• JCT to meet FC Kochin today

Fit Srinath eager to play
MUMBAI, March 4 — Indian pace spearhead Javagal Srinath today declared that he has completely recovered from a sore shin and was eager to play in the Asian Test Championship final at Dhaka, provided India qualify.

Ravelli retires after 143 caps
STOCKHOLM, March 4 — Goalkeeper Thomas Ravelli, who earned a world record 143 caps for Sweden, announced on Tuesday that he had decided to retire after 22 years in professional soccer.

Lara awaits scan results
PORT OF SPAIN, March 4 — West Indies captain Brian Lara is awaiting the results of a scan on his damaged right wrist to determine whether he will play in the first Test against Australia which begins tomorrow.

Abhin, Ratti in main draw in Swedish Open
BANGALORE, March 4 — Talented Indian youngsters Abhin Shyam Gupta and Sachin Ratti have advanced to the main draw in men’s singles in Swedish Open badminton championships at Bangalore.

• Rathore’s ton in Punjab’s 309 for 6
• Bhardwaj, Arun slam centuries
• Hyderabad pile up 232 for 5

Wasti, Nazir bolster Pakistan

LAHORE, March 4 (PTI) — Young opener Wajahatullah Wasti struck an unbeaten 80 and raised a fine 105-run second wicket stand with teenaged debutant Imran Nazir (64) to guide Pakistan to a strong 192 for three wickets on a rain-marred opening day of the Asian Test Championship tie against Sri Lanka today.

Wasti, playing in only his second Test after his poor debut against India in Calcutta last month stood firm, after seasoned opener Saeed Anwar’s third ball dismissal and burly Inzamam-ul-Haq also fell for nought, to be on the verge of his maiden Test hundred.

The 20-year-old Wasti and 18-year-old Nazir, with a hard-hitting 64, ensured their team suffered no further hiccups till lunch, taken at 98 for one.

The day’s play was interrupted by unseasonal rain and well over two hours of play was lost, including the entire post-lunch session.

Youngsters took centrestage as both Anwar and later the burly Inzamam-ul Haq fell for zero. At close Yousuf Youhana was giving Wasti company with an unbeaten 40.

The depleted Sri Lanka, seeking to get a difficult seven points, threatened to embarrass the hosts, who have already qualified to the final of the championship.

Lankan medium pacer Pramodya Wickremasinghe, spearheading the attack, bowled Anwar with a straight delivery off the very third ball of the day and then removed Nazir and Haq at 105 to finish the day with three for 61. 

Only 65 overs were sent down out of the quota of 90 due to rain and bad light, which also forced the extended final session to be stopped six overs short.

Pakistan got off to a bad start when Anwar, in form after his 188 at Eden Gardens saw his offstump uprooted by Wickremasinghe off the very third ball. The bowler also ensured that the islanders — needing to get seven points from the match to edge out India from the Dhaka final from March 12 to 16 — gained their first point of the match.

Imran, hailed as an exciting and free-scoring batsman after a rousing series against the visiting South African colts, lived up to his promise by putting the depleted Sri Lankan attack to sword.

He struck 10 fours besides a six off medium pacer Chandika Hathurasinghe in a knock lasting a shade over two hours, after racing to his half-century in only 67 balls.

Imran’s adventurous knock finally led to his downfall as he hooked Wickeramasinghe to Sajeeva De Silva at deep fineleg.

Inzamam, who was forced to miss the Calcutta Test with a head injury, edged the fourth ball he faced onto the stumps, but Wasti thrived on a few chances to remain unbeaten.

He has struck 12 boundaries in an innings which has lasted close to four and half hours and with the stylish Youhana having played himself in, Pakistan look set for a big score tomorrow.

Nazir raced past his half century and was unbeaten on 59 at lunch, but apparently lost concentration due to the long rain-interruption and fell hooking.

But both Wasti and Youhana batted with authority in the final session. Wasti showed fine touch with lovely straight and cover drives and has faced 187 deliveries so far.

Youhana got a life when he had made only one run, Russel Arnold at second slip dropping him off Wickeremasinghe who had to plough a lone furrow.

With several regular stars absent, the Sri Lankan fielding left much to be desired as a dropped a number of catches.

Pakistan (1st innings):

Saeed Anwar b Wickremasinghe 0

Wajahtullah Wasti batting 80

Imran Nazir c Sajeewa b Wickremasinghe 64

Inzamam-ul Haq b Wickremasinghe 0

Yousaf Youhana batting 40

Extras (b-2, lb-3, nb-3) 8

Total (for 3 wickets, 65 overs) 192

Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-105, 3-105.

Bowling: Pramodaya Wickremasinghe 19-7-61-3, Sajeewa De Silva 11-0-66-0, Chandika Hathurasinghe 10-3-21-0, Bandaratilleke 18-7-25-0, Ruwan Kalpage 7-1-14-0.

Anand slips to third position

LINARES, March 4 (PTI) — Russia’s Garry Kasparov recorded his fifth straight win at the city of Linares Chess Tournament here to lead nearest rival Vladimir Kramnik by 1.5 points as India’s Vishwanathan Anand slipped to the third position after his eighth draw at the end of nine rounds.

Kasparov beat Vassily Ivanchuk, his first win with white pieces here, to reach seven points while Kramnik (5.5) beat Peter Svidler and Anand (5) drew with Peter Leko.

Playing white, Leko had better positions in the Spanish opening. Anand gave up castling and did not develop his king bishop. The Indian Grandmaster missed a likely win after Leko came under time pressure.

But Leko managed his 40th move under the allotted two hours and the two decided to split the point after 44 moves.

Kasparov’s domination of the tournament was apparent in his game against Ivanchuk.

Ivanchuk accepted the queen’s gambit offered by Kasparov, improving the latter’s position. A good bishop move on the 12th BC2 followed by 13.D5 put Kasparov in firm control.

With Kasparov’s bishops dominating, a tense Ivanchuk, though he could have managed a draw, resigned on the 36th move to the surprise of all.

Svidler, playing black, could not break Kramnik’s stranglehold on a grunfeld game. After attempting to salvage it by sacrificing a rook for a bishop, he resigned after the 33rd move.

The result made Kramnik the only player apart from Kasparov to have scored more than one win, while for Svidler, it was the fourth successive loss.

Michael Adams, not his usual self in the earlier rounds, drew with Veselin Topalov in 24 moves of a sicilian-najdorf.

In the tenth round, to be held after a rest day, Anand will play with white pieces against Kasparov, who has won all his four games with black pieces.

Ivanchuk will meet Kramnik, Svidler takes on Adams and Topalov will be up against Leko.

Results (ninth round): Kramnik (5.5) bt Svidler (3) Kasparov (7) bt Ivanchuk (3) Leko (4) drew with Anand (5) Adams (4.5) drew with Topalov (4).

Lanka drop Mahanama, Tillekeratne

COLOMBO, March 4 (PTI) — Stand-in skipper Hashan Tillekeratne and seasoned bat Roshan Mahanama have been omitted from the pruned Sri Lankan world cup squad of 18 while former England all-rounder Ian Botham has been hired to train their bowlers ahead of their title defence in England this summer.

A three-member selection committee finalised the list after an acrimonious three-hour meeting on Tuesday, local media reported.

Tillekaratne, leading Sri Lanka against Pakistan in the final league tie of the Asian Test Championship in Lahore, former skipper Mahanama and paceman Ruchira Perera, who made his Test debut here against India in the Asian series are key omissions.

Arjuna Ranatunga has been named captain with Aravinda De Silva, who aggravated a groin injury to be ruled out of the Lahore trip, as his deputy. Opener Sanath Jayasurya and off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan, who are out of action with injuries, have been retained.

Off-spinner Kumara Dharmasena, whose action was reported to the ICC, is also part of the list which has to be pruned to 15 by March 31. Tempers frayed as selectors, with Ranatunga and De Silva as invitees, grappled to finalise the list, the report said, but gave no further details.

Botham has been appointed to guide the medium-pacers and will take over when the team reaches England three weeks ahead of the opening tie against the hosts at the Lord’s on May 14.

Board President Thilanga Sumathipala confirmed the report but said Botham’s brief was restricted to training the bowlers and Roy Dias would continue as overall coach.

The Sri Lankan list contains six fast bowlers, including seasoned left-arm paceman Chaminda Vaas.

The list: Arjuna Ranatunga (capt), Aravinda De Silva (vice-capt), Sanath Jayasuriya, Romesh Kaluwitharana, Avishka Gunawardene, Marvan Atapattu, Mahela Jayawardene, Upul Chandana, Muttiah Muralitharan, Chaminda Vaas, Promodya Wickramasinghe, Kumara Dharmasena, Nuwan Zoysa, Chandika Hathurasinghe, Eric Upashantha, Suresh Perera, Ruwan Kalpage and Hemantha Boteju.

ICC World Cup trophy unveiled

HYDERABAD, March 4 (PTI) — The shimmering ICC World Cup cricket trophy, flown in specially from London, was unveiled at a glittering ceremony by Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin and teammates Ajay Jadeja and Ajit Agarkar and actor Amitabh Bachchan here today.

The 60-cm tall silver and gilt trophy weighing 11 kg, designed and manufactured in London by Garrard. Features a golden globe held aloft by three silver columns.

The globe is depicted in the form of a stylised cricket ball, with the columns shaped as stumps and bails representing the three essential sections of the game - batting, bowling and fielding.

Vibha Rishi, executive vice-president (marketing) of Pepsi Foods Limited who were instrumental in bringing the cup to India, said "Pepsi has always been able to connect cricket with passion of young people".

The trophy will be on display at Hyderabad (March 6), Vishakapatnam (March 9) and Chennai (March 12) before reaching the Sri Lankan capital of Colombo (March 16).

The trophy will return to India to be displayed at Bangalore (March 20) and Lucknow (March 27) with the programme set to culminate at Delhi on April 3.

The cup display at each centre would be accompanied by a special laser show.

The 1999 cricket World Cup is the most important event in the game’s calendar as the world’s 12 leading teams will compete for the title of world champions from May 14 to June 20 and will vie for a record prize fund of $ 1 million.

The winners will be richer by $ 300,000 while the runners-up will get $ 150,000. The losing semifinalists will receive $ 100,000 each. The remaining prize money will be split between fifth and sixth place finishers, super six and group match winners and losers.

Twelve teams — holders Sri Lanka, India, South Africa, England, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Australia, West Indies, Pakistan, New Zealand, Bangladesh and Scotland — are to assemble in England in early May and be hosted for a 10-day period during which they will play three warm-up matches each.

The first phase of the competition will be group matches and each team will play the others in its group in a 30-match round-robin format to run from May 14 to June 13.

The top three teams from each group will progress to the next phase, the "super six" stage, taking with them only the points scored against the other successful teams in their group.

The nine "super six" matches will be played at the Test match grounds with each progressing team in group A playing each of the three qualifiers from group B.

The top four teams at the end of the "super six" phase will qualify for the semi-finals, scheduled for June 16 and 17 at Old Trafford and Edgbaston.

The final will be played at Lord’s on June 20.

Waqar will have to work hard

THE question we all wanted answered was, would Pakistan be up for the match against Sri Lanka? There is no doubt in my mind that a Pakistan team ‘fired up’ to win would be too strong for a badly under strength Sri Lanka. Pakistan players have enormous talent but their cricket is sublime or ridiculous and we were all wondering if Pakistan would play with conviction and spirit or behalf half hearted enough to let Sri Lanka get the seven bonus points and keep India out of the finals in Dhaka.

On a very flat batting pitch of no pace it was tailor made for easy runs but the two senior batsmen Saeed Anwar and Inzamam-ul-Haq played so casually that you could be forgiven for thinking they hadn’t woken up! Anwar never moved his feet and played down the wrong line to a straight ball. Inzamam wafted at a wide ball to give the impression that he would have preferred to stay on his honeymoon with his new wife rather than batting in Lahore! So it was left to the new kids on the block to take advantage of the opportunity. Imran Nazir at 17 and in his first Test batted with all the arrogance of youth and the confidence of a guy in good form. Anything wide he threw the bat at the ball and gave it a real thump without any concern or thought of where his feet went. His good shots were quality with the off drives and the pull/hook being his favourites. The best time to give a youngster a chance is when he is batting well and full of runs so that he plays his shots without thinking. You don’t want him to start his Test career with any doubt in his mind. It is important, a new player expresses himself and does not get ‘bogged down’ with too much theory.

Opener Wajahat Wasti playing in only his second Test was less flamboyant but looked a more composed batsman. Very solid and straight in defence he took a bit more time to make his runs but I don’t mind that in an opening bat. Too many shots early on gives the bowlers too many chances with the new ball to get early wickets. He was dropped early on by Kaluwitharana from a good ball but he did not let that upset him. From then on he was very much at ease playing his steady way.

With youngsters coming through and grabbing their opportunities are we seeing the end of the careers of Salim Malik and Aamir Sohail? I get the impression that the selectors — together with coach, Javed Miandad are looking for a infusion of youth into the team. It will be difficult for both batsmen to force their way into a winning team. Sohail may make it for the World Cup because of his dual role as batsman and left arm spinner. Pakistan have been given permission to name their World Cup squad a few days late. When it come out the name of Waqar Younis will be absent. Twelve months ago it would have been unthinkable that a Pakistan team would not have one of the best and fastest bowlers in the world as its spearhead. Even more upsetting for Waqar is that he was left out of this Test match even after Shoaib Akhtar pulled out with neck trouble. To be overlooked for two new young raw pace bowlers, Fazal-e-Akbar and Shahid Nazir is a pointer for his future as a Test player. The Pakistan thinking is that the various injuries Waqar has sustained recently have taken the edge off his bowling. He is a yard short of pace and even when he swings the ball because he is slower, the ball starts its swing too early and the batsmen have more time to play it. Gone is the old swagger and cockiness he used to have. The injuries may have healed but psychologically he has been damaged. Unless he has the desire and mental toughness to put himself through a hard fitness regime with lots of bowling, we may never again see the pace and fire that made him feared in Test match cricket. — PMG

Churchill hold East Bengal

MARGAO, March 4 (PTI) — Down by a first half goal, Churchill Brothers played superbly to rally from behind in an exciting second half and hold East Bengal to a 1-1 draw and salvage a point in their last encounter of the first leg of National League Football here today.

East Bengal, who had better share of exchanges, shot into the lead in the 26th minute through Ranjan Dey after missing two chances at the Nehru Stadium, Fatorda.

Churchill shrugged off their lethargic display in the first half and restored parity in the 50th minutes when mercurial striker Philip Mensah found the net to become the leading scorer with ten goals.

With this draw, Churchill is leading the table with 11 points, while East Bengal are placed third with six points.

Referee Inayatullah Khan showed yellow cards to Ratan Singh, Ranjan Dey and Dipendu Biswas of East Bengal.

England may field more blacks than SA

CAPE TOWN, March 4 (AFP) — South Africa’s cricket team for the World Cup later this year is likely to contain fewer blacks than the England team, a parliamentary committee has been told.

Lulama Xingwana, chairperson of the committee on sport, said England had named five black players in its preliminary World Cup squad, whereas South Africa, "which is in Africa", has only named three.

"We hope when the final team is announced these three will not disappear", Xingwana said during a hearing yesterday by the committee on efforts by the United Cricket Board of South Africa (UCBSA) to implement government affirmative action policies.

Cricket came in for a severe tongue-lashing by Sports Minister Steve Tshwete last year for fielding what he termed "lilywhite" teams.

Despite that the South African selectors in December selected an all-white team for the first Test in the triumphant series win over West Indies.

This provoked further outrage from Tshwete, who warned he may have to legislate against sporting codes fielding all-white teams.

Undeterred, the selectors — coach Bob Woolmer, captain Hansie Cronje and vice-captain Shaun Pollock — chose two all-white teams for the second and third one-day internationals against New Zealand.

Three black players are in the squad, including Herschelle Gibbs, who played in the first one-day international.

Fit Srinath eager to play

MUMBAI, March 4 (PTI) — Indian pace spearhead Javagal Srinath today declared that he has completely recovered from a sore shin and was eager to play in the Asian Test Championship final at Dhaka, provided India qualify.
Talking to reporters after the formal launching of his three-year tie-up with United Television (UTV) Sports, the gangling Karnataka pace ace said the brief rest from the hard grind of international cricket has done him a world of good.

"I wanted the rest as I thought it (shin soreness) was becoming chronic", the Mysore-born Srinath, who was rested for India’s last league match in the Asian Test series against Sri Lanka at Colombo, said.

Srinath, who bagged a superb eight for 86 in the second innings of the Asian Test series match against Pakistan at Eden Gardens to complete the first ten-wicket haul of his career, rated his career-best second innings figures of 6 for 21 against South Africa at Ahmedabad in 1996 higher.

"The spell at Ahmedabad fetched India the victory and I rate that better than the Calcutta effort", Srinath said when queried how he compared the two performances.

The 29-year-old Srinath, who has taken 141 wickets in 38 Tests and 215 wickets in 154 limited overs internationals, said the coming World Cup in England is his as well as the Indian team’s centre of focus.

During the period of his contract, the Mumbai-based TV company would promote Srinath for endorsements of any product, service, organisation or activity, it was announced at a press conference here.

The fast bowler would also devote himself to promoting cricket and plans are being drawn up for his participation in seminars and workshops to share his experience and expertise with aspiring cricketers.

Lara awaits scan results

PORT OF SPAIN, March 4 (Reuters) — West Indies captain Brian Lara is awaiting the results of a scan on his damaged right wrist to determine whether he will play in the first Test against Australia which begins tomorrow.

"There’s a crack in the bone. I’ve been practising and feeling okay but you can’t forget the fact that there is a crack there," Lara said before training at Queens Park Oval yesterday.

"I’m 90 per cent definite that I will play. I’m having extra net sessions."

The lingering doubt over Lara adds to the uncertainty which plagues West Indian cricket on and off the field going in to the four-Test series.

Concerns also remain about the fitness of veteran fast bowlers Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh.

Like Lara they have not played a competitive match since returning a month ago from the tour of South Africa in which West Indies lost all five Tests and six of the seven one-day matches.

Ambrose trained with the team yesterday but Walsh was still on his way from Jamaica.

Walsh has just returned from visiting a specialist in New York who assessed the player’s groin and hamstring problems.

Asked if Walsh was fit, concerned team manager Clive Lloyd replied: "I hope so."

The West Indian selectors have named six fast bowlers in a 15-man squad as cover for injuries. Lloyd expects the final XI to be chosen later.

Australia have also yet to name a team but there is no doubt both leg-spinners, Shane Warne and Stuart MacGill, will play along with fast bowlers Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie.

The pitch has a reasonable cover of thick grass but is nothing like the sodden mine-field of a track which confronted the Australians on their last tour four years ago.

The toss is likely to be irrelevant. With a bank of fast bowlers and no spinners, the West Indies will be looking to bowl first to exploit any early life in the pitch.

Australia will want to bat first so the spinners can bowl last on a wearing wicket.

Despite the good grass coverage Steve Waugh, in his first Test as captain, expects the pitch to begin taking spin after day two.

Almost daily showers have prevented the groundsmen from rolling the wicket as much as they would like to but Waugh was happy with what he saw.

"It looks as though it’s going to be pretty slow, pretty dead. I’ve got no complaints," he said. "I think our blokes will turn the ball on it but you don’t want to read too much into it."

The West Indies are trying to put their disastrous South African tour behind them but the defeats have burned deep. Questions are still being asked of those in charge.

Like Lara on Monday night, coach Malcolm Marshall has refused to take responsibility for the dreadful performance.

"You share the blame but the manager and coach don’t seem to get any credit when you win. I’m not going to sit back and take all the blame," Marshall said.

"As a coach all you can do is prepare the players."

No major surprises in list of 19
By Abhijit Chatterjee
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, March 4 — There has been, by and large, no major surprises in the list of 19 probables shortlisted by the national selection committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India for the World Cup.

Those who have been dropped from the list of 30, finalised on January 16 last, can take heart from the fact that the selectors had very little data at their command between then and yesterday when they met at Mumbai to shortlist the 19. The list will be further pruned to 15 on March 30, one day before the deadline set by the International Cricket Council for finalising the members of the teams scheduled to take part in the last World Cup of the millennium.

These 19 players will figure both in the triangular series at home as also the Sharjah Cup in April, where in all probability the 15 selected for the World Cup will play.

Gyanendra Pandey, the Uttar Pradesh and Central Zone allrounder, and Delhi youngster Virendra Shewag can count themselves lucky to have been retained in the list of 19 at the expense of players like openers VVS Laxman, Gagan Khoda, Devang Gandhi (a surprise inclusion in the team for the final of the Asian Test Cricket Championship at Dhaka in case India to qualify for the match) spinners Harbhajan Singh, Sunil Joshi and Rahul Sanghvi, pacemen Doda Ganesh and Debashish Mohanty and wicketkeepers Saba Karim and MSK Prasad as also middle order batsman Jacob Martin.

But what is most surprising is the fact that the selectors have included only one wicketkeeper — Nayan Mongia — in the list of 19. Between now and the series involving India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka at home and then the Sharjah Cup in April and any injury suffered by Mongia in any of these tournaments may put India in an awkward position.

The explanation that Mongia handled the workload in New Zealand singlehandedly does not cut much ice since the World Cup is an altogether different cup of tea and every matters to every team in such a tournament. Therefore, the pressure on the wicketkeeper would be all the more.

While the board secretary, Mr J.Y. Lele, tried to explain that Mongia could be replaced if injured, much would depend on the medical board to be set up by the England and Wales Cricket Board which must certify to the genuineness of the injury suffered by the player. But with two good wicketkeepers in the list of 30, MSK Prasad and Saba Karim, the selectors should have included one more wicketkeeper in the list of 19.

With Ajit Wadekar, chairman of the national selection committee, himself admitting that the spinners would have a very limited role in the World Cup where was the justification in having as many as three spinner — Anil Kumble, Nikhil Chopra and Gynanendra Pandey — in the list of 19. In fact one of these slots could have gone to a wicketkeeper given that fact that the pressure on the wicketkeeper in a one-day is at the optimum level.

However, the selectors have done well to go by the ruling of the team doctor, Dr Ravinder Chadha, and physio Andrew Kokinos who said in their report that Ajit Agarkar and Vinod Kambli had recovered fully from their injuries. Both players have immense potential and should serve well in India's campaign in the World Cup.

Ravelli retires after 143 caps

STOCKHOLM, March 4 (Reuters) — Goalkeeper Thomas Ravelli, who earned a world record 143 caps for Sweden, announced on Tuesday that he had decided to retire after 22 years in professional soccer.

Ravelli, 39, has been considering his future since he left US major league soccer club Tampa Bay Mutiny last November after a year with the club.

Ravelli's goalkeeping heroics helped Sweden reach the semifinals of the 1994 World Cup in the USA and earned him a place on the short list for FIFA's all stars selection from the tournament.

He made his senior international debut in 1981 and played his last match for Sweden in a 1-0 win over Estonia in October 1997.

"I've decided I no longer have the inner motivation to continue", Ravelli told Swedish SVT television.

"Since I came home from the USA three months ago I've been thinking about what to do with my future".

Ravelli said he had been approached by several Swedish clubs to be a stand-by goalkeeper. He said he was considering a possible television career.

He was first signed up by Osters when he was only 10 years old and developed through their schoolboy and youth rank before making his senior debut at 17.

He stayed with Osters for 19 years, winning Swedish Championship medals in 1980 and 1981, and moved to IFK Gotenburg in 1989, winning further championship titles in 1990 and 1991.

JCT to meet FC Kochin today

MARGAO, March 4 (PTI) — JCT Phagwara and FC Kochin will try to salvage some pride when they meet in their last encounter in the National Football Super League at Nehru Stadium here tomorrow.

Both the teams have not won a match from their four outings and are at the bottom of the table. JCT have three points after drawing with East Bengal, Mohun Bagan and Salgaocar and losing to Churchill Brothers.

The young FC Kochin side have played reasonably well, but conceded goals due to lapses by their defenders.

FC Kochin medios Noel Wilson, Roque Barreto, C. Karunakar Raj and K. Noushad will have to put up a better performance and create more openings for their nippy strikers M. Najeeb and Nitin Pradhan.

A mixture of youth and experience, JCT’s performance depends on their team work. Their midfield, revolving around Hardeep Sangha, Hardip Saini and Jasbir Singh, has been inconsistent in attack.

JCT’s main strength is their keeper Virender Singh and a strong defence manned by Tarsem Lal, Deepak Mandal, Kuldip Singh and Daljit Singh.

Hyderabad pile up 232 for 5

HYDERABAD, March 4 (PTI) — A 138-run fourth wicket stand between Nanda Kishore (83) and M.V. Sridhar (batting 83) enabled hosts Hyderabad to pile up 232 for 5 against Rajasthan on the first day of their four-day Ranji Trophy group-A super league cricket match at Gymkhana Grounds here today.

Electing to bat, Hyderabad had a disastrous start, losing opener Arvind Shetty (0) on the first ball of the day by Shamsheer Singh.

Test-discard V.V.S. Laxman (7) followed soon after, caught brilliantly by wicket-keeper Manish Singh off Shamsheer Singh in the fifth over.

Thereafter, opener Daniel Manohar (40) and Nanda Kishore repaired the early damage, putting on 81 runs for the third wicket in 31.3 overs. Manohar fell to Jai Kumar Sharma caught by Anshu Jain at silly point.

Nanda Kishore’s fine knock ended when he mistimed a stroke to be caught and bowled by Jai Kumar Sharma. His 83 knock came off 227 balls in 317 minutes with 10 boundaries.

Vanka Pratap (9), who joined Sridhar, did not last long, falling to Rajasthan skipper Aashish Kapoor.

The umpires called off play with Sridhar at crease on 83 (172 b, 201 m 10x4).

Brief scores: (Hyderabad 1st innings): 232 for 5 (Daniel Manohar 40, Nanda Kishore 83, M.V. Sridhar batting 83; Shamsheer Singh 2/20, Jai Kumar Sharma 2/57.

Rathore’s ton in Punjab’s 309 for 6

BARODA, March 4 (PTI) — India discard Vikram Rathore cracked a century while Amit Sharma chipped in with an unbeaten half century in Punjab’s first innings total of 309 for six wickets on the opening day of a group-A Ranji Trophy super league match here today.

Rathore compiled 120 runs and put on a 93 runs first wicket partnership with veteran Navjot Singh Sidhu (35) and 73 for the second wicket with Pankaj Dharmani (33) after Punjab won the toss and elected to bat.

SCOREBOARD
Punjab (Ist innings): Rathore c Arothe b Mulherkar 120, Sidhu c Chavda b Mulherkar 35, Dharmani c Martin b Sivaramakrishnan 33, Mongia c Martin b Swaroop 6, Amit Sharma batting 55, Harjinder Jugnu c Martin b Swaroop 34, Harman Harry c Swaroop b Mulherkar 0, Sandip batting 12, Extras (B-6, LB-5, N-3) 14.

Total (for six wickets in 90 overs) 309.
Fall of wickets: 1-93, 2-166, 3-187, 4-211, 5-265, 6-266.
Bowling: Arjun Chavda 6-0-24-0, Manmohan Kadri 6-0-33-0, Darshan Mulherkar 26-7-64-3, R.A. Swaroop 25-0-80-2, L. Sivaramakrishnan 15-1-56-1, Arothe 12-1-41-0.

Bhardwaj, Arun slam centuries

BANGALORE, March 4 (PTI) — A dazzling 124 by Vijay R. Bhardwaj who also completed 1,000 runs in a Ranji season, and a fine 135 by Arun Kumar helped Karnataka pile up 322 for 4 against Bihar on the first day of their Ranji Trophy cricket super league match here today.

Bharadwaj became the fifth player to score more than 1,000 runs in a season and the first from Karnataka to do so. His aggregate now stands at 1,022. He is just 13 runs short of becoming the highest run getter in a Ranji season.

In Karnataka’s last match against Saurashtra last month, Bharadwaj had surpassed Brijesh Patel’s previous Karnataka record of 850 runs in a season.

Raman Lamba (1,034), Ajay Sharma (1,033), W.V. Raman (1,018) and R.C. Modi (1,008) are the other four batsmen who had achieved the feat in the national championship.

Opting to bat first, Karnataka got off to a disastrous start losing opener Sujith Somasundar (6) leg before to Dheeraj Kumar with their total on 11. Kumar struck again to send back Tilak Naidu (0) two balls later.

But, Bhardwaj and Arun Kumar rescued their team with a 243-run partnership for the third wicket, before both fell to spinner Tariq-ur-Rahman.

Brief scores: (Karnataka Ist innings): 322 four 4 (Vijay R. Bhardwaj 124, Arun Kumar 135; Dheeraj Kumar 2/54, Tariq-ur-Rahman 2/26.)

Abhin, Ratti in main draw in Swedish Open

BANGALORE, March 4 (UNI) — Talented Indian youngsters Abhin Shyam Gupta and Sachin Ratti have advanced to the main draw in men’s singles in Swedish Open badminton championships at Bangalore.

However, their compatriot Manjusha Kanwar narrowly lost in the qualifying round in the ladies singles yesterday.

Abhin playing in the grand prix circuit after a long break, scored straight game wins over Johan Holm, Simon Knuttson and Henrick Croona, all from Sweden, according to information received by the Badminton Association of India here today. Sachin also scored facile victories over Swedish opponents Frederik Du Hann, Andreas Ehn and Marcus Jansoon.

Abhin will now take on German national champion Oliver Pongratz in the first round while Ratti will clash with Daniel Erickson of Sweden. Nikhil Kanetkar, who had got direct entry, will meet Alvaraad of Lithuania in the opening round.

Manjusha Kanwar was beaten by China’s Sun Jian 5-11, 10-13. Former national champion Manjunsha led 10-8 in the second game but squandered the opportunity, to lose narrowly. Aparna Popat will take on Johanna Holegersson of Sweden in the first round.

Indian doubles pair Jaseel Ismail and Vincent Lobo have a tough opening round against Fedrick and Henrick of Sweden.

Chandigarh boxing on March 13,14

CHANDIGARH, March 4 (BOSR) — The Chandigarh Amateur Boxing Association will conduct 22nd Chandigarh State Senior Boxing Championship on March 13 and 14 at Boxing Coaching Centre, Sector 23, according to a press note of the association. The UT team for participation in the 45th Senior National Boxing Championship to be held at Visakhapatnam (AP) from March 25 to 30 will be selected during this championship.

Varsity function

PATIALA, March 4 (FOSR) — The annual sports prize distribution function of Punjabi University will be held at the university arts auditorium on March 10 at 11 a.m. Position holders in All-India inter-university sports tournaments along with the respective coaches and managers will be honoured. Mr Arvind Khanna, secretary general of the Punjab Olympic Association, will be the chief guest, according to Mrs Manjit Bhagwat, Director, Sports, Punjabi University.

OBC sport meet

CHANDIGARH, March 4 (BOSR) — The All India Oriental Bank of Commerce Sports meet in four disciplines, cricket, table tennis, chess and carrom will begin tomorrow, according to a press note of the OBC, Chandigarh Regional office. Nearly 200 players from eight zones from all over India will be taking part in this three day tournament.

YCC Club triumph

CHANDIGARH, March 4 (BOSR) — On the opening day of the Chandigarh State Senior Basketball Championship at Sector 7 sports complex, YCC Club got the better of Panjab University campus by 57-42. The half time score was 28-16 in favour of the YCC.

The main scorers for the winning side were Harjot Singh (27), Amrish (17) and Vikramjit Singh (6) while for the losers Virender emerged the top scorer with 18 points followed by Mahesh with 10 and Sunil with 5 points.

A total of six teams in men's section have been divided into two pools. Pool 'A' has 12 AF Wing, Athletic Club, Sector 7 and Engineering Regiment while pool 'B' comprises PU Campus, SD College Club, Sector 32, and YCC. All the matches will be played on league-cum-knockout basis.

Judokas honoured

CHANDIGARH, March 4 (TNS) — Amateur Judo Association of Chandigarh yesterday honoured Yash Pal Solanki, Prashant Verma (both gold), Babita (gold and bronze), Mukesh Solanki, Rupinderdeep Kaur and Rashmi (all bronze) for winning laurels in the recent National Games held at Imphal. Mr L.V. Sehgal, president, AJAC, along with other dignataries, applauded the efforts of the judokas and their coaches P.P. Singh and Jagdeep Singh. Judokas were honoured by Mr Inderjit Singh Sandhu, Additional Commissioner, Transport, Punjab, who was chef-de-mission for the Chandigarh contingent.