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Indian hockey coach to be named today
Nel bowls SA to victory
Nadal lifts another title on clay
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Russia, USA, Spain in Fed Cup semis
Prakash ready for Uzbeks
Alonso cautious despite hat-trick
JCT take on resilient Dempo today
Tollygunge hold Sporting
Gursharan benefit match today
India scrape past Pak
Mongia slams half century
Ranbir included as respondent
in contempt case
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Indian hockey coach to be named today
Jalandhar, April 25
“We are in the process of finalising the candidate out of several renowned players being considered for the post. IHF President KPS Gill will announce the name tomorrow,” K. Jothikumaran, secretary of the IHF, told The Tribune today. The IHF Secretary, however, did not rule out the possibility of seeking the assistance of foreigners in the future but said the latter were most likely be engaged as consultants. “The IHF, at present, is not thinking along those lines (appointing a foreign coach). Even if his services are engaged, it would only be as a consultant for giving technical advice,” he added. According to sources, Rajinder Singh, coach of the Punjab and Sind Bank team, is the front-runner for the post. Other names being considered are those of Vasudev Bhaskaran, who led India to victory in the Moscow Olympics, and N.S.Sodhi, an assistant with Rajinder Singh, who was sacked unceremoniously from the post of the coach by the IHF. Rajinder was a member of the silver medal winning Indian team in the 1982 Asian Games. He also played in the 1984 Los Angles Olympics and participated in several international events like the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup and the Champions Trophy. The Punjab Government had conferred the Maharaja Ranjit Singh Award on him in 1984 for his contribution to hockey. Rajinder, who has been training the Punjab and Sind Bank team since 1987, today left for Delhi to meet IHF officials, the sources said. Interestingly, while the IHF was yet to officially announce the name of the new chief coach, Rajinder, while talking to the The Tribune on the phone, revealed that he has been appointed to the post. “I have been conveyed about the appointment and I am going to Delhi, where the formal announcement will be made,” he added. Bhaskaran is the coach of the Railways team while N.S. Sodhi, based at Chandigarh, was the coach of the junior team in the Hobart World Cup in 2000. The Indian team is scheduled to play two international tournaments in the next few months — the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup at Kuala Lumpur from May 26 to June 5 and an eight-nation event at Amstelveen in the Netherlands from August 14-21 — ahead of the Champions Trophy, said Jothikumaran. Chennai (pti): A four-nation tournament involving Pakistan, Australia, Malaysia and hosts India would be the perfect platform to finalise the Indian team for the Champions Trophy, Jothikumaran said here on Monday. It is planned to be held at the newly laid synthetic turf here. All participating teams in the Champions Trophy always want to play a tournament at the venue which hosts the mega event, but as of now these three teams are said to be available during the third week of September, he said. A new FIH global quality approved tight-tufted turf laid here was the venue of the Murugappa Gold Cup hockey tournament which ended here on Sunday. The work on flood-lighting is progressing as scheduled and it would be ready before the end of June this year. The Champions Trophy, scheduled here from December 10 to 18 2005, would have Olympic champions, Australia, Germany, Holland, Pakistan and Spain besides India in the fray. “A plan to have the four-nation tournament is already afoot and the Murugappa Group of Companies have expressed their desire to sponsor the event,” Jothikumaran said. |
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Nel bowls SA to victory
Bridgetown, April 24 Nel claimed six wickets for 32 runs from 16.2 overs, as West Indies, trailing South Africa by 252 runs on first innings, were dismissed for a modest 166 in their second innings about 50 minutes after tea on the penultimate day of the Test to give the visitors an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the four-match series. The first Test at Georgetown ended in a draw and South Africa won the second Test at Port of Spain by eight wickets. The fourth and final Test at St. John's, begins on Friday. Nel put South Africa in command when he dismantled the West Indies batting and claimed the two 'big fish' - Brian Lara and West Indies captain Shivnarine Chanderpaul - on his way to match figures of 10 wickets for 88 runs that earned him the Man-of-the-Match award. West Indies wicketkeeper/batsman Courtney Browne, however, used the opportunity to hit five fours and four sixes in his highest Test score of 66 from 75 balls in a little over one and three quarter hours. Scoreboard West Indies (1st Innings) 296 South Africa (1st Innings ) Smith c King b Gayle 104 De Villiers c wk b King 178 Dippenaar run out 71 Kallis c (sub) b W. Hinds 78 Gibbs c Bravo b Gayle 8 Prince c Bravo b Gayle 23 Boucher b Powell 28 Boje not out 20 Zondeki c C'paul b Powell 2 Ntini c Bravo b Powell 16 Nell not out 4 Extras
(b1, lb2, nb13) 16 Total (9 wkts dec, Fall of wickets: 1-191, 2-334, 3-392, 4-410, 5-450, 6-496, 7-502, 8-504, 9-542 Bowling:
Edwards 32.5-3-112-0; King 30-5-80-1; Powell 31-2-103-3; Bravo 29-3-73-0; R Hinds 18-1-67-0; Gayle 27-3-85-3; W. Hinds 9-2-18-1; Sarwan 1-0-7-0. West Indies (2nd Innings) Gayle c Smith b Ntini 5 W Hinds c Gibbs b Nel 11 Sarwan c Gibbs b Ntini 0 Lara lbw b Nel 13 Chanderpaul lbw b Nel 31 Bravo c Boucher b Kallis 6 R. Hinds c Kallis b Boje 15 Browne c Dippenaar b Nel 68 Powell lbw b Nel 5 Edwards c Ntini b Nel 2 King not out 3 Extras
(b1, lb2, nb4) 7 Total (all out, 54.2 overs) 166 Fall of wickets:
1-17, 2-17, 3-17, 4-54, 5-63, 6-71, 7-107, 8-130, 9-143. Bowling:
Nel 16.2-3-32-6; Ntini 11-2-40-2 (nb1); Zondeki 8-3-43-0 (nb3); Boje 11-1-33-1; Kallis 6-3-7-1; Smith 2-0-8-0
— AFP |
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Nadal lifts another title on clay
Barcelona, April 25 With a month left before the May 23 start in Paris, the 18-year-old Raging Bull from Mallorca has now joined Roger Federer with the most wins this season on the ATP with 35. His record on clay is the best in the game — 25-2. Victory in two hours, 56 minutes over former world number one Ferrero marks Nadal’s fourth title on clay since February. Between last weekend’s trophy in Monte Carlo and his coveted Spanish home success, he has burst into prominence as the newest king of the clay. Nadal, ranked 11th, is due for a rise as he takes next week to rest after winning his last two and stretching Federer to the five-set distance in the Miami final to start the month. Ferrero, who two months ago stood 98th, can also take pride, despite his inability to get over his younger compatriot. His ranking of 58th will also experience a big leap when the new list comes out on Monday. Ferrero was playing in his third Barcelona final, which he won in 2001 after finishing runner-up in 2000 to Marat Safin. It was his first shot at a trophy since Rotterdam in February, 2004, with the last of his 11 titles coming in October, 2003 in Madrid. The 25-year-old now stands 8-6 on clay court finals and 21-5 in Barcelona. Nadal is impeccable against compatriots after winning his 13th against Spaniards since Stuttgart last July, where he lost to David Ferrero; he’s 4-0 in clay court finals. Roddick wins HOUSTON (TEXAS): Top seed Andy Roddick captured his third ATP US Clay Court Championship in five years here Sunday, defeating France’s sixth-seeded Sebastien Grosjean 6-2, 6-2 in the final. The 22-year-old American, playing in his fifth consecutive final here, had previously won in 2001 and 2002. “It’s my mom’s company at dinner, maybe,” said Roddick, who improved 23-2 in clay court matches here. “I have always felt very comfortable here.” The title was Roddick’s second of the year following a February crown at San Jose. It came in a $ 380,000 red clay event that was his first appearance since withdrawing from a second-round match at Key Biscayne with a wrist sprain. “I felt good, felt like I was really strong with my forehand,” Roddick said. “I put a lot of pressure on him with that shot.” Roddick improved to 5-1 lifetime over Grosjean, who had won their lone prior meeting on clay in a 2002 Davis Cup semi-final match at Roland Garros. Roddick broke Grosjean’s serve twice in the opening set to open a 4-1 lead. In the second, Roddick broke the Frenchman in the third game before cruising to his 23rd win in his last 27 matches. “Against the top guys, if you don’t hold your serve and you’re behind early, they don’t let you in,” Grosjean said.
— AFP |
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Russia, USA, Spain in Fed Cup semis
London, April 25 Spain, with a shot at winning their sixth Fed Cup in 15 years, will travel to France for the semifinals on July 9-10. France put away Austria 4-1. Russia downed Italy 4-1, and will host the USA, who routed an overmatched Belgium 5-0. At Jerez, Anabel Medina Garrigues and Nuria Llagostera Vives combined for the first time in the competition to beat Argentina’s Gisela Dulko and Maria-Emilia Salerni 6-4, 6-4 and nail an overall 3-2 victory. Spain led 2-0 after Saturday’s singles but in the reverse singles, Dulko swept past Marta Marrero, a late substitute for Medina Garrigues, 6-0, 6-3, and Mariana Diaz-Oliva avoided a slump at 5-2 in the first set to beat Llagostera Vives 7-6 (6), 6-4. At Brindisi, world No. 5 Elena Dementieva continued to struggle, losing her serve five times for the second day in a row, and had to save four match points before overcoming Italy’s No. 1 Francesca Schiavone 4-6, 7-6 (2), 6-0 and putting Russia up 2-1. Elena Bovina, substituting for Dinara Safina, then beat Maria-Elena Camerin 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 in two hours to give Russia an unbeatable 3-1 lead. Russia should be able to count on a full-strength side against the Americans. French Open champion Anastasia Myskina withdrew injured this week, while Wimbledon winner Maria Sharapova and US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova were omitted from the first-round tie. The Americans hold a 4-0 lead over Russia in Fed Cup play, but they have not met since the Russian women surged to the top of the game. Top-ranked Lindsay Davenport needed only 48 minutes yesterday to give the US team an unassailable 3-0 lead against Belgium when she beat Els Callens 6-4, 6-0. Venus Williams won her second singles, and Davenport and Corina Morariu combined to win the doubles over a Belgian team without stars Justine Henin-Hardenne and Kim Clijsters, who wanted to concentrate on the Grand Slam events. Davenport and the Williams sisters joined up for the US team for the first time since 1999, and Davenport said she tried to get a commitment from Serena and Venus to play in Russia. Davenport called their response positive but not a guarantee. At Portschach, France had less trouble than they did on Saturday but still flattered to beat Austria 4-1. Virginie Razzano continued in place of an injured Amelie Mauresmo, and beat Yvonne Meusburger 6-3, 7-6 (2), then Nathalie Dechy rebounded from her upset loss to Meusburger on Saturday, by clinching victory with 7-6 (5), 6-2 win over 14-year-old Tamira Paszek. Dechy, ranked 15th, had to rally from 2-5 down in the first set. Dechy and Razzano beat Austrian twins Daniella and Sandra Klemenschits 6-4, 7-5 in the doubles.
— AP |
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Prakash ready for Uzbeks
Jaipur, April 25 Amritraj, who has had a brilliant run in the Futures and Challenger events before pulling out of a $ 10,000 event in Chennai citing an injury last month, returned to the professional circuit after a three-week gap in the British hard courts season. The 22-year-old California resident made it through two qualifying rounds and reached the last eight of the main draw where he lost to 118th ranked Justin Gimelstob of the USA. Prakash, ranked 293 on the ATP Tour, said the splendid run had helped him get into groove ahead of the Davis Cup tie. "I was able to reach the quarterfinal stages in the recent Challenger and also reached the last eight in the Futures tennis at Vietnam recently ... I played on grass only in the Wimbledon qualifiers (last year) and reached last eight. But that was enough to give me a feeling that I can adopt well to this surface," Prakash, son of legendary Vijay Amritraj, stated. "My style of play suits more to grass courts. I love to attack the net and have a serve and volley game." The Indian-American became eligible to play for his country of origin in 2003 and had a baptism by fire against Sjeng Schalken in the World Group play-off against Holland. Prakash won his first Davis Cup tie in the first round match against China in Delhi in March this year. India are considered favourites against the Uzbeks but Prakash said he would prepare for the match in his usual way and all that mattered to him was his own game. "I have never seen the Uzbeks but I am not bothered. Whoever is playing against me I am determined to play well," he said. "I rely on my first serve and I hope it gets going." The youngster, whose serve and volley game is an anathema in modern tennis which is full of baseline power-hitters, said he did not deliberately model his game on his father who also liked to come up to the net often. "Consciously I have never tried to imitate him but somethings have automatically crept into my game. My father has been the guiding light in my career and I still turn to him for few tips." Prakash felt that he had not lost out because he turned pro and took up tennis full time after completing college. "There was a lot of discussion with my father that when I should turn a professional but I have no grievances. I am improving with each outing," he said. Prakash said being the son of a famous father did not put any pressure on him. "I have exerted so much pressure on myself just because I am determined to do well that I don't feel any pressure for being son of Vijay Amritraj," he said. Instead, Prakash said, he derived inspiration from his father, video clips of whose memorable matches were a prime source. "The Wimbledon match where my father was 2-0 up against Bjorn Borg is my favourite. I feel very excited while watching how my dad was playing," he said. "But these tapes have no effect on my father now. He says 'past is past, and nothing can be changed now'."
— PTI |
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Alonso cautious despite hat-trick
The 23-year-old championship leader’s hat-trick of wins knocked soccer off the front pages in Spain today, with sports daily Marca dedicating its first 13 pages to his San Marino Grand Prix triumph. “After three victories I am now feeling very strong in the championship but these victories are also going to generate an excess of euphoria, so we have to be cautious,’’ said Alonso, looking forward to the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona on May 8. “It is going to get harder to win from now on as Ferrari is becoming more competitive and Kimi Raikkonen was pushing on dangerously in the McLaren before he had to retire.” “The truth is that day by day my chances of winning the next race in Barcelona are getting less and less,” he said. The Renault driver started second on the grid at Imola yesterday and was only able to take the lead when Raikkonen came to a halt on lap nine. Alonso was then forced to play a masterful strategic game to hold off seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher’s Ferrari over the last 10-odd laps and deliver his team a fourth win in four races this season. “I had hoped to get a podium finish but I never thought I would get my third consecutive win, so the team is enormously happy,” said Alonso. “This is the kind of win that I like where you spring a surprise, especially in difficult circumstances.” “I was convinced that Schumacher wouldn’t get past me as long as I didn’t make a mistake, and managed to slow him down,” said Alonso. “I was surprised at first that he was so far back. I thought that was that, and that I wouldn’t have to worry about him, but he got past a lot of traffic at his first stop to close on me. “I think I have had tougher duels than this though, for example last year with Jenson Button in Hockenheim.’’ Alonso leads the championship standings with 36 points, double the total of his nearest rival, Italy’s Toyota driver Jarno Trulli. German Schumacher has 10 points. Narain pleased
with best show
Imola: After finishing 14th in the San Marino Grand Prix here yesterday, Indian race sensation Narain Karthikeyan said he is happy with his best show since making his formula one debut in March. Karthikeyan who qualified 17th on the grid but finished 14th with an aggregate time of 2:52.099, said, ''This is the best race for me so far pace-wise. I have made a decent start and I was able to keep close to the cars in front. ''I had a good first pit stop but I made a small mistake in the second one, which unfortunately cost me some time, and then I was on my own for the rest of the race. However, it was a positive race for us as we were able to keep up with the Red Bull cars which is quite encouraging for the team,'' he added. Jordan team chief Trevor Carlin, however, was disappointed by Karthikeyan's pit stop mistake, which cost the Indian a better result.
— Reuters, UNI |
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JCT take on resilient Dempo today
Chandigarh, April 25 Incidentally, on that fateful day, their fallen comrade had scored both goals before collapsing on the pitch following a collision with Bagan goalkeeper Subrata Pal. As shocked team-mates, huddled together in rooms, wept quietly for days along with coach Armando Colaco, an inner resolve to keep the club's banner flying as a tribute to Christiano, gave the Goans strength to meet the NFL challenge head-on. Today, Dempo placed third in the 12-team league, are very much in the race for the winner's purse of Rs 40 lakh. Talking to The Tribune from Ludhiana on the eve of their 19th round match against JCT Mills, coach Armando Colaco while lauding the services rendered by Christiano during his short stint admitted that the Brazilian from Sao Raimundo was a great motivator. " My boys are drawing inspiration from Christiano's words and God willing, we will live up to his expectations," he said. Colaco's words certainly cannot be dismissed lightly. Out of 17 matches, Dempo have notched up victories in 10 and have drawn two ties. They have lost only two matches, the lowest number. Having accumulated 35 points, the Goans are only four points behind current leaders East Bengal although a spate of injuries has somewhat hindered their progress. Among those on the injured list are internationals Sameer Naik, and midfielders Jose Colaco and Lazarus Fernandes. Nevertheless, carrying forward Christiano Junior's legacy are his team-mates Ranty Martins, the dashing striker from Nigeria, who has so far scored 12 goals, including a hat-trick against defending champions East Bengal, and players like Clifford Miranda and Mario Soares. Defender Valeriano Rebello and midfielder Nacimento Silveira besides newcomers like Pio Rodrigues and Riston Rodrigues have also given a good account of themselves so far. However, in a major setback, international RC Prakash, the livewire of Dempo's attack, and Nigerian defender Majek Bolaji, will be out of action tomorrow following two yellow card bookings. Dempo are also without the services of former Liberian star Sunday Seah, who is currently playing in Indonesia. Local favourites JCT Mills, on the other hand, are placed sixth with 26 points from seven victories and five draws. Incidentally among the setbacks that they have suffered in the current league is the 0-1 defeat at the hands of Dempo at Margao on January 16. JCT's latest win over Tollygunge at Kolkata in the 18th round where they triumphed 3-1 has added to their confidence. Among those who have justified the faith reposed in them are newcomer Sakatar Singh and forward Harvinder Singh. Coach Sukhwinder Singh is also happy that none of his players have missed action due to yellow cards. With Mansuru Mohammed under the bar and a reliable defence manned by stopper backs Harpreet Singh and KV Dhanesh to fall back upon, JCT will once again be dependent Jaswinder Singh, Baldeep Singh, Manjit Singh, and Sukhwinder to deliver in front of the home crowd. Incidentally for the first time, entry into the stadium will be by tickets.
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Tollygunge hold Sporting
Kolkata, April 25 In a thrilling match at the Salt Lake stadium, Dudu Omagbemi struck both goals for Sporting while Akeem Abolanle and substitute Gouranga Dutta found the mark for Tollygunge. The unproductive encounter also strengthened leaders and title holders East Bengal’s championship hopes with 39 points from 18 matches. Second-placed Sporting have culled the same number of points, but have played one extra match. Tollygunge, on the other hand, have 16 points from 19 encounters. — PTI |
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Gursharan benefit match today
New Delhi, April 25 The 35-over-a-side match is being organised by the Veterans Cricket Association of Delhi in honour of former Delhi and Punjab player Gursharan Singh, who played a Test and a one-day international for India. Besides the under-ban Indian captain Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Irfan Pathan and Harbhajan Singh will also play the game. Heaping praises on Gursharan, former Test players Maninder Singh and Kirti Azad said he was an under-achieving player in the international level and a gutsy cricketer at the domestic level. “Gursharan was unjustly dropped from the Delhi team in 1993 and he joined the Punjab team and won the Ranji Trophy final against Delhi the next year,” Kirti Azad recalled. Maninder also urged the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to render Rs 15 lakh as financial help to all former India cricketers and organise a benefit match for them. The match will start at 9.15 a.m. and Doordarshan will telecast it live. Gursharan Singh will get Rs 3 lakh from the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) as benefit. There will be no tickets for the match and entry will be only through passes. The teams: Sourav XI: Sourav Ganguly (capt), Virender Sehwag, Mohd Kaif, Rahul Dravid, Murali Kartik, Rahul Sanghvi, Parthiv Patel, Amit Bhandari, Ashish Nehra, Vijay Dahiya (wk), Amit Mishra and S. Sriram. Sachin XI: Sachin Tendulkar (capt), M.S. Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan, Nikhil Chopra, Mithun Manhas, Ajay Jadeja, Shikhar Dhawan and Saba Karim (wk). — UNI |
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India scrape past Pak
Sonepat, April 25 Though the score after the first round was level at 11-11, in the second round Pakistan established a lead of four points as the score at the end of second round was 26-22 in Pakistan’s favour. The match was delayed for around 15 minutes following objections by Pakistan players over umpiring. However, at the end of third round, the score was again level at 32-32. In the fourth round closing minutes, India gained the decisive lead of two points and won the match by 46-44. The president of All-India Youth Congress Ashok Tanwar and former Haryana minister Ranjit Singh gave away prizes among the players. Manager of Pakistan team Taufiq Ahmad, captain Maqbool Ahmad, coach Rashi Khan and observer of Pakistan Net-Ball Federation, Imran Rashi appreciated the hospitality, love and affection given by the people of India to them during this tour and felt that games between the two countries could play important role in normalisation of relations. |
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Mongia slams half century
London, April 25 Brief scores: Leicestershire Foxes 204 for eight (D L Maddy 40, Dinesh Mongia 62, M Saggers 46/3); Kent Spitfires 150/4 in 33.5 overs (Martin van Jaarsveld not out 69, C Dagnall 20/2).
— UNI |
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Ranbir included as respondent
in contempt case
Chennai, April 25 Allowing the application filed by Theayagaraya Cricket Club seeking to implead Mahendra as a respondent, Judge Mohideen Pitchai posted the case for hearing on April 27.
— PTI |
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Sasikiran, Timman share honours
Copenhagen, April 25 Sasikiran, who was in joint lead with Timman after the penultimate round, did not take any chances with black pieces in the final round and shared the trophy with the veteran Dutch GM in this category-13 event.
— PTI |
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Madrid, April 25
