Kartik leads India to narrow win over Australia

Murali Kartik’s all-round exploits helped India beat Australia by two wickets in the seventh and final one-day international on Wednesday.The left-arm spinner spun a web with his first five-wicket haul in one-dayers to bowl out the world champions for 193 in 41.3 overs after the visitors, who had already won the series, opted to bat in the day/night match.

“It was nice to get six wickets (for 27 runs), it doesn’t happen every day,” man of the match Kartik told reporters.

The 31-year-old also scored 21 not out and shared an unbroken 52-run stand for the ninth wicket with Zaheer Khan (31 not out) to guide India home with four overs to spare.

Robin Uthappa struck an entertaining 47 and put on 65 for the seventh wicket with Harbhajan Singh (19) as the hosts rallied in fine style after slumping to 64 for six.

Left-arm paceman Mitchell Johnson had made early inroads by having Saurav Ganguly and Dinesh Karthik caught behind by Adam Gilchrist for ducks. Gilchrist collected four catches in total to take his tally to 400 in one-day internationals.

Earlier, India left out former captain Rahul Dravid because of his lack of form before skipper Ricky Ponting proceeded to give Australia a flying start with a classy 57. Kartik then took centre stage by snatching six wickets in a 10-over spell.

He removed Brad Hodge, Andrew Symonds, Brad Haddin, Brad Hogg, Brett Lee and James Hopes as the visitors collapsed from 117 for three in the 20th over.

Ponting shared half-century stands with Gilchrist and Hodge but Kartik twice claimed two wickets with consecutive deliveries to put the brakes on for India. Michael Clarke, opening in place of the injured Matthew Hayden, fell first ball to left-arm seamer Zaheer for the second successive game.

“At one point they were going great guns,” added Kartik. “The way Ponting and Gilchrist were batting it was looking like the wicket was very easy.”

Australia, despite their defeat, took the series 4-2 after the opening match was washed out.

“We bowled really hard with the ball but didn’t get enough runs,” said Ponting.

“Murali bowled beautifully. Taking six wickets today was a great effort.”

The teams next meet in a Twenty20 international on Saturday.

Dhoni gets it right

The Indian skipper handled the media with aplomb when asked to compare his team’s World Twenty20 triumph with that of Kapil Dev’s men in the 1983 World Cup.

After India’s nail-biting win in the final of the ICC World Twenty20 tournament the Indian skipper was asked to compare his team’s triumph with the 1983 World Cup win by Kapil Dev’s men. What has been most impressive about Dhoni is not only his cool demeanour under pressure, but the disarming manner in which he can react to a potentially explosive question. It can never be a practised and acquired skill but one that comes naturally. With so many news chan nels and newspapers and magazines vying to get their TRPs and circulation soaring and looking for a peg on which a story can be developed, it is extremely tough to be the captain of the national cricket team or for that matter a public figure in India nowadays.

Visitors to India find that out the hard way, but because they are here for only a short time they are spared the mess, which is sometimes created for neither rhyme nor reason. A stray comment or a remark can make headlines and those in India are mostly aware of this. But the foreigners don’t always know, when they are asked to react to something, whether such a comment has been made at all or has just been made up in order to get a reaction that will keep the story going further.

So, when Dhoni smartly said he was only two years old at the time of the 1983 World Cup triumph and did not remember much of it, the media was not going to let him off easily. But Dhoni played safe by saying comparisons between the two triumphs was simply not on as they were in different eras and in different formats of the game. That was nifty footwork from the Indian skipper, for if he had indulged in any comparison he would have been on a sticky wicket.

The only realistic comparison in sport is when you play the same opposition at the same time. That’s when you know who the champion is or who the better player or team is. In cricket it is even more so as the conditions change from country to country, even venue to venue and session to session. You can only compare players from the same team and not from different teams. So a Hayden and a Ponting can be compared, but not a Hayden and a Dravid because they are playing bowlers of different quality even in the same match.

That the Twenty20 format is different from the 50-over format, which again is different from the Test format, is obvious and so any comparison is going to be dicey. The lesser the number of overs, the better the chance for even low-ranked teams to surprise the higher ranked ones. This is simply because the margin for recovery is much less than in the longer games.

Champion teams invariably find a way to get back into the game when they have the time and the overs to do so. It’s virtually impossible to corner good teams in Test matches because even if they have had a bad session or two, they can bounce back. Similarly, in a 50-over game a good team has a chance to recover the lost ground of a few bad overs, whether batting or bowling.

However, as the ICC World Twenty20 showed us, it wasn’t always easy to come back into the game even if there were just a couple of bad overs. That’s why a team like Zimbabwe with plenty of newcomers was able to surprise Australia in the tournament. It’s even more hazardous for such teams in a shorter format like the six-a-side tournament where sides like Hong Kong have beaten the top teams.

Thus, though the Indians humbled the Aussies in the Twenty20 format, they found the world champs too hot to handle in the 50-over version of the game.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni was therefore quite correct in refusing to be drawn into comparing the two champion Indian teams. His team’s performance was thrilling and has given rise to a belief that under him the Indian team will go places. Yes, there will be hiccups playing against the world champs, but there are more chances of the Indian team winning against the other teams than ever before.

The Indians will be playing a lot against Australia over the next few months and there is plenty to learn from the world champs. If they can pick up a few valuable lessons, then it will go a long way in making the team a consistent winner in all formats of the game.

Cricket board chiefs condemn racism

Cricket board chiefs of India and Australia have condemned racism in the sport, saying there was no place for it in the game on or off the field.Andrew Symonds was racially abused by spectators during a one-day international in Baroda last week and the Australian team, especially Symonds, was booed by spectators in the seventh and final one-day match in Mumbai on Wednesday..

The International Cricket Council (ICC), which strengthened its anti-racism code last year, has written to Indian officials asking them to comment on events in Baroda.

Cricket Australia spokesman Philip Pope said the staging association was immediately informed of the inappropriate behaviour of the crowd.

“Cricket crowds in all cricket nations are often noisy and boisterous, which is part of the fun of cricket,” Indian board president Sharad Pawar and Cricket Australia chairman Creagh O’Connor said in a joint statement.

“But all cricket nations have to be on guard to ensure that the fun does not cross the boundary into unacceptable behaviour.

“If it does, it is our expectation that the specifics of ICC Anti Racism Code be enforced without fear or favour.

“Players of all countries have a right to expect they will be treated with respect wherever they play in the world,” the statement said.

The statement said Pawar and O’Connor were concerned that the ICC Anti Racism Code could only work if it was genuinely embraced.

They have instructed their respective managements to ensure the objectives of the code were understood and implemented appropriately at all venues.

Kartik destroys Australia with 6 wicket haul

India’s Murali Kartik destroyed the high-flying Australian batting for a measly 193 with a devastating career-best spell of spin bowling in the seventh and final cricket one-dayer here on Wednesday.Kartik, who grabbed two wickets off successive balls to be on a hat-trick twice, sent the visitors to their doom in the dead-rubber tie with a six-wicket haul to bring back memories of a similar display against the same opposition in a similar series-winding Test contest almost three years ago.

Australia, choosing to bat first, were shot out in only 41.3 overs with Kartik grabbing a magical 6 for 27, his first-ever haul of more than three wickets in 33 ODIs, bettering his previous best of 3 for 36 against the West Indies at Jodhpur in November, 2002.

The bowler had taken seven wickets, including three at a crucial time in the second innings when the top team in the world chased 107 and were shot out for 93, on November 5, 2004 at the same venue and secured the man of the match award on that occasion.

The 31-year-old Railways bowler, recalled to the squad midway through the series at the insistence of captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, removed Brad Hodge (16) and Andrew Symonds (0) off successive balls in the last two balls of his second over to bring the Australians down a bit after they went into the match aiming for a 5-1 score-line in the rubber.

After being denied a hat-trick in the first ball of his third over, Kartik struck three big blows in his eighth over, off the first, fourth and fifth balls, to get rid off Brad Haddin (19), Brad Hogg and Brett Lee, both for ducks, to leave the tourists gasping at 162 for eight in the 32nd over.

Butt receives dressing down for ‘irresponsible’ comments

LAHORE: Pakistan vice-captain Salman Butt has got a dressing down from the team management for criticising the bowlers at a press conference during the second cricket Test against South Africa last week.

Sources in the team said that Butt was forced to apologise to the bowlers and other teammates who rounded on him for his critical comments.

“Leg-spinner Danish Kaneria as well as the pacers were not happy when they read Butt’s comments and confronted him,” sources said.

“One bowler told Butt on his face that being the vice-captain did not give him a license to blame the bowlers publicly and if the team did not do well it was everyone’s responsibility,” he said.

“He also told Butt that by making such statements he should not spoil the spirit in the dressing room.”

Butt had tried to play down the issue by blaming the media for blowing up his comments and claiming that he had been misquoted.

“But when the team management also pulled him up and warned him to be careful with his choice of words, Butt apologised to other players,” he said.

“The team manager and captain advised him that he would only create problems in the side if he was not careful with his words and attitude,” the source said.

The left-hander was also fined 50 per cent of his fees by match referee Alan Hurst for criticising some umpiring decisions in the Test.

Butt was a surprise choice for vice-captaincy before the Twenty20 World Cup and many felt that his appointment was because of the fact that he was one of the few players in the side who were well versed in English.

Butt did not click in the Twenty20 World Cup and was also castigated by the team management during the tournament when he gave a statement on the Shoaib Akhtar-Mohammad Asif brawl.

McMillan draws stumps on career

Craig McMillan announced his retirement from cricket today for health and personal reasons.

He said he wanted to spend more time with his family and had issues with his diabetes.

He has played over 50 tests and nearly 200 one-day internationals for the Black Caps. He has also quit the domestic scene.

Rumours of McMillan’s plans to retire surfaced a couple of weeks ago after an email was leaked to the media, where he informed close friends and team mates of his intentions to end his career.

England win series but miss chance for big jump in ICC ODI Championship table

England’s 3-2 series win in Sri Lanka is certainly something for Paul Collingwood and his team-mates to celebrate. After all, it included the side’s first ODI win in the country for 25 years and is England’s first series win in a ODI rubber in the Asian sub-continent since 1987, when Mike Gatting’s team beat Pakistan 3-0 in the aftermath of the ICC Cricket World Cup. And as it follows a 4-3 series win over India in August and September, it can be viewed as further progress for a side that has often under-achieved in one-day cricket, said a media release of the ICC on Tuesday.

But after crashing to defeat by 107 runs in the final match in Colombo on Saturday evening, Collingwood could be forgiven for thinking what might have been, even as he held aloft the series trophy. Victory in that final match would have secured fourth spot in the ICC ODI Championship table and England’s highest placing since January 2005 ahead of a series in South Africa. Instead England remain in seventh position, the same spot they occupied at the start of the series.

It is a clear illustration of how tightly packed the teams are in the middle section of the ladder with just one rating point separating four teams, but there is a plus side for Collingwood and company. His line-up have still gained two rating points over the course of the series and are now just one point behind those three sides directly above them, Sri Lanka (fourth), Pakistan (fifth) and India (sixth). That trio is separated only when the ratings are calculated to three decimal places but there is plenty of scope for the situation to change over the coming days and weeks. That is because India are in the midst of a series against table-toppers Australia while Pakistan are about to go head-to-head with South Africa in a five-match series that starts on Thursday (tomorrow).

Sri Lanka have lost three rating points during their series against England but that win on Saturday night, with Dilhara Fernando capturing a career-best 6-27, has seen them stay put in fourth spot, although they are now six points behind New Zealand, in third position.

Saturday’s match was England’s last in this form of the game in 2007, a year in which they have had plenty of highs and lows. They shocked the cricket world by beating hosts Australia and New Zealand to lift a tri-series in January and February but could not replicate that form to make a significant impact at the ICC Cricket World Cup in the Caribbean. A series loss against the West Indies at home followed, but since then those successes against India and Sri Lanka have given cause for optimism.

Racism in cricket? Refer to Australian report just out

While the Symonds controversy brews, an internal report says racial abuse is prevalent in Australian cricket

The noise coming out of the Australian cricket camp over its star Andrew Symonds being taunted by “monkey chants” during last week’s one-day international in Vadodara seems a bit over the top—when you consider the startling contents of an Australian government-backed report that was released today.

Racial abuse is prevalent across the sporting world of Australia, including its cricket grounds, says the report titled ‘ What’s the Score? A survey of cultural diversity and racism in Australian sport’ that was released today by Australia’s Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC).

On Australian cricket, the report points to “racial sledging” of South African cricketers who “were referred to as kaffirs by a small section of spectators” at Perth in December 2005. It says that cricketers from Sri Lanka were “subjected to calls of ‘black c——’ at Adelaide, and adds that an ICC security official was punched by spectators in Melbourne.

“It is clear that incidents of racial abuse and vilification are prevalent across all major sporting codes, involving professional sportspeople, amateurs, coaches and spectators. The fear of racism in Australian sport is also a major barrier to participation for Indigenous people and those from various ethnic and cultural groups,” says Race Discrimination Commissioner Tom Calma about the report that has been put up on the commission’s website www.hreoc.gov.au.

Focusing on Cricket Australia, apart from 16 other national sporting organisations Down Under, the report says: “Don’t believe the spin doctors — racism still exists in sport.”

Under the heading ‘A Summer of Discontent’, the report says about racism in Australian cricket:

“It is not surprising that Cricket Australia was highly embarrassed by the racist taunts directed at visiting cricketers during the 2005-06 international series, which led to an International Cricket Council (ICC) investigation into the behaviour of Australian crowds.

“The racist sledging of players by spectators started during the Perth Test in December 2005, when some South African players were referred to as ‘kaffirs’ by a small section of spectators in the crowd. Similar taunting was also reported by the South African players in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Members of the Sri Lankan team were subjected to calls of ‘black c——’ from spectators at the Adelaide Oval during a One Day International match on Australia Day.

“Players haven’t been the only targets. The International Cricket Council’s regional anti-corruption and security chief, John Rhodes, was punched by a drunken spectator at Melbourne’s Telstra Dome after being identified as South African.”

Under another heading ‘Deep Concerns Remain’, the report says, “For racism to have infected Australia’s national summer pastime and a sport long regarded as one of the world’s most ‘civilised’ games is deeply concerning for a country that prides itself on being fair-minded and multicultural.”

It adds: “So too is a recent survey of cricket fans, which indicates opinion is divided on the contentious behaviour of Australian crowds. Many seem to think there is no problem at all. A poll on cricket website baggygreen.com.au found that 46 per cent of 12,000 respondents believed crowd behaviour had been acceptable during the 2005-06 summer season.”

Then, it quotes Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland as saying, “ I think it’s embarrassing for Australian cricket that we are put in a position where this review has been implemented.”

However, the report acknowledges that “Cricket Australia acted quickly to reinforce its zero-tolerance policy towards racist abuse, with security staff ordered to eject any perpetrators from the ground and heavy fines for racist behaviour”.

In Vadodara, Australian all-rounder Symonds had alleged that he faced racial taunts from spectators during the one-day international, following which the ICC sent a letter to the BCCI, citing media reports, asking it to explain. The Australian media has also launched a high-pitched campaign against the Indian cricket board for its “inaction”.

BCCI’s Anti-Racism Commissioner Prof Ratnakar Shetty told The Indian Express: “All of us know how Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan was taunted by crowds in Australia. We know how they treated England’s Monty Panesar. Look who is talking.”

Shetty, who is also the BCCI’s Chief Administrative Officer, added: “I was present in Vadodara during the match, and the noise from the crowd was deafening. I don’t understand how you could make out monkey noises from all that. What is this monkey noise, anyway? Or Mr Andrew Symonds should report to us exactly what was said to him. Then, it makes sense. But he has not done that, either.”

In fact, the Symonds episode is the latest in a one-day series of heated tempers — Australia leads 4-1 with the final match coming up tomorrow in Mumbai — with Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh earlier accusing the Australian cricketers of “ungentlemanly behaviour”.

Bond ditches rebel ICL for Black Caps

New Zealand speedster Shane Bond is not jetting to join the rebel Indian Cricket League having committed himself to the Black Caps for the season ahead.

Speculation in recent months had centred around Bond signing for the breakaway group but Bond laid the rumours to rest yesterday in Christchurch confirming he will be sticking with the establishment.

Bond did receive a tempting offer to play in the rebel Twenty20 league which starts in India in November that he said caused him “a few sleepless nights”.

Fitness permitting, Bond is available for all of New Zealand’s upcoming season which includes tests and one-day series in South Africa, at home against Bangladesh and capped by home and away series’ against England.

It would not surprise, however, if Bond joined Black Caps team-mates Stephen Fleming, Daniel Vettori and Scott Styris in accepting an offer to play in the Indian Premier League, a Twenty20 competition which is approved by the International Cricket Council and will start in April. It will not conflict with ICC scheduled series.

Bond said all would be revealed within the next week or so. “It will all come out in a week or two, but there’s stuff going on behind the scenes.”

Bond said it meant he was now fully focused on the South African tour with the Black Caps leaving Christchurch tomorrow.

Bond, who has a remarkable 74 wickets from just 16 tests, is hoping for better fortune than his last series scheduled against the Proteas which never started. He suffered a knee injury after the first warm-up game two seasons ago.

Bond expects the wickets to be markedly better than when the team toured in April and May last year and the pitches were tired. “The wickets should be a lot better than last time. They were up and down because they were tired. This time they should be good.

“We are not expecting much sideways movement but they should have a bit of pace.”

Bond was under no illusions how tough the tour would be to a country where New Zealand has never won a test series.

“All the games I’ve played against South Africa have been close. If we can cut out the odd bad session we have then we are in with a chance.”

Bond is aware South Africa will be match-hardened coming off a tour of Pakistan where it recently accounted for the home side 1-0 in the test series.

“We have a couple of warm-up games which we want to play with intensity and set about winning.

“The South Africans have just come off a couple of tests so have got that intensity and we need to generate it quickly.”

South Africa’s success pushed Pakistan a position below New Zealand on the world test ladder with the Black Caps now sixth.

The Black Caps are returning to the republic less than a month after being there for the world Twenty20 tournament where they reached the semi-finals. Bond was down a little on his usual speed around 140km/h speed at the tournament which he put down to the early season timing of the event.

“It’s just a matter of getting bowling fitness. We came straight out of indoors and just had a couple of practices outdoors then were right into the matches.

“I didn’t quite have the timing right. Once you get the timing and bowling fitness, that allows you to bowl quick.

“Then you get some days where the outfield was nice and firm and other days when it was soft and that can throw your timing out as well. I’m hoping to use the two warm-up games to get up to speed.”

Bond has been frustrated by the fickle spring weather in Christchurch which has prevented him doing much bowling outdoors since returning home.

He is optimistic the back troubles which led to surgery several years ago are now behind him despite some niggles again last season which were similar to when he previously broke down.

“I still get some aches and pains, but they rescanned my back and it is really good in terms of the screws and the bolt holding the L5 vertebrae together. “With the way I’ve trained and the action I’ve got now, I’d be pretty disappointed if it goes wrong.”

New Zealand’s first-class matches will be played at altitude and Bond said that probably favoured the batsmen.

“It means a deeper burn on lungs when bowling and the ball comes faster off the bat.”

Ponting plays down verbal volleys

Australia captain Ricky Ponting has downplayed heated exchanges between his players and India in the ongoing one-day series, saying his team is focused solely on playing good cricket.

“Way too much has been written about it,” Ponting said on the eve of the seventh and final match here. His side have already gained a winning 4-1 lead.

“But after the second game in Kochi, we have played the game in a very good spirit. The match referee has said nothing about it. The focus should be on playing good cricket.”

The series has been marred by ill temper, stemming in part from discontent within the Australian camp at the way India’s players celebrated their semi-final win over Australia in the Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa.

Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds, the national team’s only black player, has been involved in a running feud with Indian paceman Shanthakumaran Sreesanth since the start of the series.

Cricket Australia said last week that Symonds complained about apparent monkey noises made by a section of the crowd as he fielded near the boundary during the fifth one-dayer in Vadodara.

Ponting also brushed aside suggestions made by a couple of team-mates that India should be ready for a tough reception when they tour Down Under for a Test series later this year.

“We are always very tough and play our cricket hard on the field. Nothing will change in Australia,” he said.

World Cup winners Australia may have already wrapped up the series with a solid all-round performance, but Ponting said revenge had never been on their minds after being beaten by India in the Twenty20 championship, which India went on to win.

“We were disappointed at not making the final in the Twenty20 championships. Sometimes it happens in cricket,” Ponting said.

“Coming after a long break, I think all the guys were keen to get back to playing some very good cricket again. And we have played some of our best cricket in the last two games against India in this series.

“We did not seek vengeance on anybody. We just wanted to play good cricket.”

Australia are playing their first 50-over series since winning the World Cup in the Caribbean early this year.

Ponting said in-form opener Matthew Hayden was doubtful for today’s day-night game.

“Hayden did a fair bit of running this afternoon. We will see how he pulls up tomorrow morning before making a final decision on him,” the Australian captain said.

The left-handed opener, who has so far scored 290 in four games, missed the previous match at Nagpur with a hip injury.