|
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Video Plus Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities 
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE
|  |
Honoring a legend Australia to pay tribute to Bradman with 'good cricket'
BOMBAY, India (AP) - Australian cricket captain Steve Waugh says the best way for his lineup to pay tribute to national icon Sir Donald Bradman is to win the first test against India starting Tuesday in Bombay. Preparations for the series-opener were overshadowed Monday by the death overnight of the 92-year-old Bradman, who was regarded universally as cricket's greatest ever batsman. Australia is on a world-record 15 test winning stretch and should be going into the series as hot favorite, but Australian teams traditionally struggle in India and have not won a series here since 1969-70. "Sir Donald Bradman meant a lot to Australia -- he united the country in times of need," he said. "Obviously he was a great player and an inspiration to millions of people, including myself." Waugh said instead of focussing on the passing of a legend and sending representatives back to Australia for a funeral, the Australians could use the loss to inspire a win in his honor. "I'm sure Sir Don would want the game to go on, that's the most important thing here -- to play good cricket," he said. "By doing that we'll show him all the necessary respect." The Australians will await a report on the fitness of batsman Mark Waugh and the condition of the pitch before naming a starting lineup. Mark Waugh injured his hand in the drawn tour match last week against Bombay and was unable to bat or field for the bulk of that match. Steve Waugh said if his twin brother was sidelined, Ricky Ponting would be elevated to bat at No. 4 and Damien Martyn would be recalled at No. 6. The skipper also said he was favoring a three-pronged pace attack spearheaded by Glenn McGrath along with Jason Gillespie and Damien Fleming but, if the pitch at Wankhede Stadium was very dry, selectors could opt to use two spinners. Leg-spinner Shane Warne returned to form Saturday by taking seven wickets against Bombay to help secure a draw. He would most likely be picked ahead of off-spinner Colin Miller if only one spin-bowler was named. The Australians have been scratchy in two tour matches but Waugh said the Indians were going into the series under strength. "India hasn't played a tough test series in the last six months -- against a quality quick bowling attack," he said. So it's going to be difficult for their batsmen." McGrath snared 18 wickets in Australia's 3-0 series drubbing of India in Australia in 1999-2000 and is has a good record against star Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar. But the pace bowler is untried in Indian test conditions and Tendulkar is primed for a big series, particularly in the wake of Bradman's death. Bradman, who blazed 6,996 runs at an average of 99.94 in 52 tests before retiring in 1948, once rated Tendulkar as the modern batsman who most reminded him of himself because he scores his runs quickly and with finesse. Tendulkar, who has scored 22 centuries and 50 half centuries in 76 tests, thrives in situations where the Indian team is under pressure. With Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid at the top of the order, the hosts could be prolific if Ganguly wins the toss and elects to bat first. Ganguly refused to comment on the condition of the pitch, except to say it would be a good wicket to bat on, and also declined to comment on Australia's patchy performances in the opening two tour games. "That was a first class game and this is a test match, there's a big difference," he said of last week's tour match. "I don't want to comment on their form, we want to concentrate on our own cricket." Indian selectors will name a team on the morning of the match. In contrast to the Australian bowling attack, the Indians were expected to name three spin bowlers alongside paceman Javagal Srinath, with Ajit Agarkar and Narenda Hirwani in contention for the third spot. Coach John Wright, a former New Zealand international, wouldn't be drawn on tipping the outcome, only to say that he was happy with the Indian squad's buildup for the test. "I just hope sincerely that we play with a passion and we play hard cricket so that the people that follow the game here are proud of the way we play," he said. Lineups: India (from): Sourav Ganguly (captain), Shiv Sunder Das, Sadagoppan Ramesh, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, V.V.S. Laxman, Nayan Mongia, Ajit Agarkar, Harbhajan Singh, Rahul Sanghvi, Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan, Narenda Hirwani, Hemarg Badani. Australia (from): Steve Waugh (captain), Michael Slater, Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Mark Waugh, Ricky Ponting, Damien Martyn, Adam Gilchrist, Jason Gillespie, Shane Warne, Damien Fleming, Glenn McGrath.
| ||||||||||||||||||||
