Desperate Mumbai face Guyana in must-win game

Stunned by two back-to-back defeats, Sachin Tendulkar-led Mumbai Indians will be desperate to find their winning ways when they take on a low-profile Guyana in a Champions League Group B match here on Thursday.

The IPL runner-up side had a forgettable start in the show-piece event as they first went down to Lions by just nine runs in the tournament-opener and then fell prey to South Australia, who comprehensively beat them by five wickets on Tuesday.

The two consecutive defeats has put the Mumbai team on the brink of an early elimination and it will now need an inspired effort from Tendulkar and his men to bounce back.

Their performance have only showed a downward graph and although Tendulkar tried his best to lead from the front, he is yet to instill the confidence among his teammates.

After a breezy 62-ball 69 in the first match, Tendulkar failed to deliver yesterday while the so-called strong batting order of Mumbai failed to provide much resistance against the South Australia attack.

lthough Guyana bowling department does not have any big names, Mumbai batting order, including South African J P Duminy and hard-hitting West Indian Kieron Pollard, have to show more consistency tomorrow and in their coming encounters as well.

Young batsman Sourav Tiwary cracked a brilliant 44 off 36 balls on Tuesday and the team would expect another good knock from the talented Jharkhand guy on Thursday.

In bowling department Mumbai's new-ball pair of Zaheer Khan and Sri Lankan Lasith Malinga have to live upto expectation.

Zaheer scalped one wicket in the last match but was too expensive, while his India teammate and seasoned off-spinner Harbhajan Singh also proved quite ineffective against South Australia.

Guyana have also lost their campaign-opener to another IPL side Royal Challenger Bangalore by nine wickets and will find Mumbai Indians a tough nut to crack.

Skipper Ramnaresh Sarwan is the only big name in their batting line-up which somehow managed to cross 100-run mark against RCB's mighty bowling attack.

But Mumbai is unlikely to take the West Indian side lightly because the players like Christopher Barnwell, who helped Guyana to cross 100-run mark with a 54-ball 30, and Sewnarine Chattergoon are capable of changing the equation of any match just in a few overs.

But support from the lower-middle order including Esuan Crandon, Jonathan Foo and Derwin Christian will also play crucial role.

http://www.indianexpress.com

India take on Brazil to reclaim berth in Davis Cup

India will look to exploit a favourable surface, weather conditions and form of its players to reclaim a berth in the Davis Cup World Group as the hosts take on formidable Brazil in the play-off tie here from tomorrow.

India came to this tie after losing the World Group first round to Russia in March this year while Brazil whitewashed Uruguay 5-0 in the Americas Zone group I semifinals in May.

India have tasted success consistently in the Asia-Oceania Group and went on to break the World Group jinx after 11 years following a win over South Africa in 2009.

Brazil, a clay court specialist nation, last played in World Group in 2003 against Sweden and have been trying ever since to make it to the elite club.

September has been an unlucky month in the last few years for them as they lost to Ecuador, Croatia, Austria and Sweden in the play-off ties.

Traditionally India have chosen grass courts to host a Davis Cup tie but due to liking of Somdev Devvarman, its best singles players currently, it preferred hard courts for the tie, first at home in two years.

The last time India hosted a tie on a non-grass surface was in 1979 when it played against Australia on clay.

Comparing the two sides ranking wise, India do not have a single top-100 player with Somdev being the best at 113 and Rohan Bopanna a distant 479 but the doubles team Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi is undoubtedly a class apart, unbeaten in the last 23 ties. Paes will, infact, mark 20 years in the Davis Cup circuit when he takes the court on Saturday.

Brazil boast world number 27 Thomaz Belluci and 75th ranked Ricardo Mello and also have a solid doubles team in Bruno Soares and Marcelo Melo, who are ranked 16th.

Yet, a few things go in favour of India as its players, specially Somdev, have done exceedingly well on hard courts to turn the ties in his team’s favour while Brazil have not won a Davis Cup tie on hard court since 1991 and have played on the surface just eight times in its 62-year history.

The rankings may show a wide gulf between the players of the two nations, but Somdev and Bopanna have time and again proved their disdain for them.

Bopanna, despite concentrating more on doubles, has done well in Davis Cup singles of late. In India’s WG play-off win over South Africa, Bopanna had played an important role by beating Rik De Voest.

In the lost tie against Russia, the only singles win came from Bopanna when he beat Teimuraz Gabashvili.

His confidence, after a historic performance at the just concluded US Open will also be sky high.

Somdev on his day can beat any player in the world, hence despite having superiorly ranked players, Brazil will face a tough job.

Adding to their disadvantage would be the hot and humid conditions here.

In the end, it will be an intense tie in which both teams will go with equal chances to win. The losing team will play its respective Zone in 2011.

Source:http://www.indianexpress.com/

Hyderabad ready to host NZ test

Hyderabad has reportedly said it is ready to host the test match between India and New Zealand after both Kanpur and Kolkata said they will not be able to stage the test match.

The second test match of the three test series will be played from November 12 to the 16th. The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium has staged three ODIs since 2005 and was conferred Test status by the BCCI and the ICC in June this year.

Kanpur was originally scheduled to host the test match, but withdrew citing construction of a 10,000 seater stand. Kolkata's Eden Gardens then said it would not be able to host the match as renovation work was going on for next year's World Cup.

Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) president, Arshad Ayub said "Hyderabad would certainly and absolutely be ready to stage the India-New Zealand Test. We haven't been contacted, but I believe the BCCI may be considering it".

Ayub said Hyderabad was "already in the line" to host a Test as it wrote to the BCCI asking to be allotted one, depending on, "the rotation of the Test match grounds or whose turn it was."

On the 4th of December, the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium will host an ODI between the 2 countries Ayub said the prospect of hosting two international matches within the space of three weeks was, "not a problem at all".

The two confirmed venues for the India-New Zealand Test series are Ahmedabad (November 4 to 8) and Nagpur (November 20 to 24). Scheduling issues have been ongoing since starting in July when the Mumbai Cricket Association said no staging the third Test, due to the renovation of the Wankhede Stadium for the World Cup in July, followed by Kanpur's constructions problems and Kolkata's refusal to host the match.

ICC recommends Test league

The ICC Chief Executives' Committee (CEC) met in Cape Town on Monday and Tuesday with the following results.

Context and Content of International Cricket, schedule of ICC events post-2015 and the proposed Future Tours Programme 2012-2020.

The CEC endorsed a series of recommendations from a CEC working group which was set up to identify ways of introducing context for international cricket within the Future Tours Programme (FTP) after 2012 and also to consider future ICC events.

Coming from this meeting, the CEC will make some key recommendations to the ICC Board to consider. They are:

1) The FTP should consist of a Test league to provide context for all Test matches. The league would determine the top four teams to qualify for an ICC Test play-off.

2)The play-off should be held once every four years to determine the Test champion team with a request to hold the first such play-off in 2013.

3)The FTP should also consist of a One-Day International league, the first to run from April 2011 until April 2014, culminating in the crowning of an ODI league champion. This would run separate to the ICC Cricket World Cup.

4)That the ICC Board should consider a 10-team format for the ICC's flagship event, the ICC Cricket World Cup, from 2015.

5)That the ICC Board should consider a 16-team format for the men's ICC World Twenty20 from 2012, with the women's event continuing to run alongside.

6)The introduction of Twenty20 International rankings table as soon as this is justifiable.

ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said: "I am really excited by what the CEC has proposed.

"Restructuring international cricket is a significant strategic challenge and one that must be dealt with. I am grateful to the CEC and its working group for making such far-reaching proposals to tackle this important issue.

"Achieving balance and unanimous agreement is not easy but it is a very important piece of work that requires a strategic response. The holistic set of proposals, especially introducing more meaningful context, means we now have the potential to follow international cricket that is even more exciting.

"Protecting and promoting all three formats at international level is viable and I believe the CEC has shown itself to be forward thinking in tackling the challenges. I am now encouraged to engage with the ICC Executive Board to consider these proposals as soon as possible."

Bad light

The CEC continues to support the promotion of Test cricket by promoting initiatives to enhance play. In this regard, the CEC received a clarification from David Richardson (ICC General Manager - Cricket) following recent discussions at the Elite Umpires and Match Referees Seminar on the question of when players should leave the field due to bad light.

Mr Richardson said: "There is a clear instruction to match officials that the players should only go off the field when conditions are considered dangerous or unreasonable. In addition, players should not go off the field when the ground floodlights are switched on and these were deemed before the series to be adequate."

Balance between bat and ball

The CEC also discussed the need to ensure that Test match pitches provide a fair balance between bat and ball and approved a revised guideline to the ICC Pitch and Outfield Monitoring Process.

Mr Lorgat said: "In recent years there have been many more results in Test matches but there are still a few instances where the pitches do not provide a fair balance between bat and ball. This must be addressed to ensure that the enduring charm and attraction of Test match cricket is not endangered by pitches which do not produce a true contest."

Additional update reports

The CEC received a detailed progress report on preparations for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, including the release of the next phase of match tickets on 15 October.

Mr Lorgat said: "It is satisfying to see all the hard work undertaken by the host nations paying off. I am not expecting the ICC final inspections to reveal any significant concerns."

The CEC also received an update presentation on the progress in developing the ICC Strategic Plan 2011-15.

© ICC

Latif quits Pakistan academy, becomes Afghan coach

Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif resigned Tuesday as a coach at the national cricket academy over spot-fixing comments and said that he had taken up a new job with the Afghan team.

The former wicket-keeper batsman resigned after authorities handed him notice over a statement he made about spot-fixing.

"This is to inform you all that after having discussions with the Afghan cricket authorities I have accepted their offer to become the head coach of the Afghan cricket team," he said.

Latif, who was until last month Afghanistan's batting coach, is taking over from fellow Pakistani Kabir Khan, who was coach until last month's tour of Scotland. He resigned over differences with the Afghan cricket authority.

Pakistani cricket has been rocked by an investigation against three of its top cricketers in Britain over the latest spot-fixing scandal.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) suspended test captain Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamir after a tabloid newspaper said they had taken money to bowl no-balls during a Test against England in August.

Scotland Yard, London's police headquarters, is investigating the claims in Britain's News of the World newspaper, and has asked the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the ICC not to give statements about them until the inquiry is finished.

But Latif, who blew the whistle on match-fixing among Pakistan's national team in 1994 and testified against his fellow players in an inquiry four years later, spoke out last week.

Latif said the ICC and its anti-corruption unit were "powerless" in the fight against betting scams.

He also suggested that the ICC change its rules to curb corruption, and described the News of the World report as a "joint money-making exercise" by the newspaper reporter and the alleged bookie, Mazhar Majeed.

After his resignation Latif said in a statement, "As a former player and captain, people look up to me and expect me to speak honestly and without bias, and that I have done without meaning anything personal against anyone.

"I have taken the decision to resign after being issued a notice by the (Pakistan Cricket) Board for having given statements on the spot-fixing issue.

"I would like to make it clear here that while it is an honour to serve Pakistan cricket in any position, I can?t remain quiet on a key cricket issue that could determine the future of our cricket."

Latif, 41, played 37 Tests and 166 one-day internationals in an illustrious career that also saw him campaign against corruption in the game.

He had been wicket-keeping coach at the academy since late 2008.

Nadal completes career Slam by winning US Open title Read more: Nadal completes career Slam by winning US Open title

NEW YORK: World number one Rafael Nadal completed a career Grand Slam title sweep on Monday by capturing his first US Open crown, defeating Serbian third seed Novak Djokovic 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2.

The 24-year-old Spanish left-hander overwhelmed Djokovic with uncanny shotmaking to win the 1.7 million-dollar top prize as well as his third consecutive Grand Slam crown and his ninth Grand Slam title overall.

Nadal became the seventh man to complete a career Grand Slam sweep, joining Roger Federer, Andre Agassi, Roy Emerson, Rod Laver, Don Budge and Fred Perry in having won Wimbledon and the US, French and Australian Open titles.

"That's more than what I dreamt," Nadal said. "Just to be in this final was amazing."

Showers pushed the final to Monday for the third year in a row and halted the match for one hour and 48 minutes, but rain only delayed Nadal's reign on the Flushing Meadows hardcourts despite losing his lone set of the fortnight.

"To have the trophy right here in my hands in a few seconds is going to be unbelievable," Nadal said at the on-court award ceremony. Seconds later, he was smiling and hoisting the trophy above his head.

A ninth Slam title moved Nadal alone into seventh on the all-time list, passing Agassi, Perry, Ken Rosewall and Ivan Lendl and moving only seven shy of Federer's all-time record, three crowns ahead of Federer's Slam-title pace.

"Right now he's the best player in the world and he absolutely deserves this title," Djokovic said.

After winning Wimbledon and the French Open earlier this year, Nadal joined Federer, Laver and Pete Sampras as the only men to win three Slams in a row in the Open Era that began in 1968.

Nadal, third-youngest on the Slam sweep list, would join Laver and Budge as the only men to hold all four Slam crowns at once by winning the 2011 Australian Open.

No Spanish man had won the US Open title since Manuel Orantes in 1975 and the only other Spanish US Open champion was Manuel Santana in 1965. Not since John McEnroe in 1984 had a left-hander had won the US Open men's title.

Nadal was broken only five times in the tournament, matching the mark for fewest broken serves by a US Open men's champion set by Andy Roddick in 2003.

Djokovic, whose lone Grand Slam title came at the 2008 Australian Open, had won his three prior matches against Nadal, all on hardcourts, but has still never defeated the Spaniard in a final or at a Grand Slam event.

Nadal improved to 9-2 in Slam finals, his only losses coming to Federer at Wimbledon in 2006 and 2007, and 15-7 lifetime against Djokovic, who could not combat the top seed's relentless performance.

After dropping a set for the first time in the tournament, Nadal responded with exceptional shotmaking in the third set, breaking Djokovic for a 2-1 lead when the Serb sent a forehand wide.

Djokovic fought off three break points in the fifth game and five more in an epic seventh game as each man fired impressive shots time and again, those who stayed through the rain giving both men a standing ovation after Djokovic held.

Nadal held twice more to claim the third set, forced Djokovic to save a break point to open the fourth set and then broke Djokovic in the third game, his forehand winner setting up a break that came when the Serb's forehand hit the net cord and landed beyond the baseline.

Djokovic netted a forehand to surrender a break that handed Nadal a 4-1 lead but the speedy Serb kept fighting and had a break chance in the sixth game, missing long with a forehand, before Nadal held to reach the brink of history.

Nadal swatted a forehand on the baseline to reach match point and the magical moment came after three hours and 43 minutes when Djokovic hit a forehand wide.

The Spaniard put his face in his hands and fell to the ground on his back, then rolled over and savored the moment. After receiving congratulations from Djokovic at the net, Nadal dropped to his knees on the court and raised his hands in victory.

Nadal fired a forehand winner to break Djokovic in the opening game of the match, but Djokovic answered by breaking back to 2-2, the Spaniard swatting a forehand wide to surrender his serve for only the third time in the tournament.

Djokovic, who will rise to second in the world rankings, denied Nadal on five break points in the fifth game but succumbed on the sixth, the Serb smashing his racket in anger after Nadal's serve-swiping winner.

Nadal held his serve from there to claim the first set, an ominous note for Djokovic as the Spanish star was 107-1 in prior Grand Slam matches when winning the first set and 91-0 when taking the first two sets.

His urgency aroused, Djokovic broke Nadal at love for a 3-1 lead in the second set but saw his lead erased in a pivotal seventh game, Nadal denying him on two game points then firing a forehand winner on his third break chance.

The second set was at 4-4 with Djokovic serving at 30-all after one hour and 41 minutes of play when rains returned to Arthur Ashe Stadium, halting the match for one hour and 48 minutes.

When play resumed, Djokovic battled through deuce three times before holding to 5-4, then broke Nadal to claim the second set, the Spaniard spraying a backhand wide and netting a forehand for his first lost set of the tournament.

TOI

ICC chargesheeted Butt and Akmal after rejecting their replies Read more: ICC chargesheeted Butt and Akmal after rejecting their replies

KARACHI: The International Cricket Council charge-sheeted Test captain Salman Butt and stumper batsman Kamran Akmal after getting unsatisfactory replies on the show cause notices served on them last month, media reports said on Tuesday.

A report in the 'Dawn' said the two players were served the notices on August 21, the day Pakistan won the Oval Test against England.

The PCB, though, ignored the notices and went onto announce special victory bonuses for the players and the team management.

Sources said that the ICC was tipped off about the suspicious activities of the two players after the T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the governing body also had some information on the conversations between them and the alleged bookie Mazhar Majeed.

The report said both Salman and Akmal were asked to reply to notice within 14 days, asking them to provide their mobile phone numbers which they used during the World T20 besides some other information.

After finding their replies unsatisfactory, the ICC sent charge-sheets to the two players and were delivered at their personal addresses and not through the PCB.

The report quoting sources said although the PCB had some reports about the suspicious activities of Akmal, it was unaware about the activities of Butt, who was elevated to the post of Test captain after Shahid Afridi quit job.

Butt along with pacers Mohammed Asif and Mohammed Aamer is under investigation by Scotland Yard for the alleged spot-fixing and betting racket carried out by their agent Mazhar Majeed.

Butt, Asif and Aamer were suspended by the ICC following an expose by British tabloid 'News of the World', which claimed that the players took bribe for bowling no-balls during the Lord's Test.

Sources said PCB Chairman Ejaz Butt had apparently made a quiet return to Pakistan on Wednesday but there was no official confirmation on his return.

Ejaz, who has maintained a distance from media during the entire spot-fixing episode in London, is expected to brief the chief patron of the board President Asif Zardari on what sort of situation Pakistan cricket is facing, what punishments the players could face and what steps could be taken by the Board to contest the ICC investigations against the players.

Sources also said there were no immediate plans to recall the trained players from England.

"Scotland Yard has put no restriction on their travel but logistically it is not feasible to call them back now when they can be required for questioning by the police any day that is why they are based in London," one PCB source said.

Another source said Butt is also likely to consult his governing council members on immediately cancelling the central contracts given out to the players under suspension.

TOI

Indian men in Archery World Cup final

KOLKATA: Indian men erased bitter memory of the past by sailing into the final of the recurve team event in the Archery World Cup Stage IV, ousting hosts China in the semifinal at Shanghai on Friday.

India will face Japan in the summit-clash for the gold medal on Saturday.

Indian men's recurve side comprising Jayanta Talukdar, Tarundeep Rai and Rahul Banerjee, ensured a final berth with a thumping 222-214 win over China, according to information received here from the Archery Association of India (AAI).

The men's team had returned empty-handed from the World Cup Stage III at Ogden after losing the quarterfinal to the hosts USA.

This time India's first round victim was Great Britain, one of the strong contenders at the Commonwealth Games, as they notched a 218-215 victory.

Incidentally, India beat USA 225-208 in the quarterfinal to avenge their loss in the last edition.

Japan shocked world champion Korea 224-216 to make the final.

Meanwhile, Indian women's recurve side, consisting of Deepika Kumari, Laishram Bombayla Devi and Dola Banerjee, went down to Japan 212-213 in the initial round.

The women's trio had won silver at Ogden. In the compound section, the men's team of C Srither, Ch Jagnas and Ritul Chatterjee, were ousted by Malaysia 218-224.

The women's outfit of Jhano Hansdah, Bheigyabati Chanu and Gagandeep Kaur made a quarterfinal exit after going down to the USA 218-226.

The women's trio defeated New Zealand 216-200 in their opening round clash.

Indian recurve mixed pair of Talukdar and Deepika, seeded third, went down to 14th seed Mexico 142-145.

Compound duo of K Ratan Singh and Hansdah, ranked 10th, ousted Italy 153-151 in the first round but lost to the USA 150-154 in the last eight.

TOI

ICC suspends Pakistan's Butt, Asif, Aamer

LONDON: Cricket's world governing body charged three Pakistan stars accused in a betting scam with anti-corruption offences and provisionally suspended them Thursday, as the trio protested their innocence.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) said Test captain Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif were barred from taking part in all cricket matches with immediate effect, although they can appeal the suspension.

Earlier, Pakistan's ambassador to Britain said after meeting the trio that they had asked to miss the rest of the team's tour of England because of the scandal, but said he believed their insistence that they were innocent.

The ICC said it had charged the three stars with offences under its anti-corruption code and they had been provisionally suspended pending a decision on those charges.

"We will not tolerate corruption in cricket - simple as that," said ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat.

"We must be decisive with such matters and if proven, these offences carry serious penalties up to a life ban.

"The ICC will do everything possible to keep such conduct out of the game and we will stop at nothing to protect the sport's integrity. While we believe the problem is not widespread, we must always be vigilant.

"It is important, however, that we do not pre-judge the guilt of these three players. That is for the independent tribunal alone to decide."

Earlier, Butt, Aamer and Asif met with Pakistan Cricket Board ( PCB) chairman Ijaz Butt and Pakistan's ambassador to Britain, Wajid Shamsul Hasan, at the diplomat's London office.

Speaking afterwards, Hasan said: "The three players have said that they are extremely disturbed by what has happened in the past week, especially in regard of their alleged involvement in the crime.

"They mentioned that they are entirely innocent in the whole episode and shall defend their innocence as such.

"They maintain that on account of the mental torture which has deeply affected them, they are not in the right frame of mind to play the remaining matches."

Asked later if he believed the trio were innocent, Hasan replied: "Yes, I believe in their innocence."

Butt, Aamer and Asif were all named in a News of the World report which alleged they were involved in a "spot-fixing" scam by bowling deliberate no-balls in last week's Test match with England in exchange for cash.

However Hasan later questioned the authenticity of video footage shot by the newspaper, saying the players may have been framed.

"The video wasn't timed or dated. It could have been filmed before or after the match, or at a different time," he told the BBC.

Asked specifically whether he believed the players may have been set up, he replied: "Yes, I would say that. Yes."

The revelations have shocked the cricket world and led to calls from figures within the game that the players involved should be banned for life.

The trio were quizzed by police during the Lord's Test and had their mobile phones confiscated. Sky News reported they would be questioned again Friday, but Scotland Yard refused to confirm this.

London-based businessman Mazhar Majeed was arrested on Sunday but released without charge on police bail.

Meanwhile Australian Test legend Shane Warne added his voice to the chorus of condemnation, saying authorities should choose the ultimate punishment if the three players were found guilty.

"If it is true and they have been found (guilty of) match-fixing and throwing games and spot-betting with the no-balls and stuff, if that's the case they should be thrown out," Warne told reporters. "It's as simple as that."

Former England cricket coach Duncan Fletcher also adopted a hard line, writing in The Guardian newspaper that life bans were the only way to send a clear message to players who compromised the integrity of the sport.

"We must be ruthless and put the fear of God into people. Even the smallest transgression must mean that a career is over," he said.

TOI

Saina slips to third place in world rankings Read more: Saina slips to third place in world rankings

NEW DELHI: Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal on Thursday slipped one place from her career-best position of world number two to the third place in the latest international rankings release on Thursday.

The 20-year-old Saina had made a meteoric rise following her back-to-back title triumphs at the India Open Grand Prix, Singapore Open Super Series and Indonesian Open Super Series to reach the world number two spot.

But a quarterfinal finish at the recently-concluded World badminton Championship in Paris left her one place down the rung at the third position.

Saina has 64791.2637 points, while Xin Wang of China rose to the second spot after finishing second in the World Championship in women's singles. Compatriot Yihan Wang is still the number one in the ranking.

In March, Saina had attained the fifth position after becoming the first Indian woman to reach the semifinals of the prestigious All England Super Series Championships.

However, she dropped to the sixth position in the subsequent weeks.

Saina's next engagement will be the all-important Commonwealth Games in Delhi from October 3 to 14, before playing the Asian Games in November.

In the men's ranking, the Indian trio of Chetan Anand, P Kashyap and Arvind Bhatt were at 17th, 29th and 31th spot respectively, while mixed doubles pair of Jwala Gutta and V Diju were at the 13th place.

TOI

4 wrestlers, shotputter in CWG squad fail dope test Read more: 4 wrestlers, shotputter in CWG squad fail dope test - Top Stories - Commonwealth Games

BANGALORE: In a major embarrassment for the country ahead of the Commonwealth Games, eight Indian sportspersons, including five who were selected for the event, have tested positive for a banned substance.

Heading the list of the tainted is Olympian wrestler Rajiv Tomar, who was being seen as a bright prospect for a Commonwealth gold medal and had received the Arjuna Award barely five days ago.

Among the dope offenders, six are wrestlers and two athletes. Of them, four wrestlers and Sourabh Vij of Delhi had been named in the national squads for the Games.

The drug they tested positive for was methylhexaneamine, a stimulant in the non-specified category, banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency in 2010. Intended to be a nasal decongestant, it is being marketed as a dietary supplement and a party pill.

Days earlier, another CWG probable, netball player Megha Chaudhary, tested positive for steroids. The wrestlers' urine samples were collected by National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) officials during the selection trials at Sonepat last month.

Tomar, who won the gold in the 120kg category in the Commonwealth championship in Jalandhar in December 2009 before following it up with another gold at an international meet in Madrid in July, was seen as a "sure shot" medal prospect at the Commonwealth Games next month. Now, he may be forced to watch the action from the sidelines, having been slapped with a provisional suspension pending a 'B' sample test and inquiry by the anti-doping disciplinary panel.

Shotputter Sourabh Vij tested positive for the drug at the inter-state athletics meet in Patiala last month, as did discus thrower Akash Antil of Haryana. "They are provisionally suspended with immediate effect pending inquiry," Ravinder Chaudhry, officiating secretary of Athletics Federation of India, said.

Wrestling has been the worst affected by the NADA crackdown in which eight Indian sportspersons have tested positive for a banned substance, methylhexaneamine.

Besides gold medal hope Rajiv Tomar, three others headed for the Games - Sumit (74kg) and Mausam Khatri (96kg) and Gursharanpreet Kaur (women's 72kg) - tested positive. The other two grapplers who failed the dope test are Rahul Mann (60kg) and Joginder Kumar (120kg), gold and silver medallists, respectively, at the Commonwealth Championships last year. Joginder, along with Mausam, had been selected for the senior World Wrestling Championships to be held in Moscow from October 6 to 12.

The positive tests have emerged only in the freestyle category. All Greco-Roman wrestlers tested negative. In fact, in the freestyle category, Olympic bronze medallist Sushil Kumar (66kg), Anil Kumar (55kg), Yogeshwar Dutt (55kg) and Anuj Kumar (84kg), who are part of the squad, also emerged clean.

The orders for provisional suspension, issued on Wednesday, forced the Wrestling Federation of India to name replacements for the Commonwealth Games. They include Narsingh Pancham Yadav (74kg), Anil Mann (96kg) and Praveen (120kg) as well as Anshu Tomar (72kg; women).

When contacted, NADA director general Rahul Bhatnagar confirmed the positive tests. "It is unfortunate, but we are bound by WADA rules and have to take stringent action. We have issued the provisional suspensions as per WADA rules."

WFI president G S Mander said he was "surprised and shocked" by the positive dope tests. "Our wrestlers are clean and have been undergoing periodic dope tests. This is thoroughly disappointing," he told TOI.

Asked whether the wrestlers would opt for a 'B' sample test, he said: "The law will take its course. It all depends on the wrestlers whether they want a 'B' sample test in a different laboratory. But we would like to get to the bottom of this affair."

Mander was not willing to comment on whether contaminated dietary supplements could have led to the positive dope tests. "I am no expert. SAI deals with that, and we are confident the wrestlers were being provided with the best stuff. However, from what I hear, this drug is available over the counter."

TOI

About spot-fixing

Spot fixing has emerged as the latest threat to the integrity of cricket after the match-fixing scandal which rocked the game 10 years ago.

British police arrested a 35-year-old man on Saturday on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud bookmakers after a newspaper report that Pakistan pace bowlers Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif had bowled three deliberate no-balls in the fourth test against England at Lord's.

WHAT IS SPOT-FIXING?

Spot-fixing involves a player agreeing to perform to order by pre-arrangement. For example, a bowler might deliberately bowl consecutive wides in his second over or a batsman could make sure he does not reach double figures.

Twenty20 cricket is particularly susceptible because so much happens so quickly that individual performances can soon be forgotten or dismissed as inconsequential.

Tim May, the chief executive of the international players' union FICA, is one of several influential figures in the game who believes that the number of Twenty20 matches now being

played could tempt players to take money from bookmakers in return for spot fixing.

WHO BENEFITS?

Betting on cricket matches televised in the Indian sub-continent is a hugely lucrative business. Fortunes can be made if a gambler knows in advance what a particular bowler or

batsman is going to do. Bets can be placed on every delivery.

Only betting on horse racing at trackside is allowed in India but in practice around half of a market worth billions of dollars is estimated to be illegal betting, mostly on cricket.

WHAT EVIDENCE IS THERE OF SPOT-FIXING?

Rumours have abounded since the advent of the Indian Premier League (IPL) two years ago although nobody has ever been charged. During last year's Ashes tour of England an Australian player reported that he had been approached by a suspected illegal bookmaker in the team's London hotel.

Former England captain Michael Atherton said in a newspaper column earlier this year that one leading former international had told him "categorically" that spot-fixing was a regular occurrence.

Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif told Reuters this year that he knew of match-fixing in the now defunct Indian Cricket League.

WHAT WAS THE MATCH-FIXING SCANDAL?

Three international captains Hansie Cronje (South Africa), Salim Malik (Pakistan) and Mohammed Azharuddin (India) were banned for life in 2000 for helping to influence the results of matches.

Match-fixing had become established in one-day cricket in the 1990s and suspicion centred, in particular, on the one-day tournaments staged at Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates.

As a result of the scandal the International Cricket Counci(ICC) founded its Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) to monitor all international matches. The ACSU monitored the IPL tournament in India this year but not the second edition in South Africa last year because the Indian board thought the fee charged by the ICC was too high.

© Reuters

Dhoni loses top spot, Sehwag rises in ICC ODI rankings Read more: Dhoni loses top spot, Sehwag rises in ICC ODI rankings

DUBAI: Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni lost his number one spot but opening batsman Virender Sehwag gained eight places to return to the top- 10 at eighth in the ICC ODI rankings issued on Sunday.

India held on to the second spot in the team rankings despite losing the tri-series final to Sri Lanka last night.

Sri Lanka, sixth before the series, are just behind India, and in front of South Africa, who drop to fourth, when the ratings are calculated beyond the decimal point.

New Zealand drop to sixth from fourth as Australia, at the top, and England, in fifth spot, remain unchanged.

In individual rankings, Tillakaratne Dilshan broke into the top five of the batting chart.

Dilshan's match-winning effort of 110 in the final against India last night was enough to earn him a three-place boost in the rankings and he now sits in fourth position, level with Hashim Amla of South Africa.

Amla's team-mate AB de Villiers has benefited from Dhoni's slip with the 26-year-old from Pretoria taking over at the top of the rankings.

The other main mover upwards in the top 10 is Sehwag, who was declared Man-of-the-Series in Sri Lanka.

The hard-hitting opener was the series' top-scorer with 268 at an average of 67 and that effort has moved him up eight places on the rankings to eighth place.

Sachin Tendulkar, who was rested from the tri-series, lost four places and now sits in 10th position. A player loses half a per cent of his rating for every ODI he misses.

In the list for bowlers, India pacer Praveen Kumar has gained five places to break into the top 10 for the first time in his career.

The 23-year-old took nine wickets in the Sri Lanka tri-series at an average of 23.66 and now sits in 10th position in the ladder, level with Pakistan's Shahid Afridi.
TOI

Saina Nehwal racing towards World No. 1 spot

HYDERABAD: It looks like God is on the side of Saina Nehwal and is clearing the path for the Indian badminton ace's rise to No. 1 in world rankings.

While Saina Nehwal is doing her bit to achieve the distinction by progressing up the bottom half of the singles draw at the World Championships in Paris, her task was made easier on Thursday by the early exit of the current world number one and top seed China's Wang Yihan.

With Yihan becoming a third round victim to Eriko Hirose of Japan, not only the biggest hurdle is out of Saina's path but the equation now got simplified to just two players: Saina and the third ranked Wang Xin.

At the moment Saina is 56183.3531 points behind Yihan and she can wipe out that deficit with a semifinal appearance that would fetch her 6,600 points.

But she would then come face to face with Wang Xin, the only player who appears to have the chance to prove Saina's nemesis, presuming that the Chinese would come through her quarter of the draw unscathed.

Wang is already breathing down Saina's neck, with just about 3,500 points separating the two. And should she manage to beat the Indian in the semifinals, she would also win the race for the No. 1 ranking.

Before that, however, Saina is likely to come up against another Chinese wall, Wang Shixian, in the quarterfinals on Friday.

Ranked sixth at the start of the tournament, the Chinese moved to fourth rank on Thursday and is expected to come through her third round match against Yao Jie of the Netherlands.

Notwithstanding the two Chinese thorns strewn in her path, Saina is expected to sail past them. And given the manner of her victory over Russia's Ella Diehl in the third round on Thursday, the scales look tilted fully in her favour. Saina took just 40 minutes to oust Ella and extend her domination over the Russian to 5-0.

TOI

Buzz Up Kumar, Sehwag help India enter final

Dambulla: Praveen Kumar grabbed three early wickets and Virender Sehwag smashed a superb century as India entered the tri-series final with an emphatic 105-run win over New Zealand on Wednesday.

India, with 10 points from four matches, will clash with Sri Lanka (11 from four) in the final on Saturday. New Zealand finished their league engagements with seven points.

Paceman Kumar finished with 3-34 as New Zealand, chasing a 224-run target, were shot out for 118 in 30.1 overs - their lowest total against India in One-Day Internationals.

India were indebted to Sehwag for posting a competitive total as the hard-hitting opener cracked one six and 16 fours in a 93-ball 110 for his 13th one-day hundred. India virtually wrapped up the match when they sent New Zealand struggling at 22-4 in the ninth over, with Kumar taking three wickets.

Tail-ender Kyle Mills hammered an entertaining 52 for his second half-century in one-dayers, but his knock came too late to stop India from the winning the match. Mills hit three sixes and seven fours in his 35-ball knock.

Kane Williamson (13), Grant Elliott (11) and Tim Southee (10) were the others to reach double-figures in New Zealand's disappointing batting performance. Fast bowlers Munaf Patel (3-21) and Ashish Nehra (2-10) were India's other main wicket-takers.

New Zealand paceman Southee (4-49) and off-spinner Nathan McCullum (3-35) earlier shared seven wickets to bowl India out for a modest total despite Sehwag's century.

India were tottering at 66-4 in 13 overs after electing to bat when Sehwag propped up the innings with a 107-run stand for the fifth wicket with skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (38).

Southee, Mills (2-42) and Andy McKay (1-31) tested the Indian batsmen with pace and bounce in their lively opening spells to help New Zealand seize the early initiative. Dinesh Karthik, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina all failed to reach double-figures.

Southee took two wickets while Mills and McKay grabbed one apiece before Sehwag and Dhoni steadied the innings with their sensible knocks. Although wickets fell at regular intervals from one end, Sehwag kept playing attacking strokes from the other and raced to his half-century off 41 balls when he hit seamer Scott Styris through the covers for his ninth four.

Sehwag then hit McCullum for a straight six and a four through the covers off successive deliveries. He took 46 more balls to complete his century, with a single off spinner Williamson.

The Indian opener fell playing shots, caught at deep mid-wicket by Bradley-John Watling off McCullum in the 33rd over. McCullum struck again when he had Dhoni caught by wicket-keeper Gareth Hopkins, who took four catches.

Sehwag remains second in ICC Test rankings

Virender Sehwag is the highest-ranked Indian batsman in the latest ICC Test rankings issued on Sunday, occupying the second spot. Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara leads the batting table with Michael Clarke of Australia in the third spot. In the bowling list, Pakistan's fast bowler Mohammad Amir has rocketed to a career-best 17th after playing a leading role in his side's four-wicket victory over England in The Oval Test which concluded on Saturday.

Man of the match Amir took 1-49 and 5-52 in the Test and was awarded with a jump of 14 places in the rankings, which puts him just behind Paul Harris of South Africa and makes him the third Pakistan fast bowler in the top 20.

For England, off-spinner Graeme Swann has moved up one place to regain his second position on the bowling chart.

Swann, who had match figures of 7-118, had first climbed to second position in March this year after the first Test against Bangladesh in Chittagong.

In the Rankings for batsmen, Pakistan's Mohammad Yousuf, Umar Akmal and Azhar Ali, and England's Alastair Cook and Matt Prior all rose up the rankings.

Yousuf, who scored 56 and 33, has climbed two places to 14th position with India's Gautam Gambhir firmly within his sights. Umar has jumped six places to share 41st position with Australia's Phillip Hughes and Azhar has vaulted 28 places to 55th spot.

There is no change in the top five of the Reliance Mobile ICC Player rankings for Test all-rounders with Jacques Kallis of South Africa leading the field.

Meanwhile, England's four-wicket defeat has ended its chances of moving ahead of fourth-placed Australia in the ICC Test Championship.

© PTI

Perera fires Sri Lanka into final

Thisara Perera bagged a maiden five-wicket haul to help Sri Lanka storm into the triangular one-day series final with a crushing eight-wicket win over India.

The 21-year-old seamer, playing his first match of the tournament, finished with 5-28 off 7.4 tight overs as India were shot out for 103 in 33.4 overs -- their third-lowest total against Sri Lanka in one-day internationals.

The total was not enough to put pressure on Sri Lanka, who completed the win in just 15.1 overs in the day-night match in Dambulla.

The hosts finished their league engagements with 11 points from four matches, while New Zealand have seven points and India five after three games.

The winners of the last league match between India and New Zealand on Wednesday will qualify for the final.

Sri Lanka put in a solid all-round performance in the must-win match as their batsmen backed their fast bowlers, with Tillakaratne Dilshan (35) and Mahela Jayawardene (33) adding 79 for the opening wicket in 9.2 overs.

Skipper Kumar Sangakkara (13 not out) finished the match when he drove paceman Ishant Sharma through the covers for a four. Upul Tharanga remained unbeaten with 12.

Yuvraj Singh earlier top-scored with a fighting 38 in a disappointing Indian batting performance after the tourists elected to bat.

Opener Virender Sehwag (12), Rohit Sharma (11) and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (10) were the others to reach double-figures.

Yuvraj was unlucky to be given out leg-before off paceman Lasith Malinga (2-21) as TV replays suggested the ball would have missed the stumps. He was the ninth man out after hitting one six and five fours in his 64-ball knock.

Sri Lanka jolted India when paceman Nuwan Kulasekara (2-31) trapped Sehwag leg-before and had Dinesh Karthik (nine) caught behind in a lively opening spell.

Perera, who played his last one-dayer in Zimbabwe in June, then wrecked the middle order when he claimed four wickets in five overs to dash India's hopes of posting a challenging total.

He was once on a hat-trick when he had Ravindra Jadeja caught by Chamara Silva at gully and Praveen Kumar caught by Tharanga at mid-off with his next delivery. Perera ended the innings in the 34th over when he bowled Ishant Sharma.

The Sri Lankan pacemen were well supported by wicket-keeper Sangakkara, who took four catches.
Cricbuzz

Greg Chappell to be National Talent Manager

Cricket Australia (CA) has appointed Australian cricket legend and current Centre of Excellence (COE) Head Coach Greg Chappell as its first National Talent Manager (NTM), a role which will see him become Australian cricket's first full-time selector.

Chappell, who played 87 Tests and 74 One Day Internationals for Australia, will give up his current role as the Head Coach of COE in Brisbane and move to Melbourne for the new role.

CA General Manager Cricket Michael Brown said he was delighted that a person like Chappel, who has a vast depth of experience and expertise in elite cricket, will be taking on the new role.

"We began a detailed review of our cricket pathway program more than four years ago and this appointment is the final step in that comprehensive process," Mr Brown said.

"Greg will work closely with the State cricket talent development managers and with the national selectors in a system that now gives us a tightly integrated, national talent identification and management system across all Australian cricket.

"A well-defined national pathway which has all of Australian elite cricket pulling in one direction in the interests of our international performance is critically important in what is becoming a steadily more competitive international cricket environment."

Mr Brown also said CA would start recruiting a replacement head coach immediately for the COE.

With Chappell becoming a full-time selector, he will fulfill another important role as being the National Selection Panel communication point for players, coaches and other cricket stakeholders such as the media.

Chappell said: "I am really excited by the challenge of this new role - from a talent management point of view, this will be an exciting period for Australian cricket.

"I have enjoyed the COE Head Coach role as I was able to work with a talented group of coaches and support staff to assist and develop the next generation of Australian cricketers. The new role dovetails beautifully for me as they will be the immediate future of Australian cricket."

He expects to take up the new role as soon as the current COE program debriefing of state cricket associations is finished within the next month.

Andrew Hilditch will continue to chair the National Selection Panel (NSP) and Chappell will join as one of its four members.

Among his other cricketing laurels, Greg Chappell was also inducted in to the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame in 2002.

Cricbuzz

New Zealand rule out Pakistan trip

New Zealand cricket chiefs on Monday backed the idea of fundraising matches for flood-ravaged Pakistan but ruled out the prospect of the Black Caps travelling there.

Reports from Pakistan indicated New Zealand had offered to play there to raise funds for flood victims, but New Zealand Cricket chief executive Justin Vaughan said his message to the Pakistan Cricket Board had been misconstrued.

"At no point did we offer that the Black Caps would be touring as they certainly won't be playing there this year," Vaughan said.

"But it would be nice to think that in a cricket-loving country such as Pakistan that cricket could play a part in alleviating some of the suffering that is going on there."

International cricket came to an abrupt end in Pakistan in March last year after a terror attack on the touring Sri Lankan team in Lahore.

The near month-long floods in Pakistan have killed 1,500 people and affected up to 20 million nationwide in the country's worst natural disaster.

But with foreign cricket teams not prepared to play in the country because of security concerns, Vaughan said it was up to the Pakistan Cricket Board to organise fundraisers outside the country.

New Zealand Cricket Players' Association manager Heath Mills backed the idea of cricket to raise money, but added: "But at this point in time there is no way anyone can consider putting a cricket team into Pakistan to play."

He added that he did not envisage the Black Caps going to Pakistan "in the short term".

© AFP

Sehwag scores 105, but denied ton against Sri Lanka Read more: Sehwag scores 105, but denied ton against Sri Lanka

DAMBULLA: Virender Sehwag was left stranded on 99 as Sri Lankan spinner Suraj Randiv bowled a no-ball with India and Sehwag both needing a run, the team for victory and the batsman for his century. Sehwag hit the ball for a six but according to cricket rules got no runs.

Before the tri-series started, MS Dhoni had said he didn’t mind playing so many one-dayers against Sri Lanka since the matches were largely controversy-free. On Monday, rookie Lankan off-spinner Suraj Randiv had a brain freeze which could change the dynamics of this rivalry forever.

In the 35th over, India needed one run to win and Virender Sehwag also needed one to complete his century. In what appeared a deliberate and foul contravention of the spirit of the game, Randiv, coming from around the wicket, bowled the biggest no-ball seen in recent times, with even his backfoot close to over-stepping. Sehwag hit a six and raised his arms in celebration before realizing India’s win had come about with the no-ball and he would be left stranded on 99. Coincidentally - or was it? - this came immediately after Randiv had fired four byes.

India won with a bonus point chasing 171 but all hell broke loose immediately after. Both Sehwag and Sri Lankan skipperKumar Sangakkara were courteous at the post-match presentation but presented a different face immediately after. Sangakkara lambasted Randiv in front of the dressing room.

Sehwag said: "I did not know the rule when I was batting. They should have shown sportsman’s spirit. If there is a player on 99, it does not mean you bowl a no-ball, give away four byes. That has no place in cricket. It was done deliberately. He hadn’t bowled a no-ball in Tests and ODIs till now, when I was on 99 why did he bowl a no-ball? I don’t need to see videos, he was a foot outside. I’m not the opposing captain, so I don’t know what happened, but something must have been said (to the bowler) by either the captain or the seniors. This is not the first time Sri Lanka have done this. They might have done it with other teams but with us this is the second time."

Sehwag was referring to an incident in Cuttack last year. With Tendulkar at the non-striker’s end batting on 96, and India needing two runs to win, Malinga had bowled a wide down the leg side.

The indications are there could be repercussions to this episode which might have a lasting impact on the player involved, if not the Lankan captain himself. Will the game’s guardians too have a rethink on the law?

Unlike Sehwag, Sangakkara did not mention that he wasn’t aware of the rule, but said he would address the issue very, very strongly in the dressing room if he found out something had been said to the player and the act was proved deliberate. Sangakkara denied he had any role to play in the incident. "If that was intentional that has got no place on the field of cricket. If it is deliberate I will have to have a chat with him and make sure things like that don’t happen again. I will also have to see if there was any talk about it on the field prior to that delivery. Suraj is a nice guy, I hope it’s not deliberate. Maybe he was trying to bowl the doosra, get some bounce."

The MCC also has serious rethinking to do about the rule which states a match is over with a no-ball. It’s similar to a player hitting a four with one run needed, but if the batsmen cross before the ball reaches the boundary, it is counted as one and the match declared over.

Sangakkara, however, strongly disapproved: "I think if a batsman scores the runs, he should get the runs as his own
whether it is a no-ball or not. Viru deserved to get a hundred."

After venting his ire, Viru played down the issue, saying the important thing was India had won. "They have done it because no team wants to have a hundred scored against them. I don’t think there will be a change in the spirit of the series." That, however, remains to be seen.

TOI