Race to Bharat Ratna: Who should cross finish line first?

The debate, though unsavoury and distasteful, goes on...Hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand or cricket maestro Sachin Tendulkar?
   It is like pitting one behemoth against another colossus.
   One scooped up three gold medals at the Olympics and is widely considered as the greatest hockey player the world has ever seen.
   Other is the demi-god for the aficionados of the gentleman’s game and who can play the sport with one hand tied behind his back. He has attained feats which has the record books bursting at the seams.
   Who rightfully deserves to be conferred upon India's highest civilian award-Bharat Ratna first? The issue elicits a wide array of responses and views from sport experts, some of whom think the debate should not have started in the first instance.
   The media loves coarse debate because coarse debate drives ratings and ratings generate profits. In a nutshell, the media loves controversy because that is what sells.
   The issue has set off an 'unnecessary' debate, leaving in its wake a bruising competition like situation being considered demeaning to the two giants, who have brought laurels for the nation in their respective fields.
    The decision by the government to include sports in India's highest civilian honour was greeted with rhapsodies of praise by one and all, but now arguments , 'pushed by media', have broken out as to which sportsperson between the two should get it first.
   Some opine hockey legend Dhyan Chand should get it first, some say 'the demi-god of cricket' Tendulkar deserves it more.
   Not only fans but also the great sportspersons are giving their 'valuable' views over the raging issue, which has caught the fancy of one and all among the sports fraternity.
   The Sports Ministry has recommended Dhyan Chand's name for the award, saying it was a 'logical choice'.
   The ministry had to name only one sportsperson for the Bharat Ratna to the Prime Minister's Office for the award and for them three-time Olympic gold medalist, who passed away in 1979, was the right choice.
    In 2011, the government had ignored the plea of 82 members of Parliament, who had recommended Dhyan Chand’s name for the prestigious award but in January 2012, the ministry itself forwarded his name along with Olympic gold medallist shooter Abhinav Bindra and mountaineer Tenzing Norgay for the award.
    Former India captain Mohammad Azharuddin says Tendulkar deserves to be conferred with the Bharat Ratna, but wants Dhyan Chand to be the first sportsperson to be bestowed with the honour.
    'Sachin should be conferred with Bharat Ratna honour. I have never said no to this but hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand should be the first sportsperson to be conferred the award,' Azhar says.
   'Dhyan Chand played under British Raj and one should take into account the kind of atmosphere he played under. No proper hockey stick was there...no proper grounds were there.'
   Olympian boxer Akhil Kumar also echo Azharuddin’s views.
   'Sachin is a great player but I think Dhyan Chand played at a time when there was no facility available in India. Dhyan Chand deserves Bharat Ratna first,' he said.

   Known as 'The Wizard' for his astonishing ball control, Dhyan Singh used to practice a lot during night after his duty hours. He invariably used to wait for the moon to come out so that the visibility in the field improved as there were no floodlights at that him.

   He was called 'Chand' by his fellow players, as his practice sessions at night invariably coincided with the emergence of the moon.
   Former India wicketkepeer Kiran More says: 'There is no question of a comparison. Dhyan Chand deserves it. There is no competition here. Tendulkar deserves it too and will receive it one day. This is definitely a big honour for Dhyan Chand.'
    Former India all-rounder Madan Lal endorses More's views. 'Sachin can wait for it. Dhyan Chand had done a lot of good for the country.'
    Erstwhile Indian opener Anshuman Gaekwad too reckons,' Dhyan Chand is the deserving candidate.'
    'Normally this award is given after a consensus, so Sachin doesn’t come into picture. At the moment, Dhyan Chand deserves it. The days when he played hockey for India were difficult times. There were no facilities or money,' he says.
    But 'Bengal Tiger' Sourav Ganguly thinks otherwise.
    He says: 'Sachin is a Bharat Ratna. He should be conferred upon the Bharat Ratna.’’
    Taking a break from government baiting, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has also said Tendulkar deserved India's highest civilian award.
   India's latest batting sensation Virat Kohli said, 'Tendulkar really deserves the Bharat Ratna. Whatever he has done, I do not think anyone else can even come close to achieve (100 hundreds in international cricket) what he achieved in the last 22 years, It is impossible.'
   Anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare, too, joined the chorus of demanding Bharat Ratna for Tendulkar.
   'The Government should have honoured Tendulkar with Bharat Ratna.'
    The 40-year-old Tendulkar, off the boil in recent times, has to his name most of the batting records in Test and ODI cricket, including being the highest run-scorer and century maker in both formats.
    Sports lovers feels that a competition-like situation has been created for the prestigious award between the two icons.
    And whosoever gets it first, will be like the winner.
    'This is like an insult of both the legends. If Dhyan Chand gets it first, cricket lovers will not like it. And if Tendulkar gets it before Dhyan Chand, hockey lovers will hate it,' feels sports lovers Lalit Kumar, Sachin Bhagat, Sandeep Tyagi, Nishant Panchal and Naveen Tyagi.
    The government has made a change in eligibility criteria for a person getting the India's highest civilian honour.
    The Bharat Ratna will now be awarded in recognition of exceptional service/performance of the highest order 'in any field of human endeavour' -covering almost all the fields that had earlier remained out of the purview of this civilian award.
    Earlier, it was restricted to areas like 'art, literature, science and public service', making it difficult for government to consider names of those, who contributed immensely to other fields, including sports.
    The message that must be hammered home out of this unpalatable debate is that it should not have been started in the first place and those who waded into it should have let the government of the day decide who deserved it first instead of taking the sheen off the honour by setting the two goliaths against each other.

Sebastian Vettel wins Indian GP, stretches title lead over Alonso

Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel sealed his second successive Indian Grand Prix title and fourth consecutive win of the season at the Buddh International Circuit here today.
Starting the race from pole, defending champion Vettel (1:31:10.744) dominated the entire race, finishing in
1:28.723, almost nine seconds ahead of second-placed Ferrari's Fernando Alonso (1:31:20.181) and also stretched his Formula One  championship lead over Alonso to 13 points
with three races remaining.
Red Bull team mate Mark Webber (1:31:23.961) crossed  the chequered flag as the third car. McLaren's Lewis Hamilton (1:31:24.653) finished fourth.
"It has been incredible to come here consecutively  for two years and get the pole and win the race. I am very happy, it’s a very special grand prix, I really like the flow of it. We all enjoy it.
"Big thanks to the team, everyone pushed very hard.  All of us work hand in hand together, everyone is pushing hard. I am glad to be part of it and enjoying the moment," the 25-year-old German said after clinching the winning trophy.
Alonso said,"It’s not easy to fight with Red Bull  but we will never give up and we are happy today we have to congratulate them. Well done Red Bull, well done Sebastian but we will do it."
"We lost points but this weekend this was the plan, we lost the minimum points. We were fast in the straight line but we’re  still missing grip in the corners. Today I have to thank to team for the speed in the overtaking
manoeuvres."
Nico Hulkenberg (1:32:05.742) of Sahara Force India finished 8th while Paul Di Resta (1:32:33.559) returned pointless at 12TH.

"I am very happy with the result today and I think eighth was about the maximum that was possible. It was a great team performance and I'm feeling satisfied with what we achieved today," Nico said after the event.
His team-mate Paul said: "It was quite a tough afternoon, but I think that we achieved all we could from
the race because  I couldn't get any more out of the car today. I drove as hard as I could and was pushing all the way."
"We were in the hunt battling with Rosberg and Senna, but I didn't really get close enough to challenge them. To be honest I have struggled to find the ideal balance with the car all weekend."  
Vettel has 240 points to Alonso's 227, with Kimi Raikkonen of Lotus (173) and Webber (167) with only a
mathematical chance.
McLaren's Lewis Hamilton (165) and Jenson Button (141) are now officially out of the title race after coming fourth and fifth, respectively.
Record champion Michael Schumacher suffered a rear puncture in the first lap which sent him to the Mercedes pit, saw him lapped by Vettel in lap eight, and retire in the 57th lap amid in investigation of ignoring blue flag orders.
Sergio Perez, who is to take the place of Marcedes-bound Hamilton at McLaren, ruined his race with a puncture on his Sauber because he did not give enough way when he attempted to overtake the Toro Rosso of Daniel Ricciardo.
The next race is on November 4 in Abu Dhabi, where Vettel won his first world title in 2010 ahead of Alonso in what was then the season finale.

Sebastian Vettel on pole, flop show by Force India

Formula One leader Sebastian Vettel took pole position for the Indian Grand Prix, edging out Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber by just 0.044 seconds at the Buddh International Circuit here today.
Vettel, who has dominated the proceedings all weekend, clocked 1 minute 25.283 seconds in this afternoon's one-hour qualifying session.
It was Vettel's second successive pole in India, his fifth of 2012 and the 35th of his Formula 1 career.
''It could have been faster here and there,'' said the 25-year-old German, but with title rival Fernando Alonso qualifying fifth Vettel, has a McLaren Mercedes cushion in the shape of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, who occupy the second row.
Still, Vettel isn't taking much comfort from that position: ''Today is obviously a good result for us, 1-2,'' he said, ''but tomorrow is the main exercise with the race. The McLarens were very quick in long runs yesterday as well as the Ferraris, so I think it will be a close race.''
Asked if he should now be calling Buddh his home circuit since he seems so comfortable here, Vettel answered: ''It's a bit far away from my home country, but I liked the circuit from the first practice session last year. It was very special to be the first winner here in India and to do it again this year is obviously the target.''
Second in qualifying for the fourth time this season, Webber was philosophical about the tiny margin between him and his teammate.
''It was a good, tight-run thing between us, only half a tenth,'' said the 36-year-old Australian. ''I was surprised to be second, to be honest, so I’ll take that.''
Hamilton was relaxed about not being on the front row.
''I am just looking forward to a race where we don't have any issues, one where we can fight for position and get some good points,'' said the 2008 World Champion, whose chances of a second title have faded over the last two races in which he finished only fifth and 10th.
Asked about a little moment he had in Turns 5 and 6, Hamilton was quick to pay tribute to the circuit: ''This track is incredibly challenging for all of us,'' he said, ''and the more we drive it the more we realise that. It's a great circuit, it takes a lot of focus, it takes a lot to try and get a perfect lap together.
''That’s a corner where you're pulling a lot of g-force and put a lot of load on the tyres; if you just touch the kerb you have an oversteer moment, but you're always trying to gain time through there because it's an important part of the circuit.''
HUMOROUS
There was a humorous moment in the post-qualifying press conference when a question was rasied to Vettel about him patting his Red Bull car like a horse after victory in the earlier race. The questions was ''In his passion for racing, did he see it as a living creature rather than a machine?''
'First off, the car is not a horse,'' laughed Vettel. ''Sometimes you might lose oil or fuel but I think the smell is nicer than what the horse drops! You work together with your car: you speak to your team on the radio but it's between you and your car, there is obviously a special relationship.''
''You're very happy when you cross the line in a very good position after you have had a good race so you say thanks to the car, but also the car is what connects you to your crew. I am working with the car on the track, the crew is working with the car in the garage and we all share a passion. So it was maybe just a nice gesture to say thanks.''
In another comical moment, Webber was asked why Red Bull had regained their dominance over the last three races. ''Drivers,'' said the Australian laconically.
INDIA
The Indian connections to the race did not fare very well, with Local Boy Narain Karthikeyan starting 23rd tomorrow, while the Sahara Force India boys of Nico Hulkenberg and Paul Di Resta qualifying provisionally at P12 and P16, though they both seem optimistic for tomorrow's race.
Narain driving for the second time at home in the Buddh International Circuit was happy with his performance and he believes the pace in the car is good and the strategy could be a one stopper, given the low tyre degradation. It is going to be another special day for Narain with the fans cheering him on after last year's phenomenal performance.
Hulkenberg is very optimistic about the race tomorrow, because of how close the times were today and also they have the option of picking their starting tires for the race and come up with a strategy for final day.
Di Resta, piloting the other Sahara Force India said there was a lot of hard work ahead before the race tomorrow and needs to look at things overnight to see where there can be improvement in the car.
While the big boys in their big mean machines were making all the noise and getting all the attention, the support races promoted by Buddh International Circuit also saw a lot wheel to wheel action with a lot of Indian drivers participating in the JK Racing Asia Series as well as the MRF Challenge 2012.
There are seven Indians on the JK Racing Asia Series grid and 3 on the MRF Challenge 2012 grid.
Akhil Khushlani and Aditya Patel represented Team US Formula Project, Vishnu Prasad, Raj Bharath, Karminder Singh, Akhil Rabindra and Chetan Korada drove for the Indian team Meco Racing in the JK series, while Sureshwaran, Sundar and Parth Ghorpade were a part of the MRF Challenge. While MRF Challenge did not see any Indian challenge for the podium in Race 1, Aditya Patel brought home his car in 3rd place for the first race in the JK Racing Asia series.
Fast Cars, an array of celebrities, sporting legends, politicians and top notch industrialists expected at the Buddh International Circuit on the 28th of October 2012, the spectators are in for an exciting day.

Brett Lee bids adieu: Ferocity will never be the same again

When Brett Lee limped off the field during his third over in the fourth ODI against England at
Durham, most people expected it to be just another injury in the fast bowler's 13-year long career.
   As one of the fastest bowlers in world cricket, the 35-year-old Australian pacer has been no stranger to injuries and has come back strongly every time he has been laid low.
   But this time, it was not so. The calf muscle, he pulled up during his run-up turned out to be the last injury his body could take, and those 2.2 overs he bowled turned out to be to be the final overs he would bowl in international cricket.
   Lee returned home to Sydney this week and today, he announced his retirement from international cricket.
   Ever since Lee donned the Australian colours in 1999, he started gaining the reputation of being fearsome, dangerous and one of the fastest bowlers in world cricket.
   Regularly clocking at 150 kmph and above, Lee emerged as a sensation and went on to become his team's spearhead for most part of his illustrious career. One of the best phases of his career came in the 2003 World Cup, where he finished the tournament with 22 wickets.
   Lee also became the first bowler to take a hat-trick in Twenty20 Internationals. He even has an ODI hat-trick to his name.
   The stylish pacer was one of the swiftest wicket-takers, as is proved by his strike rate of 29, while keeping the run rate in check.
   He was particularly a force to reckon with at the start of the match and it is fair to say that he was one of the most lethal bowlers in the Quick Start Overs.
   With his pace, accuracy and ability to bowl beamers at will, he was considered to be one of the best pace bowlers for over a decade in limited overs cricket. His numbers speak for themselves.
   In 221 ODIs, he has taken 380 scalps, just one short of Glenn McGrath's record for the highest number of wickets.
With an economy of 4.76 and an average of 23.36, he was undoubtedly one of the greats of the game. In T20Is, he had 28 wickets from 25 matches with a best of 3/23.
   Earlier, Lee had retired from Test cricket a year ago in February 2010 but continued playing for Australia in one-day matches and in the Twenty20 format.
   In his entire career of Test cricket Lee took a remarkable number of 310 wickets in 76 matches.
   He will continue playing in the Big Bash and Indian Premier League.

2011: World Cup triumph gives cause for celebrations

The year 2011 brought glad tidings for Indian cricket as the '
men-in-blue' led by mercurial skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni held
aloft the World Cup after a long gap
of 27 years and swashbuckling opener Virender Sehwag became the
highest scorer in one day format by cracking a double century
surpassing compatriot batting legend Sachin Tendulkar's record
of unbeaten 200 runs but the team ended up losing its numero
uno spot in Test ranking, getting trounced 0-4 by England
on foreign territory.
   Tendulkar finally added one of the rare honours to his already
feathered cap which had been eluding him in a glittering career
by being part of the India team that won the World Cup on home
soil.
   The images of Dhoni heaving a six to win the final against
Sri Lanka in Mumbai, and jubilant players carrying a misty-eyed
Tendulkar on their shoulders and embracing tearful Yuvraj Singh,
were watched by millions of fans glued to their TV sets
across India.
   That magical night was the culmination of an effort that
began under the tutelage of Indian cricket team's coach,
Gary Kirsten, and its captain Dhoni from the time they paired
up in 2007 to steer India from a team prone to capitulation to
a band of world beaters.
   That result ended a 28-year drought of smelling the World Cup.
Winning the World Cup was a dream harboured by the likes of
Tendulkar since he debuted almost two decades back.
   This was what Indian cricket teams had aspired for since
Kapil Dev raised the trophy on the Lord's balcony in 1983, and
it helped erase the bitter memories of 1992, 1996, 1999 and,
most famously, 2007.
   However, India's triumph in the one-day arena was not matched
in Tests, where they suffered the humiliation of failing to win
a single game on a full tour of England in which they were blanked
in four Tests and lost the top ranking in Test cricket to their
opponents in the process.
   England reclaimed the No 1 ranking for the first time since
1979.
   If there was one more figure that gave Indian fans a defining
moment in 2011, it was Sehwag.
   He earned the most impressive milestone of the year, hitting
a world-record score in one-day internationals by smashing 219
off 149 balls while leading Team India against the West Indies
in Indore, December 8, for the highest individual score in ODIs.
   Tendulkar had held the record up till now at 200.
   A series win over West Indies followed, during which the debut
performance of R Ashwin in the Tests and Sehwag's brutal inning
in the ensuing ODIs gave the fans something to write home about.
   But the year did not end on a happy note as the ageing Indian
team, despite the presence of the trio -- Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid
and VVS Laxman --suffered a punch in the Boxing Day Test -- a
humiliating defeat of 122 runs by the hands of a youthful Australian
squad, forcing the Indian cricket to wear their thinking caps on
what strategy to adopt against the Aussies next year as bouncy
tracks are going to make life difficult for the Indian squad, which
is used to adding wins to its kitty on placid turfs back home.
   The spotlight was trained on Tendulkar, who has not been able to
shake off the demon of scoring his hundredth hundred for the last
nine months.
   As Tendulkar carry the burden of expectations again for the
milestone century to the next Test match -- it is now battleground
Sydney.

Tendulkar's chase for 100th ton reaches Feroz Shah Kotla

Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar's chase for 100th ton in the international cricket will be back in focus when India take on an inexperienced West Indies in the first encounter of the three-Test series beginning here tomorrow.
   Tendulkar- The God of cricket- has been stuck on 99 tons since the ODI World Cup when he hit two centuries against England and South Africa and fans expect him to reach the milestone at the
Feroz Shah Kotla stadium.
   He missed the milestone by a whisker when he was trapped in front by Tim Bresnan nine runs short of the elusive landmark during the fifth day of the fourth and final Test against England at the Oval earlier this year.
   However, for Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the focus will be on banishing the memories of the team's shambolic tour of England.
   The men-in-blue were whitewashed 4-0 in one of their worst ever overseas performances, where they could not win a single international match.  
   The injury-ravaged team struggled against the fast bowlers, and as a result, lost their No.1 ranking in Tests.
   "We will let him (Tendulkar) get the century and then we will speak about it. Hopefully, he gets it in this (the first) game and we will speak about it on the fifth day," Dhoni told reporters.
   "It's a milestone Tendulkar will achieve, whether in this game, the next game or some other game. It's bound to happen.   
   "So rather than discussing too much ahead of the milestone coming in, what we are doing is we said 'okay, let him get the ton and then we'll talk about it'. We are thinking about how we
need to prepare for the series," said he.   
   "We want to be the best in the world but it's not something that belongs to you. You have to maintain it, you have to keep doing well.    
   "We did not do too well in England and that's why we are not the number one team right now. Again it becomes a process and to reach to the top of the world, you have to follow the process."   
   This series will give the Indian players a chance to prepare for the tough upcoming tour of Australia.
   But it will not be a cakewalk for the hosts as the visitors are coming off a series win in Bangladesh.
   India will once again be able to call on the services of regular openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, and the middle order will look stronger with Tendulkar and Yuvraj Singh also returning
from injuries.   
   Ace cricketer Rahul 'The Wall' Dravid, who has already notched four centuries this year, is expected to continue with his rich vein of form and provide stability to the middle-order.
   BOWLING
   Both the pace and slow-ball departments look inexperienced in the Indian side with medium-pacer Zaheer Khan still recovering from ankle surgery and off-spinner Harbhajan Singh dropped,
   Rookies Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron both impressed with their ability to generate pace and provide breakthroughs in India's 5-0 whitewash of England in the recently-concluded ODI series recently, while Ishant Sharma re-emerged as a genuine strike bowler, picking up 22 wickets in three Tests in the West Indies earlier this year.
   Whereas, spinner Pragyan Ojha has played Test cricket before, but ODI specialist Ravichandran Ashwin and a leg-spinner Rahul Sharma are rank newcomers.
   Meanwhile, the tourists can derive positives from their series victory in Bangladesh.  
   In the second and final Test in Dhaka, Kirk Edwards scored a century in the first innings and 86 in the second, Darren Bravo almost reached within the breathing space of maiden double century
and promising leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo claimed a first five-wicket haul.
   West Indies coach Ottis Gibson said the team is high on confidence after that win and are suitably warmed-up to subcontinental conditions.
   "Over the last six to 12 months our fast bowlers, Ravi Rampaul, Fidel Edwards, Kemar Roach and Darren Sammy have done well and won us matches," Gibson said. "We know that India obviously will be heavy on spin but we believe in the quality of our fast bowlers."
   "We have Fidel bowling quick at the moment and we hope we can cause some problems to the formidable Indian batting line-up.
   "We believe that we have the quality to back ourselves. We know that the ball doesn't swing very long. You need to have added skills and we pay a lot of attention to that. We are skilled enough to
reverse it and get wickets as well," he added.   
   Skipper Darren Sammy also promised a "fearless" display in the series, which he labelled his team's biggest challenge to date.   
   Barring Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Marlon Samuels, none of the 13 other West Indies cricketers have played a test match in India and Sammy seemed fully aware of the task ahead.   
   "This is the biggest series for most of the guys here. Playing cricket in India is indescribable. The way cricket is held here, it's like religion. This by far is the biggest test for us, for me as the captain as well," said Sammy.
   PITCH
   This is just as big a test for Feroz Shah Kotla.
   This is only the third first-class match, and the first Test Delhi is hosting after the abandonment of an ODI in 2009-10.
   The re-laid pitch has been slow, low and lifeless for List A cricket.
   In one of the two first-class games, it retained its Ranji reputation of early life when Gujarat were bowled out for 71 on the first morning, but neither of the matches produced a result. It is
hoped that the new Kotla will break away from the trend, especially considering November mornings are smoggy here, which could lead to loss of some play.
         
Squads:  
India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Vangipurappu Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, Ravichandran Ashwin, Pragyan Ojha, Ishant
Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Virat Kohli, Varun Aaron, Ajinkya Rahane, Rahul Sharma.  

West Indies: Darren Sammy (captain), Adrian Barath, Carlton Baugh, Devendra Bishoo, Kraigg Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Fidel Edwards, Kirk Edwards, Kieran
Powell, Denesh Ramdin, Ravi Rampaul, Kemar Roach, Marlon Samuels, Shane Shillingford.

Vettel wins first Indian GP, Sutil finishes 9th

Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel won the inaugural Indian Formula One Grand Prix at the spanking new Buddh International Circuit here today.
The world champion (1:30'35.002) made it 11 victories in 2011 after once again appearing completely in control.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati presented the winning trophy to the 24-year-old German.
McLaren's Jenson Button (1:30'43.435) was 8.4sec behind in second, while Fernando Alonso (1:30'59.303) took third for Ferrari.
Leading every lap in the contest, Vettel waited until the 59th and final lap to set the fastest lap time of 1'27.249, winning in emphatic style.
The German also set a record for the most laps led in a single season by any driver, leapfrogging Britain's 1992 champion Nigel Mansell in the statisticians' lists.   
"Yes boys, we did it," shouted Vettel after cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar brought down the chequered flag. "New track, new challenge."
He now has 374 points with two races remaining, Button 240, Alonso 227 and Red Bull's Australian Mark Webber (1:31'00.531)-- who finished fourth after starting on the front row -- 221.   
The German has 11 wins this season, and victories in the final two races in Brazil and Abu Dhabi would equal Schumacher's record of 13 wins.
Vettel and his team are not letting up despite already having clinched the drivers' and constructors' championships.
FORCE INDIA
Sahara Force India's Adrain Sutil, who started the race from eighth position, finished at 9th and his fellow driver Paul di Resta finished at 13th position.
"It was quite a good race and I think we can be happy with the two points today.
"In the early laps I struggled with the rear of the car, with a bit of oversteer, and could not hold off the Toro Rossos who were a bit quicker today," Sutil said.
"But in the second and third stint the car balance improved and I was able to keep the Sauber (Perez) behind me in the closing laps. We were also fortunate that Buemi retired, which gave me another position. I think ninth was probably the maximum today and I hope Vijay will have a smile on his face tonight."
Force India co-owner Vijay Mallya expressed his satisfaction with the team's performance.
"Today's Indian Grand Prix was a great event. We targeted points and that's exactly what we delivered with Adrian's excellent drive to ninth," said he.
"As for Paul, he performed well, but we went very aggressive with the strategy to cover the chance of a safety car.
"In the end it didn't work out, but we needed to cover our bases. These two points are important for our championship battle and I am delighted that Sahara Force India will go down in the record books for scoring points in the inaugural Indian Grand Prix."
India's Narain Karthikeyan, who drives for Hispania Racing, started at the 23rd position, finished at 17th position.
He was benefited by the collision of four cars at the rear end going into turn one. Karthikeyan gain another few places momentarily but fell back later to equal his performance at Monaco and Canada.
COLLISION
The race saw yet another collision between McLaren's 2008 champion Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari's Felipe Massa, their sixth on-track clash of the season.
Massa was given a pit drive-through penalty before later breaking his front suspension and retiring from the race.
British comedy actor Rowan Atkinson, 'Mr Bean', was watching the race as a guest of the McLaren team and his anguished expression was there for all to see as the arch-rivals came together once again
on turn five of lap 23.
Over the radio Hamilton said: "He turned in on me. He didn't give me any space."
A total of five retirements took place in the race.
MINUTE'S SILENCE    
Before the race, all drivers and top team personnel plus Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone observed a moment of silence on the grid to mark the deaths of IndyCar driver Dan Wheldon
and MotoGP rider Marco Simoncelli this month.
Vettel paid tribute to Wheldon and MotoGP Simoncelli, both killed in races over the past two weeks.
"To be honest with you, it is a little bit of a mixed emotion," said Vettel.
"On the one hand I am very happy, very proud to be the first winner, but on the other hand looking back at last weekend we lost two of our mates. I didn't know Dan but obviously he is a
big name in motorsport."
As promised the circuit delivered excellent overtaking opportunities and remained competitive throughout the required 60 laps.