Indian Media praises the God of Cricket

Indian media lined up on Thursday to shower the "God" Sachin Tendulkar with front-page tributes and predict the record-shattering batsman was not finished yet. 

Tendulkar, who turns 37 in April, smashed the first-ever double century in one-day international's on Wednesday, pounding the South African bowlers with 25 boundaries and three sixes.

Tendulkar's landmark dominated the front pages of leading newspapers, even overshadowing India-Pakistan diplomatic talks.

Immortal at 200, screamed a banner headline in the Times of India, while the Indian Expressran a half-page photo of a celebrating Tendulkar with the word God!

A similar front-page photo in the Hindustan Times, headlined 200 not out, was followed by an appreciation by Tendulkar's former teammate and bowling great Anil Kumble.

"The way he celebrated when he reached his 200 epitomised the man's persona," Kumble, an ex-India captain, wrote.

"There were no running laps around the field, no aggressive gestures, nothing over-the-top.

"He did what he always does. Raised both his arms, closed his eyes for a moment and quietly acknowledged it had been done.

"If the youngsters in the team can take even 10% of what he does, they will be better cricketers for it."

A memorable year

The Times of India highlighted the veteran's scintillating form in the last 12 months, during which he has hit 10 international centuries, including six in Test cricket.

"Treasure this new, improved Tendulkar," the paper said. "He is, by far, still India's most valuable player, and will remain so till he decides to call it quits."

Tendulkar, who made his debut in 1989, has scored 13 447 runs with 47 hundreds in 166 Tests, and 17 598 runs with 46 centuries in 442 one-day matches.

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar rated Tendulkar over legendary Australian Don Bradman, saying the Mumbai man was the "greatest batsman the game has ever seen".

Newspapers highlighted Australian spin legend Shane Warne's tweets as he followed the knock of one of his close friends.

"Nervous for my good friend Sachin," Warne posted as Tendulkar neared his double century.

"Come on Sachin, my friend, get your 200. World record to please! you deserve it."

Once achieved, Warne said: "Yes, yes, yes! Well done Sachin my friend. Congrats and well done! Awesome."

The Hindustan Times cricket correspondent wrote: "It's never a good idea to try and speak for a whole nation. But on Wednesday it was a risk worth taking.

"To Sachin Tendulkar, on whom more words have been written than any other cricketer, including Sir Donald Bradman, two words will suffice: Thank you."

The pavilion at the Roop Singh stadium in Gwalior where Tendulkar achieved the feat will be named after him, the Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.

The chief minister of Madhya Pradesh state, where Gwalior is located, also announced that one of the main roads in the town will be named after Tendulkar, PTI said.

India win in Kolkata, despite Amla resistance ; back to No 1 spot

India defied an unbeaten century from Hashim Amla to crush South Africa by an innings and 58 runs in the final Test on Thursday to draw the series 1-1. 

Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh claimed 5-59 as the tourists, trailing by 347 runs on the first innings, were bowled out for 289 in their second knock with just nine deliveries remaining in the match.

Amla returned unbeaten on 127 to finish the series with an astonishing average of 494 after making 253 not out in the first Test and 114 in the opening innings of this match.

The 26-year-old from Durban battled for 394 deliveries and struck 16 boundaries in his ninth Test century, but failed to prevent his team from snatching a thrilling draw.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni's Indians, who lost the first Test in Nagpur by an innings and six runs, retained their number one Test ranking with 124 rating points.

Second-ranked South Africa, who would have taken over from India if the match had ended in a draw, were left on 120 points.

Last man Morne Morkel (12) kept Amla company for 21.4 overs before being leg-before to Harbhajan in the penultimate over of the match in front of 40 000 relieved fans at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Wayne Parnell, who put on 70 for the eighth wicket with Amla, was dismissed in the fourth over after tea for 22. He was caught at mid-on off seamer Ishant Sharma.

Sharma also had Paul Harris caught in the slips for four, before Morkel and Amla almost pulled off a thrilling draw.

As the South Africans fought hard, India sorely missed pace spearhead Zaheer Khan, who was confined to the dressing room the entire day with a knee injury.

Breakthrough

The overnight pair of Amla and Ashwell Price put on 47 for the fourth wicket, before Harbhajan broke through two hours after the start under bright sunshine.

The off-spinner beat Prince in the air and the miscued drive lobbed to Sharma at mid-off.

Left-handed Prince made 23 after scores of zero and one in the previous two innings of the series.

Leg-spinner Amit Mishra, who left the field briefly for treatment on a sore right shoulder, returned to trap AB de Villiers leg-before for three with a googly just before lunch.

South Africa, who went to lunch at 164-5, slipped to 180-7 as Harbhajan claimed both Jean-Paul Duminy and Dale Steyn leg-before soon after play resumed.

Meanwhile, the Indian cricket board said in a statement that Zaheer will not feature in the one-day series against the Proteas which starts on Sunday.

South African captain Graeme Smith will also miss the one-dayers due to a fractured finger and all-rounder Jacques Kallis will lead the tourists in his absence, the team management said.

The internationals will be played in Jaipur (Feb 21), Gwalior (Feb 24) and Ahmedabad (Feb 27).

India dominate after Laxman, Dhoni tons

Kolkata, India - Venkatsai Laxman and Mahendra Singh Dhoni slammed unbeaten centuries to put India in firm control of the second and final Test against South Africa on Tuesday.

Laxman hit 143 and Dhoni made 132 as India piled up a record 643-6 before declaring their first innings shortly before stumps on the third day at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

The tourists, trailing by 347 runs, were six for no loss in their second knock when play was called off due to bad light after just five deliveries from Zaheer Khan.

India's powerful batting boosted their chances of squaring the series after they lost the first Test in Nagpur by an innings and six runs.

A drawn series will also enable Dhoni's men to retain their No.1 position in the official Test rankings.

India's total was their highest against South Africa, surpassing the 627 during the Chennai Test in 2008.

"We expected India to come back strongly," said South Africa's batting consultant Kepler Wessels.

"They're a very good team under their own conditions. We certainly expected them to put up this sort of fight. If you don't take your opportunities against a good side, you're going to pay the price."

Laxman and Dhoni put on 259 for the unbroken seventh wicket as India lost just one wicket, of nightwatchman Amit Mishra, during the day.

Laxman, who missed the Nagpur Test due to a finger injury, played some trademark pulls and drives for his 15th Test century and the fourth at the Eden Gardens.

Dhoni, dropped on 23, clobbered part-time spinner JP Duminy for two consecutive sixes and another off Paul Harris to underline India's dominance over the second-ranked Proteas.

There were four centuries in India's innings after Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar made hundreds on Monday.

The South Africans, who made 296 in their first knock, squandered a few chances in the field, which could prove costly as they seek their first Test series victory in India for nearly a decade.

Duminy spilled his second catch of the match when he dropped Laxman on 48 at backward point off Wayne Parnell (0-103).

Duminy had also grassed Sehwag on 47 while fielding in the slips on Monday. Sehwag went on to make 165 and set the platform for India's huge total.

"You can't drop good players and expect to get away with it, particularly on good surfaces like this," said Wessels. "It's challenging but you have to adapt and take the opportunities that come your way. We didn't.

"We're in a position where we have to save the game to win the series.

"There are two days of tough Test cricket ahead and we'll fight as hard as we can."

Resuming at 342-5, Laxman flicked a couple of boundaries in the first over of the day by Dale Steyn, who conceded 115 runs while taking just one wicket.

Laxman faced 260 balls during his nearly six-hour stay at the wicket.

Mishra (28) enjoyed a brief flourish and a couple of reprieves before falling to an ambitious upper cut which was plucked by Jacques Kallis off Morne Morkel (2-115) at second slip.

Four South African bowlers conceded more than 100 runs each, with left-arm spinner Harris being the most expensive with figures of 1-182 from 50 overs. - AFP

Mind your horses

Among the tips for spectators coming to Eden Gardens for the second Test is to have a newspaper on hand to put on the concrete benches, a damp handkerchief to help with the dust, caps and wet towels for the heat, small boxes for food and fruit which must be cut. 

But the most important warning doesn't involve anything inside the ground, or anything associated with the cricket, or a cricketer, it's to do with horses. "Be careful of the mounted police while venturing out. They lose control of their horses quite often."

Which is a pretty damning indictment of the mounted police. How do you qualify to be come a mounted policeman if you can't control your horse?

But enough horsing around. South Africa's first innings total in this match appears woefully inadequate. After the start they got thanks to Hashim Amla and Alviro Petersen, they really should have made more than 296. 

The cab driver's son from PE, did a wonderful job Sunday. He was obviously very nervous at the start, but he was coldly analytical in describing what he wanted to do. There's an intensity about Petersen's play that he doesn't show outwardly.

It was through that kind of emotional detachment that Petersen has carved out a successful career for himself at domestic level. In the 2008/09 season he became the highest run-scorer in a first class cricket in South Africa, scoring 1376 runs at 57.33 that included six centuries and four 50s from 27 innings. 

It was because of his desperation to improve that he packed his bags and left PE to go to Centurion 2000/01 to join Northerns. When he had a fall out there with coach Richard Pybus, he moved south to the Lions in 2005/06 and has continued to improve, finding consistency and revelling as a senior player.

It's no surprise that the Highveld Lions having made the decision to dispense with Neil McKenzie as captain looked to Petersen, he may not make Churchillian like speeches, but he'll inspire through his deeds. 

His own self-belief is shared by his dad, who once told a group of travelling journalists to Port Elizabeth, to "interview my son now because one-day he's going to be a big star".

A hundred in your first Test, and that at Eden Gardens would suggest the father was right. And who did Petersen junior dedicate the hundred to? "I'll probably dedicate it to myself for all the hardwork I've put in in the last couple of years.

India search for right answer

VVS Laxman’s return to the Test side will be a boost to the struggling Indian middle-order, but it is almost certain to cause a strange selection headache to the team management. Before suffering an innings defeat in the first Test against South Africa in Nagpur, the India think-tank had found it hard to plug the yawning gaps in the middle-order due to the absence of Rahul Dravid, Laxman and Yuvraj Singh. Now, as the Indian batting line-up regains some strength with Laxman’s presence, the team’s plan of countering left-arm spinner Paul Harris with the inclusion of Suresh Raina is bound to throw up the problem of who to leave out.

With no other left-handed batsman in the side after opener Gautam Gambhir, Raina had been called into the squad to provide cushion to the right-handers as they attempted to counter Harris’s negative leg-stump line. The spinner had choked the Indian batsmen in Nagpur with this tactic, dismissing Murali Vijay, Sachin Tendulkar and skipper MS Dhoni in the second innings, to return figures of 38-17-76-3.

While Raina was earlier considered a direct replacement for Wriddhiman Saha — dropped after a woeful debut — the situation has changed with Laxman’s return. Only two out of three players — Raina, Vijay and S Badrinath — can now make it to the final XI and, according to highly placed sources, Raina looks set as of now to make his debut, leaving a difficult choice between between Vijay  (227 runs in four Tests) and Badrinath (who impressed the selectors with a fifty on debut).

“The team management thinks the left-handed Raina, who is a good player of spin bowling, can upset Harris’s plan and rhythm. Of course, the final decision will be taken after reaching Kolkata and seeing the conditions there,” the team source said.

A national selector, who did not wish to be named, added that it was likely Vijay would be retained in the playing XI. “He hasn’t done badly. He was out to a brilliant Dale Steyn delivery in the first innings, and played well in the second. He is the right choice at No 3 in Dravid’s absence,” the selector said. While one would have expected Badrinath’s half-century to insulate him for the Eden Gardens Test, the India batting order is bound to see some readjustments.

There could be some changes in the bowling attack as well, with the most notable difference going into the Kolkata Test being that, after a string of average performances, Harbhajan’s place in the side does not remain a certainty. “After Anil Kumble’s retirement, Harbhajan was the clear spearhead of the spin attack, but so far he has failed live up to the expectations,” the selector said.

With the No.1 Test ranking on the line, the think-tank have a lot to take care of before Sunday’s fixture.

Source: Indian Express

Lalit Modi calls on ECB to make 'minor adjustments' to county schedule

Lalit Modi, the Indian Premier League commissioner, has hit back in the row over fixtures scheduling that has developed between himself and the English and Wales Cricket Board by calling on the governing body to make "minor adjustments" to its county schedule so that English side can participate in this year's Twenty20 Champions League.

Modi's comments come a day after he announced the tournament would take place between 10-26 September and, as such, clash with the final two rounds of the County Championship season, the semi-finals and final of the 40-over league and the one-day international series between England and Pakistan.

This led to annoyance within the ECB as well as among the counties, with Richard Gould, the chief executive of Somerset, accusing Modi of engaging in brinkmanship by intentionally trying to force English sides to choose between his competition and the county championship.

"We hope the ECB will be able to prepone their domestic tournament and be able to participate by making this minor adjustment to their schedule," Modi told Cricinfo. Doing that, he added, would provide an opportunity to the top two English domestic Twenty20 winners to participate in the world club championships, where $6m is up for grabs, with $2.5 million going to the winners.

Modi also denied an ECB statement that it was not consulted over the dates. "[This is] not true," he said, adding that Dean Kino, a member of the Champions League governing council, "is and has been in touch with [David] Collier [the ECB chief executive] on a regular basis since December [2009]."

The Champions League Twenty20 is run by the boards of India, Australia and South Africa and its governing council comprises representatives from each board. Other countries participate in the tournament by invitation.

Modi said the scheduling is always complicated due to the fact that the Champions League timings are adjusted according to the international schedules in an existing Future Tours Programme.

"Given that Australia's tour to India begins on 2 October and other countries also have pre-committed FTP games it was the only window available this year," Modi explained. "We will always endeavour to accommodate all countries as far as possible, and the governing council looked at all possibilities and decided that these were the only dates."

The ECB, however, remains keen to see a compromise be reached so that English sides can take place in the Champions League as well as fulfil their domestic requirements.

"The ECB has expressed serious concern to the BCCI [Board of Control for Cricket in India], CA [Cricket Australia] and CSA [Cricket South Africa] concerning this decision and the matter will be discussed with the respective chairmen and presidents who are currently meeting in Dubai," read a statement yesterday. "The ECB believes that it would be a great shame for the Champions League tournament to be deprived of teams and players by this change of date in bringing forward the respective events by a week and has called on the BCCI to review all alternatives."

ICC turns down BCCI appeal, upholds ban on Kotla

An appeal by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) challenging the 12-month ‘ban’ imposed by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on the Kotla has been dismissed by the independent Appeals Commissioner, Michael Beloff.

The BCCI had disputed the ICC’s classification of the pitch used for the India-Sri Lanka ODI on December 27 last year as “dangerous and unfit”.

Beloff, conducted the hearing via a teleconference on Tuesday and issued his written judgement late on Wednesday.

As per the regulations, the decision to declare the pitch as unfit was taken by ICC general manager (cricket) David Richardson and ICC Chief Match Referee Ranjan Madugalle. The BCCI had subsequently appealed against the decision.

In his judgement, Beloff said: “Following due consideration of all the evidence and submissions from both the ICC and the BCCI, the correct decision was taken by Mr Richardson and Mr Madugalle to declare the pitch to be dangerous and, therefore, unfit.”

Beloff added that the imposed suspension until the end of 2010 was proportionate in this case, according to an ICC release.

ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said: “We must now focus on making sure the New Delhi venue is ready in time for the 2011 World Cup.

“The ICC’s pitch consultant will travel shortly to the Kotla, a ground with a long and proud history, to begin the process of remedial work that will ensure the pitch is restored to its former glory.”

The one-day International had been called off after 23.3 overs, during which the Sri Lankan players received several blows due to the uneven bounce of the pitch.

The ICC governing body earlier hadn’t specifically used the word ‘ban’, but the ruling implied just that.

The ICC said in a statement that following the conclusion of a full investigation into the circumstances leading to the abandonment of the ODI on December 27, it was confirmed that no international cricket would be played at the ground until the end of December 2010.

As per the BCCI’s rotation policy, the Kotla is not scheduled to host any international match this year.

The fact that the Kotla will host the Delhi DareDevils’ home matches in the upcoming IPL-III will, however, give the DDCA a chance to rebuild its image.

The Kotla is expected to host seven matches during the IPL in March-April. The one-year ban is on international matches, and the IPL, being a domestic tournament, is out of the global governing body’s purview.

Richardson and Madugalle’s decision was taken, after considering all the evidence, including video footage of the match, and the Match Referee Alan Hurst’s report and the submissions from the BCCI.

Richardson had said: “We understand that turf pitches, by their very nature, are not and cannot be expected to always behave predictably and that an occasional delivery of unexpected steep bounce, while not ideal, especially for limited-overs cricket, is part of the game.

“In this instance, however, we are of the view that the frequency of the misbehaving deliveries (on average just more than one every three overs) — and the excessive degree of variation — had the potential to inflict serious injury on the batsmen and that therefore the pitch that was prepared for the above match was ‘dangerous’ and should therefore be classified as ‘unfit”.

The BCCI had disbanded its grounds and pitches committee following the abandonment of the ODI.

All members of the grounds and pitches committee of the DDCA — chairman Chetan Chauhan, convenor Sunil Dev and curator Vijay Bahadur Mishra — had also resigned owning moral responsibility for the pitch fiasco.