Thursday, June 17, 1999
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S P O R T | Thursday, June 17, 1999 |
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Waugh's innings freak: Marsh Moody
catching up with Klusener Poor
bowling, fielding led to debacle: Patel Recognition
elusive for Robin Singh Rousing
reception for Indians |
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Anwar, Wasti propel Pak into final OLD TRAFFORD, June 17 (PTI) — Formidable Pakistan rode on a majestic unbeaten century by Saeed Anwar and his record opening stand of 194 runs with young Wajahatullah Wasti to crush New Zealand by nine wickets and storm into the final of the cricket World Cup here last night. The 30-year-old Anwar cracked 113 not out and young Wasti came up with a superb 84 to propel the 1992 champions into their second final, at the Lord’s on June 20. Anwar (113 n.o. — 137 b, 8x4) and Wasti (84 — 123 b, 10x4, 1x6) flayed the Kiwi attack as Pakistan coasted to 242 for one wicket in 47.3 overs after tearaway Shoaib Akhtar led the way to restrict New Zealand, opting to bat first on a docile track, to 241 for seven in 50 overs in what turned out to be a woefully onesided contest. Anwar struck his second straight century of the tournament, after his 103 against Zimbabwe, and the 17th of his career as he and the 25-year-old Wasti — playing only his seventh tie — flayed the unidimensional Kiwi pace attack. The two erased the previous highest World Cup opening stand of 186 set by South Africa’s Gary Kirsten and Andrew Hudson against Holland at Rawalpindi in 1996. A pitch invasion by overenthusiastic Pakistan fans held up play for a while with just six runs needed for victory, before stewards managed to clear the ground to complete the match. Returning to his best form, Anwar, with a confident Wasti, gave Pakistan a flying start. Left-arm paceman Geoff Allot, who has emerged the highest wickettaker in a single World Cup, was wayward and reflected the listless Kiwi attack. Wasti showed his fine technique and conventional approach at the outset but came up with forceful fours off Allot on his way to reaching his maiden one-day fifty ahead of Anwar. Picking runs steadily and finding the ropes whenever the slow medium stuff of Gavin Larsen and Chris Cairns looked like coming on top, both openers simply pulled the match away to leave the Kiwi skipper Stephen Fleming a resigned man. Wasti mistimed Cairns to Fleming at mid-off close to a richly deserved maiden ton, but Anwar brought off his century in the 44th over, as the boisterous Pakistan fans set off yet another round of crackers in the stands. The fans invaded the pitch with Pakistan on 236 in the 47th over, but they were cleared to complete the tie. Pakistan needed 46 runs with nine overs left, but Ijaz Ahmed went after Chris Cairns and hoisted Nathan Astle for a straight six to hasten victory. He remained 28 not out. Akhtar, adjudged man of the match, instilled fear in the minds of the Kiwi batsmen with his pace and variation to capture three for 55 with fine support from skipper Wasim Akram (2/45) and teenager Abdul Razzaq (2/28) as Pakistan bowlers shackled Kiwi hopes of a big total. In-form Roger Twose (46) and Fleming added 94 runs for the fourth wicket and Chris Cairns (44 n.o. off 48 balls) also helped the Kiwis post a decent total, but the clinical chase undid the efforts. Scoreboard Pakistan: |
South Africa gear up to face Aussies EDGBASTON, June 16 (PTI) — Favourites South Africa will be determined not to let the Australian grit and fighting spirit upstage them for a second time when the two square up for a potentially explosive second World Cup semifinal tomorrow. The professional African side, which succumbed to Aussie skipper Steve Waugh’s classy unbeaten century in the Super Six tie, will pin hopes on the return of allrounder Jacques Kallis to plug a weak area of a fifth bowler which was flayed. Kallis missed the tie against Australia due to a groin strain. Steve Waugh’s vintage 120 not out lifted Australia from the verge of elimination to a superb five-wicket win and the 1987 champions will clearly hold the psychological edge going into what once again promises to be a fight to the wire. Hansie Cronje and his men will brook no hurdles on their way to achieving their burning desire of a maiden title, but will be aware how their last two campaigns were torpedoed. In the 1992 edition in Australia, the cumbersome rain rule left them needing to make 21 runs in one ball in the semifinals they looked set to win against England. In 1996, Brian Lara struck a magical 111 to propel the West Indies to a fine upset win over Cronje’s side. There is little to choose between two highly tuned sides, but South Africa are prone to struggle if they are brought under pressure while chasing. Steve Waugh, who has irked Cronje by saying the Africans are known to choke when it comes to crunch games, has said the "pressure is on Cronje". Australia have shown they are running into form at the right time after their group defeats to New Zealand and Pakistan threatened an early exit. Their top batsmen Mark Waugh, Ricky Ponting and Steve Waugh are in great nick and Michael Bevan and Tom Moody giving the lower order boost. South Africa’s top order batsmen struggled in the early stages and only their outstanding allrounder Lance Klusener provided them the cutting edge. The young all-rounder has scored 250 for an average of 125 in the tournament. But openers Herschelle Gibbs and Gary Kirsten have run into fine form in the last two matches and with Kallis back to lend solidity before Jonty Rhodes and Klusener take over, the ICC mini World Cup champions have been able to breathe easy. Their pace battery of Shaun Pollock, Steve Elworthy, Jacques Kallis, Allan Donald and Lance Klusener have proved tough to score against for most teams and will be firing on all cylinders. South Africa depend much on their brilliant fielding, but will be keen to ensure there is no repeat of the embarrassing episode where Gibbs dropped Steve Waugh trying to celebrate too soon without fully controlling an easy catch. The Aussie attack has so far shone in patches. Paceman Glenn McGrath, who was brilliant against the Caribbeans and the Indians, has not found the early wickets that easily. But beleaguered leg spinner Shane Warne gave much confidence to his captain with a fine effort of two for 33 against the South Africans, who have always struggled against quality spin. The war of words flew back and forth as the the two teams braced themselves to fight it out once again in what is seen as a tie befitting a final between the two uncompromising sides. "I don’t really care who we play. I know we are good enough. I think the other teams will be more concerned about us. "We are definitely going the right way, and it would be a shame to waste the performance," Steve Waugh said referring to the win on June 13 with just two balls to spare. Waugh conceded South Africa was a superior side. "We have South Africa again, and they are a really tough side to beat. You have to play very good cricket to do so." "But we have waited 14 years for the opportunity. It does not get any bigger than this," Steve, who was a key member of Allan Border’s Cup winning side in 1987, said. Cronje, on the other hand, attributed the Super Six loss to Australia mainly to the absence of an effective fifth bowler. Left arm spinner Nicky Boje and the skipper Himself went for lot of runs. "When you lose Kallis, you lose two cricketers, and it is very difficult to replace him," he added. Reuters adds: Kallis batted and bowled, albeit gingerly, in the nets and coach Bob Woolmer said he hoped he would be fully recovered from his abdominal problem. "He’s very important to us and he’d probably play even if he’s not 100 per cent," said Woolmer. Australia are also likely to make one change, recalling bruised finger victim Darren Lehmann for Damien Martyn. "They are the two best sides in cricket today and I think it will be another great match," said Woolmer who retires as coach after the tournament. "It would have been nice to have put them on the plane home on Sunday but that’s history and the lads are very keen to redress the balance. "Both teams have high skill levels, are strong mentally and physically very fit. The difference on Sunday was Steve Waugh who was magnificent." Ever the perfectionist, Waugh said he was disappointed with his team’s bowling on Sunday — "we were wide on both sides of the wicket" — and is looking for a improvement in that department. He is confident Australia can successfully chase a big total but recognises that South Africa’s fielding was not at its brilliant best on Sunday. "We had a couple of escapes, but you always need a bit of luck," he said. "It evens itself out and generally at this level you make your own luck." Apart from the obvious reward of a place in the World Cup final, Waugh and his team have another incentive tomorrow -revenge for their defeat in last year’s Commonwealth Games final. "That hurt a lot," said Waugh. "It was a once in a lifetime chance but beating them again and winning the World Cup would certainly make up for it." Teams (from): Australia: Mark Waugh, Adam Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting, Darren Lehmann, Steve Waugh (captain), Michael Bevan, Tom Moody, Shane Warne, Paul Reiffel, Damien Fleming, Glenn McGrath. South Africa:
Gary Kirsten, Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, Darryl
Cullinan, Hansie Cronje (captain), Jonty Rhodes, Shaun
Pollock, Lance Klusener, Mark Boucher, Steve Elworthy,
Allan Donald. |
You can't plan for Klusener: Warne EDGBASTON, June 16 (AFP) — Australian leg spinner Shane Warne goes into tomorrow’s World Cup semi-final against South Africa knowing the key lies in containing the Lance Klusener, the star of the tournament. But, Warne admitted, the problem lay in finding the right key. "Klusener has been player of the tournament by a country mile," Warne wrote in The Times today. "Our plan on Sunday was to go around the wicket and aim to bowl yorkers outside the off-stump to stop him hitting in his favourite area through the leg-side." The plan, Warne said, "half-worked" because left-hander Klusener blasted 36 off 21 balls in the second-round clash at Headingley. Australia won the match with two balls to spare following a magnificent 120 not out by skipper Steve Waugh. Warne, who had finished his spell by the time Klusener came to the crease, said Australia will have to come up with another plan for the semi-final. "But plans have to go out of the window when you are bowling to someone like him at the death," he said. Klusener has only been dismissed twice in the tournament while hitting 250 runs. He also has 17 wickets, the second highest behind Geoff Allott of New Zealand (20). His efforts have earned Klusener four man-of-the-match awards, and he remains the main threat to Australia’s chances of reaching their second World Cup final in a row. Warne predicted an Australia-Pakistan final at Lord’s on Sunday, but admitted tomorrow’s game against South Africa will be "another humdinger." "They know we’ve got the wood on them and I don’t think they know why," he said. "I reckon their best hope is the law of averages — we’ve beaten them so many times in big matches, it must be their turn." During the tri-nation series in Australia last year, South Africa won six games in a row before losing both finals to the hosts. Warne was reminded of the semi-final three years ago in India when Australia fought back from the brink to defeat the West Indies by five runs. "I reckon there is
something in our blood that gives us that hunger and
desire to come through as winners," he said. |
Die-hard Aussies run into form EDGBASTON, June 16 (AFP) — Team analysis of World Cup semi-finalists — Australia and South Africa: Australia: It’s no good knocking an Australia down. He’ll just get up again. On Sunday, South Africa dug a six-foot hole for Steve Waugh and deposited 271 tonnes of concrete on top of him. With two balls to spare, he crawled free. His innings of 120 kept his team in the tournament. After three World Cup games, nobody was betting on Australia. They had lost to both New Zealand and Pakistan and laboured to victory over Scotland. They looked tired. Gradually, however, key men have run into form. Paceman Glenn McGrath has come to terms with the white swinging ball. Mark Waugh stopped looking good and started coming good. Tom Moody, meanwhile, came from nowhere — or rather, from the substitutes’ bench — to offer tight medium-paced seam and lower-order batting of the very highest order. For most teams, he would bat around four. For Australia, he comes in at seven or eight. Australia have won their last five matches. Seven in a row will give them the title. But one key question remains. Is Shane Warne back to his best? his captain has called for an end to the carping, following the leg spinner’s lukewarm campaign to date. Against South Africa, he took two for 33 off 10 overs and played a vital role in checking their advance, but doubts remain. His bowling arm seems to come over lower than it once did, following shoulder surgery. The spin and loop, some batsmen say, are not as mesmerising. Warne says he just needs a bit of luck. If he gets it, Steve Waugh may not need to resort to miracles again. South Africa: Hansie Cronje is the most successful one-day captain in the world, at the head of a team which wins three out of every four games. All of which will count for very little if the highly-rated South Africans fail to reach the World Cup final again. In 1992, a controversial rain rule saw them knocked out of the semifinals. In 1996, the wide bat of Brian Lara killed them off in the quarterfinals. Here, a missed catch and Steve Waugh’s brilliance have combined to make things hard for them. Cronje, however, will not panic about taking on Australia again, a few days after going down to them. You don’t panic with Allan Donald, Shaun Pollock, Jacques Kallis and Lance Klusener — 250 World Cup runs, two dismissals — in your camp. Even in defeat, there were consolations, namely the form of Herschelle Gibbs — with the bat in hand rather than the ball out of it — and Daryll Cullinan at the top of a notoriously brittle top order. The South Africans’
mental toughness may prove crucial. They were branded as
"chokers" by the Australians last year and will
want to ram that suggestion back down the throat of their
greatest rivals. In many ways, these are similar teams,
highly professional in all that they do. The well-drilled
South Africans, however, sometimes seem to lack just one
thing — the element of surprise and the spark of
genius. Tomorrow would be a good time to find it. |
Akram may quit after World Cup MANCHESTER (England), June 16 (AP) — Wasim Akram wants to emulate his mentor Imran Khan by leading Pakistan to a World Cup triumph. But he might also follow Imran’s footsteps and quit in a blaze of glory. "Calling it quits after winning the World Cup might be a good way to bow out,’’ Akram said yesterday after title-favourites Pakistan’s net practice at Old Trafford. "I haven’t made plans for the future. That’ll get decided after June 20,’’ said Akram referring to the World Cup final at Lord’s. Pakistan, the 1992 titlist, have to beat New Zealand in the semifinals to have a crack at the title. And the Asian Test champions are back on course after recovering from three successive World Cup defeats. The last of these three defeats was against arch-rival India at Old Trafford, the venue for the first semifinal, which was Akram's home turf during his decade-long stint with English county Lancashire. He capped off his county stint by steering Lancashire to the Natwest Trophy and Sunday league titles, besides finishing second in last season’s county championship. As he returns to Old Trafford, the 33-year-old all-rounder has his eyes set on the biggest prize. Acknowledged as one of the best captains on view in the World Cup, his experience of English conditions has helped Pakistan’s cause. Akram made no reference to his oft-stated ambition of breaking former Indian bowler Kapil Dev’s record of 434 wickets in Test matches when he hinted at retirement. He acknowledged his diabetic ailment had affected his World Cup campaign and blamed the recent deterioration of his condition on media accusations of match-fixing. Driven by the desire to silence his detractors, Akram agreed to become Pakistan’s captain for the third time when the team toured India, for the first time in a decade, earlier this year. Besieged by allegations of being hand-in-glove with bookmakers in fixing matches, Akram lashed out at his critics and had vowed never to lead Pakistan again. Although, speculation in Pakistan suggests that Akram may quit as the captain after the World Cup, but would keep playing to break Kapil’s record. Asked if he would
consult the 1992 winning captain Imran, a television
commentator at the World Cup, Akram said: "Wait and
watch". |
Waugh's innings freak: Marsh LEEDS, June 16 (Reuters) — Steve Waugh’s match-winning century against South Africa was the ultimate example of the Australian captain’s unrivalled ability to fight his way out of the toughest of spots. Waugh’s 120 not out has been hailed at home as perhaps the greatest by an Australian in one-day cricket while coach Geoff Marsh says it was a "freak" innings. "Innings like that come from within and he’s just such a determined person," Marsh said of the battle-hardened Waugh. "You could tell it in his eyes at lunch. I sat and had lunch with him and he was just so focused. You could see he was determined that we were going to get the runs." When Waugh went to the crease with the score at 48 for three and chasing a stiff South African target of 271, Australia were waving goodbye to the win they needed to stay in the World Cup Mixing patient defence with fearless aggression, and profiting from an outrageous dropped catch by Herschelle Gibbs, Waugh turned the game round, driving Australia to their fifth straight win and into the semifinals. "It doesn’t get any tougher than that. We were struggling on a wicket that’s doing plenty against a good quick attack. But in those situations you’ve got to dig deep and that’s what we did," he said. "You’ve got to muster as much courage as you can, because it’s easy to walk away and say it’s too tough and leave it to someone else, and not really give 100 per cent concentration." World Cup victory would be a personal triumph for Waugh, the only survivor from the team that won the trophy in 1987. He has had a tricky job trying to maintain the winning momentum Australia built up under his predecessor, Mark Taylor. South Africa deprived him of a Commonwealth Games title he badly wanted and Brian Lara’s brilliance nearly condemned him to defeat in his first series as Test captain against the West Indies earlier this year. Australia pulled out a win in the final Test to square the series 2-2 in a performance that typified Waugh’s own style. After defeats to Pakistan and New Zealand in the first three games of the World Cup Waugh knew Australia had to win every single game if they were to repeat the success of Alan Border’s team in 1987. He didn’t panic, he didn’t complain about his team and he refused to buy into the furore surrounding Australia’s go-slow tactics in their final group match against West Indies, aimed at making it difficult for New Zealand to qualify. Steady ahead was his message and his team responded. "Our goal was to win seven in a row — now we’re only two away," he said. Waugh has led the fightback by example, averaging over 50 even before the South Africa century. He now has 342 runs at an average of 85.50. "A lot of people wrote us off at the beginning of the tournament but that has just spurred us on to bigger things. When I got to fifty I remembered all those little doubts and it geed me on," Waugh said. Surprisingly Sunday’s all-or-nothing knock was only his second century in 266 one-day international innings. "Hundreds don’t come along that often when you bat at five or six. It was the kind of innings I’ve always dreamed of, what you work for all your career," he said. "There are hundreds scored in one-day cricket that I don’t think are that great, but there are some that are sort of special." Waugh, a part-time medium-pacer in this competition, has known his lean times with the bat but the selectors have stood by him, knowing mental toughness like his is very hard to find. "It’s not just one facet, you sort of bring them all together — experience, knowledge of conditions, body language, what your opponents make-up is," the 34-year-old said. Waugh now leads his side into tomorrow’s repeat clash with South Africa believing Australia have the psychological edge. "They are a tough side to beat ... I think the pressure is on (South African captain) Hansie Cronje," he said after the semifinal. "But it would be a
shame to waste this performance." |
Moody catching up with Klusener EDGBASTON, June 16 (AFP) — If South African World Cup star Lance Klusener glances into his rear-view mirror here tomorrow, he may just spot a distant but growing speck appearing in his slipstream. The turbo-charged all-rounder has caused a sensation at the tournament by scoring 214 high-speed runs before he lost his wicket for the first time. His dismissal by New Zealand’s Gavin Larsen also gave Klusener a world record of 400 one-day runs since the last time he trudged back to the pavilion. Australia’s veteran all-rounder Tom Moody, however, has been quietly building an unbeaten run of his own. Ignored by the selectors for the first three World Cup games, he has since had four innings without losing his wicket, scoring 117 runs. Klusener’s current average is 125. Moody’s is infinity, having not been dismissed. The Australian already owns one ‘world record’. On a cricket tour to Britain 10 years ago, Moody visited the highland games in Scotland, where bizarre sports like tossing the caber — a tree trunk — and hurling the haggis — a Scottish delicacy made of minced sheep’s meat — are practised. The six feet seven inches Moody threw the haggis into the car park to break the existing record. Klusener’s powerful hitting at number seven, which saved his side from imminent disaster against Sri Lanka, England and Pakistan, have earned him four man-of-the-match awards. Yet Moody’s runs have been scored at an even faster rate. Also coming in at number seven, the Western Australia and Worcestershire skipper has made less headlines because he has scored 20's and 30's to Klusener’s 40's and 50's. But Moody has the higher score here, 56 not out, to the South African’s 52 not out. Moody hit those runs off a World Cup record 29 balls against Bangladesh. The Australian almost missed the World Cup after being left out of the provisional 19-man squad, only to be recalled at the last minute. Moody and Steve Waugh
are the only survivors of Australia’s victorious
1987 World Cup Squad. Moody, however, did not play in the
final. |
Poor bowling, fielding led to
MUMBAI, June 16 (PTI) — The administrative manager of the World Cup team Brijesh Patel has blamed poor bowling and fielding along with inconsistent performances for India’s failure to reach the semifinal stage. After landing here in the wee hours today along with six players, Patel told reporters that the Indians will have to work hard on their bowling and fielding to compete successfully with the top teams in the future. "The boys did pretty well in the English conditions and fought against all odds against Sri Lanka, England (in the league) and Pakistan (in Super Six stage), but were inconsistent," Patel said. "The loss to Zimbabwe in the league mattered heavily in the team’s debacle," Patel, who flew in by an Emirates flight here along with Saurav Ganguly, Javagal Srinath, Anil Kumble, Nayan Mongia, Sadagopan Ramesh and Debashish Mohanty, said. Nikhil Chopra, Amay Khurasia and the team doctor Ravinder Chadha landed at the New Delhi airport. Skipper Mohammad Azharuddin, coach Anshuman Gaekwad, Sachin Tendulkar, Ajay Jadeja, Robin Singh, Rahul Dravid and Ajit Agarkar are holidaying in different parts of the world, while paceman Venkatesh Prasad had returned home earlier. "The point system in the Super Sixes stage too went against India and we were disappointed for not making the semifinals," the former Test star from Karnataka said. To a question whether too many one-dayers affected the team’s performance, he said "I think we should cut down the number of international tournaments we play." According to Patel, the number of matches against Pakistan at Toronto (Canada) for the Sahara Cup should be trimmed down to three from the current five. "I personally feel every Test player should also focus on domestic championships and each of them should at least play in two of such tournaments every year," Patel said. Praising Dravid and Jadeja for their consistent performance in England, he said the two batsmen were "the find of the tournament". "Dravid showed that he is a fine one-day player apart from being a consistent performer in Test matches," he said. Mohanty bowled well throughout the tournament, while Ganguly came up with important knocks, Patel added. When asked whether presence of a psychiatrist would have helped players to be tough mentally, he said "I don’t think so" and stressed that "consistency is what we required." He also replied in the
negative when asked whether too much of hype affected the
performance. "The players were very comfortable and
played quite well." |
Recognition elusive for Robin Singh LONDON, June 16 (PTI) — Top batsmen like Saurav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, and the Waugh twins Steve and Mark have been promptly hailed as match-winners, but not every all-rounder at the World Cup has got his due. Lance Klusener, the South African "Zulu" warrior, and dapper Pakistan wicketkeeper Moin Khan have carved a niche for themselves at the mega event for lifting their teams when the chips were down, but India’s Robin Singh is one utility player who has been left in the shadows. India’s early exit might not have helped his cause, but 35-year-old allrounder has faced too many ups and down in his career where doing better than his peers has not meant equal recognition. A real performer who always strives to complete the job left unfinished by his star team-mates, Robin Singh has long got used to such existence, leave alone a pat on the back by his seniors. Being India’s best fielder has not helped either. Look at his performance in this World Cup. He aggregated 157 runs at 31.40 playing in only six of India’s eight ties and picked up eight wickets for an economy rate of just over four an over, which includes five for 31 against Sri Lanka. Arriving invariably in the final overs, he has shown his ability to score at run a ball, against the best bowlers who return for their final spells and reverse swing at will. Robin Singh has also showed his staying power time and again as in his superb 75 in a 141-run fifth wicket stand with Ajay Jadeja in a losing cause against Australia. Despite Robin Singh’s heroics, he invariably gets the axe when the team management has to make a choice. He is dropped while others are not even considered border cases. Total commitment and brilliant fielding apart, he is also a quick runner between the wickets. But Robin Singh has soldiered on ever since he landed in Chennai from Trinidad in mid 80’s and stunned the pundits with his athleticism and natural cricketing abilities. But almost a decade was lost in his prime as he was dumped by the selectors since his selection for the 1987 West Indies tour under Dilip Vengsarkar — where he got to play just one side match and discarded. But it is a tribute to his perseverance that he kept up his performances and finally got the selectors’ nod after the 1996 World Cup as both Sachin Tendulkar and Mohammed Azharuddin on return kept up their demand for the player. Since then he has more or less been a regular, except for being omitted because none else could be dropped. In all he has been dropped five times and not always due to poor showing. In this World Cup, Robin Singh was dropped against Kenya once Sachin Tendulkar returned to the side and his stand-in Sadagopan Ramesh, was also retained. He was reportedly told only on the morning of the match that he was not playing. The World Cup would have been over for him had it not been for wicketkeeper Nayan Mongia pulling out against Sri Lanka due to injury. Robin Singh promptly marked his return with a five wicket haul, only to be dropped for the next tie against England. Ever the team man, he returned against Australia to take two for 43 and hit a fine 75 with a stunning assault on leg spin wizard Shane Warne. His stand with Jadeja helped India maintain their faint victory hopes into the slog overs. But Robin Singh, who has played big knocks for Tamil Nadu, always gives the impression he is not batting freely, perhaps conscious that he can’t afford to fail even once. The first time he decided to take his chance early on, as pinch-hitter against Pakistan at Sharjah in 1997, he was out first ball and promptly dropped for the next game. But the gritty left-hander’s quiet response was a superb 81, again as pinch-hitter, and a match-winning stand with Saurav Ganguly to lift India to a thrilling title win over Pakistan at Dhaka in the very next tournament. Robin’s strength is calculated hitting though critics harp on his lack of elegance. But total team support rather than elegance has done the trick for Klusener and Moin Khan. Here is a batsman who can easily adapt to batting at the top order, which he proved by scoring a century as number three in Sri Lanka last year. But always taken for granted, he was promptly pushed to number seven the very next match. Robin believes a cricketer must have the flexibility to suit the situation and has himself shown that despite entering the national side almost at the fag end of his career. How far does Robin Singh expect his career to go? In today’s cricket
even playing tomorrow’s game is luck, he says half
in jest. |
Rousing reception for Indians MUMBAI, June 16 (UNI) — The six players of the Indian World Cup team, who arrived here early this morning, were given a welcome so warm and affectionate that they will remember forever. Saurav Ganguly, S. Ramesh, Nayan Mongia, Javagal Srinath, Anil Kumble and Debashish Mohanty perhaps would not have dreamt of such a reception by the cricket crazy fans of this metropolis after the team failed to make it to the semifinals of the World Cup. The one win against Pakistan was enough for the fans to celebrate. Instead of brickbats, it was bouquets all the way for the players. Fans had gathered outside the Chatrapati Shivaji International airport since 1a.m. to receive their heroes. The players were greeted with bouquets and autograph hunters, usually associated with cricket, were there in plenty. Some of them were just happy in having a glimpse of their favourite heroes. However, some of them were disappointed when they came to know about the non-arrival of local hero and star of the masses Sachin Tendulkar and Ajit Agarkar. The police had a tough time in controlling the surging crowds as the fans and the media persons jostled with each other to get close to the players. In the melee the camera of a photographer belonging to a local eveninger was damaged. The police had to literally push the crowd back to allow the players get into the waiting coach. Though others were quick
to get into the bus along with the coach Brijesh Patel,
Saurav Ganguly obliged a few autograph hunters. |
Chanu sets new national record BANGALORE, June 16 (PTI) — Sanmacha Chanu today set a new national record in the women’s 48 kg category on the opening day of the National Senior Weightlifting Championship (men and women) here. The 21-year-old Chanu, a final year B.A. student won the gold clearing 82.5 kg in snatch and 100 kg in clean and jerk. She cleared 75 kg in the first attempt and 80 kg in her second attempt. With this she broke her own record of 80 kg which she had set last year. Incidentally, Chanu was a junior world bronze medalist in 1998. She hails from Imphal, Manipur but represents Delhi. Tikina Gopal of Orissa with a snatch of 67.5 kg and jerk of 90kg (167.5 kg) earned silver. Karnataka’s Sharda Siddi settled down for the bronze, (snatch 62.5kg and jerk 72.5kg total 135kg). In the 53kg women’s category, Nandini Devi of Police Sports Board won the gold (snatch 80kg, jerk 105 kg). She finished with a aggregate of 185 to finish on top. Nearly 176 competitors (men and women) from 20 states are taking part in the championship. The notable absentees
are Kunjarani Devi and Malleswari. |
Australia, Korea in Champions BRISBANE, June 16 (AFP) — Australia will play Korea in the final of the men’s hockey Champions Trophy after Pakistan and Spain crashed out in preliminary matches here today. Australia clinched their place in Sunday’s final after drawing 1-1 with Korea, but the Koreans’ rivals for the other final spot fell away when England downed Pakistan 2-0 and Spain lost to their Atlanta Olympics nemesis Netherlands 1-0 in the night’s final game. Pakistan and Spain needed victory to keep alive Friday’s fifth and final round of preliminary matches, but they will now be redundant in the leadup to the final. Spanish hopes were sunk by a goal from Teun de Nooijer in the 45th minute, while England always had Pakistan’s measure with goals from Jonathan Wyatt and James Wallis in either half. Tomorrow, the makeup of Australia’s final opponent in the women’s champions trophy tournament will be known between either Netherlands, Germany or Argentina. Pakistan played into England’s hands to lose a game they had to win and as a consequence bowed out of the men’s Champions Trophy. England can make Sunday’s bronze-medal game if they can improve on parts of their game and beat the struggling Olympic and world champions Netherlands on Friday. The Dutch are already
out of the reckoning for the final. |
Koji Ito breaks 10-second barrier TOKYO June 16 (AFP) — Asia’s fastest sprinter Koji Ito broke the 10-second barrier for the first time today with a run of 9.9 seconds in the 100 metres, measured by manual timing at an athletics meet. However, the record remains unofficial because the Japan Amateur Athletic Federation only recognises times measured electronically. "I feel I’m almost in my best form. I regained confidence when I marked 20.50 in the 200 metres a week ago despite of a head wind," said Ito, the Asian games triple gold medallist in Bangkok in December. "I’m going to concentrate on the 200 metres at the world championships, but today’s time made me feel that I also want to compete in the 100 metres," said the 29-year-old Japanese. Ito set new Asian
records of 20.16 seconds in the 200m at the Japanese
national championships in October last year and 10.00
seconds in the 100m semi-finals in Bangkok, where he won
the accolade of top athlete of the 13th Asian Games. |
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