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India’s Tour of England
I am sad India lost No. 1 Test ranking: Kirsten
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Ameya, Rajvirdhan burn the track
Narain, Chandhok keen on home F1
Harveen, team win golds
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India’s Tour of England
London, August 20 After rain had disrupted play in the post-Lunch session, and England had declared at 591 for 6, India struggled, as has been the trend in the series and lost most of their top order batsmen, save Rahul Dravid. The Wall once again was the lone shining light as he played on with an unbeaten 57, accompanied by skipper MS Dhoni. Earlier, Middle-order batsman Ian Bell scored his maiden double hundred as England piled up a mammoth 591 for six. Starting on his overnight score of 181, Bell reached his milestone with minimum fuss and was finally adjudged leg before for 235 off part-time spinner Suresh Raina's bowling. Bell is England's third double centurion of the series after Kevin Pietersen and Alastair Cook scored one each in the first and third Tests respectively. Bell also completed 5000 runs in Test cricket. The morning session saw 134 runs being scored from 30 overs losing only three wickets, one of which was of nightwatchman James Anderson. Sreesanth has been the most successful among the Indian bowlers with three for 123. Bell who batted close to eight and half hours faced 364 deliveries in the process and his innings included 23 boundaries and two sixes. Such has been the plight of specialist bowlers that both Bell and Kevin Pietersen fell to the part-time spin of Raina. England, resuming at 457 for 3, began briskly enough with even night-watchman James Anderson showing some urgency. But then he fell to Sreesanth, chasing a wide delivery, and offering VVS laxman a chance in the slips. Sreesanth struck again when he induced a similar edge from Eoin Morgan (1) but it was Dhoni now who latched on to the chance. England were soon back on the track after these minor stutters and there was cause for celebration for packed stands when Bell flicked Sreesanth to fine leg for his 20th four and his first double century. Dhoni introduced RP Singh as first change and a cut for two by Bell raised 500 runs on the board. RP was dealt with disdainfully by the batsmen as he gave 22 runs from his four overs. India bowled only 12 runs from the first hour and conceded 59 runs. Bell departed in the second hour, his scoring graph showing 18 of his 23 fours came against Sreesanth and RP who together conceded 123 runs to him. — PTI Scoreboard England 1st Innings (Overnight 457/3) Strauss c Dhoni b Sreesanth 40 Cook c Sehwag b Ishant 34 Bell lbw b Raina 235 Pietersen c & b Raina 175 Anderson c Laxman b Sreesanth 13 Morgan c Dhoni b Sreesanth 1 Bopara batting 44 Prior batting 18 Extras: (b-6, lb-8, w-7, nb-10) 31 Total: (6 wkts, Decl.) 591 Bowling: RP 34-7-118-0, Ishant 31- 7-97-1, Sreesanth 29-2-123-3, Raina 19-2-58-2, Mishra 38-3-170-0, Tendulkar 2-0- 11-0. India 1st innings Sehwag lbw b Anderson 8 Dravid batting 57 Laxman c Prior b Broad 2 Tendulkar c Anderson b Swann 23 Raina st Prior b Swann 0 Ishant c Cook b Swann 1 Dhoni batting 5 Extras (lb 5, w 2) 7 Total (5 wkts; Stumps) 103 Bowling: Anderson 5-1-21-1, Broad 10-1-22-1, Bresnan 7-0-25-0, Swann 10-3-27-3, Pietersen 1-0-3-0. |
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I am sad India lost No. 1 Test ranking: Kirsten
Johannesburg, August 20 "I am bit surprised with the results, but not in a negative way," the current South Africa coach said on the sidelines of a promotional event here. He insisted that there was no any reason to press the panic button. "It's always difficult to understand why teams ebb and flow and often it's the intangibles that make the difference," Kirsten said. Having relinquished the coach's job after guiding India to World Cup victory, Kirsten admitted that it is always difficult to continue the stupendous run especially when a change of guard takes place. "It's not easy to continue a run of success. It's difficult to reach the top and stay there. They won the World Cup, which was massive for them, but then they've had a tour of West Indies and a few injuries and maybe the hunger to win games goes down a little," he explained. The former Proteas opener felt that it will be a must for new coach Duncan Fletcher to get accustomed with the team culture. "When a new coach comes in, its important that he follows on with the culture of the team," Kirsten said. Asked about the deficiencies of this current side which is entering a transition phase, Kirsten said the team always knew that the bowling had limitations. "They are a great cricket team, with a great captain and one of the best batting line-ups in the world which is why they were No. 1 but we always knew that we were bit short on the bowling side and that was something that we learnt to manage." Although veterans like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman are in the home stretch of their illustrious careers, Kirsten felt that idea should be to continue with them till they enjoy the game. "People said that with such an experienced team we should try to integrate youth but I felt that for as long as those experienced guys were there and they were enjoying it and playing good cricket, they should carry on," he said. He further added, "Even if it means that there is only one spot to bring in a youngster, that's fine. We were able to, at No 6, so we covered both angles." Kirsten feels that all is not lost as India are still to play five ODIs where they can make a statement as reigning world champions. "It's in the shorter format of the game that Kirsten thinks India can redeem themselves on this tour, especially after their World Cup triumph. I hope they have a good ODI series, because if they do, they can look back and say, 'ok, we had a disappointing Test series, but as World Cup winners we've shown our worth in the one-day game," he added. — PTI
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Simply Sunny
England's weather may just come to the rescue of the Indians in the fourth and final Test match at the Oval. There is heavy rain forecast for the fourth day and the fifth day also is supposed to be interrupted, so unless India succumb badly in both innings they will avoid a whitewash. It has been depressing to see how a number one ranked team has gone downhill so fast. It has still got some of the greatest names in the game but they have just not been allowed to play to the skill level that the world has known about them.
This is due to some terrific planning by the England team. They have discussed the strengths and weaknesses of the Indian players and know exactly what to do. Clearly, they were more worried about the batting and not so much about the bowling and then planned how to bowl to these players who between them have almost 40000 runs in Test cricket. That India in six innings have not been able to get to 300 is testament to that planning. In the batting too, the England players have not been satisfied with just a hundred but have gone on to what Graham Gooch their batting coach calls 'daddy hundreds'. Gooch highest score 333 came at Lord’s in 1990 and he knows a thing or two about 'daddy hundreds'. Gooch calls anything under 150 'baby hundreds' and so Kevin Pietersen was not satisfied with a ton but got a double in the first, and then Alastair Cook got a monster 294 in Birmingham and here at the Oval, Ian Bell got 235. All these scores mean that the team piles up a huge total and moreover bats for more than five sessions in one innings, and whenever a team does that then it is hard to beat. India have hardly survived 100 overs in one innings in this series which tells the story of their batting woes. Apart from Rahul Dravid, nobody has looked entirely comfortable. Most crucially the Indians have simply not got a start. With Gambhir falling badly on his head attempting to back pedal and take a catch and unlikely to be fully fit to open the batting, Dravid will have to come and open the batting again. He has been out there almost in the first couple of overs so going to open the batting is not going to be much different. India rely heavily on him and if he doesn’t stabilise the innings then it goes into a freefall. Laxman and Tendulkar have not been in good form and have only shown glimpses of their ability. Sehwag is treading the thin line between being carefree and careless and his batting approach at the Oval will be watched with great interest. If the weather stays cloudy then it will suit the England bowlers and not make life easy for the Indian batsmen. The pitches in England are usually best for batting on the second and third days of the Test match. On both those days there was some sunshine too and Indians feel a lot better with the sun on their backs. They have seen how the bowler’s footmarks have afforded turn and even if the English seamers don’t get the ball to swing or seam on this beautiful batting pitch it might be the time for Graeme Swann to come in and show why he is the top ranked spinner in the world. Nothing has gone right for the Indians in the series, not even the weather but maybe just maybe it is the English weather that will rescue them from an embarrassing whitewash. — PMG |
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Colombo, August 20 Sri Lanka won the toss for the third time in the series and chose to bat, but the decision backfired as Lee and Doherty bowled them out for 132 in 38.4 overs. Australia won in the 28th over, scoring 133-5. Mahela Jayawardene top-scored with a painstaking 53 off 102 balls and Kumar Sangakkara made 31. The rest of the batting hardly made an impression, with the last seven batsmen failing to enter double figures. Lee ended with figures of four for 15 and Doherty a career-best four for 28. Australia lost Shane Watson (12) and Ricky Ponting (0) in one over from Lasith Malinga, but Shaun Marsh and skipper Michael Clarke put together 97 off 116 balls before debutant spinner Seekuge Prasanna picked up three wickets in four balls to cause a late alarm in the Australian batting ranks. Prasanna dismissed top scorer Marsh for 70 off 80 balls (11 fours, 1 six) and Michael Hussey (0) from successive deliveries and David Hussey (0) off his fourth to finish with figures of three for 32. Clarke was unbeaten on 38 along with Brad Haddin (5) as the winning runs came from four leg byes. — Reuters Scoreboard Sri Lanka Tharanga b Lee 8 Dilshan c Haddin b Bollinger 12 S’kara c Lee b Doherty 31 J’rdene c and b Lee 53 Silva lbw b Doherty 0 Mathews st Haddin b Doherty 6 Kulasekara lbw b Watson 7 Eranga c Bollinger b Lee 1 Prasanna lbw b Doherty 0 Malinga b Lee 0 Mendis not out 0 Extras: (lb 10 w 4) 14 Total: (all out, 38.4 overs) 132 Bowling: Lee 6.4-1-15-4, Bollinger 7-0-28-1, Johnson 8-0-31-0, Watson 7-0-20-1, Doherty 10-0-28-4. Australia Watson c Mendis b Malinga 12 Marsh c S’kara b Prasanna 70 Ponting c Prasanna b Malinga 0 Clarke not out 38 Mike c S’kara b Prasanna 0 David b Prasanna 0 Haddin not out 5 Extras: (lb-6 w-2) 8 Total: (5 wkts, 28 overs) 133 Bowling: Malinga 7-2-18-2, Mendis 7-0-31-0, Dilshan 2-0-17-0, Kulasekara 2-0-13-0, Eranga 4-0-16-0, Prasanna 6-1-32-3.
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Ameya, Rajvirdhan burn the track
Chennai, August 20 Three-time champion Ameya Walavalkar of Mars Racing again proved his mettle when he crossed the finish line first in Race 1 of the day — FLGB Swift Cars. He finished with a timing of 20:01:813, a second ahead of R. Deepak from the same team. TVS Girling’s Narendran S., who began at pole position, finished third. “It was a really difficult and a hot day today,” Walavalkar said after the race. “I was already struggling in the qualifying round and then the race was even tougher.” Walavalkar managed to take the lead after mid-distance. “It was fun being in this thrilling race,” said Narendran. “I did begin on pole but made a horrible mistake on the third lap to finally let the heroes win the race.” Race 2 for the Indian Touring Cars was an outstanding show by 24 cars. The beauties were guided down the track by leading drivers, as the spectators strained to catch a glimpse of what was coming next. The lead was well strategised and charismatically maintained by this Prime Racing driver V Rajvirdhan all through. Completing the race in 2:00:718, Rajvirdhan was unbeatable. He drove like he would even completely trash the car to win and his team cheered like that would not be a problem at all and they would have no problem repairing it a thousand times! “I took my prime car out and blew the engine in the very first lap,” the winner said. “This helped me build up my pace from the pole and by mid-race I had come up with a comfortable lead. So I just maintained it afterwards to win.” Indian Junior Touring Cars was the third and the final race of the day, which came as a surprise for all. Hometown driver B. Balavijay from Moto Rev India, who had been disqualified in the last round held in Coimbatore, made an impressive comeback to leave all others behind and bag first position. “Last-minute efforts by my team members helped me to win this race,” said Balavijay, who finished the race in 21:52:720. Coimbatore’s Diljith T.S. began from the pole but only managed to finish second. This was the end of the fifth round of races of this season and the sixth and the final round will be held tomorrow at the same venue. The previous four rounds were held in Coimbatore in the months of June and July.
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Narain, Chandhok keen on home F1
New Delhi, August 20 The two drivers, who were present at a function to announce the launch of ticket sales, held at Greater Noida today, were emphatic in stating that a Formula One race on a home track was a “dream come true” for them and they were keen to make a mark in it. “It has always been a dream for me to see a Formula One race in India, and that dream is turning into reality now,” Karthikeyan said. “I am pitching myself to drive for my team HRT (Hispania Racing F1 Team) in the race.” Chandhok, while not saying as much, is also likely to be a part of the race for his Lotus team. “I have always dreamt of an Indian Formula One race,” Chandhok said. “I got involved with the project since April 2010 and that there was a lot of mud and pools of water in the area. But the Jaypee Group has done a tremendous job to create the course. “The track is very impressive with undulations and elevation changes that are really great,” he added. “There are several innovative overtaking zones and the spectators will be able to see more than one corner from their seats, which is also a new thing.” Karthikeyan agreed with Chandhok on the quality of the track. “I could relate to many of the corners there. The constructors have taken the best in the world and added it to BIC. There are a lot of overtaking opportunities and we can see speeds of over 320 Km per hour. There are a mix of corners — fast, medium and slow — and hairpins, which make for a very exciting race.” The process of purchasing tickets also began today over the Internet. The ticket prices range from Rs. 2500 for the natural stands to Rs. 35,000 for the main grandstand. The tickets are valid for three days - October 28-30 - encompassing functions, practice and position runs and the main race. The logistics for the race however, are going to be huge. While the organizers are making arrangements for the parking of 16500 cars and there are also parking slots for motor-cycles, these too will be charged extra. The charges would depend on whether the spectators want to park close to the stadium or would like to avail the park and ride, bus or taxi services. Details regarding the process of purchasing of tickets and additional requirements are available on www.bookmyshow.com.
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Harveen, team win golds
Patiala, August 20 Harveen scored 388 points in the qualifying round whereas Juhi and Ruby scored 381 and 371 points, respectively. Harveen, who is currently doing her masters in physical education from the National College of Physical Education, Chupki, had also won the event during the last Summer Universiade that was held at Bangkok in 2007. Harveen’s father Sukhpal Singh Sarao said she was extremely delighted to retain her title. He said that Harveen had called him as soon as she won and said she was happy to live up to the expectations of her family and coaches. "I am equally excited about her performance because this would certainly boost her confidence as she is eyeing at the last Asian Championship that would be held in October in order to qualify for the London Olympics,” Sukhpal Sarao said. “She has not qualified for the Olympics yet and this certainly will be her last chance. Therefore, this medal ahead of the championship would certainly help her get the momentum." Director Sports, Punjabi University, Patiala, Dr Rajkumar Sharma, and university shooting coach Swaranjeet Kaur when contacted were delighted with her victory. “Nothing can be better that the fact that all three medals won by India till now, including one in archery and the two in shooting, have contributions of players from my university,” Sharma said.
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London, August 20
Not just the spectators at the Madras Motor Sports Club track, even the road-side peddlers were held captive by the jaw-dropping, ear-numbing noise, even from a kilometer away, as the drivers burst past each other to kick off the action packed 14th JK Tyre FMSCI National Championship here today.
London: