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‘Sehwag and Gambhir must make it count’
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Sri Lanka tour of South Africa Second Test: Preview
Liberals Hockey
Baisoya wins Eastern India final
Chess: Indian eves bow out
Sourabh loses in final
Cricket tourney begins
Rotich, Megersa win marathon
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India’s Tour of Australia: 1st Test — Preview
Melbourne, December 25 With a young and inexperienced side to lead, Michael Clarke has already conceded that it would be quite a task for his greenhorn bowlers to contain India's veteran line-up of batsmen. But never the best of travellers despite their improving record, the Indians would be challenged by the sheer hostility of conditions that Australia is known for. The larger grounds and the bouncing tracks would test the Indian side even though the visitors holds the edge against the most inexperienced of Australian sides. It is India's best chance considering how Australia have struggled in the past few months and if Sachin Tendulkar manages to score that elusive 100th international hundred, it would be cause of bigger celebrations. In fact, such has been the wait for the ton that an early lead for the two teams could become a sideshow if Tendulkar reaches his milestone in the opening Test. Tendulkar, the game's biggest legend with 15,183 runs from 184 Tests, chases that century after an excruciating wait of seven Tests and 13 innings which even his team-mates are urging him to end now. On the other side, Ricky Ponting, with 12,656 runs from 158 Tests, is the game's third biggest scorer ever and is arguably the best Australian batsman ever after Sir Donald Bradman. Yet, the former Australian captain finds his head on the chopping block after failing to score a century in the last two years, a wait of 16 Tests and 30 innings when he advanced his total by only 856 runs and a mere eight half centuries. Indeed this Test is a story of plots within plots with India chasing that elusive series win on Australian soil which hasn't happened on nine previous visits, 36 Tests and 64 years. India's trinity of batting legends, Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid (13,094 from 160 Tests) and VVS Laxman (8,626 from 130 Tests) almost surely have their absolute last chance of scripting history in Australia as another visit by India on these shores is not scheduled before 2014. On paper, it should be an easy task given Australia have a callow attack of James Pattinson (2 Tests), Peter Siddle (27 Tests), Ben Hilfenhaus (17 Tests) and Nathan Lyon (7 Tests). Yet, the promise they have shown, as individuals and as a bowling group, turns them as Australia's most potent weapon in the forthcoming series. Pattinson, Siddle and Hilfenhaus all bowl in the 140-km zone and bring diverse variety on the table. While Pattinson is extreme speed with lethal away movement, Siddle is bouncy with a back-of-length approach and Hilfenhaus is a renowned exponent of late swing. In Lyon, Australia probably have their best off-spinner in the last 30 years. It is a bowling attack which is expected to make up for the frailty in batting which has suffered collapses of 136, 47, 192, 88 and 127 in different innings of the last 21 Tests of two years. Australia's troubles have been laid on the doors of two of its most experienced batsmen, Ponting and Mike Hussey, though its worries with its openers is no less pronounced with Philip Hughes failing to make the most of his opportunity and Shane Watson becoming injured with an annoying regularity. Wicketkeeper Brad Haddin is talented but his 2171 runs from 39 Tests at 36.18 average with just three hundreds don't stack up to the class of Adam Gilchrist who never failed to shore up the lower half of the batting during his astonishing 96 Tests in which he cracked 17 centuries in his decade-long career lasting till 2008.
— PTI |
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‘Sehwag and Gambhir must make it count’
Melbourne, December 25 Chopra couldn't score a fifty and his average was only 23.25 during India's eventful tour of Australia in 2003-04 but the then Australian captain Steve Waugh was moved enough to say after the final Test in Sydney that the Delhi-opener was the reason why India not only drew the series 1-1 but also at times dominated the home team. The secret of Chopra's success, not reflected in figures, was how he invariably blunted the new-ball attack. "The kookaburra ball is all about negotiating the first 30 overs. If you come through the spell with minimal loss, the middle order would come on to their own," said Chopra. Blunting the new-ball was somehting that Chopra did with remarkable panache on that trip. In Brisbane, he batted for 40 balls for his four runs. In Adelaide, it was 67 balls for his 27 runs; at MCG, it was 48 runs from 135 balls and finally the score of 45 in Sydney came from 184 balls. Sure enough Australians lost the plot and the Indian middle order flourished like never before. Tendulkar made 383 runs at 76.60; Laxman 494 runs at 82.33 and Dravid proved to be the deadliest of them all with 619 runs at 123.80. I knew most Indian openers had come and failed on those shores. Interestingly, I could hardly do much work-out before the series. I had injured my finger in the preceding series against New Zealand. But England's Michael Vaughan was mighty successful before. I asked for his tapes. I also spoke to Geoffrey Boycott on my way to Australia," says Chopra.
— PTI |
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Pattinson: Unwanted with KKR but now the toast of Australia
Melbourne, December 25 Team India is justifiably bewildered at the noise which surrounds Pattinson ahead of the opening Test starting here on Monday. Just two Tests old, the 21-year-old speedster is hailed as the enforcer who would bring India's superstars to their knees in the four-Test series. It's the same Pattinson who was in the Kolkata Knight Riders' squad during the Indian Premier League last year and was hardly given a look-in. He now has the opportunity to take it out on his Indian captain Gautam Gambhir for being so dismissive of him earlier this year. Bought at his base price of $100,000, Pattinson had turned out in only four first-class games for Australia at that stage. But for obvious reasons, KKR didn't see any merit in pushing him ahead of star pacer Brett lee. In a matter of six months, Pattinson is one of most talked-about bowlers from Australia. He bowls in the high 140s and moves the ball disconcertingly for any batsman's comfort. Former Australian cricketer Dean Jones is also from Victoria and has seen enough of Pattinson to think he is a genuine star performer. "It's like when your car hits a chicken, it gets a little jolt. But when the car hits a cow, you are startled by the impact. It's the same with Pattinson, when he hits the bat, it jars. He's the real thing," he explained.
— PTI |
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Sri Lanka tour of South Africa Second Test: Preview
Durban, December 25 The side is, however, upbeat after thrashing Sri Lanka by an inning and 81 runs in the first Test in Centurion. Sri Lanka has failed to win the past 15 matches and clinched their last victory against India in Galle in July 2010. Sri Lankan batsman Kumar Sangakkara said South Africa's poor record at Kingsmead would inspire his side. "Every Test is an opportunity for us to change things around and we need to change it around now. Losing, like winning, can become a habit. For us to go into this Test match, knowing that South Africa doesn't have a great record here, is good but it us up to us to deliver," Sport 24 quoted Sangakkara, as saying. He added that it would be crucial for his side to maintain mental state for the second Test. "The difference between the best performing teams and the ones chasing them is probably the mental side of things. It is not skill or technique but being tough when the pressure is on," he said. South Africa to
make amends
"Over Christmas it is important that you maintain your focus, so our preparation is a key factor to that. Gary (Kirsten) has stressed to us that we are in the process of improving certain facets of our game and our preparation is a crucial factor in that," he added. South African players might also achieve their personal milestones during the Boxing Day Test. Dale Steyn will be playing in his 50th Test match for South Africa and AB de Villiers is just 15-runs away of becoming the sixth South African to score 5000-Test runs. "It has been extremely disappointing the way that we have played here at Kingsmead, all of us
in the squad know that," Smith said. "I certainly don't come here with any self-doubt or things in my mind as to why we haven't performed well here. I'm here now, it's a fresh five days that lie ahead of us, I want to turn that around, I want to perform well here and I think everyone in the team feels the same way. That positive mindset and wanting to turn that around at Kingsmead is something we are all focused on," he added.
— ANI |
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Arsenal can still win Premier League, says Wenger
London, December 25 Since then they have climbed up to fifth position in the league table, providing some much needed respite to under-fire manager Wenger. Now, Wenger believes that if his team can score wins over the Wolves, the Queens Park Rangers and Fulham during Christmas period, then they will be in contention for the title during the second half of the season, The Daily Star reports. "We know we have an opportunity to gain a better position on the table. It's down to us to do our job. In the Premier League the "Christmas period is vital to get your points," said Wenger. Wenger also thinks that the only way by which you can succeed in Premier League is by playing your best football but he also pointed out the fact that during the festive season it's a tough job to focus and play your best football. The Gunners home match against Wolverhampton Wanderers has been postponed from Boxing Day to a day later due to a London Underground strike. Wenger is in no mood to take the Wolves lightly despite of their proven superiority over them. "Wolves are a side that plays good football. They always look dangerous going forward and they make it tough for everybody. They have the Mick McCarthy spirit and attitude, they never give up", Wenger added. Wenger will face a tricky situation while selecting his team for Tuesday's game, since he has too many injury issues to ponder upon. The latest entry in the club's injury list is of 22-year-old Keiron Gibbs who was already sidelined since October due to a stomach problem and was expected to be back by the year end. Bacary Sagna, Carl Jenkinson and Andre Santos are already injured which means that once again one of the center backs from Arsenal would have to play as a full back.
— ANI |
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Clippers ready to deal with great expectations
Los Angeles, December 25 Boosted by the arrival of premier point guard Chris Paul and former All Stars Chauncey Billups and Caron Butler, the Clippers have instantly been installed as genuine title contenders for the 2011-12 season. While the players themselves claim they are not feeling any added pressure, there is no question their long-suffering fans now hold great expectations, starting with Sunday'sseason-opening game away to the Golden State Warriors. "We don't feel any pressure," four-time All-Star Paul told reporters while preparing for his first official game in Clippers colours. "Who's putting that pressure on us? The thing is, at the end of the day, we're the players. We control what we can control and that's the people in this organisation who are in here at practice every day. "We can't control what you guys (reporters) say because that is what it is." The acquisition of Paul from the New Orleans Hornets for guard Eric Gordon, center Chris Kaman, forward Al-Farouq Aminu and a 2012 first-round draft pick was comfortably the biggest signing in the NBA's off-season. Add in twice All-Star small forward Butler and Billups to a line-up already boasting the astonishing dunking talents of Blake Griffin, along with veteran All-Star Mo Williams and talented center DeAndre Jordan, and it is no wonder Clippers fans are suddenly drooling with delight. "We really do have a great outlook but, in all actuality, we haven't won a game yet," five-time All-Star guard Billups said warily ahead of Sunday's game. And the difficult thing is that everybody knows we should be a lot better, so we don't have the advantage of sneaking up on teams anymore.”
— Reuters |
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Liberals Hockey
Patiala, December 25 PSEB made an early exit going down 2-0 to seasoned Western Central Railways in their opening encounter. Excelling in all departments of the game, the railmen dominated the proceedings and were leading 1 in the 15th minute with centre forward Mehraj-ud-din sounding the board with a powerful hit after receiving the ball from left out Dev Kumar. They earned five short corners while PSEB forced three short corners without any success. Western Central railways made sure of the victory by adding another goal in the 40th minute when speedy inside right Imran Ali pounced on a centre from the left flank and made no mistake with an accurate hit into the left corner of the post. Experienced CISF failed to match the speed and skill of Sports Hostel, Lucknow and went down fighting 3-0 in an absorbing tussle. Lucknow lads went ahead 1-0 in the 10th minute with a goal from Abhinav Pandey. CISF tried hard for an equalizer but failed to dent the formidable defence of the Sports Hostel. The Lucknow outfit increased their lead to 2-0 when inside left Imran Khan weaved his way into the CISF circle and beat goalkeeper Bhushan Kumar with a clever flick in 25th minute. They earned a penalty stroke in the 52nd minute which was easily converted by Faiz Khan to give the Lucknow team a 3-0 victory. J&K Police registered their second consecutive win with a 2-1 hard fought victory over Rock Rovers. After a goalless first half Rock Rovers scored in the 38th minute with Kanwaldeep Singh dodging past a couple of defenders to find the board. The policemen initiated a counter attack in the 39th minute and succeeded to equalise from a penalty stroke taken by their captain Gurjeet Singh. The penalty stroke was awarded when defender Jobenjeet Singh stopped the ball with his leg on the goal line. Rock Rovers tried hard but success eluded them and the policemen took full advantage to score an opportunistic goal by Sikandarpal Singh in 62nd minute when he collected a loose ball in front of goal and scored past onrushing goalkeeper Kanwalpreet. In the last match of the day Sangrur XI upset experienced ITBP Jalandhar 4-2 with inside left Harvinder Singh scoring a brace in the 10th and 50th minute while Jaskaran Singh and Ramandeep scoring in the 23rd and 34th minute. For ITBP jasvinder singh and Suresh Kumar scored to restrict the Sangrur XI lead to 4-2. Tomorrows fixtures: CRPF N. Delhi vs J&K Police, Jammu 10:00 am; Sikh Regimental Centre, Ramgarh Cantt vs Sports hostel, Lucknow 11:30 am; Corps of Signal, Jalandhar vs Sangrur XI 1:00pm; Hawks Ropar Vs Western Central Railway, Jabalpur 2:30 pm. |
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Baisoya wins Eastern India final
Kolkata, December 25 Baisoya, who started as underdog in the final, was always ahead in the match right from the first hole. Chikka, well as he played, was always trying to catch up. At no stage did he manage to even draw level as Baisoya kept his nose slightly ahead in the final at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club. Baisoya had six birdies in the first round of 18 and three more in 16 holes in the second round of the final while Chikka had three birdies in both rounds, but more importantly Baisoya dropped fewer bogeys. With six birdies in the first round of 18 holes, Baisoya had Chikka struggling. Three of the birdies came in the first five holes and in no time Baisoya was three-up. He missed a par on the seventh and lost one. They parred the ninth with birdies from both and then Chikka came closer as Baisoya bogeyed the 11th at which stage the Delhi boy was just one-up. Then he birdied the 12th and 15th to go three up. Chikka did reduce the gap to two with a birdie on 16th, but Baisoya was sitting pretty with a two-hole advantage after the first round of 18 holes. That lead swelled to four by the time the players came for the final nine. Baisoya was soon four up with four go, making it a must for Chikka to win and keep his hope alive. Chikka did win the 15th with a birdie to make it 3-up for Baisoya, but then with them halving the 16th the match was over 3 & 2 for the Delhi boy. It was a big win ahead of the All India Amateurs to be held in January and Baisoya can now look forward to dethroning Chikka, who has been the top golfer this year. |
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Chess: Indian eves bow out
Mardin, December 25 Tania Sachdev lost on the third board from an advantageous middle game against Valentina Gunina while Soumya Swaminathan misplayed a clearly drawn endgame against Natalia Pogonina to give the Russian an easy victory. Earlier in the day, Koneru Humpy had played out a draw with Tatiana Kosintseva while Nadezhda Kosintseva also split the point with D Harika on the second board. China meanwhile continued their rampaging act and scored a 3-1 victory over Greece. World women champion Yifan Hou defeated Yelena Dembo and Zhao Xue overpowered Ekaterini Fakhiridou to complete the rituals. — PTI |
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Sourabh loses in final
Lucknow, December 25 The unseeded Indian was locked in an intense battle with the second seed Hidayat till the end of the men's singles summit clash, which he lost 15-21 18-21 in 46 minutes. Ranked 72 in the world and on his debut season on the senior international circuit, Sourabh pushed the defending champion Hidayat to limits but it was the Indonesian, who had the last laugh. Sourabh, who beat three higher-ranked players -- Tommy Sugiarto, Yun Hu and Suppanyu Avihingsanon -- en route to the final, had opened up a 8-2 lead but Hidayat scored six points in a row to draw parity and moved neck and neck till 13-13. Sourabh fought hard and led 15-16 before the Indonesian reeled off five points on the trot to pocket the first game. The second game again was a close affair as Sourabh refused to give in to the six-time Indonesia Super Series title winner. Scores were even 17-17 but Hidayat surged ahead by moving to 20-18 and then clinched the issue quickly.
— PTI |
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Cricket tourney begins
Patiala, December 25 In the first match, riding on a fine century by Subhan Gill (105), Coaching Center Mohali defeated YPS Patiala by 114 runs at the YPS ground. In another match, Black Elephant Cricket Club defeated Pace Cricket Academy Rajpura by 9 wickets at BEC ground. Rajpura won the toss and scored 119 before being all out in 35
overs. BECC chased the target in 23.5 overs. Brief scores: Match 1: CC Mohali 246 for 6 in 35 overs
(Subham Gill 105, Chatanya 2 for 43), YPS Patiala 112 all out in 34.5 overs
(Chetnya 42, Suman 3 for 18). Match 2: Pace Cricket Academy Rajpura: 119 all out in 35 overs (Deepak 51, Abhisek Verma 3 for 27).
BECC: 120 for 1 in 23.5 overs (Jasanpreet Singh 57 not out). |
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Rotich, Megersa win marathon
Ahmedabad, December 25 Rotich timed 2hr 12min 02 sec to gain the first spot in the men's category, while Megersa took 2hr 38min 54 sec to reach the finish line in the women's category. Both the winners were awarded Rs six lakh each for winning the event. The marathon was today flagged off by Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi from the banks of river Sabarmati.
— PTI |
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South Africa will likely amends to overcome their past three defeats at Kingsmead during the Boxing Day Test against Sri Lanka. "The preparation is going to be important again, making the most of our time over this time of the year is always crucial," Sport 24 quoted South Africa skipper Graeme Smith, as saying.