Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Infosys Placement Paper 1

1. A man starts his walking at 3PM from point A, he walks at the rate of 4km/hr in plains and 3km/hr in hills to reach the point B. During his return journey he walks at the rate of 6km/hr in hills and 4km/hr in plains and reaches the point A at 9PM.What is the distance between A and B?
Ans: 12km
Solution:
T1+T2=6
T1-time for forward journey,
T2-time for return journey
D1+D2=forward /return distance
D1-distance in plains
D2-distance in hills
D1/4 +D2/3=T1 (forward time)
D1/4 +D2/6=T2 (return time)
Adding we will get D1+D2=12 km


2. A boy asks his father, " what is the age of grand father?". Father replied " He is x years old in x^2 years", and also said, "we are talking about 20th century". what is the year of birth of grand father?
Ans: 1892

3. A boy travels in a scooter after covering 2/3rd of the distance the wheel got punctured he covered the remaining distance by walk. Walking time is twice that of the time the boy’s riding time. How many times the riding speed as that of the walking speed?
Ans: 4 times.

4. In a Knockout tournament 51 teams are participated, every team thrown out of the tournament if they lost twice. How many matches to be held to choose the winner?
Ans: 101 matches

5. A man sold 2 pens. Initial cost of each pen was Rs. 12. If he sell it together one at 25% profit and another 20% loss. Find the amount of loss or gain, if he sells them separately.
Ans: 60 Paise gain

6. Find the 3 digit no. whose last digit is the square root of the first digit and second digit is the sum of the other two digits.
Ans: 462

7. Meera was playing with her brother using 55 blocks.She gets bored playing and starts arranging the blocks such that the no. of blocks in each row is one less than that in the lower row. Find how many were there in the bottom most row?
Ans: 10

8. Two people are playing with a pair of dies. Instead of numbers, the dies have different colors on their sides. The first person wins if the same color appears on both the dies and the second person wins if the colors are different. The odds of their winning are equal. If the first dice has 5 red sides and 1 blue side, find the color(s) on the second one.
Ans: 3 Red, 3 Blue

9. A person travels in a car with uniform speed. He observes the milestone,
which has 2 digits. After one hour he observes another milestone with same digits reversed. After another hour he observes another milestone with same 2 digits separated by 0. Find the speed of the car?
Ans : 45

10. Three persons A, B &C went for a robbery in different directions and they theft one horse, one mule and one camel. They were caught by the police and when interrogated gave the following statements

A: B has stolen the horse
B: I didn't rob anything.
C: both A & B are false and B has stolen the mule.
The person who has stolen the horse always tell the truth and
The person who has stolen the camel always tell the lie.
Find who has stolen which animal?
Ans:
A- camel
B- mule
C- horse


11. One quarter of the time till now from midnight and half of the time remaining from now up to midnight adds to the present time. What is the present time?
Ans: 9:36AM

12. After world war II three departments did as follows First department gave some tanks to 2nd &3rd departments equal to the number they are having. Then 2nd department gave some tanks to 1st & 3rd departments equal to the number they are having. Then 3rd department gave some tanks to 2nd &1st departments equal to the number they are having. Then each department has 24 tanks. Find the initial number of tanks of each department?
Ans :
A-39
B-21
C-12

13. A, B, C, D&E are having their birthdays on consecutive days of the week not necessarily in the same order. A 's birthday comes before G's as many days as B's birthday comes after E's. D is older than E by 2 days. This time G's birthday came on Wednesday. Then find the day of each of their birthdays?
Ans:
Birthday of D on SUNDAY
Birthday of B on MONDAY
Birthday of E on TUESDAY
Birthday of G on WEDNESDAY
Birthday of A on THURSDAY

14. A girl 'A' told to her friend about the size and color of a snake she has seen
in the beach. It is one of the colors brown/black/green and one of the sizes 35/45/55.
If it were not green or if it were not of length 35 it is 55.
If it were not black or if it were not of length 45 it is 55.
If it were not black or if it were not of length 35 it is 55.
a) What is the color of the snake?
b) What is the length of the snake?
Ans:
a) brown
b) 55

15. There are 2 persons each having same amount of marbles in the beginning. after that 1 person gain 20 more from second person n he eventually lose two third of it during the play n the second person now have 4 times marble of what 1st person is having now.
find out how much marble did each had in the beginning.
ANSWER - 100 each

16. A lady was out for shopping. she spent half of her money in buying A
and gave 1 dollar to bagger. further she spent half of her remaining
money and gave 2 dollar to charity. further she spent half of
remaining money n gave 3 dollar to some children's. now she has left
with 1 dollar. how much she had in the beginning?
Ans $42

17. There are certain diamonds in a shop.
1 thief stole half of diamonds and 2 more.
2 thief stole half of remaining and 2 more
3. same as above
4 same as above.
5 came nothing was left for that.
how many diamonds was there???
Ans 60 diamonds

18. There are three friends A B C.
1. Either A or B is oldest
2. Either C is oldest or A is youngest.
Who is Youngest and who is Oldest?
Ans A is youngest n B is oldest.

19. Father says my son is five times older than my daughter. my wife is 5
times older that my son. I am twice old from my wife and altogether
(sum of our ages) is equal to my mother 's age and she is celebrating
her 81 birthday. so what is my son's age?
Ans - 5 years.

20. In Mulund, the shoe store is closed every Monday, the boutique is closed every Tuesday, the grocery store is closed every Thursday and the bank is open only on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Everything is closed on Sunday.
One day A, B, C and D went shopping together, each with a different place to go. They made the following statements:
A.D and I wanted to go earlier in the week but there wasn’t day when we could both take care of our errands.
B.I did not want to come today but tomorrow I will not be able to do what I want to do.
C.I could have gone yesterday or the day before just as well as today.
D.Either yesterday or tomorrow would have suited me.
Which place did each person visit ?
A-BOUTIQUE
B-BANK
C-GROCERY
D-SHOE

21. The Novice hockey tournaments are on for beginners. Just three teams are in the league, and each plays the other two teams just once. Only part of the information appears in the result chart, which is given below.
Team Games Won Lost Tied Goals For Goals against
A 2 1 0
B 2 1 1 2
C 2
The scoring pattern in the tournament is as follows:
Two points are awarded to the winning team. In case of a tie, both teams are awarded one point, so the total points in the standings should always equal the total number of games played ( since each game played is counted as one for each of the two participating teams). Of course, total goals scored for and goals scored against must be the same, since every goal scored for one team is scored against another.
The games are played in the following order: Game 1: A Vs B; Game 2: A Vs C; Game B Vs C
Can you determine the score of each of the above games ?
Ans: A – B = 0-1.
A – C = 0-0.
B – C = 0-2.

22. A recent murder case centered around the six men, clam, flip, gront, herm, mast, and walt. In one order or another these man were the victim, the murderer, the witness, the police, the judge, and the hangman. The facts of the case were simple. The victim had died instantly from the effect of gunshot wound inflicted a shot. After a lengthy trial the murderer was convicted, sentenced to death, and hanged.
§ Mast knew both the victim and the murderer.
§ In court the judge asked clam his account of the shooting.
§ Walt was the last of the six to see flip alive.
§ The police testified that he picked up gront near the place where the body was found.
§ Herm and Walt never met.
What role did each of the following play in this melodrama ?
a) Murderer – Flip.

b) Victim - Herm.
c) Judge - Mast.
d) Witness - Gront.
(or)

22.There are 6 people related to a murder case Fillip, walt, Mark, joseph, peter, and george. Each of them is police ,murderer, judge, Witness, victim, and hangman. Maynot be in the same order. The murderer is hanged up for this crime.
Following are some statements,
1. Joseph knows both witness and murderer
2. Walt is the last who saw fillip alive.
3. Police made sure that he arrested george at the murder site.
4. Peter doesn’t meet Walt.

Find who played following role in the above drama
1. Murderer
2. Judge
3. Witness
4. Hangman ( 8 Marks)
Ans:
1. Murderer - Walt
2. Judge - Joseph
3. Witness - George
4. Hangman – Peter

23. Fodder, pepsi and cereale often eat dinner out.
a) each orders either coffee or tea after dinner.
b) if fodder orders coffee, then pepsi orders the drink that cereale orders
c) if pepsi orders coffee, then fodder orders the drink that cereale doesnot oder
d) if cereale orders tea, then fodder orders the drink that pepsi orders
which person/persons always orders the same drink after dinner ?
Ans:Fodder


24. At a recent birthday party there were four mothers and their children. Aged 1,2,3 and 4. from the clues below can you work out whose child is whose and their relevant ages ?
· It was jane’s child’s birthday party.
· Brian is not the oldest child.
· Sarah had Anne just over a year ago.
· Laura’s Child will be next birthday.
· Daniel is older than Charlie is.
· Teresa’s child is the oldest.
· Charlie is older than Laura’s child.
Jane – Charlie -3
Laura – Brian – 2
Teresa – Daniel – 4
Sarah – Anne - 1

25. We are given 100 pieces of a puzzle. If fixing two components together is counted as 1 move ( a component can be one piece or an already fixed set of pieces), how many moves do we need to fix the entire puzzle.
Ans: 99

26. Two guys work at some speed...After some time one guy realises he has done only half of the other guy completed which is equal to half of what is left !!! #$%#$
So how much faster than the other is this guy supposed to do to finish with the first... (This one stumped me)..
Ans: one and half times or 3/2

27. There is a square cabbage patch.He told his sister
that i have a larger patch than last year and hence
211 more cabbages thios year.Then how many cabbages i
have this year.?
Ans:106*106=11236

28. There are three guesses on the color of a mule
1 says:itz not black
2 says:itz brown or grey
3 says: itz brown
Atlest one of them is wrong and one of them is
true.....Then whatz the color of mule?
Ans: Grey

29. Jim,Bud and sam were rounded up by the police yesterday. because one
of them was
suspected of having robbed the local bank. The three suspects made
the following statements
under intensive questioning.
Jim: I'm innocent
Bud: I'm innocent
Sam: Bud is the guilty one.
If only one of the statements turned out to be true, who robbed the
bank?
Ans:BUD.

30. There are two containers on a table. A and B . A is half full of
wine, while B, which is twice A's size,
is onequarter full of wine . Both containers are filled with water
and the contents are poured into a
third container C. What portion of container C's mixture is wine ?
Ans:33.33%

31. A man was on his way to a marriage in a car with a constant speed.
After 2 hours one of the tier is punctured and it took 10 minutes to replace it.
After that they traveled with a speed of 30 miles/hr and reached the marriage
30 minutes late to the scheduled time. The driver told that they would be
late by 15 minutes only if the 10 minutes was not waste.
Find the distance between the two towns?
Ans: 120 miles

32. An artist has exactly seven paintings --- ,T,U,V,W,X,Y, and Z -- from
which she must choose exactly five to be in an exhibit. Any
combination is acceptable provided it meets the following conditions:
1. If T is chosen , X cannot be chosen
2. If U is chosen , Y must also be chosen
3. If V is chosen , X must also be chosen
1) Which one of the following is an acceptable combination of
paintings for inclusion in the exhibit?
A. T,U,V,X,Y
B. T,U,V,Y,Z
C. T,W,X,Y,Z
D. U,V,W,Y,Z
E. U,V,W,Z,Y
2) If painting T is chosen to be among the paintings included int he
exhibit which one of the following cannot be chosen to be among the
paintings included in the exhibit?
A. U
B. V
C. W
D. Y
E. Z
3)Which one of the following substitutions can the artist always make
without violating restrictions affecting the combination of paintings
given that the painting mentioned first was not, and the painting
mentioned first was not, and the painting mentioned second was,
originally going to be chosen ?

A. T replaces V
B. U replaces Y
C. V replaces X
D. W replaces Y
E. Z replaces W

4) If the artist chooses painting V to be included among the
paintings in the exhibit, which one of the following must be true of
that combination of paintings?

A. T is not chosen
B. Y is not chosen
C. U is chosen
D. W is chosen
E. Z is chosen

33. Yesterday my mother asked me to buy some stamps. Stamps are available
in 2 paise,7paise,10paise,15paise and 20paise denominations. For
three types of stamps I was asked to buy five of each. For the other
two types of stamps. I was asked to buy six of each. Unfortunately I
forgot which I was supposed to buy five of and which to buy six of .
Luckily my mother had given me the exact money required to buy the
stamps , Rs. 3.00 and the shopkeeper was able to give me the correct
stamps. Which stamps did I buy?
Ans: 6 stamps – 180 (10p & 20p)
5 stamps – 120 (2p, 7p, 15p)


34. Farmer jones sold a pair of cows for Rs. 210 , On one he made a
profit of ten percent and on the other he lost ten percent.
Although he made a profit of five percent. How many did each cow
originally cost him?
Ans:150,50

35. I spent one-sixth of my age as a boy and one-12th in youth, remarked the boss "spent one-seventh and five years in matrimony". My son born just after that period was elected as a governor 4 years back when he was half of my present age. What is the age of the boss?
ans:-84

36. A girl had several dollars with her. she went out for shopping and spent half of them in shopping mall,being generous she had given 1 dollar to the beggar. After that she went for lunch and spent the half of the remaining and gave 2 dollars as tip to the waiter. Then she went to watch a movie and spent the half of remaining dollars and gave autorikshaw-wala 3 dollars. This left her with only 1 dollar. How many dollars did she had with her at the beggining.
Ans:$42.

37. 3 couples were there ,B ,E,C. and G, H, M ,
Bill,Eds and Cleo husbands and Grace,Helen and Marry wives, not in order.
went to play 18 points golf .
1.GHM and E scored 100,102,106 and 94 respectively.
2.B and C either scored 98 and 96 and had written there scores in cards which they lost .but when found them back,they found that the two couples had the sAME TOTAL.
3.eDS WIFE DEFEATED bILLS WIFE.
Tell the combinations?
Ans: B - G.
C - H.
E - M.

38. A bargain hunter bought some plates for $ 1.30 from a sale on saturday, where price 2cents was marked off at each article .On Monday she went to return them at regular prices, and bought some cups and saucers from that much amount of money only. the normal price of plate were equal to the price of 'one cup and one saucer'.
In total she bought 16 items more than previous. saucers were only of 3 cents hence she brought 10 saucers more than the cups,How many cups and saucers she bought and at what price?
Ans: 8,18 Price: 12,3.

39. Racing competition. Participants were from 3 tribes
Sonorean-always says truth
Midorean-alternatively says T and F ,not with any particular start.
Nororean-always False
A says-1. C obstructed me at the last moment ,which caused me to lose the race.
2. C always speak true
3. c is the winner.
B says - 1. A is the winner.
2. c says false always.
C says- 1.B won the Race
2. I didn't caused any obstruction to A at the last time.
Identify the tribes of each.
Ans: Sonorean - C
Midorean - A
Nororean – B


40. Mr. T has a wrong weighing pan. One arm is lengthier than other.1
kilogram on left balances 8 melons on right.1 kilogram on right
balances 2 melons on left. If all melons are equal in weight, what is
the weight of a single melon?
Ans:200 gms

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Miracle in Tiruannamalai - Clear video

Miracle in Thiruannamalai, Tamilnadu

Monday, February 25, 2008

Saadhu Miranda - DVD Rip Download

CD1

CD2

CD3

Is vitamin D powerful enough to go head-to-head with cancer????

Yes, according to a growing body of evidence. High levels of vitamin D have
been found to protect against several kinds of cancer, particularly those
of the digestive system: mouth, throat, stomach, and colon. While many of
us think we get plenty of vitamin D from milk or a multivitamin, it turns
out that the best source is the sun. Its rays trigger your body to produce
the nutrient, and a 10-20 minute stroll each day yields an abundant dose.

The resulting cancer protection is impressive. Study participants with high
vitamin D levels had 43 percent fewer digestive-tract cancers, 29 percent
fewer cancer deaths, and 17 percent fewer cancers overall. Although vitamin
D is readily found in salmon, mackerel, herring, tuna, and sardines, as
well as fortified milk and supplements, sun exposure won hands-down as the
best source, because just a little light produces so much D.

How much of the sunshine vitamin do you need? About 1,500 IU each day to
reap the protective rewards seen in the study, which is about how much a
daily 10-20 minute walk produces. By contrast, a glass of milk has only 100
IU of D, and 3.5 ounces of salmon has 360 IU. Even the recommended daily
dose is comparatively low: just 400-600 IU. But many public health experts
are calling for the recommendation to be raised to 1,000-2,000 IU, the
current upper limit considered safe for adults.

To get your daily dose of sun while minimizing skin risks -- you don't want
to trade one cancer for another -- walk in the morning or afternoon, when
the rays are less intense. And try applying a sunscreen just before you
leave the house. Because it takes about 15-30 minutes for chemical
sunscreens to kick in, by the time it starts working, you'll have gotten
your daily D.

RealAge Benefit: Getting 400 IU of vitamin D and 1,200 milligrams of
calcium per day can make your RealAge as much as 1.3 years younger.

Who was Trisha before becoming an actress????

Today Trisha might be in top in Kollywood and Tollywood or even she may have a flag of her own or put conditions to accept offers or even damage the cut-outs of the leading hero in the industry.

How did she started her career? If you say she started as a heroine then you are wrong. She actually appeared in the movie Jodi, in which Prasanth and Simran have paired. Trisha came for a single shot in that movie as one of the friends of Simran.

This applies for Barathi, the girl of Ammuvaakiya Naan. She was one among in Thirudaa Thirudi, in which Danush used to push. For Kushboo, she started her career as a bar dancer.

These females now only talk about rocket technology and never land in grounds to tell us the truth that they all started as extra! Why do they behave like this? Any idea?

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Kamal's next venture is Rs 200 Crore Budget


It was Kamal who used to speak about big budgets. But he kept away from Big Budgets to avoid taking risk. Then came a director in the name of Shankar who only speaks about BB.

For Shankar there was a man called Kunjumon who takes risk and invests. The Shankar - Kunjumon combination was a great success. But in the middle Kunjumon started cursing Shankar, by making comments like, Shankar is just successful because of the money invested only by him. By that time there were many producers who were willing to invest for Shankar.

Shankar moved to super star through Sivaji. Now Rajini - Shankar combo is doing Robo at a budget of Rs 100 Crores.

Now, Kamal is also set to go big but atleast at a budget that is double of Rajini's.

Kamal's Marmayogi will be produced at 200 Crores and the production company is from Hollywood.

The war is making the workers happy in Kollywood.

India Team's fight in vain against Aussies



Ricky Ponting's century was just enough for Australia to earn an 18-run victory over India in a high-scoring contest at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

The Australian skipper blasted back into form with a bang after a troubled summer as he hit 124 as Australia made an imposing total of 317 for seven in Sydney, helped by half-centuries from Andrew Symonds and Matthew Hayden.

Gautam Gambhir got his second hundred of the Commonwealth Bank Series to keep India in at as their top order crumbled, but a late rally led by Robin Uthappa nearly brought them back into the match.

Brett Lee took two crucial wickets in two balls late on though, and despite India making a record total for a team batting second at Sydney, their 299 all fell 18 runs short of the win.

After Adam Gilchrist went early for 16, Ponting and Hayden put on blistering 110 for the second wicket before the big opener was run out for 54 at the non-strikers end by Virender Sehwag.

Ponting was involved in another century partnership after Micael Clarke went for 38, with the skipper and Andrew Symonds piling on 102 for the fourth wicker as Symonds brought up his fifty in just 44 balls.

Symonds was bowled for 59 before Ponting went for 124 as Australia closed on a tally which proved too much for the tourists.

India needed a good start when chasing such a lofty total, but they got exactly the opposite when they tumbled to 51-4 when their top order failed miserably.

Gambhir was the exception and he combined with skipper MS Dhoni for a 98-run partnership that brought India back into the contest before Dhoni was caught behind off Lee for 36.

Gambhir's effort was eventually ended on 113 when Gilchrist stumped him off Brad Hogg, but he had done enough to give India a real chance of an unlikely victory after also adding 68 with Uthappa.

Irfan Pathan kept the score ticking along with a lively 22 and Uthappa brought up his fifty off 43 balls as Harbhajan Singh then offered some assistance at the other end.

India had a real chance when needing 28 runs to win from 15 balls, but just as it started to look tight Lee stepped in to end their chances with two wickets in two balls.

A slower ball deceived Harbhajan who lobbed the ball straight up in the air for Gilchrist to take his sixth wicket of the match, and Uthappa holed out to Hussey the very next ball as India then fell to 290 for nine.

Lee completed his five-for when her bowled Ishant Sharma and he finished of figures with five for 58 as Australia won an enthralling match by just 18 runs after India's brave run chase came so close to an historic victory.

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Hey You Wow - Tanvi, Shiva, VZ Durai

Kanavilae Kanavilae - Sathiyan, Swetha, Grace

Love In Minor - Srikanth Deva

Mulu Neela Kadai - Megha, Sunitha Sarathi, Chorus

Priya Idhu Sitout - Karthik, Bombay Jayashree, Savitha

Sound Of Action - Srikanth Deva

Suthuthae Suthuthaey - Yugendhiran, Vijay, Chorus

The Words of Nepali Theme - Srikanth Deva

Its now Bangla Lions to turn back the cards on SA


Shahadat Hossain and Junaid Siddique were the heroes as Bangladesh had the better of the second day of the opening Test in Mirpur. Having established a 22-run first-innings lead, they were then indebted to Siddique for a stodgy unbeaten 64 that stretched it to 147 by stumps. Dale Steyn produced another superb new-ball spell as Bangladesh slumped to 29 for 3 before tea, but a 56-run partnership between Siddique and Mohammad Ashraful thwarted South Africa for a fair while in the final session.

Shahadat, who bowled at a lively pace and with tremendous control for career-best figures of 6 for 27, may have been the main man but the talking point of the day was provided by Ashraful. By the time he brought himself on shortly before lunch, the momentum had swung towards South Africa, with AB de Villiers riding his luck to 46 and Johan Botha offering stout resistance.

But it all changed in the space of one ball. And what a ball it was. Ashraful is no Shane Warne, and after the ball left his fingers, it bounced twice before reaching de Villiers. He chose to play it from the crease, but could only top-edge it back to the bowler. Cue massive celebrations from Bangladesh and no movement from de Villiers, who was convinced that it was a dead ball. Steve Bucknor finally sent him on his way though, much to the dismay of the South African dressing room.

Botha's 91-ball vigil ended soon after, trapped lbw by Shahadat, and when Mornè Morkel followed on the stroke of lunch, Bangladesh were poised to take a slender lead. They did too, with Shahadat trapping Mark Boucher in front and then bowling Makhaya Ntini to complete an impressive spell.

Bangladesh weren't in the ascendancy when de Villiers was going strong. Coming to the crease after a shambolic mix-up sent Ashwell Prince on his way in the second over of the day, he quickly signalled his intent with drives, cuts and powerful pulls through midwicket. There was an element of good fortune too, with Ashraful, running back from mid-off, dropping a catch off Mohammad Rafique when de Villiers was on 30.

On a pitch where the odd ball stayed exceptionally low, concentration was crucial, and Botha played his part in a partnership that got South Africa back into the contest. He let de Villiers do the bulk of the scoring, but there was also a lovely on-drive off Rafique and an impudent reverse-sweep off Shakib Al Hasan in his innings of 25.

There was a phase in the session where the South Africans were becalmed for more than five overs, but once de Villiers smacked Shakib for a big six over midwicket and then took him for two fours in an over, the tide appeared to be turning. A bizarre dismissal though put paid to that.

South Africa needed breakthroughs quickly and Steyn provided them. Tamim Iqbal was cleaned up by a quick one, and after Shahriar Nafees had played a couple of lovely strokes square of the wicket, Steyn got one to shape back and catch him in front. Habibul Bashar, whose career is in free fall, followed soon after in similar fashion and Bangladesh were once again in danger of squandering a promising position, as they had in Multan against Pakistan in 2003 and later in 2006, against Australia in Fatullah.

But Ashraful and Siddique eschewed flamboyance for the most part to put on some crucial runs. Ashraful, who was in one-day mode in the first innings, was remarkably controlled, showing his big-hitting prowess only with a huge six over midwicket off a listless Botha.

Ntini finally picked up his first wicket of the match, getting Ashraful to edge one behind, but Aftab Ahmed and Siddique saw it through to stumps with a few dollops of luck. Edges fell short of slip and flashy drives evaded fielders as Graeme Smith was reduced to trying out even Neil McKenzie's innocuous medium pace. It wasn't South Africa's day and unless they improve dramatically on Sunday, the cream of the Bangladeshi crop may just reprise their Under-19 team's heroics in Malaysia.

Tasmania Completes Formal;ities against Victoria to Clinch Title


Tasmania sneaked to a dramatic one-day domestic final win over Victoria, prevailing by one wicket in the final over at Bellerive Oval on Saturday afternoon.

Travis Birt was the hero for the Tigers with a crucial 38 not out as Tasmania's batting line-up choked in their chase of a revised target of 131 off 31 overs after Victoria were bowled out for a paltry 158 earlier in the day.

The second innings was hampered by periods of rain and the elements looked to have played into the visitors hands when they took a thrilling 4 for 19 in the dying stages of the match.

But the Tigers held on thanks mainly to the patience of Victorian-born Birt who combined for a 33-run partnership with Mark Divin (18) who was the first of leg spinner Bryce McGain's three wickets in a inspirational late spell.

McGain, who finished with 3 for 11 off 5 overs, gave the Victorians a sniff of victory after dismissing Divin and Xavier Doherty in the same over to have the Tigers feeling the pinch at 7 for 109.

The hosts recovered to be only 4 runs from victory before Brett Geeves departed for 9 quickly followed by Brendan Drew who edged McGain behind for a duck in the penultimate over.

With Tasmania requiring 3 runs in the last over with only one wicket in hand Birt's composure shone through as he late cut Andrew McDonald to the boundary to secure Tasmania's third one-day domestic title.

Earlier, Tasmania's attack ripped through the usually dependable Bushrangers sheet with man-of-the-match Geeves leading a wicket-taking trio including himself, Doherty (4 for 18) and Ben Hilfenhaus (3 for 32).

Geeves claimed the important wickets of opener Rob Quiney (21), Brad Hodge (9) and skipper Cameron White for a golden duck to finish with figures of 3 for 28 off his eight overs.

Middle order linchpin David Hussey added some credibility for the Victorians with a much-needed 50 alongside McDonald who contributed a stodgy 35.

The Tigers win breaks the competition's home final hoodoo, with no side being able to claim the title in front of their home fans for the last seven seasons while Victoria lost their second final in consecutive years.

New Zealand wins series against England


New Zealand won the final one-day match against England in Christchurch by four wickets under the Duckworth/Lewis method to secure the series 3-1.

Put in, England struggled for runs and Daniel Vettori took 2-28, but Luke Wright fired four sixes in 47 and Dimi Mascarenhas hit 22 off the final over.

Chasing 243, Brendon McCullum gave the Kiwis a stunning start, blazing five fours and six sixes in 77 off 43 balls.

Ryan Sidebottom struck twice in two balls but rain had the final say.


Interview: New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori
Interview: England captain Paul Collingwood

Nothing could separate the teams after 680 runs in a frantic tie in the fourth match at Napier, but there were some crucial differences in the finale.

New Zealand had a balanced attack with accomplished slower bowlers, while their opening batsmen made a mockery of England's assertion that it was a difficult pitch to score freely on.

England's 100 arrived in the 25th over, New Zealand reached theirs in the 11th.

Only nine runs came from the first five overs after England were asked to bat, Phil Mustard skewing to cover in the third.

Vettori was able to complete his three powerplay segments in one bundle and bowled his 10 overs consecutively.

Just 11 boundaries came in the first half of the innings and again Vettori's clever variations caused problems, a quicker delivery pinning Alastair Cook on the crease for 42.

Kevin Pietersen hit three fours and reached 39 in fairly reasonable time but was also not at his happiest with the conditions.

Patel's second delivery tempted him to attack and, slightly deceived by the pace, he dragged to deep mid-wicket.

Vettori tossed one up to lure Paul Collingwood out of his ground and some sharp turn beat the edge and saw him comfortably stumped.

Twelve overs passed without a boundary, but the Wright quickly set about changing the complexion of the innings.

He launched two sixes over wide mid-wicket and proved he was no one-trick pony with two off-side maximums, driving square of the wicket and then backing away to hit over cover.

Wright dominated his partnership with Owais Shah, which reached 50 from 67 balls.
After he fell guns blazing the scene was set for a Mascarenhas late show.

The Hampshire all-rounder is something of a "death" specialist having smashed five sixes in the final over of England's innings against India at The Oval last summer.

His first six went way above the line of the stadium roofs and the second went even further, disappearing deep into the huge grandstand at mid-wicket.

But remarkably it was soon eclipsed by a phenomenal display of hitting from McCullum.

The 26-year-old was particularly incensed by Stuart Broad running down the line of the stumps at the end of the England innings, and took out his anger on the England bowlers.

Early wickets might have been a factor, and Jesse Ryder survived a half chance in the second over when Ian Bell got a hand to a firm square drive.

James Anderson and Ryan Sidebottom found some early swing but England went on the defensive and the only movement on the ball then was when it bounced around the terraces.

McCullum was given two reprieves in quick succession, on 30 by Cook who got two hands to a stinging cover drive but could not hold on, and again on 31 when Broad failed to get to a spiralling top edge at third man.

After that he smashed the final two balls of Sidebottom's over over mid-wicket for six, and launched a hapless Anderson for three successive maximums.

After three overs for 24, Anderson was surprisingly soon brought back for a fourth, which went for 22, one of the sixes coming close to clearing the imposing three-tiered grandstand.

The introduction of the more astute Collingwood stemmed the onslaught and McCullum called Ryder through for a quick single he did not relish.

McCullum was dropped for a third time by Collingwood low off his own bowling, but the next ball was a good one that nipped back and ended his scintillating performance.

At that stage 125 were needed with 34 overs remaining.

Jamie How edged needlessly behind and Anderson's painful figures were ameliorated slightly when Scott Styris mis-hit to mid-off.

Then in his final over Sidebottom, finding swing again under the lights, trapped debutant Daniel Flynn and bowled Jacob Oram with a beauty, with 46 were still required.

Light drizzle added further intrigue but it intensified to ensure there would be no miraculous England triumph

Saturday, February 23, 2008

TCS Aptitude Paper 2

1. If two pencils cost 8 cents, then how much do 5 pencils cost?
Ans. 20 cents

2. Some work is done by two people in 24 minutes. One of them can do this work alone
in 40 minutes. How much time does the second person take to do the same work ?
Ans. 60 minutes

3. A car is filled with four and half gallons of fuel for a round trip.If the amount of fuel taken while going is 1/4 more than the amount taken for coming, what is the amount of fuel consumed while coming back?
Ans.2 gallons

4. The lowest temperature in the night in a city A is 1/3 more than 1/2 the highest during the day. Sum of the lowest temperature and the highest temperature is 100 degrees. Then what is the low temp?
Ans.40 degrees

5. Javagal, who decided to go to weekened trip should not exceed 8 hours driving in a
day. The average speed of forward journey is 40 miles/hr.Due to traffic on sundays, the return journey's average speed is 30 m/h. How far he can select a picnic spot?
placementquestions.com 10
a) 120 miles
b) between 120 and 140 miles
c) 160 miles
Ans. 120 miles

6. A salesperson by mistake multiplied a number and got the answer as 3, instead of
dividing the number by 3.What is the answer he should have actually got?
Ans. 3

7. A building with height D shadow upto G. What is the height of a neighbouring
building with a shadow of C feet.
Ans. (C*D)/G

8. A person was fined for exceeding the speed limit by 10 mph. Another person was also fined for exceeding the same speed limit by twice the same. If the second person was travelling at a speed of 35 mph, find the speed limit.
Ans. 15 mph

9. A bus started from bustand at 8.00am, and after staying for 30 minutes at a destination, it returned back to the busstand. The destination is 27 miles from the busstand. The speed of the bus is 18mph. During the return journey bus travels with 50% faster speed.At what time does it return to the busstand?
Ans. 11.00am

10. In a mixture, R is 2 parts and S is 1 part. In order to make S to 25% of the mixture, how much of R is to be added?
Ans.One part of R

11. Wind flows 160 miles in 330 min, for travelling 80 miles how much time does it
require?
Ans. 2 hrs 45 mins

12. With a 4/5 full tank a vehicle can travel 12 miles, how far can it travel with a 1/3 full tank
Ans. 5 miles

13. There are two trees in a lawn. One grows at a rate 3/5 of the other in 4 years. If the total growth of trees is 8 ft. What is the height of the smaller tree after 2 years
Ans. 1 1/2 feet

14. Refer to the figure below.A ship started from P and moves at a speed of I miles per hour and another ship starts from L and moving with H miles per hour
simultaneously.Where do the two ships meet?
||---g---||---h---||---i---||---j---||---k---||---l---||
PG H I J K L are the various stops in between denoted by || . The values g, h, i, j, k, l denote the distance between the ports.
Ans. Between I and J, closer to J

15. If A is travelling at 72 km per hour on a highway. B is travelling at a speed of 25 meters per second on a highway. What is the difference in their speeds in m/sec.
Ans. 1 m/sec


Pick the odd one…..

1.http 2.arp 3.snmp 4.sap Ans-sap
1.linux 2.windows NT 3.sql server 4.Unix Ans-Sql server
Ans-MVS

8. Which of the following is a singular matrix. (Determinant must be zero)

9. Aeroplane is flying at a particular angle and latitude,after some time another latitude is given..(8 hrs later), u r asked to find the local time of the place.
how many Ws r followed by F and preceded by T.

11. 7,9,13,_,27,37. Ans-19

13.194 base 10 = ____ base 5 (1234)

14.Largest prime no. in a 6 bit,8 bit (Ans 127),9 bit microprocessor

15.n=68 x 12 x 51
Which of the follg is not an integer Ans- n/122

16.Which is a/not a power of 2 or 3.
Power of 4 Ans-4096

TCS Aptitude Paper 1

QUANTITATIVE APTITUDE

1. Two pencils costs 8 cents, then 5 pencils cost how much
(Ans:20 cents).

2. A work is done by the people in 24 min. one of them can do
this work a lonely in 40 min. how much time required to do the
same
work for the second person.
(ans:60 min.)

3. A car is filled with four and half gallons of oil for full
round
trip. fuel is taken 1/4 gallons mor3 in going than coming. what is
the fiel consumed in coming up? (2 gallons)

4. low temperature at the night in a city is 1/3 more than 1/2
hinge as higher temperature in a day. sum of the low temp and
higherst temp is 100C. then what is the low temperature (40 C)

5. A person who decided to go weekend trip should not exceed 8
hours
driving in a day Average speed of forward journy is 40 mph. due
to traffic in sundays, the return journey average speed is 30 mph.
how far he can select a picnic spot (120 miles).

6. A sales person multiplied a number and get the answer is 3,
instead of that number divided by 3. what is th answer he actually
has to get ? (1/3).

7. A ship started from port and moving with I mph and another ship
started from L and moving with H mph. At which place these two
ships
meet ? ( Ans is between I and J and close to J)
!_____!_____!_____!_____!_____!_____!
port G H I J K L

8. A building with hight D ft shadow upto G A neighbour building
with
what height shadow C ft is (B ft.)
!_____!_____!_____!_____!_____!_____!_____!
A B C D E F G H

9. A person was fined for exceeding the speed limit by 10
mph. Another
person was also fined for exceeding the same speed limit by twice
the same. If the second person was traveling at a speed of 35
mph. find the speed limit (15 mph)

10. A bus started from bustand at 8.00a m and after 30 min staying
at
destination, it returned back to the bustand. the destination is
27 miles from the bustand. the speed of the bus 50 percent fast
speed. At what time it retur4ns to the bustand (11.00)

11.in a mixture, R is 2 parts, S is 1 part. in order to make S to
25%
of the mixture, howmuch R is to be added ( one part).

12. wind flows 160 miles in 330 min, for 80 miles how much time
required.

13. with 4/5 full tank vehicle travels 12 miles, with 1/3 full
tank. how much distance travels ( 5 miles).

14. two trees are there. one grows at 3/5 of the other. in 4
years, total growth of trees is 8 ft. what growth will smaller tree will
have in 2 years. (<2ft)

15. A storm will move with a velocity of towards the center in
hours. At the same rate how much far will it move in hrs.
(but Ans is 8/3 or 2 2/3).

Friday, February 22, 2008

Jodha Akbar Review


When one hears the title and gets to see the trailers one may back off wondering if this movie is worth it or not.

After a week’s hard work and stress and tension no one is in a mood to sit and watch a three-hour, history class.

So why should one watch this movie???? So what If It has a strong and famous cast of actors?

A.R. Rehman has composed the music but if one actually listens to it, one finds it to be very dragging and slow.

Time factor is another issue, the movie is said to be three solid hours.Infact 3+ hours of time.

Language is another big concern, because the language used in the movie is urdu.

So Is it worth it ????

Well, yes it is, Critics have claimed that this movie is unique comparatively to all the classic movies that has been made so far. Am sure all of u have an idea of the story line by now. Ash a rajput princess is forced into marrying a Muslim King Akbar- Hrithik. She resents it and the whole movie is about how Hrithik i.e. Akbar wins the lady’s heart.

When it comes to language, director Ashutosh Gowarikar has been very smart. Of course Urdu is spoken but at the same time there is an equal dose of Hindi used. Akbar speaks in Urdu, Jodhaa in Hindi - and it’s easy to decipher.

The casting is perfect. Critics state “It’s difficult to imagine anyone else in the role of Emperor Akbar. Hrithik seems born to play this role and he enacts it with such precision, such flourish, such confidence that it leaves you asking for more. A mind-boggling performance without doubt!
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is superb. Oh yes, she looks ethereal — a compliment she has heard a trillion times before. What’s new in that? But watch her emote in this film. You realise the amazing talent that has hitherto not been tapped by any movie maker. A flawless performance indeed!”

This is what they have to say abut the music “A.R. Rahman’s music is not the type that you take to instantly, but yes, it gels beautifully with the mood of the film. Azeem-o-Shaan Shahenshah and Jashn-e-Bahara are the best tracks in terms of tune. In terms of choreography, Azeem-o-Shaan Shahenshah is awe-inspiring, while the execution of Khwaja Mere Khwaja is outstanding. Rahman’s background score is simply extra-ordinary.”

The three+ hours spent in the theatre they say leaves one “Spell Bound” but at the same time one tends to feel the pinch at some occasions [only].

Some scenes worth watching according to the critic are

· The war sequence at the very outset. You realise the scale and magnitude of the film at the very beginning.
· Hrithik taming an out-of-control elephant. It’s hair-raising.
· The two pre-conditions set by Jodhaa, before her marriage to Akbar. Very interesting.
· The confrontation between Ila Arun and Ash at the kitchen, when Ash decides to make the meal herself.
· The immediate sequence, when Ash is asked to taste the food herself by Ila before she’s about to serve the food to the Emperor and his associates. Once done, Hrithik demanding that he be served the meal from the same platter that Jodhaa had used.
· The intermission point, which sows the seeds of a misunderstanding between Hrithik and Ash.
· Post-interval, Hrithik returning to Amer to get Ash back to Agra and the welcome ceremony by his mother-in-law [Suhasini Mulay].
· The sword fight the very next morning, between Hrithik and Ash.
· The Azeem-o-Shaan Shahenshah track, when the entire kingdom hails Hrithik.
· The fight in the climax [reminds you of the fight between Brad Pitt and Eric Bana in Troy].
Amazing moments indeed…

On the whole, Jodhaa Akbar is, without a shred of doubt, a brilliant film in all respects. This historical has all it takes to prove the first blockbuster of 2008. Very strongly recommended

Well, this is what the critics and jury feel.

Nominees for 2008 Academy Awards

Best picture
“Atonement,”
“Juno,”
“Michael Clayton,”
“No Country for Old Men,”
“There Will Be Blood.”

Best actress
Cate Blanchett,
“Elizabeth: The Golden Age”;
Julie Christie, “Away From Her”; Marion Cotillard, “La Vie en Rose”; Laura Linney, “The Savages”; Ellen Page, “Juno.”

Best actor
George Clooney, “Michael Clayton”; Daniel Day-Lewis, “There Will Be Blood”; Johnny Depp, “Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber of Fleet Street”; Tommy Lee Jones, “In the Valley of Elah”; Viggo Mortensen, “Eastern Promises.”

Best supporting actress
Cate Blanchett, “I’m Not There”; Ruby Dee, “American Gangster”; Saoirse Ronan, “Atonement”; Amy Ryan, “Gone Baby Gone”; Tilda Swinton, “Michael Clayton.”

Best supporting actor
Casey Affleck, “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford”; Javier Bardem, “No Country for Old Men”; Hal Holbrook, “Into the Wild”; Philip Seymour Hoffman, “Charlie Wilson’s War”; Tom Wilkinson, “Michael Clayton.”

Best director
Julian Schnabel, “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly”; Jason Reitman, “Juno”; Tony Gilroy, “Michael Clayton”; Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, “No Country for Old Men”; Paul Thomas Anderson, “There Will Be Blood.”

Best foreign film
“Beaufort,” Israel; “The Counterfeiters,” Austria; “Katyn,” Poland; “Mongol,” Kazakhstan; “12,” Russia.

Adapted screenplay
Christopher Hampton, “Atonement”; Sarah Polley, “Away from Her”; Ronald Harwood, “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly”; Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, “No Country for Old Men”; Paul Thomas Anderson, “There Will Be Blood.”

Original screenplay
Diablo Cody, “Juno”; Nancy Oliver, “Lars and the Real Girl”; Tony Gilroy, “Michael Clayton”; Brad Bird, Jan Pinkava and Jim Capobianco, “Ratatouille”; Tamara Jenkins, “The Savages.”

Animated feature film
“Persepolis”;
“Ratatouille”;
“Surf’s Up.”

Art direction
“American Gangster,” “Atonement,” “The Golden Compass,” “Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” “There Will Be Blood.”

Cinematography
“The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford,”
“Atonement,”
“The Diving Bell and the Butterfly,”
“No Country for Old Men,”
“There Will Be Blood.”

Sound mixing
“The Bourne Ultimatum,”
“No Country for Old Men,”
“Ratatouille,”
“3:10 to Yuma,”
“Transformers.”

Sound editing
“The Bourne Ultimatum,”
“No Country for Old Men,”
“Ratatouille,”
“There Will Be Blood,”
“Transformers.”

Original score
“Atonement,” Dario Marianelli;
“The Kite Runner,” Alberto Iglesias;
“Michael Clayton,” James Newton Howard;
“Ratatouille,” Michael Giacchino;
“3:10 to Yuma,” Marco Beltrami.

Original song
“Falling Slowly” from “Once,” Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova; “Happy Working Song” from “Enchanted,” Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz; “Raise It Up” from “August Rush,”
Nominees to be determined;
“So Close” from “Enchanted,”
Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz; “That’s How You Know” from “Enchanted,”
Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz.

Costume
“Across the Universe,”
“Atonement,”
“Elizabeth: The Golden Age,”
“La Vie en Rose,”
“Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber of Fleet Street.”

Documentary feature
“No End in Sight,”
“Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience,”
“Sicko,”
“Taxi to the Dark Side,”
“War/Dance.”

Documentary short
“Freeheld,”
“La Corona (The Crown),”
“Salim Baba,”
“Sari’s Mother.”

Film editing
“The Bourne Ultimatum,”
“The Diving Bell and the Butterfly,”
“Into the Wild,”
“No Country for Old Men,”
“There Will Be Blood.”

Makeup
“La Vie en Rose,”
“Norbit,”
“Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End.”

Animated short film
“I Met the Walrus,”
“Madame Tutli-Putli,”
“Meme Les Pigeons Vont au Paradis (Even Pigeons Go to Heaven),”
“My Love (Moya Lyubov),”
“Peter & the Wolf.”

Live action short film
“At Night,”
“Il Supplente (The Substitute),”
“Le Mozart des Pickpockets (The Mozart of Pickpockets),”
“Tanghi Argentini,”
“The Tonto Woman.”

Visual effects
“The Golden Compass,”
“Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End,”
“Transformers.”

Pax is officially a Jolie-Pitt


The adoption of the newest member of the Brad and Angelina brood was made official on Wednesday by a Los Angeles County Children’s Court judge, Angelina’s rep confirmed to People.

Angelina adopted the now 4-year-old in March of 2007, in Hanoi, Vietnam. He added Pitt to his last name in May.

Jolie's oldest child, 6-year-old Maddox, was adopted from Cambodia. She also has two daughters: Zahara, 3, who was adopted from Ethiopia, and 21-month-old Shiloh, who was born to Jolie and her partner, Brad Pitt, in May 2006.

Ever since she was young, she has wanted to adopt children, Jolie said in an interview published last year in a Vietnamese newspaper.

"Everyone would agree that children need to have a family," the paper quoted the Oscar-winning actress as saying. "I have the ability to help children fulfill that desire. Why should I say no?"

Jennifer Lopez gives birth to twins


Jennifer Lopez gave birth to twins early Friday, making the singer and husband Marc Anthony the parents of a boy and a girl after one of pop music's most closely watched pregnancies.

Lopez representative Simon Fields told People magazine the babies were born shortly after midnight on New York's Long Island, with the 5-pound, 7-ounce girl arriving first, followed by her 6-pound brother minutes later. The location was not identified.

"Jennifer and Marc are delighted, thrilled and over the moon," Fields told the magazine.
Lopez' publicists and agent did not return telephone calls from The Associated Press early Friday.

Ending months of speculation, Lopez confirmed her pregnancy at a Miami concert in November. Her father, David Lopez, told Telefutura's "Escandalo TV" earlier this month that the 39-year-old singer was expecting twins.

Lopez and Anthony, 38, married in 2004. The twins are her first children, and his third and fourth.

Will A.R.Rahman get the Oscar ?????


The Indian maestro A.R. Rahman has just completed a new English movie, Elizabeth: The Golden Age, directed by Shekar Kapur - an Indian as well. It is a sequel of Shekar’s very popular - Oscar winner and multiple Oscar nominee - Elizabeth. Big names like Kate Blanchett, Oscar nominee Clive Owen and Geoffrey Rush are involved in this project.

The first movie was made at a budget of $25 million and garnered more than $60 million all over the world, and also bagged an Oscar for the best make up. Apart from this, it was also nominated for the Best Actress in a Leading Role award, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration award, Best Cinematography award, Best Costume Design, including Best Picture award and not to forget the Best Music - Original Dramatic Score by David Hirschfelder. David will also work in this colossal project along with A.R. Rahman. The sequel of Elizabeth is getting much bigger with much higher budget.

Also, chances are high for A.R. Rahman to be nominated for an Oscar. Shekar Kapur, one of the finest directors that India has ever produced is very optimistic about this movie. It will be released in the US this October and Indian audience can catch this movie in the theatres only by next year. Hope we get good news by January and better news by March.

Nepali - Will it be a treat to watch on First day

As part of Nepali’s audio release at the Sathyam theatre, invitees were treated to a song sequence. Everyone present came out feeling that the song was very special. It shows Bharath and Meera Jasmine in a sensuous song that has been tastefully and atmospherically shot. The tune by Deva is marvelously melodious and contemporary (a little unlike the usual Deva tune), the memorable lyrics are by Yuga Bharathi and the playbacks are Bombay Jayashree and Karthik.

There is an interesting prelude to the song: Bharath and Meera arrive at their dream house, a newly constructed flat that they are planning to move into. Bharath has brought her there to show the flat off, but before he can say anything, Meera beats him to it: “The bedroom will be here, the kitchen here, the study here,” she begins rattling off her preferences. “Please da, I want this first day to be as unforgettable as our first night.” A stunned Bharath says, “I’m not a talker, I’m a do-er,” and embraces her. The song begins.

After the screening of this song, director Parthiban came up to praise director Durai’s work. “There are some movies that leave us with a line that we don’t forget and keep repeating. In Ramana it was “Forgiveness is the only word in Tamil I don’t like.” Bhagyaraj gave us that line about drumsticks. After Nepali, people are going to talk about first day, not first night!”

Ash says no Jhansi Ki Rani


Close on the heels of the confirmation from Aishwarya Rai that she will be acting opposite Rajinikanth in Robot is the news now that she will not be part of Jhansi Ki Rani: The Rebel, Ketan Mehta's ambitious historical sequel to Mangal Pandey: The Rising..

The media is abuzz with the question of why Ash has walked out of the project. Is this so that she can allocate enough time for Robot? Talking to the media, Ash expressed her disappointment over her being linked to the project. "Please stop dragging my name into Jhansi Ki Rani. Ketan spoke to me nearly two years back when he was very keen on making this film with me. But thereafter, he has not been in touch with me and I don't think that as of now I am working in Jhansi Ki Rani. So I would appreciate it if the media stops writing stories about me playing Rani Laxmibai." The actress further added that what she was most keenly looking forward to now was her Hollywood stint in Pink Panther – an enormous and nice change from all these Bollywood blockbusters.

What is also more newsworthy is that Ash might write her own life story. Her glittering life is begging to be made into a best selling biography (and a movie) and though several publishers have been asking her permission to commission a book on her life, Ash has turned them all down. The reason was revealed only recently: she plans to write an autobiography.

Brendon McCullum amazed by the price for him at IPL

New Zealand's players contracted to the Indian Premier League were working out how to spend their money after receiving huge figures during Wednesday's auction. Another house and a racehorse are on the cards for Brendon McCullum while Stephen Fleming and Jacob Oram are happy their futures are more secure.

"Because it was the first time there was uncertainty about the figures so I had no idea what I'd sell for," McCullum told the Dominion Post. "When I was signed for US$700,000 I was obviously blown away and having slept on it, it's a great feeling and it's nice to get the recognition."

McCullum was the biggest winner from New Zealand while Oram picked up $675,000, Daniel Vettori $625,000, Fleming $350,000 and Scott Styris $175,000. The paper reported Fleming texted "Sorry, can't at the moment, at the bank" when asked for an interview. He later said he was "just pleased to get picked up". "I saw the amounts of money being thrown around and I thought: `Wow, I hope they keep trading.' It was incredible to be involved in."

Oram was speechless when his amount came through. "I was expecting nothing like what I went for," he said. "Dan was first up and I was happy for him. I was hoping I'd be somewhere close to him, I always thought he would be top dog."

The participation of Oram, Vettori and McCullum will be limited in the first year because their tour of England begins on April 27, leaving them only a handful of chances to participate in the inaugural event.

"The players realise where their priority lies," Justin Vaughan, the New Zealand Cricket chief executive, said. "It might hurt them in the pocket in the first year but the following two years are clear for them." There are no problems for Fleming, who has retired, while Styris has stood down from Tests and will be available for all of Hyderabad's matches.

South Africa rocked Bangladesh on 1st day

Dale Steyn's pace delivered the initial breakthroughs before Mornè Morkel took over, and a wicket for Johan Botha in his opening over ensured a miserable morning for Bangladesh at the National Stadium in Mirpur. Mohammad Ashraful had batted beautifully for 34, but the impetuous streak that has so often been his undoing came to the fore again 10 minutes before lunch to leave his side in an abject position at 85 for 5.

Ashraful had decided to bat first on a hard pitch with a dark-grey tinge, but it took South Africa just two balls to push Bangladesh on to the back foot. Steyn was spot on with his first ball, and the second looped back to his left after Tamim Iqbal had inside edged on to his pad. Steyn reacted smartly on his follow through to hold on.

In his next over, more damage was done, with Junaid Siddique hanging his bat out at one that slanted across him. Mark Boucher dived across Graeme Smith at first slip to hold on to the catch. More uncomfortable moments followed, with Makhaya Ntini and Steyn testing the batsmen with short deliveries, but Shahriar Nafees gave the crowd some solace with a crisp pull and square-drive off Steyn.

Habibul Bashar pulled Ntini for a boundary, but looked out of sorts otherwise, and the introduction of Morkel sent him speedily in the direction of the pavilion. Considering that he's a former captain and the most senior batsman in the side, it was a wretched shot, a nothing waft outside off stump, and Neil McKenzie held a low chance in front of him at a wide third slip.

Stodgy defiance hasn't been a characteristic of Bangladeshi batting in recent times, and Ashraful's approach when he arrived at the crease was indicative of a cavalier mindset. An edge for four got him going, and when Morkel then pitched too full, he clipped one effortlessly through midwicket for four.

Ntini has seldom been a factor on subcontinent pitches, and Ashraful capitalised on his more predictable offerings with a superb square-drive and a meaty pull. At the other end, Nafees was alternately watchful and attacking before Morkel turned out to be too good for him.

A full delivery was driven superbly through the covers, but the next ball angled across and deviated away. The hesitant push flew to Smith, and South Africa had four wickets for just 60.

Ashraful continued undaunted, lacing a couple of lovely drives, but Botha's introduction on the stroke of lunch proved a masterstroke. Ashraful drove and cut for two fours, but when Botha then tossed up up, Ashraful's drive flew right back to him.

Had Shakib Al Hasan been given leg before following a vociferous shout soon after, Bangladesh's plight would have been even worse. As it was, another pummelling loomed, against a South African side that appears to have worked out subcontinent conditions [they won in Pakistan last October] better than some of their predecessors.

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Kamal's daughter in Sultan

Sultan the warrior, the animated film being directed by Soundarya Rajnikanth and produced by Ochre studios in association with Adlabs is shaping up at a fast pace. The film has many firsts to its credit. Rajnikanth is the first Indian star to have been animated. Music is being scored by A R Rahman and two songs have been penned by Kavi Perarasu Vairamuthu, out of which one will be the opening number and the other one is a duet. Recording of the songs have been done under tight wraps. It has also been alleged that these two tracks have been recorded very innovatively where creativity will be at its best and unique. Whispers floating in the industry also suggest that Shruti Hassan has sung a song in Sultan. Insiders reveal that the film is sure to be liked by kids as well as adults.

Billa's Production House - Ayangaran Int - on a roll

Ayngaran International is gearing up to be a major presence in Kollywood. They made headlines when they signed up to co-produce Shankar’s Robot, and followed it up quickly as producers of Vasanthabalan’s Angadi Theru. Ayngaran’s newest big project as producer is Vishnuvardhan’s Sarvam. After Billa, Vishnu has become the hottest new director in town, and Ayngaran snapped him up without wasting too much time.

Last morning at their Chennai office, Ayngaran International held a pooja for Vishnuvardhan’s Sarvam which will star Arya and Trisha. Originally, the story was conceived with Surya in mind. Arya is still busy with Naan Kadavul, and ditto for Trisha who is tied up with Abhiyum Naanum. Once these stars have their dates free, Ayngaran hopes to announce the shooting schedule for Sarvam. It wasn’t very long ago when Ayngaran for most of us meant international distributors of high quality Tamil DVDs. And now they’re big players in the industry.

Mani Ratnam's Next movie

Mani Ratnam’s newest film project returns to a territory he is master of: a simple, deep love story beautifully and impeccably told in the way only this maestro can. Think Alaipaiyuthey, except the couple is now negotiating married life amidst the frantic pace of modern life. Will the story also perhaps deal with how contemporary couples balance careers with marriage and family? There is something doubly interesting about this project – the stars that will play this couple are Abishek and Ash. The glittering echo between the fictional and the real couple is obvious, adding to the buzz.

It’s nice to have Mani Ratnam come back from larger than life stories like Guru to doing something more intimate, feel-good, lyrical and romantic. And where there’s Mani there’s always that other maestro, A.R.Rahman. Taking a cue from the story and theme of this yet untitled movie, the model for Rahman’s songs could well be Alaipaiyuthey. Richly lyrical romantic ballads, intoxicatingly choreographed and shot. Which brings us to the cinematographer – rumour has it that Mani is most likely going to bring his veteran cameraman in - P.C. Sriram. If you recall, P.C. and Mani together revolutionized the use of lighting and camera work in Tamil cinema once. Rumour also has it that the Big B will make a cameo. But let’s wait and see what develops – with this publicity shy director nothing is confirmed until he confirms it.

Sarah Khan under trouble for controversial act - Silambattam Unmoved

Sanah Khan, Simbu's lead lady in Silambattam, might not have hit the screens yet in Tamil cinema, but she already is a nationwide news material. Thanks to the controversial undergarment ad she featured in, that later went off air from National television for alleged obscene material.

However, the producer's aren't quite put off by the government's decision. For they have recently shot a sequel of sorts for their old commercial with Sanah Khan herself. Shot in the exotic locales of Malaysian jungles, the commercial that features Sanah and an Orangutan is said to have cost the producers a whopping 70 lakhs.

Sanah isn't letting the controversy get her down either. "Forget about the controversy, I simply enjoyed doing the shoots and I'm sure it'll catch up among public bringing enough publicity for the brand," she chimed during the publicity event organized by the manufacturers.

Trisha imposes conditions


Trisha has come up with three conditions to accept offers.

1. No more pairing with little boys who are new to the industry

2. No more new producers and directors

3. No more stories which has value and importance for her.

The reasons for this conditions are,

1. Little boys either misbehave or takes lots of repeat shots

2. New producers don't have money and hence her salary is struck up. She hates people who pull her for payments.

3. If stories have value for her, then the risk of its failure will pull down her career. So she prefers to be a glamour doll rather than a girl owning several awards and risking her career and making less money.

Vijay eyes Tamil Remake after Ajith

It was Ajith who started starring in remake of Billa. The movie was a great success.

Understanding the business value, now Vijay is also preparing to act in a remake of old movie of Rajini.

Already there were many in queue to act in remakes of MGR, Sivaji, Rajini and Kamal!

Mamooty wants Shreya in his next venture


Shreya fever is day by day catching up more and more.

After Shriya's semi-nude appearance in Sivaji, plenty of offers poured in her, most of the time recommended by the hero of the movie for whom she has offered a star category treat! - Treat for Vadivelu really spoiled the value of her treat!

Now the fever is spreading to other languages too!

Mammootty is expecting her in his next movie. She may be one of the females among three to pair with him!

Meera Jasmine was paid 25 L for the movie Nepal



Meera Jasmine was paid 25 L for the movie Nepal in which she has opened up everything. It is now said that the money paid is not just for opening - glamour show, but to act and co-operate very close with Bharath, the hero of the movie.

Understanding the money involved, her date Rajesh advised her not to showcase things for cheaper money and to double her salary.

Rajesh is ready to wait for another couple of years, if Meera can bring him more money.

So, her movies will have more and more of glamour. If you want to see more, then you have to request the producer of the movie to pay her more money.

Sony gets Audio rights for Dasavatharam


Being one of the most committed in the audio market, Sony BMG extends its next step into Kodambakkam acquiring the audio rights of Dasavatharam, one of the most expected blockbuster biggies of 2008.

Talks between Sony BMG and producer V. Ravichandran of Oscar Films Pvt. Ltd were held over for a long time and things were finalized today. Dasavtharam starring Kamal Haasan in 10 different roles will hit the screen on April 14, 2008, while audio for the film will be released during second week of March.

Speaking about the film's release, producer Ravichandran says, "The film will be simultaneously released in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi". Also added the publicity works and number of prints are being worked out.


More elated about stepping into Tamil Film industry, Shridhar Subramaniam, Managing Director, SONY BMG India utters that it's a great feather added to their caps now for they have mingled with one of the finest projects in the history of Tamil cinema. It is a great beginning for Sony BMG and Shridhar further continues that main concern of Sony BMG will of redefining a new and different scenario in this region.

As known earlier, the film has Asin, Jayapradha, Mallika Sherawat in lead roles and Himesh Reshammiya has tuned melodies for this flick.

Apart from spinning great successful albums in the international standard, Sony BMG has been sensing triumph in the audio market joining hands with Mani Ratnam (Guru), UTV (Rang De Basanti), Dharma productions (Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, Kabhie Khushie Kabhi Gham, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Kal Ho Naa Ho), Aamir Khan Productions (Lagaan), A R Rahman's (Vande Mataram), Kailash Kher's (Kailasa), Jagjit Singh'Gulzar's (Marasim & Koi Baat Chale) and the Indian Idol and Fame Gurukul series among many.

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Padmapriya says a big yes to glamour

With a tone of hitting at Shreya and Namitha, Padmapriya announced yesterday that glamour is not just these female's individual property but is public and is always for public.

Now, in her next movie you can see Padmapriya in her natural dress - invisible costumes!

"Why is that Padmapriya wants to showcase things of her to public?" we asked, she says "An image has been created on me, as if I am just a family girl, I want to break that image and wanted to be identified as a girl who can do Item, which is my original. So, soon you can see me in a natural way."

One of her show will be in Tamil and another in Hindi. It seems Hindi will have more skin show than Tamil, because she is doing a bar dancer role for Hindi.

Already she is spreading her semi natural photos through Tamil magazines like Kumudam, Vikatan, Dinakaran etc., but sad thing is that nothing natural is found in her - curves missing!!!

Money flow in IPL Auction - 170 Crores

The Indian Premier League player auction opened this morning with an outbreak of testosterone-fuelled bidding entirely in keeping with the hype and financial excess synonymous with this remarkable sporting start-up.
Owners of the eight franchises that make up the nascent league gathered behind closed doors at the Hilton Towers hotel on Mumbai's western waterfront at 11am, and immediately began spending money like the billionaires many of them are. In the first two hours of the auction only 10 players were sold, but their total value of $7.175m demonstrated the fever that overcame some franchise owners when presented with their pick of the world's highest-profile cricketers. By 7.15pm, eight hours after the bidding opened, and with all but 10 players contracted, the owners had spent a total of $34.955m.


"There's so much testosterone in there it's unbelievable," said a franchise source inside the private auction. "They are spending money at an incredible rate, and it has been quite easy to force the prices up. I think it's just dawned on some of these guys that they have to pay these wages for three years."
The players were presented in lots of six, with the marquee names first to go under the hammer. Top of the list was India's one-day captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, signed for an astonishing $1.5m, $1.1m more than his reserve price, by the Chennai franchise owned by Indian Cements. Chennai also captured Muttiah Muralitharan for $600,000, well above his $250,000 reserve price.

As expected Adam Gilchrist was in high demand, eventually fetching $700,000 from Hyderabad that will ensure his retirement from international cricket will be comfortable. Franchises have a minimum spend of $3.3m and a maximum of $5m for their squads, with players signed for an initial three years, but the restrictions do not appear to have occurred to some franchise owners.

The morning's biggest spender was the Mumbai franchise owned by India's richest man, Mukesh Ambani. He kept his hand in his pocket in the first round but made up for it when the second batch of players were put up. Ambani signed 39-year-old Sri Lankan opener Sanath Jayasuriya for $975,000, the second-highest bid of the day, and Harbhajan Singh for $800,000.

Mumbai is already guaranteed the services of Sachin Tendulkar, who under IPL regulations must be paid a salary amounting to 115% of the next highest-paid player in the franchise. That takes Ambani's total spending to $2,946,250, leaving just over $2m left to fill the other 13 places in his squad.

The excess continued into the afternoon as a combination of pride, ambition and tactical bidding saw extraordinary prices agreed. Andrew Symonds became the second most valuable player in the league after Hyderabad paid $1.35m for his services, apparently untroubled by his central role in the Australian Bollyline row last month. Symonds was involved in the spat with Harbhajan in which the Indian was alleged to have called him a "monkey". On Australia's last tour of India, meanwhile, Symonds was subjected to monkey chants, but there is evidently sympathy for this hugely talented player.

It remains to be seen whether Symonds or any of his Australian colleagues will be available to play in the inaugural tournament starting in April, as it clashes with a scheduled tour of Pakistan, though security fears may yet abbreviate the trip.

Brett Lee was the next most popular Australian, fetching $900,000 from the Mohali side owned by Bollywood star Preity Zinta. Lee has a huge following here, but not as great as that of his boss who almost caused a small riot when she graced the media with her presence during one of the breaks in bidding. A stampede of photographers almost flattened the actress, and left IPL commissioner Lalat Modi ordering them to leave the room. Ignored by everyone, he retreated as Zinta struck her poses.

The sums paid for Symonds and Lee are startling in comparison to those for Ricky Ponting, captured for $400,000 by Kolkata where deliciously he will be captained by long-time adversary Sourav Ganguly, and Shane Warne. In one of the shrewdest moves of the day Jaipur secured Warne's signature for his reserve price of $450,000.

Owned by the British-based Emerging Media, Jaipur's strategy appears to be to build a side with one megastar leading younger players. Manoj Badale, boss of Emerging Media, owner of the Jaipur franchise, arrived with that strategy, but admitted he was prepared to adapt to the unique circumstances of the auction. "We've got a plan of course, but this is an auction," he said. "This is about what others do as much as what we do."

Australians and Indian were not the only ones to profit from the bidding. New Zealanders Jacob Oram (Chennal, $675,000) and Brendan McCullum (Kolkata, $700,000) attracted higher bids than expected, while Jacques Kallis ($900,000 from Bangalore) and West Indian Chris Gayle ($800,000, Kolkata) confirmed their places among the elite.

Nobody yet knows how good the cricket will be when the IPL's billion-dollar circus finally gets under way in April, but judging by today's events the hype will be world-class. The auction shoved President Musharraf's election defeat in Pakistan off the new bulletins, pushed stock exchange numbers off the business channel tickers, and dominated the morning papers.

Skilfully orchestrated by international sports agency IMG and Modi, commissioner of the IPL and a vice-president of the BCCI, the competition is a masterpiece of marketing. Before a ball has been bowled the IPL has raised $1.8bn in revenue and sent tremors through the international game. Today's event is another shrewd step in a campaign to fuel interest in the nascent tournament. Shortly after dawn journalists and camera crews gathered at the Hilton Towers, awaiting the arrival of the franchise owners and players that have already lent glamour to the competition.

Vijay Mallaya, India's highest-profile billionaire whose personal PR would make Richard Branson blush, arrived to a characteristic burst of flash bulbs, as did the captain of his Bangalore franchise Rahul Dravid. Ganguly, also an IPL "icon player", drew similar attention. The arrival of Zinta, one of two Bollywood stars whose involvement has boosted interest, simply sprinkled a little stardust on an already remarkable event.

IPL Players Auction List

Top 10 players sold

1. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, India - Chennai, $1.5m
2. Andrew Symonds, Australia - Hyderabad, $1.35m
3. Sanath Jayasuriya, Sri Lanka - Mumbai, $975, 000
4. Ishant Sharma, India - Kolkata, $950,000
5. Irfan Pathan, India - Mohali, $925,000
6. Brett Lee, Australia - Mohali, $900,000
6. Jacques Kallis, South Africa - Bangalore $900,000
8. RP Singh, India - Hyderabad, $875,000
9. Harbhajan Singh, India - Mumbai, $850,000
10. Chris Gayle, West Indies - Kolkata, $800,000
10. Robin Uthappa, India - Mumbai, $800,000


Players by franchise

Bangalore
Rahul Dravid, India, icon
Jacques Kallis, South Africa, $900,000
Anil Kumble, India, $500,000
Cameron White, Australia, $500,000
Zaheer Khan, India, $ 450,000
Mark Boucher, South Africa, $450,000
Dale Steyn, South Africa, $325,000
Nathan Bracken, Australia, $325,000
Wasim Jaffer, India, $150,000

Kolkata
Sourav Ganguly, India, icon
Ishant Sharma, India, $950,000
Chris Gayle, West Indies, $800,000
Brendon McCullum, New Zealand, $700,000
David Hussey, Australia, $625,000
Shoaib Akhtar, Pakistan, $425,000
Murali Kartik, India $425,000
Ricky Ponting, Australia, $400,000
Ajit Agarkar, India, $350,000
Umar Gul, Pakistan, $150,000

Chennai
Mahendra Singh Dhoni, India, $1.5m
Jacob Oram, New Zealand, $675,000
Albie Morkel, South Africa, $675,000
Suresh Raina, India, $650,000
Muttiah Muralitharan, Sri Lanka, $600,000
Matthew Hayden, Australia, $375,000
Stephen Fleming, New Zealand, $350,000
Parthiv Patel, India, $325,000
Joginder Sharma, India, $225,000
Makhaya Ntini, South Africa, $200,000
Mike Hussey, Australia, $400,000

Delhi
Virender Sehwag, India, icon
Gautam Gambhir, India, $725,000
Manoj Tiwari, India, $675,000
Mohammad Asif, Pakistan, $650,000
Daniel Vettori, New Zealand, $625,000
Dinesh Karthik, India, $525,000
Shoaib Malik, Pakistan, $500,000
AB de Villiers, South Africa, $300,000
Tillekeratne Dilshan, Sri Lanka, $250,000
Farveez Maharoof, Sri Lanka, $225,000
Glenn McGrath, Australia, $400,000

Hyderabad
Andrew Symonds, Australia, $1.35m
RP Singh, India, $875,000
Rohit Sharma, India, $750,000
Adam Gilchrist, Australia, $700,000
Shahid Afridi, Pakistan, $675,000
Herschelle Gibbs, South Africa, $575,000
VVS Laxman, India, $375,000
Chaminda Vaas, Sri Lanka, $200,000
Scott Styris, New Zealand, $175,000
Nuwan Zoysa, Sri Lanka, $110,000
Chamara Silva, Sri Lanka, $100,000

Jaipur
Mohammad Kaif, India, $675,000
Graeme Smith, South Africa, $475,000
Yusuf Pathan, India, $475,000
Shane Warne, Australia, $450,000
Munaf Patel, India, $275,000
Younis Khan, Pakistan, $225,000
Kamran Akmal, Pakistan, $150,000

Mohali
Yuvraj Singh, India, icon
Irfan Pathan, India, $925,000
Brett Lee, Australia, $900,000
Kumar Sangakkara, Sri Lanka, $700,000
Shantakumaran Sreesanth, India, $625,000
Mahela Jayawardene, Sri Lanka, $475,000
Piyush Chawla, India, $400,000
Ramesh Powar, India, $170,000

Mumbai
Sachin Tendulkar, India, icon
Sanath Jayasuriya, Sri Lanka, $975,000
Harbhajan Singh, India, $850,000
Robin Uthappa, India, $800,000
Shaun Pollock, South Africa, $550,000
Lasith Malinga, Sri Lanka $350,000
Dilhara Fernando, Sri Lanka, $150,000

Dhoni Tops tha Auction List with $1.74 million

India's rich and powerful dug deep into their pockets on Wednesday to stock up on talent for their teams in India's new money-spinning cricket tournament.

Chennai splashed out $A1.74 million for Indian one-day captain MS Dhoni while Hyderabad paid $A1.47 million for Australia's Andrew Symonds at a glitzy auction to determine who plays where in the Twenty20 Indian Premier League (IPL) starting in April.

Dhoni was snapped up by the southern metropolis side in the first round of the sale.

Retired Australian spin-bowler Shane Warne was the first player to go under the hammer fetching $491,000 from Jaipur.

Warne's compatriot fast bowler Brett Lee was later snapped up by Mohali for $982,000 while Australia captain Ricky Ponting was bought by Kolkata for $436,000.

Australian keeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist, who last month retired from Test cricket, went to Hyderabad for $764,000.

Retired Australian fast bowler Glenn McGrath and batsman Michael Hussey failed to attract a bid in the first round and will join Pakistan's Mohammad Yousuf in the reserve pool.

The Mumbai franchise, which has Sachin Tendulkar as the designated city player and is owned by India's most valuable company Reliance Industries, paid $1.06 million for Sri Lankan Sanath Jayasuriya and $927,000 for India spinner Harbhajan Singh.

Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan went to Chennai for $655,000.

Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene was bought up by the Mohali franchise for $518,000 while temperamental Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar went to Kolkata for $464,000.

The eight franchise teams of the IPL - Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mohali and Mumbai - have a budget of up to $5.45 million each for a maximum of eight contracted players. They are bidding for 78 players and the closed-door auction could last up to 12 hours.

The 44-day IPL starts on April 18 and will feature 59 matches.

The players are being put up for bidding in sets of 12 according to their annual base price, multiple-skills and expected availability for the inaugural year.

The player contracts are for a period of three years.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Shriya angry on kissing Vikram's Lips

Shriya was in shooting for a Tamil flick titled ' Kanda Swamy' which is 'Mallana' - Telugu in Chennai, while doing shooting she got annoyed and left the place with anger, the reason for this is Director Sushi Ganeshan is filming some kiss scenes between Vikram and Shriya, already one shot of the kiss scene has been completed but Director was not satisfied and he asked for retake of the same scene for which she got annoyed and left the place. This incident took place on Monday. This was a romantic scene between Vikram and Shriya. She canceled the shooting and left the place.

India Beat Srilanka in the 8th ODI


A calm and composed Mahendra Singh Dhoni finished off the target in the last over as India won a hard-fought match at the Adelaide Oval. Yuvraj Singh starred with a brilliant 76 as India cruised to victory by 2 wickets.

Chasing 239 for victory, India got off to a bad start when Lasith Malinga produced a virtually unplayable delivery to dismiss Sachin Tendulkar. It was a superb outswinger from Malinga, which straightened and slightly moved a shade away from the batsman. Tendulkar was all squared up and the ball knocked the back of off-stump. Tendulkar went for a duck with India at 2/1.

Robin Uthappa and Gautam Gambhir then looked to steady the innings for India, but Uthappa could not last long as he tried to take a risky single and Jayasuriya hitting the stumps bang on. Uthappa went off for 10, as India were reduced to 33/2.

Ishara Amarasinghe then got into the act, removing Gautam Gambhir for 15, trying to tickle one down the leg side. Gambhir went when India were 35/3.

Yuvraj Singh then joined Rohit Sharma in the middle - at the back of a big slump in form. Yuvraj looked uncertain initially, but once he got his eyes in, it was one of the Yuvraj innings that flowered into a treat. His cover-drives were back, and so were his backfoot punches. And more importantly, he did not relax - giving the innings a degree of momentum, which ultimately contributed to the victory. His reached his fifty in over-a-run a ball, in 46 balls. Sharma, in the meanwhile was intent on rotating the strike and keeping the scoreboard ticking and scoring some intermittent boundaries.

Sharma, however was a victim of his own downfall as he tried to slog-sweep one from Muttiah Muralitharan, but could only manage to hole out to Chamara Silva. Sharma departed for 26. Dhoni then joined Yuvraj in the middle and India were on the ascendancy at that stage and kept going. Yuvraj and Dhoni added a superb 50-run partnership, taking India closer to the target.

Chaminda Vaas then added a twist to the tale by dislodging Yuvraj with a superb yorker, with the left-hander falling for 70-ball 76. Pathan then strode out to the middle, under immense pressure to guide his team through. He gave Dhoni able company for a good 50-run partnership, which took India extremely close. Ishara Amarasinghe added another chapter in this game when he castled Irfan Pathan, who went through with a needless shot at that time.

Then went Praveen Kumar, trying to hook the ball before it got to him - catching him off-guard with the ball taking the outside edge and looping in the air to Jayawardene in the first slip. Sri Lanka then removed Harbhajan Singh when Lasith Malinga to add a late twist in the tale, when he trapped him leg-before for 3. India at 229/8.

A brilliant century by vice-captain Kumar Sangakkara helped Sri Lanka register a competitive score of 238 in the 8th CB Series ODI at Adelaide. Sangakkara came to bat when the Lankans were 6/2 and added a massive 153-run partnership with his captain Mahela Jayawardene to ensure a strong fightback.

Earlier in the day, Sri Lanka got off to a disastrous start - losing both openers cheaply. Tillekaratne Dilshan was the first one to depart, caught behind to Munaf Patel for 4. He poked at one bowled in the channel by Patel, and the rest was done by Dhoni - who grabbed an easy catch. The next batsman to depart was Sanath Jayasuriya, thanks to some smart work by Munaf Patel - who deflected a straight drive from Sangakkara, catching Jayasuriya short of the crease.

Then came together an inspirational partnership - the Jayawardene-Sangakkara one that yeilded 153-runs. The first few overs were very difficult, with the bowlers dictating terms to the batsmen. But the duo held their nerves and got through the tough period to consolidate their position - through brisk running between the wickets and stroking the odd boundary. Jayawardene was forced to play an extremely responsible innings and supported Sangakkara right from the word go.

Both Jayawardene and Sangakkara looked aggressive once the ball lost its sheen - and played some superb timing-based boundaries, with immaculate placement. Sangakkara displayed enormous levels of patience, reaching his fifty off almost 100 balls. The partnership gathered momentum somewhere around the 25th over, when both batsmen started picking the gaps with ease. The Indian bowlers lacked ideas and were unidimensional in their approach. Jayawardene, also reached his fifty off 74 balls and started upping the ante. That included a superb six off Ishant Sharma over mid-wicket and a boundary soon after. Once both batsmen settled down, there were boundaries to see - with a lot of skill and craft displayed by the wristy two.

Jayawardene then departed for 71, in almost an identical fashion to one that got rid of Sanath Jayasuriya - with Praveen Kumar deflecting the ball to the stumps. Jayawardwene made a 99-ball 71, which took Sri Lanka past 150. Catastrophe then struck Sri Lanka as they lost Chamara Kapugedara in the very next over - thanks to a brilliant piece of fielding and throwing by Rohit Sharma. Sri Lanka were at 161/4 when Chamara Silva walked into bat.

Silva had only one responsibility - taking that single and giving Sangakkara the strike. He looked rather bogged down against some fine spell of death bowling by the Indians, and at times got stuck at the other end. He managed to begin his innings well, but when the time mattered, just got glued - and lacked intent. Sangakkara in the meanwhile, notched up his 7th hundred in ODI cricket. And there were no signs of him giving up as he plundered some cheeky boundaries in the last five overs.

Sangakkara's splendid hundred came to an end after he played a tired shot, to be caught in the deep by Praveen Kumar off Irfan Pathan for 128. And then, Silva was the final Sri Lankan wicket to fall, trying to clear the Adelaide long boundary - only to be caught by Uthappa off Harbhajan Singh in the final over of the innings, Sri Lanka scoring a tenacious 238.

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