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Sledging part of the game: Langer
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Snub For Fleming
Sania in doubles pre-quarters
Northern India Golf set for close finish
Premier League
Nehru Football Tournament
Oct 28 WC qualifier in Lebanon
Fencing tourney
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Karthik unlucky to miss century
The Oval, London, August 9 Neither side could claim a clear advantage. An authoritative 127-run second-wicket partnership between the increasingly impressive Dinesh Karthik (91) and Rahul Dravid (55) had laid a platform, but the unfortunate removal of Sourav Ganguly, adjudged lbw off an inside edge, cut short a promising 77-run fourth wicket stand between him and Sachin Tendulkar. At close, though, the Dadar dynamo was undefeated on 48, having seen off nearly seven overs of the second new ball with a resplendent VVS Laxman, who crossed 5,000 runs in Tests. In a culturally changing Britain, scent of Indian spices rather than frying fish and chips emanated from the ground as one entered it. The weather was also salubriously sunny and the wheat-coloured pitch quite batsman friendly, making it a fortuitous turn of the coin for the tourists. Of course, it took India 21 balls to get off the mark - surprising in this era of instant gratification - but once they did so, it was akin to turning on a spirited tap. Wasim Jaffer, having opened his account with a meaty square cut off James Anderson, handsomely off-drive him in the same over. Better still, he cut him over point for six, before flicking Ryan Sidebottom off the hips to the midwicket fence. The 50 of the Indian innings erupted in 13.1 overs. But Jaffer paid for replicating the upper cut after a thirdman had been deployed for it. This was the first of Anderson’s two wickets. Chris Tremlett, with sunken cheeks and a shadowy beard, made Jaffer hop around a bit against extra bounce. But when he pitched up, Karthik drove him peerlessly through the covers for two of his 10 fours. A straight drive at the expense of Anderson was also a beauty, not to mention a twinkle down the track to hoist Monty Panesar to long-off for six. Andrew Strauss, technically, dropped Karthik at short extra cover off Panesar. The English crowds’ love affair with the latter is quite fascinating. Once when he ran back from mid-off to the extra cover boundary to restrict Karthik to three, the spectators cheered him as if he had won the match. Dravid, though, cracked him frequently past point, once following this stroke with an exquisite drive, which bisected the gap between two short extra covers for two fours in an over. However, mid-way through the second session, the clouds gathered and the ball began to wobble. Unsurprisingly, Michael Vaughan summoned his swing merchants. Dravid survived a testing over from Sidebottom. But in the very next, he played for an inswinger, but the ball swerved away yorker length and into his stumps. But it was really the fall of Karthik, as he nibbled at Sidebottom three overs later - but probably didn’t touch the ball - that suddenly put pressure on India, exposing them to a tricky few overs before tea as Ganguly joined Tendulkar. The former opened his account with a streaky cut for four, but soon settled into a blend of pugnacity and panache. The Mumbai maestro, though, was untypically restrained, as the England quicker bowlers targeted his ribs with a leg gully waiting around the corner. He was, in fact, lucky to be let off when 20 by wicket-keeper Matt Prior as he snicked Sidebottom thick and low in front of 1st slip. Yet, inevitably, he steadied himself, cover driving Sidebottom and, then, lofting and cutting Panesar for boundaries. In between, Ganguly effortlessly despatched the Sikh for six to the sightscreen. Scoreboard Karthik c Prior b Sidebottom 91 Jaffer c Pietersen b Anderson 35 Dravid b Anderson 55 Tendulkar not out 48 Ganguly lbw b Collingwood 37 Laxman not out 20 Extras (b 21, lb 2, w 2, nb 5): 30 Total (4 wickets; 90 overs): 316 Fall of wickets: 1-62, 2-189, 3-199, 4-276 Bowling: Sidebottom 25 5 75 1; Anderson 20 5 83 2; Tremlett 23 4 60 0; Panesar 19 2 71 0; Collingwood 3 1 4 1.
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Sledging part of the game: Langer
London, August 9 ''Let's make no bones about it: Test cricket can be a fierce affair,'' the former Aussie opener wrote in his column for BBC. ''Cricket is a non-contact sport so in the heat of the moment words are often exchanged between different players. This is part of the contest. ''The game wouldn't be the same if everyone was silent on the field. I would be concerned if my team, no matter what colour cap we are wearing, were quiet throughout the course of a day's play. ''I would see this as a sign of disinterest or lack of the competitive edge that the best teams tend to display. It would be a sad day when the emotion of a contest was taken away from the game,'' he said. Langer echoed England coach Peter Moore's sentiments about turning off the stumps microphone during the course of play. ''I believe Moores was absolutely spot on with his assessment of the stump microphones. ''If there is anything unsavoury happening in the middle then I believe that is where it should be left; on the field,'' he said. The Sommerset captain said the players knew, in most of the cases, where to draw a line. ''There is ample policing of the spirit of cricket and the players know they would be foolish to take anything too far,'' Langer added. — UNI
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Murali’s Action
Colombo, August 9 In a reference to Bedi's comments that Muralitharan was taking advantage of his physical deformity and that the ICC have "created a monster" by allowing him to continue to bowl, the Sri Lankan Cricket Board said such remarks were intended to "harm the bowler's reputation and achievements". Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Media Manager Samantha Algama said in a statement: "It is irresponsible for a person of Bedi's stature to make such public comments where he has attacked the personal integrity of Muralitharan and technical competency of the ICC. Bedi has needlessly, unfairly and deliberately targeted Muralitharan in his vituperative outburst." Algama said the SLC would back Muralitharan if he intends to take action against Bedi. "While the SLC respects the right of individuals to form their own opinion ... we feel that Bedi's comments are defamatory and intended to cause harm to his reputation and achievements, and also disparage the ICC's ruling on the matter," he said. "The SLC sincerely believes that appropriate action should be taken by the authorities to prevent such incidents from recurring and will support any and all efforts by Muralitharan to take corrective action in the matter." Earlier, Bedi, who has been a vocal critic of Muralitharan, said the Sri Lankan was killing the game by setting a wrong precedent for youngsters. "That man (Muralitharan) is the best shot-putter in the history of cricket. People like him are just killing the game and nobody is doing anything about it," Bedi said at a function here this week. "The most worrying thing is that young boys are trying to emulate him. So the ICC have ended up creating a monster with all their technological nonsense to help him continue," he added. Muralitharan recently became only the second bowler ever in the game's history to take 700 Test wickets and is set to go past Australian Shane Warne's tally of 708 soon. But his career has been blotted by umpires no-balling him for suspect action on two separate instances and had to undergo tests by an ICC panel twice to get his action cleared. "The reason I think he (Muralitharan) cheats is because I have seen him bowl perfect leg breaks. But when it comes to his other deliveries, he bends his arm," Bedi said. — PTI
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New Delhi, August 9 The 30-year-old Sandhu pipped Indian cricket captain Rahul Dravid and star golfer Jeev Milkha Singh for the award which was officially announced by the Government here tonight. For the third year running, no Indian male cricketer was in the list of awardees with spinner Harbhajan Singh being the last Arjuna awardee in 2003. Ace archer Jayanta Talukdar, athlete K M Binu, chess player P Harikrishna, shuttler Chetan Anand, woman cricketer Anjum Chopra and woman hockey player Jyoti Sunita Kullu were among the 14 selected for Arjuna awards 2006. Sandhu won the gold medal in trap event at the 49th World Championships in Zagreb, Croatia, in July 2006, a feat which made him India's second world champion in shooting. He also won the bronze medal in the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. The Punjab marksman becomes the fourth shooter to bag the prestigious honour after Abhinav Bindra, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore and Anjali Bhagwat. The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award comprises a cash award of Rs 5 lakh, a scroll of honour and a medal while the Arjuna Award carries a cash award of Rs 3 lakh and a statute and a scroll of honour. The Dhyan Chand and Dronacharya Awards also carry cash award of Rs 3 lakh. The awards will be given away by President Pratibha Patil at a function in the Rashtrapati Bhawan on August 29. Former All England champion Prakash Padukone headed another 15-member committee, constituted to choose winners of Dronacharya award for coaches. Apart from Dravid and Jeev, Koneru Humpy (chess), M C Marykom (boxing), Gagan Narang and Samresh Jung (both shooters), Mahesh Bhupathi (tennis) were among the other nominees for the prestigious Khel Ratna award. Others in contention in athletics were quarter miler Satti Geetha and Chitra K Soman, discus thrower Krishna Poonia and 100m hurdler Anuradha Biswal. Archer Talukdar won the gold medal in the Croatia leg of the World Cup and finished a creditable fourth in the mega final in Mexico. Saurav Ghosal (squash), Subhajit Saha (TT), Vijay Kumar (shooting), Geetika Jhakar (wrestling) and Geeta Rani (weightlifting) were among those in the list of Arjuna awardees for their outstanding performance in 2006. The list of awardees: Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna: Manavjit Singh Sandhu Arjuna Awards: P Harikrishna (chess), K M Binu (athletics), Vijender (boxing), Anjum Chopra (womens cricket), Jyoti Sunita Kullu (womens hockey), Chetan Anand (badminton), Jayanta Talukdar (archery), Navneet Gautam (kabaddi), Vijay Kumar (shooting), Saurav Ghosal (squash), Subhajit Saha (table tennis), Geeta Rani (womens weightlifting), Geetika Jhakar (womens wrestling) and Rohit Bhakaar (sport for physically challenged). Dhayn Chand Awards: Varinder Singh (hockey), Shamsher Singh (kabaddi), Rajendra Singh (wrestling). Dronacharya Awards: R. D. Singh (athletics, paralympic), Damodaran Chandralal (boxing), Koneru Ashok (chess). — PTI
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Snub For Fleming
Christchurch, August 9 Amid speculation of the southpaw joining the Indian Cricket League (ICL), the move wasn't surprising for Fleming, who had given up the ODI captaincy following the Black Caps semi-final exit at the World Cup in the Caribbean in April. Fleming holds the world record of most capped ODI captain - 218 matches as of April 2007. ''Stephen Fleming has been omitted from the squad. This is the first opportunity for Daniel to captain the team abroad and we wanted to ensure that Daniel and the team were not looking to him for leadership,'' Kiwi coach John Bracewell said. ''We also thought it would be a good opportunity for Stephen to remain with Nottinghamshire to build towards the longer forms of the game,'' he added. Squad: Daniel Vettori (Capt), Shane Bond, Peter Fulton, Mark Gillespie, Gareth Hopkins (wicketkeeper), Chris Martin, Craig McMillan, Brendon McCullum (wicketkeeper), Nathan McCullum, Jacob Oram, Jeetan Patel, Bradley Scott, Scott Styris, Ross Taylor, Lou Vincent. — UNI
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Sania in doubles pre-quarters
Los Angeles (USA), August 9 Sania and her American partner Bethanie Mattek beat Slovakian-Dutch pair of Janette Husarova and Michaella Krajicek 6-3, 2-6, 11-9 in the first round of the WTA Tier II hardcourt tournament, yesterday. The Indo-US duo will take on second seeded pair of Czech Kveta Peschke and Australian Rennae Stubbs. Sania, who beat former number one and currently ranked 12th Swiss player Martina Hingis in her singles second round match, will next meet French Virginie Razzano in the pre-quarterfinals match later today. Razzano beat 10th seed Shahar Peer of Israel 6-1, 4-6, 7-6 (6) in the second round to set the match-up against Sania. If Sania manages a win against Razzano, her possible opponent in the last eight stage match would be fourth seed Russian Nadia Petrova, who will play Katarina Srebotnik of Slovania in another pre-quarters clash. — PTI
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Sania can be in top 10: Amrithraj
Bangalore, August 9 Talking to newspersons here, the Former Davis Cupper was all praise for the Hyderabad lass’ recent performance, including the defeat of former World Number 1 Martina Hingis. “She is only 20 years old. She has all the qualities to move on. But she should maintain consistency and ensure she does not get injured on her way to the top,” he said. Amritraj said Sania had the potential to climb up the rankings. But how long would it take to reach the top 10 depended on her continuing with her fighting spirit. However, the legend was quick enough to add that Sania needed breaks in between to keep fit. “Too many matches also affects one’s performance. She should take breaks at the right time and prepare herself for the US Open as well,” he said. Amritraj said as long as Sania had mental toughness she could continue playing. “She is playing terrific in the recent days. Though she has lost in the singles, her win in the doubles in the recent international tournaments is encouraging. It gives her confidence to move further,” he said. Amritraj however said ranking should not be taken seriously as it never counts as long as a player is winning. Overall the Indian tennis scenario was encouraging and in women section, Sania was making a big headway, he added. — UNI
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Northern India Golf set for close finish
Chandigarh, August 9 Vikram Rana played a par 72 to take the lead with a three-round tally of six over 222. Just one stroke behind at 223 was overnight leader Jasjeet Singh who had to settle for a six over card of 78. Close on their heels another stroke behind were Manav Das of Ambala and Ajeetesh Sandhu of Chandigarh occupying the third spot with a three-round tally of 224. While Oil India's Manav Das played a par 72, Ajeetesh returned a card of one-over 73. Indian Oil's Gagan Verma was a further stroke behind in fifth place at 226 after shooting a 79 today while the trio of Abhishek Jha, Kanishk Madan and Karan Vasudeva were tied for sixth. Harjinder Singh Kang of Chandigarh played a three over 75 to occupy the ninth spot along with Rakesh Kumar and Mithun Pereira at 229. ONGC's Rana started badly with a bogey on the second. Dropping a shot so early did not bother him the least as he made up suitably with birdies on the seventh and ninth to make the turn at one under. On the back nine, he bogeyed the 13th to end the day at 72. Jasjeet's round commenced in terrible fashion with back-to-back bogeys on the second and third followed by another on the seventh. After the initial hiccup, Jasjeet pulled back with birdies on the eighth and ninth to turn at one over. On the back nine, Jasjeet dropped shots on the 10 th, 11th and 13th and ended his round with a double bogey on the 18th. Manav Das started badly with a bogey on the third but soon found his radar to fire birdies on the fifth and seventh to make the turn at one under. On the back nine, Das bogeyed the 16 th where he two putted from 10 feet to end the day at level par. Ajeetesh Sandhu started well with a birdie on the first hole where he used a driver-lob wedge combination to nail the ball to within three feet from the pin. However, he dropped shots on the third and eighth to turn at one over.
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Premier League
London, August 9 Record sums have been spent by clubs this summer - the combined total exceeding 350 million pounds ($710.2 million) - yet champions Manchester United and Chelsea are again most people’s title favourites. United, who beat Chelsea on penalties in the Community Shield season-opener last weekend, start at home to reading on Sunday. Manager Alex Ferguson will be hoping that United can repeat their last year’s blistering start, when their opening 10 games yielded 25 points. After surpassing expectations last season, reading might find the going tougher and certainly they could not have asked for a harder start. While Ferguson ponders an embarrassment of attacking riches, Chelsea counterpart Jose Mourinho will simply hope to have 16 fit players available for Sunday’s home opener against promoted Birmingham City. Chelsea enter the campaign hindered by a long injury list - more than a dozen players were injured this week - and Mourinho will hope new faces like Steve Sidwell and Tal Ben-Haim are ready to make an instant impression. London Derby
Sunday’s schedule also includes a London derby between Arsenal and Fulham with the home crowd eager for positive signs from the Gunners’ first match of the post-Thierry Henry era. The first kick of the season will come at Sunderland, who mark their top-flight return with a home game against Tottenham Hotspur. With Roy Keane in charge, the Northeast Club can expect to improve on their dismal showing of 2005/06, when Sunderland supporters waited until May to see a solitary home win. However, Sunderland’s credentials will be tested by a Tottenham side targeting a top-four finish. An outlay of over 40 million pounds, including 16.5 million on striker Darren Bent, has fuelled expectations at Spurs and seven straight wins in pre-season augur well. Liverpool, away to Aston Villa, have even higher hopes for 2007/08 with Rafael Benitez’s side, now featuring record-signing Fernando Torres, expected to challenge seriously for the title. For West Ham United supporters, it will be a relief to get back to watching football again after a close season dominated by the Carlos Tevez saga. West Ham start off against Manchester City in what is new City boss Sven-Goran Eriksson’s first match since England exited the 2006 World Cup. Another new managerial appointment, Sam Allardyce, will doubtless be looking forward to his first fixture as Newcastle United boss - back at his old club Bolton Wanderers. Elsewhere on Saturday, Everton are at home to Wigan Athletic, promoted Derby County welcome Portsmouth and Blackburn Rovers visit Middlesbrough. — Reuters
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Nehru Football Tournament
New Delhi, August 9 President Pratibha Devisingh Patil will inaugurate the opening match between India and Cambodia on August 17 at 6.45 p.m. Syria, Krygyzstan and Bangladesh are the other teams in the fray. The All India Football Federation (AIFF) tried to rope in Iran too, but they were willing to send only a club team and not even the national under-23 team, despite the AIFF's request. Since the Nehru Cup is a FIFA-backed ranking tournament, the AIFF would have accepted only the national team, and no less. Unveiling the new trophy donated by the ONGC and the fixtures here today, AIFF president Priyaranjan Dasmunsi said the original Nehru Cup, which was last won by Iraq at Cochin in 1997, was taken home by the Iraqi team, but did not return and the trophy got lost when the US forces moved into Bagdad in the Iraq war. He said the Iraqi Football Association, which now functions from Amman in Jordan, has not been able to trace cup and other documents related to the Nehru Cup. But the ONGC, which has stepped forward to "restore" the Nehru Cup with a sponsorship deal worth over Rs 40 lakh, has also donated the new handsome, hand-crafted high grade stainless steel and gold plated trophy, weighing 4.5 kg, which will be at stake in the revived edition. Dasmunsi said the winners would be given a cash prize of $40,000 while the runners-up would be richer by $20,000 and the third-place finishers by $10,000. Besides, for each victory, a team would be given $ 2500 and $300 for each man of the match award. The AIFF president said though the "restored" Nehru Cup, 13th in the series, will have a modest presence of five teams from Asia, it would be turned into a truly representative international tournament, by making it a biennial event, in the coming years. The round-robin league will feature one match under floodlight at the Ambedkar Stadium from August 17 to 26 while the final will be held on August 29 after two off days on August 27 and 28. AIFF secretary Alberto Colaco said the two off days have been set apart to compensate for any cancellation of matches due to rain or other factors. The fixtures: India vs Cambodia (Aug. 17), Bangladesh vs Syria (Aug. 18), Kyrgyzstan vs Cambodia (Aug. 19), India vs Bangladesh (Aug. 20), Syria vs Kyrgyzstan (Aug. 21), Bangladesh vs Cambodia (Aug. 22), India vs Syria (Aug. 23), Bangladesh vs Kyrgyzstan (Aug 24), Cambodia vs Syria (Aug. 25) and India vs Kyrgyzstan (Aug. 26). The title match will be played on Aug. 18 at 6 p m. The Indian team, presently undergoing a coach camp in Gurgaon, will be announced by chief coach Bob Houghton on August 17.
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Oct 28 WC qualifier in Lebanon
New Delhi, August 9 According to AFC draw on Monday, India play Lebanon in their away match of the first round of 2010 World Cup qualifiers on October 8 and host the West Asian country on October 28. Lebanese capital of Beirut was initially to host the 17th Asian Athletics Championship but due to security reasons, the venue was later shifted to Jordanian capital of Amman. Mumbai's Mahindra United, who are scheduled to play their away match against Lebanese side Al Nijmeh on September 25 in the quarterfinal stage of the AFC Cup, the second tier Asian club championship, had written to the AFC to schedule the match at a neutral venue. ''As of now, we are ready to play in Lebanon. AFC said countries in conflict zone -- Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine -- will play in neutral venues. They have not said anything about Lebanon. So we are not doing anything now,'' AIFF General Secretary Alberto Colaco said on the sidelines of ONGC Nehru Cup trophy unveiling ceremony. ''We know Mahindra United had written to AFC to schedule their away match in neutral venue. We will see if there any security problem arises for the World Cup qualifier, only then we will think of neutral venues,'' he said. — UNI
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Fencing tourney
Faridkot, August 9 In other matches Harish slugged out Harpreet 5-2 and Harmeet Singh defeated Manish 5-4. In the girls under-14 group, Suman routed Shanti 5-1, while Suman trounced Tania 5-3 and Gurpreet Kaur defeated Satwant Kaur 5-1.
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Murali’s Action
