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| Argentina complete 4-1 win over Australia SYDNEY, July 17: David Nalbandian and Guillermo Coria both recorded straight-set wins to secure a 4-1 win for Argentina in their Davis Cup quarter-final with Australia at the Olympic tennis ......more Globalising
cricket and KOLKATA, July 17: While acknowledging gratitude for being honoured with the IJHS Award, former ICC Chairman Jagmohan Dalmiya said, ''for .......more Unexpected West Indian resistence stings Lanka COLOMBO, July 17: Sri Lankan captain Marvan Atapattu today called for an improved display by his batsmen after a hard-fought six-wicket win over ...........more Last ditch effort to save Shabbir's career KARACHI, July 17: Pakistan Cricket Board will make a last ditch effort to save the sinking career of fast bowler Shabbir Ahmed by consulting Australian specialists. PCB's director cricket operations, Saleem Altaf, today said he had written to Prof Bruce Elliott and Daryl Foster in ......more |
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Army Commander’s Golf Cup tourney held at BEPTA Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 17: Army Commander’s Golf Cup 2005 held at Bhalual Environment .......more Nirmal
Singh made Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 17: Known Ranji Trophy player in the State, Nirmal Singh has been ..............more Mahesh
Bhupathi to BANGALORE, July 17: India's tennis doubles star Mahesh Bhupathi is graduating to a new level .........more Not
playing in India NEW DELHI, July 17: Not playing in India is the biggest void in his otherwise illustrious career, admitted new Team India coach Greg Chappell.Talking to NDTV's 'Walk the Talk' programme, the former Australia captain said, ''I did not get to play in India at any ........more |
Argentina complete 4-1 win over Australia SYDNEY, July 17: David Nalbandian and Guillermo Coria both recorded straight-set wins to secure a 4-1 win for Argentina in their Davis Cup quarter-final with Australia at the Olympic tennis centre today. Nalbandian demolished Lleyton Hewitt 6-2 6-4 6-4 to give the South Americans an unassailable 3-1 lead, before Coria defeated Peter Luczak 6-3 7-6 in the concluding dead rubber. Argentina have never won the Davis Cup but have reached the semi-finals three times in the past four years. They will play either Slovakia or the Netherlands in September for a place in the final. ''I can't believe this moment, this is great,'' Nalbandian said after being mobbed by his jubilant team mates. ''To beat Australia here, and on grass, for us that's amazing.'' Nalbandian produced a near-perfect display to overwhelm a strangely subdued Hewitt, who committed a staggering 45 unforced errors and served six double-faults. ''It was a weird feeling out there today, I just didn't step up to the plate when I needed to,'' Hewitt said. ''I needed to dictate play a bit more on the big points but I just sort of went into my shell a little bit.'' Nalbandian had lost each of his three previous encounters against Hewitt, including the 2002 Wimbledon final and the quarter-finals of this year's Australian Open, but could not have picked a better moment to exact his revenge. The pair have made no secret of their intense dislike for each other after their heated clash at Melbourne in January and there was no sign of the rift healing after a bitter war of words erupted between the Argentine and Australian camps following Hewitt's spiteful win over Coria in Friday's opening rubber. However, Nalbandian wasted little time stamping his authority on Hewitt, who had not lost a Davis Cup singles match since his defeat to Nicolas Escude in the 2001 final with France. DROP SHOT Nalbandian broke the world number two's serve in the third game when Hewitt hit a backhand wide after the Argentine had set up the break with a cleverly disguised drop shot. The world number 10 broke Hewitt's serve again in the fifth game when the Australian made another unforced error off his backhand, then sealed the opening set after 38 minutes on yet another uncharacteristic Hewitt mistake. ''I think he was very, very nervous,'' Nalbandian said. ''That gave me confidence and made it easier for me.'' The Argentine broke Hewitt's faltering serve twice more in the second set to establish a 4-1 lead and although he dropped a service game of his own, he held his nerve to grab a two-set lead with a booming ace down the centre of the court. Hewitt squandered an early chance to break back early in the third set and was left to rue his last real opportunity when Nalbandian broke the Australian in the next game to open up a decisive lead which he never surrendered, completing a one-sided victory in less than two hours. ''I didn't have a great day out there today, my ball striking just wasn't as good as I would have liked,'' Hewitt said. ''He played solid right from the start to the end and whenever I got small opportunities out there I didn't take them.'' (AGENCIES) |
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Globalising
cricket and Indo-Pak tie KOLKATA, July 17: While acknowledging gratitude for being honoured with the IJHS Award, former ICC Chairman Jagmohan Dalmiya said, ''for me globalising cricket and setting a political benchmark in Indo-Pak relations through the unifying forces of cricket are the greatest achievements as a sports administrator.'' England-based International Journal of the History of Sports (IJHS) has instituted the award for administrative excellence. The programme was attended by a select audience chosen from a cross section of the cricketing administrators from the world, BCCI office bearers and Mr Dalmiya's collegues from Cricket Association of Bengal, where he still is the president. ''Sports administration is a thankless job. And when this job fetches an award, there is some reason to feel on top of the world,'' was how the former President of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Jagmohan Dalmiya conveyed his feelings while, receiving the crystal cup for his achievement in administration of cricket. The man who turned each of these high chairs of cricketing administration, that he ascended at different times, into thrones of unmitigated power with his acumen, adminsitration, foresight and tact, received the world recognition for the 'feats' last night. Dalmiya said, ''I am overwhelmed to receive the IJHS award which is the most glorious award in the world (of sport),'' and added, ''there is a significant reason for being happy as this award ensures the realization of my long cherished dream of seeing cricket as a global sport.'' ''As a young man, I wondered why cricket was rediculed as a game and played among a clutch of nations. From then on, a dream took shape and the award is the proof that cricket is on steady roads. At least now there is light at the end of the tunnel that one day it will truely be recognised as a world sport,'' he said. ''As an admninistrator I survived many challenges. One of them was Indo-Pak cricket and the toughest one I may admit. There was no cricket between the two countries for 16 years in the 60s and 70s, for 11 years between 80s and 90s and then again from 1999 to 2004,'' he said. ''So when I got about the task of repairing that bridge with my dearest friend Shahriyar Khan, whom I fondly call 'Miya', everyone warned, irrespective of sides, that there will be blasts. Yes, there was a blast and that was of goodwill. We wrote a political benchmark beyond which even the politicians would find it difficult to travel,'' he said. And as a recognition, the UN has declared the Indian and Pakistan team cricketers as sportspersons for the International Year of Sportspersons which is 2005. Mr Dalmiyam, as the recipient of IJHS award, was the only exception to a scholastic conclave on the podium, which extolled his 'high-impact' profile as an administrator that has changed the face of cricket. Those who spoke on his contribution included Prof J A Mangan, the executive editor of the International Journal of the History of Sport, Prof John Macaloon, dean of Social Sciences at University of Chicagoand, Prof Brian Stoddart, vice chancellor of Latrobe University, Melbourne. Prof Stoddart described Mr Dalmiya as one of the high-impact administrators who helped cricket undergo a remarkable process of development. Prof Mangan was more profuse in his eulogies and termed Mr Dalmiya as ''the man responsible for taking India to this height of admired performance, success and global visibility.'' Defending the reason for choosing Dalmiya for the award - which will also be given to FIFA President Sepp Blatter and former IOC chief Juan Antonio Samaranch - the IJHS editor said that the former has played the lead in making South Asia the hub of cricketing activity. ''He has played substantial role in ensuring the shift of power, prestige and prominence of the sport to South Asia from where it was before,'' said Prof Mangan. While Mr Ballter would be awarded in Zurich in August, Mr Samaranch would be awarded at IOC Museum in Laussane later this year. Among the important cricketing administrators present were, Bob Merriman, chairman Cricket Australia, Peter Chingoka, chairman of Zimbabwe Cricket Union, Mohammad Ali Asgar, president Bangladesh Cricket Board, Jayantha Dharmadasa, chairman of Interim Committee Administering Sri Lanka Cricket, Syed Ashraful Huq, chied executive Asian Cricket Council and Cassim Suliman, chief executive of Africa Cricket Association. The president of BCCI, Ranbir Singh Mahendra and the secretary S K Nair were also present. The dignitories were unanimous in acknowledging Mr Dalmiya as the man who shaped world cricket and as the one responsible for the power shift of cricket from the UK to the sub-continent. (UNI) |
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Unexpected West Indian resistence stings Lanka COLOMBO, July 17: Sri Lankan captain Marvan Atapattu today called for an improved display by his batsmen after a hard-fought six-wicket win over a weakened West Indies in the first cricket Test here. "We want to have all our batters going a bit better in the next game," Atapattu said after Sri Lanka were made to sweat by the unheralded rivals for four days at the Sinhalese sports club. The second and final Test of the short series begins in the hill resort of Kandy on Friday. Many observers felt the hosts won only because of the inexperience in the West Indian ranks, missing 10 first choice players including the world's top-ranked batsman Brian Lara. A sponsorship row with the West Indies Cricket Board has depleted the touring squad to the extent that captain Shivnarine Chanderpaul's 87 Tests are almost double the rest of the team's combined tally of 55 appearances. Yet Sri Lanka were reduced to 47 for four and 113 for seven in the first innings before tailenders Chaminda Vaas and Muttiah Muralitharan put on 66 for the ninth wicket to restrict the West Indian lead to 58 runs. Then chasing a modest 172 to win, the hosts slumped to 49 for three against the hostile pace of Jermaine Lawson, who finished with four wickets in each innings. Atapattu admitted that playing a second-string West Indies had its own disadvantages. "They had nothing to lose as there was only one side expected to win," the Sri Lankan captain said. "People might have expected us to run through but that does not always happen in cricket." "Actually, to have a win after playing for four innings was more pleasing than just playing one innings and getting them out twice," Atapattu said. "The West Indies have a good attack and in the first innings they were very disciplined, bowling a good length and line which got us in a bit of bother." West Indian coach Bennett King was disappointed his team did not win. "Yes, I am disappointed that we did not come away with a win." said Bennett, a former coach of the Australian Cricket Academy. "We played very well initially and set up what should have been a positive result for us. "But it is very hard to win a cricket match when five of your top six score 11 runs. They are certainly better players than that." Having made 285 in the first innings, the tourists were skittled for 113 in the second to let Sri Lanka off the hook. While Vaas starred with seven wickets and a top score of 49 in the first innnings, the Sri Lankans were delighted by Muralitharan's successful return to Test cricket after an 11-month absence because of shoulder injury. Having taken just one wicket in the first innings, the prolific off-spinner grabbed six for 36 in the second -- the 45th time he has claimed five wickets or more in an innings. "He was a bit worried after the first innings because after bowling 30 overs he rarely ends up getting just one wicket," Atapattu said of his star bowler. "But he bowled a better line in the second innings. He is back to being the normal Muralitharan." (AFP) |
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Last ditch effort to save Shabbir's career KARACHI, July 17: Pakistan Cricket Board will make a last ditch effort to save the sinking career of fast bowler Shabbir Ahmed by consulting Australian specialists. PCB's director cricket operations, Saleem Altaf, today said he had written to Prof Bruce Elliott and Daryl Foster in Perth and sought their views and opinion on the issue. "We are trying everything we can to save the career of Shabbir Ahmed and I think this is probably our last ditch effort. I am expecting Prof Bruce Elliott and Daryl Foster to convey their views by Monday after which we will decide what to do," Altaf said. "If required, Shabbir will be immediately flown to Perth so that he can again undergo biomechanical tests," he added. Shabbir was suspended from international cricket after he was reported for suspect bowling action for exceeding the 15 degrees permissible limit for straightening of the arm. Shabbir straightens his elbow up to 27 degrees. Shabbir has been reported for a faulty action three times in his career, the most recent occasion being the first Test of Pakistan's tour of the West Indies in May 2005. He was reported by the umpires, David Shepherd, Darrell Hair, Basil Morgan - the TV umpire - and Ranjan Madugalle, the match referee. Shabbir, however, was allowed to bowl in the second Test of the series. He appeared before Dr Paul Hurrian, who is on the ICC panel, in England on June 11 on his way back to Pakistan from the West Indies. On India's next year's tour of Pakistan, Altaf said there was no progress. There was complete silence on both fronts, he said. "Naturally, we are focused on this winter's home series against England. "But there has not been any significant progress as far as England series is also concerned. But I am hoping to get some positive news from our chairman who returns from England on July 26." England have refused to play Test in Karachi and are also non-committal on playing back-to-back one-dayers in the Port city and India will play three Tests and five one-day internationals between January and March. But more significantly, Pakistan plans to have both third country umpires in the one-dayers against the two countries even though the ICC rejected its proposal of third country umpires in ODIs. (PTI) |
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Army Commander’s Golf Cup tourney held at BEPTA Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 17: Army Commander’s Golf Cup 2005 held at Bhalual Environment Park and Training Area (BEPTA) Miran Sahib, near here wherein Governor and Lt. Gen. Hari Prasad, GOC-in-C Northern Command were among prominent personalities present. Played on 18 holes between the Army team and the members of Sher-e-Kashmir Golf Course team, the winners of the event were given away prizes in a separate function held at Usman Officers’ Institute Satwari Cantt, here. Function besides others was attended by Chief Secretary, J&K, S S Boleria and host of other dignitaries from civil and army. Meanwhile, the BEPTA course was hailed by the players as one of the best courses in Jammu and Kashmir. It was under the directions of Major General Vinay Sharma, General Officer Commanding Tiger Division, patron BEPTA that the course underwent major improvements resulting into the creation of a state of art environmental friendly course. A number of additional facilities have also been added along with improvement in overall ambience of BEPTA. |
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Nirmal Singh made president of veteran cricketers’ body Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, July 17: Known Ranji Trophy player in the State, Nirmal Singh has been made president of Jammu and Kashmir Veteran National Cricket Players’ Association (JKVNCPA) in a meeting of the veteran cricketers held here today. The body has been formed to safeguard the interest of cricket and cricketers, who are otherwise being sandwiched because of infighting in the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA). Shahid Pervez was named chairman while Parvez Kesar was unanimously elected as vice-president of the Association. Ravi Kant Gupta was appointed general secretary and Ravi Sharma treasurer. Zahoor Butt and Rajinder Arora were named joint secretaries. Veteran cricketers present in the meeting also named 16 founder members. They were Ramesh Chander Pargal, Vinod Sharma, Sunil Sharma, Suneet Sharma, Desh Rattan Dubey, Randhir Singh Jamwal, Ashok Singh, Ajay Singh, Dr Anil Gupta, Ravi Kant Puri, Sham Lal Gupta, Rakeshwar Dubey, Bharat Bhushan Sadhotra and Ram Swroop Khajuria. |
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New ODI rules to bring
contenders closer NEW DELHI, July 17: The novel concept of supersub and the change in fielding restriction rules in limited overs cricket might narrow the gap between the second rung teams and world champions Australia, a former India player turned national selector has said. The International Cricket Council last month decided to allow on an experimental basis for next 10 months a soccer style substitution in one-day internationals. The new rule allows teams to substitute one of the 11 players at any point of time in the match with the right to bat and bowl. The replaced player, however, cannot take part in the match once substituted. The ICC has also decided to do away with the mandatory field restrictions in the first 15 overs. Instead, it has increased the number of overs with restrictions to 20 with 10 overs mandatory at the start of the innings and the remaining 10, split into two blocks of five overs each, to be applied at the discretion of the fielding captain. The idea of full-time substitution could come in handy for a team like India that has struggled to find the right balance between bowling and and batting in the line-up. An 'active' 12th man would solve that problem, and would spare the captain much ridicule of his 'seven batsmen' theory. "Champion sides will always do well whatever the rules. But other teams now have a chance. Normally we pack seven batsmen, three bowlers and a wicketkeeper who can bat. Now we can go in with six batsmen," V B Chandrasekhar, an India international and currently a national selector, said. "It depends on how the teams use it (the substitution). Captains can have a flexible strategy." Chandrasekhar felt that the shorter version of the game, besides having become predictable, had come to place too much importance upon the toss, and that the new rules would change that situation. "Looking at recent results, toss was a definite factor. Teams batting first and scoring 340-350 had the advantage," he said. "That may not be the case anymore. Maybe they (the rules) need some improvement but the matches will not be so predictable. It all depends on how teams adapt to it." The 43-year old from Tamil Nadu disagreed that the toss would become a lottery or wreck a captain's plans when the playing conditions dictated team strategies. "If you are playing under lights and are short of a spinner, the substitution could be handy," he said. But Chandrasekhar's former statemate and Test player T A Sekhar realises the potential landmine the concept poses for a captain and the player involved. "There is an element of risk in it. It is going to be a double-edged sword for the captains. If it clicks, he will be hailed. If he fails, he will be railed," Sekhar said. "It could also affect the morale of the youngster picked to play. In India, we name teams for two-three matches." "If the newcomer fails and the supersub does well, it could put undue pressure (on the former)." Another cricketer who saw lot of positives about the rule changes was former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar. "In my opinion, bowlers who can bat will make the perfect supersub. But more than the supersub, the new field restrictions rule will have a long term impact on the game," the Mumbaikar said. Chandrasekhar, however, said the 20 overs should be split into four phases of five overs. "Suppose a team makes 250, and the chasing team scores 100 or more in the first 10 overs, it is still a lopsided game. I think it should be five overs mandatory in the beginning as 10 is still too much," he said. Again, the basic idea was to allow teams to make up for the earlier mistake and comeback into the match, he added. He said supersubs would prove to be more effective in Test cricket. He said it would allow the captain to correct any error in tactics or strategy, give the teams another chance to fightback and thereby making the contest more interesting. "Like in the Nagpur Test (where Australia conquered the Final Frontier last season)," he cited as example. "We went in with two fast bowlers and two spinners while Australia had three pacers and a spinner. If we had substitution, we could have played the extra fast bower." So, was he in favour of supersubs in Tests as well? "I will definitely recommend it for Tests. We don't have to hang on in the name of traditions." (PTI)
Not playing in India biggest regret of career: Chappell NEW DELHI, July 17: Not playing in India is the biggest void in his otherwise illustrious career, admitted new Team India coach Greg Chappell. Talking to NDTV's 'Walk the Talk' programme, the former Australia captain said, ''I did not get to play in India at any point of time in my career and that's definitely the biggest gap in my CV.'' Now in charge of the team to change its flagging fortune, the former Australian captain admitted there was a sea of gulf separating the world champions from the rest. ''In the '80s, everyone involved with Ausralian cricket sat down and said 'OK, West Indies ruled the game for so long. Now we will have to find ways to do the same,'' Chappell said pointing to Australia's emergence as the cricket super power. ''A lot of work went behind the scene. There was the hunger, desire and the desperation to do well,'' he explained. He, however, opined that the team Sourav Ganguly led Down Under last time should have won the series there. ''Sourav and (former coach) John Wright were great partners and they had definite plans for the series. Sourav's vision -- what he wanted -- was also important. He wanted the team to do well...And India should have won the series.'' Chappell, meanwhile, refused to admit that Indian innings could not flourish whenever their openers failed to give them a flying start. ''I beg to differ. I think what we need is very solid 15 overs and not necessarily flyers. Looking for only boundaries is a negative attitude and players lose opportunities to score,'' he argued. Emphasising on the importance to get the basics right, Chappell said, ''Pakistan did the basics right in the second half of the (one-day) series against India and won it. For instance, their running between the wicket (was better than India's).'' On his plans with the team, Chappell said, ''The biggest challenge for me is now to sell my vision of Committment to Excellence (to the players).'' Insisting India has to have a rich pool of fringe players, the Aussie said good teams should also build their side for the future. Pointing towards Australia's ageing bowlers with no real successors in the offing, Chappell said, ''I think that's a dangerous sign for them.'' Admitting that the under-arm bowling controversy remains a blot in his career, Chappell said, ''I do regret it. It was very frustrating and came out of frustration...However there were some positive outcomes as well -- like the law was changed and for the first time the entire New Zealand combined to support their team.'' Then captain of the side, Chappell had asked his younger brother Trevor to bowl an under-arm delivery to prevent Kiwi Brian McKechnie from hitting a six off the last ball.(UNI)
Sania to take on seventh seed in first round NEW DELHI, July 17: Sania Mirza would gun for another upset win against Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany whom she has been drawn to play against in the first round of the USD 170,000 WTA Western and Southern Financial Group Women's Open tennis starting in Cincinnati tomorrow. Sania, who has climbed up to five places to 70th rank after her impressive show in the Wimbledon, has a tough task in hand against the seventh seeded German, currently ranked 36 in the world. The Tier-II WTA tour event, Sania's first in the run up to the US Open Grand Slam starting on August 29, will also test the Indian's skill on hard court. Sania, who would be accompanied by her travelling coach John Farrington, would be hoping to pull off a win against the German whom she had defeated in the semifinals of the Palm Beach Garden Challenger last November. Switzerland's Patty Schnyder is seeded top while Vera Zvonareva, Jelena Jankovic and Daniela Hantuchova follow on second, third and fourth positions. Sania is unseeded. American-born Indian Shikha Uberoi has been seeded fifth and will face Seiko Okamoto of Japan in the first round of the qualifiers. (PTI) |
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