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India wrap up Davis Cup tie
Weather plays spoilsport
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HPCA ignored Met office forecast
Photo exhibition on cricket
BCCI keen to invite Pervez
Bindra hopes for a ‘dosti’ series
I am keyed up for series
Aussies sweep series
SA beat Zimbabwe Narain impresses in qualifying round
Anand draws with Topalov
HPCA selects 20 players for camp
Randhawa keeps hopes alive
Kahlon in joint lead
Gurbaaz Mann wins title
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India wrap up Davis Cup tie
New Delhi, March 5 With India having wrapped up the contest, the redundant reverse singles matches tomorrow will be best-of-three contests. In the morning, Prakash Amritraj completed the unfinished task of disposing of Wang Yu Junior at 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 in one hour and 30 minutes in the second singles to give the hosts a 2-0 lead. Leander and Mahesh were expected to breeze through the doubles, but had to sweat it out before clinching victory. Prakash, who was leading by 6-3, 2-3 in the second singles when the tie was halted due to rain last evening, took the court today morning under bright sunshine with his guns blazing. He conquered a fighting Wang with a fine display of serve-and-volley tennis to register his first Davis Cup victory after four losses. Prakash retained serve in the sixth game, which was the first thing he did in the morning, by firing three aces. He then broke the left-handed Wang in the seventh game to cruise to victory though he could have pocketed the set in the ninth game itself, but squandered three break points to allow the Chinese hold his serve. Prakash, who hit stunning net volleys and made many double-handed backhand returns from the deep court, tasted success early in the third set when he broke Wang in the third game, but lost his focus for a brief while in the very next game to be broken for the first time. He broke back in the fifth and seventh games to put India 2-0 ahead. Harsh Mankad had defeated Peng Sun 7-5, 6-3, 6-2 in the opening singles yesterday. The crowd was abuzz with excitement as Leander and Mahesh took the field against Ben-Qiang and Wang Yu for the vital doubles, with the stadium almost near full. The Indian duo looked poised for a quick finish, but along the way, Mahesh ran into a kind of a road block as his returns were crashing either into the net, or going astray. The Chinese pair played in tandem, rushing to the net for quick kills, and kept the fight boiling, fighting back from the brink. They saved three break points in the fifth game to hold serve, and then fought it out to take the set to the tie-breaker where it was a see-saw battle, with Mahesh being broken when on the verge of set point. Eventually, the tie-breaker was decided at 13-11, which was the longest ever played by the Indian duo in Davis Cup, bettering the 12-10 record of Ramesh Krishnan and Leander Paes against Marc Rosset and Jakob Hlac of Sweden in 1993. In the second set, the Indian pair got a break in the eighth game to cruise to victory but found the going tough in the third set. The set would have been India’s had Mahesh not fumbled with his returns in the third game when India enjoyed two break points, but let go the chance. And then shockingly, Leander’s serve was broken in the sixth game, with the Indian star serving two double faults to confound matters. India failed to break back the left-handed-right-handed Chinese pair and the contest stretched to the fourth set, in which Wang was broken in the second and sixth games to settle the issue. Here again, India were lucky when Mahesh managed to hold serve in the seventh game, saving two break points. India will now await the winners of the tie between Uzbekistan and Indonesia in the Asia-Oceania World Group play-off match, which is likely to be held in India. “I am really happy with the way Prakash and Harsh played”, captain Leander Paes remarked after the Indian triumph. He said had these youngsters not won, he would have been blamed for taking a chance. “It’s after a long time that we have won the tie in two days”, Leander noted. India last won a Davis Cup tie in two days against Lebanon four years ago. Leander blamed the “scratchy court” for the doubles tie stretching to four sets and over two hours. The uneven bounce was hampering the return of Mahesh, who is otherwise considered as the better doubles player, though he was the weak link today. Leander admitted that they could not really dominate the Chinese pair the way they wanted to be. Mahesh observed that “we played as well as the court let us play. The court was not giving us any rhythm”. |
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Australia win
Sydney, March 5 The Australians fought back to score a gritty win in a rain-interrupted match after Melzer and Knowle looked likely to keep the tie alive going into tomorrow’s reverse singles. Hosts Australia, 28 times Davis Cup champions, dominated the opening singles on Friday, but the Austrians put up a sterner fight in the doubles and took a well-earned two-sets-to-one lead against the hugely experienced pairing of Woodbridge and Arthurs. Austrian captain Thomas Muster gambled before the match by replacing Alexander Peya with Melzer though Melzer and Knowle had lost their four previous Davis Cup doubles matches together. USA draw level
with Croatia
CARSON (California): Andy Roddick defeated Mario Ancic 4-6, 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 to help the USA draw level at 1-1 with Croatia in their first round Davis Cup World Group tie after the opening singles. In the first match, Ivan Ljubicic spoiled Andre Agassi’s return to the competition with a 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 trouncing before Roddick rallied to overwhelm Ancic on the back of some huge serving, inventive play from the backcourt and a solid defence. Watching Agassi’s loss from the locker room did not put Roddick in a good frame of mind, but he managed to regain his focus after a shaky first set.
— Reuters Pak lead 2-1 in Davis Cup
KARACHI: Pakistan’s doubles pair of Aisamul Haq Qureshi and Aqeel Khan scored an upset victory over Paradorn Srichaphan and Danai Udomchoke to give the home side a crucial 2-1 lead against Thailand in the Davis Cup Asia Oceania Group I match on Saturday. The Pakistani pair dropped the second set and then failed to serve out for the match in the crucial 12th game of the fourth set, but recovered to post a 6-4, 5-7, 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) victory.
— PTI Slovakia oust
holders Spain
BRATISLAVA: Slovakia ousted Davis Cup holders Spain on Saturday,winning the doubles match in their World Group first round tie to take an unassailable 3-0 lead.
Karol Beck and Michal Mertinak clinched the upset with a 7-6, 6-4, 7-6 win over Rafael Nadal and Alberto Costa after Dominik Hrbaty and Beck put the upstart Slovaks 2-0 ahead in the opening singles on Friday. Although the Spaniards were weakened and without the powerful Carlos Moya, they started as clear favourites, having reached the final three times in the past five years.
— Reuters
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Weather plays spoilsport
Dharamsala, March 5 During the day, 45 minutes of play was possible. Board President’s XI, starting from their overnight score of 91 for 1, progressed to 120 without losing any wicket before the weather intervened again, third day in succession, ruling out any further play as the tour opener fizzled out in a dull draw. Overnight rain had left the ground unfit for play on scheduled time. Ground staff made sincere efforts to make the playing area match fit. Mopping up operations continued for hours. The match finally got under way at 1.40 pm. When at least half day’s play looked possible, unpredictable weather once again played spoilsport. Lightning and a hailstorm put paid to the hopes of the visitors from across the border and denied them any further match practice for the first Test. Only 11.4 overs were bowled today, in which Mohammad Kaif and left-handed Dheeraj Jadhav could add 29 runs to the overnight total. Jadhav added 19 more runs to his overnight total, while skipper Kaif, more circumspect of the two, scored seven runs. Both were left stranded on 49 as play came to a forced halt. Fast bowler Mohammad Sami and leg-spinner Danish Kaneria did not get to bowl much before the play stopped. It turned to be a fruitless visit for Pakistan. Chosing to bat first after winning the toss, the Pakistan team, comprising probably the players likely to play the first Test, failed to make the most of the opportunity. Except for all-rounder Abdul Razzaq and middle-order batsman Asim Kamal, none of the batsmen could stay long enough at the wicket to gain confidence before the crucial series. Their bowlers hardly got the time to bowl long spells to find the right rhythm. Scoreboard Pakistan (first innings) 273 Board President’s XI (1st innings) Dheeraj Jadhav not out 49 Satyajit Parab b Rana 11 Kaif not out 49 Extras
(lb-6, nb-5) 11 Total (1 wicket, 34 overs) 120 Fall of wicket:
1-17.aBowling: Mohammad Sami 11-2-37-0 Rana Naved-ul-Hasan 8-4-17-1, Abdul Razzaq 6-0-36-0, Danish Kaneria 9-1-24-0. |
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HPCA ignored Met office forecast
Dharamsala, March 5 Mr Chatur Singh, regional director, Meteorological Department, Chandigarh, told The Tribune over phone that it did rain during this time of the year in Dharamsala and surrounding areas. “It will not be right to say that the rain is unnatural as our department had been giving proper forecasts from time to time in this regard, he said. He added that the only difference this time was the frequency of rain had increased, but otherwise, the rainfall in Himachal Pradesh had been normal this year. Pakistan had to skip their practice session a day before the match and play was called off early yesterday and today due to bad light. Play had also to be suspended for some time in the morning due to rain. The rain failed to dampen the spirits of spectators till the end, especially the local youth. Some, however, felt that this was not the right time to hold a match in Dharamsala in view of the continuous rain. |
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Photo exhibition on cricket
Dharamsala, March 5 About 200 frames are on display, capturing different aspects of the game. These include a picture of a jubilant Indian team after it won a match in Pakistan, an imposing picture of the Eden Gardens and a frame of an ecstatic Sachin holding a wicket. The 42-year-old photo journalist says many of his pictures have found a place on the walls of rooms of several cricketers. “Cricket has been a passion for me. It always saddened me to see cricketers being profiled in non-flattering poses. When I clicked a profile of Ajay Jadeja in 1996, he liked it and asked for 300 copies,” says Sharma, who has been the official photographer for many international matches. |
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Bangalore, March 5 “He is Pakistan’s President, we would be happy to invite him but in protocol matters the Government and the External Affairs Ministry is involved,” BCCI Secretary S.K. Nair said here, adding that the Centre would have to decide on extending the invitation. Reports from Pakistan said General Musharraf has evinced interest in visiting India to watch one of the matches of the series. Nair clarified that he had only seen press reports on Musharraf’s keenness to visit India and said there had been no communication from the Pakistan Cricket Board in this regard. AHMEDABAD: Even though the Gujarat Cricket Association
(GCA) has not received any intimation from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), it has extended standing invitation to Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf if he decides to watch the fourth Indo-Pak ODI at Motera Stadium here on April 12. Talking to newspersons here on Saturday, GCA president Narhari Amin said maximum security was being provided to the visiting Pakistani team, right from their arrival at the airport, to the hotel and the stadium for the match and for practice the previous day. “In an Indo-Pak match, the President of Pakistan perhaps does not need an invitation as has been quoted in a Pakistan newspaper. If he insists, it can be decided by Government of India or BCCI as to which match he (Gen Musharraf) wanted to watch.” he said.
— PTI, UNI |
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Bindra hopes for a ‘dosti’ series
Chandigarh, March 5 In the words of Mr Inderjit Singh Bindra, President of the Punjab Cricket Association, the series between the two teams, which consists of three Tests and six one-day matches, should witness a fresh surge of “dosti” between the two
neighbours. By current estimates the Mohali Test is likely to draw the largest number of spectators from across the border given the proximity of Punjab. Mr Bindra wants the people of Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula, where over 5000 Pakistani fans will stay during the five days of play, to give a warm welcome to the visitors. He wants that the hospitality which the people of Pakistan in general and the people of Lahore in particular extended to visitors from India in the series last year to be repeated. Given the enthusiasm seen over the past weeks, the visitors from Pakistan will be extended all hospitality. “Cricket is a great binding force between the two countries. In 1999, about 5000 persons had come from Pakistan to Chandigarh to witness a one-day between the two countries at the PCA Stadium. All of them still speak nostalgically about that trip. We want them to take back even more happier memories of this trip,” Mr Bindra said. Hundreds of people of Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula have responded heartily to the request of the Punjab Cricket Association to house the fans from across the border. The visiting fans should have no problems either in going to the stadium or in going around the city, given the warm feeling the residents have for them. Mr Bindra said the successful hosting of the Indo-Pak Punjab Games, the World Punjab Conference as also the media conference by the Chandigarh Press Club had given the PCA an added impetus to welcome the guests from Pakistan to witness not only the Test match but also what this city has to offer, right from shopping to musical evenings and special film shows. The PCA President was of the view that such contact between people of the two countries was a big step in improving bilateral relations. He said he was surprised to see Pakistani fans sporting Indian flags on their cheeks during the series last year. He was hopeful to see such a spectacle at Mohali too. Mr Bindra said the PCA had decided that spectators would be allowed to carry flags into the stadium as had been permitted by the Pakistani authorities during the series last year. |
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I am keyed up for series
An India-Pakistan series is special for every Indian cricketer, but in my case I am really keyed up for this one. I was not part of India’s historic tour to Pakistan last year because of my injured hand, and that was a really frustrating time for me.
When my team-mates got back to India, they came back with great stories not only about the cricket itself but also about the unbelievable levels of hospitality they enjoyed wherever they went. It was also a great time on the field for Indian cricket with the team winning the series in both forms of the game, and I will always regret not being in the dressing room when we registered those famous victories. The other reason I’m really looking forward to the series is because I have come back after having my action cleared in Australia. It was a difficult time for me since my ‘doosra’ delivery was under the scanner. I was confident that my action was clean, but I was pretty nervous when I landed in Australia for the prescribed tests. The fear was even greater as I went through the long-drawn-out procedure involving 12 bio-mechanic cameras, which were recording my every movement. In fact, that took around 45 minutes, after which I was made to bowl for another 45 minutes. The whole test lasted around two hours and it was a pretty draining experience. I was also taken aback when I was told that my traditional off-spinner was also being checked, and I was a little apprehensive when my normal action was also looked at. However, I was pretty confident of my innocence and I thank God for seeing me through the ordeal. I would also like to thank Mr Jagmohan Dalmiya for being a pillar of support right through, and I am truly glad that the whole episode is now behind me. I am now looking forward to taking the field once again, and I used the Duleep Trophy games just to get back my rhythm and focused on bowling long spells. The Pakistan team is young but they are by no means short on talent and experience. The latter is provided by the likes of Inzamam-ul-Haq, Yousuf Youhana and Younis Khan, while youngsters like Salman Butt look extremely promising. Importantly, the team is coming here immediately after an Australia tour. The rigours of playing the Australians always forces the opposition to raise their level of performance. This was evident in the way Pakistanis played towards the end of the tour Down Under. They may have lost, but there were quite a few good performances from the side. This is an indication that their boys are now at their toughest. I don’t really believe in personal targets before a series. Instead, I will try to contribute to ensuring that we win the series. In this particular contest, off-field conduct is also very important, and I know that the people of Chandigarh and indeed the rest of India will go all out to ensure that our neighbours have a really memorable time in India. The cricket will be tough and uncompromising, but we will have to be at our best behaviour to ensure that every visitor leaves with nothing but pleasant memories of India.
— Gameplan |
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Aussies sweep series
Napier, March 5 Ponting relished the flat batting pitch as he cracked 141 off 127 balls, while Gilchrist was merciless, hammering 91 off 61 balls as Australia reached 347 for five and then restricted New Zealand to 225 for eight. Scoreboard Australia Gilchrist c Cumming Katich c McCullum Ponting not out 141 Martyn c Fleming Symonds run out 17 Clarke c Cumming Hussey not out 0 Extras (lb-7, w-2, nb-1) 10 Total
(5
wkts, 50 overs) 347 Fall of wickets: 1-37, 2-129, 3-204, 4-241, 5-335. Bowling:
Mills 10-1-67-1, Hamilton 10-0-76-1, Canning 10-0-80-1, Vettori 10-0-37-0, McMillan 7-0-63-1, Cumming 3-0-17-0. New Zealand Cumming lbw b Lee 13 Fleming c Gilchrist Marshall run out 28 Marshall b Kasprowicz 0 McMillan c Hogg McCullum c McGrath Canning b Kasprowicz 16 Vettori not out 16 Mills c Kasprowicz Hamilton not out 1 Extras (b-1, lb-1, w-3, nb-2) 7 Total:
(8
wkts, 50 overs) 225 Fall of wickets: 1-39, 2-60, 3-60, 4-103, 5-167, 6-196, 7-199, 8-223. Bowling:
Lee 10-0-34-1, McGrath 10-0-45-1, Kasprowicz 10-2-36-3, Hogg 10-0-53-0, Clarke 5-0-30-0, Symonds 5-0-25-2.
— AFP |
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SA beat Zimbabwe
Cape Town, March 5 South Africa’s first innings of 340 for three declared was the fastest in the history of Test cricket. South Africa scored their runs off 50 overs at 6.8 per over. They surpassed the previous record of 296 off 51 overs at a rate of 5.8 held by Australia against South Africa in Johannesburg in 2002-2003. It was the third world record of the match following Jacques Kallis’ whirlwind half century off only 24 balls and the 286-run first innings lead after the first day of a Test. Scoreboard Zimbabwe (first innings): 54 South Africa (first innings): Smith c Masakadza b Cremer 121 De Villiers c Blignaut b Cremer 98 Rudolph not out 49 Kallis c Blignaut b Cremer 54 Gibbs not out 8 Extras: (lb-1, w-1, nb-8) 10 Total:
(for three wickets
declared, 50 overs)
340 FoW: 1-217, 2-234, 3-328. Bowling: Streak 13-0-90-0, Mpofu 12-2-53-0, Blignaut 6-0-44-0, Chigumbura 8-0-53-0, Cremer 9-0-86-3, Matsikenyeri 1-0-6-0, Taylor 1-0-7-0. Zimbabwe (second
innings): Matsikenyere c Rudolph b Ntini 13 Rogers c Boucher b Ntini
28 Ebrahim lbw Langeveldt 72 Masakadza c Gibbs b Boje 46 Taylor c Langeveldt b Boje
9 Taibu c sub b Langeveldt 9 Chigumbura b Boje 0 Streak c Gibbs b Kallis
12 Blignaut st Boucher b Boje 61 Cremer run out 2 Mpofu not out 0 Extras:
(b-2, lb-7, w-2, nb-2) 13 Total: (all out, 75.2 overs)
265 FoW: 1-25, 2-59, 3-157, 4-173, 5-183, 6-186, 7-186, 8-214, 9-247. Bowling:
Pollock 5-1-14-0, Ntini 16-2-68-2, Langeveldt 9.3-3-27-2, Kalliq 17.3-7-40-1, Boje 26.2-5-106-4, Rudolph 1-0-1-0.
— Reuters
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Narain impresses in qualifying round
Melbourne, March 5 The Indian ace had an eventful F1 debut, leading the way for a while in the first session, and despite losing a part of the second last session after a spin due to wet conditions, he finished ninth in qualifying, nine places ahead of Ferrari’s Schumacher, who was the slowest of the 18 cars. The 28-year-old Indian, driving for Jordan, finished the qualifying at 1 minute 44.357 seconds. Renault driver Giancarlo Fisichella secured provisional pole position setting the fastest time of 1:33.171 at the 5.303 km Albert Park circit where the Grand Prix kicks off tomorrow. In fact, Karthikeyan’s run helped Jordan set the fastest qualifying lap of the Bridgestone runners under the new format for 2005. Karthikeyan’s team-mate Tiago Monteiro finished 13th quickest. Fisichella was 2.1 seconds faster than Toyota’s Jarno Trulli. Mark Webber of Williams was placed third and former world champion Jacques Villeneuve of Sauber recovered from a spin to finish fourth. The Indian driver was one of the few beneficiaries of a dry track in qualifying, only for the heavens to open up and lash the last half of the session, rendering useless the hopes of defending champion Michael Schumacher, Juan Pablo Montoya, Rubens Barrichello, Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso. Karthikeyan could only dream of a seven-second advantage over Schumacher, yet he will take that into tomorrow’s final qualifying under the new format of aggregating results from the two sessions for the make-up of the grid. “I am happy with what I have done. Obviously, I could have pushed a bit harder but I am learning step by step,” the Indian said after the race. “Qualifying was a bit tricky for the rookies today as it was so slippery.” Karthikeyan had a fabulous start to the day finishing fourth quickest in the Jordan car powered by Toyota with a time of 1:45.641 in the first session. During the second session, Karthikeyan’s car had a small fire after the driver had only completed six laps on the track that was getting dry after the early morning torrential rain. Karthikeyan quickly jumped out of the car with flames visible at the rear of the machine. The fire was extinguished subsequently by a track marshall. He took no further part in the session. Jordan team director Trevor Carlin admitted his drivers had luck on their side in qualifying, but did not expect to go that far in tomorrow’s final qualifying. “It is a great start. It is nice to be ninth even though we would be very lucky to finish there tomorrow,” he said. Karthikeyan had a none-too-memorable outing yesterday when he was fined $ 6,750 by stewards for exceeding the pit lane speed limit during opening practice.
— PTI |
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Anand draws with Topalov
Linares, March 5 The other game of the day was an exciting draw between Corus champion Peter Leko of Hungary and Brit Michael Adams. With five rounds still to come in this event, Kasparov raced to 5.5 points from his eight games while Topalov holds the sole second spot on 4.5 from as many games. Anand on 4 points has company of Leko but has played one game less than the Hungarian, while Adams is on 3.5 from eight games.
— PTI |
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HPCA selects 20 players for camp
Dharamsala, March 5 The players are Sandeep Sharma, Ankur Bassi, Sangram Singh, Manvinder Singh, Paras Dogra, Munish Gupta, Ajay Manu, Vishal Bhatia, Ashok Thakur, Vikramjit Malik, Virender Sharma, Mohinder Sharma, Varun Mishra, Saurav Rattan, Rajinder Thakur, Ankit Aggarwal, Amit Negi, Mukesh Sharma, Kuldeep Diwan and Vijay Boon. |
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Randhawa keeps hopes alive
Dubai, March 5 Randhawa, the lone Indian left in the field after the exit of Arjun Atwal at the midway stage of the tournament, began with a birdie on the second, but faltered between the fourth and eighth holes, as he dropped three shots in that period. Then he made four birdies between 10th and 16th and finally ended at five-under for three days and in tied 32nd.
— PTI |
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Kahlon in joint lead
Phuket, March 5 Kahlon, 34, whose sole win on the Asian Tour came at home in the Hero Honda Masters 2002, was at nine-under 207 after rounds of 70, 70 and 67, while Barr following up on his first two rounds of 65 and 68 had a two-over 74, the same as Jeev Milkha Singh, the first round leader. Jeev was in the lead from the very start and then held it with two holes to go at 11-under. But then he bogeyed the 17th and double bogeyed the 18th to drop into a three-way tie for third place at eight-under 208.
— PTI |
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Gurbaaz Mann wins title
Gurgaon, March 5 The team event was won by Vijay Kumar (pro) Vijay Chauhan, Shiela Sangwan and Simon YS Shim. The runner-up team included Gurbaaz Mann (pro) Nikhil Chopra, Vikramjit Sen and Rajan Kapoor. The two select Indian corporate players were Ashish Bharatram and Pradeep Shah. The longest drive award was won by Nikhil Chopra (296 yards). Closest to the Ballantine’s 17th hole pin was Kapil Dev at 6 ft 4 inches.
— UNI |
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An India-Pakistan series is special for every Indian cricketer, but in my case I am really keyed up for this one. I was not part of India’s historic tour to Pakistan last year because of my injured hand, and that was a really frustrating time for me.
When my team-mates got back to India, they came back with great stories not only about the cricket itself but also about the unbelievable levels of hospitality they enjoyed wherever they went.
