Frustratred Kaka's revival on hold after red card

Published>Tue, Jun 22 10 08:37 PM

Kaka has been hampered by injury and a drop in form over the last two seasons but probably the last thing the squeaky-clean Brazilian expected at the World Cup was for his revival to be halted by a red card.

Just as he seemed to be returning to something near his peak, Kaka will have to endure the frustration of missing Brazil's final group game against Portugal as he serves a one-match suspension for his sending-off against Ivory Coast.

The Brazil playmaker is trying to put a brave face on the situation, saying it will give him more time to work on his fitness, but he was clearly down-hearted at missing part of what will be at the most a seven-match campaign.

"I can see the positive side, which is that I will have another week to work on improving my physical strength," said Kaka, whose team have already guaranteed a second-round place after winning the first two games.

"I'm sad at not being able to play in this game, but it's happened and now I must prepare for the second round," he told reporters.

"Getting sent off is not a comfortable situation but from now on, I will try to police myself better on the pitch."

Deeply religious, known for his charity work and considered by many as a role model, Kaka has only been sent off twice before, both times with Sao Paulo in the early days of his career, and has not seen red for seven years.

His first Brazil dismissal came late a bad-tempered game after being given a second yellow card for allegedly elbowing Kader Keita, although he was the victim of blatant play-acting by the Ivorian.

"Even my grandmother was angry with the referee," he said. "It was a perfectly normal incident, unfortunately there was just some over-reaction from the other guy.

ORDINARY INCIDENT

"If I had really lost my temper, I would apologise. But it was just an ordinary incident."

In the last two seasons, Kaka has been a shadow of the player who was voted World Player of the Year in 2007.

He arrived at the World Cup after a frustrating, injury-plagued debut season with Real Madrid but with the hope that a good performance could put him back on the same stage as Lionel Messi, Fernando Torres and David Villa.

"I've had a lot of physical difficulties this season and that was the worst, because I've always led an athlete's life and I know how important it is for a player to be in good physical shape," he said.

"Not being able to reach my peak has bothered me."

"I wasn't at my best in the game against North Korea but I played much better against Ivory Coast. It was a relief to play well."

The 28-year-old said his biggest motivation was seeing footage of thousands of people celebrating Brazilian wins on Copacabana beach.

"When I saw those pictures from Copacabana, the emotion was indescribable," he said. "It's not just Copacabana, there are millions of Brazilians following us, we are playing for these people. That's the real motivation.

"The messages they send us are fantastic. It's what motivates you to play when you're in pain, to make a sacrifice. It's what makes the World Cup unique."

Source: Web Search

Sri Lankan Maharoof claims hat-trick against India

Published Tue, Jun 22 10 08:17 PM

Sri Lanka all-rounder Farveez Maharoof became the 23rd bowler to perform a hat-trick in one-day internationals when he took five for 42 in the Asia Cup match against India in Dambulla on Tuesday.

Maharoof trapped Ravindra Jadeja leg before wicket, bowled Praveen Kumar and had Zaheer Khan caught in successive deliveries in the 39th over. All three were dismissed without scoring.

He is the third Sri Lanka bowler to claim a hat-trick in one-day internationals after Chaminda Vaas (twice) and Lasith Malinga.

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All 2018 Games bidders make IOC shortlist

Published>Tue, Jun 22 10 07:57 PM

All three cities bidding for the 2018 Winter Olympics have made an International Olympic Committee shortlist with Germany's Munich and South Korea's Pyeongchang finishing top in a technical report.

Munich, Pyeongchang and France's Annecy, who were urged to rework their project, will now have about 12 months for the final round of campaigning before the IOC elects the winning bid in Durban, South Africa, on July 6, 2011.

The Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi will host the 2014 Winter Games.

"The (IOC) Executive Board today decided that all three applicant cities deserved to move to the second phase of the bidding procedure," IOC Olympic Games Executive Director Gilbert Felli said in Lausanne on Tuesday.

"It has been made clear, however, that Annecy needed to review its project. We look forward to working with the three candidate cities and wish them good luck for the year of competition ahead."

The decision was based on a technical report analysing in detail the quality of the bids.

THIRD TIME

The South Korean resort is bidding for the third straight time after narrowly losing out to Vancouver for the 2010 and Sochi for the 2014 Games.

"A lot of dedication and hard work has brought us here today but we realise that we all have a long way to go until Durban," said Yangho Cho, Pyeongchang bid chief.

Pyeongchang and Munich's overall concept won a mark of between eight and nine points out of 10 while Annecy was marked between four and seven points.

"Over the next year, we will build on our strong foundations and continue developing the enthusiasm for Munich 2018," Willy Bogner, head of Munich's bid said.

The three cities now have, until January to submit their candidature files.

The files will be analysed by the IOC's evaluation commission, which will also visit the bidders, before issuing a report about a month before the vote.

"We are more determined than ever to do everything possible to offer exceptional Games, in the heart of the mountains, serving the Olympic ideal," Annecy bid chief Edgar Grospiron said. "Therefore, we are working on readjusting our project, as suggested by the IOC."

Source: Web Search

Jaini ahead by two strokes in PGTI Players Championship

Published>Tue, Jun 22 10 07:47 PM

Pune, June 22 (IANS) Manav Jaini of the Delhi Golf Club returned a five under 66 to establish a two-stroke lead on the opening day of the Aircel PGTI Players Championship.

Kolkata's Rahil Gangjee and Amardip Sinh Malik of Meerut were in joint second place as they shot identical scores of three under 68 at the Poona Club Golf Course, here Tuesday.

Jaini, currently placed eighth on the Rolex Rankings 2010 (Order of Merit), had a slow start as he bogeyed the opening 10th hole. He then rallied with a 15 feet birdie putt on the 11th to get back on track. Thereafter, three more birdies followed on the 12th, 15th and 17th thanks to some good hitting.

A poor chip shot on the second led to the 26-year-old's second bogey of the day. Jaini, however, more than made up for it with a chip-in from the edge for birdie on the third. Two more birdies on the fifth and seventh meant he finished with a commendable five under 66.

Jaini, said: 'I hit it well today and was accurate off the tee. My strategy was to be aggressive off the tee from the very outset as the fairways are narrow from the tee to the green and the rough is not easy to negotiate.

'I, therefore, thought it would better to be aggressive with my tee shot so that even if I find the rough it would not be too far from the green. This strategy seemed to pay off today.

'I recovered well after making bogeys in the very early stages of the first nine and second nine. The birdies on the 11th and third were crucial as they got my confidence going immediately after the setbacks on the 10th and second respectively.

'The course is playing tough and the greens are in great shape. One needs to drive really well to post a low number here.'

Gangjee and Malik fired six birdies and three bogeys in their respective rounds of three under 68 to be tied second.

The Rolex Rankings leader Shamim Khan of Delhi shared fourth place with Digvijay Singh of the DLF Golf & Country Club and Chennai's Sandeep Syal at two under 69.

Gaganjeet Bhullar, C. Muniyappa, Vinod Kumar and Pappan were tied seventh at one under 70 while Mukesh Kumar fired a two over 73 to be tied 23rd.

Anirban Lahiri, the 2009 Aircel PGTI Order of Merit champion, was tied 37th at three over 74 along with Pune golfers Gurki Shergill and Jaideep Patwardhan. Pune's Dinesh Raghuvanshi was joint 59th as he carded a five over 76.

Defending champion Mohd. Siddikur Rahman of Bangladesh got off to a poor start with a six over 77 to be placed tied 68th. Rajiv Datar of Pune was also placed tied 68th.

Source: Web Search

France captain dropped in wake of player strike

Published>Tue, Jun 22 10 07:37 PM

France captain Patrice Evra, who led the players' protest against the decision to kick Nicolas Anelka out of the World Cup squad, was not in the team to face South Africa in their final Group A match on Tuesday.

Evra was among six changes to the French team for their match against the World Cup hosts in Bloemfontein.

The other players who started against Mexico but are not in the team to face South Africa are Anelka, his Chelsea team mate Florent Malouda, Eric Abidal, Sidney Govou and Jeremy Toulalan. Toulalan is suspended so could not be included in the lineup.

They are replaced by Alou Diarra, who is named as French captain for the first time, Sebastien Squillaci, Gael Clichy, Yoan Gourcuff, Andre-Pierre Gignac and Djibril Cisse.

France's major overhaul came after coach Raymond Domenech suggested on Monday several players might not wish to play in the wake of Sunday's training ground strike and the sending home of Anelka.

Hosts South Africa also rung the changes, making five in total, as coach Carlos Alberto Parreira had promised overnight.

South Africa surprised by leaving out Teko Modise, introducing Bernard Parker in a more attacking role. Anele Ngcongoa comes in at right back in place of Siboniso Gaxa and Thanduyise Khuboni gets a first Word Cup run in place of Reneilwe Letsholonyane.

The other two changes were enforced by suspension with Moeneeb Josephs replacing Itumeleng Khune in goal and MacBeth Sibaya coming in for Kagisho Dikgacoi in the defensive midfield position.

Source: Web Search

World Cup will create more jobs in S.Africa -Zuma

Published>Tue, Jun 22 10 07:17 PM

South African President Jacob Zuma said on Tuesday he was confident the Soccer World Cup, hosted for the first time in Africa, will boost job creation and economic growth in his country.

"The event itself has created such an opportunity that our economy is not going to be of the same size after the 2010 World Cup. Certainly, therefore, GDP will grow from where it has been," Zuma said in an interview with Reuters Insider television.

"We are confident that the employment numbers will grow."

Unemployment in South Africa is officially around 25 percent but analysts say the figure could be as high as 40 percent.

The president said threats of strike action during the World Cup from unions were not directly targeted at the event as wage negotiations and strikes traditionally took place each year around June or July during the so-called "strike season".

"The strikes are always a matter of concern but there is nothing extraordinary because we are dealing with what we always deal with during this time," Zuma said.

Unions representing workers at power utility Eskom [ESCJ.UL] have given the company until Thursday to come up with a better deal and avert a potentially damaging strike during the World Cup.

A possible work stoppage at Eskom follows a series of threats of labour action to freeze transport, abandon security posts and tie up immigration at airports during the sporting event if demands for better pay and conditions are not met.

KICKSTART DEVELOPMENT

Analysts estimate that the month-long tournament could add around 0.5 percentage points to South Africa's GDP in 2010. A Reuters poll in May found forecasts ranging from 0.1-0.7 percent with a median of 0.3 percent.

The government has spent around 40 billion rand ($5.40 billion) on infrastructure projects, and billions more on upgrading roads and airports.

A study by accountants Grant Thornton found that foreigners would inject 13 billion rand into the economy during the World Cup while the estimated gross economic impact -- including indirect and infrastructure spending will be 93 billlion rand.

Zuma told a Reuters Newsmaker event later that the World Cup could kickstart development in Africa's biggest economy.

"We view the World Cup as a catalyst for development".

He said some of the positive impacts from the event would be further job creation and infrastructure development.

"We are very confident that after this, employment will go up," Zuma said in the Reuters Insider interview.

He urged South Africans to continue supporting the national soccer squad Bafana Bafana (The Boys) who face a crunch game against France on Tuesday.

South Africa needs to win the match by a big score to avert an early exit from the tournament -- the first time a host nation would not have progressed to the second round.

"We urge the nation to keep supporting Bafana Bafana and to come out in the customary huge numbers this evening at the stadiums and fan parks," Zuma said.

He said the World Cup had thrown South Africa on to the global stage.

"The world has descended on South and it experienced South Africa as a country (and) a very important investment destination."

Source: Web Search

India 209 all out v Sri Lanka - Asia Cup - innings

Published Tue, Jun 22 10 06:57 PM

India were all out for 209 off 42.3 overs in an Asia Cup match against Sri Lanka in Dambulla on Tuesday.

Scores: India 209 in 42.3 overs (R. Sharma 69; F. Maharoof 5-42) v Sri Lanka

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