WFI not keen on trial, Sushil's Olympic dream shrinks further

May 19, 2016

New Delhi, May 19: Sushil Kumar's fight for an Olympic berth suffered another blow on Wednesday with the Wrestling Federation of India ( WFI ) strongly hinting that they would prefer Narsingh Yadav for the Rio by insisting on not having a trial given the quota winner's "consistent performances".

sushilFollowing the Delhi High Court directive, a special WFI committee, formed on the instruction of the court, held a meeting with the two-time Olympic medallist, to sort out as to who between Sushil and Narsingh would represent India in the men's 74kg freestyle category at the mega-event in August.

"Sushil has put forward his views before the committee and has maintained what he has been saying since the very beginning that he should get a chance to undergo a trial," WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh told reporters.

"We have told him that 'you have put Indian wrestling at a pedestal and we cannot ignore your contribution and we all respect you'. But on the other hand, there is another wrestler who has brought the Olympic quota and also has been giving consistent performances. So, can we be unfair to him also?," Brij Bhushan added.

Asked what if the High Court, during its next hearing on May 27, instructs the Federation to take a final call, Brij Bhushan said, "The Federation has taken its decision."

The meeting chaired by the WFI president included senior vice president ID Nanavati, secretary general and the chief coach, besides Sushil. Sushil's mentor and father-in-law Satpal was also present in the meeting.

"Since it was a friendly meeting, we also allowed Satpal to be a part of it. We heard Sushil and Satpal's point of view and we also put forward WFI's dilemma. We said that Federation is not just for one wrestler or one category. I asked Sushil what he would have done had he been in my place with one wrestler having immense contribution in the past and another with consistent performances," said Brij Bhushan.

Asked if WFI got convinced by Sushil's opinion, the president said: "Convince hone ka koi sawal hi nahin uthta hai (there is no question of getting convinced).

"Whatever is our view point on the matter, we will submit it to the court in our reply."

On why there has been a communication gap between Sushil and WFI after Narsingh had qualified almost eight months back in last September, Brij Bhushan said, "I have never told Sushil or for that matter any other person that WFI will hold the trials. Whenever I have been asked by the media if trials would be conducted, I had always said that if I talk about the issue now it would hamper the training of the wrestlers and that's why I never spoke about it. I said when the time will come to take a decision, I would decide on the matter."

The WFI president said if the Court orders us to conduct a trial, this matter would not stop there.

"If the court decides that we should hold the trial, the matter would not stop there. Then it will again go to the Supreme Court.

"But if court instructs WFI to conduct a trial and if the higher court also says it, then we will have to listen to the court," he said.

Brij Bhushan said Sushil would not be allowed to be in the national camp until the next hearing.

Sushil, meanwhile, said that he has put forward his stand that there should be a trial.

"I have always wished Narsingh well. He is my colleague and he has also done well for the country. But now what the present situation is in 74kg, the decision can only be taken after conducting the trial," said the 32-year-old.

Asked if he was disappointed with the WFI's stance, Sushil kept up a brave front.

"No. They have always supported me. Sent me for training in Georgia. I have always got exposures via the Federation and they have always stood by me. My chief has also always stood by me," he said.

Sushil had moved court as his last resort having already taken the matter to the doorsteps of Prime Minister's Office.

He had also appealed to the Sports Ministry, IOA, WFI and fans to give him a chance to undergo a trial for the Rio Games, as according to the rules, quota belongs to the country and not to a particular wrestler.

The former World champion had argued that the government has spent a substantial amount of money on his training and even the federation has been asking him to keep practising.

Narsingh, meanwhile, has been staking his claim to represent India at the Olympics since last year when he secured a quota place at the World Championship in Las Vegas after winning a bronze in 74kg. Sushil, who missed the event due to a shoulder injury, has been demanding a trial.

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News Network
July 24,2020

Bengaluru, Jul 24: Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, who was earlier banned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for breaching the Anti-Corruption Code, on Friday, said that people are bound to make mistakes and the important thing is that how well they make a comeback.

Shakib was banned from all forms of cricket on October 29 last year after he accepted the charges of breaching the ICC's Anti-Corruption Code. He will be able to resume international cricket from October 29, 2020.

"You have to be honest. You just can't lie to the people and pretend different things. Whatever happened has happened. People are bound to make mistakes. You are not 100%. The important thing is how well you can comeback from those mistakes. You can tell other people not to make those mistakes. Tell them the path so that they never take those paths," Shakib told Deep Dasgupta in a videocast hosted by ESPNcricinfo.

The 33-year-old all-rounder said he has seen many controversies ever since he was first made captain in 2009. He had trouble with the board chief, selectors and the media, mainly about selectorial decisions and not being made permanent captain between 2009 and 2010.
He believes those experiences have changed him as a person over time.

"I think [it's] combination of both [controversy following him, and vice versa]. I got the responsibility so early in my career, I was bound to make mistakes. I was captain when I was 21. I made a lot of mistakes, and there are so many things that people think about me. Now I realise that it was my fault in some areas, and in some I was misunderstood. But I get it completely. It is part and parcel in the subcontinent," Hasan said.

"Of course I will try to minimise [my mistakes] as much as I can, but by the time I got married, and now I have two kids, I understand the game and life better. It has made me a calmer person than I was in my twenties. I have changed quite a lot. People won't see me doing a lot of mistakes now. My two daughters changed my life completely," he added.

Shakib is likely return to international cricket during Bangladesh's proposed Test series against Sri Lanka in October. 

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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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Agencies
February 5,2020

Hamilton, Feb 5: Ross Taylor and Tom Latham played knocks of 109 and 69, respectively, as New Zealand defeated India by four wickets in the first ODI of the three-match series here at the Seddon Park on Wednesday.

Chasing 348, New Zealand got off to a steady start as openers Martin Guptill and Henry Nicholls put on 85 runs for the first wicket, however, India finally got the breakthrough in the 16th over as Shardul Thakur dismissed Guptill (32).

Tom Blundell and Nicholls then put on 24 runs for the second wicket, but their vigil came to an end in the 20th over as Kuldeep Yadav had Blundell (9) stumped at the hands of wicket-keeper KL Rahul, reducing Kiwis to 109/2.

Nicholls then retrieved the innings for the hosts as he found support in Ross Taylor. The duo mixed caution with aggression to stitch together a partnership of 62 runs. But with their back against the wall, skipper Kohli lifted the side up as he ran out Nicholls (78) in the 29th over, reducing New Zealand to 171/3.

Skipper Tom Latham, came out to bat next, and he increased the tempo of the Kiwi innings. He took a special liking to Kuldeep and kept on sweeping him to pick easy boundaries on the legside.

Taylor and Latham put on a stand of 138 runs to take Kiwis closer to victory. But with 39 runs away from the target, Kuldeep dismissed Latham (69) to revive India's hopes of making a comeback.

Mohammed Shami removed Jimmy Neesham (9) in the 46th over while Colin de Grandhomme (1) was sent packing via a run-out to send cat among the pigeons in the Kiwi camp. In the end, Mitchell Santner and Taylor took the hosts over the line by four wickets and with 11 balls to spare.

Earlier, Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul's knocks of 103 and 88, respectively, helped India post 347/4 in the allotted twenty overs.

After being put in to bat, India got off to a quickfire start as openers Prithvi Shaw and Mayank Agarwal put on 50 runs. Colin de Grandhomme finally provided the breakthrough to the Kiwis as he sent Shaw (20) back to the pavilion in the eighth over.

Agarwal (32) was also dismissed soon after by Tim Southee and the Men in Blue were reduced to 54/2 in the ninth over.

Skipper Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer then retrieved the innings for the visitors as the duo put on 102 runs for the third wicket. Kohli brought up his 58th half-century in the 28th over.

Ish Sodhi got the crucial breakthrough of Kohli (51) in the 29th over as he clean bowled him to reduce India to 156/3. However, Iyer continued to march on and brought up his maiden ODI century in the 43rd over.

KL Rahul, who came in to bat at number five provided the much-needed impetus to the innings. He along with Iyer put on a stand of 136 runs for the fourth wicket.

Iyer (103) was finally sent back to the pavilion by Southee in the 46th over, reducing India to 292/4.

In the final overs, Rahul and Kedar Jadhav hammered the Kiwi players to take India's score past the 340-run mark. Jadhav remained unbeaten on 26.

Brief Scores: New Zealand 348/6 (Ross Taylor 109*, Henry Nicholls 78, Kuldeep Yadav 2-84) defeat India 347/4 (Shreyas Iyer 103, KL Rahul 88*, Tim Southee 2-85) by four wickets.

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