LONDON, July 18: The new head of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Malcolm speed has written to the captains of the 10 test-playing nations calling on them to help clamp-down on player indiscipline.................more

Court directs BCCI
to file a reply to
Jadeja’s petition

NEW DELHI, July 18: Delhi High Court today asked the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to file its reply within a week to banned cricketer Ajay Jadeja’s writ petition against the BCCI’s five-year ban on him playing competitive cricket..........more

Hairline fracture keeps
Tendulkar away

MUMBAI, July 18: Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar has been ruled out of the ongoing Triangular.....more

Indian soccer team
for England tour
announced

NEW DELHI, July 18: The All India Football Federation today announced a 22-member Indian squad......more

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, July 18: Top handball girl players of Jammu and Kashmir have threatened to quit.........more

Jammu Distt Boxing
Champ from July 21

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, July 18: Jammu and Kashmir Amateur Boxing Association is holding......more

2nd Kulvir Singh Memorial Cricket
Cantt Club reach final, to
meet Bharat Club for title

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, July 18: All-round performance by Vijay Sharma helped Cantt Cricket Club reach the.....more

Sri Lanka snatch 16-run
victory against Kewis

COLOMBO, July 18: Sri Lanka opened up their fire power to successfully......more

ICC to clamp down on player behaviour

LONDON, July 18: The new head of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Malcolm speed has written to the captains of the 10 test-playing nations calling on them to help clamp-down on player indiscipline.

Speed, who took over as ICC chief executive earlier this month, has also contacted top international umpires and match referees urging them to take a "tougher line" in disciplining players.

He told a news conference at lord’s today that there had been "a number of incidents in matches over the past 12 months that have fallen below an acceptable standard...It is time to ensure that all of us charged with protecting the reputation of our great game meet the high standards expected."

Speed’s letter to the captains said that he "appreciated that the international game is fiercely competitive and played for increasingly high stakes" but argued that the image of cricket was being tarnished by on-field clashes.

During England’s tour of Sri Lanka at the start of the year, players from both sides were fined and given suspended bans after a string of incidents, mostly stemming from controversial umpiring decisions.

England batsman Michael Atherton later said it was the most unpleasant series he had played in. (REUTERS)

Court directs BCCI to file a reply to Jadeja’s petition

NEW DELHI, July 18: Delhi High Court today asked the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to file its reply within a week to banned cricketer Ajay Jadeja’s writ petition against the BCCI’s five-year ban on him playing competitive cricket.

Justice Mukul Mudgal told counsel for the chairman of the board K K Venugopal to reply on the merits of the case as the court had not received any arguments from the BCCI on the main issue raised in the case and only points relating to the maintainability of the case had come up and were being discussed.

Today Jadeja’s counsel P P Malhotra submitted that the scope of Article 226 of the constitution, through which a writ of Mandamus had been sought, was very wide and covered pleas for remedy against not only the Government and its agencies but also any individual or a body performing public duty under the statute or any charter or contract.

On July 12, the BCCI had said it has no animosity against banned cricketers like Ajay Jadeja and Mohd. Azharuddin, on whom imposed five-year and life ban respectively was imposed by it from playing competitive cricket for their alleged involvement in matchfixing.

The BCCI, through its counsel Kapil Sibal, told Justice Mudgal’s court that the cricketers were handed out bans because there was a reasonable doubt on their conduct. "They were icons and there was a public outcry against them," he added.

The board made its decision based on reasonable suspicion, it could base its assumptions on material which could be good enough to create doubts in its mind but not necessarily admissible in a court of law.

On July 11, the BCCI submitted in the court that the writ petition moved by Jadeja was not maintainable in law.

Mr Venugopal said the board was not ‘state’, as defined under Article 12 of the constitution, so the civil writ petition filed, under Article 226 of the constitution, by the cricketer was infructuous. A writ under Article 226 could only be issued against the state, he said.

Mr Venugopal said the board was only a society affiliated with the International Cricket Council (ICC) and Jadeja could at best file a civil suit and fight the case in the realm of contract.

Jadeja had filed a writ petition, in February this year, against the five-year ban on him to play cricket imposed by the BCCI.

Mr Malhotra said he was entitled to file the suit as the board was ‘performing the functions of the state’ as it received Government land on subsidised rates, earned money from such land, received tax concessions, got security cover and performed the state’s function of promoting sports (cricket).

Jadeja’s counsel said there were no charges of match-fixing or under-performance against his client and merely knowing somebody who was a punter was no crime.

According to a report submitted by the CBI on October 31 last year, Jadeja is alleged to have established close contacts with bookies for fixing cricket matches.

The court, meanwhile, asked the Union of India to give a clear cut view of whether it held BCCI as performing the functions of the state or not. The Government had held divergent views in the High Court and the apex court.

The BCCI, in December last year, had imposed a life ban on former captain Mohd. Azharuddin and a five-year ban on Manoj Prabhakar, Ajay Sharma and Jadeja for their alleged involvement in matchfixing. The cricketers are also barred from holding any positions in cricket governing bodies or their affiliates. (UNI)

Hairline fracture keeps Tendulkar away

MUMBAI, July 18: Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar has been ruled out of the ongoing Triangular one-day series in Sri Lanka due to a hairline fracture to the big toe of the right foot but may join the team for the test series, if fit.

"The nature of the injury (the hairline fracture, sesamoid) was detected in the afternoon at Hinduja Hospital after reports of a CT Scan done at a local hospital came in," Tendulkar told reporters here this evening.

"I am disappointed at missing the one day series part of the Sri Lankan tour," Tendulkar said and expressed hope that he would be back in the team for the test series starting on August 14, if he recoveries by then.

Giving details of the injury, he said "I had great pain in the match against West Indies on July 4 during the Zimbabwe tour. The pain continued even in the final and after the team physiotherapist Andrew Leipus had an X-ray done on my toe, we decided to rest it for a couple of weeks".

After coming back to India, the swelling subsided but the pain persisted even after putting an ice pack on it, Tendulkar said.

Asked whether he had a stomach upset during the final against the West Indies, Tendulkar replied in the affirmative.

During the league match when Tendulkar hit a century, he immediately heard a click sound of the bone while running between the wickets. "In fact, I told this to Rahul Dravid who was my partner in the middle. That particular night there was swelling and I experienced real pain," he said.

"However, just before the final the pain and swelling subsided and I decided to play as it was a big match," Tendulkar said adding "during the final I again experienced pain while fielding".

"When I came back to India, physiotherapist Andrew Leipus had advised (me) to take rest and put an ice pack on the foot for sometime till the swelling came down but the pain persisted and I was forced to go for a bone scan. The reports which I got today suggested that I have a hairline fracture and doctors have advised rest for 2-3 weeks which means that I will be missing the Triangular one day series in Sri Lanka," the batting maestro said.

"I can now move around but cannot run and jump like we do in a match," he said referring to his fracture.

"However, if I am fit after three weeks, I am hopeful of playing the test series," tendulkar said adding "it is really disappointing to miss the Triangular series". (PTI)

Indian soccer team for England tour announced

NEW DELHI, July 18: The All India Football Federation today announced a 22-member Indian squad for the forthcoming four-match exposure tour to England.

The squad includes the star striker Baichung Bhutia who is currently with the English Club Bury FC and mercurial striker I M Vijyayan, besides three goalkeepers.

The team will be accompanied by the chief coach Sukhwinder Singh, his deputy Brahmanand Shankwalker, technical director Krishnaji Rao and three other officials.

The team: Virender Singh, Balaji, Sangram Mukherjee (GKs), Sur Kumar, Deepak Mondal, Mahesh Gowli, Robert Fernandes, K V Danesh, Daljit Singh, Jules Alberto, Khaled Jamil, Renedy Singh, R P Singh, Hardip Sangha, Deepankar Roy, I M Vijayan, Alvito D’ Cunha, Najeeb, Hardip Gill, Bijen Singh, M Suresh and Baiching Bhutia. (PTI)

Harassed by JU coach, Association
Handball girl players threaten to quit game

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, July 18: Top handball girl players of Jammu and Kashmir have threatened to quit the game, if the undue interference from the Jammu University coach at the Parade college training centre and harassment by the Jammu and Kashmir Handball Association led by S M Bali, did not stop.

These players, some of whom were medalist at the North-Zone level competitions, were speaking under the banner of Adhoc Committee of the Jammu and Kashmir Handball Association to the newsmen at the University Campus here today.

It was alleged that the Jammu and Kashmir Handball Association is harassing the outstanding players by ignoring them for the national level competitions.

Convenor of the adhoc committee, Bachan Dogra said that the general secretary of the Handball Federation of India, Mr S M Bali, who belongs to J&K, "is not undertaking the bonafide and talented players for India camp instead such players are being selected who have hardly six months of experience, thus demoralising the talented players".

He said that earlier the discrimination at the hands of Association was limited to the boys, but now, it has spread to the girl players also.

Telling their tale of woes, they said that a handball coach of the Jammu University, namely Sudesh Kumar, who has nothing to do with the girls coaching centre at Government College for Women, Parade, was harrasing them by dividing the trainees among themselves.

The Parade college girls coaching centre has been provided with a woman coach by the State Sports Council, but the Jammu University coach was always creating trouble for both coach and trainees, alleged the girls.

An appeal has been made to the Secretary, J&K State Sports Council for his personal intervention in this case so that girl players were not demoralised in any manner at the hands of the said coach.

Others who spoke on the occasion were Sandhya, Neetu Mahajan, Sonika Bhandari, Chandan Singh Chowhan, Ankush Abrol, Sanjeev Jamwal and Desh Bandhu.