Chappell attacked by Orissa fan
He is angry over non-inclusion of Oriya boys in Team India, report Soumyajit Pattnaik & Himanshu S Sahoo.
Coach Greg Chappell was attacked on Monday by an activist of the Orissa-based political outfit Kalinga Sena for something he had nothing to do with - the non-inclusion of Oriya players in the Indian cricket team.
The man, later identified as Biranchi Moharana, broke through the security cordon around the team at Bhubaneswar and managed to land a blow on Chappell's back.
Orissa Cricket Association official Kamala K Pandey, an eyewitness, said, "We were standing near the team bus. This man (Moharana) emerged out of nowhere and gave Chappell a hard blow from behind. Chappell did not fall. Before the intruder could hit Chappell again, he was overpowered."
In another version, Bhubaneswar Superintendent of Police Amitabh Thakur said, "Chappell was not hit. Moharana fell on top of Chappell. His intention was not to hit Chappell, but to highlight his own organisation." Moharana was immediately taken into custody, the officer added.
Talking to the media, Moharana said: "Why are players like Debasis Mohanty and Shiv Sunder Das from Orissa not included in the Indian team," he demanded.
Mohanty last played for India in 2001 and Das in 2002. Neither has been in contention for a place in the team for some time. Chappell declined to comment.
