Indore, December 8
Swashbuckling opener Virender Sehwag today created history by scoring the highest-ever ODI score of 219 as a merciless India clinched the ODI series against West Indies with a convincing 153-run win in the fourth cricket one-dayer to take an unssailable 3-1 lead.

The 33-year-old Sehwag was at his explosive best as he became only the second batsman after Sachin Tendulkar to reach the 200-run landmark in ODIs and propel India to their highest ever one-day total of 418 for five. The hosts then dismissed the West Indians for 265 in 49.2 overs to wrap up the five-match series in style, rendering the fifth match in Chennai on Sunday, inconsequential.

Debutant spinner Rahul Sharma was the pick of the Indian bowlers with three for 43. Electing to bat, it was Sehwag who took centrestage with a stunning exhibition of strokeplay as he plundered runs at will on a belter of a track at the jam-packed Holkar stadium. Sehwag surpassed Tendulkar's 200 not out made from 147 balls against South Africa in Gwalior on February 24 last year when he square-cut Andre Russell for a boundary in the 44th over of the Indian innings to go past the 200 mark. He joined his idol Tendulkar in the record books as the only other cricketer to score double hundred in the limited overs game.

The Delhi marauder, who cracked his second three-figure knock against West Indies and 15th overall in 240 ODI matches, slammed as many as 25 fours and seven sixes during his 149-ball blitz. He also reached his double hundred in fewer balls (in 140 balls with the help of 23 fours and six sixes) than Tendulkar, who took 147 deliveries for his unbeaten 200

The opening stand of 176 he put on with Gambhir, who cracked 67 in the same number of balls with the help of 11 fours, laid the platform for the record total. And his subsequent 140-run stand for the second wicket with another left-handed batsman Raina, who made 55 in 44 balls, took the score past 300-run mark. Sehwag got life twice during his masterly knock — once on 20 when he escaped a run out chance after being stranded mid-pitch and then on 170 when rival captain Darren Sammy dropped an easy catch at extra cover.

When India commenced their innings today, the decision of the Indian team management to tweak the top order paid rich dividends as Sehwag and Gambhir, who replaced Parthiv Patel after the latter had opened in the first three games, ripped apart the Windies bowling attack. The Delhi openers tore apart the rival attack in stunning fashion with Sehwag, who went into the game with scores of 20, 26 and 0, dominating the proceedings. Sehwag clipped the first ball off his pads for a four from Ravi Rampaul, who had dismissed the two openers for first ball ducks in the last game at Ahmedabad on December 5, and then upper cut Kemar Roach over fine third man for a six in the next over to set the tone for a run-spree.

Runs came in a cascade from the two batsmen's blades as the first ten overs yielded 63 runs, while in the next ten the total jumped to 149. — PTI

Virender Sehwag is in a league of his own. The fiery batsman can drive the opposition, as well as his fans, to despair with equal aplomb. The most effective and one of the most pugnacious batsmen ever seen in India, Viru doesn’t really care how he gets his runs. Or if he gets out while trying to get them, for that matter.

The issue of getting a double-century in One-day Internationals was a matter of when, not if. This ‘when’ however, had begun bothering his support group as several unsavoury injury related incidents in the recent past made them wonder if Viru will ever be the same batsman again. Those questions were answered at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore today in no uncertain terms – Viru lives on. In fact, he just destroyed the record books.

India’s most headline-grabbing tour this year, barring the World Cup win, was the England series where everything that could go wrong, did. Sehwag was on the injury list then, with a dodgy shoulder, and ear infection and vertigo to go with it. He was nevertheless deployed by a desperate team management as things fell apart. The result was a king pair (two first ball ducks) in the Edgbaston Test.

The tongues started wagging.

So, while the Indian cricket scenario thereafter focussed on when Sachin Tendulkar would get his 100th international century, Viru quietly got back to business. Nothing to flashy anywhere, and some innings that didn’t impress (didn’t we say he can drive fans to despair?). The wagging became faster.

Then came the home series against England and the West Indies. Sehwag stayed out of the ODIs against England and even in the three Tests against the West Indies, where it was a virtual run-fest, Viru had to be satisfied with three half-centuries, frequently getting settled and getting out. Things weren’t looking too good.

Then came the five-match ODI series against the Caribbeans and Sehwag suddenly found captaincy in his lap, as Mahendra Singh Dhoni decided to take a break. The first three games weren’t too great for the new captain, as he got 46 runs in three innings, including a duck at Vizag as the West Indies came roaring back to post a win.

All that changed in Indore.

Madhya Pradesh, the heart of the country, suddenly has become the heartthrob for Indian cricket too. It was in Gwalior where the record books were re-written when Tendulkar breached the 200-barrier against South Africa on February 10, 2010. It is now Indore’s turn to celebrate its inclusion in the annals of cricket history.

Sehwag is by far the best Indian batsman ever. He holds the highest Test score for India and the top ODI score in the world, getting these runs at an incredible pace, giving the bowlers time enough to work on the opposition. He wins more matches, or sets up more matches than anyone else.

Still, he saunters around with a broad smile on his face. The smile doesn’t vanish for too long, whether he hits a six to get from 294 to 300, or whether he fails while attempting one. That is what makes him a great cricketer – the man within.

New Delhi, December 8
Former president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Chaudhary Ranbir Singh Mahendra has hailed Virender Sehwag’s record knock, describing it as a “gem of a knock”. Mahendra said Sehwag’s innings was not only a world record, but also a lesson in patience, perseverance and attacking cricket, which should be emulated by the younger generation. Sehwag mentioned in the post-match television interview that when he got out for 20 in the last match, Ranbir Singh, who was also president of the Haryana Cricket Association, had sent him a message, saying that he should have scored a century as he had got a good start and the next time, he should not miss out on a century.

“I was really touched when Viru mentioned about my message in his hour of triumph,” Ranbir Singh told The Tribune from Bhiwani. Sehwag’s cricket academy-cum-international school is based in his home State, Haryana.

New Delhi, December 8
When British coach Bob Houghton was at the helm of affairs of the Indian football team and Baichung Bhutia was the star striker, there was a method in the madness of their game plans. They won many interesting battles under Houghton and the two Nehru Gold Cup titles were testimony to the hard work put in by him to mould India into a winning combination.

With Houghton getting a premature sack and Bhutia having called it quits, India needs regrouping, as was evident during the three group matches of the SAFF Football Championship.

India played a patchy game against Afghanistan to draw 1-1, when the visitors had come from a country torn in turmoil. India’s 5-0 win against Bhutan and 3-0 triumph against Sri Lanka, to qualify for the semi-final, left much to be desired in game plans and strategy, particularly in converting close chances.

Sunil Chhetri, with four goals to be second behind Belal Arezo of Afghanistan (5) on the scorers’ list, has been a potent weapon up front, but many chances were muffed as the team could not strike proper rhythm and flow in their moves and finishing. Forwards like Jeje Lalpekhula, Clifford Miranda and the hard-working play-maker and captain Climax Lawrence, have not jelled enough with Chhetri to get goals.

Syed Rahim Nabi has shown that he can overlap to trouble the rival citadel and he has scored too. But these were all individual efforts and India can least afford such a game plan when they take on the Maldives in the first semi-final of the championship at 3 p.m. tomorrow. Afghanistan will cross swords with Nepal in the second semi-final at 6 p.m.

Though India had beaten the Maldives in the title clash at the last edition in Dhaka in 2009 and hold a better record, they have to put their best foot forward in attack and defence to triumph. India’s record against the Maldives is impressive as they have won nine of their 15 contests, with Maldives emerging victorious four times. But those were the good days of Indian football, as talented players like I.M. Vijayan, Joe Paul Ancheri and Bhutia had made up the line-up. The present team is a shadow of the previous teams and coach Savio Medeira has a difficult task on hand against group toppers Maldives.

If India depend heavily on Chhetri to strike, the rivals also stake a lot on Ali Ashfaq to deliver. The Indian game plan would be to bottle up Ashfaq to upset the Maldives’ plan. The visitors would also adopt a similar strategy to make Chhetri immobile, to shackle the Indian attacks.

Medeira and Lawrence agreed that this Maldives’ team was more organised than the “one we played in July in an international friendly”. India possess the firepower to subdue the Maldives if they play to a plan. Missing too many chances has been the bane of the hosts in this edition, and Medeira would be striving to correct that flaw to help India progress into their third successive final.

London, December 8
The big two from Manchester, United and City, failed to qualify for the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League and will now be playing in the Europa League.

On a night of drama, Manchester City, the runaway leaders in Premier League this season, beat group leaders Bayern Munich 2-0 but failed to qualify as second place Napoli beat Villareal 2-0 away from home late Wednesday. With one more point, Napoli grabbed the last place of the group from Man City, qualifying for the knockout rounds with Bayern, who had already booked the berth before the final group rounds.

Three-time European champions Manchester United failed to hold to their one-point lead in Group C, as they lost 1-2 away to minnows FC Basel. Last year's finalists ended the Champions League journey in group stage for the first time since 2005/06.

Both the Manchester clubs had to move on to the low-level Europa League after Wednesday's early exit.

Elsewhere, Group D came to a dramatic end as Lyon progressed to the next stage by winning 7-1 at Dinamo Zagreb. However, after the final whistle, it was still not enough for them to go through as Ajax, who had a three-point advantage, needed to lose at home.

Fortunately, for the French giants group leaders Real Madrid breezed past the Dutch side, Ajax with a 3-0 victory, finishing a perfect six-win record in group stage and also giving Lyon a lift.

Qualified Teams: Bayern Munich, Inter Milan, Benfica, Real Madrid, Chelsea, Arsenal, APOEL FC, Barcelona, Napoli, CSKA Moskva, Basel, Lyon, Leverkusen, Marseille, Zenit St Petersburg and AC Milan. — IANS

Patiala, December 8
The governing body of the Sports Authority of India (SAI), headed by the Sports Minister, has approved the decision of making the National Institute of Sports, Patiala, an autonomous body.

The move is aimed at resuscitating and establishing the academic character of the institute. Though the final decision regarding the demerger of NIS from SAI is still to be taken during the Cabinet meeting, the NIS authorities are hopeful that this proposal would be cleared without any 
problems.

Sports Minister Ajay Maken had announced the demerger after a series of incidents before the Commonwealth Games, including many top Indian players testing positive for dope. On his visit to Patiala, Maken had said that this decision had been taken in the larger interest of sports and would help in restoring the position of NIS as a premier national institute for coaching education.

Prior to its amalgamation with the SAI in April, 1987, NIS was functioning as the National Institute of Physical Education and Sports for training of coaches and sports-related research and development work. However, over time, the role of academic division got diluted, especially with the conduct of national camps becoming the primary activity here.

Though NIS and SAI authorities had welcomed the decision, stating that NIS would now be able to pay attention to its primary task of teaching, it is most likely that SAI would continue to run its coaching camps at NIS.

Ace woman athlete Krishna Punia said though the decision on whether the camps should be shifted was not in her hands, but NIS, being the best centre of sports in India, should certainly continue to run the camps. “Patiala has world-class infrastructure and it would be great to continue my training here,” she added.

Seconding her opinion, boxer Vijender Singh said they have been training at NIS for the past ten years and it has the best facilities. “Right from food and infrastructure to the environment, everything here is of international standards. Moreover, infrastructure worth crores has been laid recently and SAI should continue to run their coaching camps here.”

Nyon, December 8
England striker Wayne Rooney's ban at next year' Euro 2012 finals was reduced from three to two games following an appeal heard by UEFA on Thursday.

The 26-year-old Manchester United striker was originally banned for three matches following his sending off for kicking opponent Miodrag Dzudovic in their final qualifier against Montenegro in October. "The three-match suspension levelled against Wayne Rooney is now suspended, with the third game of the suspension, suspended for four years, so Wayne will be available for the final group game of the European championship against Ukraine," Adrian Bevington, the managing director of Club England, told reporters at UEFA's headquarters.

"It is effectively a two-game suspension with one carried over for a four year period for the national team." He added: "I am pleased to say we have had a very fair hearing from UEFA's panel and we are very pleased with what's happened today."

Both Rooney and England manager Fabio Capello gave evidence to the hearing. Rooney will now miss England's opening two Group D matches against France in Donetsk on June 11 and against Sweden in Kiev on June 15, but will be eligible to play against co-hosts Ukraine in their third and final group game in Donetsk on June 19. — Reuters

Patiala, December 8
In an effort to curtail doping at school level, the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) will conduct dope tests at the Kerala Schools' Athletics meet. This is for the first time that NADA will be conducting doping samples in school games.

NADA Director-General Rahul Bhatnagar said it will conduct testing at the 55th Kerala State Schools’ Athletic Meet being held at Ernakulam from today. “NADA teams have been constituted and deputed to conduct about 40 samples in this competition. This is being done as part of the NADA programme to extend the dope testing to the college and school level competitions,” he added.

“Many Indian players have tested positive for banned substances lately bringing major embarrassment to the nation,” he added. “We have therefore decided that this menace should be curbed at a much lower level. Usually, dope tests were done after a player has made it to the India camp but we realised that if we wanted to make Indian sports dope-free, we would have to apprise young players about its ill effects.

“Making them aware is one part of the task. The other is that by conducting tests, we want to send a message across that there was no room for players who indulge in doping,” Bhatnagar added.

“Youngsters would take our warnings more seriously if they fear that once if they get caught for doping, they might never be able to establish a career in sports. Many get caught out of sheer ignorance. They would certainly be more cautious when they are aware that they could be tested any time,” added Bhatnagar.

Dubai, December 8
Swede Peter Hanson and Briton Paul Lawrie parried the punches of the European Tour's heavyweights to lead the way after the Dubai World Championship first round on Thursday. While Rory McIlroy (66) seized the early initiative against money-list leader Luke Donald (72) in their fight to end the season as Europe's number one golfer, Hanson fired a record-equalling 64 at the Greg Norman-designed Earth course.

Lawrie produced the sort of display that earned him victory at the 1999 British Open as he tucked into second place on 65, one ahead of McIlroy and two in front of Spain's Sergio Garcia. Hanson, a member of the triumphant 2010 Ryder Cup team, was bursting with pride after his round. "I think it's the best golf I've ever played," he told reporters.

McIlroy put together a stunning run of scores to climb the leaderboard, roaring home in 30 strokes, thanks to five birdies in the last six holes. "That back nine was pretty much flawless and I holed some really nice putts," said the world number two. "I just kept giving myself birdie chances and luckily enough I was able to take a few. It was a perfect start to the tournament for me. To shoot a great score like that sets me up nicely for the next three days."

Donald is bidding to become the first player to land the orders of merit on both sides of the Atlantic. He has a lead of $1.06 million over second-placed McIlroy. — Reuters