Virat ton takes India to 276 vs NZ in the 1st ODI

Sun, Nov 28 10 01:22 PM

Guwahati, November 28 (PTI) In-form Virat Kohli struck his second consecutive ODI century as India were bowled out for 276 against an injury-ridden New Zealand in their five-match series opener at Nehru Stadium here today. Fresh from his back-to-back centuries in Ranji Trophy, the Delhi lad played a neat and chanceless knock as he refrained from taking any risks but at the same time rotated the strike to hit 105 from 104 balls with the help of 10 boundaries. Kohli''s fifty came from 62 balls with four boundaries and in no time he raced to his second consecutive ODI century after the one -- his careerbest 118 -- against the Aussies in Visakhapatnam. But before he could better his ODI best score, Kohli was dismissed by left-arm pacer Andy McKay who had figures of four for 62 bowling to a primarily off-side. After Kohli''s dismissal, India''s lower order collapsed -- five wickets falling with addition of 26 runs -- as they were bundled out in 49 overs. The new look Team India under Gautam Gambhir was put into to bat after New Zealand stand-in skipper Ross Taylor won the toss with regular captain Daniel Vettori along with Brendon McCullum pulling out this morning. While Vettori had a stiff back, McCullum had problems of back spasms. True to its character, the early morning start on the Nehru Stadium strip tested the Indian opening duo as the Kiwi new ball bowlers, Kyle Mills and Daryl Tuffey, extracted some fine seam movements early on. India started off rather sloppily when Vijay edged past second slip, while Gambhir was beaten by Tuffey on more than one occasions as the duo survived some nervous moments before getting their act together. Vijay looked in fine touch as he struck five clean boundaries to race to 29 from 32 balls the opening duo did not look in any pressure in absence of Virender Sehwag. Gambhir looked to attack the New Zealand bowlers and survived a run-out chance as the opening duo were not afraid to take risk that saw Indian run-rate going over six in the wicket that began to ease on. An overanxious shot off Tuffey did Vijay in as the 44 runs stand was broken in the eighth over. Vijay''s lofted shot took the top-edge as wicketkeeper Gareth Hopkins took a brilliant catch running backwards. The pitch looked perfect for batting beside the odd ball that bounced as Gambhir looked unaffected by his partner''s dismissal, while Kohli gave a fine support playing sensibly. Gambhir fell early in what came as a soft dismissal as the partnership yielded 48 before McKay took the skipper''s wicket. .

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Sports should be lead by sportsmen: Kapil Dev

Published>Sun, Nov 28 10 01:08 PM

Bangalore, November 28 (ANI): Former cricketer Kapil Dev said that Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) should have a cricketer as its Chief. He said this on Saturday while speaking to the reporters on the sidelines of a function organised by a brand in Bangalore. Karnataka State Cricket Association has recently elected Anil Kumble India's former bowler as its President.

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Warne's 'shiny' makeover sets tongues wagging!

Published>Sun, Nov 28 10 12:38 PM

Melbourne, Nov 28 (ANI): Shane Warne's new looks have become the talk of the town.

The spin legend has left everyone awestruck with amazingly improved looks on his teeth, tan, hair tips and thinness.

Warne's appearance on the Ashes coverage and the first episode of his own chat show 'Warnie' last week revealed plenty of action behind the scenes.

His teeth are whiter than piano keys, and look even brighter against his tandoori tan and the blond tips in the hair positively sparkle under the studio lights and he's slim enough to inspire jokes about raiding his mum's medicine cabinet again.

Plastic surgeons said there was no sign of any nips and tucks but do rule not rule out the possibility of little Botox at some places.

"There's no sign of recent surgery, that's not to say he's never had anything done. He's had his teeth whitened which would most likely have been done through laser whitening or he's had veneers put on," News.com.au quoted a plastic surgeon from Bondi, Robert Drielsma, as saying.

Other surgeons delivered a frank assessment on Warnie's looks.

"He's not a masterpiece but he's got a nice face. His teeth are too shiny - they're overdone. You put some black bits in there and he'd look like a piano," said Sydney plastic surgeon Howard Torres. (ANI)

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Johnson needs urgent correction to technique to remain potent bowling force: Fleming

Published>Sun, Nov 28 10 12:18 PM

Sydney, Nov 28(ANI): Former Australian bowler Damien Fleming believes that Mitchell Johnson must address some technical deficiencies to rediscover his match-winning form.

Figures of 0-66 from 15 overs in England's first innings at the Gabba continued a worrying run of form for Johnson, who has taken 11 wickets at 49.45 since Australia's Test series against Pakistan in July.

"I think there is something wrong with his technique, but it's no different to two years ago. If it's not going to change now, I don't know if it ever will. It only takes a drop of 10 per cent for things to start going wrong," News.com.au quoted Fleming, as saying.

"Mitch has some technical issues and it can't be changed from Test to Test. I think he needs a good couple of months of remedial work and making sure he gets into a position to release the ball with a stable seam. Where he is now, I think that's miles away," he added.

The 40-year-old is however confident that the left-handed fast bowler would strike back soon.

"I like Mitch in the team. He does have a lot to offer. He has an excellent bouncer, a good slower ball and he has variety, but when you're not at the peak of your form, you keep striving to get your stock ball right and you forget your variety," Fleming said.

"It wasn't the worst I've seen him bowl the other day, (against England), but mentally he needs to be strong with his body language," he added. (ANI)

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Kochi owners make last ditch attempt to save franchise

Sun, Nov 28 10 11:52 AM

Mumbai, Nov 28 (PTI) The owners of the beleaguered Kochi IPL franchise have made a last ditch attempt to save the outfit by reaching a compromise, sources said today. "Apparently, Kochi sent across some sort of correspondence last evening to the BCCI but it is upto the cricket board to accept that," sources close to the development told PTI. "We do not yet know that they (BCCI) will be convinced. Else they will float the tenders (for a new team)," they added. The IPL Governing Council is meeting in Nagpur today to take a call on the fate of the franchise. The investor group of the franchise, which was earlier bought for a staggering sum of Rs 1533.33 crore, had written to the BCCI informing them of their intention to withdraw from the IPL, two days before the expiry of the 30-day notice period which ended yesterday. The BCCI, which had on October 10, expelled Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals from the IPL for allegedly violating contractual agreements, had given the termination of 30 days to sort out is internal disputes regarding the shareholding pattern of the franchise.

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Inspired England bowling in Ashes opener hardest I've ever had to face: Haddin

Published>Sun, Nov 28 10 11:36 AM

Brisbane, Nov 28(ANI): Australia's centurion in the Ashes opener in Brisbane, wicketkeeper-batsman Brad Haddin, has said that England's bowling on day three was the toughest he has ever had to face in Test cricket.

Haddin's comments came after he shared a 307-run game-changing partnership with Michael Hussey, as Australia made 481 in their first innings reply to England's score of 260.

"The first hour and a half was probably the hardest Test bowling I've ever had to face. It was a pretty conscious effort to make sure we got through that unscathed and hopefully at the back end of that we might be able to get on top of the bowling and bat with a bit more freedom," the Telegraph quoted Haddin, as saying.

"But that first period was the toughest Test cricket you can get with (James) Anderson and (Stuart) Broad bowling. The pleasing thing is that we came through the other side and put the result on the board that we did," he added.

Haddin (136) and Hussey (195)'s partnership is the third highest for the sixth wicket in Australian Test history, 39 runs shy of the 346 by Don Bradman and Jack Fingleton against England at the MCG in 1936-37.

Meanwhile, Hussey said that it was a very satisfying achievement to score a hundred, and it is something that he "would remember for the rest of his life".

"There was a bit of relief, a bit of excitement and there were great emotions running through the body and I'll remember that for a long time," Hussey said.

"I've still got plenty of adrenaline running through my body, so I might have a struggle to get off to sleep tonight. I'm sure I will be playing some shots through my mind," he added. (ANI)

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CVC raises questions on high cost of CWG stadia

Sun, Nov 28 10 11:06 AM

Ashwini Shrivastava New Delhi, Nov 28 (PTI) The Central Vigilance Commission has found serious procedural lapses and vast differences between the estimated and tendered costs in the development of almost all the Commonwealth Games venues here. It has sought clarification from the authorities concerned on this as the difference in cost ranged from 30 per cent to nearly 100 per cent. According to an internal investigation report made after inspecting the Games stadia, the Commission has noted wrong justification of rates while procuring items, poor quality of construction, grant of work to ineligible firms, rigged tender process, payment of crores of rupees for non-existent items and use of inferior products. The Games construction works related to stadia as well as other aspects which are under the scanner of the anti-corruption watchdog, were carried out by agencies like Central Public Works Department, Public Works Department, New Delhi Municipal Council, Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Delhi Development Authority and RITES, a government of India enterprise and are worth over Rs 760 crore. The Commission has found alleged financial irregularities in about 16 Games projects costing Rs 2,477.22 crore. According to the report, the authorities were far from completing construction and renovation due to various administrative lacunae and improper planning. The Commission has asked all the authorities, that undertook the construction works, to reply to its queries or observations raised by it. The report, received in response to an RTI application filed by PTI, said the construction of indoor stadium for badminton and squash for Commonwealth Games at Sirifort sports complex was given to S B E Billimoria and Company Ltd at 30.75 per cent above the estimated cost of about Rs 118.08 crore. "Most of the items (approximate 95 per cent) were non-scheduled items and their rates in estimate were based on current market rates provided by consultant having experience in such type of work. But the analysis of items prepared for justification was not shown during inspection," the examiner said in the report. "When the consultant prepared the estimate on market rates, justification of 21.91 per cent above the estimated cost within a span of approximate three months does not appear reasonable," the report said. The Commission also questioned poor quality of work and cost escalation in upgrading Shivaji stadium by an "ineligible" firm and at nearly double the estimated cost at Rs 160.27 crore. .

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Strauss stumped as Australia break through

Published>Sun, Nov 28 10 10:46 AM

Captain Andrew Strauss was out for 110 as Australia finally broke England's opening partnership on the afternoon of the fourth day of the first Ashes test against Australia on Sunday.

Stepping down the wicket to part-time bowler Marcus North's off-spin, Strauss was left stranded as Australia wicketkeeper Brad Haddin removed the bails to end the stand with Alastair Cook at 188 runs.

England, who made 260 in their first innings, were still 32 runs behind Australia's opening effort of 481 and Strauss left the field clearly furious with himself.

Out for a duck in the first innings, he had reached his 19th test century, and first since his 161 at the Lords test in the last Ashes series in July 2009, soon after lunch.

His innings was not without chances, most notably an inside edge to a Peter Siddle delivery when he was on 61 that somehow missed the wicket and a good catching chance off Doherty that Mitchell Johnson spilled when he was on 70.

The 33-year-old's stand with Cook was England's highest opening partnership in a test at the Gabba. Strauss hit 15 fours in his 224-minute innings.

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Villarreal stay in the hunt with win at Zaragoza

Published>Sun, Nov 28 10 10:06 AM

Villarreal trimmed the gap to second-placed Barcelona to four points after fine goals from Marcos Senna, Santi Cazorla and Nilmar helped them to a 3-0 win over 10-man Real Zaragoza on Saturday.

Champions Barca host unbeaten leaders Real Madrid at the Nou Camp on Monday (2000 GMT) and third-placed Villarreal seized their chance to cut the advantage held by the big two before the eagerly-anticipated "Clasico".

Zaragoza, who sacked coach Jose Aurelio Gay on Nov. 18 and gave former Mexico boss Javier Aguirre the task of avoiding relegation, remain rooted to the bottom with just eight points from 13 matches.

Pablo Osvaldo's superb volley gave Espanyol a 3-2 win at Atletico Madrid that cemented the Barcelona-based club's hold on fourth, two points behind Villarreal, while Sevilla squandered the lead and lost 3-1 at home to Getafe and stay in seventh.

Former Spain international Senna put Villarreal ahead in the ninth minute at the Romareda with a crisply-struck drive that flew through a crowd of players and fizzed past goalkeeper Leo Franco into the top corner.

Cazorla added a second nine minutes later with a clever lob and Brazilian Nilmar put the game beyond Zaragoza's reach with a neat finish in the 65th.

Zaragoza defender Matteo Contini was dismissed moments before Nilmar's goal after picking up a second yellow card.

"We need to do a huge amount of work," Aguirre, who struck the dugout in frustration after Villarreal's third goal, told a news conference.

"We have not had much time yet to work... but the reality is that we have only taken a point from two matches (since I took charge)."

TOUCHLINE CLASH

Atletico fell behind at a chilly Calderon when the referee ruled Jose Antonio Reyes had handled in the penalty area and Espanyol captain Luis Garcia thundered the spot kick in off the underside of the crossbar.

Tiago levelled for the home side on the stroke of halftime, roofing the ball after his initial header was saved by Cameroon keeper Carlos Kameni.

Joan Verdu fired Espanyol back in front shortly after the break only for Sergio Aguero to level after he was played in by strike partner Diego Forlan.

Atletico keeper David De Gea got hands to Osvaldo's powerful volley with just over 10 minutes left but could only divert the ball up and into the net.

Atletico coach Quique Sanchez Flores was sent to the stands in added time after clashing with Garcia on the touchline and had to be restrained by Kameni and other players and officials when he tried to confront Garcia again after the final whistle.

In Seville, Mali striker Frederic Kanoute struck for the home side in the 31st minute at a half-full Sanchez Pizjuan when Ivory Coast midfielder Ndri Romaric hooked the ball across the goal for his African compatriot to sidefoot past Jordi Codina.

A first-time effort from Getafe striker Miku crashed back off Andres Palop's crossbar just after the break before Manu del Moral beat the Sevilla goalkeeper from the penalty spot in the 57th and Miku added a second three minutes later.

Pedro Rios made sure of the three points when he pounced on a loose ball and smashed it high into the net in the 78th.

Real, who have lost the last four "Clasicos" but are riding high under new coach Jose Mourinho, lead Barca by a point with about a third of the season played.

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Warm wlecome for Pakistan hockey players

Sun, Nov 28 10 09:52 AM

Lahore, November 28 (PTI) The victorious Pakistan hockey team that won the gold medal at the Asian Games in Guangzhou was given a rapturous welcome on its return on Saturday night. The players were welcomed at the Allama Iqbal airport in Lahore by the President and secretary of the Pakistan Hockey Federation besides some government officials and hundreds of joyous people who appeared thrilled to greet their heroes. In a euphoric atmosphere at the airport people lifted the players on their shoulders and showered them with rose petals as others danced to drum beats to celebrate Pakistan''s first Asian Games hockey gold medal since 1990. Pakistan beat Malaysia in the final after shooting out South Korea on penalty strokes in the semi-final their only defeat came against arch-rivals India . Pakistan''s ace penalty corner specialist and goal scorer in the final, Sohail Abbas said that the tough match against India had put the players in the right frame of mind for the knockout games. "The matches against India and Korea were really hard and when we went into the final we were confident we could beat Malaysia ," Abbas said. The senior player said he was ready to play for the national team as long as the country needed him maybe even up to the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Pakistan captain, Zeeshan Ashraf said he was overwhelmed by the celebrations and joy the Asian games victory had brought to the Pakistani people. "Winning the gold medal was a big high but this is much bigger the welcome we have got today is amazing. I am thankful to God that he gave me the honour of leading the team to the victory stand," he said. President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister, Yousuf Raza Gillani have already announced cash prizes ranging upto five million rupees each for the players who will also be feted at official receptions. Pakistan manager, Khawaja Junaid said the joyous welcome given to the team proved that the sport was still very much alive in the country and the Pakistani people had not forgotten hockey despite disappointments in recent times. Goalkeeper, Salman Akbar who saved crucial penalty strokes in the semi-final against Korea said when he defended the final stroke he recited the Kalma (prayer) and kept his nerves. "I think now is the time for big organizations to come forward and support hockey, we need to find more talent and offer more incentives to players to take up hockey as a profession," Akbar said. The Asian Games title was Pakistan''s first major title win in any tournament since 1994.

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Federer scaling new heights, says Djokovic

Published>Sun, Nov 28 10 09:46 AM

Roger Federer began 2010 in devastating fashion and is ending it in unstoppable fashion too, according to Novak Djokovic who was thrashed by the Swiss in the semi-fnals of the ATP World Tour Finals on Saturday.

The Swiss made light work of world number three Djokovic with 31 winners during a 6-1 6-4 victory that set up a dream final against Rafael Nadal, with both players gunning for the $1.6 million jackpot for an undefeated champion.

Federer did not drop a set in his round-robin victories over world number seven David Ferrer, number five Andy Murray and number four Robin Soderling but he went up another level against the unfortunate Djokovic.

"Every ball kind of listens to him," Serbia's Djokovic, who can now concentrate on next week's Davis Cup final against France, told reporters. "I think he was playing unbelievable from the first moment.

"He was playing smart. He was coming in. He didn't give me any time to try to get into the match. In just half an hour, it was already 6-1."

The 29-year-old Federer, bidding for a record-equalling fifth title at the year-ending showpiece, produced a Saturday night feast for the 17,500-capacity crowd at London's O2 Arena.

Djokovic was troubled by his contact lenses during a group phase defeat by Nadal, complaining after that it was impossible to play the Spaniard with one eye.

He would have needed eyes in the back of his head to keep track of the winners that flew off Federer's racket.

The writing was on the wall for Djokovic when he dropped his first service game and he never really recovered despite a brief fightback against the Swiss who won this year's Australian Open but who has since been overshadowed by Nadal.

Federer trailed 0-3 in the second set but that just provided a platform for the 16-times grand slam champion to unleash his full arsenal as he won six of the next seven games with a series of irresistible winners.

He sealed victory with another graceful swish of his right arm to send a service winner whizzing past his opponent.

Earlier, Nadal fought his way past Britain's Andy Murray in a three-hour tussle and Federer will start as favourite in Sunday's final which will be only the second time the two players have met this year.

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New Zealand opt to bowl; Vettori left out

Published>Sun, Nov 28 10 09:36 AM

Guwahati, Nov 28 (IANS) New Zealand's stand-in captain Ross Taylor won the toss and opted to bowl against India in the first one-day international cricket match here Sunday.

New Zealand have left out their captain Daniel Vettori due to an injury.

Teams:

India: Gautam Gambhir (captain), Murali Vijay, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Yusuf Pathan, Wriddhiman Saha (wicketkeeper), R. Ashwin, Ashish Nehra, Sreesanth, Munaf Patel

New Zealand: Jamie How, Martin Guptill, Ross Taylor (captain), Scott Styris, Kane Williamson, Grant Elliott, Gareth Hopkins (wicketkeeper), Nathan McCullum, Kyle Mills, Daryll Tuffey, Andy McKay

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NZ opt to field in 1st ODI as Vettori, McCullum pull out

Sun, Nov 28 10 09:06 AM

Guwahati, November 28 (PTI) Leading the side in place of Daniel Vettori who pulled out at the last minute because of a sore back, Ross Taylor won the toss as New Zealand opted to bowl against India in the five-ODI series opener at Nehru Stadium here today. New Zealand will also be without their explosive opener Brendon McCullum who also has a recurring back spasm that had troubled him during the third Test in Nagpur. In place of McCullum, Martin Guptill will open the batting with Jamie How, while Gareth Hopkins will keep the wickets. For India, Bengal stumper Wriddhiman Saha will make his ODI debut as Gautam Gambhir opted to bring in three seamers -- Asish Nehra, Sreesanth and Munaf Patel -- and one specialist off spinner in Ravichandran Ashwin. India also brought in allrounder Yusuf Pathan as Saurabh Tiwary, Ravindra Jadeja and R Vinay Kumar have been left out of the playing XI. Teams India: Gautam Gambhir, Murali Vijay, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Yusuf Pathan, Ashish Nehra, Sreesanth, Munaf Patel and Ravichandran Ashwin. New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Jamie How, Ross Taylor (captain), Scott Styris, Kane Williamson, Grant Elliot, Gareth Hopkins (wk), Daryl Tuffey, Nathan McCullum, Kyle Mills, Andy McKay.

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Federer and Nadal set for grand finale

Published>Sun, Nov 28 10 08:46 AM

Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer set the stage for a grand finale to the men's season on Saturday when they demonstrated just what seperates them from the bunch to seal a dream final at the ATP World Tour Finals.

World number one Nadal delved deep into his seemingly inexhaustible reserves of willpower to fight off an inspired Andy Murray in a three-hour duel before Federer obliterated Novak Djokovic with a dazzling display of artistry.

Nadal described his 7-6 3-6 7-6 victory over Murray as one of his "best matches ever" while Djokovic could only stand and admire Federer's shot-making in a 6-1 6-4 masterclass at the O2 Arena.

Both men have reached the final undefeated and to add to the intrigue on Sunday they will be facing each other in London for the first time since their unforgettable 2008 Wimbledon final when Nadal snatched Federer's crown.

There is also the small matter of the $1.6 million jackpot up for grabs, although with 25 grand slam titles between them Sunday's final will transcend financial gain.

"Obviously I'm really looking forward to playing against Rafa tomorrow," Federer, who can emulate Pete Sampras and Ivan Lendl by winning the year-end title for a fifth time, told reporters. "Who wouldn't? I'm no different."

Federer conjured 31 winners in a one-sided 80-minute contest against Djokovoic, who beat him at this year's U.S. Open.

"Every ball kind of listens to him," was Djokovic's eloquent description of 16-times grand slam champion Federer's sublime performance. "He's maybe playing the best tennis in 2010."

While Federer's virtuoso display provided the gloss on a blockbuster day, the real drama happened earlier as Nadal and Murray contested one of the most memorable matches of 2010.

A ferocious encounter ebbed and flowed to keep a 17,500 sell-out crowd on the edge of their seats from the first shot to the last, both of which were ended by brutal Nadal forehands.

No wonder Murray ended up on his fourth racket before the end -- the tendon-stretching rallies often defied physics as both players extended each other to the limit.

"I think it was an incredible tennis match," Nadal told reporters. "I am very happy to beat a great champion like Andy. For me it's an amazing victory. His level is unbelievable."

Despite the pain of defeat, Murray proved that he can once again be a threat to Nadal and Federer's domination of the major prizes next year -- an opinion shared by Nadal.

"I kind of knew when I was out there that it was a great match," Murray, who will end the year fourth in the rankings, told reporters.

"The noise the crowd made when we changed ends at 6-6 in the (third set) tiebreak was incredible. It's nice in some ways to be involved in matches like that. But it's not nice losing."

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Nadal reaches London final in thriller over Murray

Published>Sun, Nov 28 10 03:06 AM

London, Nov 28 (DPA) Andy Murray saved two match points before Rafael Nadal collected himself enough to scrape through for a 7-6 (7-5), 3-6, 7-6 (8-6) win Saturday into the final of the ATP World Tour Championships.

Nadal, who lost all three group matches at the event a year ago to limp out, will play Sunday for the trophy against either Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer.

'It was a fantastic match, I'm very happy to beat a great champion like Andy,' said Nadal. 'it was an amazing victory. It was a really difficult match against one of the best players of the world.

'His level is unbelievable almost always. If he plays like this, I don't have any doubt he is going to have big chances to win very important titles.'

Murray showed grit from the start of an inspired contest in front of a home crowd of 17,000, hanging tough with his Spanish opponent who owns three of the four Grand Slam titles this season.

'It was a great match, I think both of us played very well,' said the Scot who will move back to fourth in the world to end the season. 'I probably played one bad game the whole match, or maybe just a couple of bad points.

'It was great tennis - but I'm disappointed to lose.'

Murray saved a match point in the ninth game of the final set in what turned into a three-hour, 11-minute epic, holding serve for 4-5 and breaking the Spanish world number one a game later as Nadal served for victory.

The tension notched up, with Murray reaching 6-5 with his 20th and 21st aces in the game before Nadal brought on a tiebreaker.

Even at that late point nothing was decided, with Murray going up a double mini-break 3-0 as he began with another ace only to see Nadal claw back from 4-1 down.

Murray saved another Nadal match point from a Spanish backhand error before sending a return wide. That error - Murray struck more than 50 winners on the marathon afternoon - put Nadal into winning position for the third time.

The Spaniard finally ended the drama with a ripping forehand cross-court into the corner.

'Even when I was losing 4-1, 3-0 in the final tiebreak, I was happy,' said Nadal 'I was saying, just try to be there, because there is always a chance for me.

'I was really happy because I was playing a great match. Even if I lose, I had a fantastic season.

'If I lose against Andy playing like this, just congratulate him, go home be very happy for everything, and practice for next year.'

Added Murray, who will train in the Florida heat of Miami in December: 'I want to build on this (level) for next year. It was a great match to finish the year.

'But I need to improve because I'm competing with the two best players (Nadal and Federer) of all time. So if I want to win these tournaments, I want to win the Grand Slams, I need to get better.'

Nadal improved his record against Murray to 9-4 after losing their last match in Canada during the summer following a Wimbledon semi-final win for the Spaniard.

Nadal holds winning records over both Federer (14-7) and Djokovic (16-7), defeating the Serb this week in group play at the year-end event.

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Five star Berbatov sends Man Utd back on top

Published>Sun, Nov 28 10 12:26 AM

Dimitar Berbatov scored five goals to send Manchester United roaring back to the top of the Premier League with a 7-1 rout of Blackburn Rovers at Old Trafford on Saturday.

The Bulgarian, eclipsing team mate Wayne Rooney in the England striker's first league start since the beginning of October, put in a five-star performance after wrapping up his hat-trick two minutes after the break.

Under increasing flak for a scoring drought extending back to September, Berbatov was only the fourth player to score five in a single game in the Premier League.

In the absence of champions Chelsea, who can reclaim top spot at Newcastle United on Sunday, Arsenal enjoyed a brief spell in first place after beating Aston Villa 4-2 in the early match.

United, now unbeaten for 29 games in all competitions, have 31 points from 15 games to second-placed Arsenal's 29.

Carlo Ancelotti's misfiring Chelsea, who have lost three of their last four Premier League encounters, slipped to third overall with 28 points from 14.

Manchester City, held 1-1 at Stoke City after conceding a late equaliser, stayed fourth on 26 points.

West Ham United remained bottom despite a 3-1 home win over another relegation-threatened side, Wigan Athletic, after fellow strugglers Wolverhampton Wanderers overcame Sunderland 3-2.

BLACKBURN ROASTED

Berbatov wasted no time getting on the scoresheet at Old Trafford, taking his first goal from close range in the second minute and his second in the 27th before notching a third in the 47th. He made it four in the 62nd and five eight minutes later.

"We've been waiting for that performance for weeks," said United manager Alex Ferguson. "We kept saying that our rhythm and tempo has not been good enough in the last few weeks but today it was. We found it."

The only other player to manage five for United in Ferguson's time as manager was Andy Cole and the Scot was quick to praise Berbatov and the team effort.

"There was some great football attached to those goals and getting off the mark early I think helped him (Berbatov) because he hadn't scored for 10 games," he told Sky Sports. "And that does prey on strikers' minds because that's the way they are."

South Korean forward Park Ji-sung had made it 2-0 in the 23rd while Nani scored United's fifth in the 48th with Blackburn, taken over this month by Indian poultry giant Venky's, getting a roasting.

Chris Samba scored a late consolation goal with a header seven minutes from time.

Arsenal, still smarting from their 3-2 home defeat by North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur last weekend and a 2-0 Champions League loss at Braga in midweek, eased the pain of those results with victory at Villa Park.

Arsenal went in 2-0 ahead at halftime but then allowed Villa back into the game, youngster Ciaran Clark scoring twice to set up a nervy final 20 minutes with Arsenal leading 3-2.

Marouane Chamakh had scored their third while teenage midfielder Jack Wilshere made it 4-2 deep into stoppage time when he headed in his first league goal for Arsenal.

West Bromwich Albion returned to form by trouncing Everton 4-1 at Goodison Park while Bolton Wanderers recovered from two goals down to draw 2-2 at home to Blackpool.

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Nadal holds off Murray to reach season-ender final

Sun, Nov 28 10 12:10 AM

Rafael Nadal fought off a tenacious Andy Murray to reach the final of the ATP World Tour Finals for the first time on Saturday, winning a ferocious contest 7-6 3-6 7-6 after more than three hours of graft.

The world number one will face either Roger Federer or Novak Djokovic in Sunday's showpiece.

There was nothing to separate the players in an enthralling first set in which both were rock solid on serve but Nadal edged the tiebreak to move ahead.

From 2-3 down in the second set Murray found another gear and reeled off five consecutive games and appeared to be heading for a stunning victory before Nadal roared back.

Nadal seized on a Murray lapse in the decider to break in the third game and had a match point when Murray served at 3-5, only to be stretched into another nerve-wracking tiebreak.

Murray made the better start and forged into a 4-1 lead but his relentless Spanish opponent recovered and stormed into a 6-5 lead. Murray again saved a match point but when a third opportunity arrived, Nadal sealed victory with a forehand.

Source: Published>

Baroda player Satyajit Parab hangs his boot

Sun, Nov 28 10 12:06 AM

Vadodara, Nov 27 (PTI) After playing 84 Ranji Trophy matches, opening batsman Satyajit Parab today announced his retirement from the first class cricket here. Parab had been one of the mainstays of Baroda''s batting line-up ever since he made his debut in late 1990s. In his 14 years of cricketing career, Parab has scored more than 4700 runs which included 16 centuries and 16 fifties. He started off in the middle order, but the runs began to flow when he moved up to open the innings. Talking to reporters here, he recalled how he had scored centuries in each innings. He said playing with the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Irfan Pathan was memorable. "Like any other cricketer, I had hoped to get into the national team but failed to find a place in it," he said. When Baroda won the Ranji Trophy, Parab scored 809 runs at average of 58 and followed that up with 895 runs at an average of 56 in 2002-03. His consistency in the domestic circuit -- and a knee injury to Aakash Chopra -- won him a place in the India A squad for the tour to England. When he announced his retirement from the first class cricket, no office bearer of Baroda Cricket Association was present. Irfan Pathan, who was present, said, "It was bad luck that Parab could not break into the national team despite reaching near to it." PTI SP PDS

Source: Published>

Five star Berbatov sends Man Utd back on top

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 11:28 PM

Dimitar Berbatov scored five goals to send Manchester United roaring back to the top of the Premier League with a 7-1 rout of Blackburn Rovers at Old Trafford on Saturday.

The Bulgarian, eclipsing team mate Wayne Rooney in the England striker's first league start since the beginning of October, put in a five star performance after wrapping up his hat-trick two minutes after the break.

In the absence of champions Chelsea, who can reclaim the lead at Newcastle United on Sunday, Arsenal had earlier enjoyed a brief spell in first place after beating Aston Villa 4-2 in the day's early match.

Unbeaten United now have 31 points from 15 games to Arsenal's 29.

Carlo Ancelotti's misfiring Chelsea, who have lost three of their last four Premier League encounters, fell to third overall with 28 points from 14.

Manchester City, held 1-1 at Stoke City after conceding a late equaliser, stayed fourth on 26 points.

Berbatov wasted no time in getting his name on the scoresheet, taking his first from close range in the second minute and his second in the 27th.

The fourth, again lashed in from close range, came in the 62nd and the fifth eight minutes later.

South Korean forward Park Ji-sung had made it 2-0 in the 23rd while Nani scored United's fifth in the 48th with Blackburn, taken over this month by Indian poultry giant Venky's, taking a roasting.

Chris Samba took a late consolation goal with a header seven minutes from time.

West Ham United remain bottom of the table despite a 3-1 home win over another relegation-threatened side Wigan Athletic.

Source: Web Search

Baroda player Satyajit Parab hangs his boot

Sat, Nov 27 10 10:52 PM

Vadodara, Nov 27 (PTI) After playing 84 Ranji Trophy matches, opening batsman Satyajit Parab today announced his retirement from the first class cricket here. Parab had been one of the mainstays of Baroda''s batting line-up ever since he made his debut in late 1990s. In his 14 years of cricketing career, Parab has scored more than 4700 runs which included 16 centuries and 16 fifties. He started off in the middle order, but the runs began to flow when he moved up to open the innings. Talking to reporters here, he recalled how he had scored centuries in each innings. He said playing with the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Irfan Pathan was memorable. "Like any other cricketer, I had hoped to get into the national team but failed to find a place in it," he said. When Baroda won the Ranji Trophy, Parab scored 809 runs at average of 58 and followed that up with 895 runs at an average of 56 in 2002-03. His consistency in the domestic circuit -- and a knee injury to Aakash Chopra -- won him a place in the India A squad for the tour to England. When he announced his retirement from the first class cricket, no office bearer of Baroda Cricket Association was present. Irfan Pathan, who was present, said, "It was bad luck that Parab could not break into the national team despite reaching near to it." PTI SP PDS

Source: Published>

Sri Lanka draw with Windies in rain-marred test

Sat, Nov 27 10 10:46 PM

Sri Lanka and West Indies settled for a draw in the second test on Saturday after five consecutive sessions were lost to rain.

West Indies were set a target of 202 to win in 22 overs but the match was called off with the vistors on 12-2 on the final day, with openers Chris Gayle (three) and Adrian Barath (eight) the two men out.

West Indies who resumed their first innings at 165-5 were all out for 243. Sri Lanka scored 387-9 declared and 57-1 declared.

Sri Lankan spinners cleaned up the West Indies tail before tea on the final day but the test was already heading towards a draw due to the weather conditions that marred the match.

Left-armer Rangana Herath captured three wickets for 76 and Ajantha Mendis two for 56.

Overnight pair Dwayne Bravo and Carlton Baugh had their sixth wicket stand broken by Herath, who had Bravo stumped by Prasanna Jayawardene for 20.

Debutant Suranga Lakmal picked up his second test wicket when he had West Indies captain Darren Sammy caught at square leg for a duck Herath then removed Sulieman Benn also for a duck, caught at forward short leg and Baugh bowled by a doosra for a well compiled 50.

Mendis wrapped up the innings by bowling Kemar Roach for three leaving Shane Shillingford unbeaten on five.

The series is now level at 0-0 as the first test also ended in a draw. The third and decisive test will be played in Kandy's new international venue at Pallakele from Dec 1-5.

Source: Published>

Rebel T20 league harmed budding cricketers: Atapattu

Sat, Nov 27 10 09:36 PM

Mumbai, Nov 27 (PTI) Having been part of the disbanded Indian Cricket League (ICL), former Sri Lankan skipper Marvan Atapattu feels that the rebel T20 league has only harmed the future of budding cricketers. "ICL did not do any harm to people like us but there was not much support lent to them by the people who endorsed it. For a 35-36 year old it was an ideal scenario as the career is over but for a 20-year old, it was a pure damage," Atapattu told reporters on the sidelines of an interactive session with sports management students here. Talking about Sachin Tendulkar, Atapattu, who played in 90 Test matches and 268 ODIs, said the batting maestro fully deserves the feat of completing 50 centuries. "Sachin is a fantastic cricketer and has not changed in the last 25 years and neither has his records. He had given us many bad memories. He is such a humble person no matter who you are I wish him all the best and hope that he gets his 50 (centuries) soon," he said. "I know that he has not won a World Cup yet. I don''t wish him too much for that as I want Sri Lanka to win the World Cup," he added. Atapattu said the felicitation of Tendulkar by Cricket South Africa (CSA) was just one of the many in the champion batsman''s glorious career. "I feel that the CSA felicitating him is just another thing for him, as he will have more celebrations and felicitations than his runs," the 40-year-old said. MORE PTI VKV ABC PDS

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Arsenal beat Villa 4-2 to go top in England

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 09:26 PM

Arsenal took over at the top in England, at least for a couple of hours, after overcoming Aston Villa 4-2 on Saturday with Jack Wilshere scoring his first Premier League goal for the Gunners.

Arsene Wenger's men, still smarting from their 3-2 defeat to North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur last weekend and a 2-0 Champions League loss to Braga in midweek, eased a point clear of champions Chelsea who are at Newcastle United on Sunday.

Manchester United, with Wayne Rooney in the starting line-up against 11th-placed Blackburn Rovers at Old Trafford, are level on 28 points with Chelsea and can leapfrog Arsenal later on Saturday.

Arsenal missed a fistful of chances at a freezing Villa Park while youngster Ciaran Clark scored twice for the home side in the second half to turn what should have been a comfortable afternoon for the Gunners into a nervy final 20 minutes.

The first half was all Arsenal, with Villa flattered to stay on level terms for 39 minutes before a defensive howler allowed Andrei Arshavin to scamper into the box and beat the outstretched Brad Friedel.

Samir Nasri could have made it 2-0 a minute later after being played through and rounding Friedel only to see his tightly angled shot hit the side netting.

Friedel had to make another crucial save from a powerful Marouane Chamakh header in the 44th before Nasri finally got on the scoresheet on the stroke of halftime.

The Frenchman's volleyed shot off a floating Arshavin corner took a deflection off Villa defender Luke Young with Friedel diving in vain to keep it out.

Villa's French manager Gerard Houllier took off former Arsenal midfielder and compatriot Robert Pires at half time and they were a changed side after the break.

Clark chested the ball down on the edge of the area in the 52nd minute and lashed it past Lukasz Fabianski to pull a goal back, although team mate John Carew appeared to be in an offside position.

The Villa joy was short-lived, with Chamakh restoring the two goal advantage in the 56th with a right-footed prod at full stretch past Friedel as the American rushed in desperately to smother.

Clark restored their hopes with Richard Dunne nodding on the ball from a corner for him to head home in the 70th.

Teenage midfielder Wilshere, who signed a new long-term contract only this month after making his England debut in August, then made sure of all three points with a diving header three minutes into stoppage time.

Source: Web Search

Ashok Kumar clinches DDA Open golf title

Sat, Nov 27 10 08:52 PM

New Delhi, Nov 27 (PTI) Delhi golfer Ashok Kumar clinched the DDA Open title with a mammoth 10-stroke victory after he posted a sublime eight under 62 in the final round here today. Ashok Kumar ended the tournament with an impressive total of 20 under 260. Chandigarh''s Sujjan Singh shot a three under 67 to finish a distant second at 10 under 270. Vijay Kumar finished third with nine under 271 after his final round 67. Gaurav Pratap Singh claimed fourth position with an eight under 272 total. Vikrant Chopra and Naman Dawar finished one stroke behind Gaurav in tied fifth. Ashok Kumar (63-68-67-62) began with a flurry of birdies on the first, second and fourth to launch an early assault for the title at the Qutab Golf Course. His tremendous hitting prowess ensured that he left himself birdie putts of two feet or less on these three holes. The mercurial Ashok stepped on the gas with more birdies on the ninth, 10th and 12th to all but seal the title. He sank an 18 feet putt for birdie on the ninth. As he regained his touch with the putter, the leader secured two more birdies from 10 feet on the 15th and 16th. Ashok wrapped up his second straight win on the Aircel PGTI and overall fourth win of the season. The triumph also happened to be the Delhi golfer''s 11th success on the Aircel PGTI and he is now tied with Mukesh Kumar for the maximum number of titles on the tour. "My putting form had deserted me in previous rounds but fortunately that was not the case today. The brilliant start lifted my confidence and there was no looking back from there on," said Ashok. "The 2010 season is turning out to be an exceptional one for me and I attribute this golden run to my improved mental strength. I have worked on my mental fitness this year and as a result I am not making as many errors as I used to earlier," he said. The winner''s cheque of Rs 484,950 has consolidated the Delhi golfer''s position at the top of the Rolex Rankings. He is now sitting pretty at number one with earnings of Rs 4,893,092 for the year. Anirban Lahiri is in second position as he has so far earned Rs 3,736,208 in the 2010 season. Sujjan Singh (68-66-69-67), a winner on the Aircel PGTI earlier this year, was the only other golfer besides Ashok who recorded four under par scores this week. The Chandigarh golfer''s runner-up finish secured him his fourth top-10 of the year.

Source: Published>

Asian Games medal table

Sat, Nov 27 10 08:46 PM

REUTERS - Medal table after the final day of competition at the Asian Games on Saturday.

Gold Silver Bronze Total

China 199 119 98 416

South Korea 76 65 91 232

Japan 48 74 94 216

Iran 20 14 25 59

Kazakhstan 18 23 38 79

Source: Published>

Rolon honours for Saran Vikram

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 08:36 PM

Chennai, Nov 27 (IANS) Young Saran Vikram of Mars Racing consolidated his position at the top of the leaderboard in the Formula Rolon class by chalking up his fourth win of the series in the penultimate round of the 13th JK Tyre National Racing Championship here Saturday.

With the expected rains holding off, barring an occasional light drizzle, the conditions were just about perfect for racing and Vikram underlined his dominance with a start-to-finish performance as he spared over two seconds to Chitesh Mandody (Mohites Racing) at the finish.

The victory took Vikram's tally to 43 while his nearest championship rival Sarosh Hataria (Meco Racing) who has 29 points, retired due to technical problems while Mandody jumped to second spot from fourth with 34.

Meanwhile, championship leader in both Super Saloons and Polo Cup classes, Sailesh Bolisetti of Visakhapatnam, barely survived a wretched day to drop vital points.

The 21-year old from RAD Racing team finished fifth in the Super Saloons that fetched him a mere three points that took his tally to 71 as against Siddharth Kishore (Performance Racing) who moved to 53 following a second place finish behind Raj Viruthan (Prime Racing) in an incident-packed race.

Veteran C. Rajaram (Prime Racing) came in third, but behind the top three there was considerable jostling and shunting that however did not impact the final outcome.

Bolisetti could qualify only fifth on the grid in the Polo Cup and will have to extend himself on the morrow when the race would be run.

In the Formula LGB Swift class, the seasoned Ameya Walavalkar (TVS Girling) picked up 10 points from his third win of the championship to stay in contention for the title.

However, Walavalkar still has much to do as he is on 53, 16 behind leader Ajay Kini (Wallace Sports) who was second in the race, ahead of team-mate Gautam Parekh (50) who slipped to third position in the championship standings.

The results:

Super Saloon (Race 1): Raj Viruthan (Prime Racing) 1 (20mins, 40.323 secs); Siddharth Kishore (Performance Racing) 2 (20:40.465); C Rajaram (Prime Racing) 3 (21:09.987).

Formula LGB Swift (Race 1): Ameya Walavalkar (TVS Girling) 1 (19:48.430); Ajay Kini (Wallace Sports) 2 (19:49.308); Gautam Parekh (Wallace Sports) 3 (19:50.034).

Formula Rolon (Race 1): Saran Vikram (Mars Racing) (18:54.500) 1 ; Chittesh Mandoy (Mohites Racing) 2 (18:56.522); G Vikas Anand (VAD-RAD Racing) 3 (19:17.354).

Source: Web Search

SPORT-RACE

Sat, Nov 27 10 08:22 PM

Bangalore, Nov 27 (PTI) Following are the seventh day races held here today. 1st race: Sirsi Plate - 1100 M. Cortina (Dr and Mrs Vijay Mallya rep. Utd Rac & B''Stk Breeders Ltd) 53.5 Vinod Shinde first Celebrity 53.5 C D Hayes second Waikato 55 Ryan Marshall third Brilliance 53.5 A.Imran Khan fourth All ran Won by: LNK, 4 L and 1-1/2 Ls Time : One minute: 09.75 seconds Tote : Rs 445 for win. Rs 57, Rs 11 and Rs 14 for places Winner trained by : J S Dhariwal Favourite : Celebrity Forecast : Rs 359 Quinella : Rs 179 SHP : Rs 45 Trin : 70 pct Rs 1248 : 30 pct Rs 579..

Source: Published>

China take last gold before athletes' farewell

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 08:16 PM

China's women volleyballers clinched the last gold medal at the Guangzhou Asian Games on Saturday as organisers prepared to say farewell to nearly 10,000 athletes under a tight security blanket.

Having already smashed through their 183 gold record at the 1990 Games, the hosts were determined to end the party just as they had begun it, with a relentless march to the podium accompanied by ecstatic cheers from home fans.

Two weeks after Chinese Wushu fighter Yuan Xiaochao snatched the first gold of the Games, China's women came back from a two-set deficit to sink South Korea in the volleyball final.

The title brought the hosts their 199th gold medal, but delegation chiefs said there was still work to be done.

"Although we have a relatively large amount of gold medals, only a few attained world standards and most of them lacked the competitive standard of the Olympics," deputy chef de mission Duan Shijie told reporters.

"The situation in the lead-up to the London Olympics is grim and we can not rest on our laurels."

Security forces were also on high alert in the centre of Guangzhou, with roads closed off and scores of police gathering at residential compounds near Haixinsha island, the venue of both the opening and closing ceremonies.

"We just wanted to see the venue, but the police and volunteers would not allow visitors," said Pang Bin, a retired 57-year-old, touring Guangzhou with his wife. "So disappointed."

Guangzhou organisers have promised another visual spectacular to say goodbye to the 45 delegations that have participated in the mammoth programme of 42 sports.

LION DANCE

Athletes arrived at the water-themed opening ceremony on a flotilla of boats down the Pearl River, but on Saturday they will walk into a glimmering opera house to be entertained by folk and a traditional lion dance.

South Korean pop-singer Rain was also scheduled to perform as part of the handover ceremony for the Games next hosts, Incheon in 2014.

Earlier, Zhou Chunxiu gave China gold in the women's marathon, ahead of team mate Zhu Xiaolin.

The battle for medals in the men's marathon was more heated with gold medallist Ji Young-jun of South Korea and Kenya-born Mubarak Shami of Qatar sniping at each other for a large part of the race.

After Ji ran into Shami's heels, the hot-tempered Qatari cuffed the South Korean on his shoulder and scolded him angrily. "It really upset me ... But I don't think he meant to do it," Shami said.

BEST FOR LAST

Military-ruled Myanmar saved their best for last by winning their only two gold medals on the last day in the men's and women's doubles sepaktakraw.

The tight victory over South Korea in the men's final proved too dramatic for team leader Nyan Htun who fainted and was sent to hospital on a stretcher.

"He was shocked ... and just collapsed," head coach Kyaw Zin Moe told Reuters as medics checked his vital signs.

While China's athletes dominated, Japan lost their battle for runner-up bragging rights to South Korea, who managed 76 golds to their rivals' 48 and cut into Japan's traditional strongholds of judo, wrestling and swimming.

"Our results are not good and this is Japan's sporting level in Asia right now. It's painful but we have to recognise that," Japan chef de mission Noriyuki Ichihara said.

Organisers basked in the glow of praise from Olympic Council of Asia president Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah who described the Games as "extraordinary", despite earlier rapping officials over half-full venues and excessive security measures.

"This is the best Games now. And at Doha I was saying that it was the best Games. And I hope that at Incheon we'll say it was the best Games," Sheikh Ahmad told Reuters as he was ushered into a courtesy car.

The OCA President also praised North and South Korean athletes who battled tooth and nail for titles ranging from wrestling to archery amid the worst military flare-up between war-time foes in decades.

"We are very sorry for what is happening between the two Koreas. Here we are sports people and the athletes have participated shoulder to shoulder without any problems in our Asian Games," he said.

Source: Web Search

NZ ODI series chance for India to regain 2nd spot in ODIs

Sat, Nov 27 10 08:06 PM

Dubai, Nov 27 (PTI) India stand in with a chance to regain the second position in the ICC ODI Championship table when they take on New Zealand in the five-match series that begins in Guwahati tomorrow. Currently Sri Lanka is in the second spot with 118 points - one ahead of India but a win in the series by any margin against New Zealand will see India upstage the islanders. A 5-0 win for India will put it on 121 ratings points - seven behind Australia who currently top the table. And even if Sri Lanka register a 5-0 win over West Indies in their upcoming ODI series, they will have to sit out in the third position. But if India lose the series 0-5 to New Zealand it would see them drop to the fifth spot. However, a 2-3 series defeat will see India drop down fourth on 114 points while New Zealand will rise to the sixth position on 101 points.

Source: Published>

India's best-ever medal tally at the Asian Games

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 07:56 PM

Guangzhou, Nov 27 (IANS) India came up with their best ever medal tally in any Asian Games at the Guangzhou games which ended here Saturday.

India's 14 gold medals are one less than their best-ever gold tally of 15 at the inaugural Games in Delhi in 1951, when only 11 countries and 489 athletes took part, and one better than their tally at home in the 1982 New Delhi Games.

The 64 medals also bettered New Delhi Games tally of 57 - 13 gold, 19 silver and 25 bronze.

China (199-119-98), South Korea (76-65-91), Japan (48-74-94), Iran (20-14-25), and Kazakhstan (18-23-38) are above India in medals tally in that order.

Total Gold Silver Bronze

14 17 33

Athletics 5 2 4

Boxing 2 3 4

Tennis 2 1 2

Kabaddi 2 - -

Shooting 1 3 4

Rowing 1 3 1

Billiards 1 1 2

Archery - 1 2

Wushu - 1 1

Golf - 1 -

Sailing - 1 -

Squash - - 3

Wrestling - - 3

Chess - - 2

Roller Sports - - 2

Gymnastics - - 1

Hockey - - 1

Swimming - - 1

Source: Web Search

Hooda congratulates Haryana''s Asian Games medal winners

Sat, Nov 27 10 07:36 PM

Chandigarh, Nov 26 (PTI) Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has congratulated athletes of the state for their sterling performance in the 16th Asian Games which concluded in Guangzhou, China today. Haryana athletes have won three gold, six silver and six bronze medals in the quadrennial event. Apart from this feat, Haryana players formed the core of India''s men and women kabaddi teams, which won gold medal in both the categories. As many as seven kabaddi players are from Haryana in the kabaddi team, two athletes in the women gold medal winning kabaddi side and three the national hockey team which bagged the bronze. While lauding the players for their continued excellent performance, Hooda said the athletes of the state have won more than 25 per cent of the total medals won by the country and out of total 61 players participating in the Games, more than 26 players have already got a medal or two on their chest. Thus 43 per cent of Haryana players have contributed in national quest for medals in Asiad, which might be highest percentage of success rate for any state or country, he added. Hooda said that Haryana players like Vijender Singh, Vikas Krishan, Sanam Singh, Kaptan Singh, Manisha, Dinesh, Abhinav Lohan, Gagan Narang, Annu Raj Singh, Sanjeev Rajput, Ravinder, Kavita Goyat, Paramjeet Samota, Mausam Khatri and Krishna Poonia have made the state and the country proud by winning medals in the mega-event. .

Source: Published>

Nayar, Agarkar help Mumbai edge out Assam

Sat, Nov 27 10 07:22 PM

Mumbai, Nov 27 (PTI) An aggressive century by Abhishek Nayar and a vital cameo by veteran Ajit Agarkar helped hosts Mumbai edge out visitors Assam in an exciting battle for the first innings lead on the fourth and final day of the Ranji Trophy Super League Group A match here today. Replying to Assam''s 298, Mumbai made 318 in their first innings, thanks to Nayar''s quickfire 122 and a useful 29 by Agarkar, who added 27 runs for the 10th wicket with last man Dhawal Kulkarni (11 not out) to help the hosts cross the visitor''s total. Assam reached 53 for three in 21 overs in their second innings before both the teams agreed for a draw. Earlier, resuming at an overnight score of 91 for the loss of three wickets, Mumbai began well with the overnight pair of Sahil Kukreja and Nayar adding further 127 runs in about 24 overs to the tally before being separated. The duo, who had come together when Mumbai were reeling at 47-3, added 171 runs for the fourth wicket before pacer Dhiraj Goswami disturbed Kukreja''s timber. Kukreja made a crucial 76 off 161 balls with the help of 10 fours. From here, off-spinner Arlen Konwar took over and scalped five wickets as Mumbai, who were 218-3 at one stage, slumped to 291-9 before Agarkar ensured them the three points. Nayar was the sixth man out with the score at 265. His 122 came off 143 balls, a strike rate of over 85, with the help of 12 fours and two sixes. For Assam, Konwar ended with figures of 5-101, while Goswami took three wickets while conceding 77 runs. Brief scores: Assam 298 and 53-3 (D Jadhav 21 not out; I Abdulla 3-22) Mumbai 318 (Abhishek Nayar 122, S Kukreja 76; A Konwar 5-101, D Goswami 3-77).

Source: Published>

Equatorial Guinea,Nigerian footballers caught up in gender row

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 07:08 PM

London, Nov.27 (ANI): To field one man in a women's football team may be regarded as unfortunate. To field two looks like carelessness, or blatant cheating.

This is the accusation levelled at Equatorial Guinea, the tiny west African country, with a population of 650,000, reports the Guardian.

Several rival teams in the recent African women's championship complained that two of its players - the captain, Genoveva Anonma, and a striker, Salimata Simpore - had one Y chromosome too many.

According to the paper, African football's governing body is investigating claims that one player who lined up in this month's final is a man. It is not clear whether this refers to Anonma or Simpore.

The inquiry follows a complaint by the Nigerian Football Federation over "the gender status" of a player.

"The protest is on. We have lodged our protest with CAF [the Confederation of African Football]," NFF spokesman Robinson Okosun, was quoted, as saying.

Equatorial Guinea, one of the smallest countries in Africa, saw off opposition including the hosts, South Africa, on their way to the final and qualification for the women's World Cup.

Okusun said that the CAF sports medicine committee would provide further information on this case as soon as some other details emerge.

For the record, Nigeria beat Equatorial Guinea, the defending champions, 4-2 in the final. Both go through to the World Cup in Germany next June and July. (ANI)

Source: Web Search

Guangzhou Asian Games "one of best ever": OCA president

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 06:52 PM

Guangzhou (China), Nov.27 (ANI): The Asian Games in Guangzhou would go down in history as "one of the best ever", Olympic Council of Asia President Sheikh Ahmad Al Fahad Al Sabah said on Saturday.

The 16th Asian Games were unprecedented in both size and scale in the 59-year history of the quadrennial event. More than 10,000 athletes from 45 countries and regions have participated in a record 42 sports ranging from archery to chess.

On the last day of the two-week-long competition, Xinhua quoted Sheikh Ahmad as telling a press conference held at the Main Press Center that the OCA was satisfied with the Chinese organizers' work.

"The city of Guangzhou has done a very great job for the Asian Olympic Movement and for the Asian Olympic family," he said.

"It was one of the best ever (edition) in the history of Asian Olympic Movement."

"Our target is to make the Asian Games better, and this is our job," said Sheikh Ahmad. "Each Games have different aims, have different situations."

Wei Jizhong, OCA's deputy honorary life president from China, echoed these comments. (ANI)

Source: Web Search

We would like to rectify our mistakes, says Vettori

Sat, Nov 27 10 05:06 PM

Guwahati, November 27 (PTI) New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori wants to come out of their humiliating 0-4 series loss to Bangladesh by rectifying their mistakes against India in the five-match ODI series that begins with the match at Nehru Stadium, here tomorrow. Talking to the reporters on the eve of the match, Vettori said a series win would help before they return to India again for the upcoming World Cup in February-April. "It''s important in our build up to the World Cup. I know we had a disappointing series over there (Bangladesh). "We have come here to rectify that in a lot of ways. There are some changes, some good experienced players coming back into the team. "We will see how we go. The side will miss the services of their in-form batsman Jesse Ryder who had a superb run in the recently concluded Test series but Vettori said it would help the youngsters in the side to cement their place. "Jesse Ryder will definitely come into the picture (for the World Cup) with what he has done. But he has injury now so this is a chance to have a look at others. For people looking towards World Cup, it''s about playing every game and winning them. Both teams would like to win every game to get some confidence going into the World Cup," he said. Vettori said the toss would not be crucial in the result of the match. "The last two times the team won the toss have batted first and went on to lose the game. So it should not affect the game." On the wicket, Vettori said, "Traditionally, it''s played pretty slow here. With such an early start, probably it will go slower and slower as the game progresses. Asked about the team composition, Vettori said: "We will have a look at the wicket in the morning because it''s such an early start." India are fielding a second string side but Vettori said the hosts are still capable of upstaging them. Asked about the new look Indian side, Vettori said: "Few of them played in the IPL. We know most of them pretty well. They are all good players and they must be in form to be selected for India. We know how dangerous they can be. We are not underestimating the Indian team." Asked about opener Jamie How would be looking to seal his berth before the World Cup, Vettori said, "Anyone coming back into the side means that he is in form at the domestic level. He is a quality player. We are hoping that he makes it this time around," Vettori said.

Source: Published>

Chelsea must get tough to win Premier League title: Mikel

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 04:36 PM

London, Nov. 27 (ANI): Chelsea's Nigerian football star John Obi Mikel has told his team mates to get tough if they want to win this year's Premier League title.

The injury-hit Blues have lost three of their last four league games.

"We used to tend to push teams aside even when we were not playing well. It's kind of a struggle for us," The Sun quoted Mikel, as saying.

The champions are without skipper John Terry, Frank Lampard and Michael Essien for tomorrow's clash at Newcastle.

"When the season started everybody said that Chelsea would go unbeaten. We were playing very well, creating chances and scoring goals. We got used to the first-team players and now most of them are not there. No disrespect to those playing now but we are missing these players," Mikel said. (ANI)

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CWG scam: Jayachandran sent to 11 days'' judicial custody

Sat, Nov 27 10 04:22 PM

New Delhi, Nov 27 (PTI) A Delhi court today sent former CWG Organising Committee official M Jayachandran to 11 days'' judicial custody in the case related to alleged financial bunglings in conduct of the Queen''s Baton Relay (QBR) in London last year. Special CBI Judge A S Yadav remanded Jayachandran to judicial custody till December 8. Jayachandran, who was arrested on November 23, moved a bail application and the court posted the matter for hearing on it on December 8. The court had earlier remanded two other sacked CWG OC officials T S Darbari and Sanjay Mahendroo, who were arrested on November 15, to judicial custody till December 8. All the accused had been sent to Tihar Jail after the CBI told the court that they were no longer required for interrogation by the agency. CBI had lodged two separate cases against the former OC officials. The first case, registered under IPC and Prevention of Corruption Act, pertained to the award of contract to AM car and Van Hire Limited for various functions related to the conduct of the QBR, preceding the sporting event. They have been booked under sections 468 (forgery of court records and public documents), 471 (using forged documents as genuine), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC and Prevention of Corruption Act. The second case involves A M Films and the probe agency had named Patel, Mahendroo, Darbari and others under sections 420 (cheating), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC and Prevention of Corruption Act.

Source: Published>

'PCB to give "fair chance" to Zulqarnain to explain his position before taking any action'

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 04:16 PM

Lahore, Nov 27 (ANI): The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has said that it would give a 'fair chance' to runaway wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider to explain his position, before taking any disciplinary action against him for deserting the team midway through the series against South Africa in the UAE earlier this month.

"The board will decide on how to deal with the Zulqarnain issue on basis of the findings of the fact finding committee that has investigated the entire episode. But in any case the player will be given a fair chance to give his side of the story," the Daily Times quoted PCB legal adviser Tafazzuil Rizvi, as saying on Friday.

Rizvi added that a lot of would depend on what the fact-finding committee would provide to the board.

"We will act on basis of the committee's report. In legal terms there is no doubt that he (Zulqarnain) has committed a breach of his contract by leaving the team hotel without informing anyone," Rizvi said.

"But even if we decide that there is enough ground to take disciplinary action against him we will not do it before sending him a notice and giving him a chance to respond to us," he maintained, adding, "If he doesn't respond then the board is legally in a position as his employer to take ex-parte action against him."

The fact-finding committee is due to submit its report to the board within two or three days, according to its head and Pakistan team manager Intikhab Alam.

"Whatever information we have managed to collect on the incident, we will give it to the board in two or three days time. We have tried to get maximum information on this episode which was not good for Pakistan cricket," Alam said.

Earlier this month, Zulqarnain had left the entire cricket world stunned when he fled from his team hotel in Dubai without informing anyone, hours before the fifth and final one-day international against South Africa.

Later that day, he showed up in London, where he is seeking temporary asylum, and revealed that he took the sudden decision after getting death threats from bookmakers. (ANI)

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Pakistan slams India over no-show at Asiad cricket tournament

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 04:06 PM

Guangzhou, Nov 27 (ANI): Pakistan has slammed India for snubbing the XVIth Asian Games by refusing to send its cricket team there.

Pakistan coach Sadiq Mohammad insisted that more pressure should have been put on India to respect the Guangzhou tournament, The News reported.

"India said they would come and they said cricket should be in the Asian Games. God knows why they are not here. Somebody should have put added pressure on them," said Sadiq, after Pakistan's six-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in the bronze medal play-off.

India chose to give a miss to the Asian Games because of the international commitments faced by their national team, with a home series against New Zealand and an eagerly-awaited tour of South Africa about to get underway.

But Sadiq pointed out that in spite of Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh also having Test and One-day International programmes, all three still sent their second-string teams to both the men's and women's events in Guangzhou.

"India said they had to play New Zealand, but our main team had matches to play against South Africa," he argued.

"India should have taken part in the Asian Games because this would have been a great opportunity for the young players to gain experience," Sadiq added.

It is for the first time that cricket has become an official Asian Games sport. Bangladesh went on to win the first Asiad gold for their country by defeating Afghanistan in the men's final, while Pakistan clinched the women's title. (ANI)

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Ancelotti says he's 'safe' but under pressure as Chelsea manager

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 03:36 PM

London, Nov 27 (ANI): Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti has admitted that he is under pressure to get his team to perform, but insists that club owner Roman Abramovich is "happy" for him to stay on despite the team's latest flop.

"Roman is happy when the team plays good football and he was happy after the game at Birmingham. The owner doesn't put me under pressure, he always supports me," The Sun quoted Ancelotti, as saying.

However, Ancelotti admitted that things must improve immediately, starting with today's match against Newcastle.

"You only have to look at results to see I am under pressure. But to be under pressure doesn't mean I am not safe," Ancelotti said.

"We've had a lot of criticism lately and I agree with it. There is good reason to be critical after recent results," he added. (ANI)

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Latif backs Afghanistan to gain Test status

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 03:08 PM

Sydney, Nov 27(ANI): Afghanistan coach Rashid Latif has said that Test status for his team could prove vital for development of the game in the war-torn country.

Latif, a former Pakistan wicketkeeper, also said that the Afghanistan team, which had qualified for this year's Twenty20 World Cup, was already better than Test strugglers Bangladesh.

"I'm not interested in Twenty20 cricket or 50-overs cricket. We need to compete in Test cricket. If a country has Test cricket you can improve your cricket at the grassroots level," the Sydney Morning Herald quoted Latif, as saying.

"Bangladesh had Test cricket [from 2001] and after that they greatly improved, but I think this Afghanistan side is better than their current team. In two or three years we should be ready to apply for Test status," he added.

Latif's comment comes after he masterminded Afghanistan's silver medal winning effort in the Guangzhou Asian Games men's Twenty20 cricket event. (ANI)

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Gambhir bats for Yuvraj

Sat, Nov 27 10 02:52 PM

Tapan Mohanta Guwahati, Nov 27 (PTI) Pleading with the media to be lenient on Yuvraj Singh, India captain Gautam Gambhir today strongly stood behind the stylish Punjab batsman who has been under constant scrutiny and immense pressure. Terming Yuvraj as the one of the best match-winners India has produced, Gambhir said, "We are just making too much of Yuvraj Singh. We are trying to scrutinise him too much -- what he is doing and not doing. Give him some time, let him be what he is. He is such a great player. Be a little lenient on him and don''t try to scrutinise him too much." Yuvraj''s poor form also saw him demoted to Grade B in the annual contract list this year but Gambhir said that ''he is a quality player''. "He has played a lot of international cricket and he knows what he has to do. He is a quality player. India never had such a match-winner, the amount of matches he has won for the team is incredible. "Doubting his abilities is not the right thing. He is the biggest match winner India ever had at his batting position. He already has a half-century to his name in the last ODI (against Australia in Visakhapatnam) he played and has done decently in Dambulla as well. It''s just about playing one big innings and then he is back to his best," said Gambhir. "He did fielding with me and did it with the same intensity as any other player. You can''t just keep thinking why he is not fielding, practising with the same intensity." Yuvraj had a disappointing year so far that saw battling injuries, patchy form, with juniors going past him to even taking a pay cut as he was relegated from Grade A to B by the BCCI''s Gradation Committee. Handed the captaincy baton with seniors including Mahendra Singh Dhoni given rest before the World Cup, Gambhir also defended Suresh Raina who had a poor run in the recently concluded three-Test series. "You can''t compare Test with One-day cricket. He has done brilliantly in one-dayers. Both the forms are completely different. If you see his last match, he has won the match against Australia," Gambhir said recalling about Raina''s 71 not out against Australia in Visakhapatnam -- the only ODI played in the three-match washed out series. "He has played a lot of cricket as Mahi (Dhoni) has said. There will be ups and downs in everybody''s career. You need to give your players some time, need to show confidence in them," Gambhir said. "One innings do not put you in bad form and one good innings cannot give you back your form. Try and have patience in them. These are the players who made India No 1 in Tests and No 2 in one-day cricket," he told reporters here on the eve of their ODI series opener against New Zealand.

Source: Published>

Saina reclaims career-high 2nd spot in world rankings

Sat, Nov 27 10 02:06 PM

New Delhi, Nov 27 (PTI) Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal, who had a disappointing Asian Games campaign ending up without a medal, rose a rung to reclaim her career-high second spot after 13 weeks in the latest Badminton World Federation rankings. Saina, who crashed out of the Asian Games in the quarterfinals, has 63211.2637 points in the recent list released by BWF. China''s Xin Wang held on to the top spot with 66152.4017 points. Another Chinese, Yihan Wang, occupied the third spot with 62488.9106 points. Denmark''s Tine Baun (60400.0982) is fourth with Chinese Shixian Wang (60400.0982) completing the top-five.

Source: Published>

Pot shots taken at "Hot Spot" for failing test of infallibility

Published>Sat, Nov 27 10 01:48 PM

Sydney, Nov 27(ANI): Cricket's electronic eye, "Hot Spot", has had its first major Ashes glitch when debate raged over whether Australian vice-captain Michael Clarke had edged a ball on the opening day of the Brisbane Test.

The controversy started when Clarke flashed at a ball from fast bowler Steve Finn, but was given not out by on-field umpire Aleem Dar.

England captain Andrew Strauss immediately sent the decision for video review, which was eventually rejected by third umpire Tony Hill as video replays and Hot Spot technology failed to give cause to overturn Dar's decision.

Hot Spot, which takes the help of four heat-seeking cameras at the ground, could not detect an edge as video evidence did not spot a mark on Clarke's bat.

However, Channel Nine's "Snicko", which can't be used to rule on dismissals, later suggested that Clarke had got a faint edge.

Finn was "convinced" that Clarke was out, but said that he respected the decision.

"I was convinced there was an edge there, because I thought I heard a noise. But Hot Spot didn't say anything and you have to respect that. On the basis of the evidence the umpire got it right," Finn said.

Asked if Hot Spot was fallible, Finn said: "I have no idea about the technology. Obviously we were convinced there was a nick there, hence why the review was called, but hot spot showed different."

Former cricketers were also convinced that the technology had let them down.

"It looks like there was a flick (edge) there, it was so fine that 'Hot Spot' couldn't pick it up," News.com.au quoted former opening batsman Michael Slater, as saying.

"I have no doubt that was out," former Test captain Bill Lawry added. (ANI)

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