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Anand clinches Leon title
Narain keen to improve show
Mark Waugh denies links with Mehta
Fast bowlers shaping up well, says Gloster
Ganguly to play in
tsunami relief tie
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Bangladesh taste victory
Lanka to play seven one-dayers in India
Trading the burqa for boxing gloves
94-year-old Fauja Singh completes marathon
Indian eves blank Guam 10-0
Korean women down India
Shokeen wins
title in Germany
Sandeep Jangra, Ritwik in last eight
Punjab rowers bag 4 medals
Patiala athletics team for state meet
Easy win for Karan Bir
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Anand clinches Leon title
Leon (Spain), June 13 In what was a great comeback, Anand, trailing 0-1 after losing the first game, won the second and fourth games and drew the third board to attest his superiority once again in the rapid version of the game. Having earlier beaten prodigiously talented Grandmaster Magnus Carlsen in the semis, it turned out to be another memorable outing for the world number two here after he had won the Advance chess title on three previous occasions on Leon soil. “It’s nice to win once again in Leon. I am quite happy with the way I am playing. I know there’s still lots of chess to come this year,” Anand said. “I will defend my title at the Chess Classic of Mainz against Alexander Grischuk and then there is the World Championship in Argentina, plus a few other events.” The victory in the fourth game for the Indian ace was a real treasured one as he accomplished a fine task in the final game with a piece sacrifice that resulted in a winning endgame almost instantly. Starting off with the Anti Marshall opening setup, Anand could only get a miniscule advantage out of the opening but once Kasimdzhanov erroneously embarked on the exchange of queens, Anand was quick to spot a brilliant knight sacrifice that forced the swap of all black queen side pawns and instantly white’s own pawns had a telling effect. With hapless knights doing nothing to salvage the position, Kasimdzhanov found nothing to counter menacing white forces and called it day on the 39th move. Earlier in the day, the third game of the match had ended in a draw. Playing the white side of a Sicilian Taimanov with the scores tied, Kasimdzhanov first sacrificed a pawn and later won two to arrive at a rook-and-minor-piece ending with clearly the better prospects. However, Anand’s defensive skills were yet again on display as he slowly got counterplay and eventually liquidated to a drawn rook-and-pawns endgame. The longest game in the match, it lasted 69 moves. “I fell into a trap where I lost a pawn and then it already became somewhat difficult. Probably there was better ways to defend but I was just getting steadily outplayed till I saw one trap and he fell for it,” Anand said about the game. The second game had given Anand the much-needed equaliser after a rather unexpected loss. The English attack once again remained faithful to Anand in this game as he simply crushed Kasimdzhanov in the middle game with a picturesque piece sacrifice to rip open the kingside. It took just 33 moves for the Indian to finish matters. Kasimdzhanov had made his presence felt in the first game itself that was a sharp Sicilian defence giving the Uzbek an unexpected victory. Playing white, Kasimdzhanov went for Anand’s king in all possible ways and even though it was an extremely complicated game, the Uzbek did not falter in capitalising on his advantage when he finally got it. Wild manoeuvres in the middle game wherein Anand’s King went for a long walk, and a well-utilised endgame skill had helped Kasimdzhanov get an early lead after 63 moves.
— PTI |
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Narain keen to improve show
Montreal, June 13 Karthikeyan had a horrid time yesterday as the Indian hit the wall on lap 25, damaging his right rear suspension and had to quit. ‘’I went in the dirt a little bit and that was it,’’ the Indian rued. ‘’I had a problem at the start and did not make a good get away. However, I managed to pass Patrick Friesacher. Then a few laps later, I ran wide in the first corner and the exit of the second corner and Monteiro overtook me. I pushed really hard to improve my position and I was in front of Tiago again after the first pit stop. Unfortunately, I went in the dirt a little bit and clipped the wall, which made me retire.’’ ‘’It is really a pity to finish the race like this but I will do my best in Indianapolis next week,’’ Karthikeyan said. Clearly feeling the heat with team mate Monteiro outshining him in the later part of the season so far — the Portuguese yesterday created a record for the highest number (8) of consecutive finishes — and Trevor Carlin’s exit from the Jordan Sporting Director’s post — Karthikeyan hopes to strike the right chord at Indianapolis. After yesterday’s race, the Jordan Grand Prix team today left for Indianapolis — the home of American motor racing — to prepare for the United States Grand Prix. The team will have only two days to rebuild the cars in time for Friday’s first practise. Karthikeyan and Monteiro will train for two days there, preparing themselves for a demanding race.
— UNI |
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Mark Waugh denies links with Mehta
Sydney, June 13 Waugh, who was fined $10,000 in 1995 by the then Australian Cricket Board for supplying weather and pitch information to an Indian bookmaker identified only as ‘John’, also said through his agent Leo Karis that he was not concerned by the new allegations. “Mark denies ever knowing this guy, or speaking with him or dealing with him. Corruption investigations had not found Waugh guilty of anything other than supplying information to ‘John’,” Karis was quoted as saying in Sydney Morning Herald today. Karis said Mehta and ‘John’ could be the same person but Waugh still did not have any case to answer in regard to Mehta’s statements. “I’ve no idea whether this guy (Mehta) could be John. That’s not for us to determine. The thing is, Mark went through two investigations and it was found he had no case to answer.” Police Commissioner D.J. Vanjhara last Friday said in Ahmedabad that Mehta had claimed links to Waugh during the latter’s playing days. Mehta had claimed he would on occasion contact the Australian an hour before the start of play to receive tips on weather and pitch conditions and late team changes, Vanjhara
said. — PTI |
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Fast bowlers shaping up well, says Gloster
Chennai, June 13 Gloster, who was at the MRF Pace Foundation here to make an on-the-spot assessment of the fitness level of seamers Zaheer Khan and L, Balaji, besides Parthiv Patel and Hemang Badani, said here today that several of them have made good progress. “I am happy that all of them have progressed well to my satisfaction. I am communicating with Greg Chappell at the moment. He has come back from South Africa. For me, it is a burning programme to have the players prepared for the next five competitions before the team is selected”, he said. Gloster, who refused to express his opinion on policies, including rotation of bowlers, said when the camp starts next month, the squad should be fully prepared. “The bowlers have to be totally fit and mentally prepared for positive results in Sri Lanka, where conditions are almost similar to those over here. “As for Greg and myself, we will prepare the squad as far as possible. Then it is up to the selectors and the team management to guide us.” On solutions to fast bowlers’ injuries, including that of Irfan Pathan, he said, “I cannot comment on Irfan’s injury at the moment. I am not concerned about individual players. But when injuries occur, we set a training programme, giving them the best schedule for three months, to ensure that they do not get injured.” Stating that injuries do occur despite the best possible training schedule, Gloster said conditions are difficult in India, as the grounds are hard. “It is always better to play on surfaces which are more conducive, but grounds are more difficult in this part of the world. We have to work around the given conditions. “Similarly, it will be difficult for players from other nations to adjust to conditions in the subcontinent. Injuries are always going to occur, especially to fast bowlers. We have to make sure that they are well prepared as much as possible.” Expressing confidence that Sachin Tendulkar would fully recover within 16 weeks, Gloster said he would not make any suggestion on whether the maestro should play with a light or heavy bat. “Sachin has been around for 16 years. It is left to him to play with any kind of bat he feels comfortable with. I will have to work around with that. Injuries are common to everyone, including sportspersons in everyday life. But it should be attended to,” he said. On Tendulkar’s surgery, he said, “I feel that we made the right decisions at this point. It is an important part of the upper limb, which controls the wrist and finger movements. Lots of specific exercises are given to resolve this problem.” Asked to compare the Indian players with others, including the Australians, he said “I can’t speak about the Australians, since I have not done the tests. As for our bowlers, we produce and reproduce fitness programmes better than what everybody else is using. ”
— PTI |
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Ganguly to play in tsunami relief tie
London, June 13 The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) hopes to raise more than £485,000 from gate receipts alone for the survivors of the December 26 tsunami. West Indian Brian Lara will captain International XI while New Zealand’s Stephen Fleming will lead the MCC team. During the interval between the innings, the highest bidder in an on-line auction will receive 15 minutes of coaching from Sachin Tendulkar before facing an over from Shane Warne on the Lord’s pitch. The match is the second time this year the cricketing community has come together in wake of the Indian Ocean disaster after a January fund-raising match in Melbourne raised more than $11 million. A Twenty20 tsunami appeal match will be held on June 20 at The Oval between an Asian team and an International XI. The teams:
MCC XI: Stephen Fleming (captain), Chris Gayle, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman, Jacques Kallis, Andy Flower, Kumar Sangakkara, Shaun Pollock, Anil Kumble, Muttiah Muralitharan and Shoaib Akhtar. International XI:
Brian Lara (captain), Virender Sehwag, Sanath Jayasuriya, Graeme Smith, Rahul Dravid, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Chris Cairns, Shane Warne, Chaminda Vaas, Mohammad Sami and Makhaya Ntini.
— Reuters |
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Bangladesh taste victory
Worcester, June 13 But it was not the send-off Worcestershire director of cricket Tom Moody would have wanted before he leaves the county later this week to become national coach of Sri Lanka. Bangladesh needed a modest run rate of 3.38 per over but ran into early trouble against Worcestershire debutant Shoaib Akhtar and Nadeem Malik. Malik made the initial breakthrough when he bowled Shahriar Nafees for a duck, and then Shoaib struck with the final ball of his second over to have wicketkeeper Rajin Saleh caught behind for a single. It became 24 for three when Tushar Imran edged David Wigley to second slip. But a stand of 82 in 13 overs between Omar and Ashraful swung the match in favour of the tourists.
— AFP |
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Lanka to play seven one-dayers in India
Colombo, June 13 Mirando said apart from Sri Lanka’s tour of India in November, they were also likely to visit India for a tri-nation series next year. Sri Lanka were scheduled for a five-match one-day series in India in April but the tour was called off due to the reluctance of Indian players to play soon after a gruelling tour by Pakistan. Sri Lanka have a packed schedule from July this year to July, 2006, during which they will play 15 Test matches and a minimum of 44 one-dayers. Sri Lanka will host the West Indies for two Tests in July after which India will join them for a tri-series from August 2-14.
— AFP |
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Trading the burqa for boxing gloves
Kolkata, June 13 They know that not many in their largely Muslim neighbourhood in this teeming metropolis would be happy to see them in their boxing attire. But the 17-year-old school dropouts are a determined and focused pair. And the South Calcutta Physical Culture Association (SCPCA), where they have been students for several years, is more than happy to teach them boxing — free of cost. Under the watchful eyes of their trainer Asit Banerjee, the sisters shed their veil — and inhibitions — and slipped into the role of "no-nonsense" boxers along with the men. Sanno and Sakila may be the poor cousins of Laila Ali, daughter of legendary Muhammad Ali. But they are among the 21 women boxers at the SCPCA, which is in a public park here. Their penchant for boxing stemmed from watching boys in their neighbourhood in boxing gloves. Their inspiration was local boy Mohammed Ali Qamar, who rose from adversities to clinch a gold medal in the light flyweight category at the Manchester Commonwealth Games in 2003. "Since our childhood we have watched boxing at a club in Nawali Park, Kidderpore. Then we decided to come here for training," Sanno, who along with sister took part in the 2003 National Games in Hyderabad, said. "We practise two hours daily. We are three sisters and three brothers. Our father died five years ago. My mother is a member of the Congress women's wing. Our family is dependent on my elder brother who works in a bank. "We hope to find an avenue for a decent livelihood through boxing," says Sanno, who also sees it as a means of self-defence. "We recently bashed up a shopkeeper and a hoodlum who were teasing us. We can now protect ourselves better," she says. Though Sanno and Sakila's family stands by their decision to take up boxing, not all girls at SCPCA are lucky. "Getting our parents to agree was unimaginable," recalls Shabnam, another boxer. "When I decided to drop the veil for the boxing gloves and I told my parents about it, they were shocked. But they gave in to my unrelenting attitude." In the beginning Shabnam used to come to the boxing club wearing a burqa. According to Banerjee, who is also the SCPCA secretary: "Our society talks of women's empowerment. I think this is a new avenue for women to prove themselves. "Though the parents of these girls were sceptical initially, they are now more cooperative. They know their girls are safe in my club and I have greater acceptance among them." "I feel proud when I am told by (Pakistan-based) Anwar Chowdhury, president of International Boxing Tournament (IBT), how he appreciates our endeavour and feels sorry that the same cannot be replicated in his country," says Banerjee. The first official women's boxing event in India was held by the SCPCA in 2000 in Kolkata, followed by a national championship in Chennai in January 2001 where girls from the SCPCA won four medals. Banerjee says Razia, Sanjukta, Geeta Channu and Malati — the medal winners at Chennai — are now working as coaches. "Razia and Sanjukta have also started refereeing and judging. Razia went to Turkey and Russia for refereeing. She did her job so well that an impressed Anwar Chowdhury asked her to conduct the male bout. Razia is a regular coach here," explains Banerjee. According to Banerjee, India has some 200 women boxers, but the pioneering effort came from girls of Kolkata's Muslim neighbourhoods. "This is the struggle period for Indian women boxers. Their time will come. Then, they will be the million dollar babies," said Banerjee, alluding to the Oscar-winning film that has a female boxer
as one of the protagonists. — IANS |
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Sorenstam completes hat trick
Maryland, June 13 Sorenstam, five shots ahead overnight, fired a final round 73 to finish on 11-under-par at the Bulle Rock Golf Course, three shots ahead of 15-year-old American amateur Michelle Wie. It was the Swede’s ninth career major, her sixth title of the year and her 62nd LPGA victory in 11 years on the Tour. She is now fifth on the all-time list of major winners behind Patty Berg (15), Mickey Wright (13), Louise Suggs (11) and Babe Zaharias (10). Most importantly in her eyes, it was two out of two in the majors this year and the Swede now has her sights on becoming the first player to win all four for a season’s grand slam. Sorenstam’s victory was more comfortable than the margin suggests but it was still a glorious day for Wie, whose 69 left her on eight-under with a third top 10 placing in six majors. Another talented American teenager, 18-year-old Paula Creamer, who has already won as a rookie on the LPGA Tour, shared third place with Britain’s Laura Davies on six under after a joint best of day round of 67. Sorenstam extended her overnight lead to eight after four holes and was still seven ahead when she reached the turn in 35. But the Swede then dropped four shots on a back nine of 39 that included bogeys at the last two holes. One of the more surprising statistics was that Sorenstam was three over for the par fives. She won the first major of the year, the Kraft Nabisco Championship, by eight shots and the last two to complete a grand slam are the US Women’s Open at Cherry Hills in Colorado (June 23-26) and the Women’s British Open (July 28-31).
— Reuters |
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94-year-old Fauja Singh completes marathon
''I am extremely honoured to have been invited to start this year's Edinburgh Marathon. By running as the oldest-ever marathon relay team, I hope we will inspire young people to keep going and older people never to give up,'' Fauja Singh said. Baqar, put forward by the the 'Protect Darfur campaign, is a 24-year-old refugee from the restive Sudan province, who had been refused asylum in the UK and told it was safe to return to his homeland. He used the marathon as a means of raising awareness of the campaign, and called on the British government to understand that his people, the Fur, could be wiped out.
— UNI |
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Indian eves blank Guam 10-0
Mumbai, June 13 India dominated in both halves of the Group B match and shut Guam out completely with excellent team work and co-ordination. Sradhanjali kicked off the demolition job in the 23rd minute. Then Sujata began her goal-spree, scoring her first goal in the 36th minute before slamming home her second two minutes later. Magar added the fourth goal three minutes from half time and, after the restart, Tababi Devi blasted in two goals in quick succession in the 50th and 53rd minutes to give India a 6-0 lead. Oinam Bem Bem also got on the scoresheet five minutes later and Kar scored last three goals between the 67th and 84th minutes to round off the tally for a comprehensive win. But the massive Indian win was not enough to satisfy coach Harinder Singh. “Although we won I am not satisfied. The next game against Chinese Taipei will be a big challenge,” he said after the one-sided clash. “We have brought our young players here to expose them to high-quality matches to prepare for the future,” he added.
— PTI |
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Korean women down India
New Delhi, June 13 The home team’s goals were all scored from set pieces, with a pair of first half penalty corners conversion by Ko Woon Oh and Seon Ok Lee, complemented by a penalty stroke goal in the 54th minute through Eun Sil Kim, according to information received here today. India, who had a fine start to their campaign with a 7-2 win over Malaysia, were held to a 1-1 draw by England in the subsequent match. The loss against Korea saw them going down to the fourth place in the table with four points.
— PTI |
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Shokeen wins
title in Germany
New Delhi, June 13 Eighteen-year-old Vivek capped his good show in the six-day tournament with a facile 6-2, 6-3 win against the Australian in this grade one tournament, according to information received here today. His compatriot Sanam Singh reached the third round of the tournament before going down to Croatia’s Luka Belic 3-6, 3-4. In doubles, the Vivek-Sanam pair was humbled in the second round by the Australian pair of Brydon Klien and Joel Lindner, who won 6-3, 6-2.
— UNI
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Sandeep Jangra, Ritwik in last eight
New Delhi, June 13 In the professional section, Mukhtiar Ali beat Gautam Sood 9-0, 9-0, 9-1; Asfand Yar Khan defeated Man Mohan 9-0, 9-0, 9-0 and Sunil Kumar b Vijay Kumar Singh 9-7, 3-9, 9-5, 5-9, 5-9, 9-6. Other results: Girls (under-17 pre-quarterfinals): Urvashi Mishra b Anjani Singh 7-9, 9-5, 9-4, 5-9, 9-7; Aakriti Saghal b Swan Mucnnai 9-2, 9-4, 10-9; Ankita Patel b Vishruthyl Sahni 9-6, 0-9, 3-9, 9-4, 9-4; Dheeya Somya b Nikita Mann 9-1, 9-2, 9-2. |
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Punjab rowers bag 4 medals
Chandigarh, June 13 In the 250 m single scull Davinder Singh stood first while in double scull event Davinder Singh along with Partap Singh Rana bagged the second gold. They repeated the same performance in 500 m sprint and won silver medals. Seventeen state teams participated in the championships. |
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Patiala athletics team for state meet Patiala, June 13 The athletes were selected on the basis of their performance in the district athletic meet held here on June 11. The team: (men): Lakhbir Singh (100m, 200m), Jagbir Singh (100m, 200m), Davinder Singh (200m), Harjinder Singh (400m, 800m), Jasbir Singh (400m, 800m), Jasdeep Singh (110m and 400m hurdles), Davinder Singh (long jump), Gurpreet Singh (5,000m, 10,000m), Anil Kumar (5,000m, 10,000m), Surinder Singh (javelin throw), Bikramjit Singh (shot put) and Harjinder Singh (triple jump). Women: Sukhjit Kaur (1,500, 5,000m), Rajwinder Kaur (100m, 200m) and Narinder Kaur (400m, 800m). SAI coach Harbhajan Singh Sandhu will accompany the squad as its coach-cum-manager.
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Easy win for Karan Bir
New Delhi, June 13 Rohit of Rajasthan defeated Gurjot Singh 11-4, 12-10, 11-6. Prayank Sood defeated Subham Kumar of Haryana 11-5, 11-9, 11-9; Anita Rani of Haryana b Vansh Arora 11-6, 11-13, 11-2, 12-10; Ravi Dangi of Punjab b Rohan Aggarwal 11-4, 11-9, 11-7. |
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Leon (Spain), June 13
Montreal,
June 13
(
London, June 13
