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Wednesday,
October 9, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Indian
eves look to salvage pride
Uppal-Ghouse
duo enters q-finals
Sethi ends
campaign with bronze
Victories
trigger celebrations
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Spikers
record consolation win Expert comments:
Pritamrani Siwach Paddlers crash out in second round Boxer Qamar bows out Indian
shooters disappoint Gold
for injured Chinese pair India
finish fifth Tennis
in Japan Eleven
missing Dismal day for grapplers
Srinath’s
return to boost squad Paceman
Srinath at the Indian team practice at the Wankhade on Tuesday
morning. — PTI photo Chetan Sharma writes Expert comments
Vivian Richards Aier,
Suhrid in lead
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Indian eves look to salvage pride
Busan, October 8 After suffering two consecutive defeats, including a 5-0 thrashing by hosts South Korea yesterday, India’s chances for a gold medal have been badly hit in this four-nation event where the top two finishers will meet in the final with the remaining two battling it out for the third place. India, who were billed as one of the favourites after their gold medal winning performance in Commonwealth Games recently, would now have to beat Japan by a huge margin to entertain any hopes of moving into the final. With no points in their kitty, India are placed at the bottom of the table and South Korea, leading the tally with six points from two matches, have almost assured themselves a place in the final. As both China and Japan have three points from two matches each, India have a tall task at hand. Their rivals Japan are pepped up after their upset victory against China yesterday. They scored in each half of the match to beat the Champions Trophy winners 2-1. After a 0-2 loss against China in the opener on Saturday, Indians crashed to a morale-shattering 0-5 defeat against South Korea, displaying sheer lack of application. After conceding a goal in the 32nd minute of the match, India held fort for the next 15 minutes before South Korea opened the floodgates pumping in four goals in quick succession. The failure to earn penalty corners is a worrying factor for the team management as the strikers failed to pose any threat on the opposition defence in both the matches. Penalty corner conversions had played a big role in India’s triumph at Manchester and in the last two matches here India could earn only four penalty corners while China (13) and Korea (9) together earned 22 against them. Failure of some of the defenders, particularly Pritam Siwach, was also disappointing and most of them were found wanting in the match against Korea. The mood in the Indian camp was rather gloomy and the only motivating factor for the players was to go all out against Japan tomorrow, said coach Gurdial Singh Bhangu.
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Uppal-Ghouse duo enters q-finals Busan, October 8 Uppal and Ghouse, India’s second doubles pair, registered a creditable 6-1 6-4 victory against Cheng Wei Jen and Chen Ti of Chinese Taipei in the second round this morning. But India’s hopes in the singles events suffered a series of setbacks with three of the four players in contention bowing out - all of them to Japanese opponents. Sunil Kumar Sipaeya went down to Goichi Motomura 2-6 6-7 (1/7) in the third round in men’s section while Sania Mirza lost 4-6 2-6 to Saori Obata in the women’s section. Senior women’s player Nirupama Vaidyanathan, who returned to competitive tennis after a brief hiatus following her marriage, lost in straight sets 1-6 0-6 to Shinobu Asagoe. Indian pair of Ankita Bhambri and Rushmi Chakravarti also bowed out of the competition with 0-6 3-6 defeat against Hsieh Su Wei and Chan Chin Wei of Chinese Taipei in the second round of the women’s doubles section. But Leander Paes and Sania Mirza kept the Indian spirits high - defeating Japan’s Thomas Shimada and Shinobu Asagoe, the top seeds, 6-3 6-3 in the second round of the mixed doubles. Paes and Sania will face Thailand’s Tamarine Tanasugarn and Vittaya Samrei in the quarterfinals tomorrow.
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Sethi ends campaign with bronze Busan, October 8 Sethi, who won the silver in the last Games in Bangkok losing to compatriot Ashok Shandilya, wrapped up the third place match in about 25 minutes beating Aung San Oo of Mayanmar 2-0 in the best of three-frames match at the Dongju stadium. India finished with a total of three medals, including a gold in snooker doubles by Yasin Merchant and Rafath Habib and a silver by Sethi and Alok Kumar in billiards doubles. Last time in Bangkok, India had won two gold, one silver and one bronze medal in billiards. Sethi tossed for the match and, after Aung San Oo made 19 in his first visit, played with vision. Sethi’s forthright approach helped him to clear the frame with an unfinished break of 96. With the whole Indian team present at the half-packed indoor hall, Sethi’s determination in not allowing the match drift into the decider was evident. Spurred on with the first frame which saw his superb break putting and a lot of tactical play, Sethi took lesser time in winning the second frame and the match. He came up with an unfinished break of 98 in the second frame denying his rival any chance of a comeback. However, the former world champion was still disappointed in letting down his countrymen failing to win the semifinal yesterday. “I really played well today. At least, I made sure of winning a medal for our country,” Sethi said trying to hide his disappointment. Asked whether Ashok Shandiliya’s presence in the squad would have made any difference, Sethi said: “Shandilya is a gutsy player. In Bangkok, he collapsed in doubles but in singles he took the challenge out of his skin. He is definitely a fighter.” Before the team left the Indian shores there were allegations of favouritism in the selection of the team for both billiards and snooker but Sethi rubbished these claims. “It was an unbiased selection for the Games. In this shorter format of the sport, one cannot predict anything,” Sethi said. “The gold haul by Yasin and Rafath enhanced our morale but we failed to take on from their excellent performance, which was also India’s first gold medal in this Games,” he said. Summing up the format and competition in the 14th edition of the Games, Sethi said “the cuesport is growing rapidly in this region. India were the leaders once but we cannot take anyone or anything lightly concerning the sport.” “Compared to the Bangkok Games where the sport made its debut, there was a stiffer competition in Busan and I am sure the trend will only make India sit up and programme for a systematised training of our youngsters.” Apart from the medal winners the other members in the squad put up a disappointing performance. Devendra Joshi, who had won a bronze with B Bhaskar in billiards doubles in Bangkok, failed to cross the first round, while Siddharth Anand did not impress at all stumbling at the first hurdle in both billiards three cusion singles and Carom. Asim Merchant lost in eight ball pool singles pre-quarter finals. While Merchant, Pankaj Advani and Manan Chandra were eliminated in the
pre-quarterfinals of snooker team event, Dharminder Lily crashed out of eight ball pool singles in the pre-quarters. Lily along with Amit Khansaheb was also ousted in eight ball pool doubles. Mukesh Rehani lost in the quarter-finals in nine ball pool singles.
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Victories
trigger celebrations
Jalandhar, October 8 As the news spread and as the elated family members, friends and relatives of the two stars watched Bahadur and Madhuri getting gold and silver on TV, they came out of their houses, started distributing “laddoos” and danced on Bhangra tunes at Jalandhar and Mahilpur township. Their elation doubled as congratulations started pouring in from all quarters. Bahadur belongs to Jalandhar, where he is posted as a DSP in the PAP while Madhuri hails from Mahilpur, a sleepy township on the Hoshiarpur-Chandigarh road. She is posted as a Foreman in the Punjab State Electricity Board. Bahadur’s Dhiman Nagar residence on Kapurthala road was flooded with friends and relatives, who extended greetings to his father Surinder Singh and mother Satwant Kaur, while it was Amandeep Singh, the husband of Madhuri Singh, who was flooded with telephone calls of friends and colleagues of the couple. Similarly, it was jubilation all around in Mahilpur. People were seen greeting Amandeep Singh. “After she was shown performing live on TV, I have received so many calls from friends and well-wishers. She deserved it since she was preparing for it since 1998 after birth of our daughter,” said Amandeep Singh. Umrao Singh said both would be felicitated and a function to be organised at Jalandhar.  |
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Spikers
record consolation win Busan, October 8 India, who are already out of the contention for a medal, ended their league engagements with two wins and two defeats from four matches and will now play Pakistan and Chinese Taipei for the 5-8 positions. In today’s game, India played out of their skins to demolish a fighting Qatar 25-22, 25-17, 25-14. India, who were placed in Group A, had lost the first two matches against Korea and Iran respectively, and defeated Macau in their third match. Deft play at the net by Jobi Joseph, Tom Joseph and Subba Rao supported by effective blocks from M.S. Rao, did not give the opposition any chance to win even a single game, though they came close to taking the opener.
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Expert
comments: Pritamrani Siwach Our second consecutive loss has come as a big shock. The 5-0 scoreline has been a further dampner and there has been a pall of gloom in the Indian camp. South Korea may be a good side, but we had no business losing to them like we did yesterday. In fact, we were thinking in terms of winning before the match. It was one of our worst matches, so to say. Our attack-line just did not work and the stickwork that we are known for, seemed to desert us. Having lost to China 0-2 in an earlier match, we’re virtually out of contention for the final in the four-team tournament. Though, if the Koreans beat China and we beat Japan, South Korea will have nine points and rest three each. But after our big loss to the Koreans, we can’t even expect to make it on goal average. Actually, that’s somewhere we blundered. We didn’t think about the goal average and went on conceding goals. A loss is a loss, was what went through our minds. So, we tried to create opportunities for ourselves, that in vain. I think we have hit a really bad patch. Our forwards, who used to dribble past four or five players at the Commonwealth Games just a couple of months back, seem to run into a wall everytime they have the ball. We have been too slow upfront. There just doesn’t seem to be a flow. Our bodies don’t seem to be responding at all. Maybe we peaked too early this season. Maybe the camps and the preparation for this tournament had a negative effect on us. The freshness has oozed out of us. The surprise of the tournament has been Japan beating China yesterday. Though it kept the tournament open, it also scares us because it means Japan is a fine team too. After all, we had lost to China ! But we’ll fight it out in our remaining two matches. We still have a chance to win a bronze and we’ll go all out for it. We don’t know which team will be playing for bronze. Presuming that we’re playing in it, it can be either China or Japan. Tough it definitely is going to be. We know what we’re in for now. Like I’d written in my column before, even if we win the bronze, people are going to say that it was just a four-nation tournament and it’s no big deal winning a bronze. But that’s not how it is. This tournament is really hard and we’re going through it with great difficulty. Had there been a couple of easy games in the tournament, we could have done some thinking. But here you are, from one loss to another, not knowing what to do. When the team is off-colour, you can’t do much. Let this not seem like an excuse. I’m not justifying our losses. We’ve played badly and I concede that. But give credit to other teams too. They are all world class. History has a knack of repeating itself. At 1990 Beijing Asiad too the Koreans defeated us on the same 5-0 scoreline. But in the period I have been with the teams since 1991, Koreans never had it easy against us. Be it the last Asian Games final or the Asia Cup final, the scored stood a fighting 2-1 in their favour. We even defeated them in the Perth 4-Nation Cup in 1999 before finishing third, a step above the Koreans. But yesterday was another day another match. We will forget this match and focus on bronze. We have two more matches to go. We will strive to retrieve some prestige
there. Hockey Features |
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Paddlers crash out in second round
Busan, October 8 The other Indian in the fray Subhajeet Saha lost his first round match against Chinese Taipei’s Peng Lung Chang earlier in the day. On a disappointing day for the Indians, the team sorely missed the services of veteran Chetan Baboor who skipped the Games to appear for his MBA exams in USA. Following Baboor’s withdrawal, India decided against competing in the team event and sent only a two-member team to the Games for individual events. Roy failed to post a serious challenge against his Korean opponent Tack Soo Kim and tamely conceded the first three games without offering much fight. Despite lifting his performance a bit to take the fourth game, Roy failed to keep the momentum going losing the match 4-11 8-11 6-11 11-8 4-11. Earlier, after an intense fight he had prevailed over Mangolian Sukhee Galbadrakh 11-8 2-11 11-7 13-15 11-3 11-9 to move into the second round of the
competition. Saha lost in straight games 5-11 7-11 10-12 3-11 to Chang. In doubles, the Indians fared no better with Roy and Saha losing to Chinese Taipei’s Peng Lang Chang and Yen S Chang 12-10 11-4 11-9 in a second round match. Earlier, the Indian pair had defeated Mangolia’s Galbadrakh and Enkhabat Lkhagvasuren 11-6 11-8 11-6 in a first round match.
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Boxer Qamar bows out Busan, October 8 Qamar, one of the medal prospects for India after his superb show in Manchester, went down 11-21 to Harry Tanamor of Philippines at the Masan Gymnasium. The Indian pugilist could never really recover from the early assault launched by his rival who took a comfortable lead. After being at the receiving end for most part of the fight, Qamar closed the gap in the last two rounds with a few crisp punches but it came too late in the day to alter the result. The Kolkata boxer also paid dearly for leaving his defence loose at times. Particularly, while going for the attacks, he allowed the wily Filipino to score a few points. The exit of Qamar at the quarter-final stage has diminished India’s medal hopes in the event though a couple of boxers have made it to the last eight stage. Ramananand and Jitender Kumar, who have found their way into the quarter-finals, will carry India’s medal hopes though they are expected to face a stiff opposition in their next fights.
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Indian shooters disappoint Busan, October 8 At the end of the second round in skeet, the Indian trio of Rahoul Rai, Harinder Singh Bedi and Naveen Jindal ended way down the ladder while in the 25m standard pistol, Japal Rana, Ved Prakash Pilaniya and Samresh Jung were nowhere in contention. In the last two rounds of the skeet event, Rahoul Rai, who scored 66 out of 75 yesterday, shot 43 (22, 21) out of 50 today to aggregate 109 in five rounds and was placed joint 23rd in the field of 33. Harinder Singh Bedi, who shot 64 yesterday, fired 43 (21,22) for a total of 107 and ended at 29th place. A slot behind him was compatriot Naveen Jindal who shot 18 (18, 0). He finished yesterday with a score of 65 thus totalling today 83. In the 25m standard pistol, Jaspal Rana ended at 12th place with a total of 568. In his first series of four rounds, he had a score of 190 (50,45,47,48), in the second series he earned a total of 189 (47,46,48,48) and in the third 189 (48,48,48,45). Ved Prakash was placed 19th with a total of 561. His series scores were 192 (48,49,47,48), 188 (47,48,48,45) and 81 (45,45,44,47).
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Gold for injured
Chinese pair BUSAN: World champions Wu Minxia and Guo Jingjing of China routed their rivals to win the first Asian Games diving gold today despite both stars carrying injuries. The duo amassed 319.80 points from their five dives, judged on execution and synchronisation, to easily win the women’s 3m synchronised springboard final ahead of South Korean pair Kang Min-Kyung and Im Sun-Young (248.04). Abdullah Farah Begum and Leong Mun Yee won Malaysia its first ever Asiad diving medal with a 245.34 total. “It’s true we were both injured. We both knocked our legs during training but it didn’t hamper us too much,” said Guo, a veteran at 20 who partnered the legendary Fu Mingxia to take Olympic silver in the event two years ago.
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India
finish fifth BUSAN: After having won a bronze medal in team eventing, India finished fifth in team dressage in equestrian in the Asian Games here today. The team comprising Sunil Shiv Das, Mritunjay Rathore, Vishal Bishnoi and Sandeep Dewan put up a rather dismal show to take the fifth position with a total of 2849 points. While Das was the pick of the Indian performers with a score of 995, Rathore (914), Bishnoi (853) and Dewan (940) could not show the desired consistency. The strong Korean team comprising Jung-Kyun Suh, Chang Moo shin, Jung Keun Kim and Jun Sang Choi claimed the honour with a total of 3493 while the Japanese team of Yuriko Miyoshi, Masumi Yokokawa, Hiroyuki Kitahara and Naoko Hitomi took the silver medal with a tally of 3431 points.
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Tennis
in Japan BUSAN: Japan’s top tennis players hope their Asian Games team gold medal will be a turning point, but fear it will lead to just another frustrating trip up a blind alley. Victory over South Korea in the men’s team event here was their first for almost 30 years, but in a country where soccer and baseball are kings they are destined to return to the shadows. “The World Cup in Japan and South Korea was such a success that tennis can’t compare,” said Thomas Shimada, one of the winning four-man squad. “The men in Japan don’t have a good history in tennis. Part of the problem is physical, we are not very tall while all the leading players in the world are big and very powerful.” Shuzo Matsuoka was an exception to the rule. He reached number 74 in the world in the early 1990s and was a Wimbledon quarter-finalist in 1995, but he was an exception rather than the rule.
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Eleven
missing BUSAN: At least 11 Asian Games athletes from Nepal, Sri Lanka and Mongolia have gone missing from the athlete’s village, police said today. “We suspect these athletes may trying to find jobs here as illegal immigrants,” a Busan Police Agency official said on the customary condition of anonymity. The missing include seven Nepalese, three Sri Lankan and one Mongolian, the official said. “To locate them as soon as possible, we have listed them on the police wanted list although they have not broken any laws,” he said. Officials cannot detain them or force them to return to their teams because they have been accredited until October 29 and are legally in South Korea. The games end on October 14. “So far all we can do is locate them and notify the team to pick them up,” he said.
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Dismal day for grapplers
Busan, October 8 In the 60-kg category bout, Delhi’s Shokinder Tomar lost two bouts and won one and made exit from the
competition. Tomar, who had yesterday had won his first bout, met his match in burly Mongolian Oyunbileg Purevbaatar and lost to him, though Indian lasted the bout for six minutes. Tomar was handed a 1-4 defeat at the hand of his far superior
rival. Tomar was in for another drubbing when he met Kazakthan’s Ulu Ulan
Nadyrbek. The Kazak proved more ruthless than the Mongol and thrashed the Indian 4-0. The Delhi grappler had a consolation win against hapless Afghan grappler Mohammed Nadir Mir whom he trounced 4-0 in 3:41 minutes.
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Srinath’s return to boost squad
Mumbai, October 8 Srinath, who has been persuaded to change his decision to retire four months ago after the tour of the West Indies, is almost certain to play tomorrow. Captain Saurav Ganguly said the playing eleven has not been finalised yet but in all probability opener Shiv Sunder Das, left-arm seamer Ashish Nehra and newcomer Amit Mishra will have to sit out. Srinath played in the first of the two rain-abandoned final matches of the Champions Trophy in Sri Lanka and was thrashed for 55 runs from eight overs, but Ganguly did not seem to be unduly worried about the bowler’s form. “Srinath is looking good in the nets and I still feel he has got a lot of cricket left in him,” Ganguly said. “He can also be a guiding factor for the youngsters and we need him to balance the bowling attack.” In the midst of a splendid run, the Indian team look firm favourites in both the Test and one-day series, especially since it also enjoys the home advantage, but Ganguly said his side was a bit nervous going into the first match tomorrow. “This being the first match of the series, we are a bit nervous, but I am sure we will settle down as the series progresses. As of now the boys are a little worried,” Ganguly said ahead of tomorrow’s match which will mark West Indian captain Carl Hooper’s 100th Test. The West Indies, playing without Lara, who has been ruled out of the series due to hepatitis, heaved a sigh of relief when Hooper was declared fit for the Test. Hooper had sustained a knee injury during net practice yesterday but an MRI scan showed everything was okay. |
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Chetan
Sharma writes Earlier this year when India toured West Indies, the home team was favourites to win the series. Though the West Indians proved the pundits right, the final scoreline of 2-1 showed that it was by no means a one-sided contest and it could have easily swung the Indian way. However, it needs no great experts to gauge which way the present series shall go. India are the overwhelming favourites this time and the only point of interest will be to see whether India are able to inflict a 3-0 sweep on the tourists. This West Indian team is no patch on the ones, which have been touring India for decades. I don’t think these fast bowlers have it in them to trouble the Indian batsmen on Indian pitches to the extent of running through the side. I would not rule them out entirely but I don’t see them making batsmen like Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid losing their sleep over the bowling. I guess they will pick up wickets when they bowl good spells but I would be really interested in finding out what would be the consistency rate of the West Indian bowlers. One thing to the West Indian advantage will be that their captain Carl Hooper is a wonderful batsman of spin bowling alongwith Shivnarine Chanderpaul who has more hundreds against India in his Test career than against any other team. If someone like Ramnaresh Sarwan and Wavell Hinds can provide them the back-up, the Indian bowlers may just struggle. Now, it is here that the West Indians can thwart the Indian bid. If their batsmen manage to ward off the Indian spin threat, they can at least hope to save a Test or two. It does not mean though that the Indians will be without a strategy for the likes of Hooper and Chanderpaul. I would love to see the line Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble bowl to them and how much will they are willing to attack this time. If they could win a Test in England, bowling in home conditions should be easier so on them lies India’s hope. Lately India have been playing excellent cricket and I would advise them not to relax or get complacent. If they carry on with their winning habit they would be in a better position to handle pressure than they were used to at one stage. If we are building a champion team for the future these issues are vital ingredients. This is how Australia rose in the 80s and who knows five years down the line India could be the world champions in both Test and one-day cricket. |
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Expert
comments Vivian Richards AS the West Indies get ready for the start of the first Test, the entire touring party is aware that this is a very important series. There are seven one-dayers as well that will provide crucial preparation for the World Cup, which is only a couple of months away. The absence of Brian Lara is very disappointing for us because we all know of his exploits as well as what he is capable of. Having said that, I personally would not view it as a blow to the team, since his absence can also be seen as a golden opportunity for one of the youngsters to come of age. Players like Ramnaresh Sarwan, Marlon Samuels, Wavell Hinds, Ryan Hinds and Chris Gayle can grab this opening with both hands and leave their mark on the series. In the absence of the senior professional, it will be a great chance for a couple of them to leave the Indian shores with their reputations enhanced. In my role as selector, I know that these guys have an abundance of talent, and I have full confidence that they will prove themselves, given the opportunity. Having made my debut in India, I know what it is to be a young cricketer here. The sheer enthusiasm that the game invokes in India is a revelation for any youngster touring these parts. Fortunately, for players like Jermaine Lawson and Darren Powell, there are a few seniors in the side like Carl Hooper and Shivnarine Chanderpaul who will help them along. Having been in a identical situation, I too can tell them what to expect and what not to expect. Interestingly the West Indians who made their debut in India have often gone on to become greats. Both Gordon Greenidge and Malcolm Marshall made their debut in Bangalore, and later went on to become household names. These youngsters too have plenty of potential. They are young, willing learners and could form the core for the new generation of the West Indian cricketers. Having been around them for some time, I must say that they have shown a good attitude to the challenges that await them on the slow pitches of India. The pitch at the Wankhede Stadium looks hard and moist at present, but I think that hardness will soon break up and the spinners will have a big role to play. Hopefully, the moisture will stay on the wicket for some time, because if it does there could be something in it for the first hour, after which it will lapse back into being the Wankhede wicket of old. Bangalore afforded us a perfect opportunity to prepare and the entire team is acclimatised on the eve of the first Test. There was a little concern about a knee injury Carl Hooper sustained on Monday, but like a true competitor he is readying himself for the game. Hooper belongs to the old brigade and likes to go about his preparation quietly. He is not the sort to shirk his responsibility, and will be looking forward to his 100th Test. Being a member of the old brigade myself, I know he will not let minor setbacks come in the way of his playing. Hooper’s reaching this landmark is all the more remarkable, considering he had prematurely retired from the game three years ago. No one had tried to understand why he left at the time, but fortunately for the West Indian cricket, he reversed his decision and came back. Since then he has made a tremendous impact on the game, and his captaincy is a huge plus for our side. In the absence of Lara, I hope he will be able to replicate the form he displayed against India in the West Indies earlier this year.
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Aier, Suhrid in lead Chandigarh, October 8 In the two-wheeler category, last year’s winner Suhrid Sharma of Shimla ( from where the rally was flagged off) was in the lead. While Aier expectedly maintained his lead at the end of the leg with a timing of 50 minutes 48 seconds, Suresh Rana of Kullu in a Gypsy King was a surprise second with 56 minutes and 55 seconds. |
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Busan, October 8
