Tendulkar's request for higher sightscreen addressed

The Tamil Union Cricket and Athletic Club authorities have accommodated Sachin Tendulkar's request for a higher sightscreen at the Air Force Flats End, but not without a cost. The sightscreen at the end in question is shorter than the one at the Press Block End, and usually sports two permanent advertising hoardings above it. Tendulkar is shorter than an average batsman, and he has to look up to spot the ball, and because of the angle created he is believed to have found that the sightscreen didn't completely cover his view.

On Sunday, two days before the match, Tendulkar was seen having a long chat with Anurudda Polonowita, the curator, gesturing towards the sightscreen, and pointing towards the height issue. The next day MS Dhoni explained why Tendulkar wanted the height of the sightscreen increased.

"We have requested the screen to be increased in height," Dhoni said, "because Sachin is quite short and when you have a taller bowler bowling to him at an angle, at times the hand crosses the sight screen. We have requested before the game so that no complications arise later."

No complications arose as far as the game is concerned. By 7.30pm, the sightscreen had grown up by about 15 feet. "We did it like that," said Tone Perera, CEO of Tamil Union, snapping his fingers. "We were under pressure because the match referee had asked us for this."

Other senior club officials, though, had to suppress their disappointment at financial losses that covering the hoardings would incur. The hoardings advertised a bank and a milk product company. The bank sponsors the club team too, which according to the officials, is a main source of their revenue. The officials said that the sightscreen had always been similar and no one had made such a request until Tendulkar did.

Tendulkar, though, is known to be a perfectionist when it comes to everything around his batting. More famous among his requests for sightscreen heights to be increased are Mohali, 2005 and Karachi, 2006. In an unrelated chat, on the eve of his becoming the most capped Test player in the world, Tendulkar spoke about his preparations. Even during the SSC Test, where he scored a Test-saving double-century, Tendulkar asked for advertisements above the sightscreen to be covered.

"I am not saying cricket is simple, but everything around it, if you keep simple, it becomes relatively easy," Tendulkar said. "For that, the pre-match preparation is extremely important. In that factor, I feel I have always been prepared. Sometimes I was able to achieve results, sometimes I wasn't, but my preparations were always there."

Diego Forlan leaves 40,000 spectators spellbound

Having witnessed Diego Maradona [ Images ] in front of them, the football-crazy people of Kolkata [ Images ] saw another Diego, when 2010 World Cup golden ball winner Forlan left a 40,000-plus spectator spellbound in the floodlit Yuba Bharati Krirangan.

With percussionist Sivamani setting up the tone with some lively performances, Forlan added colour to the evening as he kicked off the grand finale of 'The Match', a football reality show by Mahuaa Bangla that has brought the Uruguayan sensation and Brazilian icon Branco to the city.

After arriving in the stadium around 5.30pm, Forlan kicked off the match between Mohun Bagan XI and Challengers XI, a team groomed and coached by Branco in his 20-odd days stay.

Challengers lost the 70-minute match 0-2 but they stole the hearts of the thousands of football lovers gathered to see Forlan who sat in the dug-out giving tips, sharing his experiences with the Challengers led by Dipyendu Biswas.

To their utmost surprise, Forlan made an appearance in the lemon break and uttered few Bengali words. Waving to the crowd, Forlan said "Jamiyedin-Saradin (Live up, everyday)."

He also thanked the crowd for their huge jubilation from the stands cheering and waving Forlan, Forlan.

The Uruguayan star sat through the entire match and by the time he left the stadium, everybody was just spellbound.

In between, Bengal Sports minister Kanti Ganguly and Mohun Bagan officials felicitated Forlan in a traditional Bengali way, giving him Uttario, as the Latin American star kept on obliging the autograph-hunters.

Firecrackers lit up the YBK skyline as Forlan bid adieu to the city of football with a live performance by Bengali band, Bhoomi, who sang 'Hare Krishna Hare Rama'.

Earlier Sivamani, accompanied by more than 100 traditional drummers (dhakis) gave a live performance to set the tone of the evening.

In December 2008, legendary Diego Maradona had set his foot at the same venue with a similar experience that will stay etched in a football-lover's heart forever.

Simbu to perform on ‘Endhiran’ stage

After changing his name to STR aka Silambarasan is striving to be busier than ever. Even as his verbal was with Lingusamy not yet over, STR is taking his next action to KL, Malaysia. News coming in from our sources says Silambarasan will be performing on the stage in KL, Malaysia during the launch of ‘Endhiran’ audio. He will be dancing to a number from ‘Endhiran’ film itself. Is it a solo number or a duet and if so who is partnering him on stage all these details are yet to be revealed. The function is on July 31 and it is going to be one of the biggest ever Kollywood event in any part of the world. The event will be attended by Kamal Haasan, Amitabh Bachchan, Ajith and other celebrities from India and abroad. Of course the ‘Endhiran’ team comprising Rajinikanth, Aishwarya Rai, Shankar. A R Rahman and others will also be there.

Delhi airport, Air India close to mega deal

Delhi [ Images ] International Airport Ltd, the consortium operating Delhi airport, is close to signing a mega deal with Air India [ Images ], which is making the new terminal its operational hub.

The consortium is working out the broad contours of the deal, according to sources close to the negotiations. A DIAL spokesperson said he was not aware of the development and AI's spokesperson declined to comment.  

The sources said DIAL was expected to offer AI a discount of 20 to 30 per cent on airport charges, on a commitment that the carrier would increase the number of its passengers there to 3,000 an hour, a four to five-fold increase from the current numbers, within two years. The airport charges include landing and takeoff charges, parking, usage of aerobridges and usage of airport terminal, among others.

AI has also committed to go in for a three-fold increase in its deployment of flights in and out of Delhi, from 480 a day to 1,200, starting from the next summer schedule. Currently, AI operates a little over 800 flights a day across the network.

These translate to AI bringing 10-13 million passengers annually at the airport's new Terminal 3, a third of its annual handling capacity of 34 million passengers.

AI will initially get nine dedicated aerobridges of the 78 in operation and 56 check-in counters of the total of 168.

"DIAL, along with us, plans to do a joint marketing campaign to bring more passengers to the airport," said an AI official, who did not want to be identified.

He explained that people from Nepal, for instance, go to Dubai [ Images ] to take a flight for US or European destinations. If Delhi offers that service, people would come here to take the connecting flight.

International operations at the new terminal start from July 25 and domestic operations from August 27.

However, the low-cost carriers will shift to the new terminal only by March next year. DIAL, a consortium led by the Bangalore-based GMR Group and comprising Airports Authority of India, Fraport AG and Eraman Malaysia, built the new terminal at a cost of Rs 12,700 crore in over three years.

'We couldn't have scripted it better' - Sangakkara

	'There will be just one Murali' - Kumar Sangakkara© Associated Press
Related Links Players/Officials: Lasith Malinga | Muttiah Muralitharan |Kumar Sangakkara Matches: Sri Lanka v India at Galle Series/Tournaments: India tour of Sri Lanka Teams: India | Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara said his team couldn't have scripted it better after they beat India by ten wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the series. The hosts experienced the dual joy of winning comprehensively and watching Muttiah Muralitharan bag his 800th wicket in his final Test to seal victory.

"When we came here on the first day, we got to a good start, "Sangakkara said. "The second day was washed out and there were some doubts in my mind whether we could get a result. Once we got that 500 platform and the way Lasith (Malinga) bowled, there was no way we were going to lose the match," Sangakkara said.

Sangakkara said Murali, despite talk of whether he would get to the 800-wicket landmark, remained focused on winning the Test. "What we spoke about was let's enjoy. There was no other person to do it than Murali. We've got to enjoy the test because he had done so much for us over the years.

"There's nothing more we can do, we wanted to win this match. Murali never spoke about the 800 wickets, although the press did. He was focused on winning the match."

"I don't think we gave Murali a gift, he gave us one. At the start the game I said that if Murali picks up eight wickets, we will win the match. He got eight wickets and on the other hand Malinga gave good support. As a team, we are thrilled that in his last game, Murali, like he has done for 18 years, gave us one more win."

Sangakkara also paid tribute to Murali for his contribution to Sri Lankan cricket and hoped he would continue to remain part of the set-up. "We are indebted for him for all what he's done. People like Arjuna (Ranatunga) were able to get us to this state. After 18 years for the work load he did, Murali is retiring from Tests today, but I feel as a team we are happy that we played with him for so long and hopefully he'll join us in the ODIs. If we can get Murali's service in some way or the other, even as a consultant or just to come and sit and have a chat in the dressing room is a great thing. I don't think anyone in our dressing room gets the amount of respect Murali does."

Murali and Lasith Malinga shared 15 of the 20 Indian wickets, and Sangakkara said they, along with a strong collective performance with the bat in the first innings, kept the pressure on India throughout. "It was important that we used Lasith and Murali in spells that counted and got us wickets. I think every spell they bowled they managed to do that.

"You can't forget Tharanga Paranavitana's contributions with the bat, as well as Rangana Herath's and Malinga's. Those are things that won us the game. Lasith came and did what he usually does for us in one-day cricket. The Indians were constantly under pressure. When something gives, usually a couple more follow. We are happy with that."

Malinga returned to the Test format after almost 30 months, and Sangakkara said it was a challenge to have him fit throughout. "We've been trying to get Lasith to play all forms of cricket for two years now. We believe in him immensely. He's a fighter, works as hard as anyone as I have seen. He prepares well to play matches for Sri Lanka. Unfortunately he was feeling a bit stiff. We don't want to bowl him into the ground. You know, we've done it with Murali for so many years. He's feeling it now.

"Test cricket is like that. It's a hard place for bowlers. Everyone forgets how difficult it is to be in the sun and bowl constantly on sometimes wickets that give you very little. With our cricket board we have been discussing to introduce a bonus scheme for bowlers who play an x number of games per year. At the end of the day, an injury will end your career. This is the prime form of the game and we need everyone hungry to play in this form," he said.

Murali was irreplaceable, Sangakkara said, and the onus was on the rest of the bowling unit to step up in his absence. "My theory is that I am not going to look for another Murali because you are not going to find one. There'll be just one.

"For me, leading out the side without Murali is a huge loss. But it gives us an opportunity to see how really the other bowlers will be able to give us test wins. I don't think anyone is going to take us eight-fors and nine-fors for us. They might to do it once in a while. We'll share the wickets out, do the hard work necessary and win games for Sri Lanka by bowling the unique way."

Malinga's marvellous comeback

Muttiah Muralitharan's farewell and 800th wicket dominated the Galle Test, but Lasith Malinga's contribution to Sri Lanka's victory was critical

	Lasith Malinga ended India's chances of drawing the Test by dismissing MS Dhoni in his first over of the final day© Associated Press
Related Links Bulletin : Murali gets 800, Sri Lanka win by ten wickets Players/Officials: Lasith Malinga Matches: Sri Lanka v India at Galle Series/Tournaments: India tour of Sri Lanka Teams: Sri Lanka

One of the greatest virtues of Muttiah Muralitharan is the big turn he gets on any surface, to almost take those 22 yards out of the equation. In his farewell match, with the kind of reception he got and the way he took the last Indian wicket to reach 800, it is easy to forget the other man to whom the pitch matters little. Lucky is the captain who has both Lasith Malinga and Murali in the same XI. The giant cut-outs on the Galle Fort might have been Murali's, but the most important impact on the match was Malinga's.

There were fears before this Test that, like other out-and-out fast bowlers in the world, Malinga might have made up his mind to concentrate just on limited-overs cricket. Tests can be cruel and thankless. Twenty20s bring more money and fame. It is a tempting choice for a fast bowler, perhaps the most injury-prone breed in non-contact sport. If you see a fast bowler out of Tests for two-and-a-half years, you fear the worst. Kumar Sangakkara, his captain, says, perish the thought.

"We've been trying to get Lasith fit for all forms of cricket for two years now," Sangakkara said. "We believe in him immensely. He's a fighter, works as hard as anyone I have seen. He prepares well to play matches for Sri Lanka." Sangakkara was betting on the right horse: in Malinga's first Test back, all that the captain needed to do was throw the ball his way, and something would happen, often as early as the first over.

The other question was whether a bowler used to Twenty20s for two years would have the patience to work for wickets on flat Sri Lankan pitches. Two balls into his Test comeback, the question became, would he need patience? Does the pitch matter?

The first of those balls, bear in mind it was bowled to an opener who had been on the field for 124 overs in the heat, was on target, full, and swinging in towards middle and leg stump. Gautam Gambhir actually did well to keep it out but Malinga was at him again. From that height, at that pace, swinging in, to a tired batsman who knows the best he can achieve he is a draw, it was too much.

Malinga showed patience when he worked VVS Laxman over in the first innings with bouncers. He wasn't getting reverse-swing then, but he was prepared to set a field and bowl to it. The top edge duly arrived.

In the second innings Malinga was deadlier. Gambhir lasted one more delivery than he did in the first innings. This time he edged one swinging away from him, after the ball pitched in an area similar to where it had swung in from in the first innings. Still, following that, it seemed Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid had pitched tents on the pitch and with every passing delivery on the fourth day the draw kept becoming the favoured result.

The partnership lasted 42.1 overs. Malinga had to be brought back for one final sling before stumps and he slung like he would end the game on the fourth evening. Malinga's attacking fields are as different as his action is. When he is reversing the ball, he doesn't need slips. Yorkers push batsmen back. Short midwicket, short square leg, and backward square leg await any shot that comes off a delivery that is shorter than expected. It happened to Dravid, in the first over of a new Malinga spell again. Tendulkar missed a low full toss that was slower than expected. Yuvraj Singh looked like he would get out every ball in those dying moments of the day.

The work was not done yet, though, and Malinga was to make impact again. In his first over of the final morning, he removed MS Dhoni with a full ball that angled in, pitched around the crease, and then moved away. Better batsmen than Dhoni have been done in by those.

Dhoni paid rich tribute to his conqueror. "Somebody like Malinga - the kind of action he has - even if you are set, if he comes for a fresh spell, it can be the second spell or the third spell, you can't really say you are set," Dhoni said. "You have to start all over again because he has got a unique action. The way he bowled, he normally used to bring the ball in, but in this match we saw he could take it away also, so if you don't pick [even] a single delivery of his, you can be in trouble."

It was to happen once more. Again in the first over of a new spell, like five of his seven wickets in the match, Malinga bowled an unplayable yorker to Abhimanyu Mithun, who had fought well with Laxman for 17.3 overs. It was the first delivery Malinga had at Mithun. As Dhoni said, if you don't pick one ball, you are gone.

Thankfully for Murali's fans, Malinga went off the field. Worriedly we looked again. Had the strain been too much? Sangakkara calmed the fears, saying Malinga was just feeling a little stiff. "We don't want to bowl him into the ground," Sangakkara said. "You know, we've done it with Murali for so many years.

"Test cricket is like that. It's a hard place for bowlers. Everyone forgets how difficult it is to be in the sun and bowl constantly on, sometimes, wickets that give you very little. With our board, we have been discussing to introduce a bonus scheme for bowlers who play an x number of games per year. At the end of the day, an injury will end your career. This is the prime form of the game and we need everyone hungry to play in this form."

Malinga hasn't played more than nine Tests in a row. He strikes every 50 deliveries, and only recently has he been at his best. During his first match back, while nobody noticed, he moved closer to 100 wickets, becoming Sri Lanka's third-highest wicket-taker. His biggest challenge right now is to play more matches without suffering an injury. His captain seems to understand the need of using Malinga in spurts, of respecting his body. If he can put another string of nine Tests together, on evidence of this match, those figures of 98 wickets at a strike-rate of 50 will look remarkably different.

Murali's romanticised farewell

The script couldn't have been more ideal. Murali needed eight wickets, it came down to the final wicket and the catch was taken by his favourite slip catcher. Perhaps it was all contrived to end this way
http://www.flvpro.com/?aff=8878_generic

	At 1.55pm, Murali reached the magical figure of 800 and better still, he had set up Sri Lanka's win © Cricinfo Ltd
Related Links Bulletin : Murali gets 800, Sri Lanka win by ten wickets Features : Murali delivers on a big occasion, again Players/Officials: Muttiah Muralitharan Matches: Sri Lanka v India at Galle Series/Tournaments: India tour of Sri Lanka Teams: Sri Lanka

It would have been incredibly contrived had it not been for real. The last wicket had stood for more than 15 overs, there was a cloud coming from afar, the opposition had built up a lead of over 90, time was slowly running out. Then, at 1.55pm, Muttiah Muralitharan bowled a sharp offbreak to Pragyan Ojha, and Mahela Jayawardene was there to wrap his fingers around an edge off Murali's bowling, for one last time - his 77th catch off him - a record, to bring up Murali's 800th wicket.

The slight tension had eased, the crowd that had earlier celebrated a not-out decision off another bowler erupted, his team-mates carried him off the park and Jayawardene hugged him for one last time in a Test. Muralitharan had set up another match for Sri Lanka. Perhaps Sri Lanka had contrived to let him take 800 wickets. Perhaps it was all contrived to end this way even before Murali switched to offspin from medium pace.

Murali goes into his last match needing eight wickets to get to 800, recreates the magic in the first innings, taking his 67th five-for, reaches 799 on the final morning, and needs one out of the three remaining batsmen and then the wickets dry up. Lasith Malinga, the man who looks like taking a wicket every ball, is off the field due to some discomfort. Murali tries and tries with no results in a 9.3-over spell. A partnership builds, takes India closer to avoiding an innings win.

Malinga comes back, and does his time. Murali changes ends. Malinga goes to Murali's end, and produces a killer yorker off the third ball to bring up his career-best figures of 5 for 50. Malinga hugs Murali, smiles, chats, perhaps a pact is signed. One out of two now.

Murali goes back to the Fort End and bowls the first over with the new ball. Malinga feels some discomfort again, and is taken off soon. Murali goes round the wicket, pitches a two-over-old ball outside off, and gets it to turn so much it goes down the leg side.

The partnership flourishes again. VVS Laxman, the more accomplished batsman, doesn't even try to shield Ishant Sharma against Murali. He doesn't look dangerous, but he is trying. After a five-over spell, he gets another change of ends. Malinga is still kept away.

In the second over of Murali's new spell, Laxman is run out. It's a close decision for the third umpire. The cameras are all on Murali's face. He smiles when the batsman is given out. Chanaka Welegedara bowls an over full of deliveries wide outside off from the other end. Malinga goes off the field again. The batsmen, perhaps sure that Sri Lanka won't go for run-outs now, start taking suicidal runs. One of those is attempted at Murali, and he lets it rip, missing the stumps by a fraction.

Another partnership builds. Murali changes ends again. Welegedara, Rangana Herath and Tillakaratne Dilshan are mostly innocuous from the other end. No sign of Malinga. Angelo Mathews is not even tried. It is clear Sri Lanka are now letting Murali go for the last wicket.

The last two partnerships have lasted 17.3 overs and 15.2 overs. Every ball bowled, every run scored, is eating into the time needed to knock the target off. On top of that there have been instances of Murali's team-mates' not trying to go for the final wicket. The last thing Murali wanted was to stand in the way of a win for the sake of his record.

Then again, who else could have taken that wicket? Malinga is off the field. In his 27th over of the day, out of 57 bowled by Sri Lanka on the day, Murali produces that final breakthrough, through his favourite slip catcher. How could it not be contrived? How could it not be real?

A peculiar witch dashes into the outlook.

A peculiar witch dashes into the outlook.

White House shifts Afghanistan strategy towards talks with Taliban

Senior Washington officials tell the Guardian of a 'change of mindset' over Obama administration's Afghanistan policy

Any negotiations with the Taliban would be conducted largely in secret, through third parties, Washington sources reported. Illustration: Saeed Achakzai/Reuters

The White House is revising its Afghanistan strategy to embrace the idea of negotiating with senior members of the Taliban through third parties – a policy to which it had previously been lukewarm.

Negotiating with the Taliban has long been advocated by Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president, and the British and Pakistani governments, but resisted by Washington.

The Guardian has learned that while the American government is still officially resistant to the idea of talks with Taliban leaders, behind the scenes a shift is under way and Washington is encouraging Karzai to take a lead in such negotiations.

"There is a change of mindset in DC," a senior official in Washington said. "There is no military solution. That means you have to find something else. There was something missing."

That missing element was talks with the Taliban leadership, the official added.

The American rethink comes in the aftermath of the departure last month of General Stanley McChrystal, the top US commander in Afghanistan.

Barack Obama, apparently frustrated at the way the war is going, has reminded his national security advisers that while he was on the election campaign trail in 2008, he had advocated talking to America's enemies.

America is reviewing its Afghanistan policy which is due for completion in December, but officials in Washington, Kabul and Islamabad with knowledge of internal discussions said feelers had been put out to the Taliban. Negotiations would be conducted largely in secret, through a web of contacts, possibly involving Pakistan and Saudi Arabia or organisations with back-channel links to the Taliban.

"It will be messy and could take years," said a diplomatic source.

The change of heart by the US comes as Afghanistan hosts the biggest international gathering in its capital for 40 years, with representatives from 60 countries including Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, and Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general.

The dominant theme of the Kabul conference is "reintegration", which involves reaching out to low-level insurgents to encourage them to lay down their arms.

Earlier this year Richard Holbrooke, Obama's special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, distinguished between "reintegration", which the US supported, and "reconciliation" or negotiating with senior Taliban. Holbrooke said: "Let me be clear. There is no American involvement in any reconciliation process."

There is growing disenchantment in the US with the war in Afghanistan and members of the Senate's foreign relations committee last week questioned Holbrooke over what they described as a lack of clarity on an exit strategy.

The US has no agreed position on who among the leaders of the insurgency should be wooed and who would be beyond the pale. The Taliban leader, Mullah Omar, would be a problem as he provided Osama bin Laden with bases before the 9/11 attacks.

The US would also find it problematic to deal with the Pakistan-based insurgents led by Sirajuddin Haqqani, whose group pioneered suicide attacks in Afghanistan. The third main element in the insurgency is Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who has hinted he is ready to break ranks.

A source with knowledge of the process said: "There is no agreed US position, but there is agreement that Karzai should lead on this. They would expect the Pakistanis to deliver the Haqqani network in any internal settlement."

The US has laid down basic conditions for any group seeking negotiations. They are: end all ties to al-Qaida, end violence, and accept the Afghan constitution.

A senior Pakistani diplomat said: "The US needs to be negotiating with the Taliban; those Taliban with no links to al-Qaida. We need a power-sharing agreement in Afghanistan, and it will have to be negotiated with all the parties.

"The Afghan government is already talking to all the shareholders‚ the Taliban, the Haqqani network, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, and Mullah Omar. The Americans have been setting ridiculous preconditions for talks. You can't lay down such preconditions when you are losing."

Some Afghan policy specialists are sceptical about whether negotiations would succeed. Peter Bergen, a specialist on Afghanistan and al-Qaida, told a US Institute of Peace seminar in Washington last week that there were a host of problems with such a strategy, not least why the Taliban should enter negotiations "when they think they are winning".

Audrey Kurth Cronin, a member of the US National War College faculty in Washington, and the author of How Terrorism Ends, said talks with Mullah Omar and the Haqqani network were pointless because there would be no negotiable terms.

She said there could be talks with Hekmatyar, but these would be conducted through back channels, potentially by a third party. Given his support for jihad, she said, "it would be unreasonable to expect the US and the UK to do so".

Asked how Obama's Afghan strategy was progressing, a senior former US government official familiar with the latest Pentagon thinking said: "In a word, poorly. We seriously need to be developing a revised plan of action that will allow us a chance to achieve sufficient security in a more sustainable manner."

Officials have mentioned possible roles in negotiation for the UN and figures such as the veteran UN negotiator, the Algerian Lakhdar Brahimi, who heads, along with the retired US ambassador Thomas Pickering, a New York-based international panel which is looking at such a reconciliation.

Another name mentioned is Michael Semple, an Irishman based in Boston at Harvard's Kennedy School who has extensive contacts with the Taliban.

Is Simbu's loss Vijay's gain?

A sudden announcement from Simbu that he would do 'Vaanam' and his revamping of the long pending 'Podaa Podi' has given raise to a question- Will he act in Lingusamy's forthcoming project? If sources are to be believed, the actor may not be a part of the 'Paiyaa' director's next film, and instead of him, Vijay will play the protagonist of the action-paced venture. "Since Vijay is on the verge of completing ‘Kaaval Kadhal’ and his other movie ‘Velayudham’ which went to floors a few days ago will be completed in one ago, he has agreed to do Lingusamy's film," sources say. The venture will be produced by Dhayanidhi Alagiri's Cloud Nine Movies, it is said. The production company run by Dhayanidhi has acquired and released ‘Paiyaa’, which recently completed 100 days, it may be recalled.

Topperspeak: From class 7, IIT was my target

Vipul Singh from Bhilai (Chhattisgarh) achieved two accolades this year -- he earned the first rank in AIEEE and the fifth rank in IIT-JEE. He shares with Nitin Jindal his journey to the top, his hopes, and plans for the upcoming International Physics Olympiad in Croatia, this month.

Congratulations. Which institution are you opting for?
Computer Science branch at IIT Mumbai [ Images ] because I'm interested in things like logic and programming, and also because I'll get a good recommendation for further studies from there. Another factor is that IIT Mumbai's computer science degree has a very good value in the market.

So you plan to go for further studies after your engineering?

Yes, I plan to do my MS and PhD and get into research.

Now that the results are out are you enjoying the well-deserved break?

Not exactly. I am preparing for the International Physics Olympiad right now, which is being held from July 17-25 in Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. 80 nations are participating, India [ Images ] is being represented by five students and I am one of them.

How were you selected?

I was selected by the Homi Bhabha Centre for Science and Education, Mumbai. There are two national-level written rounds and the third was a camp held there. I cleared all three rounds and hence got this chance to represent India. At the camp, there were orientation lectures by professors from various colleges including IIT Kanpur [ Images ] and Guwahati. Then we had an experiment session and five tests; three experimental tests and two written theory tests.

Who inspired you? Who's your role model?

My parents have always guided me very well. They've always motivated me and inspired me a lot. There have been students earlier from Bhilai like Shashank Shekhar Dwivedi who secured AIR 1 in IIT-JEE 2003 and is currently studying in MIT Boston. Also there was Shariq Rizvi who secured IIT-JEE AIR 5 and is running his own company in the US. So from their experiences I knew it could be done.

How did you come to have so much clarity at such a young age?

I knew I had to go in this field and IIT was the best in this line. I was in class VI when Shashank topped IIT-JEE. My parents also knew about IIT well and told me about it. Then I participated in National Level Science and Mathematics Olympiad and I always secured a top 25 ranking. They told me that with such a good ranking I could get in the best IIT in the country, so I knew I had to go there.

When I was in class VII I had also participated in the India Child Genius Contest conducted by Mr Siddhartha Basu, I was the national semi-finalist and the East zone runner-up. I've been to many national-level quizzes after that and it gave me a lot of confidence when I won in these where participants were from all over the country.

So I knew I was amongst the top in the nation and knew I could do it!

When and how did you start your preparation for IIT-JEE?

In class VII and VIII. I was clear that IIT was my target. In class IX I started studying advanced topics, and joined a Brilliant Tutorials correspondence course. If there was any topic in the NCERT textbook, it was covered in the Brilliant course with higher concepts.

For example, if there was something about mechanics then it used to cover Newton's Laws, which are actually taught in class XI. So I had some idea of what was going to be taught in class XI, too.

What helped you score such a high rank? Was it coaching or long years of preparation?

I was very clear from the beginning that the main part was self-study. I joined FIITJEE because the course was integrated with the syllabus at school. Computers and English were taught to me by my school teachers whereas physics, chemistry and maths were only taught to me by my FIITJEE teachers.

So, I didn't have to study these subjects separately at school and run for tuitions in the evenings.

So you saved time. How was this worked out?

They had a tie-up with our school, MGM Bhilai, with such arrangement. It is optional for the students. Actually the fees for the same is Rs 2 lakh but I got a 100 per cent fee waiver since I stood second (all-India) in a written exam conducted by them in December of class X.

So you used to study only computers and English at school and PCM at FIITJEE?

No, I was taught PCM by FIITJEE teachers inside the school campus only. So I didn't have to waste my time running here and there in the evening and therefore I could spend a lot of time on self-study. From my self-study I used to gather all my doubts and discuss them with my teachers for hours at a stretch.

The FIITJEE teachers were very good at doubt clearance too.

Did you have any separate strategy for physics, chemistry and maths?

I would give equal weightage to each of the subjects, since the questions can be from any topic.

Any difference in your preparation for IIT-JEE and AIEEE?

Actually I didn't prepare for AIEEE separately, just prepared for IIT-JEE throughout. There were some additional topics for AIEEE from maths and physics which I covered in the two weeks between IIT-JEE and AIEEE.

Is the level of questions the same for both exams?

The level is the same and also there are objective questions in both, but while in AIEEE all questions are "single-option correct questions", in IIT-JEE you have a variety like match the following, multi-correct questions, some numerical questions etc.

What was your course material?

Apart from FIITJEE's packages and Brilliant's packages, I used some books referred to by my teacher like Paula Bruice for organic chemistry in which I was weak. This I had discovered through the various national-level Olympiads I had participated in and also my exposure to organic chemistry in class X.

How did you overcome this weakness? Who helped you?

When my teacher was teaching physical chemistry, I approached him and told him my organic chemistry was weak, so he suggested I buy the book. I used to read it regularly when organic chemistry (instruction) started and discuss all my doubts with him. He helped me a lot by giving me extra papers and summaries on this topic.

Also, I was good at physics but used to score a bit less in the all-India test series in the subject. In the last 5 to 6 months, I came in touch with the HoD of physics at FIITJEE, South Delhi [ Images ] and we used to interact over the phone and e-mail. He helped me improve a lot in physics and now, I am representing India at the international level in physics, thanks largely to his efforts along with my own. I dedicated entire January 2010 to strengthening my physics.

What would you say is the mantra of your success?

Time management. Many students first go to school and study all the subjects there and then in the evening run to various teachers, typically two each for physics, chemistry and maths. For me, everything was during school hours, so I had a lot of time at home for self-study. Also I had only one teacher each for all subjects and they were all good.

You also went to Japan [ Images ] recently?

Yes I went to Japan in August 2009 to attend the Asian Science Camp where I got the opportunity to listen to 7 Nobel laureates. There was a contingent of 30 participants from India within which I was one of the 7 who had got scholarships from the Japan government for the tour. The rest 23 had been sponsored by the Indian government.

Any message you would like to give to IIT-JEE and AIEEE aspirants?

Focus on your topics and don't try to study from too many teachers. Try to gain exposure as it helps build your confidence.