DEHRADUN, Oct 7 (UNI): The 21st Sub-Junior National Badminton Championship 2007 will be held here from October 10-16, with 400 shutlers vying for the title in singles and doubles in both boys and girls catagory in two groups of under-13 and under-16.
President of Uttarakhand State Badminton Association DIG Ashok Kumar told reporters that Qualifying rounds would be held on 10 and 11 October at Multipurpose sports auditorium, Parade Ground.
The event would be inaugurated by Uttarakhand Tourism Minister Prakash Pant and Chief Guest of concluding ceremony on October 16 would be Chief Minister Maj Gen (Retd) Bhuvan Chandra Khanduri.
Gambhir injured doubtful for the fourth ODI CHANDIGARH, Oct 7 (UNI): Team India Opener Gautam Gambhir is unlikely to play in the fourth ODI against Australia in Mohali tomorrow due to a groin Injury.
The batsman slipped while batting in the nets this morning and had to be taken off the field in pain.
Gambhir will undergo an MRI scan to assess the extent of the injury, batsman Robin Uthappa told media persons here this afternoon.
"He slipped and strained his groin.
He is going for an MRI and we are waiting for the report.
Team physio John will assess him in the evening," Uthappa said.
Uthappa, the son of Venu an international hockey referee, talked to the press in place of skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni admitted that it was the batsmen who have let the team down in last two matches.
"We let the team down, the batters have put their hands up," he said adding that the time has come for "us to put up much better display.
We will make amends." The Karnataka batsman was candid enough to admit that his team mates had struggled to switch back quickly from Twenty20 to one-day cricket but asserted that, "we are now ready to fight back.
It's not a pressure, but a question of taking more responsibility." "Winning the Twenty20 World cup was a huge thing.
After that momentum was on Twenty20.
Immediately to change in a matter of two days was not an easy task.
We did find it tough to change gears in such a short time." "There was very little time to recover, to shift gears and bring it back.
But we are looking up now.
We are feeling a lot better.
We need good start,big score and I am confident that tomorrow we will put good performance in all departments of the game." The 21-year-old said, in England "we had good opening partnerships and that made a huge difference and We only hope that we start having such partnership in the remaining matches of the series." He rubbished the reports of differences between seniors and juniors in the team and said, "There are no difference, we are a one unit, united in our approach to win.
The reports of differences is only in the media.
The mood is postive in our camp." Asked if India could play two regular spinners by including left-arm Murali Kartik alongside off spinner Harbhajan Singh, he said "I will not rule out the possibility." On being asked about the display of aggression by some players in Kochi, the right handed batsman said, "We all want to play positively.
Our plan is to be aggressive.
If they say something we will give it back to them." The batsman said bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad is working with the bowlers to formulate strategy for tomorrow's game, "I am hopeful that we will make a turn around in the 4th Game." "The reason for my optimisim is that we are getting into our rhythm and players know the importance of the match.
A win here will keep us alive in the series," he added.
Uthappa said the absence of coach is being felt in terms of making strategy.
"We do miss a coach strategy-wise." About his performance, Uthappa said, "I like to stay at the crease for long time, I will play my natural game, if ball is there to be hit i will hit.
Asked whether India will choose to bat first if they win the toss, he replied, "I am not M.S.Dhoni." Peter Senior to make Debut at Indian Open NEW DELHI, Oct 7 (UNI): The field is getting tougher and more competitive with veteran Australian golfer Peter Senior making his debut at the Hero Honda Indian Open at the Delhi Golf Club this week.
The 48-year-old Senior, will be hoping to join the elite band of Australians, who have left a stamp on the Indian Open.
The history of Indian Open itself has a lot to owe to one particular Australian, Peter Thomson, the five time British Open champion, who also won the Indian Open three times.
Thomson was instrumental in persuading the then officials of Indian golf into starting the Indian Open in 1964 with the promise that he would coax some of the best players to come to India.
That was a promise he kept and he himself came back again and again and won three times besides finishing in top-10 countless other times.
Australians and Americans have won the Indian Open most times.
Golfers from these two countries have managed to get their names etched onto the trophy nine times each.
The next on the list is India with six players winning title eight times.
Golfers from Taiwan have emerged champions on five occassions, while Japanese players have won four times, including twice by Kenji Hosoishi (1967 and 1968).
Aussie Peter Thomson continues to hold the record for winning three times, while numerous others have emerged champions on two occassions.
Interestingly, the field for this year will have two players, who could join Thomson as the only three-time winners.
While Ali Sher, winner in 1991 and 1993, may be somewhat of a long shot, the same cannot be said about defending champion Jyoti Randhawa, who also won in 2000.
Senior, winner of more than 20 tournaments around the world, turned professional in 1978 and he topped the highly competitive PGA Tour of Australasia's Order of Merit three times.
His last big win was the Australian PGA Championships and he is one of the few to have also won the Australian Masters and the Australian Open in his career.
He also played on the International Team in the President's Cup tiwce and also represnted Australia twice in Alfred Dunhill Cup and the World Cup.
Time for India to perform or perish CHANDIGARH, Oct 7 (UNI): Battered and bruised by the rampaging Kangaroos, India need to get their act together as they take on Ausralia here tomorrow for the fourth ODI to salvage their reputation in the seven-match series.
The hosts, having already been brought down to earth after the heady Twenty20 World Cup triumph festivities, will have to come up with some extraordinary display to keep the series alive at a venue on which international cricket fixture is returning after a gap of 14 years.
The 84-run thrashing at Kochi and the 47-run defeat at Hyderabad have rattled the Indians and Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his teammates will have to raise their game to a much higher level if they are to avoid further humilation at the hands of ODI world champions in this 50-over-a-side format.
The Indians seem to be clueless against the Aussies.
They have been outplayed by the visitors in all departments of the game on the field.
Intriguingly, India, having one of the best opening pairs in the ODI history in Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly, have not opened with them in the last two matches.
Indians, barring few exceptions, have failed to live up to their reputations.
Their bowlers have conceded over 900 runs in 150 overs and batsmen hardly looked control of the situation to create any problem for the rivals.
The visitors have clearly demonstrated that their batting line-up has enough depth and the middle order is capable of surviving any top order collapse.
Matthew Hayden and Andrew Symonds are in awesome form and with the return of Ricky Ponting they are brimming with confidence.
Their bowling is incisive backed up by agile fielding and having won the two matches rather easily, they are unlikely to give the hosts any quarter.
The visitors have been served well by their bowling combination too.
Mitchell Johnson's lively pace has created problems for the hosts while Brett Lee gave no leeway.
Stuart Clark and James Hopes have added more firepower to their side's armoury.
Left-arm chinaman bowler Brad Hogg and Michael Clarke's part-time off-spin make the Australian bowling awsome.
Meanwhile, the Indians have made one change in their squad.
Though Murli Kartik has ben included in place of Romesh Power it remains to be seen whether Dhoni will go ino the match with two spinners.
In the three innings which hey got to bowl against Australia, the Indian pacers managed get breakthrough at early stages but the visitors somehow riggled out of the stranglehold to notch up over and around 300.
"We have to improve from here.
We need to bat better, we need good starts.
It is important to deny their (Australian) new-ball bowlers wickets," said Dhoni after the Hyderabad debacle.
Skipper Dhoni is still to taste victory in the one-dayers and he knows that it is going to be a tough task ahead with his team trailing 0-2 in the series.
The hosts' bowlers bowled well to some extent in Hyderabad with Harbhajan Singh doing a fine job by conceding only 38 runs in ten overs though without getting a wicket while Zaheer Khan and Irfan Pathan scalping two wickets each but could not contain the run flow of the rivals.
Indian fielding also has been upto the mark.
"We are not a great fielding side anyway and in the match at Hyderabad, Australia saved about 25 runs on the field.
If we had fielded that way, the match would have been much closer," rued selection commitee chairman Dilip Vengsarkar.
The two crushing defeats have left Vengsarkar fuming.
He has warned the Big Three Tendulkar, Ganguly and Dravid to perform or perish.
"Definitely, the threshold has reduced.
No question about it, there are many players like S Badrinath and Suresh Raina who are waiting for their chances and you can not ignore them," he was quoted as saying.
Is it a warning for the trio? Only time will tell, but time has definitely come for them to perform and be counted.
They have not only their reputation at stake but also that of the team.
Teams (from): India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Gautam Gambhir, Sourav Ganguly, Harbhajan Singh, Dinesh Karthik, Zaheer Khan, Irfan Pathan, Rohit Sharma, Murli Kartik, Rudra Pratap Singh, S Sreesanth, Robin Uthappa, Yuvraj Singh.
Australia: Ricky Ponting (captain), Adam Gilchrist, Nathan Bracken, Stuart Clark, Michael Clarke, Brad Haddin, Matthew Hayden, Ben Hilfenhaus, Brad Hodge, Brad Hogg, James Hopes, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Andrew Symonds, Adam Voges, Michael Hussey.
Murali eyes Ponting as the prime target Down Under SYDNEY, Oct 7 (UNI): Sri Lankan off spinner Muttiah Muralitharan, just nine wickets away from the world record of highest test wickets, is eyeing the wicket of Australian captain Ricky Ponting as his prime target on the tour 'Down Under'.
The 35-year-old spinner said Ponting has improved enormously in facing the spin bowling in recent years and it will be a challenge taking his wicket.
"The greatest challenge will be to get Ricky Ponting out, the best batsman in the world," Murali said.
"He is hard for everyone," he admitted.
Muralitharan who will arrive in Australia this month for a two-Test series, in Brisbane (November 8 to 12) and Hobart (November 16-20), says the conditions may suit him, pointing to Shane Warne's strong record at Gabba.
In 11 Tests in Brisbane, Warne flourished on the traditionally bouncy deck, claiming 68 wickets.
"It depends how well I will bowl." "Everyone says there will be a little bit of bounce and a little bit of spin in Brisbane, it will be a good challenge.
Time will tell," Murali opined.
The champion off spinner who has the highest wicket per match ratio 6.2 (for any bowler with over 200 Test wickets), has not performed according to his prestige on the Australian soil picking only three wickets against Australians since his debut in 1992.
However, these facts hold no importance to the man.
"There is nothing to prove.
What shall I prove? I have taken wickets almost everywhere.
I will just try to play well and try and make the team win." "I have done everything in cricket.
If I do well, that's good, but I have nothing to prove anymore.
Just to try and win matches," Murali stressed.
While the Australian team has made a pact to stop Murali from overtaking Warne's test record of 708 wickets on leg spinner's home soil, he has played down the importance of reclaiming the record saying his dream of reaching 1000 test wickets will be a bigger achievement.
Murali said, "I have had the record before, it's just another wicket - 1000 will be the big one, if I can get that." "I think I can achieve a little bit more than the world record," he added.
Murali overtook Courtney Walsh's (West Indies) record of 519 Test match wickets in May 2004, to become the highest wicket taker.
However, because of his injury in 2004, Murali missed a number of matches with Warne overtaking his record on October 15, 2004 during the second test against India in Chennai.
Warne went on to become the first bowler to claim 600 and 700 wickets before retiring in January this year, after Australia's 5-0 Ashes series victory over England.
Murali, nursing a bicep injury, has his eyes fixed on his goals.
"I hope to play until the next World Cup in 2011 and the challenge is that before I retire I am thinking of taking 1000 Test wickets.
If I put my mind to it, then I can do it," he was quoted as saying by 'The Daily Telegraph'.
The Sri Lankan great, who has received taunts and abuses from Australian crowd during his past tours, said he is ready for any such behaviour this time.
"If they do (it again), I won't listen to them.
I (will) just bowl, that's it.
I have learned to deal with it." "It's all in the past.
That happens but that was a long time ago.
Hopefully it's good times now," he added.
Sri Lankan team will start the tour playing a three-day match against Cricket Australia Chairman's XI in South Australia from October 27.
Ferrer pummels Gasquet to win Japan Open TOKYO, Oct 7 (Reuters): Spain's David Ferrer pummelled Frenchman Richard Gasquet 6-1 6-2 to win the Japan Open title today.
The top seed, a late replacement for Roger Federer following the world number one's late pullout, totally dominated and needed just 52 minutes to wrap up his fifth career title.
Ferrer won 145,000 dollar and became the first Spaniard since Manuel Orantes in 1977 to win the Tokyo title.
"There are so many great names on this trophy," a beaming Ferrer told reporters.
"Now it says 'Ferrer' on it.
Maybe I'm the worst player on this trophy!" Ferrer raced through the first set in 21 minutes, playing near-perfect tennis, sealing it with a ferocious backhand pass that fizzed past Gasquet's racquet.
A dejected Gasquet trudged back to his chair and the third seed fared little better in the second set despite encouragement from a Tokyo crowd keen to get their money's worth.
Ferrer, playing his first tournament since reaching the semi-finals of the U.S.
Open, broke for 2-0 with a blistering forehand and never looked like losing his grip on the match.
The 25-year-old wrapped up his third title of 2007 on his first match point, ending Gasquet's bid for back-to-back titles after his victory in Mumbai last week.
"It's very special," said Ferrer.
"Not because Federer won last year but because it's on a hardcourt.
My surface is clay and this is only my second hardcourt title (after Auckland).
"To win in Tokyo is special because it's a big tournament bigger than Auckland." Gasquet blamed fatigue for his sluggish performance and jokingly said he regretted not staying up until the early hours to watch France beat New Zealand at the rugby World Cup.
"I played 10 matches in two weeks it was a bit too much for me," said the Wimbledon semi-finalist.
"I was feeling tired and it was just too difficult." "I knew the rugby was on at the TV at 4 a.m.
in my hotel but I had to sleep," he added with a sheepish grin.
"If I had known I was going to lose 6-1 6-2 I would definitely have watched it." Vengsarkar's comments came at wrong time: Rajput CHANDIGARH, Oct7 (Agencies): Indian team's cricket manager Lalchand Rajput today reacted to chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar's warning to senior players, saying the outburst was unwarranted in the middle of a series.
Vengsarkar, in an apparent dig at the senior players who have failed to impress in the series so far, told a Mumbai-based daily that young players were waiting for their chance in the Indian team and "nobody can take their place for granted".
Rajput said such comments could affect the mindset of players when they had crucial matches ahead of them.
"I think it was a wrong statement during the series because it really affects players and I am sure he knows about it.
This is not done during a series," the cricket manager told 'Times Now' on the eve of the fourth ODI here.
Rajput, however, said the players were focusing on their game and not thinking about Vengsarkar's comments.
"But we have not thinking about that.
We are just focusing on our game and have concentrated on the series game by game," he said.
India is trailing 0-2 in the seven-match series after the first match was washed out due to rains in Bangalore.
use usha logo add matchwinner Whatmore to replace Greg as Indian coach Dennis Lillee India must not panic, in the face of trailing in the one-day series against Australia, and blindly appoint a coach as quick-fix means of turning around its fortunes.
In fact, if I was on the Indian Board of Control I would insist the word "coach" be stuck from cricket's vocabulary and replaced with "manager".
Australia's 47-run win at Hyderabad on Friday to give them a 2-0 series lead has no doubt spooked Indian cricket administrators, fans and players alike with a further loss in Chandigarh on Monday dashing all hope of another tournament win to follow their Twenty/20 success in South Africa.
Dav Whatmore is on the short list to replace Greg Chappell as Indian coach, and I can see why because of his subcontinent cricket knowledge and experience with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
Whatmore would be a good choice but India has a great chance to forge a new era and announce their new man as manager.
Before Bob Simpson's appointment as Australia's coach in the late 1980's , the game had progressed for the previous 100 years with a captain calling the shots and a manager doing most of the off-field organizing.
Simpson did a great job and, on the strength of Australia's success in the years that followed , other countries followed suit.
Ian Chappell used to say the only coach a cricket team needed was one to get them from the hotel to the ground and back each day.
But the game has evolved since then and from team coach, I think the next step should be a high-performance manager.
Let's face it, in most other sports a coach has very much a hands-on role whereas in cricket it is the captain who makes the major decision, right from the toss to setting fields and organizing his batting and bowling orders.
I'll never forget when we were invited to see first hand how the Manchester United soccer team functioned during a tour of England.
The team's support staff was vast, but on our six-month tour of England all the Australian team had was a team manager who organised the accommodation and gave after dinner speeches, a bloke who looked after the baggage and a rubber.
Now the rubber was a sort of physiotherapist without any physio skills.
With so many support staff it's little wounder the man in charge of a big soccer teams is known as a manager rather than its coach.
The manager of an international or provincial cricket team should have considerable standing in the game as a former player and excellent management skills.
Not everyone who has played Test cricket has the freakish all-round ability of Garfield Sobers, so if a particular player has a problem with an aspect of his game, the team manager should call in an expert in his field to help sort out the problem.
For example, I'm sure if Geoff Lawson, recently appointed Pakistan coach and former high-quality fast bowler, considers that one of his batsmen needs some help he will call in an expert in that field of the game to help rectify the glitch.
A great player won't need a coach as such but a bit of fine-tuning might be required from time to time-and the team manager can arrange that in a very private way.
Even Tiger Woods sneaks off to visit his swing coach from time to time.
The Indian cricket team clearly needs someone at the helm before it sets out on its approaching tour of Australia.
The right man with the right philosophies and ability to use his managerial skills to seek out the right sort of help when needed will turn this talent-laden team into a frightening force.
Malik welcomes inclusion of Inzamam, Yousuf in team KARACHI, Oct 7 (Agencies): Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik has welcomed the inclusion of senior batsmen Inzamam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Yousuf in the team for the second cricket Test against South Africa starting tomorrow in Lahore.
He said Inzamam's return to the Test was a morale booster for him as well as for the team.
"Just having him training today with us has raised our confidence level and hopefully we can win this Test and square the series," Malik said.
The second Test would be Inzamam's swansong from cricket after he had retired from one-day internationals during the World Cup in March.
Malik dispelled the impression that he might not be happy with Inzamam's inclusion in the team in such a abrupt manner or it could disturb the team's focus on winning the Test.
"Inzamam and Yousuf coming back will boost our middle order batting and give us confidence to go for the win," he said.
Malik said Yousuf was Pakistan's answer to Jacques Kallis who was the main difference between the two teams in the first Test in Karachi which the visitors won by a thumping 160 runs.
Criticism mellowed down Sreesanth in Hyderabad: Uthappa CHANDIGARH, Oct 7 (Agencies): S Sreesanth, who was at his belligerent best in the first two cricket one-dayers against Australia before going uncannily quiet in the third match, mellowed down due to criticism of his volatile temper, said Robin Uthappa.
"You guys have mellowed him down," Uthappa quipped at the press conference ahead of the fourth ODI here.
"I think a lot has been made of it and he was naturally mellowed down in Hyderabad.
In fact, we had to talk to him and key him up," he said.
Sreesanth had altercations with Andrew Symonds and Matthew Hayden in the second ODI at Kochi where he tried to run out Symonds when the ball was dead.
The Kerala speedster then caught the batsman off his own bowling, which was followed by yet another verbal duel.
Sreesanth, however, was not alone to vent his anger in the tie and match referee Chris Broad later called both the captains and told them to rein in their teammates.
Sreesanth, however, looked a complete different bowler who just went about his job in the third match.
Uthappa insisted that the hosts had not overdone things in the series.
"Yes, we have been aggressive even though we mellowed down a bit in the third match.
But I feel it's hyped up a lot by the media.
We know where to draw the line and we respect the rules of the game too," he said.
Australia captain Ricky Ponting, however, has not been amused by India's aggression and felt the hosts misconstrued the notion.
"It's not jumping up and down," Ponting wrote in his in an Australian newspaper.
Reacting to Ponting's comments, Uthappa quipped "they are experienced in it while we are just late starters.
Give us some time and we'll definitely catch up with them." Goal deluge by Orissa girls put hockey body in a fix BHUBANESWAR, Oct 7 (Agencies): Orissa girls scored 50 goals in two matches of the 37th Junior Women's National Hockey Champoinship at Gwalior which has made the hockey association functionaries of the state a worried lot.
The Orissa Women's Hockey Association's had promised cash prize of Rs 1,000 for each goal scored by the team in the championship.
The Orissa team thrashed Tripura by 42 goals in the Pool-E league match on Friday.
They followed it up with a triumph over Maharastra by eight goals yesterday.
Worse, the Association had a zero balance in its bank account, its secretary Laltendu Das said.
"We have to find sponsors for the cash award.
The Association President Frida Topno and I had promised the girls of the cash prize the girls boarded the train to Gwalior on October two," he said.
Das, however, added a rider.
The cash prize would be given only if they lifted the trophy.
The Association would be happier if the girls earned Rs one lakh by scoring 100 goals in the tournament, he said.
Ashutosh brings first national title in family NEW DELHI, Oct 7 (Agencies): By winning the national title, Ashutosh Singh carried forward the family tradition of excellence on the tennis court but his latest feat is something which nobody in the clan had achieved before.
"It means a lot emotionally.
It brought happiness for my coaches, trainers but I think, it came as a relief to my family as it was one title that no one in my family had won.
"My father was in the Davis Cup squad, my uncles won international tournaments, my sister was junior national champion and also in the Fed Cup team but no one had won a senior national title, so this title brought relief," Ashutosh Singh told.
Son of Balram Singh, who was coach of the Indian team in the 1990 Asian Games in Beijing where Leander Paes won a bronze medal, Ashutosh said he could see relief in his father's eyes when he won the title at the DLTA complex.
"He did not say much when he heard that I have won, but I could see his eyes, there was a relief.
He was waiting for this for a long time.
When asked why it took so long to bag the title, the 25-year-old Ashutosh said, "Yes, I took my own time to settle in the sport.
Despite the fact that my father was a coach I could not train under him." Pakistan feel the heat in decider LAHORE, Oct 7 (Agencies): An unusual Test awaits Lahore.
To begin with, South Africa are in a position to win a Test series against a major subcontinent side, something that hasn't been the case since 2000.
The home side, meanwhile have just one game to square the series and save face.
South Africa were frighteningly efficient in Karachi as expected, but not, as they have often been derided, without some blood, sweat and things that make a soul.
Even Jacques Kallis played an innings you could while away an afternoon to.
Paul Harris's left-arm and Dale Steyn's right produced surely one of South Africa's most stirring moments in recent Test cricket: a quality spinner at one end and a tearaway at the other.
By happy circumstance, neither is the multi-dimensional droid South Africa is renowned for.
So understandably, captain Graeme Smith can afford to smile, even over a few niggles.
Speaking on the eve of the match, Smith said, "Ashwell [Prince] has a stomach problem and [Andre] Nel has a groin problem, but everyone will hopefully come up for selection." They will because, as Smith points out, much is at stake.
South Africa have won nine out of 25 Tests in this region since readmission, but a seven-year itch does strange things.
"We have come here to win Tests.
A win in the subcontinent is extra special because we've only had a few since readmission.
We've given ourselves a great chance of winning a series here and it's something we are hungry to achieve." The plans will be much the same.
Runs from the top order and a solid base to build on; then repel Pakistan's spin, which they did so imposingly last week.
"We play spinners very well and score runs against them now at will," Smith said.
The rest of it they will leave to confidence.
"We have to play positive cricket.
Even if we do have a change, it will be a bowler for a bowler and no extra bat." But Lahore will also be unusual because it is the 'Inzamam Test.' The Gadaffi Stadium may have the opportunity to bid farewell to possibly the greatest batsman to have lumbered across this soil.
Smith reckons Inzamam's farewell might be a distraction to Pakistan .
But the point he chose not to highlight, one his counterpart Shoaib Malik was keen to highlight, was that it brings to the middle, where it matters, beef.
The return of Inzamam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Yousuf reunites, for the last time, possibly the best middle-order Pakistan has had in recent times.
"We are determined to win this Test," Malik said.
"Inzamam's return will not be a distraction.
Along with Yousuf, it will bolster our middle-order.
We are all professionals and we know what we need to do.
The morale is high and just having Inzamam around, my confidence has gone up.
He is an encouragement, not a distraction." About us | Advertise | Other Publications | Subscriptions | Weather | Letters | Send Mail Disclaimer: Information is being made available at this site purely as a measure of public facilitation.
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