Top Asian cricketer Rahul Dravid has backed a scheme to encourage more Indian students to study in Scotland.

The Rahul Dravid scholarships will allow 10 Indian students to study at Adam Smith College in Kirkcaldy, Fife, by offering help towards tuition fees.

The college said the scholarships were the first of their kind in the UK and were designed to remove some of the barriers to international education.

They are worth about £1,000. Students will be selected on academic merit.

The scholarships are supported by Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who facilitated the original approach to Dravid on behalf of the college.

He is the captain of the Indian cricket team and one of the country's most high-profile sportsmen.

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Dravid said: "I was invited by Gordon Brown to consider supporting a scholarship scheme,

Dravid is captain of the Indian cricket team and a high-profile sportsman

which is something I considered very carefully.

"It is important to me that young people aspire to be the very best they can be, that is why I am backing them to reach their true potential with scholarships."

Studying at a western institution is a popular option for many young Indians, for whom places at colleges and universities at home are limited.

Mark Cullens, assistant principal, said: "Studying in Scotland fits really well with the quality of the Indian education system, where two years of full-time school education is followed by two years of further or higher education.

"Students progress well and have the added advantage of gaining a two-year work visa to work in Scotland after their studies."

 

'Fabulous victory'

Thousands of supporters stood in line along the route as the team journeyed from a hotel in a garlanded bus towards a welcome ceremony at Delhi's Ferozeshah Kotla Ground.

The stadium was chock-a-block with several thousand fans who had gathered to greet the winning team.

Papers say India's victory points to a 'shift' in the world's cricket order

The ground was decorated with colourful balloons, and the Indian flag was flying high.

Addressing the crowd, Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni thanked them for their support.

Officials of the Indian cricket board congratulated the team and each member was presented with a cheque of $145,000.

Earlier, appeals to parade the cricketers through the streets of Delhi on the way to the stadium were rejected by Indian cricket officials.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh complimented the team on its victory.

"It is a fabulous victory. This is victory based on teamwork and strong determination," he said.

The Indian cricket board has announced cash awards to the members of the winning team.

 

Sunderland's Miller moves to QPR

Miller has become surplus to requirements at Sunderland Midfielder Liam Miller has left Sunderland and signed for QPR until the end of the season. The clubs initially discussed a loan deal but agreed an undisclosed fee for the 27-year-old, ending Miller's two-and-a-half-year spell on Wearside. "It's a great move for me. The club is heading in the right direction and when you look at the squad you can see the quality on offer," said Miller. "Liam will give us great options in midfield," QPR boss Paulo Sousa said. "He's an energetic, box-to-box player who will complement the already positive options we have in the midfield department."