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Dravid’s ton helps India recover
BCCI felicitates centurion Bucknor
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ICC cautions India on Champions Trophy
Indian veterans win by 20 runs
Samaresh Jung bags silver, Jaspal Rana wins bronze
Ranjit shoots 3-under to help team win Pro-Am
Patel stars in ONGC
win
JCT to take on East
Bengal on March 22
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Dravid’s ton helps India recover
Kolkata, March 16 The dependable Dravid (110) notched up his 19th Test century and took centre stage after Virender Sehwag had put the visitors on the mat with a blistering 81 but the hosts lost as many as four wickets in the last session to find themselves at 344 for six at close on the opening day. The Indians were cruising along comfortably at 278 for two at one stage before Sachin Tendulkar (52), Sourav Ganguly (12) and VVS Laxman (0) fell in quick succession to squander a solid start with medium pacer Abdul Razzaq providing the breakthroughs. The dismissal of Dravid at close came as a big blow for the Indians who managed to score at a brisk pace right through the day on a what appeared to be a good batting track at the Eden Gardens. Wicketkeeper Dinesh Kaarthick was the lone not out batsman on 28 at stumps which came at the fall of Dravid in the last scheduled over. Tendulkar also made the opening day memorable by becoming only the fifth batsman in Test history to score 10,000 or more runs, a landmark he achieved when he scored 27. Dravid was at his best, either in driving the seamers or cutting the slow bowlers. He moved from 92 to triple figures with two successive boundaries and the century notching stroke was a stunning on drive off Mohammad Sami. The vice-captain and Kaarthick waged a tense battle against the leg spinners, Shahid Afridi (2-62) and Danish Kaneria (2-116) towards the fag end of the day. It was a fascinating contest as Pakistan looked to break the last recognised pair. For a while, it seemed the rookie wicketkeeper-batsman was the vulnerable but the Tamil Nadu youngster emerged unscathed from a rowdy spell by Afridi. Just when it seemed the duo had seized the reins from Pakistan's grasp, Dravid faint-edged a teasing leg break from Kaneria to leave the momentum with the visitors. The end of play's situation was far from anyone's imagination at tea break when the hosts were going hammer and tongs. Tendulkar had quickly gone past the 10,000 runs milestone, to be placed in the company of Allan Border, Steve Waugh (Aus), Sunil Gavaskar (Ind) and Brian Lara (WI). And Dravid had taken the baton from Sehwag in sending the Pakistani bowlers on a leather hunt. And then, Abdul Razzaq (2-53), who had had an ordinary series so far, produced a devastating spell with the old ball to effect two dismissals that changed the complexion of the game. Tendulkar, soon after reaching his 40th half century, played a casual square cut at an Afridi long hop and Kamran Akmal came up with a brilliant under-edge catch to have the premier batsman for 52. That ended a 122-run partnership between Tendulkar and Dravid from 213 balls for the fourth wicket. Razzaq then came up with his irresistible reverse swing bowling to dismiss captain Sourav Ganguly (12) and VVS Laxman (0) off two successive deliveries to turn the tables on the Indians. Dravid, who had played as if he was simply continuing from the first Test where he was out for exactly 50, was forced to drop anchor and see through the day. The batsman who had contemptuously smote Kaneria, the best bowler for the visitors in Mohali, for a six over long on, was now pinching singles and farming the strike. It was Dravid's scintillating form that helped India reach 225 for two at the tea break, after Sehwag had given them a thunderous start earlier in the day. Sehwag, who had struck a hurricane 173 in the drawn first Test, turned the heat on the Pakistanis once again with his audacious strokemaking after Ganguly elected to bat first. Sehwag and Gambhir Gambhir (29) put on 80 runs for the opening stand before the latter fell leg before the wicket to Kaneria. Sehwag added another 76 runs for the second wicket with Dravid and ultimately perished while attempting to break the shackles thrown around him by the fast leg spin of Shahid Afridi. Runs came at a fast clip of four runs per over as Sehwag batted with his characteristic flamboyance. Sehwag, however, seemed to have trouble in the post-lunch session when Afridi tied him down with his accurate leg breaks. The batsman eventually succumbed to his impatience as he went for a big shot and top edged it for a well judged catch by skipper Inzamam-ul Haq at mid off. Dravid, playing in his 88th Test, began with a silken smooth drive off Abdul Razzaq for his first boundary. The right hander was severe on the spinners whom he cut repeatedly through the point region and drove them off the pads when they erred in line. He brought his half century with a four to midwicket off Kaneria and a whipped boundary off the same bowler gave India their 200. Tendulkar middled the ball well but seemed to grow nervous as he approached the landmark. He swished outside the off stump at Sami twice in the last before tea. Earlier, India brought in off-spinner Harbhajan Singh in place of pacer Zaheer Khan from the team that failed to force a win in the Mohali Test while Pakistan made two changes. All-rounder Afridi took the place of opener Salman Butt while Khalil replaced Naved-ul-Hasan. Scoreboard India (1st innings): Sehwag c Inzamam b Afridi 81 Gambhir lbw Kaneria 29 Dravid c Akmal b Kaneria 110 Tendulkar c Akmal b Afridi 52 Ganguly c Akmal b Razzaq 12 Laxman lbw Razzaq 0 Kaarthick batting 28 Extras
(b-2, lb-11, w-6, nb-13) 32 Total ( 6 wkts, 89.1 overs) 344 Fall of wickets:
1-80, 2-156, 3-278, 4-298, 5-298, 6-344. Bowling: Mohammad Sami 18-3-61-0, Mohammad Khalil 11-3-39-0, Danish Kaneria 26.1-1-116-2, Abdul Razzaq 16-1-53-2, Shahid Afridi 18-0-62-2.
— PTI |
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‘Plenty of cricket left in me’
Kolkata, March 16 "I am very happy to join the four great players in the 10,000 club. Its nice to join the elite league," said the master blaster, who became the second Indian after Sunil Gavaskar to reach the milestone. Relaxed and composed, as he always was, the batting ace said he definitely was a happy man to reach the mark, but had "no special feeling" while achieving the feat at the Eden Gardens. "I did not have anything in my mind. All of a sudden, the crowd reaction was different. I was pretty much relaxed. There was no special feeling as such," Tendulkar said at the post-match press conference. If that was just satisfying, the missing of the record-making 35th century was "not at all" disappointing. "I am not at all disappointed. There is more to cricket, more to life. If I keep thinking about it, I can't play. When its to happen, it will happen," was the philosophic response from the Mumbai batsman, who would turn 32 next month. However, the little master gave a warning to the bowlers all around the world, saying "I hope that I don't stop here. I have plenty of cricket left in me and want to go on scoring runs." Asked about a possible time frame for scoring the eagerly awaited 35th Test ton, Tendulkar said "I go for scoring hundred in each and every innings...hope I get it soon". Looking sympathetic to his numerous fans as also the scribes present, a smiling Tendulkar said "it seems you are pretty much disappointed (at my missing the hundred)." Recalling his dismissal on 94 in the first Test at Mohali, he said "when I went to bat, nobody talked about it (35th hundred). But when I got out, everybody was saying you just missed it". Coming back to the 10,000-mark, Tendulkar said he felt good to touch the landmark and wanted to thank all those who contributed to his 15-year-long cricketing career. "Feeling achcha hain. 10,000 in Tests banana aasan nahi hain. kafi sacrifice karna parta hain. (the feeling is good. Its not easy to score 10,000 runs in Tests. You need to sacrifice a lot). "Its basically a team work. My father, two brothers, wife, coach, teammates and the crowd - without their support, it was not possible. I thank them all." He felt elated to join the four great batsmen of world cricket - Allan Border, Steve Waugh, Gavaskar and Brian Lara - in the 10,000 club. "When you join the elite club, you seat on a different league altogether," he said. However, Tendulkar, who also has the distinction of scoring over 10,000 runs in one day internationals, rated his achievements in the shorter version of the game at par with the achievement in Test cricket. "Scoring runs have never been easy in both versions of the game. I value my 10,000 runs in ODIs as well,'' Tendulkar, who has scored 13,497 runs and 37 centuries in one dayers, said. The master batsman was also happy to achieve the feat at Eden Gardens, which was "a special ground" and had a different type of response from the crowd. Tendulkar, who was dismissed on 52 today, said he did not try to play differently in this innings. Asked which among the first and the 10,000th run in Test cricket would be more memorable to him, he said "both are important. That (the first run) started my career. Here I am in my prime time. I feel both are equally important."
— PTI |
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A monkey off Tendulkar’s back
Mumbai, March 16 A lot of sweat and hard work had gone into the Mumbai maestro's feat of following in the footsteps of his illustrious predecessor -- who had also achieved it against arch-rivals Pakistan led by Imran Khan -- at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata today. Tendulkar's inability in overtaking Gavaskar in the Test century makers' list in the first Test at Mohali, where he fell in the nineties, and in the first innings of the second Test in Kolkata where he gathered 52 runs, has left another sizeable burden on his much-injured back. But he's bound to be the sole owner of that record too in the near future when he slams century number 35. The inescapable fact going by the manner in which he's batting of late is that the most recognised face in Indian cricket is no longer the destroyer of bowlers which he once was in the earlier part of his glittering career. The spate of injuries and the amount of cricket Tendulkar has played over the last 16 years seems to have taken a heavy toll of his physique. He has mellowed with age (he will be 32 next month) and has also realised that with the slowing down of reflexes, coupled with a dodgy elbow, he cannot get away by trying to take the leather off the ball constantly. That mantle has fallen on Virender Sehwag. The fans are seeing a different Tendulkar now and should learn to enjoy the way he bats of late. He's still good enough to score centuries against the best of bowling attacks, but not in the manner by which he used to scatter them with disdain. The champion batsman is now loathe to lift the ball unless it deserved such a punishment. In this manner he cuts down on risky shots. He has become more choosy in his shot-making, the wisdom acquired through tons of experience of playing at the highest level of the game. Tendulkar is not only the senior citizen of the team but acts like one too. He's arguably the best batsman ever produced by this country and has long been its most marketable commodity. Indian cricket would be poorer by a huge margin if and when he hangs up his boots. The millions of cricket fans must be hoping that the day would come only in the distant future.
— PTI |
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Tendulkar’s fans overwhelmed
Kolkata, March 16 Sachin, however, missed the opportunity of making another record — of scoring 35th Test century, which he had narrowly missed during the first Test match at Mohali. Sachin has played in 122 Test and a total 199 cricket innings. Sachin’s fans were overwhelmed with joys finding their hero included in the list of other renowned cricketers, who had already completed 10,000 Test. They are Allan Border, Brian Lara, Steve Waugh and Sunil Gavaskar. ***
Danish Kaneria magic which laid Indians low at the Mohali Test, did not work at the Eden Test, which surprised the Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer as well as the captain, Inzamam-ul Huq. The young cricketer who was playing his first match in the Eden today was visibly upset for his poor performances. He bowled 20 overs but could take only one wicket. He said he was analysing what the reaction was and would seek advice from his seniors. *** Eden did not have much crowd today which disappointed the CAB bosses and Jagmohan Dalmiya admitted he could not imagine such a poor a turn-out at the prestigious Indo-Pak Test. He said he was expecting a crowd of over 100,000 but crowd at best could be 50,000 after the lunch session. In the morning, almost all the galleries were empty.
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BCCI felicitates centurion Bucknor
Kolkata, March 16 Dalmiya was accompanied by BCCI Joint Secretary Goutam Dasgupta during the brief function at the Eden Gardens. Around 30,000 spectators broke into spontaneous applause as Bucknor raised the silver plaque in acknowledgement. Bucknor, who made his debut in April 1989 at Kingston Jamaica in an India-West Indies Test, had done duty in four consecutive World Cup finals. An accomplished soccer referee, six-foot tall Bucknor had also supervised a World Cup soccer qualifier. Bucknor said he wanted to continue till the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies to realise his dream of equalling Dicky Bird’s record of umpiring in five World Cup finals.
— PTI |
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ICC cautions India on Champions Trophy
New Delhi, March 16 ICC president Ehsan Mani and Chief Executive Malcolm Speed said here today, ahead of the ICC Executive Board meeting over the next two days, that the ICC would have to look for other options if the Indian Government did not relent on waiving tax for hosting the Champions Trophy. The ICC Executive Board meeting, being held in India for the second time, will deliberate on the Indian Government’s stand on the tax issue, to arrive at a unanimous decision. Mr Mani said India’s tax law would be a “big issue” at the ICC Executive Board meeting. The first time the ICC Executive Board meeting was held in India a few years ago when Mr Jagmohan Dalmia was its president. Mr Mani said he had discussed the tax issue with Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram and Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Sunil Dutt when he was in India a couple of weeks ago and the ministers had given him a sympathetic ear. But the ICC was yet to receive any concrete response from the Indian Government on the vexed tax issue. Mr Mani pointed out that the Champions Trophy, which were to be held in India in 2004, was shifted out as the government had failed to settle the pending tax related matters for hosting the 1996 World Cup in India. Mr Mani cautioned that India would have to promptly “address the tax issue” and the government would have to be “absolutely clear in the matter” if the Champions Trophy were to be held, as scheduled, in India next year. He said a “third country option would be looked at” for hosting the Champions Trophy if the Indian Government did not relent on the tax issue. “The ICC gets tax exemption in every other country”, Mr Mani reasoned, “except in India”. But could not clearly spelt out why should the Indian Government forego its tax claims. The ICC chief warned that India would not be able to host major international events like the Olympic Games and the Commonwealth Games if reforms were not effected in the Indian tax laws. “The ICC’s effort is not to get bogged on the tax issue”, Mani stated. He said the ICC, which ploughs back the money it earns into the development and nurturing of the game, could not afford to forego 30 to 40 per cent of its income in taxes. He informed that the West Indies, which would be hosting the 2007 World Cup, has already exempted the event from tax, making it easier for its cricket board and the ICC to organise the mega show in a smooth and hassle-free manner. Mr Malcolm Speed said the ICC meeting would have a look into the structure of the ICC Champions Trophy and decide “whether to keep it open for 12 teams or limit to eight teams”. |
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Indian veterans win by 20 runs Korba (Chhattishgarh), March 16 The side then dismissed the rivals for 221 in 40 overs, with Ajay Jadeja emerging as the most successful bowler with figures of three for 30. The Pakistanis, who had a shaky start to their essay, lost half of their side for 61 runs before an attacking 42 by Manzoor Ilahi steadied the innings. But another batting slump saw the team being bowled out for 201 in the final over of the match. The hosts got off to a good start, with Nayan Mongia and Jadeja adding 34 runs for the first wicket. But the Indians suffered two quick blows when both openers were dismissed on the same score. Pillai and Azharuddin then joined hands, taking the side to a respectable total. Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh gave away the prizes.
— PTI
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Samaresh Jung bags silver, Jaspal Rana wins bronze
New Delhi, March 16 The other Indian to win a medal today was Jaspal Rana, who won bronze in the men’s standard pistol event. With this, India so far have 10 gold, six silver and three bronze medals from the event, according to a National Rifle Association of India press note. Samaresh started promisingly and shot 578 in the qualifying round that earned him the second place before moving to the finals. The Indian there shot 97.6 and his total of 675.6 fetched him the silver. Englishman Michael Gault (681) won the gold while the bronze went to Australian Repacholi Daniel (674.4). In the standard pistol event, Jaspal Rana had to battle with hostile weather before the Indian managed to finish among the top three. Australian Toohey Justin (568/600) won the gold and Michael Gault, who won gold in the air pistol event, got silver while Rana (564) had to be content with the bronze. Bad weather also affected the performance of Mansher Singh in the trap event. Mansher, who was placed second in the qualifying round, could score only 43/50 today and his total of 115/125 saw him finishing sixth. Fellow Indian duo of Manavjit Singh (112) and Zorawar Singh (109) finished ninth and 15th, respectively.
— UNI |
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Ranjit shoots 3-under to help team win Pro-Am
Chandigarh, March 16 Ranjit and his team of amateurs — Alamgir S Grewal, JS Kesar and Gayatri MM Singh —returned with a team total of 203 to emerge as the winners. Another
Chandigarh professional, Gurbaaz Mann along with Dilmick Lamba, RPS Chahal and Dr Jagmohan Verma clinched the first runner-up trophy after scoring an aggregate of 207 while the foursome of professional Ashok Kumar, Captain JM Singh, SK Sharma and Rajneesh Sanwalka returned with a team score of 210 for a close third position. The trio of Feroz Ali, Vijay Kumar and SSP Chaurasia bagged the honours for the best round by a pro as they each shot rounds of four-under 68. Ranjit as the professional in the winning team was richer by Rs 5000 while Gurbaaz and Ashok earned Rs 3000 and Rs 2000 respectively. The Pro-Am was played on a team strokeplay format and each team was made up of one professional and three amateurs. The team score was an aggregate of the professional’s score (mandatory) and two best out of three amateur scores over 18 holes. 31 top professionals from the Amby Valley PGAI Order of Merit including the money leader Mukesh Kumar, No. 2 Ashok Kumar, No. 4 Vijay Kumar, No. 5 Rafiq Ali and No. 6 Ranjit Singh of Chandigarh participated in the Pro –Am along with 93 amateurs. The prizes were jointly given away by the chief guest for the day Punjab Finance Minister Surinder Singla, along with Mr Pawan Munjal, MD, Hero Honda Motors, Mr Sunil Munjal, MD, Hero Cycles, Mr Suman Munjal from the Hero Group of Industries, and Col. AP Singh, President, Chandigarh Golf Club. |
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Patel stars in ONGC
win
New Delhi, March 16 Scores: HPCL: 119 (Munaf Patel 7 for 15). ONGC: 122 for 2 (Mithun Manhas 46, Manoj Mudgil 43). In the second semi-final, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) defeated Oil India by ten wickets to enter the final. Scores: Oil India: 72 in 30 overs (Bhavin Thakkar 5 for 17, Shitanshu Kotak 4 for 5). BPCL: 73 for no loss (Robin Morris 35, Onkar Khanwilkar 32 no). |
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JCT to take on East
Bengal on March 22
Chandigarh, March 16 The other fixtures are: JCT vs Mahindra United — April 3; JCT vs Sporting Clube de Goa — April 8; JCT vs Fransa Pax FC — April 15; JCT vs Dempo — April 25; and JCT vs Mohun Bagan — April 30. |
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Players honoured
Amritsar, March 16 |
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JNST advance
New Delhi, March 16 |
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Ronaldinho’s bank account Giant screen Vaughan rested Athletics meet
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