Colombo, March 27
There is scarcely anything surprising about the fact that three Asian teams have reached the semifinals of this World Cup. These teams were always the frontrunners and have played according to script. But there is one team that has surpassed expectations and has upset the calculations of many keen experts.

South Africa and Australia were the teams that were expected to reach the last-four stage but it has been the unheralded New Zealanders who have once again reached the semifinals of the World Cup. The Kiwis have been there before, but have never gone beyond this stage. And this time too they are up against a rampaging Sri Lankan team that seems hard to stop.

Kiwi skipper Daniel Vettori is very proud of what his team has done at this tournament and is also equally aware of the legacy that earlier New Zealand teams have bestowed on his shoulders.

“I suppose you can give a negative slant to it all and say that we have been to the semifinals before but have never reached the final of the World Cup. But I will say it’s a great achievement for a country as small as ours to have been in the semifinals for more than one occasion. We have already achieved a lot,’ says Daniel Vettori.

While the Sri Lankans opted to rest after their convincing win over England last night, the New Zealanders had a practice session at the Sara Oval Ground here today.

Most experts were of the opinion that the South African team were looking favourites to claim the title this time around and not many were giving the Kiwis any chance at all. Yet, Vettori’s players thrashed the Proteas quite convincingly in the quarterfinal by 49 runs.

Now they are a step closer to where they have never been. But the path is strewn with obstacles. New Zealand were beaten squarely by the Sri Lankans just a week or so ago in Mumbai by 112 runs in one of the league games. Captain Kumar Sangakkara slammed a century in that match and Muralitharan claimed four wickets as the Kiwis were bowled out for 153.

“Yes, we beat them in Mumbai. But that was not a high-pressure game. This one is. You can say that the teams from the subcontinent generally perform quite well in home conditions. So that will be an advantage for us to be playing here in front of home supporters. But the Kiwis achieved a great win over the South Africans the other night and we know we will be playing against a dangerous side,’ said Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara.

In the league match against Pakistan earlier, Ross Taylor showed what a dominating batsman he can be. Nathan McCullum, Jacob Oram, Tim Southee and Jesse Ryder have all made an impact in this tournament already. Daniel Vettori continues to be accurate and threatening as a bowler and positive as a captain.

But if the Kiwis were outstanding in their match against the Proteas in Dhaka, the Sri Lankans too were on top of their game against England. Both their openers scored a hundred and the spinners were bang on target.

So, New Zealand will surely find it extremely hard to stop this Sri Lankan team that seems very balanced in every sense. But, like Vettori said, the Kiwis have already achieved a lot at this World Cup and can be quite proud of their performance. 

Chandigarh, March 27
Mohameed Bashir Udeein Khan, a Pakistan cricket team follower, flew in all the way from Chicago in hope of catching the match that has already been billed as the ‘mother of all contests’, the final before the final, and more... but he too was only one among the thousands of disheartened fans who will not get a chance to buy a ticket for the forthcoming World Cup semifinal to be held in Mohali on March 30.

People not only from across the nation but from across the world want to be part of the moment when the two nations with long-standing rivalry, on and off the field, will fight for a place in the final. It almost seems as if people have nothing else to do, but hunt for tickets!

“I was not aware of the situation here but the officials are not entertaining anyone; they should keep a good stock of tickets for people like us”, said Khan, who owns a restaurant in Chicago.

With just two days left for the semifinal, ample people despite being aware of unavailability of tickets are coming here to buy the tickets. “I am coming here from past three days as my boss ordered me to buy tickets and if I will not, he will throw me out of my job,” said a servant while roaming around the PCA.

Even government servants were also seen jolting for tickets around the stadium. “My chief told me to buy three tickets worth Rs 5,000 each by hook or by crook. However, I came to know that the slot was not available for general public, and even tickets for the rest of the blocks were not available, I don’t want to loose my job please help me to get a Rs 5000 ticket as you are a journalist ” stated an inspector rank officer posted with the Haryana Income Tax department.

While for some the ordeal has been on how to get inside, for others living in the vicinity of the stadium the situation is looking like an inevitable nightmare. “I hope the new stadium comes up soon, the area sometimes look like the general ward of a hospital where chaos reigns through the day. Not only this, people are actually coming to us asking for tickets and offering huge amounts” said a local. 

Mohali, March 27
Pakistan's Test captain Misbah-ul Haq feels that Shahid Afridi's greatest quality has been to bring unity in the team which has always been in the news for all wrong reasons.

"He (Afridi) listens to senior players, he takes senior players and the coaches into confidence. We decide everything with a good co-ordination, and that's why everything is going well. It's a big thing actually. There is always differences of opinion, but we always go with the captain. Everyone is standing behind him," Misbah told mediapersons, ahead of his side's much-anticipated semi-final clash against arch-rivals India, on Wednesday.

"He has led the team by example and his aggression has been exemplary. He has bowled superbly giving us breakthroughs at the right time. It helps the team when the captain is performing," Misbah added. Misbah said the team is gelling well with the senior players, including another former captain Younis Khan, helping out the juniors.

"The team members are gelling well. The big plus is that the team is playing as a unit. Everyone is chipping, putting the right input at the right time. Everyone is fulfilling the roles the team demands of them," said Misbah after his team's three-hour practice session at Punjab Cricket Association grounds.

He also said that presence of manager and former skipper Intikhab Alam was also helping the team as he brings in the wealth of experience for the team.

Misbah said that any player-specific plan against India may backfire as "all of them are world-class." "You cannot just single out any one individual player. All the eleven are important and we need to have strategy for all of them. We cannot take anyone lightly, all are world class players," Haq said when asked what strategy his team will adopt to tackle players like Yuvraj Singh and Zaheer Khan.

Asked if Shoaib Akhtar will play against India, Misbah said the management is yet to give any thought on the team composition but described the retiring fast bowler as somebody who gives "psychological advantage" against the opponents.

"He is a world class bowler who has come up with numerous match-winning performances on a number of occasions including the 1999 World Cup. Batsmen get to prepare well against pace bowling when they face him at the nets. If he does play in the coming matches, I feel it will give us a psychological advantage," Misbah said. — PTI

Melbourne, March 27
Australian captain Ricky Ponting is hoping for a ‘Tendulkar-sort rebirth’ after his century against India in the World Cup quarterfinal in Ahmedabad last Thursday.

"I guess by even making some runs in this last game that I've played and getting that really good feeling back about my batting again, hopefully it might be a bit of a kick-start for a Tendulkar-sort rebirth, if you like," Ponting told AAP today, on his arrival from India.

Tendulkar has scored 379 World Cup runs, the third highest aggregate of the tournament, at an average of 54. He averaged 81 in his most recent Test series against South Africa in a battle between the world's top two ranked nations.

Amidst lot of critcism, the star batsmen who had led Australia to back-to-back World Cup triumphs feels that he still has a lot to contribute. Ponting said the next couple of days would be crucial for him in determining the way to go forward for both himself and the team.

"I see myself as a leader around the group, simple as that, whether I'm captain or not I still think I've got a lot to offer as far as leadership qualities go.”

Though heartened by the recent support of senior officials, Ponting said he was "absolutely" prepared to drop down the order and not continue as captain, "if that's what they (Cricket Australia,) and I believe is the best way forward." He admitted the quantity of runs he scored in recent months had been "a lot shorter" than what he wanted. But Ponting stressed he had no imminent retirement date in mind. — PTI

Melbourne, March 27
World champion Sebastian Vettel won in commanding fashion from pole Sunday to end Red Bull's rot at the Australian Formula One Grand Prix. Vettel, 23, dominated the delayed 2011 season-opener ahead of Lewis Hamilton in a damaged McLaren and Renault's Vitaly Petrov who got a first podium finish in the sport for Russia.

Red Bull's best Australian result until Sunday was fourth place from David Coulthard in the team's debut season 2005. Vettel was stopped by a technical problem in leading position during last year's race. Reliability had been the only Red Bull concern after Vettel had routed Hamilton in qualifying Saturday by almost eight tenth of a second.

"Fantastic race, really controlled. Excellent car, excellent stops," said the elated Vettel via team radio after taking the checkered flag at Albert park. Ferrari had to settle for fourth place from Fernando Alonso in the first race since a bad team pit stop strategy cost the Spaniard the 2010 crown in the final race and gave it to Vettel.

Sebastian Vettel celebrates on the podium

Bolstered by the pole, the youngest F1 champion Vettel made no mistakes at the start and pulled away quickly from Hamilton Mark Webber in the second Red Bull and Petrov, who moved up from sixth.

Michael Schumacher's race was ruined in a first-lap collision which damaged his Mercedes and eventually forced him to retire in the 23rd lap. Mercedes' agony was complete when Nico Rosberg had to quit as well after Williams veteran Rubens Barrichello crashed into him. "That's racing. It's a shame we came here with very different expectations," said Schumacher.

The 2009 and 2010 race winner Jenson Button failed for a long time to get past Felipe Massa's Ferrari in a thrilling duel for fifth. When he finally did so, he had to cut a corner and received a drive through penalty because stewards ruled he hadn't been ahead of Massa heading into turn 11.

Vettel retained the lead from Hamilton and Webber after the first round of pit stops while Button had to work his way back up from 12th, once he had served the penalty and then pitted on lap 20. The 2008 champion Hamilton was later hampered by a partly broken front floor after going wide into the grass but was able to carry on.

While Vettel, Hamilton and Petrov got through the race with two stops on the new Pirelli tyres, Webber and Alonso came into the pits three times which added to the spice. Webber rode out after his final stop which may have cost him third place at the home race as Alonso went ahead. But none of the two were able to hunt down Petrov as the Russian held on to third with one stop less.

Alonso, Webber and Button completed the top six. A one-minute silence was observed ahead of the race as a tribute to victims of recent natural disasters in Japan, New Zealand and Australia. — DPA

Melbourne, March 27
Adrian Sutil and Paul di Resta finished outside the points bracket as Force India Formula One team returned empty-handed from the Australian Grand Prix here today. Sutil ended the race 11th while di Resta finished 12th.

Both Sutil and di Resta made a good start to the race, running in 10th and 12th position, respectively, by the end of lap one. Di Resta was the first to pit for a set of new option tyres on lap 14 while Sutil's first stop came on lap 16. For the team's second pit stops, Sutil came in for prime tyres on lap 37 and di Resta for new primes on lap 36.

The pair then ran consistently in 11th and 12th, maintaining their positions until the chequered flag.

"Generally it was not a bad race. Coming from 16th was not easy; the start itself was good and as usual there were a lot of cars at the first corner, but I made up at several places by the end of lap one. We had good performance on the track and in the end it was a good race for the first one of the season," Sutil said.

"It is a shame that we were just outside the top ten, but we hope to have improved our pace and be in the points in Malaysia," he added. Di Resta said the team would aim for a better finish in the next race. "Our pace was just a little bit behind today, but hopefully by Malaysia, we will be able to understand why and when the upgrades come, we will perform at bit better.

"Adrian and I were on different strategies and we had to fuel conserve toward the end that's why the gap opened up. I am going into Malaysia to try to do a better job than I did here today, but overall I am relatively happy," he added.

Force India's chief operating officer Otmar Szafnauer said though it was disappointing to be outside the points bracket, the performance was good nonetheless.

"It was good to see both Force India cars run a consistent race today. It is, of course, disappointing to finish just outside the points, but we have to look at the positives and what we have learned this weekend," he added. Reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull won the race. —PTI

Miami, March 27
Rohan Bopanna and his Pakistani partner Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi warded off late resistance from the German-American pair of Philipp Kohlschreiber and Rajeev Ram to enter the pre-quarterfinals of the Sony Ericsson Open here.

The seventh-seeded Indo-Pakistani pair beat the unseeded rival team 6-3 7-6(5). Bopanna and Qureshi will next face the Slovak-Belarussian pair of Michal Mertinak and Dick Norman. Bopanna and Qureshi frittered away four break points in the opening set itself but managed to convert one against their rivals' none to get the edge.

The second set was a closer battle but Mertinak and Norman once again wasted the opportunities they got converting just one of the seven break points they earned. Bopanna and Qureshi, however, negated that by converting the only break they got the victory. — PTI

Berhampur, March 27
Commonwealth Games gold-medallist K Ravi Kumar of Berhampur has been selected to represent India in the Asian Weightlifting Championship to be held in China from April 12.

"He is the only weightlifter from the country selected by the Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWF) to participate in the Asian Weightlifting Championship which will be held at Tongling, China from April 12 to 17," said vice president of IWF Narayan Sahu.

22-year-old Ravi had also won three gold medals in senior National weightlifting championships held at Bangalore on Friday. Representing Services Sports Control Board (SSCB), Ravi won in clean, jerk and overall weight in the men's 77-kg event. Ravi lifted a total of 306 kg (138, 168) in the event.

Sahu, who was also a former coach to Ravi, expressed confidence about his success in the Asian championship. Ravi told PTI from Bangalore that he has already started preparing for his China tour. "I am very much confident of winning gold in the Asian championship and I am practising regularly," he added.

Starting his career as a weightlifter from the Veer Hanuman Club here about seven years ago, he has established a brilliant track record by winning several gold medals at the national and international events. Ravi had also set a record in the men's 69-kg category by lifting 321 kg in the recently held Commonwealth Games held at New Delhi in October last year. — PTI

Oslo, March 27
Dennis Rommedahl's superb volley in a 1-1 draw with Norway was not enough to spare him from criticism from Denmark coach Morten Olsen whose faith in the inconsistent winger is showing signs of waning.

The Olympiakos Piraeus player has often been condemned by fans and the media for erratic performances for club and country but Olsen has continued to select him.

However, as Denmark let slip a 1-0 lead in Saturday's Euro 2012 Group H qualifier, Rommedahl's dithering and wild shots did not go unnoticed as he was one of three players Olsen pointed the finger at.

Rommedahl's first-half strike in Oslo was excellent, but he often picked the wrong pass to cause several promising Danish counter-attacks to run out in the sand. — Reuters