 |
|
|
Hayden leads Aussie
assault
SA, Lanka ready for pitch test |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Something Indian in Super Eight
‘Winning, losing
part of the game’
Srinath not to officiate in Super 8s
Gavaskar writes
Ranatunga: WC no fun without India, Pak
Woolmer’s last meal
to be tested
Medals for 2008 Olympics unveiled
Indian wrestlers floor Pak
Mahindra edge out Dempo
Rajwinder to get Bhim Award
|
|
Antigua, March 27 Hayden cracked a 143-ball 158 to help the reigning champions overcome initial hiccups and post a daunting total at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium. The Queensland left-hander, who made 101 off 68 balls against South Africa for the fastest century in World Cup, smashed 14 fours and four sixes in his power-packed innings. Captain Ricky Ponting (35) and Michael Clarke (41) lent valuable support to Hayden while Shane Watson (33 no) ensured a strong finish for the three-time winners. It was the sixth 300-plus total on the trot by Australia who plundered 99 runs from the last 10 overs. Put in to bat, Australia lost Adam Gilchrist for seven in the fifth over when the left-hander edged Daren Powell to wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin. Hayden, however, made sure his side, and the opposition as well, did not feel Gilchrist's cheap dismissal. After adding 66 runs for the second wicket with his captain, Hayden put on 98 with Clarke. Ponting played a strokefilled knock of 35 with four fours and a six before succumbing to a direct throw by Ramnaresh Sarwan at short extra-cover. Clarke, who made a 47-ball 41, too could have been run out without facing a ball if only Sarwan found the stumps again. The middle-order batsman was dismissed leg before wicket by Bravo. Andrew Symonds (13) and Mike Hussey (9) departed in the space of 26 runs but Hayden's presence made up for that. Hayden was in such awesome form that even a miscued sot off Marlon Samuels cleared the ropes. The southpaw finally fell in the 47th over when he lofted Dwayne Bravo to Samuels at long off. Watson then played some cheeky shots, including a knee-bent sweep-scoop for a six to third man against the seamers, as Australia galloped past the 300-mark. Hayden didn’t score a run from the first five overs but thereafter it was mayhem as he clobbered the Windies bowling. A brief shower in the 46th over was the only 15-minute respite for the hosts who chose to field first in overcast conditions after skipper Brian Lara had won the toss. Hayden was briefly inconvenienced by the innovative field of the West Indians but he was well and truly underway after he had twice in succession driven Jerome Taylor past the short extra cover, specially positioned for him. His sixes were flat and were still carrying when they crossed the ropes and none was more brutal and mortifying for the West Indians than the one-handed six he lobbed off Chris Gayle. Scoreboard Australia Gilchrist c Ramdin
Hayden c Samuels
Ponting run out 35 Clarke lbw Bravo 41 Symonds c Ramdin
Hussey b Powell 9 Watson not out 33 Hogg not out 5 Extras (b-1, lb-9, w-8,
Total (6 wkts, 50 overs) 322 Fall of wickets: 1-10, 2-76, 3-174, 4-208, 5-234, 6-297. Bowling: Powell 10-2-53-2, Taylor 10-0-67-0, Collymore 10-0-56-0, Gayle 4-0-29-0, Bravo 7-0-49-2, Samuels 9-0-58-1.
— PTI
|
|
‘Lara more dangerous
than Sachin’
Melbourne, March 27 “I
would have to rate him (Lara) the best I bowled to,” McGrath said
lavishing praise on the West Indian left hander.
— PTI
|
|
SA, Lanka ready for pitch test
The Super Eight game will be the first to be played at Providence Stadium, which was built for the seven-week long World Cup in the Caribbean and mystery surrounds the nature of the pitch. Rain on Monday and Tuesday only added to the factors the teams would have to take into account when they considered the conditions. “It looks a good surface and the outfield looks magnificent considering the weather they’ve had,” Sri Lankan coach Tom Moody told a news conference today. “There wasn’t a huge amount of grass on the square which is what you tend to get in Colombo. But how it plays is still a mystery to us all because it’s a new surface, it’s only been laid for eight or nine months. There’s moisture in the surface but there doesn’t seem to be a huge amount of pace in it.” The South Africans gained little insight into the likely conditions when they abandoned their planned net session at the ground on Tuesday because they felt the practice surfaces were not up to standard. Sri Lanka made the other major teams in the tournament sit up and take notice when they delivered a clinical performance to beat India by 69 runs in their Group B match in Port of Spain, Trinidad, on March 23. “Finishing games off and being professional from start to finish is something we talk about on a regular basis, and that was a big game for us,” said Moody, who lent similar importance to Wednesday’s match. South African all-rounder Andrew Hall held a similarly respectful opinion of the Sri Lankans. “They have played really well leading up to the Super Eights,” Hall said. “It’s always a tough challenge going up against them, especially in conditions that suit them a bit.” Hall said the South Africans hoped to improve on their recent record against Sri Lanka. “When we played them in Australia last season we were missing quite a few guys who are in this squad,” Hall said. “Hopefully this time, at full strength, we can perform well.” Kallis and fast bowler Andre Nel were injured and withdrawn from the squad during that series. Hall said the absence of heavyweights India and Pakistan from the Super Eights did not mean that the other favoured sides would cruise into the semifinals.
— Reuters
|
|
Dravid takes
responsibility for India’s dismal show
Port of Spain, March 27 India were eliminated from the tournament at the first round stage after losing to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, and finishing Group B with just two points from their three matches. “We
definitely do take the responsibility. I am not sitting here and trying
to shirk responsibility. I am the first one to stand up and say that we
should have done better, and it starts with me,” Dravid told the media
here. “I am not trying to put the responsibility on anyone. People
are asking me what’s the way forward and what do we do. I haven’t
really thought about stuff like that. “Till about 24 hours ago
(Friday), I truly believed that we will still be in this tournament. I
didn’t have the time to think what’s ahead of us. But I am not
trying to say I don’t take any responsibility. I take full
responsibility for the fact that we haven’t progressed to the next
round.” On the issue of the captaincy, Dravid said he had been
appointed until the end of the cricket World cup and his fate was in the
hands of the BCCI. “I was appointed captain till the World Cup. So I
am not even the captain at this point of time. So it’s not my decision
to make,” Dravid stressed. Dravid, a key member of the team’s much
vaunted batting line-up, said the batsmen did not perform to potential
during the group stage. “Some of these guys have had success before
as well. It’s a question of maybe the guys going back and looking at
their performances, how they performed in the important games and
critical games,” he noted. “Yes, we have not batted anywhere near
our potential. We picked what was the best batting line-up in the
conditions but I guess we were the best batting line-up in India, but we
did not bat well enough in these two games. It is definitely something
to think about.” India became the second major team to be eliminated
from the cricket World Cup, following Pakistan’s surprise exit after
their three-wicket shock defeat to Ireland a fortnight ago. “Both
the teams did not play good cricket. I think Pakistan stumbled against
Ireland and we stumbled against Bangladesh,” Dravid reasoned. In a
tournament like this, he said, you have one bad day and you could be in
big trouble and that’s what happened to Pakistan and India. “I am
sure there is a lot of thinking to do in both the countries.” Dravid
also does not believe his players will be in any danger when they return
home to irate fans. Since India’s loss to Bangladesh two weeks ago
and their subsequent first round exit from the cricket World Cup as a
result of their loss to Sri Lanka Friday, Indian fans have been
responding angrily. They have mounted angry public protests, burnt effigies of the Indian players and called for their axing. Dravid told the media here he was not worried. “(I
am) not really (worried). I hope the players wouldn’t be under any
physical danger. To be honest, I don’t expect that to be the case,”
Dravid said. “I am sure people will be disappointed, and fair
enough. They have invested a lot of hope in this team and we haven’t
delivered. So, they are entitled to be disappointed. But I just hope
that no one in is in any physical danger.”
— IANS
|
|
Greg was not happy with WC squad
Antigua, March 27 Before leaving for the West Indies, Chappell, in an SMS to an Indian journalist Rajan Bala, claimed that senior players in the side resisted the inclusion of younger players and chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar sided with the seniors fearing a media backlash in case the young guns failed to fire. “Even in the last selection meeting, I fought for youth. The senior players fought against it and the chairman went with them out of fear of media, if youth did not perform,” Chappell wrote in his SMS to Bala. This message was sent to the writer on the morning of the one-day international against Sri Lanka at Visakhapatnam on February 17. In the same SMS, the Australian observed young stumper-batsman Dinesh Kaarthick had leadership material. “Kaarthick will be a very good batsman and by the way, he is a potential leader. You are also very right about Yuvi,” Chappell said. The coach was referring to the Bala’s article in which he had not been very complimentary about Yuvraj Singh. The writer had written “He might or might not develop to be the country’s best future batsman, but let it be known that the possibility of his not being fully fit during the World Cup can not be discounted. It is a risk that is being taken. “The problem with Yuvraj is that he believes he is a star when he is only a rising one.” Chappell had also confided with the writer that “Suresh Raina is a must. But he was not wanted.” — PTI
|
||
|
Something Indian in Super Eight
Georgetown, March 27 When South Africa will take on Sri Lanka tomorrow at the brand new Guyana National Stadium at Providence near here, they will be playing on a facility that has been largely constructed with Indian help. Inaugurated
by Indian Vice-President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat during his official
visit to Guyana in November last year, Guyana’s new international
cricket stadium, which will hold as many as half a dozen matches in the
Super Eight stage, has been billed as the stadium of friendship between
India and Guyana. India gave the Guyanese government a grant of $6 million and a concessional line of credit of $19 million for the purpose. The new facility was built by a Mumbai-based firm. “Both
in our country as well as yours, cricket is not just a game; it is
indeed a passion with the people,” Shekhawat had said in his
dedication speech at a two-hour function November 8 last year in the
sparkling facility just near this Guyanese capital. “Our partnership
in the Providence Stadium (now renamed Guyana National Stadium) is,
therefore, an appropriate reflection of our common passion for the game
of cricket. We, in India, would certainly feel a special sense of
pleasure and bonding when we catch the World Cup 2007 matches played in
this stadium,” he had said. And Guyana President Bharrat Jagdeo, a
person of Indian origin, reciprocated: “There can be no more a
splendid symbol of friendship between India and Guyana than this
magnificent edifice.” The need for a new cricket stadium in Guyana was
felt when the West Indies was awarded the 2007 cricket World Cup around
nine years back. Georgetown’s other regular international ground,
the Bourda Oval, which also happens to be the oldest cricket ground in
the West Indies, had fallen out of favour of the International Cricket
Council (ICC), which did not find the ground meeting the rigid standards
set for World Cup infrastructure. The last Test the Bourda hosted was between the West Indies and South Africa from March 31 to April 4 in 2005. The new picturesque Guyana National Stadium is set on the east coast of the majestic Demerara river, which flows into the mighty Atlantic just a few miles away. The
Bank of Guyana has also issued a special gold coin to mark the opening
of the new stadium.
— IANS
|
||
|
‘Winning, losing
part of the game’
Pune, March 27 Pawar
maintained that Indian cricket team’s performance was below par and he
was not very “happy” with it. He also disapproved of the “media
hype” that preceded the tournament, contributing to the pressure on
the team. “Our players should not play under tension. Before their
match, Dravid told me on the phone that all team members were under
tremendous pressure to perform. “We have to accept that Bangladesh
is also a much improved team which has beaten both Australia and Sri
Lanka,” he said. On the future of Greg Chappell as India’s coach,
Pawar said his term was coming to an end and a decision on extension or
otherwise would be taken after the deliberations of BCCI meeting
scheduled for April 6-7. On the choice of coach, Pawar said a decision in this regard would be taken after consulting all concerned, including former India captains. “It
does not matter whether the coach is Indian or foreign as long as he is
able to train the team and boost its morale,” he said. Taking a soft
line on the commercial endorsements on television by Indian cricketers,
the BCCI president said “there is a tendency to exaggerate this issue.
There is nothing wrong in the players earning money through
endorsements.”
— PTI
|
||
|
Srinath not to officiate in Super 8s
Kingston, March 27 Srinath refereed preliminary stage matches but was not included for the Super eights. The ICC also announced the names of nine umpires who would be standing in the next stage. Brent
Bowden was the only one to be left out from the umpires’ group
which stood in the first round matches. Umpires: Mark Benson, Billy Bowden, Steve Bucknor, Aleem Dar, Billy Doctrove, Daryl Harper, Rudi Koertzen, Asad Rauf and Simon Taufel. Match
referees: Chris Broad, Jeff Crowe, Ranjan Madugalle and Mike Procter.
— PTI
|
|
Double celebration
for B’desh
Dhaka, March 27 It was a double celebration in Bangladesh as the World Cup victory over Bermuda in the wee hours Monday coincided with their 36th Independence Day. President Iajuddin Ahmed and Chief Advisor Fakhruddin Ahmed led a delirious nation in congratulating the cricketers, fondly called tigers. The shock defeat delivered to India and then to Bermuda to eliminate any chance of India sneaking into the game gave many, mostly non-sports writers, an occasion to mix the game with a bit of sub-continental politics. The double victory would give the Bangladeshi cricket team much impetus and experience, and reaching the semi-final could be realistically expected, experts said amid celebrations. Politicians of all hues, although barred from engaging in political activities, joined in sending congratulatory messages to the team. Former prime minister Khaleda Zia, who did not join the Independence Day functions, also sent a message to the cricketers. Another
former prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, and the country’s only Nobel
laureate Muhammad Yunus sent in messages from the US. Former national
captain Roquibul Hassan said: “Bangladesh have shown a lot of
consistency in the last few months. If they can maintain it in the Super
Eight, I don't think it would be unrealistic for them to hope for a
place in the semi-finals.” “Without dreaming, one cannot achieve
anything,” he added.
— IANS
|
|
B’desh can cause an upset or two
A billion Indian prayers didn’t work and India went out of the 2007 World Cup when Bangladesh held their nerve in a rain-shortened match to overhaul Bermuda’s total and entered the second stage of the World Cup for the first time. Make no mistake, the passion for cricket is as much in Bangladesh as it is in India, and there would be lots of celebrations in Bangladesh for the team’s entry in the Super 8 stage. Its a moment to seize for Bangladesh, for now they will be playing the other top teams in the world, and its an opportunity not just to cause an upset, but also for their young, fearless players to pick up some valuable ideas, watching and learning from the best players in the world from such close quarters. What they have shown in the game against India is that if they can strike early, then the spinners in their team can control the opposition batsmen and restrict them to a total that their team can chase. The top two teams from each of the four groups qualify for the Super 8 stage and they don’t play the team in their group again in the Super 8 stage. What is more important is that the teams that have qualified carry the points won against the other qualifier from their group to the Super 8 stage, as well as the net run-rate against that team, so Australia go in with the two points they got against South Africa, as well as the run rate helped by the massive total that they put up. They will be thinking in terms of six points already in the bag, as they have to play against Bangladesh and Ireland. In fact, other teams like New Zealand, South Africa, England and the West Indies will be thinking on the same lines, that they will have easy points against these two unexpected qualifiers. But we have seen that cricket can be a funny game, and don’t forget the weather factor in the West Indies, where it can rain, and in a reduced match, its a lot easier for the unfancied teams to cause an upset. Australia, West Indies, New Zealand and Sri Lanka have gone into the Super 8, winning all their matches in the group stage. England have their task cut out for them, as they have been struggling to get off to a start and in the World Cup, a good start is half the job done. Look at the starts that Australia are getting off to, and South Africa too have made some electrifying beginnings. Though cricket is not the most popular sport in England, their team is always under scrutiny and pressure, and has not always been able to cope. The demotion of Andrew Flintoff after his shenanigans till the early hours of the morning on the night they lost to New Zealand may actually free the big fella up and make him play as naturally and devastatingly as only he can. He is capable of changing the game in a jiffy with both bat and ball, and all English supporters will be hoping that he fires and gets them the world cup. The team that has been most impressive in the tournament so far is New Zealand. They have come into the event on the back of a sensational 3-0 win over their northern neighbours and that too in style, overhauling Australia’s 300-plus scores in two consecutive matches. They have a team full of all-rounders, and that makes the captain’s task even simpler. It’s a team that has a great blend of youth and experience, and on current form, are a good bet to go all the way. Former champs West Indies can be a let down, as they have a tendency to collapse at the slightest sign of pressure, especially from the Australians. Still, on their home turf, they will be inspired to give off their best, and their captain Brian Lara, playing in his last World Cup, would like to go out with a bang. Sri Lanka also have been impressive and they too have a fine mix of youth and experience. They also have the variety in their attack which is not there with other teams, and have the bowlers who can make a difference in the crucial middle overs of the innings. South Africa have had the tag of ‘chokers’ around them for some time now, and this is a tournament which will show if they have got rid off it or if they still have cold feet . They have a fiercely ambitious skipper and some fine players, but they may find that without a quality spinner to bowl those middle overs, they may be a bit short when it matters. So, who are my likely semi-finalists? Australia, who are still the team to beat, followed by New Zealand, Sri Lanka and South Africa. All these teams are capable of winning all their six matches in the Super 8 stage and go through to the semifinals. But as India and Pakistan have discovered, there is many a slip between the cup and the lip. — PMG
|
|
Ranatunga: WC no fun without India, Pak
Colombo, March 27 Ranatunga, who had tipped India to win the showpiece event, said he was shocked to see the two former champions knocked out in the first round. “I
was shocked the way India played, especially against Bangladesh,”
Ranatunga, who was captain when Sri Lanka won the World Cup in 1996,
told AFP. “Guys like Sachin (Tendulkar), Sourav (Ganguly), Rahul
(Dravid) and (Anil) Kumble will be disappointed as they might not play
another World Cup.” Ranatunga said the tournament’s new format,
which had 16 teams divided into four groups with the top two in each
advancing to the second round, contributed to the ouster of 1983
champions India and 1992 winners Pakistan. “The format was such that
one bad game was enough to send a team out,” he said. “India had a
bad day against Bangladesh while Pakistan were not up to their best
against Ireland. “Earlier, teams had an opportunity to bounce back.
For instance, Sri Lanka were beaten by Kenya in 2003 but still we went
on to qualify for the semi-finals. “In the previous World Cup where
14 teams were divided into two groups, we had six first round matches,
but here it's just three games.” Ranatunga praised the Sri Lankan
team, which cruised through with three straight wins against India,
Bangladesh and Bermuda. “The Sri Lankans have played smart cricket,”
he said. “They have not only created opportunities but grabbed those
opportunities as well. “There’s enthusiasm in the squad. Look at
Muttiah Muralitharan, he’s 34 now, but his exuberance is the same as
that of a 20-year-old.” Ranatunga also said he hoped the murder of
Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer would be solved soon.
— AFP
|
|
Hunt on for three Pak fans
London/Kingston, March 27 Jamaica’s
deputy commissioner of police Mark Shields said foreigners were the
prime focus of investigation because a local would have preferred
weapons rather than strangling the victim. “It seems highly unlikely
a Jamaican has walked off the street, gone up to the 12th floor in a
secure lift, to his room, got in without any sign of forced entry,
murdered him and then not stolen anything at all,” Shields said. “The
fact that it was manual strangulation, asphyxiation, doesn’t really
fit the profile of somebody locally,” he told Sky News. The latest
twist to the story came amid rumours in Jamaica that closed-circuit
television footage clearly shows two suspects entering the hotel
corridor on Woolmer’s floor in the early hours of the ill-fated Sunday
morning. However, Shields said the three men were not suspect in the murder and police wanted to trace them to eliminate them from their inquiry. According to The Guardian, Woolmer and his team mixed freely with fans, including the small community of Pakistanis living in Jamaica. Some would provide the practising Muslims on the team with halal meat, which is hard to find in Jamaica. Meanwhile, Shields dismissed claims that the investigators had taken so long to analyse the film because of its poor quality. He said it was because it had taken a long time to find state-of-the-art equipment to transfer video to digital images. Jamaica police had begun to examine CCTV footage of the lift and service areas of the 12th floor of the hotel where Woolmer was staying in Room No 374. Meanwhile,
the Pakistan government urged the international media to show
sensitivity towards its “traumatised” team and exercise restraint.
“There are lots of speculations and rumours, some of them very
malicious, and we expect the media, the international media
particularly, to show some sensitivity,” said Tasnim Aslam. In London, team manager Pervez Mir denied rumours of a rift between the coach and players and insisted that Woolmer had a fantastic relationship the team members. He said he would release private footage of the team with its coach to dispel rumours of friction. “There
is disagreement in every team. But to highlight that and make it a media
trial is not a fair thing to do. He was more than a coach. He used to
help the boys,” he said at Heathrow yesterday. He was also particularly displeased with the possible match-fixing angle given to the murder. The 1992 champions, Paksitan were knocked out the World Cup after successive losses to hosts West Indies and Ireland. “When
a man has been murdered, to divert a murder inquiry into a match-fixing
inquiry, that’s not fair, because we have to find the killers, then we
will know what happened,” he said.
— UNI
|
|
Life’s tough as a
coach
St Lucia, March 27 The murder of Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer has shocked the cricket world, but the fact many first assumed he had suffered a heart attack after losing to outsiders Ireland shows the pressures of the job. Pakistan’s
elimination was followed by that of fellow cricket powerhouse India,
with coach Greg Chappell pilloried for their defeats by neighbours
Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. John Wright, India coach from 2000 to 2005, knows exactly how Chappell is feeling. “It
is just the expectation. People are passionate about cricket,” the New
Zealander told Reuters. “There is pressure trying to win every game.
If you don’t, there is a lot of media criticism.” Even for the
more successful coaches at this tournament, the sacrifices are tough. New
Zealand’s John Bracewell believes international cricket coaches must
constantly worry and be selfish in order to do well. Bracewell’s
side have progressed to the World Cup second stage Super Eights in
impressive fashion, winning all three group matches including a simple
six-wicket win over England. They are many people’s dark horses for
the title because of their team ethic, all-round game and determined
attitude, a trait Bracewell has in abundance. “As a coach you are
constantly worried, that’s what you do. It’s part of the job
description, it’s the worry of the next game and how far ahead you can
look,” the 48 year-old told reporters last week. Bracewell honed his coaching skills in the English county cricket with Gloucestershire before his elevation to New Zealand coach in Sept. 2003. “Gloucestershire
was a great lifestyle for our family, it was a great education in terms
of how to work with a team over a long period of time,” he said. “This
is probably a little bit more selfish. You don’t see your family for
long, long periods of time. So it’s a bit harder but you do it by
choice.” His achievements with the New Zealand cricket team, in a
sparsely-populated country obsessed with rugby, are impressive. Their recent 3-0 whitewash of Australia in the one-day Chapell-Hadlee series was great preparation for this tournament, but a defeat by Bangladesh in the World Cup warm-ups brought them back down to earth, which Bracewell thinks was positive. “You
just thrashed Australia 3-0, and you may need a little bit of a wake up
call. As it turned out it was a good thing for us,” he said. Bracewell does not believe he has a particular method for coaching but is very keen on analysing the opposition as much as he can. “It
is about developing the New Zealand style, what fits in with where our
players are in terms of their own maturity and that varies across the
board,” he said. “So my style will change from a Ross Taylor
coming in to Stephen Fleming, who has a damn sight more experience of
international sport than I do. “We are constantly scouting the
opposition, we are videoing it from home. We are having it analysed and
having it sent over to us. We are watching it here. So we are very aware
in terms of our coaching staff of what is happening. “But we are
trying to keep the players in the point of now. It’s a difficult
balancing act.”
— Reuters
|
|
Woolmer’s last meal
to be tested
Kingston, March 27 Deputy
Commissioner of Police Mark Shields, who is leading the investigation,
said the man of Woolmer’s stature could not have been manually
strangulated unless he was impaired. “He was 6ft 1 in and a big man,
and unless he was drugged or impaired it would perhaps have been
difficult to restrain him. We are looking at whether his food was
drugged,” he said. “The meal was thrown away after he put the tray
outside his room, but we are conducting toxicology and tissue tests,”
Shields was quoted as saying by The New Zealand Herald today.
— PTI
|
|
Medals for 2008 Olympics unveiled
The
Beijing Organising Committee for the Games (BOCOG) unveiled the medal
design at a ceremony held at the Capital Museum of China to mark the
500-day countdown for the world’s most prestigious sporting event. The
front of the medals follows the standard design set by the International
Olympic Committee, while the back is inlaid with ‘bi’ — a Chinese
traditional flat jade disc with a circular hole in the centre — and
includes a metal centrepiece engraved with the Beijing Olympic emblem. The
design of the medal hooks is derived from China’s traditional
semi-circular jade ornament, and features a double dragon design and a
grid pattern. “Noble and elegant, the Beijing Olympic medal is a
blending of traditional Chinese culture and the Olympism,” BOCOG
executive vice president Jiang Xiaoyu said. Created by a group formed by the China Central Academy of Fine Arts and the China Banknote Printing and Minting Corporation, the medal design was picked from 179 entries that BOCOG received in a world-wide competition. “I
think the medals design is an image that is both immediately Chinese in
its form and embodies the traditional style of the Olympic medal,”
said the President of BHP Billiton China Clinton Dines, the diversified
minerals and medals sponsor of the 2008 Games. “It is a truly
East-meets-West emblem of an event that embodies China’s economic and
national achievements in recent years and emergence onto the global
stage,” Dines said.
— PTI
|
|
Indian wrestlers floor Pak
Mumbai, March 27 The hosts were unable to complete a clean sweep as the third bout ended in a tie between Asian champion Ravinder Singh Goti and Sher-E-Pakistan Ghazanfar Ali in the 84 kg category. Mahapur Kesari Nitin Khurd launched the campaign with a victory over Pakistan national champion Yasir Hussain in the 90 kg category. Haryana Kesari Sandeep Kumar later got the better of another Pakistan champion Mohammed Aslam in the 74kg category. Haryana Kesari Virender Singh overcame Pakistan Kesari Mohammed Shoaib in the 84 kg section. India rounded off with star matman Raju Tomar quelling the challenge of Mohammed Arshad without trouble in the 120 kg category. Dronacharya Awardee and India coach Mahasingh Rao said the Indians shaped up well for the competition and added that financial constraints and inadequate facilities were inhibiting the progress of Indian wrestlers. Results:
120kgs: Raju Tomar (Ind) bt Mohd. Arshad (Pak); 90kgs: Nitin Khurd (Ind)
bt Yasir Hussain (Pak); 84kg: Ravinder Singh Goti (Ind) tied with
Ghazanfar Ali (Pak); Virender Singh (Ind) bt Mohd Shoaib (Pak); 74kg:
Sandeep Kumar (Ind) bt Mohd Aslam (Pak).
— PTI
|
|
Margao, March 27 With this win, Mahindra increased their points tally to 21 points to move at the top, while Dempo were relegated to second place with 20 points with as many matches. Dempo could have won the outright had they utilised the gilt edged opportunities before them especially in the first session. In a fast paced match, Dempo went into attack right from the start with the midfielder controlled the play well but their forwards lacked scoring ideas especially in the first half. They came with three splendid opportunities in the 9th minute Clifford Miranda gave a through pass to Climax Lawrence, who run down with the ball beating the entire rival defence and unleashed a hasty shot which missed the mark narrowly. Then in the next minute, Renty Martin attempted shot sailed over the bar off a pass from Peter Carvalho. Dempo had one more chance to move ahead in the 30th minute of the first half but Roberto Silva’s header missed the mark. It was a good pass from Clifford Miranda. Mahindra came near scoring in the 32nd minute but Dempo goalkeeper Satish Kumar punched for abortive corner a power packed shot by Yakubu Yusif. After barren first half, jeepmen played themselves with renewed vigour after two changes in the team bringing in Stevan Dias in place of S Venkatesh and Mahammed Rafi in place of James Singh. In the 72nd minute, Mahindra had a chance to surge ahead but Dempo goalkeeper brought off a fine save off a header from Pomeyie Mensah following a flag kick taken by substitute Stevan Dias. Mahindra scored the match winner in the 73rd minute through Substitute Mahammed Rafi, whose powerpacked shot found the net off a well measured pass received from Mbaka Dady to make it 1-0. Dempo’s defender Samir Naik was adjudged the man of the match for his fine performance. — UNI
|
|
Rajwinder to get Bhim Award
Chandigarh, March 27 Governor A R Kidwai will present the award next month at the Haryana Raj Bhawan here. The Bhim Award carries a cash award of Rs 1 lakh, besides a trophy and a citation. Others selected for the award this year are, thrower Krishna Punia (Hisar), boxer Jyotsna (Rewari), wrestler Naveen (Sonepat) and volleyball player Dinesh Kumar (HSIDC). Sportspersons
of the state who have won medals in international competitions would
also be felicitated on this occasion.
— UNI
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
In video (
Georgetown, March 27
Beijing, March 27