Ganguly, Dravid emerge out of Sachin’s shadow
MUMBAI, Dec 23 — Saurav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, who made their Test debut together at Lord’s, broke out of the larger-than-life shadow of Sachin Tendulkar in spectacular style in the last year of the millennium but the trio could not pilot India to the coveted World Cup, the year’s showpiece.

Tollygunge start favourites
LUDHIANA, Dec 23 — Darkhorses Tollygunge Agragami are tipped favourites against BSF in their third away match of the National Football League at Guru Nanak Stadium here tomorrow.

England team to study Klusener
DURBAN, Dec 23 — England’s cricketers are studying videotape of Lance Klusener in a bid to devise a method of coping with the South African’s batting prowess.

Sethi, others fail to cross first hurdle
NEW DELHI, Dec 23 — A three-member Indian team led by ace cueist Geet Sethi impressed much in their first appearance in WPA 9 Ball World Pool Championship which concluded recently at Alicante, Spain, but could not move beyond the first stage due to lack of experience.

Alexsandra, Nasigul steal show
PATIALA, Dec 23 — As the team championship commenced in the Ist Central South Asian Gymnastic Championship here it was clear during the preliminary competition itself that the Nepalese were too lethargic in their movements, so were the Bangla gymnastic, Sri Lankans had little to show by way of talent and it seemed that only the Indians had the necessary wherewithal to make a dent in the rivals reputations.

Yadwinder scores a hat-trick
LUDHIANA, Dec 23 — Hosts Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, outclassed last year’s runner-up Punjab University, Chandigarh, 4-1 to register their first victory on the third day of the second Prithipal Singh Memorial Punjab State Inter-Varsity Hockey Tournament for men at the astroturf hockey stadium of PAU here today.

• Andy Flower stays captain
• Deepan stuns Humpy
• Mohd Saif leads

East Bengal, JCT battle to a goal-less draw
From Amardeep Bhattal
Tribune News Service

LUDHIANA, Dec 23 — Last year’s runners-up East Bengal and winners of the inaugural edition JCT Phagwara battled to a goal-less draw in a high-voltage action tie of the National Football League at Guru Nanak Stadium here today.

Pitted against one of the strongest outfits, JCT Phagwara displayed strong motivation to keep the red and yellow brigade under sustained pressure, especially in the second half.

The mill men enjoyed greater ball possession and with a little more luck could have even carried the day, but that was not to be. East Bengal, boasting of an impressive line-up, did give JCT the jitters through well-orchestrated moves early on, but the Phagwara outfit fought back gallantly, matching their rivals move for move. The Hardip trio —Sangha, Saini and Gill — moved up and down in tandem and at times even tested Prasanta Dora under the East Bengal bar with power-packed shots, East Bengal, on the other hand, relied on star strikers Raman Vijayan and Bijen Singh upfront while Ghanian Jackson Egygpong kept the marauding JCT forwards at bay through some gallant rearguard actions. The JCT goal had a lucky escape in the eighth minute following a Raman Vijayan — Bijen Singh move. With goalkeeper Baljit Singh clearly beaten, Bijen headed goalwards but right back Prabhjot Singh effected a goal-line save.

The first serious move by JCT came in the 13th minute when the laborious Hardip Saini despatched a cross for Jaswinder inside the box but Jaswinder’s header sailed past the goal-post. Again Jaswinder attempted a header off Rampal’s lob but this time he missed the flight of the ball.

Jaswinder, who showed a lot of promise, again initiated a move after trapping the ball on the right flank but his through pass for striker Hardip Gill saw the latter getting sandwiched between two defenders.

In the second half, JCT brought in Harinder in place of an off-colour Harjinder to bolster the midfield and the move had an immediate impact as the JCT attacks became more thrustful.

East Bengal had a good chance when Jackson standing inside the rival box aimed a powerful ground but Hardip Saini standing near the goal-line made a timely clearance.

Midway through the second half, East Bengal had another good chance when Raman Vijayan raced down the centre and after getting past a defender, despatched an angular shot on the run. But the alert Deepak Mondal playing as a stopper back headed the ball out at the cost of a flag kick.

Then followed the JCT blitzkrieg and the mill men were all over the East Bengal territory. Hardip Gill’s powerful shot from the top of the box brought out the best in East Bengal custodian Prasanta Dora who jumped high to punch the ball over the bar.

Later Hardip Saini was almost successful in finding the target with the ball rolling into the goal but East Bengal defender Falguni Dutta made a goal-line save.

A few minutes before close, Hardip Gill’s pass to Sukhjit saw the latter attempting a header but Prasanta Dora made a neat collection.

The match also witnessed some rough play and on one occasion Hardip Gill of the JCT was brought down with a tackle from behind but the referee overlooked the infringement, Prabhjot Singh of the JCT earned a yellow card for a foul early in the second half.

With today’s draw, JCT’s tally has gone up to five points while East Bengal have accumulated seven points from two wins and a draw.

Tollygunge start favourites
Tribune News Service

LUDHIANA, Dec 23 — Darkhorses Tollygunge Agragami are tipped favourites against BSF in their third away match of the National Football League at Guru Nanak Stadium here tomorrow.

Tollygunge, who made their debut in the league last year after qualifying through the second division, have already caused a couple of ripples in the current league, defeating favourites East Bengal and the State Bank of Travancore while drawing their third match against FC Kochin, BSF, on the other hand, have already suffered two defeats against Mohun Bagan and East Bengal while managing a narrow 1-0 win over Dempo here on December 16. The Calcutta outfit, coached by the veteran Amal Dutta who shot into prominence with his “box system”, have emerged as the third major force in the Mecca of Indian football after Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, pushing Mohammedan Sporting into the background. The team does not have a star-studded roster but has on its rolls a host of skilful players, including Shasti Duley, Jayanta Sen, striker Srikanta Dutta, goalkeeper Bibbash Ghosh and defender Bishwanath Mondal.

The club management has also recruited some foreign players like defender Abdul, medio Felix, striker Moses Owira and Isiaka. In the last match against the State Bank of Travancore, Thiruvananthapuram, on December 19, Shasti Duley displayed unique opportunism by snatching a rival defender’s mispass to put Srikanta Dutta in Possession, who scored the all-important goal for his team.

Tollygunge made it to the final of the IFA Shield last month where they lost to Mohun Bagan by a solitary goal. Earlier they beat East Bengal twice in the semifinals of the McDowell Cup and the IFA Shield.

An important aspect of Amal Dutta’s gameplan is to throw a defensive screen to frustrate rival attacks which can put well-known outfits out of gear. At the same time the forwards carry out incisive attacks, achieving success at a moderate rate.

BSF, on the other hand, have shown improvement with successive outings. The last match against East Bengal saw the security men putting up a memorable performance. Skipper Bibbas Saha displayed alertness under the bar while Sane Lama, Tapan Bhattacharya, Prasanta Das and J. Oseph constantly troubled the East Bengal defence. Strikers Gurjit Atwal and D.S. Negi with a little more luck could have even tilted the balance in favour of the BSF. However, against Tollygunge tomorrow, both Gurjit and Negi will have to overcome the crowding tactics of the rival defenders, who are known for such rearguard actions in all major tournaments.

BSF’s last major success was the title win in the Independence Cup where they beat Tata Football Academy in the final last September. The team also won the title in the all-India police games in Nagaland but the recent outing in the Durand Cup ended on a dismal note, as the team lost to PSEB and East Bengal. The contest, the seventh of the league here, is likely to be lively as BSF will be going all out to exploit home conditions to strengthen their position in the National Football League.

Shoaib to stay in team

ISLAMABAD, Dec 23 (PTI) — The Pakistan Cricket Board yesterday said it would not drop Shoaib Akhtar from the Australia-bound team for a one-day international series after confirming that it had received from the ICC video footage of the pace bowler’s alleged suspect bowling action.

The board had received a 20-minute video footage of Akhtar’s bowling action from International Cricket Council (ICC) manager of cricket operations Clive Hitchcock, a PCB official confirmed from the body’s headquarters in Lahore.

Asked if the PCB was contemplating any follow-up action on the issue, the official said the board was committed to defending Akhtar and there would not be any change in the 14-member team led by Wasim Akram which is scheduled to leave for Australia on December 30.

In a letter accompanying the footage, Hitchcock said the ICC’s nine-member advisory panel on illegal deliveries would discuss Akhtar’s bowling action in a telephonic conference on December 30, the official said.

The ICC panel includes former Pakistani skipper Imran Khan, who has strongly defended Akhtar since the controversy over his bowling action erupted during Pakistan’s three-Test series against Australia last month. But, as per ICC rules, he will not be party to the verdict.

New Zealand’s John Reid, who raised objections on Akhtar’s action as the match referee, is also in the panel.

Newly appointed Pakistani coach Intekhab Alam too came to the defence of Akhtar, saying the paceman had a perfect bowling action.

“As far as I am concerned, he (Akhtar) is a textbook fast bowler”, said Alam, who is supervising the team’s conditioning camp at Lahore’s Qaddafi Stadium.

The coach alleged that the controversy was a “pressure tactic to psychologically disturb” the key Pakistan bowler ahead of the series also involving Australia and India.

Meanwhile, PCB Secretary Shafqat Rana said in Karachi that the board had protested to the ICC in its reply to the letter, reports AFP.

“We have registered our protest in the reply and will not withdraw Shoaib from the team because we are not asked to do so by ICC”, Rana told AFP.

“We will protect Akhtar to our best ability because he is our most talented player”, Rana added.

“A panel of experts has watched the footage and they are convinced that there’s no problem in Akhtar’s action. His arm is straight at the time of delivery”, Rana said.

Former Pakistani cricket stalwart Javed Miandad also said he fully backed Akhtar and advised him to sue the Australians after the furore over his bowling action.

“The Australians are hell bent on destroying his career. He may lose his county contract and endorsements and I would suggest he take the Australians to court”, Miandad said.

Miandad was one of the panel of experts who watched the video footage of Akhtar’s bowling action.

Critics accused Akhtar of “chucking” the ball when bowling his fastest deliveries during Pakistan’s Australia tour.

Kapil eager to level series

MELBOURNE, Dec 23 (PTI) — Indian coach Kapil Dev is sure Courtney Walsh will not overtake him as the highest wicket-taker in Test cricket in this millennium.

“We have a pact — Courtney and I. He won’t break the record in this millennium,” the former India captain joked today when asked about Walsh, fast approaching his record of 434 scalps.

The West Indian paceman now needs nine wickets in the second Test against New Zealand starting at Wellington on December 26, after claiming three in the first match at Hamilton, which the Windies lost by nine wickets.

By the looks of it, the 37-year-old Walsh would have to wait for the next year and would hope to break the record when the West Indies tour England in May.

“He will be very happy when he gets there, just as I was,” said Kapil, who broke New Zealand great Richard Hadlee’s record of 431 against Sri Lanka at Ahmedabad six years ago.

The Indian coach, who underwent an arthoscopic surgery on his right knee yesterday, was not happy with suggestions in local media that the Indians would welcome the forecast of rain during the Boxing Day second Test here.

“I am not happy, as suggested by some, with the forecast that it will rain during the Melbourne Test. We’re not looking to square the series in Sydney. We must try to win this game,” said Kapil, who came to MCG on crutches despite the surgery.

It was quite brave on Kapil Dev’s part to be present at the nets today and he admitted it as much.

“I remember the first time I had this operation on my knee it took me two-and-a-half months (to recover),” he said.

A less mentally strong man would have been laid up in bed for at least a week. But the legendary all-rounder, who appeared in more than 90 Tests without a break, said he decided to come to the ground to talk to his wards.

“I just wanted to be back here this morning. Some unfinished work on this tour still remains,” Kapil said.

Tendulkar to revert to No 4

MELBOURNE, Dec 23 (PTI) — In a determined bid to help his team recover its batting poise, skipper Sachin Tendulkar today announced he will revert to batting at number four for the second cricket Test against Australia starting here on December 26.

“Yes, I think I would be there at number four,” he said after the Indian team had nets at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in a breezy morning under a dark cloud cover.

Tendulkar did not disclose whether the opening pair will be changed from the first Test at Adelaide which India lost by 285 runs. A change is on the cards, with Debang Gandhi in particular under tremendous pressure after his poor show in Adelaide, and V.V.S. Laxman is widely tipped to pair lefthander S. Ramesh here.

The Indian skipper dismissed suggestions his players were scared of pace — the MCG pitch is predicted to be very bouncy and is expected to prove a tough proposition for the Indian batsmen against the host pacemen — but exhorted his teammates not to be overawed by the conditions or opponents.

“It is a fallacy that we can’t play bouncing deliveries. It is just not true. I know there has been much talk going around about it, but personally I know for a fact that we are not affected,” Tendulkar said adding that despite the heavy defeat at Adelaide his players have not lost heart.

On the hype surrounding express paceman Brett Lee’s expected Test debut at the MCG, Tendulkar said he did not see the fast bowler as a major threat in the second Test.

“I did not play him at Sydney (against New South Wales) and only briefly at Canberra. I can’t offer much on his quality, but we are not worrying about individuals. We will play them as they come”.

Tendulkar’s return to number four in the batting order will be seen as a positive move. Two dubious decisions he was handed out in the first Test hardly helped matters. He batted at number five in Adelaide after V.V.S. Laxman came at number three, ahead of Rahul Dravid.

He denied his team was under any pressure. “If you are not positive you could complicate things. You would not be helping yourself in such a situation,” he said.

The batting maestro said despite the second innings batting collapse and the big defeat, his team had its moments in Adelaide. “We started by having them four down for 52 and then on the fourth day, our bowling and fielding gave nothing away,” Tendulkar said.

“I remember Kapil paaji telling me our bowling in the two sessions on the fourth day was one of the best by Indian bowlers he could recall in his career,” he said.

He defended the move to bowl Saurav Ganguly on the first day afternoon with the hosts reeling at 52 for four. “Saurav is a very under-rated bowler. I remember him skittling out two or three top Australian batsmen in the Calcutta Test last year (India won to clinch the three-test series). When we started after lunch, I thought he would be able to do the same here,” he said.

Tendulkar did not want to dwell on the negative aspects of the tour, but said there were plenty of positive things to talk about. He said even the four-day game at Hobart against Tasmania benefited the Indian batsmen. “It benefited our batsmen greatly. Rahul had a good outing, VVS had some runs under his belt and Hrishikesh could also spend some time in the middle”.

Dravid struck a century in the first innings of the drawn encounter while Laxman hit up a half-century in the second innings as an opener.

Mongia leaves for Mumbai today

MELBOURNE, Dec 23 (PTI) — Wicketkeeper Nayan Mongia will end his brief but agonising stay with the touring Indian cricket team when he leaves here for Sydney tomorrow morning on his way to Mumbai.

The seasoned stumper, in the centre of a row between the cricket board and the team management after being flown in as a replacement to his younger counterpart M.S.K. Prasad, will take a direct Qantas flight from Sydney to Mumbai.

Mongia said today he was relieved a decision had at last been taken over his stay.

The Baroda wicketkeeper had been a frustrated man as team coach Kapil Dev and captain Sachin Tendulkar said he was not required as Prasad had recovered after hurting his right knee while the team was travelling to Australia.

Mongia was flown in here ahead of the first Test held at Adelaide from December 10 to 14 on a request by the team management after Prasad picked up a knee injury at the Kuala Lumpur airport during the team’s travel to Australia.

But Prasad’s condition improved and he was chosen to play in the Adelaide Test. He has now been certified fully fit by team physio Andrew Leipus.

Lee promises fiery pace

MELBOURNE, Dec 23 (PTI) — Encouraged by the Indians’ notorious weakness against fast bowling, new Australian pace sensation Brett Lee has promised he will deliver them as fast as he can in the second cricket Test starting December 26 at Melbourne.

Lee, who will be making his Test debut if named in the playing eleven, said he has been chosen to bowl fast and he’s certainly not going out there in Melbourne to work on his outswinger or bowl off-cutters.

“I’m an attacking bowler and I’m not one to sit back and wait for something to happen. I go out there and try to make things happen,” the New South Wales (NSW) speedster was quoted by local media as saying today.

The Australians clearly believe they can blast out the Indians and take an unassailable 2-0 lead here as the tourists have shown that they don’t play the fast bowlers as well as other teams in Australia.

And they want to use Brett Lee as their major weapon on the bouncy track of Melbourne cricket ground.

Lee, who has been described by his state and national captain Steve Waugh as the fastest in the world at the moment, got the better of the visiting Indians when he took seven wickets for NSW in a tour match at the SCG earlier this month.

In just 11 first class games this season, Lee has taken 31 wickets at an average of 22.84.

Lee, brother of world cup all-rounder Shane, has captured the imagination of the Australian fans and also come in for praise from former players.

Big praise has come from the legendary Dennis Lillee, who said the young bowler was as fast as anyone he had seen.

“He’s right up there but it’s more than the pace. He’s got a great head on his shoulders. He’s a mature bowler,” said Lillee, the highest wicket-taker for Australia in Tests with 355 scalps.

“He’s a very ready Test-made bowler. I have no doubt if he stays fit and strong he will go down as one of the very, very top bowlers Australia has had,” said Lillee.

Lillee worked with Lee over four years and helped remodel his action after the New South Waleshman suffered stress fractures in his back.

“When he had the problems, I take my hat off to him. He just put the hard work in on his action and strengthening his trunk, and the results are there for all to see,” the pace guru said.

Ganguly, Dravid emerge out of Sachin’s shadow

MUMBAI, Dec 23 (PTI) —Saurav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, who made their Test debut together at Lord’s, broke out of the larger-than-life shadow of Sachin Tendulkar in spectacular style in the last year of the millennium but the trio could not pilot India to the coveted World Cup, the year’s showpiece.

Left-hander Ganguly, scorer of a Test century on debut, and the technically sound Dravid, who missed out narrowly on the distinction, emerged as the batting mainstays in a year when maestro Tendulkar endured a personal loss and physical pain before regaining the high-profile national captaincy.

Ganguly and Dravid accumulated 1,767 and 1,761 runs in the limited overs variety of the game, which included 379 and 461 runs respectively in the World Cup, while Tendulkar — who lost his father Ramesh during the first phase of the tournament - came up with a modest tally of 253 in the cup.

Tendulkar also endured physical disability because of recurring back spasms for the major part of the last year of the 20th century.

He had to skip a few one-day matches and a couple of limited overs tournaments too before regaining full fitness towards the end of the 12-month period in the series against New Zealand in which he notched up his maiden Test double ton.

Kumble and his Karnataka mate Javagal Srinath continued to be India’s key wicket-takers during the year which saw the revival of one of the world’s most eagerly-awaited sports contests — India versus Pakistan — in the Test arena after a gap of nearly a decade.

India drew the entertaining and exciting two-Test series with their arch-rivals, put together for the first time after the two nations’ drawn four-Test series held across the border in 1989, 1-1 by losing at Chennai and winning at Delhi.

India then lost another humdinger to the same rivals in the inaugural Asian Test Championship series opener at Calcutta’s Eden Gardens which was marred by crowd trouble on the last two days and had to be completed after clearing the stadium of spectators.

The Indians were later soundly beaten in the tri-series finals by Pakistan, both at Bangalore and Sharjah, in the run-up to the World Cup in which the team, with a lot of hype surrounding it before its departure three weeks in advance of the tournament opening, flopped miserably by being eliminated at the super six stage.

But the Mohammed Azharuddin-led squad achieved the highly-emotional job, in the backdrop of the Kargil conflict between the two nations, of beating Pakistan for the third time in as many World Cup meetings in a surcharged atmosphere at Old Trafford in the super six stage.

To many Indians it was the highlight of the mega event and saved the team largely from brickbats for its subsequent elimination from the tournament though the failure to reach the last four cost Azhar his job and coach Anshuman Gaekwad his post — in September.

Azhar underwent a shoulder operation after the World Cup and was not available for India’s first post-cup engagement, the tri-series in Sri Lanka, in which Tendulkar commenced his second stint as skipper after being installed on the hot seat by the selectors against his own wishes.

Azhar was ignored by the selectors even after regaining full fitness before the home series against New Zealand — an indication that he would have been shown the door as captain even if he had been fit for the Lanka sojourn.

A rusty-looking India, which won four and lost as many matches in their world cup campaign, failed to reach the next triangular series final too at Colombo featuring newly crowned world champions Australia and 1996 champions Lanka.

Tendulkar, who had consulted London specialist Dr Ken Kennedy for his back problem after skipping the tri-series at home and in Sharjah at the end of the Asian Test series, had a recurrence of his back spasms during his century knock against Australia in this series and had to skip a match too.

He carried on with his troublesome back in the next tri-nation tournament at Singapore, where India lost to the West Indies in the final, before deciding to consult specialists at the Australian Cricket Academy in Adelaide.

In Tendulkar’s absence, Saurav Ganguly led India to a 2-1 triumph over West Indies.

Tendulkar returned for the home test and limited overs series against the Kiwis and showed no evidence of any back trouble while leading India to a 1-0 triumph in the three-test series and a 3-2 victory in the following limited overs event.

The ace batsman showed that he was back to his wonted form with a century in the first Test at Mohali, which was drawn, and a career-best knock of 217 at Ahmedabad in the third test which too ended in a stalemate.

Kumble, back to his beguiling best after being dropped for the Toronto and Kenya events following indifferent displays in the post-cup period in Lanka and Singapore, grabbed 20 wickets in the series - including a 10-wicket haul in the second test at Kanpur which the team won - to continue to be India’s trump card on slow turners at home.

Dravid and Ganguly also chipped in with solid efforts with the bat while the new opening partnership of Sadagopan Ramesh and Devang Gandhi clicked well with two back-to-back century stands at Mohali and Kanpur as India clinched the series easily to maintain their 13-year unbeaten run at home.

Tendulkar and Dravid also compiled a world record stand of 331 at Hyderabad in the second one-day international to pilot India to an all-time high total of 376 for two wickets.

Their stand bettered the 318-run association between Ganguly and Dravid for the same second-wicket in the World Cup league match against Sri Lanka at Taunton in which India had scored 273 for six which was its previous highest aggregate.

In the same match against the Kiwis, Tendulkar smashed 186 not out which obliterated Ganguly’s previous-best individual score (by an Indian) of 183 made at Taunton against the Lankan attack with a record seven sixes.

Tendulkar’s knock of 186 not out was the fourth-best in the annals of one-day cricket following Saeed Anwar’s 194 (v India), Vivian Richards 189 (v England) and Gary Kirsten’s 188 (v UAE).

In the course of the year Tendulkar also joined Azhar as India’s second-highest Test century maker (21 each) behind Sunil Gavaskar’s world record 34 tons.

The maestro, who had airdashed to Mumbai from England to attend his father’s last rites, scored 843 runs in one-dayers during the year. At the end of the series against the Kiwis his run tally for the year read 859 in eight Tests which included four centuries too.

Dravid’s Test run aggregate for the year was slightly less at 801, in the same number of matches. It had as many three-figure innings as Tendulkar’s and included his knocks of 190 and 103 not out in the third drawn Test at Hamilton against New Zealand in the first week of 1999.

India played eight Tests from January till the end of the home series against the Kiwis, won two, lost as many and drew the rest. The team also played a record 43 one-day internationals during the year, won 21 and lost 20 while the other two ended in no result.

But the biggest disappointment was the team’s failure to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup in which it managed to lose to Zimbabwe from a winning position in the second league match of the preliminary phase.

That unexpected loss by an agonising three runs cost India dear in their bid to reach the semis because of the format by which points against other qualifiers were carried forward into the super six phase.

England team to study Klusener

DURBAN, Dec 23 (Reuters) — England’s cricketers are studying videotape of Lance Klusener in a bid to devise a method of coping with the South African’s batting prowess.

Duncan Fletcher, the England coach, said three days before the start of the third Test in Durban on Sunday that the tourists had caught Klusener on camera and hoped to put the evidence they had gathered to good use.

“We’ve had a videotape produced (of Klusener batting) and the players have been given an instruction to go and look at it,’’ Fletcher said today. “(Captain) Nasser (Hussain) and I have already seen it.

“It’s important that the bowlers see it and make their decision on where to bowl to him. We want to give them a bit of the responsibility instead of them being told all the time.’’

Fletcher said England had come up with a bowling strategy against Klusener for the early part of the tour but implied that his players had not followed the plan, particularly during the powerful left-hander’s match-winning 174 in the first Test which helped to put the home side 1-0 up with three matches to play.

“I’ve spoken to other Test players who are out here and they seem to agree with the tactics that we were meant to employ against him — over the wicket and very straight, that’s what we’re trying to get our bowlers to do.’’

The relentless rain of the past four days gave way to sunshine today.

Sethi, others fail to cross first hurdle

NEW DELHI, Dec 23 (PTI) — A three-member Indian team led by ace cueist Geet Sethi impressed much in their first appearance in WPA 9 Ball World Pool Championship which concluded recently at Alicante, Spain, but could not move beyond the first stage due to lack of experience.

The Indian squad of former professional billiards’ world champion Sethi and former national snooker champions Devendra Joshi and Dharmendra Lilly was outsed in the first stage itself in the two phase championship, held from December 6 to 12, which was won by American Nick Warner in the men’s section.

Sethi showed his command on the green baize when he scored a 9-4 victory against Eduardo Gullen of Spain in the opening match of the first round, according to information received here.

The 38-year-old Indian scored another easy victory in his next game, beating local star Fernando Orfall 9-3 but could not continue the good work as he went down 11-4 in the crucial third game to crash out of the tournament.

Joshi also bowed down in the final match of Stage I. The snooker ace from Maharashtra beat a tough American opponent Art Wiggens 9-4 in the opening game. Facing the toughest player in the game in his next game, Joshi beat Evgenu Stalev of Russia by an overwhelming margin of 9-1.

Dharminder Lily lost out on valuable match practice, getting bye in the first round. The player from Punjab lost to Dutchman Neils Feijon 9-2. He improved his show against Sweden’s Sten Jarledal but lost 11-9 in a close encounter for a disappointing end to his campaign.

Warner beat Jones Jermey 13-8 in an all-American final to bring back the title to the USA after a gap of one year. Warner beat defending champion Takahashi Kunihiko of Japan 13-2 in the pre-quarters to record the biggest upsets of the event.

Lin Shin-Mei of Chinese Taipei defeated reigning champion Allison Fisher, the most successful pool player in the world, by a close 11-10 margin to win the women’s title.

Despite lack of experience, both Sethi and Joshi started their campaign in a manner that sent the spirits of the Indian camp soaring.

In his opening match against crowd favourite Guillen, Sethi lost in the first rack as his opponent took the 9 ball through one to take a 1-0 lead. The Indian ace quickly recovered to take the next four for a 4-1 lead before Eduardo pulled three back to level at 4-4.

Sethi then came charging back to take the next five racks to win 9-4.

Joshi faced a much tougher opponent in Wiggens. Like Sethi he also lost his first rack but then raced to a 4-1 lead and then potted a tough shot to go 5-1 up after Wiggnes had pocked the 2nd, 4th, 8th, 6th and 7th balls. The American then pulled three more back before Joshi finished it 9-4.

The men’s category was divided into two stages. While 48 players were given a direct entry into Stage II based on their world ranking, 16 others from a field of 128 were selected from Stage I to make a field of 64 for Stage II.

Since the Indians were playing their first WPA event, they had to go through Stage I.

Alexsandra, Nasigul steal show
From Our Sports Reporter

PATIALA, Dec 23 — As the team championship commenced in the Ist Central South Asian Gymnastic Championship here it was clear during the preliminary competition itself that the Nepalese were too lethargic in their movements, so were the Bangla gymnastic, Sri Lankans had little to show by way of talent and it seemed that only the Indians had the necessary wherewithal to make a dent in the rivals reputations.

Uzbekistan players showed glimpses of their brilliance, particularly in the women’s section, where the nimble-footed Alexsandra Gordeeva mesmerised the spectators as she exhibited fine form in the uneven bars event. Twelve-year-old junior Uzbekistan national champion Nasigul Almatova was the cynosure of all eyes in the vaulting horse event.

Overall the quality of gymnastics on view did not rise above mediocrity, barring the quality fair meted out by the Uzbeks. And as things are going on, it seems that the dominance of the Asian giants — the Uzbeks — will remain unchecked.

In the preliminary rounds as the Uzbeks eves were proving their dominance, in both the vaulting horse and the uneven bars — the only two events slated for today in the women’s section.

Earlier, the inaugural edition of the championships got off to a dazzling start at the local polo ground indoor gymnasium here today morning.

Even the non-arrival of the Pakistan team, which was scheduled to field a six-member squad in the men’s section, failed to dampen the spirits of the organisers who made sure that the much-hyped opening ceremony was a stupendous success.

The 90-minute high voltage opening ceremony turned out to be full of razzle and dazzle. The ceremony was witnessed by a jam-packed hall, full of school children, gymnastic lovers, competition and technical delegates.

After the opening ceremony, there was this spectacle of competitors of all participating countries mingling together, exchanging pleasantries and discussing future prospects.

During the mandatory march past, the spotlight was on the Uzbekistanis. The tiny Himalayan kingdom of Nepal fielded the smallest contingent while the Bangladeshis the largest. After the march past it was time for another mandatory ritual — the oath-taking ceremony where Vikas Pandey of the hosts read out the oath of “playing the game in the right spirit”. An oath taking ceremony was also held for the Judges.

The Chief Minister, Mr P.S. Badal, declared the games open, but only after extolling the virtues of sports and sportsmanship.

Yadwinder scores a hat-trick
From Our Sports Reporter

LUDHIANA, Dec 23 — Hosts Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, outclassed last year’s runner-up Punjab University, Chandigarh, 4-1 to register their first victory on the third day of the second Prithipal Singh Memorial Punjab State Inter-Varsity Hockey Tournament for men at the astroturf hockey stadium of PAU here today.

PAU boys who had lost 0-1 to Punjab University, Patiala in the inaugural match of this tournament were a transformed lot today. They dictated terms from the word go. They drew the first blood in the 23 minute through Yadwinder Singh.

After changing ends, Yadwinder added two more goals (34th and 48th minutes) to score the first hat-trick of the tournament. In the 56th minute, Chandigarh reduced the margin through Gurpreet Singh (3-1). Just seven minutes before the hooter, Ludhiana boys pumped in another goal through Jagroop Singh to wrap up the issue 4-1.

In another match, holders Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, began their campaign in a style outplaying Punjabi University, Patiala 5-2.

GND varsity men opened their account in the very fourth minute of the game through Kulwinder Singh. In the 16th minute, Patiala boys restored parity when Rajesh successfully converted a stroke. But their joys was shortlived as GND varisty’s Harminder Singh put his team ahead again in the 20th minute.

After establishing 2-1 lead at the half time, GND varsity increased the lead in the 42th minute through Marminder, Manjit Singh sounded the board to make it 4-1.

Patiala’s fullback Sarabraj Singh converted a corner into a goal to make it 4-2. A few minutes before the long whistle, Jaswinder Singh of GND varsity struck to clinch the issue 5-2.

Tomorrow’ s fixture — PAU, Ludhiana Vs GND varsity, Amritsar 1 p.m.

Mohd Saif leads

CHENNAI, Dec 23 (PTI) — Mohd Saif Sheikh of Uttar Pradesh led the junior section and was lying fourth in the open category of the clay pigeon trap at National Shooting Championship here today.

Sheikh, who took time to get his sights on the pigeons against a backdrop of dark clouds, shot 13 out of 25 in the open category, to tie with P. Ikshu Dhanva of Karnataka and Man Singh of Tamil Nadu.

B. Ashok was leading with 16, followed by R. Ravi Kumar (15) and Ranjit Kumar (ONGC-14) for second and third spots.

In the junior section, Sheikh was all set to clinch the gold as he had a four point lead over H. Balaji and Jayeshchand (both Tamil Nadu), each of whom had nine points.

In the Services class, Krishnakumar (17), Satheesan (9) and Thomas (8), all from the Army, were leading the fray.

Amongst women, Tamil Nadu shooters Sumathi Muthalagan (12), Malathi David (8) and Harinder Singh of Punjab (6) were the leaders.

Andy Flower stays captain

HARARE, Dec 23 (Reuters) Andy Flower has retained the Zimbabwean captaincy until the tour of England starting in May, despite his team’s poor showing in the home series against Sri Lanka.

Flower, Zimbabwe’s captain until after the 1996 World Cup, regained the leadership after Alistair Campbell resigned the captaincy two days before the one-off Test against South Africa in November.

Zimbabwe lost that match by an innings and the touring Sri Lankans then beat them 1-0 in the three-Test series and 3-1 in the five-match one-day series.

Deepan stuns Humpy

AHMEDABAD, Dec 23 (UNI) — The dream of top seeded Indian K. Humpy (6) to win the title of under-12 boys category with a round to spare was shattered when she was beaten by fellow Indian Deepan Chakraborthy (5) in penultimate round in the Asian Youth Chess Championship being played here today.

However, despite this defeat Humpy has continued to lead the field, while in the under-12 girls yesterday’s Iranian leader Atousa Pour (5.5) was shocked and pushed down to second spot by sixth seeded Indian Krutika Nadig (5).

CBSE kho-kho results

CHANDIGARH, Dec 23 (BOSR) — The hosts PML SD Public School, Sector 32, surged ahead on the opening day of the 2nd CBSE National Kho-Kho Tournament which began here today in the school grounds.

More than 30 teams from different schools affiliated to CBSE are taking part in the three-day meet which was inaugurated by Mr Parag Jain SSP, Chandigarh.

SD Public School, Chandigarh won by an innings and 17 points against the DDTIC, Gorakhpur, in boys section while in girls the JDKDES Public School, Charkhi Dadri (Haryana), won by nine points and one innings against the DDTIC, Gorakhpur.

Results:

Girls: BIV, Bokaro beat BAV, Kochi ( Kerala) by one turn and 19 points; Bal Bhavan, Delhi b SIS Rara Sahib by one turn; DAV Police School, Jalandhar b SIC South, Indore by one point; HCS, Bokaro b KDB, Ghaziabad by one turn and six points and JDKDES Public School, Charkhi Dadri(Haryana) b DDTIC, Gorakhpur by nine points.

Boys: PML SD Public School, Chandigarh b DDTIC, Gorakhpur by one innings and 17 points; BIVBS, Bokaro city b BA Vidyalaya, Kochi by one innings and 17 points; Vivekananda Public School, Delhi b DAV Sahibabad by five points; Ashok MPS, Faridabad b RRPS, Delhi by six points ; GAEMS, Kerala b BSKM, Chittorgarh by 17 points; SGTBPS, Patiala b BP DAV School, Andhra Pradesh by four points; Shishu Niketan School, Chandigarh b MKGM, Baroda by 10 points.

Bharat Petroleum, PSB in final

JALANDHAR, Dec 23 (FOSR) — Last year’s runners-up Punjab & Sind Bank, Delhi set up a title clash with Bharat Petroleum in the men’s section in the 3rd Romesh Chander Memorial All India Hockey Tournament for the “Farmatrac Cup-99”. In the final of women section holder Haryana-XI will cross swords against the Sukhjit Starch Mill, Phagwara to be played tomorrow at Burlton Park astroturf hockey stadium here.

In women’s version, holder Haryana-XI topped the table with nine points from their three league matches, whereas Sukhjit Starch Mill, Phagwara and Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar earned four points each from their three outings. But on the better goal average Starch Mill, Phagwara managed to get place in the final.

In the semi-finals played today, Bharat Petroleum defeated Indian Airlines by 1-0 while Punjab and Sind Bank, Delhi outwitted Indian Railways by 3-2.

In the first semi-final in the men’s section Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited played well controlled game against the star-studded Indian Airlines.