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Sunday,
April 20, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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Zaheer, Yuvraj to play today S. Africa can pose a serious threat Australia 228 for 2 at tea Windies in ‘win-win’ situation
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How can Chandigarh get affiliation with BCCI? AAFI takes action against eight athletes
India, Lanka in SAARC Golf final Third round of Hero Golf washed out Mahesh-Mirnyi duo moves
into final Football: India beat Turkmenistan NFL
second division finals from April 23 SURJIT HOCKEY SOCIETY Mini
basketball results
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Zaheer, Yuvraj to play today
Dhaka, April 19 The five-wicket defeat in the last match against the South Africans halted India’s winning run in the tournament but captain Sourav Ganguly insists that it will not dent the morale of his young team which is eager to add one more title to its collection. “I don’t think it will affect our morale. We didn’t play well enough to win the last game. It’s a question of how you play on that particular day which matters. I am sure we will be able to lift our game tomorrow,” Ganguly said. The return of star performers Zaheer Khan and Yuvraj Singh will bolster the team to a great extent, a fact which was acknowledged by the captain himself. “We missed their services in the last match. There was a bit of inexperience in both the bowling and batting departments. But it gave the youngsters an opportunity to prove their worth,” he said. Both Zaheer and Yuvraj Singh had to sit out of the last two matches because of indisposition. While Zaheer had suffered a slight hamstring injury in the match against South Africa last Sunday, Yuvraj was down with flu and the team management expects that the duo will be fit enough to take the field tomorrow. With five seniors, including Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid opting out of the tour because of various reasons, the presence of Zaheer and Yuvraj will strengthen the team to a great extent and indications from the Indian camp suggests that both will play. But there are other injury concerns to keep the Indians a trifle worried ahead of the summit showdown. Vice-captain Virender Sehwag, who received a nasty blow on his right elbow from a Makhaya Ntini delivery yesterday, is still experiencing a lot of pain but is likely to play tomorrow. A precautionary X-ray has showed that there is no fracture which prompted Sehwag to return to the crease and finish his innings yesterday and did not hesistate to put in as many as eight overs when the captain threw the ball to him to capitalise on the slow track. Even off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has been carrying a finger injury for quite some time though it is still not serious enough to confine him to the dressing room. Since the Indians have a long break after this tournament, the players have decided to complete their engagements on this tour and then attend to their injury problems. The South Africans have improved with every game and have begun to get their combinations right and could give the in-form Indians a run for their money. Although captain Graeme Smith considered the Indians as the “in-form team” going into the final, he wants his young team to gain from the confidence of having defeated the World Cup finalists yesterday. India: Saurav Ganguly (captain), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Mohammad Kaif, Yuvraj Singh, Dinesh Mongia, Ajit Agarkar, Parthiv Patel, Harbhajan Singh, Sarandeep Singh, Zaheer Khan, Avishkar Salvi, Amit Mishra, Sanjay Bangar, Abhijit Kale. South Africa: Graeme Smith (captain), Herschelle Gibbs, Boeta Dippenaar, Jaques Rudoplh, Neil McKenzie, Mark Boucher, Shaun Pollock, Paul Adams, Allan Dawson, Andrew Hall, Makhaya Ntini, Charl Willoughy, Robin Peterson. PTI
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S. Africa can pose a serious threat South Africa are improving with every outing, and with a victory in the preliminary stages over India, could pose a serious threat in the final too. They appear to have got the balance of the team right, and every player seems to know his role. This is when the South Africans can get very dangerous, because they play best when they are regimented. Friday’s victory was emphatic. Graeme Smith would have liked a few more runs, but he will have been pleased with the form of Neil McKenzie and Mark Boucher who rode over a potential crisis when four wickets had fallen, with ease. They had their tense moments against the spinners, but these two showed the ability to graft and play shots. Runs in the middle order means that South Africa’s batting, which had looked vulnerable at the start of the tournament, is looking up. From India’s point of view, what will be worrying is that Herschelle Gibbs has not yet fired, and is overdue for a big one. The pitch will play a major role in the final and determine who start as favourites. If it plays true — which means that there is scope for 500 runs in two innings — then the two teams will be evenly matched. But a slow turner will tilt the odds in India’s favour. Harbhajan has bowled beautifully in this tournament, and Sarandeep Singh has not been mastered. Sehwag is a wonderful back-up slow bowler, so Ganguly has a few spin options up his sleeve. But South Africa seem to be peaking, and that momentum can help them overcome other handicaps. For me the turning point was Shaun Pollock being given first use of the new ball after Smith had surprisingly decided otherwise for the first two matches. Just this simple act appears to have raised the morale and performance of all his players. Pollock himself has proved to be a match winner after that. India have a few injury-related problems which Ganguly will be hoping are resolved before the final. Zaheer Khan has been a key player in India’s recent successes, and his fitness and form will be crucial for the side. Ajit Agarkar has bowled as well as I have seen him do in a long, long time, and Avishkar Salvi has made a very fine impression on debut. But Zaheer is the spearhead, and bowling left-arm also adds variety to the attack.. Friday’s loss has ended India’s run of successes in this tournament, but Ganguly and his boys must show that this was only an aberration. With five key players missing, the side is obviously below strength. But that is the time when good teams make it count and a captain expects everybody else to raise their level of performance.
TCM |
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Australia 228 for 2 at tea Port Of Spain, April 19 Sri Lankan umpire Asoke de Silva, already under fire for his performance in the first test, was at the centre of attention again as he awarded lbw decisions against opening pair Justin Langer and Matthew Hayden, both of whom appeared unlucky to be dismissed. By tea, Australia had made 228 for two off 52 overs after winning the toss and choosing to bat on a dry, bare pitch. Langer, who scored a century and half century in the first test, had made a quick 25 when he fell victim to a full length Dillon delivery which stayed low. De Silva had a long, hard look before raising his finger but television replays suggested the ball pitched outside the line of leg stump.In Dillon’s next over, Hayden, having made 30, was struck on the pad by another delivery which appeared to pitch outside the leg stump. De Silva raised his finger again and Hayden, shaking his head disapprovingly, headed back to the pavilion with television replays suggesting he had been hard done by. The wickets came at a good time for West Indies, who are without batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul and are fielding debutants Carlton Baugh and Dave Bernard in one of their youngest-ever Test teams. Australia, who won the first test by nine wickets with a day to spare, wasted no time in building up their score with the help of a fast outfield. Pedro Collins was punished for some erratic bowling, with Langer hitting him for four boundaries in the same over. Langer began by hitting the first ball through mid-wicket, then cut the next two between third slip and gully. Finally, he drove the fifth delivery of the same over through the covers for another four. Australia (1st innings): Langer lbw b Dillon 25 Hayden lbw b Dillon 30 Ponting batting 85 Lehmann batting 80 Extras
(w-1,nb-7) 8 Total (2 wkts, 52 overs) 228 Fall of wickets:
1-49, 2-56. Bowling: Dillon 15-1-51-2, Collins 16-1-67-0, Drakes 10-0-48-0, Samuels 4-0-30-0,Bernard 6-1-29-0, Sarwan 1-0-3-0.
Reuters
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Windies
in ‘win-win’ situation
Port-of-Spain, April 19 The home team trails 0-1 in the four-match series following last Sunday’s nine-wicket loss in Guyana, Australia has named an unchanged lineup. Lara said the attitude shown by rookie fast bowler Tino Best at training emphasised the team’s spirit. “I asked him to bowl another spell and he said, ‘Sure, I didn’t come here to drink soup,’” Lara said. The skipper said he liked the fact that the squad included a lot of young talent. “I haven’t done any history on it, but I am sure that this outfit has to be one of the youngest assembled teams for the West Indies in a very, very long time,” he said. Lara and fast bowler Vasbert Drakes, both 33, are the only players over 30 in the 14-man squad. Half have not yet turned 23. Batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 28, is the third oldest. Lara also said he was excited by new wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh, who will make his debut at 20 because first-Test starter Ridley Jacobs was injured. Even though we wait for Jacobs to get back, I’m actually waiting to see this youngster play his first Test match,” Lara said. “I think it is very refreshing.” Lara, following a century in the opening loss in Guyana last Sunday, is hoping he can provide his Trinidadian countrymen with another classic. “I don’t think I’ve ever come to Trinidad with this much form,” Lara said. “I feel very confident and very upbeat about how things went in Guyana, and hopeful things can work out for me in Trinidad.” He has not scored a century in nine previous Tests at the Queen’s Park Oval, his home ground since he was a teenager. But he stressed he was more keen to see a total team effort. “That is of least importance, my personal achievements,” he said. “Most importantly, I want to see the guys get together and go out there and play good cricket.”
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How can Chandigarh get affiliation with BCCI? Chandigarh, April 19 Let us first admit to the fact that the issue of affiliation with the BCCI is not a ‘‘pending issue’’. The BCCI constitution is very clear. It can only grant affiliation to states of the Indian Union and not to union territories. (Of course units like Delhi, Bombay, Saurashtra, Cricket Club of India and National Cricket Club have been granted affiliation to the board but that was when the BCCI was itself constituted. the rules of affiliation have since been changed). Even in the case of the newly created states of Uttaranchal, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh the grant of affiliation is still hanging fire. So where does Chandigarh stand in the scheme of things of the BCCI? These three states have already been assured by the BCCI that their cases would be decided quickly (how quick is quick nobody seems to know) but no such assurance has been given to Chandigarh. In any case to get affiliation somebody should be pushing Chandigarh’s case (even if the current rules don’t provide for it) but there is nobody to push the case. Officials of the Punjab Cricket Association as well as the Haryana Cricket Association are quite firm when they say that the BCCI cannot grant affiliation to the UTCA. Both these units treat Chandigarh as a district unit and both have the Chandigarh Cricket Association affiliated to the state body. Therefore, it is clear that till such time the BCCI does not amend its constitution Chandigarh cannot get affiliation. And in any case Mr Dalmiya is not keen to amend the constitution because it is apparent he has more pressing issues on hand. Even the applications of the Uttaranchal, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh are yet to get a positive reply! Getting affiliation with the board would mean that players from the city would get an opportunity to play in the National Cricket Championship for the Ranji Trophy on behalf of the ‘‘Chandigarh’’ team as also take part in the various age-group tournaments conducted by the board. Currently, players from Chandigarh have the option of playing in the BCCI recognised tournaments either from Punjab or Haryana. City players like Yuvraj Singh and Dinesh Mongia, members of the Indian cricket team, have played their first class cricket from Punjab before graduating to the international level. Now the UTCA is holding out the carrot in front of young cricketers that once the BCCI affiliation comes through they would be getting to play cricket at the highest level in the country. But the youngsters should be told the truth. But such an approach on the part of the UTCA is doing immense harm to the young cricketers of the city who are flocking to the training camps runs by the UTCA. As it is Punjab and Haryana run their own youth programmes in the various districts and players from Chandigarh unless they are really good do not even get a look-in in the trials run by the Punjab and the Haryana associations while selecting their teams fro the Ranji Trophy and other age group tournaments runs by the BCCI. Therefore, in spite of having an international cricket centre (Sector 16 Cricket Stadium) and other first class facilities spread all over the city, boys from Chandigarh face a bleak future cricket-wise. |
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AAFI takes action against eight athletes New Delhi, April 19 Jagdish Basak of Punjab and Kalyani Alapati of Andhra Pradesh have been banned for two years “from the day of the competition” for testing positive for anabolic steroid Nandrolone. Jagdish Basak had won the gold in the 100 metres sprint and Kalyani the bronze in the 400m hurdles at the National Games. AAFI secretary Lalit Bhanot said here today that four other athletes—Ramandeep Singh, Sukhjinder Singh and Maha Singh (all from Punjab), and Hirdayanand Singh of Andhra Pradesh — had been given “warning and disqualified from the competition they participated” for testing positive for stimulants. The three athletes from Punjab had tested positive for stimulant mephentermine while Hirdayanand Singh tested positive for ephedrine. Mr Bhanot said Udayalakshmi of Andhra Pradesh and Kavita Pandya of Maharashtra, who both had tested positive for an undisclosed anabolic steroid, had been “suspended till further notice”. They are barred from participating in any athletic meet. Mr Bhanot asserted that action would be taken against them after the “final procedure is completed”. The AAFI swung into action on receiving the report from its hearing panel on the dope test results of the National Games. Mr Bhanot disclosed that Pampa Chanda of West Bengal had tested positive for anabolic steroid nandrolone during the Open National Athletics Championships held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi from September 7 to 9 last year. She has been banned for two years from the day of the competition. Action against her was delayed as she was unable to attend the AAFI hearing panel due to her father’s illness. Udayalakshmi had won the 400m hurdles gold and Kavita Pandya the 100m gold and 200m silver at the National Games. Mr Bhanot said the AAFI had gone by the rule book of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) while imposing sanctions on athletes who had tested positive for banned substances at the National Games. If some of them have got away lightly, it was due to the fact that they were “first-time offenders”. Indian Olympic Association (IOA) secretary-general Randhir Singh had recently declared that out of the 465 athletes tested during the National Games, 22 turned out positive for banned substances. And out of the 22 positive cases, nine had tested for nandrolone. The IOA has given the concerned national federations time till April 20 to take action against the guilty athletes failing which the IOA medical commission, which is meeting in Delhi on April 23, will initiate action and release the names of the guilty athletes. The Rowing Federation of India was the first to get cracking when it imposed a life ban of Laxman Singh, who had won a bronze medal in the single skull event at the National Games. The IOA had made it clear that it was up to the concerned federations to impose the quantum of punishment on the athletes, as the IOA’s role was limited to taking away the medals from the athletes, though Mr Randhir Singh was emphatic in his view that “this time around, we are determined to root the evil of doping from Indian sports”. The AAFI has announced that the competition results of the National Games and the National Open Athletic Meet will be revised following the action taken against the eight athletes. |
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India, Lanka in SAARC Golf final
New Delhi, April 19 India finished on top of the five-team table at the par- 72 Delhi Golf Club today with a two-day aggregate of 286 after 36 holes of stroke-play. Sri Lanka finished with a tally of 304, 11 strokes better than the third-placed Bangladesh. Nepal were fourth at 327 and Bhutan fifth at 358. India today had a total of two-under 142, based on the one-under 71 cards of Jaideep Patwardhan and Keshav Misra. Harinder Gupta shot a level-par 72 and had the best individual score among the players with a two-day total of one-under 143. Gupta won the best individual gross trophy, while Patwardhan, who shot a one-over 73 yesterday, was the Individual gross runner-up with a two-day score of level-par 144. Sri Lanka owed it to BG Lalitha Kumara who shot a two- over 74 after his 75 yesterday. Lalitha was in great form as he started eagle-birdie and then followed it up with another birdie on the fifth to be four-under at that stage. However, he failed to keep up the momentum thereafter. The other players in the Sri Lankan team, JMD Indika Santha and M Amaraprathama contributed 77 and 83 respectively for a team total of 151 on day two. In the final, Misra will take on Santha, Patwardhan will be up against Amaraprathama, while Gupta will clash with Sri Lanka's No 1 player, Lalitha Kumara. Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan will be involved in a 18-hole strokeplay round to decide the second runner-up
team.PTI |
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Third round of Hero Golf washed out Chandigarh, April 19 Reports from the MET office predicted rain for the next two days. In case play is possible for nine holes tomorrow and every single player completes as many holes, the tournament will be decided over 45 holes. Otherwise, with a certain amount of play possible, the maximum number of holes every single pro has played totalled with the 36 holes that have already been completed will determine the tournament results. If no play is possible the tournament will be decided over 36 holes. "This is the first occasion in the history of the Tour that we have had to abandon play without a single group being able to finish their round and the leaders not even completing their opening hole," said Sampath Chari, Tournament Executive Director, PGAI. "We had two half-hour breaks today in the hope that the weather would settle down but with persistent lightning there was little choice but to call play off," he added. As things stand now, local professional Harmeet Kahlon leads the field with a two-round aggregate of eight-under 136. Kahlon, who had rounds of three-under 69 and five-under 67 on the first two days is followed at second position by fellow Chandigarh golfer Amandeep Johl at six-under 138. Lucknow's Vijay Kumar occupies the third position at three-under 141. The cut was applied after round two at seven-over 151. A total of 50 professionals made it to the deciding rounds. Scores (after 36 holes):
136 — Harmeet Kahlon (69,67); 138 — Amandeep Johl (70,68); 141 — Vijay Kumar (73, 68), Ajay Gupta (71, 70), Bhoop Singh (70, 71); 142 — Gaurav Ghei (74, 68), Mohd Salim (72, 70), Rafiq Ali (73, 69), Jaiveer Virk (70, 72), Amritinder Singh (67, 75); 143 — Mohd Islam (72, 71), Arjun Singh (69, 74). Amateurs:
148 — Girish Virk (75, 71), Jaskirat Dullet (75, 71); 148 — Ajitesh Sandhu (74, 74), Anitya Chand (74, 74). |
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Mahesh-Mirnyi duo moves
into final New Delhi, April 19 Leander Paes and his Czech partner David Rikl, fifth seeds at the Masters event, went down to Fabrice Santoro and Michael Llodra of France 3-6, 1-6 in the second round earlier in the week. Santoro and Llodra play the second semi-final against D. Johnson and Kevin Ullyett later today. Bhupathi and Mirnyi might have been helped by the fact that Cermak and Friedl were coming into the semifinal after playing two five-setters on consecutive days.
PTI
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Football: India beat Turkmenistan
Margao, April 19 India, who needed a 3-0 victory margin to move into the next round, dominated the game, creating several scoring chances but were let down by their strikers, who failed to capitalise on the chances that came their way. However, substitute Ishfaq Ahmed gave them the break when he collected an Ashim Biswas pass inside the box from the right and let go a powerful left-footer that found the roof of the net. Turkmenistan played a defensive game and never allowed the rival strikers any space to operate. They had the first scoring chance midway into the first-half but Krendelev Vyacheslov was late in connecting an off across from Zemskov Yewgenty. Turkemenistan now meet Malaysia in the next round. Tomba Singh, who played a vital role in midfield alongwith Jitin Bist and Dipankar Roy, tried to meet their upfront with an aerial pass but the tall rival defenders made good use of their height to neutralise their move as Alex Ambros and Ashim Biswas were ineffective. India, who had the better share of exchanges in the first-half, had two scoring opportunities before the lemon break but Alex Ambrose and later Dipankar Roy failed to score from close. After the change of ends, Alex Ambrose again had a chance to score but his try missed the target narrowly off Dipankar Roy’s free kick. PTI
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NFL second
division finals from April 23 New Delhi, April 19 The matches are expected to throw up some keen contests even as Mohammedan Sporting aim to enter the first division for the first time in the league’s seven-year history. The presence of Liberian striker Eugene Grey, the versatile Awal Ibrahim and midfielder Ishou Yaro of Nigeria comes as a shot in the arm for the Kolkata based club. Top two teams will be promoted to the NFL’s premier league next year replacing HAL and ITI, both Bangalore-based clubs, who have already been relegated.
PTI
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SURJIT HOCKEY SOCIETY Chandigarh, April 19 During a brief function held yesterday at Jalandhar, Mr Gupta assured to give full support to the Surjit society for popularising hockey in the region. However, he said he would make all efforts to promote all sports in general in the district. At this occasion Mr L.R. Nayyer, Working President, Surjit society; Mr Jagjit Puri, Secretary; Mrs Sarojani Sharda, Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Jalandhar; Padma Shri Pargat Singh, Mr Bhupinder Singh Makkar, ex-Olympion Gundeep Kumar, Harpreet Singh, international hockey stars Lakhwinder Pal Singh Khiara and Jagdeep Singh were also present. |
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Mini
basketball results Chandigarh, April 19 In the girls semifinals, Bathinda beat Muktsar. The Muktsar girls were themselves to blame as Arti lost possession with only 18 seconds remaining and committed a foul, which fetched two free throws to Bathinda who converted the second throw. In the other semifinal Gurdaspur girls defeated Jalandhar and reached the final. Muktsar boys defeated Bathinda 64-40. Though Muktsar took a 6-point lead at the end of the first quarter, the lead was reduced to just two points in the end. After half time Muktsar boys played a spirited game and increased the lead to 19 points, by scoring 24 points against 7 of Bathinda in the third quarter. In the second semifinal Mansa easily won the match by 30-17 points. Results:
Muktsar b Bathinda 64-40 points. For Muktsar Amrinder (9), Baldev (24) and Kulwinder (16) were the main scorers while for Bathinda Jaspal (14) and Jimmy Brar (6) reduced the margin. Mansa b Patiala 30-17. For Mansa, Ajay Pal Singh and Talwinder Singh were the main scorers. |
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Trials
for sports academies Chandigarh, April 19 |
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Rakesh Mahajan
hits 192 Amritsar, April 19 Rakesh Mahajan scored 192 runs. The other big scorers for the hosts were Guriqbal Singh 92 (not out) and Rahul Khosla 49. Earlier, Amritsar won the toss and decided to bat first. For Ludhiana Sushyant Kohli was the most successful bowler as he got six wickets by giving 65 runs and Bharat Malhotra, Gagandeep Dund and Mukul Gupta managed to get one wicket each. |
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