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Sunday,
August 25, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Sachin most complete
batsman: Gavaskar Chetan Sharma writes England players reach agreement 24 probables willing
to sign contract |
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Umpires’ retirement
age raised Williams, Davenport to meet in final Chela enters semis Sunil Kumar wins maiden title Indians out of reckoning Ashok Dewan, Ghosh get Dhyan Chand Award ‘Create system’ for golf teachers Punjab Police honours sportspersons
BSF edge out RCF Silver, bronze
for Indian boxers Maulana Azad
Trophy for DU
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England
struggle for survival
Leeds (England), August 24 After declaring their first innings at 628 for eight, their highest total against England, India made rapid inroads into the English batting order and left them requiring 165 more runs to avoid the follow-on with just one wicket remaining. Except for Michael Vaughan, who continued with his good form in the series to score a solid 61, and Alec Stewart, unbeaten on 71, none of the English batsmen were able to put up a fight. When stumps were drawn, Matthew Hoggard, who was yet to score, was batting with Stewart. Stewart put on 70 invaluable runs with Ashley Giles (25) for the eighth wicket after Alex Tudor had been dismissed for just one run to leave England tottering at 185 for seven at one stage. Earlier, India resumed at their overnight 584 for four and lost quick wickets before declaring their innings 45 minutes into the morning session. Sachin Tendulkar, who went past Don Bradman in the list of top century makers with his 30th Test hundred yesterday, missed his double-hundred by just seven runs. Tendulkar, not out on 185 yesterday, could score just eight runs this morning before being trapped leg before wicket by Andrew Caddick with delivery that kept very low. The fall of Tendulkar, who batted for 434 minutes and hit 19 fours and three sixes in his 330-ball knock, was followed by the cheap dismissals of V V S Laxman (6) and Ajit Agarkar (2). Both these batsmen were out trying to force the pace of scoring. Harbhajan Singh hit Alex Tudor for four boundaries in a row in a 24-run eighth wicket partnership with Parthiv Patel before his dismissal prompted the declaration by India. Patel remained unbeaten on seven. For England, Andrew Caddick finished with three wickets, all of them coming today, while Tudor took two. The home team started their reply on a confident note with openers Robert Key and Vaughan putting up a fluent 67- run stand for the first wicket. Both traded mostly in boundaries as the Indian new ball bowlers, particularly Agarkar, came in for punishment. However, the two spinners Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh had the batsmen in all kinds of problem. It was Zaheer Khan who struck the first blow by dismissing Key for 30 in the 22nd over of the innings. Key, who hit six fours in his 76-ball knock, gave a regulation catch to Laxman in the slips. Vaughan, who came into the match with back to back centuries at Lords and Trent Bridge, played some attractive cover drives and elegant cut shots as he once again threatened to post a big score. He was twice lucky also. He should have been walking back to pavilion immediately after reaching his half-century with his eighth boundary when he was caught plumb in front of the wicket by Kumble but umpire Dave Orchard of South Africa ruled otherwise. SCOREBOARD India (1st innings): Bangar c Stewart b Flintoff 68 Sehwag c Flintoff b Hoggard 8 Dravid st Stewart b Giles 148 Tendulkar lbw b Caddick 193 Ganguly b Tudor 128 Laxman c Hussain b Tudor 6 Agarkar b Caddick 2 Patel not out 7 Harbhajan c Hoggard b Caddick 18Extras: 50 Total (for 8 wkts, decl 180.1 overs) 628FoW: 1-15, 2-185, 3-335, 4-584, 5-596, 6-602, 7-604, 8-628. Bowling: Hoggard 36-12-102-1, Caddick 40.1-5-150-3, Tudor 36-10-146-2, Flintoff 27-6-68-1, Giles 39-3-134-1, Butcher 1-1-0-0, Vaughan 1-0-1-0. England (1st innings): Key c Laxman b Zaheer 30 Vaughan c Sehwag b Agarkar 61 Butcher lbw b Kumble 16 Hussain lbw b Zaheer 25 Crawley c Laxman b Harbhajan 13 Stewart batting 71 Flintoff lbw b Harbhajan 0 Tudor c Sehwag b Agarkar 1 Giles lbw b Kumble 25 Caddick b Harbhajan 1 Hoggard batting 0 Extras: (b-1, lb-10, nb-10) 21 Total: (for 9 wkts, 85 overs) 264 Fall of wickets: 1-67, 2-109, 3-130, 4-140, 5-164, 6-164, 7-185, 8-255, 9-258. Bowling: Zaheer Khan 19-3-59-2, Agarkar 15-4-59-2, Bangar 4-1-9-0, Kumble 31-7-87-2, Harbhajan Singh 16-5-39-3. PTI  |
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Sachin most complete
batsman: Gavaskar
London, August 24 “Passing Bradman is something that will give Sachin a lot of pleasure, because ‘The Don’ has always been the person players have looked up to. I know from experience that when you overtake him, it is a special moment,” Gavaskar who holds the record of highest number of Test centuries (34), wrote in his column in ‘The Telegraph’ today. Sachin joined the club of 30 yesterday - one more than Bradman in the third Test against England. “Yet for all Bradman’s achievements, Tendulkar is the closest thing to batting perfection I’ve seen, in terms of technique and temperament. If you have a look at some of the films of
Bradman, you can see his bat came from third man. Because Bradman was Bradman he could see the ball incredibly early and score at a phenomenal rate. “Tendulkar’s bat comes down very straight, he is perfectly balanced off either foot, and there is not a shot he cannot play.” “Like Bradman and Viv Richards, he has that special gift of hitting the good ball for four. In one-day cricket, he hits the good ball for six. When you take that into account, he is probably the most complete batsman the game has seen,” he said. Referring to the lean period Tendulkar went through, Gavaskar said “After five Tests without a hundred, I think Sachin was feeling a little under pressure. He had a bad run after the last one, back in the West Indies, when he didn’t bat up to his standard, fending and fishing at deliveries. “It didn’t help to come so close in the last game. Scores in the 90s are fine but it’s the hundreds that matter, and no one is more aware of that than Sachin. He has the run hunger now, and has even started scoring big centuries where once he used to get out for 120 or so,” he said. “As he has another eight to ten years in the game, I would back him to become the first man to score a hundred international centuries — that’s a fifty in Tests and fifty in
one-dayers. Bowlers of the world beware.” PTI |
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Chetan Sharma writes FOR once the Indians looked desperate for a victory against England. Their batting on the first two days was fabulous to say the least and seeing them bowl with vigour and gameplan today, I can only say that they should not allow England to get away with a draw in this Test. England have themselves to blame for the mess they are in. Their bowling was sub-standard in conditions heavily loaded in favour of seamers and their batting crumbled in the face of a mammoth Indian total and attacking Indian bowling. Saurav Ganguly has not only scored a century in this Test but has also justified his inclusion of both spinners in the team. Both Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble were hungry for success and it showed in their wicket tally. Harbhajan got three while Kumble picked up two wickets and with Ajit Agarkar and Zaheer Khan also getting two wickets each, it was a splendid team effort. I was surprised to see the England batsmen attack early on in their innings. They were chasing 429 to avoid a follow on so they should have applied themselves to the task rather than go for the shots. It worked for a little period but once the Indians got a couple of wickets, the pressure got too much for the England batsmen to handle. The Indian fast bowlers were thrashed around by Michael Vaughan but when he casually drove Agarkar to covers, the Indians were right back in the hunt as Vaughan had been troubling the Indian bowlers on the tour. He has already scored two centuries in the series and today he looked good for the third successive one. But after him it was a matter of time before England succumbed to pressure. Alec Stewart is veteran of many a battle and though people say he is not a very good batsman of spin bowling but he played well today. It was only because of his experience that England innings continued so late otherwise the end would have come much earlier. Stewart was handling the fast bowlers and spinners with equal ease and it should be a lesson for his teammates how to bat in the second innings. Harbhajan and Kumble troubled them because their batsmen did not play them with soft hands. I felt the Indians should have declared as soon as Sachin Tendulkar was dismissed when only seven more runs were needed for his 200. At the most Ganguly should have batted till India got to 600 but in actually batting for an hour this morning, India gave away four wickets to the English bowlers. But in the end Ganguly can say he did the right thing because he has England on the mat now.
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England players reach agreement
Leeds, August 24 “The resolution of this matter will see the best available England team participating in this tournament,’’ the ECB said in a statement, adding that the players had agreed to play in Sri Lanka as long as the International Cricket Council (ICC), the sport’s world governing body, agreed to meet players before signing future sponsorship deals. England had been one of several sides threatening to boycott the event. India remain the one team still to be persuaded to sign the contracts. The Board of Control for Cricket in India has selected a provisional expanded squad of 25 “probables’’ in case their top players refuse to take part. The row centred on an ICC demand that players taking part in their tournaments agree not to represent firms clashing with official event sponsors. The measure, backed by national cricket boards, was drafted to stop those rival firms of launching “ambush marketing’’ campaigns to coincide with major tournaments. Reuters
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24 probables
willing to sign contract
New Delhi, August 24 Srinath, who is currently in England, has not yet been contacted by the Karnataka Cricket Association but all the other probables have expressed their willingness to sign the contract and play for the country, cricket board sources here said. With top Indian cricketers making themselves unavailable by refusing to sign the controversial contract, the board had begun the process of forming an alternative team and had asked the respective associations to get the confirmation of the probables. After receiving the feedback from the respective associations, the contract forms have been despatched to the probables for their signatures, the sources said. The final team was expected to be announced in the next couple of days after the signing formalities were completed. The sources said doors were still open for the current Indian team members who are now in England and they could still be included in the team if they changed their mind and signed the contract. The contract being signed by the probables was only for the Champions Trophy as the board had been telling the top players now touring England but “they have not been convinced due to certain outside pressure,” the sources said. The International Cricket Council had also clarified that the sponsorship contract would be limited to the Champions Trophy only but the players have not budged from their stand.
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Umpires’ retirement
age raised New Delhi, August 24 Chairman of umpires’ committee of the BCCI C.K. Khanna said here today the retirement age of umpires who have officiated in one-day international matches has been raised from 55 years to 58 years while the retirement age of Test umpires has been raised from 55 to 60 years. Mr Khanna informed that an All-India Panel Umpires’ Examination will be conducted by the BCCI in the coming winter. He said a daily report of the tournaments and matches conducted by the BCCI would be obtained from the captain and the match referee appointed by the BCCI. He said the present practice of collecting the captain’s and umpires’ reports at the conclusion of a tournament or match would be done away with. |
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Williams, Davenport to meet in final
New Haven, August 24 The three-time defending champ, Williams is unbeaten in her four years at New Haven and has been stretched to three sets only twice. She’s dominated the Pilot Pen field again this year with her strength, speed and service game. In her two-week rest before the tournament, Williams said she worked on perfecting her toss. “It’s been throwing me off I guess just all my life,” she said. “This whole tournament has been a lot of great tosses.” With serves consistently higher than 177 kph she overwhelmed the seventh-seeded Hantuchova. The 19-year-old Hantuchova managed to win points on the strength of her precision
ground strokes and occasional well-timed lobs and drops, but could do little with Williams’ serves. “It’s really hard to react when it’s coming so fast,” Hantuchova said. Williams scored on 86 per cent of her first serves. Hantuchova, meanwhile struggled from the line and Williams pounced on the second serves, ripping winners from side to side. Davenport cruised in her semifinal earlier, beating Anastasia Myskina 6-2 6-2. She advanced to her second final in four tournaments since returning from knee surgery that sidelined her until last month. “It’s been such a great story seeing her come back,” Williams said. “So I know I have to be ready when I play her.” The match is the final tuneup for both before the US Open, which begins on Monday. Williams is the two-time defending champion at New York. Davenport made the semis at her other two events in her comeback, beating top-10 players Jelena Dokic and Amelie Mauresmo along the way. “I was not sure how the whole comeback would pan out and was expecting to take my lumps in the beginning,” said Davenport, the 1998 US Open champion. One of the lumps was a straight-set loss to Williams in the semifinals at San Diego. Davenport won only three games in the match. She rebounded at Los Angeles and made the final before losing to Chanda Rubin in three sets. “She’s very good right now,” Myskina said. “I think she’s really back.” Davenport was in complete control against the 16th-ranked Myskina, needing just 48 minutes to win. Myskina was coming off a three-set match against Martina Hingis on Thursday night and couldn’t catch up with Davenport’s big serves or hard-hit winners. “I knew she had a long match last night and I new Martina doesn’t hit as hard as I do, so I wanted to overwhelm her with pace and try and overpower her,” Davenport said. Davenport converted five of nine break points and scored on all seven of her net approaches. Myskina said she didn’t sleep well after the Hingis match. “I was very tired,” Myskina, “I know with Lindsay I have to be ready 100 per cent to beat her.”
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Chela enters semis
Commack, August 24 Chela, who was suspended for three months and fined by the ATP last year for illegal use of steroids, was ranked No 810 in April 2001. The 25-year-old currently stands at No 26. Chela advanced to today’s semifinals against Spain’s Alex Corretja, who led 5-2 when France’s Paul-Henri Mathieu retired because of a left toe blister. Chela has two wins over Corretja this year. Defending champion Tommy Haas of Germany played through pain for the third straight match and beat Jarkko Nieminen 3-6 6-4 6-2 yesterday to reach the semifinals. He will play Thailand’s Paradorn Srichaphan, who upset Andre Agassi at Wimbledon this year. Srichaphan beat Younes El Aynaoui 5-7 6-3 6-4 last night. Chela’s record for 2002 improved to 38-21. He won a total of 24 matches over the previous six years. Following reinstatement last year, Chela went on to win six Challenger titles and compiled a 38-5 record, best on the circuit, to climb from No 810 to 71st by the end of the year. “I’m more focused now,” he said. “And I’m happy to be winning. My confidence is very high going into the US Open.” Chela has drawn Felix Mantilla of Spain for his first match in the Open which starts next week. He was down a break point in the second set against Fish. “I was too relaxed at the start,” Chela said, “but then I won five straight games. It was a case of regaining my focus.” AP
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Sunil Kumar wins maiden title
New Delhi, August 24 Sipaeya struck form straightaway, coming up with accurate serves and elegant forehands down the baseline. A classy forehand winner and service return in the third game showed his confidence but he had to wait till the seventh game to get his break. Kannan then suddenly seemed to develop feet of clay. In an effort to win back the break, he began to approach the net more but Sipaeya repeatedly passed him on both sides of the court. Soon he dropped his next serve and with it the set. As the game moved into the second set, the Chennai lad seemed to have more problems. He managed to hold his serve but he struggled to get his first serves in, thereby failing to put pressure on his opponent. Also, one rarely saw him play his backhand slice which he used to telling effect in his elimination of Rohan Bopanna yesterday. Today, he kept feeding to Sipaeya’s strength. Sipaeya on the other hand continued to grow in confidence. He came up with more crosscourt winners as the drama approached the climax, and although he was forced to avert two break points in the ninth game, it was clear who held the upperhand. He went 4-1 up in the tie-break, although a questionable call, or the absence of it on 3-1 might have went against Kannan. It hardly mattered as Sipaeya wrapped up the set in quick time. “It feels good,” an unassuming Sipaeya later said about his selection into the Indian team for the Davis Cup tie against Australia as well as the Asian Games next month. How much chance he will get to take to the courts against Lleyton Hewitt and co in the world group qualifying encounter next month remains to be seen. Both the players had the good fortune of playing under perfect conditions with cool breeze coming as a blessing on the final day of a humid week. PTI
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Indians out of reckoning
Amsterdam, August 24 With their second consecutive defeat, after losing 2-5 to Holland in the opener on Thursday, India are now out of the race for a top two finish while Australia who played a 2-2 draw with Korea in their first match hang in there hoping to play in the final. The Aussies were first off the blocks and Andrew Smith had a clear chance in the fourth minute but Indian goalkeeper Devesh Chauhan used his pads for a smart recovery. The Indians regrouped in the midfield, gained possession and would have found the target but a superb move by Dhanraj Pillay and Prabhjot Singh was wasted by the latter. Four minutes later, in the 15th minute, India surged ahead taking the lead as four forwards worked the ball with Prabhjot Singh slamming in the opener. Australia fought back and a few minutes later, Andrew Smith rounded off a smart move finding the net and giving Australia the equaliser. The lead would have come India’s way in the 52nd minute but Prabhjot’s shot hit the Aussie goalkeeper on the chest. Looking for a goal, the Indian defence started moving upwards but that resulted in gaps at the back which was taken advantage off by Jamie Dwyer whose first shot missed but the resultant rebound was pounded in for the lead. In the 66th minute, another defence lapse led to the third goal and the second for Andrew Smith whose move with Mike McCann saw Devesh Chauhan beaten on the shot. PTI
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Ashok Dewan, Ghosh get Dhyan Chand Award New Delhi, August 24 Abhinav Bindra, the 19-year-old air rifle shooter, had won a gold and silver medal in the recently concluded Commonwealth Games in Manchester. He is the youngest sportsperson to be selected for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award. He was conferred the Arjuna Award last year. Some of the earlier winners of the Khel Ratna Award include Karnam Malleswari and Vishwanathan Anand. The Dhyan Chand Award for liftime achievement to sports and games for 2001 will be shared by three eminent sportspersons — Ashok Dewan (hockey), Shahu Birojder (boxing) and Aparna Ghosh (basketball. A selection panel, headed by former Indian cricket captain Kapil Dev, who was recently crowned the “Indian cricketer of the century” by Wisden cricket magazine, picked the awardees. The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award and the Dhyan Chand award will be presented along with the Arjuna and Dronacharya Awards at a function to be held at the Ashoka Hall of Rashtrapathi Bhavan on August 29, which is celebrated as the National Sports Day, by the President, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. It is an interesting coincidence that both Kapil and Abhinav hail from Chandigarh, and both are now residents of Delhi. The government had earlier announced the names of 14 sportspersons for the Arjuna and two for the Dronacharya Award. Interestingly, chief national shooting coach, Prof. Sunny Thomas, is one of the two selected for the Dronacharya Award, the other being former world billiards champion Michael Ferreira. Ace batsman VVS Laxman figures among the Arjuna Awardees. A cricketer has been selected for the Arjuna Award after a lapse of two years as the match-fixing scandal had forced the government from nominating any cricketer for the Arjuna Award. Abhinav Bindra, the young shooter, who has accumulated over 26 medals of all hues — gold, silver and bronze — from international meets, had set a world record with an exceptional score of 598 out of 600 at the Luxembourg Open National Championship last year. In 2000, he equalled the world record in the air rifle event during the World Cup in Munich. Abhinav had missed qualifying for the final of the Olympic Games at Sydney by just one point. He was the youngest shooter to compete at Sydney. Abhinav had won a bronze medal in the World Cup in Munich last year, where his aggregate score of 700.5 points was a mere 0.2 behind the world record. Abhinav is expected to spearhead India’s shooting challenge in the Asian Games at Busan next month. Chandigarh: The secretary-general of the Punjab Olympic Association, Raja KS Sidhu, while appreciating the selection of Abhinav Bindra, for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, said 12 eminent sportspersons had applied for this award, out of which five were shortlisted. They were, Anjali Ved Pathak Bhagwat, Mahesh Bhupathi (tennis), Samurai Tere (women’s hockey) and M Markkom (women’s boxing). The selection of Abhinav Bindra is just reward for his dedication and achievements, he added. |
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‘Create
system’ for golf teachers Chandigarh, August 24 It was a “very productive workout and the results were very good” said Donato who wore a smile on his face while fielding
questions from a battery of newsmen. Those attending the camp were very receptive. He particularly mentioned the name of Jessie Grewal, Director of the Hero Honda Academy. “He has already shaped into a good golf teacher and is eager to learn more”, were his words. Talking about the other teaching professionals he mentioned the name of Nonita Lal of Delhi,. She is a good teacher and went on to say “I rate her better than many male golf teachers. “ He repeatedly emphasised on the need for creating a system to produce teaching professionals. Producing golf teachers was one aspect. But camps to refresh the knowledge of the teachers was equally important. “ This is where a system has to be created to hone the skills of the teachers”, he added. The absence of the Indian Golf Union members from the first such coaching camp was made obvious with Donato saying that the IGU must understand the urgency of creating a system for Indian coaches. This would in the long run benefit the IGU as it would have Indian trained coaches to train the youngsters. He said the way Chandigarh was producing budding golfers the city would need a couple of more courses. His coming to Chandigarh to train the golfers was a dream come true. He had fantasised such a setting about five years back. The starting of the junior academy would go a long way in producing top golfers for the country. And he had full faith in the Director of the Hero Hondo Academy producing the results. He would be back in Chandigarh when the weather improved for the second session of the year-long assignment. He considered the Golf Range the perfect place for training teaching professionals. He complimented the team led by the CGA President and Secretary-General, Mr D.P. Azad and Mr C.S.R. Reddy, respectively, for bringing the range on the golf map of the country. Also present at the press conference was the Senior Vice-President, Mr J.S. Cheema. He would soon include yoga in his coaching curriculum. When he had come to India the first time, he had talked about learning yoga. And at today’s Press conference he was all praise for yoga. He said it was important for golf players. After the press conference the Italian golf master gave away certificates to those who had attended the camp. |
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Punjab
Police honours sportspersons Jalandhar, August 24 The Director-General of Police, Mr M.S. Bhullar, presented cheques to the winners. Three sportsmen — wrestler Palwinder Singh Cheema (gold medal), weightlifter Vicky Batra (silver medal) and judoka Bhupinder Singh (bronze medal) — who won laurels at Manchester, were presented cheques of Rs 1 lakh, Rs 70,000 and Rs 50,000, respectively. Athlete Sagardeep Kaur, who won the gold in 4x400m relay and athlete Sawarnjit Kaur, bronze medallist in discus throw, in the Asian Athletics Championship held at Colombo, were presented cheques of Rs 1 lakh and Rs 50,000, respectively. Similarly bronze medal winner in shotput in the Asian Grandprix Championship-2002 at Hyderabad, Navpreet Singh, received a cheque of Rs 70,000, while boxer Harpal Singh, who won the silver medal in the Asian Boxing Championship held at Kuala Lumpur in 1995 was handed over a cheque of Rs 70,000. The sports heroes were accorded a warm welcome on their arrival at PAP complex by the reception committee headed by the president of Punjab Basketball Association and ADGP, Mr R.S. Gill. |
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BSF edge out RCF Chandigarh, August 24 RCF had to wait till the 80th minute to reduce the margin when the experienced Manmohan Singh found the target off a combined move. Tomorrow, JCT will meet PSEB at Phagwara. Meanwhile, to commemorate FIFA Fairplay Day, a run was organised in the stadium prior to the commencement of the match. Former internationals Inder Singh, Gurdev Singh, Parminder Singh and Kuljit Singh led the race followed by members of the two teams, office-bearers of DFA, Jalandhar, and players of Punjab Police. |
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Silver, bronze
for Indian boxers New Delhi, August 24 Sanjay Kumar of Haryana won the silver medal in the 67kg category while Harikrishnan of RSPB won the bronze medal in the 60kg category. Five teams from four countries participated in the tournament. Sanjay Kumar also won the best loser award in the tournament. Indian Amateur Boxing Federation President Abhay Singh Chautala and working president R.S. Dalal congratulated the team for their commendable performance. The team was accompanied by one official. |
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Maulana
Azad Trophy for DU Chandigarh, August 24 The trophy will be presented by Dr Abdul Kalam, president, at Rashtrapati Bhavan on August 28. Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, and the local Panjab University are second and third, respectively. The winners get a cash prize of Rs 2,00,000, first runners-up Rs 1,00,000 and second runners-up Rs 50,000. |
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Silver
medal for Harwant Kaur Amritsar, August 24 Last year, Harwant had set a national record in the National Games at Ludhiana and was awarded a special prize by the Sports Authority of India.
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2 Amritsar
eves in Punjab team Amritsar, August 24 Both will represent the Punjab state team.
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Rupa Saini bereaved Chandigarh August 24
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