Vettel wins first-ever Indian GP

Vettel wins first-ever Indian GP

 

Sebastian Vettel is just two victories shy of equalling a record many thought would never be touched after his latest triumph at the inaugural Indian Grand Prix.

 

For the first time in his career the Red Bull star achieved Formula One's grand chelem of pole, win, fastest lap and leading for every single lap, to further underline his dominant campaign.
In the end, Vettel finished a comfortable 8.4secs ahead of Jenson Button in his McLaren to take the chequered flag for the 11th time in his career to leave him two wins shy of Michael Schumacher's 2004 mark of 13.
Again, though, arguably the major talking point to emerge from the race was yet another incident involving Ferrari's Felipe Massa and McLaren's Lewis Hamilton.
On this occasion the four-man stewards' panel laid the blame, and rightly so, at the door of Massa as the duo, inextricably drawn to one another this season, collided for the sixth time.
Their latest coming-together unfolded on lap 24, just as Hamilton had dived down the inside of Massa on the approach into the left-handed turn five as he attempted to claim fifth place.
The Brazilian, however, swiped across the Briton, and for the most part emerged unscathed, unlike Hamilton who was forced to pit for a new front wing.
Unsurprisingly, the stewards - that included Johnny Herbert - called an investigation, and very quickly opted to hand Massa a drive-through penalty which he served at the end of lap 31.
Four laps later, though, his race was run, and likely Hamilton will feel justice was served, and quite remarkably in a mirror-image of what unfolded at the end of qualifying.
On that occasion Massa ran over a strip of concrete - that has been given the unconventional nickname 'sausage' - that runs behind the corners and are designed to prevent drivers from cutting them.
The incident, at turn seven, resulted in Massa breaking the front- right suspension of his Ferrari, after which he then ran into the gravel and a tyre wall.
On Sunday, it was turn eight that caught out Massa, only this time the damage occurred to the front-left suspension, retiring soon after on track.
Prior to the incident, Hamilton had an outside shot at the podium, but after it his race was compromised, leaving him to trundle home seventh, more than 84 seconds behind Vettel.
At least there was a comical moment as cameras picked up footage from inside the McLaren garage where Rowan Atkinson was a guest, the funnyman pulling his usual rubber-faced expressions at the moment the duo collided.
Either side of their clash, India's debut was hardly the most riveting of races because try as he might, Button could not get close enough to Vettel.
After the Briton had passed Alonso into turn one, then Webber into turn four on the first lap, trading places with the Australian over the next two laps, his one-two with Vettel never altered.
The German then consistently managed to keep the gap between them hovering between three and five seconds before finally opening up a cushion over the closing stages.
In the end it was another comfortable victory for Vettel to further cement his dominance on a one-sided campaign, leaving him with just records to aim for in the final two races.
Behind the leading duo, pit-stop strategy in the second round at two-thirds distance, allowed Fernando Alonso to claim third in his Ferrari from Red Bull's Mark Webber, still without a win this year.
Then came the Mercedes duo of Schumacher and Nico Rosberg, followed by Hamilton, with Toro Rosso's Jaime Alguersuari, Bruno Senna for Renault and Force India's Adrian Sutil claiming the minor places.
After a podium celebration which saw Vettel temporarily blind technical guru Adrian Newey with champagne, he was typically modest after his achievements on track.
"It was a very good race," he said. "I enjoyed the time in the lead, I had a little bit of a fight with Jenson who strangely kept closing in at the pit stops.
"All in all it was a very smooth race, the car was well balanced."
Vettel paid tribute to Wheldon and Simoncelli, adding: "I've a little bit of mixed emotions.
"I'm very proud to be the first winner of the Indian Grand Prix, but then on the other hand we recently lost two of our mates.
"I didn't know Dan Wheldon, but he was big in motorsport, and then this year I got to know Marco Simoncelli, so our thoughts are with them at the moment."
Button and Alonso echoed the sentiments, with the former stating: "It's been a tough weekend for everyone after the two fatalities.
"I knew Dan very well, so this is a very sad day for motorsport.
"We should dedicate this first Indian race to Dan and Marco, a super-talented guy, the most amazing guy to ride on a bike."
Alonso added: "As Jenson and Sebastian said, a tough weekend, and out thoughts are with Dan and Marco."

Formula 1 India: Greater Noida ready to host India's first F1 Grand Prix

Formula 1 India: Greater Noida ready to host India's first F1 Grand Prix

 

NEW DELHI:  The Buddh International Circuit in Greater Noida looked set to host a great motorsporting weekend as Formula One's superstar drivers and some of the sport's most storied teams burned rubber on the new track through two free practice sessions on Friday, and seemed to enjoy it, dusty conditions and stray dogs on the track notwithstanding.

With the top championship positions for this season locked ahead of the race, the Airtel Indian Grand Prix will be more a quest for domination in the speed stakes between the world's fastest drivers. There was palpable excitement in the Paddock area, where the teams are based, about the new track and a new market for Formula One racing.

F1 Grand Prix: India's date with Hotwheels

"I loved it. It's a great track," McLaren's British driver Lewis Hamilton told ET, after he set the fastest lap time during the first free practice session in the morning, covering the 5.14 km track in one minute and 26.454 seconds. The fastest lap of the day was clocked by Ferrari's Felipe Massa at a minute and 25.706 seconds.

Hamilton said he has been having a good stay in India. "I had great Indian dinner last night. We went to this restaurant called Bukhara," Hamilton said. Did he have Dal Bukhara? "Ah yes, that, and some kababs," he added. Hamilton said he looked forward to a great race on Sunday.

Jaypee Sports International MD Sameer Gaur said he expected nearly 90,000 people on race day. "We have sold about 85,000 to 88,000 tickets for Sunday," he said. He said reports that ticket prices have been slashed are untrue. "We were selling grandstand seats at 35,000 for all three days. Later, due to popular demand, we introduced a ticket for race day alone for 15,000. We have not slashed prices at all," he said.

According to a Formula One Management official, Gaur had tears in his eyes when the first car - a Force India driven by Adrian Sutil, rolled off the pit lane. "Yes, it has been an emotional day. It is a dream come true to see all these cars finally racing here," Gaur said. The second car off the pit was a Lotus driven by Karun Chandhok, who will not be racing on Sunday. He drove the first timed lap on Friday. Force India's Paul di Resta and Narain Karthikeyan on an HRT followed Chandhok, as spectators cheered wildly for the Indian presence in the race.

In unrelated events, Virgin's Jerome D' Ambrosio suffered a mild crash while Ferrari's Fernando Alonso suffered an engine failure during the second practices session. Some teams and drivers complained of dust, while others said Formula One is about racing under all kinds of conditions and dust was expected here.

"It's an interesting track, a good challenge. It was very dusty to start with, but the track seems fun, especially the wide entries which give a lot of options to the drivers. It should be a good race on Sunday," double world champion Sebastian Vettel said.

Jackie Stewart, three-time world champion and one of the sport's best-known drivers, told ET this was the best new track he had ever seen. "In terms of the track and all the core areas, the pit stops, the team buildings and other facilities, this is on par with the best in the world. There are areas where more attention to detail is required, but then some countries are more developed in paying that sort of attention than others. This is a tremendous achievement and it's great for India," Stewart, who has travelled to India since the 1980s, owing to his association with Ford and Bridgestone, said.

For guests of the uber-luxury Paddock Club and others with access to the Paddock area, including the press contingent, there were many exciting moments as they frequently came face to face with celebrated drivers such as Michael Schumacher, Hamilton and Vettel. One also gets a close sense of the team operations from the area, as it connects to the rear of the pit garage. From a sport that used to play out in the distant playfields of the world's billionaires, Formula One racing has now come closer home, in the dusty plains of Greater Noida.

India v England, only Twenty20, Kolkata

England aim to stay at No. 1

Match Facts

India v England, October 29, Kolkata
Start time 1830 (1300 GMT)

	Graeme Swann takes over as England captain for the Twenty20 game

England have not won a match against India in India since 2006, and this Twenty20, strangely scheduled after the one-day series, is probably their best opportunity. The India players would have enjoyed the festivities over the three-day Diwali break. MS Dhoni visited his home in Jharkhand for the first time in four months after the fifth ODI, and his tweet on arriving at Eden Gardens on Thursday - "Kolkata, back on national duty" - did not reveal a great deal of enthusiasm at the prospect of this one-off game.

England's biggest weakness over the five one-dayers was that their batsmen struggled against India's spinners, and will hope that the reduced number of overs will make R Ashwin and co less effective. They will also have a new captain, and will need Graeme Swann's famed wit to lighten the spirits of some visibly frustrated players. Swann reckons England should just enjoy the match, after a testing series so far, and that may be their best bet against an India side that may struggle to find meaning in the match after having already battered England over the one-dayers.

The big test during this Twenty20 could well be for neither team, but for the Bengal Cricket Association. The sparse crowds that marred the ODI series were typified by the half-empty Eden Gardens stadium for the final one-dayer. The Diwali season may have been an excuse for that poor turnout, but with the festival now over, the number of people the organisers can bring through the gates on Saturday could be an indicator of where cricket in India is headed.

One thing that will not work in their favour is the odd scheduling of the match. The significance of a one-off Twenty20 games is debatable in any case, but at least when scheduled before an ODI series they may act as something of a preview to the series. Now, with India fans already high on the euphoria of the 5-0 drubbing and Diwali, it is questionable how many people remember England are even still here.

There are a few points of interest in the match, though. This is the first Twenty20 international since the ICC announced the official Twenty20 rankings. England are currently ranked first, but a loss will take them down to third, while India will want to improve their No. 5 ranking.

Form guide

India: LWWWW (completed games, most recent first)
England: LWWLL

Spotlight

Robin Uthappa has not played for India since 2008 but has been dominating domestic attacks in recent times. Innings of 92 off 36 balls and 64 off 20 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy suggest he belongs at a higher level. Parthiv Patel's failures in the one-day series mean this is a good time for Uthappa to make a case for himself as a reserve opener in the limited-over formats.

Less than a year ago, Yusuf Pathan hit a couple of one-day centuries that seemed like they would cement his place in the India side for some time to come. A mediocre World Cup and a poor West Indies tour later, Yusuf found himself out of not just the playing XI but the squad. He too has been bludgeoning attacks in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and will have a real point to prove if he plays in Kolkata.

Since bursting onto the scene with 41 off 21 balls against India in Cardiff, Jonny Bairstow has had a poor run in internationals, and managed just 49 runs in four innings in the one-dayers in India. With a few other young dynamic batsmen coming into contention for the Twenty20s, Bairstow will want to ensure he is still head of the pack.

Team news

Both Yusuf and Uthappa should make it to the XI, in place of Ravindra Jadeja and Parthiv Patel, who is not in the Twenty20 squad. Gautam Gambhir is also missing the game to get married, and Manoj Tiwary should play in his place. Rahul Sharma was included in the squad on the back of his performances in the IPL so it would make sense to try him out in the Twenty20 format.

India (probable): 1 Ajinkya Rahane, 2 Robin Uthappa, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Manoj Tiwary, 5 Suresh Raina, 6 MS Dhoni (capt and wk), 7 Yusuf Pathan, 8 R Ashwin/ Rahul Sharma, 9 Praveen Kumar, 10 R Vinay Kumar, 11 Varun Aaron

Alex Hales and Jos Buttler are in India specifically for the Twenty20 and should play. Jade Dernbach was replaced by Stuart Meaker for the final ODI, but has a decent Twenty20 record and could return to the side. If Kevin Pietersen doesn't recover from his thumb injury Ian Bell could slot in having previously been dropped for Twenty20 cricket.

England (probable): 1 Craig Kieswetter (wk), 2 Alex Hales, 3 Ian Bell/Kevin Pietersen, 4 Ravi Bopara, 5 Jonny Bairstow, 6 Jos Buttler, 7 Samit Patel, 8 Graeme Swann, 9 Tim Bresnan, 10 Jade Dernbach, 11 Steven Finn

Pitch and conditions

The pitch at Eden Gardens for the fifth one-dayer was slow and started to offer considerable turn as the match wore on. There will not be as much deterioration over 40 overs, but if the matches here during the IPL were any indication, the Twenty20 may not be as high-scoring as some might hope.

Stats and trivia

• This will be the first Twenty20 international England will play on Indian soil. The two have played each other three times in T20s, with England leading the head-to-head 2-1
• This will be the first Twenty20 international played in India since 2009. There have been just three completed T20Is in India before, and the home side have a 2-1 record
• With 1011 runs, Kevin Pietersen has the second-most runs in Twenty20 internationals among all batsmen. Only Brendon McCullum has more

Dhoni aims for England whitewash

Dhoni aims for England whitewash 5-0

 

India skipper MS Dhoni has promised Indian fans that his team would try to end the ODI series on a high but the main motivation would be to play good cricket.

 

"We will try, but in cricket we can't commit anything. We will try to go for 5-0. If we play good cricket, things will go our way but again the important thing is to do our best," said Dhoni after his team took a 4-0 lead.

R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja took three and two wickets each to help India dismiss England for a modest total of 220 and Dhoni was all praise for the way the two spinners bowled at the Wandheke stadium.

"Spinners have done a very good job in the series. In the first over, Ashwin was expensive, but after that he bowled brilliantly. He got a bit of spin. He has got a few variations. Not to forget he bowled three overs in the first Power Play and close to three in the second. Overall he did a very good job," he said.

"The same (is the case) with Jadeja. We all know if it starts turning he's a difficult bowler (for the batsmen) to handle. It showed in this game," he added.

Dhoni was also happy with the way debutant pacer Varun Aaron bowled after a first three-over spell.

"He went for a few runs in the first few overs. I brought him back when the ball was older and he could get a bit of reverse swing going. Umesh had more experience and that's why he was preferred to Aaron.

"He bowled a bit quicker than some of the other Indians. He was consistently around the 140 mark. It's good to see some of the younger fast bowlers coming in and putting in a bit of effort and bowling at more than 135 km per hour. They know the conditions well," he said.

"But they need to improve themselves especially if they want to do well in overseas conditions when there's no reverse swing. It's good to have them we have to manage them well so that they don't get injured," Dhoni added.

Dhoni was also quite pleased with the fielding exhibition of his team throughout the rubber.

"We have fielded very well in this series. In Hyderabad under the heat we did not field well, but overall we have fielded better than them," he said.

Sparks flew a bit during India's runchase but Dhoni said overall the game was played in a good sporting spirit.

"A bit of chit chat is fine. I don't mind that. It makes cricket interesting till it does not become personal. I think the bowlers should not abuse the batsmen and vice versa. Overall the game was good (from this aspect)," he said.

He revealed that England pacer Steve Finn, who took three out of the four Indian wickets that fell Sunday, had apologised to Virat Kohli who remained unbeaten with 86, for showing frustration on the field.

"Steve Finn did a good job. He came and apologised to Virat Kohli. He said he did not abuse but was only frustrated as he had gone for some runs," he said.

Dhoni was non committal on the new ODI format of two new balls and new power play rules.

"It's too early to comment after 4-5 games. We have to play more and see (2 new balls). We are quite happy with the way we have handled Power Plays in the series," he said.

Dhoni also said the World Cup triumph at this ground had not crossed the team's mind when they came to the field this afternoon.

"(Winning) World Cup is always special. What we achieved on the 2nd of April we will remember all our lives. But you have to switch off and on. When we went out to practice the World Cup was not in our mind," he said.

India canter to another comprehensive win

 

India 223 for 4 (Kohli 86*, Raina 80, Finn 3-45) beat England 220 (Bresnan 45, Trott 41, Aaron 3-24, Ashwin 3-38) by six wickets

England's weakness against spin cost them for the third time in the series as they unravelled from a strong position to post an underwhelming total on a slow turning pitch in Mumbai. Their fast bowlers struck three early blows but Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina motored to a 131-run stand at close to seven an over, showcasing the difference between the sides and sparking another needless bout of words in the middle as England's frustration overflowed.

It was England's own batsmen who had let down their ragged bowlers down when they caved in against spin in the afternoon. R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja took 5 for 79 in 20 overs between them after Jonathan Trott and Kevin Pietersen had built on England's quickest start of the series.

Vinay Kumar broke the 73-run stand between Trott and an uncharacteristically subdued Pietersen, then Jadeja and Ashwin worked their way through a clueless England middle order, striking three times in six overs. Tim Bresnan took the score past 200 with a run-a-ball 45, but England were dismissed with 23 deliveries remaining when fast bowler Varun Aaron bowled Bresnan to finish with three wickets on debut.

Disciplined pace bowling led by the impressive Steven Finn kept England in with an outside chance at the start of the chase. Kohli and Raina kept the runs coming, though, not allowing the score of 46 for 3 to tie them down in a partnership that steadily at first, and then emphatically, pushed England out of the match, making a 5-0 whitewash ever more likely.

Finn and Bresnan had started with testing spells that kept the India openers quiet. The first five overs produced only 17 runs, leading Parthiv Patel to whip across the line and lose his stumps to Finn. Finn struck again in his next over when Gautam Gambhir inside-edged onto his stumps. His opening spell of 5-0-10-2 was followed by a sharp burst from debutant Stuart Meaker that induced Ajinkya Rahane into a poke outside off stump only for wicketkeeper Craig Kieswetter to take a leaping one-handed blinder.

Scott Borthwick, the young legspinner surprisingly chosen ahead of Grame Swann, bowled with heart, but it was unfair to expect him to have the same effect that the experienced Swann could have managed. Kohli and Raina continued almost unbothered, picking off the singles easily and finding the boundaries with crisp shots. The duo's approach was in sharp contrast to England's tottering line-up.

Despite India being three down at the start of the bowling Powerplay, Raina took the chance and chipped Meaker just over mid-off for a boundary. His innings grew into a blur of scythes through extra cover and swings down the ground before Finn bowled him after a missed slog during a heated over. Raina had surged to 80 by then and with Kohli easing into elegant drives and cuts, India were runaway winners with almost ten overs remaining.

England's fate had virtually been sealed when their middle order tried to sweep and slog-sweep their way out of trouble. Pietersen was one of three batsmen to fall on the shots, though the substitute fielder Manoj Tiwary was responsible for sending him back with a diving catch after running across from deep midwicket.

Ravi Bopara missed one from Jadeja to be caught in front and Jonny Bairstow's disappointing series continued when he was bowled by a ripper that pitched on leg and turned to hit off stump. Samit Patel and Bresnan tried to salvage something from 145 for 6 but Patel slog-swept Ashwin straight to deep midwicket in another disappointing batting Powerplay for England.

Aaron, who had consistently hovered above 140kph on debut, came back to run through the lower order, hitting the stumps three times, the last of which straightened past Bresnan's outside edge to clip the top of off, with England well short of a challenging total on a turning pitch without Swann.

Things hadn't looked as gloomy for England when Pietersen and Trott accumulated solidly in a steady partnership that helped them recover after Alastair Cook and Kieswetter departed off successive deliveries. Though Pietersen went hard at deliveries and mistimed his strokes at times, Trott kept the runs flowing, cutting Jadeja three times to the deep point boundary. Trott welcomed Vinay's second spell with a cracking drive that beat the cover sweeper easily but was dismissed two deliveries later. Pietersen continued to find the field and the India spinners soon got on top decisively, yet again.