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Dravid best man to lead in 2007 World Cup: poll
Tendulkar is still the best
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Indian, Lankan teams arrive
Exposure tour for Zimbabwe: coach
Ashley Giles (left) and Matthew Hoggard arrive in Islamabad
on Wednesday. — AFP photo
Punjab gymnasts are champions
Bhupathi-Damm lose
Harikrishna downs Sokolov
Vaishavi Sinha writes a "get well soon" message
on the plastered hand of Irina Brar in Chandigarh on Wednesday. — A Tribune photograph
Police games
Mamat warms up in style
Delhi head for victory
Mahindras win BSF, Punjab Police to take part in football meet
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Dravid best man to lead in 2007 World Cup: poll
New Delhi, October 26 Deposed Indian captain Sourav Ganguly comes in second with 33 per cent wanting him back for the coveted job according to the STAR News-AC Nielson poll. The Prince of Kolkata though gets overwhelming support in his city with 58 per cent wanting him to lead the country in the World Cup. The southpaw could also take heart from the fact that 78 per cent of the respondents want him to be in the World Cup team as a player if not as the skipper while Dravid gets 99 per cent votes. The opinion is though divided whether coach Greg Chappell treated Ganguly in the right way with 48 per cent saying yes and 47 per cent no. Mumbai is largely confused while Delhi comes out in support of Chappell and Kolkata rooting for the left-hander. Chappell received a shot in the arm with 66 per cent of all responding considering him to be the right man to guide India to the World Cup 2007. While in Delhi and Mumbai he got the support of 92 and 70 per cent respondents, in Kolkata he could muster the support of only 35 per cent. The experiments with bludgeoning in new comers in the team also got a thumbs up from the respondents with majority believing the new-look Indian team can win the World Cup. Fiftyeight per cent believe this team can win the Cup with 24 per cent responding in the negative while VVS Laxman seems to be out of favour with just 46 per cent respondents wanting him the team.
— UNI |
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Tendulkar is still the best
The return of Sachin Tendulkar reconfirmed what I have always believed to be the difference between greats and merely good cricketers. A good cricketer would take time to find his bearing after a long lay-off while a great one would slip into his cast as if he had never ventured out of it. On the basis of what I saw in the first cricket one-dayer in Nagpur, Tendulkar is still the very best in the
business.
Tendulkar’s riposte to speculation on his future has been nothing less than stunning. He lashed out on the offside, executed those pick up strokes which had all but disappeared from his repertoire and made Murali, for once, appear mortal. His all-out aggression, the sprint between the wicket left even his younger colleagues breathless. It would be difficult not to get some similarly lyrical about a youngster who did not allow the legendary figure at the other end to completely overshadow him. More than Tendulkar, I would like to think it was Pathan who took the game away from the Sri Lankans. Some poor tactics by the visitors also helped him. It was frustrating to see an orthodox leg-spinner bowl his stuff to a left-hander who had specifically been sent to go hell after the leather. You speak to acknowledged left-handers such as Brian Lara and Sourav Ganguly and they would admit their preference to see a leggie dish up his stuff. Pathan took an instant liking to such an offering and the momentum had irrevocably shifted away from the visitors. In my view, Sri Lankans have not played this bad for a long time. There was hardly any stand-out feature, be it in batting, bowling or fielding. You don’t come to a party after eight years and be cavalier about it. Reverses such as this can ring in your ears for long. In next two weeks, we will come to know the character of Atapattu’s men. The old bogey of being poor travelers would raise its head again. In recent times, we have truly believed in the intrinsic value of this side which is not subject to the conditions they are playing. They have risen to number two in world rankings on merit and better things looked in store. Now the old doubts will resurface again. I wonder if playing against the West Indies or Bangladesh injected a false sense of belief in this side. They could also have been fooled by the new look Indian team whose mentor had been out in cold for six months and doubts were freely in the air if his best was not already behind him. Rahul Dravid provided a stirring finish to the innings but it must be said he could not have found a better platform. One of the noticeable aspect about his batting is the way he shifts gears. He nearly always is dependent on ones and two at the start of his innings and nearly always provides a great flourish in the end. It shows how well Dravid knows his game and how confident he is with his methods. He climaxed his innings with nearly every shot in the book — lofted strokes over the infield, ferocious pulls and square drives backing away towards the leg-stump. One sweep off Vaas from the middle stump defied belief. His captaincy too conveyed a man who had come well prepared to the middle. He brought on his spinners at the precise moment and his field placements were thoughtful. It also appeared to me that the team backed him to the hilt. He made a great statement of intent and India seem ready to leap into the arms of future. I just hope the momentum has not shifted away from the Sri Lankans at right angles. They would need to put their indifference aside and think deep and hard about the matches ahead. I sincerely feel the openers need to be tinkered with since it has been an ordinary association between the two of late. I would love to be proved wrong but Sri Lanka can ill-afford to start on the wrong foot and then play catch-up game for the remainder of the series. Recovery for them has to be made on all counts and the support bowling staff to Chaminda Vaas and Murali need to show their fangs quickly. Fervez Mahroof and Dilhara Fernando need to pull their weight and push Indians on the
backfoot. Before the game started, there was more than a mild query about the quality of the Indian middle-order. There would still be some now but largely on positive note as the likes of Dhoni, Jayaprakash Yadav, Venugopala Rao hardly got to bat enough in the centre. When Ganguly and Mohammad Kaif return, there would be options in excess. It is a good situation to be in for the firm of Dravid and Chappell.
— PTI |
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Indian, Lankan teams arrive
Chandigarh, October 26 Both the teams were given a warm welcome at Hotel Taj GVK. Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Irfan Pathan were the cynosure of cricket fans, who had gathered at the hotel. Due to their late arrival, both teams could not practise at PCA stadium. India (from): R Dravid, V Sehwag, S Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, G Gambhir, V Gopal Rao, S Raina, M S Dhoni, M Kartik, I Pathan, A Agarkar, J P Yadav, Sreesanth, R P Singh, Harbhajan Singh. Sri Lanka (from): M Atapattu, S Jayasurya, K Sangakara, M Jayawardhane, R Arnold, M Muralitharan, Dilshan, Samaraveera, U Chandana, Mahroof, Zoysa, C Vaas, Fernando, Tharanga, Lokuhettige. |
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Exposure tour for Zimbabwe: coach
Mumbai, October 26 “Basically it is an exposure trip for us. We are expecting to do well in the tournament as our batting seems to be clicking,” Zimbabwe coach Kevin Curran said today. “Our batsmen got runs in yesterday’s practice match against MCA Colts,” Curran said. Zimbabwe would only benefit by playing in this tournament, struggling as a number of top players had left the national outfit for one reason or another, the latest being Heath Streak. It is a must-win game for North Zone after their loss to East Zone in the round-robin opener at Rajkot. North captain Dinesh Mongia sounded upbeat about his team’s morale on the eve of their four-day clash. “It is an important game for us and we are looking forward to it,” he said. There was doubt whether young Punjab paceman
V.R.V. Singh would be fit to play in the match because of a foot injury.
— PTI |
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Reetinder shines in Hong Kong
Chandigarh, October 26 In the final, India restricted the West Indies to 72 runs in the stipulated five overs in the six-a-side final. Thanks to Robin Singh, who scored an unbeaten 34, India overhauled the target in the last over to emerge winners. Former India players Sunil Joshi and Nikhil Chopra also played their part. They mesmerised the rivals with controlled spin and never allowed the West Indian batsmen to free their arms. While Robin Singh, with his crafty batting, clinched the man of the final award, Reetinder Sodhi proved his mettle as an all-rounder and played a pivotal role in India wining the maiden title. In fine form throughout the tournament, Reetinder scored 128 runs and took five wickets which fetched him the Ben Hollioke Player of the Tournament trophy. India did not start on a winning note, they lost the first league match to the West Indies. But they beat South Africa in the next league match. Punjab Ranji Trophy player Reetinder slammed two lusty sixes in the last over to seal victory over Moin Khan-led Pakistan in the third match. Playing a crucial knock again, he hit a last-ball six to ensure a thrilling win over Sri Lanka in the semifinal. Sunjoy Bangar and Hrishikesh Kanitkar were also part of the Indian team. The last time India entered the final was in 1996, when they lost to the West Indies.
Reetinder (25), who has played 18 one-day matches for India, rued the loss of crucial one year to a debilitating injury during the Challenger Trophy two years back, but looks focussed to make up for the time lost. |
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Englishmen get low-key welcome
Karachi, October 26 In the wake of the devastation caused by the October 8 earthquake, there was no traditional welcome in Islamabad as the tourists were greeted by four Pakistan Cricket Board officials, 150 policemen and 24 commandos. The visitors were whisked away from the VVIP lounge, that not only left the waiting electronic media fuming, but also denied a handful of cricket lovers to catch a glimpse of the players. The first training session
for the tourists was scheduled for tomorrow. Allrounder Andrew Flintoff and paceman Steve Harmison, who had not accompanied the team to Islamabad, would arrive on November 3 after being given an additional one-week break following their participation in the ICC Super Series against Australia. The tourists would open
their tour with a three-day match against Patron’s XI in Rawalpindi, starting on
October 31. They were expected to take part in fund-raising efforts for earthquake victims and visit hospitals where the injured were being treated. The first Test would start in Multan on November 12, to be followed by Tests in Faisalabad and Lahore. The two teams would then lock horns in a five-match one-day series. England had last toured Pakistan in 2000 and won their first series here in 33 years in near darkness when they won the last of three Tests in Karachi by six wickets. This time, they had skipped Karachi for the longer version of the game because of
security concerns. The city would host a one-dayer on December 15. — PTI |
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Punjab gymnasts are champions
Sangrur, October 26 Smith L. of Karnataka won the 200m freestyle and 100m freestyle events in swimming, taking her tally to three gold. In basketball quarterfinals, Punjab trounced Kerala 74-31, Chhattisgarh beat Himachal Pradesh 81-41, Chandigarh defeated Andhra Pradesh 45-18 and Madhya Pradesh scraped past Uttar Pradesh 56-52. Other results: swimming: 100m butterfly final: first — Harpeet Kaur (Delhi), second — Sinchana K.A. (Karnataka), third — Praveen B. (Kerala); 4x100m freestyle relay: first — Karnataka, second — Delhi, third — Tamil Nadu; 200m backstroke: first — Shraddha S. Alvi (Karnataka), second — R. Aishwarya (Tamil Nadu), third — Meghna Gupta (Karnataka).
— OSR |
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Bhupathi-Damm lose
New Delhi, October 26 The Indo-Czech pair got off to flying start and dropped only three games to race away with the set 6-3, according to information received here today. One set up, complacent looking Bhupathi and Damm were caught napping by the Austrians who levelled the match by taking the second set. The decider proved to be a cliffhanger and both sides matched each other shot for shot and error for error to stretch it to tie-breaker. The Indo-Czech pair failed to rise to the occasion to lose the set and the match. Bhupathi and Damm have been struggling with their form for quite sometime. They lost to Leander Paes and Serbian Nenad Zimonjic in the second round of Madrid Masters last week.
— UNI |
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Harikrishna downs Sokolov
Hoogeveen, October 26 With his second successive victory, Harikrishna took his tally to 2.5 points out of a possible 3 and is now a full point ahead of nearest rivals Sokolov and Emil Sutovsky of Israel. Sutovsky defeated Women’s world champion Antoaneta Stefanova in the other game of the four-player double round robin event. As things stand now, 1.5 points should be enough from the remaining three games for Harikrishna to notch another major victory of the year. He recently won the Sanjin Hotel Cup in China. In the fifth round of the open section, Parimarjan Negi again missed out on scoring over a much higher rated opponent and drew with GM-elect Erwin Lami of the Netherlands. It was in the final position of the game that Negi failed to spot the winning sequence. Grandmaster Vladimir Baklan of Ukraine emerged as the sole leader in this section on
4.5 points. — PTI |
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Vaishavi surges ahead
Chandigarh, October 26 Vaishavi, who played a three-over card yesterday, improved upon her performance returning a two-over card of 74 today for a two-day aggregate of 149. This was six strokes better than second-placed Shruti Khanna, who logged a five-over card of 77 today for a two-day score of 155. One stroke behind her was Shalini Malik. The scores after the
second day: Championship trophy: Vaishavi Sinha 149; Shruti Khanna 155; Shalini
Malik 156. Silver Salver ( 0-12 handicap): Nett – Preetinder Kaur 140; Shewta Galande 143; Nitika Jadeja 147. Challenge Bowl ( 13-24 handicap): Gross – Tanya Anand 178, Apurva Gupta 179, Pallavi Jain 180; Nett – Pallavi Jain 140, Tanya Anand 142, Apurva
Gupta 143. Bronze Plate (25-26 handicap): Gross – Arshia Singh 210, Ekam Jai Singh 217, Neelu Chopra 218; Nett – Arshia Singh 154, Ekam J Singh 156, Gaitri M M Singh 164. Junior Shield: Gross – Vaishavi Sinha 149, Sharmilla Nicollet 158, Divia Kapoor 160; Nett – Preetinder Kaur 140, Tanya Anand 142, Sheweta Galande 143. Senior Challenge: Gross – Rashmi Prasad 194, Sheena Sekhon 195, Chandna Dutt 199; Nett – Sheena Sekhon 153, Rashmi Prasad 158, Dalbir Sahi 158. Subjunior Shield:Gross – Laverry Kumar 173, Meher Atwal 188; Nett – Ekam J Singh 134, Meher Atwal 144. |
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Police games
Jalandhar, October 26 In the handball quarterfinals, Punjab beat CISF 28-22, Jammu and Kashmir defeated Uttar Pradesh 32-18, BSF beat Karnataka 38-17 and CRPF defeated Gujarat 19-7. In kabaddi matches, Chhattisgarh beat Goa 28-20, ITBP defeated Chandigarh 37-16, CISF beat Karnataka 27-20, Himachal Pradesh defeated Rajasthan 36-10, Haryana beat Madhya Pradesh 51-17, Uttar Pradesh defeated RPF 52-30, Maharashtra beat Andhra Pradesh 49-36 and Orissa defeated Gujarat 59-10. In other matches, Madhya Pradesh beat Goa 39-10, Delhi drew with Uttar Pradesh 21-21, Maharashtra defeated Manipur 13-6, Orissa beat Uttaranchal 30-24, Punjab defeated Haryana 30-14, Chandigarh beat RPF 17-10, Himachal Pradesh defeated Gujarat 38-12 and Karnataka beat Andhra Pradesh 39-16. In volleyball pre-quarterfinals, CRPF beat Tamil Nadu 3-2, Andhra Pradesh defeated West Bengal 3-0, Punjab beat Kerala 3-0 and ITBP defeated SSB 3-1.
— TNS |
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Mamat warms up in style
New Delhi, October 26 Mamat’s team’s score of 26-under par bested Atwal’s team by one stroke. Former cricketer Kapil Dev was a member of Atwal’s team. The Singapore golfer said he was under no pressure and would try to play his best. Mamat had been paired with Atwal and South African James Kingston in the first two rounds. |
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Delhi head for victory
New Delhi, October 26 Delhi had took a 98-run first-innings lead yesterday when they scored 193 in reply to Jammu and Kashmir’s first innings’ total of 95. Sunny Sehrawat, who took six wickets yesterday, took three more today for 14 runs.
— OSR |
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Mahindras win Margao, October 26 After Mahindras’ Surkumar Singh equalised Tony Geemudu Ngozi’s strike in the first half, Baretto scored twice in the 52nd and 55th minutes. Substitute Abhishek Yadau rounded off the tally in stoppage time.
— PTI
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BSF, Punjab Police to take part in football meet Patiala, October 26 Apart from the BSF, the Jalandhar winners of the Governor’s cup, which concluded in Sikkim recently, and the PSEB, who came second in the 30th All-India Gurdarshan Memorial Football Tournament, which concluded at Nabha recently, are the JCT Academy, CRPF,
RCF, Kapurthala, Punjabi University, Patiala, Chandigarh XI and Mahilpur XI.
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