Sports

Rome, January 27:AC Milan qualified for the semi-finals of the Italian Cup Wednesday with a 2-1 win at Sampdoria.

Pato seemed to have settled matters in the first half hour with a brace that the Devils defended with minor problems in the first half.

The Brazilian volleyed home off a header from compatriot Thiago Silva as the Samp defence dithered on a corner, and on 22 minutes left Pietro Accardi standing to fire past Angelo Da Costa, himself a Brazilian.

London, January 26:India cricket coach Gary Kirsten might take up a similar role with the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Mumbai Indians after the World Cup in the sub-continent.

Kirsten’s contract with the Indian team ends after the World Cup and he is unlikely to renew it as he wants to spend more time with his family in South Africa. But a coaching job in the month-long IPL is something that he might fancy.

United Nations, January 26:Rivals of the field, Indian cricket opener Virender Sehwag and Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara are batting together against a common enemy in a United Nations-backed campaign to fight HIV/AIDS.

The players feature in a public service announcement, released Tuesday and available free to all broadcasters across the globe, encouraging young people to “get the facts, protect yourself” as part of the ICC Cricket World Cup Think Wise partnership with the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to promote HIV prevention.

Wellington, January 26: While the Pakistan team gears up for the second ODI against New Zealand, random dope tests have been carried out on four Pakistani cricketers- Misbah ul Haq, Saeed Ajmal, Shoaib Akhtar and Younis Khan. The results of the tests are awaited.

Shoiab of course, already has a dope offence against his name, testing positive for the performance-enhancing nandrolone back in Oct 2006. He was slapped with a two-year ban from international cricket, but just one month later, was cleared on appeal.

London, January 26:Boxing legend Mike Tyson has welcomed his eighth child, a healthy baby boy, who was born in a Las Vegas hospital Tuesday.

The boy is the second child of the former heavyweight champion and his wife Lakiha.

“Mike and Lakiha are very happy and everyone is doing great,” dailymail.co.uk quoted a source close to the boxer as saying.

The couple, parents of two-year-old Milan, have not named their new addition yet.

The good news came in just 18 months after the tragic death of Tyson’s daughter Exodus, who was four.

Queenstown, January 26: The second one-day international between New Zealand and Pakistan was abandoned today due to heavy rain in Queenstown.

Only 26 balls were bowled after New Zealand won the toss and put Pakistan in to bat, with the tourists at 31 without loss when poor weather forced the players back to the pavilion.

Ahmed Shehzad was on 25 and Mohammad Hafeez on four, with extras accounting for two runs.

New Zealand lead the series, which has now been reduced to five matches, 1-0 after a nine-wicket victory in Wellington on Saturday.

Melbourne, January 26: Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi are on course for their maiden Australian Open title together as they advanced to the semifinals after a hard-fought victory over the combine of Michael Llodra of France and Nenad Zimonjic of Serbia here on Wednesday.

The third seeded Indian pair, who teamed up together after nine years in a bid to add the only Grand Slam title missing in their cupboard, needed 91 minutes to beat Llodra and Zimonjic 6-4 6-4 in a quarterfinal match at Melbourne Park.

New Delhi, January 25: Star cricketer VVS Laxman and world champion wrestler Sushil Kumar were among seven sportspersons who were today honoured with the prestigious Padma Shri Award for their contribution in their respective sports.

Besides Laxman and Sushil, the other five conferred with the civilian award were weightlifter Kunjarani Devi, shooter Gagan Narang, discus thrower Krishna Poonia, para jumper Shital Mahajan and mountaineer Harbhajan Singh.

Melbhe, January 25: Roger Federer cruised into his eighth consecutive Australian Open semifinal with a dominating straight-sets victory over his Swiss teammate Stanislas Wawrinka on Tuesday.

It was a no-contest as the all-time Grand Slam champion cantered to a 6-1, 6-3, 6-3 win against the over-awed Wawrinka in just 1hr 47 min on Rod Laver Arena.

Federer will now take on either 2008 champion Novak Djokovic or Czech sixth seed Tomas Berdych in Thursday’s semifinal.

Tuesday’s success extended Federer’s winning streak to 15 and a record 59th match win at the Australian Open.

Melbourne, January 25: World number one Caroline Wozniacki recovered from losing the first set to overcome Italian Francesca Schiavone 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 in the Australian Open quarterfinals on Tuesday.

Two days after beating Svetlana Kuznetsova in the longest women’s match in Grand Slam history, Schiavone showed remarkable powers of recovery but eventually ran out of steam against her younger opponent.

New Delhi, January 25: Gary Kirsten’s low-profile coaching approach has been instrumental in Indian cricket team’s success in recent years and it will be a big loss for the team when he quits after the World Cup, former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram said on Tuesday.

Akram rated Kirsten as one of the best coaches in the world and said his three-year association with India has done wonders for the team.

New Delhi, January 25: The list of numerous accolades won by Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar might just swell up today with its most precious possession till date.

According to reports, Sachin is leading the race to win India’s highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna.

If he wins, Sachin’s this feat, like his numerous other achievements, would be another first as no other sportsperson has ever won the Bharat Ratna.

Centurion, January 25: Yusuf Pathan and Virat Kohli turned out to be the star for India in the batting department while off-spinner Harbhajan Singh was the most economical bowler for the visitors in the five-match ODI series against South Africa which they lost 2-3.

In the absence of Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, young Kohli and Pathan put up impressive performances with the bat in hostile South African conditions even as the likes of skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina found the going tough.

Karachi, January 24: Former Pakistan cricket captain Inzamam-ul-Haq Monday criticised the board for delaying naming of the team captain for the World Cup starting Feb 19.

The legendary Test batsman said the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) indecision is creating disharmony in the national team and it will affect Pakistan’s chances in the World Cup.

“With only three weeks left to the World Cup, Pakistan have no captain and the blame goes to the PCB for creating an impasse which has divided the team into two groups, supporting Afridi and Misbah,” said Inzamam.

New Delhi, January 24: Suresh Kalmadi was today sacked as the chairman of the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee in the interest of impartial and unhindered investigations into allegations of corruption in conducting the mega event.

Lalit Bhanot has also been removed as the secretary general of the Organising Committee.

The decision to remove the two top officials was taken by the new sports minister Ajay Maken, barely five days after taking charge of the ministry.

Kochi, January 24: Shantakumaran Sreesanth may have missed the cut in the Indian squad for the upcoming World Cup but has come in for praise from selection committee chairman K Srikkanth, who has described him as an “excellent bowler.”

Terming selector’s job as a “thankless one”, Srikkanth said Sreesanth is a genuinely good outswing bowler.

“I have told him (Sreesanth) to be calm and he will be a great bowler,” Srikkanth was quoted as saying in ‘On Record’ show telecast on Asianet Television, yesterday.

Mumbai, January 24: After recovering from a ligament injury, India’s ace shuttler Saina Nehwal will return to the international scene in her season-opening Korean Open Super Series in Seoul starting on Monday.

The 20-year-old, who missed the Indian Grand Prix, Super Series Masters Final and the Malaysian Open because of a ligament injury in her right leg, will take on Tzu Ying Tai of Chinese Taipei in the first round of the main draw starting on Wednesday.

Wellington, January 24: Former captain and director-general of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Javed Miandad, has called up the preent stock of Pakistan players to learn from the professional attitude and behaviour of Indian batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar.

Rather than letting their on-field performance speak for them, Miandad feels that the players are happy to brag about their performance in media.

Karachi, January 24: Former Pakistan cricket captain Inzamam-ul-Haq Monday criticised the board for delaying naming of the team captain for the World Cup starting Feb 19.

The legendary Test batsman said the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) indecision is creating disharmony in the national team and it will affect Pakistan’s chances in the World Cup.

“With only three weeks left to the World Cup, Pakistan have no captain and the blame goes to the PCB for creating an impasse which has divided the team into two groups, supporting Afridi and Misbah,” said Inzamam.

Centurion, January 24: Team India narrowly missed the history book in South Africa but it achieved several milestones in this tour.

India managed to draw the first ever Test series 1-1 in South Africa and won the only T20. Despite of Yusuf Pathan’s last hour cameo, India lost the Centurion ODI and series 2-3 on Sunday.

New Delhi, January 24: With incidents of attacks and eve teasing on the rise in the city, women are preparing themselves to take on criminals. Kick boxing, form of boxing that incorporates martial-art style kicking, has emerged as the most preferred self defence technique among women. It not only enhances physical
fitness but helps reduce weight.

Kolkata, January 24: Achanta Sharath Kamal bagged the men’s honours while Shamini Kumaresan clinched the women’s title in contrasting styles at the 72nd National and Inter-state Table Tennis Championships here Sunday.Sharath, representing Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB), came back from the jaws of defeat to put it across teammate Soumyadeep Roy in a gruelling seven-setter at the Netaji Indoor Stadium.

PSPB’s Shamini, on the other hand, coasted to a comparatively easy 4-1 win over Mamta Prabhu of Mahrashtra A in the women’s final.

Centurion, January 23: After losing the closely-fought ODI series 2-3 to South Africa, Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni Sunday said it was a “disappointing” performance by the batsmen throughout and called it a “big lesson” before the World Cup.

India lost the fifth and the last ODI by 33 runs, despite Yusuf Pathan smashing 105 off 70 balls as a last ditch effort and bringing India closer to the target of 268 runs.

“It was a disappointing series for the batsmen. The bowlers were getting the wickets, and then getting the runs too. We did not perform as a batting unit” Dhoni said.

Kolkata, January 23: Riding on Edeh Chidi’s double strike, Mohun Bagan registered a facile 2-0 win over debutants AIFF XI in a round 11 I-League match at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan, here today.

The Nigerian striker, who played for Mahindra United last season, gave Mohun Bagan a 10th-minute lead before sealing the issue in the 81st minute for his sixth goal of the season.

This was the team’s third consecutive win and it helped the green and maroon to climb to fifth spot with 17 points from 11 matches, while AIFF XI remained on 10th position with 10 points from as many matches.

Centurion, January 23: Hashim Amla struck an unbeaten century, but India managed well to restrict South Africa to 250/9 in 46 overs in the rain-curtailed fifth and final ODI here Sunday. India will have to chase 268 runs as per Duckworth-Lewis calculations to clinch the decider.

Amla, who has been in brilliant form in the series, was again pivotal to South African batting scoring 116 runs off 132 balls with nine boundaries.

Amla added 97-runs with Morne Van Wyk (56), laying the foundation of a big total, after the fall of captain Graeme Smith, who was dismissed by Yuvraj Singh (2-45).