DECLARE COMMON WEALTH GAME 2010

WHO WILL DECLARE COMMONWEALTH GAME 2010

Just 19 days to go for the inauguration of the Commonwealth Games and it is still not clear who will inaugurate the mega event.

Traditionally, the final Queen's Baton Relay runner hands over the baton to the queen of England signalling the start of the Games.

However, with Queen Elizabeth II more or less certain to give the Games a miss due to heavy workload, the Indians want President Pratibha Devisingh Patil to do the honours while the Commonwealth Games Federation is keen on its president Mike Fennell opening the Games in the absence of the queen.

The Organising Committee will take a formal call on this issue soon.

The Indian logic is simple: Protocol wise, if the queen is not coming, India's head of state should inaugurate the event.

"Discussions are on and at this stage, nothing is decided," a source close to the developments told TOI on Monday.

Sources said that in the queen's absence, her representative reads out her message before the event is declared open. Prince Charles is supposed to represent the British royal family in Delhi.

ROGER FEDERER TO SKIP DAVIS CUP

                 ROGER WON
Roger Federer will skip Switzerland's Davis Cup match in Kazakhstan this weekend to stay fresh for the rest of the season.

"I need some extra time to relax after the intense weeks in North America so I can finish the year strong," Federer said on his official website on Wednesday.

Federer reached the US Open semifinals - losing in five sets to Novak Djokovic last Saturday - won the Cincinnati Masters, and lost in the Toronto Masters final.

Federer is next scheduled to play at the Shanghai Masters starting October 10, then return to Europe for the indoor hardcourt season in Stockholm his hometown event in Basel, and the Paris Masters.

His competitive season ends at the ATP World Tour Finals in London from November 21.

Federer cited schedule problems when he missed Switzerland's 4-1 loss in Spain in the world group in March.

The Swiss had retained their place in the elite 16-nation group last September when Federer won both his singles in a 3-2 victory in Italy.

"Obviously we would have liked to have Roger with us for this match but we knew also that his participation was uncertain," Switzerland captain Severin Luethi said.

Switzerland travels to Kazakhstan for the playoffs starting Friday to decide which country will remain in the world group next year. The Swiss team will be led by US Open quarterfinalist Stanislas Wawrinka.

BIG DICISION BY ICC

      
                           
The International Cricket Council on Wednesday refuted media reports that 29 players who participated in the Indian Premier League were under the scanner of its Anti-Corruption and Security Unit for suspected match-fixing or spot-fixing.

"In particular, over the last 24-36 hours we have noted a number of specific unfounded media allegations about individual players being investigated by the ACSU - a so-called list of 29 players," ICC CEO Haroon Lorgat said in a mail to individual member boards.

"This is to confirm that there is no such list and we believe it is simply a way that the media is trying to fish for information without any basis for doing so," he added.

"If there were any specific players being investigated by ACSU we would have notified the relevant Member Board."

The London-based 'The Times' had reported that 29 players, two of them Australian, were named in a secret dossier, detailing match-fixing and spot-fixing in the IPL's second edition, prepared by the ACSU.

US Open semifinals

Nadal advances to US Open semifinals

Top seed Rafael Nadal advanced to the US Open semifinals by defeating eighth-seeded Spanish compatriot Fernando Verdasco 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 on Thursday, stretching his Grand Slam win streak to 19 matches.

Nadal, seeking his first US Open title to complete a career Grand Slam, will play on Saturday for a finals berth against Russian 12th seed Mikhail Youzhny, who outlasted Swiss 25th seed Stanislas Wawrinka 3-6, 7-6 (9/7), 3-6, 6-3, 6-3.

World number one Nadal reached his third consecutive US Open semifinal but has never reached the championship match, losing to Britain's Andy Murray in 2008 and eventual winner Juan Martin Del Potro of Argentina last year.

"It was a very important victory," Nadal said. "It's a very nice feeling to be in the semifinals third time in a row in one of the most important tournaments in the world, for me right now probably the most important."

COMMONWEALTH GAME 2010

Vijender and Co. promise medal rush at Commonwealth Games:

Their punches have had such a resonance in the past two years that expectations are bound to be sky-high when Indian boxers, led by the effervescent Vijender Singh and the experienced Akhil Kumar, step into the ring aiming for at least half-a-dozen medals at the Commonwealth Games this October. 

For all their success in the past two years, Indian boxers have managed just two gold medals -- Akhil (2006) and Mohammad Ali Qamar (2002) -- in the Commonwealth Games record books but the sport has not been the same ever since Vijender clinched the historic Olympic bronze in Beijing. 

Indians have not returned empty-handed from any major international tournament since then and if the form continues, there could well be another medal rush in the offing at the Talkatora Stadium come October. 

Leading the charge would be middle-weight world number one Vijender. The strapping six-footer from a Haryana small-town is undoubtedly the face of the Indian boxing and one of the few millionaire sportspersons outside cricket. 

The first Indian boxer to clinch a World Championship medal, when he won the bronze in Milan last year, Vijender will be the cynosure of all eyes when he would fight to better the silver that he won in the previous Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. 

"I like the spotlight. I like being the focus. I have learnt to deal with the pressure that comes with expectations. It doesn't intimidate me. In fact, I enjoy it," said the 24-year-old, who was conferred the country's highest sporting honour -- the Khel Ratna -- last year. 

At the Commonwealth Championships, which give an indication of the level of competition to come at the Games, Vijender had little trouble getting past opponents to clinch the gold this March despite the fact that he fought with a bleeding nose in the final bout. 

"I got a silver medal the last time around but I am not the same boxer anymore. I am more confident about myself and that will show in my performance also, especially when I will have my own people cheering for me," said the nimble-footed boxer, who is one of the six brand ambassadors of the event. 

While for Vijender the Games are an opportunity to go a step up on the podium, for Akhil the event is a challenge to hold on to what he has already achieved. 

Injuries sustained in the past two years have failed to deter him and he is back in the team to defend what was India's only boxing gold in Melbourne. 

Ranked number 10 in the world, the 28-year-old bantam weight (56kg) pugilist will have to dig from his experience against fresh talent such as England's Iain Weaver, the 20-year-old who beat him in the very first round of the Commonwealth Championships in March. 

Akhil, a Haryana-lad, is known for his razor-sharp reflexes and open-guard style of fighting, which draws criticism and appreciation in equal measure. 

"It has been tough but who said boxing is easy. It's a sport which leaves you in pain whether you win or lose. I have recovered from the niggles that have been affecting me and I am confident of defending my gold medal successfully," said the Olympic quarter-finalist, who beat off competition from younger boxers such as Jitender Kumar and Chhote Lal Yadav to clinch a spot in the 10-member Indian team for the event. 

"Akhil has had it tough and injuries have hampered him but he is coming back into his own and hopefully he would be giving his best performance in the Games," said national coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu. 

But India's medal hopes don't end at these two boxers, who are without doubt the most recognisable faces of the sport currently. 

Suranjoy Singh, an unassuming 23-year-old fly weight (52kg) boxer from Manipur, is one of the brightest prospects given the form he has shown in the past one year. 

The diminutive counter-puncher, whose tempo often leaves his rivals gasping for breath, has clinched six international gold medals in the past one year. 

He was India's only gold-medallist at last year's inter-continental President's Cup where he also bagged the 'Best Boxer' trophy. 

"Suranjoy's fitness level and his speed make him one of the most dangerous boxers. His reflexes are excellent and he makes sure that he makes up for his short height by fighting from a distance," said Sandhu. 

In the light weight (60kg) division, Jai Bhagwan is a strong medal contender for the country. Not much talked about but a consistent performer, Jai was a silver-medallist at last year's Asian Championships and also won a gold medal at the Commonwealth Championships. 

The light welter weight (64kg) division has comeback man Manoj Kumar presenting India's challenge. The 2007 Asian Championships bronze medallist had all but faded into oblivion due to a hand injury but roared back into contention by beating Youth Commonwealth Games gold medallist Balwinder Singh in the selection trials. 

In the light weight 81kg, this year's Arjuna awardee Dinesh Kumar, who was among India's six gold medallists at the Commonwealth Championships earlier this year, is a medal hope at the Games too. Relying mostly on the sheer power of his punches, Dinesh has grown in confidence after his first-round loss in the 2008 Olympics. 

The heavy and super heavy weight divisions have fetched just two medals -- a silver and a bronze -- for India at the Commonwealth Games and it would once again be a challenge for Manpreet Singh (91kg) and Paramjeet Samota (+91kg) to better that. 

Samota, however, did spring a surprise at the Commonwealth Championships in March when he beat off more fancied rivals to clinch the gold medal.

'Educate sportspersons to curb doping'

SPORTSPERSONS TO CURB DOPING:


Against the backdrop of a series of positive dope tests, sports minister MS Gill on Tuesday said the national federations should introduce educational programmes to make the sportspersons aware of the doping menace.
"The federations should make the sportspersons aware of this thing. We are doing our bit and the federations better launch education (programmes) for their sportspeople so that nobody is caught in ignorance," Gill said.
"The message to the athletes is what I often give. It is true that we do wantlots of medals in the Commonwealth Games. But even if we get one we want that medal with honour," Gill said at the day-long Conference of the sports ministers of the States.

Gill's comment came five days after the country faced a major embarrassment with four wrestlers - Rajiv Tomar, Sumit, Mausam Khatri and Gursharanpreet Kaur -being removed from India's CWG squad for flunking National Anti Doping Agency's tests.

Rahul Mann and Joginder Singh were other two wrestlers who failed to clear the tests. The 'B' samples of the six wrestlers on Monday turned out to be positive for stimulant methylhexanamine, which was added as a banned substance only this year by World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). His comment also assumes significance as18 athletes have been caught for using banned substances in the past few days under NADA tests.

Gill was also miffed with the repeated postponement of the 34th National Games and lashed out at the Indian Olympic Association, saying the IOA should consult the government in future before allotting the multi-sport event to any State.

"National Games is very important for us, but the IOA is allotting the event to the States like Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand in the manner Commonwealth Games Federation or the International Olympic Council allots their Games to different countries. "Its like gifts to the states. The IOA people have personal interest and desire, I understand this business. I would say that in future the IOA should consult us before allotting the National Games," Gill said.

The 34th National Games, which was originally scheduled in Jharkhand in 2007 has been postponed five times by the IOA, the latest being in October last year.
Asked about the Commonwealth Games, the minister admitted that the weather is a concern.
"The weather is surely a concern but the SAI has done its work in time and all the venues are ready," he said.