Bulls do not win bull fights. People do

FINALLY, IPL BEGINS

2008-04-18T03:29:00.000-07:00

I wish I could greet the Indian Premier League with the anticipation of my first salary, or even the trepidation of my board exams.
Sadly, the main emotion is disappointment, as some rather Draconian accreditation regulations have restricted websites' scope of coverage to a bare minimum. Those who think that Twenty20 is the future of cricket are remarkably short-sighted when it comes to thinking of the future of the media.
The IPL was never going to die a quiet death. It may sound like a doomsday prediction, but the fact remains that irrespective of what emotion you address the tournament with – you may sing praises sky-high, or lambast it to the depths of disgust - you cannot ignore it.
You will mistake it frequently though. You will mistake it for a platform for the young hopefuls to make it, you will mistake it as a forum that will provide these youngsters with so much attention, that they would not die away as unknown also-rans.
You will also make a mistake if you think that cricket as we knew it will continue. Whatever be the fallout of this league, the world of cricket will never be the same again. That’s not to say that it won’t be an improvement. Only someone totally blinkered would assume that this is all bad. This is just different.
Once One-Day Internationals came into being, the fallout was the filtering of unorthodox shots, and even lesser patience, into the Test arena. That resulted in more matches being decided, and in the recent past, there have hardly been Test series which have witnessed draws and draws only. Call it the reflexes of instant cricket, or the shift in the attention and concentration span, it yielded results.
So what will Twenty20 do? Simple. It will ensure that we don’t need five-day Tests. As it is, not too many nowadays see the fifth day, and with the techniques and quick-fix of a 20-over game coming in, things will happen faster. So shorter Tests, leaving more time for Twenty20.

SANIA CLIMBS TO THE 30 th SPOT

2008-04-15T07:01:00.000-07:00

Sania Mirza, out of action with a wrist injury, has climbed to the 30th spot in the latest WTA rankings issued Monday.

Sania, now has 917 points while her doubles ranking too showed improvement as she moved to 19th position with 1830 points.

Meanwhile, Indian veterans Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi remained static in their ATP doubles' rankings.

Paes held his 24th spot while his Davis Cup partner Bhupathi was at 13th place.

GRUELLING BATTLE AHEAD

2008-04-08T03:33:00.000-07:00

Amid talks that the Indian team wants to field three spinners on what is expected to be a square turner in Kanpur for the final Test against South Africa, the hosts began their preparations early but were missing two of their tweakers here on Monday.

Captain Anil Kumble, who is still nursing a groin strain sustained during the first Test in Chennai, as well as off-spinner Harbhajan Singh (who has an upset stomach), were missing from the nets, while recalled Mumbai spinner Ramesh Powar is to reach Kanpur straight. Only Piyush Chawla was present along with local spinners.

Having spent the day following their innings defeat to the Proteas in the confines of their hotel rooms, they returned to Motera for an extended practice session, with a 16-man squad for the next match already announced.

The batsmen returned to the same square on which they were drubbed twice over – 76 all out in the first innings and 328 all out in the second – as coach Gary Kirsten Kirsten kept a close watch. Even Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who missed the fielding session due to a throat infection, came out for a knock in the middle.

Munaf Patel, who has also been recalled for the decider, was seen bowling to the batsmen, but S Sreesanth, who seems to have a shoulder niggle, was held back from bowling in the morning session. Gujarat fast bowler Siddharth Trivedi, who has been in excellent form with the ball for his state, was also seen steaming in.

Having got a clear mandate about the surface in Kanpur, it was surprising to see the Indian players sweat it out on a green Motera pitch. Not ideal preparation, one would say, as they could have asked the ground staff to shave off one of the adjacent turfs to simulate the Green Park Stadium pitch.

The Indian team is scheduled to fly out from the city on Tuesday to Kanpur, where Ishant Sharma, who will have his fitness reassessed on April 10 along with his captain, will also join them.

MASTER MAINTAINS SECOND SPOT

2008-04-07T04:10:00.000-07:00

Injured Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar held on to his second spot, while his One-day skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni occupies the 10th spot in the ICC ODI Rankings issued on Monday.The master batsman, who jumped to second spot after his scintillating performance in the tri-series in Australia last month, has 777 rating points, 15 behind numero uno South African captain Graeme Smith.The 10th-placed Dhoni is followed by his deputy Yuvraj Singh at 17th. Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, at 19th, is the only Indian bowler in the top 20.

KUMBLE TO BE PRESENTED A GOLDEN BALL

2008-03-25T03:01:00.000-07:00

Better late than never, and it seems that the wait will be worthwhile for Anil Kumble.
Kumble is no stranger to a cricket ball, but the orb to be presented to him on Tuesday at the MA Chidambaram Stadium is something different altogether.
Touted as the ‘golden ball’ to be handed over to the leg-spinner for his 600 Test wickets, this 280-gram creation is actually a combination of diamonds and rubies.
Created by the Orra chain of jewellery, the ball is supposed to be studded with 1500 diamonds and as many as 640 rubies.
While there are no confirmations about the actual price of the artifact, it is supposed to be somewhere in the range of Rs 27 lakh. It took the company nearly four weeks to complete it.
Kumble has had it all coming to him late in life. He got his maiden Test century after 17 years in the business, got captaincy too in the fag end of his career.
After he got 600 wickets in Australia, it seemed that he had been forgotten for a while, before the BCCI woke up and decided to felicitate their captain. But it seems all will be forgotten once the ball is handed over to the bowler.

PANDAVAS OF INDIAN CRICKET

2008-03-19T23:18:00.000-07:00

The celebrations are over, the cheques have been distributed and the players have been feted all over for their feats in Australia.It is time now to play some cricket again, and play some serious cricket. This is Test cricket and believe it or not, with due consideration to the popularity of the limited overs version, this is the cricket that matters. This is the cricket that counts and decides whether you are good or not.The South Africans have rarely made tall claims about their superiority. They have been one of the most consistent sides in international cricket after Australia and I would not like to take them lightly in the three Tests that are scheduled at Chennai, Ahmedabad and Kanpur.I am looking forward to watch the five Pandavas of Indian cricket_Sachin Tendulkar, Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and V. V. S. Laxman. They have stood the test of time and served Indian cricket as diligently as one could have expected them to. There is no better sight for me than to watch them on the field.These seniors, or veterans, or performers, whatever you may like to call them, have sent a strong message that experience is priceless. Tendulkar and Kumble have been around for 18 years now, Dravid, Ganguly and Laxman for 12 years. It has been a wonderful journey for these sensational cricketers.That they still command their place in the team is a tribute to their character. At home and overseas, they have set examples, set new benchmarks, achieved greater heights. Their hunger, motivation, commitment has not waned over the years and these are the qualities that I would like the youngsters to imbibe. These stalwarts are too willing to share their experience and wisdom and pass it on to the next generation.

UNETHICAL MOVE BY FIH

2008-03-14T01:47:00.000-07:00

Oh..........at last the dreaded thing happened. India, 8 times olympic gold medallist had failed to qualify for the olympics for the first time in 80 years. Were you surprised??? Course you must be!! Because only recently had India won the asia cup and also beaten Belgium quite comfortably.But certainly I was not. I felt this coming... What went wrong? The answer was as simple as that. We didn't change ourselves according to time. Out of our 8 golds 6 of them came when the game was held on grass fields. Ever since the intoduction of astroturf we have found ourselves wanting.The infrastructure is completely inadequate. The total number of playable astroturfs in India would be around 15, but the number of astroturfs in Stuttgart,Germany, a city of the size of mysore would come around 20. No wonder germany i the no.1. Leave them all. The recent decision by FIH not to hold the scheduled world cup in 2010 is baffling. Reason stated by them is that India has not lived up to its reputation of a traditional powerhouse an they have wasted the funds provided.If that is the case then it is the mistake of a few people at the helm and it is completely unethical to punish a average hockey fan for none of his crime. Again I reiterate that the only way to develop a game in the country would be to hold big events like the world cup andchampions trophy in the country. If the FIH's real motive is to develop the game in India, then they should conduct the hockey world cup 2010 in India

WANNA GET IRRITATED

2008-03-14T01:41:00.000-07:00

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F1 SEASON STARTS WITH A BANG

2008-03-13T21:15:00.000-07:00

Kimi Raikkonen and Ferrari set the initial pace as practice for the Australian Grand Prix opened today in Melbourne’s Albert Park, in 39 degrees Celsius ambient temperature and a healthy wind.The first 45 minutes saw the Ferraris battling each other for fastest time, with Felipe Massa gaining that with 1m 27.524s ahead of Kimi Raikkonen 1m 27.709s. Behind them, the Toyotas looked quick, with Timo Glock on 1m 28.913s and Jarno Trulli 1m 29.014s.Then the McLarens came out and Lewis Hamilton worked down to 1m 27.386s to go fastest. Right at the end Raikkonen did two laps quicker than that, the better of which was 1m 26.461s. That compared very favourably with his pole time of 1m 26.072s from last year despite the ban on traction control and engine braking.Hamilton’s late response was 1m 26.948s, a difference of only 0.487s suggesting that the two teams are evenly matched. Heikki Kovalainen got off to a good start in the second MP4-23 with fourth fastest time of 1m 27.114s, just behind Massa, who had improved slightly to 1m 26.958s.Mark Webber gave Red Bull a timely boost with a late fifth fastest run, of 1m 28.263s. That edged out Fernando Alonso, who got along well with the Renault R28 for 1m 28.360s. Robert Kubica was another late improver, lapping in 1m 28.579s in his BMW Sauber which bears distinctive nose fins atop the scuttle.

AUSSIES- TOP SEEDS

2008-03-13T10:56:00.000-07:00

Holders Australia are the top seeds for the ICC Champions Trophy to be staged in Pakistan this September, the International Cricket Council said on Thursday.
Australia, also the one-day World Cup champions, are grouped with India, former winners West Indies and Pakistan in Group A.
Former champions South Africa and New Zealand, Sri Lanka and England are in Group B.
The groupings for the biennial tournament were decided on the basis of the official one-day rankings as of March 12, an ICC news release said.
The ICC decided three years ago to prune the field to eight teams from 10, following criticism of an unwieldy tournament.
The two top teams in each group after the round robin stage will qualify for the knockout semi-finals. The tournament schedule and venues will be announced later.
The groups (seedings in brackets):
Group A: Australia (1), India (4), Pakistan (5), West Indies (8) Group B: South Africa (2), New Zealand (3), Sri Lanka (6), England (7)

ROBIN'S TAKE

2008-03-13T03:50:00.000-07:00

Hangover of India's acrimonious Australia tour may linger but Hyderabad coach Robin Singh would like to see the Indian crowd embrace Andrew Symonds and Adam Gilchrist once the Indian Cricket League (IPL) takes off.
Robin, also Team India's fielding coach, has seen from close quarter the racism row in Australia featuring Symonds and Harbhajan Singh that threatened to polarise the cricket world.
Though sanity eventually prevailed, it left enough bad blood and it remains to be seen how the Indian crowd greet the Australian duo who would pull on the Hyderabad jersey in the IPL.
Robin, however, hopes that the crowd would embrace the duo and greet them with the same warmth bestowed on their Indian counterparts.
"I would definitely ask the people to treat them well. After all, we are popularising the game, particularly this form of cricket. I think they should be given the same treatment," the former player told PTI.
He also dismissed the view that both Symonds and Gilchrist would be under pressure once they arrive here.
"Absolutely not. These guys are thorough professionals. They have won a huge sum of money from the bid and there is no doubt about their motivation levels. I also had a long discussion with them," he said.

NEL IS NAILED

2008-03-13T02:15:00.000-07:00

South African Test fast bowler Andre Nel has most likely played his last game for his country as politics, through the system of targets, forced his exclusion from the tour of India later this month.
It could lead him to quitting South Africa before the tour of England later this year and instead, find him playing under a Kolpak contract that will end his international career.
Nel, who devastated the Bangladesh batting in the second ODI of the series on Wednesday, was a reluctant member of the side for the game, taking 4-29 as the tourists won the game by seven wickets and a 2-0 lead in the three match series.
Upset and angry at being dropped from the three-match Test tour of India later this month, Nel's place in the side for the India tour has been filled by Charl Langeveldt, who is three years older and largely an untried competitor in Indian conditions.
Langeveldt is seen more as a ODI competitor than a Test bowler, but the team, announced late Tuesday, also excludes an out-of-form Herschelle Gibbs.
Nel's ditching highlights the sort of politics that Cricket South Africa are now prepared to dabble in with their players in what is a crucial tour. But officials such as Cricket South Africa's President, Norman Arendse is not bothered by the future of such players as Nel.
His axing makes him the first victim of a deliberate revenge tactic employed by certain political circles within South Africa that have been interfering with team selection policy. They want to change the colour of the South African side before the 2011 World Cup in the sub-continent.
Nel was seen in animated conversation with team coach Mickey Arthur at the team's hotel in Chittagong before the second game of the series on Tuesday and is believed to have told the coach he didn't want to play, but reluctantly agreed.

CLIJSTER'S BABY GIRL JADA

2008-03-11T03:50:00.001-07:00

As one of the most successful players of her generation, Kim Clijsters was no stranger to success on court, but on Wednesday the retired Sony Ericsson WTA Tour star was celebrating another kind of success, as the 24-year-old gave birth to her first child.

The baby girl weighed in at 6.69 pounds and has been named Jada by Clijsters and her American husband Brian Lynch. The couple married on July 13, 2007 just a few months after Clijsters had announced her retirement from tennis, citing a desire to settle down and start a family.

Clijsters decision to leave the Tour after the J&S Cup in Warsaw last May brought to an end a glittering career for the popular Belgian. After breaking through to capture her maiden title as a 16-year-old at Luxembourg in 1999, there was a constant flow of success, with 33 more singles trophies making their way back to Belgium.

In a career which saw her spend 19 weeks at world No.1, win two year-ending Tour Championships and triumphantly return from serious injury, there were no shortages of highlights. However, arguably the pinnacle of Clijsters nine years on Tour came in September 2005 when she powered to her first Grand Slam title at the US Open, destroying Mary Pierce in a one-sided final.

BYE!! BYE!! GILLY!

2008-03-06T03:41:00.000-08:00

It was the second final of the CB series in Australia. India had batted first and posted a healthy total of 258 thanks to a masterly knock of 91 by sachin. It was the turn of Australia to overhaul the target. Young Indian pace rookie Praveen Kumar was bowling the first over. His first delivery went for two runs. Unperturbed, he steams in and bowls a superb full length delivery which swings away from the batsman. On its way it had taken a very fine edge of the bat. The bowler and all the fielders inside the ring appealed but the umpire was stubborn. The batsman was walking!!! The batsman is none other than Adam Gilchrist( who else?), playing his last match for Australia. Here is another Australian great who has announced his retirement. Next time when an Australian captain goes out to toss he will not have the cushion of Gilly on his side.

Such an influential cricketer that he is, he changes the morale of the entire team.No cricketer has revolutionised the game like he has. He changed the way the captains used to look at wicket-keepers.Players like Sangakkara and Dhoni has much to owe him. More than being a good cricketer he was a good human being. The cricket world will certainly miss him.

CB SERIES OR T20

2008-03-06T03:36:00.000-08:00

Fielding coach Robin Singh on Thursday rated the Indian cricket team's victory in the tri-series in Australia at par with the triumph in the Twenty20 World Cup last year.
"I think it's probably as good as the T20 World Cup victory," Singh said.
He added that the young talent in the team played brilliantly and stood up to the test.
"It feels pretty good, the guys played brilliantly. Young guys stood up to the test and Sachin (Tendulkar) led from the front," Singh added.
On being asked about the mood in the Indian team, he described it as "brilliant".
He, however, declined to comment whether the team, at any stage, felt the absence of senior players like Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid.
"I think we won the series and that is important," he added.

ALWAYS FIRST!!! NO SECOND!!

2008-02-28T22:47:00.000-08:00

To bat first or to bat second in ODIs? Teams obviously make up their mind based on the weather and pitch conditions, taking into account their past record at the venue. But perhaps another equally crucial factor is the manner in which their players - both batsmen and bowlers - respond to the different types of pressures that come with setting a target or chasing one. Some batsmen prefer the freedom of not having a target before them, while others relish the challenge of a run-chase. The Indian team is clearly a mixed bag.
When Sachin Tendulkar was dismissed for 2 against Australia in Sydney on Sunday, it continued an especially poor run for him in run-chases. He scored 63 against Sri lankaa couple of days later, but it still left his second-innings average in ODIs since 2005 at a dismally low 27.87. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, on the other hand, has revelled when batting second: his average of 53.06 is only slightly lesser than Tendulkar's in the first innings. Yuvraj Singh has been just as impressive in run-chases, averaging more than 50 at a strike-rate of greater than 85.
Tendulkar tops the list for batsmen who prefer to set a target: he averages 56.03 at a strike-rate of 82.49 when batting first, giving him a batting index (average multiplied by strike-rate divided by 100) of more than 46. When batting second, his batting index drops drastically to 22.64, a difference of more than 23. Mohammad Kaif, Gautam Gambhir and Rahul Dravid have much better numbers when batting first. Their stats are offset by those of Dhoni, Yuvraj, Robin Uthappa and Suresh Raina, who all have much better stats in run-chases.

INTERESTING QUESTIONS!!!!

2008-02-28T21:53:00.000-08:00

IPL- Its the word buzzing in the mouth of cricket fans all over the world for the past one month. This is referred to as cricket's answer to EPL, English Premier League. With huge stars like Sachin, Sourav, Dravid, Warne involved, naturally the expectations are pretty high. Will it live upto the stakes? Its too early to answer. As Rahul Dravid says the success of IPL really depends upon the quality of cricket it provides in its inaugral year.Well leave those technical things to big minds. The fact is that IPL has thrown open some very interesting questions which are very tricky to answer and they are given below.

1) Which team will a die-hard sachin or sourav fan living in chennai support?

Naturally he would support chennai super kings. but if sachin scores, say a century against the dhoni-led chennai team, what would be his reaction?

2) What would happen when Harbhajan teams up with Aussies for Mumbai team?

With controversies surrounding bhajji on all sides in australia what would happen if he is made to play alongside symonds and Hayden. This may not happen atleast for this year but may happen in the subsequent years.Interesting again!!!!!

3) How would a player of the calibre of Mcgrath or Ponting feel when they are made to sit out given the fact that they didnt command big during the auction?

4)Will a chennai fan support Hayden after his recent remarks against Harbhajan?

5)Will Hyderabad fans support symonds?

The answers for these questions are extremely tricky and we would just have to wait until April 18

LAST AMATEUR GRANDSLAM!!!!!

2008-02-28T20:23:00.000-08:00

The 2008 Australian Open marks the 40th anniversary of the last amateur Grand Slam. Melbourne's historic Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club hosted the last Slam that banned professionals from competing. The Australian Open - which this year celebrates its 20th anniversary at Melbourne Park - has changed immensely during that time, as has the sport of tennis.

Only in retrospect, there are days when the world seems firmly set in place. Ponder such dates as December 6, 1941 or September 10, 2001. And then the world changes forever. Tennis has such a date, too. January 28, 1968 was the last day of that year's Australian Championships. It was the last day of what proved to be the final Grand Slam event played prior to the onset of tennis' Open era. By the time of the next Slam, at Roland Garros, full-fledged professionalism was underway, tennis rapidly shedding its prevailing spirit - and pretense - of amateurism.
But even in Australia that January, there was a sense that the sport was on the brink of change. Ever since Bill Tilden had turned pro in the '20s, the sport had been split in two. Amateurs competed at Grand Slam events and tournaments all over the world, often earning wages with under-the-table payments or jobs that permitted excessive time for traveling the tennis circuit. Asked how he financed his adventures, an exemplary "tennis bum" of that time, Whitney Reed, responded, "I have a paper route." Reed, by the way, was ranked number one in America in 1961. A select few amateurs that reached the pinnacle - such as Tony Trabert after earning three Slams in 1955, Ken Rosewall after winning the U.S. Championships in 1956, Lew Hoad following Wimbledon '57, Rod Laver after taking all four in '62 - were given the chance to join the barnstorming pro tour and compete for money. But pros were banned from Slams and tournaments. With the world's best players unable to compete at the showcase events, tennis' growth prospects were perpetually still-born.
But in August 1967, Wimbledon hosted an eight-man pro tournament starring Laver, Rosewall, Hoad and Pancho Gonzales. Inspired by the high quality of tennis, eager to jettison what he called the "living lie" of amateurism, Herman David, chairman of the All England Club, made a revolutionary announcement that fall. In 1968, come hell or high water, Wimbledon would be open to all tennis players. If the sport's bastion of prestige and tradition would pursue change, others surely would follow. Yet even as the likes of USLTA president Bob Kelleher and French honcho Philippe Chatrier joined arms with David and sought to make their Grand Slam events open, a great many nations remained resistant. "Officials like to control the game," says Roy Emerson, the world's best amateur for much of the '60s. "They didn't want any change. They wanted to be the ones controlling things rather than looking ahead for the game."
By the fall of 1967, though, the amateur world was growing rapidly depleted. Emerson and his fellow Aussie, John Newcombe, had won all of that year's Grand Slam singles events and were each turning pro. A flock of other top amateurs also signed contracts, including future ATP president Cliff Drysdale, Australian Tony Roche and British star Roger Taylor. "Everyone was wanting Open tennis to happen, but we had no idea when it would come," says Emerson. "I didn't have a lot of time left, so I thought I'd turn pro while I was playing half-decently."
So it was that in January 1968, the Australian Championships kicked off with one of the most shallow fields in its history. Of the previous year's quarterfinalists, only one was even entered in the tournament. Gone was Emerson, who'd won it every year from 1963-'67. Gone was finalist Arthur Ashe, at the time enlisted in the U.S. Army. Gone were Newcombe and Roche, now members of the fledgling "Handsome Eight" pro tour. Gone was Australian stalwart Owen Davidson, who in the fall of '67 had accepted a job as head coach for the British LTA. Forty-seven of the 64-main draw spots were filled by Australians, the vast majority of whom likely never competed at any other Grand Slams.

INDIAN TENNIS AT THE CROSS ROADS

2008-02-14T02:25:00.000-08:00

In India sports means it is cricket as it has overshadowed every other sport in the country including hockey, our national sport. But tennis has had a huge following thanks to some exciting players like Ramanathan Krishnan, Vijay Amritraj,Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi and most recently Sania Mirza. These players have brought many laurels to the country and they even went on to excel at the grandslams.But that is history.Now not even a single indian male tennis player is within the top "200" in ATP rankings and Sania is the only Indian in the top 50.The two bandwagons of Indian tennis Leander and mahesh are at the fag end of their carrier, infact they are in their mid 30's and we still want them to play for the country at the olympics. Leander was at his peak of his tennis in singles when he chose doubles. Infact he defeated Pete sampras at the Pilot Pen tennis tournament and he was in the top 100 in ATP rankings. Winning doubles titles with mahesh was a customary till they broke up in 2000. But the main cause for worry is that there aren't much players who would continue their legacy.Players like Rohan Bopanna and Prakash Amritraj have impressed in patches but neither if them are consistent. Its high time that more ATP events are staged in the country so that our youngsters would be able to watch high profile players from close quarters so that they could learn the game better. This is the only way the youngsters could get a taste of what the world of tennis is all about.

ARE AUSSIES STILL NO.1

2008-02-14T01:31:00.000-08:00

This is the million if not a billion dollar question arising out of the minds of every cricket fan. This is mailnly due to the fact that they have lost a test and a ODI match to the resurgent Indians. These defeats are mainly attributed to the retiremrnt of the two greats Shane Warne and Glenn Mcgrath and critics say that aussies are yet to find their replacements. This is a tough if not an impossible job but the aussie team has a good bunch of cricketers who can toy with any team on their day. Infact it was with this team that australia defeated the lankans quite comprehensively just months before. So to say that they are on an downhill path is too premature and we should remember that the same was said before the start of the 2007 world cup.What happened next is history. With the kind of a domestic setup they have Cricket Australia ensures that they have a large pool of cricketers who could be called for national duty any time.The other teams especially the Indians,the next best team has a lot of catching up to do in terms of matching the OZ. Aussies are not finished yet but a lot of answers could be obtained at the end of the ongoing CB series

LITTLE MASTER AS MENTOR

2008-02-09T02:01:00.001-08:00

Sachin Tendulkar has always relished being a mentor to upcoming players but during the current One-Day International triangular series in Australia, he has to shoulder that burden to a greater degree in the absence of Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid.
Though Sachin may be shortest of all the Indian players but he towers above with the sheer weight of his stature.
Even as Indian cricket undertakes the bumpy road to transition, Tendulkar stands out as the bridge that leads to the future. For a team, whose average age is just 23, it's just ideal that they have Tendulkar as their cornerstone.
"The experience of Sachin is very vital for the team and he is sharing it with the younger lot," India’s assistant coach Lalchand Rajput said.
Sources have confirmed to CNN-IBN that the team management has clear instructions from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to keep Tendulkar in the loop about all the important decisions taken on the tour.
Even the tour selection committee takes all the vital decisions with his consent. He is keen to share his wisdom, but more importantly is also doling out crash courses to the youngsters on how to stand up to the likes of Sri Lankan spin whiz Muttiah Muralitharan and Aussie pace spearhead Brett Lee.
"Hum log ye try ker rahe ki jitna information hum log unse nikal paye utna accha hai hamare lie. Basically main bhi unse Murali ka jo doosra aur bowling ke bare me pooch raha tha (We are trying to get out as much information as we can out of him. I asked him about Murali's doosra)," young batsman Rohit Sharma said.
Ganguly and Dravid are not in the side and the new team management has made its choices clear. Though short on experience, they are keen on making a team for future.
The likes of Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma and Manoj Tiwari look promising but all they want is some time.
"Chances agar diya jae youngsters ko kyunki jitne bhi youngsters hain team me kafi accha ker rahe, chahe batting ho, bowling ho ya fielding ho. To thoda aap ek do match se judge nahi ker pate koi bhi player ko. Thoda chances milna chahiye (The youngsters in the team should get more chances as they are doing well in batting, bowling and fielding. A player cannot be judged by a few games)," Sharma said.
For more than 18 years Tendulkar has shouldered the responsibility of Indian cricket but on this tour his role is special.
He not only has to contribute as a player but he is also a friend, philosopher and guide of a young side trying to make a mark on the tour.

RODDICK'S FATE HUNGS IN BALANCE

2008-02-09T01:56:00.000-08:00

As he arrives this week in Shanghai for the season-ending Tennis Masters Cup, Andy Roddick might well take heed of an ancient Chinese proverb: May you live in interesting times.
While some view these words as a blessing, others regard them as a curse. For the 25-year-old Roddick, a former World No. 1 seeking yet more Grand Slam glory and a return to tennis' pinnacle, the challenge of sorting out the positive from the negative will likely define the balance of his career. Well aware of this, Roddick is determined to face whatever comes his way. "I'm not going to run and hide because I'm catching some heat," he says. "I'm not going to stay at home and pout."
In the fast-paced world of contemporary tennis, the depth and variety of the ATP tour makes life increasingly competitive for the ambitious Roddick. While Roger Federer's dominance sets the tune, Roddick also must grapple with stellar competitors Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, as well as such rough customers as Nikolay Davydenko, David Ferrer and a host of peers boasting an exceptionally wide range of skills.
"It's an incredible period in tennis for a man like Roddick," says ESPN analyst Cliff Drysdale. "He's living with the greatest player who ever held a racquet in Federer, and the greatest who ever played on clay in Nadal. It's a remarkable era we're in right now."
So where does Roddick fit in? In large part, he stands at the crossroads. Consistent enough to have qualified for this event for the fifth straight year, Roddick now is very much a rebuilt work in progress. After all, it was less than 18 months ago that he tumbled out of Wimbledon in the third round, looking exceptionally passive in losing to Andy Murray and briefly falling out of the Top 10.
Shortly after that, Roddick began working with the legendary Jimmy Connors. It has been a unique partnership. Most coach-player relationships revolve around the coach learning to see the world through the player's eyes and then subtly providing guidance.
Roddick and Connors have turned that on its head. The implicit message of having someone like Connors in his corner is this simple: Andy, you must see the world through my eyes.
As U.S. Davis Cup captain Patrick McEnroe says, "Jimmy made every shot count. He knew so much about weight transfer, about driving your legs through the ball, about court positioning. You could see all of this making an impact on Andy's game very quickly. Were there other people who knew these things? Probably. But maybe it took someone who's done more than Andy has to get him to listen."
Roddick's run to the 2006 U.S. Open final final less than two months after he started with Connors validated that the partnership could work. And a year ago here in Shanghai he held match points against Federer.
But 2007 has been beguiling -- or, perhaps, merely a campaign built on transition and refinement. This year Roddick has earned but two titles, has a 3-5 match record against fellow Top 10 players and failed to reach a Grand Slam final for the first time since 2002. And beyond these mere facts, even Roddick admitted that his loss from two sets to love and 4-2 up in the third set in the Wimbledon quarterfinals versus Richard Gasquet will haunt him for some time.
But there have also been encouraging signs. Roddick beat rough customers Mario Ancic and Marat Safin on his way to the Australian Open semifinals. There he lost to Federer in a match that surely ranks as one of the Swiss' finest displays.

A TASK IN HAND

2008-02-09T01:50:00.000-08:00

India pushed the home team all the way during the four-Test series, but Australia remain the side to beat in the CB Series tri-nation tournament which got underway last week. Some of the experienced hands are no longer around to guide them, and while that might make some difference, Australia still have plenty of firepower to ensure that the wins keep rolling in.
Since 2000, Australia have maintained such a high standard that the results have gone their way regardless of opposition or venue. Their win-loss ratio at home is an incredible 4:1 - which translates into one defeat every five matches - while overseas the ratio is only slightly poorer. The only other teams that have a win-loss ratio of greater than three have been South Africa and Sri Lanka, but only when they are playing in the familiar confines of home. Winning overseas has been a far greater struggle for both these teams. Sri Lanka have stacked up 50 wins and just 15 losses at home, but abroad they have only managed marginally more wins than defeats. The story is much the same for South Africa - only 20 defeats at home since 2000, but almost three times as many overseas.
India have had far more success abroad over the last few years than they have traditionally had, but much of that has been in Tests. In one-day internationals their record outside home is poorer than those of Australia, South Africa, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

KING KHAN WANTS GILLY

2008-02-09T01:37:00.000-08:00

Adam Gilchrist has become the most wanted player for the inaugural Indian Premier League with none other than Bollywood Superstar Shahrukh Khan lining up for the signature of the retiring Australian great for his Kolkata team, according to a newspaper report.
Khan, who bought the Kolkata franchisee for USD 85 million last month, has told former India captain Sourav Ganguly, who will skipper the team, to sign Gilchrist for the Twenty20 competition, which begins on April 18, Herald Sun reported.
Gilchrist is one of the 11 Australians who have signed an expression of interest for playing in the IPL.
With the sponsorship conflict between CA and IPL organisers lingering on and Australia having commitments in Pakistan in March-April, Gilchrist could be the only Aussie player available for the cash-rich tournament.
Technically, there is also a two-year moratorium on retired players joining a franchisee team but it is understood that Gilchrist's playing in the IPL has become a mere formality after IPL organisers have hinted that they would waive the "cooling off" period in his case.
The report also claimed that Gilchrist can expect a base payment of USD 300,000, which could double or triple when the franchises bid for players, and he would be earning more in 44 days in the IPL than a full year of international action.