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New captain to be named today
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Make Dhoni overall skipper, says Sidhu
Chappell, Frazer join RCA’s academy
Sania pulls out of Sunfeast Open
Under-22 cricket trials
India ‘A’, SA ‘A’ arrive in Dharamsala
Morozevich holds Anand
European Tour golf in Capital
GND varsity releases itinerary
Baba Farid hockey from tomorrow
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New captain to be named today
Mumbai, September 17 The five selectors, with former captain Dilip Vengsarkar at the helm, have been put on the horns of a huge dilemma on whether to move forward or set the clock back by handing back the job to Tendulkar for a third stint. The squad for the first three ODIs in the best-of-seven home series against Australia, beginning later this month, is also to be announced. The 34-year-old Tendulkar, who would have been the ideal candidate a few years ago, had recently admitted that the one-dayers were taking a toll on his body. He opted out of the ongoing Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa along with Dravid and another ex-skipper Sourav Ganguly. Selectors will have to think how much additional mental stress can the champion batsman can withstand if he is made captain for both the ODIs against Australia and the subsequent full series against Pakistan, not to forget the tough and energy-sapping visit Down Under to follow. The Mumbai batsman in a recent interview to a British daily talked about the difficulties he faced of late in playing back-to-back ODIs with a short gap. The series against Australia would see the players of both the teams battling it out in hot and humid conditions by crisscrossing across the length and breadth of the country. Tendulkar's previous record as captain, four wins out of 25 in Tests and 23 out of 73 ODIs, has not been very encouraging, but the selectors could still turn to him to tide over the leadership crisis. If the selectors, in their collective wisdom, feel that the burden of ODI captaincy need not be thrust on the champion batsman at the twilight of his career, then they have the option of taking the unprecedented step of splitting the job and offering the limited overs leadership mantle to wicket keeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Dhoni is the logical candidate for the ODI job if the selectors decide to break the high-profile task into two though there are some other claimants like Ganguly to fall back as a stop-gap arrangement. Dhoni's elevation cannot be questioned despite the fact that he made his debut only three seasons ago in a spectacular manner against arch-foes Pakistan as he has been appointed the T20 captain over the likes of seniors Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh. BCCI sources have said that president Sharad Pawar and Vengsarkar had got a word with Tendulkar on the sidelines of its function last week in Delhi. Whether the BCCI duo asked Tendulkar about his readiness to take over the mantle of captaincy immediately or at a time later, when Pakistan arrive, is not clear at the moment Other names like V V S Laxman have also been swirling around for the Test captaincy with the Hyderabad batsman's name being suggested by former Australian captain Ian Chappell. The matter of choosing the captain has, in fact, pushed to the background even the likely return of the axed trio of Sehwag, Irfan Pathan and Harbhajan for the ODIs at the cost of Dinesh Karthik, who has flattered to deceive after his glorious run in the Test series in England, Ajit Agarkar and the portly Ramesh Powar. Both Agarkar and Powar could face the boot, especially as Vengsarkar has said in his interview that both were not performing with the bat. Rohit Sharma is another candidate who faces the chop without having had a decent run and could give way to youngsters like the fit-again Suresh Raina, an outstanding fielder in the ring, or Manoj Tiwary both of whom have returned to competitive cricket after long injury lay-offs due to knee and shoulder injuries respectively. But the focus of the meeting would be the selection of the man who is to replace Dravid at the helm. — PTI
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England can expect no mercy: Styris
Durban, September 17 ''But we're not thinking about it like that. We're thinking that if we win we're a long way towards qualifying for the semifinals.'' England lost their first Super Eights match to South Africa yesterday, and another loss would almost certainly prevent them from reaching the semifinals. Styris said England may have depended too much on players they selected as Twenty20 specialists. ''A lot's been made of the fact that they've brought in a lot of guys who have been successful in their domestic competition,'' he said. ''They probably haven't done as well as they would have hoped, and if we can put the pressure on those guys I think it puts more pressure on a couple of other guys in their order.'' Styris said New Zealand were wary of key England players like Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff. ''I don't think you target anyone, but in any form of the game you are aware that teams have match-winners and key players,'' he said. ''In England's case they're the Pietersens and the Flintoffs. ''You know that if you get those guys out for a cheap score you've every chance of winning. We know they're their danger players.'' New Zealand beat Kenya in their first match of the tournament before losing to Sri Lanka and then beating India. —
Reuters
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Durban, September 17 After their nerve-wrecking win against Pakistan here, the Indians fell back to their erratic ways and lost against New Zealand at the Wanderers, making it imperative for the team to win their remaining matches - against England on Wednesday and hosts South Africa on Thursday - to avoid an early exit from the tournament. With plenty of grey areas in both batting and bowling, Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni needs to find a quick solution ahead of their first clash against England. "We really need to do well in every department. The batsmen have done well in one game while the bowlers have done well in another. Now we need to do both the things together, that will help the team," said Dhoni. As it were, the day India went down to New Zealand at the Wanderers, South Africa defeated England at Newlands by 19 runs. And having lost their first games both India and England will probably be facing a do-or-die situation. Then again, before India play England on Wednesday, New Zealand will be taking on England on Tuesday and turn of events from that game will have a lot of bearing in deciding the top two teams for the semifinals from the bottom half of the draw. As things stand now, New Zealand has the best net run-rate (+0.95) followed by South Africa (+0.5). India (-0.5) is marginally ahead of England (-0.9). Yet all that can change very quickly as the teams regroup at Durban for their last two games. Dhoni, after the loss against the Kiwis, said "Every game is crucial. This game (India vs New Zealand) was as crucial to us as the other two would be. The Indian skipper expressed confidence that his team would progress to the knockout stage. Since India will be playing at the bouncy Kingsmead, their gameplan will obviously be devised keeping in mind the conditions that are usually favourable to the pace bowlers. "You don't groom players in World Cup. I will play the best team that I have, if someone fits into that team, he will play, otherwise he won't," Dhoni said. However, on the evidence of their performance in recent weeks, there is a huge question mark over Ajit Agarkar. Indian can fancy playing Yusuf Pathan, who can be handy with the ball and with the bat, or even Rohit Sharma who has strangely been condemned to the reserves for the last three months. Dhoni will also have to address India's poor bowling in the death overs and here he would do well to keep Yuvraj Singh away from the firing line. — PTI
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Make Dhoni overall skipper, says Sidhu
Amritsar, September 17 He said Sachin was also a right choice but that would be a stop-gap arrangement as he would not be able to play for the country for another couple of years. He (Sachin) was presently in good form and would not be able to concentrate on his batting if burden of captaincy was put on him which would be harmful for the Indian cricket.. “We
should choose a captain who is young and good enough to lead the Indian
team for at least 7 to 10 years. Dhoni is capable for he likes to take
risks.” Rejecting outright the captaincy being given to Sourav
Ganguly, Sidhu it would be like going back. “Now was the time to move
ahead to prepare the team for the next World Cup.”
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Johannesburg, September 17 Captain Shoaib Malik (57) and former skipper Younis Khan (51) shared Pakistan’s first Twenty20 century partnership to lift their side to a good total. After two consecutive fifties, Sanath Jayasuriya failed this time, bowled by pacer Sohail Tanvir for five. Shahid Afridi was the wrecker-in-chief with 3-18 from four overs. Earlier, Sri Lanka, who won the toss and bowled first, picked up three early wickets, but Shoaib and Younis then ripped into the bowling. They struck 101 runs off the 58 balls they shared and were particularly severe on Sanath Jayasuriya, taking 46 runs off his first three overs. Shoaib reached his fifty in just 27 balls. Younis slammed 51 off 35 balls, with three sixes. Jayasuriya bowled the final over and Misbah-ul-Haq hit him for two sixes. He conceded a total of 64 runs, equalling the most expensive Twenty20 tally recorded by England’s James Anderson against Australia in Sydney earlier this year. — Agencies
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Chappell, Frazer join RCA’s academy
Mumbai, September 17 Chappell, along with bio-mechanist Ian Frazer, have been signed up as advisors by the RCA for the academy in Jaipur, RCA president Lalit Modi said in a statement today. The RCA Centre of Excellence would be operational in October, said Modi, who is also the BCCI vice-president. The academy will have five indoor pitches, a full video analysis system and 24 outdoor practice wickets. It will accommodate 70 students and will have a state-of-the-art gymnasium provided by Cybex, the US-based fitness equipment manufacturers. Chappell was quoted in the statement saying he was delighted to take up the assignment. To be involved with identifying and training the talent of the future in Rajasthan is a wonderful opportunity, he said. —
PTI
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Sania pulls out of Sunfeast Open
Kolkata, September 17 “We regret to inform you that Sania has withdrawn because of her right wrist sprain,” WTA Tour superviser Fabrice Choquet told a press conference here this evening. WTA senior manager (marketing and sponsorship) Jill Hausler said Sania had also withdrawn from the Korean Open, scheduled to begin in Seoul from September 24. She, however, hoped that Sania would recover in time for the Tokyo Open which begins on October 1. The Indian player had been seeded third in the $175,000 event being played here. In a statement, Sania said she was very upset for having to opt out of the tournament. Her place in the main draw would go to Indonesian lucky loser Sandy Gumulya. Meanwhile, Neha Uberoi found fourth seed Russian Maria Kirilenko too hot to handle and went down tamely in straight sets in the opening round of the event today. The US girl of Indian origin made a series of unforced errors to lose 2-6, 2-6 in 62 minutes. Neha, who came through from the qualifiers, seemed a bundle of nerves and had no answers to the good serves and precise shots unleashed by the world number 35. Earlier, Sania and Bhupathi took part in an exhibition match in the middle of river Hoogly. The two played a three-game duel on a barge specially constructed for the event. The 114ft by 37ft structure placed strategically between the Howrah Bridge and Vidyasagar Setu provided a breathtaking view for the players. Sania downed Bhupathi, who seemed too pleased to oblige the prodigy he discovered five years ago. —
PTI
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India’s F1 bid right on track
New Delhi, September 17 Chief architect of F1 Circuit Hermann Tilke had visited sites in and around the Capital and he went back and presented a “favourable” report to Ecclestone. Kalmadi said when he met Ecclestone in London last week, he was very happy with Tilke’s report and gave the “go-ahead” to the IOA to “negotiate and finalise any one of the two venues” for creating the F1 track. Kalmadi said if India got to host the event, it would be held in early 2010 instead of late 2009, as had been planned earlier. Ecclestone has given two draft contracts to Kalmadi to sign and return to formalise the F1 deal. The draft contracts pertain to race promotion of the Grand Prix of India as a round of the FIA F1 World Championship and the Circuit Right Agreement. However, the IOA chief refused to disclose the financial details involved in the project. Kalmadi said Tilke would visit the Capital again and make the master plan for the circuit. Kalmadi and IOA secretary-general Randhir Singh said they were confident that India would be able to successfully host the event in the National Capital Region in 2010, the year in which the country would also host the Commonwealth Games. PTI adds: Kalmadi hoped that the expenses to lay the track would be lesser than that in other countries, and the IOA, in the long run, would make profit from it. “We have to see the costs in India. Labour is not costly here. Then we have to look at the raw material. “Hopefully, we will make profit. The challenge is not the Grand Prix, but how to use the track for 365 days,” Kalmadi said. He stated that the IOA would seek the support of Vijay Mallya, leading business tycoon and Formula One team Spyker’s owner, in making the Grand Prix a success in India.
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Chandigarh: The Haryana Cricket Association will conduct trials to select the Haryana State (under 22) team at Chaudhary Bansi Lal Cricket stadium, Lahlli, district Rohtak, on September 20 at 9.30 am.
According to Anirudh Chaudhary, joint secretary of Haryana Cricket Association, the players born on or after September 01, 1985 are eligible to participate in the trials. Those willing to participate must report at the venue half an hour before the scheduled time along with age proof. —
TNS
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India ‘A’, SA ‘A’ arrive in Dharamsala
Dharamsala, September 17 India ‘A’ are led by Mohammad Kaif. The other members of the team are Akash Chopra, Cheteshwar Pujara, Manoj Tiwary, S. Badrinath, Suresh Raina, Parthiv Patel (wicketkeeper), Ishant Sharma, Yo Mahesh, Pankaj Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Arjun Yadav, Asraf Makda and Amit Mishra. South Africa ‘A’ are comprised of Yusuf Abdullah (captain), Hashim Amla, Johan Botha, Werner Coetzee, Friedal de Wet, Boeta Dippenaar, Charl Langeveldt, Andre Nel, Justin Ontong, Alviro Peterson, Ashwell Prince, Dale Steyn, Thamie Tsolekile and Morne van Wyk. Paras Mhambrey and Vaibhav Daga are accompanying the Indian team as coach and physiotherapist, respectively. On the South African side, Mohammad Barney is the coach, Mustapha Khan the team manager and Evan Speechly the physiotherapist. India ‘A’ lead the three-match series 1-0 after having won the first match by an innings at New Delhi. Both teams, which arrived this afternoon, could not do practice due to showers in the evening. Team managers and captains of both sides examined the pitch. The local stadium hosted a warm-up match between India ‘A’ and Pakistan in 2005. Duleep Trophy and Ranji Trophy matches have also been held here. However, the International Cricket Council (ICC) is yet to give its nod for conducting one-day international matches here.
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Mexico City, September 17 The Indian, however, still continued to share the joint lead with another Russian Vladimir Kramnik, who drew with compatriot Alexander Grischuk, on 2.5 points. Anand, playing with black pieces, replied with Nf6 to his opponent's opening move of d4 and after a few moves, the game was fought on Meran variation Slav defence. Anand came up with a completely different plan with Bg7 which turned the game in Black's favour. Both the players played the first 15 moves in Blitz tempo. In the middle game, Anand began consolidating his position. He forced Morozevich to win an exchange. The world number one then cleverly traded Knights and created a decisive advantage in his favour. At this juncture, a win for Anand looked certain. Morozevich, however, did not loose heart and fought back and Anand needed a couple of nice moves to break open Morozevich's defence. The Russian's stubborn resistance paid off in the end and Anand has to console himself with a draw. Anand later said getting one point from the game was not bad but ''it is a shame to play what I did today.'' On the other tables, Kramnik was held to a draw by his compatriot Alexander Grischuk, while Peter Svidler and Boris Gelfand also signed peace after 24 moves. The only decisive game was Armenian Grandmaster Levon Aronian defeating Peter Leko of Hungary. Aronian Played a good game and did not miss any opportunity to exploit many minor mistakes committed by his opponent which paid off in the end. The eight Grandmasters will have a one-day rest before slugging it out the fifth round. —
UNI
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European Tour golf in Capital
New Delhi, September 17 Promoted and organised by Golf in Dubai, and sanctioned by the European Tour and the Indian Golf Union, it will be the richest prize money golf event ever staged in the country. The Masters event is significant for the country’s golfers now that Jeev Milkha Singh and Arjun Atwal have won European Tour events, while Jyoti Randhawa and Shiv Kapur, too, are doing well on the Pro Tour. “Golf is fast emerging as a big-time sport. This will be the 37th venue of the European Tour. The event will have the appeal and the profile to further enliven the Indian golf scene,” said Mohamed Juma Buamaim, vice-chairman and CEO of Golf in Dubai, here today. He said being the promoters and organisers of world-class events like the Dubai Desert Classic and the Dubai Ladies Masters, the tournament was part of Golf in Dubai’s drive to showcase the Emirate’s rapidly-growing golfing portfolio of world-class courses on the global scene. George O’Grady, CEO of the European Tour, said some of the big names of the Tour, like Ernie Els, Henrik Stenson, Colin Montgomerie, Lee Westwood, Thomas Bjorn and Jeev would feature in the Masters, while other stars were expected to confirm their participation soon.
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GND varsity releases itinerary
Amritsar, September 17 Kanwaljit Singh, director, sports, said in a press release here today that the ‘B’ division kabaddi (national style) event for men would be held from October 6-12 and the ‘A’ division competition would be conducted from October 10-12 on the university campus. The ‘A’ and ‘B’ division badminton (women) events would be held from October 8-10, while the ‘B’ division badminton (men) competition would be organised from October 4-10 and the ‘A’ division event from October 6-10. Squash competitions would be held from October 11-12 at Service Club, Ram
Bagh, Amritsar.
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Baba Farid hockey from tomorrow Moga, September 17 However, last year's winner Border Security Force will not be participating this time due to their Inter-Frontier Sports Tournament This was announced today by Parampal Singh and Harjit Singh, senior vice-president and secretary of the Baba Farid Hockey Club, respectively. The opening match of the Gold Cup Hockey Tournament will be played between Ropar Hawks and BEG Kirkee. The other participating teams are Border Hawks Amritsar, Punjab and Sind Bank Academy, Indian Air Force New Delhi, EME Jalandhar, Namdhari Eleven, Sports Academy of India ,PSEB Patiala, Eastern Railways Calcutta, CISF (Central Industrial Security Force) New Delhi, Corps of Signal and Artilary Hyderabad. — UNI
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Veteran athlete corners glory in world
meet Patiala, September 17
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Patiala boy shines in fencing meet Patiala, September 17
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