Chennai Test ended in a Tame Draw

The end result was not surprising, as it was clear from the second day itself that Chennai test was heading for a tame draw. Batsmen continued to make merry, while bowlers had to sweat out in the Sun. There was no respite for the bowlers on the fifth day too, as South Africa piled up 331/5 before both skippers decided to call it a day.

McKenzie remained unbeaten on 155. He made 94 in the first innings. Amla scored 81, followed by his first innings score of 159. For India, Harbhajan took 3 wickets and finished with a match haul of 8 wickets. Virender Sehwag was declared "Man of the Match".

Chennai Test heading for a Draw

Be it India or South Africa, batsmen continued to torment the bowlers in Chennai Test. In reply to South Africa's first innings score of 540, India piled up 627. There was a dramatic middle order collapse, which prevented India from posting much bigger total. Sehwag was the top scorer for India with 319.

Dravid, who became the third Indian and sixth in the world to score 10,000 test runs, made 111. Jaffer had scored 73 on the second day. No other Indian batsmen failed to make any impact, as Sehwag and Dravid stole the show. For South Africa, Steyn took 4 wickets. Ntini and Harris took 3 wickets each. South Africa began their second innings on a strong note and lost only Smith's wicket at the end of fourth day's play. South Africa were 131/1 at stumps. McKenzie remained unbeaten on 59.

Rahul Dravid scores 10,000 runs in Test Cricket

Former Indian skipper Rahul Dravid added another feather to his cap, as he reached the milestone of 10,000 runs in test cricket. He is the third Indian batsman (after Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar) and 6th in the world to reach 10,000 in test cricket. Congratulations Dravid!

Latest Update: Rahul Dravid completed his 25th Test Century.

Live from Chennai: Sehwag fails to reach 400, out for 319

Virender Sehwag failed to create history, as he was dismissed for 319 on the 4th day of the Chennai test. Everyone expected Sehwag to break Lara's record of 400*. But destiny had planned something else. New ball did the trick and Ntini took his wicket. However, Sehwag managed to break his own record to become the highest individual scorer for India in Test Cricket. He surpassed his own record of 309, scored at Multan.

Meanwhile, Sachin Tendulkar was out for a duck and India were 496/3 when reports last came in. Dravid was batting on 73. In all probability, the test match is heading for a tame draw.

India on Top, as Sehwag set Chennai on Fire

Virender Sehwag put India on great command in the first test match against South Africa in Chennai. It was Sehwag's day, as he set Chepauk on fire. Sehwag scored the fastest triple century in test cricket history when he reached the milestone in 278 balls. He broke Wally Hammond's 76-year record of a triple hundred on 355 balls. Sehwag scored 42 boundaries and 5 sixes in his marathon knock.

Sehwag also joined the elite club of Don Bradman and Brian Lara, as he became the third batsman in test cricket to score a triple century twice. This is the first time a triple century has been scored on Indian soil. Riding high on Sehwag's heroics, India finished the day at 468/1. Sehwag was batting on 309, while Dravid remained unbeaten on 65. Jaffer was the only batsman out so far. He made 73.

Live from Chennai: Sehwag scores Century, Indian batsmen dominate the Show

Virender Sehwag scored his 14th test century, as India consolidated its first innings score against South Africa in the first test match at Chennai. Sehwag and Jaffer added 213 runs for the first wicket. Jaffer scored 73. Sehwag is still batting on 140. India were 219/1 when reports last came in.

Chennai turns out to be Batsmen's Paradise, No respite for the Bowlers

If we analyze the trends of the first two days of Chennai Test, it is heading towards a tame draw. After South African batsmen tormented the Indian bowlers, it's the turn of Indian batsmen to pay it back. In reply to South Africa's first innings total of 540, India finished the day on 82/0. Sehwag remained unbeaten on 52. Jaffer is still batting on 25.

Earlier, South Africa bowled out for 540 in their first innings. Amla scored 159. McKenzie scored 94, while Smith and Boucher contributed 73 and 70 respectively. For India, Harbhajan took 5 wickets, while Kumble took 2. Since India is playing with 7 batsmen, the team is expected to continue their run feast over the next couple of days.

Gavaskar to explain his dual role in ICC and Media at an ICC Meeting

The ICC has refuted the media claims that Suni Gavaskar was asked to step down as the Chairman of the ICC's Cricket Committee. Gavaskar had a meeting with ICC Chief Executive Malcolm Speed in Dubai yesterday. He has agreed to explain how he can combine roles as an ICC official and a media analyst at an ICC meeting.

According to ICC sources, Gavaskar will chair the upcoming meeting of the Cricket Committee on May 5 and 6. The ICC will review the matter at its next meeting, to be held from June 29 - July 4. It is certain that Gavaskar will be under scanner until that meeting. Recently, Gavaskar has created uproar, by calling England and Australia "Dinosaurs" of world cricket. He also made some controversial remarks against Australian cricketers, Umpires and Match Referee on the racism row involving Harbhajan and Symonds.

Live from Chennai Test: Amla scores Century, SA on Top

Hashim Amla scored a brilliant century to put South Africa on top against a helpless Indian bowling attack. Indian bowlers continued to fail on the second consecutive day, as South Africa piled up 397/5 at launch on the second day of the Chennai test. Amla was batting on 122.

Earlier in the morning, AB de Villiers fell to Sreesanth on 44. South Africa is now heading towards a big first innings score, which might put Indian batsmen under immense pressure.

South African batsmen make India toil in Chennai Test

South African batsmen did not let the advantage of batting first on a flat wicket and scored 304/4 at stumps on the first day of the Chennai test. McKenzie was the top scorer with 94. While Smith made 74, Hashim Amla remained unbeaten on 85. For India, Kumble and Harbhajan took 2 wickets each. Both RP Singh and S Sreesanth failed to make any impact.

Live from Chennai: South Africa wins the toss, elects to bat first

The much-awaited test series between India and South Africa finally kicked off at Chennai. South Africa won the toss and elected to bat first. India is playing 7 batsmen and 4 bowlers in this match. World record holders Graeme Smith and Neil McKenzie began on a positive note, as they have successfully handled the Indian bowlers in the initial overs. South Africa were 30/0 when reports last came in.

Teams:

India: Virender Sehwag , Wasim Jaffer , Rahul Dravid , Sachin Tendulkar , Saurav Ganguly , VVS Laxman , Mahendra Singh Dhoni (w) , Anil Kumble (c) , Harbhajan Singh , Rudra Pratap Singh , S Sreesanth .

South Africa: Neil McKenzie , Graeme Smith (c) , Hashim Amla , Jacques Kallis , Ashwell Prince , AB de Villiers , Mark Boucher (w) , Morne Morkel , Paul Harris , Dale Steyn , Makhaya Ntini.

ICC asks Gavaskar to quit Cricket Committee

In a clear bid to reaffirm its supremacy in World Cricket, the ICC has decided to take on the BCCI and its sympathisers. After reinstating controversial umpire Darrell Hair and pulling up teams for indulging in heated altercations on the field, the ICC has decided to sack Sunil Gavaskar as the Chairman, ICC's Cricket Committee. Gavaskar was in news when he made controversial remarks against players, umpires and match referee during and after Sydney Test.

Gavaskar, a staunch critic of Australia and England, continued his tirade, by criticizing these teams for their 'chauvinist' attitude. He wrote in a newspaper column, "Gone are the days when two countries, England and Australia, had the veto power in international cricket, even though the dinosaurs, still trying to voice their prejudiced opinions in the media, may not open their eyes and see the reality. The cricketing world has found that India has no longer a diffident voice in the international cricketing community, but a confident one that knows what is good for its cricket."

Breaking News! Sachin Tendulkar had suggested Dhoni as ODI Captain

Breaking News! In a sensational revelation, BCCI President Sharad Pawar said that it was Sachin Tendulkar who made the suggestion to appoint M S Dhoni as the skipper of the ODI team. According to Pawar, Sachin was offered the captaincy, when Dravid stepped down. However, Sachin turned down the offer and suggested Dhoni's name instead.

Sachin also said Dhoni was young,energetic and had leadership qualities besides having good relations with all team members. Sachin's feedback ensured the coveted crown of India's captain for M S Dhoni. According to the BCCI President, Sachin had also preferred young players in the Twenty20 team.

Dhoni makes controversial remarks on Senior Cricketers

In an unprecedented display of power and arrogance, Indian ODI skipper M S Dhoni hits out at his critics who raised fingers on the ODI team selection on Dhoni's behest. There was an uproar when senior cricketers Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly were dropped from the team, just because Dhoni did not want them in the team. Dhoni, in an interview to CricInfo website, lashed out at his critics and reiterated that there was no place for Dravid and Ganguly in the ODI team.

A triumphant Dhoni took a dig at his critics who questioned his capability of a young and inexperienced team. Dhoni said, "I was pretty clear about the players I wanted in the side. That's what I said to the selectors as well. You can see the kind of team I got. It's very important to send the message across because the process and the timing were criticised a lot."

Dhoni forgot that it was a senior, Sachin Tendulkar, who not only led India to final of the CB Tri-series, but also guided the team to a famous victory down under. After the series win, Sachin reminded everyone about the contribution of the seniors in the first leg of the Australian tour. Dhoni' latest outburst is bound to cause differences within the test team, where he is slated to play along with the senior players Dravid, Ganguly and Laxman.

Darrell Hair reinstated, Inzamam expresses shock

Controversial umpire Darrell Hair, who was banned from standing in top-level matches after the Oval test fiasco in August 2006, was reinstated by the ICC. ICC took this decision, after it found no objections from the PCB (Pakistan Cricket Board). It's unlikely that Hair would officiate in the matches involving Pakistan; however, he ill continue to stand in matches involving other Asian nations.

Former Pakistan Captain Inzamam-ul-Haq expressed shock and disgust over Hair's reinstatement. He blamed the PCB for showing leniency in this matter. Meanwhile, Darrell Hair said his time away from top-level cricket caused him plenty of stress, but he expressed hope that he would return with new energy and determination and focus on improved communication. He also studied a Sydney University course as part of his "rehabilitation".

Injured Kartik out of test series, Chawla gets nod

Within hours of his selection in India's test squad after 4 years, Murali Kartik injured himself while playing in a Deodhar Trophy match in Bangalore. He was ruled out action for 2/3 weeks. Piyush Chawla will replace him for the first two test matches against South Africa. It again became "yet so near, so far" for Murali Kartik.

I S Bindra loses to Imtiaz Patel in ICC CEO race

South Africa's Imtiaz Patel was appointed as the new CEO of the ICC. He edged out former BCCI President I S Bindra to get this honour. Patel is a South African of Indian origin. He will succeed Malcolm Speed in June, 2008. Bindra, as a consolation, was offered the post of ICC's Principal Advisor. The decision was taken at the ICC meeting in Dubai.

Indian Selectors announce Test Squad for series against South Africa

The long wait is over. Indian selectors finally announced the test squad for the upcoming test series against South Africa. Surprisingly, while the selectors laid red carpet for out-of-form Yuvraj Singh, they ignored in-form Gautam Gambhir. The 14-member squad was announced for the first two tests. Ishant Sharma was not selected, as he had not recovered from the finger injury.

Surprisingly, Harbhajan Singh did not turn up for the fitness test, while Yuvraj Singh arrived much later than the scheduled time. But they were 'rewarded' by the selectors for this 'indiscipline'. It's ironical that players are being selected despite not apprearing in the fitness test. It seems that Indian cricketers have become bigger than the board and selectors just believe their words without bothering to verify the truth.

The Team:

Anil Kumble (captain), Mahendra Singh Dhoni (vice-captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Wasim Jaffer, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, R P Singh, S Sreesanth, Murali Kartik.

Hayden offers Olive Branch to Harbhajan

In an interesting development, Australian opener Matthew Hayden offered to meet Harbhajan during the IPL in India to sort out all differences. "What I'd like is to have a chat to Harbhajan when we get to India. I want to sit down with him and see if there is any way we can move forward with our relationship because it hasn't been great. I'd like to see where he's at and see if we can patch up our differences," said Hayden to an Australian news portal.

Hayden also regretted his "obnoxious little weed" remark against Harbhajan. He admitted that he committed a blunder by adding fuel to fire that already existed. He also revealed that Australians players respect Harbhajan and have no ill feelings towards him. The latest development is seen as a major step to revive the soured relationship between both teams.

Graeme Smith pips Sachin to secure top slot in ICC ODI Rankings

After a superb performance in recently concluded ODI series against Bangladesh, South African skipper Graeme Smith pipped master blaster Sachin Tendulkar to secure the top slot in the latest ICC ODI Rankings. He now has 792 points followed by Sachin who has 777 points.

Meanwhile, South Africa became the No. 1 team in ICC Rankings, as Australia slipped to 2nd spot after two consecutive losses to India in the CB Tri-series. It would be interesting to see if Australia can regain the top slot or not.

Blast Impact: Australia postpones Pakistan Tour

Just hours after the Lahore blast, which killed more than 15 people, the Cricket Australia postponed the tour of Pakistan until further notice. Both PCB and Cricket Australia have confirmed this. The decision on the tour has been deferred until March 29. Officials from both boards will meet again to take a final stand on this issue.

Second IPL Auction: 14 new Foreign Players and 14 U-19 Cricketers auctioned

The second IPL Auction in Mumbai did not generate much curiosity like it did during the first one. However, enthusiasm was still there. Eighteen foreign players and a number of Indian U-19 cricket players were sold off in the second IPL Auction today.

James Hopes of Australia got the highest bid with $300,000 (Rs. 1.2 crore). He was bought by Mohali. Mumbai bought Ashwell Prince of South Africa for $175,000 (Rs. 0.7 crore). All U-19 cricketers who have played Ranji Trophy would be paid $50,000 (Rs. 20 lakh) each, while others would get $30,000 (Rs. 12 lakh) each. There were no takers for Pakistan's Mohammad Yousuf, who will be paid his base price of $330,000 by the IPL.

Here's the complete list of the players who were auctioned today.

Foreign Players:

Dimitri Mascarenhas (England) - $100,000 - Jaipur
Shane Watson (Australia) - $125,000 - Jaipur
James Hopes (Australia) - $300,000 - Mohali
Misbah Ul Haq (Pakistan) - $125,000 - Bangalore
Luke Pomersbach (Australia) - $50,000 - Mohali
Brett Geeves (Australia) - $50,000 - Delhi
Sohail Tanveer (Pakistan) - $100,000 - Jaipur
Salman Butt (Pakistan) - $100,000 - Kolkata
Morne Morkel (South Africa) - $60,000 - Jaipur
Abdur Razzaq (Bangladesh) - $50,000 - Bangalore
Ashwell Prince (South Africa) - $175,000 - Mumbai
Kyle Mills (New Zealand) - $150,000 - Mohali
Ross Taylor (New Zealand) - $100,000 - Bangalore
Mohd Hafeez (Pakistan) - $100,000 - Kolkata

Under-19 Cricketers ($30,000 or Rs. 12 lakh each)

Pradeep Sangwan - Delhi
Virat Kohli - Bangalore
Srivast Goswami - Bangalore
Tanmay Srivastava - Mohali
Ajitesh Argal - Mohali
Saurabh Tiwary - Mumbai
Manish Pandey - Mumbai
Ravindra Jadeja - Jaipur
Taruwar Kohli - Jaipur
Napoleon Einsten - Chennai
Abhinav Mukund - Chennai
Viraj Kadbe - Chennai
Iqbal Abdulla - Kolkata
Sidharth Kaul - Kolkata

The Mega IPL: Shahrukh launched Kight Riders in Kolkata

Breaking News! Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan launched his Kolkata team for the upcoming IPL mega event. The Kolkata team will be named as Knight Riders. The team will wear jersies of Golden and Black. John Buchanan will be the coach of Knight Riders. The team will be headed by Sourav Ganguly and will have Shoaib Akhtar, Ishant Sharma and Ajit Agarkar among others. Interestingly, Kolkata Knight Riders team will have an anthem in Bengali.

It could be recalled that Mumbai team has been named as "Mumbai Indians" and Delhi team as "Delhi Dare Devils". While Jaipur team has been given the name, "Rajasthan Royals", Chennai team will be known as "Chennai Super Kings". Vijay Mallya's Bangalore team will be called "Royal Challengers". VVS Laxman, the skipper of Hyderabad team was given an 'iconic status' at a later stage.

Dhoni sacrifices Goat in a Ranchi Temple

Indian ODI skipper M S Dhoni is in news again, but not for cricket. Dhoni today visited a temple in Ranchi and sacrificed a goat as part of temple rituals. He was seen performing all religious functions along with the temple priest. He did so in the presence of some political leaders and officials.

Although animal sacrifice is very common in Jharkhand, the issue might snowball further, as Dhoni is associated with national pride and millions of cricket fans look to him as an idol. He has become a symbol of 'youth icon' in a very short period. However, the latest development could put him in trouble. The live footage of this ceremony is being telecasted by Star News, Aaj Tak and INDIA TV again and again.

The Australian: ICC investigating Harbhajan's Remarks against Hayden, Gilchrist

According to 'The Australian', the ICC is investigating Harbhajan Singh's latest outburst against Matthew Hayden and other cricket Australian players. Harbhajan was subjected to intense mental harassment by Australian cricketers, media and crowd during his long stay Down Under. After returning to India, he allegedly called Hayden a 'liar' and Gilchrist 'not a saint' in an interview to a tabloid.

The Cricket Australia, still trying to recover from the loss of its world champion team in CB tri-series, shot a letter to BCCI, asking the board to rein in Harbhajan. The BCCI had yesterday warned Harbhajan against speaking anything on 'racism' issue and other developments in Australia.

However, if we believe 'The Australian', the Cricket Australia had gone a step further and lodged a complaint with the ICC, following which the ICC is investigating the matter and may take action against Harbhajan if he is found guilty. It would be really shocking, if ICC interferes in this matter, as it remained a mute spectator when Hayden called Harbhjan 'an obnoxious little weed' on Brisbane Radio.

Why does ICC maintains a double standard on these issues? Why there are separate yardsticks for Hayden and Harbhajan? Why Asian players are being targeted again and again? Is is solely because of their skin color. It's high time BCCI takes a tough stand and tell ICC to do its business. If ICC takes action on Harbhajan, then same should apply to Hayden, who started it all.

Breaking News! BCCI warns Harbhajan after Cricket Australia complains

Breaking News! The BCCI has finally acted tough and warned spinner Harbhajan Singh for making 'unwanted' comments against the Australian cricket team and players such as Hayden and Gilchrist. The BCCI also restrained Harbhajan making any comments on 'racism' issue.

It was reported that Harbhajan called Hayden 'a liar' and Gilchrist 'not a saint' and Australians 'arrogant in an interview to a Delhi-based tabloid. Cricket Australia had taken a strong exception to it and had lodged a formal complaint with the BCCI. Both BCCI and Cricket Australia agreed that such 'unnecessary' remarks could lead to further tension between two cricket teams, which will not be in the best interest of the game.

Senior Players including Kumble and Ganguly declared fit for South Africa Series

Senior Indian cricketers including skipper Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid, V V S Laxman and Sourav Ganguly were declared fit for the upcoming test series against South Africa, which is scheduled to begin on March 26 in Chennai. Pace bowlers R P Singh and V R V Singh also passed the fitness test and were declared fit for the test series.

It could be recalled that master blaster Sachin Tendulkar yesterday declared himself fit for the South Africa series. The fitness test on the cricketers was conducted at the National Cricket Academy, Bangalore.

Victorious Team India felicitated at Feroze Shah Kotla

Delhi turned up to salute the victorious Team India, which brought glory to the country by winning the Commonwealth Bank Tri-series. More than 30,000 people thronged to Feroze Shah Kotla stadium to cheer the team at the felicitation ceremony.

Tejendra Khanna, Lt. Governor of Delhi, Sharad Pawar, BCCI President, Arun Jaitly, DDCA President, Rajeev Shukla, BCCI Vice-President and Aarati Mehra, Mayor of Delhi were among the dignitaries who honored the Indian team. Irfan Pathan was not present at the felicitation ceremony.

Each member of the team were awarded cheques worth Rs. 58 lakh each. The support staff got Rs. 10 lakh each. Even the DDCA gave a reward of Rs. 2.5 lakh each to players from Delhi. They were Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma, U-19 skipper Virat Kohli and U-19 player Pradeep Sangwan.

Celebrations were all around in Kotla stadium, as excellent arrangement were made by the DDCA staff to make the occasion a special one. BCCI President Sharad Pawar congratulated the team and urged people to support the team when they lose any match or tournament, as it will serve as a moral booster for the players. Skipper Dhoni felt overwhelmed and thanked the crowd and all cricket fans across the country for their support. Truly, Team India deserved this wonderful felicitations. The nation salutes its heroes! Chak De India.....

A Proud Nation welcomes its Heroes

The victorious Team India returned home with the Commonwealth Bank Tri-series Trophy. They just landed at Mumbai Airport in a Singapore Airlines flight SQ-422. The team will board a chartered plane to Delhi, where they will be taken to Feroze Shah Kotla stadium in a grand procession.

Commandos and sharp shooters will accompany the team when they reach Delhi. Heavy security arrangements have been made across Delhi to prevent any untoward incident. The team will be felicitated in Feroze Shah Kotla by BCCI.

Praveen Kumar gets "Kanshi Ram Khel Ratna" Award

Even as the victorious cricketers are yet to return home, awards and rewards are pouring in for them from several quarters. Uttar Pradesh CM Mayawati has announced to confer the newly instituted "Kanshi Ram Khel Ratna" award on fast bowler Praveen Kumar, who helped India to win the CB Tri-series trophy with his superb bowling performance. The award carries a prize money of Rs. 10 lakh.

In addition, Mayawati has announced a cash reward of Rs. 5 lakh each for two members of Indian U-19 cricket team - Tanmay Srivastav and Iqbal Abdullah. They played significant role in India's World Cup victory.

ICC ODI Rankings: Sachin Tendulkar is Numero Uno

After a power-puff performance in three consecutive matches (63, 117*, 91), master blaster Sachin Tendulkar surpassed Ricky Ponting to become No. 1 in the latest ICC ODI Rankings, Sachin now has 777 points followed by Ponting's 770 points. Dhoni too was elevated to tenth spot. India now is on 4th spot on the ICC ODI Rankings, courtesy the great win at Commonwealth Bank tri-series.

BCCI announces Cash Bonanza for Victorious Cricketers

It's raining cash on Indian cricketers yet again. After the remarkable tri-series win in Australia, the BCCI President Sharad Pawar has announced a cash reward of Rs. 10 crore ($25 million) to the victorious Indian team. In addition, national selectors of senior cricket team will get Rs. 1 crore. Selectors of the U-19 cricket team will also get Rs. 1 crore. In a surprise move, the BCCI has given Rs. 25 crore to the Sports Ministry for the development of other sports in the country.

President Pratibha Patil, PM Manmohan Singh, LS Speaker Somnath Chaterjee and many other eminent personalities have congratulated the Indian team. The victorious Indian cricket team will return home on March 06, 2008. They will get a Heroes' welcome in Delhi. The procession will begin from IGI Airport and a grand felicitation ceremony is being planned for the team in the capital. Meanwhile, the Karnataka government has donated 31 acres of land to BCCI for establishing a training centre. More states and companies are expected to announce cash and other rewards for their respective cricket players.

U-19 WC Champions return Home, Felicitated by BCCI

The victorious Indian U-19 cricket team returned home after the World Cup triumph in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The junior cricketers led by skipper Virat Kohli, were given a Heroes' welcome in Bangalore. They travelled in a open-top bus across the city and were greeted by thousands of people on the road. Later, they were felicitated by BCCI President Sharad Pawar in a glittering ceremony. Each team member was given Rs. 15 lakh each, while all support staff got Rs. 10 lakh each.

India create History, beats Australia to win the CB Tri-Series

--By Sagar Satapathy, Editor-in-Chief

A dream came true for Team India and millions of cricket fans in the country! India finally managed to break the Australian dominance in ODI cricket and won two successive finals to claim the Commonwealth Bank Tri-series trophy. It could be recalled that India had never won the coveted tri-series trophy in Australia, which is considered as the Mini World Cup, though it features only three teams.

The entire country erupted in joy, as India registered a 9-run victory over "mighty" Australia in the second final of the tri-series in Brisbane. Chasing a victory target of 259, Australia lost three quick wickets with just 32 runs on board, thanks to a deadly spell by pacer Praveen Kumar. However, later Hayden and Symonds built up the Australian innings.

Just when Australia looked solid, Harbhajan returned and removed both Hayden and Symonds in one over. While Hayden was run out for 55, Symonds was adjudged leg before for 42. There was no looking back for the Indians and they pounced on the Kangaroos like tigers. The Aussies fought hard, but could manage only 249 runs in 49.4 overs.

James Hopes fought till the end, and was the last man to be out on 63. Hussey scored 44. For India, Praveen Kumar took 4 wickets, while Pathan and Sreesanth took 2 wickets each. It was an exciting finish and India won the "Best of Three" finals 2-0. Arrogant Ricky Ponting was right in predicting that there will be no third final in the series. And, it went straight on his face.

Sachin Tendulkar, who led from the front in both finals and scored a majestic knock of 91 in this match, set an example for the young team. Praveen Kumar, who took 4 wickets, was declared "Man of the Match". Nathan Bracken was declared "Man of the Series". Arrogance never triumphs. The Australians were beaten in the den, just because they never respected the opposition, taunted them, used unfair tricks and did not play in the right spirit of the game. They got what they deserved.....

Harbhajan returned to haunt Australia in Brisbane

The history repeats. The ghost of Sydney haunted the Kangaroos in Brisbane, as they were tormented yet again by none other than Harbhajan Singh. After reduced to 32/3, Australia staged a fight back with Hayden and Symonds leading the charge like they did in Sydney. But the turbanator struck again, like he did in Sydney.

He collected a superb throw from Yuvraj and ran Hayden out. On the very next ball, he got the wicket of Andrew Symonds, the man he hated the most. While Hayden made 55, Symonds contributed 42. Australia were 129/5 in 27.3 overs when reports last came in.

Praveen Kumar strikes, Australia lose Gilchrist, Ponting cheaply

The young Indian players led by skipper M S Dhoni are going for the kill and Kangaroos are on back foot now. Pace bowler Praveen Kumar struck in the very first over to remove Gilchrist and got Ponting in the next over to leave Australia struggling at 7/2 in the 4th over. It would have been 9/3, had Dhoni picked up a good catch of Matthew Hayden. The Indians are on their way to create history.

Mega Final in Brisbane: India sets a Victory Target of 259 for Australia

It's a do-or-die game for Australia. If they win, they will lose their reputation forever and Australian fans will be baying for their blood. In the second final in Brisbane, India looked good to cross the 300-mark or at least 280. But super bowling and fielding by the Australians in the last 10 overs changed the course of the game.

Once Sachin departed in the 40th over, Australia regained firm control of the game and manged to restrict India to 258/9 in 50 overs. Sachin scored 91. Uthappa scored 30, while Yuvraj contributed 38. Dhoni fought hard to score 36. For Australia, Bracken and Clarke took 3 wickets each. On a slow and turning wicket, Australia has an uphill task of reaching the target of 259. The onus lies on Gilchrist, Hayden, Ponting and Symonds. If they fire, Australia can sigh a huge relief until the third final.

Live from Brisbane: Tendulkar scores 91, but India struggles

Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar produced yet another superb batting performance against Australia in the second final of the CB tri-series in Brisbane. Struggling with cramps and exhaustion, Sachin threw his wicket on 91, but the team got what it wanted. India were 210/5 in 41.2 overs when reports last came in. Uthappa scored 30, while Yuvraj contributed a quickfire 38. Dhoni was batting on 20.

The Mega Final in Brisbane: India wins the Toss and bat first

The Mega Final in Brisbane begins in Brisbane. India seeking to win the match and and the coveted Commonwealth Bank series, won the toss and decided to bat first. Ishant Sharma has been ruled out because of a finger injury. S Sreesanth replaced him in the playing XI. Australia, seeking to salvage lost pride, replaced Brad Hogg with Stuart Clark. There is no doubt that second final in Brisbane will have an exciting finish.

BCCI warns Cricket Australia over Harbhajan issue

BCCI Secretary Niranjan Shah warned Cricket Australia that 'unwarranted' harassment of Harbhajan Singh by Australian crowd and media could result in a 'tit-for-tat' reaction by Indian spectators when Australia tour India later this year. Cricket fans in India are peeved over the latest incident, where Harbhajan was targeted by Australian media even for scratching his arm-pit.

"Let Australia come to us and see what the Indian crowd might do," Shah said. "It's not a good thing, people must forget. All these reports are unnecessary. when your team comes here, if it's too much media attention maybe there will be the same crowd behaviour in India", Shah said.

Ishant Sharma doubtful for 2nd Final in Brisbane

India received a jolt ahead of Tuesday's second final against Australia, as young pace bowler Ishant Sharma remained doubtful to play the game. He had injured his finger during the first final in sydney and could bowl only 5 overs. Ishant would have to undergo a fitness test in the morning before a final decision on his inclusion is taken.

Breaking News! Harbhajan given Clean Chit over alleged "monkey gesture"

The Australian media failed to nail Harbhajan Singh over a fake issue. They just took photograph of Harbhajan Singh scratching his arm-pit and claimed that the ace spinner made "monkey gesture" towards the crowd. Ironically, Harbhajan has been the victim of crowd taunts and misbehavior throughout the summer.

The ICC absolved Harbhajan of these new charges and made it clear that there were no evidences against Harbhajan to prove that he intentionally made any such gesture towards the crowd. On the other hand, the crowd continued to pass taunts on him on the basis of religious affiliation. They even asked Harbhajan to "show his knots" and "have a hair cut". It's high time Cricket Australia take a strong notes of these issues that are all set to damage cricketing ties between both countries.