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Dinesh Mongia has denied reports that his suspension from the ICL was due to alleged contact with bookies. “It has got nothing to do with match-fixing,” Mongia told the .

Cricinfo staff30-Oct-2008Dinesh Mongia has denied reports that his suspension from the ICL was due to alleged contact with bookies. “It has got nothing to do with match-fixing,” Mongia told the .On Monday Mongia and Chris Cairns, of Chandigarh Lions, were suspended on disciplinary grounds after it was learnt that Cairns, who arrived at the tournament with an ankle injury, had not disclosed his fitness status to the ICL. Mongia was suspended because he knew about Cairns’ injury in advance but did not share the information with tournament officials.”The ICL officials interrogated me over Cairns’s ankle injury,” Mongia said. “They thought I was aware of it and did not inform them. I have given my explanation to them.”Cairns’ lawyer, Andrew Fitch-Holland, also denied his client had been involved in match-fixing and said he was suspended for failing to report an injured ankle. “I’ve seen no statement [on match-fixing] from the ICL to that effect,” Fitch-Holland told the . “And I would be very surprised if you could find anyone at the ICL who would say that.”

New Zealand allrounder Jacob Oram feels the team’s early arrival in Bangladesh will help the players get used to the humidity and pitches

Cricinfo staff05-Oct-2008
Jacob Oram feels the series against Bangladesh will be a lot tougher than it was back in New Zealand in 2007-08 © AFP
Jacob Oram, the New Zealand allrounder, has said the team’s early arrival in Bangladesh will help the players get used to the humidity and the pitches. The New Zealand team arrived on September 30 in the days leading up to Eid celebrations in Bangladesh.”We had the Champions Trophy postponed which means we didn’t have any cricket after the England tour which finished in June,” he said. “We came over here earlier than the original schedule only to get used to the conditions”.Oram believed that it would be a tough series for them despite the fact that they have an excellent record against Bangladesh and won all Tests and ODIs when the two teams last played in New Zealand in 2007-08.”We are here to win. But it is going to be a lot tougher than it was back in New Zealand. The conditions are so different. In Tests, I think it’s about which side has flexibility and depth in different conditions,” he said. “Maybe the Bangladeshis did not do that when in New Zealand, so we have got a challenge here. The wicket is probably drier, flatter, slower and probably going to assist the spinner more.”Oram said Bangladesh’s batting would present a challenge despite the fact that they had lost a few players to the ICL. “I think they have some very exciting players. They showed in New Zealand that they could play all the shots. They had us under pressure a number of times. Tamim (Iqbal) is a very good player as is (Junaid) Siddiqui, (Mohammad) Ashraful at the top of the order. The guys play all the shots, more shots than us, but may be too many shots.”New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori, meanwhile, said it would be a mistake to underestimate the hosts. “We know how good they can be. If we are not on top of our game we can get upset and that’s the thing we are trying to avoid.”He said not only would Bangladesh enjoy the home advantage but would be buoyed by a formidable bowling attack. “Look at their bowlers; they have (Shahadat) Hossain, (Mashrafe) Mortaza and (Abdur) Razzak. They are going to be formidable opposition for us.”New Zealand will be playing three ODIs and two Tests on their tour to Bangladesh, with a warm-up game scheduled for October 7 against a yet-to-be-named side, followed by the first ODI in Dhaka on October 9.

Evening Standard football writer Jack Rosser believes that Totenham Hotspur will look to try do some more business before the window closes.

Manager Nuno Espirito Santo has already been active in the summer window making three new additions to his Spurs squad, with Cristian Romero, Pierluigi Gollini and Bryan Gil all signing deals at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with Barcelona’s Emerson Royal reportedly set to follow.

Spurs have started the season in fine form, winning both of their opening two matches in the Premier League against Manchester City and Wolves and were buoyed by the news that Harry Kane is staying at the club.

Jack Rosser believes that Tottenham will look to try and do some more business before the window shuts, telling Football FanCast: “I think they’ll look to try and do something by the sounds of it. Keeping Kane is obviously a big carrot for any signing that you’re going to go out and try and get now. 

“They’re not going to have to try and replace him or anything like that, they’re not going to have that burden. So yeah, I think they’ll look to do something, and I think Spurs fans can be quietly encouraged by the start of the season and keeping Kane as well.”

Spurs have also beaten Pacos de Ferreira 3-1 on aggregate in the UEFA Europa Conference League and progressed to the group stages, where they will face Stade Rennes, SBV Vitesse, NS Mura in Group G.

Lee Bowyer is eager to secure at least one more Birmingham City signing before the closure of the summer transfer window.

What’s been said?

In recent comments cited by Birmingham Live, the Blues manager revealed that, while none of the deals the club are currently working on are any further along, he is hoping that his side will be able to welcome the addition of one more loan signing prior to transfer deadline day at the start of next week.

The 44-year-old said: “Not [any further along] at the moment. It’s a tough market. We’re always trying to improve. We’ll keep trying to push to make it happen, that’s all we can do.

“We’re limited financially so we have to keep trying to do the right thing to improve us. There’s no point just bringing in bodies that aren’t going to make us any better.”

Bowyer continued: “We’ve got five loans already so if we do, we’ll maybe bring in one more loan. We’ve just got to weigh up and see what’s what after the weekend.

“We’ve only played four games, there’s another 42 to go. We’re going to get injuries, suspensions, so you need to strengthen the squad. You need numbers.”

Music to the ears of fans

With Bowyer’s comments being made after his side had just secured a rather astonishing 5-0 away win at Luton Town, a game the manager described as the best performance he’d ever witnessed from any of the teams he has managed, the argument that Birmingham need to bring in further additions in the transfer market may appear slightly redundant.

However, as has so often been in the way in his reign at St. Andrew’s, Bowyer is correct to want to bring in at least one more body this summer, for exactly the reason he states – with his comments likely to be music to the ears of fans of the club.

Indeed, a season in the Championship is arguably one of the most challenging and physically demanding campaigns of all the leagues in Europe, with injury, fatigue and operating with a small squad having been the downfall of many a promotion contender.

However, despite their impressive start to the season, with the Blues currently occupying eighth place in the second tier table, it may still be slightly premature to dub Bowyer’s side as play-off hopefuls.

Having said that, considering the vast improvements the 44-year-old has overseen since taking over at the club, we would not bet against the former Charlton Athletic manager going on to do something special with Birmingham this season.

And, if Bowyer can go on to bring in one more signing over the coming days, taking into account how well the manager has performed in the transfer market thus far, we would not blame Birmingham fans for starting to get their hopes up of a top-six finish come next May.

In other news: “Outstanding” £5k-p/w gem drops transfer hint which will leave Birmingham fans gutted

Chelsea will be without new signing Romelu Lukaku against Crystal Palace on Saturday afternoon, according to The Athletic.

And, as to be expected, the forward’s expected Stamford Bridge absence has had a lot of Palace fans talking on social media.

The Blues announced the arrival of the Belgium superstar on Thursday evening in a deal worth £97.5m.

He returns to Chelsea after leaving for Everton back in 2014 and has signed a five-year deal with the Champions League winners.

Patrick Vieira will take charge of Palace for the first time competitively against Thomas Tuchel’s side, who look set to be without Lukaku.

David Ornstein suggested that Lukaku’s second Chelsea debut could come against Arsenal on August 22 but he is not available for the opener against Palace.

Palace fans react

The news of Lukaku’s absence against the Eagles caught the attention of these Palace fans on social media. This is what some had to say in reply…

“Thank you god”Credit: @CpfcDan_”Romelu Lukaku won’t be available for Chelsea against Palace this weekend, which is nice.”Credit: @HLTCO”Nice relief, still a tough job”Credit: @andy_lobo”Cheers”Credit: @DSBme2020″Good.”Credit: @joe_cpfc_01″He was scared of being shown up by the king”Credit: @Adam_Palace

In other news: ‘Wow’, ‘Oh boy’ – Lots of Palace fans go wild as ‘massive’ news is confirmed. 

علق محمد ناجي جدو لاعب الأهلي ومنتخب مصر السابق، على أداء لاعبي المارد الأحمر أمام الزمالك، أمس الأحد، في المباراة التي جمعتهما ضمن منافسات بطولة الدوري المصري الممتاز.

وحسم التعادل الإيجابي بهدفين لمثليهما نتيجة المباراة التي أقيمت على ملعب “الأهلي وي السلام” والمؤجلة من الجولة الـ20 من عمر المسابقة المحلية.

وقال جدو في تصريحات لبرنامج “الريمونتادا” على قناة “المحور”: “لا أتفق مع سامي قمصان المدير الفني المؤقت للنادي الأهلي، في تصريحاته بشأن عدم تقصير اللاعبين”.

وتابع: “مع احترامي الكامل لكن لاعبي الأهلي خذلوا سامي قمصان وكانوا مقصرين وهم السبب في عودة الزمالك للمباراة مرة أخرى”.

طالع أيضا.. مختار مختار: شيكابالا كان سيتألق أمام الأهلي حتى لو عمره 60 عامًا.. وعبد القادر تخاذل معه

وواصل ساخرًا: “جماهير الزمالك سعيدة بالتعادل أمام الأهلي، مشكلة الأبيض بالنسبة لي أنهم يفرحون بالتعادل”.

واختتم: “لاعبو الزمالك كانوا يحتفلون بعد المباراة، سمعت هذا الكلام من المراسلين الذين تواجدوا في الاستاد”. ملخص مباراة الاهلي والزمالك (2-2) الدوري المصري 

MatériaMais Notícias

Ainda sem vencer no Brasileirão, o técnico Marcelo Cabo, do Atlético-GO, admitiu que a pretensão do clube goiano neste ano será para se manter na elite do certame nacional. O treinador declarou que o time vai lutar com todas as forças para brigar pela zona da degola e crê que os três revés nas primeiras rodadas se deve ao fato da equipe ter enfrentado adversários fortes como Flamengo e Corinthians.

– A zona de rebaixamento preocupa desde o início da competição. Todo mundo sabe que o Atlético-GO entrou para brigar contra o rebaixamento. Tivemos uma tabela muito difícil neste começo. Mas vejo evolução nos últimos dois jogos. Contra o Flamengo e ontem (no último domingo) contra o Corinthians. Não nos acovardamos, batemos de frente, mas precisamos fazer os gols. Perdemos muitas chances – afirmou o treinador.

O atacante Walter também adotou o mesmo discurso do comandante e lamentou a derrota para o Timão. Ele se mostrou preocupado com o momento que o Dragão atravessa no torneio. O capitão saiu insatisfeito com o terceiro revés seguido no campeonato e reforçou que a entrega dos companheiros não tem sido suficiente para reverter a situação da equipe. O jogador acredita na recuperação do Atlético-GO já na próxima partida.

– É complicado. Nosso time luta, luta e não consegue sair com a vitória. Mas tem que levantar a cabeça. Temos uma semana para trabalhar forte e mudar. Ir lá na Bahia e tentar buscar os pontos. Campeonato Brasileiro está muito complicado. Você pega o Vitória. Tem duas derrotas em dois jogos em casa. O Atlético-MG também. Perdeu uma e empatou a outra. Campeonato Brasileiro é complicado. Tem que levantar a cabeça e buscar esses pontos fora de casa – desabafou o centroavante.

O Atlético-GO é o lanterna da Série A e volta a campo somente na outra segunda-feira, quando visita o Bahia na Fonte Nova, em Salvador.

Sidharth Monga rewinds the Plays of the day from the match between Pakistan and India in Karachi

Sidharth Monga in Karachi02-Jul-2008
Leave it, captain: Sarfraz Ahmed gets his hands first to the ball after Mahendra Singh Dhoni hit one high up in the air © AFP
No-show of the day
After Shoaib Malik missed Pakistan’s training session on Tuesday, vice-captain Misbah-ul-Haq was asked about captaincy at the pre-match press-conference. But in a short while, Salahuddin Ahmed, Pakistan’s chief selector, announced Malik would play, and named the XI about 20 hours before the match, a policy of clarity one usually doesn’t associate Pakistan with. As it turned out, Malik, who had suffered from severe dehydration and had been on a drip, had to pull out just before the start of the match. So much for certainty.Here today, gone tomorrow
Sohail Tanvir had had, despite a mauling of the other bowlers by Sri Lanka, an impressive last game. Starting off with a maiden over, he had taken 5 for 48. On Wednesday, though, Gautam Gambhir was in no mood to let him settle down, and he took ten runs off Tanvir’s first over. Similar treatment followed throughout: by the fourth over he had given away 43, and by the time he was done he had rid Wahab Riaz of the honour of having conceded the most runs in a match against India. Figures of 10-0-87-1 straight after a five-for, welcome back to earth Mr Tanvir.Somebody call, please
When Mahendra Dhoni mishit Sohail Tanvir in the 49th over, the ball went miles in the air towards square leg. Sarfraz Ahmed, the wicketkeeper, and Misbah, from midwicket, ran in to catch the ball, and as they ran towards each other it seemed the square-leg umpire Tony Hill would be crushed between the two. Eventually Hill survived, but Sarfraz and Misbah collided, not nastily, though. Dhoni was the only casualty as Sarfraz held on to the catch.He’s pumped
When he crashed Praveen Kumar to reach his fifth century – his third against India – and the second in less than a month, Younis Khan looked towards the dressing room and did a couple of push-ups. Possibly that was his tribute to David Dwyer, Pakistan’s trainer, who pushes him hard in training. It could, on an evil note, be a message to recent Pakistani centurions who have been cramping on the way to the landmark.Nearly man arrives
Misbah has brought Pakistan back from improbable situations a few times, and then in a sudden brain-freeze thrown the good work away too. In his first match as captain, in a match they needed to win to avoid elimination, Misbah made sure he was there at the end of a brilliant turnaround; he scored 70 not out in 62 balls. In fact he hit the winning boundary, and pointed straight to the dressing room with his bat. Here’s to the hitherto nearly man of Pakistan cricket.

كشف جناح الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي برشلونة، فيران توريس، سبب ترك مانشستر سيتي للانتقال إلى العملاق الكتالوني في شهر يناير الماضي، وتحدث عن صفقة روبرت ليفاندوفسكي المحتملة واهتمام ريال مدريد.

وانضم توريس إلى برشلونة في الميركاتو الشتوي مقابل 55 مليون يورو رغم وجوده مع مانشستر سيتي وفوزه بالبطولات عكس برشلونة الذي يعاني من وضع مالي صعب وعدم استقرار فني.

اقرأ أيضًا | سيزا: ثنائي الأهلي غير مؤهلين للعب في الفريق.. وفايلر يختلف عن موسيماني

وتحدث فيران عن الانتقال إلى برشلونة خلال حواره مع إذاعة “كادينا كوبيه” الإسبانية، وقال: “لقد كان موسمًا صعبًا، لأنني كنت أعاني من إصابة خطيرة إلى حد ما ووصلت إلى برشلونة بحماس كبير، تمكنا من تغيير بعض الأشياء والتأهل إلى دوري أبطال أوروبا وكأس السوبر الإسباني”.

وتابع: “لم ننهي الموسم بأفضل طريقة ممكنة، لكن كنت أعرف جيدًا من أين بدأت ومن أين انتهيت، برشلونة مر بفترة صعبة للغاية وكان علينا بذل قصارى جهدنا للتأهل إلى دوري أبطال أوروبا لأنه بخلاف ذلك سيكون موسمًا فاشلًا تمامًا، والآن نفكر في الموسم المقبل ومحاولة الفوز بالألقاب”.

وأضاف: “تحاول الإدارة الخروج من الأزمة التي يعاني منها برشلونة، ماتيو أليماني يقوم بعمل ممتاز ويسعى وراء تدعيم الفريق لمحاولة المنافسة على الألقاب، وأنا أركز فقط على كرة القدم لأنها كل ما أهتم به”.

وعن سوء الحظ في تسجيل الأهداف في الموسم الماضي مع برشلونة: “لم أشعر بالارتباك، كنت هادئًا للغاية، كجناح لا أعتبر نفسي مهاجمًا، على الرغم من أنني أستطيع اللعب في هذا المركز ولكن لست مطالبًا بالأهداف، أستطيع مساعدة الفريق وفخور بما قدمته لصالح برشلونة، لأنني لاعب طموح ولا أريد الفشل، أرغب في التعلم، ولا أقلق من أي شيء على الإطلاق”.

وتشافي: “كان وجوده امرًا حاسمًا بالنسبة لي لاختيار برشلونة، كان بإمكاني البقاء في مانشستر سيتي حتى الصيف والفوز بالألقاب ولكن تشافي حدثني عن مشروعه وفعلت كل ما في وسعي للانتقال إلى هنا”.

وإنريكي: “علاقتي جيدة جدًا معه، لقد استدعاني منذ اللحظة الأولى للانضمام إلى منتخب إسبانيا، لقد منحني كل الثقة من الدقيقة الأولى، علاقتنا احترافية بين مدرب ولاعب، فالحياة خارج المستطيل الأخضر شيء وداخلها شيء آخر، لقد اختارني لتمثيل هذا البلد وأنا هنا للمساعدة”.

وصفقة ليفاندوفسكي المحتملة: “الأرقام تتحدث عن نفسها، روبرت أحد أفضل المهاجمين في العقد الماضي”.

وأشاد توريس في النهاية بزميله، إريك جارسيا، وقال: “مدافع مميز، صديق رائع، كان من الجيد عودته إلى برشلونة، فهو من أفضل المدافعين في بناء الهجمات، لكن عالم كرة القدم مليء بالنقد ولكنه لا يكترث لذلك”.

Each of India’s batsmen played their part as they reached the final with a convincing six-wicket win over Sri Lanka

The Bulletin by Siddarth Ravindran03-Jul-2008
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Despite keeping in back-to-back games, and playing a long innings against Pakistan, Mahendra Singh Dhoni managed two catches, two run-outs and 67 runs against Sri Lanka © AFP
For the second day in succession, a target of 309 was overhauled without much trouble. Each of India’s batsmen played their part as India reached the final with a convincing six-wicket win over Sri Lanka. Muttiah Muralitharan was the only bowler to unsettle the batsmen but, with little support from the rest, India triumphed with 19 balls to spare.In contrast to their bowling effort, four of Sri Lanka’s top six made significant contributions to help them post an imposing total. However, having already qualified for the final, they rested the experienced Chaminda Vaas as well as their new spin sensation Ajantha Mendis, a decision that worked in India’s favour.Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag provided their now-familiar blazing start as India started their chase in earnest. It wasn’t an all-out assault from them. Runs were scored with a combination of well-timed boundaries and a host of sharp singles – even Sehwag’s six over midwicket was an effortless pick-up off his pads. In fact, the only shot in the first Powerplay, based on brute force, was an on-drive from Gambhir off Nuwan Kulasekara in the 10th over.With little in the pitch for the fast bowlers, the openers were only troubled when taking some ill-judged singles. Gambhir demonstrated his confidence level by repeatedly charging the fast bowlers while Sehwag nonchalantly pulled even length deliveries to midwicket. Though India had raced to 71 in the first 10 overs, Jayawardene decided to take the second Powerplay. The decision seemed to backfire as 21 runs came off the next nine balls but the breakthrough came when Sehwag tapped a slower ball down leg side to Dilhara Fernando at short fine leg.Suresh Raina started off with a confident pull to midwicket but was fortunate to see a lofted drive dropped by substitute Jehan Mubarak at cover. He and Gambhir took India to 135 before Gambhir was trapped lbw for 68, failing to pick a straighter one from Murali. Dhoni promoted himself ahead of Yuvraj Singh probably to ensure two left-handers didn’t have to deal with the wiles of Murali.Dhoni hardly showed any effects of having kept in back-to-back matches and playing a long innings yesterday as he and Raina scampered quick singles and twos. He started out cautiously before opening out after the 30th over – four fours (including a powerful, fine paddle-sweep off Murali) and a six came in the next four overs as the required-rate dipped to manageable levels.Six statsSanath Jayasuriya scored 20 in seven balls off Irfan Pathan but only 23 in 30 balls against the other bowlersMahendra Singh Dhoni made 48 runs on the off side and only 19 on the leg sideIndia were 55 for no loss after eight overs while Sri Lanka were 39 for 1 – an indication of how the Indian new-ball bowlers outperformed their Sri Lankan counterpartsChamara Kapugedera was tied down by left-arm-spinner Pragyan Ojha (19 off 28 balls) but scored freely off part-timer Virender Sehwag (16 off 8)Irfan Pathan leaked 80 runs in his 10 overs – the most he has conceded in an ODI so farIndia’s 310 for 4 was the 300th time a team has scored 300 or more in an ODI inningsRaina was run out soon after when going for a tight third and Dhoni was foxed by a quicker one from Murali to leave India with two new batsmen at the crease, and 56 runs in the arrears. Yuvraj and Rohit Sharma, though, settled India’s nerves with a composed partnership and set up a rematch in Sunday’s final.Unlike the Sri Lankan bowlers, India started off well as the new-ball bowlers turned in a much-improved performance, so much so that the first convincing boundary came only in the seventh over.Ishant Sharma was the pick of the bowlers, exploiting the variable bounce in the pitch and effectively using the slower ball to trouble the batsmen. In one of cricket’s typical quirks, amid an excellent spell, Ishant got his wickets off two of the worst deliveries he sent down – both short and down the leg side.His opening partner RP Singh was also economical and Sri Lanka were limited to 39 for 1 after eight. The introduction of Irfan Pathan, though, let them off the hook as 26 came off his two overs. Sanath Jayasuriya had just switched to fifth gear before gloving one to Dhoni off Ishant. With the pitch easing up, Jayawardene and Kapugedera collected the singles against the spinners while punishing the loose deliveries from the faster bowlers to put on 78. Kapugedera, in particular, was impressive with a series of classical off-driven boundaries early on.Risk-free batting took Jayawardene on to his half-century but he perished soon after as he stepped out and chipped Pragyan Ojha straight to long-off. Kapugedera was next to go, trapped lbw by Praveen, but not before he added 68 with Chamara Silva. Silva used the cut and sweep shots well against the spinners to make a well-deserved fifty and cameos from Kaushalya Weeraratne and Thilan Thushara pushed Sri Lanka beyond 300.India’s cause wasn’t helped by their fielding, which has been below par right through the Asia Cup – catches were misjudged, dives at the boundary rarely saved the fours and several run-out opportunities were spurned. Ultimately, though, their batting covered up the deficiencies in the other departments to take them to the final at the expense of Pakistan.