KOLKATA : India Vs South Africa Cricket, ICC Test Rankings, India defied an unbeaten century from Hashim Amla to crush South Africa by an innings and 58 runs in the final Test on Thursday to draw the series 1-1.

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Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh claimed 5-59 as the tourists, trailing by 347 runs on the first innings, were bowled out for 289 in their second knock with just nine deliveries remaining in the match.

Amla returned unbeaten on 127 to finish the series with an astonishing average of 494 after making 253 not out in the first Test and 114 in the opening innings of this match.

The 26-year-old from Durban battled for 394 deliveries and struck 16 boundaries in his ninth Test century, but failed to prevent his team from snatching a thrilling draw.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s Indians, who lost the first Test in Nagpur by an innings and six runs, retained their number one Test ranking with 124 rating points.

Second-ranked South Africa, who would have taken over from India if the match had ended in a draw, were left on 120 points.

Last man Morne Morkel (12) kept Amla company for 21.4 overs before being leg-before to Harbhajan in the penultimate over of the match in front of 40,000 relieved fans at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Wayne Parnell, who put on 70 for the eighth wicket with Amla, was dismissed in the fourth over after tea for 22. He was caught at mid-on off seamer Ishant Sharma.

Sharma also had Paul Harris caught in the slips for four, before Morkel and Amla almost pulled off a thrilling draw.

As the South Africans fought hard, India sorely missed pace spearhead Zaheer Khan, who was confined to the dressing room the entire day with a knee injury.

The overnight pair of Amla and Ashwell Price put on 47 for the fourth wicket, before Harbhajan broke through two hours after the start under bright sunshine.

The off-spinner beat Prince in the air and the miscued drive lobbed to Sharma at mid-off.

Left-handed Prince made 23 after scores of zero and one in the previous two innings of the series.

Leg-spinner Amit Mishra, who left the field briefly for treatment on a sore right shoulder, returned to trap AB de Villiers leg-before for three with a googly just before lunch.

South Africa, who went to lunch at 164-5, slipped to 180-7 as Harbhajan claimed both Jean-Paul Duminy and Dale Steyn leg-before soon after play resumed.

Meanwhile, the Indian cricket board said in a statement that Zaheer will not feature in the one-day series against the Proteas which starts on Sunday.

South African captain Graeme Smith will also miss the one-dayers due to a fractured finger and all-rounder Jacques Kallis will lead the tourists in his absence, the team management said.

The internationals will be played in Jaipur (Feb 21), Gwalior (Feb 24) and Ahmedabad (Feb 27).

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US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is meeting with the Saudi leadership in Riyadh today, hoping to enlist the kingdom in persuading China to support a tougher stand against Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
The talks with King Abdullah and Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal come as Washington is seeking to rally international support for a fourth round of United Nations sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme. The United States and its allies suspect Iran is attempting to develop a nuclear weapon. Tehran denies this, insisting that its nuclear program is peaceful. As part of the ongoing effort to gain support for sanctions against Iran, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is meeting President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in Moscow today.

Devastating Haiti Quake Toll to Top 150,000, Haiti’s Communications Minister confirmed in Port au Prince that 150,000 bodies had been recovered from the devastating earthquake that struck Haiti 12 days earlier.
Haiti’s earthquake death toll will top 150,000, a minister said as rescuers located a possible new survivor beneath the rubble of the capital 12 days after the disaster. The United Nations appealed for more troops to be sent in as police struggled to control fresh outbreaks of looting in devastated Port-au-Prince, while a new aftershock rocked the stricken country. It’s very difficult to estimate how many more people might be dead, but the prime minister has spoken of 200,000, she added. Previously, Haitian health officials had quoted a figure of just over 112,000 dead. A 4.7-magnitude aftershock rattled Haiti, 12 days after the original 7.0 earthquake, the US Geological Survey and local residents said, although there were no reports of new casualties.
While on the other side a seven year old Charlie Simpson organised his very own sponsored bike ride around a park in west London, hoping to raise five hundred pounds for food, water and tents, particularly to help the country’s children. But the schoolboy’s eight-kilometre ride around his local park was so successful that he ended up raising more than £65,000. His mother said Charlie’s simple idea had grown beyond their expectations. Charlie will be donating the money to UNICEF who have launched the Haiti Earthquake Children’s Appeal. The children’s charity say that more than half of Haiti’s 9.6 million inhabitants are under 21 years of age and many are in desperate need of clean water, shelter and medical help.

Yuvraj Singh Dating Vivek’s Ex-girlfriend? Yuvraj Singh is apparently dating actor Vivek Oberoi’s ex-girlfriend Grace. And last week, the actor even bumped into them in Goa.

Grace is from South Africa. She’s a professional surfing trainer and brand ambassador for sportswear manufacturer, Billabong. She met Vivek last year when he had gone surfing while shooting in SA for Prince of Thieves. She has even met the actor’s family.

Grace was once quite serious about Vivek. “She was asking for a commitment. She loved him and wanted a marriage but VO felt he wasn’t ready or as emotionally involved as her. She left South Africa (where she lives) to be with Vivek and was willing to change her lifestyle for him. But VO wasn’t looking for a serious relationship then so they parted ways,” adds the source.

Since then, Grace has moved on. “Yuvraj was seen last week in Goa with friends but was seen being very protective about Grace. He was seen introducing her as his fianc. Apparently, Yuvi has even introduced her to his mother and she dotes on Yuvraj’s girlfriend. Their family astrologer says the girl will bring good luck to Yuvi’s cricketing career,” says the source.

Reveals the source, “Yuvi and Grace were partying  at a night club when they met Vivek. When VO came to know that the two were planning to tie the knot, he wished them well. After that, Grace spoke to Vivek a couple of times.”

Yuvraj Singh’s manager, Ambika Chauhan says, “It’s not true that Yuvraj and Grace are dating each other. We were all hanging out in a group — Bunty Sajdeh (Ambika’s husband), Grace and Yuvi along with a few others. Yuvraj and Grace are just good friends.

Veer Movie Review, Veer Movie Song Banner: Vijay Galani Moviez, Eros Entertainment
Producer: Vijay Galani, Sunil A. Lulla
Executive & Co-Producer: Sunil Sharma,Pratik Galani,Kamlesh Kumar
Director: Anil Sharma
Star Cast: Salman Khan, Sohail Khan, Mithun Chakraborty, Jackie Shroff, Zarine Khan
Cassettes and CD’s on: Eros Music
Lyricist: Gulzar
Music Director: Sajid – Wajid
Story / Writer: Salman Khan
Release Date: January 22, 2010
Lyrics Song List
* Salaam Aaya
* Surili Akhiyon Wale
* Kanha Thumari
* Taali
* Meherbaniyan
* Lyrics Song: Salaam Aaya……..

WASHINGTON: What can Washington do to face down a growing threat posed to US national security by al-Qaeda’s affiliates in Yemen? After a failed bomb attack on a US airliner last week, this question is soaring up the national security agenda.

Barack Obama, the president, has pledged to use “every element” of US national power to hunt down those who threaten America’s safety. While the Yemeni affiliate of al-Qaeda – known as al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) – risks becoming a significant threat to western security, Washington’s policy options are far from simple.

The risk posed by al-Qaeda in Yemen has long been of concern to western intelligence services. In 2000 Yemeni suicide bombers killed 17 people when they struck the USS Cole. The US waged a largely successful counter-terrorism campaign over the next three years, using unmanned drones to kill key operatives. But in the past three years AQAP has been thriving again in eastern Yemen, amid the ravages of its civil war.

Today western intelligence chiefs believe the risk posed by Yemeni jihadism has become especially serious. About 100 Yemenis have been held in the Guantánamo Bay detention centre since 2002. Yemen’s foreign minister said last year that the country hosted 1,000 al-Qaeda militants. These jihadists have claimed responsibility for a range of attacks, notably the attempted assassination of Prince Mohammed bin Naif, the Saudi deputy interior minister, in August.

As Mr Obama examines his options, one possibility can be ruled out: there will be no US invasion of Yemen to echo those in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Most political strategists believe that US public opinion would not tolerate such a move. But Richard Fontaine, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security think-tank in Washington, also believes it is unnecessary.

“After 9/11, the US had to invade Afghanistan because it faced a Taliban government that was totally hostile to America and with whom no deals could be done,” he says. “In Yemen you have a weak government led by President Ali Abdullah Saleh with an array of problems. But you do have the possibility of partnering that government to face down al-Qaeda militants.”

Boosting such a partnership is certain to be a key goal for the US. Washington already gives security and intelligence support to Mr Saleh’s government – and may have provided such help for two air strikes conducted by Yemeni forces on December 17 and 24.

However, such cooperation might only go so far, amid signs that Mr Saleh’s government is not as determined to take on al-Qaeda as Washington would like. “There’s a problem of will and a problem of capacity,” says Mr Fontaine.

The next few weeks are almost certain to see European Union governments pressing the US to take a different tack: focusing on trying to boost the economic and political conditions in Yemen in order to ensure that it does not become a breeding ground for jihadism.

European diplomats believe that no matter what is achieved on the security front in the short-term, Yemen’s long-term economic problems guarantee that it could become a failed state over time. Its petroleum output will fall to zero by 2017 and its water resources are running dry, according to analysts. Meanwhile, Yemen’s population will double by 2035.

New Moon Breaks Box Office Record!, New Moon had the biggest midnight opening of all time, raking in an estimated $26.27 million last night! It beat out Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince as well as The Dark Knight.

Fidel Castro Dead, On July 27, 2006, Fidel Castro nearly died during emergency intestinal surgery to stem internal bleeding caused by chronic diverticulitis. Since then, Cuba-watchers and obituary writers have been on high alert awaiting his demise.

Yet, more than three years later, Castro soldiers on, approaching his mortal end with the same zeal he lavished on his life. The 83-year-old appears to have adjusted to his medically mandated retirement, enduring various surgeries and their attendant complications. A state-of-the art convalescent suite has been installed in his principal residence, Punto Cero, where he is surrounded by family and Cuba’s finest doctors. On his good days, he entertains well-wishers — among them, Harry Belafonte and Oliver Stone. And he continues to intervene in the thorny politics of Cuba.

In 2007, while still hospitalised, Castro began a transition from being Cuba’s commander in chief to its pundit in chief, penning columns he calls ‘Reflections’ in the state-run newspaper, Granma. Late last year, he offered some personal introspection. “I have had the rare privilege of observing events for a very long time,” he wrote. He then acknowledged the gravity of his illness. “I do not expect I shall enjoy such a privilege four years from now — when President [Barack] Obama’s first term has concluded.”

But until Castro is in the grave, we will be hearing from him. While his brother Raul and the Cuban army are running the day-to-day affairs of the country, Castro retains and exercises veto power. And Cubans continue to feel the strongman’s sting.

In March, more than a dozen of the most senior members of the Cuban regime were purged from the government. While Raul Castro had initiated the internal coup, Fidel was quick to weigh in and assail its casualties, all former members of his inner circle. The men had succumbed to “the honey of power,” he wrote in his column.

Castro’s reluctant leave-taking — with its periodic near-finales — fits into a long tradition of Hispanic caudillos or dictators. Consider, for example, the life — and death — of Francisco Franco, Spain’s dictator of almost 40 years. Both Castro’s father and Franco hailed from the rugged northern countryside of Spain, a region renowned for its fierce and stubborn citizenry. And notwithstanding divergent political ideologies — Franco was a zealous anti-communist — the two men had a good deal in common. Both were willing to forge unpalatable and unpopular alliances with totalitarian states to shore up their power — Franco with Nazi Germany and Castro with the Soviet Union.

And Franco’s shrouded last days neatly foreshadowed Castro’s. Franco became grievously ill in 1974 and was forced to turn over his rule — “temporarily,” he insisted — to Prince Juan Carlos. Castro also initially ceded control to his brother only “temporarily”. Like Castro, Franco had an unexpected recovery, although his lasted only a year before he died at 82.

Although it is generally believed that Franco died days earlier, his death was announced on November 20, 1975, the same day on which Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera, the founder of Franco’s fascist Falange party, died 40 years earlier.

Some people assert doctors kept Franco alive under orders from the dictator that he would live until the ordained date.

Castro’s untidy leaving has kept the news media in an indefinite state of high alert, as they formulate and reformulate coverage and obituaries. The veteran Spanish Civil War reporter Martha Gellhorn found herself in a similar pickle three decades ago. In 1975, she accepted an assignment from New York magazine to write about post-Franco Spain. “This thrills me, the sort of journalism I love,” she wrote her son. “I am waiting for the old swine to die; but obviously he is being kept breathing [no more] while the right tightens its hold on the country.”

When I asked Castro in a 1994 interview when he would retire, he snapped: “My vocation is the revolution. I am a revolutionary, and revolutionaries do not retire.”

Bardach is the author of Without Fidel: A Death Foretold in Miami, Havana, and Washington and serves on the Brookings Institution’s Cuba Study Project. Thanks to gulfnews.com

Matt Damon, an American actor and philanthropist, was found dead in California’s Palo Verde mountain area on Wednesday. He was 38.
According to TMZ’s web site, Damon, who was officially reported missing Friday, was on a camping trip. His body was found by an Imperial County Sheriff’s Department deputy on Wednesday.
The cause of death is unknown.
According to TMZ.com on Wednesday, law enforcement headed into the desert near San Diego on Tuesday. That day, TMZ.com reported, “Damon sent a text message to a friend that he was out of water and needed help. There was a massive search that ended abruptly.”
On his personal blog, Damon wrote last month he was going to the desert because of his friends talking about “treasure hunting and lost gold, and my own insatiable appetite for adventure and exploration . . . I plan on going so deep into the desert, that any failure of my equipment could cost me my life.”

Later on, however, he downplayed such fears, writing, “It seems some websites have reported on the story, posting up that I might die out in the desert, or that it might be my greatest opponent yet, etc. Come on guys. It’s really common down in southern California to go out to the off-road recreation areas in the desert about an hour away from L.A. and San Diego. So my plan is to go out to the desert, do some camping, ride the motorcycle, and shoot some guns. Sounds like a lot of fun to me. A lot of people do it. This isn’t a version of Into the Wild. I’m not going out into the desert with a pair of shorts and a bowie knife to try to live off the land. I’m going fully geared up, and I’m planning on having some fun.”

Damon won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for his screenwriting in Good Will Hunting, and was nominated for his lead performance in the same film. Growing steadily in popularity from the 1997 film, he was since matched up with A-list actors in mainstream films, and today is rated among the top actors in Hollywood.

Damons agent, John Hayner, said his client led a simple life and always had an appreciation for the outdoors.

“He was always planning on going on some sort of adventure,” Hayner told TMZ.com. “And his my mom got scared and said ‘You’re moving with your auntie and your uncle in Bel-Air.’ I whistled for a cab and when it came near the license plate said “Fresh” and there were dice in the mirror. If anything I could say that this cab was rare but I thought, naw, forget it, yo holmes to Bel-Air. I pulled up to the house about seven or eight and said to the cabbie “Yo holmes smell ya later.” Looked at my kingdom, I was finally there, to sit on my throne as the prince of Bel-Air.”

LOS ANGELES: Michael Jackson Funeral Live and Michael Jackson eventually laid to rest, More than two months after his death from a drug overdose, Michael Jackson will be laid to rest here Thursday in a private funeral for family and friends at a star-studded Los Angeles cemetery.

Jackson, who died aged 50 on June 25, will be entombed in an ornate mausoleum at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park, where Hollywood icons such as Humphrey Bogart, James Stewart, Spencer Tracy and Walt Disney are buried.

No details of the 45-minute service have been released, although reports Thursday said soul diva Aretha Franklin could sing at the service as mourners said a poignant final farewell to the “King of Pop.”

Jackson’s children — Prince Michael, 12, 11-year-old Paris and Prince Michael II, 7 — would leave notes in their father’s coffin, reports said.

Messages reading “Daddy we love you, we miss you,” would be placed in Jackson’s gold-plated casket alongside his trademark single white glove.

Close Jackson friends Diana Ross and Brooke Shields are reported to be among the mourners who will be in attendance.

Thursday’s service contrasts with the lavish public memorial held at Los Angeles’s Staples Center in July, which was attended by 20,000 fans and beamed live around the world to an estimated audience of 1 billion.

Police in the Los Angeles suburb of Glendale urged Jackson devotees to stay away from Thursday’s funeral, saying the neighborhood surrounding the cemetery’s imposing entrance would be cordoned off.

“A special request would be to encourage fans to stay at home,” a statement said. “The closure of the streets for the day will not afford anyone the opportunity to get anywhere near the gates.”

Police helicopters, sniffer dogs and plain-clothes officers would patrol the 300-acre (120-hectare) cemetery, on the lookout for any fans trying to sneak into the service, which is due to take place at 7:00 pm (0200 GMT Friday).

Jackson is to be interred at Forest Lawn’s Great Mausoleum, an elaborate neo-classical building inspired by Genoa’s Campo Santo.

Forest Lawn, which opened in 1906, is also home to replicas of some of Michelangelo’s greatest works, including “David,” “La Pieta” and “Moses.”

The cemetery also features a stunning recreation of Leonardo da Vinci’s “Last Supper” in stained glass.

Jackson’s casket will be placed in a private area of the crypt that also houses Hollywood legends Clark Gable, Jean Harlow and Carole Lombard. Other icons buried at the cemetery include Lon Chaney, Nat King Cole and Errol Flynn.

Although open to the public, Forest Lawn is renowned for its privacy, and unlike other cemeteries in the Los Angeles area does not provide maps of celebrity graves.

On Wednesday, a Los Angeles judge supported a request from Jackson’s mother, Katherine, that the cost of the service be paid for by her son’s estate.

A lawyer for the two entertainment industry figures who control Jackson’s fortune said the costs of the service would be steep.

“The expenses will be extraordinary, but Michael Jackson was extraordinary,” Jeryll Cohen said, without specifying the anticipated bill.

Jackson’s delayed funeral comes after months of speculation about the exact cause of his death and reports of divisions within the singer’s family about where he should be buried.

Jackson’s elder brother Jermaine had said he wanted the star to be interred at his Neverland Ranch estate north of Los Angeles. Jackson fled the property in 2005 following his acquittal on child molestation charges.

Los Angeles coroners said last week that Jackson’s death was being treated as a homicide and revealed that the star had six drugs in his body when he died, including propofol, a powerful anesthetic.