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| Wednesday, May 24, 2000, Chandigarh, India  
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Prabhakar to depose by this
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Bangladesh name 14-man squad
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Windies force draw against Pak BRIDGETOWN, May 23 (Reuters) — West Indies survived the loss of three quick second innings wickets to force a draw in the second cricket Test against Pakistan yesterday. Set 275 to win off a minimum 57 overs, West Indies were quickly reduced to 41 for three before recovering to 132 for four at close. Captain Jimmy Adams and ‘man-of-the-match’ Wavell Hinds, who scored 165 in the first innings, led them to safety with a fourth-wicket partnership of 72. At close, Adams was 34 not out and Test debutant Ramnaresh Sarwan 11 not out. With the first Test in Guyana also drawn after two days were washed out, the three-match series will be decided in the final Test, which starts in Antigua on Thursday. West Indies, who often held the initiative in a Test in which fortunes fluctuated dramatically, were sent in shortly after lunch after Pakistan captain Moin Khan declared with his team’s second innings score on 419 for nine. Moin praised his batsmen, who for the first time in the tour put in an accomplished performance during the second innings, and defended his decision to carry on batting until after lunch. “I think 55 overs was enough to bowl them out and we gave them a chance to chase as well,’’ he said. West Indies lost opening pair Adrian Griffith and Sherwin Campbell with the score on 15 and were reduced to 41 for three when Shivnarine Chanderpaul was dismissed. Griffith was lbw to Waqar Younis for five, while Campbell was caught by substitute fielder Shahid Afridi for eight. Chanderpaul had made 16 when he was caught by Mohammad Wasim at silly point off Musthaq Ahmed. Hinds added to his first innings effort with a crucial 52 before leg spinner Mushtaq Ahmed had him caught behind by Moin, with the draw by now assured. “We played some good cricket,’’ Adams said. “We showed a lot of fight and character and it has set the series up for a very interesting game in Antigua.’’ The final day began finely balanced, with Pakistan on 345 for seven, a lead of 200. West Indies were hoping to finish off the tail end quickly but Abdur Razzaq and Saqlain Mushtaq batted doggedly through the morning. Progress was slow, with only 18 runs off 16 overs in the first hour of play. Allrounder Razzaq, who also scored a half-century in the drawn first Test, completed his 50 in 244 minutes off 180 balls and hit seven fours. He battled on despite a thigh strain which forced him to use a runner and prevented him from bowling. Both were quickly out after lunch. Razzaq was caught by substitute Chris Gayle for 72 to give Reon King his fourth wicket of the innings and Mushtaq was clean bowled by Nixon McLean for 33. The initiative had switched hands throughout the five days. West Indies took early control when they reduced to Pakistan to 37 for five on the first day but the visitors fought back to reach 253, with Yousuf Youhana scoring 115. The home side regained control as they amassed a first innings lead of 145 by the halfway mark on the third day, scoring 398 all out, with Hinds making his 165 and 19-year-old Sarwan scoring 84. Sarwan was upstaged by 18-year-old Imran Nazir, who hit a stylish 131 in a first-wicket partnership of 219 as Pakistan fought back on the third and fourth days. The match saw five-wicket hauls for veteran West Indies pace bowler Courtney Walsh, who took five for 22 in Pakistan’s first innings. SCOREBOARD Pakistan (first innings): 253 West Indies (first innings): 398 Pakistan (second innings): Wasim lbw King 82 Nazir c Adams b King 131 Khan c Jacobs b King 23 Inzamam c and b Walsh 29 Youhana c Adams b McLean 19 Razzaq c sub Gayle b King 72 Moin b Adams 14 Akram c Hinds b Adams 0 Saqlain b McLean 33 Waqar Younis not out 1 Extras (lb-4 w-1 nb-10) 15 Total (for nine wickets declared) 419 Fall of wickets: 1-219, 2-232, 3-248, 4-294, 5-294, 6-341, 7-341, 8-411, 9-419. Bowling: Ambrose 37-16-54-0, Walsh 36-6-102-1 (1nb), McLean 29-9-112-2 (8nb), Adams 26-9-52-2 (1nb), Chanderpaul 2-0-13-0 (1w), King 29-9-82-4 West Indies (second innings): Campbell c sub Afridi b Wasim Akram 8 Griffith lbw Waqar Younis 5 Hinds c Moin Khan b Mushtaq Ahmed 52 Chanderpaul c Mohammad Wasim b Mushtaq Ahmed 16 Adams not out 34 Sarwan not out 11 Extras (b-1 lb-1 nb-4) 6 Total (for four wickets) 132 Fall of wickets: 1-15, 2-15, 3-41, 4-113. Bowling: Wasim Akram
7-1-24-1 (3nb), Saqlain Mushtaq 21-12-28-0 (1nb), Mushtaq
Ahmed 20-5-64-2, Waqar Younis 4-0-14-1 |
Prabhakar to depose by this weekend NEW DELHI, May 23 (UNI) — Former all-rounder Manoj Prabhakar, who caused ripples with his sensational disclosure that he was offered bribe by one of his senior teammates to underperform in a match in 1994, would this week depose before the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team inquiring into match-fixing in India. Prabhakar said, “I am likely to go to the CBI by this weekend.” The date of the deposition is being finalised. Asked whether he has been summoned by the premier investigating agency, or he would be appearing on his own, he told UNI today: ‘‘The CBI has been in touch with him. But if they (CBI) do not decide it quickly, I may consider going to them on my own.’’ The former all-rounder also said he would reveal whatever information he had with him about the controversy shrouding Indian cricket at a press conference he plans to call next week. He said he would be inviting all Indian and international media to his press meet. The date and the venue was being worked out, he added. The public appearance of Manoj Prabhakar by all possibility would only be after his interaction with the CBI. Even the CBI has been maintaining that Prabhakar’s deposition was on the cards and the dates were being finalised. The CBI sources had categorically denied reports that he had already appeared before the agency. “He (Prabhakar) will certainly be questioned, but the date is yet to be decided,” sources said. Yesterday, BCCI President A.C. Muthiah had claimed that Prabhakar was delaying his appearance before the CBI because he had very little or nothing to say. He had also hinted that stiff action would be taken against him if he did not come out with the truth. The former all-rounder shouted back, saying that the BCCI was trying to exert pressure to make him withdraw his allegations about match-fixing and refused to succumb to any such pressure and would go public about his views. Recently, former BCCI President I.S. Bindra stunned the nation claiming that Manoj Prabhakar had confided in him that it was Indian cricketing icon Kapil Dev who was the senior player who had offered him bribe to perform below potential during a Singer Cup match in Sri Lanka in 1994. Prabhakar has, however, refrained from naming any cricketer so far. He has been constantly refusing to take the name since 1997 saying that he had no legal protection in the absence of evidence. The ex-India Test opener was likely to reveal the name and other details about his allegations on match-fixing in Indian cricket when he appears before the CBI. He has himself said that he was now in a position to take the name of the player and would be providing the information to the CBI, if it contacts him. The CBI is probing the involvement of present and past cricketers, administrators and officials in match-fixing, betting and any other malpractices in Indian cricket. The probe was handed over to the investigating agency by the government in April end and the inquiry was initiated on May 2. The allegations of the former India all rounder had forced the BCCI to institute the Justice Y.V. Chandrachud committee on match-fixing. But the committee cleared all players and cricket officials of the charges. The agency has so far questioned four people, including former India manager Sunil Dev. The names of the other three have not been disclosed by the CBI. The present phase of allegations on match-fixing and betting in international cricket was kicked off in the first week of April after the sensational disclosure by the Delhi Police that the now sacked South African captain Hansie Cronje and three of his teammates were part of the group which allegedly rigged the Pepsi one-day series against India in March. Delhi Police is inquiring the FIR No. 111/2000 against Hansie Cronje, three of his teammates — Herschelle Gibbs, Nicky Boje and Pieter Strydom — and two alleged bookies Sanjay Chawla, the absconding prime accused in the case, and Rajesh Kalra, who is under judicial custody. Music baron Kishen Kumar has also been charged for his involvement in the case.
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AHMEDABAD, May 23 (PTI) — International Women Master Koneru Humpy today claimed the boys under-14 national title with a round to spare, maintaining 100 percent record at the end of the eighth round of the Children’s Chess Championship today. Top seed Humpy (8), the former world under-10 girls’ champion, justified her seeding by bagging the crown by scoring her eighth win in as many games against P. Sengupta of Bihar in the penultimate round of the tournament at the Karnavati Club here. Playing with black pieces, the 13-year-old from Andhra Pradesh equalised easily in the middlegame in Birds Opening against Sengupta and then capitalised on a poor endgame tactics by her opponent to score a easy victory in 62 moves. This gave her a clinching 1.5 points lead over her nearest rival, Saptarishi Roy of Goodricke Chess Academy, who moved to the second spot with a creditable win over teammate Somak Palit. Anuradha Beniwal of Haryana halted the winning spree of overnight leader S. Nabeela Farheen of CAPA Chess Academy in the under-14 girls’ section, but the Tamil Nadu girl still continued to lead the table with 6.5 points. In boys’ under-12 section, top seed Deep Sengupta (7) shot into lead with a well deserving victory over A.A. Kore of Maharashtra while in girls’ section of the same age group, L. Shobana was leading with seven points after an impressive win over Maharashtra’s K. Nadig (6). Beniwal, playing with white pieces, gained a pawn because of a mistake in the opening by Fareen in the Ruy Lopez game and converted it into a rook pawn ending to clinch the issue in 54 moves. She was sharing the second spot with M. Priyadarshini, Amruta Mokal and Eesha Karwade with six points each. Mokal upset top seed Baisakhi Das in Center Counter Game in which she launched a king side attack with white pieces. Das had to give up two pawns to wriggle out of the crisis which was sufficient for Mokal to romp home in 37 moves. Playing with black pieces in an Irregular Game which was later transposed into Duch Defence, Deep Sengupta (7) attacked on the king side of Kore, who countered with a queen side offensive. But the top seed’s pawn sacrifice on the queen side put an end to the attack by his rival and clinched the game in his favour in 29 moves. On the second table, B.R. Kidambi of Tamil Nadu defeated S. Majumdar of Maharashtra in Nimzo Carsan attack in 34 moves to share the second spot with International G. Rohit and K. Nikhilesh Kumar, half a point behind. In the girls’ u-12
section, Shobana (TN) came up with an impressive
performance against Nadig in a Centre Counter Gambit.
Nadig, playing with white pieces, sacrificed her queen
for two rooks but could not activate her rooks and lost
two pawns and the game after marathon 80 moves. |
Why did
selectors opt for Karim? CHANDIGARH, May 23 — Keeping behind the issues of match-fixing and the mudslinging that came with it and the needle of suspicion pointed to various cricketers, both past and present, the Indian cricketers will travel to Dhaka later this week to take part in the Asia Cup where besides India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka as also Bangladesh will take part. The tournament, which commences on May 28, could well turn out to be the acid test for the game of cricket. If the players can sustain the interests of the fans even as enquires into bribing and match-fixing are being conducted not only in India but also in various other cricket playing countries then only can this game flourish and prosper. The national selectors have shown foresight in including stylish southpaw Hemang Badani of Tamil Nadu and Delhi medium-pacer Amit Bhandari in the 14-members Indian squad for the tournament. But one fell really sorry for Vinod Kambli for not finding a place in the squad. Also, it will be probably the first one-day series in recent memory that India will not have the services of both Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad, the former opting for some well-deserved rest and the latter not getting the nod of the selectors even after performing well at Sharjah. Now it will depend on the likes of Ajit Agarkar and T. Kumaran as also Amit Bhandari to take the battle into the enemy camp. Both Hemang Badani and Vinod Kambli have been among the runs this season. The Tamil Nadu batsman had scored 762 runs in the Ranji Trophy season this season, including a 162 against Mumbai in the semi-final. The Mumbai batsmen too has been among the runs this season, showing enough signs that he was getting back into his groove after some indifferent cricket over the past couple of seasons. However, the selectors chose to ignore both his form as well as his experience while selecting the team for Dhaka. Kambli was the top scorer in the limited-over Deodhar Trophy this season, scoring 330 runs with two centuries. He also had a hundred in the Duleep Trophy and was Mumbai’s best batsman in the Ranji Trophy this season with an aggregate of 866, including four hundreds. Even after such a performance Kambli failed to get the nod for Dhaka and the Chairman of the Selection Committee Chandu Borde went on record to say that Kambli “is more useful for Test matches.” But will somebody explain why his performance did not count for much and Hemang Badani got the nod on the basis of performances in the same circuit? It is quite possible that Badani’s fielding skills put him ahead of Kambli whose fielding is not as razor sharp as the one-day game demands. Why is the team management and the selectors so much against stumper Nayan Mongia? Rated at one time as India’s best bet behind the wicket (in the World Cup last year he held what was adjudged as the best catch of the tournament), why did the selectors opt for Saba Karim for the job of keeping ignoring Mongia is difficult to explain. By saying “he will continue to be in contention” Borde is probably trying to be very simplistic and has skirted the whole issue. But the most disturbing aspect of the team selection is the lack of a quality allrounder in the squad. Punjab’s Reetinder Singh Sodhi fits the bill and the Dhaka tournament was a perfect launching pad to blood the Punjab lad. The Indian team has been playing without a good allrounder for quite some time and the national selectors have not done much planning to groom someone. Reetinder could have been accommodated in the squad in place of Nikhil Chopra because players like Sachin Tendulkar and Saurav Ganguly are already there to send down their quota of overs if the situation demands. The batting remains in
the same hands as they did in the now infamous series
against South Africa at home, the last series played by
India before the issues of betting and match-fixing
engulfed the sport pages in newspapers and magazines. But
India’s biggest problems at Dhaka might well be in
the new ball department which remains largely untested.
It is quite possible that the 10 overs by Anil Kumble is
every match might count the most. |
Ex-PCB officials involved: Latif DUBAI, May 23 (UNI) — Former Pakistani skipper Rashid Latif suspects that some of the past officials of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) were also involved in match-fixing with Salim Malik. “Six boards have come and gone in Pakistan since 1995 when I raised the alarm that certain Pakistani players were involved in match-fixing but nothing has happened”, Latif said, adding that it appeared that some of the officials were also being given a piece of the “pie”. Talking to Gulf News, he said “I don’t have to say anymore, the ‘main accused (Salim Malik)’ himself has been caught admitting that he fixed matches if we go by the news from England...Malik vindicated my allegations”. He said that despite his having provided sufficient proof to the PCB, it had taken no action on match-fixing. Latif was commenting on the “News of the World” expose in which the British tabloid claimed to have video-taped Malik while he was boasting of fixing matches. Malik has been reported to have said that he even had an ICC official to do the “fixing” for him. Malik yesterday rejected the allegations as baseless and pledged to tell his side of the story soon. “I will come up with my side of the story in the next four or five days. I am not going to be quiet but at the moment I can’t say anything more”, Malik was quoted as saying from Lahore. Latif said, “People also had hopes from the present PCB chief Gen Tauqeer Zia when he took over but still nothing has happened and Justice Mohammed Qayyum’s report is under wraps. We are waiting to see the guilty being punished”. He said “the international pressure would be tremendous now (after the latest expose) and they (PCB) would have to act on justice Qayyum’s report’’. Latif was of the view that a fresh inquiry be conducted on matches played by Pakistan after the Justice Qayyum Commission was formed in 1998. He claimed that match-fixing had continued during the last two years. “I strongly believe that ‘fixing matches’ has not stopped even today”. He said “I have been saying that four to five Pakistani players are involved and now Malik has also admitted that five players are actually on his pay roll”. Latif said, “Whatever I have been saying is now being confirmed by Malik himself when he boasted to the undercover reporters”. However, he expressed surprise that Malik had spoken so openly to the undercover reporters.”How can he (Malik) be so gullible?” Latif said efforts by the authorities concerned to bury everything under the carpet had made people like Malik get bolder and openly boast of their ability to fix results of the matches. He said the guilty players believed that they were “untouchable”, adding “I think it is all the power of money that has corrupted players as well as officials. The officials can neither swallow the truth nor can they ignore it”.
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Boris Becker’s remarks draw flak HAMBURG, May 23 (DPA) — Champion Gustavo Kuerten and runner-up Marat Safin toasted each other with a glass of beer at the post-match news conference after they played a thrilling five-set final in the Hamburg Masters Series tournament. Kuerten’s dramatic 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (7-3) victory in 3 hours 51 minutes had the 10,000-strong crowd on their feet and the Brazilian said: “We both played unbelievable tennis, this was the best Masters Series final of the year.” Unfortunately Boris Becker had already left Hamburg by then. The former German icon had told reporters last week that international tennis was in a deep crisis, badly lacked stars, and that ATP officials were holding emergency meetings once a week. He reiterated the criticism in a column for the Welt Am Sonntag Sunday paper: “By all respect for the finalists. The superstars of tennis are not represented in the final.” Becker’s statements did not go down too well. The ATP points race leader Magnus Norman of Sweden reminded in a local paper that Becker himself had been everything but a top star when he won his first of three Wimbledon titles aged 17 in 1985. Jan A.M. Hendrikx, German president of tournament presenting sponsor Eurocard, agreed: “I remember when this young man for the first time won Wimbledon and the whole world was excited about him. I was very surprised that he had some remarkable comments to make.” Germany’s Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily compared Becker with football icon and Bayern Munich president Franz Beckenbauer. “Someone who says things that sound interesting but miss the point by miles.” After all, Safin had come to Hamburg with two clay court titles in three weeks. The 1997 French Open champion Kuerten was in the Rome final the previous week and is very much a star of his own right. Becker, by contrast, never won a clay court tournament in his career. Becker obviously had Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi in mind, the two Americans whom he liked to play best in his career which ended last year. Agassi was not present in Hamburg and Sampras lost early. Tournament and ATP officials agreed that Agassi’s absence on short notice was a problem. After all, top players are supposed to play all Masters Series events and are awarded zero points for not showing up. If they miss two, they start missing bonus money. “Agassi will lose around one million (for not playing in Monte Carlo and Hamburg), which is not insignificant,’’ insisted ATP Chief Executive Officer Mark Miles. “The event is bigger than the individual. We miss them, but it is no catastrophe.” Hamburg had the best field ever and tournament director Guenter Sanders could announce an increase in profits, similar to other Masters Series directors earlier in the year. However, there is one big dilemma especially in Europe about the Masters Series where the ATP is guaranteed 1.2 billion dollars in a ten-year period from the ISL company for the marketing rights. ISL aims for exclusivity
in many areas, but that now comes at the expense of the
average tennis fan as in most European countries the
tournaments are shown on pay-TV, something not everyone
can afford. |
End controversy over Tyson: Warren LONDON, May 23 (AFP) — Boxing promoter Frank Warren has urged for the controversy surrounding Mike Tyson to be finally laid to rest so the American superstar can prepare for what he describes as “the biggest fight ever to be staged in Britain”. Warren announced plans for Tyson’s heavyweight clash against Lou Savarese which will take place at Glasgow’s Hampden Park on June 24. It will be the Brooklyn-born battler’s first appearance since knocking out Londoner Julius Francis in Manchester back in January. Because Tyson is still the biggest attraction in boxing, 20,000 applications have already been received and all 58,000 tickets are expected to be sold out within days of them going on sale. The bout will be televised live to millions in 180 countries worldwide, but since news of the event broke it has been shrouded in controversy. Some Scottish MPs and women’s groups have voiced their concerns over the decision by Home Secretary Jack Straw to grant Tyson’s UK entry visa after being convicted of rape. But Warren insists the former undisputed heavyweight champion has served his time and must now be given the chance to resurrect his once brilliant career. Warren said: “Obviously there has been a lot of controversy surrounding this fight. “All I can say about that is that people are entitled to their views and we’re in a democracy and as long as people stress their views peacefully then I certainly don’t have a problem with that.” “Mike Tyson is aware of some of the controversy that has gone on but he has sent a message to the people of Glasgow.” “He just wants to come here to box and be allowed to get on with his living and give the fans what they want, which is an exciting night of boxing.” “Women’s groups are quite entitled to their opinion and they have a very valid opinion. It’s something they believe in and something that they should be allowed to say.” “But there are people who want to see Mike Tyson fight. Mike Tyson went to prison and served a sentence and as a result of that should be allowed to get on with his life.” Warren now wants the episode firmly closed to enable Scotland to look forward to staging what he claims is the biggest fight in British history, in both financial and audience terms. Hampden Park beat off bids from Wembley Stadium and the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff to stage the fight and they are set for a financial windfall. As well as the Tyson fight a number of up-and-coming Scottish fighters are promised to be on the undercard and Warren will also reveal details of two title fights over the next few days. Warren revealed:
“Capacity and financially it’s without a doubt
the biggest fight ever to be held in the UK.” |
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DHAKA, May 23 (PTI) — The Bangladesh Cricket Board today refuted former Pakistan skipper Salim Malik’s allegation that Bangladesh’s upset win over Pakistan in a World Cup league clash last year was fixed. “This is not our concern, because our players were not involved in any such matter,” BCB president Saber Hossain Chowdhury told reporters here. Malik, who himself is facing match-fixing allegations, has been quoted by British tabloid “News of the World” as saying Bangladesh’s stunning win over the eventual finalists was fixed. Malik has described the report as “baseless”. Mr Chowdhury said “our players played well in that match, but if the other side fixed the match, then it was their matter”. Last month United
Cricket Board of South Africa (UCB) Managing Director Ali
Bacher was quoted by Australian newspapers as raising
suspicion that the Bangladesh-Pakistan tie was fixed, but
he subsequently denied having made any such comment. |
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DHAKA, May 23 (PTI) — The Bangladesh Cricket Board today named a 14-man squad led by Aminul Islam for the Asia Cup Cricket Tournament scheduled here from May 28 to June 6. The 23-year old allrounder Mushfiqur Rahman, who has a handy medium pace is the only new face in an otherwise predictable team. Rahman caught the selectors’ eyes after performing consistently in the local premier league cricket. The 7th edition of Asia Cup, that includes India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, will begin with reigning champions Sri Lanka taking on Bangladesh on May 28. Bangladesh play their other league matches against India on May 30 and against Pakistan on June 2. Bangladesh team consists of five batsmen, as many bowlers and three allrounders. Shahriar Hossain will open the innings with Javed Omar who got a lucky break after Mehrab Hossain withdrew following a knee injury. Left-arm spinner Mohammad Rafiq who has decided to play again after announcing his retirement late last year, also found his place back in the squad after a 25-wicket haul in the premier division league. “First of all we considered the present performance and then the international record and the ability to rise up to the occasion while selecting the national side,” Tanvir Haider, head of the three-man selection panel said. The selectors, however, did not name any deputy for Aminul. The tournament will also open up an exciting prospect for Sarwar Imran, who replaced an ailing South African Eddie Barlow as coach. Team: Aminul Islam
(captain), Javed Omar Belim, Shariar Hossain, Habibul
Bashar, Akram Khan, Naimur Rahman, Khaled Masood (Wk),
Mohammad Rafique, Enamul Hoque, Hasibul Hossain, Monjurul
Islam, Mushfiqur Rahman, Safiuddin Ahmed and Khaled
Mahmud. |
Yogin Thakur goes down fighting KUALA LUMPUR, May 23 (UNI) — Yogin Thakur came close to pulling off a stunning victory in the boys under-17 event at the Sportexcel Milo Squash Open in Ipoh last night. The youngster had beaten top seed Kenneth Liew (Serewak) in the semis but found Hansul Hashim a tough customer and went down 9-2, 9-6, 9-5. The scores do not reflect the way the match went with Thakur giving it his best shot, playing four matches in the span of 48 hours took its toll and the same happened with the other Mumbai junior, Rachita Vora, who lost in the semi-finals of the girls under-17 and eventually had to settle for fourth place. The two midgets of the
Indian side, Ishaan Balwani and Shailee Shelke, were up
against top juniors. Balwani was in the boys under-13 and
after his four matches, was placed 10th, Shelke played in
the girls under-13 where she finished 9th. The above
quartet were in action at Ipoh, two-and-a-half-hours from
here. |
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NEW DELHI, May 23 (PTI) — A huge squad of 22 Indian athletes will participate in a five-week training and competition programme in Kiev, Ukraine. A team of long distance runners will soon leave on a similar exposure trip to Kazakhstan. Top woman long jumper Anju Markose, who got married recently, has pulled out of the trip while quartermiler Lijo David Thottan, who recently underwent a knee operation has been declared fully fit to be included. The team: Men: Anil Kumar, P Ramachandran, Paramjit Singh, K J Manoj Lal, Jata Shankar, Sanjay Kumar Rai, Anil Kumar, Shakti Singh, Bahadur Singh, Jagdish Kumar, Satvir Singh, Pramod Tiwari, Lijo David. Women: Rachita Mistry, K
M Beenamol, Jincy Philip, Manjima Kuriakose, K Rosa
Kutty, Neelam J Singh, Sugan Yadav, Gurmeet Kaur, Sunita
Rani. |
SA to back B’desh Test status bid JOHANNESBURG, May 23 (Reuters) — The United Cricket Board of South Africa (UCBSA) today announced that it is to back Bangladesh’s bid for Test status. The International Cricket Council (ICC) will consider the application at their meeting in London next month. Acting UCBSA President Percy Sonn said in a statement: “We decided Bangladesh’s application is consistent with the ICC’s global (cricket development) policy. “Bangladesh has a strong cricket culture and a passion for the game at all levels.” Bangladesh Cricket Board
President Saber Chowdhury said: “The support and
assistance of the UCBSA represents an important step
forward for Bangladesh cricket and I am delighted with
the news.” |
Kiefer forced out due to injury ST POELTEN, Austria, May 23 (Reuters) — Top seed Nicolas Kiefer was forced out of the St Poelten Grand Prix yesterday by an ankle injury suffered while playing Italian Andrea Gaudenzi. Kiefer, who had been sidelined with an injury to the same ankle since the Miami Masters series in March, became the third seed to fall by the wayside in the first round of the clay court tournament. He was leading 7-6 0-3 when he quit. Australian second seed Mark Philippousis was surprisingly beaten 1-6 6-4 6-3 by American Jeff Tarango on Sunday while fifth seeded Spaniard Fernando Vicente bowed 6-4 7-5 to Romania’s Andrei Pavel. The highest remaining seed is last year’s beaten French Open finalist Andrei Medvedev. The number three seed fought back from 5-2 down in the deciding set for a 6-3 4-6 7-6 victory over American Scott Humphries. German Kiefer’s injury occurred after he had come back from 5-2 down and a set point against him. He twisted his ankle during the tiebreak and despite winning it 7-4 was then “unable to properly put pressure on my foot”.
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SALEM, May 23 (PTI) — International Master N. Sudhakar Babu of Indian Bank, Chennai, edged closer to the title by drawing his third game against national under-14 champion M.R. Venkatesh in the ninth round of the Golden Squares fide rated Chess Championship today. S. Mari Arul (Southern Railways), Tej Kumar (Karnataka), M.R. Venkatesh (spic) and Ebenezer Joseph (P and T Audit) are in second spot with seven points, a clear point behind the leader. Employing the Zaitsev
variation of the Ruy Lopez opening with black pieces
against the Chennai lad, Babu equalised the game with a
‘d5’ break. For N.K. Mishra (Tata Steel), the
other international master in the tournament, it
wasn’t an easy task to obtain a draw against S. Mari
Arul of Southern Railways. In a queenless middle game
that arose from the English opening, Mari Arul, playing
with the black, held the initiative for most part of the
game. But with very little time left on the clock, he
decided to split the point on the 23rd move. |
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