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India gear up for clash with Aussies Ponting looks to exploit
India’s past record Kallis’ century
sinks Windies
Waqar slams fixing charges Best versus Rest cricket
series planned |
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Bengal defeat Delhi by 14 runs
India rally to hold Holland India look to settle scores Paes to play singles
against Kiwis Jyoti Randhawa breaks into Pakistan judo team arrives India win
kabaddi title Heartening development for players
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India gear up for clash with Aussies Melbourne, February 5 India would be hampered by the injury-induced absence of in-form leg spinner Anil Kumble, who was today ruled unfit for the match, but skipper Saurav Ganguly sought to overcome the odds through some "special effort" by his team. "Past does not matter. We did not have a great record in Australia in the past but in due course of the summer, it took a special effort from us to change that," Ganguly said after the training session today. Ganguly was apparently referring to India's dismal record against Australia in the last one year. They lost the World Cup final before being humiliated at home in a tri-series summit clash. In the triangular series here, India have lost three matches to the hosts while winning just one in the league round. But the India skipper was positive about the finals saying "we have all improved over the last couple of months. If we can finish it off well, it would be a nice way to go back home." Kumble tried his very best in order to be able to play his part in this crucial phase of India's campaign, bowling and throwing at the nets this morning, but he would have to sit out considering his long-term fitness prospects. Kumble is the only fitness worry for the Indians now and Ganguly would have a complete bunch of cricketers to pick from though it is unlikely his choice would deviate much from the straight and tested. Much as the likes of Hemang Badani and Ashish Nehra have done to establish their credentials, it is unlikely Ganguly would tamper with his trusted line-up. Badani played a match-winning hand against Zimbabwe at Perth on Tuesday but he is unlikely to be preferred ahead of Rohan Gavaskar who has been solid and consistent, if not spectacular. Nehra is clearly lagging behind Irfan Pathan and L. Balaji in the stakes for the medium-pacers' berth and his chances are not helped with the form of Ajit Agarkar. Agarkar's bowling has been the story of this tour and as he showed against Australia in Perth on Sunday, he has lost none of the art of wicket-taking against the world champions. The wiry Mumbai bowler has taken only nine wickets in the series but all of them have come against Australia, that too in just two games. His swing has been the major factor even though his length has bothered at times. India would be hoping openers Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar would return to their run-making ways prior to the injury and there was much to suggest a certain eagerness in the two in the nets. India would also be looking up to Rahul Dravid and Ganguly to fire at their batting best but should have no doubts over VVS Laxman who indicated against Zimbabwe in Perth he was still hungry for runs on the tour. Laxman has so far scored 908 runs in Tests and one-dayers combined on this tour so far and certainly 1,000 runs from the summer is not beyond him. Ganguly has asked his bowlers to bowl well in pairs, the way they did against Zimbabwe to bowl out the minnows for 135. Balaji in particular had two fine, accurate spells in Perth even though he did not pick all that many wickets. Australia too are back to their full strength with the return of captain Ricky Ponting who was rested in their final league game against India. The Aussies made good use of the rotation policy in the league but would take nothing for granted in the finals. Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist had provided the early thrust to Australia's campaign but as soon as it became clear they were in the finals, both were rested in turns. Now they are back together and Australia would be hoping their feared openers would give them the best possible start. Ponting, who had a splendid Test series with over 700 runs, would also be keen to make a valuable contribution as captain. He is also aware Damien Martyn is not among runs and Michael Clarke has lost his way a bit lately. Andrew Symonds though continues to be a pillar of strength. More importantly, Australia would like their pace attack of Jason Gillespie, Brett Lee and Brad Williams to show the same intensity they displayed last week, albeit on a pitch tailor made for fast bowling. The induction of experienced Michael Kasprowicz at the cost of Andy Bichel has added spice to the whole thing. The pitch here had a tinge of grass but whether or not it stays tomorrow, Melbourne is unlikely to be Perth where the Indian batsmen stuttered and struggled to connect the bat with the ball. Teams (from): India: Sachin Tendulkar, Saurav Ganguly, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh, Rohan Gavaskar, Hemang Badani, VVS Laxman, Ajit Agarkar, Irfan Pathan, Laxmipathy Balaji, Murali Kartik, Amit Bhandari, Sanjay Bangar and Ashish Nehra. Australia:
Matthew Hayden, Adam Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting, Damien Martyn, Andrew Symonds, Michael Clarke, Mike Hussey, Michael Kasprowicz, Brett Lee, Jason Gillespie, Brad Hogg, Brad Williams and Ian Harvey.
— PTI |
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Ponting looks to exploit
India’s past record
Melbourne, February 5 “I guarantee Indians would be thinking about it (recent record),” said Ponting ahead of the first final against India here tomorrow. India lost the World Cup final to Australia last year before going down in a tri-series final at home for a dismal 1-7 one-day finals head-to-head record against the world champions. Ponting believes Australia can work this record in their favour in the finals. “You look back at our record against India over the last few years and it is very, very good — not only in big games but in most games of cricket we have played against them,” said the upbeat Australian skipper. Ponting was also seeking to exploit the scars left by Brett Lee on the Indian batsmen in Perth. “Brett, hopefully, would have created some scars in Perth and we can carry on and bring that to tell in the final of the series,” he said after nest at a small ground in St Kilda, a suburb of Melbourne. Lee wrecked India with some fiery bowling on a quick and bouncy WACA pitch on Sunday. “We have been yearning to play India in Perth and certainly our fast bowlers right throughout the summer have played them on some very good batting wickets,” said Ponting hoping his bowlers would come good even on a docile pitch at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. “If we bowl well, execute our plans well and hold on to our catches, we are going to be very competitive in the finals,” he said. However, Ponting did not want to take anything away from the Indians who have enjoyed a sensational summer Down Under. “It has been a great summer of excellent cricket and both sides have made lots of runs. There is no reason why finals wouldn’t be the same and provide the big crowd some entertaining cricket. “It has been tough and hard. The Test matches have been sensational and even the one-dayers have gone down the wire with a couple finishing in the final overs.” |
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Kallis’ century sinks Windies Johannesburg, February 5 Kallis hit a career-best 139 as South Africa chased down a West Indian total of 304 for two, winning by four wickets with two balls to spare to secure a 3-1 series win yesterday. The amazing Kallis trumped a magnificent 152 not out by West Indian opener Chris Gayle, who thrashed the South African bowling and shared a record opening partnership with Shivnarine Chanderpaul as the West Indies set an imposing target. Kallis, who was named man of the series, followed up his 718 runs at an average of 178 in the Test series with 361 runs in the one-day games at an average of 180.5. He hit four centuries in four Test matches and two in the one-day games in addition to 95 not out in the fourth match at Centurion. Kallis and Jacques Rudolph (35) set up the South African win with a fourth wicket stand of 90 off 65 balls but there were some anxious moments before the win was clinched. Rudolph was caught on the boundary and Lance Klusener fell to a sensational diving catch at midwicket by West Indian captain Brian Lara. Then Kallis was caught on the deep cover boundary during an outstanding 49th over by 19-year-old Ravi Rampaul in which only one run was scored. Kallis’ dismissal left South Africa needing nine to win off eight balls but Shaun Pollock hit off-spinner Gayle for four, two and six in the final over to wrap up the series. It was a cruel ending for Gayle, who made his 152 off 153 balls with three sixes and 12 fours. He and fellow left-hander Chanderpaul (85) put on 193 to set up a big total after the West Indies won the toss and made first use of a good batting pitch. It was the highest individual score made by any batsman against South Africa in a one-day international, beating the 150 by Chanderpaul for the West Indies in East London in 1998/99. West Indies Gayle not out 152 Chanderpaul c Rudolph b Smith 85 Lara c Ntini b Klusener 11 Powell not out 49 Extras: (lb1, nb2, w4) 7 Total: (2 wkts, 50 overs) 304 FoW: 1-193, 2-212. Bowling: Pollock 10-2-47-0, Ntini 7-1-41-0, Nel 10-0-60-0, Klusener 8-0-42-1, Peterson 3-0-22-0, Kallis 4-0-39-0, Smith 8-0-52-1. South Africa Smith b Gayle 58 Gibbs c Sarwan b Collymore 15 Kallis c C’paul b Rampaul 139 Dippenaar c Rampaul b Hurley 28 Rudolph c C’paul b Rampaul 35 Klusener c Lara b Collymore 4 Boucher not out 7 Pollock not out 12 Extras: (lb-7, nb-2, w-3) 12 Total: (6 wkts, 49.4 overs) 310 FoW: 1-31, 2-133, 3-187, 4-277, 5-285, 6-296 Bowling:
Dillon 10-0-42-0, Hurley 9-0-56-1, Collymore 10-0-83-2, Rampaul 10-1-56-2, Gayle 9.4-0-61-1, Sarwan 1-0-5-0.
— AFP |
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Waqar slams fixing charges Islamabad, February 5 Waqar, who was the captain for both the tournaments, said as the skipper he could vouch that the team had not performed up to expectations in Morocco and Kenya in August-September 2001 entirely because of cricketing reasons. “We just did not play well and we lost quite a few close matches. Luck did not favour us. But I know everyone tried hard to win,” he was quoted as saying in media reports. Waqar said he was not surprised at these allegations resurfacing because the Pakistan team had recently lost the one-day series in New Zealand and also a very important series against India was coming up. “Whenever the team loses a few matches on a trot or an important series is coming up, you hear and read about such allegations about match-fixing. So this is nothing new for me.” He said he had read about the ACU having written to the Pakistan Cricket Board expressing concerns over the team’s performance in the two tournaments and also about the activities of some players. PCB to look into charges As the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit’s letters continued to rock the cricket establishment here, Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Shaharyar Khan said the allegations pertaining to match-fixing against some of the national players were a matter of concern and the issue would be looked into. “We are in touch with the ICC on many issues and we view this issue seriously. When I get back to the board office tomorrow I will look into it further,” Khan was quoted as saying by the daily ‘The News’ today. Meanwhile, former PCB chief Tauqir Zia sought to defend his stand of not taking any action against some players despite a warning by the Anti-Corruption Unit that they could have under-performed in a few matches. Confirming that the ACU Director Lord Condon had voiced concern about some Pakistan players based on their intelligence reports in its correspondence last year, Zia, who resigned as the PCB chairman in December 2003, said the board had been hampered due to lack of evidence. “Yes, the ACU did write to us... But on what basis could we take action? We had our doubts also. We also heard about things. Since no evidence was available, no action was taken,” Zia was quoted as saying in the same newspaper. Zia said the PCB had even conducted its own inquiry but did not find any evidence against the players.
— PTI |
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Best versus Rest cricket
series planned Sydney, February 5 Australian newspapers and Wisden Online today quoted an ICC spokesman in London as saying under the plan the top-ranked Test and one-day teams — currently Australia — would play an all-star World XI in one Test and three one-day games next year in South Africa for one million dollars in prize money. Using the current PricewaterhouseCoopers rankings the team would be: Herschelle Gibbs (RSA), Mark Richardson (NZL), Rahul Dravid (IND), Brian Lara (WI), Inzamam ul-Haq (PAK), Jacques Kallis (RSA), Sachin Tendulkar (IND), Muttiah Muralitharan (SRI), Shoaib Akhtar (PAK), Shaun Pollock (RSA) and Makhaya Ntini (RSA). Wisden said its dream team would be: Michael Vaughan (ENG), Kallis, Dravid, Lara (capt), Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman (IND), Mark Boucher (RSA), Pollock, Shane Bond (NZL), Muralitharan and Akhtar.
— AFP |
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Bengal defeat Delhi by 14 runs
Kolkata, February 5 Bengal won the toss and elected to bat first and put up 239 for eight wickets at the end of the stipulated 50 overs. Opener Arindam Das (67) and wicketkeeper Deep Dasgupta (39) and L.R. Shukla (41) were the main scorers for Bengal. Bengal also got early breakthrough returning three top Delhi batsmen-Akash Chopra (4), Vijay Dahia (12) and Mithum Manhas (16) — to reduce Delhi to 85 for three. Ajay Jadeja joined Gautam Gambhir and both of them
threatened to take the match away from Bengal with clever strokeplay and steady accumulation of runs. Gambhir scored 64 (4x4), while Jadeja showed flashes of his brilliance scoring 49 off 73 deliveries with six hits to the fence. But once Gambhir got out playing a rash shot to Manoj
Tiwari to be caught at long on, Bengal crawled back into the game. Jadeja returned soon caught by Nikhil Haldipur off Sourasish Lahiri. The other Delhi batsmen never really threatened as their innings folded up in 49.5 overs scoring 225 runs. Another cause of worry for the Bengal coach was the number of extras given away by the team. Bengal had given 23 extras which effectively was the third highest score of Delhi innings. For Bengal Shib Shankar Paul flourished with three wickets in his nine overs giving away 25 runs. Sanjib Sanyal and Anirban Chatterjee got two wickets each. Bengal got four points from this game. Brief scores: Bengal:
239 for 8. A. Das 67, Deep Dasgupta 39, L.R. Shukla 41, K. Lal 2 for 42. Delhi:
225, Gautam Gambhir 64, Ajay Jadeja 49, N.S. Negi 23; S.S. Paul 3 for 25, Sanjib Sanyal 2 for 40, A. Chatterjee 2 for 48. |
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India rally to hold Holland Hyderabad, February 5 Trailing 0-1 at half time, the Indians rose to the occasion at the hour of reckoning as Gagan took a fine pass from Baljit Singh Dhillon to beat the Dutch goalkeeper hands down and restore parity after Taeke Taekema put the visitors ahead. Taekema converted a penalty corner with superb skill as the visitors went up 1-0 in the 32nd minute. India equalised after Dhillon took a long pass from Vikram Pillai and relayed it to Gagan, who beat the Dutch goalkeeper Guus Vogels with a fine scoop. The sparse crowd greeted the goal with a thunderous applause. Earlier, the three-Test series got off to sparkling start with both sides showing shades of aggression. But it was Holland who had the upperhand in the first half as they earned as many as eight penalty corners. After dominating the proceedings with most of the action in the Indian midfield, Holland took the lead making full use of a penalty corner. Teun Nooijer pushed the ball with precision and Taekema baffled Indian custodian Devesh Chauhan with a fine shot. The Indian forwards went close to scoring twice in the first half but in the end they failed to pierce the Dutch defence and their watchful custodian. The hosts, however, displayed good positional play with a series of neat interceptions and proved their class against the Olympic champions. Skipper Dilip Tirkey, Vikram Pillay and Ignace Tirkey unleashed aggression and poached the rival territory repeatedly. The Indians missed a couple of gilt-edged chances when Bimal Lakra and Len Aiyappa failed to find the mark after going close. Lakra missed the target with a poor reverse flick before the breather and Aiyappa failed to dribble past the Dutch defenders after being put through. Prabhjot Singh's untidy advances earned the ire of the umpire who warned him with a green card. The match also saw Ignace Tirkey getting badly hit on the head and had to be replaced. For the Dutch, Floris Evers, Brouwer and Rob Reckers put in a spirited display in the opening match. The second Test will be played here on Sunday.
— PTI |
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India look to settle scores with Korea New Delhi, February 5 A motely bunch of Korean supporters, mostly their embassy staff based in New Delhi, had come to witness the final armed with kitchen utensils, symbols and steel plates to create a deafening cacophony of sounds to drown the voice of the Indian fans, which heightened the tension and almost reached a flash point. That bitter defeat is still fresh in the minds of the hosts as the team, coached by GS Banghu, had put up an engaging fight before going down. India will be striving to set that record straight, and there is a lot at stake for the title winners who would be in line for a place in the 2006 World Cup in Spain. Though the Korean team consist of a young and promising bunch, they look formidable. The Indian girls will have more than a handful to tackle when they take the field tomorrow. The Koreans are fitter and speedier and the young Indian eves, who have struggled to cash in on their chances, particularly penalty corners, barring against Kazakhstan, will have to cut out the frills to match the visitors, who are not only the defending champions, but three-time champions overall. China, like Korea, too have not brought their best squad, but may still pose problems for Japan, who have emerged as the top-scorers with 39 goals to their credit. China, winners of the second edition of the Asia Cup, enjoy the psychological advantage of having never lost to Japan in the Asia Cup and had beaten the Japanese to clinch the bronze medal in the fourth edition here. Both the finals are expected to produce dazzling hockey. |
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Paes to play singles against Kiwis New Delhi, February 5 Paes, captain of the team, named himself as the second singles player and was drawn against Kiwi number one Mark Nielsen in the second match in the draw today. Harsh Mankad, with an ATP ranking of 329, will kickoff India’s campaign in the opening singles against Simon Rea (818) who will be making his Cup debut. With Mankad the odds on favourite against the unknown Rea, and Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi expected to defeat Nielsen and Rea in the doubles match on Saturday, the Paes vs Nielsen rubber would decide the course of the tie. Paes, unranked, beat Nielsen 6-1 7-6 6-2 in Kolkata last April but has not played a singles match since then. The only tennis Paes has had since recovering from his brain lesion has been a first round defeat in doubles and a final appearance in the mixed doubles with Martina Navratilova at the Australian Open last week. But the ‘Miracle Man’ of Indian tennis sounded confident ahead of the tie. “I have done this many many times. It is tough to put myself in this position but in the past I have had to win all three matches,” he said. Paes also has the incentive of equalling Ramanathan Krishnan’s record of most number of wins by an Indian in Davis Cup. Paes has a win-loss record of 66-29 including doubles victories while Krishnan ended with 69-28. The importance of tomorrow’s match could be understood when Paes says that he would not sit on the courtside when Mankad plays Rea. He felt he should prepare for his match, having the responsibility to win his matches. Paes also rated Mankad highly to win the opening match. “For Simon Rea it is his first time in Davis Cup and he is going to feel nervous. Harsh is a bit of a veteran and is used to all the pressure,” Paes said. Mankad, aged 24, said he was up to the challenge of leading his country and believed that even though he did not have any big weapon he had the ability to win. “I am timing the ball very well and I don’t hit with a lot of top spin, so the ball goes through the court fast. I have been working on my serve and I am generally pretty good around the net,” he said.
— PTI |
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Jyoti Randhawa breaks into
top 100
Bangalore, February 5 In the latest rankings released, Randhawa, after achieving a second-place finish in Asia’s biggest event the Johnny Walker Classic, has moved to No. 98. Even more impressively, other than the Japanese professionals, Jyoti is only the third Asian in history after world No. 2 Vijay Singh and world No 18 K.J. Choi to break the top 100 barrier, according to a Globosport press note here today. An elated Jyoti said, "I feel that my game has really improved over the last year and it is great to start 2004 with a bang. It is only just sinking in that I have now broken through a barrier that only two Asians have before. Now the goal is to emulate Vijay and Choi and reach the top 20. I am young and my game is still developing... so I am sure I can do it,” the golfer was quoted as saying. Jyoti became the first Indian to win the Asian PGA Order of Merit. With the next highest Indian golfer ranked at No. 226, Jyoti’s challenge is now to compete against the best in the world rather than beating his Asian rivals with regularity.
— UNI |
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Pakistan judo team arrives Attari, February 5 They have come to participate in the Rajiv Gandhi International Judo Championship scheduled to be held from February 6 to 10 at Lucknow. At least 15 countries are participating. Rana Ajmal Hussain, manager of the team, said it was the first judo team of his country taking part in any competition in India since 1992. He said his judokas were thrilled to test their mettle here. Javed Malik, coach, said it was a good opportunity for the young players to polish their skills and learn new techniques. The team:
Sarajil Bhatt (60 kg), Mohammad Zishan Bhatt (66 kg), Syed Akhtar (73 kg), Amzad Ali (81 kg), Mujaffar Iqbal (90 kg) and Talib Hussain (100 kg) |
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India win
kabaddi title Jalandhar, February 5 The game started on very fast note as Indian raiders Sonu, Kinda and Happy made tactical moves to take an early lead in a Punjab-style match. Pakistan raiders, including Shehzad Dhillon, Zor Rehman and Tariq Javed, attacked the rivals and succeeded in scoring points for their team, but India finally won 42-32. The coach of Pakistani team, Mohammad Saleem Gujjar said the team was on friendly mission in India and the result to the match was of no consequence. “Basically, we are here to promote kabaddi, which had lost its sheen in both the countries. Besides, such tournaments will improve sports links among both the countries,” he said. |
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Heartening development for players Ludhiana, February 5 All outstanding players of the Punjab Police who were issued show cause notices about their reversion to their substantive ranks from Inspectors to Constables would be adjusted against the additional posts approved by the Council of Ministers of the state. This was stated by Mr D.R. Bhatti, ADGP, PAP, and in charge, sports centre of the Punjab Police, Jalandhar, while inagurating the annual sports festival at the Jarkhar village near here today. Mr Bhatti said the Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, had given the instructions yesterday to go ahead with the exercise. |
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Haryana judo teams Hisar, February 5 Mr Sumer Singh Nandal, general secretary of the Haryana State Judo Association, said here today that 16 members were selected at the Mahabir Stadium here last evening for representing the state in the championship. He said former Olympian Rajender Singh Dhanger and Sat Parkash Rana would be coaches of the teams. The teams:
(men’s) — Balraj Singh (50 kg), Ashwani Kumar (60 kg), Dharmender (66 kg), Jasbir Singh (73 kg), Vikender Singh (81 kg), Narender (90 kg), Jasbir (100 kg) and Sanjay Kumar (open weight). Women’s section: Archana (44 kg), Rajni (48 kg), Janita (52 kg), Nidhi (57 kg), Poonam Chopra (63 kg), Neelam (70 kg), Divya (78 kg) and Usha (open weight). |
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Jalandhar beat Nawanshahr Amritsar, February 5 Left-in Gurpreet Singh of Jalandhar scored a hat-trick. He scored goals in the 5th, 14th and 19th minutes. However, Nawanshahr could not open their account in the first half. They could score only one goal in the 49th minute through Gurpinder Singh. Rajwinder Singh of Jalandhar scored a field goal in the 44th minute while Roopinder Singh scored the last goal. |
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GMN shuttlers win title Ambala, February
5 The championship was held at SD College. GMN College defeated SD College by 3-2 in the finals. Before reaching the finals, GMN College team trounced MPN College, Mullana, and Government College, Ambala Cantonment. GMN College team comprised Ankush Puri,
Madvendra, Kapil, Ajeet Nain and Deepak Mishra. |
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SBOP annual sports meet Patiala, February 5 More than 500 employees are expected to take part in the three-day meet, which will host several indoor and outdoor games. Mr
P.K. Panda, Chief General Manager of the bank, will inaugurate the sports festival, while Mr
A.K. Dass, Managing Director, will be the chief guest on the concluding day. |
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Lennox Lewis set to retire Diamond back |
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Johannesburg, February 5
