I never slammed the government for Sania's Khel Ratna: Advani

September 4, 2015

New Delhi, Sep 4: Hurt at being misquoted about his stance on the National Sports Awards, ace cueist Pankaj Advani today said he never took a jibe at any sportsperson and his critical remarks on Sania Mirza getting the Khel Ratna were nothing but a figment of somebody's imagination.

advaniAdvani was reported to have slammed the government for Sania getting the Khel Ratna even when deserving cueists were left out of the Arjuna list. But the 13-time World champion cueist insists that his remarks were totally misconstrued.

"I mean what I said about the Arjuna award and the whole selection process about the awards has been completely taken out of context. In fact the last thing I would want to do as a Khel Ratna awardee is to disrespect someone else who has just received it for her exceptional performances over the last so many years," Advani said.

"I think Sania has done extremely well for her country and in fact she broke at the international circuit about the same time as I did, over 10 years ago. I would also like to tell certain sections of the media to refrain from giving their representation of my statements or remarks that may cause damage to somebody's image and to the sport as a whole," Advani, who received the Khel Ratna in 2006 and the Arjuna in 2004, added.

Noted cueists Vidya Pillai, Chitra Magimairaj and Sourav Kothari missed out on the Arjuna Award this year and Advani said that his only contention was that the process of selecting players for the honour should be consistent.

"My point was only related to the Arjuna Awards, because cuesports players have been performing exceptionally well and I was surprised to see none of their names on the list of the Arjuna awardees this year. The guidelines that are being followed for one sport is not being followed for the cue sport players. Who am I to judge, who deserves an award and who doesn't?," he said.

"All I am saying is that if there is a particular guideline or policy then let it be same for everyone. I was not hitting out at the government. People are saying that I am panning the government or panning X, Y, Z sportsperson. I mean who am I? In fact I have the greatest respect for sportspersons.

"Being a sportsperson I know what it takes to reach and achieve at the top. And I know that the government also has been supporting us for so long. Yes, there are certain things and there is nothing wrong in just saying that listen, if the policies are going to be followed for certain sportspersons, all I am requesting the government is to follow it for all sports equally.

Advani reiterated that for him, the contentious issue is inconsistent policy."There should be consistency. I am not saying what has happened is wrong or it cannot be corrected. Ofcourse, it can be corrected. Next year maybe the policies will be followed for everyone and maybe things will be streamlined. I am not saying things should change now.

"Once the awards are given, I would like to congratulate every winner who has received it. They have a lot in their respective sports as well," he added.

Advani, who has been India's poster boy of cue sport for the last decade and more, called for equality in sport.

"I am basically speaking about a very broad topic over here and that is about equality in sport. I am not there is a bias or whatever it is. All I am saying is that if someone deserves it, let there case be considered with hundreds of others.

"But don't ignore someone and put someone else up and say that the guidelines are only meant for Olympic sports, only meant for X or Y sport. It should be inclusive of all sport.

So whether it comes to deciding the awards and whether it comes to handing out cash incentives, which by the way haven't come for five years. Let's be fair, let's be equal," he said.

"The awards are over now, I don't want to take credit away from the people who have received the awards and if someone has not received an award from cue sport then probably they are waiting for another exceptional performance. Probably they will get it next year.

"But I feel bad because I have received these awards and the process was very fair, I still believe that the awards hold a lot of meaning and importance and that's why I am saying as a fellow cue sport player that we are feeling a bit let down. I am just requesting the government to look into it and I am sure they will do it," he added.

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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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News Network
April 4,2020

New Delhi, April 4: India skipper Virat Kohli has said that the 2014 Test series against England was the lowest point of his career.

He made the revelation during a candid Instagram Live session with former England batsman Kevin Pietersen.

To date, the 2014 Test series in England remains one of the worst Test series for Kohli as he averaged just 13.40 from 10 ten innings with his highest score being 39.

"I felt like as a batsman, you know you are going to get out in the morning as soon as you wake up. That was the time I felt like that there is no chance I am getting runs. And still to get out of bed and just get dressed for the game and to go out there and go through that, knowing that you will fail, was something that ate me up," Kohli told Pietersen.

However, just four years later, Kohli made a triumphant return to England as he scored a century in the opening Test of the 2018 series and finished as the highest run-getter in the series.

Kohli told Pietersen that the performance in 2014 came because he was just thinking about his own batting.

"2014 series happened, for all the younger guys listening, because I was too focused on doing well from a personal point of view. I wanted to get runs. I could never think of what does the team want me to do in this situation," Kohli said.

"I just got too engulfed with England tour - if I perform here, Test cricket, in my mind I am going to feel established and all that crap on the outside, which is not important at all," he added.
During the chat, Kohli talked about his favourite format in cricket and he also revealed the main reason for turning into a vegan.

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March 5,2020

Mar 5: India reached a maiden women's Twenty20 World Cup final Thursday after their last four clash against England was washed out, sparking calls for the International Cricket Council to include reserve days in future events.

Harmanpreet Kaur's unbeaten side were due to face the 2009 champions at the Sydney Cricket Ground, but the rain began pouring early in the day with barely any let-up.

With a minimum 10 overs per side needed for a result and no break in the weather, the umpires called it off without a ball being bowled.

Normally, five overs per side are needed to constitute a Twenty20 match, but the rules are different for ICC tournaments.

Four-time champions Australia are scheduled to take on South Africa later in the second semi-final, with that match also under threat.

With no reserve day, the highest-ranked teams from the two groups move into the final if play is not possible

That would pit India against South Africa at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday, where organisers are hoping to attract 90,000 plus fans, denying Australia a chance to defend their crown.

A reserve day is allowed for the final and the lack of one for the semis has been criticised by some players, with England captain Heather Knight among those calling for change.

"If both semi-finals are lost it would be a sad time for the tournament," she told reporters ahead of the match. "It's obviously going to be a shame if it does happen and I'm sure there will be a lot of pressure on the ICC to change that."

Cricket Australia chief Kevin Roberts said he sought clarification from the ICC about adding a reserve day with the Sydney weather looking ominous, but the request was denied.

"We've asked the question and it's not part of the playing conditions and we respect that," he told Melbourne's SEN radio.

"It gives you cause to reflect and think about how you might improve things in the future, but going into a tournament with a given set of playing conditions and rules, I don't think it's time to tinker with the rules."

It is not the way India would have wanted to make the final, but they are deserving of being there having gone through the group phase as the only unbeaten team.

After opening their campaign by upsetting Australia, they beat Bangladesh, New Zealand and then Sri Lanka.

While the entire team played well, teenage batting prodigy Shafali Verma excelled, which saw her elevated to the top of the ICC T20 batting rankings this week aged just 16.

She is only the second Indian after Mithali Raj to reach number one, pushing New Zealand veteran Suzie Bates down to second.

Ranked four in the world, India had made three semi-finals before this year and lost every time, including against England at the last World Cup.

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