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| Wednesday, December 13, 2000, Chandigarh, India   
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Chopra grilled; final
report on ICC team meets CBI
officials
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Hussain praised for
victory Punjab pile
up 402 Pak yet to confirm participation Anand draws first game in
semis Expert Comments
Advantage Amritraj Punjab, Chandigarh win; Services
held Satish Bhatia to
be honoured Vishwas Bhalla flays
Haryana attack Powerlifting squads for
junior nationals Madras varsity
cagers lift title
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Chopra grilled; final report on Jan 31 CHENNAI, Dec 12 (UNI) — BCCI Anti-Corruption Commissioner K. Madhavan, probing the match-fixing scandal, today said he will submit his report on cricketer Nikhil Chopra’s role soon, and his final report after examining former captains Kapil Dev and Ajit Wadekar by January 31 next year. Mr Madhavan, also a former CBI Joint Director, examined Nikhil Chopra on the directions of BCCI President Dr A. C. Muthiah, today. “Chopra also handed over some documents to me for my perusal and said whatever he wanted to say,” he said. Asked if Chopra was under any pressure while deposing before him, Mr Madhavan refused to disclose what the Delhi off spinner, named by the CBI to have had links with bookies, told him. He merely said “Nikhil was in a relaxed mood.” Chopra was also hopeful that he would get justice. Mr Madhavan also said Chopra did not say anything new during the questioning that contradicted what he (Madhavan) had discovered in his earlier investigation after the CBI had submitted its report. Mr Madhavan answered in the negative when asked if there were any fresh leads about the conduct or involvement of other players in the match-fixing scandal. Mr Madhavan said he would examine Kapil Dev and Ajit Wadekar after reaching Delhi on December 30 and submit his report by January 31, 2001. He denied reports that the BCCI had asked him to look for further information beyond what the CBI had reported. “If such information comes about in the course of my present examination, I cannot ignore it,” he emphasised. Asked if he would suggest remedies to contain the corrupt practice of fixing matches, Mr Madhavan said in his report he had suggested to the board how to streamline betting and prevent match fixing. The CBI report had also made some suggestions to prevent the evil. Asked if he thought that the present probe and punishment meted out to players would put an end to matchfixing in Indian cricket, he said: “At least for some years no Indian player will dare to indulge in it.” When asked was it a necessity to examine Kapil Dev and Ajit Wadekar who had been cleared by the CBI and when he (Madhavan) himself had commended the CBI’s report, Mr Madhavan said: “If the BCCI asks me to do it, I will have to do it. I owe my report to the BCCI”, he said. |
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ICC team meets CBI
officials NEW DELHI, Dec 12 — A high-level International Cricket Council (ICC) delegation, probing the alleged involvement of foreign cricketers in match-fixing, met the CBI and Delhi Police officials today. The CBI probe had resulted in the life ban for former Indian cricketer Mohammad Azharuddin and five years ban for Ajay Jadeja, Manoj Prabhakar and Ajay Sharma. The ICC team led by Director of its anti-corruption unit, Mr Paul Condon met CBI investigation team, which prepared the report on match-fixing and related malpractices, in the morning and later called on the officials of Delhi Police’s crime branch, which blew the whistle on match-fixing with evidence against sacked South African cricket captain Hansie Cronje. The 162-page CBI report on betting and match-fixing names former captains Alec Stewart (England), Brian Lara (West Indies), Hansie Cronje (South Africa), Arjuna Ranatunga and Arvinda DeSilva (Sri Lanka), Martin Crowe (New Zealand) and Asif Iqbal and Salim Malik (Pakistan). Apart from the former skippers, the names of two more Australian players Mark Waugh and Dean Jones also figured in the CBI report. During their three-hour meeting with the CBI officials led by its Joint Director Mr R.N. Swani, the ICC members discussed at length the issues involved in match-fixing and the areas in which they could cooperate to rid the game of the malise, CBI sources said. Besides Mr Condon, the ICC team had of Mr Robert Smalley and Martin Hawkins, both support managers, and a representative each from Australia, New Zealand and Sri Lankan cricket boards. The representatives are Mr Greg Melick (Australia), Mr Tim Gresson (New Zealand) and Mr Desmond Fernando (Sri Lanka). Though the ICC members declined to say anything about their meeting with CBI officials, the agency sources said the ICC team showed keen interest in knowing the method of investigation adopted by India’s premier investigating agency in exposing the murky world of match-fixing, especially methods adopted to gather evidence against foreign cricketers named in its report. Mr Condon, a former London Police chief, had full praise for the CBI and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) anti-corruption commissioner, Mr K. Madhavan for doing a “thorough and professional” job. “With the CBI report and Mr Madhavan’s findings, we have seen a major step forward in the fight against corruption in cricket and I congratulate the team on its throughness and professionalism,” Mr Condon said. Later in the day, Mr Condon along with Mr Smalley and Mr Hawkins met the Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) at Delhi Police headquarters. The meeting was also attended by Mr Pradeep Srivastava, Deputy Commissioner of Police (crime) and Mr Qamar Ahmed, Additional Commissioner of Police (crime). “Information of mutual interest was exchanged between both groups of the officers. The ICC team was explained about our letter rogatory sent to the UK and the requirement of information from there,” Mr Condon told The Tribune. The Delhi Police had through the CBI sent a letter rogatory for the extradition of London-based Indian businessman Sanjeev Chawla, who is the prime accused in the match-fixing case registered by them. Despite several reminders and the cancellation of the Indian passport held by Chawla, the Delhi Police has not been able to get the extradition of the accused, which is crucial for the logical conclusion of the case. Delhi Police had registered an FIR against banned South African skipper Hansie Cronje and four of his team-mates besides naming Chawla, Bollywood actor Krishen Kumar and Delhi businessman Rajesh Kalra on April 7. While Mr Condon assured Delhi Police to do his best to expedite exchange of information, the visiting investigators were assured total cooperation by the Delhi Police in their investigation. The meeting lasted for about half-an-hour. An ICC delegation comprising Mr Hawkins, Mr Sammeney and Allen Peacok had earlier visited the CBI on two occasion and had also made an unsuccessful attempt to meet former all-rounder Manoj Prabhakar and former Delhi captain Ajay Sharma. |
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Ganguly to sit out in last match RAJKOT, Dec 12 (PTI) — Indian skipper Saurav Ganguly was today slapped with one-match suspension for showing dissent and intimidating umpire during the fourth one-day international against Zimbabwe in Kanpur yesterday. The ban meant Ganguly will sit out in the series-ending fifth and final one-day international here from December 14. International Cricket Council (ICC) match-referee Barry Jarman of Australia announced the ban today after going through the videotapes of the match. Wicket-keeper Vijay Dahiya, who also tried to intimidate the umpire, was, however, let off with a milder penalty as Jarman handed him one-match suspended suspension. The former Aussie wicket-keeper Jarman told PTI here that Ganguly tried to disrupt the game after his three appeals for leg before wicket were turned down by umpire C.K. Sathe. Jarman said besides one-match suspension, Ganguly would have to undergo suspended suspension for two one-dayers from December 11 to June 1, 2001. “However, no monetary penalty has been slapped on him.” Ganguly had made strong lbw appeals against Mluleki Nkala in the 37th over of the match for what he thought were close calls and showed his displeasure when Sathe turned all of them down. In the absence of Ganguly, Rahul Dravid will lead India on Thursday. Reacting to the suspension, Ganguly said he knew it (the ban) was coming, “but I don’t want to say anything”.
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Pele and Maradona chosen Players of Century ROME, Dec 12 (DPA) — The International Football Federation (FIFA) has announced that it has picked Brazilian superstar Pele as the Player of the Century, but added that Argentina’s Diego Maradona had won a contest held on the internet. Zinedine Zidane, who led France to the 2000 European Championship title, was proclaimed Footballer of the Year for the second time after 1998. Champions League defending champions Real Madrid were voted all-time best club. The choice of two winners for the Player of the Century award was apparently made to settle a dispute with the 40-year-old Maradona, who had threatened to boycott the gala awards ceremony in the Italian capital if he was not declared the winner. However, FIFA President Joseph Blatter said that when FIFA celebrates its 100th birthday in 2004 only one player will be picked for a similar prize. The FIFA award for Women’s Football Player of the Century was won by Michelle Akers of the USA, while the internet poll had China’s Sun Wen in front. The 60-year-old Pele won world championships with Brazil in 1958, 1962 and 1970. He played 92 matches for his country and scored over 1,000 goals in his illustrious career. Maradona was a world champion with Argentina in 1986 and led the team which finished runners-up in 1990. The FIFA selection had Pele in front with 72.75 per cent of the votes, while Alfredo Di Stefano (Argentina) was second with 9.75 and Maradona third with 6 per cent. The FIFA internet poll gave Maradona 53.60 per cent, Pele 18.53 and Eusebio (Portugal) 6.21 per cent. Zidane won his award with 370 points, ahead of Luis Figo (Portugal/Real Madrid) with 329 and Rivaldo (Brazil/FC Barcelona) with 263. Reuters adds: Diego Maradona walked out of the FIFA awards ceremony before his great rival Pele got up on stage to receive recognition as one of the two greatest players of the 20th century. In what appeared to be a clear snub to the Brazilian, Maradona left the gala event on Monday in Rome early after collecting his own prize as the best player of the century as voted by fans on FIFA’s official website. When Pele took the stage to accept a parallel prize based on votes by FIFA officials, journalists and coaches, he was faced with Maradona’s empty front row seat. “I would have liked to have had Maradona up here on stage with me but it looks like he’s already gone,” the great Brazilian said. When pressed, Pele declined to name the Argentine as the best player of the past century while Maradona only named Pele alongside a host of other players. The volatile Argentine, who flew in from Buenos Aires for the ceremony, dedicated his victory to his compatriots, his wife, Cuban leader Fidel Castro and “all the footballers of the world whom I respect with all my soul”. Asked who he would have chosen as the century’s greatest player, Maradona said that as an Argentine he would be tempted to choose Di Stefano, part of the great Real Madrid side of the 1950s and 1960s. “But I would also have to admit the merits of Platini, Pele, Cruyff, Rivaldo...,” he said, before leaving the stage and the hall. The stand-off between the two giants of world soccer came after weeks of rancour over the terms of the FIFA awards. World soccer’s governing body initially planned to name just one Player of the Century and Argentines, spurred by media reports, were convinced Maradona had won it. That outraged Brazilians who argued the terms of the web-based vote were unfair and claimed the Argentine Football Federation had led a concerted campaign to swing the vote Maradona’s way. FIFA, apparently anxious to defuse the controversy, then announced on its website the award would be for a “player of the decade.” It then changed tack again and said the change was simply due to a typing error. “It (the announcement on the website) should have read decades rather than decade,” an association spokesman said, implying the terms of the vote never changed. Pele seemed little inclined to praise Maradona when he arrived at the gala on Monday. “We’re not great friends but I admire him,” he said. “If he thinks he’s the best player of the century that’s his problem.” |
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LONDON, Dec 12 (Reuters) — Skipper Nasser Hussain won most of the plaudits today as the English press hailed the national team’s first series victory in Pakistan for 38 years. “England’s progress under Hussain’s captaincy in the last 12 months has been spectacular. I’m proud of the standards he has set as the figurehead of English cricket”, said former England captain Ian Botham in the Daily Mirror. Hussain’s team beat Pakistan by six wickets in the third Test on Monday after an astonishing final day’s play in which they bowled out the home side then reached their victory target in near darkness to win the three-match series 1-0. “Let me tell you, that’s one stunning victory to win in Pakistan”, former England coach David Lloyd told the Daily Telegraph. “There is some steel back in the side led by Hussain, who is becoming a great captain. He motivates the players, doesn’t take any nonsense and is not afraid to bawl them out”, he added. Mike Gatting, who led England to two series defeats in Pakistan in the 1980s, said” “This team is a team now. To me they have come through a huge test. They have done it around the team and contributed in all areas”. Chairman of the England board of selectors David Graveney said he was not wholly surprised by the dramatic triumph: “We always thought we could have a chance of winning the series if we could get a score on the board in our first innings. To win this match from the position we were in after the first day is something to be really proud of”. He also praised his skipper, who was the victim of some controversial umpiring during the series: “Decisions have gone against him and I think he’s done a fantastic job of being captain of England”. Mr Graveney’s predecessor Ray Illingworth, who has been highly critical of the England side in the past, was also impressed with the victory: “It is a tremendous win, whichever way you look at it, a bloody good win. I think Pakistan got it wrong by preparing the wrong wickets — putting all their hopes in spin. With Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis in the side they would have been better tackling it with seamers. It would have been a more interesting series too”, he added. Pakistan and their captain also came under fire from Wasim Raja, who resigned as coach of the national side last year: “I was embarrassed by Moin Khan’s time-wasting tactics. If Pakistan can’t win then they should play fair. He was so negative and I think he lacked imagination throughout the series”, he said in The Times. “Captaincy is our biggest problem — everyone wants to be captain. We are not a team but 11 individuals”, he added. KARACHI (PTI): The Pakistan Cricket Board chief Lt General Tauqir Zia, has refused to blame the umpires or bad light conditions for Pakistan’s defeat at the hands of England in the final cricket test. In a starkly frank assessment, the PCB supremo blamed the team’s over-confidence for conceding the Test series 0-1 to England to help it register its third series win in a row. “I don’t think we need to blame anyone. If we had been in England’s place we would have also wanted to bat on. The umpires should not be blamed. We just need to do some soul-searching ourselves,” Mr Zia was today quoted as saying by leading dailies here. “Pakistan’s series defeat was due to over-confidence. And also because we were scared to lose from the start. Our approach was not positive. England played a better planned and organised game and their selection was also consistent and I think they were worthy winners of the series.”
ROHTAK, Dec 12 — Haryana were 177 for five in reply to Punjab’s first innings total of 402 at close of play on the second day of the North Zone BCCI under-22 cricket match at Maharaja Aggarsain Stadium here today. Resuming their innings at 276 for seven today, Punjab’s remaining batsmen added 126 runs to surpass the 400-run mark. Yesterday’s not out batsman Sarandeep Singh scored 101 in 163 minutes of batting after facting 134 balls. He hit six fours and five sixes. Sarandeep was associated in two valuable partnerships today. He added 91 runs with Harkishan Kali for the eighth wicket and 64 runs for the ninth wicket with Vineet Sharma, Hari Kishan Kali scored 41 and Vineet Sharma made 12. Haryana’s left arm spinner Deepak Sain captured five wickets for 86 runs. Right arm off spinner Anuj Sharma dismissed three batsman for 127 runs. Haryana made a satisfactory start as their openers added 45 runs before Maninder Bhola was dismissed at an individual score of 25. Haryana lost four wickets in quick succession. |
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Pak yet to confirm participation CHANDIGARH, Dec 12 — The preparations for the sixth
Asian junior rowing championship from December 14 to 17 at sukhna lake are in full
swing. Most of the participant countries have already arrived and are practising at the lake. But as yet there has been no confirmation from the Pakistan team, who is to participate in the boys events only, according to Mr Gopal Ghosh, Chairman, technical conduct committee. Pakistan is a member of the Asian Rowing
Federation. They have also been given the clearance to bring their own boats for the
meet. The organisers have been trying to contact the Pakistani officials through fax and e-mail but had not been successful in getting through, he said. The teams from China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, and
Indonesia have already arrived. The team from Uzbekistan will arrive tonight. Bangladesh, North Korea and Turkmenistan are not participating in the meet where as Sri Lanka is not a member of the Asian Rowing Federation. Four events-singles skulls, doubles skulls, coxless pairs and coxless fours-will be held in both the boys and the girls sections. Suresh L., Sunil Kakde, Naga Raj G., Satish
Shirshat, Ashish Singh and Jasbir Singh will constitute the Indian boys team. The girls team has local girl Gurpreet Kaur, Manjula Rai, Elizabeth, Purna Laxmi Rai and Mary Monika Minj. Gurpreet Kaur and Suresh L. will take part in singles skulls. Suresh L. will also participate in the doubles skulls event. Naga Raj G., Satish
Shirshat, Ashish Singh and Jasbir Singh will form the coxless fours team. Hong Kong have brought their own boats while the rest of the teams are using the boats rented out by the Lake Club. These boats are of Indian make and are used in all the national championships. The island, which was virtually covered in wild growth, is being
cleaned. Umpires examination and seminars are also being held along side the meet from December 13 to 15. Lt-Gen(Retd)J.F.R. Jacob will inaugurate the meet. The draw will be held on December 13 Competition schedule: December 14: heats 2 pm to 4.30 pm December 15:
heats, repechage 9am to 4.30 pm December 16: repechage, semis 9am to 4 pm December 17:
finals 11.30am to 3.30 pm. |
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Anand draws first game in semis NEW DELHI, Dec 12 (UNI) — Vishwanathan Anand drew the first game in the semi-finals against Michael Adams of England without any problems in the FIDE World Knock-Out Chess Championships here today. But in the other two matches, white drew the first blood, as Alexy Shirov, the Latvia-born Spaniard defeated Alexander Grischuk in the first game and women’s world champion Xie Jun gave her Chinese teammate a drubbing in the first game of the women’s final. Anand, who drew black pieces in the first game, will have white in the second in a match that will have four games in all. In the other semi-final, Shirov handed young Grischuk a valuable lesson in the first game. The game was a Ruy Lopez which had the berlin defence. Shirov, who seems to be striking good form at the right time, played excellently and Grischuk seemed overawed by the situation. After all the Russian had not expected to progress so far in the ongoing World Championships. In the women’s final, the world champion took a step towards adding the world title in the knock-out format to her already glittering showcase with a fine win over Qin Kanying in the opening game of the four-game final In the Adams-Anand match the opening was a Petroff, and very similar to what Adams had used in his second game against Veselin Topalov in the quarter-finals. The draw in just over three hours and 29 moves suited Anand, who went through a gruelling and tense tie-breaker yesterday in the quarter-finals. “May be he was slightly better but it was still a draw,” said Anand. Upto move 14, the game was identical to the one Adams had played as black against Topalov in the second game of the quarterfinals, which ended in a draw and it resembled a game Karpov had drawn with Viktor Bologan earlier this year in Buenos Aires. So it was clear unless there were some serious moves from either side, the game was destined for a draw. That, however, seemed highly unlikely considering the kind of form Adams has shown in the last couple of matches. He himself admitted yesterday that he was pleased with his play in the last two rounds. |
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Expert Comments FOR, India and the Karnataka Tennis Association, it’s a feather in the cap. Close on the heels of the Legends tour, Bangalore will now play host to the top eight teams of the world for the World Doubles Tennis championship to be played from December 13 to 18. The credit for bringing these two mega tennis events goes to Mr S.M. Krishna, Chief Minister of Karnataka, who is a self-confessed tennis fan. The top seven teams have been selected by virtue of their performance throughout the year. The eighth team consists of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi who have been given a Wild Card. Talk about home court advantage! The other seven teams that will be on display are Ellis Ferreira/ Rick Leach, Paul Haarhuis/ Sandon Stolle, Alex O’Brien/ Jared Palmer, David Adams/ John de Jager, Joshua Eagle/ Andrew Florent, Don Johnson/ Piet Norval, and Jaime Oncins/ Daniel Orsanic with Aspelin/ Landsberg as the alternate team. Unfortunately, Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge (better known as ‘The Woodies’) have withdrawn due to the pending first child that will make Todd Woodbridge a proud father. This has robbed the tournament of some sheen, as the Woodies are arguably the greatest doubles team to have ever stepped onto a tennis court. The teams will be divided into two groups of four each and the top two teams of each group will go through top the semifinals. The winner of Group A will meet the team that finishes second in Group B and vice versa. The winners will then battle for the title of world champion. Though all the teams are good, the focus will obviously be on Leander and Mahesh. Both have had an indifferent year to say the least. They refused to see eye to eye for the first half of the year. After much cajoling and coaxing form their near and dear ones, better sense prevailed and they came together just two weeks prior to the Olympics. They were unfortunate to run into the Woodies in the second round at Sydney who beat them comprehensively. Since then, they won the Japan Open and they proclaimed that the ‘ “Indian Express was rolling. Unfortunately, it got derailed as Leander injured himself soon after. Since then, Mahesh has played with a host of other partners without much success. Bangalore will be their acid test and hopefully they will take full advantage of the crowd support and the huge advantage of playing in familiar surroundings. Normally, they get better and better as the tournament progresses but they cannot afford that luxury here. There will be no easy matches and the round robin format means that they will have to play well from day one if they are to qualify for the
semi-finals. There is little to choose from the other teams. Ferreira and Leach are the most experienced with Leach having won a number of doubles grand slam titles in a career spanning a decade. Haarhuis and Stolle have also won a few Grand slams between them though Stolle will be disappointed at having lost the crucial doubles tie in the Davis Cup final against Spain last weekend. Adams and De Jager are a tough team from South Africa whereas Joshua Eagle and Andrew Florent are tipped to take over the mantle of the best Aussie doubles team from ‘The Woodies’. Though Oncins and Orsanic are relatively inexperienced, they have beaten Leander and Mahesh in the past and hence cannot be taken lightly. What remains to be seen is whether Leander and Mahesh can use the home court advantage like they do in Davis Cup and give India a pair of world champions?
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Advantage Amritraj And so finally the ATP tour’s 2000 season has come to an end in the singles with Gustavo Kuerten, the 24-year-old Brazilian who became the first year ending No.1 player from South America winning the Tennis Masters Cup in Lisbon last weekend. It certainly was a magical week for him as he beat Kafelnikov, Pete Sampras and Agassi to reach the world’s No 1 spot by winning the year ending championships. Kuerten, who had lost in the first round of the Sydney tournament in Germany, started the year slow, but by March he was picking up form. In this first year of the champion race he led for 16 weeks, five more than any other player and also won both his matches against Marat Safin, the hottest player on the tour. He also won five titles during the year, on three different surfaces — French Open, Hamburg and Santiago on clay, Cincinnati on hard court and Lisbon on indoor hard court. He has worked incredibly hard with guidance from his coach since 1989, Lappy Passos, constant encouragement from his parents — his father who died while umpiring a junior match and his mother who proudly led the cheering section in his corner. It was a wonderful moment after he won the final as event into the boxes to hug his mother and accept the cheers of the huge Brazilian contingent cheering him on loudly. It certainly couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy. And now all eyes turn toward the final event on the ATP Tour — the World Doubles Championship in Bangalore from December 13 to 17. 2000. This is where we hope to see the Indian challenge from Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes. Having got back together again after a brief hiatus in time for the Sydney Olympics, Mahesh and Leander won the ATP tour event and that should give them a lot of confidence to do well at home. Also the team that beat them in Sydney, Woodforde and Woodbridge, are not playing the World Championships and along with a few other top teams that have withdrawn the Indians should really be the front runners for this event. A lot depends on their fitness and once they get the first match under their belt, they should be fine. Eight teams qualify by points while the Indian team have a wild card. They will be in two groups of four each in a round robin format, eventually finishing up with a semifinal and final. The state of Karnataka and the city of Bangalore have spared no effort in putting in an incredible amount of work, to make this first time event in India a grand success. Bangalore also hosted a great senior legends event with Borg, Vilas and Cash playing in India for the first time and the response was quite unbelievable.
— PMG |
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Punjab, Chandigarh win; Services held JAMMU, Dec 12 (UNI) — Sixteen-time winners Punjab waged a grim battle to down spirited Uttar Pradesh 3-2 for their second win and virtually assured themselves a place in the semifinals, while eight-time champions Services bade adieu to the tournament as they were held to a 2-2 draw by Jammu and Kashmir in the 60th Senior National Hockey Championship here today. In another match, Chandigarh shocked Bengal 3-0 for their first win in two outings, having lost to Punjab in the opener. For Bengal this was their second straight defeat. They were beaten by Uttar Pradesh 0-2 in the opening outing. Punjab, with several Olympians and internationals in their ranks, were given run for their money before they managed to garner full points. In a group “C” encounter the teams were levelled 1-1 at half time. Uttar Pradesh were not overawed by their rival’s reputation, they played the same hard and tough game as the former champions and made Punjab sweat for win. Punjab tried to use the same ploy that they tried against Chandigarh. They held back their fire power expecting Uttar Pradesh to be an easy target but they were in for the shock. For 31 minutes they not only failed to score but had a tough time in defending their citadel. Uttar Pradesh had nothing to lose, they went all out on attack and for once Punjab looked to be on the receiving end. Punjab managed to break the deadlock in the 31st minute when Olympian Baljit Dhillon made no mistake in converting the stroke (1-0) but their joy lasted barely a minute as Uttar Pradesh launched a lightning counter-attack and Arshad Ahmed stunned them with a goal (1-1). There was another shock awaiting Punjab as six minutes into the second session Ranjit Singh cut through an overconfident Punjab defence to send the ball into the cage (2-1). A throughly chastened Punjab tried to put their act together and it was again Baljit Dhillon who came to their rescuse seven minutes later when he converted another penalty corner for his team’s second goal. After this equaliser Punjab mounted pressure and the Uttar Pradesh defence came under pressure and in the 57th minute conceded another penalty corner. Punjab did not let go this chance as Jugraj Singh scored and it turned out to be the winner. For the next 13 minutes Uttar Pradesh tried hard for an equaliser but the determined Punjab defence foiled all their efforts and held on to the slender lead which helped them almost win a place in the last four. Earlier, Chandigarh did Punjab a favour as they defeated Bengal 3-0. All the goals came in the first half. In a drab encounter, Chandigarh surged ahead in the second minute through junior international Saurav Bishnoi, who scored off a penalty corner. Four minutes later Rajpal Singh made it 2-0 for the winners when he converted a stroke and in the 17th minute Navdeep Singh increased the tally to 3-0, scoring off a penalty. There was no intrest left in the match, once the union territory took commanding 3-0 lead and both the sides went through their motions to complete the formality. In the first match of the day, Services crashed out after they were held to a 2-2 draw by Jammu and Kashmir. Services, who lost to the Border Security Force (BSF) in their opener in pool ‘D’ yesterday, were in for another shock as they were forced to share points with lowly Jammu and Kashmir, despite taking lead twice. Putting behind yesterday’s poor show against holders Indian Airlines, Jammu and Kashmir gave a better display and pleased their supporters by snatching a point from Services. Interestingly of the four goals scored, three came off the penalty corners. Much was expected from Services, who last won the title in 1992,but they let their supporters down. Services despite dominating the proceedings clearly lacked proper planning. They kept on attacking but without any result. The former champions surged ahead in the 17th minute when Lokhanda shot off a penalty corner (1-0). Services, however, could not hold on to the lead for more than five minutes as Jammu and Kashmir striker Inder Pal Singh took advantage of the defensive lapse to shoot the equaliser (1-1) much to the chargain of the service men. |
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Satish Bhatia to
be honoured CHANDIGARH, Dec 12 — Wg Cdr Satish Bhatia, a former national badminton champion and winner of the international meritorious award for his contribution to the growth of badminton, will be jointly honoured by the UP Badminton Association and the UP Government during the Syed Modi Memorial All-India Badminton Tournament in Lucknow on December 17. Better known for inventing the most controversial spin service in 1962, Satish made the International Badminton Federation officials sit up and watch his question mark serves. He was summoned to England for a slow action movie of his controversial service. The replay showed the service to be perfect.
Satish belongs to Dehra Dun , but for the last 25 years he has been a permanent resident of Chandigarh. Vishwas Bhalla flays
Haryana attack ROHTAK, Dec 12 — An unbeaten knock of 204 by Punjab skipper Vishwas Bhalla enabled Punjab to raise a score of 451 for five on the opening day of their Vijay Merchant cricket tie against Haryana at Sat Priya Cricket Academy here today. After winning the toss and electing to bat first, Punjab lost their first wicket at no score. But a captain’s knock by Vishwas Bhalla helped this team to a mammoth total. Batting at No. 3, Vishwas completed his double hundred with the help of 28 fours and two sixes. He took 346 minutes and faced 247 balls to achieve this feat, Rahul Arora made 91 in 138 minutes off 122 balls with the help of nine fours and two sixes. Vishwas Bhalla and Rahul Arora were also associated in a third wicket partnership of 161 runs in 138 minutes off 209 balls. Aseem Gupta was batting on 35 and Vishwas Bhalla on 204 when play stopped today. Rahul Gehlot was the most successful Haryana bowler, claiming three wickets for 133 runs. |
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Powerlifting squads for
junior nationals PATIALA, Dec 12 — The Punjab Powerlifting Association has selected an 11-member boys and a 10-member girls squad for the 22nd Junior National Powerlifting Championships slated to be held at Ranchi [Bihar] from December 23 to 27. The teams are : Boys: J.S.Cheema, Munish Kumar (Senior), Rakesh Kumar, Karamjit Singh,Mandeep Singh, Balwinder Singh, Sukhdev Singh, Munish Kumar (Junior), Gautam Sood, Ashok Kumar, Balkaran Singh. Reserve: Sanjiv Kumar. Girls:
Sunita, Babita, Beant Kaur, Rupinder Kaur, Mandeep Kaur, Asha Rani, Arpana, Kulwinder Kaur, Neelam, Maninder Kaur. Reserve: Harvinder Kaur. |
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Madras varsity
cagers lift title PATIALA, Dec 12 — There was a lot in terms of competitive value in the final match before Bhartiar university cagers ran out of steam towards the fag end of the game to enable Madras university clinch the title in the All India inter -university basketball championships which conluded at the Punjabi University sports complex here today. In a tense final, Madras University played a cohesive and well knit game to scrape past the Bhartiar university boys 71-67. For the winners the lanky E .Emmanuel dominated the proceedings. He moved smoothly, dodged the robust-looking defense with incisive forays and found the basket almost at will much to the chagrin of his rivals. The Bhartiar cagers tended to relax towards the end which led to their undoing. GNDU varsity, Amritsar, guided by Amritpal Singh who garnered an impressive 16 points, took the third spot beating Panjab University, Chandigarh, 56-46. For the losers, Nirpinder Singh played well to notch up a formidable total of 16 points. |
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