New Delhi, July 28
Former England opener Geoffrey Boycott believes he was technically superior to Sunil Gavaskar even though his Yorkshire teammate Dicky Bird feels otherwise. The England opener with a reputation for straight talking said he and Gavaskar were similar in many respects but he had the better technique.

“There is no question that Sunny was a fantastic batsman. People love to make comparisons and Sunil and I have been compared very often perhaps because we were similar in many ways - we batted right-handed, opened the innings, had a great appetite for runs, hated to give our wickets away and possessed good technique,” Boycott wrote in new book ‘Sunil Gavaskar: Cricket’s Little Master’.

“As our records show, Sunil played more matches, scored more runs and centuries than me, but in terms of technique, I consider myself superior to Sunil even if by just half a percentage point,” he added.

Gavaskar has played 125 Tests and scored 10,122 runs while Boycott has 8114 runs from 108 matches. Incidentally, Boycott’s argument could not convince former umpire and his Yorkshire teammate Dicky Bird who had no doubt that Gavaskar was the better batsman.

“What a great sight it was to watch Gavaskar bat. Pace bowlers could never really dominate him. That’s why I rate him as the best opener of my era,” Bird wrote in the book compiled by veteran cricket journalist Debasish Datta. “And mind you, I have seen quite a few in my time. He would be in my World XI along with Barry Richards - I have mentioned that in my latest book,” Bird said.

“Needless to say that my Yorkshire hero Geoffrey Boycott did not like it after going through the name of my World XI. Boycott wanted to know why I had not picked him in the World XI. He also wanted to know whether I recognised him as a great player. I told him, of course he was also a great player but Sunil and Barry were marginally better than him. He did not take it sportingly,” he said.

Bird explained why he rated Gavaskar so highly as a batsman. “He had enormous powers of concentration, an excellent technique and used to time the ball well. He always seemed to have extra time to play a stroke. That’s the hall mark of a great player,” he said. — PTI 

New Delhi, July 28
Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Dr M S Gill, thinking out of the box, set a welcome precedent when he sanctioned Rs 3 lakh to the widow of legendary athlete Makhan Singh, who had fallen on hard times after the death of the Asian Games gold medallist. The plight of Makhan Singh’s widow was brought to Dr Gill’s notice, who chaired a seven-member meeting of the General Committee for Management and Administration of the National Welfare Forum for Sportspersons on July 7, by another famed athlete Gurbachan Singh Randhawa.

The meeting considered nearly 70 applications for financial help from sportspersons and their families who were in dire need of help. Dr Gill brought up the case of the widow of a Hyderabad footballer, who had represented the country in the Olympics. Then G.S.Randhawa mentioned the plight of the widow on Makhan Singh, who had won the 4x400-metre relay gold and 400m silver in the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games.

An Arjuna Awardee, Makhen Singh hit international spotlight when he upstaged Milkha Singh in the 1964 National Games in Kolkata. He served the Army and retired as a subedar. Dr Gill responded positively and entrusted Randhawa to contact Makhan Singh’s widow Sulinder Kaur at the Bathalla Village in Hoshiarpur.

He got an application from her, the case was processed and Rs 3 lakh was granted to her as a one-time financial assistance on July 10. Though there is a scheme to help out those living under indigent circumstances with fianancial assistance, some deserving cases get left out, for various reasons. At the initiative of Dr Gill, the eligibility ceiling for such cases was raised from Rs 36,000 to Rs 2 lakh per annum.

Assistance for fatal injury to sportspersons has been raised from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh while for minor injuries, the amount would be Rs 2 lakh, instead of Rs 40,000. The Government has also enhanced the cash component of the sports awards from this year. The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awardee will get Rs 7.50 lakh (from Rs 5 lakh), while the Dronacharya, Dhyanchand and Arjuna Awardees will get Rs 5 lakh each (from Rs 3 lakh).

Madrid, July 28
Tour de France winner Alberto Contador found the time he spent off the road with Astana team mate Lance Armstrong tougher than the race itself, the Spaniard said on Monday.

The 26-year-old picked up his second Tour title in Paris on Sunday, finishing ahead of Luxembourg's Andy Schleck and Armstrong who came third. “My relationship with Lance Armstrong is zero,” Contador told a news conference in Madrid, where he was given a hero's welcome.

“He is a great rider and has completed a great race but it is another thing on a personal level, where I have never had great admiration for him and I never will. On this Tour, the days in the hotel were harder than the those on the road. The situation was tense and delicate because the relationship between myself and Lance extended to the rest of the staff.”

Contador, publicly criticised by Armstrong for ignoring team orders during the Tour, refused to be drawn on his future but it was unlikely to lie with his current team Astana.

“We’ll have to see what happens,” he said. “I don’t know where I will go but it will clearly be with a team that is 100 percent behind me.” After being greeted by family, friends and fans at Madrid’s Barajas airport, Contador was given a victory reception by the president of Madrid's regional government in the centre of the capital.

At every opportunity fans sang the Spanish national anthem as a reminder to Tour organisers who accidently played the national anthem of Denmark at the podium ceremony on Sunday. — Reuters

Patiala, July 28
The trials for the selection of Indian women wrestling team for the World Senior Wrestling Championship, that would be held at Denmark from September 17 to 21, were held at National Institute of Sports (NIS), Patiala on Sunday under the supervision of general secretary of the Indian Wrestling Association, Kartar Singh (IPS), and senior national coach P.R. Sondhi.

Seven women wrestlers, including top Indian wrestler Geetika Jakhar, were selected for the championship. The names of the wrestlers include- Nirmala Rani (48 kg), Babita (51 kg), Geeta (55 kg), Alka Tomar (59 kg), Suman Kundu (63 kg), Geetika Jakhar (67 kg) and Gursharanpreet Kaur (72 kg).

The trials for selection of men wrestling team were held at Sonepat, Haryana. Joginder Kumar of Delhi defeated two times Olympian Palwinder Singh Cheema, and Rajiv Kumar to qualify for the super heavy weight championship.

The list of selected men wrestlers in free style wrestling include Balraj (55 kg), Hardeep Singh (60 kg), Olympian Sushil Kumar (66 kg), Ramesh (74 kg), Ravinder (84 kg), Anil Mann (96 kg) and Dharmendra (+120 kg).

In the Greek Roman category, Rajinder (55 kg), Ravinder (60 kg), Sunil Kumar (66 kg), Rajiv Shikara (74 kg), Manoj Kumar (84 kg), Anil Kumar (96 kg) and Dharmendra (+120 kg) made the cut.

Kartar Singh, the general secretary of the association, said, “Indian wrestlers were improving with each passing day and we have high expectations from them. I am sure they would give their best results.”

Felipe Massa’s Formula One career appears to be in the balance following confirmation that he has suffered serious damage to his left eye. More positively for the Brazilian, he has been brought out of an artificial coma, taken off a respirator and has been able to communicate with his doctors and family representatives, his doctors said on Monday.

“His condition has improved significantly over the past 24 hours and he remains stable,” Lajos Zsiros, the chief surgeon of Hungary’s defence forces, said. “We have ended sedation and taken him off the respirator. He’s sleepy but has been able to reply to questions and has been able to move his limbs adequately.”

Dino Altmann, Massa’s personal physician, said the Brazilian’s condition was reassuring. “He’s awake, he has been answering questions, he has been asking what has happened to him,” said Altmann, who added that the Massa family is happy with the care the injured driver is receiving at the military hospital and moving him was not currently on the agenda.

Massa suffered a fractured skull in an accident during qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday when he was hit just above his left eye by a bouncing spring, weighing almost a kilo, that broke free from his compatriot Rubens Barrichello’s Brawn car. Doctors have not yet been able to assess fully the chances of his eye recovering.

Professor Robert Veres, the surgeon who operated on Massa over the weekend, said: “He has suffered some damage to the eye. We don’t know if he’ll be able to race again.” Even with the best-case scenario of a complete recovery, Professor Veres said it is likely that Massa, runner-up in the championship to Lewis Hamilton last year, is likely to miss the rest of the season.

The Ferrari president, Luca di Montezemolo, who flew to visit his employee, said his team will consider his possible replacement later. “For us, the first priority is to find out Felipe’s recovery progress and situation,” Di Montezemolo said. “Felipe is a very important member of the Ferrari family, not just the Ferrari team. First priority now is to find out the situation with him and then we will see and we will think, without pressure. Only then will we make a decision and if we have to make a decision we will make a good one,” he said. Massa will not be replaced for the remainder of the season by the multiple world champion Michael Schumacher despite speculation that the German would return to help Ferrari, according to his manager Willi Weber.

— By arrangement with The Independent

BRIEFLY

Let US host WC, Obama to FIFA
WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama has urged FIFA to let his country host the World Cup football either in 2018 or 2022. Welcoming the FIFA President Joseph Blatter at White House, Obama asked him to give strong consideration to the US bid to host the World Cup in either 2018 or 2022, a press statement said. Obama complimented FIFA on their efforts to incorporate community service, education and public health projects into their plans for staging the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. — PTI

Jose eyeing Man U job
LONDON: Jose Mourinho admitted on Tuesday that he would jump at the chance to step into Sir Alex Ferguson’s shoes at Manchester United. Mourinho’s name has been mentioned frequently since his exit from Chelsea as a replacement for Ferguson. “I would consider going to Manchester United but United have to consider if they want me to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson,” Mourinho said. — AFP

PCB ready for settlement: Morgan
DUBAI: ICC President David Morgan on Tuesday indicated that Pakistan Cricket Board would desist from taking legal action against the governing body for shifting the 2011 World Cup matches out of the strife-torn country after meeting PCB Chairman Ejaz Butt here. “We are making good progress on the issues of dispute between us,” Morgan said. — PTI

Bell laughs off Warne’s jibes
LONDON: Comeback man Ian Bell is so determined to fill in the void created by Kevin Pietersen’s absence in the third Ashes Test that the dour England batsman refuses to let Shane Warne’s jibes become a distraction for him. “Warney keeps doing that sort of stuff, but that’s him, it doesn’t come as a surprise.” Bell said. — PTI

IOA killing hockey: Roy
NEW DELHI: International Hockey Federation chief Leandro Negre on Tuesday had a first hand experience of the turmoil that plagues Indian hockey when Bengal state association president JB Roy came calling with a complaint that the Indian Olympic Association was “killing” the sport in the country. Roy said that the IOA was making a mockery of democracy and natural justice and was indulging in dirty politicking and killing the sport. — PTI

Phelps coasts through prelims
ROME: Michael Phelps coasted through the preliminaries of the 200-meter butterfly at the world swimming championships on Tueday, putting up the second-fastest time at 1 minute, 54.35 seconds. “I just wanted to win my heat,” said Phelps, who did just that after a sluggish start. — PTI