Cricket

Australia captain Ricky Ponting tested out his broken finger during fielding and throwing drills on Thursday and said he was hopeful of playing the fourth Ashes Test against England 'pain-free'. Ponting broke his little finger during a catch attempt in the slips in the third test in Perth and did not take the field on the fourth and final day as Australia completed a 267-run victory to level the five-test series 1-1. The 36-year-old captain appeared to have little difficulty during the fielding session at the Melbourne Cricket Ground but elected not to take the crease in the nets. Ponting has endured a poor series with the bat, with just 83 runs at an average of 16.60, 51 of those as Australia batted out the first test for a draw in Brisbane. "The finger is good actually. I joined in and did a fair bit of fielding at training this morning, I didn't have a bat today but I'll jump into the nets tomorrow," Ponting said at a public appearance in Melbourn...

How crucial a role Virender Sehwag will play in Durban can't be stated enough. Having lost at Centurion, India desperately need him to come up with his aggressive and big knocks to level the series. "If we manage to knock him over early, it gives us a chance to have a go at the middle order with a relatively hard ball. He takes the attack to the opposition with his aggressive stroke-play and also takes pressure off other batsmen," said Graeme Smith. The point the South Africa skipper made was well illustrated in Centurion. The other batsmen looked far more comfortable against the South African attack when Sehwag got some quick runs in the second innings. Apart from boosting the side's morale, a quick start, even a crisp 30 or 40, blunts the opposition's attack. "It's a very nice feeling to get him out early. He is the danger man who comes hard at you," said Morne Morkel. The South Africans, as they showed in the first innings at Centurion, ...

DURBAN: South Africa are prepared for India's experienced line-up to fight back strongly in the Boxing Day Test after their crushing defeat at Centurion, captain Graeme Smith said on Thursday. South Africa cruised to victory by an innings and 25 runs in the first Test of the three-match series after India crumbled to 136 all out on day one in the face of testing Proteas pace bowling. "After what happened in the first Test I expect them to be better, especially from a batting perspective, as they will know what to expect," Smith told a news conference before the match starting on Sunday. "India are an experienced team and I expect them to come out fighting in the next Test and I expect them to use their experience to bounce back. We can't afford to take anything for granted in terms of how we expect them to go," he added. While Smith expects the number-one ranked Test team in the world to present a stiffer challenge at Kingsmead, he said his own c...

Comparisons are odious. But truth be told, there's nothing sports fanatics love more. And so, for all the disclaimers about how it's impossible and unfair to compare greats from different eras, we insist on doing precisely that. One question that's increasingly being asked is whether Sachin Tendulkar is a greater cricketer than Sir Don Bradman. The answer, at least according to netizens who participated in a recent Sydney Morning Herald poll, is a resounding yes - by a whopping margin of 67% to 33%. Even as we were digesting this result, along came an interview by Usain Bolt. The world's fastest man admitted to being a huge Sachin fan. He also said that given a chance, he'd like to ask Sachin "how he has managed to work so hard to stay at the top for so long and what advice he'd give other sportsmen". Clearly then, Sachin is idolized not just by millions of cricket lovers, but also champions of other sports. It's easy to understand why: Af...

DURBAN: India's coach Gary Kirsten wants his batsmen to put up their hands and score sizeable first innings totals in the upcoming Tests in South Africa. "We were well-prepared for the first Test (at Centurion) but let ourselves down a bit in the first innings. We should have got 100 more," Kirsten said, referring to India's disastrous first innings performance which led to a massive defeat. "Whoever is there at the pitch should try to stay there and play a long innings. We need to get in excess of 400 in the first innings of a Test. Otherwise, we'll be under pressure." While on Thursday was an optional practice day for the Indians, Zaheer Khan was still conspicuous by his absence. Is all well with Zaheer? "Yes. He is fully fit, no worries there," Kirsten stressed. The second battle, the Boxing Day Test, begins on December 26. Reacting to criticism that India's lack of pace would not let them win in South Africa, the former opener sai...