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Thursday,
June 7, 2001, Chandigarh, India  
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Grosjean stuns Agassi; Corretja wins
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Gopi stretched by Kevin
Han Punjab National Games mascot released
India humiliate
Brunei 17-1 Waqar promises more
aggression Karnataka beat
Haryana Champions Trophy not to be put off
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Grosjean stuns Agassi; Corretja wins
Paris, June 6 The 10th-seeded Frenchman will play Spain’s Alex Corretja on Friday after the 13th seed defeated Swiss Roger Federer 7-5, 6-4, 7-5. Grosjean looked out of his depth in the first set on an overcast Centre Court as Agassi, the champion at Roland Garros in 1999, moved him around the court before firing a succession of winners into the corners. But as former US president Bill Clinton took his courtside seat at the start of the second set to support the American, Grosjean came to life. He barely missed a ball in the second and third sets, whipping the home spectators into a frenzy with a series of searing winners. “I could hear the crowd today but I was concentrating so well it didn’t bother me,” Grosjean said. “I began to serve better, with more variation which seemed to work well. He started to make some mistakes after the first set and I thought he was not really in the game from then.” The Australian Open semifinalist kept his nose in front in the fourth set to seal victory in one hour and 49 minutes and become the eighth Frenchman to reach the last four at his home Grand Slam since 1968. The last was Cedric Pioline in 1998, when he eventually lost to Corretja. “Alex will be a tough match, he is a great player so to beat him won’t be easy,” said Grosjean, who is hoping to emulate Yannick Noah, the last Frenchman to win at Roland Garros 18 years ago. Agassi whistled through the first set in 20 minutes, silencing the packed and patriotic crowd with some stunning baseline play. But the arrival of the former president coincided with a complete transformation in the match as the American’s game fell apart and Grosjean’s took off. The Frenchman raced through the next two sets for the loss of only two games against a dispirited-looking Agassi, who was forced into a series of untypical errors. When the Las Vegan lost the third set with a double fault Clinton decided he had seen enough and left his seat to do a television interview. Agassi, whose Australian Open triumph in January was his seventh Grand Slam title, immediately broke at the start of the fourth set and led 2-1 when Clinton returned. Bizarrely, the American promptly double-faulted on the first point of the game and then again at 15-40 to lose his serve. After producing a sublime lob, the 23-year-old Grosjean broke again for 5-3 and recovered from 15-40 down in the next game to complete the biggest win of his career with another ace. “I felt really good today, I could have run all day. If we had to play a fifth set it would not have been a problem for me,” Grosjean said. Agassi was generous in defeat. “I played well, he played a lot better,” the 31-year-old said. “It was tough conditions out there. He was hitting the ball solid and better than I did. “His speed puts a lot of pressure on you. You have to hit a lot of quality shots and I couldn’t come up with them. “He played real well, he was hitting winners with his forehand and he wasn’t missing his backhand. I played real good, just not good enough.” Corretja eased into the semifinals for the second time in four years with a comprehensive victory over the unseeded Federer. The 27-year-old Spaniard, runner-up to compatriot Carlos Moya at Roland Garros in 1998, never looked entirely comfortable on a cold morning. Federer was unable to find the consistency to trouble him, however, and Corretja’s outstanding backhand again proved his dominant weapon as he claimed his fourth successive straight-sets win of the tournament. “This run of three-set matches is giving me real confidence,” said Corretja, who had to come through a difficult five-setter in the first round against Mariano Zabaleta before finding his best form.
Reuters
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India keen to set record straight Bulawayo (Zimbabwe), June 6 That elusive series win outside the sub-continent which hasn’t happened in the last 15 years and not more than five times in the country’s 70-year cricket history finally seems quite plausible. However, history is not a help but a deterrent in this mission. In the last one decade, India have visited Zimbabwe twice and failed to win on either occasion. In fact, they lost the one-off Test by 61 runs the last time they toured this country in 1998. It only conforms to a pattern — India did not score their first win against England till the 22nd Test they played there. In Australia, it was the 12th match and so was the case in the West Indies. India are yet to break the hoodoo in South Africa and Pakistan. Their last series win was against England in 1986. However, the Indians’ task is far from easy. The 1998 loss still haunts the team and they will do well not to repeat their mistakes. Zimbabwe no longer are the minnows they were of international cricket. They are playing more and winning more and they too are on a high right now with a comprehensive win over Bangladesh. Still, the team is brimming with confidence relying on a fabulous middle order and newest spin hope Harbhajan Singh. The potent mix of an aggressive captain in Saurav Ganguly and a hard taskmaster coach in John Wright bore fruits against the world conquering Australians two months ago and the indians hope it will work again on this tour and those to follow immediately after. The Indians did themselves a lot of good in the two tour matches. After struggling a bit with chilly and windy weather conditions and the extra bounce on the wicket in the first game against Zimbabwe ‘A’, they came into their own against the schoolboy side of CFX Academy. As many as four batsmen hit centuries with Hemang Badani giving a scare to the opening pair of Shiv Sunder Das and Sadgopan Ramesh. Badani, who is yet to play in a Test, fared attractively when asked to open against the academy boys and though he is not likely to make his debut here, he has certainly put Das and Ramesh on high alert. Similar is the case with the bowlers, with Delhi seamer Ashish Nehra most likely to be preferred over Ajit Agarkar for the slot of the third medium-pacer after his impressive performance in Harare. Harbhajan Singh lived up to his “turbonator” image with a 10-wicket haul against the Academy boys and is set to torment the Zimbabweans the way he did the Australians. The Indians have shown utmost dedication and commitment in persuance of their objective which was evident in the way they took to the field within hours of arriving in this country to acclimatise themselves with the conditions. That same commitment would be in evidence when Rahul Dravid plays tomorrow despite having dislocated his finger during the first tour match. Dravid has scored hundreds in all the three Tests he has played against Zimbabwe and he would certainly not like a blemish on that record. Sachin Tendulkar is intent on sorting out his defence technique while Ganguly too is sure he would make up for the loss of runs against Australia over the next fortnight. The visitors, however, definitely need to tighten up their fielding and fitness levels. The basics of running between the wickets and maintaining a disciplined line and length while bowling are the areas that need to be worked upon if they want to transform themselves from a side that beat the world-beaters to a team the world would want to beat. Zimbabwe too are in the middle of an upswing in their fortunes. In the last season they played five Tests and won two, losing one and drawing the other two. This was also the season when they unearthed quite a few promising talents. Dion Ebrahim is an opener of promise and the middle order remains formidable with the Flower brothers and Alistair Campbell around. The new talents in bowling are actually overflowing with Andy Blignaut, Brighton Watambwa and Travis Friend all capable of lending captain Heath Streak, Man of the Series against Bangladesh, a helping hand. Raymond Price is a promising spinner in addition to Brian Murphy. Both Blignaut and Watambwa have bowled at good pace in recent times. Blignaut is also a powerful hitter of hte ball while Watambwa is blessed with natural pace. According to Andy Flower, Watambwa is the quickest of the lot and has the ability to swing he ball away. The wicket at the Queen’s Sports Club has a fair bit of grass but it is not in a clump. It would afford pace and bounce but not excessively and those batsmen who are prepared to back themselves could have an enjoyable outing.
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Saurav Ganguly writes The wicket looks a very sporting one. It is hard and will have good carry. It will assist spinners on the fourth and fifth day. Overall it is a perfect atmosphere for a good five days of Test cricket. For us it is a very important series — a series which we are really looking forward to. The expectations are really high among the fans but I as a captain have faith in this side. It is a bunch of very good cricketers, a good unit trying to help each other out, enjoying each others’ success and especially a unit hungry for success. It is a good blend of youth and experience. The two warm-up games have been good for us. Srinath and Ashish Nehra bowled well and Harbhajan has been just running into top form. He looks an improved bowler with every game. The batsmen have also been in good form. It always takes a touring side a couple of games to get used to the conditions. The batsmen now look to be in good touch although Test cricket is a different ball game. The Zimbabweans are going to be a good side at home. They may not have any big names, but they are a competitive unit at home. Andy and Grant (Flower) are two of their best players and we think we have a good gameplan for them. Their bowling would be handy in these conditions. Streak would be the main bowler and he would be well supported by Friend and Blignaut. Our seamers have been bowling well on this trip. I really look up to then to deliver. For the first time in five years we have a good bunch of support seamers to assist Javagal Srinath and that is heartening. The first two hours of the Test match will be very crucial whatever we do. Our seamers will have an important role during the first three days. The batsmen will also have to play their part and provide the right platform by putting up a big total. The conditions then are set for a good game of cricket.
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Harbhajan Singh exudes confidence
The tall 20-year-old is relishing the challenge on pitches that will certainly not suit off-spin as much as those he is used to on the sub-continent. “I don’t have much say about the way the pitches are prepared,’’ Singh said on Tuesday as India prepared for the Test at Queens Sports Club. “Whenever I get the chance I just have to bowl well. The conditions are different to India and even the ball is very different, which is a bit more difficult. “If we want to perform all the time then we have to manage these things whether it’s in Zimbabwe or Australia.’’ Singh was a sensation in the recent Test series against Australia in India, which the home side won 2-1 thanks largely to the spinner’s exploits with the ball. His near unplayable off-spin ripped through the Australian batting as he captured a phenomenal 32 wickets in the three tests. That performance has ensured that he is under pressure to perform all the time, but with it came a large slice of confidence. “I’m definitely confident and I’ll try my level best to get more wickets,’’ Singh said. “Australia was just like a dream — it was my dream performance.’’ Singh, who hails from the Punjab, sounded a warning to the Zimbabwean batting with match figures of 10 for 80 against an Academy XI in Harare. “I was very happy with that performance because the wicket was not very helpful,’’ Singh said. “There was no turn and it was very slow too, so now I’m looking forward to the Test match and will try to get lots of wickets for my team and help win this series.’’ Singh has played 11 tests to date and taken 53 wickets, five of them against Zimbabwe in Harare nearly three years ago.
Reuters Laundary Bills Mumbai However, Diwadkar did not specify how the problem was sorted out and only said the players have been asked by Dr Muthiah to concentrate on the Test match starting on Thursday Bulawayo. Soon after reaching Zimbabwe, the team had complained of insufficient daily allowance provided to them by the board. An allowance of $ 32 was considered too inadequate by the players specially due the fact that laundry charges are very high in that country.
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Gopi stretched by Kevin Han Seville (Spain), June 6 The sixth-seeded Indian prevailed 15-6 11-15 15-7 over the Pan-American champion but the scoreline hardly suggests the keen contest observed in the match. “Kevin played really well,” Gopichand said after the match. “Basically he has the same kind of game that I have strong at the net, good with the parallels and a powerful smash. And because he was on top of his game it was difficult for me.” Han, who upset world number 19 Johan Hadikusuma of Indonesia in the opening round, began from where he left off yesterday and raced ahead to a 5-0 lead in the first game. He served low and even dared to engage Gopichand in rallies at the net, a place where the Indian is rated as the best in the world. Gopichand seemed to be troubled by the speed of the shuttle and he decided to ask for a slower shuttle, something that was not acceptable to his opponent. The chief referee had to intervene and he ruled in the favour of the American. That galvanised Gopichand into action and he changed tactics and kept Han pinned to the backcourt while unleashing a series of powerful cross-court smashes. Soon Gopichand caught up with his opponent at 5-all and then playing the best badminton of the match he raced to wrap up the first game while allowing Han just one more point. After the first game, some complacency set in in the Indian as he saw Han once again take a 6-0 lead. The sparse gathering of Indian supporters waited for a comeback by Gopichand as the American invited him to the net and then beat him at his own game. With Han increasing his lead, Gopichand’s desperation showed in the number of unforced errors committed by him. Soon, he was 3-12 down and the match looked headed into a tense decider. Han was in top form at this stage reading his opponent’s usually deceptive strokes with great ease. Han seemed to have done his homework on the Indian well as none of Gopichand’s usual tactics of trying to speed up the game really worked. In fact, it was Gopichand who got irritated by the deliberate delays by Han in getting ready. Gopichand, one of the hot favourites to win the title here, however, kept his calm and slowly dragged himself back into contention at 11-13. But a couple of silly errors at crucial junctures nullified that effort and Han won the game at 15-11 to take the match into the decider. This acted as a wake-up call for Gopichand who had not dropped a single game on his way to the All-England title and won all his four matches in Sudirman Cup as well as the first round match here in straight games.
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Punjab National Games mascot
released Chandigarh, June 6 Official invitations to the participating states would be sent soon. Also, invitations to the President and the Prime Minister have been officially handed over personally by Mr Parkash Singh Badal, Chief Minister of Punjab and chairman of the organising committee. Besides spelling out the preparations for the National Games, Mr Dhindsa today released the logo and mascot for the games. Besides the logo and the mascot, the website of the National Games would also be in place within a week. The website would be updated regularly so that a correct picture of the preparations for the games could be obtained. The logo is a portrayal of the free flying bird signifying the Olympic motto — swifter, higher and stronger. The dome against the outline of the bird constitutes an integrated symbol of religious continuities. The five coloured lines on the wings represent the five rivers of Punjab and the words taken from Dasam Granth literally meaning “with will and determination shall I win” are inscribed on the top. The mascot is the hawk, a profound mystic symbol in life and letters. It defines the Punjabi spirit of joie de vivre or Sada Vigas in action and deed, the tenth Sikh Guru’s chosen bird of power, glory and ascendancy. Its “God’s spy ?”, a third eye in the sky. The Olympic rings at the bottom of the mascot symbolise universal brotherhood and the meeting of athletes in a spirit of friendship and fair competition. Both the mascot and the logo of the 31st National Games have been designed by Romesh Malhotra, a city based artist. The artist is well known in sporting circles in the city since it was he who had designed the murals on the walls near the main entrance of the PCA Stadium. Explaining the work which had gone into the designing of the logo and mascot of the games, he disclosed that he had designed about 20 variations of both the logo and the mascot before it was selected by the organising committee of the games. Mr Dhindsa disclosed that work on all infrastructure and facilities would be completed by August 15. He said work on only two facilities, the shooting range proposed to be built at SAS Nagar and the indoor hall at the PAP complex at Jalandhar (venue of the wrestling competitions), might not be completed by that time. But even then this should pose no problems for the successful conduct of the games. Speaking about the construction of the shooting ranges, Mr Dhindsa said he was hopeful that the work on the shooting range would start soon once the issue of the land was sorted out. It would take a maximum of 60 days to put up the shooting complex once work started and there was enough time for the work to be done. In any case, the organising committee had drawn up an emergency plan to conduct the shooting competitions at the ranges at Phillaur. Mr Dhindsa said all state associations would be asked to conduct their state championships at the actual venues of the National Games so that all arrangements could be tested. In this connection it was disclosed that the final camp for the Punjab probables would be held at the actual place of the competitions so that the participants could get a feel of the equipment. The selection of the contingent would be made at the completion of the third camp, it was disclosed. In all three camps would be held for the Punjab probables for the various games. Financial sanction for the camps had been made by the Punjab Sports Department and in many cases the first camp was already in progress or would start soon. Regarding the import of equipment, the meeting was informed that initially a budget of Rs 95 lakh for the import of equipment for the National Games was forwarded to the Sports Ministry. Subsequently, the requirement was increased to Rs 2.91 crore which had now been cleared by the Sports Ministry and had been forwarded to the Finance Ministry for clearance. The clearance from the Finance Ministry was expected any day. Once the clearance was obtained the heavier equipment would be shipped while the lighter equipment might also be flown in. Some equipment with the Sports Authority of India would be shifted to Punjab for the duration of the games. Three primary committees-organising committee to be headed by Chief Minister P.S. Badal, working committee to be headed by Mr Dhindsa and a steering committee to be headed by Mr Manpreet Singh Badal had been constituted. |
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India humiliate
Brunei 17-1 Ipoh (Malaysia), June 6 Jugraj Singh, a full back, played a stellar role, often playing upfront and became the first player to score a hat-trick in the tournament. India played an attacking game right from the beginning and the forwards were all over the weak Brunei defence as India led 8-0 at the break. Rajpal Singh, Imtiaz Ahmed, Yadvinder Singh and Tusher Khandekar scored three goals each and in between Karthik scored one. Malaysia finished second behind India to qualfiy for the semifinals. After a day’s rest tomorrow, India will play the runners-up in group B. Group B is evenly poised with Kazakhstan having already qualified for the semifinals and the fight for the remaining berth is between three teams — Japan, Korea and Bangladesh. Korea will qualify provided they beat Japan when the two teams meet. If Japan wins, then Bangladesh will make the grade.
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Waqar promises more aggression Birmingham (England), June 6 Waqar said: “I think aggression is important to the game and we will see more in the one-dayers. It’s the name of the game.” Both teams were warned about their conduct by match refereee Brian Hastings last week during the second Test at Old Trafford, following a clash between Andrew Caddick, wicketkeeper Rashid Latif and Azhar Mahmood during the England first innings. There were other isolated cases of sledging between the teams before Pakistan won to level the two-match series 1-1. But the Pakistan captain added on Wednesday with a smile: “I don’t have a problem with anybody. I have played in English county cricket and we are friends off the field. We’re not such good friends on the field but that’s the game.” Australia, the third side in the tournament, play their first game on Saturday when they take on Pakistan in Cardiff. The two top sides from the nine first-phase matches will contest the final at the Lord’s on June 23. Waqar, however, was disappointed with the British press coverage after his team’s Old Trafford win, arguing that England’s defeat had been blamed on four questionable umpiring decisions on the final day. Some reports also suggested Waqar had been guilty of ball tampering, although the umpires did not change the ball despite regular inspections. “When ever we are in England there’s always a controversy,” said Waqar. “I’m not happy that we didn’t get enough credit for our win.” Third umpire for the game, Ray Julian, later said that match referee Brian Hastings had told the umpires via radio to keep an eye out for no-balls during the Old Trafford Test. “It is the match referee’s job to inform the field umpires if he sees anything untoward,” Julian was quoted on BBC’s online service. “Brian told them to keep an eye on the no-balls - he was concerned they were missing a few. He got on the walkie-talkie to Shep (David Shepherd) and Eddie (Nicholls) between lunch and tea. “Maybe the pressure got to them. Certainly, they are two experienced umpires and I’m sure they’ll be disappointed to miss those no-balls. “Shep was down after the game. Both he and Eddie are experienced officials but they would admit they made a few mistakes.
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Karnataka beat
Haryana Kapurthala, June 6 The second pre-quarterfinal match between Kerala and Madhya Pradesh was a chiff-hanger. Madhya Pradesh took a lead of four points in the first quarter (8-12) and increased the lead to six points (20-26) at the end of second quarter. Kerala changed their tactics after the break and made some quick counter-attacks through Nithan John, who alone contributed 12 points in that quarter. It not only wiped out the deficit but also gave a lead of four points 36-32 to Kerala at the end of third quarter. However, Kerala failed to sustain the lead in the fourth quarter and were unable to stop Anurag of Madhya Pradesh who scored nine points in the quarter to help his team win the match 49-46. In the first pre-quarterfinal in the girls section the match between Karnataka and Haryana was a one-sided affair Karnataka won the match 32-7 after leading 21-1 in the first half. Hosts Punjab defeated Andhra Pradesh 42-30. Punjab girls took a lead of 11 points (25-14) after remaining at par with the Andhra girls in the first quarter (7-7). Andhra Pradesh played well in the third quarter and reduced the margin of deficit to three points (28-31) but could not stop the spirited Punjab girls from winning the match. |
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Champions Trophy not to be put off Chennai, June 6 The FIH has decided to stick to the decision of its immediate past President Juan Angel Calzado which was conveyed in a letter to IOA Secretary-General Randhir Singh that it was not possible to change the dates of the 23rd Champions Trophy slated to be held in Lahore from November 4 to 11 this year, FIH’s Communications Manager Steven Morres told PTI on phone from Brussels today. He said the FIH’s decision to stick to the original dates was due to the fact that any change at this stage will be detrimental to the participating teams programmes.
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The first Test starts tomorrow at the Bulawayo Cricket Stadium in Zimbabwe. The ground has a completely different look to what we saw when we last toured here in 1998. The stands have been rebuilt, the ground is lush green and the practice facilities probably the best in the world. 
Bulawayo, June 6
