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Friday,
June 8, 2001, Chandigarh, India  
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India take honours on 1st day
Paes-Bhupathi duo in French Open
final |
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Gopichand battles into
quarterfinals Inzamam, Anwar guide Pak to
273 Germany beat Albania; England
win France beat Brazil to enter final
India win series against Malaysia
Pak offers second-string
team Punjab cagers enter final Stadium in memory of Jarnail
Singh
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India take honours on 1st day Bulawayo (Zimbabwe), June 7 On a wicket that was supposed to be a perfect batting track, as many as 13 wickets fell during the day with 256 runs being scored as Zimbabwe captain Heath Streak’s decision of batting first went totally haywire. Only the veteran Andy Flower made some substantial contribution to the hosts’ scorecard making a breezy 51 before holing out a simple catch to Shiv Sunder Das off Ashish Nehra who was the pick of the Indian bowlers claiming three wickets for 23 runs from his 12 overs thus justifying his inclusion in the team over Ajit Agarkar. Many of the Zimbabwe batsmen were guilty of getting out to casual shots and the Indian bowlers could hide their own shortcomings by capitalising on the mistakes of the hosts. Javagal Srinath was very wayward in his first spell and came in for heavy punishment from Andy Flower in his third. Zaheer Khan too was taken for a lot of runs but India’s newest spin sensation Harbhajan Singh put up a good show. India did not get the start they would have expected with Sadagopan Ramesh getting out in the very second over for two. V.V.S.Laxman could make only 28 before being dismissed while Shiv Sunder Das was unlucky to be adjudged caught bat-pad when he did not seem to have nicked the ball. Sachin Tendulkar was batting on 16 and Srinath on one when the day’s play came to an end. Zimbabwe had only themselves to blame for their sorry state as at least three of their batsmen gifted their wickets away after getting set. And the prize catch for the Indians was Andy Flower who after blasting 51 off just 45 balls that included seven hits to the fence, he miscued an on-drive off Nehra to give a skier to Das. Flower batted as if he was playing a one-dayer and was unperturbed by the two quick loss of wickets in the early half of post-lunch session. He completed his eighth 50 in nine innings before getting over-ambitious. Similar was the case with his brother Grant Flower, who went for a shot before having a proper feel of the wicket and only managed to give a regulation catch to wicket-keeper Sammer Dighe off Srinath. He made just five runs. Captain Heath Streak, after making a patient 16, went for a single that never existed and was run out. But the Indian bowlers too had their moments of glory. Nehra got Carlisle off a beauty that the batsman edged to Laxman at second slip after making 29, the second highest of the innings. And Harbhajan Singh foxed Alistair Campbell into skying a catch to Dighe for 21. The Indians used only four bowlers and were able to do the needful. Srinath and Zaheer Khan got carried away with the bounce and pace that the wicket offered and were suitably punished but Harbhajan and Nehra were outstanding with their effort. Sadgopan Ramesh, under watch after his statemate Hemang Badani came up with an impressive show in the opener’s slot in the three-day match against CFX Academy, did his prospects no good by getting dismissed for just two runs. He simply missed the line of a Watambwa delivery to see his off-stump uprooted. However, Das was his elegant self and Laxman played with usual confidence. The little opener was a picture of poise and was troubled only by a few deliveries that were angled away from his body with the bowlers coming round the wicket. Laxman was in superb touch and hit six fours in short 38-ball knock, four of them against Blignaut whom he pulled and drove with utmost ease, before getting out. Das added 27 runs for the third wicket with Tendulkar with the Indians looking more interested in playing out the day than in scoring runs. They were stuck 81 for four overs during which Das was dismissed for 30, made off 73 balls and with three fours. Srinath came in as night watchman and saw off the day in the company of Tendulkar. The Indians are 90 runs behind the Zimbabwean total with seven wickets intact. Scoreboard Zimbabwe (1st innings): G. Whittall b Nehra 6 Ebrahim run out 12 Carlisle c Laxman b Zaheer 29 Campbell c Dighe b Harbhajan 21 A. Flower c Das b Nehra 51 G. Flower c Dighe b Srinath 5 Streak run out 16 Blignaut lbw b Nehra 0 Murphy c Dravid b Zaheer 7 Olonga c Dighe b Harbhajan 16 Extras: (lb-4, nb-6) 10 Total:
(all out, 58.5 overs) 173 Fall of wickets: 1-9, 2-46, 3-65, 4-89, 5-97, 6-137, 7-139, 8-154, 9-165. Bowling: Srinath 15-5-47-1, Nehra 12-1-23-3, Z. Khan 11-1-54-2, Harbhajan Singh 20.5-6-45-2. India (1st innings): Das c Ebrahim b Murphy 30 Ramesh b Watambwa 2 Laxman c Whitall b Olonga 28 Tendulkar batting 16 Srinath batting 1 Extras: (lb-2, nb-4) 6 Total: (for 3 wkts, 29 overs) 83 Fall of wickets: 1-2, 2-54, 3-81. Bowling:
Streak 9-4-12-0, Watambwa 9-3-29-1, Blignaut 4-0-19-0, Olonga 5-0-21-1, Murphy 2-2-0-1.
PTI
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Paes-Bhupathi duo in French Open final
Paris, June 7 The duo won in three sets 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 to make their second French Open final in three-years after winning here in 1999. That year the crack-combination had reached the finals of all the four Grand Slams winning in Paris and London. Paes and Bhupathi will take on the winners of the match between 13th-seeded Czech pair of Petr Pala and Pavel Vizner and unseeded French team of Arnaud Clement and Nicolas Escude. After winning the first set fairly comfortably at 6-3, the Indian’s failed to keep the magic going in the second set. Hill and Tarango who had upset top seeds Jonas Bjorkman and Todd Woodbridge in the quarterfinals won the second set with an identical score to knot it 1-1. The decider was real nerve-wracker as Paes and Bhupathi leading 4-2 muffed a chance to 5-2 up. The Aussie-US combine then broke Leander’s serve to make it 4-4. But the former World’s No 1 pair broke right back to lead 5-4 and Bhupathi then served out the match in style to keep the tri-colour flying here in Roland Garros.
PTI
Jennifer Capriati of the USA reached her second Grand Slam final in a row when she overpowered top seed Martina Hingis of Switzerland 6-4, 6-3 in the French Open women’s singles semifinals. In so doing, the Australian Open champion moved within one match of completing the first half of the Grand Slam of women’s tennis, 13 years after Steffi Graf achieved the ultimate honour in the sport. That match will come in Saturday’s final when she takes on Belgian teenager Kim Clijsters, the 12th seed, who defeated compatriot Justine Henin in three sets in the first semifinal. “It was really difficult because she really wanted to win her first Roland Garros and I wanted to win mine too,” said Capriati. It was Capriati’s third straight win over Hingis including the Australian Open final in January which she also won in straight sets to complete her long comeback from her troubled teenage years. And it came as she fought off the effects of pains behind her right knee which needed extensive court-side treatment after the fifth game of the first set. “It was a new thing for me. Maybe the weather had some thing to do with it - a little tendinitis - as it was so cold,” she said. “But as soon as the trainer warmed it up it felt better. The pain went away.” Kim Clijsters became the first Belgian to reach a Grand Slam final when she fought back from a set and a break down to beat compatriot Justine Henin 2-6, 7-5, 6-3. The 12th seed sealed the landmark victory one day before her 18th birthday. “I’m very happy, I was getting very tired but kept trying and trying and managed to come back. She was just too good for me in the first set but I kept trying,” Clijsters said. “It is a great piece of history for Belgian tennis — I think the whole of Belgium is upside down right now.’’ Clijsters, whose previous best performance in a Grand Slam was reaching the fourth round of this year’s Australian Open, will play top seed Martina Hingis or fourth seed Jennifer Capriati in Saturday’s final. The two meet later on Thursday. Henin, who celebrated her 19th birthday last week, started off in irrepressible form on Centre Court. Pummelling Clijsters with a series of searing backhands and heavy serves, the 14th seed wrapped up the opening set in just 28 minutes. She grabbed an early break in the second set for 2-1 as the 12th seed looked to have run out of ideas. Clijsters lifted her game, though, adding consistency to her groundstrokes and eradicating the errors that had plagued her in the opening set. Henin also scaled new heights, however, matching her opponent shot for shot with pin-point groundstrokes to all corners of the court. She sent Clijsters scampering around the arena with some deft drop shots before repeatedly drilling her trademark backhand past the 17-year-old. Clijsters, cheered on by her boyfriend Lleyton Hewitt, showed some of the Australian player’s grit and determination, though, and refused to fold. She dug her heels into the Roland Garros clay and fought her way back into the contest with some fiercely struck double-handed backhands. Clijsters broke back for 4-4 when Henin, appearing to feel pressure for the first time in the match, double-faulted. She held and a game later earned a set point but drilled a backhand just long to let Henin off the hook. Two games later, however, she made no mistake by rifling a backhand down the line to level the match. The pair began the final set neck-and-neck but the momentum was with Clijsters. Henin held her first two serves but eventually the pressure told. Serving at 2-3 and leading 40-love she made four forehand errors to give Clijsters a break point. The 17-year-old made no mistake, thumping a return into Henin’s backhand corner for 4-2. She held serve to love, finishing with an ace, as she piled the pressure on and Henin won only one more game before Clijsters slammed away an angled overhead to clinch victory in one hour and 51 minutes. Reuters  |
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Gopichand battles into quarterfinals Seville, June 7 Prakash Padukone had reached the semifinals in the 1983 championships at Copenhagen where he eventually lost out to Indonesian Ichuk Sugiarto, who won the title. Gopi won 15-10, 15-13, but not without some anxious moments. Coming into the stadium in the morning, the All-England champion remarked, “I will not be playing too much on the net today. Yesterday, Kevin Han knew precisely where to catch me and I had some trouble. I intend to play a more open game today and take the attack to Fung. I have never played him before, but obviously he is a very experienced player.” Fung, a former Indonesian international who settled in Taiwan five years ago as his mother is a Chinese from Taipei, was world No 2 just a year ago and was runner-up in the last world championships to Chinese star Sun Jun. In 1999, Fung also scored the biggest win of his illustrious career when he stunned all the big names to win the GP finals title at Bali. Gopi started off confidently and led 6-3 in the first game, but his policy of playing towards the net backfired as the highly-experienced Fung played the perfect foil on the net. In fact, many a time he anticipated Gopi’s net strokes and killed the bird on the net. With the score reaching 10-10, it was left to the Indian to change tactics and go more for baseline play. He won that game without much ado 15-10. In the second game, with the score even at 4-4, it was Gopi who caught Fung on the deep forehand with some tight flick tosses which gave the openings Gopi wanted. He went ahead at 12-8. That’s when Fung, in a last surge of adrenalin, came charging back to equal at 12-12 and went ahead at 13-12. One bad line call from the baseline judge also upset Gopi to some extent. Even though he lost two matchpoint serves at 14-12 and saw Fung come up to 13-14, it was his favourite shot — the net dribble — that saw him through. The encounter took almost 45 minutes. Dane Morten Frost, the former world champion who witnessed the match, said, “I think that Gopi has shaped up well. His match yesterday was a wake-up call in a way. Today Peter Gade Christenesen also had a very tough match. Now with Roslin out and both Peter and Gopi well set in, the favourites are still these two and Hendrawan Tauqique of Indonesia and Chen Hong of China. If Gopi can defeat the Chinese tomorrow I think he will win the championships. But he must not allow Chen to come to the net as, if that happens, Gopi seems to be at a loss.” Gopi now runs into Chinese star Chen, whom he had defeated at the all-England finals in March. Chen has played wonderfully well all through and today he beat the dangerous Malaysian Ong Ewe Hock 17-14, 15-10. In their past three encounters, Gopi has won on two occasions, but lost in a Danish Open match last year.
UNI |
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Inzamam, Anwar guide Pak to 273
Birmingham (England), June 7 One-day specialist Shahid Afridi began with a series of misses, a nicked four over the wicketkeeper’s head and a near run-out before thrashing four boundaries in nine balls, his streaky 25 coming off 24 deliveries before he charged Alan Mullally and top-edged a steepling catch to Mark Ealham at mid-on.Pakistan, after making 31 off the first five overs, managed just six off the next five against Mullally and Darren Gough to reach 37 for one after 10 overs. When they were rested, however, the Pakistan onslaught began. Abdur Razzaq was run out by a Ben Hollioake direct hit to make it 55 for two before Anwar let loose, whipping Mark Ealham’s medium pace over mid-wicket for six and then guiding him to third man for four next ball. Occasional off-spinner Michael Vaughan was smashed out of the attack, 17 coming off two overs, as Pakistan’s 100 and the 50 partnership came up in quick succession. Anwar, having completed his half-century, then hit Ealham back over his head for six and Inzamam brought up the 150 with two consecutive leg-side fours off debutant Paul Collingwood’s medium pace. His two overs cost 18. The pair had put on 100 in 106 balls when Gough spilled a simple return chance from Anwar’s leading edge, Hollioake then repeating the offence of a sharp one-handed chance. Cork, however, then stemmed the flow by removing both in successive overs, Anwar steering a catch to Hollioake at backward point after a 106-ball innings which included two sixes and six fours, and Inzamam skying a cover drive to Marcus Trescothick after his 95 balls.All-rounder Azhar Mahmood, however, responded with 38 off 24 balls, including an extra-cover six off Gough. Hollioake’s six overs cost 53 runs. Scoreboard Pakistan: Anwar c Hollioake b Cork 77 Afridi c Ealham b Mullally 25 Razzaq run out 9 Haq c Trescothick b Cork 79 Youhana run out 12 Mahmood not out 38 Khan c Stewart b Gough 9 Akram not out 4 Extras (b-4 lb-5 w-9 nb-2) 20 Total (for six wickets, 50 overs) 273 Fall of wickets: 1-34, 2-55, 3-205, 4-210, 5-236, 6-265. Bowling: Gough 10-0-53-1, Mullally 10-1-44-1, Ealham 10-0-35-0, Cork 10-0-44-2, Vaughan 2-0-17-0, Collingwood 2-0-18-0, Hollioake 6-0-53-0.
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Umpire Shepherd
admits making mistakes London, June 7 Television pictures showed that up to four of the England batsmen were given out on no balls in the second Test, which Pakistan won by 108 runs after bowling England out on the last day of the match to level the two-match series 1-1. “I accept the mistakes that I made on the final day of the Old Trafford Test,” said Shepherd in statement released by the England and Wales Cricket Board
(ECB). “I have always endeavoured to perform to the best of my ability in each game that I officiate in.” “I have learned from the experiences from earlier this week, and I look forward to continuing my umpiring.” The triangular one-day tournament begins in
Edgbaston, Birmingham today with a match between England and Pakistan.
Reuters |
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Germany beat Albania; England win Hamburg, June 7 Group 9 leaders Germany pulled ahead in the 28th minute when Marko Rehmer volleyed home Carsten Jancker’s header and Michael Ballack added the important second goal for Germany in the 68th minute. Both sides went a man down in the 37th minute as Albania’s Edvin Murati and German Carsten Ramelow saw red cards after a confrontation between Murati and Ballack. Germany lead group 9 with 16 points from six matches, six points more than England, who beat Greece 2-0 on goals by Paul Scholes and David Beckham. Albania remained at the bottom of the table with three points while the Greeks have six points. Group 5 leaders Poland, meanwhile, were held to a 1-1 draw against eight-man Armenia. The match in Yerevan saw a brawl break out three minutes before the final whistle after a foul on a Polish player, resulting in red cards for Armenians Feliks Khojoyan and Aik Gevorgyan and Poland’s Jasek Bak. Poland, who could have qualified for Japan and South Korea with a win, retained a five-point cushion in the group after Belarus only managed a 1-1 draw in Norway and Ukraine - seven points back -played to the same result against Wales. Ireland, meanwhile, increased their lead in group 2 with a 2-0 victory against Estonia in Tallin thanks to goals by Richard Dunne (9th minute) and Matt Holland (39th). The Irish, who were without four regular starters including captain Roy Keane, lead group 2 by three points ahead of Portugal, who got doubles from Pedro Barbosa, Correira Pauleta and Joao Pinto to win 6-0 against Cyprus. Holland have 14 points for third place. Spain also remained on track to qualify from group 7 thanks to a dull 1-1 draw in Israel, which stretches their lead to three points over Austria, who have 11 points with a game in hand. Israel remain in third place with 10 points. Marc Wilmots’ double gave Belgium a 4-1 win over San Marino to push the Belgians atop group 6 with 14 points. Scotland are three points back but have a game in hand, as do Croatia, who beat Latvia 1-0 yesterday. Henrik Larsson scored four goals - three on penalties - as Sweden thrashed Moldova 6-0 to go atop group 4 with 17 points. Turkey needed a hat-trick by Alpay Ozalan to come back from deficits of 2-0 and 3-2 to draw 3-3 at home against Macedonia and stay within two points of the Swedes. While Turkey were able to avoid the upset, Slovakia were not so lucky as Azerbaijan - who had scored just one goal in six matches -notched their first victory in group 4 with a shocking 2-0 win over the Slovaks in Baku. In Copenhagen, Ebbe Sand scored two goals as Denmark fought back to defeat Malta 2-1 and take the lead in group 3. The Danes have 14 points, one more than the Czech Republic - who defeated Northern Ireland 3-1 thanks to goals by Pavel Kuka and Milan Baros in the final three minutes - and Bulgaria, who could only manage a 1-1 draw in Iceland. Russia fought to a 2-1 win at Luxemburg to stay atop group 1 with 17 points, four more than Slovenia - 1-0 winners at Switzerland. Mateja Kezman scored a hat-trick and Dejan Stankovic added two goals as Yugoslavia thrashed Faroe Islands 6-0 in the other group 1 encounter. In Group 8, Romania defeated Lithuania 2-1 in Kaunas to pull to within four points of leaders Italy while Hungary beat Georgia 4-1 to stay within four points of Romania. The World Cup qualification takes a summer break and will continue in September.
DPA
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France beat Brazil to
enter final Suwon (South Korea), June 7 Japan, co-hosting the tournament with South Korea, qualified for the final earlier today with a 1-0 win over Australia in Yokohama. A clever volley side-footed home from 18 metres by Robert Pires after only seven minutes and an opportunistic close-range header from skipper Marcel Desailly following a 54th minute Youri Djorkaeff free-kick gave France a well-deserved victory. Brazil, who could have been three goals down after a one-sided opening 25 minutes, replied with a direct free-kick from Ramon after 30 minutes, but despite playing their best football of the tournament, could not cancel out Desailly’s goal. Brazil will now face Australia in the play-off for third place in Suwon on Saturday. The match was the first between the two countries currently placed first and second in FIFA’s world rankings since France beat Brazil 3-0 to win the World Cup final nearly three years ago. But with many of France’s top players absent and Brazil fielding largely a second team, the match lacked the cutting edge of an out-and-out first class match.
Reuters
Kuala Lumpur, June 7 Put into the lead by a Prabhjot Singh goal, India went for the break leading 1-0. Malaysia equalised when Gugan converted a penalty corner to make it 1-1. India again clinched the lead through Arjun Halappa but Shankar got the equaliser for Malaysia for a 2-2 scoreline. Ten minutes before the hooter, India were reduced to 10 men as Deepak Thakur received a yellow card and temporary suspension. The third Test had ended yesterday in a 1-1 draw.
PTI
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Pak offers second-string team Karachi, June 7 A top Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) official told ‘The News’ on Wednesday that a Pakistan A team can be fielded in the Afro-Asian Games as the country’s national side would be busy taking part in the Champions Trophy during that time. “I don’t foresee any problem in raising a second string for the Afro-Asian Games if they (Indian officials) want us to participate in the event,” said PHF secretary Brigadier Musarratullah Khan. The Pakistani offer comes after a change in dates of the Champion’s Trophy as requested by the Indian Olympic Association officials was ruled out by both the International Hockey Federation (FIH) and Pakistan. The IOA officials had urged Pakistan to advance the Champions Trophy — scheduled to be held in Lahore from November 3 to 11 — by a week so that Pakistan can compete in the Afro-Asian Games in New Delhi. But with just five months left in the event, the FIH decided against shifting the tournament that would feature the top six hockey teams of the world. A top FIH official in fact suggested that the Indians should call second string teams from Pakistan and Korea — the two Asian nations competing in the Champions Trophy — for the Afro-Asian Games. Mr Peter Cohen, Secretary-General of the FIH, was of the view that both Pakistan and Korea can still raise a strong team irrespective of the Champions Trophy and take part in the Afro- Asian Games. “It is not possible to change the dates of the 23rd Champions Trophy tournament, but both Korea and Pakistan would be able to participate in both tournaments,” he said in a statement from Melbourne. Added Mr Cohen: “The unfortunate clash of dates is something we must try to avoid in future. The FIH decision should not be interpreted as any disregard or downgrading of the importance of the hockey competition in the Afro-Asian Games.” The issue of second string teams from Pakistan and Korea was also raised at the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) meeting in Kuala Lumpur in January this year but was not accepted by the Indian Hockey Federation. The Indians, at that time had decided to field the national teams of Japan and Bangladesh.
ANI |
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Punjab cagers enter final Kapurthala, June 7 In the first semifinal in girls section this morning, Madhya Pradesh outclassed Tamil Nadu 43-22 in a one-sided match. At half time Madhya Pradesh were leading 28-16. For Madhya Pradesh Khushboo and Namite contributed well both in offence and defence and Tamil Nadu players were erratic in shooting. Namite scored 10 points, Khushboo eight while Ritu scored 8 points and Thilagavathi scored 6 points for the losers. In the other one-sided semifinal Chhattisgarh trounced Maharashtra 41-14. At half time Chhattisgarh led 16-10. After the break, Chhattisgarh girls applied full court pressure and scored 29 points against four points of Maharashtra, Pushpa scored 18 points for the winners. In the first semifinal in the boys section, hosts Punjab routed Orissa 71-40. Orissa started with a 3-2 zone defence and took an intial 5-1 lead which was shortlived and Punjab, who had started with man-to-man defence, quickly changing over to zone defence. Attacking with quick fast breaks, they turned the game in their favour at the end of the first quarter (21-14). The second quarter was dominated by Punjab with counter-attacks and increased the lead to 39-24. After the break Orissa players looked as if they had surrendered the game and did not put any efforts. Rahul with 16 points. Sukhpreet with 14 points and Manpreet with 8 points were the main scorers for the winners. In the second semifinal, Mizoram defeated Rajasthan 61-30. |
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Stadium in memory of Jarnail
Singh Hoshiarpur, June 7 He said Jarnail Singh brought laurels to India by his performance. He said Rs 1.50 crore had already been spent on repair and strengthening of roads in the Mahilpur segment during the past two years and Rs 3 crore more would be spent for the widening, repair and strengthening of remaining roads in the segment. |
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