India out of ICC Women's WC despite win over West Indies

SYDNEY: India defeated West Indies comprehensively by eight-wickets on Thursday but the result was not good enough to ensure them a place in Sunday's summit-clash of the ICC Women's World Cup.

The Indians, who has a slim chance of making it to the final show down, were dealt a severe blow with Australia tilting their fate by posting a eight-wicket win over England in another Super Six match on Thursday.

For progressing to the final, India needed to beat the West Indies and hoped that New Zealand go down to Pakistan and England beat Australia in the respective Super Six matches.

India, however, got a chance to make amends for the disappointment as the win over West Indies has ensured them a place in the third-place playoff match against Australia on Saturday with both the teams automatically qualifying for the next World Cup.

Chasing a timid target of 84 at the Bankstown Oval here, the Indians romped home with 193 balls to spare with opener Sulakshana Naik (39 0ff 48) and in-form Mithali Raj (34 off 41) doing the bulk of the scoring.

Earlier, West Indian skipper Merissa Aguilleira's decision to bat first backfired as right-arm spinner Priyanka Roy (4/14) recorded her career-best figures to run through the West Indian batting order after Amita Sharma (2/14) and Rumeli Dhar (1/16) did the early damage.

The weak West Indian batting line up cut a sorry figure once again as five of their batters made ducks including captain Aguilleira.

Opener Stafanie Taylor (29) and one-down Pamela Lavine tried hard to resurrect the innings with a 45-run first-wicket partnership, but after the dismissal of Lavine in the 15th over, the West Indians batting order crumbled like a pack of card, losing their last seven wickets for just 12 runs.

In reply, the Indians started their timid run chase on a cautious note with opening duo of Anjum Chopra (3) and Naik adding 25 runs in six overs.

With a modest target to chase, Indian skipper Jhulan decided to give debutant Poonam Raut a chance ahead of experienced Mithali but the 19-year-old squandered the opportunity and registered her name in the record books by scoring a duck in her first match.

From there on, there was no looking back for the Indians as Naik and Mithali played sensibly to avoid further hiccups an take their side to victory in 17.5 overs.

For the Windies, pacer D Lewis scalped both the Indian wickets.

Source:http://cricket.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India-fail-to-enter-Womens-WC-final-despite-win/articleshow/4286258.cms

South Africa reduce Australia to 66/2 at lunch

CAPE TOWN: South Africa recovered from dropping both opening batsmen to reduce Australia to 66/2 at lunch on the first day of the third and final Test at Newlands on Thursday.

South Africa, having already lost the series, gave a debut to Imraan Khan but he made a sorry start to Test cricket when he missed an easy catch in the gully when Simon Katich, on nine, edged a square-drive off Makhaya Ntini.

The left-handed Katich had moved on to 26 not out by lunch. Fellow opener Phillip Hughes, who led the attack in a first-wicket stand of 58, also escaped on 33 when JP Duminy made a hash of a catch off spinner Paul Harris at extra cover.

The mistake did not prove costly, however, because Hughes missed a sweep at left-armer Harris just two balls later and was adjudged leg-before-wicket when still on 33.

If the batsman had called for a review he may have got the decision overturned because television replays suggested he was struck outside the line of off stump.

Australia captain Ricky Ponting, having won the toss for the sixth successive time against South Africa, who are already 2-0 down in the series, and chosen to bat first on a flat pitch under clear skies, then came to the crease.

But the most-feared Australian batsman was out in the next over for a duck when he edged a delivery that swung away late from Albie Morkel, playing in his first Test, into the gloves of wicketkeeper Mark Boucher.

Michael Hussey was up next and went into lunch on five not out.

Ntini conceded just six runs, four of them off his first delivery, in seven overs, while Morkel had one for 17 in six overs and Harris one for three in three.

Source:http://cricket.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/South-Africa-reduce-Australia-to-662-at-lunch/articleshow/4287581.cms

Marseille and Werder Bremen reach UEFA Cup quarter-finals

LONDON: An extra time goal from on-loan English-born defender Tyrone Mears sent Olympique Marseille into the UEFA Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday. Me ars headed in from close range in the 110th minute to secure the Ligue 1 side a 2-2 draw at Ajax Amsterdam, putting them through 4-3 on aggregate.

Werder Bremen, who ousted favourites AC Milan in the previous round, also knocked out St Etienne. The Germans, 1-0 up from the first leg, advanced with a 2-2 draw in France.

Mears was making a rare start for Marseille after his controversial move from English Championship (second division) side Derby County in September. The defender was heavily fined by Derby who said he had left without permission.

Then-manager Paul Jewell said Mears would never play for the club again while he was in charge and although the right back returned to Derby, the clubs came to an agreement and the player headed back to Marseille on a year-long loan.

Mears scored for Marseille when he pounced to head in a rebound after Boudewijn Zenden's free kick was blocked. Ajax, 2-1 down from the first leg, had forced extra time when Serbia striker Miralem Sulejmani fired them into a 2-1 lead with 16 minutes left of the return leg.

Earlier, Cameroonian midfielder Eyong Enoh sprung the offside trap to latch on to a Luis Suarez through ball and shoot Ajax ahead after 33 minutes. Marseille hit back two minutes later when Bakari Kone crossed low for an unmarked Mamadou Niang to equalise.

Ajax finished with 10 men after defender Bruno Silva was sent off in the closing seconds for elbowing Hatem Ben Arfa. Werder took control against St Etienne after first-half goals from Sebastian Proedl and Claudio Pizarro left the Ligue 1 side needing to score four times to progress.

The hosts did not give up though and responded with second-half goals from Yohan Benalouane and Sebastien Grax. The six remaining last-16 second-leg ties take place on Thursday, with holders Zenit St Petersburg needing to overturn a 2-0 defeat at Udinese to remain in the competition.

The draw for the quarter-finals and semi-finals will be held in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday.

Source:http://cricket.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

Azarenka stuns Safina to reach Indian Wells semi-finals

INDIAN WELLS: Victoria Azarenka stunned top-seeded Russian Dinara Safina 6-7 (4/7), 6-1, 6-3 on Wednesday to book a semi-final berth at the Indian Wells hardcourt tennis tournament.

The 19-year-old from Belarus, seeded eighth, denied Safina's latest bid to seize the world number one ranking from Serena Williams, who is idle this week.

Safina could have supplanted the American, who beat her in the Australian Open final, by reaching the final here.

But in Azarenka, she ran into a player brimming with confidence after capturing her first two career WTA titles this year - in Brisbane and Memphis.

Safina appeared to have the match in her grasp when she took a 3-1 lead in the third set, but she couldn't hold on to the lead.

"I just went away from my game every time I was up," Safina said. "From the second set I just gave all into her hands. She's a very aggressive player, so she was just better than me."

Azarenka notched her first victory over Safina in four career meetings.

"I have no words to say," she beamed. "It was a tough match. I was almost losing it and I pulled it off."

In the semi-finals, Azarenka will face her doubles partner, fourth-seeded Russian Vera Zvonareva, a 6-4, 6-2 winner over Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki.

Currently at No.6 in the standings, Zvonareva has one title to her credit already this year, at Pattaya City.

A break in the third game was all Zvonareva needed to win the first set. She broke her 18-year-old opponent three times in the second to secure the victory.

Zvonareva won the last five games of the second set, but had to fight off break points in both the fourth and sixth games.

"It wasn't easy out there," she said. "I had my ups and downs... I'm pretty happy to get through this one."

Quarter-finals in the bottom half of the draw are scheduled for Thursday, when defending champion Ana Ivanovic, the fifth seed, takes on Sybille Bammer of Austria and seventh-seeded Pole Agnieszka Radwanska plays 17-year-old Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.

The second-round exits of second-seeded Jelena Jankovic and third-seeded Elena Dementieva left Zvonareva is the top seed remaining in the field.

Source:http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Azarenka-stuns-Safina-to-reach-semi-finals/articleshow/4286059.cms

Nadal reaches Indian Wells quarter-finals

INDIAN WELLS: Rafael Nadal saved five match points en route to a 3-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-0 victory over David Nalbandian on Wednesday to reach the quarter- finals of the Indian Wells hard court tennis tournament.

Nalbandian's crushing forehand had the world number one on the ropes, but the Spaniard withstood the onslaught. He saved five match points, producing winners on four of them, to take the second set to the tie-breaker.

Nadal quickly gained the upper hand in the tie-break, as Nalbandian netted a volley, double-faulted and then netted another volley.

Once Nadal had pocketed the set, Nalbandian faded rapidly and Nadal wrapped up the victory in two hours and 48 minutes - almost on the stroke of 2am.

Nadal next faces another Argentinian, sixth-seeded Juan Martin del Potro, a 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/3) winner over American John Isner.

Nadal's escape, against an opponent who had beaten him in two previous encounters back in 2007, meant that the "big four" of the men's tennis circuit - Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray - all made it into the quarter-finals of the first Masters series event of the year.

World No.2 Federer, playing his first tournament since falling in five sets to Nadal in the Australian Open final, got past Chilean Fernando Gonzalez 6-3, 5-7, 6-2.

He'll face fourth-seeded Murray, who had an unexpectedly easy time as Tommy Robredo retired with an injured right wrist with Murray leading 6-2, 3-0.

Djokovic, the defending champion and third seed, survived some shaky moments to pull off a 7-6 (9/7), 7-6 (8/6) victory over Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka.

He booked a quarter-final clash with seventh-seeded American Andy Roddick, who beat tenacious Spaniard David Ferrer 7-6 (7/5), 3-6, 6-3.

Djokovic and Roddick will be renewing a rivalry that saw them meet in the quarter-finals of the last two Grand Slams.

Former world number one Federer, who has spent the time since the Australian Open recovering from a lingering back ailment and getting in some quality practice, said he enjoyed his tussle with Gonzalez, the 2007 Australian Open runner-up.

"I enjoy playing Fernando because it's so tactical, but then at the same time it's so brutal, so aggressive. You think you have a slight chance to win the point, and then you realize no, there's actually none."

Nevertheless, Federer stretched his record over Gonzalez to 12-1, and lined up a quarter-final clash that promised another test of his ground game against Spain's Fernando Verdasco.

Verdasco, who powered to the semi-finals of the Australian Open where he was felled by Nadal, defeated unseeded German Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-4, 3-6, 6-1.

Like Federer, Scotland's Murray arrived in California after some time off, having withdrawn after reaching the quarter-finals in Dubai two weeks ago and then skipping the Davis Cup because of a virus.

Murray had lost to Robredo in their last two encounters and got off to a slow start, dropping his serve to trail 1-2.

"Because I haven't played that much, I'm sort of trying to work my way into the match by making a lot of balls early on," Murray said. "Tommy was able to dictate a lot of points. That wasn't through my errors. He had a couple of big returns and got ahead of me. After that I started to play a little bit more aggressive."

Murray said he knew Robredo was battling a wrist injury, but said it was hard to gauge how much his opponent was bothered by it.

"Mentally a wrist problem can be tough. It's not so much hitting the ball that's worrying, it's just the pain that's there and feeling like something might happen," he said.

Murray next faces Croatian Ivan Ljubicic, who saved five match points to beat Russian Igor Andreev 4-6, 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/4) in a match lasting more than three hours.

In women's matches, Eighth-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus shocked top-seeded Russian Dinara Safina 6-7 (4/7), 6-1, 6-3 to reach the semi-finals.

Azarenka denied Safina's bid to topple American Serena Williams from the world number one rankings, which the Russian would have done had she reached the final here.

In the semi-finals Azarenka will face her doubles partner, fourth-seeded Russian Vera Zvonareva, who beat ninth-seeded Dane Caroline Wozniacki 6-4, 6-2.

Source:http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Nadal-reaches-Indian-Wells-quarter-finals/articleshow/4286589.cms