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| Tuesday,
July 3, 2001, Chandigarh, India    |
Sampras knocked out by Federer
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Kumble uncertain
for Lanka tour Kumble writes
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Sachin not averse to
captaincy Bacher leaving no stone
unturned Gupta fails to meet
deadline
Cameroon, S. Africa qualify for World
Cup Sports to figure in Indo-Pak talks?
Afro-Asian Games to
cost Rs 111 crore 500 athletes to
vie for honours
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Sampras knocked out by Federer
London, July 2 Federer, 19, won 7-6 5-7 6-4 6-7 7-5. Sampras has won a record-equalling seven men’s singles titles at the world’s most famous tennis tournament. Serena Williams set up a fascinating quarter-final with Jennifer Capriati today when she crushed Bulgaria’s Magdalena Maleeva 6-1 6-2 at Wimbledon. Big servers Goran Ivanisevic, three times a runner-up here, and defending women’s champion Venus Williams also thundered through in straight sets to prove once again that power works best on grass.
Fifth seed Serena, beaten in last year’s semifinals by big sister Venus, raced through the match in 48 minutes leaving the 12th-seeded Maleeva rooted to the spot with the power of her ground strokes.
Elder sister Venus also looked in a hurry to get home, beating Russian Nadedja Petrova 6-2 6-0. The athletic second seed simply overwhelmed her inexperienced opponent wrapping up the match in 51 minutes with a combination of powerful serves and punishing ground strokes.
Venus meets 1998 runner-up Nathalie Tauziat in the next round.
Capriati, seeking her third Grand Slam crown of the year, was no less imperious in her victory over 15th-seeded Frenchwoman Sandrine
Testud, winning 6-1 6-2 in 58 minutes. The 25-year-old American looked polished and unruffled as she served out to love at the start of the first set. She broke the hapless Testud’s service allowing the 29-year-old just one game in the 24-minute first set.
The fourth seed, who 10 years ago became the youngest player to reach the semifinals here, looks stronger with every round after victories in Australia and France. Capriati said she was expecting Williams to play better at Wimbledon than in the French Open because she had had more match practice. “Just because I beat her there doesn’t mean I’m going to take this match for granted,” Capriati said. Capriati’s victim in the French Open final last month, Belgian Kim Clijsters, had to work harder to grind out a 7-6 7-6 victory over American Meghann Shaughnessy. Clijsters, seeded seven, struggled with her serve early in the match and then failed to convert three set points in the 12th game. But the 18-year-old held her nerve and converted the fourth break point in the tiebreak winning 7-2. She won the second tiebreak 7-5. Clijsters meets Lindsay Davenport, the 1999 champion, in the quarter-finals after the third seed beat Yugoslav teenager Jelena Dokic on Centre Court 7-5 6-4. The lofty American, who has been hampered by a knee injury for the last three months, used her heavy serve and thundering forehand to subdue 18-year-old Dokic, who lost to the American in the semifinals last year. In the men’s draw the battle of the big guns turned into a one-sided massacre as Ivanisevic bludgeoned British number two Rusedski 7-6 6-4 6-4 with 22 aces.Croatian Ivanisevic, who was offered a wild card to play here, has tumbled down the rankings since losing to Pete Sampras in the 1998 final, but was in no mood to sully his 8-0 record against Rusedski coming into the match. Ivanisevic meets Russian fourth seed Marat Safin in the quarter-finals. U.S. Open champion Safin continued his stealthy march through the draw, finding his best 2000 form to thump Frenchman Arnaud Clement 6-0 6-3 6-2. Last year’s finalist Pat Rafter took a while to get going before beating Russian Wimbledon debutant Mikhail Youzhny 2-6 6-3 6-2 7-5.
The Australian third seed was error-prone as Youzhny, at 19 the youngest player left in the men’s singles, broke twice to take the first set. Rafter looked shell-shocked but he regained concentration to break once in the second set, and twice in the third as normal service was resumed on court two.Youzhny, world number 85, saved five break points early in the fourth set but a double fault in the 11th game helped Rafter secure a vital break of serve and he completed the two hour 20 minute victory on his second match point. The man Rafter will meet in the last eight, 10th seed Thomas Enqvist, also suffered a shaky start losing the first nine points against Argentina’s Guillermo Canas before going through 6-3 6-3 6-1. Canas went away with the distinction of becoming the first Argentine since Jose Luis Clerc 22 years ago to reach the fourth round at Wimbledon.
Reuters Women’s
singles q-final line-up
Conchita Martinez (Spa x19) v Justine Henin (Bel x8)
Fourth seed India’s Mahesh Bhupathi and Russian Elena Likhovtseva defeated Andrew Kratzmann of Australia and Magui Serna of Spain in three sets 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 to reach the third round of Wimbledon mixed doubles here today. The Indo-Russian pair, who had reached the semi-finals of this year’s French Open, had defeated Scott Humphries of the USA and Anne-Gaelle Sidot of France 6-4, 6-4 in the first round. In the junior boys’ first round action India’s Sunil Sipaeya defeated Craig Evans of Britain in straight sets 6-4, 6-4.
PTI |
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Kumble uncertain for Lanka tour Bangalore, July 2 When asked whether he would be fit for the forthcoming nearly two-month-long tour to the island nation, Anil Kumble told UNI here today that he had to inform about his fitness to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). “I have been bowling at the nets and regularly following the rehabilitation programme. I am yet to inform the BCCI (about his fitness),” was his reply when asked whether he was ready for the Sri Lankan tour. Twentynine-year-old spinner, who had been out of action for nearly nine months and missed the ongoing tour of Zimbabwe, had said in April that it would be a bonus if he was fit for the Sri Lankan tour after consultations with shoulder specialist Mark Fergusson of South Africa. Kumble underwent the surgery in South Africa in January this year. However, he had expressed confidence of being match fit for the South African tour commencing from October 2. The team for the Sri Lankan tour is scheduled to be picked up next week. India will play three Test matches against Sri Lanka besides taking part in a triangular series involving New Zealand. Kumble has played 61 Tests and taken 176 wickets and has 274 wickets from 208 one-day internationals. India have a tight schedule ahead of them and are scheduled to play 22 Tests and 41 one-day internationals during the next 14 months.
UNI |
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Kumble writes THE
West Indies qualified for the Coca-Cola Cup final with a thrilling victory over Zimbabwe with one ball to spare. Having fought bravely to have a remote chance of qualifying for the final, Zimbabwe faltered in the end. The West Indies batting came good against the hosts with Gayle and Ganga giving them a start at the top of the order yet again. What a difference it makes when the opening pair clicks! It was the cool head of Ridley Jacobs which won the game for the West Indies in the end. On Saturday, India marched ahead in the tournament with a comfortable win over the West Indies. The West Indies found it tough to bat on a damp slow wicket. Batsmen who were willing to graft would have survived, but the West Indies batsmen were not willing to do that. Debashish Mohanty and Harvinder Singh swung the ball and bowled at the right spots to pick up five wickets for very few before Jacobs, after having survived a confident lbw appeal off Zaheer, and Marlon Samuels brought some respectability to the West Indian score. Mohanty bowled really well: for someone who has been in the reserves for quite some time, to come up and perform is never easy. He did just that by taking three wickets. He bowled up and bowled within his limitations. The Indians were never in trouble chasing 170 runs. Sourav started off well and looked set for a big score before being given out caught behind when the ball seemed to have brushed his thigh pad on its way to the keeper. It was up to Sachin to take India home and he responded with a sedate innings. His inning was not his usual dominating one, but considering the pitch, he was keen on deflecting the ball and taking his ones and twos. He played with a delicate touch and opened out his shoulders towards the end to bring victory to India. His ability to adjust and adapt so quickly to the conditions makes him the great player he is. There were a few jitters in the Indian camp when Mongia and Dravid fell in succession, before Badani and Sachin steadied the ship. The last league match between India and the West Indies will be a dress rehearsal for the final on Saturday. Both teams will be keen to outperform the other to take the psychological advantage in the final. While India do have an edge, it is important for the team not to be over-confident. The skipper must be really pleased with the way his bowlers have performed in this competition. On the other hand, West Indies will be looking for a win ahead of the finals. All their batsmen are getting decent starts but getting out to poor strokes. Their seamers with the exception of Cuffy have not really bowled a disciplined line and these are areas that Carl Hooper will be looking to address before the finals. Gameplan |
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Sachin not averse to captaincy Bulawayo, July 2 “But I haven’t ruled it out also,” Tendulkar told PTI in an interview here as the Indian team took a break ahead of the final league encounter in the triangular one-day series against West Indies on Wednesday. Tendulkar sought to dispel suggestions that the burden of captaincy had hampered his batting in the past and said his first double hundred came when he was leading the side. “Only, I think when I was the captain, we played South Africa, West Indies and Australia... probably the toughest tours. I don’t think it affected my batting as such.” But he did admit that captaincy had hampered him “as a person” though he did not elaborate. His success or failure has become almost synonymous with those of his team, yet Tendulkar downplayed his importance in the side emphasising that cricket was a team game. “I have always felt an individual cannot win or lose a game. Its a teamwork. We lose, we go down as a team. We win, we win as a team. “How did we win the first Test in Bulawayo (against Zimbabwe) where neither a hundred was scored nor a five-wicket haul managed? It was because it was team effort,” he stressed. That also put an end to criticisms that he had been unable to win more Test matches for India on foreign soil. Tendulkar said his hunger for runs had not died down and he still was “motivated enough” even against the relatively weaker sides “to try and get as many runs as possible”. But challenges do spur him on. “When the situation demands you produce good results, that’s (challenges) what one thrives for,” he said. And it doesn’t matter whether he is playing tests or one-dayers, his sole concentration is on giving a “quality performance and not quantity”. “I have always felt it is only cricket I am playing - not tests or one-dayers. I try to keep it simple. I am good enough to adjust to both the forms (of cricket),” he said making an obvious understatement. Tendulkar said he was by instinct an “attacking player” and named Sunil Gavaskar and West Indian great Viv Richards as the batsmen he looked up to. “I have always had high regard for these two players. When it comes to attacking batting, Viv is the best and when it comes to solid stuff, Gavaskar is the best,” he said. Tendulkar dispelled doubts that his back injury had curtailed his natural instincts against rising balls. “Its nothing to do with my back injury. Sometimes I feel I should not attack and just play and sometimes I feel if I attack it might work in my favour,” he said. “Like in Chennai (last Test against Australia), Glenn McGrath was trying to provoke me. He bowled a few short ones with the new ball and wanted me to hook. I felt I was in control of the game and I went for it. “Here (in Zimbabwe), I felt I wasn’t in control to play pull and hook shots. Its probably nothing to do with my back but its the state of mind and the situation of the game,” Tendulkar said.
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Bacher leaving no stone unturned Harare, July 2 The tournament, to be jointly hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya, will see a few changes from the previous editions aimed at making the premier event more professional. “There are three changes from the last World Cup which would be seen this time,” Bacher told PTI. “One is that for every game there would be reserve day. If it happens you don’t complete 25 overs, you stop and play a new game. You don’t carry on the game. That’s been approved,” Bacher said. “The second point is on day one if it is a day-night game, and you don’t complete 25 overs and it goes to the reserve day, the second day is day-night game too. Also unlike the 1999 World Cup, you don’t get three points but two for winning a match in the super league stage,” Bacher, former CEO of United Cricket Board of South Africa, said. Bacher justified inclusion of India in the tough Group A which includes Australia, Pakistan, West Indies, Zimbabwe and the winner and runner up of the ICC Trophy, currently being played at Toronto (Canada). “The groupings have been done after careful and detailed study of the teams’ one-day performances...We have taken into account all the official one-day matches and worked out a winning percentage of each country,” he said. “Australia are number one, they have won about 70-75 per cent of their matches and they go in Group A while South Africa, the second best head group B and so on and so forth,” Bacher said confirming the schedule and method in practice had been approved by the International Cricket Council. Besides South Africa, Group B includes Sri Lanka, New Zealand, England, Bangladesh, Kenya and third-placed team in the ICC trophy. Bacher admitted security has been one of the prime concerns of the organising committee. “We have a philosophy in South Africa that playing field should be exclusive only to the umpires and players. From the time they get on the field, we do not want one spectator (there),” Bacher said. A security directorate comprising experienced people has also been apppointed only for this purpose, he said. On pitches for the World Cup, Bacher said it would be ensured that wickets are the ones where the ball comes on to the bat. “Pitches must be good, there should be good outfield so that players can perform to the maximum”. Bacher said as many as 60 million rands ($ 10 million) are being spent to upgrade the facilities. “One of the priorities for us is to improve the media facility. At the end of it if we can keep the security tight and make media happy, I think we would have a pleasant World Cup”. It would be no mean task given 14 top teams will participate in a total of 54 matches with 46 to be hosted by South Africa, six by Zimbabwe and two by Kenya over a period of almost two months. The league matches will number 42 and will be played over 22 consecutive days. On 20 of those days, there will be two matches per day. The nine super-six matches will be played over nine consecutive days. The first semi-final is a day game scheduled at Port Elizabeth on March 15 and the second is a day-night game fixed for the next day at Durban. Bacher said though there have been innovations from time to time on technological front, often initiated by South Africa, there isn’t anything new planned for this World Cup. “Personally, yes, I would like to have few things to happen. When a ball is pitched only 2 or 3 millimetres outside the leg stump and hits the pads, it is impossible for naked eye to see it correctly.” Bacher said of late there had been a move in domestic cricket in South Africa to allow the standing umpire to refer to third umpire on no-balls. “The standing umpire, looking down at the bowler’s foot and then at the batsman, the poor man has no chance. I would say that technology should provide it.” “There will always be resistance to change. I can recall when Indians came to South Africa in 1992-93, it was about the use of Third Eye. People were resistant because it was something new, and the person who made it happen was Clive Lloyd. He is an innovative, progressive cricketing man, if it wasn’t for Clive Lloyd, it wouldn’t have happened.”
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Gupta fails to meet deadline London, July 2 Gupta, whose charges formed the basis of the CBI naming several top cricketers in its report on betting and match-fixing, was given time till yesterday to turn approver failing which the ICC said it would drop further investigations against those players who included England’s Alec Stewart, Brian Lara of West Indies and the Sri Lankan duo of Arjuna Ranatunga and Aravida de Silva. ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit, headed by Lord Paul Condon, which conducted a worldwide probe into match-fixing, today said “he (Gupta) has not responded and it is assumed that he will not allow his allegations to be tested.” “The situation was discussed with Gupta’s solicitors by telephone this morning and with CBI Joint Director Ravindra Nath Sawani, who met Lord Cordon on Friday,” ACU said in a statement.” “The situation was discussed with Gupta’s solicitors by telephone this morning and with CBI Joint Director Ravindra Nath Sawani, who met Lord Condon on Friday,” ACU said in a statement. ACU had recently interviewed Stewart, whom Gupta had claimed to have given £ 5,000 for pitch and weather information, and will submit its report to the England and Wales Cricket Board within the next two weeks. The cricket boards in Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and West Indies, who are running separate probes into match-fixing, are being informed about the latest on Gupta, ACU said. “Gupta has been seen twice in India by ACU and he verbally confirmed his allegation to investigators from the unit. However, Condon has always believed natural justice demands that Gupta’s allegations should be capable of challenge and cross examinations by lawyers acting for the accused cricketers. Gupta was given the option of his allegations being tested in India, or a country of his choice. “To bring clarity to the situation Gupta was given (time) till July 1, to make up his mind. He has not responded and it is assumed that he will not allow his allegations to be tested.” Condon said “The CBI report and Gupta’s allegations are only one strand of the work of ACU. We have advised the inquiry teams around the world of the position Gupta has taken. They will no doubt take this into account when they submit reports to their cricket boards in due course.”
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Hakkinen
puts a brave face after setback Maghy Cours (France), July 2 The former two-time world champion was left speechless as he stalled on the grid at the French Grand Prix, leaving him out of yesterday’s race as the rest of the pack moved away for the warm-up lap. It is the fifth time in 10 races a McLaren-Mercedes driver has been stranded by his car’s electrical fallibility. For Hakkinen it was the sixth time he failed to finish in 10 races this year. After clocking the fourth best qualifying time, leaving him optimistic enough to give an interview before climbing into his car, Hakkinen was soon scratching his head in despair as his engine failed to fire. “I tried to start the car but the engine didn’t spin,” Hakkinen said.
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Cameroon, S. Africa qualify for World Cup Yaounde, July 2 The USA meanwhile, lost 0-1 at Mexico, their first defeat in six games in the final round of the North and Central American and Caribbean region. Cameroon and South Africa join defending champions France and co-hosts Japan and South Korea, who all get automatic berths in the 32-nation field. At Yaounde, Cameroon won 2-0 at home against Togo, getting goals from samuel Etoo (27th minute) and Marc Vivien Foe (47th minute). The Indomitable Lions (6-0-1) won group A and became the first African nation to qualify five times for soccer’s premier event. About 90 minutes later, South Africa gained their second straight berth with a 1-1 tie at Burkina Faso that clinched group E. Sibutsiso Zuma scored for the Bafana Bafana (4-0-1) in the 24th minute at Ouagadougou off a corner kick and Alain Nana tied it in the 75th minute. At Montevideo, Brazil remained winless in three qualifiers this year, giving up a goal on Federico Magallanes’ penalty kick in the 33rd minute after Alvaro Recoba was pulled down in the penalty area. Brazil, the only team to appear in all 16 World Cups, were coached for the first time by Luiz Felipe Scolari, who replaced Emerson Leao following a 0-1 qualifying loss at Ecuador, a 1-1 tie in a home qualifier against Peru and first-round elimination at the FIFA Confederations Cup. Brazil and Uruguay are both 6-3-4, with Brazil ahead on goal difference, both two points ahead of Colombia (5-4-4). The top four nations in South America qualify and the fifth-placed team meets Australia, the Oceania champion, in a home-and-home playoff for another berth. Argentina (10-2-1) leads with 32 points, six ahead of Paraguay (8-2-3), seven ahead of Ecuador (8-1-4) and 11 ahead of Brazil and Uruguay (6-3-4). In Africa, Nigeria (4-1-2) moved into first place in group B, winning 4-0 at Sudan (3-0-3) as Liberia (4-0-3) lost 2-1 at home against Ghana (2-2-2) and dropped to second. At
Omdurman, Yakubu Ayegbeni scored in the 47th and 85th minutes for the Super Eagles, who also got goals from Austin Okocha in the 40th and Victor Agali in the 80th.
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Sports to figure in Indo-Pak talks? New Delhi, July 2 Sports Minister Uma Bharti today said her ministry’s views would certainly be taken into account if sports was to form a part of discussions but till now nothing had been conveyed to her. “If sports forms part of discussions, we will certainly be asked about the issues to be taken up. Only then can we give our views,” Ms Bharti told reporters here today. “Till now we have not been asked,” she said.
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Afro-Asian Games to
cost Rs 111 crore New Delhi, July 2 A total of Rs 75.5 crore has been earmarked for the actual conduct of the games and Rs 37.5 crore will be utilized for the renovation of the existing sports infrastructure as well as creating new facilities. The games to be held between November 3 to 11 would have eight disciplines and a demonstrations sports — kho-kho or kabbadi. Talking to newspersons the Union Sports Minister, Ms Uma Bharti, said the organising committee and the executive board of the games has set up 17 sub committees for the successful conduct of the games. Prominent persons in the committee include Vijay Kumar Malhotra, Vinod Khanna, Shatrugan Sinha, K.P. Singh Deo, Trilochan Singh and Kirti Azad. The Union Minister turned down the demand for adding more disciplines like wrestiling on the grounds that it would entail cumbersome and time consuming hassles as only couple of months are left for the games. The eight events were hockey, weightlifting, football, boxing, shooting, acquatics, tennis and swimming. Indian Olympic Association head Suresh Kalmadi said two events — hockey and weightlifting — were included in the games to make it more representative. On the inclusion of more games, he said “There is no time left. Let us get on with the games.” Kalmadi said the selection committee of Asia and Africa would meet here on August 17 and 18 to finalise the teams for the games. Asked about Pakistan’s participation in hockey, he said “We are trying to get them, efforts are on and we are hopeful that they will eventually come.” The different sub-committees formed for the games were ceremonial, protocol and
accreditation, games technical conduct, accommodation and hospitality, transport, media, information technology, publicity and public relations, security stadia, legal affairs, volunteers, finance, marketing, stores and equipment, medical and city beautification. The names of the persons heading the sub committees for ticketing, gates and civic amenities would be announced later, the minister said. |
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500 athletes to
vie for honours Bangalore, July 2 The performances are expected to be good as the event will run as the selection trials for picking up the Indian team for the Ninth Asian Junior Athletic Championships to be held at Darussaladm in Brunei from July 19 to 22. All the probables for the event would get a last chance to impress the Amateur Athletic Federation of India to get selected for the event. Twentyfive states have confirmed their participation for the meet which would have 40 events. All the athletic events would be conducted except decathlon, heptathlon and pole vault for girls. Some of the athletes, who had hogged the lime light in the last week’s Federation Cup, would also be in action.
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