Durban, December 29
Jacques Kallis made his swansong match a memorable one by hitting his 45th Test hundred as India faced a daunting task of batting out the entire fifth day to save the series-deciding second cricket Test against South Africa.

Kallis ensured that he left the Test arena in a blaze of glory with a fluent 115 as the home team posted a mammoth 500 in their first innings to take a sizeable 166-run lead. India lost both the openers Murali Vijay (6) and Shikhar Dhawan (19) before reaching 68 for two on yet another rain-marred day, still needing 98 runs to avoid the ignominy of an innings defeat.

Cheteshwar Pujara (32) and Virat Kohli (11) will resume India's battle tomorrow.

Pujara and Dhawan had batted with caution after paceman Vernon Philander had Vijay caught in the slips. But Faf du Plessis took a spectacular one-handed catch to send back Dhawan, who played uppishly in the mid-wicket region and failed to clear the fielder.

It was yet another waste of a watchful start by Dhawan, who ended this Test series with scores of 13,15, 29 and 19. With one day left in the match, the visitors have to bat out the final day to share the honours in the two-match series. The first Test in Johannesburg had ended in a thrilling draw.

South Africa on the other hand need to take eight wickets on a tricky fifth day track at the Kingsmead to give Kallis a perfect gift in his farewell match. Beginning at the overnight score of 299 for five, Kallis scored 115 off 316 balls with 13 boundaries while lower-order batsman Robin Peterson played a 61-run cameo before their innings folded for 500.

Left-arm spinner Ravidra Jadeja was the pick of the bowler for India with six wickets for 138 runs while paceman Zaheer Khan took two wickets at the expense of 97 runs. South African pacemen Dale Steyn (0-5) and Morne Morkel (0-11) bowled well with the new ball, getting more pace, bounce and movement than the Indian attack earlier on, yet could not get anymore breakthroughs.

Dhawan was more watchful than usual, carefully leaving deliveries he did not need to play at. Pujara was his resilient self, playing for time. The two batsmen silently put on 45 runs for the second wicket, successfully negotiating the initial pace barrage.

After Dhawan's dismissal, Kohli joined Pujara in the middle and India’s two best batsmen on display avoided further damage, putting on 15 runs off 49 balls.

Earlier in a rain-interrupted first two sessions of the day, South Africa finished at 500 all out. Shortly after resumption of play post-tea, Faff du Plessis (43) was run-out by a direct throw from Rohit Sharma. Morne Morkel (0) was caught and bowled by Jadeja, who garnered his best bowling figures in a Test innings. He took 6-138, beating his previous best of 5-58 agaainst Australia at Delhi earlier in 2013. Zaheer Khan (2-97) picked up a wicket on either side of lunch. Mohammad Shami (1-104) was taken for runs after the second new ball, as was Ishant Sharma (0-114). Rohit (0-29) was the only other bowler tried. Before the tea-break, Robin Peterson smacked a quick-fire fifty to help build the lead with du Plessis, putting up 110 runs at 6.11 runs per over.

Starting at 395/7 after play was again delayed by fifteen minutes post lunch, Peterson and du Plessis looked for runs as against the approach seen early in the day. The first over after the break bowled by Zaheer was taken for two boundaries. — Agencies

Durban, December 29
A century by Jacques Kallis on Sunday in what is likely to be his last test innings emphasised his status among the cricketing greats and ensured a fitting farewell after the South African's sudden decision to end his 18-year Test career.

His 115 in South Africa's first innings against India moved him up to third place on the list of Test run scorers and helped his country to a 166-run lead on the fourth day of the second Test at Kingsmead. The innings characterised the qualities of the beefy 38-year-old - understated, stoic and determined, but also saw a brief display of emotion from a player better known for his dour demeanour.

He allowed himself a brief teary moment as the Durban crowd handed him a lengthy standing ovation as he reached his 45th Test ton - a figure bettered only by the 51 scored by the also recently retired Sachin Tendulkar.

Kallis, soon after, passed Rahul Dravid on the list of test run scorers but the moment went unrecognised at the stadium.

Kallis, who went out to skyed top edge off spinner Ravindra Jadeja, is a single run ahead of Dravid's career tally of 13,288 runs and now third behind Tendulkar (15,921 runs) and Ricky Ponting (13,378) in the list of top test batsmen.

The South African's Test figures - including 292 wickets and 200 catches - stand him out as the best all-rounder of all time although Gary Sobers of the West Indies remains the sentimental choice of most affectionados.

That has much to do with the fact Kallis lacked a demonstrative personality to go with his fullsome array of stroke play and ability to dictate the course of a match.

His Test career started slowly and it was only in the winter of his career that his own country's supporters seemed to warm to him.

“There were times when I could have dominated more. But for years I tried to bat through an innings. When our batting line-up became stronger, I had the opportunity to be more aggressive, especially in test cricket," he told the authors Ali Bacher and David Williams in a new book on South African cricket. Kallis surprised with his decision to end his career after 166 tests and ahead of a three-test home series with Australia in February, where South Africa seek to emphasise their status as the top ranked nation against the Ashes winners. — Reuters

Scoreboard

India Ist innings 334

South Africa Ist innings (299-5 overnight)
Smith c Dhawan b Jadeja 47
Petersen c Vijay b Jadeja 62
Amla b Shami 3
Kallis c Dhoni b Jadeja 115
de Villiers c Kohli b Jadeja 74
Duminy lbw Jadeja 28
Steyn c Dhoni b Khan 44
du Plessis run out 43
Peterson c Vijay b Khan 61
Philander not out 0
Morkel C & B Jadeja 0
Extras (b-3, lb-15, w-2, nb-3) 23
Total (all out, 155.2 ov) 500
Fall of wickets: 1-103 2-113 3-113 4-240 5-298 6-384 7-387 8-497 9-500 10-500

Bowling:
Khan 28-4-97-2
Shami 27-2-104-1
Sharma 31-7-114-0
Jadeja 58.2-15-138-6
Sharma 11-1-29-0

India IInd innings
Dhawan c du Plessis b Peterson 19
Vijay c Smith b Philander 6
Pujara not out 32
Kohli not out 11
Total: (2 wkts; 28 overs). . . . . . . . . 68

Bowling:
Steyn 7-5-5-0
Philander 6-2-9-1
Morkel 6-2-11-0
Peterson 9-2-23-1
Duminy 8-2-20-0

Melbourne, December 29
Chris Rogers struck a sparkling century to fire Australia to a dominant eight-wicket win in the fourth Ashes test on Sunday, leaving an insipid England staring down the barrel of a humiliating series whitewash.

The victory, completed before tea on day four, pushed Australia to a 4-0 series lead and the prospect of sweeping England in the fifth and final test in Sydney seven years after Ricky Ponting's team whitewashed the tourists in 2006-07. Needing quick wickets to have any chance of salvaging pride at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, England were let down badly by their captain Alastair Cook, who put down two catches at first slip in the first half-hour to reprieve Rogers on 19 and his opening partner David Warner for 22.

Though Warner lasted only three more runs, Rogers combined with number three batsman Shane Watson to flog a demoralised attack, their carefree partnership of 136 putting the hosts within 31 runs of victory before the opener succumbed for 116.

Australia captain Michael Clarke (six not out) joined Watson (83 not out) to administer the last rites for England, who played out the final sessions with a deflating weariness that allowed the hosts to mow through the 231 runs required for victory without breaking sweat.

Watson whipped a boundary square to secure the win in style, and charged down the sun-bathed pitch with arms raised as a crowd of more than 38,000 roared their approval. “We've had our ups and downs. There's no doubt that the winning feeling is back in our camp," Clarke told reporters after his team finished a tough year that started with nine straight tests without a win on a high. — Reuters

Scoreboard

England Ist innings 255
Australia Ist innings 204
England IInd innings 179

Australia IInd innings (overnight 30/0)
Rogers c Bairstow b Panesar 116
Warner c Bairstow b Stokes 25
Watson not out 83
Clarke not out 6
Extras: (nb-1) 1
Total (2 wkts; 51.5 ov) 231
Fall of wickets: 1-55 2-200

Bowling:
Anderson 11-2-26-0
Broad 10-0-58-0
Panesar 7.5-0-41-1
Stokes 12-0-50-1
Root 4-1-8-0
Bresnan 7-1-48-0

cHANDIGARH, December 29
Punjab will take on Jharkhand in a crucial Group A match at Dhanbad on Monday. If Punjab nurtures any hopes of making it to the knockout stage, they will have to win this match comprehensively and then wait for other results to fall in favourable line.

Punjab recorded one of the most inspiring victories in recent times beating Delhi by 98 runs in their last match to keep their quarterfinal hopes alive. But this season has been stop-start for them as they have frittered away the advantage many a times against much weaker teams. Punjab need to pull up their socks in both batting and bowling departments to come good.

Karnataka have already qualified for the quarterfinals, while Gujarat, Mumbai, Punjab and Delhi have a chance to grab one of the remaining two knockout spots from Group A. Haryana, with seven points from seven matches, have been long out of the reckoning and face the danger of being relegated.Mumbai (23 points) play second-placed Gujarat. If Mumbai lose, they would need Punjab to lose, too, and Delhi to draw. If they concede the lead to Gujarat, they will need Punjab to do the same or worse against Jharkhand, and also need Delhi not to beat Karnataka. Their chances will brighten if they take the lead, but they will still require Delhi to not win by a bonus point, and hope Punjab also don't post a win. If Mumbai win, they would be in the quarterfinals. Punjab, also with 23 points, would need the last round to play out similarly in their favour if they are to qualify. If Punjab beat Jharkhand, they would brighten their chances of qualifying.

new delhi, December 29
A Delhi Court has directed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to consider the age of players on the basis of birth certificates or adopt a scientific method to determine the age in the absence of genuine documentary proof.

Accepting the plea of Yash Sehrawat and Aryan Sehrawat, who were denied permission to play an under-16 tournament by the BCCI citing over-age, Justice V K Jain rejected the Tanner Whitehouse 3 (TW-3) method adopted by the cricket body to ascertain their age for the tournament.

The court directed BCCI to verify the genuineness and authenticity of the documents, including the school certificates, filed by the petitioners as proof of their respective date of birth, within four weeks of submission.

“... If on such verification, the respondents (BCCI and Delhi District Cricket Association) find that the documents are genuine documents, they would record the date of birth of the petitioners... In their data base and would accordingly consider them for playing in the tournaments for which they are found to be eligible.”

BCCI had conducted their age determination test using TW-3 method at Fortis Hospital, New Delhi. According to which both of them were found to be above 16 years of age and not eligible for the tournament. Expressing displeasure over the manner in which BCCI had rejected the documentary evidence of the petitioners, the court referred to various judgements and said in the absence of such documents to prove the age, any other scientific method can be adopted.

The court observed that "It would be unrealistic to say that all the documents produced in support of age of a player seeking to play a tournament meant for a particular age group would be authentic documents.

"There is a reasonable possibility of some of the documents being forged or tampered with. However, such instances, cannot, in my view, be a good ground to outrightly reject all such documents, when the age determined by use of TW3 method is not in conformity with the age indicated in the documents.”

The court further said, “There may be cases where the documents produced are absolutely genuine and the age recorded therein is absolutely correct. It would be unreasonable and unfair if despite submitting such authentic and genuine documents, they are denied opportunity to play.” — PTI

New Delhi, December 29
Shiva Keshavan failed to retain his title in the 16th Luge Asia Cup as he settled for the silver in Nagano, Japan today.

Keshavan, who won the title in the 2011 and 2012 editions, clocked a total time of 1:39:750 for two heats in the Winter Olympics event.

The Indian, who has qualified for the February 7-23 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, clocked the best start time and was leading in both runs until the mid section of the track, the fourth intermediate time. However, he lost the leading position in the last two splits to Japan's Hidenari Kanayama who won gold with a total time of 1:38:675.

Keshavan, however, retained his Asian speed record of 134.3 kmph, which he had clocked in the 2011 edition held in the same Japanese city.

He said the race gave him the idea on which areas he needs to make improvements ahead of the Winter Olympics. “This race made us identify our strengths and areas that need improvement. Good news is we have a clear understanding of what we need to do to win an Olympic medal. So we can work towards that goal. The challenge is achieving it without a full-time coach or a full year budget for training,” he said.

Keshavan said during the two-week training stint in Nagano, he had been fine-tuning his equipment by making minor to major changes everyday and testing them.

He said he had struggled with the equipment setup all week and the runs during training were not up to the mark as he had to deal with handling difficulties to manoeuvre the sled without fishtailing in the faster corners.

“I am very happy to be bringing silver to India. At one point we seemed far behind the competition but we kept making progress one small step at a time all week and kept fighting until the very last day. I am most satisfied that I managed to put down two solid runs on the race day and my start has been better than previous years.

“I seem to be losing a lot of time due to aerodynamics and some handling issues in the faster section but that is something that we will continue to work on,” he said. — PTI

Brisbane, December 29
Roger Federer and Serena Williams had contrasting 2013 seasons but both kick off their new campaigns at the Brisbane International this week showing no signs just yet of calling time on their illustrious careers.

Born just a month apart and each with 17 grand slam singles titles to their name, Federer and Williams could justifiably claim to be the best tennis players of their generation, if not of all time.

While admitting the season had been difficult at times, Federer said on his arrival in Brisbane that he was feeling fitter than he had for more than 18 months and was not about to be pushed into retirement. "Critics are a part of the game. But they are the last guys to push me out of this game. Deep down I am doing it because I love the game. And now I don't want to waste any more opportunities," he said.

chandigarh, december 29
Anirban Lahiri concluded what has been an excellent season for him on a high note, claiming the season-ending McLeod Russel Tour Championship on Sunday.

Lahiri, one of the most consistent professionals to emerge on the Asian Tour this year, carded a three-under 69 in the final round to win the richest PGTI Tour event with a total 17-under 271 at the Royal Calcutta Golf Course.

Lahiri showed excellent form to win the Rs. 1.35 crore event by four-shots, at a course where he had been attempting to win an event since he was 11 years old.

"The 2013 season has been my most consistent season so far as I won four titles this year. My golf and physical conditioning improved by leaps and bounds. The win today gives me a further boost for the coming season," said Lahiri, who took home the winners cheque of Rs. 21,39,750.

Rahil Gangjee, who also carded a 69 in the final round, finished the tournament sole second at 13-under 275 in front of home crowd. The Kolkata golfer, who recently lost his father, added that it was a very emotional week for him.

Abhinav Lohan carded a 71 to finish the week tied third at 10-under 278 and was tied alongside Chiragh Kumar who shot a 73 in the final round.

Jyoti Randhawa also displayed his consistent form with a final round 69 to finish fifth at nine-under 279.

Rashid Khan was sole sixth at eight-under 280 and the Delhi professional ended claimed number one position on the 2013 Rolex Rankings, the PGTI Order of Merit.

Meanwhile, second round leader Sanjay Kumar finished a further shot behind for seventh place finish. Gaganjeet Bhullar enjoyed a top-ten finish as he tied for ninth alongside Angad Cheema, who ended up in second position in the Emerging Player of the Year race, Mithun Perera and S Chikkarangappa at six-under 284.

Chandigarh’s Ajeetesh Sandhu carded a 74 in the final round and finished the week tied 18th at one-under-par, while Sujjan Singh and Abhijit Singh Chadha finished tied 21st.

Chennai, December 29
Somdev Devvarman would be India's top contender, while Yuki Bhambri is expected to carry his good form into the new season which is full of new challenges for the Indian players as ATP Aircel Chennai Open begins here tomorrow.

India have three players in the singles main draw, which has world number eight and 2011 champion Stanislas Wawrinka as the top seed apart from 2008 champion and Russian second seed Mikhail Youzhny.

Wawrinka’s stunning show in late 2013 season, when he stretched world number one Novak Djokovic in the US Open semifinal, makes him a favourite.

From the Indian point of view, the local fans would hope that Somdev, who reached the final in 2009, does well. He had a terrific 2013 season and in his quest to break into top-50, he would eye a strong start to the season. The slow courts are of Somdev's liking as he likes to play from the baseline.

Wild cards Yuki and Jeevan Nedunchezhian's will open their campaigns against Pablo Carreno Busta of Spain and Jiri Vessely of Czech Republic respectively.

India's best chances would be in the doubles, which features a lot of home players, including veteran Leander Paes, who has paired with Italian Fabio Fognini and are the second seeds.

Rohan Bopanna and his Pakistani partner Aisam-ul-haq Qureshi, with whom he has re-joined forces, are the top seeds. — PTI

London, December 29
Olivier Giroud ended a seven-game scoring drought to help Arsenal beat Newcastle United 1-0 and return to the top of the Premier League while Everton moved back into the top four with a 2-1 defeat of Southampton on Sunday.

France striker Giroud, who had not scored in all competitions since Nov. 23, got the faintest of touches to glance a Theo Walcott free kick into the net midway through the second half.

Romelu Lukaku, who had not scored for Everton in five games, scored the winner for Roberto Martinez's side three minutes after Gaston Ramirez cancelled out Seamus Coleman's early opener.

Arsenal, with 42 points, are one point clear of Manchester City after 19 games. Everton, in fourth on 37, leapfrog rivals Liverpool, who play Chelsea later on Sunday. Tottenham Hotspur host Stoke City in Sunday's other match.

Arsenal's visit to Newcastle promised goals after the North Londoners won 7-3 when the teams clashed on the same day last year, but this encounter soon descended into a more stolid affair with both defences well on top. Arsenal kept possession neatly, but without injured playmaker Mesut Ozil, lacked incision and failed to create a chance of note in the first half.

Newcastle came close to taking the lead in first-half injury time when Arsenal keeper Wojciech Szczesny palmed a shot from Moussa Sissoko over the bar and defender Mike Williamson hit the crossbar with a header from the resulting corner.

It looked to be heading towards a draw when Arsenal struck the decisive blow. Walcott's free kick was perfectly angled into the box and Giroud got in between the Newcastle centre backs to feather a delicate header into the net. It could have been 2-0 moments later but Walcott missed two chances to put the game to bed, with Newcastle keeper Tim Krul saving his first shot while his follow-up effort was cleared off the line by Mathieu Debuchy. — Reuters 

Moradabad, December 29
Tamil Nadu and Railways bagged the men's and women's titles respectively in the 62nd Senior National Volleyball Championship here today.

Tamil Nadu thrashed Uttarakhand in the men's summit clash 3-0 (25-17, 25-16, 25-14). The precision smashing of Naveen Raja Jacob and GR Vaishnav broke the backbone of Uttarakhand defence in the first set. Booming jump serves by Naveen gave no chance to Uttarakhand in the final set as last year's runners-up Tamil Nadu ran away with the trophy.

Defending champions Kerala finished third after defeating Services 3-2 (23-25, 21-25, 25-19, 25-17, 25-10).

In the women's final, Railways hammered Kerala 3-1 (25-17, 25-10, 23-25, 25-21) to retain their title. Captain Minimol Abraham and Soumya V were the stars for Railways. Minimol led from the front as her team continued its domination and wrapped up the match.

Tamil Nadu secured third place by thrashing Haryana 3-0 (26-24, 25-16, 25-21). — PTI

BRIEFLY

Schumacher injured in skiing accident
Meribel: Michael Schumacher, the most successful driver in Formula One history, is recovering in hospital after suffering a head injury while skiing in the Alps on Sunday, according to French media reports. The 44-year-old German, who retired from the elite motorsport for the second and final time in 2012, fell and hit his head on a rock, said the director of the Meribel resort where Schumacher was skiing. "He was airlifted and taken to hospital in Moutiers," a source said."He was shocked, a little shaken but conscious. It may be a head injury but it is not very serious." The incident happened just after 11 a.m. local time and Schumacher received help just minutes later.

Curator accuses Gambhir of interference 
Mumbai: Delhi team management's lack of communication with the establishment again came into the fore today when Ferozeshah Kotla curator Venkat Sundaram accused skipper Gautam Gambhir of "interfering into his job" ahead of their Ranji Trophy final group league encounter against Karnataka tomorrow. Having played three of their home matches on a seaming Roshanara track, Delhi had been forced to play their final game at the Kotla — a ground which is not to their liking as they feel the wicket does not produce results. Gambhir and Co. had relented because Roshanara, being a private club, will not be available from Dec 30 due to new year celebrations. 

Shastri to become first umpire to reach 100 first-class game
Hyderabad: Suresh Shastri will become the first Indian umpire to stand in 100 first-class games when Hyderabad takes on Kerala in Group C match. Coincidentally, it was at Secunderabad, where Shastri made his umpiring debut in 1990-91, in a Ranji Trophy. — Agencies

Ozil out for three games with shoulder injury: Wenger
London: Arsenal's Germany international Mesut Ozil will be out for up to three matches with a shoulder injury, manager Arsene Wenger said on Sunday. Ozil, who joined Arsenal from Real Madrid for a club-record fee on the final day of the close-season transfer window, suffered the injury in their 3-1 win over West Ham United on Thursday. Ozil missed Sunday's match at Newcastle United and will miss their match against Cardiff City on January 1. He is also a doubt for their FA Cup third round clash against local rivals Tottenham Hotspur on January 4.

Nath, Archana sub-junior champs in TT nationals
Ajmer: North Bengal's Akash Nath and Karnataka's Archana Kamath emerged new champions in the sub-junior section, while Rounak Majumdar (WB) and Swastika Ghosh (Maharashtra A) annexed titles in the Cadet category at the ONGC Cadet and Sub-Junior National Table Tennis Championships. What made Nath's maiden win special was the way he fought from the brink to snatch the crown from PSPB Academy's Manav Thakkar, winning 4-3 in one of the finest finals in recent years. It was also a maiden title for Archana, who beat Maharashtra A's Shruti Amrute 4-0. She became the first girl from the state in 13 years to win the sub-junior crown.

Assam lifter sets 3 junior national records
Guwahati: Md. Jameer Hussain of Assam shattered three national junior records en route to sweeping three gold on offer in the men's 94kg category on the concluding day of the 50th Men & 26th Women Junior National Weightlifting Championships here today. Hussain lifted 140kg in snatch, 178kg in clean and jerk for a total of 318kg to bag all the three golds. In junior men's +105kg category, Vinay Chauhan of Haryana won all the three gold in snatch (137kg), clean and jerk (150kg) and total lift (287kg). — Agencies