Dec 24: South Africa captain Graeme Smith has said that his team is better placed against Australia ahead of the second Test at the MCG, starting on the Boxing Day.

Smith said while the Proteas' history-making victory in Perth had given his side extra self-belief, it was also handy having the first match completed after a long build-up to the series.

Vijay Mallya, the owner of the Bangalore Indian Premier League team dismissed information that the team was up for sale as the trading window for the second season opened on Monday.

Mallya said, “There has been some misinterpretation of a statement issued by my Bangalore office. The Bangalore IPL team is not for sale and neither do we seek to transfer a majority of our current players.”

Dec 24: South African coach Mickey Arthur has noted that Brett Lee had struggled to perform as Australia's strike bowler without the dependable Stuart Clark building pressure from the other end.

"Brett is a champion bowler and he has been for a long time. I think what we are seeing from Brett is that since Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath have gone, he has done a huge amount more bowling," Arthur said.

"I say it with respect, but Clark is obviously the perfect foil for him. Without Clark, without a guy doing a holding job, perhaps his role sometimes gets a little bit confused. I think Brett is at his best when he is striking for you. How they balance their attack, I'm not sure," he added.

Melbourne, Dec 24: Captain Ricky Ponting is unsure whether all rounder Andrew Symonds, struggling with a knee injury, would be fit enough to play the Boxing Day Test at the MCG.

Already 1-0 down against South Africa, Australia faces the prospect of making up to three changes for the second Test if Symonds fails to prove his fitness, The Australian reported.

Fellow all-rounder Shane Watson would play if Symonds' condition does not improve, while fast bowler Ben Hilfenhaus is putting pressure on Peter Siddle and off-spinner Jason Krejza has already been dropped to make way for Nathan Hauritz.

London, Dec 24: English skipper Kevin Pietersen has said that Yuvraj Singh was a great player, and the sixes hit by him had left him dumbfounded.

The Mohali Test has been punctuated by baiting between Pietersen and Yuvraj, whose 86 was the highlight of the final day of the drawn Test.

Pietersen, who called Yuvraj a pie-chucker a couple of days ago, turned a great admirer of the Punjab batsman on Tuesday.

"The man (Yuvraj Singh) is one of the cleanest strikers of the ball in world cricket. The sixes this man hits, leaves me dumbfounded. He is a very special cricketer," is how Pietersen described the Indian left-hander at the end of the Test series against India.

Melbourne, Dec 23 : Australian cricket coach Tim Nielsen has said that the team will consider entering the crucial Boxing Day Test against South Africa without a specialist spinner.

Australia has the options of playing four fast bowlers in Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson, Peter Siddle and debutant Ben Hilfenhaus, or selecting a traditional attack of three quicks and spinner Nathan Hauritz.

Nielsen said he favoured the idea of playing a spinner, but would not guarantee Hauritz a start until the Australians had assessed the conditions closer to the game.