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Akmal repels Afghan charge
u-19 World cup |
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Winless streak snapped, India ready for Lanka
‘No plans on new Indian assistant coach’
J&K, Punjab lose opening ties
Punjab cagers beat Rajasthan
Punjab Police, Air Force win in Dashmesh Hockey
champions league
Rashid leads the field by four
Skiing meet kicks off at Auli today
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Akmal repels Afghan charge
Dhaka, February 27 Afghanistan, playing their inaugural match in the five-nation tournament, impressed despite the defeat. Their lack of experience, however, stopped them from causing an upset. Chasing a daunting target, the Afghans were 139-2 in the 36th over before losing their last eight wickets for 37 runs as Mohammad Hafeez (3-29) and Saeed Ajmal (2-25) gave Pakistan a win with a bonus point. Asghar Stanikzai (40) and Nawroz Mangal (35) shared a 74-run partnership for the third wicket but they failed to keep pace with the required run-rate which kept climbing. Earlier, it was Akmal who saved Pakistan the blushes with a dominating second ODI century — his first in five years. In all he hit seven boundaries and three sixes, helping Pakistan to put on 59 runs in the last five overs. Akmal, let off at 28, led the fightback through a 60-run seventh wicket stand with Anwar Ali (21). Pakistan began fluently with a stand of 55 between Ahmed Shehzad (50), who hit seven boundaries in his 74-ball innings, and Sharjeel Khan (25). But once spinner Hamza Hotak (1-22) provided the breakthrough by dismissing Khan, Afghanistan grabbed six wickets in the space of 62 runs. Hafeez fell for ten, Misbah-ul Haq was run out for nought without facing a ball, Sohaib Maqsood went for 13 and Shahid Afridi for six. Misbah, the world’s highest run scorer in one-day cricket last year, was the dismissal which jolted Pakistan badly. But Akmal held the innings together to ensure Pakistan reached a respectable total.—
PTI Back home, arrest warrant issued against the centurion
Lahore: Thursday turned out to be quite a mixed bag for Umar Akmal (in pic). While he scored a fine hundred against Afghanistan in Dhaka, an arrest warrant was issued against him back home. According to media report in Pakistan, a local session court issued the arrest warrant against the Pakistan cricketer for violating traffic rules and scuffling with a traffic warden about three weeks back. Umar was arrested on February 1 after police said he did not stop at a traffic signal in Lahore, and later brawled with a traffic warden. He was detained the same day and released a day later on a bail order. Scoreboard Pakistan Afghanistan
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India bat WI out of the game, finish fifth
Gaurav Joshi
Sharjah, February 27 Half-centuries by Ankush Bains (74), Sanju Samson (67) and Shreyas Iyer (66) were followed by a quick 42 (off 30 balls) by Deepak Hooda as the Indian lads amassed 340/8 in their 50 overs. In reply, West Indies lost their first wicket off the second ball of the innings and never seemed likely to win after that. There were a couple of fighting partnerships, 91 runs between Tagenarine Chanderpaul and Tristan Coleman for the second wicket, and 89 for the fourth wicket between Chanderpaul and Nicolas Pooran. However, the required run rate kept on creeping up all the time and West Indies were always lagging far behind, right to the end. When Coleman (45) fell, West Indies were 93/2 in the 19th over and the required run rate was over 7.8; when Pooran (54) was out, the score was 204/5 in the 36th over, the required rate was well over nine. There was no significant threat to the Indian total after that, though Chanderpaul had the personal satisfaction of scoring a century, 112 with eight fours and a six. Chama Milind took two wickets while five others took a wicket each. Eight bowlers were used by the Indian skipper Vijay Zol. Earlier, after Zol won the toss and elected to bat, Bains and Akhil Herwadkar added 70 for the first wicket before Herwadkar fell for 27. Zol (30) and Bains were the next two to go, but Iyer and Samson then had a match-winning partnership of 124 for the fourth wicket off just 14.5 overs, at 8.35 an over. Iyer scored his 66 off 45 balls with five fours and four sixers, while Samson's 67 came off 56 balls and had two fours and five sixers. The two fell within six balls, and India were then 277/5 in 42 overs. The last eight overs yielded 63 runs as Hooda two fours and two sixers in his 42 off 30 balls. Brief
scores
India 340/8 in 50 overs (Ankush Bains 74, Sanju Samson 67, Shreyas Iyer 66; Gudakesh Motie 3/52, Preston McSween 2/74). West Indies 294/8 in 50 overs (Tagenarine Chanderpaul 112, Nicolas Pooran 54, Tristan Coleman 45; Chama Milind 2/50). Bangladesh Under-19s lift the Plate Championship
Fifties from Shadman Islam and Litton Das, and a four-wicket haul from Mosaddek Hossain helped Bangladesh U-19s lift the Plate Championship against New Zealand U-19s in Abu Dhabi. Bangladesh were all out for 223 in 47 overs but they restricted New Zealand to 147 as only one of their batsmen scored more than 25. An incisive performance from Afghanistan Under-19s' bowlers, spearheaded by Sayed Shirzad and Usman Ghani, helped the team seal a five-wicket win against Sri Lanka Under-19s in the seventh place playoff in Dubai. Luke Jongwe's half-century helped Zimbabwe U-19s defeat UAE U-19s by 84 runs in the 11th place playoff. — Agencies |
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Winless streak snapped, India ready for Lanka
Fatullah, February 27 Set to face a far tougher opponent in Sri Lanka in the second match on Friday, India desperately needed to snap the almost two-month long winless streak before the big match. “Obviously it's (the win) very important for us. Great momentum to start the series, we're just looking forward to the coming matches now,” said Rahane. “We played good cricket, the bowlers in the last five overs did really well. I think credit goes to the whole team, Virat batted brilliantly,” said Rahane, who scored 73. Asked if he was under pressure after a string of failures in his last five ODI innings, Rahane said: "Frankly speaking, I was not thinking about the past. I was relaxed and just wanted to play my game. I was batting well in New Zealand, but could not convert those starts. I was disappointed. But I got a hundred in last (Test) innings in New Zealand, so I was confident. My plan was to take time initially, and then play my shots,” he said. On how he and Kohli planned their partnership, Rahane said: “It was not easy to play shots initially, the ball was keeping low. There was some odd and uneven bounce. We were just planning to play straight initially and back ourselves to play our shots later on. Virat took his chances really well and that worked.” “During our partnership, our conversation in the middle overs was that we should stay together for as long as possible. The longer we stayed, the better it would be for the team. I was very happy that we had a good partnership and we could make the team win.” Praising the bowlers, he said Mohammad Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled quite well to restrict Bangladesh to 279. "On this wicket, I think the bowlers did really well. Bhuvi and Shami later on bowled wicket to wicket and it was not easy to hit that length.” “Jadeja and Ashwin are bowling really well. It`s just a matter of momentum and I'm sure they'll do a good job for us in the coming games.” The bowlers, however, will be tested a lot more when they come up against Sri Lankan batsmen on Friday. Spinners, Ashwin in particular, will come up with much-improved performance to keep the Lankan batsmen in check in the crucial middle overs. — Agencies
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‘No plans on new Indian assistant coach’
Mumbai, February 27 “Nothing of this sort is being planned and this is not going to come up at the Working Committee meeting (tomorrow in Bhubaneswar),” Board secretary Sanjay Patel told PTI when asked to respond to a report. “We have to take stock of the situation by talking to the coach (Fletcher). India is now touring (playing in the Asia Cup in Bangladesh)," added Patel. Patel had earlier informed that the Board officials will have a meeting with Fletcher and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni after the conclusion of the World Twenty20, which is scheduled in Bangladesh from April 6. The coach's contractual tenure, as well as those of bowling coach Joe Dawes and fielding coach Trevor Penney, ends on March 31. The report, quoting an unnamed BCCI insider, said that while the tenure of Fletcher and Penney are expected to be extended till the 2015 World Cup, Dawes is likely to be given the boot because of the recent poor display of the Indian bowlers overseas. “A BCCI insider confirmed that most of the BCCI bigwigs are 'quite happy' with the way Fletcher and Penney have been handling the team,” the report stated. “However Dawes, who came on board at the end of India's disastrous tour to Australia in 2011-12, seems to have lost the confidence of the BCCI top brass with the Indian bowling consistently faltering in various conditions. “The BCCI hasn't been mulling over a like-for-like replacement for Dawes. Instead of a bowling coach, the appointment of an Indian assistant coach is being discussed. A BCCI insider revealed the move would take into consideration the availability of 'top coaches in India now,” it added. — Agencies
BCCI meet to finalize IPL-7 venue
Bhubaneswar: The BCCI Working Committee will meet tomorrow to shortlist two prospective countries which will be kept as alternative venues for the seventh edition of the IPL which is co-inciding with the general elections. While South Africa is the front-runner having had the experience of hosting the second season of IPL, United Arab Emirates (UAE) is also among the countries being considered for the event to be held between April 9 to June 3 window. The final decision will be taken only after the government announces the dates of the elections. |
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New Delhi, February 27 Delhi scored 256 for eight in 50 overs after being put into bat on a typical low and slow Feroze Shah Kotla wicket with skipper Gautam Gambhir scoring 58 and adding 99 runs for the opening stand with Unmukt Chand (42). While Sehwag coming in at No 3 scored only 15, Puneet Bisht (39) and Sumit Narwal (22) threw their bats around as the last couple of overs produced around 40 runs. In reply, Jammu and Kashmir were all out for 218 in 45.4 overs. Once Rasool (30, 1x4, 2x6) was gone, J&K didn't have much chance. In another match of the North Zone leg, Haryana beat Punjab by seven runs in a 32-overs-a-side affair. Batting first, Haryana scored 153 for eight and then restricted Punjab to 146 for eight. The third match of the zone saw hosts Services beat Himachal Pradesh by 11 runs. — PTI
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New Delhi, February 27 While Gurvinderdeep Singh scored 29 points, Gurkirpal Singh and Amritpal Singh finished with 23 and 22 respectively to take their side home at the Thyagaraj Stadium. Gurkirpal Singh added 23 points while Amritpal Singh chipped in with 22. Punjab dominated the first two quarters, outscoring their opponents 32-17 after taking a 19-14 lead in the first. Punjab had tamed Andhra Pradesh 92-44 yesterday. In the women's section, Maharashtra women made a strong came back defeating Punjab 71-61 after going down to Tamil Nadu in their first match. Kritika Devadkar scored 26 points while B Sangeetha collected 16 and Shireen Limaye finished with 11 for Maharashtra. For Punjab, Kiranjeet Kaur (17), Nirmal Kaur (15) and Nagma Mirza (15) were the notable scorers. Gujarat and Haryana registered convincing victories in their respective group matches. Gujarat put themselves in the driver's seat in Group F with their second consecutive win. Dishant Shah scored 25 points while Nachiket Nayak added 17 as Gujarat beat Mizoram 94-49. Haryana outscored Himachal Pradesh in every single quarter as they won their second Group C game in a row 80-48. Hemant, Balraj and Vishal added 18, 14 and 10 points, respectively, for Haryana. — PTI
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Punjab Police, Air Force win in Dashmesh Hockey
Ropar, February 27 While Punjab Police outclassed Rock Rovers, Chandigarh, 3-0, Air Force defeated Sikh Center, Ramgarh (Bihar), 3-1. Earlier, in the first match of the day, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) beat Northern Railways 1-0. In the first half, both the teams failed to convert their chances. In the 45th minute, Neeraj scored for CISF to help his team to victory. In second match, Punjab Police scored two goals in the first half to take the match away from the Rock Rovers. Avtar Singh sealed the match for Punjab Police.
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Real stars dazzle Schalke
Ronaldo, Bale, Benzema score two each in Madrid’s 6-1 win
Gelsenkirchen (Germany), February 27 The round of 16, first leg bore more resemblance to a playground kickabout than Europe’s top club competition as Schalke kept giving the ball away to Real, who simply ran down the other end of the pitch and scored. Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice each and Real could quite easily have added to their tally against opponents who started promisingly but completely lost their composure after conceding two goals in a disastrous eight-minute first-half spell. Incredibly, the home fans kept singing until the end and were rewarded when Dutch striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar volleyed in from the edge of the area for a stoppage-time consolation. The result, Schalke’s heaviest defeat in European football, was the second embarrassment for the Bundesliga following Bayer Leverkusen’s 4-0 humbling at home by Paris St Germain last week. Real, who also won 6-1 at Galatasaray in the group stage, took their tally in the competition to 26 goals in seven games, 11 of them from Ronaldo. “We made too many simple mistakes,” shattered Schalke coach Jens Keller said, his tie undone and his hair flopping to one side. “We should have equalised straight away to make it 1-1, but it was just mistake after mistake. I have a young team who wanted to go forward but we should have been tighter.” “I’m satisfied with everything because that was the perfect game,” said Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti. “They played with togetherness. Everything came off for us. The front three all scored twice but they also had the help of their team mates.” — Reuters
Chelsea keep Drogba in check but held 1-1
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Rashid leads the field by four
New Delhi, February 27 The 23-year-old found the going tough today after starting his round on the back-nine, making a double bogey on the 17th (ninth of his round). But three birdies and an eagle on the front-nine helped his aggregate to 14-under 130. Bangladesh’s Siddikur Rahman, Australia’s Unho Park and Sri Lanka’s Mithun Perera shared the second spot with a two-day total of 10-under 134. Siddikur fired his second five-under 67 of the event. Park blasted a seven-under 65 today, while Mithun came up with a four-under 68. But the star of the day was Martin Rominger of Switzerland who fired a scintillating nine-under 63 to lie at the fifth spot. He had shot 72 in the first round. Two-time defending champion Anirban Lahiri put behind yesterday’s disappointment and carded a six-under 66 to be tied sixth along with Digvijay Singh, who scored his second successive 68. — PTI
Nicollet wins her first title of the season
Mumbai: Bangalore golfer Sharmila Nicollet registered her first victory of the season in the fourth leg of the Hero Women’s Professional Golf Tour at the Bombay Presidency Golf Club on Thursday. Sharmila returned with an impressive one-under 69 on the final day and a total of 208 to take the title. Vani played another steady round to finish second with a final round score of one-over 71 and a total of 215. — IANS |
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Skiing meet kicks off at Auli today
Dehradun, February 27 Over 185 participants will participate in the alpine junior and sub-junior competitions and cross-country competition. “We are still witnessing intermittent rainfall and snowfall in Auli and the conditions seem perfect,” said SS Patwal, president of Winter Games Federation of India (WGFI). The championships were scheduled to take place on February 5, but due to insufficient snowfall, the championship had to be postponed. — TNS
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Federer sets up Djokovic clash in Dubai Dubai, February 27 Djokovic will next face fourth-seeded Roger Federer, who beat Lukas Rosol 6-2 6-2, in Friday’s semifinals. Czech Tomas Berdych registered a straight sets 6-4 6-3 victory over fifth-seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to secure his berth in the semifinals. Berdych will face Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber who outclassed Malek Jaziri of Tunisia 6-2 6-3 in his quarterfinal match. Bopanna-Qureshi advance to semifinals
Second seeds Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-ul-haq Qureshi survived a scare before diffusing the challenge of Mahesh Bhupathi and Denis Istomin in the quarterfinals. The Indo-Pak Express came back from a set down to beat their unseeded rivals 5-7 7-6(3) 10-7 via super tie breaker to move to the semifinals. Murray, Ferrer reach Mexican Open quarters
Acapulco: Andy Murray reached the quarterfinals of the Mexican Open with a 6-3 6-4 win over Portugal's Joao Sousa on Thursday. The seventh-ranked Murray needed three sets in the first round to beat Spaniard Pablo Andujar, but put in a more authoritative performance against Sousa and set up a clash with France's Gilles Simon in the last eight. Top seed David Ferrer beat Spanish compatriot Feliciano Lopez 7-6(1) 6-2 to advance to his fifth-straight Mexican Open quarterfinal. Ferrer, trying to win his fourth title on Mexican soil, will next play South Africa's Kevin Anderson, who eliminated American Sam Querrey 7-6(2) 6-4. — Agencies |
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Umar Akmal hit a fighting hundred to help Pakistan overcome early wobbles against Afghanistan to win their crucial Asia Cup match by 72 runs in Dhaka on Thursday. Pakistan owed their recovery to Akmal’s 89-ball 102 not out, which lifted them from a precarious 117-6 to 248-8 in 50 overs before they wrapped up their rivals for 176 in 47.2
overs.
India finished fifth in the Under-19 World Cup when they beat West Indies by 46 runs in their playoff match today.
Half-centuries by Ankush Bains (74), Sanju Samson (67) and Shreyas Iyer (66) were followed by a quick 42 (off 30 balls) by Deepak Hooda.
Istanbul:
