Chennai, October 4
Trinidad and Tobago made a dramatic late onslaught as they pulled off a sensational two-wicket victory over Cape Cobras in a Champions League Twenty20 thriller here today.

Chasing a modest target of 138, T&T were struggling from the start of their run chase as they were reduced to 26 for two in the sixth over with both the openers falling cheaply.

Wickets fell regularly and T&T needed 24 runs from the last two overs with three wickets in hand at the M A Chidambaram Stadium.

New Delhi, October 4
Ronjan Sodhi created history today when he became the first Indian shooter to defend a World Cup title in shooting at Al Ain, in the United Arab Emirates. He retained the title when he got the better of China’s HU Binyuan in a close tie-shoot finish. Ronjan and Binyuan shot a total of 187/200 at the finals. The Indian shooter clinched the gold in the tie-shoot to pip the Chinese Olympian.

Sodhi, sponsored by Mittal Champions Trust, was placed second behind Binyaun with a score of 142/150 in the qualifiers. He was the only Indian shooter to have qualified for the prestigious Shotgun World Cup final. And his appearance at the finals this year marked his fifth consecutive World Cup final presence, which itself was a record.

“It is the most prestigious competitions for us in a non-Olympic year. To win back to back titles is an amazing feeling. Going into the final, HU was leading by two points, and I knew that it would be a close affair. He missed initially to even it up. I dropped my last target, but came back strong to win the title. All finals are like this”, said an elated Sodhi after his title triumph.

He further added: “It was the last competition of the year and I was looking forward to it. I have had a good year throughout. Since the format of this event was the same as that of the Olympics next year, it was a great test run for me. The flash targets were very heavy and we had to shoot being very focused. We were required to hit the targets at the center, as they were very hard. I hope they improve the clay birds at the Olympics as it is very demoralizing for us shooters to shoot such low scores in a prestigious competition like this”.

New Delhi, October 4
The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) today held a meeting with the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) and Hockey India (HI) to work out a solution to the threat held out by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) that it would bar India from all the international events sanctioned by it, including the 2012 London Olympics, if HI was not recognised as the sole custodians of the game in the country.

The IOA called the meeting at Olympic Bhawan, following a letter written by FIH president Leandro Negre to the Sports Ministry on September 27, asking the Ministry to recognise only Hockey India as it did not approve of the truce worked out between IHF and HI, at the behest of Sports Minister Ajay Maken, for the smooth running of the game in the country.

The FIH felt that the truce was in violation of the Olympic Charter, which stipulates that there should be only one body for one game (both men and women), which was also the rule followed by the FIH. But the Ministry had to restore the recognition to the IHF following a Delhi High Court verdict in its favour.

The IOA also supports only one body for both men and women hockey and did not support the hockey truce, as it argued that the team will eventually be fielded in the Olympics under the IOA banner. IOA acting president Vijay Kumar Malhotra, secretary-general Raja Randhir Singh and R.K. Anand met the IHF and HI representatives. Both IHF and HI were represented by five members each.

The IHF team included former president and adviser KPS Gill and former Women’s Hockey Association of India secretary-general Amrit Bose while the HI team included secretary-general Narinder Bhatra, associate vice-president Rajiv Mehta and treasurer Mohammad Mushtaq Ahmed.

But a source said the issue was very complicated with court cases and all, and only through concerted efforts and only when IHF and HI discard their rigid postures, could a solution be worked out. The IHF is learnt to have made it clear that Indian hockey could survive without the support of the FIH as the World Series Hockey (WSH), which it was launching later this year in association with Nimbus, would give Indian hockey a greater push and make the players richer.

Each player would stand to benefit to the tune of Rs 20 lakh, and the IHF argued that if IPL in cricket, and professional leagues in basketball and football, could survive then the WSM too could create its own niche, and playing in the Olympics was not such a great deal.

A source confirmed that the road ahead would be very tough, though the IOA would persist with this effort to bring a solution. The Sports Ministry has also called a meeting of the three stake holders - IOA, IHF and HI - on October 14 to work out a solution. Joint secretary in the Ministry Rahul Bhatnagar is expected to chair that meeting. 

Patiala, October 4
While India’s top medal hopes have bowed out of the World Championship underway at Baku, the comparatively fresher lot is putting up a spectacular show. L Devendro Singh (Light flyweight-49kg), Commonwealth Games gold medallist Manoj Kumar (Light Welter- 64kg) and Jai Bhagwan (60kg) today cemented their place in the 2012 London Olympics by advancing to the quarterfinals of the 2011 AIBA World Championship, bringing much-needed hope to the boxing fraternity.

Though there was some disappointment due to the defeat of Vijender Singh, Suronjoy Singh, Akhil Kumar, Paramjit Samota, Manpreet and Dinesh Kumar, still Devendro, Manoj and Commonwealth Games bronze-medallist Jai Bhagwan have brought back smiles. Now, they have set their eyes on Asian Games gold medallist Vikas Krishnan (69kg), who will take on Onder Sipal of Turkey.

In the evening session, Jai upstaged seventh seed David Joyce of Ireland 32-30 in a tense battle.

Talking about Devendro and Manoj, coach in charge of boxing at NIS, Patiala TL Gupta, said, “They have displayed remarkable skills in each bout and have reserved a berth for them in the London Olympics, which in itself is a great achievement. But I know that they are capable of much more. This will be really beneficial in forthcoming tournaments, especially the Olympics,” he added.

Meanwhile, another coach said there was no denying the fact that the top boxers could not live up to the expectations of people. “Winning medals is not an issue right now. Its just that they should have at least made it to the top 10 in their respective categories, so that they would qualify,” he added.

Jaipur, October 4
The Rest of India are all set to win the Irani Cup for the sixth consecutive time in recent years after setting Rajasthan an impossible target of 618 to win at stumps on the penultimate day at Sawai Man Singh Stadium.

As a contest, the match was over once Rajasthan were all-out for 400 ensuring a huge 263 run first innings lead for the Rest on a day when a few records tumbled. Left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha got a five-for and send a timely reminder to the selectors.

Without enforcing follow-on, the Rest skipper Parthiv Patel wanted his batsmen to have a go at the hapless Rajasthan attack. Shikhar Dhawan (155) and Abhinav Mukund (154) went hammer and tongs at the below par attack smashing 310 runs in only 45.1 overs and they ultimately declared at 354 for two.

The hosts were 28 for no loss when stumps were drawn. It was pure entertainment for the small crowd as Dhawan and Mukund carted the Rajasthan bowlers with utter disdain. Dhawan was finally holed out having scored his runs off only 126 balls with the help of 22 fours and three sixes.

The Delhi lad became the first batsman in history of Irani Cup to score century in both innings. With this performance, Dhawan certainly has come back into national reckoning. Mukund, who was scratchy in the first essay also got much-needed confidence with a three-figure mark, although it counts for little in the context of the match.

The Tamil Nadu southpaw also became the first player in the history of tournament to score hat-trick of centuries. — PTI 

New Delhi, October 4
Indian Olympic Association (IOA) acting president Vijay Kumar Malhotra said the Rs 70-crore aerostat balloon, displayed during the 10th Commonwealth Games opening and closing ceremonies, now gathering dust at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium, was one of the “costly legacies” of the much-touted games. He said the balloon was now lying as a junk, without any claimants, and the money spent on it was a colossal waste.

He said he had opposed the purchase of this gigantic balloon by the CWG Organising Committee, headed by Suresh Kalmadi, but his protest was over ruled to buy this expensive toy.

Malhotra said neither the IOA nor the National Sports Federations (NSFs) were responsible for the construction or upkeep of the stadiums in the Capital, and sportspersons and NSFs were also prohibited from using them. Yet, Sports Minister Ajay Maken had the “temerity” to ask the IOA and the NSFs “about the legacy of the CWG”.

He said it was surprising that though the stadiums have not been used, the chairs have been broken, electricity and other equipments have vanished and some areas have been vandalized, and their restoration was going to cost a fortune. “Is any mafia involved in this vandalism, to start another loot of Government money in the name of renovation?”, he wondered.

Giving a “brief summary” of the conditions of the sports infrastructure after the Commonwealth Games, and the “legacy created by the Government”, Malhotra noted that around Rs 30,000 crore were spent on building the infrastructure for the CWG, out of which Rs 1000 crore alone were spent for the renovation/reconstruction of the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, though it has not been used for any sporting competition since October 15, 2010.

“All the left-over material is dumped there, turning it into the most expensive junkyard in the world”, Malhotra observed. He said other stadiums are gathering dust too, making them a breeding ground for mosquitoes, and they may even turn out to be a major health hazard, while the Shivaji Stadium (for hockey) was still under construction, though it has already overshot the budget, and may eventually cost over Rs 200 crore to the New Delhi Municipal Council.

Malhotra also pointed out that the prestigious Games Village , on the Yamuna river banks, built at a cost of Rs 2,800 crore, was lying idle, and the 1000 flats, for which 400 people have already paid money, have not yet been allotted to anyone. He said less said about the Talkatora Swimming Pool complex and the Indira Gandhi Stadium complex, and this was “only the gist” and not a comprehensive document of the “misdeeds of the Government”.

Patiala, October 4
A recently-retired Punjab Sports Department coach is under scanner for allegedly pasting his name on the official display board in the district sports department office as a District Sports Officer (DSO) at Patiala despite being given temporary charge by the department.

According to information gathered, Juna Khan, a sports coach posted in Patiala who retired on September 30, 2011 was given temporary charge as DSO following leave taken by the incumbent DSO Yograj.

Despite the fact that it was a temporary charge Khan connived with few officials inside the department and printed his name on the official display board inside the department display board.

Interestingly the same board displays the tenure of Yograj ending on September 22 although he was only on leave. When contacted Yograj said since he was on leave and joined back on Monday he was unaware of the developments.

Punjab Director Sports, Pargat Singh said due to shortage of senior officers usually charge is given to others and they are posted as officiating DSO’s. “However with a temporary charge, no one can claim himself to be a DSO”, Singh stated.