ACROSS
1 - Dance after quiet game (8) - SOFTBALL {SOFT}{BALL}
5 - Hack holding page showing prominent headline (6) - SPLASH {S{P}LASH}
9 - One local person, about 100, is resting (8) - INACTIVE {I}{NA{C}TIVE}
10 - Briefly express American position (6) - STATUS {STATe}{US}
12 - Flower standing in row, cut (5) - LUPIN {L{UP}INe}
13 - Repulsive, smooth ale if off (9) - LOATHSOME*
14 - Film barrister attending meeting (5,9) - BRIEF ENCOUNTER {BRIEF] {ENCOUNTER}
17 - Money available for use by company run in Surrey town and London, perhaps (7,7) - WORKING CAPITAL {WO{R}KING} {CAPITAL}
21 - In New Zealand, adult inhaling pipe gets a respiratory ailment (9) - INFLUENZA {IN}{FLUE}{NZ}{A}
22 - Consider carefully course announced (5) - WEIGH (~way)
23 - Got the shakes in deprived area (6) - GHETTO*
24 - Sheriff's officer upset employees (8) - TIPSTAFF {TIP}{STAFF}
25 - President's first to speak in golf club (6) - PUTTER {P}{UTTER}
26 - Popular batting order (2,6) - IN DEMAND {IN} {DEMAND}
DOWN
1 - Protect novice in cast (6) - SHIELD {SHIE{L}D}
2 - She was a flighty young thing, and one likely to panic? (7) - FLAPPER [DD]
3 - Staff may make racket, working (5) - BATON {BAT}{ON}
4 - Even scores at cribbage? (5,7) - LEVEL PEGGING [E]
6 - Essential oil, oil university refined under cover (9) - PATCHOULI {PATCH}{O{U}LI*}
7 - Performs in a play abroad attached to different cast (4,3) - ACTS OUT {ACTS*} {OUT}
8 - Inn shortly to be refurbished to accommodate engineers, initially (8) - HOSTELRY {HOST{E}LRY*}
11 - Support an outsider, reportedly a drunken reveller (12) - BACCHANALIAN (~back an alien)
15 - Protocol quite absurd - letter required to dismiss banks (9) - ETIQUETTE {ETIQUE*}{lETTEr}
16 - Admitting having spell of prosperity (6,2) - OWNING UP {OWNING} {UP}
18 - Display mirror (7) - REFLECT [DD]
19 - Bail out a bishop, a hero of pantomime (3,4) - ALI BABA {ALI B*}{A}{B}{A}
20 - Irritated husband in snack bar close to Anfield (6) - CHAFED {C{H}AFE}{D}
22 - Refuse to kill (5) - WASTE [DD]
1 - Dance after quiet game (8) - SOFTBALL {SOFT}{BALL}
5 - Hack holding page showing prominent headline (6) - SPLASH {S{P}LASH}
9 - One local person, about 100, is resting (8) - INACTIVE {I}{NA{C}TIVE}
10 - Briefly express American position (6) - STATUS {STAT
12 - Flower standing in row, cut (5) - LUPIN {L{UP}IN
13 - Repulsive, smooth ale if off (9) - LOATHSOME*
14 - Film barrister attending meeting (5,9) - BRIEF ENCOUNTER {BRIEF] {ENCOUNTER}
17 - Money available for use by company run in Surrey town and London, perhaps (7,7) - WORKING CAPITAL {WO{R}KING} {CAPITAL}
21 - In New Zealand, adult inhaling pipe gets a respiratory ailment (9) - INFLUENZA {IN}{FLUE}{NZ}{A}
22 - Consider carefully course announced (5) - WEIGH (~way)
23 - Got the shakes in deprived area (6) - GHETTO*
24 - Sheriff's officer upset employees (8) - TIPSTAFF {TIP}{STAFF}
26 - Popular batting order (2,6) - IN DEMAND {IN} {DEMAND}
DOWN
1 - Protect novice in cast (6) - SHIELD {SHIE{L}D}
2 - She was a flighty young thing, and one likely to panic? (7) - FLAPPER [DD]
3 - Staff may make racket, working (5) - BATON {BAT}{ON}
4 - Even scores at cribbage? (5,7) - LEVEL PEGGING [E]
6 - Essential oil, oil university refined under cover (9) - PATCHOULI {PATCH}{O{U}LI*}
8 - Inn shortly to be refurbished to accommodate engineers, initially (8) - HOSTELRY {HOST{E}LRY*}
11 - Support an outsider, reportedly a drunken reveller (12) - BACCHANALIAN (~back an alien)
15 - Protocol quite absurd - letter required to dismiss banks (9) - ETIQUETTE {ETIQUE*}{
16 - Admitting having spell of prosperity (6,2) - OWNING UP {OWNING} {UP}
18 - Display mirror (7) - REFLECT [DD]
19 - Bail out a bishop, a hero of pantomime (3,4) - ALI BABA {ALI B*}{A}{B}{A}
20 - Irritated husband in snack bar close to Anfield (6) - CHAFED {C{H}AFE}{D}
22 - Refuse to kill (5) - WASTE [DD]
OT: When I opened the Magazine section of the Sunday Express (Sunday edition of New Indian Express), I was surprised to find an overly large US-style crossword grid with 'open' spaces. I wondered how I missed seeing this earlier and so took the trouble of taking out earlier issues of the paper from the binned pile. They carried only the earlier version of the crossword. So from this week SNIE has launched a new crossword - but as is the case with most newspapers where the crossword is not given proper editorial attention, the serial number is 003 - where went the first two? Ask the subeditor (no use asking the editors-in-chief (who are only responsible for news selection under the PRB Act).
ReplyDeleteMy paperwallah has given me the SNIE today instead of the Hindu so I also happened to see it. I think this is from the NY Times, same as the one that appears in the TOI
DeleteTOI weekdays appears to be NYT, but Sundays, they have a good cryptic.
DeleteKishore, you're right.
DeleteAs for the SNIE crossword, it's obviously US-style, but I don't think it's NYT or LAT or any other American paper. Possibly it's home-grown.
Thank you CV. One more CW for Sundays!!
ReplyDeleteA doubt about 26A-
How does 'batting' come into the picture?
Popular = Definition = IN DEMAND
Deletebatting = IN (When a batsman is batting, he is 'in')
order = DEMAND
Thank you Col. I read it as "batting order" and got misled. Though it had to be in demand, I could not get the anno. Thank you again.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I too did notice the Sunday NIE crossword to be different and wondered when and where the other earlier two were published. I am disappointed with this as thier double crossword with QUICK and CRYPTIC were quite a job to tackle, though their grid continues to be the same for both, leaving me to take a second copy to do both. Again, they have a standard grid common for all weekends with the same missing block on the top RHS !! Their clues also keep repeating themselves many a times, leaving you wondering whether any Crossword editor is at all looking into them.
ReplyDeleteToday's looked largish and I was gleeful and ready to tackle a larger one but alas, these are not cryptic.
Agree that Crosswords are the most neglected section of all newspapers.What a shame? Can we as bloggers do something to create more awareness?
Did ye all see that article in the Deccan Chronicle)today's Magazine section)of someone creating personalized crosswords for gifts amongst friends? Creativity being taken to another level? Jugaadi Indians.
The Times of India Sunday editions are also interesting and over the years they have remained stereo-typed. I reckon, at one time Raju Bharathan in Bombay used to compile them as I knew him but he must have now retired and must be free-lancing for crosswords and hindi film music reviews.