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Saturday,
June 21, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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England trounce
Pakistan McCaw sings Indian team’s praises Cameroon stun
Brazil Power no longer name of the game
in women’s tennis Abhinav training hard for
Olympics |
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Prakash Amritraj shakes hands with Vijay Kannan after winning in straight sets 6-2, 6-1 to enter the final of the third leg of the ITF Men’s Satellite Tennis Circuit in Delhi on Friday. —
Photo Kamal Singh Pillay’s series proposal Manish helps Amritsar to 355 Rs 16 crore for new stadia in
HP Boxing skills run in his blood
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England trounce
Pakistan
London, June 20 Fast bowler Anderson (20) took four for 27 as Pakistan were bowled out for 185, with six overs of their innings left, after captain Rashid Latif won the toss. England knocked off the runs with 28 overs to spare, the three-match series level at 1-1 ahead of Sunday’s finale at Lord’s. Anderson’s figures were his best in one-day internationals, surpassing the four for 29 he took against Pakistan at Cape Town in the World Cup in February. Marcus Trescothick’s 55 ball 86, including two sixes and 16 fours, got England, who finished on 189 for three, off to a flying start. Somerset left-hander Trescothick dominated a first wicket stand of 109 in 71 balls with Vikram Solanki, the Worcestershire batsman contributing eight to the partnership. Trescothick — dropped on 30 by Shoaib Malik off Azhar Mahmood from a steepling chance — eventually top-edged medium pacer Abdur Razzaq and was caught by wicketkeeper Latif. Shoaib Akhtar, recalled in place of Umar Gul after completing a two-game ban for ball-tampering at Old Trafford on Tuesday — where Pakistan won the series opener by two wickets — saw his first two overs go for 20. It was bad day for the ‘Rawalpindi Express’, who had Solanki twice dropped by Younis Khan, his nine overs going for 69 runs although he did take two wickets. Earlier Anderson, who had Imran Nazir lbw with the first ball of the match, polished off Pakistan’s innings to claim the 18th hat-trick in 2,026 one-day internationals and become the first England bowler in 373 limited overs games to achieve the feat. Only Yousuf Youhana, 75 not out off 102 balls, including five fours and Azhar, 30, made it out of the 20s, the pair putting on 76 for the sixth wicket after Pakistan slumped to 73 for five. Anderson’s hat-trick started midway through the 44th over when he had Razzaq (17) caught at mid-off by Trescothick. Next ball Shoaib was caught behind by wicketkeeper Chris Read before last man Mohammad Sami was bowled by a rapid yorker. Pakistan: Nazir lbw b Anderson 0 Hafeez lbw b Flintoff 14 Hameed b Gough 28 Youhana not out 75 Y Khan c Read b Gough 0 Malik run out 2 Latif c Solanki b McGrath 3 Mahmood c Solanki b Clarke 30 Razzaq c Trescothick b Anderson 17 Akhtar c Read b Anderson 0 Sami b Anderson 0 Extras 16 Total (all out, 44 overs)185 FoW: 1-0, 2-37, 3-61, 4-61, 5-73, 6-80, 7-152, 8-185, 9-185. Bowling: Anderson 9-2-27-4, Gough 7-1-28-2, Flintoff 8-1-36-1, McGrath 10-1-40-1, Giles 5-0-22-0, Clarke 5-0-30-1. England: Trescothick c Latif b Razzaq 86 Solanki not out 40 Vaughan c Khan b Akhtar 10 Troughton c Latif b Akhtar 0 Flintoff not out 26 Extras: 27 Total: (3 wkts, 22 overs) 189 FoW: 1-109, 2-143, 3-147. Bowling:
Sohaib Akhtar 9-0- 69-2, Mohammad Sami 3-0-25-0, Azhar Mahmood 3-0-35-0, Mohammad Hafeez 2-0-19-0, Abdul Razzaq 5-0-33-1.
— AFP  |
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McCaw sings Indian team’s praises New Delhi, June 20 “India would be the best team in the world if only they approach their fitness and fielding with the same passion and intensity as they bat and bowl,” McCaw told PTI in a telephonic interview. “The South Africans and Australians are no where as skilled as the Indians and they know that. But what they lose in that department, they make up with their high fitness levels and a never-say-lose attitude,” said McCaw who is likely to have negotiations with the Indian cricket board for the post of fitness trainer of the Indian cricket team next week. The trainer said he had warned the Dutch team to look out for Indians even before the start of the World Cup. “I said to the Dutch guys ‘watch the Indians’. They have been working on their fitness and add that to their incredible cricketing skills — they will be the finalists if not the world champions.” McCaw, who is also the personal trainer of South African skipper Grame Smith, sought to dispel notion that he may be ill-equipped to deal with specific fitness requirements of Indian cricketers. “I have followed cricket since being able to stand on my two feet,” McCaw said. McCaw was a little cagey about a possible alliance with the Indian cricket board but confirmed that he had been approached by them. “I am not in a position to comment on what terms and conditions could come up. It depends on what kind of contract I am offered. I would need to look into certain areas and discuss terms with the Holland Cricket Board who would not be happy to see me go after what difference in the levels of fitness they saw at the World Cup.” McCaw said he was weighing his options at the moment. “I have been approached by certain high profile people in the game to consider this position and I am still deciding what my next move should be.” McCaw was all praise for compatriot Adrian le Roux, India’s former trainer. “With what I have heard and seen, I can only have high praise for the man. He has done a great job and I wish him well... I spoke to Dinesh Mongia last week at a cricket game and he only had great things to say about Adrian.” India is keen to acquire a trainer in the wake of Le Roux’s abrupt departure and would like a deal to be hammered in the working committee meeting here on July 2 to 3. Indian coach John Wright has also indicated that he would like to have a full-scale fitness camp for the Indian probables in August, well in time before the arrival of the New Zealand cricket team in September. — PTI |
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Cameroon stun Brazil Paris, June 20 The 1-0 victory on Thursday night in Paris sees the African champions join Turkey on three points after the Turks beat the USA 2-1 in the earlier match played in St. Etienne. Although playing only one striker upfront, Cameroon looked dangerous when going forward, and Etoo had a good chance at 20 minutes, but just overran the ball after beating two defenders. Shortly afterwards, Marc-Vivien Foe had a clear chance at the Brazilian goal after being set up by Mohamadou Idrissou, but his header was aimed straight at goalkeeper Dida. The South Americans nearly stole the lead in injury time of the first half when Ronaldinho went on one of the darting runs that have made him such a crowd favourite with the fans of his French club PSG. After carrying the ball for more than 30 metres, beating several defenders in the process, his shot missed the post by inches. In the second half the African champions played less defensively. Their forward play created all sorts of trouble for the Brazilians in the back and opened up several chances. Well supported by a large section of the crowd, Cameroon kept on pressing forward. In the final 10 minutes of the game, the Brazilians were often booed as their intentions to save the game in over time became too obvious and the ball was often played back to Dida. They were punished seven minutes from the end, when Etoo unleashed a powerful shot from well outside the area that flew over the outstretched hands of Dida and hit the back of the net. In the earlier game, Turkey came from behind to beat the US 2-1, with goals in both halves through Okan Yilmiz (40) and Tuncay Sanli (71) after DaMarcus Beasley had given the Americans the lead in the 37th minute.
— DPA |
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Power no longer name of the game
London, June 20 Henin-Hardenne’s bludgeoning of fellow Belgian Kim Clijsters came after she had whipped Serena in a three-set semifinal which left the outgoing champion in tears — though that was largely to do with a ferociously anti-American crowd. With Venus, champion in 2000 and 2001 before Serena sent her packing in last year’s final, struggling for form, Henin-Hardenne and Clijsters now head a raft of players looking to end the sisters’ dominance of the event. Serena will have none of that and says her preparations have been gong well. “The serve has been marvellous,” she explained, reflecting that “I served so badly in Paris.” Although the men’s champion will pocket $ 965,000 to a trifling $ 899,000 for his female counterpart following a 9.5 per cent increase in prizemoney over 2002, the women can be comfortable in the knowledge that in the sport as a whole they now lead the way. To date, this year’s top three tennis earners are all women. Clijsters’ $ 1.7 million leave her out in front with Henin-Hardenne in hot pursuit at $ 1.55 million. Serena Williams has creamed off $ 1.5 million to push French Open men’s champion Juan Carlos Ferrero into fourth spot overall by a handful of dollars. Such statistics go some way to defusing the women’s argument that they should receive equal remuneration at Wimbledon, whose chairman Tim Phillips refutes the idea. “Women players like Serena can play more matches which last less time and collect more money,” explains Phillips. “We think we have got it just about right.” On the basis of last year’s tournament the women earned $ 1,370 per game played to $ 1,020 for the men. Not that the men will be screaming in frustration. They are content to leave the screaming to the “new Anna Kournikova”, Maria Sharapova. Sharapova is only just 16 but with Kournikova’s career seemingly on the wane — she will miss Wimbledon with injury, having been a 16-year-old semifinalist debutante in 1997 — her fellow Russian is now firmly in the spotlight and greedy tabloid lenses are already zooming in on the leggy blonde. Her deep groundstrokes and bludgeoning backhand were too much for 15th-ranked compatriot Elena Dementieva on her run to the semifinal in Birmingham last week — and this only child from Siberia who started playing at four years of age has all the hallmarks of a future champion. Her tough exterior has drawn comparisons with Monica Seles, who only missed the 1992 Grand Slam with defeat in the Wimbledon final that year. Less fortunately for Sharapova is that she has something else in common with Yugoslav-born American Seles: She’s a champion grunter, earning her the sobriquet queen of scream. Nick Bollettieri, whose Bradenton, Florida academy Sharapova started attending aged just nine, is in no doubt she will make the grade and is on record as saying that “she will be one of the best in the world.” The object of all the attention is a keen student and carries on with her schoolwork through the internet insisting that academic success is as much a goal as tennis as “tennis is not and never will be the most important thing in my life.” Of her grunting she insists: “I won’t allow it to affect me.” While Sharapova bids to emulate Kournikova’s opening gambit of reaching the last four at the first attempt, Venus Williams will be out to show she is over the stomach muscle injury which hampered her at the French Open. And Jennifer Capriati will likewise look to prove wrong those who believe her star is on the wane after her Australian Open triumphs of 2001 and 2002 and her French Open success in 2001. Capriati went out last year in the quarterfinal to Amelie Mauresmo of France. Away from the Parisian crowd which often cuases her to freeze like a rabbit caught in the headlights Mauresmo herself has the power to have a say in where the title ends up. “I’m trying not to put any pressure on myself this year,” she said before Roland Garros, where Serena mauled her for the loss of just three games in the quarterfinals, Mauresmo having seen off the American in the Rome Masters semifinal. History is not on Mauresmo’s side, however. Nathalie Tauziat was the last Frenchwoman to reach the final, going down to Jana Novotna in 1998. The last French champion was none other than Suzanne Lenglen — the last of her six wins coming in 1925. Even Britain’s women have lifted the salad bowl six times since then — not that a home triumph looks remotely likely in the forseeable future.
— AFP |
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Abhinav training hard for
Olympics Chandigarh, June 20 “It is going to be a high-pressure situation. I will be working hard to improve my technical and mental abilities so as to be able to withstand the pressure in the premier event,” Bindra, back in the country after nearly eight months training hard and taking part in various competitions in the USA, said. Abhinav showed great resolve and determination shooting 596 to finish behind world record holder Jason Parker of the USA and Konstantin of Russia to finish third, ensuring for himself a slot to compete in the Olympics. This is the second bronze medal won by the shooter in World Cup. Earlier Abhinav had lifted a bronze at the same venue in 2001 World Cup with a score of 597. “I can shoot higher score on my day,” commented 21-year-old Abhinav, the youngest registered shooter ever to participate in the Olympics. “The government is doing its bit, but it can also do more,” the youngster, who established a new world record with stupendous effort of 598 out of 600 in Luxemburg Open National Championship, said when asked about the the government contribution. Gurbir Singh, former Olympian and president of Punjab Shooting Association, dubbed Abhinav’s achievement “very creditable” and stated that Abhinav had it in him to win an elusive individual gold medal for the country in the Olympics. “If he shoots with the ability that he has, Abhinav is bound to fare even better,” Gurbir said, hoping that he would do the country proud in Athens. “Shooting is a very demanding sport, but he has the technical ability and temperament to produce results,” Gurbir, executive committee member of the Indian Olympic Association, said. “Abhinav had been performing consistently well for the past two years. So, it was just a matter of time before he struck big,” Gurbir, father of trap shooter Manavjit Sandhu, said. Dr A.S. Bindra, father of Abhinav Bindra, revealed the a sum of nearly Rs 1 crore was required to keep Abhinav fully prepared for the showpiece event in Athens, implying that financial assistance was needed to keep the talented shooter in fine fettle as “national pride was at stake”. Elaborating further, he said huge money was needed for hiring of a coach, sports psychologist, foreign travel, board and lodging of the shooter. He said another air conditioned shooting range was ready for the benefit of the youngster. Col J.S. Dhillon, Abhinav’s coach in India, lamented the lack of adequate government support for the budding shooters of the country. Abhinav, who narrowly failed to make the finals in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, will leave for Seoul (South Korea) on June 28 with the Indian squad for the World Cup. |
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Amritraj in line for double
crown New Delhi, June 20 Barely two hours after his singles semifinal victory, Prakash joined hands with his cousin, Stephen Amritraj, son of Anand Amritraj, to lift the doubles crown, beating the third-seeded pair of Rishi Sridhar and Manoj Mahadevan 6-3, 6-4. The unseeded Prakash and Stephen proved too good for the comfort of Rishi and Manoj, and coasted to victory without much trouble. Prakash, the top seed, who played an encore against the third-seeded Vijay Kannan, has set up a title clash against Prima Simpatiaji of Indonesia. The fourth-seeded Simpatiaji sailed into the final without stepping on the court as his opponent, second-seeded Daniel Kiernan of the UK, gave a walkover, complaining of nausea and uneasiness. Kiernan, who lifted the singles title in the first leg in Mumbai, looked fit as a fiddle when he turned up for the match in the morning, but pouring rains delayed the matches, and the semifinals could begin only at mid noon. And Kiernan declared himself unfit. But there was no such problem for Prakash Amritraj, who made light of the heat and humidity, which gained in intensity when the sun shone brightly after the rain, to clinically demolish Vijay Kannan. Kannan was hoping to exact revenge for the humiliating defeat inflicted on him by Prakash in the title clash at Chandigarh, but ended up facing a worse plight today. Prakash asked for no quarter, and gave none as he mercilessly mowed down Kannan. Prakash, playing devastating serve and volley game, and showing all-round athleticism, drilled holes into Kannan’s defence while breaking him in the first and fifth games of the first set. The second set was even quicker, as Prakash broke the third-seeded Kannan in the second, fifth and seventh games. Kannan made a pathetic exit, committing a double fault to drop serve in the seventh game, to be subjugated by the power play of Prakash. Prakash’s searing serves and returns pierced through the doughty defence of Kannan, and the latter could only stand and stare, as the ball whistled past him in express speed. Prakash, son of the legendary Vijay Amritraj, looks like emulating his famous father if his game at this level of tennis is any indicator. He looked unbeatable, and his all-round game proved too intimidating for a seasoned campaigner like Vijay Kannan. |
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Pillay’s series proposal New Delhi, June 20 “We should play more matches against Pakistan. This is not only good for hockey but also for the players and the people. But decision-makers must take into consideration India’s interest before asking us to play bilateral series against Pakistan,” the mercurial striker said at Gurgaon, near here, where he inaugurated a school hockey ground. The last time the two sides played in a bilateral series was four years ago when Pakistan toured India for four Test matches which was soon followed by a visit by the Indian team to Pakistan for a five-match series. Pillay, who would be leading the team to Hamburg, Germany, next week for the four-nation Panasonic Cup, said India should play at least 20 matches every year against their arch-rivals.
— PTI |
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Manish helps Amritsar to 355 Amritsar, June 20 The hosts won the toss and decided to bat first. Manish Bhatia was the highest scorer with 97 runs while Vipan Chouhan and Mayank Sharma contributed 62 and 55 runs, respectively. Rahul Mattu and Harmanjit Bajwa scored 26 runs each and Gagandeep made 25. For the visitors, Saurav Ratan captured the maximum three wickets while Vinod Minhas and Sanjay Trama managed to get two and one wicket, respectively. |
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Rs 16 crore for new stadia in
HP Shimla, June 20 The Chief Minister said the state government, in its endeavour to promote sports in the state, had reserved 3 per cent seats in all departments, boards and corporations for sports persons who had excelled at the national and international levels. Lauding the Rohru Cricket Club for organising this event every year, he announced Rs 25,000 for the organisers for promotion of cricket. The Chief Minister said the government was committed to the welfare of youth and added that efforts were on to create maximum employment opportunities in government, joint and private sectors. Mr Manjeet Singh Thakur, president Rohru Cricket Club, welcomed the Chief Minister. Oil and Natural Gas Commission, winners of the championship were awarded the trophy and Rs 70,000 in cash. Indian Airlines were declared runners-up and were given Rs 40,000. Mrs Pratibha Singh, wife of the Chief Minister, was also present. |
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Boxing
skills run in his blood Patiala, June 20 The youngster won a gold medal in the 47th National School
Games at Patiala in 2001, where he was also declared best boxer. Two
years earlier, Sandeep had won a bronze medal in the 14th sub-junior
national meet at Durgapur in West Bengal. Sandeep has the capacity to
grasp and calculate at a high speed the movements of his opponents.
Once he steps in the ring, his survival instincts ensure that he does
not repeat mistakes. After Sandeep won a string of titles in the
sub-junior category, Harpreet decided that the time had come to shift
him to the junior section. This decision proved beneficial as he won a
gold medal in the 35th Junior Punjab Boxing Championship at Jalandhar
last year. Sandeep is considered an intelligent boxer who uses his
grey cells in a sport which is purely physical in nature. His coach is
happy with whatever Sandeep has accomplished.
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Paris, June 20
