Portsmouth end nightmare tour with drubbing in Washington

Published>Sun, Jul 25 10 12:17 PM

With scarcely any sleep, in sweltering heat and after losing their kit, Portsmouth ended a farcical North American pre-season tour on Saturday with a 4-0 drubbing at the hands of Major League Soccer's DC United.

Relegated from the Premiership, in administration and placed under a transfer embargo by England's soccer authorities, Portsmouth could scarcely field a team during their week-long tour of the United States and Canada, relying heavily on youngsters with little or no first-team experience.

But if anyone thought things could not get any worse for the embattled club, they were wrong.

Stranded in Chicago by a lightning storm en route from their last game in Edmonton, the players had just four hours sleep the night before Saturday's game with DC United and with no time to train for three days.

As if that wasn't bad enough, 14 bags went missing en route, including the one containing their kit, meaning they had to play Saturday's game in a strip borrowed from their hosts.

They probably wished they had never arrived at all, after a thrashing at the hands of the MLS strugglers, which included a hat-trick by Australian striker Danny Allsopp.

"Probably that result summed up the tour for us really -- it has been extremely tough," Portsmouth manager Steve Cotterill told reporters.

The journey from Edmonton had taken 27 hours. The flight from England to their first game in San Diego took 42.

"The time it took us to get here, we could have flown to Australia," a furious Cotterill told Reuters after the game.

The newly installed Pompey boss has made no secret of his frustration with the gruelling tour, organised before he took over, and that he would have preferred to have remained in England to try and assemble a squad for the approaching season.

Two players went home injured after the Edmonton game, one with a broken leg.

Then goalkeeper Jamie Ashdown, trying to earn a new contract after the departure of David James, went off injured after colliding with a team mate during Saturday's game, to add to Cotterill's woes.

Pompey's weary players soon ran out of steam on the hottest day of the year in Washington, with the temperature reaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) in the RFK Stadium.

As that wasn't bad enough, three players were sent off, including Portsmouth's Hayden Mullins, whose only offence was to get into an argument with DC United's Santino Quaranta, which Mullins admitted included "some swearing".

Quaranta then seemed to spit at Mullins and both men were shown straight red cards.

Cotterill called the refereeing "ridiculous" and "appalling".

"I can't believe he's been allowed to officiate a game," he said. "I've never seen anything like it in my life."

It has been an incredible fall from grace since Portsmouth won the FA Cup in 2008. On Saturday, the players were just relieved to be going home.

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Mobile phones may be jammed at CWG venues

Sun, Jul 25 10 10:37 AM

New Delhi, Jul 25 (PTI) Security agencies are mulling the option of installing mobile phone jammers at Commonwealth Games venues to thwart any possible terror strike. Sources said the step is being considered in view of the threat to the fortnight-long sporting extravaganza from terrorist groups which may try to use mobile phones to trigger explosives as they have done on several occasions in the past. There has been no credible threat so far but the government is taking every pre-emptive precaution, sources said. Each of the 13 competition venues for the Commonwealth Games will have a three-tier security ring and special arrangements will be made to transport the athletes to and from the Games Village with helicopters carrying commando snipers keeping an eye on the convoys below. This is to prevent a repeat of the Lahore attack of March 2009 in which militants shot at and injured Sri Lankan cricketers touring Pakistan. To ensure fleet security, each of the 574 vehicles used for ferrying athletes across the city will have to undergo a mandatory anti-sabotage clearance every morning before athletes board it. The Government has already sanctioned Rs 330 crore for procurement of high-tech weapons and gadgets, armoured vehicles, close circuit television cameras, metal detectors, bomb disposal equipment and protective gear for chemical and biological attacks. Over 10,000 athletes from 71 countries, and 500,000 spectators are expected in Delhi for the Commonwealth Games between October 3 and 14.

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Selector Illyas says son-in-law Farhat deserves place in squad

Sun, Jul 25 10 10:21 AM

Karachi, July 25 (PTI) National selector Muhammad Illyas has hit out at his critics who alleged conflict of interest whenever his son-in-law Imran Farhat was picked for Pakistan, saying that the youngster deserved a place in the squad. Farhat, married to Illyas'' daughter, hit a match-winning 67 as opener in Pakistan''s second innings in their three-wicket win over Australia in the second Test at Leeds. He also got decent starts in the first Test at Lord''s. "I was hurt when some people tried to insinuate that Imran was in the team because of me. Many people don''t know that whenever the selectors discussed Imran, I left the room because I felt It was better I was not involved in a final decision on his selection since he is my son-in-law," Illyas, a former Test player, told PTI. "I never had any say in his final selection because I saw it as a conflict of interest. If he came into the team it was because the other selectors felt he deserved a place," he said. The outspoken selector said he was not only happy that Pakistan had won a Test against Australia to break a 15-year-old jinx but also because Farhat scored crucial runs. "Whatever cricket Imran is playing it is because of his ability and hardwork. I have no say in it. It is a wrong impression that I push for him," Illyas said. "For me nothing is more important than national interest. I would never support or back a decision if it involved selecting a player who didn''t deserve to be in the team for any reason," he added. 20-year-old left-handed Farhat has been in and out of the national team since 2000 when he made his debut in New Zealand. He left international cricket to join ''rebel'' Indian Cricket League three years ago. Illyas said he was overjoyed with Pakistan''s Test win as it came through a new look team and under a new captain. "The victory is sweet because it is clear that Salman Butt has gelled the team well and they played like a team. I am confident they can carry on with their good performance in future as well," he stated. He, however, reserved special praise for left-arm pacer Muhammad Aamer who took seven wickets in the second Test. "He is one of the best talents to come up in Pakistan for a while now and he is a quick learner he is learning very quickly and he has a good cricket brain. He is now a more difficult bowler to face because of his ability to swing the ball into the right handed batsman," Illyas said.

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Button puts love life back on track, goes faster

Published>Sun, Jul 25 10 09:37 AM

Formula One champion Jenson Button put both his qualifying form and love life back on track at the German Grand Prix on Sunday.

After out-qualifying McLaren team mate Lewis Hamilton for the first time since April, Button told reporters he had also renewed his romance with Argentine-Japanese lingerie model girlfriend Jessica Michibata.

The pair, inseparable last year when the 30-year-old Briton romped to the title with Brawn GP, split up in May but Michibata gave the game away in a message on her Twitter feed announcing that they were an item again.

"I'd better have a word with her about the internet," grinned Button. "You'll see her, she'll be in Hungary."

Button and Hamilton have had their legs pulled by rivals about how well they get on as team mates, with some describing the relationship as a 'love-in', but neither could be too content with their grid positions at Hockenheim.

Button qualified fifth, his best performance since Canada last month, while championship leader Hamilton will start Sunday's race sixth on the grid -- his lowest slot since China in April.

"I think we can still have a very good race," said Button, who roared from 14th on the grid to fourth in his home British Grand Prix two weeks ago.

"If you have looked at the speed traps, you'll notice that we are quite a bit quicker than the two teams in front of us. Maybe that isn't a positive thing in qualifying, but in the race I think it could help us as long as we can look after the tyres.

"I was reasonably happy with the lap," added Button, who is second and 12 points behind Hamilton in the overall standings with nine races remaining.

"I thought I'd be a little bit closer to the front when I crossed the finish line, I didn't think I was going to be seven tenths behind pole position."

McLaren have introduced a new 'blown diffuser' and floor for Germany after failing to get it to work properly at Silverstone and the drivers had no doubt that it represented a step forwards.

Team principal Martin Whitmarsh said the system had significant potential, with plenty of improvement to be unlocked.

"I think we probably have half or less than half of what is possible," he said. "I'm sure as races go by we'll get more from that.

"Once you've got this concept working, the aerodynamicists can start to work on details of the floor, they can start to work on the exhaust and how it interacts with the wheels and tyres. There is a lot of scope now to make some progress."

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Arshiya to meet Ishita in final

Published>Sun, Jul 25 10 07:47 AM

Top seeded Arshiya Sethi set up a title clash with Ishita in the girls under-10 final of the Second Tricity Schools Badminton Tournament being played at the Sector 7 Community Centre Badminton Hall in PanchKula. In semi-final matches, Arshiya Sethi overwpowered Chavi by 21-15 and Ishita got the better of Manswini by 22-20.Meanwhile,Unseeded Anushrav toppled top seed Vardaavan by 21-19. In another keenly contested match for girls under-14, Mehak prevailed over Janvi by 31-30.

Results:Boys Under - 10 singles: Anushrav bt Vardaavn 21-19, Naman Garg bt Kartik 21-8, Ishaan bt Shiraj 21-18.

Girls Under - 10 singles: Arshiya Sethi bt Chavi 21-15, Ishita bt Manswini 22-20.

Boys Under - 14 singles: Hardik bt Nitin 31-16, Rajat bt Sabhijot 31-13, Abhishek bt Pankaj 31-16, Himanshu bt Kannav 31-25, Lara bt Azeea 31-14, Justin bt Anmol 31-13, Paras Mittal bt Amil 31-16, Kartik bt Ganeshwar 31-4.

Girls Under - 14 singles: Gayatri bt Rupinder Kaur 31-16, Mehak bt Priyanka 31-12, Daaman bt Tusharika 31-2, Mehak bt Janvi 31-30, Purnnima bt Monash 31-27, Krishma bt Shweta 31-2.

Boys Under - 17 singles: Abhijot bt Abhishek 31-15, Pankaj bt Kunal 31-9, Arnaav bt Arpit 31-21, Aman Kumar bt Ayush 31-8, Ayush Gautam bt Karan 31-19, Subham bt Nischal 31-5, Shivam bt Yash 31-24, Keenneth bt Aadip 31-16.

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HI refers Kaushik case to police

Published>Sun, Jul 25 10 05:47 AM

Taking serious note of player Ranjita Devi's sexual harassment complaint against coach M K Kaushik, Hockey India on Saturday referred the matter to the Delhi Police for further investigation. The four-member inquiry committee constituted by the sports body had refrained from recommending any action, only proposing that the Sports Ministry should look into the case.

"The committee report fell short of giving any recommendations. So HI is going a step ahead and we are making a recommendation to SAI to take action," said Hockey India interim secretary Narinder Batra. "Hockey India feels that the committee should have recommended action," he added.

"We thought that the complaint was highly credible with specific charges and did what we felt right," he said. The inquiry committee, comprising Sudarshan Pathak, Zafal Iqbal, Ajitpal Singh and Rajeev Mehta, had suggested that the "case may appear to fall in the category of sexual harassment under the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in the Vishakha judgement and Section 354 of the IPC."

Stating that only the police have the power to take action under the specified section, the HI has sought police action. "We have asked the Delhi Police to start investigation immediately by filing an FIR. The government can also take suo motu action," said Batra.

HI has also said that it will not avail the services of Kaushik and videographer M Basavaraj in future. The inquiry committee had suggested that since Kaushik had already resigned, his services were not needed with immediate effect. Meanwhile, the Delhi Police said they had not received any complaint yet. "We haven't got any complaints, so we can't say anything about it," said an official said.

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Contador survives panic attack to extend Tour lead

Published>Sun, Jul 25 10 12:57 AM

Alberto Contador had a bad night and a bad day on the bike on Saturday but was still poised to win his third Tour de France despite a below-par performance.

The 27-year-old Spaniard increased his advantage to 39 seconds over Andy Schleck in the final time trial over 52 kms from Bordeaux and the Luxembourg rider will now have to be content with second place overall for the second year in a row.

"I had a bad night, I did not sleep well, I had stomach ache," Contador, who could not hold back his tears when he was given the yellow jersey on the podium, told a news conference.

Contador, one of only five men with titles in the Tour, the Giro d'Italia and the Spanish Vuelta, struggled to find the perfect position on his bike. He gasped for air more than usual as Schleck threatened his eight-second overall lead during the first part of Saturday's timed effort.

"To be honest, I got some information that Andy was five seconds behind and I started to panic," Contador said. "I thought 'oh my god, oh my god it's over'."

Contador's panic proved premature as Schleck eventually lost ground, gradually running out of energy and almost falling off his bike in exhaustion.

"This is such a relief, you cannot begin to imagine," said Contador.

Asked if he had suffered as much as Saturday on the bike this year, he paused and replied: "There are many times I suffered this year, but not as much as today."

Contador appeared less dominant than last year, when he beat Schleck by 4:11 with strong time trial showings and brutal attacks in the climbs.

This year, Schleck was a match in the mountains and almost as good as Contador in Saturday's time trial.

The man from Pinto, however, hinted his domination of the Tour was not over.

"I would not say that Andy is stronger than last year. It's just than I was not as good," he said.

"I have had bad days on this Tour. But I won't say which ones," he added with a smile. (Editing by John Mehaffey; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

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Menezes becomes Brazil coach

Sun, Jul 25 10 12:19 AM

Mano Menezes, a specialist in leading big clubs out of the doldrums but little-known outside his own country, became the coach of Brazil on Saturday when he accepted an offer from the five-times world champions.

The 48-year-old, currently coach of Corinthians, confirmed he had said yes to the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), which had been turned down by Muricy Ramalho on Friday when his club Fluminense refused to release him.

"For the whole of Brazil, I say that I officially accept the invitation," Menezes told a news conference at his club. "I'm very proud and happy."

"We must have 30, 40 or 50 excellent professionals in Brazil, so if I'm second on the list, that's fine by me."

Menezes replaces Dunga, who quit after Brazil's shock quarter-final defeat to Netherlands at the World Cup three weeks ago. Both men hail from the south of Brazil, regarded as the more European part of the country.

Menezes, who did not play professionally, will have the huge task of trying to rebuild Brazil's national team, discredited after a lacklustre display in South Africa, and win a sixth world title when they host the 2014 World Cup.

Winning their own World Cup is seen as an obligation by Brazil's 190 million inhabitants. With Brazil's failure to win on home soil in 1950 still being mentioned regularly, the pressure on Menezes and his team will be greater than ever.

He will also be under pressure to restore a more attractive playing style which many felt was missing under Dunga's leadership.

FRIENDLY MATCHES

One of his biggest problems could be that Brazil will qualify automatically as hosts and will be short of competitive football, with only next year's Copa America and the 2013 Confederations Cup to test the team.

Otherwise, he faces a long run of friendlies, starting with a match away to United States on Aug. 10.

Menezes, 48, made his name in 2005 when he led former South American champions Gremio out of the second division.

In an extraordinary decisive game, Gremio had four players sent off, survived a penalty miss by opponents Nautico and then snatched a goal to win 1-0 and clinch promotion.

Two years later, he took them to the final of the Libertadores Cup, the South American equivalent of the Champions League.

He then joined Corinthians, another hugely popular team, and led them out of the second division in 2008.

Since then, his side have won the Copa Brasil and signed former Brazil World Cup winners Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos.

CBF president Ricardo Teixeira said in a statement that the team would depend less on foreign-based players, a risky strategy which has not succeeded when it has been tried in the past.

"Brazil, as the new coach told me, will have a significant presence of players who play for Brazilian clubs, Mano Menezes is the right person to lead this process," said Teixeira.

"I am a certain he will do a great job until 2014. He showed courage and pride in having the opportunity which every coach in the world dreams of."

Source: Published>

IOCL, ONGC in Murugappa final

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 10:07 PM

Chennai, July 24 (IANS) Indian Oil Corporation Ltd and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation entered the final of the 86th All-India MCC-Murugappa Gold Cup hockey tournament with hard-fought victories here Saturday.

IOCL overcame a luckless Indian Railways 4-2 while ONGC got past Punjab National Bank 3-2 in the semi-finals both of which witnessed unseemly scenes with players repeatedly protesting umpiring decisions and also a couple of goals.

Indeed, Indian Oil, with a virtual India line-up, were rather lucky and the four goals they scored were more due to unforgivable defensive lapses than any creativity on part of the star forwardline. The Railways too had their chances, but blew them on the altar of poor finish.

IOCL profited on goals by Roshan Minz (1st), Deepak Thakur (50th), Prabhjot Singh (53rd) and Ramachandra Raghunath (61st), all of whom have donned India colours. For the Railways, it was the tireless duo of Chengappa (41st) and Md. Abdul Aleem (48th) who did the star turn.

IOCL began well enough with Minz finding the boards from Inderjit Singh Chadha's pass within the first minute and thereafter drew blank thanks to some wonderful defending by the Railwaymen.

On change of ends, Chenappa did a superb half-turn and scored after Aleem snatched the ball from Raghunath and passed inside the circle for the equalizer. Soon after, Aleem himself put Railways ahead (2-1) with a neat deflection of Chinglen Sana's pass.

The IOCL equalizer when Thakur slammed home a rebound off goalkeeper Suraj Kanta who blocked a Prabhjot attempt, was hotly disputed with Railways claiming an infringement on part of one of the rival forwards. After a brief hold-up the match resumed.

IOCL then took a grip on the match when Prabhjot put home a rebound after Kanta blocked a long hit from Raghunath who later converted a penalty corner for the last goal of the game.

Earlier, ONGC did well to shrug off an early reverse to put it past Punjab National Bank in an ill-tempered and scrappy game that threatened to get out of hand with both umpires, Pankaj Tyagi and Surya Prakash going soft on indiscipline.

ONGC were well-served by their schemer Pramod Kumar who played a key role as Balwinder Singh (18th), Gurwinder Singh (47th) and Jagwant Singh (55th) scored while PNB replied through Ranjit Singh (13th) and Bruno Lugun (52nd).

It was PNB who drew first blood, much against run of play when Ranjit deflected a Yudhvir Singh pass, but their lead was short-lived as ONGC equalized soon after when Balwinder found the net from a penalty corner.

On resumption, the game turned rather physical with players indulging in elbowing each other and rough tackles besides arguing umpiring decisions. However, ONGC looked the more composed unit and forged ahead when Gurwinder got a touch to Pramod Kumar's cross to take a 2-1 lead, but PNB equalized not long after as Lugun reached out to deflect a withering shot by Yudhvir to level the scores.

ONGC yet again stepped up the pace and Jagwant Singh let fly from a rebound after goalkeeper Jasbir Singh came up with yet another save, this time off Dharmender's attempt.

Thereafter, ONGC managed to sit on the lead to emerge deserving winners.

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PCB should compensate other sports bodies: PTF

Sat, Jul 24 10 09:57 PM

Karachi, July 24 (PTI) A senior official of Pakistan Tennis Federation today asked the Cricket Board to compensate the different sports bodies in the country for the refusal of foreign teams to tour Pakistan because of security reasons. Khawaja Saeed Hai, a former Davis Cupper and a PTF official, said it was due to the Pakistan Cricket Board that the militant attack on the Sri Lankan team had occurred in March last year. "It was after that deadly attack that foreign teams and players simply refused to visit Pakistan," Hai said. "And now it is clear from the inquiry report and other sources that the attack happened because of gross negligence on part of the Board and its failure to coordinate with the government in providing proper security to the Sri Lankan team," he said. Hai said the Board must be held responsible for the sad state of affairs in Pakistan sports. "Today no team or player is willing to tour Pakistan because of that one unfortunate incident. As a result, all other sports are suffering," he said. "More importantly because of no international events in Pakistan, sports bodies including the PTF are facing financial problems," he added. Hai demanded that the PCB start compensating all sports federations in the country so that they can send their players abroad for more international competitions. "The PCB must compensate all federations so that other sports don''t die out in the country. The PCB is financially the strongest sports body in the country and they must compensate us. I would soon approach the Pakistan Sports Board and Sports Ministry to take up the issue with the PCB," he said. He pointed out that Pakistan Davis Cup squad had been forced to play its last three home ties abroad and lost to New Zealand recently. "If the tie had been played in Pakistan I am sure we would have won it but because of that attack that took place because of the PCB''s poor organisation, other sports are also suffering." PTI CORR PDS

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Bad day for Force India at qualifying

Sat, Jul 24 10 09:47 PM

Hockenheim, July 24 (PTI) Force India faces a tough task to get points from tomorrow''s German Grand Prix as Adrian Sutil will start from 19th and Vitantonio Liuizzi from 22nd on the grid after a disastrous qualifying here today. Problems started during the last practice session when Sutil''s VJM03 encountered some technical problems and he could race just two laps without setting any time. Sutil, who will be racing for the first time at home in F1, made it to the Q2 but a penalty cost him five places. Italian Liuizzi could not progress beyond Q1 due to an accident and settled for 22nd position after just three laps. He completed three laps in Q1 but when exiting the final corner he ran wide onto the kerbs and hit a damp patch remaining from the earlier rain. The loss of grip sent him into a spin and unfortunately he speared across the track and into the pit wall, damaging the front of his VJM03. Sutil eased into Q2 with the 12th quickest time of the 20 minute opener. Despite improving on his time, he could not progress through to Q3. "Not really such a great day for us. The weekend started so well and in the rain the car was so strong, but it''s not gone right today. This morning I had a problem with the driveshaft and missed the whole session. We also had to change the gearbox as a result of the problem so we knew that we would be facing a tough challenge with the five place penalty we would get," Sutil said. "Then in qualifying I didn''t have any grip and the car was sliding around and we were only quick enough for 14th place. All the same it''s only qualifying and there''s a long race tomorrow where anything can happen.With a good strategy we can always go for a good result," he said. Liuzzi was disappointed with the happenings today. "I had had a good couple of laps but then I hit a wet patch on the kerb or on the grass that wasn''t visible from the track and it then started the accident. I lost the rear and was pushed out quite strongly across the track and into the wall. I wasn''t hurt, but it''s such a shame as we lost the qualifying and now have to start far down the grid. "We can still make up some places as we showed in the last race in Silverstone where I came back to 11th and under a second from the points, so the race pace is very strong - let''s see what we can do," he said. Chief operating officer Otmar Szafnauer said, "Obviously we''re disappointed with the session today. We were hoping for more in qualifying but had technical problems with driveshaft failure on Adrian''s car in FP3, which compromised his performance in qualifying. Tonio had an accident at the last corner, which eliminated him in Q1. But there''s no points for qualifying. Our long run pace this weekend on both cars has been strong and both Adrian and Tonio are real fighters who will keep pushing until the flag." PTI AT PDS

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Hockey India submits probe report to government, police

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 09:27 PM

New Delhi, July 24 (IANS) Hockey India (HI) Saturday told the government that it will not need the services of women's hockey coach M.K Kaushik in future and submitted a copy of its internal report to Delhi police for further investigation.

HI secretary general Narinder Batra said the written submission of Ranjitha Devi, who levelled allegations of sexual harassment against Kaushik, was 'highly credible.'

Batra said he has submitted the report of the internal probe committee, which looked into the allegations, to the Sports Authority of India (SAI), the sports ministry and has also marked a copy to the police commissioner.

Batra said they do not want to avail the services of Kaushik as also videographer Basavraj, who has been suspended after photos of him with a prostitute surfaced in the media.

'We have given our recommendations and since it is a serious issue we have also given a copy to the police commissioner. We have said that HI in future will not avail the services of M.K. Kaushik and Basavraj.

'HI feels that the written version of Ranjitha Devi was highly credible and it had some specific charges. But we cannot broaden the scope of our investigation and we do not like the matter to end here.

'The committee does not have coercive powers to go into the issue. In view of the Supreme Court judgement in the Visakha case regarding sexual harassment at work place, which relates to Section 354 of IPC (relating to outraging the modesty of a woman), we are marking a copy to the Delhi police Commissioner for taking suo moto notice so that this can be taken to its logical conclusion,' Batra told reporters.

Batra said they cannot recommend any action against Kaushik as it was not within the purview of the probe panel which did the preliminary inquiry.

'The matter needs to be enquired urgently so that such issues do not happen in future. We did the preliminary inquiry and handed over our report to the government, SAI and we have marked a copy to police to avoid any delay. This issue needs to be inquired and investigated urgently.'

Batra said the committee finalised its report after talking to various people including the team captain.

'We have spoken to the captain and she said the team stands by its view. There was no dissent among the players.'

Batra said HI is making the recommendations after noting down the suggestions made by the five-member committee in its report.

Batra also said the committee's demand for more time to inquire into the matter was rejected by HI since it would be logical that authorities take up the issue without any delay.

'Let the government of India or police file an FIR for investigating the matter,' he said.

Asked about Basavraj's case, Batra said: 'The assistant coaches have made written replies. One of them has admitted that the pictures of Basavraj with the prostitute were taken during the tour,' he said.

Kaushik resigned Wednesday, saying his position has become untenable after the charges levelled by Ranjitha Devi, who had the support of 31 girls in the camp.

The HI committee comprised Rajiv Mehta (chairman), Zafar Iqbal, Ajit Pal Singh, Sudharshan Pathak and Anupam Gulati.

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Vettel takes pole for home German GP

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 09:17 PM

Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel snatched pole position for his home German Grand Prix on Saturday after beating Ferrari's Fernando Alonso by barely the blink of an eye.

"Yes, baby!" shouted the 23-year-old local favourite, taking his sixth pole in 11 races and Red Bull's 10th, after denying Ferrari their first top slot since 2008 by a mere two thousandths of a second.

Vettel's fastest lap of one minute 13.791 seconds came right at the end of the session and Alonso, following him, could not match it.

"It would be interesting to calculate just how much it is," Vettel said of the time gap that clinched his third Formula One pole in succession and first in front of his home fans.

"Two thousandths of a second is not really the margin you are looking for," he added.

"The main challenge will be tomorrow. It will be a tough fight against the red cars I guess."

Brazilian Felipe Massa qualified third for Ferrari, a day before the first anniversary of the Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying crash that ended his 2009 season and left him in hospital with life-threatening head injuries.

Red Bull's Australian Mark Webber, winner of three races this season, was fourth after making a mistake and running wide.

MCLARENS TOGETHER

McLaren's world champion Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton, the overall leader, will line up alongside each other on the third row.

Button's fifth place was the first time he had outqualified Hamilton since China in April.

Double world champion Alonso, the quickest driver in the first two sessions, could at least be content with his first front row of the season after a string of setbacks in recent races.

"We have to be happy," said the Spaniard. "Finally we made a perfect Saturday. We lost pole by a very small margin but that is not important. The points come on Sunday, not Saturday."

Poland's Robert Kubica qualified seventh for Renault with Brazilian Rubens Barrichello eighth for Williams.

Two German Nicos, Rosberg for Mercedes and Hulkenberg for Williams, shared the fifth row at the expense of returning seven times champion Michael Schumacher who failed to make the final phase of qualifying and starts 11th for Mercedes.

Hulkenberg, managed by Schumacher's long-term commercial adviser Willi Weber, edged out his great compatriot in the dying seconds of the second phase.

The first part of qualifying was halted for eight minutes after Italian Vitantonio Liuzzi lost control of his Force India and smashed into the pitlane wall, spreading debris across the track.

His German team mate Adrian Sutil, who had suffered a driveshaft failure in final practice, qualified 14th but will be demoted five places on the starting grid for an unscheduled gearbox change.

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Kerala, Assam on course for Santosh Trophy pre-quarters

Sat, Jul 24 10 09:07 PM

Kolkata, July 24 (PTI) Kerala and Assam maintained their winning streak to keep their pre-quarterfinal hopes alive in the 64th National Football Championship for Santosh Trophy here today. In other matches of the day, the Railways brightened their last-16 chances with their second consecutive win, while Mizoram picked their first victory in cluster VIII fixtures. Kerala drubbed Himachal Pradesh 10-0 at Yuba Bharati Krirangan, while Assam registered a 7-0 win over Uttarakhand at Mohun Bagan ground in the cluster VII matches. Railways thrashed Orissa 4-0 at Howrah Stadium to take a lead in their cluster with six points. Mizoram recorded their maiden win in style with a 10-0 rout of Bihar at Khardah Stadium. Javed O K struck thrice (14th, 45+1st and 54th minutes), while Rajesh K (15th and 32nd) and Sakeer M P (28th, 70th) struck twice each in Kerala''s hammering of Himachal. Martin John (43rd), Bijesh Ben (55th) and Subair K P (83rd) completed the rout. Assam''s star striker Akum Ao continued his menacing form with two goals in the 31st and 46th minutes while Jelendra Brahma struck late in the 80th and 84th minutes to lead the rout. Ao had struck six goals in their 10-0 thrashing of Himachal Pradesh earlier. Sisuram C (8th), Ajit Singh (41st) and S Wary (50th) completed the tally for Assam who lead their cluster table on a better goal difference to Kerala. Assam and Kerala will lock horns on Monday to determine the pre-quarterfinalists. Bijoy Das (20th), S Freedy (27th) and D Nanda Kumar (36th) gave Railways a 3-0 lead at half-time before Suraj Mondal (61st) hit the final nail to dent Orissa''s chances. Railways need a point in their match against Mizoram on Monday to qualify for the pre-quarterfinals.

Source: Published>

CWG security: Delhi Police procuring armoured vehicles

Sat, Jul 24 10 08:51 PM

New Delhi, Jul 24 (PTI) Amid fears that terrorists might try to target the Commonwealth Games, Delhi Police is procuring armoured vehicles and will be forming a special commando force to ensure that the mega sporting event passes off without any trouble. Gearing up to the challenge of protecting sportspersons of 71 countries, the Delhi Police is making elaborate arrangements for the event to be held from October 3 to 14. "We will be getting three armoured cars. Delhi will be the first city in the country to use such vehicles in policing," Police Commissioner Y S Dadwal told PTI in an interview. "These vehicles will be moving around the city and (sometimes) stationed at venues," he said. The vehicles, each carrying 30 commandos, would be deployed to tackle eventualities like terror strikes. One batch of such commandos is ready while two batches are undergoing special training. Besides, the city police is procuring high-end gadgets and equipment. Its personnel are also being specially trained in frisking, search operations and screening baggage through X-Ray machines. Special training on enhancing communication skills and behavioural patterns are also being imparted. "The force will have a special commando force which will keep a hawk-eye vigil over the city," Dadwal said. Apart from around 80,000 Delhi Police personnel, over 17,500 paramilitary personnel, 3,000 specialised commandos and 100 anti-sabotage check teams will be deployed across the city. "There will be elaborate security arrangements for the Games. We have got Quick Reaction Teams, commandos and snippers to secure the event as well as the city," Dadwal said. When asked about Punjab Police claiming that Sikh militants may target the Games, the Commissioner said he was "not aware" of any threat to the event. "No. I have no information (about Punjab Police alert)," Dadwal said. To a question whether the delay in completion of Games-related projects was compromising security preparedness, he said all venues will be ready on time and he did not envisage any problem in this regard. "We know the stadia and the surrounding areas. We know the city very well. So securing them or other areas will not be a problem," the city police chief said. "As a preventive measure we have asked schools and colleges to remain closed during opening and closing ceremonies," Dadwal said. Asked whether he envisages any coordination problems with paramilitary forces which are also being drawn for security measures, he answered in the negative and said all the forces will work under his command and control. .

Source: Published>

Don''t lose focus: Former Pak players to Butt & Co.

Sat, Jul 24 10 08:37 PM

Karachi, Jul 24 (PTI) Former Pakistan cricketers today expressed happiness over the national team''s second Test win over Australia at Leeds but cautioned the players to not lose their focus and improve in the batting department. Pakistan''s former captain Javed Miandad said that the team still needs to pay lot of attention to their batting. "The bowlers did a wonderful job. But the batting still wobbled and I think it is the batting that has weak spots and they should be sorted out," Miandad, who is also director-general in the cricket board told PTI. Miandad paid rich tributes to captain Salman Butt stating he had led the team well and Pakistan appeared to have found a good future Test captain. "The team deserves all the accolades it is getting but let us not lose focus because we have another tough series coming up against England," Miandad stated. Former captain Zaheer Abbas also noted that while the bowlers had bowled remarkably well to exploit the helpful conditions on the first day, the batsmen were still not confident enough. "The batsmen need to develop the ability to play long and big innings in Test matches. We struggled in the run-chase so the batting still needs to be sorted out," Zaheer said. Former captain, Moin Khan said that he also remained concerned with the batting department. "It is a moment of joy that we have finally broken Australia''s winning streak and it is clear Salman Butt has the temperament to lead the team well," Moin said. "But the batsmen are struggling in English conditions and this was obvious today. This victory does not mean that we should forget about having Younus Khan and Muhammad Yousuf in the team." Moin said Pakistan had found some good talent but they needed to be groomed alongwith senior players. Chief selector Mohsin Khan said that the victory over Australia had come like a breath of fresh air for Pakistan cricket. "We desperately needed this win and I think the boys fought remarkably well and kept their nerves to win a close match. I pay rich tributes to the bowlers who put us in a position to win the match," Mohsin said. He said the performance of the youngsters showed that Pakistan had good back up talent in all departments of the game it just needed to be given proper chances and exposure. "The selectors have been trying to give chances to new players and our plan appears to be working but there is still lot of hard work to be done," he said. .

Source: Published>

Woman hockey player dropped from squad without reason

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 08:17 PM

Ranchi, July 24 (IANS) Woman hockey player Asuntha Lakra Saturday said she was dropped from the squad for the Asian Champions Trophy in Busan, South Korea at the last minute without any reason.

The Jharkhand player said she was to go with the team for the tournament beginning Tuesday.

Lakra said she was even given the air ticket.

'But just before the departure of the team to Busan I was told that another girl will go in my place. I was shocked to hear that. When I asked the team manager and other people, I was told to ask the national selectors. Preeti Kiro, who is also from Jharkhand, has been included in my place,' Lakra told reporters here Saturday.

Lakra has been a regular member of the national team for the past 10 year.

The issue has surfaced at a time when the Indian women's hockey team is embroiled in a controversy. The chief coach of the team M.K. Kaushik resigned following allegations of sexual harassment by a player Ranjitha Devi, who produced a letter of support signed by 31 players of the national camp.

Lakra, who hails from Simdega district, is working in the railways here.

Source: Web Search

Felix, Mariano retained as captain, coach for Santosh Trophy

Sat, Jul 24 10 08:07 PM

Panaji, Jul 24 (PTI) Sporting Clube de Goa keeper Felix, who captained Goa to Victory last year in the Santosh Trophy, will lead a 20-member squad in the National Football Championships which is underway in Kolkata. Goa, who won the title last year after beating Bengal, will leave for Kolkata on July 27. They play their first quarter-finals league match against Karnataka on July 29. Mariano Dias, who has been retained as the coach for the second year, is optimistic that they will do well to retain the title inspite of 10 players from last year''s team missing out on account of national duty and injuries. "Our team is a mixture of youth and experience. I have faith in my boys who show lot of promise. I am confident that they will defend the title. We have a lot of promising talent and I am happy the way things have gone so far," Dias said. "The only concern is the upfront in the absence of Joaquim Abranches who is out due to injury, where we lack sharpness in scoring goals. But we have Peter Carvalho who will be used as a makeshift striker," he said. "The first match against Karnataka is important and we must win to raise our confidence and things will fall in line," Dias said. .

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Modi seeks minutes of Special AGM, GC meets

Sat, Jul 24 10 07:57 PM

Mumbai, Jul 24 (PTI) Suspended Indian Premier League Chairman Lalit Modi has asked the Disciplinary Committee formed by the BCCI to provide him with minutes of meetings of the Special General Body of the Board and the IPL Governing Council held after his suspension, sources said today. In an application to the Disciplinary Committee yesterday, Modi has also asked for a copy of the amended agreement between the Board and Sony-MSM, they said. When contacted, Modi''s legal counsel Mehmood Abdi told PTI, "We have asked for some documents. These are crucial to the proceedings which are already underway as the disciplinary committee and the jurisdiction of the disciplinary committee flows from these documents." "It is essential for us to have access to these documents since the contents we''ve asked will have far-reaching implications for us. BCCI should provide us these documents as the same have implications on the co-issue of recusal, which the disciplinary committee is scheduled to finally decide at its meeting on July 27, 2010 in Delhi," he said. .

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I want to be number one again: Anand

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 07:37 PM

New Delhi, July 24 (IANS) Reigning world chess champion Viswanathan Anand wants to regain the number one position in the FIDE world rankings by the year-end.

Anand, who retained his world championship in May, has already resumed training to move to the top from world No 3 position.

To start with, the Grandmaster will play a tournament in Norway next month and in December he will travel to China, Spain and London to participate in major tournaments in a bid to improve upon his ranking.

Anand, who is currently behind Magnus Carlsen and Veseling Topalov, was world number one way back in July 2008.

Anand was quick to point out that the road to top is tough. 'Carlsen, Topalov, Vladmir Kramnik and Levon Aronian, all have a chance. It will be tough for me to get there.'

'I have resumed practice after a much needed break. I am motivated to be number one again. My strategy has always been of playing few tournaments. But now I realise I will have to play more often if I have to be number one,' Anand told IANS Saturday on the sidelines of NIIT 'Mind Champions' initiative to popularise chess among children.

There is very little that Anand has not achieved in the game of chess. He has won the world championship four times and the chess maestro from Chennai has also been bestowed with India's highest sporting honour, Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, in 1991.

Anand, however, said his career is far from over. 'Retiring from the sport has not crossed my mind and it is the last thing I can think of. I am only 40 and I will play as long as I can and enjoy playing. Right now I am focused and looking forward to the chess season.'

Anand has also been greatly responsible for popularising chess (especially among schoolboys and girls) in India. He along with NIIT has been trying to create awareness about the game ever since he won his first world title in 2000.

'We have about 8000 chess clubs, encompassing a million students across the country. The idea is to cover as many schools as possible. I am confident that if the 'Mind Champions' program is implemented properly, India will be the foremost chess nation once again,' added Anand.

Source: Web Search

My target is to regain world number one status: Anand

Sat, Jul 24 10 07:21 PM

New Delhi, Jul 24 (PTI) Having defended his World Championships title two months back, Indian Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand has set his eyes on regaining FIDE number one spot by the year end. "I wanted to win the world championship and now that I have done it, I will focus on ranking and regaining number one status by this year end," Anand said. Anand, who defended his world title against Bulgaria''s Veselin Topalov in May, said the priority, however, would be to win the big tournaments which are coming up in the next few months. "But I believe, I should focus on the board rather than the scoreboard because once I do that, the ranking will take care of itself," he said on the sidelines of a seminar on ''Role of Chess in Developing Young Minds'' here. "I have some big tournaments coming up in August, October and December in Spain, China and London. The emphasis would be to play in tournaments and win those as it will automatically lead to the surge in ranking," he explained. Anand is currently ranked third with 2800 ELO points, which he touched for the first time since April 2008. Norwegian prodigy Magnus Carlsen (2826) and Topalov (2803) are at the first and second spot respectively. Anand said he would not only try to win tournaments but also study the games of his opponents as he faces the winner of the Candidates Tournament for World Chess Championship 2012. "Magnus, who is currently number one, will pose a good challenge. Even Russia''s Vladimir Kramnik, Topalav they all are fighting in the challenger. So I would have to study their games to chalk strategies for World Championship of 2012," he said. The 40-year-old Indian has achieved literally everything in chess but he remains insatiable and said he doesn''t even want to think about his retirement. "I am still motivated to compete and I am doing well. It feels strange when people ask me about retirement. At times you don''t need targets. Thinking about retirement is a wrong attitude to have," said Anand, who in April 2007 became the oldest person to become world number one. In a career spanning more than two decades, Anand has seen the best and worst of times and he said it was in such moments he took to experimenting with his strategies and it helped him to improve. "There are times when one hits rock bottom. I had a bad phase in 2001 when I started losing. I feel in such times one should experiment more with the strategies, may be try a different opening, it will bring more variety," said the 2007 Padma Vibhushan awardee.

Source: Published>

Kamran's 'impressive batting' behind his selection in Test squad: PCB selector

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 07:17 PM

Karachi, July 24(ANI): Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief selector Mohsin Hasan Khan has said that wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal's 'impressive batting' is the reason why he continues to be selected in the Test squad despite serious keeping problems.

"The first reason is his impressive batting in comparison to other keepers in the domestic circuit. Yes, his keeping has been poor over the past little while, but it has to be remembered that his keeping is improving. In the recent matches that were played, he did extremely well behind the stumps and barely had any mistakes," PakPassion.net quoted Khan, as saying.

"However, the selectors have constantly kept tabs on his performances and he is not getting a free leash. He knows that if his performances continue to dip - he will be dropped immediately," he added.

Khan further admitted that the board is searching for talented and upcoming keepers.

"Backups are not only reserved for keepers of course. The selectors are constantly making sure that there are efficient backups for each and every first choice player because problems can arise at any time," he added.

Kamran has been constantly criticized for his poor wicket keeping by former cricketers and selectors.

He is infamous for the horrendous second test against Australia in Sydney earlier this year, where he dropped four catches, including three chances from Michael Hussey.

Hussey went on to score a match winning century, with the Pakistan team losing in a shock result after dominating the first three days of play.

Kamran was subsequently dropped for the third test, being replaced by Sarfraz Ahmed. (ANI)

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RCB's claim on Taylor will earn huge windfall for New Zealand Cricket

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 06:37 PM

London, Jul 24 (ANI): Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) has indicated they will exercise their right to select Ross Taylor in their 15-man Champions League squad, which would prove to be an unexpected windfall for New Zealand Cricket.

RCB will pay the 200,000 dollars transfer fee to NZC, to be divided up among the six major associations. Central Districts will receive the major share of the money, being the team that "supplies" Taylor to Bangalore.

Taylor's manager Leanne McGoldrick said they were working through a process with the organisers of the Champions League, which they hoped to have wrapped up today, the NZ Herald reports.

According to the Indian Premier League contracts, the franchises have first right of refusal over their contracted players, but they must buy them off their home team. Taylor also qualified for the Champions League through his short-term deal with Victoria.

Victoria have not named him in their initial squad of 20 because they know they won't have access to him, whereas protocol means both Central Districts and RCB will.

The Champions League is an invitation tournament. No New Zealand team was invited to the 2008 tournament.

New South Wales, winners of the inaugural 2009 tournament in India, received prize money of 2.5 million dollars. (ANI)

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Blanc makes debut by suspending French team

Sat, Jul 24 10 06:27 PM

Paris, July 23 -- New France coach Laurent Blanc on Friday has punished the country's farcical World Cup squad by dropping each of the 23 players for a friendly against Norway next month. Blanc's decision to take action was approved by the French Football Federation's (FFF) federal council after a meeting with Raymond Domenech's successor in Paris. France suffered a miserable World Cup campaign in South Africa, marked by striker Nicolas Anelka's expulsion after his foul-mouthed tirade at Domenech, infighting, and the players' refusal to train. 'Les Bleus' returned home in ignominy after failing to win any of their first round games, with Domenech refusing to shake South Africa coach Carlos Alberto Parriera's hand following the final defeat to the hosts. Blanc, who will release his squad for the Norway game on August 5, refused to elaborate on his decision to boycott the World Cup squad. France football has endured a woeful year, with Thierry Henry's controversial handball which put France into the World Cup at the expense of Ireland in the play-offs, their pitiful display in the competition itself, and then the scandal involving international stars Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema who this week put under investigation on charges of having sex with an under-age prostitute. The crisis that engulfed Domenech's last mission as national coach resulted in the resignation of FFF president Jean-Pierre Escalettes, with his successor due to be unveiled on Friday. Meanwhile France forward Franck Ribery, placed under judicial investigation by French authorities this week on suspicion of soliciting sex with an under-age prostitute, is depressed but not worried about his career.

But he added: "No, I'm not worried for my future or my career."

Source: Published>

Focus back on Indians

Sat, Jul 24 10 06:17 PM

Colombo, July 24 -- Somewhere in the bottom of their hearts, India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and coach Gary Kirsten would have thanked Pragyan Ojha on their journey from Galle to Colombo on Thursday. Not for his mediocre left-arm spin bowling but for becoming Muttiah Muralitharan's 800th Test victim. The historic moment took the focus away from India's dismal show in the first Test against Sri Lanka, which the hosts comfortably won by 10 wickets. India's overall performance was so pathetic that the Test, despite losing close to four sessions due to rain, finished 21 minutes after tea on the last day. While the bowlers failed to break partnerships, batsmen fell short of coming up with sizeable stands in both of India's innings with the bat. No doubt there were patches of brilliance in the first innings. Like Virender Sehwag's brisk century and Dhoni's short stand with Yuvraj Singh for the sixth wicket; and Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid's partnership on the fourth evening followed by VVS Laxman's heartening performance with the tail on the last morning. But none of these efforts lasted as long as they should have for India to earn a draw. Dhoni admitted that the lack of partnerships was one of the main reasons for his team's downfall. "Whenever we had some kind of a partnership going, the Sri Lankan bowlers came up with a beautiful delivery to get the batsman out," conceded Dhoni after the defeat in Galle. "Be it the first innings or the second innings, we were not really able to get any partnership going. Some of the deliveries they bowled were really difficult to keep out." While the Sri Lankan bowlers, led by Lasith Malinga and Muttiah Muralitharan did exactly what was expected of them, the less said about their Indian counterparts the better. While Abhimanyu Mithun had a decent Test debut, Ishant Sharma was clueless about what he was doing for most of his spells. As for spinners, the risk to field a half-fit Harbhajan Singh, recovering from a flu, backfired and Ojha didn't succeed in doing anything worth note. But Dhoni, who suffered only his second defeat in 14 Tests as captain, still backed his bowlers. "Overall I am quite happy with the performance of the bowlers. Of course we could have got more wickets, it could have been better, but they batted really well. They kept the good deliveries out," said Dhoni.

With the next two Tests slated to be played at the Sinhalese Sports Club and P Sara Oval, respectively - both venues that have seen tons of runs from Sri Lanka's middle order- winning a series in Sri Lanka for the first time in 17 years may just remain a dream for captain cool.

Source: Published>

Aamer's spell puts Pakistan on top

Sat, Jul 24 10 05:47 PM

Leeds, July 23 -- Steven Smith's scored a maiden half-century as his late assault on the Pakistan bowling helped Australia set a competitive target of 180 for Pakistan to win the second Test at Headingley on Friday. Australia were bowled out for 349 on the stroke of tea on the third day as number eight batter Smith butchered 77 in 100 balls. Pakistan scored 105 runs for the loss of a single wicket at the time of going to press. He began slowly but eventually smashed nine fours and two sixes, including two in succession off leg-spinner Danish Kaneria with the latter finding the roof of the rugby ground stand. Smith was the last man out, bowled by Umar Gul. Australia lost key wickets throughout the day in pleasant batting conditions but managed to eke out enough runs to set up what is likely to be a nervous chase for Pakistan, who have not beaten Australia in a Test for 15 years and must win to draw this two-match series. Australia's battling effort, after they were dismissed for a 26-year low 88 in the first innings, has given their bowlers something to fight with. Mohammad Aamer, the 18-year-old left-arm pace bowler, claimed all three wickets of the morning session and he finished with four for 86 as Australia's last five wickets raised 185 valuable runs. Michael Clarke scored a gritty 77 before he edged Mohammad Asif on the seventh ball after lunch to the wicketkeeper, while Tim Paine added 33. Skipper Ricky Ponting was out for 66 in the third over of the day when he chased a wide Aamer ball. The failure to finish off Australia's late order was a major frustration for Pakistan who saw Smith slap boundaries viciously off Asif and Gul through midwicket. They have lost their last 13 Tests against Australia - a record run for one country against another - and in Sydney in January were bowled out for 139 chasing a fourth innings victory target of 176. The various momentum swings were appreciated by a crowd that had swelled from the first two days when empty seats were widespread at the neutral venue. The East Stand was two thirds full as fans basked in the sun - a far cry from the overcast conditions of the first two days.

Source: Published>

Pakistan v Australia - second test scoreboard

Sat, Jul 24 10 05:37 PM

Scoreboard at the end of the second test between Pakistan and Australia at Headingley in Leeds, England, on Saturday.

Pakistan beat Australia by three wickets to draw the two-match series 1-1.

Australia first innings 88

Pakistan first innings 258 (Watson 6-33)

Australia second innings 349 (Ponting 66, Clarke 77, Smith 77)

Pakistan second innings (overnight 140-3)

Imran Farhat b Bollinger 67

Salman Butt c Clarke b Hilfenhaus 13

Azhar Ali c Paine b Bolinger 51

Umar Amin c Paine b Bollinger 0

Umar Akmal c Paine b Hilfenhaus 8

Shoaib Malik c North b Hilfenhaus 10

Kamran Akmal c Hussey b Johnson 13

Mohammad Aamer not out 5

Umar Gul not out 1

Extras (lb 7, nb 5) 12

Total (seven wickets; 50.4 overs) 180

Did not bat: Danish Kaneria, Mohammad Asif

Fall of wickets: 1-27 2-137 3-137 4-146 5-150 6-161 7-179

Bowling: D. Bollinger 13-2-51-3 (3nb), B. Hilfenhaus 13-2-39-3 (1nb), M. Johnson 10.4-1-41-1 (1nb), S. Watson 5-1-18-0, S. Smith 9-2-24-0.

Source: Published>

Indian challenge ends in Six-Red World Snooker

Sat, Jul 24 10 05:21 PM

New Delhi, Jul 24 (PTI) Veteran Yasin Merchant and Manan Chandra returned empty handed as they failed to register a single win in the preliminary stage of the Sangson Six-Red World Snooker Championship in Bangkok. With their ouster, Indian challenge came to an end in the six-day-long event. Merchant and Chandra lost all their respective five matches and failed to qualify for the pre-quarterfinal stage. Playing in Group ''C'', Merchant suffered twin defeats against Brazil''s Igor Figueiredo and England''s Stuart Bingham last night. Chandra in his group ''D'' went down to Hong Kong''s Fung Kwok Wai. Merchant failed to showcase his cue control and masterly dipping of the multicoloured for which he is famous for and lost 02-38 36-11 22-33 00-55 10-38 43-17 04-35 to Bingham in his first clash of the day. Against Figueiredo, the bespectacled Merchant showed nerves of steal in a highly pressure situation but failed to turn the table on Brazilian. Busan Asian Games gold medallist Merchant went down 44-14 00-49 17-44 00-43 24-27 44-29 37-00 41-24 18-37 against Figueiredo to finish his league standings at 5-0. Chandra once again failed to lift his game at the crucial junctures and lost (4-5) 44-20 08-60 01-53 38-19 52-03 00-54 36-22 00-52 02-38 to Kwok Wai. Kwok Wai kept Chandra under pressure with lovely safety positional play and dipped the coloured ball in different pockets with touch of softness.

Source: Published>

Pallikal, Suchde crash out of Malaysian Open squash

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 05:17 PM

India's challenge at the Malaysian Open Squash championship came to a premature end after qualifiers Dipika Pallikal and Siddharth Suchde bowed out in the first round of the tournament in Kuala Lumpur.

Asian junior champion Pallikal went down fighting to eighth seed Laura Massaro of England 11-9 9-11 11-9 8-11 9-11 in the USD 53,500 WISPA World Tour Gold event at the the Bukit Jalil National Squash Centre last night.

Meanwhile in the USD 52,500 PSA Five-Star event, Suchde, world ranked 88, suffered a crushing 4-11 7-11 9-11 defeat at the hands of top seed Mohamed El Shorbagy of Egypt to bow out in just 33 minutes.

Earlier in the final round of the qualifiers, Pallikal had defeated local girl Siti Munirah Jusoh 9-11 11-6 11-6 11-6, while Suchde got the better of USA's Gilly Lane 11-7 11-9 6-11 11-8.

Source: Web Search

Women hockey player dropped from Asian Champions Trophy without reason

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 05:07 PM

Ranchi (Jharkhand), July 24 (ANI): Women hockey player Asuntha Lakra has alleged that she was dropped from the Asian Champions Trophy squad after selection without any reason.

The player contented that she was given air ticket for the tournament to be held in Busan, South Korea from July 27-31.

Lakra, who has been part of the team for a long time now, did enquire about the shoddy treatment but no official reply has come so far.

"I came to know before departure of the team that another girl is going for the tournament in my place. Then I asked the manager in front of entire team that why I am not going? She replied with folded hands that please don't ask me, ask Hockey India," said Asuntha Lakra.

"Preeti Kiro of Jharkhand has been included in my place," she added.

The team left for Busan under the captaincy of Surinder Kaur.

India will begin their Asian Champions Trophy campaign against Japan on July 27. Other teams are hosts South Korea, China and Japan. (ANI)

Source: Web Search

Bopanna-Vliegen in semifinal of Atlanta Tennnis Championships

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 04:57 PM

Atlanta (USA), July 24 (IANS) India's Rohan Bopanna and Kristof Vliegen of Belgium defeated Jonathan Erlich of Israel and Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia in a tough duel to reach the semi-finals of the Atlanta Tennis Championships.

Third seeded Bopanna and Kristof won 3-6, 7-6 (7), 10-8 Friday and will now play Stephen Huss of Australia and Brazilian Andre Sa in the $531,000 hardcourt event.

Huss and Sa got a walk over from Americans Andy Roddick and Mardy Fish.

The other semi-final will be a contest between American pairs -- James Blake and John Isner and Scott Lipsky and Rajeev Ram.

Blake and Isner went past Germany's Michael Kohlmann and Rainer Schuettler 6-4, 6-1 while Lipsky and Ram beat Kevin Anderson of South Africa and Michael Russell of US 7-6 (2), 7-6 (9).

Source: Web Search

Court issues arrest warrants against Preity Zinta, Ness Wadia

Sat, Jul 24 10 01:51 PM

Chandigarh, July 24 (PTI) A local court today issued arrest warrants against IPL franchise Kings XI Punjab co-owners actress Preity Zinta and industrialists Ness Wadia and Mohit Burman for failing to appear before it on a complaint accusing them of not filing its balance sheets and annual returns. The bailable warrants were issued by Chief Judicial Magistrate J S Sidhu after neither the three co-owners nor their counsels appeared before the court on a complaint filed by the Registrar of Companies (ROC) here. However, another co-owner and industrialist Karan Paul''s counsel appeared before the court and submitted that he would appear in person on the next date of hearing. The court later adjourned the case till October 4. The court had in April issued notice to the four co-owners of KXIP and fixed July 24 as the next date of hearing. The prosecution submitted that the co-owners of the company had tried to conceal the financial position of KPH Dreams, which owns KXIP, from the public by not filing the balance sheets and annual returns. In our complaint, "we had submitted that the Mohali franchise had not filed any annual return and balance sheet since it came into existence," Gaurav Hooda, counsel for the ROC, said today.

Source: Published>

Kiwi administrator Anderson rules himself out as Howard's replacement for ICC post

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 01:47 PM

Wellington, Jul 24 (ANI): New Zealand administrator Sir John Anderson, who lost the ICC vote to former Australian premier John Howard, has ruled himself out as a nominee for ICC vice president's post.

It was NZC and Cricket Australia's (CA) turn to jointly nominate a candidate, but original nominee Howard was last month rejected by the ICC, who said he did not have sufficient support on its board.

The ICC executive asked the two countries to re-nominate their candidate for the role by August 31, with Sir John touted as a likely replacement.

But Sir John did not wish to pursue the option; Stuff.co.nz quoted NZC chairman Alan Isaac, as saying on Saturday.

"In light of ICC's rejection of the nomination of John Howard, I approached Sir John Anderson to assess his availability for the role. Unfortunately, Sir John advised me that he is not available to be considered as a possible nominee," Isaac said.

"The NZC Board respects Sir John's position and acknowledges the outstanding contribution he has made to game of cricket. We have recommenced discussions with Cricket Australia around a proposed a way forward," he added.

NZC chief executive Justin Vaughan had hinted this month that Sir John might not be available.

NZC and Cricket Australia (CA) had expressed deep disappointment at the ICC decision not to support Howard.

Under ICC rules, the nominee serves as vice-president for two years before graduating to the presidency.

Howard was put forward as the joint nomination from Australia and New Zealand, ahead of respected New Zealand cricket administrator and businessman Sir John, on the recommendations of an Australian-chaired sub-committee. (ANI)

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Man U 'retains' Vidic with whopping 18-mn pound deal

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 01:37 PM

London, Jul 24 (ANI): Serbian defender Nemanja Vidic has agreed to stay at Manchester United for a whopping 18 million pounds, ending Jose Mourinho's bid to lure him to Real Madrid.

United boss Sir Alex Ferguson moved to keep the 28-year-old defender by making him one of the highest earners at the club. Vidic will earn 90,000 pounds -a-week.

Vidic was signed for seven million pounds in 2006, and had two years remaining on a 70,000 pounds-a-week deal.

United have offered Vidic a two-year extension and improved terms on his remaining two years to take his deal to a massive 18.72 million pounds, The Sun reports.

"I am very pleased to confirm we agreed terms with Nemanja on a new long-term deal. We've shaken hands on it and we're confident it will be signed in early August. It's great news," United chief executive David Gill said.

Vidic's decision to stay is a huge boost given Rio Ferdinand's fitness problems.

Gill will also discuss a new contract with Wayne Rooney, 24, who has two years to run on his current deal.

"The intention is to meet with Wayne and his advisors when he's back from holiday with a view to sorting out a new deal for him," Gill said. (ANI)

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Cole can escape personal life backlash by quitting Chelsea for Real Madrid: Higuain

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 01:21 PM

London, Jul 24 (ANI): Quitting Chelsea for Real Madrid will help England defender Ashley Cole escape the ongoing backlash from his private life believes Real Madrid's Argentine superstar Gonzalo Higuain.

Cole has struggled to keep a low profile since his highly publicised split from pop star wife Cheryl Tweedy and his public image hit an all-time low when he declared that he hated the people of England after the nation's World Cup disaster.

Higuain has now urged Cole to catch the Madrid lifeline being thrown to him by former Blues boss Jose Mourinho.

"At Madrid, Cole's football will make all the headlines, not his private life. I think that will be a big incentive for him. I have spoken with a couple of senior players who the club confide in and they are very confident that we will sign him in the next few weeks," The Sun quoted Higuain, as saying.

"Once players have played for Jose Mourinho, they seem to want to follow him. Jose is very much like Argentina coach Diego Maradona in the sense that he will lay down his life for his players.

"It's everybody inside the club versus the rest of the world and that protection which the coach offers is a real incentive. Ashley will know all about Jose's passion and love for his players and I am sure he is keen to link up with him again," Higuain said.

It was Mourinho who, in 2006, controversially lured Cole to Chelsea from Arsenal and striker Higuain is convinced that history is about to repeat itself at Madrid. (ANI)

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Sehwag, Laxman depart; India in trouble

Sat, Jul 24 10 01:07 PM

New Delhi, July 21 -- India lost quick wickets, in the form of Virendra Sehwag and VVS Laxman to Lankan bowlers on day four of the first cricket test against Sri Lanka in Galle. The Indians are still about 60 runs behind to avoid follow-on and more than 250 runs to avoid Sri Lanka's first innings declared total of 520/8

For scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary, click here.

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'Rash' Akmal needs to quickly get over his Twenty20 hangover: Waqar

Published>Sat, Jul 24 10 12:37 PM

Leeds, Jul 24 (ANI): Pakistan's coach Waqar Younis has denied that his batsmen had been tainted by Twenty20 cricket with the exception of Umar Akmal.

"Definitely I would say that about Umar Akmal. I think he's a little rash when it comes to Test-match cricket, maybe he's just played too much Twenty20," Waqar said.

"He's very young, so he's still learning. He's no doubt a very talented cricketer, he's got all the shots in the book, but he's just got to learn quickly. Trying to control him - it sometimes gets hard. He is very young; it takes a bit of time, I guess," he said.

In December 2009, Akmal, then 19, stunned Australia with 51 in the Boxing Day Test at the MCG. The knock included three thumping boundaries and a six off a single Peter Siddle over. In his eight subsequent innings against Australia he has failed to reach 50, averaging 24.5, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

Waqar said the biggest failing of his team's first innings, rather than the manner of dismissals, was the inability to build any partnerships outside of the 80 compiled by openers Butt and Imran Farhat.

"We didn't really get the partnership going apart from the top partnership and then the odd one in the middle as well. Thirty- or 40-odd, we didn't really get the partnerships of 70 or 80 runs.

"It's been lacking and it's just because we have got pretty young players in the middle order. If you look at numbers three [Azhar Ali], four [Umar Amin] and even five [Umar Akmal], they're very new in this [Test] arena, so I think we've got to give them a little bit of margin," Waqar said."

Despite the inclusion of the more-experienced Shoaib Malik in the team for this match, Waqar said there were no plans to shift him up the order to bolster the experience of its top-order. (ANI)

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