The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Gavaskar quits after tiff with Dungarpur
MUMBAI, Dec 23 — Former India cricket captain and batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has resigned as member and adviser of the National Cricket Academy after a tiff with its chairman Raj Singh Dungarpur here yesterday.

BCCI keeps meeting outcome secret
MUMBAI, Dec 23 — The cricket board today refused to brief the media about the outcome of its "core group" meeting held at the Cricket Club of India here. Board President Dr A.C. Muthiah told PTI there was nothing to give to the media.

Scintillating ton by Tendulkar
MUMBAI, Dec 23 — Sachin Tendulkar today blazed to his 15th hundred in Ranji Trophy as Mumbai built up a big total of 391 for eight against Baroda on the first day of the Ranji League match here at the Mig Cricket Club in Northwest Mumbai.

Robin records impressive win
GURGAON, Dec 23 — Andhra’s Sundi Raju and Haryana’s Robin Dev hogged the limelight with super performances as they stormed into the finals of the fly weight and light fly weight categories, respectively, in the 33rd Junior National Boxing Championship here today.

Bagan, FC Kochin head the table
CHANDIGARH, Dec 23 — Mohun Bagan and FC Kochin head the table with four points each at the end of the second round of the fifth National Football League which concluded this week. The league, which had a subdued start on December 14,has come to a temporary halt due to the forthcoming Millennium Cup. It will resume at the end of January,2001.

PSB subdue Punjab cops
LUDHIANA, Dec 23- On the penultimate day of the 4th All India Ramesh Chander Memorial FARMTRAC Cup Hockey Tournament at the astroturf stadium of Punjab Agricultural University, in the semifinals played today, the holders Punjab and Sind Bank quelled a strong challenge before emerging victorious against Punjab Police 2-1 while last year's losing finalists Bharat Petroleum sweat it out to outplay Army XI 6-5.

PAU hockey team manhandled
LUDHIANA, Dec 23 — In a case of hooliganism several members of the hockey team of the Punjab Agricultural University were injured when they were manhandled by a mob in the grounds of the Jamia Milia Islamia, Delhi, during a match in the North Zone University hockey (men) tournament in the first match with the hosts Jamia Milia. Being the runners-up the last year the PAU team had already qualified for the quarterfinals.

Abhinav to play in European circuit
CHANDIGARH, Dec 23 — Chandigarh-based Olympian Abhinav Bindra has been selected to represent India in the European circuit rifle shooting tournaments, according to information available here.

Eves’ football nationals in Punjab likely
CHANDIGARH, Dec 23 — The Punjab Women’s Football Association has requested the All-India Football Federation to organise the Senior National Women’s Football Championship in February-March 2001.

REGIONAL SPORTS BRIEFS

Top shuttlers for Punjab meet
PU eves triumph

Farcical doubles tie denies India berth in final
From M.S. Unnikrishnan

NEW DELHI, Dec 23 — South Korea lost to Thailand 1-2 to deny Indian men’s berth in the final while China blanked Thailand 3-0 to lift the women’s crown, in the $ 90,000 prize money Asia Cup Tennis Tournament at the R.K. Khanna Stadium here today.

China virtually enacted a replay of their last match in the three-team round-robin league when they trounced Thailand to lift the inaugural women’s title. No 2 Ting Li struggled a lot to pip Napaporn Tongsalee 6-4, 6-4 in one hour and 44 minutes in a battle of breaks and breakbacks, though in the league clash, the Chinese girl faced problems only in the first set, before coasting home in straight sets.

However, Na Li had an easy sailing in the second singles, as she blasted Suchanan Viratprasert asunder at 6-2, 6-0 in just 54 minutes. Suchanan had stretched Li to three sets in the league clash before caving in.

Though the redundant doubles tie was reduced to best of eight games one-set affair, it was fought in all seriousness before the Chinese pair of Na Li and Tian-Tian Sun prevailed over Orawan Lemangthong and Napaporn Tongsalee 8-3 to make a whitewash of the contest.

The Chinese girls pocketed $ 20,000 for their triumph in the women’s event, which was making its debut, while the Thai girls got $ 10,000. Hosts India had crashed out after losing both their league matches, to end up with the wooden spoon.

But the tie, that was in focus today, was the men’s league contest between South Korea and Thailand as India’s fate hinged on the outcome of the match. South Korea had nothing to lose, but everything to gain, by keeping hosts India out of the final, and they did precisely that, by ‘tanking’ the tie to Thailand. South Korea had ensured their passage into the final after convincingly pipping India and China in their league matches, whereas Thailand, who had lost to India, had to win the last tie to move into the challenge round, at the cost of India.

Thailand needed only a simple victory to sail into the final, as they had beaten China by a 3-0 margin. India, on the other hand, could beat China and Thailand only by 2-1 margins, and the 2-1 win for Thailand over Korea knocked the wind out of the hosts’ sails on the basis of sets won and lost.

The high-stake prize money, obviously is a tantalising bait for the Koreans, whose simple calculation is that they can beat the Thais in the final, but may not be India, with Mahesh Bhupathi around. And it would be too much of a gamble to let India in for the title clash. So they opted for the safer course, by willingly losing to the Thais.

Had the Koreans played their normal, aggressive tennis, they would have pulverised the Thais, but Korean non-playing captain Won-Hong Joo had made his intentions clear of taking it easy against the Thais. And his players were only too willing to “oblige” the skipper, except top gun Hung-Taik Lee, ranked 90 in the world.

Lee outplayed Thai top seed Danai Udomchoke 6-3, 6-1 after No 3 Seung-Hung Lee had lost the first singles to Attapol Rittiwattanapong 3-6,3-6 in 50 minutes. The gameplan of the Koreans was very apparent when Lee was preferred to second seed Yong-II Yoon, and when Seung-Hun Lee and Hong-II Yoon played out a farcical doubles match against Suppart Chukawan and Danai Udomchoke to lose at 1-6, 4-6 in 52 minutes, only the dumb would have believed the genuineness of the result.

The $ 25,000 prize money at stake for the winners is apparently a big enticing factor, and the Koreans have made no bones about wanting to win the cup and the cash. And for that if they had to sacrifice the interest of the hosts, so be it. The Koreans couldn’t have cared much for the Indians’ sentiments, though the hosts cried foul, and Mahesh Bhupathi acerbically remarked that “we have been robbed of the final”.

India need to blame no one, except themselves, for their exit, for they should have thought about their fate much in advance, and should have chalked out appropriate strategy, instead of depending on Korea to give them a good turn, at the fag end.

The fact was that India could not seize home advantage, and were ill-prepared for the Asia Cup. The motivation level of the players seemed low, to begin with, and when they started warming up, it was too late to cement their position.

Anand on way to pinnacle of glory

TEHERAN, Dec 23 (PTI) — Showing perfect form like a thoroughbred, topseed Indian Grandmaster Vishwanathan Anand has dominated Latvia-born Spanish Grandmaster Alexei Shirov at the half-way mark of the World Chess Championship and is just one point away from the coveted title.

After a day’s rest today, the two champions resume play tomorrow for the fourth board of the six-game match which Anand currently leads 2.5-0.5.

Anand, 31, now needs a win or two draws from the remaining three games to wrap up the event and become only the 16th player to don the mantle of champion since it began in 1886.

Some of the gms present here have already predicted a victory for Anand and an unlikely come-back for the Spaniard.

Shirov, undoubtedly faces an uphill task. His choice of going in for a win through an exchange-sacrifice is debatable but that has always been the strategy in his glorious career.

The championship being held in Asia for the first time, has, thus, bright possibilities of producing the first Asian champion in the history of the game.

Anand has played near perfect chess, winning with white on the majority side and making it through the grinding month long knock-out that began in New Delhi almost four weeks back.

Also, his strategies have been baffling his opponent, who has yet to come to terms with the Indian’s preparation and execution.

While it was the French in the first game, it became the Sicilian in the third. With two more whites on hand it should be a successful home run for the Indian wizard.

The rest day should help Shirov recoup his energies and plan things that can go beyond Anand’s preparation.

The organisation and venue has been a spectacular sight for the chess loving public. The weather has been quite cold, with the snow clad mountains surrounding the venue, but the facilities are excellent and on par with the best in the world.

It has also got the support of the Iranian Government so ministers visiting the venue is a regular sight. And the support for the Indian Grandmaster has to be seen to be believed.

The game has returned to the place where it travelled from, after its origins in India, before going West.

The Chess Federation of the Islamic Republic of Iran can pride itself in organising the world championship in the historic city of Teheran in an impeccable manner.

The crowd on all the days has been fantastic and more can be expected of them in the remaining three days of action.

Match-fixing scandal overshadows sporting feats

NEW DELHI, Dec 23 (PTI) — The country’s most popular sport cricket was sullied by the match-fixing scandal in 2000, an year which was disappointing otherwise too.

Heroes like former Indian captain Mohammed Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja were transformed into villains as the match-fixing saga cast its shadow on the nation’s sporting scenario, overshadowing few creditable on-field performances of sportspersons in another frustrating year.

Under tremendous pressure from the government and bowing to public sentiment, the cricket board slapped a life ban on Azharuddin and Ajay Sharma and imposed five-year bans on Ajay Jadeja and Manoj Prabhakar and former physiotherapist Ali Irani to put an end to the burning issue but cricket will never be the same again in the country. Barring 25-year old Karnam Malleswari’s heart-warming bronze medal in the Sydney Olympics and super Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand’s entry into the final of the World Chess Championship, Indian sports continued to languish in the depths of mediocrity.

Amidst the match-fixing scandal, a new look Indian team under captain Sourav Ganguly had mixed fortunes as it sought to make amends for a string of disasters early in the season being drubbed by Australia and South Africa in Tests. Youngsters like Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan and Hemang Badani were a revelation as the young team toppled giants like Australia and South Africa to reach the final of the ICC Knockout in Kenya before being tamed by the Kiwis. But inconsistency continued to plague the team which has seldom done justice to its true potential.

Maestro Sachin Tendulkar’s decision to relinquish the Indian captaincy, the unfortunate split of the dream doubles team of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi and their subsequent re-unification, Jyoti Randhawa’s title triumph in the Indian Open Golf and the Indian under-19 cricket team winning the Youth World Cup were some of the other important developments during the year.

Match-fixing remained the most important subject of the year forcing the cricketers and administrators to face a crisis which has shaken the very foundation of the game. With a number of international players also being named by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), it could just be the tip of the iceberg.

The year began on a disastrous note for Indian cricketers as the team suffered an ignonimous 0-3 whitewash against the formidable Australians who amply proved they were the best team in the longer version of the game as well. The sequence of defeat continued for the Indians at home when the South Africans handed out a 2-0 drubbing. The great home record stood vulnerable for the first time as the Indians conceded defeat after a gap of 13 years.

Weighed down by repeated failures which also started affecting his batting, Tendulkar took the painful decision of stepping down from captaincy, a job which was virtually thrust upon him by the board despite his reluctance. The Indians lost the first Test by four wickets and suffered an embarrassing innings and 71 runs rout in the second at Bangalore, raising questions on the quality and commitment of the players.

Saddled with captaincy at a difficult time, ‘prince of Calcutta’ Sourav Ganguly brought a whiff of fresh air for the disillusioned cricket fans as the Indians wrapped up the one-day series with a 3-2 verdict.

Ganguly’s luck deserted him in the three-nation tournament at Sharjah in March as the team failed to reach the final, winning just one league match against Pakistan.

The Indians again failed to reach the final of the Asia Cup Cricket Tournament in Dhaka in June managing to win against minnows Bangladesh only as the form of the players slumped again.

India’s best performance came in Kenya when a young team, under stop-gap coach Anshuman Gaekwad, showed rare aggression and an improved fielding performance to reach the final of the ICC Knockout Tournament dubbed as a mini World Cup. After prevailing over hosts Kenya in their opening match, a spirited India stunned World Cup champions Australia and South Africa enroute to the final where they eventually lost to New Zealand in a closely contested summit showdown.

The Kenyan performance showed that the youngsters had the capacity to deliver as the likes of Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan and Badani showed their talents against stronger teams.

If the Kenyan safari lifted the spirits of millions of cricket fans, the notorious Indian inconsistency came to the fore all over again when the team suffered an embarrassing defeat against the Sri Lankans in the final of the Coca Cola Cup tri-series at Sharjah.

The Indians were skittled out for a paltry 54 in 26.3 overs chasing Sri Lanka’s huge total of 299 for five built on a rollicking 189 by skipper Sanath Jayasuriya.

The Indians ended the year with a 1-0 Test series win against another weak team Zimbabwe who, however, did not disgrace themselves totally.

India’s Olympic aspirations were completely shattered as the contingent, barring Malleswari, who secured a bronze, courted disappointment in almost every discipline they entered at the Sydney Games.

Malleswari, who was not really expected to be a medallist after entering a heavier category, surprised everyone by claiming the bronze in the 69 kg category as she lifted a career-best 240 kg.

Boxer Gurcharan Singh’s valiant bid for a medal with two victories before being declared lost on the individual scoring of each of the five judges turned out to be a cruel end.

The other encouraging performances came from Anjali Vedpathak in the women’s 10 m air rifle event in which she reached the final and 17-year-old Abhinav Bindra who missed a place in the final by just two shots.

Hockey and athletics proved huge disappointments for different reasons while tennis never gave any hope.

The hockey team could not have asked for a better occasion to redeem its lost prestige but it failed to play consistently and finished a poor seventh which again opened up the debate about the team’s vulnerability to play under pressure.

Though not many hopes were pinned on the athletes to cause a flutter in the track and field events, most of the them returned with below par performances. Only K.M. Beenamol salvaged some pride by reaching the semi-finals of the women’s 400 m run.

Other star athletes like Shakti Singh, Bahadur Singh, Paramjeet Singh, Neelam J. Singh, Pramila Ganapathy, Soma Biswas and Sanjay Kumar Rai failed to come close to their personal best marks.

Chess superstar Viswanathan Anand provided some cheer for the nation towards the fag end of the year by reaching the final of the World Chess Championship.

The world No 2 player outwitted players like Alexander Khalifman and Michael Adams (in the semi-finals) in the first leg world championship in New Delhi to set up a clash with Latvia-born Alexei Shirov in the six-game final in Teheran.

The year also saw the tragic split between India’s famed doubles duo of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi and their subsequent patch-up after realising that their career-graphs were taking a downward plunge.

It was indeed a sad day for Indian sport when the duo announced their decision to bring an end to their fruitful association which brought much glory for the country, particularly in 1999 when the pair won the title in the French Open and Wimbledon and were runners up at the Australian Open, US Open and World Doubles Championship.

The two estranged friends, both battling niggling injuries right through the season, buried their differences to team up again later in the year though the partnership failed to click in the first few tournaments.

The Indian dream team showed that they can still combine and play with the same passion as they stormed into the final of the world doubles championship in Bangalore earlier this month.

The duo however failed to find their best form against Donald Johnson and Piet Norval who carved out a three-set victory to shatter Indian hopes of title triumph. It was the pair’s third straight set loss in the final in as many years.

Although the Indian athletes came a cropper in the Sydney Olympics, they put up a creditable performance in the Asian Track and Field Meet held in Jakarta in end July bagging as many as six gold medals and an overall haul of 21 medals. India, who finished behind China, occupied the number two slot after 11 years. It was in Jakarta that India had its best gold harvest of 10, five being garnered by sprint queen P.T. Usha in 1985. Shot putter Shakti Singh (19.77 m), discus thrower Anil Kumar (58.47 m), high jumper Bobby Aloysius (1.83 m) and discus thrower Neelam J. Singh (60.75 m) were among the gold medal winners in the meet which served as a warm-up for the Sydney Olympics.

Promising athlete Seema Antil did the country proud by winning the coveted gold in the women’s discus event with a throw of 55.72 m in the World Junior Athletic Championship.

Indian hockey was brilliant in patches for most part of the year under re-appointed coach Vasudevan Baskaran but the team lagged behind in many departments of the game, particularly in penalty corner conversions.

Gavaskar quits after tiff with Dungarpur

MUMBAI, Dec 23 (PTI) — Former India cricket captain and batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has resigned as member and adviser of the National Cricket Academy (NCA) after a tiff with its chairman Raj Singh Dungarpur here yesterday.

The differences cropped up between the two over Gavaskar’s column in a tabloid recently where the former skipper had said the NCA team should not have gotten a three-day game against the visiting Zimbabweans at Indore in their tour opener, according to an NCA member today.

Reacting to Gavaskar’s statement, Mr Dungarpur said in an interview to the same tabloid, published yesterday, that “one gentleman being a member of NCA said the academy boys should not have been given a game against Zimbabwe. Such people should either resign from the committee, or take it on, or fall in line”.

“You can’t run with the hares and hunt with the hounds at the same time,” he had said.

“After reading this interview, Gavaskar came over to the Cricket Club of India (CCI) where NCA committee was meeting and handed over his resignation,” the NCA member added.

When contacted over the telephone, Gavaskar told PTI today that he had indeed resigned from NCA and said he had not criticised the board as Mr Dungarpur had felt he had but was just making an observation that there are other players who deserve to play a touring side more than the NCA boys.

“If there were more side games scheduled then it was fine for NCA to play. Moreover, if Mr Dungarpur felt I was critical then he too should resign as he (Dungarpur) too has criticised the board in his interviews before”, Gavaskar said.

“Why is not the same criteria being applied and don’t you think these are double standards,” he asked.

“People who live in glass houses should not throw stones at others. He (Dungarpur) is a self-confessed failure. If he, as selector dropped players for failing, why is he sticking to his seat?” questioned Gavaskar.

“I am still the chairman of BCCI technical committee and I am always available to the Indian cricketers for any help they require,” the former opener said.

“I played the game for my country with pride and my pride does not allow me to be in the same committee chaired by a man for whom I don’t have respect,” he added.

Mr Dungarpur told PTI at the Brabourne Stadium today, where he was captaining the CCI President’s XI in a 30-over-a-side game against MP’s XI: “I don’t regret calling for Gavaskar’s resignation in my interview”.

“I stand by it. I did not say it from my heart but from my head,” Mr Dungarpur added.

He also “recalled” that Gavaskar had gotten away with things during his playing days. “He took 60 overs to score 36 runs in the 1975 World Cup and he staged a walkout in Melbourne during the 1980-81 tour of Australia. If it were not for Wing Commander Durani, who was manager of the team, things would have been more embarrassing,” Mr Dungarpur said.

BCCI keeps meeting outcome secret

MUMBAI, Dec 23 (PTI) — The cricket board today refused to brief the media about the outcome of its "core group" meeting held at the Cricket Club of India (CCI) here.

Board President Dr A.C. Muthiah told PTI there was nothing to give to the media.

"It is an informal meeting and we have nothing to give to the press. Even the itinerary for the home series against Australia will be finalised at the working committee meeting to be held at Delhi on January 22, 2001," he added.

Board Secretary Jaywant Lele, who had earlier said he would speak to the media this evening, also toed Muthiah’s line by saying there was nothing to disclose to the press.

The meeting was to discuss the show cause sent to Punjab Cricket Association chief I.S. Bindra and finalise the Aussie itinerary among others.

Meanwhile, two senior coaches of the National Cricket Association, Hanumant Singh and Vasu Paranjpe, resigned today citing health reasons, BCCI officials informed UNI here today.

Coming on the heels of the altercation between the two prima donnas of Indian cricket Raj Singh Dungarpur, who is the chairman of the NCA, and Sunil Gavaskar, which resulted in the latter giving in his resignation, the NCA has its hands full with controversy.

With Roger Binny also resigning as the junior coach after Dungarpur wanted Balwinder Singh Sandhu as the coach, the National Cricket Academy is in trouble.

Robin records impressive win

GURGAON, Dec 23(UNI) — Andhra’s Sundi Raju and Haryana’s Robin Dev hogged the limelight with super performances as they stormed into the finals of the fly weight and light fly weight categories, respectively, in the 33rd Junior National Boxing Championship here today.

In light fly weight, Robin Dev hammered A. Magesh (TN) 13-4 in a one-sided bout to set up a title clash with Andhra’s V. Durga Rao.

V. Durga Rao (Andhra) overcame spirited Arun Singh (Punjab) to book a berth in the final. Durga Rao defeated Arun 9-7 in a close contest.

In fly weight Sundi Raju (Andhra) thrashed Bihar’ Rakesh Poorti. Raju was at his aggressive best and Poorti was saved by the referee from further punishment when he stopperd the contest in the 3rd round.

Raju’s rival in the final will be Steel Plant Sports Board’s Divakar who outpointed Rajesh Kumar of Bengal 16-2 in a one-sided bout.

In bantam weight,the title clash will be between Chandigarh’s Dharam Singh and Bengal’s Mujtaba Kamal.

The two pugilists won their respective bouts in contrasting style.

Dharam Singh faced tough resistance from Madhya Pradesh’s G. Satya Raju before emerging 12-9 winner while Mujtaba made light of Punjab’s Kamaldeep Dutt’s challenge winning the bout comfortably 12-1.

M. Athteshamuddin became the third Andhra boxer to make it to the finals. In feather weight category, Athteshamuddin had to wage a grim battle to pip Punjab’s Gopal Singh.

In a gripping contest the Andhra pugilist managed to put it across Gopal Singh by a solitary point winning 11-10.

Services Rohit Thapa outpointed Delhi’s Dharmendra 16-13 to set up title clash with Athteshamuddin.

Mizoram’s L.R. Sanga Pachua and Service’s Man Bahadur Thappa are the contenders for the light weight category gold.

Sanga Pachua defeated Gagan Dep Singh (Punjab) 13-7 in a lack luster bout while Thappa ousted Andhra Pradesh’s Cheepurla Papa Rao 14-10 in other semifinal.

Haryana’s Parinder Singh defeated Harvinder Singh 14-6 to make it to the finals in the light welter weight category.

He will take on Manipur’s S. Ning Thousaing in the title clash. Thousaing outclassed Delhi’s Narender Singh as referee had to stop the contest in the third round.

Bagan, FC Kochin head the table
By Amardeep Bhattal
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Dec 23 — Mohun Bagan and FC Kochin head the table with four points each at the end of the second round of the fifth National Football League which concluded this week.The league,which had a subdued start on December 14,has come to a temporary halt due to the forthcoming Millennium Cup.It will resume at the end of January,2001.

In the two rounds played so far,12 matches were played at Delhi,Goa,Bangalore,Calcutta and Mumbai.None of the 12 contestants have been able to log full points but Mohun Bagan,FC Kochin,debutants Vasco Sports Club,Goa,and ITI Bangalore have four points each from one victory and one draw respectively.They are followed by Salgaocar,East Bengal and Air-India with three points each while JCT and State Bank of Travancore are close behind with two points.Mahindras and Churchill Brothers have one point each from drawn ties against JCT and SBT. Darkhorses Tollygunge Agragami are languishing at the bottom without any point after tasting defeat at the hands of East Bengal and Mohun Bagan.

Among the leading scorers in the two rounds are Salgaocar’s Bruno Coutinho,who netted twice in the match against Air-India,Dennis Cabral also of Salgaocar,Ram Pal (JCT),and IM Vijayan(FC Kochin) who all have scored two goals each.The most impressive victory was recorded by Salgaocar against Air-India at Margao where the former champions trounced Air-India 4-1.Among the major upsets were East Bengal’s shocking 0-1 defeat at the hands of ITI Bangalore on December 19 and the hero of the Bangalore outfit’s win was Prakash Rawat.In fact ITI had barely managed to remain afloat in the league last season when they had drawn their last and crucial tie against Border Security Force at Ludhiana. The Bangalore outfit had secured 18 points and had finished tenth.

The teams who have commenced the proceedings on an impressive note are debutants Vasco,who shocked Churchill Brothers through Kashimov Awazbek’s opportunistic strike on the opening day,and FC Kochin,who downed Salgaocar 3-2. Salgaocar nevertheless made up for the lapse and hit back in a big way,notching up the biggest 4-1 win over Air-India,who are back in the league after missing the last edition.Both Vasco and Air-India qualified for the NFL through the second division this season.

The following are the standings of the teams in the National Football League at the end of the second round(read under teams,matches played,won ,drawn,lost,goals for,goals against,and points) :
Teams                              P          W          D         L          GF       GA        Pts.
Mohun Bagan                2         1        1        0         4       3        4
FC Kochin                     2         1        1        0        4        3        4
Vasco                          2         1        1        0        2        1        4
ITI                              2          1       1        0        1        0        4
Salgaocar                     2          1       0        1        6        4        3
East Bengal                   2          1       0        1        2        1       3
Air-India                       2          1       0        1        3        5       3
JCT                             2          0       2        0        3         3       2
SBT                             2          0       2        0        0         0      2
Mahindras                     2          0       1        1        2         3      1
Churchill Bros                 2          0       1        1        0        1       1
Tollygunge                    2          0        0        2       1        4       0

PSB subdue Punjab cops
By Anil Datt and Kamal Kishore Shankar

LUDHIANA, Dec 23- On the penultimate day of the 4th All India Ramesh Chander Memorial FARMTRAC Cup Hockey Tournament at the astroturf stadium of Punjab Agricultural University, in the semifinals played today, the holders Punjab and Sind Bank quelled a strong challenge before emerging victorious against Punjab Police 2-1 while last year's losing finalists Bharat Petroleum sweat it out to outplay Army XI 6-5. The second semi final was decided through 'tie breaker' as the issue remained tied two-all even after the end of extra time.

In the first semifinal Punjab Police felt the absence of their star player, former Indian Captain Ramandeep Singh. In a battle of nerves the cops went into lead in the 6th minute. Right in Baljit Singh Dhillon weaved a fine move, rolled the ball towards left in Daljit Singh Dhillon who with a crisp shot sounded the board 1-0.

The very next moment, PSB made a counter attack and in the process earned a penalty corner but failed to translate this opportunity into a goal. They missed two more chances in the 21st and 29th minute to restore parity when they failed to capitalise on penalty corners.

Just four minutes before the breather bankmen scored equaliser through centre half Sandeep Singh who received the ball from right in Sanjeev Kumar at the top of striking circle. Sandeeps' sizzling shot found Punjab Police custodian Manpreet Singh on wrong foot 1-1.

Immediately after changing ends, bankmen enhanced their lead (2-1) through a penalty corner conversion by right in Baljeet Singh Chandi. Punjab Police players pressed very hard for the equaliser but PSB succeeded to maintain their lead till the long hooter.

The second semifinal between last year's runners up Bharat Petroleum and Army XI began on a fast note with both the teams exhibiting great mobility and depth in their attacks.Bharat Petroleum initiated the first move from left flank with Sabu Varkey making attack on the opponent's citadel. He repeatedly raided rival's D and finaly , Army XI's goalkeeper Deepak Lakra caved in the ninth minute when centre forward Gagan Ajit Singh scored a superb field goal. BP players enjoyed this lead till 24th minute when ArmyXI's left in Cyprilaind found the target off penalty corner rebound to read the score sheet 1-1.

PAU hockey team manhandled
From Vimal Sumbly & Surbhi Bhalla

LUDHIANA, Dec 23 — In a case of hooliganism several members of the hockey team of the Punjab Agricultural University were injured when they were manhandled by a mob in the grounds of the Jamia Milia Islamia, Delhi, during a match in the North Zone University hockey (men) tournament in the first match with the hosts Jamia Milia. Being the runners-up the last year the PAU team had already qualified for the quarterfinals.

According to the skipper Jagroop Singh Bal the team was playing exceedingly well in an evenly matched encounter. The encounter was evenly balanced. Although the host team had been awarded a penalty corner in the first minutes of the game, they could not score a goal. They apprehended foul play when a penalty stroke was granted to the host team. “It was absolutely without any justification and we protested”, Jagroop Singh revealed. While they were arguing with the match referee a mob from among the spectators descended on the field and started manhandling the players. Three of them received serious injuries. The injured include Sukhdeepak Singh, Jaskaranbir Singh and the goalkeeper Ramanjit Singh.

Apprehending harm to the life of the players the team manager Mr H.S. Bhullar decided the take his team out of the field. “We decided to stay out till the security was provided”, he said. However, while they were waiting outside, the referee ordered resumption of the game and the penalty hit which was taken went unresisted as the PAU players were outside the field. The referee declared the hosts Jamia Milia as the winner.

The manager and the players alleged that they had smelt foul play in the beginning of the match itself. Mr Bhullar pointed out as a standard practice before every match the contesting teams have to deposit the referee fee. That was not charged from the PAU. Nor were they asked to pay money for the balls to be used during the match. “It looked that everything was pre-planned and the hosts (Jamia Milia) had already decided to win the match by hook or crook”, Mr Bhullar said, while narrating the sequence of events.

He revealed that none of their complaints was entertained. So much so the players were threatened with dire consequence in case they continued to stay in the hostel. “The threats led us to move out immediately Mr Bhullar said. The team reached here in the wee hours today. The PAU has decided to lodge a protest with the organisers of the tournament and cancellation of the match.