Sushil Kumar named flag-bearer

July 16, 2012

sushilNew Delhi, July 16: Beijing Olympic bronze medallist Sushil Kumar will be India's flag-bearer during the opening ceremony of the London Games, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) announced on Sunday.

Sushil, one of the stars of India's history-making Olympics four years ago, will lead the strong Indian contingent that will hope to better the three-medal haul of Beijing.


The 66-kg wrestler, who would be competing in his third Games, was among the four Olympic medal winning sportspersons chosen for the role. Others were Beijing Olympics medal winners-- gold-medallist shooter Abhinav Bindra and bronze-medallist boxer Vijender Singh and tennis's doubles exponent Leander Paes, a bronze medallist at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

“It's a proud moment for me that such an honour has been bestowed upon me. I know there were other names considered as well. I feel privileged to have been chosen to lead the Indian contingent,” said a delighted Sushil.

The IOA was keen on having Bindra doing the honours but the shooter had reportedly conveyed his reluctance with his 10m air-rifle event scheduled two days after the opening ceremony on July 30. Likewise, Vijender's competition begins the very next day, scheduled for July 28.

With Paes having done the honours at the Sydney Games in 2000, Sushil was chosen for the role.

"With Abhinav Bindra and Vijender Singh having their events soon after the opening ceremony and Leander Paes already donning the role in Sydney Olympics, we have chosen Sushil Kumar to be the flag-bearer of the Indian contingent for the London Games," IOA acting president VK Malhotra told reporters on the sidelines of a send-off function by the ONGC.

However, it will not be easy for Sushil either as the wrestlers will be training in Belarus from July 20th to August 5. Indian wrestlers' competition will begin only on August 10 and the team will only reach a few days before their event. Sushil, whose event is slated on August 12, will have to come specially to London for the opening ceremony.

“He will come for a day to London and will then return to his training at Belarus. The wrestler will be coming to London on August 6th. The IOA discussed the matter with us and we agreed. It is a good news for wrestling that Sushil is becoming the flag-bearer. It will encourage more youngsters to take up the sport,” Wrestling Federation of Indai (WFI) general-secretary Raj Singh told Deccan Herald.

Sushil too wasn’t worried about the cramped schedule. "I will be in Belarus with the wrestling team but will fly down to London for the opening ceremony,” he pointed out. “It’s just a 2-2.5 hours away by flight. It is because of the love and respect of the people that I have got this opportunity. It will only motivate me to do well. It is a big thing for us wrestlers and it will encourage a lot of youngsters.”

Sushil was also the World Champion in 2010, and a gold medallist at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi.



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News Network
March 5,2020

Mumbai, Mar 5: Former India spinner Sunil Joshi was on Wednesday named chairman of the national selection panel by the BCCI's Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), which also picked ex-pacer Harvinder Singh to the five-member group.

The CAC, comprising Madan Lal, R P Singh and Sulakshana Naik, picked the two selectors with Joshi replacing South Zone representative MSK Prasad.

In an unprecedented decision, the BCCI said the CAC will review the panel's performance after one year and make recommendations accordingly.

"The committee recommended Sunil Joshi for the role of chairman of the senior men's selection committee. The CAC will review the candidates after a one-year period and make the recommendations to the BCCI," read a statement from BCCI Secretary Jay Shah.

Harvinder was chosen from central zone and replaces Gagan Khoda in the panel.

The existing members of the selection panel are Jatain Paranjpe, Devang Gandhi and Sarandeep Singh.

"We have picked the best guys for the job," Lal told news agency.

The CAC had shortlisted five candidates for interviews -- Joshi, Harvinder, Venkatesh Prasad, Rajesh Chauhan and L S Sivaramakrishnan -- from a list of 40 applicants.

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News Network
January 24,2020

Auckland, Jan 24: K L Rahul and Shreyas Iyer smashed quick-fire half-centuries, while skipper Virat Kohli made 45 as India defeated New Zealand by six wickets in the first T20 International to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series here on Friday.

Chasing a challenging 204-run target, Rahul smashed 56 off 27 balls and together with Kohli shared 99 runs for the second wicket to lay the foundation for the chase.

Later, Iyer (58 not out off 29 balls) and Manish Pandey (14 not out) remained unbeaten as India chased down the target with an over to spare.

Earlier, Colin Munro, Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor smashed scintillating half-centuries to power New Zealand to a challenging 203 for five.

Opener Munro blasted six fours and two sixes in his 42-ball 59, while skipper Williamson treated the Indian bowlers with equal disdain, hitting them out of the park four times in his 26-ball 51.

Taylor then clobbered an unbeaten 54 off 27 balls. His innings was laced with three sixes and as many fours.

Opener Martin Guptill also chipped in with a 19-ball 30.

Earlier, India skipper Virat Kohli won the toss and decided to field.

For India, Jasprit Bumrah (1/), Shardul Thakur (1/44), Yuzvendra Chahal (1/32), Shivam Dube (1/24) and Ravindra Jadeja (1/18) snapped one wicket each.

Brief Score:

New Zealand: 203 for 5 in 20 overs (Colin Munro 59, Kane Williamson 51, Ross Taylor 54; Jasprit Bumrah 1/31).

India: 204 for 4 in 19 overs (Shreyas Iyer 58 not out, K L Rahul 56, Virat Kohli 45; Ish Sodhi 2/36).

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News Network
January 28,2020

Hamilton, Jan 28: No one sits on the seat that Mahendra Singh Dhoni made his own in the team bus, revealed India leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, saying that the talismanic former skipper is missed by the side.

In a video shot inside the team bus while it was on its way to Hamilton for the third T20 International against New Zealand, Chahal is seen talking to several members of the squad including Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul.

Towards the end of the video, he moved to the rear of the bus and pointed to an empty seat which, he said, was the former captain's preferred spot before he went on a sabbatical last year.

"Yeh woh seat hai jahan ek legend baithate the. Mahi bhai. Abhi bhi yaha koi nahi baithata. Hum unhe bohot miss karte hai (This is the seat that used to be occupied a legend. MS Dhoni. No one sits here now. We miss him a lot)," Chahal said in the video posted on 'bcci.tv'.

The-38-year-old Dhoni has not played a competitive game since the World Cup semifinal loss to New Zealand on July 9. Earlier this month, Dhoni was dropped from the BCCI's list of centrally contracted players, raising fresh doubts on his future.

However, on the same day, Dhoni returned to training, batting fluently in the Jharkhand team nets.

Head coach Ravi Shastri has hinted that the celebrated wicketkeeper-batsman might retire from ODIs soon but will be in contention for a T20 World Cup berth provided he does well for Chennai Super Kings in the IPL.

The Indian team lead the five-match T20 series against New Zealand 2-0.

Virat Kohli's men will take on the hosts in the third T20 here on Wednesday.

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