Colombo, August 25
Having put the pressure on the hosts with two consecutive wins, India is likely to retain the winning combination when they go into the fourth cricket one dayer against Sri Lanka here tomorrow seeking to clinch the series by taking an unassailable 3-1 lead.

After being thrashed in the first match in Dambulla, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his young bravehearts have tilted the scale in their favour with two close wins and need just one more triumph to record a rare overseas series win.

Although the Indians have been quite sloppy on the field with a number of dropped catches, the two victories will no doubt serve as a morale booster as they gear up for another floodlit contest at the R Premadasa stadium.

The islanders, on the other hand, have no option but to win the game tomorrow to stay afloat in the five-match series.

The track at the Premadasa stadium did provide some assistance to the bowlers which means that the game could turn out to be another low-scoring affair.

The two rival captains - Dhoni and Mahela Jayawardene - did prove that batting was not all that difficult on this pitch with heroic knocks and it remains to be seen whether the other batsmen show the necessary application.

Dhoni had won the important toss in the last two games and may again opt to bat first, when the wicket is at its best, if luck favours him again.

The visitors would need to work on taking catches under lights in case they have to field second, besides avoiding needless run outs.

The Indian team had a good practice session at the nets today trying to plug the gaps ahead of the match in which Sri Lankans are expected to come out with all guns blazing to equalise the series before going for the final on Friday.

Though there were contributions from a few batsmen to take India to a challenging total of 237 in the third match, the Indian camp is worried about Yuvraj Singh's form.

Yuvraj Singh was promoted in the batting order in the last game so that he could settle down before Sri Lankan skipper Jayawardene introduced the vicious spinners, but it did not work.

Despite his heroic effort in guiding India to a decent total by scoring a precious 76 runs, Dhoni attributed the victory to team effort and said he would prefer it this way in the coming matches as well. India's batting reputation has been at stake from the very beginning after they had failed to read Mendis and Muraltharan.

Barring Gautam Gambhir, who advised his team mates to read the mystery bowler's finger, none of them could gauge Mendis.

The Indian captain has adopted a positive approach of trying to take on the Sri Lankan bowlers head on and to score the maximum runs.

Though the toss has proved to be vital in the first three ODI's, nevertheless the Indian team is working hard to be able to face greater pressure.

Dhoni will also depend a great deal on the part time spinners Like Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the absence of Virender Sehwag to substitute for the fifth specialist bowler. — PTI

Colombo, August 25
Indians must get on the top of their Sri Lankan nemesis Ajantha Mendis by punishing him for his bad deliveries to bring him under pressure, says Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

"It is more about him (Mendis). If he bowls a bad ball then punish him and build up pressure on him. If you continue to defend him then you know he will also be on top," Dhoni said.

"It is very important that whenever he bowled a bad bowl we will get runs out of them so that you know he (Mendis) gets under a bit of pressure," Dhoni said after winning the match by 33 runs to take 2-1 lead in the five-match series.

"I think S Badri(nath)'s effort was great. He took on Mendis. He went for a big shot but that is what you need to do at times to put some pressure on the bowler. Till now he (Mendis) was never under any sort of pressure. So he was bowling at his best," he added.

His match-winning 76-run knock notwithstanding, Dhoni said India won the third one-dayer here because of a team effort with no body having a bad day and would prefer it this way in the coming matches as well.

"It is better to have a contributory effort while winning a match but we are not relying on one individual," he said.

"If you will have the privilege of getting individual performances like Zaheer played well in the last match. In this match also he has bowled well. But it is always better to win in the sense when it is a team effort and every one enjoys. No body had a bad day. It is good overall if we can continue to do this way," he added.

But Dhoni admitted India should have scored more runs especially with seven batsmen. — PTI

Melbourne, August 25
In a shocking revelation, former England opener Marcus Trescothik has admitted that during the 2005 Ashes series he has used an an artificial substance to shine the ball.

Trescothik in his recently published autobiography, "Coming Back to Me" wrote that the secret behind pacers Andrew Flintoff and Simon Jones' virtually unplayable reverse swing deliveries during the series was a special brand of mints, 'Murray Mints'.

"I was firmly established as the man in charge of looking after the ball when we were fielding," Trescothik was quoted as saying by "The Australian" in his autobiography.

"It was my job to keep the shine on the new ball for as long as possible with a bit of spit and a lot of polish. And through trial and error I finally settled on type of spit for the task at hand," he added.

During the 2005 Ashes, the English pacers’ ability to reverse the ball early in the innings led to the downfall of the Australian top order. Jones and Flintoff regularly swung the ball in the first 20 overs, which ultimately played a vital role in England's triumph over Australia.

Trescothick, who retired from international cricket earlier this year, wrote that he experimented with mints until he found the right brand.

"It had been common knowledge in county cricket for some time that certain sweets produced saliva which, when applied to the ball for cleaning purposes, enabled it to keep its shine for longer and, therefore, its swing.

"I had a go at Murray Mints and found they worked a treat," he said.

Incidentally, it was not the first time that Trescothik adopted unfair means to shine the ball. The left-hander also used mints during the 2001 Ashes and narrowly escaped during the Headingley Test.

"For the first time, as I dived to gather the ball at square-leg, I landed on my side and a shower of Murray Mints spewed out of my trouser pocket all over the grass right in front of the umpire," he wrote.

"Fortunately neither he nor the two batsmen seemed to take much notice as I scrambled around on all fours trying desperately to gather in the sweets before they started asking awkward questions.''

The ICC laws strictly prohibits the usage of artificial substance on the surface of the ball and considers the act against the spirit of the game.

Karachi, August 25
ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat today dismissed suggestions that relocation of the Champions Trophy from Pakistan to some other country would have led to a divide among the member boards.

Lorgat said the decision to postpone the event, which was to be held in Pakistan from September 12, was unanimous and it was not taken because of any fears of any divide in the ICC.

"All this (division/split in ICC) is far from the truth. There were never such indications of racism at any position.

He also insisted that Pakistan will be the host of the tournament and that every member has supported the decision.

"The PCB will retain the hosting rights and we will attend to see what happens with safety and security and if that doesn't satisfy the ICC we will make a decision to host it elsewhere with Pakistan stripping the hosting rights," Lorgat added. — PTI

London, August 25
Riding a wave of sporting euphoria after its best Olympic performance in a century, Britain accepted Olympic host-nation status from China with a huge street party in front of Buckingham Palace.

As the Beijing games closed yesterday in a spectacular explosion of fireworks, London throbbed with 40,000 partygoers at a live concert to start the countdown to the London 2012 Olympics.

The event centred on The Mall, the ceremonial route to the palace used for royal processions and celebrations, which was lined yesterday with red, white and blue Union Jack flags.

London Mayor Boris Johnson promised a ''fantabulous Olympics'' in the British capital in 2012 as he accepted the Olympic Flag in Beijing in a live television link-up.

In a statement issued in London, the mayor promised Britons would ''draw on our wit, flair, imagination and ingenuity'' to deliver the 2012 Games in ''the home of sport''.

''Sport is coming home,'' he said. ''See you in London!''

More than 400 flags were raised across Britain to mark the countdown - from Land's End, the tip of southwest England, to the northernmost Unst island, off the Scottish coast - and BBC television started an on-screen countdown clock showing 1,433 days to go.

Britain won 19 gold medals at the Beijing Olympics and came fourth in the medals table, a vast improvement on its 2004 performance in Athens, where British athletes won nine golds.

Britain's best Olympics performance for a century has thrilled the nation and reignited interest in the 2012 Games after grumbling about the high cost of staging them.— Reuters 

Madrid, August 25
Coach Bernd Schuster insists Real Madrid will not be resting on their laurels after his side pulled off a thrilling comeback with only nine men to defeat Valencia in the Spanish Super Cup. The Primera Liga champions came from behind, shrugging off red cards for Dutch duo Rafael van der Vaart and Ruud van Nistelrooy, to beat the King’s Cup holders 4-2 at the Bernabeu, winning the season curtain-raiser 6-5 on aggregate.

However, with just a week remaining before the summer transfer window closes and the future of unsettled Brazil forward Robinho still uncertain, Schuster warned against complacency. “This kind of game doesn’t happen very often. It’s the first time I have experienced anything like this as a player or a coach,” the German said after yesterday’s match.

“But we aren’t going to stop looking (for new signings) because of this win.” Robinho, who has disrupted Real’s plans ahead of the new campaign by saying he wants to join Chelsea, was included in the squad but spent his time on the bench sheltering from the whistles and jeers of the home fans. “The situation isn't comfortable for him or the club,” Schuster added.

“It was my decision not to play him. He continues to be included in the side because we need to see what’s going to happen. We hope that he will end up with us for next season.”

Real have said they will not negotiate with Chelsea, who British media report have tabled a £19.7 million bid for the 24-year-old. — Reuters 

Sirsa, August 25
Megha Bhardwaj, a young promising boxer, who has played at the junior national-level, has been fighting against cancer for the last one-and-a-half year.

Her father Dinesh Bhardwaj, who worked with a private company, had to leave his job to ensure his daughter’s regular treatment at the Sawai Man Singh Hospital, Jaipur. Bhardwaj has already sold a residential plot he had purchased for constructing his house, as well as the gold jewellery of his wife Meenu Bhardwaj for the costly treatment of his daughter, but there seems no end to his sufferings.

Repeated requests to the authorities to provide some financial assistance from the District Red Cross or the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund have failed to yield any results. She had come back after playing the national juniors in April 2007, when she noticed a small tumour on her thigh. Soon it increased and when consulted, doctors suspected it could be cancer. Ever since, life has been a arduous journey.

“After the birth of my two daughters, the idea of a son never came to my mind. Megha was more than a son to me. Now it’s her condition that pains me, not the financial constraints. Doctors say they can treat her for the time being, but they cannot find a cure,” says Dinesh. But, despite all odds, Megha has not given up and the indomitable spirit in her refuses to die.

BRIEFLY

Hayden to miss B’desh ODI series
BRISBANE: Opening batsman Matthew Hayden will miss Australia’s limited overs cricket series against Bangladesh starting Saturday because of an Achilles tendon injury. Australian team medical staff made a decision on Monday to rest Hayden for the three match series in the northern city of Darwin to allow him to continue rehabilitation at his home in Brisbane. Hayden aims to be fit for Australia’s next major assignment, a four-test tour of India. The Australian team, minus Hayden, injured captain Ricky Ponting and fast bowler Brett Lee who has been granted time off after the break up of his marriage, assembled in Brisbane on Monday for a two-day camp before heading to Darwin. Michael Clarke will lead the team in Ponting’s absence. — AP

What more can I do? Asks Chopra
NEW DELHI: Breaking his prolonged silence over selectors’ indifference towards him, India’s highest run-getter in 2007-08 domestic season, Aakash Chopra on Monday said he was disappointed and clueless why he was ignored for the upcoming home series between India ‘A’ and Australia ‘A’. The Delhi opener, who scored 1,339 runs at 60.86 to become the highest scorer in previous first-class season as well as the fourth highest scorer ever, said he did not know what more he could have done to secure a place in the team. “I have proven myself against Australia in the past and was looking forward to play against them (Australia A). But I have absolutely no clue what could be the reason for not picking me after being in the loop and being called up for the camp (in Bangalore),” Chopra said. — PTI

China used chemicals to prevent thunderstorms
BEIJING: Chinese meteorologists fired rockets and flew planes with rain dispersal material to ensure that thunderstorms did not dampen the dazzling closing ceremony of the 2008 Olympics here. Thunderstorms had threatened the closing ceremony of the Beijing Olympics last night, but planes spreading rain dispersal materials were dispatched and rockets were fired to ensure that no rain fell during the ceremony, Chinese met officials said on Monday. “Rain clouds from Hebei and Inner Mongolia had started to move towards the capital city at 2 p.m.,” said Guo Hu, head of the Beijing Observatory. “Moisture in the air was at a higher level than at the time before the opening ceremony and would more easily develop into convective clouds,” said Zhang Qiang, from the Beijing Weather Modification Office. — PTI

Gaurav wins Indonesia APRC Rally
NEW DELHI: Indian driver Gaurav Gill has won the 2008 Rally of Indonesia by nearly two minutes with his Mitsubishi team-mate Katsu Taguchi finishing second. After being 4.5 seconds of taking the lead Cody Crocker slipped to third with a puncture on Stage 12. The first three stages of day two were a great battle between Taguchi, Gill and Crocker. Taguchi was fastest of the three drivers over the three stages, but Gill managed to hold the gap to Crocker to 4.5 seconds heading back to mid-day service. On Stage 12 it was Crocker’s turn to have a puncture dropping the Australian to third, two minutes behind Taguchi. With only two stages to run Gill was uncatchable and went on to win his first major international rally. — UNI

Vijay Singh wins Barclays title
PARAMUS: Vijay Singh of Fiji won his fourth Barclays Classic title after beating Spain’s Sergio Garcia and American Kevin Sutherland in a playoff. Singh birdied both playoff holes at Ridgewood Country Club on the way to snaring the title. A three-times winner of the event when it was played across the Hudson River at Westchester Country Club, Singh matched Garcia’s birdie on the first playoff hole (18th) while Sutherland was eliminated. Singh then birdied the par-five 17th to close out world number four Garcia, who hit his tee shot into the left rough, punched out into the right rough and narrowly missed a birdie chip. “I convinced myself I’m the best putter in the world,” said Singh. “I came out here with a different attitude, and I putted great this week.” The three players finished locked at eight-under 276, a shot better than Australian Mathew Goggin, 2003 British Open winner Ben Curtis and his fellow-American Kevin Streelman, the overnight leader. — Reuters