 for 3 in 15 overs (Peter 27, Harbhajan
Kala 24 n.o. Vicky 2 for 18). |
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