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It’s now or never for India I’ve horrible technique for Test cricket: Dhoni Mahela falls cheaply in his farewell Test
No fan of melodrama, Gavaskar keeps it straight and simple
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Man behind Dipika’s CWG success, Dinesh Karthik
Indian men clinch bronze in Chess Olympiad
Gill in catch-up mode in Malaysia
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It’s now or never for India
London, August 14 Dhoni, however, doesn’t do bluster and baloney — sporting performance and patriotism/nationalism must not be equated, Dhoni believes. Thus, he sought to separate nationalism from sport, even though media and fans love the notion of sport being war minus the guns. “When you are representing your country, that is motivation enough,” Dhoni said. “It doesn’t have to be the Independence Day or the Republic Day, it’s the same for us.” Dhoni, thus, goes into the fifth and final Test match against England — which India must win to square the series 2-2 – with his usual, high level of motivation. However, he would be without any actual net session out in the open. The skipper had skipped the nets yesterday and today, just a few minutes after the Indian nets started, a burst of rain cut it short. Dhoni and the other then had a stint in the indoor nets. A bit of more rain is forecast for tomorrow, the first day, but London is likely to be dry for the duration of the match after that. India must win the match, of course, to draw the series.
For that to happen, India must raise their game several notches — they’ve not fought hard in the last two matches, which caused big defeats for them. In the third Test at Southampton, India lost 3/32 and 4/26 in two disastrous stages of the second innings. In the fourth Test at Manchester, they were 8/4 in the first innings, and lost their last four wickets for 23 runs; in the second innings, they lost four wickets for eight runs in the third afternoon. They lost nine wickets in a little over 46 overs. That’s pathetic. The Oval wicket traditionally has been drier and helps the spinners towards the later part of the match. The long strip of practice pitches that runs on both sides of the wicket used to be drier and grassless — they would scuff the ball quicker, which is conducive to reverse-swinging the ball. The practice pitches are greener now, and the outfield is a still greener shade. Revere-swing may not be a factor here. The temperature over the next few days is going to hover around 20 degree C – it would be overcast in between sunny interludes, and that would bring conventional swing into play. Ishant Sharma, who missed the third Test due to an unspecified leg injury — the Indian team management is coy about revealing the exact nature of such problems — is fit and likely to play, in place of Pankaj Singh. Gautam Gambhir didn’t look Test-class in the previous match — but then, who did? — and it would be unfair to drop him for just two failures; the other concern for India is Ravindra Jadeja, whose batting is definitely not Test-class. Who to replace him with if he’s dropped, Dhoni had wondered the other day. The wicket is likely to remain less than completely dry over the course of the match — nets bowlers who bowled at England today said that the wicket is damp underneath; whether it aids spin later in the match would depend on how much and how quickly it dries. It won’t have the bounce of the Old Trafford track, though. England liked the bounce of the Old Trafford wicket – because of the bounce, the edges off the bat carried to the wicketkeeper or slips. However, the overall conditions should cheer up the England attack — James Anderson is on a roll again, and Stuart Broad, who broke his nose after being hit by a Varun Aaron bouncer, is fit to play, perhaps with a face mask. “We think he's going to be absolutely fine,” England captain Alastair Cook said today. “We reserve the right (to not pick up Broad) tomorrow morning, in case something unusual happens overnight. He batted, he bowled his six or seven overs and didn't get any pain from it. So we're expecting him to be absolutely fine, and see what mask he pulls on tomorrow.” What mask would India pull on tomorrow — fierce and fighting or sorry and submissive? Whatever it is, it’s just a game, don’t bring patriotism into it. Numbers game
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I’ve horrible technique for Test cricket: Dhoni
London, August 14 Dhoni is also cool enough to cast a very critical eye on his own technique. “I must be one of the guys with the most horrible techniques for Test cricket,” Dhoni said today. “It’s all about adjustment for me. People often talk about technique. But the way we come from, the way we play 60-80 percent of our cricket, that’s the way you develop you technique! But I think you should not think too much about your technique, you should be aware of where you shouldn’t be… But I’ve been working on it for some time. The problem I was facing was that whatever I was trying in the nets, I was not able to take it into the game. That’s a big step you have to take. I batted well in the last game, if I can carry it into this game, I’d be really happy – with not the runs, but the way I bat.” “It’s difficult to change your technique, you can’t do that… So it’s important to have confidence in your technique, but still you have to be aware of the limitations that you have with the kind of technique you have.” Has he discussed frailties of the team with the batsmen – how not to lose nine wickets in a session, for instance? “We already have spoken about it, but I really don’t like to speak about that in a press conference,” Dhoni grinned. “We have addressed that, and it was not just that game. In the games before that also we have lost some wickets in a very short span of time. It is not really about addressing it – it’s more about soaking it up, learning from the last game and making sure that we don’t repeat those mistakes.” England captain Alastair Cook was in a happier place as he discussed his team. “You don’t get a partnership like Stuart Broad and Jimmy (Anderson) have without being a world-class bowler,” he said of his two seamers, who have taken 37 Indian wickets so far. “They’ve taken over 500 wickets together. Any captain would want those two in the team if possible, so it’s great news for us as a team that Broady has come through that blow. He likes performing in big games – this is another big game.” Live on Star Sports: 3:30 pm
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Mahela falls cheaply in his farewell Test
colombo, April 14 Left-arm fast bowler Junaid Khan took three of the four wickets to fall in the session and ended the day with figures of four for 69. There was great expectation from the spectators who had turned up to see former captain Jayawardene play in his 149th Test, but the elegant 37-year-old lasted just 16 balls and made four runs before he was trapped lbw by Saeed Ajmal in the first over after tea. Pakistan also grabbed the wicket of opener Upul Tharanga when he flicked a ball from Riaz and the inside edge that came off his pad was held smartly by Azhar Ali at short leg after a fumble. Tharanga scored 92 off 179 balls including 12 fours. The final session was Pakistan's most fruitful for they took four wickets including that of Lahiru Thirimanne for 20, Niroshan Dickwella for 24 and Dilruwan Perera for a duck. Thirimanne edged Junaid to Sarfraz after being missed on 14 by Khurram Manzoor at first slip. Dickwella and Perera were lbw victims to the second new ball. Kumar Sangakkara had a testing time against Wahab Riaz before he was bowled off an inside edge for just 22. As Sangakkara departed, Jayawardene walked out to a standing ovation and the Pakistan players formed a guard of honour as fire-crackers exploded around the packed Sinhalese Sports Club ground. Sri Lanka, who won the first Test by seven wickets, had batted cautiously to reach 69 without loss at lunch after winning the toss. — Reuters Brief scores: Sri Lanka: 261/8 (Tharanga 92, Junaid 4/69, Wahab 3/66)
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No fan of melodrama, Gavaskar keeps it straight and simple
London, August 14 But the car was smashed, wasn't it? Do say yes, Mr Gavaskar! No, it wasn't. "After the accident, we actually travelled in it for a few kilometres, before we moved into another vehicle," Gavaskar said. "Luckily, we were in a big, strong car, with great safety features, and it was due to that that we didn't suffer injuries." For an autograph
The autograph hunters of England would rank among the most patient people in the world. Here at The Oval, they wait for the players at the bottom of the stairs coming down from the dressing rooms. Most of them have aged much since the time when they could be called young - but their inner child remains very enthusiastic for the thrilling sport of autograph-hunting. They seem apologetic and diffident, for their tribe is never 'authorised', always at the mercy of the stewards. "I've been coming here for decades, and I've never had any problems, really," says one of them. It helps if you're a member of the cricket club you're autograph-hunting in, he says. The ones in action today, all six of them, had great luck with England, for the home team players stopped for a autograph and a chat after practice. The Indians, though, were sent scurrying in by a sudden spell of rain, moments after the net session had started. The Indians went down to the indoor practice area, leaving the autograph-hunters forlorn. Vijay in meditation
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Man behind Dipika’s CWG success, Dinesh Karthik
New Delhi, August 14 The moment of glory was a dream come true for Pallikal and the defining moment of her career, but what gave the glamour queen of Indian squash that extra push to do better than her best was the presence of a man — her fiance, cricketer Dinesh Karthik, during the summit clash. In an interview to The Tribune, Pallikal spoke very fondly of Karthik. Pallikal said she has been quite smitten by the Indian cricketer ever since they fell in love with each other last year in Chennai. She agreed to give a sneak peek into her personal life, and also why, she thinks that her gold should encourage more parents to put their kids in squash. Excerpts: Do you think your gold-winning performance at the CWG will help raise the profile of the racket sport in India? Pallikal: It’s a great achievement, not only for us but the Indian squash in general. I seriously hope that it opens a lot of doors for us. We can only concentrate on our job by winning medals for the country and hope that corporates come forward and start investing in Indian squash. I also hope that our win will inspire kids to take up the game. Do you see any major change happening to the sport after your CWG success? Pallikal: It has made some difference to us. We are getting a lot of media attention which was not the case earlier. This media frenzy has come as a surprise to us. On a serious note, we have done our job and it’s time for people concerned to do their bit. I hope sports administrators will do their job. If it doesn't happen now, I don't see it happening ever again. What’s your next target? Pallikal: My personal target is to break into top 5 in the world. Right now, I am No. 10 in the world. Talking about your personal life, you are engaged to marry Dinesh Karthik. What was his first reaction when you won the title clash? Pallikal: He was super excited. He knew how much this gold meant to me. I had been talking about it ever since we have been together, so he is very happy that it's finally over. He always wants me to become the best in my sport and here I am with the gold. As a partner, he is happy for me. Tell us more about Dinesh as your future husband? Both being a sportsperson, you have a hectic lifestyle… Pallikal: We share a very strong bond. We give each other space which is important in any relationship. Whenever we are down in our sport, both of us are just a phone call away. We don’t behave like a powerful sports couple. When we go back home, he is just my fiance. We don't talk much about our careers. He is someone whom I can trust.
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Indian men clinch bronze in Chess Olympiad Tromso, Norway, August 14 Parimarjan Negi scored over former FIDE World Champion Rustam Kasimdzhanov on the top board, SP Sethuraman ended his bad run by defeating Anton FIlippov while Krishnan Sasikiran lived up to expectation and outplayed Marat Dzhumaev to pave the way for an Indian triumph. On the fourth board, B Adhiban fought from a hopeless position to draw with Jahongir Vakhidov as the team ended joint second with Hungary winning the silver in a competition where 171 countires participated. China became the first Asian country to win the gold medal in the Chess Olympiad and their success comes at a time when there was a highest participation of 171 countries. The Chinese scored a 3-1 victory over Poland in the last round, taking their tally to 19 match points out of a possible 22. Hungary, Russia, Azerbaijan and India ended on an identical 17 points each. Russia defeated France by a minimal 2.5-1.5 margin while Azerbaijan achieved the same result against United States. In the other important match, Hungary drew with Ukraine on all four boards. This is the best-ever finish by the Indian men in a Chess Olympiad. — PTI
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Gill in catch-up mode in Malaysia
Johor (Malaysia), August 14 After Gill, the 2013 APRC champion retired in the previous round in Australia following a crash, Kopecky opened a 39-point lead in the championship standings. Kopecky, the European champion, has 105 points to Gill's 66 while Australian Mark Pedder is third with 62. However, Gill's experience of the Malaysian Rally could prove decisive as the slippery Special Stages and tropical climate make this event of the toughest rallies in the world. While Gill will drive a brand new Race Torque-prepared Skoda Fabia S2000, Kopecky will have a new engine fitted to his car which could see them take a first-up Malaysian victory. This event is usually tricky on technical roads that are very slippery when wet," Team MRF boss, Lane Heenan said. "The temperature and humidity makes this one of the toughest rallies anywhere in the world and is a real test of the crews' stamina. Jan has been going to the sauna and wearing his overalls for the last few weeks to help get used to the conditions here, and both drivers and co-drivers will wear cool suits with ice water circulation to prevent fatigue." Team MRF will be hoping to get both cars to the finish and to consolidate their already considerable championship lead. While they're hoping for a dry event, rain in Malaysia can often be very localised, making tyre choice more difficult than at any other event in the championship. Temperatures during the day are expected to be around 30 degrees, with high humidity. The rally continues on Saturday and Sunday with 14 stages. —Agencies
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London, August 14
New Delhi, August 14
Even as the team seems to be in a state of turmoil, losing badly to England in the last two Test matches, Mahendra Singh Dhoni remains captain cool. Ask him what he’d been up to yesterday, when he didn’t practise with the Indian team, he responds simply: “I felt like taking a day off and took one.”
Mahela Jayawardene fell cheaply in his final Test as Pakistan came back strongly in the last session to grab five wickets and reduce Sri Lanka to 261 for eight on the first day of the second Test on Thursday. Dhammika Prasad was unbeaten on four at the close after captain Angelo Mathews was dismissed for 39 in the final over of the day when he was caught down the leg side off Wahab Riaz.
Murali Vijay was in the nets, having faced just a few balls, when it started to rain. It began as a light shower but grew stronger in minutes. Vijay continued to bat in the nets, even as the others sprinted to get away from the rain; Vijay then came off the field and joined the photographers, who were huddling under a small roofed area protected from rain. Vijay took a chair, closed his eyes and straightaway seemed to have reached a higher state of meditation. "You all right there?" bowling coach Joe Dawes called out to Vijay, who was at a mental space where no human voice could be heard. So Vijay kept his eyes closed, his mouth shut, in meditation. Hopefully, the results of the meditation would be tangible, in the form of runs for India.
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