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Australia vs Canada World cup 2011 Highlights,Live Score Card

2011-03-15T15:13:00.000-07:00

Australia Vs Canada

ODI match at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru on Wed 16 Mar 2011 at 02:30 PM IST.

A nation that featured in the first ‘international' match way back in 1844 is yet to grow up in cricket. On that distant September day at Manhattan, Canada, then a British province, defeated the United States by 22 runs. Sadly, Canada is yet to move beyond its baby steps and a sterner test awaits it on Wednesday against Australia in a Group A match at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.(livesportsonweb.blogspot.com)

The teams (from):

Australia: Ricky Ponting (captain), Shane Watson, Brad Haddin, Michael Clarke, Michael Hussey, Callum Ferguson, David Hussey, Cameron White, Tim Paine, Steven Smith, John Hastings, Mitchell Johnson, Jason Krejza, Brett Lee and Shaun Tait.
Canada: Ashish Bagai (captain), Ruvindu Gunasekera, Hiral Patel, Zubin Surkari, Jimmy Hansra, Rizwan Cheema, John Davison, Balaji Rao, Harvir Baidwan, Khurram Chohan, Henry Osinde, Nitish Kumar, Tyson Gordon, Parth Desai and Karl Whatham.
Umpires: Billy Bowden and Amiesh Saheba; Third umpire: Richard Kettleborough; Match referee: Andy Pycroft.

Ireland vs South Africa Live Streaming,Score,Highlights Videos ICC WC 2011

2011-03-14T17:13:00.000-07:00

South Africa Vs Ireland

ICC WC 2011 Match 34 - ODI match at Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Tue 15 Mar 2011 at 02:30 PM IST.

Match begins at 14:30 local (09:00 GMT)

The teams (from): South Africa: Graeme Smith (captain), Hashim Amla, Johan Botha, A.B. de Villiers, Francois du Plessis, J.P. Duminy, Colin Ingram, Jacques Kallis, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Dale Steyn, Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Morne van Wyk.

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Ireland: Willam Porterfield (captian), Alex Cusack, George Dockrell, Trent Johnston, Nigel Jones, Ed Joyce, John Mooney, Kevin O'Brien, Niall O'Brien, Boyd Rankin, Paul Stirling, Albert van der Merwe, Andrew White, Gary Wilson and Andre Botha.

Umpires: Kumar Dharmasena and Billy Doctrove. Third umpire: Simon Taufel. Match Referee: Ranjan Madugalle.

Pakistan Vs Zimbabwe Live Scorecard,World Cup 2011 Highlights Videos

2011-03-13T15:45:00.000-07:00

Pakistan Vs Zimbabwe

WC 2011 ODI match at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Kandy on Mon 14 Mar 2011 starts at 02:30 PM IST.

Pakistan Team

Shahid Afridi, Misbah-ul-Haq, Abdul Razzaq, Abdur Rehman, Ahmed Shehzad, Asad Shafiq, Junaid Khan, Kamran Akmal, Mohammad Hafeez, Saeed Ajmal, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Akmal, Umar Gul, Wahab Riaz, Younis Khan

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Zimbabwe Team

E Chigumbura, RW Chakabva, CK Coventry, AG Cremer, T Duffin, CR Ervine, GA Lamb, SW Masakadza, CB Mpofu, T Panyangara, RW Price, V Sibanda, T Taibu, BRM Taylor, P Utseya

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Bangladesh vs Netherlands Live Scorecard,Highlights Videos WC 2011

2011-03-13T15:34:00.000-07:00

Confident Bangladesh eyes Dutch scalp

The teams (from):

Bangladesh: Shakib Al Hasan (capt.), Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Junaid Siddique, Shahriar Nafees, Raqibul Hasan, Mohammad Ashraful, Mushfiqur Rahim, Naeem Islam, Mohammad Mahmudullah, Abdur Razzak, Rubel Hossain, Shafiul Islam, Nazmul Hossain, Suhrawadi Shuvo.

Live ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 Events Follow us livesportsonweb.blogspot.com

The Netherlands: Peter Borren (capt.), Adeel Raja, Wesley Barresi, Mudassar Bukhari, Atse Buurman, Tom Cooper, Tom de Grooth, Alexei Kervezee, Bradley Kruger, Bernard Loots, Pieter Seelaar, Eric Szwarczynski, Ryan ten Doeschate, Berend Westdijk, Bas Zuiderent.

Umpires: Aleem Dar (Pak) and and Rod Tucker (Aus). TV umpire: Daryl Harper (Aus). Match referee: Jeff Crowe (Nzl).

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India vs South Africa Live Streaming,Score World Cup 2011 Videos

2011-03-11T17:51:00.000-08:00

Head 2 Head

INDIA		SOUTH AFRICA
2	ICC Ranking	4
65	Played	65
24	Won	39
39	Lost	24
0	Tied	0
2	No Results	2
13	Home Wins	19
5	Away Wins	9
India won by 3 wickets	Highest Total chased	South Africa won by 8 wickets
on Mar 08 2000		on Nov 13 1991
Target Chased: 301		Target Chased: 287
Sachin Tendulkar (1890 Runs)	Most Prolific Batsman	Jacques Kallis (1446 Runs)
Sachin Tendulkar (200 Runs)	Highest Individual Score	Graeme Smith (134 Runs)
5/6 by Sunil Joshi	Best Bowling Analysis	5/29 by Allan Donald
on Sep 25 1999		on Nov 09 1991
Anil Kumble (46 Wickets)	Most Prolific Bowler	Shaun Pollock (48 Wickets)

Sahara Pune Warriors Team 2011 players list,captain IPL 4 Jersey

2011-03-08T16:50:00.000-08:00

India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh was on Tuesday named captain of the Pune Warriors squad for the fourth season of the Indian Premier League starting April 8.

The new entrant in the hugely successful league also announced its 30-member squad that includes, among others, Graeme Smith, Nathan McCullum, Wayne Parnell, Tim Paine, Jesse Ryder and Angelo Mathews.

Besides Yuvraj, Ashish Nehra, Robin Uthappa and Murali Karthik are the other capped players from India.

Callum Ferguson, Mitchelle Marsh, Jerome Taylor and Alfonso Thomas are also part of the squad.

“Sahara’s Pune Warriors squad has been constituted with an intention to strike a balance between experience, exuberance, international expertise and promising talent of present and future

India vs Netherland Live Cricket Score,Highlights Videos WC 2011 Cricket

2011-03-08T16:39:00.000-08:00

India Vs Netherlands ODI match at Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi on Wed 09 Mar at 02:30 PM IST.

The teams (from):

India: M.S. Dhoni (captain), V. Sehwag, S. Tendulkar. G. Gambhir, V. Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Yusuf Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, R. Ashwin, Zaheer Khan, A. Nehra, M. Patel, P. Chawla, S. Raina, S. Sreesanth.

The Netherlands: P. Borren (captain), W. Barresi, M. Bukhari, ten Doeschate, A. Buurman, T. Cooper, Tom de Grooth, A. Kervezee, B. Kruger, B. Loots, A. Raja, P. Seelaar, E. Swarczynski, B. Westduk, B. Zuiderent.

Match starts at 2.30 p.m.

India vs Srilanka Live Streaming 2010 Watch Online |Tri Series 2010 Final Live Cricket

2010-08-27T18:39:00.000-07:00

India vs Srilanka Live Streaming 2010 Watch Online |Tri Series 2010 Final Live Cricket

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Hall of fame game Live Streaming 2010

2010-08-07T18:30:00.000-07:00

Hall of fame game Live Streaming 2010 | NFL Teams Canton Tickets Online Today

NFI Hall of fame 2010 Teams

Emmitt Smith

Running back

Dallas Cowboys: 1990-2002
Arizona Cardinals: 2003-2004

• NFL record for career rushing yards (18,355)
• NFL record for career rushing touchdowns (164)
• NFL record for career games with 100+ yards rushing (78)
• 1993 NFL MVP
• 1990 Offensive Rookie of the Year
• Eight-time NFL Pro Bowl selection
• Four-time NFL first-team All-Pro selection
• Named to NFL's 1990's All-Decade team
• Three-time Super Bowl champion

Jerry Rice

Wide receiver

San Francisco 49ers: 1985-2000
Oakland Raiders: 2001-2004
Seattle Seahawks:2004

• Holds NFL records for career receptions (1,549), receiving yards (22,895) and receiving touchdowns (197)
• Super Bowl XXIII MVP • 13-time NFL Pro Bowl selection
• 11-time NFL first-team All-Pro selection
• Named NFL Offensive Player of the Year in 1987 and 1993
• Named to NFL's 1980's and 1990's All-Decade teams
• Three-time Super Bowl champion
• 1996 Pro Bowl MVP

Dick LeBeau

Cornerback

Detroit Lions: 1959-1972

• Pro Bowl selection in 1964, 1965 and 1966
• Finished career with 62 interceptions (seventh all-time)
• 171 consecutive games started (record for cornerback

Floyd Little

Running back

Denver Broncos: 1967-1975

• Sixth overall pick in 1967 NFL-AFL Draft
• AFL All-Star in 1968 and 1969
• NFL Pro-Bowl selection in 1970, 1971 and 1973
• Finished career with 6,323 rushing yards

John Randle

Defensive tackle

Minnesota Vikings: 1990-2000
Seattle Seahawks: 2001-2003

• Seven-time NFL Pro-Bowl selection
• Six-time first-team All-Pro selection
• Named to NFL's 1990's All-Decade team
• Holds career record for most sacks by a defensive tackle (137.5)

Rickey Jackson

Defensive tackle

Minnesota Vikings: 1990-2000
Seattle Seahawks: 2001-2003

• Six-time NFL Pro-Bowl selection
• Four-time first-team All-Pro selection
• Super Bowl XXIX champion
• Third-most career sacks (128)

Russ Grimm

Offensive guard

Washington Redskins: 1981-1991

• Named to NFL Pro Bowl from 1983-86
• First-team All-Pro selection from 1983-85
• Three-time Super Bowl champion
• Member of famous "Hogs" Redskins offensive line

NFI Hall of fame game 2010 tickets

NFI Hall of fame game 2010 date

Hall of fame game 2010 schedule

NFI Hall of fame 2010 inductees

NFI Hall of fame 2010 Induction Ceremony

Hall of fame game Videos Photos

Hall of fame game Watch Online

Commonwealth Games 2010 Medals | Hopes windfall for Indians

2010-08-07T03:19:00.000-07:00

Kalmadi Unveils CWG Medals,hopes windfall for Indians

New Delhi: Organising Committee Chairman Suresh Kalmadi on Friday unveiled the victory medallions for the Commonwealth Games and hoped that Indian athletes would lay their hands on most of them during the October 3-14 multi-sporting event here.

"I hope that majority of these wonderful medals would be bagged by the Indian athletes during the Games. I think our athletes may get up to 70 medals this year," Kalmadi said after unveiling the medals.

"Prime Minister has given ` 700 crore for training of athletes and I am very confident that will reflect in India's medal tally," said Kalmadi.

The 1408 medals - 272 gold, as many silver and 282 bronze - at a cost of ` 81,08,566 have been made by the government of India mint in Kolkata and the design has been approved by the Commonwealth Games Federation.

The mint was entrusted with the design, development and manufacture of the medals, for which initially four designs were recommended.

The front of the medal has the Commonwealth Games 2010 Delhi logo and the dates, while the reverse side bears emblem of the CGF. The lanyard of the medals carry all the six Games colours - pink, purple, green, red, yellow and blue - blending into each other.

The cost of production of each gold medal was ` 5,539, while every silver and bronze medal would be procured for ` 4,818 and ` 4,529 respectively, said OC Secretary General Lalit Bhanot, who was also present.

Every medal is six millimeter thick with a diameter of 63.5 millimeter. The signature element's starting fin is raised by one millimeter and it rises up to three millimeter on the last fin. The embossed logo and date is raised by a millimeter.

Manufacture of the medals was in full swing.

Kalmadi informed that the first hearing on the suspension of M Jaychandran, who was the OC Joint Director General (Accounts and Finance) at the time Queen's Baton Relay in October last year, was held today at OC headquarters here.

"Yes, the first hearing of Mr Jaychandran took place today. But the result would not be known so soon, the process would take some time," said Kalmadi, also the President of the Indian Olympic Association.

Jaychandran was among the three tainted high-ranked officers suspended by the OC's all-powerful Executive Board yesterday following allegations of financial irregularities during the QBR in London.

Meanwhile, Bhanot said that the OC has already taken over 11 venues and hoped most of the stadiums would be under their control by the weekend.

"So far we have taken over 11 stadiums under some terms and conditions. I hope we would get most of the stadiums by the weekend," Bhanot said.

Kalmadi reiterated that all the venues of the Games would be world-class.

"I am sure that all the venues would be in good condition. If there is any problem in any section of the venues, we will send a written notice to those who are responsible for the construction," said Kalmadi.

"I assure you all that all the clearances will be taken and the venues would be tip-top during the Games," he added.

Pennetta Beat Stosur to Reach San Diego Semi Finals

2010-08-07T03:13:00.000-07:00

Pennetta beats Stosur to reach San Diego semi-finals

San Diego, California: French Open runner-up Samantha Stosur of Australia was ousted from the 700,000-dollar WTA San Diego Open on Friday, losing a quarter-final 6-4, 6-3 to Italian fifth seed Flavia Pennetta.
Second seed Stosur joined Serbian top seed Jelena Jankovic and Russian third seed Vera Zvonareva on the scrapheap at the 700,000-dollar hardcourt tournament, a tuneup for the US Open that begins on August 30.

Pennetta fired seven aces and blasted 19 winners past Stosur to book a semi-final berth against the winner of a later match between Russia's Svetlana Kuznetsova and US teen Coco Vandeweghe.

The other quarter-finals pit Russian Alisa Kleybanova against Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova and Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska against Israel's Shahar Peer.

Tiger Woods Can't Find Range off the Tee

2010-08-07T03:09:00.000-07:00

Woods can't find range off the tee

Akron, Ohio: Things got so bad for Tiger Woods off the tee in the second round of the Bridgestone Invitational that he had to supply his own soundtrack.

"Get in the hole!" he sneered under his breath at an errant iron shot into the par-3 seventh hole, repeating the cliched phrase so often yelled by the loudest of his fans on Friday.

Woods followed up his worst round ever at Firestone Country Club, a 4-over 74 on Thursday, by matching his second-worst round, a 72. When he left the course, the seven-time winner of the Bridgestone stood 13 shots off the lead - but just two shots out of last place in the 81-player field.

In his 261 US PGA Tour starts, he has played the first 36 holes worse in only four tournaments.

It wasn't just bad scores, however. The biggest problem is that Woods has almost no idea where his ball is going off the tee.

He hit only three of 14 fairways in the second round. A closer look shows he hit seven tee shots into the right rough - sometimes far, far to the right - and three other times he pounded the ball into the high grass on the left.

In other words, he was all over the course, visiting spots that the game's best seldom see.

He bolted after his round, walking away from reporters after signing his scorecard and then hustling to his waiting luxury car. But on Wednesday, he was asked about his driving. "Of late I've been driving the ball so much better," he said.

He did not back that up on the course. His play speaks volumes about where he is just a week before the final major of the year, the US PGA Championship at Whistling Straits.

Woods came into the Bridgestone ranked ninth in the US Ryder standings, with the top eight assured of spots on the team. He repeatedly said during a pretournament interview that he intended to play his way on, instead of forcing American captain Corey Pavin to select him with one of his discretionary picks.

But Woods is not showing that his game is in shape with just 10 days remaining until those eight automatic qualifiers for the US side are finalized.

Woods hit his first drive of the day (on the 10th hole) far to the right and ended up bogeying. On the next tee, he slashed the ball far to the left, scattering the gallery, but ended up making a par.

After walking off the second tee, he turned back to playing partner Lee Westwood, who was also spraying the ball off the tee, and said, "So how are we doing so far?" Both laughed.

Woods didn't hit a drive into the fairway until his eighth hole, about the same time a fan yelled, "Welcome back, Tiger, to your home away from home." On the next hole, he drove directly behind a large fir tree. He whacked a 3 iron off the low-hanging branches, the ball going across the fairway and hitting another tree there. He then chipped 12 feet past the hole and missed the par putt.

It was like that all day long, with Woods finding trouble repeatedly.

Woods, ranked No. 1 in the world for the past 269 weeks, was paired for the first two days with Westwood, who is No. 3. Both of them hacked up the course in the second round, with Westwood shooting a 76 to stand at 147, a shot behind Woods.

"Neither of us played very well, did we?" said Westwood, who is battling an injured right calf that caused him to withdraw from the remainder of the Bridgestone and next week's US PGA. "We're all human. We all have bad days."

The two did talk to each other or their caddies from time to time. There was an occasional smile.

"What can you do? Cry?" Westwood said with a laugh. "You try and pass the time as fast as possible."

Tyson Gay beats Usain Bolt in Stockholm

2010-08-07T03:03:00.000-07:00

Tyson Gay beats Usain Bolt in Stockholm

Stockholm: Tyson Gay beat Usain Bolt in the 100 meters at the DN Galan meet in 9.84 seconds at the same stadium where Bolt last lost a race two years ago.

The American always looked in complete control against world record-holder Bolt, who was second in 9.97 on Friday.

A sellout crowd in the 1912 Olympic Stadium was silent before the race between the two fastest men of all time. And the tension increased among the 20,000 spectators even further after two false starts.

The pair raced side by side in lanes four and five and Gay looked comfortable throughout, slowly pulling away while the Jamaican was straining to keep up in the highly anticipated race.

"I'm really happy with the win, even though Usain Bolt isn't in the best shape," Gay said. "It was very important to beat someone like that for the fans and the sport.

"My body worked well today, I was excited and motivated." Bolt has ran faster this year, timing 9.82 a month ago in Lausanne, Switzerland.

"I think (today) showed that I wasn't in the best of shape," Bolt said. "I'm not unbeatable. I can be beaten and it showed today."

"This is my easy season. If you don't beat me this season it's not going to happen next season because next year is a championship year."

The sprinters both looked like they left plenty in reserve when they cruised through the heats, and so it proved for Gay when it came to the final.

Richard Thompson of Trinidad finished third in 10.10.

Asafa Powell defeated Bolt at the same meet two years ago, but pulled out of this year's race on Wednesday with a back injury, denying fans the chance to see the first race between the world's three fastest men since Bolt stormed to a new world record of 9.58 last August at the world championships in Berlin.

In other events, Darya Klishna of Russia beat a top-class field in the women's long jump with 6.78 meters. Brittney Reese of the United States was second with 6.75, and European silver medallist Naide Gomes of Portugal third with 6.72. European champion Ineta Radevica of Latvia was down in fifth, with 6.70.

"I missed Barcelona so this was something special for me," said Klishna. "I always like to jump with the best possible field. It gives me more motivation."

Blanka Vlasic of Croatia won an exciting high jump competition with 2.02. American Chaunte Howard-Lowe was second with 2.00 and home-crowd favorite Emma Green of Sweden was third with 1.94.

American Bershawn Jackson set a new stadium record of 47.65 in the 400 hurdles. Javier Culson of Puerto Rico was a distant second in 48.50 and Angelo Taylor of the U.S. third in 49.57.

A throw of 84.41 meters by Finland's Tero Pitkamaki inflicted a rare javelin defeat on world, Olympic and European champion Andreas Thorkildsen of Norway, who was second with 83.63. Mattias De Zordo of Germany came third with 82.05.

Allyson Felix won the women's 200 in 22.41 in an American sweep of the podium; Shalonda Solomon was second in 22.51, and Bianca Knight third with 22.59.

Australian Sally Pearson won the women's 100 hurdles in 12.57, beating Canada's Priscilla Lopes-Schliep in 12.59 and Lolo Jones of the United States, who was third, clocking 12.70.

Sachin Tendulkar Interview 2010 After Sri Lanka Test Match

2010-07-30T21:12:00.000-07:00

People should stop talking about my age now: Tendulkar

Colombo: With a fifth Test double hundred under his belt at 37, Indian batting icon Sachin Tendulkar said he has proved that age has got nothing to do with performance and people should just stop linking the two in his case. Tendulkar scored a match-saving 203-run knock as India and Sri Lanka settled for a high-scoring draw in the second Test.

"I think as long as you are mentally strong and prepared to go through the grind, age does not really matter. I think everyone should just stop talking about the age factor. If I can score a double hundred at 37, I don't think age really matters," he said after being named the most stylish player of the match at the post-match presentation.

The veteran right-hander has 48 Test hundreds against his name and though his knock played a crucial role in saving the match for India, he chose to praise the contributions of debutant Suresh Raina (120) and opener Virender Sehwag (99).

"Suresh built an important partnership with me and all credit to him. And the start that Sehwag gave us was also crucial," he said.

India are 0-1 down in the series after losing the series-opener and Tendulkar said the team is desperate to latch on to the top spot in the ICC Test rankings which the visitors stand to lose if they go down 0-2.

"Being number one is important for us. We got here through a process and we hope to continue this process in the next match and win it," he said.

Courtesy:- yahoonews

Sachin Tendulkar 200 Runs | Double Century in Test Cricket

2010-07-29T21:48:00.000-07:00

Sachin Tendulkar slams 48th Test century

Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar scored his 48th Test hundred to lead India’s fightback on the third day of the second Test against Sri Lanka at Colombo on Wednesday.

The batting maestro reached his ton in 167 balls which was studded with 13 boundaries and a six.

India were vulnerably placed on 243/4 at tea on day three needing 200 runs to avoid follow on, but it reached 382/4 at stumps. India just need 61 runs to avoid follow on with six wickets in hand.

Tendulkar, who holds the record of scoring highest number of centuries, played brilliant cricket with Suresh Raina to dominate the day.

Sachin also equalled the former Australian captain Steve Waugh's Test record to have played the most number of matches (168).

Tendulkar shared an unbroken 141-run partnership for the fifth wicket with debutant Suresh Raina.

Tendulkar was unbeaten on 108 at stumps while Raina, who made a half-century in his maiden Test innings, was not out on 66 off 133 balls, including eight boundaries.

Earlier, VVS Laxman departed after a slow partnership with Sachin Tendulkar to leave India tottering at 243 for four at tea.

Tendulkar and Laxman almost batted through the second session but Ajantha Mendis broke the slow 68-run stand by trapping the stylish Hyderabadi 10 minutes before tea break.

Tendulkar, who was dropped on 29 by Prasanna Jayawardene off Dilhara Fernando, was batting on 39 and debutant Suresh Raina was yet to open his account.

Laxman (29) and Tendulkar dug in went about their business slowly and raised a stand of 68-run to deny the Lankan bowlers any success for almost two hours.

The mid-session produced 70 runs after the troubled opening session, which saw India being jolted by three quick blows including that of explosive Virender Sehwag.

Tendukar's runs came off 95 balls while Laxman consumed 98 balls for his 29-run knock.

The duo slowed down the proceedings by playing a lot of dot balls and relied on ones and twos to keep the scoreboard moving.

Laxman was lucky as his edges, off spinner Suraj Randiv and paceman Dammika Prasad, fell short of fielders.

Laxman finally got out as he failed to read a Mendis googly and was caught in front of the wicket.

X Games Schedule 16 Schedule 2010 Los Angeles‎

2010-07-29T21:37:00.000-07:00

ESPN celebrates its 16th annual action sports event, July 29-Aug

Check your local ESPN TV time: X Games 16 will be held over downtown L.A. ESPN celebrates its 16th annual action sports event, July 29-Aug. 1, entirely downtown between the STAPLES Center, Nokia Theatre, the Los Angeles Coliseum and L.A. Live, Hanson Motorsports has been invited to compete in rally car racing.

Boys’ x-games bmx motobike: bikes, scooters & skates ESPN X Games 16 program tickets now on sale. There are all kinds of ways to catch what’s going on for x games 16 here’s where you’ll be able to catch news and coverage live on ESPN

It is also where you can catch x games 16 coverage the summer x games will be in full swing today. There are the results of x games Asia and to preview x games 16 happening July 29 – august 1, 2010.

Events at L.A. Coliseum: Moto X Freestyle, Super X (M, W and Adaptive), BMX and Skateboard Big Air, Skateboard Big Air Rail Jam, Rally Car Racing. Get your tickets for X Games 16 are available at all Ticketmaster locations. X Games Schedule 16 Schedule 2010 Los Angeles

AC Milan Ronaldinho,Galaxy would take on a lot with high-maintenance Ronaldinho

2010-07-22T18:10:00.001-07:00

AC Milan star Ronaldinho gestures to his fans as he arrives at the team's first training session of the season in Carnago, Italy on Tuesday.

Team is reportedly pursuing the gifted and entertaining star even though AC Milan president says he is staying put. L.A.'s motivation might be marketing, but it would be tricky.

If you wouldn't buy a used car from Silvio Berlusconi, the AC Milan president who doubles as Italy's prime minister, why would you buy a used soccer player from the man?

Sure, the New York Red Bulls have been suckered into splashing out a bundle of money for French forward Thierry Henry and soon will do the same for Mexico defender Rafael Marquez, but New Yorkers have been taken to the cleaners by a whole succession of past-their-prime soccer players — Roberto Donadoni, Lothar Matthaeus, Claudio Reyna, the list is endless.

"He is not over the hill," Red Bulls Coach Hans Backe said defensively, preempting the obvious question about Henry.

"Everybody knows that I love this city," said Henry, presumably not referring to the team's Harrison, N.J., digs.

And sure, the Chicago Fire has been fooled into believing that Mexican never-has-been Nery Castillo could be the second coming of Cuauhtemoc Blanco, which he is not, but at least the Fire has a get-out-of-jail card. It obtained Castillo, 26, on loan from Ukraine's Shakhtar Donetsk and can send him back where he came from if need be.

The Galaxy, meanwhile, is said to be dangling $24 million in front of AC Milan and Brazilian star Ronaldinho, in its latest move to achieve, well, no one is really clear just what Galaxy owner AEG has in mind. Although a Ronaldinho-for-Landon-Donovan swap could be the game plan.

The Galaxy already has a competitive team, with the best record in Major League Soccer. It already has solid attendance. It already has "name" players in Donovan and David Beckham. It plays in MLS, so even signing 11 Ronaldinhos would not lift it to European Champions League level. MLS is where it is at and where it will stay.

So what exactly is AEG after?

A few thousand more seats filled with warm bodies at the Home Depot Center in Carson and around the league? Possibly. A trip to the MLS Cup final? Been there, done that. Higher ticket prices and a bunch more shirts sold all across the land? Plausible and profitable, but can AEG manage the trick?

Berlusconi has stated flatly that no matter what offer comes his way from the Galaxy, or from another would-be suitor, the Flamengo club in Brazil, Ronaldinho is staying put.

"Ronaldinho is not transferable and we're all in agreement that he will remain at Milan as long as he continues to play," Berlusconi said Tuesday. "I have not spoken to him recently, but it is certain that he will be renewing his contract. . . . I consider him the best player of all time."

All of which is a flowery and convoluted way of saying: "If the offer is more generous and if new AC Milan Coach Massimiliano Allegri opts not to give Ronaldinho much playing time, we can talk."

The Brazilian is gifted, of that there is no doubt. He is an entertainer, capable of lighting up a stadium. He is only 30, unlike Henry, who turns 33 next month, so there are still quite a few miles left on the tires, even if Brazil did not take him to the World Cup this year.

But Ronaldinho is also high maintenance. As much as he enjoys entertaining on the field, he enjoys even more being entertained off the field. Suffice to say the word "party' figures prominently in his vocabulary. It got him into trouble when he played at FC Barcelona and it could give Galaxy Coach Bruce Arena fits.

Ronaldinho's brother and agent, Roberto de Assis, is playing it coy. Ronaldinho is under contract with AC Milan through 2011 and there is a new offer on the table through 2013, so De Assis has time to play one side against another.

The agent told Italy's Gazzetta dello Sport on Sunday that Beckham wants Ronaldinho in Los Angeles. "Should an agreement not be reached for a renewal at Milan, this could be an option for next summer," De Assis said.

Then, almost in the same breath, De Assis admitted that Ronaldinho would like to end his career with Flamengo. "This is his dream," he said.

The Galaxy has been staying silent on all this, but several scenarios are possible.

The most likely one is that Donovan returns to Europe after this MLS season, despite Commissioner Don Garber's insistence that "it is my hope and my expectation that we have him for the rest of his career." That's Garber playing the Berlusconi role.

Donovan, 28, could rejoin English Premier League team Everton, whose captain, Phil Neville, said last week: "I know for a fact that he wants to come back here." Or Donovan could be snapped up by cash-rich Manchester City, whose coach, Roberto Mancini, said Wednesday that a pricey move for Donovan "could be possible."

Would Galaxy fans trade Donovan for Ronaldinho, straight up? It seems to be the move AEG is trying to pull off. Don't bet against it happening, no matter what Berlusconi and Garber say.

Argentina vs Nigeria

2010-06-26T19:25:00.000-07:00

Argentina vs Nigeria on FIFA 2010

Match 3 - Group B - 12 June
1:0
* Gabriel HEINZE (6')ARG:NGA - Gabriel HEINZE

Heinze header downs Nigeria

Gabriel Heinze of Argentina celebrates with teammates Lionel Messi (L) and Martin Demichelis

Argentina joined Saturday's earlier winners Korea Republic on three points in Group B with a 1-0 victory over Nigeria at Johannesburg's packed Ellis Park. Gabriel Heinze scored the game's only goal with a diving header from a corner in just the sixth minute, although the two-time FIFA World Cup™ winners would have added more if not for the heroics of Nigeria goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama and their own wasteful finishing.

As early as the fourth minute, FIFA World Player of the Year Lionel Messi burst through the Super Eagles' defence and set up Gonzalo Higuain in front of goal, but the Real Madrid man blazed wide of the target. Two minutes later Messi tested Enyeama from 20 yards out, but the Israel-based goalkeeper saved well with a dive to his right. However, from the resulting corner, Heinze ran free of his marker and made no mistake with his header from the penalty spot. The early goal sent coach Diego Maradona into raptures on the sideline, and surely he must have thought there was more to come.

Messi was a constant thorn in the side of the Nigeria defence, and in the 18th minute he cut inside and curled a left-footed shot towards goal from 25 yards out. But Enyeama was up to the task with a fine save at his post. Three minutes later, the Albiceleste threatened again but Higuain blasted his point-blank shot right into the goalkeeper. Enyeama was the Nigerian hero another time shortly after, denying Messi with his fingertips when it seemed like his curling shot would sneak in.

The introduction of Obafemi Martins early in the second period sparked Nigeria into life. The Wolfsburg forward showed his pace on the hour to latch onto a through-ball and play in Sani Kaita but he blasted over from 25 yards out. As the match opened up, Argentina found more room in the attacking third. In the 65th minute, they counter-attacked quickly to find themselves four-on-two and bearing down on the Nigeria defence. Carlos Tevez slid the ball dangerously into the middle, Angel Di Maria let the ball carry on to Messi, but the Barcelona superstar hit his shot agonisingly wide. Messi then set up Higuain for another opening, but Enyeama was again the victor in that head-to-head duel.

In the 71st minute, Nigeria left-back Taye Taiwo blasted a shot just wide of the post from the edge of the area, injuring himself in the process. His replacement, Kalu Uche, had the best chance of the night for the Super Eagles in the 83rd minute, but he failed to keep down an effort from 12 yards out despite being left unmarked. Nigeria next face Greece on 17 June in Manguang/Bloemfontein, when Argentina and Korea Republic will battle it out for top spot in the group at Johannesburg’s Soccer City.

France vs South Africa

2010-06-26T19:17:00.000-07:00

France vs South Africa on FIFA 2010
Match 34 - Group A - 22 June
1:2

    * Florent MALOUDA (70')FRA:RSA - Florent MALOUDA
    * Bongani KHUMALO (20')FRA:RSA - Bongani KHUMALO
    * Katlego MPHELA (37')FRA:RSA - Katlego MPHELA

Bafana beat Bleus, both bow out

Bongani Khumalo (#20) of South Africa celebrates scoring the opening goal with team mates

South Africa beat France 2-1 for only their second FIFA World Cup™ victory, but both teams ultimately emerged losers in Bloemfontein. Carlos Alberto Parreira's team became the first host nation to fail to qualify for the tournament's second round while a miserable campaign from the French came to a predictable conclusion as they also bowed out of South Africa 2010.

The African side's story was ultimately one of disappointment as they exited their own tournament on goal difference with Mexico taking the second qualifying place in Group A behind Uruguay. For France there was further ignominy as a second defeat in three games provided a fitting epitaph to the sense of disharmony which had infected Raymond Domenech's squad virtually since the opening game.

The beleaguered coach, who now leaves his post, made six changes to the team that had gone down to Mexico in their previous game – with captain Patrice Evra one of those dropped. However, initially France promised to lift the gloom for their followers with some attacking thrusts. One should have seen Andre-Pierre Gignac fire them into an early lead but he could only direct his attempt straight at Moneeb Josephs who was deputising in the South African goal for the suspended Itumeleng Khune. Djibril Cisse then flicked on Abou Diaby's floated pass but again the goalkeeper was behind it all the way.

Bafana Bafana were not short of voluble support and the stadium erupted with joy in the 20th minute when they took the lead. It followed a right-sided corner which precipitated a mistake by Hugo Lloris who was unable to put a glove on the ball, allowing Bongani Khumalo to profit from his towering leap at the far post and a downward header gave the host nation the lead.

Their hopes raised, South Africa kept pouring forward in search of further goals which would be crucial if it came down to goal difference. At the other end of the field came a decision that would help their cause as Yoann Gourcuff duelled for an aerial ball with MacBeth Sibaya and was shown the red card as the home midfielder lay on the ground requiring treatment.

Parreira's side sensed their chance as 12 minutes later Katlego Mphela bundled the ball in at the far post after Tsepo Masilela's ball across had caught the French defence in confusion. News that Uruguay had taken the lead against Mexico only added to the sense of euphoria around the stadium and not even a chance for France, which William Gallas failed to seize as a free-kick found him unmarked in the area, could dampen it down.

Mphela drew a fingertipped save from Lloris and it was he who led the charge for second-half goals, striking the crossbar, demanding another fine stop from the keeper, and then burrowing his way through only to find the side-netting. In the final reckoning those misses were to prove crucial. In the 70th minute France took a lot of sting out of South Africa's attacks as Florent Malouda, who had just appeared off the substitute's bench, was on hand to roll the ball home after Franck Ribery had unselfishly squared the ball into his path.

Uruguay vs Mexico

2010-06-26T19:08:00.000-07:00

Uruguay vs Mexico on FIFA 2010
Match 33 - Group A - 22 June
1:0
* Luis SUAREZ (43')MEX:URU - Luis SUAREZ

Uruguay edge Mexico, both advance

Uruguay finished top of Group A thanks to a hard-fought 1-0 win over Mexico at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg, but the defeat was ultimately sufficient for El Tri to join their conquerors in the Round of 16.

Joint-leaders Uruguay and Mexico went into their final group match safe in the knowledge that a draw would be enough for both of them to reach the knockout phase. But it was a must-win for the Mexicans if they were to avoid a likely encounter with the formidable Argentinians in the last 16. Both coaches opted for a 4-3-3 formation, with the only one notable change being veteran Mexico forward Cuauhtemoc Blanco starting for the first time in place of the injured Carlos Vela.

The stadium was filled with a large contingent of El Tri supporters hours before the kick-off, and the Mexicans soon began to find their rhythm with the the waves of 'ole' coming from the stands. However, it was the Uruguayans who had the first attack of note. Luis Suarez missed a glorious chance to put his side ahead on five minutes, when the Ajax marksman sent his shot just wide of the left post after collecting a loose ball from a defensive mistake from Hector Moreno.

Mexico fought back midway through the first half, with Andres Guardado hitting the crossbar with an audacious left-foot drive from 30 yards. Guardado and Giovani dos Santos then managed to find space on the left, but were unable to create clear-cut chances to break down one of the meanest defences in the competition. With half-time approaching, Carlos Salcido tried his luck from distance but the ball sailed well over the bar.

Just as the first half seemed to be ending goalless, La Celeste seized their opportunity on 43 minutes. Edinson Cavani broke down the right channel to send a looping cross to the far post, where Suarez headed home from close range to make it 1-0.

With South Africa leading France 2-0 at the interval in Bloemfontein, Mexico could not afford to concede more goals. But the Uruguayans surged forward right after the break, with Diego Lugano’s point-blank header off a Diego Forlan free-kick forcing a brilliant save from Oscar Perez. At the opposite end, substitute Pablo Barrera sent an inviting cross from the right, only for Francisco Rodriguez to send a glancing header just wide of Fernando Muslera’s goal.

Although Mexico put the pressure on by bringing Javier Hernandez on for Blanco after the hour mark, Uruguay's defence looked even more impenetrable as time wore on. And despite enjoying more possession of the ball, Mexico failed to find a way through as Uruguay completed a hat-trick of clean sheets for the first time in their FIFA World Cup™ history.

France vs Mexico

2010-06-26T18:58:00.000-07:00

France vs Mexico on FIFA 2010
Match 18 - Group A - 17 June
0:2

* Javier HERNANDEZ (64')FRA:MEX - Javier HERNANDEZ
* Cuauhtemoc BLANCO (79' PEN)FRA:MEX - Cuauhtemoc BLANCO

Mexico subs shoot down France

France, FIFA World Cup finalists in 2006, are on the verge of crashing out of the 2010 event after losing 2-0 to Mexico in Polokwane's Peter Mokaba Stadium. Substitutes Javier Hernandez and Cuauhtemoc Blanco grabbed the goals as El Tri moved to within touching distance of the last 16 with a deserved win over Raymond Domenech’s lacklustre side.

This was a generally well-matched encounter, with little to choose between two talented but inconsistent sides. Mexico, however, just about shaded it, and certainly succeeded in creating the better of the chances throughout. The French defence looked vulnerable faced with the pace and movement of Mexico's youthful attack, and Les Bleus should really have conceded a goal inside eight minutes. All it took was a simple lofted ball over the top from Rafael Marquez to leave them exposed but Carlos Vela, having raced clean through, ballooned his left-foot shot high over the crossbar.

Mexico were showing plenty of ambition, and their willingness to commit men forward was exemplified in left-back Carlos Salcido, who twice went close midway through the half. First, with 18 minutes played, he charged forward from his defensive berth and rifled a low drive just wide of the far post. Then, nine minutes later, Salcido again burst forward, jinked inside Bacary Sagna and, with William Gallas backing off, poked in a right-foot shot that Hugo Lloris could only parry clear.

France were more cautious in their approach, although the largely-subdued Franck Ribery did provide one worthwhile effort with a powerful right-foot shot that flashed across goal. Mexico remained the more threatening, and even the loss of Vela to injury did not disrupt their rhythm, with the Arsenal striker's replacement, Pablo Berrera, heading just wide within a couple of minutes of entering the fray.

The French would have felt fortunate to return to the dressing rooms with the scores level, but they emerged with renewed determination and forced a decent early save from Oscar Perez when Florent Malouda was given time and space to crack in a powerful right-foot shot. With Mexico struggling to replicate their first-half form, Javier Aguirre rang the changes, and it was one of his substitutes, Hernandez, who provided the all-important breakthrough.

Marquez again split the French defence with a simple through-ball, and Hernandez, having sprung the offside trap, coolly sidestepped Lloris before sidefooting into the open net. A resolute French response seemed inevitable, yet it never materialised. Instead, Mexico made sure of all three points when Blanco slotted a textbook penalty to the right of Lloris after Barrera's thrilling run was halted by Eric Abidal's sliding challenge. El Tri now march on to their final fixture against Uruguay knowing that a point will be enough to see them through to the last 16, while France face the hosts knowing that only an unlikely set of results will salvage their South Africa 2010 dreams.

South Africa vs Uruguay

2010-06-26T18:48:00.000-07:00

South Africa vs Uruguay on FIFA'2010

Match 17 - Group A - 16 June

0:3

Forlan silences South Africa

Diego Forlan silenced the crowd for the first time during South Africa 2010 with a wonder strike worthy of any stage, and was also on target from the spot as Uruguay took a step closer to the last 16 with a 3-0 win over the hosts. Alvaro Pereira sealed a comfortable victory for the South Americans with a stoppage-time tap-in.

South Africa, who had not beaten Uruguay in their previous two meetings, headed into this game in Pretoria knowing the hopes of the Rainbow Nation rested upon their shoulders, with both sides having picked up a point in their opening outings in Group A. Carlos Alberto Parreira brought in Tsepo Masilela for Lucas Thwala in the hosts' starting line-up, while Uruguay opted to make two changes, with Edinson Cavani and Jorge Fucile coming in for Mauricio Victorino and Ignacio Gonzalez.

Pretoria had been a lucky place for Bafana Bafana, who had not yet lost at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium, but it was Uruguay who started the brighter. In the 23rd minute, Luis Suarez teased his way past Bongani Khumalo before stinging the palms of Itumelenge Khune. It was a clear warning of what was to come and, within 60 seconds, the South Americans were ahead through Forlan. Khune had clearly not been expecting the Atletico Madrid forward to unleash a shot from 30 yards out, and stood rooted to the spot as his stunning drive, taking a slight deflection off the back of Aaron Mokoena, dipped over his head and into the back of the net.

The second half started as the first had finished, with Oscar Tabarez's side threatening to add to their lead. Cavani was first denied an opportunity to strike at goal thanks to some smart defending by Masilela, Diego Lugano might have been wheeling off in celebration had he made any kind of decent connection with Forlan's inviting corner-kick, and, in the 67th minute, the lively Pareira was guilty of scuffing a gilt-edged chance wide.

Bafana Bafana were still being frustrated in their search for an equalising goal, but when the chances did present themselves, they failed to profit. Katlego Mphela could not direct a header from Siboniso Gaxa's cross, Steven Pienaar's attempted shot was blocked, and Teko Modise's 68th-minute shot, South Africa's first on target, was easily smothered. The host nation's hopes of making it to the last 16 for the first time in their FIFA World Cup history received a hammer blow in the 76th minute when Khune was adjudged to have brought down Suarez, prompting referee Massimo Busacca to point to the spot, before flashing a red card at the South African keeper. Forlan stepped up to take the resulting penalty and made no mistake in smashing the ball past the deputising Moneeb Josephs.

Mphela and Siphiwe Tshabalala both had chances to reduce the deficit in the closing stages but, in the end, there was little the hosts could do to deny Uruguay a deserved and vital three points. Indeed, the South Americans added insult to injury in stoppage time with Pereira given the space to tap in Suarez's inviting cross.

Asia Cup 2010 Cricket final winner India vs Sri Lanka match Celebration

2010-06-24T08:21:00.000-07:00

India beat Sri Lanka to win Asia Cup after 15 years

DAMBULLA (Sri Lanka): India's pace battery led by Ashish Nehra demolished Sri Lanka to help their team win the Asia Cup with a comfortable 81-run win on Thursday.

Dinesh Karthik top-scored with 66 as India made 268-6 after electing to bat in the day-night final, before the defending champions and hosts were shot out for 187.

India, who last won the region's premier one-day prize in 1994, denied Sri Lanka a hat-trick of titles following their victories in 2004 and 2008.

Indian team members pose for a group photograph after India defeated Sri Lanka by 81 runs in the finals of the Asia Cup cricket match in Dambulla.

Nehra claimed four wickets, including two in one over, as Sri Lanka were reduced to 51-5 by the 16th over before being bundled out in the 45th over.

India never looked back after hard-hitting opener Tillakaratne Dilshan was dismissed off the fifth delivery, holing out to mid-on off seamer Praveen Kumar.

Kumar, who made use of windy conditions to swing the ball, bowled an unchanged opening spell of nine overs in which he conceded just 29 runs.

Fellow seamer Zaheer Khan bowled Upul Tharanga, before Nehra wrecked havoc by having Mahela Jayawardene and Angelo Mathews caught behind in the 14th over.

Nehra also removed Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara for 17, but Thilina Kandamby (31) and Chamara Kapugedera (55 not out) delayed the end.

Nehra's 4-40 was supported by Zaheer's 2-36 and left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja's 2-29.

Karthik, who replaced the injured Virender Sehwag, hit nine boundaries to lead India's batting at the Rangiri stadium in Dambulla.

Karthik put on 62 for the second wicket with Virat Kohli (28) and 46 for the third with skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (38).

Rohit Sharma propped up with the middle-order with a fluent 41, before Jadeja boosted the score with an unbeaten 25.

Kandamby, who had failed to take a wicket with his leg-spin in 32 previous one-dayers, stunned India's top order with the dismissals of Karthik and Dhoni.

Sling-arm fast bowler Lasith Malinga finished with 2-57, while Nuwan Kulasekara claimed 1-44.

Saina Nehwal clinches Singapore Open title 2010

2010-06-20T21:53:00.000-07:00

Singapore open badminton 2010 win

Singapore: Indian badminton ace Saina Nehwal clinched the second Super Series title of her career by winning the Singapore Open with a straight-game win over qualifier Tzu Ying Tai in the final here on Sunday.

ON A ROLL:India's Saina Nehwal made short work of Chinese Taipei's Tzu Ying Tai in the final of the Singapore Open Super Series.

Top-seeded Saina took just 33 minutes to beat Chinese Taipei's Tai 21-18, 21-15 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium here.

The World No. 6 bagged her maiden Super Series title in June last year when she claimed the top honours at the Indonesian Open.

“I never expected to reach the final as there were two good Chinese players in the draw, but I believed in myself and got the result I wanted,” the jubilant 20-year-old said.

The in-form Saina came here after winning the India Open Grand Prix title only last week. “The Indian Open gave me the confidence to play well here,” she said.

Close affair

In a match that was a close affair to start with, Saina was locked 18-18 with her rival after trailing 8-14 at one stage. But Saina clinched the opening game with seven smash winners to show against her rival's three.

In the second game, Saina displayed a better net game and outwitted her rival in rallies to emerge triumphant.

Saina said she kept gaining in confidence as the match progressed. “I was nervous at the start of the match, but I maintained my strategy of playing more rallies,” she said.

“I was down 8-14 in the first game but I just told myself ‘play your best and give your 100 per cent' I think that really worked well for me,” she added.

Tricky opponent

Saina said her opponent, despite being a mere qualifier, had some tricks to unsettle her. “She defeated a few good players in the run-up to the final. She was in good rhythm and her strokes were falling well. At the start, I wasn't comfortable with her game. She had some tricky shots,” she said.

But as the minutes ticked by, Saina said she got a hang of her rival's strategy. “Slowly, I studied her game. I was down and very nervous that I would lose the match but I had the spirit to fight it out,” she said.

Saina's ranking is expected to improve with this triumph but the Hyderabadi said that climbing the charts was not her priority right now.

“It will help my rankings but that's not my focus right now. My focus is on the World championships and the Commonwealth Games. I might go into the top four but that doesn't bother me much. I am very happy that I won the tournament,” she said.

“Next is the Indonesian Open starting on Wednesday and I want to give my best in that,” she said.

Earlier, Saina rallied to beat fourth-seeded Lan Lu of China 8-21, 21-17, 21-8 in 49 minutes in the semifinals on Saturday.

Kashyap loses

In the men's singles, India's P. Kashyap lost to seventh-seeded Indonesian Sony Kuncoro 19-21, 20-22 in a hard-fought semifinal that lasted 48 minutes. Sony went on to beat Thailand's Boonsak Ponsana 21-16, 21-16 in the final.

Cristiano Ronaldo fifa 2010 worldcup

2010-06-13T21:18:00.000-07:00

Cristiano Ronaldo unfazed by goal drought

MAGALIESBURG (South Africa): Portugal striker Cristiano Ronaldo said Sunday that he is not worried about his goal drought which saw him fail to net in the World Cup qualifiers.

Goals, he explained, are like "ketchup - when it comes out (of the bottle) it all comes out at once," as per the old adage, you can wait ages for a bus, then several appear at once.

Ronaldo has not scored for his country for 16 months (in a friendly win over Finland) and drew a blank altogether in the qualifiers as his countrymen limped home with a playoff success over Bosnia.

In the Spanish league, however, he netted 26 times for Real Madrid.

"But I am not worried - I am just plugging away as usual. God knows who is working hard and who is deserving. I am perfectly calm.

"I want to turn in a great tournament and, who knows, be the best. I will strive for that. My ambition has always been to be the best."

The Portuguese open up their campaign against the Ivory Coast on Tuesday then meet North Korea and Brazil.

Stanley Cup 2010 Winners

2010-06-13T21:00:00.000-07:00

Stanley cup winners 2010

Blackhawks' victory in Stanley Cup caps entertaining playoffs

The 2010 Stanley Cup Finals deserved a seventh game, but Game 6 that finished the series was so good, it might have actually been overkill.

Too bad hardly anyone realized when it was all over. Chicago’s Patrick Kane did, but he seemed to be the only one sure that his shot from the far side had slithered past Flyers goalie Michael Leighton to end the overtime and give the Blackhawks their first title since JFK was a rookie in the White House.

Fortunately there was no controversy to the goal -- replays showed it was clearly in -- because this series should have been beyond any taint. The quality of play was top notch -- fast, physical and really high-scoring. Chicago and Philadelphia thought about their attacks throughout the series, and absent goaltenders who could inspire true confidence at either end made for riveting watching.

Patrick Kane, who scored the clinching goal in Game 6, lifts the silverware.

So did the entire playoffs for that matter. There were several great series in the first three rounds and the NHL ended up drawing record network and cable television ratings as a result. And it didn’t hurt that teams with deep histories created some great storylines from remarkable upsets to historic comebacks to crowning achievements like Chicago’s first Stanley Cup since 1961.

Highlights- Sharks Drop Game 3 on Own Goal

The Blackhawks were heavy favorites by the time they reached the Finals, the last hurdle of an incredible turnaround that has taken the team from outcasts to darlings of Chicago sports fans in less than three years.

The new converts believed this was going to be a coronation for the Blackhawks, too, figuring it wasn’t a matter of if, but when yet Philadelphia made them work and nearly pulled off an upset that would have ended their own long championship drought.

Patrick Kane, who scored the clinching goal in Game 6, lifts the silverware.

At times, it almost seemed to be destined for the Flyers. They had made a habit of rising from the dead over the previous two months, and did it again in Game 6 essentially willed it to the overtime in the Finals moments of the third period.

It was great theater. Philadelphia had been trying to keep up with a really fast Chicago team skating in overdrive, but was being outshot badly and looked gassed by the last few minutes of the third period.

Yet the Flyers only trailed by a goal. During a timeout, a scene from the movie Rocky and then the theme hit the jumbotron, bringing the crowd to a standing ovation and the Flyers apparently back to life. Danny Briere’s line forced its way into Chicago’s zone with Scott Hartnell bulldozing his way to the front of the net and getting his stick on a desperate centering pass by Ville Leino.

The goal saved the season -- for a brief time, anyway. Philadelphia missed two great chances in the first 30 seconds of overtime and it wasn’t long before Kane took advantage of Kimmo Timonen being on the wrong side of the ice. Kane skated around the defenseman and got off a shot that fooled just about everyone in the building including the goal judge.

A strange ending certainly. But it brought the 2010 championship to the right conclusion because Chicago was the better team in this series, just not in the sense of a No. 2 seed facing off against a No. 7 that had 24 less points in the standings. Those differences were irrelevant by the time the talented teams met for the final because both had earned the right to be there during these playoffs.

But both were coming off week-long hiatuses that gave everyone too much time to get caught up in the hype, and the rust showed until the teams arrived in Philadelphia with the Blackhawks leading the series 2-0. The Flyers were several steps better back in their building and drew even in the series, but it took so much, they had nothing left after that.

Chicago made life tougher by shuffling the lines for Game 5, a move that was the fundamental turning point of the series. Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville separated captain Jonathan Toews, Kane and Dustin Byfuglien from the top line and spread them out over three units, preventing the Flyers from getting any real matchups.

Philadelphia played mostly only three forward lines and two defense units as it had throughout the series, but with Chicago’s speed and scoring power coming from so many places, it became too much for the Flyers to handle.

And it was no better back home in Game 6. Philadelphia’s was hoping for one last home ice advantage but by then and really for the first time in the series, the Blackhawks looked like they had really figured out how to beat the Flyers.

Chicago got the jump in the game by getting pucks deep and dominating the first period, and even after falling behind briefly in the second period, it quickly regained control and ultimately found a way to win -- the way champions do.

But as Pronger said later, the Flyers fought through adversity and hung on long enough to give themselves a chance to win one of the most memorable post seasons ever.

Here are some reasons why.

The goaltending: The 2010 Finals might change a lot of people’s minds about how crucial a ‘big time’ goaltender really is. For one thing, the game’s best -- Ryan Miller, Martin Brodeur, Roberto Luongo -- were all long gone from the playoffs by the time it arrived. And while Chicago’s Antti Niemi outplayed Philadelphia’s Leighton and Brian Boucher when he relieved, his work throughout the Finals was not exactly the stuff legends are made of. Still, Niemi was a rookie, albeit an older one at 26 and he did have three very good rounds coming in. Leighton though was just as good though earlier, in fact he had the best numbers in the league at the outset of the series. But on the biggest stage, it often seemed like their teams won win in spite, not because of them.

The offense: The gunners were out throughout the playoffs, but it really became noticeable during the Finals which turned out to be one of the highest-scoring in history. With 47 goals combined, Chicago and Philadelphia produced the highest total since 1980 and the second-highest for six games ever. Both teams talked about defense, but the games tended to be track meets with lots of pace and quick transitions that produced plenty of scoring chances. It says that you can win a Stanley Cup by having teams play to win instead of not to lose.

The upsets: Parity really does exist in the NHL. And the lesson is that if you can just get to the playoffs, you can go far because teams that barely squeak into the playoffs have knocked out teams that finished in another postal code -- despite the odds. The Flyers rebounded from losing the first three games of round two against Boston, which was historic if not necessarily an upset coming against a team that barely finished ahead in the standings. Still, Phoenix was an underdog that forced a Game 7 at home against Detroit, and the Kings were killing the Canucks for several games with their power play, but the poster kids were in Montreal where the Canadiens beat Presidents' Trophy-winning Washington and defending Stanley Cup-champion Pittsburgh. Those were upsets in every sense of the term, not the least reason being that both took Game 7 wins on the road.

The breakout stars: In the Finals, chances are you finally noticed how good a center Philadelphia’s Claude Giroux really is. Teammate Ville Leino probably caught your eye, while the same thing goes for Chicago’s Dave Bolland and Kris Versteeg. But several other young players grew up fast in this postseason, despite being long gone by the time the Finals began. Among them Canadiens goalie Jaroslav Halak, Ottawa rookie Erik Karlsson, Kings defenseman Drew Doughty, San Jose’s Joe Pavelski and Boston’s David Krejci.

Top 10 moments

1. Patrick Kane’s on-ice celebration in overtime, while everyone else was trying to figure why he was so happy.

2. Flyers captain Mike Richards coming from behind the Chicago net to steal the puck from Niklas Hjarmalsson and score a shorthanded goal in Game 4.

3. Dustin Byfuglien flattening Chris Pronger in Game 5 and making an even bigger statement with two goals and two assists in a pivotal game.

4. Sidney Crosby playing catch-me-if-you can with Ottawa’s Jason Spezza behind the net before setting up the winning goal for Pittsburgh in Game 2 of their series.

5. The Sharks’ Dan Boyle making a bad pass that ended up in his own net to give Colorado an overtime win over San Jose after being outshot by 51-16 in the game.

6. Boston’s 42-year-old Mark Recchi separating Buffalo’s Tim Kennedy from the puck deep in Buffalo’s end before setting up the winning goal in Game 3 of the opening round.

7. The fancy footwork by Philadelphia’s Giroux on the Game 3 overtime winner against Chicago after the Flyers had a goal called back on review moments earlier.

8. Bolland agitating San Jose’ Joe Thornton enough to draw a slashing penalty off a faceoff that created a pivotal power play in Game 2, the game that turned the series for Chicago.

9. Patrick Kane’s shorthanded goal in the dying seconds of Game 5 against Nashville. It set the stage for an overtime win that kept Chicago's Cup run from being derailed almost before it started.

10. All of Chris Pronger’s podium sessions with the media during the Stanley Cup Finals.

They said it

"There’s an awful lot of you guys and it's an awful lot of questions. Some of them can be monotonous, [but] I think we all understand the game is there for good entertainment. It's not every day you have the opportunity to be here at the Stanley Cup Finals. You have to relish it." -- Pronger on how he handled having been made available to the media on the very day of the Final.

saina nehwal win India Open Grand Prix title

2010-06-13T18:37:00.000-07:00

Saina nehwal fights back to win India Open Grand Prix title

CHENNAI: Top seed Saina Nehwal, looking a tad rusty following a long break, bounced back in style to beat Malaysia's Mew Choo Wong 20-22, 21-14, 21-12 in the women's final of the Yonex-Sunrise India Open Grand Prix badminton tournament on Sunday.

Saina Nehwal was made to sweat before she clinched the title.

World No.6 Saina's victory compensated for the disappointing show by seventh seeded RMV Guru Sai Dutt who went down 13-21, 18-21, to unheralded Indonesian Yunus Alamsyah in the men's singles final, with the visitor clinching his first major international title.

Both the singles winners picked up 7,000 points that should see them move up the world rankings.

Saina, playing her first tournament in two months, was rather patchy as she blew a 20-18 lead in the first game, but kept her nerves to take the next two games, capitalising on a desperate Mew's errors.

It was not the best of matches and the conditions inside the hall were tricky. The raucous crowd that kept up a din even when a rally was in progress, irritating flies, and the sideways air drift due to air-conditioning, put a premium on concentration and judgment.

However, Saina took these irritants in her stride and after the initial tentative approach, changed her stance in the second game when she turned aggressive and maintained the momentum in the decider when she opened up a 10-point lead early on to seal the match.

"I was nervous at the start and committed too many errors. In the normal course, I should have won in two games, but this being my first tournament in two months, I was nervous. In the second and third games, I played aggressively," said Saina after the 56-minute match.

"I am happy winning the tournament and that too at home, and yes, it's a good preparation for the two Super Series events (Singapore and Indonesia) I am participating in this month. In fact, I am playing Mew in the first round at Singapore!" she added.

On her part, Mew admitted that Saina was just too good for her. "I have played her before and I tried my best, but today, she was too good for me, especially in the second and third games," Mew, ranked No.22, said through an interpreter.

In contrast, Sai Dutt hardly got going against the highly defensive Alamsyah, who benefitted largely on the mistakes committed by the 20-year old Indian rather than doing anything out of the ordinary.

Undoubtedly, Alamsyah is one of the better retrievers around, but there is little else in his game besides a fairly sharp smash that surprisingly he uses sparingly. Under the circumstances, Gurusaidutt needed to be patient and await a clear opening before going for the kill, something he failed to.

"I was anxious to finish off the rallies quickly and made mistakes. I will now have to work harder on my game and fitness to reach the next level," said Guru who is currently ranked 66 as against 125 of the Indonesian, who Saturday night took out top seeded Indian Chetan Anand.

Quite the best thing about Alamsyah was his creativity at the net, marked by wristy dribbles some of which sent Guru Sai Dutt the wrong way. The Indian would have been better off to keep Alamsyah in the backcourt rather than match him at the net.

In both the games, the 23-year old Alamsyah took early leads and then kept Guru Sai Dutt, playing in his maiden international final, under pressure that eventually cracked his defense wide open.

Korea Republic vs Greece

2010-06-12T19:13:00.000-07:00

Korea Republic vs Greece on FIFA 2010
Match 4 - Group B - 12 June'10

South Korea made an explosive start to their campaign by chalking up the first win of this year's World Cup finals with a fluent 2-0 victory over Greece in their Group B opener on Saturday.

Goals from Lee Jung-soo and captain Park-Ji-sung early in each half gave South Korea, semi-finalists in 2002, only their second World Cup win on foreign soil and left Greece struggling to advance from a group that includes Nigeria and Argentina.

The Koreans defended solidly against the aerial threat of the taller Greek players, who bombarded their opponents with lofted passes that yielded few chances for a country that has lost every World Cup game they have played in.

The 2004 European champions, who have failed to score at a World Cup finals, struggled against a torrent of South Korean attacks, with European-based duo Cha Du-ri and Park Chu-young proving a handful for the Greek defence.

"We played to win and our players worked really hard," said South Korea coach Huh Jung-moo. "The team played well and the flow of the game was very good."

Greece coach Otto Rehhagel added: "I knew the Koreans would be very fast, very swift and they would run the extra mile to get the ball. It was a well-deserved win for South Korea."

Greece had started brightly and could have gone ahead in the third minute when Vassilis Torosidis steered Giorgos Karagounis's corner past the post.

But South Korea, unbeaten in qualifying, looked dangerous and punished Greece with slick counter-attacking and neat passing play that left their opponents outnumbered at the back.

They snatched the lead in the seventh minute when Lee Young-pyo's corner drifted past four defenders into the path of Lee Jung-soo, who volleyed the ball into the net to spark frenzied celebrations from thousands of travelling Korean fans.

Greece, who did not score in any of their group games in their only previous appearance in 1994, battled to get into the game but were reeling as the three-times Asian champions piled on the pressure and had two penalty appeals turned down.

Park Chu-young looked certain to double their lead near the half-hour mark when Park Ji-sung's incisive pass put him clean through on goal, only for his shot to clip goalkeeper Alexandros Tzorvas and spiral over the bar.

Park Ji-sung, uncharacteristically quiet in the first half, burst into life after the break and doubled South Korea's lead in the 52nd minute to deal a killer blow to Greece.

He chased a poorly weighted square ball from Avraam Papadopoulos, eluded two defenders and coolly slotted the ball into the corner with a left-footed drive to clinch the points.

2010 football world cup opening ceremony

2010-06-12T18:59:00.000-07:00

Tshabalala! South Africa’s Cup gets off to a perfect start – almost Mandela Mourns Great Granddaughter, But The Party Begins

soccer world cup 2010
Mexico vs South Africa

Johannesburg: “The time for Africa has come. It has arrived.” Nine words that in a different context might easily have been dismissed as political hyperbole. But when President Jacob Zuma uttered them, there was unmistakable electricity at the Soccer City stadium here. An emotionally surcharged crowd wept, danced — and blew the vuvuzela.
    It was to this ubiquitous vuvuzela horn’s mono-pitch, high-decibel drone that the city awoke on Friday. And to it, it partied into the night. The vuvuzela will define this World Cup. It’s a strange instrument, irritable and triumphant at the same time. It fog-horned triu m p h a n t ly when five jets flew over the stadium to mark the start of the opening ceremony and blew even louder when 26-year-old Siphiwe Tshabalala of Soweto scored the tournament’s opening goal for the Rainbow Nation.
    Soccer City, which resembles an African calabash cooking pot, wiped out all differences that moment — racial, class or any other. A group of shocked Mexican fans huddled together in shock as a joyous wave subsided all other emotions, even the morning’s grief when news came that Nelson Mandela’s 13-year-old great granddaughter Zenani had died in a car crash on the way home from a pre-Cup concert.
    Gorgeous Shakira had set bodies swaying at the concert. Somali-Canadian hip-hop artist K’Naan swung by Soweto earlier in the day to set pulses racing. It all picked up a terrific tempo as Algerian rai icon Khaled belted out “Didi” and Nigerian star Femi Kuti revived memories of dad Fema with Afrobeat, a unique combination of jazz, funk, psychedelic rock and African beats. And there was Hugh Masakela, arguably the only musician after Louis Armstrong to sing and play the trumpet with equal power and ease.
    A giant dung beetle rolled a ball as troupe after troupe (1,500 performers in all) created a practised spectacle. Desmond Tutu, who had said that the World Cup was as important for Africa as Barack Obama’s victory was for African Americans, danced energetically wearing the scraf of the Bafana Bafana (the Boys). Tshabalala steps into immortality

OPENING SHOT: South Africa’s Siphiwe Tshabalala (2nd from left) dances with team-mates after he scored the first goal of the 2010 World Cup against Mexico in the opening match of the tournament. The game ended in a 1-1 draw

Johannesburg: It was time for South Africa to celebrate.
    No matter the Boys failed to hold on to the lead given by Tshabalala — they weren’t defeated in the opener. So, dignity and hope were intact.
    Even if he lives to be a 100 years old, Tshabalala would remember the goal as clear as daylight. So would every South African — without or without the vuvuzela — who watched him cut in on the left and unleash a left-footed missile that pierced the far corner of the Mexican net. That worthy strike set the 2010 World Cup alight. Football afficianados would remember that a similar high-quality strike by Germany’s Philip Lahm had set the ball rolling in World Cup 2006.
    ‘‘It was a great goal, very special for me,’’ Tshabalala said. ‘‘It was something of a present because I was celebrating my 50th appearance.’’
    SA coach Carlos Alberto said:“We could easily have won the game. All in all at the end a draw is a fair result. We are still in the competition.”
    In the end, it was 1-1, a fair result most would say. But Mphela might replay the moment a million times in the coming years. If only the ball had moved four inches to the right. Football is always about “if only”.

France vs Uruguay

2010-06-11T15:43:00.000-07:00

France vs Uruguay on FIFA'2010
Match 2 on Group A - 11 June 2010
France and Uruguay battle out dour 0-0 draw

CAPE TOWN: Former champions France failed to set the World Cup alight on Friday as they struggled to a 0-0 draw against 10-man Uruguay in an uninspiring start to their campaign.

Rarely can a team have arrived at a World Cup with more baggage than France, unsettled by rumoured internal strife and criticised at home for poor form.

They did little to appease their detractors against the South Americans, with neither side able to take the early initiative in Group A after South Africa and Mexico drew 1-1 in the opening match of the tournament.

France coach Raymond Domenech raised a few more eyebrows by leaving not just Thierry Henry on the bench but also Chelsea's Florent Malouda.

Nicolas Anelka was tasked with the main goalscoring duties and Arsenal's Abou Diaby drafted in for Malouda.

But they looked far from convincing at a packed Green Point Stadium.

Both sides started lively enough with France having a great opportunity to take an early lead on six minutes when the dangerous Franck Ribery gave his defender the slip down the left.

The Bayern Munich star sent a low cross into the box with Sidney Govou's outstretched foot sending the ball just past the post, a chance he should have buried.

France came into the match under huge pressure after a string of average performances and they looked like they wanted to prove a point, with Diaby keeping the momentum going with a long range drive soon after.

Uruguay were struggling to find their groove until Diego Forlan found space just outside the penalty area and curled in a shot that forced a fine save from Hugo Lloris.

The game began opening up and minutes later Yoann Gourcuff tested the Uruguay keeper with a swinging free-kick that Fernando Muslera did well to punch away.

But just as suddenly the match got bogged down in midfield and the chances dried up, with the teams going to the break all-square.

The second half started as the first finished and it was becoming a turgid affair.

Forlan showed glimpses of the form that bagged him so many goals last season, effortlessly bringing down a ball on his chest before blasting wide early in the second period.

But the goalkeepers were hardly troubled with Anelka all at sea as France's lone striker. He paid the price with Henry replacing him for his 121st cap with 19 minutes left.

Malouda also came on for Gourcuff as Domenech threw his last dice, but to no avail with France failing to capitalise when substitute Nicolas Lodeiro was shown a red card for a wild challenge on Bakary Sagna with eight minutes left.

France and Uruguay meet each other later on Friday in Cape Town.

Mexico vs South Africa

2010-06-11T15:31:00.000-07:00

Mexico vs South Africa on FIFA'2010
Match 1 on Group A - 11 June 2010

Mexico fight back to draw with South Africa on 11th june 2010

JOHANNESBURG: Hosts South Africa were denied the dream start to their World Cup finals in Friday's opening match after Barcelona's Rafael Marquez scored a late equaliser for Mexico to seal a 1-1 draw.

South Africa had looked to be on course for a surprise win thanks to Siphiwe Tshabalala's superb 55th-minute volley only for the lead to be cancelled out by Marquez's strike in the 79th minute.

The Bafana Bafana then went agonisingly close to sneaking a win right at the death when striker Katlego Mphela hit the post after outpacing two defenders.

South Africa's coach Carlos Alberto Parreira praised his side for their battling display.

"Mexico are the most daring team in the World Cup and they threatened us early on, but I believe we were more balanced in the second half and could have won the game," said the Brazilian.

"It is a fair result.

"Our spirit was high from the beginning, whatever happens I expect things will be decided by our last game against France."

His opposite number Javier Aguirre admitted he was disappointed his side failed to make their first-half dominance count.

"I think we had a very good first half, but we weren't capable of really putting away our chances," said Aguirre, who is in his second spell as national coach having been in charge for the 2002 World Cup finals.

"The team was confident, but we missed a few chances and things got complicated after they scored.

"The South African goalkeeper played really well and kept them in the game in the first-half.

"Both teams are going away with a bitter, sweet taste and now we are forced to beat France in our next game," added Aguirre, who played for Mexico at the 1986 finals when they hosted them and reached the last eight.

After a nervy opening half in front of 84,490 fans at Soccer City, South Africa finally found their rhythm to take the lead as Mexico failed to make their first-half domination count.

The Bafana Bafana were lucky to go into the half-time break at 0-0 after Mexico dominated the opening 45 minutes, but Carlos Vela's 38th minute effort was ruled offside.

South Africa had a let off after just four minutes when Mexico captain Gerardo Torrado whipped in a cross which goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune fumbled into the path of Giovani Dos Santos, but his shot was blocked.

Galatasaray's Dos Santos was a constant threat in the opening stages as the Mexicans attacked relentlessly.

Mexican midfielder Efrain Juarez was shown the tournament's first yellow card on 18 minutes, but South African play-maker Steven Pienaar sent the free-kick sailing over the crossbar.

Bafana Bafana midfielder Kagisho Dikgacoi was then shown a yellow card for the hosts after fouling Dos Santos on 27 minutes, but Marquez fired the free-kick high.

After the break, a perfectly-timed through ball from Pienaar split the Mexican defence and put Tshabalala into acres of space for the Kaizer Chiefs' star to slam home his shot giving Mexican goalkeeper Oscar Perez no chance.

With 20 minutes left, Aguirre made some changes to push his side forward and they were rewarded with Marquez's goal.

The Barcelona star was left unmarked at the far post and he wasted no time in drilling his shot past Khune.

South Africa now face Uruguay in Pretoria on June 16, while Mexico take on France in Polokwane on June 17.

France and Uruguay meet each other later on Friday in Cape Town.

Football Crazy Vysarpadi decked up with digital banners

2010-06-10T15:32:00.000-07:00

2010 World Cup football Crazy Vysarpadi decked up with digital banners

Vysarpadi, referred to as Chennai's Brazil for its passion for football, is gearing up to welcome the biggest football carnival of the year on Friday. Digital banners, big posters, colourful jerseys, loudspeakers, LCD screens and even cakes with designs of Jabulani (the official ball for the FIFA World Cup-2010) are dime a dozen in the football crazy neighbourhood.

A huge vinyl banner displaying images of football greats and the schedule of the World Cup greet you in C. Kalyanapuram, Vysarpadi. Football fans, aged 6 to 60 enthusiastically deck up the road corners with posters of their favourite teams.

Chennai 2010 World Cup football festival

“World Cup football is like a festival here which is welcomed each time with fireworks and sweets. The next one month will be a gala time as football lovers from Vysarpadi and neighbouring areas will gather at the playground on the Chennai School premises in C. Kalyanapuram to watch the games on a giant screen,” says N. Umapathy of Slum Children Sports Talent and Education Development Society (SCSTEDS).

The society members along with the help of residents and lovers of the game have pooled money to print banners and posters, some of which also have images of local players from Vysarpadi along with big names in the game like Messy, Kaka, Ronald and Beckham.

“This is great motivation for our young talents here who are playing for clubs and the State,” adds N. Tanagra, a resident.

A 40-inch LCD TV is being taken on rent to screen the first round of kick-offs. An LCD projector would be used to screen the quarter-final games.

The arrangement which is free for all football fans, according to organisers, is a step to bring together the lovers of the sports.

The celebrations at Kalyanapuram would kick-off at 7.30 p.m. on Friday with the youngest fan cutting the specially ordered Jabulani cake with rapper Canaan's World Cup 2010 promotional anthem Waving' Flag playing.

Source:- The Hindu

2010-06-10T15:19:00.000-07:00

South Africa welcomes the FIFA'2010 world

Soccer City cheered when the giant screens beamed him swaying to music in a South Africa team shirt. Surely, even the dreamer in Desmond Tutu wouldn’t have believed if, 20 years ago, he was told he would live to see this day. But there he was to welcome the world to Africa.

Soccer City cheered when the giant screens beamed him swaying to music in a South Africa team shirt. Surely, even the dreamer in Desmond Tutu wouldn’t have believed if, 20 years ago, he was told he would live to see this day. But there he was to welcome the world to Africa.

Everything about the 30-minute ceremony typified the continent. There was nothing of the technological wonder with which Beijing wowed the world two years ago. And though a family tragedy meant Nelson Mandela pulled out at the last minute, he was there in posters that said ‘thank you’, on the screens strung at both ends of the stadium and surely in the hearts of everybody who had managed to break the traffic gridlock to make it on time.

"The spirit of Mandela is in Soccer City,” FIFA president Sepp Blatter said before South Africa president Jacob Zuma declared the Cup open. “You must enjoy the game,” Zuma delivered Mandela’s message and the vuvuzelas droned in appreciation.

By the time the South African national anthem was sung the stadium had filled up, looking like a sea of yellow where thousands of South African flags were aflutter.

They even flirted with notions of what seemed like an impossible victory when Siphiwe Tshabalala’s left-foot drive drilled into the top corner in the 55th minute.

Keeping his calm, Rafael Marquez denied South Africa the chance to continue an African trend of upsets in World Cup openers but, after a jittery start, the hosts had their moments.

When the South Africa team emerged from the tunnel - some of them dancing, would you believe it? — the roar made the fly-past of military planes seem like geriatrics struggling with their vuvuzelas.

The calabash was recreated and human streams spread out from it in a symbolic show of taking the message to the world. With footprints over coloured cloth held head high to recreate their map, South Africa paid tribute to its past.

Special mention was made of the African sextet that is part of the 32 finalists through songs - representing Algeria, Khaled sang Didi, pop group Osibisa represented Ghana, charismatic star Femi Kuti did the honours for South Africa — and more dance. Also performing were South African artistes Thandiswa Mazwai, Hip Hop Pantsula (HHP), TKZee and vocalist Timothy Moloi.

R&B singer R Kelly and the Soweto Spiritual Singers then acknowledged the efforts of the 204 countries who were part of the qualifying process with ‘Sign of Victory’. Flags of those countries formed an ellipse around the flags of the qualifiers summing up what the Cup is all about.

amelie mauresmo tennis player photos

2010-06-08T22:08:00.000-07:00

Amelie Mauresmo biography

amelie mauresmo tennis player photos

Name : Amelie Mauresmo
Birthdate : July 5, 1979
Birthplace : Laye, France
Height : 1.76 m
Weight : 64 kg (142 lbs.)
Nationality : France
Plays : Right-handed, one handed backhand
Turned Pro : 1997

Amelie Mauresmo history

Amélie Simone Mauresmo born 5 July 1979, is a retired professional tennis player, and a former World No. 1. Mauresmo won two Grand Slam singles titles at the Australian Open and at Wimbledon.

Mauresmo first attained the top ranking on 13 September 2004, holding it for five weeks on that occasion. She was the fourteenth World No. 1 in women's tennis since the computer rankings began. She is well known for her powerful one-handed backhand and strong net play . She officially announced her retirement from professional tennis on December 3, 2009, ending a career of ten years.

Amelie mauresmo retirement and Tennis records

Sanex WTA Tour Singles Titles: 9
Sanex WTA Tour Doubles Titles: 1
Grand Slam Titles: None YET
ITF Women's Circuit Singles Titles: 2
Career Win/Loss Record: 187-105 (At the end of 2001)

Amelie started being interested in tennis when she was 4 and was watching a match between Yannick Noah and Mats Wilander. Shortly after that, Amelie received a racket from her parents and that was the start of a brilliant career. Throughout her youth, she was always playing against older, more experienced players but always showed great talent. In 1988, she was contacted by the French Federation and offered to train with the elite of her age, offer that she accepted of course. In the juniors, Amelie had tremendous success even winning the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year (1996). That is how Amelie got to the level where she is right now. Up to now, her pro highlight is without any doubt her final at the Australian Open in 1999 where she was eventually defeated by No1 player Martina Hingis.

Amelie Mauresmo photos

Amelie Mauresmo videos

very soon in our blog..

fifa world cup 2010 schedule printable

2010-06-07T04:53:00.000-07:00

fifa world cup 2010 schedule printable

Justin Rose in PGA Tour Win

2010-06-06T18:08:00.000-07:00

Justin Rose Gets First PGA Tour Win at Memorial, Beating Fowler

Justin Rose of England captured his first career U.S. PGA Tour title with a three-shot victory over Rickie Fowler at golf’s Memorial Tournament.

Rose, 29, trailed the 21-year-old Fowler by four strokes entering the final round and closed with a 6-under-par 66 at Jack Nicklaus’s Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio.

Rose, who is 66th in the world golf ranking, finished 18- under for the tournament and receives $1.08 million. Rose’s five previous titles came outside the U.S., where he had five top-10 finishes in the past three years, including a runner-up showing at the Memorial in 2008.

“I’ve had a few close calls over time and you start to sometimes wonder why you can’t get it done,” Rose, who was playing his 162nd PGA Tour event, said in a televised interview. “It’s nice to have the hard work pay off.”

Fowler, a rookie making his 24th PGA Tour start, finished 15-under after a final-round 73.

Bo Van Pelt and Ricky Barnes tied for third place at 12- under par, one shot better than Phil Mickelson, Ryan Moore and Tim Petrovic.

Memorial champion 2010

Defending champion Tiger Woods tied for 19th at 6-under in his first event following a three-week layoff due to a neck injury. He shot rounds of 72, 69, 69 and 72 in his final tune-up before the U.S. Open.

The PGA Tour next moves to Memphis, Tennessee, for the $5.6 million St. Jude Classic at TPC Southwind from June 10-13. It’s the final event before the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links in California. The season’s second major championship begins June 17.

Source:-bloomberg.com

Rafael Nadal wins French Open, reclaims No. 1 spot

2010-06-06T17:55:00.001-07:00

Nadal wins French Open Final 2010


Nadal wins French Open, reclaims No. 1 spot

Rafael Nadal recaptured the French Open crown on Sunday, gaining revenge over Robin Soderling with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 win and, in so doing, he also retook the world number one spot from Roger Federer.

Nadal was simply too powerful on clay for the Swede who 12 months ago ended the Spaniard's 31-match, four titles win streak in Paris in stunning fashion with a four sets, fourth round triumph.

The win, Nadal's fifth here since 2005, put him second on the all-time list of French Open winners, one behind Bjorn Borg whose last title here came in 1981. He is now 38-1 in matches played at Roland Garros.

It was also the second time he had won the French Open title without dropping a set, having first achieved that feat in 2008.

For Soderling it was another cruel finish to the tournament having defeated top seed and title-holder Roger Federer in the quarter-finals. Last year he beat top seed and title-holder Nadal, but lost to Federer in the final.

"I played my best match against you otherwise it would have been impossible to beat you," Nadal told Soderling on the awards podium.

In reply Soderling said, "If you continue to play like this you will surely have the chance to win many more. I will be back next year and hopefully it will be third time lucky."

With a morning storm having chased away the sweltering temperatures that marked Saturday's women's final, cool, overcast conditions greeted the two men as they stepped out onto the Philippe Chatrier centre court.

Fifth seed Soderling opened confidently with three big serves at around 220 kilometres an hour and it was the Swede who procured the first break point of the match in the third game.

He failed to convert that though, hitting a backhand long and was made to pay the price in the following game.

Soderling was in control of the rally with a second break point against him, but he mistakenly left alone a Nadal crosscourt backhand, thinking it was going out. Instead it dipped at the last second and landed just inside the baseline.

The Swede was going for broke with his sledgehammer forehand, while Nadal was content to soak up the pressure and destabilise his opponent with his high-bouncing, top spin shots down both flanks.

Soderling saved a further break point to close to 3-4 before Nadal also needed to save one in the following game as he stretched his lead to 5-3.

The fifth seed saved three set points from 0-40 down in the following game, but Nadal wrapped up the set in 55 minutes on serve in the following game.

With dark clouds gathering over Roland Garros, Soderling had a total of four break points for a 2-0 lead early in the second set but, despite having Nadal on the ropes on three of those occasions, he failed to take his chances.

Once again the man from Mallorca made him pay a heavy price as he broke the Swede's serve to love in the fifth game to lead 3-2.

The match was starting to slip away from Soderling and his confidence took another blow when Nadal broke again two games later to lead 5-2. He comfortably served out for a two sets to nil lead.

A relentless front-runner, Nadal scented victory and he moved in for the kill by capturing Soderling's serve to open the third set.

Rafael Nadal poses with his trophy after he defeated Robin Soderling at the end of their men's final match in the French Open at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris.

Soderling's last glimpse of a chance came when he had break point in the following game, but a big Nadal first serve slammed shut the door.

The Spaniard simply needed to hold serve four times to win the tournament and that he did comfortably before falling onto his back in triumph.

At 24, Nadal had won his seventh Grand Slam title joining the likes of John McEnroe, Mats Wilander and 1920s French legend Rene Lacoste.

source:-ndtv.com

Tiger Woods Wins and actions in Golf

2010-06-06T17:27:00.000-07:00

Tiger Woods golf actions

Memorial champion 2009

Tiger Woods returns to action at Memorial this week - a venue where he has won four times in 11 starts. We list his past results and pick out some of the things he has said about this prestigious tournament over the years.

2009 - WINNER: "I always want to come here each and every year. This is one of the greatest tournaments we can play in. What Jack has done for the game is truly remarkable. I wasn't able to get here the last couple of years. One, I was sick. The other one I broke my leg. I was really looking forward to coming here this year. This golf course is always in perfect shape. It's always demanding. And it was just a matter of getting some good weather. We were able to do that this week and it's been absolutely ideal. Dried the golf course out. This golf course is as pure as it gets."

2007 - T15th: "I've had good speed, I just haven't made anything. That's the frustrating part. I've hit so many good putts, and they're just not going in. I don't know what it is. Obviously I'm not reading them right. That's just the way I spent this week."

2005 - T3rd: "This golf course is so fast, I'm hitting so many 2 irons because the balls my 3 wood I'm hitting on some of these holes 330, and a 2 iron is going 300 yards because the ball is rolling 40, 50 yards. It's the nature of the way the golf course is playing. It's playing completely different than we're used to. The fairways actually narrow up a little bit because they're playing faster. You have to carve the ball back into the hills and try and keep the ball in play. All my misses early for about the first ten holes were all on the short side, and that's the only thing you can't do on this golf course is short side yourself, and I kept doing that again and again and again."

2004 - 3rd: "I hit the ball very well this week. I putted all right, didn't make everything, but I've really hit the ball well this week. It fits my eye. Certain golf courses really fit your eye. I play well at Pebble, here, Bay Hill. Certain golf courses you just feel very comfortable at, and this is certainly one of them."

2003 - T4th: "I drove it pretty good for about three days, yesterday was kind of sporadic, but today I really hit good drives. I felt today just go out and do the same thing, hit the ball the same way, make solid contact and keep the ball in play. I didn't quite do that yesterday on the front 9. I didn't quite do that. It cost me a chance of winning the tournament. Today I went out and did that."

2002 - T22nd: "I wasn't that far off all week. I was just mistiming the wind. I hit a good shot and the wind would drop off or lay down and I missed a few putts and I just never got anything going. And today it finally happened and I didn't do anything different. I felt the same way over the putts and the shots today and for some reason it added up to a lower score."

2001 - WINNER: "This week, with as much water as there was on the fairways, I really wasn't hitting my short irons as well as I would like to. I was catching a couple jumpers here and there. But my long irons, I was just sweeping off the ground beautifully, and when I can full release it like that, up in the air, it just so happened to work. On the range every day, I hit my long irons beautifully. I just tried to convince myself over every shot, 'You've done it on the range, just do it now.' For most of the week, I was able to do that on most of the par 5's, and from there, I made a few putts, too."

2000 - WINNER: "This week I drove the ball beautifully. I picked the sides of the fairways I wanted to put it on and I was able to shape it to the correct side of the fairway, I was able to give myself an angle at the flag and shape it in there the way I wanted to or play it safe and make a putt. I just felt so comfortable with my driving this week, it enabled me to be more aggressive coming in to the greens."

1999 - WINNER: "This week I didn't hit the ball as good as I'd like and my short game bailed me out. I've always worked very hard, diligently, on my short game. I would rather do that then pound balls at a driving range any day. It's more fun. It's more creative. You look at Seve's record. Seve never really hit it as good as some of the players he was playing against, but he was able to hit great recovery shots and frustrate them."

1998 - T51st: (speaking pre-tournament) "I like this golf course, especially if it's not a sloshfest. You have to shape it both ways. The fairways are ample wide. The greens are very quick here. You have to be careful coming into the greens. They're very severe. You can't shortside yourself."

1997 - T67th: "(My swing) is not as good as it was at Augusta (where he'd just scored an incredible 12-shot win in his first major as a pro), that's for sure. But mentally I'm about the same. I'm putting just as good. My chipping is probably better, but my swing is not as good as Augusta, just because you get into lulls, and I'm in that lull right now. Right now is kind of interesting, because it comes in streaks, where I'll hit great shots for four or five holes, where I shoot three or four under, and all of a sudden I couldn't throw a pea in the ocean."

ICC World Cup Cricket 2011 Schedule

2010-06-05T22:53:00.000-07:00

ICC World Cup Cricket 2011 Schedule

All the matches of the tournament will be  played in the month of February and March, 2011.

Saturday 19 Feb – Bangladesh v India, Dhaka
Sunday 20 Feb – New Zealand v Kenya, Chennai
Sunday 20 Feb – Sri Lanka v Canada, Hambantota
Monday 21 Feb – Australia v Zimbabwe, Ahmedabad
Tuesday 22 Feb – England v Netherlands, Nagpur
Wednesday 23 Feb – Pakistan v Kenya, Hambantota
Thursday 24 Feb – South Africa v West Indies, New Delhi
Friday 25 Feb – Australia v New Zealand, Nagpur
Friday 25 Feb – Bangladesh v Ireland, Dhaka
Saturday 26 Feb – Sri Lanka v Pakistan, Colombo
Sunday 27 Feb – India v England, Kolkata

Monday 28 Feb – West Indies v Netherlands, New Delhi
Monday 28 Feb – Zimbabwe v Canada, Nagpur
Tuesday 1 Mar – Sri Lanka v Kenya, Colombo
Wednesday 2 Mar – England v Ireland, Bangalore
Thursday 3 Mar – South Africa v Netherlands, Mohali
Thursday 3 Mar – Pakistan v Canada, Colombo
Friday 4 Mar – New Zealand v Zimbabwe, Ahmedabad
Friday 4 Mar – Bangladesh v West Indies, Dhaka
Saturday 5 Mar – Sri Lanka v Australia, Colombo
Sunday 6 Mar – India v Ireland, Bangalore
Sunday 6 Mar – England v South Africa, Chennai
Monday 7 Mar – Kenya v Canada, New Delhi
Tuesday 8 Mar – Pakistan v New Zealand, Pallekele
Wednesday 9 Mar – India v Netherlands, New Delhi
Thursday 10 Mar – Sri Lanka v Zimbabwe, Pallekele
Friday 11 Mar – West Indies v Ireland, Mohali
Friday 11 Mar – Bangladesh v England, Chittagong
Saturday 12 Mar – India v South Africa, Nagpur
Sunday 13 Mar – New Zealand v Canada, Mumbai
Sunday 13 Mar – Australia v Kenya, Bangalore
Monday 14 Mar – Pakistan v Zimbabwe, Pallekele
Monday 14 Mar – Bangladesh v Netherlands, Chittagong
Tuesday 15 Mar – South Africa v Ireland, Kolkata
Wednesday 16 Mar – Australia v Canada, Bangalore
Thursday 17 Mar – England v West Indies, Chennai
Friday 18 Mar – Sri Lanka v New Zealand, Mumbai
Friday 18 Mar – Ireland v Netherlands, Kolkata
Saturday 19 Mar – Australia v Pakistan, Colombo
Saturday 19 Mar – Bangladesh v South Africa, Dhaka
Sunday 20 Mar – Zimbabwe v Kenya, Kolkata
Sunday 20 Mar – India v West Indies, Chennai
Wednesday 23 Mar – First quarter-final, Dhaka
Thursday 24 Mar – Second quarter-final, Colombo
Friday 25 Mar – Third quarter-final, Dhaka
Saturday 26 Mar – Fourth quarter-final, Ahmedabad
Tuesday 29 Mar – First semi-final, Colombo
Wednesday 30 Mar – Second semi-final, Mohali
Saturday 2 April – Final, Mumbai

Football Action

2010-06-05T19:03:00.000-07:00

FIFA world cup 2010

David Beckham Kicks

2010-06-04T21:41:00.001-07:00

David beckham kicks field goal

David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE(born 2 May 1975) is an English footballer who currently plays in midfield for Milan in Serie A,on loan from Major League Soccer club Los Angeles Galaxy.He is also an established member of the England national team.

david beckham kicked in the balls

Twice runner-up for FIFA World Player of the Yearand in 2004 the world's highest-paid footballer,Beckham was the first British footballer to play 100 Champions League matches. He was Google's most searched of all sports topics in both 2003 and 2004.With such global recognition he has become an elite advertising brand and a top fashion icon.Beckham was captain of England from 15 November 2000 until the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals,during which he played 58 times. Since then he has continued to represent his country and earned his much-publicised hundredth cap for England against France on 26 March 2008. He is currently England's most-capped outfield player with 115 appearances.

david beckham kicked in the balls

Beckham's career began when he signed a professional contract with Manchester United, making his first-team debut in 1992 aged 17.During his time there, United won the Premier League title six times, the FA Cup twice, and the UEFA Champions League in 1999.He left Manchester United to sign for Real Madrid in 2003, where he remained for four seasons,clinching the La Liga championship in his final season with the club.

David beckham kicked in the balls

In January 2007, it was announced that Beckham would leave Real Madrid and sign a five-year contract with Major League Soccer club Los Angeles Galaxy.Beckham's contract with Los Angeles Galaxy became effective on 1 July 2007 and gave him the highest player salary in MLS history.His playing contract with Galaxy in 2007, 2008 and 2009 was worth $6.5m per year.He debuted for the team on 21 July 2007 in a friendly versus Chelsea at The Home Depot Center,and on 15 August, he had his first start with the team, scoring his first goal in the 2007 SuperLiga semi-final.His first league start then came on 18 August in front of a record crowd at Giants Stadium Beckham is married to former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham (née Adams).The couple have three sons and currently reside in Beverly Hills, California
David beckham kicks field goal

David beckham kicks field goal

cristiano ronaldo 2010 Hero

2010-06-04T19:02:00.000-07:00

Cristiano Ronaldo Football world cup Hero

Cristiano Ronaldo Biography

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro, OIH, (Portuguese pronunciation; born 5 February 1985),commonly known as Cristiano Ronaldo, is a Portuguese footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club Real Madrid and serves as captain of the Portuguese national team. Ronaldo currently holds the distinction of being the most expensive player in football history after having transferred to Real Madrid from Manchester United in a deal worth £80 million (€94m, US$132m). His contract with Real Madrid is believed to have made him the highest-paid football player in the world.

Ronaldo began his career as a youth player for Andorinha, where he played for two years, then moved to Nacional. In 1997, he made a move to Portuguese giants Sporting CP. Ronaldo's precocious talent caught the attention of Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson and he signed the 18-year-old for £12.24 million in 2003. The following season, Ronaldo won his first club honour, the FA Cup, and reached the Euro 2004 final with Portugal, in which tournament he scored his first international goal.

In 2008, Ronaldo won the Champions League with United, and was named player of the tournament. He was named the FIFPro World Player of the Year and the FIFA World Player of the Year, in addition to becoming Manchester United's first Ballon d'Or winner in 40 years.Three-time Ballon d'Or winner Johan Cruyff said in an interview on 2 April 2008, "Ronaldo is better than George Best and Denis Law, who were two brilliant and great players in the history of United."

Cristiano Ronaldo Football worldcup Hero

Cristiano Ronaldo FIFA worldcup 2010

Source:- www.google.co.in

Cristiano Ronaldo in Action

2010-06-03T21:21:00.000-07:00

Cristiano Ronaldo in football action shots

Cristiano Ronaldo in Action

livesportsonweb.blogspot

2010-06-03T18:29:00.000-07:00

Live Source for the all latest Sports news,cricket live scores, cricket,Foot ball news and cricket fixtures. Get cricket tournament details and live cricket match results at http://livesportsonweb.blogspot.com/

football, football live scores, football results, fixtures, star football, match highlights, super selector,cricket, cricket live scores, cricket results, fixtures, star cricket, match highlights, super selector

List of countries in the fifa world cup 2010

2010-06-03T05:25:00.000-07:00

list of teams in fifa world cup 2010

Algeria
AlgeriaAlgeria
England
Korea DPR
Serbia
Argentina
France
Korea Republic
Slovakia
Australia
Germany
Mexico
Slovenia
Brazil
Ghana
Netherlands
South Africa
Cameroon
Greece
New Zealand
Spain
Chile
Honduras
Nigeria
Switzerland
Côte d'Ivoire
Italy
Paraguay
Uruguay
Denmark
Japan
Portugal
USA

football world cup 2010 schedule

2010-06-03T05:08:00.000-07:00

FIFA world cup 2010 schedule

Group stage

Group A

Match	Date - Time	Venue
1	11/06 16:00	Johannesburg - JSC	South Africa	Mexico
2	11/06 20:30	Cape Town	Uruguay	France
17	16/06 20:30	Tshwane/Pretoria	South Africa	Uruguay
18	17/06 20:30	Polokwane	France	Mexico
33	22/06 16:00	Rustenburg	Mexico	Uruguay
34	22/06 16:00	Mangaung / Bloemfontein	France	South Africa

Group B

Match	Date - Time	Venue
3	12/06 16:00	Johannesburg - JEP	Argentina	Nigeria
4	12/06 13:30	Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth	Korea Republic	Greece
19	17/06 16:00	Mangaung / Bloemfontein	Greece	Nigeria
20	17/06 13:30	Johannesburg - JSC	Argentina	Korea Republic
35	22/06 20:30	Durban	Nigeria	Korea Republic
36	22/06 20:30	Polokwane	Greece	Argentina

Group C

Match	Date - Time	Venue
5	12/06 20:30	Rustenburg	England	USA
6	13/06 13:30	Polokwane	Algeria	Slovenia
22	18/06 16:00	Johannesburg - JEP	Slovenia	USA
23	18/06 20:30	Cape Town	England	Algeria
37	23/06 16:00	Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth	Slovenia	England
38	23/06 16:00	Tshwane/Pretoria	USA	Algeria

Group D

Match	Date - Time	Venue
7	13/06 20:30	Durban	Germany	Australia
8	13/06 16:00	Tshwane/Pretoria	Serbia	Ghana
21	18/06 13:30	Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth	Germany	Serbia
24	19/06 16:00	Rustenburg	Ghana	Australia
39	23/06 20:30	Johannesburg - JSC	Ghana	Germany
40	23/06 20:30	Nelspruit	Australia	Serbia

Group E

Match	Date - Time	Venue
9	14/06 13:30	Johannesburg - JSC	Netherlands	Denmark
10	14/06 16:00	Mangaung / Bloemfontein	Japan	Cameroon
25	19/06 13:30	Durban	Netherlands	Japan
26	19/06 20:30	Tshwane/Pretoria	Cameroon	Denmark
43	24/06 20:30	Rustenburg	Denmark	Japan
44	24/06 20:30	Cape Town	Cameroon	Netherlands

Group F

Match	Date - Time	Venue
11	14/06 20:30	Cape Town	Italy	Paraguay
12	15/06 13:30	Rustenburg	New Zealand	Slovakia
27	20/06 13:30	Mangaung / Bloemfontein	Slovakia	Paraguay
28	20/06 16:00	Nelspruit	Italy	New Zealand
41	24/06 16:00	Johannesburg - JEP	Slovakia	Italy
42	24/06 16:00	Polokwane	Paraguay	New Zealand

Group G

Match	Date - Time	Venue
13	15/06 16:00	Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth	Côte d'Ivoire	Portugal
14	15/06 20:30	Johannesburg - JEP	Brazil	Korea DPR
29	20/06 20:30	Johannesburg - JSC	Brazil	Côte d'Ivoire
30	21/06 13:30	Cape Town	Portugal	Korea DPR
45	25/06 16:00	Durban	Portugal	Brazil
46	25/06 16:00	Nelspruit	Korea DPR	Côte d'Ivoire

Group H

Match	Date - Time	Venue
15	16/06 13:30	Nelspruit	Honduras	Chile
16	16/06 16:00	Durban	Spain	Switzerland
31	21/06 16:00	Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth	Chile	Switzerland
32	21/06 20:30	Johannesburg - JEP	Spain	Honduras
47	25/06 20:30	Tshwane/Pretoria	Chile	Spain
48	25/06 20:30	Mangaung / Bloemfontein	Switzerland	Honduras

highest paid sports person in world

2010-06-03T03:48:00.000-07:00

The highest paid sports person in world

Top 15 Alex Rodriguez

$32 million

A-Rod earns little off the field these days but makes the cut thanks to his historic 10-year, $275 million contract he signed with the Yankees after the 2007 season. The deal paid A-Rod $27 million last year and is worth $32 million this season. He also got $1 million in January as part of the $10 million signing bonus in the deal.

Top 14 Lewis Hamilton

$32 million

Hamilton is often compared to Tiger Woods for his breakout performance at an early age as a black athlete in a predominantly white sport. Hamilton won the 2008 Formula One World Championship by a single point and became the youngest driver to win the title at 23. Last summer, Reebok inked Hamilton to a multimillion- dollar deal to be a "global brand ambassador."

Top 13 Oscar De La Hoya

$32 million

Boxing´s Golden Boy hung up his gloves after one last mega-fight in December against Manny Pacquiao that earned De La Hoya $30 million. He retires with the record for all-time pay-per-view buys of 14.1 million and PPV revenue of $696 million.

Top 12 Shaquille O´Neal

$33 million

Shaq experienced a renaissance on the court this year returning to the All-Star game where he shared the MVP Award with former teammate and nemesis Kobe Bryant. Off-the-court Shaq continues to pile up sales of his low-cost Shaq and Dunkman brands of shoes, which now top 75 million pairs since he launched the first line in 1996. Shaq has reached a new audience through Twitter where he has 1.2 million followers.

Top 11 Roger Federer

$33 million

Federer cemented his position as the greatest tennis player ever when he won his 14th Grand Slam title and completed a career Grand Slam by winning the French Open this month. Federer also passed Pete Sampras in October to become the all-time leader in career prize money and has earned $48 million since turning pro in 1998.

Top 10 Dale Earnhardt Jr.

$34 million

Earnhardt was chosen as Nascar´s most popular driver for a sixth straight year in 2008 despite winning only one race during the past two seasons. His merchandise sales were twice the total of any other driver. Earnhardt´s biggest personal sponsorship deals are with Adidas, Chevrolet, Polaris, Wrangler and Nationwide Insurance, which he added this year.

Top 9 Valentino Rossi

$35 million

The Doctor won his eighth World Championship in 2008 after two straight years of falling short of the title. The biggest star in motorcycle racing earns $16 million annually from his contract to ride for Yamaha and his earnings more than double when you count licensing income, bonuses and endorsement deals with the likes of energy drink Monster.

Top 8 Manny Pacquiao

$40 million

Pac-Man hogged the boxing spotlight over the past year with victories in two blockbuster fights against Oscar De La Hoya in December and Ricky Hatton in March that combined generated more than $100 million in pay-per-view revenue in the U.S. A member of Time magazine´s 100 Most Influential People, Pacquiao plans to run for political office when his days in the ring are over.

Top 7 Phil Mickelson

$40 million

Playing second fiddle to Tiger Woods has proven very lucrative for the world´s second-ranked player. His most lucrative deal is with Callaway, which signed Mickelson to a five-year extension this year. Other sponsors include Barclay´s, Exxon, KPMG and Rolex. Mickelson has won $54 million in prize money during his career, third all-time behind Woods and Vijay Singh.

Top 6 LeBron James

$40 million

The NBA´s MVP led the Cleveland Cavaliers to the league´s best record and had a playoff performance for the ages this year, but his team was bounced from the playoffs by the Orlando Magic in the Conference Finals. His free agency next summer has teams maneuvering to get under the salary cap in hopes of signing King James. The Cavs can offer the biggest contract under NBA salary rules, but James might go in search of a bigger market.

Top 5 David Beckham

$42 million

Becks is far from the best player on the pitch, but he is still the most famous which is why companies like Adidas, Giorgio Armani and Motorola pay him millions for his endorsement. Beckham spent five months on loan this year playing for AC Milan before his planned return to play for the Los Angeles Galaxy in July when the MLS season is half over.

Top 4 Kimi Raikkonen

$45 million

Formula One´s highest-paid driver finished a disappointing third in the World Championship standings last year after winning the title in 2007. This year has been even worse for the Iceman who sits in 10th place in the current standings. Ferrari resigned Raikkonen in September to a one-year contract extension keeping the Finn behind the wheel for Ferrari through 2010.

Top 3 Michael Jordan

$45 million

MJ retired as a player for the third and presumably final time six years ago, but he is still the most famous athlete in the United States. The Jordan Brand is approaching $1 billion in sales for Nike which turned Jordan into a marketing phenomenon. Jordan is on the short list of potential buyers for the Charlotte Bobcats where he is head of basketball operations and a minority owner.

Top 2 Kobe Bryant

$45 million

Bryant secured his place among the NBA´s all-time greats when he won his fourth NBA title with the Los Angeles Lakers in June. The Black Mamba´s popularity is at its zenith as his No24 jersey is the top seller in the U.S., Europe and China. Bryant pads his $21 million Lakers salary through endorsement deals with Nike, Upper Deck, Activision and VitaminWater.

Top 1 Tiger Woods

$110 million

Woods has earned almost $900 million in prize money, endorsements and appearance fees during his 13-year professional golf career and next year is poised to become the first athlete to earn $1 billion during a career. Woods racked up more than twice the earnings of any other athlete over the past 12 months despite being sidelined for eight months after knee surgery thanks to lucrative endorsement deals with Accenture, Gillette and Nike as well as a thriving golf course design business.

Top Sports in World

2010-06-02T03:57:00.000-07:00

The most Popular sports in the world

Football:
    3.3-3.5 billion fans (Europe, Africa, Asia, Americas, etc.)
Cricket:
    2-3 billion fans (India, UK, Pakistan, Asia, Australia, etc.)
Field Hockey:
    2-2.2 billion fans (Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia)
Tennis:
    Around 1 billion fans (Europe, Americas, Asia)
Volleyball:
    Around 900 million fans (Asia, Europe, Americas, Australia)
Table tennis:
    Around 900 million fans (Asia, Europe, Africa, Americas)
Baseball:
    Around 500 million fans (US, Japan, Cuba, Dominican Republic)
Golf:
    Around 400 million fans (US, Canada, Europe)
Gridiron (American football):
    390-410 million fans (US mainly)
Basketball:
    Not more than 400 million fans (US, Canada mainly)

http://livesportsonweb.blogspot.com/

2010-06-01T22:55:00.000-07:00

world cup cricket 2011 groups

2010-05-07T22:57:00.000-07:00