NEWS
OTHER SPORTS
DIARY
PEOPLE
MATCH REPORTS
SLIDE SHOW
ARCHIVES

Tendulkar ready to take on the Windies

Sachin Tendulkar will return to lead India against the West Indies in the final of the Singapore Challenge cricket tournament tomorrow.

Tendulkar sat out during yesterday's game against the same opposition but will captain a full-strength side in the final in which India will be additionally bolstered by the return of medium-pace bowler Venkatesh Prasad and leg-spinner Anil Kumble.

All three were rested yesterday as the outcome of the match was meaningless after both sides had already qualified for the final. The West Indies won, scoring 196 for seven to India's 154 for eight.

The three players are expected to replace Sadagoppan Ramesh, young all-rounder Laxmi Ratan Shukla, who has a sore ankle, and left-hand batsman Amay Khurasia, who did not make much of an impression in the earlier games against Zimbabwe and the West Indies.

The West Indies rested their veteran pace bowler Courtney Walsh yesterday. Walsh, 37, is the main weapon in skipper Brian Lara's armoury and still troubles the best batsmen even on the best of pitches.

The Kallang pitch has played flat and true so far, making it a contest of piling up the runs. Even the two rain-shortened games have yielded scores around the 200-mark and beyond.

That could make the title clash a straight battle between the two captains. Lara and Tendulkar both have the ability to win a match single-handedly.

Both teams have players who can accelerate the scoring, especially on the small Kallang ground where there has been a barrage of sixes.

It promises to be an absorbing final for local cricket enthusiasts, mostly Indian supporters, who were disappointed that Tendulkar missed yesterday's game. Tendulkar has resolved not to let them down again.

The weather remains uncertain. It rained late at night for the past three days and matches have been delayed and shortened to a 30 overs a side.

UNI