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| Tuesday, January 9, 2001, Chandigarh, India    |
Millennium Cup Wadekar deposes before Madhavan
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| Akram quitting after England tour? “Take away award & face consequences” Sri Lanka recall De Silva Sharjah cricket tournament rescheduled |
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| I have been a power player: Capriati Striker Ferguson fights off burglars Batistuta may need knee surgery Andhra, Karnataka cagers in quarters Delhi gets 3-day match, may lose out on one-dayer Ajay Ratra to lead U-19 squad Rovers Cup : exciting tussle on the cards Chandigarh men win; Punjab eves lose Services boxers bag honours Six Punjab boxers for national camp Baboor, Das lead PSCB to victory North, West squads reaching today
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| Millennium Cup KOLKATA, Jan 8 (PTI) — The Japanese team arrived in the city this morning to take part in Sahara Millennium Cup soccer tournament to be held at three different venues of the country from January 10 to 25. Japan, who were the second team to reach the city after Uzbekistan who landed yesterday, had a light workout in the afternoon to get acclimatised to the conditions here. "We are optimistic of doing well in the tournament and are looking forward to the matches. It is going to be a tough tournament," team’s manager Mayazaki Julisichi told reporters here. The manager said the team comprised of a clutch of youngsters and had no experience of playing in the sub-continent. "It is a young and promising team. They are all very enthusiastic to make an impression in the tournament," he said. Japan have been clubbed in group-4 along with strong contenders Chile, Uzbekistan and Bahrain. Chile and Bahrain are expected to reach the city tomorrow. Japan will open their campaign against Uzbekistan on the inaugural day of the championship on January 10. They will play their second match against Chile on January 12 and complete their group engagements with a match against Bahrain on January 17. The city’s Salt Lake Stadium, renovated for the occasion, will host as many as 12 of the 32 matches, including two quarterfinals, two semi-finals and the final. Colaco said the withdrawl of Iraq, despite their representative being present at the draw ceremony in Delhi, was "unfortunate". "Panama had shown interest and was the likely replacement for Iraq, but was not sure of the arrangement," he said, adding they were negotiating with Iraq further and if there was no response then Group One would be left with only three teams out of which two would qualify. Meanwhile, a press release from AIFF president Priyaranjan Dasmunsi said: "The tournament in the new millennium shall not only bring a new football appetite in the country but guide our destiny for a competitive skill, strength and endurance of our own team for future development". "Indian team was composed of best available talents in the country with a unique combination of exposed, experienced senior players and new recruits," he added. The participating teams are Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bosnia, Cameroon, Chile, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Japan, Romania, Uruguay, Uzbekistan and Yugoslavia. UNI: With their national team on a tour of Tel Aviv, an almost newly-built Uzbekistan national side with least expectations will take to the field in the first Millennium Cup soccer league commencing here on January 10. This was stated by Uzbek coach Inileev Rauf here today. A 31-member national squad, including 25 players, arrived here yesterday. The team had a two-hour workout with their young and some experienced players this afternoon. Of the 25 players, many were teenagers. The team looked a defensive side as it had only four frontliners, including the country’s best schemer Mirkholdirshayev Sukhratbek. They belonged to Kovabakhor team and had scored 24 goals in their last national league. Former Uzbek national coach Borisov Viktor, who accompanied the team as manager, was silent about his present side which would have to play against Japan, Chile and Baharin in the group league here. He, however, observed that the Indian team has been progressing. He is now coaching Pakhtakor Club that played in Kolkata several times earlier. A couple of player of the side had also played in the Nehru Gold Cup in 1997, Mr Rauf pointed out. Twenty four-year-old medio and skipper Piramatoy Otabek hoped the youngsters of his team would perform well in the league. After the national of his team would perform well in the league. After the national side’s debacle in Asia Cup 2000, most of the aged players were ousted and a new generation entered the team, Otabek said. Mr Rauf said it become difficult for the independent countries of the erstwhile Soviet Union to build a strong side with experienced players as most of the good players favoured playing in Russia after the dismemberment of the USSR. The present squad was, however, chosen with four Pakhator players, five Dustlic club player and the rest from other clubs. The age of the players varied from 18 to 30. The 18-year-old, goalkeeper, Nesterov Ignatiy, who was adjuded ‘best young player’ of the country, is also in the squad, the coach said. The players also liked the climate of Kolkata and said it was conducive to good football as their country was now reeling under severe cold. The Uzbek side is the first team to arrive in the city to play. The other teams in the group to play at Salt Lake Stadium are Sydney Olympic bronze medallist soccer team Chile, Asian champion Japan and Bahrain. While Chile holds the 19th FIFA ranking, Japan are 38th, Uzbekistan 71st while Bahrain’s are 138th. However, Japan would be represented by a selection of the university level. Uzbek would play their first match against Japan on the inaugural day at 5 p.m. after the match between Chile and Bahrain at 2.45 p.m. |
| Wadekar deposes before Madhavan NEW DELHI, Jan 8 — Former Indian cricket captain and manager Ajit Wadekar deposed before the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) appointed inquiry commissioner K. Madhavan, who is probing into the betting and match-fixing allegations, following the 162-page report on “Cricket match-fixing and related malpractices” submitted by the Central Bureau of Investigation to the Union Government on October 31, 2000. Mr Madhavan and Wadekar were closeted for close to four hours, and after the marathon meeting Mr Madhavan would only say that “we have recorded his statements”. Mr Madhavan, pressed further, said Wadekar “appeared before me and Mr P.K. Sharma and made a statement. He was co-operative and replied to whatever questions we asked him”. Mr Madhavan said Wadekar was summoned to elicit his views on the betting and match-fixing scandal as after the submission of the CBI report, the BCCI felt that the inquiry commissioner should probe the roles of Wadekar, Nikhil Chopra and Kapil Dev in the entire episode. Mr Madhavan refused to elaborate any further, though he indicated that he may meet Kapil Dev on Wednesday. He did not give a categorical reply when asked whether Navjot Singh Sidhu would also be called to depose before him. Mr Madhavan said it would take at least three hours to type out Wadekar’s statement, but did not elaborate. Wadekar said: “I was asked by the BCCI to depose before the commission and I had a good chat with Madhavan”. But he said the timing of his deposition was “ill-timed and I didn’t know why I was asked to depose before Madhavan”. Wadekar said he did not have anything more to add to what he had told the CBI and today’s meeting, if anything, had only put a spanner in the works of his campaign for the presidentship of the Bombay Cricket Association. “I have quite a lot of canvassing to be done”, he said. In his deposition before the CBI, Wadekar had reportedly stated that during his tenure as manager of the Indian cricket team, he did not come across any instance or information which hinted at match-fixing, betting or involvement of Indian players in it, “although there were some instances such as Kapil Dev not running out Peter Kirsten in the 1992 Goodwill Tour of the Indian team to South Africa in spite of his (Kirsten) repeatedly leaving the crease before the ball was delivered and in spite of him telling Kapil to run Kirsten out a number of times after warning Kapil did not do so”. Wadekar had further stated that this behaviour of Kapil “appeared odd, but thought that Kapil really wanted to have good relations with South Africa”. He had also stated that Nayan Mongia had played extremely slowly in the one-day international match against West Indies at Kanpur, and he along with Manoj (Prabhakar) had been dropped from the next two matches on the ground that they appeared to have played slow to improve their average. He had also stated that although all these instances did appear to be odd, he could not say that they were deliberate acts on the part of the players because of “consideration of match-fixing and betting”. Wadekar had also totally denied that Manoj Prabhakar had given him any information about the alleged offer of money to him by Kapil Dev to “underperform”. |
| Akram quitting after England tour? KARACHI, Jan 8 (ANI) — Pakistan all-rounder Wasim Akram is expected to call it a day from international cricket after this summer’s tour of England. “The News” has learnt through reliable sources that Wasim has reached a confidential understanding with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) that he would retire after the tour of England in May-June. The sources in the board say that at a meeting Wasim had with PCB Chairman Tauqir Zia a few weeks ago, a tacit understanding was reached that the three-time former captain should announce his retirement during the tour of England, where Pakistan play two Test matches and take part in a triangular one-day series also involving the unbeatable Australians. Wasim came under extreme pressure during the home series against England after his poor performances in the first two Tests. He did not play the final one at Karachi, pulling out from the team on the morning of the match on the pretext that he had developed back spasms. Although different stories circulated over his sudden withdrawal raising questions whether the board had finally dropped him from the team, Wasim himself insisted he was in the playing eleven sent for the toss between the captains and had pulled out himself due to his back problem. Pakistan lost that match and Wasim later met Tauqir Zia, following which the board issued several statements making it clear that Wasim would be going to New Zealand as he was a national asset provided he was fit like all other players. Wasim during this time left for Manchester to join his wife, who is expecting their second child later this month. This he did with the permission of the board although all the players had been told to appear in domestic cricket to be eligible for selection for the New Zealand tour. Sources say during his meeting with Tauqir, who had earlier also met Imran Khan, it was decided that the board would enable Wasim to tour New Zealand, Sharjah and England and then leave it to him to announce his retirement, thus allowing him to leave the international scene gracefully. |
| “Take away award & face consequences” NEW DELHI, Jan 8 (UNI) — Former cricket all-rounder Manoj Prabhakar, banned for five years from the game, today dared Union Sports Ministry to take away his Arjuna Award which was bestowed on him in 1998. “Take away the award and face the consequence,” Manoj said in a letter to the Sports Ministry and added that he will go to the court if government takes any such drastic step “The award was given to me for my achievements on the field and I have done nothing wrong on the field to be deprived of the award,” he told UNI. In his deposition to Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) Anti-Corruption Commissioner K.Madhavan he had said: “During my playing days I was not involved in any scandal. I don’t know why I am being clubbed with Ajay Jadeja who is still playing.” Manoj said he had received a letter from the ministry saying “you may” appear before the joint secretary to give your view on the match-fixing scandal. According to the former all-rounder no where in the letter it was said that “I have to appear”. He claimed the letter from the ministry said: “It wishes to give you an opportunity to present your case as why the Arjuna Award should not be taken away from you.” “I did not go to meet the joint secretary today. My views are already well known, I have other things to do. How many times I keep meeting the officials about the same topic.” “I have written to the ministry giving my point of view, it is the same statement which I have given to the BCCI and Mr K.Madhavan.” The player-turned-businessman, who blew the whistle on match-fixing scandel three years ago was to meet the Joint Secretary, Sports, this morning but he did not turn up at Shastri Bhawan. Prabhakar, in a letter to the ministry said he had already appeared before the CBI and Mr Madhavan. Prabhakar claimed that this was not the way to treat cricketers who had served the country for many years and that there was no point in appearing before the Sports Ministry officials again. |
| Sri Lanka recall De Silva COLOMBO, Jan 8 (Reuters) — Veteran batsman Aravinda de Silva is expected to leave for South Africa tomorrow to try to shore up the struggling touring side. However, he might not be able to arrive before the third of the six one-day internationals takes place in Paarl tomorrow. The former captain, who is Sri Lanka’s all-time run leader with more than 13,000 runs in Tests and one-day internationals, was originally overlooked for the tour because Sri Lanka wanted to give younger players a chance to gain experience ahead of the 2003 World Cup which will be played in South Africa. “He leaves tomorrow, but we are not sure what time he will arrive there,” a Sri Lanka cricket board official said. The 35-year-old was recalled after all-rounder Upul Chandana broke a finger, and after Sri Lanka lost the first two games of the one-day series and were hammered by an innings and 229 runs in the second Test in Cape Town last week. It was Sri Lanka’s worst-ever Test defeat. De Silva was named last year along with former captain Arjuna Ranatunga in a match-fixing report by India’s Central Bureau of Investigation. He has denied the report’s allegations. |
| Sharjah cricket tournament rescheduled DUBAI, Jan 8 (UNI) — The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has virtually confirmed the national squad’s participation in the Sharjah Cricket Tournament, also featuring Pakistan and Sri Lanka, to be held in April, by asking for a slight change in its schedule. The Cricketers’ Benefit Fund Series (CBFS), the organisers of the cricket tournaments at Sharjah, told local newspapers that it had received a request from the Indian board, asking for shifting of dates in view of India’s engagements with Australia in a domestic series till April 6. Mr Zahed Noorani, Chief Executive of the CBFS was quoted as saying that the Sharjah tournament would now begin on April 8 instead of April 4 and conclude on April 20. “We have received a request from the Indian board for a change in schedule since India will be playing Australia in one-day international matches till April 6,’’ Mr Noorani said. Both Pakistan and Sri Lanka have also been informed about the change in dates. “We have informed Pakistan and Sri Lanka about the shifting of dates. Since the teams have no commitments during this period, we hope their respective boards will agree to the suggested change of dates’’, he added. However, the CBFS was yet to get a reply from the two teams in this matter. The newspaper had recently reported that Australia’s tour schedule overlapped with the Sharjah tournament dates and that India was planning to request the CBFS to revise the dates of the desert tourney. The schedule sent to the Australian board for approval indicated the tour would end on April 6 though the triangular series in Sharjah was to commence from April 4. The Australian board approved the schedule and sent it back to India and only then did the Indian board realise its mistake. BCCI secretary J.Y. Lele, when contacted, had stated that the Australian tour schedule , which had appeared in some sections of the Press, was an unofficial one and that the official schedule would only be released on January 22. High-level discussions to drop a few matches to ensure that India reaches Sharjah before April 4 also failed as none of the state associations in India wanted to forego the match allotted to it. There were also reports that the BCCI was planning to drop from Australia’s schedule a match against the Board President’s XI at Kochi to enable the Indian team to reach Sharjah before April 4. Meanwhile, Kerala’s representative in the BCCI, Mr S.K. Nair, was quoted as saying in the newspaper that “Kerala will not be hosting the Australia-Board President’s XI match in Kochi as we had recently staged a one-day match against South Africa’’. As per the BCCI’s rotation system in allocation of matches, it was another south Indian state’s chance to host a touring team, he said. Mr Nair said Kerala was expecting an important match during the England tour of India. “We will be hosting a one-day international when England is to tour India in November this year’’, he added. The rescheduling of the Sharjah tournament indicates that the Indian board is keen to participate in the tri-nation championship and was not opposed to playing against Pakistan. It is to be seen whether the government will clear the tour to Sharjah, against the backdrop of its refusal to allow the team to go to Pakistan for a two-month tour last month. The government has taken the view that there was no point in having sporting links with Pakistan unless the neighbouring country stopped fomenting trouble on the Indian soil. This will be the last tournament for both India and Pakistan in Sharjah before their three-year contract with the CBFS becomes due for renewal. However, India says it had so far not taken any decision on the renewal of the contract. India recently refused to participate in a proposed tournament in Malaysia, also involving Pakistan and the hosts. However, BCCI secretary Lele said India’s refusal to participate in the tournament had nothing to do with Pakistan. He said time constraints did not permit the team to take part in the Malaysia tournament. |
| I have been a power player: Capriati SYDNEY, Jan 8 (AFP) — Jennifer Capriati is finding she can hit the ball better than most players on the women’s tour — but her problem is getting into position to do so. The one-time American teen sensation is now approaching 25 and is trying to keep up with the younger guns in the fast-evolving world of women’s tennis. Capriati reached her first grand slam semi-final in nine years at last year’s Australian Open where she lost to Lindsay Davenport, and now is back again to match it with the best. Capriati, enjoying her best ranking of 14 since her hey-days at No 6 in 1991-93, won her opening round match at the Sydney International here today, accounting for Russian Tatiana Panova, 6-4 3-6 6-1. The eighth-seed is travelling with her father Stefano, as her coach since splitting with Harold Solomon last March and believes she is adapting her game to the demands of the circuit. "The thing for me is to be in immaculate physical condition," said Capriati. "I know I can hit the ball better than those players, but I just have to get to the ball first. "I also have to be aggressive, add variety to my game, be consistent, have a good serve." Capriati said she had adapted her game to the power game of the Williams’ sisters, Davenport and Mary Pierce. "I have always been a power player, but now it’s double what it used to be." "When I was starting out it was playing the top 10 that was tough, but once you got past the top 10 the depth wasn’t as good," she said. "Now you regularly have tough matches in the first and second rounds of tournaments and you can never know what will happen." Elsewhere today, Australian power server Alicia Molik ousted American Meghann Shaughnessy, 6-1 7-6 (7/1), American Brie Rippner ended Thailand’s Tamarine Tanasugarn’s tournament, 6-0 6-7 (4/7) 6-3 and Austrian Barbara Schett skated past Spain’s Gala Leon Garcia 7-2 6-4. In the men’s draw, French Davis Cup member and sixth seed Sebastien Grosjean took out Australian Richard Fromberg 7-6 (7/3) 6-2. Compatriot Fabrice Santoro knocked out German David Prinosil, 6-3 6-3, Germany’s Rainer Schuettler was taken to three sets by Slava Dosedel of the Czech Republic, 6-3 3-6, 6-3 and Italy’s Gianluca Pozzi defeated Moroccan eighth seed Younes El Ayanoui 7-5 6-4. |
| Striker Ferguson fights off burglars london, Jan 8 (Reuters) — Everton striker Duncan Ferguson fought off two burglars at his home in the early hours yesterday. Ferguson (29) known as one of the most combative players in the game, escaped with a minor injury. One of the intruders was still in hospital today, though his injuries are not thought to be serious. The police hope to question him later in the day. A police spokesperson said today they were not in a position to name the homeowner involved in the incident but said of him: “He has been interviewed by the Lancashire Police and we are satisfied that he acted both bravely and responsibly when encountering these intruders in his home.” Batistuta may need knee surgery ROME, Jan 8 (Reuters) — As Roma’s Argentine striker Gabriel Batistuta might need surgery on his right knee which would sideline him for up to four months, a surgeon associated with the club said yesterday. Pier Paolo Mariani, who has operated on several Roma players, said Batistuta was suffering from tendinitis. “If it doesn’t improve, an operation cannot be ruled out, even if the usual first course of treatment for such problems is physiotherapy and the gymnasium,” Dr Mariani told Italian state television RAI. “For operations of this type he’d need to be sidelined for around three to four months.” Dr Mariani said Batistuta had been suffering from tendinitis since the start of the season but added that the player did not appear to need immediate surgery. |
| Andhra, Karnataka cagers in quarters BANGALORE, Jan 8 (UNI) — Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka women today booked their quarterfinal berths at the 51st Senior National Basketball Championship, scoring fluent victories. In group C, Andhra Pradesh rounded off their campaign beating West Bengal 71-51 to remain unbeaten in three matches, while hosts Karnataka beat Orissa comprehensively 61-26 in the match between the leaders of group D and group E, respectively. Karnataka would take on Andhra Pradesh for the placings in the knock-out draw. Already, Indian Railways, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh have qualified for the last eight stage in the women’s section. Madhya Pradesh surprised last year’s runners-up Delhi 67-50 to finish runners-up in group B behind Tamil Nadu. In an inconsequential women’s match, Himachal Pradesh defeated Jammu and Kashmir 35-13 in group C. In the morning session, both the men’s matches were only of academic interest. Assam defeated Jammu and Kashmir 42-31 and Haryana thrashed Goa 93-47. Orissa were no match for the home team who extended their winning run without much ado. Having put up a good performance in the group, a confident Karnataka dictated terms to Orissa and were leading 36-9 at half time. For, Karnataka Dhanya Muttanna top scored with 19 points and for Orissa Pragyan scored nine. Andhra Pradesh pipped West Bengal with Sofi San doing the bulk of scoring with 31 points. She was assisted well by Anandhi (15) and Sicily (10). For West Bengal, Rekha Choudhary scored 23. The results of the matches played today: Men (qualifying): Group C: Haryana 93 (Surender 28, Manoj Kumar 22, Vikram 18) b Goa 47 (Atmanand Desai 22, Mahesh Kambli 12); Group E: Assam 67 (Jitumoni Deka 25, Rajiv Bora 14) b J and K (Sudesh Kumar Pande 14, Harpreet Singh 12). Women (superleague): Group B: Madhya Pradesh 67 (Savita Deshwal 25, Anju Lakra 15, Poonam Singh 13) b Delhi 50 (Rashmi 19, Nikshita 10); Qualifying: Group C: Andhra Pradesh 71 (Sofi Sam 31, Anandhi 15, Sicily 10) b West Bengal 51 (Rekha Chowdhary 23), Himachal Pradesh 35 (Sunita 19) b J and K 13; Knock-out: Karnataka 61 (Dhanya Muttanna 19) b Orissa 36 (Pragyan 9). |
| Delhi gets 3-day match, may lose out on one-dayer NEW DELHI, Jan 8 — Delhi will host a three-day match against Australia from March 4 to 6 at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground. The match was originally scheduled to be played in Mumbai, but it is learnt that the Australian High Commission exerted its influence to shift the match to Delhi. As a consequence, however, Delhi may lose out on the bid for a one-day international match against the visitors to Goa, which was to be held in the Capital (either on March 1 or 22). But the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) is still hopeful of getting the one-dayer allotted to Delhi as Goa may not be in a position to hold the cricket match, after the Millennium Super Cup and National League soccer matches at the Nehru Stadium in Margao (Fatorda). Goa does not have a separate cricket stadium. The Australians are scheduled to play three Tests and five one-day internationals in India. According to the previous itinerary, the Test matches were slated to be held in Mumbai, Chennai and Calcutta. But the final itinerary is likely to be drawn up only by January end after discussing it thoroughly with the Australian Cricket Board. |
| MUMBAI, Jan 8 (PTI) — Wicketkeeper-bastman Ajay Ratra of Haryana would lead the Indian under-19 squad in the three Test matches against the English lads starting at the Wankhede Stadium here from tomorrow. The centurian in the Rest of India vs England under-19 three-day match, Gnaneshwara Rao of Andhra Pradesh, would be his deputy, a Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) release said here today. The junior team selection committee selected a 15-member squad after watching the two three-day ties at Pune and Mumbai and the two-day selection trials held for the other 16 players from all over the country here. The three Test matches would be held in Mumbai (January 9 to 12), Chennai (January 20 to 23) and Hyderabad (January 27 to 30). The team: Ajay Ratra (capt), Ishan Ganda, Nitin Agarwal and Amit Mishra (all from Haryana), Gnaneshwara Rao (vice-capt from Andhra), Vinayak Mane (Mumbai), Gautam Gambir (Delhi), Kashinath Khadkikar (Maharashtra), Vidyut Shivaramakrishnan (Tamil Nadu), Parthiv Patel and Sidharth Trivedi (both from Gujarat), M. Dharmi Chand (Karnataka), Alind Naidu (Vidarbha), Arindam Das (Bengal) and Manindar Singh (Madhya Pradesh). Stand-bys: Uday Karkera (Mumbai), Deepak Chowgule and Steve Lazrus (both from Karnataka), Tushar Shah (Tripura), Manvinder Singh (Haryana), Ansu Kapoor (Uttar Pradesh) and Amit Deshpande (Vidarbha). |
| Rovers Cup : exciting tussle on the cards MUMBAI, Jan 8 (PTI) — An exciting tussle for supremacy is on the cards when Kolkata Giants Mohun Bagan take on Zee Churchill Brothers, Goa, in the final of the 100th Rovers Cup Football Tournament at the Cooperage here tomorrow. Both the teams are equally balanced. Both have reached the final by prevailing over two formidable teams — Iran Youth team and East Bengal in the semifinals. While Churchill beat Iran Youth team 2-1 on Saturday, Bagan edged out traditional rivals East Bengal 1-0 in the second semifinal yesterday. The key strikers of the rival teams Francis Silveira of Churchill and Bagan’s Amar Ganguly have struck form and the fate of the rival teams rests heavily on these two plucky forwards. Silveira scored a brace in Churchill’s win against Iranians while Ganguly scored the lone goal in Bagan’s win over East Bengal. Churchill have a slight edge over their opponents as they are strong in defence as well as attack. Their defence is managed by Rajesh Meetei, Jaspreet Singh and Inacio Afonso while in the mid-field they have players like Somatai Shaiza, Jose Colaso, Andre Reqena and hard-working Ajay Kumar. Their biggest advantage is having a custodian like Edward Ansah, who is also the captain of the team. Veteran Ansah will have to play a major role in order to see his team through. Added to this are their strikers Francis Silveira and Igor Shkvrin, who seem to be in good form. On the other hand, Bagan will be without the services of Brazilian Jose Santos, who is injured and has been adviced complete rest. They will have to play their hearts out so as to beat Churchill. Bagan were good in defence so far in the tournament with Amitava Chandra, Amauri, Hussain Mustafi and captain Lolendro Singh manning it brilliantly. Their mid-field consists of R.P. Singh, Dulal Biswas and Debjit Ghosh. Their goalkeeper Bivash Ghosh is also doing a wonderful job under the bar. The only area of concern for Bagan coach Subroto Bhattacharya is the attack. Though Barretto, Amar Ganguly and makeshift striker Naushad Pari are playing well and are always hungry for goals but they lack that “final touch” which Santos can only provide. Whatever may be the result but it is sure that the final is going to be an exciting one. |
| Chandigarh men win; Punjab eves lose KOZHIKODE, Jan 8 (UNI) — Fancied West Bengal and Delhi women dropped a set apiece before recording victories in the preliminary matches in the 49th Senior National Volleyball Championship here today. After taking the first two sets 25-16, 25-21, West Bengal relaxed a bit mid way through the match and paid the price for their complacency as Punjab pulled one back to win the third set 26-24. West Bengal, however, steadied their game and won the fourth set 25-16 to win the match in 84 minutes. The Delhi-Uttar Pradesh encounter which also lasted 84 minutes saw last year’s quarterfinalists Delhi losing the first set at 18-25. But they bounced back in style taking the next three sets 25-23, 25-7, 25-17 to post a fluent win. In the men’s section, two of the three matches played in the forenoon session went the full distance. In group “D” Jammu and Kashmir came from behind to prevail over Gujarat 18-25, 23-25, 25-18, 25-20, 15-10. In a group “C” encounter Chandigarh battled it out with Orissa in a marathon 93 minute contest. Chandigarh won 22-25, 25-23, 25-18, 15-25, 15-13. In another group C match Maharashtra easily defeated Assam in straight sets 25-20, 25-19, 25-12. Earlier yesterday defending men’s champions Punjab and women’s title holders Railways began their campaign in style scoring straight set victories in their respective inaugural matches. Punjab men thrashed Uttar Pradesh 25-16, 25-20, 25-23 while in the women’s section holders Railways ran over Punjab 25-8, 25-12, 25-6. In another men’s encounter, hosts Kerala notched up an easy 25-16, 25-16, 25-11 victory over Rajasathan. The match between mighty Punjab and Uttar Pradesh proved to be one-sided barring the third set. Though Uttar Pradesh opened the scoreboard, the experienced champions took their time to settle down and went on to dominate it before clinching the the set in 15 minutes. As Punjab strikers Surjith Singh, Roy Joseph and Jagbir Singh came up with thundering smashes capping the good work done by setter Amir Singh, Uttar Pradesh men stood as mere spectators. In the second set also, Punjab men dictated the terms and maintained the lead right from the beginning. But, the losers by changing their setter tried for a come back and succeeded bringing the score to 23-20. But the champions kept their cool and took the set 25-20. | |
| Services boxers bag honours PUNE, Jan 8 (PTI) — Services earned the opening day’s honours in the much-awaited showdown between the boxing powers Services and Railways — in the 47th Senior National Boxing Championship at Pimpri, near here yesterday. In a one-to-one face-off in the welterweight category D. Bhagyaraian of Services was a class apart and without much of sweat he showed Davinder Gill the door with a whooping 10-1 point decision. Both Services and Railways boxers made it into the next round without much difficulty. Mohan Krishanan of Tamil Nadu was bang on target as he recorded the first knock-out of the championship. Krishanan, vying for honours in the light flyweight category, knocked-out Punjab’s Nitin Kumar after his right jab caught the later unaware in the second round of their fight. Hosts Maharashtra had mixed luck on the opening day. In the light flyweight category, promising Girish Pawar advanced into the next round with a referee stopped contest verdict against Pushpender Pawar of Rajasthan. However, bantamweight Arvind Panavale went down 0-5 on points to Bengal’s Mjutaba Kamal. The bantamweight also saw a close split point decision given in favour of Puran Rawat of Assam Rifles, who managed a solitary point win over Jeevan Chand of Delhi. Results: Light flyweight (2nd round): Bhim Singh (AP) b Mohd Hafiz (J & K); Girish Pawar (Mah) b Pushpender Parmer (Raj); Md Sardar Khan (Services) b Puran Thapa (Meg); K. Mohan Krishnan (TN) b Nitin Kumar (Pun); Sohan Singh Rana (Har) b D.K. Padhy (Ori); Md Ali Qamar (Rlys) b P. Dinakaran (Pondicherry); S.B. Thapa (Assam) b P.S. Saji (Kerala); Biswajit Mandal (Bihar) b Mohan Bahadur (Guj). Bantamweight: Mangesh Kamble (CISF) b Pramod Ram (HP); R. Kannan (TN) b Sandeep Yadav (Chd); Birju Sah (Services) b Sohan Lal (AIP); Virendra Singh (UP) b Rajinder Singh (AIEB); Mujtaba Kamal (Bengal) b Arvind Panvale (Mah); Puran Rawat (Assam Rifles) b Jeevan Chand (Delhi); G. Vishwanath (Goa) b Matheus Warjri (Meg); Harinder Manhas (J&K) b Paramjit Singh (MP); H. Raju (AP) b Vinod Sami (Raj); P. Bipin (Services) b Anish Kumar (Bihar). Welterweight: D. Bhagyarajan (Services) b Devinder Gill (Railways). Six Punjab boxers for national camp Chandigarh, Jan 8 — Six boxers from Punjab have been selected for the junior national boxing coaching camp scheduled to be held at the Nehru Stadium in New Delhi from January 14 to February 15, according to information available here. The boxers, who have been selected on the basis of their performance in the Junior National Boxing Championships held recently at Gurgaon, will be trained for future international meets, according to a communication received from the Indian Amateur Boxing Federation. The following are the boxers from Punjab selected for the camp: Arun (light flyweight), Kamaldeep (bantamweight), Gopal (featherweight), Gagandeep (lightweight), Harvinder (heavyweight) and Amandeep (light middleweight). |
| Baboor, Das lead PSCB to victory CUTTACK, Jan 8 (PTI) — Defending champions Petroleum Sports Control Board (PSCB) retained both the men’s and women’s team titles beating Railways in the finals in the 62nd National and Inter-State Table Tennis Championship here today. While the PSCB men, led by second-seeded Chetan Baboor trounced Railways 3-1 to annex the Barna-Bellack Cup for the ninth time, the women also beat the Railways by an identical margin to retain the Jayalaxmi Cup. This is the eighth victory of PSCB in the women’s team championship, while men won for the eighth straight time. Baboor struck twice for PSCB beating Sivaji Dutta 21-14, 21-13 in the opening match and then winning the last encounter against Ranbir Das 22-20, 21-15. The top seed S Raman also beat Ranbir Das 21-11, 21-13, while Railways’ Subham Choudhury defeated Subhajit Saha (senior) of PSCB 21-19, 23-21 to reduce the margin. In the victory of the women’s event, top-seeded Mauma Das figured twice defeating Shshmita Roy 21-15, 28-26 and getting better of Anandita Chakraborty by 21-14, 17-21, 21-19, while the second seed N.R. Indu beat Anandita 21-18, 21-11. Railways’ Malika Parekh won the only match for her side when she defeated Poulomi Ghatak 21-17, 10-21, 21-14. Bengal bagged the third spot in both the men’s and women’s team events beating Tamil Nadu by identical margin of 3-2 in the two encounters. |
| North, West squads reaching today CHANDIGARH, Jan 8 — North Zone and West Zone scheduled to take part in the four-day Duleep Trophy match from January 11 are reaching Chandigarh on January 9 evening, according to a press note issued by Punjab Cricket Association here today. All arrangements for the successful conduct of the match have been made. Young trio of Zaheer Khan, Yuvraj Singh and Reetinder Sodhi would be in action from North Zone while from West Zone Nayan Mongia would go all out to get a glimpse of selector’s eye during this match. North Zone in their first match took lead from South Zone while West Zone conceded the first innings lead to Central Zone in the first match. Free travel allowed CHANDIGARH, Jan 8—Mr RS Sandhu Chairman tournament Committee of the Asian Schools Hockey tournament beginning from January 18 at PAU, Ludhiana today visited the venue and felt satisfied at the ongoing arrangements for the meet. Sandhu disclosed that the teams will be provided free transportation to and from airports in Delhi and Amritsar. | |||||
HPU sail into last eight CHANDIGARH, Jan 8 — It was a superb show by Kamini of HP University, Shimla who enabled her team to sail into the last eight of the women's section of the North Zone Inter University Badminton Tournament being played at Panjab University campus here today. HPU overpowered Kurukshetra University, Kurukhetra at 2-0. In men’s section, Punjabi University Patiala, CCS University, Meerut, Bundelkhand University, Jhansi and MJP Rohilkhand, Bareilly were among those who made it to the quarterfinals. In the lone women quarterfinal tie played today, Punjabi University, Patiala, humbled MD University, Rohtak at 2-0. Results: Women: HPU, Shimla b KU Kurukshetra 2-0 (Kamini b Himakshi 7-11, 11-7, 11-7; Poonam and Anamika b Himakshi and Pooja 15-9, 15-3; HNB Garhwal b PAU, Ludhiana 2-0;CCS University, Meerut b Dr RML Avadh, Faizabad 2-0. Men: PU Patiala b Dr RML Avadh, Faizabad 3-0; CCS University, Meerut b KU Kurukshetra 3-0; BU Jhansi b GB Pant University, Pantnagar 3-0; MJP Rohilkhand, Bareilly b HNB Garhwal 3-1. |
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