Haryana to honour all CWG participants

Thu, Oct 21 10 07:51 PM

Chandigarh, Oct 21 (PTI) Haryana Government today decided to boost the morale of the state atheltes who didn''t finish in the medal bracket of the Commonwealth Games by announcing a cash prize of Rs two lakhs for all the participants. Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said that the participants who failed to get any medal will be given Rs two lakh each, a official release said. The state has already announced cash awards of Rs 15 lakh, Rs 10 lakh and Rs five lakh to each winner of Gold, Silver and bronze medals respectively. As many as 54 sportspersons of Haryana had taken part in the Commonwealth Games and the players of the State bagged 32 medals including 17 Gold medals, seven Silver medals and eight Bronze medals. In view of its long association with Haryana, Gurgaon based Maruti Udyog has also announced to give Maruti SX4, Dzire and Wagon R to the winners of Gold, Silver and Bronze medals respectively. The awards will be presented at a state level function on November one on Haryana Day at Sonipat.

Source: Published>

Better bowling attack will win Australia the Ashes, says Lillee

Published>Thu, Oct 21 10 07:47 PM

London, Oct 21 (IANS) Former fast bowler Dennis Lillee believes a stronger bowling attack will win Australia the forthcoming Ashes series against arch-rivals England.

Lillee, who took 355 wickets in 70 Tests representing Australia, said a team needs to have a potent bowling line-up for winning a Test series and the Kangaroos have that, despite the retirements of legends like Glen Mcgrath and Shane Warne in the recent past.

'In the end it is got to be about your attack. You have got to bowl sides out twice,' Lillee told Sky Sports Radio.

'If I look at both attacks I think Australia - even without Warne and McGrath - have a better attack than England.

'England's spinning attack - they may use spin twins (Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar) - may be better than ours because Nathan (Hauritz) is still evolving, but overall our attack is better and that is where the games are won.'

On the final outcome of the five-match Test series, Lillee said: 'It is going to be much closer than the other ones but we should probably win it 2-1 or 3-2.'

Another fast bowler Brett Lee, who retired from Test cricket earlier this year to prolong his limited overs cricket career said the arrival of the Ashes in his home country will not make him think twice about changing his retirement plans.

'There is still a lot of cricket left in me and the reason I stood down from Test cricket was to prolong my career in the shorter forms of the game,' Lee told Sportal.

'If I chose to continue with Test cricket the odds were, with the strain on the body, the cards were not going to fall my way.'

'That is why I drew a line in the sand. I loved every single moment of my Test career but I have not missed it one little bit.'

'I am more than content with what I have achieved,' Lee summed up.

The first Ashes Test starts Nov 25 in Brisbane.

Source: Web Search

Parliamentary Committee to visit CWG Village for inspection

Thu, Oct 21 10 07:37 PM

New Delhi, Oct 21 (PTI) Amid allegations of deficiencies in the Commonwealth Games Village, a Parliamentary Committee will visit the site on November 3 for assessment of the work done there and present its report to Lok Sabha during the upcoming session. The Estimates Committee of the Lok Sabha, at a meeting here a few days back, discussed issues related to conditions at Games Village which have come under sharp attack, including from some foreign delegates, sources told PTI today. At the meeting, there were strong demands that the Committee should visit the Village for an on-the-spot assessment of the work done at the venue where the sportspersons were housed during the 12-day Games. It was decided that the Committee will inspect the site on November 3 and prepare a report which would be placed in the Lok Sabha during the winter session of Parliament beginning November 9, the sources said. Earlier, some members of the BJP and other opposition parties had wanted to inspect the site before the Games commenced on October 3 but Committee Chairman Francisco Sardinha convinced them that the visit should take place after the mega sporting event ended, they said. Sardinha, a Congress MP from South Goa, had argued that a visit by the Committee before the Games would bog down the officials who were already racing against time to complete the arrangements. "The infrastructure will remain even after the Games," he told the members who agreed to visit the Village after the event was over. Sports policy, infrastructure and training facilities of the Sports Ministry are among the subjects being covered by the 30-member Committee. The conditions at the Games Village have come under sharp attack and the government has already initiated punitive action against the private builder Emaar-MGF for shortcomings, deficiencies and delays. Union Urban Development Ministry has ordered confiscation of the builder''s Rs 183 crore bank guarantee and directed initiation of legal action for recovery of other expenditure.

Source: Published>

Afridi wanted Malik for ODIs, selectors named Younis

Thu, Oct 21 10 07:21 PM

Karachi, Oct 21 (PTI) Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi and chief coach Waqar Younis had asked for the inclusion of out-of-favour Shoaib Malik in the ODI team for South Africa series but national selectors overruled their suggestion and named Younis Khan in the 17-member squad. Afridi and Waqar had asked selectors to replace injured Mohamad Yousuf with the all-rounder Malik for the two Twenty20 and five-match ODI series against South Africa to be played in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. But the selectors rejected their demands and recalled Younis Khan for the one-dayers. "PCB and the national selectors didn''t agree with the suggestions coming from the captain and coach and opted to go for Younis Khan''s inclusion in the team," Pakistani daily ''The News'' quoted a source as saying. Yousuf was ruled out of the limited-over series against the Proteas beginning October 26 after he ruptured a muscle in his right leg. Younis, a Test specialist, will now have to prove his form and fitness in one-day format also to be considered for next month''s two-Test series against South Africa. Sources said Afridi and Waqar were of the view that Malik could have been useful for Pakistan in the T20 and one-dayers because of his utility as an all-rounder. However, the PCB decided against recalling the former captain in the national fold and instead made him the captain for the Super Sixes series to be played in Hong Kong from November 6-7.

Source: Published>

White hopes for another Aussie chance in Test cricket

Published>Thu, Oct 21 10 07:08 PM

Melbourne, Oct 21 (IANS) After smashing a 49-ball 89 against India, all-rounder Cameron White hopes he is ready for another chance at Test cricket for Australia.

'No doubt, I still want to play Test cricket for Australia and the best opportunity I can give myself to do that is to play well for Australia in this format, and Victoria when I get to play first-class cricket,' White was quoted as saying by The Age.

'I think the Test team is playing pretty well at the moment and it's a tough team to get into, so I'll try to play well to get the opportunity. I think I know what I need to do, score as many runs as I can, and if I can bowl a bit that would help also,' he said.

'I hope (I'm) not (far away), you'd have to ask the selectors, I don't know whether I'm next in line or 20 or 30 blokes down the track.'

White was part of Test team that toured India in 2008 and he picked up the wicket of Sachin Tendulkar on his debut in Bangalore. But his unpolished bowling and a lack of clarity about his role with the bat made his place in the side unstable.

'It was a great thing (in 2008), something no-one can take away from me, I enjoyed playing four Test matches for Australia, enjoyed every moment. It was tough, it was a learning experience, it was everything really,' the Victorian captain said.

'But it's out of my control and I'll try to make as many runs as I can and hope for the best.'

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Sun City golf event suffers because of crowded calendar

Published>Thu, Oct 21 10 07:01 PM

A crowded schedule and a glut of prize money elsewhere mean South Africa's Sun City Challenge event has attracted only two of the world's top 10 golfers this year, organisers said on Thursday.

"There is simply too much golf and too much money out there for the guys to make," tournament director Alastair Roper said after announcing that world number two Lee Westwood and local favourite Ernie Els were the only top-10 players in the Dec. 2-5 event.

"Our aim is to secure the participation of 12 top-ranked players in the world but that is unrealistic," Roper added.

"Tiger Woods hosts the Chevron World Challenge which is scheduled for the same week, and this puts us in a difficult position.

"The lack of top American players in the field is unfortunate. The likes of Jim Furyk will be defending his Chevron title and Phil Mickelson has committed to play in Japan the same week as our tournament."

Roper said possible changes in the calendar next year would help the event, which this year celebrates its 30th anniversary.

"This year, the Race to Dubai ends the week before our tournament, but next year it will probably be the week after. That means a lot of top golfers might decide to fly to Africa early, play at Sun City and then catch the short flight to Dubai," Roper told Reuters.

The event at the Sun City resort was launched in 1981 as the richest tournament in golf. In 1987, when Ian Woosnam claimed a cheque for $1 million his prize money dwarfed the winnings of that year's U.S. PGA Tour leader Greg Norman, who took $653,000.

Briton Westwood, who is expected to end the month on top of the world rankings, was on Europe's victorious Ryder Cup team at the start of the month and will be joined at Sun City by team mates Ross Fisher, Padraig Harrington, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Edoardo Molinari.

World number 10 Els, who won the Grand Slam of Golf on Wednesday, will be returning to the Gary Player Country Club, where he has won three times, for the first time since 2007.

He will be joined by fellow South Africans Louis Oosthuizen, the British Open champion, Retief Goosen and Tim Clark.

Robert Allenby, the first Australian to win the title, will return to defend his crown, while Denmark's Anders Hansen earned an invitation by virtue of winning the 2009/10 Sunshine Tour order of merit.

Source: Web Search

Rare cricket memorabilia on sale in London

Published>Thu, Oct 21 10 06:57 PM

London/New Delhi, Oct 21 (IANS) Want to own a slice of Marylebone Cricket Club's (MCC) cricketing history? Check out an international art sale in South Kensington in London Nov 17.

Christie's will offer precious relics of international cricket from one of the world's oldest and most famous sporting establishments - MCC. These include a selection of cricket bibliography comprising poems, score books and cricket publications, said the auction house.

The 100 lots of 'Sporting Books' on sale are estimated to be worth between 500 to 40,000 pounds. MCC expects to raise more than 300,000 pounds.

The lots to be offered will be duplicate of the original collection and the proceeds will be used by MCC to sustain and care for core antiquities and acquire more cricket-related trivia.

The centre-piece of the sale will be a reproduction of a portrait of 'The Young Cricketer - Portrait of Lewis Cage' by artist Katharine Lloyd, which was hung in the pavilion at Lord's for the past 60 years.

It is estimated at 6,000 pounds. It was commissioned to coincide with the opening of the Lord's Museum in the 1950s.

The first independent works on cricket ever published were verse accounts of cricket matches, mock heroic poems in the genre established by Alexander Pope's 'Rape of the Lock' (1714).

Highlights of the MCC duplicate sale include not only the first of these humorous poems, James Dance's 'Cricket: An Heroic Poem', written in London in 1744, but also three rare cricket poems that appeared as 18th century pamphlets.

John Duncombe's 'Surry Triumphant' and John Burnby's 'Kentish Cricketers' were written by clergymen and published in 1773.

The poems - 'Cricket: An Heroic Poem' - bear a pre-sale estimate of 15,000 pounds. Poems 'Surry Triumphant' and 'Kentish Cricketers' bound together in a special volume are estimated at 25,000 pounds.

The fourth of the 18th century poems is the anonymous 'The Noble Cricketers ... addresss'd to Two of the Idlest Lords in His Majesty's Kingdom'. Composed in 1778, it is a satire on two famously indolent, cricket-loving aristocrats, the Duke of Dorset and the Earl of Tankerville, who were accused of preferring to play cricket while England was losing the war against the American colonies.

It is estimated at 10,000 pounds. Other highlights include a complete set of Wisden's almanac that has been in print since 1864.

Also on offer will be all of Wisden's important, if less well known predecessors, most notably three editions of the rare scorebooks produced by Samuel Britcher in 1792, 1793 and 1796.

The importance of these works is highlighted by the fact that their author, Britcher, was an official scorer for MCC, and the first person to produce an annual scorebook on a regular basis.

Of probably even greater rarity is William Epps's 'Cricket: A Collection of All the Grand Matches played in England from 1771 to 1791', published in Rochester, Kent, in 1799. It is expected to fetch 70,000 pounds.

Said the curator of MCC Collections, Adam Chadwick: 'The MCC collections continue to attract an increasing number of admirers, and in 2009 we set a record having welcomed 60,000 people through the doors.

'We are committed in our aim to continue developing the accessibility of the collections, and to maintain them as the world's most important celebration of the history of cricket. The proceeds will provide MCC with the much needed funds required to enhance and conserve the core collection,' Chadwick said.

Source: Web Search

Sun City golf event suffers because of crowded calendar

Published>Thu, Oct 21 10 06:37 PM

A crowded schedule and a glut of prize money elsewhere mean South Africa's Sun City Challenge event has attracted only two of the world's top 10 golfers this year, organisers said on Thursday.

"There is simply too much golf and too much money out there for the guys to make," tournament director Alastair Roper said after announcing that world number two Lee Westwood and local favourite Ernie Els were the only top-10 players in the Dec. 2-5 event.

"Our aim is to secure the participation of 12 top-ranked players in the world but that is unrealistic," Roper added.

"Tiger Woods hosts the Chevron World Challenge which is scheduled for the same week, and this puts us in a difficult position.

"The lack of top American players in the field is unfortunate. The likes of Jim Furyk will be defending his Chevron title and Phil Mickelson has committed to play in Japan the same week as our tournament."

Roper said possible changes in the calendar next year would help the event, which this year celebrates its 30th anniversary.

"This year, the Race to Dubai ends the week before our tournament, but next year it will probably be the week after. That means a lot of top golfers might decide to fly to Africa early, play at Sun City and then catch the short flight to Dubai," Roper told Reuters.

The event at the Sun City resort was launched in 1981 as the richest tournament in golf. In 1987, when Ian Woosnam claimed a cheque for $1 million his prize money dwarfed the winnings of that year's U.S. PGA Tour leader Greg Norman, who took $653,000.

Briton Westwood, who is expected to end the month on top of the world rankings, was on Europe's victorious Ryder Cup team at the start of the month and will be joined at Sun City by team mates Ross Fisher, Padraig Harrington, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Edoardo Molinari.

World number 10 Els, who won the Grand Slam of Golf on Wednesday, will be returning to the Gary Player Country Club, where he has won three times, for the first time since 2007.

He will be joined by fellow South Africans Louis Oosthuizen, the British Open champion, Retief Goosen and Tim Clark.

Robert Allenby, the first Australian to win the title, will return to defend his crown, while Denmark's Anders Hansen earned an invitation by virtue of winning the 2009/10 Sunshine Tour order of merit.

Source: Web Search

We will beat India in Asian Games: Pak Hock captain Zeeshan

Thu, Oct 21 10 06:21 PM

Karachi, Oct 22 (PTI) Pakistan hockey captain Zeeshan Ashraf has vowed to avenge their defeat against India in the recently-concluded Commonwealth Games when the two arch-rivals meet for the third time this year in next month''s Asian Games at Guangzhou, China. Pakistan were unable to counter India''s speed and accuracy in their Commonwealth Games clash in New Delhi, losing 4-7 in a highly-charged atmosphere. In a similar result, India had beaten Pakistan in their World Cup clash at the same Major Dhyan Chand venue last March. Pakistan and India will meet in a crucial Pool B contest of the Asian Games hockey event on November 20 and Zeeshan hopes to make the clash against the old rivals in Guangzhou a memorable one. If Pakistan win the gold medal, they will secure an Olympic berth but for the skipper, national pride will be above anything else. "We have to win our match against India at all costs. We played badly against them in our last match but we won''t repeat the same mistakes again in Guangzhou," said Zeeshan. Zeeshan said that his team won''t go down in their third meeting of the year against India. "We won''t let Pakistan down again. The match against India will be really crucial for us because it might decide which team from our pool will play against Korea in the semifinals. "We are a bit short on experience when compared to India. But the boys are improving slowly but surely," the experienced defender said in an interview to Pakistan''s ''Geo Super'' channel. Defending champions Korea head Pool A that also includes hosts China and minnows Oman. Pakistan share Pool B with India, Japan and Bangladesh. Zeeshan said that the match against India will be Pakistan''s most important pool outing but was quick to add that his team won''t take Japan for granted either. "Japan are a very good team on their day and we can''t afford to take them lightly," he said. The defender believes that "too many changes" over the past few months have taken their toll on the team. "There have been too many changes in the line-up and also in the coaching staff. India on the other hand have experienced more stability and now they are on the way up," the captain added. Pakistan will take part in the final conditioning camp beginning October 25 in Islamabad before moving to Kuala Lumpur early next month to play two warm-up games against Malaysia. They will also play hosts China in a practice game ahead of the quadrennial event in Guangzhou.

Source: Published>

Decide probe panel composition in 6 days, Modi, cricket board told

Published>Thu, Oct 21 10 06:17 PM

New Delhi, Oct 21 (IANS) The Supreme Court Thursday asked the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and former Indian Premier League commissioner Lalit Modi to decide within six days the composition of a panel probing alleged financial lapses by Modi.

The apex court bench of Justice J.M. Panchal and Justice Gyan Sudha Misra gave time to both BCCI and Modi to work out a compromise on the composition of the disciplinary committee.

Senior counsel Ram Jethamalani told the court that since the BCCI had taken the stand that it was not possible to change the composition of the committee, he would discuss the matter with his client Modi.

The court also suggested that at this stage it would let the existing committee go ahead with the inquiry.

However, when its report is discussed in the annual general body meeting of the BCCI, three members of the inquiry committee Chirayu Amin, Arun Jaitley and Jyotiraditya Scindia would not participate in the meeting.

The court said that both the contending parties would next Wednesday report back to the court the outcome of their efforts to arrive at a compromise. In case of a deadlock, the court will resume hearing the matter from then onwards.

The court suggestion for working out a compromise came even after the BCCI Wednesday declined to consider the apex court's suggestion for reconstituting the committee.

The BCCI told the court that the inquiry had reached an advanced stage and at this 'late' stage it was not possible to constitute the committee in view of Modi's objection that the existing panel was not free from bias.

Modi is upset over the presence of Chirayu Amin, the new Indian Premier League commissioner, who he says along with BCCI president Shashank Manohar had participated in the meeting that decided to hold an inquiry against him.

On Wednesday, the court told senior counsel C.A. Sundaran, appearing for the board, that the board had already diluted the composition of the committee after Manohar withdrew from it. The court wondered why it could not reconstitute the panel by changing another member.

Source: Web Search

Tight security for third ODI

Thu, Oct 21 10 06:07 PM

Panaji, Oct 21 (PTI) Tight security arrangements have been made to ensure no untoward incident take place during the third and final ODI between India and Australia to be played at Nehru Stadium, Fatorda on October 24. GCA President Dayanand Narvekar said four towers will be used for the first time at the stadium and 100 men in plain clothes will be among the spectators to spot troublemakers. As per the BCCI guidelines, bunkers will be installed outside the stadium and CCTVs at strategic points outside and inside the stadium. The security will be watertight and every entrant will be frisked and metal detectors will be installed at all the entry points. Women will be allowed to carry their purses and people will be allowed to carry mobiles but not the cameras, Narvekar added. .

Source: Published>

Congress govt gave Emaar-MGF Rs 760 cr

Published>Thu, Oct 21 10 05:51 PM

In the run-up to the Commonwealth Games, the Centre had cleared a bailout package of Rs 760 crore to real estate major Emaar-MGF for completion of the Games Village project.

"It was decided in the interest of the Games to give a bailout package of Rs 760 crore by the DDA to Emaar-MGF against the purchase of 333 apartments in the Games Village," said a source in the Urban Development Ministry.

"The construction of Games Village was going on at a snail's pace and the builder was facing a financial crunch due to various reasons. So, a bailout package was necessary to complete the project in time," sources said.

There are a total 1,168 apartments in the Games Village. "The bailout package for Emaar-MGF worked out by the Lt-Governor of Delhi, who is also the Chairman of the DDA, was duly approved by the Centre", said the sources.

According to a senior official in the L-G office, "the bailout decision was taken after taking approval of all stakeholders. It was an emergency situation and we had to take a decision considering the urgency, said sources in LG's office.

The LG had also directed the DDA to carry out a detailed audit of all the spendings in the Games Village including the expenditure incurred by Emaar-MGF in developing the Village.

Emaar-MGF, however, clarified that "DDA purchased 333 apartments as a much lower rate compared to the existing market price at which Emaar MGF was selling. We are yet to receive the full payment of the same.

"Additionally, we also offered the DDA an option to buy back the apartments sold to them", the company said.

Source: Web Search

Ferdinand to be dad for third time

Published>Thu, Oct 21 10 05:47 PM

London, Oct 21(ANI): England captain Rio Ferdinand is to become a father for the third time after it was revealed that his wife Rebecca Ellison is three months pregnant.

The couple already have two boys - Lorenz, four, and Tate, two.

The names of their children stem from Ferdinand's favourite actor, Larenz Tate.

"They are over the moon. Rio has always wanted a big family so is absolutely thrilled to add to their brood," the Sun quoted a source, as saying.

The 31-year-old had traveled to the World Cup in South Africa as skipper, but saw his tournament ended by a knee injury sustained in the very first training session.fter his return to Manchester United last month, he has played two Premier League games without conceding a goal. (ANI)

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CWG gold winners Ravi Kumar, Renubala in 13-member Asiad squad

Thu, Oct 21 10 05:37 PM

New Delhi, Oct 21 (PTI) Commonwealth Games gold medallists K Ravi Kumar and Y Renubala Chanu will lead a 13-strong Indian weightlifting squad in the next month''s Asian Games at Guangzhou, China. Only Swati Singh (women''s 53kg) and Srishti Singh (women''s 75kg) were left out from the 15 lifters who took part in the just-concluded Commonwealth Games. "It is a strong squad and we are expecting a good result from them in the Asian Games. We were happy that we got eight medals, including two gold, in the Commonwealth Games without any doping issues," Indian Weightlifting Federation Secretary General Sahdev Yadav said. Weightlifting competition in the Asian Games will be held from November 13-19. India have not won a medal in weightlifting in the Asian Games since Karnam Malleswari bagged a silver in women''s 63kg in the 1998 edition in Bangkok. Indian lifters did not win a medal in 2002 in Busan, South Korea while they were banned from taking part in 2006 in Doha after two lifters flunked dope tests during the Melbourne Commonwealth Games. The team: Men: 56kg: Sukhen Dey and V S Rao; 62kg: Rustam Sarang and Omkar Otari; 69kg: K Ravi Kumar; 77kg: C P R Sudhir Kumar; 85kg: Chandrakant Mali; +105kg: Sarabjit Singh Women: 48kg: Soniya Chanu and Sandhya Rani; 58kg: Y Renubala Chanu; 75kg: L Monika Devi; +75kg: Geeta Rani. PTI PDS SHN

Source: Published>

Afridi, Waqar wanted Malik, not Younis to replace Yousuf for South Africa series

Published>Thu, Oct 21 10 05:03 PM

Karachi, Oct 21(ANI): Pakistan ODI captain Shahid Afridi and coach Waqar Younis wanted discarded all-rounder Shoaib Malik to replace injured Mohammad Yousuf in the squad for the two Twenty20 matches and the five ODI series against South Africa.

This has been revealed after national selectors recalled Younis Khan for the tour to be placed in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

"PCB and the national selectors didn't agree with the suggestions coming from the captain and coach and opted to go for Younis Khan's inclusion in the team," the News quoted a source, as saying.

The source further said that Afridi and Waqar were of the view that Malik could have been useful because of his utility as an all-rounder.

According to Mohsin Khan, Pakistan's chief selector, Younis has only been selected for the ODI series, and might play in the Tests if he proves his form before that series.

Malik, who was the captain of the national team until January last year, had earlier been selected to lead the country's challenge in next month's Super Sixes in Hong Kong. (ANI)

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