Sangakkara lifts Lanka with 34th century
Chittagong: Kumar Sangakkara became the leading century-maker among active Test players as Sri Lanka bounced back strongly after a shaky start in the second Test against Bangladesh here on Tuesday. The tourists, who won the first Test by an innings and 248 runs in Dhaka last week, recovered from from 49-2 to a comfortable 314-5 by stumps on the opening day at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury stadium. Left-handed Sangakkara was unbeaten on 160, his 34th Test hundred that drew him level with retired Sunil Gavaskar and Brian Lara in the all-time list of century-makers. The four above them – Sachin Tendukar (51 centuries), Jacques Kallis (45), Ricky Ponting (41) and Rahul Dravid (36) – are also not playing Test cricket. (AFP)
Defensive stats unreal: Mertesacker
LONDON: Arsenal have not lost a Premier League match where Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny have completed the full 90 minutes for more than two years – a statistic the German defender struggles to comprehend. A 2-1 reverse to Manchester City in January 2012 was the last time the league leaders lost with the pair at the back, a streak that now stands at 32 matches, including 23 wins. Arsenal have conceded 21 goals in 24 league matches this season, second only to third-placed Chelsea, and they have let in one goal in their last 11 home games. “It (the statistic) sounds not real for me,” Mertesacker told the club’s website. “When I first heard it, it sounded very weird. It’s a good statistic but we have to build on that. I think we have shown a lot of people who criticised us a lot over the last two-and-a-half years that we know each other much better now and that we complement each other well, so it looks like that’s a good partnership.” Goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, who fought back from being dropped by Arsene Wenger last season to establish himself as the undisputed number one at the Emirates, said consistency of selection was key to their strong performances. “We’ve been together for much longer and we understand each other’s game now,” the Pole said. “Over the last couple of seasons we had less luck with injuries – I never played with the same back four for more than two or three games (in a row). Now we play with the same back four, sometimes we rotate the fullbacks but in general we stay with the same defence.” (Reuters)
Will not compromise on integrity: CSA boss
Johannesburg: Cricket South Africa president Chris Nenzani denied reports on Tuesday that his Board has reached an agreement with the BCCI on the controversial ICC revamp proposals in lieu of reinstatement of their CEO Haroon Lorgat into mainstream administration. “While we are engaged in discussions with the ICC and other Members, including the BCCI, to find an acceptable way forward, we have not and will not consider deals that compromise our key principles and integrity,” CSA president Chris Nenzani was quoted as saying in a press release. On behalf of his Board, Nenzani has taken strong exception to the reports that CSA, which has expressed strong views against the control of ICC being vested into the hands of BCCI, CA and ECB, will reach a compromise. “CSA vehemently denies any notion of deals being made with any other party. On the contrary, we will seek to uphold good governance and our professional approach to find solutions to the current proposals being considered by all the Member boards,” he said. (PTI)
Somdev struggles in Chennai Challenger
Chennai: Top seed Somdev Devvarman struggled past Ramkumar Ramanathan, who was troubled by cramps, but Yuki Bhambri made a fluent start with a straight set win in the ATP Challenger event, here on Tuesday. Somdev, who was shocked by Ramkumar in the Chennai Open, yet again faced a stiff challenge from local boy, who countered India’s number one player with his aggressive play, specially his fierce forehands. However, it was difficult for him to match Somdev’s fitness and after one hour and 53 minutes of battle he was struggling to stand on his feet and retired from the first round contest, 7-5, 5-4. Somdev will next face New Zealand’s Michel Venus, who ousted local wild card Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan 6-7 (3), 7-6 (1), 6-1. Meanwhile, Yuki Bhambri brushed aside the challenge of Taiwan’s Liang-Chi Huang 6-2, 6-4. Yuki will next face Spaniard Gerard Granollers. (PTI)