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Captaincy is not an additional burden for ‘The Wall’
Bangladesh’s tour deferred, not scrapped: BCCI
Off-field dramas will expedite retirement, says Warne
Britain denies visas to African football players
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Sania retains 70th place, Shikha moves up
26 hockey probables named for camp
Transferred coaches must join today: SAI
Harikrishna wins, retains lead
India start favourites
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Captaincy is not an additional burden for ‘The Wall’
Bangalore, July 19 “I do not see it as an additional burden. I have to obviously give time for my captaincy. There will be a time when I will have to concentrate on batting and forget captaincy,” he said in response to a question. “I am really excited; it is an honour to lead the side.” Dravid said, “There is certain amount of pressure everytime when one plays for India.” “I think, it (captaincy) is going to be a huge challenge,” he said. “I have done it before (as stand-in captain whenever Sourav Ganguly was unavailable). So I am looking forward to it.” Asked if he was looking for “longer arrangement” (lead the side even after the tri-series), Dravid pointed out that he had been named captain only for the Sri Lanka series. Noting that players and the captain were picked on series-to-series basis, he said one had to look at the scenario from that perspective. Dravid said he always played cricket by looking at one game at a time and would adopt the same strategy as captain. He said this strategy had given him success as a player and hoped for a similar result when he was at the helm. Dravid said India would aim to set the record straight in Sri Lanka, where the tri-series would commence on July 30, with the West Indies as the third team. “It is going to be a huge challenge. We have not particularly done well (against Sri Lanka) in one-day cricket. But we have a good chance to correct that,” he said. “All the guys are very keen. With the new coach we are looking to put some new things in place and hope to start the new season on a positive note.” “The fact that India’s tour of Sri Lanka last season was a disappointment does not mean this time it would be automatically similar,” he said. “We have really worked hard,” Dravid said. “We hope we will put up a much better performance.” In response to a question, he said the possible absence of Ganguly in addition to Sachin Tendulkar, who had been ruled out, would give an opportunity for a couple of youngsters to showcase their talent. “Definitely, it is a good opportunity for youngsters to set a mark and show that they can do it at this level,” he said, adding that it would be interesting to see how a couple of players used the opportunity and performed. On Ganguly, he said if the ICC would lift the ban and the Kolkatan did play in the tri-series, it would be fantastic. “Sourav has tons of experience. He is a very experienced player; a very successful one-day player. It is fantastic to have him back in the side when he does come back.”
— PTI |
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Mumbai, July 19 At that stage of his career, “The Wall” was not adept in the shortened version of the game, which calls for improvised shots, even some totally agricultural ones, and constant rotation of strike. Questions were asked about Dravid’s effectiveness as a batsman in the one-day format because of his in-built tendencies to offer a straight bat. His one-day place seemed to be in doubt. However, the Bangalore stalwart, an unwilling donner of gloves behind the stumps for the better part of this period, lumped it down his throat
and kept wickets to the best of his ability. He also improved tremendously
as a one-day player. It was said Dravid’s additional job of keeping wickets in the slam-bang game helped him improve as a one-day batsman. Ganguly, on the other hand, was the supremely gifted batsman at the top of the order with his sublime sense of timing on the off side. His silken-smooth caresses used to send the ball racing to the off-side boundary and helped him amass runs by the tons at a fast clip in the limited-overs format, earning him admiration of everyone. But the elevation yesterday of Dravid to captaincy for the tri-series in Sri Lanka and doubts over Ganguly’s participation in the tournament have brought into sharp focus the stunning reversal of their roles in the one-day game. Ganguly, who forged an outstandingly successful one-day opening combination with master batsman Sachin Tendulkar before abdicating that position to Virender Sehwag, now has to prove his intrinsic value to the team as a mere player under Dravid if the ICC lifts the ban imposed on him, just like the latter had done earlier under his
captaincy. Is Dravid’s elevation as captain a stop-gap arrangement, or has the era of Ganguly as the national cricket skipper come to an end? That is the big question which will be answered soon. Suffice to say, Ganguly needs to get back to the form of yore which made him one of the finest one-day batsmen in the world. He needs to do so at the earliest as quite a few youngsters with superior fitness and unrealised dreams are waiting in the wings. Will Ganguly be able to recapture his earlier touch which earned him the respect of his peers and make his spot in the team secure? It is a difficult task, but something not beyond his reach.
— PTI
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India to open World Cup campaign against Bangladesh
London, July 19 Two days after the opening ceremony, Pakistan will take on West Indies in Group D while India, placed in Group B along with Bangladesh, Bermuda and Sri Lanka, will play their first match on March 17, according to the World Cup schedule announced by the International Cricket Council in Trinidad today. India, who will play all their group matches in Trinidad, will take on qualifiers Bermuda on March 19, four days before they face Sri Lanka in their last league match. The top two teams from each of the four groups will qualify for the second round — the Super Eight Series — which will be held between March 27 and April 22. The semifinals will be played at Jamaica on April 24 and at St Lucia on April 25, with the final to be played at Barbados on April 28. Before the opening ceremony on March 11, all teams will play warm-up matches between March 5 and 9, with India slated to play the Netherlands on March 6 and West Indies on March 9. The round-robin stage will see six games each in the four groups over 11 days. The winners and runners-up from each group will advance to the Super Eight Series, where teams will play each of the other teams advancing, except the team which advances from their own group. The Super Eight Series will be played in Antigua, Guyana, Grenada and Barbados. The last match of this segment will take place on April 21. The event logo and mascot, a teenaged character called ‘Mello’, embodying the lifestyle of the region, were also unveiled today. — PTI
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Bangladesh’s tour deferred, not scrapped: BCCI
New Delhi, July 19 Talking over phone today, BCCI Secretary S.K. Nair said, ‘’The tour has not been scrapped but only deferred. We are in constant touch with the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and we are working on finding a time that suits both the parties.’’ After India visited Bangaldesh in December last year, the neighbours were originally scheduled to the country in April, but the BCCI deferred the visit because of the high-voltage home series against arch-rivals Pakistan. Subsequently the tour was rescheduled in October but with the Super Series coinciding with it, the BCCI expressed its inability to host the Tigers because of the cricketing extravaganza in Australia and two big festivals — Dashera and Diwali. ‘’The itinerary is quite packed and so we are considering other options to find the right alternative,’’ Nair said. Desperate to save the series, BCB President Ali Asghar had proposed a split tour and hoped that the BCCI would somehow manage to squeeze it into its itinerary. “The Indian officials told me that they have a busy international schedule, but we have requested them to find a suitable time to accommodate the series. BCCI Secretary S.K. Nair promised me that they will clear their position within a week,’’the BCB chief told mediapersons in Dhaka. “I told them to split the one-day series and the Test series if needed like they had done for Sri Lanka. They will play seven ODIs in India in October before returning again for the Tests. We are ready to tour twice if required,” Asghar said. Reacting to the proposal, Nair said, “I met Asghar in Kolkata recently and we had discussions on the issue. The split tour proposal is an issue, but we are considering every option and what we need is a time that is convenient for both the countries.” India had to fulfil its obligation of hosting Bangladesh under the ICC Future Tours Programme. Asked to give a time frame for the tour, Nair said, “The negotiations are on and we are working towards finding a mutually convenient time. This is something you can not speculate on. Both the boards will have to take a look at their calendars and consider their commitments before we can arrive at a time which is okay with both of us.” India had a similar problem in hosting Sri Lanka before the Lankan board agreed to visit the country twice, separately for the one-dayers and the Test series. With the Super Series and South Africa’s visit in November for a one-day series in the offing, Sri Lanka’s tour was split into two halves and accordingly, the islanders would play the ODIs in the first half of November and then return in December for the Test matches.
— UNI |
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Off-field dramas will expedite retirement, says Warne
London, July 19 But with the trials of his private life, he now can envision himself stopping before he might have previously. “I definitely think it’ll make me play shorter,” he said, without speficying why or when he would retire. “I’d rather not go into what they are but I’ll probably play shorter for those reasons. I’m not sure when that is.” At 35, Warne doesn’t plan to play in another Ashes series in England, by which time he will be approaching 40. Last month, Warne and his wife Simone said they were splitting. Warne’s contract with an Australian broadcaster also was cancelled after widespread reports of his extramarital affair involving a 25-year-old student in England, the latest scandal in a long history of lurid media coverage detailing Warne’s infidelities. The world’s leading wicket-taker said the controversy hadn’t affected his ability to return to the Australian squad ahead of the first Test, which starts at Lord’s on Thursday. “It’s been great to be back with the lads. They’ve all been very supportive of me and I think they’re enjoying having me back, contrary to what some people think,” Warne said. And, while he admitted it would be difficult, he was confident the drama would have no bearing on his form. “The tougher the situation the better I generally respond,” he said. “Nothing like this has ever happened in my life before and it’s not the way I obviously wanted it to be. They’re things I have to deal with and hope I can deal with them the best way I can and I can concentrate on the cricket and be there for the guys, which I’m sure I can.” “It’s a period in your life that nobody would like to have be public, some things should remain private, but unfortunately that’s the way the world works these days,” he added. “You have some good days and some bad ones. Some days you’re trying to move on and you’re moving on, and other days it’s tough to move on ... but I have to.” Australia is seeking its ninth consecutive Ashes series win. Warne made his name in the Ashes in 1993 when he dismissed Mike Gatting with a deceptive first ball. The leg spinner holds the record for most wickets in Test cricket, with 583 wickets in 123 matches. He’s well clear of second-placed Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka, who has 539 wickets from 92 matches.
— AP |
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Britain denies visas to African football players
London, July 19 The decision came about 10 days after G8 leaders met in Scotland to discuss alleviating poverty in Africa. “To deny homeless people access to the UK on the basis that they are too poor is ridiculous,” the tournament’s co-founder Mel Young said. “It raises some serious questions around the British Government’s commitment to taking action towards alleviating poverty in Africa.” The Homeless World Cup was founded in 2003 to highlight homelessness and poverty, and underline the positive effects of football. The four-a-side street tournament would open in the Scottish capital on Wednesday and involved 32 national teams. “How can they say that we are too poor to play football?” said Kenyan team chief Siegfried Milchberger. “My team and I cannot even begin to account the loss we have suffered. It leaves me wondering what London Olympics 2012 has in store for Africa,” he was quoted as saying by the tournament’s organisers. The Foreign Office said it regretted that some participants had not satisfied visa requirements. Russian and American players had also been turned down, a spokeswoman said. “The immigration rules have been applied fairly and consistently in all cases. Each applicant has been considered on individual circumstances,” she said. Many of the teams had been set up by streetpapers, such as the Big Issue. To qualify for the World Cup, players must either have been homeless over the past year, make their living from selling streetpapers, or be seeking asylum.
— Reuters |
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Australian cyclist killed, five injured
Sydney, July 19 Gillett, a former Olympic rower, was killed when a car struck the six riders near the town of Zeulenroda, about 80 km south of Leipzig. The injured cyclists were named as Katie Brown, Lorian Graham, Kate Nichols, Louise Yaxley and Alexis Rhodes. Yaxley and Rhodes were in a very serious condition in hospital. The other three were stable. Yaxley suffered major trauma that required surgery while Rhodes had a thoracic fracture and serious concussion. Brown had a seriously fractured leg, Nichols had soft tissue damage and torn tendons in her hand which required surgery, while Graham had multiple fractures of her knees, fingers and both collarbones. German police said the accident happened yesterday
when the car’s driver, an 18-year-old learner, lost control of her vehicle between the towns of Zeulenroda and Auma.
— Reuters |
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Sania retains 70th place, Shikha moves up
New Delhi, July 19 Boca Raton-based Shikha, who made her debut for India in the Fed Cup earlier this year, went three places up to finish 131st with 278.50 ranking points. Shikha’s Fed Cup team-mate Rushmi Chakravarthi, however, slipped six places to finish 366th. The next Indian in the ladder was Sanaa Bhambri, who moved eight steps up to 468th, while her sister and Fed Cup team member Ankita finished 478th, four places up from her previous ranking. Uberoi sisters fail to qualify US-based Neha Uberoi managed to tame sister Shikha, but her hopes of qualifying for the main draw was dashed by Austrian Sybille Bammer in the Cincinnati Open. It was a disappointing outing for the Uberoi sisters, who also failed to qualify for the doubles main draw, according to information received here.
— UNI |
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26 hockey probables named for camp
New Delhi, July 19 While making the announcement, the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) gave no explanation for Michael’s omission for the August 14-21 tournament. The name of Vikram Pillay, another permanent fixture of the national squad, is also missing. But a source in the IHF said he was recuperating from an injury and would take some time to recover. Many members of the junior national team who have played at the senior level in the recent past were also not picked. “Players like goalkeeper Adrian D'Souza and Vivek Gupta have just returned from the Junior World Cup in Rotterdam and are very tired,” the
source said. “They have been away from their homes for over three months, attending camps and playing tournaments. They need a well-deserved rest,” the source added. The camp, to be conducted by chief coach Rajinder Singh Junior, assistant coach Narinder Pal Singh and goalkeeping coach Romeo James, will be held at Chandigarh from July 20 to August 10, the IHF said The final 18-member squad is expected to be announced on July 29 or 30. The probables: Devesh Chauhan, Bharat Chetri, Maninder Singh, Dilip Tirkey, Kanwalpreet Singh, Harpal Singh, Muthuselvan, Viren Rasquinha, Ignace Tirkey, Prabhdeep Singh, Bimal Lakra, Jaswinder Singh, Devinderpal Singh, Arjun Halappa, Didar Singh, Girish Pimpale, Deepak Thakur, Gagan Ajit Singh, Prabhjot Singh, Ravipal Singh, Inderjeet Singh, Rajpal Singh, Davinder Singh, Navpreet Singh, Raghunath and Gurtejpreet Singh. Support staff: Rajinder Singh Junior (chief coach), Narinder Pal Singh (assistant coach), Romeo James (goalkeeping coach) and Sampath Kumar (physical trainer).
— IANS |
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Transferred
coaches must join today: SAI Chandigarh, July 19 Mr Harmilapi, however, gave a ray of hope to deserving coaches and said their case for transfer might be reconsidered after some days. But their transfer would be reviewed only after they join at their new posting first, he added. He said those coaches who have brought good results in the past five years and not stayed longer at a particular place would be allowed to work at the previous place of posting. When asked why some coaches, who have not been transferred for more than 10 years, were not shifted, he said there might be genuine feedback about them. On the question of unequal distribution of coaches after the transfers as Punjab was now left with lesser number of SAI coaches than Haryana, he said the Cheif Parliamentary Secretary, Sports, Punjab, Mr Rana Gurmit Sodhi, has already assured the coaches from Punjab that he would take up the matter with the Union Sports Minister. He said the universities would be given more freedom to have SAI coaches and wherever needed specific game coach would be appointed. On the proposal of the Punjab Sports Deaprtment to establish the Sports Training Centre of the SAI at Anandpur Sahib, he said he had a meeting with the Director Sports, Punjab, Mr Kartar Singh, and the proposal has been sent to the Punjab Chief Minister, for approval. Meanwhile, the coaches are still adamant on not joining at the transferred places. An SAI coach said the Regional Director has already favoured a chosen few by posting them nearer to their previous posting.
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Harikrishna wins, retains lead
Taiyuan (China), July 19 With his seventh win in nine games, Harikrishna retained his slender half a point lead over Alexander Motylev of Russia, who had a smooth sailing over Grandmaster Tigran Petrosian of Armenia. It was now down to a race between Harikrishna and the former Russian champion in the remaining two rounds of this category-15 round-robin tournament. Despite the loss to the Indian Grandmaster, Bu Xiangzhi remained in sole third spot with 5.5 points as his nearest contenders fell apart. Wang Yue of China was joint fourth, along with Sergey Karjakin of Ukraine and Ni Hua of China, with five points each in their kitty. Having lost his eighth-round game to Motylev, it was imperative for Harikrishna to come back in full swing and he did precisely that. Xiangzhi, once the youngest Grandmaster in the world, was no match for the Indian stalwart, playing white, as he fell like ninepins in just 36 moves after the complexities took centrestage in the closed Sicilian opening. Motylev accounted for out-of-form Tigran Petrosian of Armenia, who had a fantastic start in the event. By winning with black, Motylev made sure that the difference between him and Harikrishna did not go out of reach.
— PTI |
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India start favourites
New Delhi, July 19 The hosts had won the boys as well as the girls gold last time while Sri Lanka finished second in both events. Besides the hosts, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives and Bhutan have confirmed their participation in both sections while Afghan paddlers would be seen in action in boys team event, a Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) press note said here today. The Indian players did not leave any stone unturned ahead of the tournament
and honed their skills at a camp in Ajmer. The Indian boys team will look forward to R Abhishek and the talented Soumyajit Sarkar to lead from the front. While Abhishek is ranked 52 in the world, Soumyajit is placed 76th. Among the girls, a lot would depend on the performance of J. Swarna, who is ranked 79th. Team-mate Madhurika Patkar, ranked 92, will also get a chance to showcase her skills. The teams: boys: Soumyajit Sarkar, Aniket Koparkar, R. Abhishek, Devesh Karia, Sanil Shankar Shetty; girls: K. Shamini, J. Swarna, Neha Aggarwal, Ashlesha Bodas, Madhurika Patkar.
— UNI |
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