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Tuesday,
January 15, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Venus, Henman start with wins Baby prams, strollers banned at Australian Open Zimbabwe fritter away solid start
Ganguly’s lean patch defies explanation |
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England fine-tune reverse sweep to tackle India
I want to perform well: Ratra Aussies will improve: McGrath HOA releases calendar Gopichand to lead Faridkot, Sirsa schools ousted Orissa defeat Himachal 2-0 Punjab cops outwit
Tata Steel
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Venus, Henman start with wins
Melbourne, January 14 Defending champion Andre Agassi and women’s fifth seed Serena Williams left gaping holes in the tournament when they announced they had failed to beat injuries in time to play at the first Grand Slam of the year. Agassi was sidelined by a wrist injury he picked up in a warm-up event at Kooyong while Serena’s chances were scuppered after she twisted her ankle at the Sydney International last week. Three-times champion Agassi delivered the first body blow on a grey and drizzly Monday morning. “This is not good news for anyone,” an ashen-faced Agassi told reporters at a hastily-arranged news conference. Serena’s departure follows the withdrawal of Lindsay Davenport last week. And Gustavo Kuerten, who has won the French Open three times on the famous red clay court of Roland Garros, hobbled out against unseeded Frenchman Julien Boutter 6-3. 6-4, 5-7, 3-6, 3-6. Boutter, who joined the tour only after getting a degree in applied mechanics, dismantled the Brazilian’s game for a stubborn five-set triumph against the odds. Agassi, the defending men’s champion and three-time winner, said his recurrence of an old right wrist injury could be career-threatening. Mary Pierce, another crowd puller here and the 1995 champion, was also quickly through the exit door with an abdominal injury suffered against American Jill Craybas. Organisers will be grateful that glamour queen Venus Williams, the US Open and Wimbledon champion, saved their blushes with an easy straight sets victory over American qualifier Ansley Cargill. Britain’s Tim Henman also remains in the hunt after beating Australian Todd Larkham, as does four times winner Monica Seles, seeded eight, who beat Switzerland’s Patty Schnyder and is scheduled to meet Venus in the last eight. Yevgeny Kafelnikov of Russia, the 1999 champion seeded four, raced through in straight sets against German qualifier Michael Kohlmann and then said he had room to improve before he faced a potential quarterfinal against fifth seed Sebastien Grosjean of France, who defeated Spain’s Juan Balcells in four sets. Greg Rusedski of the UK beat Australia’s Scott Draper in Straight sets 7-6, 6-3, 7-5. Serena, the 1999 US Open champion, withdrew from her first round match against former Wimbledon champion Conchita Martinez of Spain with an injury to her right ankle she picked up in the semifinals of the Sydney International last Friday. New Zealand lucky loser Pavlina Nola replaced her against Martinez, whose match was rescheduled to Tuesday. The 31-year-old Agassi, who was out for 11 weeks when he had an operation on the same wrist in 1993, had been due to open his defence of the title against Zimbabwe’s Byron Black tomorrow. He was due to return home to Las Vegas with his wife Steffi Graf and son Jaden Gil later today. He was replaced in the draw by Irakli Labadze of Georgia. Meanwhile, Martina Hingis enjoyed the easiest of starts to her campaign, coasting to a 6-2, 6-2 first round win over injured Frenchwoman Virginie Razzano. Hingis beat Razzano in straight sets in the third round of last year’s Australian Open and today’s result was all too predictable once it became Razzano was not completely fit. Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic made it safely into the second round defeating Czech Martin Damm 4-6, 7-5, 7-6, 6-4. Ivanisevic belted 30 aces past Damm during an entertaining 162-minute match on Rod Laver Arena and backed his service power with a string of forehand winners over the closing two sets. Two-time French Open finalist Alex Corretja was knocked out in the first round, beaten 7-5, 6-7, 3-6, 2-6 by American James Blake. The Spanish baseliner began strongly, winning the first set, but failed to maintain his form as Blake stamped his control on the match. Reuters, AFP
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Baby prams, strollers banned at Australian Open
Melbourne, January 14 The innocuous — but very helpful items for any mother - was included on the “danger’’ list alongside alcohol, animals, scooters, skateboards, chairs, cans, fireworks, Frisbees, long camera lenses, large flags, portable drinks coolers and — finally — helium balloons. Keeping an eye on the profit margin of the biggest sporting event is one thing and staying safe in troubled times is another, but many are up in arms about the ban on baby aids. “It could be declared unlawful,’’ said one legal expert. “There are safety and crowd control issues, but the job of a service provider is to provide effective access, regardless of attributes, and that includes parent status.’’ To be sure, officials have also declared that video cameras may be useful as weapons and has apparently vowed to keep them off the grounds as well.... Today’s injury withdrawal of favourite Andre Agassi also took Australian bookmakers by surprise. Before the third seed said goodbye due to a wrist injury, he was a 6-1 favourite to capture a third consecutive title. Rival Pete Sampras, who beat him on Saturday at the Kooyong tune-up event, was listed as 17-1, likely to shorten considerably. Sampras is keen on his chances: “I’ll put a little money on (myself). ..I can afford it. I know a little bit more about tennis than they do. The price may be right — if you go with the seedings.’’ But he warned: “If you go with Grand Slam records over the years I’m right up there,’’ said the all-time winner of 13 major titles. “I don’t have to prove myself to punters...That’s not my goal.’’ ... Jennifer Capriati feels like she almost never left Melbourne after lifting the title last year. Now that she’s back for another go, the American very happy to be back at the venue where her tennis life made a dramatic turn for the better. “I’ll always love this place, my whole life will always be the place where it all started. It started such a year...I never knew there were so many awards.’’ DPA |
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Zimbabwe fritter away solid start
JGalle (Sri Lanka), January 14 Jayasuriya grabbed 3 for 38 and Muralitharan 2 for 66 as Zimbabwe slipped after a record 153-run stand between openers Trevor Gripper (83) and Stuart Carlisle (64) to reach 230 for 5 at stumps on the third day in reply to the hosts’ 418. Heath Streak (29 not out) and Grant Flower (19 not out) steadied the innings with an unbroken 59-run stand after five wickets had fallen for 18 runs. Left-arm spinner Jayasuriya started the slide with two wickets in three overs just before tea, dismissing Gripper and then trapping Craig Wishart leg-before for one. Gripper stepped out to drive, missed the line and was stumped. His stand with Carlisle was the best against Sri Lanka, eclipsing the previous highest of 113 between openers Grant Flower and Mark Dekker at Harare in 1994-95. Sri Lanka (1st innings): 418 Zimbabwe (1st innings): Carlisle lbw b Muralitharan 64 Gripper st Sangakkara b
Jayasuriya 83 Wishart lbw b Jayasuriya 1 Rennie c Sangakkara b
A Flower c Tillekaratne b
G Flower batting 19
Extras: (b-11, lb-8, nb-2) 21 Total: (for 5 wkts) 230 Fall of wickets: 1-153, 2-155, 3-161, 4-171, 5-171. Bowling: Vaas 19-7-36-0, Buddika 11-1-33-0, Muralitharan 53-23-66-2, Jayasuriya 23-8-38-3, Chandana 12-4-24-0, Samaraweera 5-1-14-0.
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Ganguly’s lean patch defies explanation Chandigarh, January 14 And to add to his woes, his fielding, once very dependable, has also fallen apart. At Bangalore, time and again the ball went past his hands and at times he had difficulty to even judge the flight of the ball. The only thing that seems to be going his way is his bowling but only his bowling will not be able to ensure his continuation as skipper once the one-day series against England, which commences later this week, is over. The Chairman of the national selection committee Chandu Borde has gone on record to say that Ganguly had been selected captain till the end of the series against England and once that is over they might give a thought whether Ganguly should continue as skipper or not. In any case, India need a Ganguly who can bat and not a skipper who has the tendency to get into one controversy after another. India cannot play with 10 players and a skipper and should have a captain who can put his weight behind the performance of the team. Immediately after the conclusion of the series against England, India are scheduled to host Zimbabwe at home both for a Test series as well as a number of one-day matches before they travel to the West Indies for a full series. The one thing which goes in Ganguly’s favour is the fact that at the current juncture there seems to be no one who is ready to step into his shoes. Sachin Tendulkar at one time (when the Indian team was in South Africa) had indicated that he was willing to accept the leadership of the team but later he retracted his statement. The Indian vice-captain Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble are the other options in front of the selectors. One thing which goes in Ganguly’s favour is the fact that the Indian skipper is not willing to accept any nonsense from any visiting team. This is one aspect where not only Sachin but also Dravid or Kumble may be found wanting. The Indian think tank must remember that all efforts in Indian cricket should be working full throttle towards the 2003 World Cup to be staged in South Africa. In that scheme of things it is important that Saurav should regain his form and the quicker the better. At the moment he is having trouble against the rising delivery but he is too good a batsman not to find a solution to his problem. May be, John Wright himself goes to the nets with the Indian skipper and help him to sort out his problems. |
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England fine-tune reverse sweep to tackle India
Kolkata, January 14 Skipper Nasser Hussein and aggressive left hander Nick Knight were among those who rehearsed the shot, with the latter doing long shadow practice under the tutelage of coach Duncan Fletcher and his deputy Tim Boon at the Cricket and Football Club grounds. The English team also worked with an out-of-shape ball, apparently to gear up to facing any uneven bounce in the Eden Gardens wicket in the opening one-day contest. Despite their media manager Andrew Walpole again complaining to reporters about the ‘poor practice track’ which could “cause danger to the batsmen against quicker deliveries”, speedsters Matthew Hoggard, Andy Caddick and Darren Gough were seen bowling full blast to the batsmen during the three-hour practice. Running between the wickets, catching skiers and blinders were the other areas of emphasis. The visitors, who have repeatedly demanded that they be allowed to tune up at the Eden Gardens, will have their maiden practice session at the historic stadium tomorrow afternoon. Walpole said all members of the side were fit and raring to go. In a refreshing departure from the high voltage complaints made by the visitors, Walpole praised the hospitality here and also expressed satisfaction with the food and other services given to them in the hotel. “The hospitaly is excellent. We are really enjoying the food, particularly the Indian cuisine,” he said. He said the England team was focussed and had no plans to go on local outings. However, the side would attend a formal party at the British Deputy High Commission tonight, he said. Grumbling continues The England team management continued to grumble over the poor practice facilities but ruled out the possibility of taking up the matter with the International Cricket Council. “We are not taking up the matter at the highest level. It is a trivial issue to be taken up with the International Cricket Council,” Walpole told reporters after a practice session. He said the team management had discussions about the sub-standard practice facilities with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) but had never thought of taking up the issue with the games apex body. The England team had criticised the practice facilities at the venue from the very first day and requested the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) to allow the team to work at the Eden Gardens. The England team’s request to practice at the Eden Gardens was, however, turned down by the CAB for security reasons causing much resentment among the visitors. The team also took up the matter with the Indian board but without much luck as the BCCI said security and logistic problems stood in way of acceding to the visitors’ demand. “England’s practice schedule at the CCFC was decided much before the team left London for India,” BCCI President Jagmohan Dalmiya said yesterday. “What can we do if they want to practise at the Eden for seven days at a stretch before such a crucial match? Will they give the Lords ground to a visiting Indian side for that many days for practice in similar situations?” Dalmiya asked. The Eden Gardens, meanwhile bustled with activities as hordes of workers busied themselves in jobs ranging from painting the galleries to putting electronic trivia in place. The historic Eden, which has witnessed countless memorable matches and individual performances since its maiden first class match in 1917, has been given a facelift for the occasion. Apart from the installation of a giant clock on top of the electronic scoreboard, most of the galleries in the stadium were being given a fresh coat of paint and the array of colours alongwith the multi-coloured chairs presented a wonderful picture. Electricians were also working in full swing to put all the electronic gadgets in place for the one-day international match which was expected to draw a full house on Saturday. PTI
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I want to perform well: Ratra Rohtak, January 14 The background noise originating from Ratra’s house during his brief chat with this correspondent on phone indicated that the there was an atmosphere of
ecstasy which was confirmed by Ratra. “Yes ! people have gathered here to congratulate me and my family” said Ajay in an emotional voice. His mother Vidhyawati also said that everybody was happy at home. When asked about her own reaction on his son’s selection she said: “Hame to bahut he khushi hui hai” (We feel extremely happy). Born on December 13, 1981 at Faridabad, Ratra is set to don national colours to join the select band to Haryana cricketers Kapil Dev, Chetan Sharma, Ashok Malhotra, Ajay Jadeja, Yograj Singh, and Vijay Yadav who were earlier able to make it to the international level. He will be the second Haryana wicket keeper after Vijay Yadav to represent India in an international match. Ratra did his schooling at Dayanand Public Senior secondary school at Faridabad and pursued his further studies at Pt. J.L.N. College Faridabad. Nick-named ‘Bunty’ Ratra made his first class debut in the Ranji Trophy super league match in 1998-99 at Rajkot against Saurasthra. His major achievements so far have been to lead Indian colts to a series victory against England and to represent India in the junior world cup played in Sri Lanka where India emerged champions. He was quite agile to grab 19 victims in the World Cup. He also led his home team Haryana to their maiden title triumph in Cooch Behar Trophy and Chidambram Trophy last year. This year he was appointed captain of the Haryana team for the Ranji Trophy one dayers in which his team topped the North Zone. Ratra was also named Junior Cricketer of the Year recently. In fact, Ratra has been giving consistant performance for a couple of seasons now and was on the verge of getting bigger assignments. But he could not get selectors’ nod earlier as Bengal’s Deepdas Gupta was considered a better batsman. But Ratra’s talent was recognised by several veterans, including former wicketkeeper Syed Kirmani. Ratra who loves to listen music idolises Ian Healy and Sachin Tendulkar.
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Aussies will improve: McGrath
Sydney, January 14 Australia opened the series with a 23-run loss to New Zealand at Melbourne Cricket Ground and returned to the ground on Sunday to be beaten by South Africa by four wickets. McGrath, who missed yesterday’s game because of a one-match suspension for dissent, said the signs were positive for Australia despite being on the bottom of the table. “The first match we let ourselves down, we played very poorly. Last night we didn’t get the score we would have hoped for, but the way we fought when we bowled, there was good energy in the field,’’ McGrath said. “That was very heartening and hopefully we’ll carry that into the next match and start winning a few. “We haven’t really sort of clicked, batting or bowling, but there’s good signs there, we’re improving every game. “It’s a bit like the (1999) World Cup. We started off very slowly but we got better every game, so if we continue to do that then we will be pretty happy.” Australia batsmen Matthew Hayden and Michael Bevan today said poor batting was to blame for the home team’s two successive losses. “The batsmen haven’t given our bowlers a great deal to bowl at, so we’ve got to bat better and then I think it will turn around,’’ said Hayden, who made 10 yesterday after his opening partner Adam Gilchrist made a first-ball duck. Bevan said: “I think certain areas have let us down in the past two games with the batting. “We’ve just go to make sure we get those areas right. “It’s important that one batsman in the top five probably gets a big score,’’ Bevan added.
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HOA releases calendar Chandigarh, January 14 Block level panchayat tournaments would be held at block headquarters from February 1 to 3. The Haryana state rural and panchayat tournaments would be held in Narwana, Jind
district from March 2 to 4. A function would also be organised to honour the medal winners of the National Games 2001 held in Punjab recently. Open national kabaddi championship would he held at Rori in Sirsa district from April 12 to 14 followed by state level sports clinic, seminar and conference at Haryana Agriculture University, Hisar and Moti Lal Sports School, Rai from April 26 to 28. Off-season coaching camps for the selected sportspersons in various games would be held with the help of sports department from May 6 to 30. International Olympic Day would be celebrated at Faridabad and at each district headquarter on June 23. Special coaching camps would be held from July 1 to 20 to groom the players for Commonwealth Games to be held at Manchester from July 25 to August 4. Talent search competitions would be held from July 10 to 31 with the help of sports and education departments. District championships would be organised by district sports associations for all games from August 20 to 26. He said that it had also been decided to celebrate the birthday of hockey wizard late Major Dhyan Chand at Narnaul on August 29. The state sports championship for seniors would be organised by concerned state sports association from
September 24 to 30. The state sports championship for juniors would be organised from November 7 to 12 by respective state sports associations. |
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Gopichand to lead Mumbai, January 14 Gopichand, who pulled out of national championship in Lucknow would be fit to lead the country, the Badminton Association of India which announced the men’s and women’s teams for Thomas and Uber Cups said here today. Besides, Gopichand, the team announced by the BAI selection committee comprises Abhin Shyam Gupta, Chetan Anand, Nikhil Kanetkar, Jaseel P. Ismail, Jaison Xavier, Sunave Thomas, V. Diju, Sachin Ratti and Arvind Bhatt. The women’s team comprises T. Murgunde, P.V.V. Laxmi, Ch Deepti, G. Jwala, S. Kurian, Neelima Chaudhary, D. Swetha and Madhumita Bisht. S.M. Arif, Sanjay Sharma, L. Dise and Roman Ghosh would be the coaches, a BAI release said.
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Faridkot, Sirsa schools ousted New Delhi, January 14 Lucknow team ousted Baba Farid Public School (Faridkot) 13-12 in sudden death while Danapur boys knocked out Shah Satnamji School, Sirsa 2-0. In the first match of the day, Lucknow and Faridkot teams were locked 1-1 at the end of the regulation time. Jagdeep Singh gave Faridkot the lead in the 16th minute but a defensive lapse just a minute before the final whistle cost the Punjab team the match. Lucknow team forced their 4th penalty corner in the 59th minute and Danish Mustafa converted it to draw parity (1-1). In the first set of five penalty corners both teams were levelled 3-3, in the next set of five penalty corners both the teams converted all of them.
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Orissa defeat Himachal 2-0 Shillong, January 14 Aiborlang Lywait opened the score sheet for Meghalaya when he converted a penalty in the sixth minute. Madhya Pradesh failed to convert a sitter in the eighth minute, but they didn’t have to wait long. Ravinder Thapiyal shot the equaliser in the ninth minute. In the third match Orissa beat Himachal Pradesh 2-0. S.K. Wahid and Bulu Samal scored for the winners. The game between Nagaland and Kerala ended in a tame goal-less draw.
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Punjab cops outwit
Tata Steel Jamshedpur, January 14 While Punjab
cops outplayed Tata Steel 83-50 to win the championship for sixth year
in a row Western Railway thrashed Tamil Nadu 88-59 in the finals at J
R D Sports Complex. For Punjab Police it was also a sweet revenge of
their 45-70 loss to Tata Steel in a previous league stage
match. Egged on by the home crowd support, the host team were
however,themselves to blame as they missed several scoring chances.
Their cagers instead of going all out were found busy in keeping a
close vigil on Punjab Police’s tall veteran Parminder Singh (Sr) and
Parminder Singh (Jr) in most part of the match.PTI |
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