Rooney ends goal famine as Man Utd crush West Ham

Sun, Aug 29 10 12:37 AM

Wayne Rooney scored his first goal since March as Manchester United beat West Ham United 3-0 in the Premier League at Old Trafford on Saturday.

Rooney, who had not found the net since the Champions League quarter-final first leg against Bayern Munich, converted a first-half penalty after Ryan Giggs was brought down by Jonathan Spector.

Nani doubled United's lead five minutes into the second half with a superb finish from Rooney's clever lay-off and Dimitar Berbatov completed an easy victory to leave West Ham without any points and bottom of the table.

United have seven points from three matches, level with Arsenal and two behind leaders Chelsea.

Source: Published>

Batsmen failed, I have no complaints on losing: Dhoni

Sun, Aug 29 10 12:21 AM

Dambulla (Sri Lanka), Aug 28 (PTI) Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni today said he has no complaints in his side''s tri-series summit clash loss to Sri Lanka here, saying that his batsmen let them down by not applying themselves. "Out batsmen failed again. We got the starts but did not spend enough time in the middle. If we had batsmen to bat all the overs we could have chased down the target. We should have played the remaining four five overs," Dhoni said after his side''s 74-run loss to Sri Lanka here. "It is sad we lost today. But credit to Sri Lanka they played better cricket today. They batted and bowled well. They have been playing some good cricket throughout the series. The side which played better cricket on that day should win. I have no complaints," added Dhoni whose sequence of four consecutive series triumphs on Sri Lankan soil ended today. Dhoni said his side were also found short on other two departments of the game though the batting failure cost them the most. "We could have done better in fielding and bowling also. Our bowlers gave Sri Lankan batsmen a bit of width and that''s one thing you don''t want to do to Tillakaratne Dilshan. He smashed us all around the park. In contrast, their bowlers bowled really well and kept the pressure on us," said Dhoni. The youngsters in the team failed to impress but Dhoni felt they must have learnt a lot from this tri-series. "They must have learnt a lot from this tournament. The conditions in Dambulla is something which you don''t get in the sub-continenet. So in a way it was a good learning curve for them," he said. Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara said his side had an all-round performance in the final today. "It was a good toss to win. The way the openers batted -- we talked a lot about getting through the first 10 overs. Mahela (Jayawardene) and Dilshan started well. Dilshan continued to bat really well," he said. "Thisara Perera lengthens our batting but his bowling has been very impressive in the last couple of games. Champaka Ramanayake has to take a lot of credit. He has done a great job with the fast bowlers. The discipline in line and length has been the real key for us," said Sangaakkara. Man-of-the-Match Dilshan said he was happy to score big today after failing to convert the starts he got in the last three innings. "The last three innings I got a start but didn''t capitalise. I thought today I should do it. We have lost the last three finals here against India. Everyone came and performed well today," he said. Indian opener Virender Sehwag won the Man-of-the-Series Award for his 268 runs from five matches, including a century, in the tournament.

Source: Published>

Dilshan ton helps Sri Lanka destroy India in final

Sun, Aug 29 10 12:17 AM

A brilliant century by opener Tillakaratne Dilshan led Sri Lanka to a crushing 74-run win over India in the final of the Tri-series on Saturday.

Dilshan bludgeoned 12 fours and a six to help the hosts amass a total of 299 for eight after choosing to bat first.

He shared a run-a-ball opening stand of 121 with Mahela Jayawardene (39) and also added 85 in 96 balls for the third wicket with captain Kumar Sangakkara (71).

In reply India lost Dinesh Karthik for a duck in the first over and their hopes took a serious dent when the in-form Virender Sehwag followed for 28.

Opener Sehwag, the leading run-scorer in the tournament, was run out by a direct hit as he attempted to steal a leg bye.

India then lost wickets regularly and only skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni was able to offer resistance, top-scoring with 67 as his side were bowled out for 225.

Sri Lanka medium-pacer Thisara Perera and off-spinner Suraj Randiv shared six wickets.

Source: Published>

Dilshan's century guides Sri Lanka to a thumping win

Published>Sun, Aug 29 10 12:09 AM

Dambulla, Aug 28 (IANS) Tillakaratne Dilshan scored a fine century to guide Sri Lanka to a thumping 74-run win over India in the Triangular Series final at the Ranagiri Satdium here Saturday.

Dilshan hit 110, and with an 85-run stand with skipper Kumar Sangakkara (71) took the hosts to 299 for eight. Dilshan was also adjudged as the Man of the Match while Indian batsman Virender Sehwag was the Man of the Series.

In reply, India faltered right from the start and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's fighting 67 went in vain as the visitors folded up for just 225 runs in 46.5 overs.

Seamer Thissara Perera wrecked the Indian batting with his three for 36 while Suraj Randiv and Lasith Malinga each picked up two wickets.

Sehwag (28), Virat Kohli (37) and Suresh Raina (29) got the starts but could not convert it into a big total.

Opener Dinesh Karthik was the first to depart in the sixth ball of the innings for a duck off Lasith Malinga.

Sehwag then took on the Sri Lankan bowling attack with a flurry of boundaries off Nuwan Kulasekera and Angelo Mathews. But the fiery show was short-lived as Sehwag was run out trying to attempt a non-existent leg bye.

Yuvraj Singh (26) also returned to the pavilion, well caught by Sangakkara.

Dhoni and Raina then tried to do the repair act with their 49 runs for the fifth wicket. In a bid to step up the run rate, Raina went for a big hit but mistimed it and Dilshan took a well-judged catch at the cover region.

Source: Web Search

Scoreboard: India vs Sri Lanka, tri-nation ODI final

Published>Sun, Aug 29 10 12:07 AM

Dambulla, Aug 28 (IANS) The following is the scoreboard of the tri-nation ODI series final between India and Sri Lanka at the Ranagiri International Stadium here Saturday.

Sri Lanka:

Mahela Jayawardene c Karthik b Ishant 39

Tillekaratne Dilshan c Ishant b Kumar 110

Upul Tharanga c Dhoni b Yuvraj 6

Kumar Sangakkara c Rohit b Patel 71

Chamara Kapugedera c Karthik b Nehra 12

Angelo Mathews c Rohit b Ishant 1

Chamara Silva not out 26

Thisara Perera c Dhoni b Patel 6

Suraj Randiv run out (Patel) 4

Nuwan Kulasekara not out 0

Extras (lb 12, w 12) 24

Total (for eight wickets in 50 overs) 299

Fall of wickets: 1-121 (Jayawardene, 20.2 overs), 2-132 (Tharanga, 23.4), 3-217 (Dilshan, 39.5), 4-242 (Kapugedera, 42.3), 5-258 (Mathews, 43.6), 6-261 (Sangakkara, 44.4), 7-294 (Perera, 49.1), 8-298 (Randiv, 49.5)

Bowling:

Praveen Kumar 10-0-72-1

Munaf Patel 9-1-43-2

Ashish Nehra 10-0-60-1

Ishant Sharma 8-0-54-2

Yuvraj Singh 8-0-37-1

Virender Sehwag 5-0-21-0

India:

Virender Sehwag run out (Kapugedera) 28

Dinesh Karthik c Sangakkara b Malinga 0

Virat Kohli c Mathews b Perera 37

Yuvraj Singh c Sangakkara b Perera 26

Mahendra Singh Dhoni b Randiv 67

Suresh Raina c Dilshan b Randiv 29

Rohit Sharma st Sangakkara b Randiv 5

Praveen Kumar b Malinga 14

Ishant Sharma b Perera 0

Ashish Nehra c Perera b Mathews 2

Munaf Patel not out 0

Extras (b 4, lb 1, w 8, nb 4) 17

Total (all out in 46.5 overs) 225

Fall of wickets: 1-9 (Karthik, 0.6 overs), 2-38 (Sehwag, 5.6), 3-88 (Yuvraj Singh, 15.2), 4-109 (Kohli, 21.1), 5-158 (Raina, 30.4), 6-177 (Rohit, 34.1), 7-201 (Kumar, 37.6), 8-210 (Ishant, 41.5), 9-224 (Nehra, 45.5)

Bowling:

Lasith Malinga 9-0-49-2

Nuwan Kulasekara 9-0-47-0

Angelo Mathews 10-0-48-1

Thisara Perera 9-2-36-3

Suraj Randiv 9.5-1-40-3

Toss: Sri Lanka, who chose to bat

Result: Sri Lanka won by 74 runs

Player of the match: Tillkeratne Dilshan (Sri Lanka)

Player of the series: Virender Sehwag (India)

Umpires: Asad Rauf (Pakistan) and Asoka de Silva

Match referee: Alan Hurst (Australia)

Source: Web Search

Dilshan's century guides Sri Lanka to a thumping win

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 11:57 PM

Dambulla, Aug 28 (IANS) Tillakaratne Dilshan scored a fine century to guide Sri Lanka to a thumping 74-run win over India in the Triangular Series final at the Ranagiri Satdium here Saturday.

Dilshan hit 110, and with an 85-run stand with skipper Kumar Sangakkara (71) took the hosts to 299 for eight. Dilshan was also adjudged as the Man of the Match while Indian batsman Virender Sehwag was the Man of the Series.

In reply, India faltered right from the start and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's fighting 67 went in vain as the visitors folded up for just 225 runs in 46.5 overs.

Seamer Thissara Perera wrecked the Indian batting with his three for 36 while Suraj Randiv and Lasith Malinga each picked up two wickets.

Sehwag (28), Virat Kohli (37) and Suresh Raina (29) got the starts but could not convert it into a big total.

Opener Dinesh Karthik was the first to depart in the sixth ball of the innings for a duck off Lasith Malinga.

Sehwag then took on the Sri Lankan bowling attack with a flurry of boundaries off Nuwan Kulasekera and Angelo Mathews. But the fiery show was short-lived as Sehwag was run out trying to attempt a non-existent leg bye.

Yuvraj Singh (26) also returned to the pavilion, well caught by Sangakkara.

Dhoni and Raina then tried to do the repair act with their 49 runs for the fifth wicket. In a bid to step up the run rate, Raina went for a big hit but mistimed it and Dilshan took a well-judged catch at the cover region.

Source: Web Search

Scoreboard: India vs Sri Lanka, tri-nation ODI final

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 11:47 PM

Dambulla, Aug 28 (IANS) The following is the scoreboard of the tri-nation ODI series final between India and Sri Lanka at the Ranagiri International Stadium here Saturday.

Sri Lanka:

Mahela Jayawardene c Karthik b Ishant 39

Tillekaratne Dilshan c Ishant b Kumar 110

Upul Tharanga c Dhoni b Yuvraj 6

Kumar Sangakkara c Rohit b Patel 71

Chamara Kapugedera c Karthik b Nehra 12

Angelo Mathews c Rohit b Ishant 1

Chamara Silva not out 26

Thisara Perera c Dhoni b Patel 6

Suraj Randiv run out (Patel) 4

Nuwan Kulasekara not out 0

Extras (lb 12, w 12) 24

Total (for eight wickets in 50 overs) 299

Fall of wickets: 1-121 (Jayawardene, 20.2 overs), 2-132 (Tharanga, 23.4), 3-217 (Dilshan, 39.5), 4-242 (Kapugedera, 42.3), 5-258 (Mathews, 43.6), 6-261 (Sangakkara, 44.4), 7-294 (Perera, 49.1), 8-298 (Randiv, 49.5)

Bowling:

Praveen Kumar 10-0-72-1

Munaf Patel 9-1-43-2

Ashish Nehra 10-0-60-1

Ishant Sharma 8-0-54-2

Yuvraj Singh 8-0-37-1

Virender Sehwag 5-0-21-0

India:

Virender Sehwag run out (Kapugedera) 28

Dinesh Karthik c Sangakkara b Malinga 0

Virat Kohli c Mathews b Perera 37

Yuvraj Singh c Sangakkara b Perera 26

Mahendra Singh Dhoni b Randiv 67

Suresh Raina c Dilshan b Randiv 29

Rohit Sharma st Sangakkara b Randiv 5

Praveen Kumar b Malinga 14

Ishant Sharma b Perera 0

Ashish Nehra c Perera b Mathews 2

Munaf Patel not out 0

Extras (b 4, lb 1, w 8, nb 4) 17

Total (all out in 46.5 overs) 225

Fall of wickets: 1-9 (Karthik, 0.6 overs), 2-38 (Sehwag, 5.6), 3-88 (Yuvraj Singh, 15.2), 4-109 (Kohli, 21.1), 5-158 (Raina, 30.4), 6-177 (Rohit, 34.1), 7-201 (Kumar, 37.6), 8-210 (Ishant, 41.5), 9-224 (Nehra, 45.5)

Bowling:

Lasith Malinga 9-0-49-2

Nuwan Kulasekara 9-0-47-0

Angelo Mathews 10-0-48-1

Thisara Perera 9-2-36-3

Suraj Randiv 9.5-1-40-3

Toss: Sri Lanka, who chose to bat

Result: Sri Lanka won by 74 runs

Player of the match: Tillkeratne Dilshan (Sri Lanka)

Player of the series: Virender Sehwag (India)

Umpires: Asad Rauf (Pakistan) and Asoka de Silva

Match referee: Alan Hurst (Australia)

Source: Web Search

Sri Lanka beat India by 74 runs, clinch tri-series

Sat, Aug 28 10 11:07 PM

Dambulla, Aug 28 (PTI) Sri Lanka clinched the cricket tri-series title after beating India by 74 runs in the final here today. Brief Scores: Sri Lanka: 299 for 8 in 50 overs (Tillakaratne Dilshan 110, Kumar Sangakkara 71; Munaf Patel 2/43, Ishant Sharma 2/54). India: 225 all out in 46.5 overs (Mahendra Singh Dhoni 67, Thisara Perera 3/36, Suraj Randiv 3/40).

Source: Published>

Sri Lanka beat India in tri-nation final

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 10:57 PM

Dambulla, Aug 28 (IANS) Sri Lanka defeated India by 74 runs in the final of the tri-nation ODI series at the Ranagiri International Stadium here Saturday.

Chasing a target of 300, India were all out for 225 in 46.5 overs. Mahendra Singh Dhoni top scored with 67.

Source: Web Search

Newcastle clinch deal for Marseille's Ben Arfa

Sat, Aug 28 10 10:37 PM

Newcastle United won the race to sign French midfielder Hatem Ben Arfa on Saturday, agreeing a deal with Olympique Marseille for a one-season loan with an option to make the transfer permanent.

"We think he will add flair to the squad and we're confident he will fit in well with the team we have put together here," Newcastle manager Chris Hughton told the club's website (www.nufc.co.uk).

The 23-year-old attacking midfielder had been linked with several clubs around Europe after becoming involved in a tense stand-off with Marseille, missing close-season training sessions as he sought an exit from the Ligue 1 side.

Marseille had kept hold of him after their Senegalese striker Mamadou Niang, last season's top scorer in Ligue 1 with 18 goals, left for Turkish side Fenerbahce but they have since signed forwards Loic Remy and Andre-Pierre Gignac.

"It was always my first choice to come here and I'm delighted to be here," Ben Arfa told the Newcastle website (www.nufc.co.uk).

"All I'm waiting for is to show what I can do in front of the public in Newcastle. A lot of my friends in France already know the fans' reputation."

A gifted playmaker, Ben Arfa cost Marseille 11 million euros ($13.99 million) when he signed from Olympique Lyon in 2008 and has been capped eight times by France, scoring in their recent friendly against Norway.

However, he was left out of the squad for both the 2008 European championships and this year's World Cup in South Africa.

As a youngster he trained in the famous Clairefontaine academy and in 2004 won the Under-17 European Championship alongside the likes of Karim Benzema.

He has also lifted four French titles with Lyon and one more with Marseille last season although he failed to earn a place as a regular starter at either club.

Source: Published>

Webber beats the rain to claim pole for Belgian GP

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 10:17 PM

Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium), Aug 28 (DPA) Championship leader Mark Webber of Red Bull put in a flying lap before the rain returned Saturday to claim pole position for Sunday's Belgian Formula One Grand Prix.

The Australian, who celebrated his 34th birthday Friday, clocked a time of 1 minute 45.778 seconds for the 7.004-kilometre Spa-Franchorchamps circuit to secure the sixth pole of his career.

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton snatched second spot after registering a lap-time 0.085 seconds slower than Webber.

'I pushed to the limit and it was enough for me to have pole halfway through the session,' said Webber.

'It was one of those days when things can easily go wrong.'

Hamilton could have secured pole position himself but paid the price for an error on turn one.

'It was such a tricky qualifying session where the weather conditions were constantly changing,' he said.

'We're on the front row. The positive thing is that we are there in the fight.'

Robert Kubica of Renault was a surprising third while Sebastian Vettel, who claimed the previous four poles, had to be satisfied with fourth on the grid in the second Red Bull this time around.

Defending champion Jenson Button of McLaren was fifth ahead of Felipe Massa of Ferrari while the Brazilian's team-mate Fernando Alonso qualified down in 10th spot.

Michael Schumacher qualified one spot above Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg in 11th place after both drivers were eliminated at the end of the second session.

However, the seven-time world champion has a 10-place penalty to serve following his actions in the Hungarian GP earlier this month when he nearly forced Rubens Barrichello into the pit-wall.

Webber heads the drivers' standings with 161 points ahead of Sunday's race, the 13th of the season. Hamilton sits in second spot, four points adrift, followed by Vettel on 151 and Button on 147 points.

Alonso also remains in the title hunt in fifth place on 141 points.

Source: Web Search

Theme song for 2010 C'wealth Games launched

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 10:07 PM

Gurgaon, Aug.28 (ANI): Music maestro A.R. Rahman on Saturday enthralled the audience with "Jiyo, Utho, Badho, Jeeto", the theme song for the Commonwealth Games 2010 Delhi at Kingdom of Dreams, Gurgaon.

Rahman performed the Theme Song live during the launch at the Kingdom of Dreams, Gurgaon.

Talking about the song, Rahman said: "It has not been easy. Got the first lines six months ago and a lot of modifications have gone in, post that. I kept tweaking it and finally finished it last night," Rahman added.

He had been working on the composition of the song for the past six months.

Rahman will also perform the song during the Opening Ceremony of the Games of the Commonwealth Games 2010 Delhi, on October 3.elhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda were also present at the theme song launch function.

Suresh Kalmadi, Chairman of the Organising Committee for Commonwealth Games 2010 Delhi on this occasion exhorted the city and the nation to welcome Delhi 2010 with open arms.

"Rahman is one of the jewels of India and he has done an excellent job with the Theme Song for the Delhi 2010. I urge people to come out, cheer the athletes and be a part of this sporting extravaganza," he said.

"We promise that we will give you great games and we have to live up to that promise. Let there be no doubt about it at all.

Everybody is working like a team- Team India. We will have great opening and closing ceremonies that will depict 5000 years of Indian culture. We can and we will make these Games as best ever games," Kalmadi added

Also present on this occasion was Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, who said: "I join everybody else in the belief that the Games which have come to India for the first time will be the most memorable Commonwealth Games ever. I believe that Delhi with India behind it will be able to achieve what a lot of people think it can't. Delhi is India's capital and the success of these Games will be the pride of all of us. We could not have got a better person than Mr. Rahman to make us swing and play during the games."

On this occasion, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, said: "Commonwealth Games will be celebrated like a festival which has begun today. We will provide our whole hearted support to Mr. Kalmadi and his team for Delhi 2010. As far as the medal tally is concerned, I wish to reassure our countrymen that Haryana will have the top position in domestic tally with our performance as we had done in the Beijing Olympics. The games are a matter of pride not only for the city of Delhi, but for Haryana and the rest of the country also."(ANI)

Source: Web Search

Sohail questions Pak coaches'' credentials

Sat, Aug 28 10 09:53 PM

Karachi, Aug 28 (PTI) Former Pakistan captain Aamir Sohail today questioned the credentials of the national team coaches and claimed that they don''t have much knowledge about the jobs they are doing. The outspoken former cricketer, who has also served as the chief selector, said he was appalled at the way Pakistan allowed England to take control of the fourth Test at Lords. "Where is the coaching and support staff? At times it seems they don''t know anything at all about their jobs. In fact, I don''t think they know about their job descriptions," Sohail said. Pakistan allowed England to recover from a precarious 50 for five to 347 for seven at stumps on the second day with some clear tactical blunders being noticed on the field by the captain and other players. Sohail feels that in modern day cricket the role of the support staff specially the coaches was paramount and play a big part in any team''s success or defeat. "I don''t know what is happening in the team, where is the support staff? What were they doing when so many blunders were being made on the second day of the Test? Why didn''t they guide the captain and bowlers? "Wahab Riaz has a problem with his bowling arm wrist that he does not hold it in one place and sprays the ball all over the place. It is the job of the coaches to have spoken to him after every session and guide him," Sohail said. "But why has this problem not been sorted out as yet? What are the support staff doing? Saeed Ajmal kept on bowling round the wicket to Stuart Broad, Muhammad Asif was made to bowl from just one end, who is responsible for this?" he asked. Sohail said that in Pakistan cricket there was a habit for pre-mature celebrations and to create a star out of a young player prematurely. "Success has many fathers but defeat none. I have respect for Waqar Younis and Ijaz Ahmed as cricketers as I have played with them. But I have serious doubts about their coaching credentials," Sohail said. Sohail pointed out that the coaching staff was supposed to be there for the players in trying circumstances. "The true role of the support staff and coaches comes in when the chips are down and unfortunately in this series when the team has lost direction the coaches have failed to guide them in the right direction," he said.

Source: Published>

Afridi to hold charity dinners in UK for flood victims

Sat, Aug 28 10 09:37 PM

Karachi, Aug 28 (PTI) Pakistan ODI captain Shahid Afridi will hold two charity dinners in England this weekend to raise funds for the millions of people displaced and left homeless by the devastating floods in his country. The flamboyant all-rounder said from London that he hoped to raise considerable amount of donation in cash and kind from the charity dinners and had the full support of the national team behind him. "Players in the team are well aware of the devastation caused by these floods and the fact that how much need there is for us cricketers to also contribute towards rehabilitation of these homeless people," Afridi said. The all-rounder has already visited some flood-hit areas before leaving for England where he will captain the national team in two Twenty20 matches and five ODIs against the hosts next month. Afridi said he had received very good response from all sections of society in his appeal for donation in Pakistan and he personally distributed goods and cash to the flood victims. "We distributed goods worth Rs 2 million in Nowshera," he said. Afridi said that it was good to see the Pakistan cricket community also get on one platform to raise the funds for the flood victims. "If I get a chance to speak to players of other teams I will also request them to give us a helping hand because millions have been affected by the floods," he said. Afridi referring to the series itself said he saw it as a golden opportunity to start finalising the nucleus of the team for the 2011 World Cup, to be held in the sub-continent. "After this ODI series in England we will know the shortlist of players who will eventually be in contention for the World Cup. "I think, it is time for us to try our new combinations because unless we do that we can''t move forward or hope to do well in the World Cup," he said. Afridi also said though as captain the ODI series in England was a big challenge for him but it would also allow the selectors and team management to shortlist players for the World Cup. "We have some very good players of T20 and 50-over cricket and we need to finalise our World Cup squad in advance so that we can put up a good show in the mega event." He feels those days were gone when Pakistan, India or Sri Lanka could say that they had advantage of playing in the sub-continental conditions. "I think this World Cup will be a close one as now nearly every second team and players are used to the conditions in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and even Pakistan. So it is a question of doing your best on a given day," he said.

Source: Published>

PM to visit Games' sites soon

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 09:27 PM

New Delhi, Aug 28 (IANS) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is scheduled to visit the Commonwealth Games sites 'very soon', an official at the Prime Minister's Office said here Saturday.

'He will visit the site very soon,' the official told IANS. He, however, refused to confirm the date.

The official said the prime minister had expressed his wish to visit the sites when he chaired the meeting of ministers and senior officials Aug 14 -- just 50 days before the Oct 3-14 mega events.

'He had warned (Suresh) Kalmadi that he would be visiting the sites,' the official added.

The official added that the visit could be any day now.

The prime minister intervened in the preparations following delays and corruption allegations in the biggest sporting event being organised in India since the 1982 Asiad.

During his meeting, he issued clear instructions that the facilities for the Commonwealth Games should be made ready in time and meet international standards as the 'eyes of the world' were on the country.

The prime minister had observed slippages in the time schedules of some of the construction works and deficiencies and had directed ministries concerned to conduct thorough investigations into all the complaints that have been received of procedural and other irregularities.

Source: Web Search

Zulqarnain denied Test cap on debut?

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 09:17 PM

The Pakistan Cricket Board and the team management in England have landed themselves in another controversy after it was revealed that wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider was not given the ceremonial Test cap when he made his debut against England at Edgbaston.

Well placed sources told PTI that the team management had neither given the Pakistan Test cap to Zulqarnain nor bothered to hold the usual ceremony whenever a player makes his debut.

Sources said for inexplicable reasons manager Yawar Saeed told Zulqarnain he would be given the cap later on.

Interestingly, during the same tour and in the series, the management awarded Test caps to Umar Amin, Azhar Ali and Wahab Riaz and also held the traditional cap handing over ceremony for them when they made their debuts.

"It is hard to understand why the Test cap was not given to Zulqarnain when the same was done for the other players who made their debuts in England on this tour. This incident is sending out all the wrong messages for cricket followers and other players," former Test captain Aamir Sohail said.

Interestingly there is already a cloud over the way the team management bundled off Zulqarnain to Pakistan insisting doctors had advised him three to four weeks rest after he suffered a hairline fracture in his little finger during the second Test.

Zulqarnain was sent back after an impressive debut at Edgbaston although he kept insisting he could play the Test even with the fractured little finger by wearing a protective splint over it.

Sources said that Zulqarnain had pleaded with the team management to not send him home to Pakistan.

Similarly even when he asked for his Test cap he was told that it would be given to him when it was available leaving him disappointed.

"One former England great asked Zulqarnain if he could gift him his Test cap and the wicketkeeper told him he couldn't do this since he himself was waiting for his cap," the source added.

Source: Web Search

Pakistani pacer Amir inducted into Lord's honours board

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 09:07 PM

London, Aug 28 (IANS) Pakistan's lanky fast bowler Mohammad Amir earned his place into the Lord's honours board as he took six wickets against England in the first innings of the fourth and final cricket Test match here Saturday.

It is a status reserved for those who take five wickets or score a century at the historical ground.

Amir has been a revelation this season and has picked up 30 wickets in the last six Tests against Australia and England.

The 18-year-old is the youngest player to reach 50 Test wickets and the youngest to make it into the Lord's honours board.

The lanky fast bowler made his Test debut against Sri Lanka at Galle in July 2009.

Source: Web Search

Memorable double world title for Russell

Sat, Aug 28 10 08:53 PM

Pune, Aug 28 (PTI) Mike Russell of England today added the Time Format world crown to his Point Format title which he had won just five days ago after outplaying Peter Gilchrist of Singapore to win a memorable double in the IBSF World Billiards Championships here. Russell outplayed Gilchrist 4120-784 in the Time Format final played over six hours at the PYC Hindu Gymkhana here. Russell scored breaks of 281, 324, 281, 420, 88, 265 and he got the biggest break of 1137 on the 16th visit to the table, followed it up with breaks of 735 (visit 17), 176, 439 (visit 27) at an average of 158.5. In contrast, Gilchrist had a poor day on the table managing to score 784 with breaks of 192, 124, 124. Russell received a prize money of USD 2000 from Real Value Advertisers from the hands of Dr P D Patil, Chancellor DY Patil Vidyapeeth and Allen C Perreira CMD Bank of Maharashtra. Russell had beaten India''s Pankaj Advani in the Point Format final on August 23. Advani had lost to Russell in the Time Format semifinal yesterday.

Source: Published>

Army Red, Chennai Cheetahs make semis

Sat, Aug 28 10 08:37 PM

Kolkata, Aug 28 (PTI) Defending champions Army Red began their title defence on a positive note ousting Jungle Crows in the All-India and South Asia Rugby Tournament at the Calcutta Cricket and Football Club (CC&FC) here today. In another match of the day, Chennai Cheetahs bounced back to rally past Kolkata Police 22-12 and joined Army Red in the semi-finals. Down 0-12 to 10th seeded Kolkata Police in the 30-minute first-half, third seeded Chennai Cheetahs went ahead in the second half to settle the issue. In a one-sided affair, top seeded Army Red thrashed 12th seeded Jungle Crows 17-5 to book their last four berth. PTI TAP PR PDS

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Rahman unveils Games theme song

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 08:27 PM

Gurgaon, Aug 28 (IANS) The Commonwealth Games' theme song, 'Jiyo Utho Badho Jeeto', by Oscar-winning composer A.R. Rahman was unveiled at a glittering function here Saturday.

The song calls upon everyone to participate in the Oct 3-14 mega sporting event.

'I wrote the first line six months back and kept tweaking it till I finally finished it last night (Friday). It is definitely an honour to compose the official theme song which is in the spirit of the Commonwealth Games,' said Rahman, who performed at the launch function.

The theme song was recently cleared by the Group of Ministers headed by Urban Development Minister S. Jaipal Reddy.

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit said that the city will hold the best ever Games.

'The Games which have come to India for the first time are going to be the most memorable Commonwealth Games ever held. We are confident that Delhi, with India behind it, will be able to achieve what many people believe may not be possible,' she said after the launch of the theme song.

'I do believe that along with (Organising Committee chairman) Suresh Kalmadi and his team, with support of the Indian government, the very warm and kind blessings of prime minister of India, we will achieve the best ever Games held anywhere in the world,' she added.

The unveiling of the theme song was delayed by a few days after the GoM asked Rahman to tweak the song.

'When we got the flag we had promised that we will put up a great show and we will live up to the promise. We are using the best of infrastructure in the opening and the closing ceremonies which would depict 5,000 years of Indian culture,' said Kalmadi.

'We are working hard and we know we can do it. The Games will be better than the Beijing Olympics,' he said.

Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda was also present on the occasion.

Source: Web Search

ICC pitch consultant Atkinson to visit India next month

Sat, Aug 28 10 08:21 PM

Mumbai, Aug 28 (PTI) With less than six months to go for the commencement of the 2011 World Cup in the sub continent, International Cricket Council''s pitch consultant Andy Atkinson will make a visit to India early next month. "Atkinson is on a week-long visit in the first week of September to inspect six out of eight World Cup match hosting centres in India," said World Cup tournament director, Prof Ratnakar Shetty today. Shetty said that Atkinson would not be visiting Mohali and Nagpur, two of the match hosting centres. "He would be visiting the other six centres (Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai and Ahmedabad). Anyway barring Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata, the other centres are to host international matches against Australia and New Zealand and we would know their preparedness," he said. "Mumbai (Wankhede Stadium), Kolkata (Eden Gardens) and Delhi (Ferozshah Kotla) would host some first class games before the World Cup," he added. The Wankhede Stadium is set to host its inaugural first class tie after undergoing renovation on November 24 when Ranji Trophy winners Mumbai take on Assam in their Elite division league match.

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BCCI AGM on Sept 29

Sat, Aug 28 10 08:17 PM

Mumbai, Aug 28 (PTI) The Cricket Board''s AGM would be held on September 29 here in which it will choose a president-elect who would take over the reins from September 2011. "The AGM is on September 29. There would be a president-elect. All office bearers would have to be re-elected for the third year (of their current term)," informed BCCI CAO Prof Ratnakar Shetty today. As per the BCCI''s rotation policy the president-elect would have to be from south zone.

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ICC pitch consultant Atkinson to visit India next month

Sat, Aug 28 10 08:07 PM

Mumbai, Aug 28 (PTI) With less than six months to go for the commencement of the 2011 World Cup in the sub continent, International Cricket Council''s pitch consultant Andy Atkinson will make a visit to India early next month. "Atkinson is on a week-long visit in the first week of September to inspect six out of eight World Cup match hosting centres in India," said World Cup tournament director, Prof Ratnakar Shetty today. Shetty said that Atkinson would not be visiting Mohali and Nagpur, two of the match hosting centres. "He would be visiting the other six centres (Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai and Ahmedabad). Anyway barring Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata, the other centres are to host international matches against Australia and New Zealand and we would know their preparedness," he said. "Mumbai (Wankhede Stadium), Kolkata (Eden Gardens) and Delhi (Ferozshah Kotla) would host some first class games before the World Cup," he added. The Wankhede Stadium is set to host its inaugural first class tie after undergoing renovation on November 24 when Ranji Trophy winners Mumbai take on Assam in their Elite division league match.

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Modi''s lawyer hits back at BCCI chief Manohar

Sat, Aug 28 10 07:53 PM

Mumbai, Aug 28 (PTI) Lalit Modi''s lawyer today hit out at Cricket Board President Shashank Manohar for calling the suspended IPL chairman a "liar" and said his client had not made any accusations of fixing player''s auction against BCCI secretary N Srinivasan. "Very unfortunate to hear such an intemperate expression by BCCI president Shashank Manohar calling Lalit Modi a liar, whereas Mr Modi has not said anything," Modi''s lawyer Mehmood Abdi told PTI. Earlier in the day, the Cricket Board threw its weight behind Srinivasan and rejected what it termed Modi''s allegations that the BCCI Secretary had fixed the 2009 players'' auction. BCCI chief Manohar told reporters after the Working Committee meeting here that the accusations against Srinivasan, who owns the Chennai Super Kings team, were "blatant lies". "I can produce papers which prove that the charges levelled by Mr Modi against Mr Srinivasan are blatant lies," Manohar said which was contested by Abdi who said Modi had not issued any such remark. "It''s the trail of e-mails which speak for themselves. If BCCI disputed them they should confront them at an appropriate forum instead of denying the existence of any such mails summarily. This shows the double standards followed by BCCI - one for Modi and the other for BCCI secretary N Srinivasan," he said. A TV channel had claimed that Srinivasan, in connivance with Modi, tried to fix the bid for Andrew Flintoff in Chennai Super Kings'' favour and gave details of purported e-mail exchanges between the two. (More) PTI SSR VKV PDS

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Dilshan slams ton as Lanka score an imposing 299 for eight

Sat, Aug 28 10 07:47 PM

Dambulla (Sri Lanka), Aug 28 (PTI) Tillakaratne Dilshan struck a blistering century as Sri Lanka exploited a sloppy bowling display by the Indians to amass an imposing 299 for eight in the cricket tri-series final here today. Dilshan (110) notched up his eighth ODI century to provide the impetus to the Lankan innings who capitalised on some wayward bowling by the Indians to rattle up a decent score at the Rangiri International stadium. Captain Kumar Sangakkara (71) and Mahela Jayawardene (39) were the other notable scorers for the hosts who have left India with a stiff asking rate of nearly six runs per over to record their second successive series triumph on Lankan soil in three months. Electing to bat, it was not a fiery start for the hosts as both the Lankan openers took some time to settle down and opened up gradually to pile up the misery on the visitors. After the first few overs, the Indian bowlers seemed to lose their rhythm and bowled a lot of loose deliveries. The home crowd had a lot to cheer when Tillakaratne Dilshan hit two cracking fours off Praveen Kumar and Mahela Jayawardene produced a lofted drive off Ashish Nehra in the first few overs. There was a minor altercation between Dilshan and Munaf Patel, who collided with the batsman in the seventh over, but normalcy was restored after umpire Asad Rauf and Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni intervened and pacified the two players. Dilshan was more agressive of the two openers, who raised the best opening partnership of the series so far by putting on 121 for the first wicket. Ishant Sharma provided the breakthrough for the visitors by evicting the experienced Mahela Jayawardene (39) with Dinesh Karthik latchinng on to a well-judged catch. Jayawardene reached forward and tried to wrist a length delivery across the line but only succeeded in spooning a catch to Karthik at the sweeper cover. But his dimssal came only after he had achieved a personal milestone of completing 9000 runs in ODIs, becoming only the third Sri Lankan to achieve the feat after Sanath Jayasuriya (13,428 runs) and Aravinda de Silva (9824 runs). More PTI TVS MRM

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Modi''s lawyer hits back at BCCI chief Manohar

Sat, Aug 28 10 07:37 PM

Mumbai, Aug 28 (PTI) Lalit Modi''s lawyer today hit out at Cricket Board President Shashank Manohar for calling the suspended IPL chairman a "liar" and said his client had not made any accusations of fixing player''s auction against BCCI secretary N Srinivasan. "Very unfortunate to hear such an intemperate expression by BCCI president Shashank Manohar calling Lalit Modi a liar, whereas Mr Modi has not said anything," Modi''s lawyer Mehmood Abdi told PTI. Earlier in the day, the Cricket Board threw its weight behind Srinivasan and rejected what it termed Modi''s allegations that the BCCI Secretary had fixed the 2009 players'' auction. BCCI chief Manohar told reporters after the Working Committee meeting here that the accusations against Srinivasan, who owns the Chennai Super Kings team, were "blatant lies". "I can produce papers which prove that the charges levelled by Mr Modi against Mr Srinivasan are blatant lies," Manohar said which was contested by Abdi who said Modi had not issued any such remark. "It''s the trail of e-mails which speak for themselves. If BCCI disputed them they should confront them at an appropriate forum instead of denying the existence of any such mails summarily. This shows the double standards followed by BCCI - one for Modi and the other for BCCI secretary N Srinivasan," he said. A TV channel had claimed that Srinivasan, in connivance with Modi, tried to fix the bid for Andrew Flintoff in Chennai Super Kings'' favour and gave details of purported e-mail exchanges between the two. (More) PTI SSR VKV PDS

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India end Portugal tour with a draw against 3rd Div side

Sat, Aug 28 10 07:27 PM

New Delhi, Aug 28 (PTI) Indian national team today played out a 1-1 draw with Portuguese third division outfit Odivelas Futebol Clube in the last practice match of their Portugal tour in Lisbon. After a barren first half, the Portuguese side drew first blood in the 60th minute, but India retaliated strongly with defender N S Manju restoring parity two minutes later. Manju made no mistake off a Syed Rahim Nabi pass from the left flank in the match played at the Odivelas ground. India started off with Subhasish Roy Choudhury in the goal with Manju, Mahesh Gawli, Govin Singh and N Mohanraj in the defence. Jagpreet Singh got the start as right winger while Baldeep Singh and Mehrajuddin Wadoo once again paired up in the central midfield with Rahim Nabi operating from the left flank. Baljit Sahni and Sushil Kumar Singh were the two strikers. India ended their two-month tour of Portugal, which is part of their preparation for next year''s Asian Cup in Qatar, after playing 10 practice matches, all of them against third or second division sides. India won six times, drew and lost twice each.

Source: Published>

Dilshan slams ton as Lanka score an imposing 299 for eight

Sat, Aug 28 10 07:17 PM

Dambulla (Sri Lanka), Aug 28 (PTI) Tillakaratne Dilshan struck a blistering century as Sri Lanka exploited a sloppy bowling display by the Indians to amass an imposing 299 for eight in the cricket tri-series final here today. Dilshan notched up his eighth ODI century to provide the impetus to the Lankan innings who capitalised on some wayward bowling by the Indians to rattle up a decent score at the Rangiri International stadium. Captain Kumar Sangakkara (71) and Mahela Jayawardene (39) were the other notable scorers for the hosts who have left India with a stiff asking rate of nearly six runs per over to record their second successive series triumph on Lankan soil in three months. Electing to bat, it was not a fiery start for the hosts as both the Lankan openers took some time to settle down and opened up gradually to pile up the misery on the visitors. After the first few overs, the Indian bowlers seemed to lose their rhythm and bowled a lot of loose deliveries. The home crowd had a lot to cheer when Tillakaratne Dilshan hit two cracking fours off Praveen Kumar and Mahela Jayawardene produced a lofted drive off Ashish Nehra in the first few overs. There was a minor altercation between Dilshan and Munaf Patel, who collided with the batsman in the seventh over, but normalcy was restored after umpire Asad Rauf and Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni intervened and pacified the two players. Dilshan was more agressive of the two openers, who raised the best opening partnership of the series so far by putting on 121 for the first wicket. Ishant Sharma provided the breakthrough for the visitors by evicting the experienced Mahela Jayawardene (39) with Dinesh Karthik latchinng on to a well-judged catch. Jayawardene reached forward and tried to wrist a length delivery across the line but only succeeded in spooning a catch to Karthik at the sweeper cover. But his dimssal came only after he had achieved a personal milestone of completing 9000 runs in ODIs, becoming only the third Sri Lankan to achieve the feat after Sanath Jayasuriya (13,428 runs) and Aravinda de Silva (9824 runs). More PTI TVS MRM

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`Mr Greedy'' bags The Odds On Trophy

Sat, Aug 28 10 07:07 PM

Pune, Aug 28 (PTI) Top weighted `Mr Greedy'', trained by M K Jadhav and confidently ridden by apprentice jockey P Trevor, bagged The Odds On Trophy, the feature event on speical race day of Pune races held here today. Jockey Imran Chisty and Y S Srinath scored a double each.

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Chelsea creates 'sensation of fear' in opponents' penalty area: Drogba

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 07:03 PM

London, Aug 28(ANI): Chelsea striker Didier Drogba has said that their next opponents Stoke City have a great reason to be frightened of facing the reigning Premier League champions today.

Carlo Ancelotti's men have started the new season in fantastic fashion knocking in 12 goals in two games with back-to-back 6-0 wins over West Brom and Wigan.

"We create such a sensation of fear in our opponents' penalty area - and that really helps us score. We have developed a perfect system. We practise so many different situations thousands of times in training so it becomes automatic in games," The Sun quoted Drogba, as saying.

"It may look easy, but the secret is work, work and more work each day. And, while Ancelotti is an Italian coach, we do not play a defensive Italian style. That is how we were successful last season so there is no reason to change," he added.

However, he did admit that Stoke City would be determined to avoid conceding goals, following last season's 7-0 thrashing.

"Last season we beat Stoke 7-0, but I am convinced they will see this as a chance to gain revenge. They will be determined to avoid conceding goals, so it will not be so easy even though we are in good form," Drogba said. (ANI)

Source: Web Search

Lanka 299/8 against India in final

Sat, Aug 28 10 06:53 PM

Dambulla, Aug 28 (PTI) Electing to bat, Sri Lanka made 299 for eight in the summit clash of the cricket tri-series against India here today. Brief Scores: Sri Lanka: 299 for 8 in 50 overs (Tillakaratne Dilshan 110, Kumar Sangakkara 71; Munaf Patel 2/43, Ishant Sharma 2/54).

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Youth Olympic medallists want more exposure trips

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 06:47 PM

New Delhi, Aug 28 (IANS) Fresh from the success at the Youth Olympics in Singapore, India's medal winners asked the government and the sports federations to organise regular foreign trips and hire better coaches for improving their performance at the highest level.

India won nine medals at the first edition of the Youth Olympics and were 58th in the medal's tally. India won medals in athletics, badminton, judo, tennis and wrestling.

The medal winners complained that they play very few international tournaments in a calender year, in comparison to their foreign counterparts.

Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president Suresh Kalmadi said he has directed the federation to look after the needs of their athletes.

'We will make sure these young athletes get proper training. The IOA will be writing to chief ministers of the respective states to provide the winners with whatever they ask for,' said Kalmadi.

Shiva Thapa, 17-year-old boxer who won a silver, has played in five international tournaments since picking up the gloves five years back.

'We hardly get to play outside. If we play 100 bouts in a year, a boxer in Cuba plays 200 bouts. The more exposure we get the better it is for us. I hope it will start happening after our good performance at the Youth Olympics,' Thapa told IANS.

The lanky boxer from Guwahati is based in Army Sports Institute, Pune. Thapa is now eying a gold medal in the Commonwealth Youth Games and the Asian Youth Games in 2011.

Discus thrower Arjun won a silver and got the first medal for India in athletics. Arjun said he gets to play only the state championships and a one-off tournament annually, leave aside competing outside India.

'Whatever I achieved is because of my coach. The federation has not done much for me. The athletes around the world participate in events every week. We need to do the same so that we perform well at the senior level.'

Arjun took up discuss throw in 2006 under the guidance of coach Suresh Yadav. He stays and practices in Delhi.

Not very far from the national capital, wrestler Pooja Dhanda has been training at her hometown of Hissar. She feels the younger coaches with good technical skills are the need of the hour.

'We need younger and skilled coaches who point our mistakes. We need better technology, so that we can improve our performances and our mistakes are rectified instantaneously. The SAI centre here in Hissar is not up to the mark,' said Dhanda.

Dhanda won a silver in Singapore and has been wrestling since 2003.

Source: Web Search

BCCI Disciplinary Committee hearing resumes tomorrow

Sat, Aug 28 10 06:37 PM

New Delhi, Aug 28 (PTI) After rejecting Lalit Modi''s demand for recusal of two of its members, the Cricket Board''s Disciplinary Committee will meet here tomorrow to decide the procedures and schedules for its probe against suspended IPL Commissioner. According to sources, the Disciplinary Committee will decide the procedures and the number of sitting in its probe against Modi, who has been accused of irregularities in running the Twenty20 league. Modi had demanded recusal of Chirayu Amin and Arun Jaitley from the committee and wanted an independent panel made up preferably of retired Supreme Court judges because he claimed the duo would be biased against him. Modi''s contention was that Amin has a grudge against him and Jaitley had voted to ratify the charges against him at BCCI''s Special General Body meeting in July. After three hearings on the recusal issue, the last being on August 1 here, the BCCI had rejected Modi''s demand on August 11 without giving any reason. "The request of Mr Lalit Modi for recusal of certain members of the Disciplinary Committee is rejected," the BCCI had said in a terse statement. Tomorrow''s meeting was originally scheduled for August 18 but could not be held because the third member of the committee Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia was out of the country. Modi has been absent on all the three occasions, leaving it to his legal team to present his case, and he will not be present tomorrow. Asked whether Modi would appear before the committee tomorrow, his lawyer Mehmood Abdi said, "No, he is still out of the country." Andi said tomorrow''s meeting is important as it will also decide witnesses and who could be called for cross examinations. Modi was accused of committing financial irregularities in the running of the IPL and trying to launch a ''rebel'' Twenty20 league in England. He was suspended by the BCCI within moments of the completion of the IPL III final on April 25.

Source: Published>

Webber quickest in final Spa practice

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 06:17 PM

Formula One leader Mark Webber set the pace for Red Bull in final practice for the Belgian Grand Prix on Saturday ahead of closest challenger Lewis Hamilton.

Webber, who celebrated his 34th birthday on Friday, lapped the longest circuit on the calendar in one minute 46.106 seconds with the sun making occasional rare appearances on a cold morning in the Ardennes forests.

McLaren's Hamilton, four points behind the Australian with seven races remaining, was 0.117 slower in a session that started off damp, then dried out before ending with a brief downpour.

The top four after the hour of practice reflected the championship standings, with Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel third fastest and McLaren's reigning world champion Jenson Button fourth.

Vettel, who will be chasing his fifth pole position in a row later in the afternoon, and Red Bull's 12th in 13 starts, had a problem with 20 minutes to go and returned to the pits at a crawl before marshals pushed the car back to the garage.

A team spokeswoman said there had been a problem with the Renault-powered car's airbox, with the engine shut down as a precaution, but the issue had since been resolved. Vettel did not return to the track.

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, who was quickest in both of Friday's session, was sixth on the timing screens behind Renault's Robert Kubica.

Seven times world champion Michael Schumacher, returning to his favourite track with Mercedes for his first race there since he was at Ferrari 2005, was only 14th fastest.

The 41-year-old German will have a 10 place penalty on the starting grid from wherever he qualifies after an incident with former Ferrari team mate Rubens Barrichello at the previous Hungarian Grand Prix.

Source: Web Search

Adebayor told to "remain professional" by Manchester City

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 06:07 PM

London, Aug 28(ANI): Manchester City football administrator, Brian Marwood, has told 'disgruntled' striker Emmanuel Adebayor that he is contracted to the club, and must stay and fight for his place.

Adebayor, signed for 25 million pounds from Arsenal last year, wants to quit the club after being left out of the opening Premier League games.

However, Marwood said: "It's straightforward. A lot of these players need to understand and realize they are contracted to their football club. They have to fight for their place."

"What we are trying to create is a very competitive environment at Manchester City. Emmanuel is no different to Shay Given, or to other players in the squad who want to be playing," The Sun quoted Marwood, as saying.

"We feel if we are to have a successful season we need to have depth in our squad and need to be able to cope with the amount of games we are going to play. It's not as if he hasn't played. He's featured in a few games already. Any player at the club is salaried, contracted and has obligations," he added.

Earlier, Adebayor had voiced his concerns over his starts being limited this season after being named on the substitutes' bench for City's first two Premier League games.

"If you're in a team and you're not playing, and there is a team that comes in for me, then I will definitely be on my way out because I'm a footballer and I love playing," he had said. (ANI)

Source: Web Search

Lawyer criticises BCCI president for calling Modi ''liar''

Sat, Aug 28 10 05:53 PM

Mumbai, Aug 28 (PTI) Lalit Modi''s lawyer today lashed out at BCCI President Shahshank Manohar for calling the suspended IPL Chairman a "liar" and said that he should stop defending Board secretary N Srinivasan and take action instead. "Very unfortunate to hear such an intemperate expression by BCCI president Shashank Manohar calling Lalit Modi a liar, whereas he has not said anything," Modi''s lawyer Mehmood Abdi said. Earlier in the day, BCCI threw its weight behind Secretary N Srinivasan and rejected Modi''s allegations that the senior official fixed the 2009 players'' auction. BCCI President Shashank Manohar told reporters after the Working Committee meeting here that Modi''s accusations against Srinivasan, who owns the Chennai Super Kings team, were "blatant lies". "I can produce papers which prove that the charges levelled by Mr Modi against Mr Srinivasan are blatant lies," Manohar said. According to Abdi, the BCCI, in defending Srinivasan, was practising double standards as a similar accusation made by English and Wales Cricket Board Chairman Giles Clarke was reason enough for it to issue a showcause notice to Modi. "Its the trail of e-mails which speak for themselves. If BCCI disputed them they should confront it at an appropriate forum instead of denying the existence of any such mails summarily. This shows the double standards followed by BCCI - one for Modi and the other for BCCI secretary N Srinivasan," he said. (More) PTI SSR VKV ATK

Source: Published>

Youth Olympic medal winners to get cash rewards

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 05:47 PM

New Delhi, Aug 28 (IANS) The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) announced cash rewards of Rs.400,000 for silver medallists and Rs.200,000 for bronze medal winners of the inaugural edition of the Youth Olympics held in Singapore from Aug 14-26.

The cash prize was jointly given by the IOA and South Korean electronic giant Samsung, the main sponsor of the Youth Olympics.

'I am happy that the team came back with nine medals. I congratulate all the members of the team. We decided to get Commonwealth Games to India so that we could win medals in the Olympic sports. I will make sure all the players get proper training from now on and are looked after by their respective federations,' said IOA president Suresh Kalmadi.

India put up a good show at the 12-day event, winning nine medals and securing 58th position in the medals tally.

In Singapore, wrestler Pooja Dhanda won the first medal for India, a silver in the women's 60kg freestyle. Satyawart Kadian won a bronze in the men's 100kg freestyle.

Discus thrower Arjun sprung a surprise by pocketing a silver and giving India its first medal in athletics. Durgesh Kumar followed it up with a silver in the 400m hurdles final.

Badminton player H.S.Prannoy, who has been making waves at junior level and won a bronze in the world championships, had an impressive tournament but lost to Pisit Poodchalat of Thailand in the boys' final, bagging the silver.

Tennis sensation Yuki Bhambri, who stunned second seed Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia-Herzegovina, had to contend with a silver after muscle cramps forced him to retire in the final against Juan Sebastian Gomez of Colombia.

Boxers Shiva Thapa and Vikas Krishan won silver and bronze in the 60kg and 54kg category. Neha Thakur won the bronze medal in judo in the mixed team event. India had sent a contingent of 32 athletes at the Youth Olympics.

Source: Web Search

Serena Williams sparks 'nose job' rumours

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 01:17 PM

London, August 28 (ANI): Serena Williams sparked speculations that she has got a nose job done when she turned up at a magazine cover party.

The tennis champion revealed a remarkably fresh-faced look that provoked assumption that she may have succumbed to the surgeon's knife, reports the Daily Mail.

Williams showed off her most glamorous look yet at a party for Hamptons magazine in New York.

Serena attended the Hamptons Magazine Cover Party with Grey Goose at Pranna in a leopard print dress. (ANI)

Source: Web Search

Waqar 'miffed' over Malik's omission from ODI squad for series against England

Published>Sat, Aug 28 10 12:53 PM

Islamabad, Aug.28 (ANI): Pakistan's head coach Waqar Younis is reportedly upset over the selection panel's decision to axe all rounder Shoaib Malik from the one-day squad which would take on England in the five match series starting September 10.

Sources close to the team revealed that Waqar had an altercation with both ODI and T20 skipper Shahid Afridi, as well as chief selector Mohsin Khan over their decision to omit Malik and young middle order batsman Umar Amin from the squad.

"Waqar felt that Pakistan needed Malik's experience for the one-day series and he would get back into form soon. While he also believes that Amin is a great talent for the future and must be given confidence," The Daily Times quoted sources, as saying.

Earlier this week, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced a 16-man team for the upcoming series, retaining veteran middle order batsman Mohammed Yousuf in the squad.

While controversial speedster Shoaib Akhtar succeeded in earning a recall, all rounder Malik, who was left out of the Test squad earlier because of his awful form, was axed. (ANI)

Source: Web Search

Randhawa tied 23rd; Chowrasia, Kapur miss cut

Sat, Aug 28 10 12:37 PM

Perthshire (Scotland), Aug 28 (PTI) Jyoti Randhawa''s second successive card of two-under 70 made him the best-placed Indian at tied 23rd but it was curtains of Shiv Kapur (73) and SSP Chowrasia (74) after the second round of the Jhonnie Walker Golf Championship here. Randhawa rose six rungs after striking four birdies against a couple of bogeys which took his total to four-under 140. Further down the leaderboard, Jeev Milkha Singh occupied the tied 49th position after an even-par 72 took his overall score to one-under 143. Jeev''s roller-coaster round included five birdies and an equal number of bogeys and he shared the 49th spot with among others Gaganjeet Bhullar. Bhullar, who was the highest-placed Indian at tied 18th after the opening round, slipped down after a disappointing two-over 74. The Punjab-golfer stumbled to six bogeys and picked up four birdies yesterday. But as expected after their horror opening rounds, Kapur and Chowrasia fell by the wayside. Kapur picked up two birdies and dropped three bogeys to total five-over 149. Chowrasia lay even further down after stumbling to three bogeys and a double bogey against three birdies. His overall total stood at seven-over 151. At the top, David Lynn (68), Julien Guerrier (67) and Gary Boyd (68) were tied for the top spot with totals of nine-under 135.

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