Mithali guides India to consolation win over Australia

Hobart, Feb 7, 2016, (PTI)

Skipper Mithali Raj led from the front with an 89-run knock to save the Indian women's cricket team from a whitewash by guiding it to a comfortable five- wicket in the third and final ODI against Australia here today.

The Indians, having already surrendered the series by losing the first two matches, managed to end the tour on a positive note with today's consolation victory.

Electing to bat after winning the toss, the Australian team lost a couple of early wickets before half-centuries by Elyse Perry (50) and Alex Blackwell (60) helped the team post 231/7 in their 50 overs.

Blackwell's 60 from 64 balls was noteworthy given that Australia's strong batting line-up struggled to score freely in the face of a disciplined bowling display from India

Perry, on the other hand, took 91 deliveries to reach her milestone.
For India, Shikha Pandey snared 3 for 50 in her 10 overs, while Rajeshwari Gayakwad also picked up a couple of wickets for 41.

In reply, the Indians were off to a solid start with in- form opener Smriti Mandhana striking a 52-ball 55. Mandhana partnered Mithali in a 58-runs second-wicket stand which set the tone for a smooth chase.

During her 112-ball stay, Mithali struck 12 fours and set the platform for Harmanpreet Kaur (22) and Poonam Raut (24 not out) to steer India home in 47 overs.

For Australia, Perry was the most successful bowler with figures of 2/50 in 10 overs.
Before the ODIs, the Indian eves had notched up a historic 2-1 Twenty20 series triumph over the hosts.

Brief Scores:
Australia Women: 231/7 in 50 overs (Alex Blackwell 60, Elyse Perry 50, Shikha Pandey 3/50).
India Women: 234/5 in 47 overs (Mithali Raj 89, Elyse Perry 2/50).

BCCI to convene SGM before responding to SC

Mumbai, Feb 7, 2016, (PTI)

Cornered by the Supreme Court's latest missive to "fall in line" with the recommendations of the Justice R M Lodha Committee, the BCCI today decided to convene a Special General Meeting before responding to the apex court.

BCCI President Shashank Manohar, himself a lawyer by profession, attended the meeting of its legal panel here comprising P S Raman (Tamil Nadu, chairman), D V S S Somayajulu (Andhra) and Abhay Apte (Maharashtra), along with treasurer Anirudh Chaudhary.

It is learnt, that in the meeting, it was decided that an SGM would be convened at the earliest to get the views of the BCCI's various affiliates before it responds to the Supreme Court on the issue.

As per the BCCI's Memorandum of Rules and Regulations 21 days' notice has to be given to convene an SGM, but the President has the discretionary powers to direct the secretary to convene an SGM "at shorter notice in which case as a notice of at least 10 days shall be given."

The apex court had said on February 4 that the recommendations are "straight, rational and understandable" and "deserve respect" and "there is no reason to disagree with the committee" which has the most "illuminated and respected members of the legal community".

While four weeks time was granted to the BCCI to respond to the implementation of the recommendations, the court had made it clear that there should not be any difficulty in accepting the recommendations.

The remarks by a bench headed by Chief Justice T S Thakur came after senior advocate Shekhar Naphade, representing BCCI, said there was a need to consult the 30-odd members of the Board on the recommendations and in view of its legal committee's meeting today, four weeks be allowed to respond. 

However, the bench said "they all have been heard and have given their views to the Committee. Ask your client to take a strict view of the recommendations. You can't jump the gun. You must see the recommendations. These recommendations deserve respect.

"They have come from the most illuminated and respected members of the legal community. They had invited people and have done extensive deliberations with all stakeholders. The recommendations are straightforward, understandable and rational."

"The best thing is to fall in line and follow the suggestions to save the trouble," the bench, which also comprised Justice F M I Kalifulla, said.

The BCCI had submitted that it should not be seen as "obstructionist" and it would come back with "concrete suggestions" after the meeting of the legal committee.
However, the bench said "decks must be cleared for complete reform".

When Naphade said several technical problems would arise in implementing the recommendations of the committee as BCCI is registered under the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, the bench said it would give the solution for following the suggestions.

The bench, which was hearing the plea filed by Aditya Verma, Secretary of Cricket Association of Bihar, on whose petition N Srinivasan was asked by the apex court to step down as the BCCI President for conflict of interest, posted the matter for further hearing on March 3.

Warriors score big win over Lancers

February 8, 2016, Bhubaneswar, PTI

Hockey HIL : Punjab side move up to second spot

Simon Orchard and Satbir Singh scored a field goal each as Jaypee Punjab Warriors registrered a 4-1 victory over Kalinga Lancers to propel to the second position in the fourth edition of the Hockey India League here on Sunday.
After the Lancers took the lead through a penalty corner conversion by Glenn Turner in the 42nd minute, the visitors emerged victorious through strikes from Orchard (48th) and Satbir Singh (58th) 

By virtue of this win, the Warriors have moved to the second spot in the standings with 22 points from seven games. The Lancers too have similar points from as many matches but they are atop the table because of superior goal difference.

The first quarter of the match started with attacking intent from the Lancers but the Punjab unit showed good defensive skills to keep the hosts at bay as both the teams looked dangerous on counter attacks.

The second quarter started with the home team getting defensive as the visitors raised their pace in the game. The Warriors started pressing hard but the possession was still majorly controlled by the Lancers who were looking very strong in the midfield.

The Punjab outfit came close on many occasions including four failed back-to-back penalty corners, which were beautifully saved by Andrew Charter leading to a goalless first half.

The third quarter saw both the teams pushing hard for a goal. The Lancers finally managed to break the deadlock in the 42nd minute when the star player Turner made no mistakes in converting a penalty corner, giving the home team a much needed 1-0 lead.

The final quarter started with the Lancers trying hard to capitalise on their lead in the early moments but an excellent interception by Sardar Singh foiled the home team’s ambitions and the visitors scored a field goal through Orchard in the 48th minute handing the visitors a 2-1 lead.

The Lancers pressed really hard after this but the Punjab defence was way too strong for them to break. In the process the Warriors scored their second field goal in the 58th minute through Satbir to propel their lead.

MP set Mumbai date in semifinals

February 8, 2016, Mumbai, PTI

Cricket Ranji Trophy

 Skipper Manoj Tiwary and lower order batsman Pankaj Shaw cracked individual hundreds but could not save Bengal from suffering a huge 355-run defeat against Madhya Pradesh on the fifth day of their Ranji Trophy quarterfinal tie here on Sunday.

Starting the final day on 113 for 3 and chasing an improbable victory target of 788, Bengal were kept in the fight till the extended tea session by Tiwary (124), Shaw (118) and Ashok Dinda (52) before they folded up for 432.

Lanky pacer Ishwar Pandey once again led the bowling honours for Madhya Pradesh with a haul of 4 for 93 to add to his first innings tally of 4 for 45, while debutant pacer Chandrakant Sakure finished with a match haul of six wickets that included his second innings 3 for 114.

Madhya Pradesh, who thus recorded their second outright win over Bengal in nine outings in the Ranji Trophy, now take on 40-time champions Mumbai in the semifinals commencing at the Barabati stadium in Cuttack on February 13.

When play started on the final day, the only point of interest was whether Bengal — similar to last year when they denied MP an outright win — could repeat the feat.
The loss of two wickets in successive overs pegged them back but Tiwary, who stroked his way to 14 fours and 3 sixes in 161 balls, and Shaw — who was the last batsman to be dismissed after facing 137 balls and striking 13 fours and four sixes — put on 108 for the sixth wicket to prolong the fight.

Tiwary fell seven minutes before lunch in trying to hit Pandey, whom he had smacked for two sixes off successive balls last evening, for a maximum over mid-off and was caught.

After lunch, Shaw kept one end up, adding 58 runs with Pragyan Ojha (27) for the seventh wicket and 78 for the next wicket with Dinda, who used the long handle to smack ten fours in his 42-ball cameo.

The game ended when Pandey caught and bowled Shaw with the second new ball soon after dismissing Dinda while Sakure accounted for Veerpratap Singh.

Brief scores: Madhya Pradesh: 348 all out and 560/ 9 decl bt Bengal 121 all out and 432 all out (Sayan Mondal 39, Manoj Tiwary 124, Pankaj Shaw 118, Ashok Dinda 52; Ishwar Pandey 4-93, Chandrakant Sakure 3-114, Jalaj Saxena 2-96).

Final four

In Cuttack: Mumbai vs Madhya Pradesh.
In Vadodara: Saurashtra vs Assam.
Note: Semifinals are scheduled on February 13-17.

Determined Barca sore high

February 8, 2016, Madrid, Agencies

Football La Liga : Catalan side regain three-point lead; Atletico Madrid win

 Barcelona equalled a club record of 28 games unbeaten to move three points clear at the top of La Liga with a hard-fought 2-0 win at Levante on Sunday.
The European champions were far from their best in coach Luis Enrique’s 100th game in charge, but David Navarro's first-half own goal and Luis Suarez's strike in stoppage time was enough to secure a 10th consecutive win in all competitions.

Barca now lead Atletico Madrid by three points and have a game in hand on Diego Simeone's men. Third-placed Real Madrid are now seven points adrift of Barca.

Barca's 28-game unbeaten run matches the same feat of Pep Guardiola’s side in 2010/11 with Enrique's men well on course to repeat their treble of Champions League, La Liga and Copa del Rey.

Fresh from hitting Valencia for seven in the Copa del Rey semifinals in midweek, Barca started with purpose and should have been ahead inside two minutes when Lionel Messi was wrongly flagged offside as he slotted home from Andres Iniesta's pass.

However, Barca needed a slice of luck to open the scoring on 21 minutes as Jordi Alba burst down the left and his ball into the box was deflected into his own net by Navarro. Barca’s star front three of Suarez, Messi and Neymar were kept for long periods, but they nearly combined for a brilliant second moments later when Messi picked out Neymar and his driven cross was turned just wide by Suarez.

Levante remain rooted to the foot of the table, but had won their previous two home games and deserved to be at least level at the break as they outplayed the Catalans in the latter stages of the first-half.  Verza fired a free-kick inches over before Jefferson Lerma had a great chance to level when he skewed horribly wide with just Claudio Bravo to beat.

Barca had barely threatened themselves after half-time, but did seal the points with the last move of the match as Messi picked out an unmarked Suarez to fire home his 36th goal of the season.

Ton-up Torres

On Saturday, Fernando Torres scored his 100th Atletico Madrid goal as Los Rojiblancos came from behind to move level on points with Barcelona at the top of La Liga thanks to a 3-1 win over Eibar.

Central defensive pairing Jose Maria Gimenez and Saul Niguez headed home corners after Keko had fired Eibar into a shock lead just after half-time before Torres ended a five-month goal drought in stoppage time.

Arsenal return to winning ways

February 8, 2016, Bournemouth, AFP

Football EPL : Ozil, Oxlade-Chamberlain on target as Gunners return to third place on table

Arsenal returned to third place in the Premier League after Mesut Ozil and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s goals ended a four-game winless streak with a 2-0 victory at Bournemouth on Sunday.
Arsenal arrived at Dean Court with their title challenge under threat after a poor run in January capped by a failure to score in their previous three league matches.

But two goals in a minute midway through the first half were enough to move them back level on points with second-place Tottenham Hotspur, five points behind leaders Leicester City, who visit the Emirates Stadium in seven days' time.

The progress of near neighbours Tottenham has only added to Arsenal's frustration as they have struggled to rediscover the form that took them to the head of the table.

But manager Arsene Wenger could be satisfied with the way his side showed signs of the form that took them to the league summit at the turn of the year, with Oxlade-Chamberlain's first league goal of the season a welcome bonus.

Bournemouth's recent results showed that Wenger's side could not afford to take anything for granted, with Eddie Howe's team unbeaten in their previous three league games, including an impressive mid-week victory at Crystal Palace.

The presence of Benik Afobe in the home line-up also gave the Gunners cause for concern, with the 22-year-old anxious to impress against his former club after revealing his frustration at having never been given a first-team chance at the Emirates Stadium.

Afobe left 13 months ago and has already made his mark in the top flight with three goals in four games since completing a £10 million move from Wolverhampton Wanderers last month.

A positive start by Howe's men meant that Arsenal were given little time to settle and the hosts were convinced that Mathieu Flamini -- selected ahead of Francis Coquelin, who started on the bench -- should have seen red rather than yellow for a studs-up challenge on Dan Gosling. Referee Kevin Friend thought otherwise and having withstood early pressure, Wenger's side exposed Bournemouth's defensive vulnerability twice in quick succession to take control of the game.

Aaron Ramsey was the provider for the first goal, clipping a ball towards the far post for Olivier Giroud, whose headed knock-down enabled Ozil to finish smartly from 10 yards out in the 23rd minute.

Less than a minute later, the visitors added a second, with Ramsey again the architect.

This time the midfielder picked up a loose ball after Alexis Sanchez's forward run had been halted before releasing Oxlade-Chamberlain on the right side of the area, from where the winger finished well with an angled shot that went in off the left-hand post.

Oxlade-Chamberlain has endured a frustrating run of injuries over the last couple of seasons and this was the first time he had been involved in a league goal since September 2014. The game could have been over if the referee had not ignored Arsenal's claims for a penalty when Nacho Monreal went down under a challenge from Matt Ritchie.

But with Bournemouth's first-half response limited to an excellent dipping shot from Harry Arter that drew an acrobatic save from Petr Cech, there seemed little chance of a comeback.

Southampton win

On Saturday, Maya Yoshida struck as Ronald Koeman's resurgent Southampton defeated West Ham United 1-0. 

Japan defender Yoshida scored from close range in the ninth minute at St Mary's and the hosts weathered the 54th-minute dismissal of Victor Wanyama to condemn West Ham to only a second defeat in 14 games. Aided by fit-again goalkeeper Fraser Forster Southampton have now gone five games in the league without losing or conceding a goal.

Meanwhile in Liverpool, a mass protest by fans over ticket prices was not responsible for Liverpool's collapse as they allowed Sunderland to fight back to snatch a 2-2 Premier League draw on Saturday, said assistant coach Pep Lijnders.
In the 77th minute at Anfield, with the home team 2-0 up, thousands of supporters left their seats and headed for the exits in a pre-planned walkout to highlight discontent over the club's ticket plans.

Hit by lack of tournaments, Pak squash faces battle for survival

February 8, 2016, Guwahati, DHNS

Terror fallout

 Ever since the 2009 attack by gunmen on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore, Pakistan has become a no-go zone for many international sporting events. While the biggest sufferer from that ghastly incident is cricket, the most popular sport there, one sport that has taken a severe beating is squash.

The Pakistan Squash Federation has not being able to host any PSA events and with sponsors too seemingly washing their hands off, the sport has been on a terminal decline — much like hockey in India with just moments of fleeting success.

A sport that they dominated with an iron fist with the likes of Jahangir Khan, Jansher Khan, Azam Khan, Roshan Khan, Mo Khan and Qamar Zaman winning titles by the handful, Pakistan are struggling to make their presence felt now. Their highest rated men’s player is Nasir Iqbal at 35, while the situation among women is bleak with Maria Toorpakai Wazir placed 50.

“(The downfall) is not because there is a dip in talent or players are not fit enough,” Nasir told Deccan Herald before sealing his spot in the final of the men’s singles competition at the South Asian Games. “Because of the prevalent security situation in the country, we are not able to host PSA tournaments. We are not getting the exposure that we need. Earlier we used to host a lot of tournaments and the Pakistan Open saw a lot of players from other countries coming and competing. There were sponsors, which is essential for any sport to survive. 

“Nether the federation nor the players are getting any sponsors. Despite the stiff challenge, the federation has been working extremely hard to support us. The federation is spending from their pocket to ensure we go abroad and compete in at least a few events. We hope to win some titles and attract some sponsors,” added the 2007 British Open Junior (Under-13) champion.

Grim situation

Nasir opined that unless the country gets to stage PSA events or they win more titles, the situation is going to be grim. 

“Squash is such an event that you need to play at least two international tournaments in a month to keep yourself tuned. Squash is also an individual sport which means we players need to organise our travel, accommodation etc. For all that, we need sponsors. It’s extremely difficult situation we are in now. I’m World No 35 but I’m still poor,” he quipped.

Nasir and his team-mate Farhan Zaman will get a chance to restore a semblance of pride to the sport back home when they clash with each other in the final on Sunday.