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Ntini destroys Pak
South Africa’s Makhaya Ntini (centre) is congratulated by his team-mates after taking a Pakistani wicket during their Group B match at the PCA Stadium in Mohali on Friday. — Tribune photo by Pradeep Tewari
Mediocre England have nothing to lose
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Poor selection needs look-in
Injured Agarkar ruled out
Solid start by North Zone
Super league starts today
Jeev tied 19th
Transplant Games begin
Chowrasia in joint
lead
Mahesh-Ancic crash out
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Ntini destroys Pak
Mohali, October 27 Ntini’s spell and three wickets from Charl Langeveldt set up a 124-run victory after South Africa had made 213 for eight batting first. South Africa claimed their second victory in Group B to qualify along side New Zealand. Pakistan and Sri Lanka were eliminated. Earlier, Justine Kemp and Mark Boucher struck fine half-centuries to help South Africa recover from a top order slump and post a competitive 213 for eight. Boucher (69) and Kemp (64) stitched a partnership of 131 runs off 187 balls for the sixth wicket to put the innings back on track from a tottering 42 for five in 13 overs in the day-night clash, the winner of which would advance to the semifinals. Pakistan’s speedsters did a commendable job in giving their team early breakthroughs on a helpful track although they did lose the plot a bit in the middle overs to allow the South Africans to score a fighting total in the end. South Africa’s decision to bat first on the lively track at the PCA Stadium backfired badly when they lost two wickets in two balls right in the very first over. It was a fiery spell from speedster Umar Gul (3-36) which saw captain Graeme Smith and Herschelle Gibbs return to the pavilion without making a run. Smith tried to play a defensive shot on the backfoot but only ended up being trapped plumb in front while the off-colour Gibbs poked at an away going delivery to give Shoaib Malik a catch in the slips. Reduced to an extremely sorry reading 2-1, South Africa needed their batsmen to put their heads down to undo the early damage. But it was not to be as they lost another couple of wickets soon to stare deep down the barrel. Boeta Dippenaar and Jacques Kallis were both guilty of attempting to play the ball away from the off stump off Rao Iftikhar (2-26) and handing the catch to Akmal, the wicketkeeper having a busy day in the office. Dippenaar (13) failed to read a short rising delivery and edged to the keeper who dived full stretch to his right to take a brilliant catch. Kallis was lost to the same combination after he attempted to drive a perfect line and length ball but in vain. The all-rounder made 17 off 25 balls with two fours. South Africa lost another wicket, that of AB de Villiers, to be reduced to 42 for 5 in the 13th over. De Villiers (10, 2x4) was dismissed by rookie paceman Yasir Arafat, playing his first match of the tournament, caught by Akmal after playing at a ball wide off the stumps. With the fast bowlers getting lot of help from the wicket early on, the batsmen needed to see through the initial overs as the pitch eased down as the game progressed. This was evident in the way Boucher and Justine Kemp negotiated the bowlers in the middle overs and Younis Khan let Rao complete his quota of 10 overs by the 35th over. Boucher was the more enterprising of the two, the veteran wicketkeeper-batsman reaching his 20th ODI fifty off 73 balls and with the help of six fours. Kemp also did an admirable job of mending the tattered innings and in the process reached his 50 off 94 balls with the help of four fours and a six. Boucher then top edged Abdul Razzaq to point fielder Mohammad Hafeez who also succeeded in sending back Shaun Pollock cheaply for two just two overs later. Scoreboard
South Africa Smith lbw Gul 0 Dippenaar c Akmal b Anjum 13 Gibbs c Malik b Gul 0 Kallis c Akmal b Anjum 17 De Villiers c Akmal b Arafat 10 Boucher c Hafeez b Razzaq 69 Kemp c Malik b Gul 64 Pollock c Anjum b Hafeez 2 Nel not out 12 Ntini not out 0 Extras
(lb-15, w-11) 26 Total (8 wkts, 50 overs) 213 Fall of wickets:
1-0, 2-1, 3-27, 4-36, 5-42, 6-173, 7-182, 8-199. Bowling: Gul 8-0-36-3, Anjum 10-4-26-2, Arafat 5-0-33-1, Razzaq 10-0-33-1, Hafeez 8-1-23-1, Afridi 6-0-26- 0, Malik 3-0-21-0. Pakistan Hafeez c Smith b Ntini 1 Farhat c Pollock b Ntini 4 Younis c Langeveldt b Ntini 7 Yousuf b Pollock 5 Malik c Boucher b Ntini 0 Akmal lbw Ntini 1 Razzaq b Langeveldt 5 Afridi lbw Pollock 14 Arafat c Ntini b Langeveldt 27 Gul c Boucher b Langeveldt 7 Anjum not out 2 Extras
(lb-5, w-9, nb-2) 16 Total (all out, 25 overs) 89 Fall of wickets: 1-5, 2-9, 3-17, 4-21, 5-21, 6-27, 7-42, 8-47, 9-77. Bowling:
Pollock 7-0-20-2, Ntini 6-2-21-5, Nel 6-0-23-0, Langeveldt 6-2-20-3.
— PTI, Reuters
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Mediocre England have nothing to lose The overriding impression that I am getting from watching the ICC Champions Trophy from a distance is that the conditions are not allowing the teams any great luxuries, especially when it comes to batting. There have been one or two good scores but in general, scores have been lower than one might expect and that has come simply enough firstly from some unpredictable but mainly slow and low pitches and secondly from some tricky atmospheric conditions. The dew factor, though hard to quantify, has been much talked about. What it has also meant is that the players who have been prepared to work hardest to adapt to these conditions have been the ones to prosper and that some of the superstars have yet to find their feet. One might have expected these conditions to have evened things up rather more than has actually been the case, with only two matches so far being really close, but it has inadvertently helped keep these group matches interesting in as much as predicting who is going to win which game has been a harder task than normal. Predicting the result of England’s final match in this competition would appear to be an easier job than most only because of their abysmal current form, which compares most unfavourably to that of their opponents, the West Indies. These two teams contested a marvelously close final in the last Champions Trophy, which West Indies just managed to win in the gloom at the Oval. While England will not be around for the important parts of this year’s competition West Indies have made themselves into real contenders after disposing of India, maintaining their run of good form against the host nation and further boosting their confidence in the process. In that process three of their lesser-known players have taken centrestage, Runako Morton, Ian Bradshaw and Jerome Taylor. Compared to most of the sub-continental stars of this competition, who have played ridiculous numbers of one-day internationals, these three are all relatively inexperienced yet their contributions have been invaluable and so far consistent. Morton has made runs in both matches, 90* against Australia and 43 against India, Bradshaw has quietly and efficiently gone about his business picking up wickets and giving away little and Taylor showed his mettle in taking the hat-trick in that match against the Aussies which made sure that the tournament favourites stumbled to defeat. One would expect West Indies to carry on the good work again against England but the fact that England now have nothing to lose and will be in familiar territory in approaching this match with only a little pride at stake might just allow them to salvage something. West Indies’ only slip in the tournament so far has been when the pressure was off in the qualifying round so maybe they might just save their best for the next real contest ahead, their semi-final. Maybe not. For Australia and India it is all or nothing, which makes for a great contest. The Aussies have that pre-tournament favourites tag to justify, while the Indians once again find themselves under pressure as the hosts, wondering if they can avoid the ignominy of leaving their own party early. This is going to be a contest decided entirely by the psychology of the two teams. The worry for India is that things are just not going their way particularly. While, for instance, Tendulkar looks to be in good touch he has not made a big score yet. The batting as a whole seems to lack that awesome confidence that made India almost invincible until the West Indies tour earlier this summer when those doubts began to creep in, twenties and thirties replacing the rapid seventies and eighties that made for much bigger totals. Uncertainty is a corrosive element and it is severely hampering this team. The Aussies are not firing on all cylinders either but one feels that their confidence has not yet been dented and they have a history of coming good as these one-day tournaments progress. That I think gives them the psychological edge and that is the one factor that could prove decisive as we wait to see which of these two teams can make it through to the semifinals. — PMG
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Poor selection needs look-in
I cannot believe this is the same Indian side, which stirred my heart six months ago. The quality of players has not worsened dramatically: it is poor selection and batting positions that seriously need a look-in.
Even a maharaja in his pomp would turn a blind eye to playing four medium pacers in Indian conditions. But not this Indian team. Excessive use of medium pacers on Indian turfs — an obese, overflowing middle order whose girth seeks its own space and governance and the serial quarrel on Irfan Pathan at number three — Indians are only refining their finesse to shoot itself in the foot. We all know the western soil has a reddish soil. Look to it, in cricketing parlance means a ticket to party for spinners at the start and end of a cricket season. Yet we dispensed with Ramesh Powar and picked up four medium pacers. I can understand if you have pacers of 140k speed but that is not the case. Just picking up right and left-arm bowlers does not mean variety. There was too much of sameness. All you end up doing is under-bowl a few of them and turn to your Sehwags and Yuvrajs. Thirteen overs between them is an admission that the team woke up to the reality late in the game. Sometimes wisdom comes to us when it can no longer do any good. Or take the case of our packed middle order. Besides the ones who played, Dinesh Mongia and Mohammad Kaif were resting on the bench. Compare this with the options we have at the top of the order. God forbids but if some unfortunate injury was to happen to Virender Sehwag or Sachin Tendulkar, we don’t have an option to give the team a thrust in the
powerplays. Who are the alternatives we have thought of for such an eventuality? It can no longer be postponed. Indians must now get an absolute fair idea of 15 they are going to pick for the World Cup. In my squad, Gautam Ghambir would be a must. You can’t sideline players who can take a good helping for themselves in
powerplays. It is an area where India doesn’t seem to take heavy toll of bowlers. Even in Ahmedabad on Thursday, they needed to promote Yuvraj Singh to make the most of field restrictions. Or even Suresh Raina who needs to be given a stage to establish himself as a top-order left-hand bat rather than allow him to languish at number seven.
— PTI
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Injured Agarkar ruled out
Ahmedabad, October 27 The Indian team management has requested the tournament technical committee to allow Kerala medium pacer S. Sreesanth as a replacement for the injured Agarkar. “Agarkar got the injury yesterday (during the West Indies tie). Most probably he sustained it while fielding,” Indian team media manager Rajan Nair told PTI. Agarkar, who went to a local orthopaedic this morning along with physio John Gloster, underwent a scan, which showed the fracture. “He will not be able to take part in the tournament any further,” Nair said. Technical committee member Ratnakar Shetty said the ICC could give the go-ahead for replacement only after receiving a formal application from the BCCI. Meanwhile, Munaf Patel, who bruised his right wrist while fielding yesterday, was found completely fit today during a medical check-up.
— PTI
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Solid start by North Zone
Jamshedpur, October 27 At close, Rawat was batting on 59, studded with eight hits to the fence, and Joginder was unbeaten on 65 with the help of eight fours and one six. Electing to bat, Mithun Manhas-led North zone received an early blow as opener Akash Chopra was adjudged leg before off seamer Praveen Kumar in the very third over for one. The total was just two. Ravneet Ricky, who joined the opener Gambhir at the other end, followed Chopra after stitching 56 runs for the second wicket. Ricky, who started off on a confident note, misread a delivery off medium pacer Anand Rajan edging a simple catch to Brajesh Tomar at gully to be out for 20. Yashpal Singh, who stepped in following the dismissal of Ricky, and Gambhir faced the Central attack with ease, taking the total to 118 runs with no further loss of wicket at lunch. Sri Lanka A 325
Cuttack: A fine spell of bowling by Sidharth Trivedy, supported by Test discard Zaheer Khan, enabled West Zone to restrict Sri Lanka A to 325 on the first day of their four-day Duleep Trophy match against West Zone at the Barabati Stadium here today. Pace bowler Trivedy returned with figures of 5 for 79, while Zaheer, who is struggling to regain his berth in the Indian team, had a haul of 3 for 76. Earlier, Sri Lanka A won the toss and elected to bat. They started disastrously losing opener Michael Vandert for a duck. Mahella Udawatte (68) and Malinga Warnapura (40) put up a 69-run partnership before Warnapura fell to spinner Rajesh Pawar. Sri Lankan batsmen had a look-in but none of them were able to make a big score.
— PTI, UNI
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NATIONAL hockey ‘06 Prabhjot Singh Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 27
In the super league, hosts Punjab have Namdharis and Indian Airlines to fight in Pool A, while Indian Oil Corporation are placed in Pool B with Tamil Nadu and Railways. Air India, Mumbai and Delhi are in Pool C, while defending champions Punjab and Sind Bank are grouped with Services and Chandigarh in Pool D. Starting tomorrow, there will be three matches each day till October 31. The winners of each pool will qualify for the semifinals. The two semifinals are scheduled for November 2 and the final is on November 3. The organising secretary of the tournament, Mr Hardeep Dhillon, told The Tribune that draws were taken out in the presence of coaches and managers of all 12 qualifiers for the super league. Mr Dhillon, who was joined by the technical director of the tournament, Mr Kuku Walia, also had a long interactive session with all international umpires, team managers and coaches over the interpretation of various rules. They stressed the need for uniform application of all rules and wanted the umpires to conduct the final round of the championship strictly in accordance with the FIH norms followed at all international hockey meets. It is almost after 25 years that top-notch teams of Indian hockey, minus 20 players who are at the Asiad camp, will be seen in action at the Surjit Hockey Stadium. While some of the discards, including Dhanraj Pillay, Baljit Dhillon and Sabu Varkey, have shown patches of their brilliance, a couple of new faces, including a few players from Punjab and Chandigarh, have exhibited their talent during the elimination rounds. Players like Jugraj Singh, who are looking to wrest back their place in the national team, are also under watch. The national selectors are also expected to watch the final round to shortlist some more players for the national camp in addition to 15 national probables who have been granted special permission to represent their units in the ongoing championship.
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Jeev tied 19th
Sotogrande (Spain), October 27 Jeev, who earned his place in the elite field with his 44th ranking on the European Tour Order of Merit, sank in three birdies against three bogeys to be five shots behind leader and local hope Jose Manuel Lara in the European Tour’s season ending event. The 34-year-old Indian had a flawless front nine studded with birdies on the fourth and eighth but lost his way in his return journey. Jeev stumbled to bogeys on the 11th, 14th and 16th before signing off with a last hole birdie. Jeev, who was in the top 20 at the Mallorca Classic on Sunday, shared his tied 19th spot with, among others, Spaniard Sergio Garcia. Poor start by Atwal
Miami: Arjun Atwal’s bid to retain his PGA Tour card for next season did not get off to a very good start as he carded a poor five-over 76 to be tied 120th after the opening round of the season ending $5.3 million Chrysler Championship here. The disappointment continued for Orlando-based Atwal, who managed a lone bogey against four bogeys and a double bogey. Struggling to find his feet, Atwal could not have started on a worse note as he stumbled to a double bogey on the third before dropping another shot on the fourth. Atwal, who has played full time on the US PGA Tour since 2005, hit another bogey on the seventh to make the turn at four-over. Battling to keep his card with a top-125 finish on the Money List, on which the Indian star is presently 137th, Atwal recovered from the initial setbacks to gain a shot on the 11th but it all went downhill for him after this as he hit successive bogeys on the 16th and 17th to end his unimpressive day. In contrast, Indian-born Swede Daniel Chopra made a strong start and was tied for the third spot after a sizzling four-under 67 which saw him mixing five birdies with a lone bogey. The Swede is just three shots behind leader Brian Gay of the US. Atwal desperately needs a good finish on Sunday to avoid a dreaded trip to the qualifying school. The former Asian Tour regular has accumulated $550,535 this season.
— UNI
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Sharmila wins golf title
Chandigarh, October 27 Those who had gathered at the Chandigarh Golf Club to see the clash between the experienced Shruti and the upcoming Sharmila could not have asked for more. A class X student, Sharmila took the first nine with par scores plus a birdie on the fourth hole. Shruti on the other hand had a birdie but also two bogies to trail the Bangalore teenager by two strokes in the first nine. The two came level on the 10th hole with Shruti striking a birdie to Sharmila’s bogie. A bogie each saw them take the level score to the 11th hole. But that was as far as Shruti could get. Sharmila broke away with long drives. She fired birdies on the 13th, 16th and 17th holes with Shruti conceding bogies on the 14th and 15th holes. From a neck and neck fight, the contest swung the teenager’s way. She emerged the winner by five strokes. Sharmila’s performance was the best of the tournament. She finished with a one-under card of 71 for an overall aggregate of 300. Shruti who played a four-over card today had a score of 305. Nitika Jadeja, who had played a good game yesterday, saw her performance fade in the wake of the leaders’ strokeplay. She returned a card of 77 for a four-round score of 309. Throughout the tournament Sharmila has played the back nine under par. The open longer holes on the back nine were the best suited for her long drives. This girl is all set to go places. Once her short game and putting mature a lot can be expected from her. Mr I.G. Sharma, President of the Punjab Golf Association, gave away the prizes. Final scores: Championship Bowl: Sharmila Nicolette 74+82+73+71=300, Shruti Khanna 73+79+77+76=305, Nitika Jadeja 82+78+72+77=309, Vandana Aggarwal 320, Saaniya Sharma 322, Nalini Singh 327, Mani Chander 329, Pauline J.M. Singh 330. Silver Salver (Nett): Nitika Jadeja 285, Pauline J.M. Singh 290, Sharmila Nicolette 292. Challenge Bowl (handicap 13-24): Gross — Karishma Thiagaraja 342, Sonali Chibber 363, Khushboo Thiagaraja 364; Nett — Khushboo Thiagaraja 288, Karishma Thiagaraja 290, Binny Bath 296. Bronze Plate (25-36): Gross Amrita Sarna 407, Kanak Lata 424, Jaipreet S. Ghuman 435. Nett — Jaipreet S. Ghuman 291, Meher Dhillon 295, Amrita Sarna 295. Junior Shield (under-18): Sharmila Nicolette 300, Nalini Singh 327, Mani Chander 329; Nett——-Khushboo 288, Karishma 290, Jaipreet Ghuman 291.
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Transplant Games begin
Ludhiana, October 27 But for Pakistan, no other participant from SAARC countries reached here to take part in this two-day event. Forty-eight participants from India and four from Pakistan registered their names for the games. Results: (27-35 years) 100m — Seleman Akhtar of Karachi 1, N.N. Manikam of Mumbai 2, Karmaan Habib of Karachi 3; (Above 50) 50m — Rajidner Gandhi of Delhi 1, Balbir Kaur of Ropar 2; (under-50): 50m — Dr Hema Sahir of Ropar 1, Raj Bala Sharma of Delhi 2, Janak Sharma of Tarn Taran 3. Boys (u-10) 50 m — Raj Kamal of HP and Aayush Chawla of Delhi 1, Akshay of Delhi 2, Rahil of Gujarat 3; (under-30) 100 m — Chaman Lal of Ropar 1, Manoj Kumar of Jalandhar 2, Sandeep Kumar of Jalandhar 3; (35-45 years) 100m — Davis of Kerala 1, Davinder Singh of HP 2, N. Ravi of Tamil Nadu 3; (Above 50) 100 m — Dr Harinder Singh of Patiala 1, Kailash Chander of Amritsar 2, Rekha of Delhi 3; (45-50 years) 50m — Rakesh Kumar Anand of Uttar Pradesh 1, Hemant Gopal Sharma of Noida 2, Harish Kumar of Chhattisgarh 3.
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Chowrasia in joint
lead
Greater Noida, October 27 Chowrasia’s was the best round of the day and he dropped his only shot of the day on the par-four first hole where he missed a 30-footer for par after pulling his pitching-wedge approach shot into the left bunker. However, he responded with a string of birdies on the second, third, fourth, seventh and ninth holes to make the turn at four-under and a birdie trio on the back nine — on 11th, 12th and 15th — put him in a tie for the lead. “I am hitting the ball well and my game is good. There is no pressure on me now as I have kept my card for the Asian Tour. I am looking forward to playing with Jyoti Randhawa again on the weekend and learning something from him,” said Chowrasia, who was beaten in the Indian Open playoff by Randhawa. Ganapathy carded three-under 69, while amateur Chirag Kumar played almost flawless golf for a second round of six-under 66.
— UNI
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Mahesh-Ancic crash out
St Petersburg, October 27 The Indo-Croatian pair, who had stunned third seeds Jonas Bjorkman and Thomas Johansson in the first round, got off to a great start and hardly put a foot wrong as they clinched the opener. However, the Indo-Czech were in for a surprise in the second set as Stephens and Moodie made a strong comeback to equalise. The match went into the tie-breaker and Bhupathi and Ancic failed to raise their game under pressure to crash out.
— UNI
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Strike bowler Makhaya Ntini captured five for 21 to rout Pakistan for 89 powering South Africa into the Champions Trophy semifinals here today.
The overriding impression that I am getting from watching the ICC Champions Trophy from a distance is that the conditions are not allowing the teams any great luxuries, especially when it comes to
batting. There have been one or two good scores but in general, scores
have been lower than one might expect.
