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Sania upbeat despite defeat
Venus overpowers Serena
Mahesh-Daniela in quarterfinals
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India keen to shed tag of ‘final floppers’
We aim to run through Indian top order
Narain blames Albers
Brazil secure World Cup berth
Atwal slips to joint 61st
Mandi cricket body ‘not allowed’ to hold matches
JCT Mills rout Punjab Police
Lovedeep wins badminton title
Ravinder, Jund prop up Patiala
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Sania upbeat despite defeat
New York, September 5 Notwithstanding a none-too-flattering scoreline and her inability to rein in unforced errors, Sania — the first Indian woman to reach the fourth round of any Grand Slam — admitted she could not have asked for more in her debut at the Flushing Meadow. “I had a great US Open. I couldn’t have asked for more. This is my career highlight — getting to the fourth round of the US Open on my first attempt and in my first year on the tour,” said the 18-year-old Hyderabadi girl who matched her illustrious rival shot for shot in the first set before Sharapova prevailed. In her post-match interview, Sania also defending her tactics of going for big, risky shots. “That’s how I play. I’m going to have maybe 50 unforced errors one day, but I’m going to also have 50 winners that day. That’s what I compensated for.” “I enjoy hitting the ball as hard as I can. I enjoy taking risks. And I believe that you always have to take risks,” she said. About the match, she said, “If I would have pushed the ball, I probably would have lost ‘love and love’. So I had to go for my shots, and I did. I got a few in; I got a few out. That just gives me experience. Next time, I’m probably going to have a lot more matches hopefully against her, and it’s just a lesson.” On future encounters with Sharapova, Sania said, “I’ll come up with a game plan. She obviously played some really good shots out there.” Asked about her poor second serve, the first Indian woman with a WTA title said, ‘’I have no regrets. My serve, we’ve been trying to work on it, but we couldn’t because I had the stomach injury, so really didn’t get time in the past at least one month to work on it.’’ ‘’I think except my serve, I played a good match. I hit the ball well. I was feeling it well. I’m just happy that I made it to the fourth round.’’ The Indian who stunned her opponent with incredible groundstrokes, said, ‘’I always say that I can match the best when it comes to the groundstrokes. It’s just probably a few other things like physical fitness or the serve that I kind of have to work on to match them. It didn’t surprise me. Like I say, it’s going to give me confidence the next time I’m going to step on court.’’ She also thanked the boisterous crowd that cheered its heart out at the Arthur Ashe stadium. The crowd’s favourite also drew flattering tributes from Sharapova. ‘’I think she’s definitely great for the sport. Tennis is a very global sport. It’s amazing how we have, you know, such great athletes. She’s very young, has a great future ahead of her. Very big game. But of course with time, I think she needs experience. She’ll learn,’’ said the top seed Russian. In the match. Sania matched Sharapova’s power in the
first set before her resistance fizzled out in the second. Cheered by the vociferous crowd and watched by her father Imran Mirza, Sania took to the court in a red T-shirt and white baseball cap flaunting her earstuds. Sania won her first point in the second game of the first set with a scorching double-handed backhand and levelled 1-1 but the Russian held her serve and then broke Sania to reach 3-1. Sania responded in style, breaking the Russian in the next game as Sharapova struggled against Sania’s pace but the Russian won the next three games, breaking Sania again in the seventh, to pocket the set in 31 minutes. Sharapova was firmly in command of the second set and after Sania just about managed to held her serve in the second game, the Russian won the next four games with elan, breaking Sania in the fourth and sixth in the process. It took the Russian 59 minutes to wrap it up but not before some running around the court. Sharapova never found it easy against the Indian and was found wrong-footed a number of times while Sania came up with blistering groundstrokes. The Indian, however, could not rein in her erratic, inconsistent display as unforced errors flowed from her racquet while six double faults, compared to one by Sharapova, marred her show. A poor second serve also undid most of her good work and the Indian was far too inconsistent to pose any serious threat to Sharapova.
— UNI |
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New York, September 5 There the Wimbledon champion will face in-form Belgian fourth seed Kim Clijsters, who embarrassed Venezuela’s Maria Vento-Kabchi 6-1, 6-0. They were joined in the last eight by Russian top seed Maria Sharapova, who produced her best tennis of the tournament to beat hard-hitting Indian Sania Mirza 6-2, 6-1 and reach the quarterfinals for the first time. Men’s defending champion Roger Federer fended off tenacious Belgian Olivier Rochus, winning their third-round match 6-3, 7-6, 6-2 despite lacking some of his usual fluency. Third seed Lleyton Hewitt was stretched to the limit by American Taylor Dent in a five-set thriller but won to stay on course for a semifinal showdown against Federer. As so often in the past, the meeting of the sport’s most famous siblings was a strangely muted, messy affair. Venus won a protracted first set 7-5 in the tiebreak and after that Serena’s inferior physical condition ultimately counted against her. “Weird, awkward, bizarre,” were the words Serena chose yesterday to describe the unusual early- round meeting with her older sister, who like her is a twice former US Open champion. The last time they played at a Grand Slam Venus was stricken with an abdominal strain and lost a low-key Wimbledon final to Serena in 2003. This time eighth seed Serena’s left knee and ankle problems came home to roost. Sharapova will play compatriot and ninth seed Nadia Petrova in the last eight, a repeat of their Wimbledon quarterfinal this year which Sharapova won in straight sets. Petrova, who has never won a tour title, reached the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year with a 7-6, 7-5 victory over temperamental 16-year-old Czech Nicole Vaidisova. Federer almost lost his first set of the tournament when he trailed 1-4 in the second set tiebreaker against Rochus, his former junior doubles partner. The Swiss will play German Nicolas Kiefer, who beat Arnaud Clement of France in four sets, in the last 16. Federer beat Kiefer in four sets on his way to winning Wimbledon this year. Hewitt eventually quelled Dent 6-3, 3-6, 6-7, 6-2, 7-5 on a breezy Arthur Ashe Court. The 2001 champion will play Slovakia’s Dominik Hrbaty in the fourth round. Hrbaty, seeded 15, beat David Ferrer of Spain in four sets yesterday. Jarkko Nieminen became only the second Finnish man to reach the fourth round at a Grand Slam event, and the first at the US Open, when he beat Belarus’s Max Mirnyi 6-3, 7-6, 3-6, 6-3. Spain’s Fernando Verdasco is the Finn’s fourth-round opponent. He fought out a five-set win over Serbia and Montenegran teenager Novak Djokovic. Davide Sanguinetti became the first Italian to reach the last 16 of the men’s singles for 11 years after an epic four-hour, 24-minute 6-3, 4-6, 6-7, 7-6, 7-6 win over Thailand’s Paradorn Srichaphan.
— Reuters |
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Mahesh-Daniela in quarterfinals
New York, September 5 Earlier, Bhupathi and his Czech partner Martin Damm reached the third round in men’s doubles. Pitted against the fourth seeds, Bhupathi and Hantuchova found the going surprisingly easy in the first set and they pocketed it with consummate ease. After conceding the first set, Raymond and Bjorkman came back strongly in the second set and stretched it to the tiebreaker, hoping to clinch it before going into the
decider. Bhupathi and Hantuchova, however, kept their cool in the tiebreaker and waited for their rivals to make mistakes. The move paid off. Fellow Indian Leander Paes and his legendary American team-mate Martina Navratilova have also reached the quarterfinals.
— UNI |
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India keen to shed tag of ‘final floppers’
Harare, September 5 The Indians go into the match with a lot more confidence, having defeated the Kiwis in a league match, and it remains to be seen if they can do it again when it matters the most. If things go their way, it would be only their second title in a multi-team series since March, 1999. During this time, India have reached 20 finals and won just one, losing 15 and finishing with a deadlock in the rest of them. More often than not, it is the batsmen who freeze at the moment of reckoning, though in the 2003 World Cup final it was the bowlers who left the batsmen with no chance whatsoever. The conditions in Harare over the past few days have discounted New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming’s suggestion that the final would be a “battle of the bowlers”. Three matches in a row have produced pitches which neither had moisture nor support swing bowlers and teams regularly exceeded the 250-run mark. Toss will only be a help to the extent that one team would have the option of using its super sub better than the other, like the Indians did with Venugopala Rao in that close- fright-of-a-match against Zimbabwe yesterday. With the onus on batsmen, there are reasons to believe that the Indian top order would be tossing in unease in their beds on the eve of the final. India’s best three batsmen — Virender Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid — have not been in the best of form. Sehwag has not got a fifty in the past 15 matches and is irritatingly getting out when he has the opposition by the collar. Ganguly, after his half century against the West Indies in Sri Lanka, has not crossed 50 in the past six innings. At the moment, if his pull does not get him out, it is the square cut which is terminating his stay in the middle. Dravid has been out bowled four times in the past five innings — four in four on the present tour — and on at least two occasions his stationery footwork has inside edged the ball onto the stumps. These three have also little going by way of their performance in the finals. Ganguly’s average drops by over 18 runs in the finals. Dravid suffers by at least 10 and Sehwag, too, has been scoring lesser by four runs in crunch games. That India have chased two successive scores of 250-plus is because the lower half is in roaring form. Both Mohammad Kaif and Yuvraj Singh have got hundreds while Mahendra Singh Dhoni is acquiring the stamp of reliability. JP Yadav and Irfan
Pathan, by dint of their show in the very first game, promise the never-say-die spirit. India would again rely on four fast bowlers and a spinner in Harbhajan Singh to work around the New Zealand batting. They would have done a good job if, in conditions such as are prevalent at the ground, they are able to stop the Kiwis to less than 250 runs. New Zealand’s biggest worry seems to be the support which Shane Bond lacks at the other end. Without him and Daniel
Vettori, their attack was toothless against India on Friday. India’s best chance is to target other New Zealand bowlers and raise a total they can defend. For New Zealand, batting is just about giving the hint of running into full steam. For cricket fans in Zimbabwe, this would be the match of the summer or one of quality for a long time. As Zimbabwe hit a barren patch, both by performances and off-field troubles, tomorrow could be a day to rejoice in a quality contest. The one between Bond and the Indian batsmen should be an edge-of-the-seat affair. Teams (from): India: Sourav Ganguly
(capt), Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Mahendra Singh
Dhoni, Ashish Nehra, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Ajit Agarkar, JP Yadav and Venugopala Rao. New Zealand: Stephen Fleming
(capt), Nathan Astle, Lou Vincent, Hamish Marshall, Craig McMillan, Scott
Styris, Kyle Mills, Jacob Oram, Brendon McCullum, Daniel Vettori, Andre Adams and Shane Bond.
— PTI |
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We aim to run through Indian top order
Before I harp on India’s poor record in the finals, let me state they we have a similar image of not doing well in crunch games in foreign conditions. So in that sense, we are not dissimilar. One of us would have taken some corrective measures by the time light is dying out at the Harare Sports Club on Tuesday evening.
It was nice from our point of view that Zimbabwe could keep India’s top order out of business once again. It would have been still better if Zimbabwe had won and sowed doubts in Indians’ minds. Virender Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid are on ration in terms of runs in this series. Dravid has been bowled in all four innings and we hope he has similar returns for one more knock. From the New Zealand point of view, we regard him the best Indian batsman and hold him in very high esteem. Once he strikes roots at the crease, the rest of the batsmen tend to feed off him. We rate both Sehwag and Ganguly similar to the extent that they are dangerous on the off side and giving them width is asking for trouble. We would prefer to take them out of the equation while the pitch still has some bounce for once it gets slower and lower, they are tough work. We try to limit these two batsmen with deliveries which could climb up to the midriff and limits their footwork. The thing about the Indian top order is that if they stay for any length, they can make us pay dearly. As it is, the batting line-ups are getting deeper in the age of super subs. In our line-up, you see a Kyle Mills coming at number 11 and he has a first-class hundred. For India, Irfan Pathan comes in at number 10. It is no longer the age when you can limit teams to 150-160 runs. With India’s middle order beginning to make an audible noise, it is important that we run through the top order quickly. Once it is done, the lower half would not be able to bat with customary freedom and we can tie up the two ends with Scott Styris and Daniel Vettori. Otherwise, the likes of Yuvraj Singh and Mahendra Singh Dhoni would take some stopping. Dhoni obviously is a powerful hitter. His cut-and-thrust methods work up a great mix with the finesse which India’s top batsmen are able to conjure up. Yuvraj is in good nick but looking up the figures, I find he does not seem to have done much against us in the past. We would like to keep it that way and test him with lifting deliveries on the off stump. Again, to expose him early while the ball is still new would only be possible if we go through the top order. We have noticed that older balls are easier to negotiate at this ground. Once the wicket gets slower, the early spongy bounce tends to die out and becomes predictable for the batsmen. With the ball rising slowly, batsmen are able to whack balls with cross-batted shots. The depth in batting has seen teams pushing that much harder and now 260-plus seems only a par score. So we could only hope that we would get a similar pitch to what we had in the Test match here last month. It had swing and bounce, the two ingredients which are needed for a good game of cricket. Nobody wants sideways movement because it loads the things overtly in the bowlers’ favour. But swing-friendly conditions can make it a fair contest between bat and ball. Regardless of the pitch, the basic plans of any bowling side do not change much. It is to bowl fairly and regularly on and around the off stump long enough to cause discomfort to the batsmen. We would surely like to leave with a high but have to be at our absolute best to stop the Indians. The early advantage of the first game is long gone: India since then have made a reputation with their bowling and fielding and the lower half is holding up firm. The top order is their main concern and it is an area where we would like to stomp our feet and test if the ground is still soft underneath.
— PTI |
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Lebedeva wins $ 1 million jackpot
Berlin, September 5 The Russian triple jumper missed last month’s world championships in Helsinki but here yesterday became only the second athlete in the eight-year history of the Golden League to collect the entire jackpot alone. “Fortune smiled on me,” said the 29-year-old from Volgograd, who was the only athlete to win her event in all six Golden League meetings. “I have always dreamed of earning lots of money,” she added with a huge smile. Lebedeva said she was delighted she would not have to worry about making ends meet the way her grandparents had, although, she joked, she feared returning home with so much cash. “I’m afraid to go back to Russia,” she said with a laugh. “I have many friends but some enemies. Maybe I just let my manager decide what I will do with my money. But I will have a party.” The $ 1 million usually shared by the athletes who win their disciplines in all six meetings, this year went solely to this mother of a three-year-old daughter. Lebedeva was a model of consistency in meetings across Europe from Paris in July to Berlin yesterday with all her jumps falling between the 14.85 m and 15.11 m marks. She said despite winning in Paris and Rome, she had not started thinking about the prize money until the Oslo meet, where she injured her Achilles. She went on to win in Norway and elected after that to focus on the money rather than defending her 2001 and 2003 world titles. But here yesterday Lebedeva clearly had the cash on her mind as she was wearing bib number “1,000,000”. She had to defend herself all weekend about putting money over honours but with a warm smile and disarming candor she explained she had won two world titles and wanted a new challenge.
— Reuters |
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Narain blames Albers
Monza, September 5 Karthikeyan clearly did not have stars in his favour and after he lost the toss — and the chance to drive the revised Jordan car — to Monteiro, the Indian was left cursing his luck again yesterday. Albers hit Karthikeyan’s left rear Bridgestone and punctured it and the Indian could not recover from there, especially as after his off on Saturday he was obliged to run a very old set of tyres. The Indian driver who finished 20th in his Jordan, was hit on the first corner by the Minardi of Albers, resulting in the puncture, which forced him to go to the pits. On lap 34, after going off the track, Karthikeyan had to pit twice for car examination.
— UNI |
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Brazil secure World Cup berth
Brasilia, September 5 Brazil, who are the first defending champions who have been forced to qualify for the subsequent tournament, also dealt Chile’s hopes a severe blow on a hot afternoon at the Mane Garrincha stadium. Brazil raced to a 4-0 lead in half an hour as defender Juan headed his second international goal, Robinho finished an end-to-end move and Adriano added two more. The Inter Milan player completed his hat-trick in injury time. The only frustration for Brazil was that Ronaldo, who was rested at half-time after complaining of a groin strain, completed his sixth international without scoring. |
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Atwal slips to joint 61st
Boston, September 5 At the scenic par-71 Tournament Players Club here, the Indian had par shots in the first and third hole with a birdie in between. But soon he ran into trouble bogeying his fourth which pulled him back.
— UNI |
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Mandi cricket body ‘not allowed’ to hold matches
Mandi, September 5 Addressing a press conference here the President, CAM, Mr Ajay Rana alleged that they had approached the district sport officer (DSO) for permission to organise the u-17 and u-22 matches at Paddal Stadium, but he refused saying that the higher authorities were not permitting it. “We have matches fixed from October 13 to 16 and from October 22 to 26, but we do not have a cricket ground to conduct them”, said Mr Rana. He said the state government was doing this so as to dominate the HP State Cricket Association (HPSCA), which is demanding the scrapping of the sports act. Mr Rana said due to politics Mandi had lost the opportunity to conduct Ranji trophy matches last year as the HPPSCA was not allowed to use the Paddal ground. “Last year, we held the CK Naidu matches at Sundernagar college ground as the DSO refused to give Paddal ground for these matches”, he said. The CAM office-bearers claimed that the Paddal ground was ready to host the Australia- India u-19 match last year, but the authorities did not give them the necessary permission. They were trying for the Bilaspur ground but the Sports Minister, Mr Ram Lal Thakur, did not want the association to take credit for that, alleged Mr Praveen, general secretary, CAM. “The matches were being conducted in Nadaun and Una grounds despite the fact that Bishan Singh Bedi had praised Paddal ground as one of the best ground in the North”, they said. |
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JCT Mills rout Punjab Police
Chandigarh, September 5 The second goal for JCT came a minute after resumption when Baldeep put Chetri in possession who beat the Punjab Police goalie with a rasping shot from close range (2-0). In the 65th minute, JCT’s Sakatar Singh and international Parveen Kumar displayed fine understanding. Finding himself unmarked inside the box, the latter bulged the net to give the mill men a comfortable 3-0 lead. Four minutes later, a move initiated by Sukhwinder in the midfield saw Parveen making a neat interception before relaying the ball to Baldeep who made no mistake in finding the net (4-0). Towards the end, Punjab Police had a good chance but Deepak Kumar’s powerful shot was saved by the alert Kalyan Chaubey under the JCT bar. The JCT custodian again rose to the occasion a few minutes later to effect another save off a free kick by Harnek Singh. Tomorrow, PSEB will meet Mahilpur FC at Hoshiarpur. |
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Lovedeep wins badminton title
Jalandhar, September 5 In girls doubles (under 16), Komalpreet and Shweta of Jalandhar defeated Harmanpreet and Shikha of Ropar 20-22, 22-20, 22-18. In boys singles (under 13), Lovedeep Singh of Gurdaspur beat Kamaldeep of Sangrur 21-19, 19-21, 21-11 to win the title. In girls singles (under 13), Staffi Kala of Ludhiana beat Sachi Sood of Sangrur 23-21, 21-5, 21-14. In girls doubles (under 13), Staffi of Ludhiana and Sachi of Sangrur beat Ishu and Damanpreet of Sangrur 21-14, 21-9 to clinch the title. In boys singles (under 10), Ramandeep Singh of Ropar outclassed Ayush of Amritsar 21-13, 21-19. In boys doubles (under 10), Amit and Suriya of Ludhiana defeated Ayush and Abhinav of Amritsar 21-18, 21-16. |
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Ravinder, Jund prop up Patiala
Patiala, September 5 Former India cricketers Pankaj Dharmani and Reetinder Sodhi failed to click. Ankur Jund held the lower order together with an unbeaten 62 which enabled Patiala to finish
the day with a respectable total. Brief scores: Patiala: 1st innings: 287 for 8 in 90 overs (Ravinder Singh 64, Ankur Jund 62 n.o., Rupeetinder Singh 28, P. Dharmani 21, R.Sodhi 22; Love Abhilesh 2 for 44, Karan Goel 2 for 49). |
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