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5-wkt Praveen sinks Green India Red batsman S. Badrinath returns to the pavilion after the completion of the innings against India Green during the Challenger Trophy in Ahmedabad on Friday. — PTI photo
Clark predicts 4-0 whitewash
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Brett Lee promises to make amends
Smith, Pollock level series
Chance for Shoaib to silence critics: Ashraf
Akhtar recalled
World
Boxing Championships
Was the event stage managed?
Russian wrestler Nikita booked
Kroos sees Bayern home
National Open Athletics
Eves face Iran today
Rashid wins NCR Cup
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5-wkt Praveen sinks Green
Ahmedabad, October 26 Chasing a victory target of 304 set by India Red, India Green were bowled out for 215 in 47 overs. Praveen claimed a five-wicket haul to hasten India Green collapse, while seamer Sidharth Trivedi took two
wickets. Manoj Tiwari was the lone batsman for India Green to wage a battle as wickets kept on tumbling at regular intervals at the other end. Tiwari kept the hopes alive for his team with a resolute 71-ball 65 even as none of the other recognised batsmen could not stay at the wicket. Mumbai all-rounder Abhishek Nayyar with 29 was the second most successful batsman from the side. Impressive 22-ball 25-run cameo by Pankaj Singh gave the innings late impetus, but the effort was not good enough to make any difference to the final outcome of the match. In-form batsman Gautam Gambhir and S. Badrinath led the charge as India Red posted an impressive 303 for the loss of seven wickets. Gambhir, India’s hero in the Twenty20 World Cup, notched up a scintillating 73, while Badrinath was equally impressive while making unbeaten 82 as Mohammad Kaif-led India Red put a challenging total on the board. Left-handed Gambhir was in fine nick and scored nearly run-a-ball knock studded with seven hits to the fence. Badrinath, Tamil Nadu skipper, provided the late flourish to the innings. It was this 79-ball knock of 82 runs which was instrumental in his team get past the 300-run mark. Badrinath hit seven fours and a six. Batting at No. 4, Punjab’s Karan Goel contributed 33, while Delhi batsman Virat Kohli showed his prowess hitting 45-ball 40 which included two towering sixes, as the batsmen continued to hold sway. Lanky Rajasthan seamer Pankaj Singh and left-arm spinner Iqbal Abdullah were the most successful bowlers and claimed two wickets apiece, while off-spinner Yusuf Pathan was economical without taking a wicket. Scoreboard India Red: Praveen Kumar c P Patel
b Pankaj 15 Gambhir c Tiwary b Piyush 73 Kaif c PA Patel b Pankaj 8 K Goel b Sharma 33 Badrinath not out 82 V Kohli st PA Patel b Abdulla 40 Paresh Patel c Pathan
b Abdulla 22 Mahesh Rawat b Patel 13 Sidharth Trivedi not out 1 Extras
(lb 4, w 11, nb 1): 16 Total (7 wickets; 50 overs): 303 Fall of wickets:
1-18, 2-62, 3-131, 4-139, 5-224, 6-268, 7-294 Bowling: Munaf Patel 10-0-81-1; Pankaj Singh 8-2-37-2; Abhishek Nayar 2-0-13-0; Yusuf Pathan 10-0-41-0; Iqbal Abdulla 10-0-54-2; Rohit Sharma 2-0-4-1; Piyush Chawla 8-0-69-1. India Green: Pujara b Kumar 7 Y Pathan b Kumar 0 P Patel c Ojha b Trivedi 19 Rohit c Gambhir b Trivedi 11 Tiwary c Rawat b Kumar 65 N Behera b Ojha 12 Nayar lbw b Sharma 29 Chawla c Goel b Kaif 26 Abdulla not out 12 Pankaj b Kumar 25 Patel lbw b Kumar 0 Extras
(lb 1, w 7, nb 1): 9 Total (all out; 47 overs): 215 Fall of wickets:
1-6, 2-28, 3-36, 4-67, 5-101, 6-135, 7-176, 8-178, 9-215, 10-215 Bowling:
Praveen Kumar 9-0-45-5; Ishant Sharma 9-0-37-1; S Trivedi 8-2-32-2; PP Ojha 10 0 41 1; P Patel 4 0 22 0; K Goel 3-0-14-0; M Kaif 4-0-23-1
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Sydney, October 26 Clark has modelled his bowling on the lines of Glenn McGrath and is surely been inspired by the 'Pigeon' when he boldly predicted a series whitewash against the India (4-0) and Sri Lanka (2-0). The 32-year-old, in a typical McGrath style, said ''It's going to be a great summer with Sri Lanka and India coming out.'' ''And hopefully, the fans can come out and support us and we can bring home 4-0 and 2-0 series wins,'' Clarke said. When quizzed further if he meant a series whitewash against both India and Sri Lanka, Clark said: ''I have just predicted 4-0 and 2-0.'' McGrath, who retired after Australia's Ashes triumph, also had the habit of making stunning pre-series predictions in his long Test match career spanning 124 Test-match. The 37-year-old, McGrath would declare his ''bunny'' in each series, much to the delight of cricket fans. Though Clark has not single out any particular person as bunny, but has said he would target them all. ''Glenn always targeted the batsman but I think I would hold off on that one at this stage of my career,'' Clark said. ''Any time you play against these guys (India and Sri Lankan) it is going to be a tremendous challenge. I am just going to target them all. Hopefully I can get them all out.'' Clark, is considered to be the closest thing in cricket to the legendary McGrath. Like McGrath, he prides himself on line and length bowling and uses his height to his advantage to trouble the batsman. The pacer has also taken over McGrath's old gig on a Sydney radio station, but says he is still his own man. ''You always want to be your own man but we do similar things in the game,'' Clark said. ''I'll just be out there doing my best.'' India is scheduled to play four Test and a tri-series, featuring the host and Sri Lanka. They will also play a one-off Twenty20 match against the Aussies. The first Test starts from 26th in Melbourne, followed by a Test here on second January. The third and fourth Test will start from January 16th and 24th in Perth and Melbourne respectively. The one-off Twenty20 match between India and Australia will be held in February first at Melbourne Cricket Ground. The ODI tri-series will starts from February 10th (Australia and India) at Melbourne Cricket Ground followed by February 12th (India and Sri Lanka) Manuka Oval; February 17th (Australia and India) Adelaide Oval; February 19th (India and Sri Lanka) Adelaide Oval; February 24th (Australia and India)
Sydney Cricket Ground; February 26th (India and Sri Lanka) Bellerive Oval.
— UNI
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Brett Lee promises to make amends
Melbourne, October 26 In the 2003-04 series which ended in a 1-1 draw, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Sourav Ganguly and Virender Sehwag averaged more than 50 runs. Lee was thrust into the role of the leader of the bowling attack in the absence of Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne but his two Tests produced the unflattering return of eight wickets for 476 runs at a cost of 59.50 each. "I actually had forgotten about that until now, so thanks for bringing it up," Lee said when asked if revenge may motivate his efforts this summer. The fast bowler rated the Indian top order the biggest challenge to Australian bowlers, nominating the usual suspects and wicketkeeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni - "probably the hardest hitter of the ball I've ever seen in my life, a guy who can clear the pickets at will" - as the main threats. "They're great batsmen to bowl against and, if you want to improve your cricket, you always put yourself against the best and that's the Indian batsmen," Lee told 'The Age'. "We've definitely got our work cut out but we have got a great side," Lee said while acknowledging a huge hole at the heart of the Australian side this year. "In the hard Test matches, we've always thought we can turn to Glenn McGrath or turn to Shane Warne to try to take a wicket and actually get that breakthrough," he said. "But now we haven't got that. We are looking to guys like Stuey Clark or Mitchell Johnson, if he gets the opportunity, or Stuey MacGill, or whoever it might be," he said. While he backed away from expressing a firm preference on who should play as a third quick alongside himself and Stuart Clark, Lee suggested Queenslander Johnson deserved to be the favourite to make his Test debut against Sri Lanka at Brisbane on November 8. "Mitchell Johnson's been really, really impressive. He's been probably the bowler of the tour of the last South African and Indian series," Lee said. "When he's had his opportunity to bowl with the new ball, he's always done well." Despite being thrust into a leadership role by McGrath's retirement, Lee does not foresee his role changing. "I'm not going to go out there and try to be a different bowler. I'm out there trying to take wickets, to help the guys and try to bowl in partnerships," he said. Lee is pleased to be playing Test cricket for the first time since January. "Test match cricket is about a test of character, a test of courage. It's a test of a person's mental strength as well. It's not over in 20 overs, it's not over in 50 overs: this is about going out there and playing five days of solid cricket," Lee said.
— PTI
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Multan, October 26 South Africa easily chased down Pakistan's 230 for nine with 74 balls to spare to leave the series tied at 2-2 with the final game to be played in Lahore on Monday. Pollock, whose 90 was his highest score for South Africa, and Smith, who scored 81, put on a record partnership of 159 from 157 balls for the second wicket, surpassing the 155 by AB de Villiers and Jacques Kallis against Pakistan this year at Johannesburg. Both were out just three runs short of victory, pacer Rao Iftikhar having them caught in the deep in successive overs.
— Reuters Scoreboard Pakistan Hameed c Gibbs b Pollock 10 Afridi c Nel b Ntini 0 Y. Khan c Gibbs b Nel 82 M. Yousuf run out 5 S. Malik c Smith b Kallis 45 Misbah c Boucher b Nel 7 Akmal c Pollock b Botha 28 Rehman b Morkel 31 Iftikhar not out 2 Gul c Ntini b Botha 1 Asif not out 0 Extras
(lb-13, w-5, nb-1) 19 Total (9 wickets, 50 overs) 230 Fall of wickets:
1-2, 2-20, 3-38, 4-129, 5-158, 6-159, 7-219, 8-227, 9-229 Bowling:
Shaun Pollock 10-0-37-1 (1-w), Makhaya Ntini 10-0-26-1, Albie Morkel 10-0-54-1 (4-w), Andre Nel 9-0-44-2 (1-nb), Johan Botha 8-0-41-2, Jacques Kallis 3-0-15-1 South Africa Smith c Rehman b Iftikhar 81 Gibbs lbw Afridi 39 Pollock c Malik b Iftikhar 90 Kallis not out 6 AB de Villiers not out 1 Extras
(lb-8, w-5, nb-3) 16 Total (3 wickets, 37.4 overs) 233 Fall of wickets:
1-65, 2-224, 3-228 Bowling: Asif 8-0-64-0, Umar Gul 5-0-52-0, Rao Iftkhar 5.4-0-27-2, Afridi 9-0-43-1, Abdul Rehman 10-0-39-0 Man of the match:
Shaun Pollock
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Chance for Shoaib to silence critics: Ashraf
Lahore, October 26 ''I hope that Shoaib will be a changed man on the tour of India,'' said the PCB chief. ''It is his last chance and we all hope that this time he would not waste it.'' Hoping that Shoaib will play a major role in the Indian tour, Ashraf said it will be a great chance for the bowler to silence his critics. ''Shoaib has a role to play for Pakistan,'' he said. ''He also has a point to prove and should give his best to silence his critics who believe he is spent force.''
— UNI
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Akhtar recalled
Multan, October 26 The squad will leave for India on November 1 and play the first match at Guwahati on November 5. Pakistan will also play three Tests, the team for which will be announced later. Squad: Shoaib Malik (capt), Shahid Afridi, Salman Butt, Imran Nazir, Yasir Hameed, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul-Haq, Fawad Alam, Kamran Akmal, Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Asif, Umar Gul, Rao Iftikhar, Sohail Tanvir, Abdul Rehman.
— PTI
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World Boxing Championships
Chicago, October 26 While Jitender Kumar (51kg), Jai Bhagwan (60kg) and Dilbag Singh (69kg) lit up the day for the Indian team with their dominating performances, Balbir Singh (48kg) and Jasveer Singh (81kg) bit the dust in the opening round of the first qualifying event for next year's Beijing Olympics. Fiery Haryana lad Jitender overcame Moldova's Igori Samoilenco in the flyweight category. The Indian held a slender two-point lead over Samoilenco in the first round and built on it in the next three to come through 20-14. The next Indian to take the ring was Dilbag, and the 26-year-old had little trouble in making his first move towards Olympic qualification registering a comfortable 13-5 victory over Lithuania's Roman Skerlo. In the second round, Dilbag will square off against Serb Zoran Mitrovic on October 28. Mitrovic defeated England's Neil Perkins 17-12. Jai Bhagwan then made it three wins in a row for India as he thrashed Bahamas' Valertino Knowles 35-12. It was a superb performance by Bhagwan, who collected 21 points in the second and third round to beat the daylights out of his opponent. However, Balbir was hardly a match for his Kazakh opponent Birzham Zhakypov in the lightfly weight category. The Central Asian led from start to finish in ousting the Indian 27-11. Indians rounded off the day on a disappointing note with Jasveer crashing out in the light heavyweight category. Five of the eight Indian boxers sent for the championships are now in the second round after Doha Asian Games silver medallist Vijender (75kg) and A L lakra (57kg) advanced on Wednesday. Making the quarterfinals of the showpiece event would be enough to secure a berth in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
— PTI
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Was the event stage managed?
Ludhiana, October 26 For the press conference that was scheduled at 2.30 pm, Nikita arrived at the hall along with another wrestler at around 3 pm. The two kept sitting there for over 20 minutes and went out after which the entire team marked their entry. As soon as they got seated, photo journalists were at work during which they were asked to get aside. As the photographers got aside, one of the organisers read out that the wrestling championship was cancelled. It was during this speech that the Russian wrestler Nikita started fuming. He challenged those present there to fight with him and as pin drop silence prevailed in the hall, Nikita threw his coat and took out his shirt. Even after this, when the audience merely watched him in disbelief, he started using abusive language, something that is quite a routine with these wrestlers, as all the viewers of wrestling matches would know. Not only the fact that he did not have a reason to vent his ire on the media goes in support of an absence of genuine-ness of the entire episode, Tiger Jit Singh, the Indian wrestler, while talking to mediapersons said, “It was just five minutes prior to the conference that they learnt of the cancellation. He is off-balance due to it,” said Tiger. However, that does not seem to hold any good particularly as the organisers had decided to call a press conference to announce the postponement of the event a couple of hours earlier. Besides, a press note was also handed over to the media, something that could not have been done in five minutes. Further, after the Russian wrestler’s tiff with Tiger Jit Singh, Nikita was seen sipping coke and relaxing soon after the episode. Nikita’s action might not have managed to check accrual of losses due to the postponement, but it definitely gave them heavy news publicity in electronic and print media.
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Russian wrestler Nikita booked
Ludhiana, October 26 “The wrestler has been asked not to leave the country and investigations have begun," said SSP R.K. Jaiswal. On a complaint by Sunil Jain, who represented a group of journalists, the police registered a case against Nikita and organisers M.P. Singh and Grewal for getting violent and hurting sentiments. After the cancellation of the wrestling championship, Nikita got agitated during the press conference here yesterday. Taking a strong note of yesterday’s incident, mediapersons lodged a complaint. Today, in a meeting with journalists, the SSP also criticised the incident and ordered the registration of an FIR. Talking to The Tribune over the phone, M.P. Singh, one of the organisers, said, "We are quite upset that the event has been postponed." Refusing to comment on the payment to wrestlers and losses due to cancellation, he said, "We have already started refunding the money and it would be done by November 10." When asked about the reasons for the cancellation, he refused to furnish details but said, "Clearances were definitely a reason. There were technical problems as well."
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Kroos sees Bayern home
London, October 26 Kroos, a 17-year-old midfielder, scored with a free-kick after Miroslav Klose had twice equalised for Bayern
Munich. Bayern is one of the favourites to win the UEFA Cup, which it claimed in 1996. But after that trophy, the four-time European champion played in the European Champions League for 10 straight seasons and only dropped into Europe's No 2 competition because it finished fourth in the German league last
season. Also winning yesterday were Panathinaikos, Everton, Anderlecht, Bordeaux, FC Zurich, Hamburger
SV, Bayer Leverkusen, FC Basel and Everton. Atletico drew 3-3 at Lokomotiv Moscow and Villareal drew 1-1 with
Fiorentina. Tottenham lost at home to Getafe 2-1 -- with manager Martin Jol resigning just before the match after a dismal start to the Premier League season. Red Star led in the 16th minute with a low shot from Ognjen
Koroman, and Nenad Milijas put the Serbian side ahead 2-1 in the 74th minute with a long-range half-volley. Klose equalised in the 84th with a header and also scored in the 20th from a rebound. Red Star defender Milos Bajalica was red-carded in injury time and Kroos scored from the resulting free
kick. Bayern, playing without Martin Demichelis, Franck Ribery, Luca Toni and Daniel van
Buyten, had difficulty controlling the game on the slippery and difficult field at the Red Star
stadium. — AP
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National Open Athletics
Jamshedpur, October 26 The Best Athletics award for men's, however, went to Babu Bhai of Services, who created a national record in 20,000m walk, while star athlete Sinimole Paulose of Tata Athletics Academy, who represented Steel Plant Sports Board (SPSB) walked with Best Woman Athletics award for clinching gold in the women's 1500m race. Railway athletes maintained their winning streak on the final day also as long distance runner Preeja Sreedharan set up national meet record in the 5000m run clocking 15:45:96 eclipsing Sunita Rani's record (16:00:98) in the 1999 Bhopal meet. This was the second gold for the Kerala girl, who also annexed gold in the 1000 m run on the opening day of the meet. Railways girls O.P. Jaisha and Kavita Raut also bagged silver and bronze in this event clocking 16:01:15 and 16:09:49 seconds respectively. In the men's triple jump, Railways’ Amarjeet Singh created a national meet record covering 16.53 m. The 24-year-old Punjab lad bettered the national (17.04 m) and meet record (16.39 m) holder R Maheshwari's feat, who came second with 16.14m. Bibu Mathew of Services got bronze with a jump of 16.12 m.
— UNI
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Eves face Iran today
New Delhi, October 26 The Indians won the home leg at Gurgaon 3-1 on October 20 but the Iranian girls gave ample indication that they were not to be taken lightly despite being recent entrants in international women's football. Women's football in Iran is only a year-and-a-half old, compared to a 70-year-old tradition for the men. The West Asian team even took the lead in the eighth minute through Fereshteh Karimi but goals from Oinam Bembem Devi (14th), Bala Devi Ngangom (28th) and Lalvarmoi Hmar (78th) ensured that India will take a healthy advantage to the Iranian capital. Coach Premkanta Singh would be hoping that they find the target again. Iran, coached by Chinese Xinfeng Zhou, gave the Indians a lot of trouble because of their strength and superior height and they would be more confident of putting up a bigger fight in front of their home supporters. In Gurgaon also, the vociferous shouting and chanting by the Iranian Embassy staff and students of Jawaharlal Nehru University and Jamia Millia Islamia made it seem a home match for the visitors. Playing with their head scarves and long sleeved jerseys and pants, the Iranian team provided a altogether unique experience on the football pitch. The match in Teheran will be witnessed by women only as men are barred from watching these games. The women too are not allowed in stadiums to watch the men's team play.
— PTI
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Rashid wins NCR Cup
New Delhi, October 26 Rashid sustained his form to have an overall seven-under 281 which gave him a five-shot lead over 20-year-old Aditya Singh, also from Delhi. With the greens playing fast and true, Rashid began well, with a birdie on his opening hole, followed by three consecutive birdies on the fifth, sixth and seventh holes. On the return journey, Rashid birdied in the 12th and 15th before signing off in style with yet another birdie on the 18th hole, which made light of his bogey on the 13th. The NCR Cup win helped him annex the Delhi state champion title as well.
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Ahmedabad, October 26
Mind games have begun even before a single ball has been bowled in the upcoming India's tour of Australia, later this year, with lanky fast bowler Stuart Clark already predicting a 4-0 series whitewash.
