Chennai, January 7
Chief selector Krish Srikkanth today said the two consecutive Test defeats in Australia has a lot do with poor batting rather than Mahendra Singh Dhoni's captaincy which has come under sharp criticism.

"Our batting didn't click as a unit. It is a bit surprising as we were confident of a good show in Australia. But we must admit that Australia have played better cricket than us. There is no point trying to find excuses and we need to move on," Srikkanth said here.

Asked about Dhoni's captaincy that has been criticised by former greats like Ian Chappell and Wasim Akram, Srikkanth said it would be unfair to single out his captaincy for the poor performance. "Look, when you lose you can cite any reason. But Dhoni has been honest enough in not giving any excuses. In fact, he has rightly admitted that our batting has not clicked, it has clicked only in patches.

"This is the best team we have at the moment. Also, there are no injuries. I believe each and every member has accepted that Australia is playing better cricket," the former India captain said.

When asked to pinpoint the exact problem area, he said the failure of the batsmen to get big scores has played a part in the defeats. "In South Africa, when we drew the Test series, atleast one of our batsmen went on to score a big hundred. Here our batsmen have got to half centuries but didn't get a big score. Test cricket provides you with few opportunities but one needs to grab them when they come your way."

Srikkanth felt that India had their moments and should have won the Melbourne Test match. "We were 211 for two and we lost it from there. We had Sehwag, Dravid and Tendulkar playing well but then no one got a big score. When you lose the first Test, automatically, there is a lot of pressure on you. Now one should try and do well in the Perth Test. We have won in Perth last time and we should try and do well there," he added. — PTI

Sydney, January 7
The Australian media on Saturday suggested a reality check on the hype surrounding the much-vaunted Indian batting line-up after the visitors' humiliating innings defeat in the second Test, saying that they should ponder over whether the ageing stars can still deliver for the team.

The famed Indian batting line-up came a cropper in the two Tests against Australia in the ongoing four-match series and the local media wondered whether the ageing stalwarts were still an asset.

"On paper, India boasts one of the most formidable batting line-ups ever seen in Test cricket, but reality suggests age is starting to overpower the benefits of their experience," the Australian Associated Press said.

"Dravid and Tendulkar are approaching 39, Laxman is 37 and India's recent whitewash against England and 2-0 deficit against Australia indicates something is significantly wrong. Writing off champion players is always fraught with danger, and India's big three, as well as Virender Sehwag and MS Dhoni, have shown patches of their prowess over recent months," it said.

According to the write-up, India's recent rise to No. 1 spot in Test before England dethroned them were due to the huge partnerships among the experienced but ageing players.

"India became No.1 team in Test because their stars had a knack of firing together and combining for huge partnerships to bat teams out of matches. That isn't happening at moment, and the question is whether their ageing heroes are in a position to see them back to top of world rankings," it said.

The media said the perception that India's famed batting line-up will deliver at SCG, Sachin Tendulkar's "favourite" ground abroad, in second Test was exaggerated.

"Rumours of an Indian pulse in Sydney had been greatly exaggerated. Inevitably, the tooth fairy (mythical creature of bounty) was revealed to be a fraud," a write-up in 'Sydney Morning Herald' said.

"While Tendulkar and Laxman were still at crease after lunch, there remained the faint belief the unsalvageable might be salvaged. The tourists' back was broken early afternoon with the dismissals of Tendulkar for 80 and Laxman for 66. The rest of afternoon was a victory lap for Michael Clarke's side," the write up in 'Sydney Morning Herald' said. — PTI

Mumbai, January 7
VVS Laxman should be the first veteran head to roll in a batting revamp if India are to secure their future in test cricket, several former players have said in the wake of a second crushing defeat in Australia.

India, who surrendered their world number one Test status during a disastrous tour of England last year, slumped to their sixth successive loss in overseas Test matches with the innings defeat in Sydney on Friday. The 4-0 drubbing in England, coupled with the first and second Test defeats in Melbourne and Sydney, have seriously dented the pride of the world's most vaunted batting line-up.

Senior batsmen like 38-year-old Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid (38) and Laxman (37) have traditionally been India's strength but they have failed to live up to their reputation and calls for infusing more young blood have been gaining ground.

"We can't always think short-term. We need to start building a team as well," former India opener Anshuman Gaekwad told Reuters. "Sachin still has the class, Rahul is very hard working, but I am not sure how long Laxman will be able to continue."

Australia, are also going through a tricky transition period after a golden generation of cricketers that included Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist retired one after another. They have slipped to fourth in the Test rankings after dominating world cricket for over a decade.

Many in India worry that their team is going down the same road due to a lack of replacements waiting in the wings. Gaekwad, who played 40 Tests for India, said middle-order batsman Rohit Sharma should be handed his debut in Perth and selectors should give struggling batsman Virat Kohli more chances to find his feet. "It's not that Virat is not batting well. He's just getting out. If you drop him now, it will dampen his confidence.

“You can't phase out all the three seniors at a time. You have to do that gradually. The youngsters will learn only in the company of the seniors." — Reuters

Sydney, January 7
The ongoing India-Australia Test series might have been a one-sided affair so far with Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men coming a cropper but it has drawn more eyeballs than the Ashes with the latest ratings showing a shift in interest for cricket fans here.

The television audiences for the ongoing series are up by more than 30 per cent than last year's Ashes, indicating that Ashes is no longer the most watched cricket series in Australia.

Broadcaster Channel 9 has recorded an average national rating of 1.492 million viewers during the two Tests so far, while last summer an average of 1.144 million tuned in for the drubbing England dished up.

Nine's head of sport Steve Crawley said India are now Australia's greatest rival. "India are our gun opponent now. The Ashes may well come back, especially if England hold on to that No.1 ranking, but right now, all the evidence shows that India is in front for Australian audiences," Crawley said.

"It seems there's plenty of interest in watching guys like Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke, and James Pattinson already has real star quality," he was quoted as saying in 'Daily Telegraph'. — PTI

Sydney, January 7
After four years in waiting, Rohit Sharma could finally get a Test debut when India take on Australia in Perth but Aussie coach Mickey Arthur said it would be nothing short of baptism by fire for the youngster whose footwork is suspect on bouncy tracks.

India is down 0-2 in the four-match series after humiliating losses in Melbourne and Sydney and the axe could fall on an out-of-sorts Virat Kohli for the third Test in Perth starting January 13.

Arthur doubts Sharma would succeed on the fiery pitch of WACA, Perth and wonders if his backfoot play could stand up to the test. "He has challenges on wickets which have bounce. WACA will have it and it's a test by furnace. He probably just would have to make sure he gets his backfoot game in order.

"I have seen a lot of him on television and how he copes if he gets the nod will be very interesting," he said.

Former Australian captain Ian Chappell echoed the opinion but felt the batsman should have been in the Indian team much earlier. "Sharma should have been in the team a long time ago," said Chappell who is an admirer of the middle-order batsman and predicts 10,000 Test runs from his blade.

"Now it's hard for a batsman who hasn't had a hit for a couple of weeks. You bring him to Perth in conditions which are very difficult for experienced batsmen, never mind the inexperienced ones."

Chappell even goes on to suggest that Sharma should get match practice by playing in some club match or grade cricket in Perth in order to have a grip on the conditions. Playing in the WACA square alongside the main pitch would also not be a bad idea, according to Chappell. — PTI

Sydney, January 7
Left-arm seamer Mitchell Starc is the only change, coming in place of injured fast bowler James Pattinson, in the 12-man Australian squad for the third Test against India in Perth, starting on January 13.

Pattinson is carrying a injury in his left foot and has consequently been ruled out of the remainder of the four-match Test series. Like Pattinson, Starc is too a 21-year-old fast bowler who is rated immensely even though he has just four wickets from two Tests he has played.

The 1.96m tall New South Wales bowler is known to generate tremendous pace and bounce. Also, it is likely that Nathan Lyon would be replaced with swing bowler Ryan Harris. — PTI

London, January 7
Andy Carroll scored at Anfield for the first time this season to help Liverpool reach the fourth round of the FA Cup with a 5-1 win over League 1 (third division) Oldham Athletic on Friday.

England international Carroll, bought for 35 million pounds from Newcastle United last January, pounced with injury time approaching to put Liverpool 4-1 up after they had gone behind in the 28th minute.

Oldham's Robbie Simpson produced an unstoppable strike from 25 metres in the 28th minute but Liverpool quickly drew level when a Jonjo Shelvey shot destined for the goalkeeper's hands deflected off Craig Bellamy into the corner of the net. Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard, plagued by injuries in 2011, then rifled home a penalty at the end of the first half to give his side a 2-1 lead.

Bellamy's pace unsettled Oldham as Liverpool made it 3-1 after 68 minutes, the Welsh winger's cross after a dashing run dispatched by Shelvey. Misfiring striker Carroll then grabbed his third goal of the season after a swivel on the edge of the box and a smart finish before Stewart Downing made it 5-1 deep into injury time.

"Downing scored, big Andy got a goal, Jonjo scored and Steven scored with a penalty so we've had a few positives but I don't think the scoreline reflects the distance between the two teams on that performance," said Liverpool boss Kenny dalglish. However, the game ended on a sour note when Oldham's Tom Adeyemi exchanged words with a spectator and the tearful midfielder needed a consoling word from Gerrard. — Reuters

Perth, January 7
Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova and Tomas Berdych had straight-set singles victories over France on Saturday to give the Czech Republic their second Hopman Cup title.

Kvitova won the last three games of the first set and went on to beat Marion Bartoli 7-5, 6-1 while Berdych was perfect in a first-set tiebreaker and beat Richard Gasquet 7-6 (0), 6-4. The Czech pair were unbeaten in singles through three matches leading to the final.

The mixed doubles match was not played because the championship was decided in singles.

The Czechs won the eight-country mixed teams title for the first time in 1994 when Jana Novotna and Petr Korda beat Germany in the final.

France have never won the Hopman Cup, although they lost the final in 1998 to Slovakia. France have played 18 times in the 24-year history of the tournament.

Kvitova, who could overtake Caroline Wozniacki for the No. 1 ranking if she wins the Sydney International next week, beat American Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Bulgaria's Tsvetana Pironkova and Denmark's Wozniacki in round-robin play before defeating Bartoli on Saturday.

Berdych was playing for the Czech Republic at the Hopman Cup for the third time. He beat American Mardy Fish, Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov and Denmark's Frederik Nielsen in earlier play. — AP

Chennai, January 7
The big-serving Canadian youngster Milos Raonic reached his third ATP Tour final after a 6-4, 6-4 thrashing of world number 10 Nicolas Almagro in the Chennai Open semifinals, here today.

Ranked 31, Raonic took 72 minutes to dispatch his Spanish rival and earn a shot at his second ATP title, having won one in 2011 at San Jose.

He now awaits the winner of the other semifinal between Serbian top seed Janko Tipsarevic and Japanese qualifier Go Soeda for tomorrow's final.

New Delhi, January 7
The men hockey team core group arrived here on Saturday from Bangalore for the second phase of the Olympic qualification preparatory camp, which will get underway at the Dhyan Chand National Stadium from tomorrow. The probables were joined by chief coach Michael Nobbs and exercise physiologist David Ian John, after a short break in Australia.

During the course of the camp in Delhi, India will play a five-Test series against South Africa, which will also serve as the selection trials for the Olympic Qualification Tournament, to be held at National Stadium from Feb 18 to 26.

The probables: Goalkeepers: Bharat Chetri, PR Shreejesh,. Naveen Kumar and Nanak Singh; defenders: Rupinder Pal Singh, VR Raghunath, Amit Rohidas, Harbir Singh, Gurjinder Singh and Sandeep Singh; midfielders: Gurbaj Singh, Ignace Tirkey, Manpreet Singh, Manjeet Kullu, Vikas Sharma, Birendra Lakra, Vikram Pillay, Bharat Chhetri, S.K. Uthappa, V.S.Vinaya, V Pillay, B Horo, Sardar Singh, Kothajit Singh and Pradeep Mor; Forwards: Rajpal Singh, D Mujtaba, Sarvanjit Singh, S.V.Sunil,Ravi Pal, Gurvinder S Chandi, R Minz, Y Walmiki, M Antil, Chinglesana S Kangujam, Shivendra Singh, Arjun Halappa, T Khandker, Dharamvir Singh, M.B.Aiyappa, S Topno, Ramandeep Singh, P Somanna, N Thimmaiah and Akashdeep Singh.

Manali, January 7
Aanchal Thakur, a 15-year-old village girl from sleepy Burwa in the hills of Manali, has only one dream: to win a medal in the Youth Winter Olympics to be held at Innsbruck, Austria from January 12.

Youth games mantra is to channelize youth energy into eco-friendly adventure sports and the only girl from India is a ‘pahari’ girl. Aanchal will compete with over 1000 athletes from 76 countries. There are over 63 different events and 15 disciplines in the Youth Olympiad, but Aanchal will compete in alpine ski events of slalom and giant slalom.

What makes this first Youth Winter Olympics special for Aanchal and adventure sports lovers in Himachal is that she is a sole representative from India, who has qualified the Federation International De Skiing(FIS) points to make it to the Olympics.

What makes Aanchal a different skier is that she has roughed it out on the “unequipped ski slopes of Solang Nala and Rohtang Pass nearer home, without any training from the state’s institutes.

“I owe it to my father, an adventure sport promoter who trained me and opened a world of opportunities for me”, she said.

“Manali needs world class ski resort which will help harness winter games potential and bring in adventure tourism and channelise youth energy in a positive way”, Aanchal added.

Starting skiing at the age of seven at Manali, Aanchal won many medals at the National level and participated in International Children Skiing Championship in 2009 and 2010 in Italy and Asian Children Skiing Championship in Lebanon in 2009 and in Korea in 2011. She qualified for Winter Olympics in New Zealand in July 2011.

“I did my pre-Olympic training in St. Moritz Ski resort in Switzerland from December 1 to December 20 last year”, she added.

La Manga, January 7
As many as five Indian women golfers will be teeing off for a spot on the main Ladies European Tour 2012, when the qualifiers get underway tomorrow at the La Manga Club in Spain.

Veteran Smriti Mehra, who has in the past held a card on the LPGA Tour, the current Women's Golf Association of India (WGAI) Order of Merit leader, Sharmila Nicollet, Neha Tripathi and Nalini Singh Siwach, will compete in the qualifiers.

Three of the Indians are being sponsored and supported by the Ministry of Tourism and one player is being sponsored by the DLF Golf and Country Club.

A fifth Indian player, Rhea Nair, based in Dubai, will also be playing the qualifiers. This is the first time that as many as five Indians will be playing in the qualifiers. — PTI

Barcelona, January 7
Lionel Messi's remarkable career with Barcelona began on a napkin.

It happened more than a decade ago, when the 13-year-old Messi, then just a scrawny little kid with plenty of talent, was hoping to earn a contract with Barcelona.

"It's a napkin that myself and many colleagues believe has changed the history of Barcelona," Horacio Gaggioli, who helped broker the deal said. "If it didn't exist, Leo would have played for another team."

In September 2000, Messi had his first tryout with Barcelona. Undersized but dazzling as always with a football at his feet, the Argentine teen impressed Barcelona club official Carles Rexach.

So when the time came a few months later to make a firm decision, the club's technical secretary and past and future coach scribbled out an informal contract on the closest piece of paper he could find at Barcelona's Pompeia Tennis Club. In it, Rexach reiterates Barcelona's desire to meet the demands of Messi's father, Jorge.

The small napkin reads: "In Barcelona, on the 14th of December of 2000 and in the presence of Josep Minguella and Horacio (Gaggioli), Carles Rexach, F.C.B technical secretary, it commits under his responsibility and despite some views against it to sign the player Lionel Messi, as long we stick to the amounts agreed upon."

Messi's exploits since turning pro have been amazing. Still only 24, Messi is on the verge of winning football's top individual prize, the Ballon d'Or, for the third consecutive time. He scored 53 goals last season and has 31 so far this season, leaving him only 25 goals short of Cesar Rodriguez's club record.

Nicknamed "The Flea," Messi has also won three Champions League titles, five Spanish leagues, a pair of Club World Cup and European Super Cups, five Spanish Super Cups and one Copa del Rey since his club debut in 2004 - leading to comparisons with Pele, Diego Maradona and Alfredo Di Stefano, the game's greatest players.

"They were different players and so was he. Players like him are very few, which is why we signed him so young - there was something different about him," Rexach said. "The family asked us for a paper to confirm the deal so they could be confident about his signing for Barcelona. I had nothing else to write on, so I used a napkin."

The process to bring Messi to Barcelona started even earlier, however. Gaggioli had been asked by contacts from Messi's native Rosario to help broker a tryout with Barcelona because the family had decided to leave Newell's Old Boys for the football riches of Europe. Besides searching for a big European club, Jorge Messi was looking for a team that would also agree to pay for Messi's growth hormone treatment.

River Plate had the chance to sign Messi before Barcelona came into the picture, and Gaggioli said he will never forget the day he went to meet the Messis for the first time.

"I met them at the airport and when I saw Leo I thought, 'Where is this kid going to play?'" Gaggioli said. "He was so small and so skinny that the notion of him playing football seemed impossible."

Despite his slight appearance, Messi was mesmerizing on the field. He had been a standout player for Newell's youth teams - scoring handfuls of goals at a time - and wowed Rexach and youth team coach Quimet Rife in his single tryout against older boys.

Still, convincing incoming president Joan Gaspart to commit to signing a 13-year-old nobody when he needed to hire a coach and sign players for a league run was proving difficult. Especially considering Messi's weak physique, with the cost of treatment paramount to any deal after Newell's stopped funding it.

Not only would Barcelona have to pay the cost of Messi's growth hormone treatment, but signing him meant carrying the price of transporting his entire family to Barcelona, where the club would have to find his father work and cover the cost of his lodging. — AP