Yuvraj's India return washed out

Indian batsman Yuvraj Singh's keenly-awaited return after battling cancer ended with a damp squib as the first Twenty20 game against New Zealand was washed out on Saturday.

The game was abandoned without a ball being bowled as heavy rain lashing the southern coastal town of Visakhapatnam since late afternoon showed no signs of relenting.

Interview: Yuvraj Singh
My Yuvi, the fighter

The two-match series - the second game takes place in Chennai on Tuesday - is a build-up for the World Twenty20 which opens in Sri Lanka on September 18.

Yuvraj, 30, underwent chemotherapy in the United States in March and April to treat a rare germ-cell tumour between his lungs which was diagnosed late last year.

The left-hander, who was man of the tournament in India's World Cup triumph last year, was recalled to the Twenty20 side despite not having played competitive cricket since November.

Tamil Nadu to add 3,000 Mw solar energy

    

The Tamil Nadu government has set a target to add 3,000 Megawatt (Mw)  solar energy as part of it solar mission programme by 2015-16. The state government is also planning to bring a new policy for solar energy.

This was disclosed by  Natham R Viswanathan, minister for electricity and prohibition and excise, during his address at Renergy 2012, an international conference organised by  the Tamil Nadu Energy Development Agency. This is more than 33 per cent of India's target.


     

The minister said the Centre's assistance for the state renewable energy sector was nil. “We need financial assistance to boost the renewable energy sector to address the power deficit.” TN, according to him, would become a power surplus state by 2015-16. The state facing a shortage of around 4,000 Mw at present.

The new solar policy will be introduced before or during the current Budget.

On the Centre’s allocation to the state under JNNRUM, he said, “We have received only 22 Mw out of 1,000 Mw under Phase I of the National Solar Mission. We request the Centre to recognise the potential of solar energy in Tamil Nadu and address this inequality.”

The state’s installed capacity of renewable energy is around 75,000 Mw, about 36 per cent of the total installed capacity.

8 Reasons Why Yoga Beats the Gym

By nature, I am not a comparer. Everything has its plusses and minuses in my book (except, of course, yoga which is all plusses!). So, while I am not anti-gym, I do think that yoga kicks the gym's derrière on every level, and you can kick your own (butt, that is) in yoga, literally, if you feel like it!

People are always curious as to "what else I do" to "work out" other than yoga. The answer? Nothing! Yoga is everything my body needs to function at it's absolute best. Here's why:

It's efficient! Why would I waste so much time at the gym working each part of my body separately when I can connect all of the dots and do it all at once with yoga? No amount of lifting weights is going to make my arms as strong as holding up my own body weight in yoga. Also, practically everything you do in yoga is engaging your core, from core-centric poses to moving from pose to pose, using your core to stabilize your body. And in different inversions and arm balances, yoga allows you to raise your heartbeat, strengthen your muscles, and lengthen them out all at once. How's that for efficiency?

It can count as cardio. All you have to do is try a few sun salutations or any flow at a good, steady pace, matching your breath to your movement. Or, if you are a bit more adventurous, try some Kundalini kriyas (like the Kundalini frogs in the step-by-step breakdown of shoulder press pose.)

Yoga is not a competitive sport! I prefer yoga to the gym as I steer clear of anything that involves pitting myself against others. Isn't there enough competition in work and in life in general? While some people thrive on trying to be the fastest in spin class or trying to run longer than the woman on the treadmill next to them, in yoga it doesn't matter what any one else is doing. There is no comparing or competing because there is only you.

It saves money. In fact, yoga doesn't have to cost a penny. All you need to practice is you. You can wear any clothes that allow you to move, and you don't even need a yoga mat : grass and carpet work just fine. If you want some inspiration, there are plenty of great, inexpensive yoga DVDs or free online videos.

You can do it anywhere. With no equipment necessary, it doesn't matter if you are at home, at your office, on the road-or even in the streets of NYC , as in the SHAPE Yoga Anywhere videos. So long as you have the desire, you can strike a few poses.

Yoga will help you lose weight. Practicing yoga changes your mind: It changes the way you approach life, your body, and eating. Yoga shows you how to appreciate your body for all of the amazing things that it can do for you and points you in the direction of wanting to fill your body with the best possible fuel rather than processed junk food. And changing your mind about your body and the foods you feed it will be a much more effective weight-loss tool than burning a bunch of calories in an aggressive kick-boxing class and then mindlessly plowing through equal or more calories later that day.

India's wrestling superstar

Sushil Kumar, who achieved stardom in Beijing Games (bronze) four years ago, was immortalized in Indian wrestling in London Games (silver) as he became the first in the country to win back-to-back individual Olympic medals.

I have no respect for Carl Lewis, says Bolt

Newly-crowned "greatest-ever sprinter" Usain Bolt said on Thursday he had lost all respect
for Carl Lewis, the man whose on-track exploits he has surpassed with his unique Olympic double-double but who still leads the way in self-regard.
American Lewis is the only other man to win two Olympic 100m gold medals, the second coming in 1988 when he was promoted from second place after the disqualification of Ben Johnson.
He won the 200m in 1984 but managed only silver four years later. He did, however, have a remarkable run of success in the long jump, winning that event in four successive Games for a tally of nine golds in all.
In the wake of Bolt's triple-gold record success in Beijing Lewis was quick to point the finger of suspicion at him and Jamaica in general.
"I think there are some issues," he said at the time.
"Countries like Jamaica do not have a random (drugs testing) program, so they can go months without being tested. I'm not saying anyone is on anything, but everyone needs to be on a level playing field.
"I'm not saying they've done anything for certain. I don't know. But how dare anybody feel that there shouldn't be scrutiny, especially in our sport?"
He has continued to fire broadsides ever since but Bolt, now with his sprinting record unquestionably superior, hit back.
"I'm going to say something controversial right now, Carl Lewis - I have no respect for him," Bolt said, having cited 1936 quadruple champion Jesse Owens as a man he held in the highest regard.
"The things he (Lewis) says about the track athletes, it's really downgrading for another athlete to be saying something like that about other athletes.
"I think he is just looking for attention really because nobody really talks much about him. It was really sad for me when I heard the other day what he was saying, it was upsetting.
"So, for me, I've lost all respect for him, all respect.
"It was all about drugs, about drugs stuff for me. For an athlete to be out of the sport saying that was really upsetting for me. As far as I am concerned he is just looking for attention."
TESTED POSITIVE
Lewis tested positive three times for a stimulant before the 1988 Games but had the results overturned by American officials.
He was named "Athlete of the 20th Century" by the IOC, the IAAF, and American magazine Sports Illustrated and has always seemed uncomfortable with the idea that someone from the 21st could surpass his achievements.
Asked before the London Games what he thought of Bolt, he said: "It's just... interesting.
"I watch the results like everyone else and wait... for time to tell."
Even after Bolt won his second 100m title, Lewis's congratulations were wrapped in barbed wire.
"He repeats and he's tremendous and he's the second person to do it and congratulations," he said last week.
"The thing for me, what I really admire about anyone, is longevity. We still have to have the longevity and dominance through the era because for me performance-wise, you really have to put longevity in.
"I'm really not trying to take anything away from his performance because it was tremendous, but you've got to see the consistency over a period of time because as of now it's just a four-year period and you really have to see a continuous dominance.

India's projected medal count at 2012 Olympic Games

India is expected to win two gold medals at the 2012 London Games. The Goldman analysts predict India will win a total of five medals in London and will be No. 39 on the medals tally at the end of the Games. At the 2008 Beijing Games, India won three medals, including one gold, and was placed No. 50 in the medals tally.

SAINA TO PLAY

Saina Nehwal has struck stunning form at just the right time ahead of the 2012 London Games where she hopes to deliver India a first Olympic badminton medal. Last month, Saina won the Thailand Open and Indonesian Open. Nehwal was defeated by Indonesian Maria Kristin Yulianti in the quarter-finals at the Beijing Olympics. The world number five knows her toughest opponents at the London Olympics will be the Chinese, but she is confident of doing ...