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Friday,
June 29, 2001, Chandigarh, India   |
WIMBLEDON Kramnik
hands shock defeat to Anand |
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KUMBLE WRITES ‘Aussies
will crush England’ Joint
move to curb crowd trouble France outclass
Germany |
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Jeev
tied for fifth place Sheetal
beats top seed Phadke Soccer
Federation Cup in Chennai Flaws
in sports policy of PSEB Chandigarh
lad takes 2nd spot
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WIMBLEDON London, June 28 Defending champion Venus Williams overcame early jitters to gallop into the third round with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Slovak teenager Daniela Hantuchova today. On the other hand Escude converted four of the 13 break points he got breaking Paes once each in the first and second sets and twice in the third to clinch an easy victory. After losing the first two sets, Paes was broken in the second game of the third set to give a 2-0 lead to Escude. Paes saved a break point in the seventh game before double faulting on the next to lose his serve again. With Escude serving for the match at 5-2, Paes raised some hopes when he won the first two points but that was all the Indian had as Escude won the next four points and finished the affair with a backhand return to clinch the match. Number two seed Andre Agassi, facing his first British player in 11 Wimbledon appearances, today cruised into the third round by crushing wildcard Jamie Delgado 6-2, 6-4, 6-3.
Unlike compatriot and defending champion Pete Sampras, who was taken to five sets by Britain’s Barry Cowan late on Wednesday, the execution took just 88 minutes with Agassi dominating from the start on centre court. Women’s 16th seed Silvia Farina Elia of Italy defeated an injury-hampered Alexandra Stevenson 6-3 6-2 in the second round. The 20-year-old American wild card entrant, a semifinalist at Wimbledon in 1999, needed treatment to her lower back at 3-2 in the first set and never fully recovered. Farina completed two successive breaks against her grimacing opponent to take the opener and kept Stevenson moving as she took the second set to seal victory. Seventh seed Yevgeny Kafelnikov recovered from losing the first set to overcome British wildcard Arvind Parmar 6-7, 6-3, 6-3, 6-1. The Russian served two double faults and netted an easy backhand volley on Parmar’s second set point to gift the world number 211 the first set tiebreak 7-5. But Kafelnikov hit back by breaking his opponent in the seventh and ninth games of the second set to level. Parmar, who saved a matchpoint in a five-set first round win over Andre Sa of Brazil, failed to convert three break points at 1-1 in the third set and from there Kafelnikov never looked back. Fourteenth seed Jelena Dokic disposed of American Jennifer Hopkins 6-2 6-4 to reach the third round. The 18-year-old Yugoslav, a semifinalist last year, broke her opponent in the first game of the match and again in the fifth game to race into a one-set lead on court two. Hopkins, making her first appearance in the main draw at Wimbledon, battled gamely in the second set, fighting back at the death when 5-2. But Dokic proved too strong, closing out the match in just 44 minutes with devastating baseline play. Belgian Kim Clijsters, a gallant runner-up in the French Open, today swept aside Canadian Maureen Drake 6-3 6-1 to advance to the third round. The seventh seed broke Drake, ranked 205 in the world, in the first game of the first set. Last year’s beaten finalist Pat Rafter, the Australian third seed, reached the third round of the men’s singles ousting Slave Dosedel of the Czech Republic 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1. Third seed Lindsay Davenport powered past Australia’s Alicia Molik 6-4, 6-2 to move into the third.
Agencies |
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Kramnik hands shock defeat to Anand Mainz (Germany), June 28 In the fourth game, Anand playing black agreed for a draw in 25 moves. With his first loss to Kramnik in rapid chess since 1994, Anand now trails the 10-game match 1.5-2.5. Playing white in the third game Anand decided to take the bull by its horns and entered complications in the Berlin defence of the Ruy Lopez. The opening has been serving Kramnik faithfully for the past one year and his only loss in the variation came against world’s highest rated player Kasparov in the Astana Super Grandmaster tournament last month. Anand went for a similar set-up that Kasparov had employed successfully but Kramnik came up with a new idea that gave him a dynamic equilibrium though his pawn structure was a little worse. Slow manoeuvring ensued in the middlegame and Anand appeared to have netted a slight advantage as his rooks got into the groove to control the vital queen file. Kramnik on the other hand wrested his hopes on the kingside and pushed his pawns, his rook however was confined to the defence of the base rank. What was effectively still a miniscule advantage became a disaster as Anand missed a simple tactical stroke on the 24th move that left his kingside dismantled while his rook was caught unawares through a nasty threat of discovered attack. Kramnik cashed in on the opportunity and won on the 27th move. With six games still to come in the match, Anand has a daunting task on hand in what is tipped to be the most important match in the history of the game since Fischer played Spassky in 1972. Meanwhile in the Fischer Random Chess match being organised simultaneously, GM Peter Leko of Hungary consolidated his lead with a other fine victory over GM Michael Adams of England. The third game of their eight-game match became a perfectly normal position after a positional fight and the draw was agreed to in 34 moves. Leko handled the fourth game imaginatively to go 3-1 up.
PTI |
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KUMBLE WRITES Both West Indies and India registered comfortable victories for against the home team Zimbabwe had trouble right from the start of the tournament with their captain Heath Streak resigning over selection of the team. However he was reinstated against the Indians in the first game, only to be out with injury when the two teams met again in Bulawayo. With Wednesday’s win, India have qualified for the final. Sourav Ganguly found form and it was really heartening to see him score. I am sure he will be a lot more relaxed in his next match and this augurs well for the team. I am really happy for him. Rahul’s contribution in the victory was immense and he played a flawless knock to bring victory to India. He certainly was the deserving Man of the Match, in spite of an inspired performance by Grant Flower and Ganguly’s 85. As far as the bowlers is concerned, I think they came up with a more professional display on Sunday. The toss at Harare was important, and our seamers made use of the pitch, which had a lot of juice and moisture. Once again, Ashish Nehra was the pick of the bowlers. He bowled an impeccable line and length and swung the ball, mostly into the right-handers, leaving the left handed batsmen as Alistair Campbell and Viljeon found out. It was probably the first time that two left-arm seamers opened the bowling attack for India. Zaheer, equally complimented Nehra with his bounce and pace that resulted in Grant Flower and Stuart Carlisle’s wicket. Zaheer continued the good work at Bulawayo, albeit bowling quite a few no-balls. It was rather unfortunate that Laxman dislocated his finger while taking a catch in the slips at Harare. It appears unlikely that he will take further part in this tournament. The target of 133 runs set by Zimbabwe was never going to be challenging for our batsmen at Harare. While Sachin and Badani did the needful in Harare, Ganguly and Dravid were the ones who guided the team to a win on Wednesday. Badani made use of the opportunity that Laxman’s injury afforded and brought about his half-century in style. He plays with a lot of flair and has plenty of time to play his shots, which was evident during his knock. Zimbabwe is as good as out of the running. They will have to win against West Indies, and hope that India thrash the Caribbeans in both their league matches. This seems unlikely as West Indies have made a good start and played excellent cricket against Zimbabwe. The crucial ties will be over the weekend when India and West Indies battle it out.
Gameplan |
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‘Aussies will crush England’ Karachi, June 28 “I fear a very one-sided Ashes series and in my opinion Australia will murder England,” he told AFP. “The way the hardcore professional Australians are playing it would be very tough for England to get a respite,” the Pakistan captain said. “And the way England have gone down in the last one month or so I see little chance for them.” Waqar said Nasser Hussain’s comeback would raise England’s morale but it was unlikely to be enough. “Although one man can’t change a team’s fortunes Hussain is aggressive and can make some difference.” Waqar’s Pakistan side was crushed by Australia in the final of the tri-series in England last Saturday. “Professionalism is the key word to define the Aussies approach and they are rugged cricketers who give nothing away,” he said, but added that they were beatable by the right team. “We beat them in the lead-up to the final and all you need is to match their professionalism if you want to beat them.” Despite losing the final, Waqar said he was satisfied with his team’s showing in England. “The way we staged a comeback after the defeat at Lord’s (Test) was remarkable but I am disappointed the way we ended the tour, losing a one-sided final to Australia,” he said. “But the Old Trafford win was the best part of the tour.” However, he expressed disappointment that the British media highlighted the umpire's faults rather than Pakistan’s Test victory at Old Trafford. British media discredited Pakistan’s series levelling win at Old Trafford, focusing on four incidents when umpires ruled English batsmen out on no-balls. “Similarly they highlighted crowd trouble in the one-day series more than anything else,” he complained. The 29-year-old, declared player of the one-day series for his 16 wickets, will leave for Australia on Friday where his wife is expecting a child and said he was pleased with his personal performance in England. “I am pleased with my comeback as a bowler after struggling to get a place in the side for a while but all through it was learning process for me,” he said. “I learnt not to give up any time.” Waqar was sidelined due to lack of fitness between 1997 and 2000 but fortunes changed for him and he was appointed captain for the England tour. “I was pumped up, running in and if I keep up like this I can carry on even after the 2003 World Cup,” he said. “The fire still burns in me but my career will depend on fitness and I am taking my career series by series.”
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Joint move to curb crowd trouble London, June 28 The group was formed yesterday by representatives of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), Sports Minister Richard Caborn, Home Office Minister John Denham and the Association of Chief Police Officers. It will look at all aspects of crowd management, existing legislation and ground regulations. Two matches between England and Pakistan in the one-day series ended in chaos after pitch invasions by Pakistan fans, and Australia captain Steve Waugh led his team off the field against Pakistan after a firework exploded near fast bowler Brett Lee. |
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France outclass Germany Buenos Aires, June 28 Host nation Argentina ended Asia’s hopes in this under-20 tournament by beating China 2-1 with goals from Maximiliano Rodriguez and Alejandro Dominguez in front of 30,000 spectators in Buenos Aires. In yesterday’s other match, Egypt were 2-0 winners over the USA. Argentina now face France in Buenos Aires in the quarterfinals on Sunday. Germany’s 3-5-2 formation came out attacking and they took the lead after 20 minutes when Benjamin Auer brought down a drop cross and buried a left-foot drive in the French net. The Germans dominated until Herve Bugnet went down in the German penalty area and Chilean referee Guido Aros awarded a penalty. Cisse converted with a bullet into the top-left corner of Tom Starke’s net to draw level on 33 minutes. Cisse then turned provider, sending Paris Saint Germain’s Bernard Mendy in to the box just before half time and his delicate shot sneaked under Starke to make it 2-1. The second half was a frenzied, end-to-end affair. The ever active Cisse almost ended the tie on 57 but hit the crossbar when he should have done better. Germany drew level with a spectacular solo effort from Thorsten Burckhardt who left five defenders in his wake, fell and got up, before a left foot rocket from 12 yards left Nicolas Penneteau no chance in the French goal. But four minutes into injury time a long-range clearance found Cisse alone and his shot sent France through. “France fought right to the end,” said French coach Ramond Domenech. “It’s going to be interesting to see what we can do now against Argentina.” Brazil hardly broke sweat as Adriano and his team-mates ran riot against an Australian side which had only scraped into the last 16. Adriano opened the scoring in the 27th minute before the floodgates opened in the second half, with Kaka scoring first before Adriano claimed his second and Eduardo finished off the job. Argentina were made to fight by a Chinese team which has impressed with its defensive organisation. A third-minute header from Maximiliano Rodriguez suggested a possible onslaught but Qu Bo sprinted clear of the defence for an equaliser in the 54th minute before Alejandro Dominguez scored the winner to the joy of the home crowd. Egypt sent 10-man USA packing when they booked a last eight spot with two late goals in front of 10,000 fans in Buenos Aires. The Africans took the lead thanks to a 76th-minute penalty conversion from Wael Reyad. The Americans then saw Kelly Gray red-carded in the 83rd minute before Egypt compounded their misery two minutes later, Mohamed El Yamany doubling the score. Egypt will meet the winner of Netherlands versus Angola tie.
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Jeev tied for fifth place New Delhi, June 28 The 29-year-old golfer, who finished fourth in last weeks Mizuno Open and recently received a special invitation to take part in The International, an event on the top-grade US PGA Tour, was tied for the fifth place along with two others — Satoshi Higashi and Kosaku Makisaka. That put the Hero Honda Motors-sponsored golfer just one stroke behind the leaders-Brendan Jones, Mitsutaka Kusakabe, Chin-Sheng Hsieh and Hajime Meshiai. Jeev was in cracking form as he began with a birdie on the 385-yard par-4 first and made the turn at three-under after registering back-to-back birdies on the par-sixth and the par-3 seventh holes. On the back nine, the Chandigarh-based pro made an eagle on the par-5 10th after reaching the green on the 530-yard hole in two shots, and then added a birdie on the 13th to return a six-under 66 card.
UNI |
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Sheetal
beats top seed Phadke New Delhi, June 28 Sheetal terminated Sonal’s winning streak with a late surge, with the top seed failing to cope up with the pressure in the blistering heat. Even her first set victory was achieved after a lot of trepidation, as after taking a comfortable 5-1 lead, and serving for the set, Sonal got into an erratic mode to drope serve in the seventh and ninth games. But Sheetal could not capitalise on these lapses as she herself was struggling to come to grip with her serve. She dropped her serve in the 10th game to give away the set. But Sheetal made up for her mistakes with an authoritative display in the second and third sets while Sonal’s game cracked up, with her serve and returns failing her at crucial moments.
Though Sonal executed some mesmerising passing shots and cross court winners, she could not effectively chase the slug-fest from the baseline by Sheetal, as the heat seemed to take a heavy toll on her. She was often caught laden-footed, to find her dream of entering the final of the Masters shattered. The match of the day was between the tomboyish-looking Megha Vakharia and the doughty Isha Lakhani as the second set witnessed a battle of wits and attrition before the
former could triumph in straight sets. Megha’s powerful weapons are her backhands and down the line winners. Her drops and lobs also fetched many big points. It was smooth-sailing for Megha in the first set, breaking Isha in the second and sixth games. Though she dropped her own serve in the fifth game, Megha had a firm grip on the game to win the set. Megha was coasting along merrily in the second set too, taking a 3-1 lead, when she found herself at the receiving end, dropping serve in the fifth and seventh games, to trail 3-4. The players traded breaks in the next three comes, and in the 11th game, Megha saved two break points to set up deuce when she put away a long rally into the mid-court with a swinging forehand smash, and then kept her nerves under control to hold serve. But in the 12th game, she squandered two match points to allow Isha back into reckoning. But it was another story that Isha could not make use of the reprieve, and Megha eventually grabbed the set after wasting eight match points. But the compactly-built Megha has a solid game and she could have perhaps wrapped up the match much earlier had the weather been kind. The weather was unbearably hot and sultry and yet Megha did not give up. |
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Soccer Federation Cup in Chennai Chennai, June 28 Mr Viswanathan, who is also AIFF’s Vice-President, said to restore the turf in the Nehru stadium, hectic efforts had begun with the help of the Tamil Nadu Sports Development Authority (SNDTA), which is maintaining the sports infrastructure built here during the South Asian Federation (SAF) Games in 1995. Mr Viswanathan said AIFF President Priyaranjan Das Munshi and Secretary Alberto Colaco would be visiting the Nehru Stadium on July 16 to assess the condition of the turf. The stadium has to be readied before August 15, when the Federation Cup competition, being revived after two years, is scheduled to begin. In order to procure water in the midst of a grave crisis in Chennai, the SNDAT had approved the digging of two borewells in the precincts of the stadium itself. This would also make the stadium self-sufficient for water for constant maintenance in future also, SNDAT member-secretary Niranjan Mardi said. Twenty teams are to participate in the knockout competition, including 12 teams which had played in the National Football League. Besides, SBT
(Thiruvananthapuram), Air India (Mumbai), Indian Bank (Chennai), Dempo
(Goa), Tata Football Academy, Mohammedan Sporting and Sporting Club (Goa), which had participated in the second division of the National league, are also in the fray.
UNI |
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Flaws in sports policy of
PSEB Patiala, June 28 So much so, the members of the sports council, which was formed to oversee the implementation of the new policy, have yet to hold even a single meeting. The sports council had been formed in place of the Central Sports Committee and was to recommend the names of sportspersons to be contracted by the board to the chairman. However, as no meeting of the council has been convened ever since the new sports policy came into being, sports activity in the board has come to a halt. Interestingly, the PSEB management, in an effort to give a fillip to sports activity, had appointed former hockey Olympian and Arjuna awardee, Baldev Singh, as Advisor on a contract basis and the cash-starved board is paying him an ‘honorarium’ of Rs 15,000 per month apart from other perks for doing virtually nothing. Sources reveal that Baldev Singh has his hands tied to his back since the PSEB has slapped a ban on recruitment. The policy had envisaged that players will be employed on contract basis with state level players getting Rs 5000 per month, national level sportspersons getting Rs 10,000 per month and International level players were to get Rs 15,000 per month. The Board was to contract 128 men and 54 women players in nine disciplines but till yet not even a single player has been contracted by the board. This has put the management in a tight spot as the board has to do with the services of sportspersons who are already over the hill in inter-electricity board sports tournaments. This clause which is proving to be a biggest impediment in implementing the sports policy is the one under which all sportspersons, who are employed against ex-cadre posts in the board’s sports cell and are beyond the age of 40, are to be shifted out of the cell. Sources reveal that there are a number of blue eyed boys of the Advisor who have attained the age of 40 and the Advisor is all for the scrapping of this clause. Yet another reason why the policy has run into rough weather is that under both the old and new policies it had been envisaged by the management to construct a modern sports complex near its Shakti Vihar offices along with a public school upto 10 plus 2 level for wards of board employees. However, not a brick has been laid on the land acquired and prime property worth crores of rupees is lying in a state of disuse. Sources reveal that due to the financial crunch the management has decided to put on hold the construction of the sports complex. Sources disclosed that the policy in its present form may not be implemented at all as it has a lot of flaws and the management may have to formulate a fresh policy if it has to run its sports activities in a proper manner. |
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Chandigarh
lad
takes 2nd spot Lucknow, June 28 In the 56-kg category, K.P. Bhuwneshwar of Tamil Nadu created the a new record and won gold for lifting 182.5 kg in squat, leaving behind Maharashtra’s Atish Shinde’s record of 180 kg in the last edition at Jamshedpur. Bhuwneshwar, in all, lifted 460 kg, for which the break up was 182.5 kg squat, 95 kg bench press and 182.5 dead lift. Amarjeet of Chandigarh earned the second place while another Tamil Nadu lad S. Kumar Wel remained on third spot. The second national record was also established by fellow Tamil Nadu lifter S. Suresh Kumar in 60-kg category. Suresh lifted 225 kg weight breaking the record of 210 kgs of Fayyaz (UP). Suresh in all lifted 505 kgs. The break-up was 190 kg in squat, 90 kg bench press and 225 kg dead lift. R. Kirtimaan of Tamil Nadu and Auskar Khan of UP claimed second and third positions, respectively.
UNI |
Amritsar amass 315 Patiala, June 28 Powerlifting meet |
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