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SPORTS

Funds are now pouring in for Worrell
Geetanjali Gayatri
Tribune News Service

Devi Chand Worrell

Chandigarh, August 7
It seems that things have started looking up for the Worrell household in Sector 21. Devi Chand Worrell, former Punjab Ranji player, who was awaiting funds for an amputation, has now found some helping hands.

It’s as if the heavens have opened for him with help pouring in from everywhere. Moved by the pathetic condition of this former cricketer, volunteers of Yuvsatta were the first to come to his rescue by raising funds for him.

The UT Red Cross has decided to foot the bill for DC Worrell’s entire treatment including amputation, while the Punjab Government will chip in with Rs 1 lakh to the former cricketer who has played with the Maharaja of Patiala, Yadavindra Singh, Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh’s father.

The Board of Cricket Control of India is also willing to pitch in with some funds. Besides, his plight, reflected in a story published in The Tribune last month, moved a number of readers who sent in drafts and cheques from all over Punjab to help the ailing cricketer.

“The last few months were almost nightmarish. We had no money, no help and nobody to hear us. Being diabetic, my wounds got bad instead of healing. My wife used to dress the wounds at home since the family had no money to take me to the hospital,” he said.

An ambulance now takes Worrell to the hospital for his regular check ups and dressing. However, it’s been marked by another traumatic realisation for Worell—-that the amputation of his arm is the only way out.

Doctors at Government Medical College and hospital, Sector 32, and the PGI are of unanimous opinion that there’s no hope for the hand that bowled to cricketers of the likes of Lala Amarnath. And, Worrell is not able to reconcile to this fact.

“We’ve been trying to convince him to let go, to ready himself for the amputation He just doesn’t seem ready for it and is now even avoiding going to the doctor since they are emphasising on an early amputation,” his wife rues.

Bindra elected Punjab Cricket Club chief
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 7
Mr Inderjit Singh Bindra, president of the Punjab Cricket Association, was elected president of the Punjab Cricket Club at the annual general body meeting of the PCA held in Mohali today.

Other members of the committee are Dr B.C. Gupta and Mr S.K. Sinha (vice-presidents), Mr M.P. Pandove (secretary), Mr D.P. Reddy (joint secretary), Mr G.S. Walia (treasurer) and Mr A.S. Chhatwal, Mr Yashveer Mahajan, Mr Rajiv Bali, Mr H.S. Oberoi, Mrs Jugraj Sohi, Mr B.S. Gill, Mr Kapil Khanna, Mr Manjit Singh, and Mr R.P. Singh (members).

The other committees formed at the meeting are — selection committee (senior): Chaman Lal Malhotra (chairman), Navjot Singh Sidhu, D.P. Azad, Bhupinder Singh Sr, Intikhab Alam (adviser) and M.P. Pandove (convener). Junior selection committee (under 19 and 22): R.P. Singla (chairman), Sameer Mehra, Balbir Singh, Joginder Singh, Pawan Kumar and M.P. Pandove (convener). Junior selection committee (under 15 and 17): Umesh Kumar (chairman), Ajit Singh, Monish Aggarwal, Kamal Thakur, Naresh Kumar and M.P. Pandove (convener).

Tournament and fixture committee: S.K. Kakkar (chairman), J.P. Shoor, Vinod Chitkara, Surjit Rai, R.P. Pandove, Mohinder Singh, Daljit Singh, H.S. Sekhon, G.S. Walia and M.P. Pandove (convener). Minor district committee: B.K. Mehta (chairman), Ajay Tyagi (co-chairman), O.D. Sharma, J.B. Behal, A.G.S. Bawa, Yog Raj Singh, Sandeep Budhiraja, Krishan lal and M.P. Pandove (convener). Technical-cum-rules committee: Ashiwani Kumar Minna (chairman), Daljit Singh (co-chairman), D.P. Azad (co-chairman), H.S. Sekhon and M.P. Pandove (convener).

Finance committee: Rajan Kashyap (chairman), Lalit Modi, Rajiv Mittal, Kapil Khanna and G.S. Walia (convener). Marketing committee: Y.S. Ratra (chairman), Viswajit Khanna (co-chairman), Lalit Modi, Rajiv Bali, Surjit Rai, Vinod Chitkara, M.P. Pandove and G.S. Walia (convener).

Cricket committee: Chaman Lal Malhotra (chairman), Navjot Singh Sidhu, D.P. Azad, Bhupinder Singh Sr, Daljit Singh, Intikhab Alam (special invitee) and M.P. Pandove (convener).

It was Shaifali’s day at table tennis tournament
Tribune News Service

Panchkula, August 7
Shaifali Garg of Bhavan Vidyalaya, Sector 15, won under-14 and under-17 events after beating Manu in a one-sided affair on the concluding day of the Panchkula District Table Tennis Championship held at Manav Mangal School, Sector 11, here today.

Shaifali prevailed over her rival Manu in the finals of the sub-junior girls singles(u-14) with scores of 11-7, 8-11, 11-7, 11-7 and thrashed her again in under-17 girls singles category with the score of 7-11, 17-19, 11-9, 11-6, 13-11.

Prasoon Sharma could not face the challenge posed by Prateek Gupta and lost the boys singles u-17 category. The final score was 6-11, 8-11, 20-18, 4-11.

Today’s results (finals):

Sub-junior girls singles: Shaifali Garg bt Manu 11-7, 8-11, 11-7, 11-7.

Sub-junior boys singles: Vaibhav Kashyap bt Archit 11-4, 11-5, 11-7.

Girls (under-17): Shaifali bt Manu 7-11, 17-19, 11-9, 11-6, 13-11.

Boys (under-17): Prateek Gupta bt Prasoon Sharma 11-6, 11-8, 18-20,11-4.

Women’s singles finals:

Anuradha Bansal bt Shaifali Garg 11-6, 11-9, 11-6.

Men’s singles finals:

Prateek Gupta bt Manikant 6-11, 11-8, 9-11, 11-8, 11-9.

	Come, let’s play dodgeball Arvind Katyal Chandigarh, August 7 The two-day national dodgeball meet which concluded today has raised curiosity among the sports fraternity towards the new game. This sport is now on the verge of gaining popularity as it costs less and encourages hand-eye coordination. Dodgeball is also known as war ball, prison ball and chain ball. It is played in almost every country but with slight variation. In India, school students have been playing this sport in an unorganised manner for years and in the absence of any formal competition. Japanese students play dodgeball almost daily in school. Mr Arvind Tyagi, president of the Maharashtra Dodgeball Federation, says, “This sport is catching on fast in their state and other parts of the country as it is an excellent aerobic exercise”. Mr P.S. Brar, secretary of the Dodgeball Federation of India, says “At the international level seven players with seven balls trying to dodge players is difficult. He said the ball used for play is very light (about 7 oz), and about 8 inch in diameter. It has a butyl bladder inflated with very low pressure (2 lbs) and is covered with a fabric to avoid stinging. But in India at present it was being played with two balls in the nationals.” He said the International Dodgeball Federation has asked us to further popularise the sport in Asia. He said many states had offered to host the women’s nationals but “we want to go slow with regard to competition in this sport as it is still in an infant stage in India”.
	Kabaddi court at sports complex soon Akash Ghai Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 7 To give a boost to kabaddi, a national style kabaddi court will be constructed soon at the sports complex, Sector 42, here. The court will be constructed in a round shape with 65-foot playing area while the area of national style kabaddi is only 12 ½ x 10 feet. A two-foot wall has been erected on which 8-foot IRS fencing will be installed. A special floor will be prepared by mixing saw dust with special soil to make it soft and less injury prone. Four trees, which are standing in the middle of the court, have to be uprooted for the completion of the court. “The Engineering Department has taken up the issue of the trees with the Forest Department. We are expecting to get the clearance to remove these soon,” said Dr J.P.S. Sidhu, Joint Director of Chandigarh Sports Department. However, he expected the court to be ready before September. Defining the preparation of the court a big step in the promotion of the game, Dr Sidhu said, “the department has sanctioned 28-wing seats to city kabaddi players last month and now the court, costing Rs 7 lakh, is being prepared with the latest dimensions for kabaddi lovers”. The court would be instrumental in raising the popularity graph of the game, he added. Mr Davinder Singh Kohli, kabaddi coach at the training centre, Sector 42, expressed happiness with the construction of the court. “It will cater to the needs of 60 to 70 players of the centre. After its completion, they will be able to play circle kabaddi,” said Kohli. Briefing about the popularity of the circle kabaddi, Kohli said: “The circle kabaddi, an old rural game, is being played in over 20 states. The game is popular not only in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi but also in foreign countries like Canada, America and the Britain.” These countries also organise tournaments on regular basis, he added.
	Football field to be expanded G.S. Paul Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 7 If one goes by the number of players being produced at the national and international level by training centres, then the Football Academy, Sector 42, is certainly be one of the best in the country. But it stands handicapped because of the absence of a football field of standard size. The football field is roughly 97 metres long and 68 metres wide, whereas the size of a standard field is at least 110 metres x 80 metres. With the induction of more trainees, which has increased from 21 to more than 40 in the second batch, the situation has worsened. Three more are expected to join the academy after selections to fill vacant seats. It is difficult for the coaches to train both batches on the same field, being the only soccer field in the Sector 42 Sports Complex. According to the chief coach, Mr Harjinder Singh: “We have apprised the UT Director of Sports, Mr Inderjit Singh Sandhu, and Joint Director of Sports JPS Sidhu about the incorrect dimensions. The Director has ordered the expansion of the football field, but the process will take a lot of time. There is some technical hindrance.” The work on extending the field has been on. A retention wall has been built at one side of the field. Later, the whole field will be levelled and the goalpost placed keeping in view the standard field conditions. The authorities’ say due to the monsoon, the extension work of the soccer field has come to a halt. The extension work will be resumed as soon as the weather permits.
	Golf starts at Forest Hill Club Our Sports Reporter Chandigarh, August 7 Golf enthusiasts got the much-awaited opportunity to play golf after the re-opening of the Forest Hill Golf and Country Club, near Karoran village. The enthusiastic members welcomed the apex court’s decision which was announced in favour of the club. Although, a part of the fun would be missing due to non-operation of the pub and restaurant, nature lovers and golfers would love to be in the beautiful club surroundings. The management had invited all club members for a round of golf on Sunday for celebrating and sharing the moment of happiness. The sporting event was followed by a high tea programme in the evening. Lieut-Col B.S. Sandhu, chairperson and managing director, along with Mr Devinder Sandhu, senior director, of the club, were also present on the occasion. The exchange of congratulatory notes and acknowledgements seemed to be endless.
	City boys win dodgeball nationals Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 7 Chandigarh thrashed the Tamil Nadu 2-0 (28-18, 32-4) in the finals of the first Dodge ball Senior National Championship at the sports complex, Sector 7 here today. Punjab beat Madhya Pradesh 2-0 (6-4, 6-4) and come third. The chief guest, Mr Gurdip Singh, president of Dodgeball Association Chandigarh, gave away the prizes. He also exhorted state units to conduct state championships to promote this game. Mr C.K. Jerath and Mr R. Sharan, joint secretaries, Chandigarh Olympic Association, were also present at the closing ceremony.