Indian news round-up

Sachin Tendulkar, who bequeathed the Ranji Trophy captaincy to Sameer Dighe, gave credit for the the triumph to dedicated team effort and the Almighty.``I am very happy and very excited and also feel happy for all those associated with Mumbai cricket,'' he said.

Tendulkar said ``it's very difficult to put it in words but I am delighted that we could do it. It was a collective effort. It would be wrong to say that it was only because of sheer talent.''

Mumbai coach Ashok Mankad was all praise for the left-arm spinner Rajesh Pawar following his consistent performances all through the season. Mankad said ``He stands very high in my estimation. He should play for India in the next one year. He has great tenacity of purpose.''

Indian Sports Minister SS Dhindsa has said that sportspersons should bring in self-discipline and declare their assets. He was speaking during a TV interview on the issue of match fixing and betting.

Indian team coach Kapil Dev, while agreeing to the Minister's suggestion, said ``If it is going to help the game, I am ready to do that. There is nothing wrong in declaring the assets. We have to come forward and clean up the mess.''

The Karnataka under-25 team retained the PS Ram Mohan Rao Trophy with an innings and 92-run victory over Hyderabad in the three day match in Bangalore on Sunday.

Batting first, Hyderabad were dismissed for 156. In reply, Karnataka declared their first innings at 459 for 9. Karnataka then bowled out Hyderabad for 221 to complete their emphatic win.

BA Vinay Kumar did the star turn for Karnataka with a century (135). He followed this up by taking 4 for 15 in Hyderabad's second innings. Nitin Mulki (115) and Sunil Kumar (3 for 75) were the other notable performers for Karnataka.