From the publishers of THE HINDU

VOL.29 :: NO.42 :: Oct. 21, 2006

STAR POSTER
ADAM GILCHRIST

ADAM GILCHRIST

Letters
Lure of lucre
Full marks to S. Ram Mahesh for a rare Cover Story (Sportstar, Oct. 14) dwelling for once not
on any event in the world of sports but on the current monetary `climate' prevalent therein,
with its potential to make or mar the pristine image of ...

Cover Story
Bustling in the fast lane
In the land of spin, pace is now considered the ace. India has a wealth of options with
pacemen sprouting from remote corners, and unlikely backgrounds, writes S. Dinakar.

Cricket
CHAMPIONS TROPHY PRELIMINARIES
Paucity of runs
On a new wicket, the Indian bowlers held sway. England caused a flutter of sorts late in the
match, but it was too little, too late. VIJAY LOKAPALLY reports.

Interview
Not the one to succumb to pressure
M. S. Dhoni likes to keep his cricket simple. "The ball is there to be hit. Sometimes you have
to play a delivery on its merit and sometimes think of innovating. I like to innovate because it
throws new challenges to the bowlers," says the wicketkeeper-batsman in a chat with Vijay
Lokapally.

Cricket
CHAMPIONS TROPHY PRELIMINARIES
Over in double quick time
Sri Lanka had an unlikely hero in seamer Farveez Maharoof in its match against the West
Indies. G. Viswanath reports.
CHAMPIONS TROPHY PRELIMINARIES
Nafees calls the shots
In a bout of lightweights, Bangladesh packed the heavier punch. A report by Vijay Lokapally.
CHAMPIONS TROPHY PRELIMINARIES
Caught in a Ga(y)le
Chris Gayle is not one to look a gift horse in the mouth. His century sunk an already listing
Bangladesh. A report by Vijay Lokapally.
CHAMPIONS TROPHY PRELIMINARIES
Tharanga packs a mean willow
The opening batsman has firmly entrenched himself in the Sri Lankan team and promises to
be an asset for years to come. A report by G. Viswanath.

Typhoon Talk
COLUMN BY FRANK TYSON
The wisdom of Warne
Shane Warne obviously believes that the players within the Australian team can fulfil all of
the necessary coaching duties!

Cricket
IRANI TROPHY
Champions run aground
Uttar Pradesh's inability to rise to the occasion made the Irani Trophy match an exercise in
futility. A report by NANDAKUMAR MARAR.

Cricket Corner
COLUMN BY BOB SIMPSON
The real stars of cricket
Style is fine for a batsman, but more often than not it is those with not much talent, but willing
to put in hard work, who amass priceless runs in international cricket.

Inside Cricket
COLUMN BY MAKARAND WAINGANKAR
Secret of success
By winning the coveted Ranji Trophy, beating Bengal, followed by a win over Sialkot in the
Mohamad Nissar Trophy, U.P. has proved that the only way to victory is to keep playing
cricket hard.

Feature
FLINTOFF MUST BE HIS CHARMING SELF IN AUSTRALIA
England's captain is admired in Australia, too, as a fellow who plays the game with gusto, but
never tramples cricket's spirit in his response to a challenge, writes Rohit Brijnath.

Tennis
KINGFISHER AIRLINES OPEN
Tursunov's conquest
Russia's Davis Cup hero displayed raw aggression that saw him stand out in the tournament,
writes Nandakumar Marar.

Hockey
WOMEN'S WORLD CUP
POOR UMPIRING MARS CHAMPIONSHIP
It is nobody's case that a tournament at the World level should be bereft of umpiring errors.
No sport is free from this. But the federations must ensure that the margin of errors is
negligible, writes S. THYAGARAJAN.

Comment
COMMENT
The job is only half done
Campaigns against racism do nothing to stem the thoughts that crystallise in racist abuse. If
racism is to be rooted out, the thinking has to change, writes S. Ram Mahesh.

Kicking Around
COLUMN BY BRIAN GLANVILLE
England's problems
The choice of Steve McClaren was a pathetic, unimaginative compromise.

Focus
FORMULA ONE
A SEASON OF TWISTS AND TURNS
For Michael Schumacher to win his eighth title, two things have to work in his favour — he
has to win the Brazilian GP, scheduled for October 22, which to some extent is within his
control, and Alonso has to finish out of points, which definitely neither Schumacher nor his
team Ferarri can influence. So, it's advantage Alonso, writes G. RAGHUNATH.