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SUNDAY CHRONICLE May 03, 2015
Lowden beats Adams once again Busta Soft Shoe to win Assuria over-45 age group finalists decided BERBICE veteran tennis player Godfrey Lowden who was crowned Assuria’s Men’s Over-35 Singles champion just two days ago, engraved his veteran champion seal when he took the Assuria Men’s Over-45 Singles champion title from Carlos Adams once again last Wednesday at the Nash Tennis Court. There, the two players treated the small gathering of spectators once again to a display of heavy tactical and aggressive play. According to a release, Adams strategically tried to anchor his game at the centre of the court and net, playing deep cross courts and forcing Lowden to move about on the baseline. This strategy paid off since Adams initially won more points volleying at the net. However, Lowden’s aggressive ground strokes made his game more solid. He had 17 winners (10 on the forehand and 7 on the backhand) and a margin of 6 unforced errors while Adams had 6 winners and 11 unforced errors. Overall Lowden made full opportunity of Adams second serve and consistently attacked it. In the first set, Lowden took a commanding 5-1 lead but Adams was able to advance with a more consistent serve to win the next two games. Lowden made no hesitation and used his version of big
serves to close the set with a love service game, giving him the first set at 6-3. The second set provided similar excitement. Lowden’s service game was pushed to breaking point with six
Berbice veteran tennis player Godfrey Lowden deuces but Adams failed to convert the break point and Lowden took a 2-0 lead. Adams, who is in his 60s, came up with excellent footwork and placement to launch a shift in momentum to even the score at 3-3. However, Lowden took
control and secured the second set at 6-3, to clench yet a second championship title, the Assuria Men’s Over 45 Singles. It was remarkable to see players in their 50s and 60s compete with great agility and fitness. With the evolution of the game more players guard the baseline and aim to hit power shots but the veterans showed the classier, gentleman style of the game. There was a mixture of slices, approach shots and much volleying which seems to be a dying form of the game. The release went on to state that the camaraderie and the love of the game were evident in the post-match as both were gracious in their comments. Adams has been playing since the early 60s and accredits lots to tennis. He had minor injuries but he played the second final and made a show of it. Lowden who travels from Berbice to play matches says he does it for the love of the game. He congratulated Carlos on a good game but he knows that there can be a higher level of play by his friend and looks forward to more finals in the near future. The Men’s final was scheduled to be played last evening at Harry Panday’s tennis courts, followed by the closing ceremony.
A$50M rebel contracts ‘highly speculative’ - Cricket Australia
SYDNEY, Australia (Reuters) Cricket Australia have dismissed as “highly speculative” media reports that Michael Clarke and David Warner will be offered A$50M ($39.37M) contracts to defect to an Indian-financed rebel cricket league. Fairfax media yesterday quoted unnamed sources as saying Clarke and Warner would be targeted as “priority acquisitions” on lucrative 10-year deals to play in an international Twenty20 league run by a new global governing body. “We are aware of the reports around a rebel league and they remain highly speculative, particularly given the proposed scale and complexity,” Cricket Australia chairman Wally Edwards said in a statement. “Australian cricket has never been in better health. Record crowds, television audiences, grassroots participation and commercial support continue to drive record revenue which means player payments have never been higher and will only increase. “As it stands, Australia’s cricketers are the highest paid athletes of any team sport in the country and the earnings of our topranked players would already be close to the numbers referenced in
today’s media reports.” According to Australian magazine BRW, all-rounder Shane Watson was the best-paid cricketer in the country last year with a total of A$4.5M ($3.54M) in on and offfield earnings. Yesterday’s report was the latest in a string of stories about the new cricketing structure being set up by Indian entertainment conglomerate, the Essel Group. The breakaway structure would be looking to exploit dissatisfaction in the game surrounding last year’s deal brokered by the existing governing body, the International Cricket Council. That ‘Big Three’ model gives India, England and Australia a greater say in the running of the game and a bigger share of the revenues deriving from international cricket. Any breakaway move would have echoes of Australian tycoon Kerry Packer’s rebel World Series, which reinvigorated the game with the popularisation of one-day cricket in the 1970s. Edwards said that Cricket Australia’s current pay structure had a much broader goal than just enriching the top players such as Test captain Clarke and opener Warner. “The success of international
MICHAEL CLARKE cricket directly subsidises the wages of state cricketers. Any proposed rebel league would jeopardise that,” he added. “Most of Australian cricket’s revenue is reinvested into the sport, strengthening it for the 1.1 million players at grassroots level around the country. “We remain firmly focused on growing the game in Australia for fans and participants, while at international level we will be staunch in working with the ICC and other member countries to protect the interests of the game globally.” ($1 = 1.2700 Australian dollars).
THE finalists of the inaugural Busta Soft Shoe competition were decided on Friday night after the two semi-final matches were contested at the Georgetown Football Club ground. West Front Road will now lock horns with Sparta Boss for bragging rights and the top prize of $600 000, while the runners-up will have to settle for $300 000. On Friday night West Front Road needled Queen Street-Tiger Bay 1-0 in the first semi-final match then Sparta Boss humbled Kitty Weavers 4-2 in the feature. This means, on the final night of action which is billed for May 5 at the same venue, Weavers will battle Queen Street-Tiger Bay in the third-place match. The winner of this showdown will pocket $200 000 while the losing side will walk away with $100 000. Sparta commanded the match against Kitty Weavers as they took an early two-goal lead when Devon Millington struck in the fourth minute then Sheldon Shepherd doubled the lead in the seventh. Colin Clarke made it a one-possession match when he defied the Sparta defence and finished in the ninth. At halftime, the eventual victors still led by one but found themselves back in the hunt as Weavers equalised in the first minute of the second half (21st) through a Sherwin Vincent strike. However, as the regulation time whistle drew near a goal each from Travis Grant and Gregory Richardson was enough to shut out the opposition. Prior to that match Queen Street-Tiger Bay and West Front Road battled to a goalless first half but Colin Nelson broke the deadlock in the 25th minute with a goal which turned out to be the decider.
Hero Russell turns villain in KKR loss BANGALORE, India (CMC) – West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell smashed a scintillating cameo but then sent down a poor final over to gift Chris Gayle’s Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) an exciting seven-wicket win in the Indian Premier League here yesterday. In a rain-affected game reduced to ten overs per side at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) rattled up 111 for four, with Russell gathering a whirlwind 45 off a mere 17 balls. The right-hander counted five fours and three sixes and put on 38 for the second wicket with opener Robin Uthappa who scored 23 from 21 balls. Russell started quietly before ripping into pacer Varun Aaron, smashing two sixes and a four in the sixth over which cost 17 runs and then struck two boundaries – on either side of the wicket – in the following over by leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chalal. He was eventually run-out with eight balls left in the innings, attempting to steal a bye in order to get on strike. In reply, RCB were handed a flying start by Gayle who hit 21 off nine balls with three sixes, in a 48-run opening stand off 23 balls with captain Virat Kohli who got 34 from 20 deliveries. The left-handed Gayle fell in the same over in which he clobbered two sixes off Hogg, well taken at long-on by Russell in the fourth over. When RCB slipped to 81 for three in the eighth over, Mandeep Singh produced a blinder with an unbeaten 45 off 18 balls, including four fours and three sixes. Needing 12 off the last over, RCB managed just three runs off the first two deliveries before Mandeep slashed Russell’s third delivery over point for six and the fourth over the ropes at backward square leg, to end the game emphatically.