Burnout issue rages on
Tendulkar calls for flexible approach

Chennai, May 16
Sachin Tendulkar has come out in favour of a flexible approach to player burnout, saying each player should be judged differently.

“Each one should be judged differently. There are youngsters, senior players, fast bowlers and spinners. The workloads are different for each of them. We just have to find the right balance,” the 33-year-old said.

The Mumbai batsman said it was important to find the right balance because players needed to recharge their batteries.

“There are different policies and they are quite good.

Sometimes you want a break. The player should take some time off just to recharge his batteries. To get fresh mentally and physically is important,” he said on the sidelines of a function here last night.

“The selectors, the coach and the captain would know particularly the state of the individual players and they are the right persons to figure out who are not needed to be selected,” he added.

Former India captain Kapil Dev, however, did not agree that too much cricket was a problem and suggested those complaining about fatigue to take a break.

“Cricketers are professionals and Indian cricketers are the only 100 per cent professional sportsmen in the country.

They should take a break if they feel they are playing too much cricket,” he said in Mumbai today.

“Don’t want to play, then don’t play,” was the 1983 World Cup winning captain's simple mantra.

Indian vice-captain Virender Sehwag had recently spoken on the subject and earned a reprimand from the Cricket Board which subsequently gagged players from speaking on the issue.

“There is too much cricket. Players need a break because they (may) burn-out from cricket... I think after every series a player should get 20 to 25 days of rest. If a player gets 3 to 4 months’ break in a year, it is good for players and good for BCCI also,” Sehwag had said.

India coach Greg Chappell has also urged BCCI not to overburden its champion players as it could lead to premature end of their careers.

“It is important for BCCI and others to understand that there is a huge investment in these players. They are champion players and you must not finish their careers by overburdening them,” Chappell had said before the team's departure to the West Indies.

Chappell said although at the moment the balance was pretty good, there was a need to be careful about breaks in between matches.

Players are not donkeys: Shastri

DUBAI: On the burnout issue, Shastri said not all cricketers needed to toil in every match, instead a pool should be selected and rotated.

“If you are only going to shuttle 15 players around the world and make them play all the matches, then one should call them donkeys. You will be literally treating them like donkeys.

“Cricket is a business which generates income and there should be a pool of 30 players that can be shuffled around. This will help top players get their break at the right time."

“Look at India now, it has 20 good players for one-dayers. Despite (Sachin) Tendulkar’s injury, they could still go on and win the series. India has also proved that they can win without Ganguly. Even Sehwag did not play in a few matches and still India beat England. Once you rest a few players, it will increase the supply of players,” he said.

Take a break: Kapil

Mumbai: Coming out in full support of the BCCI on the player burn-out issue, legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev said that those who thought they were playing too much cricket should take a break.

“Cricketers are professionals and Indian cricketers are the only 100 per cent professional sportsmen in the country.

They should take a break if they feel they are playing too much cricket,” the former India captain said here today.

“Don’t want to play, then don’t play,” was the 1983 World Cup winning captain’s mantra on the raging debate.

Kapil felt the present Indian team was a very well balanced one and was well poised to not only erase the 35-year Test series victory drought in the West Indies but also come out with flying colours in the process.

“The Indian team is very well balanced and is doing very well. I expect them not only to win the series in the West Indies but to win it convincingly too. A victory overseas is always a beautiful thing,” he said.

The erstwhile great all-rounder also said India needed Sachin Tendulkar, recuperating from a shoulder surgery, to come out firing all cylinders in the Test series in the Caribbean.

“We all want him to do very well at this time when he's struggling (with injuries). I want him to play and do very well in the West Indies,” Kapil said. — PTI

India start firm favourites
Ashis Ray

Kingston, May 16
As Rahul Dravid won his first toss of the tour and the Indian cricket squad chose to bat in the only warm-up game — against a Jamaica XI in the exotic holiday resort of Montego Bay — before the best of five one-day international (ODI) series, it is interesting to recall that the first time India featured in ODIs in the West Indies — in 1983 — these enjoyed the status of lesser business on that sojourn. However, in the second of three encounters on that visit — at Albion in Guyana — India inflicted a significant defeat on the home side. This was the first time a full strength West Indian team had lost an ODI in the Caribbean. The otherwise invincible outfit of that era perished in the Guyanese plains to the batting of Sunil Gavaskar and the all-round display of Kapil Dev!

Of course, the West Indies continued to win series in both 1989 and 1997. But India squeezed a maiden victory, by two matches to one, four years ago. India, though, have still won a mere four of the 15 one-day encounters in the Caribbean.

Presently, the hosts are eighth in the ICC ODI rankings, whereas India, after 18 triumphs in 24 outings, have rapidly ascended to the third place. In short, it would not be misleading to assert that the tourists are this time firm favourites. Indeed, never have India, 10 months before a World Cup, looked as promising as they do today.

Yet, there is a caveat. India's success of late has flowered entirely on flat pitches in the sub-continent. The challenge now is to sustain the trend on bouncier tracks, which will demand greater technical soundness from the batsmen. Admittedly, a batting order which includes Dravid, Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh and Mahendra Dhoni should overcome the challenge. But this needs to be achieved with limited acclimatisation, which is never easy.

As for the bowling, here is a chance to gauge the efficacy of pacemen Irfan Pathan, Sreesanth, Munaf Patel and Rudra Pratap Singh in slightly more encouraging conditions. If the visitors endorse Greg Chappell's inclination for five specialist bowlers, it will be interesting to see if four quicks and a spinner or two spinners make the XI.

To the West Indians, the new off-spinner, Ramesh Powar, though temporarily out of action with a twisted ankle, with his lesser exposure to scrutiny and greater flight could be more problematic for the West Indians. He is also a recognised batsman. The other off-break exponent, Harbhajan Singh, though, is tried and tested and undoubtedly the better fielder. A tough choice indeed!

A series against Zimbabwe, which is what the West Indies have been preoccupied with this month, is neither a test of ability nor a clue to capability. It does, however, represent match practice, which they shrewdly adopted for experimentation. The Caribbean has increasingly come under the grip of American culture. Consequently, cricket, an English injection, has been pushed to the edge of the radar screens. The awesome talent of yore is, now, relatively absent.

Infighting and low morale have, over and above, vitiated the atmosphere. Brian Lara, back as captain, is a redoubtable batsman; but his critics complain he is only interested in himself! In short, despite nine newcomers to the West Indies in their ranks, it's a golden and unprecedented opportunity for India.

Erving Burgess' lyrics for Harry Belafonte's immortal song, Jamaica Farewell ("Down the way where the nights are gay, and the sun shines daily on the mountain top!") not only romanticises this country's capital, but the West Indies in general.

But India's cricketers will only appreciate this romance if they capitalise on their timely exposure to the environment of next year's World Cup.

We will come back victorious: Sachin

Chennai, May 16
Sachin Tendulkar is eagerly waiting to join his team members on the exciting tour of the Caribbean and says he has no doubts that the team will come out with flying colours against the West Indies.

The Mumbai batsman, who will miss the five-match one-day series, said he was expecting to be fit in time for the subsequent Test series but did not commit on whether he would be able to make it to the squad.

"That is the reason I am in Chennai, training at the MRF. I always wanted to be there (in the Caribbean). The injury was a bit more complicated than what the doctors and myself thought," Tendulkar said.

"Initially, it was thought it was going to be a shoulder surgery but my tendons were also operated on. The doctor and the phsyio have been quite happy with my progress," he told reporters.

"At this moment, I do not want to say whether I would be going to the West Indies for the Test series. Because there is a fitness test in Mumbai and before that I do not want to say anything. So far, it has been good. We just have to wait and see." Tendulkar said he rated India's chances against the West Indies as very high.

"We won the one-day series in the West Indies last time.

The (Test) loss at Barbados was a nightmare. It took me long long time to overcome that. There are certain things which we have to keep aside and move on with cricket.

"But I am much sure that our present team will put up a very good performance. I have no doubt in my mind that we will come back with flying colours," he said.

Tendulkar said he was looking forward to an exciting tour ahead and did not want to miss out any cricket.

"It is an exciting tour. Playing cricket is exciting, to be short and sweet, either you play in West Indies or New Zealand or South Africa. You do not want to miss cricket. I am looking forward to the tour." The Indian great, who holds the record for scoring the highest number of Test centuries, also revealed that Brian Lara was awaiting his visit and had promised to play a good host during his visit this time around.

"We had lunch together in Mumbai. He was looking forward to my coming to the West Indies. He was saying this many times. I hope he is a good host," Tendulkar said.

He said whether he played as a senior or a junior in the team, the pressure remained the same on him as he wanted to give his hundred per cent to the team.

"No matter whether the other guys perform or they do not perform. Surely, I want to go there and give my hundred per cent to contribute towards our team's victory. So the pressure is still the same.

"Earlier also, I wanted to play and perform. It is wonderful that other players are doing extremely well. It is very heartening and gratifying that India is winning. The present team has done well in the past and will continue to do well by God's grace."

Asked about the team's performance in his absence, Tendulkar said the team was winning and ultimately it was a collective effort and not the individuals who counted.

"The team is performing well right now. It is a healthy sign. I am an Indian and I am proud whenever our team plays well and wins matches and series.

"I am sure that we will continue to do it. We share responsibilities. Probably the picture was not clear enough earlier on. So many guys had been telling me in the past that you are the only guy doing well in the team and others do not perform.

"I always felt and will continue to feel that it is India and it is not individuals. It is the collective effort of the team that takes you right to the top. When it is not collective, it shows you the other way." About the World Cup, also to be hosted by the West Indies, he said, "World cup is 10 months away now. It is too early to start thinking about. About 17 or 18 players would be considered for the World Cup. But to start playing right away for the World Cup is not the right thing to do. But at the back of our mind, it should be there." On International Cricket Council's decision to allow players to appeal against on-field umpires, Tendulkar said it was an experiment which he was yet to experience.

"It is an experiment that I have not tried out yet. Wait for my turn to come to comment on this. We have to try them out. We have tried so many things in the past. But before putting them into practice I am not in a position to say anything on that."

Asked if it would reduce umpires to dummies, he said, "it becomes rather difficult for me to answer. You are saying that Venkataraghan had commented that way. But I was not part of that conversation. If you are going to ask three more umpires there will be three more opinions. We just have to wait and give time for such experiments to settle." He also said every format of the game was important and players must plan accordingly.

"One-day is also equally important as Test matches. One has to plan differently for each type of game... 20-20 is going to be an experience. We did play a 20-over-a-side match in New Zealand as a warm up game.

"It was a wonderful experience but for the team to plan and figure out our strengths for 20-20 matches, we need to play in five or six games to be in a better position to understand the game." Regarding the debate on burnout, he said, "each one should be judged differently. There are youngsters, senior players, fast bowlers and spinners. The workloads are different for each of them. We just have to find the right balance. — PTI

Ruthlessness in selections pays: Shastri

Dubai, May 16
Endorsing India’s policy of blooding youngsters, former cricketer Ravi Shastri has said selectors needed to be ruthless in picking players, none of whom were indispensable.

“You need to go back to experienced players only if there is a vacuum and there is no talent. If your strategy is to look into the future, then you need to give the youth a chance. They need to be ruthless in selection and no player should be considered indispensable,” Shastri said tersely when asked if there was a need to select experienced players like Sourav Ganguly.

The former Indian captain said what needed to be counted was the current performance and not past records while selecting a player.

“It is the player’s current form that should be the criteria for selection. We are a country obsessed by records. For us hundreds, 10,000 runs, and large haul of wickets are more important than the performance of the Indian team,” he was quoted as saying in the Gulf News today.

“In Australia, the emphasis is not on how many centuries Ricky Ponting makes but on Australia’s winning streak for the past 10 years. India has given too much emphasis on players’ records than on the actual performance of the team. — PTI 

Dropped catches baffle Flintoff

London, May 16
England captain Andrew Flintoff was unable to explain how England had dropped nine catches as Sri Lanka pulled off one of Test cricket’s great escapes to salvage a draw in their series-opener at Lord’s here.

The tourists, following-on, batted for over 14 hours to finish on 537 for nine in their second innings when bad light forced the players off for the last time in the first Test of a three-match campaign.

Sri Lanka’s performance was all the more impressive after they’d been bowled out for just 192 in their first innings.

“If we had held our catches we could have won the match,” said Flintoff, continuing to deputise as England captain for the injured Michael Vaughan after leading the team to a 1-1 series draw in India.

“It was a bizarre game for that. Nine or 10 chances went down, and whatever it was it was catching. You look to find excuses and reasons why we dropped them. We practice in the morning and we take most of them in the drills,” the Lancashire all-rounder also told Sky Sports.

But he took heart from England’s first innings 551 for six declared, their highest Test total against Sri Lanka which featured hundreds from middle-order batsman Kevin Pietersen (158), opener Marcus Trescothick (106) and an 89 on his home Test debut by newly-installed No 3 Alastair Cook.

“We started well. We batted fantastically in the first innings. The wicket was a good track,” Flintoff explained.

“Marcus Trescothick has been one of our best players for the past three years and getting him back (he came home early from the tour of India for personal reasons) was a bonus. Alastair Cook got 89, Kevin Pietersen entertained and the batting was on song.”

Flintoff also had words of praise for the way fast bowler Sajid Mahmood, a team-mate of his at Lancashire, had performed on his Test debut.

“Sajid Mahmood ran in and bowled quick and that is one of the things that made the Sri Lanka innings end quickly.

“Once he got his feet I thought he bowled fantastically well,” he added after Mahmood, the 24-year-old cousin of British boxer Amir Khan, had taken five wickets in the match.

“But they (Sri Lanka) kept going and kept us in the field for three-and-a half-days.” Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene was named man-of-the-match after top-scoring in both his side”s innings with 61 and 119, respectively.

“We were chasing the game after the first day and we felt we had a lot more to give,” he admitted.

“It was a disappointing first innings performance, and we knew we had to show some character, which we did. We’re pretty happy with the effort,” Jayawardene added.

“On Saturday, we wanted to try to avoid the follow-on and then the target was to keep it going until Monday. From where we were it’s a great achievement for us, it gives us a lot of encouragement looking to the next Test match.”

“But there are a lot of areas we need to improve. We have to compete with England every single day.” — AFP

Anand jumps to joint lead

Sofia, May 16
Viswanathan Anand played out a safe draw with former Russian champion Peter Svidler to move into joint lead after the fifth round of the Mtel Masters Chess tournament here.

On what turned out to be another exciting day in the category-20 super tournament, world champion Veselin Topalov defeated overnight sole leader Gata Kamsky of the United States in a highly instructive game.

As a result of Topalov’s victory, the draw by Anand was enough to propel him to the joint first spot as he was trailing Kamsky by just a half point.

The third game of the six-players double round robin ended in a draw between former world champion Ruslan Ponomariov of Ukraine and Etienne Bacrot of France.

At the half way stage, both Kamsky and Anand have an identical 3.5 points now while Topalov and Svidler are next in line on 2.5 points apiece.

Ponomariov and Bacrot share the fifth spot on 1.5 points with five rounds still to come in the strongest tournament of the year. — PTI 

Nadal rules clay, Roger Federer everything else

New York, May 16
Rafael Nadal is unbeaten on clay. Roger Federer is untouchable in the men's tennis rankings.

Despite beating Federer for a fourth straight time on Sunday in the Rome Masters final, Nadal barely affected the gulf between his No 2 ranking and Federer's No 1.

With the Wimbledon, US Open and Australian Open crowns, Federer had 7,010 computer ranking points yesterday, compared to Nadal’s 4,635.

Federer has more than twice as many points as third-ranked David Nalbandian.

The Swiss star, the undisputed No 1 since February 2, 2004, will dip below 7,000 for failing to defend his Hamburg title this week, but Nadal will be under the most pressure rankings-wise when he has to defend his first Grand Slam championship at the French Open beginning May 28.

Federer has reached the final of all of his tournaments this year, and won four of seven.

All three losses were to Nadal at Dubai, Monte Carlo and Rome, where the 19-year-old Spaniard tied Guillermo Vilas' record 53-match winning streak on clay in the Open era.

Nadal also tied Bjorn Borg for most titles won as a teenager (16), and became the first repeat winner in Rome since Thomas Muster in 1995-96. Nadal has won his last 13 finals. Federer owns the all-time record with 24 straight from 2003-05.

The rest of the top 10 was Andy Roddick, Ivan Ljubicic, Nikolay Davydenko, James Blake, Fernando Gonzalez, Gaston Gaudio and Lleyton Hewitt.

In the women’s rankings, Amelie Maureso remained No 1 for a ninth straight week, but she could be supplanted by No 2 Kim Clijsters if the Belgian wins this week’s Italian Open, where she was seeded first.

Nadia Petrova, who won her tour-leading fourth title of the year in Berlin on Sunday, moved to a career-high No 3 ranking and replaced injured Maria Sharapova (No 4) as the highest-ranked Russian.

The top 10 was rounded out by Justine Henin-Hardenne, Mary Pierce, Lindsay Davenport, Elena Dementieva, Patty Schnyder and Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Martina Hingis, after reaching the Berlin quarterfinals, moved within one spot of cracking the top 20 five months into her comeback. — AP

Sasikiran beats Malakhov

Sarajevo, May 16
Grandmaster Krishnan Sasikiran added another twist in the tale of the ongoing Bosnia International Grandmasters Chess Tournament with a comprehensive victory over leader Vadimir Malakhov of Russia in the ninth and penultimate round.

In danger of losing important ELO rating points at this event, Sasikiran made good of his opportunities against Malakhov and cruised to his second victory in the event. He had beaten Arkadij Naiditsch of Germany earlier in the tournament.

Sasikiran’s was the lone decisive game in the 9th round. As a result, top seed Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu of Romania and Norwegian boy wonder Magnus caught Malakhov in the lead on five points each after drawing with Borki Predojevic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Naiditsch, respectively.

Predojevic is fourth with 4.5 points, Sasikiran stands fifth on four while Naiditsch slipped to the last spot on 3.5 points with one round remaining in the double round robin event.

The stage is now set for a nail-biting finale as Malakhov clashes with Nisipeanu while Carlsen meets Predojevic.

Sasikiran can still finish tied third but will have to win his game against Naiditsch and hope for other results to go his way. — PTI