Hyderabad, February 28
Not long after arriving at the ground today afternoon, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni made a beeline for the centre of the ground. The object of his curiosity was the square in the middle, in which six different kinds of pitches were in readiness.

Their colours represented different shades of green — from deep emerald to brownish to off-white, which had barely a blade of grass. Dhoni made his way to this last one, a ball in his hand. He examined this track closely, and then bounced the ball on it several times, with varying degrees of force, making it bounce from head-high to ankle-high. Dhoni was trying to gauge the bounce on the track; he was probably playing out different scenarios too, weighing his bowling options for this match.

After the win in Chennai, Dhoni had made it quite clear that he’s unlikely to change the team for the second Test. India’s win had papered over two failings of the team: The opening partnership between Virender Sehwag and Murali Vijay, who scored a total of just 37 runs between them in four innings; and the pace duo of Ishant Sharma and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who failed to pick up a single Australian wicket. We must hasten to add here that Ishant and Bhuvneshwar bowled just 33 overs (out of 226, ie 14.6 percent) in the two innings; in the second innings, such was India’s reliance on spin that Ishant bowled three overs, Bhuvneshwar didn’t bowl at all. Dhoni spoke favourably for Sehwag, Bhuvneshwar and Ishant in Chennai, so they seem safe. The only other player who could have cause for anxiety, Harbhajan Singh, also received words of praise from the captain for his bowling in the second innings.

It’s unlikely, thus, that India would change their team for the second Test, especially as the wicket here is not likely to turn as much as the Chennai wicket. The wicket here is made of a different soil, less fine than the red soil of the Chennai track. It’s likely to hold together for two days, then disintegrate slowly over the last three days, when spinners would get a grip and assistance on it.

“It will not be as bad as Chennai, it will be a good wicket,” said former Indian spinner Venkatapathy Raju, now a Hyderabad Cricket Association vice-president. “It will, as the game goes on, turn slowly, but only by the third day.” That’s exactly what Y.L. Chandrasekhar, the pitch curator here, said.

In Chennai, the middle of the pitch had been watered while the ends had been left dry. The pitch here, made of a mixture of red clay and mud, is firmer and harder and hasn’t undergone that sort of a procedure.

All this means that India are likely to again play two pacers here, apart from the two specialist spinners and one spinning allrounder, Ravindra Jadeja. Australia would find the pitch more to their liking, to both bowl and bat on, though they’re aware they’d have to guard against spin. Today at nets, Australia wanted to work hard against spin bowling. But when they asked the spinners among the local nets bowlers to raise their hands, only two hands went up. The Indians also used only two spinners from the nets bowlers, apart from using their own spin options — Ravichandran Ashwin, Harbhajan, Pragyan Ojha and Jadeja. India, however, also had the top crop of the country’s pace bowlers bowling here at the nets — they included Sandeep Sharma, Siddharth Kaul, Rishi Dhawan, Ishwar Pandey, Imtiaz Ali, Shrikant Wagh, Ankit. The Indian cricket board is trying to create a second string of the pace bowlers; thus some of the above-named youngsters were flown here from Vishakhapatnam after playing in the Vijay Hazare Trophy yesterday.

India, thus, had plenty of pace options to practise against today — they want to prepare against Australia’s pace attack, for the visitors’ spin hasn’t caused them any worry. And judging from the bounce Dhoni elicited from the pitch today, Australia’s spin will continue in its failure to trouble the Indians. 

Hyderabad, February 28
Shane Watson wasn’t a factor at all in the first Test. The one man who can be the gamechanger for Australia — much like Kevin Pietersen was for England in Mumbai last November — Watson made just 45 runs in the defeat in Chennai. Worse, he underwent the frustration of fielding 166 overs in the match without being able to bowl.

Australian players during a practice session in Hyderabad on Thursday. — PTI

Watson, who has 62 wickets from 39 Tests with a best of 6/51, has been troubled by injuries through his career; that’s one reason that in his eight-year career, he’s managed to play just 39 Tests. After a calf injury earlier this year, Watson declared that he’d not bowl at all on the tour of India. During India’s batting dominance, Watson wished he could bowl.

“It might not have made a difference whether I bowled or not,” Watson said today. “The way Dhoni was hitting the ball was pretty amazing. I am certainly not saying I would have got MS out, that’s for sure. It’s more like feeling of providing an impact, whether you do or not. The way MS batted, I think it didn’t make a difference where you bowled him.”

“I certainly missed my bowling in that Test, especially on the day when MS started to take the game away from us,” he said. “That’s the reason I love being allrounder, having that feeling that you can make an impact on the game, especially with the game slipping away. I missed that in that Test. It reaffirmed in my mind that I am never ever going to give up my bowling. This (not bowling) is more a short-term to get some continuity with my batting.”

“When the ball doesn’t bounce as much as it does in Australia, MS’s technique is certainly equipped for wickets like Chennai, and for wickets that are not bouncy,” Watson went on. “It was amazing to see someone come out there and take the game away with the way he batted. Hopefully it will be someone in our team who can do that to the Indians in this game.”

Watson, an affable and modest man, didn’t say that it could be him, though he’s the most likely one to do it. Will he attack more in the second Test than he did in the first?

“It’s very difficult at times to show the intent you can show, especially in the second innings with the ball spinning as much as it was and the way the spinners bowled,” he said. “In the end, my game is to show intent and in my mind I had the intent to take on the bowlers and they felt under pressure to get the ball exactly where they wanted. I feel comfortable that’s actually I am trying to do and I just need to spend a bit more time in the middle to continue show that.”

Much depends on the pitch, too. “The wicket looks very nice. Little bit different to the T20 pitches I have played on here in the past. But it looks a nice wicket,” Watson said.

Yes, but will it turn? “Probably!” Watson said with a laugh. “The wicket is a little bit dry than in the T20s and ODIs. I think it will turn at some stage of the match.”

“I think this wicket will be a good Test wicket. The wicket here is always a good cricket wicket; there is always good pace and bounce for the quicks and for the batsmen as well. And it looks like it will turn at some stage,” he added.

Pace and bounce -- the Australians would love it if the wicket has these two attributes, for that would be their best chance of making a comeback after the Chennai loss. 

New Delhi, February 28
Senior batsman Sachin Tendulkar says he would have "gladly traded" his knock of 175 against Australia in 2009 for an Indian victory even though he "certainly" rates it as one of the very best in his glorious ODI career.

Chasing 351 runs in the fifth of the seven-match ODI series at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad, Tendulkar fell awfully close to pulling off an unlikely win with an incredible innings. "It was certainly one of my best innings, but I would have gladly traded those 175 runs for a victory," Tendulkar said about the match which India lost by three runs.

He scored those runs off 141 balls and smashed 19 fours and four sixes. Tendulkar completed 17,000 runs in ODIs during the course of that innings.

"It was one of those days when nothing seemed to be out of place. I was able to execute my strokes well. Our middle order failed, but Suresh Raina batted fluently. We had a good partnership of 137. Suresh was caught behind at 299 in the 43rd over.

"Harbhajan Singh fell soon after, to make it 300/6, but I believed we were very much in control. It was a question of hanging in there, running well and ensuring that bad balls were dealt with harshly," he said.

"We were only 19 away when I tried to lift (Clint) McKay over short fine-leg, only to be caught by (Nathan) Hauritz. It was a huge disappointment. The lower order tried hard, but more wickets fell, and we fell short by three runs," Tendulkar wrote in a piece for BCCI's official website.Tendulkar mentioned about the comparisons made between that knock and his back-to-back hundreds against the same opponent in Sharjah back in 1998.

"I have been asked on a few occasions to compare the 175 with the back-to-back hundreds against the same team at Sharjah in 1998. I don't think a comparison can be made. The expectations were way higher at the final stages of the tri-series in Sharjah," he said.

“The Hyderabad hundred was scored in the middle of a bilateral series, and hence the circumstances were very different, physically and even mentally." The pressure was certainly their on that November evening as well as the series was tied at 2-2 going into the fifth ODI.

"The seven-match series against Australia was even when we took the field for the crucial fifth game at Hyderabad.

The winner would take a 3-2 lead, and the loser would be under tremendous pressure before the last two matches," Tendulkar said. The stadium in Uppal, which was back then a newly-built one, came in for praise from Tendulkar. — PTI

Lahore, February 28
Whatmore's future depends on ODI and T20 series: PCB sources Lahore, Feb 27 (PTI) The forthcoming T20 and ODI series in South Africa could well decide the fate of the national team's Australian coach Dav Whatmore or lead to the axing of some senior players from the squad.

The buzz within the PCB also indicates that already there is talk about the Chairman of the board Zaka Ashraf deciding to take some strong decisions when the team returns home in late March. To complicate matters for Whatmore and infact the team management reports about problems in the dressing room have also not helped their cause.

The daily "Jang" reported on Wednesday that immediately after the massive innings defeat in the third Test Whatmore had chosen to take out his anger on Imran Farhat who incidentally was Pakistan's best player in the match with scores of 30 and 44.

"Instead of taking out his anger on the senior players for their inept performances, Whatmore accused Farhat of working against team's interest and playing for himself.

"This led to a argument between the two with the latter reminding the coach that atleast he had chosen to play positively against the South African bowlers and it had produced good results.

Farhat also told Whatmore to not blame him and look at the team's passive approach in the matches," the report said. Another report claimed that the team management had tried to hide the real reason for the fitness problems facing Junaid Khan. — PTI

New Delhi, February 28
Indian shuttler Anand Pawar notched up a straight-game win over sixth seed Viktor Axelsen to join compatriot Ajay Jayaram in the pre-quarterfinals of the German Open badminton championship in Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany.

World number 51 Anand rode on his smashes to outclass Viktor, who is ranked 22nd, 21-11 22-20 in a 35-minute at the RWE-Sporthalle. The Mumbai shuttler will next take on Hsuan Yi Hsueh of Chinese Taipei. It was curtains for Arvind Bhat, who suffered a 10-21 16-21 loss to second seed Boonsak Ponsana in another men's singles match which lasted for just over half an hour. In doubles, Tarun Kona and Arun Vishnu crashed out 16-21 17-21 to V Shem Goh and Khim Wah Lim in opening round. — PTI

Patiala, February 28
Understanding the need for more scientific training for its players, the Government of India has decided to raise the standard of coaches in the country to ensure that the dependence on foreign coaches is less.

The Finance minister P. Chidambaram’s announcement that he understands that sports need more grants and support are encouraging words. “We have many sportsmen and sportswomen but few coaches. Hence, I propose to set up the National Institute of Sports Coaching at Patiala at a cost of 250 crore over a period of three years”, said the minister in his speech.

Further for a state fighting drug abuse, the announcement of setting up of a new National Institute of Sports (NIS) for Coaches at a cost of Rs 250 crore, would go a long way in helping youth stay away from drugs in Punjab.

Further the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Member has assured to take up the matter further and get Patiala declared as high level training centre of excellence which means more foreign exposure.

Reacting to his budget allocation member, IOC, Randhir Singh said that he would officially convey to the IOC to ensure that Patiala gets more international exposure which would mean more coaches and players training at the NIS. “The 250 crore is to be spent in a phased manner in three years and by that time we can get support from the IOC,” he stated.

The present NIS campus spread over 268 acres is now the Academic Wing of the Sports Authority of India was established by the Government of India on May 7, 1961.

According to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Human Resource Development’s report to the Parliament in 2010 the strength of 1,623 coaches way back in 1997 was brought down to 831 by the ministry of finance. It took prolonged deliberations in bringing back the strength to 1258 on regular basis and 85 coaches on contract basis.

In 2011, NIS Patiala was been de-merged from the SAI in the wake of doping scandal. The primary role for NIS is presently to produce world class and qualified coaches rather than holding training camps.

According to SAI top brass no recruitment of coaches has been made since 1998 and thus hampering India’s preparation for the upcoming Commonwealth Games 2010, Asian Games 2010 and London Olympics 2012. 

Chandigarh, February 28
Jeev Milkha Singh carded a five-under-par, 67 in the first round of the European Tour's Mar Tshwane Copperleaf Golf and Country Estate Centurion which is being played in South Africa from February 28 till March 3, 2013.

The Chandigarh professional is tied for second place alongside Gary Lockerbie, while South African Darren Fitchardt leads the tournament after he carded a seven-under-par, 65 today.

"It's good to have a good round under the belt. I played steadily today and made four birdies in a row and had a couple more birdie chances coming but could only convert one, but I'll take the five-under any day," said Jeev on the phone from South Africa.

Chandigarh, February 28
After a series of emphatic victories, Punjab face reigning champions Services in the semifinals of the Satosh Trophy at Kollam in Kerela on Friday. 

While Services have the airs of a champion side, Punjab are banking on their all round capabilities and recent string of success in the tournament. In fact, Punjab has been a tagged team right through this tournament. After giving hiding to top sides such as Manipur, Meghalya, West Bengal they are already the giant-slayers this time. The 2010 finalists have a formidable forward attack, their midfield is always busy and the defense has been on the mark in this tournament. Their confidence is buoyed by the fact that they have defeated big teams with sizeable margin every time. One remarkable thing about the team is that it scores early in the game, giving a beginner’s advantage to the side. They have the advantage of average heights (of players) in their favour too. This year, Punjab has drastically improved in terms of players’ shooting power and headwork. Coach Harnek Singh said, “Though Services are the reigning champs our team has no doubt that we can beat them easily. We have a strategy in place and are ready for on-field adaptations. Overall, we can say that we have a distinct advantage over them in every field.” Punjab’s attacking forward Prem Kumar, a Rurka Kalan product, has been their main scorer this time. But Punjab will miss his services in the semifinals as he is down with two yellow cards. That may upset the balance and confidence of the team. “Prem has been really exceptional this season. He has come out of a knee injury after a long time. Had he been in the team, Services would have been under psychological pressure. But we have equally good forwards in Vijay Kumar and Bali Gagandeep.”

Skipper Sukhjit Singh has no doubt saying that Punjab are a favourites in the match. “Last time we met in National Games in Guwahati we beat them 1-0. They play hard game but tactically we have the edge,” he said, adding that, we trained intensively during the camp at Punjab Armed Police, Jalandhar. Even before the start of the tournament we were confident that we would do well this time.

Riding on Shimin Lal's second-half extra-time winner, Kerala defeated Maharashtra 2-1 to enter the final of the 67th Santosh Trophy.

London, February 28
Adrian Sutil sealed his Formula One comeback on Thursday with Force India announcing they had given the 30-year-old German racer a second chance as team mate to Britain's Paul Di Resta this season.

The Silverstone-based team said in a long-awaited statement that they had re-signed the driver dropped at the end of 2011 to make way for compatriot Nico Hulkenberg, who has since moved on to Sauber. The season starts in Australia on March 17 and Sutil's appointment fills the last remaining vacancy on the starting grid.

"I'm delighted to be back in Formula One, especially with a team I know so well," Sutil said in a statement issued by the team. "I'm very happy and I want to thank Sahara Force India for giving me a second chance.

"Having been away from the sport, I'm even more determined to achieve my goals in Formula One. Things went really well at the Barcelona test last week and it almost feels as though I've never been away." The announcement came as no surprise after Nicolas Todt, manager to Sutil's rival for the seat Jules Bianchi, said on Wednesday he had been told by the team that the Frenchman had lost out.

Second chances are rare in Formula One but money has always talked and it was no secret that commercial considerations played a part in Sutil's return. The German seemed last year to have a mountain to climb to get back into the sport after being given suspendesion. — PTI