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India in Sri Lanka
Hockey sex scandal: Coach Kaushik quits, videographer sacked
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Oz off to awful start
Hockey scene gets murkier
India to host 2011 Men's hockey Champions Trophy
Santosh Trophy
Parimarjan slips to bottom
HI elections: Olympians vouch for Pargat
GND varsity archers found ineligible
Indo-Pak lawyers’ one-dayer tomorrow
Sandeep Moudgil
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India stare at defeat
Visitors trail by 63 runs with five wickets in hand Murali scalps five wickets in first innings, one in second In first innings, India lost last five batsmen for 24 runs
Galle, July 21 India, who were dismissed for 276 in their first innings, ended the fourth day on 181 for five and need at least another 63 runs to avoid an innings defeat on the final day of the first test. Muralitharan now stands just two wickets away from the landmark figure after he added Yuvraj Singh's scalp to the five wickets he took during India's first innings. Yuvraj edged a catch to Mahela Jayawardene at slip in the final over of the day to give Muralitharan figures of one for 57. However, it was fast bowler Lasith Malinga's fiery second spell that broke the back of the Indian batting. He sent back opener Gautam Gambhir caught behind without scoring off the third ball and later came back to dismiss Rahul Dravid for 44 and Sachin Tendulkar for 84 to finish the day with three for 33. Dravid and Tendulkar looked like rescuing India after they had lost first innings century-maker Virender Sehwag for 31 when he was snapped up brilliantly by Jayawardene at gully. The pair figured in a third wicket partnership of 119 but Malinga's spell ended their charge. Dravid was caught at leg gully as he flicked a ball off his legs and Tendulkar was trapped lbw by a fast yorker aimed at his leg stump. In his final test, Muralitharan picked up his 67th five-wicket haul and forced India to follow-on after they had resumed their first innings at 140-3. Having dismissed Tendulkar in the first innings on the third day, Muralitharan added the wickets of Yuvraj (52), skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (33) and tailenders Pragyan Ojha and Abhimanyu Mithun. Sehwag reached his 20th test century in the second over of the morning with a streaky inside-edged four off Angelo Mathews. However, he went chasing after a wide delivery from Chanaka Welegedara on 109 and edged a catch to first slip after hitting 19 fours and a six in his 118-ball innings. Malinga removed the other overnight batsman VVS Laxman for 22 when he top-edged a pull to deep square leg. Yuvraj and Dhoni steadied the Indian innings with a sixth-wicket stand of 74 before Muralitharan broke through. — Reuters Scoreboard Sri Lanka (1st innings) 520-8 dec India (1st innings) 140-3 overnight Gambhir lbw Malinga 2 Sehwag c Paranavitana b Welagedara 109 Dravid run out 18 Tendulkar lbw Murali 8 Laxman c Dilshan b Malinga 22 Yuvraj c M. Jayawardene b Murali 52 Dhoni b Murali 33 Harbhajan st P. Jayawardene b Herath 2 Ishant not out 5 Ojha c M. Jayawardene b Murali 3 Mithun b Murali 8 Extras: (b-1, lb-1, nb-10, w-2) 14 Total: (all out, 65 overs) 276 Fall of wickets: 1-2, 2-68, 3-101, 4-169, 5-178, 6-252,7-259, 8-259 9-266 10-276. Bowling: Malinga 13-0-55-2, Welagedara 11-1-69-1, Herath 18-1-62-1, Mathews 5-0-19-0, Murali 17-1-63-5, Dilshan 1-0-6-0. India (2nd innings) Gambhir c P. Jayawardene b Malinga 0 Sehwag c M. Jayawardene Dravid c Sangakkara b Malinga 44 Tendulkar lbw Malinga 84 Laxman not out 9 Yuvraj c M. Jayawardene b Murali 5 Extras (lb-3, w-1, nb-4) 8 Total (5 wkts; 59.3 overs) 181 Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-42, 3-161, 4-172, 5-181 Bowling: Malinga 9-2-33-3, Welegedara 6-1-26-1, Herath 14-2-27-0, Mathews 7-3-13-0, Murali 18.3-1-57-1, Dilshan 5-0-22-0.
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Hockey sex scandal: Coach Kaushik quits, videographer sacked
New Delhi, July 21 The videographer, whose photographs with a prostitute plunged the game into a moral crisis, has already been sacked. The girl’s written complaint was endorsed by 30 other players of the team, though they did not support her specific sexual harassment allegation against Kaushik. Hockey India has constituted a five-member panel, headed by Rajiv Mehta, and comprising government nominees Ajit Pal Singh and Zafar Iqbal, Sudarshan Pathak of the Delhi Hockey Association and HI adviser Anupam Gulati, to inquire into the allegations against the coach and the videographer, and submit its report by Friday. A Sport Ministry statement said, “The SAI (Sports Authority of India) and the Sports Ministry have taken note about the allegations of sexual harassment complaint in women’s hockey, and the matter is being looked into immediately.” The five-member HI panel today summoned the complainant and Kaushik to the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee headquarters and heard them out. Later, talking to newspersons outside the OC headquarters at Jantar Mantar near Connaught Place, Zafar Iqbal and Hockey India secretary-general Narinder Batra did not rule out the possibility of a “conspiracy” behind the girl’s allegations against the coach, in view of the Hockey India elections, scheduled to be held on July 28. “I asked the girl whether Kaushik ever touched her, or made any other kind of sexual advance against her, to which she said ‘no’ though she admitted that Kaushik had told her that ‘she was beautiful’. She was not confident in her replies,” Zafar said. “Then what the complaint was all about, since she reported the so-called incident now, that allegedly happened nine months ago,” Zafar stated. “We will submit our report with recommendations to the SAI which can take action according to the government service rules. The coach or the videographer are not working under us. They are employees of the SAI. I have taken legal advice also. Nobody is guilty until proved. But, ultimately it is the job of SAI what action to be taken against anybody who is found guilty,” Batra said. “I am not in a position to work,” Kaushik said. The women are preparing for the World Cup to be held in Rosario (Argentina) in August and the Asian Champions Trophy in Busan from July 27 ahead of the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games later this year. KPS for independent inquiry Chandigarh, July 21 Gill, who was in the city today, said that setting up a four-member committee by Hockey India was just a formality to save the accused. “They (Hockey India) are trying to whitewash the most shameful episode of Indian hockey and should be enquired into by a committee headed by a former judge,” said Gill adding that the inquiry would help in exposing the other big names in the scandal. “Why didn’t they (Hockey India) make police complaint immediately after getting the mail from the players? After all, a complaint by women players is not a trivial issue. Do you think that the committee, set up by them, would take action against their own men,” asked Gill. Further blasting Hockey India for clearing the name of 83-year-old Vidya Stokes as the presidential candidate in HI forthcoming elections, Gill said, “Where have their moral values have gone now? HI is government-backed body and now, they have refused to comply with the guidelines of the sports ministry when their own interests have start clashing.” |
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Oz off to awful start
Leeds (UK), July 21 Left-arm fast bowler Mohammad Aamer claimed wickets with the first two balls after lunch to help reduce Australia to their lowest test total in 26 years -- they were dismissed for 76 by West Indies in 1984 at Perth. Tim Paine top scored with 17, after Australia skipper Ricky Ponting won the toss. The Pakistan batsmen were largely untroubled and though there was still swing for the bowlers, they struggled to control it. Two such examples saw Ben Hilfenhaus and Shane Watson wobble balls into Butt's leg stump, though both were clipped to the boundary. Butt had faced 51 balls and struck seven fours. Australia resumed on 73 for six after lunch when Aamer, aged 18, bowled Steven Smith with a ball that swung into him sharply. Left-hander Mitchell Johnson looked to drive a delivery heading for leg stump through mid-on only to see the ball swing prodigiously away from him to smash into his wickets. — Reuters Scoreboard Australia (1st innings) S. Watson lbw Asif 5 Katich lbw Aamer 13 Ponting lbw Asif 6 Clarke b Gul 3 Hussey lbw b Gul 5 North c Akmal b Amin 16 Paine c Akmal b Asif 17 Smith b Aamer 10 Johnson b Aamer 0 Hilfenhaus run out 3 Bollinger not out 2 Extras (lb-6, nb-2) 8 Total (all out; 33.1 overs) 88 Fall of wickets: 1-20 2-20 3-27 4-29 5-41 6-60 7-73 8-73, 9-86 10-88 Bowling: Mohammad Aamer 11-4-20-3, Mohammad Asif 10.1-1-30-3, Umar Gul 9-3-16-2, Umar Amin 2-0-7-1, Danish Kaneria 1-0-9-0 Pakistan (1st innings) Farhat not out 20 Butt not out 38 Extras (b-2, lb-3, nb-1) 6 Total (0 wkts; 15 overs) 64 Bowling: Bollinger 6-4-5-0, Hilfenhaus 4-0-31-0, Watson 3-0-10-0, Johnson 2-0-13-0.
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Hockey scene gets murkier
Chandigarh, July 21 Within hours of the HI ad hoc committee taking stand to shun government support as well its guidelines stipulating upper age limit and fixed terms in office of a national sports federation, the sex scandal has sent shock waves in the sports circles. While the national coach of the Indian women team, Maharaja Kaushik, has stepped down to facilitate “free and fair inquiry into the allegations”, HI finds itself in a piquant situation about accepting the offer to host the prestigious Champions Trophy featuring top six teams of the world next year. By getting on the wrong side of the Union government, HI cannot expect the same support and backing for the 2011 Champions Trophy as it did for the 2010 World Cup Hockey Tournament in New Delhi in March this year. By rejecting the guidelines and also claiming itself to be a registered society, HI has tried to distance itself from the Union Ministry of Sports than falling in the line on an issue that has taken the country to the executive of the International Olympic Committee. While the government wants that persons above 70 years should not contest election to important positions like those of the president and secretary-general of a national sports federation, the ad hoc committee has fielded 83-year-old Vidya Stokes as its candidate for the post of president against three-times Olympian and half-her-age candidate Pargat Singh. What turn this open defiance of the government guidelines will take remains to be seen, it has certainly put a big question mark over the future of administration of this national sport. And the highlighting of the video clips of alleged sexual harassment of national players has further aggravated the divide as members of the team management have mostly been drawn from the Sports Authority of India. Other than HI, there are at least two other organisations that claim to be authorised body to control and administer the game in the country. Indian Hockley Federation that got a major verdict in its favour from Delhi High Court has already held its National Hockey Championship in Madhya Pradesh. Headed by super cop KPS Gill, this body has threatened to move court against Hockey India and its elections. Kaushalya Atma Ram of Chandigarh, who has been associated with women’s hockey for more than four decades and currently heads All-India Women’s Hockey Association (AIWHA), feels that chief coach Maharaj Kaushik was being victimised. “I have known him for a long time and he is a thorough gentleman,” maintains K Atma Ram. She questioned the composition of the inquiry committee, saying that president of the ad hoc committee Vidya Stokes had kept herself out of the committee. “When such serious allegations are made against the team management, the HI head should lead the inquiry team,” she said. Interestingly, Vidya Stokes was the president of the AIWHA till it formally merged with the IHF some years ago and the Indian Hockey Confederation was formed.
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India to host 2011 Men's hockey Champions Trophy
Chennai, July 21 The decision was taken by FIH in its Executive Board meeting, FIH Communication Manager Arjen Meijer said in a press release today. This will be the third time that India will be hosting the men's Champions Trophy. The prestigious event was held in Chennai in 1996 and 2005. The exact dates and venue would be decided in a week's time, the release said. Olympic and World Champion The Netherlands would host the women's FIH Champions Trophy next year, which would be the sixth time for the country. FIH would allocate its other World level events for 2011 and the tournament from 2012 onwards in the coming months. — PTI |
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Delhi, UP, Sikkim start on winning note
Kolkata, July 21 Uttar Pradesh and Sikkim also got off to winning starts in their respective cluster matches at different venues. In the cluster V match at Yuba Bharati Kriranga, former HAL midfielder Bhuvan Joshi struck in the 19th minute to help Delhi open their account. After the break, Delhi scored through Vikash Rawat (53rd), but Arunachal Pradesh pulled one back through Bamin Tatung who slammed home in the 71st minute to make it 2-1. However, Tuishim Nashangua sealed the issue for Delhi scoring in the 81st minute to earn three points. In another match of the same cluster, Madhya Pradesh blanked Uttar Pradesh 3-0 with a brace from Tushar Chaudhary (76th, 82nd) and Irfan Zaman Khan's penalty conversion in the 20th minute. In a cluster VI opener at YBK, Sikkim kicked off their campaign in style thrashing Haryana 4-0. Tshering Lepcha (6th), Vikas Jairu (19th), Birendra Rai (22nd) and Rupesh Diyali (85th) struck in Sikkim's comprehensive win. The first pre-quarterfinal match between Karnataka and Maharashta is being played at YBK. — PTI
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Biel (Switzerland), July 21 With his second loss in as many games, the Indian, who is the second youngest Grandmaster ever in the history of the game, is last in the 10-player field as of now. In the first round, Parimarjan had lost to Maxim Rodshtein of Israel. Russia’s Tomashevsky emerged as joint leader on 1.5 points along with Rodshtein and Wesley So of Philippines on a day that saw the other four games reaching peaceful draws albeit after tough fights and high quality games. Top-seeded Maxime Vachier-Lagrave of France, Fabiano Caruana of Italy, Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son of Vietnam, Anish Giri of Holland and Dmitry Andreikin of Russia share the third spot on one point each having drawn both games played so far, while David Howell of England is the sole ninth after he opened his account with a draw. With seven rounds still remaining in the category-17 tournament, Parimarjan will be hoping to open his account in the next round when he gets his first white in the event. The Indian faces Caruana in his third outing. Back-to-back black games are difficult and yet if a player draws number five in a ten-player field, it is mandatory to have two black games in the first two rounds. Parimarjan got the ill-fated number in the draw of lots and the first two games have not gone well despite him showing a new idea early in the opening. Tomashevsky went for one of the topical variations in the Queen’s gambit declined and it as early as on the 10th move that Parimarjan came up with a new idea and equalised subsequently. On the 17th move, the Indian gave a temporary pawn sacrifice and when he recovered it five moves later, the experts believed it was a “no-problem” position. However, as the game progressed, a few inaccuracies forced Parimarjan to part with one of his pawns and the ensuing endgame after tactical complexities proved difficult to handle. It was a long a slow grind in the final stages that saw Tomashevsky securing the full point in 94 moves. — PTI
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HI elections: Olympians vouch for Pargat
Jalandhar, July 21 Olympian Baljeet Singh Dhillon said it was a good sign that Pargat was contesting the elections. Olympian Harpreet Singh Mandher said the hockey players were a disgruntled lot. “Till date, HI had been governed by mere administrators, who considered their rule supreme against the interest of game, leading to poor output,” he added. Talking about the nomination filed by Vidya Stokes (83), the Olympians said, “There is a vast difference between playing the game on the field and planning strategies behind closed doors.” “We expect a paradigm shift if Pargat becomes HI president. Being a former India captain, he is aware of the best sponsors, discipline, diet, coaching and umpiring in the game. In fact, he has virtually revived the game at the grassroots level in the state,” said Baljeet.
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GND varsity archers found ineligible
Patiala, July 21 Shish Pal was allegedly ineligible to participate in the championship, as he did not collect migration certificate from Kurukshetra University (KU) before representing GND varsity. Showing written records to TNS, director (sports), Punjabi University, Patiala, Rajkumar Sharma said, “Shish Pal had represented KU in 2008-09 during AIIU that was held at Vijaywada, as a BA II student. But he got compartment during his exams. This year he represented GND varity as a BA III year student without taking migration from KU”. The documents provided by Rajkumar and KU Registrar clearly indicate that Shish Pal got compartment in BA II and did not clear his exam. Rajkumar has also submitted a complaint with the Association of Indian Universities (AIU) in this case. Sources informed TNS that GND varsity had been issued a letter by the AIU regarding explaining their position within 10 days, but the university had failed to stick to the deadline. Director (sports) of GND varsity Kanwaljeet Singh said he didn’t know anything and refused to make any comments. It is pertinent to mention here that a woman archer of the same varsity, Suman, too, was found ineligible during the same championship. As a result, the compound team of the varsity, which won silver medal during the championship, was disqualified and Kurukshetra University, which stood third, was announced runners-up.
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Indo-Pak lawyers’ one-dayer tomorrow
Chandigarh, July 21 Partap Singh, chairman of the Bar Council, stated that the match was being played to maintain and enhance harmony between the two neighbouring countries, and, hence, it hasd been named as “Indo-Pak Lawyers Harmony Cricket Cup - 2010”. “Our endeavour is to extend brotherhood by way of sports which is followed in both countries by the masses. The legal fraternity has taken up the cause to harness friendship and mutual understanding,” he added. Sandeep Moudgil, advocate of the high court, has been named as the captain of the Indian Advocates’ Cricket Team. Moudgil said the match would be played on the T20 pattern and would start at 2.30 pm.
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Muttiah Muralitharan edged closer to capturing his 800th test wicket in his farewell match as Sri Lanka pushed a floundering India to the brink of defeat on Wednesday.
New Delhi, July 21
Pakistan reached 64 for no loss at tea after bowling Australia out for just 88 on day one of the second test at Headingley on Wednesday in a game they must win to draw the series. Newly appointed captain Salman Butt was 38 not out and Imran Farhat had 20, as they enjoyed the best batting conditions of the day with sunshine partly breaking out following gloomy bowler-friendly conditions during Australia's innings.
Launching a nationwide campaign to support Director of Sports, Punjab, Pargat Singh, who is vying for the post of president of Hockey India (HI), various Olympians today asked hockey enthusiasts to join hands to regain the lost glory of the game. The HI elections are scheduled for July 28. The Olympians also termed former India captain Pargat Singh Pargat’s decision to contest the HI elections as a ‘breather’ for the game from dirty politics.
The Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana is organising a one-day cricket match between India and Pakistan on July 23 at Sector-16, Cricket Stadium,
Chandigarh. Partap Singh, chairman of the Bar Council, stated that the match was being played to maintain and enhance harmony between the two neighbouring countries, and, hence, it hasd been named as “Indo-Pak Lawyers Harmony Cricket Cup - 2010”.
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