Sri Lanka record 5-run Narrow win over India

Sri Lanka recorded a five-run sensational victory off the last ball of the warm up match in the fifth World Twenty20 Cup here on Monday. Chasing 154, India were all set for a win as they needed 12 runs in the last over with three wickets in hand but failed to do so and lost all three wickets. Fast bowler Lasith Malinga bowling the final over, dismissed two batsmen on his fifth and sixth balls after Binny was run out off the third. Thus, India were all out for 148.

Malinga captured four wickets for 30 and Nuwan Kulasekera claimed two for 37. Suresh Raina (41) and Yuvraj Singh (33) were main scorers for India while Earlier, Sri Lanka made 153 for six after India captain Mahinder Singh Dhoni won the toss and sent them to bat first.

Main scorers for Sri Lanka were veteran batsman Mahela Jayawardene (30), captain Dinesh Chandimal (29) and opener Kushal Perera (21). For India, off-break bowler Ravichandran Ashwin grabbed three wickets for 22 runs.

Asia Cup Final

Asia Cup: Sri Lanka thrash Afghanistan by 129 runs, to final

In-form Sri Lanka sailed into the summit clash of the Asia Cup cricket tournament with a resounding 129-run victory over minnows Afghanistan, here today. Opting to bat, the islanders rode on Kumar Sangakkara`s patient 76 and skipper Angelo Mathews` breezy 41-ball 45 to post a competitive 253/6 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium. In reply, Afghanistan were bundled out for 124 in 38.4 overs, sealing Sri Lanka`s place in the final of the five-nation continental tournament, and further diminishing India`s chances. India have lost two of their three matches and need to win with a bonus point against Afghanistan and hope that Bangladesh score an upset victory over Pakistan in their last respective round-robin matches.

Afghanistan`s run-chase never really got the momentum as they lost wickets at regular intervals, slipping to 73 for five in the 21st over. Their batting was in stark contrast to the efforts put in by the Afghan bowlers, who kept the free-flowing Lankan batsmen in check for a major part of their innings before Mathews let loose. Sangakkara, though, was the man who kept the Lankan innings afloat when the going got difficult. Afghan captain Mohammad Nabi contributed 37, while Noor Ali Zadran (21) and Asghar Stanikzai (27) got out after getting starts. Nabi hit three fours and a six during his 40-ball knock.

The rest of the batting just caved in without putting up any sort of resistance, a far cry from their outing against hosts Bangladesh, who were humbled by the spirited strife-torn nation a couple of days ago. Among the wickets for Sri Lanka were Ajantha Mendis (3/11), Thisara Perera (3/29) and Chaturanga de Silva (2/29), who proved to be handful for the Afghani batsmen.

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TN Suspends Cop Tied to IPL Probe

Tamil Nadu IPS officer G Sampath Kumar, who had deposed before the Justice Mudgal Committee probing the IPL betting-match fixing scandal, has been suspended on charges of receiving money from a bookie.
 Sampath Kumar had hit the headlines after claiming in his deposition that bookie Uttam C Jain alias Kitty had told him during interrogation that some senior India players had attended a party thrown by some bookies. Sampath had also told the committee that Kitty had taken the name of Chennai Super Kings' former team principal Gurunath Meiyappan in the context of match-fixing. The officer, who was transferred from the special branch, which initially probed the case, to Trichy as SP, Railways, had been critical of the Crime Branch-CID which probed the betting scandal in Tamil Nadu. Announcing the suspension of IPS officer G Sampath Kumar, who had deposed before the Justice Mudgal Committee probing the IPL betting-match fixing scandal, a statement issued by the governor of Tamil Nadu and signed by state home secretary Apurva Varma, read: "Disciplinary proceedings against Sampath Kumar is contemplated; the state government in exercise of the powers conferred by clause (a) of sub-rule (1) of the rule 3 of the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1969, has placed the officer under suspension with immediate effect. Sampath Kumar has been asked not to leave Trichy without the permission of Varma."

Police sources said Sampath Kumar was suspended because the CB-CID policemen had booked a case against him for collecting Rs 55 lakh from one of the punters who wanted to be let scot-free. The CB-CID officials said they recovered the cash and 10kg of silver from two people close to Sampath Kumar.

After the IPS officer's statement on Kitty's revelations were leaked to the media in early February, CB-CID director general N P Singh had said that his team would summon the officer over his controversial statement. "Sampath Kumar didn't have powers to get statement from the bookie as he was not involved in the IPL inquiry," Singh had then said.

Asia Cup 2014: That Man Kumara Sangakkara Again

Quite a few times during Sri Lanka’s successful chase, which resulted in their two-wicket win over India, Virat Kohli would have missed a spinner. The Indian skipper would have rued not playing Amit Mishra and regretted choosing pace bowling all-rounder Stuart Binny as Varun Aaron’s replacement. Binny scored a four-ball duck and looked completely innocuous with his dibbly-dobblies. On a Fatullah Cricket Stadium pitch, where the ball gripped and stayed low, Mishra would have turned the ball and, maybe, the game in India’s favour. The two frontline spinners, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, did enough to pull things back for their team. Jadeja removed Mahela Jayawardene and Dinesh Chandimal in the first two balls of his fifth over to put the brakes on Sri Lanka’s run chase. The left-arm spinner accounted for Chaturanga de Silva in his final over to keep India in the hunt but after his spell, India dragged their feet and finally gave up. Jadeja finished with three for 30 in his 10 overs.

Ashwin, returning to his usual action and wearing half sleeves, bowled well, too. Forty-two runs in his 10 overs with the wickets of Kusal Perera and Lahiru Thirimanne, was a good effort. He also reached the landmark of 100 ODI wickets in the process. But, by the time he and Jadeja were finished, five more overs were to be played. With Kumar Sangakkara and Thisara Perera at the crease and no specialist spinner at hand for Kohli, Sri Lanka had little worry. Pacers Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami did get a few toe-crushers in but still the runs leaked. Eventually, Sri Lanka won by two wickets, with four balls to spare, to top the group. They now have only Bangladesh and Afghanistan to play against and their place in the final looks almost certain. For India, they will have to win against Pakistan on Sunday to stay afloat in the competition.
Five drops
Despite their fast bowlers’ lack of discipline, India would have managed to defend the total had they been sharp on the field. A total of five catches were dropped, and that meant Sri Lanka were let off the hook too often. A collision between Ajinkya Rahane and Shikhar Dhawan in the third over during Sri Lanka’s run chase allowed Thirimanne a reprieve. He was on one then. Four runs later, Jadeja dropped him at cover. Shami was the bowler on both occasions. Perera got a life when he was on 36. Another tough chance at deep mid-wicket off Binny and once again it was the team’s best fielder Jadeja who had failed to hold on to the catch. The two openers went on to add 80 runs for the first wicket.

But India were worst hit by a missed stumping as it would have dismissed Kumar Sangakkara. It was a faster delivery down the leg side from Jadeja that Sangakkara missed and lost his balance. Dinesh Karthik swung his hand towards the stumps but missed them completely. The left-hander ended up as his team’s batting hero with an 84-ball 103, his 18th hundred in this format. It was a terrific innings under the circumstances. Sangakkara never looked to be in any sort of hurry but still ended up with a strike rate of 122-plus. He had to stay till the end to see his team through as wickets were falling at the other end. And when he got out in the 49th over, Sri Lanka were just seven runs away. India’s young batsman would benefit a lot if they learn a few things from the Sri Lankan. Most of them lacked application. The pitch didn’t offer sharp turn but still eight Indian wickets went down to Sri Lanka’s spinners. Kohli got a very good delivery from Ajantha Mendis — a carrom ball that crashed into the off stump. Actually, Mendis’s inclusion in this game turned out to be a master stroke for Sri Lanka.

Mystery returns
The 27-year-old has always suffered for his inconsistency. But today was a good day for him and he deserved his four wickets. Sachithra Senanayake took three for 41 and left-arm spinner Chaturanga de Silva bagged Ambati Rayudu’s wicket. After a promising start, the latter just threw it away. In fact, Sri Lanka were one bowler short as Mathews limped off after bowling just 3.2 overs. As usual, Lasith Malinga was not menacing against India, taking just one wicket for 58 runs in his 10 overs. But Mendis, with the wickets of Dhawan and Karthik inside three balls in his seventh over, was the game changer. From 175/3 at one stage, India were reduced to 247 for nine before a couple of sixes from Shami gave the total some respectability.
Earlier, Dhawan and Kohli put on 97 runs for the second wicket after an out-of-sorts Rohit Sharma got out cheaply. Dhawan returned to his one-day form after low scores in his last seven innings. But unlike Kohli, he still hasn’t acquired the skill to guide his team till the end.

Asia Cup: India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni to miss tournament

India's captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been ruled out of the Asia Cup with a side strain.

Dhoni suffered the injury during the second Test against New Zealand in Wellington and has been replaced in the squad by Dinesh Karthik.Virat Kohli will now skipper the side in the competition which begins in Bangladesh on February 25.

However, Dhoni is expected to be fit for next month's World Twenty20 which is being staged in the same country.A statement from the Board of Control for Cricket in India read: "MS Dhoni has been ruled out of the forthcoming Asia Cup to be played in Bangladesh in February and March.

"He sustained a Grade I left side strain injury during the course of the second Test against New Zealand. He will be undergoing rehabilitation for ten days."The All-India Senior Selection Committee has picked Dinesh Kartik as his replacement in the Indian squad for the tournament."

Million Dollar Mitch: Ashes Hero Mitchell Johnson a Big Ticket Item At IPL Auction

Mitchell Johnson looks on during an Australian nets session at Centurion Park

Pietersen a $1.6 million man
Mitchell Johnson struck a rich vein of form before he even stepped onto the field against South Africa at Centurion, becoming a million-dollar man when a Kings XI Punjab executive called his name in a luxury hotel in Bangalore. In the most blatant expression of cricket's commercial side and India's position at the centre of the cricket universe, Indian Premier League franchises spent more than $25 million in a few hours.

Johnson's supreme hostility in the Ashes made him a big ticket item, and he was the most expensive of the Australians to be sold in the first session of bidding on Wednesday. The Kings XI splurged $1.15 million on the Australian fast bowler. David Warner commanded $978,000 from Sunrisers Hyderabad, where he will form an explosive opening partnership with Aaron Finch ($710,000). Most Australian players are free to take part in the IPL this year because of a rare gap in the international schedule. Mitchell Starc, for

instance, will make his first appearance, and will earn $887,000 for his trouble. In the past, Australian Twenty20 captain George Bailey has subsisted on cut-price IPL deals but his astonishing hitting in the recent ODI series in India evidently made an impression on the owners of the Punjab Kings XI, who forked out $578,000 for the Tasmanian. Cricket's newest free agent, Kevin Pietersen, has 1.6 million reasons to feel better about the end of his international career, after he was snapped up by the Delhi Daredevils.
But even Pietersen's price tag was small beer compared with the $2.5 million reserved for Indian hero Yuvraj Singh by Royal Challengers Bangalore.

David Hussey, who in 2011 was one of the biggest earners in the IPL, was one of the players overlooked but he can go back in the auction of Friday if the franchises have any spare change. His brother Mike is still one of the most sought-after Twenty20 players, and went to Mumbai Indians for $887,000.
On Friday, the feelgood story of the Big Bash League, power cable operator Craig Simmons, will find out whether his record-breaking exploits for the Perth Scorchers were enough to score an IPL contract, and so will the player of the BBL, Ben Dunk.

Yuvraj, Karthik Big Winners At IPL Auction

Flamboyant all-rounder Yuvraj Singh was the surprise recipient of a windfall at the IPL players' auction, fetching a record bid of Rs 14 crore from the Royal Challengers Bangalore while Dinesh Karthik also clinched a mind-boggling Rs 12.5 crore purse from Delhi Daredevils here today. Both Yuvraj and Karthik, who are not even regular members of the Indian team, triggered stunning bidding wars among the franchises to set a new record in earnings in the cash-rich league. They surpassed the Rs 11.04 crore that was bid on Gautam Gambhir in 2011, the highest till now. Controversial batsman Kevin Pietersen, whose England career came to an abrupt end after a disastrous Ashes campaign earlier this month, fetched a huge Rs 9 crore purse, bought by Delhi Daredevils, the franchise he played for last season. Upcoming New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson, who scored the fastest ODI century smashing a 36-ball ton to breach the record set by Shahid Afridi in 1996, expectedly got a decent package of Rs 4.5 crore with the Mumbai Indians though there was strong buzz of him emerging as the highest paid from this auction.

Australian pacer Mitchell Johnson (Rs 6.5 crore, Kings XI Punjab), all-rounder Glenn Maxwell (Rs 6 crore, Kings XI Punjab), Indian opener Murali Vijay (Rs 5 crore, Delhi Daredevils), South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis (Rs 5.5 crore, Kolkata Knight Riders), Robin Uthappa (Rs 5 crore, KKR), West Indian batsman Dwayne Smith (Rs 4.5 crore, Chennai Super Kings), Amit Mishra (Rs 4.25 crore, Sunrisers Hyderabad) and Aaron Finch (Rs 4 crore, SRH) were some of the players who triggered intense bidding in the auction.

"It's a grand affair and every edition IPL has grown bigger. The seventh edition would be no exception, it will be grander and more entertaining for fans and franchises," IPL Chairman Ranjib Biswal said before the start of the star-studded auction where Bollywood actors and business tycoons were present. Actress Preity Zinta, co-owner of Kings XI Punjab, Juhi Chawla, co-owner of Kolkata Knight Riders, businessman Vijay Mallya, Nita Ambani (Mumbai Indians), cricketers Rahul Dravid (Rajasthan Royals), Anil Kumble (Mumbai Indians) were among the celebrities present at the auction which was beamed live.

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Punjabi Lad Earns a Black Cap to Play Against India

After an embarrassing 0-4 defeat at the hands of New Zealand's assembly line of fast bowlers in the five-ODI series, Dhoni's men will be facing off against an India-born spinner in the Test matches. Inderbir Singh Sodhi, Ish to his teammates, has been named in the Kiwis Test squad and is sure to divide loyalties among his Indian fans as the Ludhiana-born 21- year-old attempts to impress against the Indians in the first Test, in Auckland, on February 6. Just five Tests and 11 wickets old in international cricket, Sodhi - as Daniel Vettori's replacement - will be the sole spinner in the squad. The leg spinner is the first India-born to play a Test for the Black Caps and only the second to play for the Kiwis. Sodhi was four years old when his father, a doctor, migrated to New Zealand. Growing up in Auckland, pace was his first love, more a Shane Bond than Vettori. That was until former Kiwi spinner Dipak Patel, who famously opened the bowling in the 1992 World Cup, encouraged him to bowl spin after the 12-year-old landed in his academy.

Although Dipak was quickly convinced of Sodhi's skill, he warned against the hype, "We don't get a lot of young spinners. The media and the public are getting over-excited. Let him develop. My personal view is he should not be playing against India now, they have batsmen who handle spin very well. But it is just my opinion," he told HT. But he is not worried that Sodhi, who idolises Anil Kumble, will be overwhelmed by the attention, "Of course, we are all very conscious he is playing against India. His immediate family I'm sure will support New Zealand, but his close family and friends will be supporting India." The New Zealand U-19 coach, Grant Bradburn, to whose Hamilton-based Northern Districts team Sodhi shifted two years ago to play as a professional, adds: "He's incredibly skilled and understands the art of spin bowling for someone so young. He's special." Spin might pale against pace in New Zealand, but Sodhi has a height advantage. "The bounce he can generate on these pitches is an advantage," said Bradburn.

Sodhi's recent trip to Australia to seek tips from Shane Warne also received wide media attention. "He was a typical youngster who wanted to try everything, but pretty quickly he realised he wanted to bowl spin," Dipak said. Dipak believes the pressure of learning variations too early can affect his stock delivery, "Unfortunately in the international scene, they try too many variations. It's important that it is not overdone," he says. "Even with Warne, the advice given would be no different." The Black Caps haven't lost any of the five Tests Sodhi has played. Sodhi could be more than just a spin option for the Kiwis. "He is a secret weapon for New Zealand," Patel said. "And he can understand their lingo as well," he joked.

BCCI stands to gain more than Rs 3,600 crore from ICC revamp

Based on the International Cricket Council's (ICC) approximate revenue model of Rs 15,700 crore ($2.5 billion) between 2015 and 2023, the Indian cricket board (BCCI) stands to gain Rs 3,600 crore if the proposal to make India, England and Australia custodians of the global game comes to pass. Former ICC president Ehsan Mani believes the BCCI could end up making even more money since he estimates the world body could make as much as $3 billion (Rs 18,900 cr @ Rs 62.73 per dollar) during that period. In addition, BCCI will make more for staging events in India during that period. "I had done two previous commercial deals for the ICC and I can tell you that the world governing body will get more money than what is mentioned by the BCCI in the proposal paper," Mani told TOI from Pakistan. BCCI had said that it was looking at a sum of Rs 5,000 crore from ICC's revenues, as reported by TOI earlier. BCCI, England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Cricket Australia (CA) are expected to be the biggest gainers from the finance and governance draft proposal initiated by BCCI. "I am shocked to see England joining hands with BCCI. CA doesn't want to upset India and that is why they are supporting a cause which will ruin world cricket," Mani said.

Mani charged these three countries with undermining the integrity and status of the ICC. He also claimed that the proposal was drafted to benefit a vested group. "India is doing lip service to Test cricket. They want more time out for T20 and that is why their Test team struggles outside India. By not inviting teams like Zimbabwe and Bangladesh, BCCI is killing cricket in that part of the world," Mani said. "The directors, presidents, chief executive and management of ICC have no role and inputs in, or knowledge of, the preparation of the paper even though it comes from a working group of the ICC finance and commercial affairs committee. It appears some members of the committee were not invited to join in the discussions leading to the paper and were not even aware of discussions taking place," he added. Mani was also quoted as saying the full members of the ICC were summoned in Dubai on Jan 9 and presented with this paper.
As per the existing revenue sharing model, each full member like BCCI is supposed to get Rs 700 crore from ICC. Between 2007 and 2015, BCCI will be getting around Rs 332 crore (@Rs 52 to a $) from the ICC. As per Mani's calculations if BCCI has its way, Indian board's share of income will be close to 23%, England's 11% and Australia's 5%.

Mani also claimed that total share to full member countries would around Rs 9,700 crore and the associate members would get approximately Rs 1,300 crore. Based on the current model, associate members get Rs 3,300 crore. If the proposal is passed, ICC will be left with a mere Rs 4,670 crore to run cricket affairs. Mani said: "A point that also needs to be addressed is why does BCCI need more money at the expense of other countries? If a World Cup was held without Pakistan, South Africa and the West Indies, ICC's revenues for the event could be reduced by 30% to 40%.

BIG MONEY:

Total ICC revenue (likely) from 2015-2022): 15,700 cr

BCCI's share (22.9 %): Rs 3,600 cr; ECB (11.7%): Rs 1,850 cr; CA (5%): Rs 800 cr; PCB (3.82%): Rs 600 cr; CSA (3.75%): Rs 590 cr; WICB (3.18%): Rs 500 cr; NZC (2.99%): Rs 470 cr; SLC (3.18%) Rs 500 cr;

BCB (2.67%) Rs 420 cr

ZCB (2.54%): Rs 400 cr

Associate Members: Rs 1300 cr

ICC will be left with Rs 4670 cr to promote the game.

Sunanda Pushkar, wife of Union minister Shashi Tharoor, found dead in Delhi hotel

Sunanda Pushkar, the wife of Union minister Shashi Tharoor, was found dead in suite 345 of Leela Hotel on Friday evening. Her death comes within 48 hours of her going public about her husband's alleged affair with a Pakistani journalist, raising suspicions of suicide, although no note has been found. Her body was reportedly found by Tharoor when he returned to the hotel in the evening after Friday's AICC session. The couple are said to have moved out of the minister's official bungalow as it was being painted. The police were informed by Tharoor's PS Abhinav Kumar.

The tragic end came even as Twitter was still buzzing about the public display of anger, betrayal and accusations involving Tharoor, Sunanda and Pakistani journalist Mehr Tarar. There were also reports of Sunanda talking of divorce, although she scotched the talk on Thursday. The police initially suggested it was suicide. But late at night, the officers were more guarded. Police sources said it could be a "natural or unnatural death". They said all angles were being probed: suicide, poisoning and death due to a sudden heart attack. A forensic team had come to the hotel and a magistrate was called for the interrogation of Tharoor and his PS.

As the marriage was less than seven years old, section 176 of the CrPC kicked in and the police was conducting investigations to rule out any dowry angle. Delhi police will also ask Twitter to give details of direct messages between Sunanda and Tarar. There were no apparent injuries on the body which was discovered around 8pm when Tharoor opened the room. Police said the 52-year-old woman had been last seen in the hotel lobby around 3.30pm. The Sarojini Nagar SDM will supervise the probe.

Special commissioner of police Deepak Mishra confirmed her death and said suite 345 of Leela and the entire third floor had been sealed. Pushkar had checked into the hotel on Wednesday, police said. Sources said her body was discovered on the bed covered with a duvet. Dr Sudhir Gupta, head of forensic sciences at AIIMS, said the body would be kept at the department and viscera preserved. "Postmortem will be conducted after inquest orders from the magistrate," he said.

Talk of trouble between the high-profile Tharoors had been swirling for months but things were finally made public by Sunanda. 'Sunanda spoke of poor health, depression' Sunanda, who has a 21-year-old son from a previous marriage, put correspondence between Tharoor and Lahore-based Mehr Tarar, 45, on Twitter and spoke about it to the media. Although the couple on Thursday said they were "happily married", parallel reports of her having sought divorce resurfaced in the media.

Although no one who had spoken to her in the past few days sensed any suicidal tendency, one of her last tweets read: "Will try got so many issues diagnosed in KIMS that now who knows when I got 2 go with joy hastay hua jayagay (will go laughing)." Tharoor, who left his job at the UN after unsuccessfully contesting elections for the secretary-general's post, returned to India in 2008. Soon after, he divorced his Canadian diplomat wife. He married Sunanda in 2010 — his third marriage. He has two sons from his first wife, Tillotma.

People who had spoken to Sunanda in the past two days described her as very disturbed and distraught over her husband's relationship with Tarar. TV anchors with whom she had corresponded on Thursday night said she had spoken about her poor health and depression. Sunanda, who was with Tharoor in Thiruvananthapuram last week, underwent treatment at a private hospital two days ago. She was unwell and diagnosed with Lupus and stomach tuberculosis, said a hospital source. Lupus is a medical condition arising from deficiency in immunity which damages healthy tissues. It is learnt that she had spent four days in hospital.

"My wife's illness means I need to be with her and will miss all five events of Jaipur litfest in 2014. I promised to atone in 2015," a tweet by Tharoor at 8.01pm read. Journalist Vir Sanghvi said on TV he had met her a few weeks ago and the usually bubbly woman was not herself. "...I feel there is something deeper here," he said. 

Corey Anderson World record slams fastest ever ODI ton

World record: NZ’s Corey Anderson slams fastest ever ODI ton

Corey Anderson slammed a century off just 36 balls against the West Indies to break Shahid Afridi's long-standing world record for fastest ODI ton as New Zealand beat West Indies by 160 runs in a rain-shortened game in Queenstown. At the other end, Jesse Ryder got a super quick ton (104 off 51 balls) as well but no one is going to be talking about that. The West Indies will remember the partnership for a long time though -- 191 runs, 12.3 overs, RR: 15.28. Ryder's contribution to partnership was 63.

Anderson finished the innings on 131 off 47 balls with 6 fours and 14 sixes. The match was curtailed to just 21 overs-a-side due to bad weather. New Zealand finished on a mind-numbing 283-4 off just 21 overs. In reply, West Indies never got going and stuttered to 124/5, with captain Dwayne Bravo topscoring with 56. At one point, Anderson was going along at a very brisk 59 off 24 balls (2x4, 7x6) but then he slammed Ravi Rampaul for four successive sixes and things just took off. He reached 85 off 31 balls -- 2 fours, 11 sixes... 15 runs and 5 balls to get them in. A few singles and and even a dot ball ensued. But then he reached the mark -- as it seemed just -- with another six off Nikita Miller. The previous fastest century in ODIs was by Shahid Afridi, who got it in just 37 balls way back in 1996. Anderson also beat the previous fastest for New Zealand by 31 balls. Craig McMillan had scored a century off 67 balls versus Australia at Hamilton in 2007.

Fastest ODI 100s 36 balls - C Anderson, 2014
37 balls - S Afridi, 1996
44 balls - M Boucher, 2006
45 balls - B Lara, 1999
 45 balls - S Afridi, 2005
46 balls - J Ryder, 2014 

Cricketer Dinesh Karthik gets engaged to Squash ace Deepika Pallikal

Dinesh Karthik - Deepika Pallikal.

Though the wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik couldn't ensure a berth for himself in the South Africa bound team, yet, he is a happy man. After all, he's won the most important trophy of his life - he's got engaged to squash player Deepika Pallikal. After a bitter divorce from his first wife, Karthik had decided to focus only on cricket. And as luck should have it, he ended up training under the same fitness coach as Deepika Pallikal and it's there that he discovered his lady love in the ace Indian squash player.

Both of them gelled well and somehow managed to succeed in keeping their affair out of the media's eyes. Dinesh Karthik, 28, and Deepika Pallikal, 22, got engaged at the Taj Grand Hotel in Chennai last week.

Dinesh Karthik Biography
Cricketer
Krishna Kumar Dinesh Karthik is a wicketkeeper-batsman who made his debut for the Indian cricket team in 2004 and has been a regular member of the team for varying periods since then, including a stint ...

Born: June 1, 1985 (age 28), Chennai
Height: 1.70 m
Career start: 2002
Spouse: Nikita Karthik (m. 2007)
Batting style: Right-handed
Current teams: Mumbai Indians (#19 / Wicket-keeper, Batsman), Tamil Nadu cricket team, India national cricket team

Dipika Pallikal Biography
Dipika Pallikal is an Indian squash player. She is the first Indian woman to break into the top 10 in the WSA rankings. She won 3 WISPA tour titles in 2011 that saw her attain a career best ranking of 13.
Born: September 21, 1991 (age 22), Chennai
Height: 1.42 m
Awards: Arjuna Award for Squash

Crickter Piyush Chawla and Anubhuti Chauhan Wedding Photos, Video 

Zaheer Khan back in India Test squad for SA tour, Gautam Gambhir ignored

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Monday announced Team India’s squad for the South Africa tour. While most members of the ODI squad have been retained, pacer Zaheer Khan has found a place back in the squad. All eyes were on Gautam Gambhir’s selection after his performances in the domestic series, but he was ignored. "His name was discussed, in fact, we discussed a lot of things. Even skipper M S Dhoni was consulted and all the players were selected unanimously," BCCI Secretary Sanjay Patel said after a meeting of the selection committee. Ambati Rayudu will make his maiden entry into the Test team as a reserve batsman.Yuvraj Singh has maintained his position despite dishing average performance in the ODI series against Australia and the present West Indies series as well.

India Squad

Test: Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay, Chesteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, MS Dhoni, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohd Shami, Zaheer Khan, Ambati Rayudu, Umesh Yadav, Wriddhiman Saha, Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ojha, Ravindra Jadeja

ODI: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Virat Kolhi, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja, Ishant Sharma, Mohit Sharma, Amit Mishra.

Bharat Ratna Demands Continue On Sachin

Following the decision of the government to confer Bharat Ratna on Sachin Tendulkar and Prof CNR Rao, the BJP has revived its demand for conferring the highest civilian honour Bharat Ratna on former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad questioned why Vajpayee was ignored despite being “the most popular PM” ever. He added that “Atalji will get the award once the BJP comes to power at the Centre.

While former prime ministers Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Morarji Desai, Gulzari Lal Nanda were all given Bharat Ratna, Prasad asked why there was a ’41 year’ delay in conferring the same on Iron Man Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.Meanwhile, closer home, TDP chief Chandra Babu Naidu has been making statements that are both interesting and surprising.

What he failed to do during his tenure, Babu is now demanding the Congress government to take appropriate steps to confer Bharat Ratna on late NT Rama Rao. Apart from leaving an indelible mark in cinema and politics, Babu points out that NTR was instrumental in bringing about social change by allowing the backward communities to take active part in politics.

MS Dhoni looks to lead CSK to opening win in Ranchi

MS Dhoni

From off-field betting scam ashes, MS Dhoni looks to lead CSK to opening win at his home ground in Ranchi The Chennai Super Kings team will face South African team Titans. On Friday, the Mumbai police filed a chargesheet against former Chennai Super Kings team principal Gurunath Meiyappan. Amidst all this drama, on Sunday the CSK team will play their opening match against South African team Titans. The match will be played at the Chennai team's captain MS Dhoni's home ground in Ranchi, Jharkhand.

The team will need to put all the drama of the IPL betting behind them when they face the Titans and aim to win another Champions Leaugue T20 crown. With game winners in Suresh Raina, Mike Hussey, Dwayne Bravo, R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni will need to get his combinations right as he gets set to play in front of his home crowd. The CSK team will hope like the Rajasthan Royals who put their spot-fixing woes behind them and managed a win over IPL champion's Mumbai Indians on Saturday.

Cricketer Baba Aparajith Interview

I got out at the wrong time, says Aparajith

India 'A' opener Baba Aparajith said losing his wicket before the batting powerplay led to the hosts' 45-run defeat in the third unofficial ODI against the West Indies 'A' on Thursday.  Victory for the visitors resulted in a 2-1 series win over the formidable India A side. Aparajith, who scored a half century in his first game of the series, said his dismissal came at a wrong time.  "Powerplay was important but before that I got out... that did not help," he said at the post-match press conference at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Aparajith said he didn't put pressure on himself and followed his process to tide over an usual nervousness in the beginning.  "I just tried to enjoy," he added. He also said it was easier to bat along side skipper Yuvraj Singh.  Describing his style of batting, Aparajith said he likes to play long innings.  Meanwhile, West Indies A captain Kieran Powell lauded the efforts of Kirk Edwards who smashed a match-winning century, that paved the way for his side's 2-1 series clinching victory in the unofficial ODI series.

"He (Edwards) knew if he bats deep into the innings, he will get an hundred and that's what the team needed, and he did it and other guys batted around him, which helped us clinch the series in the decider," Powell said.  Powell said the visitors executed their plans brilliantly in last two games after losing the series opener. Asked about the positives to derive from the series, Powell said: "Lot of youngsters are there in the team and the series win augurs well for West Indies cricket."

On his personal form after two bad performances in the series, Powell said the ploy to play positively worked wonders for him and he hoped to continue in the same vein in the one-off Twenty20 match to be played on Saturday.

Wimbledon champion Bartoli announces shock retirement

Marion Bartoli made a shock retirement announcement Wednesday, ending her career just weeks after winning Wimbledon. Bartoli, citing a string of injuries, dropped the bombshell shortly after losing in the second round of the Cincinnati Masters to Romania's Simona Halep. The top French star suffered a stunning 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 defeat to Halep. "It's time for me to retire and to call it a career. I feel it's time for me to walk away actually," said the 28-year-old.

The announcement comes two weeks before Bartoli was scheduled to compete in the US Open in New York. Seeded eighth at the Cincinnati event, Bartoli said Wimbledon helped her reach the top of her game but also took a toll on her physical and mental wellbeing. "I've been a tennis player for a long time, and I had the chance to make my biggest dream a reality," said Bartoli, who won over $11 million in prize money during her 13-year career. "I felt I really, really pushed through the ultimate limits to make it happen. But now I just can't do it anymore," she said. "I've been through a lot of injuries since the beginning of the year. I really pushed through and left it all during that Wimbledon," she added.

"I really felt I gave all the energy I have left inside my body. It (Wimbledon) will stay forever with me, but now my body just can't cope with everything." Bartoli, ranked seventh in the world, has battled a series of injuries over the past few years. She has played just three matches since winning Wimbledon and after withdrawing from several hardcourt events in July due to abdominal muscle injuries. She won a match last week in Toronto over American Lauren Davis but lost to 33rd-ranked Magdalena Rybarikova the next day.
"I have pain everywhere after 45 minutes or an hour of play," Bartoli said. "I've been doing this for so long. And, yeah, it's just body wise I just can't do it anymore."

Bartoli, who turned pro in 2000, has been coached most of her career by her father, Walter, who is a doctor. Besides Wimbledon, Bartoli won seven other WTA Tour titles, beginning with Auckland in 2006. Her most recent, prior to Wimbledon, were both in 2011 at Eastbourne and Osaka, Japan. "It's been a tough decision to take, I don't take this easily," she said. Bartoli said simply walking was now difficult for her, adding that her hips and lower back also bothered her almost constantly. "My Achilles is hurting me a lot, so I can't really walk normally after a match like that, especially on the hard court when the surface is so hard," she said.

"And my shoulder and my hips and my lower back. My body is just done." The player known for her quirky mannerisms and non-stop fidgeting on the court, said she spoke to her father by phone about the decision."He knows, more than anyone, how much I worked and what I did to make it happen, to make my dream a reality," she said. "He is proud of me. He is proud of what I did and he kind of knew I just couldn't do it anymore. He kind of felt it."

Bartoli didn't say what she plans to do next but insists this is the right time to move on. "I'm sure I will find something. I just need a bit of time to kind of settle down," said Bartoli. "It's fine. I have the right to do something else as well. I've been playing for a long, long time, and it's time for me now. It is."

Vishnu Prasad wins second leg of JK Tyre Racing Championship

Vishnu Prasad of Chennai on Sunday achieved a hat-trick of events in two days in the premium BMW-JK FB02 India Racing category of the JK Tyre National (Open) Racing championship at the Kari Motor Speedway. Handling a Formula Car introduced in India for the first time, Vishnu's victory in all the three races had put him in the leadership position on point table with 115 seven points ahead of Hyderabad's Akhil Kushlani, who had a miserable performance this weekend after having won the three races in the first leg last month. Bangalore's Akhil Rabindra was on third spot with 56 points. In the first race of the day, Dark Don driver Sariosh Hataria managed to win the race and achieve a double despite being passed by Mumbai's Ameya Bafna (Rayo Racing) and Chittesh Mandody once each.

Sarosh's strong rivals Saran Vikram and Vishnu Prasad were hit after the corner-2 by Karthik Krishna (Dark Don) and their cars spun and prevented them from racing. At the end of the race, Karthik Krishna finished third but was relegated to eighth spot after he was penalised 30 seconds for the infringement. The incident forced the race to be red flagged and the winner and other placing were decided on seven laps as per the new rules of the championship. At the end of the two of the five legs of this JK Tyre Racing Championship (six races), Sarosh was leading the points table with 103 points followed by Saran Vikram (79) and Vishnu Prasad, who had won a event on Saturday was on 75. In the WV Polo Cup events, Chennai driver Prasanth Tharani claimed the title in a start to finish affair. South African guest driver, Jeffrey Krugger came second and Rahil Noorani of Mumbai finished third.

In the second race, Mumbai ace, Rahil Noorani ruined his chances by indulging in a 'jump start' and was slapped 30 seconds penalty. However, Krugger made use of this situation to finish for top honours, followed by Prasanth Tharani and Yatin Magu for the second and third positions.

Results: Polo Cup (Race 1): 1. Prashanth Tharani (Chennai); 2. Jeffrey Kruger (South Africa); 3. Rahil Noorani (Mumbai). Race 2: Jeffrey Kruger (South Africa); 2. Prashanth Tharani (Chennai); 3. Yatin Magu (New Delhi). Formula LGB 4 (Race 3): Sarosh Hataria (Dark Don); 2. Tejasram Caveripakam (Meco); 3. Akash Gowada (Meco). FB02 (Race 2): 1. Vishnu Prasad (Chennai); 2. Akhil Rabindra (Bengaluru); 3. Chittesh Mandody (Kolhapur) and Race-3: Vishnu Prasad (Chennai), 2.Arjun Maini (Bangalore) and 3.Chittesh Mandody (Mumabi).