Indian news round-up

Team not affected by allegations, says Ganguly

Indian captain Sourav Ganguly on Friday said that the allegations against the team coach Kapil Dev would not affect the team's performance in the forthcoming Asia Cup in Dhaka, due to start on Sunday.

Speaking to a news agency in Calcutta, Ganguly said `` the team's performance will not at all be affected by these allegations'' and added `` Our duty is to play to the best of our abilities, and we will do so. As team captain, I can assure you that we are not at all concerned with off-the-field happenings. We are only interested in performing on the field.''

India will be playing hosts Bangladesh in their first match of the tournament on May 30.

TNCA felicitates players

Robin Singh, T Kumaran, and Hemang Badani were on Friday felicitated by the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) for being selected to play for India in the Asia Cup in Dhaka. Sridharan Sriram was also felicitated along with the threesome for having represented India during the recent India-South Africa one-day series.

Speaking on the occasion, the chief guest, retired Director General of Police Walter Davaram, said ``it is good to see five members from the state (including Sadagopan Ramesh) make it to the international arena'' and added ``but with such wealth of talent we should have won the Ranji Trophy this year.'' Tamil Nadu lost to Mumbai in the semifinal.

Responding to the felicitations, Sriram and Badani thanked the TNCA for their support and all the others who had helped them all these years. The TNCA secretary, Ashok Kumbhat welcomed the gathering while the TNCA joint secretary Dr Nandakumar proposed the vote of thanks. Balu Alaganan, former Tamil Nadu captain and TNCA president also spoke.

Lull in proceedings for Indians in county championship

Inclement weather forced Kent to settle for a draw in their PPP Healthcare County Championship Division One match against Surrey at the St Lawrence Ground in Canterbury on Sunday. India's Rahul Dravid did not get a chance to bat as Surrey batted right through, but he managed to roll his arm over for two overs and managed to pick up the wicket of Adam Holloiake for 10 runs. The match was frequently interrupted by rains, and Surrey scored 348 for the loss of eight wickets in their first innings.

Meanwhile Leicestershire had to go into their match against Durham without the services of Anil Kumble as the Indian leg spinner had to report for the Asia cup in Dhaka. Ganguly had earlier left for India even before the scheduled start of Lancashire's match against Hampshire.