LONDON, July 8: Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia shattered Tim Henman’s Wimbledon dream with a come-from-behind 7-5 6-7 (6/8) 0-6 7-6 (7/5) 6-3 win in a rain-ruined men’s singles semi-final today..........more

Tendulkar, Zaheer
top averages

HARARE, July 8: Indians failed to win the Triangular one-day series in Zimbabwe but they bagged all the top honours emerging with the best batting and bowling averages in the tournament......more

Hussain agony as Australia
crush outclassed England

BIRMINGHAM (England), July 8: England captain Nasser Hussain was struck by his injury jinx again as.....more

Hussain fractures finger
in new injury jinx

BIRMINGHAM (England), July 8: England captain Nasser Hussain fractured his little finger after being hit......more

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, July 8: Raipur Satwari Cricket Club today defeated Lions Cricket Club......more

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as camp begins today

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JAMMU, July 8: India’s ace striker and former captain Dhanaraj Pillay, who is facing...more

2nd Summer Cup Open
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JAMMU, July 8: Second Summer Cup Open Table Tennis Championship.....more

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on July 11

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Ivanisevic into Wimbledon final as Henman’s
dream is wrecked

LONDON, July 8: Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia shattered Tim Henman’s Wimbledon dream with a come-from-behind 7-5 6-7 (6/8) 0-6 7-6 (7/5) 6-3 win in a rain-ruined men’s singles semi-final today.

In the rescheduled title-match tomorrow, the 29-year-old Ivanisevic will play against third-seeded Pat Rafter of Australia.

The Croatian is the first wildcard ever to make it through to a final of a Grand Slam event. It will be his fourth final here after three previous losses.

The win took Ivanisevic 3hr 03min, but it was spread over a nerve-wracking three days because of persistent rain. The first serve was banged down by Ivanisevic yesterday afternoon and Henman’s final return floated wide 44 hours later this afternoon.

Ivanisevic fell to his knees, stretched out on to his back and raised his arms aloft as the pressure-boiler came to an end. "It’s unbelievable," he said. "It’s destiny, god wanted me to win. Tomorrow will be the biggest day of my life. I can’t lose another final. It would kill me," he said.

"First and foremost it’s a disappointment," said Henman whose life’s ambition is to become the first British player to win Wimbledon since Fred Perry in 1936.

"It was a pretty long three days, but I must give Goran the credit for the way he played. It was a tough match but he was the one who came out on top.

"I did my best but it wasn’t good enough this year. But I will certainly be back for many more tries. I believe I will win this tournament one day."

The second semi-final had been cruelly put on the back burner by rain for a first time late yesterday with sixth seeded Henman poised to win, two sets to one up and leading 2-1 in the fourth with the Croatian serving at 40-30.

The British number one had been on a magnificent roll at the time having won the third set 6-0 in under 15 minutes and with Ivanisevic unravelling.

The rain held up the start of proceedings again today for four and a half hours with the men’s semi scheduled on the centre court prior to the women’s singles final between Venus Williams and Justine Henin.

It eventually got underway in the late afternoon as the rain relented and Ivanisevic grabbed his chance to level the set scores at 2-2.

He was leading 3-2 in the decider with Henman 30-15 on his serve when the covers were brought on again and play was abandoned.

After late night consultations with both players, tournament referee Alan Mills said the final would be rescheduled for tomorrow, the first time that had happened since Stefan Edberg beat Boris Becker in four sets in 1988.

When the marathon finally resumed in cool, damp conditions today, Henman held his serve to level at 3-3.

The British player got to 0-30 in the next game, but Ivanisevic blasted down four big serves to take a 4-3 lead.

And in the next game the Croatian made the vital break slamming back a big forehand which Henman could only tip into the net. Serving for the match, Ivanisevic sent down two double faults but still clinched a berth in the final on his third match point, Henman’s return floating wide.

The last act to this centre court drama lasted just 16 minutes.

"I feel sorry for him. This was the biggest match of his career but also for me," said the Croatian.

Ivanisevic now stands just one match away from sealing one of the greatest comebacks in tennis history.

Struggling for any kind of a win over the last two years and wracked by injuries, his ranking had slumped into the three figures and the general feeling was that he was a spent force.

But the Wimbledon organisers took sympathy on the giant from split and gave him a wildcard into the championships.

The transformation was immediate as Ivanisevic started to unleash his howitzer services as in the good old days and opponents cowered.

A prime-time, centre court win over American prodigy Andy Roddick in the third round pumped him up further and then he put a first spoke in the British wheel by crushing Greg Rusedski in the last 16.

Fourth seed Marat Safin followed in the quarter-finals and then he bit the British hand that fed him with the wildcard by trouncing Henman for a place in the final.

For Henman it was the bitterest of pills to swallow as he had appeared to be storming into the finals before the London rain got in his way.

He twice got to within two points of becoming the first British player to reach the final since Bunny Austin in 1938.

It was the third time he had fallen at the semi-final stage after losses to Pete Sampras in 1998 and 1999, and at 26 he may never get a better chance. (AFP)

Tendulkar, Zaheer top averages

HARARE, July 8: Indians failed to win the Triangular one-day series in Zimbabwe but they bagged all the top honours emerging with the best batting and bowling averages in the tournament.

Sachin Tendulkar, who remained unbeaten three out of five innings, aggregated 282 runs, the highest in the tournament, for an average of 141.00 and leads the batting table by miles. His closest competitor was wicket-keeper Samir Dighe who by virtue of his unbeaten 94 in the final yesterday emerged with an average of 103.00 from two innings.

Zaheer Khan was the highest wicket-taker in the tournament with 11 victims which gave him an average of 17.77, also the best.

Captain Saurav Ganguly, who had a couple of decent scores in the tournament after a string of failures in the test series, finished with an average of 39.40.

Reetinder Singh Sodhi (83.00) and Rahul Dravid (40.33) were the other notable performers with the bat. Ashish Nehra who topped the bowling averages in the test series could manage only four wickets in the one-day series with an average of 39.25. Ajit Agarkar (20.25), Debasish Mohanty (25.00) and Harvinder Singh (22.50) also had good shows.

Marlon Samuels, with an average of 60.00, and Guy Whittall, who averaged 68.00, lead the batting tables for West Indies and Zimbabwe respectively. The bowling department for the two teams was respectively spearheaded by Colin Collymore (five wickets for 18.40) and Grant Flower (six wickets for 21.33). (PTI)

Hussain agony as Australia crush outclassed England

BIRMINGHAM (England), July 8: England captain Nasser Hussain was struck by his injury jinx again as Australia cruised to a crushing innings victory in the first ashes test today.

Steve Waugh’s side routed the home side by an innings and 118 runs, tearing the heart out of England’s second innings either side of lunch on the fourth day as the home side slumped from 142 for two to 164 all out.

The collapse began after Hussain, in his first game back for England following a previous hand injury, was struck on the left hand by Jason Gillespie, the delivery fracturing his little finger and ruling him out of the rest of the match.

Gillespie then removed Alec Stewart, Usman Afzaal and all-rounder Craig White for four runs in 15 balls.

Leg-spinner Shane Warne dismissed top-scorer Marcus Trescothick for 76, caught at first slip by Mark Waugh, and Darren Gough lbw for a golden duck, only for Andrew Caddick to survive the hat-trick ball.

Warne, however, sealed the game with his eighth wicket of the game.

Australia set up the win thanks to centuries from captain Steve Waugh, Damien Martyn and Adam Gilchrist, whose scintillating 152 came off 143 deliveries.

Hussain broke his right thumb in the first test against Pakistan in May. He was also sidelined by hand injuries in 1999 and 2000. He will see a specialist tomorrow. (REUTERS)

SCOREBOARD

England first innings 294 (A Stewart 65, M Atherton 57

S Warne 5-75)

Australia first innings 576 (A Gilchrist 152, D Martyn 105, S Waugh 105)

England second innings

M Atherton c M Waugh b McGrath 4

M Trescothick not out 76

M Butcher b Gilchrist b Lee 41

N Hussain retired hurt 9

I Ward b Lee 3

A Stewart c Warne b Gillespie 5

U Afzaal lbw b Gillespie 2

C White b Gillespie 0

A Giles c Waugh b Warne 0

A Caddick not out 6

Extras (b-1 lb-5 nb-12) 18

Total (all out, 42.1 overs) 164

Fall of wickets: 1-4 2-99 3-142 4-148 5-150 6-154 7-155 8-155 9-164

Bowling: McGrath 13-5-34-1 (5nb), Gillespie 11-2-52-3 (4nb), Warne 10.1-4-29-3 (1nb), M Waugh 1-0-6-0, Lee 7-0-37-2 (2nb) (REUTERS)

Hussain fractures finger in new injury jinx

BIRMINGHAM (England), July 8: England captain Nasser Hussain fractured his little finger after being hit on the left hand by pace bowler Jason Gillespie on the fourth morning of the first Ashes test at Edgbaston today.

Hussain had just returned to lead the side after breaking his right thumb in the first test against Pakistan in May.

He was ruled out of the rest of the Edgbaston game and will see a specialist on Monday.

England were fighting to save the match after being reduced to 154 for six in their second innings at lunch, still 128 runs behind after Australia made 576 in their first knock.

Hussain’s recent career has been plagued by injuries.

He broke his thumb in the first test against Pakistan at Lord’s in May when he was hit by a bouncer from Shoaib Akhtar, sidelining him from the second test and a Triangular one-day Tournament with Pakistan and Australia.

In 1999, he broke his middle right finger at Lord’s against New Zealand.

Last season, he missed the Lord’s victory over West Indies in the second test after breaking his left thumb while fielding for his county side essex.

Hussain also returned home early from the tour of Sri Lanka earlier this year with a groin strain, missing the one-day series after England had won the tests 2-1. (REUTERS)

2nd Kulvir Singh Memorial Cricket Tourney
Raipur Club beats Lions Club, enter semi-finals

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, July 8: Raipur Satwari Cricket Club today defeated Lions Cricket Club by 42 runs to enter the semi-finals of the ongoing 2nd Kulbir Singh Memorial Cricket Tournament being organised by the Azad Cricket Club at Government Model School, Satwari, here.

Batting first after winning the toss, Raipur Club set a target of 140 runs in the allotted 20 overs, which Lions Club could not chase and bowled out for 96 when 18th over was in progress.

Sanju was top scorer with 32 runs off 17 balls, while Balbir and Rajinder contributed 24 and 23 runs respectively for Raipur Club.

From Lions Club, Bansi Lal was the most successful bowler with two wickets, while Imtiaz, Hardeep and Babu shared one each.

Batting second, Lions Club could not face the bowling wrath of Raipur Club and started losing wickets at regular intervals and their innings ended at a score of 96 in the 18th over.

Imtiaz was the main scorer who contributed 17 runs, while Babu and Sham added 12 and 11 runs respectively. Manoj was the successful bowler from Raipur, who took four wickets and was declared as man of the match. Iqbal bagged two.

Cantt Cricket Club has already entered into the semi-finals beating Atman Cricket Club.

Jangu and Mini were the umpires in today match, while Jimmy was scorer.