Under-pressure India face tough ask

KING STON, July 2: Jolted by the humiliating defeat in the last match, a jittery India go into the crucial third cricket one-dayer against the West Indies here today with the form of their top order batsmen being a worrying factor, reports AFP.
Barring a couple of individual performances, the Indians have generally been a pale shadow of themselves in the first two matches of the four-match series and Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s team has a daunting task to put it across the hosts.
With the series locked 1-1, both the teams will go all out for a victory at the Beausejour Stadium and thereby ensure that they cannot lose the series.
The Indians, desperate to make amends for their early exit from the Twenty20 World Cup in England last month, have not really looked convincing in both the matches and their perennial weakness to short-pitched stuff has come back to haunt them.
While the visitors snatched a narrow 20-run victory in the first game at the Sabina Park in Kingston, they suffered an embarrassing eight-wicket drubbing in the second match which will no doubt serve as a morale-booster for the Caribbean team.
The huge defeat will act as a wake-up call for Dhoni’s side who had a string of victories to their credit till only a couple of months back. Suddenly, the team finds itself under tremendous pressure.
In the absence of star performers like Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag, the top order batting has lacked the firepower and the poor form of Gautam Gambhir has only compounded India’s misery.
Tamil Nadu’s wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik has been tried out as Gambhir’s opening partner in this series with mixed results. He scored 67 in the first match, but managed just 4 in the second game and it will be interesting to see whether the team management persists with him.
The failure of Rohit Sharma has been a cause of concern for the Indians and the young batsman has himself to blame for the rut as his shot selection has been atrocious.
The Caribbeans have exploited India’s weakness to short pitched deliveries to a great extent and the batsmen have now been left with no option but to find a solution.
Dhoni himself has admitted that the batting has not been of a high order and has told his teammates to play more responsibly.
“We should have paid a little more respect to the bowlers (in the last match). The wicket was a bit difficult, it was swinging around a bit. We didn’t judge the wicket well and just went around playing our strokes which really brought our downfall,” Dhoni said.
“Once you lose too many wickets then the only thing that you are doing is catching up. RP and me had a partnership otherwise it would have been quite embarrassing,” he said.
The Indian batting has relied too much on the in-form Yuvraj Singh although Dhoni scored 95 in the last match.
Yuvraj can be a highly destructive batsman when he gets going but it is high time some of the other established batsmen came to the party.
Yusuf Pathan has the ability to plunder runs at will but has hardly done anything significant in the T20 World Cup and the first two matches.
The Indian bowling has also lacked the sting and much will depend on off-spinner Harbhajan Singh to stem the Caribbean run flow. The pacers will also have to bowl in the right areas to be able to put pressure on the West Indian batsmen.
While the emphatic win in the last match will certainly boost their confidence, the home team also has to plug a few loopholes if it hoped to take a 2-1 lead in the series.
West Indies captain Chris Gayle was happy with the way his wards responded in the last game in Kingston but is also aware that a lot of work still remained to be done.
“It is nice to square the series. There were some good performances from the guys. (Ravi) Rampaul and (Jerome) Taylor set the game for us and from now we will look to go strength to strength,” Gayle said.
“There was moisture in the wicket and Taylor and Ravi utilized it well, and the catching was also good, so we just need to keep working on our game”, he said.
The teams (from):
India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt), Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir, Dinesh Karthik, Rohit Sharma, Harbhajan Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Yusuf Pathan, Murali Vijay, Subramaniam Badrinath, Rudra Pratap Singh, Praveen Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Abhishek Nayar, Ashish Nehra, Ravindra Jadeja.
West Indies: Chris Gayle (capt), Denesh Ramdin, Lionel Baker, Darren Bravo, Dwayne Bravo, Sulieman Benn, David Bernard Jr, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Narsingh Deonarine, Runako Morton, Ravi Rampaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Jerome Taylor.

Ashes 2009

Aussies bank on Johnson to counter Flintoff

LONDON, July 2: Australia’s long search for a match-winning all-rounder to counter the feats of England’s Andrew Flintoff may finally be over, reports Reuters.
Mitchell Johnson has not only established himself as the new leader of Australia’s bowling attack but has also emerged as a devastating lower-order batsman.
His batting average of 34.70 and bowling average of 28.01 are both better than Flintoff’s and the lanky Australian has reached the best form of his career heading into the Ashes.
Johnson took career-best figures of eight for 61 against South Africa in Perth in December then followed it up with his maiden test century against the same opponents in Cape Town in March. Johnson’s impressive statistics are only part of the reason why he is suddenly looming as Australia’s trump card for the Ashes.
A naturally shy man, the 27-year-old Johnson has taken it upon himself to assume the role of the team’s aggressor.
The ability to intimidate opposing batsmen is a vital weapon in the arsenal of any fast bowler and Johnson showed why he is one of the most fearsome pacemen in the world during one destructive day in Durban.
The left-hander captured three wickets, including two in his first over, with his blistering pace and also put two South African batsmen in hospital.
He broke a bone in the hand of Graeme Smith for the second time in two months with a delivery that leapt off the pitch and caught the South African skipper unawares.
Then he split the chin of Jacques Kallis with a vicious bouncer that left South Africa’s most experienced batsman dazed, bloodied and needing three stitches.
Johnson finished off by bowling Mark Boucher with an inswinging yorker that he has been working on in preparation for England.
The inability of Australia’s pacemen to swing the ball played a part in their downfall in the 2005 Ashes series but Johnson’s success has given them confidence that they will match the England seamers in that department this time.
As a left-armer himself he has unsurprisingly had a lot of success against left-handed batsmen and already has his sights set on England captain Andrew Strauss.
Johnson’s rise to become Australia’s premier fast bowler has been steady rather than meteoric. He had been earmarked for greatness since he was a teenager but his progress was delayed by injuries and problems getting into an Australian side already packed with great pacemen.
He spent five seasons in Australia’s first-class domestic competition before he was called into the national side for his first one-day international appearance against New Zealand in 2005, but took none for 64 from nine overs as the Kiwis overhauled Australia’s total of 331-7 to win by two wickets. Johnson made another 17 one-day international appearances for Australia over the next 14 months and was picked for the 2007 World Cup in West Indies but did not play a match as Australia won the title for the third time in a row.
The retirement of Glenn McGrath opened the way for Johnson to push his claim for inclusion in the Test side and he finally got his chance in November 2007 when he was selected to play against Sri Lanka in Brisbane aged 26.
Johnson toured West Indies and India in 2008 but it was not until the most recent Australian summer that he really started to make his mark in the international arena. He took nine for 36, including his first five-wicket haul in an innings against New Zealand, then claimed 33 wickets in six tests, three on home soil and three away, against the South Africans.
Batting at number eight, he had always been a consistent and valuable run-scorer but as his confidence with the ball grew so too did his batting and he began turning his potential with the bat into higher scores.
He made 64 in Sydney, 96 not out in Johannesburg when he cruelly ran out of partners, then an unconquered 123 in Cape Town to make himself indispensable, though he remains uncomfortable about his sudden role as the spearhead of the attack.

T20 finalists gear up for Test battle

COLOMBO, July 2: Pakistan and Sri Lanka make an emotional return to Test cricket on Saturday, almost four months to the day after a militant attack halted their last contest, reports AFP.
The three-Test series is the first between the two nations since armed gunmen fired on the Sri Lankan team bus while the players were on their way to resume a Test match in the Pakistani city of Lahore on March 3.
Seven Sri Lankan cricketers were injured and eight local security men were killed in the attack that forced the cricket world to abandon Pakistan as a venue for international cricket.
The upcoming series opens at the Galle International Stadium just two weeks after Pakistan defeated Sri Lanka in the final of the World Twenty20 at Lord’s in London.
Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam said he had no fears over security but was more concerned about how quickly his team would switch from the Twenty20 mode to the traditional five-day format.
“The key to winning the series against a strong Sri Lankan team will be our ability to adjust to demanding Test match cricket in hot and humid weather,” said Alam.
“We can’t afford to look back. Winning the Twenty20 title will mean little when the first ball is bowled in the Test series. It’s a different ball game.”
Pakistan have never lost a Test series in Sri Lanka, winning three — including the past two in 2000 and 2006 — and drawing the other two.
Its a creditable achievement considering that Sri Lanka, with the record-breaking spinner Muttiah Muralitharan in their ranks, have proved almost unbeatable at home in recent times.
Of the 19 home Tests Sri Lanka have played in the past five years, they have won 13, drawn four and lost just two — one of them to Pakistan by eight wickets in Kandy in April 2006.
Younus Khan’s Pakistan have not experienced the rigours of a Test match on foreign soil since a two-match series in India in December 2007.
Even at home, Pakistan have played just one series over the past two years due to security concerns in the volatile nation, and that too had to be abandoned after the attack on the Sri Lankan team.
Pakistan will be boosted by the return of veteran batsman Mohammad Yousuf, 34, and seasoned all-rounder Abdur Razzaq, 29, to the Test fold after they ended their links with the rebel Indian Cricket League.
But flamboyant all-rounder Shahid Afridi, who won the player of the match awards in both the semi-final and final of the World Twenty20, has opted to rest from the series.
Kumar Sangakkara, leading Sri Lanka for the first time in a Test series, was confident his team had overcome both the tragedy in Lahore and the loss in the Twenty20 final and were ready to clash with Pakistan again.
“Lahore is not on our minds, the team has done a really great job mentally getting over it,” said Sangakkara. “It was heartbreaking to lose the Twenty20 final but we had a great tournament.
“I am proud of the way the team played in England and I am confident we will do as well in the Test matches.”
After the Galle Test, the teams move to Colombo where the second Test will be played at the P. Sara stadium from July 12-16 and the third at the Sinhalese sports club from July 20-24.
The rivals are also scheduled to play five one-day internationals and a Twenty20 match after the Test series.

BD defeat in both basketball matches

Bangladesh conceded humiliating defeat in both of their FIBA 3 on 3 Basketball matches of the First Asian Youth Games at the Anglican High School in Singapore on Thursday, reports UNB.
Bangladesh suffered 06-33 points defeat against United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the morning and 04-33 points defeat against Thailand in the afternoon.
Skipper Khaled Mahmud Akash scored all the six points for Bangladesh against UAE while Abu Obaida Adib scored three and Akash scored one for Bangladesh against Thailand.
Bangladesh, which got walkover against Malaysia in the inaugural match, will play their last group match against Palestine today (Friday) at 10:30 am (local time).
Two Bangladeshi male shooters — Shovon Chowdhury and Mahmudul Hasan — will compete in the men’s 10-meter Air Rifles on Saturday (July 4).
Bangladeshi shooter Syeda Sadia Sultana of BKSP finished 7th in the 10-meter Air Rifles scoring 392 on Wednesday while another Bangladeshi shooter Tripu Dutta eliminated in the qualifying round.
Earlier on Tuesday, both the Bangladeshi male and female athletes Mesbah Ahmed and Shirin Akhter quit from the heats of their respective 100-meter sprint.

BSWA accords reception to 2 sports personalities

Bangladesh Sports Writers Association (BSWA) Thursday accorded a reception to two renowned sports writers — Dr Nizamuddin Ahmed and Jalal Ahmed Chowdhury — for their contributions to sports, reports UNB.
State Minister for Youth and Sports Ahad Ali Sarkar was the chief guest at the reception held at the National Sports Council (NSC) conference room yesterday afternoon. BSWA president Sarwar Hossain and general secretary Rafiqul Islam were, among others, present at the function. As in the other 144 countries of the world, BSWA also marked the World Sports Journalist Day today with huge enthusiasm.
Dr Nizamuddin Ahmed received a BSWA crest with blazer while Rabra Chowdhury, the only daughter of Jalal Ahmed Chowdhury, received the crest on behalf of her father from the state minister. Jalal Ahmed Chowdhury, technical adviser of Bangladesh Under-19 team, could not attend the reception as he is now in England with the team.
Speaking briefly at the function, State Minister Ahad Ali Sarkar said the nation would remember with gratitude the contributions of sports journalists for the development of sports in the country.
BSWA members, officials of different sports federation, players, patrons and coaches were present on the occasion.
Meanwhile, a rally marking the World Sports Journalists Day scheduled Friday morning, has been cancelled due to rough weather. A fresh date for the rally will be announced later.

Murray to face Roddick in semis, Hass through

WIMB LEDON, England, July 2:Most of the talk at Wimbledon has been about the likelihood of a final between Roger Federer and Andy Murray. It turns out another Andy is also making a strong title run, reports AP.
Andy Roddick overcame former champion Lleyton Hewitt 6-3, 6-7 (10), 7-6 (1), 4-6, 6-4 Wednesday to set up a semifinal matchup against Murray. Five-time champion Federer will meet German veteran Tommy Haas in the other semifinal on Friday.
This is Roddick’s best showing at Wimbledon since 2005, when he lost in the final to Federer for the second year in a row. He lost in the third round in 2006, the quarterfinals in 2007 and second round last year.
Roddick served 43 aces against Hewitt in a 3-hour, 50-minute match that swung back and forth until the American got the decisive break for a 5-4 lead in the fifth set, converting his second chance with an easy forehand into the open court.
“It certainly wasn’t short on drama,” Roddick said. “It was tough from a mental standpoint because Lleyton wasn’t going away and there were a lot of ebbs and flows to the match. I’m just happy to be on the good side of it.”
When it was all over, Roddick let out a sigh and raised a fist, then threw his racket down, sat in his changeover chair and covered his face with his hands.
“It’s a mixture of happiness, of relief,” Roddick said. “In your mind, you’re kind of trying to stay the course for four hours, constantly figuring out what you’re going to do. Your mind is just racing for four hours. So then it’s relief, happiness and almost kind of an instant shutdown mode.”
Roddick and the other men get a day’s rest Thursday, which is set aside for the
Roddick knows he will be battling more than just Murray in his next match. Murray, who swept Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-5, 6-3, 6-2 to reach his first Wimbledon semifinal, is bidding to become the first British player to win the men’s title since Fred Perry in 1936.
“I realize that if I don’t bring my best game then I’m going to lose to guys like Hewitt or Roddick,” he said. “I feel confident because I’ve won a lot of matches on the grass. But every day when I get up to play the matches, I know that I’m going to have to perform very well, and that gets the nerves and the adrenaline going and makes me better.”
Federer reached his 21st consecutive Grand Slam semifinal by taming 6-foot-10 Croatian Ivo Karlovic 6-3, 7-5, 7-6 (3). Federer, who has won 17 straight matches, is closing in on his sixth Wimbledon title and record 15th Grand Slam championship.
“It would be writing in the history books of tennis,” Federer said. “It’s not there yet. Still far away. Many points, many serves, many forehands. We’ll see.”
Haas upset fourth-seeded Novak Djokovic 7-5, 7-6 (6), 4-6, 6-3 to advance to his first Wimbledon semifinal. The 31-year-old German was the oldest player in the quarters, while the 22-year-old Djokovic was the youngest.
Haas led Federer two sets to love in the fourth round of the French Open a month ago, only to lose in five.
“This is the best results, the best tennis I’ve played here, the best I’ve been feeling,” Haas said. “Unfortunately, my next opponent is a really tough hurdle to go by. We had a good battle at the French, but I’m realistic of who my opponent is.”

BD to play WI A team today

Ban gladesh national cricket team will start their campaign in the Caribbean Islands with a three-day warm-up match against West Indies A team at the Kensington Oval in Barbados from today, reports UNB.
Newly appointed captain Mashrafe bin Mortaza will lead the Bangladesh team while Sewnarine Chattergoon will lead the 2nd string West Indies side with only three players having international experience.
Bangladesh team, which reached Barbados, West Indies on Tuesday had a recovery session at the beach adjacent to the team’s hotel, Accra Beach Resort.
During the West Indies tour, Bangladesh will play a two-match test, three-match ODI series and one T20 International match.
Bangladesh will play the first Test against the Caribbean on July 9-13 at Arnos Vale and the second Test on July 17-21 at National Stadium in Grenada.
After the two-match test series, the Bengal Tigers will play the first ODI against West Indies on July 26 and the second on July 28, both at Windsor Park, Dominica, while the third ODI will be held July 31 at Warner Park in St Kitts before the only T20 match on August 2 at the same venue.
After completion the West Indies tour, Bangladesh will fly to Zimbabwe on August 5, two days ahead of a warm-up match on August 7. Bangladesh will play the 1st ODI against Zimbabwe on August 9, the 2nd on August 11th, the 3rd on August 14, the 4th on August 16 and the 5th and last on August 18, all at the Queens Sports Club venue at Bulawayo.
Bangladesh Test Squad: Mashrafe Bin Mortaza (captain), Shakib Al Hasan (vice-captain), Mohammad Ashraful, Tamim Iqbal, Junaid Siddique, Imrul Kayes, Raqibul Hasan, Mehrab Hossain Jr., Mahmudullah Riad, Mushfiqur Rahim (WK), Shahadat Hossain, Enamul Haque Jr., Mahbubul Alam, Rubel Hossain and Saghir Hossain (wk).

T20 is fast food, says Miandad

LAHORE, July 2: Twenty20 is ‘fast food’, a bad habit and is posing a major threat to Test cricket in the sub-continent, feels former Pakistan Test skipper Javed Miandad, reports PTI.
Miandad expressed concerns over suggestions from the International cricket Council to reduce Test cricket matches to four-days and introduce colored balls and colored clothing under lights in the traditional format of the sport.
“There is no doubt that T20 cricket is undermining Test cricket and they are many reasons for this.
“Take India’s example. Players like Yousuf Pathan are more popular than most of his more illustrious teammates because T20 cricket is in these days. It is just like fast food, a bad habit,” Miandad said.
Miandad, however, felt that the future of Test cricket faced no threat in countries like England, South Africa, Australia where it was still popular.
“It is in countries like Pakistan and India where it is under threat. One reason for this is also economic conditions of the people. Everything is so expensive for our masses,” he said.
There have been suggestions from the ICC President, David Morgan about reducing Tests to four day matches instead of the traditional five days.
Morgan has said that Test cricket faces a challenge from the growing popularity of twenty20 cricket and there is a need to look at revamping the traditional format of the game.
However, Miandad cautioned the ICC against trying to change the traditional format of the game.
“Any moves to reduce the number of days in a Test or introduce night matches and colored balls will only prove counter-productive,” he said.
The former Test captain said instead of taking measures that can threaten the spirit of the game the ICC should be looking at other ways to ensure all forms of the game survive together properly.
“The ICC should involve more former players in consultations and find ways to keep interest in Test cricket alive. As it is now Test cricket is about 90 overs a day you can’t do more to get results,” he said.
“Test cricket must remain the way it is or else cricket will lose its special appeal to the people as well. Cricket lovers want to see Test matches,” he said.

Hanif writes to Zardari about selection committee

LAHORE, July 2: Former Pakistan Test great Hanif Muhammad has written a letter to President Asif Ali Zardari about the controversial dissolution of the national senior and junior selection committees by PCB Chairman Ejaz Butt, reports PTI.
In a scathing attack, Hanif said PCB’s decision lack any sense and hoped President Zardari, who is also chief patron of the board, would take note of the issue.
“I hope the President takes note and saves cricket in our country,” Hanif said.
“It makes no sense at all that the selectors who picked the World Cup team should be removed in such a manner,” he added.
Hanif’s son Shoaib Mohammad, also a former Test player, was a member of the national selection committee along with Saleem Jaffer. Chief selector Abdul Qadir had resigned during the World Cup citing interference from Chairman Butt in selection matters.
“They are saying the new selection committee would include representatives from all provinces. If they plan to run cricket matters on quota system then God help our cricket,” Hanif said.
The former skipper said he could not understand why the board was creating unnecessary controversies at a time when the country was celebrating the twenty20 World Cup win.
Meanwhile, Shoaib appearing on a television channel accused former Test captain Wasim Bari, who is now the PCB director human resources, of engineering the move to remove him as a selector.
“Everyone knows that Bari has an old grouse against me and he took out his enmity. There was no issue about me doing two jobs. I had written to the board offering to work on honorary basis as a selector as I could not leave my job at the national airlines,” the former Test opener said.
Shoaib said he and Jaffer had not resigned as selectors even though Abdul Qadir had stepped down.
“But we were treated unjustly and this is not the way the board is supposed to treat former Test players who have served the country,” he said.

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