I want to stay in top 50: Sania

New Delhi, April 26
After her meteoric rise last year, expectations maybe skyrocketing back home but Sania Mirza knows maintaining the position at the top is tougher than reaching it and she will be happy if she manages to hang on to the top 50 this year.

Addressing a press conference here today, Sania said for a pro, the second season is always the toughest time and defending points is not a stroll in the park.

“Hanging in the top 50 in the second season is a tough job and that will be my main target this year. The second year is always tougher than the first and I’ll be trying to hang in there in the top 50,” she said.

“It’s a tough life out there. If you are in the top 30, you play those top players day in and day out and it’s quite tough.

The competition level is so high that you don’t see a player in so many semifinals. It’s very competitive at that level.” “And there is hardly any difference in WTA Tier I and II tournaments because you see five of six of the top 10 players competing in both.” Sania, who ignored doctor’s advice and played the Fed Cup in Korea, said she would stay away from the court for another two-three weeks.

Asked if she would play in any tournament before the French Open, the World No. 40 said, “I’m not very sure. I’m taking 2-3 weeks off from tennis and would be back only after I’m fit.” “I was keen to play Fed Cup this time because I missed it last year. It was great to reach the (Asian/Oceania Zone Group I) final even though we lost to Australia. Shikha (Uberoi) played great tennis there and we hope to do better in future.” Sania also said she was looking forward to represent India in Doha Asian Games.

“It’s a great feeling to represent the country and I’m looking forward to Asian Games. We will have strong men and women teams there and we are expecting a lot of medals there,” said the teenager who won a bronze medal in the 2002 edition of the Games.

On roping in Asif Ismail in place of John Farrington as her traveling coach, Sania said, “John is a great coach but he was not hitting partner as such. At this level, I felt I needed someone I can hit with and I have a good rapport with Asif, with whom I was hitting in Hong Kong.” Sania also felt her stint with legendary coach Tony Roche, who also coaches Roger Federer, did her a world of good.

“It was great to work under Roche and he worked on my serve. He did not have a look at me since the Bangalore Open but I think my serve looks a little different now and is much smoother,” she said.

Sania also refused to subscribe to the view that playing doubles was affecting her game in singles and added lack of permanent doubles partner did not bother her.

“I don’t think I have played with someone for two tournaments in a row but then I never had stable doubles partners. I think I have got used to it and adopt quickly to the style of my team mate,” she added. — UNI

Aussies win series

Fatullah, April 26
Andrew Symonds smashed an unbeaten 103 today to take Australia to a 67-run victory over Bangladesh and a winning 2-0 lead in the three-match one-day series. Chasing a victory target of 251 runs, Bangladesh were dismissed for 183 from 48 overs with captain Habibul Bashar top-scoring with 70. The home team were always struggling after openers Shahriar Nafees and Rajin Saleh were both dismissed without scoring.

All rounder Symonds completed his fifth one-day century, adding 140 for the fourth wicket with Michael Clarke (54).

Scoreboard

Australia

Gilchrist lbw Mortaza 32

Katich c Nafees b Mortaza 26

Ponting b Mortaza 5

Clarke c Kapali b Rafique 54

Symonds not out 103

Hussey b Razzak 18

Extras (b-1, lb-2, w-7, nb-2) 12

Total (5 wkts, 50 overs) 250

Fall of wickets: 1-55, 2-64, 3-65, 4-205, 5-250.

Bowling: Mortaza 9.1-0-54-3, Hossain 10-0-50-0, Razzak 7.5-0-34-1, Rafique 10-0-39-1, Kapali 4-0-23-0, Imran 4-0-16-0, Saleh 5-0-31-0.

Bangladesh

Nafees lbw Lee 0

Saleh c Gilchrist b Bracken 0

Omar c Lee b Hussey 34

Imran b Bracken 2

Bashar c Hussey b Clarke 70

Mashud b Clarke 36

Kapali c Hussey b Hogg 10

Rafique c&b Lee 0

Mortaza c Clarke b Hogg 15

Razzak b Hogg 3

Hossain not out 1

Extras (b-1, lb-4, nb-2, w-5) 12

Total (all out, 48 overs) 183

Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-4, 3-8, 4-70, 5-146, 6-157, 7-159, 8-168, 9-182.

Bowling: Lee 8-2-29-2, Bracken 6-1-16-2, Johnson 6-0-24-0, Hussey 5-0-22-1, Cullen 10-0-37-0, Hogg 9-0-34-3, Clarke 4-0-16-2. — Reuters 

Pak ‘A’ beat Holland

Abu Dhabi, April 26
Bazid Khan hit a stroke-filled half century as Pakistan ‘A’ sailed to a convincing 123-run win over Holland in the BSNL EurAsia Cup cricket tournament at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium here.

The middle order batsman hit an unbeaten 77 off 50 balls, studded with 11 boundaries, to guide Pakistan ‘A to a mammoth 306 for four in the stipulated 50 overs yesterday. Later, they restricted Holland to 183 for 8 to script an easy victory. — PTI

World Cup down memory lane
M. S. Unnikrishnan

New Delhi, April 26
The advent of television has helped capture the most memorable moments of World Cup matches in all its myriad glory for posterity, though there was a time when classic matches were played, but only freeze frames in black and white survive to recollect those golden era classics.

Pele storming the 1958 World Cup was one such edition in which the magic of the Brazilian wizard could not be retained in all its pristine form, as they had done with Maradona’s magic and Paolo Rossi’s hat-trick in later editions. The effect of such World Cup clashes can be understood only in retrospect as the greatest football show on earth has impacted the economy of countries and their presence on the global map.

Discovery Channel, in collaboration with FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football), has captured previously unseen footage from World Cup matches dating back over 40 overs and the evolution of the World Cup, in a six-part programme named “More Than a Game”.

The one-hour programme each day will feature memorable matches of the giants of the game like Brazil, Argentina, England, Germany, Italy and France. Besides exclusive footage from FIFA’s film archive, the episodes contain recollections from greatest players like Beckham, Beckenbauer, Zidane, Platini and Zoff. It is the definitive account of the World Cup — its glorious goals, legendary players, fanatical fans and enduring appeal. The viewers can get a fresh perspective on even the most familiar football legends as well as understanding that winning or losing a game can change the fortune of a nation. The premiere of the programme is designed as a curtain-raiser to the World Cup, kicking off in Germany in June.

‘More Than a Game’ chronicles the emergence of football’s greatest teams and players interwoven with the story of how the World Cup evolved as a tournament and shaped the nature of football world-wide.

Ambassador of Brazil Jose Vicente Pimentel, at a preview of the programme here today, said the six-part series will give soccer fans in India an insight into the history of the World Cup. “Each of the six nations covered in the programme represent football in its truest form, how single-handedly football can bind an entire nation,” he added.

Pimentel said Brazil, five-time World Cup champions who would be defending their title in Germany, have been dominating the soccer world for the past 50 years after the game was introduced in the country in 1894. “After we won the Cup in 1958, football became a strong symbol of Brazilian identity,” noted the diplomat.

JCT clash with Mohammedan Sporting today 
Amardeep Bhattal
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 26
Mohammedan Sporting, Kolkata, appear to be running out of luck as the 10th National Football League inches towards its climax. Tomorrow, a fully charged JCT, keen to avenge the fifth-round humiliation, may add to their agony at Ludhiana’s Guru Nanak Stadium.

Promoted from the second division last season along with Air-India, Mohammedan Sporting did make an impact in the initial stages by notching up wins against Mohun Bagan and Salgaocar but subsequent setbacks have put their campaign off-track.

What further compounded their misery was the sudden exit of coach Mohammed Habib after the 0-3 defeat at the hands of Goa’s Sporting Clube de Goa on April 8. Habib left for Hyderabad citing health reasons and the club management was quick in requisitioning the services of former East Bengal coach Subhas Bhowmick.

Under Bhowmick, the Mohammedans have played one match so far which ended in a 1-3 defeat at the hands of Dempo.

Mohammedan Sporting, runners-up of the All-Airlines Gold Cup and semifinalists of the Kalinga Cup, kicked off their campaign on a lacklustre note at Kolkata where they lost by a solitary goal to East Bengal on January 10.

However, two consecutive victories rejuvenated the side subsequently. They first defeated Mohun Bagan and then Salgaocar by identical 1-0 margins. Their third victory came against JCT at Kolkata on January 28 where they won 2-1, with goals through Bijen Singh and Mohammed Mukhtar.

But three defeats on the trot again left the Mohammedans frustrated. After losing to Dempo 0-2 at Kolkata on February 3, they lost to Air-India and Mahindra United 0-1 and 0-2, respectively. It was again at Kolkata on March 24 that Mohammedan Sporting regained their winning touch when they beat Air-India 1-0.

However, this month Mohammedan Sporting tasted defeat in three matches consecutively. After losing to East Bengal 0-2 at Kolkata on April 2, Mohammedan Sporting went down to Sporting Clube de Goa and Dempo 0-3 and 1-3, respectively.

The club management hired a couple of foreigners this season, including defender David Mkandwire from Zimbabwe, and striker Patrick Okonji Onyelo Mboma, who incidentally is the skipper. In fact it was Patrick Okonji who single-handedly demolished East Bengal in the IFA Shield. In the NFL, he has notched up match winners against Mohun Bagan and Air-India. The third foreigner assisting the Kolkata outfit this season is striker Gley Yao Rodrigue from Togo, who initially signed for Mohun Bagan but fell out with new coach Jahar Das and subsequently joined Mohammedan Sporting. Although Rodrigue played a key role in Mohun Bagan’s title win in the CFL Premier Division, he has not been as impressive in the current league.

With Gopal Das under the bar, Mohammedan Sporting’s defence will be manned by Mir Farooq Hyder, formerly of Churchill Brothers, David Mkandwire of Zimbabwe, and Madhusudan Majumdar. Madhab Das, another dependable defender, will be missing action tomorrow as he has earned two yellow cards.

The attack will be spearheaded by Patrick Okonji and Gley Yao Rodrigue with valuable support from Nitin Pradhan, formerly of East Bengal, Bijen Singh, Jiten Rai, and Mohammed Mukhtar. Incidentally, when JCT lost to Mohammedan Sporting at Kolkata, Bijen Singh and Mohammed Mukhtar scored the goals while Parveen Kumar had reduced the margin for the mill men. The other notable faces assisting the Kolkata outfit include Palash Karmakar, formerly of Mohun Bagan, Satyajit Bose, Suman Duta, Bijoy Basfore, and Kabijit Khotel.

JCT Mills, under coach Parminder Singh, will be going all out for victory. “It is high time we start logging full points and our primary objective tomorrow will be victory. We cannot afford any more draws or defeats,” said Parminder while talking to The Tribune today. Incidentally, JCT are currently placed seventh with 14 points from three victories and five draws. Although Mohammedan Sporting have also logged 14 points, their inferior goal average has pushed them to the eighth position.

As usual, JCT will be relying on star Brazilian striker Marcos Pereira upfront who is likely to be assisted by Johnson, Sunil Chhetri, Rennedy Singh and striker Parveen Kumar. Nigerian stopper back Julius Akpele will be assisted by Narinder Singh and Daljit Singh in the defence with Kalyan Chaubey doing duty under the bar. Baldeep and Jaswinder are also expected to chip in to bolster the midfield.

Mohammedan Sporting, who arrived in Ludhiana last night without coach Subhas Bhowmick, had some practice at the venue today. According to team manager Jahangir Alam, Bhowmick is expected to reach the city tomorrow.

The kick-off is at 4.30 pm.

FIH adopts tough anti-doping policy

New Delhi, April 26
Joining the war against doping, the international hockey federation (FIH) has laid down a detailed anti-doping policy and prescribed bans upto lifetime for drug abuse. As per the new policy formulated by the FIH, a first positive test for prohibited substances will invite a two-year ban while a second time offence will result in a life-time ban.

India, as a member country of FIH, would also have to comply with this policy.

The policy provides respite to players when they test positive for specified substances that are particularly susceptible to unintentional anti-doping rules violations because of their general availability in medicinal products or which are less likely to be successfully abused as doping agents.

Where an athlete can establish that the use of such a specified substance was not intended to enhance sport performance, the penalty, as per the new policy, will be a warning or reprimand or a maximum of one year ban for first-time offenders.

But it will turn into a two-year ban for the second time violators and life-time ineligibility for third violation.

There are also different sets of punishments for refusing or failing to submit to sample collection, tampering with doping control, certain potential multiple violations, trafficking and administration of prohibited substance or prohibited method, whereabouts violations or missed tests, anti-doping rule violation by a minor and athlete support personnel.

The suspended athlete or support staff must also during the period of suspension make him or herself available for out-of-competition testing.

The policy says that all national associations shall comply with these anti-doping rules and these should also be incorporated by reference into each national body’s rules.

The national associations shall provide access to independent observers at events as directed by the FIH.

Also, the host country will be responsible for the organisation and cost of doping controls. — PTI

Balbir Sr is best Sikh hockey player

New Delhi, April 26
Legendary Balbir Singh Sr, a triple Olympic gold medallist, pipped great players like Udham Singh, Harbinder Singh, Prithipal Singh and Ajit Pal Singh to emerge as the best Sikh hockey player of all time here today.

A 10-member jury, headed by former Chief Justice of India J. S. Verma, today named the top 10 Sikh players, led by Balbir Singh Sr and followed by Udham Singh, Harbinder Singh, Prithipal Singh, Ajit Pal Singh, Dharam Singh Sr, Balbir Singh (Railways), Surjit Singh, Pargat Singh and Col Balbir Singh (Services).

Visibly elated after topping the table, Balbir Singh Sr, thanked his parents, team-mates and coaches and said he cherished memories from his good old days.

“I have so many stories to tell that I’m working on a second autobiography. It’s great honour to get this award,” said the Padmashree awardee who was adjudged Player of the Century in a 1982 poll.

Late Udham Singh’s award was accepted by her sister Mandeep Kaur, who recalled how the boys of Sansarpur used to follow her illustrious brother.

Harbinder Singh recalled how he honed his skills in Sansarpur, the cradle of Indian hockey, where his father was posted.

“My father played with the legendary Dhyan Chand and all of my brothers followed in his footprints. Even my sons kept alive the tradition and they play for the Railways,” he said.

Ajit Pal Singh, who led India to its only World Cup triumph in 1975, was asked why he did not push his son to take up hockey and instead he opted for tennis, much like Vace Paes and son Leander.

“In those days, it was hockey alone and there was no television in the village but things change soon. My son opted for tennis and I welcomed his decision,” he said.

Dharamjit Singh’s award was collected by his son who reminisced the lessons he learnt from his father.

Late Surjit Singh’s wife was also present on the occasion and she thanked the Government of India and the Punjab Government.

Pargat Singh was his modest self and when asked to recall his spectacular solo goal cutting through the German defence during a Champions Trophy match, Pargat said, “I think it was by sheer chance. I was moving up with the ball and did not find a forward to pass it. Surprisingly none of the German defenders tackled me and I had the goalkeeper at my mercy and I beat him to score the goal. That was it.”

Col Balbir Singh, an Arjuna awardee right-half, was also asked why he did not encourage his son to take up the sport.

“I was fortunate to grow in Sansarpur where it was rather uncommon not to play hockey. But he was not. He was in Dehra Dun and now he is a paratrooper. But I’m glad that he took up mountaineering and scaled the Mt Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa. He is scaling great heights in other sports at least,” he added. — UNI

Gritty display by 7-year-old 
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 26
Injury failed to dampen the plucky kid’s spirit. Despite a fractured arm, she went on to compete in the equestrian events at the Chandigarh Horse Show, bagging a silver in the process.

One of the youngest riders in the show, Aafreen Chaudhary (7), stood second in the children’s hacks today. She had injured her arm after a fall from her horse a couple of days ago, which had to be plaster cast.

“I really very keen to participate in the events,” she said. “At times it was a little uncomfortable and at times a bit painful, but I managed to do everything and every thing went well,” she said.

The event in which she competed was for judging the discipline and turnout of the rider and the horse, the riders control and co-ordination with the horse and response to commands from an umpire.

Daughter of an Army officer, Aafreen is the only child participant to be part of an Army team at the show, accompanying the 20-member Headquarters Northern Command riding team.

She began riding when she was four and spends about an hour each day in the saddle at the Dhruv Equestrian Node in Udhampur, where her father, Lt Col Siddharth Chaudhary, is posted. Her mother, also a rider, was the spirit behind her foray into riding and her 3-year-old sister, Fiza, has also joined her. “For me, horses are not just animals to ride upon. They are by best friends,” she quipped.

Aafreen is how headed for a three month training stint at the Keith Kenneth Riders Academy in Sydney in June. “It is a big boost for her and help her grasp the finer aspects of riding,” Colonel Chaudhary said. “Though he will be dipping into his own resources for the training, Northern Command is also doing its bit to groom the young riders under the Army’s Mission Olympics project.

Thumping win for Abhijeet

Dubai, April 26
International Master Abhijeet Gupta scored a thumping victory over Woman Grandmaster Aarthie Ramaswamy and moved to 2.5 points after the conclusion of the third round of 8th Dubai International Open Chess championship now underway here at Dubai Chess and Cultural Club.

On a day when none of the leading Indians managed to defend their respective positions, double Grandmaster norm Parimarjan Negi scored over Lara Stock of Croatia to take his tally to two points out of a possible three in this $40000 prize money tournament being played under FIDE’s Swiss rules.

With six rounds still to come in one of the strongest open event of Asia, as many as 10 Grandmasters emerged as joint leaders with a perfect score. Top-seeded Izoria Zviad showed no mercy over compatriot Zurab Sturua and coasted to his third victory in as many days to remain in joint lead.

Amongst the Indians at the top, only M. R. Lalith Babu could give stiff resistance against frequent Indian visitor GM Pavel Kotsur of Kazakhstan but in the end the immense experience of the latter helped him take the full point.

Grandmaster R. B. Ramesh and International Master S. Satyapragyan tried to find some attack against GM Darmen Sadvakasov of Kazakhstan and GM Sergey Fedorchuk of Ukraine respectively but did not succeed in the end while S. P. Sethuraman blew his chances away against Armenian GM Tigran Petrosian.

However, on the lower boards it turned out to be a better day for huge Indian contingent here as D. Sai Srinivas, Prathamesh Mokal and World under-10 champion Sahaj Grover romped home with fine victories. For Grover, this was the first victory in the event that helped him open his account after two losses.

Abhijeet Gupta was a class act against Aarthie Ramaswamy in a Nimzo Indian defense game. Playing white, Abhijeet faced a mild opening surprise but was soon to place his feet firmly on the ground. — PTI

Eves suffer third defeat on trot

Bremen (Germany), April 26
Indian women’s team went down to their third successive defeat in the championship division, losing 0-3 to Siberia in the World Table Tennis Championship here today.

India are now languishing with three points from three defeats and are almost out of reckoning for the quarterfinal stage as they run into defending champions China and Belarus in their last two matches.

Men taste defeat

Indian men failed to recreate their Melbourne magic against Singapore as they went down 2-3 in the first division league match of the World Table Tennis Championships here today. India had upset Singapore in the recent Melbourne Commonwealth Games to win their maiden gold in the men’s team event. — PTI

RVC riders shine
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 26
The Army’s Remount and Veterinary Corps (RVC) continued its haul of gold and silver, with its riders bagging top positions in Category-B of the Asian Show Jumping Challenge here today.

The top score was notched by Lieut-Col Deep Ahlawat riding Mirza, followed by Swr Jasbir Singh astride Veeru. Both are from the RVC Training School and Depot, Saharanpur. Capt Ravi Rathoer from 61 Cavalry came third.

The results of other events, in the order of merit, are: Children Hacks Gp-I – Prithvi (HQNC), Joginer Singh (MNSS Rai), Anupriya (SRPC); Children Hacks Gp-II & III – Zorawar Singh (ARPC), Aafreen Chaudhary (HQNC), Shaurya (SRPC); Trotting race Gp-I – Aneet Singh, Chanpreet Singh, Rochana Sharma (all PPS Nabha); Trotting race Gp- II – Lovedeep Singh (AIPS), Saahil (SRPC), Sarthak (SRPC); Trotting race Gp-III – Nayantra (CHRS), Gobind (SRPC), Samim (CHRS); Seccessive Relay – Capt R. Rathore and Capt R. Dagar (61 Cav); Ld Lakhwinder Singh and Nb Ris Sajjan Kumar (PBG); Lt Amit Sinsinwar and Sep Kuldeep Singh (HQNC).

Lecture on ills of Indian sports
Tribune News Service

Patiala, April 26
Dr Gurdeep Singh, Member Secretary, Inter-University Board of India, Association of Indian Universities, New Delhi, delivered a lecture on “Relevance and role of scientific research in promoting university talents for winning gold medals in Olympics” at Government Mohindra College here today.

He enumerated the reasons for the poor performance of Indian sportspersons at the international level. He said proper training of sportspersons on scientific lines and involvement of sports psychologists would go a long way in remedying the ills afflicting the Indian sports scenario.

He said liberal funding of sports events, fair selections of athletes and coaches and lucrative pension benefits for athletes were the other areas that needed to be looked into urgently.

Earlier, Dr D.I.S. Brar, college Principal, welcomed the guest speaker. The lecture was followed by a discussion in which students and the members of the teaching faculty took active part.