Hockey India set to appoint foreign goalkeeping coach

July 16, 2013

Hockey_IndiaNew Delhi, Jul 16: With the all-important Asia Cup round the corner, Hockey India is all set to hire a specialist foreign goalkeeping coach for the Indian men's team ahead of the August 24 to September 1 event in Ipoh, Malaysia.

Hockey India secretary general Narinder Batra confirmed that that they are in look out for a foreign expert to work with Indian goalkeepers on short-term basis.

"Yes, we are searching for a goalkeeping coach to work with our men's team. We are looking for a specialist from abroad. We have shortlisted three candidates and whosoever out of them is affordable and acceptable will be appointed within two to three days," Batra told PTI.

"The person who fits best in our scheme of things and whose terms and conditions are acceptable to us will be appointed. He will be under Hockey India's payroll but we will have to take SAI's approval," he said.

Unlike other foreign experts, the goalkeeping coach will be appointed for a short tenure, to be precise for the upcoming Asia Cup and the Junior World Cup to be held in the Capital from December 6-15 this year.

"The arrangement will be on a short-term basis. But depending on our requirement and his performance, the coach may be roped in to work with the team for important future tournaments," Batra said.

Batra, however, refused to divulge the names of the candidates doing the rounds but, according to HI sources, South Africa's Dave Staniforth is the front-runner for the job.

"Staniforth is our first choice candidate as having worked in the Hockey India League, he has the knowledge about Indian hockey. Greg Clarke (junior men's team coach) also recommended his name. But we will have to see his terms and conditions," the source said.

A two-time medallist in the Champions Challenge event, Staniforth was the goalkeeping coach and video analyst of inaugural HIL winners, Ranchi Rhinos.

The foreign goalkeeping coach will report to Hockey India's High Performance Director and interim chief coach, Roelant Oltmans in the ongoing national camp in Bangalore, where the Indian team is preparing for the Asia Cup which they desperately need to win to qualify for next year's World Cup in Hague, The Netherlands.

Oltmans is in charge of the team along with newly-appointed coach M K Kaushik after Australian Michael Nobbs was prematurely shown the door due to non-performance.

Interestingly, it was Nobbs who in the past had called for the need to appoint a specialist goalkeeping coach in order to broaden the country's bench strength on this vital front.

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Agencies
August 9,2020

Manchester, Aug 9: Chris Woakes and Jos Buttler played knocks of 84 and 75 respectively as England gained an improbable three-wicket win over Pakistan in the first Test of the three-match series here at the Emirates Old Trafford.

England chased down a total of 277 on the fourth day of the first Test.

Chasing 277, England openers Rory Burns and Dom Sibley put on 22 runs for the first wicket, but Mohammad Abbas finally provided the breakthrough to Pakistan as he had Burns (10) adjudged leg-before wicket in the 12th over.

Skipper Joe Root came to the crease next, and he along with Sibley ensured that the side does not lose any more wickets before the lunch break, and England went into the lunch break at 55/1.

Sibley and Root eventually put up a 64-run stand, but their partnership was finally brought to an end by Yasir Shah as he dismissed Sibley (36) in the 36th over. Soon after, skipper Root (42) was also sent back to the pavilion by Naseem Shah, reducing England to 96/3 in the 39th over.

All eyes were on all-rounder Ben Stokes (9), but Pakistan's Yasir Shah sent him back to the pavilion in the 42nd over, and England was left in a spot of bother. Shaheen Shah Afridi, then also got among the wicket-taking charts as he scalped the wicket of Ollie Pope (7), reducing England to 117/5 in the 45th over.

Chris Woakes and Jos Buttler then got together at the crease, and the duo played in an aggressive manner to retrieve the innings for England. The hosts went into the tea break at 167/5, still, 110 runs away from the target with five wickets in hand.

Buttler and Woakes continued their march to frustrate the Pakistan bowling attack and the duo brought the target within the grasp of England. Both batsmen put up a stand of 139 runs, however, with just 21 runs away from the target, England lost the key wicket of Buttler (75) as Yasir Shah had him trapped in front of the wicket.

With England just needing four more runs for the win, Yasir Shah dismissed Stuart Broad (4), but in the end, Woakes and Dom Bess ensured England's win by three wickets.

For Pakistan, Yasir Shah was the pick of the bowlers as he scalped four wickets.

Earlier, resuming day four at 137/8, Yasir Shah (33) along with Mohammad Abbas (3*) and Naseem Shah (4) added 32 more runs to the overnight score to give England a target of 277 to win the first Test.

Stuart Broad was the pick of England bowlers as he scalped three wickets.

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Agencies
April 12,2020

London, Apr 12: Former Formula 1 legendary driver Stirling Moss died at the age of 90 on Sunday.

"All at F1 send our heartfelt condolences to Lady Susie and Sir Stirling's family and friends," Formula 1 said in a statement.

Often referred to as the greatest driver never to win the world championship, Moss contested 66 Grands Prix from 1951 to 1961, driving for the likes of Vanwall, Maserati and Mercedes, where he famously formed a contented and ruthlessly effective partnership with lead driver Juan Manuel Fangio.

In his 10-year-long stint at the tracks, Moss took 16 wins, some of which rank among the truly iconic drives in the sport's history - his 1961 victories in Monaco and Germany in particular often held up as all-time classics.

Moss won the 1955 Mille Miglia on public roads for Mercedes at an average speed of close to 100mph, while he also competed in rallies and land-speed attempts.

Following an enforced retirement from racing (barring a brief comeback in saloon cars in the 1980s) after a major crash at Goodwood in 1962, Moss maintained a presence in Formula 1 as both a sports correspondent and an interested observer, before retiring from public life in January of 2018.

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Agencies
January 26,2020

Chennai, Jan 26: Former India cricketer Kapil Dev on Saturday said that it will be a big loss for the Indian side when MS Dhoni decides to hang up his boots.

"I think he has served the country so well and nobody has done it like him. Everyone has to retire sooner or later. He is not playing matches currently. So I don't know when he will come out one day and say -- I have had enough. I think it will be our loss because he is such a fabulous cricketer," Dev told reporters here.

In the recently released BCCI contracts list, Dhoni did not find a place for himself. The former World Cup winning captain Dev said that it is unfortunate that Dhoni was not included in the contract list.

"I feel sorry that they have not included him. 

Tendulkar, Gavaskar had to witness the same. It's not my job and I am not there to give the contract to anyone. It is the job of the cricket board. So, I don't know. You can ask this question to the cricket board. They will be able to answer this question," Dev said.

The 38-year-old Dhoni is currently enjoying some time away from the game. He last played competitive cricket during the 2019 World Cup.

Dhoni had to face criticism for his slow batting approach during India's matches in the tournament. 

Especially in the games against England and New Zealand (semi-final), he had to bear the brunt of netizens, who deemed him as the reason for the Men in Blue's loss.

BCCI released the list of central contract list of players for the period from October 2019 to September 2020.

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