Sports

New Delhi, June 19: All is not well with team India, as after the ouster from T20 World Cup, team manager V Chamundeswarnath has been suspended following charges of misbehaviour with the women’s team.

V Chamundeswarnath, who is the secretary of the Andhra Cricket Association, was suspended on Thursday by the state association after a meeting of its executive committee meeting in Vijayawada.

The executive committee found him guilty of misuse of funds and misbehaviour with the women’s team.

New Delhi, June 19: The Steve Waugh Foundation Global launched on Friday, announced their association with 6UP, hosts of the ‘runs per over’ SMS game played via mobile.

The game had been launched during IPL-2 and was subsequently taken off after India’s sports minister M S Gill expressed reservations about the game and how it could bring in elements of betting and match-fixing.

But at the official launch here on Friday, 6UP founder George Tomeski said all such fears had been dispelled.
Also read:

Colombo, June 19: Arjuna Ranatunga, the former Sri Lankan captain, has said the BCCI “sacrificed national interest” and hurt India’s chances at the ICC World Twenty20 by giving the IPL more importance.

His comments come soon after India coach Gary Kirsten blamed the fatigue caused by the IPL and the minor injuries picked up during the tournament for the team’s lacklustre showing at the World Twenty20.

Nottingham, June 19: Pakistan beat South Africa in Twenty20 World Cup first semifinal as Afridi found form to his first fifty of the Twenty20 cricket.

Unusually for Afridi, he batted for 34 balls without clearing the ropes once. This was a reflection of a tricky pitch, which offered appreciable turn and some variation in pace. But he still managed to cudgel 51 runs – his first half-century in all international cricket for 28 innings.

Washington, June 19:
US Open Golf Championship 2009 Schedule dates –

June 18, Thursday
10:00 AM – 3:00 PM – ESPN
3:00 PM – 5:00 PM – NBC
5:00 PM – 7:00 PM – ESPN
8:00 PM – 11:00 PM – ESPN (replay)

June 19, Friday
2:30 AM – 5:30 AM – ESPN2 (replay)
10:00 AM – 3:00 PM – ESPN
3:00 PM – 5:00 PM – NBC
5:00 PM – 7:00 PM – ESPN
8:00 PM – 11:00 PM ESPN (replay)

June 20, Saturday
3:00 AM – 6:00 AM – ESPN (replay)
2:00 PM – 8:00 PM – NBC

June 21, Sunday
3:00 AM – 6:00 AM – ESPN (replay)
1:30 PM – 7:30 PM – NBC

Location where matches play is Old Bethpage New York

London, June 19: ronaldo Christiano Ronaldo is making news all over. Just last week the Portuguese superstar footballer had made headlines for being the highest bid footballer of all time. In a short span of two days, he was back in news for being seen partying with Hilton heiress, Paris Hilton in Los Angeles. Now he is making news for his clothes, more precisely, the lack of it.

Nottingham, June 19: Shahid Afridi’s inspired all-round display saw Pakistan knock out favourites South Africa by seven runs and book a place in the final of the World Twenty20 cricket at Trent Bridge here Thursday.
Afridi slammed 51 off 34 balls to take Pakistan to 149 for four and then made the Proteas bleed with his bowling, taking the wickets of Herschelle Gibbs and Ab de Villiers, at a miserly 16 runs from four overs.

Farmingdale, June 18: The first round will resume 7:30 a.m. Friday and may push the tournament’s final round into Monday, although a definitive schedule has not been released. Friday’s forecast contains a chance of rain; it will otherwise be cloudy with temperatures in the mid-70s. Saturday brings another chance of rain.

United States Golf Association officials said that roughly an inch of rain had fallen on the course Thursday morning and early afternoon and that workers were no longer able to clear water off the greens fast enough to make them playable.

Bangalore, June 18: Former Pakistan skipper Wasim Akram has predicted a Pakistan-Sri Lanka clash in the final of the on-going World Twenty20 tournament to be held at Lord’s on June 21.

“Agreed that South Africa and Sri Lanka are still unbeaten in the tournament so far, but most dangerous of the four to me looks to be Pakistan. With the return of Abdul Razzaq, the side looks very strong. They have variety in the bowling and suddenly they are looking like a side which can cause a major upset,” Akram wrote in his column for The Times of India.

London, June 18: Former India captain Sourav Ganguly backs under-fire skipper MS Dhoni and says the team and country should put behind the humiliation of the T20 World Championship and move on.

Ganguly, who is in London and will turn a new page when he sits behind the camera for ESPN, spoke to CNN-IBN’s associate cricket editor Nishant arora. While he backed Team India, he also said that fatigue can never be an excuse for the young lads in the team.

London, June 18: West Indies are confident of chasing nearly any total in this event; Sri Lanka believe there is no score they can’t defend. Clearly, something will have to give in their World Twenty20 semi-final.

Friday’s match at the Oval sees two exciting sides up against one another and, while Sri Lanka will start favourites, the West Indies have shown that they are not to under-estimated.

Sri Lanka, who have an admirably well balanced side for cricket’s shortest format, have yet to lose a match at this tournament.

Karachi, June 18: Back in the national side after snapping ties with the ICL, Pakistan allrounder Abdul Razzaq said he had a torrid time adjusting to mainstream cricket after playing in the “low standard” rebel League.

“It wasn’t easy getting back into international cricket after a long absence. This is the highest standards of cricket being played in the world and playing in the ICL and its low standards of cricket, it needs a great deal of mental adjustment,” Razzaq told the ‘Dawn’ newspaper in London.

Karachi, June 18: Former Pakistani Test players Zaheer Abbas and Saleem Yousuf have backed Younis Khan and his team to win the Twenty20 World Cup in England.

“I think the Pakistani players have surprised everyone with their performances after a slow start in the tournament. If they retain their momentum they can go on to win the Cup,” former Test captain Zaheer Abbas said.

Zaheer, who had criticised the performance of the team in the early part of the World Cup, said the batsmen must support the bowlers if they were to win the title.

Nottingham, June 18: An intriguing battle is on the cards when favourites South Africa clash with buoyant Pakistan in the semi-final of the World Twenty20 on Thursday.

The South Africans have showed their all-round prowess during an unbeaten run in the tournament, including emphatic wins in all three Super Eight games against the West Indies, England and defending champions India.

The latest success came at Trent Bridge on Tuesday when the Proteas fought back after being restricted to a modest 130-5 on a slow wicket to keep off-colour India down to 118-8.

London, June 18: West Indies are confident of chasing nearly any total in this event; Sri Lanka believe there is no score they can’t defend. Clearly, something will have to give in their World Twenty20 semi-final.

Friday’s match at the Oval sees two exciting sides up against one another and, while Sri Lanka will start favourites, the West Indies have shown that they are not to under-estimated.

Sri Lanka, who have an admirably well balanced side for cricket’s shortest format, have yet to lose a match at this tournament.

London, June 18: South Africa are confident they can handle Umar Gul’s reverse swing when they clash with Pakistan in the World Twenty20 semi-final on Thursday.

Gul is the main reason the enigmatic Pakistanis have progressed so far in the tournament after a stuttering start, and will be expected to deliver again to see his team through to the final.

The right-arm seamer grabbed a sensational five wickets for six runs against New Zealand in a must-win at the Oval last Saturday, the first ever five-wicket haul in Twenty20 internationals.

London, June 18: Sachin Tendulkar shares an average fan’s disappointment after Team India’s early exit from the Twenty20 World Cup but he strongly disapproves of the backlash it has generated back home.

Tendulkar said he was disappointed with India’s failed title defence but at the same time felt the fans back home needed to show more “responsibility and balance” in their reaction.

Islamabad, June 17: Pakistani police have made their first arrest in the attack on Sri Lanka’s cricket team, and determined that the assailants planned to take the athletes hostage, a senior official said Wednesday.

Pervez Rathore, police chief in the city of Lahore where the March 3 attack occurred, said the arrested suspect, Mohammad Zubair, was a member of a banned militant group, as were six other suspects in the assault.

He refused to name the group.

Sachin Tendulkar and Zaheer Khan have been rested from India’s four-ODI to the Caribbean starting on June 26, and Suresh Raina has missed out due to a hairline fracture on his thumb.

Fast bowler Ashish Nehra makes a comeback after his impressive performances for the Delhi Daredevils in this year’s IPL, while the big-hitting Mumbai allrounder Abhishek Nayar gets his maiden call-up to the national squad.

New Delhi, June 17: Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh has been signed by Swiss luxury watch company Movado as its brand ambassador.

‘I am honoured to be associated with a brand like Movado. It believes in the art of design and is known for its perfection worldwide. I have strong faith in the pursuit of perfection. I am looking forward to a long association,’ said Harbhajan in a press statement.

Other ambassadors of the brand include tennis player Pete Sampras, jazz master Wynton Marsalis, actors Amanda Seyfried and Kerry Washington and dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov.
–IANS

Nottingham, June 17: Criticised by former cricketers for his tactical blunders against England, Mahendra Singh Dhoni faced the wrath of angry fans as he was booed after India’s 12-run defeat to South Africa in their final Twenty20 World Cup Super Eight match here.
Dhoni was booed at the presentation ceremony after the match but the beleaguered Indian captain said it didn’t affect him.

Nottingham, June 17: A hugely confident South Africa will look to continue to unleash their all-round prowess against an unpredictable but resurgent Pakistan in the first semifinal of the Twenty20 World Cup here tomorrow.

South Africa have been on the roll with their five-match unbeaten streak in the tournament, and they are the favourites to win the title after their emphatic wins against the West Indies, England and holders India in the Super Eight stage.

Nottingham, June 17: An intriguing battle is on the cards when favourites South Africa clash with buoyant Pakistan in the semi-final of the World Twenty20 on Thursday.

The South Africans have showed their all-round prowess during an unbeaten run in the tournament, including emphatic wins in all three Super Eight games against the West Indies, England and defending champions India.

The latest success came at Trent Bridge on Tuesday when the Proteas fought back after being restricted to a modest 130-5 on a slow wicket to keep off-colour India down to 118-8.

London, June 17: This is pretty hard to believe, guys: three T20 defeats in a row. If the West Indies fast bowlers proved we cannot play pace, the South Africans showed we cannot handle the turning ball either. So what are we? Just flat pitch bullies?

Though our spinners bowled well in restricting South Africa to 130, I still can’t fathom why we kept Pragyan Ojha out on a spinner-friendly track.

London, June 16:Pakistan skipper Younis Khan called the extra scrutiny of the ball by umpires during their game against Ireland in World Twenty20 as “embarrassing.”

Umpires checked the ball after every over at the Lord’s Monday following the unproven ball-tampering allegations raised by New Zealand against seamer Umar Gul. The Pakistani fast bowler demolised the New Zealanders with his record five for six, getting the new ball to reverse swing, during their first Super Eight game at The Oval.