Deccan Chargers face Knight Riders in must-win tie

HYDERABAD, May 10: Low on morale and languishing at the bottom of table, Deccan Chargers will have to reverse their losing streak when they take on Kolkata Knight Riders in a must-win match here tomorrow to remain in the reckoning.

The badly-bruised Hyderabad team which has won only two of the eight matches it has played so far are sharing the bottom spot with Bangalore Royal Challengers on four points and would have to post a few victories to remain in contention for a semi-final berth.

Moreover, the VVS Laxman-led side will have to overcome the jinx of losing at home having failed to post a single win from three matches so far at the Rajiv Gandhi international stadium with its two wins coming away from home — in Mumbai and Chennai.

The bad news for the team was that Laxman, who is recovering from a hand injury, is still doubtful for the crucial match and responsibility of steering the team would once again fall on stand-in-captain Adam Gilchrist.

Gilchrist, who has rediscovered his form after initial failures, would have to repeat his fine form with the bat against Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur though his side lost the match.

The Australian, who has made 284 runs in eight matches, is the highest run-getter for the team, followed by Rohit Sharma who has been consistent so far and has worn the orange cap for highest run getter though he is now in the fourth place with 263 from eight matches behind Gautam Gambhir, Gilchrist and Virender Sehwag.

The Hyderabad side’s main worry has been that some big batting stars in the team including Herschelle Gibbs and Shahid Afridi are yet to make their presence felt in the tournament though the Pakistani has taken seven wickets in six matches.

In the bowling department, except for RP Singh and city lad Pragyan Ojha, others are pedestrian in their performance so far.

The Shahrukh Khan-owned Kolkata Knight Riders, on the other hand, would look to carry on their winning momentum after their impressive victory over Bangalore Royal Challengers in their last match. (PTI)

I want Sachin to play next match, says McGrath

NEW DELHI, May 10: Missing his long time on-field rival Sachin Tendulkar, retired Australian fast bowler Glenn McGrath hopes to bowl at the master batsman when Delhi Daredevils and Mumbai Indians face off again in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

"Hopefully, Sachin will be fit in the next match. I wish him best of luck," the legendary pacer said.

Talking on the sidelines of a fashion event in the capital last night, McGrath said the Mumbai team was dearly missing Tendulkar.

"If Sachin comes to the Mumbai side, it will add extra pressure on the rival team as the little champion has the capability to win matches on any given day, he said.

The Australian said the Delhi Daredevils was a balanced side and was one of the strong contenders for the title.

"We have a good combination of youth and experience. Losing the last match against Chennai felt bad but we played some good cricket," said McGrath.

Delhi Daredevils captain Virender Sehwag exuded confidence that his side would lift the IPL title. (PTI)

ASN School organises Inter-House Sports Meet

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, May 10: A S N Higher Secondary School, Channi Himmat conducted Inter-House Sports Meet at Armed Police Complex today.

Four teams comprised Shakespeare House, Milton House, Blake House and Oliver House participated in the competitions held in the disciplines of kho-kho and athletics.

Besides this, a cricket match was also played between Shakespeare House and Blake House.

Shakespeare House won the toss and opted to field first. Blake House accumulated 74 runs.

In reply, Shakespeare could manage only 54 runs to suffer a 20 run defeat.

R C Mannotra, Commandant, IRP-8th Bn was the chief guest on the occasion while A K Kapoor, Chairman, Adarsh Educational Trust and I D Soni, State Commissioner (S), J&K Bharat Scouts and Guides were the guests of honour.

Ritesh Kapoor, Administrator of the school was also present who briefed about the activities being conducted by the school at regular intervals.

The chief guest presented trophies along with a cash award of Rs 5,000 to the winner teams of cricket and kho-kho competitions.

He also distributed medals amongst the winners of athletic competitions.

Results (Athletics):

100mts (boys): Omar (1st), Rajeeb (2nd) and Waseem (3rd).

100mts (girls): Ruksar (1st), Anmol (2nd) and Tabassum (3rd).

200mts (boys): Manzoor (1st), Shahid (2nd) and Akash (3rd).

200mts (girls): Rafia (1st), Laxmi (2nd) and Harneet (3rd).

Inter-House competition held

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, May 10: Tawishi Scholars Public School, Trikuta Nagar conducted an inter-house competition in the school premises today.

Children of various houses sang patriotic songs and Bhajans in the competition.

In junior group, Arjun Gupta finished first while Chakshita secured second position.

Gurvinder and Brynjot stood third. Akshay and Mayank jointly secured first position in senior group followed by Divya Maini and Shikha Sharma who had to be content with second and third place respectively.

Aditya Malhotra, Managing Director of T S Group of Institutions presided over the function.

AIFF observers to visit Jammu venues today

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, May 10: Two All India Football Federation (AIFF) observers would visit Jammu tomorrow.

According to Prof Bashir Ahmed Shah, chief spokesman of Jammu and Kashmir Football Association (JKFA), the observers namely Anil Kamath, Director competitions and Col Mehta, AIFF member would inspect the ground conditions, accommodation facilities etc at the proposed venues-GGM Science College and M A Stadium in connection with the conduct of the coveted 62nd edition of the National Football Championship-Santosh Trophy.

He further said, after their day long stay at Jammu, both the observers will leave for Srinagar to join the other two observers to inspect the final preparations at the venues on May 12-13.

The two observers are Subroto Dutta, vice-president, AIFF and Nasir Ali, executive member, AIFF.

The observers would leave for Delhi on May 14.

Distt Jammu Taekwondo Championship begins

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

JAMMU, May 10: The 10th District Jammu Taekwondo Championship organised by District Jammu Taekwondo Association under the banner of J&K Taekwondo Association got underway at Judo Hall, M A Stadium today.

Inderjeet Khajuria was the chief guest on the occasion who declared open the championship being conducted under the supervision of Jatinder Sharma and Tarsem Sharma.

Medal winners (day 1):

Up to 20kg (boys): Apoorv Mehta (gold), Dhruv Duvey (silver), Saiyan Chandan and Akshit Gupta (bronze).

20 to 22kg: Arjun Sharma (gold), Karan Sharma (silver), Priyanshu and Srijan Anand (bronze).

22 to 24kg: Lakshay Gupta (gold), Gautam Sharma (silver), Saksham Gupta and Satyam Gupta (bronze).

24 to 26kg: Aryaman Chowdhary (gold), Jaskirat Singh (silver), Sukul Tickoo and Sarat Sareen (bronze).

26 to 28kg: Abhishek Dogra (gold), Bhopinder Singh (silver), Aditya Aggarwal and Akshit Ghai (bronze).

Up to 20kg (girls): Sakshi Aggarwal (gold), Parina Sharma (silver) and Bhavika (bronze).

20 to 22kg: Payal Singh (gold), Shakshita Rajput (silver), Nandita Mangotra and Chitrakshi Gupta (bronze).

21st batch of National Heritage trek flagged off

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

UDHAMPUR, May 10: Alok Puri, DIG, Udhampur-Reasi Range today flagged off the 21st batch of National Heritage Trek from its headquarters at Shivalik College of Education.

A total of 62 students drawn from different schools are taking part in this five-day long trek being organised by Youth Hostels Association of India (YHAI) in collaboration with Tourism Department.

The trek commenced from Moungri via Sankhri (Panchari) and will pass through Nathatop, Patnitop, Sudh Mahadev to culminate finally at Mantalai.

Dr Taran Singh, Secretary, Youth Hostels Association of India (YHAI), J&K branch, Vikram Gulati, Secretary K K Gandotra, Sunil Badyal, Balwan Singh and P R Manhas were also present on the occasion.

S K Verma is the chairman of J&K unit of YHAI while Ashok Kumar is the chairman of Udhampur unit.

Meanwhile, the President of Youth Hostels Association of India, Mohd Shafi Pandit will visit Udhampur on Monday.

"Open House Discussion" at Adarsh College

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, May 10: An "Open House Discussion" for creation and establishment of better teaching and administrative infrastructure was held at Adarsh Educational Complex, Tarore, wherein students of B.Ed and E T T courses actively participated.

The discussion was held under A K Kapoor, chairman, while P B Kapoor, managing director, Rahul Kapoor, trustee, Principal Shreekant Pratyoosh Guleri, faculty members of all the wings were also present on the occasion.

During the discussion, students mainly highlighted the demand for setting of question papers (university/ board exams) in dual scripts i.e. Hindi and English. Some others issues and suggestions were highlighted by the students in the three hour long discussion.

The chairman and MD readily accepted some of the demands and suggestions of the students, while the chairman assured the students to highlight their demand for dual scripts in question papers at appropriate level.

5 students receive Amul Shakti Vidya Awards

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, May 10: Five students of Dogra Higher Secondary School, Shastri Nagar received Amul Shakti Vidya Shree awards today for excellent academic performance in SSE.

The awards were presented to the students by Sudesh Bhat and Mohit Sahani, Senior Executives of Amul India Ltd in a felicitation function held in the school premises.

The students namely Akansha Mehra, Sonam, Anshu Gupta, Nisha Thakyal and Shefali Badan received a cash prize of Rs 1,000 each along with a trophy and a merit certificate.

Nirmal Koul, vice-principal of the school was also present on the occasion.

Harbhajan has been unmasked by his attack on Sreesanth: Ponting

MELBOURNE, May 10: Australian captain Ricky Ponting today hit out at Harbhajan Singh, saying that the Indian off-spinner has been unmasked by his attack on teammate S Sreesanth.

Ponting said people can now make their own judgment on Harbhajan after the slapping row since involved his own teammate.

"The (slapping) incident was him dealing with a guy that he has probably played 20 tests with," Ponting, who had a brief stint with Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League during which the slap-gate took place, said.

"After this latest issue in India, I think people should be making their own judgments about Harbhajan. He has again done something wrong," Ponting told ‘Herald Sun’.

The Sydney fiasco involving Harbhajan and Andrew Symonds is more than three months old but Ponting remained incredulous at how Harbhajan got off with a slap on the wrist after being charged with racially abusing Andrew Symonds.

Harbhajan was initially suspended for three tests but after an appeal received a 50 per cent match-fee fine on a lesser charge.

"It certainly wasn’t the outcome that we expected. He ended up being fined 50 per cent of his match fee. As it is, I will cop a 20 or 30 per cent match-fee fine most one-day games because I am behind in the over rates," Ponting said.

Ponting admitted his team had several lapses of judgment in that ill-tempered series against India, but claimed they were blown out of proportion.

"Most of us would put our hands up and say we made a few minor errors last year," Ponting conceded.

"I think the thing that happened was that every time there was a minor error it was turned into something that was a lot bigger than it was."

As for the IPL, Ponting said it will benefit the game if it was not held annually and it is included in the international calendar.

"If there is some sort of window carved out for an opportunity for international players to play (in the IPL) most years - and it doesn’t have to be every year because that will never work out for everybody - I really do think they can manage it well," Ponting said.

"It won’t be detrimental to world cricket if it is handled the right way. What it has done already is attracted new audiences. With more audiences, you are going to get more participation.

"With more participation, you are going to get a stronger and better game with better players and better athletes," Ponting said. (PTI)

Shoaib’s fate to be decided on pure merit: Ashraf

KARACHI, May 10: Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Nasim Ashraf today dispelled the impression that fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar would escape the five-year ban imposed on him because of an understanding brokered by influential political figures with him.

"Let the appellate tribunal do its work. It is an independent tribunal and will decide on merit after resuming its regular if the ban is justified. It will hear out both parties," AShraf said

the fast bowler was banned from playing in and for Pakistan by the board’s disciplinary committee but allowed to play anywhere outside Pakistan. But the Indian Premier League governing body twice refused to entertain Shoaib, insisting he could only play once he was allowed to appear for Pakistan.

The tribunal decided to suspend the ban for one month to facilitate Shoaib’s IPL stint which has become a subject of discussion in cricket circles in Pakistan.

The tribunal will resume its regular hearing on the appeal by Shoaib against the ban from June 4 when the ban becomes effective again.

Before going to India, Shoaib was also let off the hook by Ashraf who had filed a 220 million rupees defamation suit against him for making serious allegations against the chairman on a television show.

But Ashraf said his decision to withdraw the defamation suit had nothing to do with political pressure and would not affect the ban on the fast bowler.

"I decided to drop the defamation suit because Shoaib twice publicly apologised and accepted he had made wrong allegations against my character and person. I stand vindicated and my reputation is cleared," Ashraf said.

"He also apologised to me publicly and in front of a senior government official. The purpose of the defamation suit was to clear my name and make Shoaib realise he can’t get away with anything. That has happened and I decided to let the issue end," he added. (PTI)

Malik revives his battle to get his life ban lifted

KARACHI, May 10: Former Pakistan captain Salim Malik, serving life ban from the Pakistan Cricket Board for his alleged role in 2000 match-fixing scandal, has resumed his legal battle to get his name cleared once for all after witnessing the Shoaib Akhtar-ban episode.

"I think now is the right time to fight afresh and prove my innocence. Why couldn’t my ban was reviewed. Look what is happening. Even Shoaib Akhtar has had his ban suspended," Malik said.

"Although I have maintained that the five-year ban on him was very harsh and should be lifted. But the way Shoaib reacted, it just shows what a player goes through if he is prevented from associating with his bread and butter and passion," he added.

Malik’s appeal has been heard twice in recent weeks by the High Court and the next hearing is scheduled on May 19.

Malik said he was confident a decision would be taken soon and he would be vindicated and proven innocent.

"My appeal in the court has gone through various stages since 2002 but hearings were not held regularly for different reasons. Now the appeal is being heard regularly and I am confident of some good news," Malik said.

The 45-year-old player played 103 tests and 283 one-day internationals before he was banned by the board on the recommendations of the Justice (retd) Malik Qayyum match fixing inquiry judicial commission in 2000.

One of the most stylish batsmen to play for Pakistan, Malik is also one of the most successful captains in the country’s cricket history before his career came to a humiliating and premature halt.

Malik said he was not pursuing his legal battle because he wanted to play cricket again at any level.

"It is not about playing cricket. But the thing is since the ban was imposed they have stopped me from having anything to do with cricket. I can’t coach, I can’t be involved in any cricket activity at all. This has been a reason for great mental anguish for me because cricket is my passion and also my bread and butter," Malik said.

"I still believe that I can contribute something to Pakistan cricket in different capacities and this can only be possible if this ban goes," he said.

Malik has voiced his interest in launching his own cricket academy in Lahore but was stopped from doing so by the board because of the ban.

Pacer Ata-ur-Rehman, who was also banned for life with Malik in 2000 for lying to the inquiry commission, was last year cleared by the International Cricket Council and the PCB lifted his ban allowing him to taking up coaching assignments at the National Cricket Academy. (PTI)