Initial probe finds no link of Vijender Singh with drug dealers: Police

March 8, 2013

Chandigarh, Mar 8: Initial probe into the recovery of 26 kg of heroin worth Rs 130 crore from an NRI's house in Zirakpur has not suggested any link with boxer Vijender Singh, whose car was recovered at some distance from the accused's house, police said.

"We just recovered Vijender's car at some distance from the arrested NRI's house and there is nothing much after the initial probe to tell," Fathegarh Sahib SSP Hardyal Singh Mann said.

"In the initial probe there has been nothing to tell. Besides, it appears there is no link of the boxer with the person from whose house the heroin was seized," he said, adding "if needed we may call Vijender for questioning. But at present there is nothing in connection with Vijender."

Anoop Singh Khalon, an NRI, and Kulwinder Singh were arrested a few days back by Punjab police and during interrogation they revealed that they had supplied small quantity of the drug to both the boxers.

SSP (Fatehgarh Sahib) Hardyal Singh Mann said a car, which was registered in the name of Archna, wife of boxer Vijender Singh, was found parked outside Khalon's house in Zirakpur.

A case under section 21/61/85 NDPS Act and 420,467,468, 471 of IPC along with 25/54/59 of Arms Act has been registered at Fatehgarh Sahib police station.

Accused Khalon and Kulwinder would be produced in a local court of Fathegarh Sahib later today.

As per the SSP, the NRI, along with his family, has been living in Canada since 1995. As per the police, he was a truck driver and later developed ties with drug mafia in the European countries and the US.

Meanwhile, Vijender Singh has denied having any links with Anup Singh Khalon and said that his name was being misused in the case.

"I am shocked. I am in Mumbai right now for work. My friends dropped me at the airport in my wife's car. I don't know how it reached outside that Zirakpur flat," Vijender, an Asian Games gold-medallist, said.

"My friends could have used that car after dropping me but I don't understand how can my name be dragged into this. The police has already clarified that nothing was recovered from the car. And they have not even contacted me," he said.

Heroin worth Rs 130 crore found; Boxer Vijender Singh denies links with drug dealers

Boxer_Vijender_Singh

Chandigarh, Mar 8: Punjab police have decided to question international boxers Vijender Singh and Ram Singh in connection with recovery of drugs in Fathegarh Sahib and Zirakpur area of Mohali. Police had recovered 26kg heroin worth Rs 130 crore from a flat in Mohali.

Anoop Singh Khalon, an NRI, and Kulwinder Singh were arrested a few days back by Punjab police and during interrogation they revealed that they had supplied small quantity of the drug to both the boxers.

SSP (Fatehgarh Sahib) Hardyal Singh Maan said a car, which was registered in the name of Archna, wife of boxer Vijender Singh, was found parked outside Khalon's house in Zirakpur. He said before taking any legal action against the two boxers, both would be questioned.

Accused Khalon and Kulwinder would be produced in a local court of Fathegarh Sahib later today.

Meanwhile, Vijender Singh has denied having any links with Anup Singh Khalon and said that his name was being misused in the case.

Vijender is presently serving as a DSP in Haryana police and Ram Singh, a Punjab police officer, is training at the NIS in Patiala, ahead of an international championship.

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News Network
July 3,2020

Karachi, Jul 3: There was a sense of insecurity among Pakistan players during the 2019 World Cup, claims former chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq, who also reckons that the PCB should have given Sarfaraz Ahmed more time as captain instead of removing him abruptly.

Inzamam said captains need to be backed since they get better with time.

"Even in the last World Cup I felt the captain and players were under pressure because they were thinking if we don't do well in the tournament we will be out. That environment was created and this is not good for cricket," Inzamam said.

"Sarfaraz achieved some notable victories for Pakistan and was learning to be a good captain but unfortunately when he had learnt from experience and mistakes he was removed as captain," the former captain told a TV channel.

Inzamam remained chief selector from 2016 till the 2019 World Cup. During his tenure, most of the time Sarfaraz remained captain.

Soon after Inzamam was replaced by head coach Misbah-ul-Haq, the Pakistan Cricket Board removed Sarfaraz as a player and captain from all three formats.

"Sarfaraz won us the Champions Trophy and also made the team number one in T20 cricket. He got us some good wins. He should have been given more time as captain by the board but it acted in haste and didn't give him confidence or patience."

The PCB has now given the Test captaincy to senior batsman, Azhar Ali while young batsman Babar Azam leads the side in the white ball formats.

Inzamam, the most capped player for Pakistan, also said that the captain's own performance can dip as he had to focus a lot on other players.

"But a captain learns all this with time. There is no shortcut to it."

He pointed out that people praise Imran Khan’s leadership qualities and captaincy but he also won the World Cup on his third attempt as captain.

"He won the 1992 World Cup because by that time he had become a seasoned captain and learnt to motivate his players and get them to fight in every match."

Inzamam said giving confidence to new players and youngsters is very important for the selectors. He gave the example of Babar Azam.

"Babar struggled initially in Test cricket but we never had any doubt about his ability so we persisted with him and see today where he is standing in all formats."

He also described Babar and pacer, Shaheen Shah Afridi as and future stars.

"Babar is always compared to Virat Kohli but the latter has played a lot more cricket and if you look at their stats and performances at the stage Babar is now, he has not done badly at all."

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News Network
May 11,2020

Mumbai, May 11: The French Open, which was postponed to September from May due to the novel coronavirus outbreak, could be held without fans, the organisers of the claycourt Grand Slam have said.

Roland Garros had been scheduled for May 24 to June 7 before the French tennis federation (FFT) pushed it back to Sept. 20-Oct 4 in a bid to save the tournament from falling victim to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last week the FFT said all tickets purchased for this year's French Open would be cancelled and reimbursed instead of being transferred.

"Organising it without fans would allow a part of the economy to keep turning, (like) television rights and partnerships. It's not to be overlooked," FFT President Bernard Giudicelli told French newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche.

"We're not ruling any option out."

The tennis season was suspended in early March due to the pandemic and the hiatus will continue at least until mid-July with many countries in lockdown.

Wimbledon has been cancelled while the status of the U.S. Open, scheduled to take place in late August, is still unclear.

COVID-19 Pandemic Tracker: 15 countries with the highest number of coronavirus cases, deaths

The FFT was widely criticised when they announced in mid-March that the French Open would be switched, with players bemoaning a lack of communication as the new dates clashed with the hardcourt season.

Organisers said last week they had been in talks with the sport's governing bodies to fine tune the calendar amid media reports that the Grand Slam tournament would be delayed further by a week and start on Sept. 27.

The delayed start would give players a two-week window between the end of the U.S. Open, played on the hardcourts of New York, and the Paris tournament.

"The 20th or the 27th, that does not change much," Giudicelli said.

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July 21,2020

Melbourne, Jul 21: Cricket Australia's chief executive Nick Hockley has said that the Indian players and staff will most likely be asked to face two weeks of quarantine before the four-match Test series.

This scenario will bring the Adelaide Oval and its newly constructed hotel firmly into view as the sort of biosecure bubble, ESPNCricinfo reported.

India and Australia are slated to face each other in a four-match Test series, which is to begin from December 4 at Brisbane.

"The two-week quarantine is pretty well-defined. What we are working on is making sure that even within that quarantine environment, the players have got the absolute best training facilities, so that their preparation for the matches is as optimal as it can possibly be," ESPNCricinfo quoted Hockey as saying.

"Certainly the fact that the Adelaide Oval has a hotel. It does provide a facility not dissimilar to Old Trafford or Ageas Bowl where the hotels are integrated into the venue," he added.

Hockley also said that an exacting standard of biosecurity and testing would be applied before the series against India as the coronavirus cases are spiking in the subcontinent.

"It's widely known and it's unlikely that international travel restrictions would have lifted by the time that India will be due to come into the country. Clearly there will be testing regimes. We will be able to test people before that they get on to the plane and it is the nature of the situation of making sure we have the quarantine arrangements in line with government and health authority protocols," Hockley said.

"The key thing for the players is that there's regular testing and that we appropriately quarantine them when they come in and all of those plans are currently in development," he added.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday announced the postponement of the T20 World Cup 2020 slated to be held in Australia from October 18-November 15 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Following the announcement, the BCCI is likely to go ahead with the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the October-November window. However, it is known where the T20 tournament will be played as cases continue to rise in India.
"I think the BCCI has made no secrets that they are considering what that means for the IPL. For us, it's about getting a bit of an understanding and certainty around what that means. Clearly, in a normal course, some of our best players are obviously top picks for those IPL teams," Hockley said.

"It's a bit premature to speculate on that. We need to understand what the plans are if any and once we understand that we will make decisions accordingly," he added.

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