Aussie skipper Ricky Ponting said that his inexperienced side would do all it can to hang on to their number one spot when they would take on South Africa in the upcoming test series.

Speaking with the reporters, Ponting said, “We have had quite a few injuries, but we have brought a fully fit squad to South Africa. We always enjoy playing here. The conditions are fairly similar to those at home, and we know the series will be challenging. We just hope Australia come out on top this time.”

London, Feb 19 : Lindsay Lohan has quashed rumours suggesting that she is dating Chace Crawford after parting ways with girlfriend DJ Samantha Ronson.

Rumours of Crawford fling started making rounds when she and the Gossip Girl actor were seen enjoying a night out with pals at New York City restaurant Southern Hospitality on February 15.

Later, the `Mean Girls' star was snapped at Crawford''s apartment building in the wee hours of February 16 morning.

Washington, Feb 19 : Sandra Bullock is set to star in football drama-comedy `The Blindside', which will be financed and produced by Warner Bros.-based Alcon Entertainment.

Along with Gil Netter (`Marley and Me'), the film will be produced by Alcon co-toppers including Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove.

Molly Smith, Erwin Stoff and Tim Bourne will exec produce the film based on `The Blind Side: Evolution of the Game' by Michael Lewis (`Moneyball').

John Lee Hancock (`My Dog Skip', `The Rookie') has written the big screen adaptation and will also direct project.

The film traces the story of Michael Oher, who is projected to be one of the first players selected in this year''s NFL draft.

Beijing  - Eight crew were feared dead after Russian Coast Guard vessels fired on a Chinese ship that was fleeing port after a dispute over a rice cargo, Chinese and Russian media said Thursday.

China's Foreign Ministry said the cargo ship New Star sank Saturday off Russia's eastern port of Nakhodka in waters close to Japan.

The ministry did not give the cause of the sinking, but Russia's RIA Novosti news agency said the Russian Coast Guard opened fire after the cargo ship ignored warnings to return to port.

The agency said eight crew died after the Sierra Leone-flagged vessel sank during a storm.

Seoul  - North Korea's military upped its threats against South Korea Thursday, saying it was prepared for "an all-out confrontation" with its neighbour.

North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency carried the military spokesman's remarks the same day US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton was to arrive in South Korea on a visit that was to focus on efforts to end the North's nuclear weapons programme.

Karvy Stock Broking Limited has maintained ‘Buy’ rating on DLF stock to achieve a target of Rs 165 within 1-2 days.

According to Karvy, day traders can purchase the stock between Rs 155-157 with a stop loss of Rs 150. If the stock market remains on positive track, the next target for the stock will be above Rs 168.

Shares of the company, on Wednesday (Feb 18), closed at Rs 158.70 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). The total volume of shares traded at the BSE was 8796462. Current EPS & P/E ratio stood at 12.67 and 12.77 respectively. The share price has seen a 52-week high of Rs 899 and a low of Rs 124.15 on BSE.