We need to score big tomorrow: Gambhir

Jaipur: (PTI) India's stand-in skipper Gautam Gambhir today said the batsmen need to score heavily against New Zealand in the second one-dayer here tomorrow since the dew-factor would be crucial to the outcome of the match. "It's always good to score as many runs as possible in the sub-continent. If we are batting first 300 should be a good score but because of the dew factor, the more we score the better it would be for our bowlers," Gambhir said after a net session at the Rajasthan Cricket Association s academy. "It (dew) is a big factor but we also have bowlers who have the experience and who have bowled enough in dew conditions.

They will use some chemical and that will make a difference I think but there are certain things like toss and dew which are not in our hands," the skipper said. Asked about the wicket at the Swai Man Singh stadium, he said, "There is no point thinking about the team composition and wicket right now as we are going talk to the coach. The wicket looks dry and it might spin a bit if we bowl first." The Indian team trained for an hour and half today, with Yuvraj Singh doing the bulk of batting at nets. Coach Gary Kirsten was seen giving tips to the southpaw and also did some throw-downs with him. Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli and Yusuf Pathan did some batting practice against S Sreesanth, Munaf Patel, Vinay Kumar and the local bowlers. But comeback man Ashish Nehra, surprisingly, did not bowl long enough. Quizzed on that, Gambhir said, "He is a very experienced campaigner and is bowling in good rhythm at the moment. Sreesanth has also bowled a lot in the Test series and doesn't need to bowl that long.

Moreover, in sub-continental wickets, batting is also very important." The men in blue are high on confidence after their convincing win over the visitors in the first ODI of the five-match series in Guwahati but Gambhir cautioned the side against complacency. "This is a young side and no one can afford to be complacent, we still have a long way to go. I don't there is place for anyone who is complacent in this team," the left-hander said. The left hander from Delhi, who will be leading the national team for only the second time in his career tomorrow, said he is enjoying the opportunity. "As far as captaincy is concerned, you need to take care of the entire unit. As I have always said a captain can be as good as his and this has been a very good team effort. I am enjoying the stint," Gambhir said. The skipper also reiterated that, with so many stars missing from the line-up, this is a 'great opportunity for the youngsters' to prove their mettle.

Ganguly's decision to play for Bengal gives jitters to TN

Chennai: (PTI) Former India captain Sourav Ganguly's decision to assist Bengal midway in the season in Ranji Trophy against Tamil Nadu in their fifth of seven league matches in Elite-A group has given jitters to Tamil Nadu bowlers, who have not performed to their potential so far. The four-day fifth round of league match between Bengal and Tamil Nadu starts at IIT Chemplast grounds here tomorrow.

Bengal are now in fifth position on the table with eight points from four matches. On the other hand, Tamil Nadu are in joint second spot with 10 points, along with Gujarat, behind the leaders Mumbai with 14 points. Bengal coach and former India player Woorkeri Raman has found it tough to field totally fit 11 players in earlier matches this season and Ganguly's return should help the side perform in order to push themselves up the points table. "We managed with a squad of 12 players, but I must say the boys have measured up well under the circumstances.

In this context, Ganguly's presence will definitely make an impact and hopefully, we will be able to do well," Raman said. "Against Assam, we didn't have (Ashok) Dinda who was not fit. His replacement Shami Ahmed contacted viral fever and was off the field for two hours. We had our chances, but didn't take them. Our game against Tamil Nadu is crucial for us," Raman, who was Tamil Nadu's coach for four years before shifting back to Bengal this season, added. Bengal, who are eyeing an outright win to make sure of progressing further in the tournament, might face lot of hurdles in realising it as Tamil Nadu's top and middle order batsmen have been in good nick.

Opener Abhinav Mukund (double century plus), K B Arun Karthik (century plus) and Badrinath have cracked centuries against Delhi and Saurashtra and also have decent scores in the other two matches. Despite having Ganguly, capable of performing well with both bat and ball, Bengal will miss the services of wicketkeeper batsman Wriddhiman Saha, who is with the Indian team for the ODI series against New Zealand. "Saha's replacement Sreevats Goswami for our match against Tamil Nadu has also gone home due to viral fever. So it has been a bit of struggle for us this season. But there is not much you can about it," Raman said. Tamil Nadu, meanwhile, would also be going into the match without two of their key players -- off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and opener Murali Vijay, both of whom are away on National duty against the Kiwis. However, the main worry of the hosts would be their bowling that has not clicked so far and any hope of beating Bengal depends on Lakshmipathi Balaji upsetting Bengal with some early strikes and young left-arm spinner, Aushik Srinivas finding his rhythm.

India blanked 0-3 by Australia at World Women Ch'ship

New Delhi: Indian women suffered their second consecutive defeat at the World Team Squash championship when it was drubbed 0-3 by formidable second seed Australia in Palmerston North, New Zealand.

The 10th seed India, which earlier lost to Ireland, are now lying third in the four-team pool B and are unlikely to advance to the next stage.

Anwesha Reddy was thrashed 6-11, 4-11, 6-11 by Donna Urquhart in the opening match.

India needed a win to stay in contention but Joshana Chinappa was outplayed 3-11, 2-11, 4-11 by Racheal Grinham.

Anaka Alankamony then lost the inconsequential third rubber 3-11, 6-11, 5-11 to Kasey Brown.

India rested Dipika Pallikal on Tuesday and will take on Japan in their last pool match on Wednesday.

England moral victors in drawn first Ashes Test

Brisbane: (AFP) England head to this week's second Adelaide Test with all the momentum after dominating Australia over the final two days of the Ashes opener which ended in a draw at the Gabba today. England ensured they would not be beaten in the first match of their Ashes defence after conceding a 221-run innings deficit when Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott shared in England's highest partnership in Australia of 329 runs.

In pic: Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott take the applause after their record stand of 329 which secured a draw at Brisbane

Cook became only the fourth Englishman to score a Test double-century in Australia with his unconquered 235, while Trott hit 135 not out before skipper Andrew Strauss called a halt at 517 for one, 40 minutes before tea. Australia tried to avoid further collateral damage in their 26 overs to the close and were 107 for one when the match finished in a draw. Ricky Ponting scored his 56th Test half-century to be 51 not out and Shane Watson was on 41. Records and personal bests kept tumbling for England on the anti-climactic last day as Cook and Trott pummelled the Australian bowlers.

Cook joined Wally Hammond (3), Reg Foster and Paul Collingwood as double centurions with his 625-minute epic off 428 balls in the highest score by either team in 19 Ashes Tests at the Gabba. Their unbroken partnership surpassed the previous highest stand by England in this country of 323 held by Jack Hobbs and Wilfred Rhodes at Melbourne in 1911-1912. When Trott's 100 came up it was the first time three English players have scored a century in an innings of a Test match since 1924. On that occasion the top three batsmen -- Jack Hobbs (211), Herbert Sutcliffe (122) and Frank Woolley (134 no) -- all scored hundreds against South Africa at Lord's. Cook surpassed his previous highest Test score of 173 and also passed Ian Botham's 138 as the highest English run scorer at the Brisbane ground, set back in 1986.

It was also only the second match in Test match history to feature two 300-plus partnerships following Mike Hussey-Brad Haddin's 307-run stand in Australia's first innings 481. The other was the drawn Pakistan v India first Test in Lahore in 2006. England landed psychological blows on the Australians as Cook and Trott had frolicked before a small last-day crowd dominated by England's taunting Barmy Army fans, which made it more like a Test at Lord's. More salt was rubbed into Australia's wounds with two more embarrassing dropped catches, making a total of five for the match.

Vice-captain Michael Clarke put down a regulation chance off Trott (75) at slip off Shane Watson's bowling and Ponting dropped Cook (222) in the slips. It only got worse when Simon Katich was caught at first slip by Strauss off Stuart Broad for four in the sixth over of Australia's second innings. Australia will have plenty to ponder ahead of Friday's second Test at the Adelaide Oval after England came away from the Gabba without losing for the first time since the drawn Test in 1998. Over the course of the five days only 22 wickets fell, and just seven over the last three days on the bat-friendly flat Gabba pitch.

Scoreboard at the close of the fifth day of the first Ashes Test between Australia and England at the Gabba today: England 1st innings: 260 Australia 1st innings: 481 England 2nd innings (overnight 309-1): A Strauss stpd Haddin b North 110 A Cook not out 235 J Trott not out 135 Extras: (B-17, LB-4, W-10, NB-6) 37 Total: (for 1 wkt declared in 152 overs) 517 Fall of wickets: 1-188 Bowling: Hilfenhaus 32-8-82-0, Siddle 24-4-90-0, North 19-3-47-1, Johnson 27-5-104-0, Doherty 35-5-107-0, Watson 15-2-66-0 Australia 2nd innings: S Watson not out 41 S Katich c Strauss b Broad 4 R Ponting not out 51 Extras: (B-4, LB-1, W-1, pen runs 5) 11 Total: (for 1 wkt in 26 overs) 107 Fall of wicket: 1-5 Bowling: Anderson 5-2-15-0, Broad 7-1-18-1, Finn 4-0-25-0, Swann 8-0-33-0, Pietersen 2-0-6-0.

Sachin, MSD's IPL base price 1.84 crore, Sourav for 92 lakh

NEW DELHI: Around 62 Indian cricketers will be up for auction for the fourth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) with Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and the legendary Sachin Tendulkar in the top-bracket of cricketers valued at Rs 1.84 crore.

In pic: Tendulkar and Dhoni during IPL match

However, Tendulkar and Dhoni are likely to be retained by their respective franchises -- Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings.

Former India captains Sourav Ganguly, Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid along with VVS Laxman are in the third bracket which has a base price of Rs 92 lakh.

The cricketers who will command the highest base price of Rs 1.84 crore are Sachin Tendulkar, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh.

The second bracket is that of Rs 1.3 crore where Twenty20 specialist Yusuf Pathan finds a place alongside speedster Zaheer Khan and the talented Suresh Raina.

Similarly stand-in ODI captain Gautam Gambhir, who didn't have a great IPL 2 and 3, has been priced in the third bracket at Rs 92 lakh along with the likes of Virat Kohli, Irfan Pathan, Robin Uthappa, Ashish Nehra, Ishant Sharma, Praveen Kumar and veterans such as Ganguly, Kumble, Dravid and Laxman.

The fourth bracket is of Rs 46 lakh which consists of domestic cricketers and the fringe India players who have represented the country since 2005.

Bengal players Wriddhiman Saha, Manoj Tiwary, Ashok Dinda along with Saurashtra's Cheteshwar Pujara are some of the players in the fourth bracket.

The fifth and final bracket is of Rs 23 lakh where there are India discards such as Manpreet Gony, Sudeep Tyagi, Sridharan Sriram to name a few.

The five brackets of base price: 1st: Rs 1.84 crore; 2nd: Rs 1.3 crore; 3rd: Rs 92 lakh; 4th: Rs 46 lakh; 5th bracket: Rs 23 lakh

List of Players up for auction

Andhra: Yelakka Venugopal Rao; Assam: Sridharan Sriram Baroda: Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, Ambati Rayudu, Munaf Patel;

Bengal: Sourav Ganguly, Manoj Tiwary, Wriddhiman Saha, Ashok Dinda;

Delhi: Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Ashish Nehra, Ishant Sharma

Gujarat: Parthiv Patel, Siddharth Trivedi Haryana: Joginder Sharma, Amit Mishra

Hyderabad: VVS Laxman, T Suman, Pragyan Ojha

Jharkhand: Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Saurabh Tiwary

Karnataka: Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid, Manish Pandey, Abhimanyu Mithun, R Vinay Kumar, Robin Uthappa

Kerala: S Sreesanth

Mumbai: Sachin Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan, Wasim Jaffer, Abhishek Raut, Rohit Sharma, Abhishek Nayar, Ramesh Powar

Madhya Pradesh: Naman Ojha

Punjab: Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Manpreet Gony, VRV Singh

Railways: Murali Kartik Rajasthan: Pankaj Singh

Saurahstra: Ravindra Jadeja, Cheteshwar Pujara

Tamil Nadu: Dinesh Karthik, S Badrinath, R Sathish, R Ashwin, M Vijay, L Balaji

Uttar Pradesh: Mohammed Kaif, Suresh Raina, Praveen Kumar, Sudeep Tyagi, Piyush Chawla, Rudra Pratap Singh

Vidarbha: Umesh Yadav.

Kohli, Ashwin set up comfortable win

India 276 (Kohli 105, McKay 4-62, Mills 3-42) beat New Zealand 236 (Taylor 66, Yuvraj 3-43, Ashwin 3-50) by 40 runs

Virat Kohli's first century batting first, his fourth overall and second in a row, set up an eventually comfortable win for India, who are yet to lose an international in the current home season. India did lose their way in the last 10 overs of both innings. They lost their last six wickets for 26, and were given anxious moments by a 67-run stand ninth-wicket stand between Kyle Mills and Nathan McCullum.

In pic:Virat Kohli made his second successive century

Gautam Gambhir, leading India for the first time, brought the final breakthrough with a lovely catch running backwards to remove McCullum with 41 runs to get in five overs. R Ashwin, who can replace Ravindra Jadeja in the Indian line-up in the longer run, provided reasons to do so with the big wickets of Martin Guptill and Ross Taylor. Ashwin showed he could be an attacking option, operating inside the Powerplays, bowling big offbreaks, and slipping in the carrom balls. With the asking rate climbing, he got his wickets regularly.

The pitch had little of the early-morning demons it is famous for, and all the Indian batsmen got starts. Kohli wasn't as flashy as the others, but only he converted the start. Not flashy didn't equate to not quick in his case. Just that he hit only 10 boundaries in his 104, as opposed to Yuvraj Singh's seven in 42, Gambhir's six in 38, and Murali Vijay's five in 29. And Kohli ran hard. And he placed the ball well, creating opportunities to run hard.

It took Vijay and Gambhir a couple of overs of caution to realise this was an easier pitch than the one that had them at 27 for 5 in the last ODI here. Vijay started off by cover-driving what was called a no-ball for four, and then pulling the resultant free-hit for another. Gambhir matched him in aggression, charging at the bowlers, creating his own driving length, and getting two fours off Daryl Tuffey in the sixth over.

Inexplicably, though, Vijay switched from classical shots to a slog that ended his knock in the eighth over, with the score at 44. Eight overs later Gambhir flirted with what would have been called a wide, and perished with India 92 for 2.

Yuvraj took time getting started. India's run-rate dipped below six as he scored seven off the first 28 balls he faced. Then he started timing well, hitting boundaries at will. By the time he fell to Tuffey's remarkable knack of picking up wickets in the first overs of new spells, India were 179 in the 35th over. Unnoticed, Kohli had reached 63 off 73.

Unlike the others, Kohli didn't need periods of dramatic acceleration, nor did he need time to settle in. The only hiccup was the big shout for an inside edge from Kyle Mills. There was a sound, but no deviation. If we were not sure after watching replays, it is fair to assume the umpire couldn't have been either.

Soon Kohli started finding gaps, using his wrists to play into the on side. The pull to cow corner off deliveries not really short remained his favourite shot, getting four of his boundaries. Upon Yuvraj's dismissal, he did take charge, but didn't seem to make any drastic change, getting 42 off the last 31 balls he faced.

Kohli hit two boundaries in the 90s. The Powerplay had been taken, and it had to be made use of. The celebration upon reaching the century was representative of the growth of Kohli the batsman. There was no anger in his reaction on making the landmark, unlike in the past. He just had the smile on, enjoying the moment, more sure of his place. That the century would come seemed just as sure.

Andy McKay and Mills, though, were fantastic in the Powerplay, bowling the slower bouncers - and the quicker ones - well. McKay, in particular, got the ball to leave the right-hand batsmen from round the stumps. When Martin Guptill beginning the chase with five boundaries in the first six overs, it seemed New Zealand had shifted the momentum.

Ashish Nehra responded by shortening his length, getting Jamie How's wicket with one that got a bit big. Gambhir introduced Ashwin early, and the bowler delivered. He beat Guptill in the flight, getting him to hit straight to the deep fielder, signalling a start of a period where India choked the run flow.

The accurate Munaf Patel, and the spinners - Ashwin and Yuvraj - hardly bowled a bad ball for the next hour or so, and Taylor had to take his chances against Yusuf Pathan, hitting back-to-back sixes in the 23rd over - a pull and a slog-sweep.

However, the asking rate read 6.4 even after that over. Gambhir immediately brought back Ashwin, and New Zealand had to now attack Yuvraj, who was bowling well. A middle-overs collapse ensued, and when Taylor fell to another carrom ball in the 32nd over, he had left the tail too much to do for too long.

Strauss and Cook reignite contest

England 260 and 1 for 309 (Cook 132*, Strauss 110, Trott 54*) lead Australia 481 by 88 runs

If Australia needed any convincing about England's resilience they were given a day-long example as Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook hit magnificent centuries to give the visitors a golden chance to save the opening Test in Brisbane. The openers added 188 and when Strauss departed for 110, the challenge was taken up by Jonathan Trott, who helped Cook put on a further 121 for the second wicket. Cook ended unbeaten on 132 and England held a lead of 88 when bad light closed in.

In pic: Andrew Strauss roars after reaching his century

While few expected England to fold in a heap - they rarely do these days - even fewer would have expected a stumps score of 1 for 309. However, inspired by their captain the tourists set about showing they'd learnt the lessons from their poor first innings and gave Australia a day of toil in the field to match what England had suffered on Saturday. There is still time for the home side to force something on the final day, but nothing in their bowling in this innings has suggested they have the firepower to succeed.

Strauss's 19th Test hundred, and fourth against Australia, arrived from 184 balls when he late cut Xavier Doherty and his aggression against spin was a key part of the innings. He knew England couldn't block their way to safety, and often used his feet to advance and loft down the ground. Strauss's century celebration was unusually emotional; it hadn't been the easiest start to the series after his first-morning failure and this was another example of England's spirit. The stage was set for him to make it a massive hundred, following Hussey's lead, but he was beaten in flight by Marcus North and couldn't regain his ground, stumped by Brad Haddin.

Cook reached his landmark with a rasping cut shortly after tea and this match has been an emphatic response from somebody who still had his fair share of doubters coming in to the tour. Shortly afterwards he gave a tough chance to Peter Siddle at fine leg off a top-edged pull, but Siddle couldn't quite hold on as he dived forward. Trott was also given a reprieve, on 34, when Michael Clarke's valiant attempt at point failed as the ball slipped out of his finger tips and this time Siddle was the bowler to suffer.

England's opening pair ticked off a few records along their way, including the visitors' highest stand at the Gabba and the best opening effort by any touring team in Brisbane. They also became England's most prolific first-wicket duo in Test cricket, although the record was diluted somewhat as they have played more than twice as many innings as the Jack Hobbs-Herbert Sutcliffe pairing they overtook. But that was a minor point in the bigger picture of England trying to claw their way back into the match, which they did with an impressively aggressive approach. The time-runs equation could be vital in the end.

Having survived a first-ball review yesterday evening, Strauss gave a commanding display, punctuated with his favourite cuts and drives. However, he was given a significant let-off on 69 when Mitchell Johnson, in the midst of a torrid match, spilled a relatively simple chance at mid-off when Strauss tried to loft Doherty down the ground. There was another moment of alarm when he misjudged a pull on 88 which looped over point then an edge flew between the slips to take him to 96, but Strauss will feel England were owed a little luck.

The clearest sign that Strauss's game was in top order came from his shots through cover, which were a hallmark of his dashing start to Test cricket back in 2004. He latched on to Ben Hilfenhaus and Shane Watson when they over-pitched, while waiting on the back foot for anything short. Though the ball was only 15 overs old when play resumed there was very little assistance for the quick bowlers and Johnson, who was the fourth option used by Ricky Ponting, resorted to trying a bouncer-attack at Strauss, but a slow pitch nullified the threat.

Cook showed the same application as he had in the first innings after an early alarm when he sliced a cut between third slip and gully. Most of his other 10 boundaries came out of the middle and he even showed the cover drive, which is rarely seen from him these days. Initially, Cook outscored his captain but normal service was resumed as he dug in but he never became flustered and ticked the scoreboard over. He hacked Doherty through midwicket then cut him for three to move to 97 but had to spend the tea interval sat two short of his hundred, although didn't have to wait long. It was the first time since 1938 that both England openers had hit Ashes hundreds in the same innings.

After Strauss's aggression towards spin brought his demise, Trott began in positive fashion, which meant the scoring didn't seize up. He carried England into the lead with an elegant cover-drive off the struggling Johnson and he ensured two set batsmen were ready to face the second new ball when it came at the beginning of the final session.

Once again a crucial period loomed but Cook and Trott were equal to the challenge. Hilfenhaus found some swing and there were the two tough chances, yet it wasn't quite the threat everyone expected. In a sign of desperation Ponting used up his last review when Trott padded up to Hilfenhaus, but the ball was easily missing off stump and Trott's fifty soon followed as he tucked into Johnson's wayward offerings. This Test has had too many twists to think the final day will be plain sailing, but if England can hold their nerve it will be another in their recent history of incredible rearguards.

Asian games: Closing ceremony pics

Spectacular fireworks bring curtains down on Asian Games

Guangzhou: The skies lit up with dazzling fireworks as an emotional China brought the curtains down on the biggest Asian Games in a riot of colour, foot-tapping music and a cultural extravaganza at the Haixinsha Island on the Pearl River here today. If the opening ceremony held at the same riverside venue on November 12th was high on technical wizardry, the closing was a heart-touching display of warmth by the people of this South China city whose infrastructure has improved remendously as a result of hosting the Games which saw India record their best-ever medal haul till date. India finished sixth on the medal rostrum with a record 14 gold, 17 silver and 33 bronze for an overall tally of 64, eclipsing their earlier record of 57 medals in the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi.

In pic: Indian athletes arrive during the Closing Ceremony of the 16th Asian Games in Guangzhou, China on Saturday. Photo: AP

The closing ceremony was also used by the Games hosts to present cultural segments representing the different regions of the continent, including South Asia in which Indian singers Ravi Tripathi and Tanya Gupta enthralled the capacity crowd. Hosts China were unstoppable in their relentless march to titles and at the end of the Games had an incredible harvest of 199 gold in an overall haul of over 400 medals, proving once again that they are in the top-most echelons of world sports. Korea finished way behind in second place while Japan were third that underlined the fact that the Asian Games, the second largest sports event after the Olympic Games, are still being overwhelmingly dominated by the far eastern nations of the continent. The prelude to the official part of the ceremony was punctuated by dance of Qiling (a legendary animal symbolizing good luck) to celebrate the success of the Games that was followed by an exhibition of acrobatics and dance. Performers staged "Dragon drunk on the Pearl River", "Painting of Toy figuring in Emotion" and "Wind of the Yao Ethnic Group" dances while flashbacks of the Asian Games actions were shown on sail-shaped screens before the Chinese President Hu Jintao and Olympic Council of Asia Chief Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah entered the arena to the strains of the Chinese Military Band. With nine plumes of red smoke rising up from the Guangzhou Tower, an athlete jumped out of the screen while the eight sail-shaped screens showed some memorable moments of the Games competitions. The plumes changed shape one by one and the fireworks started on the Guangzhou Tower to symbolize the success of the Games and the happiness it produced.

The five-starred red flag of China was unfurled and the hosts national anthem was played by the Military band. A small cultural segment was then presented with fishing lights shaped as starlight and the crescent moon used as major props to create a dream-like atmosphere of changing colours and flowing figures, the images giving the crowd an impression of fairy tales and scenes of fishing. The face of a smiling child appeared which turned into a beautiful girl from this city of ten million who frolics in the night sky amidst the stars. When she extended her hand all the stars and moon fell into her grasp and she, with a laugh, threw the stars and moon to the Games Torch Tower in the centre of the square. As they fell to the ground, hundreds of children appeared like magic and scattered in all directions to form the Asian Games emblem. A ship resembling a crescent moon with singing children on board gently set sail on the front waterway and hundreds of chorus singers with stars in their hands in four groups entered from two sides. A child singer picked up a Lingnan-style fishing lantern made of bamboo splits ecclosed by paper from the water. Almost immediately several fishing lights in different colours appeared on the scene winding in groups or strings through the site as the children with star lights in their hands flashed those lights to give an impression of a sea of lights. This was followed by the representation of India and the Ganga with the holy river appearing on the sail-shaped screen and running towards the famous temples of India while the screen also showed images of the Taj Mahal and modern architecture. Several dancers led by Cai Yushan and Xi Chuhang performed to the singing of Tripathi and Gupta and there were also motorcycle stunts done in front of the Games Torch Tower. One hundred men performers with Indian flower wreaths in their hands danced in two groups behind the bikes and formed two crescent moons on both sides of the Torch Tower while over 1000 chorus members holding multi-coloured Indian light-reflecting towels danced in harmony.

When the two Indian singers came to the front, male dancers ran along the two sides of the Torch Tower to form a triangular pattern and danced with gusto while around 200 women dancers ran out, divided themselves in two groups and performed various Indian dance forms. The men and women dancers came together to form a semi circle they danced together to the song in typical Bollywood style.

The other regions of the continent were also given their prominence in the cultural milieu before flashbacks of the Asian Games competitions and athletes being awarded their medals were shown along with emotional scenes, symbolizing the excitement and harmony that was visible during the Games. The cultural show ended with all the participants coming on to the stage forming different patterns while singing and dancing with abandon to bring an end to the cultural part and the commencement of the formal part of the ceremony with the arrival of the athletes. The Indian flag was carried by gold medal winning star boxer Vijender Singh with his left hand in a cast following the thumb injury he sustained during last night s final against two-time world champion Atoev Abbos of Uzbekistan. OCA President Sheikh Al-Sabah, accompanied by the president of the Chinese Olympic Committee, Liu Peng, executive president of the Games organizing committee Huang Huahua, and the mayor of Guangzhou Wan Qingliang, delivered the keynote address and declared the 16th Asiad closed. The OCA flag was then lowered and the OCA anthem played before the national flag of Korea, the next Games hosts at Incheon in 2014 was raised, in the presence of the vice president of the Korean Olympic Committee and the chief of the Incheon Games organizing committee.

Guangzhou mayor Qingliang handed over the Asian Games torch to the OCA chief who, in turn, handed them over to the mayor of Incheon. Later the flag of the first Games held in Delhi in 1951 and the OCA flag were handed over to the Korean representatives by Huahua and Peng. The Koreans presented a short segment to the accompaniment of percussion instruments and taekwondo, the country s martial arts, which is also part of the Games programme and "Welcome to Incheon" and "See you at Incheon in 2014" were flashed on the screen. The Games flame was extinguished before the fireworks lit up the night sky to signal the end of the closing ceremony.