Indian news round-up

The Orissa Cricket Association secretary Ashirbad Benera said on Thursday that the association has finally succeeded in trading the offered India-Zimbabwe Test for a one day international at Cuttack during the forthcoming Zimbabwe tour to India.

Speaking to an Indian news agency in Cuttack, Ashirbad revealed that though the official tour itinerary for the tour will be announced only after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) meeting on August 19, the board had already conveyed to the State Association to begin the pitch preparations for the ODI, scheduled to be held on December 2.

Earlier the OCA had been allotted the second India-Zimbabwe Test, scheduled to be held from November 25 to 29. They declined to stage this, citing the non-availability of ground and lack of time for its preparation for the five-day match.

Indians have never really understood the importance and correct techniques involved in proper training methods says Craig M Schinck, physical trainer associated with the National Basketball Association.

Schinck is currently on his fifth trip to India. While takling to an Indian newspaper, he said there was no dearth in talent in the country but one of the main causes for the lack of performance is due to the lack of sufficient weight training. He sighted the example of Sachin Tendulkar and said ``he would not have developed a back problem had he started strength training at an early age.''

Schinck is in India as part of the Atheletes in Action to propagate the importance of strength training and also to complete research on his forthcoming book on Indian athletes. Schinck believes that if the Indians train properly, they can achieve a lot more than they are actually doing.

The ongoing match fixing scandal has not deterred its enthusiasts from taking the game to the remotest corners of the globe. The Southern California Cricket Association in Los Angeles had organized the third Independence Cup cricket tournament earlier this month and Victory Cricket Club of Mumbai, boasting of players like Lalchand Rajput and Jatin Paranjpe, stood runners up losing to a Jamaican side in the final.

Jatin Paranjpe took the batting honors for the tournament while his teammate Vinit Sarang bagged the honours for his bowling. But the most significant part of the sojourn was the award of contracts to some of the Indians to play in the local league. This prompted Mayank Khandwala, the player cum manager of the team, to term it as ``A new vista which has opened for Indian players.''