India star's World Cup ban reduced

The three-match ban imposed on India's striker Shivendra Singh during the ongoing men's field hockey World Cup has been reduced to two games, the world body said on Tuesday.

Shivendra was handed the three-match suspension by tournament director Ken Read for hitting Pakistan's Fareed Ahmed above the eye in Sunday's league clash between the Asian rivals. An appeals jury of the International Hockey Federation (FIH), which heard India's protest at the verdict on Tuesday, upheld the charge, but reduced the punishment to two games.

Shivendra, who scored a goal in India's emphatic 4-1 win over Pakistan, will miss the next two matches against Australia and Spain, but will be available for the England game.

While handing the three-match ban, Read had said that video replays suggested that Shivendra had hit Fareed deliberately, even though the on-field umpires did not penalise the player during the match.

The appeals jury concluded that the offence was "reckless but not deliberate" and thus required only the minimum penalty of a two-match suspension.

India take on Australia in their second match later on Tuesday. NEW DELHI, Wednesday (AFP)