Sports News

10 Highest Paid Soccer Players (2011)

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 19:38:00 +0000

1. Cristiano Ronaldo
Country: Portugal
Club Team: Real Madrid
Age: 25
Salary: $17.06 million

Cristiano Ronaldo

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2. Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Country: Sweden
Club Team: AC Milan
Age: 29
Salary: $15.7 million

Zlatan Ibrahimovic

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3. Lionel Messi
Country: Argentina
Club Team: AC Milan
Age: 22
Salary: $13.74 million

Lionel Messi

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4. Samuel Eto’o
Country: Cameroon
Club Team: Inter Milan
Age: 29
Salary: $13.74 million

Samuel Eto’o

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5. Kaka
Country: Bzazil
Club Team: Real Madrid
Age: 27
Salary: $13.13 million

Kaka

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6. Karim Benzema
Country: France
Club Team: Real Madrid
Age: 22
Salary: $11.17 million

Karim Benzema

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7. Carlos Tevez
Country: Argentina
Club Team: Manchester City
Age: 26
Salary: $10.57 million

Carlos Tevez

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8. John Terry
Country: England
Club Team: Chelsea
Age: 29
Salary: $9.81 million

John Terry

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9. Frank Lampard
Country: England
Club Team: Chelsea
Age: 31
Salary: $9.81 million

Frank Lampard

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10. Thierry Henry
Country: France
Club Team: Barcelona
Age: 32
Salary: $9.81 million

Thierry Henry

Swede success, Ghana romp

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 20:20:00 +0000

Sweden began their friendly tournament campaign in Cyprus with a 2-0 win against the host nation. First-half goals from Tobias Hysen and Markus Berg were enough to give Erik Hamren's side a routine victory. The tournament's other fixture saw Ukraine beat Romania 4-2 in a penalty shootout, after the game had ended 2-2. Ukraine had taken a 2-0 lead through Yaroslav Rakitskiy and Artem Milevskiy but they were pegged back by a double from Dan Alexa.

In action involving African teams, Didier Ya Konan scored the only goal to help Ivory Coast sink Mali 1-0 in Valence. The decisive strike came after three minutes at the French venue, which was marred by some heated exchanges between the players late on following several bad tackles.

The match also saw Didier Drogba play his first international since last year's World Cup finals in South Africa - the Chelsea striker marking his return by laying the ball on for fellow forward Gervinho, whose cross was met by Hannover midfielder Ya Konan. Mali missed a second-half penalty before the game was stopped twice, first after a fight broke out between the players and then for a floodlight failure. Elsewhere, Ghana's new coach Goran Stevanovic began his reign in style after watching his side thrash Togo 4-1 in Antwerp.

The continent's top side took the lead after just 10 minutes thanks to Dominic Adiyiah.

And further strikes from Jonathan Mensah (60), an own goal from captain Serge Akakpo (69) and a late effort by Samuel Inkoom (83) saw the Black Stars run out easy victors.

In Tuesday's other friendly clash Peru recorded a 1-0 victory over Panama as Orlando Contreras got the only goal.

Arsenel Exit ,

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 20:12:00 +0000

Bendtner, 23, is only just returning to full fitness and sharpness after injury problems this season. But the Danish international, who will face England in Copenhagen on Wednesday, feels he needs regular football to achieve his lofty goals.

Bendtner said: "I have a lot of feelings for Arsenal and it means something great to me. I would be sad to leave it, but you have to think about yourself and, with the career goals I have, I cannot be sitting on the bench.

"That's the way it is. I will do my best for Arsenal throughout the season. Hopefully, I will be there next season as well, but we have to wait and see. But, if my situation at Arsenal doesn't change, I will have to look at it because I want to play football.

"There is no doubt about that. If I cannot play at Arsenal, then I do not want to sit on the bench - but every player thinks like that. I am at a stage of my career now where I think I should play every game and I should develop and score goals.''

Bendtner will face his Arsenal team-mate Jack Wilshere in Copenhagen with the 19-year-old making his full debut. But he hopes the lesson of another Gunners player in Theo Walcott, who was taken to the 2006 World Cup as a 17-year-old, will be learnt by England in handling Wilshere.

He said: "Jack is developing all the time. He is still young and he will keep developing and getting better for five or six years still. Young players are always put under a lot of pressure very early in England. You always throw players around really quickly. Jack has got potential, he is a grounded lad and he can be a great, great player for England.

"I have my own theories on how Theo Walcott was treated by England, but I don't want to get too much into that because it will probably just get me in trouble.

"But Theo can be a lesson for the way you treat Jack. It's important to take it easy and realise he is a kid. He's still young even though he seems very mature and seems like he has played a long time.''

ICC chief Haroon Lorgat at an event, before the World Cup

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 18:18:00 +0000

Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, has said that he is confident about having a corruption-free World Cup, especially after the anti-corruption tribunal's verdict that banned three Pakistan players on charges of spot-fixing.

"I am confident for two reasons," Lorgat told the National. "The main one is that the vast majority of players are honest players. They do play the game in the spirit that it should be played. They are not seeking to make gains out of untoward means.

"Secondly, we are alive to what could come to the fore in terms of corruption. We have measures in place, and people forget we had been tracking this long before the News of the World had broken the story.

Lorgat said the ICC was having discussions at appropriate levels about whether gambling could be legalised on the sub-continent, where cricket has long been under the spectre of illegal bookies and betting. "I agree with the notion that if it is regulated, it is a lot better than if it is not regulated. We have made inquiries, and these are the things we are working towards."

Since the spot-fixing scandal broke last year, Lorgat said that the ICC had increased its anti-corruption staff, and were now "more vigilant around leads we pick up."

Lorgat has said that the punishments handed out were severe enough, and felt that it would deter players in future. "I think it would take someone very brave not to take heed of what has happened.

"In legal terms, you have to be proportionate when you mete out punishment. We must distinguish between match-fixing and spot-fixing. This is a very experienced group of judges. They have enormous experience and expertise, and they are independent. They have applied their minds and decided on what is a proportionate sanction."

S Sreesanth as a replacement for injured pacer Praveen Kumar

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 18:10:00 +0000

The BCCI on Tuesday named S Sreesanth as a replacement for injured pacer Praveen Kumar in India’s 15-member World Cup squad after the latter was ruled out due to an elbow injury.Praveen has been fighting an elbow injury, which had also kept him out of the recent ODI series against South Africa.

Sources earlier told CNN-IBN that Sreesanth and R Vinay Kumar were the two names making rounds as replacement for Praveen and the Indian think-tank – which includes coach Gary Kirsten and captain MS Dhoni – preferred Vinay over Sreesanth in the squad.

“God has been kind to me, so I am playing the World Cup. I feel bad for Praveen, hope he recovers fast. I have been working on my game a lot and its been a learning experience, and am looking forward to the World Cup now,” Sreesanth told CNN-IBN.

“I was worried about my economy rate, but I think I am in control of it. Our fast bowling department is confident of the challenge. Our team is a perfect mix of talent and experience this time,” he added.

The pacer said that he was “very much misunderstood but I am in control of my emotions.”

I was looking forward to cheer for the team, but now I am excited I will be playing. Cricket comes first any day, it’s my priority always.”

Praveen Kumar, the India seamer, underwent a fitness test early on Monday morning at the National Cricket Academy, immediately after returning from England, where he had dashed last week to consult experts on his injured right elbow. Though there was no official word yet from the BCCI on Praveen, sources monitoring the developments have indicated that the fast bowler' dreams of playing his maiden World Cup were virtually over because the injury had not healed as fast as was expected.

Praveen had picked up the injury at the outset of the ODI series last month in South Africa and was sent back immediately as a precautionary measure to recuperate at the NCA. But the recovery did not go as planned and Praveen was rushed to meet Dr Andrew Wallace, a London-based surgeon, who has treated many Indian players including Sachin Tendulkar. The BCCI officials were tight-lipped about the development, but it is understood that the board wanted to first approach the tournament's technical committee to report on Praveen's injury and get the approval for his replacement.

Messi hat-trick puts Barca 10 points clear

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 21:49:00 +0000

Lionel Messi’s brilliant hat-trick fired Barcelona to a 3-0 win over Atletico Madrid on Saturday that set a record for consecutive La Liga victories of 16 and stretched their lead over Real Madrid at the top to 10 points.

The Argentine World Player of the Year struck twice in 12 first-half minutes and again in the 79th to move two goals clear of Real forward Cristiano Ronaldo at the top of the La Liga scoring charts with 24 goals.

The victory lifted the champions to 61 points from 22 matches and beat the previous best for straight league wins set by Alfredo Di Stefano’s Real in the 1960-61 season.

Real, who suffered a shock 1-0 defeat at Osasuna last weekend, can trim the gap back to seven with a win over promoted Real Sociedad at the Bernabeu on Sunday (1800).

Villarreal earlier squandered a chance to close within three points of Real and lost their unbeaten home record when they slumped to a 1-0 defeat against promoted Levante.

The loss, their first in 12 home games this season, leaves them on 45 points, six behind Real and four ahead of fourth-placed Valencia, who host promoted Hercules in Sunday’s late kickoff (2000 GMT).

Athletic Bilbao boosted their chances of a place in Europe when goals from David Lopez, Gaizka Toquero and Fernando Llorente gave them a 3-0 home win over 10-man Sporting Gijon.

The victory lifted the Basque club to fifth place on 38 points, a point above Espanyol who were three goals down by the 18th minute at Almeria and eventually lost 3-2.

MESSI MAGIC

Atletico were looking for a morale-boosting result at the Nou Camp that would keep their hopes of European qualification alive but any prospects of derailing the Barca express were effectively snuffed out by two moments of Messi magic.

His first goal in the 17th minute was a trademark dash in from the right wing and he left several opponents trailing before arrowing a low shot past David De Gea.

Spain striker David Villa slipped the ball through for Messi to score his second in the 29th. Atletico captain Antonio Lopez got a foot to the ball but Messi burst clear and clipped a shot in off the right-hand post from close range.

The 23-year-old had a powerful header acrobatically saved by De Gea before he beat Diego Godin to a loose ball and prodded it over the line to complete a memorable treble.

“I am happy with the win against a tough team who are not going through the best time and that could have made things hard for us,” Messi told Spanish television.

“I am not thinking about being league top scorer at all,” he added. “The important thing is that we continue this winning run as we have Real Madrid just behind us and we know they will fight to the end.”

Atletico are seventh on 30 points, seven behind Espanyol and eight adrift of Bilbao.

In other games on Saturday, Getafe thumped visiting Deportivo Coruna 4-1 and Real Mallorca were held to a 1-1 draw at Osasuna as Japanese midfielder Akihiro Ienaga made his debut for the Balearic Islands club.

Real Zaragoza and visitors Racing Santander played out a 1-1 stalemate.

I hope Amir comes back strongly: Wasim Akram

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 21:32:00 +0000

Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram admitted that the lengthy bans handed out to Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir for corruption on Saturday represented a new low for the besieged sport in the country.

“I feel sad for all three of these kids, two just over 20 and one just 18,” Wasim told AFP.

“I feel for their families because they are key players. This is a low for Pakistan cricket.”

The International Cricket Council’s anti-corruption tribunal on Saturday banned Butt for 10 years (five suspended), Asif for seven years (two suspended) and teenager Amir for five.

The bans were handed after an investigation into allegations made by the News of the World that the players deliberately bowled no-balls in the Lord’s Test against England in August.

Wasim said he hopes the punishments will serve as a lesson.

“Not only for cricketers in Pakistan, but also for the players of the world, this should be a lesson, and I sincerely hope that the ICC has set an example with this verdict and this will serve as a clean-up, not only in Pakistan cricket, but in world cricket,” said Wasim.

Wasim said Amir is a special talent.

“I was very happy to see Amir’s progress, but with this punishment his career will suffer. I hope he comes back strongly,” said Wasim, of the teenage left-arm paceman who has been compared to him.

Former Pakistan spinner Iqbal Qasim termed the decision as “upsetting”.

“All three players were the future of Pakistan cricket, so it’s a very upsetting day,” said former spinner Iqbal, who is also the head of the National Bank team for which all three players featured in domestic matches.

“All three had promising careers but it’s sad that they fell into a trap and couldn’t recover.

They could have earned more through playing international cricket,” said Qasim, also a former chief selector.

Qasim said the decision must serve as reminder for other cricketers as well as for Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

“I hope these punishments will help future cricketers be more responsible.

I think it should also serve as a jolt for the PCB who should have curbed this before it happened,” said Qasim.

Former captain Rashid Latif said the loss of the three players will be temporary.

“To gain an honest system, and have unquestionable integrity, you have to lose something and players come and go – this will be a momentary loss for Pakistan cricket,” said Latif, who blew the match-fixing whistle against fellow players in 1994.

Former paceman Sarfraz Nawaz termed the decision as “pre-judged”.

“The ICC had decided to give punishments to the players because there was too much pressure on them to curb fixing,” Nawaz told AFP.

“It’s an important day for world cricket and very sad for Pakistan.”

Nawaz said Amir and Asif will be sorely missed in next month’s World Cup.

“Amir and Asif are a huge loss,” said Nawaz, of the new-ball pairing.

“They are the world’s best opening bowlers and will be missed, while Butt has matured into a solid opener.”

Fans in the street had a mixed reaction, some calling the decision a “conspiracy” against the Pakistan team.

“The ICC is biased,” said student Mohib Alint.

“They banned three key players so that Pakistan could not win the World Cup.”

But other fans blamed the players.

“All three have spoiled Pakistan’s cricket image. We cannot play cricket at home because teams do not travel to Pakistan because of security fears and now because of spot-fixing, teams will refuse to play us anywhere,” said banker Shabbir Hussian.

UK to announce decision on Pakistan trio today

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 11:36:00 +0000

British prosecutors will announce on Friday whether three Pakistan cricketers accused of taking bribes to fix incidents in an international match in England last year will be charged with criminal offences.

Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir were questioned by London police over claims they fixed certain incidents, such as the bowling of no-balls at pre-agreed times, during the fourth test at Lord’s last August.

All three deny any wrongdoing. A spokesman for Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service said the decision on whether to charge them would be given shortly after 1100 GMT by Simon Clements, the head of its Special Crime Division.

A fourth man, sporting agent, Mazhar Majeed will also learn if he is to face charges of conspiracy to defraud bookmakers.

Former test captain Butt, and fast bowlers Asif and Amir have been suspended by the International Cricket Council while the allegations are investigated.

An International Cricket Council anti-corruption tribunal will announce on Saturday its verdict on the “spot-fixing” allegations. If they are found guilty, they face lengthy career-threatening bans.

What is Baseball?

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 21:34:00 +0000

Baseball is a very popular sport which involves two teams made up of, more or less, nine players. A baseball game is done in what we call a baseball field, a very large and open space where there is a ninety-foot square (or diamond) usually located at the bottom middle of the field. Baseball is oftentimes called a bat-and-ball game wherein a pitcher throws the baseball as fast and as hard as he (or she) could. This action, in baseball terms, is called "pitching". On the other side of the "diamond", we have the batter who will attempt to hit the hard fist-sized baseball using a narrow cylindrical wooden bat. However, if one is not playing professional baseball, only perhaps backyard baseball or such, any long and hard object that will pass as a bat will just do, along with an open space as a field.

Some people find the sport quite boring as it takes a bit long to play, and it is not as exciting a sport for some people as, let us say, basketball. A baseball team will only get the opportunity to score when their team is the one batting. Their players move counter-clockwise past four consecutive markers at the corners of the "diamond" in the baseball field. These markers are called "bases" and are usually coloured black or white. The team's players may advance through hits, but after three outs recorded against the team, they lose the opportunity to score and their half-inning ends. Innings are similar to "quarters" in basketball, and these are the periods wherein each team are given half of the whole inning time to bat and score runs. There are, all in all, nine innings in a baseball game. Baseball is especially popular in the United States and many baseball leagues are done there.

Top 10 Home Runs in Playoff History

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 21:25:00 +0000

10. Chris Burke

The longest postseason game in MLB history ended because Chris Burke hit one out of the park. Apparently, after 18 innings and 6 hours of baseball, Burke decided to bring things to a close by hitting Joey Devine out of the ballpark. That hit put the Houston Astros into the National League Championship Series, which they won and then in the World Series, which they also won after a 44-year gap.

09. Carlton Fisk

Game 6 of the 1975 World Series saw Carlton Fisk hit Reds’ pitcher Pat Darcy along the wee edges of the foul line. No one can forget Fisk jumping up and down, trying to will the ball into staying ahead of the foul line. The ball hit the foul pole and got the Boston Red Sox the win they were looking for. Had this won them the world series, the hit would have ranked higher, but the Reds won Game 7 and took the World Series title.

08. Magglio Ordonez

The first pennant winning home run since 2003, Ordonez gave the Detroit Tigers a 4-0 clean sweep over the Oakland Athletics. With the game tied at 3-3 at the bottom of the ninth, and with two runners on base, Ordonez hit a three run homer and gave the Tigers their first pennant in over two decades.

07. Aaron Boone

It was 3-3 at the 2003 ALCS with the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox going back and forth. In the final game, the Yankees dragged a 4-0 Red Sox lead to tie to score at 5-5 and send the game into extra innings. Boone stepped up, in the bottom of the 11th and hammered Tim Wakefield over left field to beat their arch rivals and bring their 39th pennant title in history.

06. Chris Chambliss

Game 5 of the 1976 ALCS saw the Yankees up against the Kansas City Royals. It had been a dozen years since the Yankees had won the title and Chambliss’ walk-off home run at the bottom of the ninth gave the team a 7-6 win over the Royals.

05. Kirby Puckett

The Minnesota Twins went into Game Six of the 1991 World Series, against the Atlanta Braves, needing a win. After blowing a one run lead in the 7th inning, Kirby Puckett was brought in to bat in the 11th inning. Tied at 3-3, the match changed course after Puckett sent the ball into the stands, forcing Game Seven. The Twins would eventually go on to win Game Seven as well.

04. David Ortiz

It may not have been a series ending shot but Big Papi’s championship season with the Boston Red Sox had a sensational closing in hand. With the Yankees facing them in the 2004 ALCS and looking strong, the Red Sox managed to force an extra innings in the ninth inning. It wasn’t until the 12th inning that Ortiz finally got a chance and smashed home a two-run home run. The Red Sox would go on to win that game and every single game for the rest of the season, beating the Yankees over seven games and then sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals to win their first World Series since 1918.

03. Kirk Gibson

At the 1988 World Series, the Oakland Athletics were the favourites for the title. To top it off, for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Kirk Gibson was injured. In the series opener, at the bottom of the ninth, the Dodgers were trailing 4-3, with a runner on first. Gibson hobbled on to bat, hit a few foul balls, let the count reach 3 & 2, before picking up a slider and sending it into the bleachers over right field. The sight of Gibson hobbling around the bases, fist in air, became one of the most famous shots in the history of baseball. The Dodgers got the confidence to go on and win against the mighty Athletics in just 5 games.

02. Joe Carter

Playing the 1993 NL Championship Series against the Philadelphia Phillies, the defending World Series Champions, the Toronto Blue Jays were forced to battle it out. With the Blue Jays leading 3-2 in the series, the Phillies were looking to fight back and had a 6-5 lead at the bottom of the ninth, in Game Six. While Mitch Williams took to the mound, and two runners on bases, Joe Carter hit a three run home run to end the World Series. This was only the second time in the history of baseball when the World Series was ended with a walk-off home run.

01 Bill Mazeroski

And this was the first! In Game Seven of the 1960 World Series, the New York Yankees were favoured heavily to win the title. The game was topsy-turvy, with the Pittsburgh Pirates taking a 4-1 lead. The Yankees then came back to make it 7-4 before the Pirates again turned things around to 9-7, in their favour! At the top of the ninth, the game was tied at 9-a-piece. However, at the bottom of the ninth, Mazeroski stepped up and hit Ralph Terry over left field to end the game. Despite being dominated throughout the series, the Pirates came back to win the title in the dying moments.

Bolton vs. Wolves

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 21:14:00 +0000

Bolton haven’t quite maintained their blistering form from the early months of the season but remain very hard to beat at The Reebok and should have too much for Wolves on Wednesday.

While it is just one win in seven matches in all competitions for Owen Coyle’s men, that a 2-0 success over York in the FA Cup third round, Bolton have had a tough run of fixtures of late and will appreciate the drop in grade in midweek against struggling opponents.

Defeats to Liverpool and Chelsea were no disgrace earlier in the campaign and only that pair plus Aston Villa and Manchester United have triumphed at The Reebok in the past calendar year.

Having slipped down to 11th in the English top flight, a win could propel Bolton up four places were other results also to go their way and the 1.87 with totesport about them doing so appeals.

Since their miraculous 1-0 success over Chelsea at the start of last moth, Wolves boss Mick McCarthy has seen his team lose three straight Premier League fixtures and eight goals have been shipped in that time.

Back-to-back home defeats to Liverpool and Stoke, both without scoring, will have concerned McCarthy and he was unable to add to his squad on deadline day either.

Aside from four points gained on Merseyside, courtesy of a 1-0 win at Anfield and 1-1 draw with Everton back in August, Wolves have been beaten in every away fixture this term and scoring goals on their travels has been a problem.

It was just six Premier League away goals in ten matches prior to Wolves’ bizarre 4-3 reversal at the hands of Manchester City and it probably wont be a great spectacle in the north-west on Wednesday.

Only being kept off the bottom of the table on goal difference, Wolves desperately need points to haul themselves out of what is clearly at present a relegation battle but I’m not sure they’ll get anything and are likely to have their hands full with Kevin Davies and Johan Elmander in opposition.

Rooney scores twice as United go five clear

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 20:46:00 +0000

Wayne Rooney scored twice as Manchester United remained five points clear at the top of the Premier League after a 3-1 win at home to Aston Villa on Tuesday.

For much of the night it looked as if United might extend their lead but second-placed Arsenal came from behind to beat Everton 2-1 at the Emirates and so stay in touch with Sir Alex Ferguson’s unbeaten side.

England striker Rooney’s first minute goal — his first in open play in the Premier League in 11 months — gave the hosts the ideal start at Old Trafford.

Rooney controlled United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar’s long goalkick downfield before unleashing a 20-yard dipping shot past Brad Friedel.

The former Everton forward then doubled United’s lead on the stroke of half-time when he turned in Nani’s cross from close range.

“Goals always help strikers but Wayne has got a great appetite to play,” Ferguson told Sky Sports. “Everyone should remember that — we know that.

“It’s an inbred thing in the boy, he’s got a great appetite to work and fight and he gets his rewards eventually.

“The aim for us is to keep the momentum going and hopefully that gets us where we want to be.”

Darren Bent, a 24 million pound transfer window capture from Sunderland, gave Villa hope with a 58th minute goal before United defender Nemanja Vidic blasted an unstoppable shot into the roof of the net five minutes later.

Louis Saha fired Everton into a 24th minute lead against Arsenal, although the French striker appeared to be several yards offside.

But Arsenal grabbed a 70th minute equaliser through Andrey Arshavin.

And the Gunners completed their revival 15 minutes from time when unmarked defender Laurent Koscielny headed in a Robin van Persie corner.

English champions Chelsea, still 10 points behind United, came from a goal down to win 4-2 at Sunderland.

Blues captain John Terry made it 3-2 on the hour mark before striker Nicolas Anelka, whose place has come under threat follwing Chelsea’s #50 million British record signing of former Liverpool striker Fernando Torres on Monday, put the result beyond doubt in the 90th minute.

It took Sunderland a matter of minutes to score the first of four first-half goals, with Phil Bardsley’s swerving shot deceiving Petr Cech.

But Chelsea equalised through Frank Lampard’s 15th minute penalty after Ahmed Elmohamady was ruled to have climbed over Ashley Cole in the box.

And eight minutes later Chelsea were in front when Sunderland goalkeeper Craig Gordon made up Salomon Kalou’s mind by misguidedly rushing off his line.

However, Sunderland were level in the 26th minute when, after Elmohamady was fouled by John Obi Mikel, former Manchester United midfielder Kieran Richardson saw his 20-yard free-kick go under the Chelsea wall.

In Tuesday’s other Premier League match, Wigan remained in the relegation zone after a 2-2 draw away to West Brom.

Nigeria forward Peter Odemwingie gave the Baggies a fifth minute lead but Charles N’Zogbia’s deflected free-kick drew visitors Wigan level in the 20th minute.

Another free-kick, from Ben Watson, gave Wigan the lead two minutes before half-time but West Brom grabbed a point through Marc-Antoine Fortune’s late header.

Manchester City can leapfrog Arsenal into second place if they win away to Birmingham on Wednesday when Liverpool, fresh from signing Andy Carroll for a club record 35 million pounds, face Stoke.

India ready for World Cup pressure cooker: Dhoni

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 20:42:00 +0000

India are ready to deal with the pressure of being World Cup hosts in a cricket-mad country, their captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said on Tuesday.

India’s 1.15 billion people will put aside everything else to follow their team in the Feb. 19-April 2 tournament, hoping Dhoni can emulate Kapil Dev’s feat of leading the team to the 1983 World Cup title.

“For a change, we won’t be considered as underdogs,” Dhoni told reporters.

“Most of the places we go to, there is plenty of pressure on us and what we have done in the past two or three years is we have changed the meaning of pressure and responsibility.”

Dhoni said the Indian players were not thinking about things beyond their control.

“It is very important to play every game in the right frame of mind and that is what we are focusing on,” he said.

“I never predict when it comes to cricket. We will just try and give it our best shot.”

Happy with the composition of his squad, Dhoni does not feel India were wrong to omit left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha.

“We also don’t have an extra wicketkeeper in the squad because we tried to accommodate one utility player,” Dhoni said.

“But right now what is important is those 15 players who are selected… Those are the ones who will have (to make) an impact on the World Cup.”

India are in the tournament’s Group B and play their first match against Bangladesh on Feb. 19.

Pakistan need to name World Cup captain, says Imran Khan

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 19:35:00 +0000

Pakistan have harmed their World Cup chances by delaying naming a captain for the Feb. 19-April 2 tournament being held in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, former skipper Imran Khan said.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced their 15-man squad for the showpiece event on Jan. 18 but have yet to choose a skipper. Shahid Afridi is captaining the Pakistan side for the ongoing one-day series in New Zealand.

“It’s just three weeks before the World Cup starts. But we still don’t know who the captain is,” a fuming Imran told reporters on Wednesday.

Khan, flanked by former World Cup winning captains Clive Lloyd of West Indies, India’s Kapil Dev, Australia’s Allan Border and Steve Waugh and Sri Lankan Arjuna Ranatunga, was in Mumbai for a promotional event.

“Pakistan has put themselves at a big disadvantage by not planning ahead,” the 58-year-old former all-rounder, who led Pakistan to World Cup glory in 1992, said.

“You can’t have just three weeks before the World Cup and the captain has not been announced.

“All these captains here will tell you that it takes time to know your team… Its strengths… Its weaknesses… To develop your strategy…”

Imran said Pakistan’s chances of a successful World Cup tournament were reduced by the absence of pace duo Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, both suspended by the International Cricket Council.

Captain to be named on Friday, says PCB chief

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 00:04:00 +0000

Pakistan`s captain for the World Cup will be named on Friday, a day before the final match of their ongoing one-day series in New Zealand, Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt said.

Talking to Pakistani media here on Monday, Ijaz, however, refused to say who would captain the side in the mega event, starting from Feb 19.

Limited-overs captain Shahid Afridi and Test skipper Misbah-ul-Haq are in the race to lead the side.

“We will announce the captain on Friday that is decided now,” he said.

Ijaz said India were willing to play a series against Pakistan in England sometime this year.

“We have made good progress in talks with the Indian board to resume bilateral cricket ties and they have indicated they are willing to resume them,” he added.

Common Wealth Games

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 23:58:00 +0000

Rank	Country	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	Australia	74	55	48	177
2	India	38	27	36	101
3	England	37	59	46	142
4	Canada	26	17	32	75
5	South Africa	12	11	10	33
6	Kenya	12	11	9	32
7	Malaysia	12	10	14	36
8	Singapore	11	11	9	31
9	Nigeria	11	10	14	35
10	Scotland	9	10	7	26

17	Pakistan	2	1	2	5

NBA Picks and Predictions for January 31st

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 23:47:00 +0000

A Sunday featuring two marquee matchups on national television certainly didn’t disappoint. In the glamour game, the league’s two most recent champs squared off as Boston and Los Angeles renewed one of the greatest rivalries in professional sports. True to most of this season’s form one team looked their age while the other looked like rejuvenated champs.

Boston handled their business in the Staples Center, led by 32 points from Paul Pierce who always seems to bring his best when he gets the opportunity to return home to Los Angeles. His Celtics cruised to a 109-96 win despite a 41 point effort from Kobe Bryant. The Lakers better find a solution to what’s been ailing them quickly or they could find themselves sliding out their coveted #2 seed in the West and in a world of hurt.

One of the teams they’d be wise to hold home court advantage over is the young Oklahoma City Thunder, who gave the champs a true first round scare last year, pushing them to a tightly contested six game series before a Pau Gasol buzzer-beater sent them home for the Summer.

The Thunder hosted the Heat in the day’s most exciting game. Kevin Durant hit a tough bucket to put them up by one late, but Eddie House’s clutch 3-pointer – which led to House dusting off Sam Cassell’s famous…er, dance – put the Heat ahead for good with 22 seconds remaining.

The most interesting take away from the game was some rare trash talk from Durant afterwards, referring to Chris Bosh as “fake tough.” It was out of character, but showed a little “real tough” from the soft spoken young superstar. The Thunder are maturing in more way than just their play and feel like a squad dialed in with the potential to do some real damage in the playoffs.

Confident Pakistan ready to take on Kiwis in 4th ODI

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 23:37:00 +0000

Pakistan and New Zealand will face off in Mcleans Park here in the fourth One-day International on Tuesday as the series is equalled at 1-1 after Pakistan`s victory at Christchurch on Saturday.

Pakistan showed their real aggression in third ODI where Mohammad Hafeez, Shahid Afridi, Umar Akmal and Misbah-ul-Haq did the job with bat which also reminded cricket fans old days of building innings in initial overs and then going for everything in death overs.

With firepower that Pakistan possess in the middle and late middle-order including Umar Akmal, Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq, Kamran Akmal and Wahab Riaz, they can afford really to play at around four runs in an hour till 30 overs mark and then turn it on in final stages of the innings.

Now as both teams have won one match apiece, all eyes are on Napier where a fierce battle is expected as Kiwis will have their regular captain Daniel Vettori back in ranks while Pakistan are expected to replace Sohail Tanvir with either Abdur Rehman or Shoaib Akhtar.

Good thing for Pakistan is that their batsmen have finally started to find some form with Mohammad Hafeez and Umar Akmal both looked in great touch in the third ODI while skipper Shahid Afridi also silenced his many critics with a strong show at AMI Stadium.

On the other hand, New Zealand are still struggling to find just perfect batting order as they have tried Brendon McCullum down the order to give their middle order some strength.

However, it`s quite a questionable approach as they already have Jacob Oram there and demoting McCullum so lower in order actually gives their opposition chance to stop scoring rate right at the top.

Black Caps team management is more eager to use this ODI series as an opportunity to experiment rather than winning it as it is expected that coach John Wright will try new combinations at Napier.

Vettori said he found the right balance in his team difficult in home conditions, which favour pace over spin bowling because of quick and bouncy wickets.

“It seems whatever balance we go in with, we don`t quite have enough batters or not quite enough bowlers, and maybe that just could be the conditions.

“New Zealand conditions dictate you might need that extra seamer, but when we get to India you can play more fiddly bowlers. It`s probably not like for like but you just want guys in form and feeling good about themselves, and most of that will come from winning,” Vettori said.

Pakistan have won two out of their last five matches while New Zealand only won one match from their last clashes.

New Zealand Cricket is far from disappointed with the empty stadiums that have so far greeted the Black Caps and Pakistan this summer.

Ninety-thousand tickets have been sold for the tour to date, which is ten-thousand below budget. That equates to between two to three hundred thousand dollars.

CEO Justin Vaughan said all things considered the tour was going well.

Manchester United goalkeeper Van der Sar to retire in May

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 22:50:00 +0000

Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar will retire at the end of the season, the Dutchman said on Thursday.

The 40-year-old former Netherlands international joined United from Fulham in 2005 and has made 245 appearances for the Old Trafford club, winning three Premier League titles and the 2008 Champions League crown.

Van der Sar’s wife fell seriously ill in December 2009.

“It is now time to pay attention to my family,” he said on the website of his management company.

“I cannot really identify a time when it (the decision) happened.

“Let’s just say that it was playing on my mind from the moment Annemarie had her stroke.

“She has fought back from it. We decided on another year in England and thus to stay at Manchester United.

“But, once engaged in the season, the thought of saying goodbye started to gnaw a bit more emphatically.”

Van der Sar, who played a record 130 times for his country, began his career at Ajax Amsterdam before moving to Juventus and on to Fulham in 2001.

He set an English league record in 2009 for time without conceding a goal when he went more than 21 hours unbeaten.

United are five points clear at the top of the Premier League and Van der Sar has played in 21 of their 23 league games this season.

“It is a difficult process” he said.

“After a defeat, I thought differently than after playing a few good games in a row.

“My age played no role, I am 40 years old, but I still feel fit.

“And then the decision came suddenly. Do not ask me how or why, but suddenly you know. That was sufficient.”

Ronaldo Leads Soccer Diaspora Back Home as Brazil Rally Brings Madrid Pay

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 22:34:00 +0000

Brazil’s economic boom and strengthening currency are luring hundreds of globe-trotting soccer players home.

The 34-year-old soccer star Ronaldo is getting paid as much with Sao Paulo’s Corinthians as in 2006 with Real Madrid, the biggest soccer team by sales, his agent Fabiano Farah said. That was $8.2 million, according to Spanish newspaper El Mundo. Teammate Roberto Carlos says he doesn’t need to seek out bigger checks abroad after 15 years in Italy, Spain and Turkey.

As Brazil’s economy expands at the fastest rate in more than two decades, wealthier clubs and a stronger currency are boosting the national league, which ends Dec. 5. The number of players traded to Brazilian teams from abroad rose to 707 last year, more than twice as many as in 2006, national soccer federation statistics show. Some 6,650 players had left Brazil between 2003 and 2009.

“Brazil nowadays is very different from the ‘90s, when I left for Europe,’’ Roberto Carlos, 37, said in an interview. ‘‘It’s possible to play at a very high level in Brazil, make money and stay with my family.’’

Players have emigrated since the 1980s as Brazil’s league suffered from crumbling stadiums, fan violence and a calendar that changed so frequently most people couldn’t keep track, said Richard Law, a consultant on Brazil for London team Arsenal.

Ronaldo Rejects U.S.

Now there’s a boom. Revenue of the 20 top-tier teams rose 12 percent to 1.93 billion reais ($1.13 billion) last year on more television rights income, a study by research and consulting firm Crowe Horwath RCS in Sao Paulo found. The English Premier League, soccer’s biggest with $3.6 billion of revenue, had 3 percent growth in the year to June 2009.

Spending by the 20 Brazilian clubs on transfers and salaries rose 14 percent to 1.2 billion reais, according to the study published in May.

Ronaldo was world player of the year three times. He rejected offers from the U.S., England and Germany when he signed with Corinthians in December 2008, said Farah, who declined to name teams that made the bids or disclose Ronaldo’s income. Roberto Carlos, a World Cup winner in 2002, joined Corinthians from Turkey’s Fenerbahce last December.

A stronger Brazilian currency is the main reason for marquee players coming back, according to Juan Figer, an agent in Brazil since the 1970s. The Brazilian real climbed 74 percent in value against the euro since May 2004, when Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos were at Real Madrid.

Tax Advantages

Brazil’s lower top tax rate of 27.5 percent -- compared with 43 percent in Spain -- is another motive, says Law, who’s based in Fort Worth, Texas. ‘‘Playing in Europe isn’t what it used to be if you’re going to lose half your income” to tax authorities, Law said.

Corinthians, which increased spending on player trades and salaries by 65 percent to 133.6 million reais last year, is happy to pay more to Ronaldo because he helps generate sponsorship and ticket revenue, team President Andres Sanchez said. The club had net income of 5.8 million reais as sales soared 54 percent to 181 million reais, according to Crowe Horwath’s research.

“Ronaldo is too cheap for me,” Sanchez said in an interview. “Corinthians has never made so much money.”

Ronaldo gets a share of ticket sales and sponsorship income, which doubled last year on deals with companies such as Sao Paulo-based BRF-Brasil Foods SA, the world’s largest poultry exporter, Farah said. Ronaldo, who has six goals in eight league games this season, wasn’t available for interview.

More Organized

As more money flows into the Brazilian league, it is becoming more organized, Law said. In 2003, end-of-season playoffs that were repeatedly amended in an effort to boost audiences were canceled. The championship now has the same format as Europe’s top divisions.

League leader Fluminense of Rio de Janeiro is seeking its first title since 1984 this weekend, when Corinthians and Belo Horizonte’s Cruzeiro can also prevail.

To be sure, Brazilians will still seek contracts in European leagues to boost their profile and earning power, according to Farah.

Real Madrid’s payroll last season was more than three times bigger than that of Corinthians, helping it attract Sao Paulo native Kaka, 28, from AC Milan in 2009. Neymar, 18, said he plans to leave Brazil’s Santos for the Premier League, the Sun newspaper reported Oct. 6. Neymar’s agent Wagner Ribeiro didn’t return messages seeking comment.

“Young players are still going to want to try out new experiences: different food, different languages,” Farah said. “They want to test themselves.”

Deco Returns Home

Brazilian soccer federation statistics show 1,017 players left to play abroad last year, a 14 percent decrease from 2008. That’s because contracts are improving in Brazil, Figer said.

Clubs expect sales to climb 58 percent more by the time Brazil hosts the 2014 World Cup, according to Crowe Horwath’s study. Some $2.8 billion of public investment in 12 stadiums will boost corporate hospitality sales, Crowe Horwath director Amir Somoggi said.

That’s good news for players like 33-year-old Deco, a two- time Champions League winner who moved to Fluminense in August after 13 years in Europe.

“I have been far away from my country for too many years, I missed my family,” Deco said. “It was time to come back.”

Germany sign Barbie for World Cup

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 22:27:00 +0000

The German Football Federation (DFB) is planning to cash in on hosting the Women’s World Cup in June with a football version of the children’s doll Barbie wearing the national team’s colours.

The German team are bidding to win their third consecutive world title at home and a ‘fussball’ edition of the popular children’s toy is expected to hit the stores in football-mad Germany later this year.

The Women’s World Cup kicks off on June 26, when the hosts face Canada at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium, and the final will be held in Frankfurt on July 17.

“There will be a Football-Barbie wearing a Germany shirt,” Doris Fitschen, the general manager of the Germany team, told German weekly newspaper Die Zeit.

“It will appear in the shops at the end of March and will be aimed at our target group. We are aiming to attract young girls who we can inspire to play football.”

Germany have dominated the women’s game by winning both the last two World Cup titles, in 2003 and 2007, and the last five European titles.

Australia take series after Brisbane victory

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 22:21:00 +0000

Australia wrapped up a morale-boosting one-day series victory over England with two games to spare after a 51-run win in the fifth match at the Gabba on Sunday.

Michael Clarke’s team took an unassailable 4-1 lead in the seven-match series after hitting 249 in 49.3 overs and then bowling out the visitors for 198.

Pace pair Brett Lee and Doug Bollinger reduced England to 22 for three before Kevin Pietersen (40) and Ian Bell (36) combined for a 73-run partnership.

England, however, self destructed when they still had plenty of overs remaining and two well-established players batting.

Pietersen again succumbed to a rush of blood to the head when he misread a slower John Hastings delivery and spooned the ball to Lee at mid-on to leave his team 95 for four.

Eoin Morgan (two) also threw away his wicket when he smashed Steve Smith straight to Mitchell Johnson at long off while Bell chopped Hastings on to his stumps to leave England 103 for six.

Shane Watson then dismissed Paul Collingwood (18) and Chris Woakes (eight) in his first over, the 33rd of the innings, to all but end the run chase despite some final-wicket defiance from James Anderson (22 not out) and Steve Finn (35).

POOR RUN

Earlier, Clarke ended his poor run of scores with a half century while the tail provided a late flurry to help the home side post a good total despite man of the match Woakes claiming six for 45.

Clarke, who had been under pressure, combined for a 65-run partnership with David Hussey (34) for the fifth wicket.

He then needlessly charged Woakes in the 41st over and top edged a simple catch to opposing skipper Andrew Strauss on 54.

Clarke’s dismissal left Australia 190 for six but Smith (24 not out), Johnson (16) and Hastings (13) combined well in the latter stages to set up a victory charge that will give them confidence heading into next month’s World Cup.

The match was also used to help raise money following recent flooding.

The floods have swamped the eastern seaboard of Australia, killing 35 people, crippling coal mines, ruining crops, damaging infrastructure, destroying homes and causing an estimated A$5 billion (US$4.98 billion) in damage in Queensland alone.

More than A$6 million (US$5.96 million) was raised from the game, with the final figure to be matched by the Australian federal government.

“It makes you really very proud to see the way Australians have got out and responded, from a local barbie (BBQ) … to some of our biggest companies in the country,” Prime Minister Julia Gillard told Australia’s Channel Nine.

Scoreboard:

Australia won the toss and chose to bat

Australia innings

S. Watson c Collingwood b Woakes 16

B. Haddin b Finn 37

S. Marsh c Strauss b Collingwood 16

M. Clarke c Strauss b Woakes 54

C. White c Prior b Woakes 16

D. Hussey b Woakes 34

S. Smith not out 24

M. Johnson b Anderson 16

J. Hastings c Collingwood b Woakes 13

B. Lee c sub b Woakes 0

D. Bollinger run out 6

Extras: (w-11, b-2, lb-3, nb-1) 17

Total: (all out, 49.3 overs) 249

Fall of wickets: 1-48 2-72 3-96 4-113 5-178 6-190 7-212 8-233 9-234 10-249

Bowling: Anderson 10-1-42-1 (w-4), Shahzad 8-1-46-0 (w-4), Finn 10-0-61-1 (w-3), Woakes 10-0-45-6 (nb-1), Collingwood 10-1-36-1, Trott 1.3-0-14-0

England innings

A. Strauss c Smith b Bollinger 3

M. Prior b Lee 14

J. Trott c Bollinger b Lee 0

K. Pietersen c Lee b Hastings 40

I. Bell b Hastings 36

E. Morgan c Johnson b Smith 2

P. Collingwood c Hastings b Watson 18

C. Woakes c Haddin b Watson 8

A. Shahzad c Haddin b Bollinger 9

J. Anderson not out 22

S. Finn b Watson 35

Extras: (w-4, nb-5, lb-2) 11

Total: (all out, 45.3 overs) 198

Fall of wickets: 1-20 2-20 3-22 4-95 5-98 6-103 7-128 8-128 9-145 10-198

Bowling: Lee 7-0-21-2 (w-1, nb-1), Bollinger 9-1-57-2 (nb-1), Johnson 8-1-29-0 (w-1, nb-1), Hastings 9-0-35-2 (w-2), Smith 8-0-29-1, Watson 4.3-1-25-3 (nb-2)

Result: Australia won by 51 runs

Australia lead seven-match series 4-1

Next match: February 2, Sydney

Previous results: January 16 – Australia won by six wickets

January 21 – Australia won by 46 runs

January 23 – Australia won by four wickets

January 26 – England won by 21 runs

Man of the match: Chris Woakes

BCCI asks ICC to reconsider decision on Eden Gardens

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 22:16:00 +0000

The Indian cricket board on Friday asked the International Cricket Council (ICC) to reconsider its decision of taking away the India-England World Cup match from the Eden Gardens stadium in Kolkata.

“We have written a letter to the ICC to reconsider its decision. Now it is up to the ICC to decide, but we are confident that the stadium can host the crucial India-England match,” Ratnakar Shetty, tournament director and chief administrative officer of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), said.

This comes after Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) President Jagmohan Dalmiya, also a former ICC president, on Thursday appealed to the BCCI to advise the international body to reconsider its decision.

Referring to the 14-day extension given by the ICC to four other venues, including Mumbai`s Wankhede Stadium to complete the finishing work, Dalmiya, a former BCCI president and secretary, asked for an extension of 10 days — up to Feb 7 — to hand over a complete Eden Gardens to the game`s apex body.

Dalmiya`s appeal came hours after the ICC ruled out Eden Gardens as a venue for the match, saying it was unprepared.

The ICC took the decision following an adverse report from its venue inspection team that visited Kolkata and four other venues earlier this week to review their readiness for the big event being hosted jointly by India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka from Feb 19 to April 2.

Dalmiya argued that the ICC decision to take away the Feb 27 match came exactly 30 days before it was scheduled to be held.

Apart from the India-England encounter, Eden Gardens is supposed to host three other games — South Africa vs Ireland (March 15), the Netherlands vs Ireland (March 18), and Zimbabwe vs Kenya (March 20).

Poor bowling, fielding to affect India`s chances: Bedi

noreply@blogger.com (Hammad Hassan) — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 22:09:00 +0000

Former captain Bishen Singh Bedi said on Saturday that India`s average bowling and not so impressive fielding will not be able to back the batsmen enough during the World Cup.

Questioning the selection of players, Bedi said the selectors have included too many spinners in the squad, ignored right options in the fast bowling department and hardly given importance to fielding which is very significant in one-day cricket.

“One spinner is too many (in the conditions). I don`t think this kid Piyush Chawla will get to play. And look at the fast bowling…they are not outstanding bowlers. Ashish Nehra is not the bowler he was in 2003. Zaheer and Praveen are struggling. Bowling is definitely a weak link,” Bedi said.

“I would have picked Sreesanth in place of Nehra since he is a very fit youngster. And India`s fielding is poorer. The batsmen will have to do a hell lot of job to make up for the average bowling and poor fielding,” he said.

“Expectations have always been high after the 1983 win but this World Cup is open. Any side, India, South Africa, Australia or even England, can go on to win the trophy. Sri Lanka always are a contender. So, all the teams would be under a lot of pressure.”

Bedi refused to compare the current side with the 1983 World Cup winning team but said one of the major reasons for India`s success at that time was that almost all the players were brilliant fielders.

“Comparison won`t be fair. At that time India had nothing to lose but one thing I would like to say is that players such as Roger Binny, Kapil Dev, Mohinder Amarnath and Sandip Patil, they were all good fielders. Fielding can win you matches but we have ignored this aspect this time around,” he argued.

Bedi also said the Indian team should do everything to win the coveted trophy for Sachin Tendulkar, who is perhaps playing in his last World Cup.