The Hindu : Sport / Golf : World cricketers to tee off

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Oct 16, 2005

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Sport - Golf

World cricketers to tee off

Special Correspondent

BANGALORE: : Kapil Dev summed it up succinctly when he said, "during our cricket-playing days we shared a lot of good times together. The Cricket Golfers' Championship will be an ideal time for the players to revive those moments". Kapil Dev was addressing a press conference here on Friday to announce the first ever Signature World Cricket Golfers' Championship.

The Cricket golfers' World Cup was the result of a pleasant evening at a discotheque where MN Chittiappa, Pritam Basappa and Brandon de Souza had met. Much of what was discussed at the disco was jotted on a paper napkin and consequently the whole idea crystallised. A large number of former cricketers had taken to playing golf and many of them actually excelled in the game. Kapil Dev, Ajay Jadeja, Roger Binny, Sujith Somasundar (who will form the foursome for the Indian team) are all single digit handicappers. Pakistan's Wasim Akram, Zaheer Abbas, Aamir Sohail and Waqar Yunis have confirmed their participation in the championship.

From Down Under Mark Waugh, Jeff Thompson, Dean Jones and Allan Border will don the Aussie colours while Dipak Patel, Simon Doull, Mark Richardson and Murphy Sua will turn out for New Zealand.

Ian Botham, Paul Allot, Gladstone Small and Graeme Hick will tee off for England and the four South Africans in the tournament are Barry Richards, Clive Rice, Pat Symcox and Gary Kirsten.

Bangladesh, West Indies and Sri Lanka's teams are yet to be confirmed. Sir Gary Sobers has confirmed his participation in the tournament for the West Indies.The four-day tournament will be played under floodlights at the Karnataka Golf Association from Nov. 24th to 27th. KGA has already set up floodlights at nine holes and will complete the rest by the time the tournament tees off.

Mcdowell's will be the title sponsor for the event for the next three years. Vijay Mallya and M.N. Chittiappa signed and exchanged a memorandum of understanding at the Leela Palace Hotel on Tursday to seal the agreement.

The former cricketers from each country will play for an individual cricketer-golfer title and of the foursome, two will compete for the team title. Apart from the teams mentioned, there would also be an international team with four of the greatest cricketers turning out for it. In addition there will also be an invitational team from the Corporate sector. —

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