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Franchisees relieved
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Mills under pressure to perform
Pak players expecting call-up: Shoaib
IPL: Tanvir, Gul, Misbah in action?
Selection worries haunt Ganguly
NZ coach wary of ‘unhelpful’ Napier track
Police equestrian meet
Indian Open
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Franchisees relieved
New Delhi, March 24 Ranjit Borthakur, vice chairman of Rajasthan Royals, admitted the last year's winners would miss the home support when the second IPL gets underway in South Africa. But he was still happy that the event, shifted out of the country after it clashed with Lok Sabha elections, would finally get underway.
"It's disappointing that the event is not taking place in India. But if there was a choice between no tournament and a tournament outside India, it was always the latter," he said. The die-hard optimist in him, however, was still praying for a miracle so that IPL returned to India. "There is this Great Indian Dream. You really never know what can happen in India. Who knows, maybe there still are chances that it might return to India," he said. Chennai Super Kings player Muttiah Muralitharan was also sad that the event was being held outside India but at the same time he was happy that it was finally taking place. "It's disappointing because we would have played in front of home crowd and I guess it would not be the same this year. "But at the same time, the game must go on, else cricket would die. This is the right decision," Muralitharan said. Asked if he had any security apprehension about touring India during general elections, the Sri Lankan off-spinner said, "I've toured India many times, on personal tours as well and I never had any security concern. I think this time because there was elections, people seemed wary of security." Chief Operating Officer of the Delhi Daredevils Amrit Mathur said with speculations about the second edition of the event finally put to rest, the team would soon start making the arrangements for its South Africa trip. "We are very happy and with the clarity on venues, we can proceed to make the necessary arrangements," Mathur said. Asked if sponsors would be equally happy, Mathur said, "Absolutely. we have a strong relationship with the partners and they are also very happy," he said. Former South Africa captain and Mumbai Indian mentor-cum-adviser Shaun Pollock was happy that the event was going to be staged in his home country. "It's a huge tournament and I think South Africa is ready to host the event. The domestic season has finished, stadiums are empty, practice facilities are available and the weather is going to be perfect," said the all-rounder who has been training most of the Mumbai Indian players at Durban. Pollock admitted it would not be possible to match the kind of frenzy witnessed in India in the first season but predicted decent turnout for the matches. "I doubt if South Africa would be able to get as big crowd as we saw last year. But people here love Twenty20 and appreciate world class players. I'm sure they will come out in numbers and support," Pollock said. Co-owner of the Kings XI Punjab Ness Wadia said he didn't have any particular preference for either South Africa or England, which was also in the race to host the event, but was happy that the stalemate over the venue was finally over. "To be honest, I didn't have much preference. I have been to South Africa and it's a wonderful country with lot of support for cricket and India. Either of the two would have been good," Wadia said. He was rather happy with the tournament starting a week late than its original schedule. "It would give us more time for Yuvraj (Singh), (Kumar) Sangakkara and Mahela (Jayawardene) to be free from national duty and join the squad," he said. Meanwhile, former South Africa player and ex-Board chief Ali Bacher was ecstatic with the decision which he felt came at the right time for the Proteas. "I'm absolutely delighted and it is a great news for South Africa which is on a high, particularly after the success against Australia. It comes at the right time and we are expecting a lot of tourism and global television exposure," Bacher said.
— PTI |
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Dravid set to overtake Waugh
Napier, March 24 Dravid caught Kiwi opener Martin Guptill at slips in the opening Test at Hamilton to put himself level with former Australian batsman Mark Waugh as the most prolific fielder in Test cricket. Locked at 181 catches with Waugh, Dravid would certainly go for at least another one to take the sole lead and put another record to his illustrious career so far. A modest Dravid, however, credited his bowlers for the number of catches that he has held so far and but also noted that every catch that he has taken has given him the same pleasure that had from amassing 10,583 runs in Test cricket. ''To have taken so many catches is really a reflection on the quality of the attack I've been lucky to have played with,'' he said. ''I love being part of victories and making contributions to wins. ''I think that's what gives me a challenge now - it's not really the number of runs I score now, centuries I score. ''Now it's really about if I can make a contribution to the team, that's what'll give me the satisfaction,'' he added. However, Dravid could have easily gone into the second Test with outright ownership of the record but only if he had held on to an edge from Daniel Vettori at first slip in the first innings of the opening Test at Hamilton. To illustrate Dravid's, whose first victim was England's Nasser Hussain at Lord's in June 1996, prowess close to the stumps, spinner Anil Kumble's haul includes 55 Dravid catches; Harbhajan has a provisional 44. When asked to nominate the best catch of his career, Dravid recalls the three victims he snapped and all of them came against Australia. In chronological order, Dravid recalled snaring Mark Waugh at backward short leg during the remarkable 2001 series at Chennai. ''Mark Waugh was on 50 or 60 (57). It was a sharp chance to my right (off Harbhajan). That sticks in my memory because we couldn't give them a big lead.'' Two years later at the Adelaide Oval a Sachin Tendulkar and Dravid combo play took away the initiative from Australia. Tendulkar's occasional leg breaks and googlies had Damien Martyn and Steve Waugh exit in quick succession as Australia stumbled to 112 for five. Ultimately they were dismissed for 196 to leave India 230 for victory. ''If you look at them in the context of the game and how they helped the team win they were critical. ''I took Martyn at slip, it was an important one I value and cherish,'' he recalled. Dravid had a memorbale contribution in that match besides the catches, he scored 233 runs in the first innings and then an unbeaten 72 that got his team home in his second essay.
— UNI |
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Mills under pressure to perform
Napier, March 24 It has been a change of fortunes for Mills, who, at the start of the Indian tour, was regarded as the best pacer for New Zealand and now after the first Test, the speedster has to depend on the fitness of other members of his team to retain his place. If Mills manages to retain his place, it will have everything to do with Brent Arnell side strain and Jacob Oram unavailability but off-spinner Jeetan Patel also has bright chances to capitalise on the opportunity. ''I like to put a performance on the board,'' Mills said. ''It's always much more comfortable and more confident when you've got a few results behind you, and I probably haven't done that in recent Test matches. I thought I bowled well in Dunedin and I bowled all right here against the West Indies. ''I didn't bowl well last week so I know the pressure's on me. Hopefully I can rectify that,'' Mills said. The speedster has also been guilty of overstepping on a number of occasions especially the one in the opening Test at Hamilton, where the Indian opener Gautam Gambhir was trapped in front of the wickets but to the disappointment of the home team it was a no ball. ''I've made some slight adjustment in my run-up,'' Mills said. ''My main concern last week was I was bowling no-balls, I was always close to bowling no-balls, and I was thinking about that the whole way on my run-up. I want to eradicate that and focus on my plans for the opposition batsmen. ''It's a really bizarre thing. The first half of the season I don't think I bowled a no-ball. I'm really trying to rectify that. I don't really want to be thinking about that running into Sachin Tendulkar,'' he added. Being one of the more experienced members of the team, Mills admitted the number of problems he has leaves his captain to encounter with. ''In all honesty this has been a problem in New Zealand cricket for 40-50 years, except for the eighties when we had a couple of special players. ''We've never really excelled as a Test nation. I want to be part of the group that turns that around,'' he admitted.
— UNI |
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Pak players expecting call-up: Shoaib
Pakistani players were part of the inaugural season of the IPL but the government refused to give exit visas to its players for this year as a response to India's refusal to send its cricket team here for a scheduled tour here. However, Shoaib said the Pakistani players were hopeful that they will get a call-up for the tournament which is due to begin from April 10. ''For me, it ain't over till it's over,'' Shoaib said. ''I haven't given up. It's up to the franchises. If they call upon my services, I will provide them,'' Shoaib was quoted as saying by a cricket website. ''We do not have great circumstances with India at the moment. The situation between us is not crictical anymore, and hopefully it will get better in the coming months. ''It is a shame for the Indian fans that the tournament will not be played in India. For now I am preparing to play against Australia in the ODIs next month and take wickets for my country,'' he added.
— UNI |
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IPL: Tanvir, Gul, Misbah in action?
Karachi, March 24 Sources close to the players say at least four Pakistani players, namely Sohail Tanvir, Umar Gul, Misbah-ul-Haq and Kamran Akmal, could be in line to play for their old franchises in the IPL which is likely to be held in either England or South Africa after being shifted from India. "Since the IPL is now not being held in India the franchises are thinking about asking for permission from the organisers to bring back their Pakistani players on board for the tournament," one source said. The source said Kolkatta Knight Riders was one team that had already indicated it wanted pace bowler Umar Gul back while Rajasthan Royals were also eying all-rounder Sohail. Pakistani players were stopped from going to India to play in the IPL this year by the government after relations with India deteriorated following the Mumbai terror attack in November. But with the IPL being shifted abroad, even the Pakistan cricket Board has said it would speak to the government and Indian board to find out if Pakistani players can take part in the lucrative competition now. The IPL franchises either cancelled or suspended contracts of their Pakistani players after the decision of the Pakistan government. Gul, Tanvir, Akmal and Misbah had their contracts suspended so that their franchises could get replacements. So technically they are still on the rooster of their franchises. PCB Chairman Ejaz Butt has said he would find out whether their players are still required to play in the IPL after its relocation from India. — PTI
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Selection worries haunt Ganguly
"With venues likely to be in South Africa or England, the condition and seaming track is a worrying factor for Buchanan who feels Ganguly does not fall in the T20 scheme of things," a Knight Riders official told PTI. "Approaching 37 years, Ganguly is not a clear choice for Buchanan who has already decided on the captaincy. It needs the approval from team boss Shah Rukh Khan who is out of the country," the official said. While sources claimed the two-time World Cup winning Australian coach was unhappy with Ganguly's fitness, Buchanan has already made it clear the team management was still discussing the captaincy issue. "In fact, Ganguly did not turn up for practice when the coach was here. Buchanan is clearly unhappy about him. He is out of international cricket for quite sometime and Buchanan has serious doubts about his fitness level to suit T20," the official added. Names of New Zealand wicketkeeper-batsman Brendon McCullum, West Indies captain Chris Gayle and Australian Brad Hodge are doing the rounds for the captain's role.
— PTI |
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NZ coach wary of ‘unhelpful’ Napier track
India thrashed the Kiwis by 10 wickets in the first Test at Hamilton to record their first win in New Zealand in 33 years. Moles was annoyed by the fact that the surface of the McLean Park had been moved two to three feet and now includes half the original pitch and half of the adjacent one, which was used for the one-day game between the two sides, earlier this month. Aiming to avenge the Hamilton loss here, Moles said the Kiwis wanted a typical local wicket so that the seamers could utilise their skills. ''We need a typical New Zealand wicket where it nips for about a couple of days so it brings our seamers into the game against their batting attack, which is used to the ball being true and turning a bit,'' Moles said. He also said he was seeking to tackle the rampant Indian batsmen with sideways movement. ''If the wicket is very dry it can turn a lot, which is obviously something we don't want to experience down there,'' the Kiwi coach observed.
— UNI |
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Police equestrian meet
Karnal, March 24 Head Constable Inderpal Singh of U.P. Police and ASI Hari Kishan of Haryana Police jointly won bronze medals scoring 384 points each, a spokesperson of Haryana Police saidhere today. In ‘Ferrier’s Test” event HC Raja Ram of ITBP won gold medal by scoring 30.05 points, Constable Ramesh Chander of Punjab Police won silver medal, Head Constable Ranjeet Singh of BSF and Ravi Singh of Manipur Police won bronze medal by scoring 26.50 points each. In ‘Novice Jumping’ event MS Ratanpura Shonya with his horse-Shonya of Gujarat Police, Jagat with his horse Master Mind of Delhi Police, Hari Kishan with his horse Shiva of Delhi Police and Major Raj Sangram Singh with his horse Road Runner of Assam Rifles secured 1st , 2nd , 3rd & 4th positions, respectively. In ‘Jumping Medium Normal’ event Hit Karan with his horse Tushar of M.P. Police, Dharam Pal with his horse Kavita of Delhi Police, Lakhwinder Singh with his horse Archery of Punjab Police and Raghwinder Singh with his horse Menka of BSF secured 1st , 2nd, 3rd & 4th positions, respectively. In ‘Tent Pegging’ (Individual) event ASI Ram Bhagat with his horse Mriga-Naini and Inspector Ram Phool with his horse Apolo both of Haryana Police secured 1st & 2nd positions and Jagdish Singh with his horse Jasmine and Talwinder with his horse Sonia, both from Punjab Police, secured 3rd & 4th
positions, respectively. — TNS |
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Indian Open
Hyderabad, March 24 Aparna Balan, Ashwini Ponnappa, Arundhati Pantawane and Chitralekha progressed to the main draw. Balan beat Mohita Sachdev 21-11, 21-14 in just 20 minutes in the first round of qualifiers and then edged past PV Sindhu 21-16, 15-21, 21-18. Ponnappa defeated Bibar Basumatari 21-14, 21-11 before accounting for Anuradha Shrikhande 21-17, 21-17 in the second match. Pantawane defeated Meenakshi Nair 21-13, 21-15 and then made short work of Manisha K 21-5, 21-14 while Chitralekha knocked out Sara Devi Tamang 21-16, 21-11 and then beat Anita Ohlan 21-17, 25-23 to make it to the main draw. In men's doubles qualifier, Sai Praneeth B and Pranav Chopra, Bennett Anthony and PH Suraj and Jayan James and KS Hersen won their respective matches and alongwith D Guruprasad and Vineeth Manuel, who got a walkover, entered the main draw. — PTI |
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