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Afridi shuts door on India
Rayudu says some players mentally fatigued
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Smith’s retirement ushers in new era for Proteas
AIBA’s knockout punch spells trouble and hope
basketball nationals
pistorius trial
Fastest man Bolt can fly on Saturn’s moon
Blatter says World Cup problems are under control
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Afridi shuts door on India
Mirpur, March 4 Chasing 327 for victory, opener Ahmed Shehzad (103) gave Pakistan a solid start with his fifth ODI century but it was left to Afridi’s pyrotechnics to cement the win as the right-hander hit seven sixes and two fours during his innings, his half-century coming off just 18 balls. Afridi, who hit two consecutive sixes in the last over during Pakistan’s win against arch-rivals India on Sunday, suffered from cramps towards the end and was run-out to a direct hit by Shakib Al Hasan with Pakistan needing 33 off 19 balls. Fawad Alam (74) was also run out in the final over but his two sixes off left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak had sealed the win for Pakistan, whose highest successful run chase till date was in a 2007 ODI against India when they made 322-6. Earlier, determined to register their first win in the tournament, Bangladesh made five changes to their squad and their top order fired in unison to help them post 326 for three, their highest ODI total in front of a delirious crowd at Mirpur’s Shere Bangla National Stadium. Opener Anamul Haq (100) hit his second ODI century, while Imrul Kayes (59) and Mominul Haque (51) chipped in with brisk half-centuries to lay the foundation for a big total against Pakistan’s off-colour attack. Skipper Mushfiqur Rahim (51) and all-rounder Shakib (44) added 77 quick runs in 5.4 overs and remained unseparated to take the hosts past the 300-run mark. Pakistan left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman sent down a hat-trick of illegal full tosses and was taken out of the attack with bizarre bowling figures of 0-0-8-0. Mushfiqur took the onus on himself to negate the threat posed by Pakistani off-spinner Saeed Ajmal who conceded 52 runs in his last four overs. Bangladesh milked 121 runs off the last 10 overs with Shakib hitting six fours and two sixes during his unbeaten 16-ball blitz. Bangladesh’s previous highest score was 320-8 against Zimbabwe in a 2009 one-dayer in Bulawayo.
— Reuters Scoreboard Bangladesh Haque c Shehzad b Ajmal 100 Kayes c Akmal b Talha 59 Mominul c Hafeez b Ajma l 51 Rahim not out 51 Shakib not out 44 Extras (lb 3, w 15, nb 3) 21 Total (3 wickets; 50 ov) 326 Fall of wickets: 1-150 2-204 3-249 Bowling Hafeez 10-0-27-0 Gul 10-1-76-0 Rehman 0-0-8-0 Alam 2-0-12-0 Talha 7-0-68-1 Ajmal 10-0-61-2 Afridi 10-0-64-0 Maqsood 1-0-7-0 Pakistan Shehzad b Razzak 103 Hafeez c Kayes b Haque 52 Misbah b Shakib 4 Maqsood c Haque b Haque 2 Alam run out 74 Rehman c Rahman b Mahmudullah 8 Afridi run out (Shakib) 59 Akmal not out 14 Gul not out 0 Extras (b 1, lb 3, w 9) 13 Total (7 wickets; 49.5 ov) 329 Fall of wickets: 1-97 2-102 3-105 4-210 5-225 6-294 7-325 Bowling Islam 5-0-49-0 Hossain 6.5-0-50-0 Shakib 10-2-53-1 Razzak 9-0-72-1 M Haque 9-1-37-2 Mahmudullah 7-1-47-1 Hossain 3-0-17-0 Rehman concedes eight without bowling a ball
Mirpur: Pakistani spinner Abdur Rehman had a spell to forget in his match against Bangladesh, the left-armer sending down a hat-trick of illegal full tosses to finish with bizarre bowling figures of 0-0-8-0. Brought into the attack in the 11th over, the 34-year-old's first delivery to Imrul Kayes slipped out of his hand and sailed well above waist-height and wide outside the off-stump. His second attempt turned out to be a chest-height beamer, which Kayes pulled to deep midwicket, where a fielder took the catch but the batsman stayed at the crease after replays confirmed another no-ball. Under ICC playing conditions, a bowler is taken out of the attack after sending down more than one full toss above the waist but umpire Johan Cloete let Rehman continue after a chat with skipper Misbah.
— Reuters |
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Rayudu says some players mentally fatigued
Mirpur, March 4 “We have been travelling a lot... to South Africa, then New Zealand, and then here. We played a game just two days after arriving here from New Zealand. The players are going through mental fatigue as well,” said Rayudu after a practice session on the eve of their Asia Cup match against Afghanistan here. Out of contention for the final after Pakistan defeated Bangladesh on Tuesday, a demoralised India would look to sign off their disastrous Asia Cup campaign on a positive note when they take on spirited Afghanistan in their last round-robin league match here on Wednesday. This was India’s only third practice session, and the first in the ongoing tournament as the players had preferred to stay confined to their hotel rooms on the eve of their last two matches. Having arrived here on the wee hours of February 24 after a hectic flight from New Zealand, India trained on the same day and the next day before playing their Asia Cup opener against Bangladesh. But India opted not to travel to the stadium for match practice ahead of their matches against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, against whom they suffered consecutive losses. The team’s attitude was questioned by Sunil Gavaskar, who slammed their “abysmal work ethic”. Rayudu, however, said they were training hard but were hard-pressed with the hectic scheduling as a few members of the side, including stand-in skipper Virat Kohli, had been playing non-stop cricket since the home series against West Indies in November last year. “We have been working as hard as any other team, if not more. Moreover, we have played back-to-back games. We played three games in five days. It is not only us, no other team has practised after back-to-back games.” |
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Australia closing in on big victory
Cape Town, March 4 Chasing a victory target of 511, the hosts will resume on 71 for four wickets on the final day despite a valiant effort from AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla who survived 31 overs before the latter was out 20 minutes before stumps. South Africa had lost openers Smith and Alviro Petersen (nine), as well as Dean Elgar (nought), as Australia were rampant before tea. Smith flicked a rising Mitchell Johnson delivery on to his thigh and the ball looped gently to Alex Doolan at short leg, an inglorious end for one of the game’s greats who was given a guard of honour by the touring side as he came out to bat. It was a tame way for Smith’s 205th test innings to finish but it was in keeping with his poor form in a series in which he has scored just 45 runs in six innings. The South African captain, who announced his retirement from international cricket late last night, bowed out having made 9,265 runs at an average of 48.25 in 117 tests, 109 of those as captain. De Villiers has survived 100 balls for his 16 with all thoughts of scoring gone and survival the only thing on his mind. He and Amla added 53 for the fourth wicket off 184 balls, a stand ended when Amla was trapped lbw by a reverse-swinging delivery from James
Pattinson. De Villiers will resume on Wednesday, with nightwatchman Kyle Abbott (one), hoping for a repeat of their performances in Adelaide and Johannesburg in the last 18 months where they batted for 148 and 136 overs respectively in the fourth innings to seal draws. Faf du Plessis, who will bat next, scored battling centuries in both those innings to steer the Proteas to safety. The struggles of the home side were in sharp contrast to the Australia innings, when David Warner made batting look easy as he bludgeoned 145 from 156 balls and the tourists declared their second innings on 303 for five. Brief Scores: South Africa 287 & 71 for 4; Australia 494-7 declared & 303-5 declared (Warner 145, Abbott 3/61).
— Reuters |
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Smith’s retirement ushers in new era for Proteas
Smith's decision to retire from international cricket just nine weeks after Jacques Kallis quit will usher in a new era for South African cricket, which now finds itself shorn of experience and potentially in a leadership crisis. The 33-year-old's runs at the top of the order will be missed but so too will his strength of character and grit in times of adversity. He has, in many ways, been the face of South African cricket over the last decade and played a key role in taking the side to the number one position in the Test rankings. Thrust into the captaincy role at the age of 22 following the resignation of Shaun Pollock after South Africa's miserable first round exit at the 2003 World Cup on home soil, Smith admitted it took him four or five years to settle into the job. While many South African cricket fans have struggled to warm to him, few would argue that he deserves a place among the game's greats as he has won a record 53 Tests as captain, many of those thanks to his own prowess with the bat. Never the most elegant to watch, he bludgeoned his way to 27 Test centuries, five of them double-hundreds, the last of which came less than five months ago against Pakistan in Dubai. It has been his ability to grind out fourth innings runs, something that will likely be needed again in his final, ongoing, Test in Cape Town, that has made him so well respected in the international game. He led his side to two series wins in Australia and a triumph in England in 2012 that took the team to the summit of world cricket. Despite facing the possibility of a series defeat to Australia in his final Test match, he leaves the side at the very top of the game. Smith had spoken in the build-up to the third Test of still having the passion and desire for international cricket, of wanting to achieve more with this team. A fifth batting failure in as many innings in the series may have led to him re-evaluating his future plans — the stark reality for South Africa is that they are now not just looking for a new opening batsman who can average close to 50 in Test cricket but also a new leader.
— Reuters |
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AIBA’s knockout punch spells trouble and hope
Chandigarh, March 4 While the incumbent faction has been left stunned by the sudden and extreme step, the other faction, clamouring for elections and change in the IBF set-up, sees this as a blessing in disguise. For them, the federation's termination is the first step towards the reconstitution of the “clean and accountable” IBF. “It's a real shame that the AIBA had to finally terminate us after warning us with suspension. Honestly speaking, we've brought this upon ourselves, thanks to mistakes by a handful of our members. Anyhow, we are hopeful that something good will emerge out of it,” said Asit Banerjee, head of the West Bengal unit, who has been spearheading the charge against the incumbent faction. Rajesh Bhandari, the secretary of the now defunct IBF, was surprised by the diktat. “We are shocked with this unilateral decision of the AIBA. Neither did they consult us, nor did they send any fact-finding mission to get to the bottom of the matter. We will request the IOA to take up the issue with the AIBA,” said Bhandari. For what forced the AIBA's hand, the factions spell out different reasons. While the Bhandari group says the meeting held by the rival faction on February 23 may have prompted the parent body to take the radical decision, the Asit Banerjee-faction claims that IOA's request to recognise and regularise the incumbent body forced the AIBA to throw out the IBF. “We are pro-AIBA and are willing to follow all their rules and guidelines. We held a meeting of more than 20 units a while back where we formed a seven-member advisory board. We will soon call another meeting, wherein we will also invite an AIBA observer, and then see how we can hold elections and get back into the AIBA fold,” said Banerjee. While it's still not clear where the Indian boxing federation will go from here, one good thing to emerge from the sordid affair is that AIBA hasn't banned boxers from participating at the international stage. Nevertheless, it's not that the Indian boxing isn't feeling the pinch. “Nationals have not been held for almost two years now. The kids who have been working hard haven't got a platform to perform. Players are being called to the national camps on the basis of tournaments held two years back,” said an official, not wanting to be named. With the AIBA entering zero-tolerance zone, it's time for the faction-ridden IBF to set their house in order. Termination order It is with much regret that the International Boxing Association (AIBA) Executive Committee (EC) has decided to end any official relationship with its current suspended member, the Indian Amateur Boxing Federation (IABF) after an extensive evaluation and assessment of all issues surrounding the sport of boxing in India. AIBA has always regarded India as one of the most important members of its family, but it has become impossible for us to bear the hard feelings, the pain and suffering the boxers as well as the boxing family in India had to go through under the past and recent leadership which has also been damaging the image, reputation and interest of our sport in the country.
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Punjab men enter final
Set up title clash with Tamil Nadu after beating Uttarakhand in semis
New Delhi, March 4 Yadwinder Singh, who has a habit of coming good against Punjab, scored 24 points for Uttarakhand. But the former Punjab player could not help his team into the final. Amritpal Singh (15) and Riyaz Uddin (14) were the other contributors for Uttarakhand. In the final, Punjab will take on Tamil Nadu, who defeated Services 92-85 in a tight semifinal. Both teams were matching basket for basket throughout the match and Tamil Nadu were leading 55-36 at half time. Services reduced Tamil Nadu’s lead to 16 in the third quarter. Services scored 30 points in the final quarter but Tamil Nadu managed to hold on. Pratham Singh scored 28 points (four 3-pointers), SP Venkatesh scored 22 points (10 rebounds) and Rikin Pethani scored 14 points (11 rebounds) for Tamil Nadu. Joginder Singh and Jairam scored 18 points each, while Gopal Ram scored 15 points for the Services. Defending champs Railways to face Chhattisgarh Meanwhile, Chhattisgarh women avenged their defeat to Maharashtra in the league stage by posting a 76-65 win in their semifinal clash. Kavita was the top scorer for Chhattisgarh with 20 points. For Maharashtra, Shireen Limaye scored 20 points. Chhattisgarh will take on defending champions Indian Railways, who outclassed Delhi 100-65 in the other semifinal. Seasoned campaigner Geethu Anna Jose was the top scorer of the match with 27 points. — PTI
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Chhattisgarh rally from two goals down to beat Kerala
Lucknow, March 4 They doubled the lead just a minute before the end of the first half with Jithu Sasi scoring another field goal. Chhattisgarh regrouped in the second half and Shakeel Ahmed scored through a penalty corner in the 54th minute. Eight minutes later, Chhattisgarh restored parity through a field goal by Erfan Khan. The team did not stop there and scored the match-winner in the 69th minute through Upendra Pillay. In another match, Puducherry mauled Tripura 11-1. While Tripura's Arif Hussain started the goal scoring in the ninth minute, it was Puducherry who then punished Tripura with flurry of goals. While A Tamilarasan scored a hat-trick with all his goals coming in the second half, M Harikrishna, V Karthikeyan and N Kamalakannan scored two goals each. In the third match of the day, Hockey Gangpur, Odisha, beat Mizoram 6-0, with Ashish Anmol Minz scoring a brace. — PTI
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Judge warns media over leaked photo
Pretoria, March 4 The warning was one of several dramatic moments in the trial's second day that saw a distraught Pistorius bury his head in his hands when the court heard details from the post mortem of his slain girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. Judge Thokozile Masipa warned the media and ordered an investigation after broadcaster eNCA showed a photo of Pistorius' neighbour Michelle Burger during the audio broadcast of her second day of testimony. While the trial is being televised live, a court order had ruled witnesses must give their consent to be filmed. "I am warning the media, if you do not behave, you are not going to be treated with soft gloves by this court," said Masipa, herself a former journalist. — Reuters
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Fastest man Bolt can fly on Saturn’s moon
Theoretically, the Olympic athlete would then be able to soar above the planet — without any need for propulsion, said researchers at the University of Leicester in the UK. Physics students at the university made the calculations in their final year paper for the Journal of Physics Special Topics, a peer-reviewed student journal run by the Leicester University's Department of Physics and Astronomy. Titan is Saturn's largest moon and has a dense nitrogen-rich atmosphere with a surface pressure almost 50 per cent stronger than Earth's. As a result, it has long been predicted that humans would be able to lift off into the moon's atmosphere if they were wearing wing-type devices on their arms. But now, the students have shown that it would even be possible with a regular wingsuit used by skydivers here on Earth. To calculate the speed needed, the group factored in: the density of air at the surface of Titan; the acceleration due to gravity; an average wingsuit wing area (approximately 1.4 metres squared); and the ratio of the streamline path of the air above the aerofoil to that below the aerofoil. They found that, for a normal-sized wingsuit, a run up speed of 11 metres per second would be required.
— PTI |
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Blatter says World Cup problems are under control
London, March 4 Brazil is racing against time to complete stadiums, airports, communications infrastructure and transportation systems as the June 12 opening day approaches.
— Reuters |
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Mirpur, March 4
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