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Federer makes it four in a row
South Africa face tense opener
Denial of dues may hit boxers hard
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Jeev finishes tied 31
East Bengal oust JCT
Put hockey, football back on priority list: Kalmadi
Tania in joint lead
Lawrence eves lift shooting trophy
Dempo edge out Churchill 2-0
Jhulan is ICC Woman Cricketer of Year
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Federer makes it four in a row
New York, September 10 It was the 12th career Grand Slam title for Federer, who moved within two of matching the all-time Grand Slam title record set by Pete Sampras, and the 51st career tournament triumph overall for the 26-year-old master shotmaker. Federer's US Open win streak is the longest since Bill Tilden won six in a row from 1920 to 1925. "You never do get used to it," Federer said. "It's too nice to be true to be back and win a Grand Slam final." But the victory was far from easy for Federer as Djokovic was up a break in each of the first two sets and squandered five set points serving in the 12th game of the opening set and two more in the 12th game of the second set. Djokovic netted a backhand volley to surrender the only break of the final set on Federer's second match point, ending his struggle after two hours 26 minutes. Djokovic, trying to become at 20 the second-youngest US Open men's champion in the Open Era after Sampras' 1990 victory, was undone by his own mistakes on critical points in his first Grand Slam final. The Serbian star, who suffered semi-final losses to Rafael Nadal this year at Wimbledon and the French Open, was only 2-of-9 in break-point chances, missing opportunity after opportunity and ultimately unable to stop Federer. Federer, in his record 188th week in a row atop the rankings, improved to 5-1 against Djokovic after losing their prior meeting in last month's Montreal final. That's where the Serbian star beat Federer, second-ranked Rafael Nadal and third-rated Andy Roddick to become the first man since Boris Becker in 1994 at Stockholm to sweep the world's top trio in the same event. Djokovic broke Federer for a 6-5 lead in the first set after the Swiss star hit two forehands long, then squandered five set points in the 12th game and double faulted on Federer's second set point to dig himself a huge hole. The Serb poured out his frustrations in the next break by dumping the contents of a water bottle in front of his chair. In the 12th game, Federer saved the Serb's first set-point chance with a forehand winner on the sideline, then watched Djokovic send two forehands and two backhands long on set points. Djokovic botched another forehand to give Federer a break chance and hit his third double fault to force a first-set tie-breaker. At 3-3 in the tie-break, Djokovic hit another double fault to help push Federer to a 6-3 edge. Federer sent a backhand wide but took the first set on Djokovic's fifth double fault. Djokovic went ahead 4-1 in the second set but Federer broke at love in the seventh game and finished a run of 10 points in a row holding at love to level at 4-4. Djokovic had two break and set points in the 12th game of set two but Federer rescued the first with a 126-mph ace and the Serb sent a forehand long, a challenge review denying Djokovic by an eyelash. In the third set, Djokovic had three break points on Federer in the fifth game but again failed to capitalise, allowing Federer to hold. But Djokovic did remain defiant, denying Federer on a break chance in the next game with a drop volley winner before giving up the deciding break. —
AFP
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South Africa face tense opener
Graeme Smith’s home team is a front-runner along with the world Test and one-day champions Australia to win the 12-nation competition in the shortest version of the game. But the South Africans will be wary of the West Indies who stunned them in the opening match of the 2003 World Cup in Cape Town, a defeat that cost the hosts a place in the second round. West Indian star Marlon Samuels did not hesitate to remind the South Africans of that day and hoped his team will pull off a similar win at the Wanderers tomorrow. “Hope we can do something like that again,” said Samuels. “They (South Africa) are at home and have the advantage, but we are playing very good Twenty20 cricket.” South Africa, who have not won the 50-overs-a-side World Cup in five attempts despite being a formidable side, are determined to bag the Twenty20 world title in front of their own fans. Smith’s men showed they mean business when they stunned Australia by eight wickets in a practice match yesterday, a win that key batsman Abraham de Villiers said was a real morale-booster. “Victory is always important, especially against Australia because they’re a well-drilled side,” said de Villiers, who smashed 65 off 35 balls as South Africa chased down a target of 180 with five deliveries to spare. “It wasn’t just a warm-up game. It’s a bit of a psychological advantage to beat the Aussies.” Australia’s new coach Tim Nielsen admitted the swinging ball had caught the team “off guard”, but the result only underlined the belief that Twenty20 cricket is an unpredictable sport. In other practice games, Pakistan beat World Cup finalists Sri Lanka by five wickets and New Zealand stumbled to a 35-run defeat at the hands of the West Indies. South Africa’s de Villiers said a way out to master the Twenty20 game was to chase a target rather than set one. “It’s not easy to find your feet and know if the target you’ve set is big enough if you bat first,” the aggressive batsman said. “Batting second it’s much easier to pace your innings. It’s a matter of keeping wickets in hand and making sure that you reach yor targets after every five overs. “If you bat first you have to sum up the conditions and adjust. That takes time and you don’t have time in this format of the game.” In other words, winning the toss can be crucial. It’s a game of chance. The 27-match, 14-day tournament features the nine nations currently playing Test cricket along with Zimbabwe, Kenya and Scotland. The 12 teams have been divided into four groups for the preliminary league with the top two from each group advancing to the Super Eights round. The final will be played on September 24. — AFP
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Messi tires of Maradona comparison
Melbourne, September 10 Despite the presence of Carlos Tevez, Gabriel Heinze and Hernan Crespo in Alfio Basile's party for the clash at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, the diminutive Barcelona forward has been unwittingly dominating the focus of local media. Even though Maradona has hailed the roaming playmaker as the heir to his crown, the 20-year-old insists the comparisons are premature and misguided. — Reuters
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Denial of dues may hit boxers hard
New Delhi, September 10 "Even the thought of it is heartbreaking, but the fact is that right now we do not have the money to send the team to Olympic qualifiers next month," Indian Amateur Boxing Federation (IABF) General Secretary Col P K Muralidharan Raja said today. Olympic qualifiers start with the World Championship in Chicago, from October 23 to November 3. The IABF has announced a nine-member team, comprising newly-crowned national champions, for the event. But the federation is unsure about the boxers actually making the trip. "Until something happens at the very last minute, we are in no position to send the team. The boarding and lodging alone comes to $ 50 everyday there. We don't have that kind of money. The Sports Ministry keeps delaying the matter, it is very frustrating," Col Raja said. The nine boxers are also scheduled to go to Kazakhstan for a training camp later this month as they prepare for the World Championship, but Col Raja said there was no chance of that happening either until the federation gets some money. "About a month ago, we received an assurance that all our dues would be cleared but now we are being told that it will take some more time. The government owes us Rs 60 lakh at the moment. "We cannot keep borrowing money from here and there. The lenders want their money back and we cannot delay them for long. There is no question of a training trip to Kazakhstan until the ministry clears the funds," he said. Col Raja rued the government apathy and said, "it is very unfortunate that this kind of attitude is being shown to a sport which is doing so well." — PTI
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Jeev finishes tied 31
Chandigarh, September 10 Jeev, who is ranked 39th in the European Tour Order of Merit, shot birdies on the first, second, seventh and ninth holes against two bogeys on the third and fourth to be two-under in the first nine. In the return nine, it was an all par game besides a birdie on the 11th. The other Indian on the tour, Shiv Kapur, finished tied 66th after finishing with a four-day tally of six-over 290. Australian Brett Rumford defeated England’s Phillip Archer to clinch the Omega European Masters title. Ghei in race for China Classic
Gaurav Ghei, who is ranked sixth in the Asian Tour Order of Merit, is all set to make a go in the inaugural $4 lakh Midea China Classic Asian Tour event that begins on the greens of the Royal Orchid Golf Club at Guangzhou in China on September 13. Local hero Liang Wen-Chong, who is ranked No. 1 on the Asian Tour’s UBS Order of Merit, will spearhead the charge. Other title hopefuls include Australian Scott Hend, Thailand’s Chapchai Nirat and recent champions Artemio Murakami of Philippines and Lin Wen-Tang of Chinese Taipei. Others in the race are two Chandigarh golfers Gurbaaz Mann and Harmeet Kahlon besides other Indian pros like Rahil Gangjee, SSP Chowrasia, Digvijay Singh, Arjun Singh and Rahul
Ganapathy.
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East Bengal oust JCT
Ludhiana, September 10 The action-packed match was witnessed the largest number of spectators so far in the tournament. It was marked by plenty of rough play, with four players getting injured. East Bengal drew first blood in the 15th minute when Surkumar Singh dodged a couple of defenders and sent the ball into the net. Their second goal was scored by Brazilian striker Edmilson Marques, who latched on to a rebound as the custodian failed to gather the ball properly after a free kick by Alvito D Cunha. Both sides made numerous thrilling moves, mounting repeated raids on each other’s citadels. Subrata Paul, East Bengal goalkeeper, saved a goal by flinging himself to his right side following a header from Brazilian striker Eduardo Da Escobar. The mill men opened their account through a penalty kick which was awarded following an obstruction by East Bengal defenders. Escobar converted it through a powerful kick. Edmilson scored his second goal to make it 3-1. However, Karanjit Singh, JCT goalkeeper, sustained a head injury while trying to stop Edmilson’s shot. He fell on the ground writhing in pain, and the game was held up for a few minutes. He was rushed to hospital for a CT scan. JCT reduced the lead to 2-3 through Renedy Singh, who impressively converted a cross by Baljit Singh Sahni minutes before the final hooter.
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Put hockey, football back on priority list: Kalmadi
New Delhi, September 10 Kalmadi, while praising Parliament’s congratulations to the hockey team, also noted the “wonderful performance” of the football team. “The football and hockey teams have performed exceedingly well by winning the Nehru Cup and the Asia Cup”, Kalmadi said in a statement. He demanded that the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports “reinstate” football and hockey into the priority list once again. Football and hockey had been taken out from the priority list by the ministry last May. Kalmadi was supported by Priyaranjan Das Munshi, Jagdish Tytler and Vijay Kumar Malhotra, who head football, judo and archery federations, respectively, in the country. “The general mood of the House on the sporting success was very upbeat and the Speaker, Somnath Chatterjee, noted that since Parliament seemed to be of the unanimous view in this matter, the Sports Ministry should take note of this”, Kalmadi added.
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Tania in joint lead
Tehran (Iran), September 10 A victory had eluded Tania for last three rounds, but the Delhi-based was in her elements yet again to survive an onslaught by Pourkashiyan and come out triumphs. The victory helped Tania to bridge the gap between her and overnight joint leaders as some of the top games ended in draws. As things stand with just two rounds to come in the premier women event in Asia, Chinese duo of Lufei Ruan and Huang Qian and Vietnamese girls Nguyen Thi Thanh An and Le Thanh Tu share the lead with Tania on 5 points each out of a possible seven. — PTI
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Lawrence eves lift shooting trophy
Chandigarh, September 10 Whereas the hosts Lawrence School lifted the winners' trophy, M. N. S. S., Rai and Daly College, Indore, were second and third, respectively. Other winners: Jasneet, Razia and Simar of Lawrence School, Sanawar were winners in Open Sight Air Rifle; Kadambari, Lalwani and Megha of Daly College, Indore won in Peep Sight Air Rifle category and M.N.S.S., Rai girls were victorious in Air Pistol category. As many as eight schools participated in the shooting championship.
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Dempo edge out Churchill 2-0
Ludhiana, September 10 Ranti Martins of Dempo swiftly turned a cross from Edeh Chidi into a goal through a header in the 12th minute of the game. However, they failed to capitalise on a free kick earned after rival goalkeeper in order to acquire the ball left the goalpost open. The two Goa-based clubs failed to offer quality football. Churchill Brothers’ attack was toothless. They struggled to posses the ball in the first half. The winners made several moves from all sides and build pressure. However, they failed to convert a couple of fine moves into goals. At the fag end of the first half, certain chances in quick succession were wasted. After a few minutes, Clifford Miranda wasted another fine pass when the ball closely whizzed past the goalpost. Chidi scored a goal from a cross by Miranda through a header in the 37th minute for Dempo to complete the tally. Odafe Onyeka Okolie of Churchill Brothers tried to seize and dribble the ball, but rival players foiled his attempts. Tomorrow’s fixture:
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Jhulan is ICC Woman Cricketer of Year Johannesburg, September 10 Goswami, the 23-year-old player from West Bengal’s Nadia district, received the award at a glittering function from Mahendra Singh Dhoni, skipper of the Indian team for the Twenty- Twenty World Cup. Jhulan was the only Indian to be nominated for the awards this year. The winning of the ICC Womens Cricketer Award for 2007 was a perfect icing for Jhulan’s career in the year during which she averaged 12.4 in test matches and 21.8 in ODIs. Her phenomenal accuracy with the ball is illustrated by her economy rate of 2.1 in tests and 3.17 in ODIs. Her best bowling of the voting period came against England when she took 5-33 in the first innings of a test at Taunton, a haul that included the top three England batsmen. This excellent spell helped to set up a five-wicket victory for her side.
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No complaints about outcome: Djokovic Sania static in singles rankings Mallya supports BCCI Punjab lift school football trophy
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Johannesburg, September 10
