Pak cricketers divided over IPL's invitation to Razzaq

Lahore, Jan.29 (ANI): While mystery still surrounds all-rounder Abdul Razzaq's participation in the Indian Premier League's (IPL) third season, former and present Pakistani cricketers are a divided lot over the issue.
While former skippers Ramiz Raja and Aamir Sohail feel that Razzaq should move forward and play in the IPL, batting legend Zaheer Abbas has termed the IPL's offer to Razzaq a 'gimmick'.
Razzaq has reportedly received offers from both the Deccan Chargers and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).
"This is just a formality. They wanted to show the world that they have picked a Pakistan player. They have chosen a player whose place is not guaranteed even in the national team. They could have chosen a deserving player. Anyways I don't believe in any such proposal until IPL issues a statement," Abbas said.
However, former opener Aamir Sohail said the offer was a step forward in dousing the fire.
"It was sad the way our cricketers were excluded. But in the same way it is nice to know that Razzaq has been offered a contract. It's a beginning as you have to start from somewhere," The Daily Times quoted Sohail, as saying.
Leg-spinner Danish Kaneria said it is upto Razzaq to decide whether he wants to participate in the cash-rich T20 league or not.
"It's now up to Razzaq to decide now. We are deeply hurt whatever happened during the auction. We did not expect this from India," Kaneria said. (ANI)

Man to be charged for court invasion at Australia Open

Published>Fri, Jan 29 10 11:10 AM
A man who invaded Rod Laver Arena's court at the end of the Australian Open semi-final between Briton Andy Murray and Marin Cilic on Thursday night will face police charges.
A man wearing a shirt emblazoned with Croatian colours invaded the court just after the players finished their match and approached Croat Cilic as he was preparing to shake the chair umpire's hand.
After shaking Cilic's hand, the man was intercepted and escorted off court.
Cilic later played down the incident, but the embarrassing security breach has thrown the spotlight on security at the Australian grand slam.
The man, 22, from Melbourne, would be "charged on summons with disrupting proceedings and unauthorised entry to an arena," a police spokesman said in a statement on Friday.
Tournament organisers would not provide immediate comment.
Players still remain vulnerable to crowd invasions despite pledges by tournament organisers to bolster security after Monica Seles was stabbed in the back by a Steffi Graf fan in a Hamburg tournament in 1993.
A man was charged after he invaded the court at Arthur Ashe stadium at the U.S. Open last year to kiss Spain's Rafa Nadal on the cheek.
World number one Roger Federer was unnerved when a spectator jumped from the stands and tried to put a hat on his head during the final of the French Open

Govt steps in to advise IPL authorities on Pak fiasco

New Delhi, Jan. 27 -- The government on Wednesday moved in to put a lid on the IPL controversy involving Pakistani players, with Sports Minister, MS Gill, advising the IPL authorities to take a lesson from the "fiasco". "I have seen the graceful response of some Pakistani cricketers to the IPL auction fiasco. I welcome the remarks and hope there will soon be an opportunity for these boys to play exciting cricket in India," Gill said. "I trust that the IPL corporate owners have also taken a small lesson from it. Everyone must realise that sport is the bedrock of people-to-people contact, which we need to promote with our neighbours," the Sports Minister said. Meanwhile, an official in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said, "No one in the government wanted such a situation. "It's like fire-fighting now. We had fast-tracked the visa process and issued them multi-entry visas in December and January so that they could take part in the tournament," said another government official. Earlier, Home Minister P Chidambaram had said that the franchisees had done a "disservice" to the game by ignoring the Pakistani players. Chidambaram had said the cricket lovers were disappointed by the franchisees' behaviour and felt the controversy was avoidable.

Vancouver weather always a wildcard

The Canadian government will spend C$13.4 million ($12.8 million) to track one of the "world's most complex weather systems" but trying to predict what Mother Nature might do during the Vancouver Winter Olympics is a roll of the dice.
"We can train, we can install the equipment, but the weather always has the last word in what happens," David Jones, Environment Canada meteorologist, told reporters on Thursday during a briefing on preperations for the Games.
"We're subject to extreme events, we're subject to new types of weather systems we have not seen before, so we're going to try to do the best job we can to forecast the weather but it is always a challenge in this type of environment."
The hottest January on record in Vancouver has made the Winter Games' weather the hot topic in the build-up to the Feb. 12 opening ceremonies -- the first to be held indoors because of Vancouver's notoriously wet climate.
Already the warmest city to host a Winter Games, Vancouver has felt more like a city getting ready to stage a Summer Olympics as record-smashing temperatures and relentless rain eat away at precious snow.
The major trouble spot for organisers is the Cypress Mountain venue, located just north of Vancouver, where more than 100 people are working around the clock to prepare the site for the snowboarding and freestyle skiing competitions.
Cypress has always been seen as a potential headache for the Olympics. Fog and rain disrupted a World Cup freestyle skiing event there in 2008 and the World Cup snowboarding parallel giant slalom race had to be cancelled last year.
EVIDENCE BEFORE YOUR EYES
From Environment Canada's Storm Prediction Centre on the 18th floor of a downtown Vancouver office tower you do not need the millions of dollars of state-of-art equipment to see the problems plaguing Cypress Mountain.
Looking out across Burrard Inlet at the mountains, forecasters can see the receding snow on Cypress and watch helicopters ferry bales of hay up the mountain to help build a base for the skiing and snowboarding courses.
"They have been told they are in tough spot since the beginning of the month given the forecast," said Jones. "At Cypress Bowl it has been shockingly warm ... temperatures have exceeded the freezing point every single day this month.
"We're on track to set a record for the warmest January on record in Vancouver and the records go back to 1937.
"The mean temperatures for the month looks like it is going to end up at around 7 degrees Celsius.
"We are more-or-less shattering the record."
While Vancouver organisers have remained cool in the face or rising temperatures alarm bells have started to sound with forecasters saying there is no relief in sight.
BLAME EL NINO
An El Nino, a periodic warming of the tropical Pacific Ocean that affects global weather patterns and occurs only once every two to seven years, is creating havoc with Vancouver weather and is expected to remain in the area through the Spring, pushing temperatures even higher.
El Nino's impact can be seen in the mountains and on Vancouver streets where sidewalk cafes are doing brisk business, convertibles cruise by with their tops down and joggers have swapped sweatpants for shorts.
"It looks like it is going to be more of the same old story," said Jones. "Latest update on the El Nino is basically it's here and it's sticking around.
"But there is more than just El Nino going on here.
"We've had the double whammy of bad luck for 2010. We've had the affect of El Nino plus the bad luck of that natural variability swinging towards the warm end that has set us on record territory for January."

FEATURE - Hockey is more than a game to Canadians

Published>Fri, Jan 29 10 07:49 AM

Canada's ambitious goal is to top the medals table at the Vancouver Winter Olympics but it will be a hollow achievement to much of the Great White North unless the men's ice hockey gold is among the final tally.

Hockey's place in Canadian culture is closer to religion than a simple sporting pastime, a unifying force in a country of 33 million people that is often split by politics and language.

The sport is part of the national identity, a rite of passage between fathers and sons and more recently mothers and daughters as the game has evolved beyond its traditional gender boundaries.

Generations of Canadians grew up listening to Hockey Night In Canada on the radio and decades later the Saturday night tradition continues intact on high-definition television.

Canada hopes to win its first gold medal at a home Olympics this time, after failing at the 1976 Montreal Summer Games and the Calgary Winter Games in 1988. To hockey fans, the only really important thing is the men's gold which will be decided on the final day, Feb. 28.

To the International Olympic Committee (IOC) the sport is classified as "ice hockey". In Canada, which regards itself as the birthplace of the game, it is simply referred to as "hockey", and anyone describing it any other way risks a disdainful look or a puck in the head.

LUCKY LOONIE

A scene of children playing pond hockey can be found on the Canadian $5 bill while a lucky Loonie (Canadian dollar coin) secretly buried under the ice at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, where Canada ended a 50-year gold-medal drought, is now a national treasure housed in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Many of the country's great novelists have pondered hockey's role in Canadian society, Morley Callaghan calling it, "our own national drama," while Bruce Kidd and John Macfarlane described it as "the dance of life, an affirmation that despite the deathly chill of winter we are alive".

From Newfoundland to Vancouver Island hockey touches the lives of Canadians young and old. Children are introduced to the game at an early age, some learning to skate and hold a stick as soon as they can walk, while some people go to their graves wearing team jerseys.

Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper is a hockey historian currently writing a book on the early days of professional hockey and children grow up following the adventures of the Screech Owls, a fictional peewee hockey team as it competes around the world solving murders and mysteries, including the theft of the Stanley Cup.

Hockey is a contradiction of graceful skill and brutal violence that runs counter to Canadians' modest, polite image, and novelist Hugh MacLennan theorised that the sport gave Canadians the same release that "strong liquor gives a repressed man".

"Hockey means everything and it means way too much at the same time," Roy MacGregor, one of Canada's most respected hockey writers and author of several defining books on the sport, along with 24 instalments of the Screech Owl series, told Reuters.

"It is something Canadians have seized upon that we like to think is the image the world has of us, as some industrious team...cooperative, strong, resilient, victorious, magnificent and most of all humble victors in hockey.

"It's the image we have of ourselves and what we wish the world would see when they look upon boring old Canada. The only time I have seen Canadians absolutely swagger is when they are winning at hockey."

NATIONAL DEPRESSION

Such is the grip hockey holds on Canadians that failure to win gold in Vancouver could plunge the country into a national depression much like in 1998 when professional players were first allowed to compete at the Olympics and a team led by "The Great One" Wayne Gretzky failed to return home with a medal.

The failure in Nagano reverberated across the entire country, with the reasons debated in local bars and the House of Commons resulting in a landmark Hockey Summit that dissected every aspect of the game from the grassroots to the NHL.

It is that unbridled passion and crushing pressure that will form the backdrop to a competition for the 23 young men hand-picked to carry Canada's immense hopes into what is already being described as the greatest hockey tournament of all time.

"Pressure, there is pressure if you are competing in an under-17 tournament, there is pressure at the Spengler Cup or the world juniors, there is pressure every time any team puts on the Maple Leaf because the goal is always the same -- win gold," Johnny Misley, Hockey Canada executive vice-president told Reuters.

"Canadians expect to win gold, they demand gold and anyone representing Canada grows up knowing that. Canadians feel pride and accomplishment through hockey.

"One thing that unifies our country is hockey. The pressure to succeed is not just on 23 men and women...it is on 33 million Canadians."

Source: Web Search

Last-gasp Inter leave Juve's Ferrara on brink

Published Fri, Jan 29 10 07:29 AM

Mario Balotelli scored a minute from time to give Inter Milan a 2-1 win over beleaguered Juventus in their Italian Cup quarter-final on Thursday, leaving Juve coach Ciro Ferrara on the brink of the sack.

Juve's elimination followed five defeats in six Serie A matches and December's exit from the Champions League group stage.

Media reports have said a caretaker could now be appointed until the end of the season with ex-Juve defender and Italy under-21 coach Claudio Gentile among the favourites.

"I have received no communication so tomorrow it's training," a dignified Ferrara told Rai television.

His team's woeful run continued despite taking a 10th-minute lead when Inter reserve goalkeeper Francesco Toldo let a Diego shot through his body.

Hosts Inter deservedly equalised when Lucio prodded in Wesley Sneijder's deflected free kick midway through the second half and forward Balotelli sealed victory after Gianluigi Buffon could only parry Thiago Motta's shot.

Juve fans were banned from the San Siro for their racist chants against Balotelli in recent months.

Giorgio Chiellini did hit the post for Juve while they were leading but Inter had more chances and were furious not to be awarded a penalty when Felipe Melo handled Thiago Motta's flick just before the break.

"We didn't ask for a penalty, football did," said Inter coach Jose Mourinho, already angry with the refereeing in Sunday's 2-0 win over AC Milan when he had two men sent off.

"It's best to forget what happened at the end of the first half because if we don't, I don't know what to do."

Mourinho, who said his side clearly deserved to win, had sympathy for Ferrara given media reports have linked a host of coaches to his job including Guus Hiddink and Rafael Benitez.

"He deserves respect. Talk about replacements after he is sacked but not before," said the Portuguese.

The Italian champions will meet Fiorentina in next month's two-legged semi-finals with the other tie between AS Roma and Udinese, who beat Milan 1-0 away in Wednesday's quarter-final.

Source: Web Search

Barry Larkin to visit Taiwan

Published Fri, Jan 29 10 07:23 AM

Washington, Jan 29 (PTI) America''s Major League Baseball All-Star and Hall of Fame nominee Barry Larkin will visit Taiwan as a Sports Envoy of the US State Department in the first week of next month. Former Montreal Expo pitcher Joe Logan will join Larkin for their second Sports Envoy programme for the SportsUnited Office of the Department''s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the State Department said in a statement. During the six-day trip from February 1, Larkin and Logan will visit Taipei-Hsien and Kaohsiung. "The Envoys will conduct six baseball clinics, visit an orphanage and a school for at-risk youth and attend an exhibition baseball game between two Taipei high schools," the statement said. They will also interact with youths from Taiwan who visited the US in September 2009 on a Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs SportsUnited programme, the State Department said.

Source: Web Search

Egypt to meet Ghana in final

Published>Fri, Jan 29 10 07:10 AM

Egypt and Ghana have advanced to the African Nations Cup final, maintaining their records as the tournament's most successful teams.

They will both play in a final for an eighth time when they meet in Luanda on Sunday after Ghana edged out Nigeria 1-0 and Egypt thumped Algeria 4-0 in the semi-finals.

Egypt, who remain on course for a record-breaking third successive title, will be heavily fancied against the injury-hit Ghanaian team, who overcame the absence of several key players to book their first final in 18 years.

Egypt had been eliminated from World Cup qualification by Algeria but extracted a measure of revenge with the victory in a game that saw three Algerian players sent off.

Rafik Halliche, Nader Belhadj and goalkeeper Fawzi Chaouchi were red carded while Hosni Abd Rabou (penalty), Mohamed Zidan, Mohamed Abdelshafi and Mohamed Nagui scored for Egypt.

"It's clear the referee spoilt the game. The first red card was for nothing and we were completely deflated by that," Algeria coach Rabah Saadane said.

Ghana turned in a tight defensive performance to beat Nigeria, Asamoah Gyan's 21st minute header the difference between the sides.

Ghana went into the tournament without several key players and then lost captain Michael Essien after he suffered a knee injury in training.

Egypt, who stretched their record-breaking unbeaten run at the Nations Cup to 18 games after Thursday's win, have won six titles while Ghana have won four.

Thursday's losers meet in a play-off match in Benguela on Saturday.

Source: Web Search

Hi-tech arena for netball tournaments

Published>Fri, Jan 29 10 06:39 AM

The structure in blue glass, better known as Thyagaraja Stadium, stands tall in the quiet residential colony behind the Capital's famous INA market.

Designed by Australian firm Peddle Thorp, the stadium, to host netball tournaments, has been made in a rectangular shape. "The building has been designed keeping in mind use for various purposes, any sport or recreational activity, after the Commonwealth Games. We wanted to leave a legacy behind," said project manager Anil Pandit.

Peddle Thorp currently operates from Brisbane, Cairns, Jakarta, Gold Coast and Shanghai. One of its latest designs includes a six-star spa resort being built in middle of ocean, accessible only by water taxis, in Tianjin, China.

Amid space constraints ? the company had merely 16 acres available ? the stadium houses one match court and two warm-up courts.

Interestingly, the 18,122 sq m roof has no single joint. The 'Kalzip roof' ? which has seven layers, each serving a different purpose ? has been built by a Japanese firm.

In Thyagaraja Stadium, the first layer is aluminium profile, which is water and vapour proof. The second layer is of rockwool with man-made mineral fibre and is used for insulation. The third layer is on texon sheet, which is also waterproof. These three sheets are repeated again till the seven layers are neatly piled. The roof is flexible; it sinks under your feet.

Calcium silicate tiles in the stadium, used for the false ceiling, have been made from recycled domestic waste.

The floors have been laid using recycled PVC, which was imported from England. Maple wood, approved by F?d?ration Internationale de Basketball, the international federation of basketball, has been imported from the United States for the sports floor.

To build the structure, fly ash bricks have been used and to reduce heat conductivity, cavities have been created between the walls. Interestingly, all wires and electrical fitting have been adjusted in these cavities only.

FAST FACTSCapacity: 4,500

What's special: One match court, two warm-up courts on 16 acres

Solar power plant to generate 4.5 MW energy

Source: Web Search

No move planned for Vancouver freestyle venue

Published>Fri, Jan 29 10 05:49 AM

There are no plans to relocate the snowboard and freestyle skiing competitions at next month's Vancouver Olympics, despite concerns about insufficient snow at the venue, organizers said on Thursday.

Weather and snow conditions at Cypress Mountain, just north of Vancouver, have become a bit of a public relations problem for organizers as the Feb. 12 start of the Winter Olympics on Canada's Pacific Coast nears.

"We have no intention of moving from that venue," Tim Gayda, the Vancouver Organizing Committee's (VANOC) vice-president for sport, told reporters during a special briefing on the situation at Cypress.

"Things are well at Cypress and we have things in hand," he said.

A crew of some 100 people has been moving snow that was stockpiled at higher, colder elevations, and using straw to help rebuild a snow base that was melted by unseasonably warm weather in mid-January.

Temperatures at the competition area, which also goes by the local name of Cypress Bowl, have not been cold enough to let crews produce large amounts of artificial snow.

Cypress has always been seen as a possible trouble spot for the Vancouver Olympics. Fog and rain disrupted World Cup freestyle skiing there in 2008 and the World Cup snowboarding parallel giant slalom race had to be cancelled last year.

VANOC said part of the problem last year was they had only one day to prepare the course after the snowboard cross event ended, and Cypress is much better prepared now with equipment that allows them to build a backup snow supply.

"We came up with some new plans to make sure that doesn't happen again," said Eric Freemont, VANOC's competition manager at the venue.

No significant natural snowfall is expected between now and the start of the Games. "If we get it, it will just make our jobs all the easier," Gayda said. Vancouver is known for having some of the mildest winter weather in Canada, though its nearby mountains are usually snow-covered.

There probably would have been extra attention paid to Cypress even without the snow concerns. It will be the venue for ski cross, which is making an Olympic debut that organizers hope will draw new, younger fans to the Games.

Lack of snow is not a problem at the alpine and nordic skiing venues at the resort community of Whistler, about 125 km (80 miles) north of Vancouver. The snow base where the alpine skiers will race is 9.88 metres (32.4 feet) deep, VANOC said.

Source: Web Search

American Crane charges into early tie for San Diego lead

Published>Fri, Jan 29 10 05:29 AM

American Ben Crane made the most of ideal scoring conditions on the southern California coastline to surge into a share of the early lead in the San Diego Open first round on Thursday.

With hardly a breath of wind on a glorious sun-drenched day, Crane fired a seven-under-par 65 on the North Course, one of two layouts hosting the fourth PGA Tour event of the year.

Crane recorded eight birdies and a lone bogey to finish level with little-known compatriot Chris Tidland and Japan's Ryuji Imada, who also tackled the North layout.

American Tom Pernice opened with a bogey-free 66 on the North while Australian Robert Allenby, who started out on the more difficult and much longer South Course, was among a group of five bunched on 67.

Tournament favourite and three-times champion Phil Mickelson, who also began on the South, carded a two-under 70.

Crane, a double winner on the PGA Tour, was delighted to tee off in the second group of the morning on the picturesque 6,986-yard North layout.

"Getting off early on the North Course certainly helps," the 33-year-old told reporters. "The greens are in great shape the earlier you play and I was able to make some good putts today.

Source: Web Search

Last-gasp Inter beat struggling Juve in Cup

Published Fri, Jan 29 10 04:09 AM

Mario Balotelli scored a minute from time to give Inter Milan a 2-1 win over beleaguered Juventus in their Italian Cup quarter-final on Thursday.

Juve coach Ciro Ferrara could now face the sack, according to media reports, after his team's woeful run continued despite taking a 10th-minute lead when Inter reserve goalkeeper Francesco Toldo let a Diego shot through his body.

Hosts Inter deservedly equalised when Lucio prodded in Wesley Sneijder's deflected free kick midway through the second half and Balotelli sealed victory after Gianluigi Buffon could only parry Thiago Motta's shot.

The Italian champions will meet Fiorentina in next month's two-legged semi-finals with AS Roma playing Udinese in the other tie.

Source: Web Search

Getafe squeeze past Mallorca into King's Cup semis

Published Fri, Jan 29 10 03:29 AM

Getafe squeezed through to the King's Cup semi-finals on Thursday on away goals after a 2-2 aggregate draw against Real Mallorca.

Getafe were beaten 1-0 in a near-empty Coliseum stadium on Thursday but could not be denied a place in the last four thanks to their 2-1 win in the first leg.

Mallorca striker Aritz Aduriz, who earlier had a penalty saved, put the Balearic Islanders in front with a header in first-half added time.

Defender Ruben Gonzalez fluffed a golden chance to double the visitors' lead five minutes after the break, heading over from close range, and Getafe held on to set up a two-legged semi-final next month against Sevilla.

Sevilla, conquerors of holders Barcelona in the last round, lost their quarter-final second-leg 1-0 at home to Deportivo Coruna on Wednesday but went through 3-1 on aggregate.

The Andalusians beat Getafe 1-0 in the 2007 final and the Madrid-based club lost 3-1 to Valencia in the 2008 final.

Second-division Celta Vigo, the only side left from outside the top flight, host Atletico Madrid in their quarter-final, second-leg later on Thursday (2100 GMT).

Celta are struggling in 17th out of 22 in the second-tier standings but snatched a potentially crucial away goal in a 1-1 draw at the Calderon in last week's first leg.

Source: Web Search

Fans set for up close and personal 3-D experience

Published>Fri, Jan 29 10 02:10 AM

Soccer fans could soon get closer than ever to the action without even leaving their chairs as 3-D TV gets set to revolutionise sports events this year.

Sky and Disney's ESPN will both launch 3D networks in the coming months, with ESPN airing a minimum of 85 sporting events, including 25 World Cup finals matches from South Africa.

Sky will get the ball rolling on Sunday by filming the English Premier League clash between Arsenal and Manchester United in 3-D and broadcasting it to selected pubs across the United Kingdom and Ireland.

It will be the first live 3-D TV sports event broadcast to a public audience anywhere, according to the company part-owned by News International.

Sky 3D will be launched in April before it is later made available to all Sky+HD customers for a wider range of content including documentaries and movies.

Gerry O'Sullivan, Sky's Director of Strategic Product Development, said in a statement: "2010 is the year for 3D TV.

"People have already embraced 3D cinema and because Sky's 3D service uses the same kind of technology, we're confident there will be demand for sport, movies, concerts and drama in 3D."

The move into 3-D broadcasting follows hotly on the success of James Cameron's 3-D movie Avatar, which this week became the highest-grossing movie worldwide partly due to 3-D engagements.

The sci-fi film had racked up a box office total of $1.859 billion on Tuesday.

ESPN will roll out its 3-D network in June beginning with the World Cup soccer match between hosts South Africa and Mexico in Johannesburg.

Separately, Discovery Communications Inc. said it had joined ranks with Sony Corp and IMAX Corp to launch a dedicated 3-D network in the United States beginning in 2011.

The network will feature history, space, adventure shows and children's programmes and reflects a strong trend in the entertainment industry to harness 3-D in the home.

Source: Web Search

Gyan sends Ghana into African Nations Cup final

Published>Fri, Jan 29 10 01:49 AM

A first-half goal by Asamoah Gyan earned Ghana a 1-0 win over Nigeria on Thursday and a place in the African Nations Cup final for the first time in 18 years.

Gyan, who also scored the only goal in the quarter-final win over hosts Angola, headed home in the 21st minute.

Nigeria enjoyed long periods of possession and created the best chances but Ghana held firm.

The Black Stars, who last won the continental tournament in 1982, will meet either holders Egypt or Algeria in Sunday's final at Luanda's November 11 stadium.

"I told my players we were going to play to reach the final and not to produce beautiful football, only the result matters, it's all about the result," Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac told a news conference.

"Nigeria had a few good chances. Our team is very young and we let them be dangerous because of this lack of experience," he added. "Defence is a very important thing in modern football."

His Nigeria counterpart Shaibu Amodu would not say Ghana were the better team.

"I would not say we lost against a better side. We lost to a youthful and enterprising side. We had possibilities to win this match but this is football."

SNUFFED OUT

Nigeria, eliminated by Ghana two years ago in the Nations Cup quarter-finals, needed freshening up after being forced to play 120 minutes and a penalty shootout to advance from the previous round.

Amodu made three changes from the team that beat Zambia, with Obafemi Martins taking over from Yakubu Ayegbeni up front.

The Wolfsburg striker proved a threat to the Ghana defence in the early stages as Nigeria made the better start against a Ghana side featuring four players from their triumphant Under-20 World Cup team.

But Ghana, without the experienced Michael Essien, John Mensah and Stephen Appiah through injury, went ahead against the run of play when Gyan nipped at the near post to head home from a Kwadwo Asamoah corner.

Gyan almost doubled the lead three minutes later with a lob that went just over Vincent Enyeama's bar.

In the 28th minute, Ghana keeper Richard Kingson stretched to his left and parried away a shot from Martins.

Nigeria piled on the pressure after the break and Martins went close again at the hour when his attempt to lift the ball past Kingson bounced off the Ghana keeper's chest.

Inter Milan striker Obinna Nsofor was brought in for midfielder Yusuf Ayila and Yakubu replaced Peter Odemwingie in an attempt by Amodu to sharpen his attacking line.

The move almost paid off immediately when a forceful cross from Elderson Echiejile took a deflection off Yakubu's knee and went just wide.

Nigeria had another great chance 15 minutes from time when Martins raced into the box but Samuel Inkoom got back to snuff out the danger.

Source: Web Search

Ronaldo's ban appeal rejected

Published Fri, Jan 29 10 01:29 AM

Real Madrid's appeal against Cristiano Ronaldo's red card and two-match suspension has been rejected, the Spanish soccer federation (RFEF) said on Thursday.

After considering Real's arguments, the federation's appeals committee ruled that the ban and a 600-euro fine ($842) for the Portuguese forward should stand, the RFEF said on its website (www.rfef.es).

Real said in a statement on their website (www.realmadrid.com) they would take the case to Spain's Sporting Disciplinary Committee (CEDD), a body overseen by the government sports council (CSD).

That could mean the suspension is put on hold and Ronaldo would then be available to coach Manuel Pellegrini for Saturday's trip to fifth-placed Deportivo Coruna.

Ronaldo was shown a straight red card in Sunday's 2-0 win over Malaga after catching defender Patrick Mtiliga with a flailing arm and breaking his nose.

The RFEF's disciplinary committee decided Ronaldo's actions were not wilful or reckless, which would have meant a longer suspension, but that he had been guilty of dangerous play.

Ronaldo apologised to Mtiliga immediately after the game but said the red card was "a disgrace" and insisted he never tried to hurt another player.

It was his second dismissal of the season following his sending-off against Almeria in December for kicking out at an opponent after he had been booked for taking off his shirt in a goal celebration.

Source: Web Search

Paraguay's Cabanas may have dared his attacker - reports

Published Fri, Jan 29 10 12:49 AM

Paraguay striker Salvador Cabanas may have dared the man who shot him in the head at a late-night bar in Mexico to pull the trigger, Mexican media reported on Thursday.

Cabanas, a prolific goalscorer who was expected to lead the Paraguay attack at this year's World Cup, was shot in the bathroom of a Mexico City bar in the early hours of Monday.

He remains in critical condition with a bullet lodged in his brain.

Another man in the bathroom taunted Cabanas over his recent scoring record and held a gun to the footballer's head. Cabanas then dared him to shoot, Reforma newspaper reported, citing a bathroom attendant's statement to police.

Cabanas, 29, plays for Mexican club America and was Paraguay's top scorer in the qualifying competition for this year's World Cup in South Africa, with six goals.

Police are looking for a man they believe regularly visits the bar, popular with Mexican celebrities and VIPS, after spotting him and his bodyguard on security cameras.

Doctors say any attempt right now to remove the bullet would further endanger Cabanas.

"His situation is stable but he is still in critical condition," America spokesman Edwin Victoria told reporters on Thursday.

Cabanas was also top scorer in the 2007 South American Libertadores Cup with 10 goals and again the following year with eight, both while playing for America, Mexico's richest and most powerful club.

He has regularly been among the top scorers in the Mexican championship since moving to the country in 2003, initially with Chiapas until 2006 and then with America.

Source: Web Search

Athletes with suspect blood values could be banned

Published>Fri, Jan 29 10 12:29 AM

Athletes who do not test positive for drugs but post abnormal blood values could be thrown out of next month's Vancouver Winter Olympics, the International Olympic Committee said on Thursday.

German speedskater Claudia Pechstein became the first athlete to be suspended for two years after blood samples showed abnormal values last year, but without the skater ever testing positive for banned substances.

Asked whether the IOC would seek to suspend athletes who show irregular blood values during the Feb. 12-28 Games but do not test positive, IOC President Jacques Rogge said: "I cannot rule that out. It is a possibility.

"The IOC will have 450 blood samples of 2,000 tests in and out of competition," Rogge told reporters in a conference call.

"If parameters are abnormal then they will be communicated to the international federations. Our (blood) values will be fitted into the long-term values of international federations."

He said in case of a discrepancy "a disciplinary hearing will be opened."

Rogge said he did not expect a double-digit figure of doping offenders, with the past two winter editions of the Games recording seven positive cases each time.

"It is hard to say. We had seven positive cases in Salt Lake City and seven in Torino. Something around that would not be surprising in Vancouver."

"I would hope that it would less than that."

The IOC has in past Games used local law enforcement officers in their fight against doping, with armed police raiding Austrian athletes' quarters at the 2006 Turin Games.

"It is up to (Canadian) police to decide if there should be judicial action," Rogge said. "We are under Canadian laws. Border authorities will give information to the IOC when an accredited person will try to smuggle drugs into Canada."

Source: Web Search

Ronaldo two-match ban appeal rejected

Published Fri, Jan 29 10 12:11 AM

Real Madrid's bid to get Cristiano Ronaldo's red card and two-match suspension reversed has been rejected, the Spanish soccer federation (RFEF) said on Thursday.

After considering Real's arguments, the federation's appeals committee ruled that the ban and a 600-euro fine ($842) for the Portuguese forward should stand, the RFEF said on its website (www.rfef.es).

Real have said that if the appeal failed they would take the case to Spain's Sporting Disciplinary Committee (CEDD), a body overseen by the government sports council (CSD).

That could mean the suspension is put on hold and Ronaldo would then be available to coach Manuel Pellegrini for Saturday's trip to fifth-placed Deportivo Coruna.

Ronaldo was shown a straight red card in Sunday's 2-0 win over Malaga at the Bernabeu after catching defender Patrick Mtiliga with a flailing arm and breaking his nose.

The RFEF's disciplinary committee decided Ronaldo's actions were not wilful or reckless, which would have meant a longer suspension, but that he had been guilty of dangerous play.

Ronaldo apologised to Mtiliga immediately after the game but said the red card was "a disgrace" and insisted he never tried to hurt another player.

It was his second dismissal of the season following his sending-off against Almeria in December for kicking out at an opponent after he had earlier been booked for taking off his shirt in a goal celebration.

Source: Web Search

Manchester City loan Robinho to Santos

Published>Fri, Jan 29 10 12:09 AM

Manchester City's Brazil forward Robinho is returning home to his former club Santos immediately on a six-month loan deal, the Premier League club said on Thursday.

"Santos will assume all of the player's contract terms, including wages and bonuses. Robinho will travel to Brazil on Sunday to begin his loan period," City said in a statement.

Robinho joined the big-spending club in 2008 for a British record transfer fee of 32.5 million pounds ($52.87 million) from Real Madrid but has struggled to hold down a first team place.

"Robinho is someone who needs to be playing regularly and we wish him well for the period of his loan," said City manager Roberto Mancini on the club website (www.mcfc.co.uk).

The player, who left Santos for Real Madrid in 2005, won the Confederations Cup with Brazil last year but had feared a lack of first team action could jeopardise his World Cup hopes.

Robinho struggled to make an impression at City under former manager Mark Hughes but Italian Mancini, who joined the club in December, had said he was keen for him to stay.

Robinho is expected to earn substantially lower wages at the Brazilian club.

"If everything works out well, Robinho could be a really cheap signing for Santos because we have a lot of partners interested in financially supporting Robinho's return to Santos," Santos press officer Arnaldo Hase said this week.

Source: Web Search

Weather, budget won't spoil Vancouver Games, says Rogge

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 11:49 PM

Weather and budget concerns will not spoil next month's Winter Olympics in Vancouver, which is ready for "great sport, great action," IOC President Jacques Rogge said on Thursday.

Unusually warm weather in western Canada has raised some concerns just two weeks before the start of the Games but Rogge said the latest data showed the mountains around Vancouver, where the skiing events will be staged, had sufficient snow for the Feb. 12-28 Games.

"Vancouver can say that everything is ready now," Rogge told reporters in a conference call.

"Seven good years of preparation and I am very optimistic for the staging of these Games. I look forward to very good games."

Rogge said Games organisers (VANOC) were on top of the weather issue, with a contingency plan in place in case of insufficient snow fall.

"There is a permanent contingency planning for the entire duration of the Games. The latest (report) I got 30 minutes ago ago is that Whistler mountain is absolutely fine and Cypress mountains is absolutely fine on the track."

Rogge said the credit crisis, which had forced organisers to save money, would also not affect the Olympics.

"We do not expect to see changes on the level of athletes or national Olympic committees."

"We had some savings to do in the budget of VANOC but chosen very carefully as not to impact the Games and experience for the athletes. The athletes won't feel anything of the financial crisis."

Vancouver had encountered problems with the financing of the athletes' village with taxpayers forced to bail out the $1 billion project last year.

The IOC had also assured organisers it would help out with a potential budget gap caused by the global recession.

Rogge said he was confident VANOC, the last winter Games under his presidency as his term ends in 2013, would break even.

"The budget result will be known six weeks after the Games. The prediction is to have a break even. It is the latest position of VANOC and this is our position," Rogge said.

Source: Web Search

Ferrari's Massa welcomes another "baby"

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 11:09 PM

New father Felipe Massa welcomed another "baby" to the family on Thursday with the launch of Ferrari's 2010 car, but team mate Fernando Alonso said there were teething troubles with the steering wheel.

Massa, fit again after suffering head injuries in July's Hungarian Grand Prix and missing the rest of the season, became a father to Felipinho in November.

"We have another baby that arrived today," the Brazilian joked at a news conference after the unveiling of the F10 car in Ferrari's northern Italian factory.

"We've got to make it grow but it must grow quickly, not like a baby."

Ferrari finished fourth in the constructor's championship last year and have hired double world champion Fernando Alonso to replace Kimi Raikkonen and try to win the title back.

"We worked in November and December to simplify things slightly. Compared to others, it seemed the steering wheel was a bit more complex but now we are ready for the season," Alonso said.

The Spaniard is also struggling to get used to the new points system, where the top 10 drivers this season rather than eight will be rewarded and race winners will receive 25 points instead of 10.

"I'm a bit more traditional. You lose a bit of history that was always in Formula One," said Alonso, ahead of February's official tests and the first race in Bahrain on March 14.

The ban on full testing until next month continues to rile Ferrari and Massa's plans to take a trip in the new car for a promotional video was thwarted by icy conditions on Thursday.

Source: Web Search

MP CM distributes funds to 18 women hockey players

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 10:59 PM

Bhopal, Jan 28 (PTI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today distributed drafts worth Rs 23 lakh to 18 Indian women hockey players and five officials. At a function at his official residence, Chouhan also gave away a cheque of Rs 50 lakh to clear the outstanding dues of the players. Chouhan had earlier given Rs one crore to the Union Sports Ministry for clearing the dues of hockey players and promoting the game. He said that till now women hockey players have not received anything from Hockey India and therefore he was giving an additional Rs 50 lakh to them. "I have been told that the money will come tomorrow, but as no one has seen tomorrow therefore I am giving away Rs 50 lakh today itself to the players," he said. The Chief Minister also honoured the women hockey players, former players and officials on the occasion.

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Wilson and Dredge share lead in Doha

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 10:49 PM

Britain's Oliver Wilson and Bradley Dredge toughed out windy conditions to fire five-under-par 67s to share the lead after the opening round of the Qatar Masters on Thursday.

The pair are one stroke clear of four players -- Briton Lee Westwood, Germany's Marcel Siem and the Swedish duo of Robert Karlsson and Alex Noren.

Just 24 players in the 126-player field managed to break par on the windswept Doha Club course.

Wilson bounced back in superb style after missing the halfway cut in last week's Abu Dhabi Championship with a scoring display that included six birdies and one bogey.

"I am really pleased with a 67, and it's strange, as it didn't feel that hard," he said.

"It felt quite easy, in context. Then I got in and realised the scores so obviously it has been playing tough out there, so it looked tough for a lot of guys."

Wilson, in his sixth full European Tour season, is still seeking to capture a first Tour success after nine second-place finishes.

With the help of some changes introduced into his game over the off-season, Wilson is looking to correct that statistic ahead of this year's Ryder Cup in Wales.

"I did a lot of change over Christmas and they are not quite grooved yet," he said.

"I haven't won, so something needed to change. So I did a lot of evaluating over Christmas with my coach and my team with various thoughts on things and stats and where I need to improve things and sort of implemented plans for that."

Dredge began his round with a bogey but then birdied five of his closing seven holes including three in succession from his 14th ahead of holing a 20-foot birdie putt in near darkness on his final green.

"The forecast was for the wind to die down on the back nine, and it did that and we were fortunate," said Dredge.

Westwood was delighted to also bounce back from also missing the halfway cut last week.

Last year's European number one had a new set of irons shipped to him from the United States and Westwood was delighted with the turnaround in his game.

"I played very solidly, missing two greens and two fairways, so today was more like picking up from last year's golf," he said.

Source: Web Search

Ambika upsets Teertha in AITA junior tennis

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 10:29 PM

Kolkata, Jan 28 (PTI) Unseeded Ambika Pande of Tamil Nadu stunned second seed Teertha Iska of Andhra Pradesh to enter the semifinals of the SunfeastAITA Junior Tennis Super Series at Calcutta South Club court here today. Pande demolished Iska in straight sets 6-0 6-1 in the quarterfinals. In boys'' singles Under-14 event, seventh seed Garvit Batra of Delhi upset second seed P Vignesh Prabhu of Tamil Nadu 6-3 6-4 in the semifinals to book a berth in the summit clash against Fatehdeep Singh of Punjab.

Source: Web Search

Kovalainen keeping an open mind on Button

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 10:09 PM

Heikki Kovalainen knows where he went wrong at McLaren and is unwilling to predict how Formula One champion Jenson Button will fare as his replacement alongside Lewis Hamilton.

The Finn, now with newcomers Lotus, told Reuters in a telephone interview on Thursday that, while he had left McLaren on good terms, he would do things differently in future.

"I have analysed it quite a lot myself and with the people around me, with my family and with everybody," he said of his time at McLaren.

"We tried very hard with McLaren towards the end of my time there. It didn't work out. I don't want to get into the reason why too much, there's no point.

"I think I know why it didn't work out for me and I am starting from another place now and let's see how it works out."

McLaren had a roller-coaster season last year, starting out with an uncompetitive car but improving it to the point where Hamilton at least was able to return to the top of the podium in Hungary and Singapore.

The Mercedes-powered team will reveal their new car on Friday with Button joining from Brawn as 2008 champion Hamilton's new partner.

"I don't know how it is going to work out for him (Jenson), the only thing I can say is that he will find a team that is warm and very professional. I'm sure they will be very motivated and work flat out for him," said Kovalainen.

"That's what he will find. Whether it will work out for him I don't know."

NEW START

The Finn, whose only win to date was with McLaren in Hungary in 2008, joins experienced Italian Jarno Trulli at Malaysian-backed Lotus.

"If I went back in time I would still go to McLaren, no question about it. But I would do things very differently," said Kovalainen.

"I am doing things differently at Lotus and my target is to get 100 percent out of the team all the time. At McLaren I felt I didn't get everything out of the team."

The new car is due to be fired up for the first time at the Hingham factory on Feb. 5 and launched a week later. Malaysian test driver Fairuz Fauzy will carry out the initial shakedown.

"The first chassis has arrived here and everyone's building it. The engine is here already so there are quite a lot more people working here compared to a week and a half ago when I was here last time," said Kovalainen.

"It all looks very positive, everybody is flat out working because it will be busy until the first test and first race, it will be very hectic. But for me it all looks like it is progressing really well.

"It (the car) looks fantastic. I don't expect it to be a rocket to start with but it looks really cool, people will be surprised when they see the car."

Neither driver is under any illusions about the team's prospects this year, with the main target being to finish ahead of the other newcomers.

"For me, it's just a new chapter in my career and I feel I am in very good shape," said Kovalainen, who had been linked to a return to Renault before opting for Lotus.

"I expect some tough times, especially the first half of the season, but I have to go through them. I think we have a lot of potential and that's why I decided to join. I think in the long run this can be a very good place for me."

Source: Web Search

Mahindra-Mumbai FC match ends in goalless draw

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 09:39 PM

Mumbai, Jan 28 (PTI) An injury-hit Mahindra United squandered a golden opportunity to move to the top of the table after ending its 12th round I-League match against Mumbai FC in a goalless draw at the Cooperage ground here today. The draw ensured that Mahindra remain on the second spot with 21 points, while Mumbai FC too remained unchanged at the sixth place with 18 points. Mahindra, missing the services of Paresh Shivalkar and skipper Krishnan Ajayan, brought in Thoi Singh and Svetozar Mijin in the starting XI today. As the result suggest, both the teams started the match on a cautious note and lacked pace in the attack. Subhas Chakraborty came close to breaking the deadlock for Mumbai FC in the 18th minute but his header was off target skipper Abhishek Yadav''s cross from the right wing was off target. After a pale first half, Mumbai FC almost scored the first goal but were denied by Mahindra custodian Subhashish Roy Chowdhury, who pulled off a brilliant save off Bashiru Abbas strike. In the 73rd minute Noel Wilson''s floater saw Abhishek heading it for substitute Kayne Vincent inside the box but the Mumbai FC''s Japanese striker failed to give the ball the desired direction. Vincent missed a golden opportunity to score in the injury time as well.

Source: Web Search

Inzamam backs under-fire Yousuf

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 09:24 PM

Karachi, Jan 28 (PTI) With former players gunning for his head after the disastrous Australia tour, under-fire Pakistan skipper Mohammad Yousuf got the much-needed support from Inzamam-ul Haq, who feels the right-hander should be retained captain of the national side till next year''s World Cup. Former skipper and the nation''s most capped player Inzamam said Yousuf deserved a better treatment and respect from the Pakistan Cricket Board. "He (Yousuf) took up the challenge of leading the team at a time when no one was willing to take this responsibility and has tried his best," Inzamam said. "I think he should be retained for one full year till 2011 World Cup before the PCB makes any decision about his fate," he said. The former middle-order batsman was also averse to the policy of making frequent changes in the leadership position. "It is not wise to make frequent changes in captaincy because it will further worsen the performance of the team besides adding additional pressure on the players," Inzamam said. Inzamam, who played 120 Tests and 378 ODIs, said it would be fair to give Yousuf a fair chance to prove his leadership credentials. .

Source: Web Search

Salgaocar down Mohun Bagan 2-1

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 09:20 PM

Margao, Jan 28 (PTI) Salgaocar played their heart out to overcome a one goal deficit and edge out Mohun Bagan 2-1 in the round 12 of the I-League here today. Bagan''s Japan recruit Sueoka Ryuji put them ahead in the first half but the local favourites scored through Keita Mandjou and Ekene Ikenwa on either side of the lemon break for a morale-boosting win. Salgaocar played with more determination in the first half as they moved the ball around well and created a couple of early chances but Avneet Singh Shergill and Keita Mandjou failed to score. Bagan who failed to combine themselves in the first half created only one move which they scored. Defender Zenith Mashangva from the right sent a long lob into the box for Sueoka Ryuji and the Japanese responded well with a glancing header to find the far corner of the net. Salgaocar suffered a setback midway in the first half when Avneet got injured and was replaced by Ikenwa which gave more solidity in the attack. Salgaocar did not lose hopes after the setback and put the rival defence under pressure and the efforts paid off in the 44th minute. Milagres Gonsalves, from the right, sent a long lob into the box for Keita Mandjou who chested the ball, controlled it, beat defender N S Manju and send a low drive that beat keeper Sangram Mukherjee to find the back of the net. .

Source: Web Search

Poor start for Indians in Qatar Masters

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 09:09 PM

Doha, Jan 28 (PTI) None of the three Indians in fray could bring home a sub-par card and Shiv Kapur lied tied 50th after an average opening round of two-over 74 in the Qatar Masters golf tournament here today. Among his compatriots, SSP Chowrasia brought home three-over 75 to be tied 67th, two strokes ahead of Jyoti Randhawa, who was languishing at tied 94th. Shiv Kapur was one-under after his first 10 holes before bogeys on the 11th, 13th and 15th marred his card. In contrast, Chowrasia got off to a nightmarish bogey-bogey start and was six-over after 13 holes before launching a damage-minimising effort with birdies on the fifth, sixth and ninth holes. For Randhawa, nothing went right except the 12th hole birdie. The lanky golfer bogeyed the 10th, his opening hole, 13th and 15th to be two-over at the turn and dropped three more bogeys to go five-over. English pro Oliver Wilson shared the lead with Walesman Bradley Dredge at five-under 67.

Source: Web Search

Salgaocar down Mohun Bagan 2-1

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 08:53 PM

Margao, Jan 28 (PTI) Salgaocar played their heart out to overcome a one goal deficit and edge out Mohun Bagan 2-1 in the round 12 of the I-League here today. Bagan''s Japan recruit Sueoka Ryuji put them ahead in the first half but the local favourites scored through Keita Mandjou and Ekene Ikenwa on either side of the lemon break for a morale-boosting win. Salgaocar played with more determination in the first half as they moved the ball around well and created a couple of early chances but Avneet Singh Shergill and Keita Mandjou failed to score. Bagan who failed to combine themselves in the first half created only one move which they scored. Defender Zenith Mashangva from the right sent a long lob into the box for Sueoka Ryuji and the Japanese responded well with a glancing header to find the far corner of the net. Salgaocar suffered a setback midway in the first half when Avneet got injured and was replaced by Ikenwa which gave more solidity in the attack. Salgaocar did not lose hopes after the setback and put the rival defence under pressure and the efforts paid off in the 44th minute. Milagres Gonsalves, from the right, sent a long lob into the box for Keita Mandjou who chested the ball, controlled it, beat defender N S Manju and send a low drive that beat keeper Sangram Mukherjee to find the back of the net. .

Source: Web Search

Brilliant Murray storms into Australian final

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 08:49 PM

Andy Murray charged into the Australian Open final on Thursday, giving fresh hope to Britain that the country's long wait for another men's grand slam champion may be nearing an end.

It has been 74 years since a British man last won a grand slam singles title but the jokes about long trousers and wooden rackets could soon be over after Murray booked a place in Sunday's final by beating Croatian Marin Cilic 3-6 6-4 6-4 6-2.

"This is the best I've played at a slam," said Murray. "I want to win it, obviously for the people that I work with, for my parents... then doing it for British tennis and British sport would be excellent."

Serena Williams and Justine Henin blasted their way into Saturday's women's final by killing off China's hopes of a first grand slam finalist.

This tournament may one day be remembered as a watershed for Asian tennis with two Chinese reaching the last four for the first time, but the new world order was left on hold a little longer.

Williams used all her power and big-match experience to beat Li Na 7-6 7-6 in an absorbing centre court contest to remain on track to successfully defend the title she won for the fourth time last year.

"I am happy I was able to pull it out, it was really close," Williams said.

"I wasn't at my best today but I'm still here -- which is shocking -- and I'm just going to do whatever I can to stay."

FAIRYTALE COMEBACK

Henin, in only her second tournament since coming out of retirement, demolished Zheng Jie 6-1 6-0 to continue her fairytale comeback to the sport she once dominated.

The Belgian, improving with every match, was at her ruthless best against Zheng, wrapping up a one-sided win in 51 minutes.

"The dream continues," Henin said. "I'm going to play the number one in the world. She's a fighter as she's proved here, and I'll do my best and try and get the title."

Already the first Chinese to make the semi-finals of a grand slam, Li and Zheng had been bidding to become the first players from the world's most populous country to reach a final.

Their unlikely run to the semi-finals captured the imagination of millions of people in their homeland and gave the tennis world a peek at the future of the game.

"This was good for both players and, of course, good for Chinese tennis," Li said. "I think if (Chinese) children saw this, they will have more confidence. They might think some day they can do this."

Murray provided a brilliant exhibition of shot-making, including one outrageous winner when he darted from the net to retrieve a lob then spun around on the baseline and whipped a forehand straight past a bewildered Cilic.

"Honestly, I actually practise that shot quite a lot in training!" Murray said.

EXHAUSTED CROAT

The Croatian, who had survived three gruelling five-setters to reach his first grand slam semi-final, was in control of the match until that point.

"I think he got a little bit of the momentum going and wasn't easy after to get back into it," Cilic said.

By reaching the semis, Li will become the first Chinese to make the top 10 when the new rankings are released on Monday.

The 16th seed showed why she is one of the most improved players in the game by pushing Williams to the limit.

The 28-year-old American, who is also in the doubles final with sister Venus, was panting heavily as Li forced her to run from side to side and was relieved to avoid a third set.

"I knew (I had) to play the tiebreaks well. I knew I had to get in the lead so if I choked I had some points to choke on," Williams said. "She's a fighter and I knew I had to close it out."

Henin won the Australian Open in 2004 and made the final in 2006, but quit while trailing Amelie Mauresmo in the second set, complaining she was ill.

The Belgian, who has not yet qualified for a ranking, became only the second wildcard to reach a grand slam final.

"I was curious about how I would feel," Henin said. "Today was perfect... it was good to have a pretty easy match.

"I can't wait for the final. It's an amazing feeling to have the chance to play another final in Melbourne. It's fantastic for me."

Source: Web Search

Moment of magic turns match for great Scot

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 08:29 PM

One magical point was all it took for Andy Murray to convince the doubters that he has what it takes to win the Australian Open.

The Briton brought the packed crowd at Rod Laver Arena to their feet with a miraculous winner in his semi-final win over Marin Cilic on Thursday.

Murray looked to be in trouble against the Croat when he lost the first set and was labouring through the second when he broke his serve and spirit with one of the best points ever seen on a tennis court.

Needing to win the point to avoid losing his serve for the first time in the match, Cilic seemed to have got a lucky break when he blasted a shot into the net tape that dribbled on to Murray's side of the court.

Before the Croat could celebrate, the Scotsman sprinted forward and managed to scoop the ball back over the net.

Cilic saw Murray coming and was in a position to flick the ball back across the court with a backhand but the Scot made another desperate lunge to keep the point alive.

So Cilic decided to take the aerial route, lobbing the ball over Murray and deep into the back court, leaving his opponent stranded at the net.

Most players would have happily given up and applauded Cilic but Murray instinctively turned around and set off after the ball.

He got to the baseline just in the nick of time to spin around and swish the ball back over his shoulder and past a bewildered Cilic.

"I just managed to chase it down," Murray said. "Honestly, I actually practise that shot quite a lot in training!"

OUTRAGEOUS SHOT

Cilic was less impressed, blaming himself for not finishing off the point earlier.

"It wasn't demoralising. He made it. I was just a little bit angry at myself because I had an easier shot when I played the backhand short cross court there," he said.

That one point changed the momentum of the match and Murray went on to win 3-6 6-4 6-4 6-2 to go into Sunday's final against either Roger Federer or Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

But not before he pulled off one more outrageous shot for the highlights reel, whipping the ball between the post and the umpire's chair for a winner.

"It feels great. When it happens and you're ahead, you get an adrenaline rush at the end of the match, very close to finishing it off," Murray said.

"I didn't feel like I had the match won but I felt pretty relaxed in the last game. So those moments are great. You know, they don't happen that often, so you've got to enjoy them."

Source: Web Search

Wriddhiman stumped by Test selection

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 07:53 PM

Kolkata, Jan 28 (PTI) Surprised at his selection in the Indian squad for the first Test against South Africa in Nagpur, young Bengal stumper Wriddhiman Saha today said he would try to do his best if he gets the chance to play for the country. "If I get the opportunity (to play), I will try and make full use of the chance", Saha told reporters here. The 25-year-old wicket keeper-batsman said though he was aware that the Test team would be picked today, he did not expect to be selected. "It is a fantastic feeling. I knew that the Team selection was today, but I clearly didn''t expect to be picked. It''s a dream come true", he said. Saha, who is part of the IPL franchisee Kolkata Knight Riders, had played for India Under-19 and India-A teams earlier, but it''s the first time that he has been chosen for the senior team. "After Sourav Ganguly, several players from Bengal had got a look-in in the Indian team, but they could not cement their places. But I will try to perform well to stay there as long as I can", Saha said. "Before leaving for Nagpur, I will get in touch with Sourav Ganguly and get some tips from him", he added.

Source: Web Search

Troubled Portsmouth have website closed down

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 07:49 PM

Portsmouth's financial problems continued on Thursday when the club's official website was shut down because its operators had not been paid.

"It is down at the moment because we haven't kept up with the payments," a spokesman or the Premier League club said.

Hard-up Portsmouth face a winding up order in the High Court on Feb.10 following a petition issued by the Government's Revenue and Customs office and there are fears that they could become the first top flight club to go into administration.

The south coast club has failed to make monthly payments to its players several times this season while the Premier League diverted most of their recent seven million pounds television income to clubs they still owe transfer fees.

One piece of good news this week for the Premier League's bottom club was the lifting of a transfer embargo meaning they can make loan signings as they try and escape relegation.

Source: Web Search

Russia call up second-string team for Serbia tie

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 07:09 PM

Russia named a second-string team for next month's Fed Cup first-round tie against Serbia, the country's tennis federation said on Thursday.

Russia captain Shamil Tarpishchev was forced to rely on world number 31 Alisa Kleybanova, 39th-ranked Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Vera Dushevina (40) and Ekaterina Makarova (59) after all their leading players turned down the invitation.

World number two Dinara Safina, third-ranked Svetlana Kuznetsova, Elena Dementieva, Vera Zvonareva, Maria Sharapova and Nadia Petrova said they could not attend the Feb. 6-7 clash in Belgrade due to injuries or schedule issues.

Russia, who won the Fed Cup four times between 2004 and 2008, lost to eventual champions Italy in last year's semi-finals.

Source: Web Search

China's crushed "Golden Flowers" to bloom again

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 06:49 PM

China's hopes of a first grand slam finalist were crushed by two of the greats of the women's game on Thursday but Li Na and Zheng Jie's brilliant Australian Open run marked another step in the country's inevitable rise.

Dubbed China's "Golden Flowers" by an appreciative media at home, Li and Zheng's record-shattering path to the semi-finals at Melbourne Park ignited the draw and offered the astonishing possibility of an all-Chinese final.

That notion was snuffed out when a rampant Justine Henin thumped 35th-ranked Zheng 6-1 6-0 following Serena Williams's 7-6 7-6 win over the 16th-seeded Li.

But like Russia's rapid rise to tennis super-power status in the last 10 years, the world will need to get used to seeing more Chinese names at the business end of grand slams.

As with all sports, tennis was once denounced as bourgeois and decadent, and banned in China under the rule of the late Mao Zedong, but the game has come along way in a very short time.

Olympic ambitions have played a big part, with the Communist Party leadership throwing resources, cash and foreign coaches into the game to produce players who can bolster medal counts.

The country's Soviet-style sports system produced a shock gold in Athens in 2004, when Sun Tiantian and Li Ting took the women's doubles title, the same year Li broke through for China's first tour win in the southern city of Guangzhou.

Zheng, who has vied with Li for the number one status in China in recent years, then partnered Yan Zi to clinch the country's first doubles grand slam titles at the Australian Open and Wimbledon in 2006.

Li's breakthrough quarter-final at Wimbledon the same year, followed by Zheng's semi-final there in 2008, continued China's steady march.

MIDDLE AGE

While well into middle-age by tennis standards, 27-year-old Li and 26-year-old Zheng are now playing the best tennis of their lives, surprising themselves with their own progress.

"My goal was to make the top 10 this year, but I've already done that," said Li, whose quarter-final win over Venus Williams ensured she will pass the milestone when the new rankings are published on Monday.

"So next, maybe (go for the) top five, like step by step."

Zheng, whose ranking peaked at 15 last year, will also break back into the top 20, after injuries and indifferent results at the grand slams last year sent it dipping to the 30s.

The two players form the vanguard of China's push into the top ranks of world tennis and along with Yan and 43rd-ranked Peng Shuai, have been rewarded with freedoms rarely granted at home, where top athletes remain yoked to the state sport system.

After increasing friction between players and officials over training arrangements and pay, the Chinese Tennis Association allowed the four to "fly away" and organise their own coaches, tours and scheduling.

The decision, while criticised by more conservative officials in China, has been validated with Li and Zheng's success at Melbourne Park.

Both players have said they have benefited from the freedom to train and rest at will, and from more specialist coaching available to them. They have also vowed to learn from their semi-final lessons and believe they have room for improvement.

"It wasn't just that I made the last four. It's because the things I've done in training really came out here so it's been a good harvest," said Zheng, a feisty counter-puncher who has hired American coach Nick Bollettieri to improve her serve.

Li, a hard-hitter with all the tools to succeed in the power-dominated modern game, has hired Swede Thomas Hogstedt and has shown a tougher mental edge after previously appearing brittle under pressure.

While not a single Chinese man appeared in the draw at Melbourne Park, junior champions are being groomed and a breakthrough tour win from the other sex may only be "three to five years away", Hogstedt told local media.

Li and Zheng's performance at Melbourne Park should inspire more young Chinese to pick up rackets but has also, Zheng conceded, put more pressure on them to keep the good times rolling.

"I wouldn't say I like (that kind of pressure), but I think I can do my best to adapt to it," she said.

"I hope more people can watch tennis and get involved, but of course this will require more good results."

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PCB mulls new clauses in players'' contract

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 06:23 PM

Karachi, Jan 28 (PTI) Pakistan Cricket Board is mulling new clauses in the players'' central contracts for 2010 which lay more emphasis on the performance and fitness level of the players. Wasim Bari, PCB chief operating officer, said the new clauses will be first discussed with the central contracts committee tomorrow during a meeting before being incorporated. "We intend to give contracts to 28 to 29 players but we will also have stipends for the top performers in the domestic season and national under-19 team. We have around four new clauses in the contract which will be discussed with the central contracts committee on Thursday," Bari said. Bari, without revealing much about the meeting, said, "those players who are not fit or injured or have not performed will not get the new contracts." However, he made it clear that the board has no intention to reduce the monthly retainers given to players in the new contract. "They will get the same amount -- Rs 250,000 in top category, Rs 175,000 for B category and Rs 125,000 for C category." The contract committee includes Bari, Zakir Khan the director cricket operations and chief selector, Iqbal Qasim. (More) PTI Corr SHN

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Henin praises Clijsters' comeback

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 06:09 PM

Melbourne, Jan.28 (ANI): Justine Henin has praised fellow star Kim Clijsters' for making the mother of all comebacks.

Henin, who will meet Serena Williams in Saturday's Australia Open woman's final here, said her achievement was nothing compared to what Clijsters, 26, has achieved.

Henin admits Clijsters' inspiring victory as a mother was tough to beat.

"I'm not quite sure I could do it, having a child and then coming back on the tour," Henin said.

"I mean, it's brave to do it, to travel with a child, to deal with being a mum and a tennis player. I think it's not easy.

"So it's great what she's doing. I have a lot of respect for what she did because it's not easy, and she has been (playing at) an amazing level very quickly, beating Venus and Serena in the same tournament," Fox Sports quoted her, as saying. (ANI)

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Murray reaches Oz Open final, revives British hopes

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 05:53 PM

Andy Murray has beaten Marin Cilic to reach the Australian Open final and is again only a win away from ending a long British drought at the Grand Slam tournaments.

Murray started slowly but picked up momentum Thursday night in a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 win over the 21-year-old Croatian.

Murray is the first British man to reach the final in Australia since John Lloyd in 1977 and the first to reach two Grand Slam finals in the Open era. Cilic had an upset win over Murray in the fourth round of the 2009 U.S. Open, where the Scot had lost the final the previous year to Roger Federer.

Fred Perry, who won eight major singles titles in the 1930s, was the last British man to win a Grand Slam event.

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Dempo bank on home advantage against East Bengal

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 05:23 PM

Margao, Jan 28 (PTI) Dempo Sports Club will bank on home advantage to keep their winning momentum going when they meet East Bengal tomorrow in the round 12 I-League match at the Nehru Stadium in Fatorda here. Dempo, who played without their two foreign players did well to demolish Sporting Clube de Goa and regain the top spot with 22 points, now two points ahead of Mahindra United and Mohun Bagan. Peter Carvalho controlled the midifield well in the absence of Roberto D''Silva along with Clifford Miranda to punch holes in the defense of Sporting. Joaquim Abranches who replaced injured Ranty Martins also played well upfront scoring a goal. Dempo will be once again relying on him to do the damage to the rival defence who are looking good after their Federation Cup triumph. East Bengal carried on their Federation Cup triumph into the I-League when they ended defending champions Churchill Brothers'' unbeaten run beating them in a 3-2 thriller in their last match. Yakubu, who created history in the national league and I-league by scoring 100 goals will be the one Dempo''s defense have to watch on closely. He along with India''s star striker Bhaichung Bhutia, Hammond and Alvito D''Cunha have combined well to demolish opposition''s confidence. (More) PTI MCS VKV SHN

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Now, mistress reveals Tiger Woods' '9 p.m. to next morning' sexcapades

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 05:09 PM

New York, January 28 (ANI): Tiger Woods' alleged mistress Loredana Jolie has revealed that the golfer had sex with her "from 9 p.m. until the sun came up the next morning."

She believes that rehab may not cure the golfer from sex addiction.

"He would engage in sex from 9 p.m. until the sun came up the next morning. But he wasn't a healthy guy. He couldn't sleep and would stay up all night. I am not really sure rehab for sex addiction will help him," the New York Post quoted her as saying.

She added: "Tiger's sexual fantasies were not normal. He likes role-playing, he likes to be the guy in control and wearing a suit while there are girls performing girl-on-girl and guys entertaining guys. By that, I mean they would dance for each other like girls would do for a man.

"He'd have different girls all the time, entertaining, role play, fetishes, stuff like that . . . But he would only watch . . . He would also ask me to text him pictures of myself when we weren't together."

Jolie, who also goes by Loredana Ferriolo, plans to write a tell-all book.

Woods has reportedly entered a sex rehab center in Mississippi, following the exposure of his sexcapades. (ANI)

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It was a mutual decision to call off Sania's engagement: Imran Mirza

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 04:54 PM

Hyderabad, Jan 28 (ANI): Ace tennis star Sania Mirza's father Imran Mirza on Thursday confirmed that the decision to call off Sania's engagement with her childhood friend Sohrab Mirza was a mutual one and that the two families continue to be on good terms despite the couple's split.

Imran Mirza said, "It was very much a mutual decision. Sania has already said there was incompatibility between the two and they both came to us. The families have been very close. We have known each other for half a century now."

"It was mutually agreed that it might be in the best interest of everyone concerned that it should be called off," he added.

On being questioned on Sania's emotional side, Imran Mirza said, "It could hurt both. She has to fight her way out of it."

Sania's father further said, "Sania will focus on her tennis now. She will continue to play. This has nothing to do with her career. She has been playing before, through the engagement and now."

Sania said that despite she and Sohrab being friends for a long time, she found him incompatible during the engagement period.

Sania said, "We were friends for half a decade, but found ourselves incompatible during our engagement period. I wish Sohrab the best in life."

Questions were earlier raised about whether Sohrab would be able to cope as Sania's life partner.

Sania is set to participate in the Fed Cup Asia Oceanic Group two-competition beginning from February 2. (ANI)

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Serena unmatched in battle of nerves

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 04:50 PM

If winning the Australian Open were a simple test of will power, Serena Williams would win every time.

The American has always been one of the most powerful and athletic players on the women's tour but her greatest strengths are not in her body but in her mind.

While other players succumb to self-doubt and nerves when things start going against them, Williams never loses faith in her ability to dig herself out of trouble.

Her fighting qualities have helped her win 11 grand slam titles, including four in Melbourne, and given her a chance at another when she plays Justine Henin in Saturday's final.

Williams booked her place in the final by beating China's Li Na 7-6 7-6 on Thursday. She was expected to win so the result was no surprise but it was anything but a walkover.

Li, playing the match of her life, gave the world number one a torrid time, thumping into the ball deep into the corners and forcing the American to scamper from side to side.

Already heavily bandaged, Williams looked to be tiring fast but showed why she remains the most feared player in the game by raising her game when it mattered and dominating the tiebreaks.

"I am happy I was able to pull it out, it was really close," Williams said. "I wasn't at my best today but I'm still here -- which is shocking -- and I'm just going to do whatever I can to stay."

Williams may have looked close to exhaustion but she remains a glutton for punishment and has an endless love of playing the game.

A few hours after beating Li, she was back on court, teaming up with her sister Venus to beat Lisa Raymond and Rennae Stubbs and qualify for Friday's doubles final.

"I don't think it's flattened me. I think it's helped me," she said. "I get a lot of extra practice...I just like being out there."

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Cash-strapped Malaysians told to focus on big events

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 04:29 PM

Malaysia's badminton bosses have been told to enter fewer international tournaments this year and focus on four big events because of a shortage of cash at the country's national sports council.

Because of the financial constraints, the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) has only had its budget approved up to the All England tournament in March.

"We have to reduce the allocation for competitions due to budget constraints and the focus should be on the four major events," sports council director general Datuk Zolkples Embong told the New Straits Times newspaper.

"BAM's proposal is bigger than what we have allocated and thus, only tournaments up to the All England have been approved."

There are more than the usual number of big international events this year, with the world championships in Paris in August, the Commonwealth Games in Delhi in October and November's Asian Games in Guangzhou.

Malaysia also hosts the international men's and women's team events, the Thomas and Uber Cups, in Kuala Lumpur in May and Zolkples said he wanted the top players, most notably men's number one Lee Chong Wei, to focus on winning the major titles.

"Winning gold in the world championships, Asian Games and Commonwealth Games is the priority and as hosts, we must also do well in the Thomas Cup," he told the paper.

"Although Chong Wei has proven his worth, he is not getting any younger and we want him to be around until 2012 (London Olympics).

"(China's) Lin Dan has skipped the first two Super Series events and his focus is on the Thomas Cup, world championships and obviously to win the Asian Games.

"I don't want the players to burn out and fail to perform in the major events."

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Britain's worst football team has no points after 21 games

Published>Thu, Jan 28 10 04:09 PM

London, jan.28 (ANI): Britain's worst football team has no points from 21 games.Desperate Durham City AFC have conceded 108 goals and scored just 13 playing in the Unibond Premier, just six leagues below the Premier League.

No side has ever made such a bad start to a Unibond season and no other team in Britain's professional or semi-pro divisions have failed to register a point this term, reports The Sun.

Durham's dreadful run kicked off after their sponsors backed out just before the campaign got underway.

They were forced to offload the entire squad who had won successive promotions - and selected a team from 16 and 17-year-olds at a local sixth-form college.

Chairman Ian Walker said: "We couldn't pay any of our players' wages, so we are playing with college kids. They're not receiving a penny. We felt the most important thing was to keep the club going - it's been around for 90 years." (ANI)

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Gag order for Pakistan cricketers

Published Thu, Jan 28 10 03:53 PM

Karachi, Jan 28 (PTI) Pakistani cricketers have been told not to speak on the Indian Premier League as contradicting statements from players are adding to the existing confusion over their participation in the Twenty20 event. "The team management in Australia has been asked to advice the players from avoiding making comments on the IPL while the sports management company which represents some of these players has also told them not to say too much," sources told PTI. Two leading newspapers carried two completely different statements of all-rounder Shahid Afridi on Wednesday. Afridi was quoted as saying by the ''Dawn'' that he has condoned the people responsible for humiliation caused to his country''s crickters at the Mumbai auction and is willing to play in IPL if invited. However, ''Jang'' quoted him as saying that this year he "will not go to the IPL at any cost not even with the South Australian team in the Champions League after the way they insulted us at the auction". There is confusion abuot Abdul Razzaq''s participation as some reports say he has been offered a contract by Deccan Chargers but the reigning champions have denied it saying they do not have a slot for any foreign player.

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