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Lanka outplay India in drawn Test
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Chappell unfazed by dismal show
Akram backs Ganguly
Indo-Pak veteran cricket series from Dec 26
HC fixes HPCA’s petition for Dec 13
Harikrishna bows out
Rathod wins fifth double trap title
Athlete Ana Figueira dead
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Lanka outplay India in drawn Test
Chennai, December 6 The Sri Lankans first bundled out the hosts for their lowest ever total against the islanders on 167 and then showed better application on a difficult track at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium to finish the fifth and final day on 168 for four. With just one and half day’s play being possible in the rain-marred match, Marvan Atapattu’s men claimed both the batting and bowling honours which would hold them in good stead in the remaining two matches of the series. Mahela Jayawardene was the topscorer with a defiant 71 on a track that offered uneven bounce and played a big role in steering the Lankan total past India’s modest effort. Thilan Samarweera was the other notable contributor with an unbeaten 35 before play was called off with 12 mandatory overs remaining to be bowled. Resuming at the score of 90 for two, the Indians collapsed dramatically, losing their last eight wickets for the addition of just 77 runs to the total. Seasoned paceman Chaminda Vaas was the chief wrecker with 4 for 20 while Muttiah Muralitharan chipped in with two wickets. The two teams will now travel to Delhi to play the second match of the series, to be held at the Firoze Shah Kotla from December 10 to 14. The Sri Lankans, looking to put behind their 1-6 series loss in the shorter version recently, showed signs that they were on course for their first ever Test win in Indian soil when they play the next two Tests. After restricting the hosts to 90 for two last evening, they came back strongly in the morning to claim eight wickets in the space of 26 overs and the Indian innings folded up at 167, the lowest ever total against the islanders, the previous low being 180 at Galle in 2001. Much was expected of Sachin Tendulkar, looking for his 35th century to surpass Sunil Gavaskar’s tally, and Sourav Ganguly, on a come back into the team, but both failed to make their mark much to the disappointment of a good crowd that had thronged the stadium despite today being a working day and the expected outcome. Debutant Mahendra Singh Dhoni waged a lone battle scoring a valuable 30 and throwing his wicket away in the end having run out of partners. Scoreboard
India (1st innings) Gambhir b Vaas 0 Sehwag c Atapattu b Vaas 36 Dravid c Sangakkara b Vaas 32 Tendulkar lbw Muralitharan 22 Laxman run out 5 Ganguly c Dilshan b Fernando 5 Dhoni c Gunawardene Pathan c & b Muralitharan 0 Agarkar run out 4 Kumble c & b Vaas 9 Harbhajan not out 4 Extras (b-12, lb-2, nb-6) 20 Total
(all out, 73.2 overs) 167 Fall of wickets: 1-13, 2-45, 3-97, 4-108, 5-109, 6-117, 7-118, 8-128, 9-159. Bowling: Vaas 21-14-20-4, Fernando 16-4-58-1, Muralitharan 25-6-60-2, Bandara 11.2-6-15-1. Sri Lanka (1st innings) Gunawardene c Dhoni b Pathan 4 Sangakkara lbw Kumble 30 Jayawardene c Gambhir Samaraweera not out 35 Atapattu b Kumble 7 Dilshan not out 8 Extras (w-1, nb-7, penalty-5) 13 Total (4 wkts, 43 overs) 168 Fall of wickets:
1-5, 2-62, 3-124, 4-158. Bowling: Pathan 7-0-43-1, Agarkar 10-3-29-0, Ganguly 2-0-16-0, Harbhajan 9-2-34-0, Kumble 15-3-41-3. Man of the match:
Chaminda Vaas. — PTI |
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Chappell unfazed by dismal show
Chennai, December 6 Talking to reporters here, he said the one-and-a-half day’s match was a good practice for both the teams. Pointing out that the conditions were quite difficult to bat on, the Aussie said he was not unduly worried about the performance of the batsmen even though the host side was all out for a meagre 167. “They bowled well and the conditions were difficult for batting,’’ Chappell said when asked about India’s collapse from 90 for two to 167 all out, the lowest ever total against the islanders. He also said he was not concerned about opener Virender Sehwag not converting good starts into big scores. He, however, admitted that the team should have made a decent score in the match. Asked about Sourav Ganguly flopping with the bat and conceding 16 runs in his two overs, Chappell reiterated “I do not read too much into what happened here’’. Meanwhile, Lankan skipper Marvan Atapattu and coach Tom Moody said the team had gained some psychological advantage before going into the second Test in Delhi from December 10. “It’s psychologically beneficial in a number of ways. We are pleased with the little bit of cricket after being confined to the hotel rooms. We bowled well and the batsmen gained some good practice, especially Mahela Jayawardene, who scored a half century,’’ the captain said. The skipper and the coach were all praise for Chaminda Vaas, who was adjudged man of the match for his four-wicket haul.
— UNI |
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Akram backs Ganguly
Chennai, December 6 All cricketers go through such a stage. Ganguly is only 33 years old and has some more years left in the game, he said. “The culture in this part of the world is different... One bad series is not enough to suggest that a player should be sidelined,” he said when asked about the recent furore involving Ganguly and coach Greg Chappell. Commenting on the Test series and
one-dayers between Pakistan and India slated to begin next month, he said it would be a close affair and played on slow tracks. “India-Pakistan matches will be a close series. No matter who wins or loses, it will be a close series,” the former left-arm fast bowler said. Asked about the possibility of him coaching the Indian team, he said, “It really doesn’t matter which nation you coach. I got tips from the great Kapil Dev so I would like to give back to the cricketing world what I know.” On Irfan
Pathan, he said the Baroda bowler had talent. It is too early to compare him with Kapil Dev. Zaheer Khan, who had been dropped from the Indian squad, should have been retained as he has a lot of potential, he added.
— PTI |
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Indo-Pak veteran cricket series from Dec 26
Kochi, December 6 According to sources, the goodwill series will be played at Sirsa in Haryana (December 26), Kanpur (December 28), Lucknow (December 30) and Kochi (January 1), Board Vice-President J.K. Mahendra said here today. The Pakistan team would include Wasim Akram, Rashid Latoif, Amir Sohail, Manzoor Ilahi, Rashid Khan and Tousif Ahmed, while India would announced the team on December 16. Former players like Krishnamachari Srikkanth, Bhagawat Chandrasekhar, Javagal Srinath, Robin Singh, Dilip Vengsarkar and Venkatapathi Raju were likely to be included in the Indian team, he said.
— UNI |
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Telecast rights run into controversy
Dubai, December 6 According to sources, cricket boards of England, Australia, New Zealand and Pakistan, have also written to Mr Dasmunshi expressing concern at the proposed regulations which they fear would reduce their revenue from broadcast rights. The new regulations, the eye of the storm, make it mandatory for satellite broadcasters to share content with Doordarshan and the cricket boards are concerned that this will effect the revenue of international cricket which relies heavily on Indian broadcasters TEN Sports, ESPN, STAR Sports and SET Max for their income. The expected losses of cable distribution income for the satellite broadcasters are expected to result in lower offers from the broadcasters for the next sale of rights from the member countries of the ICC, it was said. The issue also affects other television markets such as West Asia, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh where the Doordarshan signal is freely available on satellite — effectively preventing pay television sales of Indian cricket in those areas. David Morgan, the President of the English Cricket Board and Pakistan Cricket Board chief Sharyhar Khan have also written to the Indian Government complaining that this would reduce their income and their potential to invest in the sporting infrastructure of their countries. The complaints of the broadcasters concentrate on the lack of exclusivity for any of the content, which effectively reduces their income from cable operators. The broadcasters are asking Doordarshan to clarify as to whether they will show all Indian cricket, as the legislation allows, or whether Doordarshan will only chose certain one day games. As an example, the India against West Indies Test matches will clash with the football World Cup but Doordarshan have the right to take both events free of charge under the new laws.
— UNI |
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Sanam goes down fighting
Chandigarh, December 6 Rohan Bopanna, Karan Rastogi and Vishal Uppal, however, made it to the last eight. The line up for tomorrow's quarterfinal: Rohan Bopanna vs Toshihide Matsui (Jpn); Go Soeda (Jpn) vs Aisam Qureshi (Pakistan); Karan Rastogi vs Frank Moser (Ger); Vishal Uppal vs An Jae-Sung (Korea). Sanam made his opponent earn every point. The Chandigarh lad played some excellent volleys but in the end he lost 6-4, 5-7, 3-6. Rohan Bopanna, the top seed, downed Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan 6-3, 6-3. Fifth seed Karan Rastogi beat qualifier David Brewer of the UK, 6-3, 6-3. Qualifier An Hyung-Tae of Korea upset second seed Smith Matthew of the UK 6-4,7-5. Pakistan Davis Cupper Aisam Qureshi defeated Michal Przysiezny of Poland 6-1, 2-1. Michael conceded after a knee injury. Results: singles (2nd round): Rohan Bopanna b Jeevan Nedundchezhiyan 6-3, 6-3; Toshihide Matsui (Jap) b Sanam K Singh 4-6, 7-5, 6-3; Go Soeda (Jap) b Steve Nobelcourt (Fra) 6-3, 6-1; Aisam Qureshi (Pak) b 8-Michal Przysiezny (Pol) 6-1, 2-1 retd; Karan Rastogi b David Brewer (UK) 6-3, 6-4; Frank Moser (Ger) b Hyun-Woo Nam (Kor) 6-3, 6-2; Vishal Uppal b Divij Sharan 6-4, 6-1; An Jae-Sung (Jap) b Smith Matthew (UK) 6-4, 7-5. Doubles (1st round): Tushar Liberhan and Navdeep Singh b McGahon John (Irl) and Smith Matthew (UK) 6-3, 6-4; Frank Moser (UK) and Vishal Uppal b Arjun Goutham and Aditya Madkekar 6-0, 6-3; Ravishankar Pathanjali and Vinod Sridhar b Kanagazraj Balakrishnan and Sitham Giri (Malaysia) 6-0, 6-1, Jar-Sung An (Kor) and Domnic Stockler (Sui) b Alexei Filinkov (Rus) and Dmriti Makeyev (Kaz) 6-4, 7-5, Karan Rastogi and Ashutosh Singh b Hyung-Tae Kwon (Kor) and Hung Woo Nam (Kor) 6-3, 6-2, Chu Huan Yi (Tpe) and Hiu Tung Yu (HKG) b Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Sanam K Singh 6-4, 6-4, Divij Sharan and Vivek Shoken b Siddharath Gulati and Kinshuk Sharma 6-0, 6-0. Marico Torres (Bra) and Aisam Qureshi (Pak) b Abou El Khair Motaz (Egy) and Shivang Mishra (India) 6-1, 6-0. |
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Jeev looking to break out of winless mode
Bangkok, December 6 Jeev is the man who in many senses put Indian golf on the Asian, European and Japanese Tours. But somewhere down the line, an inspiration of sorts for contemporaries and youngsters alike, got lost in the labyrinth of injuries and self-doubt. And that is the maze a resurgent Jeev will try to find a way out of when he tees off at the Thai Country Club here. Jeev leads a group of five Indians, including defending champion Jyoti Randhawa, Gaurav Ghei, Shiv Kapur and Harmeet Kahlon at what is the grand finale of the 2005 Asian Tour. “I personally feel my game is really good. I have just got to get my confidence back to shoot four good rounds. I don’t trust myself at the right moment,” Jeev says with renewed belief. Jeev also comes off a fairly decent season in Japan, where he will once again spend a better part of 2006 season, mixing it with a lot of tournaments in Asia. “The last day (at Hong Kong) I did nothing right. I hit badly and negative thoughts came into my mind. At six-under after three days, I was not too far off. And then nine-under wins. It was frustrating, but that’s what I am working at,” says Jeev. The first Indian to play on European and Japanese Tours, Jeev, has four titles on the Asian Tour, but the last one came in 1999. The 33-year-old Jeev confesses that his wrist injury in 2000 set him back quite a bit. He was playing well then, doing extremely well on European Tour and the injuries were a big blow. That troubled period continued into the next two seasons till 2002-03. As and when Jeev breaks out of the “winless” mode, one can be sure that virtually the whole of Indian golfing community will be up there applauding for him, for there could not be a more likeable and amiable man who has more than paid his dues and deserves a change in fortunes. — PTI |
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Gagan to lead, ill Tirkey out
Chennai, December 6 The talented forward had led India in the Junior World cup event and has represented India in more than 100 matches. “Certainly”, Mr Gill said when asked if Tirkey’s absence would be felt as it would weaken the defence. “He is a great inspiration to the team. But I am sure he will come back for the Commonwealth Games (Sydney early next year),” he said. IHF President K.P.S. Gill, who is also Chairman of the selection committee said the doctors had certified that Tirkey, undergoing treatment for an acute sinus problem, would be fit in a day or two. “We had discussions with the doctors who told us that Tirkey’s sinus problem is being treated with antibiotics,” he said. Gill said Tirkey would be fully fit after ten days. “But Tirkey told us that he wanted to skip this tournament as he was not feeling fully fit and did not want to weaken the team,” he said at a press conference. Asked if Tirkey’s illness was the result of some of the senior players playing too much hockey as IHF was not rotating players available as in cricket, Mr Gill said, “It is our endeavour to see that players are rested adequately.” That is why we decided not to have any domestic tournaments in the run up to the Champions trophy tournament, Mr Gill said. Mr Gill said defender William Xalco will be replacing Tirkey in the defence. Mr Gill said it was creditable that India has qualified for the Champions Trophy for the fourth consecutive term. “But we like to do be better and continue to be part of this tournament. We are ranked sixth in the world. But with a better show we must improve,” he said. — UNI |
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Asian cycling logo released
Ludhiana, December 6 Giving details, Ms Amrit Gill, organising secretary, 25th Asian Cycling Championship, said final touches were being given for the conduct of this mega event being organised for the first time in Punjab. She said competitions would be held for 34 medals, both on road and velodrome, in which more than 500 cyclists from Asia would take part. The countries, that have confirmed their participations include China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kirgyzstan, Lebanon, Macau, Malaysia, Mangolia, Nepal, North Korea, Pakistan, South Korea, Thailand, UAE, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, besides
hosts India. To review the progress of the arrangements, a high-level meeting was held at Chandigarh on Sunday under the chairmanship of Mr Surinder Singla, Finance Minister, Punjab, and chairman of the organising committee of the 25th BSA Asian Cycling Championship-2005 and 12th Junior Cycling Championship, who said Doordarshan would be making arrangements to cover the event live. |
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HC fixes HPCA’s petition for Dec 13
Shimla, December 6 The HPCA alleged that the registration of parallel cricket body by the state government emboldened it to take control of Dharamsala cricket stadium by force recently. The HPCA, which filed the contempt petition through its president Anurag Thakur, son of former Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, alleged that registration of parallel cricket body amounted to contempt of court as it violated an earlier interim order of the court in which the state government was directed not to take any adverse or penal action against the HPCA after passing of HP Sports (Registration, Recognition and Regulation of Associations) Act 2005. A Division Bench of the HC, comprising Chief Justice V.K. Gupta and Mr Justice Deepak Gupta, has fixed the contempt petition for December 13. The HPCA, by way of a writ petition, had earlier challenged the HP Sports (Registration, Recognition and Regulation of Associations) Act 2005 as unconstitutional in the HC alleging that the enactment and the passing of the Act by the state government was an attempt to muzzle the freedom of the sports associations in the state. In the garb of the Act, the state government intended to assume state control over sports association and that various provisions of the Act would trigger ominous consequences for the autonomy of sports associations in the state, it was alleged. The HPCA was represented by former union law minister Mr. Arun Jaitley in the court today.
— UNI |
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Harikrishna bows out
Khanty Mansiysk, December 6 Having drawn both games played under normal time control, Harikrishna had to first play two games under rapid time control and the Indian stalwart failed to match the skills of Dreev in this faster version of the game. Harikrishna lost the first game of the tiebreaker itself, going down surprisingly from a harmless variation opted by the Russian and was under tremendous pressure in the return game to level scores. However, the experience of Dreev came in handy in the end as the Russian salvaged a draw and marched his way to the fourth round of the cup. With Harikrishna’s ouster, the Indian challenge in the World Cup ended as other qualifiers Krishnan Sasikiran and Surya Shekhar Ganguly had lost in the second round itself.
— PTI |
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Rathod wins fifth double trap title
Hyderabad, December 6 Having won in 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003, he added the coveted title this year after missing the 2004 championship as he was busy practising for Athens Olympics. Rathod who hit 97 out of 100 yesterday, scored 46 out of 50 shots for the final in the morning to top qualifiers list. In the afternoon, Rathod scored 48 out of 50 in the final taking total tally to 191 points — just one short of his personal best and national record. Ronjan Sodhi of Chandigarh who got 135 points, the qualifying norm, hit 43 to take his tally to 178 and stood second. Vikram Bhatnagar of Delhi finished third in the event.
— UNI |
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Athlete Ana Figueira dead
Panaji, December 6 Figueira (56), is survived by her mother and sister. Ana was the bronze medallist in javelin at the open nationals held in Chennai in 1975. She held the distinction of being the Asian gold medal record-holder in the veteran section. Ana was also a hockey player and was selected for India in 1975 to play against the then Ceylon and the Rest of India. She was he recipient of Yashadimini Puruskar award for outstanding sportswoman in 2002.
— UNI |
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