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Wednesday,
October 16, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Windies sweat it out at the nets No plans to retire, says Pillay
The ‘golden’ cueist from Punjab Punjab to honour Asiad medallists Radcliffe finally cements place in history |
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Anand held in 1st round of q-finals Rajiv shows his form on English soil McGrath keen to join 400-wkt club All eyes on Forest Hill course Maharashtra, TN in quarterfinals Punjabi varsity thrash PAU Haryana defeat Delhi
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Windies sweat it out at the nets
Chennai, October 15 Setting an example to his teammates, captain Corl Hooper was at the stadium by 7.30 am and was seen jogging and stretching out while the rest of the players joined him at by 9.30 am after which followed a-two-and-a-half-hour stint. The Indian team is are scheduled to practice later in the afternoon. The team arrived in batches. While nine of them, including vice- captain Rahul Dravid and coach John Wright checked in last night, captain Saurav Ganguly and star batsman Sachin Tendulkar arrived this morning. “We must not turn complacent and have to play even harder,’’Wright said upon his arrival. However, captains of both the team are scheduled to address the media formally only after another session at the nets tomorrow. At the nets Lester Armoogam, enduring cheer leader of the Carl Hooper-led West Indies team, surprised one and all as he was freely interacting with the players. “I have been following the West Indies team ever since the Indian team toured our country under Vijay Hazare”, Armoogam, whose ancestors hail from Southern India, said in a chat with reporters on the sidelines as the Windies were sweating it out at the nets. The Trinidad-based Armoogam, a retired businessman, however, cannot exactly recall whether his ancestors hailed from Tamil Nadu or Kerala. “I am not sure if it’s Madras or Kerala”, he said. “My all time favourite is Sir Garfield Sobers, I don’t know if we can find another Sobers...Brian Lara is another of my favourites”, a Armoogam said. In the current West Indies team, his favourite is Shivnarain Chanderpaul. Armoogam asserts that Ramnarain Sharvan would mature into another Rohan Kanhai. Asked about the decline in the West Indies cricket, Armoogam said players like Sobers, Kanhai and Basil Butcher played with dedication, application and with the pride of representing their country. “The current crop of players seem to be playing for themselves”, he added. But, he is confident that the present team will come good in two years time. UNI
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No plans to retire, says Pillay New Delhi, October 15 The 34-year-old Pillay, who played a key role in India defeating Pakistan in the semifinal and eventually earning a silver medal, replied in the negative when asked if retirement was in his mind. “No. No,” the veteran striker of four Asian Games replied to a barrage of questions regarding his retirement plans on his arrival here late last night. Pillay’s celebrity status was evident as the controversial forward was singled out by fans and reporters alike even as the other team members, including captain Dilip Tirkey quietly walked away to the waiting team bus. On India’s performance in the games, Pillay felt the gold medal was very much in India’s grasp but blamed the missed chances in the final for the defending champions settling for a silver. “Gold was in our hands but it slipped out. We got the chances but we missed them,” he said while obliging autograph seekers. “Last time I was the captain when we beat Korea in the final in Bangkok and this time too all of us tried our best. We are all very sad that we missed the gold,” he said. Despite the team being unable to repeat their 1998 title triumph, coach Rajinder Singh said he was totally satisfied with the performance of the team. “The way we came back after being 0-3 down in the final was superb,” Rajinder Singh said. “Also luck played a big part in Korea’s win,” he said but refused to comment on some debatable umpiring decisions in the final which India lost 3-4. “We had planned to attack against the Koreans in the first half but it did not work out,” he said. Rajinder Singh also brushed aside doubts on discipline in the team in the wake of Pillay accusing some younger teammates of deliberately not giving passes to him in a Champions Trophy match recently, saying “there are no problems absolutely. Neither here nor in the earlier tournaments.” “I don’t have any complaints. I am totally satisfied with the team. We are looking forward to future assignments.” Rajinder, who took over from Cedric D’Souza after the Kuala Lumpur World Cup fiasco, was also not ready to pinpoint any individual brilliance and instead gave credit to team effort. The unassuming Tirkey also echoed the coach saying “every member of the Indian team gave 100 per cent but the best laid plans failed to work out in the end.” “The Koreans had more pace and control,” the fullback said assesing the final. Forward Gagan Ajit Singh, a DSP with Punjab Police, said “he was happy to beat Pakistan in the semifinal.” “We also played superbly in the second half of the final. But were done in by lastminute hiccups,” said Gagan who slotted India’s winner against Pakistan in the semifinal and the second goal in the final. “Purana Badla lena tha wo le liya (it was an old score that we had to settle and we did it),” said Daljit Singh about the sweet win over Pakistan. “They beat us for the bronze in the Champions Trophy and we gave one back to them.” “In the final we did not settle in the first half and also the umpiring was bad. “The infringement by Jugraj Singh did not deserve a penalty corner award,” he said. The women’s hockey team, who also arrived in the same flight, looked a dejected lot and captain Suraj Lata Devi was so upset that she did not even talk to the reporters. Gold medallists at Manchester Commonwealth Games, Indian team put up a dismal show at Busan to finsh winless and last in the four-team competition. (PTI) Prabhjot returns AMRITSAR: Prabhjot Singh, whose participation in the tournament was curtailed due to injury he suffered in the first match against Hong Kong, said the team had combined well to reach the finals in spite of a draw against South Korea in the league match. Prabhjot
played only for five minutes in the final and his injury has totally healed. He was hopeful of proving his worth in the next tournament. Describing collective play of the team as
marvellous he said it was good on the whole, though there were always areas of
improvement. OC Warm welcome JALANDHAR:
Four eminent Punjab Police players and members of the Indian hockey squad, which won the silver medal at the recently concluded Busan Asian Games, were given a warm reception on their arrival at the local railway station by their family members, sports lovers and veteran sportspersons of Punjab Police, including the ADGP, Mr R.S. Gill, here this afternoon. As soon as the players — Daljeet Dhillon, Yugraj, Kanwalpreet and Tejvir - descended from the Shatabadi Express, they were garlanded by their elated family members and admirers. Living true to their sporting tradition, a group of senior Punjab Police officers including Mr R.S. Gill, IG Mr J.P. Birdi, former Indian captain Pargat Singh, hugged the players besides congratulating them on their performance during the final.
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The ‘golden’ cueist from Punjab Chandigarh, October 15 Alok said: “Since this sport is not that popular among the masses here in this part, but the three medals secured by Indians will go a long way in promoting this sport”. In this just-concluded Asian games, Indians won a gold in snooker, silver in billiards and bronze in pool. India had sent 12 players, three coaches and a manager with the team. Narrating the sequence, Alok said at the 11th hour, the entire format of the rounds was changed by the Busan Asian Games Organising Committee, which appeared to mar India’s chances. Thailand won the gold medal and the Myanmar pair, the bronze. Alok was however happy that this was the second time, that cue sport was a medal sport. At the last Bangkok Asian games, Indian cue sport players had won three medals, including two gold and one silver. Alok who had this year taken part in the World Pool Championship, will leave on October 16 for the World Snooker Championship to be held at Cairo from October 19. In this meet top-ranked snooker players from about 40 countries will participate. His other major tournament this year will be the World Billiards meet in Australia in November. Alok said, by playing in a number of tounaments, one gets a lot of exposure and confidence. Earlier Alok used to foot the bills from his pocket, but now the Government was taking care of all such expenses. On his future plans, Alok said, he wanted to perform on the lines of Michael Pereira, a world renowned cue sport player. But along with that, he wants to excel in billiards, snooker and pool, so that he can give his maximum to the country. Alok endows his success to his father, Mr Karan Prakash, who has always encouraged him even when while staying in a town like Mandi Gobindgarh. Alok said, he had also taken the initiative with a few other cue sport lovers to promote this sport among the youngsters. He said the holding of the regional circuit-wise pool championship in Punjab and Chandigarh was a step in this direction. Alok said, he was also in favour of starting a national sub-junior meet, as till now nationals were held only in the senior and under-21 section. Alok said, the basic thrust must be to promote this sport among schools. |
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Punjab to honour Asiad medallists
Chandigarh, October 15 Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said gold medal winners will be given Rs 10 lakh each while the silver and bronze medal winners will be awarded Rs 7 lakh and Rs 5 lakh respectively. Congratulating the Indian contingent for its fine performance at the Asian Games, Amarinder Singh said the state government would soon come out with a sports policy with special emphasis on modern infrastructure, qualitative training and attractive incentives for outstanding athletes from Punjab. The Haryana government has already announced cash rewards of Rs 10 lakh, Rs 7 lakh and Rs 5 lakh for the gold, silver and bronze medal winners, respectively. PTI
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Radcliffe finally cements place in history
London, October 15 The British runner’s unusual style - head bobbing in apparent pain - provides a sharp contrast to the effortless stride of Seb Coe or to a brilliant Franz Beckenbauer pass or Pete Sampras volley. But after capping an astonishing year with a world marathon record in Chicago on Sunday, the 28-year-old Radcliffe has cemented a place among history’s great performers, even though her running could never be described as pretty or graceful. Radcliffe was named one of Britain’s ‘Women of the year yesterday just 24 hours after producing one of the great athletics feats of all time to shatter the marathon record by nearly 1-1/2 minutes in the streets of Chicago. The svelte Englishwoman, whose soft voice and smile hide a tough determination to succeed, was already hugely popular in Britain before she embarked on a year which has brought her success in marathons and at the European Championships and Commonwealth Games. British fans love battling sporting figures, even when they fail to win the most prestigious prizes. The popularity of golfer Colin Montgomerie and tennis player Tim Henman bear witness to that. For years Radcliffe played the role of the great British loser, leading 10,000 metres race with brave, front-running before watching two or three Africans cruise past her on the final lap to snatch the medals. The script was performed on the major stages of athletics like a long-running Broadway show, notably at the 1999 world championships on a hot evening in the Spanish city of Seville and at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. At the 2001 world championships in the Canadian city of Edmonton where Radcliffe finished fourth, her race even ended with a much-publicised trackside tiff between the runner and her husband Gary Lough and tears and hugs later in the stadium. But this year Radcliffe, who never allowed the loser tag to dent her confidence, finally put together a training schedule and race tactics which helped her transform her life.In April she made an astonishing marathon debut in London, clocking the second fastest time ever. During a superb European summer she threatened world records on the track, winning both the Commonwealth 5,000 metres on her home soil in Manchester and the European 10,000 in Munich. After returning to her training base in France for intensive altitude training Radcliffe went to Chicago with confidence. A brilliant second-half surge took her to victory in two hours 17 minutes 18 seconds, breaking the previous record of 2:18:47 set by Catherine Ndereba of Kenya in Chicago last October. Radcliffe is now favourite to win the coveted prize as Britain’s sports personality of the year in 2002 — a big achievement for a female athlete in a country where athletics has to battle to grab attention away from soccer, rugby and cricket.A trackside protest against drug cheats in Edmonton won her many friends in addition to her brave running. Earlier this year she even asked the world governing body of athletics to conduct random tests on her and to freeze her blood samples for future testing to demonstrate that her performances were clean. Her biggest problem now will be digesting her success during the European winter and rebuilding her form and determination for next year’s world championships in Paris and the 2004 Athens Olympics. Some 40 prominent women from all walks of life were asked to nominate their ‘Woman of the year’, and the same 40 then voted on the nominations put forward. Reuters
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Anand held in 1st round of q-finals
Hyderabad, October 15 Facing a Catalan opening, Anand, who lost a pawn on the 11th move, tried to defend his position and regroup his pieces against some strong tactical play by the Russian. “I couldn’t get his line properly. There were many variations which I could have tried but I am not unhappy with the draw,” said Anand after settling for a draw with black pieces in 24 moves. After the initial battle of attrition, the game was heading for a clear draw. Though the defending champion was a pawn down, he had the positional advantage and this led to the Russian accepting the offer. In the absence of a white bishop and the entire flank of the Russian lying wide open, Anand could do nothing as the double rook queen combination provided an equal opportunity to both the players. The middle game saw some quick exchange of pieces which kept the board open but the king’s denfence in the company of heavy rooks set the trend for the draw. In tomorrow’s second round, Anand will be have the advantage of playing white. In case of another draw, the match will go into a tie-breaker where the players will play two 25-minute rapid rounds followed by two 15-minute blitz rounds. If the impasse continues, white should win a six minute game with both the players getting a chance each. PTI
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Rajiv shows his form on English soil Chandigarh, October 15 Playing against Knowles and Dorridge, for whom “white lightning” Allan Donald of South Africa also played some matches, Rajiv scored 145 which included eight sixes and 12 fours. The Chamba batsman, known more as a steady batsman who normally believes in anchoring the innings, scored 120 setting a tough task for Leamington batsmen to win the match. Against Bromsgrove he finished with an unbeaten 110. Continuing in the same vein he came up with a brilliant unconquered 105 against Sutton Cold Field. His hunger for runs remained unsatiated as he tormented Stourbridge with another valuable knock of 125. At the end of the season the diminutive batsman had a highly satisfying haul of 1245 runs at 110.28 per innings. Rajiv also served Harborne Cricket Club occasionally fetching wickets with his off-spin. By virtue of such performances Harborne Club won eight games and got fifth position in the league. Last year also the dependable middle order batsman was the top scorer for his club. During his stay with highly competitive minor counties where the doughty batsman has been playing for the past eight years, Rajiv has scored in excess of 10,000 runs. Impressed by his impressive run with the willow, Rajiv has again been signed by Harborne Cricket Club for 2003. Rajiv reached the pinnacle of glory when playing against Jammu and Kashmir in the Ranji Trophy in 1999 he displayed exemplary application and concentration staying at the wicket for 1017 minutes and scoring 271 runs to record the longest stay at the wicket in first class cricket, thus eclipsing legendary Hanif Mohammad’s long-standing record. In the domestic matches for the Ranji Trophy, Rajiv has scored more than 6,000 runs including 19 centuries and 34 fifties. The next domestic Ranji Trophy season is round the corner. If he continues with the type of form he has displayed in recent months the rival bowlers should have a tough task at hand in dislodging the seasoned batsman who plays for Una. |
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McGrath
keen to join 400-wkt club Sharjah, October 15 McGrath needs just four wickets to join team-mate Shane Warne as the only Australians in the exclusive 400-wicket club, a feat he hopes to achieve in quick time against the Pakistanis. “It’s been there on my mind for sometime, and it will be nice to get there in this Test itself,” the 32-year-old said here today. “Getting to 400 will be a very amazing achievement, I will be a very proud man when I get there.” The 86-Test veteran hoped the milestone will inspire him to touch the 500-wicket mark, a feat achieved so far only by world record holder Courtney Walsh of the West Indies, who retired last season with 519 wickets.
AFP
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All eyes on Forest Hill course Chandigarh, October 15 “But the tournament is not just about golfing, it also boasts of a lavish entertainment evening by a renowned DJ in attendance with the lip smacking Thai food catered by Grande Caterers,” said Col Sandhu, President , Forest Hill Golf and Country Club. Twice Honda-Siel PGA Championship winner Uttam Singh Mundy, one of the pre-tournament favourites, was among the first to try out the course. “What sets this course apart from the rest is the fact that it calls for extreme physical durability along with consistency,” said Mundy referring to the two elevated championship tees — on the second and fourth — that requires a climb of nearly 100 steps. “Brute power is not going to fetch you anything on this course,” he added. “This is a thinking man’s course and requires a lot of strategic positioning of your ball off the tee because of the blind greens,” said Australian Steve Kent. “It will be difficult to predict a winning score as none of the pros have had a taste of this course prior to this championship,” added the pro who is attached to The Montgomerie course in Dubai. Mukesh Kumar, the current money list leader, who returned from Johar Bahru in Malaysia, where he represented India a long with Feroz Ali, headed straight for a practice round today. “The premium will be on your approach shots and how you handle the greens, which are in superb condition,” said Mukesh who has not finished worse than second in the last six events he has played on the Hero Honda Indian Golf Tour. Apart from Mukesh, Feroz and Mundy, the other big names seen in action include twice winners on the Tour this season, Digvijay Singh and Vijay Kumar, veteran Rohtas Singh, twice Indian Open champion Ali Sher, reigning Hero Honda Masters champion Harmeet Kahlon and exciting youngsters like Gangjee, Ashok Kumar and Jaiveer Virk. A total field of 68 pros and four amateurs will tee off on the opening day. The latest host venue to join the Hero Honda Indian Golf Tour, the Forest Hill Golf and Country Club was the cynosure all eyes as the battle-hardened pros paid tributes to what is now being described as one of the toughest golf courses on the Tour here today. Set at the foothills of Shivalik range, the course is a perfect blend of challenging hole lay-outs and sheer natural beauty. The tournament also offers musical nites and food fiesta for the golfers as well as golf lovers. The other attraction of the tournament is the winner’s cheque of Rs 1.62 lakh which is sponsored by WWICS. It is going to be a five-day celebration of golf. Tomorrow’s event: 7.30 a.m. — Opening ceremony; 8 a.m. — Round I of the FHG Open; 4 p.m. — Putting Competition for juniors; 8 p.m. — Dinner and Dance . |
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Jaskirat
leads in Junior Golf Chandigarh, October 15 In Category B Zoravar Singh of Chandigarh Golf Club led the field with six over followed by Viraj Gandhok and Gaganjeet Singh Bhullar. Category C was led by Siddharth Seth with 11 over followed by Fatehbir Singh Dhaliwal and Amanjot Singh. The tee off tomorrow will be at 7.30 a.m. Golfers in Category D (below 10 years) will also join the competition as they are supposed to play 54 holes only.
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Maharashtra, TN in quarterfinals Chandigarh, October 15 In the boys team championship league round, defending champions Maharashtra topped in Zone 1 securing 12 points while Bihar were second with 10 points. In Zone II, unseeded Uttar Pradesh with 12 points were at top, followed by Hyderabad with 10 points. In Zone III Karnataka topped with 12 points, followed by Assam with 10 points while in Zone IV No 2 Tamil Nadu were at the top with 12 points, followed by Vidarbha with 10 points. In the girls team championship league round, defending champions Tamil Nadu were at the top with 8 points, followed by Andhra with 6 points in Zone I. In Zone II Goa topped with 8 points, followed by Haryana with 6 points. In Zone III, Manipur surprisingly entered the quarterfinals securing 8 points while Maharashtra had 6 points while in Zone IV, Bihar topped with 8 points while Hyderabad had 6 points. Score: Boys team championship: Haryana b Uttaranchal 3-0. Ravi Rohilla b Pranav Jindal 25-8, 25-0; Mohit Madan b Manish Aggarwal 25-0, 25-4; Rohit Rohilla w/o); Delhi b Punjab 3-0 (Mohd. Saim b Sarabjit Singh 25-0, 25-0, Mohd Imran b Harpreet Singh 17-6, 25-0, and Mohd. Wakeel b Gurinder Singh 25-0, 25-0); Kerala b Goa (ES Arun b Angelo Almedia 25-0, 25-0; R Prashanth b Mithun Nayak 25-0, 23-2; and ML Arun lost to Vijay Barve 25-0, 25-15)
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Punjabi
varsity thrash PAU Fatehgarh Sahib, October 15 Setting the pace the Patiala forwards repeatedly raided the rivals citadel from the word go. They were rewarded with goals in the 12th, 16th 19th, 22nd and 44th minutes of the first half. PAU reduced the margin in the 16th minute and Sukhdev Singh of Punjabi University completed the tally in the dying minutes. The second match of the day between Panjab University, Chandigarh, and Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar ended in a draw. Guru Nanak Dev University went in to the lead in the 38th minutes through Jaspal Singh but Chandigarh boys restored parity in the 42th minute through Narinder Singh. At the end of the second day, Panjab University Punjabi and Guru Nanak Dev University have 4 points each whereas PAU are yet to score a point. On the third and final day of the league tomorrow, PAU will take on GND University, Amritsar, at 11.30 while Punjabi University will play against Panjab University at 2 pm in the second match. Sukhdev Singh Libra MP, will give away prizes to the winners. |
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Haryana
defeat Delhi Rohtak, October 15 Facing a target of 285 runs for victory, the visiting Delhi team was bundled out for only 115 runs in their second innings by host. Aprajit Singh was the most successful Haryana bowler claiming five Delhi wickets in the second innings for just 25 runs. Earlier, resuming at the overnight score of 125 for five, Haryana declared their second innings at 209 for six. Vikram Dhaliwal (69) was the highest scorer for Haryana in their second innings. Scores: Haryana : 215 and 209 for six (declared) Delhi:
140 and 115 all out UNI |
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