Ratna demand for Dhyan Chand
New Delhi: Demanding that late hockey legend Dhyan Chand be conferred with the Bharat Ratna, former players and several fans of the game today marched upto the Prime Minister's Office to submit a memorandum requesting that the process be expedited. Dhyan Chand's son and former hockey player Ashok Kumar led the rally which featured several yesteryear stars such as Zafar Iqbal, Dinesh Chopra, Rajesh Chauhan and former coach Harendra Singh. The march started from the Barakhamba Road and went uptil PMO where noted hockey historian K Arumugam and Kumar submitted the memorandum. The clamour for Dhyan Chand to be conferred with the highest civillian honour has grown considerably after retired cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar became the first sportsperson to be bestowed the honour. "We, a volunteer based NGO, Hockey Citizen Group, appeal and urge to confer top civilian award Bharat Ratna to hockey legend Dhyan Chand. Government of India has already declared his birthday as Annual Sports Day when the sporting excellence award such as Arjuna and Dronacharya are given away by the President of India," the memorandum submitted to the PM read.
Bopanna-Qureshi in semis
Sydney: Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi progressed to the semifinals of the Sydney International but leander Paes failed to rescue his 2014 season from a poor start as he crashed out in the first round with Czech partner Radek Stepanek. Bopanna and his Pakistani partner, seeded third, faced stiff resistance from Trat Huey and Dominic Inglot before prevailing 6-7(3), 7-6(5), 10-3 in the quarter-finals. Paes and Stepanek, seeded second, were ousted 4-6, 4-6 in 65 minutes by the French pair of Julien Benneteau and Edouard Roger-Vasselin.
Yuki out of Aus Open qualifiers
Melbourne: Yuki Bhambri failed to clear the first hurdle as he bowed out of the Australian Open qualifiers after losing the opening round match to 28th seed Italian Potito Starace, here on Wednesday. The 21-year-old Indian youngster made a good comeback after losing the first set but could not maintain the momentum against world number 153 opponent, losing 3-6, 6-1, 2-6 after one hour and 45 minutes. However, Yuki is set to make his Grand Slam debut as he will compete in the doubles event of the Australian Open with Michael Venus, with whom he won the wild card play-off event in China.
Federer rallies with Rod laver
Melbourne: There was a time when the mere presence of Rod laver on center court at Melbourne Park drove Roger Federer to tears. On Wednesday, at a fundraising event billed as "An evening with Roger Federer and friends," the 17-time major winner finally got to find out what it's like to have a few rallies against the man who twice completed the Grand Slam. laver, 75, strolled onto the court named in his honor in shorts and vest, and had a hit against the 32-year-old Federer, who is preparing for next week's Australian Open.
Winter schedule for 2022 qatar WC
Paris: The 2022 World Cup in Qatar will not be held in June and July but would best be staged in the winter time, FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke said on Wednesday. The scheduling of the tournament has been hotly debated ever since FIFA controversially awarded it to Qatar in December 2010, especially over fears that the summer heat in the Gulf emirate would be dangerous for players and fans alike. "The dates for the World Cup (in Qatar) will not be June-July," Valcke, the second most powerful man in FIFA, said. "To be honest, I think it will be held between November 15 and January 15 at the latest."
PNS/Agencies