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Ashes-2013 With England three down before lunch, Australia had a whiff of opportunity but rain ensured there was no more play and match ended in a tame
draw. — AFP
Badminton
World Championships |
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Shahabad girls owe it to
hardwork, determination
To rejoice or not is the question
Dravid lashes out at BCCI, says game’s credibility at stake
MAKA Trophy winners could be awarded this year
Tiger Woods won his eighth WGC-Bridgestone title on Sunday. — Reuters
United reject second Chelsea bid for Rooney
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Rain denies Australia a shot at victory
Visitors pick three quick wickets but rain thwarts their charge; England retain Ashes
The hosts were looking for the draw but were in trouble at 37 for three when play was suspended after lunch and steady rain continued to fall until the end. “It's a bit of a strange day. Today we had a little bit of luck and it's nice to retain the Ashes,” said England captain Alastair Cook at an indoor presentation. “The feeling in the dressing room is a very pleasant one. Now we want to go on and win it (the series).” Australia would have fancied their chances of taking the remaining seven wickets in the final two sessions had the rain not intervened. Play was eventually called off at 1539 GMT to the cheers of a smattering of hardy fans still left inside the Manchester ground, who later greeted the celebrating England players on the team balcony. The teams next face each other at Chester-le-Street in Durham from Friday for the fourth test which will be a slight anti-climax after the literal damp-squib finish at Old Trafford. England will still want to win the Ashes outright for the third straight time while Australia will at least look to make it 2-2 and head home with some confidence for the next series between the two starting in November. “It's unfortunate. I certainly don't want to take anything away from England. It's the chance you take going 2-0 down,” Australia skipper Michael Clarke said of the weather. “Our goal is to try to level the series.”
England's Joe Root was unbeaten on 13 from 57 balls after the opener tried to leave every wide delivery he could. Ian Bell was four not out having been struck on the glove and seen the ball balloon over the slips just before the second rain break. Bustling fast bowler Ryan Harris struck twice for Australia before lunch to give the tourists real hope they could drag themselves back into the series after a 14-run loss at Trent Bridge and a 347-run humbling at Lord's. Rain was in the air from the start and play began half an hour late, leading Australia to declare on 172 for seven in their second innings and set England 332 to win. DRS controversy
Cook's team got off to a terrible start when the captain was trapped lbw by Harris for a duck, compounding his misery by wasting a review even though he was proved to be plumb in front. Out-of-form Jonathan Trott (11) survived a scare when Australia reviewed a not-out call for another Harris lbw shout, technology showing it was the umpire's call, but the tourists did not have to wait long before he edged the same bowler down the leg side to wicketkeeper Brad Haddin. More DRS controversy followed when Kevin Pietersen was adjudged to have nicked Peter Siddle behind for eight. Pietersen called for a review and despite no hotspot showing on the video replay, the third umpire upheld the decision. — Reuters Scoreboard Aus 1st innings 527/7 Decl England 1st innings: 368 Australia 2nd innings Decl Rogers c Prior b Broad 12 Extras: (b 4, lb 2, w 3) 9 Bowling Anderson 8-0-37-2 England 2nd innings Bowling
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Jayaram soars high but India falter in doubles
Guangzhou, August 5 Jayaram, who had reached the pre-quarterfinals of the event's last edition in 2011, battled fatigue and lapse in concentration to get the better of Wong 22-20, 17-21, 21-15. He will take on Spain's Pablo Abian in the second round. The 25-year-old from Mumbai, who had lost to Wong in their only earlier meeting in 2011, was first to get off the blocks and that helped him race to a handsome lead in the opening game. It looked he would pocket the game rather easily with four game points until Wong fought back to level scores before Jayaram regrouped and took the next two points and the game. The world number 12 hit back in the second game by engaging in long rallies, taking the match to the decider. The Indian showed the maturity to handle the pressure exerted by his opponent to win a tight contest. “The shuttles were slow and I had to play patiently, waiting for my chances. In the second game, he started rallying a bit more and my patience wore out,” said Jayaram, who also had to tackle fatigue as he only recovered from illness a week ago.
While Jayaram made a winning start, India's challenge in mixed doubles came to an end with the combinations of Aparna Balan/Arun Vishnu and Ashwini Ponnappa/ Tarun Kona losing in the first round. 2010 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Parupalli Kashyap will play later in the day, while the women's singles stars — Saina Nehwal and P.V. Sindhu — have received a bye in the first round. Lee has it easy
Malaysian badminton star Lee Chong Wei eased his way through the first round of the BWF World Championships on Monday, taking just 27 minutes to dismiss his opponent. The world number one dispatched Ireland's Scott Evans 21-11, 21-15 at the start of his quest to take the world title for the first time at the tournament in Guangzhou, China. Despite some impressive smashes and delicate touches close to the net, Evans found it hard to make an impression on the agile Malaysian whose lightning reflexes created an almost impenetrable defence. His speed around the court left the Irish player struggling to keep up with the pace, and Evans soon succumbed to his third defeat out of three meets with the Malaysian. Lin Dan starts rolling
Badminton superstar Lin Dan moved effortlessly through to the second round of the world championships in China's Guangzhou on Monday, putting in a powerful performance after a year on the sidelines. The reigning world champion trounced American Sattawat Pongnairat 21-6, 21-9 and although the Chinese player was hardly stretched, the man regarded by many as the sport's best ever player showed flashes of classic play.
— Agencies |
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Shahabad girls owe it to
hardwork, determination
Shahabad, August 5 Rani Ramphal, speaking from Germany, said, “The win has encouraged the team to work harder and perform much better in the coming international tournaments.” Crediting their coach Dronacharya awardee Baldev Singh for the success, she said, “He has been a great motivator.” Navneet Buta Singh, the youngest member of the squad, said, “It was our determination that enabled us to win the medal. It will encourage the team to win gold in the next tournament.” Another player, Navjot Kaur, said, “The medal has helped create a new identity for women hockey in the country. Shahabad girls have brought back the golden days of women hockey and more is yet to come.” Meanwhile, coach Baldev Singh said, “The junior team was competent enough to win a gold, but due to certain circumstances they had to be content with a bronze.” He said the win would go a long in boosting the morale of the girls, who would now get on the field with added strength and a sense of achievement and excel further. The national skipper, eighteen-year-old Rani Ramphal, a localite who scored India's only goal in the regulation time and then found the net twice in the penalty shoot-out to script India's memorable victory, is a product of the local hockey academy. Navneet Kaur, who ably assisted the skipper strike a goal during the match, is also a produce of the Shahabad Hockey Academy. Besides, Navjot Kaur, Manjit Kaur and Monica also represented the country in the Cup. The local residents came out on the streets to celebrate after they defeated England. Anil Dhantori, local legislator, said a special function to felicitate the local girls would be held after they return home. More reward
Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda announced a reward of Rs 5 lakh each for six Haryana players who were part of the junior Indian women team that won bronze medal in Germany. Hooda also congratulated the team for winning country’s first ever medal in the tournament. |
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To rejoice or not is the question
Chandigarh, August 5 “It’s a proud moment for all of us, my congratulations to the girls... they have been fantastic,” said Ajit Pal Singh. It, however, doesn’t take long for the World Cup winning captain to see the grim side of this heart-warming story. “It’s of course a fine moment for Indian hockey but it’s very disturbing and demoralising to know that we had to wait for a medal in the World Cup for 38 years. Not that we need but it’s indeed another reminder of the despairing depths our hockey has slithered into,” he said. And soon, the former India captain is rattling out the reasons why Indian hockey is where it is today. “The standards have simply nosedived. We no longer get the players we had in the 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s...there’s such a yawning gap in standards.” “And then, he said, there are hardly anyone playing hockey these days. In the past we had several strong teams competing against each other - BSF, Punjab Police, Railways, Army teams at al. Why, even schools and colleges had brilliant teams. Now, there are hardly any teams and hence the plight of the national game. “Quality always comes from quantity. We keep getting quality cricketers because so many play the game,” he said, explaining the dearth of quality players in hockey. Much as he’s happy for the girls, he refuses to see their success of much significance in the larger context of the revival of Indian hockey. “It can’t be seen as any turning point for Indian hockey. This is one odd win we have been able to notch up and this alone can’t eradicate the sport from various ills it’s afflicted with. It’s of course good for the girls and their confidence, but then that’s perhaps all about it,” he said. What worries him more is the failure of our junior players to make the transition to the senior level. Many of them, no matter how talented, fail to make an impression at the senior level. “Junior players of the hockey powerhouses show impressive growth physically as well as mentally once they hit the senior level. Our players fail to match them and hence the huge gap between us and the top teams,” said Ajit Pal. One hopes this lot of youngsters buck the trend and perform at the senior level too. The standards have simply nosedived. We no longer get the players we had in the 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s...there's such a yawning gap in standards. — Ajit Pal Singh, he led India to World Cup victory in 1975 |
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Dravid lashes out at BCCI, says game’s credibility at stake
New Delhi, August 5 “There are so many fans and so many people who care deeply about this game and it is because of these fans that we are who we are as cricketers. Administrators are there because of the fans and the cricketers to run this game, so credibility of a game, or a board, or even a government for that matter, is important irrespective of what you do. If you are in public life it is important,” he said. Three players from Rajasthan Royals, led by Dravid, were arrested on charges of spot-fixing and the former skipper said such episodes were not good for the image of the players. “A certain amount of reverence, respect and love for cricketers can diminish, and I think it's a really, really sad thing for cricket in this country if that had to happen,” Dravid said. Another former cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar said the administrators do not respond adequately to such crisis since they know that fans have never turned their back on the game, no matter what happens. “When the match-fixing chapter was written in Indian cricket in 1999-2000, when some of the Indian stalwarts were banned, people thought Indian cricket had this severe jolt of credibility and it would all be downhill from then on. “I remember there was an India-Zimbabwe series at home immediately after that particular event and every seat in the stadium was taken. So somewhere I think the administrators know that despite all this, the people will still follow this game passionately. “...Somewhere the administrators feel that they can get away with this, and I think that doesn't quite help in building enough pressure in the management of cricket.”
— PTI |
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MAKA Trophy winners could be awarded this year
Patiala, August 5 About one and a half years back, Punjabi University, Patiala, was busy celebrating the win for the 2010-11 session when the Delhi Court ordered a stay on the notification issued by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India. Consequently, the trophy was not awarded during the National Sports Day (2011) as the Sports Ministry could not arrive at a consensus. The AIU had invited performance details from the member universities till June 30, 2011 but GND University alleged that Punjabi University had sent the entries after the last date. Nonetheless, the ministry issued a notification on February 13, 2012 and GNDU went ahead and filed a writ petition against the decision of Sports Ministry and AIU. Following this, the trophy was not awarded to any university. However, the court later directed the same monitoring committee to review the marks again and that decision is pending till date. The same happened in 2011-12. The ministry claims that it was occupied with the calculations for the previous years and calculate the points before the National Sports Day thus the award for the 2011-12 session was not given. The award for the session of 2005-06 is also pending in the court due to unresolved complications. The regular delay in awarding trophies has irked players and coaches alike who feel that if the trophy is not awarded timely, it loses its charm. SPS Tomar, Under Secretary, Sports Department, Government of India, said, “The ministry has finalized the winners for the past three years and hopefully awards all the three winners this year, if the Rashtrapati Bhawan permits.” “Though an official announcement has not been made, the trophy for 2010-11 now goes to GNDU, while the trophy for 2011-12 is bagged by Punjabi University. As far as the winner of this session, the meetings are still on.” Since the case for 2005-06 trophy is still in the court, there has been no decision on it. |
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Akron (USA), August 5 Seven strokes ahead overnight, the world number one left an elite field trailing in his wake as he signed off with an even-par 70 at Firestone Country Club to land a record eighth title in the World Golf Championships (WGC) event. Woods played rock-steady golf on a warm afternoon at one of his favourite venues, barely making a mistake on the way to a 15-under total of 265 for his fifth PGA Tour title this year in 11 starts. With his eighth victory at Firestone, he equalled the mark he already shares with Sam Snead for most wins at a single PGA Tour event. It also leaves him just three shy of matching Snead’s record 82 career PGA Tour victories. Since turning professional in late 1996, Woods has won at least five times on the US circuit in 10 separate seasons. “One thing I’m proud of is how many World Golf Championships I’ve won,” Woods said. — Reuters
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United reject second Chelsea bid for Rooney London: Manchester United have rejected a second offer from rivals Chelsea for unsettled forward Wayne Rooney. Chelsea tabled an improved bid for Rooney, having had an initial cash offer rebuffed last month. “A bid was received yesterday and immediately rejected,” a United spokesperson said. “Our position remains that he is not for sale.” Rooney left United’s recent pre-season tour of the Far East due to a hamstring injury. He has also been ruled of Tuesday’s pre-season friendly at AIK Stockholm because of a shoulder problem. According to recent media reports, Rooney has been ‘angry and confused’ with his situation at United after comments from new manager David Moyes that suggested he was a backup in attack to Robin van Persie. — Reuters
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Old Trafford's famously fickle weather helped shaky England retain the Ashes after rain ruined the last day of the drawn third test on Monday, destroying Australia's slim hopes of winning the series.
England, who have won the last two Ashes campaigns, lead the five-match encounter 2-0 and as holders will keep the urn in the event of a drawn series.
Manchester, August 5
“I am very happy with the way I fought hard both mentally and physically. I need to play with the same focus and composure in the next round.”
