Flintoff to make comeback by next month

June 4, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, June 4 (ANI): England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who retired from test cricket in 2009 after helping England regain the Ashes from Australia, is expected to return to action for his county club Lancashire by July or August.

Flintoff, 32, has been recuperating since undergoing reconstructive knee surgery after the final test at the Oval and is still ambitious to represent England in one-day cricket.

He had initially targeted England’s one-day series in Bangladesh in February for his comeback, but had to abandon that plan while conducting his rehabilitation in Dubai, Stuff.co.nz reports.

“Fred was with us last week and he had a long interview with Mike Watkinson (the cricket manager at Lancashire) and he said he is on course,” Lancashire chief executive Jim Cumbes told reporters.

“He is full of enthusiasm. It’s amazing that with the time he has been out he is still able to plough on. We are hoping to have him back by the end of July or start of August,” Cumbers added. (ANI)

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Report: Akmal wants coaches to apologize, CRI

May 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment

ISLAMABAD (AP) Pakistan news reports say wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal wants an unconditional apology from his former coaches for accusing him of match-fixing during this year’s winless tour of Australia. Akmal was quoted by leading Urdu-language daily Jang on Sunday as saying both Intikhab Alam and Aqib Javed should apologize to him unconditionally, otherwise he will take court action against them.

Both Alam and Javed raised suspicions of match fixing in a leaked video of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s inquiry committee. Alam had said he was flabbergasted after Akmal missed a run out of Shane Watson during the Sydney test and later heard stories of match fixing.

Akmal was talking to the newspaper before leaving for commitments in England.

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Mourinho likely to join Real Madrid

May 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, May 23 (IANS) After guiding Inter Milan to a Champions League final win over Bayern Munich that sealed his second career Treble, Jose Mourinho admitted he was ‘more likely to leave than stay’ and is interested in joining Real Madrid.

The Portuguese became only the third coach to win Europe’s premier competition with two different clubs – he won it with Porto in 2004 – and now he wants to go one better.

‘I want to be the only coach to win the Champions League with three different clubs.’It’s more likely that I will leave rather than stay. The Champions League I won at Porto (2004) was my last game there and this time it will almost certainly be my last game for Inter. I want another challenge in my career,’ Mourinho was quoted as saying by Rai TV.

‘It’s not definite that I’ll go but I want new risks, new experiences, and now is the moment to decide.’

He also hinted that Real Madrid are willing to take him.

‘Great season, incredible season. But at this moment I have not many words to describe how I feel because it’s almost for sure that I will leave. Real Madrid is the only club that wants me. It is an enormous club, a club that wants the same as me; I want to win, I want to feel important, I want to keep winning.

‘My target now is to win another championship where I have never won it and another Champions League… And then I return to England,’ said Mourinho.

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Onions ruled out for three months with back injury

May 21, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, May 21(ANI): England fast bowler Graham Onions has been ruled out for up to three months due to a back injury and will now miss the upcoming series against Bangladesh and Pakistan.

Onions has been out of action since he was forced to return home from England’s tour of Bangladesh with the injury in March.

The 27-year-old underwent scans on his back earlier this week, which confirmed that the injury was worse than feared.

“I am naturally incredibly disappointed to miss the bulk of the domestic season and am still hopeful that with rest I can be back on the field nearer to the end of the summer,” The Telegraph quoted Onions, as saying.

“The ECB medical team has been very supportive and all I can do is be patient, work hard on my rehabilitation programme and focus on my number one goal which is to be fully fit and available for selection for the Ashes tour to Australia,” he added.

Onions also underwent surgery on Thursday at a London hospital to repair a cartilage in his left knee. (ANI)

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Cricket in UK schools ‘less elitist and more ethnically diverse than in past’: Survey

May 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, May 20(ANI): A new survey has revealed that cricket in the UK has become less elitist and more ethnically diverse than in the past, with it growing in popularity among kids in state schools.

The survey was conducted by the ‘Chance to Shine’ foundation, which has brought cricket to a million schoolchildren across the UK. The results were based on an online YouGov survey of 993 parents of children aged 8 to 17.

When asked whether ‘cricket has become less elitist’ than when they were at school, three times as many parents of children at state schools polled strongly agreed (42 percent), compared to those that strongly disagreed with the statement (13 percent).

Twenty-four mums polled said that cricket is now offered as a team sport to girls at their child’s school, twice the number that say the “gentleman’s game” was an option for them when they were at school (11 percent).

It also showed that a whopping 72 percent of parents believed playing cricket could improve their child’s grades.

Meanwhile, England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff explained why he has been backing the foundation.

“Cricket in state schools was in real danger of dying out before Chance to shine launched in 2005,” The Sun quoted Flintoff, as saying.

“I believe every child has the right to play competitive cricket at school and to learn skills that they can use throughout their lives,” he added. (ANI)

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Aston Villa rejects Man City’s 25-mn pound bid for Milner

May 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, May 20 (ANI): Aston Villa has rejected Manchester City 25 million pound bid for James Milner, and now plans to negotiate a new long-term deal with the England midfield ace.

The Sun reports that Villa boss Martin O’Neill would still struggle to hold on to the player.

The deal was worth an initial 20 million pounds with a further five million pounds of add-ons for success and appearances.

Both Villa owner Randy Lerner and manager O’Neill have been adamant that Milner, 24, is not for sale.

In a statement Villa said: “We have received an offer from Manchester City and this has been firmly rejected. We plan to sit down with James and his representative after the World Cup to agree a new, long-term deal.”

Milner learned of City’s move on Wednesday at England’s training camp in Austria, the paper said.

Mancini has up to 150 million pounds to spend this summer as he tries to build a side for a Premier League title push next season, it adds. (ANI)

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Afridi says aggression, ending ‘mental hang up’ critical for Pak success against Oz

May 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 20 (ANI): Flamboyant Pakistan T20 skipper Shahid Afridi believes that his team suffers from a ‘mental hang up’ when it comes to competing with the World Champions Australia, and he wants to help players break that ‘jinx’ concerning the Kangaroos.

In the recent years, Pakistan have had a nightmarish record against Australia, with the latest being the January-February tour where Pakistan failed to register even a single win against the hosts.

It came close to defeating Australia in the semifinal of the just concluded ICC T20 World Championship in the West Indies, but faltered at the last moment.

Afridi said the loss almost shattered his heart, but he pointed towards the positive aspect of the loss that at least Pakistan played some tough and competitive cricket.

“I would have been left completely shattered but what gave me hope was the fact that we played aggressive cricket and a victory against Australia was within our reach,” The News quoted Afridi, as saying.

“It would have been great had we go on to win that match but once again the Australians proved that they are still the best in the world,” he added.

The hard hitting all-rounder pointed out that defeating Australia has never been easy, but the teams competing against the world champions would have to match the aggression of the Kangaroos to stand any chance.

“I must make it clear that beating Australia will never be easy. But I’m also confident that we can do it. What we need is to overcome our mental hang up and just play brave cricket. The thing is that the Aussies are mentally very tough and the only way to beat them is by going out there and giving it our best shot. You have to be really aggressive against that team because there is no other way to tackle them,” Afridi said.

Afridi said he is eagerly waiting for the two T20 encounters against Australia during the upcoming series in England, as the best chance of ending the team’s poor run against Australia is to defeat them in the game in which they are considered to be the best.

“It would take a gigantic effort to beat Australia in the Test series but Twenty20 cricket is a different story. We have a very good team for the shortest format and can beat any opposition on our day,” he said. (ANI)

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Afridi says aggression, ending ‘mental hang up’ critical for Pak success against Oz

May 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Karachi, May 20 (ANI): Flamboyant Pakistan T20 skipper Shahid Afridi believes that his team suffers from a ‘mental hang up’ when it comes to competing with the World Champions Australia, and he wants to help players break that ‘jinx’ concerning the Kangaroos.

In the recent years, Pakistan have had a nightmarish record against Australia, with the latest being the January-February tour where Pakistan failed to register even a single win against the hosts.

It came close to defeating Australia in the semifinal of the just concluded ICC T20 World Championship in the West Indies, but faltered at the last moment.

Afridi said the loss almost shattered his heart, but he pointed towards the positive aspect of the loss that at least Pakistan played some tough and competitive cricket.

“I would have been left completely shattered but what gave me hope was the fact that we played aggressive cricket and a victory against Australia was within our reach,” The News quoted Afridi, as saying.

“It would have been great had we go on to win that match but once again the Australians proved that they are still the best in the world,” he added.

The hard hitting all-rounder pointed out that defeating Australia has never been easy, but the teams competing against the world champions would have to match the aggression of the Kangaroos to stand any chance.

“I must make it clear that beating Australia will never be easy. But I’m also confident that we can do it. What we need is to overcome our mental hang up and just play brave cricket. The thing is that the Aussies are mentally very tough and the only way to beat them is by going out there and giving it our best shot. You have to be really aggressive against that team because there is no other way to tackle them,” Afridi said.

Afridi said he is eagerly waiting for the two T20 encounters against Australia during the upcoming series in England, as the best chance of ending the team’s poor run against Australia is to defeat them in the game in which they are considered to be the best.

“It would take a gigantic effort to beat Australia in the Test series but Twenty20 cricket is a different story. We have a very good team for the shortest format and can beat any opposition on our day,” he said. (ANI)

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Clarke adamant about keeping Oz Twenty20 captaincy

May 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Sydney, May 20 (ANI): Twenty20 skipper Michael Clarke, whose tenure comes in for review over his poor batting in the shortest version of the game, is adamant about retaining the Australian Twenty20 captaincy.

Clarke has already conceded that his position might come under review following Australia’s seven-wicket loss to archrivals England in the final of the World Twenty20 Cup.

He finished with 92 runs in the tournament at 15.33. White on the other hand scored 180 runs at 45, with a strike rate of 146.34 compared with Clarke’s strike rate of 80.7.

“No doubt (I want to continue), I’m disappointed we couldn’t win the World T20, win the final, but I’ve really enjoyed the opportunity,” Clarke said on Wednesday.

“I’ve loved playing with the guys, I’ve had a lot of support from people back at home, the people who came and watched the games in the West Indies, and family and friends, so it’s been great and I’m enjoying it (the captaincy),” he said.

The Sydney Morning Herald quoted Clarke as saying it might be time he re-acquainted himself with the aggressive and nimble-footed technique he first brought to the Australian team.

“Who knows? Maybe I need a little bit of that back,” said Clarke of his former, youthful approach.

“Everybody has a different role in our team though and that is one thing that players certainly are aware of, and you need to do your role to the best of your ability. For me my role is not the same as Dave Warner or Shane Watson.

“I always want to perform, I always want to score runs, it doesn’t matter what form of the game I’m playing, but like I said in this game, sometimes you can’t always make those runs,” Clarke added. (ANI)

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Shilton backs Rooney to live up to expectations of English fans during WC

May 19, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, May 19 (ANI): England legend Peter Shilton has backed ace striker Wayne Rooney to live up to the expectations of fans during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa

“At the end of the day Wayne is only 24, but I’m sure he can deal with everything. He’s really matured as a player and shaken off the impetuousness of his younger years,” The Sun quoted Shilton, as saying.

“The aggression and will to win remain, along with the competitive spirit, but he’s harnessed it in the right way now. Wayne’s far more disciplined and that’s obviously going to be important in South Africa,” he said.

Capello has a number of options with the likes of Emile Heskey, Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe and Darren Bent to partner Rooney in front, the paper said.

But Shilton expects Aston Villa player Heskey to get the nod when England’s Group C campaign kicks off against the United States on June 12, it added.

“It’s a difficult one to call. Heskey’s not an out-and-out goal scorer but his strength makes him a terrific target man. At the end of the day I think it will come down to the system Capello plays,” he said.

“However, I wouldn’t like to see Rooney up front on his own as that would take away from his strengths. I think Heskey will get the nod because Capello likes to play with a strong man leading the line,” Shilton said. (ANI)

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Salman Butt emerges frontrunner for Pak Test captaincy

May 19, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Lahore, May 19 (ANI): Left-hand Pakistan opener Salman Butt has emerged as a frontrunner for the captaincy for the upcoming back-to-back Test series against England and Australia.

According to sources in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), the board is contemplating to reward Butt with the Test captaincy for his impressive show in the just concluded ICC World T20 Championship in the West Indies.

T20 skipper Shahid Afridi is likely to lead the team in the upcoming Asia Cup and later in the one-day tournament against England and Australia in England. However, the board would have to appoint a new captain for the Test series as Afridi has decided not to play the five-day game, The Daily Times reports.

Butt had served as vice-captain under Shoaib Malik, but he failed to impress the selectors during his stint as Malik’s deputy following which he was removed. (ANI)

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‘Tall and dangerous’ Harmison not out of contention for Ashes: Saker

May 19, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, May 19 (ANI): England’s new bowling coach David Saker has said that he is not ruling out fast bowler Steve Harmison as a contender for the Ashes series in Australia this year.

“There’s no way Steve Harmison is out of the picture. I’m not going to write off someone as tall as he is and someone who can really cause some damage to the Australian team,” Saker told The Wisden Cricketer magazine.

“I know the Australian batters sometimes talk about him as one of the hardest guys to face and he troubles them more than anybody. I want to see the best XI represent England. I’m never age-biased in the way I pick a team,” he said.

The former Victoria coach is gearing up for a highly competitive Ashes series and said that England’s bowlers will be up for the battle.

“I can assure you that the English bowlers won’t be backing down. You’ve got to really get into the contest and be competitive. Most fast bowlers are like that.

“The ones that come in and out of the game are the ones that aren’t that competitive. The ones that last are unbelievably competitive people. All of the fast bowlers I’ve met have all had that competitive streak and the aggression comes out when it’s needed.”

But Saker believes England must add defence to their aggression to be successful against Australia.

“You’ve got to have a good defence as a bowler, not just a good attack. The English team is a good attacking side but at times they leak runs. And that’s one of my jobs, to make sure we don’t leak as many runs in those middle overs when you really need to defend,” Saker said.

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‘Contender’ White backs Clarke to lead Oz T20 side

May 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Sydney, May 18 (ANI): Australia’s Twenty20 vice captain Cameron White has backed incumbent Michael Clarke to lead the side for his leadership skills, despite selectors toying with the idea of allowing Clarke to focus on 50-over cricket and Tests.

Clarke expects his spot in the Australian Twenty20 team to be reviewed after batting performances at the World Twenty20 that “haven’t been up to scratch”.

Clarke guided Australia to six consecutive victories before the final where Kevin Pietersen hit 47 off 31 balls to inspire England to a seven-wicket win.

White said Clarke deserved credit for his leadership skills. “What Michael’s done for the team, his leadership and captaincy, has been a great effort,” he said.

“We’ve come a long way. There was a stage when we weren’t considered a very good Twenty20 team. But I think we’ve showed in this tournament that we are,” The Sydney Morning Herald quoted White, as saying.

Clarke also said that Australia has taken a big step forward, reaching the World T20 final for the first time at its third attempt. (ANI)

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White being tipped to replace Clarke as Oz T20 captain

May 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Sydney, May 17 (ANI): Victoria captain Cameron White, who led his side to the Big Bash title, while winning four of the past five championships, is being tipped to be the new Australian Twent20 skipper after incumbent Michael Clarke’s tenure comes under review over his suspect batting in the shortest version of the game.

Clarke has conceded that his position must come under review following Australia’s seven-wicket loss to archrivals England. He finished with 92 runs in the tournament at 15.33. White on the other hand scored 180 runs at 45, with a strike rate of 146.34 compared with Clarke’s strike rate of 80.7.

It is a difficult consideration for selectors because of Clarke’s astute leadership and excellent winning record as captain. But his not holding his place in the Twenty20 team as a batsman is proving a weakness, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

Clarke’s performances in the three World Twenty20s so far have yielded 108 runs at an average of 10.8, with a strike rate of 77.14. White, by contrast, has played only 20 games for Australia, but has more runs – 481, at a superior average of 43.72 and an excellent strike rate of 148.45.

“There is no doubt the selectors will need to have a look at my performances. I certainly know they haven’t been up to scratch and as good as I would’ve expected throughout this whole tournament, and probably Twenty20 cricket in general,” said Clarke.

“I’m sure the selectors will have a look and if I’m not the right person for the No.3 position and the captaincy of this team they’ll make that decision,” he said.

White was predictably diplomatic when asked about taking over the leadership in wake of Clarke’s comments.

“If that’s what Michael thinks, that’s what he’s thinking. I’m in no position to think about selection. All I can do is make sure I’m doing well and the team’s doing well and playing my part for the team and supporting Michael as vice-captain as well,” White said. (ANI)

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Moore to miss 12 weeks with broken jaw, RGU

May 16, 2010 By Leave a Comment

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) Australia hooker Stephen Moore, a 46-test veteran, is facing 12 weeks on the sidelines after breaking his jaw in a Super 14 match for his ACT Brumbies. Moore underwent surgery on Saturday in Christchurch, New Zealand following a bad break early in the Brumbies’ 40-22 loss to the Canterbury Crusaders which ended the Australian team’s Super 14 semifinal chances.

He will likely miss next month’s internationals against Fiji, England and Ireland and the first half of the annual Tri-Nations tournament involving South Africa and New Zealand, Brumbies officials said Sunday.

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We didn’t come here to make the final; we came here to win the final: Clarke

May 16, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Melbourne, May 16 (ANI): The Australian team led by Michael Clarke having several Twenty20 specialists is determined to set the record straight by winning the Twenty20 World Cup final.

Australia will go into tonight’s final against archrivals England in Barbados to win the one major title that has eluded them so far.

“I’m stoked we’re in the final. We have come a long way in this form of the game. But we didn’t come here to make the final; we came here to win the final,” The Herald Sun quoted Clarke, as saying.

“I think we have achieved a lot as a team, but it would be extra special tomorrow to top it off with a victory. It would be fantastic. There’s no doubt we’d be much happier leaving Barbados with that one last trophy we don’t have just yet,” he said.

Clarke stressed that victory tonight would be no consolation for Australia’s 2-1 Ashes series loss in England last year.

“It won’t make up for it, but it would be a fantastic start to what is going to be a great summer back at home. I’m certain every Australian and every English person loves seeing that battle. It’s always tough cricket, in any form of the game,” he said.

“I’m certain tomorrow will be no different. So for now, it’s about focusing on a huge game – a final – against a very good team,” Clarke said. (ANI)

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Brit girl, 8, lied to mum about rape, fearing ”she wouldn”t get any sweets”

May 14, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, May 14 (ANI): An eight-year-old girl in England, who was allegedly raped by two 10-year-old boys last October, has admitted in a court that she lied to her mother about the incident because she feared she would not get any sweets.

In the trial at the Old Bailey, the child confessed that all three kids had pulled down their own underwear.

She believed it was a “naughty” act, and had not wished to tell it to her mother.

The girl answered the questions of Linda Strudwick, who represented the older boy, via videolink connecting her to the court.

On October 29 last year, the girl she had been playing outside her house in Hayes, west London with the boys.

The court heard how the girl joined the older boys and then they all went into a block of flats, then a bin shed next to the flats, followed by a field nearby. It is there that the alleged rape took place.

Strudwick asked about the moment the youngsters exposed themselves to each other, in a form of “I”ll show you mine if you show me yours”, reports The Telegraph.

Referring to her client, she said: “He took his pants down… The younger boy took his pants down… and you took your knickers down?”

To each question, the girl replied “yeah”.

Strudwick said: “That was a little bit naughty, but nothing too terrible. You were all giggling at the time because it was naughty and it was silly.”

The girl smiled and said shyly: “Yeah.”

Strudwick said: “You knew that you had done something that was naughty? You didn”t want your mum to find out because if your mum found out, no sweeties.

“When your mum came up to you, your mum was not looking very pleased with you? You knew you were going to get into trouble?”

Again, each time the girl replied: “Yeah.”

Strudwick said: “You told her the boys had taken your knickers down because you didn”t want your mother to think that you had been naughty? Is that right?”

The girl replied: “Yeah.”

Justice Saunders asked: “What were you worried about with your mother?”

“No sweeties,” the girl replied.

“Because if you had been naughty you would get no sweeties? Had you been naughty?

“A tiny bit,” said the girl.

Justice Saunders then told the child she had done nothing wrong.

“I am a judge and I know when people have done anything wrong, you have done nothing wrong,” he said.

The boys, now aged 11 and 10, have denied two charges each of rape and two charges each of attempted rape of a child under 13.

The trial continues. (ANI)

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Waqar says fully fit pace attack critical for Test series against England and Australia

May 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Islamabad, May 13 (ANI): Pakistan cricket coach Waqar Younis believes that a fully fit pace attack would the key during the Test series against England and Australia this summer.

Waqar told PakPassion.net that once the team returns from the Caribbean after the ICC World T20 Championship, the selectors would review options for the tough English tour, adding that he would like them to pick a few extra fast bowlers in particular to cope with any injury related trouble during the Test series.

He also expressed the hope that both fast bowler Umar Gul and all rounder Yasir Aarafat would get fit on time for the ‘home’ series in England.

“We need a lot of boys to be playing, we may bring a couple extra. We’ve got a long tour this summer. We have given Umar Gul and Yasir Arafat a rest. We need all those fast bowlers for the English conditions,” Waqar said.

When asked about the chances of young fast bowler Mohammed Irfan’s inclusion in the national squad, he said Irfan has got all the ingredients of becoming a world-class pacer.

“He is totally unorthodox, he”s tall, he’s got potential”. “I thought he might be good for the World T20 competition but unfortunately he couldn”t get into the side. I believe in the very near future he could get into the side,” Waqar said.

(ANI)

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Amanda Seyfried’s new tattoo means ‘vagina’!

May 12, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, May 12 (ANI): Amanda Seyfried is excited about her new tattoo—‘minge’— which means vagina.

The Mamma Mia has said that she is proud of the odd artwork, which is apparently her nickname too.

“It means vagina and kind of proud of it,” the Sun quoted her as saying.

“It”s my nickname. You can”t see it, but it”s called Minge and it”s slang in England. Speaking of the artwork,” she admitted.

“It has something to do with your pubic hair in the dictionary,” she added.

Amanda, who has shared on-screen smooches with actresses Megan Fox and Julianne Moore, also confessed she enjoys lesbian kisses – but bans her dad from watching them.

She told host Chelsea Handler: “One person cannot enjoy it, which is my father. He”s not allowed to enjoy it – he”s not allowed to see it.

“But it”s really fun. It feels like I”m becoming a better actor, to use my body in different ways.” (ANI)

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