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Team-mates for Shoaib’s omission?
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ICC panel for changes in ODI format Sydney, February 4 The International Cricket Council is considering radical changes in the one-day cricket format which, if agreed to during its two-day meeting that started in Melbourne yesterday, are likely to be implemented as early as this year.
Yuvraj, Harbhajan power North Zone to win
Indian colts sweep series
North Zone win Deodhar Trophy
Montgomerie, Lonard share lead
Sharapova advances, Dementieva out
Harikrishna in joint lead
Punjabi University clinch fencing titles
Fund crunch halts work
on complex
HC restrains AICF chief on appointments
HC directs
Mohun Bagan to hold elections
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Australia win by 18 runs
Melbourne, February 4 Lee and McGrath took two wickets each in their opening spells as Australia, defending 237, had Pakistan reeling at nine for three and then 27 for four. Lee returned 3-23 and McGrath had 3-34 as Pakistan reached 219 for nine in reply. Pakistan regained an outside chance of an upset in a 91-run fifth-wicket stand between skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq (51) and Shoaib Malik (66), but hopes faded when Lee returned in his second spell to dismiss Inzamam. Andrew Symonds led the Australian batsmen, scoring 91 off 101 balls and sharing a 137-run fourth-wicket partnership with Damien Martyn (53) after the hosts had struggled to 53 for 3. The Australians lost their last seven wickets for 47 after Martyn’s dismissal, including 5-24 to be all out in the 49th over at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Pakistan also lost their wickets in bundles. Lee trapped Salman Butt (0) lbw and bowled Yousuf Youhana (2) in his opening spell, while McGrath chimed in with the wickets of Kamran Akmal (4) and Mohammad Hafeez (13) to have Pakistan in trouble at 27 for four. Inzamam and Malik restored Pakistan’s innings before Lee struck again in the second over of his second spell. Inzamam had batted patiently, hitting a boundary and a six off 83 balls before he was caught at long leg by McGrath as Pakistan slipped to 118 for five in the 33rd over. Abdul Razzaq (3) was run out, making the total 123 for six in Lee’s next over. He was backing up on Malik’s attempted single when Symonds fielded from close range and knocked down the stumps with a diving, underarm throw. Malik and Shahid Afridi added 30 in 3.4 overs before paceman Jason Gillespie cramped Malik’s attempted pull shot and got an edge that carried to Darren Lehmann at mid-off. Afridi (26) plundered three sixes in his rapid-fire 15-ball innings, including a wild swipe off Symonds that Martyn caught and then carried over the boundary. He was Gillespie’s second wicket, top-edging a short ball to Simon Katich in the deep. Rana Naved-ul-Hasan (29) frustrated Australia’s bowling attack until he was dismissed by McGrath in the last over. Rana claimed a wicket at each end of the Australian innings and had figures of 2-50. Afridi and Razzaq both had hat-trick chances, each taking wickets on consecutive balls as the Australian middle and lower order folded. Razzaq returned 3-33 off 10 overs and Afridi took 2-50. Afridi had Martyn stumped and Lehmann (0) caught behind attempting a reverse sweep, both with the total at 190 in the 41st over. Katich (9) blocked the hat-trick ball, but he was out to Razzaq in the 45th over as Australia slipped to 213 for six. Razzaq removed Symonds with his subsequent delivery, the Australian allrounder swiping at a short ball and directing a catch to Inzamam in the covers. Inzamam said Mohammad Khalil was in doubt for the second final at Sydney on Sunday after dislocating his left shoulder in a fielding collision with Rana in the 23rd over of Australia’s innings. Scoreboard
Australia Gilchrist c Razzaq b Khalil 24 Clarke lbw Rana 9 Ponting b Rao 11 Martyn st Akmal b Afridi 53 Symonds c Haq b Razzaq 91 Lehmann c Akmal b Afridi 0 Katich c sub (Yasir) b Razzaq 9 Watson c Hafeez b Razzaq 4 Lee b Rana 13 Gillespie not out 3 McGrath run out 1 Extras:
(b-1, lb-8, w-7, nb-3) 19 Total: (all out, 49 overs) 237 Fall of wickets:
1-29, 2-51, 3-53, 4-190, 5-190, 6-213, 7-213, 8-220, 9-235 Bowling:
Rana 9-0-50-2, Anjum 8-1-27-1, Khalil 4-0-30-1, Afridi 10-0-50-2, Razzaq 10-0-33-3, Hafeez 8-0-38-0. Pakistan
Butt lbw Lee 0 Akmal c Gillespie b McGrath 4 Hafeez c Watson b McGrath 13 Youhana b Lee 2 Haq c McGrath b Lee 51 Malik c Lehmann b Gillespie 66 Razzaq run out 3 Afridi c Katich b Gillespie 26 Rana c Lehmann b McGrath 29 Rao not out 19 Khalil not out 0 Extras
(lb-3, w-2, nb-1) 6 Total (9 wickets, 50 overs) 219 Fall of wickets:
1-1, 2-7, 3-9, 4-27, 5-118, 6-123, 7-153, 8-171, 9-216. Bowling:
Lee 10-0-23-3, McGrath 10-3-34-3, Gillespie 10-0-47-2, Watson 9-1-38-0, Lehmann 4-0-29-0, Symonds 7-0-45-0.
— AP, Reuters |
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Team-mates for Shoaib’s omission?
Islamabad, February 4 Top players, including Inzamam, Yousuf Youhana, Abdul Razzaq, Shahid Afridi, Younis Khan, Rana Naved-ul Hassan and Salman Butt have all decided to insist on omitting Shoaib from the India tour after their return from Australia, local daily The Nation reported today. The players threatened to boycott the remaining part of the Australian tour and the series against India if Shoaib was included, the newspaper claimed. The host of reports appearing in the local media casting doubts about the inclusion of the Rawalpindi Express in the squad against the arch-rivals were part of the campaign, it said, adding that the players were against recalling Shoaib in the squad as the team had begun to do well without him. Shoaib was called back by the PCB midway through the tour of Australia claiming that the player was given rest and time to recuperate from his injuries to be fit for the series against India. The PCB, on its part, denied the reports of rebellion in the team over Shoaib but at the same time was taking pains to explain why he was recalled despite the fact that the best medical facilities were available in Australia and the team was accompanied by a qualified foreign physio and doctor. Talking to the same paper, PCB media director Abbas Zaidi dismissed the talk of revolt in the team. “There is no such thing and they are all playing for the country, doing their job as one unit,” he said. Asked about PCB Chairman Shahrayar Khan’s reported comments that Shoaib could face the axe, Zaidi said the PCB chief had only stated that the speedster would be considered if he was fully fit. Nevertheless, a question mark hangs over Shoaib’s inclusion in the squad as PCB officials are also surprised to see the team doing well ever since the fast bowler was recalled home last month, the newspaper said. Since then, the team won a match each against the mighty Australians and the West Indies and qualified for the finals to play the home team in the triangular cricket series. Medium pace Naved-ul-Hassan Rana, who took over from Shoaib, has done well to make inroads into the rival teams and refused to return home despite the death of his father, a move widely appreciated by the PCB and cricket experts here.
— PTI |
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ICC panel for changes in ODI format
Sydney, February 4 The ICC Cricket Committee, headed by Sunil Gavaskar, recommended the rules to make the shorter version of the game “rather challenging and interesting”. According to the reports in the Australian media, Gavaskar has said the proposed changes were regarding rotating the 15-over fielding restrictions and a double-play — when two batsmen may be dismissed from a single ball — which were already being experimented in South African domestic cricket. “I think it has become a little predictable, the one-day game. We’ve looked at a double-play situation, where if a batsman’s been given out lbw and the ball ricochets off to gully and the fielder picks it up and throws it at the non-striker’s end, so you have two dismissals off one ball. Same if the ball’s gone up in the air (and is caught),” Gavaskar was quoted as saying in The Melbourne Age. The committee, comprising representatives of all full-member countries, also proposed that fielding restrictions - now placed in the first 15 overs of a match — should be rotated according to the batting team’s wishes. “The first idea was to leave it to the fielding side but then we thought that you might have a situation where the fielding side is so good, they might dismiss the opposition in 35 overs and have no field restrictions at all,” Gavaskar said. “What we have suggested is that the batting side will choose the 15 overs it wants. That makes it all the more challenging for the fielding side,” he added. The changes, if passed by the member countries, could be implemented as early as September, an ICC spokesman said. Gavaskar, however, said, Twenty20 cricket would not be introduced at the international level for a few years, since after England and South Africa only Australia is planning to stage it at the domestic level. “I think it won’t be added to the international calendar in a hurry because only three out of 10 teams have got it,” he said, adding that “but if it is successful, then I think other countries will be encouraged to try it out.” Gavaskar also praised the recent improvement in sportsmanship in the
Australian team. “The fact that they realised they would not be remembered as a winning team as fondly as the West Indies were remembered may well have made them look at this. “It hasn’t stopped them winning, but it’s made them more likeable. I think there’s been a big change in the Australian approach to the game as far as verbal intimidation of players is concerned. I think there’s been a great improvement,” he said.
— PTI
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Yuvraj, Harbhajan power North Zone to win
Valsad, February 4 Chasing a victory target of 213 runs, North Zone proved their superiority, making 214 for six in 42 overs. With this win, North Zone added four more points to their kitty and were on 14 points. North Zone, skippered by Dinesh Mongia in the absence of Virendra Sehwag, had a disastrous start as they lost their top three wickets with the team score reading just 16. A captain’s knock was expected of Mongia, who in partnership with Yuvraj, looked to steer the boat out of trouble. Mongia, just when he was looking good, got out caught and bowled by pacer Vishnuwardhan for 19 runs off 26 balls, laced with three hits to the fence. Yuvraj scored a delightful unbeaten century under pressure and was involved in a fine fifth-wicket partnership with Jadeja (34) to steer the team to the win with 8 overs to spare. Vishnuwardhan was the most successful bowler for South Zone, claiming three wickets for 35 runs. Yohanan, Sreekumar Nair and S. Sriram claimed one wickets each. Earlier, South Zone captain V.V.S. Laxman might have regretted his decision to bat first after winning the toss as they lost batsman at regular intervals and could make only 212 runs for nine wickets in their allotted 50 overs. Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh did the star-turn for his team, bowling a superb spell to end with four wickets for 48 runs. For South Zone, all-rounder Venugopal Rao was the top scorer with 59, which was studded with two sixes and two boundaries. He was dismissed by Harbhajan, caught by Gagandeep Singh. Laxman also failed to make a mark and could made only six runs before becoming the second victim of pacer Amit Bhandari. Opener-wicket keeper Dinesh Kaarthick made 46 runs while S. Sriram made 36 runs. Sriram was caught and bowled by Mongia in his first over. Harbhajan’s demolition act was ably supported by Bhandari and all-rounder Joginder Sharma who took two wickets each. — UNI
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Indian colts sweep series
Jamshedpur, February 4 Resuming at overnight 189 for four, England were all out for 258 in reply to India’s first innings 472 for four declared and conceded a deficit of 214 runs. After being forced to follow on, the England team collapsed dramatically and their second innings fell like a house of cards for a paltry 77. It was debutant leggie Shahbaz Nadeem’s spin web which had the England batsmen in tangle as the home state youngster returned with a match figure of 10 for 131.
— UNI |
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North Zone win Deodhar Trophy
Valsad, February 4 Chasing a victory target of 213 runs, North Zone proved their superiority, making 214 for six in 42 overs. With this win, North Zone added four more points to their kitty and were at 14 points. With Central Zone’s stunning upset win over West Zone at
Jamnagar, there were no last-minute hitch to North Zone claiming the
trophy. JAMNAGAR: After pulling off the biggest upset of the tournament by defeating North Zone, Central Zone sprung another surprise on Friday when they defeated West Zone by 12 runs in a crucial Deodhar trophy one-day encounter here. Buoyed by half centuries by middle-order batsmen Suresh Raina and J.P. Yadav, the Mohammed
Kaif-led Central Zone posted a competitive total of 282 runs from their allotted overs. In reply, West Zone’s much-vaunted batting line-up could not achieve the victory target, being bowled out for 270 in 49.1 overs.
— UNI
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Montgomerie, Lonard share lead
Sydney, February 4 Montgomerie followed up his opening round of 68 to reach the halfway stage at nine-under-par 133 as the wet and windy conditions that drenched the course on the first gave way to perfect blue skies and sunshine. Lonard, winner of the Australian Open and Australian PGA titles in November and December, joined Montgomerie at the top of the leaderboard with a 68 that featured an eagle three at the second. South African Trevor Immelman, joint overnight leader with Lonard and Englishman Steve Webster, fired a 69 to finish just one shot off the pace, level with 23-year-old Australian Jarrod Lyle. Lyle, who was diagnosed with leukaemia as a teenager but made a full recovery, made a flying start to his round, collecting four birdies and an eagle to turn in 30. He twice got to 10-under with birdies on the back nine but two late bogeys saw him end the day at eight-under, and suddenly in contention to win his first big title. Sweden’s Henrik Stenson and Australian pair Craig Parry and James Nitties finished the day at seven-under, just two shots off the pace, but the most ominous move was made by defending champion Ernie Els. The South African world number three is chasing his fourth straight win in Australia’s richest golf tournament. He shot one-over in the opening round but stormed back into contention with a 64 today, four short of the course-record 60 he set last year. Els carded eight birdies and had just one blemish in his round to join a group of five players at six-under though he was still not happy. Another nine players, including first round leader Webster, finished the day a further shot back. Montgomerie, playing the back nine first, went out in a respectable one-under 34 but picked up five shots to come home in a sizzling 31. The 41-year-old won the Australian Masters at his last visit to Melbourne in 2001 and while his form has slipped in recent years, the big Scot said he was starting to turn the corner. Els carded eight birdies and had just one blemish in his round to join a group of five players at six-under though he was still not happy. Another nine players, including first round leader Webster, finished the day a further shot back.
— Reuters |
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Sharapova advances, Dementieva out
Tokyo, February 4 Second seed Sharapova overwhelmed Elena Likhovtseva with some trademark thumping groundstrokes to win an all-Russian quarterfinal 6-3, 6-3. But Japanese hope Shinobu Asagoe scored the result of the day by beating French and US Open runner-up Dementieva 6-3, 6-4 to set up a semifinal meeting with Sharapova, a beaten semifinalist in last week’s Australian Open. Sharapova lost to Likhovtseva in two sets at Toronto in August, 2003, in their only previous encounter. Sharapova jumped ahead 5-2 in the first and 4-2 in the second set when she lapsed into making errors to lose her serve at love in the following game. And each time Sharapova broke back in the following game and never gave Likhovtseva another break opportunity. While Likhovtseva converted twice on her two break chances, Sharapova cashed in five times out of 10 break
points. In another quarterfinal match, world number one Lindsay Devenport beat Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic 6-1, 6-2.
— AFP |
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Harikrishna in joint lead
Bermuda, February 4 In a major upset, tailender Bartlomiej Macieja struck form to beat Vescovi while the other game of the day between Andrei Volokitin of Ukraine and Boris Gelfand of Israel also ended in a draw. At the halfway stage in this category-17 double round robin tournament between six players, Harikrishna, Vescovi and Gelfand share the lead on three points apiece while Dominiguez is on their toes with 2.5 in his bag. Another half a point adrift is Volokitin while Macieja, despite his fantastic victory, remains at the bottom of the tables on 1.5 points. Harikrishna is playing just too solidly in his first major all-play-all event abroad. Playing his third black in five games so far, Harikrishna played tough and did not give any chances to Dominiguez who employed the Ruy Lopez. Playing one of the well-analysed variations, Harikrishna maintained the dynamic equilibrium in the middle game with timely manoeuvres leading to balanced ending. Quite interestingly, not a single pawn was exchanged in first 16 moves but once the trading began, the pieces flew off the board as if in a heap and the players found themselves in a rook and opposite coloured Bishop endgame. The draw was a just result in 33 moves.
— PTI |
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Punjabi University clinch fencing titles
Patiala, February 4 The hosts’ men’s team accumulated 24 points to stand first in the overall placings while their eves garnered 54 points, 40 points more than their nearest rivals, Kanpur University, to emerge triumphant. In the men’s section, the hosts were followed by Panjab University, Chandigarh, with 20 points and Kurukshetra University with 17 points. In the women’s section, Kanpur University, who collected 14 points, were placed second while Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, with nine points in their kitty, finished with the wooden spoon. In the final of the sabre individual event for men, local lad Preet Mohinder Singh of TIET showed good footwork and reflexes to get the better of Amandeep Singh of Kurukshetra University 15-11. Earlier, in the semifinals, Preet Mohinder Singh downed Rahul Tanwar of Kurukshetra University 15-5 while Amandeep Singh beat Harsimran Singh of Punjab Technical University
(PTU) by an equal margin. In the final of the epee individual event for men, Harpreet Singh of the hosts did not have to exert himself much to notch up a facile 15-10 win against Vikramjeet Singh of Panjab University. Earlier, in the last four round bouts, Harpreet Singh downed Rahul Tanwar of Kurukshetra University 15-10 while Vikramjeet Singh beat Preet Mohinder of
TIET. Both the losing semifinalists were declared joint third. In the final of the sabre individual event for women, Punjabi University once again proved their superiority when Navjot Kaur downed her colleague Ranjit in a tight contest 15-13. Earlier, in the semifinals, Ranjit downed Leelavati of Periyar University 10-4 while Navjot Kaur beat Amandeep Kaur of GNDU, Amritsar, with the minimum of fuss 10-4. In the women’s section, the foil individual title went to the hosts when Gurdeep Kaur downed her colleague Karamjeet Kaur 15-9 while Vikramjeet Singh of Panjab University clinched the title in the men’s section when he tamed Harpreet Singh of Punjabi University 15-12. |
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Fund crunch halts work
on complex Moga, February 4 Sources said the Punjab Urban Development Authority (PUDA) had been constructing the sports complex in association with the Sports Department and Municipal Council, but work was stopped midway due to over-expenditure. The sources said the foundation stone for the complex was laid during the SAD-BJP regime in the state and local MLA Tota Singh had played a key role in it. Planned to be built at a cost of Rs 3.5 crore, the complex was to have a gymnasium and a swimming pool, besides dressing rooms for sportspersons and coaches. The Municipal Council had allotted seven acres for the complex by passing a resolution on May 19, 1999. The MC had also entered into an agreement with the Sports Department, under which the department had to provide coaching to local sportspersons. The sources said the Sports Council of India had sanctioned Rs 1.5 crore and the Sports Department had released Rs 60 lakh for the construction of the complex, but work was stopped when its roof had been laid to a great extent.
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HC restrains AICF chief on appointments
Chennai, February 4 Mr Justice R. Balasubramanian passed an interim order to this effect on a petition filed by P.T. Ummer Koya, whom the Judge had earlier restrained from functioning as secretary and Mr Somen Majumdar as treasurer. In his petition, Mr Koya prayed that the interim injunction restraining him and Mr Majumdar be vacated. Mr Justice Balasubramanian also restrained Mr Srinivasan from implementing any decisions taken, in case any meeting of the AICF had already been convened. Yesterday, Mr Srinivasan nominated AICF vice-president D.V. Sundar and Jharkhand Association secretary and International Master Neerajkumar Mishra secretary and treasurer, respectively, in place of Mr Koya and Mr Majumdar. — UNI
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HC directs
Mohun Bagan to hold elections
Kolkata, February 4 A Division Bench appointed senior advocates S.P. Roychowdhury and Jayanta Mitra and government pleader Rabilal Moitra in the panel and asked it to complete the election process by July 31. The bench also directed that the elections be held through casting ballot and made it mandatory for voters to carry photo identity cards. The existing executive committee would have to hand over charge to the new committee within seven days after the elections, the court said. All expenses of the special committee would be borne by the three-member panel appointed earlier to run the soccer affairs of the club.
— PTI
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Ajit Pal to be honoured
Chandigarh, February 4 He said this year’s Rural Sports Festival would feature not only top teams in basketball (boys and girls),
kabaddi, volleyball and hockey (boys and girls) but also top wrestlers of the country during the three-day festival. Competitions will also be organised in smashing volleyball. The main wrestling bout will be between
Rustam-e-Hind Harwinder Alamgir and Sher-e-Hind Sarwar Mohali on the opening day. The winner would be crowned with the Punjab Kesri title. There will be a cultural programme also in which singers Harbhajan Mann and Gill Hardeep will perform.
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Shokeen to meet Jeevan in final
New Delhi, February 4 In the semifinals today, Jeevan disposed of unseeded Jun Cheo Xu of China 6-2, 7-6 (3) while Vivek Shokeen stunned second-seeded Sanam K Singh 6-4, 6-3. However, Sanam had some consolation as he paired up with Jeevan to beat Shokeen and Sumit Gupta 7-6 (3), 7-6 (6) in the boys doubles title clash. In the girls singles, third-seeded Madura Ranganathan will take on fifth seeded Amina Rakhim of Kazakhstan. Madura scalped top-seeded Xenlya Palkina of Kirgyzstan 6-4, 7-6 while Rakhim got the better of Elenora Sitdjemileva of Uzbekistan 6-4, 6-0. In the girls doubles final, Rakhim and Palkina defeated Laura-Loana Andrei and Justina Derungs 6-2, 6-1.
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Zakir Husain soccer
New Delhi, February 4 In another match, Jamia Millia Islamia trounced Ram Lal Anand College 5-0. Phea (2), DJ Varte, Clyde Reius and Hyang Boypiu were the marksmen. Jamia and the hosts also made it to the semifinals, which will be played tomorrow. |
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Jalandhar college win
New Delhi, February 4 In other matches, St. Joseph’s College, Bangalore, edged past Khalsa College, Patiala, 1-0 while Loyola College, Chennai, pipped Faculty of Youth Affairs and Adventure Sports, Gwalior, 5-0.
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In video: Harbhajan to correct suspect action under Australian
biomechanic next week.
