Friday, April 2, 1999
today's calendar
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S P O R T | Friday, April 2, 1999 |
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Germany, France victorious; Belarus
hold Italy |
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Malik to replace Nazir at
Sharjah DD
sport channel ‘facing problems’ Warne,
Healy face axe after defeat Ranatunga,
Murali among top 5 Fazaluddin
set for Davis Cup debut Delhi
may bid for 2006 C'wealth Games Coles
loses panel chairmanship |
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Pakistan beat India by 7 wickets SAS NAGAR, April 1 — A record unbroken partnership of 163 runs for the fourth wicket between Ijaz Ahmed and Inzamam-ul-Haq against India helped Pakistan to romp home comfortably in the day/night Pepsi Cup Triangular Series match at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium here tonight. India, opting to bat first, bundled out for 196 runs, while Pakistan overhauled the target in 42 over for the loss of the three wickets. A three-wicket burst early in the innings by experienced Venkatesh Prasad put the Pakistan side completely on the defensive and brought India back in reckoning. But, in the end, the experience of Ijaz (89 not out, 129 balls) and burly Inzamam (63 not out, 88 balls) saw Pakistan emerge easy winners. In the end, the contest, if it could be dubbed so, proved to be totally lop-sided. The Indian bowling line-up looked thoroughly innocuous with only Prasad having the experience to play at this level. Among the rest of the bowlers used medium fast bowler Luxmi Ratan Shukla and left-arm spinner Gyanander Pandey were playing second match only. For Sehwag it was his debut match, while Ganguly and Robin Singh, by no stretch of imagination are regular or frontline bowlers. After the three-wicket burst by Prasad had left Pakistan reeling at 34 for 3, India had these bowlers to fall back on. Ijaz and Inzamam batted with clinical precision. They first repaired the damage done negotiating the harmless stuff being offered. Once the victory seemed within sight, Ijaz, as he has so often done in the past, unleashed his powerful array of strokes. He got valuable support from Inzamam as the visitors raced away to a comfortable victory. A slight slice of luck came India’s way when Prasad, introduced for the second spell, succeeded in inducing a catch off Ijaz when the score was 127. But Pandey fielding at fine square leg made a hash of it. After dropped catch Ijaz emerged a completely transformed batsman. In the next over he hoisted a hapless Ganguly over long-off for a huge six which landed on the roof of the enclosure adjoining media box. In the last over debutant off-spinner Sehwag conceded 22 runs. India, batting first, pushed and prodded in the first 15 overs and could score only 40 runs for the loss of Rahul Dravid’s wicket. Makeshift opener Saba Karim’s contribution — though he stood bravely in the face of hostile fast bowling, particularly by Shoaib Akhtar, who conceded just eight runs in his first six-over spell — was 15 in the total. Dravid who came in after the departure of Saurav Ganguly, who retired hurt earlier on the innings, failed to open his account. He tried to flick an Akhtar delivery but Shahid Afridi, fielding at square leg, plucked a beautiful catch. Ganguly fell grimacing on the ground in the fourth over of the innings after being struck hard by an express Akhtar delivery, which hit him on the lower right side of the rib cage and Ganguly had to retire to the pavilion. A flashy square cut off Wasim Akram which eluded the fielder at fully gave Jadeja his first boundary. Karim, who had been at the crease for 84 minutes for his 18 runs, tried to play away from his body but ended up giving Ijaz Ahmed a catch at point. The Indian innings was just past the 50-run mark when Mahmood struck again clean bowling Jadeja. Khuresia again opened his account with a rasping boundary off Azhar Mahmood but was soon done in by wily off spinner Saqlain Mushtaq who brought the delivery in to the left hander and had him stumped by wicketkeeper Moin Khan. Ganguly, who come out to bat again, showed no signs of discomfort and played a well compiled knock of 57 runs from 90 deliveries and he, in the company of the veteran all rounder Robin Singh (Sr) who also displayed good character scoring a valuable 42 runs. This enabled the team post 196 runs on the board. INDIA PAKISTAN |
Young team gave a good fight:
Jadeja S.A.S. Nagar, April 1 — India played one bowler short in the last league match of the three-nation triangular tournament at the PCA Stadium here this evening. This was admitted by stand-in skipper Ajay Jadeja in the post-match conference, who went on to say that the experience gained by the number of youngsters in the squad would stand them in good stead in the future. While admitting that the team was playing one extra batsman the Indian skipper said it was better to have given some youngster a chance rather than not giving him a chance at all. He said he was proud of the fact that the young Indian team gave a full fight to the visitors and no player was overawed by the occasion. He said even with just regular bowler in Venkatesh Prasad India did well to push Pakistan to the wall who were chasing a very modest total. Defending the team decision to play a number of spinners, Jadeja said that the team thought that the pitch would take turn. That the decision was not correct was a part of the game. The Indian cricket manager Anshuman Gaekwad, who was also present, said he was proud of the performance of the youngsters and was happy the way the team was shaping up for the future, specially with the World Cup just round the corner. He said nothing should be read into the defeats of the Indian team twice at the hands of Pakistan in the current tournament as the squad "was never in full strength". Anshuman said the team management was only trying out different combinations with an eye on the World Cup. At Bangalore, where the final of the tournament will be played on Sunday, he was hopeful that India would play a full squad and "win the title." He also defended the team decision to play more spinners, as he also felt that the wicket might play a major role and take turn early on. The Pakistani skipper Wasim Akram, who till the morning was undecided whether he would play in today's game, gave full credit to his boys for the win. He was all praise for Ijaz Ahmed, the man of the match, who was largely instrumental in Pakistan's win. He was very happy that the team was shaping up very well for the final. "We are full of confidence and if we win at Bangalore it would serve as a very good tonic for the coming World Cup." The Pakistani skipper also thanked the people of Chandigarh for the hospitality shown not only to his team but also to the spectators who had come specially for the match.
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Spectators "beaten up" by
cops CHANDIGARH, April 1 — A couple of spectators who had come to witness the India-Pakistan cricket match for SAS Nagar were reportedly beaten up by police men deputed on security duty at the PCA Stadium, the venue of the match today. Two of the spectators, who
came to The Tribune office past midnight showed lathi
blows all over their bodies allegedly inflicted by the
cops without "any provocation." "The cops
snatched everything we had", said Ravinder Singh, a
resident of Sector 23-B here, while taking off his shirt
to show the lathi blows on his body. His relative,
Baljinder Singh, who was bare-footed, also showed injury
marks on his face while recounting his horrifying
experience at the stadium today. |
I have to see how I feel: Sachin MUMBAI, April 1 (PTI) — Sachin Tendulkar intends to inform the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) about his availability for the April 7-16 Sharjah triangular series after seeing how he felt following net sessions for a couple of days. Tendulkar said here today "I have to see how I feel after practising (for a couple of days). Then I will get a clear idea about my fitness. The ace batsman, who underwent treatment from a London specialist for his back spasms recently and on medical advice had decided to skip the ongoing tri-series at home, said "I intend to speak to the board President Raj Singh Dungarpur, about my availability prior to the team selection for Sharjah." Mr Dungarpur had said on Tuesday that Tendulkar was in constant touch with him and a clear picture about his availability for the Sharjah tournament would emerge in a few days. However, board Secretary Jaywant Lele had informed reporters at Pune after India's victory over Sri Lanka that Tendulkar was available for the Sharjah tri-nation event, featuring Pakistan and England as the other two teams. Queried yesterday, Mr Lele reiterated from Baroda that since Tendulkar wanted rest only from the home series and had not informed the board about the Sharjah series so far, it was assumed the master batsman was available for the event. The teams for the Sharjah
tourney and the May-June World Cup are to be selected in
Bangalore on April 4. |
Germany, France victorious; Belarus hold Italy PARIS, April 1 (AFP) - World champions France and defending European Champions Germany reasserted their hold over their respective Euro 2000 qualifying groups yesterday with easy wins while Italy and Ukraine both slipped up with home draws against minor opposition. France brushed aside Armenia 2-0 in group four to move level on points and goals with Ukraine after the previous leaders were held 1-1 in Kiev by plucky Iceland. Germany saw off Finland 2-0 in Nuremburg to move joint top of group three with Turkey. But the most unlikely result of the night came at Ancona as traditional heavyweights Italy could only manage a 1-1 home draw against Belarus, the last side in group one. The Italians still top the group by three points from Switzerland, who leapfrogged Wales into second place after beating the Welsh in Zurich. Elsewhere, a first half goal from Arsenal striker Fredrik Ljungberg gave Sweden a vital 1-0 group five victory in Poland to give the in-form visitors their fourth straight win and send them streaking five points clear of England. Ljungberg struck eight minutes before the break for the Swedes, who if they avoid defeat at Wembley on June 5 will be almost assured of a place in next year’s finals. In the same group, Bulgaria registered their first win when first half goals from veteran striker Hristo Stoichkov and Ivailo Iordanov brought a 2-0 triumph at Luxembourg. Italy almost embarrassed themselves in Ancona as they struggled to overcome a dogged Belarus, who remain winless. The visitors had the temerity to take a shock 24th-minute lead through Valiantsin Bielkovich of Dinamo Kiev. But Filippo Inzaghi levelled from the spot six minutes later. Switzerland closed the gap after two goals from Dortmund veteran Stephane Chapuisat. Chapuisat notched his first in the fourth minute with the Welsh defence in disarray following a Patrick Muller cross and stabbed home his second from close range to finish the visitors off 19 minutes from time. Things are looking up for Germany, who reaped a whirlwind of criticism after losing their opening tie in Turkey but who ominously moved to top of group iii above the Turks on goal difference after two goals inside four first-half minutes from Jens Jeremies and Oliver Neuville overcame Finland 2-0. Both the Germans and the Turks, who were without a game, now have nine points from four matches. France, who dropped two home points against Ukraine last Saturday, did just enough but no more as they defeated a defensive-minded Armenia 2-0 at the Stade De France with a goal in the second minute from international novice Sylvain Wiltord and another on the stroke of half-time by Christophe Dugarry. France and Ukraine now both have 11 points from five matches. The Czech republic, runners up to Germany four years ago, continued their barnstorming run to the finals when they beat group ix rivals Scotland 2-1 in Glasgow to go eight points clear. Matt Elliott put through his own goal under pressure for the first on 27 minutes and Vladimir Smicer of French champions Lens beat the offside trap after a sublime through ball from Liverpool’s Patrik Berger to notch the second for his 16th international goal. Elsewhere in the group, Estonia won the Baltic Derby 2-1 win Lithuania thanks to a brace of second half goals from Sergei Terehov of Estonian champions FC Flora. The Estonians are now level on points with the Scots having played a game more. In group VII, Portugal, briefly ousted from top slot by Romania’s earlier 1-0 win in Azerbaijan, reclaimed first place with a 5-0 thrashing of hapless Liechtenstein. A Rui Costa penalty started the rout and Barcelona star Luis Figo notched the second five minutes after the restart. Paulo Madeira then scored twice and Costa hit another to give Portugal’s goal difference a boost. Also in group VII, Slovakia and Hungary drew 0-0 in their first senior international meeting. In the only group ii match played yesterday, Latvia and Greece drew 0-0, leaving the unheralded Latvians top of the group on goal difference ahead of Norway. The leading pair both have seven points from four matches. Spain were looking for a goal rout in the late group vi match at San Marino. Three games scheduled for last night were postponed due to the conflict in the Balkans. The group viii match between Yugoslavia and Macedonia has been postponed until September 4 with the Croatia vs Malta game in the same group postponed to a date yet to be decided. The group ii game between
Slovenia and Albania has been switched to August. |
Malik to replace Nazir at Sharjah KARACHI, April 1 (ANI) — The national selection committee, in a major reversal, has included Saleem Malik in the Pakistan team for the Coca Cola Cup in Sharjah in place of young opener Imran Nazir who will fly back home from India. Well-placed sources said Malik, who flew to India on Tuesday to join the team at SAS Nagar as a reinforcement player, will now be proceeding to Sharjah from India. The Pakistan team after playing the final of the triangular series in India on April 4 flies directly to Sharjah where the Coca Cola Cup commences from April 7 with a game against England. The sources said that initially the tour selection committee in India comprising the captain, coach and manager had only asked for Malik to be flown to India as reinforcement to strengthen the middle order, but later after Wasim had discussions with chief selector Wasim Bari it was decided that Malik should also proceed to Sharjah in place of Imran Nazir. The interesting thing is that this same selection committee of Wasim Bari and Shafiq Ahmed (the third selector Salahuddin was in England), after consulting Wasim and Miandad, had dropped Malik for the triangular series in India, the Coca Cola Cup in Sharjah and also the preliminary World Cup squad of 19 players. The general opinion at that time was that someone of Malik’s experience was still required in the team at least up to the World Cup. It certainly is not a good
reflection on the working of the selection committee and
the Pakistan captain that within one week Malik had been
recalled to the team. The question now arising is will
the experienced middle order batsman be considered for
the World Cup too? |
Sohail ignored despite pressure KARACHI, April 1 (ANI) — Despite directives from the Nawaz Sharif Government that Aamer Sohail should be considered for the World Cup, the selectors have ignored him while finalising their 15-member squad which will be announced shortly by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). Well-informed sources said in Lahore that the selectors had in principle finalised their 15-member World Cup squad and in fact chief selector Wasim Bari had forwarded it to the board for approval by the executive council members. According to sources, the selectors have instead selected veteran Saleem Malik even though he was not even named in the 19-member preliminary squad. The interesting thing is that Malik came back into favour with the selectors and captain Wasim Akram a few days after the board had got directives from an influential federal minister that Sohail should be considered for the World Cup and not victimised because of the ongoing inquiry into allegations of match-fixing and betting against some members of the Pakistan team. The board in turn had sent a fax to Bari asking him to consider Sohail in the World Cup squad, a directive which was not taken kindly by the selectors since they parted ways with Sohail on a bitter note last December when he walked out of the Pakistan team after seeing his team lose to Zimbabwe at Lahore as captain. The selectors and Wasim also formed a consensus that bringing back Sohail at this stage would only be inviting problems as majority of the players were not happy with him. Soon after the instructions from the federal minister, PCB Chairman Khalid Mahmood also agreed with the thinking of the selectors and Wasim, and being close to the ruling party, also used his contacts to get the idea of Sohail's inclusion for the World Cup dropped. In the meantime the selectors have done their spadework and finalised the final 15 sans left-handed opener. Besides Malik, they have also reposed faith in the experienced Waqar Younis and Mushtaq Ahmed, who will be going to England. The 15-member squad finalised by the selectors but still to be approved by the council, is said to include Wasim Akram, Saeed Anwar, Wajahatullah Wasti, Shahid Afridi, Ijaz Ahmed, Inzamamul Haq, Waqar Younis, Shoaib Akhtar, Saqlain Mushtaq and Mushtaq Ahmed. This is, by any standard, a very balanced side but clearly when the stress is on experience by the selectors themselves, Sohail deserves a place as regular opener, sources said. The feeling in the Pakistan team on the possibility of Sohail joining the team for the World Cup is so strong that some players have silently hinted at a possible revolt against his inclusion. However, whether Sohail is
also a late inclusion like Malik will depend on how the
board's executive council reacts to the squad given by
the selectors for approval and whether they are only
going to consider it on merit. |
DD sport channel ‘facing
problems’ S.A.S. NAGAR, April 1 — While admitting that the newly-launched sport channel of Doordarshan was facing teething problems, Mr Pramod Mahajan, Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting, was of the view that the channel would be able to reach international standard within a month. In an exclusive interview with TNS, the Union Minister said the channel was not launched with a view to giving competition to the satellite sport channel already beaming to India. The channel had been started to inculcate the spirit of sport among the people of the country. The channel was the "start of a long journey with a small step." Mr Mahajan said the channel was only two weeks old but should show positive results within two or three months. "In any case since Doordarshan was a public broadcaster profit alone is not the guiding force for starting the channel," was his candid remark when asked what was the necessity to start the channel in the first place. On his first visit to Chandigarh after taking over as Information and Broadcasting Minister, Mr Mahajan took time off today to be present at the PCA Stadium as India and Pakistan played in the last league match of the triangular cricket series. In fact, he joined the ESPN commentary team for some time and the facilities there must have impressed him. Having a dig at the way Doordarshan was being run in the past, the Union Information and Broadcasting Minister said nobody knew whether Doordarshan was in profit or loss. But to make Doordarshan a successful commercial venture he had ordered the Doordarshan authorities to carry out an internal audit to find out the exact financial health of the corporation. In his view the earnings of Doordarshan was between Rs 500 crore to Rs 600 crore annually, while the spending was about Rs 1000 crore. Although he admitted that Doordarshan had a social commitment but the earnings must match the spendings. Mr Mahajan said the principal reason for starting the Doordarshan sport channel was to create a sports atmosphere in the country. He was quick to remark that the channel would telecast cricket "not to promote cricket but to cross subsidise other sport." While admitting that Doordarshan cameramen were not used to covering games like golf or badminton, he said most of the time of the cameramen was spent covering static things like "politicians and mikes". He was quick to add that the same Doordarshan cameraman on joining a foreign company quickly learnt to "follow the ball in a game like cricket". What Doordarshan really needed was the skill of mixing and proper presentation. He was, however, not averse to the idea of giving training to the cameramen so that they were able to reach the expertise of foreign cameramen. Mr Mahajan said since Doordarshan was a government undertaking it faced problems in hiring the best available talent. "The system of pay scales, appointment committees and seniority is difficult to beat. The chief executive of a foreign channel can hire the best talent without having to answer anybody. The same is not the case with me as I have to answer to Parliament for everything connected with Doordarshan." He said that somebody like Sunil Gavaskar could be asked to join the sport channel but the remuneration must be adequate. "He might like to join a national channel after a pay cut but obviously he will not come to work free." The Union Minister said
Doordarshan must wake up to realities. The monopoly which
it enjoyed ever since it came into being had now ended
for the past four or five years when the satellite
channels came into existence and it must gear itself up.
Admitting that Prasar Bharti needed a good administrator,
he ended by saying that he was not adverse to change
Doordarshan into a corporation on the lines of the MNTL. |
Warne, Healy face axe after defeat ANTIGUA, April 1 (AFP) — Australian star leg-spinner Shane Warne and wicketkeeper Ian Healy are facing the axe for the fourth and final Test against the West Indies here on Saturday. The West Indies’ stunning victory, masterminded by a brilliant Brian Lara, saw Australia go 2-1 down in the series and victory in the last test is a must. "The bottomline is we’ve got to pick a side to win the next Test match and if either of those guys (Healy and Warne) aren’t in the best eleven, then they won’t be there", said Steve Waugh. Warne, yet to look his old self since shoulder surgery last April, faces his moment of truth when he sits down with fellow selector Waugh and coach Geoff Marsh to pick the team. There is little chance Australia will persist with their twin spin attack of Warne and Stuart MacGill, who took one wicket each in the third Test. Despite being given 24 overs by Waugh in the final innings on a fifth day pitch, Warne failed to extract much turn and was punished on occasions by Lara. Healy, struggling with calf muscle problems, dropped west Indies Brian Lara when the home team were seven runs short of their one-wicket victory. BRIDGETOWN (BARABADOS) (AP): Fast bowler Jason Gillespie is expected to miss the fourth and final match in Antigua because of a back injury. The 24-year-old Gillespie bowled 15.1 overs during the West Indies successful chase of 308 on the last day, picking up three wickets. But the south Australian left the field 35 minutes before lunch for treatment and bowled with serious pain after his return. "It seems a serious back injury," manager Steve Bernard said yesterday. "He is very doubtful for the last Test." "It was a miracle he went back out there and bowled. When he came into the pavilion before lunch, he could not even bend down to remove his boots and socks. We had to lie him down and let someone do that for him." Captain Steve Waugh was full of praise for Gillespie's effort, and that of his new ball partner Glenn McGrath. "I thought our quick
bowlers were magnificent," Waugh said.
"Gillespie was struggling with a back spasm, his was
a heroic performance and McGrath was magnificent as
always." |
Ranatunga, Murali among top 5 LONDON, April 1 (AP) — Two Sri Lankans have been named among Wisden’s top five cricketers of the year, with the influential Bible of the sport also calling for ICC Chairman Jagmohan Dalmiya to resign and also claiming there is racial discrimination in the English domestic game. Two months after leading his team to a mid-match boycott in Australia, Sri Lanka’s captain Arjuna Ranatunga made the top five list as Wisden’s 136th edition was unveiled today. So did teammate Muttiah Muralitharan, whose controversial bowling action sparked the 15-minute stand-off between Sri Lankan players and match umpires in Adelaide. Regarded as the game’s most authoritative reference book it also names two English players fast bowler Darren Gough and all-rounder Ian Austin and South African batsman Jonty Rhodes among the top five. The Wisden award, which dates back to 1889, is based on each players influence on the previous English cricket season and includes only players who played in England in 1998. Gough last month picked up the English player of the year award after helping England to a come-from-behind 2-1 Test series win over South Africa last season. Muralitharan bamboozled English batsmen during Sri Lanka’s brief tour last year, culminating with his 16-wicket haul to help Sri Lanka beat England in a one-off Test at the Oval in September. CHENNAI: Twentyeight times champions Bengal, who have also been the reigning champions for the past five years, would be under less pressure when they take on their traditional rivals Kerala in the second semifinal of the Bharat Petroleum Santosh Trophy 55th National Football Championship here tomorrow. Combining well and peaking at the right moment, as their 1-4 win against Manipur in the last quarter final league match proved, Bengal definitely enjoy an edge. But as Kerala coach and former international M.M. Jacob put it, his team is confident. "My players are physically and mentally fit. We have been playing well in all departments of the game", he averred. However, Jacob admitted that his forwards, led by Asif Zahir, the second highest individual scorer next to Tamil Nadu’s Sabir Pasha in this championship so far, had missed scoring opportunities in the quarterfinal league encounters. Jacob said Asif, the under-21 player, could be the trump card in this vital match for Kerala, in their dream of regaining the trophy. Asif is playing in the nationals for the first time. However, exuding confidence Jacob said Bengal were no doubt formidable with players like Baichung Bhutia heading their attack. "But we will stick to our style of playing mixing short and long passes", he said when asked if he was contemplating any change of tactics to counter Bengal’s style of play. Their strength is midfield in their 4-4-2 formation. "We will be sticking to our 4-3-3 formation," Jacob added. With Asif Zahir, brothers Ignatius Sylvester and Earnest Sylvester, international V.P. Shaji, who is the most experienced player and the four F.C. Kochin players K.V. Dhanesh, Naushad, A.S. Firoze and Najeeb are the key players in the young Kerala team. For the records, Kerala had last beaten Bengal in the semifinals of the 1992 nationals and went on to lift the trophy defeating Goa. However, when the two
teams last met in the 1994 nationals, Bengal emerged
victors in the tie break, that too by a narrow margin as
Kerala failed to convert one penalty shot. |
Fazaluddin set for Davis Cup debut CALCUTTA, April 1 (PTI) — India’s number two player Mahesh Bhupathi has been ruled out of the singles giving local lad Syed Fazaluddin the opportunity to make his debut as the hosts got a favourable draw in their Davis Cup Asia Oceania Group-1 tie against China beginning at the South Club from tomorrow. Bhupathi, plagued by a hamstring injury since last month, was a doubtful starter for the tie and the Indian thinktank decided to leave him out for the singles though he will be Leander Paes’ partner in the doubles. The draw has favoured the Indians with number one player Leander Paes opening the campaign against China’s number two Zhang Yu while Syed Fazaluddin would take on number one player Zhu Ben-Qiang in the second singles on the opening day. The famed Indian doubles duo of Paes and Bhupathi will lock horns with the Chinese pair of Zhu Ben-Qiang and Zhang Yu on the second day. Paes will complete his engagement with a match against Zhu Ben-Qiang while Fazaluddin would have a tough reverse singles match against Zhang Yu on the last day as per the draw done by the State Sports Minister Subhas Chakraborty at a simple function at the venue. The Indians, playing on their favourite grass surface, start as overwhelming favourites against the unfancied Chinese but non playing captain Jaideep Mukherjea and the team were in no mood to take their opponents lightly. "I’m happy with the draw as Leander will be playing the first match. We need to get off to a good start. We cannot afford to take anybody lightly in the Davis Cup," Mukherjea said after the draw ceremony. The Chinese, not used to playing on grass, will be meeting a much superior Indian team for the first time and the hot and humid conditions prevailing in the city would only compound their problems. The Chinese would also be wary of the fact that India would be represented by two local heroes for whom the grass courts at the South Club have been a second home. "You’ve got to go there and stamp your authority on the game as early as possible. I will be playing on all the three days and have to handle that smartly. I have to pace myself well," ace Davis Cupper Paes observed. The injury to Bhupathi has given a golden opportunity to Syed Fazaluddin to display his skills and temperament to handle the pressure of a Davis Cup tie and the youngster seemed quite confident of living upto the expectations. "Well, it's a dream come true for me. I’ll give it my best shot. Playing at South Club is an advantage for me as I have grown up here," a composed Fazaluddin said. "It is fantastic opportunity for Fazal. I had also got such an opportunity and had grabbed it with open hands. There is a lot of pride playing for the country and he knows that. We are all here to support him," Paes said. For Fazaluddin, who has been in the Davis Cup team for quite some time now, it would be a real test of his physical stamina as he is not used to playing five-set singles matches. The Chinese, though they had never seen Paes in action before, were quite aware of his remarkable achievements in Davis Cup competitions. "We are not used to grass courts as we play more in hard courts. After having practised here for four days, we have improved a lot. We will give a tough fight to the Indians," Chinese non-playing captain Wang-Fu-Zhang said. The Chinese team’s top player Zhu Ben-Qiang has a current ATP ranking of only 771 while the second player Zhang Yu has a ranking of 779. Jang Shan was the third member of the team but would not be seen in action at all since the Chinese have preferred to use their two singles players for double also. The team had practised for just over a month for this Asia-Oceania zonal tie, but most of the workouts has been on hard courts with only a week’s practice on grass courts. Both teams had lost their
last Davis Cup tie with identical 2-3 margins. While the
Chinese had lost to New Zealand, the Indians had
succumbed to South Korea. |
Delhi may bid for 2006 C'wealth Games MELBOURNE, April 1 (AFP) — Melbourne might not get the solo run it expects to host the 2006 Commonwealth Games with Cape Town and New Delhi emerging as possible challenges. Melbourne’s only rival to host the games, Wellington, dropped out of the race last month and with bids closing in London on April 9, it was expected there would be no more challengers. However, Melbourne bid chief Ron Walker said there were rumblings that South Africa and India could be set to mount late bids. "There is some information coming out of Cape Town and New Delhi that they may just enter the race at the last minute", Mr Walker told reporters. "There are some people in Cape Town and New Delhi who have been making some inquiries". Melbourne has been lobbying for three years to host the games and has always been a front runner with most of the facilities already in place. It has repeatedly shown that it can handle world-class events. Mr Walker has also said Melbourne will draw bigger crowds to the Commonwealth Games than the Sydney 2000 Olympics if it is named the host city. "But it is a big prize we are seeking and you cannot take anything for granted", he said. NEW DELHI (PTI): It is not Melbourne alone that has all infrastructure in place. New Delhi which hosted the Asian Games for the second time, in 1982, has all the facilities ready. And, whatever little
repair or upgradation work is necessary, is expected to
be done well in time for the first-ever Afro-Asian Games
to be held here in the year 2001. |
Santosh Trophy CHENNAI, April 1 (PTI) — Last year's runners-up Goa scored an authoritative 3-1 win over hosts Tamil Nadu in the semifinals of the Santosh Trophy National Football Championship here today. Goa await the winners of the other semi-final match between defending champions Bengal and Kerala, scheduled for tomorrow. The final would be played on April 4. Goa trooped out in style thanks to goals by S.Venkatesh (13th min). Francis Silveira (40th min) and Brund coutinho (87th min). Syed Sarir Pasha netted the lone consolation for Tamil Nadu in the closing stages of the Match. Goa's strength was in their solid midfield. Their short passes in the mid-field were so controlled that the Tamil Nadu medios could not intercept them. Though every member of the gone team played their part well, medio Jules Alberto was the pick of the lot. Tamil Nadu barring wily striker Sabir Pasha and Hamilton Bobby, did not have that many experienced players in their team and the inexperience showed. In fact Pasha got the ball only on three occasions. Tamil Nadu coach D. Sekar brought on defender Ramakrishnan in the first 11 minutes and Amirthraj after 15 minutes. These two were found wanting and Ramakrishnan, in particular, was rather slow in his movements. Pasha's goal in the 42nd minute was called off side by linesman PK Bose of Madhya Pradesh. However, Pasha managed to pull one back for his team in the dying stages. Tamil Nadu's drawback was the number of miss-passes and over dribbling by their players, giving enough time for the Goans to regroup. But for a couple of saves by Netto, Tamil Nadu would have lost by a huge margin. On the other hand, the Goans never marked the Tamil Nadu players and they played their usual game with measured passes. Goa drew first blood in the 13th minute following a throw-in by Bruno Antony Pereira headed backwards and S.Venkatesh beat goalkeeper Sabestian Netto with his header. Goa's continued forays were thrustful and they increased their lead following a defence lapse. In the 40th minute Seby Coelho's controlled long ball was chested by Venkatesh and Francis Silveira, playing in place of Samatai, who had received two yellow cards, showed great opportunism to boot the ball home with both Kumar and Merlin in Kamaldas looking on helplessly. Crossing over, Tamil Nadu held sway for about 10 minutes and only once they came close to scoring but failed to beat keeper Jlue Siddi. In the 36th minute, Tamil Nadu's Kumar muffed up a sitter. Bobby set up a dummy for Pasha and the ball went to Kumar, who needed to just tap the ball home, but missed. Goa's Bruno Coutinho came up with a superb goal in the 87th minute. Collecting a stray pass Bruno sped down the centre despite being challenged by Abdul Ajith of Tamil Nadu. With at least eight players inside the box with Netto. Bruno's powerful right footer from about 20 yards crashed into the net. In the closing stages,
Pasha scored the lone goal for Tamil Nadu. Bobby's long
range shot hit the cross and substitute Balashankar
latched on to the rebounder and passed to Pasha to do the
rest. |
Kanwaljeet sends Delhi reeling HYDERABAD, April 1 (UNI) — Master spinner Kanwaljeet Singh, with a career-best haul of eight wickets, spun out Delhi for a paltry 160 runs in their first innings in reply to Hyderabad’s 440 runs on the third day of the Ranji Trophy cricket quarterfinal match here today. Bowling with variation and extricating the slow turner from the far end, Kanwaljeet exploited the situation to the hilt, forcing Delhi batsmen to play more on the backfoot and skittled them out cheaply. Delhi batsmen, though playing under tremendous pressure, however, could not escape more than a fair share of their own, for their dismal performance. There was no footwork and they presented a pathetic sight as they choose rather to play Kanwaljeet Singh standing causing their own downfall. Raju, pegging down the Delhi side from the other end got one wicket from 26 overs, 12 of which were maiden. Pankaj Joshi, the overnight bat was the only Delhi boy to show some grit hammering a huge six and three powerful boundaries before he was bowled by Kanwaljeet for 44, the highest scorer of his side. The wily Hyderabad spinner, who picked up three wickets yesterday, never loosened his grip and scalped another five wickets this morning to finish with figures of eight for 86. Curtains wrung down for Delhi 47 minutes before lunch this noon. For Kanwaljeet, the momentous event pushed his haul to 40 wickets in the current season, boosting his tally to 236 wickets from 84 Ranji matches. For the eleventh time Kanwaljeet bagged five wickets or more in an innings. Surprisingly, Hyderabad choose to bat for the second time with a 280-run lead rather than enforcing a follow-on. Hyderabad (first
innings) : 440 Delhi (first innings) (resuming
at 69 for four) Akash Chopra b Kanwaljeet Singh 32, Ashu
Dani lbw b Raju 17, Devender Sharma c Nandkishore b
Kanwaljeet Singh 3, Akash Malhotra c M.V. Sridhar b
Kanwaljeet Singh 3 Vijay Dahiya c Vinaykumar b Kanwaljeet
Singh 10, Pankaj Joshi b Kanwaljeet Singh 44, Sandeep
Angorala run out 19, Harinder Choudary c Vishnuvardhan b
Kanwaljeet Singh 18, Rahul Sanghvi lbw b Kanwaljeet Singh
1, Amit Bhandari not out 4, Ashish Nehra b Kanwaljeet
Singh 0. |
Punjab take first innings lead AMRITSAR, April 1 — Punjab managed to get a vital lead of 87 runs against Tamil Nadu through some fine spin bowling by Sarandeep Singh in the first innings and added 109 for two at close of play on the third day of the quarterfinal knockout Ranji Trophy cricket match being played at Gandhi grounds here today Tamil Nadu started their day at the overnight score of 125 for three with skipper S. Sharath batting on 38 and Madan Gopal on 19. They batted with caution but with the addition of only nine runs, Sharath was caught at first slip by wicketkeeper Dharmani off the bowling of Sarandeep Singh. The local, off-spinner Sarandeep managed appreciable turn and earned the reward when he got his second wicket in the ninth over as he induced Madan Gopal to stretch forward while the wicketkeeper did the rest and stumped him. At that stage Tamil Nadu were 139 for 5. Sunil Vishvanath and D Vasu tried to step up the scoring but failed to get going with some fine bowling by Punjab off spinner Sarandeep. Skipper Vikram Rathore reshuffled his bowlers cleverly and did not allow any Tamil Nadu batsman to score freely. Both Sunil and Vasu managed to take the score to 194 for 5 at lunch. Immediately on resumption, Sunil was trapped leg before by Bharat Bhushan for 18 runs made in 125 minutes. Thereafter Harbhajan had D. Vasu caught by Bharat Bhushan at mid-wicket while he was trying to hit out for patient innings of 44. It was S Mahesh who hit Harbhajan for two towering sixes and added a quickfire 42 off 42 balls which lent some respectability to the Tamil Nadu score which at one stage was 214 for 8. Mahesh was finally bowled by Navdeep and was the last batsman out with the total at 261. Sarandeep with figures of 3 for 41 was the pick of the bowlers. He got the vital wickets which put the rivals on the defensive. He was supported by Bharat Bhushan and Harbhajan. In the second innings, Punjab skipper Vikram Rathore disappointed his fans as he managed to get only seven runs caught at silly point by HK Badani off the bowling of P Subbiah while his opening partner Sandeep Sharma made a strokeful 51 with six fours and one six as Navjot Sidhu decided to bat down in the order. He too was caught at short cover. The second wicket was down at 76. Pankaj Dharmani (30) and Dinesh Mongia (19) were batting at the close of play. Punjab with an overall lead of 196 with eight second innings wickets in hand are placed comfortably. Punjab (Ist
innings): 344 (all out) |
Coles loses panel chairmanship SYDNEY, April 1 (AFP) — Embattled International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Phil Coles was today removed as Chairman of the Sydney Games Torch Relay Committee. Olympics Minister Michael Knight said Mr Coles was obviously disappointed when told the news. But he said the circumstances surrounding Mr Coles made it necessary for a change. The decision by the board of the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (SOCOG) was not unanimous, with fellow Australian IOC member Kevan Gosper and Australian Olympic Committee Chairman John Coates abstaining. Mr Coles has stood aside
from his duties as a SOCOG board member while the IOC
investigates whether his ex-wife received expensive
jewellery from a businessman associated with Athens’
failed bid for the 1996 games. |
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