Mumbai, January 28
A dominant Mumbai lifted their 40th Ranji Trophy title after skipper Ajit Agarkar and Dhawal Kulkarni combined to wreck Saurashtra for an innings and 125-run victory in the five-day final that ended inside three days at the Wankhede Stadium here today.

Saurashtra, trailing the home team by 207 runs in the first innings, were shot out for a pathetic 82 in less than three hours and 36.3 overs, 41 minutes after tea.

Mumbai, thus, clinched their 40th national title in 44 appearances in the summit contest and their first after two blank seasons.

Agarkar snapped up four wickets for 15 runs while his younger teammate Kulkarni grabbed 5/32 to complete splendid match figures of nine for 56.

The home team pace duo finished off the lop-sided contest with their fiery first spells to help Mumbai regain the crown after a gap of two seasons by sharing six wickets equally.

The other wicket-taker for Mumbai was Abhishek Nayar (1 for 3).

Mumbai also earned the right to take on the Rest of India in the Irani Cup tie, which is to be held at the same venue here from February 6-10. The home team fetched a solid Rs 5 crore as prize money. While the Mumbai Cricket Association paid a whopping Rs 3 crore, the BCCI shelled out Rs 2 crore while Saurashtra got Rs 1 crore.

The visiting team's batsmen showed a distinct lack of application and surrendered on a wicket that provided good pace, bounce and prodigious movement to the swing bowlers even on day three.

They capitulated for the second time in the match after having been bowled out for 148 in 75.3 overs in the first innings on day one to which Mumbai replied with 355.

The highest score in a dismal batting display for Saurashtra was 22 off 35 balls by Dharmendra Jadeja.

Saurya Sanandiya (16) was the only other player to reach double figures after staying for more than an hour at the crease like another lower-order batsman Jaydev Unadkat (9 in 69 minutes).

Among the top seven batsmen dismissed, none reached double figures and three of them — openers Sitanshu Kotak, Sagar Jogiyani and first innings top scorer Arpit Vasavada — failed to score.

Rahul Dave (5), skipper Jaydev Shah (6), Sheldon Jackson (9) and Kamlesh Makwana (7) were the other top-order batsmen to depart with single digit scores.

Agarkar took three for 15 in a fiery first spell of eight overs and Kulkarni claimed as many for same number of runs in his opening spell of nine overs. Makwana was sent back by Nayar at 34.

Kulkarni came back to grab the wicket of Sanandiya to leave Saurashtra on the brink of defeat at 53 for 8. Unadkat and Jadeja, who put on 29 runs, before Agarkar returned for his second spell to snap the ninth wicket partnership, prolonged the innings.

Fittingly, Kulkarni came back for his third spell and ended the match by having Jadeja caught behind by Tare who grabbed his fourth victim of the innings to equal the championship season record of 41 by Uday Kaul of Punjab.

The tourists were tottering at 20 for 6 after the initial burst by Agarkar and Kulkarni and then managed to get past Saurashtra's lowest-ever score of 25 all out, also against Mumbai at the nearby Brabourne Stadium 60 years ago.

Mumbai, who made 355 in their first innings building on the solid knock of 132 by opener Wasim Jaffer, thus regained the title after their previous successful title run in the 2009-10 season when they defeated Karnataka at Mysore in the final.

This was the seventh time that Agarkar had figured in a successful title match, this time as captain, after having been part of a triumphant squad as a player on the six occasions he had turned out in a final for Mumbai.

This morning, Saurashtra did well to grab the remaining four Mumbai first innings wickets while conceding 68 runs with Kamlesh Makwana claiming the last two wickets to fall in successive overs.

Overnight batsman Kulkarni was the first Mumbai player to be dismissed without adding a run when he edged Sidharth Trivedi to first slip fielder Sitanshu Kotak after the team score advanced by one run to 288.

Kulkarni had added 51 runs for the seventh wicket with Hiken Shah, who made 55 that came off 141 balls including seven fours.

Shah and Chavan, who hit six fours in his 51-ball knock, took the score beyond 300 with a stand of 41 runs for the eighth wicket. Makwana took two wickets in his first two overs by dismissing Chavan and no. 10 Shardul Thakur to end the innings 23 minutes before lunch.

But Saurashtra made a poor beginning-losing veteran Kotak to the third ball he faced from Agarkar, by feathering a leg-side catch to wicket keeper Aditya Tare who then pouched Jogiyani to leave the visitors at a sorry 5 for 2.

Dave poked at a short, rising ball from Kulkarni to the slip cordon while Vasavada was trapped leg before by Agarkar to make Saurashtra 11 for 4 which became 11 for 5 and 20 for 6 in quick succession when Kulkarni bowled rival captain Shah and Jackson.

The writing was on the wall for Saurashtra who prolonged the losing battle through Sanandiya before Mumbai broke through and then stormed home triumphant. — PTI

Mumbai, January 28
Skipper Ajit Agarkar today attributed Mumbai's innings and 125-run victory over Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy final to combined team effort and said lifting the title for a record 40th time makes it even more special.

Sachin Tendulkar and Ajit Agarkar with the Ranji Trophy in Mumbai on Monday. — PTI

"Everyone has chipped in at different times in the season. We've had eight or nine guys who have had exceptional seasons and that's why we're here today," said Agarkar, who combined forces with young pace mate Dhawal Kulkarni to knock the daylights out of Saurashtra in their second innings at the Wankhede Stadium here.

“Dhawal is one of the guys who has done well. He's been our stand-out performer for four or five seasons now. (Wicket keeper Aditya) Tare has had a great season, as has Hiken (Shah). Sachin (Tendulkar) has played a crucial role, (while) Jaffer has done well as has Ankeet (Chavan).”

“I am very happy and very proud. I have won it before, but to win it as a captain makes the win even more special,” he said.—PTI

Mumbai, January 28
Captain MS Dhoni defended key players Gautam Gambhir and spinner R Ashwin after winning the ODI series. Here’s what he had to say on:

R Ashwin

“In the last few games Ashwin has bowled well. He has stuck to one line and hasn’t overused the variations. Having said that, he needs to find the right balance between consistently landing the ball in the same area and using his variations, which is his strength. I think he’s learning it. Now with more men inside the circle, the spinners have to bowl differently and he’s coming to terms with that.”

Gautam Gambhir

“He is going through a lean patch, but he’s one of the most experienced openers we’ve got. Besides, having the left-right combination at the top is important. I personally felt he batted well in the last few games —he wasn’t tentative and was quite decisive in his stroke-making. There have been signs of improvement and once he gets back to his 100 per cent form, he’s an amazing cricketer to watch. He is one opener who plays spin really well. Yes, we depend on him to play out 35 overs and that hasn’t happened of late. But it’s just a matter of time before he gets back to his best.

Ishant Sharma

“Ishant is bowling really well and he’s not giving away free runs. Fast bowlers have to bowl in the death overs and he has been a bit expensive there. But we also need to see that he’s playing ODIs after a long time. His overall approach has been good and it’s a big positive for us.”

Bhuvneshwar Kumar

“Bhuvneshwar Kumar can swing the ball well. But before selecting him [for Tests] we’ll have to see what the wicket is like. He will do really well in places like England, Australia or South Africa, but not subcontinent tracks where you have to heavily rely on reverse-swing.”

Ravindra Jadeja

“We have always struggled to find an all-rounder. It’s always good to have a seaming all-rounder, but Irfan is the only option we have for that and he’s not fit. For now we need someone like Jadeja. I personally have, for a long time, felt that he’s someone we need to look to groom. He has done well in this series and has improved with time. Once Irfan gets fit, we will be in a position to look at different combinations.” — (www.bcci.tv/)

Scoreboard
Sri Lanka

Dilshan b Faulkner 6

K Perera c Bailey b Maxwell 15

Chandimal c Bailey b Laughlin 5

Jayawardene not out 61

J Mendis c Faulkner b Doherty 25

T Perera not out 35

Extras: (b 1, lb 8, w 5) 14
Total (4 wkts; 20 overs) 161
Fall of wickets: 1-15, 2-33, 3-39, 4-102

Bowling

Maxwell 4-0-23-1

Starc 4-0-35-0

Faulkner 4-0-24-1

Laughlin 4-0-40-1

Doherty 4-0-30-1

Australia

Warner c T Perera b Kulasekara 7

Finch lbw b A Mendis 7

Marsh not out 47

Bailey c K Perera b T Perera 45

Maxwell not out 8

Extras: (b 1, lb 2, w 1, nb 1) 5

Total (3 wkts; 15 overs) 119
Fall of wickets: 1-10, 2-20, 3-106
Bowling

Dilshan 2-0-10-0

Kulasekara 3-0-18-1

A-Mendis 3-0-25-1

Malinga 3-0-26-0

Dananjaya 1-0-12-0

T-Perera 3-0-25-1

Melbourne, January 28
White feathers can mean whatever you want of them. They can be a symbol of cowardice or the arrival of a guardian angel. Unfortunately for Andy Murray, the one that fluttered down into the Rod Laver Arena served neither purpose. All it did was briefly distract him from the growing reality that Novak Djokovic had finally stumbled upon the ruthless best of himself.

The champ takes a tumble but wins this point in the second set. — AFP

After flicking away the feather, Murray won just one more of his meagre three points in the second set tie-break that announced, as brutally as a fusillade of mortar shells, that the world's best player was again on the ferocious march. Murray has such aspirations of his own and there is no reason for either him or his flinty old coach Ivan Lendl to despair of them.

This, unquestionably was the Murray he promised to be while winning, from the grasp of yesterday's conqueror, the US Open last September and in Friday's semifinal hounding of the great Roger Federer further into the margins.

The real trouble was not a failure of nerve, a blistered foot or a brief eruption of some of his old highly charged self-destructive emotion that plagued his hopes for so long. It was Djokovic, raw, insatiable and, ultimately, masterful Djokovic.

When that figure re-emerged after an edgily introspective first set, Murray was obliged to resign himself to a little longer in the shadow of the man who is threatening, more purposefully than ever, to bring still another dimension to arguably the greatest epoch tennis has ever known.

With Federer deposed and Rafael Nadal sidelined, Murray could hardly have tackled the challenge presented by Djokovic more promisingly. Though his serve appeared the more vulnerable, the range of his shots and the certainty of his movement suggested that he might well deliver a stunning one-two in winning major tournaments.

Djokovic gleaned just two points from the tie-break at the end of the first set, and the state of his game encouraged Murray. It had a degree of rare uncertainty. Oddly for a man operating in the theatre of action and on the surface he most likes, that had already brought him three of his five Grand Slams, Djokovic seemed to be trying too hard.

An absurd proposition, you might have thought, while considering a man who so routinely draws the life out of the opposition. But there was Murray flourishing with some panache.

It was then that Djokovic did something utterly remarkable, something which provided the first clear evidence that once again he would find a way to win. Under the severest pressure, he slipped on to his back, a situation which has caused at least a million players to beat their rackets in frustration. Djokovic played a perfect lob, got to his feet and won the point with a shot that stretched belief. Before the white feather, we had seen a lightning bolt. The rest quickly become a fait accompli.

If this depressed Murray, it shouldn't have done. He has suffered such rites of passage before and there should be no lasting pain or discouragement in one conducted by someone capable of mustering the astonishing force of a Djokovic at peace with himself. — The Independent

Patiala, January 28
Continuing their good form, Punjabi University athletes added another feather in the cap of the university by emerging overall champions in the All India Inter-University Athletics Championship that concluded at University of Kalyani, West Bengal.

While Punjabi University lads emerged victorious in the men’s category with a total of nine medals, the girls had to settle in for the silver after Mahatma Gandhi University, Kotyam, with 10 medals.

Pole vaulter Parveen Kumar was the star performer as he created a new All India Inter-University record in the event with a jump of 4.77m, breaking the previous record of 4.76m by a whisker.

In the women’s category, Purnima Hembram won a gold medal in heptathlon and silver in 100m hurdles. Amanpreet Kaur won gold in discus throw, Anita won gold in hammer throw and Shanti Kumari won silver in 5km walk. Among other stars, Sonu bagged a silver in high jump, Mandeep Kaur won silver in discus throw, KM Rachna won bronze in hammer throw, Harpreet Kaur wins bronze in half marathon and Anupama Srivastava won bronze in 800m.

In the men’s section, apart from Parveen, Navjot Singh won gold in triple jump. Romit won silver in 20km walk, Tejinderpal Singh Toor bagged silver in shot put, Gurjinder Singh took the silver in hammer throw, Navtej Deep Singh won bronze in shot put, Lovepreet Singh won bronze in 800m and Shander Singh won bronze in 5,000m and 10,000m.

Congratulating the athletes and coaches — Harbhajan Singh, Dharmender Singh and Ramesh Pal Singh — on this win, Director Sports of the university Dr Rajkumar Sharma said he was extremely delighted with the results and is hopeful that they would win both individual trophies next year.

Vice Chancellor Dr Jaspal Singh gave the credit of their success to their hard work.

Mumbai, January 28
Defending champions England start as favourites to qualify for the Super Six stage of the ICC Women's World Cup from Group A, which also includes India, West Indies and Sri Lanka.

The Indian women celebrate taking a New Zealand wicket in their warm-up match in Mumbai on Monday. India won the match by eight wickets as Poonam Raut scored 69 after Jhulan Goswami had taken three wickets. — PTI

The second and third places will be hard fought for with the West Indies a vastly improved side from four years ago and India and Sri Lanka vying for the Super Six placings. The subcontinent sides perhaps enjoy the edge due to the event being hosted here.

England, winners in 1973, 1993 and 2009, will begin their campaign against Sri Lanka on the second day of the tournament. A day later in the feature match of the group Charlotte Edwards, featuring in her fifth successive World Cup, will lead England against 2009 third-place finishers India before concluding the group stage matches against the West Indies on February 6.

England's matches against Sri Lanka and India will be played at the Cricket Club of India (CCI). On the opening day, the hosts will take on the West Indies at the CCI. Sri Lanka will meet the West Indies on February 4 while on Feb 6 Shashikala Siriwardena's Sri Lankans will face India at CCI.

Sri Lanka won the right to compete in the tournament when they finished in the top four of the World Cup Qualifier in Dhaka in November 2011. The side beat South Africa in the third/fourth play-off to occupy the fourth spot in Group A while the West Indies qualified for the third spot in the group after completing the tournament undefeated.

At the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka, the West Indies finished in the top four after a tight semifinal against Australia last October. Sri Lanka managed just one win throughout the whole event, against the West Indies in Galle.

The England squad for the World Cup features familiar faces including captain Edwards while there are eight players from the victorious squad of 2009 including the in-form Twenty20 Player of the Year, Sarah Taylor, who will once again lead the side's batting line-up.

Edwards requires a mere 61 more One-Day International (ODI) runs to usurp Belinda Clark’s record of the highest number of runs in women's ODI cricket. Clark's record of 4,844 runs has stood since 2005.

The bowling attack features No. 1 ODI bowler Katherine Brunt, who currently has 76 scalps, along with the talented slow left-armer Holly Colvin, who hit the winning runs for England back in 2009 when they defeated Australia.

The India women are led by Mithali Raj, the women's No. 1 batter, while former captain Jhulan Goswami also features in the side. Others to watch out for include the diminutive batter Poonam Raut and her state team-mate Sulakshana Naik, and bowlers Gouher Sultana and Nagarajan Niranjana.

West Indies feature a mix of youth and experience including twins Kycia and Kyshona Knight of Barbados. They are led by Merissa Aguilleira. — IANS

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