New Delhi, August 17
Refused support by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the cash-strapped Association for Cricket for the Blind in India (ACBI) has approached Rahul Dravid to help raise funds for sustaining itself.

“The BCCI says that blind cricket is not cricket. When Jagmohan Dalmiya was the chairman, he at least used to attend our phone calls, but the present set-up does not even respond to our letters,” ACBI chairman George Abraham said today.

“It has been impossible to get through to Sharad Pawar, who once sent us a letter saying that ‘we will get back to you’ but never got back. If England and Pakistan boards can support their respective blind associations, why can’t the BCCI?”

“Our expenses are not more than Rs 18 lakh to 20 lakh per year. So we just need half a per cent of the millions they earn. This kind of indifference from the richest cricket board in the world hurts,” he added.

Abraham said the BCCI’s apathy has forced the ACBI to look for support from the corporate world and members of the Indian team.

“VVS Laxman has been a vocal supporter of blind cricket and has even attended some of the matches, which has helped. I have been speaking to Dravid as well and I think he is keen to help as well,” he said.

“I met Dravid when we took our team to Bangladesh for a series and he said that he was open to supporting us. The only problem is time. These players have such busy schedules now that they are left with no time for such activities after all the cricket,” Abraham added.

He also lashed out at the sports ministry for not supporting blind cricket.

The ACBI chief said blind cricket was also pinning its hopes on the ICC, which might give recognition to their world governing body.

The team, which reached the final of last year’s World Cup in Pakistan, will leave for a five-ODI tour of England tomorrow.

This is their first tour outside the subcontinent. The team will play all its matches at Worcester from August 20-26.

Team: Manvendra Singh Patwal (captain), Rajendra Verma, Ketan Patel, Subhash Boya, Pushpraj, Ashish Negi, Dilip Munde, Manoj Kumar, Shekhar Naik, Joe Shibu, Fernandez, Nanji, Rakesh Prajapathi and Bishorejit Singh. Manager: Noor Mohamma. — Agencies

Mainz (Germany), August 17
Viswanathan Anand fought back hard but Armenian Levona Aronian proved to be too good, beating the Indian Grandmaster in tiebreaker in a thrilling final to clinch the Chess 960 World Championships.

Playing this variant of the game for the first time where the position of the pieces at the start is set randomly for each game, Anand fought from behind to level the scores 2-2 after the rapid games.

Aronian, however, produced a scintillating performance in the shoot-out to score 1.5-0.5 to lift the title here on Thursday.

In the playoff for third place, Etienne Bacrot of France who mauled Rustam Kasimdzhanov of Uzbekistan 3-1.

Anand lost the first game of the four-game match after spoiling a promising position against Aronian, who played with white.

After a lot of manoeuvring the players arrived at a chess-like position where Anand had little to worry about.

However, for once, the Indian ace was under pressure on the clock which eventually had a telling effect.

After drawing the next two games Anand took the match to tiebreaker that Aronian won eventually.

It will be time for some normal chess again as Anand will start his campaign for the 10th overall title in Chess Classics Rapid.

In the 960 open chess tournament that began yesterday, India's second highest rated player Krishnan Sasikiran came out impressive with a 4.5/5 start.

Sasikiran who won four games and drew one is now placed in joint fourth spot behind three leaders - American Gata Kamsky, Shakhriayr Mamedyarov of Azerbaijan and Hungarian Zoltan Almasi.

The other Indians in the day also had a reasonable start as former World Junior champion P Harikrishna ended the first day on 4 points while world's youngest Grandmaster Parimarjan Negi scored 3 points on his debut.

Harikrishna, who came back just in time to register for the event from Paks in Hungary, scored three fluent victories before taking two draws.

The Indian is also world junior champion in this variant of the game after winning a match against German Arkadij Naiditsch last year. This year there is no junior contest and Harikrishna is likely to defend his title next year. — PTI

Manchester, August 17
Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has called for greater protection from referees to prevent Cristiano Ronaldo from sustaining serious injury.

The Portuguese winger was sent off for violent conduct at Portsmouth on Wednesday and while Ferguson had no quibbles about the red card, he believes his player was provoked by a series of heavy challenges that went unpunished by referee Steve Bennett.

''My fear is, and I don't whether there is a directive, but maybe referees are a bit more tolerant of the physical contact,'' Ferguson told reporters today.

''I've noticed this in the last few months — late challenges are going unpunished. I thought these things were black and white. Late challenges are not allowed.

''We saw it again on Wednesday night, the referee letting it go unpunished time and time again. If you have got weak referees then you are going to be suffering.''

Ferguson added: ''There is a concern players like Ronaldo are going to be the victims... because it will end up with someone getting a serious injury.'' The fiery Scot had every sympathy with Ronaldo, who was dismissed for an apparent headbutt in the closing stages of the 1-1 draw.

''It's very difficult to completely punish Ronaldo or be angry with him,'' Ferguson said. ''Some of the things that are happening to him are not right.''

Ronaldo will miss Sunday's derby at Manchester City through suspension and the champions with be further weakened in attack without injured pair Wayne Rooney and Louis Saha.

Ferguson was impressed with Carlos Tevez's debut at Portsmouth and could partner him with Ryan Giggs as United look for their first win of the season.

After opening with two draws they already trail Chelsea and Manchester City, who have taken maximum points under new manager Sven-Goran Eriksson, by four points.

''We are dropping points and that's frustrating because the performance levels were very good,'' Ferguson added. ''The important thing is just to be patient now.

''The players will come right. It's frustrating, but it's recoverable of course.'' — Reuters

Los Angeles, August 17
David Beckham wants to play two matches on two continents in two days next week as he begins juggling England duty with his Major League Soccer LA Galaxy commitment.

Beckham made his first start for the Galaxy on Wednesday, scoring with a free kick and creating a goal for Landon Donovan in Los Angeles' 2-0 SuperLiga victory over DC United.

He was to fly to the East Coast for tomorrow's MLS match against the New York Red Bulls at Giants Stadium.

From there, he plans to depart for England to join coach Steve McClaren's squad for a friendly against Germany next Wednesday at Wembley.

He wants to be back the following day in time for an MLS match against Chivas USA, the other Los Angeles club that share the Galaxy's Home Depot Center facility.

"I think I arrive back about 12 noon, and we've got a game that evening," said Beckham, whose has seen limited action in a month with the club due to a sore left ankle.

"Hopefully I'll be physically ready to play some part in that game as well. Hopefully it will all be good."

Beckham played 63 minutes against United before he was replaced on Wednesday. He immediately put ice on his sore ankle and said he had further treatment immediately after the match.

"I had to have my legs flushed through and get any of the little knots that were actually in my legs," Beckham said.

"This was the first time I've been on the field in eight weeks or done any sort of running like that.

"I had to get some treatment ... the ankle was a lot better than I actually thought it was going to be. After 10 minutes, it is all cleared up."

Beckham reiterated that despite the demanding travel, he believed the Galaxy firmly backed his desire to play for England.

"There is not a conflict, and for the club it's not a conflict," he said. "They made me well aware that they would do anything to help me play for my country, and they know how passionate I feel about playing for my country. So everyone is working together, and I think that is important. Everyone has got to be on the same page."

Beckham said he was pleased with how well his ankle held up in Wednesday's victory.

"I was happy to get an hour on the pitch," he said. "I didn't expect to last an hour. It felt great after 10 minutes into the game. My confidence got up with my ankle, and I felt great." Beckham also said he felt at home with the switch from the right wing to central midfield for the Galaxy. — AFP

Kuala Lumpur, August 17
Anup Sridhar's dream run in the World Badminton Championships came to a screeching halt as he went down to top seed and defending champion Lin Dan after giving a scare to the Chinese in the quarterfinals here today.

Sridhar played courageously against his formidable opponent but ultimately lost 20-22 9-21 in 38 minutes.

The scoreline is not an indicator of how Sridhar, who knocked off Olympic champion Taufiq Hidayat and former All England Champion Muhd Hafiz B Hashim in two days, ran close to world No.1 Lin.

In the first game, the Indian was up 20-19 with just one point away from taking a crucial 1-0 advantage.

But luck was not in Sridhar's favour as Lin saved the game point and closed the game at 22-20.

Lin was in absolute command in the second game and did not concede an inch to tame the giant killer Indian without much trouble.

Sridhar would be more than happy with what he achieved in the tournament and his world ranking of 40 is sure to get a major boost from his quarterfinal appearance here.

Lin will now take on fourth seed compatriot Bao Chunlai, who beat Kenneth Jonassen of Denmark 21-11 21-11.

Sridhar, whose deft placements at the net had been his hallmark in the tournament, surprised Lin with his supple wristy game as he pocketed 12 net winners to Lin's three in the first game.

Having got a taste of Sridhar's play, Lin decided to beat him at his own game and the world No.1 adapted well to notch up eight net winners to Sridhar's three in the next game.

The Bangalore boy played with a big heart in the first game. After being down 2-6, Sridhar slowly started closing in the gap to hold Lin at 10-10 and got the advantage at 12-11.

From there on, it was a neck-and-neck thriller with both scoring one point at a time. Sridhar stood on the verge of a game point at 20-19 but could not convert it. Lin was in no mood to give his fierce opponent another chance and closed it at 22-20.

The Chinese raced to a 7-1 lead in the second game and it was too wide a gap for Sridhar to catch up Lin. — PTI

Kuala Lumpur, August 17
India's Anup Sridhar, who Thursday stunned 2003 All-England champion Hafiz Hashim to enter the quarterfinals of the Proton World Badminton Championship, has only just begun to realise what his coaches expect of him.

What sets him apart from most Indian players is a certain confidence in himself that some might mistake for arrogance.

But it is this quality that makes his backers believe he won't crumble under pressure and that, no matter how dire his situation in a match, he won't stop believing in himself.

His game is essentially different from the classical Indian style, which relies more on deception than big hitting.

But Anup is by nature an aggressive player, using his long reach to bring in the steep smashes, and using his height to intercept defensive clears from his opponents.

But while earlier he showed signs of impatience and reluctance to slug it out, especially in sticky, long-drawn encounters, he now shows unmistakable signs of never giving in until it's over.

In Wednesday's match against Taufik Hidayat, he trailed 14-18, but still kept in the hunt, eventually winning 22-20. Thursday's defeat of Hashim also showcased some of that ability, when he shrugged off a second-game defeat to upset the 13th seed.

Excerpts from Anup's interview

Q: Did the match go the way you expected it to?

A: It turned out exactly the way I expected it. We were both trying to control the net, get a lift and hit, because that's our strength - he planned to hit to my forehand flank and did a couple of tricks at the net. He did catch me a couple of times with his wristwork.

Q: His style is like a mirror image of yours.

A: Yeah. I thought I could've been a bit more tight in the second, I was up 9-4. But I gave a few easy points and let him get into the match.

Q: You are able to climb back from tight spots. That's something you didn't do earlier, at the international level.

A: It's about getting patient. That's probably the key. I'm staying in the points longer.

Q: Your defence has been the standout aspect of your game.

A: I've worked a lot on it. I've spent all season on it. I have a good reach, so I can get a lot of shuttles. I can still do with better control and placement.

Q: How was your mind state in the match against Muhd Hafiz Hashim? You played a near-perfect match.

A: I wanted to win at any cost. Earlier (against Taufik)... I wanted to give everything I had. I didn't want to come out of the court without feeling I could've hit a harder smash or moved a bit better. Yesterday was my best match ever.

Q: How were you feeling physically? You'd started cramping after the Taufik match.

A: Against Hidayat it was such a long match. I was surprised on Thursday because in the third game I felt better than in the second. Maybe it was adrenaline; suddenly I thought I could push the pace and give it a go. That worked.

I think these results are due to my better fitness. I'm able to push a little bit
more, hit a couple more smashes, stay in a bit longer. That's making the difference. Also, the confidence of my results this season. I'm pretty high on confidence
now. — IANS

(The interview was taken after Thursday’s match in which Anup Sridhar defeated world number 16 Muhd Hafiz Hashim).

Cincinnati, August 17
Roger Federer struggled but survived, beating Marcos Baghdatis for the fifth time to reach the quarterfinals of the Cincinnati Masters.

The world number one was pleased to get his teeth into the US Open warm-up with a 7-6, 7-5 victory over the smiling Cypriot, whom he defeated for the 2006 Australian Open title.

Baghdatis had plenty of chances with four set points in the first set, but he failed to convert thanks to errors that included a costly pair of double faults. He then broke the solid Swiss as he served for the match leading 5-4 in the second.

But nerves entered the frame, Federer breaking back and then producing a service winner in the next game to advance in 1hr, 24min.

Lahore, August 17
Pakistan all-rounder Abdul Razzaq and opener Imran Farhat have cautioned that if the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) does not change its attitude towards players, then many of them would join the Indian Cricket League (ICL).

Alleging that the national selection committee had shown a biased attitude in selecting the team for the Twenty20 World Cup, Razzaq said the selectors dropped him from the team without offering a solid reason.

"The PCB is creating an uneasy atmosphere for the senior players which is forcing them to quit cricket," the Dawn quoted Razzaq as saying.

"If the board continues with the same attitude towards the players, many of them will join the Indian Cricket League," he said before leaving for England to play county cricket.

Farhat, who has requested the PCB to release him from the players' central contract, said he took the decision, as he believed he could not get justice from the selectors.

"I am the top scorer of the last Patron's Cup one-day tournament and four-day events, but I am still being left out of the Twenty20 World Cup," said Imran.

Farhat went on to say that he was being penalised for questioning the selectors about his omission from the off-shore in Abu Dhabi last April.

"That reflects a biased attitude of the selectors, and so, I have decided not to play until the time a new set up is in place," he added.

He said any of the players could consider the ICL offer, as they wanted respect and dignity.

Media reports are making the rounds that Razzaq, Mohammad Yousuf, Farhat and Azhar Mahmood have already signed agreements with the ICL and more are likely to join the proposed parallel league in India. — ANI

China had upset India in the Doha Asian Games last year but the latter avenged the defeat later. The Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) released the schedule today.

After their opening match on August 31, India will take on Sri Lanka on September 1, South Korea on September 3, Bangladesh on September 4 and Thailand on September 6.

In the inaugural match on August 31, Malaysia will cross swords with Singapore at 7.30 in the morning.

Pool A comprises Pakistan, Japan, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Singapore. Pool B consists of India, Korea, China, Bangladesh, Thailand and Sri Lanka.

The final preparatory camp for the 18-member Indian squad and four standbyes would be held here from August 26.

IHF secretary K. Jyothikumaran said China would be the first team to arrive here on August 27, with Pakistan coming the next day.

The tournament was initially to begin on September 1, but it was advanced by a day after Pakistan agreed to participate, thereby increasing the number of pool matches and making the schedule tighter. — UNI