Hockey Asia Cup 2017: Manpreet Singh-led India face tough test against arch-rivals Pakistan

Agencies
October 15, 2017

Dhaka, Oct 15: Two easy wins garnered, a confident India would face its toughest test in the event when it takes on arch-rivals Pakistan in the much-anticipated clash of the Asia Cup hockey tournament on Sunday.

Rated as favourites to win the title, the Indians have been impressive so far, beating Japan and hosts Bangladesh comprehensively in their opening two Pool A matches.

After beating Japan 5-1 in their opening match, the Manpreet Singh-led side mauled minnows Bangladesh 7-0 on Friday.

Pakistan, on the other hand, have had a mixed outing so far. While they thrashed Bangladesh 7-0 in their campaign- opener, they were held to a 2-2 draw by Japan in their next match.

India are currently sitting atop Pool A with six points from two wins while Pakistan are placed second with four points.

With two wins, India are comfortably through to the Super 4 stage of the tournament and the Sjoerd Marine-coached side would be hoping to finish the pool stages with an all-win record.

In the first two games, the Indians have showcased beautiful one-touch hockey and used both flanks to create numerous scoring chances.

What is heartening is that the Indians have scored some excellent field goals but a matter of concern for them is their penalty corner conversion rate.

Against Bangladesh India earned as many as 13 penalty corners but could make use of just two.

Less than a month into his new job replacing the legendary Roelant Oltmans, Sunday's game can be considered for coach Marijne the biggest challenge of his short tenure.

History suggests that any Indo-Pak hockey duel is full of not just excitement and drama but also frayed tempers.

Pakistan might not be the most potent force in world hockey presently but when it comes to playing against India, the intensity touches a new level.

So come Sunday, the Indians will have to control their emotions when they take the turf. Any lapse in concentration would spoil all the good work they have done so far in the tournament.

Of late, India have dominated arch-foes Pakistan in hockey, the latest being the 6-1 thrashing in a 5th-8th place classification match of the Hero Hockey World League Semi- Final in London in June.

That loss dented Pakistan's hopes of booking a berth at the next year's World Cup to be held in Bhubaneswar and the Pakistanis would be desperate for revenge.

With four world titles and three Asia Cup titles (1982, 1985, 1989), the 14th-ranked Pakistan have been blighted by poor management and security concerns.

But with a new management in place, Pakistan have recalled some experienced players in the squad and this could make things better rather than worse.

For Pakistan it is a big game as a loss can dent their Super 4 chances as Japan is expected to win hands down against Bangladesh in the other Pool A match of the day.

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News Network
April 12,2020

Mumbai, Apr 12: Always eager to share his vast knowledge and experience, cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar has interacted with 12,000 doctors on sports injuries.

In his over two decade long illustrious career, Tendulkar suffered many health issues, the most prominent being the tennis elbow injury.

The veteran of 200 Tests and 463 ODIs, got to know through one Dr Sudhir Warrier, an orthopaedic surgeon, that several young doctors across the country were utilising the lockdown time to effectively gain knowledge on sports injuries through live webinars.

A session on sports injuries was held on Saturday and Tendulkar, knowing that his experiences will help these doctors, volunteered to be a part of it.

Tendulkar, accordingly, interacted with around 12,000 doctors, who attended the session.

It is reliably leanrt that the 46-year-old legend said he was grateful to the medical fraternity for their service.

During the session, the young orthopaedic doctors got to know how the requirements and treatment outcomes of athletes are different from regular patients, sources said.

Dr Warrier moderated the session with Dr Nitin Patel, physiotherapist, who has worked with Indian cricket team and IPL franchise Mumbai Indians.

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News Network
January 10,2020

Srinagar, Jan 10: Real Kashmir FC made a strong comeback in the second half to play out a 1-1 draw against former champions Punjab FC in their home I-League match here on Friday.

The 'Snow Leopards' equalised in the 62nd minute through Gnohere Krizo in front of a partisan crowd of 8,500 spectators after Makan Chothe had given Punjab FC the lead in the 21st minute at the TRC ground.

After Thursday's draw, Punjab FC is placed third on the table with 10 points from seven games. Real Kashmir FC remained at eighth with six points from five matches. This was Real Kashmir's third home match on the trot.

The match was a story of two halves as the first belonged to the visitors who enjoyed a 62 per cent possession of the ball, whereas the second belonged to the home side.

Both the teams were looking to gain an early advantage and Punjab FC took the lead after 21 minutes.

Confusion inside the Real Kashmir box because of a long ball from Punjab opened up an opportunity for Chothe and he made no mistake as he smashed the ball at the back of the net.

As the fans cheered on, Real Kashmir created a flurry of chances, but none of the home side players could find the back of the net. Punjab was able to hold on to their slender lead heading into the tunnel.

The second half resumed with Real Kashmir pressing high up the field and pressurising Punjab.

In the 56th minute, Real Kashmir playmaker Kallum Higginbotham cut through two defenders on the left side of the box and the ball fell to Mason Robertson, whose shot was too weak to trouble the Punjab goalkeeper.

Soon after, it was Danish Farooq who tried a curler from a distance but his shot did not have enough bend to trouble the Punjab goalkeeper. The home team's effort finally paid off in the 62nd minute.

A miscalculated header by Danilo Augusto fell at the feet of Gnohere Krizo, who was one-on-one with the keeper. He made no mistake in striking the ball into the opponent's goal to score the equaliser.

Real Kashmir was in their groove now, and Kallum came in from the right with a beautiful low cross across the face of the goal but Mason could not get a touch as the chance went begging.

The duo of Kallum and Mason were proving difficult for Punjab to deal with. In the 82nd minute, a beautiful long ball by Kallum found the head of a towering Mason, but the effort went just over the crossbar.

Within a few moments, Punjab again had another nervous moment as Chesterpoul Lyngdoh's cross from the right side hit the arm of Thoiba Singh but the referee turned down an appeal for penalty.

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Agencies
April 25,2020

London, Apr 25: Former Australian cricketer Graeme Watson who was fighting cancer, has died at the age of 75.

Primarily a middle-order batsman and a medium-pace bowler, he featured in five Tests from 1967 to 1972 and two ODIs in 1972, ESPNcricinfo reported.

The all-rounder earned the national call during the 1966-67 tour of Rhodesia and South Africa. Watson slammed a half-century in the first innings of the second Test of the series.

However, the medium-pace bowler was ruled of the next test after suffering an ankle injury. He returned for the fourth Test in Johannesburg where scalped his career-best 2 for 67 but failed to leave a mark with the bat as Kangaroos lost the series.

In 1971-72 he moved to Western Australia and played a major role in their Sheffield-Shield win in 1971-72, 1972-73, and 1974-75 seasons.

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