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Leander Paes on song
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Sehwag toughest to bowl to: Mendis
Take rest, Guru Greg advises Symonds
Kaif, Kohli prop up India A
Oz clobber Bdesh again
6 Indian cueists in last 8
Anand draws with Ivanchuk
Rathore undone by change in technique
JCT have edge on Mahindra
Rebel players yet to get dues from BCCI
Khade betters national record
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Federer survives scare
In a match that started under sunny skies but ended under floodlights, Russia's Igor Andreev exposed Federer's vulnerable side before the Swiss protected his four-year New York reign with a compelling 6-7, 7-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 triumph. "It was a tough match, the wind was changing with either side, it went from day to night session which is never easy. They were tough conditions but I'm happy we put on a good show," a relieved Federer summed up courtside after his three and a half hour win. Weakened by a dodgy stomach and stricken by a hip injury, Djokovic survived a physical meltdown to hobble past 15th-seeded Spaniard Tommy Robredo 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3. After watching Robredo net a forehand on match point, third seed Djokovic tilted his head skywards then locked eyes with his mother before thumping his heart four times with a clenched right fist. He went on to point to his hip and forehead, as if to say, "My heart won me that one today." Clutching the net with his left hand, an exhausted Djokovic said following the three hour 45 minute tussle, "I need to stay next to the net, otherwise I will fall down. "If we start talking about the things that are bothering me now, we will talk until tomorrow. I am just really happy to get through." Next up for the Serbian will be former champion Andy Roddick, who dashed into the quarters by beating Chilean 11th seed Fernando Gonzalez 6-2, 6-4, 6-1. Fifth seed Nikolay Davydenko's racquet felt the full force of his frustrations after he fell 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 to qualifier Gilles Muller. Davydenko was luckily spared the ordeal of contesting a fifth set because as the Russian said, "I broke all my racquets in the match and I didn't have any left for the fifth set." Muller won a titanic fourth-set tiebreak 12-10 to become the first player from Luxembourg to reach the last eight of a grand slam and at 130 in the world, he also became the lowest ranked player to reach that stage here since 1999. With the men hogging all the limelight, Olympic champion Elena Dementieva and second seed Jelena Jankovic were barely noticed as they tip-toed into the women's semifinals.
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Leander Paes on song
New York, September 3 Paes and his Czech partner Lukas Dlouhy earned a spot in doubles semifinals after defeating error prone Swede-Finland pair of Robert Lindstedt and Jarko Nieminen 6-3, 6-7(2), 6-3 in the quarterfinal clash, which lasted over two hours. In the mixed doubles semifinals, fifth seeded Paes and Cara Black of Zimbabwe pipped the Swede-Russian pair of Jonas Bjorkman and Nadia Petrova 6-4, 6-4. Paes-Dlouhy will now fight it out with Argentine pair of Maximo Gonzalez Juan Monaco, who beat Brazilian-Serbian duo of Bruno Soares and Dusan Vemic 6-2, 6-7(3), 6-3 for a place in the final. In the summit clash of the mixed doubles Paes-Black face off against Liezel Huber of the United States and Briton Andy Murray, who beat American pair of Jill Craybas and Eric Butorac 6-3, 6-4 in their semifinal encounter. In the doubles quarters, Paes-Dlouhy cashed in on mistakes of their opponents as Lindstedt-Nieminen wasted three breakpoints in the first set while Paes-Dlouhy converted the one and only chance to go ahead. In the second set, both the teams converted two of the three chances but Paes and Dlouhy faltered in the tie-breaker allowing the rival team to stretch the issue to the third set. In the decisive final set, Lindstedt-Nieminen once again came a cropper squandering four breakpoints while the Indo-Czech duo managed to convert one of the three chances to clinch the issue.
PTI |
Sehwag toughest to bowl to: Mendis
New Delhi, September 3 here was not much of a difference in bowling to most of the Indian batsmen. Their style was similar. But Virender Sehwag was the toughest to bowl to without doubt," Mendis, who picked up Indian wickets in heaps in both the Test and ODI series, told 'cricketnirvana.com'. The Lankans won the Test series 2-1 but lost the ODI series 2-3 but Mendis said he found no difference in the batting style of the two Indian sides. He said the only reason why he failed to replicate his stupendous Test form in ODIs was the lesser number of overs he bowled in the shorter version of the game. "There wasn't really much of a difference between the two sides. It was more or less the same for me. My problem in one-dayers was that there were only 10 overs to bowl and it is very difficult to take wickets in that limited time," he said. Mendis, however, admitted that gradually the Indians and other international teams would learn to read him and he is prepared to cope with that. Mendis says he has grown in confidence after the series against India during which he got prized scalps of likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid. "I feel very happy to be bowling to the best batsmen in the world. After bowling to Tendulkar, (Sourav) Ganguly, Dravid, (VVS) Laxman and (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni how can I not be confident? If I can take their wicket, then I can take anyone's wicket in the world," he said. On how he planned Tendulkar's dismissal, Mendis said, "I had been learning about the batting styles of the Indian batsmen for some time. I understood Tendulkar's batting style and understood his weakness. That's how I took his wicket." Asked whether Dhoni was the other tough customer after Sehwag, Mendis said, I think he batted very well against me.
PTI |
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Take rest, Guru Greg advises Symonds
Sydney, September 3 Symonds is pondering his future after being sent home from Darwin last week for a disciplinary breach where the Australian team was assembled to play a three match one-day series against Bangladesh. ''There are a lot of stresses away from the field,'' said Chappell, who infamously ordered his brother Trevor to bowl under-arm in a one-day match against New Zealand, and also sat out tours even though he was Australian captain at the time. ''The constant focus of attention on everything that you do, anything that goes wrong will be highlighted.'' ''Learning to deal with all of that and understanding how it fits into a successful career and a successful team is a very important part of the mentoring role,'' he added. Chappell, who also struggled to cope with the stresses and strains in the early 1980s, hoped Symonds would return to the international game. ''Hopefully, he decides playing for Australia is very important because he is a terrific cricketer and we all want to see him playing for Australia as long as possible,'' he said. Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland also extended his helping hands to the 33-year-old hard hitting batsman by saying that the Symonds has the complete support of the organisation. ''He has our absolute support and we've already gone to great lengths to ensure appropriate processes are in place for him,'' he said. ''The feedback I have got from inside the team is that they have dealt with it as a welfare issue. There's some discipline issues related to it, but ultimately it's a welfare issue,'' he added. Sutherland also expressed his desire that Symonds should play for the country. ''We all want Andrew Symonds up and going, playing cricket for Australia.'' He said CA had a ''duty of care'' to help Symonds as an employee, especially if he returned during an important series followed by a busy international schedule. ''From the start of the India tour (this month) onwards, it's a very, very busy schedule,'' he said. ''There are not a lot of breaks and we need people who are up and going and want to be there and have the tools in place to deal with the ups and downs that come with being a member of a high-profile team. ''There is no point speculating when Andrew is going to be back; there are a lot of things that need to be worked through,'' he added.
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Kaif, Kohli prop up India A
Bangalore, September 3 The start of the match was delayed by more than three hours due to overnight rain. After India A captain S Badrinath elected to bat first, the team lost four wickets for just 90 runs. Kaif (68 not out) hit eight boundaries and a six. He was supported by India Under-19 World Cup captain Virat Kohli who hit four boundaries and a huge six. For the visitors, leg spinner Bryce Edward McGain, who took three wickets conceding 51 runs was the most successful bowler. Pace bowler Douglas Erwin Bolinger took one wicket. Opener Ajinkya Rahane (6) was the first to go when Douglas took a brilliant return catch when India's score read only 20. The hosts suffered another blow when they lost Parthiv Patel (13) and Robin Uthappa (22). Brief scores: India A: 180 for four (Mohammed Kaif 68 not out, Virat Kohli 48 not out, Robin Uthappa 22, S Badrinath 10, Parthiv Patel 13, Douglas Erwin Bollinger 1-13, Bryce Edward McGani 3-17).
UNI |
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Oz clobber Bdesh again
Darwin, September 3 Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful won the toss and elected to bat. The Aussies first demolished Bangladeshi batting order, knocking it over for just 117 in 36.1 overs. Then the batsmen, led by man of the match Shaun Marsh, with an unbeaten 69, knocked off the required runs in 22.4 overs. Along the way, the Aussies lost Shane Watson (29) and captain Michael Clarke (1), both to wily spinner Shakib al-Hasan.
UNI Scoreboard Bangladesh: T Iqbal c D Hussey b Bracken 0 M Hossain Jnr c M Hussey b Bracken 1 J Siddique c Haddin b Johnson 21 M Ashraful c White b Clark 3 S Al Hasan lbw b Johnson 19 A Kapali c Watson b Hopes 2 D Ghosh c Watson b Clark 30 Razzak c Clarke b White 9 M Mortaza c Haddin b Johnson 7 N Hossain lbw b White 0 S Hossain not out 6 Extras (lb-9 w-10): 19 Total (in 36.1 overs): 117 Fall of wickets: 1-0 2-9 3-15 4-53 5-57 6-59 7-85 8-104 9-106 10-117 Bowling: Bracken 5-1-16-2, Clark 7-0-15-2, Hopes 7-2-16-1, Johnson 6.1-0-17-3, White 7-0-39-2, Watson 4-0-5-0 Australia: Marsh not out 69 Watson lbw b Hasan 29 M Clarke st D Ghosh b Hasan 1 M Hussey not out 8 Extras (lb-7 w-2 nb-2): 11 Total (22.4 overs for 2 wickets): 118 Fall of wickets: 1-73 2-79 Bowling: Mashrafe Mortaza 9-0-30-0, Shahadat Hossain 6-0-38-0, Abdur Razzak 1-0-5-0, Shakib Al Hasan 6.4-0-38-2
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6 Indian cueists in last 8
Bangalore, September 3 Alok Kumar, Rupesh Shah, Dhruv Sitwala and Devendra Joshi are the other Indians who entered the last-eight stage while the remaining two quarterfinal berths have been booked by Peter Gilchrist (Singapore) and Praprut Chaithanasakun (Thailand). The 23-year-old Advani came from behind to beat Thawat Sujaritthurakarn (Thailand) 4-1 (17-150, 150-8, 150-31,150-10, 150-0) at the Karnataka State Billiards Association Hall. After being off-colour in the first frame, the Bangalore star regained his composure pretty quickly and raised his game several notches to carve out the victory. Advani will now takes on Gilchrist, a contest to watch out for, in the quarterfinals. Gilchrist struggled to beat Sourav Kothari (Ind) 4-2 (42-150, 129-150, 151-105, 150-20, 150-41). Defending champion (points format) Shah was in good form, as he eliminated countryman B. Bhaskar 4-0 (150-100, 150-73, 150-149, 151-29. Shah now takes on Sitwala, who beat Teik Chong Alan Puan (Singapore) 4-1 (151-135, 151-127, 151-44, 117-150, 151-40) for a semifinal slot. It would be Sethi vs Alok Kumar, and Chaithanasakun vs Joshi in the other two quarterfinals. Pre-quarterfinal results: Sethi bt Suriya Suwannasingh (Thai) 4-0 (152-21, 153-82, 150-64, 150-58); Kumar bt Prem Prakash (Ind) 4-2 (36-151, 34-152, 151-109, 151-72, 150-68, 151-84); Chaithanasakun bt Brijesh Damani (Ind) 4-2 (40-153, 151-122, 86-151, 150-74, 152-82, 151-17; and Joshi bt Shyam Jagtiani (Ind) 4-3 (79-150, 126-150, 7-150, 150-37, 150-97, 150-32, 151-19).
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Anand draws with Ivanchuk
Bilbao (Spain), September 3 Anand could not make the most of the advantage of having the white pieces and faced considerable difficulties before salvaging a draw against Ivanchuk, who played the Marshall attack by sacrificing a pawn against the Indian's Spanish opening. Anand has an enviable record against the Marshall but he could not find a satisfactory reply to Ivanchuk's opening play and soon drifted into a difficult position. The Indian lost back his pawn and his king was exposed to attack. The adverse turn taken by the opening served as a wake-up call for Anand. He defended an inferior position with consummate ease and gave up a pawn to centralise his queen and rook. The World Champion ensured that there was excellent coordination between his major pieces, preventing Ivanchuk from making inroads into his territory. Ivanchuk conceded a draw when he was unable to make any progress against Anand's stubborn defence. Meanwhile, Norwegian prodigy Magnus Carlsen shot into the lead with a victory over Grandmaster Levon Aronian of Armenia. Carlsen played the symmetrical variation against the English opening and accepted a pawn sacrifice by his opponent. Aronian got a grip on the black squares and seemed to have good compensation for the sacrifice. However, Carlsen managed to ward of all the threats with resourceful play and hung on to his extra pawn. Aronian broke up Carlsen's kingside pawns in an attempt to gain some attack, but he could not create serious threats as all the minor pieces had been exchanged. Carlsen retained his pawn advantage in the queen ending and won with impeccable technique. The game between Topalov and Radjabov was headed for a draw from the opening itself. Radjabov played the Scotch opening and Queens were exchanged on the 12th move resulting in a level endgame. Further exchanges took the players closer to a draw, and though they fought on till just kings were left on the board, a draw was the inevitable outcome. The tournament is being played with a new scoring system being tried on an experimental basis, with a player being awarded three points for a win, nothing for a loss, and both players being awarded one point in the event of a draw.
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Rathore undone by change in technique
New Delhi, September 3 "What I did wrong was that I was looking for a perfect technique in my quest for excellence," Rathore told PTI in an interview. "I devoted my precious two years. I picked all top shooters and followed their styles. There was a shooter who performed consistently and had good results but in following him, I lost my own technique," he said. "So, I have now learnt that their is nothing called a perfect technique but you have to develop your own technique which is perfect for you," he said. Rathore finished 15th in a field of 19 shooters in the double trap event at the Beijing Games. Asked if there was a difference in his preparation for the Olympic Games at Athens in 2004 and the Beijing edition, he replied in affirmative. "Yes, obviously. I worked harder for Beijing but there are many other factors responsible for failure or success," he said before refusing to elaborate on it. "At the end of the day I am satisfied that I could not have worked harder than this. I won't say that I have made any sacrifices though because I loved doing all the hard work. I did not take my annual leave for the past nine years, I was constantly thinking about my goal," he said. "If I set my mind on doing it I achieve but rest is destiny," he added. Rathore said in the hindsight it was good that someone other than him won the medal because that enhanced India's reputation that the country could produce champions. "I am happy that I did not win because then I would have become a great sportsperson. Now India is being called great since it is like the country can produce champions. "The attitude of a winner is more important than winning," he said. Asked if Olympic Games in Athens or Beijing were the turning point of his life, Rathore said it was the 2002 Manchester Games. "There I started to learn how to win. It is not that once you win and get the medal in hand. The feeling it generates is important and you have to strive hard to keep it alive," he said.
PTI |
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JCT have edge on Mahindra
New Delhi, September 3 In the second semifinal, defending champions Churchill Brothers will take on Sporting Clube de Goa in an all-Goan derby on Friday. Going by present form, Sukhwinder Singh's boys at JCT look more settled than the rest. They have learnt to cope with the loss of India players Sunil Chhetri and Renedy Singh and having retained most of the squad from last season, they seem better prepared in the run-up to the I-League.
PTI |
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Rebel players yet to get dues from BCCI
New Delhi, September 3 The ICL cricketers are yet to get their dues to the tune of Rs 1.27 crore from the BCCI on account of their appearance in Ranji, Duleep and Deodhar tournaments before they turned 'rebel', according to a report in Cricinfo. The report said though non-ICL players have received their payment for the same period, 'rebel' cricketers are yet to get their dues. BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah, however, passed the buck on the state associations. "As far as the board is concerned, all dues for players who have played in BCCI-organised tournaments must be paid.
PTI |
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Khade betters national record
Amritsar, September 3 Surbhi Tipre and Aarati Ghorpade both from Maharashtra also set new records in 1500m freestyle and 200m backstroke respectively.
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New York, September 3
