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India need killer instinct, says John Wright
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Dalmiya expects crowd of over 100,000
Pak report flays Koertzen, Hair
Noted cricket
columnist Kureishi dead
Indian shooters continue good run
Sunil Dutt hails shooters’ performance
Wild card for Sania in Florida tournament
Mauresmo upset
Women boxers win two silver medals
Churchill Brothers down Salgaocar
Padraig Harrington holds the winner’s trophy after defeating Vijay Singh in a playoff in the Honda Classicin West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday. — Reuters photo
IOC, PSB in super league
ONGC move up in PSPB cricket
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India need killer instinct, says John Wright
Kolkata, March 14 Wright said it was "disappointing" how the Indians let go the golden opportunity and remarked that his players needed a killer instinct. "It was very disappointing to get to the situation we were in and then lose the opportunity. We have to start again, but it will make us more hungry,'' Wright told newspersons here. Asked about the bowlers' failure to polish off the Pakistan tail on the concluding day of the series opener at Mohali, the coach said "Great sides would have done it. We also have to get it done. It is an area we are looking into". "We need a killer instinct. We are getting better. We hope to show that in the remaining matches of the series," the former New Zealand skipper said. On whether off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, who was dropped at Mohali to make way for a three-pace attack, would be recalled into the playing eleven, Wright said "I think he has a good chance. He has done well at the Eden. But we have to wait for the selectors and (skipper) Sourav (Ganguly)". To a query whether India would go to the Eden Gardens Test with five bowlers, Wright said "that chance is always there. But I don't know whether we will do that because we have Ganguly, (Virender) Sehwag and (Sachin) Tendulkar, who are capable of taking the responsibility of the fifth bowler." Wright also parried a question on the player who could face the axe if Harbhajan made his way back. "I won't speculate on that. We need to have the right combination in place." Wright said all members of the side, including pacer Irfan Pathan, were fully fit. "We just have to ensure that we play to our potential," he said. Asked about the pitch, the former New Zealand opener replied "It's a normal Kolkata wicket. There are no surprises. "Its a good ground. The conditions suit us. We have a good chance," he said. He did not agree that the Indians frittered away the chance to win the first Test because their batsmen batted too slow. "I'll say after Ganguly got out, we were not in a position to go for quick runs." The coach said that he was happy with Dinesh Kaarthick's performance behind the wicket. "Though he conceded a few byes, he kept well to (Anil) Kumble and took all the catches." Asked whether the Indian team was finding Pak leggie Danish Kaneria a dangerous proposition, Wright said "He bowled well. But then our boys usually do play leg spinners well." He said that the Indian team would have a light workout tomorrow after going through a heavy drill today. On whether the current engagement was his last as coach of the Indian team, Wright said "This series is much important to me. So, I'm not thinking about anything else."
— PTI |
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Each Test is 50:50, says Woolmer
Kolkata, March 14 "I don't look much into history. But after Mohali, I think, each Test is 50:50," Woolmer told newspersons after the tourists had an extensive practice session at the Eden Gardens. Refusing to attach any significance to captain Inzamam-ul Haq's contention that the hosts were still the favourites for the rest of the series, he said the "tremendous rearguard action" at Mohali had been a great morale booster for the side. "I don't know about Inzamam's comment. But I think each Test is 50:50". The former England batsman, though concerned at the failure of top order batsmen like Younis Khan in the last Test, ruled out any major change in the team for the second match. "There won't be any drastic change, but only strategic changes. I don't want to change the team too much," he said. Woolmer, however, hinted that Pakistan may have to opt for five specialist bowlers given the sultry weather condition in Kolkata and absence of able stop-gap bowlers like India's Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly or Virender Sehwag. Woolmer hailed wicketkeeper-batsman Kamran Akmal, admitting that his stupendous batting at Mohali had given the team management a chance to consider inclusion of an additional bowler in the side for the second Test. About the possibility of
speedster Shoaib Akhtar joining the squad in the third Test in Bangalore, the coach said he had written to Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Shaharyar Khan in this regard and was awaiting a reply from him. The 56-year-old former South Africa coach said the Eden wicket looked "fantastic" and he expected "fantastic cricket" on the surface. Admitting that the vociferous crowd sometimes posed a factor against the visiting side at Eden, he said "I always say my batsmen to switch off their mind from the crowd noises and concentrate on their job". Though not inclined to look into history, the coach felt Pakistan's triumph over India in the BCCI Platinum Jubilee one-dayer at the same venue in November last should be at the back of his boys' minds and it should enthuse them. "But in reality, you have to play every ball as it comes." Woolmer, who has been facing criticisms due to his 'experimentations' with the Pak team, said he would continue to do so, particularly with the opening slot, "until any two of them start performing". Woolmer said he was not worried about the criticism of his work as coach in media. "I never got a good press. I am not worried (to face the criticisms). As a cricket coach I have to concentrate on my job and aim for good results". Asked about his assessment of Pakistan's rate of success since he took over the charge last year, the coach said "the team has played 27 ODIs and about seven Tests since then. In ODIs, the success rate is 68 per cent while in Tests, its 35-40 per cent. "So, in statistical terms, we are on track so far the ODIs are concerned, but have to go a long way in Tests". Besides, "the team has improved its fitness level by about 60 per cent and achieved 120 per cent improvement in attitude. The fighting quality has drastically improved after Mohali Test," he said. On fielding, Woolmer rued the missed catches at Mohali, saying "we dropped more catches in the first innings of Mohali Test than we did in previous six Test matches," he said.
— PTI |
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Pervez likely for Kochi one-dayer
New Delhi, March 14 After his plans to see the second Test at Kolkata beginning Wednesday fell through due to lack of time to ensure security arrangements, Musharraf wanted to make it to Jamshedpur for the third one-dayer scheduled April 9. But with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh caught up in engagements that day, the Pakistan president agreed to advance his trip and fly to the port city in Kerala where he will also have discussions with the Indian leader. “We are trying to convince Pakistani officials to ensure the General comes on April 2. The PM (Manmohan Singh) has no major engagements and can make the trip to Kochi,” a source told IANS. As head of Pakistan’s cricket board, Musharraf was initially keen on coming for the Kolkata Test. But a two-day chief ministers’ conclave in New Delhi at that time will prevent Manmohan Singh from joining him in
Kolkata. Musharraf last visited India in the summer of 2001 for a summit meeting in Agra with then Indian prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Earlier, Rajeev Shukla, vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), told reporters here that Kolkata had been ruled out because of lack of time to make security arrangements. “We are looking into making arrangements for him to visit Bangalore or Kochi,” said Shukla, also a member of the Rajya Sabha. Official sources, however, said security officials had already reached Kochi to check out security arrangements likely to be in place for Musharraf. The Kerala government is already preparing to give a red carpet welcome to Musharraf.
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Mohali result has made us more focused
Getting so close to victory and not being able to pull it off has left the entire team very disappointed, but it has also made us more focused for the next Test. In my first article I had said that these Pakistanis were no pushovers.
Unfortunately, on the last day at Mohali, they proved me right.
While Kamran Akmal is a bit unknown, we have played against Abdul Razzaq on numerous occasions. Yet, I have never seen him score 70-odd runs in 250 balls. It was an innings that was completely unlike his attacking style, and it was the manner in which he handled pressure that made Pakistan emerge from a hopeless situation. Though we dominated the game for four days, we were unable to push home the advantage in the first session of the final morning. There were a few edges that did not go to hand, and even though the bowlers toiled hard, Akmal and Razzaq were too good for us in that session. Their heroic exploits have been dubbed as a moral victory for the visitors. I have heard this phrase ‘moral victory’ pretty often, but have never been able to understand what it actually means. Perhaps it’s just another of those tags that the media uses every now and then. Every game starts at 0 for 0, and even when a team is ahead in the series, the last game and its result are history when a new match begins. I am not interested in moral victory and would any day prefer a real win — because that’s what every team plays for. While it was pretty disappointing to be out of the eleven for the Mohali Test, it was a good decision for the team since the conditions did favour seamers. Hopefully I will get a chance in Kolkata, my favourite venue. I have played four Tests here, and my hat-trick, 10 wickets against Australia and man of the match-winning performance against South Africa last December make it my most successful venue. Eden Gardens for me is the best arena that this sport has to offer, especially when 100,000 people are cheering me when I come in to bowl. We landed late last night, and there were a large number of people at the airport to welcome us. There is a ‘masti’ in this city, and a love for the game that really enthuses us whenever we come here. The crowds will have plenty to cheer about here. After all, Virender Sehwag looked in absolutely smashing form at Mohali. Veeru and Yuvraj Singh are players who can really leave bowlers clueless once they get going. Balaji was also great in the last game and should relish playing in Eden Gardens. He is a quiet, shy person but on the field he is a smiling assassin. I was also very impressed with Danish
Kaneria. It’s not easy for a spinner to bowl well against Indians, who are the best players of spin. However, he bowled magnificently on an unresponsive surface The team is gearing up to perform even better than we did at Mohali. The guys are disappointed but we know we were the better team in the last Test. The Kolkata crowds, the Eden pitch and large helpings of “mishti
doi” always gets me going, and I’m hoping I get a chance to do well at this special venue once again. — Gameplan |
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Dalmiya expects crowd of over 100,000
Kolkata, March 14 *** Budding cricketers and other cricket fans witnessed a practice session of the Pakistan team in the morning from the stadium galleries after getting in through special passes issued by the CAB. *** While the Pakistan players spent the entire morning doing net practice, their wives and children went out for shopping or sightseeing. They visited the
Maidan area, Victoria Memorial, Zoo gardens, the Ganga embankment, etc. Some of them also had a ride on the metro trains. *** The last batch of players, comprising Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh, Ashish Nehra and Gautam Gambhir, arrived late in the morning due to a delayed flight. They checked in at a hotel in Alipore and got ready for a post-lunch practice session at the Eden Gardens. *** Afternoon showers disrupted the Indian team’s practice session for a while. However, when the rain stopped, the players were back on the field. ODI team during Bangalore Test KOCHI: The Indian team for the forthcoming one-day series against Pakistan will be selected during the third Test at Bangalore later this month, according to BCCI secretary S.K. Nair here on Monday. Talking to newsmen here, he said the team would be announced on March 27 or 28, during the Bangalore Test, which begins on March 24. Meanwhile, he said the preparations were going on as per schedule in all the six venues for the one-day series. The BCCI was monitoring the progress of the work closely. ‘’The preparations are being completed in a time-bound manner, things will be in place in time. We are in touch with the concerned state cricket associations, specially where more improvement is needed,’’ Mr Nair said.
— IANS, UNI |
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Pak report flays Koertzen, Hair
Lahore, March 14 The News claimed it was because of the stringent International Cricket Council (ICC) Code of Conduct that the team management decided not to go to the media but captain Inzamam-ul Haq and coach Bob Woolmer, in their match reports, have given them negative ratings for ‘’inconsistent’’ umpiring. According to the daily, the team was upset with Koertzen’s decision that offered Sachin Tendulkar a life despite being caught at silly point off Danish Kaneria and Darrell Hair’s verdict that sent Inzamam back to pavilion leg before to Anil Kumble.
— UNI |
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Kaneria visits
Kalighat temple
Kolkata: Pakistan’s spinning ace Danish Kaneria on Monday visited the famous Kalighat temple here and offered
puja, seeking divine blessings for the well-being of his newly born daughter and the success of his team in the second cricket Test against India beginning at Eden Gardens on March
16. Kaneria, the only Hindu player in the Pakistan team, paid a visit to the temple in the evening and stayed for about 15 minutes to offer puja to the Goddess Kali. The youngster, who arrived at the temple escorted by the police, said, “I enjoy visiting shrines in Pakistan also. But I feel good to see so many places of worship here.”
— PTI
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Noted cricket
columnist Kureishi dead
Karachi, March 14 Last week, he was admitted to the Ziauddin Medical Centre in an extremely serious condition following a severe stroke and was on life support system since then. Kureishi was regarded the world over for his cricket reporting and analysis of the game. He was also the godfather of many cricketers, including present Chairman of Pakistan cricket selectors Wasim Bari. Born in Murree, Kureishi had his formal education in Pune and Mumbai before he headed for the United States to do his graduation. Along with Jamshed Marker, Kureishi revolutionised cricket commentary in Pakistan in the 1950s and was also the manager of the Pakistan team in the 1970s.
— PTI, UNI |
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Indian shooters continue good run
New Delhi, March 14 With this haul, India now have eight gold, five silver and two bronze medals from the tournament, a National Rifle Association of India release said here today. It was a sparkling show by the Indian duo of Sushil Ghale(1147) and Sanjeev Rajput (1132) in the free rifle three position men pair event. Their aggregate of 2279/2400 not only earned them the gold but also set a new Commonwealth shooting record. Australia (2262) won the silver while the bronze went to Wales (2256). In centre fire pistol event, ace marksman Jaspal Rana (585) and talented Ashok Pandit (569) also came up with brilliant show and totalled 1154/1200 to bag the gold. Australia (1136) settled for silver while Wales (1121)bagged the bonze. Meanwhile, despite
ousting Jingna Zang in the qualifying round, ace markswoman Anjali Bhagwat was unlucky to miss the gold and had to be satisfied with silver in the women’s air rifle individual event. Anjali shot 398/400 in the qualifying round, compared to Zang’s 396 but in the finals, the Indian could score only 100.7 while her Chinese rival shot 104.1. Zang (500.1) won gold, Anjali(498.7) bagged silver and the bronze went to Suzan Maccready (492.6). The other Indian in the fray, Pournima Zanane shot 491.2 (390+101.2) to finish fifth.
— UNI |
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Sunil Dutt hails shooters’ performance
New Delhi, March 14 In a message to the national coach, Prof Sunny Thomas, the minister commended the “brilliant performance” of all participants and commended them for their “grand success”. |
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Wild card for Sania in Florida tournament
Hyderabad, March 14 Jessica Kirkland (USA), Sesil Karatantcheva (Bul), Angela Haynes (USA), Viktoriya Kutuzova (Ukr), Anna Tatishvili (Gwo), Jamea Jackson (USA) are the other wild cards. Top players Serina Williams (USA), Maria Sharapova (Rus), Amelie Mauresmo (Fra), Svetlana Kuznetsova (Rus), Anastasia Myskina (Rus), Elena Dementieva (Rus), Venus Williams (USA), Vera Zvonareva (Rus), Nadia Petrova (Rus), Nathalie Dechy (Fra), Patty Schynder (Sui) and Justine Henin-Hardenne (Bel) have confirmed their entry in this tournament. After winning a tier-3 WTA title Hyderabad Open in front of the home crowd and reaching the quarter-finals of tier-2 WTA event Dubai Open, this was definitely going to be a big challenge for the ‘’Hyderabad Pearl,’’ who recently bagged good commercial endorsements. Speaking to UNI, the 77th ranked Sania said, ‘’This is the big event after the Australia Open in which I took part. All most all top players are in the fray. I wouldn’t say that I will win the title, but winning couple of matches is my motto. I am making some space in between other engagements for training, hoping to put up better performance and ultimately I should reach my target of top 50 as soon as possible,’’ she added. Indian tennis fans are also hoping Sania to win a couple of good matches, especially in the back drop of she resisting Serena Williams in the third round of Australia Open, beating 66th ranked Russian Maria Kirilenko in the semifinals of
Hyderabad Open and beating another Russian and seventh ranked Svetlana Kuznetsova in the second round of Dubai tennis championships. She has started this year with breaking in to top 200 reaching 77th rank playing just three tournaments.
— UNI |
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Mauresmo upset
Indian Wells, March 14 Mauresmo beat 18-year-old Linetskaya in January at the Australian Open, but the 30th-seeded Russian rebounded to pull off the biggest surprise of the tournament to date. Linetskaya is having a breakthrough season, rising more than 50 spots in the rankings since the start of the year, with semifinal appearances at her previous two events in Pattaya City, Thailand and Memphis. Meanwhile, top-ranked Roger Federer beat Mardy Fish of the USA 6-3, 6-3 to open the defence of his title. Federer, running his match record for the year to 21-1, broke Fish’s serve twice on the way to a 4-0 lead in the first set, then was in clear control the rest of the way.
— AP |
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Women boxers win two silver medals
New Delhi, March 14 India picked up another silver through Aswathy Prabha of Kerala in the 57 kg category as she went down 12-15 on points to Elena Karpacheva of Russia, a former world champion, in the title
round. The Indian team, which consisted of four boxers, arrived here today. Sixty-six boxers in 13 weight categories from 14 Asian countries participated in the tournament, with India finishing fourth. |
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Churchill Brothers down Salgaocar
Margao, March 14 The all-important goal came in the 45th minute of the first half through the man of the match Yakubu. With this win, Churchill registered their third win and moved on to the 9th spot with 13 points from 12 outings, relegating Salgaocar Sports Club to the 10th place with 12 points from equal number of outings. Though a major part of the first half was confined to the mid-field, Salgaocar came close to scoring in the 29th minute but Samson Singh’s long-ranger landed straight into the hands of rival goalkeeper Mark Mascarenhas. Churchill surged ahead in the 45th minute through ace striker Yakubu Yusif when Marcos Pereira headed the ball towards Yakubu who was lurking inside the goal and pounced upon the
opportunity and unleashed a power-packed shot which found the net to make it 1-0.
— UNI |
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Harrington pips Vijay Singh
Toronto, March 14 Vijay, Harrington and Joe Ogilvie finished the regulation 72 holes on the Sunrise course level at 14-under-par 274. The American was eliminated on the first hole of the playoff after finding a fairway bunker with his drive. “I thought it (Vijay’s putt at the second playoff hole) was a
gimme,” world number eight Harrington said at the Country Club at Mirasol in Palm Beach Gardens. “It was a shock. I was mentally prepared to go back to the tee. It was a surprise...it took me a couple of seconds for it to sink in because I was really focused,” he told reporters after becoming the first Irishman to win a PGA Tour event. Vijay Singh, who has a 5-1 record in playoffs, had an opportunity to end the suspense on the first extra hole but watched his 15-foot putt roll beyond the cup in the Florida twilight. “I’m a little disappointed,” said Vijay, who lost the world number one ranking to Tiger Woods recently. “I hit the putt a little too hard, you can’t miss putts like that in a playoff. “I played well, I struck the ball well and could have made one or two more putts out there, but I made the ones that counted. “I’m not really worried about the ranking at the moment. I just wanted to come here and have a solid tournament...the ranking is going to take care of itself.”
— Reuters |
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IOC, PSB in super league
New Delhi, March 14 Besides IOC, which qualified from Pool 2, three other teams also making the cut are - Punjab and Sindh Bank (PSB) from Pool 1, Namdhari from Pool 3 and Air India from Pool 4. It was mundane hockey from IOC which had a number of Olympians and internationals in its ranks. Deepak Thakur also made a comeback in this match after he was hit by Kanwalpreet Singh in a Maharaja Ranjit Singh hockey tournament here last month. Requiring a draw to qualify for the next stage, IOC took control of the match soon but owing to poor finishing, had to wait for 24 minutes before Bikramjeet struck. It was the second penalty corner for IOC and Bikramjeet's first attempt was thwarted by a diving BSF custodian K M Subbaiah. Bikramjeet, however, beat the latter all ends up with his second effort which pierced the net (1-0). A quick jolt awaited BSF when Bikramjeet repeated the same feat within three minutes.
— UNI |
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ONGC move up in PSPB cricket
New Delhi, March 14 Scores: IPCL: 114 for 7 in 30 overs (Gautam Patel 35, V Dongre 29, Sarandeep Singh 2 for 20). ONGC: 117 for 4 in 23.2 overs (Sundeep Sharma 43, Ajay Ratra 24 n o, Gautam Vadera 21, Naresh Gharat 2 for 26). India Oil Corporation defeated Oil India in other match. Scores: Oil India: 98 (G P Singh 28, S Bhagwati 22, Abbas Ali 2 for 11, Mahesh Kaaranjkar 2 for 12). IOC: 99 for no loss. — OSR |
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Kaleka
re-elected PDAA chief
Patiala, March 14 Mr Kaleka
had been authorised to form his own team of office-bearers for the
smooth conduct of athletic activities in the district.
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Karachi, March 14
Batistuta quits