SPECIAL COVERAGE
CHANDIGARH

LUDHIANA

DELHI


THE TRIBUNE SPECIALS
50 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE
TERCENTENARY CELEBRATIONS
S P O R T S

lanka’s Tour of India
2nd T20 at Mohali

Sanga was the difference: Dhoni

Nagpur, December 10
India’s Yousuf Pathan (C) with Sri Lanka’s Muralitharan (R) at the Chandigarh Airport After being comprehensively beaten by Sri Lanka in the first Twenty20 International, India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said his team gave away too many runs after starting well in the match. 

India’s Yousuf Pathan (C) with Sri Lanka’s Muralitharan (R) at the Chandigarh Airport on Thursday. Tribune photos: Parvesh Chauhan

India, Lanka teams arrive for T20
Chandigarh, December 10
Lasith Malinga The high of becoming the No.1 Test team called for a definite celebration in the Indian camp, but the party was cut short by the defeat in the first T20 game at Nagpur. Now, the scene shifts to Mohali, with the teams arriving in the city for the second T20 to be played on December 12.

Lasith Malinga in Chandigarh on Thursday.








EARLIER STORIES


Super Series win will be best preparation for CWG: Jwala 
Jwala Gutta (R) with V Diju New Delhi, December 10
As a successful but physically draining year draws to a close, one half of Indian badminton’s most formidable mixed doubles pair Jwala Gutta is now aiming for a Super Series title in the new season to ensure a good build-up to the Commonwealth Games here.  Jwala, who along with V Diju won the Chinese Taipei Grand Prix Gold besides making the finals of Indian Open and the season-ending World Super Series finals, reckons 2010 would be hectic.


Jwala Gutta (R) with V Diju 

Love castles Mohanty’s timber Ranji Trophy
Punjab face daunting task

Chandigarh, December 10
Skyline and Punjab’s fortunes had a similar story to share all day. Clouds hovered over both throughout the third day of their Ranji Trophy “A” tie against Orissa here. 



Love castles Mohanty’s timber on Thursday. Tribune photo: Parvesh Chauhan

Champions League
Barcelona, Inter make it to last 16 

Paris, December 10
FC Barcelona’s Lionel Messi (R) vies with Leandro Almeida during their match Holders Barcelona and Inter Milan secured their places in the Champions League knock out stages at the last throw of the dice. Joining this pair on the final batch of group games yesterday were Stuttgart and Olympiakos to complete the 16-team cast-list for the second round starting in February. Barca had the luxury of travelling to Dynamo Kiev knowing that even a defeat would not necessarily spell a premature end to their pursuit of a fourth European crown.

FC Barcelona’s Lionel Messi (R) vies with Leandro Almeida during their match on Wednesday. — AFP



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lanka’s Tour of India
2nd T20 at Mohali

Sanga was the difference: Dhoni

Nagpur, December 10
After being comprehensively beaten by Sri Lanka in the first Twenty20 International, India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said his team gave away too many runs after starting well in the match. “We started well and had given away only 16 to 18 runs in the first four overs. Both Ishant Sharma and Ashish Nehra began well but then to give away 200-odd runs in the next 16 overs cost us the match,” said Dhoni.

Dhoni conceded that Sri Lanka outplayed his side who came into the tie after being crowned as the world’s top Test team following their 2-0 victory in the three-match rubber against the visitors.

“In this game we were outplayed. (Lanka skipper Kumar) Sangakkara played brilliantly and carried on till the end. We also dropped a few catches. We could have done better and had we restricted them to around 190 it could have been different,” he said.

He said the middle order failed to get going after the brisk start given by openers Gautam Gambhir, who top scored with a fine 55, and Virender Sehwag. “The middle order failed but if you see the asking rate had climbed up and we had to go for the shots. But they went to hand. Both Yuvraj and I got out that way,” he pointed out.

New faces and format helped: Sangakkara

The new format and a fresh set of faces, including veteran Sanath Jayasuriya, definitely helped Sri Lanka clinch the first Twenty20 International against India by 29 runs, said visiting team skipper Kumar Sangakkara.

“It was a new format and there were fresh faces who are one-day specialists in the team who were ready to stand up and be counted,” said Sangakkara who played a stellar knock of 78 to power the tourists to 215 for 5.

In reply, India were halted at 186 for nine by determined Lanka bowling and excellent fielding. Sangakkara said the wicket of Gautam Gambhir was obviously the key point in the contest when the Indian left-hander was going great guns.

“The wicket of (Virender) Sehwag after they started well was a bonus. Then we got the wicket of Gambhir. At that stage they needed one boundary an over. Sanath and Mathews bowled in the right areas and that made the difference,” he said. But, the Lankan captain was not too happy with the way the team allowed matters to drift after reducing the hosts to a sorry-reading 129 for 7 in the 14th over. — PTI

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India, Lanka teams arrive for T20
Vaibhav Sharma
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 10
The high of becoming the No.1 Test team called for a definite celebration in the Indian camp, but the party was cut short by the defeat in the first T20 game at Nagpur. Now, the scene shifts to Mohali, with the teams arriving in the city for the second T20 to be played on December 12.

The teams arrived at the Chandigarh airport around 4.30 pm, and were escorted directly to the team hotel under heavy security cover. While both teams arrived almost simultaneously, Sri Lanka’s Upul Tharanga, who is supposed to join the team for the ODI series, and came to India early, arrived at the team hotel earlier in the day.

Four Indian players also did not arrive with the team, and will be arriving by the morning flight from Delhi. These four are Ashish Nehra, Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma and Virender Sehwag, all from Delhi.

De Dana Dan time

While many players made use of the time off by resting in their hotel rooms, some Indian players decided to cheer themselves up by catching the latest hindi movie De Dana Dan at a local multiplex. The brigade that initially comprised of Suresh Raina, Dinesh Karthick, Pragyan Ojha and Rohit Sharma was later joined by captain MS Dhoni.

Chandigarh boy Yuvraj Singh also went out, but without company. Keeping in mind their security violations during their last visit to the City Beautiful, the Indian players informed the police in advance for clearance. They were accompanied by PSOs (personal security officers) and two police vehicles.

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Super Series win will be best preparation for CWG: Jwala 

New Delhi, December 10
As a successful but physically draining year draws to a close, one half of Indian badminton’s most formidable mixed doubles pair Jwala Gutta is now aiming for a Super Series title in the new season to ensure a good build-up to the Commonwealth Games here.

Jwala, who along with V Diju won the Chinese Taipei Grand Prix Gold besides making the finals of Indian Open and the season-ending World Super Series finals, reckons 2010 would be hectic.

“2010 is going to be really busy and hectic and we have the Commonwealth Games also in India. We are excited and proud to represent our country but having said that, we don’t want to think so much ahead as it is still a long way to go. Also to perform well in the CWG we will have to concentrate on the other tournaments next year,” Jwala said.

“So the focus will be on performance and raising the game with each match we play and in the process winning at least one or two Super Series tournaments,” she added.

Still recovering from a skin infection, Jwala said she had a tough time playing the World Super Series Masters Final in Malaysia due to the ailment and wants to take some time off from the court to regain her fitness for the next season.

“I had a really tough time playing in the World Super Series Masters Finals as I was not well. I was advised complete bed rest for 3-4 weeks but I still went to Malaysia. So, I was very weak,” said Jwala, who was forced to pull out midway in the first round of the China Super Series because of the ailment.

Asked if she and Diju have set any ranking targets for next season, Jwala said the aim would be to perform well and not bother about the rankings. “I think me and Diju, Saina (Nehwal) and Chetan (Anand) have reached a stage where we should just focus on performance and not think about the ranking. But if you ask me where we want to see ourself, it has to be within the top 5 by the next year end. But it is going to be tough,” Jwala said. — PTI

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Ranji Trophy
Punjab face daunting task
Amit Khanna
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 10
Skyline and Punjab’s fortunes had a similar story to share all day. Clouds hovered over both throughout the third day of their Ranji Trophy “A” tie against Orissa here. With the visitors already 302 runs ahead at the call of stumps in the second innings, hosts have their work cut out if they want to strengthen their case for the second round spot this season. Punjab have 15 points and are placed second with Mumbai, and a loss here will certainly dent their chances with only one more game to play with. Punjab play Railways next from December 15 at Delhi.

Early in the morning, hosts added another 33 runs before folding out for 177 in their first dig. Yesterday’s wrecker-in-chief B Mohanty did not take long and shaved off Punjab’s tail in a hurry. He finished with an impressive 6 for 65.

With a hefty 106 runs lead on the basis of first innings under their belt, Orissa started cautiously and added another fifty for the loss of two wickets till the Lunch interval. Love, who ended the day with a five-wicket haul struck early trapping Pati in front in the 5th over. Just before the interval, Gagandeep managed to see the back of last innings top scorer Behera with one that moved away from him.

Though visitors lost another five wickets before Tea, but by then they had already accumulated another 135 runs to their first innings lead. Love kept questioning everyone he bowled to and was amply rewarded for his efforts. Gony took two wickets to take his tally to an impressive 30.

Orissa ended the day at 196 with two wickets to go. With one full day still to negotiate and their patchy batting form this season, Punjab would do well to save the game as that would ensure them one crucial point, which might come in handy when the second round slots are finalised. Expect Orissa to show no mercy and they will go for the full six points.

Brief Scores:

Orissa (1st Innings) 283

Punjab (1st Innings) 177

Orissa (2nd Innings) 196 for 8 (Sahoo 62, Love 5 for 54)

Andhra beat J&K

Andhra (1st Innings) 318

J&K 147 & 192

Andhra (2nd Innings) 22 for no loss.

Haryana win

Kerala (1st Innings) 93

Haryana (1st Innings) 383

Kerala (2nd Innings) 205

Gujarat lose

Gujarat (1st Innings) 234

Himachal 182 & 83

Gujarat (2nd Innings) 140 for 4.

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Champions League
Barcelona, Inter make it to last 16 

Paris, December 10
Holders Barcelona and Inter Milan secured their places in the Champions League knock out stages at the last throw of the dice. Joining this pair on the final batch of group games yesterday were Stuttgart and Olympiakos to complete the 16-team cast-list for the second round starting in February. Barca had the luxury of travelling to Dynamo Kiev knowing that even a defeat would not necessarily spell a premature end to their pursuit of a fourth European crown.

In the end they won 2-1 with goals coming from Xavi and European Footballer of the year Lionel Messi to top Group F. “It was a match of unique importance for us and I’m happy that all my players showed true understanding of that fact,” Barcelona manager Josep Guardiola said.

Inter faced a must-win game at home to Russia’s Rubin Kazan, and duly completed the mission with former Barcelona star Samuel Eto’o producing the opener in their 2-0 win.

That sealed Inter the runners-up spot and potentially shored up Jose Mourinho’s position as manager with rumours before kick-off that he could be out at the end of the season if Inter didn’t go througth.

Elsewhere Arsenal, already confirmed as Group H winners which theoretically means a more favourable second round draw, lost 1-0 at Olympiakos with the Greeks grabbing the runners-up spot.

All that was left to decide in Group E was which of Fiorentina and Lyon would emerge as table toppers. The French ended their first round campaign on a high, routing Debrecen 4-0 but lost out on the number one place after Fiorentina grabbed a late goal to beat Liverpool 2-1 at Anfield. Yossi Benayoun’s first half header had given the hosts a 43rd-minute lead against the run of play before Martin Jorgensen levelled for the Italians after half time. — AFP

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 BRIEFLY

CWG: British gymnasts pull out 
LONDON:
The top British gymnasts will skip the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi but the media here is not sure whether it was the fear of ‘Delhi Belly’ or the scheduling of the event that prompted such reaction from the sports administrators here. ‘The Daily Telegraph’ reported it was the fear of ‘Delhi Belly’ which forced British gymnasts Beth Tweddle, Louis Smith and Daniel Keatings to skip Commonwealth Games, which is still a good 10 months away. — PTI

China’s Li Jinzhe competes during the men’s long jump final at the East Asian Games in Hong Kong
China’s Li Jinzhe competes during the men’s long jump final at the East Asian Games in Hong Kong on Thursday. Li won the event. —Reuters

Wife smashed Tiger’s tooth: Report
LONDON:
His image shattered, disgraced golfer Tiger Woods reportedly had one of his teeth smashed by wife Elin when she discovered the sordid details of his several extra-marital affairs on the night of his car crash. According to a report in ‘The Sun’, Elin threw a mobile phone at Tiger after confronting him over a reported affair with one of the several women that have now come out in open to tell all. — PTI

Lifters’ doping: Ministry rules out probe 
NEW DELHI:
The Sports Ministry on Thursday ruled out a probe into the serial doping in Indian weightlifting which is set to incur an international ban for the country. Minister of State for Youth Affairs & Sports Pratik Prakashbapu Patil said in the Rajya Sabha that there was a set procedure to tackle such cases and the government does not plan to investigate the matter further. — PTI

Ronaldinho Player of the Decade 
LONDON:
Brazil forward Ronaldinho was named as World Player of the Decade by prestigious British magazine World Soccer on Thursday, while Argentine forward Lionel Messi was named their World Player of the Year. Ronaldinho won the accolade based on the votes cast by readers in the 10 annual votes between 2000 and 2009 being converted into points. — Reuters

Michelle Wie of the U.S. waves during the second round of the Dubai Ladies Masters European Tour golf tournament in Dubai on Thursday.
Michelle Wie of the U.S. waves during the second round of the Dubai Ladies Masters European Tour golf tournament in Dubai on Thursday. — Reuters

Sydney gold void to stay: IOC
GENEVA:
The International Olympic Committee decided not to re-award the women’s 100m gold medal at the Sydney Games in 2000, which was stripped from drug cheat Marion Jones two years ago. In line with IOC practice, controversial Greek sprinter Katerina Thanou, who finished second behind Jones in Sydney, would have been expected to receive the gold medal. — AFP

PCB hopeful of IPL participation 
KARACHI:
The deadline for visa clearance may have been missed but Pakistani players could still make it to the IPL’s third edition as their Cricket Board is hopeful of completing the paperwork within the next couple of days. “We are hopeful that the visas will come through in a day or two and are very hopeful that Pakistan’s players will be in the next IPL,” PCB chief Ejaz Butt said. — PTI

Jharkhand thrash Tripura
GURGAON:
Two Group A matches were played on the second day of the 32nd National Sub- Junior Football Championship for Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy at Tau Devi Lal Sports Complex here on Thursday. In the first match, the Jharkhand beat Tripura by 5-0 in a one-sided match. In the second match, Bihar defeated Mizoram 2-1. Megahalaya play Maharashtra while Uttar Pradesh lads will take on Delhi on Friday. — TNS

Want chess in Olympics: Anand
NEW DELHI:
On the eve of his 40th birthday, the first chess player to become world champion in all three formats of the game, Indian ace Viswanathan Anand has just one wish - to see his sport become an Olympic event. “Obviously that would be for the FIDE and the International Olympic Committee to decide. Personally, it would be nice to have chess in the Olympics,” he said. — PTI

Messi doubtful for Espanyol clash
MADRID:
Barcelona forward Lionel Messi is a doubt for Saturday’s La Liga match against city rivals Espanyol after he injured an ankle in the Catalans’ 2-1 Champions League win at Dynamo Kiev on Wednesday. The Argentina international, whose superb freekick sealed Barca’s victory, suffered a hefty challenge from Leandro Almeida late in the match which damaged his right ankle, the club said. — Reuters

‘Would love to play for Man U’
LONDON:
Former England defender Sol Campbell has said that he would love a move to Manchester United as the cash-strapped club look to bolster their defensive cover. “I have heard nothing officially, but there have been suggestions and it would be a great move for me. I would love to play for Manchester United, but I am not counting any chickens,” he said. —ANI

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