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Pakistan need win to stay afloat Shoaib Malik fit to play |
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Akhtar’s fate to be decided on Friday
Mirth, merriment in Madrid
(L) Players of the Spanish national soccer team lift coach Luis Aragones in the air during a homecoming event in Madrid on Monday. Players hold up the Euro 2008 trophy as they celebrate their victory on a stage at Madrid's Colon square on Monday. — Agencies
photos Anju jumps to gold
Teen GM Negi wins Philadelphia title
Jr Asia Cup: Gurbaz to lead
Hewitt facing double heartbreak
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Pakistan need win to stay afloat
Karachi, July 1 Mahendra Singh Dhoni was visibly miffed when he complained about the tight schedule of the tournament that required his team to play three matches over four days. "It is too tight. I am not happy with the schedule. Two teams have to play back-to-back matches while two others got a day off," fumed Dhoni after his team had tamed Bangladesh in their previous match. Much to his relief, a three-day break allowed the side to get over the fatigue and the players should be raring to go when they have the traditional rivals at sight. The cloud of doubt over Irfan Pathan's fitness, however, hovers and though the left-arm seamer slugged in yesterday's optional practice session, it's not known if the Indian think-tank would risk playing him tomorrow. Though predicting the outcome of an India-Pakistan match can be inviting embarrassment, Dhoni's team seems to have a certain edge, having beaten the hosts in the group stage. The Indian batting line-up, especially the top order, has been firing on all cylinders and though the tight schedule made it quite taxing for them, runs have not stopped flowing from their blades. "It was tough out there for us. But I am happy we have kept going. Suresh Raina, Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag have batted really well in the tournament and I hope they keep on doing the same," Dhoni said. Raina has hit a purple patch with two centuries against his name and his impressive strike rate suggests he is yet to get over the Twenty20 mode. Sehwag has been among the runs too, as is Gautam Gambhir and the Delhi duo would walk out tomorrow to once again lay the perfect foundation for a mammoth total so that they can bury the opponents under the run mountain. In fact, the top order has made it look so easy that neither Yuvraj Singh nor Dhoni got much of a chance to strut their stuff. The lone worry surrounds the form of Rohit Sharma, whose run drought is all the more baffling considering his sublime shot in the Indian Premier League. But even though Rohit continues to struggle to the ODI format, his batting colleagues are doing enough to ensure that the team does not suffer from his slump. The lack of firepower and sting in the bowling attack, however, would remain a worry for Dhoni. In their previous meeting too, Pakistan managed to post 299 for four against a lacklustre Indian attack. Ishant Sharma does not look like the bowler he was in Australia, while RP Singh and Praveen Kumar have not been much of a trouble for the rival batsmen. Piyush Chawla too was taken to the cleaners by Shoaib Malik and Younis Khan and Dhoni would be desperately banking on his batsmen tomorrow to book a place in the final. Meanwhile, Malik's team would have to rise above internal conflicts and put up a vastly improved show to stop the in-form Indians, even though it would not be an easy task. The team already looks a house divided with coach Geoff Lawson and the senior players at the loggerhead, while the Australian is also under tremendous media pressure after his bust-up with the press. Malik himself is sulking with team combination and the Pakistan captain made it clear that he was only leading a bunch picked by the selectors. The bickering notwithstanding, Pakistan tend to produce their best when pushed to the corner and they would derive inspiration from the Kitply Cup final when they meet Dhoni's
men. — PTI |
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Shoaib Malik fit to play
Pakistan will make two changes for the crucial Asia Cup match against India tomorrow, replacing Wahab Riaz and Mansoor Amjad with Abdul Rauf and off spinner Saeed Ajmal. Chief selector Salahuddin Ahmed met with captain Shoaib Malik and coach Geoff Lawson after the nets and announced that the changes had been necessitated for their do-or-die match. "The good thing is that Malik has also declared himself fit for the match despite suffering from some dehydration and fatigue," he said. It will be the first outing for 30-year-old Ajmal who bowls off-spinners and had a successful domestic season. Rauf, a tall and well built pacer has played just one international against Zimbabwe earlier this year. Pakistan manager Talat Ali said Malik was recovering well after taking a rest. "His blood tests have come out fine and there is no major problem with him. But he was dehydrated and needed rest. He is himself very keen to play the match because it is important for our survival," Ali said. Malik said he would do everything to play against India although he was still feeling weak. "This match is crucial for us and we will do our best to win it." Malik also called on the people and media to support the team and encourage it. "Support is very important to push us to giving our best. We will do our best but India is a good side so we have to do something special," he said.
— PTI |
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Akhtar’s fate to be decided on Friday
Karachi, July 1 The beleaguered bowler was originally banned for five years by the Pakistan Cricket Board's disciplinary committee. The ban was later reduced to 18 months by an appellate tribunal, which also fined him Rs 7 million. Describing the reduced ban as "illegal and unjustified", Akhtar appealed against it in the Lahore High Court yesterday. "The lawyers for Shoaib wanted the court to issue a stay order today on the ban but the court adjourned the proceedings till July 4 and will at its next hearing decide whether to stay the ban," PCB lawyer Tafazzul Rizvi said today. "Shoaib has challenged the ban in a writ petition which was accepted for hearing but since we didn't have a copy of the writ. Therefore, we requested them to provide us the copy. "The documents were issued to us today and we will argue the case after going through it. The court has issued notices to us today," he added. — PTI
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Mirth, merriment in Madrid
Madrid, July 1 The 69-year-old coach Luis Aragones and goalkeeper Iker Casillas were the first off the plane, marked "Campeones" (Champions), after it touched down at Madrid's airport on a flight from Innsbruck, Austria, at around 7.40 pm. The two lifted aloft the cup, won in Vienna on Sunday with a 1-0 defeat of Germany in the Euro 2008 final, to the cheers of supporters gathered at the airport. "I am a bit emotional today," Aragones said in a brief comments to reporters. The players, wearing the team's red shirts, boarded the red open-top bus, which travelled into Madrid watched by tens of thousands of fans, still recovering from a night of wild revelry. The players, who celebrated their victory in a Vienna nightclub on Sunday, will also be received by Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero at his Moncloa Palace office. Spaniards celebrated until dawn yesterday in a nationwide fiesta. The police said they made 52 arrests for acts of vandalism or public disorder in the capital, where a man was found dead in a pool of blood after apparently falling over drunk and hitting his head. Emergency services said a man was also taken to hospital with a fractured skull, among some 90 people treated by medics, mostly for fainting and minor injuries. The police said 65,000 people watched the match live on giant television screens in the central Plaza Colon, where chants of "Viva Espana" and "Champions" rang out amid a cacophony of klaxons, firecrackers, drum beats and car horns at the final whistle. Spain's Cuatro television channel reported a record 17.69 million viewers were watching when Liverpool striker Fernando Torres scored the only goal. "Spain has gone crazy," said the top-selling daily El Pais. "Finally!" screamed the Catalan daily Publico in a massive double-page headline. "Spain conquers Europe and opens a new era in Spanish football," said Catalan sports daily Mundo Deportivo. "The best team won the tournament and with a more beautiful style of football than any other," the sports daily AS said in an editorial. "The team reached the summit of European football with a generation of young players ... who have swept away the curses of the past and announced a new era full of hope," El Pais said. Spain last lifted the European trophy in 1964 with victory over the former USSR in what was its only previous triumph at a major tournament. — AFP
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Anju jumps to gold
Hanoi (Vietnam), June 30 Anju, whose Olympic preparations are on full swing, gave her best shot for the season by jumping 6.55m to win the top honours, yesterday. Indian middle distance runners also put up a good show by making the hat-trick of 1-2 finish in men's 1500m and 3000m runs. Naresh Yadav clocked 3:53.98s and Sandeep Karan Singh produced the timings of 3:53.99s to win the gold and silver medals respectively in the 15,000m event. Vietnam's Nguyen Dinh Cuong finished third with 3:56.68s. In the 3000m event, Kashinath Aswale travelled the distance in 8:16.22s while Ajay Kumar Patel followed with 8:16.56 while Amirov Ajmal ended up third 8:33.47s. Shotputter Satyendra Singh claimed his second gold medal on the circuit with an effort of 17.84m. Indian women 4x400m relay team was the best in the competition with a timing of 3:33.08s, however their male counterparts' Olympic hopes were washed out due to heavy rain. Water-logging on the track resulted into their slow timing of 3:07.09s. Kashinath Naik won the silver in the javelin throw after covering a distance of 68.65s.
— PTI
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Teen GM Negi wins Philadelphia title
Philadelphia, July 1 Negi (2529), the second youngest GM in chess history, signed pact with Woman Grandmaster Eesha Karvade in the final round yesterday ending a clear first with seven points out of a possible nine and a winner's purse of $ 2000 in the field of 39 players from five countries, including 14 Indians. The 15-year-old Delhi-lad edged past Ganguly (2631), over 100 ELO points ahead of him and the top seed here, and other higher-rated Indian GMs Abhijit Kunte (2554) and G N Gopal (2572). It is certainly a massive triumph for Negi, who had earlier this year shared the Kaupthing Open title with Romanian Andrei Istratescu in Luxemburg. GM S Arun Prasad (2492), who had held Negi during the course of the tournament, finished second just half point adrift of his younger countrymate in the tournament, which was played in the build up to the $ 400,000 36th World Open, a nine-round event which kicked off at the same venue yesterday. Prasad drew his final round game with black against Gabriel Battaglini and scored 6.5 for clear second and $ 1,000. He also earned his 2500 rating during the tournament and a fourth norm here.
— PTI |
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Venus ends Tamarine’s run
The seventh seed, chasing a fifth title at the All England Club, made sure an all-Williams women's final was still on the cards by reaching the semifinals for the seventh time. After sealing the first set with a thundering backhand winner, Williams completed the win when Tamarine smacked a forehand wide. Fifth seed Elena Dementieva of Russia beat compatriot 21st seed Nadia Petrova 6-1, 6-7(6), 6-3 on Tuesday in a women's singles quarterfinal match. Earlier, mercurial Russian Marat Safin, his temper in check and his talent to the fore, fought his way into the quarterfinals on Monday with 6-4, 6-3, 5-7, 6-1 win over Swiss 13th seed Stanislas Wawrinka. The twice grand slam winner, who had already knocked out Serbian number three seed Novak Djokovic, won the first nine points of the first set before Wawrinka stopped the rot with an ace and fought back to level the match at 4-4. But then he lost his serve and Safin, who has so often let his volatile temperament get the better of him, held his for a 1-0 lead. Safin, who was recording his best Wimbledon result since reaching the quarterfinals in 2001, twice broke Wawrinka in the second set which he won comfortably. Safin, never a great fan of grass, let slip his advantage in the third set with a lapse of concentration. But the lanky former world number one then firmly re-established control, swiftly dismissing Wawrinka 6-1 in the fourth set. Briton Andy Murray completed an astonishing turnaround after staring defeat in the face to beat Frenchman Richard Gasquet 5-7, 3-6, 7-6, 6-2, 6-4 on Monday and claim a Wimbledon quarterfinal spot. The Scot was two sets behind and a break down at 5-4 in the third before his survival instincts kicked in. He delighted the home crowd on Centre Court by breaking back to level at 5-5 before forcing a tiebreak which he took with ease. The 12th seed repeatedly punched the air and brought the crowd to their feet as he raced through the fourth set, where eighth seed Gasquet's previously sizzling backhand winners fizzled out, to set up an exciting fifth. The 21-year-old Briton got an early break and Gasquet faded along with the light, allowing Murray to secure victory when the Frenchman put his return into the net. "That is the best moment I've ever had on a tennis court. Coming back from two sets to love was an amazing feeling," a delighted Murray said. The win after nearly four hours allowed him to reach his first grand slam quarterfinal, where he will face second seed Rafael Nadal. Gasquet, a semifinalist here last year, had looked to be cruising into the last eight after unleashing a dazzling array of backhand winners that had Murray flummoxed. He broke in the 12th game to take the first set on his fifth set point when Murray hit an easy volley wide. The 22-year-old Frenchman rode the momentum to get an early break in the second set and surge to a 3-0 lead, survived a break-point scare in the fifth game and then took the set at the fourth attempt with an exquisite forehand while at the net. Having broken Murray in the ninth game of the third, Gasquet must have been starting to think about getting home for an early night with a last-eight place in the bag.
— Reuters |
Sania-Mattek in quarters clash with Williams sisters
London, July 1 The 13th seeded Indian-American pair was leading 4-6 6-4 2-0 when their opponents forfeited the match. The Williams, seeded 11th and both of whom are already in the singles quarters, swept aside the fifth seeded Spanish pair of Anabel Medina Garrigues and Virginia Ruano Pascul 6-1 6-4 in their third round match. With yesterday's win, Sania has reached Wimbledon doubles quarters for the first time. The best that she had managed before this win was a third-round appearance last year, when she had teamed up with Israeli Sahar Peer. Paes-Dlouhy reach semis
The ninth seeded pair of Leander Paes and his Czech partner Lukas Dlouhy beat third seed pair of Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram in straight sets 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 in a men's doubles quarterfinal match on Tuesday.
— PTI |
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Jr Asia Cup: Gurbaz to lead
New Delhi, July 1 The selection committee of the Indian Olympic Association-appointed Ad Hoc Committee, to administer hockey, headed by Aslam Sher Khan, picked an 18-member team with five reserves after three-day selection trials from June 28 to 30 in Hyderabad. All the five selectors were present to assess the players. The team: Goalkeepers: Sreejesh P.R and Mrinal Chaubey. Full-backs: Diwakar Ram, Innocent Kullu, Manjeet Kullu. Midfielders: Gurbaz Singh (capt), Vivek, Ranjit Singh, Vikas Sharma, B. Horro and
Amandeep Ekka. Forwards: Mandeep Antil, S.V.Sunil, Gurminder Singh, Jagwant Singh, Pramod, Roshan Minz and Danish Mujtaba. Reserves: Harjit Singh (goalkeeper), Samir Baxla (full back), Virender Lakra (midfielder), Dharam Vir and Jujhar Singh (forwards). Coach: S.P.Bansal. |
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Hewitt facing double heartbreak
London, July 1 The Australian grimaced with pain throughout his 7-6 (9/7), 6-2, 6-4 defeat to world number one Roger Federer in the fourth round of Wimbledon yesterday leaving the 27-year-old former world number one with some stark choices. "This was the tournament that I wanted to play in. Now I'll probably try and focus more career-wise, trying to get the hip right because at the moment it's not just getting any better," said Hewitt. "So I'm just going to have to speak to more people and see what my best options are." Hewitt picked up the injury in April which limited his claycourt season to just the French Open and it was a factor yesterday, particularly in the second and third sets against Federer, the five-time champion. The Australian, who was the champion here in 2002 before Federer started his private domination at the All-England Club, came into the tournament as the 20th seed. His world ranking last week was 30, his lowest in 11 years. But despite that slump and his long-standing injury, the former US Open winner is adamant he can return to the top five and threaten the likes of Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. "Out there today I didn't feel like I was that far away. Obviously he, Djokovic and Nadal are the three stand-outs at the moment, especially on a week-in, week-out basis," he said. — AFP
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Having got three full days to recharge their batteries, a rejuvenated India will take on arch rivals Pakistan in a Super Four match of the Asia Cup cricket tournament here tomorrow, fully aware that a victory will ensure them a berth in the final.
Thousands cheer Spain’s
London, July 1
