‘BIG FOUR REMAIN FREE OF DANGER’
SPORTS
Afternoon Despatch & Courier www.afternoondc.in
MUMBAI | TUESDAY, JULY 8, 2014
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ONDON: Roger Federer insists he expects to challenge for Grand Slam titles for years to come despite his Wimbledon heartache because there is no serious threat from the next generation. Federer fell agonisingly short of a record eighth Wimbledon title on Sunday as the Swiss star was beaten 6-7 (7/9), 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) 5-7, 6-4 by Novak Djokovic in one of the great All England Club finals. The 32-year-old’s defeat left him with his 2012 Wimbledon triumph as his only Grand Slam crown in his last 18 attempts. His last major success outside the grasscourt Grand Slam came at the 2010 Australian Open and by the time he returns to Wimbledon next year Federer will be almost 34. Yet the 17-time Grand Slam champion is convinced his strong showing at Wimbledon proves he will continue to compete with Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray for the sport’s major prizes for the foreseeable future, especially while much-touted youngsters like Grigor Dimitrov, Milos Raonic and Kei Nishikori continue to underachieve. somewhat exchangeable from 30 or “I don’t feel a huge threat from 40,” Federer said. them. There’s many good players “There’s a lot of dangerous playfrom 5 or 6 to 20. But they’re also ers around there. But I feel like if I’m
Companeroes My blank Classico 6-0 N M
UMBAI: Formidable Companeroes Sports Club scored an easy 6-0 win against Classico FC in their opening match of the 11th BWFA (Bandra West Football Association) League 2014, conducted by the BWFA and played at the Dr. Norman Lewis Supari Talao municipal grounds. Wren D’Abreo and Rohel Shaikh scored a brace each while Jayesh Kambe scored one and the sixth was a gift, courtesy an own goal by Classico defender Raju Barretto. In a closely fought encounter Bandra FC powered by Salman Qureshi’s lone strike prevailed over Theresians SC 1-0 . OTHER RESULTS: Premier Division: Companeroes SC 6 (Rohel Shaikh 2, Wren D’Abreo 2, Jayesh Kamble, Raju Barretto-OG) beat Classico FC 0; Bandra FC 1 (Salman Qureshi) beat Theresians SC 0; Atletico Bandra 3 (Jonathan Pereira, Garfield Pereira, Ogden Fernandes) beat Carmelites SC 1 (Henry Picardo); Millwall FC 3 (Sheldon Crasto, Rakesh Tulsiram, Zeeshan Sheikh) beat KW Stars 0; Bandra Packers 6 (Taha Kachwala 2,Shebaz Zayed 2, Wavylan D’Souza, Ranzie Kallicharan) beat Friends FC 1 (Brian D’Souza).
Division-I: Baze FC 2 (Shnyder Buggri, Dexter Vassaokar) beat M. United 0; Velankani Boys 1 ( Rahul Salian) drew with Megdoot FC 1 (Rahul Pawar); Athletico Titans 1 (Warner Rebello) drew with Jolly Boys FC 1 (Mark D”Souza); MW Strikers 2 (Jordon Titus, Keith Pereira) beat Somlands Juniors 0.
are still going to be deciding outcomes of the bigger tournaments, like the Masters 1000s and the Grand Slams.” Bulgaria’s Dimitrov, 23, and Canada’s Raonic, 23, made it to their first Grand Slam semi-finals at Wimbledon, but both came up short against Djokovic and Federer respectively. In contrast, Nadal won his first Grand Slam aged 19, Federer at 21 and Djokovic at 20. “We all made the breakthrough much earlier than most of the guys,” Federer said.“Rafa was incredible as a teenager. I was better at 21. That’s when I started to make my rise. The other guys we’re talking about are all 22, 23 and have been already on tour for five years.” Federer was captured wiping away a tear of frustration during Sunday’s post-match ceremony and it is hard to imagine he will get many better chances to add to his Grand Slam haul. He enjoyed a undemanding route to the final and came up against an opponent in Djokovic who hadn’t been at his best for much of the tournament. But, try as he might, playing well I can control the field to Federer couldn’t deliver the knocka degree. Clearly there’s never a out blow that would have made him guarantee. But I do believe the top the oldest man to win Wimbledon guys are the ones we know and who in the Open Era.
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‘Atletico de Kolkata is an opportunity to give something back’
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OLKATA: Former India cricket captain Sourav Ganguly is cluless about his ‘future’ in football, but the co-owner of the ISL franchise Atletico de Kolkata today said it was an opportunity to give something back to the sport. Ganguly said football was overshadowed by cricket’s glamour and by starting up a franchise it was a time to give something back to the sport which occupies the heart of Bengal. “It’s an opportunity for all of us to give something back to the sport. A popular sport which is neglected in India. I won’t say ‘neglected’ but I think which is covered by the razzmatazz of cricket in this country,” Ganguly said in his address during the ceremonial launch of Atletico de Kolkata.“We never looked at numbers and the financial figures, it was a straightforward and bold decision. All we wanted was a team from Kolkata. We really don’t know what’s the future of this but unless and until we don’t begin somewhere we don’t know where we will finish.”
gut feeling driven by logic and experience: Dhoni
EW DELHI: Being instinctive is seen as Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s best attributes but the man who has captained India to unprecedented highs in the last seven years reveals that his often talked about gut feeling is backed by cold logic. In a rare interview on his 33rd birthday, Dhoni recollected the time he was made captain before the World Twenty20 in 2007, how he dealt with the senior players, his leadership style and how it is to shoulder the team of a cricket crazy nation. Talking about the trait which helped him guide India to the No.1
Test sport, 2011 World Cup, 2007 World Twenty20 and most recently the Champions Trophy last year, Dhoni says he relies on his past experiences to act instinctively on the field.“I don’t plan a lot and believe in my gut feel. But what many people don’t understand is that to have that gut feel, you have to have experienced that thing before,” Dhoni said. “For instance, you don’t know anything about bikes. I open one of my bike engines and keep it in front of you and ask you ‘which model does your gut feeling say this engine belongs to’, you will be clueless. You won’t have a gut feeling because you
don’t know anything about the object there. “My gut feeling comes from my past experiences of all the cricket I’ve played in my life and the situations I have faced. It’s not something you just feel for a moment without any logic,” said Dhoni, who faces one of the biggest challenges in his career when India take on England in the first of five Tests at Nottingham from July 9. One could feel a lot of pressure as a leader in the presence of seniors something Dhoni had to deal with when Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly were around.
Rahul does the ’trick as BCB bans ‘indisciplined’ Shakib Tata Power bag Div-IV title M
UMBAI: Rahul Sander’s brilliant hat-trick was the highlight of Tata Power’s triumphant 4-1 victory against Hockey Anstrengung United in the summit round, which helped them clinch the Fourth Division title of the MHAL (Mumbai Hockey Association Limited) League played at the MHAL Stadium, Churchgate. Besides Sander’s superb effort, seasoned Raju Bagade scored Tata Power’s fourth goal, while Rahul S. netted the lone goal for the losing side.
The final contest between two evenly matched outfits, witnessed a keen tussle for supremacy initially and there was not much to separate the two teams as they finished the first half with the scores tied 1-all. But, after resumption Tata Power were a totally transformed lot and they put to good advantage their vast experience to gain control over the proceedings. They did well to create quite a number of chances during the second period and scored three times to emerge worthy winners. The victorious Tata Power team, were presented with a cash-prize of Rs 25,000 and the winner’s trophy, while the runners-up Hockey Anstrengung received a cash award of Rs 15,000. Both teams have been promoted to the Third Division next season.
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HAKA: Bangladesh Cricket Board today cracked the whip on Shakib Al Hasan for indiscipline, handing him a six-month ban from all forms of cricket after the star allrounder left for Barbados for Caribbean Premier League without the clearance from the Board. BCB also decided not to grant an NOC to Shakib, who had also misbehaved with coach Chandika Hathurusingha, for any overseas competitions until the end of 2015. The 27-year-old former captain had threatended to quit international cricket after Hathurusingha asked him to return to Bangladesh’s
training camp on August 1 for the upcoming tour of West Indies. The camp though is coinciding with Shakib’s CPL campaign that runs between July 11 to August 16. “He has severe attitude problem, which is unprecedented in the history of Bangladesh cricket. We think that his behaviour is such that it is directly impacting the team,” BCB President Nazmul Hassan told reporters.“This morning he called me. He thought that he had the NOC. He did not have any. He admitted that he misbehaved with the coach. He apologised for the misbehaviour,” he added. Apart from earlier disciplinary breaches during his international career, Shakib has had several runins with authority this year too. His infamous lewd gesture towards the camera during the Bangladesh-Sri Lanka ODI series earned him a three-match ban, and currently, a BCB disciplinary committee is investigating his alleged brawl with a spectator during a Bangladesh-India game last month.