Prince apologises
Agence France-Presse . London
South Africa vice-captain Ashwell Prince apologised to his team-mates despite a gutsy century in his maiden Test innings against England and on his first visit to Lord’s here Saturday.
Sadly for Prince, his 101 couldn’t prevent England bowling out South Africa for 247 and enforcing the follow-on after the home side had piled up an imposing 593 for eight declared in the first of this four-Test series.
Left-arm spinner Monty Panesar did the bulk of the damage with four for 74 and South Africa, at stumps on the third day, were 13 without loss – still needing a further 333 runs to make England bat again.
The Proteas were in a parlous position when Prince came in at 47 for three but the 31-year-old left-hander fought hard, and played some fine shots too, in a near five-hour innings featuring one six and 13 fours.
Prince, whose wife and baby son were among the crowd, was hard on himself for being dismissed shortly before the close.
‘I thought I let the team down, getting out just a few overs before the end of the day’s play,’ he said. ‘The last thing I wanted was to have the captain and Neil McKenzie go out again tonight and face a few overs.
He added, ‘It’s a proud moment for me – but having said that, it would have meant a lot more if it was more meaningful for the team.’
Prince, often regarded as a blocker, showed intelligent judgment while making his eighth hundred in his 42nd Test.
‘People call me ‘obdurate’ but I just played the ball,’ he explained. ‘I try to do that every time. If it’s a good ball, respect it, and if it’s there to hit, hit it.’
Prince, whose Test career began controversially in 2001/02 after he was helped into the national side by a racial quota system, although he top-scored on debut with 49 against the all-conquering Australians, added: ‘When I was a youngster I used to come out and try to play every shot in the book.
‘But I’ve been left out of the Test side and went into the wilderness for a bit. I used to make a lot of fifties and not make the big scores.
‘I’ve been playing first-class cricket since the age of 18 and over the years you learn and try to improve.’
Facing Panesar, who made good use of the rough on offer, was a particular challenge for Prince.
‘It’s always going to be an issue for left-handers facing spin bowlers in the rough and you have to learn a technique and trust it,’ Prince said.
‘Monty bowled very well, he got some nice turn and
bounce. I’m sure he’s going to be featuring a lot more in the series.’
An admiring Panesar said of Prince: ‘He batted well. Obviously there was a bit of rough there, but he managed to counter-act that well.’
Prince, whose experience before this tour of English conditions was limited to an Under-19 trip and a couple of seasons with northern club side Morecambe, insisted South Africa could turn things around after three tough days.
‘I’m sure as the series goes on our guys will learn, and hopefully rather quickly, which are the lengths to hit.
‘It’s not just about the pace and we know that.’
And Prince, whose name will now become part of the fabric of Lord’s after his century earned him a place on the dressing room honours’ board, said the Proteas batsmen could save this game too, citing captain Graeme Smith’s 259 against England here five years ago as inspiration.
‘We’ve got guys in our team who can bat for a very long time and have done in the past. Our captain has done it before at Lord’s. We have confidence in our ability.’
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Rooms go begging as
Olympics loom
Agence France-Presse . Beijing
Rooms are going begging one month out from the Beijing Olympics with hotels reporting lower-than-expected advance bookings and crossing their fingers for a late influx of tourists.
After being warned that an accommodation crunch was likely during the Games, Beijing went on a hotel building binge after winning the right to host the Games in 2001 — and now the opposite appears to be in prospect.
With few exceptions—notably some niche hotels in Beijing’s old quarter—hotels are in fierce competition to attract Olympic customers.
So far the luxury sector has come off best with top hotels achieving 75 per cent booking rates while four star hotels are less than half full and bookings for three-star hotel rooms are running at 30 per cent, according to the Beijing Tourism Bureau.
Only 10 per cent of rooms in the more modest tourist hotels are booked, it said.
The boutique hotels that have recently begun to emerge in what is left of Beijing’s old city seem to be acquitting themselves well in the intense pre-Olympic struggle for customers.
They offer traditional courtyard accommodation in old Hutong, the lanes that once connected up the fabric of old Beijing.
Hotel proprietors were expecting to make a killing during the Olympics and room charges have more than quadrupled in the run-up.
Home owners were also hoping to cash in on Olympic fever with some deciding to offer their apartments for rent to visitors at a significant premium.
Three-bedroom apartments that normally rent for around 6,000 yuan (880 dollars) are on offer for 1500 yuan a day during the August 8-24 Games.
‘We were told there would be a lack of beds so property owners got rid of tenants and upped the rent for the Games period. Or if they were living in the apartment themselves, they decided to move out so they could rent the space,’ said Song Zhi, who helps run the accommodation service lodgingatbeijing.com.
Song offers apartments for all budgets including premier locations near the main Olympic venues. ‘But at least for now, supply exceeds demand,’ he said. The head of the Beijing Tourism Administration, Zhang Huiguang, said that Beijing has 336,000 hotel rooms with 660,000 beds.
Administration officials say that the Games are expected to attract between 450,000 and 500,000 overseas visitors, in addition to 1.2 to 1.6 million Chinese visitors from outside the capital.
However, expectations concerning the number of overseas tourists could prove optimistic.
Some travellers may already have been put off by early reports of huge tourist numbers expected to flood an already congested city. Others may have been discouraged by diplomatic tension between China and the outside world earlier this year over issues including its handling of the unrest in Tibet.
In addition, reports about heavy handed Olympic security measures and a tougher policy on giving visas to overseas applicants may have further discouraged potential tourists.
Evidence that tourism has been falling off was clearly visible in May this year at some of China’s top tourists sites. Parking lots normally impossible to find a space in were half empty at Mutianyu, one of the top sites at the Great Wall just outside Beijing.
Faced with falling bookings, European airlines Air France and British Airways have been running special promotions to attract tourists to their China routes, while the French firm has also been forced to suspend several weekly flights.
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China vows to boost
Olympic security
Agence France-Presse . Beijing
China vowed Sunday to step up security for the Beijing Olympics, warning of an unprecedented threat to the Games amid reports that two ‘terrorists’ were executed in the mainly Muslim far northwest.
With up to 80 heads of state expected to attend the August 8 opening ceremony, China said it was faced with a ‘huge responsibility’ to defend its own people, Olympic athletes and visiting dignitaries.
Rioting and looting in Tibet this year and recent police battles with ‘terrorist groups’ in far northwest Xinjiang region were evidence of real threats to sabotage the Games, the leading People’s Daily said in an editorial.
‘As far as China is concerned, the international situation and the political environment is becoming increasingly complicated by the day, and the dark clouds of terrorism on our borders are a fact that cannot be ignored,’ it said.
‘Up until the present, we know there will be 80 heads of state attending the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony—as the host nation, we are faced with unprecedented pressure and a huge responsibility.’
The commentary defended massive security efforts that have resulted in a missile battery being placed outside the main Olympic Stadium, as well as a raft of new regulations restricting the movement of people and goods.
It also derided Western press reports that have expressed fears that the stringent security measures would result in a ‘cold and cheerless Olympics.’
‘These incidents (in Tibet and Xinjiang) show... that the Beijing Olympics is facing a terrorist threat unsurpassed in Olympic history,’ the People’s Daily said.
The paper said the threat had become more real, ‘especially as the peaceful protests of anti-China forces like those linked to ‘democracy movements’ outside the nation become violent attacks by Tibetan and Xinjiang separatists.’
Ongoing crackdowns in Tibet and Xinjiang have been motivated by Olympic security concerns, the government has said.
According to US-based Radio Free Asia, two ethnic minority Uighur Muslims convicted of terrorist and separatist activities were executed last week in Xinjiang. Fifteen others were jailed for similar crimes.
China announced last week that 82 ‘suspected terrorists’ had been detained there this year for allegedly plotting to sabotage the Olympics.
State press also said last week that police had shot dead five knife-wielding Muslims and detained 10 others in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, who allegedly wanted to launch a ‘holy war’.
The People’s Daily said that when China was awarded the right to host the Games in 2001, its number one commitment to the International Olympic Committee was that it would maintain security.
‘In order to fulfil this commitment, China has built the most strict prevention and control system in Olympic history, adopting a series of security measures rarely seen,’ it said.
Such measures include security checks on roads, at airports and in train and subway stations, as well as stricter controls at borders, including tough new visa application requirements, it said.
Authorities in Hebei province, which surrounds Beijing, announced Saturday that check points would be set up on all roads leading into the capital from July 20.
‘Our province must strike hard and our police must firmly attack the evil forces and wipe out those who seek to dominate and endanger others,’ the Hebei government said in a statement on its website.
‘We must prevent any person with ulterior motives from entering Beijing and we must prevent any dangerous or illegal materials from entering Beijing.’
Also on Saturday, Beijing unveiled its new special armoured rapid response team that includes 39 new bullet-proof vehicles that will patrol the capital during the Games.
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