Batra withdraws
New Delhi: Withdrawing himself as coordinator between the International Olympic Committee and the Government in the IOA suspension, Hockey India Secretary General Narinder Batra has made it clear that he is not in the running for any post in the Indian Olympic Association. “I want to withdraw myself from all future interactions with the Government and IOC,” Batra wrote in a letter addressed to banned IOA president Abhay Singh Chautala and Secretary General lalit Bhanot. “I also wish to further inform you that I am not a candidate for any post in IOA and do not wish to contest elections for any posts in IOA,” he added. Batra was a part of the delegation that travelled to lausanne, Switzerland for a meeting with the IOC in May to draw a roadmap for India’s return to the Olympic fold.
Gavaskar awaits Wei
New Delhi: legendary cricketer and one of the owners of Mumbai Masters, Sunil Gavaskar is waiting with bated breath to meet world’s numero uno shuttler lee Chong Wei, and said it will be a “thrill” to watch the Malaysian in action in the inaugural Indian Badminton league. Along with former Andhra Pradesh cricketer V Chamundeshwarnath and actor Nagarjuna, Gavaskar owns the Mumbai Masters — the franchise that bought lee Chong Wei for a whopping $135,000 during the players auction of IBl earlier this week. “lee Chong Wei has been the No.1 player for a few years now and it is not easy to maintain the ranking since there are so many new players coming through every year,” Gavaskar said. “Wei’s speed is incredible and there is no doubt that he is the fastest player on the court. It is going to be a great thrill to be able to watch him in action.”
Corruption-free Sai
New Delhi: The Sports Authority of India (SAI) is working on implementing an ambitious project — e-tender procurement — to clamp down on corruption within the sports body. In his bid to make SAI more effective in its functioning, the SAI Director General is working on launching the ‘e-tender procurement’, wherein, whenever the SAI will invite bids for a tender, interested parties will have to file their bid documents through the internet. “It will be protected by a password and the parties will come to know about their bids whether it was successful or not once the tenders are opened. It will help in minimising corruption and help in the better functioning of the SAI,” an official said.
India U-19 play draw
Dambulla: Indian bowlers put up an impressive performance to take the visitors within sniffing distance of a win before the last-wicket pair of Ramesh Mendis and lakshan Jayasinghe stood tall to eke out a creditable draw for Sri lanka in the first Youth Test (Under-19) here on Friday. Till Thursday evening, the match was heading for a tame draw with Sri lanka comfotably placed at 235 for five in their first innings in reply to India’s 503 for seven declared. Resuming their innings, Sri lanka needed another 119 runs to reach 354 and avoid the follow-on. But Indian pace duo of Atul Singh (3/39) and Chama Milind (2/41) had other plans as the lankans lost their last five wickets for just 21 runs to enforce the follow-on on the home team.
PCB future uncertain
Karachi: The Pakistan Cricket Board is concerned about the fact that the ICC could suspend the country’s membership with the game’s governing body if the Islamabad High Court did not review its recent judgment on the affairs of PCB. In its intra-court appeal filed in the Islamabad High Court, the PCB expressed fear that the court orders could jeopardise the national team’s participation in international competitions. “And Pakistan’s failure to fulfill international commitments, might also result in the suspension of its membership,” the PCB has said in its appeal. The PCB filed the appeal on behalf of its chief operating officer Subhan Ahmad against the judgment given by IHC judge Justice Shaukat Aziz earlier this week on a constitutional writ petition filed by former coach of the Army cricket team, Nadeem Suddle.