The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has admitted, before 2013 any realistic chance of a bilateral Test series with India would not be possible . 
Pakistan Cricket Board chief Operating Officer, Subhan Ahmad said that it appeared with the new ICC Future Tour Program (FTP) to be enforced from April this year, the scheduled Pakistan team's tour to India in March-April in the old FTP is now being shelved.
"It appears as if both boards now have to make a fresh start in the new FTP with India scheduled to tour Pakistan in 2013," he said.
India didn't tour Pakistan in early 2009 in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks, while Pakistan's tour to India in March-April this year under the old FTP is cancelled due to various reasons.
Ahmad admitted that it is a case of even-steven between the two boards.
"We were demanding compensation for the cancelled tour of 2009 but now with India not hosting us this year, the situation has evened out between the two boards as both have suffered losses by not hosting these series in the old FTP," Ahmad explained.
"This basically means that we make a fresh start as far as bilateral relations are concerned between the two boards from 2013 when India is due to tour Pakistan under the new FTP," he added.
Pakistan Cricket Board chief Operating Officer, Subhan Ahmad said that it appeared with the new ICC Future Tour Program (FTP) to be enforced from April this year, the scheduled Pakistan team's tour to India in March-April in the old FTP is now being shelved.
"It appears as if both boards now have to make a fresh start in the new FTP with India scheduled to tour Pakistan in 2013," he said.
India didn't tour Pakistan in early 2009 in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks, while Pakistan's tour to India in March-April this year under the old FTP is cancelled due to various reasons.
Ahmad admitted that it is a case of even-steven between the two boards.
"We were demanding compensation for the cancelled tour of 2009 but now with India not hosting us this year, the situation has evened out between the two boards as both have suffered losses by not hosting these series in the old FTP," Ahmad explained.
"This basically means that we make a fresh start as far as bilateral relations are concerned between the two boards from 2013 when India is due to tour Pakistan under the new FTP," he added.
Defending champion and top seed Novak Djokovic cruised into the second round of the Australian Open on Tuesday with the loss of just two games against Italy's Paolo Lorenzi.
Djokovic had few problems in winning 6-2, 6-0, 6-0 and will next play Colombia's Santiago Giraldo.
The Serbian world number one broke Lorenzi's service nine times in wrapping up his opening match in 1hr 32min on a sweltering day on Rod Laver Arena.
Such was the lack of pressure that Djokovic even had the opportunity of playing a trick shot through his legs that Lorenzi netted.
Djokovic is bidding to become just the fifth man to win three consecutive Grand Slam titles in the Open Era joining Rod Laver, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Last year's Australian Open final triumph over Andy Murray was the first of seven straight tournament wins in a 41-match winning streak that was finally ended by Federer in the semifinals of the French Open.
Djokovic, 24, won a career-best 10 titles in 11 finals last year. He defeated world number two Nadal six times and overall was 21-4 against top-10 opponents.
Djokovic had few problems in winning 6-2, 6-0, 6-0 and will next play Colombia's Santiago Giraldo.
The Serbian world number one broke Lorenzi's service nine times in wrapping up his opening match in 1hr 32min on a sweltering day on Rod Laver Arena.
Such was the lack of pressure that Djokovic even had the opportunity of playing a trick shot through his legs that Lorenzi netted.
Djokovic is bidding to become just the fifth man to win three consecutive Grand Slam titles in the Open Era joining Rod Laver, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Last year's Australian Open final triumph over Andy Murray was the first of seven straight tournament wins in a 41-match winning streak that was finally ended by Federer in the semifinals of the French Open.
Djokovic, 24, won a career-best 10 titles in 11 finals last year. He defeated world number two Nadal six times and overall was 21-4 against top-10 opponents.
Diego Maradona has left a private hospital in Dubai after undergoing surgery to remove kidney stones.
Maradona’s club Al Wasl said the coach and former Argentina great complained of abdominal pains on Sunday and was taken to a local hospital, where doctors determined he will need surgery to remove kidney stones. He was discharged from the Canadian Specialist Hospital on Monday following the operation Sunday night.
It said Maradona will take a day off to rest and recuperate and is expected to return to the club on Wednesday.
Maradona’s club Al Wasl said the coach and former Argentina great complained of abdominal pains on Sunday and was taken to a local hospital, where doctors determined he will need surgery to remove kidney stones. He was discharged from the Canadian Specialist Hospital on Monday following the operation Sunday night.
It said Maradona will take a day off to rest and recuperate and is expected to return to the club on Wednesday.
Sri Lanka's batting turned up on a slow East London pitch after the no-show in Paarl but a scratchy performance was not enough to push South Africa, though the hosts managed to give themselves some nervy moments during the chase. Sri Lanka's three big batsmen failed once again and it was only due to the rapidly maturing Dinesh Chandimal and Upul Tharanga that they avoided another poor score.
Hashim Amla's wizardry then threatened to shut out the visitors before South Africa lost crucial wickets at the wrong times to make sure the rest of their chase wouldn't be as breezy as Amla's innings was. JP Duminy, though, kept his cool to guide his side home in the penultimate over.
AB de Villiers had earlier been lured into putting Sri Lanka in by overcast skies, but the visitors were able to survive and slowly build their innings, partly due to the lack of bite in the pitch and partly due to Chandimal and Tharanga. That South Africa got as much as 237 to chase was down largely to Chandimal. He batted till the end of Sri Lanka's innings, displaying grit - a quality that has been largely absent among Sri Lanka's batsmen recently.
Chandimal outside-edged heaves over point, he even lap-swept a ball off his helmet a four. Timing eluded him for most of his innings, but fortune did not. He repeatedly tried to smash the spinners out of the ground only for the ball to roll towards midwicket. He could have been run out several times as he went for tight singles. He had earlier been hit on the arm and the side of the helmet by Albie Morkel as he played a pull too early. But he just smiled and rode out the tough period. He hit his first four off the 16th delivery he faced, the next one came off the 85th as he carried Sri Lanka from 164 for 5 in the 40th over to 236 for 6 in the company of Angelo Mathews.
The visitors had initially found themselves in familiar territory at 21 for 2 after 10 overs despite the Buffalo Park pitch affording neither the pace nor the bounce that Paarl had. Tillakaratne Dilshan still managed to get dismissed off the fourth ball he faced for his second duck in as many games, a slight hesitation while attempting a tight single against the arm of Faf du Plessis finding him short of the crease. He now averages 15.50 with the bat in 18 ODIs since taking over the Sri Lanka captaincy.
Smart stats
Dinesh Chandimal's 92 is his fourth fifty-plus score in 19 matches. He has scored two centuries prior to this knock. His 92 is also the fifth-highest score by a Sri Lankan batsman against South Africa in ODIs in South Africa.
South Africa's win is their 14th against Sri Lanka in 20 home ODIs. Overall, they lead the head-to-head contests 24-22.
This is South Africa's 12th win in 18 matches in East London and their second win against Sri Lanka at the venue. Their last defeat at the venue came in 1994.
Hashim Amla's half-century is his 16th in ODIs and his second consecutive fifty-plus score against Sri Lanka. Since the beginning of 2011, his performance has dropped a little but he continues to average nearly 50 with three hundreds.
JP Duminy's half-century is his 15th in ODIs overall and first against Sri Lanka. He has made 11 of his 17 fifty-plus scores in home ODIs.
This is South Africa's tenth successful chase in ODIs against Sri Lanka. The target of 237 is the second-highest that South Africa have managed to chase down in matches against Sri Lanka. The highest is 248 in Paarl in 2001, when South Africa went on to win by eight wickets.
With edges dying on the wicketkeeper and batsmen being beaten after playing their shots too early, it was no surprise that Lonwabo Tsotsobe's assortment of slower deliveries and cutters proved difficult to score off. After having played the patience game in making 3 off 27 deliveries, Kumar Sangakkara fiddled with a Tsotsobe delivery outside off stump and feathered a dying edge to the wicketkeeper.
Tharanga and Chandimal were tested more by the slowness of the pitch than by South Africa's bowlers. But to their credit, they were prepared to wait and nudge the ball around. Tharanga, the only Sri Lanka batsman to find some measure of timing on the pitch, glided deliveries for boundaries through point, and when the spinners found some help from the pitch he stepped out to loft them down the ground. An attempt to glide Morne Morkel towards third man resulted in a faint edge to the keeper after he had motored to 66.
South Africa's excellence in the field earned them the wickets of Mahela Jayawardene and the promoted Nuwan Kulasekara, both after breezy cameos. Chandimal ultimately carried them to a score that was seven runs short of the average total by a side batting first at Buffalo Park.
Sri Lanka needed Lasith Malinga to strike early if they were to make the target of 237 seem bigger than it was, but Amla and Graeme Smith were careful to play out his opening burst with caution. With Malinga out of the way for the moment, Amla began to toy with the rest of the attack, untroubled by the slowness of the track. He smashed Nuwan Kulasekara for six over extra cover, walked across to flick him for four through midwicket and flicked him over square leg for six.
Dilshan soon did what he so often does when there are no answers to be found: he brought himself on. Amla guided and nudged him for consecutive fours to race towards his half-century. Dhammika Prasad gave Sri Lanka much-needed relief as Amla finally failed to connect and was bowled for 55.
Rangana Herath, who had been held back, came on and troubled Kallis immediately with sharp turn as well as with arm balls. A slow partnership between Kallis and Duminy followed, which served to push the asking-rate up. With 85 needed from 15 overs, Kallis sliced Prasad straight to sweeper cover in an attempt to speed up the scoring.
de Villiers came in charged up and soon ran himself out, attempting a non-existent single to short third man. But Amla's start had afforded South Africa the space to wobble a bit. Duminy did what was required, working the singles and pushing for the twos. He hit only one boundary off 87 deliveries but still scored at a strike-rate of over 75. It wasn't fancy stuff, it wasn't the artistry of Amla, but South Africa would be grateful to Duminy for doing the dirty work that steered home what should have been a far smoother chase.
Hashim Amla's wizardry then threatened to shut out the visitors before South Africa lost crucial wickets at the wrong times to make sure the rest of their chase wouldn't be as breezy as Amla's innings was. JP Duminy, though, kept his cool to guide his side home in the penultimate over.
AB de Villiers had earlier been lured into putting Sri Lanka in by overcast skies, but the visitors were able to survive and slowly build their innings, partly due to the lack of bite in the pitch and partly due to Chandimal and Tharanga. That South Africa got as much as 237 to chase was down largely to Chandimal. He batted till the end of Sri Lanka's innings, displaying grit - a quality that has been largely absent among Sri Lanka's batsmen recently.
Chandimal outside-edged heaves over point, he even lap-swept a ball off his helmet a four. Timing eluded him for most of his innings, but fortune did not. He repeatedly tried to smash the spinners out of the ground only for the ball to roll towards midwicket. He could have been run out several times as he went for tight singles. He had earlier been hit on the arm and the side of the helmet by Albie Morkel as he played a pull too early. But he just smiled and rode out the tough period. He hit his first four off the 16th delivery he faced, the next one came off the 85th as he carried Sri Lanka from 164 for 5 in the 40th over to 236 for 6 in the company of Angelo Mathews.
The visitors had initially found themselves in familiar territory at 21 for 2 after 10 overs despite the Buffalo Park pitch affording neither the pace nor the bounce that Paarl had. Tillakaratne Dilshan still managed to get dismissed off the fourth ball he faced for his second duck in as many games, a slight hesitation while attempting a tight single against the arm of Faf du Plessis finding him short of the crease. He now averages 15.50 with the bat in 18 ODIs since taking over the Sri Lanka captaincy.
Smart stats
Dinesh Chandimal's 92 is his fourth fifty-plus score in 19 matches. He has scored two centuries prior to this knock. His 92 is also the fifth-highest score by a Sri Lankan batsman against South Africa in ODIs in South Africa.
South Africa's win is their 14th against Sri Lanka in 20 home ODIs. Overall, they lead the head-to-head contests 24-22.
This is South Africa's 12th win in 18 matches in East London and their second win against Sri Lanka at the venue. Their last defeat at the venue came in 1994.
Hashim Amla's half-century is his 16th in ODIs and his second consecutive fifty-plus score against Sri Lanka. Since the beginning of 2011, his performance has dropped a little but he continues to average nearly 50 with three hundreds.
JP Duminy's half-century is his 15th in ODIs overall and first against Sri Lanka. He has made 11 of his 17 fifty-plus scores in home ODIs.
This is South Africa's tenth successful chase in ODIs against Sri Lanka. The target of 237 is the second-highest that South Africa have managed to chase down in matches against Sri Lanka. The highest is 248 in Paarl in 2001, when South Africa went on to win by eight wickets.
With edges dying on the wicketkeeper and batsmen being beaten after playing their shots too early, it was no surprise that Lonwabo Tsotsobe's assortment of slower deliveries and cutters proved difficult to score off. After having played the patience game in making 3 off 27 deliveries, Kumar Sangakkara fiddled with a Tsotsobe delivery outside off stump and feathered a dying edge to the wicketkeeper.
Tharanga and Chandimal were tested more by the slowness of the pitch than by South Africa's bowlers. But to their credit, they were prepared to wait and nudge the ball around. Tharanga, the only Sri Lanka batsman to find some measure of timing on the pitch, glided deliveries for boundaries through point, and when the spinners found some help from the pitch he stepped out to loft them down the ground. An attempt to glide Morne Morkel towards third man resulted in a faint edge to the keeper after he had motored to 66.
South Africa's excellence in the field earned them the wickets of Mahela Jayawardene and the promoted Nuwan Kulasekara, both after breezy cameos. Chandimal ultimately carried them to a score that was seven runs short of the average total by a side batting first at Buffalo Park.
Sri Lanka needed Lasith Malinga to strike early if they were to make the target of 237 seem bigger than it was, but Amla and Graeme Smith were careful to play out his opening burst with caution. With Malinga out of the way for the moment, Amla began to toy with the rest of the attack, untroubled by the slowness of the track. He smashed Nuwan Kulasekara for six over extra cover, walked across to flick him for four through midwicket and flicked him over square leg for six.
Dilshan soon did what he so often does when there are no answers to be found: he brought himself on. Amla guided and nudged him for consecutive fours to race towards his half-century. Dhammika Prasad gave Sri Lanka much-needed relief as Amla finally failed to connect and was bowled for 55.
Rangana Herath, who had been held back, came on and troubled Kallis immediately with sharp turn as well as with arm balls. A slow partnership between Kallis and Duminy followed, which served to push the asking-rate up. With 85 needed from 15 overs, Kallis sliced Prasad straight to sweeper cover in an attempt to speed up the scoring.
de Villiers came in charged up and soon ran himself out, attempting a non-existent single to short third man. But Amla's start had afforded South Africa the space to wobble a bit. Duminy did what was required, working the singles and pushing for the twos. He hit only one boundary off 87 deliveries but still scored at a strike-rate of over 75. It wasn't fancy stuff, it wasn't the artistry of Amla, but South Africa would be grateful to Duminy for doing the dirty work that steered home what should have been a far smoother chase.
Australia's fast bowlers completed an innings-and-37-run destruction of India minutes after lunch on day three of the third Test, snatching the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in the most emphatic style imaginable. Ryan Harris split a stubborn stand between Virat Kohli and Rahul Dravid before Peter Siddle nicked out MS Dhoni in the shadows of the interval, and Ben Hilfenhaus razed the tail with three wickets in five balls on resumption.
Siddle found Kohli's outside edge to complete proceedings, heralding the start of rich celebrations for the hosts following victory over opponents who never came to terms with the challenges posed by Australia's bowlers and conditions. The performance of the match was by a home batsman however, and it was a measure of the Man-of-the-Match David Warner's 180 that India's batsmen fell short of his individual tally in each innings.
His efforts gave the pace ensemble a chance to squeeze India, and all the bowlers contributed in another strikingly even performance. Harris will bowl far worse and claim five wickets rather than the one he plucked in the second innings, while Siddle and Hilfenhaus maintained their outstanding marriage of pressure and late movement. Mitchell Starc, of course, had made two critical breaks on the second evening.
Dravid and Kohli provided the staunchest Indian batting resistance of the match in a union of 84, but were never completely in control against Harris, who deservedly found a way past Dravid towards the end of an exacting spell. Siddle's dismissal of Dhoni was a familiar sight, the captain's edge snapped up by Ricky Ponting in the cordon.
Kohli's innings was a beacon of hope for India's future, demonstrating strong technique and a stronger mind to cope with Australia's bowling that did not flag in considerable heat. Following up a similarly composed 44 in the first innings, it may warrant a promotion in the batting order for Adelaide.
Resuming at 4 for 88, still 120 short of going into credit, Dravid and Kohli had plenty of testing moments in the opening overs. Harris' first two deliveries of the day did everything but bowl Dravid, angling in and seaming away, while at the other end Hilfenhaus swung the ball tantalisingly away with the help of a south-westerly breeze.
Kohli was the more assured of the batting duo, collecting his runs quietly with ones and twos, reining in his most aggressive tendencies in a struggle for survival against bowling that offered precious little latitude.
Harris, in particular, posed question after question, taking advantage of a crack on a length at the Lillee-Marsh Stand end to bring the ball sharply back into Kohli and Dravid. Dravid was late to react to some subtle inswing, the ball swerving between bat and pad to send leg stump cartwheeling. Dravid shuffled off, bowled five times in six innings during the series.
Dhoni's technique has been found similarly wanting, and once again he would edge tamely into the cordon. Siddle's delivery was full, fast and swinging, and Ponting's hands at second slip were alert and safe. Nevertheless, the dismissal was another grim reflection on the batting of Dhoni, who has always struggled to replicate his subcontinental run-scoring on foreign shores.
Lunch came and went, Kohli still harbouring the desire to reach a century. But Hilfenhaus was not in a mood to countenance charity. Bashing the ball in short of a length, he had Vinay Kumar and Zaheer Khan fencing to Michael Clarke at slip in consecutive balls, and while Ishant Sharma survived the hat-trick delivery, he fended his third straight to Ed Cowan at short leg.
Umesh Yadav survived one ball to give Kohli the strike, but Siddle probed the perfect line and length once more to coax a touch behind and seal a series that has been more lopsided than anyone can have imagined.
Siddle found Kohli's outside edge to complete proceedings, heralding the start of rich celebrations for the hosts following victory over opponents who never came to terms with the challenges posed by Australia's bowlers and conditions. The performance of the match was by a home batsman however, and it was a measure of the Man-of-the-Match David Warner's 180 that India's batsmen fell short of his individual tally in each innings.
His efforts gave the pace ensemble a chance to squeeze India, and all the bowlers contributed in another strikingly even performance. Harris will bowl far worse and claim five wickets rather than the one he plucked in the second innings, while Siddle and Hilfenhaus maintained their outstanding marriage of pressure and late movement. Mitchell Starc, of course, had made two critical breaks on the second evening.
Dravid and Kohli provided the staunchest Indian batting resistance of the match in a union of 84, but were never completely in control against Harris, who deservedly found a way past Dravid towards the end of an exacting spell. Siddle's dismissal of Dhoni was a familiar sight, the captain's edge snapped up by Ricky Ponting in the cordon.
Kohli's innings was a beacon of hope for India's future, demonstrating strong technique and a stronger mind to cope with Australia's bowling that did not flag in considerable heat. Following up a similarly composed 44 in the first innings, it may warrant a promotion in the batting order for Adelaide.
Resuming at 4 for 88, still 120 short of going into credit, Dravid and Kohli had plenty of testing moments in the opening overs. Harris' first two deliveries of the day did everything but bowl Dravid, angling in and seaming away, while at the other end Hilfenhaus swung the ball tantalisingly away with the help of a south-westerly breeze.
Kohli was the more assured of the batting duo, collecting his runs quietly with ones and twos, reining in his most aggressive tendencies in a struggle for survival against bowling that offered precious little latitude.
Harris, in particular, posed question after question, taking advantage of a crack on a length at the Lillee-Marsh Stand end to bring the ball sharply back into Kohli and Dravid. Dravid was late to react to some subtle inswing, the ball swerving between bat and pad to send leg stump cartwheeling. Dravid shuffled off, bowled five times in six innings during the series.
Dhoni's technique has been found similarly wanting, and once again he would edge tamely into the cordon. Siddle's delivery was full, fast and swinging, and Ponting's hands at second slip were alert and safe. Nevertheless, the dismissal was another grim reflection on the batting of Dhoni, who has always struggled to replicate his subcontinental run-scoring on foreign shores.
Lunch came and went, Kohli still harbouring the desire to reach a century. But Hilfenhaus was not in a mood to countenance charity. Bashing the ball in short of a length, he had Vinay Kumar and Zaheer Khan fencing to Michael Clarke at slip in consecutive balls, and while Ishant Sharma survived the hat-trick delivery, he fended his third straight to Ed Cowan at short leg.
Umesh Yadav survived one ball to give Kohli the strike, but Siddle probed the perfect line and length once more to coax a touch behind and seal a series that has been more lopsided than anyone can have imagined.
Overcoming initial jitters Saina Nehwal stamped her class with a straight-game - 21-19, 21-8 - victory against Shao Chieh Cheng of Chinese Taipei to make it to the quarterfinals of the Malaysia Open Super Series in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.
The 21-year old made a brilliant rally in the first game and then overpowered her opponent in the second. In the first, Saina was staring down the barrel as Shao was just two points away (19-15) from clinching the game. It was here Saina slowed down the pace of the game.
In fact Saina was surprised at the way her opponent raced ahead to 6-1, 14-9 and 19-15. The Taipei girl started on an attacking note playing smashes and drops at will. Saina had been trying to stop her and succeeded in the end by engaging her in long rallies.
She caught her opponent on the back hand and once Shao was not allowed to get winners at will she lost patience and made mistakes. Saina stopped the finalist of the World Championships at 19 and produced six consecutive winners to clinch the first game at 21-19.
Distraught after losing the first game from a winning position, Shao lost her rhythm and surrendered meekly in the second. Saina started with a 3-0 lead and widened the gap to 11-4 by the break. Saina showed her finesse at the net as she secured 10 winners to dominate the opponent. She gave only four points after the break before wrapping up the contest at 21-8.
In the quarters on Friday, the Indian will have a tough outing against two-time All England champion Tine Baun of Denmark.
The 21-year old made a brilliant rally in the first game and then overpowered her opponent in the second. In the first, Saina was staring down the barrel as Shao was just two points away (19-15) from clinching the game. It was here Saina slowed down the pace of the game.
In fact Saina was surprised at the way her opponent raced ahead to 6-1, 14-9 and 19-15. The Taipei girl started on an attacking note playing smashes and drops at will. Saina had been trying to stop her and succeeded in the end by engaging her in long rallies.
She caught her opponent on the back hand and once Shao was not allowed to get winners at will she lost patience and made mistakes. Saina stopped the finalist of the World Championships at 19 and produced six consecutive winners to clinch the first game at 21-19.
Distraught after losing the first game from a winning position, Shao lost her rhythm and surrendered meekly in the second. Saina started with a 3-0 lead and widened the gap to 11-4 by the break. Saina showed her finesse at the net as she secured 10 winners to dominate the opponent. She gave only four points after the break before wrapping up the contest at 21-8.
In the quarters on Friday, the Indian will have a tough outing against two-time All England champion Tine Baun of Denmark.
Tamil Nadu wrapped up the Mumbai tail to take a vital first innings lead of 202 in the Ranji Trophy semifinal at the Wankhede Stadium here on Thursday.
The three seamers — L. Balaji, Yomahesh and J. Kaushik — got into the wicket-taking act and dismissed the home team for a meagre 157.
Not in recent times has Mumbai been shot out in a little over four hours and the Tamil Nadu bowlers can take credit for bringing down a mighty opponent in such a short time, in 51 overs, and more or less confirm its entry into the final of the National championship.
NO FOLLOW-ON
As expected Tamil Nadu did not enforce the follow-on; instead it batted again and Murali Vijay scored a century.
The right-hander who went through a poor run in the early part of the league, struck three half-centuries leading to the contest here and fell short of the half-century mark by three runs in the first innings.
But on the third day when his side had virtually sewn up the match, he spent considerable time and notched up his ninth first class century and eighth for his State in the tournament.
GOOD STAND
Getting a second opportunity to bat almost an hour before the lunch break, Abhinav Mukund and Vijay raised 90 for the first wicket before the former was dismissed.
The visitor had lost three more wickets for a total of 220 and at close was 422 runs ahead with Vijay on an unbeaten 103 (210b, 15x4, 1x6).
The scores:
Tamil Nadu — Ist innings: 359.
Mumbai — Ist innings: K. Pawar c Karthik b Balaji 1, O. Gurav c Vijay b Balaji 2, A. Nayar c Vasudevadas b Srinivas 17, W. Jaffer lbw b Balaji 0, S. Yadav c Karthik b Yomahesh 52, H. Shah c Karthik b Yomahesh 21, A. Chavan c Vijay b Kaushik 10, D. Kulkarni c Balaji b Yomahesh 7, R. Powar b Balaji 4, B.S. Sandhu (jr) (not out) 18, K. Waingankar c Srinivas b Kaushik 6, Extras (b-2, lb-7, nb-7, w-3): 19; Total (in 51 overs): 157.
Fall of wickets: 1-8, 2-14, 3-14, 4-61, 5-83, 6-98, 7-124, 8-129, 9-142.
Tamil Nadu bowling: Balaji 15-4-28-4, Kaushik 11-2-34-2, Yomahesh 16-4-63-3, Srinivas 8-2-18-1, Gupta 1-0-5-0.
Tamil Nadu — 2nd innings: A. Mukund b Waingankar 42, M. Vijay (batting) 103, S. Badrinath b Chavan 23, D. Karthik b Sandhu (jr) 4, K. Vasudevadas c Yadav b Waingankar 36, R. Prasanna (batting) 1, Extras (b-1, lb-5, nb-2, w-3): 11; Total (for four wkts. in 70 overs): 220.
Fall of wickets: 1-90, 2-129, 3-134, 4-219.
Mumbai bowling: Kulkarni 7-3-24-0, Sandhu (jr) 18-4-53-1, Waingankar 15-4-43-2, Nayar 2-0-14-0, Powar 7-2-17-0, Chavan 20-4-63-1, Yadav 1-1-0-0.
The three seamers — L. Balaji, Yomahesh and J. Kaushik — got into the wicket-taking act and dismissed the home team for a meagre 157.
Not in recent times has Mumbai been shot out in a little over four hours and the Tamil Nadu bowlers can take credit for bringing down a mighty opponent in such a short time, in 51 overs, and more or less confirm its entry into the final of the National championship.
NO FOLLOW-ON
As expected Tamil Nadu did not enforce the follow-on; instead it batted again and Murali Vijay scored a century.
The right-hander who went through a poor run in the early part of the league, struck three half-centuries leading to the contest here and fell short of the half-century mark by three runs in the first innings.
But on the third day when his side had virtually sewn up the match, he spent considerable time and notched up his ninth first class century and eighth for his State in the tournament.
GOOD STAND
Getting a second opportunity to bat almost an hour before the lunch break, Abhinav Mukund and Vijay raised 90 for the first wicket before the former was dismissed.
The visitor had lost three more wickets for a total of 220 and at close was 422 runs ahead with Vijay on an unbeaten 103 (210b, 15x4, 1x6).
The scores:
Tamil Nadu — Ist innings: 359.
Mumbai — Ist innings: K. Pawar c Karthik b Balaji 1, O. Gurav c Vijay b Balaji 2, A. Nayar c Vasudevadas b Srinivas 17, W. Jaffer lbw b Balaji 0, S. Yadav c Karthik b Yomahesh 52, H. Shah c Karthik b Yomahesh 21, A. Chavan c Vijay b Kaushik 10, D. Kulkarni c Balaji b Yomahesh 7, R. Powar b Balaji 4, B.S. Sandhu (jr) (not out) 18, K. Waingankar c Srinivas b Kaushik 6, Extras (b-2, lb-7, nb-7, w-3): 19; Total (in 51 overs): 157.
Fall of wickets: 1-8, 2-14, 3-14, 4-61, 5-83, 6-98, 7-124, 8-129, 9-142.
Tamil Nadu bowling: Balaji 15-4-28-4, Kaushik 11-2-34-2, Yomahesh 16-4-63-3, Srinivas 8-2-18-1, Gupta 1-0-5-0.
Tamil Nadu — 2nd innings: A. Mukund b Waingankar 42, M. Vijay (batting) 103, S. Badrinath b Chavan 23, D. Karthik b Sandhu (jr) 4, K. Vasudevadas c Yadav b Waingankar 36, R. Prasanna (batting) 1, Extras (b-1, lb-5, nb-2, w-3): 11; Total (for four wkts. in 70 overs): 220.
Fall of wickets: 1-90, 2-129, 3-134, 4-219.
Mumbai bowling: Kulkarni 7-3-24-0, Sandhu (jr) 18-4-53-1, Waingankar 15-4-43-2, Nayar 2-0-14-0, Powar 7-2-17-0, Chavan 20-4-63-1, Yadav 1-1-0-0.
Third-seeded Belarusian Victoria Azarenka and reigning champion Li Na will clash in Friday's final at the $637,000 Sydney International tennis tournament, a final Australian Open tuneup.
The fourth-seeded Li prevented second-seeded Petra Kvitova from reaching No. 1 this week, as the Chinese slugger continued her winning ways at this tournament with a 1-6, 7-5, 6-2 semifinal victory on Day 5 at Sydney Olympic Park Tennis Centre.
Li converted on 4-of-6 break-point chances, while saving 10-of-14 break opportunities for Kvitova, who could have overtaken Caroline Wozniacki as the top player in the world with a title here.
The 29-year-old Li appears to be relocating her game, which fell on hard times after she reached last year's Aussie Open final and captured her first-ever major title at the French Open.
The fourth-seeded Li prevented second-seeded Petra Kvitova from reaching No. 1 this week, as the Chinese slugger continued her winning ways at this tournament with a 1-6, 7-5, 6-2 semifinal victory on Day 5 at Sydney Olympic Park Tennis Centre.
Li converted on 4-of-6 break-point chances, while saving 10-of-14 break opportunities for Kvitova, who could have overtaken Caroline Wozniacki as the top player in the world with a title here.
The 29-year-old Li appears to be relocating her game, which fell on hard times after she reached last year's Aussie Open final and captured her first-ever major title at the French Open.
Germany's world number 10 Andrea Petkovic has withdrawn from next week's Australian Open with a stress fracture of her lower back, tennis officials said on Wednesday.
Petkovic had a scan after her straight-sets loss to Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska in Tuesday's second round of the Sydney International.
The German becomes the second top women's player to pull out of the year-opening Grand Slam following American Venus Williams' exit earlier this week with an autoimmune disease.
"I've been having some back problems for the last three or four months," Petkovic said in a WTA statement.
"I've been struggling with it, but I've always believed it was going to be fine and so I pushed through the pain.
"The last two weeks in Australia I've been having bigger problems and I could only play for 30-45 minutes without pain."
Petkovic said Tuesday's scans detected a stress fracture in her lower back.
"The only thing I can do right now is rest and hope that the bone will heal as fast as possible," she said.
Petkovic said she had been advised her recovery could take between six to eight weeks.
"I'm positive this is going to be fine. I just need to take the time off to get better," he said.
"With this type of injury I'd rather take an additional week off, than start back a day early, and I need to be patient."
Petkovic said she will return to Germany later Wednesday to undergo further tests.
Petkovic had a scan after her straight-sets loss to Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska in Tuesday's second round of the Sydney International.
The German becomes the second top women's player to pull out of the year-opening Grand Slam following American Venus Williams' exit earlier this week with an autoimmune disease.
"I've been having some back problems for the last three or four months," Petkovic said in a WTA statement.
"I've been struggling with it, but I've always believed it was going to be fine and so I pushed through the pain.
"The last two weeks in Australia I've been having bigger problems and I could only play for 30-45 minutes without pain."
Petkovic said Tuesday's scans detected a stress fracture in her lower back.
"The only thing I can do right now is rest and hope that the bone will heal as fast as possible," she said.
Petkovic said she had been advised her recovery could take between six to eight weeks.
"I'm positive this is going to be fine. I just need to take the time off to get better," he said.
"With this type of injury I'd rather take an additional week off, than start back a day early, and I need to be patient."
Petkovic said she will return to Germany later Wednesday to undergo further tests.
Argentina and Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, still only 24, won the World Player of the Year award for the third time in a row on Monday.
Real Madrid's Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo was second in the vote for the 2011 FIFA Ballon D'Or and Messi's Barcelona team mate Xavi third. Messi swept home with 47.88 per cent to votes in the survey among national team coaches, captains and selected media. Ronaldo took 21.6 percent and Xavi 9.23 per cent.
Messi, who inspired his Spanish team to win the Champions League, La Liga and Club World Cup, was also first last year when the award was created by joining together the separate annual prizes handed out by FIFA and France Football magazine.
"To win it three times running is a very big honour," Messi, who also won both old awards in 2009, told the audience after being presented with the trophy by former Brazil striker Ronaldo a three-time World Player of the Year.
"I want to share it with the people who helped me, my team mates and coach. This is very special, I want to divide it with me team mate Xavi."
No player has previously won the FIFA award three times in a row, although Michel Platini claimed the France Football prize three years in succession in the 1980s.
Barcelona's Pep Guardiola won the coach's award ahead of Manchester United's Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho of Real Madrid.
Ferguson took the FIFA presidential award for outstanding service to the sport.
The ceremony, co-presented by former Netherlands striker Ruud Gullit, also saw Japan's Homare Sawa voted women's player of the year, ending a run of five successive wins for Brazil's Martha.
Brazil and Santos forward Neymar won the award for the goal of the year, a stunning effort in a Brazilian championship match against Flamengo.
"I also thank the thousands of people through more the 100 years who have worked in football in Barcelona and have developed one of the best clubs in the world."
Blatter heaped praise on Ferguson before handing him his prize.
"In a world in which coaches are expected to produce instant results or be changed, his longevity is a shining example of what can be achieved through stability, continuity, investment in development and trust and confidence in the personality himself," said the Swiss, in his fourth mandate as FIFA president.
Real Madrid's Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo was second in the vote for the 2011 FIFA Ballon D'Or and Messi's Barcelona team mate Xavi third. Messi swept home with 47.88 per cent to votes in the survey among national team coaches, captains and selected media. Ronaldo took 21.6 percent and Xavi 9.23 per cent.
Messi, who inspired his Spanish team to win the Champions League, La Liga and Club World Cup, was also first last year when the award was created by joining together the separate annual prizes handed out by FIFA and France Football magazine.
"To win it three times running is a very big honour," Messi, who also won both old awards in 2009, told the audience after being presented with the trophy by former Brazil striker Ronaldo a three-time World Player of the Year.
"I want to share it with the people who helped me, my team mates and coach. This is very special, I want to divide it with me team mate Xavi."
No player has previously won the FIFA award three times in a row, although Michel Platini claimed the France Football prize three years in succession in the 1980s.
Barcelona's Pep Guardiola won the coach's award ahead of Manchester United's Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho of Real Madrid.
Ferguson took the FIFA presidential award for outstanding service to the sport.
The ceremony, co-presented by former Netherlands striker Ruud Gullit, also saw Japan's Homare Sawa voted women's player of the year, ending a run of five successive wins for Brazil's Martha.
Brazil and Santos forward Neymar won the award for the goal of the year, a stunning effort in a Brazilian championship match against Flamengo.
"I also thank the thousands of people through more the 100 years who have worked in football in Barcelona and have developed one of the best clubs in the world."
Blatter heaped praise on Ferguson before handing him his prize.
"In a world in which coaches are expected to produce instant results or be changed, his longevity is a shining example of what can be achieved through stability, continuity, investment in development and trust and confidence in the personality himself," said the Swiss, in his fourth mandate as FIFA president.
Alex Ferguson, rarely noted for complimenting other teams, heaped lavish praise on Barcelona on Monday, saying he could not see the Catalans failing to defend the Champions League title.
FOOTBALL
"Sometimes in football, you have to hold your hand up and say: 'They're better than us'," Manchester United manager Ferguson told a news conference before the FIFA Balon D'Or player of the year award.
"It's not a crime or weakness, it's just plain facts. They are just an extraordinary team," said Ferguson, whose side lost the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals to the Catalans.
"I can't see anyone taking the trophy from them this year. Real Madrid are probably the nearest to them," added Ferguson, whose side failed to reach the last 16 this season.
Barca coach Pep Guardiola, wearing a black sweater and faded jeans while Ferguson wore a suit, said Barcelona had almost forgotten that losing was part of the sport.
"We have to live with the fact that, by winning so much, we lose the perception this is a game with opponents and it's quite possible that we can win or lose," said Guardiola, whose team trail Real Madrid by five points in La Liga.
"We are competing against opponents who have a spectacular record," he added. "If a team is five points ahead it's because they are better, they have done things better than us. There are no secrets in football."
Ferguson, Guardiola and Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho are candidates for the coach of the year award while Lionel Messi, Xavi and Cristiano Ronaldo are on the shortlist for the player
FOOTBALL
"Sometimes in football, you have to hold your hand up and say: 'They're better than us'," Manchester United manager Ferguson told a news conference before the FIFA Balon D'Or player of the year award.
"It's not a crime or weakness, it's just plain facts. They are just an extraordinary team," said Ferguson, whose side lost the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals to the Catalans.
"I can't see anyone taking the trophy from them this year. Real Madrid are probably the nearest to them," added Ferguson, whose side failed to reach the last 16 this season.
Barca coach Pep Guardiola, wearing a black sweater and faded jeans while Ferguson wore a suit, said Barcelona had almost forgotten that losing was part of the sport.
"We have to live with the fact that, by winning so much, we lose the perception this is a game with opponents and it's quite possible that we can win or lose," said Guardiola, whose team trail Real Madrid by five points in La Liga.
"We are competing against opponents who have a spectacular record," he added. "If a team is five points ahead it's because they are better, they have done things better than us. There are no secrets in football."
Ferguson, Guardiola and Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho are candidates for the coach of the year award while Lionel Messi, Xavi and Cristiano Ronaldo are on the shortlist for the player
PERTH: The mounting criticism of their poor show in the Test series against Australia notwithstanding, the Indian cricket team chose to enjoy some go-karting on Monday instead of having a net session ahead of the do-or-die third match starting on Friday.
For the third day in running, the beleaguered team chose to keep itself away from cricket.
While the cricket fans back home are up in arms and former players are baffled by their take-it-easy approach, the team is insistent that taking mind off the game is the best way to get ready for the decisive game.
Down 0-2 in the four-Test series with crushing defeats in Melbourne and Sydney, the third game is a must-win for the tourists who are beset with bowling and batting issues.
"The first Test ended on the fourth day and the next day was a free day. But did the Indian team practice? I don't think they practiced. Why did they not practice? Nobody knows," Sunil Gavaskar has stated.
"The attitude has to be there. There is no attitude to go there. You have to go there and practice cricket. Should not a two-day game have been organised in Perth because that's the fastest pitch in Australia," he added.
For the third day in running, the beleaguered team chose to keep itself away from cricket.
While the cricket fans back home are up in arms and former players are baffled by their take-it-easy approach, the team is insistent that taking mind off the game is the best way to get ready for the decisive game.
Down 0-2 in the four-Test series with crushing defeats in Melbourne and Sydney, the third game is a must-win for the tourists who are beset with bowling and batting issues.
"The first Test ended on the fourth day and the next day was a free day. But did the Indian team practice? I don't think they practiced. Why did they not practice? Nobody knows," Sunil Gavaskar has stated.
"The attitude has to be there. There is no attitude to go there. You have to go there and practice cricket. Should not a two-day game have been organised in Perth because that's the fastest pitch in Australia," he added.
Wayne Rooney scored twice as Manchester United beat FA Cup holders Manchester City 3-2 in a dramatic third round tie at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday in which City played most of the match with 10 men after Vincent Kompany's early dismissal.
The Premier League title rivals' first meeting since City crushed United 6-1 at Old Trafford in October lived up to expectations with City fighting back after going 3-0 down, but ultimately failing to hold on to the trophy they won last May.
In contrast to United's nail-biter, Chelsea, who won the cup three times in the four seasons before City's triumph last May, beat Portsmouth 4-0 at Stamford Bridge in a replay of the 2010 final which they won 1-0.
Juan Mata put Chelsea ahead just after halftime and three of Chelsea's goals came in the dying minutes. Ramires scored in the 85th and 87th minutes before Frank Lampard added a fourth in the fourth minute of stoppage time against the Championship (second division side).
Sunderland, the third Premier League team in action, also made the last 32 with a relatively easy 2-0 win at Championship side Peterborough United with Seb Larsson opening the scoring direct from a free-kick and James McClean adding the other.
There was one shock with sleeping giant Sheffield Wednesday, three times FA Cup winners in the past but now playing in League One (third tier), beating Championship promotion hopefuls West ham United 1-0 at Hillsborough with Chris O'Grady scoring the late winner. Sam Baldock missed a penalty for West Ham early in the second half.
The third round will be completed when Arsenal face Leeds United at the Emirates Stadium on Monday.
UNITED COASTING
All eyes were focused on the Etihad Stadium where City had been unbeaten since losing to Everton in December 2010.
By halftime that record was in jeopardy with United, the 11-times record FA Cup winners, 3-0 ahead and seemingly coasting into the fourth round.
Rooney headed them in front after 10 minutes, two minutes before City captain Kompany was controversially sent off for a challenge on Nani when he appeared to make fair contact with the ball, although referee Chris Foy ruled he had slid into the tackle with his feet off the ground.
Danny Welbeck scored with an acrobatic volley on the turn after 30 minutes to put United 2-0 ahead before Rooney made it 3-0 with another header, scoring on the rebound when Costel Pantilimon initially saved his penalty.
But City, victors over United in last season's semi-final, were in no mood to surrender meekly their grip on the trophy, and stormed back after the break with Aleksandar Kolarov scoring from a freekick after 48 minutes.
Midfielder Paul Scholes, who came out of retirement on Sunday to rejoin United until the end of the season, featured as a 59th minute substitute but his loose pass enabled City to break for Sergio Aguero to make it 3-2 after 65 minutes and set up a dramatic finale.
Rooney told ITV: "We knew it was going to be a difficult game today. Obviously going 3-0 up, we maybe took our foot off the gas a little bit, City got two goals and we had to make sure we saw the game out which we managed to do so we are delighted."
Rooney dismissed any notion that he would be leaving the club following newspaper reports on Saturday morning which implied he had had a major falling out with manager Alex Ferguson.
NOTHING TO PROVE
Asked if he had a point to prove, Rooney replied: "Not at all: what's been in the press of late has been a load of nonsense, because it's me, because it's Manchester United, it's blown up out of context. There are no problems with me at this club, I want to be at this club for a long time."
Rooney said the team were surprised when they realised Scholes was in the squad.
"It was a bit of a shock to be honest, we didn't know until we were in the dressing room. It's great. It gave everyone a lift he's a fantastic player and he showed his quality when he came on."
Ferguson was not overly pleased with his team's performance.
"I think we made them look better than they were," he said, "We were very careless in the second half, but the problem was, being 3-0 up at halftime, the players thought they were through and took their foot off the pedal."
Beaten manager Roberto Mancini seemed the happier of the two saying he was delighted with the character his side showed in their second half fightback.
"I am disappointed with the result but I am very happy with my players for their performance," Mancini told reporters.
"We defended very well in the second half, they did not have a chance and we scored two goals. It is not easy to play with 10 players against United."
The Premier League title rivals' first meeting since City crushed United 6-1 at Old Trafford in October lived up to expectations with City fighting back after going 3-0 down, but ultimately failing to hold on to the trophy they won last May.
In contrast to United's nail-biter, Chelsea, who won the cup three times in the four seasons before City's triumph last May, beat Portsmouth 4-0 at Stamford Bridge in a replay of the 2010 final which they won 1-0.
Juan Mata put Chelsea ahead just after halftime and three of Chelsea's goals came in the dying minutes. Ramires scored in the 85th and 87th minutes before Frank Lampard added a fourth in the fourth minute of stoppage time against the Championship (second division side).
Sunderland, the third Premier League team in action, also made the last 32 with a relatively easy 2-0 win at Championship side Peterborough United with Seb Larsson opening the scoring direct from a free-kick and James McClean adding the other.
There was one shock with sleeping giant Sheffield Wednesday, three times FA Cup winners in the past but now playing in League One (third tier), beating Championship promotion hopefuls West ham United 1-0 at Hillsborough with Chris O'Grady scoring the late winner. Sam Baldock missed a penalty for West Ham early in the second half.
The third round will be completed when Arsenal face Leeds United at the Emirates Stadium on Monday.
UNITED COASTING
All eyes were focused on the Etihad Stadium where City had been unbeaten since losing to Everton in December 2010.
By halftime that record was in jeopardy with United, the 11-times record FA Cup winners, 3-0 ahead and seemingly coasting into the fourth round.
Rooney headed them in front after 10 minutes, two minutes before City captain Kompany was controversially sent off for a challenge on Nani when he appeared to make fair contact with the ball, although referee Chris Foy ruled he had slid into the tackle with his feet off the ground.
Danny Welbeck scored with an acrobatic volley on the turn after 30 minutes to put United 2-0 ahead before Rooney made it 3-0 with another header, scoring on the rebound when Costel Pantilimon initially saved his penalty.
But City, victors over United in last season's semi-final, were in no mood to surrender meekly their grip on the trophy, and stormed back after the break with Aleksandar Kolarov scoring from a freekick after 48 minutes.
Midfielder Paul Scholes, who came out of retirement on Sunday to rejoin United until the end of the season, featured as a 59th minute substitute but his loose pass enabled City to break for Sergio Aguero to make it 3-2 after 65 minutes and set up a dramatic finale.
Rooney told ITV: "We knew it was going to be a difficult game today. Obviously going 3-0 up, we maybe took our foot off the gas a little bit, City got two goals and we had to make sure we saw the game out which we managed to do so we are delighted."
Rooney dismissed any notion that he would be leaving the club following newspaper reports on Saturday morning which implied he had had a major falling out with manager Alex Ferguson.
NOTHING TO PROVE
Asked if he had a point to prove, Rooney replied: "Not at all: what's been in the press of late has been a load of nonsense, because it's me, because it's Manchester United, it's blown up out of context. There are no problems with me at this club, I want to be at this club for a long time."
Rooney said the team were surprised when they realised Scholes was in the squad.
"It was a bit of a shock to be honest, we didn't know until we were in the dressing room. It's great. It gave everyone a lift he's a fantastic player and he showed his quality when he came on."
Ferguson was not overly pleased with his team's performance.
"I think we made them look better than they were," he said, "We were very careless in the second half, but the problem was, being 3-0 up at halftime, the players thought they were through and took their foot off the pedal."
Beaten manager Roberto Mancini seemed the happier of the two saying he was delighted with the character his side showed in their second half fightback.
"I am disappointed with the result but I am very happy with my players for their performance," Mancini told reporters.
"We defended very well in the second half, they did not have a chance and we scored two goals. It is not easy to play with 10 players against United."
SYDNEY: The historic 100th international ton continued to elude Sachin Tendulkar as India slumped to an embarrassing innings and 68-run defeat in the second Test against Australia, who have now taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the four-match series.
India lost the first Test at the MCG by 122 runs and now for the second successive time they have lost with more than a day to spare. They have now suffered the ignominy of losing half as many as six consecutive Test matches on foreign soil.
Resuming at 114/2, India were all out for 400 with 25-odd overs of the fourth day's play still remaining.
There were as many as four half centuries in the Indian innings ------ Gautam Gambhir (83), Sachin Tendulkar (80), VVS Laxman (66) and Ravichandran Ashwin (62) -- yet none produced a gritty effort which could take the match into the fifth day.
Tendulkar again came close to the historic milestone of 100 international centuries but was dismissed by part-timer Michael Clarke to break a few million Indian hearts.
Even though the visitors chalked up 400 runs in their second innings, 114 runs came for the last three wickets by when the match was as good as over.
Ben Hilfenhaus ripped the heart out of India's batting, claiming Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Laxman and Mahendra Singh Dhoni as his victims for figures of 5/106.
Peter Siddle took 2/88 while James Pattinson, Michael Clarke and Nathan Lyon shared the other three wickets.
The two teams will now travel to Perth for the third Test beginning January 13.
The morning session had promised some rearguard action by the Indians as 129 runs accrued for the loss of a solitary wicket of Gautam Gambhir.
Gambhir, overnight 68, was out on 83 when his attempted push towards mid-on only resulted in a slice to point where David Warner accepted the simple chance with glee. The southpaw batted for 217 minutes and faced 142 balls slamming 11 fours.
The opener from Delhi once glided James Pattinson through slips and then hammered a four off the backfoot against him before ending his innings in a disappointing manner.
Tendulkar, batting on overnight score of 8, had once spent 51 balls without scoring last evening but was in an aggressive mood to start with.
He reeled off a series of fours off Ben Hilfenhaus, five in all and all in the point region, as he quickly moved towards his half-century.
VVS Laxman, who came to the crease with scores of 2, 1, 2 from three innings, was dropped on nought by wicketkeeper Brad Haddin down the leg side off a Siddle delivery.
The right-hander then got into his stride and what helped him was the introduction of off-spinner Nathan Lyon into the attack.
Laxman began with a flicked four off Lyon and then cover drove Siddle through the covers from the other end. He then cover drove the off-spinner to get his innings underway.
Due to the enterprise of the batsmen this morning, Indians added 79 runs from 13 overs in the first hour's play.
Tendulkar, from the other end, reached his half-century with flick for two to fine leg. In took the master batsman 89 balls and 138 minutes to reach his half-century with seven fours.
Tendulkar took only 48 balls to add 42 runs to his overnight score this morning.
Laxman and Tendulkar looked in good touch, the former cutting Hilfenhaus smartly and Tendulkar repeating the dose against Pattinson. The senior-most player also played his trademark uppercut off Pattinson.
It was a satisfactory pre-lunch session for the visitors who put on 129 runs off 27 overs. Tendulkar, unbeaten on 70, was looking good for his hundred.
But the floodgates were opened once Tendulkar nicked a delivery from part-time left-arm spin of Michael Clarke to Michael Hussey at first slip via the gloves of wicketkeeper Brad Haddin.
Tendulkar had added 10 more runs to his lunch time score through ones and twos when he came forward almost in a pre-meditated manner to Clarke and could do no better than edge a chance.
Australians had resorted to bowling Clarke and Michael Hussey from the two ends in a bid to claim the second new ball as quickly as possible. Tendulkar's scalp, just an over before the second new ball was claimed, was an unexpected gift to the hosts.
Tendulkar made his 80 runs from 140 balls in 215 minutes hitting nine boundaries.
The second new ball was now claimed and three wickets were now to fall off 22 deliveries. Hilfenhaus, that tormentor of the Indian batting in the series, made one leave Laxman's defensive blade and just brushed his off-stump to take out the bails.
Laxman (66) batted for 132 minutes and 119 balls and struck seven fours. Skipper Dhoni (2) offered a return catch to Hilfenhaus which needed television replays to affirm that the catch wasn't a bumped offer.
Virat Kohli (9), continuing his miserable form in Test cricket, tried to flick a delivery from Pattinson but it kept low and found him plumb in-front of the stumps.
Ashwin and Zaheer Khan then hit out lustily, more so the left-arm paceman who once clobbered a six and four off successive deliveries from Pattinson.
The 50-run stand for the eighth wicket duly arrived when Zaheer Khan stroked tweaker Nathan Lyon through the covers for three. It took them 44 balls and a mere 32 minutes for the landmark. Zaheer's pyrotechnics finally ended when he lobbed a catch to Shaun Marsh at point, having made his 35 runs from 26 balls and hit five fours and a six.
At the tea break, Indians were 351/8, still 117 runs adrift. India's tail wagged a little in the final session, Ashwin doing his batting average no harm with a well-compiled half century.
After 42 runs were put for the ninth wicket, Ishant Sharma was ruled leg before out to off-spinner Lyon. Ashwin was the last man out for 62 made off 76 balls with nine fours and a si
India lost the first Test at the MCG by 122 runs and now for the second successive time they have lost with more than a day to spare. They have now suffered the ignominy of losing half as many as six consecutive Test matches on foreign soil.
Resuming at 114/2, India were all out for 400 with 25-odd overs of the fourth day's play still remaining.
There were as many as four half centuries in the Indian innings ------ Gautam Gambhir (83), Sachin Tendulkar (80), VVS Laxman (66) and Ravichandran Ashwin (62) -- yet none produced a gritty effort which could take the match into the fifth day.
Tendulkar again came close to the historic milestone of 100 international centuries but was dismissed by part-timer Michael Clarke to break a few million Indian hearts.
Even though the visitors chalked up 400 runs in their second innings, 114 runs came for the last three wickets by when the match was as good as over.
Ben Hilfenhaus ripped the heart out of India's batting, claiming Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Laxman and Mahendra Singh Dhoni as his victims for figures of 5/106.
Peter Siddle took 2/88 while James Pattinson, Michael Clarke and Nathan Lyon shared the other three wickets.
The two teams will now travel to Perth for the third Test beginning January 13.
The morning session had promised some rearguard action by the Indians as 129 runs accrued for the loss of a solitary wicket of Gautam Gambhir.
Gambhir, overnight 68, was out on 83 when his attempted push towards mid-on only resulted in a slice to point where David Warner accepted the simple chance with glee. The southpaw batted for 217 minutes and faced 142 balls slamming 11 fours.
The opener from Delhi once glided James Pattinson through slips and then hammered a four off the backfoot against him before ending his innings in a disappointing manner.
Tendulkar, batting on overnight score of 8, had once spent 51 balls without scoring last evening but was in an aggressive mood to start with.
He reeled off a series of fours off Ben Hilfenhaus, five in all and all in the point region, as he quickly moved towards his half-century.
VVS Laxman, who came to the crease with scores of 2, 1, 2 from three innings, was dropped on nought by wicketkeeper Brad Haddin down the leg side off a Siddle delivery.
The right-hander then got into his stride and what helped him was the introduction of off-spinner Nathan Lyon into the attack.
Laxman began with a flicked four off Lyon and then cover drove Siddle through the covers from the other end. He then cover drove the off-spinner to get his innings underway.
Due to the enterprise of the batsmen this morning, Indians added 79 runs from 13 overs in the first hour's play.
Tendulkar, from the other end, reached his half-century with flick for two to fine leg. In took the master batsman 89 balls and 138 minutes to reach his half-century with seven fours.
Tendulkar took only 48 balls to add 42 runs to his overnight score this morning.
Laxman and Tendulkar looked in good touch, the former cutting Hilfenhaus smartly and Tendulkar repeating the dose against Pattinson. The senior-most player also played his trademark uppercut off Pattinson.
It was a satisfactory pre-lunch session for the visitors who put on 129 runs off 27 overs. Tendulkar, unbeaten on 70, was looking good for his hundred.
But the floodgates were opened once Tendulkar nicked a delivery from part-time left-arm spin of Michael Clarke to Michael Hussey at first slip via the gloves of wicketkeeper Brad Haddin.
Tendulkar had added 10 more runs to his lunch time score through ones and twos when he came forward almost in a pre-meditated manner to Clarke and could do no better than edge a chance.
Australians had resorted to bowling Clarke and Michael Hussey from the two ends in a bid to claim the second new ball as quickly as possible. Tendulkar's scalp, just an over before the second new ball was claimed, was an unexpected gift to the hosts.
Tendulkar made his 80 runs from 140 balls in 215 minutes hitting nine boundaries.
The second new ball was now claimed and three wickets were now to fall off 22 deliveries. Hilfenhaus, that tormentor of the Indian batting in the series, made one leave Laxman's defensive blade and just brushed his off-stump to take out the bails.
Laxman (66) batted for 132 minutes and 119 balls and struck seven fours. Skipper Dhoni (2) offered a return catch to Hilfenhaus which needed television replays to affirm that the catch wasn't a bumped offer.
Virat Kohli (9), continuing his miserable form in Test cricket, tried to flick a delivery from Pattinson but it kept low and found him plumb in-front of the stumps.
Ashwin and Zaheer Khan then hit out lustily, more so the left-arm paceman who once clobbered a six and four off successive deliveries from Pattinson.
The 50-run stand for the eighth wicket duly arrived when Zaheer Khan stroked tweaker Nathan Lyon through the covers for three. It took them 44 balls and a mere 32 minutes for the landmark. Zaheer's pyrotechnics finally ended when he lobbed a catch to Shaun Marsh at point, having made his 35 runs from 26 balls and hit five fours and a six.
At the tea break, Indians were 351/8, still 117 runs adrift. India's tail wagged a little in the final session, Ashwin doing his batting average no harm with a well-compiled half century.
After 42 runs were put for the ninth wicket, Ishant Sharma was ruled leg before out to off-spinner Lyon. Ashwin was the last man out for 62 made off 76 balls with nine fours and a si
NEW DELHI: IPL side Mumbai Indians have bought Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik from Kings XI Punjab in the first player transfer ahead of the fifth edition of the Twenty20 league, it has been reported.
Karthik was bagged by Mumbai Indians for an undisclosed sum and in exchange all-rounder R Sathish will go to Kings XI.
According to a BCCI insider it was the highest sum paid to buy a player from another team in the history of the IPL.
"It was a substantial sum and easily the highest in terms of strictly trading terms. Mumbai wanted a keeper. Punjab did not mind as they were getting a good amount of money," an unnamed BCCI official was quoted as saying.
It is understood that Mumbai have paid somewhere between $2-2.5 million (Rs 10.59-13.2 crores) for Karthik, the report further said.
The franchises have a limited money to spend during the auctions but there is no cap on spending during trading.
According to IPL rules, 20% of the profit made in a trade goes to the player with the rest going to the franchise selling him.
Karthik had spent the first three IPL seasons at the Delhi Daredevils.
The first window for trading between IPL franchises closes on January 20. There will be another short window for trading after the February 4 auction in which the players of now terminated franchise Kochi Tuskers Kerala will be sold.
Karthik was bagged by Mumbai Indians for an undisclosed sum and in exchange all-rounder R Sathish will go to Kings XI.
According to a BCCI insider it was the highest sum paid to buy a player from another team in the history of the IPL.
"It was a substantial sum and easily the highest in terms of strictly trading terms. Mumbai wanted a keeper. Punjab did not mind as they were getting a good amount of money," an unnamed BCCI official was quoted as saying.
It is understood that Mumbai have paid somewhere between $2-2.5 million (Rs 10.59-13.2 crores) for Karthik, the report further said.
The franchises have a limited money to spend during the auctions but there is no cap on spending during trading.
According to IPL rules, 20% of the profit made in a trade goes to the player with the rest going to the franchise selling him.
Karthik had spent the first three IPL seasons at the Delhi Daredevils.
The first window for trading between IPL franchises closes on January 20. There will be another short window for trading after the February 4 auction in which the players of now terminated franchise Kochi Tuskers Kerala will be sold.
SYDNEY: A hapless India faced the prospect of another humiliating defeat as Australia rode on skipper Michael Clarke's maiden triple hundred and Michael Hussey's 150 to score a mammoth first innings total of 659/4 declared and take complete command of the second Test on Thursday.
At stumps on the third day, India were trailing by 354 runs after losing a couple of wickets at the Sydney Cricket Ground. India face the daunting task of batting out two full days, which raises the possibility of an innings defeat in the match.
Opener Virender Sehwag (4) and an uncertain Rahul Dravid (29) were cooling their heels in the pavilion, leaving Gautam Gambhir (68) and Sachin Tendulkar (8) to fight. The visitors were 114/2 in their second dig in the 41 overs and nearly half the day of batting they got.
Gambhir has so far batted for three hours and struck nine fours off 124 balls. Tendulkar's grim 8 was made in over an hour's batting and he faced 42 balls.
Earlier, Australia continued their firm grip on the match by stretching their overnight score of 482/4 to 659 an hour after lunch without losing a single wicket.
Michael Hussey, overnight 55, remained unbeaten on 150 but the glory of the day belonged to Clarke who was left unconquered on 329, the highest score ever made at the SCG, which is hosting its 100th Test.
Hussey reached his century before lunch but Clarke had to wait till resumption to get to his triple century. The Australian captain, overnight 251, was slow to get off the blocks and had added only 42 runs by lunch as only 13 runs came off his bat in the first hour.
Still, Australia were past 500 runs in the first hour, a feat they had done nearly 22 months and 17 Tests ago -- against New Zealand at Seddon Park in Hamilton in March 2010.
All along, landmarks kept falling like nine pins against Clarke's name. When he had added seven runs to his overnight total, he overtook Ricky Ponting as the highest scorer ever against India. Ponting had made 257 in the 1999-2000 Test at Melbourne.
Clarke swept off-spinner Ashwin to square leg fence through a packed onside field to move to 280 which took him past 277 that West Indian legend Brian Lara made at this venue in a 1992-93 series.
Clarke stroked Ishant Sharma through the covers to become the highest scorer at the SCG, going past the 287 which R E Foster of England made in a 1903-04 series just a few minutes before the lunch interval.
Clarke cut another four in the same over, dangerously close to VVS Laxman at slips, to move to within seven runs of his triple century.
Hussey had reached his own hundred, his 16th in his 68th Test, and was unbeaten on 111 at lunch.
The pair raised the 200 for the stand when Hussey back cut Umesh Yadav crisply past the point boundary. It took 206 minutes and 307 balls for the 200-run stand.
By lunch, the two had put on 258 runs for the fifth wicket and the score read 583/4.
On resumption, Clarke reached the all-important landmark when he clipped Ishant Sharma to midwicket fence.
The two were still going strong when the declaration arrived as soon as Hussey reached his 150. Clarke was unbeaten on 329 at the other end and Australia had stretched their lead to 468 runs.
Clarke's score is the fourth highest score by an Australian in Test cricket, behind Matthew Hayden (380), Sir Donald Bradman (334) and Mark Taylor (334).
This was the 25th instance of a triple century in Test cricket. Only Bradman, Brian Lara, Virender Sehwag and Chris Gayle are the four batsmen who have hit triple century twice in Tests.
That makes Clarke only the 21st batsman in game's annals to crack the code of a triple century.
For records, this is after 95 Tests that an Australian has thrashed a triple century. Matthew Hayden was the last one to do so -- a total of 380 against Zimbabwe at WACA, Perth in 2003.
In all, Clarke batted for 617 minutes and hit 39 fours and a six from 468 balls. Hussey batted for 312 minutes and 253 balls and smashed 16 fours and a six.
India began on a familiar dismal note when Sehwag cut an ordinary delivery from Ben Hilfenhaus to point where David Warner took a wonderful acrobatic catch.
But Gambhir was looking in fine nick as he hit a few glorious strokes in his 39 before tea. In the very first over itself, bowled by James Pattinson, he thrashed two cuts through point for boundaries.
He then twice drove Peter Siddle in succession to cover boundary. It was followed by a straight drive off Siddle which he executed with utmost aplomb.
Off-spinner Nathan Lyon, in his second over, the final one before tea, was hit for two fours by Gambhir -- both slammed through the cover region as India took tea at 53/1.
Gambhir duly reached his half-century in the final session, having taken only 54 balls and hitting eight fours.
Dravid, at the other end, hit a few fine strokes on either side of the wicket but he did appear a man with more than one worry in his head.
The veteran batsman once dangerously inside edged a delivery past his stumps for four and then fell prey in now all too characteristic fashion in this series.
Dravid came forward to an off-cutter from Hilfenhaus and left a little gap between his bat and pad. It was enough for the ball to sneak through and hit the top of the middle stump.
Dravid batted for 102 minutes and 73 balls for his 29 runs and hit six fours. He put on 72 runs for the second wicket with Gambhir.
Gambhir and Tendulkar dropped anchor and were just intent to see through the day. Overs after overs passed without a run being added to the total.
Gambhir took a run after being run-less for 34 balls and Tendulkar went past his three runs through a streaky four only after defending 51 deliveries.
In the dying minutes of the game, Gambhir received a chance when he edged an easy catch towards the wicketkeeper but Brad Haddin just couldn't lay his hands to the edge. James Pattinson was the aggrieved bowler for Australia.