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Symonds, umpires rescue Aussies
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Yes, I was out: Symonds
BCCI asks team to lodge protest
Success due to Nielsen: RP
Mohali venue for Test against Oz
Ranatunga for more India-Lanka Tests
Sultans edge past Warriors, enter semis
Come good on word, Kashmir asks IOA
Indian National play draw
Soccer trials
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Symonds, umpires rescue Aussies
Sydney, January 2 Indeed, there could still be enough “juice” in the pitch as Indian captain Anil Kumble put it at the toss when India bat to enthuse Brett Lee, who is a yard faster than his Indian counterparts. Andrew Symonds, with an unbeaten 137 - his second Test hundred - and a 173-run partnership with Bradley Hogg - a record for the 7th wicket at the SCG - dramatically transformed proceedings. The former was 30 when umpire Steve Bucknor failed to detect a thick outside edge to the wicket-keeper off Ishant Sharma, who replaced Zaheer Khan, rendered hors de combat with a troublesome heel. The 19-year-old Sharma was, in fact, the only specialist Indian bowler not to concede more than four runs an over. Rudra Pratap (RP) Singh’s four wickets came at a cost of more than five runs an over, while both Kumble and Harbhajan Singh were carted for more than four an over on a fast outfield, left unwatered at India’s request. The SCG is a priceless piece of real estate, where a Victorian style pavilion and members’ and ladies’ galleries blend with modern architecture, still expanding, as stands where there used to be a hillock now rising to a second tier. The new ball swung while moisture evaporated off a grassy wicket; and while the seam was still prominent, also spun. RP and Harbhajan, thus, caused havoc, before the hosts retaliated. Phil Jaques was late in executing an upper cut; but there was no luck involved in RP’s second breakthrough of the morning, when he squared up the formidable Mathew Hayden with an outswinger that left him from off-stump. India were disappointed when Ricky Ponting was reprieved by umpire Mark Benson after he glanced a Sourav Ganguly inswinger to the wicket-keeper. But they were elated when he was adjudged the Australian skipper leg before wicket off another nick. Pulling, cover driving off the back foot and hooking RP for fours in one over - the second of which signalled his 50 - Ponting was threatening to dominate when Harbhajan claimed him for the 7th time in 11 innings of bowling to him. Thereafter, Mike Hussey, after some exquisite cover drives off the front foot at the expense of RP, was indecisive against the same bowler to snick to slip, while Michael Clarke padded up to Harbhajan anticipating a doosra, before Sachin Tendulkar clasped a third catch at 1st slip to reward RP with the prized scalp of Adam Gilchrist. Australia declined from 119 for two to 134 for six, but that’s where the Indian advance was rudely terminated. With the ball losing it shine and the wicket drying out, Symonds and Hogg, who has four first-class centuries, inexorably turned the tide. The latter counter punched with a flurry of cuts and drives through the covers and mid-off, taking advantage of a single-stopping field. His half-century erupted off 57 balls, as compared to Symonds’ in 77. The first ball after tea, Hogg chopped RP to thirdman for four to reach his maiden Test 50. However, by the time he departed caught at slip for a chanceless 79, Symonds had raced through his second 50 off a mere 51 balls to complete his century. Typically, he drove Harbhajan with minimal backlift to long on and midwicket for two effortless sixes. When on 48, Symonds was beaten by leg-spinner from Kumble and Mahendra Dhoni removed the bails in a flash; but this stumping, too, was disallowed by the TV umpire Bruce
Oxenford. Scoreboard Australia (1st Innings): Jacques c Dhoni b RP Singh 0 Hayden c Tendulkar b RP Singh 13 Ponting lbw b Harbhajan 55 Hussey c Tendulkar Clarke lbw b Harbhajan 1 Symonds batting 137 Gilchrist c Tendulkar b RP Singh 7 Hogg c Dravid b A Kumble 79 Lee batting 31 Extras (b-2, w-3, lb-4 nb-3): 12 Total (for 7 wkts, 89 overs): 376 Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-27, 3-119, 4-119, 5-121, 6-134, 7-307. Bowling: RP Singh 21-3-108-4, Ishant Sharma 17-2-65-0, Sourav Ganguly 6-1-13-0, Harbhajan Singh 20-2-88-2, Anil Kumble 20-0-82-1, Sachin Tendulkar 5-0-14-0.
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Yes, I was out: Symonds
Sydney, January 2 Australia were gasping for breath at 134 for six when Symonds (137 not out) joined hands with Brad Hogg (79) to steady the rocking boat and some poor umpiring decisions only helped their cause. "I was out when I was 30," Symonds admitted without batting an eyelid after his century took Australia to 376 for seven at the SCG today. Symonds was given at least one life early in his innings when he edged Ishant, still 70 runs short of his second Test century. As Indian cricketers agonised over the decision, Bucknor remained unmoved. Symonds had another reprieve on a stumping chance before making good with a 173-run record stand with Hogg to bail his side out. "I was very lucky. I was out when I was 30 and given not out," Symonds said. "That's cricket though. I could sit here and tell you about some bad decisions as well. That's the game. It's one of those things." But on a day where the howlers weren't confined to Symonds' dig - Ricky Ponting was given not out by Mark Benson on 17 when out caught behind and then sent packing lbw on 57 when clearly not out - umpiring standards and the use of technology became a hot topic. Former Test players Steve Waugh and Ian Healy suggested changes might be necessary to shake up an under-performing group of world umpires but Symonds said he'd be reluctant to tinker with the game in the form of constant TV replays and referrals. "I don't think the game needs to go to the point of every decision gets referred," the Queenslander said. "Let's not push and prod it and poke it too much, I think it's a pretty good game. It's a great game. "People make mistakes, players makes mistakes every day. Umpires make mistakes too, it's how you handle them and how you keep going when that mistake has been made," he said. Waugh said he thought "four obvious errors in one day...is poor concentration" and called for the neutral umpire system to be scrapped to allow the homegrown world's best official Simon Taufel to stand in Australian Tests. Healy said he thought the "captain's challenge" concept might be worth looking at again as a way to harness available technologies and give players a chance to dispute an umpire's call. "So an umpire wouldn't have that feeling in his heart that he'd wrecked a Test," Healy said on Channel Nine. Ultimately, Symonds' admission will be small consolation to the Indians, who started the day with aggressive inroads into Australia's batting line up but finished it on the back foot. India's two bowlers RP Singh and Harbhajan Singh had put the side on top before the rescue act was staged. "Australian teams have always prided themselves on being able to fight back and having that mental toughness. This team is no different," Symonds said. Symonds said that a total of 400 on the present SCG pitch could test out the Indians. A Channel Nine spokesman said yesterday the use of their array of technology - the snickometer, Hawkeye and the Hot Spot - would currently see the game halted for at least a minute to be formatted and presented to an umpire. A technical glitch could see the match held up for several minutes. Like Ponting, players have mostly expressed resistance to the concept of time-wasting technology in the game. — PTI
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BCCI asks team to lodge protest Mumbai, January 2 "We have asked our team management to lodge a protest to the ICC match referee against the wrong umpiring decisions made today by Steve Bucknor. The wrong decisions made by Bucknor have been commented upon by all cricketers and analysts alike," said BCCI vice-president Rajiv Shukla. "I am sure the International Cricket Council will be monitoring the matter in Dubai and take appropriate actions," Shukla said. Australian batsman Andrew Symonds was caught by MS Dhoni off Ishant Sharma when on 30 but to the horror of the Indian team, Bucknor decided he was not out. Symonds went on to score an unbeaten 137 to spearhead a great recovery after the hosts were tottering at 134 for six at one stage. Symonds was also given another 'life' by third umpire Bruce Oxenford who ruled him not out when he was stumped by Dhoni off Anil Kumble a little later. — PTI
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Sydney, January 2 A couple of years ago, R P Singh had a 45-day stint at the Australian Cricket Academy (ACA) where Nielsen was the head coach at that time. "I went to the cricket academy when Tim Nielsen was the head coach and he told me about Australian conditions," R P Singh said at the press conference after the first day's play, in which he took four wickets. "I learned a lot. I spent almost 45 days there," he recalled. Looking back at the opening day's play which ended with Australia at a comfortable 376 for seven, the 22-year-old bowler admitted that his side had not bargained for the batting ability of Brad Hogg who made 79. "We hadn't thought that he could bat so well. He surprised us," he said. Hogg and Andrew Symonds, who struck an unbeaten hundred, teamed up to build a 173-run seventh wicket stand to pull Australia out of trouble after they had been reduced to 134 for 6. RP Singh commended the two Australian batsmen and said both of them "hit pretty hard." He admitted that Zaheer's absence made him a bit nervous at the start of the proceedings. "I was a bit disappointed when I got the news Zaheer was not playing because of his injury," Singh said. "I was a bit nervous because Zaheer's a great player but then I talked to my coaches." The left-arm pacer dodged queries on the poor umpiring, which hit the Indians hard today and expressed confidence that the visitors would be able to take advantage of the good batting conditions. "There's still three more wickets to go, but I think the wicket's still pretty slow and we have a great batting lineup," he said. "I think it's going to be a better batting wicket tomorrow because the wicket is now slow," he added. — PTI
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Mohali venue for Test against Oz Mumbai, January 2 The other two matches in the March-April rubber will be held at Ahmedabad and Chennai, BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah said after the Board's Tours Programmes and Fixtures Committee meeting chaired by president-elect Shashank Manohar. Green Park, a permanent Test venue, hosted a Test match in November, 2004 against Australia but did not host another because of a dispute with the state government. Matters got resolved and the half-a-century old Test venue hosted a ODI during the last visit by Pakistan, on November 11, 2007. It will now play host to a Test match against South Africa again. The committee also decided that Bangalore, Nagpur, Delhi and Mohali will be the venues for the four-Test series against Australia to be held in October-November. — PTI
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Steyn, Ntini put S. Africa on top
Cape Town, January 2 West Indies, who won the toss and chose to bat despite cloudy skies, were 240 for eight at the close. Steyn took four for 60 and Ntini claimed two for 63 to undo much of the good work of Marlon Samuels and Shivnarine Chanderpaul who completed a stand of 106 after West Indies slumped to 77 for three before lunch. Samuels scored 51 and Chanderpaul was 64 not out at stumps.
— Reuters Scoreboard West Indies (1st innings) Gayle c McKenzie b Nel 46 Ganga c Boucher b Steyn 3 Morton c Ntini b Kallis 23 Samuels c Boucher b Ntini 51 Chanderpaul not out 64 Bravo c Kallis b Ntini 0 Ramdin lbw Steyn 21 Lewis b Steyn 0 Taylor c and b Steyn 8 Powell not out 0 Extras
(b-5, lb-10, nb-8, w-1) 24 Total (8 wkts, 89 overs) 240 Fall of wickets:
1-12, 2-71, 3-77, 4-183, 5-185, 6-220, 7-220, 8-237. Bowling: Steyn 20-5-60-4, Ntini 21-6-63-2, Nel 20-5-58-1, Kallis 9-1-11-1, Harris 19-5-33-0.
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Ranatunga for more India-Lanka Tests
Colombo, January 2 "I have just taken over. I am going to hold a meeting with the CEO OF SLC Duleep Mendis and other officials and work out the possibility of having regular exchange programmes regarding cricket matches with India," Ranatunga told PTI. He said it will be on the lines of regular cricket fixtures that India has with Australia and Pakistan. The 44-year-old Ranatunga said he was keen that the two Asian nations play regular Test matches. He said after discussing the matter with the cricket board officials of the Island country on the programme he will hold talks with the BCCI officials and put forth the views of the SLC.
— PTI
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Chennai Open Chennai, January 2 Defending champion Xavier Malisse of Belgium continued his impressive comeback from a long injury layoff, upstaging Austrian Jurgen Melzer 7-6, 6-2 to set up a third round clash with Youzhny. Unseeded Malisse, whose dream start to 2007 turned sour following a serious wrist injury that left him ranked 112th in the world, showed his class to oust the sixth seed. Fourth seed Youzhny, the world number 19, made a sluggish start and had to dig deep in the first set after his 97th ranked French rival raced to 5-0. The 25-year-old produced sublime tennis as he fought back, reeling off the next seven games and conceding just four points to his 24-year-old opponent. Roger-Vesselin still raised hopes of only his second win over a top-20 player as Youzhny's game again tailed off in the second set, only for the Russian to restore order in the decider. Malisse clinched a tight first set 7-3 in the tie-break. He then wore down left-handed Melzer, the world number 60, in the second set as the Austrian made desperate forays to the net. Other results (2nd round): Carlos Moya (Spain) beat Alexandre Koudriavtsev (Russia) 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-2; Florent Serra (France) beat Kristof Vliegen (Belgium) 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(3). — Reuters
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Sultans edge past Warriors, enter semis
Chandigarh, January 2 The Sultans remained at number three with 11 points after Chandigarh Dynamos and Bangalore Hi-Fliers (14 points) while the Warriors (seven points) got out of the fray with the defeat. Hyderabad started making attacks into the rivals’ circle from the word go. The forward line consisting of Sardar Singh, Deedar Singh and Johnson Ekka combined well to foray into the defence line of the Warriors many a time. The efforts bore fruit in the 14th minute when Johnson Ekka latched on the ball which was fumbled by custodian Adrian D’Souza from a shot by Sardar Singh. Ekka pushed the ball to net the winning solo goal in the 14th minute. In the second quarter, Warriors made an all out effort to produce the equaliser but all credit to young full back Samir Baxla and Diwakar Ram, who again rose to the occasion and countered all attacks of the rivals. Warriors’ custodian Oscar ter Weeme too put up a solid show manning the post. In the second quarter, Warriors controlled the proceedings but could not produce the required results. In the second quarter, a short corner came the way for the Sultans in the 26th minute but the chance was squandered. Even the three penalty corners (22nd, 27th and 62nd minutes), earned by Warriors, went a waste. All flicks off Dutch import Loijen Melchior were successfully blocked by the alert custodian of the Sultans. The team also could not capitalise on the opportunity when Sultans were reduced to 10 players as the umpire showed a yellow card to Sardar Singh in the 52nd minute. Oscar was declared the Man of the Match. Today’s match Orissa Steelers v Sher-e-Jalandhar at 6 pm.
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Come good on word, Kashmir asks IOA
Srinagar, January 2 When Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president Suresh Kalmadi had said here way back in year 2004 that Gulmarg could host Commonwealth Games, not many had attached much seriousness with his words. But a slew of positive turn of events has boosted the morale of the government, which has been encouraged into asking the IOA to come good on its president's words. First, the second phase has opened some of the world's best slopes for skiing to adventure sports enthusiasts and, its positive reviews by likes of Warren Miller, a noted filmmaker of ski and snowboarding movies, meant that there was no lack of confidence in its abilities. Sarmad Hafeez, joint director, Tourism, told The Tribune that other probable India destinations like Manali and Narkanda in Himachal Pradesh and Auli in Uttarakhand are "no patch on Gulmarg". "If there is one place most appropriate for winter sports chapter of Commonwealth games then it is Gulmarg," he said. A final decision, however, regarding the holding of winter sports version of Commonwealth Games is yet to be taken, local officials said. Though Gulmarg lacks quality hotels, its proximity to Srinagar, a 90 minute ride from there, will come handy, the joint director said, adding that the likely start of an international airport in Srinagar from this year would help them further. A long spell of insurgence in Kashmir has had a devastating effect on Gulmarg's prospects on the international map of winter sports, but things have starting turning around in the last few years. Officials said it hosted record 3000 foreigners, many of them adventure sports lovers, last year and the figure is expected to touch 10,000 this year. Warren Miller's movie, Off the grid, on Gulmarg, which highlighted its potential, gave it a further push in international market. Hafeez claimed that if they do get to host the international event, it has the potential to pitchfork Gulmar to the level of Whistler Blackombe, a famous Canadian town for skiing which attract lakhs of sports lovers every year. In terms of natural gifts, it has everything from best quality snow to adventurous slopes, he said. Infrastructure remained a problem, when Gulmarg is compared to its international rivals, but opportunity to host an international event like Commonwealth would boost work and much needed funds, he stressed.
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Indian National play draw
New Delhi, January 2 Indian National, packed with a number of seasoned players, started on a fast mode and took the lead in the sixth minute through inside-right Trilok Singh Bisht, who shot in a rebound. National consolidated their lead 16 minutes into the second half when Anthony seized a pass from the left flank to score.
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Soccer trials
Ludhiana, January 2 Boys born on or after January 1, 1988, are eligible for the trials. They must bring their date of birth certificates along. The Punjab team will be selected from these probables who will represent the state in the national championship slated to be held from February 1 to 17 at Madurai.
— OSR
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