Hamilton, March 20
Sachin Tendulkar gave ample display of his class with a masterly 160 as India tighten the noose around New Zealand by taking a huge 241-run lead and snapping up three early Kiwi wickets in the first cricket Test here today.

Tendulkar not only notched up his 42nd Test century but anchored the innings brilliantly to steer India to a commanding first innings total of 520. Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (47) and Zaheer Khan (51 not out) chipped in with useful contribution as the visitors took advantage of a good batting track of Seddon Park to put the host team on the back-foot.

The Kiwis were struggling at 75 for three at close on the third day, still trailing by 166 runs. With two full days left, Black Caps will have to bat out of their skin to prevent India from taking a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Indians took the wicket of night watchman Kyle Mills in the very last ball to cap a day, completely dominated by them with Tendulkar standing out with his heroic knock. It was Tendulkar's third hundred in four Tests since the 109 against Australia at Nagpur last November, putting him clearly ahead of Ricky Ponting's 37 hundreds (129 Tests).

New Zealand got off to a poor start in the second essay, losing Tim McIntosh (0) in the third ball of the innings, before Martin Guptill, who played some delightful strokes through the off-side during his enterprising 48. Tendulkar injured the index finger of his left hand while taking a low slip catch, offered by McIntosh off Khan.

Guptill and Daniel Flynn (batting 24) put the brakes on India, posting 68 runs for the second wicket. Harbhajan Singh broke the partnership by sending back Guptill, who played an uppish drive and Virender Sehwag at mid-off pounced on the easy chance.

Earlier, Tendulkar was in supreme form this morning as he began his symphony at the crease with an exquisite cover drive off Chris Martin, following it up with an endemic punch of the back foot through covers. It was the Tendulkar of yore as boundaries oozed out of his thickset willow. He turned the heat on Iain I'Brien and Jesse Ryder, hitting on the up through the off, back cutting and flicking with finesse.

His skill, balance, grace, steely determination and saint-like temperament which have been essence of his successful career spread over 20 years came to the fore as he expanded his overnight 70. The Kiwis merely watched in awe as Tendulkar moved into top gear at the square, working the ball delightfully off the square. — PTI

Scoreboard

He also became the 56th bowler to sclap 200 or more victims in Test cricket. The left-arm pacer has now joined the elite list of Indians which includes Anil Kumble (619), Kapil Dev (434), Harbhajan Singh (315), Bishan Singh Bedi (266), BS Chandrasekhar (242) and Javagal Srinath (236).

If Indian supporters were silently praying for good weather on the second and third day’s play so that their batsmen won’t have to bat restricted in jumpers they will be hoping that the rains stay away but won’t mind if its a cloudy day.

The ball has certainly seamed off the pitch on all the days and if there is a cloud cover then it will swing in the air too, which does make batting a lot more difficult. Not that it would make much of a difference to Sachin Tendulkar for he is batting as well as he ever has and with that classic technique he is more than capable of dealing with the movement in the air and off the pitch.

There was little that the New Zealand bowlers could do while he was at the crease and it was his innings that has given India such a grip on the Test. It is not always easy to find the same touch for a batsman who has batted well the previous day for sometimes the arms are a bit tired and the legs a fraction slow in moving to the pitch of the ball but Tendulkar got back in the groove straightaway, which again is indicative of his mind for more than anybody else in this team he wants to be part of a Test series winning team in New Zealand.

With the one-day series already in the bag its the Tests that have to be won and India have taken giant strides towards it. It was also good to see the largely unsung Rahul Dravid get runs. Here is a batsman who has over 10,000 runs in both forms of the game but does not get the same recognition as others in that club do.

It could well be that his intensity stops people from approaching him but ask around in the dressing room and you will find no man better liked than the Karnataka stalwart. He will be upset at getting out when he was batting well but he will be more confident now for the next few matches.

Dhoni too gave good support to Tendulkar eschewing his natural attacking game. He realised that it was in India’s interest not to chase too many in the second innings and so minimised the risks and ensured that the tail was not exposed.

Tail? What tail? Zaheer khan is entitled to ask that. If ever a bowler has taken his batting seriously and ensured that his wicket is not given away cheaply, it is Zaheer. 

It could well be the realisation that he himself does not get easy wickets from the opposition tailenders that has made him so determined. Harbhajan is another who has improved and does not give it away and though they cannot as yet be called all-rounders they will have seen from Daniel Vettori that application and common sense has its rewards.

India are in control alright but need to show ruthless streak if they are to challenge seriously for the number one slot in the game. — PMG 

Ashwell Prince plays a shot on the second day of the third Test against Australia. — AFP

Australia (1st innings): 209
South Africa (1st innings) (overnight: 57-0)
Imraan Khan c & b Siddle 20
Prince c Haddin b Hilfenhaus 150
Amla c Haddin b Johnson 46
Kallis batting 102
A de Villiers batting 39
Extras: (b-18, lb-16, nb-10, w-3) 47
Total: (for 3 wkts, 102 overs) 404
Fall of wickets: 1-65, 2-162, 3-322.
Bowling: Johnson 24-4-92-1, Hilfenhaus 25-4-97-1, Siddle 23-12-35-1, McGain 11-2-102-0, McDonald 19-6-44-0. 

Mumbai, March 20
Organizers of the Indian Premier League may be forced to shift several major matches outside venues in Maharashtra as the state government has expressed its inability to provide security for the event till the month of May.

Director General of Police Suprakash Chakravarthy today told reporters here that the police force in the state was completely stretched due to the Lok Sabha elections. Voting in Maharashtra would be complete by April 30. “We have a constitutional obligation to secure the elections and there is not enough forces to provide security for IPL,” Chakravarthy said.

The police official further added under the model code of conduct in force, deployment of security forces would be decided by the Election Commission even if the Union Ministry for Home Affairs gave the green signal to hold IPL matches in the midst of polling. Permission to reallocate security forces should be provided by the Election Commission in writing, Chakravathy said.

Usually in the run-up to the elections, leaves of all police personnel are cancelled and there is full deployment. Policemen end up working multiple shifts till polling is complete and ballot boxes secured. The central government has already indicated that para-military forces would not be allocated for IPL during the period of elections.

Maharashtra is a major venue with as many as 14 matches to be played in Mumbai alone. Under the earlier schedule prepared by the organizers of IPL eight matches were to be scheduled in Mumbai on April 10, 12, 14,15,17, 23, 25 and 26, and three in Nagpur on April 19, 20 and 28. Polling is scheduled to be held in Maharashtra on April 16, 23 and 30.

Meanwhile, Lalit Modi, IPL Commissioner, told reporters at the BCCI headquarters that the organizers were looking at a number of possibilities including holding of the matches at alternative venues. “We have multiple schedules for multiple possibilities...we are ready for any eventuality,” Modi said.

Istanbul, March 20
Luck and form combined as Indian Grandmaster Koneru Humpy won her final round match and saw other title aspirants dropping down to facilitate her triumph in the first edition of IS Bank Ataturk Women Grand Prix chess tournament here.

Humpy and the Chinese duo of Zhao Xue and Yifan Hao shared the lead going into the all-important final round. Of the trio, only Humpy managed to win her match against Marie Sebag of France, while Zhao bowed to Elina Danielian of Armenia and Hao was held to a draw by compatriot Shen Yang.

Humpy finished the tournament with a commendable 8.5 points out of a possible 11. The victory gives Humpy a head-start in the newly constructed Grand Prix series which is also a part of the next world championship cycle. Apart from the title the Indian went home richer by Euro 6400.

Elina finished second on a better tie-break than Yifan on eight points while Zhao, who enjoyed a full point lead coming in to last two rounds, had to be content with fourth place on 7.5 points. — PTI 

BRIEFLY

Demoralised India meet Australia in 3rd place playoff
Sydney: Smarting from the failure to reach the final of the ICC Women's World Cup, a demoralised India will take on an equally dejected Australia in the third/fourth-place play-off at Bankstown Oval here on Saturday. The Super Six stage defeat against New Zealand put paid to India's hopes for a place in Sunday's final and the 2005 finalists now play for pride against the hosts. Considering they are the defending champions, Australia's fate was worse as they could not recover from their Super Six stage defeat against India, something they would like to avenge when Karen Rolton's side takes on Jhulan Goswami and her teammates. — PTI

Anand beats Ivanchuk in rapid game
Nice: World champion Viswanathan Anand came up with his true form in the rapid game to beat Ukrainian Vassily Ivanchuk by 1.5-0.5 margin in the fifth round of the Amber blindfold and rapid chess tournament here. Anand slipped a bit in the blindfold game after getting a few chances but came back strongly to stir tactical complications in the return game to post his victory. Levon Aronian of Armenia joined Russian Vladimir Kramnik in lead on 6.5 points in the combined standings on 6.5 points, a half point ahead of Russian Alexander Morozevich who now stands sole third. — PTI

New rules absurd, dangerous, feels Ferrari boss
Rome: Ferrari president Luca Cordero di Montezemolo has branded Formula One's new scoring system as "absurd" and "dangerous" ahead of next weekend's season opener in Australia. The International Automobile Federation (FIA) has made a number of sweeping changes this season including guaranteeing the winner of the most races the title, rather than deciding the championship on a straight points basis. "I find it really absurd, serious and dangerous that one week before the start of the season we have created a situation of this nature which is very negative for our credibility, the teams, the constructors, the supporters, the journalists and the sponsors," said Montezemolo. — AFP

UEFA CL: Holders United handed plum draw
Nyon: Holders Manchester United were handed arguably the plum pick of the Champions League quarterfinals draw after being pitted against FC Porto. 2006 finalists Arsenal were drawn to play Spanish side Villarreal. Liverpool take on Chelsea. In the other quarterfinal 2006 winners Barcelona welcome Bayern Munich to the Nou Camp before playing the second leg in Germany. United went into the draw as the favourites to defend their title, although the bookies will be looking closely at the current form of Porto - and past statistics between the teams - before setting the odds. Former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was coach of Porto in 2004 when the Portuguese giants sent United crashing out at the first knockout round before going on to win the title. Of the six matches the clubs have played in Europe they have each won two, lost two and drawn two. — AFP 

Eight teams for Railway women hockey
Jalandhar: The 30th All India Railway Hockey Championship being organised by Railway Sports Control Board began here on Friday at the local Olympian Surjeet Hockey stadium, Burlton Park. The six-day long hockey tournament will conclude on 25. As many as eight teams comprising of 120 players including winners from Northern Railway Delhi, runners-up Western Railway Mumbai, Western Central Railway, Jaipur, South Eastern Railway, Calcutta, North Eastern Railway, Gorakhpur, East Central Railway, Dhanbad, Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala and Central Railway, Mumbai will be seen in action. — TNS

Lalit Modi granted bail in Nagaur land scam case
Jaipur: Commissioner of the lucrative Indian Premier League and former president of the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA), Lalit Modi was today granted bail in the Nagaur land scam case. Justice O P Simwar, Additional Session Judge of Nagaur, granted bail to Modi, against whom a charge was levelled for acquiring a piece of land by unfair means. During the hearing at Nagaur Session Court in Western Rajasthan, the judge also granted him bail in another case which was filed in regard to manipulation of records in Nagaur District Cricket Association. — PTI

JCT face Sporting in crucial tie
Chandigarh: Lurking in the drop zone JCT FC will have to be at their very best as they take on an inspired Sporting Club de Goa in the ONGC I-League at the Guru Nanak stadium in Ludhiana on March 21. The Millmen will have to lift their performance to try and avoid an onslaught from a Sporting side still harbouring title hopes. While JCT are eleventh with 18 points from 18 games, Sporting are second, behind Churchill on goal difference, with 39 points from 19 games. The match begins at 3.30pm local time. — TNS