Gul and Zaheer, the silent destroyers

New Delhi, March 29 (AFP): Pakistani paceman Umar Gul has so far won just one man-of-the-match award and India seamer Zaheer Khan none, but they are their teams' silent World Cup destroyers.

The duo are expected to have a huge impact when their teams clash in the blockbuster World Cup semi-final in Mohali on Wednesday, although they have been largely over-shadowed in the build-up to the match.

Currently in focus are Indian opener Sachin Tendulkar's much-anticipated 100th international century, Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi's leadership skills, Indian Yuvraj Singh's all-round exploits - and the match pressure.

Gul and Zaheer will definitely come into the picture when the ball is in their hands, whether new or old, because they have consistently provided crucial breakthroughs to help their sides seize the initiative.

Spinners and batsmen were in the news more than pacemen in previous matches, but Zaheer and Gul managed to leave a mark with their disciplined efforts.

Their main contribution to their teams' victories is they have succeeded in overcoming unfriendly conditions - low, slow tracks - with their clever variations in pace.

Zaheer has so far bagged 17 wickets, the second-highest in the tournament, and Gul 14 in seven matches.

Gul's lone man-of-the-match award came at Pallekele in Sri Lanka where be bagged 3-36 against Zimbabwe.

India and Pakistan have often changed their bowling combinations but always relied on Zaheer and Gul, who were instrumental in creating pressure while their spinners struck from the other end.

Zaheer's ability to reverse-swing the ball has surprised even the best, as was seen during the tied game against England in Bangalore last month when he removed well-set skipper Andrew Strauss and Ian Bell.

"It's great to see how Zaheer has also quietly gone about doing his job for the team," former Australian wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist wrote in his column in an Indian newspaper.

"In almost every game he has provided early breakthroughs. He has come a long way in the last few years and his ability to reverse (swing) the ball in the second spell is second to none."

Gul's ability to extract bounce even on slow tracks and unsettle batsmen with yorkers and reverse-swing has stood his team in good stead.

He said he had been getting used to open the bowling at the urging of coach and former paceman Waqar Younis.

"For the last two to three years, Waqar Younis has been telling me to get prepared to use the new ball in the World Cup. I have returned to my best form by bowling with the new ball again," said Gul.

Gul, who took four wickets in the opening three matches, lifted his performance against big teams as he grabbed three wickets each against New Zealand and Australia.

Zaheer has so far taken 269 wickets in 189 one-day internationals and Gul 133 in 87 matches.

India's batting takes on Pak's bowling, but will rain play dampener?

MOHALI: Somebody has to lose. That's the only reality facing the cricketers and the two emotionally fatigued nations they represent. India are clear favourites but for most players this is the most demanding game of their careers. Will the batsmen wilt under the pressure of expectation? For Shahid Afridi's bunch, chaos and turmoil are professional hazards and they have defied pre-tournament predictions by performing as a unit. Their Achilles heel is the fear of a backlash back home, and the usual knee-jerk testimonies of foul play following a big defeat. Somebody has to lose and it won't be pretty.

For all the jingoism, this isn't a game for the common man. He hasn't got a ticket for the match which is being threatened by prospect of rain. The politicians and VVIPs are out in full force, and the army, local police and national security guard have lent an air of apprehension to the proceedings. Out in the middle, it will be the man enjoying the challenge who will prevail. For India, that bulwark is the battle-hardened Sachin Tendulkar, who awaits a milestone that may soothe many nerves. For Pakistan, it is the talismanic Shahid Afridi, of whose fortitude and capability we knew so little over so many years. Somebody has to lose but it won't be the man who fears failure.

India inch ahead in the pre-game stakes purely on the basis of the diverse batting might revolving around Tendulkar. They have power hitters and scrappers and even the younger lot have, in the recent past, displayed the gumption for a fight. Pakistan's unpredictable batting lineup isn't a pushover either in these batting-friendly conditions. But it is their varied bowling attack led by Umar Gul and Afridi which holds the key, though one big-match trump card, pacer Shoaib Akhtar, doesn't seem to be up for the occasion. "Shoaib is not 100%," Afridi declared, "But he is trying his level-best." Under the circumstances, playing Shoaib will be a big gamble. Somebody has to lose and maybe Shoaib, facing retirement, already knows how it feels.

For India, changing a winning combination could mean gambling with Ashish Nehra, who has been putting in the hard yards at the nets, and bringing in Yusuf Pathan for Ashwin on this track to bolster their main strength. The team has blown hot and cold throughout the tournament and then brought it all together in the quarters against Australia. Inevitably, no matter what the combination, no matter the toss and the dew, it will all boil down to handling the strain of the occasion. "By the end of the 30th you will have a winner and a loser," said MS Dhoni, "That's part and parcel of sport. Somebody has to lose the game."

Just try and explain that to the masses clamouring for chest-thumping rights. More than any other game in the World Cup, this will be decided not on technicalities or precedent but attitude, nerve and character. Both sides have a contrasting blend of the right ingredients. Somebody has to lose but don't give up hope.

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World Cup: Blue vs Green in a match that's red hot

MOHALI: A Prime Minister playing the high stakes in a desperate act of proactive diplomacy, a batting genius presented with the grandest of theatres to fashion his much-awaited 100th international ton, a knock-out match where the pitch is merely a surrogate for battlefield, where the outcome could induce either agony or ecstasy in either nation - this is not just the 2011 ODI World Cup semifinal between India and Pakistan, this is simply the biggest game cricket can conjure. ( Read: Fans bat big for men in blue ) ( Read: Chacha cricket arrives in trademark style )

Peaceniks may be disappointed but for most fans on either side of the border, it doesn't really matter whether PM Manmohan Singh's initiative, a parallel event to the nerve-jangling game, takes off or not. ( Read: HC judges lose tickets to SC seniors ) ( Read: Pakistan's glitterati arrives for good cricket )

Diplomacy has the option to fail; the cricketers do not. Both MS Dhoni and Shahid Afridi have a crushing weight of expectations on their shoulders. Winning isn't important; it is the only thing. ( Read: 'We'd rather share tickets with our hosts' )

Most experts believe India are odds-on favourites. Pakistan have looked an ominous unit in their recent games but their primary strength, spinners, may not find the going easy against the Men in Blue.

Raina seems to have filled the last piece in the Indian batting jigsaw. The man in form, Yuvraj Singh will be playing before his home crowd. And there's something reassuring watching Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag go out to bat together.

It should be a memorable match. Here's hoping its outcome incites the longest late-night party in Indian cricket.

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SL vs NZ: Sri Lanka beat New Zealand by 5 wickets to enter World Cup final

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka reached the World Cup final with a five-wicket win against New Zealand on Tuesday as veteran off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan said goodbye to his home crowd.

Sri Lanka, set a modest 218 to win, wobbled in the middle before reaching their target in 47.5 overs with Tillakaratne Dilshan (73) and skipper Kumar Sangakkara (54) setting the foundation at a packed R Premadasa stadium.

Muralitharan took his 534th wicket off his last ball on home soil as New Zealand were bowled out for a below-par score of 217 in 48.5 overs.

Muralitharan, who last year retired from Tests after finishing as the highest wicket-taker with 800, now aims to win his second title -- after being part of the 1996 Cup winning squad -- in Saturday's final in Mumbai.

Sri Lanka, cruising along at 160-1, lost four wickets in the space of 25 runs to raise fears of an unlikely defeat before Thilan Samaraweera (23 not out) and Angelo Mathews (14 not out) guided them home with an unbroken 35-run stand.

The victory took Sri Lanka into their second successive World Cup final, after finishing runners-up to Australia in 2007, as a capacity 35,000 celebrated with firecrackers.

Sri Lanka play the winners of Wednesday's semifinal between India and Pakistan in Mohali.

New Zealand, who for the sixth time failed in a World Cup semi-final, seemed to be succumbing like England did during their 10-wicket quarterfinal defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka, but they staged a brave rearguard action.

It was 34-year-old Dilshan who was once again in rampaging mood, taking the co-hosts to 40 by the eighth over in the company of Upul Tharanga who fell after scoring a 31-ball 30 with four boundaries and a six.

Dilshan then found an equally aggressive and in-form partner in captain Sangakkara as they added 120 for the second wicket, before Dilshan played straight into the hands of Jesse Ryder off Tim Southee.

Dilshan hit 10 boundaries and a six during his 93-ball knock.

Sri Lanka then lost Mahela Jayawardene (one) and Sangakkara in the space of eight runs and then Chamara Silva (13) before the team held their nerve.

Dilshan also became the top run-getter of the tournament with 467.

It was Ajantha Mendis (3-35) and Lasith Malinga (3-55), along with Muralitharan (2-42), who kept New Zealand under control after Daniel Vettori won the toss and opted to bat.

Scott Styris, who top scored with 57, added 77 for the fourth wicket with Ross Taylor (36) but the Sri Lankan bowlers never allowed them to run away with a big total, dismissing the Kiwis in 48.5 overs.

Styris and Kane Williamson (22) added 42 in the batting powerplay but New Zealand lost their last seven wickets for just 56 runs.

Sri Lanka once again dismissed hard-hitting Brendon McCullum through a spinner when left-armer Rangana Herath bowled him in the eighth over for 13.

Martin Guptill (39) and Jesse Ryder (19) took the total to 69 before Muralitharan had the big left-hander caught off a quickish delivery.

Soon it became 84-3 when Malinga bowled Guptill with a ferocious yorker after the opener had hit three boundaries off 65 balls.

Styris hit five boundaries during his 77-ball knock.

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Michael Clarke appointed Australian captain

SYDNEY: Michael Clarke was appointed Australia's Test and one-day captain on Wednesday, a day after Ricky Ponting bowed to pressure and quit after the country's World Cup exit.

Long seen as heir-apparent, the stylish batsman, who turns 30 on Saturday, will jump into the role immediately, leaving this week for a tour of Bangladesh.

Ponting will also be on the plane, taking orders from his former deputy, after being named in the squad to play three one-dayers.

Shane Watson will be Clarke's vice-captain with Cameron White remaining the Twenty20 skipper.

"First of all can I say what an honour it is to be named captain and also a huge surprise to see Ricky stand down," Clarke said at a press conference.

"I was very much unaware of where he was at and didn't know he was going to stand down. It was a huge surprise to me.

"I know Ricky will allow me to do my job to the best of my ability," he added. "We want to be the best team in all forms and that is going to take time."

His Test reign will start in August when he skippers a tour of Sri Lanka.

Clarke, though, is not popular with Australian fans, and polls published Wednesday showed how cool the public are to him.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, only 26 percent of 21,000 respondents in an online poll favoured him to be the new captain.

In the Sydney Daily Telegraph, a survey of 8,500 readers placed him a distant third behind Shane Watson and Michael Hussey.

Ponting insisted Clarke was the right man for the job, and vowed to give him all the support he needed.

"He has done nothing wrong when has stood in for me over the past few years and his record in T20 cricket speaks for itself," he said in a column for The Australian newspaper.

"I will be there in the background for him if he needs me, but from today the Test and one-day teams will be his and I will be one of many players who follow him onto cricket grounds all over the world."

Asked how he will feel taking orders from a man who used to be his deputy, Ponting replied: "I've taken orders most of my life, I'm pretty used to it."

Clarke was also endorsed by cricket legend Richie Benaud.

"I'd have Clarke, he's vice-captain, he's done well the times he's been captain," Benaud told the Nine Network.

Clarke made his professional debut for New South Wales as an 18-year-old in the 1999-2000 Australian domestic season.

He made the jump to the national one-day team in January 2003 against England at Adelaide and was chosen to make his Test debut against India at Bangalore in October 2004.

He thumped 151, helping Australia to victory, invoking comparisons to past Australian greats Doug Walters and Mark Waugh.

Since then, he has gone on to play 69 Tests, scoring 4,742 runs, including 14 centuries, with an average of 46.49. A slow left-arm orthodox bowler, Clarke has captured 21 wickets.

In the one-day game, he has collected 188 caps and 5,928 runs at an average of 43.58, with 52 wickets to his name.

A part-time underwear model and a regular in the social pages, Clarke was formerly engaged to model Lara Bingle and controversially returned to Sydney during Australia's tour of New Zealand in March 2010 for "personal reasons".

It followed Bingle deciding to sue her former lover Brendan Fevola for disseminating naked pictures of her, which ended up in a women's magazine.

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Chennai cops send Rs1.6 crore World Cup bill to BCCI

CHENNAI: When the World Cup euphoria is over, and the Board of Cricket Control in India sits down to square away the accounts, they will have to set aside Rs 1.60 crore to Chennai police. That's the bill for all the anti-aircraft guns, crouching commandos, and hovering choppers deployed by the city police during Chennai matches. "We have prepared the bills to be sent to BCCI," a police officer said.

Following the terror threat, city police prepared a detailed bandobust scheme to give extensive security for the players during the matches. The players were escorted to the hotel from Chenani airport by armed policemen in a tourist bus. The security at the hotel was also tight. One whole floor was cordoned off by the police where the players were stayed. Players had the cautious eyes of cops watching over them even during net practice.

City police arrived at the figure of Rs 1.6 crore based on the number of policemen deployed inside and outside the stadium for player security. This included armed policemen escorting the players from the hotel to the stadium, as well as those who provided security in the hotel.

For the Indian Premier League (IPL) matches conducted in MAC Stadium in 2010, city police had collected Rs 1.06 crore from IPL office bearers. "This is routine for the city police. For the world cup, we will collect the money from BCCI," city police commissioner T Rajendran told TOI.

Five international cricket matches including the India - West Indies match was held in the MAC Stadium, apart from a practice match held prior to the world cup, which started on March 19, 2011. During the India - West Indies match, city police roped in coast guard and defence personnel for security. The defence personnel were armed with anti-aircraft guns and placed inside the stadium premises. "The sharp shooters were there to quickly bring down suspicious aircraft flying above," a police officer said.

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Ind vs Pak: Dhoni urges team-mates not to get distracted by media hype

MOHALI: All the members of the Indian team are fit for Wednesday's World Cup semifinal clash against Pakistan, according to captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni who strongly urged his teammates not to get distracted by the hype surrounding the high-voltage clash and just focus on the game.

Dhoni said Indo-Pak cricket matches tend to generate such media hype and it was important for the players not to get sucked into the frenzy and lose focus of the task at hand.

"Well, we know the kind of hype media India-Pakistan matches generate. We are not getting involved in all this. We need to know what we are expected to do and focus on that," Dhoni said at the pre-match media conference.

"All this is part of cricket and we have to accept it. But the key is not to get involved. We will have the biggest distinguished guests (referring to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan PM Yousuf Raza Gilani) to see the match, we have to be at our best," Dhoni said.

Asked whether the excessive hype would affect the Indians who are playing at home, the Indian skipper said, "It is not really affecting us. We all know it is a big tournament and we have prepared a lot. Our preparations have been the same like what we have done in the past few days."

Dhoni was not unduly worried about his batting form and reckoned that he had just not got opportunities to score big though he has been striking the ball well.

Asked specifically if pressure of captaincy was taking a toll on his batting, Dhoni responded: "It is only a cricketing aspect, nothing to do with form. I have been batting quite well. Sometimes the situations are not great to play flamboyant cricket. In the Bangladesh match, such a situation was there but I didn't get to bat."

"If you are batting at No 5, 6, or 7, you don't get to bat much if the top order scores. I think the last game (against Australia) was ideal but it went straight to a fielder. It does not go your way always. Form has not been a worry," he added.

Asked whether all the players in the squad were fit, Dhoni said "as of now, everybody seem to be fit. Hopefully they will be fit."

On whether this was his biggest match as captain, Dhoni said he did not believe in comparisons .

"In a cricketer's life there will be many instances, this is no doubt an important match. After some time you forget. I have forgotten how we were feeling before the semifinal and final in 2007. Three years down the line, every game is different.

"At the end of the day, it remains a 50 overs game, you have to be at your best. You have to maintain the intensity for 100 overs to win the game," the Indian skipper said.

Dhoni admitted that the presence of the Prime Ministers of both India and Pakistan and cricket being used as a tool for politics could serve as distraction.

"That will be a distraction if I think of how we can help in bringing about a political change. I have been given job to lead the side and I have to do that to the best of my ability," he said.

The Indian captain said one team had to lose in the end and fans have to take the result of the match in the right spirit.

"Somebody has to lose, irrespective of all the political talk and cricketing hype. At the end of 30th March, one team loses. It does not happen in cricket along, it happens in all sports," Dhoni pointed out.

"The good thing is we are all unaware of what is happening. Not watching the television is helping. It's a honour to lead the side. If you take it as a pressure job, you will find yourself in a pressure cooker," he said.

On the Pakistan team, Dhoni said they have a good bowling attack with their seamers and spinners doing a good job in the tournament.

"They have a good bowling attack. Their seamers and spinners are doing a good job, the part-timers are also doing well. In sub-continental conditions, these players play a role. All-rounders like Abdul Razzak and (Shahid) Afridi give them the liberty to play extra bowlers," he said.

On the Mohali track, the Indian captain said he could not comment on the wicket as he has not seen the track yet.

"Not seen the wicket, so I can't comment. In Mohali, most of the time it is in favour of batsmen," Dhoni said.

Dhoni also said that his Pakistan counterpart Afridi has been bowling really well in the tournament.

"He has been bowling really well and has been the pick of their bowlers...But irrespective of the bowler, we have to treat the ball on merit and respect the good deliveries, he said.

Ind vs Pak: Akhtar doubtful for World Cup semifinal

MOHALI: Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi on Tuesday said that retiring pacer Shoaib Akhtar is racing against time to be fit for the World Cup semifinal against India and is a doubtful starter for the high-profile match to be played at the PCA stadium on Wednesday.

Akhtar has played just three games in the tournament before being dropped but current and former Pakistan players have been calling for the experienced pacer's return in the playing eleven in a bid to unsettle the Indian batsmen.

Afridi, however, said that the team management will take a call on the temperamental pacer later in the day.

"Shoaib is not 100 per cent (fit). He is trying his level best to play and we will decide on him in the evening," Afridi said during the pre-match press conference.

The 35-year-old Akhtar, who has played 163 ODIs for Pakistan, also received support from teammates Umar Gul and Misbah-ul-Haq.

The Pakistani skipper seemed to have started mind games when he said that pressure will be more on India compared to his team during the match.

"We are not the most favourite team for this competition. India is the most favourite and we have played above expectations. We are enjoying our cricket," Afridi said.

"If you know how to handle it, there is no need to panic. I think we will enjoy playing here," he said when asked if the match was being seen more as a battle of nerves.

Admitting that it is always a big challenge to play against India in their home turf, Afridi said his team was up for the task at hand.

"This game is very important for both the sides. We have prepared well for this game and we are confident," he said.

Apart from a place in the April 2 World Cup final at stake, Wednesday's match will also witness cricket diplomacy with Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and his India counterpart Manmohan Singh attending the game.

And Afridi said the sport has and will always build the bridge between the two nations, who have not played a bilateral series since the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

"I think it's a great sign for both countries and sports, especially cricket always brings these two countries together," Afridi said.

Afridi said he was honoured to represent and lead Pakistan in the match.

"I am a cricketer first, then a diplomat and ambassador or whatever you may call," he said.

Afridi also held the media responsible for strained relations between the two neighbouring countries.

"Media ki vajeh say India, Pakistan kay relations itney kharab huvein hein (it is because of the media that relations between the two sides have deteriorated)," he lamented.

He also sought to blame the media for twisting his comments on Sachin Tendulkar, who is just one away from reaching the milestone of 100 international tons.

Praising the Mohali track, Afridi said to an extent it would be correct to say that Wednesday's contest would be between Pakistan's strong bowling attack versus India's formidable batting line-up.

Afridi, who is the highest wicket-taker in the tournament with 21 scalps, said he has transformed as a bowler.

"My focus has been on bowling," the all-rounder said. He also praised the controversy-ridden Pakistan team for its impressive display in the tournament.

"The guys have been doing a good job over the past 7-8 months. The team has played as a unit," Afridi said.

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Dhoni plays down India-Pak hype

All the members of the Indian team are fit for Wednesday's World Cup semifinal clash against Pakistan, according to captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni who strongly urged his teammates not to get distracted by the hype surrounding the high-voltage clash and just focus on the game.

Dhoni said Indo-Pak cricket matches tend to generate such media hype and it was important for the players not to get sucked into the frenzy and lose focus of the task at hand.

"Well, we know the kind of hype media India-Pakistan matches generate. We are not getting involved in all this. We need to know what we are expected to do and focus on that," Dhoni said at the pre-match media conference.

"All this is part of cricket and we have to accept it. But the key is not to get involved. We will have the biggest distinguished guests (referring to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan PM Yousuf Raza Gilani) to see the match, we have to be at our best," Dhoni said.

Asked whether the excessive hype would affect the Indians who are playing at home, the Indian skipper said, "It is not really affecting us. We all know it is a big tournament and we have prepared a lot. Our preparations have been the same like what we have done in the past few days."

Dhoni was not unduly worried about his batting form and reckoned that he had just not got opportunities to score big though he has been striking the ball well.

Asked specifically if pressure of captaincy was taking a toll on his batting, Dhoni responded: "It is only a cricketing aspect, nothing to do with form. I have been batting quite well. Sometimes the situations are not great to play flamboyant cricket. In the Bangladesh match, such a situation was there but I didn't get to bat."

"If you are batting at No 5, 6, or 7, you don't get to bat much if the top order scores. I think the last game (against Australia) was ideal but it went straight to a fielder. It does not go your way always. Form has not been a worry," he added.
© PTI

Ponting quits as Australia cricket captain

Ricky Ponting quit as Australia's Test and one-day captain Tuesday, bowing to pressure after their World Cup exit, but said he hoped to extend his career as his country's most prolific batsman.

Ponting, 36, who led Australia in more than 300 Test and one-day matches, insisted there was no "tap on the shoulder" to step down and said he remained available for selection. He endorsed deputy Michael Clarke as his successor.

"I have thought long and hard about what Australian cricket needs. Now is the right time for the next captain to assume the responsibility for both the Test and one-day teams," he told a press conference.

Ponting is Australia's most successful Test captain and their leading Test run-scorer, and lies second only to India's Sachin Tendulkar on the all-time list of Test centurions.

But his record, straddling a transition period after the retirement of a host of greats, is tainted with three Ashes series defeats to England, along with occasional flashes of petulance.

Ponting said last week's World Cup quarter-final loss to India -- ending their 12-year reign as champions -- prompted his move, which also comes just three months after the latest Ashes loss brought strident calls for change.

"The fact that we went out of the World Cup when we did was the main reason," he said, while denying he had been forced out by Cricket Australia. "I will go on the record and say that I have had no tap on the shoulder from anybody, this has been a decision that has been wholly and solely made by me."

Ponting added that he was excited by the prospect of being unburdened by the captaincy and rediscovering his world-beating batting form.

His fighting 104 in Thursday's quarter-final was Ponting's first hundred in 39 international innings across all formats.

"Today is a new start for me and I am very excited about the future," he said.

"I will give my complete support to our new captain and continue to do my best to set the best possible example for my team-mates and emerging cricketers alike.

"I proved to myself the other day that I still have what it takes to play a good international innings and that was something that was really important to me."

Ponting endorsed his deputy Clarke as the next captain, starting with the three one-day match tour to Bangladesh in April.

"Absolutely. I think that is the way it will go, for the sheer fact that he (Clarke) has done a terrific job in almost every game he has had the chance to captain for Australia," he said.

"I think he's growing into the leadership role and I would totally endorse Michael Clarke as the next captain."

Ponting has been under growing pressure since earning the dubious distinction of becoming the only Australian skipper to fail to win the Ashes three times, and said he was proud of how he responded. "It's something I've had to deal with over the last six to eight months. There's been a lot of those questions out there about me, about my leadership, and even my batting at different times," he said.

"The thing that I am really proud about is how I have handled it and how I responded with the bat in the last game, under probably the most pressure that the team and I have been under for a long time, was really satisfying."

He did not say when he might retire altogether.

"I have not put a finish date or time on when my international career will be over. I haven't written off playing in the 2013 Ashes and to have another crack at winning another Ashes series in England," he said.

Ponting stands as one of the modern-day cricketing greats, amassing 12,363 runs in 152 Tests at 53.52, and 13,288 runs in 359 one-day internationals.

He has won more Tests as captain with 48 than any other Australian and has the astonishing success rate of almost 72 percent as the country's one-day leader, winning 164 of his 228 games.

"Ricky Ponting has been an outstanding batsman, one of the best to wear the baggy green," Cricket Australia chairman Jack Clarke said.

Cricket Australia meet later Tuesday to discuss who will succeed Ponting, with Clarke the overwhelming favourite.

© AFP

Indo-Pak security tight ahead of W.Cup semi-final

New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori believes the semi-final should mark the start of bigger achievements.

The Black Caps have never progressed beyond the World Cup semi-finals in five previous attempts, but Vettori hoped his team move on from their upset quarter-final win over South Africa.

"I think we need to move on pretty quickly from that South Africa game," said Vettori of New Zealand's 49-run win at Dhaka.

"It was obviously a tremendous result for us but Sri Lanka is a completely different prospect. It's a different game so we need a different game plan and a better game plan if we want to succeed." The world record breaking off-spinner, who will retire after the World Cup, has been carrying a hamstring injury and also picked up a knee problem in the quarter-final win over England.

But the 38-year-old, who has 800 Test wickets and 532 ODI victims, is so crucial to Sri Lanka, that Sangakkara could be tempted to gamble.

"Murali and everyone is trying to get him fit enough to play, it's no use thinking about the final and saving him for other games," said Sangakkara of Muralitharan who took 4-25 in the group stage win over New Zealand.

Sangakkara said the spinner, who played in the 1996 World Cup winning team, will be crucial to his team's hopes of making the April 2 final in Mumbai.

"This is the crunch game and if he can play that'll be great for us, but if that doesn't work out for us, we've got enough cover to make sure that we are still a solid winning side," said Sangakkara. Around 100 commandos belonging to Punjab's Special Security Group, trained by Israeli counter-terrorism experts, will also be on duty.

People living close to the 30,000-capacity PCA stadium in Mohali were left fuming at what they termed was "too much attention just for a game of cricket".

"It has become a nightmare for us to reach and leave our homes," said Vijay Khanna.

"I shudder to think what will happen on match day when the build-up is like this. I am thinking of going on a short trip and escape the madness."

Hotel guests in Mohali and nearby Chandigarh, meanwhile, also complained of midnight security sweeps of their rooms.

In Colombo, Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara admitted that even a half-fit Muralitharan could be risked in Tuesday's semi-final against New Zealand. More than 2,000 mounted police and commandos threw a tight security blanket around Mohali on Tuesday ahead of the World Cup semi-final clash between India and Pakistan.

But despite the significance of Wednesday's game, there was only one match consuming interest in Sri Lanka where Muttiah Muralitharan was playing his last international on home turf, the semi-final against New Zealand.

India's last-four encounter against Pakistan will be the first meeting between the two arch-rivals on Indian soil since the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

Although relations are still tense, the match has become a diplomatic lever with Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani accepting an invitation from his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh to attend the match.

"We are leaving nothing to chance. The security will be multi-layered," said Mohali's Senior Superintendent of Police G.P.S. Bhullar.
© AFP

Aussie PM praises 'great bloke' Ponting

Australia's Prime Minister Julia Gillard praised Ricky Ponting as a "great bloke" Tuesday as former players also hailed the batsman, who stepped down as the country's Test and one-day captain.

Gillard said she had called to congratulate Ponting on his achievements, after he quit the captaincy in the wake of last week's World Cup exit at the hands of India.

Ponting is Australia's most successful Test captain and its leading Test run-scorer, but was under growing pressure after losing his third Ashes series against England and relinquishing his team's 12-year hold on the World Cup.

"To play that kind of role for Australia is an enormous privilege and I know from talking to Ricky today that he has felt that privilege," Gillard told reporters.

"He's our greatest batsman after (Don) Bradman... I think all of us would wish him well in whatever he chooses to do for the balance of his life.

"He's still a very young man but many, many accolades are going to flow in the direction of Ricky Ponting today and in the coming days and let me lend my voice to congratulate a great bloke and fantastic cricketer."

Australian Cricketers' Association President and former team-mate Michael Kasprowicz said Ponting, who remains available for selection, had made an outstanding contribution as skipper.

"Ricky has been a magnificent team leader who has excelled in all forms of the game in all kinds of conditions," Kasprowicz said.

"On countless occasions he has carved an innings of strength to truly lead from the front on the big stage and was an inspirational figure to play under."

Former England captain Michael Vaughan said via Twitter: "Respect to Ricky Ponting. Never easy giving up something that you love doing. Lots of runs still in him though. Bowlers beware."

Cricket Australia chairman Jack Clarke paid tribute to Ponting's leadership.

"Ricky Ponting has been an outstanding batsman, one of the best to wear the baggy green," Clarke said in a statement.

"His leadership as captain has been outstanding and I sometimes think his brilliance with the bat has overshadowed his fine work as captain.

"Those close to the team know his true worth in guiding his players and setting a personal example of commensurate professionalism, particularly in recent years following the retirement of so many greats of the game." Former Australian skipper Kim Hughes believed Ponting can follow in the footsteps of Indian great Sachin Tendulkar and improve as a player after relinquishing the captaincy.

"I still feel that he possibly thinks he's got another year or two good cricket left in him at either one-day or Test cricket and maybe without the burden of the captaincy that he can do justice to that," Hughes said.

Cricket Tasmania chairman Tony Harrison, whose island state -- Ponting's birthplace -- won this season's domestic Sheffield Shield, said cricket was strong there because of the ex-captain's contribution to the game.
© AFP