TOI:
Come to think of it. MSD and company had everything in their favour. A fully fit batting unit, home conditions and an opposition racked by injuries. No Michael Clark, no Nathan Bracken, no Brad Haddin and mid-series exits of Brett Lee, James Hopes, Peter Siddle, Tim Paine and others — for all purposes, this was Australia’s B team.

Yet Ponting’s men played like true champions. What a shame MSD’s million-dollar boys couldn’t even take the series to the wire. Faced with circumstances similar to Australia’s, the Men in Blue would have probably lost the series 7-0 or 6-1.

Let’s analyse the larger reasons for our defeat:

1. We lacked batting consistency at the top: Barring MSD, no other batsman played with any degree of consistency. Sehwag offered two blistering cameos but failed to score even a single half century in six knocks. He is a genius but he needs to be shaken out of his comfort zone. Similarly, barring his magical 175, Sachin was a disappointment. True, he got a rough decision at Mohali but what about the other knocks? Gambhir started brightly with 68 and 76 but ended up with 6, 8 and 0. Yuvraj played one fabulous match-winning knock in Delhi but had little else to offer. With the new Fab 4 failing regularly, India were bound to struggle.

Now compare their performance with the three key Australian players at the top: Watson, Ponting and Hussey. Watson scored 5, 19, 41, 49, 93 and 49, apart from claiming a bagful of wickets. Ponting notched up 74, 12, 59, 52, 45 and 25, while Hussey made 73, 53, 81, 40, 31 not out and 35 not out. These three seldom allowed Indian bowlers to have an early view of Australia’s relatively inexperienced and vulnerable lower middle order.

The scores and the manner in which they came about also underlined the fact that while the Aussies were willing to walk the hard miles, we were happy smacking fours and sixes. They won games; we didn’t.

2. Our bowlers too underperformed: Barring Mohali, where the batsmen were guilty of losing the game, the Indian bowlers were mediocre throughout. The series only exposed our lack of bench strength. How we missed Zaheer Khan! Australia had a match-winner like Doug Bollinger in reserve; we had the likes of Ishant Sharma as part of our original strike force. Just see the difference.

Even spin, allegedly our strength, gave us no advantage. Harbhajan bowled relatively better in the latter part of the series. But only just. In Guwahati, he got a couple of wickets but Jadeja was getting more purchase out of the track. He was distinctly unlucky not to get wickets. The Punjab off-spinner had batted well in the earlier part of the series but failed to contribute even a single run when much-needed in the last two games. He is a good No. 9 batsman, nothing more. I still feel he should be dropped for a few games. Otherwise we will never find out how good or bad Amit Mishra and Pragyan Ojha can be for us.

3. India muffed the big moments: The series was very tight. But we handled the key moments pretty awfully. In Vadodara, when we looked like winning for the first time in the last over, we muffed it up. In Hyderabad, with 19 runs to get off 18 balls and four wickets in hand, we threw our wickets away. We lacked nerve.

4. The Men in Blue displayed lack of cricketing intelligence: On a seaming, damp pitch at Guwahati, everyone expected the batsmen to be a little circumspect initially. Certainly not Sehwag, who had not scored even a half century in the series. His early dismissal set the tone for the day. In fact, the lack of cricketing intelligence was evident in the way certain players approached their job. In Hyderabad, Nehra was caught trying to clear the deep when he should have just taken a single. Unwilling to learn a lesson, he again tried a similar stupid shot in Guwahati. With Praveen Kumar batting beautifully at the other hand, India might have ended with another crucial 15 runs. But it was not to be. Kumar himself was guilty in Hyderabad when a dive could have saved his wicket — and probably won India the game later.

5. Lack of grit: Unlike the Aussies, we displayed a lack of grit. Take a player like Cameron White. In Vadodara and Nagpur, he wasn’t at his best. But he stuck it out and ended up scoring 51 off 68 balls and 23 off 42. He was more confident at Mohali hitting 62 off 71. But nobody really expected him to play the belter as he did in Hyderabad smashing 57 off 33. The point is, he played as per the needs of the situation and never ever threw his wicket away. Can you say the same about Sehwag, Yuvraj and Raina?

6. The Aussies are a superior team: The Aussies are superior not because they are more talented but because they are more committed. The Aussies did not have players with a clutch of world records under their belts but they had plenty of match-winners and honest triers. Everyone gave their 110%. They have players who are hungry to perform. Which is why players like Bollinger grab the first chance that comes their way because they know the next might never come. Who would have thought that an unknown player like Clint McKay would come up trumps in the key moments of the Hyderabad match getting the better of Tendulkar? The series is a tribute to Oz bench strength.

7. One-trick ponies: India are filled with players who are good at either batting or bowling but are either average or below average as fielders. We don’t have a Ponting, a Hussey, who are both great fielders as well as great batsmen. To create a great ODI unit, you need at least seven players who are very good in at least two departments. How many such players do we have? Sehwag, Tendulkar, Gambhir and Yuvraj are all very good batsmen but they are all average fielders now. Sehwag and Tendulkar hardly bowl anymore. When they fail as batsmen they have no other way of compensating. It was a totally different story earlier when Tendulkar contributed significantly with the ball. So did Sehwag. Raina is a very good fielder but certainly not a great batsmen. As for our bowlers, each of them is either an average or a poor fielder. And Nehra’s batting – refer to his dismissals in Hyderabad and Guwahati – gives the impression that he is doing someone else’s job.

The point I am trying to make is, we don’t have classy, all-round players. Which is why though we look strong on paper, we are actually far less effective.

We need more cricketers like MS Dhoni. He may not have the batting talent of Sehwag or Tendulkar but he certainly plays to the need of the situation and invariably overachieves. India would have had a better chance at Guwahati, if umpire Tarapore had not blundered in giving him out leg before. Despite the series loss, I repeat, he should be made India’s ODI captain till the 2011 World Cup. The selectors need to give him more powers to create the team we need for the grand event.

8. One last point: What did we gain from this series? A lot. India have been lacking in bowling allrounders for a long time. Praveen Kumar and Ravindra Jadeja can go some way in filling that gap. Both can bowl 10 overs. If they start contributing with the bat regularly, India will be well served.

CHENNAI: The cyber crime police on Saturday arrested Will Heum (56), a Dutch national living in Chennai, for uploading child pornographic materials on the internet. Police recovered his personal computer and pornographic
materials from his house.

Heum is already facing a case in a Chengalpattu court for sexually abusing children of Little Home, an orphanage he had opened near Mamallapuram. He was arrested in May 2002. Out on bail and living in a rented house in Choolaimedu, he was uploading pictures of children being sexually abused, police said.

This is the first case of child pornography to be registered in the country under the IT Act, which came into force on October 27. Heum was booked under Section 67-B of the IT Act, 2008, which deals with digital child pornography, and remanded in judicial custody after being produced before the XI metropolitan magistrate court in Saidapet. The IT Act spells out a maximum punishment of seven years’ imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10 lakh.

It was a tip-off from the Child Exploitation Online Protection Centre in Germany through Interpol that led to the arrest of Heum, who has done bit roles in Tamil movies.

Initial inquiries revealed that he had uploaded video clips of foreign children. “We are interrogating him about the source of these clips. We have to verify the seized computer accessories to check if he had uploaded clips of Indian children too,” a police officer said.

“It was an example of good co-ordination between the city police and the international agencies. Cyber crime has no geographical barriers,” central crime branch DCP C Sridhar told TOI. The seized computer and accessories will be scanned for data at the new cyber lab attached to the city police commissioner’s office.

Heum was arrested in 2002 after a boy complained that he had been sexually abused. Heum came to India 30 years ago for “social work” after his wife’s death. He stayed in Mamallapuram, where he befriended several children and started an orphanage.

Today the prosecution brought a few anti-piracy watchdogs to the stand who had “investigated” the Pirate Bay by downloading music, movies and games from the site. And then they reduced their evidence to shreds.

• The court heard from Magnus Mårtensson, a lawyer for the IFPI, and policeman Magnus Nilsson of the Swedish Anti-Piracy Office, who both described how they gathered evidence against the Pirate Bay by downloading torrents.

• In a continuing theme, neither of them seemed to grasp at all how BitTorrent works: all they could produce as evidence were screenshots of their torrents downloading, which the defense has already proven to be shaky if not entirely useless as evidence in court, as they don’t provide any actual information as to where the data is coming from on the network, and if the Pirate Bay’s trackers were being used.

• Whoopsies!

Gottfrid (defense): Before taking the screenshot, did you turn off DHT and Peer Exchange?

Mårtensson: DHT was obviously on. I wanted to be like an average user.

Gottfrid: So in other words, you can’t check if the tracker was used?

Mårtensson: The tracker address was visible on the screen. From that I assumed it was used in some way.

Gottfrid: But since you had DHT on, you have no possibility to state to the court as to whether The Pirate Bay’s tracker was actually used or not?

Mårtensson: No

.

• After these two witnesses, the court decided to adjourn for the day after only two hours of work. Gotta love those Swedes.

I like the precedent this is setting: If you’re going to take on the Torrent sites, you better have the tech skillz to fight the geeks. [TorrentFreak]

This table lists different countries around the world, and shows the ages at which people of different sexualities can legally have sex.

If you’re an adult, and you’re reading this page for personal information, then you might need a more detailed explanation of these laws as they relate to adults – you can find this on our age of consent FAQ page.

If you’re a young person, and you want to find out more, read our page on teens, sex and the law. You might also like to have a look at our “Am I ready for sex?” page.

This table should only be used as general guide – please also read the notes at the bottom of this page.
Country Male-Female Sex Male-Male Sex Female-Female Sex
Afghanistan 18/Married Illegal Illegal
Albania 14 14 14
Algeria 16 Illegal Illegal
American Samoa 15? 15? 15?
Andorra 16 16 16
Angola 12/15 Illegal Illegal
Antigua and Barbuda 16 16 16
Argentina 13/16 13/16 13/16
Armenia 16 16 16
Aruba 16 16 16
Australia ACT 16 16 16
Australia NSW & Norfolk Is. 16 16 16
Australia NT 16 16 16
Australia Queensland1 16/18 18 16
Australia SA 17 17 17
Australia Tasmania 17 17 17
Australia Victoria 16 16 16
Australia WA 16 16 16
Austria2 14/16 14/16 14/16
Azerbaijan 16 16 16
Bahamas 16 18 18
Bahrain 16/Married
Illegal Illegal
Bangladesh ? Illegal Illegal
Barbados 16 Illegal Illegal
Belarus 16/18 16 16
Belgium 16 16 16
Belize 16 ? ?
Bermuda 16 18 16
Benin ? Illegal Illegal
Bhutan 18 Illegal ?
Bolivia 14f/16m ? ?
Bosnia 16 16 16
Botswana 16f/14m Illegal ?
Brazil3 14/18 14/18 14/18
Brunei 14/16 Illegal Illegal
Bulgaria 14 14 14
Burkina Faso 13 13 13
Burma/Myanmar ? Illegal ?
Burundi 18 Illegal ?
Cambodia (Kampuchea) 16 ? ?
Cambodia 16 ? ?
Cameroon Must be married
Illegal ?
Canada4 16/18 18 16
Cape Verde ? ? ?
Cayman Islands ? ? ?
Central African Republic ? ? ?
Chad ? 21 21
Chechenya ? ? ?
Chile 14 18 18
China 14 14 14
China – Hong Kong 16 16 16
China – Macao 16/17 ? ?
Chinese Taipei (Taiwan)
16 16 16
Colombia 14 14 14
Cook Islands 16 Illegal 16
Costa Rica 15 15 15
Cote D’Ivoire 15 15? 15?
Croatia 14 14 14
Cuba 16 16 16
Cyprus 13/17 17 (Illegal in north) 17
Czech Republic 15 15 15
Democratic Republic of the Congo ? Illegal ?
Denmark 15 15 15
Dominica 16 ? ?
Dominican Republic 18 18 18
Dutch Antilles 16 16 16
Ecuador 14 14 14
Egypt 18 Illegal 18
El Salvador 18 ? ?
Equatorial Guinea ? ? ?
Eritrea 18 Illegal Illegal
Estonia 14 14 14
Ethiopia 15 Illegal Illegal
Falkland Islands (Malvinas) 16 16 16
Faroe Islands 15 15 15
Fiji 16 16 (unofficial) 16
Finland5 16 16 16
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 16 16 16
France 15 15 15
French Guiana 15 15 15
French Polynesia (Tahiti) 16 16 16
Gabon 18 18 18
Gambia 16 Illegal ?
Georgia (country) 16 16 16
Germany6 14/16 14/16 14/16
Ghana 16 Illegal Illegal
Greece 15 15/17 15
Greenland ? ? ?
Grenada 17 Illegal 17
Guam 16 16 16
Guadelope 15 15 15
Guatemala 18 18 18
Guinea 15 Illegal Illegal
Guyana 16 Illegal 16
Haiti 18 18 18
Honduras 14/17 14 14
Hungary 14 14 14
Iceland 15 15 15
India7 14/16 Illegal Illegal
Indonesia 16f/19m 18 18
Iran Must be married Illegal Illegal
Iraq 18 ? ?
Ireland 17 17 17
Israel 14-16 14-16 14-16
Italy 14 14 14
Jamaica 16 Illegal 16
Japan8 13-18 13-18 13-18
Jordan 16 16 16
Kazakhstan 18 ? ?
Kenya 18 Illegal 18
Kuwait Must be married? Illegal Illegal
Kyrgyzstan ? ? ?
Laos 15 ? ?
Latvia 14/16 14/16 14/16
Lebanon 15/18/Married Illegal Illegal
Lesotho ? ? ?
Liberia 16 Illegal Illegal
Liechtenstein 14 14 14
Lithuania 14 14 14
Luxembourg 16 16 16
Madagascar 21? 21 21
Mali 16 ? ?
Malta 18 18 18
Malaysia 16/Married Illegal 16
Marshall Islands 16 16 16
Martinique 15 15 15
Mauritius 15 Illegal Illegal
Mexico9 12-18 12-18 12-18
Moldova 14 14 14
Monaco 15 15 15
Mongolia 16 ? ?
Montenegro 14 14 14
Morocco 15 Illegal Illegal
Mozambique ? Illegal ?
Namibia 16 Illegal 16
Nepal 16 ? ?
Netherlands 16 16 16
Netherlands Antilles 16 16 16
New Caledonia 16 16 16
New Zealand 16 16 16
Nicaragua ? ? ?
Niger ? 21 21
Nigeria 13 Illegal Illegal
North Korea Undefined Undefined Undefined
Norway5 16 16 16
Oman Must be married Illegal Illegal
Pakistan Must be married Illegal Illegal
Panama 18 Illegal (not enforced)
?
Papua New Guinea10 16f/14m/Illegal Illegal 16
Paraquay11 14/16 16 16
Peru 14 14 14
Philippines12 12/18 12/18 12/18
Poland 15 15 15
Portugal13 14/16 14/16 14/16
Puerto Rico 14 14 14
Qatar Must be married Illegal Illegal
Reunion 16 16 16
Romania 15 15 15
Russia 16 16 16
Rwanda 18 18 18
San Marino 14/16 14/16 14/16
Saudi Arabia Must be married Illegal Illegal
Senegal ? Illegal Illegal
Serbia 14 14 14
Singapore 16 Illegal 16
Slovakia 15 15 15
Slovenia 15 15 15
Somalia ? Illegal Illegal
South Africa 16 16 16
South Korea 13 13 13
Spain 13 13 13
Sri Lanka 16 Illegal 16
St. Kitts and Nevis 14/16 ? ?
St. Martin ? ? ?
Sudan Must be married Illegal Illegal
Suriname 16 18 18
Sweden 15 15 15
Swaziland 18 Illegal Illegal
Switzerland 16 16 16
Syria 13/15 Illegal Illegal
Tajikistan 17 ? 17
Tanzania 18 Illegal Illegal
Thailand14 15/18 15/18 15/18
Togo 14 Illegal Illegal
Tonga15 16/Illegal Illegal 16
Trinidad & Tobago 16 Illegal Illegal
Tunisia 20 Illegal Illegal
Turkey 18 18 18
Turkmenistan 16 Illegal 16
Tuvalu ? Illegal ?
Uganda 18 Illegal 18
Ukraine 16 16 16
United Arab Emirates 18/Married Illegal Illegal
Uzbekistan 16 Illegal 16
Uruguay 15 15 15
Vanuatu 15 18 18
Venezuela 16 16 16
Vietnam 18 18 18
Western Samoa 16 Illegal Illegal
Yemen Must be married Illegal Illegal
Zambia ? Illegal ?
Zimbabwe 12/16 Illegal 12/16
United Kingdom England, Scotland, Wales Jersey, Isle of Man 16 16 16
United Kingdom Northern Ireland 17 17 17
United Kingdom Guernsey and Gibraltar 16 18 16
USA Alabama 16 16 16
USA Alaska 16 16 16
USA Arizona 18 18
18
USA Arkansas16 14/16 14/16 14/16
USA California 18 18 18
USA Colorado16 15/17 15/17 15/17
USA Connecticut 16 16 16
USA D.C. 16 16 16
USA Delaware16 16/18 16/18 16/18
USA Florida16 16/18 16/18 16/18
USA Georgia 16 16 16
USA Hawaii 16 16 16
USA Idaho 18 18 18
USA Illinois 17 17 17
USA Indiana16 14/16 14/16 14/16
USA Iowa16 14/16 14/16 14/16
USA Kansas 16 16 16
USA Kentucky 16 16 16
USA Louisiana16 17 17 17
USA Maine 16 16 16
USA Maryland 16 16 16
USA Massachusetts 16 16 16
USA Michigan 16 16 16
USA Minnesota 16 16 16
USA Mississippi 16 16 16
USA Missouri 17 17 17
USA Montana 16 16 16
USA Nebraska 17 17 17
USA Nevada 16 16 16
USA New Hampshire 16 16 16
USA New Jersey 16 16 16
USA New Mexico 17 17 17
USA New York16 15/17 15/17 15/17
USA North Carolina16 16 16 16
USA North Dakota 18 18 18
USA Ohio 16 16 16
USA Oklahoma 16 16 16
USA Oregon 18 18 18
USA Pennsylvania 16 16 16
USA Rhode Island 16 16 16
USA South Carolina 16 16 16
USA South Dakota 16 16 16
USA Tennessee 18 18 18
USA Texas16 17 17 17
USA Utah16 16/18 16/18 16/18
USA Vermont 16 16 16
USA Virginia 18 18 18
USA Washington16 16/18 16/18 16/18
USA West Virginia 16 16 16
USA Wisconsin 18 18 18
USA Wyoming 16 16 16
USA Traveling citizens17 12/16 12/16 12/16
USA Military personnel18 16 Illegal Illegal
Average age* 16 16 16
General notes

If more than one age is given then the law within that country or state varies according to region or circumstances. In particular, some countries have regional laws that may overrule the federal law. Also in some cases the age of consent is lower when partners are of a similar age. Where the symbol ? is used, information is either incomplete or unavailable.

In some countries the age of consent is higher for those taking part in commercial sex. In many countries the age of consent is higher when one partner is in a position of trust with regard to the other, or when one partner takes advantage of the other’s immaturity. Age of consent laws often do not apply when the partners are married.

In this table, male-female sex is defined as vaginal or anal sex, and male-male sex is defined as anal sex. Other sexual activities may be legal at a lower age.

* The average age of consent does not include countries where it is illegal.
Footnotes

1. In Queensland, the legal age of consent for anal intercourse is 18 (regardless of gender), while for vaginal intercourse it is 16.
2. Although the Austrian age of consent is basically 14, it is illegal to have sex with someone under 16 by “exploiting their lack of maturity”.
3. In Brazil, authorities may not choose to prosecute if the younger partner is aged 14 to 17 and does not lodge a complaint.
4. In Canada, unmarried persons under 18 cannot legally consent to anal sex according to national law, although provincial laws may vary.
5. In Finland, sex with someone under 16 is not deemed sexual abuse of a child if “there is no great difference in the ages or the mental and physical maturity of the persons involved.” Similarly in Norway, a prison sentence may not be imposed “if those who have committed the act of indecency are about equal in age and development.” In both countries, lesser punishments may nevertheless be imposed.
6. In Germany, sexual intercourse is legal from the age of 14 in most cases. An exception is when the older partner is aged over 18 and is “exploiting a coercive situation” or offering compensation, in which case the younger partner must be over 16. In addition, it is illegal for someone aged over 21 to have sex with someone under 16 if they “exploit the victim’s lack of capacity for sexual self-determination”.
7. India’s age of consent for heterosexual sex is 16 except in Manipur, where it is 14. If the partners are married then a lower age of consent applies (13 in Manipur and 15 elsewhere). A law banning “carnal intercourse against the order of nature” may be used to prosecute people for having anal or oral sex, though prosecutions are rare.
8. Although the age of sexual consent in Japan is 13 years of age, prefecture law usually overrides federal law, raising the age up to 18.
9. In Mexico the federal law varies according to the age gap between partners and is often overruled by regional laws.
10. In Papua New Guinea, anal sex is illegal in all cases. The age of consent for vaginal sex is 16 for females and 14 for males.
11. Paraguay sets the age of consent at 14 within marriage and 16 outside of marriage.
12. The age of sexual consent in the Philippines is 12 for all, but contacts with minors (under 18) are an offence if the minor consents to the act for money, gain or any other remuneration or as the result of an influence of any adult person.
13. In Portugal it is illegal to perform a sexual act with a minor between 14 and 16 years old “by taking advantage of their inexperience”.
14. Although Thailand’s age of consent is usually said to be 15, the laws can be interpreted to allow prosecution for sex with someone under 18.
15. Anal sex is illegal in Tonga regardless of age and gender.
16. In some U.S. states a lower age applies when the age gap between partners is small, or when the older partner is below a certain age (usually 18 or 21).
17. It is illegal for an American citizen or resident to have sex in another country with someone aged under 16, unless the age difference is less than 4 years, in which case the minimum age is 12.
18. Under some circumstances it is possible for members of the U.S. military to also be charged under state laws.

Disclaimer

We rely on the help of our readers to keep this table as accurate and up-to-date as possible. If you know that the age of consent in your country differs from that given above, and if you can supply good references to prove it, then please contact us. Please note that AVERT will not answer personal enquiries about age of consent.

This page is intended for educational purposes only and should not be used to inform personal decisions. If you are in any doubt about the age of consent law in your region then please seek expert legal advice.

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