Kingston, June 22
Former captain Rahul Dravid hit a gritty unbeaten 69 as India reached 166 for six against West Indies at lunch on the third day of the first Test, thereby extending their overall lead to 239.

Starting their day at 91 for three, India lost Virat Kohli (15), Suresh Raina (27) and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (16) while adding 75 runs in the first session of the third day.

Dhoni who was showing a lot of positive intent was out at the stroke of lunch when he tried to cut a long hop from Devendra Bishoo (3/41) being caught by Fidel Edwards at cover.

Young Bishoo infused hope for the hosts by claiming couple of wickets in the final quarter of an hour before lunch as Raina and Dhoni tried to hit their way out of trouble on a track that was difficult for batting.

That's where Dravid's 203-ball vigil that contained eight boundaries is all the more praiseworthy. The innings was typically Dravid where the concentration was intense, risk-factor minimal trying to consolidate. On a track with variable bounce where the others found it difficult to defend Dravid played both pace and spin with minumum fuss.

In the morning, it was Kohli who was the first one to depart when he managed to glove one down the leg-side with Edwards digging it short.

Raina, as is his wont, was positive from the moment he arrived and played the rising deliveries well. A straight drive off Edwards was a real treat as Dravid was trying to see off the first hour leaving anything that was a shade outside the off-stump channel.

Earlier, India held the upperhand as they dismissed West Indies for a paltry 173 before taking a vital 164-run lead.

At stumps yesterday, India were 91 for three in their second innings with Rahul Dravid (45), who was dropped on six by West Indies skipper Darren Sammy, at the crease along with debutant Virat Kohli (14). Sammy (1/16), Ravi Rampaul (1/17) and leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo (1/27) accounted for a wicket each for the home team. Starting their second essay with a lead of 73, India once again made a sloppy start and lost their first three batsmen with only 57 runs on the board. — PTI

Scoreboard

India 1st innings:

246 all out

West Indies 1st innings:

(Overnight 34 for one)

Barath c Dhoni b Praveen 64 Simmons c Vijay b Ishant 3

Sarwan lbw b Ishant 3

Bravo c Dhoni b Praveen 18 Chanderpaul c Mukund

b Harbhajan 23

Nash c Raina b Praveen 1 Baugh c Vijay b Harbhajan 27 Sammy b Ishant 1

Rampaul not out 14

Edwards c Dhoni b Mishra 7 Bishoo c Raina b Mishra 4 Extras: (b-1, lb-3, nb-4) 8

Total: (all out; 67.5 overs) 173 Bowling: Praveen 18-5-38-3, Ishant 17-6-29-3, Mishra 13.5-1-51-2, Harbhajan 19-5-51-2.

India 2nd innings:

Mukund c Baugh b Bishoo 25

Vijay lbw b Rampaul 0

Dravid not out 69

Laxman c & b Sammy 0

Kohli c Baugh b Edwards 15

Raina c Sammy b Bishoo 27

Dhoni c Edwards b Bishoo 16

Extras (b 8, nb 6) 14

Total: (6 wkts at lunch) 166

Bowling: Edwards 13-1-40-1, Rampaul 17-3-35-1, Sammy 20-8-36-1, Bishoo 16-2-41-3, Nash 1-0-6-0.

New Delhi, June 22
The Thapar Group’s decision to disband the JCT Football Club has evoked shock and surprise among football circles and in the Indian Olympic Association (IOA). The overwhelming reaction was that the Punjab Government should step in to help revive JCT as the club had become a kind of an icon for Punjab.

Indian Olympic Association (IOA) senior vice-president Tarlochan Singh has written to Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal to prevail upon JCT boss Sameer Thapar “to review his order of closing the football club”.“It will be a big loss not only to Punjab, but also to the country as the role JCT played for the promotion of football will be written in golden letters”.

Tarlochan Singh suggested to Sukhbir Badal that “the State Government can give some financial benefit to JCT if money crunch is the problem”. “All sports lovers are looking towards you for some immediate action in this regard. The Punjab Government should step in if JCT is not willing to carry on,” Tarlochan Singh added in his letter.

He said contrary to popular perception, football and not hockey, was the most popular sport in certain parts of Punjab, notably in the Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar and Kapurthala districts, and Phagwara, where JCT was headquartered, was in the centre of this region.

Tarlochan said people had appreciated the Punjab Deputy CM’s zeal to promote sports in Punjab by providing maximum monetary benefits to the Punjab players who won medals in the Olympics, Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games. He had also honoured cricket stars Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh for their contribution to India’s World Cup victory, and his enthusiasm to promote kabaddi has also been well-received. He should do something for the revival of JCT “as for decades, they (the Thapar Group) nursed and trained budding Punjab youth through their football academy. Some international football players, who did the country proud, came through JCT’s efforts” and such a club should not be allowed to fade away unsung.

Former Indian international Jo Paul Ancheri, who played for JCT for four years, from 1995-96 and 2002-2003 and was part of JCT’s many cup-winning deeds along with I.M. Vijayan, echoed similar views. He said every effort should be made to keep the club going as otherwise the players will be the biggest sufferers as they will have no club to represent.

“I had a very enjoyable and productive time with JCT for four years, when the club won the inaugural I-League, the Federation Cup, IFA Shield, Durand Cup and many more. The club had no financial problem then,” Ancheri told The Tribune from Kerala.

He said JCT had a large fan-following in Kerala for their robust football and fair play. “When I was part of the JCT, we won many important tournaments in Kerala like the Nagjee Trophy, Scissors Cup and the Mamman Mappila Trophy. That was one of the best phases of my career,” Ancheri noted.

Vijayan said JCT had endeared to fans in the south as stalwarts like Inder Singh and Parminder Singh, who both had figured in the Asian All-Star teams, were role models for their exemplary behaviour on and off the field. “It will be in the interest of Indian football to revive the JCT team,” Vijayan added.

London, June 22
Venus Williams recovered from a shaky start to beat 40-year-old Japanese Kimiko Date-Krumm 6-7, 6-3, 8-6 in a thrilling second-round match at Wimbledon on Wednesday.

Date-Krumm surged into a 5-1 lead under the Centre Court roof and although American Williams fought back to force a tiebreak, the Japanese won it 8-6 on her fifth set point.

Williams, five-times Wimbledon champion but seeded 23rd this year following injury problems, improved as the match wore on but Date-Krumm refused to lie down.

Williams made the decisive break in the 14th game of the final set, clinching victory when Date-Krumm sent a backhand wide. — Reuters

Kolkata, June 22
Rubbishing rumours that he refused to play under the leadership of co-player Suresh Raina, Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh today said he plays for India and not for captains of the cricket team.

"The question is totally baseless. I was badly ill. I have started training. It is totally baseless that I have denied playing under Suresh Raina. I play for India and my team, and not for any captain," said said Yuvraj while addressing a programme of 'Emotional Atyachaar - Season 3' here.

"I have played under Sourav, MS Dhoni, Gautam Gambhir. I have played under so many captains. And Gautam and MS came to the team five years after I got included in the team. There has been no such thing. I play for my country and not for captains," said Yuvraj. — IANS

Pune, June 22
India face a tough task as they need a vastly improved performance than their 1-3 loss against Qatar in the first leg, when they take on the same opponents for a place in the third final round of the 2012 football Olympic qualifiers here tomorrow.

India were outplayed by a technically superior Qatar in the first leg in Doha on June 19 and it will be a difficult job, if not impossible, for Desmond Bulpin's under-23 boys to turn the tables tomorrow at Shiv Chhatrapati Stadium Balewadi.

A 2-0 win will see India through to the final round on 3-3 aggregate and on away goal rule, but Bulpin's worry would be in his defence as his boys had been a disappointment in that front in the first leg. — PTI

Colombo, June 22
The uncertainty over Indian players' participation in next month's Sri Lankan Premier League will continue after tomorrow's meeting between the top brass of Sri Lanka Cricket and BCCI has been put off due to pressing engagements of SLC officials.

On the advise of Sri Lanka Sports Minister Mahindanda Aluthgamage, SLC chairman DS de Silva and secretary Nishantha Ranatunga were scheduled to meet the BCCI officials tomorrow to sort out the issue at the earliest. — PTI

BRIEFLY

Sania to undergo MRI; doubtful for doubles
London: Sania Mirza will undergo an MRI scan to know the extent of damage in her left knee and her participation in the doubles events of the Wimbledon would depend solely on doctor's recommendation. "The doctor wants to get her to do an MRI before allowing her to play in doubles and mixed at Wimbledon. The main concern will be that she should not damage the knee further," Sania's father and coach Imran said. "As for the pain, she is ready to fight through that, provided the doctor gives her the clearance that the injury will not deteriorate." — PTI

McCullum backs Taylor
Wellington: Wicketkeeper-batsman Brendon McCullum has pledged support to New Zealand captain Ross Taylor after being overlooked for the position following a lengthy contest to find a successor to Daniel Vettori. Taylor, who has played 30 tests and 107 limited-overs internationals, was appointed this week to lead New Zealand in all forms of the sport. Vettori resigned the test captaincy earlier this year and will no longer play ODI and Twenty20 internationals. — AP

Saba guides India to win
New Delhi: Skipper Saba Anjum led from the front scoring three goals to help India thrash Azerbaijan 6-1 and advance into the quarterfinals of the FIH Women's Champions Challenge I hockey tournament in Dublin, Ireland. India, who led 5-0 at the half time, were in total domination in their last Pool B round robin fixture. Saba (4th, 7th and 32nd) converted three penalty corners while Deepika Thakur (10th), Rani Rampal (18th) and Jasjit Kaur Handa (52nd) fired in a goal each to hand India the rampaging victory last night. For Azerbaijan, Khatira Aliyeva scored the lone goal in the 47th minute from a short corner. India finished second in their pool behind Ireland and will now play Japan in the last eight round tomorrow. India had earlier lost to Ireland 1-2 in their tournament opener before drawing 1-1 against Spain in their next pool fixture. — PTI