SPORTS

DOHA: Dinara Safina's dream of becoming the first Russian to end the year as world number one was left in tatters on Wednesday when her aching body finally gave out at the WTA Championships.

The 23-year-old, who arrived in Doha ahead of 11-times grand slam champion Serena Williams in the rankings, managed just two games in her opening round-robin match against Serbia's Jelena Jankovic before a lower back injury flared up and she was forced to quit in tears.

Shortly afterwards she confirmed she would be unable to take any further part in the tournament, meaning Williams, courtesy of her group victory over Svetlana Kuznetsova on Tuesday, was guaranteed ending the year as the No.1 -- the first time she has done that since 2002.

Safina, who has been criticised for her failure to land a grand slam title, said she first injured her back in Slovenia in July but has battled on in pain to protect top spot, a position she held for 25 consecutive weeks this year.

"It's my low back, I have inflammation there in the bone," Safina, sister of former men's number one Marat, told reporters.

"I've been playing on in pain, on anti-inflammatories, on everything. It's been about three months.

"But as I was chasing this number one I was fighting with my body. God knows, maybe I should have stopped after the U.S. Open.

"I was still hoping, but then my body just gave up. And here, I did everything possible to play. I went yesterday to put injections, cortisone, but I could not handle this pain.

DOHA: An exciting opening day of the Sony Ericsson Championships saw 6 of the 8 women in action, and as you would expect with the best of the best the matches were tight and intense.

Elena Dementieva produced the shock result in an exceptionally tight Maroon Group downing Venus Williams in a thrilling three setter, while the younger Williams Serena edged past French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova in two close sets.

The only relatively easy contest of the day was an in form Victoria Azarenka justifying her higher ranking, coasting through her match with Jelena Jankovic in straight sets.

With Venus Williams having beaten Dementieva in their last six meetings, it would have been easy to mistake today's contest between the two players as one that Williams could easily bank on.

Having raced to a 6-3, 3-1 lead in the match, there seemed little reason for Williams to doubt the result would be any different. However, the Russian ace, now with the confidence of an Olympic Gold medal behind her, just refused to give in.

Despite serving 10 double faults in the second set, Dementieva hung in a tight second set taking advantage of both of her break opportunities to stay close in the contest.

As Williams' first serve started to lose its consistency, Dementieva climbed all over a weak second and managed to steal the tiebreak 8-6.

The final set was all Dementieva, she served a lot better, landing 65% of her first serves and winning 12 of 15 points on them. She saved two break points and created seven of her own as Williams' own serve deserted her.

Elena took two of her chances for a double break and notched up her first win in the Maroon Group 3-6, 7-6, 6-2.

The other marquee contest of the day featured second seed and Australian Open and Wimbledon champion Serena Williams and French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova.

The two heavy hitters slugged it out right from the start, with the Russian star twice going up an early break, but unable to hold on to pull out a meaningful lead.

The set finally found its way through to a tiebreak, where Williams jumped to a 3-1 lead only for Kuznetsova to rally back to win 5 of the next 6 points to claw ahead 6-4.

Williams saved both set points and rattled off four points in a row herself to wrap up the breaker 8-6.

Serena picked up the pace in the second, hammering 8 aces but failed to pull away till right at the end when she broke Kuznetsova to close out the match 7-6, 7-5.

Tomorrow Serena takes on Venus in the last match of the day, knowing that a win for her will almost guarantee a place in the last four, while a defeat for Venus all but knocks her out of the tournament.

In the first match of the tournament, Victoria Azarenka on debut at the Sony Ericsson Championships, took a huge step towards correcting her 0-3 head-to-head record against 8th seeded Serbian Jelena Jankovic producing a comprehensive straight sets win over the former world no.1.

Azarenka made just 15 unforced errors and took only 82 minutes to coast past an error prone Jankovic, in a rather forgettable match for the Serbian star.

Jelena will have little time to put this result behind her as she takes on world no.1 Dinara Safina in the second match tomorrow evening.

Up first on center court will once again be Victoria Azarenka, as she takes on another tournament debutant and US Open losing finalist Caroline Wozniacki in what should be a highly entertaining contest featuring by far the two brightest sparks on the WTA Tour.

AKRACHI: Vice Captain of Pakistan Cricket Team, Shahid Afridi said he had no differences with Captain Younis Khan.

He expressed these views Wednesday in Geo Super’s program ‘Bolen Kiay Baat Hey’.

When asked about his meeting with Younis Khan, he replied, ‘The meeting was on the issues faced by the players.’

He stressed, ‘I do encourage players to explain their problems in the meeting’, when asked why players discuss their problems with you and not with the Captain.

‘We have decided that Captain and Vice Captain will jointly hear the problems of the players form now onwards’, he added.

KARACHI: South Australia have signed Shahid Afridi for the Twenty20 Big Bash this summer as a replacement for the spinner Ajantha Mendis.

The Redbacks had announced the recruitment of Mendis in July but he is now unavailable due to Sri Lanka's planned tri-series with India and Bangladesh in January.

South Australia's Big Bash campaign begins on December 29, when Pakistan will be involved in the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne.

However, Afridi has not played Test cricket since 2006 and is not expected to feature in their Test squad, which would leave him free to take part in the full Twenty20 competition.

"We narrowly missed out on finals last season and these signings are definitely a boost to our quest to qualify for the Champions League this year," South Australia's high performance manager Jamie Cox said.

"I have made no secret of the fact that I view the Big Bash competition as the most commercial on the domestic calendar and the inaugural Champions' League also provides fantastic opportunities for young players to showcase their skills on the world stage."

Afridi should be a valuable Twenty20 asset for South Australia; he was the player of the tournament at the 2007 ICC World Twenty20 and averages 21.05 with the bat and 15.73 with the ball from his 24 Twenty20 internationals. Other international signings for the Big Bash include Chris Gayle (Western Australia) and Dwayne Bravo (Victoria).

Lasith Malinga was to join Tasmania and Victoria had attracted Muttiah Muralitharan but both men are likely to be unavailable for the same reason as Mendis. The West Indies allrounder Kieron Pollard is on New South Wales' radar and the states have until Christmas Eve to confirm up to two international recruits.

KARACHI: Pakistan cricket team captain Younis Khan said that he wanted to have the power of the nation which he got and his responsibility ahs been increased after getting powers. He wants to make the Pakistan team number one.

Talking with media after attending the programme of the Islamic Relief Fund at the Karachi Gymkhana, he said that the series against New Zealand would not be easy as the Kiwis play like one unit and we have to play with unity for achieving success against them.

Younis said that after he resigned the entire nation, media and former cricketers encouraged him wholeheartedly which filled him a renewed spirit.

WELLINGTON: With no coach, no vice captain and no idea when either will be replaced – line up against Pakistan at the Zayed Cricket Stadium next week, the focus will firmly be on their captain Daniel Vettori.

The all-rounder, 30, has been appointed coach on a temporary basis following the termination of Andy Moles’s contract on Saturday after many team members were unhappy over his contribution.

And with the authorities feeling there is no need to have a deputy to Vettori, the pressure has fallen squarely on the broad shoulders of their most reliable player.

While Vettori said he was happy filling the void for the forthcoming limited-overs series in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, he added he had no intention of retaining the role permanently. “I suppose I’m worried in some way, it’s difficult trying to do everything, but I have been performing well so far,” he said.

“I only want to do this job for a short period of time and if I can give everything to it for that period, hopefully we can turn around some results.”

Vettori will be aided by the assistant coach Mark O’Donnell and manager Dave Currie when the Black Caps play their first of three One-Day Internationals with Pakistan in Abu Dhabi next Tuesday.

Following further ODIs on November 6 and 9, Vettori will take his side to Dubai for Twenty20s on November 12 and 13.

Vettori is sure O’Donnell and Currie will help develop his side’s youngsters, but he is looking to his more experienced players to stand up and be counted.

“It’s incredibly important for the young guys coming into the team that they are looked after well, a lot of people will try to pick up the slack and try and make sure that nothing is left alone,” he said.

“(But) it’s a balancing act. You want your group of senior players to be strong and able to look after themselves and develop their own games and be in form, the whole time. The real thing about that is as long as guys are in form then I think you can make it work.”

Brendon McCullum, who has lost the vice captaincy, is confident the decision to strip him of his role will work in his favour.

“I still have some fairly big goals I want to achieve for New Zealand, including the captaincy, and this has not changed that,” he said.

NEW DELHI: The wife of Pakistani bowling legend Wasim Akram died in an Indian hospital on Sunday after heart and kidney complications, the Press Trust of India reported.

Huma Akram, 42, was admitted to hospital in Chennai last Tuesday on October 20 in an emergency situation, suffering from a fever. The air ambulance carrying her from Lahore to Singapore had stopped in Chennai for refuelling whenher condition worsened.

Wasim Akram, a former Pakistan captain, was at her bedside for the last five days. The couple had two children.

Arrangements are being made to fly her body back to Pakistan, hospital sources told local media.

Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt and chief operating officer Wasim Bari expressed the PCB's grief.

“We are with Wasim and his family at this hour of need and pray to God to give them strength to bear this great and irreparable loss,'' PCB chairman Ijaz Butt said a statement.

“All the management of PCB and fellow cricketers have also extended their condolences and prayed eternal peace for the departed soul.''

PML (N) leaders Mian Nawaz Sharif and Mian Shahbaz Sharif, and former captain and cricket legend Imran Khan also expressed deep sorrow over the death of Wasim’s wife.

Among former and present players, who condoled the death, are Shahid Afridi, Ijaz Ahmed, Aamer Sohail, Rashid Lateef, Basit Ali and other cricketers.

VADODARA: Australia defeated India by four runs in a sensational contest in the first match of their one-day international series against India here on Sunday.

Chasing a tough target of 293, Indian batsmen fought well but could not win the match as they finished 288-8 in the allotted 50 overs.

They were at one stage 201 for seven and in sight of defeat but tail-enders Harbhajan Singh (49) and Praveen Kumar (40 not out) provided a great resistance and made together 84 runs to take their team close to victory.

They needed only ten runs in the final over but pacer Peter Siddle bowling Harbhajan out turned the tables as Kumar and Ashish Nehra could make only four runs from the remaining four balls.

Gambhir faced only 31 balls and smashed three sixes and four fours while Praveen hit one six and five fours in his 32-ball unbeaten innings.

Gautam Gambhir top-scored with 68, hitting six fours and a six. He added 58 with Virat Kohli (30) and 64 with captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni (34).

Earlier, Captain Ricky Ponting top-scored with 74 as Australia posted a strong 292-8 after winning the toss.

Ponting hit eight fours and two sixes in his 85-ball knock and shared 97 runs with opener Tim Paine (50) after electing to bat on a placid wicket at the jam-packed Reliance stadium.

Michael Hussey then slammed 73 off 54 balls with the help of eight fours and a huge six in a late assault that also saw Cameron White chip in with 51.

Pacer Ishant Sharma was the most impressive among the bowlers, picking 3-50 off his 10 overs while left-arm seamer Ashish Nehra took 2-58.

Umpire Amish Saheba took on the on-field umpire's role after England's Mark Benson fell ill on the eve of the match. Saheba had earlier been named as the third umpire.

Ponting, who became only the second Australian after Steve Waugh to feature in 50 one-day internationals against India, looked in prime form as he anchored the innings with young Paine.

The Aussie skipper was trapped leg-before by Ravindra Jadeja, the left-arm spinner picking his first wicket in one-day internationals.

Paine, playing his first international in India, looked set for a big score, hitting nine boundaries in his 62-ball knock, when he edged Sharma behind the wicket.

The home team left out hard-hitting batsman Yuvraj Singh after he failed to recover from a finger injury.

Australia: Ricky Ponting (captain), Michael Hussey, Nathan Hauritz, James Hopes, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Tim Paine, Peter Siddle, Adam Voges, Shane Watson, Cameron White.
India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra, Praveen Kumar, Ishant Sharma.

VADODARA: Australia have set a difficult winning target of 293 runs for India in the first of the seven-match series here on Sunday.

After Australian captain Ricky Ponting won the toss and elected to bat, his team made 292 runs for the loss of eight wickets in the allotted 50 overs against the hosts.

Four individual half-centuries were scored for Australia –Ricky Ponting (74), Michael Hussey (73), Cameron White (51) and Tim Paine (50).

For India, Ishant Shrma claimed three for 50, Ashish Nehra got two wickets while Harbhajan Singh and Ravindra Jadeja took one wicket each.

India's hard-hitting batsman Yuvraj Singh was ruled out of the match because of a finger injury.

LAHORE: The national hockey team on Saturday flew to France to partake World Cup qualifying round, Geo news reported.

According to details, 15-member Pakistan hockey team were looking confident and exited at Allama Iqbal airport before departure to France while three players Rehan Butt, Waseem Ahmed and Salman Akber will joint team members later following European League.

Coach national hockey team Shahid Ali Khan told Geo news, he was satisfied over preparations and vowed to give tough time to every team.

I am hopeful to win tournament but fear the weather conditions might cause up-sets in tournament, he added.

Our team ranking is commendable and will try put up good competition against Japan and France teams, he concluded

WELLINGTON: New Zealand coach Andy Moles quit on Saturday, New Zealand Cricket officials confirmed, ending a stand-off in which senior players had appealed for him to be sacked.

English-born Moles, who was contracted through to the 2011 World Cup, lasted less than a year in the job, resigning just three days before he was to have taken the team to the United Arab Emirates for a series against Pakistan.

The announcement came following a day of mediation talks after it became public that senior players had raised concerns about his abilities.

Former Warwickshire batsman Moles was a surprise choice to replace John Bracewell as the coach of the New Zealand team last November.

At the time, New Zealand Cricket chief executive Justin Vaughan said Moles brought "leadership, passion, commitment and a drive to get the best out of his teams, attributes we believe are essential for this role."

However, New Zealand's record has been patchy since them. Four Tests have been drawn and three lost, and in one-day internationals New Zealand have won nine and lost 10.

A review of New Zealand's recent tour of Sri Lanka and South Africa, which included making the finals of the Champions Trophy tournament, is understood to have been critical of Moles' performance.

Leaked media reports early this week said senior players claimed Moles had not provided them with adequate tactical or technical support, and wanted him sacked.

But captain Daniel Vettori was non-specific when asked about player dissatisfaction. "I don't think I'd put it in those terms .... we're not sitting around trying to plot Andy's demise," he said.

"Whenever players are asked honest questions about anything they give their answers. I think guys have voiced ways of making the team better."

LAHORE: Former vice-captain Misbah-ul-Haq after being dropped from the national squad played a brilliant innings of 248 runs for Sui Northern Gas against Lahore in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.

Misbah said that with fitness and scoring runs he would dispel the impression that his increasing age is a bearer in the way of his career.

He said that he has already gone through jolts of axing from the team but he would make his comeback by showing better form.

HYDERABAD DECCAN: The only unbeaten team in the Champions League, Trinidad & Tobago, produced another compelling performance oozing with Caribbean flair to knock the Cape Cobras out of the tournament and set up a summit clash against New South Wales.

The second semi-final wasn't anywhere near as one-sided as the first, though, and T&T and the Cobras traded blow for blow, wrestling for the ascendancy until Dwayne Bravo's first significant contribution with the bat in the competition was the deciding blow on a thrilling evening in Hyderabad.

T&T raised their intensity at crucial moments: when the Cobras' openers had made a fast start, when the middle-order batsmen batted with aggression and by conceding only two runs off the final over after Bravo had conceded 20 off the previous one.

The Cobras, on the other hand, failed to contain T&T's thrilling opening combination and dropped an appalling number of catches, which allowed Bravo and Daren Ganga to script a match-winning 93-run partnership.

The T&T approach to batting has been sheer entertainment during the Champions League and they did not let the pressure of chasing 175 in a semi-final cramp their style.

Their openers, Adrian Barath and Wayne Perkins, targeted Monde Zondeki for most of the early runs. Barath played with flamboyance and cut him for four, drove for six, and whipped to the leg side boundary to take 16 off the second over.

Perkins stole the spotlight soon after, with a cheeky hat-trick of fours in the fourth. Andrew Puttick gave Rory Kleinveldt a go, but he leaked 15 off his first five balls - six of those a result of a towering cut by Barath over point.

T&T had raced to 53 off 4.5 overs when a misjudged single led to Perkins' run out.

Barath followed soon after, for 29 off 16, when he played back to Duminy and was trapped in front. But just when the Cobras had an opening, their fielding went to pieces. Lendl Simmons was dropped in successive overs by Henry Davids, and though those errors didn't cost the Cobras much, the next one hurt them plenty.

The spinners had brought T&T's run-rate down and there had been no boundaries for 31 balls until Bravo pulled Justin Ontong for six in the 13th over.

The asking-rate was still steep - T&T needed 68 off 38 balls - when Bravo offered Ontong a catch at long-on and was dropped. The Cobras never found a way back.

Ontong watched Ganga loft the next ball over his head for six, before Bravo cut loose in Vernon Philander's next over, hitting consecutive sixes over long-off and extra cover.

The asking-rate went into freefall thereafter with the batsmen finding the boundary in every over.

Bravo brought up his half-century off 31 balls by lofting Charl Langeveldt through cover, and finished the game with four balls to spare by pulling Kleinveldt to the midwicket boundary.

LAHORE: Pakistan on Thursday recalled regular openers Salman Butt and Imran Farhat in their squads for next month's One-day Internationals and Tests against New Zealand.

Pakistan will play three one-day internationals (November 3, 6 and 9) in Abu Dhabi besides two Twenty20 internationals (November 12 and 13) in Dubai, in a series which was relocated to the neutral venue over security fears at home.

Pakistan will later fly to New Zealand to play three Tests, with their home series also relocated over security fears.

One-day Squad: Younus Khan (captain), Salman Butt, Imran Farhat, Khalid Latif, Mohammad Yousuf, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq, Umer Akmal, Kamran
Akmal, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamir, Rao Iftikhar, Wahab Riaz.

T20 squad: Shahid Afridi (captain), Khalid Latif, Imran Nazir, Umer Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal, Abdul Razzaq, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamir, Rao Iftikhar, Saeed Ajmal, Imran Farhat, Fawad Alam, Sohail Tanveer.

Test squad: Younus Khan (captain), Khurrum Manzoor, Salman Butt, Imran Farhat, Mohammad Yousuf, Shoaib Malik, Fawad Alam, Faisal Iqbal, Kamran Akmal, Danish Kaneria, Saeed Ajmal, Yasir Arafat, Umar Gul, Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Aamir, Abdur Rauf, Umer Akmal, Sarfraz Ahmed.

HYDERABAD: The second semi-finals of the Champions League will be played today between Trinidad & Tobago and Cape Cobras at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad Deccan.

In the first semi-finals, played yesterday at Feroze Shah Kotla Stadium, New Delhi, New South Wales defeated Victoria by 79 runs.

West Indian team Trinidad & Tobago will face South African New South Wales in today’s semi-final. The match will begin at 9-30 pm (Pakistan standard time) and it will be telecast live on Geo Super.

Yesterday, New South Wales of Australia Batting first scored 169 runs for seven wickets against Victoria of the same country. David Warner top-scored with 48 while Clint McKay claimed three wickets.

In reply, Victoria could make only 90 runs for the loss of nine wickets. Moises Henriques captured three for 11.

WELLINGTON: New Zealand's cricket team wants coach Andy Moles sacked, and claim captain Daniel Vettori has effectively been filling the role for the last six months, a report said Thursday.

An unnamed source said senior players claimed Moles had not provided them with adequate tactical or technical support, a report by Dominion Post cricket writer and former New Zealand fast bowler Jonathan Millmow said.

New Zealand Cricket responded to the report by confirming Moles' position as coach.

Moles would continue to prepare the team for a series of one-day internationals and Twenty20 matches against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates starting early next month, chief executive Justin Vaughan said.

He said New Zealand Cricket was reviewing the team?s performance following a recent tour to Sri Lanka and the Champions Trophy tournament in South Africa, in which New Zealand lost to Australia in the final.

"This looks at all aspects of individual and collective performance with a view to continuous improvement," Vaughan said in a statement.

The 48-year-old former English county batsman took over as New Zealand coach last year from John Bracewell, after stints with Kenya, Scotland and New Zealand first class side Northern Districts.

New Zealand's record has been patchy since Moles took over the reins. Four tests have been drawn and three lost, and in one-day internationals New Zealand has won nine and lost 10.

LAHORE: The selection committee of Pakistan Cricket Board will announce 15-member list of probable players for the ODI series against New Zealand cricket team today, while Dubai and Abu Dhabi will jointly hold the series, Geo news reported Thursday.

According to sources, Misbah-ul-Haq and Muhammad Asif will likely be dropped from the squad while Salman Butt will make a come back.

KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is drawing up a new code of conduct to stop players on central contracts speaking to the media without approval, PCB chairman Ejaz Butt told media on Wednesday.

He said the revised code is aimed at curbing controversies and players would have to sign it before the next one-day series against New Zealand in Abu Dhabi and Dubai from Nov. 3.

"We have a code of conduct in the existing contracts but it has loopholes and is not spelt out clearly. The new code will be stricter and carry more penalties," he said.

"The idea of the new code is to stop players from speaking on team and cricket matters that have negative effects and create controversies," Butt added.

He said only the captain, coach and manager would now be allowed to speak to the media without first seeking approval.

Any player wanting to give an interview or statement or make a television appearance would have to ask for prior clearance from the PCB and give details of what he intended to say.

Pakistan cricket was rocked last week when Younus Khan quit as captain to protest against statements from the chairman of the National Assembly standing committee on sports following the team's return from the Champions Trophy in South Africa.

Jamshed Dasti claimed Pakistan had underperformed in the tournament after they lost in the semi-finals to New Zealand, although he later said his remarks had been misunderstood.

The PCB chief rejected Younus's resignation this week and said he would continue until the next World Cup in 2011.

MUMBAI: The 15-member Australian squad led by skipper Ricky Ponting has arrived at the Shivaji Chhatrapati International Airport in Mumbai today in afternoon to play seven ODI matches series against India.

The Mumbai police escorted the Australian squad to their hotel in the Bandra under the tight security cover. Six members of the Australian team are already playing the cash rich and lucrative T20 Champions League and they will join the team after end of tournament on 23rd October.

Australia had thrashed the host England 6-1 in September before successfully defending their Champions Trophy crown in South Africa earlier this month. Australia is currently placed at the top of the ICC ODI rankings followed by the Indian team.

Ponting and Australian coach Tim Nielsen will hold a media conference in Mumbai on Wednesday and the ODI series will kick off with one-day match to be played in the Vadodara on Sunday.

Australian squad for the ODI series includes Ricky Ponting (captain), Michael Hussey (vice-captain), Doug Bollinger, Nathan Hauritz, Jon Holland, Ben Hilfenhaus, James Hopes, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Shaun Marsh, Tim Paine, Peter Siddle, Adam Voges, Shane Watson and Cameron White.

PESHAWAR: The Sports Minister of NWFP Syed Aqil Shah said 31st National Games will be held in Peshawar in 2010 and reports about change of venue are baseless.

Talking to Geo News here, Syed Aqil Shah said Pakistan Olympic Association had postponed the National Games after taking him into confidence, however, the games will be held in Peshawar.

The sports minister said a sports complex of international standard and international cricket stadium will be constructed in Regilalma area in Peshawar. He said we are in touch with PCB for the renovation of Arbab Niaz Stadium.

CHENNAI: Former Pakistan cricket captain Wasim Akram's wife is in a critical condition at a hospital in Indian city Chennai where she was rushed after developing an "emergency situation" in an air ambulance during its scheduled refuelling at the Chennai airport.

Huma was admitted to the on advice from doctors on board the Singapore-bound air ambulance, hospital and airport sources said.

Hospital sources said Huma suffered a multiple organ failure and she was put on ventilator support.

Her pulse rate was picking up and vital parameters were better, but her condition continued to be critical, the sources said. She was originally scheduled to receive treatment in Singapore.

Sydney: Hampered by injuries to key players, the Australian cricket team took off for India to play a seven-match ODI series with skipper Ricky Ponting conceding that despite their Champions Trophy debacle, Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men would be hard to beat in home conditions.

"They will be particularly hard to beat in India, they always are. They definitely play a lot better at home than they do when they travel," Ponting told reporters before the Aussies boarded their flight to India yesterday.

India crashed out of the Champions Trophy in the group stage itself.

Australia, on the other hand, are high on confidence after clinching their second successive Champions Trophy title.

But Ponting said injuries to regular vice-captain Michael Clarke and batsman Callum Ferguson has disturbed the balance of the side and selection would be a major headache during the tour.

LAHORE: Pakistan cricket team captain Younis Khan said he was overwhelmed with the support he had received from Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman.

"The faith that the chairman and the board has placed in me again, it's good to know. The support that I have received from the board and the country through this time has been fantastic."

Younis said he expects to be fit for Pakistan's next assignment, an ODI and Twenty20 series against New Zealand in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Chairman PCB Ijaz Butt had refused the resignation of Younis Khan and appointed him captain till World Cup 2011.

LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board’s Women Wing has announced the domestic calendar for the season 2009-10.

The season will begin in the current month with the Under-19 Regional Inter-District Tournament which will be played at the Regional headquarter in October and November.

In December, the first Shaheed Benazir Bhutto T20 Women Cricket Tournament will be held and the National Under-19 Women Championship will be played in January next year.

The Regional Inter-District Tournament Senior will be played at all regional headquarters while the National Women Cricket Championship will be held in Lahore in March and April and regional coaching sessions will also be held during this period.

LAHORE: Former Test cricketer Ijaz Ahmed has been appointed coach of the Pakistan Under-19 cricket team here on Tuesday.

Sources said that he has been appointed for a period up to the World Cup next year.

Ijaz has already coached Pakistan A team and he has also been a member of the national selection committee. But after assuming the charge of the coach, he will no more be the selector and thus the number of the selection committee members has become four while two of them are co-operated members.

The first assignment of Ijaz Ahmed is the under-19 tournament to be held in Sri Lanka where Pakistan will play with hosts Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The three-nation series will begin from November 25.

KARACHI: The cricket boards of Pakistan and England have resolved the financial dispute that arose after the forfeited Oval test on Pakistan's tour to England in
2006.

Umpires Darrell Hair and Billy Doctrove ruled Pakistan had forfeited the fourth test at the Oval, as the visitors had refused to come out after tea on the fourth day in protest at
being docked five runs for alleged ball tampering.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) then claimed for the loss of revenue due to the early finish to the match.

According to official documents seen by Reuters, the boards have signed an agreement under which Pakistan will forfeit revenue from a Twenty20 international on their tour of England next year as a full and final settlement of the dispute.

Pakistan is scheduled to play four tests, five one-day internationals and two Twenty20 matches against England between next July and September for which the ECB have agreed to pay them a participation fee of $3.6 million.

"The participation fee does not include the fee for one Twenty20 match on this tour which the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has agreed to waive as full and final settlement of the Oval test match dispute," a clause in the agreement stated.

Under the agreement, the PCB also received 68,000 pounds ($111,700) to settle all outstanding amounts from the 2006 tour.

Pakistan will also be playing a 'home' series against Australia in England next year for which the ECB has guaranteed a minimum payment of $1.9 million against ticket sales,
corporate hospitality and ground advertising rights for the two tests and two Twenty20 matches.