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SA eye whitewash, No 1 spot
Losses will serve as lesson: Ponting
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Sunitha, Shikha axed from Fed Cup squad
Sunny, Bedi, Kapil in ICC Hall of Fame
Sunil Gavaskar/Bishan Singh Bedi/ Kapil Dev
UEFA objects to Champions League name
Pak hockey team not to travel to India
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Sydney, January 2 Under Graeme Smith's inspiring leadership, South Africa have looked unstoppable in the series so far. In contrast, Ricky Ponting managed to salvage some individual reputation but Australia as a team cut a very sorry figure both in Perth and Melbourne and now they run the risk of surrendering their world number one crown to the visitors. To make it worse, Australia will be without their pace spearhead Brett Lee and all-rounder Andrew Symonds in this match, even though the injured duo hardly made any impact in the matches they have played so far. Instead, uncapped duo of Andrew McDonald and Doug Bollinger are set to make their debut tomorrow and the attack would be led by left-arm pacer Mitchell Johnson. Bollinger's inclusion ahead of Ben Hilfenhaus means Australia opted for two left-arm pacers in the playing eleven, a move that intrigued many. South Africa, meanwhile, decided to go ahead with an unchanged side, which means in-form JP Duminy gets a chance to continue with his sterling shows while Ashwell Prince waits in the sidelines nursing a broken thumb. Smith has decided to lead by example and play through pain to complete the mission he has embarked upon. Battling an elbow injury, the South African captain hit two fifties in Melbourne defying the injury. Smith, however, would return home after the Test to get his own blood injected in his right elbow to see if he can avoid a surgery. The Protea captain has already made it clear that he was not ready to bask in the glory of winning their maiden series in Australia and was, in fact, gunning for a whitewash which would also make them the top side in the world. "I look around me and the squad appears very calm. Each bloke is hungry for a good performance. They either want to score a big hundred or take five wickets. We want to win and there is a real motivation to win the series 3-0. That opportunity hasn't come around very often for teams against Australia," Smith said. South Africa's batting line-up looks deep and rock solid and the bowling, especially Dale Steyn, has been sensational and Smith has little to worry about as the visitors go into the final Test. In contrast, Australia looks a disjointed bunch for which nothing seems to be going right. At the top, there is no end to Matthew Hayden's struggles to wriggle out of a bad patch. Public patience is already wearing thin and the demand for his retirement is growing stronger. In fact, barring Ponting, who struck 101 and 99 in Melbourne, no other Australian batsman has made his mark in the series so far. Australia's bowling has been pretty pedestrian as well and South Africa's in-form batsmen simply feasted on the innocuous stuff sent down by the hosts. — PTI
Losses will serve as lesson: Ponting
Melbourne: Not accustomed with a series loss at home, Australian skipper Ricky Ponting on Friday admitted that the gap between their best and worst performance has been huge but said it will serve as a learning lesson for the world champions.
"Heading into the last Test against South Africa, beginning tomorrow at the SCG, with a series already lost is a feeling none of us is accustomed to. Some of the younger guys in the team were still in primary school when Australia last lost a series at home 16 years ago. "Unfortunately the gap between our best cricket and our worst cricket has been far too great. That's what we all have to learn from and try to improve heading into Sydney. There were some invaluable lessons, particularly for the younger guys, about just how disciplined you have to be, how well you have to execute your plans and how long you have to execute them for," Ponting was quoted as saying in the Australian. Faced with a crunch of players, Ponting conceded that absence of the players like Warne and McGrath is the main difference between the past and present team. “Those teams with guys like Warne and McGrath were so relentless with the way they went about their bowling and executing their plans. They just wore other teams down. We haven't been able to do that. We haven't put enough pressure on to stop the run rate ticking over and we've put catches down at crucial times," he said.
— PTI |
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Sunitha, Shikha axed from Fed Cup squad
New Delhi, January 2 Both Sunitha and Shikha, who were part of the team last year, are US passport holders. They have been excluded following the new government policy that now allows only Indian passport holders to represent the country. The All-India Tennis Association (AITA) selection committee named Sania Mirza, Ankita Bhambri, Sanaa Bhambri and Rushmi Chakravarthy for the Fed Cup Asia-Oceania Zone Group I tie in Perth from February 4 to 7. India have been clubbed with Australia, Korea, Thailand, Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, New Zealand and Uzbekistan. Sunitha, ranked 197, is the second-highest ranked player in the country after Sania (101). She partnered Sania in the Beijing Olympics. Isha Lakhani at 365 is the third Indian in the world rankings and was part of last year's Fed Cup team but a bout of jaundice forced her to opt out. Shikha, ranked 592, replaced an injured Tara Iyer in the team last year. AITA's executive director Ranbir Chauhan said they went by the government's rule. "As per the new policy, the two players could not be the part of the team. Otherwise I am sure Sunitha would have been there,' he said. For Bhambri sisters, the news came as a surprise. Ankita has been a part of the Fed Cup team before, but she missed the cut last year because of a dip in her rankings, while for younger sister Sanaa it is been the first-time call for national duty. Sanaa, ranked 480, admits expecting the call. "After the whole citizenship issue, I had a feeling that I will be selected. I am quite thrilled and will to do my best," she said.
— IANS |
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Show aggro, McGrath tells Aussie quickies
Melbourne, January 2 "To be a fast bowler you have to have that aggression. It's a naturally aggressive part of the game and if you are running in and bowling and smiling at the batsman when they hit you for fours, you are not going to stay there for long, are you?" he said. McGrath expects left-arm pacer Mitchell Johnson to lead the depleted pace battery from the front. "Mitchell should lead from the front to set the tone. Obviously, Mitch isn't an old bloke himself so it will be a learning experience for him as well," he said. With Brett Lee injured and struggling, 17-Test-old Johnson, who started his career under McGrath, now finds himself with the extra burden of leading an inexperienced Australian pace attack. But McGrath feels the 27-year-old left-arm pacer will thrive on the opportunity. "Some guys thrive on it, they love that responsibility of being the number one bowler. Any bowler should strive to do that, I think Mitchell will obviously enjoy that," he was quoted as saying by the 'Herald Sun'. "The way that Johnson has bowled this year has been sensational. To see him come up, he always had the potential, and now he has the confidence," he added. McGrath, who ended his career with 563 Test wickets, feels that the present vacuum in Australia's pace department has opened up window of opportunity for young quicks. "It's definitely a challenge for the Australian team at the moment. I just see a lot of opportunities for young guys in Australia at the moment," he said. — PTI
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Sunny, Bedi, Kapil in ICC Hall of Fame
Sydney, January 2 Launching the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame here, Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said the initiative, in association with the Federation of International Cricketers' Association (FICA), would provide the chance for the game to recognise its greatest achievers. "Given a key theme of the ICC's centenary year is celebrating the game's heritage then the foundation of the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame is an entirely logical step," he said. "It will provide a means of recognising the historical contribution of past players, officials and even institutions in making cricket what it is today, a great sport with a great spirit," he added. Gavaskar expressed "humbled" to be named along with Sir Donald Bradman and Sir Garfield Sobers. "To be recognised by the ICC, and that, too, in its centenary year, is an honour indeed. "It is a privilege and I am overwhelmed and humbled to be included in such august company as Sir Donald Bradman and the one and only Sir Garry Sobers," he said in a statement. Former Australia wicketkeeper Rodney Marsh became the first Hall of Famer to receive his commemorative cap from ICC President David Morgan. "I'm deeply honoured to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. Being recognised in this way is humbling, especially when I look at the names of the players in this list and think about those who will join it in the years to come," Marsh said. "It (the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame) is another way of showing what a great history our game has and anything that does that has to be a good thing," Marsh said. "FICA believes it is important to honour the outstanding contributions many individuals have made to the game," said May. — PTI
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UEFA objects to Champions League name
New Delhi, January 2 The European soccer governing body, which conducts the annual Champions League football tournament amid much fanfare, saw a trademark violation in the effort by the cricket boards of India, England, South Africa and Pakistan to have a Twenty20 cricket tournament bearing the same name. According to a report in www.cricketnirvana.com, UEFA has recently sent a letter to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), objecting to the name after BCCI had applied for a Community Trade Mark (CTM) license for the Champions League to promote the event worldwide. The inaugural edition of the Champions League Twenty20 tournament was scheduled in December last year before the Mumbai terror attacks led to the postponement of the extravaganza.
— PTI |
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Pak hockey team not to travel to India
Islamabad, January 2 The Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) has been intimated about this decision. Meanwhile, the PHF said that it would honour every government decision in this regard. The tournament was scheduled to be held during the next month. The Pakistani decision comes against the backdrop of cancellation of earlier sport exchanges by India including tours of its hockey team and the cricket tour amid tensions in the wake of Mumbai attacks of November 26. |
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Aware that a win here will not only complete a rare whitewash of Australia but also make them the new number one team in the world, a buoyant South Africa will go for the kill in the third and final cricket Test starting here tomorrow.
Three Indian cricketing legends, Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar and Bishan Singh Bedi figured among the 55 former players named today in the ICC's inaugural Hall of Fame list as part of its centenary celebrations.
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