Friday, November 26, 1999
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S P O R T | Friday, November 26, 1999 |
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Stephan set to enthrall
fans India struggle to beat China Agassi downs Sampras India face difficult task Laxmi disappoints Lewis to replace Adams as skipper England bundled out for 122 Poulami, Ranbir champions |
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BRISBANE, Nov 25 (PTI) — The touring Indians will have their first taste of Australian conditions when they take on the formidable Queensland side in the tour opener at the bouncy Gabba pitch here tomorrow. The home side, currently on a roll, defeated New South Wales twice in one month, also beat Pakistan in the opening match of their tour last month and are comfortable leaders at present in the Pura Milk Cup. In the last five years, they have been the champions twice — in 1994-95 and 1996-97 seasons. The team has as many as six internationals in the ranks minus fast bowler Michael Kasprowicz who has been chosen to bolster the Aussie attack against Pakistan in the final Test at WACA, Perth starting tomorrow. The Indians have in their ranks three batsmen with the best averages in the world in Saurav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid. The three should do enough to make everyone realise here why they are rated so highly. The match should also be a good testing ground for openers Sadagopan Ramesh and Devang Gandhi. The medium pace bowlers too should find the bouncy Gabba pitch to their liking and the battle would be on in earnest among the five seamers to secure their places in the playing eleven. Only bold and courageous methods would make it a worthwhile trip for the Indians. Queensland, which has profited immensely in the 90s through Allan Border’s presence and leadership and inspiring ‘keeper Ian Healy, also provides the brainstrust to the national Australian squad in the form of their coach John Buchanan. The side is led by 31-year-old Stuart Law, a right-handed batsman and bowler who has played a Test and 54-one-dayers for Australia in recent times. The supporting batting mainstays are internationals James Maher and Matthew Hayden who are due to open the innings. Matthew Hayden, who has intermittently played in only seven Tests for Australia since his debut against South Africa at Johannesburg in 1994, is back in contention for a Test batting spot. Hayden, with one century from four Pura Milk Cup knocks, 103 and 80 in two Mercantile Mutual innings, and a tour century against Pakistan makes him reasonably confident. But he is quick to remind everyone that his 1036 runs at an average of 126 in the 1993-94 summer were not good enough for him to get a crack at higher honours. Maher is a right-arm batsman and medium-pace bowler who turned out in two internationals — against New Zealand and South Africa — for Australia last year. Lest one forgets, the side also has sensational Andrew Symonds in its ranks. The former Gloucestershire and Kent pro, Symonds has turned out in nine one-dayers for Australia and his best score of 68 was made against India itself at Galle, Sri Lanka in AIWA Cup tournament in August. Queensland are unlikely to miss Kasprowicz much since pacemen Andrew Bichel, Adam Dale and Scott Muller are already capable to set the pitch on fire. Muller, who has played in the first two Tests against Pakistan, has been omitted for the Perth encounter since his seven wickets at 36.85 were not considered good enough by the selectors. Bichel and Dale similarly are out of favour at the moment, having played their last Tests for Australia in 1998. Bichel has played three Tests for two wickets and Dale two for six scalps in their short careers. Dale’s best figures of 3 for 71 were recorded against India in his debut in the Bangalore Test in the 1998 series. Queensland’s wicketkeeper Wade Seccombe is also highly rated in Australian cricket circles and is a true Healy protege. Gabba has undergone a complete overhaul in recent times. The old, antiquated wooden stands have been completely redone with the dog track around the boundary is being replaced. Even the famous wooden scoreboard seems to have lived through its life. Indian team: Sachin Tendulkar (capt), Devang Gandhi, S. Ramesh, Rahul Dravid, Saurav Ganguly, MSK Prasad, Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad, Ajit Agarkar, Debashish Mohanty, T Kumaran, Anil Kumble. Hours of play (IST):
5.30 am to 7.30 am. 8.10 am to 10.10 am, 10.30 an to
12.30 pm.
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BRISBANE, Nov 25 (PTI) — Indian cricket coach Kapil Dev had only one advice to his pace bowlers on the fast Australian wickets: “Don’t get carried away.” “Of course these wickets are different from back home and I know it would be difficult to resist yourself as a fast bowler on these tracks but if I have to give one advice to them it will be ‘don’t get carried away,” said Kapil Dev. The coach, however, said “I want them to have their own impression, how they feel comfortable in a certain style.” He was speaking to reporters after the team somehow squeezed enough practice on a greyish morning with one particularly torrid spell of rain this morning. Kapil Dev had the local media drooling over his inimitable spontaneous style and witty oneliners. Will Sachin Tendulkar play? “Why not? What makes you think he will not,” Kapil said in mock agitation. “I want all my top batsmen to lap up as much practice as possible in the first two games before the first Test and all of them would play.” He saw no point in carrying the fear of Australia to the Tests. “They are inarguably the best side in world cricket at the moment but we have come here to win, to beat them. Does Australia’s irrepressible form against Pakistan worry him? Isn’t it a wake up call for his team? “Oh, I have been having this wake up call for almost a month now,” Kapil Dev said. “We’ll see if we are wide awake to the issues in the next few weeks.” Kapil Dev was once against asked to comment on board secretary Jaywant Lele’s reported remark on 3-0 demolition of India by Australia in the coming series, but he refused. “I don’t want to comment about it. You should ask the administrative manager about it,” he said and added: “as far as I know, the secretary has denied the statement attributed to him and is even threatening to sue the erring media.” The coach later requested the media to leave captain Sachin Tendulkar alone. “Let him handle his cricket,” he said in earnestness. Kapil Dev had no complaints about the nets nor about the threatening weather but, all in good humour, he had one against his own batsmen. “They keep losing the kookaburra balls. Two were lost yesterday and two today,” he said and was quick to explain that the Indian board had made arrangements for the team to have enough balls but “there is no point in losing them and looking to requisition them all the time.” A fair crowd had gathered around the indoor nets where the Indians were practising and they were particularly keen on watching Tendulkar. The Indian captain, ironically, had trouble adjusting to the two pace practice wickets. Some balls tended to keep low while others flew off from a length. Most of the medium-pacers, however, operated from a short run. The Indian coach had a lengthy catching practice with the players and was busy trying out a correct slip formation. If it was Saurav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar yesterday, it was Vijay Bhardwaj, Sadagopan Ramesh and Ajit Agarkar who were asked to catch edges flying off Kapil Dev’s bat today. In the nets, the Indians had an unexpected visitor in former Test cricketer Russi Surti who is based in Australia for the past 31 years. Surti, who toured here with Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi’s team in 1968, never went back as he was given a contract to play in league cricket here. He runs an indoor coaching clinic here and visits India often. He was at the nets,
“to catch up with Kapil Dev” with whom he has
struck a rapport over the last few Indian visits to
Australia. |
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PERTH, Nov 25 (AFP) — Pakistan, who trail Australia 2-0 in their three Test Series, are a better all-round side than India, who have just arrived for their tour here, Australian captain Steve Waugh believes. India are very tough at home, but away they have won very few Tests over the past 10 years,” Waugh said today on the eve of the third Test. “To me, this says Pakistan are a better all-round side in all conditions, but if you go to India you probably rate India as one of the top sides in the world at home. Away from home, it is a bit of a different story with India.” Australia are due to play India in a three-Test series with matches at Adelaide (December 10-14), Melbourne (December 26-30) and Sydney (January 2-6). India will also compete in a three-nation one-day tournament with Australia and Pakistan in a month-long contest starting on January 9. Waugh said he would rate it an outstanding achievement if Australia defeated Pakistan 3-0. It would be great, because this Pakistan side is a very fine team — as good as anyone else in world cricket, definitely in the top three, with South Africa,” he said. “It could have been 1-1 but for our great win in Hobart. It would be a shame to waste that win and play poorly in Perth.” Cricketers’ loss of privacy in an age of ever-expanding technological gimmickery was lamented here by captain Steve Waugh. “The microphone (on the field) is an invasion of your privacy — you can’t seem to have any conversation these days without someone knowing about it,” he said. “It would be nice if players had a little bit of privacy some time.” Waugh was commenting on a segment in a commercial television programme last night in which an Australian player apparently made derogatory remarks about team-mate Scott Muller during the second Test against Pakistan in Hobart. The remarks were picked up by a microphone on the field. Muller, a fast bowler who failed to produce his best form, has been dropped from the side for the third and final Test of the series starting here tomorrow. “If Muller is upset about the incident, it’s not a good thing,” Waugh said. “He probably did not do himself justice in the first two Tests, but he did reasonably well and we would love to see him back playing for Australia. “You certainly don’t want to see a team-mate upset by something like that.” Waugh said that, as well as microphones, it seemed there was a camera everywhere players went. “There’s a camera at the hotel, at the dinners, or when you are watching the game,” he said. “I suppose that is
modern sport, but things are certainly changing and it
takes a time to get used to it. |
Stephan
set to enthrall fans CHANDIGARH, Nov 25 — Star Nigerian striker Stephan Abarowei is all set to get cracking in the national football arena again and in all probability he is likely to figure in the IFA Shield final tomorrow in Calcutta which will witness a clash of two premier outfits — Mohun Bagan and Tollygunge Agragami. Stephan,who arrived in Calcutta on November 18, had to wait for a couple of days before he got the final clearance from KFC Desselsport of Belgium to join India’s top soccer club,Mohun Bagan.The final agreement with Mohun Bagan was signed yesterday.Stephan’s inclusion will add the much needed sting to the Bagan attack,which was a worrying factor for the newly-appointed coach Subrata Bhattacharji. For football buffs of the region, Stephan Abarowei is a familiar name.Till last year,he was a regular member of Punjab’s premier club, JCT Phagwara,which he had joined in 1996-97.In fact such was Stephan’s dominance that despite being a part of JCT’s star-studded roster which included Baichung Bhutia, IM Vijayan, Carlton Chapman and Joe Paul Ancheri, he easily stood out from the pack.His lightning bursts down the flanks and power-packed shots left indelible marks on memories of football fans all over India. Tall, lithe of muscle and possessing abounding energy, Stephan Abarowei had a major hand in JCT’s maiden title triumph in the high-profile Philips National Football League. Stephan had left JCT at the end of the 1996-97 season but returned to the fold of the Phagwara outfit in January, 1998. During this period, he suffered a personal bereavement as his son, Joshua, breathed his last in Lagos after a brief illness. Though heart-broken, Stephan once again started concentrating on football and started doing what he liked best — scoring goals under the most trying circumstances. Born on November 30, 1971, at Lagos in southern Nigeria, the 28-year-old Stephan Abarowei took to football more than a decade ago.In 1989 he was included in Nigeria’s national team which he continued to represent till 1992. Over the past few years,he represented different clubs like Chempaka and KFC Desselsport in the Malaysian and Belgian leagues, respectively. With the National
Football League scheduled to commence on December 9,
Stephan Abarowei will once again be the cynosure of all
eyes though in a new green and maroon jersey of Mohun
Bagan. |
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NEW DELHI, Nov 25 (PTI) — An off-colour Leander Peas struggled in his singles match before losing to China’s Zhu Ben Qiang as India was stretched to the deciding doubles tie before closing it out 2-1 for a semifinal berth in the ATF Asia Cup Team Tennis Championship here today. Paes, probably suffering from jetlag, was caught unawares by Chinese, No. 1 Zhu as he rattled the world’s best doubles player with gutsy play. The Indian, who arrived in the capital only last night, easily won the first set 6-4, but then Zhu started tiring Paes with long rallies to take the next two sets 6-2, 6-2 and level the three-match rubber 1-1. Prahlad Srinath had put India ahead with a workmanlike 6-2, 6-1 win over Chinese No. 2 Xu Ran in just over an hour. Paes then paired with Syed Fazaluddin in the absence of regular partner Mahesh Bhupathi and the two saw to it that two-time champion India stayed in the hunt for continental supremacy for the third straight year. The duo defeated the Chinese tandem of Zhu Ben Qiang and Jiang Shan 6-3, 6-3 in just 70 minutes to give India a place in the last four, where they meet Japan from the bottom half of the draw. Earlier in the day, India A succumbed 0-3 to South Korea in a placement match. The second string Indians — Sunil Kumar and Vijay Kannan — showed few sparks of brilliance but overall, the Koreans proved too hot to handle. The crowd favourite Paes failed to live up to expectations despite the fact that his opponent Zhu’s name does not figure even in the top 1000 in the ATP rankings. Paes, coming here after ending runners-up in the season-ending ATP World Doubles Championship with Bhupathi, started in right earnest by breaking Zhu in the very first game. Both the players held on with their serves then on and as Paes blasted five aces, the Indian looked to be in command. Serving for the set, Paes was down 30-40 but he stretched the 10th game to duece thrice before firing an ace to close out the set in just 35 minutes. Paes, watched from his sidelines by who’s who of all India Tennis Association, again broke Zhu in the opening game of the second set, but that was the last game in which the Indian dictated the terms. Paes dropped his serve in the second and it looked as if he was taking it lightly but Zhu really made him work. The top Chinese, who was part of their Davis Cup team that went down 0-5 to India in the Asia-Oceania Group I tie in Calcutta in April, then broke Paes in the sixth and eighth games winning the second set 6-2 to stun the sparse crowd. In the decider, Paes totally looked off colour and gave up the fight. His penchant for breaking Zhu in the opening game continued but the wiry Chinese had something in store as Paes was broken in the 4th, 6th and 8th much to the shock of the Indian contingent. Davis Cupper Srinath’s victory in the opening tie against Xu Ran thus proved crucial for India. India take on Japan in the second semifinal and top seed Uzbekistan meet Thailand in the first tomorrow. Srinath, playing with an ankle-strep, showed no such worries against his rival Xu. The Indian broke Xu in the fifth game with a blistering backhand passing winner and then again in the 7th as the Chinese double-faulted at duece to give away an easy point. Srinath was also
stretched to duece in the 8th game but he held on to win
the first set 6-2. |
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HANOVER, Nov 25 (Reuters) —The eagerly-awaited battle of giants between Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras turned out to be a one-sided affair with Agassi cruising to a 6-2 6-2 victory at the ATP Tour World Championship yesterday. Agassi had lost all three matches against his compatriot this year, including the Wimbledon final, but the Las Vegan was in a class of his own this time and needed just an hour to blow away the man he replaced as world number one. “In a normal situation I would not have beaten him 6-2 6-2. With Pete, you usually have the impression that he can always turn the match the next point,’’ Agassi said. “It was not like that today. He had to take risks on his second serve, which did not work that well.’’ Sampras, who had played only one match in three months before entering the year-end event, never got close to the brilliant form that demolished Brazil’s Gustavo Kuerten in his opening match on Tuesday. The Wimbledon champion won the first six points but it soon became clear he was in no position to mount a realistic challenge to his confident opponent, who was watched by girlfriend Steffi Graf. After a superb backhand pass earned Agassi a break point in the fifth game of the first set, Sampras double-faulted to go 3-2 down. A stream of blistering returns countered Sampras’ serve, which gradually lost its potency, and Agassi stayed on top by breaking his opponent with another backhand pass to build a 5-2 lead. He wrapped up the first set in 35 minutes. Another unforced error
by a nervous Sampras saw him drop serve to go 3-2 down in
the second set. He was broken again two games later as
Agassi lost all fear of his opponent’s delivery. |
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KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 25 (PTI) — An upbeat India face a tough task going into tomorrow’s semifinal match against defending champions South Korea in the Asia Cup Hockey Tournament here. Going by the display the Koreans put up against Pakistan in the league match yesterday, India, the reigning Asian Games champions, will be hard pressed to hold them at bay, especially in the initial phase, when they go all out, stretching the opposition to full length all over the field. Even against Pakistan, to whom they lost by a solitary goal, the Koreans came close to scoring at least three times in the first 20 minutes, and were thwarted only by the brilliant display of Pakistani goalkeeper Ahmed Alam. Indian coach Vasudevan Baskaran is aware of the rival’s strengths and is confident his defence will be able to contain the speedy Korean forwards, particularly Woon Kon Yeo, the second-highest scorer in the tournament so far with six goals to his name. “We will have to contain them,” said Baskaran. “We have to break them in the midfield so that they are not starting moves that end up in our half,” he said today. The Indians are studying videos of Korea’s match yesterday in preparation for the semifinal clash. “We are confident we will reach the final.... The Koreans have improved over the years and we can’t take them easy, but the boys are fit and willing to go all out in the semi-final.” Baskaran said. The reigning champions, going into what is seen as a grudge match after their loss in the Asian Games final last year, are typically guarded and playing down their chances. “India is a very hard team and they are dangerous in counter-attacks. And they are very good in defence too,” coach Sang Ryul said. Though reluctant to reveal his strategy at this stage, he said: “If we don’t contain Dhanraj Pillay, Baljit Singh Dhillon and the other forwards, we really stand no chance.” Sang also dismissed the talk of a grudge match. “We have already played you twice after that (the Asian Games). So this is no grudge match,” he maintained. Korea thrashed India 6-1 in the recent four-nation tournament in Canberra and then played out a scoreless draw against the same opponents in the next encounter in Sydney. In stamina, the Koreans are way ahead of the Indians and are aware they can maintain their considerable pace till the end. “Our boys can run the whole match at the same speed. I think that is where we stand a better chance,” Sang said. But in skills, the Indian team, which Sang rated better than the one his boys defeated in Sydney, is superior. Moreover, the sub-continental side, which has often flattered to deceive, is free from injury worries. Baljit Singh Saini is recovering and it is a good sign that his bandage has been taken off. Even Baljit Singh Dhillon went all out in training with his back apparently better. Baskaran, though, was worried about left winger Sameer Dad. “He had fever and is very weak. But we will see tomorrow. If fit, he would be in the first eleven”. Meanwhile, Pakistani manager Shahnaz Sheikh is the most confident of the lot on the eve of his team’s semifinal clash with hosts Malaysia. “We will win the tournament and the boys have promised me that,” he said. “Sohail (Abbas) and the rest of the team is all raring to go.” Sheikh had reason to be happy with his team’s performance. “Of the 30 odd goals that we have scored, 15 have come from penalty corners, all scored by Sohail, and the rest are field goals. So the ratio is working out fine.” His confidence apart, the record also points to Pakistan making it to the final of the Asia Cup. Pakistan and Malaysia have played each other 37 times, with the sub-continental powerhouse winning 31 of the encounters, the rest being defeats and draws. Pakistan’s trump card is Sohail Abbas, the top scorer in the tournament, and Sheikh acknowledges as much. “He is the best flicker in the world so we are confident that he will do the job,” says Sheikh, proudly adding. “He has just beaten Paul Litjens’ record of 58 goals in a calendar year by scoring 59.” Sohail also equalled
Sheikh’s record of seven goals in a match in the
game against Sri Lanka which Pakistan won 15-0. |
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ATHENS, Nov 25 (AP) — India’s Neelam S Laxmi finished at the bottom of the table after failing in all her three attempts in the clean-and-jerk of the women’s 69-kg category at the World Weightlifting Championships here. Laxmi lifted 100 kg in her first attempt in the snatch, but failed to hoist 105 kg in the second and third attempts to stand seventh. In the clean-and-jerk, the 24-year-old Indian failed in all three attempts to lift 125 kg to finish last behind 34 lifters. She ended up 34th in the overall standings with just one valid lift of 100 kg. Sun Tianni of China won
the gold medals for total lift — 247.5 kg — and
clean-and-jerk, in which she set a world record by
hoisting 143 kg in her final attempt, half a kg more than
the previous record of her countrywoman Lin Weining. |
Lewis to replace Adams as skipper PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad, Nov 25 (AP) — Leg-spinner Rawl Lewis will replace Jimmy Adams as captain of the West Indies ‘A’ team for the second and final cricket ‘Test’ against India ‘A’ starting on November 30. The West Indies Cricket Board announced the change yesterday. The 31-year-old Adams, who was in charge during the tied first match here two days ago, is unavailable because he and fellow ‘A’ team batsman Daren Ganga are joining the West Indies senior team for its winter tour of New Zealand in December. Grenadian Lewis, who has played three Tests, is captain of his regional Windward Islands team. Guyanese teenager Narsingh Deonarine will also join the squad. The 16-year-old left-hander has yet to represent Guyana but was one of the leading batsmen in August’s regional under-19 tournament in Barbados. The 13-man squad: Rawl Lewis (captain), Narsingh Deonarine, Chris Gayle, Ryan Hinds, Sylvester Joseph, Dwight Mais, Nixon Mclean, Brenton Parchment, Wayne Phillip, Goldwyn Prince, Lincoln Roberts, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Rodney Sooklal. Women’s soccer squad PHILLAUR, Nov 25 — The following have been selected member of Punjab women football team which will participate in 24th National Senior Women Football Championship being held from November 27 to December 6 in Uttar Pradesh. Sukhwinder Kaur
(captain), Amandeep, Paramjit, Sunita, Gurpreet,
Harpreet, Anita, Navjot, Vayoma Bhogal, Gurbax Kaur,
Parminder, Gurjit Kulwinder, Rupinder, Davinder,
Rashpaul, Parabhajot, Manjit and Prema (manager). |
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JOHANNESBURG, Nov 25 (AFP) — England collapsed under the onslaught of fast bowlers Allan Donald and Shaun Pollock as they were shot out for 122 on the first day of the first Test against South Africa at the Wanderers today. Donald took six for 51 and Pollock four for 16. Donald’s first three wickets were taken for no runs as England crashed to two for four wickets in the first three overs of the match after being sent in to bat on a green-tinged pitch in overcast conditions. Donald and Pollock, ranked second and first in the latest world Test bowling rankings, were aided by five catches by wicketkeeper Mark Boucher. New cap Michael Vaughan and the hard-hitting Andrew Flintoff shared England’s only substantial partnership, putting on 56 for the sixth wicket. Vaughan, who made 33 off 84 balls with five fours, batted with impressive composure while Flintoff hit seven boundaries in his 38 off 48 balls. Another new cap, Chris Adams, helped Vaughan stop the early rot, making 16 in a stand of 32 after the pair found themselves together, neither having faced a ball, when four wickets were down after 17 balls of the match. Donald, who had been a doubtful starter because of a side strain, had figures of four for 28 from his opening spell of eight overs. England’s troubles started with the last ball of the first over when Donald sent Mike Atherton’s offstump flying as the England opener pushed forward tentatively against a fast inswinger. Six balls later, England captain Nasser Hussain fended a lifting ball from Shaun Pollock to Lance Klusener at gully and was out for nought. England were two for two. Worse was to come for the tourists as Mark Butcher edged a catch to wicketkeeper Mark Boucher off Donald and Alec Stewart was trapped lbw first ball by a full-pitched inswinger. New caps Vaughan and Adams staged a partial recovery, taking the total to 34 before Adams was caught off his glove down the legside by Boucher off Donald. Vaughan and Flintoff scored at a run a minute as they took England past their lowest total against South Africa, 76 at Leeds in 1907. A lunch break extended by 57 minutes because of rain enabled Donald and Pollock to come back with another devastating burst. Vaughan was out nine balls after lunch, caught by boucher off an inside edge, and Gavin Hamilton and Flintoff followed within another 10 deliveries. Scoreboard England (1st innings): Butcher c Boucher b Donald 1 Atherton b Donald 0 Hussain c Klusener b Pollock 0 Vaughan c Boucher b Pollock 33 Stewart lbw b Donald 0 Adams c Boucher b Donald 16 Flintoff c Boucher b Pollock 38 Hamilton c Pollock b Donald 0 Caddick c Boucher b Donald 4 Gough not out 15 Mullally lbw b Pollock 10 Extras (lb3, w2) 5 Total (all out, 41 overs) 122 Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-2, 3-2, 4-2, 5-34, 6-90, 7-91, 8-91, 9-103. Bowling: Donald
15-3-53-6, Pollock 14.4-6-16-4, Cronje 5-2-15-0, Klusener
6-1-30-0, Adams 1-0-5-0. |
Poulami,
Ranbir champions CHANDIGARH, Nov 25 — Poulami Ghatak, reigning national junior and senior champion, brushed aside the challenge of statemate Mouma Das while Ranbir Das of Bengal checkmated his colleague Shubham Chaudhary to wrap the titles here in the 61st Stroh’s Junior National Table Tennis championship here today. Poulami clinched her second title when she paired with Mouma Das prevailed over the Karnataka pair of BM Ashwani and Smruthi Prasad, who had upset two seeded pairs to reach the final. It was Bengal all the way as they bagged three out of four titles in this meet. The only consolation for Petroleum Sports Academy, Ajmer, was the winning victory in the boys doubles final by Anal Kashyap and Soumyadeep Roy who thwarted the spirited challenge of Anirban Nandy and Amit Das of Bengal. Chandigarh Olympic Association President Mr Rajan Kashyap, gave away prizes to the winners. Ms Vineeta Rai, adviser to the Chandigarh Administration and Mr Ramsekhar, Director Sports-cum-DC, Chandigarh, were among those who witnessed the finals. The four-game final thriller went for nearly 45 minutes which saw the confident Mouma taking the first game at 21-18. Good lobes of Poulami forced Mouma to commit errors on many occasion and the attacker Poulami forced mistakes by Mouma and won next two games by conceding 16 and 11 points, respectively. Mouma, who had remained out of major tournaments during the past one year due to objection raised against her age, was at her best in fourth game. At one time she was leading at 13-11, then again at 17-16. But here Poulami changed her game tactics and playing with back hand and unleashing splendid smashes put her in commanding position. Mouma Das, who was confident of staging a comeback to fight for decider in fifth, went down at 18-21 and lost the match. Earlier in another girls semifinal played morning, Poulami Ghatak had little difficulty in disposing of Sushmita Roy also of Bengal at 21-10, 21-12, 21-15. The boys singles final slated to start immediately after girls final was delayed by more than 30 minutes due to disturbances in light arrangements. In the final played between Ranbir Das and Shubham Chaudhary, the latter, who looked in fine nick and bagged both the first two games at 21-17, 21-11. In third, the more agile Ranbir, down by 0-2, made a comeback by winning the third game at 21-12. In the fourth game, Ranbir showed the packed audience the superb rallies, high lobes and forehand smashes. Shunbham who had upset the top seed Anal Kashyap of the PSCB‘A’ in the semifinals, proved no match for him in last two games which Ranbir wrested in 20 minutes at 21-15, 21-14. Results: Boys singles (finals): Ranbir Das (Bengal) b Shubham Chaudhary ( Bengal) 17-21, 11-21, 21-12, 21-15, 21-14. Semifinals: Shubham Chaudhary (Ben) b Anal Kashyap (PSCB’A’ ) 14-21, 21-14, 21-13, 21-14: Ranbir Das (Ben) b Sukanto Das (Ben) 21-14, 21-15, 13-21, 21-14. Doubles (Finals): Anal Kashyap & Soumyadeep Roy (PSCB ‘A’) b Anirban Nandi & Amit Das (Ben) 21-12, 16-21, 21-18. Semifinals: Anal & Soumya Deep (PSCB‘A’) b Shubham Chaudhary & Saurav Chakarborty (Ben) 21-19, 11-21, 21-12: Anirban Nandy & Amit Das (Ben) b Suvajit Saha & Sukanto Das (PSCB ‘A’) 21-12, 21-18. Girls (finals): Poulami Ghatak (Ben) b
Mouma Das (Ben) 18-21, 21-16, 21-11, 21-18. Semifinals:
Poulami Ghatak (Ben) b Sushmita Roy (Ben) 21-10, 21-12,
21-15: Mouma Das (Ben) b Mamta Prabhu (Mah) 21-16, 24-26,
12-21, 21-11, 21-11. Doubles(Finals): Poulami Ghatak
& Mouma Das (Ben) b BM Ashwini & Smruthi Prasad(
Ktk) 16-21, 21-12, 21-12. Semifinals: Poulami & Mouma
Das (Ben) b Mamta & Sherry Crawford (Mah) 21-9,
21-15: BM Ashwini & S.Prasad (Ktk) b M Aparna &
S.Prasanna (TN) 15-21, 21-19, 21-12. |
Rafiq,
Vijay share lead NEW DELHI, Nov 25 — Rafiq Ali and Vijay Kumar shared their stay on the summit with six under 66 as eight others fired sub-par scores on the opening-day of the four-round sixth Honda-Siel-PGA Golf Championship at the Delhi Golf Club (DGC) course here today. Raju Ali drew a leaf out of Rafiq’s book and fired five-under 67 to stay a stroke behind the leaders. Seldom have 10 or more returned such fantastic cards in a competition of the magnitude of Rs 28-lakh prize money. Both Rafiq Ali and stocky Vijay Kumar were in dazzling form. Amidst eight birdies, Rafiq Ali had two bogeys. Rafiq Ali’s success lay in making perfect use of three-wood. He did not touch his driver. Vijay Kumar’s game was totally unblemished. He encountered no bogey and earned as many as six birdies. He revelled in putting. Rafiq Ali, who narrowly missed winning this title last year as he made a triple bogey on the 69th and another bogey on the 70th, was a fully focussed player. He played steadily birdieing on 1st, 3rd, 6th,10th,13th, 14th, 16th and 18th. Both bogeys came on par-3 holes. On the 5th, he went into right bunker and missed his up-and-down. On the 7th, he missed his chip-putt from the left-edge of the green. Leading scores: 66,
Rafiq Ali and Vijay Kumar, 67 Raju Ali , 69 Arjun Singh,
Ali Sher and Monisha Bindra, 70 Uttam Singh Mundy and
Vishal Singh, 71 Minky Barbora, Sanjay Kumar, 72 Amit
Dube, Digvijay Singh, 73 Ranjit Singh and Binod Pandey. |
H
Bishan
Bedi bereaved AMRITSAR, Nov 25 — The former Indian cricket skipper and local hero Bishan Singh Bedi lost two of his sisters — Satwant Kaur and Anupam Sodhi — after brief illness during this week. A large number of cricketers and fans attended the last rites held at his ancestral house here today. Various sports associations sent their condolence messages. PSEB
triumph PATIALA, Nov 25 — Favourites PSEB lived up to their top billing as they beat EME, Secunderabed, 3-1 in the final to clinch the prestigious Bhel Football Tournament which concluded at the BHEL Football Stadium in Bhopal yeterday evening, according to information received here today. For the Patiala powermen, linkman Gurvinder scored a brace while the other scorer for PSEB was Harjinder Singh. For the Secunderabad team F.C. Subramanium reduced the margin. GND
University eves win basketball crown PATIALA, Nov 25 — GND varsity eves won the North-East Zone Inter-University Womens Basketball Championships which concluded at the university campus basketball courts here today. Punjab University, Chandigarh, stood second while Punjabi University and Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla took the third and fourth spots, respectively. Meanwhile, the All-India Inter-University Basketball Championships for women will be held at the campus courts from November 26 to 30, according to a press release of the university. Punjab
287 for 6 PATIALA, Nov 25 — Fine knocks by Manik Kohli and Manjit Singh enabled Punjab to pile up a comfortable 287 for 6 against Haryana on the opening day of the league match of the Vijay Merchant Cricket Tournament at the Dhruv Pandove Stadium here today. The Haryana bowlers toiled throughout the day and found wickets hard to come on a batting-friendly pitch. Manik Kohli (82) was stubborn in his approach and Manjit Singh (77) was more forthright and fluent as both collected 138 run third wicket partnership. Brief scores: Punjab
(1st innings) 287 for 6 (Manik Kohli 82. Manjit Singh 77.
Rajan Singh 44 n.o. Joginder Sharma 2 for 61. Shanker 1
for 35. Gaurav 1 for 28. Sandeep 1 for 25. Deepak 1 for
16). |
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