Gambhir ignored, Ishant ruled out

BANGALORE, Mar 17: Dashing Gautam Gambhir’s heroics with the bat on the recent tour of Australia failed to impress the national selectors who today ignored him from India’s 14-member squad for the first two cricket Tests against South Africa alongwith injured paceman Ishant Sharma.

Barring Gambhir’s non-inclusion, there were no major surprises in the squad announced by BCCI Secretary Niranjan Shah after a meeting of the selection committee here.

The left-handed Gambhir, who emerged as the highest run-getter in the tri-series in Australia with an aggregate of 440 runs from 10 matches, was not picked as the selectors preferred to retain Mumbai opener Wasim Jaffer despite his indifferent form in recent times.

The lanky Ishant, who put up a sterling show in Australia, was not considered for selection owing to his toe and finger injuries.

"Ishant has been advised rest for some more time and he was therefore not considered for the first Test," Shah told reporters.

The team, to be captained by Anil Kumble, has two other specialist spinners in Harbhajan Singh and Murali Kartik while R P Singh, S Sreesanth and Irfan Pathan will shoulder the pace bowling responsibilities.

As expected, the four senior pros — Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly an VVS Laxman — have been included in the squad with the selectors reposing faith on the experienced campaigners rather than blood youngsters for the home series beginning March 26.

Delhi opener Virender Sehwag, who scored a century in the last Test at Adelaide, has also been retained in the squad and is expected to open the innings with Jaffer.

Shah said that Dhoni and Harbhajan Singh will have to undergo a fitness test in Banglore on March 21.

"If they fail the fitness test, Dhoni will be replaced by Dinesh Kaarthick and Harbhajan Singh by Piyush Chawla," Shah said.

Yuvraj Singh, who also had some injury concerns, however, passed the fitness test today and was included in the team.

On paceman Zaheer Khan, Shah said that he had still not recovered from his heel injury and has been ruled out for the entire series.

As per the new BCCI policy, chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar did not interact with the mediamen. The BCCI Secretary just read out the names of the players to the waiting mediapersons.

Apart from the five selectors, newly appointed coach Gary Kirsten also attended the meeting which lasted close to two hours.

The South Africans will play three Tests during their tour of India with the first match scheduled to be held in Chennai from March 26-30. The second Test will be held in Ahmedabad from April 3 to 7 while the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur will host the third and final match from April 11-15.

Team:

India: Anil Kumble (Captain), Mahendra Singh Dhoni (vice-captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Wasim Jaffer, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, R P Singh, S Sreesanth, Murali Kartik. (PTI)

Anand beats Mamedyarov in Rapid game

NICE (France), Mar 17: World champion Viswanathan Anand thumped Shakhriayar Mamedyarov of Azerbaijan to register his second straight Rapid game victory in the second round of the Amber Blindfold and Rapid Chess tournament here.

Anand continued excellent results with black pieces in the traditional yet unique event that has one Blindfold and one Rapid game in each round.

With nine rounds still to go, Anand is now sitting pretty at joint top in Rapid along with Levon Aronian of Armenia on two points each after two wins with black pieces. They are followed by Magnus Carlsen of Norway, Veselin Topalov of Bulgaria and Ukrainian Vassily Ivanchuk on 1.5 points each.

Anand shares the lead in combined standings with Aronian and Ivanchuk. While all the three leaders have three points apiece, Topalov and Carlsen are not too far behind on 2.5 points each.

In the Blindfold, the lead is jointly held by Russian Alexander Morozevich, Ivanchuk and his compatriot Sergey Karjakin who all have 1.5 points each. Anand shares the fourth spot in this section on one point along with Mamedyarov, Aronian, Vladimir Kramnik of Russia, Topalov and Carlsen.

Anand was not too impressed with Mamedyarov’s choice of opening in the Rapid game and even as the latter showed some aggression in the middle game, it was clear from the start that Anand was in fine fettle.

The Indian won a far advanced pawn in the center showing fine technique but still the task was not easy. It was only after the 31st move that anand won a second pawn with a tactical shot and the rest was child’s play. (PTI)

England end drought with emphatic win

WELLINGTON, Mar 17: England levelled the cricket series against New Zealand when they won the second Test by an emphatic 126 runs on the final morning at the Basin Reserve here today.

It was their first victory in nine months and first away Test win since beating India two years ago.

Key to the victory were a first innings century by man-of-the-match Tim Ambrose, playing in only his second Test, and a five-wicket bag for Ryan Sidebottom who destroyed New Zealand’s hopes of a dramatic fightback.

The defiant 102 by wicketkeeper Ambrose, the only century in the match, allowed England to open a 144-run lead on the first innings and then set New Zealand a 438-run target after their second innings.

England captain Michael Vaughan described Ambrose’s innings and his 164-run partnership with Paul Collingwood as the difference between the two sides. "It was the defining partnership in the whole match on a wicket where I don’t think any batsman felt completely in but it was a good cricket wicket."

Brendon McCullum valiantly tried to hold the innings together, scoring 42 of the 69 runs New Zealand mustered in the tail end partnerships before he was the last batsman to fall for 85.

Vettori faced just six balls before edging Sidebottom and was caught by Alastair Cook at third slip without scoring. (PTI)

Federer finds his feet as Haas halts red-hot Roddick

INDIAN WELLS, Mar 17: World number one Roger Federer, in search of his first title of 2008, moved smoothly into the third round of the Indian Wells masters series.

The top-seeded Swiss, who enjoyed a first-round bye, defeated Spain’s Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-3, 6-2 yesterday in his first ATP outing since a first-round ouster at Dubai last week.

Federer, who has put his quiet start in 2008 down to a bout of mononucleosis, is hoping a return to the California desert, where he won the title three years in a row from 2004-2006, will be the tonic he needs.

"I haven’t played much, this is the difficulty," he said. "I felt pretty good out there."

While Federer began to gather steam, red-hot Andy Roddick was cooled yesterday by Germany’s Tommy Haas.

Haas, 29, used a break in each set to defeat sixth-seeded Roddick 6-4, 6-4, displaying an array of crisp passing shots and asserting himself when it mattered most.

Roddick had come into the tournament on a high, with titles in San Jose and last week in Dubai already to his credit this year.

But after enjoying a first-round bye he fell at the first hurdle of this 5.7 million-dollar tournament, which features both the men’s masters series event and a WTA Tier One tournament.

The American insisted that the defeat, his seventh against Haas in 10 career meetings, was just a bump in the road, not a major obstacle.

"I’ve been playing very, very well for the last month, so I’m not going to freak out over this loss and forget everything I’ve been able to work towards," Roddick said.

"I feel good about the way I’ve been playing. It’s a lot easier sitting here after this loss today, having put together the body of work I have over the last month. It affects your confidence a lot less."

Haas, meanwhile, arrived at the first masters series of the season hoping to jump start his 2008 campaign.

After undergoing shoulder surgery in November, Haas didn’t play his first tournament of the year until February, falling from 11th to 27th in the rankings.

In early men’s play, 11th-seeded Andy Murray overcame a slow start to defeat Austrian Jurgen Melzer 3-6, 6-3, 6-3.

Murray who has already won titles this year in Doha and Marseille, next faces Croatian Ivo Karlovic, who downed South African Rik De Voest 6-3, 7-6 (7/2).

Seventh-seeded Argentinian David Nalbandian also advanced, defeating Latvia’s Ernests Gulbis 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (7/4).

In women’s play, Australian Open champion Maria Sharapova, the fourth seed, moved into the fourth round with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Greece’s Eleni Daniilidou.

Second-seeded Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova struggled through with a 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 victory over Slovakian Dominika Cibulkova.(AGENCIES)

State Football Championship
Aashiq scores hat-trick as DFA Sopore trounces NBC

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, Mar 17: Aashiq Hussain slammed the first hat-trick of the tournament as DFA Sopore notched up a thumping 4-1 win over New Bharat Club (NBC) today in the ongoing State Football Championship being played at Jammu University Football Field.

Aashiq drew first blood in the 2nd minute followed by the second and third in the 23rd and 24th minutes respectively to virtually decide the fate of the match in the first half.

New Bharat Club managed to salvage some pride as Rajesh scored the only goal in the 49th minute.

DFA Sopore added one more to their kitty with Mohd Shafi struck in the 64th minute to seal the issue.

In the second match, DFA Baramulla got the better of International Club by 2-0 goals.

The goal scorers were Aaquib Sultan (20) and Taufeq Ahmed (26).

Young Star Club started their campaign on a positive note with an emphatic 3-0 win over DFA Budgam in the third match.

Despite some desperate moves by both teams, first half remained goalless.

The second half witnessed a U-turn by Young Star Club who shown urgency after their failures in the first half.

DFA Budgam till the 45th minute gave nothing away to their opponents to seize any scoring opportunity but a self goal blunder by Showkat poured water on all the hard work they had done.

Young Star Club managed to add two more goals in their kity. The goal scorers were Vikas (48) and Sunit Massih (55th).

The matches were officiated by Suresh Dimple, Mohd Shafi, Ghulam Rasool, Kushey Kumar, Suresh Gupta, Nazir Ahmed and David Massih.

Sanjeev beats Naresh in Chess

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, Mar 17: Sanjeev Sharma (SOI) got the better of Naresh Joshi (RRL) as first two rounds were completed today in Chess in the ongoing Sports Meet of Central Government Employees Welfare Coordination Committee at M A Stadium.

In other matches, Ashok Bhat (CWC) beat Anil Kumar (AG), S P Sharma (NSSO) defeated Rajinder Kumar (RRL), Surinder Mohan (SOI) beat N P Capalla (AG) and R K Sharma (NSSO) beat S K Sharma (CWC).

Surinder Mohan (SOI) got the better of Ashok Bhat (CWC) in the inaugural match of second round while S P Sharma (NSSO) defeated his compatriot R K Sharma.

Rajinder Gupta (RRL) defeated Naresh Joshi whereas S K Sharma (CWC) beat Sanjeev Sharma (SOI). The the matches were played under the supervision of S P Sharma (ASI) and were officiated by Ashok Chadha (AG), Surinder Mohan (SOI), Gulzar Singh and B S Jamwal (ASI).

Earlier, Railways clinched both Badminton and Volleyball titles.

MAM College celebrates Annual Day
CM asks students to excel in sports,
strengthen cultural values

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, Mar 17: Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has called upon students to achieve excellence in sports and other extra-curricular activities along with academics and contribute in a big way to strengthening secular and moral values in the society.

Addressing the Annual Day function of Government M. A. M. College today, the Chief Minister said the real aim of education has to be all round personality development of the students. He said the teachers and institutions have to groom them as responsible citizens to shoulder future responsibilities of nation building.

Referring to the construction of auditorium in the college, the Chief Minister said that it would be speedily built.

The Chief Minister congratulated the students on the Annual Day function and said that it is a great occasion for any institution. He gave away prizes to the students for achieving excellence in academic and extra-curricular activities.

The Minister for Higher Education, Gulchain Singh Charak also spoke on the occasion.

Principal of the college, Prof. Muqbil Chisti presented annual report and spoke about the achievements of the institution in academics and extra-curricular activities.

A composite cultural programme was also presented by the students on the occasion.

Prominent among those present on the occasion were Director Colleges, academicians, serving and former principals of various colleges, faculty, staff and students of the college.

Rachna to attend Asian seminar on Fencing

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU,Mar 17: Fencing coach Rachna Jamwal has been selected by the Fencing Association of India to attend the second Asian Seminar on Fencing for coaches of National Fencing Federations in Asia and Oceania slated to be held at Almaty City, Kazakhstan from March 19 to 24.

The seminar is being organised by the International Charity Foundation for Future of Fencing in collaboration with National Fencing Federation of Kazakhstan.

Govt contemplates to introduce more job-oriented
courses in Colleges: Charak

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, Mar 17: Minister for Higher Education Gulchain Singh Charak has said that Government is contemplating to introduce more job-oriented courses besides using modern technology like e-networking, online education and virtual classrooms in Colleges of the State.

Addressing at the Annual Day cum prize distribution function at General Zorawar Singh Memorial College Degree College, Reasi today, the Minister said Government with its sincere endeavours has already started market friendly and job-oriented courses in the colleges including Fisheries, Journalism, BBA, Tourism, Bio-Chemistry, Bio-technology, Information Technology, Computer Science, Video Editing and Sericulture courses.

Among others, Deputy Commissioner Reasi Sanjeev Verma, Executive Project Director Railways Vinod Kumar, Principal GDC Reasi Dr.S. L. Gupta, SSP Reasi J.L. Sharma, Chairman Municipal Committee Reasi Yashpal Verma, President General Zorawar Singh Memorial Committee Baldev Singh, senior citizens, parents and students were present on the occasion.

The Minister also distributed prizes among the outstanding students of the college who have excelled academically as well as in co-curricular activities.

Principal of host college S.L. Gupta in his welcome address highlighted the achievements of the college in its annual report. The students of the college presented colourful cultural bonanza.

JKCA to organise Inter Provincial
Level Cricket Tournament

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, Mar 17: The Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA) is going to organise an Inter Provincial Level cricket tournament in memory of Prof Pran Nath Malhotra.

In all, eight teams of selected cricketers from the two provinces (four from each province) would participate in the tournament commencing from 1st week of April at two venues.

The organisers have also decided to conduct a tournament of similar nature in Srinagar in July.

The tournament will be played on round robin league basis and the matches shall be of 50 overs each.

The selection of these teams would be done by the selectors of Ranji Trophy, U-22 and U/19 teams.

Total 36 cricketers will be shortlisted after bothtournaments who will thereafter participate in local tournaments organised by different associations in North India.

The Association has made it mandatory for the selectors of both Jammu and Srinagar provinces to moniter the matches.

The president, chairman and general secretary of the Association has also impressed upon the wing officials to conduct events at rural venues to identify talented cricketers.

J&K Police beat Press

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, Mar 17:J&K Police edged out Press in today in the Shahid Cricket Tournament played at Bishnah.

Rajesh Bittu, Kissan leader gave away winners to the Police team. Others who were present on the occasion were Ghanisham Sharma, Satish Bharti, Suraj Sharma, Indu Bhushan.

J&K finishes first in Snow Sqay Championship

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

SRINAGAR, Mar 17: J&K finished first followed by Chandigarh and Punjab who stood second and third respectively in the 1st Snow Sqay National championship which concluded at Gulmarg.

Mazhar Khan, Assistant Secretary of the Federation was the chief guest on the occasion who gave away medals and certificates to the winner and runner up teams. Total 80 players participated in the said championship.