Saturday, November 28, 2009

*India promises best and green Commonwealth Games

India promises best and green Commonwealth Games

Port of Spain: Blending sports with climate change diplomacy, India on Saturday said it will hold the first-ever Green Commonwealth Games in 2010 and the best-ever sporting show and underlined that the event will propel New Delhi to a world-class city.

Suresh Kalmadi, chairman of the organizing committee of the 2010 Commonwealth Games, made the remarks at a ‘sports breakfast’ that the leaders and sports ministers of former British colonies attended.

The breakfast was held at the seaside Hotel Hyatt, where most of the world leaders participating in the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) are staying.

Addressing the gathering, Kalmadi reaffirmed India's commitment to holding the best-ever Commonwealth Games and a unique event that will have environment and climate as its focus.

"We will hold the best ever Commonwealth Games and the first green Commonwealth Games," Kalmadi told journalists here.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday made a vigorous pitch for "equitable and balanced outcome" at the upcomming UN conference on climate change at Copenhagen during his intervention at a special session devoted to climate change at the CHOGM meeting.

"Environment today is a critical component. Recognising this, we will strive towards reducing the carbon footprint to hold the first-ever Green Commonwealth Games and thus become the benchmark for all multi-disciplinary games in the future," Kalmadi said at the sports breakfast.

India will invest in green infrastructure, pro-active waste management, greening and green ceremonies, Kalmadi said.

Despite skepticism expressed by some about India's preparedness for holding such a mammoth sporting event, Kalmadi conjured a robust picture of the preparations for the Games.

There are always skeptics, but we have proved them wrong again and again, Kalmadi told IANS.

Outlining the detailed preparations for the Games and its expected spinoff for the Indian economy, Kalmadi said the mega sporting event will generate $4.5 billion for India in the 2008-2012 period.

It will create 2.5 million jobs and over 100,000 tourists are expected to visit India, Kalmadi said.

The Games will leave behind a great legacy for New Delhi and for India in the areas of civic and world class facilities, thus promoting Olympics sport in the country, he said.

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Patrick Manning, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma and Mike Fennel, president Commonwealth Games Federation, as also sports ministers from the Commonwealth countries, attended the sports breakfast.

*Beehives to be cleared before ODI

Beehives to be cleared before ODI

The Orissa Cricket Association is worried over the recurring problem of formation of beehives in two galleries of the Barabati Stadium.

The venue will host the third one-dayer between India and Sri Lanka on December 21.

Presently, gallery number seven and eight are dotted with over a dozen large beehives and OCA Secretary Asirbad Behera told reporters that they have to be removed before the match.

"We are planning to remove the beehives in the first week of December so that the bees would not get time to form fresh hives before the match," he said.

The organisers came across the same problem during the India-Englandencounter at the venue in November 2008. Honey collectors from Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj districts had removed the beehives then to allow a trouble-free match.

"We have got in touch with the same honey collectors who will be in the town much in advance to remove the beehives," Behera said.

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*Winless Nets lose 16th straight, 109-96 to Kings

Winless Nets lose 16th straight, 109-96 to Kings

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The New Jersey Nets dropped their 16th straight game to open the season, moving within one of matching the worst start in NBA history with a 109-96 loss to the Sacramento Kingson Friday night.

Rookie Tyreke Evans had 21 points and eight rebounds, and Beno Udrih also scored 21 for Sacramento, which never trailed on its way to winning back-to-back games following a four-game losing streak.

After losing to the team that had the worst record in the NBA a season ago, the Nets need to beat the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday at Staples Center to avoid matching the record for futility held by the expansion Miami Heat (1988-89) and the Los Angeles Clippers (1999).

The potential record-setter would come at home against Dallas on Wednesday.

Brook Lopez had 24 points and 11 rebounds, and Devin Harris scored 25 points on 6-for-22 shooting for the Nets, who matched the longest losing streak in franchise history with their latest loss.

"It's just a matter of time until we break through," coach Lawrence Frank said before the game.

Just not against the Kings.

Things were so bad for the Nets that they missed five shots near the basket in one 15-second span, including three that were blocked. Frank complained to the officials when Monty McCutcheon told him the defensive plays were all clean, asking incredulously at one point, "All five?"

The return of All-Star Harris to the starting lineup couldn't do the trick for the Nets. Harris, who missed 10 games with a groin injury, had come off the bench the past three games. He missed six of his first seven shots before helping the Nets get back into the game in the third quarter.

Harris' steal and dunk was part of a 16-4 run that helped New Jersey close a lead that had been 22 points in the first half down to 67-61 midway through the third quarter. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Udrih and Omri Casspi helped the Kings open the lead back up to 84-69 heading into the fourth.

New Jersey got it back down to six early in the period but never got any closer and lost for the 10th time in their last 11 trips to Arco Arena. Chris Douglas-Roberts scored 21 points for the Nets.

Casspi scored 18 points, making three of four free throws when New Jersey went to the hack-an-Omri strategy in the fourth quarter. Udrih added a layup that made it 104-94 with 1:05 remaining. Spencer Hawes had 16 points and 10 rebounds before being sidelined in the third quarter with a bruised right knee.

The Nets missed six of seven shots to open the game, including a dunk attempt by Lopez on the opening possession. New Jersey fell behind by 10 points less than halfway through the first quarter and trailed by 20 midway through the second. The Kings took a 59-42 lead into the break when Evans scored with 1.1 seconds left on a give-and-go with Hawes off an inbound pass.

NOTES: Lopez was called for a flagrant foul in the first quarter when he hit Jason Thompson's arm on a dunk attempt, sending Thompson crashing to the floor. ... The Nets also lost 16 straight games in the 1977-78 season. ... The Kings topped 100 points for the 11th time in the past 12 games. ... The banners honoring theSacramento Monarchs, who folded last week, have already been taken down.

Gambhir's absence may hit India hard

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KANPUR: India were grappling with a new selection headache on Saturday, with in-form opener Gautam Gambhir opting out of the crucial third Test

against Sri Lanka in Mumbai.

Gambhir has been given permission by the Indian cricket board to attend his sister's wedding, which falls on the second day of the Test opening at the Brabourne stadium on Wednesday.

Gambhir's absence is likely to throw India on the back foot as they seek to win the three-Test series, which they lead 1-0 after their innings and 144 runs victory in the second match on Friday.

The opening Test in Ahmedabad ended in a draw.

A 2-0 series win will put India on the top of the Test rankings and also deny Kumar Sangakkara's men their maiden victory on Indian soil in the longest version of the game.

Gambhir, 28, has been enjoying a golden run with the bat, having hit four centuries in a row in his last four Tests, including knocks of 114 and 167 in the current series.

It was his vital 233-run opening partnership with Virender Sehwag in the second Test which laid the platform for India's massive victory.

In his last 25 innings, Gambhir has hammered seven centuries and seven half-centuries for a stunning average of 77. Overall, he has scored 2,553 runs from 27 Tests since making his debut in 2004.

India's captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was measured in his response when asked about Gambhir's unavailability.

"It's difficult to say how much the team will miss Gambhir," Dhoni said.

"There are times when you have to adjust to situations. These are things we cannot do much about.

"We are a side that depend a lot on good starts and whoever opens with Sehwag should be able to do that."

The Indians have a reserve opener in their squad in Murali Vijay, who has played only one Test, against Australia in November last year.

But India could promote current number three Rahul Dravid to the opener's slot and include an extra bowler in place of Gambhir, considering the bowler-friendly pitches of Mumbai.

Dravid, a veteran of 136 Tests, has opened the innings on 18 occasions and notched up an average of 32.60.

However, at his favourite number three position, Dravid averages a neat 55.23.

With Sehwag in fine nick at one end, the onus will be on the new opener to adjust to his hard-hitting ways, something that his Delhi teammate Gambhir is used to.

"We enjoy batting in each other's company," said Sehwag, who made 131 in the second Test.

"For instance, when (Muttiah) Muralitharan came on to bowl on the first day here, Gautam tried to play a risky shot and I just told him to be careful. I told him to think big as it was a great wicket to bat on.

"The very next ball, he hit a beautiful cover drive. That is the kind of rapport we share."

*Tendulkar a modern greater

Tendulkar a modern Great

Last week, Mike Atherton wrote a column in The Times reflecting on Sachin Tendulkar's recent exploits against Australia and his comparison to Sir Donald Bradman.

He pointed out that the factor differentiating two greats of different eras was the increasing use of protective gear nowadays, which has made modern batsmen fearless.

He argued that the practice of calling Tendulkar the greatest cricketer of all time was to demean those who had played in another time.

*Louisville fires coach Steve Kragthorpe

Louisville fires coach Steve Kragthorpe

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Louisville fired football coach Steve
Kragthorpeafter finishing the year at 4-8, the school's worst season in
more than a decade.

Athletic director Tom Jurich met with Kragthorpe Saturday morning, hours after the Cardinals finished the season with a 34-14 loss to Rutgers.

"I felt we needed to go in another direction and get this program back
on the track," Jurich said Saturday afternoon.

Kragthorpe went 15-21 in three seasons after replacing Bobby Petrinoin January 2007. He had two years remaining on a contract that paid him about $1.1 annually. Jurich said Kragthorpe will receive a $2.2 million buyout.

"I was hoping we'd get over the hump this year," Jurich said. "I thought we could get through the year and really build some momentum and obviously that didn't happen."

Jurich said a national search would begin immediately. The list of candidates could include Houston coach
Kevin Sumlin, Florida defensive coordinator Charlie Strong and former Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer.

Head coaching experience would not be a priority in finding Kragthorpe's replacement, Jurich said. He added he's looking for someone who can bring energy back to a program that was an emerging national power when Kragthorpe took over for Petrino fresh off a season in which the Cardinals went 12-1 and won the Big East title and the Orange Bowl.

"I want to get a great leader of men and somebody that will take us to the heights we want to be at," Jurich said.

Kragthorpe was not available for comment Saturday. He is expected to do so Monday, school spokesman Rocco Gasparro said.

Louisville failed to make a bowl game in any of Kragthorpe's three years. The Cardinals went 5-16 in the Big East during his stay while fan support eroded. A crowd of 23,422 turned out for the season-finale against the Scarlet Knights, the second-lowest total in the history of Cardinals Stadium.

Jurich, who said he came to a decision in the middle of the week, said fan apathy played a role.

"I watched as the whole season progressed and I feel like we needed a change in culture, a change in scenery," Jurich said.

He'd in no rush, however, to find the coach who will start the rebuilding. He needed less than 48 hours to hire Kragthorpe after Petrino's abrupt departure, but said he has no plans to talk to some of the candidates on his list until the end of the regular season.

"I'm not going to intrude on anybody that's playing right now," he said.

Jurich called Kragthorpe "a slam dunk" when he made the hire on Jan. 9, 2007 and acknowledged on Saturday he'd probably hire Kragthorpe if he had to do things over again.

"He was the hottest guy in the country at the time," Jurich said.

Kragthorpe's stock blossomed after he resuscitated Tulsa's moribund program in 2003, turning the Golden Hurricane — who won two games total in the two years before Kragthorpe's arrival — into a perennial bowl contender.

Success proved more elusive at Louisville. His stay began with a top 10 ranking and whispers of a national title shot after Kragthorpe helped persuade star quarterback Brian Brohm to return for his senior season.

Brohm, however, couldn't overcome a porous defense. The Cardinals quickly tumbled from the rankings following a last-second loss to Kentucky in his third game on the job.

Louisville finished 6-6 in 2007, but the Cardinals appeared to get some of their swagger back midway through the 2008 season. They upset South Florida to improve to 5-2 before the bottom fell out. Louisville dropped its final five games, including a 63-14 loss to Rutgers on national television in the season finale.

Kragthorpe came forward the next day pledging to turn things around quickly. Despite the second overhaul of his staff in as many years, it simply didn't happen.

This fall looked a lot like the last two, with Louisville losing close games because of turnovers, penalties and mental errors.

Kragthorpe's players defended him, saying he'd made the locker room a better place when he cleaned house following Petrino's departure. Nearly two dozen players either left or were kicked off the team during Kragthorpe's first 18 months. The coach said the moves were necessary but robbed the Cardinals of depth.

Kragthorpe went through the junior college ranks to fill most of the holes. While there were several success stories — such as linebacker Jon Dempsey — there weren't enough to keep Louisville atop the Big East.

Monday, November 23, 2009

*Home of Pak cricket

Home of Pak cricket
completes 50 years:

Lahore: Gaddafi Stadium on Saturday celebrated 50 years as the home of Pakistan cricket despite questions remaining over its viability to host international action stalled over security fears.

Fifty years ago on Saturday the ground hosted its first Test between Pakistan and Australia and it has since been the headquarters of Pakistan cricket, housing the offices of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

But on March 3 this year the stadium -- named after Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi in 1974 -- became focus of the world when the Sri Lankan team were attacked by militants on their way for third day's play in the second Test.

Also read:

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Pak panel slams govt on Lahore attack

The ambush, which left seven Sri Lankan players and their assistant coach injured besides killing eight people, put on hold any international cricket in Pakistan.

For Gaddafi Stadium groundsman Haji Bashir the half-century is significant despite the fact that the stadium is deprived of international cricket.

"Celebrating 50 years of the Gaddafi Stadium is special for Pakistan cricket and for me," said Bahsir, who came here as assistant groundsman for the first Test in 1959, when it was known as Lahore Stadium.

During his 50 years Bashir's highlights include numerous Tests, one-day matches and Twenty20 internationals -- but he also remembers the dark moments.

"The attacks were horrifying and deprived us of cricket but I am sure this historic ground and our beloved country will host international matches very soon," said the 68-year-old.

The first Test at the Stadium wasn't particularly auspicious for the home team. It saw Australian legend Richie Benuad leading his team to a seven-wicket victory and a 2-0 unassailable lead in the three-match series.

But Bashir feels the stadium has been afforded its fair share of moments to treasure.

"The most memorable match here was the Indo-Pak match in 1978 when our team beat India in a sensational finish," said Bashir of Pakistan's first-ever win over their arch rivals at home after the ties were revived following a 17-year break.

Pakistan's most prolific batsman Javed Miandad made his debut here in 1976. Another great batsman, Inzamam-ul-Haq, scored a triple hundred against New Zealand in 2002 and paceman Wasim Akram achieved country's first-ever Test hat-trick here in 1999.

The stadium also hosted the World Cup final between Sri Lanka and Australia in 1996.

"Gaddafi Stadium is truly the home of Pakistan cricket," said PCB chief operating officer Wasim Bari. "It is one of the most beautiful grounds in Asia and we are trying our level best to bring international cricket back to our stadiums."

* Prasad out, Mendis in reckoning for second Test: Sangakkara

Prasad out, Mendis in reckoning for second Test: Sangakkara

Kanpur: Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara on Monday ruled pacer Dammika Prasad out of the second Test against India and said spinner Ajantha Mendis is very much in his scheme of things for the match.

Prasad had strained his hamstring there and Sangakkara said the team was not considering the 26-year-old right-arm pacer even though there was no such apprehension about in-form batsman Tillakaratne Dilshan who broke his nose while playing football.

"Dilshan broke his nose but is perfectly fine now. Dammika strained his hamstring and is recovering well. But we are not considering him at this moment," Sangakkara said.

Karthik came, saw and left in a hurry

Muttiah Muralitharan shared the spin responsibility with Rangana Herath in Ahmedabad with little success and Sangakkara said chances are that Mendis would break into the playing XI.

"Ajantha is always in the reckoning. With the confidence and balance our team has, we can play three spinners if we want to. Or we can also replace Dammika Prasad with another fast bowler. Or we can also change a spinner. We have quite a few combinations on mind and it would take a concrete shape by the evening," he said.

Sangakkara conceded Muralitharan's below-par show in Ahmedabad was "unusual" but dismissed suggestions that Sri Lanka paid the price for their over-dependence on the wily off-spinner.

"When you have world's leading wicket-taker in your side, you got to depend on him. There cannot be any second question about that. Murali has done it for us for years, like Sanath (Jayasuriya) and (Chaminda) Vaas. But the great thing about our team is that we have great supporting players as well. Murali had Vaas, Herath and Mendis to do that.

"And I don't think Murali struggled in Ahmedabad. He has been a match-winner all the time," Sangakkara asserted.

"Cricket is a team game. If one player fails to deliver, others have to chip in. We believe in all our players and think they are good enough. We often look forward to the part-timers like Dilshan chipping in with wickets. At the end of the day, it has to be a team effort," he added.

Dhoni says Sehwag is licensed to thrill

The Motera track in Ahmedabad drew flak for being so placid that nearly 1600 runs were scored, including seven centuries, while just 21 wickets fell over five days.

A miffed Harbhajan Singh called it a bad advertisement for Test cricket but Sangakkara refused to make a fuss over it.

"Well, the track was quite placid but we have to back ourselves to do well on all kind of surfaces. You have to keep trying. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. But if you keep trying, chances of happenings are high," he said.

In comparison, the track here at the Green Park looked livelier but Sangakkara still reserved his verdict. "Maybe it has more grass on it but it's quite dry underneath. Unless you play, you don't know," he said.