South
African top order blunts Indian attack
CHENNAI, Mar 26: The South African
top order feasted on India’s
lacklustre bowling attack under a searing
sun and on an unresponsive track as the
visitors hogged the opening day honours
in the first cricket Test here today.
After
openers Neil McKenzie (94) and Graeme
Smith (73) set the tone for the day,
South Africa dominated all three sessions
to finish day one at 304 for four.
The
visitors got off to a perfect start with
McKenzie and Smith, barely three weeks
after their world record opening stand
against Bangladesh, forging yet another
century partnership to lay the foundation
for a big total.
Though
their batting mainstay Jacques Kallis,
otherwise a familiar India nemesis,
returned before he could make a
substantial mark in the match, Hashim
Amla (85 not out) took it on his able
shoulders to build on the platform.
At stumps,
Amla (85) and Ab De Villiers (10) were in
the middle and they would return tomorrow
hoping to further swell the tally.
On a day
thoroughly dominated by the batsmen, Anil
Kumble was the pick of the Indian
bowlers, claiming two for 61, while his
spin twin Harbhajan Singh got as many for
92 runs.
After
winning an important toss, Smith
predictably decided to take first strike
on M Chidambaram stadium’s flat
strip.
With
India’s new ball attack of RP Singh
and S Sreesanth looking pretty
pedestrian, even though the Kerala
speedster did beat Smith’s tentative
bat on a couple of occasions, Smith stood
vindicated.
Smith and
McKenzie looked in a positive frame of
mind as they negotiated pace and spin
with aplomb, maintaining a healthy run
rate of four per over.
Kumble
pressed himself into service as early as
the 11th over but the breakthrough
continued to elude the hosts.
Smith also
had his slice of luck when a diving Dhoni
could not properly pouch an inside edge
off Sreesanth and spilled the ball while
getting back to his feet.
The
Indians made a vociferous appeal but
umpire Asad Rauf was not impressed.
Kumble
finally gave the team something to cheer
about but not before Smith had cobbled
together a 132-run stand with his
partner. The Indian skipper induced a
drive from his opposite number which
found VVS Laxman’s outstretched hand
at short mid-wicket.
Smith’s
73 came off 97 balls and included 13
boundaries.
South
Africa 1st innings:
Smith c
Laxman b Kumble 73
McKenzie c
Dravid b Harbhajan 94
Amla
batting 85
Kallis c
Jaffer b Harbhajan 13
Prince c
and b Kumble 23
De Villers
batting 10
Extras
(b-1, lb-4, w-1) 6
Total:
(for four wickets in 90 overs) 304
Fall of
Wkts: 1/132, 2/196, 3/244, 4/291
Bowling:
RP Singh 14-1-68-0, S Sreesanth
15-3-60-0, Kumble 29-8-61-2, Harbhajan
26-2-92-2, Sehwag 6-1-18-0. (PTI)
Gavaskar
to meet ICC representatives
NEW DELHI, Mar 26: The BCCI today
said Sunil Gavaskar would meet
international Cricket Council
representatives to discuss some of his
recent columns but asserted that the
former India captain has not yet been
asked to resign from the elite ICC
cricket committee.
During
India’s acrimonious tour of
Australia, Gavaskar had been scathing in
his criticism of the world
champions’ on-field behaviour and
the handling of Sydney racism row by ICC
match referee Mike Procter.
His
outbursts clearly did not go down well
with some quarters and according to
‘The Times’, last week’s
ICC executive committee meeting in Dubai
took a unanimous decision to oust the
batting great from the cricket committee,
which he has been heading since 2000.
BCCI
Secretary Niranjan Shah, however,
dismissed the claim and said, "media
speculation about removal of Sunil
Gavaskar as Chairman of the cricket
committee of the ICC based on a report in
a London paper is incorrect. ICC has
confirmed to the Indian board that there
has been no decision to remove Sunil
Gavaskar."
He,
however, admitted Gavaskar would explain
his columns to ICC representatives.
"ICC
representatives may discuss with Sunil
about some of his media articles and
report back to the executive board in its
next meeting," Shah said in a
statement.
Earlier,
an ICC spokesman told that the issue was
raised indeed in the Dubai meet where
members felt Gavaskar’s dual roles
were in conflict with each other and he
should choose between the two.
However,
the committee decided against removing
Gavaskar as it felt it would be better to
give him the option of deciding what he
wants to do.
"Gavaskar
will meet CEO Malcolm Speed in Dubai this
week to discuss this matter," the
ICC spokesman said.
Gavaskar
has lucrative deals as a television
commentator and a newspaper columnist and
this is likely to weigh on his mind when
he decides on whether to continue as
ICC’s cricket committee chief.
A BCCI
source said despite the outburst, the ICC
wants to have Gavaskar on board.
"The
ICC has lot of respect for Gavaskar and
it does not want to take such a step of
removing him. The ICC wants to have
Gavaskar on board as cricket committee
chairman," the source said.
In case
Gavaskar decides to quit the ICC job, it
would mark the end of his eight-year
stint, after he took over from West
Indian cricketer Clyde Walcott in June
2000.
Gavaskar
has lambasted the western media which
steadfastly opposed BCCI’s effort to
have is Bindra as the next ICC CEO.
He was
incensed by the argument put forward that
with Sharad Pawar taking over as ICC
President in 2010, Bindra’s
appointment would complete an Indian
hegemony in the running of the game.
An irate
Gavaskar wondered why the media did not
react in the same fashion when ICC had
two Australians — Malcolm Gray and
Malcolm Speed — at the helm.
Incidentally,
ICC President-elect David Morgan had also
expressed his concerns at Gavaskar’s
outspoken views.
"Conflicts
of interests pervade our sport. In terms
of Gavaskar, within the ICC, there is a
concern now that he’s chairman of
the cricket committee and a journalist
who has expressed some fairly outspoken
comments," Morgan had said during
India’s tour of Australia this year.
(PTI)
England
beats New Zealand by 121 runs to win
series
NAPIER (New Zealand), Mar
26: Monty Panesar returned
Test-best figures of six for 126 as
England beat New Zealand by 121 runs in
the third cricket Test today and clinched
the three-match series 2-1.
Off-spinner
Panesar completed his seventh five-wicket
haul in Tests, claiming three of the five
wickets to fall on the final day,
hastening New Zealand’s dismissal
for 431 as it chased 553 for victory.
England
recovered after losing the first Test at
Hamilton comprehensively, by 189 runs, to
win the second at Wellington by 126 runs
and to dominate the third, breaking a run
of series defeats overseas after losses
to India and Sri Lanka.
New
Zealand resumed its second innings
Wednesday at 222 for five, still 330 runs
behind England and lost all chance of
saving the match when overnight batsmen
Ross Taylor and Brendon McCullum both
fell to Panesar inside the first hour.
By lunch
New Zealand was 360 for nine and it took
England only 31 minutes in the afternoon
to wrap it up.
Taylor was
out for 74 and Brendon McCullum for 42
after a partnership of 104 for the fifth
wicket which delayed England’s
victory and briefly raised New
Zealand’s hopes of a draw.
New
Zealand was able to further delay the end
through a partnerships of 48 for the
eighth wicket between Daniel Vettori (43)
and Jeetan Patel (18).
Teenage
fast bowler Tim Southee then pounded nine
sixes and four fours in an unbeaten 77
from 40 deliveries which lifted New
Zealand to 431, putting on 84 for the
last wicket and ensuring the Kiwis went
down with a hint of defiance.
Southee’s
innings incorporated the fastest half
century by a New Zealander in Tests, from
29 balls, and was the sixth fastest by a
player from any nation in Test history.
He added that distinction to his haul of
5-55 in England’s first innings,
which made him the sixth New Zealander to
take five wickets in an innings on Test
debut.
England’s
wins in Wellington and at Mclean Park
marked an astonishing turnaround after
Hamilton.
The
English reacted to that defeat by making
the harsh decision to drop veteran fast
bowlers Matthew Hoggard and Steve
Harmison and to impose the bowling
responsibility on relative newcomers Ryan
Sidebottom, James Anderson and Stuart
Broad.
It was
those bowlers, and Panesar in the last
innings of the summer, who turned the
series around. Sidebottom took 24 wickets
in the three Test matches, including
five, six and seven wickets hauls and a
hattrick, at an average of 17.
In doing
so he took more wickets than any other
English bowler in a three-Test series in
New Zealand, beating the previous mark of
19.
He was
voted player of the series.
"It’s
been a fascinating series played by two
teams who have a lot of respect for each
other," England captain Michael
Vaughan said. "Both teams have tried
and fought very hard.
"After
going one down in the series at Hamilton,
we showed a lot of heart and fight to get
us out of some tricky positions.
"We’ve
played hard and I think we played the
better cricket but I’m really
looking forward to the return series in
England because I think it will be just
as topsy-turvy." (AGENCIES)
Sri
Lanka shaken after setting Windies 437
for victory
PROVIDENCE (Guyana), Mar
26: Sri Lanka were put under
some early pressure after they set West
Indies 437 to win in a minimum of 113
overs in the opening Test.
Though
they poached an early scalp, the Sri
Lankans were put on the back-foot as West
Indies reached 96 for one in their second
innings when stumps were drawn on the
fourth day at the Guyana National Stadium
yesterday.
Malinda
Warnapura scored 62 and Thilan
Samaraweera hit an unbeaten 56 that
propelled Sri Lanka to 240 for seven
before they declared for the second time
in the match, after West Indies managed
to avoid the follow-on, but conceded a
first innings lead of 196 when they were
dismissed for 280.
The Sri
Lankans were then put on the defensive by
enterprising batting from makeshift
opener Dwayne Bravo, in particular, and
West Indies vice captain Ramnaresh
Sarwan.
The
visitors failed to find an answer for the
positive stroke-play of the pair, as they
added 74 - unbroken - for the second
wicket.
The Sri
Lankans were jumped when Bravo emerged
with left-hander Devon Smith to open the
batting instead of West Indies captain
Chris Gayle, obviously being shielded
from the early misery of Chaminda
Vaas’ expert left-arm swing bowling.
The
visitors saw the pair play some audacious
strokes before Vaas had Smith caught at
deep backward square leg for 10 by a
sprawling Thilan Thushara when the
batsman miscued a hook at a short, rising
delivery.
Sri
Lanka’s bowlers produced some
nervous moments for Bravo and Sarwan, but
the two West Indies batsmen consolidated
to carry the home team through until the
close.
Before
lunch, Sri Lanka failed to make West
Indies follow-on, after the hosts
continued from their bedtime total of 269
for nine.
The
visitors knew they had to bat a second
time, when Daren Powell edged Muttiah
Muralitharan past Sri Lanka captain
Mahela Jayawardene at slip to third man
for three.
After
Muralitharan and Vaas, Sri Lanka’s
two most experienced bowlers, failed to
separate the two West Indies tail-enders,
Jayawardene turned to Thilan Thushara and
he responded with the scalp of Powell
caught low down at second slip for 12,
leaving Taylor not out on 27.
Thushara,
playing his first Test since making his
debut on Sri Lanka’s previous trip
to the Caribbean five years ago, ended
with three wickets for 59 runs from 20.5
overs, Vaas took three for 48 from 25
overs, and Muralitharan snared three for
112 from 40 overs.
When Sri
Lanka batted a second time, they gained
another stable foundation from Warnapura
and fellow left-handed opener Michael
Vandort.
Sri Lanka
however, suffered a setback in the final
half-hour before lunch, when Vandort was
caught down the leg-side for 24 off West
Indies captain Chris Gayle, bowling his
uncomplicated off-spin.
After the
interval, the hunt for quick runs
continued, but the Sri Lankans lost
wickets at regular intervals, and were
186 for five at tea.
Warnapura,
one of two century-makers in the Sri
Lanka first innings, continued in his
rich vein of form, and reached his 50,
when he edged Powell for the last of his
five boundaries through the vacant slip
region in the first half-hour after
lunch.
But the
left-handed opener was one of four Sri
Lanka wickets which fell between lunch
and tea. (AGENCIES)
Inter
Battalion Sports Meet
IRP-10th Bn strikes
double in Swimming
Excelsior
Sports Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 26: IRP-10th Bn team
comprised Arshid, Ankush, Mohd Shabir and
Aditya Sharma finished first in 4x10 mts
Free Style Relay today in the ongoing
Inter Battalion Sport Meet.
AP-8th Bn
comprised Raghubir Singh, Pawan, Mukhtyar
and Rajinder stood second.
In 4x100
mts Free Style Relay final, Arshid,
Ankush, Mohd Shabir and Aditya Sharma
again of IRP-10th Bn secured first
position whereas Raghubir Singh, Pawan,
Mukhtyar and Fayaz bagged second place.
In 50 mts
Free Style (individual event), Rajnesh of
IRP-11th Bn finished first while Raghubir
Singh of AP-8th Bn stood second.
The
gazetted officers events were commenced
today in the disciplines of Lawn Tennis
and Table Tennis.
In Lawn
Tennis, SP Ajit Singh Salaria got the
better of SP R K Bhat in the opening
match while DySP Ranjit Singh prevailed
over DySP Sanjay Bhagat in the next
match.
DySP
Daljit Singh overcame SSP A K Atri in the
inaugural match of Table Tennis while
DySP Sanjay Sharma had last laugh against
SP Stenzen Narboo.
In other
matches, SSP Israr Khan defeated DySP
Azeem Qureshi and SSP T Punchok beat SP R
K Bhat.
Other
Results (Individual Events):
Weightlifting
(60kg): Mukhtyar-ud-Din (1st) and Rattan
Kumar (2nd).
62kg: Mohd
Zulf (1st) and Javid Iqbal (2nd).
69kg:
Ravinder Kumar (1st) and Shakil Ahmed
(2nd).
77kg:
Narinder Chib (1st) and Ashiq Hussain
(2nd).
85kg:
Rajnesh Kumar (1st) and Paramjeet Singh
(2nd).
94kg:
Maninder Singh (1st) and Davinder Gupta
(2nd).
105kg:
Rakesh Kumar (1st) and Rakesh Kumar
(2nd).
Shot Put
(final): Mohd Sadiq (1st), Mashqoor Ahmed
(2nd) and Maninder Singh (3rd).
Discus
Throw: Varun Dev Singh (1st), Mohd
Sidique (2nd) and Rajinder Thapa (3rd).
Tripple
Jump: Showket Ahmed (1st), Madan Sharma
(2nd) and Pawan Kumar (3rd).
800mts:
Reyaz Ahmed (1st), Ved Kumar (2nd) and
Shabir Ahmed (3rd).
21 km Half
Marathon: Reyaz Ahmed (1st), Ram Lal
(2nd) and Rattan Kumar (3rd).
Hammer
Throw: Mohd Sadiq (1st), Mohd Sidique
(2nd) and Nazir Ahmed (3rd).
400mts:
Tahir Ahmed (1st), Raghubir Singh (2nd)
and Ved Kumar (3rd).
Team
Events:
Hockey:
AP-8th Bn beat AP-12th Bn and IRP-3rd Bn
beat IRP-7th Bn.
Basketball:
AP-8th Bn beat IRP-4th Bn and IRP-7th Bn
beat AP-12th Bn.
Football:
IRP-1st Bn beat AP-14th Bn, AP-8th Bn
beat IRP-11th Bn, IRP-9th Bn beat AP-5th
Bn, IRP-4th Bn beat AP-12th Bn, AP-8th Bn
beat IRP-1st Bn and IRP-4th Bn beat
IRP-9th Bn.
Volleyball:
AP-5th Bn beat AP-6th Bn, IRP-13th Bn
beat AP-8th Bn, IRP-6th Bn beat IRP-3rd
Bn, AP-9th Bn beat IRP-8th Bn, AP-9th Bn
beat IRP-13th Bn and IRP-6th Bn beat
AP-5th Bn.
Tug-of-War:
IRP-10th Bn beat IRP-7th Bn, AP-13th Bn
beat IRP-2nd Bn, Ap-14th Bn beat AP-8th
Bn, AP-7th Bn beat AP-9th Bn, IRP-8th Bn
beat IRP-7th Bn, IRP-4th Bn beat IRP-11th
Bn, AP-7th Bn beat AP-8th Bn, AP-13th Bn
beat AP-14th Bn, IRP-4th Bn beat IRP-1st
Bn and IRP-13th Bn beat IRP-7th Bn.
Handball:
AP-6th Bn beat IRP-4th Bn and AP-8th Bn
beat AP-14th Bn.
Kabaddi:
IRP-6th Bn beat IRP-8th Bn, IRP-3rd Bn
beat AP-8th Bn and IRP-6th Bn beat
AP-13th Bn.
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