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| Saturday, May 27, 2000, Chandigarh, India  
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A brave move, says Raja |
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Match-fixing
in badminton? Gopi
Chand breaks into top 20
Mahajan, Saini for U-19 camp
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DHAKA, May 26 (DPA) — Torrential rains at the advent of monsoon have made uncertain the opening of the Pepsi Asia Cup cricket tournament in the Bangladeshi capital city scheduled for Sunday. Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) officials today said heavy downpours over the past three days turned the oval-shaped Bangabandhu national stadium into a giant swimming pool despite all efforts to pump out the water. The BCB is hosting the May 28 to June 7 four-nation tournament which includes cup holders Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The threat of the monsoon rains washing away the matches have reportedly forced the Asian Cricket Council to select an alternative venue in the Indian city of Bangalore as an emergency measure if the cloudbursts do not cease. Sources said the matches missed due to bad weather could be played on the rest days but Bangalore had been kept as an option in case the entire biennial tournament had to be scrapped in Dhaka. “Although the monsoon is yet to be set, we predict rainfalls would affect the tournament,” said Ershad Hossain, director of the state-run Meteorology Department, as several hours of heavy rains flooded most parts of the tournament venue, the downtown Bangabandhu Stadium. Hossain added that there was no sign the weather will clear in the next week. “The sky will be overcast by cloud while drizzle may grip Dhaka,” he said. “We are covering the pitch but the already soggy outfield is exposed to the intermittent showers,’’ said a BCB official. Weathermen are forecasting more rain at the weekend because of a low pressure in the Bay of Bengal which is blowing the dark monsoon clouds towards the country’s southern coast. The Sri Lankan team led by Sanath Jayasuriya as captain arrived in Dhaka early Thursday but since then were forced to stay inside their hotel by the rains. The Asian Cup holders are scheduled to play hosts Bangladesh on the opening day Sunday in the day-night limited overs tournament. The two top teams in the tournament, played on a league basis, will go to the final on June 7. The Indians, led by
Saurav Ganguly, were scheduled to reach Dhaka tomorrow
but have postponed their arrival for a day while
Pakistan, who are currently touring the West Indies, are
expected on June 1. |
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ST JOHN’S (Antigua), May 26 (Reuters) — Yousuf Youhana hit a century for the second successive Test to pull Pakistan out of trouble in the deciding third and final Test against the West Indies yesterday. Pakistan recovered from 33 for three after being put in to bat and reached 267 for eight at the close on the opening day at the Antigua recreation ground. Youhana was unbeaten on 102, his third Test hundred, which he completed one over from the end of the day’s play, while the other saviour was Inzamam-ul-Haq, who struck 55. In a near repeat of the drawn previous two Tests, Pakistan suffered an early collapse and then recovered to accumulate a respectable score. Curtly Ambrose did the early damage, taking the first two wickets, while fellow veteran fast bowler Courtney Walsh grabbed two quick wickets before tea to slow Pakistan’s fightback, then added a third near the close. Ambrose’s first victim was Imran Nazir, the 18-year-old who scored 115 in the second Test, when he lofted a delivery for Franklyn Rose to take a difficult, diving catch at deep fine leg with the total 21. Six runs later, Ambrose had Younis Khan, who has struggled for runs throughout the tour, caught by wicketkeeper Ridley Jacobs for four. Rose, making his first appearance of the series after recovering from a finger injury and replacing Nixon McLean as the only West Indies change, took the third wicket. He caught and bowled Mohammad Wasim to make Pakistan 33 for three. The Georgetown and Bridgetown Tests had followed similar patterns, with Pakistan reduced to 39 for five and 37 for five, respectively, before wriggling out of trouble, and once again they hit back. Inzamam and Youhana added 97 for the fourth wicket, with Inzamam reaching his 50 off 81 balls with six fours and a six, which he smashed off a short delivery from Ambrose to complete his half-century. Walsh struck twice late in the afternoon session, when he had Inzamam caught at backward point by Adrian Griffith for 55 and Abdur Razzaq caught behind by Jacobs for two to leave Pakistan 135 for five by tea. But Yousuf stayed on to continue the recovery. He reached his century with a single, completing a stylish and patient effort off 223 balls, hitting eight fours and one six. In the evening session, he was helped by Moin Khan, who made 24 before being caught behind by Jacobs off Rose, and Wasim Akram, whose quick 26 ended when before he was brilliantly caught by Sherwin Campbell at first slip off Reon King. Saqlain Mushtaq was out for four, six overs from the close, when he edged a short delivery from Walsh to Campbell. Pakistan went into the match one day after four of their players were censured and fined followed the release of a report by Pakistani judge Justice Mohammad Qayyum on Wednesday into match-fixing. Inzamam, Akram, fast bowler Waqar Younis and leg-spinner Mushtaq Ahmed were found guilty of either bringing the game into disrepute or failing to co-operate with the inquiry. SCOREBOARD Pakistan (Ist innings): Wasim c and b Rose 13 Nazir c Rose b Ambrose 10 Khan c Jacobs b Ambrose 4 Haq c Griffith b Walsh 55 Youhana not out 102 Razzaq c Jacobs b Walsh 2 Khan c Jacobs b Rose 24 Akram c Campbell b King 26 Saqlain c Campbell b Walsh 4 Waqar not out 4 Extras (LB-4, NB-19) 23 Total (for 8 wickets) 267 Fall of wickets:1-21, 2-27, 3-33, 4-130, 5-132, 6-173, 7-209, 8-247. Bowling: Ambrose
14-4-30-2, Walsh 25-2-81-3, Rose 19-4-48-2, King
16-3-48-1, Adams 14-2-40-0, Chanderpaul 2-0-16-0. |
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LONDON, May 26 (Reuters) — Ian Botham says cricket is rotten to the core and wants independent judges to probe the match-fixing scandal which has tarnished the sport’s reputation for fair play. “I think corruption goes all the way to the top,” newspapers today quoted the former England allrounder as saying. “Someone, somewhere is doing a very good job covering this up. If not why haven’t they launched a proper enquiry? “But let’s have it done by people from countries which know nothing about the game and who will not be influenced by the names involved,” the Daily Mail quoted him as saying. “Anything less is not going far enough.” Former Pakistan captain Salim Malik and discarded Test pace bowler Ata-ur-Rehman were banned for life on Wednesday by the Pakistan Cricket Board after the release of a long-awaited judicial report on allegations of corruption. Malik yesterday said he would go to court to challenge the life ban and said he had been made a scapegoat. Six other cricketers, including former captain Wasim Akram, were fined either for bringing the game into disrepute or failing to cooperate with the enquiry. England cricket chief Lord Maclaurin said he believed the scandal, the biggest crisis to hit cricket, was just the “tip of the iceberg”. Next month an inquiry commission in South Africa is also due to publish its findings on a scandal involving Hansie Cronje who was sacked as national team captain in April after admitting receiving money from a bookmaker for providing information. Botham said he was shocked when he heard about Cronje’s involvement “but then you start putting things together in your mind and wondering why did this happen in that match or this in another? And you can’t explain it.” He said players faced enormous temptations with huge amounts of money being “bandied about” but did not believe that any English players had been involved. “The only way they
could have fiddled a match over the last few years was to
win one,” he said. |
Match-fixing
in badminton? PATIALA, May 26 — The match-fixing bug has also infiltrated into badminton, widely perceived to be the cleanest of all sport. According to sources, the bug has been active ever since the 1997 Glasgow World Championships. Ever heard of a mixed doubles World Championship match played by the world’s top seeded pair finishing off in just eight minutes! This is what happened in the 1997 World Championships when there were strong rumours that a crucial match was fixed. The International Badminton Federation (IBF) officials decided to look into the allegations which were found to be true. The offending team, the South Koreans who made a big mockery of the playing public, were reprimanded and heavily fined. The IBF kept the matter under wraps, fearing that the ugly episode would open a can of worms. The Glasgow incident was not the first of its kind as the South Koreans had been caught in the act a few years earlier also. The IFB had then pulled up the South Koreans and as a punishment ordered a 40 per cent cut in the salary of the Korean coaches for six months. The paying public, which had turned up in thousands to witness a high voltage duel as the world top seeded players were involved, felt badly cheated and by the time they knew what was going on, the match was already over. What irked them even more was that all the four players were seen making a complete mockery of the proceedings, giggling and laughing throughout the match. Since all the four ‘competitors’ were from South Korea, the referee remained a mute spectator, but the assistant tournament referee, Mr Stan Hales immediately reported the match and sent a video to the IBF. The South Korean management was quick to apologise and the tournament referee, Mr Torsten Berg, submitted a report to the IBF council members saying that the ‘friendship factor’ had played a big role in reducing the match to farce. Assuring that all the four players involved were friends, the possibility of the top seeded pair having been paid off by some ‘interested persons’ in an effort to help their rivals and friends gain some valuable ranking points cannot be ruled out. Even now the rumour
refused to die down. Since no concrete proof of any of
the players being paid off emerged, the IBF thought it
prudent to reprimand and fine the Koreans and
subsequently swept the entire episode conveniently under
the carpet. |
Can Agassi repeat last year’s performance? PARIS, May 26 (Reuters) — Andre Agassi’s sensational French Open victory last year could prove an inspiration for both the defending champion and arch-rival Pete Sampras when they take on an impressive armada of claycourt specialists next week in Paris. Nobody would have bet a centime on Agassi 12 months ago as he was entering his 11th Roland Garros. But it was the unexpected start of a brilliant campaign which led the Las Vegan to reach the Wimbledon final before winning the US and Australian Opens. Romantic Parisians would also like to believe that the love affair between Agassi and Steffi Graf started in their city a year ago. Agassi went on to win the Paris Indoor Open in October and French Open crowds will hope that their special relationship with the American continues. French Open glory has eluded Sampras for so long that he seems doomed to join the list of tennis greats without a Roland Garros crown. But perhaps Agassi’s feat against Andrei Medvedev in last year’s final convinced Sampras that he can avoid the fate of players such as John Mcenroe, Jimmy Connors, Boris Becker or Stefan Edberg who also failed in Paris. The French Open is the only weak spot in an otherwise perfect career — that should be motivation enough for Sampras. Both Agassi and Sampras have been lacklustre on the slow surface this season, losing early in the few tournaments they entered. In the meantime, the list of their challengers has grown longer and longer. Victory in Rome saw Swede Magnus Norman enter the limelight. Nine tournament wins had failed to make him a household name but a first Grand Slam victory could turn the current ATP Champions Race leader into a star. Mats Wilander was the last Swede to win in Paris 12 years ago. But Norman, like young Australian sensation Lleyton Hewitt, former US Open champion Pat Rafter or Briton Tim Henman, who is fast improving on the red stuff, is no claycourt specialist. Current form and recent history point towards Hamburg Masters series finalists Gustavo Kuerten and Marat Safin. Kuerten, the 1997 champion, suffered back problems for three months but has been impressive on his return, reaching the final in Rome before winning in Hamburg. He would be the logical favourite if logic had any say in the most unpredictable Grand Slam tournament. Russian Marat Safin could be this year’s sensation. Having reached the fourth round twice as a teeanager, he has come of age this season with back-to-back wins in Barcelona and Mallorca. Past winners Carlos Moya and Yevgeny Kafelnikov have been disappointing on clay this season but cannot be ruled out. Winner of the first European clay-court tournament of the season in Estoril, 1998 victor Moya has since faltered but he is always at his best in big events and over five sets. The same applies to 1996 winner Kafelnikov who, despite a disastrous run on the surface, retains an ideal game to shine on the Parisian courts. French hopes will be on Cedric Pioline. After his convincing win in Monte Carlo last month, the Frenchman looks to be his country’s best chance of a first home win since Yannick Noah in 1983. Spain’s Alex Corretja is another player who deserves to see a fine career crowned by a Grand Slam win. Among other players to
watch will be youngsters Hewitt, Juan-Carlos Ferrero and
Gaston Gaudio, the youngest member of a promising
generation of Argentine claycourt specialists. |
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ST. JOHN’S, May 26 (AP) — Calling Judge Malik Qayyum’s report into match-fixing by Pakistani cricketers “very good, very concise and brilliant,” former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja said he hoped it would be a lead other cricket authorities would follow. “It’s a positive step towards cleaning the game,” Raja said yesterday of the report released by the Pakistan Cricket Board on Wednesday. “It’s for the other cricket boards now to take the lead from this brave move the Pakistan board has offered to the world game,” he said. Qayyum’s 30,000-word report recommended a life ban and a fine of $18,500 for former Pakistan national team captain Salim Malik because of the match-fixing allegations and a life ban for fast bowler Ata-ur-Rehman for similar charges. Former captains Wasim Akram and Saeed Anwar, along with Mushtaq Ahmed, Waqar Younis, Inzamam-ul-Haq and Akram Raza were all censured and fined for not cooperating with the inquiry. None of the players has made any public comment on the report. Pakistan team manager Brigadier Mohammad Nasir said on Wednesday the board has instructed players not to speak on the subject and to “concentrate on the cricket.” “It was about time the image of the game that was tarnished so badly was improved and this is one bold step towards it,” Raja said. He was in the Caribbean as television commentator for the current Pakistan Test series against the West Indies. He said it would be “very difficult” for Wasim Akram, Mushtaq Ahmed, Inzamam-ul-Haq and Waqar Younis to focus on the play during the third and final Test against the West Indies that started yesterday. “Eyes will be staring at them. They will be answering a lot of questions internationally. The press will be after them,” he said. “This is something any cricketer would like to forget as soon as possible. No one wants to continue his career with the stigma of something like this.” Raja played 53 Tests between 1983 and 1996 and was a teammate of all the named players. “I’m sure time
will be the best healer in the end, and, hopefully they
can come out of it,” he said. |
Fans shocked at Paes-Bhupathi break-up NEW DELHI, May 26 (IANS) — Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi’s announcement that they no longer are a doubles team was a rude shock to sports lovers as they were the best thing to happen to Indian tennis for a long time. But the fathers of both Paes and Bhupathi still hold out hope of their sons teaming up on the international tennis circuit once again. Bhupathi’s father, C.G.K. Bhupathi, says that the break-up need not be final and puts a positive spin on the whole affair. “My stance is simple. Mahesh is playing and preparing for the ATP circuit. Leander is getting treated and will play in the circuit,” he told IANS in Bangalore. “They concentrate on today and prepare for tomorrow. Yesterday is over.” He added, “The point is both of them require time. If, after all this, they come back together and play, there is nothing like it. If they don’t, we should believe that we were lucky to have them play for the country and make us proud and all of us enjoyed their game.” In Calcutta, Paes’ father Vece Paes said he still hopes the boys will “live down the bad times” and come together once again. The year gone by was a dream. An unprecedented four Grand Slam final appearances, two titles and a host of ATP Tour triumphs looked deliciously like the start of greater laurels. They were the best in the world. The computers confirmed that. Then came the announcement. There are as many stories about the break-up as there are people who claim to know the duo from close quarters. Paes says it is the presence of Bhupathi’s personal coach Enrico Piperno. Paes also accuses Bhupathi and Piperno of slighting his coach. And he claims that he wants his self-respect back. Bhupathi, on his part, suggests that the fathers also have a hand in the turn of events. Paes blaming Piperno for the clash is surprising as he had the latter as his coach during his early days. On the other hand, it could also be a pointer towards a greater problem. Maybe differences of an earlier time could be manifesting themselves now. Rumours abounded during the last one year of differences between the crack team. There was the occasional media report quoting someone from the duo’s entourage confirming that all was indeed not well. But the two never let it show on the courts. What we got, however, was passion play at its best — chest-thumping, war cries, victories. Whatever the reasons for the break, money can be safely ruled out. The duo made a lot from money on the tour. They were sold to advertisers as a package deal. Sponsorships and endorsements came to them as a team. After the break-up, the sponsors and advertisers are sure to have a rethink. The break-up is likely to cause the duo considerable financial loss. Apart from the loss of lucrative endorsements, Paes and Bhupathi playing with other partners may not win as many titles as they did last year. From a financial point of view, the break-up is bad news for the two. Paes and Bhupathi have let go a chance of making history. They were by far the best team in the world. The famous Woodies of Australia have left their salad days behind and are on the verge of retirement. There was no decent competition to threaten the Indians’ supremacy. The titles were there for the picking. What they did last year could be repeated this year and a few more years. They had a chance to be there as one the best doubles combinations ever. They complemented each other perfectly on court. That they have uncomplimentary words for each other now is really sad. The fathers are hopeful of a rapprochement in the coming year. Said C.G.K. Bhupathi, “They are not splitting because the two have a problem. It is because of a third party problem.” That, he said, is reason for hope that they would come back together. Whether the sons respond
is something the entire nation and the tennis world will
look forward to with bated breath. |
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NEW DELHI, May 26 (PTI) — Riding on a fighting display in the recent Thomas Cup finals, national champion Pulella Gopi Chand has leapfrogged 16 places to break into the top 20 in the men’s singles world rankings. Among the other Indians, Sidharth Jain also continued his climb up the rankings ladder, moving 13 places to 54th after another good display in the same tournament while Nikhil Kanetkar climbed three places to 53rd. National women’s champion Aparna Popat, serving a three-month ban for a doping offence, was placed 52nd in women’s singles. The 27-year-old Gopi Chand jumped to 19th position from 36 at the start of the premier team event at Kuala Lumpur, making his maiden entry among the badminton elite dominated by Asian players, according to the latest rankings released by the International Badminton Federation. The Indian Oil Corporation officer, who defeated Shon Sheung Mo in the last league match against South Korea and also took a game off Malaysia’s Wong Choong Hann, has gleaned 937.20 points from eight individual competitions and 667.20 from two team events, making it a total of 160.44. Rankings are calculated by adding points earned in both individual and team events, divided by the total number of tournaments participated. This is the highest ranking achieved by an Indian after the legendary Prakash Padukone, who held the unofficial world number one ranking after claiming the all-England title in 1980. Jain, who rocketed to 67th from 105 after winning the French Open title last month, continued his onward march after a good display in the Thomas Cup finals. He had defeated Malaysian star Rosalin Hashim at Kuala Lumpur and was also the only Indian to cross 10 points in a game against the star-studded Denmark. Denmark’s world no 1 Peter Gade Christensen and his close rival Hendrawan of Indonesia maintained their place atop the list. Reigning Olympic champion Poul-Eric Hoyer-Larsen and Wong Choong Hann exchanged the third and fourth places while Indonesian teenager Taufik Hidayat, who played a big role in his team’s fourth successive Thomas Cup triumph, was following at fifth. China’s reigning world champion Sun Jun, still out of action because of an ankle injury suffered in February, was the biggest loser as he dropped to 41 from 20 last week. Sun Jun’s Sydney Olympics berth now looks in jeopardy as the Chinese federation had earlier said he would be considered if he maintains his place among the top 16. The big slump in his
position was also because of the loss of the points he
had earned by winning the world title in Copenhagen last
year. |
56
grapplers for coaching camp HISAR, May 26 — In preparation for the World Junior Wrestling Championship to be held at Nantes, France from July 2 to 9, the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) has shortlisted 56 grapplers, 28 each in Greco-Roman and freestyle for the national coaching camp at Patiala from May 29. The WFI secretary general, Mr V.M. Dutta, said today that 10 grepplers from Delhi, 9 from Uttar Pradesh, 7 from Haryana, 6 from Himachal Pradesh, 4 from Chandigarh and 3 from Madhya Pradesh are among the 56 grapplers invited for the camp. The grapplers shortlisted are: Freestyle: 50 kg: Ravinder (Har), Sandeep Kumar (P&T); 54 kg: Naresh Kumar (Har), Krishan Kumar (HP); 58 kg: Niranjan (Chd), Devender (Delhi), Jitender (MP), Jagbir Singh (Har); 63 kg: Rakesh (Har), Sheokander Tomar (RSPB), Ombir Singh (HP); 69 kg: Rakesh Kumar (HP), Ramesh (Chd), Ramesh Kumar (Delhi); 76 kg: Ashok Kumar (UP), Chand Ram (Delhi), Sonu Patal (MP); 85 kg: Nishant (Delhi), Sajjan Pal (Har), Sandeep (Pb); 97 kg: Anuj Kumar (UP), Naresh Kumar (Raj), Anil Mann (Delhi), Amandeep (AIU); plus 97 kg: Palwinder Cheema (Pb), Sri Pal (Delhi), Kulbir Singh (Chd), Rajeev Tomar (RSPB). Greco-Roman style: 50
kg: Rajiv (Har), Naveen Kumar (Delhi), Virender (HP); 54
kg: Mukesh Khatri (Delhi), Jagbir (Har), Triloki (UP),
Anil Kumar (Delhi); 58 kg: Surender Panday (UP), Gurmail
Singh (Chd), Jitander (P&T); 63 kg: Virender (MP),
Ravinder (UP), Sukhbir (Pb); 69 kg: Bijender Kumar
(Delhi), Surender (HP), Tejveer Singh (UP); 76 kg: Govind
Pawer (Mah), Bachho Lal (UP), Suraj Mal (Raj); 85 kg:
Sashibind (UP), Sanjit (HP), Surender (P&T); 97 kg:
Satish Kumar (Pb), Rahul Kalbar (Mah), Sache Lal (UP),
plus 97 kg: Yogesh Dodke (Mah), Dilbag (Pb), Prasad
(Delhi). |
Megha stuns Sonal, reaches final PUNE, May 26 (PTI) — Third seed Megha Vakharia stunned top seed and archrival Sonal Phadke in a marathon three-setter to storm into the singles final of the third leg of the ITF Women’s Satellite Tennis Championship here today. Megha, who beat Sonal 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 at the Poona Club courts, will meet second seed Archana Venkataraman - 6-2, 6-3 winner against seventh seed Sheetal Goutham — in the final. Megha dominated play in the first set with her superb forehand volleys. The southpaw claimed the set after breaking Sonal in the fourth and sixth games. Sonal gave away several net points and her volleys landed outside the court. In the second set, the gritty top seed made amends to her game. She broke Megha in the seventh game after the latter had committed a double fault and ultimately won the set 6-4. In the deciding set, Sonal was leading 3-0 when Megha started attacking at the net. Megha won three games on the trot to level the scores at 3-3. After the players had traded breaks to reach 4-4, Megha claimed the next two games with another break to win the match in an hour and 36 minutes. The 67-minute second semi-final between Archana and Sheetal saw both the Bangalore-based girls playing from the baseline. In the first set, the players traded breaks, Sheetal being broken in the first, third, fifth and seventh games and Archana being broken in the fourth, sixth and eighth games. In the second set,
Archana broke the error-prone Sheetal in the seventh game
after being herself broken in the sixth game. |
Amandeep jumps to joint 13th place TAIPEI, May 26 (UNI) — Amandeep Johl fired superb four under par 68 and along with Gaurav Ghei and Jyoti Randhawa made the cut while three other Indians fell by the wayside on the second day of the $ 200,000 Ericsson Classic Golf here today. Johl,who was lying at joint 77th place after the first round, made a tremendous recovery today and climbed up to joint 13th place with an aggregate of two under par 142 (74,68). Ghei shot a par 72 second round and moved up to joint 40th from 55th place with a two round total of one over par 145 (73,72). Randhawa, 28th yesterday, slipped to joint 40th slot as he carded two over par 74 for one over par 145 (71,74). The cut was applied at three over par 147 and 67 golfers made it to the third round. The three Indians who
failed the cut were Digvijay Singh, Arjun Atwal and
Amritinder Singh. |
Punjab juniors beat Chandigarh RENUKOOT, May 26 (UNI) — Hosts Uttar Pradesh’s mini-boys and sub-junior girls teams were eliminated while sub-junior boys entered the semifinal of the 17th sub-junior boys and girls and second mini-boys and girls National Handball Championships being held here. On the other hand Madhya Pradesh and Kerala achieved double success when their mini-boys and sub-junior girls won their respective matches. Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana in mini-boys, Maharashtra and Bihar in sub-junior girls, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi in sub-junior boys categories moved into the semifinals. In the first mini-boys quarterfinal Haryana outclassed Delhi 19-9. Mandeep scored 10 points for the winners. Govind and Vijay scored five and four points, respectively. For the losers Rahul scored four, Guarav and Anil scored two points each. Uttar Pradesh were easily beaten 9-21 by fancied Madhya Pradesh mini-boys. At half time the hosts were trailing 2-7. In the second half the winners dominated the proceedings and won 14 points. In the sub-junior girls Maharashtra thrashed Andhra Pradesh 18-3 in a one-sided affair. The half time score was 11-2 in favour of Maharashtra. Punjab won a well-contested quaterfinal in the sub-junior boys section against Chandigarh. Both played well gaining points at regular intervals. At half time the winners had a slight edge leadings 6-5. In the second half Punjab scored 13 more points. Chandigarh boys played well to go down fighting 13-19. Other results: (mini-boys J&K b Karnataka 22-15, Kerala b Maharashtra 12-7 (6-3). Sub-junior girls: Kerala b UP 11-6, MP b Delhi 9-6, Bihar b Haryana 13-7. Sub-junior boys: J&K
b Maharashtra, UP b Kerala, Delhi b Madhya Pradesh 16-12. |
Mahajan,
Saini for U-19 camp NEW DELHI, May 26 — Vivek Mahajan of Punjab and Shankar Saini of Haryana are among the 20 probables called for the national coaching camp for under-19 to be conducted by the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground from June 4 to 24. According to DDCA vice-president C K Khanna, who is also the vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Madan Lal, Gyaneshwar Parshad and Suresh Luthra will be the coaches of the camp, while former Test stars Bishan Singh Bedi, Chetan Chauhan, Yash Pal Sharma, Abbas Ali Baig, Kirti Azad, Rajinder Pal, Atul Wassan and Prakash Bhandari will be invited to share their valuable experience with the youngsters. Following are the players selected for the camp: Kashinath Khandvilkar (Mah), Dhruav Mohan (DDCA), Gyaneshwar Rao (AP), M Nathnai (Ker), Sugan Kamath (Goa), Aditya Srikant (TN), Sandeep Vij (Bih), Nand Lal Mehto (Assam), Manisii Kumar (Bih), Arvindhan Dass (Ben), Vivek Mahajan (Pun), Shankar Saini (Har), Udai Karekera (Mumbai), Sidharth Verma (DDCA), Krishna Chowge (Guj), Rishi Kesh Parav (Baroda), Adwit Manohar (VCA), Aman Verma (UPCA), Arvind Chauhan (Raj) and Saijwan Khan (UPCA).
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Golf
training programme NEW DELHI, May 26 — The Delhi Golf Club will conduct the largest-ever golf training programme known as Junior Training Programme 2000 for young talented boys and girls in a bid to popularise golf among youngsters, including caddies. The DGC has been holding talent creation and talent promotion programmes for the last several years and according to secretary of the club, Col S.K. Sharma, this will continue in the years ahead. Col Sharma said this year’s coaching programme, being conducted under the able guidance of Prakash Bhandari, a Council Member of the IGU and chairman of the Tournament and Handicapping Committee, and assisted by Arjuna Awardee Ali Sher, Romit Bose and Digraj Singh, will witness a number of talented youngsters honing up their golfing skills.
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MUMBAI, May 26 (PTI)
— Former India captain Ravi Shastri, today answered
Kapil Dev’s query on why he had kept silent for six
years on Manoj Prabhakar’s charge of match-fixing
against the latter saying: “If someone comes to you
with a scandalous piece of information, you are not going
to be foolish to tom-tom this to the world”. |
Amritsar
eves champs BATHINDA, May 26 — Amritsar girls won the final against Jalandhar 7-5 in the three-day Punjab State Junior Handball Championship at the Government Girls Senior Secondary School here today. The first semi-final was played between Amritsar and Sangrur which the former won 12-9, in the second semifinal Jalandhar girls defeated Ropar 12-9 to enter the final. In the boys section, in the first semi-final Ludhiana defeated Jalandhar 26-16 while the second semi-final Bathinda boys pipped Patiala 24-23. In the final match in
girls section both the teams played well and the defence
line of both the teams was strong but the Amritsar girls
in the second half played more aggressively. |
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