Bharat Rakshak

Jugraj sizzles for Punjab Police

CHANDIGARH: Jugraj Singh smashed four goals to power defending champion Punjab Police to an 8-0 victory over Uttarakhand in a Group ‘A’ league match of the 57th all-India Police hockey championship at the Sector 42 Stadium here on Friday.

India outwits Pakistan 3-1 in the inconsequential tie for a clean record (3/13/2009) -- K. Arumugam

Despite a second half sluggishness, India rode on a to fluent 3-1 victory over Pakistan in the inconsequential last pool match of the Genting 4-Nation Cup on Friday. The tune for the Indian win was set as quick as 30 seconds from the start. A right flank attack marshaled by Mandeep Antil led the ball inside the circle, a bout of exchanges later Pramod Kumar put the ball past Imran Butt. A minute later ever-agile Danish Mujtaba – he was hero of the first session – snatched the ball from a loath defender and made a beautiful reverse shot from the top of the circle. Goalie Imran Butt saved the sure shot but not before conceding the team’s first penalty corner. Diwakar’s flick posed no danger for the Pakistani defence.

Diwakar was on target in his second attempt, sending the ball right at the middle of the net for India’s second goal in the 13th minute. Barring a solitary penalty corner, Pakistan was seen struggling to the agile Indian legs. Now Danish, the architect of the previous goal, scored one by himself. He outwitted at least three defenders inside the circle areas to cobweb a reverse shot that bemused the Pakistan bench. The third goal, the manner in which it was fructified amply proved the Pakistanis here are not in their elements.

To mirror the field dominance India got a couple of penalty corners but rusher Irfan Muhammad spoilt the Indian party. Another penalty corner was well anticipated and palmed away by Imran Butt. At the fag end of the first session, Pakistan got their act together, despite a couple of misdirected shots, they got reward in the form of a penalty corner given by neutral umpire Yuji Hosokawa. Hitherto idling Indian goalie Mrinal Chaubey easily blocked the path of the ball with a timely jump at the right.

Pakistan’s 6 foot two inches tall Attique Md. negotiated both the Pakistan penalty corners. But the Gojra born defender's prowess could not be delayed for long. In the 51st minute, he sent the ball home off the team’s third penalty corner. Pakistan applied enormous pressure in the second half, especially in the last quarter in vain. Indian defence was stretched while Pak forwards harried their efforts. Toufeeq Md, missed a sitter of a situation, misdirecting an easy shot when the goal was at his mercy. This is just an instance, such misses are galore in that spell much to the chagrin of the losing side.

Need club's help to realise 'Goal 2011' project: Houghton

NEW DELHI: India's chief football coach Bob Houghton on Friday said the I-League clubs should come forward and help the All India Football Federation (AIFF) achieve its grand plan of giving central contracts to 25 players, who will play exclusively for the national team till the 2011 Asia Cup in Doha. The project, termed 'Goal 2011', was mooted by Englishman Houghton and the AIFF is still weighing its pros and cons. "There are a lot of issues. We need help of the I-League clubs to realise the project," Houghton said.

According to the project, the 25 players selected won't be contracted with any club and their present salaries will be matched by the AIFF. The project is going to be worth around Rs. 450 million. "It will be a costly project. To organise friendly matches with teams like Malaysia or even Hong Kong, the AIFF has to spend $20,000-$30,000 per match. And if we take away top players, then the I-League will be devalued," he said. Under Houghton, India have qualified for the final rounds of the Asia Cup for the first time in 24 years.

India to field 38 shooters

NEW DELHI: The National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) has selected 38 shooters to compete in ten events in rifle and pistol, in the World Cups to be held in Changwon, Korea, from April 8 to 16 and Beijingfrom April 16 to 24. Though there are no quota places to be won from these World Cups for the Olympic Games in London in 2012, the shooters are being sent to acquire Minimum Qualifying Scores (MQS) and prepare for the Commonwealth Games to be staged here in 2010. Abhinav Bindra has not yet decided about the future course of his shooting career.

The team: Amanpreet Singh, Anisa Sayyed, Annuraj Singh, Anuja Jung, Ayonika Paul, Bapu Vanjare, C.K. Chaudhary, Gagan Narang, Gurpal Singh, Gurpreet Singh, Harveen Srao, Heena Sidhu, Imran Hasan Khan, Joydeep Karmakar, Kuheli Gangulee, Lajja Gauswami, Meena Kumari, Neha Sapte, Om Prakash, Om Prakash, Omkar Singh, P. T. Raghunath, Parminder Kumar, Pemba Tamang, Priya Agarwal, Pushpanjali Rana, Ronak Pandit, Sanjeev Rajput, Satendra Kumar, Shamsher Singh, Shweta Chaudhary, Sonia Rai, Suma Shirur, Surendra Singh Rathod, Sushil Ghaley, Sushma Singh, Tejaswini Sawant, Vijay Kumar and Vivek Singh.

Indian men optimistic after Florida stint

NEW DELHI: Ten Indian players, led by the reigning National champion V.M. Ranjeet, are ready to reap the rewards of a four-week training stint at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Centre in Florida. Funded by the Union Sports Ministry as part of the preparation of the Commonwealth Games in 2010, the Indian players had a fruitful stint at Bollettieri’s. “We had tough training. I got to hit with Max Mirnyi and a couple of Canadian players. We had the opportunity to watch players like Tommy Haas, Kei Nishikori, Radek Stepanek etc. in training, which was a big learning experience,” said Ranjeet.

The original plan was to train for eight weeks, but by the time the Government approval came, the programme had to be cut down to four weeks, as the players had to return for tournaments at home in Chandigarh and Kolkata. “I think four weeks was ideal. We rested for a week on return and are ready to compete in the Futures events in Chandigarh and Kolkata over the next fortnight. Eight weeks could have been physically draining to train at this time of the season,” observed Ranjeet.

Ashutosh Singh, Divij Sharan, Vivek Shokeen, Vishnu Vardhan, Vijayant Malik, Ronak Manuja, Navdeep Singh, Sriram Balaji and Abhijeet Tiwari were the others. While most of the players would be busy with the tournaments at home, former National champion Ashutosh Singh has opted to compete in Challenger tournaments in Thailand. Coach Arun Kumar accompanied the players and praised the quality programme as much as the infrastructure.

“The physical training was very good, and our players got to practise with different players. Nick Bollettieri made it a point to be with us in the morning session almost every day,” said Arun Kumar. “It is a fabulous facility with 56 courts. It was six hours of tennis and two hours of physical training a day. Most of our players trained for five days and rested for two days in a week,” said the coach. Ranjeet felt that it was a good beginning and hoped that the Government would continue to support the players to compete in tournaments too. The women players who left later are scheduled to return by the end of the month.

Top international squash players will be seen in action along with Indian players in the USD 30,000 PSA Indian Challenger Squash meet, to be held here at the Calcutta Racket Club (CRC) from March 16. Malaysia's Ong beng Hee and Azlan Iskander and England's Adrian Grant, who are ranked 11th, 12th and 13th respectively in the world are participating along with Saurav Ghosal (WR 36) and Writwik Bhattacharjee (WR 59) from India.

CRC president R K Maheswari informed that the tournament is a 3-star Professional Men's International event and is being held as part of the preparations for the Commomwealth Games to be held next year. The draw also features three Egyptians Hisham Mohd Ashour (WR 29), Mohammed Abbas (WR 35) and Amr Swelim (WR 46). Many other international players are also in the fray. India's Naresh Kumar has been given a wild card in the meet.

Chuni Goswami criticises Bob Houghton's 2011 project

New Delhi (PTI): Former India captain Chuni Goswami on Saturday flayed national coach Bob Houghton's ambitious plan for the 2011 Asian Cup saying rather than invest time and money on senior players, he should focus on the under-19s if he intends to build a strong squad for future. The British coach, in his Goal 2011 Project, had proposed that All India Football Federation adopt players like Bhaichung Bhutia, Mahesh Gawli and keep them free off club commitments so that they can concentrate on national duty.

Houghton's proposal includes intensive training for 20 months and more than 40 exhibition matches in the run-up to the Asian Cup in Doha. The ambitious project would cost around Rs 45 crore. However, Goswami, who led the country to the Jakarta Asian Games gold in 1962, feels the project would serve little purpose since most of the players in Houghton's scheme of things are past their prime.

"Imagine India bowing out in the first round of the Asian Cup then all this money and time spent on senior players would go to waste. Houghton would do better to concentrate on the under-19 team instead and put them through the grind. That way even if India go out early, the boys will be better prepared and the country will have a strong squad," said the Padma Shree award winner and Mohun Bagan legend. "Players like Bhaichung, Mahesh, Dipak (Mondal), Surkumar (Singh) are good but they are getting old. They perhaps have a few more years of active football left. So what's the use in investing in these players," Goswami quipped.

The Arjuna award winner also rubbished Houghton's plan to keep players off club engagements. "Clubs form the backbone of every country. Playing for clubs like Mohun Bagan, East Bengal, Dempo and others, whatever be their standard, gives players vital practice and provides them enough competition. While at the national camp, the players would just train and occasionally play exhibition matches. It would serve very little purpose," said Goswami, who also had an illustrious cricket career, leading Bengal to one Ranji Trophy final.

The 71-year-old former striker feels Houghton's project is flawed and requires proper planning. "The project should involve youngsters and they should be groomed but not at the expense of club football, where they learn the competitive edge. And even if seniors are included, it shouldn't mean they stay away from club football. Rather, limit the number of matches they play for clubs. That way there will be a proper balance and club football too won't be affected," the former Sheriff of Kolkata said.

An inspired India stunned world champions Australia by 16 runs to kick off their Super Six campaign in style at the ICC Women's World Cup tournament on Saturday. Australian skipper Karen Rolton's decision to field first backfired as Indian openers Anagha Despandhe (45) and Anjum Chopra (76) gave a steady start to the visitors' innings. A late onslaught by Amita Sharma (31) and Harmanpreet Kaur helped the Indians accumulate 73 runs in the last seven overs and take the total to a respectable 234/5 in the allotted 50 overs.

Although Australia started their run chase on a confident note, the Jhulan Goswami-led Indian attack restricted the hosts to 219/7 in their 50 overs. For the Aussies, this was their second defeat in the tournament. The result leaves Australia on two points with a couple of Super Six matches still left and they must ensure victories in all the remaining matches besides hoping that other teams falter.

Indian batters who had been out of touch so far in the tournament, struck form on Saturday with Despandhe and Chopra putting on 69 runs for the opening wicket. India-born Aussie Lisa Sthalekar ended the partnership, picking up Despandhe who was caught by Lauren Ebsary in the deep mid-wicket in the 21st over. The Indians lost their second wicket soon after in the form of Thirush Kamini (2) in the 28th over. The in-form Mithali Raj (44) walked in and combined with Chopra to add 56 runs for the second wicket and lay the foundation for the onslaught.

The Indian innings accelerated after the dismissal of Chopra and Raj with Amita Sharma striking three boundaries in a 31-run cameo which came off 22 balls. Sthalekar was the pick of the Aussie bowlers, picking up three wickets for 52 runs. Australia, however, done in by a poor start and were in severe trouble after losing their top three batters by the 15th over. Shelley Nitschke was the first to go after being bowled by a superb Jhulan Goswami delivery that clipped the top of her off stump and Australia's were compounded further after Rolton and Sthalekar departed.

The hosts were tottering at 3 for 53 when Sthalekar was caught behind off Gouher Sultana. Alex Blackwell (54) made a desperate effort to keep Australia in the hunt, but her efforts went in vain as the required run-rate kept soaring and ultimately proved too much. For India, Reena Malhotra and Sultana scalped two wickets each, giving away 32 and 33 runs respectively, while Goswami, Rumeli Dhar and Sharma picked up one wicket apiece.

Gun and glory

He is largely responsible for giving Indian shooting the attention it so richly deserves. Meet India’s national coach Sunny Thomas. By A. Joseph Antony.

Sardara Singh strikes form

CHANDIGARH: Sardara Singh announced his good form and sound recovery from a recent injury that had kept him away from the Indian squad, with two goals as Haryana defeated Andhra Pradesh 7-3 to book a quarterfinal berth from group ‘G’ in the 57th all India Police hockey championship at the Sector 42 stadium here on Saturday.

These days, top boxers Akhil Kumar and Jitender Kumar are going through a phase of transition. In order to change to higher weight categories, the two underwent rigorous endurance training in South Africa with trainer Heath Matthews before they shift their focus to the ring. Changing to a higher weight category is not the easiest of the tasks for a boxer and 27-year-old Akhil — going up from bantamweight to featherweight — is happy that he has done it before, with success. On the other hand, Jitender — graduating from flyweight to bantamweight – has already experienced an initial hiccup as he lost in the opening round of the A.K. international boxing championship in Chandigarh.

“It’s not at all easy (to change to a higher weight). It’s like entering into someone else’s house and throwing him out. Physically and mentally one has to become much stronger to achieve that,” Akhil told The Hindu on Monday. “I am glad that I have the experience of switching from flyweight to bantamweight in 2005. I lost my first tournament then, but came back to win the gold in the Commonwealth Championship. That experience will come in handy for me,” the World Cup bronze medallist said.

Little doubt

There is little doubt that 21-year-old Jitender, also a World Cup bronze winner, is slightly disappointed with his recent defeat in Chandigarh. But he is not disheartened and his message on a community portal reflects his mood – “whatever happens…happens for the best!” Jitender considers Akhil as his mentor and would like to give an ear to the senior pugilist’s advice. “Jitender made the mistake of jumping into the ring too early. He should have become fully prepared before taking part in any competition. Anyway, this loss will teach him a lot,” Akhil remarked.

About his own plans, Akhil said he needed to box for four weeks to get ready for any tournament. “The endurance training in Durban was very useful. After a week’s break, I will move to the Patiala camp to start training in the new weight. I owe a lot to the Mittal Champions Trust and the national federation for their support and I should not let them down,” he said.

Chucking surfaces in women's cricket

Melbourne (IANS): Chucking has surfaced in the Women's World Cup cricket, with authorities failing to adequately deal with the bowlers who throw. In what has become a spectacular case of technology contradicting itself, England fast bowler Jenny Gunn has been cleared of throwing by the International Cricket Council (ICC) a fortnight after she was banned from Australian domestic cricket while playing for Western Australia (WA).

Gunn, 22, and a veteran of 65 one-day internationals, is in the bizarre situation of being able to bowl her country to victory in the game's most prestigious competition but not being allowed to bowl in Australian domestic cricket, The Australian reports. Always widely regarded as having a suspect action, Gunn was reported by the match umpires Nov 30 last year while playing for WA against South Australia.

Gunn made herself available for an analysis of her bowling action at the Australian Institute of Sport biomechanics laboratory in Canberra two months later. Remarkably, none of Gunn's deliveries complied with the maximum allowable elbow extension of 15 degrees. Gunn appealed the findings and the appeal was postponed until after the World Cup. In the meantime, she was reported for a suspected illegal bowling action by the on-field umpires during the opening day of the World Cup against Sri Lanka in Canberra March 7.

Amid the 13 pages of legalese and biomechanical jargon covering suspected illegal bowling actions in the ICC's handbook, part C7 clearly states: "No member of the bowling review group shall be from the country of the player who is the subject of the hearing." Apparently that applies only to male internationals. For women the report is simply shipped off to the home board to deal with. So the ICC sent the report to the England and Wales Cricket Board, which sent it to its national academy at Loughborough.

A report came back suggesting that Gunn's chucking is an optical illusion, the same scientific reason given for the unusual action of the world's leading wicket-taker Muttiah Muralitharan. Neither the ICC nor Cricket Australia (CA) have been able to explain why CA testing in Australia two months ago found Gunn to be a blatant chucker. But as this latest debacle has shown, the system is far more flawed than any bowling action.

Chennai to host India-Australia Davis Cup tie

New Delhi (IANS): The Davis Cup third round tie between India and Australia will be held at Chennai May 8-10. Setting aside the long tradition of playing on a grasscourt at home, India will dish out a hard court for the visitors, keeping in mind country's top singles players Somdev Devvarman's affinity for the surface. All India Tennis Association (AITA) Secretary General Anil Khanna said the decision to play on hardcourt has been taken keeping in mind the interests of the players. Therefore, it will be for the first time in 30 years that India will host a Davis Cup tie on a hardcourt.

Indian team's non-playing captain S.P. Misra had informed AITA that players are keen on playing in Chennai. Also, Chennai had recently conducted an ATP Tour event where all the leading players of the world participated. Somdev registered his best career performance at the $40,000 event, reaching the final. He was also the star of India's 3-2 away win against Chinese Taipei in Davis Cup last week.

"In a meeting with the non-playing captain, we were informed the team is keen to play the tie in Chennai especially because of the performance of Somdev Devvarman in Chennai Open in January," Khanna said. "Moreover the other Indian players including Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna have all played in Chennai during the Chennai Open and are familiar with the conditions." Executive Director of AITA Ranbir Chauhan will be visiting Chennai Thursday, and will have meetings with officials of the Tamil Nadu Tennis Association (TNTA), police, hotel and a security company to oversee the arrangements.

The team which won against Chinese Taipei will be retained. However, more reserve players will be added to the squad and these players will be named at a later date after the meeting of the selection committee. The winner of the tie between India and Australia will move to the World Group play-off.

Urgently required: a video analyst
Inputs during camps and tournaments assume a lot of importance
As a playmaker, Belsajar is proving to be indispensable

NEW DELHI: Despite some decent performances in various tournaments, the Indian junior hockey team has been unable to reap maximum rewards. If India’s coach A.K. Bansal is to be believed, the reason for the team not living up to its potential is the lack of technical support in the form of video analysis. The narrow 2-3 loss to Pakistan in the four-nation title clash at Johor Bahru (Malaysia) was the most recent example of the team’s weakness. The field was not strong enough in the event and India cruised in the round robin stage — beating host Malaysia, Singapore and Pakistan. In the final, the Asian champion twice took the lead before eventually losing through a golden goal. In modern hockey, almost every team relies heavily on the feedback of a video analyst and unfortunately the Indian side, nurturing higher ambitions for the Junior World Cup to be held in June, does not have that support.

To identify flaws

“A video analyst can help the side identify minor flaws which cost dearly. His inputs during the camps and tournaments assume a lot of importance in taking corrective measures and framing the game plan. We are managing on our own, but we are not experts in that field,” Bansal told The Hindu here on Tuesday on his arrival from Malaysia. “We have been doing well, but in the last few tournaments we are losing to opponents whom we have beaten earlier. This is the last chance before the World Cup and we have to fix this problem,” he said.

Few positives too

Bansal, however, counts on a few positives from the tournament. “One is the continued good showing of centre-half Belsajar Horo. As a playmaker, he is proving to be indispensable. The other good sign is that the forwards are scoring and we do not have to depend too much on the penalty corner conversions of Diwakar Ram,” he added. Meanwhile, Innocent Kullu is trying his hands at drag-flicks and Bansal thinks the defender should be able to hone his skills before the World Cup to emerge as a back-up for Diwakar.

Australia will struggle in Chennai: Somdev

NEW DELHI: Somdev Devvarman on Tuesday said the team's decision to play the Davis Cup tie against Australia on Chennai hard courts is only because the visitors would be a lot more comfortable playing on grass. India will be hosting Australia for the third round Davis Cup tie at Chennai from May 8-10, breaking away from the traditional grass courts for the first time in 30 years. The players after Somdev's exploits on the hard courts unanimously chose Chennai as the venue to host 28 times champion Australia.

"It was a team decision (to play in Chennai). We sat down after beating Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) and took a collective decision. We also had to keep in mind the fact that Australia are a very tough team on grass as Hewitt is a former world no.1 and Chris Guccione is a tall lefty with an excellent serve and volley game," Somdev, hero of India's 3-2 away win over Chinese Taipei, said. The 24-year-old said playing in Chennai would benefit the Indians who are used to heat conditions in May. "It is going to be hot and very humid. Both Rohan and I feel comfortable playing in the heat and we hope the Aussies will struggle in the humidity. Plus, we are hoping the fans will come out in numbers and support us vociferously."

Somdev, who is currently playing in a $50,000 ATP challenger in Bangkok, said they have to play their best to beat Australians. "I will be preparing the same way. I have to approach it in the same manner as I approach every match. We will have to play our very best to beat them. Let's hope we can execute our plans and hopefully register a win," he said. The winner of the tie between India and Australia will qualify for the World Group play-off.

Bagan fails to capitalise on good start

KOLKATA: Mohun Bagan squandered an early lead to go down 1-2 to Jordan’s Al Wehdat in a second round group league (D) encounter of the AFC Cup at the Howrah Municipal Stadium, near here, on Tuesday. Rakesh Masih put the home side ahead in the 13th minute to brighten hopes of breaking its poor run in recent times. However, Bagan failed to capitalise on the opportunity and allowed Al Wehdat to strike back twice in the first session. This was the second straight defeat for Bagan in the AFC Cup. The team had also lost two matches on the trot in the I-League.

New combination

Bagan coach Karim Bencherifa, desperate to revive his team’s fortunes, opted for a new combination with a lone attacker in the form of skipper Baichung Bhutia. With five men in the midfield, Bagan succeeded in gaining a firm grip initially, but surrendered the initiative to a quick, aggressive opponent which regrouped in the latter stages of the first session. Bhutia set up Bagan’s first goal in the 13th minute, midfielder Masih cashing in on his captain’s effort with a rasping drive that beat Wehdat custodian Malek Samih all ends up. Bagan could have scored earlier had Bhutia been a little more accurate with his angular shot in the seventh minute of the match.

Some sloppy defending cost Bagan its lead. Al Wehdat, stung by the reverse, found the equaliser off a fast counterattack in the 16th minute. Mahmoud Shelbaieh nodded home for Wehdat, availing a measured centre from Issa Al Sapah. Bagan defender N. Mohanraj fumbled and easily let off the onrushing Al Sapah into the attack zone. The rest of the Bagan defenders were equally complacent, letting Shelbaieh to calmly head home the approaching floater from Sapah.

Costly miss

Bhutia earned another chance to put Bagan in the lead, but his 24th minute effort went wide. The miss seemed to cost Bagan dearly as the visitor nudged ahead in the 31st minute. The home defence failed again, allowing Wehdat medio Hassan Abdel-Fattah to score almost unchallenged. Bencherifa reintroduced Brazilian midfielder Marcos Pereira, who was not expected to play in the game after being injured, in the second session in a bid to prop up the attack. Bhutia was joined by the young Branco Vincent Cardoso, as the Bagan coach fell back to the trusted formula of two attackers. The decision seemed to have come a bit too late, as Wehdat tightened up its defence to ensure that there was no change to the 2-1 scoreline.

After WGC feat, Jeev eyes Masters

NEW DELHI: It may be all part of his Masters build-up but Jeev Milkha Singh was quick to equate his fourth-place high at the WGC-CA Championship w
ith his tied-ninth finish at last year's PGA Championship, one of golf's majors. "The depth of the field was so good with the World's top 60 playing that I would put both achievements on a similar plane. And knowing that I could compete with the best and do even better gives me enormous confidence," Jeev told TOI from New York on Tuesday.

Distracted after a long flight from Miami, the World No. 29's attention was seized when reminded of his new status. "That has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? Well, knowing that I have touched that zone, Top-20 seems a realistic goal," he beamed. Taking a deserved one-week off, the 37-year-old will head back to Florida again for the $6 million Arnold Palmer Invitational, and he aims to climb a few rungs higher. "After last season, confidence has been great. I just completely trust my swing, so I guess a change has come on the mental level after a wonderful 2008 season. Of course, you constantly need to work hard and I have been practising my putting. It ultimately comes down to that."

With the year's first major, the Augusta Masters just three weeks away, it was natural that the conversation should veer to golf's holy grail. "This is my favourite event. You require a lot of imagination at Augusta National and I'm certainly geared up for the challenge," said an expectant Jeev. "After the Invitational, I'll play the Houston Shell Open and hopefully, the game will be working clockwork by the time I get to the Masters." The PGA Tour question was inevitably dropped, and the global golfer said he was prepared to juggle his commitments.

"I will make a decision whether to prolong my American journey after the Masters, but if I earn my Tour card, I will play the minimum tournaments required here as well as internationally," he divulged. "In Europe, it's a different ball game altogether with the biting weather. In the US, the greens are very firm and there's rough everywhere. Both the continents provide different challenges and I believe playing in different conditions will make me a better player." The best thing about the man is that he learns fast. "I got harsh lessons in 2007 after the highs of 2006 when I got result-oriented. I try to keep my eyes off the leaderboard and concentrate on process and routine. And so far, so good."

It could be 'so great' soon if the pathfinder summons a bit of luck and make the breakthrough, and certainly his words leave the impression. "I'm still confused as a relative of Vijay Singh in these parts," Jeev betrayed a chuckle, "and that will keep on happening till I win a few tournaments here, but I'm getting there." A loaded pause, and then the emphasis. "Getting there."

Sourav Ghosal and Ritwick Bhattacharya will be leading the Indian challenge in the three-star PSA Indian Challenger, the main draw of which gets underway here at the Calcutta Racket Club from Wednesday. Malaysians Ong Beng Hee and Mohammad Azlan Iskandar — occupy the top two spots in the draw being the World No. 11 and 12 respectively. Englishman Adrian Grant ranked 13 in the World is another big name of international squash lending credence to the tournament. The tournament will be missing players from Pakistan as it has not sent any entries this time, the organisers said.

Womens WC: The loss leaves India, which had beaten defending champion Australia in its opening Super Six match, with two points from two matches. India is ahead of New Zealand on net run-rate but can reach the final only if it beats West Indies in its final Super Six match and hope that New Zealand loses to Pakistan and Australia loses to England.

Istanbul: Humpy wins Women Grand Prix

19.03.2009 – She actually did it! India's top female GM, Koneru Humpy, staged a big finish and won the Women Grand Prix with 8.5 out of 11. In the last round she pressured her French opponent, Marie Sebag, until the latter blundered and Humpy could win. Armenian IM Elina Danielian defeated Zhao Xue to finish joint second (with Hou Yifan) and earn a second GM norm in the process. Round eleven report.

Indian GM Koneru Humpy, second strongest female player in history, managed the impossible. After a shocking loss to young Hou Yifan in round seven Humpy collapsed in disappointment and resignation over a spoilt tournament – one could expect. No, this resolute young lady came back with three wins and a draw in her last four games to take sole first in this Women's Grand Prix. A tremendous performance and a well-deserved success.

When Garry Kasparov speaks, you better listen. When he asks the air- conditioning to be lowered or the lighting to be dimmed, you better do it. When he says Viswanathan Anand’s reign as the world chess champion will come to an end soon, you better believe. Not just because he ruled the chessboard for over 20 years or that he is toiling for the revival of democracy in Russia.

Soumyajit the paddler to be watched in future, says Sharath

INDORE: Highly impressed with the teenage paddler Soumyajit Ghosh, Olympian A Sharath Kamal feels the Bengal boy has it in him to fetch wreaths for the country in the years to come, if nurtured with care. Soumyajit, who gave a spirited fight to the world no 22 Gao Ning before going down to the Singaporean in men's singles pre-quarterfinal in $30,000 Pro Tour Indian Open in Indore, made it to final of the Under-21 category in the tournament.

"He is the most talented among the young players who are coming up today and surely is going to be the player to be watched in the days to come," Sharath said. "For a young player, 16 to 19 years of age is very important as far as training and improvement is concerned. He is just entering into that phase of his life. A lot will depend how he will be trained now on," Sharath, who plays for super division club San Sebastian in Spanish League, said.

Soumyajit, who is currently 526th in the world ranking, has been named as one of the 'core probables' for the 2010 Commonwealth Games to be held in Delhi. However, Sharath feels that it will not be wise to put burden of expectation on the 15-year-old as it could have negative impact on his performance and should be allowed for the time being to play with free mind before expecting good results in the quadrennial sporting extravaganza. "He has tremendous control on his game and attacks the opponents wherever have the chance. But its too early to put pressure on him. We should let him enjoy playing for one more year and only after that we could think something about Commonwealth Games," Sharath said.

As the Indian paddlers are preparing to leave for China on a month-long training camp later this month, the 26-year-old paddler, who clinched gold in 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne feels the programme will be helpful in gaining valuable experience in the build up to the Delhi Games. "In China, you will surely not play against their best players, but the standard of other Chinese paddlers are also quite high. Most importantly, the tour will give good exposure to the young players, helping them to learn and improve technically and strategically," the world number 89 said.

The Chennai lad hails Table Tennis Federation of India's endeavour to put the Pro Tour Indian Open in their annual schedule as he thinks participation from other countries in Indian Open like China and Korea would have offered country's contenders better competition. "I personally approached some foreign players who also agreed to come and participate in the Pro Tour event, but after the terrorist attack on Sri Lanka cricket team in Lahore, they unfortunately stepped back. Participation from some middle-east countries, besides China and Korea would have given better competition to the Indian contenders," Sharath said.

After the second edition of the tournament had to be postponed due to insufficient entries last year, Sharath promised to help Table Tennis Federation of India to ensure quality foreign participation in the tournament by using his clout. Sharath also talked high about the newly appointed national coach, Massimo Constantini and hails the way the Italian is handling the preparation of the players. "I respect him as a player as he had been among the top 40s in world ranking in his playing days and knows the game itself. He can communicate with the junior players as well as senior members of the team easily and allow everybody to put forward his opinions," he said. Constantini has represented his country in 70s and 80s before taking up as the Italy coach. "Indian players are getting a balanced approach with equal importance on training and participating international tournaments. That will pay dividends in near future," Sharath added.

England pulls out of India Open

HYDERABAD: England players have pulled out of the $1,20,000 Yonex-Sunrise India Open badminton championship scheduled to be held at Swarnandhra Pradesh Indoor Stadium (Gachibowli) here from March 24 to 29, according to K. Ch. Punnaiah Choudhary, joint secretary of the Badminton Association of India. Mr. Choudhary said that a communication received from Badminton England, the governing body of the sport, merely stated: “in consultation with the Foreign Office in London, we are withdrawing the two players — Rajiv Ouseph and Carl Baxter — from the India Open”. The BAI official felt that the decision by the England team was a consequence of the terror threat in the wake of incidents in Lahore when the Sri Lankan cricketers were attacked by terrorists.

Anju won a bronze medal at the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games, a gold in the 2002 Busan Asiad and became the first Indian athlete ever to win a medal in a World Championship when she won bronze at the Paris World Championship.

Ace Indian long jumper Anju Bobby George was on Friday given an out of turn promotion at the Chennai Customs house in recognition of her sporting achievements. Anju, a two-time Olympian, was given a promotion to the level of Superintendent of Customs. "The out of turn promotion is in recognition of her activities in the field of sports," said Central Board of Excise and Customs spokesperson.

‘A matter of pride for Chennai’

CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Tennis Association president, M.A. Alagappan, expressed pride and happiness at being given the chance to host the Davis Cup Asia Oceania Zone III round tie between India and Australia. The SDAT-Nungambakkam Stadium will host the tie from May 8 to 10. “The last Davis Cup tie held in Chennai was exactly 30 years ago, between India and Australia. It is a matter of pride for Chennai and the TNTA that the Indian players and AITA chose the city as the venue for this very important and prestigious Davis Cup tie against Australia. This is an acknowledgement of the excellent facilities at the SDAT Tennis Stadium and the knowledgeable Chennai crowd. We look forward to successfully conducting this important event.

“The encounter will be the first-ever Davis Cup tie to be played on hard courts in India. With the Indian team consisting of Somdev Devvarman, who did well in the Chennai Open 2009, Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi, and Australia being a formidable side, the tie should be exciting and well contested,” said Alagappan.

Dubai backs off as Asia Cup host

Chennai: Dubai has backed out from hosting the Asia Cup hockey championship scheduled from May 8 to 15. While no specific reason is attributed to the sudden withdrawal, one of the reasons inferred is the current economic recession. The United Arab Emirates was awarded the event for the first time during the council meeting of the Asian Hockey Federation at Hyderabad, with the aim of setting up a base for the growth of hockey in the Gulf region. But the recent development has put an enormous strain on the administrators in finding a new host possessing the required infrastructure to step in and conduct the event preferably in the same period.

Malaysia is ready

A five-member committee with the AHF Secretary-General, Tansri Alagendra as convenor, has been constituted to work on the modalities and suggest new dates, if need be. It is understood that Malaysia has agreed in principle to play host and moves are afoot to finalise the dates. Coming as the Asia Cup does close on the heels of the Sultan Azlan Shah Trophy tournament, at Ipoh from April 6 to 12, the AHF is taking all steps to ensure that the participating Asian countries — India, Pakistan and Malaysia — enjoy sufficient preparation time in between. The Asia Cup will determine the qualifiers for the next World Cup to come off in New Delhi.

FIH concerned

Meanwhile, at the FIH Executive meeting at Lausanne last month, serious concerns were expressed over several loose ends causing uncertainties over India coming up with clear and transparent explanations on the issue of hosting the World Cup. The time taken to form and formulate the norms for establishing the proposed Hockey India {which in itself was the old FIH guise to plant RicC in India when Breda van whatshername was the C-in-C}, combining the men and women federations under its banner in place of the present Indian Hockey Confederation, continues to be an irritant with the FIH. The complexities involved in an exercise of this magnitude need no elaboration.

The FIH meeting authorised the FIH president, Leandro Negre, to visit India in the first fortnight of April and assess the prevailing situation. What the FIH wants India to accomplish within this time-frame remains a big question mark, given the confusion prevailing from the recent court verdict as also from the demand of several units to wind off the ad hoc committee and form a constitutionally governed Indian Hockey Federation. The Indian Olympic Association is coming under more pressure to pay greater attention to hockey and its commitment towards hosting the World Cup as much as it is to hosting the Commonwealth Games with the security environment forming a major topic in some of the leading Commonwealth countries like Australia. {This is just the ruse, see the CW thread for the takleef of the Assies, choo--- that they are, they are just trying to cover their necessities with this broadly painted word called security.}

The FIH has agreed to the suggestion mooted by the Asian Hockey Federation to revive the Inter-Continental championship. To be named as Continental Classic, it will be held within three months after the conclusion of the Olympic Games. The competition, involving all the five continental teams, was held in 1990 at Kuala Lumpur where Asia won the cup under the leadership of Pargat Singh. The AHF also endorsed the World Club Championships to come off in Barcelona. {This is how transactions go vis-a-vis IHF. IHF has a project and needs Asian block voting, so the AHF counter-proposes something and the IHF approves it in return for some cut in profits. Its all as much of a sewage in the name of love for hockey. Maj Dhyanchand must be rolling in his grave.}

Chitra Magimairaj, the world women’s billiards champion in 2006 and 2007, is all set to leave for Cambridge, UK to regain her title in the WLBSA world billiards and snooker championship beginning on April 4. Chitra, who has been supported by the Department of Youth Services and Sports (DYSS) to the tune of Rs. 73,000 for her travel and stay, is also sponsored by Tata Sons. She leaves for Sheffield on March 23 for a 10-day training and coaching stint there.

World No. 2 Koneru Humpy says her title triumph in the World Grand Prix women’s chess championship in Istanbul on Thursday night is her biggest win in the women’s circuit. “This is a very significant win for me, considering that it has come in an event which had three former World champions,” said Humpy in an exclusive chat with The Hindu from Istanbul.

Third round loss

“Obviously, after a good start, the third round loss did have a bearing on my performance. But, winning the last two games gave me immense satisfaction,” the ONGC deputy manager said. “Definitely, the victory over former World champion and World No. 4 Antoaneta Stefanova in the 10th round was one of the best of my career and it came at the most appropriate time in the championship,” the top seed said. “I was under some tension before the final round, but the confidence of beating Stefanova helped me a lot,” Humpy said.

Koneru Ashok, father-cum-coach of Humpy, said that the Turkey event also happened to be one of the Women Grand Prix series 2009-2010 organised by FIDE and Global Chess BV. “This Grand Prix comprises six legs in various countries around the world with three tournaments every year. The next tournament is planned to be held in Nanjing (China) at the end of September,” he said.

Her dream

Humpy said that the victory in Turkey should only make her more determined to realise her dream to be a World champion one day. “Right now, my plan is to take part in the Ruy Lopez championship in Spain in June besides the European circuit later on,” she said. The Vijayawada-based chess champion reiterated that this victory proved that her father was good enough to help in her preparations and that there was no need for a ‘second’. Humpy is expected to improve her current Elo 2621 by seven more points after her latest success.

Our Men in the FIH, a perspective (3/20/2009)

Recently, Pakistan hockey legend Islahuddin Siddique came heavily against the powers that be in Pakistan. He was furious that his name from the FIH Rules Board has been replaced by some other Pakistani, without his knowledge. Islahuddin is not alone. In India also voices are heard on the choice of our men in the various FIH Committees. If those voices are not loud enough, it is because hockey is low both in the public psyche and in media. Gone are the days when Indians contested FIH Election in absence, yet won vital posts. Indians count nowhere in the global electoral calculus nowadays, and it is not surprising given the way we run our home hockey affairs.

There are four Indians in the recently constituted FIH Committees. Olympian Pargat Singh regained his spot in the HRB where he was in the late 90s till one day KPS Gill thought he is unworthy. Pargat’s comeback was overdue, no one can point a finger at on his choice. S. Thyagarajan of The Hindu is in the Communications and IT Committee. A writer of his standing is still only worthy enough for being a Member is something beyond comprehension. He is not Chairman of this Committee because of his skin, nothing else. On merit and contribution to hockey, he should have been elevated long before.

Md. Aslam, Convenor of the Hockey Ad-hoc Committee, is in the Equipment Committee. Aslam is de facto Secretary, Indian Hockey Federation. We are not sure of his track record on Equipment matters. What we know for sure is he is well equipped to garner posts for him and his cronies. His inclusion is self-made, political, as he deals with the FIH on men’s hockey matters. He is there because he can. He got to the IHF without ever sweating for it – and the stars are with him.

Shakeel Qureshi, former international umpire from Bhopal, a blue-eyed boy of the adhoc committee, is in the Umpiring Committee. Qureshi comes in place of Kukoo Walia. We have a strong opinion here. With due respect to the new incumbent, one should see the track record of Kukoo Walia before one decides whether merit or lack of it is behind his exclusion. Not long ago, India hardly had its umpires in World Cup and Olympics. Now, India is not in the Olympics, but our umpire is.

According to a statistics in the latest Hockey Year Book, there are 12 Indian umpires in the FIH list. It includes World Panelist Satinder Kumar through new entrants Navtej and Harsha Vardhan. Raghu Prasad and VB Singh are Grade I umpires while Javed Sheikh is graduated to ‘Promising’ slot. 12 umpires from a single entity is a very good number for any FIH member country, especially for India which neither respects umpires nor accords importance to umpires development. This apathy is despite the fact that in no part of the world do umpires face wrath of players on the turf as Indian umpires routinely undergo. Still, there is a new crop of umpires who matter to the FIH. This is a credible development in an otherwise bleak national hockey scenario.

Secondly, the profile of the new crop of umpires, who sprouted when Kukoo was in FIH, evokes interest. They are young, not coming to umpiring at the fag end of their career. Therefore, they have a long way to go, long career ahead of them. This augurs well for Indian hockey. Interestingly, Kukoo was appointed for four years and the term ends only in 2010 Congress. One can easily surmise therefore that his curtailment has more to do with merit than others. Kukoo is nowadays active in IHF politics. He is believed to be a key advisor to JB Roy Group that seeks early election for the Indian Hockey Federation.

Election, a constitutional necessity, is anathema to the new dispensation. There is no surprise in this that nobody wants to leave the chair. This is true for both the KPS Gill or their tormentors, the Indian Olympic Association, which formed the adhoc committee. So, the Aslam group got a sadistic pleasure in showing Kukoo off the FIH corridor. The culprit here is the FIH. It calls itself a world body but cannot save its own appointees from the clutches of ever-changing national political scenarios. When it has appointed a person for four years the FIH has to honour it. Question of the replacement should arise only when the tenure expires. {or under merit issues}

For example, FIH Secretary Peter Cohen is for four years – and he continues despite change in the FIH president. He is there because two more years are left in his tenure. Why can’t the same logic apply to others in the FIH? Adhoc committee could have scored a point had it been able to push an extra slot for India, instead of replacing one with the other. This is cowardice. The country does not benefit by such narrow politics and tunnel vision. More so, it is anybody’s guess what these people must have compromised some Indian interests while bargaining for this avoidable change. When will our administrators, old or new, have the country in their mind, transcending beyond petty politics and personal egos. Sorry, this writer lives in his world of own.

Bhopal Hockey Assn racked by controversy (UNI)

Bhopal: Amid a many years-long dispute in the Bhopal Hockey Association, famed as India''s hockey nursery, one group's polls took place about a month back and the other group is to witness elections on Sunday. ''My Association is genuine but the Gufran-i-Azam-chaired Association is parallel and fake. He is trying to re-enter the Association after a break of about 14 years,'' Bhopal Hockey Association Secretary I Rahman told media here today.

Rahman alleged that former secretary late Mushtaq Ali even lodged a case against Gufran-i-Azam, under section 420 of the Indian Penal Code, in connection with a bank account while Gufran-i-Azam was Association president. ''The matter finds mention in the record of the Registrar, Firms and Societies. The Sunday polls are as per the Registrar's order. Of the Association's 52 members, 39 are eligible to vote as 13 persons' membership was annulled owing to indiscipline as they voted in the previous elections,'' Rahman added.

If the 13 seek forgiveness then the Association would consider reinstating them, he said while adding that Advocate Rana Pratap Singh would be the election officer and the Indian Hockey Federation Vice-President would be observer. On the other hand, Gufran-i-Azam contended that the Sunday polls were illegal as information was not sent to 28 of the Association's clubs and a voters' list was neither published nor distributed. ''The allegations against me are false,'' he added.

Bombay Gold Cup Hockey from April 15

Mumbai: The Mumbai Hockey Association has finalised plans to conduct the annual Bombay Gold Cup Hockey Tournament, one of the most prestigious tournaments run in the country, from April 15. "We have been given the dates (April 15-29) by the IOA's ( Indian Olympic Association) ad-hoc committee in charge of hockey. We have got confirmed entries from teams like Punjab and Sind Bank, Karnataka, Southern Railway, South Central Railway and Indian Overseas Bank," its secretary Cdr. Kehar Singh said the India Juniors team that took part in an international tournament in Malaysia was among the top attractions for the tournament.

He also expected other top teams like Air India, last year's winners Army XI, runners-up Bharat Petroleum, Punjab Police and Indian Oil to send in their entries along with Orissa's Pompose XI. Singh made light of the City Civil Court's order in the suit filed by P S Sujlana and Ranjit Dalvi against the current MHA managing committee that bars it from conducting any affairs except holding the elections. "We have been told we can go ahead and conduct the elections. There's nothing to stop us from promoting the game," he explained.

MUMBAI, June 17, 1999: Bakshi Dilbagh Singh, the 69-year-old president of Bombay Hockey Association (BHA), is a pious man. Pointing his finger heavenwards, he says, "he is going to solve my problems." Someone up there is certainly listening. A year after Bakshi took charge, BHA has a new astroturf, a long-awaited development that is certain to give Mumbai hockey a shot in the arm. True Khalsa that he is, Bakshi felt it his duty to get the turf blessed by all quarters. He organised a Hindu Havan, a Sikh Akhanda Paath (reading of the Granthsaahib for 48 hours), a Muslim Kurankhani and a Catholic service, magnanimously performed by Cardinal Simon Pimenta.

Most of Mumbai's hockey players are Catholic, and by seeking the priest's blessings, Bakshi was sending them a message a united BHA would flourish where a divided team didn't. Bakshi's conscience is clear. He says, "I am not a politician. We are not here to cut anyone off. We want people to walk with us. I acted as a Khalsa disciple, one who is true tohimself and others." His term has also seen renegade Hockey Association of Mumbai (HAM) returning to the BHA fold, and the formation of a subsidiary association in Thane.

Bakshi again proved an astute peacemaker. He invited HAM president Iqbaljit Singh to coach the Mumbai senior team. What is little known is that during the year, Bakshi's daughter suffered a car accident. She is yet to recover fully. To the man's credit, he did not shirk his duties to the BHA. Probably, the mishap spurred him to empathise with two Olympians Govind Perumal in Vashi and the wife of L Philips in Pune as the BHA rushed to help them in distress.

Bakshi will try to retain his post during next month's BHA elections, being held after four years. "This is only the beginning for Mumbai hockey. The sky is the limit," Bakshi said in an interview to Express Newsline.

Excerpts:
Q: Your term has been good for the BHA. What do you look to achieve when you are elected?
A: My aim is to bring good hockey back to the city. We are drawing up a calendar. We hope to revive premier tournaments like the Guru Tegh Bahadur, Charanjit Rai and Mumbai Gold Cup. BHA is also negotiating with the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF), and we hope to host one National Gold Cup in September. We are also asking for an international tournament, but it is too early to speak about that. My second aim is to ensure we produce good players. Mumbai should feature in the map of best hockey nurseries of India, and of the world.

Q: Mumbai's relations with IHF have been strained of late. Any comments?
A: I believe in building bridges to promote hockey. You will see that KPS Gill will come to Mumbai during the Gold Cup.

Q: Despite the return of HAM to BHA, the relations between the two groups do not appear cordial. For instance, HAM officials were not present during the recent BHA championships. Similarly, BHA officials were absent during the St Peter's Tourney at Bandra.
A: What you say is not entirely true. At the Wellingdon tourney, we were present. Similarly, Iqbaljit was present during the veneration of the turf. People from both sides are sitting together to plan the calendar for next year. Joaquim (Carvalho) {who later became the Indian team coach till the Santiago debacle} and Iqbaljit are handling the senior men's team. It is my desire to welcome everybody who really wants to work towards promoting the game, and they will be allocated appropriate responsibilities. I also have to be fair to my colleagues and staff, like PS Sujlana, Govind Chokhani, KL Passi, who stood by me during the last three years. Things will not be alright in one day, but I assure you, we have nothing ill in our mind.

Q: The turf was installed in quick time. There are misgivings the job was done too hastily, that it will not last.
A: We have a three-year warranty for workmanship from Astroturf who did the job. We have good relations with them, and I'm sure they will help us when the turf needs repairs.

Q: Does the BHA have plans to develop junior talent?
A: We have an annual camp attended by 60-70 juniors, with coaches like Jaswant Singh Grewal, Puran Singh, Iqbaljit Singh and SS Walia. These camps will continue. We are also planning tournaments at the sub-junior level.

Sandeep to lead 18-member team in Azlan Shah hockey

Experienced drag-flicker Sandeep Singh will lead a 18-member Indian squad in five-nation Azlan Shah Cup hockey championship starting in Malaysia on April 5. Selection committee of the Indian Hockey Federation, headed by chairman Ajeet Pal Singh on Tuesday picked up the squad for the tournament which will be also participated by New Zealand, Pakistan and Egypt, besides host Malaysia. Also present in the meeting were selectors Zafar Iqbal, Ashok Kumar and Dhanraj Pillai, who will also accompany the team as technical manager.

Team:
Sandeep Singh (cap), Baljeet Singh, Adrian Dsouza (both goalkeepers), Dilip Tirkey, Raghunath, Gurbaj Singh, Sardar Singh, Prabodh Tirkey, Vikram Pillai, I Tignesh, Ajitesh Roy, Tushar Khandekar, Prabhjot Singh, HV Sunil, Bharat Chhikara, GS Chandi, Shivendra Singh and Arjun Halappa.

Stand-by:
Bharat Chetri, VS Vinay, BM Antil, Hari Prasad, Virendra Lakra and Sarwanjeet Singh.

Coach in-charge: Harendra Singh.
Technical Manager: Dhanraj Pillai.

Harendra eyes top-six finish for Indian hockey this year

India's men's hockey coach in-charge Harendra Singh is eyeing a top-six finish in world ranking this year and confident about winning the Azlan Shah Cup tournament in Malaysia next month. "India ranks ninth among the hockey playing countries and we are aiming to finish among the top-six nations in the sport by the end of the year," Harendra said on Tuesday.

Speaking at the central regional centre of Sports Authority of India (SAI), where the team for upcoming Azlan Shah hockey starting on April 5 will be picked up, Harendra said his boys will adopt an attacking strategy this time to clinch the title. "We are going to lift the Azlan Shah Hockey Cup. The team will play an attacking game for which India is known world over. I don't believe in playing a defensive game as it does not lead to victory," Harendra said. India finished runner-up in the tournament last year. {to Argentina}

"The players' morale is high after the team's stunning performance in New Zealand, where India won the Test series 2-0," he added. Five teams - New Zealand, Pakistan, Egypt, Malaysia, besides India will participate in the tournament.

Dilip Tirkey moments away from momentous milestone (3/22/2009)

Padmashree Dilip Tirkey is moments away from making a personal milestone -- or has he already achieved? Dilip is just a match or two away from the magical figure of 400. Orissa's maestro has been main stay of Indian hockey, and has proved to be an epitome for endurance. The Wall of Indian Hockey, Dilip Tirkey, started his career in 1995, making his international senior debut in the 1995 Indira Cup at National Stadium, New Delhi.

Fourteen years later, even as half of his peers are out of the scene, and most of them trying to be coach -- his 2000 Sydney Olympic captain Ramandeep Singh is in fact assistant coach of the present national team -- this defender is going all guns. Dilip led India at the 2004 Olympics, and also won gold at the Afro-Asian Games and only Indian to win gold at two Asia Cup. There are many rare accomplishments that can be accredited to this genial genius.

With around 320 caps, Dhanraj Pillay comes a distant second in terms of caps for India, and it was due to the indifferent Indian Hockey Federation, Pillay, who played a couple more years than Dilip Tirkey, could not cross this mark. The IHF has recklessly dropped Pillay. In his long career, Dilip has never been dropped. However, he faced some hard times to continue in the team especially with the coaching duo of Baskaran and Harendra after the Monchengladbach fiasco -- and as its ripple effect in the run up to the last Asian Games. {That must have been the 2006 world cup in Germany where we ended 11th.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/arti ... 003282.cms} But the genius overcame all those - and we will wish him in advance all the best.

Note: According to some, Dilip has crossed 400 during the New Zealand Series. This view was due to the fact that he played three Olympics and therefore he is credited with 21 caps. However, this writer credits only 17, as Dilip played only 3 matches in his debut Olympics at Atlanta. If this writer's basis for calculation is correct, then he will be making the milestone next month at the Azlan Shah Cup. My Olympic caps assessment is done as per the offically published data. However, it is academic, and it is time to celebrate.

PTI: Tirkey Draws Inspiration from Tendulkar, Paes (3/20/2009)

Bhubaneshwar, Mar 20: Standing on the threshhold of becoming the most capped international hockey player of all time, veteran Dilip Tirkey said he draws inspiration from greats like Sachin Tendulkar, Leander Paes and Bhaichung Bhutia who are still going strong despite their age. The 31-year-old Indian defender's participation in the upcoming Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in Malaysia in April will take him past the former Dutch captain Jeroen Delmee, who retired after representing his country in 401 matches.

"It will be an honour for me (to become the most capped international hockey player). There is lot of pride attached with this and it will be of great value," Tirkey said before he left for Bhopal to attend the national camp ahead of the Sultan Azlan Shah tournament. "I always give my 100 per cent, whenever I enter the field. It's probably my destiny and luck that I've conducted myself so well for such a long time," he added.

Tirkey, who debuted against England in 1995, said he always looked up to greats in other sporting disciplines like Tendulkar, Paes and Bhutia, who have maintained high standards both mentally and physically. "They have always inspired me. The way Tendulkar has maintained his greatness, it's something you can always look up to. Looking at Paes, he's playing so well and is so fit. The same for the Indian football captain Bhutia. I get lot of inspiration from them. Their mental and physical state really motivate me," he said. "They all belong to different sports. Cricket, tennis, football and hockey are all very different from each other. But fitness is required for every sport," he added.

However, Tirkey's journey so far has not been smooth as an ankle injury forced him out of action for few months before he made a comeback in the Murugappa Cup after a long stint with athletics coach Arun Das. "For about eight months, I was out of action after hurting my ankle. It was very difficult but my fitness trainer and athletics coach helped me a lot to make a comeback. I am really thankful to them," said Tirkey, fresh from his stunning show in India's 2-0 series win over New Zealand. Tirkey, who represented India in 1996, 2000 and 2004 Olympics, said he still regretted India's show in Sydney.

"We failed to make the semis despite a good run. A 1-1 draw (against Poland) cost us dear as we finished seventh after a 3-1 win against Argentina in the classification match. That's really sad." He was also very disappointment when India failed to qualify for the Beijing Olympics after going down to Great Britain in the qualifiers in Chile last year. "We did well overall but it was in the qualifiers where the team was not consistent to shut the door on Beijing 2008. One bad run and it was end of it. We have to be consistent at this level and shouldn't lose out to any weak teams," he said.

"The players have recovered from the setback. It's time now that we get support from federation to take the sport forward. We have a very good young and talented side now. The juniors have a lot of potential and there are seniors also. I am sure we will do well in the two big upcoming events - the World Cup and the Commonwealth Games," he added. Asked to pick his memorable moments, Tirkey said, "We won the Afro-Asian Games in 2003 beating Pakistan when I was the captain. It always ranks higher. Then there's of course our wins in the Asian Games (1998) and Asia Cup triumphs in 2003 and 2007 that figure prominently in my memory."

According to K Arumugam, who has written the biography, 'Olympic Captain Dilip Tirkey', three-time Olympian Tirkey will become the most-capped player of all time if he plays in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament. The India team, which will be picked during the national camp in Bhopal, will compete against Pakistan, Malaysia, New Zealand and Egypt in the tournament.

Asia Cup to be played at Kuantan

Chennai: Kuantan, the capital of the State of Pahang will be the venue for the hockey Asia Cup to be held from May 9 to 16. The Asian Hockey Federation finalised the venue on Monday. Till Monday, the venue in Malaysia was in doubt, with the officials debating the chances of Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh. Finally, the AHF committee has approved the coastal city, Kuantan, which is about 250km from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). The journey by bus takes approximately three-and-a-half hours.

AIBA team coming to India to promote WSB

A team from International Boxing Association (AIBA) will be arriving in Delhi in the third week of April to give a presentation on the inaugural World Series Boxing (WSB), to be staged in September 2010. The delegation will be speaking to prospective Indian franchisees to give them a lowdown on what WSB is all about. Till now, two corporate houses have shown interest in becoming an Indian franchise which will require them to pump in excess of Rs 50 crore per season.

According to the rumour mill, one of the corporates showing interest is Sahara. The presentation will be given by Ivan Khodabaksh, chief operating officer, WSB and Julian Brand, vice-president, IMG. At present there are six countries from Asia - China, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Qatar, Korea and India - vying for the four slots available from this continent (four countries per continent will be chosen from the continents of Asia, Europe and America to make it a total of 12 teams).

Indian boxing stars like Vijender Singh, Akhil Kumar and Jitender Kumar are keenly awaiting the World Boxing Championships coming up in Milan from August 29 as the selection and monetary capping of boxers with respect to WSB will be done during this event by AIBA, IMG and the selected franchise cities. The boxers are likely to be capped from the minimum scale of $30,000 to a maximum of $300,000 per season.

‘Losing to Kiwis was turning point’

Kolkata: Though happy to be back as the No. 1 bowler in the ICC women’s ODI rankings, India skipper Jhulan Goswami is disappointed at the team’s third-place finish in the ICC women’s World Cup in Australia. Recollecting the memories from down under, which included meeting her ‘all-time idol’ Glenn McGrath, after returning from the ICC women’s World Cup in Australia, Jhulan said the title had been well within reach.

“Losing to New Zealand was the turning point of the tournament. A little competitive approach with some good fielding back-up would have clinched us the tie against the Kiwis. It was simply not our day (against the Kiwis). We fielded badly,” she said. “We faced the West Indies in our next match and won it hands down. If we had crossed the New Zealand hurdle, the title would have been well within our reach. It’s very disappointing,” she said.

The team, however, notched up a high, beating Australia in Australia for the first time. And it happened twice in a space of seven days. Last edition’s runner-up India finished third this time, beating defending champion Australia by three wickets in a play-off. In the Super Six too, Australia went down to India. In the final, England defeated New Zealand to win the cup.

Best memory

“For us, beating Australia on its home turf was a first; and the fact that we beat them twice, it was a big achievement. That will obviously be the best memory of mine in the World Cup,” she said. Just months ago, Australia had made a clean sweep of India in a five ODI series in October-November 2008. The 25-year-old captain also had a quiet conversation with McGrath, her all-time favourite.

“McGrath used to come to the lobby of our hotel. It feels great to have spoken to the great cricketer. He is a thorough gentleman,” she said. “We also met (Aussie medium-pacer) Brett Lee who had come for some official work during the match against Australia. It was really a memorable experience for us,” she said.

About her first time experience of leading in the World Cup, the ICC Women’s Player for 2007 said: “leading a side involves a lot of responsibility. There’s a lot of expectation from you. You have to take decisions yourself. You have to stand by your decision.” Four wickets from the World Cup meant that Jhulan leapfrogged England’s Isa Guha and Shelley Nitschke of Australia to regain her No. 1 spot in the ratings ladder.

“It (the ranking) is indeed motivating. But we have to keep performing. As of now, we are taking a few days’ rest and awaiting the domestic Twenty20 championship.” Her next target is the ICC World Twenty20 for women, to be held alongside the men’s World T20 in England.

Chance for Chetan and Saina to come good
Arvind Bhat has a recent win over Lin Dan
Hidayat would be biggest crowd-puller

HYDERABAD: The top Indian players have a golden opportunity to prove their mettle as the $1,20,000 Yonex-Sunrise India Open Gold Grand Prix championship unfolds at the Swarnandhra Pradesh indoor stadium in Gachibowli here on Wednesday. The two best Indians in the fray are Chetan Anand, seeded third in the men’s singles, and Saina Nehwal seeded No. 2 in women’s singles. “This is a big chance for me to set the record right,” said Chetan, who was a finalist in the India Open last year at the same venue. At 29, the two-time National champion is aware that it is time that he bagged a big title. Despite a creditable European circuit last year, Chetan, with his career-best world ranking of No. 12, has not been able to rediscover his touch.

Look out for Bhat

The other Indian who merits attention in the men’s section, is National champion and ninth-seed Arvind Bhat. Bhat had won a game in the first round of the Swiss Super Series recently against the reigning Olympic and All England champion Lin Dan. World No. 1 Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia, fresh from his victory over his arch-rival Lin Dan in the Swiss Super Series final, and the temperamental Taufik Hidayat, winner of the Olympic gold and the World championship in 2004, should present a study in contrast. Hidayat could be the biggest crowd-puller in this tournament. The Indonesian is keen to avenge his recent loss to Lee in the All England semifinals.

Saina, the World No. 9, is back after an injury break. “I am feeling more confident now after the quarterfinal showing in the Swiss Super Series,” she said. She could be meeting Maria Kristin Yulianti of Indonesia in the semifinal. The women’s section also has World No. 4 and top-seeded Pi Hongyan, who knocked out Saina in the first round of the All England recently. Third-seeded Mew Choo Wong is another player to watch out for. And India’s rapidly-improving Aditi Mutatkar (World No. 33), is keen to make a big impact.

Surprise packet

The surprise packet from the Indian perspective could be the mixed doubles pair of V. Diju and Gutta Jwala, who catapulted to World No. 14 from around 90 six months ago. This left-and-right combination is said to be one of the toughest combinations now.

Officials:
Harendra Singh --- Coach Incharge
Romeo James --- Coach
Ramandeep Singh --- Coach
Shrikant Iyengar --- Physiotherapist
Pradip Dutta --- Trainer
A. Prasanna --- Video Analyser
Dhanraj Pillay --- Manager

2008 was the best year of my career so far: Jeev

MIAMI: Energised after producing a career-best finish on the PGA Tour earlier this month, Jeev Milkha Singh has great expectations for this week's
Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando. Singh has long targeted a maiden victory in the United States and he contended strongly for the elite WGC-CA Championship at Doral two weeks ago before placing fourth. "I made a lot of birdies that week and the depth of the field there made me feel good," the 37-year-old from Chandigarh said.

"I really like that golf course, it suits my game and finishing fourth gave me a lot of confidence. I think the main confidence builder was the PGA Championship last year, where I had my first top 10," he added, referring to his tie for ninth in the final major of 2008. "I thought that after that I could have more top 10s. Doral definitely built up on that."

One of golf's globe-trotters who enjoys playing on all the leading tours around the world, Singh likes the look of the par-70 layout at Bay Hill. "I've never seen the greens that good," he said. "It's a golf course which requires everything. It's a good test and it's playing fantastic. I'm looking forward to this week." Singh won four times around the world last year before ending the most successful campaign of his career by becoming the Asian Tour's number one player.

Having enjoyed similar success in 2006 before suffering a let-down the following year, he has taken great delight in his bright start to this season. "(In 2007) I got more result-oriented than anything else and I think that was the main reason that the performance wasn't up to the mark," he said. "It's tough for a golfer to beat what he does every time. You usually can just hang in there and try your best, and that's what I was trying to do. Last year, everything came together," added Singh, who in 2008 become the first man on the Asian Tour to earn more than $1 million in a season.

"I personally feel that was the best year of my career so far. I've won on nearly every Tour in the world that I've played but I haven't won in the U.S. I would really like to win here, too."

Aussies want Davis Cup tie pulled out of India

BANGALORE: Tennis Australia has written to the International Tennis Federation asking for the Davis Cup tie, to be played in Chennai from May 8 to 10, to be moved out of India for security reasons. In a communication with TOI, the ITF’s communications officer Nick Imison confirmed that Tennis Australia had indeed written to the ITF asking for the Asia-Oceania Group I third round tie to be moved. The ITF on its part had sent out a questionnaire to the All India Tennis Association last week. The AITA answered the questionnaire and returned it to the ITF late on Monday.

"I’m quite sure everything will be OK and we can hold the tie in India," Col Chauhan, executive director of the AITA, said. "I personally went to Chennai to oversee everything. In January we had the Chennai ATP event there. It was held after 26/11 and it was very successful. We’ll be using the same stadium, the same hotel, and the same security agency for the Davis Cup tie too. We’ve also got government support. That’s the reason we chose Chennai over the other venues. It’s absolutely safe." The ITF confirmed the receipt of the Indian federation’s reply.

"Irrespective of whether a security issue is raised or not, our security advisors look into security aspects of every single Davis Cup tie. We will proceed on those lines. Security is of utmost importance. Our security advisors will look into the issue and get back to us in a week’s time," Imison said.

If a tie is moved out of a particular country for security reasons, the tie in all likelihood will be played in the rival country. In India’s case it will be Australia. If India is asked to forfeit this chance they’ll be given choice of surface the next two times the countries meet. "The Davis Cup is played on a home and away basis and there’s little sense in playing it on a neutral venue because there’ll be little or no spectator interest. That is talking about it in a broad and general sense. As far as the ITF is concerned, as of now, the tie is being staged in India. Only after our security advisors get back to us will we know if there are security issues to be dealt with," Imison said.

Security concerns about playing in India were first raised by Australia’s No. 1 player Lleyton Hewitt, who was quoted by Australian media as saying, "I think everyone’s probably got concerns, probably more so after what happened in Pakistan to the Sri Lankan cricket team." The fact that the matches would be played during general elections in the country and that the IPL was moved out due to security over the issue is not lost on the Australians. It must be said, however, that providing security for a smaller group of players, as in two Davis Cup teams, is surely easier and very different from protecting IPL.

We need a specialised doubles coach: Jwala

Hyderabad (PTI): Together they won three mixed doubles titles last year but Jwala Gutta and V Diju say they don't have the "expertise" of a doubles player and called for the appointment of a specialised coach. Jwala and Diju, who won three international tournaments -- Bulgaria Open Grand Prix , Bitburger Open Grand Prix, Nepal International Series -- last year, feel its their mutual co-ordination and practice that works in their favour.

"Me and Diju also don't have the expertise of a doubles player, it's just that we have a very good co-ordination and we understand each other so well that we are doing well. We have practiced a lot," Jwala told PTI. "India needs a specialised doubles coach, the sort of coach we have in singles. If India wants to do well in team events, it is very important to have a specialised coach who can teach the players the technicalities of the game, travel with the team and help the players analyse their and their opponents games," Jwala said.

Diju also agreed that he coordinates well with Jwala. "Since Jwala is left-handed and I'm right-handed, it is proving to be quite advantageous for us. When the opponents smashes a shot towards her thinking to trap her with a difficult back hand, it turns out to a forehand and vice versa," he said. Jwala lamented that the doubles players are not given proper recognition and incentives and so not many players are taking to it.

"There are no incentives for the doubles players in India, there is no backing and recognition either. We need to back the doubles players, so that they can take up the game," Jwala said. Diju and Jwala are world number 14 currently but Diju said he was not confident of his own performance when he started playing last year after losing precious time because of the Badminton Association of India's hegemony.

"In the beginning of last year, When I started playing again with Jwala, I was not at all confident. It was only after we won some tough matches against tougher opponents and won the three titles I regained my confidence," said Diju Diju and Jwala, will face the Chinese pair of Xiolong Liu and Jinhua Tang in the second round tomorrow, having got a bye in the first round. The duo is is taking the Indian Open as a preparatory tournament for the World Championship and Diju feels they have a chance to win the all important tournament to be held here in August.

"I think we have a chance if we play well. Unlike singles, in doubles, within the top 20, any pair can beat the other pair, no matter what the ranking," Diju said. Asked about their schedule after the Indian Open, Diju said, "Currently we have just the Asian Badminton Championship and the Sudirman Cup. We haven't thought after that." And as for the ranking, Diju is hopeful of cracking the top-10 soon. "By this year end, we will try to break into the top 10," he said.

What Ails Indian Hockey: Part II (3/25/2009) -- MS Balakrishnan

Domestic hockey was given the short shift and the National championships (for which a modified format was worked out by a committee) was held once in 3-4 years. Then came the over-hyped premier league --- in which a lot of money was invested and through which a few officials no doubt prospered – that collapsed under its own weight due to poor planning and execution.

So then, the question now arises – how and where did things actually go wrong? As an official closely associated with the functioning of the IHF during KPSG’s first eight years i.e. the period from 1994 to 2002, my individual and independent assessment is that KPSG somehow played into the hands of sycophants and persons out to make a living from the large amount of funds that he started to bring into this largely (till then) unpatronised game. He was and is, I’d unhesitatingly admit, a powerful leader but I am afraid, a poor judge of many of the people surrounding him. Most of them were not out to promote the game but to promote their individual interests.

And this then, is the crux of my whole article and argument – that the failure of Indian Hockey over the past 14 years of KPSG’s rule (despite the fact that India won the Gold at the Asian Games in 1998 after a long hiatus of 32 years) is largely a failure in the management of the game. As a management practitioner from one of India’s top business schools, I state with total conviction that what Indian Hockey directly needs, is a professional management team with a person with good leadership qualities at the helm. What is one to understand about this emphasis on professional management? Professional Management of Indian Hockey will essentially entail all of the following –

1. A proper administrative office
IHF has adequate space, ideally located in the National Stadium at New Delhi. KPSG hardly ever went there, preferring to function from his residence. The now disgraced Secretary General (except for his periodic visits to Delhi) functioned out of Chennai and it was largely a very old, retired official from Indian Airlines who had been for all practical purposes, running the administrative affairs of the IHF for the past 14 years.

2. IHF Constitution
The IHF Constitution, drawn up several decades back, has outlived its useful life. The enrolment of a number of Corporate units as Associate members, the formation of the Indian Hockey Confederation, an umbrella body for both the IHF and IWHF (and yet, one gets to witness the inbroglio associated with MK Kaushik’s appointment) and many other such developments, has made the present Constitution outdated. One of the provisions in any new Constitution, should limit the term of office of all the office-bearers, to a maximum of two terms of 4 years each – much like the term of office of the US President - something which should in fact, be adopted by all sports federations in the country to strengthen and improve their functioning and also prevent sycophancy and corruption from creeping in Wishful thinking? Just look at the All-India Football Federation, where an apparently incapacitated President continues to head the Federation as a figurehead. Many other constitutional changes are direly called for.

PS: Mr. M.S. Balakrishnan was former Secretary, Indian Airlines Sports Control Board, 8 players from the Gold medal winning 1998 Bangkok Asian Games hockey squad were from this board when MSB was the Secretary. KPS Gill announced his appointment as Hony. Secretary-General of the IHF after the 1998 IHF elections but retracted when a weeping Jothikumaran pleaded for his continuance. MSB was then accommodated in the IHF as Vice-President, largely a ceremonial post. MSB was also manager for the 1998 Commonwealth Games hockey team.

Right blend of balance and experience
The strength of the squad lies in the mid-field
India last won the trophy in 1995

CHENNAI: When scanned against the recent successes, any attempt at a major ruffle in the team for the Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament faced the risk of being viewed as imprudent. A seasoned and well-balanced 18-member outfit, under the leadership of the gangling Sandeep Singh, is framed for the challenge. Having said this, it must be acknowledged that the efficacy of the victories accomplished, both at home and abroad in the last few months, must reflect in the showing at Ipoh from April 5. Conceivably, the composition of teams in the fray for this year’s tournament is weak. No European outfit is in contention, nor is there the presence of the usually formidable Australia. A trophy triumph alone will come as a bold relief, and mirror a modicum of hope before next year’s Commonwealth and World Cup campaigns.

Significant wins

While it is difficult to share the optimism of the chief coach, Harendra Singh, to the effect that India will be among the top six by next year, the fact that the team claimed some significant victories cannot be cast aside. The faith reposed in experience and balance in all segments is heartening, notwithstanding the persistent frailties in the deep defence at crucial moments and the percentage of conversion in penalty corners. Goal-keepers Baljit Singh and Adrian D’Souza have acquired a great deal of experience now. The former in particular has been on the improving mode in every competition. The deep defence, manned by the mature Dilip Tirkey, needs to be tight all through the encounter. Sandeep Singh, elevated to the role of a skipper sweeping aside the previous captains Dilip Tirkey, Prabhodh Tirkey and Ignace Tirkey, has a heavy responsibility cast on him to maintain the visible tempo.

So far, Sandeep has been in the success zone, hitting penalty corners at crucial moments. There is however a filament of criticism from the likes of Nandy Singh, who, logically, questions the wisdom of Sandeep taking the lion’s share in penalty corners without noticeable variations.

Variations hold the key: The veteran Olympian lists this as the cause for India’s failure in the four-nation tournament at Chandigarh. It goes without saying that variation is the key. A better use of Raghunath along with Tirkey and Arjun Halappa can be more profitable. Admittedly, the strength of this 18-member squad lies in the mid-field, where everyone is skilful and experienced. Gurbaj, Ignace, Vikram and Prabodh are an eye-catching line-up with the competence and craft of Halappa adding to the power.

Equally strong is the frontline, where Prabhjot Singh and Shivendra continue to be the dominating force with support from Tushar Khandekar and Sunil. The unpredictable Bharat Chikara is an additional weapon in the armoury. While it is safe to distance from overt criticism of the selection by the panel headed by a veteran in the stature of Ajitpal Singh now, the post tournament reaction will certainly be based on the result at Ipoh. India has never had it carved out so well for etching the name again on the trophy it won last in 1995. Now the team enters the fray as the runner-up to Argentina.

Azlan Shah Cup Fixtures:

05 April : India v Egypt & Pakistan v Malaysia
06 April : New Zealand v Pakistan & Malaysia v Egypt
07 April : Rest
08 April : New Zealand v Egypt & India v Malaysia
09 April : India v New Zealand & Pakistan v Egypt
10 April : Rest
11 April : India v Pakistan & Malaysia v New Zealand
12 April : 3-4 Placing & Final

sum wrote:What about the British shuttlers, Stan guru?

Its a tournament thats already been on the cross-hairs of many pro-members as one that can cause severe blowblacks in terms of upsets. The oiseaules are covering their angst with security fears.

AITA rules out shifting of Davis Cup tie from Chennai

New Delhi (PTI): The All India Tennis Association on Thursday ruled out shifting the Davis Cup tie between India and Australia from Chennai, scheduled in May, saying proper security arrangements will be in place for holding trouble-free matches. An AITA official though admitted that the International Tennis Federation (ITF) had written to them about security concerns raised by the Australian team. "We are confident of holding the tie in Chennai and there is no need to shift it. ITF wrote to us about Aussies concerns and we have already sent a reply to them. There are good security arrangements. Apart from the State police, the security agency, which monitored the ATP Chennai Open in January is involved. So there is no question of shifting it (tie) from India," the AITA official told PTI.

On being asked if ITF had replied back to AITA confirming the tie, the official said, "No, they have not replied but we have assured them about the proper security arrangements. We were sent a questionnaire, as is the procedure, and we have replied. As of now the tie is on." The third and final round tie of the Asia/Oceania Group I between India and Australia is scheduled between May 8-10. The winners will advance to the World Group play-offs.

Let’s be practical and sensible

If the performances of the seniors are as positive as they have been made out to be, then the expectation of a trophy triumph in the Azlan Shah tournament in April is not unjustified. At the same time, the showing of the juniors has been impressive. But everything depends on how these youngsters shape up before the important assignment — the Junior World Cup being hosted jointly by Singapore and Malaysia in June. An analysis by S. Thyagarajan.

Pragmatism dictates the need to administer a word of caution. The reasonably notable performances both by the seniors and juniors in recent months should not be allowed to develop into a contrived euphoria. True, attempts are being made to project the showing in Argentina, Jalandhar, New Zealand and Johor Bahru as though there has been a turnaround in the fortunes of Indian hockey. Nothing can be farther from the truth.

This is not to undervalue what has been achieved by players like Sandeep Singh for the seniors and Diwakar Ram for the juniors. The mood of well-being must be tempered by the realism that the ground to be recovered is long and arduous. The complexities obtaining in the system, what with an ad hoc committee calling the shots, cannot be underestimated. For the seniors, the dilemma over having a coach — Indian or foreign — continues. If results are the yardstick, then Harendra’s role deserves to be highlighted, even though his stereotype reasoning for failures contains an element of ennui. {and that is, last 10 minute losses and draws}

The Ministry’s move to hire a coach {Jose Brasa} from Spain at this point of time is likely to spawn fresh areas of disagreement among the administration, the government and the players {Given that Harendra is doing so well}. The whole exercise needs to be fine-tuned to make the players accept that Jose Brasa is indeed the best coach for them to breach the plateau.

Though victories were recorded by the senior teams in Argentina, in the four-nation at Jalandhar and in the series in New Zealand, the matches pinpointed again the known areas of frailty; and the coaches are not tired of parroting them as though they are maladies beyond cure. In Argentina, the team won two Tests, but lost the next two.

In the four-nation tourney, which featured strong teams like Germany and the Netherlands, the final hurdle against the Dutch proved formidable. The 2-0 series victory in New Zealand was a morale booster. But the bugbears continue to be the inconsistency in the conversion of penalty corners, missing sitters in the circle and the general drying up of energy in the final minutes.

The same holds good for the juniors, who lost the four-nation tourney at Johor Bahru. Having conquered Pakistan 3-1 in the first meeting, the juniors flunked, conceding a golden goal in the final to take the second spot. Coach Bansal’s lament that the team lacked a video analyst sounds like a lame excuse. {But thats true as well!}

Heartening, however, has been the maturity displayed by the senior team. The decision to lean back on the seniors to pick up the threads was a welcome move. Stars like Dilip Tirkey, Vikram Pillay, Shivendra Singh, Deepak Thakur and Prabhjot Singh proved their mettle as did the new skipper Sandeep Singh who was instrumental in sealing off the series against New Zealand.

At the same time one cannot lose sight of the impressive showing of the juniors headed by penalty striker, Diwakar Ram. Others like {Mandeep} Antil and {Belsajar} B. Horo have come in for praise for their latent talent, but everything depends on how these youngsters shape up before the important assignment — the Junior World Cup being hosted jointly by Singapore and Malaysia in June.

If the performances of the seniors are as positive as they have been made out to be by conscious media projection, then the expectation of a trophy triumph at Ipoh in the Azlan Shah tournament in April is not unjustified. Sandeep Singh and company will answer the national sentiment better by finishing on top of the podium. This will also confirm that the matches played in the last few months have really helped the team to regain a semblance of its image after that trauma in the Santiago Olympic qualifier.

World number one Lee out of India Open

HYDERABAD: World number one Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia crashed out of the Indian Open badminton tournament on Wednesday, blaming the shock first-round defeat on ill-health and bad umpiring. Chen Long of China, the world junior champion in 2007, came from behind to stun Lee 7-21, 21-16, 21-18 on the opening day of the 120,000-dollar event at the Gachibowli indoor stadium.

"The Chinese played well, but I must say I was not at my best," said Lee. "I have been on medication since I came here. I must have eaten something that did not agree with me during my flight here from Switzerland and I was not feeling anywhere near my best." Lee, who was runners-up at the All-England championships earlier this month and won the Swiss Open last week, also slammed the Indian officials who umpired his match.

"The umpires are not fit for a tournament of this standard, they need to improve their quality of judgement," he said. "I hope it will be better in August," Lee added, referring to the world championships Hyderabad hosts that month. Chen, ranked 147 in the world, said it was the biggest win of his career. "I know I am not in the same league as him, but I played hard," the Chinese said. "I hope I can go well from here." Meanwhile, second-seeded Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia swamped Indian qualifier Nand Gopal 21-8, 21-13 in the first round.

Lee tells India to improve conditions

HYDERABAD: World number one Lee Chong Wei has called on badminton authorities to improve conditions ahead of the world championships after falling sick during the Indian Open. The Malaysian crashed out in the first round with food poisoning and voiced fears that players could stay away from the Hyderabad world championships in August if safe food and water could not be guaranteed.

"I was told to be careful of the food we take in India but I never thought it would happen to me. In fact, Wong Mew Choo (Malaysian women's singles player) also did not feel well," he told Malaysian media. "I am always careful of the food whenever I go for competitions. But we had no choice because it was difficult to get food if we returned late to the hotel. We even had to buy water from outside and that was only possible if the bus stopped at a mini-market on the way back. I hope the conditions improve when we return for the world championships. I will not be surprised if some of the players chose not to go."

Monika's B sample test returns positive, faces two year ban

NEW DELHI: The 'B' sample test of Manipuri weightlifter Monika Devi, who was stopped from taking part in Beijing Olympics on dope charges, has ret
urned positive for a banned substance in a WADA-accredited laboratory in Tokyo. Monika's 'B' sample was sent for testing in Tokyo by the Sports Ministry on the recommendation of T S Krishnamurthy Commission report which was set up to look into the doping episode. The 28-year-old lifter's 'A' sample had an "adverse analytical finding" which cost her a chance to take part in Beijing Olympics and sparked protests in her home state.

Under the normal procedure, any lifter who wants his/her 'B' sample tested should bear the cost but in Monika's case the Sports Ministry footed the bill and a representative of the 69 kg lifter also travelled to Tokyo on government expenses, top sources said. "The decision of SAI to stop her from going to Beijing has come to be correct as Monika's B sample test in Tokyo lab has returned positive for a banned substance. Nobody is speaking about it now because a case is pending in the Delhi High Court," a top source said.

Indian Weightlifting Federation officials would not confirm the dope positive result as the matter is sub-judice but it is learnt that the IWF has received a letter from the National Dope Testing Laboratory in this regard. Monika will now attract automatic two-year ban from the IWF as this is her first dope offence and it will virtually rule her out of the 2010 Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games in Guangzhou in China next year. Monika had filed a case before the Delhi High Court praying for quashing the dope result of her 'A' sample which had stopped her from going to Beijing on the ground that the authorities had not followed the WADA rules. As per the WADA rule, an athlete is entitled to know the result of sample 'A' within 10 days from the date when the sample was given but she was not informed by the officials, Monika had said.

The officials should have maintained the sample 'A' result confidential but they revealed the information to media which is against the WADA rule, she had contended in her petition. The High Court has issued notices to Sports Ministry, NDT Laboratories, SAI and IWF and the case is coming up for hearing on April 2. Monika was subjected to four sample tests last year -- on June 6, June 29, July 15 and July 28 and SAI had submitted before the Krishnamurthy Commission that the first and last tests were found to have returned positive for banned substances. The two samples of June 29 and July 15 found 'no banned substance detected'. The probe by Krishnamurthy did not find any violation of procedure in the whole testing process but stated the delay in conveying the test results to Monika was "unpardonable". He had also said the controversy could have been avoided had there been unity of purpose among the authorities concerned.

Chennai safe but consider Aus' Asia/Oceania membership: AITA

NEW DELHI: All India Tennis Association on Friday refused Australia's demand of shifting the upcoming Davis Cup tie out of Chennai and demanded the ITF to consider whether they should remain in Asia/Oceania group given their concerns about security in Asian nations. AITA Chief Anil Khanna promised a fool-proof security for Davis Cup tie and said Australia should not have any safety concerns as Chennai had hosted an ATP event (Chennai Open) in January this year.

"There is no risk in the tie from May 8-10. We are ready to provide the best possible security to the players and the officials. If Australia decides to skip the tie I believe they would face the same punishment of two year ban when Indonesia refused to play in Israel," Khanna said. "Australia should feel safe in India and Chennai. The tie will be held at the same stadium as the Chennai Open, the players will be staying in the same hotels and the same security agency (G4S) will take care of the players," he said.

The AITA chief said the ITF's decision to send security assessment team to Chennai as "unnecessary" and said the national body will provide full cooperation. "We do not consider it necessary for you (ITF) to send a seperate security assessment team. India has already already conducted enough international events over the last decade and no security checks have done till now. After the Mumbai attacks, Chennai has already conducted the ATP Tour event successfully," Khanna said. "We are very confident about the level of security that we will be providing to the visiting team and the officials," he added.

Khanna said he had spoken to the Sports Ministry, the Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary and Chennai Police Commisioner and they have assured full security for the players. Khanna said Australia may not prefer to visit 50 per cent of Asian countries because of their "very different sense of perception about security risks in nations". The AITA chief, who was recently elected as Asian Tennis Federation President, said he has the full support of the Asian nations "who are deeply concerned about non-participation of Australian teams in the juniors' event in Indonesia".

I don't feel in command of my fitness: Arvind

HYDERABAD: National champion Arvind Bhat will shun competition for six weeks and undergo rigorous training to ensure he is at the top of his fitne
ss for prestigious Sudirman Cup in May. The world number 28 said although he doesn't have any injury problems, his fitness is below his own expectations. "It has been a long time since I took a solid six weeks training. The last time I trained for so long was in July last year. I have been training for two weeks and playing for three weeks in competitions and I don't feel totally in command of my fitness," Arvind said. "I'm still 10 per cent below my expectation, so I would be taking an off for six weeks for a solid training session to gain that level of fitness. Accordingly, I have withdrawn from the Asian Championship and would next play in the Sudhirman Cup in Guangzhou, China from May 10," he added.

Arvind put up a spirited fight but still lost to tournament favourite Taufik Hidayat to crash out of the Indian Open Grand Prix on Thursday. Arvind said he was surprised by Taufik's range of shots. "I was surprised to see his strong, sharp and crisp strokes. I couldn't gauge his game but this is the first time I was playing against him so may be next time I will beat him," Arvind said. Arvind said it has been, otherwise, a good year so far as he has got rid of some mental blocks which had troubled him for quite sometime. "This year, I got rid of some mental blocks. I won the National Championship after five attempts, I beat a Chinese (Pengyu Du) on Thursday and I also stretched Olympic gold medallist and world number two Lin Dan to three sets recently in the Swiss Open Super Series. So, I feel it was a pretty good year to start with," he said.

The 29-year-old ace said he is eying to break into the top-10 bracket by this year end. "Last year I had set a target of cracking the top 25 but the way this year has started, I guess if I play consistently I should break into the top 10 or 15 by year end," he said. At the international level, Arvind had made the final of Bitburger Grand Prix and reached the quarter-finals of China Open and Hong Kong Open Super Series last year besides making the pre-quarters of German Open Grand Prix and Korea Super Series this year. Arvind said he had a very good session in Germany where he has been playing for the last seven years in the German county team. "I had a good session in Germany, I beat the best payers there more than once. I have been playing in the German county team for the last seven years. If you play for five years, you are officially eligible to represent Germany in all international tournaments, so if I want I can play for Germany but that I won't do even in my wildest dream," he said.

Tatas to start a hockey academy, a new turf in Jamshedpur

Renowned global business house, Tata is all set to start a hockey academy. The proposed Academy will come up in Jamshedpur, where the century old and their blue chip Tata Steel Company is located. Jamshedpur is around 150 km from Ranchi, Jharkhand State capital. Jharkhand has been producing a flurry of hockey players from the tribal belt, which extends to adjoining Orisaa as well. Bimal Lakra, and his sister Asunta Lakra, and Sumrai Tete are from Jharkhand. In order to harness the hockey potential, Tatas will add hockey academy utilizing the existing infrastructure in their industrial complex. Tatas have a lush green hockey ground in their sports complex, with facility for boarding and lodging. It is said that the leading business house will acquire synthetic turf soon, but the start of the academy will be from immediate effect. A Delhi based leading coach has been entrusted to prepare full-pledged Project Report for the Academy.

Olympian Aslam Sher Khan in the Parliamentary elections

Olympian Hockey Player Aslam Sher Khan gets nomination from the ruling Indian National Congress for the forthcoming election for the central government. The former Member of Parliament will be contesting from Sagar constituency in Madhya Pradesh. Congress, though ruling at the centre, is the opposition party in Madhya Pradesh. Aslam Sher Khan, the 1975 World Cup hero, contested successfully from the same state twice in the 90s. He previously contested from Betul. For a brief period, he was made the Union Minister of State for Prime Minister's Office. Aslam is currently one of the five national selectors. Though he won twice on Congress ticket, Aslam briefly defected to BJP and NCP before coming back to his mother party. True politician indeed.