New Delhi, October 17
Local boys Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli conjured up a fine batting display, putting on an unbroken 209-run third-wicket partnership on a sporting Kotla strip to guide India to a thumping eight-wicket victory against England and a 2-0 lead in the five-match One-Day International series here tonight.

India carried over their winning momentum from Hyderabad to inflict yet another crushing defeat on the visitors, though this time the dramatis personae were different. Kohli cracked a memorable 112 (98 b,16x4), after he was grassed by Jonathan Trott, off Tim Bresnan, on 101 while Gambhir made 84 not out (90b, 10x4). Chasing a victory target of 238 runs, then duo batted fluently to achieve the target in 36.4 overs.

If Vinay Kumar did the trick with the ball, with a controlled display which fetched him a career-best 4-30 off nine overs, Gambhir and Kohli stole the batting honours with the best-ever third wicket stand at the Kotla, surpassing the 175 hoisted by Mohammed Azharuddin and Sachin Tendulkar against Sri Lanka in the 1996 World Cup.

India were in a spot of bother as openers Parthiv Patel and Ajinkya Rahane came unstuck yet again. Both fell to Bresnan. At 29-2, India were in trouble but Gambhir and Kohli steadily steered the team to safety, first taking singles and twos and then going for expansive strokeplay.

The wicket was sporting as it aided both the batsmen and the bowlers -- but those who applied themselves. The Englishmen will perhaps rue their inability to cash in on two fruitful stands of 73 and 86, as thrice they lost a pair of wickets in quick succession. Openers Alastair Cook and Craig Kieswetter left in the space of three balls with no run on the board, while Ravi Bopara and Kevin Pietersen left at the same score of 121, after adding 73 for the second wicket. Then Jonathan Bairstow and Samit Patel added 86 for the sixth wicket, but left in quick succession, leaving England in the lurch as the lower order batsmen caved in meekly.

Earlier, England survived two early blows when they lost both the openers for nought, and then absorbed periodic blows, to sail to a respectable score of 237 in 48.2 overs.

Pietersen and Bopara put on 73 runs for the fourth wicket to give England their first lifeline while Bairstow and Patel with another bailout package, as they raised an 86-run stand for the sixth wicket to put England on road to a respectable total.

However, Patel and Bairstow also exited quickly, in the space of four runs, to put the clock back for England once again. Umesh Yadav yet again proved to be the nemesis of Patel, trapping him for 42. Bairstow fell to Jadeja for his only scalp. England could add only 26 runs more before they folded up with 1.4 overs to spare.

While Vinay Kumar picked up wickets, all the Indian medium-pacers were impressive on the deceptively quick Kotla track. Umesh Yadav made the most of his home conditions. R. Ashwin once again emphasised his utility to the side and also showed credentials to be considered seriously for the longer version of the game.

"Youngsters are doing very well in one-dayers. It is always good to win games and good to see youngsters stepping up and coming up with good performances," said Dhoni.

He picked Kohli, who scored an unbeaten 112 of 98 balls to help India to a comfortable eight-wicket victory here at the Ferozshah Kotla today, for special praise.

"Virat is batting very well and has improved as a cricketer. It is always beneficial for the youngsters to come at the top of the order so that they get the time to settle down and then convert the fifties into hundreds," he said.

"Eventually he would learn to change is innings a bit and improve further as cricketer. One can't forget Gambhir.

 He batted extremely well. Batting at number three he faced the English bowlers well and, along with Virat, got some kind of a partnership going, which was very important."

 Asked to compare the team's performance in England, where India could not win a single match in all three formats of the game, Dhoni said that it was the "wet ball that made all the difference". — PTI

England

Cook c Jadeja b Praveen 0

Kieswetter c Kohli b Vinay 0

Trott c Dhoni b Vinay 34

Pietersen c Dhoni b Yadav 46

Bopara lbw b Ashwin 36

Bairstow c Kohli b Jadeja 35

Patel lbw b Yadav 42

Bresnan c Raina b Vinay 12

Swann b Vinay 7

Finn not out 6

Dernbach run out 3

Extras (lb 5, w 11) 16

Total (all out; 48.2 overs) 237

Bowling: Praveen 9-1-40-1, Vinay Kumar 9-1-30-4, Kohli 5-0-18-0, Yadav 8.2-0-50-2, Ashwin 10-0-56-1, Jadeja 7-0-38-1.

India

Parthiv c Cook b Bresnan 12

Rahane c Dernbach b Bresnan 14

Gambhir not out 84

Kohli not out 112

Extras (lb 3, w 13) 16

Total (2 wickets; 36.4 overs) 238

Bowling: Bresnan 7-1-41-2, Finn 9-0-50-0, Dernbach 5.4-0-41-0, Swann 8-0-52-0, Bopara 3-0-21-0, Patel 2-0-17-0, Pietersen 2-0-13-0.

New Delhi, October 17
The revised draft of the National Sports Development Bill pretty much paved the way for the Board of Control for Cricket in India to have its way about how and when its players could be approached for dope tests, as well as ensuring that they were not answerable to the ‘whereabouts’ clause of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

Sports Minister Ajay Maken said while addressing the media here today that the revised bill allows the national bodies to follow the rules of their international federations which conflict with the WADA norms.

"In view of the BCCI's objections, we have decided to exempt cricketers from some anti-doping norms. The International Cricket Council (ICC) does not follow some WADA norms and in these cases the rules of international federation, in this case the ICC, will prevail over the WADA Code," Maken said.

"It is not that the WADA Code will not apply to cricketers but in those cases where there is conflict, the ICC rules will prevail. It is also not an exemption to BCCI, it is to the ICC," he said.

The ICC has been at odds with the WADA regarding the doping rules, especially the ‘whereabouts’ clause which demands that the players keep WADA in the know about their movements for some hours every day, three months in advance, so that the world body can ask them to appear for dope tests at short notice.

The new draft, which compared to its predecessor from last month, took some steps to keep the BCCI happy but some other provisions, like the age and tenure limits for the Indian Olympic Association and National Sports Federation (NSFs) have been retained, almost ensuring that these bodies will once again be up in arms. However, since the draft will now be sent to the IOA and NSFs for scrutiny, there is always the possibility that the said clauses may well be amended further.

Maken also emphasised that the Sports Ministry had taken pains to discount the impression that it was trying to interfere with sports. “…while retaining its basic principles of transparency, good governance and de-control from Government intervention.”

The draft also has made attempts to keep some fields outside the purview of the Right to Information (RTI) Act. “An exclusion clause has also been provided to protect certain information which are peculiar to sports, which may be used by our competitors against our athletes. These are:

A. Queries pertaining to selection, appointment or exclusion of athlete, coach, trainer or physiotherapist when it for participation in an athletic competition;

B. Queries pertaining to the quality of performance of an athlete in an athletic competition;

C. Queries relating to medical health and fitness of an athlete;

D. Queries relating to whereabouts of an athlete;

E. Queries pertaining to information which is confidential under the NADA code.

The offices of the Sports Ombudsman and the National Sports Development Council have also been removed “in order to accommodate the formation of the Indian Court of Arbitration for Sports by the Indian Olympic Association”.

It may be recalled the first draft of the bill was placed before the Cabinet in August, and rejected, with many big guns like Sharad Pawar, Praful Patel and Farooq Abdullah raising objections.

New Delhi, October 17
The country's top two football clubs East Bengal and Salgaocar face each other in yet another battle for supremacy in the one-off Super Cup match here tomorrow.

Salgaocar and East Bengal are the two best sides this year with the former winning the I-League and Federation Cup while the latter finishing runners-up both times and it's apt that they are featuring in the one-off winner-takes-all match at Ambedkar Stadium. The Rs 10 lakh prize money Super Cup is played between the I-League and Federation Cup winners but this year since Salgaocar won both the tournaments, they will have to play against the I-League runners-up side East Bengal.

The Super Cup is also the perfect dress rehearsal for the kick-off of the I-League slated for October 22 in Kolkata. Salgaocar seem to enjoy an edge but they suffered reverse just after winning the Federation Cup by failing to advance beyond the group stage in the Durand Cup here last week.

"It's true we defeated them in I-League and Federation Cup and the level of competition is very high between us. But there's no place for complacency and we are not taking anything for granted as they are a very strong team," Salgaocar coach Karim Bencherifa said. — PTI

Gautam Gambhir is unavailable for the T20 International on account of his marriage.

Karachi, October 17
Pakistan's Danish Kaneria has taken exception to the statement given by banned skipper Salman Butt during the spot-fixing trial in London that he was introduced to agent Mazhar Majeed by the leg-spinner.
"I don't know what sort of rubbish Salman Butt is talking about. I don't know this fellow Mazhar Majeed and have had no sort of contact with him. I have instructed my lawyer in London to initiate proceedings to file damages against Butt," Kaneria said on Saturday. He made it clear that he was flabbergasted by Butt's claims about him introducing Majeed to other players. — PTI

BRIEFLY

Cesc back in training
BARCELONA: Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas has returned to training after damaging his thigh muscle on Oct. 1. The former Arsenal captain was involved in part of Monday's session as Pep Guardiola's side prepared for Wednesday's Champions League Group H game against Czech club Viktoria Plzen, Barca said on their website (www.fcbarcelona.cat). The European champions have four points from two games, level with AC Milan. BATE Borisov of Belarus and Plzen are both on one point. Barca also host Sevilla in La Liga on Saturday. — Reuters

Mancini wants more Man City!
MANCHESTER: Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini would like to stay at the club he has taken to the top of the Premier League for another three or four years, he said on Monday. "I started to work here two years ago, I have worked hard to build a good team," Mancini told a news conference ahead of Tuesday's Champions League Group A game at home to Villarreal. "I would like to stay here another three or four years because I think at this moment Manchester City is one of the best clubs in the world." — Reuters

Marsh brothers for Aus
Melbourne: Former cricketer Geoff Marsh's two sons became just the second brothers, after Mike and David Hussey, to play T20 for Australia and the pair is all set to build a long future in the national set-up. No.3 batsman Shaun, 28, capitalized on Ricky Ponting's absence for one Test during the recent Sri Lanka tour to cement his placer in the Australian Test team. And now younger brother Mitchell, 19, has cashed on his opportunity in the Australian Twenty20 team made possible by the absence of Brett Lee and Shane Watson. — ANI

Warnie ‘smoking hot’
London: Seems like Elizabeth Hurley, who is known for encouraging a healthy lifestyle for her husband-to-be Shane Warne, apparently has no problem with the cricketer’s smoking habit. The 46-year-old actress appeared unconcerned as the leg spin legend lit up a cigarette outside London’s Zafferano restaurant, where they enjoyed a relaxing meal with friends, the Daily Mail reported. Well wrapped up in a long coat, the model looked more bothered by the chilly night air than Warne puffing away by her side. — ANI

Lewis ‘inspires’ Nicolas
London: Winning or completing a car race may seem usual for Formula One ace Lewis Hamilton, but it’s a miracle for his younger brother Nicolas. Nicolas, 19, was born with cerebral palsy, a condition that leads to problems with movement, posture and co-ordination. But the brave youngster has defied the odds - and the doctors - by completing his first season in the Air Asia Renault Clio Cup saloon-car racing championship. — ANI

Club tests players’ DNA
London: A Premier League football club in Britain has DNA tested its players to find out which players are more prone to injuries, a scientist has claimed. According to The Sunday Times, Marios Kambouris, a leading molecular geneticist and assistant professor at Yale University School of Medicine, claims to have carried out the groundbreaking research into common football injuries for an unnamed club. — ANI

Becks watches sons play London: Proud father David Beckham’s sons have clearly inherited their father’s love for football. The 36-year-old football legend was spotted in Woodland Hills, California yesterday to watch his eldest son, 12-year-old Brooklyn, play the game he himself is famous for excelling at, reports the Daily Mail. Becks played supportive dad from the sidelines dressed in brown trousers, a white T-shirt, white trainers and trucker hat. — ANI