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Thursday,
April 26, 2001, Chandigarh, India  
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Bharati tells BCCI not to dictate policy
Aussie experts’ panel
clears Akhtar Aussies still best; Windies’ slide unabated |
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India clash with UAE today
ITI, JCT settle for goal-less draw Crucial match for Mohun Bagan 20 teams for eves’ soccer nationals Irina, Guneet in team for
Asia-Pacific Volleyball team cleared for Pak tourney Punjab golf meet from
today Vijay Kumar closes in on title
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Bharati tells BCCI not to dictate policy New Delhi, April 25 The BCCI President, Dr A.C. Muthiah, had said here yesterday, after the working committee meeting, that the board would not field any teams other than in bilateral and triangular series conducted by Test-playing countries, till the government clarified its fiat on the board not to play cricket matches in “non-regular venues”. Ms Uma Bharati said the government had approved the BCCI’s proposal to play in the ICC Knock-out Tournament though permission had been denied to the board to field the Indian team for a five-match one-day international series with Pakistan in Toronto from September 8 to 21 last year as the “government, after careful consideration, decided that in the prevailing circumstances, it would be inappropriate for the Indian team to participate in the Toronto tournament”. She said the Sports Ministry had welcomed the BCCI’s decision to host the ICC Knock-out Trophy 2002 during the recent visit of the President of the International Cricket Conference, Mr Malcolm Gray to New Delhi “and therefore, the unilateral decision of the BCCI (not to participate in the ICC Trophy) is unfortunate”. The minister said the government decided its policy “on the basis of national interest and not on extraneous considerations”. The minister said it has been made clear to the BCCI that “as part of the government’s policy, it would be inappropriate for the Indian cricket team to play in non-regular venues like Sharjah, Singapore and Toronto for at least three years, though the government has, at no point of time, taken a view or advised the BCCI that India will not play in any multilateral tournaments amongst Test-playing nations and countries recognised by the ICC for playing one-day internationals”. Ms Bharati said the BCCI’s “unilateral decision in this regard, therefore, is unfortunate”. Agencies add: Dismissing the board’s statements on Tuesday as mere pressure tactics, she said: “Government’s policy of not playing Pakistan in the present circumstances is a final one and India’s self-respect and prestige, which are more important than everything else, will not be compromised.” “If the BCCI says it is not going to participate in the World Cup or any other tournament it’s their headache,” she said. When her attention was drawn to the board’s query what it should do if India has to play Pakistan in the World Cup, Ms Bharti said, “Our stand is clear...if such an unavoidable situation arises, India will go ahead and play. We are only against a planned bi-lateral cricket series against Pakistan.” “The time is not yet ripe for resuming bilateral cricketing relations with Pakistan,” she said, adding, “cricket is not just an ordinary game. It is extraordinary in that it is an expression of national sentiment.” Expressing her surprise at the BCCI taking a “decision on its own” not to play in major tournaments, she said “the unilateral decision of the BCCI is hasty, inappropriate and unfortunate”. “The government takes foreign policy decisions keeping in mind national interests. The board has no business to dictate policies to us,” she said. Emphasising that the government decision was a collective one, she said it “decides its policy on the basis of national interest and not on extraneous considerations”. On whether India’s chances of holding the ICC knock-out tournament next year would be affected by government’s policy, she said, “I had asked ICC President Malcolm Gray when he came and met me recently whether India’s non-participation in the tri-series in Sharjah would affect our hosting the ICC knock-out, he replied in the negative saying it was a bilateral matter between India and Pakistan”. “Whatever clarification is required, the BCCI is free to approach me. My telephone is working, my fax is working and my doors are always open,” she said. Ms Bharti said there would be no problem about Pakistan’s participation in the November 3 to 11 Afro-Asian Games and her ministry had already cleared India’s participation in the Asian Junior Volleyball Championship to be held in Islamabad from May 10 to 19. Ms Bharti said as the nodal minister she was expressing the views of the External Affairs Ministry on the issue. Earlier in the day, she met External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh to discuss the issue in the light of the BCCI’s threat to pull out of major international cricketing events. On tax exemptions sought by the ICC for the event, Ms Bharti said,’’ I have already written to Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha on the issue.’’ The government has to take a decision on it by April 30, the deadline given by the ICC. The world governing body of cricket had threatened to allot the event to some other country if the decision on tax exemption was not taken in time. Ms Bharti denied that India’s withdrawal from the Sharjah tri-series earlier this month came too late. “We had to consult the Ministry of External Affairs.” The current chill in Indo-Pak relations in the aftermath of the Kargil war and Islamabad’s continued support to cross border terrorism had all along cast a doubt on India’s participation in the tri-series that also featured Pakistan besides Sri Lanka. India had played in the triangular series in the desert venue last October with Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe as the other two teams. There have been reservations in the government circles about the non-regular venues, especially after the match-fixing scandal broke in April last year and in some cases links between the underworld and the betting syndicates were also suspected. Late last year, the government refused permission to the national side to travel to Pakistan for a Test and one-day series. The Sahara Cup, an annual five-match one-day series between India and Pakistan in Toronto (Canada), has not been played since the Kargil war in the summer of
1999.
Aussie experts’ panel
clears Akhtar Islamabad, April 25 PCB Director, Operations, Brig Munnawar Rana, said the board had received a no-objection report from University of Western Australia, where Akhtar was sent last month for a corrective training stint. The experts panel consisted of Western Australian team coach Darryl Foster, former bowling legend Dennis Lillee and doctor of the institute Bruce Elliot. The claim by the PCB comes close on the heels of the
announcement of a 20-member probables list for the upcoming England tour which also includes Akhtar. There were also unconfirmed reports that the PCB planned to appoint Daryl Foster, who helped Akhtar correct his action, as a coach to train bowlers. Rana said a three-member review committee of the board, including Iqbal Sikander, Mohsin Kamal and Ejaz Fakih, would study the report and also watch Akhtar in action before submitting their final remarks to the ICC.
PTI |
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Aussies still best; Windies’ slide unabated London, April 25 Rarely can appearances have
been more deceptive. When the dust settles behind the outgoing Courtney Walsh, the stark facts will re-emerge. Australia ended the season as they began it — as the best side in the world — while the once-mighty West Indians failed to reverse an apparently inexorable decline. Steve Waugh’s side may have gone down 2-1 in India, their world-record run of victories finally halted at 16, leg-spinner Shane Warne may have struggled and worries may have surfaced over an ageing squad (media reports suggest it will be their oldest to travel to England since 1909, immediate post-war teams excepted). But, due to be strengthened by the return of express bowler Brett Lee, they remain in the
team to beat. They also deserve unqualified praise for style of play. Australia always played to win. They won six of their eight Tests of the season. Significantly, none ended in a draw. Their defeat in Calcutta, in particular, will go down in history as one of the all-time great games. No other major Test side was able to match their positive approach, certainly not Carl Hooper’s West Indies. Their consolation win in the fifth Test against South Africa last week is likely to prove Pyrrhic, especially since the 38-year-old Walsh’s retirement, with 519 wickets in his kit bag, will rob the team of their heart. Kingston was their first Test victory of 2000-01 and their first in 14 games. Brian Lara and Hooper remain, but the younger players have yet to make an impact. Things could not be more different in India. The manner of their success against Australia — coming back from 1-0 down and becoming only the third side in Test cricket to win after being forced to follow on — was reason enough for jubilation. But India also unearthed two jewels. Vangipurappu Laxman, five years into a stop-start Test career, suddenly found his feet with an Indian record innings of 281 to turn the series around. He added a century in the one-day series. Twenty-year-old off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, however, proved the find of the season. Once blighted by a suspect action and a suspect attitude, he took 32 wickets — including a hat-trick — in the three Tests at just over 17 apiece. India, robbed of leading bowler Anil Kumble through a long-term shoulder injury, won four of six Tests, including one against Test debutants Bangladesh. Those performance helped soothe the hurt caused by the banning for life of former captain Mohammad Azharuddin for match-fixing in December. South Africa, meanwhile, flourished in the post-Hansie Cronje era, winning three series and drawing one. Cronje was barred from the game in October after admitting taking money from bookmakers. Shaun Pollock was the highlight, making his maiden century against Sri Lanka in January and then becoming only the eighth player in Test history to complete the 2,000-run, 200-wicket double. All-rounder Lance Klusener, sadly, was the low light, averaging under 10 in the five West Indies Tests and taking eight wickets. England claimed the title of the most improved unit, winning Test series in Pakistan — for the first time in 38 years — and in Sri Lanka. It was not always pretty, the team’s limitations forcing Nasser Hussain to opt for safety-first tactics rather than risking bold pushes for victory. But four successive Test series wins, their best run for 22 years, suggest the approach has merit after years of disappointment. The development of Craig White into a top allrounder provided the cornerstone of the team’s advances. Sri Lanka, without a Test series win, failed again to repeat their one-day exploits over five days, although their batting remains formidable while off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan and pace bowler Chaminda Vaas provide genuine bowling class. Pakistan, meanwhile, like the West Indies, managed just one win during a season of rifts and turmoil. They ended it with a new, inexperienced captain in Waqar Younis and without a coach. They head for England in apparent disarray. So bank on them to win the series handsomely there, as they did in 1987, 1992 and 1996. Bank on no one, however, ever to match Don Bradman. Bradman, who averaged 99.94 in Tests, died in February. Aged 92, he again missed out on the magic three figures.
Reuters |
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India clash with UAE today Dubai, April 25 “We have a good chance of winning again...We know UAE are raring to go after their humiliating 0-1 defeat in Bangalore”, Indian coach Sukhwinder Singh said as he took out his boys for a work-out session. The Indian coach said: “I have studied the UAE squad very carefully through video tapes and that supplied me with good and enough information on the strong and weak points of the team’’. Singh, however, agreed that it would not be an easy match and was hopeful that Indian expatriates would turn out in large numbers to cheer their team in the do or die battle. Indian skipper Baichung Bhutia said both the teams had an equal chance in tomorrow’s encounter. He hoped India would double their win over UAE to qualify for the second round. He also disclosed that he was prepared to play in the UAE league if he received a suitable offer. Brilliant Indian striker Jules Alberto, who netted the solitary goal in the Bangalore tie, said he would like to repeat his performance. “I will again try to beat UAE’s keeper’’, he said. UAE coach Henry Michel said his team was well prepared to take on India in the second tie between the two countries. “I don’t think there is any room for more surprises’’, he said, obviously referring to UAE’s 0-1 loss in Bangalore earlier this month. Michel said: “It is a clash which we must win and hopefully that is what is going to happen”. The UAE coach said he expected India to play a defensive game since they were playing an away match. “They will play defensively with counter attacks so that they can benefit from our moves to score goals. Such mistakes can happen in these matches”. However, Mohammed Obaid Hammad of the UAE Football Association was of the opinion that the match would not be that easy. “We must not take thing for granted. I think the Indians will perform better at Al Ain that they did at home”, he said. A sell-out crowd is expected to watch the match at 9 p.m. (IST) at Al Qattara Stadium. A loss for the UAE, trained by reputed French coach Henri Michael, means a considerable dent to their World Cup qualifying aspirations. For India too, it is a crucial match, as it would determine their future of qualifying for the next World Cup. India arrived in Al Ain on the night of April 23 and will have training sessions at their residence ground and one at Al Qatarra stadium before Thursday night’s big match. The UAE team has had long periods of training camps both here and in Europe for their World Cup preparations, while the Indians still have to finish their national league engagements. The visitors have hardly got together for a month from the day the first phase Asian group began. “Our only aim is to get the three points. The first outing loss to India means we have to get the rest of the 15 points from our remaining five matches if we are to make it to the next round,” Michel said. Mohammed Obaid Hammad of the UAE Football Association said the match would not be that easy. “We must not take things for granted. I think the Indians will perform at Al Ain better than they do at home. Last year (in Al Ain), they were leading 1-0 up to the 20 minutes and for this reason we must be careful enough,” said Hammad. The UAE does not have any established international in their side after most of the experienced players were overlooked for national selection for the 2000-01 season. The group also has dark horse Yemen, sitting pretty at the top, and Brunei. The Yemenis have accumulated five points from a 5-1 win over Brunei and an away draw against India, while Indians after their two home matches have four points. The UAE lie third with three points following their shock 0-1 Bangalore defeat at India’s hands and a 12-0 washout of Brunei in Bandar Seri Bagawan. What Brunei, the weakest side in the group, can do best now is to reduce the margin of defeats.
UNI, IANS |
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ITI, JCT settle for goal-less draw Bangalore, April 25 In a scrappy encounter that rarely rose to great heights, the two teams shared a point each and extended their relegation deadline to the last round of league fixtures to be held on April 30. ITI, from their 21 encounters have 22 points with four wins and 10 draws, while JCT, the inaugural edition champions were two points behind at 20 points, with three wins and 11 draws. In the final encounter to be played at home, ITI take on formidable Mohun Bagan, placed two in the league with 39 points while JCT takes on Salgaocar, Goa who have 26 points. Butter-footed strikers of both ITI and JCT failed to cash in on a few of the chances that came in their way in the drab encounter in which both the teams failed to come up with positive initiatives. Though ITI, enjoying the home advantage, had better of the exchanges, failed to convert from their stray raids that could have given them full three points. In the third minute Mulisa Jimmy saw his brilliant effort hit the post denying ITI to go into lead. But thereafter neither team made any concerted move though few chances came here and there. For ITI a good shot by Kenneth Raj was neatly wrapped up by JCT custodian Arvind Kumar in the 22nd minute, and nearing half time he hit the ball
wide. UNI |
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Crucial
match for Mohun Bagan Margao, April 25 Bagan, who have played one matchless than their arch rivak East Bengal, are second with 39 points from 20 matches, four points less than East Bengal. They have no option but to register a victory to keep themselves on course for the title. On the other hand, Vasco who have nothing to lose will enjoy the home advantage. They have played well so far having drawn their last two matches against formidable East Bengal and Zee Churchill and are in the fifth position with 27 points from 20 matches. Both the teams will miss their key players tomorrow. Bagan will miss R.P. Singh, Renedy Singh and R.C. Prakash who are donning India colours in the World-Cup qualifying matches. Defender Amauri Da Silva will also not play due to double booking. But they have other
players who are equally good. Vasco will be missing the services of Gregory Clark (two yellow cards), Rolando, Daniel Coalco and Denzil Coutinho due to injuries. Jose Remerios Barreto, the highest scorer so far, is the key to Bagan’s success and if Vasco defence is able to keep him in check half of their work will be done in a match which will be fought closely. Bagan midfield will be led by Basudeb Mondal along with James Singh, Amar Ganguly and Noushad Pari and it remains to be seen how the rival midfield comprising of Kashimov Avazbek, Ravi Babu, Riston Rodrigues and Khogen Singh who has played a steady game, will counter-attack. Vasco coach Derrick said tomorrow’s match is a tough one “but we will go all out for a win as we don’t have anything to lose. A win will help us to be in the first six positions. Bagan will be under pressure to perform well as they are in contention for the title. A loss will see East Bengal clinch the title,” he added.
PTI |
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20 teams for eves’ soccer nationals Chandigarh, April 25 Twenty teams will participate in the championship and the matches will be played in two rounds. The
preliminary round with 16 teams will start on May 12 and four semifinalists of the last national championship will play in the quarterfinals from May 18. There will be four groups with four teams in the preliminary round and out of these 16 teams the top four teams, one from each group, will play in the quarterfinals. The participating teams are Tamil Nadu, Chandigarh, Tripura, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharasthra, Delhi, Haryana, Karnataka, Bihar, Meghalaya, Rajasthan, Goa and Punjab. |
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Irina, Guneet in team for
Asia-Pacific
Chandigarh, April 25 Ms Champa Syal will accompany the team as the non-playing captain. Besides this strong junior ladies team, there are six individual entries for the championship. They include Mayali Talwar, Neha Majithia, Divya Kapur and Sonavi Chopra from Delhi, Mini Halwasia from Calcutta and 10-year-old Vaishavi Sinha from Noida. The girls are all set to give a good show, particularly after the week-long grooming they had under the watchful eyes of Ms Nonita Lal Qureshi in Delhi. The team has been sponsored by Adidas. Harvinder Gupta of Chandigarh will lead the junior boys team to the championship. |
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Volleyball team cleared for Pak tourney New Delhi, April 25 The Union Ministry for Youth Affairs and Sports has already cleared the Indian team’s participation in the championship. According to Volleyball Federation of India sources here, the 12-member Indian team will be selected from among 24 probables, currently attending a coaching camp in Bangalore, on April 30. Four players from Punjab— Inderjit Singh, Sukhbir Singh, Suraj Prakash and Jes Kanwal Singh— and three from Haryana — Surjit Singh, Darshan Singh and Sanjay Kumar — are among the 24 probables. Former international and Arjuna awardee G.E. Sridharan will be the coach of the team, while senior national coach and Dronacharya awardee Shyam Sunder Rao has been invited by the Asian Volleyball Confederation to supervise the tournament. |
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Punjab golf meet from
today Chandigarh, April 25 Category ‘A’ consist of 0 to 06 handicap while players with handicap 07 to 12 fall in category ‘B’. Others prominent golfers who have confirmed their entries included Sandy Lehl, Harjinder Kang, Suman Puri, Jassanjit Dullet and Jaskirat Dullet. Mr S.K. Sharma, President of the association, said the PGA had formulated plans to promote golf by conducting camps. Jessi Grewal, the state golf coach who recently underwent professional training course in the USA, will conduct these camps at Jalandhar in June and Patiala in September. |
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Vijay Kumar closes
in on title
New Delhi, April 25 After speeding through 22 events played across 19 golf courses in 37 weeks, the PGAI Wills Sports Tour worth Rs 2 crore, takes a respite and zeroes in on to Bangalore for the final event. The two Kumars have ensured that the ultimate winner would be one of them, as Shiv Prakash (Kanpur), currently in the third position, given all breaks, cannot overtake either. Mukesh Kumar, undaunted by reputations, had last year won by a dramatic half a point from Firoze Ali of Kolkata, winner of the Indian Open 1998. Vijay Kumar has secured 293 points and collected a prize money of Rs 12.3 lakh while Mukesh Kumar has tallied 281 points and earned 12.1 lakh prize money.
Dhyan Chand’s
team mate dead
Ambala, April 25 Mehnga Singh Kalra, who lived in Defence Colony at Ambala
Cantt, had played in the pre-Partition 1st Punjab hockey team along with Dhyan
Chand, a family member said. Born in Jhelum (now in Pakistan), Mehnga Singh Kalra had served in the Middle East during the second World War. He had visited Malaysia and Singapore as part of the hockey team. |
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