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India looking for that extra push
Indians keyed up to win Test, says Ganguly
Harbhajan likely to be in final XI
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Bucknor to be felicitated
Injury-free Sania raring to go
Fransa beat Mohun Bagan
Gagan sets record, Samresh bags gold
India finish second
BPCL, IPCL move up
Qadir XI defeat Kapil XI
Trinidad and Tobago win
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India looking for that extra push
Kolkata, March 15 The disappointment of not being able to polish off the Pakistan lower order in quick time on the final day of the Test despite being in the driver’s seat all through the first four days must be rankling Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly though he claimed that the visitors would not gain any psychological edge despite their match-saving fightback. Ganguly would also be worried about the weather forecast in the next few days. The met office prediction of inclement skies over the next few days has cast a shadow over the match. The probability of norwesters, so common in the city during this time of the year, and the development of a trough of low pressure in the vicinity, have resulted in the met office warning of rains, thereby making the organisers a worried lot. But what seems to be occupying the Indian team management’s mind is the bowling combination, with coach John Wright already indicating that the side would revert to a two pacers, two spinners formula by reinducting offie Harbhajan Singh in the first eleven. Harbhajan was kept out of the final team at Mohali, when the Indian selectors included three pacers, with leg spinner Anil Kumble carrying the entire load of slow bowling. As the Eden wicket traditionally offers assistance to spinners at a later stage, the Indian think-tank seems to be taking into account Harbhajan’s fabulous strike rate here inclusive of a hat-trick against Steve Waugh’s world beating Australians in 2001. With Wright virtually ruling out a five-pronged bowling attack yesterday, it could be a toss-up between medium pacers Zaheer Khan and Irfan Pathan, with
Laxmipathy Balaji sitting pretty following his nine-wicket haul in the first Test. There is no such problem with the hosts’ star-studded batting line up, with most of the big guns being among runs. The dashing Virender Sehwag tore the Pakistani attack, particularly the pacers, to shreds in Mohali with his aggressive blade, and the spectators at the Eden would be hoping for yet another awe-inspiring show from the Najafgarh man. It might also turn out to be a momentous occasion for batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar, who is just a century away from breaking Sunil Gavaskar’s world record of 34 Test hundreds. Tendulkar missed the three-figure mark by only six runs at Mohali, and must be impatient to reach the landmark soon. The visitors, despite having their tails up after the commendable final day showing in Mohali, have problems afflicting both their batting and bowling departments. The top order has failed to fire, with opener Salman Butt and vice captain Younis Khan falling short of double figures in both the innings. Coach Bob Woolmer, despite ruling out any drastic changes has conceded that there would be strategic adjustments. With manager Salim Altaf contending that Younis was under pressure to retain his place, the names of all-rounders Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Malik are doing rounds as possible replacements. On the positive side, skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq has already struck form, scoring half centuries in both the innings at Mohali, while Asim Kamal and Yousuf Youhana have also come up with good performances. But it is the heroic showing of young wicket-keeper batsman Kamran Akmal, who led Pakistan out of the woods with his maiden Test hundred, that has warmed hearts in the Pakistan camp. The savage assault launched by Sehwag at Mohali made the Pakistani attack look very ordinary, with all the bowlers — except leggie Danish Kaneria — proving expensive. Woolmer has hinted that Pakistan may have to opt for five specialist bowlers given the sultry weather condition in Kolkata and the absence of able stop-gap bowlers. Off-spinner Arshad Khan, who last turned out for Pakistan more than four years back, appears to be a hot contender for a place in the team, with Sami’s dismal performance coming under the scanner. Arshad’s inclusion would also give the much-needed support to Kaneria whose performance in the first Test has been praised by all. After the clobbering at Mohali, all-rounder Abdul Razzak needs to pull up his socks, and the uncharacteristic gritty knock in the second innings could inspire him to come up with a much improved bowling performance. The toss could again be vital as the Eden wicket has traditionally assisted spinners in the last couple of days, making it advantageous for the team batting first. However, with the morning juice on the track giving good amount of movement to the pacers, the first hour’s play on all five days might also be crucial. Teams (from): India:
Sourav Ganguly (captain), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, V V S Laxman, Dinesh Kaarthick (wk), Yuvraj Singh, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Irfan Pathan, Ashish Nehra and
Laxmipathy Balaji. Pakistan: Inzamam-ul-Haq (captain), Younis Khan, Taufeeq Umar, Salman Butt, Yasir Hameed, Yousuf Youhana, Asim Kamal, Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal (wk), Arshad Khan, Danish Kaneria, Shahid Afridi, Naved-ul-Hasan, Mohammad Sami, Mohammad Khalil and Abdul Razzaq. Umpires:
Darrell Hair (Aus) and Steve Bucknor (WI). Match Referee: Chris Broad (Eng).
— PTI |
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Indians keyed up to win Test, says Ganguly
Kolkata, March 15 “All my players are fit. We were close to winning the Test in Mohali. We will try to win here,” Ganguly told a pre-match press conference here. “But there will be a lot of pressure. Its a series of three Tests. Pakistan will also go all out to win,” he said. Ganguly said that off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, who was kept out of the side in the first Test, stood a good chance of making a comeback for the second Test. “There is a good chance of him playing. But we have to take another look at the wicket before deciding on the team composition,” he said. Despite coach John Wright giving clear indications yesterday that the Indians would go into the match with a two pacer and two spinner attack, Ganguly contended that the five bowler formula (three pacers and two spinners) could also be used considering the amount of grass on the wicket. However, compared to yesterday, the wicket looked less green and the groundsmen said that more mowing would be done this evening. But Ganguly, who contended that he was happy with the wicket, said the last time he had seen so much grass on the Eden track was six years back during the Asian Test Championship match against Pakistan. The visitors had won the tie by 46 runs. When his reaction was sought on the Mohali track which did not turn on the final day, Ganguly said “It was a good wicket. I don’t think the wicket can be blamed for what we could not achieve.” Ganguly ruled out axing pacer Zaheer Khan, who had put up a dismal show in Mohali, saying “You cannot drop successful players on the basis of one match. And I also do not see many changes in the side as we played well at Mohali.” Regretting that he did not bowl on the final day of the Mohali Test, the Indian skipper said he would definitely turn his arms at Eden. He said that the toss might not play a vital role as the heat would dry out the moisture on the wicket. Asked whether the Indians were thinking of a gameplan to tackle Pakistan leggie Danish Kaneria, the captain said “He bowled well. But then he also went for 150 runs in a Test innings. “But yes, he is a quality bowler and the main weapon for Pakistan,” Ganguly added. Asserting that he was satisfied with wicketkeeper Dinesh Kaarthick’s performance, the skipper said “He conceded a few byes, but then he is aware of that.” |
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Harbhajan likely to be in final XI
Kolkata, March 15 Though the team would be finalised tomorrow morning, Sourav indicated that Harbhajan Singh would play, adding that his entry would strengthen the team. ‘Lucky venue’:
Harbhajan Singh, who spent the morning at the nets along with the captain, said he had been mentally preparing himself for taking part in the Eden Gardens Test, which had been a lucky ground for him. Though the Indian team were scheduled to start their practice at 10.30 a.m, Sourav Ganguly and Harbhajan Singh were in the ground at 9 a.m. and they completed their first round of net practices before their team-motos arrived. Danish Kaneria:
The star attraction at Mohali, Danish Kaneria, the only Hindu player in the Pakistan team, was attentive and was looking around and seeing the stadium at the nets. He said he had been dreaming of playing at the Eden Gardens and was now feeling fortunate to be playing in the Eden Gardens Test. VIP guests:
ICC President, Ehsan Mani would be present at the Eden Gardens during the match.
Also present would be the Zimbabwe cricket board president, Peter
Changakao. |
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Afridi likely to get the nod
Kolkata, March 15 “There will be two changes — one in the top order and another in the bowling department,” skipper Inzamam-ul Haq told reporters here today. About the possible new face in top order batting line up, Inzamam said “Afridi and (Yasir) Hameed are in good condition.” He, however, ruled out dropping vice-captain Younis Khan, who failed to reach the double digit in both innings of the first Test. The 35-year-old captain indicated changes in the top batting order in a bid to get a solid start to their innings. About the bowling attack, he said “the team composition will be decided this evening. Then we will decide whether to go for three pacers or two spinners.” The Pakistan captain looked satisfied with the Eden track. “Its a good wicket for Tests and will help both the batsmen and the bowlers.” On the injury blues for his side, Inzamam said pacer Naved-ul-Hasan Rana was suffering from a shoulder injury. Rana, who sustained a shoulder joint niggle while fielding in the Mohali Test, aggravated his injury while bowling at the nets yesterday. Asked if Pakistan would opt for batting if it won the toss, the skipper said “it’s too premature (to comment on this)”.
Inzamam said his boys would draw inspiration from their gritty display on the fifth and final day of the first Test. “Our boys are high on confidence after Mohali. We hope to get a better result in this Test,” he said, but also drew a note of caution. “But we should not get carried away by that performance. Its a new match here,” he said.
Inzamam hailed the batting of wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal at Mohali and said “his bat has given more depth to our batting. He had earlier proved himself as a good ‘keeper. Now he has proved himself as a good bat. It gives us more confidence. We can now have six batsmen plus one wicketkeeper-batsman in our side”. About Asim Kamal, who got runs in both the innings of the first Test, the captain said “he is capable of playing higher up the order. But in first class cricket also, he plays at fourth or fifth down position and scores so many runs.”
— PTI |
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Bucknor to be felicitated
London, March 15 The umpire will be felicitated during the tea interval on the fourth day of the Kolkata Test, which will mark his achievement, between archrivals India and Pakistan. Coincidentally, India featured in Bucknor’s debut Test which was the fourth match of the series against West Indies in Jamaica in April 1989. He also holds the unique distinction of being the first umpire to officiate in four consecutive cricket World Cup finals. Commenting on Bucknor’s Test match history, ICC’s chief executive, Malcolm Speed said, “Reaching 100 Test matches is an outstanding achievement for Steve and a tribute to his consistency and ability to make top class decisions. Umpiring at the highest level demands tremendous stamina and concentration.’’
— UNI |
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Injury-free Sania raring to go
Hyderabad, March 15 The 19-year-old, who was recuperating from an ankle injury that began to trouble her at the Australian Open, received a wild card to play in the $ 3 million tournament starting on March 23. “My injury is okay and the ankle is much better. I will be going to this tournament as an injury-free player,” Sania told PTI here. Sania, who created history becoming the first Indian to win a WTA Open at Hyderabad after showing her prowess by reaching the third round of Australian Open, would leave for the USA on March 19 and was confident of putting up a good show in Florida. The Hyderabad girl said she did not make any special preparation for this tournament and she would be going without much expectation as it was a Tier I event with the world’s best in action. “I will play my game and try to progress as far as I could,” she said even as her family members were busy looking after her mother Nseema who underwent a surgery today. Sania’s father Imran Mirza said 75 per cent of the ankle injury had healed and the rest would subside on its own. “She does not have much worry about the ankle. The stakes are high and we will have to see how far she can go in the Nasdaq Open,” he said. Imran was expecting Sania to do well since she had earlier won a couple of tournaments in Miami, where the weather “suits her as it dry and hot like in Hyderabad.” The cream of women’s tennis including Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Maria Sharapova, Svetlana Kuznestsova and Ananstasia Myskina all were likely to take part in the tournament. Besides Sania, Jessica Kirkland (USA), Sesil Karatantcheva (Bulgaria), Angela Haynes (USA), Viktoriay Kutuzova (Ukraine), Anna Tatishvili (Georgia) and Jamea Jackson (USA) were the other wild card entrants.
— PTI |
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Top starts for Hero golf
Chandigarh, March 15 The contestants include 29 of the 30 golfers on the Amby Valley PGAI Tour’s Order of Merit. Leading the challenge will be the money list leader Mukesh Kumar, followed by Ashok Kumar. 2002 Indian Open winner Vijay Kumar, winner of the Patna Open 2004 Rafick Ali and local star Ranjit Singh are the other stars who will be vying for supremacy. Ranjit Singh’s performance this season has been good enough to occupy the sixth position on the money list. Harinder Gupta, who turned professional soon after capturing the Hero
Chandigarh Open title last year, is 13th on the money list. He will be looking forward to improving his listing besides defending his title. Local boy Ajeetesh Sandhu who has emerged as the undisputed junior number one golfer, will be playing in the pro-am event. This despite the fact that he is appearing for the matric board exams this year. “Hero Honda has been associated with the sport for a long time now. And the standard results whown by the golfers in the international arena has made this association worthwhile”, said Mr Sunil Munjal, Managing Director, Hero Cycles Limited. “Amby Valley has set an example by taking under its wings a sport like golf”, said Col S.K. Sinha, General Manager, Operations, Amby Valley Sahara Lake City . At the Press conference today Mr Sampath Chari, tournament director, said the next four days would see exciting golf on the longest golf course of the country. The Golf Club President, Lt Col
A.P. Singh, said golf standards had gone up because of the number of competitions. He said in the 70s just four all-India tournaments were held the entire year in the country. The course is all set to welcome the five-day competition. It offers a challenging layout with manicured fairways lined by a challenging rought call for accuracy. The greens are in good condition. |
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Fransa beat Mohun Bagan
Margao, March 15 For the winners, goals came through man-of-the-match Peter Rodrigues in the 15th minute and Bejamin Ansah in the 66th minute. Mohan Bagan reduced the margin in the 81st minute through Robert Mendes Silva Beto. With today’s win, Fransa came on a par with Mahindra United, Mumbai, with 18 points, below league leaders East Bengal with 24 points and Dempo with 21 points. Fransa today registered their fifth win and boosted their tally to 18 points from 12 outings which includes five wins, three draws and four defeats. Mohun Bagan remained on the seventh place with 15 points from an equal number of outings.
— UNI |
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Gagan sets record, Samresh bags gold
New Delhi, March 15 With this haul, India now has 10 gold, five silver and two bronze medals from the meet — a National Rifle Association of India release said here today. It was a brilliant effort by Gagan in the air rifle event. Currently ranked 16th, the Indian shot 699.7 (597+102.7) to ensure the gold and in the process, eclipsed the earlier Commonwealth record.
Ong Zun Hong of China (695.1) won the silver while Englishman Hector Chris (694.4) bagged the bronze. In free pistol event, Samresh Jung was bang on target and his score of 653.3 (557+96.3) was enough to earn him the gold ahead of his nearest rival Michael Gault of England who totalled 650.1 to get the silver. Australian Repacholi Daniel scored 646.7 to win the bronze. Meanwhile, in the trap event, Mansher Singh kept India’s hopes for a medal alive when he shot 72/75 to finish second on the first day of the event. Remaining 50 birds in this event will be fired tomorrow and Mansher would have his eyes set on the gold. Two other Indians in the fray, Manavjit Singh (70) and Zorawar Singh (68), are placed seventh and 10th, respectively. Local favourite Michael Diamon leads the field with his score of 74/75.
— UNI |
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India finish second
Chandigarh, March 15 Indian team set a record by winning a silver medal. The Indian team had won a bronze medal in the tournament during 2001. Rajiv Tomar (120 Kg FS) kept the Indian flag flying high by winning silver medal. Anuj Kumar (84 Kg), Rakesh Patel (96 Kg) and Kripa Shankar Patel (55 Kg FS) weight categories succeeded in gaining seventh, eighth and ninth positions, respectively. In GR style of wrestling, Sanjay Kumar (84 Kg) secured the eighth position. |
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BPCL, IPCL move up
New Delhi, March 15 Scores: IOC: 237 in 44.4 overs (Wasim Zafar 88, Abbas Ali 47, Avishkar Salvi 3 for 45, R. Verma 3 for 39). BPCL: 241 for 4 (Vineet Indulkar 112 n.o., Abhijeet Kale 46, Abbas Ali 2 for 49). IPCL: 192 for 8 (A.G. Shaikh 57, S.S. Hazara 37, R. Sanwat 28, H.A. Tipnis 3 for 8). HPCL: 155 (P.S. Rane 67, H.A. Tipnis 31, N. Garhat 3 for 21, S.S. Hazare 2 for 28). |
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Qadir XI defeat Kapil XI
Patna, March 15 Farhat, who hit nine boundaries and two sixes, added 97 runs for the third wicket with Ejaz Ahmad (37) helping Qadir XI pile up 229 for four in the allotted 30 overs. In reply, Kapil XI could manage only 166 for nine. Shoaib Mohammad (33) and Tahir Rasheed (27) were the other run-getters for the visitors. Ajay Jadeja claimed two wickets for 39 runs in six overs. Narendra Hirwani was the most expensive bowler, conceding 70 runs in six overs. Indian batsmen disappointed the crowd as they lost wickets at regular intervals and never appeared to pose any challenge to their opponents. Kapil (1) and Jadeja (0) faced batting failures and only Praveen Amre and Sanjeev Sharma offered some resistance to the bowlers and scored 39 (4x4) and 33 (5x4, 2x6), respectively. Ata-ur-Rahman, Mushtaq Ahmad and Shoaib Mohammad claimed two wickets apiece while Kabir Khan and Md Asif took one each. Bihar Governor Buta Singh presented the trophy to the victorious Pakistan team. Later, Amrendra Singh, main organiser of the match, announced that Rs 11 lakh collected from sale of tickets would be donated to the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund for relief and rehabilitation of tsunami victims.
— PTI |
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Trinidad and Tobago win
New Delhi, March 15 Scores: Trinidad and Tobago: 122 (Kamal 25, Ajay Handa 22, Sriniwas 6 for 27, Dharmander 3 for 19). World Bank: 89 (Dharmender 47 n.o., Tushar 6 for 21, Ajay Handa 3 for 12). SAI: 220 for 3 (Raju Tandon 88 n.o., Amrish Gautam 62 n.o., Ramesh Chopra 42). JNST: 224 for 4 (Kirti Azad 96 n.o., Dhanraj 62, R.K. Naidu 2 for 34). |
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