Dippenaar announces international retirement

Boeta Dippenaar, the South Africa batsman, has announced his retirement from international cricket to concentrate on building a life beyond the sport.
"Where my cricket career stands now, I have to make the tough call and step away," he told News 24 on Tuesday. "I want to improve my qualifications for life after cricket. Even if I were in the national team now I would have announced my retirement at the end of the season."
Dippenaar, 30, made his debut in 1999 but it took him a further 12 months to register his first hundred. Soon after, he lost his place to Herschelle Gibbs - a batsman of complete contrast to Dippenaar, whose strengths were his sweet timing and orthodox defence.
In spite of a healthy first-class record for Eagles and Free State, amassing nearly 9000 runs at 42.99, he couldn't translate that same form into his international career, though he found some success in one-dayers with 3421 runs and four hundreds.
Captain of the Eagles, who this week won the SuperSport Series title, Dippenaar will also play for Leicestershire in 2008.
"Some people may question my decision but it is something that my wife and I have reached certainty about during the past year," he said. "I am grateful for the opportunities I have had. I am grateful that I was able to represent my country and I wish the national team all the best."
Cricket South Africa (CSA) wished Dippenaar well and hoped he would continue to be a role model for all the younger players in the franchise system.
"CSA wishes Boeta and his family all the best in this new chapter of their lives, and we thank him for his most valued input into South African cricket at all the many levels he graced so well," Gerald Majola, the chief executive, said in a statement.

Should umpires be penalised for wrong Decisions ?

Most of the talk on day one of the second Test match between India and Australia in Sydney on Wednesday centered around the showing of the umpires rather than the players itself.Umpires Steve Bucknor and Mark Benson were involved in a few bizzare decisions as India suffered quite heavily.

First, Australia captain Ricky Ponting was the benificiary as a couple of edges were ruled not out by Benson, before he finally ruled him out leg before off a huge inside edge.Veteran Bucknor was no better as time and again he ruled in the favour of the hosts.

Youngster Ishant Sharma had got a thick audible outside edge of Andrew Symonds on 30 but Bucknor to the shock of many turned the appeal down. Later the third umpire also made his presence felt when Symonds (48) was given not out off a stumping appeal even though his feet had not touched the ground.

The blunders continued into the second day when Symonds again benefitted when Bucknor refused to use the third umpire off a closing stumping appeal. Close look at the television replays showed that Symonds, who was on 148 then, was once again short of his crease.

India's batsmen also suffered when Wasim Jaffer was bowled by Brett Lee off a fast delivery, but replays showed that the pacer might have overstepped the bowling crease.

Former India captain and commentator Ravi Shastri slammed Bucknor saying that the West Indian "was past his sell-by date.

"Peter Roebuck was equally critical in his column for the Sydney Morning Herald where he wrote: "Clearly, the sweet-natured Jamaican is past his prime. Indeed, he was expected to retire after the World Cup. Those responsible for allowing him to linger were also partly responsible for a decision that changed the course of the day and possibly the match and series."While one could argue that umpires are human and prone to error, but does it mean we continue to turn a blind eye to their mistakes? Or should the umpires be penalised for every error they commit for you never know how decisive it could prove?

Kumble the rock moves India

Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman were the run machines for India
9.5Anil Kumble

With twenty wickets in four Tests, 179 gritty runs, and a calm demeanour that helped India wade through a crisis, Kumble was India's most vital member. Beginning with a five-wicket haul on the opening day in Melbourne, he led the attack manfully and fittingly notched up his 600th wicket in Perth, a Test he termed was his "best win". He batted with gumption, shepherding the tail in crucial moments, and led with a statesman-like authority, guiding along a side through a turbulent phase.

9Sachin Tendulkar

Statistically he enjoyed his finest tour to Australia, averaging in excess of 70 with two hundreds and two fifties. He adapted brilliantly: attacking in Melbourne, accumulating in Sydney, and innovating in Perth, before rounding off with a complete innings in Adelaide, on Don Bradman's homeground. He was accorded rousing ovations each time he walked out and showed that, at 34, was still India's most consistent batsman.

8.5RP Singh

Leading the attack in Zaheer Khan's absence, RP Singh rose to the challenge. Swinging the ball at a lively pace, he troubled the Australians with his awkward angles. He expertly used the old ball and didn't flag in searing conditions. He tore through the top order on the first day in Sydney and mopped up the lower order within no time in Perth. He missed the final part of the Adelaide Test, a blow that was a big setback to India's series-levelling prospects.

8Ishant Sharma

Undoubtedly the find of the tour, Ishant was feted by Steve Waugh as the "next best thing" in Indian cricket. Despite going wicket-less in Sydney, he did enough to suggest immense potential and his double-strike against Ricky Ponting in Perth played a big part in the victory. He moved the ball both ways and, displayed a great ability to lift himself when the conditions were most demanding.

8VVS Laxman

Opened up the Sydney Test with an awe-inspiring hundred before producing a guarded, eventually match-winning, half-century in Perth. He showed his ability to change his game according to the situation and proved, once again, that he reserved his best for Australia. He was an important member of the slip cordon and did a fine job when standing close-in for the spinners too.

7.5Virender Sehwag

Made an impact in all the four opportunities he was given, none more so than the polished 151 in Adelaide, a match-saving effort. Even when he didn't go on to a big one he made confident starts to set a good platform, allowing the middle order to prosper. He made some good contributions with his offspin, including two vital wickets on the final day in Perth.

7Irfan Pathan

A fairytale comeback at Perth ended in a Man-of-the-Match award in one of the most memorable Indian wins in recent times. He did well with the bat but it was particularly heartening to see him generate alarming swing with the ball. He struggled on the flat deck in Adelaide but snapped up his 100th wicket in the same venue where he picked up his first, a good four years ago.
In the absence of Zaheer Khan, RP Singh and Irfan Pathan shouldered the bowling burden © Getty Images

6.5Rahul Dravid

Dravid struggled to strike the high notes through the series. Thrust into the opening slot for the first two Tests, he endured a mighty tough period. Often not able to get the ball off the square, he notched up dot ball after dot ball, never seeming like the run-machine that had come to these shores four years ago. His 93 was vital for the victory in Perth but, just when he appeared to be finding his groove, struggled again in Adelaide.

6Sourav Ganguly

Enjoyed a fine start to the tour but saw it fizzle out towards the end. He was undone by a couple of poor umpiring decisions but couldn't match the consistency he had shown ever since his return in December last 2006. He fell to left-armers on seven of the eight occasions with Brad Hogg troubling him more often than one would have expected. His fielding didn't inspire much confidence, a factor that went into his ouster from the one-day squad.

6MS Dhoni

It was a mixed series for Dhoni as a fine phase with the gloves coincided with an average one with the bat. His restrained knocks in Sydney and Perth were vital in the context of the match but Dhoni never really lived up to his reputation as an electrifying batsman. His wicketkeeping, though, improved with each match and displayed expert reflexes when standing up to the spinners.

5Harbhajan Singh

He ended the series as a better batsman than bowler. With two half-centuries in Sydney and Adelaide, he proved his ability as a lower-order batsman, capable of irritating the daylights out of the opposition. His bowling, though, was a disappointment. Apart from having Ricky Ponting's number for the first two Tests, he was largely ineffective through the series. He will be forever associated with the tour, though, having been at the centre of the storm during the Sydney furore.

4 Zaheer Khan

Played only one Test and had to return home with a heel injury. He contributed in Melbourne, though, hustling out batsmen on a flat pitch.

2Wasim Jaffer

Having cruised through 2007, Jaffer hit the ground with a mighty thud, managing just 49 runs in three Tests. He didn't have an answer to Brett Lee's pacy out-swingers and had lost his spot by the end of the series.

1Yuvraj Singh

With just 17 runs in two games and a string of poor fielding efforts, Yuvraj didn't inspire much confidence through the series. He injured himself during practice in Perth and was side-lined for at least two weeks, putting his one-day chances in doubt as well.

A to Z : All About our Superstar

A to Z : All About our Superstar
Name - Rajinikanth
Real Name - Shivaji Rao Gaikwad
Date of Birth - 12.12.1950
Time of Birth - 11:54 P.M.
Place of Birth - Bangalore
Star/Rasi - Sirvana/Magaram
Color - Black
Height - 5 feet 9 inch
Weight - 70 Kg
Name of Spouse - Mrs. Latha Rajinikanth, Principal, The Ashram
Date of Marriage - 26.02.1981 4:30 A.M
Place of Marriage - Thirupathi
Date of Reception - 14.03.1981 6:00 A.M
Place of Reception - Taj Coromandal, Chennai
Names of Children - Aishwarya & Sowandarya
Address -18, Raghava Veera Avenue,Poes Garden, Chennai-86
Contact Phone - 24991291,24990278
Fax - 24838890 (Raghavendra Mandapam)
Father's Name - Ramoji Rao
Mother's Name - Rambhai
Brother's Name - Sathya Narayana Rao & Nageshwara Rao
Guru - K.Balachandar
Spiritual Guru - Satchithananda Swamiji
Favourite God - Shri Raghavendra
Favourite Books - Books written by Shri Ramana Maharishi
Favourite City - Chennai
Favourite Colour - Black
Favourite Drinks - Juice & Curd
Favourite Foods - Chicken & Mutton items
Happiest Moments - To be alone
Worst Moments - Left the job of Conductor
Worst Period - 1978 - 1981
Favourite Dress - White Kurtha
Favourite Place - Himalaya
Favourite Place in House - Pooja Room
Favourite Proverb - Beware of Everything -that is un true; stick to the Truth shall succeed slowly but steadily
Favourite work - Self-driving
Unforgettable Man - K.Balachandar
Unforgettable Function - Bassha Silver Jubilee Function
Unforgettable Friend - Sri Priya
First Film - Aboorva Ragangal
50th Film - Tiger (Telugu)
100th Film - Shri Raghavendrar
125th Film - Rajathi Raja
150th Film - Padyappa
Favourite Hollywood Actor - Sylvester Stallone
Favourite Indian Actor - Kamalhaasan
Favourite Actress - Rekha (Hindi)
Favourite Role - Romantic Roles
Most Valuable Item - Appreciation Letter from K.Balachander for the film "Mullum Malarum"
Favourite Language - English
Favourite Films - Hollywood Films
Favourite Novel - Kalki's Ponniyin Selvan & T. Janakiraman's Amma Vanthal
Favourite Cinema Scene - Duet Scene
Favourite Writer - Jayagandhan
Favourite Poet - Kannadasan
Favourite Musician - Illayaraja
Favourite Speaker - Vattal Nagaraj
Favourite Songs - Songs sung by Chandrababu
Favourite Film - Veera Kesari (Kannada)
Favourite Politician - Singapore President Lee Quan-u
Unforgettable Leader - Mahatma Gandhiji
About Mahatma Gandhiji - Form of Truth; Great Yogi
About Bharathiar - Real Rebel Poet
About Kamarajar - Real "Padikatha Methai"
About Periyar - Real Spiritualist
About Annadurai - Great Leader
About Kalaigar - The only leader for Tamil Community
About M.G.R - Guardian to Tamil Cinema
About Shjivaji Ganeshan - Dictionary of Tamil Cinema
About Jayshankar - Sportiveness
About Shivakumar - Punctuality
About Kamalahaasan - Sincerity
Message to Fan - Live & Let Live
About Rajinikanth - I live for myself ; I don't care anybody but I respect everybody

My best bowling Performance

Todays match was one of my best bowling performances in my cricket career.Till today my best was 4ov 2m 5 for 3,and today it was my best of all and most satisfactory spell ever.My bowling stats were 3ov 3 for 1.I am so happy and want to perform ever like this.Thanks for my team mates and captain arun for encouraging me so much and making me achieve this.The most disappointing moment was i dropped a catch.Today again i ve a match hoping to perform the same again.

AUSSIES ONCE AGAIN GRABS THE BOXING DAY

AUSTRALIANS a perfect meaning of cricket have once again proved to be the champs of Cricket by defeating India by 377 runs one of the worst loss of Indian cricket.This is fourth Boxing day match for india and for the fourth time India has lost the pride.

Ponting one of the Best captians of Cricket History added one plus to his 15 cosecutive test victory joining the club along with Clive Lloyd and Steve Waugh with 14 and 16 test wins.Hayden's 124 run century made him the man of the match.Yuvi failed to score double figure adding both innings runs.NO ONE CAN BEAT US IN AUSTRALIA..

Rajini Pinnacle of Indian Cinema (LIFE HISTORY)

Rajini, the real mantra of Tamil Nadu. There are fan associations across Tamil Nadu dedicated to him. Many more than for any other Tamil star, past or present. Rajinikanth, the carpenter-turned-coolie-turned-conductor-turned Super Star says: “I couldn’t have asked God for more.” A bit of a recluse, Rajni may be. But everyone who’s had the privelege of a darshan with the thalaivar has come away with a spring in his step and a warm glow in the heart. Warm, friendly and affable, he’s the sort who deserves all the superstardom he’s earned. Such men, indeed, are rare...
It’s been 25 years, believe it or not, since the Periya Thalaivar (big boss) made his debut with an inconsequential role in a Tamil film. From villain and antihero to blockbuster supernova, the gifted actor has made the most of every outing. And he’s deserved every bit of the success. SCREEN analyses why...
It's a wide angle shot. A man is seen opening a gate, dressed in rags and smoking a beedi. A terminally ill disease writ large on his face. Precisely on that frame appears the Sanskrit term shruthi bedham, coupled with an off screen voice, an undoubtedly inauspicious start to any debutante’s first screen appearance, especially in the maiden frame.
The film was Apoorva Raagangal (1975). The film itself was thick in controversy, and nobody took notice of the young newcomer, who was on screen barely for fifteen minutes, muttered a few apologetic words to the wronged woman and ultimately died an unsung, unheroic death.
No one in the audience, even in his wildest imagination, would have thought this nondescript man, who had won the least attention in the film would ever win over millions of hearts in Tamil Nadu. Or ride the state like a colossus. Or even that his sway over the masses would be so intense that he could rewrite the fate of Tamil Nadu politics, exactly two decades after the release of his first film.
K Balachander, the director who has an uncanny knack of creating stars, first met Rajnikant at the film institute, where he was a student. Balachander glanced at the dark young man and crisply asked him to meet him in his office the next day. When Rajnikant walked into his office gingerly, Balachander informed him he was going to act in his next film. Overwhelmed by the sudden offer from a ‘big’ director, Rajnikant just could not believe his ears. It’s a feeling Rajni still recounts whenever in the mood of reminiscence.
Later, Balachander confided in his close friend and associate Ananthu, “Watch out! There is a fire in the young man’s eyes. One day he will take Tamil Nadu by storm.” How true the prediction turned out!
Producers went all out to capitalise on this new “wonder” called Rajnikant, and a string of films projecting him as an anti-hero, with all his stylish mannerisms in full swing, were released in quick succession. Gayathri had him shooting blue films of his wife without her knowledge, Bhairavi, Shankar Salim Simon and the like. Rajni had, by now, become an indisputable star in his own right, a force to reckon with.
Though Rajnikant persistently refers to K Balachander as his “guru”, it was director SP Muthuraman who actually revamped Rajni’s image entirely. Muthuraman first experimented with him in a positive role in Bhuvana Oru Kelvikkuri, as a villain in the first half and a refined man in the second, accepting a woman with a child ditched by her lover. The success of Bhuvana Oru Kelvikkuri prompted SPM to make a mushy melodrama with Rajni as a hero sacrificing everything for his siblings, a role ideally tailormade for Sivaji Ganesan! That film was Arulirunthu Arupathu Varai, in which Rajni’s mannerisms were totally missing and he even appeared as an old man in the last few frames. Even while the film was in the making, Rajni had misgivings about whether the audience would accept him in tear jerkers of this kind. But the film got made and its box-office success made Rajni popular among women audiences, too. These two films were a turning point in Rajni’s career — he changed from an actor who merely enthralled the audiences, to one who also made them weep. The acceptance of Rajni sans his mannerisms proved he’d at last become an actor from a star. Around this time came Mullum Malarum, directed by J Mahendran, which established Rajni as a hero with a slight tinge of the negative.
Rajnikant’s entry may have been humble, in an insignificant role but the success he achieved in a very short span was unimaginable. A popular Tamil magazine brought out a special supplement at a time when his still on the make, and, he presto, the magazine’s sales doubled with that issue alone.
Such mass adulation, the thunderous rain of applause when Rajni delivered his lines, all put together, made him a phenomenon. It was at this point that Rajni realised the onus had been thrust on him. The fate of producers hinged on him alone. This sudden exposure to the glare of the media and the popularity and money he never imagined would be his, created a lot of stress in his mind. At that crucial time in his career when his market price had just begun to zoom, he decided to opt out of films completely, sending shock waves to his fans. Balachander, Kamalhaasan and his other well-wishers somehow, coaxed him into staying on.
The second phase of his life started with K Balaji’s Billa, a superhit disproving the canard spread by detractors that Rajnikant was “finished”. He was accepted as a full-fledged hero. Billa was followed by a row of hits like Pokkiri Raja, Thanikkattu Raja, Naan Mahaan Alla and the all-important Moondru Mugham, in which Rajni essayed a triple role. Even two decades after its release, the last continues to be a box-office draw and Rajni’s fans can never tire of the thalaivar’s verbal clash with villain Senthamarai. K Balachander’s first home production, Nettrikkam proved to be yet another milestone in Rajni’s career.
An analysis of Rajni’s career graph shows a remarkable absence of fits and starts. It has been a slow and steady rise to the very top. As Rajni sings in a hit song from Badshah, a man’s life may be divided into eight divisions. Rajni’s own career may be divided into three segments. The first as a villain, the second as a hero with negative traits, and the third and present phase, as the reigning czar of Tamil filmdom. With Rajni’s films fetching crores and his market price skyrocketing, the costs of production of his films became unmanageable. And Rajni has since had to stick to a one film per year formula, sometimes, he could do a film once in two years.
The new trend where his films’ collections exceed normal regional film expectations started off with Badshah, followed by Annamalai, Arunachalam, Ejaman, Muthu and Padayappa. It’s now an accepted fact that only a Rajnikant film can break records set by his own films.
As an actor, Rajnikant’s greatest asset, apart from his style is his sense of humour and comic timing. Like Amitabh Bachchan is popular for his drunken soliloquies, Rajnikant is famous for his comic encounters with snakes, repeated umpteen times.
In the early 80s, Rajnikant made a foray into Bollywood with Andhaa Kanoon, a superhit. But Rajnikant could not concentrate on Hindi films because he was already safely ensconced down South. He still made a few films in Hindi, to mention specially Chaalbaaz which had Sridevi in a dual role. Rajni also enjoys a special kind of popularity in Telugu films and his Peddarayudu (remake of Tamil hit Nattammai) seems to have broken all previous records. The Telugu version of Padayappa has been a money-spinner, too. Rajnikant became a trendsetter recently with his Muthu and its songs becoming a rage in Japan and now, Padayappa running to packed houses in the UK and USA.
Basically a religious person, Rajnikant has always owned up his faith. “I was brought up by the Ramakrishna Mission and it’s from there that I have inherited this religious frame of mind,” he keeps saying. Even his films have him openly sharing his faith. In Arunachalam he mouths that famous line, “God decides and Arunachalam executes it.” His public meetings are always spiced with humour and embellished with anecdotes from mythology.
Married to Lata, an English literature graduate, hailing from an elite Iyengar family in 1980, Rajni has two daughters who are carefully kept away from the limelight. Lata herself a versatile singer, now runs a school called The Ashram. The couple indulges in a lot of charity, the latest being converting his Raghavendra Kalyana Mandapam into a charitable trust to help the poor and needy.
Ego and starry airs are unknown to Rajnikant. During breaks he hardly ever rushes to his air-conditioned makeup room. Instead, he prefers to sleep on the sets, even without a pillow, merely covering his eyes with a wet cloth. He never comes to functions with a retinue behind him and even prefers to drive his own car.
Rajnikant’s phenomenal success and his sway over the masses make people speculate whether he will follow the footsteps of the late MGR and enter politics. Though there has been a lot of pressure on him to enter politics by the likes of actor turned journalist, Cho Ramaswamy (“Rajnikant is the best choice for chief ministership because he has a basic integrity and simplicity, a quality which is very rare these days”) Rajnikant has persistently maintained a diplomatic silence, except for the fact that he openly supported the ruling DMK in the last assembly elections and discreetly in the recent Lok Sabha elections. When pressed, Rajnikant answers in his own inimitable style, “Yesterday I was a conductor, today I’m a star, tomorrow what I’ll be only He knows!”
A bit of a recluse, he may be at heart, but everyone who’s had the privilege of a darshan with the thalaivar has come away with a spring in his step, and a warm glow in his heart. Warm, friendly and affable, he’s the sort who deserves all the superstardom he’s earned. Such men, indeed, are rare.