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Friday,
May 10,
2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Harbhajan makes way for Kumble Expert comments — Michael Holding Ganguly wants a ton in Windies Muralitharan ‘cricketer of the year’
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Soccer World Cup for a privileged few? Welcome return for ex-champs Uruguay England name Beckham, Joe Cole
Punjab Police sink Indian Navy Ghouse rallies to win
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Harbhajan makes way for Kumble St John’s (Antigua), May 9 Skipper Saurav Ganguly confirmed that Kumble would replace off-spinner Harbhajan Singh in tomorrow’s match after missing the previous two Tests. “Harbhajan Singh hasn’t bowled well. The wickets here have not suited him and its time Kumble is back,” Ganguly told reporters here after the team’s practice session yesterday. Only two Tests ago, Harbhajan Singh was said to be more effective on the West Indian pitches and was preferred over Kumble as India decided to go in with only one spinner in their team. The match-winning off-spinner was also supposed to have an extra advantage due to a large number of left-handed batsmen in the West Indian ranks. However, a rethink by the Indian team management has apparently come due to the none-too-impressive performance by Harbhajan in the two Tests. Ganguly also made it clear that the off-spinner’s exclusion was not due to any injury. “Harbhajan’s shoulder is okay but he hasn’t got much help from the wicket and he hasn’t bowled as well as he does. Besides, the West Indies players are good players of spin,” he said. Another player likely to be back in the eleven is much- maligned wicketkeeper Deep Dasgupta. With Ajay Ratra failing to find his feet as a batsman, India are once again looking to Dasgupta and hoping that he commits as few blunders behind the wickets as possible. Dasgupta was out for zero in the first Test but his batting capability, which he has demonstrated time and again, has enabled him to survive in the team despite his poor show as a wicketkeeper. With India failing to put up a decent score in either of the innings in the lost Test at Bridgetown, batting was the topmost concern, as spelt out by Ganguly who said his team still fancied its chances of winning the series. “There are still two Tests left in the series and in whichever Test we bat well, we would be in a position to win,” Ganguly said. The batting has been a bit of concern for the Indians in the last two Tests with Sachin Tendulkar having scores of 0, 0 and 8 in the last three innings and Rahul Dravid continuing a downward trend after hitting a brilliant hundred in the first Test. Ganguly asked the team to take the cue from Australia. “Australia is a great side because they put on runs on the board. Obviously, we don’t have an Adam Gilchrist at No. 7 but all good sides put on runs for their bowlers to take wickets,” he said. Bowling has been the least of worries for India on this tour with the three pacemen - Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra - doing an admirable job. They would once again be in the thick of action trying to emulate the performance they gave in the previous two Tests. On the other hand, the West Indies seem to be peaking at just the right time. They showed tremendous temperament in winning the Barbados Test after losing the one at Port of Spain and skipper Carl Hooper sent a warning to the Indian camp saying the best was yet to come. “Our batting is there and thereabout. I don’t think we are at full steam. The best batter in the side, Brian (Lara) has still to get going. The glimpses are there but we hope he comes a big way in this game,” Hooper said. The West Indian middle order has looked very solid with Ramnaresh Sarwan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Hooper himself going great guns in this series. But the openers and tailenders have been found wanting in their job and this is what Hooper wanted to see an improvement in. The West Indies have decided to include Wavell Hinds, who struck a fine 175 for Busta XI in the three-day game against the Indians, in place of opener Stuart Williams for tomorrow’s match. “We have a bit of concern in the opening position and I think we can get better. In choosing Wavell Hinds, the selectors are obviously looking to give experience more chance,” Hooper said. “He has opened against Australia, he has opened against South Africa and the selectors have gone for a batter who is in god nick.” “We have invested heavily in Wavell and what we do is wish him well. We hope he comes good for us,” Hooper said. He was quite satisfied with the performance of his support bowlers Adam Sanford and Pedro Collins. “They both have shown in spells what they are capable of doing. Collins’ spell to V.V.S. Laxman and Saurav Ganguly on the third evening (of Barbados Test) was really, really good. He has been able to bowl well with the old ball, something which we have lacked in the first two Tests. As for Sanford, he has shown he has got the ability to take wickets,” he said. Hooper was hopeful a result would be obtained in this Test too. “It is not fair to say it is the flattest of wickets in the Caribbean. Last season, we had a result against South Africa. And I think in the series before against Pakistan too, we had a result.” He also warned his team against taking things lightly aft- er their 10-wicket win in Barbados. “When they (Indians) came from Trinidad, they probably were feeling the same way as we are feeling now. Teams (from): India: Saurav Ganguly (captain), Shiv Sunder Das, Wasim Jaffer, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, V.V.S. Laxman, Ajay Ratra, Dinesh Mongia, Anil Kumble, Deep Dasgupta, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Javagal Srinath, Ashish Nehra, Tinu Yohannan, Sanjay Bangar, Sarandeep Singh. West Indies:
Carl Hooper (captain), Wavel Hinds, Chris Gayle, Stuart Williams, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Brian Lara, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ridley Jacobs, Dinananth Ramnarine, Pedro Collins, Mervyn Dillon, Cameron Cuffy, Adam Sanford. Umpires: David Shepherd (England) and Russel Tiffin (Zimbabwe).
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Expert comments
— Michael Holding Tongues were wagging long before this 2002 Cable and Wireless Test series started here in the Caribbean and on many topics. Some were directly cricketing issues as to team selections and the Windies bowling attacks capabilities but one very hot issue to some was the venue for the first two Tests in the series. Many thought it self-defeating for the WICB to have the first two Tests in Guyana and Trinidad. Firstly because of the immense support for the visiting team in both countries from the large Asian communities and secondly because of the slow easy paced nature of the pitches which suits the Indian players. The arguments intensified after the result in Trinidad when India went one up in the series but if the truth be told, the Windies had only themselves to blame for the loss. The score card now reads one-Test all after a very convincing win by the Windies in Barbados, the dissenting voices have faded somewhat but is this pitch in Antigua going to favour the West Indies fast bowlers? Evidence from recent games suggest no, but on the odd occasion there has been enough pace on evidence to encourage the quicker men. India have elected to play one spinner in the last two Tests. Anil Kumble and Sarandeep Singh played in the first Test when Harbhajan was injured but then on his return to fitness, he has replaced Sarandeep in the last two. However, after the first Test, Anil Kumble has been left to sit idly by, twiddling his thumbs except for the three-day game against what could be termed a regional second XI between the second and third Tests. He wasn’t very successful in that game but I would suggest that India employ a double-edged spin attack for the Antigua Test. Throughout this series, we have seen the middle order of both teams supplying the large majority of the runs. It may be true that the better players are just that, middle order batsmen, but an argument can be put forward that the seamers have only been able to do serious damage with the new ball. As soon as about 30 overs or so have been bowled, the ball loses its seam and hence batting gets immensely easier on pitches that don’t offer much encouragement as far as pace and bounce is concerned. It is at this stage of the game when the early breakthrough has been effected, that the fielding team needs to maintain the pressure on the opposition batsmen. Pressure is built by good controlled bowling but one trick, in my opinion, that India have missed in this series is also applying pressure by the amount of these controlled deliveries that the batsmen face. The over-rates could be termed pedestrian at best and hence a bit easier on the concentration levels of the batsmen. Harbhajan and Kumble in the team together would certainly address this aspect of the game and the added consideration of the condition of the pitch, weighs heavily in favour of the tactic. The Windies don’t have that option as a consideration simply because they haven’t got two spinners of the calibre of Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble.
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Ganguly wants a ton in Windies St John’s (Antigua), May 9 “It is my ambition to score a hundred in the West Indies and hopefully, I will secure it before the series is out,” Ganguly said. Ganguly was the most impressive of the Indian batsmen in the third Test at Barbados which India lost, top-scoring in both innings with 48 and an unbeaten 60. He also remained unbeaten on 75 in the second Test at Port of Spain. “It is any batsman’s ambition to score a hundred in the West Indies and I am no different,” he said. Ganguly also revealed he would like to bat first on winning the toss irrespective of the status of the pitch as India were not very comfortable chasing a total. “It is the question of handling the pressure first or batting fourth. Even in one-dayers, if you notice, we haven’t chased very well. So, it means we are under more pressure if we bat fourth,” he said.
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Harbhajan, Sehwag to be honoured New Delhi, May 9 The annual awards, which are given to sportspersons from Delhi and North Zone, will be presented on May 16. Awardees, which are chosen by Delhi Sports Journalists Association (DSJA), also include Olympic bronze medallist Karnam Malleswari, Abhinav Bindra and Deepak Thakur. Railways have been selected as the best team for making the finals of Ranji Trophy for two years in a row and winning the title in 2001-2002. Sehwag has been selected as best sportsman for making a place in India’s middle order despite tough competition. Malleswari has been selected as the best sportswoman. Harbhajan has made it to the list as the best North Zone cricketer for his performance against Australia in the Test series last year and making a comeback by overcoming problems with his action and expulsion from the national academy.
UNI
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Muralitharan ‘cricketer of the year’ Chandigarh, May 9 Last year’s winner Murali once again reigned supreme with superlative performances against India, West Indies and Zimbabwe capturing an astounding 95 wickets in just 11 Tests. Muralitharan with 149 points was a whopping 49 points ahead of second placed Kallis (100). Murali with 144 bowling points is also the Ceat cricket rating international bowler of the year. Sachin Tendulkar with 85 batting points is the Ceat cricket rating international batsman of the year. Sachin has figured in the top five for the sixth straight year making him the most consistent cricketer since the Ceat cricket awards were instituted. Sachin scored 1149 runs in 11 Tests and 890 runs in 17 one-day internationals, despite missing out on three Tests and 12 one-day internationals. Australian Ricky Ponting with 9 fielding points is the Ceat cricket ratings international fielder of the year. Adam Gilchrist is the Ceat cricket ratings international wicket keeper of the year. Australia (112) expectedly won the Ceat International team of the Year Award though it was a tight finish, with Sri Lanka just four points behind. Though both
Australia and Sri Lanka won nine Test matches in the Ceat cricketing year, the Australians forged ahead thanks to six of their victories being away from home whereas the Lankans played only one Test outside the emerald isle Sri
Lanka, which they won. India with 84 points is in the fourth place of the Ceat International team rating. This is India’s best performance since the inception of the awards in 1996-97. India won an unprecedented three Test matches abroad in the Ceat year, against Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka and West Indies, respectively. |
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Soccer World Cup for a privileged few? Chandigarh, May 9 It is a widely accepted fact that Doordarshan continues to enjoy the maximum access and for the common man it is the window to the outside world. This was precisely the reason that at the meeting of the Punjab Football Association held at Phagwara the other day that representatives of all the affiliated units unanimously demanded that the Doordarshan authorities should immediately step in in deference to the wishes of millions of Indian football fans and bring the World Cup to the home of the common man, who has little access to the pay channels. Echoing similar sentiments, a parliamentarian belonging to the CPM, Mr Hannan Mollah, has also written to the Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Mrs Sushma Swaraj, demanding that the World Cup be telecast live by Doordarshan. "We wait for four years to see the World Cup. But we still do not know whether lakhs of Indian viewers, especially in rural areas, will be able to view the World Cup," the MP said. Sharing Mr Mollah views is former Asian star Inder Singh, who has taken over as the secretary of the PFA, and former 'footballer of the decade' Parminder Singh. But an announcement by TEN Sports, a 24-hour sports channel in New Delhi that it had exclusive cable, satellite, and terrestrial rights for the World Cup in India may deny the average football fan a chance to watch the exciting soccer matches and the world's top stars like Ronaldo, Zinedane Zidane, and Gabriel Batistuta in action. The parent company of TEN Sports, Taj Television Ltd, have reportedly entered into an agreement with Kirch Media WM Gmbh, the worldwide rights holders for the World Cup, and the company has claimed that it owned all rights to telecast the matches in India. According to Mr Chris McDonald, Chief Executive of Taj Television, TEN Sports "is the only authorised broadcaster of the World Cup in India. As we have all cable, satellite and terrestrial rights rights, obtaining the signal from any other source is an offence." If TEN Sports has its way, the World Cup's live telecast may only be enjoyed by a few fortunate people in the urban areas and as Mr Mollah said, “it will be depressing for crores of people, especially youth in the countryside who will be deprived of viewing such a great event.” |
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Welcome return for ex-champs Uruguay Montevideo, May 9 The Celestes (Sky Blues) clinched the 32nd and final place by beating Australia 3-1 on aggregate in a play-off after finishing fifth in the South American qualifying group. Under the pragmatic coaching of Victor Pua, Uruguay, the smallest nation to have won the trophy, will at the very least be hoping to emulate their performance in Italy in 1990 when they reached the last 16. To do so they will have to emerge from a difficult group A where they face holders France, Denmark, and Senegal. Uruguay conceded only 14 goals in 20 qualifiers, illustrating that their strength lies in a defence which is led by the world-class Paolo Montero of Juventus. Behind the back four is the outstanding Fabian Carini, who at 21 has the potential to become one of the world’s great goalkeepers. Other key players are defensive midfielder Pablo Garcia, attacking midfielder Alvaro Recoba, who will be a threat to Uruguay’s opponents the moment he gets the ball on his left foot, and the quick, powerful Dario Silva of Malaga up front. Uruguay have also surprisingly recalled 32-year-old striker Daniel Fonseca, their only man to have played in a World Cup finals. Uruguay’s resurrection owes much to Pua, who took over as coach halfway through the qualifying campaign after former Argentina captain Daniel Passarella walked out in a row over the release of players for a friendly. Pua helped to groom the current squad of players when he was in charge of Uruguay’s under-20 team, scouring the country for talent and leading his proteges to the World Youth Cup final in 1997 and the semifinals in 1999. Several of the players he discovered and helped to develop -such as defender Alejandro Lembo and midfielders Mario Regueiro and Garcia - are getting ready for Uruguay’s first World Cup in 12 years. Uruguay’s weakness is still in attack and they scored only 22 goals - only fractionally more than one a game on average - in qualifying. Critics blame Pua’s conservative tactics, as the coach invariably shuts up shop as soon as Uruguay take the lead in a game. Pua argues that he is simply adapting to the realities of modern football. Japan and South Korea will present Uruguay with a chance to reverse a seemingly endless decline. The country used to be a major force and played a major role in turning soccer into an international sport. Uruguay were pioneers of the short-passing game as they won the 1924 and 1928 Olympic titles with a brand of football never seen before in Europe. They were also at the forefront as the World Cup became a reality. While nations such as England remained in isolation in the early days, Uruguay hosted and won the first tournament in 1930 at the Centenario stadium which is still used for their home games. Uruguay were triumphant again in 1950 and reached the semifinals four years later but, since then, have adopted a more defensive approach. Despite continuing to churn out world-class players for Europe’s biggest clubs, the country has never managed to recapture the success of the early years. They made the semifinals in 1970 but since then have appeared at only three more World Cups and have never got beyond the last 16.
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England name Beckham, Joe Cole London, May 9 Coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has named a young squad for the finals in South Korea and Japan, including Bayern Munich’s midfielder Owen Hargreaves, central defender Wes Brown and Cole. But there is experience in key positions with Arsenal central defender Martin Keown, 35, surprisingly winning a place ahead of Liverpool’s Jamie Carragher and 36-year-old forward Teddy Sheringham also named. Defender Phil Neville misses out, a blow for the Neville family after regular right back Gary was sidelined for the finals with a broken foot.Beckham is also recovering from a broken foot. Real Madrid midfielder Steve McManaman loses out to newcastle United’s exciting Kieron Dyer for the problem area on the left side of midfield. The pick broadly reflects the strength of England’s top three clubs with champions Arsenal and Manchester United supplying four players each and Liverpool three, including strikers Michael Owen and Emile Heskey. However, Leeds United, despite a disappointing season, are providing four players. Ten of the squad are survivors of England’s 1998 World Cup campaign in France. There was no surprise between the posts where first-choice David Seaman is picked, along with David James and Nigel Martyn. Eriksson was due to discuss his squad at a news conference in London later in the day. England are drawn in group F with Argentina, Nigeria and Sweden: Goalkeepers: David Seaman (Arsenal), Nigel Martyn (Leeds United), David James (West Ham United). Defenders: Danny Mills, Rio Ferdinand (both Leeds United), Wes Brown (Manchester United), Sol Campbell, Ashley Cole (both Arsenal), Gareth Southgate (Middlesbrough), Wayne Bridge (Southampton), Martin Keown (Arsenal). Midfielders: David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt (all Manchester United), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Kieron Dyer (Newcastle United), Owen Hargreaves (Bayern Munich), Joe Cole (West Ham United). Forwards:
Michael Owen, Emile Heskey (both Liverpool), Robbie Fowler (Leeds United), Darius Vassell (Aston Villa), Teddy Sheringham (Tottenham Hotspur).
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Gold medal winner denied aid Bathinda, May 9 She left New Delhi with disappointment writ large on her face as she could not leave for Korea to participate in Asian Powelifting Championship scheduled to start from May 14, for which she was selected by National Powerlifting Association (NPA). She failed to fly to Korea along with other members of squad, as she could not arrange Rs 57,000, which every participant was to deposit with the NPA for air ticket and visa fee. Though initially promised financial help, the district administration and municipal council authorities refused to help her at the nick of time. Two other associates of Ms Neelam Rani namely Kushal Syal and Sunita Rani, both resident of city, who were also selected for the championship and were also promised financial help by the municipal council authorities, failed to get the same. However, both of them managed to arrange the required money on their own. Official sources said that municipal council authorities did not give money to Neelam Rani and two others despite the fact that a resolution to this effect was passed in its meeting held on March 22. Mr Surinder Singla, Chairman, High Power Finance Committee, Punjab, also spoke to Punjab Local Bodies Minister, Mr Jagjit Singh to accord sanction to the municipal council authorities to implement its resolution but without any success. Sources said that though the parents of all these three participants made several rounds of various authorities including the secretariat at Chandigarh to get the money, they returned empty handed. A section of municipal councillors on the condition of anonymity alleged that as the municipal council was being ruled by the SAD-BJP, so the financial help was denied to the budding sportspersons to defame the state Congress Government. |
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Punjab Police sink Indian Navy Mumbai, May 9 Punjab Police, who played a fast paced game, were too good for the Navymen. The winners led 2-1 half time. The cops opened their account when defender V P Singh converted the first penalty corner in the 10th minute. Another defender Jaskaran Singh increased the lead for the cops in the 19th minute when he converted the third penalty corner. Navy pulled one back when full back Amrit Kiro converted their second penalty corner with just a minute to go for lemon time. Two minutes after half time, the local outfit could have equalised after they were awarded a penalty stroke as their centre forward M M Lokande’s scoop was stopped by rival defender Avtar Singh over his head. However, the resultant penalty push which was taken by Navy’s centre half M P Manova was well saved by custodian Ashok Kumar. Centre forward Gabber Singh then scored a brace to round off the tally. Five minutes after resumption Gabber Singh deflected home defender Balwant Singh’s free hit and 19 minutes later Gabber scored off forward Gurmeet Singh’s goalmouth cross. Punjab Police forced three penalty corners and converted two of them while Navy got five and converted one. Bombay Gold Cup winners Air India, Mumbai, scored twice in each half to crush RCF, Kapurthala 4-0 and enter the quarter-final league in the second match of the day. Centre forward Roshan Tete drew first blood sweeping home a Gavin Ferreira pass in the second minute of the match. With seven minutes to go for half time centre half Tushar Khandekar scored off forward Ravi Bharti pass after Roshan Tete had initiated the move.
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Ghouse rallies to win Mumbai, May 9 In the second quarter-final, wild card Sandeep Kirtane took just one hour 20 minutes to
drub compatriot Vijay Kannan 6-2 6-3. Giant-killer Raviv Vokovitzky of Israel, who had sidelined second seed Tomer Suissa of Israel on the second day, subdued another Indian wild card Somdev Varman 6-2 6-3 in one hour 19 minutes. The Ghouse-Rafael encounter, which lasted two hours 15 minutes, had all the ingridents of a thriller. Games went with serve till 5-all before the Spaniard got the crucial break in the 11th game and then served out the set at 7-5. In the second set, the Indian tightened his game and served much better. After a crucial break in the ninth game Ghouse served out the set 6-4.
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