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| No move to rest Tendulkar: Chappell Pune, Nov 2: Coach Greg Chappell today said that there were no plans to rest Sachin Tendulkar and that the Indian team will look to continue its domination of Sri Lanka and wrap up the seven-match one-day series with a victory in the fourth encounter here tomorrow.........more Kaif fit,
to play in Duleep PUNE, Nov 2: Middle-order batsman Mohammad Kaif was today declared fit by the Indian team management and cleared to play in a Duleep Trophy tie commencing November 4 at Aurangabad......more India all
set to clinch PUNE, Nov 2: Riding the crest of an amazing sequence of triumphs, India will look to seal the seven-match one-day cricket series in their favour with another dominating display against a self-doubting.......more No
individual battle PUNE, Nov 2: Sri Lanka’s leading wicket-taker Muttiah Muralitharan today played down talks of any individual duel with master batsman Sachin Tendulkar and said all that he was focused on was his own bowling performance. ....more |
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Jammu district volleyball meets from November 5 Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, Nov 2: Jammu District Volleyball Association is conducting District Volleyball Championships in men and women sections from November 5 onwards........more Prized
memorabilia NEW DELHI, Nov 2: Golf legends like Nick Faldo and Seve Ballesteros have agreed to send signed memorabilia for a fund-raiser planned on the sidelines of ‘Dil Se’ — an Indo-Pak golf tournament to be held in Pakistan......more India’s
rise has taken By Arjuna Ranatunga It is time to now take a serious note of India. It was all too easy in Nagpur and Mohali but this was the first real challenge..............more By Muralitharan The Indian batting in this series has been brilliant and they have looked in form throughout the series. Whether it is setting the target or chasing the Indian batsmen have been aggressive and have......more |
No move to rest Tendulkar: Chappell Pune, Nov 2: Coach Greg Chappell today said that there were no plans to rest Sachin Tendulkar and that the Indian team will look to continue its domination of Sri Lanka and wrap up the seven-match one-day series with a victory in the fourth encounter here tomorrow. "There is no such move (to rest Tendulkar). As long as he’s fit and well, he would play. We missed his presence in Sri Lanka," Chappell said on the eve of the match at the Nehru Stadium. Tendulkar, playing his first competitive event after a five-month injury lay-off, has been in top form and been a major factor in India taking a commanding 3-0 lead. The 56-year-old former Australia, however, said India could not afford to relax. "If we continue to perform as well as we have done over the last three games we would do well here too. But if we don’t do it, we will be in trouble," he said. The team, led by Rahul Dravid, had made constant changes in the batting order which has brought stunning results but Chappell maintained these were not mere "experiments" but part of a "strategy" to flummox the Lankans. "It’s more to do with strategy rather than experimenting. We want to adapt to situations as they develop and as per the conditions available on any given day," he said. Chappell also came to the defense of Virender Sehwag who was yet to come up with a big score in the series. He said Sehwag had played a vital role as a partner with Mahendra Singh Dhoni who hit an explosive 138 not out in the last match at Jaipur. "He (Sehwag) played a very important role in Jaipur with his experience and knowledge of the situation to help the youngster (Dhoni). Not every one can score runs in every game," Chappell said. Dravid described the wicket prepared for the match here as a good one. "It looks to be a good wicket which may afford a bit of bounce early on. We had a good practice session today. We are very confident about our play and the general spirit in the team is also very good," he said. India once again left out Gautam Gambhir and Rudra Pratap Singh to retain the 13 who played in the previous games. Dravid defended the team’s bowling performance in Jaipur when the visitors scored a big total of 298 for four. "It was a flat track and I thought we bowled well till the first 35 overs or so. Let us also give credit to (Kumar) Sangakkara and (Farveez) Maharoof. On such wickets your bowlers are bound to go for some runs," he said. Chappell said the team needs to manage its resources well in the face of a tight schedule. "We need to manage our resources well. This can be done by keeping the players within the team but changing their roles a bit (in order to help them recharge their low energy levels)," the former Australian captain said. To a pointed question how the team is putting up such a fantastic display after looking a bit out of depth against the same rivals in Sri Lanka, Chappell said "it’s a happier team now and winning". (PTI) |
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Kaif fit, to play in Duleep Trophy tie at Aurangabad PUNE, Nov 2: Middle-order batsman Mohammad Kaif was today declared fit by the Indian team management and cleared to play in a Duleep Trophy tie commencing November 4 at Aurangabad. "The update on Kaif is that he has been declared fit by India physiotherapist John Gloster. He has been cleared to play in the Duleep Trophy tournament," the team’s media manager Wing Commander Baladitya told reporters here. Kaif was ruled out of the first five matches of the ongoing one-day series against the visiting Sri Lankans after he suffered a hamstring tear during the Challenger Trophy in Mohali last month. The batsman is expected to represent Central Zone against North Zone in the Duleep Trophy match commencing November 4 at Aurangabad. The Uttar Pradesh player would then be available for selection for the last two one-day ties against Sri Lanka to be played at Rajkot (November 9) and Vadodara (November 12). The team for these matches would be picked during the fifth ODI at Ahmedabad on November 6. (PTI) |
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India all set to clinch series against Lanka PUNE, Nov 2: Riding the crest of an amazing sequence of triumphs, India will look to seal the seven-match one-day cricket series in their favour with another dominating display against a self-doubting Sri Lanka in the fourth tie here tomorrow. Having taken a commanding 3-0 lead in the series, India are running high on confidence and it would require a superhuman effort from the lankans to stop the winning run of their rivals at the traditionally batsman-friendly Nehru Stadium track and keep the series alive. Lanka have failed to click as a team, in total contrast to India, who suddenly seem to have found the winning touch which had been missing over the last season as well as on the previous tours of Lanka and Zimbabwe. The biggest let-down for Lanka in the series so far has been the big four — former captain Sanath Jayasuriya, current skipper Marvan Atapattu, left-arm pace spearhead Chaminda Vaas and spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan. None of them have performed to their potential, to a large extent due to the constant pressure applied on them by the hosts. The Lankans are hence due for a match-winning display from at least one of this quartet in what is a do-or-die encounter for them. Jayasuriya has been struggling with his freak shoulder injury and it remains to be seen how the Matara Marauder performs with the bat tomorrow. Atapattu has once again looked clueless on Indian soil after his lack of success in this country on previous visits while Vaas and Murali have looked largely ineffective against the determined Indian batsmen. Adding to the Lankans’ batting woes would be the non-availability of their vice captain Mahela Jayawardene in the crucial match. The right-handed stylist, who seemed to have run into some form when making 71 in the previous encounter in Jaipur, has returned home to get married and is expected back in India in time only for the fifth match of the series at Ahmedabad on November 6. All rounders Russel Arnold and Tillekaratne Dilshan have been miserable failures so far with both bat and ball. The only saving grace for the visitors has been the form displayed by their wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara who has scores of 43, 27 and 138 not out to his credit. But he has not received sufficient support at the other end, barring the last tie when Jayawardene and the big-hitting Farveez Maharoof helped him set India 299 to chase. Unlike the Indians, who have sent in Irfan Pathan, J P Yadav and Mahendra Singh Dhoni to the one-down slot in the series so far and have succeeded well beyond anyone’s imagination, the Lankan think tank has preferred to use the clean-hitting Maharoof only in the lower order. With Vaas and Murali not as effective as is their wont, it has been left to the likes of Maharoof, Dilhara Fernando, Nuwan Zoysa and Upul Chandana to rise to the occasion, but they have been mere cannon fodders to the rampaging Indian batsmen. The hosts, in total contrast, are riding a wave of success under the aggressive leadership of Rahul Dravid and form of comeback man Sachin Tendulkar who seems to have rediscovered his glorious touch straightway since returning to international cricket after a six-month injury lay-off. The Indians have not only overwhelmed the Iankans but have also outthought the visitors in the strategies — the Promotion of Pathan at Nagpur and Dhoni, who pulverized the attack to make a record 183 not out at Jaipur, to the number three slot being prime examples. The Indians outwitted the Lankans in the guessing game with both Chappell and Dravid refusing to divulge to the media anything about the batting order on match-eves by saying that it would help the opposition in framing a counter. After the spectacular success of Pathan and Dhoni, especially the latter who waded into the Lankan attack at Jaipur and smashed it to smithereens, it is another guessing game who would come out to bat at number three for India tomorrow. What is certain is that the Lankan bowlers need to get two or three early Indian wickets, as otherwise another caning is on the cards. While the Indian batting has clicked in splendid fashion, the economical as well as penetrative bowling of Harbhajan Singh in the middle overs should not be overlooked. The off spinner troubled the batsmen in all the three matches so far with good support from left arm Murali Kartik in the first two games. The Lankan batsmen have been unable to attack Harbhajan and it would be interesting to see what tactics they adopt here. The hosts have also changed their supersubs constantly in the series and have effectively used the powerplays too so far, another feather on the cap of coach Greg Chappell, Dravid and other seniors like Tendulkar. To add to the Indians’ comfort zone is the fact that they have beaten the Lankans on both occasions the two rivals have clashed here — in 1990 and 1999. Another sell-out crowd would witness the clash and unless the Lankans come up with an inspired display in the face of so many odds against them, their fate in the series would be sealed here. Teams (from): India: Rahul Dravid (captain), Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Y Venugopala Rao, Suresh Raina, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Irfan Pathan, Ajit Agarkar, Harbhajan Singh, Murali Kartik, Jai Prakash Yadav, S Sreesanth, Gautam Gambhir and Rudra Pratap Singh. Sri Lanka: Marvan Atapattu (captain), Sanath Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara, Tillekaratne Dilshan, Russel Arnold, Chamida Vaas, Upul Chandana, Thilon Samaraweera, Farveez Maharoof, Muttiah Muralitharan, Dilhara Fernando, Nuwan Zoysa, Dilhara Lokuhettige and Upul Tharanga. Umpires: Billy Bowden (NZ) and A V Jayaprakash (Ind). Third umpire: U Shivram (Ind). Match referee: Alan Hurst (Aus). (PTI) |
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Jammu district volleyball meets from November 5 Excelsior Sports Correspondent JAMMU, Nov 2: Jammu District Volleyball Association is conducting District Volleyball Championships in men and women sections from November 5 onwards. Competitions in men section shall be held at Jammu University grounds here from November 5 to November 7. A day later, the competitions in women group shall start at Government College for Women, Parade,here, a handout issued here today informed. |
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Prized memorabilia for fundraiser during Indo-Pak golf NEW DELHI, Nov 2: Golf legends like Nick Faldo and Seve Ballesteros have agreed to send signed memorabilia for a fund-raiser planned on the sidelines of ‘Dil Se’ — an Indo-Pak golf tournament to be held in Pakistan later this month. The signed memorabilia will be auctioned to raise funds for the victims of the recent earthquake. The auction will be carried out by Sports Mantra, the event managers and promoters in Pakistan during the tournament to be held at the Royal Palms Golf and Country Club in Lahore from November 22 to 24. The memorabilia has been sourced directly from the famous professional golfers. Faldo, a six-time Major winner, including three British Open titles, has sent a framed autographed copy of a Masters tee time sheet while Ballesteros, another Major winner, has sent a set of signed golf balls. Bernhard Langer, captain of the winning Ryder Cup team, is also sending memorabilia. Miguel Angel Jimenez is sending a signed cap, golf glove and golf balls. Annika Sorenstam, world’s top woman pro golfer, is sending personalised memorabilia. The R&A, the oldest governing body for golf, is also donating an R&A shield along with three DVDs from the past British Open Championships. More commitments are expected in the coming days given the positive response from European and Asian Tour pros. Indian professionals will also be sending golf equipment as memorabilia. Neeraj Sareen, MD, Sports Mantra, said, "relief efforts are being carried by various agencies, and a charity fund raiser during the official tournament dates with an auction of different items including golfing memorabilia from legendary golfers like Faldo and Seve, will help raise awareness of the need for more relief efforts." The money raised through the auction will be donated to the relief fund in Pakistan and India . Faisal Qureshi, a golf professional from Pakistan, who also plays on Indian Tour, is involved with the event, and during his recent visit to Islamabad had discussions with the local authorities. "We have been assured full support from all the golf players and Ramzan Sheikh, owner of Royal Palms Golf and country club towards this effort. We are also trying to involve some well-known fashion designers of India to help out also," added Qureshi. Asad Kazmi, President of the Pakistan chapter of the event, and who is driving the current edition, said, "the participants of ‘Dil Se’ and myself have been deeply saddened by the recent earthquake in Pakistan. The friendship series will continue in the good spirit it started." As many as 16 top businessman, corporate heads from each side, will play in a Ryder Cup format golf tournament. The first edition saw the Indian team pull off a spectacular victory. According to the format, day one will feature teams facing off in a Fourball betterball stroke play event, and day two will see them come back and compete in a Fourball betterball matchplay format. (PTI) India’s rise has taken the world by surprise By Arjuna Ranatunga It is time to now take a serious note of India. It was all too easy in Nagpur and Mohali but this was the first real challenge they faced in the series. They did not panic or change their approach in the third cricket one-dayer in Jaipur. They came out swinging and showed the surge of belief which is running through their veins. It is too early but a seriously good team is in the making now. Batting is flexible and is being groomed to adapt to different situations and different slots. Opposition can struggle to plan in advance. Bowling and fielding are both on the mend. India’s rise has taken the world by surprise. I feel it has happened because they have built competitions for spots. When a senior pro like Sourav Ganguly cannot find a place, and he would soon I am sure, it brings the hunger back in the team. There is no other magic in this transformation. This is exactly what we ignored in Sri Lanka in recent years. In mid-90s, we followed the same route and men like Sanath Jayasuriya, Mahela Jayawardene and Chaminda Vaas in due course first became the integral part and then lynchpin of the team. The likes of Dilshan and Russel Arnold were brought in by the old gang. But past few years have been an antithesis to this theory. The past administration could not look beyond it’s nose and wanted wins at all costs. They dumped the long-term planning. We didn’t prepare alternatives for our seniors and are now stuck in the mire. India has done it in three months, we can also do the same if we follow their lead. I believe this theory will get its logical extension when the duo of Rahul Dravid and Greg Chappell choose to rotate the seniors once the series has been sealed, probably in Pune itself. There is talk of resting Sachin Tendulkar and I am in support of it. Tendulkar needs to be looked after properly. A thoroughbred must only run in derby. You can’t ask for his services for everyday routine. Such a theory will keep throwing alternatives and jostling for spots. Anyone who gets the place would approach it with hunger. Mahendra Singh Dhoni is not a slogger, he has proper defence. The same as it was with Ramesh Kaluwitharana in the 90s. He backs himself both in executing strokes, recall those sixes over long-on with fielders placed for mishits, as well as in shifting gears according to situation. It speaks of a selfless approach. He would still have been a hero after his hundred. But he looked at the bigger goal for the team. Cramp or no cramp, he soldiered on. Such men have invaluable impact in the dressing room. I am disappointed with a few of our tactics. The bowling and fielding have been unimaginative and routine. The attempt in the field should always be to create doubts in batsmen’s mind. In our times, we used to do it by staying put in dressing room and rummaging through those long hours of video of day’s play. It helped us plan against the opposition batsmen and bowlers. Now technology has improved by leaps and bounds. A click can summon a full dossier on a batsman or bowler. But it is proving of little use. Ideally, a one-day team should have six dependable batsmen, three allrounders and three good fast bowlers who can work well in tandem. Even though Ferveez Mahroof has been taken to cleaners, I support him. We need bowling allrounders and Mahroof has the making. At the moment he is being defeated by placid pitches and extraordinary Indian openers in Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag. It is not as if Sri Lanka has shown no progress. They put up a good total on the board and it came because the two best batsmen of the side — Kumara Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene — fired. But if the team is honest they would admit these two alone have been leading the batting charge in recent months. Others need to pull their weight. This Indian side can only be subdued by 11 charged and committed men, marauding like a hungry pack of wolves. Otherwise, I suspect a 7-0 drubbing, so much has Sri Lanka fallen behind in the present series. (PTI) |
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By Muralitharan The Indian batting in this series has been brilliant and they have looked in form throughout the series. Whether it is setting the target or chasing the Indian batsmen have been aggressive and have played good cricket. They have dominated our bowling and we will have to come up with some new plans and strategies to stem the flow of runs. We are trying hard to come up with ways to check the Indian batsmen. The pitches in subcontinent are usually very flat and are batsmen friendly. A score of around 300 in the first innings is almost expected in every game, so it becomes very important for the bowling side to continuously take wickets and keep the scoring rate down. The Indian top order has done a great job, which has hardly allowed any pressure to build on their other batsmen. The Indians are in flow and whatever experiment they try these days seems to do the trick. This was the case with us till just a short while ago. In Sri Lanka in August when India toured along with the West Indies, the flow was with us and we had the momentum going. At that time whatever we did clicked. The unbeaten 183 by MS Dhoni at Jaipur has been one of the best innings I have ever seen in my career. It reminded me of the great innings that Jayasuriya played at Sharjah against Indian in the finals of the Champions Trophy in 2000. Our batsmen had done a great job of putting up a fighting total of 298 but Dhoni made sure that the momentum stayed India’s way. He used the power plays very effectively and operated cleverly when the fielding restrictions were off. We had waited for the wicket to fall before taking the second power play and when Sehwag got out and Dravid had just got in we thought it was the best time to take the powerplay but had different ideas. We will have to ensure we bowl much better in the first 15 overs, which can allow the spinners and the slow bowlers to play a more dominating and attacking role. The Indian batsmen have been able to go after our slow bowlers because there hasn’t been much pressure on them. I am sure had there top order fallen cheaply our slow bowlers would have played a major role in the game. The Sri Lankan team is full of useful slow bowlers, but for them to succeed we need to apply pressure on the Indian batting from the very begging. We will have to ensure we get off to a good start for the remaining games. (TCM) |
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Ponting takes Clarke under his wing BRISBANE (Australia), Nov 2: Australian captain Ricky Ponting is working with Michael Clarke to try to make the most of one of the great talents of Australian cricket. Clarke’s star has waned since his 151 in his debut Test against India in Bangalore and the 141 in his first home Test here against New Zealand a year ago. In his next 17 innings the 24-year-old right-hander, known by team-mates as ‘Pup’, has unable to compile another Test century. Ponting can identify with Clarke. He scored 96 in his first Test against Sri Lanka in Perth in 1995 and the first of his 23 Test centuries in his seventh Test match and has now amassed over 7,000 Test runs. "I think he is finding his feet a little bit at Test level," Ponting said today before the first Gabba Test with the West Indies. "We know he made a dynamic start and probably the same way that I did at the start. Our careers are following fairly similar paths. "He’s someone who’s going to be around the team for some time, he’s got immense ability and potential and he’s moved up the order to No.4 spot, he’s working extremely hard on his game. "I’ve done a lot of one-on-one work with him over the last few weeks, talking about the game and working on a few technique side of things with his game. "We know how good he can be and if he gets his game in order and keeps learning about himself and what he has to do to prepare for Test matches, then you’ll see Michael Clarke make some big runs this summer." Clarke has been elevated to No.4 in the Australian batting order, coming in after Ponting in the batting and taking the place of discarded Damien Martyn. (AFP) |
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Sania maintains 34th place in singles rankings NEW DELHI, Nov 2: Recuperating from the back injury which has kept her out of action, tennis ace Sania Mirza clung on to her 34th place in this week’s WTA singles rankings. The Hyderabadi girl, who hopes to break into top 15 next year, boasts of 929.75 ranking points, according to information received here. Sania, who was here last week, exuded confidence that it would take another couple of weeks to overcome the injury and said she would return to the international circuit in January next year . Meanwhile, US-based Shikha Uberoi (251.70) has moved three places up the ladder to finish 142nd while veteran Rushmi Chakravarthi (63.75) made a significant jump, moving to 362nd place from her previous week’s 414th position. (UNI) |
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