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Sunday,
February 17, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Zaheer,
Yohannan, Dasgupta recalled Andy Flower steadies Zimbabwe Humiliating defeat for
England
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‘Pak
ready to play India anywhere’ Railways assured of
berth in final WORLD
CUP — Track Record Mahindras shock Churchill, lift Durand Cup Jeev slips to 7th
position
Monika, Priyanka to the fore in
judo Punjab win
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Zaheer,
Yohannan, Dasgupta recalled New Delhi, February 16 Also making a comeback to the Test side was left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan, who missed the Test series against England. He was in the one-day squad but did not get to play any match. The 14-member squad for the Test starting on February 21, announced here by selection
committee Chairman Chandu Borde, also marks the return of Rahul Dravid who missed the one-day series against England due to a shoulder injury. Dravid has been named deputy to captain Saurav Ganguly. However, Delhi youngster Gautam Gambhir, who staked his claim for the opener’s slot with a brilliant double century for the Board President’s XI in the ongoing three-day match against the Zimbabwean side, did not find a place in the team. Instead, Dasgupta was considered to be a better opening prospect. “Dasgupta has been picked because he is also a good batsman. He had been opening well,” Borde told reporters here justifying his selection ahead of Haryana wicketkeeper Ajay Ratra. Ratra had replaced Dasgupta for the one-day series against England. Team:
Saurav Ganguly (capt), Rahul Dravid (vice-capt), Sachin Tendulkar, V V S Laxman, Shiv Sunder Das, Virender Sehwag, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan, Tinu Yohannan, Deep Dasgupta, Sanjay Bangar, Sarandeep Singh. Laxman had been dropped for the one-day series against England after a string of indifferent performances in which he had failed to capitalise on sparkling starts and repeatedly got out in the 20s and 30s. However, his recall to the national team, at least for the Tests, was expected. Not so expected, however, was the return of Dasgupta, whose performance behind the wickets on the tour to South Africa and the Test series against England left much to be desired. Borde admitted Ratra was probably a better wicketkeeper and his name was also discussed but said Dasgupta was selected for the “balancing purpose”. “We hope he will come up to expectations as a wicketkeeper also,” he said. Dasgupta’s inclusion also closed the doors on Gambhir who had been eyeing the second opener’s place after Shiv Sunder Das. “He is a very good prospect, a very promising youngster,” Borde said about Gambhir. “But tell me in whose place could we have
included him?” “But if he keeps playing this well, I am sure he will be in the Indian team one day. He should wait for his chances.” Zaheer Khan, who was left out of the team after his lacklustre performance in South Africa, is back in favour after bowling impressively in the Ranji Trophy matches. “He bowled beautifully. He is looking fitter and has lost weight. In one match he was almost unplayable,” Borde said. “We also selected him keeping in mind the wicket in Nagpur which is conducive to his style of bowling.” Dinesh Mongia was left out despite an impressive performance in the one-dayers against England. Others from that team who could not make it to today’s squad were Mohammad Kaif and Hemang Badani, apart from Ratra and Agarakar. Borde said all possibilities were considered before picking the team and the final selections were the best under the present circumstances. He said Railways’ left-arm spinner Murali Kartik was also discussed but the selectors thought he would not be that effective on the track at Nagpur. Also making a comeback to the team was Kerala speedster Tinu Yohannan, who played in the first two Tests against England. The team for the second Test, starting in Delhi on February 28, would be decided later.
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Andy Flower steadies Zimbabwe Vijayawada, February 16 At stumps, Alistair Campbell batting on 2 was giving Flower company, who was going strong towards another first class hundred. The 34-year-old stylish left-hander put the visitors innings back on the rails with a 110-run stand with Travis Friend (52) after it slumped from a healthy 122 for two to 169 for five. Earlier, the Zimbabweans were off to a good start after Board XI skipper declared at their overnight score of 361 for three with openers Trevor Gripper and Stuart Carlisle putting on 47 runs. Though offie Sarandeep Singh scalped the prize wicket of skipper Carlisle for 20, the batsman snicking one to ‘keeper MSK Prasad, Gripper and No 3 batsman Gavin Rennie steadied the ship scoring half centuries. It was when the Zimbabweans were coasting along that Haryana leg-spinner Amit Mishra struck in quick succession to dismiss
Rennie, Tatendu Taibu and Heath Streak. But Flower was unperturbed at the other end and together with Friend he took the fight back to the opposition camp. Flower blossomed on the arid pitch pulling with prudence and exhibited fluent sweeps and authoritative drives. He picked gaps with dexterity and demonstrated to his young team-mates the art of playing spin. The leading batsman’s knock was the result of his 219 minute stay facing 138 balls laced with 12 hits to the fence. Flower, who hit Mishra for three fours in one over, showed the bowler more respect after he took three important wickets. He suddenly shifted gears and showing more patience thwarted the attempts of Board XI skipper Rahul Dravid to force the follow on. Friend, who gave admirable support to his senior partner, also played some powerful shots and hit eight fours before he was dismissed by speedster Tinu Yohannan for his first wicket of the match. In the morning, the start of the Zimbabwean innings saw Gripper and Rennie helping themselves to usefull runs hitting identical 52s. Board President’s XI (1st innings): 361-3
decl Zimbabwe (1st innings): Carlisle c Prasad b Sarandeep 20 Gripper c Mishra b
Sarandeep
52 Rennie c Mullick b Mishra 52 Flower not out 89 Taibu c Kale b Mishra 2 Streak c Khoda b Mishra 0 Friend c Gambhir
b Yohannan 52 Campbell not out 2 Extras: (b-6, lb-2, nb-15) 23 Total:
(for 6
wkts) 292 Fall of wickets: 1-47, 2-122, 3-165, 4-169, 5-169, 6-279. Bowling: Nehra 20-5-44-0, Yohannan 17-7-65-1, Sarandeep 32-6-68-2, Mishra 25-4-87-3, Rao 4-0-20-0.
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Paul Strang retires Harare, February 16 Strang asked to be released from his ZCU contract to take up a commentating job during Zimbabwe’s current tour of India, the ZCU said in a statement today. “It’s a positive life decision for myself. I have had a couple of chronic injuries over the past two years, making every day a challenge,’’ said Strang. The 31-year-old, who has been released from his ZCU ties with immediate effect, has been troubled by a knee injury and a torn muscle in his bowling arm in recent years. He will, however, continue his role as vice-chairman of the Zimbabwe Professional Cricketers’ Association. ZCU chairman Peter Chingoka thanked Strang for his service to Zimbabwean
cricket. Reuters |
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Humiliating defeat for
England
Wellingnton, February 16 Stephen Fleming’s side hammered the tourists with ease in the second of five one-day internationals with England dismissed for just 89 after being set a target of 245 for victory under the lights. It was England’s second lowest score in one-dayers but it could easily have been worse - at one point the tourists had slumped to 40 for six. New Zealand Nevin c and b Gough 21 Astle lbw b Gough 7 McCullum c Trescothick b Flintoff 9 Fleming c Shah b Hoggard 40 McMillan c Flintoff b White 69 Vincent b Hoggard 36 Cairns c Flintoff b White 11 Harris c Knight b Gough 14 Adams not out 25 Vettori not out 0 Extras (w-3 nb-4 lb-5) 12 Total (for 8 wickets) 244 FOW: 1-25, 2-34, 3-52, 4-110, 5-193, 6-198, 7-206, 8-243 Bowling: Gough 10-0-47-3, Hoggard 8-1-36-2 Flintoff 10-0-46-1 White 10-1-53-2 Giles 8-0-40-0, Collingwood 4-0-17-0. England Trescothick c Nevin b Adams 0 Knight b Adams 9 Hussain c Fleming b Tuffey 3 Thorpe lbw b Adams 10 Shah c Fleming b Cairns 7 Collingwood c Vettori b Astle 0 Flintoff c McCullum b Astle 26 White lbw b Harris 11 Giles c Vettori b Harris 12 Gough not out 0 Hoggard b Astle 0 Extras (lb-2, nb-7, w-2) 11 Total (all out, 38.2 overs) 89 Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-13, 3-18, 4-28, 5-35, 6-40, 7-65, 8-89, 9-89. Bowling:
Tuffey 8-3-23-1, Adams 7-0-13-3, Cairns 4-1-11-1, Astle 2.2-0-4-3, Vettori 7-0-18-0, Harris 9-2-18-2.
AFP
‘Pak ready to play India anywhere’ Dubai Pakistan was prepared to play India anywhere. “We are even ready to go to India now and play,’’ Lt-Gen Zia told Gulf News on Friday, while watching the second one-day international between the West Indies and Pakistan. He is against surveillance imposed on cricketers and events by the International Cricket Council’s anti-corruption unit.
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Allrounder Akram to play selectively Sharjah, February 16 “I have given a free hand to the PCB medical panel to look after Akram’s health since his hamstring injury in Bangladesh. And there are reports that he is not fully fit yet,” Zia said yesterday. “The suggestion is that he should now be used in bits and pieces in our coming commitments because of his fitness. And he will have to do that himself,” he added. The PCB chairman said Akram remained a valuable player for the team and he would like to see him play in selected matches “right up to the World Cup in South Africa”. “The medical panel feels that if Akram plays one match, he needs at least 24 hour rest before playing in another match and I think we have to implement that policy for him,” he added. Akram, who remains Pakistan’s leading wicket-taker in Tests and one-day internationals, returned to the side for the one-day series against the West Indies here after missing four Tests in a row due to the hamstring injury. He played in the first one-dayer against the West Indies on February 14 but was rested for yesterday’s game. He said, “I am satisfied with the way the team has been playing. But I am not happy with the openers. We must sort it out before the 2003 World Cup.”
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Pak to pull out if Shoaib is reported Sharjah, February 16 “This instruction had been given to the Pakistan cricket team after Shoaib was reported for a second time in 2001 for a suspect action during the Khaleej Times Trophy at Sharjah,’’ a PCB source said. “The PCB does view the issue of Shoaib Akhtar very seriously as he remains an asset to the team. Our argument is that when medically it has been confirmed twice that there is nothing wrong with his action and it cannot be modified why should he not be allowed to play,’’ the source added.
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Railways assured of
berth in final New Delhi, February 16 Despite being in a position to impose a follow-on after bowling out Bengal for 325 in their first innings, Railways opted to bat again and by close on the fourth day today, they had reached 135 for one, thus extending their lead to 367. Scoreboard Railways (1st innings): 557 Bengal (1st innings): Chakraborty lbw b Harvinder 10, Dasgupta b Harvinder 1, Gandhi b Bangar 43, Gavaskar c Sharma b Bangar 26, Ganguly s sub (Khanolkar) b Kartik 11, Das c Yadav b Kartik 82, Sanyal c Bangar b Kartik 59, Chatterjee c Yadav b Tejinderpal 30, Shukla c Tejinderpal b Parida 10, Lahiri not out 14, Ali b Yadav 0. Extras: (b-10, lb-8, nb-19, w-2) 39 Total: (all out, 101.2 overs) 325 Fall of wickets: 1-14, 2-21, 3-85, 4-105, 5-105, 6-210, 7-272, 8-310, 9-312. Bowling: Harvinder Singh 18-2-62-2, Jayprakash Yadav 9.2-2-24-1, Murali Kartik 34-9-77-3, Sanjay Bangar 15-2-82-2, Kulmani Parida 20-8-35-1, Tejinderpal Singh 5-1-27-1. Railways (2nd innings):
S. Bangar c Chakraborty b Chatterjee 62, A. Pagnis batting 59, Tejinderpal Singh batting 5. Extras:
(b-2, lb-1, nb-5, w-1) 9 Total: (for one wkt, 48.1 overs) 135 Fall of wicket: 1-124. Bowling: Sabir Ali 7.1-3-9-0, Laxmiratan Shukla 10-3-21-0, Sourashish Lahiri 13-2-40-0, Sanjib Sanyal 4-0-23-0, Rohan Gavaskar 8-0-23-0, Utpal Chatterjee 6-0-16-1.
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WORLD CUP — Track Record Chandigarh, February 16 9. England (1 silver) England’s maiden entry in the World Cup dates back to 1973 in the second edition at Amsterdam where in a field of 12
contestants, they finished sixth. With six goals to their credit and eight
against, their debut was far from impressive. The same position was maintained in the third edition at Kuala Lumpur where the English team scored 13
goals, conceding 10.In the fourth World Cup at Buenos Aires in 1978,England were pushed one slot down finishing seventh among 14
contestants. At Bombay in the fifth edition, England were pushed further down and were placed ninth in a field of 12 teams. It was finally in the sixth edition at London in 1986 that England, under the captaincy of Richard Dodds, managed to overcome the jinx and finished runners-up to claim the
silver. In the battle for the gold, they lost 1-2 to Australia.
However, that was all that England could achieve and they once again slipped to the fifth position in the seventh edition at Lahore in 1990. In the eighth and ninth editions at Sydney and
Utrecht, England were placed sixth. (To be concluded) |
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Mahindras shock Churchill, lift Durand Cup New Delhi, February 16 Mahindra United thus exacted a terrible revenge for their 0-1 defeat at the hands of Churchill in the
uncompleted National Football League (NFL). Mahindra United have also taken their season’s record against Churchill to 2-1, as they had beaten the Goa team in the Federation Cup championship. Mahindra United won half the battle even before they scored their first goal when referee Rizwan-ul-Haq of Delhi flashed the dreaded red card at Churchill’s fulcrum of defence, Osuman Husseni of Ghana, for handling the ball, in the 11th minute. To add salt to the wounds of Churchill, the referee also awarded a penalty kick to Mahindra United, which was duly converted by striker Jules Alberto Dias. The exit of the roundly-built, but surprisingly agile and skilful, Husseni virtually inflicted a death-blow on Churchill, from which they just could not recover and caved in rather meekly to enable Mahindra United to record one of the biggest title wins in the history of the Durand Cup. The biggest victory in the Durand Cup was recorded by Highland LI against Simla Rifles when they triumphed by 8-1 in 1889, a year after the start of the prestigious tournament. In recent history, the biggest victory was scored by East Bengal in the 1991 title clash, when they trounced Border Security Force by 5-3 in the tie-breaker, after playing a one-one draw in the regulation time. Mahindra United lifted the Durand Cup for the first time in 1998 when they beat East Bengal 2-1 in the title
clash. They were runners up to East Bengal in 1990 (3-2) and Mohun Bagan (2-1) in 2000. Misfortune struck Churchill like a thunderbolt when Osuman Husseni stopped the ball with his cupped hands over his head from the goal-line to prevent S. Venkatesh’s shot from curving into the goal, after goalkeeper Edward Ansah was beaten all ends up. Husseni tried to convince the referee that the ball bounced out off his head, but the referee stuck to his decision, and the Churchill defender was persuaded to leave the field by his fellow-players. Jules Dias effortlessly converted the spot kick (1-0), and Khalid Siddique’s bullet shot from the top of the box, hit the custodian’s head and balooned to bulge the roof of the net in the 43rd minute to get Mahindra United’s second goal (2-0). In the 27th minute of the second half, Dias’ snap shot caught custodian Ansah unawares (3-0), and four minutes later, Austin Okolo blasted in from the right after Dias’ attempt had rebounded (4-0). Bala Usman inflicted the final blow on Churchill when he neatly connected a cross from the right by Venkatesh into the goal (5-0). The tally would have been bigger, but Mahindra United took it easy after running up a 3-0 lead. The last two goals surprised even the Mahindra players as they came in totally unexpectec circumstances. Husseni’s exit left a gaping hole in Churchill’s defence, and none could effectively plug that gap, though coach Chathunni tried out all the possible permutations and combinations, and even exhausted the three substitutions he was entitled to make. The Churchill attack had gained more teeth with the inclusion of Noel Wilson, who had to sit out the semi-final match against East Bengal, for receiving two yellow cards. Noel Wilson and their two foreign recruits, Mousavi Sayed Amin of Iran and Yusuf Yakub of Ghana, tried their best to score a goal for Churchill, but Mahindra United’s counter attacks always proved lethal, and each of their goal only helped further demoralise Churchill. The victory helped Mahindra United reaffirm their status as the top team in the country, as they also figure among the top three teams in the points standing of the NFL, which was suspended at the half-way stage to accommodate the Durand Cup. And Churchill finished as the second best, for the umpteenth time, as this mauling was a terrible one, as it came in their maiden final of the hallowed Durand Cup. |
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Stage set for eves’ soccer Kolkata, February 16 Assuming Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh to remain non-starters this time, the organisers have reshuffled the grouping of the meet’s pre-quarterfinal league cluster, putting Rajasthan in cluster ‘D’ from ‘A’. Barring four toppers of the last year’s nationals in Manipur, West Bengal (IFA), WIFA (Western Indian Football Association) and Bihar, who were given bye to the quarterfinal league to be played in two groups, 13 teams will have to play the cluster league. The cluster matches will be played simultaneously at Kolkata’s SAI complex, Siliguri, Bongaon and Malda on February 20, 22 and 24. The quarterfinal league matches of group ‘A’ with the IFA, the WIFA and the winners of clusters ‘A’ and ‘D’ would be played at the SAI complex on February 26, 28 and march 2 while group ‘B’ teams-Manipur, Bihar and the winners of cluster ‘C’ and ‘B’ will play at Siliguri on the same days. The organisers here have informed the All-India Football Federation about the reshuffling of groupings and change of venues. The SAI complex was chosen as one of the championship’s venues instead of Haldia as decided earlier. Siliguri will host the semifinals and the final on March 5 and 6 and 8, respectively, according to the Indian Football Association sources. Preliminary league: Cluster ‘A’ (SAI): Tamil Nadu, Orissa, Karnataka Cluster ‘B’ (Siliguri): Kerala, Goa, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana Cluster ‘C’ (Bongaon): Tripura, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh Cluster ‘D’
(Malda): Assam, Rajasthan, and Chandigarh. UNI |
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Jeev slips to 7th position Gurgaon, February 16 Not a single player could break out of the pack as a crowded leaderboard saw Marksaeng and Vijay tied at seven-under 206.Harmeet Kahlon and Craig Kamps of South Africa were in joint third place at six-under 207, while Gaurav Ghei and Daniel Chopra were in fifth spot at 208. Overnight leader Jeev Milkha Singh had a dismal round of 76 to fall back to tied seventh place along with defending champion Arjun Atwal and Steve Jurgensen of the USA. Jurgensen submitted the day’s best card of 67. Marksaeng, made a solid start to his round, finding all 9 greens in regulation in his outward journey. He made only one birdie, on the par-5 sixth where he was two-on the green, but that was enough to give him the lead at 9-under at the halfway stage. The Thai golfer made bogies on the 13th and 14th, but was back at nine-under when he holed his lob wedge second shot on the 368-yard par-4 15th from 75 yards. Just when it looked he would be the sole leader, he made a double bogey on the 18th to tied with Vijay. His drive was perfect but it landed in a divot and his six-iron second shot splashed into the pond in front of the green. Jeev began his round in disastrous fashion with bogeys on the first two holes. On the first, he pulled his drive into the bushes and his second shot hit the branches. On the second, he went into the back bunker and failed to get his up and down. Thereafter, he never got going and made just one birdie on the 13th, a double bogey on the 15th and three-putt bogies on the 12th and 17th.
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Kila Raipur meet from February
27 Chandigarh, February 16 The major attraction of the five-day festival this time would be not only the traditional rural sporting events, including bullock cart races, camel race, dogs race, sack lifting and team events like kabaddi but also some regular events, including the Bhagwant Gold Cup Hockey Tournament, both for men and juniors; air pistol shooting, cycling, track and field, equestrian events, including tent pegging , and tug-of-war. The newly created state of Chattisgarh has decided to send a team to the festival this time. “The exact details of their participation are being worked out. They are likely to participate both in traditional and regular events. Similarly, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and a few other states have also confirmed their participation in the festival in various events, including archery, which was introduced last year,” Mr Grewal said. Another attraction of this rural festival would be aero modelling display. From the traditional front, participation by “bazigars” has been confirmed. Loading and unloading of carts and tractor-trailers, tractor races, some super human feats, including lifting of a plough with teeth, pulling of a loaded tractor with teeth or hair, getting a loaded truck move over the belly of the performer and riding two horses simultaneously. A contingent of Nihang Sikhs would also enliven the proceedings with superb breathtaking display of traditional games and sports, including trick horse riding, ‘gatka’ and sword display. The winners of various events would get attractive cash and other prizes. In the hockey event for juniors some of the best known hockey academies would participate. In the senior section, top teams like Punjab Police, Punjab and Sind Bank, Rail Coach Factory and others would participate, Mr Grewal said. Besides, there will be top folk artistes, including singers, who would participate in the cultural programme every evening. A team of artistes from the North Zone Cultural Centre would also perform on each of the five days of the festival, Mr Grewal concluded. |
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Monika, Priyanka to the fore in
judo Ludhiana, February 16 In the final of 40 kg category, Monika, silver medallist in the Children of Asia Meet held in Russia in 2000 proved too good for Kamalvir of Amritsar. In 48 kg, another international, Priyanka quelled the challenge of Ravinder of Amritsar to emerge victorious. In the boy’s section (open category), Surinder Singh Chana of Ludhiana, a bronze medal winner in the Junior Asian Judo Championship in Vietnam, faced a liitle resistance from his rival, Kirpal Singh of Amritsar before romping home victorious. In 52 kg, Tarjinder Kaur of Amritsar proved her supremacy over her city mate Monika and in 44 kg group, Ritu Bala of Amritsar got the better of Ranjit Kaur also of Amritsar. Earlier, Mr S.L. Lotey, District Sports Officer, Ludhiana, inaugurated the championship. As many as 120 judokas from nine districts namely Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Moga, Hoshiarpur, Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Faridkot, Bathinda and Patiala are taking part in this two-day meet. The matches to be conducted inside the multi-purpose hall of Guru Nanak Sports Complex were held in the open, just outside the venue as the hall was occupied by the security personnel who are here on election duty. Today’s results: Girls - 36 kg.
1 Meenakshi of Ludhiana, 2 Sapanpreet Kaur of Batala, 3 Sandeep Kaur of Ludhiana and Alka of Faridkot. 40 kg.
1 Monika of Hoshiarpur, 2 Karamvir of Amritsar, 3 Baljit Kaur of Moga and Rabia of Amritsar. 44 kg. 1 Ritu Bala of Amritsar, 2 Ranjit Kaur, 3 Dimple of Amritsar and Poonam of Jalandhar. 48 kg. 1 Priyanka of Jalandhar, 2 Ravinder of Amritsar, 3 Samita of Ludhiana and Rajwant Kaur of Amritsar. 52 kg. 1 Tarjinder Kaur of Amritsar, 2 Monika of Amritsar, 3 Sapna of Jalandhar and Asha of Gurdaspur. Boys:- (open)
- 1Surinder Singh Chana of Ludhiana, 2 Kirpal Singh of Amritsar, 3 Jatinder Singh of Gurdaspur and Sahbaj Singh of Gurdaspur. |
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Punjab win Hindalco, February 16 The six-day championship is jointly being organised by Hindalco Sports Council and UP Handball Association. The other quarter finalists at the end of the league stages are-Madhya Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Maharashtra, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Haryana. The participating teams were divided into four pools. In pool A Manipur continues to remain on top with six points without losing a single game. They will meet Madhya Pradesh in the
quarter-final. UNI |
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