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Murali sends Windies crashing to defeat
Merely winning will not satisfy India
Cricket not to feature in Doha Asian Games
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Kiwis leave for Zimbabwe
Sania climbs to 64th place
Indian teenager wins triple
chess crown
Chanda stumbles against Satyapragyan
Joshna enters squash final
Zafar Iqbal denied US visa
SAI to issue show-cause notices to erring coaches
Atwal finishes tied 26th
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Murali sends Windies crashing to defeat
Kandy, July 25 The off-spinner grabbed eight for 46 as the tourists, set a huge victory target of 375, folded up for 137 before tea on the fourth day at the Asgiriya stadium. Muralitharan’s 14th haul of 10 wickets in a match — he claimed 2 for 37 in the first innings — gave him 17 wickets in what was his first series in 11 months due to a shoulder injury. The 31-year-old now had 549 Test wickets from 93 matches, second only to Australian Shane Warne, who took his tally to 589 from 124 games after the first Ashes Test against England at Lord’s. The West Indies, missing 10 top stars, including the world’s leading batsman Brian Lara, following a sponsorship dispute at home, had no clue how to play spin on the wearing wicket. Their only hope was the inclement weather, that had interrupted play on the last three days, but the rain kept away despite the dark clouds to enable the Sri Lankans to post an emphatic win. Earlier, Kumar Sangakkara remained unbeaten on 157 as Sri Lanka declared their second innings at 375 for 7 midway through the morning session. Muralitharan made up for the absence of left-arm seamer Chaminda Vaas, who had been ruled out of cricket for at least a week due to a hamstring strain. Vaas, who had claimed 13 wickets in three previous innings in the series, was advised to rest ahead of the one-day tri-series against India and the West Indies, starting later this week. Team manager Michael Tissera said he might miss the opening match of the tri-series against India in Dambulla on Saturday, but would play in the later matches. Scoreboard Sri Lanka
(1st innings) 150 West Indies (1st innings) 148 Sri Lanka (2nd innings) Jayasuriya c Morton b Lawson 36 Atapattu c Banks b Powell 19 Sangakkara not out 157 Jayawardene b Lawson 43 Samaraweera c Ramdin Dilshan c Morton b Banks 49 Wijekoon b Powell 12 Vaas b Banks 19 Herath not out 15 Extras
(b-4, lb-6, nb-9, w-6): 25 Total (7 wkts dec, 107 overs):
375 Fall of wickets: 1-55, 2-57, 3-155, 4-155, 5-264, 6-278, 7-321 Bowling:
Powell 28-4-89- 2, Lawson 29-1-104-3, Best 20-3-84-0 (nb-3 w-1), Banks 19-5-47-2, Deonarine 3-0-13-0, Morton 5-0-15-0, Chanderpaul 3-1-13-0 West Indies
(2nd innings) Marshall lbw b Malinga 1 Ramdass c Jayawardene b
Muralitharan 23
Morton lbw b Muralitharan 9 Chanderpaul c Jayawardene b Herath 24 Joseph c Jayawardene
b Muralitharan 0
Deonarine b Muralitharan 29 Ramdin b Muralitharan 28 Banks c Sangakkara b Muralitharan 1 Powell c Jayawardene b Muralitharan 0 Best b Muralitharan 8
Lawson not out 1
Extras (b-4 lb-2 nb-5 w-2): 13 Total (all out, 41.2 overs):
137 Fall of wickets: 1-2, 2-38, 3-49, 4-49, 5-77, 6-105, 7-111, 8-119, 9-131, 10-137. Bowling:
Malinga 12-2-48-1, Wijekoon 4-1-8-0, Muralitharan 16.2-4-46-8, Herath 9-2-29-1.
— AFP |
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Merely winning will not satisfy India
India have a lot on their plate as they move to Sri Lanka for the triangular series. They have a new coach and a new captain, Tendulkar and Ganguly are missing and a few seniors have been asked to prove themselves all over again. Merely winning will not satisfy them. They seek a few critical answers with the 2007 World Cup in mind.
It amuses me to see so much of a build-up in India over new coach Greg Chappell. Everyone expects him to conjure up miracles. Unfortunately, cricket does not work that way. A good team wins because it has worked out a good combination, its wheels are running on a good piston and engine. Just one factor is not decisive. I have seen good teams win even when they have had a bad coach; as bad teams have lost even when a super coach has worked tirelessly. It is a combination in the park which does the trick. Similarly, Rahul Dravid as a new captain cannot provide all the answers straightaway. He is an experienced guy who has constantly strived to improve himself. But he will miss the experiences of Tendulkar and Ganguly, two guys who not very long ago appeared to have a 99-year lease at the batting crease in the one-day context. Dravid is expecting seniors to show the freshness of youngsters and rookies to play with a mature head. It is important for India to find most of these answers against the hosts in Sri Lanka for two reasons. One, they face Sri Lanka in their own group in 2007 World Cup. Two, conditions in the Caribbean are largely similar to what exist in Sri Lanka. A good performance will show them they are on the right path. Unfortunately, it will not be easy. Sri Lanka have lost only one of their last nine games at home. In the last five years, India have won just three and lost six one-day matches in Sri Lanka. Most of Sri Lanka’s top forces remain unmoved. Sanath Jayasuriya recently has not been in good touch in one-dayers, but the sight of Indian bowlers nearly always gets him going. Chaminda Vaas and
Mutthiah Muralitharan, as they have showed against an admittedly weak West Indies side, still retain a voracious appetite. I have not seen many young Indian batsmen, or for that matter batters worldwide, do a particularly good job in picking up Murali’s wrong’uns. Once you commit yourself, it becomes very difficult to counter him. A lot depends on the wicket, surface, conditions and the field setting. A good coach and captain should not lose sight of abetting factors.
— PTI |
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Cricket not to feature in Doha Asian Games
New Delhi, July 25 However, cricket would not feature in the games as the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) insisted that only top national teams would be allowed to participate, not second string or under-19 teams. The Asian Cricket Council did not respond positively to this proposal. “We are keen to have cricket, but only if the best teams participate”, observed Doha Asian Games Organising Committee deputy He said over $ 2.8 billion had been invested in an effort to make the Doha Asiad “the sporting event of the 21st century”. “We are determined to make the 15th Asian Games in Doha a memorable event, and would ensure that it leaves behind a lasting legacy”, he said at a media interaction organised by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA). IOA President Suresh Kalmadi and Secretary-General Randhir Singh were also present. India is taking keen interest in the organisational aspect of the Doha Asian Games as it is in the fray to host the 2014 Asian Games in New Delhi. Over 10,500 athletes from 45 countries across Asia will compete in 39 disciplines at Doha. The torch relay will pass through all participating countries for the first time in the history of the Asian Games movement after the inaugural edition was held in New Delhi in 1951. Qatar is the first Arab state, the first member of the Gulf Cooperation Council and the second in West Asia, after Iran, to host the Asian Games. Iran hosted the fifth edition of the Asian Games in 1974. OCA Secretary-General Randhir Singh said Doha was well on track to organise the most spectacular Asian Games ever. Al-Khulaifi informed that several stadiums were under construction or being renovated, with the focal point being the Sports City, which is home to 11 sports facilities. He said the Sports City would include the main 50,000-capacity Khalifa Stadium, where the opening and closing ceremonies would be held, an Olympic standard aquatic centre and a massive indoor sports hall. Suresh Kalmadi and Randhir Singh hoped that Indian athletes would focus their efforts for the next 16 months on bringing their performances up to the level that would see them triumph at Doha. |
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Kiwis leave for Zimbabwe
Wellington, July 25 The Parliamentary Green Party, which had rallied opposition to the tour in protest at human rights abuses in Zimbabwe, said it was not too late for the New Zealand Government to intervene. New Zealand are due to play two Test matches against Zimbabwe and a series of limited-overs matches against Zimbabwe and India on a tour which begins on August 4.
— AP |
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Sania climbs to 64th place
New Delhi, July 25 Sania climbed up six places from her previous best 70th after she reached the quarterfinals of a Tier III WTA event in Cincinnati, where she bowed out to Akiko Morigami of Japan. Sania, who first achieved the 70th ranking on May 23, had slipped to 75th place after a six-week injury layoff, but regained the spot after her impressive show at the All England Club. Sania, who now had a travelling coach John Farrington of Bahamas, aimed to break into top 50 by next year. Meanwhile, hairing sailed through the first two rounds of qualifying Sania was now set to meet Israel’s Shahar Peer in the final round in the WTA tennis tournament in Stanford, USA, the second event in her build-up to the US Open. Sania had pulled off facile victories in the first two qualifying rounds of the Tier II event. Fifth seed Sania defeated Lindsey Lee-Waters of the USA, ranked 95th, 6-1, 6-3 in the second round after a 6-3, 6-3 win over Maureen Drake of Canada, ranked 260th, according to information received here today. Earlier, US-born Indian Shikha Uberoi and her younger sister Neha Uberoi, who was representing the USA, also entered the final qualifying round. Shikha, ranked 131st, upset second seed Jill Craybas of the USA, ranked 56th, 6-4, 6-4 in the second round after her hard-fought first round win against Shenay Perry of the USA 1-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2. She would next play Marissa Irvin of the USA. The 19-year-old Neha, also in top form, defeated her higher-rated compatriots Teryn Ashley 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 and Meilen Tu 7-6 (4), 6-2 to reach the third and final round. Neha would now face seventh seed Alina Jidkova of Russia, ranked 79th. — PTI |
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Indian teenager wins triple
chess crown
New Delhi, July 25 Vishnuvardhan won the under-16 and the under-20 categories, apart from taking the top honours in the Biel International Youth Chess championship held at the Congress Centre, Biel, from July 23-24, according to information received here. On way to the title, Vishnuvardhan defeated a few International Masters (IMs) and drew his final game against Grandmaster Golod Vitali of Israel to clinch the title with 8.5 points from nine rounds. Such was Vishnuvardhan’s dominance that second-placed Gantner Mathias of Switzerland was a distant 1.5 points behind, while third placed Steiner Fabienne also of Switzerland, was a further 1.5 points adrift. The Indian also stood 19th in the rapid tournament and ninth in the blitz tournament in the same event, with keen competition from both GMs and IMs.
— IANS |
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Chanda stumbles against Satyapragyan
Pardubice, July 25 IM S Poobesh Anand continued to make merry in the 332-player nine-round Swiss tournament with his third straight victory in as many games. With six round still remaining in the tournament, Poobesh was the only Indian in the lead along with 10 others after he defeated IM Igor Smirnov of Ukraine wherein the former played black. GM Tejas Bakre, IM S Kidambi, M R Venkatesh and Satyaprargyan were closely behind the 11 leaders with 2.5 points each to their credit form three rounds while IMs D V Prasad, Saptarshi Roy Chowdhury, Eesha Karavade and Tania Sachdev were amongst those who had 2 points. The third round, in fact, turned out to be better for the Indians as Sandipan was the only loser.
— PTI |
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Joshna enters squash final
Chennai, July 25 In her semifinal today, Joshna ousted Egypt’s Sara Badr 9-6, 9-6, 9-2 in about 30 minutes. In the final, Joshna will play second-seeded Raneem El Weleily of Egypt, who won against Tenille Swart of South Africa at 4-9, 6-9, 9-5, 9-7, 9-4. The 19-year-old Joshna maintained her winning streak, winning all her matches in straight games. Joshna has been preparing herself for this prestigious championship under Liz Irving of the Netherlands since early last month in Holland. The top seeded Joshna had never lost to Sara Badr since defeating the Egyptian on January 7, 2003, for the British Open (Under-17) title. Since then, Joshna had beaten her thrice in different tournaments. Joshna was the first Indian woman to reach the last eight in the World Championship at Cairo in 2003. — PTI
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Zafar Iqbal denied US visa
New Delhi, July 25 Despite repeated requests, the US Embassy has not given any reason for not issuing him visa. The reason is believed to be that his namesake is on the ‘secret terrorist’ list. Zafar was to visit the USA on the invitation of his brother-in-law, who is a senior US Government official. While applying for a visa for a holiday trip on April 13, 2005, Zafar had submitted a no-objection certificate from his employers, Indian Airlines (IA), where he is a general manager (engineering). Since the rejection of his visa application, Zafar has written several letters (e-mail) but he has received a routine reply: “Your application is being processed and we are awaiting communication from Washington”. After a lengthy interview, Zafar was summoned two days later when his finger and palm impressions were taken. For the finger exercise, the former India captain was asked to pay Rs 3700. When he asked why was he being made to pay, the official merely said: “We undertook this exercise in your interest”. A qualified engineer from Aligarh Muslim University, Zafar was the coach of the northern region of the American Field Hockey Association in 1996. Apart from this assignment, the former Olympian had played in the John Kennedy Tournament on several occasions. However, the US immigration authorities have issued visas to his wife and daughter. |
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SAI to issue show-cause notices to erring coaches
Patiala, July 25 When contacted, the in charge, SAI Northern Centre, Sonepat, Mr Suresh Harmilapi, said since the Director-General of the SAI was the appointing authority of the coaches, it was only he who was competent to issue the notices. He added that the notices would be served on the erring coaches for disobeying orders of the head office. Mr P.C. Kashyap, Regional Director, Eastern Centre, Kolkata, had already gone ahead and had dispatched these notices to the coaches who were under his jurisdiction. Ever since the protest launched by the All India SAI Coaches Welfare Association (AISCWA) fizzled out against the defiant stand taken by the Director-General, a majority of the coaches had joined their new places of posting. Meanwhile, AISCWA office-bearers, led by the association’s president, Mr Ananta Ghosh, were still camping in New Delhi to find a amicable settlement on the transfer issue. The SAI Director-General, Mr R.P. Wattal, and the Secretary, Mr B.K. Sinha, had gone on record saying there was no question of taking back the transfer orders. However, the AISCWA had managed to convince the officials to reconsider transfers of coaches citing medical grounds and couple cases. Mr Ghosh, speaking from New Delhi, said they were seeking an appointment with certain ruling party MPs in an attempt to urge the Director-General to take back the orders. He added that a delegation of coaches camped at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium today in an attempt to meet the Director-General but to no avail. |
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Atwal finishes tied 26th
Milwaukee, July 25 Atwal, who started the day at nine-under, finished at eight-under 272. Meanwhile, Daniel Chopra suffered a back nine collapse with four bogeys, that saw him crash from a tied fifth place at one stage to tied 31st. Ben Crane, the leader for first three rounds, had no hiccups and he did not go for any heroics, as he carded a steady one-under 69 to win his second career title. Crane beat his closest rival Scott Verplank by four shots and had a 72-hole total of 20-under 260. Atwal started on the first and managed only pars for the first three holes and then dropped one at the fourth. He got that shot back with a birdie on the sixth, but a double bogey on the eighth, his first of the week, spoilt his card. He did manage birdies on the 10th and 15th, but in between dropped a bogey on the 13th to end at one-over 71. Atwal’s driving and iron play were well above average, but the 32 putts that he took to complete his round derailed all his chances. This was a pity, considering that Atwal was currently second on the overall putting average list.
— PTI |
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