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Germany survive scare
Netherlands keep party
going
Kiwis ground Korea
India’s last chance to redeem some glory
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World Cup Diary
Somdev Devvarman reacts during his Davis Cup World Group first round match against Russia’s Igor Kunitsyn in Moscow on Friday. — Reuters
DP Azad Academy to hold U16 tourney
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Germany survive scare
New Delhi, March 5 Germany, who split points with Korea in their first game, have now seven points and are behind pool leaders the Netherlands with maximum nine points from three games. Germany started with a flourish taking the lead in the opening minute of the game as a follow up of a brilliant understanding between Witthaus and Martin Zwicker, who shared among themselves three of the four goals Germany scored today. It was Martin Zwicker, who did the mop up operations of the first assault on Argentine goal initiated by Witthaus. Stung by the reverse, Pan Americans shot back, when Lucas Martin Vila, got past the packed German defence to restore parity. Matching their opponents move by move, Argentines were unlucky not to end the day by sharing honours as they had a couple of brilliant moves in the last five minutes but were unlucky not to get past Tim Jussalat, the German goalkeeper, who executed at least a couple of brilliant saves. Argentina was first to get a penalty corner in the seventh minute that went waste and Germany got its first five minutes later. It was from the second penalty corner that Martin Zwicker, on the right flank deflected in the flick taken by Martin Haner for Germany’s second goal A minute later, Witthaus made it 3-1 with a brilliant goal. Even after conceding 1-3 lead, Argentina continued with its top performance of the tournament. It was the spirited fight back that saw Mathias Paredes to score from their third penalty corner to make the score 2-3 before the game broke for half time. While crisp and fast exchanges continued to provide a rich feast of vintage hockey, Germany took advantage of their third penalty corner in the 50th minute to score through Martin Haner. Up 4-2, it looked as if Germany would wrap the match comfortably. But Argentina had different plans. They wanted to match their superior opponents and give them back whatever they had got. In the 54th minute from their fourth penalty corner, Argentina inched in closer with a brilliant penalty corner conversion by Pedro Ibera. They did try for the fourth and the equalizer but luck was not with them
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Netherlands keep party
going
New Delhi, March 5 Canada had lost their first match to New Zealand 2-3 before being outran by Germany. The Dutch, who began their campaign with a 3-0 win over Argentina, then beat New Zealand 3-1 but their best seemed to have been reserved against Canada, though all the goals came in the second half. Canada, the oldest team in the competition with an average age of 30 plus, forced the first penalty corner early in the match and also made some forays into the Dutch goal. The three-time former champions also forced two penalty corners, but a goal eluded them in the first session. But the Dutch were a transformed lot on resumption as they got their scoring act together to drive Canada into the abyss. The incomparable drag-flick specialist Taeke Taekema converted the fifth penalty corner with a perfect carpet drag to open the scoring five minutes into the second half. He also accounted for the sixth goal, but this time with a high scoop, off the seventh penalty corner. The sixth goal was also Taekema's sixth goal of the tournament to emerge as the top-scorer. In between, Ronald Brouwer scored the second goal while Rogier Hofman also accounted for a brace, slamming in the third and fifth goals. Rob Reckers struck the third goal. The essential difference of the Dutch play was that they moved in a pattern, with quick, precision passes, and fine off the ball running. They always had a man at a vantage position to guide the ball in as the ball invariably passed through many a stick before finding the mark. Though captain Teun Nooijer de and Robbert Kemperman could not figure among the goal-scorers, most of the moves were worked up by them to give their signature touch before others applied the killer punch. New Zealand are second behind the Dutch with six points from two wins while Germany, who take on Argentina in the last match tonight, have four points from one draw and one win. The Netherlands have now won all seven matches against Canada in the World Cup and Olympic competition. Their only previous World Cup encounter was in 1998 which they had won 3-1. And at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, the Dutch had beaten Canada 4-2. So Canada are used to play second fiddle to the Dutch, and they are not complaining as they fell to a far superior team, though full credit to them for keeping the Dutch goalless in the first half.
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Kiwis ground Korea
New Delhi, March 5 But they were awarded a stroke following the seventh penalty corner which was converted by Yong Nam Lee with a strike past the left of the goal-keeper to reduce the margin. New Zealand used their height, strong physique and speed to dominate the play in the first session and scored the first goal off their first penalty corner in the fourth minute through Andrew Hayward whose powerful strike brooked no denial. They struck the second goal in the 22nd minute off a penalty stroke. Dean Couzins took a clean hit to put the ball past the Korean custodian. New Zealand’s chances to score were few and far between but that did not prevent them from scoring when it counted unlike the Koreans who were worth a few goals if the chances they got were any indication of their dominance. But the Kiwi defence held out manfully, dispossessing the Koreans before they could get close to hit the target. This was Korea’s first defeat in three matches which blotted their copy book and spoilt their chances of a semifinal berth. New Zealand registered their second win in three matches though the pool is dominated by defending champions Germany and The Netherlands. Though Germany were held to a 2-2 draw by Korea, they came back to swamp Canada 6-0 while the Dutch have beaten Argentina and New Zealand to lead the group. Korea, who edged past Argentina after holding Germany, were on four points, but today's defeat has put paid to their hopes of a semi-final berth. Against Argentina too, Korea had struggled to keep themself afloat and only a last-minute goal helped them sail through. This was the second meeting betweeen New Zealand and Korea in the World Cup, and the former have once again prevailed over the Asian champions. New Zealand had beaten Korea 3-1 when they met for the first in a World Cup match in 1998. The Kiwis had tamed Korea by a similar margin in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games as well. In fact, Korea have beaten New Zealand just once in seven meetings - at the 2005 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup by 6-4. |
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India’s last chance to redeem some glory
New Delhi, March 5 While India has performed below expectations in last two of three matches they have played so far, England has impressed all with its superb display, including its sensational win over the Aussies, runners-up of last two editions of World Cup. England has not only one of the best goalkeepers on view here but also solid defence, some intelligent and aggressive forwards and an intelligent half-line that can unruffled any opponent on a given day. India, on the other hand, has been inconsistent, with both forward line and deep defence cracking quickly under pressure. Keeping aside the India-Pakistan match, the Asian challenge in the World Cup here appears to be petering out. Last hope, South Korea, too, suffered a shock 1-2 defeat at hands of New Zealand earlier in the day today thus affecting their chances of making it to the medal round. At the end of the day six, this tournament will be half way through with 18 of the 38 matches completed. So far if England has been the pick of the tournament so far, the Netherlands and Australia are not far behind with Germany also closing in the gap. Besides India and Pakistan, Canada, Argentina and South Africa, too, have been big disappointments. Canada did put up a plucky fight against the Kiwis on the opening day to lose narrowly 2-3; they virtually surrendered after holding the powerful Dutch, the Netherlands, to a goalless first half. But in the second half, it rained goals and Canada did not know which way to go. South Africa suffered a shattering 0-12 defeat at hands of Australia after a promising start to their pool B match yesterday. It can be safely inferred after completion of 18 matches that gap between the top four or five teams with the next six to seven teams has gone slightly wider. Fitness and speed could be the factors. While England has both, the speed and the fitness, the hosts India, unfortunately are nowhere near them in both. Only a spirited game and a repeat of the opening day performance can raise some hope before a Saturday night packed audience at Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium. England has still to play Spain and India’s last game billed for Monday is against bottom-placed South Africa. |
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Much to learn from
Dutch
Prabhjot Singh writes from New Delhi The Netherlands, Malaysia and India belong to a select band of nations who have had the privilege of holding the World Cup Hockey tournament more than once. Hosting a tournament of the prestige of World Cup not only gives its ardent fraternity an extended chance to watch the top notch in action but also acts as a catalyst in promoting and encouraging a new generation to take to the sport seriously. The Netherlands is an example. It organised the second World Cup in 1973 and won the title. Since then it has never looked back. It again won the World Cup in Lahore in 1990 and then as a host again in Utrecht in 1998. Hockey has now become a passion for the Dutch. It has perhaps the largest number of hockey playfields, all with latest version of synthetic pitches, and overwhelmingly large number of clubs and their members. Both Malaysia and India, however, cannot emulate the Netherlands. Financial constraints may be one reason for these two Asian hockey giants to remain low in the international ranking ladder. Even the popularity of hockey has been unfortunately on the decline in both these countries. After India organised the World Cup for the first time in 1982, it has never won a major FIH tournament. Its last major triumph has been the gold medal in truncated Moscow Olympic Games. I had a chance to cover the 1998 World Cup in Utrecht in the Netherlands. Everyday hundreds of youngsters, dressed in their playing uniform, would come not only to witness the games but also play some friendly games amongst themselves on adjoining playfields. Further, the organisers had put up some exhibitions where latest hockey equipment was on display and sale. The organisers had also made sure that at the end of the day, these youngsters had enough to cheer about by organising music parties for them. Also during free hours, exhibition matches featuring men-women mixed teams, seniors and special people were also organised. To be precise, they converted the World Cup into a hockey festival in an endeavour to keep everyone interested in the sport with its organisation. However, here in India, it has been a different concept altogether. For some security concerns as well as for some other unknown reasons, organisers of the 2012 World Cup are not very keen for larger participation of both hockey enthusiasts and players in the successful conduct of the event. Except for some young trainees of the Punjab Sports Department, none of the trainees of various hockey academies could come here even if they wanted to come by buying tickets. Tickets remained out of their grasp. On some days, the turnout at Major Dhyan Chand National Hockey Stadium renovated at a massive cost of Rs 266 crores has been in hundreds and not even a thousand. Did the public money was spent just to cater to the needs, interests or personal benefit of only a select few? How does the Organising Committee as well as the Hockey India want to use this event as a lever to promote or revive hockey in the country? Malaysia has not done that badly as we do. They have a regular tournament - Azlan Shah- on annual basis where they invite top teams of the World. Their position may have slightly improved but not come down drastically as is the case with India. Politics may be the reason that could be attributed for the failure of Malaysians to come up on international hockey horizons unlike both Korea and China, other two new Asian forces in world hockey. Korea and China by organising the Olympics and other major tournaments have relegated both India and Pakistan far behind both in men and women sections. After all they have reaped benefits of hosting the major hockey events. It is time for India to draw a leaf from the books of the Netherlands, China and Korea. Otherwise, hockey will be history.
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Somdev, Bopanna lose
Moscow, March 5 India entered the World Group after a gap of 11 years and destiny gave them the best chance to progress as Russia’s top players - world number six Nikolay Davydenko and world number 38 Igor Andreev - suffered injuries and were ruled out. However, India could not take advantage of their absence and now find themselves in an unenviable position of winning all the remaining three rubbers in the next two days. Much depended on Somdev but the Indian lost the opening rubber 7-6 (8), 6-7 (4), 3-6, 4-6 to Igor Kunitsyn despite dominating it initially. Kunitsyn was not scheduled to play the rubber but last minute knee injury to Andreev sent him in and the Russian responded to the SOS call in the best manner. Big serving Bopanna was no match to world number 13 Mikhail Youzhny, losing the second singles 4-6, 2-6, 3-6 to round off a disappointing day for the visitors. Leander Paes and Mahesh Bupathi will take on Kunitsyn and Teimuraz Gabashvili in the doubles rubber tomorrow and reverse singles will be played on Sunday. The winner of the tie will move to the quarter-finals and the loser will compete in play-offs to re-enter the elite 16-team World Group. After Somdev’s unexpected defeat, Bopanna had the big responsibility to rescue India but the task was too much for a player, who has been concentrating on doubles on the ATP Tour in the recent times. Bopanna had helped India in the play-off tie against South Africa by pulling off impressive singles win but he could not repeat the act though he did all he could within his limits. He created opportunities with some booming forehand winners and big serves but Youzhny showed his class and proved sheer power would not win you matches. Youzhny was clinical as he saved breakpoints with utmost ease and converted his chances at first opportunity. Earlier, Somdev let advantage slip out of hands, losing the opening rubber from an advantageous position. Somdev had taken control of the first singles match after winning the first set and took a 5-2 lead in the second set but lost the plot after that in a marathon contest which lasted close to four hours. Due to slow nature of the court, long rallies came into play and rather than the power, it was persistence, precision and stamina that was required to earn points. These types of courts suit Somdev's game but Kunitsyn was brilliant at the net and his tenacity paid in the end. Somdev struggled to control his strokes after the first five games of the first set went with serve. That was enough for the Russian to create a break opportunity. Kunitsyn smashed a backhand to go 40-0 up in the sixth game and coverted third chance to get the first break. Somdev though was unperturbed and immediately broke back. Two exquisite backhands did it for him and it all boiled down to the tie-break as the next five games again went with serve. Somdev came up after trailing 1-3 and a big serve set up the first set point but an attempted backhand winner sailed over the baseline, bringing relief for the hosts. Somdev though came up with another big serve and sealed the first set after Kunitsyn sent a forehand wide. Crucial lead in pocket, Somdev came up firing on all cylinders in the second set, racing to a 3-0 lead. The body language of the Russian did not look positive after the assault but Kunitsyn fought his way into the match and turned it around brilliantly. With 5-2 cushion it looked one way traffic in favour of Somdev but soon the match was back to even terms with the Russian winning three consecutive games and stretched it to a tie-breaker. Some line calls also contributed in disturbing Somdev’s rhythm. — PTI
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Manavjit traps gold
New Delhi, March 5 The 34-year-old Indian missed two birds in the final but held his nerve to hit the remaining 16 targets to grab the gold with a point's margin. His total final score was 145 (122+23). Manavjit had recently won gold in the Commonwealth Shooting Championships at Delhi with a score of 146 (124+22). “I did not realise that I was going to win until the last shots. It has been a very close competition. I just won by a single target. I shot aggressively up until the end and eventually made it to the top,” Manavjit said from Acapulco. “It was a long trip here from India but it was worth it. I am planning to take part in most of the ISSF World Cup stages, this year,” added the 2006 World Championship gold medallist. Another Indian, Anirudh Singh also impressed by entering his first ever World Cup final with a score of 122. In fact on day one of the qualification rounds, Anirudh had shot a perfect score of 75/75. In the remaining two rounds, Anirudh shot 24 and 23 to qualify for the finals with a score of 122. Anirudh registered a total score of 143 which left him fourth with Pellielo Giovanni of Italy. In the shoot-off, Anirudh defeated the Beijing Olympic silver medallist by 2 hits to 1. The third Indian in the team Birendeep Sodhi shot a score of 120 (25,23,23,24,25) to finish 10th. The silver was won by Daniele Resca of Italy who shot 144+3 (123+21) while bronze was won by John Mullins of USA with a score of 144+2 (122+22). In the women’s trap event, none of the three Indian shooters could make it to the final round. Shagun Chowdhary finished 13th with a score of 66, Shreyasi Singh ended 16th with a score of 64, while Seema Tomar shot 63 to sing off 17th. Chinese shooter Yang Huan claimed the gold with a total score of 92 (72+20). — PTI
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DP Azad Academy to hold U16 tourney
Chandigarh, March 5 The teams, which have confirmed their entries, are Guru Nanak Public School, Sector 36; St Stephen’s School, Sector 45; Mohali Cricket Association and DAV Senior Secondary School, Sector 8. Azad said paid umpires and scorers will conduct the match which are being held ahead of the Punjab Inter-district Under-16 Cricket Tournament to give local players match practice. The tournament will be held in various grounds in the Tri-city. Mohinder Singh, Monish Aggrawal and Bhupinder Singh have been appointed as the members of the technical committee to look into any dispute. |
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New Delhi, March 5
Davis Cup
Mexico World Cup
