Indian hockey team aiming for Asiad gold with an eye on London

More than weighing the positive effects of a tournament win, India will be looking at the long-term prospect re-entering the Olympic fold that they had been rudely pushed out of by Great Britain in 2008 when they begin their hockey campaign at the Asian Games on Monday.

More than the loss to Great Britain in Santiago, what will haunt them as they take on Hong Kong in the opening match is that it was the Asian Games of Doha in 2006 where the first seeds of destruction had been sowed.

It was here that India had, for the first time in the history of the continental Games, failed to qualify for the semifinals, ending all chances of a direct berth from Asia.

The qualifying tournament in Santiago was only another reminder that Indian hockey hadn't done its homework against top teams which had obviously burnt midnight oil to shape their strategies against India.

Two years later, the fall from grace in Doha and the subsequent ouster in Chile continues to haunt national coach Harendra Singh.

Harendra, who was V Bhaskaran's assistant in Doha, wants to erase those memories with a title victory. "Tomorrow's game is important to us. Games such as these help us get a good goal tally which becomes important when goal difference comes into play. Having said that, we are not complacent against Hong Kong. We treat every game equally," Harendra said.

SEMI FINAL PREDICTIONS

We're pretty much at the half-way stage of the league round of the 2010 IPL. At this point in time, Mumbai, with 6 wins from 7 games is the runaway leader, and has definitely sewn up a semi-final slot.The remaining 3 are the tough ones to predict. In 2008, 7 wins was enough for Delhi to sneak into the semis ahead of Mumbai. In 2009, Hyderabad sneaked in ahead of Mohali though both had 7 wins.So it is fair to say that 7 wins out of the 14 games (i.e. winning 50% of the games) should be sufficient. Bangalore, Jaipur and Delhi have 4 wins. Hyderabad and Kolkata have 3 wins. Chennai has 2 and Mohali has 1.That said, momentum is a huge factor, and teams can get going with just 2-3 wins in a row.The arrival of players from Australia, England and New Zealand will be a significant factor. Which teams are likely to benefit?Bangalore: Pietersen, Steven Smith and Ross Taylor are the new arrivals. Bangalore's batting has been awesome, especially their top 3-4. But Kohli, Dravid, White & Morgan have been untested and with Pietersen & Taylor joining, this would mean Morgan and possibly White being left out.Chennai: Hussey and Ntini are the new arrivals, with Ntini returning from injury. They should really have found some hospital as a sponsor given how much they've invested in Flintoff, Oram and Ntini. The bowling leaks far too many runs, and Ntini won't actually change the status quo.Delhi: Daniel Vettori. This could mean Mishra and Vettori bowling in tandem. So unless Maharoof has a couple of excellent games, he'll be sitting out.Hyderabad: No new arrivals.Jaipur: No new arrivals.Kolkata: McCullum. Their batting has really been pathetic, clicking twice and their highest total is only 180-odd. So his entry will hopefully result in some better performances in the first 5-10 overs.Mohali: No new arrivals - Hopes is injured.Mumbai: No new arrivals.Given the influx, it is quite possible that Bangalore and Kolkata will make it to the semi-finals along with Mumbai provided Kolkata's bowlers learn something from Wasim. Between Delhi and Hyderabad, I'd go for Delhi because their bowling is better than Hyderabad's.So the semi-final lineup will be Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi and Kolkata (in order of points from the league stage).

MUMBAI INDIANS

Mumbai's biggest asset is of course Sachin Tendulkar who is fresh from a record-breaking ODI double century which signals that his hunger for the game remains undiminished even as he closes in on his 37th birthday. The deep pockets of the owners enabled the team to net the prize catch of Kieron Pollard in the recent player auction and his fellow Trinidadian Dwayne Bravo is another key member. Aging warhorse Sanath Jayasuriya may be playing his last IPL and will be eager to sign off with a flourish.
Mumbai have also signed up a couple of players from the ICL in Ambati Rayudu and R Sathish who will add value to the side. The bowling looks especially strong with Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh among its ranks. They are joined by Lasith Malinga who can be almost unplayable if he gets his length right. The weak link appears to be its wicket keeper. Mumbai have undeperformed in the last two editions, not having reached the semifinal even once, but look good to go further this time
Tendulkar's fourth IPL 50 takes him past 600-run mark

Sachin Tendulkar's 32-ball 63 against Delhi Daredevils is his fourth 50 in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The knock fetched the Mumbai Indians skipper his third Man of the Match award here at the Ferozeshah Kotla.
Tendulkar, who hit his sixth 50 in 22 matches in the shortest form of the game in Delhi on Wednesday night, moved to second position behind swashbuckling Sri Lankan Sanath Jayasuriya with an aggregate of over 600 runs. Tendulkar has 632 (ave. 33.26) from 22 matches and Jayasuriya 765 runs for Mumbai Indians.

CHENNAI SUPER KINGS

Hayden launches Mongoose bat:

CSK fans await Hayden's mongoose magic at home:
The fans are awe-struck with Matthew Hayden and his Mongoose bat following his 43-ball blitz on Friday night at the Feroze Shah Kotla and they look forward to another exhilarating experience from the opening batsman when Chennai Super Kings plays host to cellar-dwellers Kings XI Punjab on Sunday.

Hayden launches Mongoose bat:

Fernandez said the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) had declared the bat legal and permitted its use in India and worldwide.
The handle of the Mongoose bat is 43 per cent longer and the blade 33 per cent shorter than the conventional bat. 'Since there is no splice, the sweet spot is increased by 120 per cent,' he said.
For the moment, 100 bats in two categories will be launched in India and all of them would be signed by Hayden, according to Fernandez. They are priced at between Rs. 17,000 and Rs. 23,000.
Hayden said the bat has good balance besides tremendous bat speed. 'Twenty20 is about scoring runs quickly. I am sure the Mongoose bat is ideal for this format.
'I am very excited by the potential of this bat and I feel just like Twenty20, it will also be accepted,' Hayden said while asserting the small size of the bat would not be a handicap in playing short-pitched balls or bouncers.
Fernandez hoped some of the top Indian players would also endorse his product. 'But Indian cricketers are far too expensive, but provide a lot of value. I would love to have somebody like Sachin Tendulkar or Virender Sehwag use the Mongoose bat,' he said.

PUNJAB GOLD CUP

INDIA DRAW IN POLAND

INDIA DRAW WITH POLAND

INDIANS DEFEAT IN OLYMPIC QUALIFIERS

Field hockey is still considered India's national game despite cricket's immense popularity. The nation won six consecutive Olympic gold medals in the sport, beginning in 1928. But India has slumped in the world rankings since winning the 1975 World Cup and the last of its eight Olympic gold medals at the boycott-marred Moscow Games in 1980.
Indian teams have briefly shown glimpses of its once dazzling stick work, but it has not qualified for the semifinals of eight straight World Cups and six consecutive Olympics.
"It's a sad day for Indian hockey, but people should have seen it coming," Pargat Singh, who captained India at two Olympics, told The Associated Press. "The Indian Hockey Federation, the national Olympic association and the sports ministry are all responsible for the state of affairs."
Singh said the country had few players of international quality, and "the pool is further dwindling with the game not being promoted at the grass roots."
India did not win a medal at the 2006 Asian Games in Qatar, the first time the two-time Asian Games gold medalists have failed to win a medal at the continental games. The country was forced to compete in one of the three qualifiers from which one team each will make the Olympics.
"We do not have a machine that you can get results instantly," Indian Hockey Federation chief K.P.S. Gill Gill told the Press Trust of India. "We've put the process in place and the results will take some time.
"It is not proper to respond at this stage. We'll wait for the team to return first, then we will have a clear idea what went wrong."