India close in on historic win

Gautam Gambhir hit 167 as India put themselves on course to a historic series triumph by taking a massive 531-run lead.

India turned the screws on day three of the third and final Test against the Black Caps to close in on their first series win in New Zealand in over 40 years.

Resuming on 51 for one, already 233 runs ahead, India piled on the misery for the New Zealanders as they racked up 349 runs for the loss of five wickets at Wellington's Basin Reserve.

That gave them a mammoth lead of 531 runs when bad light ended play early and with just two days remaining it left the visitors nicely poised to wrap up the series with ease after their comprehensive 10-wicket win in the first Test in Hamilton.

Gautam Gambhir and Rahul Dravid added 170 runs for the second wicket which effectively took the game away from New Zealand as their bowlers, particularly Tim Southee, found it tough going.

It was the 76th time Dravid had been involved in a century stand - a record for any batsman.

But the Black Caps enjoyed a profitable spell immediately after lunch with Daniel Vettori snaring the wickets of Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar, who made a 20-ball nine, as India went from 170 for one at lunch to 208 for three.

Dravid was dismissed on 60 after reaching his 57th Test half-century shortly before the interval. His 145-ball innings included 10 boundaries and was his fourth fifty of the series.

Gambhir and Laxman however, ploughed on to take India to 314 before both fell in quick succession once the second new ball had been taken.

Top Performer: Gautam Gambhir

Having reached 151 shortly before tea, Gambhir added a further 16 runs in the final session before he was trapped lbw by Iain O'Brien which brought to an end an impressive 257-ball innings that included 16 boundaries and two sixes.

O'Brien then struck again in his next over to dismiss Laxman (61), who had brought up his 39th half-century - and third in four innings - three overs previously.

That left India 319 for five, 501 runs ahead. Captain MS Dhoni (16 not out) and Yuvraj Singh (15 no) saw the visitors through to the close.

In a circumspect start Gambhir, who began the day on 28, took 75 balls to reach his 51, which included seven boundaries.

But he upped the tempo after morning drinks, finding the rope a further five times and hitting a six off O'Brien to be on 96 by lunch as the Indians ended the morning session on 170 for one, 352 runs ahead.

The opener brought up his second ton in as many Test matches, and his sixth overall, in the second over after lunch, sending Southee's first ball after the break out to the boundary rope.

The very next over Dravid (60) was dismissed by a smart bit of fielding by Brendon McCullum. The wicket-keeper anticipated a paddle sweep down leg side by the right-hander and put himself in a good position to claim the catch to the disbelief of the batsman.

It's all about numbers!

It was Vettori's first wicket of the Test and he quickly doubled his tally when Ross Taylor took a superb diving catch in the slips to dismiss Tendulkar.

After the fall of the wicket, New Zealand managed to restrict the run-flow for a while with Laxman taking 14 deliveries to get off the mark.

But by tea Laxman and Gambhir had put on 61 runs and the latter had made 151 as the Indians reached 269 for three to be 451 runs ahead.

Laxman's eighth boundary then got him to 53 off 104 deliveries, although he survived a scare on 49 when Jesse Ryder failed to hold onto a catch from in close.

And a few overs later he was heading back to the dressing room. Vettori (two for 88 off 29 overs) and O'Brien (two for 77 off 22) were the day's only wicket-takers and along with Chris Martin, who had Virender Sehwag caught by Taylor the previous evening, shouldered most of the work.

Southee struggled again and went for an expensive 58 runs off 12 overs, while James Franklin (none for 50 off 13) and Ryder (none for 21 off six) were given limited opportunity with the ball.

Fergie: Rooney row is nonsense!

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson branded claims that he had a row with Wayne Rooney as 'absolute nonsense'.

Former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson suggested Ferguson had a bust-up with Rooney following last month's 4-1 home defeat to title rivals Liverpool .

The England international was then handed a second yellow card in United's 2-0 loss at Fulham after he had been left out of the starting XI.

Lawrenson said: "Everybody knows he had a massive row with Fergie after the Liverpool game and was then left out against Fulham.

"It is an ongoing problem, but if anyone can deal with it, it is Sir Alex."

Ferguson, though, has dismissed the suggestions outright, with the Scot keen to focus his side on their vital Premier League clash with Aston Villa.

The Red Devils chief said: "I was made aware of it. Absolute nonsense.

"I don't know where that came from, but the revealing part of it is 'everybody knows', but I didn't know and I was in there.

"These people self-promote but who the hell's bothered about it?

"Nobody followed it up which tells you everything because if there was any truth you'd have found out."

Benitez sends United warning

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has warned Manchester United that the World Cup break will not break the Reds' momentum.

According to the Sun, Benitez is convinced the two-week gap will have no bearing on Liverpool's hopes of catching United.

Liverpool are in a rich vein of form at the moment after scoring 13 goals in their last three games - including a four-goal romp at Old Trafford.

He insisted: "We were playing very well before the break, that is true.

"Now we have to start again. We want to pick up where we left things and carry on winning.

"We've every confidence it will be the same when we get everyone back.

"I am really positive when I think about the rest of the season."

Kirsten denies Eng coach rumours

India coach Gary Kirsten quashed speculations that he is a front-running probable among English coach candidates.
"I am not a candidate," he was quoted as saying by the 'cricinfo' on the sidelines of Indian team's practice session here ahead of the third Test against New Zealand.

BCCI Secretary N Srinivasan also refused to comment on the reports, saying it was all "speculation by the UK media".

Leading British daily 'The Guardian' today claimed Kirsten was a "potential front-runner" to succeed Peter Moores ahead of the Ashes against Australia.

Flower also a front-runner

"In addition to (Andy) Flower, India's coach, Gary Kirsten, who is soon to be out of contract, has emerged as a potential front-runner," the paper said.

The newspaper also claimed that a four-man ECB panel would interview the candidates on the shortlist at a secret location in the UK.

Mickey Arthur, the South Africa coach, was also linked to the England job though he said that he remained committed to his national contract till 2011.

"We have had a robust and transparent process. We are pleased with those who have applied. Our interview process will begin when we get home at the weekend with a view to appointing the permanent post before the West Indies series," Hugh Morris, managing director of England cricket, told reporters in St Lucia yesterday.

Hamilton stripped of third place

FIA has announced that McLaren's Lewis Hamilton has lost the third position he won at last weekend's Australian GP.

Hamilton and McLaren have been disqualified after race stewards decided that the reigning world champion had deliberately misled them when providing evidence about an incident that saw him passed by Jarno Trulli during a safety car period.

The Italian was handed a 25-second penalty following the incident on lap 57 at Melbourne, which relegated him from third to 12th in the final classification and saw Hamilton promoted from fourth to third.

But both drivers were called before the stewards in Sepang today to address new evidence on the incident.

Following the hearing, the stewards decided to reinstate Trulli's third place and to sanction Hamilton and McLaren by excluding them from the race classification.

They explained their decision in a statement, which read: "The stewards having considered the new elements presented to them from the 2009 Australian Formula One Grand Prix, consider that driver No 1 Lewis Hamilton and the competitor Vodafone McLaren Mercedes acted in a manner prejudicial to the conduct of the event by providing evidence deliberately misleading to the Stewards at the hearing on Sunday 29th March 2009, a breach of Article 151c of the International Sporting Code.

"Under Article 158 of the International Sporting Code the driver No 1 Lewis Hamilton and the competitor Vodafone McLaren Mercedes are excluded from the race classification for the 2009 Australian Grand Prix and the classification is amended accordingly."

McLaren have decided not to appeal the decision although team principal Martin Whitmarsh was not pleased with the stewards' decision

"Obviously we are disappointed by what happened but in the circumstances, we are not going to appeal," he said.

"As we see it, during the closing stages of the race under difficult conditions, there was a safety car incident where Trulli fell off the circuit and Lewis legitimately passed.

"Lewis didn't do anything abnormal and it was clear Trulli shouldn't have passed him.

"But we have to accept the decision."

It has been suggested that the FIA arrived at the decision because McLaren withheld information about a radio conversation that took place between Hamilton and the pit during the course of the incident.

"What I understand is that there's a belief that the team was not explicit enough in terms of the content of the radio conversations," Whitmarsh continued.

"We don't believe that those radio conversations had an effect on the fact that he was passed by Trulli under a safety car period.

"The problem is that the stewards believe that the team was not explicit enough in releasing that information. We don't think that affected the outcome of their (original) decision.

"I believe that it was a harsh decision. I think the facts of the case are that Lewis made a legitimate pass and subsequently was re-passed.

"We felt that the decision of the stewards in the immediate aftermath of the race was fair but the stewards now believe that the radio conversation - that was listened to and heard by the FIA - because it was not sufficiently contained in the submission that we made and that we withheld that was the reason that they came to their decision today.

"As you would imagine Lewis is extremely disappointed.

"It's a harsh decision but I think that experience has told us that you have to accept these decisions and these things that come along and you focus on the this weekend and the races beyond that."