Kolkata, May 6
Indian team manager Ravi Shastri today said cricketers had left their World Cup disappointment behind them and were raring to put up their best performance in the upcoming series against Bangladesh.

“We have left behind what the team did in World Cup earlier and the players are raring to put up their best,” said Shastri after the conclusion of their conditioning here today.

“The Bangladesh tour would be a challenge for the cricketers to prove their mettle after the World Cup debacle,” he said.

The former all-rounder said the main objective of the camp was “to let players enjoy what they were doing.”

“It is a brilliant bunch of players at the camp, which was a positive one. All the players have enjoyed it. The idea of the camp was to let the players enjoy what they were doing,” he said.

Asked about the injuries to Sachin Tendulkar and skipper Rahul Dravid, Shastri said players were bound to get injured while practising. “Injuries are part of the process. We are here not to play marbles,” he said.

Shastri replied in the affirmative when asked whether Dravid, who was hit on his nose by a Rudra Pratap Singh bouncer at the camp yesterday, would play in the first match on May 10.
“His improvement is being monitored,” he added.

However, Virender Sehwag is likely to lead Team India in the first ODI in case Dravid sits out of the match. “In case Rahul misses the match, seniority-wise, Sehwag should lead the side,” Venkatapathy Raju, one of the selectors, told PTI.

“However, the decision is to be taken by the team management (comprising cricket manager Ravi Shastri and administrative manager Surendra Bhave). They would surely consult Rahul on this before leaving for Dhaka,” he said.

Sehwag, who had a prolonged slump in form, has been named only in the ODI squad against Bangladesh and India did not name any vice-captain for the tour for either the ODI or Test team.

About Tendulkar, Shastri said, “Sachin is hungry for runs and will certainly prove his worth in Bangladesh”.

He did not give much importance to the fact that team did not have a vice-captain. “We know what we have to do in case of eventualities,” he said.

Shastri also said players were not unduly bothered about the contract issue and were focusing on cricket. “They are all hoping it would be resolved. And once in Bangladesh it would be only cricket which will be in their mind,” he said.

The former captain said all the training methods in the camp were cricket-oriented and fielding coach Robin Singh was “a hard task master”. “The bowlers were also very enthusiastic and have great potential,” he added.

He also said that cricket lovers should be a little more patient towards senior players like Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Virender Sehwag.

“Don’t forget they are there for 15-16 years and know what to do. Just be patient, give them a little bit of time and then see how they perform,” Shastri said.

“They are not finished yet. I have respect for what they have achieved so far,” Shastri said.

On whether he would miss Tendulkar and Ganguly in the one-dayers in Bangladesh, Shastri remained non-committal and said, “I have been given a team. We will go there and play. But we have got a good team in both forms (of the game).”

Meanwhile, cricketers today slogged it out for over two hours on the last day of the conditioning camp even as youngster Dinesh Karthik joined his team mates.

Karthik, who could not participate in the camp so far due to his marriage, had batting and fielding practice with other players.

Team manager Ravi Shastri said the facilities at Eden were good and the support staff did a commendable job. — PTI 

Mumbai, May 6
Indian players might be unhappy with the severe cut in their retainers from Rs 20-50 lakh to a flat Rs 5 lakh each, but they stand to reap rich rewards if they consistently emerge on the winning side in Tests and ODIs as per the bonus formula worked out by the BCCI.

India, who have already played three Tests and 17 ODIs from October 2006 when the new contract period started, are set to feature in a total of 20 Tests and between 58 and 62 ODIs in the next 17 months till September 2008.

Of these, 6 Tests and 12 ODIs are scheduled to be held at home while the team is set to play 14 Tests and a minimum of 46 ODIs away which includes the tri-series in Australia and the Asia Cup in Pakistan as per the ICC’s Future Tours Programme.

In addition to the match fees of Rs 2.5 and Rs 1.5 lakh per Test and ODI, respectively, the players stand to gain big with individual and team bonuses for victories and draws in Tests and wins in ODIs.

The two ODI series wins over the West Indies (3-1) and Sri Lanka (2-1) at home in January and February this year entitles the team to bonus amounts of Rs 1 crore. A player who has figured in all five home ODI wins will also get Rs 12.5 lakh.

The team’s lone victory in the World Cup over lowly Bermuda will also fetch the playing eleven Rs 2.5 lakh each as bonus apart from their match fees.

The squad has seven Test rubbers coming up till September next year, including home matches against Pakistan and South Africa.

Victories in these two home series would boost the team bonus by Rs 1.5 crore, if the same formula continues from October 1 this year.

The squad can set the winning tone by clinching both the ODI and Test series later this month in Bangladesh and be richer by Rs 1.95 crore as a whole, in addition to individual player bonuses.

Then follows the three-match ODI series against South Africa in Ireland and a three-Test and best-of-seven ODI series against hosts England between late June and early September.

The World 20-20 championship follows in September in South Africa, but the Board has not yet specified the payment formula for this tournament.

The BCCI has maintained that the players can earn more under the new formula but the rider which comes with the carrot is that the team has to win more matches and series.

But it all boils down to whether the players are willing to sign the contracts in the present form or would seek changes to some of the clauses and what would be the BCCI’s response if the players want alterations. — PTI

Kolkata, May 6
M.S. Dhoni was hugged and kissed publicly by a frenzied female fan at the Eden Gardens here today on the last day of the five-day conditioning camp ahead of the Bangladesh tour.

With the Shilpa Shetty-Richard Gere kissing controversy still afresh, it was time for some more grit to the kissing mill as the stylish cricketer was grabbed and kissed by the young girl after she broke the security cordon and took all by surprise with her action.

Haseena Nasreeb Shiuli of Berhampore in Murshidabad along with friend Sweety had been almost camping in Eden Gardens since May 2 to cheer the Indian players.

Shiuli, a die-hard Dhoni fan and a first year student of Berhampore College, hugged and kissed Dhoni as he came down from the team bus to oblige for an autograph. The team was leaving in the bus after the morning practice session.

She had been cheering for Dhoni with a poster emblazoned “I love you” for the past few days.

The girl broke into tears and went hysteric screaming “Dhoni”, “Dhoni” as she was whisked away by the security men.

“I had come to see only Dhoni from Berhampore (about 250 km from Kolkata),” she said breaking down in tears. It is the most memorable day of my life. Dhoni advised me to go away because of the cops and said he is there for me,” Shiuli said as she kept waving at the team bus. — IANS

Ipoh, May 6
India survived the Chinese penalty corner blitz for a 5-4 win against the Asian Games silver medallists for their first win in group A league of the 16th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament here today.

In a bizarre match that saw 14 penalty corners being awarded, eight to China and six to India, besides two penalty strokes, India just about managed to cling to a slender lead after falling in arrears in the third minute.

China kept India on the tenterhooks by converting three of their eight penalty corners through Yang Yu (4th), Yi Song (20th) and Hui Ren Hu (37th).

However, the Indians, decidedly the superior outfit on the day, replied in kind. V Ramachandra Raghunath (19th, 43rd) flicked home two penalty corners after Prabhjot Singh (5th) had scored the equaliser. Rajpal Singh (35th) and Bimal Lakra (60th) converted a penalty stroke each to provide India an insurance against a late Chinese comeback that had Yi Song scoring his second goal of the match in the 64th.

Indian coach Joaquim Carvalho had dubbed it a “grudge match” in the light of China’s 3-2 win in the Doha Asian Games last year. As such, the intensity was very much evident in their play and should have scored more than five goals.

China struck even before the Indians could settle down when Yu completed a three-touch penalty corner variation that totally foxed the defence in the fourth minute. However, the Indians equalised in the very next minute. Prabhjot, lurking unmarked behind the defence, slotted home Harpal’s free-hit from the right.

Thereafter, the Indians dictated the flow and past the 19th, Raghunath drag-flicked a penalty corner to give them a 2-1 lead that survived for just one minute as China caught up on Yi Song’s conversion. Yet again, the Indian defence appeared bemused by the Chinese variation.

A searing breakaway run by Roshan Minz caught the Chinese defence upfield. Minz accelerated and laid a superb pass to Prabhjot on his right. The winger, on advancing into the circle, essayed a drive that came off goalkeeper Ri Feng Su.

Off the rebound, Shivendra made an attempt that struck defender Hui Ren Hu on the body leading to a penalty stroke.

Rajpal made no mistake with the attempt and the Indians went into the breather with a 3-2 advantage.

Hu made up for his lapse a minute into the second-half when he converted a penalty corner and yet again, the slip ball foxed the Indians.

Nevertheless, the Indians continued to press hard and forced their fourth penalty corner. Raghunath was on target with a powerful drag-flick to the net (4-3).

With India continuing to hold the upper hand, the Chinese goal was in constant danger. A swift Indian attack led to a penalty corner off which Raghunath's attempt struck a defender on the body resulting in a penalty stroke. Bimal Lakra easily converted and India looked home and dry at 5-3.

London, May 6
Bob Woolmer may have been poisoned with a rare “weedkiller”, traces of which were found on his champagne glass, British media claimed today.

British daily Sunday Times today quoted sources close to the Jamaica police as saying that high concentrations of a herbicide were discovered in the murdered Pakistan cricket coach’s stomach and traces were found on the inside and outside of a glass from which he had been drinking champagne.

“Everything was contaminated. The stomach content, the glass, everything. There was enough to kill him,” a source said.

The weedkiller is so rare that the police have yet to establish whether it is available in Jamaica and they are focusing on two bottles of champagne gifted to him. One had been emptied and the other was left untouched.

“We think it’s something very unusual, that you can’t even buy in Jamaica. We don’t know what form it was in, whether liquid or crystal.

“The weedkiller was certainly in the glass. We are not sure whether it was in the bottle. Until we get further results we can’t confirm it,” the source added.

It is not known whether he shared the bottle of champagne with another person, the paper said.

Woolmer, who has been cremated in Cape Town last week, had died in his Jamaica Pegasus hotel room on March 18, hours after Pakistan had been knocked out of the World Cup following their defeat to minnows Ireland.

Pervez Mir, who was the spokesman of the Pakistan cricket team for the World Cup, confirmed Woolmer had received the champagne.

“I was told that somebody has brought two bottles,” he said but added that the coach was not particularly fond of champagne.

“He (Woolmer) told me he was mostly a beer drinker because he was diabetic and it suited his blood sugar,” Mir said.

Meanwhile, toxicologists say there are hundreds of weedkiller compounds that could be used as poison. Some have no smell or taste, are soluble in water and can cause an acute reaction within hours.

Brussels, May 6
Former world number one Kim Clijsters announced her immediate retirement from tennis on her website today.

Clijsters, 23, has struggled with injury over the last few years and had said this season would be her last. The Belgian former US Open champion, who is getting married in July, had already pulled out of the French and US Opens.

“It has been more than great. The rackets will be hung up,” Clijsters wrote in her web diary.

She said recurrent injuries and the need to stretch for an hour every morning, along with preparations for her forthcoming wedding, had made it harder to carry on.

“Stopping aged almost 24 is pretty young but it has been wonderful. It would be easy to go on for a few more months and take in the four big earners in tennis,” Clijsters wrote, referring to the remaining grand slams and the end-of-season masters.

Although Clijsters won only one grand slam, the 2005 US Open, she reached four other finals and six additional semifinals. She also won the season-ender twice in a 10-year professional career highlighted by fierce rivalry with compatriot Justine Henin.

“Money is important, but not the most important thing in my life. Health and a private life are more important.”

Clijsters said last week she did not want to risk getting injured again and having to wear a cast at her wedding to American basketball player Brian Lynch.

But she added then she planned to play at Eastbourne and Wimbledon in June. She had even mooted competing in the doubles at what would have been her final grand slam.

Today’s announcement means the Belgian played her last tournament in Warsaw last week, where she was defending the Warsaw Cup but looked short of form and lost in the second round to Ukrainian qualifier Julia Vakulenko.

Clijsters had also committed to tournaments in Luxembourg and Stuttgart in late September and early October. She said she could yet attend, albeit from the stands.

“But I’m not going away without saying farewell to you and so I’m inviting you once more to a big party in September,” she told her fans.

Then she will retreat into a private life for which she is clearly yearning.

“Time to marry. Children? Time for cooking and playing with my dogs. And particularly a lot of time with my friends and family. No more travelling. No more stepping in and out of planes. No more having to read gossip or lies in the papers.” — Reuters

Milan, May 6
Jeev Milkha Singh placed himself in contention for the title with a brilliant seven-under 65 which saw him rise to the tied seventh spot after the second round of the rain-reduced Telecom Italia Open.

Jeev, three-under in first round, was 10-under 206, just four shots behind leader Andrew McLardy of South Africa (65).

Jeev will start his third and final round later this evening.

The Indian soared on the wings of a first hole eagle and added five more birdies against a lone bogey as he moved up from his first-round standing of tied 39th.

The seasoned pro took full advantage of the preferred lies and putted beautifully. He shot an eagle three on first and then bogeyed the second but birdies on fourth, fifth, ninth, 10th, 14th and 15th saw him finish seven-under.

Meanwhile, Jyoti Randhawa signed off tied 43rd after carding a third successive three-under 69 to take his total to seven-under 209.

New Delhi, May 6
Armaan Ebrahim had a nightmarish day but Parthiv Sureshwaren more than made up for it with a second place finish in the second race of the Formula Renault V6 series in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, today.

Sureshwaran, who signed a last minute deal with Eurasia Motorsport and got into the car for the first time only on Friday, finished seventh in the first race on Saturday.

A contact with the barriers damaged his car during the qualifying and he had to make a pitlane start in the sprint race.

The youngster made a good start in damp track conditions today and managed to avoid being caught in a crash at turn one and moved to fourth place.

The race was stopped due to debris on track and on restart, the Chennai lad improved his position to third place where he finished the race.

As luck would have, the car that finished ahead of him was penalised and Parthiv gained the second place on the podium.

Parthiv said his stint with Team India in the A1 GP helped him in the race today.

“Second place in the Grand Race is a fantastic way to start my championship challenge. I have been out of racing for a while now,” he said.

“I raced for A1 Team India at the Australian round of the A1GP Championship earlier this year, and I think that the 600 km of running I did that weekend has helped me get back into the groove of racing.” Armaan, however, had a horrific Sunday.

His ‘Team TARADTM’ was stripped of its pole position on technicalities following protest from rivals yesterday.

Starting from fourth position, Armaan finished the first race last 10th and then eighth in the second.

The other Indian in action on the opening weekend of the Asian Festival of Speed, Akhil Khushani finished fifth in the second race of the Formula BMW Asia championship. — PTI