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India fight back to hold Pakistan 3-3
Smith stars in SA win
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Pakistan bowled over by Dravid
England’s success inspires Chappell
Eves demand separate PHL
Henin beats Sharapova for Dubai title
Yemen team for AFC Cup qualifier
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India fight back to hold Pakistan 3-3
Rawalpindi, February 26 By holding the Pakistanis in this match, India managed to win the second leg 1-0 and thereby narrow down their series loss to 3-1. After bowing down to the superior skills and better team work of the Pakistani side in the first half, India rallied in the second, striking well in time to notch a draw. Sandeep Singh (54th), Shivinder Singh (61st) and Vikram Pillay (62nd) scored the goals for the visitors after they were nearly outplayed by Pakistan through Tariq Aziz (4th), Mohammed Saqlain (27th) and Shabbir Hussain (43rd) goals. Pakistan played with a purpose and displayed smart hockey to a take a 2-0 lead in the first half. Their planning and alertness paid immediate dividends as they took lead in the fourth minute through a Tariq Aziz blitzkrieg. From the left, Dilawar Hussein’s powerful hit from outside the circle rebounded off Harpal Singh’s stick while the latter was trying to stop it inside the striking circle. Alert as ever, a swift Tariq Aziz latched on to the opportunity to strike a cracking shot into the net, to leave the Indians stunned. The visitors were again found wanting in converting opportunities into goals. Both Sardara Singh and Didar Singh showed poor striking abilities as they were at a loss despite getting a good chance each inside the ‘D’, taking ages to put the ball in. On another occasion, an Ignace Tirkey move also could not find the right kind of finish it deserved. In contrast, Pakistan captain Muhammad Saqlain exhibited another classic example of opportunism when he dived forward to put the ball, which went off VS Vinay’s stick on the goal mouth while checking a Muddasar Ali Khan’s hit, past the Indian goalie. India got two penalty corners in the first half but Pakistani custodian Salman Akbar thwarted the attempts. In the second half, Pakistan continued with their attacking spree as Shabbir Hussain extended the lead in the 43rd minute through a field goal. However, the Indians kept their cool and got the first breakthrough in the 54th minute. Sandeep Singh dodged the rival keeper through a ground shot while the latter was expecting an aerial one. This pepped up the visitors who maintained their pace in attack resulting in the second goal by Shivinder Singh in the 61st minute. In the same flow, the equaliser came for India a minute later. Tejbir Singh provided a beauty of a pass to Vikram Pillay inside the ‘D’ and from the left the midfielder hit a spectacular goal from a very acute angle to bring broad smiles on the Indians’ faces. Pakistan brought in Nasir Ahmed as a replacement for Akbar. But that was only a desperate and defensive move just to prevent the Indians from walking away with a win. India, who lost all three matches in the first leg, won one and drew two in the second.
— PTI |
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Smith stars in SA win
Centurion, February 26 The home side reached 207 for four in 37.3 overs having been set a revised target of 204 in 41 overs because of rain. Australia had made 229 for eight in 47 overs after electing to bat first. Smith’s score was the highest by a South African in a one-dayer against Australia, surpassing the previous record of 112 held jointly by Gary Kirsten and Hansie Cronje. Opener Smith faced 124 balls and hit 12 fours and a six in an aggressive innings. Earlier, Michael Clarke and Michael Hussey shared a century partnership and Brett Lee hit out powerfully as an injury-hit Australian team reached a decent total. Australia, who were without captain Ricky Ponting, made 229 for eight in an innings reduced to 47 overs by rain. Clarke (53) and Hussey (56) rescued the side from a shaky start and Australia were 162 for six when rain stopped play after 40 overs. When play resumed more than an hour later, Lee hit an unbeaten 38 off 28 balls as Australia made 67 runs off the remaining seven overs. Ponting suffered an abdominal strain while batting in the nets yesterday and withdrew this morning, joining all-rounder Andrew Symonds (thigh) and Stuart Clark (rib) on the sidelines. Scoreboard Australia Gilchrist c Nel b Ntini 14 Katich b Ntini 2 Martyn lbw Pollock 1 Clarke c De Villiers b Pollock 53 Hussey c Dippenaar b Pollock 56 Watson b Hall 22 Hogg run out 13 Lee not out 38 Bracken run out 16 Johnson not out 0 Extras (b-1, lb-5, w-8) 14 Total (8 wkts, 47 overs) 229 Fall of wickets: 1-4, 2-5, 3-25, 4-125, 5-132, 6-157, 7-208, 8-227. Bowling: Pollock 10-1-23-3, Ntini 9-3-42-2, Nel 10-0-62-0, Hall 8-0-36-1, Peterson 7-0-36-0, Smith 3-0-24-0. South Africa Smith not out 119 Dippenaar b Bracken 10 Gibbs run out 0 De Villiers c Gilchrist b Hogg 43 Boucher run out 4 Kemp not out 24 Extras (lb-1, w-5, nb-1) 7 Total (4 wickets, 37.3 overs) 207 Fall of wickets: 1-24, 2-28, 3-111, 4-134. Bowling: Lee 10-0-59-0, Bracken 8-1-27-1, Johnson 3-0-28-0, Lewis 3-0-25-0, Hogg 8-1-30-1, Clarke 3.3-0-19-0, Watson 2-0-18-0. — Agencies
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Flintoff may lead team in Nagpur
London, February 26 With Trescothick, who deputised for the injured Vaughan in the warm-up match in Vadodara, flied home for “personal reasons” and Vaughan nursing a sore knee, Flintoff may go out for the toss with Rahul Dravid in Nagpur, a report in ‘The Sunday Observer’ said. In this scenario, Flintoff, who has had a wretched start to the tour with the bat, seems all set to take over the captain’s mantle. The only other contender would have been Andrew Strauss but he has also been afflicted by a dip in form, the report said. “And there are more complications on the horizon. Flintoff intends to return home for the birth of his second child, around the time of the third Test. Whether elevation to the England captaincy would affect that decision remains to be seen,” the report said. Another report in the same newspaper said if Vaughan’s knee was always going to be vulnerable, an early decision should be taken to withdraw him from one-day cricket and therefore the World Cup in 2007 to prolong his Test career.
— PTI |
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Pakistan bowled over by Dravid
New Delhi, February 26 “The attitude and sensitivity of Dravid was appreciated by everyone in Pakistan,” the PCB chief said. Without saying as much, the former diplomat, here for working out the modalities for the joint bid for World Cup 2011, spelled out his preference for the Indian skipper over his predecessor Sourav Ganguly. “Ganguly came to Pakistan as captain in 2004. He was a good leader. But Dravid is exceptionally good. He can be India’s ambassador,” he told PTI before flying back to Pakistan. Asked what he felt about Ganguly’s ouster from the Test squad, he said, “Cricket is such a mania in this part of the world that everything you do is criticised. There comes a time in every cricketer’s life when he has to decide whether he can play on or call it quits. You have to take the decision yourself.” On whether the board should talk to the player and work out a deal wherein the player can retire gracefully, he said there was no need for such a thing. “Messages are sent out, it is for the player to get the message.”
— PTI |
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England’s success inspires Chappell
London, February 26 Chappell, who admits the upcoming series against England would be a stern test for India, said he had been reading books by Fletcher and skipper Michael Vaughan and was inspired to rebuild the Indian side on similar lines. “I met Duncan for the first time this week, but I’ve followed him from a distance since I got involved in coaching. I’ve just read his book, and Vaughan’s, and many things they did rebuilding England we’re going through now,” the former Australian captain said. “There are things you have to do, and it takes time. The bolder you are, the quicker you get there, and that steeled me when I saw what needed to be done,” he said in an interview to The Sunday Times. “I thought that England’s Ashes performance was exceptional. Their bowling was spectacular and their spirit was great. They were well led on and off the field. England are one of the best two or three teams in the world now, so it’s a great opportunity for us to see where we are,” he said. Chappell said he was set on bringing in some fresh legs as the Indian team was ripe for regeneration. “We’ve still got some very experienced players, some of the best names in their history but to maximise their talent I perceived that we needed different personalities, different skills and youth,” he said, probably referring to the youth-oriented squad, sans Sourav Ganguly, that was picked for the first Test. Chappell said any sporting team ignored youth at its peril. “An important part of selection is knowing when to pick someone. And, by implication, when not to. The safe option is not always the best. Sometimes you’ve got to tell someone, ‘Mate, sorry, it’s time to move on’. “The players I’m looking at have got the talent. What you’re looking for are temperament, competitive instinct, tenacity. I’m interested in what makes champions.” Further changes can be expected, the report said. “The system here supported Indian cricket well enough through the amateur days, but it’s not ideal for the professional era,” Chappell said. “It’s cumbersome because you’ve got 30-odd states, a country of a billion people, and millions of kids playing cricket.” Praising the tenacity of Sachin Tendular, Chappell said, “I’ve been impressed with how the players handle it. Tendulkar has lived with it for 17 years. I’m amazed by the way he handles it.” At this stage results are less important to Chappell than working towards the right solutions. He feels lessons were learnt during the Test defeat in Pakistan, not least trusting youth in the one-dayers, which India won 4-1. “The spirit changed dramatically, and that encouraged the selectors to move down that path with the Test team,” he said.
— PTI |
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Eves demand separate PHL
Lucknow, February 26 “The PHL has not only added glamour to the stick sport in the country, but also infused more funds into the game facing a huge financial crunch. The time has now come to introduce a Women Premier Hockey League (WPHL) to popularise women hockey in the country,” said M.K. Kaushik, chief coach of national hockey team, training here for the defence of title at next month’s Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. Interacting with the UNI here today, Mr Kaushik, who was a member of the 1980 Moscow Olympic gold medallist men’s hockey team, said with a vibrant private sector thanks to liberalisation of the Indian Economy, funds were now available for starting and sustaining a WPHL in the country. “India could become the second country in the world to have hockey leagues for both men and women, featuring top players from the country and abroad on an innovative format including four quarters of over 17 minutes and roaring cheerleaders to further pep up the colourful spirits,” the 51-year-old diminutive coach added. Kaushik is the man accredited with bringing the women hockey in the country to a new high, by guiding the national eves to maiden title triumph at the Commonwealth Games 2002, Afro-Asian Games 2003 and Asia Cup 2004. Seconding the veteran coach’s views, Mamta Kharab, often considered the “Golden Girl” of Indian hockey following her golden goal that clinched Commonwealth crown four years back, said: “We would love to be a part of a WPHL that will not only have national players like us and formers in Pritam Siwach and Surajlata Devi, but also showcase the talent of foreigners like Kate Smith and Nicky Hudson from Australia.” The WPHL will not only help the players financially, but also provide private sector job and sponsorship prospects for girls, who currently were only employed by the Indian Railways, she added. Mamta was invited to play in Dutch league, but preoccupation with domestic hockey made her decide otherwise, Mr Kuashik said, adding that in the past similar invitation was given by Dutch clubs to Pritam Siwach. The team in unison further said if the PHL can have astute Spanish coach Maurits Hendricks as consultant, the same job can be done for WPHL by wily Aussie coach Ric Charlesworth, who has guided the Australian women to Olympic gold, after failing to grab similar glory for the men side as a player. Interestingly, Charlesworth has many times in the past expressed his desire to coach the Indian hockey team, but the IHF has played a deaf ear to the proposal.
— UNI |
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Shiva Keshavan boycotts Olympic closing ceremony
New Delhi, February 26 “I was fed up of the situation at the Olympic village and left before the closing ceremony,” Keshavan, who finished 25th in the luge event, told PTI from Florence. The star luge athlete of the country said the disgraceful behaviour of Indian officials accompanying the four-member team was blighting the future of the country’s sports. “Even people volunteering to assist our team have threatened to give in their resignations. For example, the Norwegian ski coach has not been paid his dues and not been reimbursed his airfare and was even asked to pay for the Olympic uniform provided to him,” he claimed. Without naming the Winter Games Federation of India, Keshavan also alleged that sports officials had stolen and diverted funds sanctioned for him. However, the 24-year-old athlete has already set his sights on the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and said he would not let officials put a dampener on his preparations for future luge events. “I hope to continue with the sport and get better results,” he said. Keshavan, the country’s best bet for an elusive Winter Olympic medal, improved on his 28th placing in Nagano (1998) and 33rd place finish at Salt Lake City (2002). Keshavan might have been ranked even higher had it not been for a disastrous mistake committed during the first of his four runs. “I was placed 30th after my first run due to a mistake I made negotiating a curve. The level of competition was very high and it was very difficult for me to cover up later,” he said. Among the other three Indian athletes, Delhi girl Neha Ahuja impressed many with a creditable 42nd place finish among 65 competitors in the Alpine Skiing Ladies’ Giant Slalom event. The 24-year-old athlete might have made her Olympic debut in 2002 but a knee injury had put paid to her hopes of participating in the Salt Lake City Olympics. Ahuja made a mark at her debut Olympic event, the Ladies Slalom, finishing 51st among 64 contenders. But there was no good news in store for athletes Hira Lal and Bahadur Gupta. While skier Lal crashed out in the first run of the Men’s Giant Slalom event, Gupta failed to qualify for the finals of the Cross-Country Skiing Men’s Sprint competition after finishing 78th among 80 skiers in the preliminary round.
— PTI |
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Henin beats Sharapova for Dubai title
Dubai, February 26 “It’s an amazing feeling,” Henin-Hardenne told reporters. “It’s great, because I didn’t know really what to expect before coming here after my health problems in Australia.” She also remains unbeaten in her 12 matches in Dubai after a high quality match in which both players mixed up their game well and produced some very competitive rallies. Third seed Sharapova, who was denied her 11th career title in her first final since she won on grass in Birmingham in June, was particularly adventurous in trying her luck at the net with varying degrees of success. However, the Russian’s limitations were exposed in the latter stages when she lacked patience in the rallies and failed to build a winning position.
— Reuters |
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Yemen team for AFC Cup qualifier
New Delhi, February 26 According to a communication received by the Delhi Soccer Association through the All-India Football Federation here today, the Yemen team includes many internationals. DSA secretary N K Bhatia said the Indian team, led by Baichung Bhutia, was already in the Capital and had been practising at the Ambedkar Stadium and at the Air Force Ground. India will shortlist their playing squad in the next two days, though coach Syed Nayeemuddin was worried about the fitness problems of key players K Ajayan and Mahesh Gawli. The team (Yemen): Muaad M Abdulkhaleq Abdulwali, Salem Abdullah Awadh, Mohammed Saleh Yousef Salem, Khaled Abdo Mohammed Afara, Yaser Ahmed Hasan Al-Baadani, Salem Saeed Abdullah, Fathi Hasan Jabar Ahmed, Mohammed Yahya Saslem Al-Tahoos, Radwan Abduljabar Ahmed Yahya, Ali Mohammed Mohammed Alnono, Ahmed Salem Ahmed Al-Wadi, Ali Aboud Awadh Al-Omqi, Akram Hamood Abdo Al-Woraff, Mohanad Hasan Rajeh Munassar, Fadhl Abdullah Mohammed Al-Aroomi, EsamMohammed Ahmed Awan, Abdo Ali Hasan Al-Edresi, Nashwan Abdulazez Ali Eissa, Nashwan Abdulazez Ali Al-Haggam, Fekri Mohammed Yahya Al-Hubaishi, Mohammed Ebrahim Ali Ayash, Ahmed Salem Ali Amoas, Wesam Abdurabu Ali Ateik, Abdulqader Ahmed Saleh Al-Roatde and Mohammed Abdo Qasem Alwah. |
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