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Team more important than ranking: Dhoni
Tendulkar recovering well: BCCI
Attache springs to masseur’s defence
Shiv Kapur, Jeev in safe zone
Ponting slams hectic schedule
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Ntini closes in on top spot
Azhar, Prabhakar to tour Pak
Rafael Nadal of Spain returns the ball to Guillermo Coria of Argentina during the quarterfinal of the Monte Carlo Tennis Open in Monaco on Friday. Nadal won 6-2, 6-1. — Reuters photo
Mukesh pips Mundy for golf title
India saunter into Fed Cup zonal final
Efforts to form footballers’ association
Ten-man Bagan hold Dempo
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Team more important than ranking: Dhoni
New Delhi, April 21 “Ranking does not matter. The team is more important. As long as my contributions lead to the team’s victories, it is more important than the top ranking,” he said. The Jharkhand player displaced Ricky Ponting from the top of ICC ODI batsmen’s rankings after his fifty in the second and final cricket one-dayer against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday. “It’s a pleasure for me to achieve the top ranking in a short span of 16 months. It really means I have done something to reach the top spot in such a short time,” he was quoted as saying by a website. The 24-year-old said he had to keep performing if he wanted to enjoy the top ranking for a longer period. “It’s a good feeling and I hope to keep performing in the near future. If you want to stay in the team you need to keep performing,’ he said. He said it was unfair to compare him with his Australian counterpart Adam Gilchrist. “Gilchrist has proved himself consistently over a long period of time. I have played only 16 months of international cricket. Hence, I think that the comparison cannot be justified. I just hope that people can recognise me as Dhoni only,” he added said.
— PTI |
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Tendulkar recovering well: BCCI
New Delhi, April 21 The master batsman, who was left out of the Indian squad for the five-match one-day series against the West Indies next month, was assessed by team physio John Gloster who expressed satisfaction over the recovery process. “He has progressed at a rate anticipated by both the surgeon and myself to this point,” BCCI Secretary Niranjan Shah said in a press release here today. His recovery process will be reviewed again after commencement of Phase 4 on April 30, which will give a clearer picture on his availability for the Test series against West Indies beginning on June
2. — PTI |
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Attache springs to masseur’s defence
Patiala, April 21 “All he wanted was a photograph. What happened next was not conclusively established,” Mr Srinivasan said. Meanwhile, Nabi’s counsel has claimed that the Judge had found a number of inconsistencies in the statement of nine Australian witnesses produced by the prosecution during Nabi’s trial. Nabi, working on contract with the SAI for the past 12 years, had been given a suspended sentence by the Australian Judge after the masseur refused to go in for an out-of-court settlement with the woman volunteer. No adverse comments have been mentioned by the Australian authorities on the passport of Nabi, who returned to Patiala last week. Mr Srinivasan, who has held several important positions in the Indian community in Australia, added that “We note that Nabi was neither given an fine nor sentenced to jail. In this situation we think that even the Judge had trouble with the version of the story given by the woman cleaner. It is important to note that, in the Australian legal system, much weight is given to the version of the victim.” Mr Srinivasan, who has sent an e-mail to various persons in India with whom Nabi is associated, ends the mail by saying that “The Indian community in Australia, with our understanding of the Australian legal system and culture, think that Nabi has been the victim of cross-cultural differences and a very weak story given by the cleaner. We believe that Nabi should be given the benefit of the doubt and also be given an opportunity to continue his work.” The Barrister-cum-Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Victoria, Mr Peter O.Vilahas, in an e-mail sent to this correspondent from Melbourne, revealed that the Judge was “provided with no medical evidence proving that Nabi had actually committed the crime he was accused of.” Mr O.Vilahas has disclosed that the prosecution failed to pin down Nabi despite the fact that DNA tests were conducted on the forehead, lips, left and right cheek of the volunteer. Mr Vilahas said despite all these tests and several other ones conducted physically on Nabi, nothing conclusive came out of the entire procedure. Quoting from the laboratory report of the Forensic Services Department of the Victorian police, Dr Vilahas says that the Judge had recorded that “I see no reason that such a charge should reflect adversely on Nabi’s character and professionalism as a masseur.” Mr Vilahas says, “In my personal judgement and in my capacity as a Solicitor and Barrister of the Supreme Court of Victoria, more serious charges could have been attached to Nabi had the court believed the prosecution’s story and the witnesses’ statement.” Meanwhile, Nabi has expressed his gratitude to Mr T.J Rao, Consul-General of India in the Indian High Commission. Nabi said ever since he was accused of assaulting the woman volunteer, Mr Rao stood by him and had continuously assured him that since there was no evidence against him he should not worry. Nabi has also thanked SAI Director-General R.P. Wattal for “his unstinted support in his difficult times.” |
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Shiv Kapur, Jeev in safe zone
Shanghai, April 21 Kapur was lying in the front greenside bunker of the 18th while Jeev Milkha was stranded on the 18th fairway when the hooter went off signaling the suspension of play at the wind-swept, cold and wet Tomson Pudong Golf Club. Kapur seemed safe at one-over while Jeev was three-over at that stage with the cut likely at just that number. Henrik Stenson, playing in the same group as Kapur, was leading at five-under and he was on the 18th green in two. The clubhouse leader was Scotsman Paul Lawrie (70) at four-under 138. Right behind them were two Asians Malaysian Danny Chia (70) and Filipino Frankie Minoza (72) in the bunch of four, including Portuguese Jose Filipa Lima (70) and Irishman Peter Lawrie (72), at three-under. Scoring conditions rapidly deteriorated during the day as the early morning breeze turned into a stiff wind and the temperatures dropped quickly to just under 14 degrees. In the second round, only two players Graeme Storm of England and German Sven Struver broke 70 while there were only a handful of others coming under par for the day. Meanwhile, the other four Indians had a rough day and missed the cut with Gaurav Ghei (75) and Amandeep Johl (76) at seven-over, Harmeet Kahlon (75) at nine over and Rahil Gangjee already 13-over with three mores holes to play. The third round will resume at 8 am on Saturday and the third round will commence in three-balls from first and tenth tees. When the first drops started coming down and there was a solitary flash, Kapur was about to hit out of the bunker, when the hooter in the clubhouse seemed to sound just once. Kapur withdrew and his caddie advised him to see if play was actually going to be suspended. As playing Mardan Mamat gestured towards the clubhouse the clarion sounded and players came off the course. Meanwhile, Jeev in the fairway needs to get onto the green and get a par to play the final two rounds. At three-over following bogeys on third, seventh, ninth and 11th, he was three-over for the day. “That was thanks to a welcome birdie on the par-5 13th which gave me some breathing space and then four pars followed, and I was happy with that,” said Jeev. The same could not be said about his playing partner, Colin Montgomerie who looked fine at three-under on the 16th tee, when he was hit by the sudden wind. He dropped a bogey each on 16th and 17th and was suddenly down to just one-under, when he came to the 18th.
— PTI |
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Ponting slams hectic schedule
Melbourne, April 21 “We just didn’t have a break. Two days between most Test matches that we’ve just played is not nearly enough. I think we just saw the effects of that on day one in Dhaka,” the Australian captain said. “We certainly do have to have a look at the amount of time between Tests. I think we’ve played five in five weeks, in pretty extreme conditions. That, as far as I’m concerned, is not acceptable,” he was quoted as saying in The Age today. Ponting said short breaks between Tests was the biggest problem and he would like his side to do as little as possible over the next four months before the Champions Trophy in India in September and the Ashes series at home. After Australia finished off Bangladesh in the morning session on the final day at Chittagong’s Divisional Stadium yesterday, Ponting said he hoped his team’s sluggish performance in the first Test in Dhaka would finally make Cricket Australia take notice. Ponting said for the last few years’ players were asking for three days off between Test matches. “One day might not sound a lot, but coming here, if we had one more day before the first Test, we would have been a lot better off for it,” he said.
— PTI |
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Ntini closes in on top spot
Dubai, April 21 Ntini is one of three South Africa fast bowlers in the top 20 with Andre Nel 11th and Shaun Pollock 12th. Shane Warne has moved up one spot to third overtaking his absent colleague Glenn McGrath, while Stuart MacGill is 16th, Gillespie is 17th and Lee is 18th. New Zealand’s Daniel Vettori rose in the list for Test all-rounders. The left-hander has moved up two places to third in the table, behind South Africa’s Jacques Kallis and England’s Andrew Flintoff.
— PTI |
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Azhar, Prabhakar to tour Pak
New Delhi, April 21 “Prabhakar has already served his five-year ban and Azharuddin played last time when we hosted Pakistan. This is a friendly series between the former players from both countries. The cricket board, accordingly, has given us a written clearance,” he told reporters. The former opener also announced that BCCI Vice-President Lalit Modi had agreed to be the BVCI Chairman. When pointed out that the Pakistan Seniors Cricket Board (PSCB) had left out Salim Malik, also tainted in the match-fixing scandal, from the squad, Chauhan said, “We can’t comment on their decision, it’s up to them to decide whom to take and whom not. All we are saying is that this is a friendly series and no international or first-class match. Azhar and Prabhakar have contributed a lot and that’s why we have invited them to play. There should not be any controversy with that.” Earlier, the BCCI had made it clear that the board has nothing to do with the veteran cricket team. A Pakistan senior team had arrived here last year and won the four-match series 3-1. The Indian team, to be led by Azharuddin, is leaving for Pakistan tomorrow and the matches are scheduled at Karachi (April 23), Sialkot (April 25), Sheikhpura (April 27) and Lahore (April 30). Squad: Mohammad Azharuddin (captain), Syed Kirmani, Nayan Mongia, Pravin Amre, Manoj Prabhakar, Vivek Razdan, WV Raman, Sameer Dighe, David Johnson, Sanjeev Sharma, N David, Suru Nayak, Amarjeet Singh Kaypee, Sukhwinder Singh, Mahendra Kumar JK and R N Chaturvedi. — UNI
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Nadal, Federer in semis
Monte Carlo, April 21 In another quarterfinal, world number one Roger Federer of Switzerland beat Spaniard David Ferrer 6-1, 6-3. Nadal will face Gaston Gaudio in the semifinal. The seventh-seeded Argentine, winner of the 2004 French Open, defeated Spain’s Tommy Robredo 6-1, 6-3. The Spanish title holder and defending champion beat Coria, his 2005 final opponent and 2004 winner of the tournament in one hour and 51 minutes to enter the semifinal.
— Reuters |
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Mukesh pips Mundy for golf title
Chandigarh, April 21 “I love coming here. The course is getting better and tougher by the day and I just love the Chandigarh Golf Club which has also proven lucky for me,” said Mukesh who registered his fourth victory in the city. With that effort, he walked away with a handsome winner’s cheque for Rs 1,89,840 and increased his lead on the Amby Valley PGAI Tour Order of Merit. Uttam who finished with an overall 11-under 277 had to settle for the runner’s up purse of Rs 1,30,440. Vijay Kumar paid dearly for missing at least six make-able birdies to finish third at 279. Arjun Singh shot the day’s best of 5-under 67 to tie with Feroz for the fourth spot. Vinod Kumar’s challenge ended halfway through as he went 5-over to finish sixth at 282. Ashok Kumar, Shamim Khan and Digvijay Singh were tied for the seventh place at 284. Local lad and last year’s champion Harinder Gupta made a valiant attempt with a final burst of four-under 68, but it was too late in the tournament, tying for the 10th spot at 285. On the final day, the early fight came from Vinod Kumar who birdied the second while Mukesh played safe with pars till he lost a stroke on the fifth. Meanwhile Feroz Ali, playing a group ahead of the leader group, made three consecutive birdies starting from the second to inch closer to Mukesh and at one point of time looked like he could pull it away till he lost his rhythm. He ended up in the bushes for most part of the time, the costliest of them being on the easy par-5 13th where he lost a stroke. Uttam Singh, who plays more rounds in Chandigarh than at Kolkata, was on fire making three birdies in a row from the fifth to tie with Mukesh at 12-under. Just at the turn, Mukesh hit a superb second shot and made a birdie to hold a solitary stroke advantage. The competition heated up as both playing attacking golf bogeyed the 10th. It was on the par-5 13th that Uttam saved a stroke as Mukesh failed to nail a 5-footer birdie putt. With scores tied, Uttam having hit the green on the par-3 14th, three-putted for a bogey. This was the turning point as Mukesh held on to that one-stroke advantage, even as the Kolkatan missed birdies narrowly on the next three holes. Coming on to the final hole, Mukesh drove on to the centre fairway while Uttam could not control and was in the trees on the left. A stunning second shot from Mukesh ensured a par at least. Uttam going for the pin from the hard surface landed just over the green and left his putt short and ended up with a par. And so did Mukesh but he had the title in his pocket. “Yes I felt a bit of pressure on the 13th when I missed a simple birdie putt and Uttam equaled. However, the bogey on the next hole by Uttam was all I was waiting for as I grabbed the chance to wrap up the issue,” said Mukesh. “I am a bit disappointed because I was playing really well and one bad putt spoiled my chances,” said Uttam after the round. Meanwhile, Gaganjeet Bhullar fired a superb 4-under 68 for an overall two-under 286 to win the Amateur title while Rahul Bakshi finished second two strokes behind. Both finished at commendable 13th and 18th positions, respectively, in the overall standings. Final scores after 72 holes: (Pro) — 276 Mukesh Kumar (68, 65, 70, 73); 277 Uttam Singh Mundy (67, 70, 70, 70); 279 Vijay Kumar (73, 66, 69, 71); 280 Arjun Singh (68, 70, 75, 67), Feroz Ali (68, 71, 69, 72); 282 Vinod Kumar (67, 71, 67, 77); 284 Ashok Kumar (72, 75, 68, 69), Shamim Khan (70, 71, 71, 72), Digvijay Singh (73, 67, 72, 72); 285 Harinder Gupta (72, 72, 73, 68); Yusuf Ali (72, 72, 71, 70), Ranjit Singh (69, 70, 74, 72); 286 Pappan (69, 74, 71, 72); C Muniyappa (69, 72, 73, 72). Amateurs — 286 Gaganjeet Bhullar (72, 76, 70, 68); 288 Rahul Bakshi (74, 71, 73, 70).
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India saunter into Fed Cup zonal final
New Delhi, April 21 Shikha Uberoi demolished Kairangi Vano 6-1, 6-3 before Sania Mirza breezed past Ellen Barry 6-2, 6-4 in the singles rubbers to see India top Pool A and book their berth in the Group 1 final to be played tomorrow. India’s unbeaten record, however, was broken as they lost the inconsequential doubles rubber, Ankita Bhambri and Isha Lakhani losing 4-6, 6-0, 6-1 to Leanne Baker and Marina Erakovic. The Indians will take on in the final Australia who topped Pool A with a thumping 3-0 win over hosts Korea. The winner of the final goes through to the World Group 2 play-off in July this year.
— PTI |
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Efforts to form footballers’ association
New Delhi, April 21 This would be the second occasion when an attempt in this direction is being made after the first one in 1988 failed to take off. However, the idea is still at a nebulous stage and nothing concrete has been decided yet. The idea of the Football Players Association of India (FPAI) came up before the national team’s departure for the Asian Cup qualifiers against Japan. Indian skipper Bhaichung Bhutia was expected to represent the players’ interests in talks with the All-India Football Federation at a later date, but no discussions have taken place till date. “The talks were mainly focussed on remunerating players when they were on national duty and a grading system for footballers,” a top AIFF official told PTI, adding that the federation was not aware of talks on a new association. “I have heard about attempts to form a body, but nobody has contacted me in this regard yet.”
— PTI |
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Ten-man Bagan hold Dempo
Mumbai, April 21 Bagan defender Sanjeev Kumar Maria was booked twice for fouls in a three-minute span and had to leave the field with 10 minutes left in the first half. But the Kolkata team packed their defence and gave little room for the Goan team’s forwards to capitalise on their numerical advantage. In fact, it was Bagan who squandered a few chances in the second half. Awudu Ibrahim’s shot early in the second half was saved by Dempo custodian Abhijit Mondal and the rebound was booted wide by Sushil Kumar Singh. The draw helped Bagan keep their third spot in the league table intact with 21 points from 11 ties, while Dempo are fourth with 20 from 11 matches.
— PTI
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Bail granted
Mumbai, April 21 |
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New Delhi, April 21
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