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| Saturday, December 2, 2000, Chandigarh, India    |
Sodhi to make debut today Akram, Razzak lead
Pak fightback |
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Indian eves beat
SA in opener CHRISTCHURCH, Dec 1 — The Indian womens’ cricket team’s campaign in the World Cup got off to a flying start, when they defeated South Africa by eight wickets here yesterday. Punjab win by
7 wickets Punjab 295 for 5 Haryana trounce J&K Sinclair slams
century Delhi beat Services |
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Indian grandmaster Vishwanathan Anand (L) looks on as Moldova's gm Viktor Bologan makes a move during the second round knockout of the men's World Chess Championship in New Delhi on Thursday. — Reuters photo Safin through to Masters semifinals Agassi ready for young guns Matthaeus
may play in Emirates Punjab, Chandigarh record
wins AITA jr tennis
from Monday JCT Academy, BSF in
semis Special Olympics
begins Mehak, Manjit claim gold Ramanpreet, Gurjit
steal the show
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Sodhi to make debut today CUTTACK, Dec 1 (PTI) — Bidding to maintain their supremacy over Zimbabwe in the shorter version of the game, India have opted for a strong batting side and further enhanced the bowling attack by including young all-rounder Reetinder Sodhi for the first one-day international starting here tomorrow. After the hosts took the two-Test series 1-0 with a brutal show of batting prowess, captain Saurav Ganguly today named a 12-member side leaving
S. Sriram and off-spinner Nikhil Chopra out after the team had practice at the lush green environs of the Barabati Stadium here. Going by the look of the team
composition, the enthusiastic cricket lovers, who clamoured for tickets causing unruly scenes that rocked the state assembly, will have a feast as Ganguly opens the innings with maestro Sachin Tendulkar. Ganguly was forthright in naming the first 10 including Junior World Cup-winning star Sodhi. This leaves in-form Shiv Sunder Das, who has played responsible knocks since he made his Test debut in Dhaka, to fight for the 11th spot with left-hander Hemang Badani. If selected, Das will come lower down the order to further strengthen Indian batting. Das’s possible inclusion has heightened the interest among the local followers of the game as the Orissa opener is just fresh from his century knock at Nagpur. The Indians were not willing to take a victory against the tourists in the tie tomorrow for granted despite having beaten them in the last two encounters — at Sharjah tri-nation tournament. With India claiming the Test series, there has been tremendous enthusiasm here among cricket lovers for the one-dayer with thousands of people clamouring for tickets. A group of irate cricket fans smashed glass panes at the stadium on Wednesday after being told that all the tickets had been sold out even as the issue rocked the state assembly yesterday with the legislators demanding an inquiry into the matter. The Orissa Cricket Association
(OCA), organisers of the match, have refused to take any responsibility in the matter saying tickets were sold through a nationalised bank which had opened six counters at the stadium. “We are not responsible. The tickets were stamped by the Superintendent of Police and handed over to the bank for sale. If they were sold out what can we do?,” countered
OCA president Prabhat Kumar Mishra. The teams meanwhile arrived in Bhubaneswar
yesterday. The Zimbabwe bowling appeared thin in the Tests as the Indians went on a scoring spree. But skipper Heath Streak and other pacers like Henry Olonga, Bryan Strang and Travis Friend could pose a few problems in the initial overs if the Indians batted first. Skipper Streak said the playing eleven would be finalised at a team meeting at
Bhubaneswar tonight. “At the nets this morning, we put more stress on fitness,” he said. Indian coach John Wright and skipper Ganguly told reporters after nets that
S. Sriram and Nikhil Chopra had been left out of the 14 chosen for the match. Of the 12 in the fray, it will now be a toss up between Tamil Nadu left hander Hemang Badani and local boy Das for the only vacant slot. All rounder Reetinder Singh Sodhi would be making his international debut tomorrow. Ganguly said the wicket looked like a batting track and “We hope to win the tie.” The Indians had a gala time with the bat in the Tests. Rahul Dravid led the averages with a total of 432 runs in three innings getting dismissed only once. Sachin Tendulkar, who is expected to open the batting with captain Sourav Ganguly, also got a double hundred at Nagpur. The home batting would revolve round the triumverate of Dravid, Tendulkar and Ganguly with Das expected to bat low in the order if chosen. Batting slots at number five and six are up for grabs in the absence of Vinod Kambli and Robin Singh with young Yuvraj Singh batting at number four. Either Badani or Das and Sodhi will complete the batting line up with wicket keeper Vijay Dahya to follow. Medium pacer Venkatesh Prasad, returning to the side after the Dhaka Test, will lead the pace attack alongside budding Zaheer Khan and Ajit Agarkar. Left arm spinner Sunil Joshi and Tendulkar are expected to handle the spin department as Chopra has been left out. Sodhi bowls medium pace. Statistically, Barabati has remained India’s happy hunting ground with the team winning six of the eight one-dayers allotted to this venue. India has so far lost only one match to England in 1984 under controversial circumstances as the Englishmen, chasing the Indian total, were declared winners on better run rate. Another one-day tie between India and Australia was washed out by heavy rains two years ago. The last match India won here in April 1998 was against Zimbabwe when former skipper Mohammed Azharuddin (153 no) and Ajay Jadeja (116 no) — both now named in the
CBI report on match fixing — posted a world record fourth wicket partnership of 275 runs. The teams: India:
Sourav Ganguly (capt), Sachin Tendulkar, Shiv Sundar Das, Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh, Hemang Badani, Reetinder Singh Sodhi, Vijay Dahiya (wk), Sunil Joshi, Zaheer Khan, Ajit Agarkar and Venkatesh Prasad. Coach: John Wright. Zimbabwe: Heath Streak (capt), Guy Whittal, Alistair Campbell, Stuart Carlisle, Andy Flower (wk), Grant Flower, Dirk Viljoen, Travis Friend, Mluleki Nkala, Brian Murphy, Henry Olonga, Gavin Rennie, Bryan Strang,
T. Madondo, D. Marllier. Coach: Carl Rackemann. Umpires:
A.V. Jayprakash and Jasbir Singh. Third umpire: S.C. Gupta. |
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Akram, Razzak lead Pak fightback FAISALABAD, Dec 1 (AFP) — Pakistan used the new ball to slash through England’s stubborn middle order in a dramatic fightback on the third day of the second Test at Iqbal Stadium here today. At stumps England were 282-8, still needing 34 runs to level Pakistan’s first innings total of 316. Just when England were eying a first innings lead, Pakistan’s pacers Wasim Akram and Abdur Razzak took the new ball with lethal effect, capturing three wickets in five balls for just one run. Graham Thorpe was the prized scalp, having batted defiantly for his 79, including a dogged 97-run partnership with nightwatchman Ian Salisbury. With England safely placed at 266-5, Akram playing in his 100th Test produced a sharp incoming delivery to trap Thorpe leg before. Thorpe batted for 325 minutes and hit eight fours — seven more than in his century at Lahore. Razzak then struck twice with his first and third deliveries with the new ball, dismissing Greame Hick for 13 and Ashley Giles for nought to revive Pakistan’s dwindling fortunes. In tandem with Salisbury, who made 33, Thorpe had put England in the driving seat after they finished the second day at a precarious 110-3. SCOREBOARD Pakistan (1st innings) 316 England (1st innings): Atherton c Youhanna b Saqlain 32 Trescothick st Moin b Kaneria 30 Hussain lbw b Saqlain 23 Salisbury c Youhanna b Khan 33 Thorpe lbw b Akram 79 Stewart c Razzaq b Kaneria 13 Hick c Youhanna b Razzaq 18 White not out 6 Giles c Afridi b Razzaq 0 Caddick not out 2 Extras: (b4, lb11, nb31) 46 Total: (for 8wkts in 123 overs) 282 Fall of wickets: 1-49, 2-105, 3-106, 4-203, 5-235, 6-274, 7-274, 8-275. Bowling: Wasim Akram 22-5-57-1, Abdur Razzak 16-0-50-2, Danish Kaneria 31-9-73-2, Saqlain Mushtaq 28-8-57-2, Arshad Khan 25-12-29-1, Shahid Afridi 1-0-1-0. |
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McGrath puts Aussies on top PERTH, Dec 1 (Reuters) — Glenn McGrath celebrated his 300th Test wicket with a hat-trick as Australia took the honours on the opening day of the second Test against West Indies today. McGrath claimed the scalps of Sherwin Campbell, Brian Lara and Jimmy Adams with successive balls to destroy the West Indian top order and become only the eighth Australian to take a Test hat-trick. But West Indies, beaten by an innings inside three days in last week’s first test in Brisbane, staged a gallant fightback to finish the first day at the WACA in Perth in a relatively competitive position. Wicketkeeper Ridley Jacobs scored a career best 96 not out and Wavell Hinds made 50 as the touring team recovered from 22 for five to make 196 in their first innings. Mervyn Dillon and Nixon McLean then took a wicket each, dismissing Michael Slater and Justin Langer, to leave the Australians on 72 for two at the close. Matthew Hayden is unbeaten on 46. McGrath joined Shane Warne and Dennis Lillee as the only Australians to top 300 Test wickets when he claimed Sherwin and Campbell with successive deliveries in the first hour of play. He completed his hat-trick by dismissing West Indies captain Adams. SCOREBOARD West Indies (1st innings): Campbell c Ponting b McGrath 3 Ganga lbw Lee 0 Hinds c Mark Waugh b MacGill 50 Lara c MacGill b McGrath 0 Adams c Langer b McGrath 0 Sarwan c Slater b Lee 2 Jacobs not out 96 McLean b MacGill 7 Dillon c Hayden b Gillespie 27 Black c Hayden b Gillespie 0 Walsh c Gilchrist b Gillespie 1 Extras: (lb-3, nb-7) 10 Total:
(all out in 61 overs) 196 Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-19, 3-19, 4-19, 5-22, 6-97, 7-117, 8-172, 9-178. Bowling: McGrath 19-2-48-3, Lee 15-5-52-2, Gillespie 12-2-46-3, MacGill 15-2-47-2. Australia (1st innings): Hayden not out 46 Slater c Campbell b Dillon 19 Langer c Sarwan b McLean 5 Gillespie not out 1 Extras: (w1) 1 Total:
(for 2 wkts in 27 overs) 72 Fall of wickets: 1-52, 2-62. Bowling: C. Walsh 10-3-24-0, M. Black 4-0-26-0, M. Dillon 9-2-19-1, N. McLean 4-1-3-1. |
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Indian eves beat
SA in opener CHRISTCHURCH, Dec 1 (PTI) — The Indian womens’ cricket team’s campaign in the World Cup got off to a flying start, when they defeated South Africa by eight wickets here yesterday. Chasing a target of 129 runs in 50 overs, India won with 10.2 overs to spare. India’s Mithali Raj, who remained not out on 69, was declared woman-of-the-match. India restricted South Africa to 128 for nine in the stipulated 50 overs after electing to field. At 62 for eight in 36 overs, South Africa were really struggling as Indian spinners Purnima Rau (3/12) and Rupanjali Shastri (2/27) cast a web around the South Africa batters, after medium pacer Renu Margrate (2/15) made early inroads. But skipper Kim Price added 66 runs for the unbroken ninth wicket with Y. Van der Merwe to take the total to 128. Starting their chase, India lost opener Anjum Chopra (15) in the ninth over when the total was on 26. |
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NEW DELHI, Dec 1 (UNI) — medium pacer Sandeep Sharma and spinner Harbhajan Singh ran though the Himachal innings to help Punjab record a comfortable seven wicket win in the Ranji Trophy one-day league here today. Electing to bat, Himachal were bundled out for 110 runs as Sharma bagged four wickets for 52 runs while Harbhajan took three wickets for 15 runs in just 6.1 overs. Himachal innings lasted barely 33.1 overs in which Amit Sharma top scored with unbeaten 31 runs (ix6,2x4,48balls). Sangram Singh chipped in 29 runs (3x4,68balls) to add some respectability to their score. Himachal Pradesh: R.K Panta c Ricky b Sandeep Sharma 10, Nischal Gaur lbw b Sandeep Sharma 0, Sangram Singh c Dharmani b Harbhajan Singh 29, Amit Sharma c Dharmani b Sandeep Sharma 0, Varinder Sharma c Mongia b Mahajan 13, R Nayyar c Ricky b Sandeep Sharma 0, R Kapoor run out (Ricky) 4, A Verma b Navdeep Singh 1, A Sharma not out 31, Pankaj c Kakkar b Harbhajan Singh 6, R Thakur c Ricky b Harbhajan Singh 5. Extras: (b 1, lb 2, w 4, nb 4) 11. Total: (in 33.1 overs) 110 all out. Fall of wickets: 1-2, 2-26, 3-26, 4-44, 5-45, 6-66, 7-67, 8-67, 9-82. Bowling: Sandeep Sharma 10-0-52-4, Vineet Sharma 4-1-6-0, Mahajan 6-2-7-1, Navdeep Singh 6-1-21-1, Harbhajan Singh 6.1-0-15-3, Sharandeep Singh 1-0-6-0. Punjab: Rathore c Verma b Panta 4, Sandeep Sharma c Thakur b Panta 7, R.S Ricky c Verma b Thakur 25, P Dharmani not out 36, D Mongia not out 32. Extras: (b 1, lb 1, w 5) 7. Total: (in 22.4 overs) 111 for 3. Fall of wickets: 1-10,2-15, 3-56 Bowling: R.K. Panta: 6-1-27-2, Sharma: 6-0-29-0. Sangram Singh: 1-0-5-0, R. Thakur 4.4-0-26-1 Pankaj: 3-0-16-0, Amit Sharma: 2-0-6-0. |
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Punjab 295 for 5 PATIALA, Dec 1 — An unbeaten 77 by southpaw Amit Kakria put Punjab in the driver’s seat against Jammu and Kashmir on the opening day of the three-day North Zone Inter State (under-22) Cricket Tournament league match here today. Amit Kakria put up an exceptional performance and with his knock today, the left hander showed that he was a batsman capable of punching shots above waist height to the maximum effect. He was helped to some extent by half volleys the rival attack showered on him. The Patiala youngster was well supported by good knocks by Vivek Mahajan (63) and Sachin Kumar (62) which bolstered the hosts’ total. Earlier, the hosts called correctly and elected to bat on a soft and grassless strip. Brief scores:
Punjab (1st innings): 295 for 5 (Amit Kakria 77 n.o., Vivek Mahajan 63, Sachin Kumar 62, Ankur Sondhi 27
n.o., Harikrishan Kali 27, Inderjit Singh 3 for 91, Hardeep Singh 1 for 32, Abid Salem 1 for 27).
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Haryana trounce J&K NEW DELHI, Dec 1 (UNI) — Seamer Feroz Ghyas ripped through the batting line-up claiming four wickets as Haryana trounced Jammu and Kashmir by nine wickets in the North Zone Ranji Trophy one-day league match here today. Haryana skipper Parinder Sharma won the toss and elected to field. Sharma’s decision paid off as his bowlers spearheaded by Feroz Ghyas made short work of Jammu and Kashmir bundling them for paltry 102 runs in 42.1 overs. In reply Haryana easily crossed the target scoring 105 for one in just 21.4 overs. Jammu and
Kashmir, who made history by making it to be knock out round of the Ranji Trophy for the first time this
season, were in all sorts of trouble against Haryana bowlers. They lost three wickets when the score was 27 and a 34 runs fourth wicket stand between Ashwani Gupta (18) and Majid (19) raised hope of fight back but other batsmen caved in without much resistance, as Ghyas scalped four wickets for 19
runs, and gave Haryana an easy target to chase. Haryana lost opener Padamjit Sehrawat (5) early when the score was just 21 but Jasvir Singh and Parinder Sharma put up 84 runs for the second wicket without getting
separated to give their side a resounding win. Jasvir’s unbeaten 56 included 11 hits to the fence while Sharma’s 38 included five boundaries. This was a sweet revange for Haryana as they had lost to Jammu and Kashmir in the four day Ranji Trophy match.
SCOREBOARD Jammu and Kashmir: Ranjit Bali c Pankaj Thakur b Feroz Ghyas 9 Extras: (b 04, lb 04, w 09, nb 04) 21. Total:
(in 42.1 overs) 102 all out. Fall of wickets:1-16, 2-27, 3-27, 4-61, 5-62, 6-91, 7-93, 8-96, 9-101. Bowling:
Vineet Jain; 6-1-17-1, Feroz Ghyas: 7.1-1-19-4, Sonu Sharma: 8-2-12-2, Parinder Sharma: 2-106-0, Pradeep Jain: 9-2-18-1, Pankaj Thakur: 10-2-22-2.
Haryana: Padamjit Sehrawat c Aslam Qureshi b Abdul Qayoom 5 Extras: (b 01, w 03, nb 02) 6. Total:
(in 21.4 overs) 105 for one. Fall of wicket: 1-21. Bowling: Abdul
Qayoom: 5-1-25-1, Surinder Singh:5-1-24-0, Ashwani Gupta: 6-2-16-0, Vijay Sharma: 4-0-11-0, Raju Sharma:1.4-0-28-0. |
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Sinclair slams
century PORT ELIZABETH (South Africa), Dec 1 (AFP) — Mathew Sinclair completed New Zealand’s first Test century against South Africa in more than 30 years as he and tail-ender Shayne O’Connor frustrated the South African bowling attack before the hosts were all out for 298 on the second day of the second Test at St George’s Park today. Sinclair became the first New Zealander to score a century in nine Tests against South Africa since the host country’s isolation from world cricket ended in 1991. The previous century for New Zealand was by Barry Sinclair in Auckland in 1963/64 when Peter Pollock, father of current captain Shaun, was a fast bowler for South Africa. The two Sinclairs are unrelated. Shaun Pollock toiled fruitlessly and was unable to add to the four wickets he took on the first day. In the seventh over of the morning O’Connor was dropped off Pollock by Lance Klusener at third slip when O’Connor had five and the total was 215. New Zealand (first innings) Richardson b Ntini 26 Spearman c Kirsten b Donald 16 Sinclair c Kirsten b Donald 150 Fleming c and b Pollock 14 Astle lbw b Pollock 2 Mcmillan c Ntini b Pollock 39 Parore c Boucher b Donald 2 Walker c Cullinan b Pollock 3 O’Connor b Kallis 20 Walmsley c Cullinan b Donald 5 Martin not out 5 Extras:
(b-4 lb-5 nb-5 w-2) 16 Total: (126.3 overs) 298 Fall of wickets: 1-43 2-55 3-95 4-101 5-172 6-194 7-203 8-276 9-291. Bowling: Donald 26.3-2-69-4 (w-2), Pollock 32-15-64-4, Kallis 21-8-44-1 (nb-1), Ntini 22-7-59-1 (nb-3), Klusener 6-2-8-0 (nb-1), Boje 19-5-45-0.
Delhi beat Services NEW
DELHI, Dec 1 (UNI) — Delhi opened their campaign with a facile eight-wicket victory over Services in the one-day Ranji Trophy tournament here today. Services’ Sanjay Verma won the toss and elected to bat but his batsmen failed to put up an worthwhile resistance against Delhi bowlers and were all out for paltry 133 in 42.5 overs. Only Sanjay Verma batted with sense of responsibility and top scored with 41 runs which came off 66 balls. He hit three boundaries. Deepak Sarwat (19) and Syed Javed (20) were other batsmen who helped Services cross the 100 mark. Services were 44 for three but last seven wickets fell in 28.1 overs adding only90 runs. Skipper Rahul Sanghvi took three wickets while debutant Surinder Dyama and Rajesh Gehlot took two wickets each. |
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Anand shows
class with emphatic win NEW DELHI, Dec 1 (PTI) — Super Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand dished out a glimpse of his mastery for the first time here when he outmanoeuvred Moldovan gm
Viktor Bologan to move in third round of the fide Knockout World Chess Championships here today. The world number two Indian, was held to a draw by Bologan in the first game of the second round yesterday. India’s other hope — young gm
Krishnan Sasikiran — was trailing against Holland’s Loek Van Wely in the second round after having lost to the Dutchman in the first game yesterday. Tournament favourite Anand had total control on the game and he started his attack in the middlegame by eyeing Bologan’s kingside. In a classy combination Anand kept his piece in front of Bologan’s pawn which the Moldovan never had chance to capture. Anand won a pawn up in the endgame with a clear winning position. At this point, he could have played a positional chess and won, but the Indian went for further attack forcing Bologan to resign when faced with an unavoidable checkmate.
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Safin through to Masters semifinals LIBSON, Dec 1 (Reuters) — Marat Safin, just one match away from ending the year ranked number one, moved into the semifinals of the $ 3.7 million Masters Cup on Thursday without striking a ball all day. The complicated formula used by the season-ending tournament’s organisers meant Alex Corretja’s round robin red group victory over Lleyton Hewitt put Russian Safin into the last four. But Corretja could do nothing to save himself. The Spaniard was eliminated from the round robin red group despite his 4-6, 6-6, 6-3 victory. Hewitt must now want until Pete Sampras plays Safin on Friday to find out if he or Sampras joins the Russian in the last four. It was the Australian who exploded out of the blocks in his final group match at Lisbon’s Atlantic Pavilion and he took the opening set with two breaks of serve. But Corretja fought back in what was a rehearsal for next week’s Davis Cup final and levelled on a tie-break. The Spaniard raced into a 5-0 lead in the decider before easing off the accelerator. He allowed Hewitt a break back but closed out comfortably for a morale-boosting victory. Andre Agassi earlier tore past Russia’s Yevgeny Kafelnikov 6-1, 6-4 before issuing a warning to the other top seven players in the world taking part here. “I really felt that my game started firing on all cylinders today,” Agassi said. “It has been a while since that happened. Things are going well.” The American’s victory leaves him with two wins from two matches in the round robin green group. He beat Gustavo Kuerten on Tuesday. Kafelnikov beat Magnus Norman on Wednesday and is 1-1. Agassi started this clash of two Olympic gold medallists in storming fashion, sending Kafelnikov — playing his 100th singles match of the year — scuttling from side to side of the court. The seven-headed American, gold medallist in Atlanta ’96, broke Sydney 2000 winner Kafelnikov in the second and sixth games before serving out the opening set 6-1 in only 21 minutes with an ace. The last time these two had met was the final of the Australian Open at the start of the year and that was the last time Agassi had produced such sublime tennis, taking the title in four sets. He was irresistible again in the Portuguese capital and broke the Russian’s serve at the first time of asking in the second set. Kafelnikov never recovered and Agassi wrapped things up 6-4 after 66 minutes. “I felt very solid... much better. But to win here you’ve got to play like that every day against everybody,” he said. “All the guys here know how to win, how to make the most of your mistakes, how to find your weaknesses.” Safin will be crowned year-end world number one unless Kuerten can beat Norman in Thursday’s final match. The green group clash is a repeat of the French Open final which Kuerten won — and both players are desperate for victory. Neither the Brazilian nor the Swede have won a match here yet. Kuerten lost his opener to Agassi while Norman let a lead of a set and a break slip against Kafelnikov on Wednesday. If Kuerten does manage to beat Norman, Safin can still become the first Russian year-end number one and the youngest ever if he beats Sampras in their final red group match today. The top two players from each group go through to tomorrow’s semi-finals.
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Agassi ready for young guns LISBON, Dec 1 (DPA) — After dismissing Yevgeny
Kafelnikov for the fifth time in succession at the $ 3.7 million Masters Cup yesterday, match-tough veteran Andre Agassi is keen to test himself against a couple of the young guns of the game. Agassi rolled to a 6-1, 6-4 round-robin victory over Kafelnikov, the man he beat in January for the Australian Open title. The frustrated Russian has not won against the Las Vegas 30-year-old since the summer of 1999 in Motreal, losing three times last year and twice now in 2000. Agassi, winner of the inaugural year-end championship a decade ago when it was played in Frankfurt in the dawn of the ATP Tour, faces a Friday concluding Green group confrontation against Swede Magnus Norman. It’s a contest the five-time Grand Slam champion is looking forward to. “I want to feel his game, I want him to feel mine.” Another potential target: Russian Marat Safin, on track for year end world number 1 status. “I’d welcome that challenge,” he added. Agassi’s year-end is looking a lot better than his year after being plagued with niggling injuries almost throughout. A setback in Zimbabwe at the February Davis Cup tie, a minor car crash at home after losing a Wimbledon semi-final to Patrick Rafter and a hip injury which sent him home from France this month have all been setbacks. “Even while I was struggling through the year, I was keeping physically ready,” Agassi said. “My concentration and my focus and my health didn’t really allow me to play my best tennis. “But I kept myself in position to turn it around quickly, I’ve been practicing well for awhile now.” The American isn’t making any predictions about how far he can go at the eight-man season-ender. “To win it here, you’ve got to play like I did today every day. Guys know how to win here. “Unless you play great at the right time it (victory) is not going to happen, I’m pleased with how it went today — but I’m thinking about doing it tomorrow.” Agassi said that despite more than a decade in the game — much of it in the upper reaches — he still finds himself challenged. “I feel the room to get better. As long as I stay healthy, my game is there, that part feels challenging. I enjoy that more now than I used to.” As always, the flamboyant Las Vegas kid rates as one of the crowd favourites. That holds true in Lisbon, a far outpost of tennis. “It’s been a great week for me,” said Agassi. “I’ve enjoyed being here. I’ve certainly appreciated how welcome the people have made me feel.” |
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Matthaeus
may play in Emirates MUNICH, Dec 1 (DPA) — Veteran German footballer Lothar Matthaeus, yesterday confirmed that he is negotiating with officials in United Arab Emirates on a potential stint on a UAE side, German pay-TV Premiere World reported. Matthaeus (39) confirmed that “talks and negotiations are underway with Dubai.” He said he could well imagine playing in the Emirates for four or five months. He said talks were still in the early stages and could take some time as he was negotiating with the royal family and not with a club. Matthaeus, a former player with top Bundesliga side Bayern Munich, said Dubai was interested. Matthaeus will return to the USA on Friday, where he has played for the New York/New Jersey Metro Stars for the past six months. |
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Punjab, Chandigarh record wins JAMMU, Dec 1 (UNI) — title contenders Punjab notched up their third straight win, short-circuiting All-India Electricity Board 2-0 to qualify for the main round of the 60th Senior National Hockey Championship here today. Punjab surged ahead in the 22nd minute when Jaskaran Singh deflected the ball home after Baljeet Bhullar’s penalty shot was blocked by the goalkeeper. Olympian Baljeet Dhillon increased the tally four minutes before the final whistle (2-0). Chandigarh routed Himachal Pradesh 6-1 after leading 3-1 at half time. Saurav Bishnoi put Chandigarh ahead in the fourth minute scoring off a penalty corner, but Pulkit drew parity for Himachal in the 9th minute (1-1). Baldev Singh converted another penalty corner in the 17th minute and Rajpal then chipped in with a goal in the 35th minute to make it 3-1 for the winners at lemon break. In the second session, international Sukhbir Gill increased the lead in the 39th minute. Saurav Bishnoi scored his and the team’s fifth goal when he scored off a penalty corner in the 47th minute while Rajpal completed the tally scoring his and winner’s sixth goal in the 64th minute. In the first match Patiala pipped Indian Postal Services by a solitary goal. The all-important goal came through Sarab Raj Singh. In another match, Haryana overpowered Bhopal 2-1. BANGALORE: Last year’s quarterfinalists Punjab and Sind Bank (PSB) slammed two goals without reply against Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) in a group “B” league match to book a berth in the prequarterfinals here. PSB scored both the goals in the first session through Tejbir Singh and Parminder Singh. CHENNAI: Fancied Air-India were held to a stunning 1-1 draw by a spirited Food Corporation of India (FCI) in group “C” here today. All the goals were scored in the first half. The draw enabled Air-India (two wins and a draw) and runners up Tamil Nadu to qualify for the pre-quarterfinals. MUMBAI: It was a day of underdogs as Maharashtra today threw the form book out of the Mahindra Stadium shocking favourites Indian Oil 3-1 while Tata Sports Club beat Mumbai 1-0 in the pool ‘D’ of the Senior National Hockey Championship here. An overconfident Indian Oil, winners of Nehru Cup, were today brought down hard by the Marathas though when oilman Deepak Thakur scored a field goal in the eighth minute all thought that another rout of the innocent was to follow. But Maharashtra’s Nirajan Ekka had other ideas. His measured short corner hit brought parity in the 13th minute and in the 64th minute took the hero’s role by banging in the third goal from close quarters giving goalie Davesh Chauhan no chance. In between N Bage was well supplied by Santosh Musale enabling him to score another field goal. Earlier Tatas curdled the cream of its senior colleague Mumbai with a solitary field goal in the 16th minute from Asad Khan. It was an error from goalie Arun Gurung, who ironically had replaced main goalie Bopana due to his indifferent form, which gave the opening. With today’s topsy turvy results the race for two qualifying sports for the major phase becomes very tight. Now there are five teams with six points each though Indian Oil are safe as they have six points from three matches along with CRPF and Tatas. The oilmen have to play Gujarat tomorrow and a win will assure them a place in Jammu and Kashmir. Maharashtra and Mumbai have six points from four matches each. The hosts Mumbai have an extremely tough match against crack CRPF, which will decide their fate on Sunday. |
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AITA jr tennis
from Monday NEW DELHI, Dec 1 — The Adidas-All-India Tennis Association (AITA) junior circuit final round for under-14 and under-18 boy and girls will be held at the Delhi Tennis Association courts here from Monday. The circuit consists of four open tournaments. The previous three legs were held at Chennai, Bangalore and Mumbai. Mr S. Ganesh, Manager, Sports Marketing, Adidas India, said here today that the final leg, which carries a prize money of Rs 1,25,000, has received overwhelming response from the players. He said 96 entries have been received for the under-14 and 63 for the under-18 in the boys section while the girls events have received 29 and 31 entries respectively. The competitions conclude doubles matches in the under-18 section. Mr Ganesh announced a few of the promising winners from the final circuit will be picked up by Adidas for sponsoring them. Some of the leading players like Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi, Nirupama Vaidyanathan, P. Srinath, Syed Fazaluddin and Sania Mirza are being sponsored by Adidas and also the kit of the Davis Cup team and the AITA junior circuit since 1997. Tournament director Brig R.S. Ranadev announced that the AITA ranking tournament for boys and girls in the under-14 and under-16 sections scheduled to be held from December 25 to 30 at the Saket Sports Complex in Delhi, has been postponed to the first week of January, 2001. The Delhi Tennis Association will hold the ATF Cup Junior Championship for boys and girls in the under-14 and under-18 section from December 25 to 30 immediately after the Asia Cup.
The tournament will carry a prize money of Rs 2,50,000. |
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JCT Academy, BSF in
semis KURALI, Dec 1 — JCT Academy, Phagwara, Punjab State Electricity Board, Border Security Force, Jalandhar, and Master Mehar Singh Memorial Football Club, Kurali, joined the semifinal line-up of the 13th Master Mehar Singh Memorial Football Tournament here today. While JCT Academy overpowered DFA Patiala by a second-half brace after a goal-less first half, BSF and PSEB got past Arjuna Club and Rail Coach Factory, respectively, by identical 1-0 margins. The last match of the day produced an upset as strong and sturdy Punjab Police went down fighting to the local Master Mehar Singh Memorial Football Club through a second-half goal. Taking the field as underdogs, the Kurali Club went all out to overpower Punjab Police who otherwise displayed good anticipation. The Kurali lads gave an inkling of the things in store as early as in the fifth minute when Narinder's powerful grounder nearly grazed through the goalkeepers hands. The Punjab Police defence relied on experienced stopper back Rajesh Kumar who displayed superiority in aerial duels. Punjab Police also got their chances in the first half. A good chance went waste in the 15th minute when Pardeep Singh shot straight into the goalkeeper. The match winner came in the 72nd minute. The hard-working Gurinder Singh, after latching on to the ball on the left flank, directed it goalwards and the Punjab Police custodian Satish Kumar was beaten hands down. Thereafter, the Punjab cops launched several counter-attacks but were distinctly unlucky. Earlier, BSF,
Jalandhar, who figured in the previous edition of the National Football League, had to struggle hard to get past Arjuna Club by a solitary goal which came in the 62nd minute. BSF enjoyed territorial superiority but on a number of occasions failed to capitalise on several chances. The Jalandhar outfit fielded almost the same team which did duty in the National Football League. With Bibhas Saha in the goal, the defence was manned by Satinder Singh, Raghbir Singh, Pradip Gorai and K.Mobi Singh. In the midfield, Sane Lama and Harbinder lent valuable support. DS Negi, Gurjit Atwal and the veteran Abhey Mahato spearheaded the attack. After a barren first half, BSF eventually found the match winner in the 62nd minute after Harbinder gained control of the ball on the left flank. Harbinder's stinging left-footer caught the rival goalie unawares. The ball kept low before landing in the net, sending a wave of joy in the BSF camp. Arjuna Club also had some chances but wayward shooting let them down. In the opening match, the young and energetic JCT Academy prevailed over DFA Patiala by two second-half goals. After a barren first half, JCT Academy took the lead through Harvinder midway through the second session while Gurpreet scored another goal soon after to send the Patiala outfit packing. Punjab State Electricity Board also moved into the semifinals after a hard-earned 1-0 victory over Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala. In the semifinals tomorrow, BSF will meet Master Mehar Singh Memorial Football Club while JCT Academy will take on PSEB. Earlier, Mr Nusrat Ali Khan,Punjab's Sports Minister, who was the chief guest, inaugurated the Master Mehar Singh Memorial Football Academy. He also announced a grant of Rs 21,000 for the organisers. |
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Special Olympics
begins CHANDIGARH, Dec 1 — The two-day Special Olympics for North West Zone began here today at the Sports Complex, Sector 7, with nearly 200 children drawn from 13 institutes taking part. Earlier, Ms P Chandra Mohan, Area Director, welcomed chief guest R.S. Gujral, Home Secretary, UT Administration. The children took part in an impressive march past. The Special Olympic oath was also taken- “Let me win, but if I cannot win, let me brave in the attempt’’. The events were held in low ability-50 metre walk for girls, eight-eleven years for 50 metre dash, 12-15 years in 100 metre dash and 16-21 years in 200 metre dash for boys. Mr N.S. Sodhi, a social worker of Patiala, presented the vote of thanks. The 13 institutes taking part are, Asha- Chandimandir; Asha Kiran-Hoshiarpur; Asha Rehabilitation- Pathankot; Bhagat Puran Singh- Amritsar; Bhavan Vidyalaya-Chandigarh; Government Institute, Sector 32- Chandigarh; Jivan Jyoti- Nabha; Little Flower- Panchkula; Devindra Red Cross Navjivani-Patiala; Nirdosh-Ludhiana; Prayas- Jalandhar; St Soldier’s-Sector 28, Chandigarh and St Stephen’s-45, Chandigarh. Tomorrow the relay races will be organised alongwith prize distribution function. |
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Mehak, Manjit claim gold CHANDIGARH, Dec 1 — It was a proud moment for the hosts Kailash Bahl DAV Centenary School, Sector 7, when its two young skaters Mehak Paul, among girls, and Manjit Singh, among boys, bagged gold medal in the under 11 section of the rink race I of the Ist CBSE National Roller Skating championship which entered the penultimate day here today. The race was for distance of 750 metres. In rink race I (under 14) with a total distance of 1000 m, Kriti Puri of Carmel Convent School, Sector 9, stole the show among girls by securing gold while in boys Gulsagar Singh Jasser of St John’s High School, Sector 26, bagged gold medal. As many as 52 schools affiliated to CBSE drawn from entire India are taking part in this three-day meet. GP Gautam, Officer on Special Duty (Sports) CBSE, disclosed that event had been for the first time in the calendar. He said next year competitions in roller hockey would also be held. The finals of rink races I and II (under 11 and 14) will take place tomorrow. Results: Finals (under 11) Boys: Manjeet Singh (KB DAV-7) 1, Anant Vidur Puri (St John’s -26) 2, Gulrajan Singh (Baba Gandha Singh School, Barnala) 3, Bandhur Hans (Sacred Heart Senior Secondary School, Ludhiana) 3. Girls: Mehak Paul (KB DAV-7) 1, Saranshi (Sacred Heart School- Ludhiana) 2, Jasmine (Sacred Heart SSS-Ludhiana) 3. Under
14: boys: Gulsagar Singh Jasser (St John’s High School-26) 1, Manpreet Singh (Ajanta Public School, Amritsar) 2, Sehaj Preet Singh (St Peter’s Academy, Patiala) 3. Girls: Kriti Puri (Carmel Convent School, Sector 9)1, Heena Bharati (St Petere’s Academy, Patiala) 2, Harjapjee Kaur (Amity International School, Saket, Haryana) 3. Madhu Bhel, Principal of the school, announced scholarship for Mehak and Manjit. |
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Ramanpreet, Gurjit
steal the show SANGRUR, Dec 1 — Ramanpreet and Gurjit Singh won double in the girls and boys section respectively in the District Lawn Tennis Championships which concluded here today. Ramanpreet won the ladies singles and girls U-19 doubles titles while Gurjit won the boys under-14 singles and doubles titles. Mr Anirudh Tewari, Deputy Commissioner, gave away the prizes. Results (all finals): Boys: Under-14 singles:
Gurjit Singh beat Karamjit Singh 6-3, 6-4. Doubles: Gurjit and Karamjit beat Rahul and Hardip 6-1, 6-4. Under 16 singles: Gurdeep Singh beat Keshav Rishi 6-2, 6-1. Doubles:
Gurdeep and Keshav beat Harjit and Karamjit 6-1, 6-4. Under 19 singles: Jagdeep Singh beat Ranjit Singh 6-3, 6-2. Doubles:
Rakesh and Satwinder beat Ranjit and Rajwinder 6-4, 6-4. Men’s singles: Vibhor Sharma beat Gurpreet Singh 6-4, 6-4. Men’s doubles: Vibhor and Gurpreet beat Rakesh and Dinesh 6-3, 6-4. Girls under 14 singles: Rupinder beat Surinder Kaur 6-1, 6-4. Doubles:
Rupinder and Surinder beat Kanwalpreet and Manisha 6-3, 6-2. Under 16 singles: Kuljit Kaur beat Sukhvir 6-4, 6-3. Doubles: Kuljit and Rupinder beat Sukhpreet and Monica 6-4, 6-4. Under 19 singles: Kiran Pal beat Ramandeep 6-3, 6-4. Doubles:
Ramanpreet and Karamjit beat Kiranpal and Kuljit 6-4, 6-3. Ladies singles: Ramanpreet beat Ranvir Kaur 6-3, 6-2.. |
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LUCKNOW, Dec 1 (UNI) — teams from Sirsa lifted the titles on the final and concluding day of the
CBSE Hockey Championship for under-16 and under-14 boys and girls played at the k d
Singh Babu Stadium here today. In the first match of under-16 girls, Maharaja Agrasen School, Sirsa, beat st
Thomas School, Jalandhar, 3-1. In the under-14 category g r g n school, Sirsa, lost to
V D Jindal School, Hisar easily at
7-0 |
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Anand shows
class with emphatic win
