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India set up dream final with Pak
Gul, Nazir power Pak into final
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ICL
Hair’s Lawsuit
PCB opts for ‘democratic’ revamp
India ‘A’ win series 1-0
Anand stays in the lead
Jyoti up to 18th, Jeev out
Sunfeast Open
Pargat gets extension
Shimla shooters clinch title
Virbhadra’s son on target
Navodaya volleyball meet concludes
Mixed fortunes for Punjab cagers
Haryana Police Games
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India set up dream final with Pak
In a humdinger of a semifinal, India rattled up 188 for five in their allotted 20 overs and then held their nerves to restrict Australia to 173 for seven to set up a title clash with arch-rivals Pakistan in Johannesburg on Monday. It was a remarkable display by the Indians, who had played just one Twenty20 match before the inaugural edition of the World Cup and still they maintained their giant-killing run by knocking off the Australians in a thrilling flood-lit encounter. Yuvraj's 30-ball blitzkrieg of 70 earned him the Man of the Match award. For Australia, Adam Gilchrist (22) and Matthew Hayden (62 runs,47 balls, 4 fours, 4 sixes) started the chase with customary disdain and they decided to go after India spearhead RP Singh, determined to unsettle his rhythm. Just when things threatened to go out of hand, Sreesanth castled Gilchrist and then Irfan Pathan had Brad Hodge (11) caught by Joginder Sharma that left Australia 68 for two. Runs, however, kept flowing with Andrew Symonds (43 off 26 balls) and Hayden imposing them on the Indian bowlers. Hayden smote Virender Sehwag for two sixes in the same over en route to a 40-ball fifty. Sreesanth, however, yorked Hayden in his comeback over to stem the run flow and two overs later, Irfan castled
Symonds. Harbhajan pumped in more life into the match by castling Michael Clarke (3) and the game became an edge-of-the-seat thriller with the Australians needing 22 runs off the last over bowled by Joginder. The Haryana all-rounder began with two dot balls, removed Mike Hussey in the third, conceded two in the fourth, castled Brett Lee in the next and a boundary off the last delivery was of no consequence as India romped to victory. Earlier batting first, India overcome initial jitters with Yuvraj playing a dream knock of outrageous power and breath-taking beauty to skin the Australian bowling raw and stitching together an 84-run stand with Robin Uthappa (34). MS Dhoni (36) then provided the late charge to take the score past the 175-mark. Coming in to bat when India was in trouble at 41 for two in the eighth over, Yuvraj straightaway took the Australian bowlers by the scruff of their neck and in an innings punctuated as much by classy shots as by some fine innovations, he hit five towering sixes and as many boundaries to knock off 70 runs off just 30 balls. India made 60 for two after 10 overs but thanks to Yuvraj, Uthappa and Dhoni, the next 10 overs produced 127 runs with 61 runs coming off the last five overs alone. After India won the toss and batted, Australia's opening bowlers Nathan Bracken and Brett Lee gave nothing away and with the openers opting to make another cautious start, runs certainly didn't come at a fast rate. Hampered by a groin injury, Sehwag (9) was rather subdued, hitting his only boundary in the sixth over bowled by Mitchell Johnson. However, he was out off the very next ball when he tried to slash over point. Gautam Gambhir (24) cut Brett Lee past point for a boundary in the very first over besides hitting two more in the fourth over bowled by Bracken before holing out to Brad Hodge while trying to pull Johnson. Uthappa displayed the right intent and also had the luck of the brave when Michael Clarke dropped a difficult overhead catch at backward point off Stuart Clark when he was on five.
— PTI Scoreboard Australia Man of the match: Yuvraj Singh
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‘Coach-less’ India have done well: Pawar
Mumbai, September 22 “We have won matches against England, Pakistan and South Africa without a coach,” Pawar told mediapersons here. Asked if his remarks were an indication that there will be no foreign coach, Pawar said “I am not saying that. The Board will take an appropriate decision on the issue.” Pawar also said that he had a chat with Mahendra Singh
Dhoni, the captain of the side, who was keen to continue the good run.
— PTI
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Gul, Nazir power Pak into final
Cape Town, September 22 Batting first, New Zealand got a good start but first a rain-interruption and then Gul’s devastating spell, left them gasping for breath. Ross Taylor top scored for the Kiwis with an unbeaten 37 but New Zealand could only manage 143 for eight in their allotted 20 overs. Chasing a modest target, Pakistan got off to a flying start with openers Imran Nazir and Mohammad Hafeez stitching together a 60-run opening stand in just seven overs, which laid the foundation for a facile win. After restricting the Kiwis to a modest total, Pakistan looked in a hurry to wrap up the chase and opener Mohammad Hafeez dropped the hint when he hit Shane Bond for a four in the first delivery of the innings. Imran Nazir (59 runs, 41 balls, 3 fours, 5 sixes) made his intention clear too and hit Mark Gillespie for three boundaries in the next over. The duo then started dealing in sixes with Bond, Vettori and Gillespie at the receiving end of their fury. The partnership was broken by Scott Styris, who did the trick with his first delivery that rapped Hafeez on his pad and Pakistan lost their first wicket at 60 in 7.1 overs. Jeetan Patel eventually removed Nazir by trapping him leg before and in the next over, Vettori had Younis Khan (4) stumped but the irreparable damage was done by then. Bond cut short Shahid Afridi's (6) stay but Shoaib Malik (26) and Misbah-ul Haq (16) guided the team to victory with seven balls to spare. Malik hit Jeetan Patel for a huge six over midwicket to score the winning runs. Earlier, Umar Gul’s three for 15, following a rain interruption, wrecked the Kiwi middle order and the New Zealanders, going great guns at 50 for no loss, slumped to 126 for eight. It was Ross Taylor's unbeaten 23-ball knock of 37, studded with two fours and as many sixes, which swelled the tally to 143 for eight. Daniel Vettori won the toss and decided to bat first and had enough reason to feel vindicated as openers Lou Vincent (28) and Brendan McCullum (26) cruised to 44 in 6.2 overs before a rain delay halted the proceedings. The interruption clearly shattered the rhythm and snapped the momentum as Vincent, after forging a 50-run stand with McCullum, offered a return catch to Fawad Alam. McCullum joined him in the pavilion three overs later with first change bowler Shahid Afridi doing the trick. Gul then struck back-to-back blows by removing Scott Styris (18) and Peter Fulton (10) in a span of three balls to leave the Kiwis in tatters. Taylor and Craig McMillan (12) just seemed to have stemmed the rot when New Zealand suffered another mini-collapse with the next three runs costing them as many wickets. Fawad removed McMillan and Gul got his third victim in Jacob Oram (1) before a mix-up ended Vettori’s (0) stay in the middle. Bond too returned run out for five.
— PTI Scoreboard Pakistan Man of the match: Umar Gul
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ICL
Karachi, September 22 PCB chief executive Shafqat Naghmi confirmed that Yousuf would be meeting with Ashraf on Wednesday in Lahore to discuss his future with the Pakistan team. “No agenda has been finalised for this meeting. But since Yousuf is a very important member of the team, the chairman will try to persuade him to give Pakistan the top priority,” Naghmi said. Ashraf is confident of convincing Yousuf to cancel his ICL contract and play for Pakistan. The PCB is adamant that any player, who signs up for the ICL, will not be considered for the national team. Yousuf, former captain Inzamam-ul Haq, Abdul Razzaq and Imran Farhat had joined the ICL. Yousuf, who made a record breaking 1,788 runs in 11 tests with nine hundreds in 2006, was a shock omission from Pakistan’s Twenty20 squad. When contacted, he said he had not given any thought to his immediate future but would like to see what the chairman has to say. “Obviously Pakistan is my first priority. But I need to know how things can be worked out without any inconvenience to anyone,” he said. Sources said the board was still not as serious about convincing the other three players to drop their ICL contracts but were expecting them to follow suit once Yousuf was back in their fold. One source said the board was willing to compensate Yousuf for the loss of earning around $200,000 he will face if he cancels his ICL contract. “And with the Indian board also having launched the official Premier League Twenty20 cricket with the blessings of the ICC and the Pakistan, Australia, South Africa and English boards, Ashraf feels he is in a strong position to convince Yousuf to play against South Africa,” sources added. Naghmi, when asked about the other three players, said right now the chairman would only meet Yousuf. “If the others want to discuss their future they are welcome to talk to us. But right now there are no plans to have meetings with them,” Naghmi said. Pakistan plays the first Test against South Africa from October 1 in Karachi and though Yousuf’s replacement in the Twenty20 World Cup, Misbah-ul-Haq, has done well the selectors are still jittery about the coming Tests with South Africa and want Yousuf to anchor the middle order.
— PTI
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Hair’s Lawsuit
London, September 22 “The summons will compel his (Inzamam’s) attendance for cross-examination at the Central Office of London Tribunals next month,” according to a report published in 'The Times'. Hair, who remains on the ICC’s Elite panel, was banned from officiating international matches. It was then that Hair had decided to sue ICC on charges of racial discrimination. Pakistan team was charged with ball tampering by Hair in the fourth Test against England at Oval last year. Inzamam, who was the captain of the side, refused to take the field in protest following which the match was awarded to England. “Hair's lawyer Finers Stephens Innocent wrote to Inzamam requesting his attendance, but did not receive a reply. The summon was served in the presence of Stewart Regan, the chief executive of Yorkshire, for whom Inzamam is playing,” the report said. “He now has to decide whether to fly back to Pakistan and return to England before the hearing commences on October 1, or stay in London,” it said. If Inzamam had remained in Pakistan rather than play county cricket, the tribunal would not have had the power to call him. The hearing is expected to last for two weeks.
— PTI
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PCB opts for ‘democratic’ revamp
Karachi, September 22 PCB chairman Nasim Ashraf told reporters today that the new charter had been agreed upon by the sports ministry after receiving prior approval from the law ministry. “It will be implemented in the next 10-15 days. A governing board of 15 members would be constituted involving all stakeholders in Pakistan cricket to oversee board affairs,” he said. Since 1999, the PCB has worked on an ad hoc system where the chairman is directly appointed by the chief patron, a position held by the president of the country. In those eight years, the chairman has held all powers with no elected body within the board able to approve or manage cricket or administrative affairs. Ashraf said the chief patron would continue to directly appoint the chairman, whose powers are curtailed in the new constitution with the formation of the governing board. “The board which will include elected representatives of affiliated associations and departments and former Test players will carry a lot of responsibility,” he added. Ashraf said former players would be given a more defining role in the board.
— Reuters
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India ‘A’ win series 1-0
Dharamsala, September 22 The continued disruption in play meant that players like skipper Mohammad Kaif, Akash Chopra, Pragyan Ojha, Cheteswar Pujara and Manoj Tiwari, keen to showcase their talent and further their chances of selection to the Indian squad ahead of the gruelling season, finished four days without having faced a single delivery on the field. South Africa ‘A’ gained some valuable batting practice, finishing at 264 for 4 at close on the first day. The denial of opportunity must be galling for in-form players like Chopra, in the reckoning for a berth in the Test squad as an opener. There is not much time left at his disposal to impress the selectors, with the first Test against Pakistan starting on November 22. In the first game against the visitors, the Delhi opener had notched up a superb 239 not out. Technically sound, with a cool demeanour and having good experience of playing against the toughest rivals at this level, Chopra looks like a certainty in Tests at least for the demanding tour to Australia. A good outing here also would have done a world of good to his prospects. The 29-year-old Chopra has, of late, been among the runs. Playing for Delhi and North Zone, He was in fine touch and scored 600 runs with a 50- plus average in the last season. Playing for Staffordshire in England this summer would certainly have been beneficial for Chopra. Similar is the case with players like Ojha. The Hyderabad left-arm spinner has come a long way in the past two years. Last year, he was a roaring success in the Ranji Trophy matches. He started this season well. It was Ojha who with a match haul of eight wickets had plotted the downfall of South Africa ‘A’ in the first game at Feroz Shah Kotla in New Delhi. In whatever little play was possible here, Ojha again impressed. His dismissal of a well-set opener Alvira Petersen, whom he drew out of the crease before having him stumped, showed his class. Petersen had just completed a scintillating century. Seamers like Pankaj Singh, Ishant Sharma and Yo Mahesh failed to grab the opportunity. Delhi’s Ishant Sharma bowled a restrictive line on the first day but looked innocuous. One-dayers from September 26
The three-match one-day series between the two teams will begin at Ahmedabad on September 26, followed by games at Baroda (Sept 28) and Rajkot (Sept 30). India ‘A’ will be strengthened by the inclusion of one-day specialists like Karan Goel, Anirudh Srikkanth, Praveen Sharma and Abhishek Nayyar in the squad to be led by Kaif.
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Mexico City, September 22 The second leg of the double round robin tournament began with an encounter between the two leaders. By drawing with the black pieces, Anand ensured that he remained half a point ahead of Gelfand. The Gelfand-Anand draw presented defending champion Vladimir Kramnik with an opportunity to close in on the leader, but he only managed a draw in his game against Peter Svidler and stayed in third place. Peter Leko began the second half on a high note by defeating the in-form Russian Grandmaster Alexander Grischuk. With his first victory in the tournament, Leko moved into the fourth position pushing Grischuk to the fifth spot. Levon Aronian shares the fifth spot with Grischuk after drawing his eighth round game against Alexander Morozevich. Gelfand-Anand was a tense encounter, as Gelfand, playing the white pieces, could have overtaken Anand by winning the game. Anand played a rare continuation against the Catalan opening by developing his bishop to 'd6' on the 10th move, instead of its more usual deployment on 'e7'. The idea worked as planned and Anand was able to obtain a level position by timely breaks in the centre. The players agreed to split the point after 20 moves, when there was very little either of them could play for. The game between Kramnik and Svidler was another crucial encounter. Svidler made a spirited attempt to raise himself from the last position by playing a sharp attacking game against the defending champion. Kramnik played his favourite Petroff defence and Svidler took the ambitious decision of castling on the queen side. The position became very complex in the middle game and Svidler's attack on the king side looked more dangerous than Kramnik's counter play on the other wing. However, Kramnik played resourcefully, combining defence with counterattack. The game ended in a draw after 29 moves by repetition of position. Alexander Grischuk suffered his second consecutive loss in the tournament. Grischuk was outplayed by Peter Leko.
— PTI
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Belfry (UK), September 22 But his two other colleagues, Jeev Milkha Singh and Shiv Kapur missed the cut on the European Tour event. Robert-Jan Derksen of Holland and England’s Mark Foster were tied for the lead at the end of the second round on a very tough day at The Belfry. Randhawa put in a creditable performance in wet conditions despite the putts not falling as he carded an even par 72 in the second round and was the only Indian out of the three to make the cut. Two double bogeys, one on either side of the turn cost Jeev a weekend berth. He started on tenth and had two birdies, three bogeys and two doubles in his five-over 77 and missed the cut by one. Verona (USA): Daniel Chopra made a great charge in the second round but still missed the cut by just one shot at the inaugural Turning Stone Resort Championship on the PGA Tour. Chopra shot a four-under 68 with three birdies on back nine, but his first round 73 took him down and he missed the cut by one.
— PTI
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Sunfeast
Open
Kolkata, September 22 The fourth-seeded Kirilenko dropped the first set 4-6 but played some scintillating tennis to take the next two 6-2, 6-1 to carve out her maiden win over the world number 11 Hantuchova. The Slovak had registered wins on each of the three occasions they clashed at Tokyo and San Diego (both in 2005) and at Dubai earlier this year. World number 35 Kirilenko would be up against Mariya Korrytseva in tomorrow’s title clash. World number 164 Korrytseva beat the higher-ranked Briton Anne Keothavong 7-6, 6-3 without breaking much sweat to reach her maiden Tour final after a 106-minute match on the Netaji Indoor Stadium centre court. Korrytseva and Keothavong, playing each other for the first time, put up a pedestrian show in the first set but the former lifted her game in the second to ride past the 144th-ranked Keothavong in style. Korrytseva overcame a minor thigh strain in the second set and played the rest of the match with her thigh strapped.
— PTI
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Pargat gets extension
Chandigarh, September 22 Punjab finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal and sports minister Gulzar Singh Ranike had jointly announced the extension at a function held on the campus of the Punjab Armed Police in Jalandhar yesterday.
— TNS
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Shimla shooters clinch title
Dharamsala, September 22 In the senior men’s open rifle shooting category, Virendra Vastu of Shimla won the gold with 563 points, while Devendra Parmar of Sirmour got the silver with 547 points out of a total of 600. In the senior as well as junior men’s peep sight rifle shooting category, Vikram Aditya Singh of Shimla won the gold securing 372 points, while Karan Godara of Shimla got the silver with 361 points. In the open sight junior as well as senior men’s category, Samrat Singh of Shimla won the gold with 305 points. Priya of Kangra district won the gold with 113 points in the air rifle junior women’s category. In the air rifle open sight sub-junior boy’s category, Gaurav of Shimla won the gold with 249 points. In the air pistol senior men’s category, Kamlesh Chand of Mandi won the gold by getting 553 points. In the air pistol senior women’s category, Shivani Rana of Kangra won the gold with 334 points out of 400. In the air pistol junior men’s category, Kamlesh Chand of Mandi won the gold with a score of 553/600.
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Virbhadra’s son on target
Dharamsala, September 22 He finished with a score of 372/400, falling just short of his record of 374/400. The royal scion of the erstwhile state of Rampur Bushahr is doing plus two at Bishop Cotton School, Shimla. Talking to The Tribune, the humanities student said, “I have been told that my elders, before the accession of the independent states, were fond of hunting. However, when the government banned hunting, my father and others gave up this hobby,” he said. Vikram has a shooting range at his residence, besides the one at his school where he does practice. He had won a bronze in the North Zone inter-school championship two years ago and had also participated in the national inter-school championship in July this year. Last year, he secured 374 points in the inter-school championship held at Sanawar. Now, he plans to participate in the All-India GV Mavalankar Shooting Championship to held at Agra next month. “I hope to improve my performance in this championship prior to the nationals,” he added. He is concentrating on studies as well and preparing for the entrance test of the National School of Law, Bangalore. “I have decided to do graduation in law,” he said.
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Navodaya volleyball meet concludes
Srinagar, September 22 Four vidyalayas of the Kashmir region - JNV Anantnag, JNV Baramulla, JNV Ganderbal and hosts JNV Budgam participated in the championship which was played under the broad programme of sports meets in different disciplines taken up by Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti, New Delhi, at different vidyalayas. After the championship, 16 girls were selected for the regional level meet to be held at JNV Patiala. At the conclusion of the sports meet, the principal of JNV Budgam Gurjinder Singh said that JNV Budgam had been hosting the event successfully for the past five years. The Navodayas Vidyalayas were launched in almost all districts of country. The vidyalayas are taking keen interest in promoting the skills of the students. Keeping this in mind, every year a sports meet is organised in different
vidyalayas.
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Mixed fortunes for Punjab cagers
Gidderbaha, September 22 Internationals Jagdeep Singh and Dilawar Singh scored 29 and 33 points, respectively, for Punjab. Arjun (21) and Partham (20) were the main scorers for India Juniors (Red). Both teams were locked 44-44 at half-time in their opening encounter last night. In other men’s matches last night, ONGC, Dehra Dun, beat Western Railway, Mumbai, 79-68, India Army outplayed Indian Navy 61-42, and India Juniors (Yellow) defeated the much-fancied Customs team from Cochin 66-54. Punjab eves went down to South-Central Railway after trailing 21-26 at half-time. In another women’s match, South East Central Railway thrashed Western Railway 74-49.
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Haryana Police Games
Karnal, September 22 Other results: Kabaddi: Special Range bt Hisar Range 35-31; HPA Range bt Rohtak Range 60-37.
Volleyball: Special Range bt Rohtak Range 25-18, 25-10, 25-20; HPA Range bt Ambala Range 25-15, 25-21, 25-16; Handball: Special Range bt Ambala Range 20-8; HPA Range bt Hisar Range 37-17. The teams which finish top in these disciplines will participate in the All-India Police Games in
Chhattisgarh.
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Dharamsala, September 22
Durban, September 22
