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Sehwag’s blitzkrieg gives India the edge
Sehwag can turn any match, says SA coach
India keen to level series
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Rampaging Aussies on verge of series win
Arvind Bhat wins Scottish Open
Pak to send 30 women athletes for games
Pak Punjab win volleyball Test
Kannan, Shokeen advance
Russia dethrone France, lift Fed Cup
Prithipal Academy win
Patiala boxers win title
Indian Oil triumph
Jindal lifts Hari Singh Polo Cup
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Sehwag’s blitzkrieg gives India the edge
Kolkata, November 29 The home team did
well to polish off the last five wickets to restrict South Africa to 305
in their first innings before Sehwag took centrestage with a rollicking
unbeaten 82 to take the hosts to a comfortable 129 for one at close on
the second day. Sehwag, who had cracked 164 in the drawn first Test in
Kanpur, enthralled a sizeable Eden Gardens crowd with his audacious
strokeplay, the highlight of which was a 19-run blitzkrieg off an over
by Justine Ontong. Dravid was content to play second fiddle and was
batting on 33 before play was called off due to fading light with 11.2
overs remaining. Sehwag, who notched up his eighth Test half century,
was involved in an unfinished 112-run partnership with the vice-captain
after India lost opener Gautam Gambhir (7) in the seventh over. The
second wicket partnership meant India were left trailing by 176 runs and
with three more days of play left, a result appears to be on the
cards. Sehwag’s knock was a mixture of caution and aggression and he
was particularly severe on the bowlers after completing his
half-century. His unbeaten knock came off 107 balls and contained 11
boundaries and a six. South African skipper Graeme Smith tried to adopt
an aggressive approach but in vain as Sehwag and Dravid not only
prevented any further setbacks for their team but took the wind out of
the sail of the visitors. Earlier, the Indians ensured South Africa did
not pile up a big first innings score by snaring their last five wickets
for the addition of just 78 runs to dismiss them soon after lunch on the
second day. Indian seamers exploited the early morning conditions and
the bounce of the track for vital breakthroughs in the morning session
which saw the visitors add 62 runs while losing the crucial wickets of
Jacques Kallis (121), Zander De Bryun (15) and Shaun Pollock
(18). Left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan gave his team just the start it
needed by removing De Bryun, who had made a fine 83 in the drawn first
Test, when just three runs had been added to the South African overnight
score of 227 for five. Bruyn repeated the mistake that some of his
team-mates also made on the opening day, flashing at a delivery outside
the off stump to offer a catch to wicketkeeper Dinesh Kaarthick. However,
Kaarthik did not have a good day behind the stumps as he dropped two
simple chances off Anil Kumble who, however, did manage to have Pollock
caught by Dravid for his first wicket in the match. Kallis played very
cautiously this morning, scoring only nine runs in the first hour before
hitting a delectable cover drive off Anil Kumble as if to break the
shackles. It was Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly who finally dismissed
Kallis when it looked the South African was all set for a big
knock. The flamboyant batsmen was done in by a Ganguly in-cutter that
spectacularly sent the bails flying, the scoreboard reading 261 for
seven. His 121-run knock came off 259 balls and included 12 fours. With
Pollock also sent back to the pavilion 13 runs later, it was left to
Ontong to ensure his team ended up with a challenging total. Ontong
doggedly resisted the Indian bowlers in the company of wicketkeeper
Thami Tsolekile for close to 16 overs before Harbhajan Singh dismissed
both in the space of three balls in his very first over of the day to
finally join the wickettaker’s list. The Indian innings began on a
shaky note with the left-handed Gambhir being trapped leg before by
Pollock for seven with the total reading 17. The opening duo, who had
put on a record 218 runs in the Kanpur Test, could not get going this
time as Pollock produced a gem of a delivery to end Gambhir’s 22-ball
knock which included one four. However, Sehwag, who opened his account
with a four off only the second ball of the innings, found an able ally
in Dravid as the duo put the innings on track again with some sensible
batting. Dravid, as usual, was circumspect, choosing only the loose
balls for keeping the scorebaord moving. His 33 runs came off 106 balls
and contained four boundaries. Unlike the Indian seamers, the South
African pacemen could not obtain much movement from the Eden track and
failed to even get the reverse swing going. While both Dravid and
Sehwag seemed to be in no discomfort against the pacers, they thrived on
the part-time spin bowling of Ontong whose four overs cost him as many
as 29 runs. Scoreboard South Africa (1st innings): Smith
c Kaarthick b Pathan 0 Hall c Kaarthick b Zaheer 7 Rudoph b Zaheer
61 Kallis b Ganguly 121 Amla b Pathan 24 Dippenaar c Kaarthick b
Pathan 1 De Bruyn c Kumble b Zaheer 15 Pollock c Zaheer b Kumble 18 Ontong
not out 16 Tsolekile c and b Harbhajan 15 Ntini c Pathan b Harbhajan
0 Extras (lb-17, nb-10) 27 Total (all out, 121.3 overs)
305 Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-21, 3-130, 4-176, 5-182, 6-230,
7-261, 8-273, 9-305. Bowling: Pathan 31-7-72-3, Zaheer
27-7-64-3, Kumble 30-6-76-1, Ganguly 9-3-14-1, Harbhajan 21.3-6-54-2,
Tendulkar 3-0-8-0. India (1st innings): Sehwag batting
82 Gambhir lbw b Pollock 7 Dravid batting 33 Extras (lb-4,
nb-3) 7 Total (1 wkt, 38.4 overs) 129 Fall of wicket:
1-17. Bowling: Pollock 12.4-2-41-1, Ntini 13-5-30-0, Ontong
4-1-29-0, Hall 7-0-24-0, De Bruyn 2-1-1-0. — PTI |
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Sehwag can turn any match, says SA coach
Kolkata, November 29 ‘’Sehwag plays Test cricket like one-dayer and he seemed to be in his elements today,’’ he observed. Asked whether they were thinking of any strategy to stop Sehwag, he said amid laughter, ‘’The best way to stop him is to go to his room and shoot him down.’’ He, however, denied that South Africa had been put under pressure. ‘’We are not playing for a draw. We are definitely playing for a win. We will definitely see our boys play a better game tomorrow.’’
— UNI |
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India keen to level series
Chandigarh, November 29 Though the visitors are satisfied with the performance of their new-look team, their only area of concern continues to be penalty corner conversion. In the first Test, they forced three penalty corners in the last nine minutes of the game but could not convert any. Their forwards and linkmen, however, exhibited perfect understanding and worked out moves in tandem to rattle the Indian defence, where besides skipper Dilip Tirkey and Prabodh
Tirkey, even Ignace Tirkey and Harpal Singh shared the burden. Spain have many promising youngsters in their ranks. Though they were unlucky to finish not higher than fourth in the Athens Olympics, they would be a team to watch at Lahore. If they click, they could upset the applecart of any fancied team. Though India scored one goal from four penalty corners in the game, they do not have an alternative arrangement for taking penalty corners in case both drag flicker Sandeep Singh and hitter Dilip Tirkey are out. Indian officials would delay the announcement of the final team till late at night as the coaches want to have a closer look at the fitness and medical reports of certain key players, including Dilip
Tirkey. Indian forwards would have to sharpen their skills to be more penetrative and effective. While Vinay copies Dhanraj Pillay not only in style and neat stickwork but also in looks, he misses that lethal finish which gets goals. Sandeep Michael is a good play- maker and creates openings in the striking circle but has yet to produce goal-scoring shots. Hari Prasad has the striking ability but no accuracy. India have a good pair of goalkeepers in Adrian D’Souza and Devesh Chauhan. And Chauhan must be waiting for the Champions Trophy to end quickly as he is scheduled to get married on December 18. He played an excellent game, especially in the second half yesterday, and brought off at least two brilliant saves. After the second and final Test tomorrow, the two teams will head for Delhi on way to Lahore. In Delhi, the Indians will attend a function where the kits for teams participating in the proposed Premier League would be released. India will reach Lahore on December 2 and play their first match against Spain on December 4 at 12.30 p.m. After the Lahore tournament, senior players may get a break as more youngsters would be inducted for Test matches against the visiting French team later next month. |
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CAB blamed for poor turnout
Subhrangshu Gupta
Kolkata, November 29 Recently, the CAB organised the India-Pakistan ODI on the occasion of the BCCI’s silver jubilee but the tickets were fixed at exorbitant rates of Rs 1,200, Rs 700 and Rs 500. Surprisingly, the CAB retained the same enhanced rates for the India-South Africa Test match. CAB bigwig Jagmohan Dalmiya said the association had thought at one stage to slash the ticket rates but by then some tickets had already been sold at high prices. He hoped that after India’s impressive performances in bowling and batting on the second day, more spectators would come tomorrow onwards by purchasing daily tickets. *** Harbhajan Singh’s frustration at going wicketless yesterday came to an end today as he picked up two South African wickets in one over. Yesterday, after his unsatisfactory bowling performance (21-6-54-0), he was upset as he could not take any wicket on his happy hunting ground. He had felt that the Eden Gardens was no longer lucky for him. But all that changed today, bringing relief to Harbhajan. *** When Jacques Kallis returned to the pavilion after scoring 121, he was greeted with applause and cheers. Captain Graeme Smith was the first to embrace him. Then followed the coach and other team-mates. His girl friend Candy Neil came up and greeted him with a kiss.
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Rampaging Aussies on verge of series win
Adelaide, November 29 The New Zealanders have the improbable task of making
315 on the final day to win the match and level the series after a loss
in Brisbane last week by an innings and 156 runs. Jacob Oram, who
scored an unbeaten 126 in the first Test, was unbeaten on 40 and Brendon
McCullum was not out 34 at stumps on the penultimate day. The pair
joined with New Zealand at 97 for five when Nathan Astle (38) was
dismissed trying to hit out against Darren Lehmann. Astle belted a
cover drive to the boundary off Lehmann and was out next shot,
brilliantly caught by Justin Langer in the covers. McCullum stroked
five boundaries and faced 36 balls to dominate the unbroken sixth-wicket
stand, which realised 52 runs and was New Zealand’s best remaining
chance of defying Australia’s bowling attack. Scoreboard
Australia (1st innings): 575 for 8 dec New Zealand (1st
innings): 251 Australia (2nd innings): Langer lbw Wiseman
46 Hayden c McCullum Ponting not out 26 Martyn not out
6 Extras (lb-6, nb-1) 7 Total (2 wkts dec, 56 overs)
139 Fall of wkts: 1-93, 2-119. Bowling: Martin 6-1-11-0,
Oram 5-1-17-0, Franklin 5-0-18-0, Wiseman 22-3-52-1, Vettori 18-2-35-1.
New Zealand (2nd innings): Richardson c Langer Sinclair lbw Gillespie 2 Fleming b McGrath 3 Styris c Clarke b
Warne 8 Astle c Langer b Lehmann 38 Oram batting 40 McCullum batting
34 Extras (b-1, lb-6, nb-1) 8 Total (5 wkts, 53 overs)
149 Fall of wkts: 1-11, 2-18, 3-34, 4-34, 5-97. Bowling:
McGrath 7-2-14-1, Gillespie 11-3-27-1, Kasprowicz 8-4-15-1, Warne
18-5-55-1, Lehmann 9-0-31-1. — AFP |
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Arvind Bhat wins Scottish Open
Bangalore, November 29 Arvind, defeated world No. 54 Germany’s, Marc Zwieber, 15-8, 15-7. Ranked 131 in the world, his previous best is Pakistani Satellite championship victory that came two years ago, according to the reports received at the Prakash Padukone Academy here, yesterday. The German, fought tenaciously early in the second set after dropping the first one. Locked seven-all in the second, Zwieber dropped in a shot after a long rally and Arvind did not give him another chance to recover and won the title. Arvind’s Scottish win is the second by an Indian with Pulella Gopichand winning it in 1999. Siddharth Jain had finished runner-up. In the 2002 edition, Thomas Kurian had finished runner-up. Arvind later commented “It is obviously the best win of my career. I was quite confident I could beat him. I played by best badminton tournament of the year today.” Arvind, who is returning to Bangalore, hoped that he would be able to return to Britain to play the All-England in March. On his way to the final Arvind had beaten Bruce Flockhart of Scotland and Adnrew Dabeka of Canada in the first two rounds. In the quarterfinals he blanked Jan Frolich of the Czech Republic, while in the semi-finals his oponent was Anup Sridhar of India. Among other players India number two Trupti Murgunde, also a trainee at the BPL Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy, upset the tournament top seed Petra Overzier of Germany 9-11, 11-4, 11-1 in the quarterfinals. But she lost to Jill Pittard of England 6-11, 1-11 in the semi-finals.
— UNI |
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Pak to send 30 women athletes for games
Chandigarh, November 29 West Punjab( Pakistan) is fielding a strong 30-member contingent of women athletes in the Indo-Pak Punjab games to be declared open by West Punjab Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi at Patiala on December 5. By sending such a big contingent of women athletes, Pakistan is keen to break the myth that women in that country do not get equal opportunity to compete in all spheres of life. Events like athletics is not a forbidden area, as is perceived in countries like India, for them. Pakistan’s woman athlete, who participated in 1500 mts race in the Olympics at Athens, is a member of the contingent, according to informed sources. It may be mentioned here that fundamentalists have been opposing the participation of women in various sports events in Pakistan and other Muslim countries. But Pakistani women have been struggling hard for equal status with men. Their coming to India for participation in the games in such a big number is to send the political message that they have won a major battle of enjoying equal rights for participation in events like athletics. Besides 30 women, 45 men would take part in athletics. There would be 12 events and 530 sportspersons from both East Punjab and West Punjab will take part in the games. Indian Olympic Association rules and regulations will be applicable in these games which will be an annual affair and hosted by both Punjabs on turn basis. The purpose of the games is to promote peace, trade and business between India and Pakistan. The venue of these games, will be changed every time as it would help to develop infrastructure at various places. Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, working chairman of the organising committee of the games, said that dope test of all participants would be held and sportspersons would compete only for two slots-first and second. There will be free entry for public to watch the games. After Independence it is for the first time that such games are being held. Mr Sarvesh Kaushal, Secretary, sports, said that in due course, these games would develop into a major event on the pattern of Afro-Asian Games. The Punjab Government will invite its star sportspersons of past years as special guests. Mr Milkha Singh, Mr Balbir Singh (senior) and other legendary Punjabi sportspersons would be asked to perform various ceremonies. Mr Milkha Singh will receive the torch at Wagah border. Important events would be telecast live. Shooting events will be held at Mohali and hockey at Jalandhar. Immediately after the games, the Punjab Government will announce the Maharaja Ranjit Singh awards, which have not been given to star sportspersons since 1996. The award money may also be enhanced from existing Rs 1.50 lakh. Mr Sodhi said that all preparations had been completed to host the games. |
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Pak Punjab win volleyball Test
Sangrur, November 29 Pakistan Punjab team started the match on a brisk note, taking an early lead of 5-2. After this Indian Punjab players played very well to take lead of 16-14. But Pakistanis fought back gallantly and took the game 25-22 in 18 minutes. Second game saw a transformed performance from Indian Punjabi side. They took an early lead and maintained it throughout. They won the second game 25-15 in just 15 minutes. Third game was once again a close affair with both the sides trying to dominate. The huge crowd, which had gathered to see the fight between the two Punjab sides, was fully rewarded by the excellent performance from players of both the sides. Pakistani Punjab won the third game, once again at 25-22 in about 20 minutes. Fourth game went Indian Punjab’s way 25-19. The final game was a one-sided affair with Pakistani Punjab taking a quick lead of 13-5. Indian Punjab players tried their best to stop their counterparts but could manage only 10 points in the final game.
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Kannan, Shokeen advance
New Delhi, November 29 Kannan beat Krotiouk 7-6 (7/5) 3-6 6-3 hammering 11 aces while Shokeen triumphed 6-4 6-1 over Punna. After claiming the first set via tie-breaker, Kannan went down in the second without offering much resistance to the Russian after being level at 3-3. But the Indian came up with a superb fight in the decider as Kannan dominated after the sixth game to win the match battling for more than two and half hours. National boys champion Shokeen began with a bang breaking Punna in the very first game. Shokeen then got further breaks in the sixth and eighth game though Punna tried his best to save his serve. Among other Indians, Ajay Ramaswami beat Germany’s Sacha Kloer 7-6 (7/5) 6-0 and Divij Sharan beat Kamala Kannan 6-3, 6-0. In doubles, Ajay Ramaswami and Kamala Kannan got the better of Konstantin Gruber and Dmitri Makeyev 7-6 (7/4) 6-2 and Vijay Kannan and Norikazu Sugiyama beat compatriots Mustafa Ghouse and Vishal Uppal 6-2 6-1.
— PTI |
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Russia dethrone France, lift Fed Cup
Moscow, November 29 The win was the first for Russia in the women’s team event and crowned a thrilling year for Russian players in which Anastasia Myskina won the French Open, Svetlana Kuznetsova the US Open and Maria Sharapova — who did not play the Fed Cup — Wimbledon and the
Masters. Myskina was the heroine of the weekend, winning both her singles matches and tasting more glory in the doubles as a last-minute replacement for Elena
Likhovtseva. The final came down to the wire, however, after France’s Russian-born Tatiana Golovin beat Kuznetsova 6-4, 6-1 to level the tie at 2-2 and take it to the final doubles match. Earlier, the hosts had taken a 2-1 lead after
Myskina, the world number three, beat Nathalie Dechy 6-3, 6-4. Russia became the 10th nation in the history of the competition to lift the Fed Cup trophy.
— AFP |
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Prithipal Academy win
Ludhiana, November 29 Mandeep of Prithipal Academy put his side ahead in the 12th minute and Baldev consolidated the lead just before half time. In the second half, Prithipal Academy boys wasted a number of scoring chances, whereas Kila Raipur reduced the margin through Maninder Pal Singh in the 60th minute. Earlier, in the inaugural match, Sukhchain Academy, Faridkot, scraped past SAI, Kurukshetra, 3-2. For the winners, Jageep scored a brace (14th and 34th minutes) and Parveen found the target in the 53rd minute while Vikas and Nihal reduced the margin for SAI. In another match, defending champions Surjit Academy, Jalandhar, outclassed Ropar Hawks 6-1. Ranjosh Singh and Jagroop Singh of Surjit Academy struck twice while Raminder and Rahul scored apiece. The lone scorer for Ropar Hawks was Gursimran who converted a penalty corner in the dying minutes of the encounter. In the last match of the day, Namdhari XI, Bhaini Sahib, drubbed DAV Club, Chandigarh, 8-3. Mr Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Parliamentary Secretary, Punjab, inaugurated the tournament. He announced a grant of Rs 50,000 for the organising committee. Mr Randhawa also promised to install floodlights at the PAU Astro-turf. |
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Patiala boxers win title
Sangrur, November 29 The results (all finals): B-4 (48-50 kg) Balkar Singh (Sang) beat Harjinder Singh (Mastuana) B-5 (50-52 kg) Gurpartap Singh (ASR) beat Karmdeep (FZR) B-6 (52-55 kg) Baljit Singh (LDH) beat Inderjit Singh (Sang) B-7 (54-57 kg) S. Thakur (HSP) beat Sard Misra (JAL) B-8 (57-60 kg) Deepak Sharma (PTA) beat Sanan Pal (ASR) B-9 (60-63 kg) Harjinder Singh (PTA) beat Daljinder (LDH) C-1 (38-40 kg) Parampreet Singh (LDH) beat Nijan Khullar (HSP) C-2 (40-42 kg) Ram Kumar (PTA) beat Rohit Kumar (Mastuana) C-3 (42-44 kg) Ajayvir Singh (PTA) beat Harinder Singh (Mastuana) C-4 (44-46 kg) P. Bahri (Sang) beat Joginder Singh (HSP) C-5 (46-48 kg) Vicky Singh (ASR) beat Vishal (HSP) D-1(36-38 kg) Surjit Singh (FZR) beat Ashwani Kumar (Mansa) D-2 (38-40 kg) Deepak Bains (KPT) beat J. Sharma (JAL) D-3 (40-42 kg) Kulwinder Singh (PTA) beat Gagandeep (FGS) D-4 (42-44 kg) Hardeep Singh (Mansa) beat Gurkirat (BTH) E-1 (34-36 kg) Gauran (HSP) beat Sahil Gupta (HSP) E-2 (36-38 kg) Rajinder Singh (JAL) beat Rajan Vaid (KPT) E-3 (38-40 kg) Jatinder Singh (ASR) beat Mohit (Mastuana) E-4 (40-42 kg) Vikramjit (Sang) beat Arun (LDH). |
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Indian Oil triumph
New Delhi, November 29 International Prabhjot Singh put the Oilmen ahead in the seventh minute when he converted a penalty corner and added the second goal in the 17th minute of second half (2-0). BSF pulled off the equaliser just two minutes before full time when Raj Singh hit true and hard, off a penalty corner. Prabhjot Singh got the man of the match award. In another match, Punjab National Bank (PNB) fought back to ground Air India 4-3. Air-India took a 2-0 lead within the first 10 minutes through Yadwinder Singh and Hardeep Kumar. PNB reduced the margin in the 22nd minute through Prem Kumar. Yadwinder Singh converted a penalty corner two minutes later to enhance the lead (3-1) but PNB got their second goal through Pramood in the 29th minute. On resumption, the Bankmen fought with vigour to pull off the equaliser in the 41st minute through Pramood while Prem Kumar slotted home the match-winner two minutes before full time. Yadwinder Singh was adjudged the man of the match. |
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Jindal lifts Hari Singh Polo Cup
New Delhi, November 29 In a thrilling title clash, Bashir Ali, who was the top-scorer for the winners in the 14-goal tournament, hit the match-winner a few seconds before the final hooter. Basheer and Samir Suhag, the two star polo players of the country, excelled for Jindal Steel. |
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Indo-Pak shooting events from Dec 6 Ropar, November 29
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