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Chance to avenge ’04 loss: Bhajji
Comeback on cards?
Anand draws with Topalov, joint 5th
Vettel takes first pole for Toro Rosso
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Humpy crashes out
Bolt could have run 9.55 in Beijing
Ghosal storms into final of Ornano Open
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New Delhi, September 13 Whatmore, now Director (Cricket Operations) of the National Cricket Academy, Bangalore said Anil Kumble's boys should capitalise on the inexperienced Australian bowling to beat the world champions. "I think in the series they (India) are fairly fortunate. There is no Warne, no McGrath (in the Australian squad), that is over a 1000 wickets taken out. India have got advantage. Generally, speaking you would need everyone firing for Australia to win a Test match," he said. "The attack that's coming over is not as experienced as what has been. They (India) will enjoy that, they will capitalise on that, get enough runs, protect and bowl the opposition out twice," the Australian told cricketnirvana.com. He, though, had a word of caution and said India would do well if they allow their pace spearhead Brett Lee and captain Ricky Ponting little success. "(It) is an inexperienced side coming over. But even in this inexperienced team there are a couple of match-winners in Lee and Ponting. We cannot overlook that. "We can never write Ponting off. He has enough experience in the subcontinent. He has played enough in Pakistan, India, as well as Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in recent times. He has enough experience here to come along and start to play the ball not coming onto the bat as much as these guys like," said the 1996 world-cup winning coach. "The (Australian) bowling attack will be worked around Lee, no question about it. It is the spin attack that worries me from their view. Not sure they have decent spinners, they certainly have no experience in Indian conditions," Whatmore said. "The batting will centre around Ricky Ponting, but if their openers Phil Jaques and Matthew Hayden, don't give them a good start, it will be difficult for them to get a big total. At least good enough to defend themselves," he said. Whamore, who toured India in 1979 under Kim Hughes, feels that India-Australia series has also grown in stature comparable to the Ashes. "Ashes are played every second year once away and once at home. Maybe people are getting sick of all that ... overkill of all that. These fixtures between India and Australia are beginning to take more importance. Both sides are boasting some decent players and it is important to beat each other particularly in your home ground, so I think it is emerging to be pretty important series in the calendar of world cricket." — PTI
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Chance to avenge ’04 loss: Bhajji
Melbourne, September 13 With two rookie spinners in the touring Australian ranks and without the likes of Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Steve Waugh and Adam Gilchrist from the world-conquering squad of 2004, Harbhajan said India would look to amend their home 1-2 series loss that time. "If you compare the team that Steve Waugh came with to now, it is obviously a lot different. It is obviously a big advantage to us that players like Gilchrist, McGrath and Warne are not around this time. "The last time they were here they beat us, but I genuinely think that if we play to the level we're capable of, we can defeat them," the fiesty off-spinner told 'Sydney Morning Herald'. "They are still the number one ranked team in the world, and it is always a challenge to play them. But we think we have a very good chance, playing in our home conditions and with the crowd supporting us," added Harbhajan, who took 21 wickets from three matches in 2004. Harbhajan predicted a tough time for the rookie spinners Bryce McGain and Jason Krejza on slow sub-continental pitches and said Indian batsmen will have fun playing against them.
— PTI |
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Melbourne, September 13 "In my life I've learnt never to say never," Warne was quoted as saying by the 'Courier Mail'. "But at the moment I'm very happily retired and I'm very happy with my life," he said. Warne, who would turn 40 by next year's Ashes "If you look at the spinners at the moment in Australia he is the best," Warne said. "He has slowed his pace down and is spinning it beautifully. Being 36 is an advantage for him experience wise and he has basically played club cricket once a week for most of his career so his body isn't a worry. "I don't see it as a backwards step that Beau Casson is gone. This is a tour of India and they have really good players of spin and we don't want to ruin anyone," he added. McGain, who has played only 19 first-class matches and taken 57 wickets at 33, was yesterday named as Australia's frontline spinner for the arduous four-Test tour of India and will partner rookie Tasmanian off-spinner Jason Krejza in a 15-man squad. He is set to become Australia's oldest Test debutant in 24 years. Casson was overlooked because selectors did not feel his wristspin would suit Indian conditions. — PTI
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Anand draws with Topalov, joint 5th
Bilbao (Spain) September 13 With his seventh draw in nine games Anand, playing with white, took his points tally to seven points in the soccer-like scoring system with just one round to come in the super-category tournament. It turned out to be a calm day before the final round as all the three games, in the six players double round-robin tournament, ended in draws. Magnus Carlsen could do little against solid play of Teimour Radjabov of Azerbaijan who played white while Levon Aronian survived a scare at the hands of Vassily Ivanchuk of Ukraine. The standings remained unchanged and Topalov remained atop the tables on 14 points, a full point ahead of Aronian. Ivanchuk and Carlsen share the third spot on 12 points each while Anand and Radjabov are way behind on seven points. Anand faced the Caro Kann defence by Topalov and it was already a big surprise. Going for a variation that has been discarded in favour of new variations and research, Anand did not get anything special in the middle game and Topalov equalised without much ado. The pieces got exchanged at regular intervals and the players reached a drawn rook and pawns endgame in quick time. After 41 moves the peace was signed. Anand's hunt for a victory continued with the draw and it looks he will go without a win from here as he plays with black against Carlsen in the final round. Ivanchuk-Aronian was much more complicated. The Ruy Lopez exchange gave little to Aronian and Ivanchuk seized the initiative in the queen-less middle game typical of the opening but the famous time-pressure of the Ukrainian again came to haunt him. Aronian wriggled out of his difficulties in the endgame through a thematic piece sacrifice to force matters. Ivanchuk was visibly upset after missing out on the victory. Radjabov played it safe like Anand and it was almost a chanceless draw in another caro Kann of the day. For the records, a rook and opposite coloured Bishops endgame was reached in this game. — PTI
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Vettel takes first pole for Toro Rosso
Monza, September 13 Vettel, dubbed ‘Baby Schumi’ by the German media as their next big hope since the retirement of seven times world champion Michael Schumacher, timed his lap to perfection while Ferrari and McLaren were caught out by the weather and their tyre choices. McLaren’s overall leader Lewis Hamilton was the big casualty of an afternoon that ripped up the form book, the 23-year-old Briton leaving it late in deteriorating conditions to qualify only 15th. Ferrari’s world champion Kimi Raikkonen was one place ahead of him. Ferrari’s Brazilian Felipe Massa, just two points behind Hamilton with five races remaining, will start his team's home race on Sunday in sixth place. McLaren’s Heikki Kovalainen joined Vettel on the front row with Red Bull’s Australian Mark Webber just behind with Toro Rosso’s French driver Sebastien Bourdais. Vettel, whose Ferrari-powered team are only eighth in the championship, was as stunned as anyone by what he had achieved. “What can I say? It was my dream one day to drive a Formula One car. My target was to fight for poles and race wins but today I didn't expect it,” he said. “It’s a great result for us, a great success. I’m very happy as you can imagine,” added the driver, who will move to Red Bull's main team at the end of the season to replace the retiring David Coulthard. Germany’s Nico Rosberg qualified fifth for Williams and starts alongside Massa, who has rarely looked convincing in wet conditions. Toyota's Italian Jarno Trulli secured seventh place on the grid with Renault's double world champion Fernando Alonso eighth. Poland's Robert Kubica, third in the championship for BMW-Sauber also came unstuck in the rain and will start 11th. Fisi quicker than Hamilton, Raikkonen
Ferrari-powered Force India entered new territory with Italian Giancarlo Fisichella taking the team into the second stage of qualifying for the first time. Fisichella, whose third place with Renault in 2005 makes him still the last Italian driver to stand on the race podium at Monza, lapped quicker than both Hamilton and Raikkonen and will start 12th.
— Reuters |
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Nalchik, Russia, September 13 In spite of being outplayed, Humpy managed to stage comebacks twice and level the scores but she was unable to overcome the 14-year-old Yifan who won both the tiebreak games to enter the finals. Yifan will now meet Alexandra Kosteniuk of Russia for the title. Alexandra had beaten Pia Cramling of Sweden in the other semifinal. Humpy's jinx at the semi-finals of the World Championships continues as this is the second time in three attempts that the Indian grandmaster has been ousted in the last four stage.— UNI
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London, September 13 Carlos Tevez had put United ahead after three minutes, with a Wes Brown own goal levelling before Babel struck 13 minutes from time to secure their first home win against United for seven years. Liverpool had lost five and drawn one of the previous six home league games against their big rivals and looked set for another defeat when new signing Dimitar Berbatov set up Tevez to fire the visitors into the lead after three minutes. Keeper Edwin Van der Sar gifted Liverpool an equaliser after 27 minutes when he parried Xabi Alonso’s long shot directly against the legs of Brown and it flew straight in for an own goal. Liverpool were the more positive and determined side after the break and Rafa Benitez, searching for his first league win over United since arriving at Anfield. It was an error by United substitute Ryan Giggs that handed Liverpool the winner. — Reuters
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Bolt could have run 9.55 in Beijing
Oslo (Norway), September 13 "We estimate that he could have finished the race in a time between 9.55 and 9.61," Hans Eriksen said in a telephone interview. Bolt won the final at the Beijing Olympics last month in 9.69 seconds, shaving 0.03 seconds off the previous record he set in May. Eriksen, a physicist at the Institute of Theoretical Astrophysics at the University of Oslo, said he got the idea to examine just how quick Bolt could have gone after hearing his coach say that the Jamaican could have run 9.52 seconds. "We saw the final on television and then spent the whole weekend researching," Eriksen said. "It was fun. We've done more serious research work, but this one got far more attention." Eriksen and his colleagues analysed TV footage of the race, focusing on Bolt's position, speed and acceleration, as well as that of runner-up Richard Thompson. Both sprinters slowed down before the finish line. But Bolt's chest-beating celebration some 20 meters before the line cut his speed more. "We don't mean to say that this is the final and ultimate result," Eriksen was quoted as saying in New Scientist magazine. "Instead, it's a fun application and simple physics."
— AFP |
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Ghosal storms into final of Ornano Open
Bordeaux (France), September 13 The fifth seed Indian player came from behind to beat Lavigne 7-11, 15-13, 11-5, 11-5 in the quarterfinal and then quelled the challenge of Swelim 10-12, 11-2, 11-2, 3-11, 14-12 in the semifinal match. The Kolkata-born 22-year-old will now take on Italian third seed Davide Bianchetti, who outplayed eighth seed Bradley Hindle from Australia 11-8, 11-9, 11-4 in the other semi-final. Bianchetti had ended the challenge of seventh seed Ritwik Bhattacharya 11-8, 11-3, 11-8 in the quarterfinal match.
— PTI |
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Melbourne, September 13
