Scoreboard

Kolkata Knight Riders

Bisla c Vihari b Karan 28

Gambhir b Reddy 53

Kallis run out 41

Morgan run out 47

Yusuf not out 3

Extras: 8

Total (4 wkts;20 ov) 180

Fall of wickets: 1-59, 2-102, 3-169, 4-180

Bowling

Steyn 4-0-29-0

Vihari 1-0-14-0

Ishant 4-0-33-0

Perera 4-0-44-0

Mishra 3-0-28-0

Karan 2-0-13-1

Reddy 2-0-15-1

Sunrisers Hyderabad

Patel b Kallis 27

White c Pathan b Kallis 34

Sangaa c Tiwary b Bhatia 2

Teja c Tiwary b Narine 10

Perera b Kallis 36

Reddy b Senanayake 4

Sharma not out 5

Vihari c Tiwary b Bhatia 1

Mishra not out 1

Extras: 12

Total (7 wkts in 20 ovs) 132

Fall of wickets: 1-57, 2-68, 3-71, 4-107, 5-115, 6-124, 7-127

Bowling

Balaji 4-0-30-0

Senanayake 4-0-18-1

Narine 4-0-31-1

Kallis 4-0-13-3

Bhatia 4-0-33-2

New Delhi, April 14
Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni seems to be in a very playful mood these days as he once again tickled his fans' funny bones by cracking a few good-humoured jokes on Chennai Super Kings teammate 'Sir' Ravindra Jadeja.

"When you give Sir Ravindra Jadeja one ball to get 2 runs he will win it with one ball to spare !!," Dhoni wrote on his twitter handle following Chennai's dramatic win over Bangalore in the IPL last night.

Jadeja stole the thunder as he guided Chennai to a thrilling win with two to get off the final ball of the match.

But had R P Singh, who conceded 16 in the last over, not bowled a huge no-ball, which was caught at third man, RCB would have won the match.It was then Dhoni's turn to poke fun at his teammate and enthral his million followers on the social networking site. “Sir jadeja was upset abt only 1 t20 match in a bilateral series so BCCI came up with the idea of IPL. so all the fans of ipl plz thank SRJ,” Dhoni tweeted. This was the second time in less than a week that Dhoni was tweeting on Jadeja. “God realised RAJNI sir is getting old so he created sir ravindra jadeja,” the India skipper had tweeted a few days days back, referring to South superstar Rajnikanth.

Dhoni added to the fun by posting another gem."Wen sir jadeja drives his jeep, his jeep remains still and road moves and wen he goes in to bat the pavillion moves to the wkt." It did not end there as Dhoni went on to leave another post.

“Sir jadeja doesn't run to take the catch but the ball finds him and lands on his hand,” his next post read.

Jadeja's teammate Suresh Raina, too, left a post congratulating the all-rounder on his match-winning knock. "Well played SRJ.... U beauty.. Keep up the CSK flag high love u beeba,” Raina tweeted.Dhoni had a few more, reserved for his junior teammate, who seems to be the buzzword on the internet at the moment. “Leaving for practice at 3pm but the stadium is coming so tht sir jadeja can practice,” Dhoni wrote. “Whenever sir jadeja makes an error its an invention and on a daily basis v get plenty of those,all patent pending.” — PTI 

Kollam, April 14
Former Australia skipper Steve Waugh celebrated the harvest festival 'Vishu' with the locals here by lighting the traditional lamp to mark the beginning of New Year according to the local calender. The festival is believed to signal good fortune in the coming year.

“Happy Vishu to all Keralites,” he told his fans who had gathered at the hotel where he is staying here. Waugh also had the 'Vishukani' darshan, the custom of sighting auspicious articles like fruits, vegetables and gold arranged in a brass platter. On Sachin, he said, "He is playing better... but he is not playing upto his standards. He himself has to decide (whether it is time to retire or not).” — PTI 

Augusta, April 14
What rules controversy? Tiger Woods goes into the final day of the Masters just four shots off the lead when he might have been taking the kids to the park as a disqualified golfer.

Woods teed off in the third round mired in turbulence after taking an incorrect drop on Friday. Under the regulations that govern disqualification Woods risked omission on the grounds of signing for an incorrect score.

However, after being hauled before the beak at breakfast yesterday, he escaped with a two-shot penalty and rattled off a 70.

Brandt Snedeker and Angel Cabrera go out in the final group today on seven under par but both will know of the danger that lurks in a red shirt on Sunday.

Woods was leading the tournament when his ball hit the flag at the 15th on Friday and rebounded into Rae's Creek. He took a penalty drop on the line that the ball crossed the water instead of the correct place determined by where it entered the hazard. This incurs a two-shot penalty, not the one he added to his score. As a result he signed for an incorrect score, which ordinarily incurs a disqualification.

The Masters Competition Committee were alerted by a television viewer that Woods might have contravened the regulation but they initially determined that he had not done so.

It was only afterwards, when he explained to journalists that he had chosen to drop two yards behind his original shot, that this testimony turned toxic and demanded further scrutiny by the committee yesterday morning.

Woods escaped disqualification on the grounds that the committee had failed to spot the error when they had the opportunity to impose a penalty, which would have enabled him to sign for the correct score. Woods said yesterday: "I didn't know I had taken an incorrect drop prior to signing my scorecard. Subsequently I met with the Masters committee Saturday morning and was advised they had reviewed the incident prior to the conclusion of my round.

“Their initial determination was that there was no violation but they had additional concerns based on my post-round interview.

“After discussing the situation with them this morning I was assessed a two-shot penalty. I understand and accept the decision and respect the committee's decision.”

That did not wash with some, including in the first instance Sir Nick Faldo, who claimed that Woods should walk or carry the stain of participation for the rest of his career. Faldo later rowed back from that view, citing a better understanding of the anatomy of the episode and how the timeline evolved.

Guan struggles to 77 but still enjoying Masters

Chinese 14-year-old schoolboy Guan Tianlang, the youngest player in Masters history, struggled to a five-over par 77 in third round of the 77th Masters to stand third-from last.

Simply reaching the weekend by making the cut on the number was a triumph of sorts for Guan, the youngest player in a major since Scotland's "Young" Tom Morris made his British Open debut at age 14 in 1865.

“It's just a great week for me, and I really enjoy it,” Guan said on Saturday. "People here are nice and I learned a lot from the top players. I played pretty good rounds these three days. It's really great." Guan, who won the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship last year in Thailand to qualify for the Masters, stood on nine-over par 225 after 54 holes.

On Sunday, Guan will play alongside Scotland's 55-year-old Sandy Lyle, the 1985 Masters winner, in the second group. "I'm pretty excited I get to play with all the top players on the weekend," Guan said. "I had a pretty good run in the first two days, and today feels pretty good, not badly. I did a couple unlucky (things), but that's golf." After a bogey at the par-3 fourth for the second day in a row, Guan took bogeys at the par-4 ninth and par-4 11th for the second time in three days. He also made bogeys at 14 and 17 playing alongside Denmark's Thorbjorn Olesen. — Agencies

Augusta, April 14
American Brandt Snedeker and Angel Cabrera of Argentina survived a drama-packed day at the Masters on Saturday to share the lead after the third round, nosing themselves ahead of a congested leaderboard that included the imposing figure of Tiger Woods.

Snedeker kept his cool in the suffocating pressure of Augusta National to shoot a flawless three-under par 69 to finish the day at seven-under and in sight of a first major title. He was joined at the top by Cabrera, the 2009 Masters champion, who drained a birdie putt at the last hole for a 69, igniting a huge roar from the greenside galleries that echoed around the Georgia course. Adam Scott was third at six-under after also signing for 69, one stroke ahead Jason Day (73) and Marc Leishman (72), raising hopes the winner's green jacket could finally be heading Down Under after years of near-misses. — Agencies

Shanghai, April 14
Fernando Alonso roared to a dominant victory in a highly strategic Chinese Grand Prix on Sunday to give Ferrari their first win of the Formula One season and put the pressure on champions Red Bull.

In a dry race dictated by tyre choices and frequent pitstops, the Spaniard beat Lotus’s Kimi Raikkonen by 10.1 seconds to make amends for crashing out of the previous race in Malaysia.

Lewis Hamilton completed a trio of world champions on the podium with third place for Mercedes after the Briton started on pole position but was unable to hold off the red car looming in his mirrors.

“The team did a perfect job with the setup of the car,” said Alonso, now third in the overall standings on 43 points after three races - six points behind Raikkonen and nine adrift of Red Bull’s triple champion Sebastian Vettel. Ferrari cut Red Bull’s lead in the constructor’s standings to five points.

The win was Alonso’s second in China, where red is regarded as the colour of good fortune, and his first since Germany last July. It was also the 31st victory of his career - taking him to fourth in the all-time list alongside Britain’s 1992 champion Nigel Mansell.

“It was a fantastic race for us from the start. There were no big problems and the tyre degradation was better than expected. It feels great,” said the double champion after a battle involving four different leaders in the first seven laps.

“In the two races we’ve finished we have got second place and victory so our start of the 2013 season is very good.”

Raikkonen had started second on the grid but made a painfully slow getaway and was immediately passed by both Ferraris as the field engulfed him.

The Finn fell to fourth spot before battling back through the many pitstops and despite breaking his car’s nose after being forced wide on to the kerb while trying to pass McLaren’s Sergio Perez.

“What the hell is he doing,” the ‘Iceman’ shouted over the radio in an uncharacteristically heated moment.

Vettel finished fourth, just 0.2 behind Hamilton after a thrilling chase to the chequered flag that was a highlight of an afternoon that saw drivers more often pacing themselves rather than racing flat out.

The German had started on the medium tyres, unlike the leaders who had lined up on softs, and left it until five laps from the end to change to the faster tyres that allowed him to reel in Hamilton.

“We’re not quite there yet, but we’re not so far away,” Mercedes principal Ross Brawn, whose team won in China from pole last year with Nico Rosberg, told Hamilton over the radio.

The Briton could at least feel buoyed with his second successive podium finish for the team he joined from McLaren at the end of last season, while Rosberg failed to finish. — Reuters

 

Webber’s wheel comes off, Red Bull boss slams conspiracy theorists Shanghai, April 14 Red Bull boss Christian Horner slammed Formula One conspiracy theorists on Sunday after Mark Webber’s Chinese Grand Prix ended with a wheel coming off his car and a penalty for causing a collision. The Australian, barely on speaking terms with world champion team mate Sebastian Vettel after a ‘team orders’ row at the previous race in Malaysia, had started from the pitlane after Red Bull failed to put enough fuel in his car for qualifying. “It’s complete rubbish, forget conspiracy,” Horner angrily told a reporter who alluded to some of the wilder speculation that there might be something more sinister behind the Australian’s problems. “We’re all about trying to get two cars to the finish as high as we can,” added Horner, whose team have won the last three championships. “Anybody who thinks there is a conspiracy here against either driver does not know what they are looking at...There is no conspiracy.” Webber was certainly ready to accept the blame for some of his misfortune on an afternoon that went from bad to worse and lasted just 18 laps. — Reuters

New Delhi, April 14
With Jharkhand taking a long time in taking a decision whether to host the Asian Athletics Championships or not, the national capital has emerged as a contender for the prestigious event to be held in July.

Ranchi was in the reckoning for the July 3-7 event after Tamil Nadu government refused to host the Championships on political grounds.

Athletics Federation of India president Adille Sumariwala told PTI that since Jharkhand has been put under President’s Rule, the decision taking process there has been slow and the AFI will have to look for other options.

“We have submitted a report to Jharkhand administrators on the feasibility of hosting the Championships in Ranchi. But it has taken long time to take the decision as the state is under the President’s Rule. So, Delhi has become a strong option for us to host the event,” said Sumariwala who was elected AFI president yesterday on the first day of the two-day AGM here.

“It’s not that we have spoken to Delhi government just now. Even while trying to convince Jharkhand administrators, we had also sounded out Delhi government if they are willing to host the event. The Delhi government has expressed its willingness to host the championships,” he said.

Sumariwala said since Delhi has international air connectivity and top-class hotel facilities, the national capital was the best city to host the event, if the government agreed to foot the bill.

“Delhi has top class stadium (in Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium), it has connectivity with various international cities and no issues with hotel facilities. So once the government agrees to finance the event, it is the best place,” he said.Meanwhile, on the second and last day of the AGM, the AFI decided to cancel the third leg of the Indian Grand Prix on the advice of national coaches.

“The coaches are of the opinion that since the Federation Cup is coming up on April 23-26, followed by Asian Grand Prix and Asian Athletics Championships, it’s better that the athletes have more training time than competing in the third led of Indian GP. So the AGM decided to cancel the third leg,” Sumariwala said.

The first and second legs of the Indian GP were initially scheduled to be hosted at Panchkula and Ludhiana but both were lated held at the NIS Patiala. The third leg was scheduled to be held here.

The AFI also decided to set up event-wise monitoring committees with eminent sportspersons of the past as members to look after various athletics camps taking place across the country on a regular basis.

Prasun Mukherjee and Kunwar Fateh Bahadur were elected vice-presidents to replace WI Davaram (named as Senior Vice-President) and Sushil Salwan, who had resigned. — PTI

Shanghai, April 14
Long before the Chinese Grand Prix started here in Shanghai, Formula One was once again reverberating to the jungle drums of Bahrain, where last year’s controversial race aroused worldwide condemnation. Little may have changed outwardly, but talks have been going on for months between the ruling Sunni factions and pro-democracy Shi’ite protesters. While the dialogue is seen as a small step towards progress, protesters have continued to foment unrest in the out-lying villages of Sitra and Sanabis, where it is claimed up to 20 arrests have recently been made.

Sarah Leah Whitson, the Middle East director of the New York-based watchdog Human Rights Watch, said last week: “Bahraini authorities are arbitrarily detaining opposition protesters in advance of the Grand Prix. This suggests officials are more concerned with getting activists out of circulation than with addressing the legitimate grievances that have led so many Bahrainis to take to the streets.”

Bahrain’s public security chief, Tariq Al Hassan, countered: “We deny that claim and have clarified that only four suspects were detained in connection with a recent Molotov attack on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building.”

Politicisation of the race is inevitable given F1’s global reach. Last year it crassly allowed its logo to be used in an unjustified proclamation of unification. This year, protesters’ banners bear slogans such as: “Our blood is your car fuel” and: “Our skulls are crushed under your wheels.”

Separating fact from fiction is delicate work, as both sides are highly adept at manipulating public relations propaganda to prove their disparate points. F1 remains divided as to whether the sport should allow itself to be treated this way. Following a recent briefing held by the Labour MP Richard Burden, who has long argued that the sport should avoid the troubled nation, former world champion Damon Hill was quoted as saying: “The question is whether Formula One going to Bahrain would be enabling or furthering brutal repression, by appearing to endorse the treatment being meted out. There is a perception that the sport is being used.”

But in Shanghai he explained: “I don’t deny a word, but I was there as a journalist expressing a view while Richard Burden was making his points. What I said was not by nature a statement by Damon Hill on Bahrain, and it would be unfair for it to be seen as such.”

— The Independent

London, April 14
Manchester United closed in on their 20th title when they won 2-0 at struggling Stoke City on Sunday and need only seven points from their remaining six matches to reclaim the Premier League crown.

Michael Carrick put United ahead with a scrappy goal after four minutes and Robin van Perise ended his 10-match scoring drought with a 66th minute penalty to seal the points from a game United dominated from start to finish.

They now have 80 points from 32 games, 15 clear of current champions Manchester City, who have 65 with seven matches to play.

At the other end, Sunderland boosted their survival chances with a convincing 3-0 win at arch-rivals Newcastle United, their biggest win in a Tyne-Wear derby at St James’ Park since 1966 and their first there since 2000.

That win, thanks to goals from Stephane Sessegnon, Adam Johnson and David Vaughan, together with Stoke’s defeat, lifted Sunderland into 15th place with 34 points. Stoke, who have now taken just one point from a possible 21, slipped back to 16th with 34 points. Queens Park Rangers and Reading, who both have 24 points, occupy the bottom two places in the table. This was Sunderland’s first win under new manager Paolo Di Canio. Di Canio, who replaced Martin O’Neill two weeks ago and saw them beaten in his first match in charge last week at Chelsea, celebrated the goals with an outpouring of emotion.

He leapt in the air, did a series of arm pumps, ran down the touchline and slid along the ground in his suit as Sunderland to end a nine-match winless streak. — Reuters

BRIEFLY

Bangla to host Asia Cup as India backs out
New Delhi: The Asia Cup cricket tournament will be held in Bangladesh for the second time in a row after India, who had earlier agreed to host the 2014 edition, backed out citing a packed international schedule. Bangladesh had hosted the last edition of the tournament in 2012. The likely dates for the tournament will be February 24 to March 8. The decision was taken at the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) board meeting on April 8 in Kuala Lumpur.

Shastri Club shock Sonnet by two runs
New Delhi: A fine allround display by man of the match Sandeep Raj Kaushik (34 and 3/29) and good knock by Vikas Dixit (40) helped L.B. Shastri shock Sonnet Club by 2 runs in a nail-biting match of the 23rd All-India Om Nath Sood Memorial Cricket Tournament here today. Scores: L.B. Shastri: 190/6 (Vikas Dixit 40, Sandeep Raj Kaushik 34, Kapil Dhaka 31, Nitin Tanwar 27, Manan Sharma 3/26); Sonnet: 188 (Manan Sharma 56, Karan Harit 34, Sandeep Raj Kaushik 3/29, Ramesh Prasad 2/25).

Sania joins ITPA as Vice President
New Delhi: Star player Sania Mirza has also joined Indian Tennis Players Association (ITPA) as one of its Vice Presidents, it was revealed today. Sania is now one of the four Vice Presidents of the newly-formed body with Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi and Somdev Devvarman being the other VPs.

Karti P Chidambaram, who is secretary of ITPA and also AITA Vice President, revealed this on twitter.com. The Association was formed recently and office bearers were announced during India’s Davis Cup tie against Indonesia in Bangalore.

Chhattisgarh trounce Maharashtra women
Mumbai: Maharashtra went down tamely to formidable Chhattisgarh women 60-71 in the opening game of the 28th All India Ramu Memorial Basketball tournament at the Indian Gymkhana here today. M Sangeeta of Chhattisgarh played a stellar role, scoring a game-high 22 points and 12 rebounds to help her team ahead of their rivals. It was virtually a cakewalk for the Chhattisgarh girls as Maharashtra, despite having the experience of Manisha Dange and Amruta Bhuskute, could never compete. — Agencies

ipl briefs

Gauti pleased as punch after second victory
Kolkata: Gautam Gambhir was a happy skipper on Sunday after Kolkata Kolkata Knight Riders registered a comprehensive 48-run victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Eden Gardens. "It was a very good wicket to bat on. Morgan and Kallis were fantastic. We were aiming at 160-odd but to get 180 was very good. Morgan has been an incredible batsman. We have to give him time in the middle. Hopefully he can continue like this through the tournament," Gambhir said. The skipper said Senanayake did what the team wanted out of him. "We needed someone to complement Sunil Narine. Senanayake did just that. We got the right pick," the KKR skipper said.

Raina reveals how he misses home food
Chennai: Suresh Raina on Sunday opened up on his 'secrets' to be a fit cricketer and an electrifying fielder. "Training, good sleep and a lot of water does it for me. I do miss home food though. I also try and keep innovating with methods to stay fit. A lot depends on discipline. I also feel that one should feel fresh when they get up first thing in the morning," said the Indian middle-order batsman.

Dhoni’s knock took the game away: Vinay
Chennai: Bangalore's medium pacer R Vinay Kumar said that it was Dhoni's knock that took the game away from the visitors,”Even though we bowled well, Dhoni's innings took the game away from us. Especially those two sixes he hit and the boundaries took the game away from us. Especially those two sixes he hit and the boundaries," Vinay said. — Agencies