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Blast, rain fail to deter Team India
Sehwag incident: ‘Ganguly wanted Wright to apologise’
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PCB to raise umpiring issue with ICC
Sharjah ready for re-launch next year
Ex-BCCI secretary Kanmadikar dead
India face mighty Saudis today
Sania Mirza bows out
BSF beat PSEB
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Blast, rain fail to deter Team India
Colombo, August 15 Meanwhile, Mohammad Kaif today skipped the practice with slight fever. “He is down with fever and some nose blockade. So we decided to take precaution and he didn’t come for practice,” Dravid told reporters after the team practice at the R. Premadasa Stadium. Dravid said despite yesterday’s blast and the prospect of rain, Team India remains as focused as ever. “As it may have been a distraction for others, we never lost the focus. It never came as a distraction. Maybe if we can play good cricket tomorrow, people would focus on cricket again,” he said. The Indian skipper described the blast as an “unfortunate” incident but said his team was not losing its sleep over it. “We are very comfortable with the security and the guys are quite relaxed. There is no worry or concern with the security here,” he said. More than the blast, Dravid seemed more worried with rain, which has been a regular event with the city. “I mean it has been like that since we came — now sunshine, now rain. The sun seems playing hide-and-seek game. We lost a practice match to rain, but then we have to go with whatever we get. “Fortunately, we had a full practice session today and the guys enjoyed it,” he added. Comeback man Sachin Tendulkar sweated it out in the nets but Dravid was evasive when asked if Sachin would open tomorrow. “I’m not going to disclose it definitely. All I can say is that I have some idea about it and this is for the opposition to guess. I will disclose it only after the toss,” he said. He also refused to comment on South Africa’s reluctance to participate in the series in the wake of yesterday’s blast and the Indian captain also said he had no idea of a new schedule. BCCI backs SLC
Chennai: Expressing satisfaction over security arrangements after the bomb blast in Colombo, the BCCI on Tuesday extended full support to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), saying they wanted to continue with the series. “We are backing Sri Lanka board and even if South Africa withdraws we will stay back and play matches,” BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah said.
— UNI, PTI
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Sehwag incident: ‘Ganguly wanted Wright to apologise’
New Delhi, August 15 This was the tension-filled scene in the Indian dressing room at the Oval in 2002 after Wright had held Sehwag by the collar and “barked” at him for throwing away his wicket in a NatWest Trophy match against Sri Lanka in England. The former New Zealand skipper has gone public with this sensational incident in his just-published book ‘Indian Summers’ and more details of what happened emerged today from the then manager of the Indian team Rajiv Shukla and now a senior office-bearer of the BCCI. Asked about Wright’s revelation, a reluctant Shukla said in an interview here that he had kept the incident under wraps all these years because what happens inside dressing rooms is not supposed to be divulged. However, it is Wright who spilled the beans, he said. Recalls Shukla: “We were sitting in the balcony outside the dressing room at the Oval. Sehwag had just got out and gone into the dressing room. Suddenly an agitated captain Ganguly came out from the room and complained to me that the coach had slapped Sehwag who was sobbing. I rushed to the dressing room and found that Sehwag was indeed sobbing. He told me that Wright had pushed him. I patted him and controlled him,” Shukla said. Next, the manager started looking for the coach. “He was not in the dressing room but after some effort I found him in a small room adjacent to it. He was all by himself, tensed up and smoking as he usually did whenever he was in tension,” he said. Shukla said he had told Wright that he should not have treated Sehwag in this manner and that the opening batsman was justifiably upset. “Wright immediately accepted his mistake. My own view is that the coach wanted Sehwag to score more runs and when the batsman had got out he could not control his anger because of which he had got hold of Sehwag’s collar and pushed him. “I knew that Wright had affection for Sehwag and had reacted to his getting out like a guru reacting to the failure of a disciple. He always used to urge Sehwag not to lift the ball because he often lost his wicket that way,” he said. An angry Ganguly was demanding that Wright should apologise to the entire team, recalls Shukla adding that the coach’s action had placed him in an acute dilemma. Shukla immediately consulted Sachin Tendulkar and the team’s media manager Amrit Mathur. “The advice I got was that in case Wright apologised to the whole team, his authority would be eroded. I thought this was a valid point,” he said. “I persuaded Sehwag not to seek apology from the coach in front of the entire team. Wright was also persuaded to speak to Sehwag and assuage his feelings when the team returned to the hotel. Both agreed to this. Wright spoke to Sehwag and admitted his mistake,” Shukla said. Thereafter, relations between the swashbuckling opener and Wright remained “cordial and nice”, according to Shukla.
— PTI
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PCB to raise umpiring issue with ICC
Karachi, August 15 “We will take up umpiring issues in the next ICC meeting. We have done that in the past and we would do it again,” Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Shaharyar Khan said on phone from London. However, Shaharyar said their complaints would not be directed against any particular umpire because that would be a breach of the ICC Code of Conduct. “I want to make it clear again that Pakistan never objected to the postings of Darrell Hair or Billy Doctrove for the Headingley game,” he said. Hair gave ‘not outs’ to centurions Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen in the first innings although television replays confirmed that the ball deviated from their bats before going into the gloves of the wicketkeeper. The two centuries laid the foundation of England’s mammoth 515. Andrew Strauss benefitted in the second innings from Doctrove’s error of judgement to score 116 as England collected 345 to set Pakistan 323 runs victory target. Pakistan fell short by 167 runs to be bowled out for 155 and lost their first series in England in 24 years. Pakistan had earlier lost the second Test by an innings and 120 runs at the Old Trafford, which was officiated by Steve Bucknor and Simon Taufel. However, the PCB chief did not want to blame umpiring gaffes for the team’s defeats. “We should not find scapegoats or make excuses for the series defeat. Fact of the matter is that we played well below our real potential. We fielded poorly, our bowlers conceded too many runs and we didn’t bat as well as we could have,” he said. Shaharyar continued to put his weight behind under-fire Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer and captain Inzamam-ul-Haq. “It was our first loss in two years. The team management that comprises Bob Woolmer, Inzamam-ul-Haq and Younis Khan enjoy a healthy relationship. I don’t think there is any need for changes in the team management at the moment,” he said. Woolmer, who was appointed coach in June 2004, has a contract till next year’s World Cup while Inzamam has been appointed captain till this year’s tour of South Africa before his contract is reviewed. Shaharyar observed that the prime reasons for the series defeat was too much cricket and the team management’s decision not to follow rotation policy. “I strongly believe we played too much cricket before the England tour that resulted in injuries to key players who eventually became out of commission. Secondly, I think Pakistan didn’t adopt the rotation policy. “However, now we would focus on the one-day series and then analyse what and where things went wrong because we have a long season ahead that concludes with the World Cup,” he said. — PTI
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Sharjah ready for re-launch next year
Dubai, August 15 “We are in the process of working out the structure of a competition in Sharjah sometime next year,” Zahid Noorani, Chief Executive Officer of CBFS told Gulf News. “We are looking at the popularity of the concept of Twenty20 and Sharjah would love to lead the cricketing world into yet another first by organising such a competition.” The Sharjah Cricket Stadium has hosted 198 one-day games and four Test matches but ran into problems in the wake of the match-fixing scandal of 2000. It has not hosted an international fixture since 2003. “Back then we were the pioneers for the one-day version of the game. And now with this concept of Twenty20 gaining a lot of popularity worldwide, we want to bring in the best teams here,” Noorani said. The CBFS wants to bring in the best Twenty20 teams available for a sort of re-launch of Sharjah as a venue and though the organisers have targeted all Twenty20 playing countries, they may eventually settle down for the best teams. “The idea will be to have the champion of champions playing in Sharjah,” Noorani said adding a meeting on August 23 will decide the structure of the tournament among other things.
— PTI
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Ex-BCCI secretary Kanmadikar dead
Indore, August 15 During Kanmadikar’s tenure as the secretary of the BCCI, India won the 1983 World Cup. He served as BCCI secretary from 1980-85 and earlier as joint secretary between 1975 and 1980. He has also served as the BCCI vice-president and as chairman of the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association (MPCA). BCCI president Sharad Pawar condoled the death of Kanmadikar hailing his contribution to cricket. “He was an untiring administrator. His contribution to the game at very crucial stages will be remembered for ever,” Pawar said. “During his tenure as an office-bearer for 10 years, he co-ordinated for the success of the 1983 World Cup. It is sad that Indian cricket has lost an able administrator and a human being who had always had the players’ requirements in mind. It is a great loss and the vacuum cannot be filled. He has contributed immensely not only for Madhya Pradesh and Indian cricket but for the world cricket too,” he said. MPCA vice-president Ashok Kumut condoled the death of the seasoned cricket administrator who has also served as the Industrial Judge in Madhya Pradesh.
— PTI
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India face mighty Saudis today
Kolkata, August 15 India’s new coach Bob Houghton is pinning his hopes on a magical display from skipper Bhaichung Bhutia upfront to trouble the star studded Saudis in the Salt Lake Stadium outing. Bhutia, who joined the Indian campaign shelving his retirement plans, appears to be the centre-piece of Houghton’s plans as was seen in the practice sessions during the 10-day camp here ahead of the tie. For 58-year-old Houghton, who took over in June, the fixture would be a crucial test after the Indians returned an indifferent performance in the four-team meet in Vancouver. The Indians are likely to play in the 4-4-2 format, with Manjit Singh pairing up with Bhutia in the striking zone. However, considering the far superior physique and talent of the footballers from the desert kingdom, India’s task appears tough, if not impossible. Houghton said as much. “Our motto will be to not concede too many goals. Don’t expect too much.” In the absence of the injured Mahesh Gawli, India’s defence has lost substantial strength, and it remains to be seen how the likes of Dipak Mandal rise up to the occasion to thwart the onslaughts from the Saudis. India’s campaign so far has just failed to take off. A humiliating 0-6 loss to formidable Japan at Yokohama was followed by a 0-3 defeat to Yemen at New Delhi, pushing India to the rear of the four-team group A from which the top two sides would make it to the final round to be played next year. Houghton is banking on two factors - heavy rains and home conditions. “Everybody wants to play well on home turf. We will have to utilise this advantage,” he said. Monsoon rains have lashed the city since yesterday, and Houghton feels that more showers would put India at an advantage. Saudi Arabia — three-time winners of the Cup in 1984, 1988 and 1996 — have brought a strong squad, including 13 World Cuppers. However, newly appointed captain Hussein Sulimani said that most of the boys were young and lack of experience was causing some worries. Saudi coach Marcos Pacqueta said the Indians would be no pushovers. “We have great respect for India. We know they love to play in counter attacks with a great velocity,” he said. The Saudis began their campaign in style, drubbing Yemen 4-0 in the only match they played. Players like defenders Hamad al
Montashari, Sulimani, goalkeeper Mabrouk Zaid, medios Mohd Noor and Mohd Amin and forward Yasser al Kahtani are stars in their own right. It remains to be seen if Bhutia and his comrades manage to take the battle to the opponent camp.
— PTI
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Sania Mirza bows out
Montreal, August 15 The Indian lost her way after winning the first set against the fighting Italian, who was quick to take advantage of Sania’s shortcomings and turn the match in her favour to advance into the second round of the tier I event. Sania got off to a flying start as she ran away with the opening set without much trouble against the Italian. However, the Indian was taken by surprise by Alberta in the second set, which turned the tide in the Italian’s favour. The Hyderabadi teen was once again let down by her poor serve, which allowed the Italian to stage a dramatic comeback to shock the Sania. The world No. 44 dropped her serve and managed to win just a point before Alberta took the match into a third set. A resurgent Alberta, having got her rhythm back with the second set win, dashed the comeback hopes of Sania, who continued to struggle and eventually dropped out of contention from the event. This was Sania’s second successive first round exit after she lost her opening match in the Los Angeles Open last week. The Indian will now team up with Poland’s Marta Domachowska in the doubles competition and face the Italian-American pair of Tathiana Garbin and Meilen Tu.
Bhupathi-Gimelstob advance
New Delhi: Mahesh Bhupathi and his American partner Justin Gimelstob survived a scare to advance to the second round of the $ 2,450,000 ATP Cincinnati Masters tournament here. The Indo-US pair prevailed in a marathon three-setter against the Czech pair of Tomas Berdych and Jaroslav Levinsky 7-5, 4-6, 11-9. They now face sixth seeds Israeli combination of Jonathan Eerlich and Andy Ram, who were given a bye in the first round. Leander Paes and his Czech partner Martin Damm, seeded seventh in the US Open series tournament, also enjoyed a bye in the opening round. They had made it to the semifinals of the event in Toronto last week. They will begin their campaign against the winners of the match between Lucas Dlouhy and Pavel Vizner of Czech Republic and South African Chris Haggard and Gael Monfils of France.
— UNI, PTI
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Manavjit on top of the world
New Delhi, August 15 Compatriot Abhinav Bindra, who also won a gold in 10m air rifle in Zagreb climbed whopping 24 rungs to the second position in his event while Olympic silver medallist Lieut-Col Rajya Vardhan Singh Rathore was fifth in the rankings for double trap event. Manavjit (3593 points), who has been shooting with uncanny consistency and precision, gained two spots and now leads the Italian Erminio Frasca (2447) by more than 1000 points. Former number one Alexey Alipov (2020) dropped down two places to third. In the 10m air rifle event, Zhu Qinan (2886) still has a 274 point advantage over Abhinav while Alin G. Moldoveanu of Romania is third with 2090 points. Former number one Gagan Narang of India has dropped down to the sixth position following a spate of indifferent performances. Among women, Avneet Kaur Sidhu gained six places to 11th in the 10m air rifle event.
— UNI
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Landis doping scandal: Phonak to disband
Zurich, August 15 Phonak owner Andy Rihs said the Landis affair had been the deciding factor in the wake of other doping scandals that affected Phonak riders over the past two years. “As a passionate cyclist, I am bitterly disappointed that the sport of cycling apparently has become a synonym for doping,” he said. “I truly regret this development and it has brought me to the decision of disbanding the Phonak Cycling Team by the end of 2006,” Rihs said in a statement distributed at a press conference in Zurich. Rihs said he had found few alternatives to closure, in particular due to uncertainty surrounding the renewal of Phonak’s ProTour licence for next season. “We looked for solutions, talked day and night... and now I’ve made my decision, I’m pulling out,” he explained, underlining that replacement sponsors were hard to find. The UCI originally excluded the Swiss team from the Pro Tour early in 2005 after three cyclists failed doping tests in swift succession the previous season and were subsequently banned. But the team won back its place later that season after a legal appeal. Rihs, a successful businessman and a cycling fan, ordered a major shake-up last season, sacking most of the managers and drafting in current sporting director John Lelangue. Despite an additional code of conduct that has led to several riders being sacked or suspended, Phonak seems to have had trouble shrugging off the spectre of doping. The team’s troubles started in 2004. First 1998 world champion Oscar Camezind was banned for taking the prohibited endurance drug EPO (erythropoietin). Then team leader and Olympic time trial gold medallist Tyler Hamilton and 2004 Tour of Spain runner-up Santiago Perez were both found to have taken illicit blood transfusions. More recently, Swiss hope Sascha Urweider was sacked and banned by the Swiss Olympic federation for two years after he also tested positive for excess testosterone during training in February. Other Phonak riders — Giro runner-up Jose Enrique Gutierrez and Colombian Santiago Botero — were provisionally dropped on June 2 when they were named in media reports on the massive “Operation Puerto” doping probe in Spain. Finally, Landis tested positive for testosterone after the 17th stage of the Tour de France at Morzine on July 20, where he staged a stunning comeback on the final mountain stage to effectively clinch the race. “Three weeks ago, we were the winners of the Tour de France, we were overjoyed, and the sponsors were queuing up to join us... And then suddenly this blow,” Rihs commented. Rihs pledged to help the team’s employees, especially its young Swiss riders, to find new jobs.
— AFP
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BSF beat PSEB
Chandigarh, August 15 After Santosh put BSF ahead in the 35th minute, Surjit Singh and Harjit Singh added two more in the second half to pave the way for their team’s smooth victory. In another match, JCT Football Academy rallied to hold Bassi FC 1-1. Bassi FC took the lead through Ramandeep in the 62nd minute but Sehajpal’s strike in injury time dashed the hopes of the hosts to log full points.
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