'My call-up has come at the right time'

NEW DELHI: He was a part of the victorious U-19 World Cup squad in 2000 which had the likes of Yuvraj Singh, Mohammed Kaif who had made their international debut within a few months, but it took close to 13 years for Stuart Binny to break into the Indian team when he is nearing 30.

Ironically, he replaced Yuvraj Singh in the New Zealand-bound ODI squad but the 29-year-old Karnataka all-rounder feels that the call came at the right time.

"I think if I would have got a call back then, I wasn't ready for international cricket back then. But now after some consistent performances in the domestic circuit, I feel more confident about playing international cricket," Binny told reporters after having played a game-changing knock of 88 against Delhi at Feroze Shah Kotla here today.

With his father and former India all-rounder Roger Binny being a part of the national selection committee, Binny junior knows that his performance will be under scrutiny even more.

"Well, I can't say anything about that. When I got out there in the field, I only concentrate on my performance and nothing else. As far as my father is concerned, he is my first and only coach till date. Whatever I have learnt till date is from him as I picked up the game at his academy. People find our actions similar as he was the one who taught me how to swing the ball," Binny said asked about his father Roger's role in his career.

His first senior team tour is of New Zealand but Binny shared that his first junior international trip was also to New Zealand.

"When I made my India U-19 debut, the first tour we had was of New Zealand back then. It's funny that my frst trip with senior team is also to same country."

For Binny, the 2011-12 season was a breakthrough one as he scored more than 700 runs and picked up 25 wickets.

"That was the season where I felt that I was doing justice as an all-rounder as I scored runs and took wickets. I was converting my 40's and 50's into big hundreds," he said.

"Having toured with the India A team to South Africa earlier this year also helped. There were atleast 7-8 guys of the current India team who were there. They helped me get used to rigours of international cricket," Binny said.

He missed out on a couple of seasons after joining the rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL) but the time spent with Steve Rixon turned out to be useful.

"It were those two years that gave me a chance to reflect on my game. I knew the comeback wasn't easy but I had worked hard. I worked a lot with Hyderabad (ICL) coach Steve Rixon on various aspects of my game," Binny said.

For the burly all-rounder, it is the pressure situation that brings the best out of him as it happened today.

"Today it was around 73 for four and my natural game is to attack the bowling. Since I started using my feet and charging the spinners, they tried bowling a bit flatter. This helped me play those late cuts. Pressure situation brings the best out of me. This year, I started with a century but then couldn't convert the starts. I am happy this innings helped the team's cause," Binny stated.

He got the news during the tea-break and for the first few overs in the post-tea session Binny admitted it was difficult to concentrate.

"I was speaking to my partner (Karun Nair) and was pleasantly shocked. It took two to three overs to realise that I was in the team. Then Ashish (Nehra) came in to bowl and said that I am going to get at you. He is still pretty quick," he concluded.

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Youthful India learn vital lessons in loss

India might have lost the brief Test series in South Africa but the experience garnered from two tough Tests against the top-ranked team will serve them in good stead in tough away campaigns to come over the next year, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said on Tuesday.

As they departed for home after losing the series 1-0, a relatively inexperienced side were also lauded for their potential by former captains Rahul Dravid and Ravi Shastri.

It was India's first Test series since the retirement of the great Sachin Tendulkar, who hung up his bat last month, and a first overseas Test series in two years since they lost 4-0 in Australia between December 2011 and January 2012.

"If you look at the overall series, I think it was fantastic," Dhoni told reporters.

"A Testing one for us because before leaving India, not many of our top order batsmen had played Tests outside of India so overall it was a good experience for all of them playing against a top side," said Dhoni after the second Test defeat in Durban on Monday which followed the drama of the high-scoring drawn first match in Johannesburg.

"I was happy with our performance," the skipper added. "When you consider how much experience South Africa have, we have learnt a lot from these two games. The new players learnt that Test games are about the full five days of cricket and every single one of the sessions has the potential to have a big impact on the whole game itself."

India's inexperienced top order proved competitive under a barrage of hostile bowling on green-top wickets alien to condition in India, providing much more resistance than pre-tour predictions had forecast.

Among the leading performers were Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane, who enhanced their credentials with the bat, while Cheteshwar Pujara was the top scorer in the two-Test series with 280 runs in his four innings.

Dravid and Shastri, acting as television analysts, said the potential shown by India's batsmen augured well for the future.

"They can go home feeling they can achieved much even if they lost," said Dravid, while Shastri told television viewers many positive lessons had been absorbed and would come in useful when India play away in New Zealand, England and Australia over the next 12 months.

India next play in New Zealand, starting with five one-day internationals from Jan. 19-31 and two Tests in February. Later in 2014 they have a five Test series in England and four in Australia.

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Youthful India learn vital lessons in loss

India might have lost the brief Test series in South Africa but the experience garnered from two tough Tests against the top-ranked team will serve them in good stead in tough away campaigns to come over the next year, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said on Tuesday.

As they departed for home after losing the series 1-0, a relatively inexperienced side were also lauded for their potential by former captains Rahul Dravid and Ravi Shastri.

It was India's first Test series since the retirement of the great Sachin Tendulkar, who hung up his bat last month, and a first overseas Test series in two years since they lost 4-0 in Australia between December 2011 and January 2012.

"If you look at the overall series, I think it was fantastic," Dhoni told reporters.

"A Testing one for us because before leaving India, not many of our top order batsmen had played Tests outside of India so overall it was a good experience for all of them playing against a top side," said Dhoni after the second Test defeat in Durban on Monday which followed the drama of the high-scoring drawn first match in Johannesburg.

"I was happy with our performance," the skipper added. "When you consider how much experience South Africa have, we have learnt a lot from these two games. The new players learnt that Test games are about the full five days of cricket and every single one of the sessions has the potential to have a big impact on the whole game itself."

India's inexperienced top order proved competitive under a barrage of hostile bowling on green-top wickets alien to condition in India, providing much more resistance than pre-tour predictions had forecast.

Among the leading performers were Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane, who enhanced their credentials with the bat, while Cheteshwar Pujara was the top scorer in the two-Test series with 280 runs in his four innings.

Dravid and Shastri, acting as television analysts, said the potential shown by India's batsmen augured well for the future.

"They can go home feeling they can achieved much even if they lost," said Dravid, while Shastri told television viewers many positive lessons had been absorbed and would come in useful when India play away in New Zealand, England and Australia over the next 12 months.

India next play in New Zealand, starting with five one-day internationals from Jan. 19-31 and two Tests in February. Later in 2014 they have a five Test series in England and four in Australia.

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Andy hoping to surpass Wimbledon form

DOHA: Andy Murray can be better than when he won Wimbledon, he suggested before taking little more than half an hour to win his first match in four months on the ATP world Tour in Doha on Tuesday.

Murray, a 6-0, 6-0 winner against Mousa Zayed in the first round of the Qatar Open, is making a comeback from surgery on a back injury which has also caused pain in a leg and a foot. It even required him to complete his historic grass court success against Novak Djokovic in July with physical discomfort.

But the brief evidence of Tuesday's mismatch victory over a local wild card entry is that the surgery may have been a success and that both his freedom of movement and his potential may have improved.

For the moment though Murray's words suggest more than his actions. "I guess with most surgeries you are trying to be better than you were before - and so far the results have been good," he said ominously.

"I haven't lost any strength, I was training two weeks after the surgery, I was on the bike and everything has been going well.

"I don't feel like I've lost speed, or strength. But I will know better when I'm playing matches against the best players in the world. It's one thing doing all this stuff in the gym and in practice but until I start doing it in matches - that's where the confidence will come from.

Murray had never previously described exactly what the injury was which decided him to risk an operation so very soon after becoming the first British player in 77 years to win Wimbledon, but now he did.

"It's quite difficult to explain," he ventured. "There's a lot of things which were a problem. But what exactly the one thing that it was, you know, I may not necessarily know, but I am hoping that the procedure I had done works.

"I was getting a lot of pain in my lower back, down my leg and into my foot. They were the symptoms I had but they could have been caused by quite a few different things."

Asked how he coped with such discomfort at Wimbledon, he said: "I don't want to go into what shots it was hurting on, but the surface helped. The lower bounce, the quicker court - you don't have to generate and rotate as much to generate the power."

A likely outcome of that memorable triumph is that Murray's acclaim will continue to increase as time passes. He is already more popular now than then, and far more celebrated than two years ago.

"In the last couple of years the support has been getting better and better, and it does make a big difference when you are playing Wimbledon, or Olympics, or Davis Cup. And I've played pretty much my best tennis in those situations when I have had the crowd with me," he said.

"I think the (BBC) Sports Personality thing was nice," Murray said of his capture of the prestigious annual television award. "I would have liked to have been there but now everyone understands what my priorities are and it was something that I couldn't do."

That was a reference to the overwhelming need to train, practise, rehab and recover at his training base in Miami, where he was presented with the BBC award by Martina Navratilova.

It also implied that there is a growing understanding and appreciation of a personality which in his younger days could seem shy, which in his early tour years might appear dour and guarded, and which is more often now seen as loyal, dedicated and tenacious.

"Obviously the awards and stuff would suggest that," he said. "But the best people to ask are the public. I don't feel like it's me that's best to answer that. You know winning those sort of awards suggests that it (the public attitude) has changed a bit and I hope it continues."

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Perfect New Year gift for Ishwar Pandey

KOLKATA: It was a perfect New Year's gift for Ishwar Pandey as the lanky medium pacer today became the first player in 18 years from Madhya Pradesh to be named in the Indian Test side.

It was former India leggie Narendra Hirwani who donned the Test cap for the last time from the big Indian state, while former left-hander Amay Khurasia was the last international cricketer to have played an ODI in 2001.

Coming from a humble middle class family in a small town of Rewa, the 24-year-old was today named in both the Test and ODI squads for India's upcoming tour of New Zealand.

It was a celebration time in Rewa today with congratulatory messages pouring in for Pandey, who though chose to concentrate on challenges ahead.

"No doubt it's a big news for my state. The time has come for me finally. I've been working hard for this moment and it has come," a soft-spoken Pandey said.

"But it's not time to celebrate as yet, I would have more challenges ahead. I have to keep working hard and remain focussed," he added.

Pandey's main weapon is his outswingers, an art which was honed by South African great Allan Donald during a month-long stint in the IPL team -- Pune Warriors -- this year.

"I always like to bowl outswings but it was during my stint in Pune Warriors, I improved on it. He (Donald) really worked on my outswingers. I'm really thankful to him," said Pandey.

He also credited legendary Aussie duo of Dennis Lillee and Glenn McGrath at the MRF Pace Foundation for bringing out the best in him.

"I learnt a lot from them, it was really a dream for me to bowl under the tutelage of McGrath, whom I consider my bowling idol, apart from Kapil Dev."

The six-foot-two-inch frame Pandey, who bowls regularly at 130kph, further said he's not going to cut down on his speed.

"I'm sure the conditions in New Zealand will aid pace bowling. I'm not going to compromise on my pace while bowling in the right areas," he insisted.

Playing for India A during their tour to South Africa earlier this year, Pandey took 11 wickets in two four-day games and five in two one-dayers. He is now looking to utilise his Proteas experience.

"It was a very successful tour for me... I'm sure the conditions in New Zealand will be something similar."

His father, a retired subedar-major, wanted him to become a doctor but he took up cricket and made it big during his Under-19 days.

It was his coach Aril Anthony who stood behind him and Pandey was all praise for his mentor.

"It's all because of him I became a cricketer. He really supported me well and I'm proud to have lived up to his expectation," a humble Pandey added.

In eight matches in the ongoing Ranji Trophy season, Pandey has taken 30 wickets at 24.76, including his career-best figures of eight for 84 against Railways.

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Rahane misses ton, SA need 58 to win

NEW DELHI: Dale Steyn struck straight away on the final day and spinner Robin Peterson took four wickets as South Africa bowled India out for 223 in its second innings on Monday to close in on a series victory in Jacques Kallis' final Test.

Scorecard

South Africa needs 58 runs to win the second test and the two-game contest despite a fighting 96 by Ajinkya Rahane, who was India's last man out searching for a maiden Test hundred.

Steyn removed Virat Kohli off the first ball of the day and Cheteshwar Pujara (32) in his second over on the way to his 3-47. Robin Peterson took 4-74 and Vernon Philander grabbed his third when he bowled Rahane right at the end.

Dale Steyn claimed his 350th Test wicket in the form of Ishant Sharma. He became the second highest to take 350 wickets in Test after Muttiah Muralitharan.

Steyn struck straight away on the final day as South Africa took five wickets before lunch Monday to rapidly reduce India to 173/7.

Steyn removed Virat Kohli first ball of the day _ to a questionable decision by umpire Rod Tucker _ and bowled Cheteshwar Pujara for 32 off a superb delivery in the third over as India's two key batsmen departed early.

India limped to seven runs ahead of South Africa's first-innings total of 500 at lunch as Vernon Philander also dismissed Rohit Sharma lbw for 25, and spinner Robin Peterson sent captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja back for his 3-61.

Steyn's first delivery appeared to come off Kohli's upper arm but he was given out caught behind by wicketkeeper AB de Villiers to put top-ranked South Africa on a roll as it chases a final-day win over No. 2 India to mark veteran allrounder Kallis' retirement from test cricket.

Ajinkya Rahane was unbeaten on 50 for India and fighting bravely again after he made 51 not out in the tourists' first innings score of 334. But captain Dhoni and Jadeja didn't show the same application as the newcomer as they fell to poor shots in the last half-hour of the session to put South Africa three wickets away from victory.

The 38-year-old Kallis' surprise decision to retire at the ground where he made his debut 18 years ago added extra motivation for the South Africans to push on in a test that has lost time throughout to weather delays in the coastal city of Durban.

After taking six wickets in the first innings, Steyn's lifting delivery to start the last day missed Kohli's bat and gloves and the Indian batsman expressed his displeasure with the decision as he walked off. There was no doubt for Pujara, however, when he was bowled by Steyn off a ball that pitched on middle stump and seamed away to clip the top of off stump and India went quickly from 68-2 overnight to 71-4.

Philander also utilized seam movement off the five-day-old surface to get one to duck back into Sharma and trap him in front.

Rahane and Dhoni put on 42 runs as India's last recognized batsmen, but Dhoni tried to whip a shot through midwicket off left-arm spinner Peterson and was caught by Alviro Petersen.

Jadeja also attempted to attack Peterson and after sending one six down the ground tried a second big shot and lofted a simple catch to Morne Morkel, leaving the tourists' tailenders with two more sessions to save the game and the short series.

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SA wins Kallis's final Test by 10 wkts

NEW DELHI: Chasing a meager 58, South Africa were 19/0 in their second innings before slipping into tea break on the final day of the second Test in Durban.

Scorecard

Dale Steyn struck straight away on the final day and spinner Robin Peterson took four wickets as India were bowled out for 223 in its second innings, setting a meager target of 58 runs, despite a fighting 96 by Ajinkya Rahane.

Steyn removed Virat Kohli off the first ball of the day and Cheteshwar Pujara (32) in his second over on the way to his 3-47. Robin Peterson took 4-74 and Vernon Philander grabbed his third when he bowled Rahane right at the end.

Dale Steyn claimed his 350th Test wicket in the form of Ishant Sharma. He became the second highest to take 350 wickets in Test after Muttiah Muralitharan.

Steyn struck straight away on the final day as South Africa took five wickets before lunch Monday to rapidly reduce India to 173/7.

Steyn removed Virat Kohli first ball of the day - to a questionable decision by umpire Rod Tucker - and bowled Cheteshwar Pujara for 32 off a superb delivery in the third over as India's two key batsmen departed early.

India limped to seven runs ahead of South Africa's first-innings total of 500 at lunch as Vernon Philander also dismissed Rohit Sharma lbw for 25, and spinner Robin Peterson sent captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja back for his 3-61.

Steyn's first delivery appeared to come off Kohli's upper arm but he was given out caught behind by wicketkeeper AB de Villiers to put top-ranked South Africa on a roll as it chases a final-day win over No. 2 India to mark veteran allrounder Kallis' retirement from test cricket.

Ajinkya Rahane was unbeaten on 50 for India and fighting bravely again after he made 51 not out in the tourists' first innings score of 334. But captain Dhoni and Jadeja didn't show the same application as the newcomer as they fell to poor shots in the last half-hour of the session to put South Africa three wickets away from victory.

The 38-year-old Kallis' surprise decision to retire at the ground where he made his debut 18 years ago added extra motivation for the South Africans to push on in a test that has lost time throughout to weather delays in the coastal city of Durban.

After taking six wickets in the first innings, Steyn's lifting delivery to start the last day missed Kohli's bat and gloves and the Indian batsman expressed his displeasure with the decision as he walked off. There was no doubt for Pujara, however, when he was bowled by Steyn off a ball that pitched on middle stump and seamed away to clip the top of off stump and India went quickly from 68-2 overnight to 71-4.

Philander also utilized seam movement off the five-day-old surface to get one to duck back into Sharma and trap him in front.

Rahane and Dhoni put on 42 runs as India's last recognized batsmen, but Dhoni tried to whip a shot through midwicket off left-arm spinner Peterson and was caught by Alviro Petersen.

Jadeja also attempted to attack Peterson and after sending one six down the ground tried a second big shot and lofted a simple catch to Morne Morkel, leaving the tourists' tailenders with two more sessions to save the game and the short series.

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Steyn removes Ishant, India 9 down

NEW DELHI: Dale Steyn struck straight away on the final day and spinner Robin Peterson took four wickets as South Africa bowled India out for 223 in its second innings on Monday to close in on a series victory in Jacques Kallis' final Test.

Scorecard

South Africa needs 58 runs to win the second test and the two-game contest despite a fighting 96 by Ajinkya Rahane, who was India's last man out searching for a maiden Test hundred.

Steyn removed Virat Kohli off the first ball of the day and Cheteshwar Pujara (32) in his second over on the way to his 3-47. Robin Peterson took 4-74 and Vernon Philander grabbed his third when he bowled Rahane right at the end.

Dale Steyn claimed his 350th Test wicket in the form of Ishant Sharma. He became the second highest to take 350 wickets in Test after Muttiah Muralitharan.

Steyn struck straight away on the final day as South Africa took five wickets before lunch Monday to rapidly reduce India to 173/7.

Steyn removed Virat Kohli first ball of the day _ to a questionable decision by umpire Rod Tucker _ and bowled Cheteshwar Pujara for 32 off a superb delivery in the third over as India's two key batsmen departed early.

India limped to seven runs ahead of South Africa's first-innings total of 500 at lunch as Vernon Philander also dismissed Rohit Sharma lbw for 25, and spinner Robin Peterson sent captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja back for his 3-61.

Steyn's first delivery appeared to come off Kohli's upper arm but he was given out caught behind by wicketkeeper AB de Villiers to put top-ranked South Africa on a roll as it chases a final-day win over No. 2 India to mark veteran allrounder Kallis' retirement from test cricket.

Ajinkya Rahane was unbeaten on 50 for India and fighting bravely again after he made 51 not out in the tourists' first innings score of 334. But captain Dhoni and Jadeja didn't show the same application as the newcomer as they fell to poor shots in the last half-hour of the session to put South Africa three wickets away from victory.

The 38-year-old Kallis' surprise decision to retire at the ground where he made his debut 18 years ago added extra motivation for the South Africans to push on in a test that has lost time throughout to weather delays in the coastal city of Durban.

After taking six wickets in the first innings, Steyn's lifting delivery to start the last day missed Kohli's bat and gloves and the Indian batsman expressed his displeasure with the decision as he walked off. There was no doubt for Pujara, however, when he was bowled by Steyn off a ball that pitched on middle stump and seamed away to clip the top of off stump and India went quickly from 68-2 overnight to 71-4.

Philander also utilized seam movement off the five-day-old surface to get one to duck back into Sharma and trap him in front.

Rahane and Dhoni put on 42 runs as India's last recognized batsmen, but Dhoni tried to whip a shot through midwicket off left-arm spinner Peterson and was caught by Alviro Petersen.

Jadeja also attempted to attack Peterson and after sending one six down the ground tried a second big shot and lofted a simple catch to Morne Morkel, leaving the tourists' tailenders with two more sessions to save the game and the short series.

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South Africa close to win in final Test

NEW DELHI: India crashed to a humiliating 10-wicket defeat in the second cricket Test after their young batsmen surrendered meekly to give South Africa a 1-0 series triumph in Jacques Kallis' farewell match, on Monday.

Scorecard

Needing to bat out the entire fifth day's play at the Kingsmead to force a draw, the Indians had the worst possible start by losing Virat Kohli in the very first ball and never really recovered from the jolt to be bundled out for 223.

Ajinkya Rahane stood bravely amidst the ruins with a gutsy 96 and was the last man out. India were pegged back after losing five wickets in the morning session.

Left-arm spinner Robin Peterson (4/74) was pick of the bowler for the hosts with a four-wicket haul while pacemen Dale Steyn (3/47) and Vernon Philander (3/43) scalped three batsmen each.

South Africa then chased down the small 58-run target in 11.4 overs overs as skipper Graeme Smith (27) hit a six and a four off Rohit Sharma to record their first win at Kingsmead. Alviro Petersen remained unbeaten on 31.

The victory was a befitting farewell gift to their retiring hero Kallis, who himself had a memorable match by cracking his 45th Test hundred.

Smith's cover drive to fence triggered off celebrations in the home camp with the players hugging each other and shaking hands while the spectators also cheered the team.

For the Indians, it turned out to be a heart-breaking end to the tour, having been drubbed in the One-day series as well. The loss was all the more disappointing since the team had fought gallantly in the thrilling drawn Test in Johannesburg.

It is the fifth time that India have lost a Test series on South African soil, managing a 1-1 draw only once in 2010-11 rubber. India have never won a series in South Africa and now have lost nine of the last 10 overseas Tests.

Rahane played a fine rearguard innings scoring 96 runs off 157 balls with 11 fours and two sixes, a lone hand with none of the frontline batsmen making an important contribution in order to save the match.

After Steyn and Peterson did the early damage, Philander chipped in and Morne Morkel (0/34) provided able support as the Indians lost five wickets for 105 runs in the morning session.

Starting at 173 for 7 after lunch, all that was left for Rahane and Zaheer Khan to do was delay the inevitable as long as possible. And they did it for nearly 10 overs, as Rahane started farming the strike.

With the Proteas pacers unable to get the breakthrough and the second new ball fast approaching, Peterson was brought on in the 76th over and the move paid off two overs later, with Zaheer being trapped LBW. He scored three runs, but faced 41 balls, and put up 35 runs with Rahane.

Rahane then brought out his shots in order to get to his maiden Test hundred, as he raced to the 90s. At the other end, Steyn got Ishant Sharma (1) in the 85th over and celebrated his 350th Test wicket with vigour. And in the very next over, Rahane was bowled by Philander, a huge swipe gunning for glory missing and the stumps shattered.

Resuming the day on 68 for two, India had their two best batsmen -- Pujara on 32 and Kohli on 11 -- at the crease, and any hopes of seeing the day out rested on their shoulders.

But all of it came to nought as Kohli was out on the first delivery of the day when Steyn bowled a short of length delivery outside the off-stump and the batsman played at it. Kohli, though didn't make contact, the ball seemed to have brushed his shoulder on its way to the keeper and umpire Rod Tucker adjudged him out.

This was his second bad decision after giving Jacques Kallis out LBW off an inside edge in the first Test at Johannesburg.

An irate Kohli walked off, but India's disastrous tale continued as 16 balls later, Steyn bowled a superb delivery to fox Pujara, who thought he had covered the line of the ball. But his off-stump was rocked back as the batting side's hopes were deflated.

Rohit Sharma (25), at the other end, meanwhile was looking to make a first mark on this tour. He was involved in a verbal duel with Steyn, and looked to be in control when he hit a four off him in the 43rd over and then a six off Peterson three overs later. But he innings was cut short by Philander, who trapped him LBW, the ball jagging back off the pitch in the 51st over.

Rahane was joined by skipper MS Dhoni (15) in the middle and they put on 42 runs for the sixth wicket. But just when it looked they could avoid further damage, Dhoni was out caught at midwicket off Peterson.

Ravindra Jadeja (8) played a horrific shot to hole out soon after, even as Rahane looked for some support from the tail-enders. He found that in Zaheer, who stayed on long enough to help him get his second half-century of the match.

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S Africa extend lead as No.1 Test side

DUBAI: South Africa today strengthened their position as the number-one ranked side on the ICC Test Team Rankings table courtesy their 10-wicket victory over India in the second and final Test in Durban.

The 1-0 series win has helped South Africa gain two ratings points to finish on 133, while India have conceded two ratings points to end at 117.

This means the gap between the two top ranked sides has now increased from 12 ratings points to 16 ratings points.

Meanwhile, Australia have an opportunity to finish third on the rankings table.

Australia had entered the Ashes series in fifth position on 101 ratings points, but after taking a 4-0 lead against England, they are guaranteed fourth position on the table. And Michael Clarke's side will gain one more place if they remain unbeaten in the Sydney Test, which starts on January 3.

The only way England can defend their third position on the table is by winning the Sydney Test. In this scenario, England will end on 109 ratings points while Australia will finish on 108 ratings points.

Pakistan, which will slip to fifth irrespective of how the Ashes conclude, can keep the pressure on Australia and England if they win the series against Sri Lanka.

If Pakistan win 2-0, then they will move from 102 ratings points to 105 ratings points, while they will finish on 107 if they win all the three Tests.

On the other side of the coin, Sri Lanka have a chance to move ahead of Pakistan if they win the series 2-0 or better. If they win 2-0, they will jump from 88 ratings points to 95 ratings points while Pakistan will slip from 102 ratings points to 94 ratings points.

With the top four sides as of December 31, 2016 qualifying for the inaugural ICC World Test Championship scheduled for 2017, every Test counts towards the qualification.

The qualification pathway for the World Test Championship is through the ICC Test Team Rankings, with the qualifying period being from May 1, 2013 to December 31, 2016. The top four teams at the conclusion of the qualification period will qualify for the event in 2017.

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Schumacher injured in ski accident

PARIS: Seven-time Formula 1 World Champion Michael Schumacher was Sunday taken to a hospital in France after being injured in a skiing accident.

The 44-year-old was taken by helicopter to a hospital in Moutiers.

Christophe Gernignon-Lecomte, director of the Meribel resort, told Radio Monte Carlo Sport: "He was shocked, a little shaken but conscious. It may be a head injury but it is not very serious."

"He was wearing a helmet and banged (his head) against a rock," the director added.

Schumacher is also one of the most popular F1 drivers ever. He retired for the second time at the end of 2012.

The German started his career with the Benetton team in 1991 and won consecutive titles with them in 1994-1995. The glorious period of his career came with Ferrari as he won five titles with the Italian outfit from 2000-2004.

His second coming in 2010 did not reap much success as he finished on the podium only once in three seasons while driving for Mercedes.

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Relieved Clarke lauds bowlers & Rogers

MELBOURNE: Australia captain Michael Clarke was left to thank his bowlers and centurion Chris Rogers for the hosts' escape in the fourth Ashes Test on Sunday, having risked his team's winning streak by opting to bowl first after winning the toss.

Australia completed a dominant win by eight wickets at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday to take a 4-0 lead in the series but Clarke admitted his decision had haunted him throughout the match.

Credited for his aggressive captaincy and his setting of imaginative fields, Clarke has also shown himself a dab hand at calling the toss, winning it all four times in the series to date.

He had resolutely played the percentages up until Melbourne, putting his team in to bat in the three previous victories in Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.

Clarke and his backroom colleagues gleaned something in the MCG's green-tinged pitch and overcast conditions in the morning that few others did, but immediately revealed his discomfort with the decision in a television interview after sending his team into the field on day one.

The queasy feeling can only have grown stronger as England survived to stumps at 226-6, with the hosts' best batsman Kevin Pietersen leading from the front.

"When you win the toss and bowl, the result always dictates whether you'll be criticised or applauded," Clarke told reporters.

"Was it the right decision or not? Well the result will say yes, but after the first five overs on day one, the wicket certainly played better than I expected it to.

"It certainly wasn't our bowlers I was second guessing, it was more the fact that I was hoping that the grass on the wicket and the overhead conditions were going to do a little more than they did."

Fortunately for Clarke, man of the match Mitchell Johnson intervened early on day two, tearing through the England tail to finish with five wickets and wrap up their innings for 255.

Despite wicketkeeper Brad Haddin's serial rescues, Australia's batsmen have also proved frail throughout the series and collapsed to be all out for 204, to concede a 51-run first innings lead.

Openers Alastair Cook and Michael Carberry appeared set to carry England to a dominant position, but Johnson intervened again, trapping the England skipper in front for 51 with a searing inswinger that turned the game on its head.

England limped to tea at 115/4 and were then duly routed in the final session of day three as spinner Nathan Lyon and their own scrambled shot selection handed the momentum straight back to the hosts.

The 36-year-old Rogers did the rest, cementing his place at the top of Australia's order for the foreseeable future with a glittering 116 as Australia mowed through the required 231 runs for victory before tea on day four.

Rogers had hitherto looked as comfortable out on the crease as with his place in the team, eking out runs through painstaking graft amid a litany of half-hearted prods and a smattering of false shots.

However, in Australia's second innings he emerged like an innocent man sprung from prison.

Rogers stunned home fans at the MCG by eclipsing the run-rate of his swashbuckling partner David Warner and unleashed a breathtaking array of cuts, pulls and drives for 14 boundaries in his 155-ball knock.

"I think it was a fantastic innings," Clarke gushed. "A match-winning innings and he deserves a lot of credit for it.

"As captain of the team I certainly haven't felt that Chris is under pressure for his spot ... I think Chris has done everything that I've asked as captain.

"He's an important part of this team and I think for his team mates it was very special to see him raise his bat for his hundred, and on his home ground the MCG as well."

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Kallis becomes third highest run-getter

DURBAN: South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis surpassed Rahul Dravid as the third highest run-getter in Test cricket after a 115-run knock against India in his farewell match on Sunday.

Most runs in Test

Kallis, who would be retiring from Tests at the end of the ongoing second and final game against India, now has 13,289 runs in the longest format.

That tally is one run more than Dravid, who retired last year after playing 164 Tests. Kallis, who is playing in his 166th Test, is now third behind Sachin Tendulkar (15,921) and Ricky Ponting (13,378) in the all-time list.

The South African, considered the best all-rounder in modern cricket, struck a fluent 115-run knock, which came off 316 balls and included nine fours, in his final Test.

"Hail King Kallis!Even his worst critic wudn't begrudge JK farewell ton-truly fantastic feat V normally relate 2 dreams!!" tweeted former Indian captain Bishan Singh Bedi, paying tribute to the 38-year-old.

"Handsome is that handsome does!Is thr any1 more handsome than Kallis in his final test?No 1 took so much workload as JK in last 3/4 decades!" he added.

Besides the mountain of runs he sits on, Kallis also has 292 wickets in Tests at an impressive average of 32.53, besides having 200 catches to his credit.

"100 for #Kallis in his last test. One of the greats," wrote New Zealand captain Ross Taylor.

"LEGEND ... #Kallis #GreatestEverAllrounder. #SAvInd," tweeted former England captain Michael Vaughan.

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Kallis becomes third highest run-getter

DURBAN: South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis surpassed Rahul Dravid as the third highest run-getter in Test cricket after a 115-run knock against India in his farewell match on Sunday.

Kallis, who would be retiring from Tests at the end of the ongoing second and final game against India, now has 13,289 runs in the longest format.

That tally is one run more than Dravid, who retired last year after playing 164 Tests. Kallis, who is playing in his 166th Test, is now third behind Sachin Tendulkar (15,921) and Ricky Ponting (13,378) in the all-time list.

The South African, considered the best all-rounder in modern cricket, struck a fluent 115-run knock, which came off 316 balls and included nine fours, in his final Test.

"Hail King Kallis!Even his worst critic wudn't begrudge JK farewell ton-truly fantastic feat V normally relate 2 dreams!!" tweeted former Indian captain Bishan Singh Bedi, paying tribute to the 38-year-old.

"Handsome is that handsome does!Is thr any1 more handsome than Kallis in his final test?No 1 took so much workload as JK in last 3/4 decades!" he added.

Besides the mountain of runs he sits on, Kallis also has 292 wickets in Tests at an impressive average of 32.53, besides having 200 catches to his credit.

"100 for #Kallis in his last test. One of the greats," wrote New Zealand captain Ross Taylor.

"LEGEND ... #Kallis #GreatestEverAllrounder. #SAvInd," tweeted former England captain Michael Vaughan.

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Schumacher injured in ski accident

PARIS: Seven-time Formula 1 World Champion Michael Schumacher was Sunday taken to a hospital in France after being injured in a skiing accident.

The 44-year-old was taken by helicopter to a hospital in Moutiers.

Christophe Gernignon-Lecomte, director of the Meribel resort, told Radio Monte Carlo Sport: "He was shocked, a little shaken but conscious. It may be a head injury but it is not very serious."

"He was wearing a helmet and banged (his head) against a rock," the director added.

Schumacher is also one of the most popular F1 drivers ever. He retired for the second time at the end of 2012.

The German started his career with the Benetton team in 1991 and won consecutive titles with them in 1994-1995. The glorious period of his career came with Ferrari as he won five titles with the Italian outfit from 2000-2004.

His second coming in 2010 did not reap much success as he finished on the podium only once in three seasons while driving for Mercedes.

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Duminy falls, but Kallis stands solid

NEW DELHI: Ravindra Jadeja struck again to dismiss JP Duminy, giving South Africa fifth blow at the score of 298 in the final session on the third day of the final Test before rain stopped the play.

Scorecard

Duminy was caught on his back foot in front of the stumps by Jadeja, who earlier scalped both South African openers and danger man AB de Villers.

Jacques Kallis, however, stood tall against India attack taking South Africa close to visitors total.

The visitors managed just one wicket even as retiring all-rounder Jacques Kallis and A B de Villiers' 127-run fourth wicket stand helped South Africa reach 267 for four at tea.

Countering the loss of three wickets in the first session, the two batsmen brought up their half-centuries in the post-lunch session and the Proteas now trail by only 67 runs, after India scored 334 runs in their first innings.

Kallis was unbeaten on 61 runs, off 180 balls with nine fours. JP Duminy (13) was giving him company at the other end after de Villiers departed following a 117-ball 74, studded with nine boundaries.

Ravindra Jadeja (3-77) was the pick of the Indian bowlers, with Mohammad Shami (1-62) the only other wicket-taker of the innings.

Zaheer Khan (0-46) and Ishant Sharma (0-65) toiled hard, but failed to provide any breakthroughs. Rohit Sharma (0-11) was again deployed in this session as skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni seemed to be missing a second spinner on this dry pitch.

After the lunch break, Kallis and de Villiers looked set for a big partnership, starting from the 68-run mark.

South Africa started at 181/3 as the runs came in quickly. Both batsmen stroked boundaries at will, as the pace bowlers searched for some reverse swing. Zaheer was punished in particular, but de Villiers also aggressive intent against Jadeja, not letting the spinners settle down.

He brought up his half-century in the 62nd over of the innings. It was his 34th fifty in 89 Tests. The 100-run partnership came three overs later, as runs continued to come unabated.

In their eagerness to score quickly, South Africa almost lost a wicket when the two batsmen were involved in a huge mix-up in the 69th over.

De Villiers nudged the ball and set off for a run, then stopped, but Kallis kept going. Zaheer failed to hit the stumps, as the first hour after lunch resulted in 55 runs.

Jadeja finally broke their partnership, in the 74th over. De Villiers prodded forward and was caught at first slip by Virat Kohli. He scored 74 runs off 117 balls, with nine fours.

Duminy was the next man in and saw away the remaining session before tea without any fuss, putting on 27 runs for the fifth wicket.

At the other end, with the crowd roaring for him, Kallis brought up his half-century in the 76th over, off 131 balls hitting nine fours. It was his 59th fifty in his 166th and final Test.

In the morning session, Graeme Smith (47) and Alviro Petersen (62) looked to further increase their opening stand. The latter reached his seventh half-century in 28 Tests, but should have been out in the 24th over, fourth of the morning, even as the third umpire ruled him not out off a very close stumping call.

The 100-run opening stand came in the 27th over, and in the very next, Jadeja, who had been looking to take a wicket, finally struck.

Smith went for a big shot over mid-on, but only sent the ball in the air over mid-wicket which Shikhar Dhawan caught stupendously, running backwards. Shami then bowled Hashim Amla (3) off the last ball of the 33rd over.

Jacques Kallis came out to bat in his last Test and the Indian team lined up to salute the legendary all-rounder. At the other end, Jadeja induced an edge off Petersen that Murali Vijay held at first slip.

The first Test of the series, played at Johannesburg, was drawn, after a pulsating fifth day, wherein South Africa just stopped eight runs short of a world-record fourth innings' chase after India had set them a target of 458 runs.

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2nd Test: SA 299/5 at stumps on Day 3

NEW DELHI: Jacques Kallis, playing in his final Test match, ground out an unbeaten 78 after South Africa lost threewi ckets in quick succession on the third day of the second and final Test against India at Kingsmead on Saturday.

Scorecard

South Africa were 299 for five, 35 runs behind India's first innings total of 334, when rain brought an early close.

Kallis received a standing ovation from the crowd and a guard of honour from the Indian players when he walked out to bat after Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla had been dismissed for 47 and three respectively.

Before he faced a ball, Alviro Petersen was caught at slip for 62 off a ball from Ravindra Jadeja which bounced more than Petersen expected.

Left-arm spinner Jadeja put a clamp on the scoring rate and picked up four for 87 in 37 overs.

Fairly early in his innings, Kallis hit two successive lofted drives for four off Jadeja but the spin bowler, who replaced Ravichandran Ashwin from the team that played in the drawn first Test, was never mastered.

Kallis and AB de Villiers (74) shared a fourth wicket partnership of 127 after South Africa lost three wickets for ten runs to be wobbling at 113 for three.

Most of the enterprise came from De Villiers, who continued in a rich vein of form which has taken him to the top of both the Test and one-day international batting rankings. He hit nine boundaries in a 117-ball innings.

But after De Villiers was caught at slip off Jadeja, the scoring rate almost ground to a halt with Kallis taking no chances after announcing that he would retire from Test cricket after this match. It was important from a team point of view, too, that South Africa secured a first innings lead on a pitch on which Jadeja gained turn and occasional unexpected bounce.

Kallis and JP Duminy (28) added 58 runs off 176 balls, a scoring rate of just under two runs an over, as Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni set defensive fields and declined to take the second new ball, with the batsmen finding it difficult to be assertive against accurate slow bowling.

Kallis advanced to a half-century off 131 balls when he cut Jadeja for four shortly after De Villiers was dismissed.

It was the 103rd time in 166 Tests that Kallis had scored 50 or more, with 44 of those innings converted into centuries. But it was first Test half-century in eight innings, going back to a match against Pakistan in Johannesburg in February.

By the close Kallis had been batting for 274 minutes, facing 224 balls and hitting ten fours. He gave a sharp chance to Shikhar Dhawan at silly mid-off against Jadeja when he was on 74.

Smith and Petersen took their opening partnership to 103 from the overnight total of 82 but were unable to bat with the freedom they had displayed on Friday evening.

Jadeja troubled both batsmen before Smith, on 47, went down the wicket and mistimed an attempted hit over midwicket. Dhawan ran back and held a good, diving catch.

Amla was bowled by Mohammed Shami for three when an inswinging delivery straightened past his bat and hit the off stump.

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Rain stops play, SA 299/5 at stumps

NEW DELHI: Jacques Kallis, playing in his final Test match, ground out an unbeaten 78 after South Africa lost threewi ckets in quick succession on the third day of the second and final Test against India at Kingsmead on Saturday.

Scorecard

South Africa were 299 for five, 35 runs behind India's first innings total of 334, when rain brought an early close.

Kallis received a standing ovation from the crowd and a guard of honour from the Indian players when he walked out to bat after Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla had been dismissed for 47 and three respectively.

Before he faced a ball, Alviro Petersen was caught at slip for 62 off a ball from Ravindra Jadeja which bounced more than Petersen expected.

Left-arm spinner Jadeja put a clamp on the scoring rate and picked up four for 87 in 37 overs.

Fairly early in his innings, Kallis hit two successive lofted drives for four off Jadeja but the spin bowler, who replaced Ravichandran Ashwin from the team that played in the drawn first Test, was never mastered.

Kallis and AB de Villiers (74) shared a fourth wicket partnership of 127 after South Africa lost three wickets for ten runs to be wobbling at 113 for three.

Most of the enterprise came from De Villiers, who continued in a rich vein of form which has taken him to the top of both the Test and one-day international batting rankings. He hit nine boundaries in a 117-ball innings.

But after De Villiers was caught at slip off Jadeja, the scoring rate almost ground to a halt with Kallis taking no chances after announcing that he would retire from Test cricket after this match. It was important from a team point of view, too, that South Africa secured a first innings lead on a pitch on which Jadeja gained turn and occasional unexpected bounce.

Kallis and JP Duminy (28) added 58 runs off 176 balls, a scoring rate of just under two runs an over, as Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni set defensive fields and declined to take the second new ball, with the batsmen finding it difficult to be assertive against accurate slow bowling.

Kallis advanced to a half-century off 131 balls when he cut Jadeja for four shortly after De Villiers was dismissed.

It was the 103rd time in 166 Tests that Kallis had scored 50 or more, with 44 of those innings converted into centuries. But it was first Test half-century in eight innings, going back to a match against Pakistan in Johannesburg in February.

By the close Kallis had been batting for 274 minutes, facing 224 balls and hitting ten fours. He gave a sharp chance to Shikhar Dhawan at silly mid-off against Jadeja when he was on 74.

Smith and Petersen took their opening partnership to 103 from the overnight total of 82 but were unable to bat with the freedom they had displayed on Friday evening.

Jadeja troubled both batsmen before Smith, on 47, went down the wicket and mistimed an attempted hit over midwicket. Dhawan ran back and held a good, diving catch.

Amla was bowled by Mohammed Shami for three when an inswinging delivery straightened past his bat and hit the off stump.

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2nd Test: SA 299/5 at stumps on Day 3

NEW DELHI: Jacques Kallis, playing in his final Test match, ground out an unbeaten 78 after South Africa lost threewi ckets in quick succession on the third day of the second and final Test against India at Kingsmead on Saturday.

Scorecard

South Africa were 299 for five, 35 runs behind India's first innings total of 334, when rain brought an early close.

Kallis received a standing ovation from the crowd and a guard of honour from the Indian players when he walked out to bat after Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla had been dismissed for 47 and three respectively.

Before he faced a ball, Alviro Petersen was caught at slip for 62 off a ball from Ravindra Jadeja which bounced more than Petersen expected.

Left-arm spinner Jadeja put a clamp on the scoring rate and picked up four for 87 in 37 overs.

Fairly early in his innings, Kallis hit two successive lofted drives for four off Jadeja but the spin bowler, who replaced Ravichandran Ashwin from the team that played in the drawn first Test, was never mastered.

Kallis and AB de Villiers (74) shared a fourth wicket partnership of 127 after South Africa lost three wickets for ten runs to be wobbling at 113 for three.

Most of the enterprise came from De Villiers, who continued in a rich vein of form which has taken him to the top of both the Test and one-day international batting rankings. He hit nine boundaries in a 117-ball innings.

But after De Villiers was caught at slip off Jadeja, the scoring rate almost ground to a halt with Kallis taking no chances after announcing that he would retire from Test cricket after this match. It was important from a team point of view, too, that South Africa secured a first innings lead on a pitch on which Jadeja gained turn and occasional unexpected bounce.

Kallis and JP Duminy (28) added 58 runs off 176 balls, a scoring rate of just under two runs an over, as Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni set defensive fields and declined to take the second new ball, with the batsmen finding it difficult to be assertive against accurate slow bowling.

Kallis advanced to a half-century off 131 balls when he cut Jadeja for four shortly after De Villiers was dismissed.

It was the 103rd time in 166 Tests that Kallis had scored 50 or more, with 44 of those innings converted into centuries. But it was first Test half-century in eight innings, going back to a match against Pakistan in Johannesburg in February.

By the close Kallis had been batting for 274 minutes, facing 224 balls and hitting ten fours. He gave a sharp chance to Shikhar Dhawan at silly mid-off against Jadeja when he was on 74.

Smith and Petersen took their opening partnership to 103 from the overnight total of 82 but were unable to bat with the freedom they had displayed on Friday evening.

Jadeja troubled both batsmen before Smith, on 47, went down the wicket and mistimed an attempted hit over midwicket. Dhawan ran back and held a good, diving catch.

Amla was bowled by Mohammed Shami for three when an inswinging delivery straightened past his bat and hit the off stump.

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2nd Test: Rain stops play with SA 299/5

NEW DELHI: South Africa were 299 for five in their first innings in the final session of day three when rain halted the play in the second and final cricket Test against India on Saturday.

Scorecard

Jacques Kallis (78) and Dale Steyn were at the crease when light drizzle came down on the Kingsmead.

Ravindra Jadeja struck again to dismiss JP Duminy, giving South Africa fifth blow at the score of 298.

Duminy was caught on his back foot in front of the stumps by Jadeja, who earlier scalped both South African openers and danger man AB de Villers.

Kallis, however, stood tall against India attack taking South Africa close to visitors total.

The visitors managed just one wicket even as retiring all-rounder Kallis and AB de Villiers' 127-run fourth wicket stand helped South Africa reach 267 for four at tea.

Countering the loss of three wickets in the first session, the two batsmen brought up their half-centuries in the post-lunch session and the Proteas now trail by only 67 runs, after India scored 334 runs in their first innings.

Kallis was unbeaten on 61 runs, off 180 balls with nine fours. JP Duminy (13) was giving him company at the other end after de Villiers departed following a 117-ball 74, studded with nine boundaries.

Ravindra Jadeja (3-77) was the pick of the Indian bowlers, with Mohammad Shami (1-62) the only other wicket-taker of the innings.

Zaheer Khan (0-46) and Ishant Sharma (0-65) toiled hard, but failed to provide any breakthroughs. Rohit Sharma (0-11) was again deployed in this session as skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni seemed to be missing a second spinner on this dry pitch.

After the lunch break, Kallis and de Villiers looked set for a big partnership, starting from the 68-run mark.

South Africa started at 181/3 as the runs came in quickly. Both batsmen stroked boundaries at will, as the pace bowlers searched for some reverse swing. Zaheer was punished in particular, but de Villiers also aggressive intent against Jadeja, not letting the spinners settle down.

He brought up his half-century in the 62nd over of the innings. It was his 34th fifty in 89 Tests. The 100-run partnership came three overs later, as runs continued to come unabated.

In their eagerness to score quickly, South Africa almost lost a wicket when the two batsmen were involved in a huge mix-up in the 69th over.

De Villiers nudged the ball and set off for a run, then stopped, but Kallis kept going. Zaheer failed to hit the stumps, as the first hour after lunch resulted in 55 runs.

Jadeja finally broke their partnership, in the 74th over. De Villiers prodded forward and was caught at first slip by Virat Kohli. He scored 74 runs off 117 balls, with nine fours.

Duminy was the next man in and saw away the remaining session before tea without any fuss, putting on 27 runs for the fifth wicket.

At the other end, with the crowd roaring for him, Kallis brought up his half-century in the 76th over, off 131 balls hitting nine fours. It was his 59th fifty in his 166th and final Test.

In the morning session, Graeme Smith (47) and Alviro Petersen (62) looked to further increase their opening stand. The latter reached his seventh half-century in 28 Tests, but should have been out in the 24th over, fourth of the morning, even as the third umpire ruled him not out off a very close stumping call.

The 100-run opening stand came in the 27th over, and in the very next, Jadeja, who had been looking to take a wicket, finally struck.

Smith went for a big shot over mid-on, but only sent the ball in the air over mid-wicket which Shikhar Dhawan caught stupendously, running backwards. Shami then bowled Hashim Amla (3) off the last ball of the 33rd over.

Jacques Kallis came out to bat in his last Test and the Indian team lined up to salute the legendary all-rounder. At the other end, Jadeja induced an edge off Petersen that Murali Vijay held at first slip.

The first Test of the series, played at Johannesburg, was drawn, after a pulsating fifth day, wherein South Africa just stopped eight runs short of a world-record fourth innings' chase after India had set them a target of 458 runs.

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Maturity of Kallis will be missed: Coach

DURBAN: South African coach Russell Domingo today said his team would "sorely" miss the "maturity" of Jacques Kallis in the dressing room and they have a challenge to manage the legendary all-rounder in a way that he could be in peak form before the 2015 ODI World Cup.

Kallis announced his retirement from Test and first-class cricket on the eve of the Boxing Day Test against India but expressed wish to play the 2015 World Cup for South Africa.

"The impact Jacques has made on South African cricket has been immense, not just as a player but as a human being. I'm not sure we will ever see another player of that stature very soon. Jacques' calmness, maturity and presence in the change room will sorely be missed and hopefully he will still be able to play a role in this team's success in the near future," Domingo said.

Going through a lean patch of late, Kallis has featured in 165 Tests for South Africa, scoring 13174 runs at an average of 55.12. He struck 44 centuries and also took 292 wickets.

Domingo said it would be an important challenge for the team to selectively manage the 38-year-old cricketer, leading up to the 2015 ODI World Cup.

"He has ambitions of playing in the 2015 World Cup and it will be important for us to manage him accordingly so that he is in prime form leading into the tournament," he said.

Haroon Lorgat, Cricket South Africa's chief executive, was effusive in his praise for Kallis and said "it is fitting that his final Test should be on the same ground as the one on which he made his debut against England back in 1995."

"He has been a stalwart for many years and South Africa's recent triumphs and greatness have been built around him. He is a legend and his statistics speak volumes. Jacques has been ever present for the Proteas in the past 18 years," Lorgat added.

Kallis' teammates took to the twitter to pay glowing tributes to him. A number of Proteas players hit the right superlatives for one of the greatest all rounders of the game.

"It's been emotional few days knowing JK retiring. All I can say what a privilege to have played with the great man!" wrote South African skipper Graeme Smith.

"Hopefully, we can give him the send off he deserves over the next 5 days!gonna miss him immensely @jacqueskallis75 love you and grateful," he posted.

Opener Hashim Amla tweeted: "An amazing career from arguably South Africa's greatest sportsman. Lookin forward to one last game in whites with this legend."

South African middle-order batsman J P Duminy said it was an honour to share the dressing room with Kallis.

"Been an honour to share a changeroom with 1 of the gr8's of the game. May we give u the send off u thoroughly deserve."

Off-spinner Johan Botha wished Kallis "all the best" for his last Test in whites.

"All the best with your last Test @jacqueskallis75 !!Get "Slaz Door" going for 1 big score to finish!!Going to miss you in whites," he posted.

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Maturity of Kallis will be missed: Coach

DURBAN: South African coach Russell Domingo today said his team would "sorely" miss the "maturity" of Jacques Kallis in the dressing room and they have a challenge to manage the legendary all-rounder in a way that he could be in peak form before the 2015 ODI World Cup.

Kallis announced his retirement from Test and first-class cricket on the eve of the Boxing Day Test against India but expressed wish to play the 2015 World Cup for South Africa.

"The impact Jacques has made on South African cricket has been immense, not just as a player but as a human being. I'm not sure we will ever see another player of that stature very soon. Jacques' calmness, maturity and presence in the change room will sorely be missed and hopefully he will still be able to play a role in this team's success in the near future," Domingo said.

Going through a lean patch of late, Kallis has featured in 165 Tests for South Africa, scoring 13174 runs at an average of 55.12. He struck 44 centuries and also took 292 wickets.

Domingo said it would be an important challenge for the team to selectively manage the 38-year-old cricketer, leading up to the 2015 ODI World Cup.

"He has ambitions of playing in the 2015 World Cup and it will be important for us to manage him accordingly so that he is in prime form leading into the tournament," he said.

Haroon Lorgat, Cricket South Africa's chief executive, was effusive in his praise for Kallis and said "it is fitting that his final Test should be on the same ground as the one on which he made his debut against England back in 1995."

"He has been a stalwart for many years and South Africa's recent triumphs and greatness have been built around him. He is a legend and his statistics speak volumes. Jacques has been ever present for the Proteas in the past 18 years," Lorgat added.

Kallis' teammates took to the twitter to pay glowing tributes to him. A number of Proteas players hit the right superlatives for one of the greatest all rounders of the game.

"It's been emotional few days knowing JK retiring. All I can say what a privilege to have played with the great man!" wrote South African skipper Graeme Smith.

"Hopefully, we can give him the send off he deserves over the next 5 days!gonna miss him immensely @jacqueskallis75 love you and grateful," he posted.

Opener Hashim Amla tweeted: "An amazing career from arguably South Africa's greatest sportsman. Lookin forward to one last game in whites with this legend."

South African middle-order batsman J P Duminy said it was an honour to share the dressing room with Kallis.

"Been an honour to share a changeroom with 1 of the gr8's of the game. May we give u the send off u thoroughly deserve."

Off-spinner Johan Botha wished Kallis "all the best" for his last Test in whites.

"All the best with your last Test @jacqueskallis75 !!Get "Slaz Door" going for 1 big score to finish!!Going to miss you in whites," he posted.

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Jacques Kallis, the greatest all-rounder

DURBAN: Jaques Kallis, one of the greatest all rounders of the game, on Wednesday announced his retirement from Test cricket.

The 38-year-old Kallis had made his debut against England in December 1995 and is third big player to quit Test cricket this season after Australian Ricky Ponting and Indian batting icon Sachin Tendulkar.

Going through a lean patch of late, Kallis has featured in 165 Tests for South Africa, scoring 13174 runs at a stunning average of 55.12. He also took 292 wickets and 199 Test catches, proving what a quality cricketer he has been for his team in the last 18 years.

With 44 hundreds under his belt, Kallis was closest to Tendulkar's record of 51 Test centuries and the possibility of surpassing incredible figure by any batsman has diminished further.

He is the greatest all-rounder the game has seen, atleast in terms of statistics, leaving behind Sir Garfield Sobers (8032 runs, 235 wickets, 109 catches in 93 Tests) and Sir Ian Botham (5200 runs, 383 wickets, 120 catches in 102 Tests.)

Kallis is currently fourth on the list of leading run-getters in Test cricket, behind Tendulkar (15921 runs in 200 Tests), Ricky Ponting (13378 runs in 168 Tests) and Rahul Dravid (13288 runs in 164 Tests).

"It wasn't an easy decision, with Australia around the corner and the success this team is enjoying, but I feel the time is right. I don't see it as goodbye, I still have a lot of hunger to push South Africa to that World Cup in 2015 if I am fit and performing," Kallis said in a statement.

Following Kallis' retirement, Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene will remain the only active players, who feature in the top-10 century scorers in the Test cricket.

Tendulkar leads the list with 51 centuries and is followed by Kallis (44), Ponting (41), Dravid (36), Sunil Gavaskar (34), Brian Lara (34), Sangakkara (33), Steve Waugh (32), Jayawardene (31) and Matthew Hayden (30).

Both Sangakkara and Jayawardene are already 36 years of age and their chances to surpass Tendulkar in the list look remote.

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Don't write Indian bowlers off: SA coach

DURBAN: South Africa coach Russel Domingo said that it will be a foolish thing to "write off the Indian bowling attack" as the pitch at Kingsmead isn't exactly to the liking of the home team as they square off in the series decider here tomorrow.

"Everyone writes them off, but they are very skilful bowlers. When bowlers from the sub-continent come here, they get excited about bowling in South Africa. But they have already developed their skills playing on non-helpful wickets," Domingo said at a press conference here today.

"In that light, the Indian medium-pacers are like the Pakistan attack, very skilful and threatening in such conditions. Their spin bowlers are also very clever. They have subtle changes of pace and bounce, lots of variations, and they use the crease in different ways," he added.

The coach said that his team is ready to move on from the drawn last Test where they almost chased an improbable target of 458 runs.

"We have got to move on. Sure, it would have been a romantic story to have won it. But it's all done and dusted now, and we have to start again tomorrow. India can take a lot of positives from there and so can we. It will be two very balanced sides will be playing this Test match," he opined.

The pitch here at Durban had behaved significantly differently during the ODI series, especially in comparison to the Johannesburg wicket.

And it seems to be the case this time as well. "The pitch here looks pretty dry and it is probably not what we were expecting," said Domingo.

"The groundsmen at different venues don't really seek our opinion. The curators are all professionals and we trust their work here. But it will probably not be a 180-all out game but a high-scoring one. Over the last five-six years, the nature of the Kingsmead pitch has changed".

"I am guessing the pitch will be a lot slower than we are accustomed to. So, I am not sure the conditions will really benefit us," he added.

The hosts have to decide about their bowling combination, as they are yet to take a call on Morne Morkel's fitness. The fast bowler had twisted his ankle in the first Test.

"He seems to be okay. I haven't chatted to the physiotherapist Brandon Jackson but just briefly chatting to Morne, he seems to be fine so that's good news for us," said Domingo.

Moving on then, it seems that the Proteas are also a bit worried about the Indian bowling and the response their batsmen have given so far in the two innings at Johannesburg.

"I firmly believe the opening partnership holds the key for us. If they can give us 80-100 runs, then we have a platform for the guys to follow. Graeme (Smith) and Alviro (Petersen) have been doing this for us for a while now," he said.

When asked specifically about the likes of Hashim Amla and Dale Steyn, both of whom couldn't make much of a mark in the first Test, the coach seemed unperturbed.

"Hashim has been in great form for us for the last two-three years. He is going to get runs at some stage, probably in this match.

"It is just a matter of time and this is a great place to do it, a great occasion on Boxing Day. He was very mature about his dismissals in the first Tests, like any other dismissal. He was disappointed of course, but he has moved on. Dale (Steyn) too has moved on".

South Africa will need their best players to perform, indeed, for they haven't won in Durban in the last four Tests.

Their last win came against West Indies, back in 2008, and since they have lost four on the bounce to Australia, England, India and Sri Lanka.

"Our past record here is not something we have thought of. It is my first Test match here and I am not carrying any baggage. Our players are looking forward to this Test since we don't have a New Year's test. So, Boxing Day becomes a big occasion and it is a massive Test match for us," he signed off.

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Don't write Indian bowlers off: SA coach

DURBAN: South Africa coach Russel Domingo said that it will be a foolish thing to "write off the Indian bowling attack" as the pitch at Kingsmead isn't exactly to the liking of the home team as they square off in the series decider here tomorrow.

"Everyone writes them off, but they are very skilful bowlers. When bowlers from the sub-continent come here, they get excited about bowling in South Africa. But they have already developed their skills playing on non-helpful wickets," Domingo said at a press conference here today.

"In that light, the Indian medium-pacers are like the Pakistan attack, very skilful and threatening in such conditions. Their spin bowlers are also very clever. They have subtle changes of pace and bounce, lots of variations, and they use the crease in different ways," he added.

The coach said that his team is ready to move on from the drawn last Test where they almost chased an improbable target of 458 runs.

"We have got to move on. Sure, it would have been a romantic story to have won it. But it's all done and dusted now, and we have to start again tomorrow. India can take a lot of positives from there and so can we. It will be two very balanced sides will be playing this Test match," he opined.

The pitch here at Durban had behaved significantly differently during the ODI series, especially in comparison to the Johannesburg wicket.

And it seems to be the case this time as well. "The pitch here looks pretty dry and it is probably not what we were expecting," said Domingo.

"The groundsmen at different venues don't really seek our opinion. The curators are all professionals and we trust their work here. But it will probably not be a 180-all out game but a high-scoring one. Over the last five-six years, the nature of the Kingsmead pitch has changed".

"I am guessing the pitch will be a lot slower than we are accustomed to. So, I am not sure the conditions will really benefit us," he added.

The hosts have to decide about their bowling combination, as they are yet to take a call on Morne Morkel's fitness. The fast bowler had twisted his ankle in the first Test.

"He seems to be okay. I haven't chatted to the physiotherapist Brandon Jackson but just briefly chatting to Morne, he seems to be fine so that's good news for us," said Domingo.

Moving on then, it seems that the Proteas are also a bit worried about the Indian bowling and the response their batsmen have given so far in the two innings at Johannesburg.

"I firmly believe the opening partnership holds the key for us. If they can give us 80-100 runs, then we have a platform for the guys to follow. Graeme (Smith) and Alviro (Petersen) have been doing this for us for a while now," he said.

When asked specifically about the likes of Hashim Amla and Dale Steyn, both of whom couldn't make much of a mark in the first Test, the coach seemed unperturbed.

"Hashim has been in great form for us for the last two-three years. He is going to get runs at some stage, probably in this match.

"It is just a matter of time and this is a great place to do it, a great occasion on Boxing Day. He was very mature about his dismissals in the first Tests, like any other dismissal. He was disappointed of course, but he has moved on. Dale (Steyn) too has moved on".

South Africa will need their best players to perform, indeed, for they haven't won in Durban in the last four Tests.

Their last win came against West Indies, back in 2008, and since they have lost four on the bounce to Australia, England, India and Sri Lanka.

"Our past record here is not something we have thought of. It is my first Test match here and I am not carrying any baggage. Our players are looking forward to this Test since we don't have a New Year's test. So, Boxing Day becomes a big occasion and it is a massive Test match for us," he signed off.

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SA seek better fortunes at Kingsmead

South Africa will seek to arrest a dismal Durban run of four straight defeats at Kingsmead when they host India in the second and final Test on Thursday, four days after their epic draw in Johannesburg.

The Proteas are at a loss to explain their miserable run at one of the country's premier Test grounds, where they have not won since beating West Indies in 2008.

Australia, England, India and Sri Lanka have all enjoyed handsome triumphs in Durban over the world's top ranked Test team since then and vice-captain AB de Villiers cannot fathom the poor run.

"I am confused about Durban. I don't know what to expect," he told reporters.

"I am going to play it like I always play my cricket. I am going to take it one ball at a time and use my experience to adapt as quickly as I can. So will the whole team."

De Villiers suggested it would be a good toss to win, with a lively pitch expected for the first part of the Test.

"I think there will be a bit of movement on the first day. Batting first always seemed the better option in the past.

"I don't expect as many cracks as there was at the Wanderers. It will probably be a bit more green, a bit firmer, and there may be a bit of turn towards the end of the Test."

South Africa's overall record at Kingsmead is symmetrical - they have won 13, lost 13 and been involved in 13 draws.

Durban-based fast-bowler Kyle Abbott should come into the side for Morne Morkel, who suffered an ankle ligament strain in the first Test at the Wanderers, but it is the spin department that will give the selectors the most pause for thought.

LACKED CONTROL

Imran Tahir went at five runs an over in the first Test and was a pressure release for the Indian batsmen. De Villiers defended the Pakistan-born 34-year-old.

"Immi (Imran Tahir) has bowled really well in the last few months. He didn't have a great game at the Wanderers but that is part of sport. We know what he is capable of," De Villiers said.

"It's always tempting to get Immi into your starting XI, even if you play on a road. Even on glass, he can get you wickets.

"He seems to run through the tail easily. It's a tough decision to make. We lacked control at the Wanderers, not just from Immi, from all the bowlers."

While there has been a furore at home over the team's decision to settle for a draw in the first Test where they were eight runs short of a world record victory target of 458, little has been made of India's inability to close the game out.

The tourists had 136 overs to take 10 wickets on a wearing pitch with variable bounce but managed just seven against a defiant display of batting by the hosts.

Questions around India's team selection also centre on the spinners, with Ravichandran Ashwin bowling 42 wicket-less and expensive overs.

Left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha is the other option, though he has never bowled in Test matches outside the sub-continent.

The workload of the entire Indian bowling unit in Johannesburg was heavy, with 35-year-old Zaheer Khan bowling over 60 overs. That might have a bearing on MS Dhoni's decision if the Indian captain wins the toss.

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SA seek better fortunes at Kingsmead

South Africa will seek to arrest a dismal Durban run of four straight defeats at Kingsmead when they host India in the second and final Test on Thursday, four days after their epic draw in Johannesburg.

The Proteas are at a loss to explain their miserable run at one of the country's premier Test grounds, where they have not won since beating West Indies in 2008.

Australia, England, India and Sri Lanka have all enjoyed handsome triumphs in Durban over the world's top ranked Test team since then and vice-captain AB de Villiers cannot fathom the poor run.

"I am confused about Durban. I don't know what to expect," he told reporters.

"I am going to play it like I always play my cricket. I am going to take it one ball at a time and use my experience to adapt as quickly as I can. So will the whole team."

De Villiers suggested it would be a good toss to win, with a lively pitch expected for the first part of the Test.

"I think there will be a bit of movement on the first day. Batting first always seemed the better option in the past.

"I don't expect as many cracks as there was at the Wanderers. It will probably be a bit more green, a bit firmer, and there may be a bit of turn towards the end of the Test."

South Africa's overall record at Kingsmead is symmetrical - they have won 13, lost 13 and been involved in 13 draws.

Durban-based fast-bowler Kyle Abbott should come into the side for Morne Morkel, who suffered an ankle ligament strain in the first Test at the Wanderers, but it is the spin department that will give the selectors the most pause for thought.

LACKED CONTROL

Imran Tahir went at five runs an over in the first Test and was a pressure release for the Indian batsmen. De Villiers defended the Pakistan-born 34-year-old.

"Immi (Imran Tahir) has bowled really well in the last few months. He didn't have a great game at the Wanderers but that is part of sport. We know what he is capable of," De Villiers said.

"It's always tempting to get Immi into your starting XI, even if you play on a road. Even on glass, he can get you wickets.

"He seems to run through the tail easily. It's a tough decision to make. We lacked control at the Wanderers, not just from Immi, from all the bowlers."

While there has been a furore at home over the team's decision to settle for a draw in the first Test where they were eight runs short of a world record victory target of 458, little has been made of India's inability to close the game out.

The tourists had 136 overs to take 10 wickets on a wearing pitch with variable bounce but managed just seven against a defiant display of batting by the hosts.

Questions around India's team selection also centre on the spinners, with Ravichandran Ashwin bowling 42 wicket-less and expensive overs.

Left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha is the other option, though he has never bowled in Test matches outside the sub-continent.

The workload of the entire Indian bowling unit in Johannesburg was heavy, with 35-year-old Zaheer Khan bowling over 60 overs. That might have a bearing on MS Dhoni's decision if the Indian captain wins the toss.

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IPL 7 auction to be held on Feb 12

NEW DELHI: IPL franchises will be allowed to retain five cricketers during the 2014 Indian Premier League auction to be held on February 12 with the option of buying back a limited number of players through the newly introduced 'right to match' provision.

After a series of discussions, the IPL Governing Council today came up with a number of regulations related to Players' Contracts, Squad Compositions and the Retention of Players in advance for the 2014 Auction.

"The Pepsi IPL 2014 Player Auction will be held on 12 February, and if necessary, 13 February 2014. The venue of the auction will be announced soon," BCCI said in a release.

"A franchise may sign up to a maximum of 5 players (either capped or uncapped, no more than four of whom may be capped Indians) who were in its squad in 2013, including those who were unavailable during the season and those who were taken as temporary replacements."

Regarding the Salary cap, the Governing Council said the franchises will be charged Rs 12.5 crore, Rs 9.5 crore, Rs 7.5 crore, Rs 5.5 crore and Rs 4 crore for respectively the first, second, third, fourth and fifth capped players retained and it would be "irrespective of the IPL league fee that is agreed between the two parties and which is set out in the player contract."

Apart from the cricketers who are retained in advance, all other players will have to enter the 2014 player auction process if they want to play in the IPL in 2014, the release said.

According to the new regulations, the format of the 2014 Player Auction will be broadly similar to last year but each franchise will have a number of 'rights to match' which it may exercise during the course of the auction for those players who were in its squad in 2013.

"The number of 'rights to match' available to a franchise will depend on the number of players that the franchise retained in advance," the release said.

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'India had more positives from 1st Test'

DURBAN: Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara today sought to play mind games ahead of the second cricket Test against South Africa, saying the visitors had more positives to take from the epic drawn first Test and would like to "build on the gains" from that match.

"If we consider the last match, we have had more positives than South Africa. We batted first when the ball was doing a bit and we batted well. When they batted in the first innings, there wasn't much help from the track, still we came back with our bowling," Pujara said at the pre-match press conference here.

"In the second innings, they had the opportunity to bat in better conditions. On the last day, we were expecting some more movement from the cracks but it didn't happen. They were lucky enough to survive," India's No 3, who scored an impressive 153 in the first Test, said.

Pujara said that India had a better chance of winning the first Test but it was one partnership between AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis, that didn't go their way.

"We had very good chance to win the match. But it was one good partnership in a session that didn't go our way. So emotionally and mentally, coming out to play in Durban is a good thing for us. It is a new match and we have to start from scratch. We have to forget what happened in Johannesburg and focus on our plans for this game," Pujara said.

Pujara did not shy away from stating that South Africa didn't go for victory as they didn't have confidence in their tail-enders when asked about the impressive show by the Proteas while chasing a target in excess of 450.

"Only two of their batsmen, Faf and AB scored runs in the whole match. We are confident that we can get their batsmen out. Also, if you notice, they didn't go for victory in the end, so they are not confident about their tail-enders getting runs," the Saurashtra batsman pointed out.

Pujara also said that although it was a very close game, the recovery process after such a taxing encounter hasn't been a problem.

"Nevertheless, it was a very exciting finish and you expect such close contests from Test cricket. There is no problem with our recovery and we are training a lot. So we are fit enough to prepare for the next game."

India fell short by just three wickets in the end, but Pujara asserted that their bowlers had done well even in coming out of the game with a draw after setting a 458-run target.

"It was just one session on fifth day, which changed the game. The one between lunch and tea when we didn't get any wickets. That was the crucial session for us. If we had got one wicket - either Faf or AB - then we would have had a very good chance of winning the match.

"Obviously credit goes to them that they batted well, but apart from that we bowled really well in all other sessions," said Pujara, giving due credit to the efforts of Zaheer Khan, Mohamad Shami and Ishant Sharma.

He also had kind words for lone spinner in the attack, Ravichandran Ashwin, who didn't pick a wicket in the two innings.

"There wasn't much help for the spinners. But with the kind of line and length he bowled, he was getting a little bit of turn despite fast bowlers getting more help from the Wanderers' pitch.

"Ashwin bowled the right areas and Faf was struggling to play him. He didn't score many runs against Ashwin, if you see. The fast bowlers were mainly supposed to pick wickets for us and he just had to hold the line and length. In the end, Ashwin did his job for us," Pujara tried his best to defend the Tamil Nadu tweaker who has not done well on overseas tours.

Pujara didn't shy away from asking questions as to how Morne Morkel's replacement Kyle Abbott, who hasn't played much international cricket will fit in the scheme of things.

"It will a huge difference for them because the replacement bowler (Kyle Abbott) hasn't played much with this team. Even in Abu Dhabi, he didn't play against Pakistan. So it will be a bit of a bother to them because Dale Steyn is used to bowling with Morkel in a partnership".

Pujara did admit that Imran Tahir's poor show and Morkel's injury helped the Indian team's cause.

"Tahir didn't bowl well in that match. South Africa will be disappointed in his bowling because he had to do a specific role and he couldn't do it. Indian batsmen are always good against spinners and we did score many against Tahir and Duminy, and they had to bowl because Morkel was injured".

Dale Steyn didn't have a great Test match but Pujara by no means would like to underestimate the fast bowler.

"Of course, it is good for us that Steyn didn't pick any wickets in the match. But he's a very good bowler and nobody in our team will under-estimate him for this match. When you score runs, you get to know about the bowlers' strategy and their lengths."

Pujara said that his first overseas Test hundred has given him a lot of confidence.

"It becomes a bit easier in the next game, but I am not saying that I can walk in there and do the same in this match as well. I will have to work hard obviously, but I had the confidence to score runs overseas because I have been on many A-tours to Australia, England and here as well earlier in the year," he said.

Irrespective of the bowling attack, his partnership with Kohli at number four will once again be crucial to India's fortunes when they bat together in the second Test.

"We had two perfect partnerships. Let us hope we can continue to bat well together in this match as well," Pujara signed off.

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'India had more positives from 1st Test'

DURBAN: Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara today sought to play mind games ahead of the second cricket Test against South Africa, saying the visitors had more positives to take from the epic drawn first Test and would like to "build on the gains" from that match.

"If we consider the last match, we have had more positives than South Africa. We batted first when the ball was doing a bit and we batted well. When they batted in the first innings, there wasn't much help from the track, still we came back with our bowling," Pujara said at the pre-match press conference here.

"In the second innings, they had the opportunity to bat in better conditions. On the last day, we were expecting some more movement from the cracks but it didn't happen. They were lucky enough to survive," India's No 3, who scored an impressive 153 in the first Test, said.

Pujara said that India had a better chance of winning the first Test but it was one partnership between AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis, that didn't go their way.

"We had very good chance to win the match. But it was one good partnership in a session that didn't go our way. So emotionally and mentally, coming out to play in Durban is a good thing for us. It is a new match and we have to start from scratch. We have to forget what happened in Johannesburg and focus on our plans for this game," Pujara said.

Pujara did not shy away from stating that South Africa didn't go for victory as they didn't have confidence in their tail-enders when asked about the impressive show by the Proteas while chasing a target in excess of 450.

"Only two of their batsmen, Faf and AB scored runs in the whole match. We are confident that we can get their batsmen out. Also, if you notice, they didn't go for victory in the end, so they are not confident about their tail-enders getting runs," the Saurashtra batsman pointed out.

Pujara also said that although it was a very close game, the recovery process after such a taxing encounter hasn't been a problem.

"Nevertheless, it was a very exciting finish and you expect such close contests from Test cricket. There is no problem with our recovery and we are training a lot. So we are fit enough to prepare for the next game."

India fell short by just three wickets in the end, but Pujara asserted that their bowlers had done well even in coming out of the game with a draw after setting a 458-run target.

"It was just one session on fifth day, which changed the game. The one between lunch and tea when we didn't get any wickets. That was the crucial session for us. If we had got one wicket - either Faf or AB - then we would have had a very good chance of winning the match.

"Obviously credit goes to them that they batted well, but apart from that we bowled really well in all other sessions," said Pujara, giving due credit to the efforts of Zaheer Khan, Mohamad Shami and Ishant Sharma.

He also had kind words for lone spinner in the attack, Ravichandran Ashwin, who didn't pick a wicket in the two innings.

"There wasn't much help for the spinners. But with the kind of line and length he bowled, he was getting a little bit of turn despite fast bowlers getting more help from the Wanderers' pitch.

"Ashwin bowled the right areas and Faf was struggling to play him. He didn't score many runs against Ashwin, if you see. The fast bowlers were mainly supposed to pick wickets for us and he just had to hold the line and length. In the end, Ashwin did his job for us," Pujara tried his best to defend the Tamil Nadu tweaker who has not done well on overseas tours.

Pujara didn't shy away from asking questions as to how Morne Morkel's replacement Kyle Abbott, who hasn't played much international cricket will fit in the scheme of things.

"It will a huge difference for them because the replacement bowler (Kyle Abbott) hasn't played much with this team. Even in Abu Dhabi, he didn't play against Pakistan. So it will be a bit of a bother to them because Dale Steyn is used to bowling with Morkel in a partnership".

Pujara did admit that Imran Tahir's poor show and Morkel's injury helped the Indian team's cause.

"Tahir didn't bowl well in that match. South Africa will be disappointed in his bowling because he had to do a specific role and he couldn't do it. Indian batsmen are always good against spinners and we did score many against Tahir and Duminy, and they had to bowl because Morkel was injured".

Dale Steyn didn't have a great Test match but Pujara by no means would like to underestimate the fast bowler.

"Of course, it is good for us that Steyn didn't pick any wickets in the match. But he's a very good bowler and nobody in our team will under-estimate him for this match. When you score runs, you get to know about the bowlers' strategy and their lengths."

Pujara said that his first overseas Test hundred has given him a lot of confidence.

"It becomes a bit easier in the next game, but I am not saying that I can walk in there and do the same in this match as well. I will have to work hard obviously, but I had the confidence to score runs overseas because I have been on many A-tours to Australia, England and here as well earlier in the year," he said.

Irrespective of the bowling attack, his partnership with Kohli at number four will once again be crucial to India's fortunes when they bat together in the second Test.

"We had two perfect partnerships. Let us hope we can continue to bat well together in this match as well," Pujara signed off.

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SA 331/4 at tea on Day 5 against India

NEW DELHI: Indian bowlers failed to get a single wicket post lunch as Faf du Plessis and AB de Villiers batted through the session on the fifth and final day of the first Test at New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg.

Scorecard

Du Plessis (88*) and De Villiers (72*) added an unbeaten 134-run stand to take South Africa 331/4 at tea on Day 5, require 127 more runs to win the last session.

The duo defied the Indian bowling to stitch century stand and put South Africa in firm control.

Faf du Plessis, AB de Villiers were batting well in tandem to score fifty apiece and leave India struggling for the wickets.

De Villiers took 85 balls to make his 34th Test fifty with the help of eight boundaries. Du Plessis smashed a boundary off Mohammed Shami towards deep square leg to reach his third Test half-century.

Earlier, India grabbed two wickets in the first session to reduce South Africa to 236 for 4 at lunch as the match remained wide open for a result.

Faf du Plessis (42) and AB de Villiers (25) were at the crease at the break at Wanderers, after Zaheer Khan (15-0-61-1) had dismissed Jacques Kallis to take his 300th Test wicket in his 89th match.

The Proteas scored 98 runs in the first session in 29 overs and need another 222 runs to win with two sessions remaining, while India need six more wickets. But, an injured Morne Morkel is doubtful to come out and bat after he twisted his ankle on Day three.

South Africa began the day at their overnight score of 138/2, with Alviro Petersen on 76 and du Plessis on 10.

Pacer Mohammed Shami (17-3-63-2) was the first bowler deployed by skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni as India hunted for their second Test win at this ground in four Tests played here. He bowled with fire, moving the ball both ways despite the ball being 45 overs old.

Peterson started with a lazy shot on the very first ball of the day, an uncharacteristic one given how he played in the evening session of day four. Even as the batsman may have hoped to get his hundred, it was a pointer that perhaps this was not going to be his day.

And four overs later, Shami found a way past his defence. An incoming delivery kept low and Peterson got an inside edge onto his stumps. He was out for 76, without adding a run to his overnight score. In all, he faced 162 balls and hitting nine fours.

Shami was bowling a fiery five-over spell in first hour, which yielded 56 runs, and he had a loud appeal against Kallis turned down first ball. The ball seemed to be going down leg-side by a few inches and the great all-rounder escaped a golden pair. Kallis found his bearings thereafter, scoring at a quick clip with a streak of boundaries, and scored 31 of the 50-run partnership with du Plessis.

Kallis, however, seemed to be in a hurry chasing down a huge score and looked set, when umpire Rod Tucker wrongly adjudged him LBW off Zaheer in the 61st over. He was out for 34 runs off 37 balls, as a huge inside edge rocked his front pads.

But the umpire's finger went up and Kallis became Zaheer's 300th Test victim in his 89th Test. The veteran left-arm speedster is the fourth highest wicket-taker for India in Test cricket, after Anil Kumble (619 wickets in 132 Tests), Kapil Dev (434 wickets in 131 Tests) and Harbhajan Singh (413 wickets in 101 Tests).

The 200 came up for South Africa in the 61st over, as de Villiers and du Plessis avoided further damage. Spin was introduced in the 65th over, with R Ashwin (21-3-49-0) coming to bowl, while Virat Kohli (2-0-7-0) was introduced into the attack with 15 minutes to go for lunch.

De Villiers survived an LBW appeal in the 71st over, bowled by Ashwin, but the ball appeared to be sailing above leg-stump. Shami bowled the final over before the break and the batsman survived another LBW call, with the ball seeming to sail just above the off-stump.

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Du Plessis, De Villiers slim India hopes

NEW DELHI: Faf du Plessis and AB de Villiers defied the Indian bowling to stitch century stand and put South Africa in firm control on the fifth and final day of the first Test at New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg.

Scorecard

Faf du Plessis, AB de Villiers were batting well in tandem to score fifty apiece and leave India struggling for the wickets.

De Villiers took 85 balls to make his 34th Test fifty with the help of eight boundaries. Du Plessis smashed a boundary off Mohammed Shami towards deep square leg to reach his third Test half-century.

Earlier, India grabbed two wickets in the first session to reduce South Africa to 236 for 4 at lunch as the match remained wide open for a result.

Faf du Plessis (42) and AB de Villiers (25) were at the crease at the break at Wanderers, after Zaheer Khan (15-0-61-1) had dismissed Jacques Kallis to take his 300th Test wicket in his 89th match.

The Proteas scored 98 runs in the first session in 29 overs and need another 222 runs to win with two sessions remaining, while India need six more wickets. But, an injured Morne Morkel is doubtful to come out and bat after he twisted his ankle on Day three.

South Africa began the day at their overnight score of 138/2, with Alviro Petersen on 76 and du Plessis on 10.

Pacer Mohammed Shami (17-3-63-2) was the first bowler deployed by skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni as India hunted for their second Test win at this ground in four Tests played here. He bowled with fire, moving the ball both ways despite the ball being 45 overs old.

Peterson started with a lazy shot on the very first ball of the day, an uncharacteristic one given how he played in the evening session of day four. Even as the batsman may have hoped to get his hundred, it was a pointer that perhaps this was not going to be his day.

And four overs later, Shami found a way past his defence. An incoming delivery kept low and Peterson got an inside edge onto his stumps. He was out for 76, without adding a run to his overnight score. In all, he faced 162 balls and hitting nine fours.

Shami was bowling a fiery five-over spell in first hour, which yielded 56 runs, and he had a loud appeal against Kallis turned down first ball. The ball seemed to be going down leg-side by a few inches and the great all-rounder escaped a golden pair. Kallis found his bearings thereafter, scoring at a quick clip with a streak of boundaries, and scored 31 of the 50-run partnership with du Plessis.

Kallis, however, seemed to be in a hurry chasing down a huge score and looked set, when umpire Rod Tucker wrongly adjudged him LBW off Zaheer in the 61st over. He was out for 34 runs off 37 balls, as a huge inside edge rocked his front pads.

But the umpire's finger went up and Kallis became Zaheer's 300th Test victim in his 89th Test. The veteran left-arm speedster is the fourth highest wicket-taker for India in Test cricket, after Anil Kumble (619 wickets in 132 Tests), Kapil Dev (434 wickets in 131 Tests) and Harbhajan Singh (413 wickets in 101 Tests).

The 200 came up for South Africa in the 61st over, as de Villiers and du Plessis avoided further damage. Spin was introduced in the 65th over, with R Ashwin (21-3-49-0) coming to bowl, while Virat Kohli (2-0-7-0) was introduced into the attack with 15 minutes to go for lunch.

De Villiers survived an LBW appeal in the 71st over, bowled by Ashwin, but the ball appeared to be sailing above leg-stump. Shami bowled the final over before the break and the batsman survived another LBW call, with the ball seeming to sail just above the off-stump.

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