Bangladesh to bat against India

Deepak Jain>Thu, Jan 07 10 02:19 PM

Dhaka, Jan 7 (IANS) Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan won the toss and elected to bat against India in the tri-series tournament here Thursday.

Teams:

India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain and wicket-keeper), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra, S.Sreesanth.

Bangladesh: Shakib Al Hasan (captain), Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Mohammad Ashraful, Raqibul Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim (wicket-keeper), Mahmudullah, Naeem Islam, Abdur Razzak, Rubel Hossain, Syed Rasel.

Source: Web Search

Gary Neville set to quit football

Deepak Jain>Thu, Jan 07 10 02:13 PM

Manchester United hero Gary Neville is set to retire from football at the end of this season as he will be out of contract in June and there are no plans to offer a new one by the club.

Right-back Neville, 34, has been hit by a series of injuries over the last two years, which have prevented the right back from making regular first-team appearances.

Fellow United veterans Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs have new one-year deals, The Sun reports.

Ex-England star Neville has played 583 first-team games so far in a superb 18-year career at Old Trafford.

Neville is England's most capped right back and Manchester United's captain. He started at and has played his entire career at Old Trafford, making him a rare one-club man.

He made his international debut in 1995 and was first choice right back for club and country for more than ten years.

Source: Web Search

AB de Villiers doesn't want 'ball tampering' issue to die down

Deepak Jain>Thu, Jan 07 10 02:09 PM

To keep pressure on the England team even though match officials said that there was no evidence of ball tampering, South African cricketers are continuing to make an issue of the television footage.

Middle-order batsman AB de Villiers said "it is not on to climb on to the ball with your spikes." This is what Stuart Broad was filmed doing on Tuesday morning.

"It was a little bit naughty. Although I wouldn't say that he deserves to be banned, I do think it should be looked at - definitely," The Telegraph quoted, De Villiers, as saying.

De Villiers's frustration can be well reflected after South Africa decided not to file a written complaint.

According to Dr Mohammed Moosajee, South Africa's team manager, they took advice from match officials before deciding to let the matter drop.

"There was a concern raised about the condition of the ball. If you looked at TV footage you could clearly see that there was an indentation on the ball, and there were marks that went across," Moosajee said.

"It was taken up to the match referee, Roshan Mahanama, who then looked into the matter and said he was quite happy that no further action needed to be taken. And we accepted that," he said.

According to a statement released on Wednesday by the International Cricket Council, South Africa's failure to put in an official charge by the start of play means that the issue is now closed.

But De Villiers seems to clearly disagree with South Africa's team policy. "I think there should be a formal complaint with a ball that was reversing after that incident. There was clearly a piece of the leather off the ball after he stepped on it and it is not the first time that it happened."

Source: Web Search

Tiger Woods' wife spotted without wedding ring

Deepak Jain>Thu, Jan 07 10 01:53 PM

London, Jan 7 (ANI): Defamed Tiger Woods' wife Elin is still not wearing her wedding ring.

A skinny-looking Elin, 29, was spotted without her ring when she was picking up her two kids from school.

Elin is trying to get back to normality in Windermere, Florida, after splitting with the ace golfer, reports the Sun.

Meanwhile, golf ace Tiger's 12million pounds yacht Privacy left moorings in North Palm Beach, sparking rumours that the 34-year-old is planning a trip.

The couple has been separated ever since the news of a string of affairs the superstar enjoyed with a number of women emerged after an unfortunate car-accident late last year.

Up to 14 women have been linked to the 34-year-old golfer and Woods has admitted to cheating. (ANI)

Source: Web Search

The second Liberation for Bangladesh

Deepak Jain>Thu, Jan 07 10 01:49 PM

Mirpur, Jan. 6 -- Former Bangladesh skipper Akram Khan is a selector and a businessman now. Khan, whose most memorable moment came in 1997 when he led Bangladesh to win the ICC Trophy, is joint owner of a travel agency with a fleet of 14 luxury buses that ply to and from different parts of the country. "It's a business owned with Ashish Bhadra," he said. Bhadra is a former captain of the Bangladesh football team. It's difficult to miss how his eyes light up when asked about the reception he got. "It was a surprise. We were taken in a bus from the airport to the Parliament Street where the reception was given. There were more than a lakh fans waiting for us. The money, the felicitations followed but nothing could beat the feeling. People told us they had not seen such a gathering since Bangladesh was liberated in 1971."

Source: Web Search

Mishra shines on last day

Deepak Jain>Thu, Jan 07 10 01:43 PM

Mumbai, Jan. 6 -- Mumbai have made it to the final of the Ranji Trophy. They will meet Karnataka in Mysore from Monday in the clash for the title. The semi-final between Mumbai and Delhi ended in a draw here at the Cricket Club of India on Wednesday but the hosts qualified on the basis of first innings lead. This is the 43rd time that Mumbai have qualified for the final of the premier domestic tournament, which they have won 38 times. And this is their second successive appearance in the final, under captain Wasim Jaffer. On the fourth and final day of the semi-final, Mumbai added 187 runs to their first innings lead of 289 to set Delhi an improbable target of 477. The visitors were 160 for four before the captains agreed to call the match off with the mandatory overs remaining to be bowled. That brought an end to a day of uninspiring cricket. It was almost certain by the end of the third day that Mumbai are through to the final. And if anybody thought there was going to be an exciting fourth day, he might have as well expected to see pigs flying over Brabourne Stadium. On Tuesday, captain Wasim Jaffer had said the decision to not enforce the follow-on was taken to rest his bowlers. And that had snuffed out the chances of a result in this contest. But with the Mumbai batsmen getting out before lunch on the fourth day, their bowlers had to toil for nearly three hours. However, with spinners Ramesh Powar and Iqbal Abdulla bowling long spells, the fast bowlers got some rest. Resuming on the overnight score of 123 for four, Mumbai lost Omkar Khanvilkar on the fifth ball of the day, caught at first slip off left-arm spinner Vikas Mishra. Iqbal Abdulla was the next to fall, to a ball that turned viciously to hit the leg stump. Abhsihek Nayar, who scored a century in the first innings, was bowled by a Mishra ball that turned and kept low. While Delhi don't have much to boast of in this match, the performance of the 17-year-old Mishra might be the biggest gain for them. The tall spinner with a lazy high-arm action took six wickets in the second innings to add to this first innings tally of four.

But in Mysore, as Jaffer said afterwards, a match will be on.

Source: Web Search

Mortaza never ceases to amaze

Deepak Jain>Thu, Jan 07 10 01:39 PM

Mirpur, Jan. 6 -- If you told someone Mashrafe Mortaza would be the showstopper at the last IPL auction, people would not have believed you. But he was, and fetched $600,000 (Rs 2.7 crore). On Wednesday, there was another scarcely believable sight: Mortaza, one of Bangladesh's biggest stars, took a cycle-rickshaw from his rented place to the Sher-e Bangla National Stadium to join the rest of his teammates at practice. The medium-pacer was getting late and his driver was yet to turn up. So he called a rickshaw and headed for the stadium. He had just spoken to HT about his chances in the forthcoming IPL and his injury. But then, as he saw a camera coming out of the bag, he turned his face away and never looked back. "It's disappointing to miss a series at home, especially after being named captain. I hope to be fit before the forthcoming New Zealand series," he said. Selector Akram Khan too sounded optimistic. "Our only problem in Tests is that we do not have another bowler of the level of Mortaza. We need to keep him in the squad for New Zealand. All our other medium-pacers are not half as penetrative as Mortaza is," Mortaza, who was with the Kolkata Knight Riders in the last edition of the IPL, is recovering from knee surgery. A bout of asthma has hindered rehabilitation but he remains hopeful. "I am optimistic about my chances in the IPL this time. Sourav Ganguly knows my strengths. Coach Dav Whatmore was our coach for four years and I have a good rapport with him. With the IPL scheduled to be played in India the wickets will suit my batting. Last time I got just one chance and I am disappointed with my performance. But this time I hope to be more useful if I get a chance."

Source: Web Search