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Flintoff bids adieu to international cricket
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In-form RCB to take on South Australia
Davis Cup
Games Village is best ever, says Kalmadi
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Fixing Row
New Delhi, September 16 ICC president Sharad Pawar, who had an hour-long meeting with PCB chairman Ijaz Butt at his residence here, indicated that Scotland Yard’s probe against the three Pakistani cricketers implicated in the scandal would be over soon. Pawar said the ICC would maintain the sanctity of the game and would never tolerate any corruption in the game of cricket. “The ICC wants to maintain the sanctity of the game and all member countries, including PCB, are assisting in preserving it. The PCB is not a separate entity, it is also a part of the ICC,” Pawar said after the meeting, which was shrouded in mystery. Butt’s surprise arrival in Delhi and his meeting with Pawar came amid intense speculation that he was under pressure from certain quarters in the PCB to seek leniency for the accused players. Butt, however, denied any such agenda and said the PCB had no tolerance for corruption and would provide all cooperation to the ICC and the investigative agencies. Pawar said the ICC would not jump into any conclusion till the probe was complete. “Till the Scotland Yard probe is complete how can we comment. But if anything is established, we will take strong stand. Without information we should not jump into any conclusion,” Pawar said. “Prima facie there are some allegations and we have suspended the players on the basis of that. The Scotland Yard has permitted them to go back to Pakistan and the PCB has also promised to make them available to the investigators if and when required. A major investigation agency is carrying out the probe and that will not take long. PCB or ICC will not interfere in the process,” he added. Contrary to speculation in Pakistan that India was behind the entire drama, Butt cleared the air saying, “I don't believe in any conspiracy theory. I’m a businessman and a cricket administrator”. Pawar also made it clear that India had no role in the entire episode. Butt also claimed that the PCB was not offended with the ICC’s move to provisionally suspend the three cricketers - Test captain Salman Butt and pacers Mohammad Aamir and Mohammad Asif. “We are not offended. The ICC asked them to individually answer and all of them have done so. If anyone is found guilty, we will not show any tolerance. ICC's Code of Conduct is very clear regarding this matter,” he said. The PCB chief also said he raised the issue of resuming Indo-Pak cricketing ties with Pawar, but did not elaborate.
— PTI |
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Flintoff bids adieu to international cricket
freddie’s journey 1995: Makes Lancashire debut 1996: Captained England Under-19s against Pakistan and Zimbabwe 1998: Test debut against South Africa at Trent Bridge and awarded county cap 1999: Scores 50 on one-day international debut against Pakistan at
Sharjah. 2002: Scores maiden Test century against New Zealand 2004:
Named ICC one-day player of the year 2005: Named man of the series after England's Ashes win 2009: becomes the
highest-ever-paid IPL playe when the Chennai Super Kings bought him for £1m. In July announces retirement from Test cricket
London, September 16 Flintoff, 32, who had announced his retirement from Test cricket after the 2009 Ashes triumph in the Oval Test, decided to quit all forms of the game with immediate effect because of a long-standing knee injury. He played 79 Tests and compiled 3,845 runs and claimed 226 wickets and was considered one of the most talented cricketers to emerge from England in recent times. Though there were some critic who felt he did not justify his immense potential. His achievements in the cricket field were at times overshadowed by a series of controversies, which ranged from waving his shirt during England's 2001-02 India tour to the infamous pedalo incident during the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies. After quitting Test cricket, Flintoff underwent a series of knee surgeries and hoped to return to action this season, but that was ruled out last month. “It is with both disappointment and sadness that I am today announcing my retirement from all forms of cricket,” said Flintoff. “The decision to end my career came yesterday after consultation with medical advisers. I was told that the problems I have been trying to overcome in rehab for the last year following the latest in a series of operations would not recover sufficiently to allow a comeback. “Having been told
that my body would no longer stand up to the rigours of cricket, I had no alternative
but to retire,” he added.
— PTI
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Mumbai Indians beat Guyana by 31 runs Durban, September 16 Pushed up the order, Pollard hammered Guyana bowlers for nine sixes and a boundary to pile up a mammoth 85 runs off the last five overs and muscle Mumbai to 184 for four at the Kingsmead here after they were down at 99 for three at one stage. Guyana's had a horrible start to their run chase as they lost Sewnarine Chattergoon early when he gave a simple catching practice to Duminy at first slip off Lasith Malinga. — PTI Scoreboard Mumbai Indians: Dhawan c Crandon b Bishoo 39 Tendulkar st Christian b Bishoo 48 Pollard not out 72 Tiwary c Barnwell b Bishoo 0 Rayudu b Crandon 4 Duminy not out 14 Extras: (LB-2, W-5) 7 Total: (for 4 wkts, 20 overs) 184 Bowling: Wintz 4-0-46-0, Crandon 4-0-44-1, Barnwell 4-0-33-0, Crandon 4-0-25-0, Bishoo 4-0-34-3. Guyana: Dowlin c Tiwary b Bravo 7 C’goon c Duminy b Malinga 1 Sarwan c Malinga b Harbhajan 46 Deonarine c Dhawan b Bravo 27 Barnwell c T’dulkar b Harbhajan 24 Crandon not out 16 Foo c Rayudu b Khan 1 Crandon not ou t 2 Extras: (B-8, LB-4, W-17) 29 Total: (for 6 wkts, 20 overs) 153 Bowling: Zaheer 4-0-17-1, Malinga 4-0-28-1, Bravo 3-0-18-2, Harbhajan 4-0-33-2, Pollard 2-0-22-0, Murtaza 3-0-23-0. |
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In-form RCB to take on South Australia
Both the teams have started their campaign in the T20 championship on a winning note and would strive to register another victory tomorrow to consolidate their position on the points table. Anil Kumble-led Bangalore side, who finished third in the Indian Premier League III earlier this year, started their journey in the tournament by crushing a low-profile Guyana by nine wickets. On the other hand, South Australia first snatched an 11-run victory over Lions and then inflicted a humiliating five-wicket defeat on another IPL side, Sachin Tendulkar-led Mumbai Indians. For Kumble's men everything fell in place against Guyana and now they have to guard against complacency before tomorrow's tough encounter at the Kingsmead ground. Experienced all-rounder Jacques Kallis commendably led Bangalore bowling attack, while pacer duo of Dale Steyn and Praveen Kumar had extended excellent support to him. Kumble, who had managed just one wicket against Guyana, would now expect another all-round performance by his bowling department to break South Australia's batting line-up. Kallis and Rahul Dravid had also clicked with the bat and produced a 78-run opening partnership, while at one-down Robin Uthappa cracked a quick unbeaten 25 off just eight balls to complete the task. But other batsmen, including New Zealander Ross Taylor and Virat Kohli, whose mettle have not been put to test in the event so far, should also be ready this time make a decent contribution with the bat. Skipper Michael Klinger and his opening partner Daniel Harris have played crucial roles in South Australia's consecutive wins. The duo had shared a 112-run partnership against Mumbai Indians to lay the foundation stone for their second win in the show-piece event.
— PTI |
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All-India JP Atray Memorial Cricket Tournament
Chandigarh, September 16 For a set target of 269, the BPCL needed 7 runs in the last over of the game with three wickets in hand. Reliance-I skipper Pathan, who took the final over, produced hat-trick on third, fourth and fifth balls to snatch the victory from the jaws of the rivals. He dismissed Bhavin Thakkar (19), S Bahutule (16) and Rajesh Verma (0) to complete the feat. The elated skipper returned with the figure 4 for 47 in 10 overs. The BPCL were bowled out for 264 in 49.5 overs. Earlier, sent to bat first, the Reliance-I made 268 for 9 in 50 overs with the help of half century by S Gaekwad (50) and Mohnish Parmar’s 44-run knock. Yusuf Pathan displayed average show with bat today as he made 26 off 13, smashing three sixes. The successful bowlers of the BPCL were Rajesh Verma (3 for 51), Bhavin Thakkar (2 for 38) and S Kotak (2 for 31). The team was at 262 for 7 at the end of 49 overs, but Pathan turned the tables on the rivals in his last over. Besides Yusuf, the man of the match, the other notable wicket-taker for the Reliance was Mohnish Parmar (2 for 54). Brief score: Reliance I: 268 for 9 in 50 overs (Yusuf Pathan 26, S Gaekwad 50, Mohnish Parmar 44, Rajesh Verma 3 for 51, Bhavin Thakkar 2 for 38, S Kotak 2 for 31). BPCL: 264 in 49.5 overs (V Indulkar 60, O Khanvilkar 34, Uday Kaul 42, Yusuf Pathan 4 for 47, Abhimanyu 1 for 34, Yogesh Nagar 1 for 38, Chetanya Nanda 1 for 35, Ishan Malhotra 1 for 23). II
In another match, local outfit Punjab Cricket Colts (PCC) started their campaign with a winning note by defeating BSNL by one wicket at Sector 16 Cricket Stadium here today. The win was made possible by former Indian cricketer Manpreet Goni, who smashed timely unbeaten 47 off 30. Set target 293 in 50 overs, the PCC overhauled it in 49.2 overs. The BSNL garnered 292 for 7 in 50 overs. Arindam Das made 35 off 36 before being castled by Rajwinder. Replying, the PCC scored 294 for 9 in 49.2 overs. Before Goni, Ravi Inder Singh struck 55 off 58 with four boundaries and two sixes while Mandeep Singh’s valuable 87 off 90 was another notable performance. Mandeep Singh was declared man of the match. III
In the 3rd match the FCI defeated Railways by five wickets. For a set target of 245, the FCI achieved it in 45 overs, losing five wickets in the course. Their main scorers were man of the match Ankur Julka (91 n.o.) and Paras Dogra (56 off 68). TOMORROWS FIXTURES PCA Colts Vs D.Y. Patil Dhruv Pandove Stadium Patiala Bishnoi Vs ONGC, Sector 16, Chd All-India FCI VS Indian Oil, DAV Sector 8,
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Davis Cup
Chennai, September 16 Bopanna was today drawn against world number 27 Thomaz Bellucci, while 113th ranked Somdev will play the second singles against Ricardo Melo, who is 38 places above the Indian in the ranking chart. “I am looking forward to tomorrow’s match. Go out there and play to my capabilities and give India the first point of the tie. My confidence levels is high,” Bopanna said after the draw ceremony. Somdev, too, was upbeat about his prospects. “Obviously, he is 75 in the world right now, but I had few good wins during the past two months. I will come and play well and have good chance to win against Ricardo Mello,” he said. Brazil's non-playing captain Joao Zwetsch was also confident of a solid start for his side. “I am happy Thomaz is playing first. I am sure Bopanna will be high on confidence after reaching the US Open doubles final, but this is a singles match and Thomaz is well-prepared for it,” Swetsch, who is Bellucci's personal coach, said The visiting captain though said rankings do not matter in the Davis Cup ties. “Thomaz has developed his game over the past few years and no one will see him only as a clay court player. He is tough to beat on any surface. “However, I do not think draw or ranking makes any difference. Davis Cup is all about emotional feelings as the atmosphere and pressure is very different as you carry pride playing for the country. It is going to be a tough and very close tie,” he said. India's seasoned doubles pro Leander Paes, who will enter into his 21st year in Davis Cup, said a good start was key to any tie. “In modern day tennis or for that matter in any game, a draw can make or mar your chances. A draw can help you to have a rousing start which might help you in the end, particularly when the two sides are balanced. “Positive result depended on who display success in making good use of the chances during the competition,” Paes said.
— PTI |
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Games Village is best ever, says Kalmadi New Delhi, September 16 "The standard of training facilities that are available here are not available anywhere else in the world. This is one of the best Games Villages that anyone has seen," Kalmadi said on the occasion of the soft launch of the Commonwealth Games Village here today. "All the facilities in the Village are top class and I am sure the athletes are going to love it. The training areas comprising of the swimming pool, athletic track, gymnasium, weightlifting and wrestling areas are simply wonderful. In a Games Village, generally, all these facilities are not available at such a large scale," he added. Putting to rest all rumours about the readiness of the Games Village, Kalmadi, himself led the media contingent to the various parts of the Games Village. "The whole village is ready. The international, the training centres and the accommodations are all in place. The Games Village will open from September 23 and we will have a lot of athletes coming in on September 23, 24 and 25 and they will continue to come till October 2," said Kalmadi. CWG theme song tweaked, to be peppier Amid criticism that it failed to meet the expectations of the people, the theme song of the Commonwealth Games composed by A R Rahman will be tweaked a bit to make it peppier like the popular Bollywood number 'Chak de'. The original version of the song 'India bula liya' was panned by critics and was also criticised by CWG Organising Committee's executive board member V K Malhotra and other leaders for "falling short of expectations". A Group of Ministers on CWG gave the green signal to the theme song after agreeing to certain changes in it. “The final rendering of theme song by Rahman along with the visuals were shown today and it is being cleared," said Urban Development Minister S Jaipal Reddy, after the GoM meeting. About the new version, Sports Secretary Sindhu Shree Khullar said: "There will be more music, particularly instrumental, in the opening theme song of the Games." — PTI
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Durban, September 16
