 |
|
|
Kiwis go down fighting
Dravid, Chappell happy with Kotla pitch
Chappell my best choice as coach, says Ranbir
Sangakkara should bat at number 3
India win series
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bopanna keeps Indian challenge alive
NIS shifted to Bangalore?
Rama wins bronze in weightlifting
|
|
Kiwis go down fighting
Wellington, December 7 Australia recovered from a shaky start to post an imposing 322-5 but New Zealand chased the total to the very end. They fell only in the final over when they lost two wickets and could only score three of the six runs needed for victory. Symonds and Test reject Michael Clarke (82 not out) came together for a partnership of 220, the highest ever fifth wicket partnership for Australia against New Zealand. After a watchful start, Symonds smashed 12 fours and eight sixes in his 127-ball innings, the highest ever one-day international score against New Zealand. In a thrilling climax, New Zealand scored 18 runs in the 49th over bowled by Brett Lee, which including two boundaries, two no balls and a wide. Needing only six from the final over, New Zealand lost their composure with Brendon McCallum (48) and Kyle Mills both run out to end the innings with one ball remaining. Scoreboard Australia Gilchrist c Cairns b Mills 8 Katich run out 36 Ponting c McCullum b Mills 28 Hodge c H. Marshall b Cairns 0 Symonds b Vettori 156 Clarke not out 82 Hussey not out 1 Extras
(lb-4, nb-4, w-3) 11 Total (5 wkts, 50 overs) 322 Fall of wickets:
1-10, 2-47, 3-50, 4-101, 5-321. Bowling: Mills 10-0-60-2, Franklin 4-0-36-0, Cairns 9-0-66-1, Oram 5-0-39-0, Styris 10-0-46- 0, Vettori 10-0-51-1, Astle 2-0-20-0. New Zealand Vincent c Gilchrist b Lewis 71 Astle c Clark b Lewis 22 McMillan c Hussey b Clark 9 Marshall lbw Hogg 10 Styris c&b Hogg 25 Cairns c Lee b Lewis 60 Oram c Clark b Lee 41 McCullum run out 49 Marshall run out 6 Vettori not out 8 Mills run out 0 Extras
(lb-9, nb-2, w-8) 19 Total (all out, 49.5 overs) 320 Fall of wickets:
1-93, 2-98, 3-109, 4-134, 5-156, 6-237, 7-271, 8-295, 9-319. Bowling:
Lee 10-0-85-1, Bracken 7-0-49-0, Lewis 9.5-0-56-3, Clark 10-0-50-1, Hogg 7-0-34 -2, Symonds 6-0-37-0.
— Reuters |
|
Dravid, Chappell happy with Kotla pitch
New Delhi, December 7 They were expecting a keen contest in the second Test against Sri Lanka, to be held here from December 10 to 14, after a rain-ruined first Test in Chennai. With Delhi now having ideal weather conditions, both Dravid and Chappell want the team to give off their best. The Indian team landed in Delhi at noon from Chennai, and Dravid and Chappell had a look-in of the Kotla wicket in the afternoon. They had a brief chat with curator of the pitch Prabir Mukherjee, and Chappell looked happy with the pitch and the outfield. He said the "pitch is fine" but refused to comment further. Dravid also found the pitch ideal for a Test match. "It's very good," he remarked. The Kotla wicket has a history of aiding the batsmen and the bowlers alike, but how would the newly-laid pitch last for five days is a matter of speculation. The Delhi and District Cricket Association is trying hard to put everything in place in the next two days, as the stadium is still far from complete, and feverish construction activity is on. But DDCA president Arun Jaitley and senior vice-president C. K. Khanna were confident of putting everything in place in the next 48 hours. |
|
Chappell
my best choice as coach, says Ranbir
Chandigarh, December 7 Mr Ranbir Singh, while talking exclusively to The Tribune last evening on his experiences as board President, said in selecting Chappell he had only one consideration in mind: Indian cricket must have the best available coach. With this aim he set up a selection committee comprising three former cricketers, Sunil Gavaskar, Ravi Shastri and S. Venkataraghvan (who have seen quite a lot of contemporary cricket and have no regional or group affiliation) and three cricket administrators (Ranbir himself, former BCCI President Jagmohan Dalmiya and the then Secretary S.K. Nair) for the selection of the coach. And when this committee opted for Chappell after interviewing quite a few candidates, they offered him a contract till the 2007 World Cup since they wanted the coach to have a long run to mould the team. Mr Ranbir Singh, while admitting that during the later stages of the tenure of coach John Wright (especially the series against Pakistan last year) the team had not done well, said he had some doubts of the coaching abilities of Chappell after India’s miserable showing on the tours of Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe under Chappell. But with the series with Sri Lanka and South Africa at home, the team is showing definite improvement and shaping up well. Mr Ranbir Singh said he took over as President of the board when it was going through tumultuous times. There were a slew of court cases against the board and working under those circumstances “was not easy”. In this connection he pointed out that when Mr Sharad Pawar took over as BCCI President last month, the first thing he did was to appeal to all concerned to withdraw the cases so that the board functioning could be smooth. What surprised Mr Ranbir Singh the most after the election of Mr Pawar as President was the selection of Bhupinder Singh Sr as national selector from the North Zone. He disclosed that at the zonal meeting prior to the BCCI meeting, it was decided that Yashpal Sharma would be given one more year as national selector but following his defeat it was “Punjab’s Bhupinder who became a selector much to the surprise of all.” Asked if he would extend cooperation to the new incumbent, Mr Ranbir Singh said he would give all help to Mr Pawar, if asked. But he also clarified that the outgoing President has no constitutional role in the new set-up. His advice to the new President was: “Keep the history of the board in mind while taking any step”. Mr Ranbir Singh said he would now concentrate on promoting the game in his state (he is Secretary of the Haryana Cricket Association) and in building an international cricket stadium at Gurgaon, land for which had already been promised by the Chief Minister, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Work on the stadium, which would cost Rs 60-70 core, would start soon. As per the existing rules, the BCCI will give Rs 4 crore to the HCA for the construction of the stadium. Meanwhile, Mr Ranbir Singh said he was working hard to set up a cricket academy at Lahli, 12 km from Rohtak, where a stadium with all modern facilities had been constructed. The stadium constructed at a cost of Rs 8 crore also has 20 rooms for trainees. He was of the view that in time this could become the main training centre of the HCA. |
|
BCCI Marketing Committee to meet today
New Delhi, December 7 |
|
|
Sangakkara should bat at number 3
Sri Lanka could feel better from whatever they could get out of the Chennai cricket Test. They limited India to their lowest total ever against them and then batted serenely till the end. There was some useful practice for key players but I am baffled by a particularly annoying decision.
I cannot see the logic of asking Kumara Sangakkara to open the innings. He has been good at number three for a number of years as has been the case with Marvan Atapattu as an opener. It was also my complaint when they played the one-dayers. It is difficult to work out the logic. Atapattu is good enough to take on the likes of Irfan Pathan and Sangakkara needs time and space after he has done his glovework. I only hope there is something which has escaped my attention. Chaminda Vaas made his mark in the Test and I liked the way he understood the conditions. He was trying to bowl slower than usual and on a slowish, low surface, the only option left for batsmen was to score runs straight down the ground. That the keeper was standing up, did not allow the batsmen to venture out of their crease. Same was with Murali who was impressive and dished up his variety with cunning and control. Most of his stuff was handled by Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar and these two, I reckon, play him the best among all Indian batsmen. I was particularly keen to see how VVS Laxman plays Murali in Tests. He did not stay long though but it is a situation I look forward to in the next Test. Laxman, despite his failure, is a proven Test performer and neither he, nor his fans or selectors, need to be despondent. It has been some months since he has appeared for India on the field and much has happened in Indian cricket since those stormy days in Zimbabwe. India surely would have loved to spend a longer time at the crease but the pitch, under covers for many days, kept terrifyingly low. Chennai was a wrong choice to begin with given the weather conditions at this time of the year and now that the usual noise has begun to emanate on Delhi, as well as the change of venue to Ahmedabad, it would appear that the administrators are doing their bit to generate excitement of their own. It is indeed strange to see a change in venue when the touring party is already in the third day of the first Test. Let us just hope that cricket served by the two teams would still make it a reason to celebrate a series which has taken a few years in coming. There are enough reasons for it to happen as a few of game’s modern superstars adorn the two ranks. Tendulkars, Sehwags and Dravids, Muralis and Vaas are reasons enough to hook on to the game. And we are not counting Harbhajans and Kumbles; Pathans and Dhonis; or Sangakkaras and Jayawardenes. Sri Lanka, if I can offer an advice, should look to win the Tests rather than earn honourable draws. The experience of Chennai should serve them well in the next two Tests. The memory of Ahmedabad is another which should perk them up since they won the only game of the disastrous one-day series at this venue in western India. From a Sri Lankan point of view, we would also be keen to see how the youngsters fare in the remainder of the series. We just cannot ignore the rebuilding process, or not to widen the pool. Let us hope the remaining two weeks could throw a couple of young talents who would be stars of the future.
— PTI |
|
India win series
Silchar, December 7 Woman of the match Goswami treated a strong 20,000 crowd at the Jatindra Mohan Dev stadium to a magnificent spell of medium pace bowling, finishing with a career best 5/16 as England were bundled out for a pathetic 50 in 30.4 overs on a slow pitch after being put in to bat. Indian openers Karuna Jain (12) and Jaya Sharma (29) did the rest in style as the home side raced to 51 without loss in 14.5 overs at the stroke of lunch to register one of their easiest triumphs. With today’s win, India have taken an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match series with the fifth match to be held in Kolkata rendered inconsequential. The home team took control of the match in the morning itself, with Goswami getting rid of the highest scorer in the previous Guwahati match skipper Charlotte Edwards even before she could open her account. After that the wickets fell like a pack of cards as Goswami, combining well with Amita Sharma (2/14), almost ran through the English innings. In Guwahati in 1995, the England eves were all out for 78 in a one-day match against India. Meanwhile, England captain Charlotte Edwards blamed the pitch and early morning dew for her team’s humiliating defeat. Indian skipper Mithali Raj expressed satisfaction at her team’s performance and singled out Goswami for her dream spell which doomed England very early in the match. With the series already won, the team would like to give chances to those players who had not got a game in the series, she added. Scoreboard England Charlotte b Goswami 0 Rosalie b Goswami 3 Taylor lbw Sharma 0 Greenway b Sharma 5 Brindle c Asha b Goswami 0 Jenny c Jain b David 13 Morgan b Goswami 0 Nicola lbw Goswami 8 Smith c Goswami b David 9 Isha Guha not out 1 Watts b Alkhadeer 0 Extras (lb-2, nb-1, w-8) 11 Total
(all out in 30.4 overs) 50 Fall of wickets: 1/3, 2/4, 3/4, 4/10, 5/13, 6/18, 7/33, 8/44, 9/49. Bowling: Jhulan Goswami 10-3-16-5, Amita Sharma 6-1-14-2, Rumali Dhar 5-2-5-0, Nooshan Alkadeer 5.4-2-9-1, Nitu David 4-3-4-2. India Karuna Jain not out 12 Jaya Sharma not out 29 Extras (w-5, nb-3, b-1, lb-1) 10 Total (for no loss in
14.5 overs) 51 Bowling: Jenny 6-2-10-0, Morgan 4-1-12-0, Isha Guha 3-0-13-0, Nicola 1-0-6-0, Watts 0.5-0-8-0. —
PTI |
|
All eyes on Gagan Ajit
Chandigarh, December 7 India’s best performance to date in this elite tournament has been a bronze medal in 1982 in Amstelveen. For the past three consecutive years, India, in spite of beating Pakistan in league matches, has been finishing fourth in the tournament. And on all three occasions, they lost the bronze medal match to Pakistan. Gagan loves to play against Pakistan as he has scored some of his best goals against them. Gagan, one of finest exponents of the reverse flick from any angle in the striking circle, has an onerous responsibility of motivating a team that has not done anything spectacular in the recent past. If Pakistan won the Rabo Bank Mini World Cup early this year, India with Gagan had nothing to brag about. The Chennai tournament is a virtual dress rehearsal for the 2006 World Cup in Germany as all the six teams, including defending champions Spain, would be experimenting with new faces. Son of Olympian Ajit Singh, Gagan has been through a thick of controversies before wresting back his place in the national team after the country’s debacle in the Athens Olympic Games. A born fighter, Gagan is a go-getter. He sets his aims high, works hard to achieve what to many may look unattainable. His brace against Pakistan in the historic match in the Champions Trophy in Amstelveen in 2003 bears ample testimony to his abilities of converting half chances into superb goals. He missed the last edition of the Champions Trophy in Lahore as well as the series against Spain. He has been perhaps the most prolific field scorer in contemporary Indian hockey today. Scoring goals perhaps run in the family. His father, Ajit, had the distinction of scoring the fastest goal in the Olympics. His uncle, Harmik Singh, now associated with the Indian Hockey Federation as a technical adviser, not only led India but also captained all-star Asian XI in 1974. Gagan, now a Deputy Superintendent in Punjab Police, was also the pick of crowds during the maiden edition of the Premier Hockey league in Pakistan. Though he missed out being named man of the tournament, Gagan had done exceeding well in almost every game he played. For the second successive time, he has been picked to lead Sher-e-Jalandhar in the Indian version of the Premier league. Gagan has his old mate, Prabhjot, in the forward line. Though he will miss indisposed Dilip Tirkey in the deep defence, he has drag flicker Sandeep Singh in the half-line. Sandeep has of late matured into a reliable converter of penalty corners with a powerful flick. He is trying to fill the void created by the exit of Jugraj Singh. Gagan, who now plays in Europe, has been given an opportunity to prove his capabilities as a leader of the national team. Though he has proved his mettle as captain of Sher-e-Jalandhar, now is the time for him to give the country something back, a medal at Chennai would be a great Christmas or New Year gift to the hockey lovers in the country. |
|
Bopanna keeps Indian challenge alive
Aisam Qureshi of Pakistan in action at the ITF Futures tennis tournament in Chandigarh on Wednesday.
— Tribune photo by Vinay Malik
Chandigarh, December 7 The second semifinal is pitted between Jae-Sung An of Korea and Frank Moser of Germany. Two Indians, fifth seed Karan Rastogi and unseeded Vishal Uppal, made their exit from the tournament. The fast paced serves of Rohan, calculated at 128 kmph, helped in demolishing his rival Toshihide Matsui (Japan) in just 52 minutes with scores being 6-2, 6-3. Rohan fired 16 aces but also double-faulted five times. Matsui, who had only one ace and three double faults proved to be a great trouble for Bopanna in the fifth game of the first set. Bopanna managed to win the game on his serve and led 3-2. Now it was Matsui who double faulted after serving at 15-40 in the sixth game. This gave Bopanna a 5-2 lead and finally he won 6-2. Bopanna won the second set 6-3. A. Qureshi of Pakistan played a 148-minutes battle with third seed Go Soeda of Japan in three sets. He served 21 aces to emerge winner at 6-2, 5-7, 6-4. Jae-Sung An of Korea scored an impressive and easy win over Vishal Uppal of India. This match lasted for just 62 minutes. The quarterfinal played between wild card holder Karan Rastogi was almost an even affair with Frank Moser of Germany with both displaying long rallies, deep cross court volleys. Serving at speed of 124 kmph, Moser fired 10 aces. Karan’s service speed recorded was just 102 kmph. This was the longest tie among all quarterfinal ties and lasted for 163 minutes. Rastogi who had last week won the ABN AMRO super tennis meet in Delhi played his best but eventually it was not his day. Moser won 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (5). Results: singles (quarterfinals): Rohan Bopanna (India) b 7-Toshihide Matsui (Japan) 6-2, 6-3; Aisam Qureshi (Pakistan) b 3-Go Soeda (Japan) 6-2, 5-7, 6-4; Frank Moser (Germany) b 5-Karan Rastogi (India) 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (5), and Jae-Sung An (Korea) b Vishal Uppal (India) 6-3, 6-1. Doubles (quarterfinals): Divij Sharan and Vivek Shoken (India) b Vinod Sridhar and Ravishanker Pathanjali (India) 6-4, 6-3; Frank Moser (Germany) and Vishal Uppal (India) b Tushar Liberhan and Navdeep Singh (India) 6-4, 6-2; and Karan Rastogi and Ashutosh Singh (India) b Jae Sung (Korea) and Domnic Stockler (Sui) 6-3, 6-1. |
|
NIS shifted to Bangalore?
Patiala, December 7 The Chief Minister’s announcement today — at a rally held at the Polo ground on the occasion of the Flag Day — that the setting up of the proposed Defense university on the premises of the NIS had been cleared by the Union Government has sent shock waves among the sports fraternity. Capt Amarinder Singh, while addressing the gathering of ex-servicemen has been quoted as saying that “90 per cent activity of the NIS has already been shifted to Bangalore” — a statement which has not gone down well among the hundreds of employees of the institute and has been met with skepticism from almost all quarters. Many believe that it is the other way around as the NIS is the Sports Authority of India’s (SAI) main academic centre and is considered to be the most efficient and vibrant among all SAI centers across the country, including the SAI southern centre located at Bangalore. The NIS was set up in 1961 and land for this purpose was given by the Punjab Government to the Government of India with the active cooperation of Maharaja Yadvindra Singh, father of the present Chief Minister. The institute, perceived to be one of the finest sports institutes in Asia, was set up following the recommendations of a high-powered committee of the Central Government which had said the setting up of such an institute was necessary to “arrest the falling standards of sports in India.” The NIS has seen crores of rupees being absorbed by it for the setting up of top class sporting infrastructure, including a state of the art cycling velodrome, an eight lane synthetic track, where many domestic-level meets are held by the Athletic Federation of India (AFI), a hockey astro turf, a sophisticated gymnasium, a swimming pool constructed to international specifications, modern boxing, wrestling and badminton halls, a sports library, a sports museum and seven hostels, all of which have been equipped with modern amenities. Apart from this, the institute also houses several sports sciences laboratories boasting of sophisticated equipment purchased from abroad at exorbitant prices. For the past four decades, the NIS, which on many an occasion has also been touted as a tourist spot by none other than the present Chief Minister, has been running various professional courses in an endeavour to improve the standard of sports in the country. Prominent among the courses run at the Institute are the Diploma in sports coaching, Masters course in sports coaching, certificate course in sports coaching, refresher course, which held for SAI and other state sports department coaches. Besides this, the institute also runs a course for foreign coaches. Among the other things in which the institute specialises — due to the fact that it has state of the art infrastructure — are the holding of junior and senior level national camps ahead of the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, SAF Games, Olympic Games and various other international level sports meets, the implementation of Sports Promotion Development Area (SPDA) schemes floated from time to time by the Government of India and the organising of the National Rural Sports Festivals.The organising of the National Women’s Sports festival and the North East Sports Festivals also comes under its jurisdiction. Many sports administrators, speaking on the condition of anonymity, revealed that the Chief Minister has been misguided on the proposed shifting of the NIS to the SAI’s southern centre at Bangalore. A former top official of the NIS said, “If the CM goes ahead with setting up of the Defense university at the NIS, sports activities may well come to an end in a state which was once world famous for its vibrancy in the sports field.” |
|
Rama wins bronze in weightlifting
Ambala, December 7 |
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
Wellington, December 7
