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| India drub China in four-nation Hockey tourney NEW DELHI, May 16: Overcoming their 2-3 defeat in the previous match against South Korea, India trounced China 4-0 in their last league match of the four-nation Prince Takamodonomiya Cup at Gifu, Japan today...................more Shoaib
shines with LAHORE, May 16: Whenever he shone with the bat, trouble followed him and his latest heroics for Durham once again landed Shoaib Akhtar in soup........more Sunny
India’s greatest HYDERABAD, May 16: Encomiums poured in from one cricketing legend to another. Sunil Gavaskar is the greatest cricketer the country has ever produced, Wisden’s Indian cricketer of the century Kapil Dev told UNI.............more Imran to
take custody LONDON, May 16: Pakistan’s cricketer-turned- politician Imran Khan will take custody of his 12-year old girl child out of wedlock following the sudden death of her mother in the US on Thursday...........more |
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Volleyball Association Kathua elects new office bearers Excelsior Sports Correspondent KATHUA, May 16: Elections of the District Volleyball Association were here today under the chairmanship of a veteran Volleyball player—Madan Lal Toofan................more Inter-School
Tournaments Excelsior Sports Correspondent POONCH, May 16: Inter-School Tournaments of Poonch Zone in the discipline of Kabaddi, Volleyball and Kho-Kho and in the age group of 14 and 17 years for boys concluded today..........more Ban on
Murali’s ‘doosra’ By R Mohan The curious case of Muttiah Muralitharan continues to provide more twists and turns than a Hollywood action.......more West
Indies scramble LONDON, May 16: West Indies survived a major scare before beating Bangladesh by one wicket in the first one-day international.......more |
India drub China in four-nation Hockey tourney NEW DELHI, May 16: Overcoming their 2-3 defeat in the previous match against South Korea, India trounced China 4-0 in their last league match of the four-nation Prince Takamodonomiya Cup at Gifu, Japan today. According to information received here, this was their second win after beating hosts Japan 2-1 in the opener. Scoring twice in each half, India set up a possible title clash with the Asian Games champions South Korea on Tuesday. Meanwhile, heavy rain delayed the start of the Japan- South Korea encounter which would take place late this evening or tomorrow. In today’s match, India’s goalgetters were Arjun Halappa (11th min), Inderjit Singh Chadha (26th min), Girish Pimpale (52nd min) and Adam Sinclair (63rd min). India began the match on an aggressive mode, even though a constant drizzle played spoilsport. India created regular breaches in the Chinese wall of defence as attacks came from both flanks, with forwards Sandeep Michael, Tushar Khandker and Arjun Halappa keeping their Chinese opponents always on their toes. The Indian midfielders, especially Ignace Tikey, Bimal Lakra, V S Vinaya and Vivek Gupta not only proved themselves outstanding positional markers, but also moved upfront. They thwarted the Chinese attacks with efficient tackles and ball rotations. India, in fact, should have taken the lead in the very fifth minute through Khandker, but the third highest scorer of the Karachi Junior Asia Cup shot wide even though he had only the Chinese goalkeeper at his mercy. India were awarded their first of four penalty corners in the eighth minute when Sandeep Michael was obstructed in the China circle. However, his namesake and penalty corner specialist Sandeep Singh narrowly missed the mark as his push went inches wide. Indian finally had the lead in the 11th minute through Halappa when the Bangalore lad moved in tandem with citymate Michael to beat the Chinese custodian with a spectacular reverse flick(1-0). India dominated the proceedings, even though play had to be suspended once in each session owing to heavy rains resulting in the waterlogging of the pitch. Winger Inderjit Singh Chadha made it 2-0 in the 26th minute when he latched on to a rebound off an indirect penalty corner. The Indians did not provide any leeway to their opponents even in the second half despite the game slowing down due to the heavy turf. The calibration and cohesion of the forwards with the medios was as good as clinical. India increased the lead in the 52nd minute when the 20-year-old Indian Airlines stipend recruit Girish Pimpale, playing as an attacking halfback, was set up by Halappa at a fairly acute angle in the striking circle. The Mumbai-based student deftly pushed home after beating two defenders(3-0). Adam Sinclair, another member of the recent victorious Junior Asia Cup squad rounded off the Indian tally, sounding the board from the edge of the circle in the 63rd minute, after intercepting a long through ball from skipper Ignace Tirkey(4-0). China earned their only penalty corner in the dying moments of the match after William Xalco was pulled up for deliberate obstruction, but their attempt to reduce the margin was warded off by goalkeeper Adrian D’Souza who palmed away the sweep push. With this win, India now have six points from three games, while South Korea enjoy an unbeaten record of six points from two matches. Hosts Japan have three points from two games and only if they upset the Koreans by a huge margin, they would make it to the final. India also enjoy a healthy goal difference of plus four. Chief coach Rajinder Singh said that if his team reached the final, they would have to blend caution with aggression against the South Koreans who are in gifu with their full Olympic squad. "This experimental side has shaped well and with a bit of luck, we might bring the title home," Rajinder said. (UNI) |
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Shoaib shines with bat, lands in trouble LAHORE, May 16: Whenever he shone with the bat, trouble followed him and his latest heroics for Durham once again landed Shoaib Akhtar in soup. Surprised by the speedster’s performance in the match against somerset, Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Shahryar Khan has decided to write a letter to the enigmatic pacer asking him to explain how he could recover so fast after reaching England. After Shoaib fell while bowling during the Rawalpindi test against India, he refused to take ground and bowl further. (UNI) |
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Sunny India’s greatest cricketer: Kapil HYDERABAD, May 16: Encomiums poured in from one cricketing legend to another. Sunil Gavaskar is the greatest cricketer the country has ever produced, Wisden’s Indian cricketer of the century Kapil Dev told UNI. Kapil Dev was here last night as Chairman, Hero Indian Sports Academy (HISA), during the presentation of the second HISA awards for excellence in sports for the year 2003. "I only hope more corporates get involved in honouring sportspersons, after the lead taken by Hero Honda. Not only the outstanding sports talent is recognised, HISA is also supporting two social projects of the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation in India. "This year two needy former greats have been given purse of Rs one lakh each. In only the second year, HISA has done wonders. Inspired by the laureus world sports awards, the HISA provides the ideal platform for a perfect melange of entertainment and sport to celebrate sporting achivements throughout India." As HISA Chairman, Kapil said the onus was on him and his team to come up with more schemes for the benefit of needy sportspersons. "there is good money in cricket which is not the case in other sports. Somewhere along the line, the balance has to be restored." Deeming the recent win in Pakistan as a historic one, the ‘Haryana Hurricane,’ said the present Indian team had blended nicely under Sourav Ganguly. Would he rate the team better than the one when he made his debut under Bishan Singh Bedi in the Pakistan tour of 1978, smashing Sarfraz Nawaz all over the park at Faisalabad in that hurricane knock of 57. "Yes, to a large extent. The depth now in the Indian batting is all there to see. The top six has settled cosily, which is an envy for any opposition. With Yuvraj leaving his mark in the tests too, the selectors have an enviable option. The need is to look for a wealthy crop of spinners as a back-up once the days of Kumble and Harbhajan are over." Kapil had a special word of praise for Gundappa Viswanath, who received the award on behalf of brother-in-law Sunil Gavaskar, conferred the lifetime achivement award. "A great cricketer and a gentleman off the field, Viswanath was in a league of his own. He brought charm with his approach to the game. There cannot be a better cricketing sight when Vishy was in flow. His double century (222) against England at Chepauk in ’81 was one of the best I had witnessed during my career. It was artistry at its delightful best." (UNI) |
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Imran to take custody of his ‘love child’ LONDON, May 16: Pakistan’s cricketer-turned- politician Imran Khan will take custody of his 12-year old girl child out of wedlock following the sudden death of her mother in the US on Thursday. Khan flew to Los Angeles last night to bring home his ‘love child’ Tyrian after her multi-millionaire mother Sita White collapsed, having apparently suffered a heart attack near her home in home in Beverly Hills, a report said here today. Quoting her friends, ‘The Mail On Sunday’ said the 43-year old Sita, a fitness fanatic, had taken steroids which exacerbated an existing heart condition. For years, the 51-year-old cricketing legend refused to acknowledge Tyrian, born in 1992, as his child until Sita won a paternity suit in 1997. He finally met his child the following year. Khan and his wife Jemima now are understood to have discussed bringing the 12-year-old to live with them and their sons Sulaiman, 7, and Qasim, 4, in Britain. Sita’s will stipulated that Khan got "full and complete parental rights over Tyrian if anything happened", her friend was quoted as saying. "Tyrian and Imran now have a strong bond despite his reluctance to acknowledge her during her early years," the friend said. Khan also had the support of Jemima in bringing Tyrian to live with them, ‘The Mail’ said. Jemima, according to the tabloid, told a friend: "We are committed to doing whatever is best for Tyrian and we are both very happy for her to move to the UK and live with us if that’s what she wants." "What Imran and Jemima care most about is the fact that a 12-year-old girl has tragically lost her mother. Although Jemima never met Sita, they were in regular contact about Tyrian. They had a very good relationship." Jemima met Tyrian for the first time three years ago. She spent six weeks in the summer of 2001 with the Khans. She has returned to the Kk and stayed with the Khans every summer since then. The eldest daughter of billionaire businessman Lord ‘Gordy’ white, Sita was born into a world of privilege at the family’s London home in Eaton Square. But she died alone on the floor of a one-storey yellow concrete yoga studio in Santa Monica. She had been working as a yoga instructor for five years. Friends say she spent the last months of her life obsessed by a desperate desire to maintain her muscular six-foot frame. It was a desperation which, one source said, may have driven her to drugs. Sita was married twice - to Italian photographer Francesco Venturi and to Malboro model Alan Marshall. She met Imran in 1985 and ended their affair a year before Tyrian’s conception in 1991. According to the report, Sita always maintained that it was the result of one final night of love with Imran in Los Angeles. (PTI) |
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Volleyball Association Kathua elects new office bearers Excelsior Sports Correspondent KATHUA, May 16: Elections of the District Volleyball Association were here today under the chairmanship of a veteran Volleyball player—Madan Lal Toofan. Representatives of 15 Volleyball clubs of district Kathua participated in the meeting convened for holding elections. Joint secretary of J&K Volleyball Association Romesh Sharma was the observer while the meeting was also attended by general secretary of J&K Volleyball Association Kuldeep Magotra and vice-president S D Singh. The participants unanimously elected Satish Sharma as president, Mohinder Kumar Sharma as senior vice-president, Surat Singh Jasrotia, vice-president, Raman Sharma, general secretary, Narinder Tonny, joint secretary and Ram Lal Sharma, cashier. In addition to the office bearers, 11 members executive committee of the District Volleyball Association Kathua was also formed in the meeting. The executive committee members are M L Toofan, Paramjit Singh, Attar Singh, Madan Lal, Romesh Singh, Dalbir Singh, Sakattar Lal, Makhan Lal and Joginder Singh. |
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Inter-School Tournaments of Poonch Zone conclude Excelsior Sports Correspondent POONCH, May 16: Inter-School Tournaments of Poonch Zone in the discipline of Kabaddi, Volleyball and Kho-Kho and in the age group of 14 and 17 years for boys concluded today. S N Khajuria, Principal Higher Secondary School Poonch inaugurated the Tournament. Mr O P Gupta, Chief Education Officer Poonch was the chief guest on the final day and distributed prizes among the winners and runners-up. In the Under-14 years category, Middle School Shahpur defeated Middle School Daradullian by six points in Kabaddi, Middle School Kuniyan defeated Middle School Karmugarh by two points in Volleyball and Middle School Daradulian defeated Middle School Dharati by two points in Kho-Kho. In the Under-17 years, High School Ajote defeated HSS Poonch by 10 points in Kabaddi, HSS Poonch defeated High School Islamabad by two points in Volleyball and GHS Degwar defeated HSS Poonch by one point in Kho-Kho. District Youth Services and Sports Officer Poonch thanked the chief guest, heads of the institutions and prominent citizens of the Poonch for extended cooperation during the tournaments. |
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Ban on Murali’s ‘doosra’ defies all logics By R Mohan The curious case of Muttiah Muralitharan continues to provide more twists and turns than a Hollywood action thriller. The latest development is he has been forced to leave the much villified "doosra" out of his armoury. The flying saucer-eyed offie may be doing so not in deference to the boffins who tested him in Western Australia but in fear of a one-year ban. He has adapted the sensible course since the ruling at least allows him to bowl his off breaks in the funny action that has been his trademark. So frustrated was the Kandy Tamil at the unusual attention being paid to his bowling that he spoke of defying the ban and continuing to spray the Zimbabweans with his "doosra." in this era of excessive media attention, such a knee-jerk reaction is understandable. But then Murali would have to consider how kind the law makers have been to him since they even changed the laws to accommodate the huge use of the wrist in delivering the ball. In refining the new weapon that he bowls with very little discernible change in his bowling action, Murali took the art of bowling to a new plane though not necessarily a higher one. Anyone who has played one-bounce catch cricket on rain days on the hard floors of dressing rooms will tell you that the "doosra" is the ball they throw every time to make the leather cricket ball turn and gain some advantage over batsmen trying desperately to keep the ball down. The boffins can claim what they want. But the "doosra" is always thrown. Whether all bowlers bend and then straighten their bowling arm during delivery is a matter that needs study. Before we buy any theories spouted by the bio-mechanical experts, consider the fact that bowling in a laboratory is far different from doing it in match conditions. Frustrated by all the attacks on the nature of his world test bowling record, Murali even bowled a genuine, orthodox leg break which Dion Ebrahim promptly described as the only legal ball that Murali bowled that day. Such are the extreme reactions to a spinner who has surprised the cricket world by taking his wickets at 5.8 wickets per test. The strike rate is awesome considering how the world s best fast bowlers like Dennis Lillee and Richard Hadlee have averaged only five wickets per test. It does not become easy to reconcile such statistics because the world s most successful spinners with the exception of Murali have had a success rate well below five wickets per test. One would not like to take away the credit from a spinner of superlative skills who has befuddled batsmen with the amount of turn he imparts to what can be described as his normal delivery which is the off break. If he has had his wrong one taken away from him, then it is only fair to conclude that something is wrong with the way he bowls it. Murali was a vastly successful bowler long before he perfected the extra special "doosra" that he now turns at a pace and to a degree that is not consistent with the first principles of spin bowling. On the face of it, such a ban is illogical, it is a bit like saying a fast bowler cannot bowl any ball beyond the 90 mph mark or that he cannot bowl the slower one. The problem is Murali is a peculiar case. Cricket always took for granted that umpires would be judges of what constitutes legal bowling methods. But the moment Australian umpires called Murali, such judgment was virtually taken away from them. All the regular noises about ridding the game of the dart throwers are still being heard. Very little of the action taken makes sense in the defining test of modern cricket which is that of bowlers with doubtful actions. The solution does not lie with straightening out the test case. To weed out those who arrive at a mockup of actions of the likes of Muralitharan and Shoaib Akhtar would be the ideal. To attempt to know more about the mechanics of bowling is fine. That may help define what is legitimate overarm bowling and what is a throw. For the moment, the curious case of Muttiah Muralitharan will only grow curiouser and curiouser. (UNI) |
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West Indies scramble past Bangladesh LONDON, May 16: West Indies survived a major scare before beating Bangladesh by one wicket in the first one-day international in St Vincent yesterday. The hosts, chasing a modest 145 for victory, collapsed from 81 for two to 133 for nine before Ian Bradshaw eased the winning single off Mohammad Rafique in the 47th over. West Indies had appeared to be cruising as opener Ricardo Powell hit 52, but two run outs and some inspired bowling by Manjural Islam, who took three for 21, took Bangladesh to the brink of a famous victory. Bangladesh got off to a terrible start in their innings, losing their first three wickets for five runs, two of them to tino best who ended with four for 35. However, an unbeaten ninth-wicket stand of 62 between Khaled Mashud and Rafique ensured the visitors batted out their 50 overs. (AGENCIES) 26 scale Mt Everest in past two days KATHMANDU, May 16: A total of 26 persons of various countries including Nepal have successfully scaled Mt Everest, the highest peak in the world in the past two days. A six-member mountaineering team of the US and Canada including two Nepalese Sherpas had successfully climbed the Everest yesterday from South East Ridge. According to a press release issued today by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, The successful climbers are Daniel Barter, Brien Sheddy, Jason Tanguay all from the US, Rauno of Canada, Karma Rita Sherpa and Mingma Tshering Sherpa of Nepal, the ministry said. Likewise, five members of 2004 Mt Everest expedition mountaineering team including four Sherpas have successfully scaled the 8,848-metre high Mt Everest from South East ridge this morning. The successful climbers are Thomas Ian MacMillan of the US and Nima Tashi Sherpa, Pem Dorje Sherpa, Nawang Sherpa and Nima Gombu Sherpa of Nepal. A five-member mountaineering team of Malaysia including three Sherpas climbed Mt Everest from South East Ridge this morning. The successful climbers are Muhammad Muqharabbin Bin Mokhtaruddin, Amhed Reduan Rozali of Malaysia and NGA Temba Sherpa, Pasang Ringee Sherpa, and Doma Chhiri Sherpa of Nepal. A team from Greece also climbed the highest peak from South East Ridge today. The climbers include Georios Voutiropolous, Panagiotis Kotronaros, Antonio’s Antonopoulos, Mike Styllas and Pavlos Tsiantos. They scaled the peak with Nepalese Sherpas Pema Tshiring Sherpa, Mingma Sherpa, Tashi Lakpa Sherpa, Tshering Tashi Sherpa, Pasang Sherpa, the ministry stated in the press release. Tourism is one of the major foreign currency earner in the Himalayan Kingdom. More than 1,200 climbers have scaled the Mt Everest since Tenzing Norgay Sherpa and Edmund Hillary scaled the peak for the first time in May 1953. (UNI) Seniors ignored, Sami to
represent Champions LAHORE, May 16: In a rather queer decision, the Pakistan Cricket Board ignored the senior players and nominated rookie pacer Mohammed Sami to represent the country at the unveiling ceremony of the ICC Champions Trophy in London tomorrow. While skipper Inzamam-ul Haq was not considered for the honour, vice-captain Yousuf Youhana and speedster Shoaib Akhtar also got a cold shoulder from the board despite both playing county cricket in England and thus could have easily been there for the event. All other countries are expected to be represented by senior players at the trophy unveiling ceremony. Sami’s nomination has taken the local media by surprise and they have questioned the logic behind such decision. Sami, never a good communicator, was bound to an embarrassment at the event, they said. According to a PCB source, Sami had been nominated to represent the country because when the ICC first asked the board to nominate its representative, it was not clear when Shoaib would be leaving for England to play for Durham because of his injury. (UNI) Leander-Rikl duo ousted at Hamburg NEW DELHI, May 16: Leander Paes and his Czech partner David Rikl have bowed out of the the 2.4 million Euro ATP Tennis Masters Doubles at Hamburg, Germany. According to information received here, the unseeded duo went down to top seeded American pair of Bob and Mike Bryan 6-7 (4/7) 3-6 in the yesterday’s semifinal. The Paes-Rikl pair, however, defended their 225 ATP points they had earned after reaching the last four stage at the same event last year. (UNI) Australia’s Zimbabwe tour could be pointless, fears Waugh MELBOURNE, May 16: Steve Waugh has said Australia’s tour of Zimbabwe could become a pointless exercise if the African side continue to be without their best players because of a selection dispute. "If they (Zimbabwe) turn up with the present side they’ve got now, it will be pretty close to a waste of time," the former Australia captain said in a television interview today. Zimbabwe’s former captain Heath Streak and 14 other players were sacked on May 10 in a dispute over the all-rounder’s removal as skipper and the composition of the selection panel. Top-ranked Australia departed for Africa on Thursday and will play a three-day match against Zimbabwe A in Harare tomorrow. The first test starts there on May 22. "There’s no doubt Australia will win the series easily if they (Zimbabwe) don’t change their current line-up," said Waugh, who retired in January 2004 as the most-capped player in test cricket. "But I think australian teams have always been motivated by a challenge. I don’t think they would play as well as they normally play, against a side like that. "They would much rather play against a full-strength side and that would get the best out of their skills," the 38-year-old added. (AGENCIES) |
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