The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Aussies keep the pot boiling ‘Sreesanth looked like goose, but he’ll learn’ Sydney, October 24 Fast bowler Jason Gillespie believes that it was stupidity on the part of Indian pacer Sreesanth to act the way as he did in the just concluded one-day series between India and Australia. ''Sreesanth didn't know quite where the line was drawn and looked like a goose, but he'll learn and he'll be better for the experience,'' the fast bowler said. ''I think a guy like him is great for cricket. I didn't see a lot of the series but I had a good laugh. I thought it was quite interesting television,'' he added. Warning the Indian sub-continent teams about the perils of touring Down Under, Gillespie told 'The Australian' that touring sides in Australia had always been given a hard time. ''With Murali coming out he always cops a gobful in Australia and he'll be expecting to cop that again,'' the South Australian pacer said. ''He might have to grin and bear it. You shouldn't have to but that's often the way it is unfortunately.'' The 32-year-old, claimed he was always abused by overseas crowds, with South Africa and New Zealand the worst, but just accepted it as part of the game. However, he said the racial abuse which Symonds had received in India was ''totally unacceptable''. ''I totally sympathise with him, you shouldn't have to put up with that, but you wait until this summer,'' he said. ''Officials are threatening to throw out anyone using racial abuse but if a whole section of the crowd, like the blokes on the hill at Adelaide Oval, start racial abuse are they going to eject the whole hill, all 5000 people? ''I see where they (officials) are coming from, they're trying to do the right thing, but I think there are going to be instances.'' ''There have been instances over the years and I don't think it's going to be any different this summer,'' he said. Gillespie also talks about the cultural and other differences between the Australian and subcontinental players. ''Players from the subcontinent play the game so differently to how we play the game,'' he said. ''What's happened in India recently has just highlighted that. ''They've tried to have this big, aggressive approach because they have been beaten by Australia on recent tours and feel that need to fight fire with fire. ''They don't understand sledging and why it happens. ''It's such a foreign concept to them. They think it should all be smiles and happy and talk to each other on the field. When we get out there and give them the blank stare or a 'get back in your crease' or whatever they get quite offended. It's just in their nature.'' ''They think 'what have I done to upset this man. I don't know him and yet he is abusing me.'' ''To us that's got nothing to do with it,'' he said. Gillespie claims that the basic difference between South African, New Zealand and England players in comparison to Indian sub-continent players is ''what takes place on the field stays on the field'' but ''India and some of the other countries are a different kettle of fish.'' ''Australia has got better over the years, and certainly when I've been playing, at understanding the cultural differences,'' he said. Fearing a backlash because of recent events on and off the field, Gillespie feels officials may crack down too hard on players, thus stiffling them. ''Administrators look at the glass half empty, unfortunately,'' he said. ''Sometimes you just get the feeling it's like this in all sport. ''Administrators can be quick to punish players. Fine them or suspended them to be seen to be doing something and look good to the public and in the media,''he stated. — UNI
	Sledging backfired on India: coach Nielson Sydney, October 24 After Matthew Hayden, now its the turn of Australian coach Tim Nielsen who believed that the sledging row in the just concluded Indo-Australian series backfired on Team India and motivated the Oz team rather than distract it. Indian fast bowler S Sreesanth, who led the verbal attack on the Aussies in order to get under the skin of the past master, however, helped the Oz, according to the national coach, to win the series 4-2. ''The most pleasing thing was that we were able to cop it and keep performing, whereas they weren't able to do that and we won the games because of it,'' Nielsen said. ''It was obviously a bit of a tactic and as a team we have spoken about that. ''If that's what they want to do that's what they want to do, and they will probably keep doing it this summer,'' he said. The Indian team tried to take a leaf out of Australia's book with in-your-face aggression during the recent Future Cup. But as Australian Opening batsman Matthew Hayden said, ''I think it (being sledged) motivates us.'' Nielsen, however, was critical of the racial abuse which was hurled at Andrew Symonds and said that being subjected to monkey chants had been ''pretty tough'' for the 32-year-old all-rounder. Praising the One-Day International Player of the Year for the year 2005, Nielsen said his man-of-the-series performance under pressure had enhanced his status in the game. The talented South Australian wicketkeeper, who took from John Buchanan after winning the second World Cup in a row this year in West Indies, strongly urged Cricket Australia to take harsh action against any Australian fans who delivered retaliatory racial abuse to Indian or Sri Lankan players this summer. — UNI
	Murali ready for chilly reception Sydney, October 24 Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan arrived today for his first full Australia Test tour in 12 years, braced for a chilly reception from fans as he bids to break Shane Warne's wickets record. Muralitharan, who had refused to tour Australia in the past because of crowds taunting his unusual bowling action, wants to show why he is one of the best bowlers in the world, skipper Mahela Jayawardene said. "He hasn't played here for 10 years in a Test match and he's pretty geared up I think. He feels Australia is one of the places that he has to challenge himself," Jayawardene said. "This is probably a place where he has to prove he's one of the top bowlers in the world. So I think he's looking forward to the challenge." Murali needs just nine wickets to overhaul Warne's 708 Test scalps in the Test matches in Brisbane and Hobart starting on November 8 and 16. The Sri Lanka tour follows Australia's return home after a bitter series against India marred by the racial taunting of the team's only black player, Andrew Symonds, who was subjected to monkey noises and gestures. There are fears that Muralitharan could receive unsportsman like treatment in Australia, where he has been called for 'throwing' on two previous tours and subjected to constant crowd calls of "no ball." Jayawardene said his team would challenge Australia but not get so carried away as to be involved in the antics seen in India. "We have to be very aggressive with Australia, but to a certain extent sometimes if you go overboard you lose your own concentration as well, and we certainly don't want that to happen," he told a press conference. "We will be aggressive, but not to the extent that we would get involved with silly incidents." Australia captain Ricky Ponting said a little heckling from the crowd was to be expected. "But when it gets a bit out of control like it did in the series just gone in India, it becomes pretty disappointing and I think pretty embarrassing for the home team," he said. Muralitharan's ultra-flexible bowling action has come under its heaviest scrutiny in Australia, where he has been called for throwing on two tours and has not played a full Test match since late 1995. He boycotted Sri Lanka's 2004 visit after Australian Prime Minister John Howard labelled him a "chucker." However, he returned for a one-off Test for the Rest of the World in 2005 and a one-day series in 2006, when he was unofficially reprimanded for making a one-fingered gesture to taunting spectators in Perth. Sri Lanka will play a warm-up match in Adelaide which starts on Saturday. — AFP
	Asif to be rested ahead of Indian tour Multan, October 24 Leading Pakistan paceman Mohammad Asif is unlikely to play in the last two one-day internationals against South Africa as the national selectors are keen to give him a proper rest before next month's tour of India. Asif has missed the first three matches of the series due to an elbow injury after breaking down while bowling in the second Test against South Africa earlier this month in Lahore. “He is not certain to play in the last two games because we need him in India for the Tests and one-day internationals and he is a proven performer,” chief selector Salahuddin Ahmed told Reuters today. Pakistan, who lead South Africa 2-1 in the one-day series, are due to play three Tests and five one-dayers on the India tour starting on November 3. The hosts are also monitoring the fitness of left-arm spinner Abdul Rehman, who has played a vital role in his team's victories in the last two one-dayers against South Africa. A team official said Rehman was suffering from a groin problem and the player's availability for tomorrow's match would be confirmed closer to the contest. — Reuters
	New-look Dhoni arrives home Ranchi, October 24 India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, sporting a new look with closely cropped hair, today returned home after the recently concluded seven-match cricket series against Australia. Dhoni was whisked away by securitymen from one of the gates at the Birsa Munda airport as a folk troupe which was to greet him was stopped at another. Dhoni looked neat and trim with his locks shorn off. His locks had once drawn attention of Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf. "The enthusiasm would have been different had Dhoni returned immediately after the Twenty20 championship," said a fan and blamed the 2-4 loss to Australia in the one-day series for the low presence of fans. — PTI
	Spyker to be Force India Paris, October 24 Spyker's request to change its name to the Force India Formula One team next season has been accepted by the International Automobile Federation (FIA), the sport's governing body said today. The team's new owner, Indian billionaire Vijay Mallya, who bought the team this month with Dutch businessman Michiel Mol, had a request for permission to rename the team granted at a meeting of the FIA's World Motor Sport Council in Paris. The name change will be the third for the team since 2005, when Silverstone-based Jordan was sold to Midland. — Reuters
	Babu sets meet record in 2,000 m walk Jamshedpur, October 24 Railways continued their winning streak even as Babu Bhai of Services set up a new meet record in the men’s 2,000 m walk on the second day of the 47th National Open Athletics Championship at JRD Tata sports complex here today. Railways dominated the proceedings on the second day winning seven gold, seven silver and nine bronze medals to top the medal chart. Services Sports Control Board (SSCB) with four gold and three silver are on the second position in the medal tally. Sprinter Sameer Mon clocked 10.53 seconds to win the men’s 100m race pushing behind Jagdish Basak (AIPSCB) 10.57 and Vilas Nilgund (Railways) 10.59 to the second and third place respectivelly. "This is my best major national title and I won the medal in a tough competition," said Mon, a SAF gold medalist in the 4x100 meter relay in Colombo. In the women’s 100 m N. Sharda of Railways clinched the gold with a timing of 11.83 seconds followed by team-mates Poonam Tomar 12.03 and Nidhi 12.03 respectively. "I am really elated to beat former champion Poonam Tomar,” Sharda, who had a previous best of 11.90 seconds, said. The day saw a new meet record created by Olympic qualifier Babubhai of SSCB in the men’s 2,000 metre walk, who clocked 1:23:40 seconds shattering the previous best of 1:25.48 seconds established by C.S. Rathi at Delhi in 1990. Babu Bhai's teammate P.S. Jalan bagged the silver with a timing of 1:27:10 seconds while Harvinder Singh (Maharashtra) had to content with the bronze with a timing of 1:27:10. — PTI
	Indian pugilists make disappointing start New Delhi, October 24 India's campaign at the World Boxing Championships in Chicago got off to a disappointing start with S. Suresh Singh crashing out in the opening round of the bantam weight category. Suresh, a reigning national champion, was beaten 4-9 by Hungarian David Oltvanyi on the opening day of the meet, which is also the first qualifying event for next year's Beijing Olympics. Making the quarterfinals of the showpiece event would be enough to earn an Olympic qualification. The Indians, who are also competing in seven other categories, are up against a formidable field in the biggest ever championship, which has over 120 countries and 700 boxers. One of the best bets for India would be Commonwealth Games silver medallist and Doha Asian Games bronze winner Vijender. But the Arjuna awardee middle weight pugilist has a challenging task at hand as he bids to book a Beijing berth. The 21-year-old takes on Romanian Ronald Gavril in the opening round and will have to slug it out in two more rounds to reach the quarters. Commonwealth champion A.L. Lakra (57kg) will be up against Korean Min-Jae Ju. In the light fly weight category, Balbir Singh will take on Kazakhstan's Birzham Zhakypov, while Jitender Kumar (51kg) will square off against Moldova's Igori Samoilenco. In the light weight category, Jai Bhagwan will open his campaign against Bahrain's Valertino Knowles. The best boxer at this year's National Championship, Dilbag Singh, will take on Lithuania's Roman Skerlo in the welter weight category, while Delhi lad Jasveer Singh will start against China's Xiaoping Zhang in the light heavy weight category. Earlier, the championship opened with a grand ceremony, which had legendary Olympic champion Muhammad Ali as a surprise guest. — PTI
	3 Punjab schools enter super league New Delhi, October 24 NCC Directorate, Punjab thrashed MP Intercollege Dehradun 17-0 while two other schools from that state, BGS Uttam Singh, Khador Sahib and Mata Gujri Public school, Ferozpur chalked out identical 4-1 wins over their rivals to qualify for the super league of the 25th Nehru sub Junior hockey tournament here today. In a tie which turned out to be no contest NCC led 9-0 at half time. Pavinder Singh with four goals led the scoring spree for the Punjab boys as Gaurav Singh Rana, Paramveer Singh (three each) Gurwinder Singh, Gurjinder Singh (two each), Harpreet Singh, Sukhbir Singh and Prem Singh (one each) completed the tally. BGS Uttam Singh school outlasted Govt School, Jashpur Nagar (Chhattisgarh) 4-1 after leading 1-0 at the breather. Gagandeep Singh, Gurdeep Singh, Lovepreet Singh and Gurpreet Singh chipped in a goal each for the winners. For the losers, Ranjit Tirkey reduced the margin. In the last match of the day, Mata Gujri School defeated CRZ School, Sonepat 4-1. At the lemon break the winners were ahead 2-1. CRZ took lead through Sachin but could not sustain it for long as Ferozpur School hit back with Pawandeep Singh and Parvinder Singh scoring two goals each to take their side into the super league. — UNI
	Sipeya enters quarters Gulbarga, October 24 Sunil Kumar Sipeya was the lone Indian to enter the quarterfinals while six other Indians lost tamely in the second round of the Gulbarga Open ITF mens' tennis tournament here today. Eighth seed Sunil Kumar defeated compatriot Vijay Kannan 6-1, 6-3 to storm into the group of last eight, while unseeded players Ajay Selvaraj, Ashutosh Singh, Tushar Liberhan, Vivek Shokeen, Aditya Medkekar and Paurav Raja lost in the second round. Top seed Poval Cervenak stormed into the quarterfinals defeating Aditya 6-2, 6-4. His first round encounter with Roy Rupesh was abandoned half way yesterday, when the score had reached 7-6(4), 6-3. The others who made it to the quarters with easy second round wins were second seed Rainer Eitzinger of Austria, third seed Ivan Cerovic of Croatia, fourth seed Dekel Valtzer of Israel and seventh seed Marek Semjan of Slovakia. — UNI
	WWF contest Permission not given; hoardings removed Lalit Mohan Tribune News Service Patiala, October 24 The Excise Department’s flip-flop over imposing entertainment tax on the forth coming WWF competitions being held in various cities of Punjab has surprised many. Initially, department officials without taking their superiors into confidence had waived the entertainment tax on WWF competitions proposed to be held in Jalandhar, Ludhiana and Patiala. However, after the matter got flared up, the department officials had now rescinded its earlier order. The department officials in a letter to the district administration have now said that the earlier decision had been withdrawn and the matter was being re-examined. Sources here said after commissioner S.K. Ahluwalia objected to the organising of such competitions sans authorisation, senior officials of the Department of Excise and Taxation took note of the matter. They allegedly pulled up the officials who had passed the order. The sources said the tax could be waived on an entertainment program only if it was in the interest of society or for the promotion of some tradition or art. However, the WWF competitions failed both clauses. The commissioner admitted that the communication had been received. Meanwhile, the sources said the organisers of the competition had submitted the reply to the notice given to them by the Patiala district administration. However, till the filing of this report, permission had not been given to them for organising the bouts. The district administration also removed the hoardings of the organisers as they had been installed without any authorisation. Interestingly, the organisers had taken permission from the Department of Sports. The sources added that the organisers were now relying on their links with top politicians to bail them out.
	Punjab State Rural Games Muktsar girls hit archery gold Puneet Pal Singh Gill Tribune News Service Bathinda, October 24 Ludhiana, Muktsar, Gurdaspur and Tarn Taran won golds in weightlifting, archery, long jump and shot put, respectively, at the Punjab State Rural Games (Girls) Under-16 today. Ludhiana opened its account with the first gold in weightlifting by securing 16 points. Jalandhar secured second place with 13 points while Muktsar stood third with 10 points. Muktsar girls clinched gold in archery bagging 1,254 points, Ferozepur won silver with 1,129 points and Faridkot won bronze with 197 points. In athletics, Bhumika Thakur (Gurdaspur) won the gold in long jump with a distance of 5.06m. Kulwinder Kaur (Sangrur) bagged silver (4.96m) and Bhupinder Kaur (Faridkot) stood third with a jump of 4.50m. Jaspal Kaur (Tarn Taran) won gold in shot put with a distance of 8.70m, Kamaljit (Gurdaspur) won silver (7.89m) and Gagandeep Kaur won bronze (7.69 m). Results: Volleyball: Ludhiana beat Gurdaspur; Ropar b Sangrur; Bathinda b Patiala and Muktsar b Jalandhar. Hockey: Tarn Taran b Barnala 2-0; Amritsar b Faridkot 2-0; Ferozepur b Jalandhar 1-0; Bathinda b Kapurthala 2-0; Gurdaspur b Nawanshahr 8-0; Ludhiana b Mohali 4-0; Moga b Patiala 5-0; Muktsar b Sangrur 2-0. Kho kho: Ferozepur b Mohali 9-4; Patiala b Tarn Taran 10-6; Jalandhar b Amritsar 6-1; Moga b Ludhiana 7-6; Hoshiarpur b Gurdaspur 7-3; Nawanshahr b Bathinda 8-4. Kabaddi: Jalandhar b Tarn Taran 40-12; Ropar b Kapurthala 49-32; Sangrur b Ferozepur 51-40; Fatehgarh Sahib b Muktsar 41-26; Patiala b Moga 70-32; Faridkot b Mansa 45-15. Weightlifting: Ludhiana (gold), Jalandhar (silver) and Muktsar (bronze). Archery: Muktsar (gold), Ferozepur (silver) and Faridkot (bronze). Long jump: Gurdaspur (gold), Sangrur (silver) and Faridkot (bronze). Shot put: Tarn Taran (gold), Gurdaspur (silver).
	Delhi varsity bag badminton titles Sunit Dhawan Tribune News Service Rohtak, October 24 University of Delhi annexed both the men’s and women’s category titles at the North Zone Inter-University Badminton Championship which concluded on the campus of Maharshi Dayanand University (MDU) here yesterday. University of Delhi defeated Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, 3-2 in a tough final match to win the men’s title. The host varsity, MDU, got the third position while Panjab University, Chandigarh, finished fourth. In the women’s category, University of Delhi defeated Panjab University, Chandigarh, 2-0 to lift the title. Punjabi University, Patiala, and MDU bagged the third and fourth positions, respectively. MDU Sports Council president Kaptan Singh gave away prizes to the winners. The top four teams in both categories have qualified to play in the All-India Inter-University Badminton Championship scheduled to be held from November 8 at MG University at Kottayam in Kerala.