Scoreboard

Pune Warriors

Ryder c Sachin b Ahmed 12

Paine b Munaf 2

Manhas c Rayudu b Ahmed 0

Uthappa c Pollard

b Murtaza 45

Yuvraj c Rayudu b Munaf 0

Mishra c Rohit b Murtaza 12

Kartik c Symonds

b Malinga 11

Parnell b Franklin 9

Rahul c Murtaza b Munaf 13

Wagh c Symonds b Malinga 2

Thomas not out 0

Extras: (lb 6, w 2, nb 4) 12

Total: (all out;17.2ovrs) 118

Bowling: Murtaza 4-0-18-2, Malinga 4-0-28-2, Ahmed 3-1-13-2, Munaf 2.2-0-8-3, Pollard 1-0-13-0, Franklin 3-0-32-1. Mumbai Indians

Franklin c Manhas b Wagh 6

Sachin c Thomas b Rahul 35

Rayudu c Rahul b Thomas 37

Rohit not out 20

Symonds not out 16

Extras: (b 2, lb 6, w 2) 10

Total: (3wkts;20 ovrs) 124

Bowling: Thomas 4-0-16-1, Wagh 2-0-9-1, Kartik 3.6-0-29-0, Parnell 4-0-28-0, Rahul 3-0-14-1, Ryder 2-0-15-0, Yuvraj 1-0-5-0.

Mohali, April 20
Kings XI Punjab will start their first home game as strong favourites in a very long time, as they take on Rajasthan Royals at the PCA stadium in Mohali tomorrow. But a fortnight ago, things were pretty different. The Royals, winners of the first edition of the Indian Premier League, were looking like a side to reckon with again, a side that bought players smartly and aptly.

Kings XI, on the other hand as many had put it, looked out of sorts and out of depth. They had no big names, no stars and not much space in the thoughts of many ‘pundits’. But how life and opinions can change in a matter of 80 overs!

Having beaten the formidable Super Kings in Mohali and Deccan Chargers in Hyderabad, Kings XI have bounced back in style, and all of a sudden, Paul Valthaty (with his last name being pronounced in more than a thousand ways) is a household name.

Royals, on the other hand, have made a startling southward journey, after having made a solid start to their campaign. Back-to-back losses at the hands of Kolkata Knight Riders and a washed out game against Royal Challengers means that this is a team in serious need of a win and a good outing on the field.

While the Kings will again be relying on the opening partnership of skipper Adam Gilchrist and Valthaty, their middle-order has yet to pile up the runs. But with David Hussey a possible inclusion, it definitely adds more meat to the side. Karthik, Abhishek Nayar and McLaren have spent time in the middle and can come to the party, provided the openers start it.

Royals have been erratic and were plain dismal at Eden Gardens. With Shane Watson, Rahul Dravid, Ross Taylor, Jacob Oram and the surprise package Johan Botha, runs should not be an issue. But they have been. The bowling too needs a massive improvement. Shaun Tait will definitely be looking forward to a bouncy track at Mohali. Amit Singh and Siddharth Trivedi complete the bowling pack.

The mantra ahead of tomorrow’s game is simple: strike early! You don’t want a Valthaty or a Watson bulldozing their way through the 20 overs. 

Colombo, April 20
Sri Lanka today rejected the BCCI's request to allow its star cricketers to play in the ongoing IPL till May 15, a move which could have a bearing in the relationship between the two Cricket Boards.

All the 11 Sri Lankan players were earlier asked to return home by May 5 to prepare for the tour of England and the Sri Lankan Board, despite requests from the BCCI to extend the date. Though no meeting took place between the BCCI and SLC, but Indian officials did speak to their Lankan counterparts on the matter and requested them to let their players play in the Twenty20 event at-least till May 15.

But Sports Minister Mahindanada Aluthgamage and the Cricket Board (SLC) have decided to ignore the Indian request. A Sri Lankan cricket source said that Aluthgamage, Sri Lanka Cricket officials and the national selection committee had lengthy deliberations on the matter yesterday.

Accordingly, some 11 Sri Lankans, including the star players Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardena and the newly appointed Sri Lankan captain Tillakaratne Dilshan, would have to abide by the Sri Lankan decision.

Aluthgamage has said that interests of Sri Lankan cricket was his priority and they would be sending a polite explanation on the decision to the Indians. Sri Lanka durected all IPL players to return in order to prepare for the tour of England which starts on May 10.

Former captain Sangakkara, now leading Deccan Chargers, said the players will have to abide by the decision, but expressed hope that two boards would sort out the issue. — PTI 

Kolkata, April 20
Sourav Ganguly's Indian Premier League (IPL) dream may not be over yet, as the former India captain today said he is still hopeful of a comeback in the fourth edition of the ongoing Twenty20 extravaganza.

Asked whether he could be seen playing in the ongoing IPL, Ganguly told a television channel, "...you will see. I am keeping my fingers crossed." There may be a latest window of opportunity for the 38-year-old, as it is believed that Sri Lankan batsman Mahela Jayawardene, who is the skipper of Kochi Tuskers Kerala, will leave for Sri Lanka in the first week of May for the upcoming tour of England.

Ganguly is tipped to lead the debutants Kochi outfit once Jayawardene leaves for the national duty. The Lankans have been asked to return home early to prepare for the national team's tour of England, getting underway on May 14.

This gives a fresh lease of hope to the former Knight Riders skipper, who did not find any takers during in the IPL auction in January, after his former franchise Kolkata Knight Riders did not retain him. It is learnt that the Kochi team management had tried to rope in Ganguly in place of injured Australian recruit Steve Smith.

However, the IPL rules did not permit this as the Australian's base price ($200000) was higher than that of Ganguly ($400000). Kochi had previously sought permission from the BCCI to recruit Dada, but IPL's Governing Council had rejected the move. — PTI 

New Delhi, April 20
Explosive West Indies batsman Chris Gayle today got clearance from his cricket Board (WICB) to play in the ongoing Indian Premier League after Royal Challengers Bangalore roped him in as a replacement for injured Australian left-arm pacer Dirk Nannes.

Gayle today received the No Objection Certificate from West Indies Cricket Board to play in the Twenty20 league, according to RCB owner Vijay Mallya.

Gayle, who went unsold in the IPL IV auctions in January this year after attracting a base price of USD 4,00,000, was yesterday roped in by the RCB to replace Nannes for the remainder of the season. "It's official now. The explosive Chris Gayle is now a part of the RCB squad after receiving clearance from the WICB," Mallya wrote on his Twitter page.

Gayle was not considered for the first two ODIs of the five-match series against Pakistan, which begins at St Lucia on Saturday. He played for Kolkata Knight Riders for the first three editions of IPL. — PTI 

Newcastle, April 20
Manchester United's Premier League title charge was slowed by Newcastle holding the leaders to a 0-0 draw that ended a run of three consecutive wins. The point took United seven points clear of Arsenal before the second-place London club plays at Tottenham.

United was denied a penalty kick in stoppage when Javier Hernandez was instead booked for diving after being challenged by Newcastle defender Danny Simpson. "I didn't feel like I touched him, maybe he went over too soft. I didn't feel like I touched him," Simpson said. "I feel like he went down too soft." But United manager Alex Ferguson hit out at referee Lee Probert.

"It was a clear penalty, it's an insult because he's booked him," Ferguson said. "I thought the referee had a good game tonight, but he's let himself down by booking the player. If it's not a penalty, fine, but to book him is an insult. There is definitely contact, no doubt about that."

But Ferguson claimed not to see Newcastle's earlier penalty claim when Peter Lovenkrands felt he was tripped by United midfielder Anderson. "The more obvious penalty was Peter Lovenkrands’. It's an absolute cert," Newcastle manager Alan Pardew said. "It was a story of two penalties: one that definitely was for us, and one that wasn't for them,” he added. — AP

Madrid, April 20
Jose Mourinho must resolve a tactical dilemma when he attempts to land his first piece of silverware as Real Madrid coach in Wednesday's King's Cup final against Barcelona at Valencia's Mestalla stadium. The charismatic Portuguese coach went into Saturday's 1-1 La Liga draw against the same opposition with an ultra-cautious approach that was not to the liking of former Real great Alfredo Di Stefano.

The club's honorary president described Barcelona as a lion playing with a mouse and called for a different strategy in the King's Cup, the second game in a four-match sequence of 'Clasico' confrontations to be played over 18 days. “Saturday's game should give pause for thought on how to face up to the next, because trying to play Barcelona on the break clearly isn't the most adequate,” the 84-year-old Di Stefano wrote in the sports daily Marca.

“Barca treat the ball with respect, adoration, they almost pamper it. To watch this team in action is a delight." Mourinho's side sat back at the Bernabeu on Saturday in the hope of stealing a goal on the break, frustrating Barca enough to prevent his opposite number Pep Guardiola making it six wins from six games against Real. It also avoided a re-run of the 5-0 thrashing Real suffered at the Nou Camp back in November.

Coming back from 1-0 down with 10 men had home fans proclaiming a "draw that tasted like a victory", even though it effectively ended their chances of catching the leaders who maintained an eight-point advantage with six games left. — Reuters

New Delhi, April 20
The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) became the first sports body to fall in line with the Government guidelines for election of the office-bearers, as it finalised an all-sportsperson panel in the recent election.

The WFI office-bearers today called on Sports Minister Ajay Maken, who expressed his "satisfaction" for making the WFI sportsmen-friendly. "The Minister expressed his happiness and satisfaction that all the senior office-bearers of the federation are distinguished former wrestlers and assured the full support of the Ministry to the federation," said WFI secretary-general Raj Singh.

The WFI officials met the minister and Secretary (Sports) Sindushree Khullar to seek their help and support for implementation of various projects for the development of wrestling in a bid to get more medals in the 2012 Olympics.

New Delhi, April 20
The Delhi Soccer Association (DSA) will hold selection trials at the Ambedkar Stadium tomorrow to pick the Delhi team for the 65th Senior National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy, to be held at various venues in Assam, from May 6 to 30.

Delhi have been grouped with Nagaland and Chhattisgarh in the preliminary round league of the competition.

DSA President Subhash Chopra requested Municipal Commissioner K.S. Mehra to make available the Ambedkar Stadium at the old rate of Rs 500 per day, as the MCD had recently hiked the stadium rental to Rs 5000 per day, which was beyond the reach of the cash-strung DSA.