Mumbai, March 6: Indian pace bowler Ajit Agarkar has been ruled out of the second Test against Australia at Kolkata following a spell of viral fever.

“Agarkar's father came to me today with a medical certificate that he needs one week's rest after having recovered from the viral fever which he contracted on the last day of the Mumbai Test,” said Indian cricket board's executive secretary Sharad.

"As such he will be unable to take part in the second Test at Kolkata", he added

He took two wickets in the match, both in the first innings in which he had figures of 2 for 50.

Agarkar's absence leaves the spot open for left-arm paceman Zaheer Khan, in the 14 for the Mumbai Test but not in the playing eleven, to be included in the Kolkata Test.

Australia elected to bat after winning the toss against Board President's XI 

New Delhi, March 6: Australia skipper Steve Waugh won the toss and decided to bat first in the three-day tour match against Indian Board Presidents XI at the Feroz Shah Kotla. Brad Haddin replaces injured Adam Gilchrist, while Jason Gillespie and Glenn McGrath make way for Colin Miller and Michael Kasprowicz.

Teams:
Australia: M Slater, M Hayden, J Langer, R Ponting, D Martyn, B Haddin, S Waugh, M Waugh, C Miller, M Kasprowicz, D Fleming.

Board President's XI: S Ganguly, V Dahiya, S Sriram, J Martin, D Mongia, H Kanitkar, N Hirwani, R Patel, Surendra Singh, Sarandeep Singh, M Kaif.

 The Mumbai match ends in a draw 

Mumbai, February 24: The second warm-up game played at the CCI in Mumbai ended in a draw with Mumbai having an upper edge on the so-called invincible Aussies. Mumbai set the visitors a target of 317 runs off 48 overs for a win on the third and final day of the three-day cricket match.

Mumbai, resuming at the overnight score of 83 for no loss, went for quick runs this morning with both openers registering their half-centuries.

Mane, the more aggressive of the two, scored a stylish 57 off 108 balls, including nine fours before he was caught by wicket-keeper Adam Gilchrist off Glenn McGrath, while Jaffer, after scoring a respectable 52 off 122 balls with seven fours, was caught at point by Ricky Ponting off Warne.

Warne went on a rampage today and sent Jatin Paranjpe (35 off 62), Vinod Kambli (2), Robin Morris (0), Ramesh Powar (13), Amol Mazumdar (17) and Samir Dighe (5), packing to reduce the home team to 191 for 8 after the openers had added 103 runs for the first wicket.

Shane Warne has at last resumed his form with a seven-wicket haul in this match.

Soon after Mazumdar was caught by substitute Damien Martyn off Warne, Mumbai skipper Samir Dighe declared the innings at 191, 28 minutes after lunch.

The home team had 48 overs to bowl out the Australians, a distant possibility.

Three overs after the interval, disaster struck for the Australians as Adam Gilchrist tried to pull a short ball down the mid-wicket fence but only succeeded in getting an inside edge onto his stumps. He scored four runs off 18 balls.

Justin Langer who stood at the other end watching the damage lost his patience when he tried to loft Bahutule over the mid-wicket but only succeeded in offering a simple catch to Vinayak Mane. Langer hung around for 49 balls scoring 18, with one boundary.

Shane Warne played a brief knock and was willing to stay at the wicket with his skipper at the other end but an unfortunate misunderstanding between the two led to the former being run out. Waugh struck a straight drive off Nilesh Kulkarni, which deflected off the bowler's hand towards mid-off. Waugh called for the single and Warne responded, but halfway through Waugh stopped in his tracks realising it was a wrong call. It was too late though as Robin Morris at mid-off had dislodged the bails with a direct hit.

Warne made his way back to the pavilion with eight runs, both off well-struck boundaries. At his dismissal, Damien Fleming came in to join the skipper.

Fleming stuck around with his skipper adding 61 runs for the seventh wicket off 23.2 overs. Fleming was unbeaten on 22 and Steve Waugh on 34. Sairaj Bahutule was the most successful bowler bagging four for 38.

 Mumbai 171/6 at lunch as match heads for a draw

Mumbai, February 24: Mumbai reached 171 for six off 59 overs at lunch in their second innings on the third and final day of the three-day cricket match against Australia here on Saturday.

The Australians, preparing for next week's first Test against India, slumped to an embarrassing 133-8 against Ranji Trophy champions Mumbai soon after lunch on the second day of the three-day match.

With Mumbai team still on the stumps with just half a day play left, the match is surely heading for a draw.

Mumbai leads by 208 runs as Aussies crumple against them

Mumbai, February 23: Mumbai were 83 for no loss off 28 overs at close of play on the second day of their three-day game against Australia at the CCI on Friday. Vinayak Mane (45 not out) and Wasim Jaffer (36 not out) were at the crease when stumps were drawn.

Australia folded up in their first innings nine balls after the tea interval. Glenn McGrath was trapped leg before wicket by Paras Mhambrey to ended a 70 run partnership off 15.3 overs for the ninth wicket with Steve Waugh. Waugh was unbeaten at the other end on 106. The innings had to close, as Mark Waugh was unable to bat owing to a finger injury.

Nilesh Kulkarni bagged four for 39 and Paras Mhambrey picked up four for 59 as Mumbai took a first innings lead of 125 runs.

Coming out to negotiate the new ball in the last session of the day, Mumbai openers Vinayak Mane and Wasim Jaffer got stuck into the Australian new ball attack of Glenn McGrath and Damien Fleming with a flurry of boundaries. Mane was the most aggressive hitting seven boundaries in his unbeaten 45. Jaffer at the other end hit two boundaries off Shane Warne to supplement his partner's efforts.

Shane Warne was introduced into the attack in the 13th over. He bowled much better than the first innings as his figures of seven overs for 18 runs reflected.

 Australians struggling at 87/4 at lunch against Mumbai

Mumbai, February 23: Mumbai medium pacer Paras Mhambrey and left-arm spinner Nilesh Kulkarni struck early to reduce the Australians to 87 for four off 41 overs at lunch in their first innings on the second day of the three-day cricket match here on Friday.

Earlier, Ranji champions Mumbai declared their first innings close at their overnight score of 328 for nine after they won the toss and elected to bat on Thursday.

Aussie opening batsman Michael Slater's poor form continued to plague the visitors. After hanging around for 21 minutes and facing 24 balls, Slater was caught by Amol Mazumdar at first slip off Mhambrey for 11.

Left-handed batsman Matthew Hayden did not fare better as Kulkarni trapped him plumb in front of the wicket for 11.

Justin Langer, who got a century at Nagpur against India A, hung around for some time after Ricky Ponting was caught behind stumps by Samir Dighe off Mhambrey for one run.

Langer and skipper Steve Waugh (batting on 30 off 62 balls) added 42 runs for the fourth wicket and looked set for a big partnership before Langer gifted a return catch to Kulkarni after scoring 25 off 67 balls with three fours.

At lunch, Waugh and his deputy Adam Gilchrist (batting on 8) were at the crease.

Among the bowlers, Kulkarni impressed the most with figures of 2/14 from his spell of 11 overs, while Mhambrey bowled intelligently to grab 2/30 off 7 overs.

 Lower order batsmen take Mumbai to 328 for 9 against Aussies.

Mumbai, February 22: Fast bowler Glenn McGrath made a striking start on the Indian tour on Thursday, bagging 3-46 before Australia let Ranji Trophy champions Mumbai off the hook in the three-day match here.

Mumbai, electing to bat first, recovered from 57-4 before lunch to post an admirable 328 for nine by stumps on the first day at the Brabourne stadium here.

To add to the tourists' woes, Mark Waugh received five stitches on his left hand when he split the webbing while fielding in his first match on the tour.

Team officials, however, said the injury was not serious and Waugh will be able to bat in the match.

McGrath, who missed his team's previous tour three years ago, made light of a slow wicket to grab two wickets before lunch in his first outing on the current trip.

McGrath had former Indian opener Wasim Jaffer caught at second slip by Mark Waugh for 16 and then removed another Test batsman Vinod Kambli for no score to make early dents in Mumbai's batting.

However, captain Sameer Dighe made up for the absence of star batsman Sachin Tendulkar, to rescue Mumbai with a dazzling knock of 84.

Dighe added 117 for the sixth wicket with Sairaj Bahutule (51) and 63 for the eighth with Romesh Power as the Australians sweated in the heat to make an impression on the unresponsive wicket.

Dighe and Bahutule batted through most of the afternoon session before part-timer Ricky Ponting set Mumbai back with two wickets in successive overs after tea.

Ponting trapped left-hander Bahutule leg-before and then had Robin Morris caught behind to make Mumbai 202-7, but Dighe and Power hit out to add valuable runs for their team.

Power, a compact right-hander, struck 13 boundaries before returning unbeaten at close on 65 off 67 balls.

McGrath, who conceded just 19 runs from 14 overs in his first two spells, returned with the second new ball after tea to remove Paras Mhambrey.

Leg-spinner Shane Warne, also playing his first match on the tour, went for 1-57 in his first spell of 14 overs before finishing the day with one for 81.

 Australians suffer a major blow; Mark Waugh unlikely to bat

Mumbai, February 22: The visiting Australian cricket team suffered a major blow on Thursday as its top batsmen Mark Waugh injured his finger while fielding on the first day of the three-day tie against Ranji champions Mumbai. Waugh injured his left hand trying to stop a Sairaj Bahutule stroke while fielding at slips.

"Waugh has got stitches on his finger and probably will not be allowed to bat tomorrow as we can't afford such injuries leading up to the first Test," Australian coach John Buchanan said. The physiotherapist for Australian team has also advised rest for Waugh.

"There are five more days to go before the start of the first Test and I hope he will fully recover before that," Buchanan said.

On the team's plans for the remaining two days, Buchanan said, "We'll bat for as long as we can as it is a nice wicket to bat on."

Commenting on ace leg-spinner Shane Warne's poor show on Thursday, the Aussie coach said he was unfortunate and added, "I don't want to make any excuses. The home team batted very well and they deserve the day's honours".

Mumbai coach Ashok Mankad expressed satisfaction with the performance of his side. "I am very proud of my boys as they batted wonderfully against the mighty visitors, who have the most formidable bowling attack in the world," he said.

"We were struggling at 80 for five but thanks to captain Sameer Dighe's knock of 84 and useful contributions from Ramesh Powar and Sairaj Bahutule helped us cross the 300-run mark. Now, we have an option to declare which is most satisfying," Mankad, said.

Asked whether Mumbai top-order is not scoring as much as it can, Mankad said, "It is a matter of great concern and being a champion side one of our top six batsmen should score a century in every match."

Mankad praised Powar's efforts, who despite batting at number eight, played a magnificent innings and is unbeaten on 64. About Friday's game plan, the Mumbai coach said, "We will try and get them out at as low score as we can. Our bowlers have a good opportunity to perform against the world champions. I'm confident they will give a good show."

Asked to comment on poor bowling of the visitors, Mankad said the Aussies have a very good bowling attack but the wicket didn't give any support to them on Thursday.

"In my opinion, they are short of one bowler, whether it is spinner or medium-pacer. But no doubt they are best in the world," he added.

 Don't forget what we did in 1998: Tendulkar

New Delhi, February 21: India’s Batting Supremo Sachin Tendulkar's absence has though dampened the spirits of Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne but still they will not be taking today’s match against Mumbai lightly as the ghost of 1998 is still very much present and the Aussies will have that at the back of their mind when they take the field.  

On the coming Test match Sachin is confident of not being over-confident Sachin too is disappointed on having to sit out but he has a message for his Mumbai mates: "Don't forget what we did in 1998. It was a tremendous performance. Don't lose out on this opportunity." This message from the batting supremo should surely pep up the Bombay Boys.

While giving due respect to the Australian attack he is confident to face Australia’s front-line bowlers. "I will concentrate hard on my batting and as a player I want to deliver more than what my skipper expects." The Australians, as always will have to be wary as Sachin is never satisfied of his performance. "The moment you get satisfied, your performance stagnates and that's what I don't want." Who should know this better than the Aussies.

 Hirwani may be the surprise packet: Steve Waugh 

Mumbai, February 21: "Hirwani has good experience in Test cricket and at the same time none of us have played him and the selectors have done no harm by picking him as he could be a surprise packet." These were the comments of Australian captain Steve Waugh at a practice session at the Brabourne Stadium.

Waugh said his team's playing eleven for Thursday's three-dayer against Ranji champions Mumbai had not yet been finalised. "However, we might field just four bowlers as both Mark Waugh and Ricky Ponting can bowl a bit and we are more interested in preparing for the Test series," he added. 

The Aussies are likely to leave out off spinner Colin Miller, Michael Kasprowicz and Jason Gillespie to accommodate Mark Waugh, Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath in the final eleven for Thursday's match.

Meanwhile, former Aussie skipper Kim Hughes said on Wednesday the India-Australia cricket series would be very close and the visitors would be happy to win 1-0.

Hughes said, "Without leg spinner Anil Kumble the Indian side looks a bit weak. Who will bowl out the Australians twice is a big question and no other name comes to my mind."

"The Aussies have a very balanced attack. They have two good spinners in Shane Warne and Colin Miller added to this they have a world-class fast bowler in Glenn McGrath. Then there is Damien Fleming, Michael Kasprowicz and Jason Gillespie who will keep coming at you all day," Hughes said.

"Except for a couple of Indian batsmen I don't see others face the battery of Aussie fast bowlers," he added.

 Glenn McGrath prefers to bowl short spells in Tests

Mumbai, February 21: Australian bowling spearhead Glenn McGrath while speaking to reporters said, "At this juncture of my career, I would not want to bowl long spells and it is very tough for a fast bowler to bowl long spells in humid conditions on batsmen friendly pitches."

He added, "I feel it is better if the fast bowlers get short spells, though it would be a big challenge for me to bowl to Indian batsmen like Sachin (Tendulkar), Dravid (Rahul) and Ganguly (Saurav)."

Queried whether he had any specific plans to bowl to Tendulkar, McGrath said, "Why only Sachin (Tendulkar), I have chalked out different plans to bowl to all the top order batsmen in the Indian team.

"It is a challenge for any bowler to come good on Indian pitches and I am looking forward to that kind of challenge all the time."

McGrath did not play in his team's tour opener at Nagpur and is expected to play against the Ranji champions Mumbai in the second three-day tie at the Brabourne Stadium.

Asked what he felt about Tendulkar's absence from the Mumbai team, McGrath said, "Tendulkar or no Tendulkar, I am looking forward to our next game".

Warne ready for the battle with Tendulkar

Mumbai, February 21: Australian leg spinner Shane Warne says his duel with Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar in the Test series starting next week would be one of the "little battles" that made cricket exciting.

"There are a lot of battles in a series - like (Glenn) McGrath bowling to the openers or me bowling to Sachin. It's good, exciting cricket. Good fun for everyone," said Warne ahead of a three-day match against national champions Mumbai which begins on Thursday.

Tendulkar won the duel with Warne in the 1998 series in India, scoring 446 runs in five innings including two centuries for a series average of 111.5. Warne took only 10 wickets in the three Tests at an average of 54.

But the leg spinner said he had changed a lot since then. "I'm a better bowler now than I was three years ago. "Last time I had a shoulder injury. This time I'm in good shape," added Warne, who missed Australia's recent 5-0 sweep of the West Indies with a finger injury.

Besides Tendulkar, Warne said Rahul Dravid and Indian captain Saurav Ganguly would be the batsmen to watch out for in the series of three Tests and five one-day internationals.

Warne said he had drawn up a separate plan to tackle each batsman. "We know the way they bat and they know the way we bowl. So it's a matter of coming up with some different plans. I have a few different ones for this trip."

Warne said his team, which has notched up a record 15 consecutive Test victories, would concentrate on their own game rather than worry about India. "That's what we've been doing recently. It has paid rich dividends."

Australia has not won a Test series in India since Bill Lawry led his team to a 3-1 win in 1969. The first Test begins in Mumbai on February 27.

Tendulkar is giving nightmares to the big Aussies 

Mumbai, February 21: Steve Waugh's world-beating team was surprised to learn that India's master batsman has pulled out of a tour match against Australia starting here on Thursday. 

Sachin Tendulkar has pulled out because of a strained calf muscle, but he still continues to make his presence felt off the field.

McGrath, who missed the previous tour, excused himself from the first warm-up match at Nagpur over the weekend so that he could tackle India's main batsman before the series began.

"What is he doing? Playing golf?" a bemused Mark Waugh asked a reporter about Tendulkar.

Skipper Steve Waugh was more guarded. "If Sachin is not playing, it is his prerogative," he said. "But I am a bit surprised, because the last time round, he had got a lot of runs."

In a similar match three years ago, Tendulkar blasted an unbeaten 204 to fashion his Ranji team's 10-wicket victory inside three days against the shell-shocked Australians. That knock set the tone for the series as Tendulkar clobbered Shane Warne and company to give India a 2-1 win in the three-Test series.

Warne returned home a chastened man, saying he was "having nightmares" of Tendulkar's assault. The current Australians, notably champion fast bowler Glenn McGrath and Warne were hoping to have a go at Tendulkar ahead of the first Test starting at the nearby Wankhede stadium next Tuesday.

Both Tendulkar and Mumbai team-mate Ajit Agarkar, who also opted out of the match with an ankle injury, have been ruled fit for the first Test. This has led to speculation that the Indians are keeping the two stars under wraps till the series starts, but Mumbai captain Sameer Dighe said both would be severely missed.

"Sachin is an inspiration for us. Moreover, we wanted to be at full-strength to face the formidable Aussies," Dighe said.

Dighe and Mumbai coach Ashok Mankad said they had received no instructions from the Indian team management on what strategy to adopt for the match. "No one has spoken to me, but I know they would want us to attack the Aussies," said Mankad, a former Test batsman.

"A good performance by us here will help the Indian team in the series."

The Australians, meanwhile, will persist with their successful strategy of playing just four bowlers in the first Test despite the heat and humidity in this coastal metropolis.

"I know other teams have gone with five bowlers in India...but I am not sure. We've done well with four bowlers in the past, a fifth bowler usually gets under bowled," said Steve Waugh, whose team has won a record 15 Tests-in-a-row.

 14-member team announced; Mongia, Hirwani back in team

Mumbai, February 20: Discarded wicketkeeper Nayan Mongia and leg spinner Narendra Hirwani are among the 14 named by the selectors for the first Test against Australia, at Bombay, from February 27 to March 3. Also finding a place in the Indian team are youngsters Harbhajan Singh, Hemang Badani and Rahul Sanghvi.

The 14-member team:

Sourav Ganguly (captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sadagoppan Ramesh, Shiv Sundar Das, V V S Laxman, Hemang Badani, Nayan Mongia, Zaheer Khan, Ajit Agarkar, Rahul Sanghvi, Narendra Hirwani, Harbhajan Singh, Javagal Srinath.

 Laxman is certain of making it to the one-day squad 

Nagpur, February 20: After giving a fright to the mighty Australians, India-A skipper V V S Laxman today said more pressure could have been applied on the visitors if his team's fielding had been sharper.

"I am happy with the way India-A played against the visiting Aussies. I wanted to take the first innings lead against them so that their morale would not be very high when they play the first Test at Mumbai", Laxman said.

"I think the boys gave 100 per cent and S Ramesh's century came at the right time and I am happy for it. I am also satisfied with the way I played, though I very badly wanted to get to the hundred mark", he added.

Laxman was confident of making it to the Indian one-day squad too and stabilizing himself in near future.

He said, "I could be going in at number six in the Test matches. After I establish myself in the longer version, I will not only try to stabilize myself in the one-dayers but also try to score heavily".

"The spinners, particularly Harbhajan Singh and Rahul Sanghvi, bowled a fine line and length and if our fielding had been a little sharper than it was, I think we could have put more pressure on the Australians. All in all, I think it was a satisfying performance in the tour opener", Laxman added.

 Shane Warne finds it toughest to play India in India

Mumbai, February 20: Australian ace Shane Warne says playing India in India is the toughest assignment in world cricket and the fit leg-spinner is looking forward to the Test series here.

Warne said on Tuesday it was always tough for any country to perform well in India with the massive crowds rooting for the home team.

"I always enjoy bowling to the Indian batsmen, who I think play spin bowling better than any others," he added.

Asked what he thought about the eagerly looked forward to tussle between him and batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar, Warne said, "I don't think you should be terming the forthcoming clash as Warne versus Sachin or McGrath versus Sachin or anything other than, India vs. Australia."

"In fact, the last time around when India played us it was Navjot Singh Sidhu who set the tone by going after my bowling and it was not Tendulkar as most people believe," he added.

"According to me, Sidhu is the best player of spin bowling and India will definitely miss his services. However, India has some very exciting players like Rahul Dravid and Saurav Ganguly and it will be a real challenge for me to bowl to them," he said.

"After a long time, I'm feeling totally fit and that was proved when I took wickets in the limited over games against the West Indies and my immediate target would be to get to 400 test wickets," Warne added.

 Australian coach unhappy with his team’s batting performance

Nagpur, February 20: Australian coach John Buchanan on Monday articulated his disappointment over his team's batting in the first innings of the drawn three-day match against India A but was pleased with his bowlers.

Expressing satisfaction with the bowlers' performance Buchanan said, "I think our bowlers particularly off-spinner Colin Miller and Jason Gillespie (medium pacer) bowled quite well when India A batted."

"We wanted to have a look at the top order batting of India A, particularly V V S Laxman before the first Test at Mumbai,'' the Aussie coach said.

"We have one more side game in Mumbai against Ranji champions Mumbai and it will be a good exposure for our players to get used to the heat and bounce and turn of the wicket. The sooner our boys get become accustomed to the climate here the better," he added.

 The opener at Nagpur ends in a draw

Nagpur, February 19: The first three-day match between hosts India and tourists Australia ended in a draw played at Nagpur. Australians made 365/9 in their second innings with the help of a maiden century from Justin Langer.

Justin Langer hit a magnificent 115 in 158 balls. His hundred   included 17 fours and two sixes. He also, shared in a 149-run fourth wicket stand with Ricky Ponting who made 68 runs in 95 balls.

Langer was dropped by left-arm spinner Rahul Sanghvi off his own bowling before lunch after lifting him for a giant six over long on. He was finally caught in the slips by V. Laxman off Harbhajan Singh.

For India A, off-spinner Harbhajan Singh was the most successful bowler, claiming three for 83. His priced wicket definitely was that of Langer.         

 Tendulkar to miss early showdown with Glenn McGrath because of injury

New Delhi, February 18: Sachin Tendulkar will miss a much-awaited confrontation with Australian fast bowler Glenn McGrath next week because of a calf muscle injury.

Tendulkar and teammate Ajit Agarkar will not play for Mumbai in a three-day match against Australia at the Brabourne stadium in Bombay from February 22.

However, it was clarified by the board officials that Tendulkar will be fit by the time the first Test that starts on 27^th here at the Wankhede stadium.

Indian team coach John Wright confirmed the injuries were not serious, but he wanted both to rest before the Test match. Tendulkar's absence from the warm-up match will surely disappoint McGrath, who opted out of the ongoing tour opener at Nagpur to have a go at the champion batsman in the next game.

McGrath, whose duels with Tendulkar could be the highlight of the three-Test series, had told the team management he would rather play his first match at Bombay.

McGrath, who missed the previous tour with injury, wanted to have a go at Tendulkar before the series begins. "The game against Mumbai is an excellent chance to tackle Sachin", said McGrath, one of the finest fast bowlers in contemporary cricket with 309 wickets in 67 Tests. "He can always get the dominance by scoring a big knock. But if I can knock him over a couple of times, it can set the tone for the series." Australia, who comes off record 15 consecutive Test victories, are looking to win their first series on Indian soil in 31 years.

 Aussies fumble against Indians in the tour opener 

Nagpur, February 18: Australia's world-beating cricketers suffered another harrowing day at the start of their Indian tour as the bowlers struggled to cope with a lifeless wicket on Sunday.

After the seasoned batting line-up had been reduced to 133-7 on Saturday, it was the turn of the bowlers to face the music on the second day of the three-day tour opener against India A here.

Defending a meagre score of 291, the Australians let India's second string off the hook to allow the hosts pile up 368, a first innings lead of 77.

The tourists, closing the second day at 38-1 in their second knock, hope to gain useful batting practice on Monday ahead of the three-Test series starting later this month. Off-spinner Colin Miller toiled manfully to pick up six for 91 even as the rest of the attack sweated under the hot sun.

Captain Steve Waugh could do little to contain the flow of runs as Indian Test stars Sadagopan Ramesh and V. Laxman hammered 195 for the second wicket. Left-handed Ramesh, certain to open for India in the first Test starting at Bombay on February 27, shrugged off a lean season to score an attractive 101 with 20 hits to the fence.

Laxman, the likely number six in the Tests, enhanced his claims with a fluent 94 as the hosts raced to 231-1 after resuming at the overnight score of 71-1.

Even an untimely collapse in the afternoon session, in which seven wickets fell for 56 runs, failed to daunt the Indian morale as wicket keeper Nayan Mongia hit back with an unbeaten 71.

Mongia, hoping for a Test recall after being cleared of match-fixing charges by federal investigators, cracked 11 boundaries while adding 75 for the ninth wicket with Debashish Mohanty (28).

The tourists have another warm-up match against Mumbai before the test series gets underway. Australia, who have secured a record 15 consecutive Test wins, are looking to win their first series on Indian soil in 31 years.

Ganguly refuses to talk to the Media on daily basis

Chennai, February 17: Indian cricket captain Saurav Ganguly on Saturday expressed unhappiness over him being 'misquoted' by the media regarding the game, the ongoing camp and his comments about the three-Test series against Australia.

Refusing to talk to the Media at the end of the camp at the IIT Chemplast grounds here, Ganguly said, "I have been advised by Coach John Wright not to talk to the media on daily basis. I do not want to talk today."

He said, "I am being misquoted by the Media and they have written something today also."

Though Ganguly did not explain on what the media had written on Saturday, it was assumed that he was referring to his visit (private affair) to Srikalahasti (Shiva Temple) in Chittor District in Andhra Pradesh, accompanied by film actress Naghma to perform 'Sarpadosha' puja on Friday.

According to official sources, Ganguly's wife Dona Ganguly left here for Kolkata on Thursday night only.

Meanwhile, persuaded by the media to talk, Ganguly said he would reply to questions on the ongoing Camp only.

"I am happy about the fitness level of players in the Camp. We are working for positive results in the series ahead against the Australians," he said.

Indian Coach tests the Spinners

Chennai, February 17: Indian Coach John Wright tested the Indian spinners at the ongoing cricket camp on the penultimate day of the preparatory camp for the Three- test Australian series, the first starting in Mumbai on Feb 27.

The six spinners-- Sunil Joshi, Murali Karthik, Sairaj Bahatule, Narendra Hirwani, Venkatapathy Raju, Sharandeep Singh -- bowled to five fielders on the off-side and one on the leg side and were told to bowl to this set field. Wright was the lone slip with Vijay Dahiya, behind the wickets.

Saurav Ganguly (Captain), Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar, Javgal Srinath and Ajit Agarkar batted in turns for 40 overs. Tendulkar also bowled 1.2 overs and gave away eight runs.

Raju and Sharandeep were the only two bowlers to take a wicket each during the play when International Umpire, K.Murali officiated.

Later in the evening, the spinners repeated the same format of test and practice.

Apart from the routine stint at the nets and fielding practices Physio Andrew Leipus gave extra load of physical exercises to the campers in turns.

The Camp ends with a long single session tomorrow.

Sachin Tendulkar pour cold water over Australia’s long term plans

New Delhi, February 18: Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar today pulled out of the Mumbai team that meets the Australians at Brabourne Stadium in the visitors' final tune-up ahead of the first Test.

With India A already having pushed Steve Waugh's team on to the back foot at Nagpur thanks to sterling performances from Rahul Sanghvi, Ashish Nehra, Harbhajan Singh, Sadagopan Ramesh and VVS Laxman, Tendulkar's decision to opt out of the only game available to Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne ahead of the Mumbai Test is certain to pour cold water over Australia's long-term plans for the series.

Two years ago, Tendulkar had destroyed Australian team from which they never recovered. The master batsman earned his maiden first-class double hundred in that game and so smashed Warne's confidence that the leg-spinner was a shadow of his attacking self for the three Test matches that followed.

McGrath and the rest of his fellow fast men have been making much of how important Tendulkar's wicket is and have received acres of space in the media here to that effect. Yet, the fact that the master has chosen his battleground will go a long way in nullifying whatever perceived advantage they may have gained. And with at least half his first Test attack put to the sword at Nagpur, Waugh and coach John Buchanan will now have to return to the drawing board to rethink their strategies.

Clearly, the Australian ploy here, as it was back home in the 1999-2000 series was to highlight Tendulkar's central role in Indian plans and then go after him. A key part of that plan included attacking him in the tour game against Mumbai, which Tendulkar's step today has defanged, leaving the Australians in doubt about his form and fitness till the very last moment.

Mumbai Test team to be chosen on February 20

Nagpur, February 17: The team for the first Test starting February 17 at Mumbai, which was to be selected at Nagpur on February 19, will now be chosen on February 20 in Mumbai.

Chairman of the selection committee Chandu Borde said here on Saturday evening that since the preparatory camp for the first Test is also beginning in Mumbai on February 20, Saurav Ganguly suggested that the team also be selected on the same day. As per him this suggestion was forwarded to the board secretary, who has accepted it. 

 India A take a lead of 77 runs against Australia

Nagpur, February18: India A managed to take a lead of 77 runs before they were all out for 368 runs here on the second day of First three day match against Australia. Australia after winning the toss had elected to bat first and had scored 291 runs in their first innings.

Collin miller produced excellent figures of 6 wickets, 10 maidens, 91 runs in his spell of 32 overs. 

From India’s side the players who left an impact were S Ramesh, V.V.S. Laxman and N.R. Mongia. Ramesh was the highest scorer with101 runs, Laxman managed to hit 94 runs and Mongia was not on 71 runs.  

India 'A' 71/1 at stumps after 18 overs

Nagpur, Feb 17:Australian skipper Steve Waugh won the toss and elected to bat on the first day of the opening three day game between Australia and India A at the Vidharba Cricket Association stadium in Nagpur.

Australia were all out for 291 off 69.1 overs with Micheal Kasprowicz being the top scorer (92).

Rahul Sanghvi was the wrecker-in-chief for India A bagging five for 40. Paceman Ashish Nehra took 3 wickets for 78.

The India A openers S Ramesh and SS Das raced to 23 runs off five overs. Das was out on 12. Laxman and Ramesh played safely and ended the day on 71 for one off 18 overs. Ramesh was on 43 off 61 balls with nine hits to the fence, Laxman was on six off 22 balls with one hit to the fence.

 Ashish Nehra rattles Australia’s top order

Nagpur, Feb 17: Paceman Ashish Nehra rattled Australia's top order as they struggled to 63 for three wickets after captain Steve Waugh elected to bat in their tour-opening three-day game against India "A" on Saturday.

Nehra, a left-arm paceman from Delhi, staked his claim for a test position when he picked up all three wickets in the first hour of play by making use of moist early morning conditions on an otherwise placid wicket.

He bowled opener Michael Slater for five in his very first over with the Australian total on six. Left-hander Justin Langer cracked two fours before being trapped leg before wicket for eight.

Nehra struck again when Waugh chased a ball outside the off stump and the edge flew straight to wicketkeeper Nayan Mongia.

Waugh was out for a duck and Australia were reeling at 25 for three, before opener Matthew Hayden (20) and Ricky Ponting (27) steadied the innings, guiding the visitors to the first drinks break without losing another wicket.

Australia rested batsman Mark Waugh and strike bowlers Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne for the match.

Australia play another three-day game next week before the first test starts in Bombay on February 27.

Teams: 
Australia: Steve Waugh (captain) Adam Gilchrist, Michael Slater, Justin Langer, Damien Fleming, Jason Gillespie, Matthew Hayden, Michael Kasprowicz, Damien Martyn, Colin Miller and Ricky Ponting.

India A: Vangipurappu Laxman (captain), Sadagopan Ramesh, Shiv Sunder Das, Dinesh Mongia, Hemang Badani, Nayan Mongia, Debasish Mohanty, Rahul Sanghvi, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra and W.D.Balaji Rao.

 John Wright happy with Hirwani, Bahutule

Chennai, February 16: Indian coach John Wright on Friday expressed happiness over the performance of leg spinners Narendra Hirwani and Sairaj Bahutule who were summoned to join the ongoing camp for cricket probables in preparation for the coming three Test series against Australia.

"Both have worked hard at the nets bowling to different batsmen for two hours on the trot," Wright told reporters here.

Wright said he will give his observations to the selectors, who are presently in Nagpur to watch the India A team take on the Australians in a three-day fixture starting there Saturday.

"I will inform them about my assessment and the selectors will take the final decision," Wright said.

Hirwani said: "I have been working on my bowling even before I was called for the camp. I am working hard and the rest, I leave to God."

Referring to Iqbal Siddique and Reetinder Singh Sodhi, who stayed back at the camp, Wright said: "I appreciate them for having decided to work at the nets despite being told to get back home. They are here on their own."

The players had a three-hour work out at the nets today and would have two sessions for the remaining two days.

The selectors not being impressed with the spinners at the camp, which started on February 6, had summoned Bahutule of Mumbai and Hirwani to have a "look at them'" 

 Betting shops open business as Australia tours India  

Sydney, February 16: With just two weeks to go for the start of the first Test of the Australian tour of India, betting shops in Australia have started accepting wagers with many Indian bookies favoring the visiting side.

"The draw (of bets) has already been a big go with news that the pitch will be a flat deck to try and stop the Aussie pace attack," said Gerard Daffy of CentreBet, one of the largest and oldest licensed sports betting companies of the country.

"We have laid the drawn series at 2/1 with a bet of $7500 from India. The Aussies are 4/5 and India 9/2 to win the best of three series," Daffy said.

The bets on individual performances are wide open which is reflected in the odds and also the spread of early money.

Master batsman Sachin Tendulkar is 7/2 favorite to become the top-scorer. Bets on Steve Waugh (8/1) and Ricky Ponting (5/1) have attracted in excess of $8000 each while Mark Waugh (9/2) is also starting to attract money now, he said.

Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne head the bets to emerge the highest wicket-taker in the series.

Gavaskar was reportedly out of town when the locker was broken after repeated reminders by the club management to clear the locker went unheeded. 

Gavaskar, Test cricket's first batsman to score 10,000 runs, has not been probed into the ongoing investigations into match fixing and corruption in cricket. 

 Gaekwad to fill the post of NCA director 

Jaipur, February 16: Former Indian coach Anshuman Gaekwad is likely to be the new director of the National Cricket Acadmey (NCA). NCA chairman Raj Singh Dungarpur on Friday hinted that Gaekwad may fill the post in the Banglore-based academy which fell vacant after the resignation of Hanumant Singh.

"Gaekwad is the most suitable candidate for the coveted post. He came to help Board when Kapil Dev had resigned as Indian coach and many noted personalities had refused to accept the post of coach as there were lot of talk about bringing in a foreign coach.

"But Gaekwad came in to shoulder the responsibility for a few months and saved Board from an embarassing position. BCCI then had thought of giving back something to Gaekwad and I think that the NCA director's post will be a just reward for him", Dungarpur said.

Asked about other changes in NCA, he said as Roger Binny expressed disinterest, former Mumbai coach Balwinder Singh Sandhu was likely to be the new bowling coach at the NCA but hunt was still on for a batting coach.

 Dungarpur places Steve above Lara and Sachin

Jaipur, February 16: Former cricket board chief Raj Singh Dungarpur said Australian captain Steve Waugh is the best batsman in the world, placing him above West Indies' Brian Lara and India's Sachin Tendulkar, as he  scored runs when needed.

"As a batsman I think not Brian Lara, not Sachin Tendulkar, but Steve Waugh is the best in the world as he scores runs when they are required the most," Dungarpur said.

Further adding, he said "No other batsman, not even Don Bradman or Vijay Hazare, have scored more runs when required than Steve Waugh.”

He said India would miss Anil Kumble during the home series against Australia and hoped experienced left-arm spinner Venkatpathy Raju would seize the opportunity provided to him once again and perform well.

"Australia have a fine record recently but it is also true most of their triumphs were against weaker sides like New Zealand, Zimbabwe and a much feeble Indian team on Australian wickets," he said.

 BCCI turned down the offer to host 3rd ICC Knockout Cup

New Delhi, February 16: Board of Control for Cricket in India secretary J Y Lele admitted India were offered to host the 3rd ICC Knockout tournament but turned it down for various reasons.

The offer was made to BCCI at the ICC's executive committee meeting in Melbourne last week. In case of an Indian refusal, Pakistan would be an alternative venue, it was learnt.

Lele quashed suggestions that India did not have the strength to host a tournament of this magnitude. "India can very well host a tournament of this nature. After all, we hosted a World Cup in 1996. This is just a Mini World Cup," said he.

When asked about the reasons for the BCCI to decline the offer, Lele said, "We still remember the way the income tax authorities hounded the Pilcom (the joint India-Pakistan organizing committee) after the 1996 World Cup. We don't want a repeat of that."

Hosting the 11-nation meet would have effectively meant hosting Pakistan as well. "Yes, we didn't want to get into that tangle all over again. What if we had accepted and the government threw a spanner in the works? This was one of the reasons but I can assure you that was not the only one," said Lele.

The inaugural ICC Knockout tournament was played in Dhaka in 1998. Nairobi hosted the second edition in October last year.

It is peculiar to note that a tournament meant to be hosted by developing cricket nations was offered to a senior Test-playing country like India.

ICC president Malcolm Gray said from Melbourne on Saturday, "It was by no means an ICC policy decision to hold the Knockout Cup in developing cricket nations. It is one of ICC's prestigious ventures which has generated a lot of interest all over and can be hosted at any suitable venue."

Gray said India were still a possible venue. He said a final decision would be made in another couple of months. 

 ICC has backup plans if India, Pak don’t play 

New Delhi, February 16: International Cricket Council president Malcolm Gray said the newly coined 10-year Test and one-day fixtures "could be in a bit of a soup" if India and Pakistan did not play each other as listed.

"A 10-year schedule is an excellent proposition. But it would be a pity if Indo-Pak cricketing ties stayed deadlocked. The schedule will then be a useless exercise," Gray said.

According to the schedule, adopted at the ICC executive committee meeting in Melbourne last week, India are slated to tour Pakistan in April 2003 and host them the following year.

"We're well aware of the situation. We also discussed that India-Pakistan ties might not take off at all," said Gray. He added that ICC can only request governments and can't dictate them.

In the backdrop of Pakistan's incessant cross-border terrorism, the Indian government has repeatedly declined the Board of Control for Cricket in India's request to renew cricketing ties with Pakistan.

As a result, India withdrew from the annual Sahara Cup series in Toronto and also cancelled the full tour of Pakistan scheduled in December-January. Indian authorities also turned down an invitation to play in a tri-nation involving Pakistan and Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur.

More recently, an invitation to play in a fun-raising triangular involving Pakistan and Bangladesh in Sharjah for earthquake victims in Gujarat was also rejected.  

 Dungarpur cautioned that India may face isolation

Jaipur, February 16 : Former Cricket Board president Raj Singh Dungarpur on Friday cautioned that India might face isolation in cricketing world if it continues with its policy of not playing against Pakistan.

Terming the cancellation of the proposed Sharjah tri-series in aid of Gujarat quake victims as a 'wrong decision', Dungarpur told here on Friday that during a visit to Pakistan in connection with a meeting of marketing committee of International Cricket Council, he had a feeling that India was being isolated on the issue.

"I was personally very disappointed when the proposed tour of Sharjah did not materialise. This was a wrong decision by the politicians. When we can have Pakistan aid for the earthquake victims, why cannot we play against Pakistan?" Dungarpur asked.

"Many Arab concerns were ready to provide crores of Rupees for the earthquake victims. India or Pakistan may have won or lost but it would have been a victory for the game of cricket in any case," he added.  

 Betting shops open business as Australia tours India  

Sydney, February 16: With just two weeks to go for the start of the first Test of the Australian tour of India, betting shops in Australia have started accepting wagers with many Indian bookies favoring the visiting side.

"The draw (of bets) has already been a big go with news that the pitch will be a flat deck to try and stop the Aussie pace attack," said Gerard Daffy of CentreBet, one of the largest and oldest licensed sports betting companies of the country.

"We have laid the drawn series at 2/1 with a bet of $7500 from India. The Aussies are 4/5 and India 9/2 to win the best of three series," Daffy said.

The bets on individual performances are wide open which is reflected in the odds and also the spread of early money.

Master batsman Sachin Tendulkar is 7/2 favorite to become the top-scorer. Bets on Steve Waugh (8/1) and Ricky Ponting (5/1) have attracted in excess of $8000 each while Mark Waugh (9/2) is also starting to attract money now, he said.

Glenn