Juve, Liverpool seek Europa League salvation

PARIS, Mar 10: European heavyweights Juventus and Liverpool will both seek to rescue disappointing seasons when the first legs of their respective Europa League last-16 ties kick off on Thursday, reports AFP.
Both clubs have fallen well off the pace in their domestic championships and face a battle to qualify for next season''s Champions League.
Juve have begun to move in the right direction under new coach Alberto Zaccheroni, however, and are now just two points outside the Serie A top four after a 2-1 victory at Fiorentina on Saturday.
Their Europa League opponents are Premier League club Fulham, who produced one of the upsets of the competition in the previous round by eliminating defending champions Shakhtar Donetsk of Ukraine.
"I don''t think many teams will play football as well as Shakhtar Donetsk did," said Fulham''s Welsh midfielder Simon Davies.
"We''ve got to believe in ourselves because we''ve had some really good results lately. We''ll play our game and remain solid. We know it''s going to be a very tough game but we also know we''re capable of getting a result."
Juve''s Italy international centre-back Giorgio Chiellini will miss the match with a left thigh injury but should be fit for the return leg in London next week.
"The Europa League is a great competition and to go all the way would be a great boost for the whole club," said Nicola Legrottaglie, who is expected to deputise for Chiellini in Turin.
Liverpool''s stuttering campaign received a further blow when they went down 1-0 at relegation-threatened Wigan on Monday, denying them the opportunity to steal a march on their rivals for fourth place and a Champions League berth.
Rafael Benitez''s men on Thursday visit Lille, who have lost just one of their last 16 home games in European competition and who are the top scorers in the French top flight.
"Lille are a good team," said Benitez. "People maybe don''t know too much about them but we''ve spoken with people in Valencia, because they played one another, and we have reports from the scouts.
"They are good at home. Maybe in the last two (league) games they haven''t been at their level because I think they''re maybe thinking about the Europa League-and that makes them even more dangerous."
Benfica have rekindled memories of their 1960s heyday by storming to the top of the Portuguese top division this season and they welcome Marseille to the Estadio da Luz.
Marseille are three points off the top in Ligue 1 and midfielder Benoit Cheyrou says his Argentine team-mate Lucho Gonzalez, who joined from Porto last summer, has given them plenty of warning about Jorge Jesus''s exciting side.
"He''s told us loads of great things about this team," said Cheyrou.
"Since the start of the season he''s been telling us that they''re the best team in the Portuguese championship with forwards like (Angel) Di Maria, (Javier) Saviola, (Pablo) Aimar, but also the Brazilian internationals behind them."
Marseille have been boosted by the news that captain Mamadou Niang should be fit to play after the Senegalese striker bruised his foot in the 1-1 draw with Lorient on Sunday.
Werder Bremen, last season''s losing finalists, travel to a Valencia side who scraped past Belgian outfit FC Bruges only thanks to an extra-time brace from midfielder Pablo Hernandez in the last round.

Lagat out to recapture world indoor title

DOHA, Mar 10: Bernard Lagat will bid to recapture the 3000m title he first won six years ago when the World Indoor Athletics Championships gets under way on Friday, reports AFP.
There might not be the likes of Jamaican sprint king Usain Bolt to light up the billboards in the Qatari capital but the March 12-14 worlds, with nearly 2.5 million dollars in prize money, will still be brimming with talent.
Lagat, a double gold medallist at the 2007 outdoor world championships and a three-time Olympian - for Kenya in 2000 and 2004 and the United States in 2008 - has been in great form this season.
The 35-year-old bagged the US 3000m title last month and a record- breaking eighth victory in the Wanamaker Mile at the Millrose Games but he will be up against defending champion Tariku Bekele of Ethiopia. Bekele, the younger brother of distance running legend Kenenisa, is himself in good shape and sits second on the world lists after clocking 7:31.78 in Stockholm.
A strong field also features Bekele''s team-mate Abrehem Cherkos, a bronze medallist two years ago in Valencia, Qatari world 5000m bronze medallist James Kwalia, world season leader Augustine Choge (7:31.75) of Kenya and his team-mate Sammy Mutahi.
Lagat leads a strong US team that includes defending world indoor gold medallists Christian Cantwell (shot put), Bryan Clay (heptathlon) and Lolo Jones (60m hurdles), two-time 60m hurdle champion Terrence Trammell, and 2006 triple jump champion Walter Davis.
Outdoor world champions on the team include reigning women''s long jump champion Brittney Reese, 2009 decathlon champion Trey Hardee and 2005 400m hurdle champion Bershawn Jackson, who will be running the flat 400m.
The US duo in the men''s 60m, Ivory Williams and Michael Rodgers, will face stiff competition from world number two Dwain Chambers of Britain, who shared the silver medal at the 2008 world indoors in Valencia and will be hoping to reproduce the form which took him to a stunning European record of 6.42 last year.

Fiorentina fury as Bayern scrape into quarter-finals

FLORENCE, Italy, March 10: Fiorentina president Andrea della Valle lashed out on Tuesday night as Bayern Munich advanced to the Champions League quarter-finals despite losing 3-2 to the Italians, reports AFP.
The German side, who had won 2-1 in Munich, went through on the away goals'' rule after the aggregate scores finished 4-4.
But their victory was thanks to Miroslav Klose''s controversial 89th-minute goal in the last 16 first leg, which replays showed was yards offside.
"We''ve been eliminated thanks to the collusion of referee (Tom) Ovrebo in the away leg," della Valle complained bitterly.
"It''s tough to go out after winning 3-2 even without thinking about the first leg. But Florence can be proud of the way that Fiorentina played this evening."
Fiorentina coach Cesare Prandelli said the whole team was upset.
"It''s a great shame the goal from the first leg proved so important but my players should not feel frustrated," said Prandelli.
"Clearly we''re upset, but also proud of the team that won six out of eight games.
"They are working on becoming great players and games like this help. When playing at this level and defeating Bayern Munich, you have to be proud."
Bayern coach Louis Van Gaal could understand his rivals'' frustration.
"I can understand that it''s hard for Fiorentina because Klose''s off-side goal in the first leg proved decisive," he said.
After the late and controversial drama in Munich in the first leg, the match began tentatively with a string of misplaced passes as the sides struggled against a strong gale.
The home side went two goals up inside 54 minutes through Juan Vargas and Stevan Jovetic before Bayern captain Mark van Bommel''s strike on the hour mark began a flurry of superb goals.
Jovetic grabbed his second with a solo effort after 64 minutes but man-of- the-match Arjen Robben broke Viola hearts with a stunning 30-yard strike just a minute later.
Van Gaal admitted that he had had a "good feeling" about the game.
"I told the players at half-time that they needed to stay calm and have patience," he said.
"We played pretty well under the circumstances but we made too many individual mistakes. What saved us was that we continued to believe and we knew how to score two beautiful goals.
"We need to improve, but we are in the quarter-finals, and that''s the important thing."
Vargas tested Hans-Jorg Butt after five minutes with an audacious 40-yard free kick but it was the German side who settled better with Franck Ribery and particularly Robben causing danger down the wings.
Fiorentina, backed by a vociferous home support as well as the wind in the first half, had created little until the 28 minute when Marco Marchionni picked the ball up 30 yards out and instantly let fly.
A surprised Butt fumbled to Vargas who somehow outmuscled Daniel Van Buyten and, from a tight angle, found the top corner with his favoured left foot.
Bayern should have equalised six minutes later when Bastian Schweinsteiger''s deep header found its way through the heart of the Viola defence to Robben 15 yards out.
The Dutchman''s left foot shot was true but a flying
Sebastian Frey threw himself backwards and brilliantly tipped the Dutchman''s shot onto the bar and over.
With Bayern needing a goal, the pace noticeably quickened after the break.
Alberto Gilardino had a glorious chance to double the lead five minutes back on the pitch but shot weakly eight yards out allowing Butt to save.
Marchionni had been getting plenty of the ball down the right and from another cross on 54 minutes Gilardino backheeled delightfully into the path of the onrunning Jovetic, who drilled home from 10 yards for 2-0. It set off a flurry of goals.
Ribery, largely anonymous until the hour mark, squared the ball for Mark van Bommel to fire unerringly into the corner from 20 yards for 2-1, to put the aggregate scores at 3-3.
Four minutes later though and Fiorentina were ahead again.
The dangerous Jovetic began a run from deep, played a one-two with Gilardino before shrugging off the ineffectual Van Buyten and slipping the ball expertly under Butt for a superb solo goal.

Paris sports giants running out of capital

PARIS, March 10: Paris Saint Germain and Stade Francais, the French capital''s flagship sports sides, face an uncertain run-in to their season''s end after failing to live up to their bankrolled billing, reports AFP.
PSG, whose last major European title was the now-defunct European Cup Winners Cup in 1996, are battling internal strife, crowd violence and general underperformance on the pitch.
Stade''s problems by contrast have come out of the blue, the club having in recent seasons rewarded flamboyant radio mogul Max Guazzini''s investment of millions with five domestic titles and two losing appearances in the European Cup final.
However, Saturday''s humiliating Top 14 29-0 defeat to arch-rivals Toulouse at the Stade de France sees them struggling to make the top six that go on to compete in the end-of-season play-offs.
Only Parisian rivals Racing-Metro''s surprise away defeat at Montpellier prevented them from trailing the top six by eight points with just five matches of the regular season remaining.
However, even that was not enough to placate 62-year-old Guazzini, who hires out the Stade de France for Stade''s key games in a bid to promote the sport to a wider and younger audience at relatively cheap ticket prices.
"This was a stain on our name and an embarrassment," he said after the Toulouse match.
"I apologise to the public for such a performance."
Guazzini''s dream ever since he bankrolled the team - bringing in future France coach Bernard Laporte at the helm - has been to win the European Cup, something which remains a distant goal this season after they reached the last eight but will face an uncomfortable away trip to Toulouse.
Certainly Stade have been swimming against the tide since the early season departure of Australian coach Ewen McKenzie.
"All that has happened here is not just by chance," said Jacques Delmas, who with Didier Faugeron replaced McKenzie.
"The start of the season was complicated, one could even say traumatic."
Stade can at least rely on loyalty from the majority of their supporters even if they do miss out on the league play-offs for the first time since the 2001/02 season.
That cannot be applied so much to PSG, who have no hope of silverware or indeed a European place for next season.
The club has banned its own fans from away matches, and they reached a new low a fortnight ago when fighting amongst themselves at a Marseille match devoid of travelling fans.
Antoine Kombouare is the club''s fourth manager in six years and while he was well regarded by the PSG faithful as a player, it has taken under a season for the 46-year-old to be catcalled and abused.

Pompey rock bottom while Sunderland savour victory

LONDON, March 10: Crisis club Portsmouth remained four points adrift at the foot of the English Premier League as Birmingham City gained revenge on their FA Cup conquerors with a 2-1 win at Fratton Park on Tuesday, reports AFP.
Portsmouth, the 2008 FA Cup winners, beat Birmingham 2-0 at their south coast home on Saturday to reach the last four of this season''s edition thanks to two goals from Frederic Piquionne.
But there was no repeat performance as Birmingham moved up to eighth in the table thanks to a double from striker Cameron Jerome.
Nwanko Kanu, who scored Portsmouth''s winning goal in their FA Cup final win over Cardiff two years ago, pulled a goal back in stoppage-time but it came too late to prevent victory for the visitors.
"We were well up for it," said delighted Birmingham manager Alex McLeish. "We spoke before the game about how Pompey might have thought our confidence has dropped and that we didn''t have much more to play for this season - and we responded brilliantly."
McLeish''s Portsmouth counterpart, Avram Grant, said: "I think there was a physical effect because players had to play because we are short in the squad. But the players did a great job on Saturday and they tried to do it again."
Portsmouth are due to return to the High Court on March 15 to answer a winding-up order brought by British tax authorities. Their entry into administration is likely to result in a nine-point deduction that would all but confirm their relegation.
But if a judge decides Portsmouth cannot overcome debts said to total 76 million pounds (115 million dollars) they could be liquidated and go out of business completely.
"I hope we will not be docked the points," Israeli manager Grant said. "I hope football decisions will be made on the pitch.
"When you punish something you punish the people who did something wrong. You need to punish the right people," the former Chelsea boss added.
In the day''s other English top flight clash, Darren Bent''s first Premier League hat-trick inspired Sunderland to a 4-0 win over Bolton - the north-east side''s first league win since November 21.
A victory that started with Fraizer Campbell''s first-minute goal at the Stadium of Light moved Sunderland six points clear of the relegation zone.
Bent''s treble ended the Black Cats'' 14-match wait for a league win and took his tally for the season to 19 goals. That total is only bettered among top-flight players by Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney.
And while Rooney, fitness permitting, is a certainty for England''s World Cup squad in South Africa, Sunderland boss Steve Bruce said Fabio Capello, the national side''s Italian manager, should also look at Bent.
"I have had a bad enough time trying to pick a team for the last three months, so I am not going to tell Fabio Capello how to do it because he has been there, worn the T-shirt and done it," Sunderland manager Steve Bruce said.
"All I can say is he must be in his thoughts, he has to be because of his goalscoring exploits.
"No disrespect to us, but to be at a team in the bottom half of the table and get what he has got, it''s fantastic."

Wenger eyes revenge mission against old rivals

LONDON, March 10: Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admits he would love the chance for a revenge mission against Manchester United or Chelsea in the Champions League quarter- finals, reports AFP.
Wenger''s side swept into the last eight with a majestic 5-0 victory over Porto at the Emirates Stadium that sealed a 6-2 aggregate triumph in the second round tie.
Nicklas Bendtner was the Gunners'' hero with the first hat- trick of his career, but sublime displays from Samir Nasri, who scored a brilliant solo goal, and Andrey Arshavin put Wenger in unusually fiesty form after Tuesday''s match.
Winning in such style without captain Cesc Fabregas, key defender William Gallas and star forward Robin van Persie clearly got Wenger''s juices flowing as he claimed Arsenal would fancy their chances against Premier League rivals United or Chelsea.
Arsenal have already lost all four league meetings with United and Chelsea this season, as well losing the Champions League semi-final to Sir Alex Ferguson''s team last season and the FA Cup semi-final last year against Chelsea.
But Wenger insisted he would be happy to play either in the next round of Europe''s elite club competition.
"I have a funny feeling maybe it''s good for us to play an English team," Wenger said.
"We have not done well against Chelsea and against Man U this year and it would be a good chance to show we can do it against them. If we get them we can''t do worse than we did in the Premier League.
"What I don''t want is a negative obssession with avoiding Chelsea or Man Utd.
"We are happy to be in the last eight. It is never easy to be in the top eight in Europe. The negative side of that is you only have good teams left now."
After being widely written off several times this season, Arsenal showed they are made of sterner stuff than many believed with the kind of magical display that suggests they could yet end their five- year wait for silverware.
They are still in the hunt for the title and will fancy their chances against anyone in Europe on this form, yet Wenger admits there is still plenty of room for improvement.
"At the beginning of the season nobody expected this team to be where they are but it is important to improve more. There are still some weak moments in the game when we need to improve," he said.
"Before we think about Barcelona, Chelsea or Man Utd we need to improve."
While Bendtner deservedly took the plaudits after silencing the critics who had called for him to be dropped following his poor finishing in the weekend win over Burnley, it was Nasri who really caught the eye.
The French midfielder has mostly been used as a winger by Wenger but he deputised for Fabregas superbly in a more central role - proving that there should be life after the Spaniard if he ever leaves the Emirates.
"He is developing well. What Nasri has shown in the game, he has shown in training and I have expected that to come out," said Wenger.
"He has talent and now he starts to be efficient - great players can assist and score goals, he is starting to do that now."
Once again Porto left England licking their wounds after a dismal defensive display, but boss Jesualdo Ferreira conceded his team may have been beaten by the tournament''s eventual winners.
"I think they can win it," he said. "They scored the most goals in the first phase of the competition. They have players of great quality and make the most of important moments in a match.
"They have been playing very well in England and have a big chance to win the Premier League as well. That is what you call maturity and class.
"When you are playing in the Champions League it is clear a result like this will make a mark and there is a little bit of pain but we will do everything to get over it."

Schweini wary of Champions League big guns

MUNICH, Germany, March 10: Germany star Bastian Schweinsteiger admitted he would be pleased if Bayern Munich avoided the Champions League''s top teams in the quarter finals after scraping past Fiorentina in the last 16, reports AFP.
Having won the first leg 2-1 in Munich thanks to a controversial goal from Miroslav Klose, Bayern went through on the away goals rule in Fiorentina after Arjen Robben and captain Mark van Bommel scored in Tuesday''s 3-2 defeat.
The result meant that the Bavarian giants, currently riding high at the top of the Bundesliga, beat Fiorentina 4-4 on aggregate.
But Schweinsteiger was wary about the draw for the last eight on March 19.
Arsenal blasted Porto away 5-0 on Tuesday to make it through to the last eight, while other giants like Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Chelsea play their last-16 second legs this week and next.
"Maybe we''ll avoid the really top teams at this stage," said a hopeful Schweinsteiger.
"We''re delighted to be through, as that was our target.
Let''s see what happens in the draw."
Despite scrapping through, Bayern coach Louis van Gaal acknowledged reaching the last eight of European football''s most lucrative competition was all important.
"We''re through, which is what matters in the Champions League," said van Gaal, whose side were 1-0 down at half-time.
"I always had a good feeling about it.
"At half-time, I told my players to stay calm, be patient and keep the ball on the floor.
"We played well in the circumstances, but made too many individual errors in defence."
Bayern''s Germany striker Mario Gomez is expected to be out for two weeks after tearing his right calf muscle in the first-half, but despite his absence captain van Bommel said he never thought his side would go out.
"We had a few nervy moments in front of our goal, but I don''t think we were that bad," said the Dutchman.
"I never had the feeling we''d be knocked out here.
"After going a goal down, we controlled the play without creating anything dangerous.
"Fiorentina only got into the game because we made mistakes.
But we kept our cool and deserve to go through."
And Germany defender Philipp Lahm said Munich had now achieved what they set out to do.
"Our target was a place in the quarter-finals, and we''ve made it," said Lahm.
"We improved after going a goal down, we let the ball do more of the work.
"Yet again, we''ve shown we''re always good for a goal or two.
"And it was a shade easier with the wind behind us in the second half."
But Bayern''s Italian opponents were not happy at their exit, as their defeat was thanks primarily to Klose''s controversial 89th-minute goal in the first leg, which replays showed was yards offside.
Fiorentina coach Cesare Prandelli said the whole team was devastated.
"It''s a great shame the goal from the first leg proved so important but my players should not feel frustrated," said Prandelli.
"Clearly we''re upset, but also proud of the team that won six out of eight games.
"They are working on becoming great players and games like this help. When playing at this level and defeating Bayern Munich, you have to be proud."

Benitez at a loss as Lille loom for Liverpool

LIVERPOOL, England, March 10: Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez was still trying to come to terms with the Reds shattering 1-0 loss to Wigan as he tried to rouse his players for Thursday''s Europa League tie against Lille, reports AFP.
Defeat by Wigan - Liverpool''s ninth Premier League defeat of the season - left the Merseysiders sixth in the table.
Although they are only a point off the fourth place finish that Benitez "guaranteed" this season, which would secure a place in next season''s Champions League, Liverpool''s rivals for a top four spot - Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City and Aston Villa - all have games in hand over the Merseysiders.
"It depends on us," Benitez said. "If we don''t show we can beat teams then at the end it will be the same (as the Wigan result)" he said.
"When you lose you have to be disappointed but the way you lose is sometimes more important and in the first half we were just not good enough.
"I was surprised. I don''t know, really I don''t. I cannot understand it."
Wigan chairman Dave Whelan laid the blame for Liverpool''s demise at the hands of bickering American co-owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks.
"The big sympathy I have is for the Liverpool supporters because they are a fantastic lot," Whelan told Sky Sports.
"Liverpool are in a mess. The owners, being American, I don''t think they feel what we (British club owners) feel.
"I''m really, really sorry for their supporters. We went to Anfield earlier in the season and there''s absolutely no atmosphere and no heart at all at present," Whelan added.
"The supporters feel that and I think the players are starting to feel it."
Liverpool now travel to France to face Lille in the last 16 of European football''s second tier club competition with their Spanish manager insisting: "We have to do it (against Lille) and I believe in the players."
But Dutch striker Ryan Babel, one of several Benitez signings who''ve failed to justify their price tags since arriving at Anfield, admitted that, with nine league matches left, Liverpool''s confidence was at a low ebb.
"It will be harder in every game. It was going to be difficult even before this game," said Babel, an 11-million-pounds (16-million- dollars) signing from Ajax in 2007.
"One defeat seems to spoil all the confidence that we have and then we have to start again."
Liverpool midfielder Yossi Benayoun is doubtful for the trip to Lille after suffering an ankle injury at Wigan which forced the Israel international to miss training on Tuesday.
However, centre-back Daniel Agger should be fit after recovering from the illness which saw him become a mere unused substitute against Wigan.
"We had some problems with Agger. He was sick and lost some weight," said Benitez. "We had to be careful with him but he''s training now so hopefully will be okay.
"Benayoun had a problem with his ankle. We have to see - we have one more day. He wasn''t training today so we have to decide."

WI v Zimbabwe

WI look to returning Bravo for spark

West Indies'' downward one-day curve got a much needed lift on Saturday, when the hosts beat Zimbabwe by four wickets to level the series. It was their first victory in an international fixture since August last year, and the relief on their faces was palpable, reports cricinfo.
It was also indicative of how hard the last few months have been for them, but as they approach the third ODI in Kingstown the momentum is still not entirely with them.
It means the series is now locked at 1-1 and Wednesday''s match will put one team within a win of taking the series.
West Indies have struggled so far in the matches against Zimbabwe, labouring to victory in the second game after losing the Twenty20 and the first ODI.
What will give them confidence though is the return of the key allrounder Dwayne Bravo, whose presence - despite having not played for nearly three months - will almost certainly lift the team.
West Indies'' most valuable one-day player, Bravo adds depth to a shaky batting order and his bowling, most notably subtle variations of pace, can do real damage.
The comments of head coach Ottis Gibson on Bravo''s return underline the influence of the star allrounder.
"He has only just come back and already you can feel the energy he brings. He is a very important player and already the players have perked up with him around," was Gibson''s assessment, and it shows just how Bravo can strengthen West Indies as a team.
On the other side, going into a crucial game, Zimbabwe have been hurt by the departure of fast bowler Kyle Jarvis with a stress fracture.
Though Jarvis had not featured in any of the three international games on the tour so far, his departure leaves Zimbabwe''s pace bowling reserves looking a little thin.
Chris Mpofu leaked 30 runs in four wayward overs during West Indies'' win in the second ODI, and although Shingi Masakadza held his nerve in a tense final over in the first game in Guyana, he too was expensive.
Zimbabwe''s batting fell away in the second ODI, and that was one of the reasons behind their loss.
They will hope the surface at Kingstown will be more suitable for batting and look to their top order to come good.

Rana, Malik get one-year bans

The PCB has struck against its players with a venom unseen in recent memory, carrying out the deepest cull of a senior cricket team in many years and banning and fining seven of its top players after the side''s disastrous, winless tour of Australia, reports cricinfo.
It has banned Younis Khan and Mohammad Yousuf, from playing for Pakistan in any format for an indefinite period, while handing out one-year bans to Shoaib Malik and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan. Shahid Afridi and the Akmal brothers were fined Rs2-3 million [$24,000-35,000] for various misdemeanours and put on six-month probations.
Action had been expected once details of the inquiry committee''s report recommendations were leaked in the press on Monday and Ijaz Butt, the PCB chairman, had followed it up by saying "more than significant action" would be taken against players. While the punishments for Malik, Rana, Afridi and the Akmal brothers were expected, the action against Yousuf and Younis has caught most people off-guard.
"Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan, keeping in view their infighting which resulted in bringing down the whole team, their attitude has a trickledown effect which is a bad influence for the whole team should not be part of national team in any format," the board said in its statement issued on Wednesday.
The PCB has stopped short of calling the punishment a life ban. "They will not be part of any Pakistan team in any format from here on," Taffazul Rizvi, the board''s legal advisor told Cricinfo. "A life ban means they cannot play domestic cricket or any other similar cricket, but we are not stopping them from that. They can play domestic cricket or county cricket here and abroad."
Typically there was confusion and the board later appeared to climb down by clarifying that this was not the end of their careers. In a statement released at least six hours after the original release, the board said, "that the recommendation of the Committee is not a life ban on these cricketers. There is no specified term in the recommendation for these two players. As and when the PCB deems appropriate, these players will be considered for selection for the national team."
Rizvi refused to elaborate on the nature of the pair''s cases, but it is believed that the board had generally had enough with the two. Younis twice stepped down from the captaincy last year with player unrest against his leadership the underlying cause both times. Yousuf''s sins are equally unclear, other than that he led a winless tour to Australia and engaged thereafter in a public battle with Malik.
The cases of indiscipline that have led to one-year bans on Malik and Rana, similarly, have not been expanded upon. "Rana Naved ul Hasan and Shoaib Malik be fined Rupees Two million. They should not be part of national team in any format for a period of one year."
Malik''s name has figured persistently at the centre of speculation over the last year in inciting player unrest within the team, though nothing substantial has appeared in public to back that up. "We cannot discuss the specifics of the incident as we are under oath," Rizvi said. "But obviously we have taken action after much consideration and based on solid information."
In contrast, the cases of Akmal brothers and Shahid Afridi are straightforward. The brothers were fined for their behavior in the aftermath of the Sydney Test; Kamran was dropped by the board but insisted publicly he would be selected in the run-up to the third Test. Younger brother Umar was alleged to have feigned an injury to not play the Test in protest, though he did eventually play. Kamran has been fined Rs 3 million, Umar Rs 2 million and the pair are on probation.

Henin, Clijsters look to shake things up at Indian Wells

INDIAN WELLS, California, March 10: Former world number ones Justine Henin and Kim Clijsters of Belgium will provide some early headaches for top seeds at the WTA Indian Wells tournament which begins Wednesday, reports AFP.
The 4.5 million-dollar event, played in conjunction with an ATP event that starts Thursday, also could see a potential third-round rematch of last year''s final between defending champion Vera Zvonareva and 24th seed Ana Ivanovic.
With 32 seeds receiving first-round byes, the early star of the show figures to be Henin, the 27-year-old who lost to Serena Williams in the Australian Open final and US Open champion Clijsters at the Brisbane final.
Henin, who won at Indian Wells in 2004, opens against Slovakia''s Magdalena Rybarikova and if she advances will face 31st-seeded Gisela Dulko of Argentina for a possible third-round encounter with fifth seed Agneiszka Radwanska of Poland.
Russian fourth seed Elena Dementieva is also in Henin''s quarter of the draw.
Clijsters, a 14th-seeded two-time Indian Wells champion, opens with a second-round tie against Germany''s Andrea Petkovic or Czech Barbora Strycova Zahlavova. She could face top seed Svetlana Kuznetsova in the fourth round.
Russian star Kuznetsova''s path to a third career Indian Wells final could also see her face Serbian sixth seed Jelena Jankovic or Italy''s ninth-seeded Flavia Pennetta in the quarter-finals.
Kuznetsova opens in the second round against either Alize Cornet of France or Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain. Last year, Kuznetsova suffered her earliest loss at Indian Wells when she fell to Poland''s Urszula Radwanska in her opener.
Russian 12th seed Zvonareva beat 2008 champion Ivanovic of Serbia to take the 2009 crown and opens her title defense against either a qualifier or Czech Lucie Hradecka. Ivanovic opens with a qualifier or Latvian Anastasija Sevastova.
Zvonareva or Ivanovic could face eighth seed Samantha Stosur of Australia in the fouth round with two-time Indian Wells champion Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia or third seed Victoria Azarenka of Belarus possible quarter-final foes.

SPORTS NOTES

Ali visits US training camps

SCOTTSDALE, Arizona, March 10: Muhammad Ali, the former world heavyweight boxing champion, visited the clubhouse of the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday as the team continued its Major League Baseball pre-season training, reports AFP.
The 68-year-old superstar, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease, is visiting teams that train near his Arizona home in hopes of recruiting players to donate their time as part of the Athletes for Hope program.
“It’s exciting. He is one of the greatest,” said southpaw pitcher Jonathan Sanchez. “To have someone like him here makes you be better every day.”
Ali, whose friends include retired Giants’ Hall of fame legend Willie Mays, is among the founding members of Athletes for Hope, which is dedicated to community service and includes US cycling star Lance Armstrong and tennis great Andre Agassi among its members.

Koren strike delights Baggies boss Di Matteo

LONDON, March 10: West Brom boss Roberto Di Matteo praised Robert Koren after his strike secured a 1-0 win against Sheffield Wednesday that moved the Baggies back into the Championship’s automatic promotion spots, reports AFP.
Only the top two teams at the end of the season in English football’s second tier are guaranteed promotion to the lucrative Premier League and substitute Koren’s 30-yard goal 21 minutes from time saw the Baggies up into second place, two points clear of Nottingham Forest, with only leaders Newcastle above them.
“It took a great effort by Koren and I am very pleased for him,” said former Chelsea and Italy midfielder di Matteo after Tuesday’s win at The Hawthorns.
“The goal that Koren scored was a great goal and it probably needed a goal like that to win the game.”
Elsewhere fourth-placed Swansea beat Watford 1-0 at Vicarage Road thanks to Finland striker Shefki Kuqi’s third goal in nine appearances for the club.
At the other end of the table, Roy Keane’s Ipswich Town moved four points clear of the relegation zone as on-loan Sunderland striker Daryl Murphy scored twice in a 2-0 win over Cardiff.
Peterborough beat Sheffield United 1-0 thanks to Craig Mackail-Smith’s 100th senior goal but still remained bottom of the table.
Elsewhere QPR’s revival under new manager Neil Warnock continued with a 2-0 win over second-bottom Plymouth Argyle.

ICC quandary over Nepal disturbances

The ICC has dismissed criticism it was too slow to react to the crowd trouble which marred the match between Nepal and USA in Kirtipur in the ICC World Cricket League Division 5 tournament, reports cricinfo.
In the immediate aftermath of the serious disturbances, Singapore lodged a complaint with the ICC, claiming they and not Nepal should have qualified for the final, and in turn promotion to Division 4 of the tournament.
At the time the USA-Nepal match was suspended, Nepal were facing elimination on net run-rate (NRR), but they edged through after USA were set a revised Duckworth-Lewis target which slightly but crucially improved Nepal''s NRR and enabled them to squeeze out Singapore.