Benitez tells Reds to forgot Cup trauma

Rafael Benitez has challenged his Liverpool players to make up for their premature FA Cup exit by bringing the league championship back to Anfield for the first time in 19 years.

Liverpool travel to struggling Portsmouth on Saturday looking to make amends for Wednesday's heartbreaking 1-0 extra-time fourth round defeat at the hands of Merseyside rivals Everton.

Benitez says cup elimination leaves his side free to concentrate on wrestling the Premier League title from Manchester United's grasp.

"I don't think our confidence will take a blow by what happened on Wednesday," he said. "The players showed great character and when you lose in this way it won't affect the confidence of the team.

"It's very disappointing to be out of the cup but now we have to concentrate on the league and the Champions League so there is still a lot to play for.

"They are two massive competitions and we are in a very good position."

Liverpool's Goodison Park misery was compounded by Steven Gerard hobbling off with a hamstring tear after only 16 minutes.

The Reds skipper is out for a minimum of three weeks and will miss this weekend's trip to Fratton Park, which is particularly worrying for Liverpool because Fernando Torres is struggling with his match fitness after missing most of the early months of the season with his own hamstring problem.

"Torres was really tired on Wednesday and that is why I took him off," Benitez said. "Clearly he has to keep playing games and keep training because his match fitness is not at its best."

Benitez will receive little sympathy from Portsmouth counterpart Tony Adams, who is battling to save his job.

Last weekend's 3-1 defeat at Fulham left Adams with only two wins from 15 Premier League games in charge and he had to suffer the abuse of his own supporters for the first time in a career spanning 25 years.

Former Arsenal and England captain Adams said: "I received verbal abuse getting on the bus after the game on Saturday and that hurt.

"There were a couple of fans who were not happy over the way the team is playing and the results. They shouted they did not want me at the club again. To be honest it was put stronger than that.

"I tried to explain myself to them but they were not listening. I have had stick from opposing fans of course. I played a lot of games in my career and you don't expect to be liked by rival supporters but I have never experienced that before in my career.

"It was only a couple of guys angry at me but it did not stop me feeling bad about it.

"We had another bad result and I understand people's reaction but the club has changed and I am doing my utmost to scrap away and improve things."

With Gerrard sidelined, Dirk Kuyt could be in line for a more central attacking role after spending most of his time at Anfield playing wide on the right.

The Dutchman warned that his team-mates that they cannot afford to feel sorry for themselves in the wake of the cup defeat.

"Obviously we are all really disappointed to lose a game so late on because it did not look like they were going to score," Kuyt said. "That is football though and now we just have to keep going and look forward.

"The key now is how we react to this defeat. The positive thing from our point of view is that on the two other occasions we have lost games this season we managed to come back in the weeks that followed. That is what we must do now."

Source: http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/eplarticleshow/4087170.cms

Punjab Gold Cup hockey: India go down to Germany

CHANDIGARH: Hosts India tasted their first defeat as they went down 2-4 to Olympic champions Germany in the Punjab Gold Cup hockey tournament at Sect or-42 stadium on Friday.

Germany, thus, logged their first win in the tournament and also avenged their first-round loss to India.

For Germany, Jan Philipp Rabente (14th minute), Lim Kevin (21st), Moritz Furste (34th) and skipper Tobias Hauke (38th) scored, while Tushar Khandekar (12th) and captain Sandeep Singh (64th) found the goals for India.

In another match, the Netherlands outplayed New Zealand 4-1 to reach the final.

India, who are on eight points, need a draw in their last league match against New Zealand Saturday to set up a summit clash with the Netherlands.

However, a loss would mean that they will have to depend on the result of Germany's last league match against the Netherlands. Germany's win Saturday will take them to eight points and in that case the team with better goal difference will sneak into Monday's final.

Despite getting an early breakthrough, India were pushed on the backfoot as Germany showed their class and dominated the 70 minutes through their attacking play.

Khandekar gave India an early lead as he latched on to a long pass from Rajpal Singh before hitting a reverse flick into the goalpost.

However, Germany equalised through mid-fielder Rabente after two minutes.

German defender Kevin struck in the 21st minute to give his team a 2-1 lead. In the 34th minute, Germany got their first penalty corner and Furste made it 3-1.

Continuing their dominance in the second half, Hauke increased the lead to 4-1 when he hit a long pass into the Indian goalpost.

Desperation was writ large on the faces of Indian players as they made some good moves but failed to convert these into goals.

They wasted two penalty corners in 53rd and 57th minute before skipper Sandeep converted the third in 63rd minute.

Soruce: http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Punjab_Gold_Cup_India_go_down_to_Germany/articleshow/4089803.cms

Yuki's agenda: Training with a top player

NEW DELHI: He’s the world No. 1 in his age group. He has a Grand Slam to his name. And from the outside it might appear that this is when life for Yuki Bhambri gets simple. The truth is vastly different.

The most important task right now for Yuki and for those around him is to keep him grounded and not let the flashing light bulbs distract him from his goals.

"He has created the hype but it’s very important for Yuki to keep his feet on the ground. He looks upto Sachin Tendulkar and I’ve told him to emulate his role model now. The pressure and expectations are just growing," said Aditya Sachdeva, the man who has steered and guided the young lad all the way, on Friday.

The felicitations and praise will continue but Sachdeva is already focussed on the future. A major feature of his plans is getting Yuki a three or four-week stint with a top player.

"He had the chance to hit with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open but the heat interrupted the plans. All these top players look to hit with juniors and I’m very keen that Yuki gets the chance to spend time with a top player, someone like Marian Cilic, spend a few weeks with him. He will have the chance to learn a lot," informed Sachdeva.

Top pros hitting with juniors is a regular feature on the tour. Bernard Tomic, who beat Yuki in the Australian Open semifinal last year, was Rafa’s hitting partner for a day in Melbourne.

Sachdeva also has a number for Yuki to focus on in 2009 - 50 matches. "He has to play 50 matches this year. He could reach this number early depending on how deep he goes in the tournaments."

Having excelled in the junior ranks, time is ripe for Yuki to test the waters of the men’s circuit and Indian tennis legend Ramesh Krishnan, who was present in the Capital for a felicitation affair, felt that Yuki’s age was a great advantage.

"He’s just 16 and he has the time to test his mettle against men now. He just needs to strike a balance between the juniors and the men’s circuits. It has to be a trial and error method. The key is to play a lot of matches interspersed with proper rest," said Krishnan, who himself won the junior French and Wimbledon crowns.

Source: http://sports.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Yukis_agenda_Training_with_a_top_player/articleshow/4090749.cms

West 303/5 on Day I of Duleep final

Chennai: Ajinkya Rahane continued his impressive domestic form by slamming an unbeaten hundred (109) to take a depleted West Zone to a comfortable 303 for five on the first day of the five-day Duleep Trophy final against South Zone here today. Rahane, who scored over 1000 runs in this year’s Ranji season for champions Mumbai, remained unbeaten after facing 211 balls, hitting 13 fours and two sixes for his century. Captain Wasim Jaffer (69) and Bhavik Thaker (73) chipped in with a half century each. The visitors would have been in a more commanding position had not they lost two quick wickets -- that of Thaker and Abhishek Nayar -- towards close, both dismissed by S Sreesanth. At stumps, Siddarth Trivedi (0 not out) was giving Rahane company after Jaffer elected to bat at the MA Chidambaram Stadium here. Rahane, who struck his eighth first class century today, stitched two solid stands -- 77 in 20 overs for the second wicket with Jaffer and 134 in 40.4 overs with Thaker for the fourth wicket. For South, who were able to get moderate turn from the wicket, medium-pacer Sreesanth and R Ashwin took two wickets apiece while Shadab Jakati chipped in with one. (PTI)

Malik never deserved captaincy: Yousuf

KARACHI: Banned Pakistani batsman Mohammad Yousuf has lauded the PCB's decision to sack Shoaib Malik as captain, saying that Malik never deserved to lead the side as he is an inconsistent player and does not have the respect of the team.

"Younis Khan should have been appointed captain much earlier," Yousuf, banned by the Pakistan Cricket Board after he joined the rebel Indian Cricket League, said on Thursday.

Yousuf said the board made a blunder by appointing Malik as captain after the World Cup.

"They should have convinced Younis to become captain because a captain has to be a consistent performer who is respected as a player in the team," Yousuf said.

"You look at our history and you will see that people like Imran Khan, Javed Miandad, Wasim and Inzamam were successful as captains because they were top class performers themselves.

"Things were building up to a stage where even the board started realizing it had made a mistake in appointing Malik as captain after the World Cup," he added.

Yousuf expressed confidence that under Younis the Pakistan team would turn a new leaf and become a more dependable and consistent side.

"Younis has the ability to become a good and successful captain, I wish him all the best," he said.

Source: http://cricket.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/News/News/Malik_never_deserved_captaincy_Yousuf/articleshow/4084917.cms

India rise to second spot in ICC ODI rankings

NEW DELHI: India moved to second place in ICC ODI rankings after Australia were pushed to the third spot following their defeat at the hands of New Zealand in Melbourne.

New Zealand beat Australia by 6 wickets in the second ODI of the series to help India pip Australia. Beating Sri Lanka 4-0 in the ongoing ODI series also helped India to rise in the rankings.

Australia not only slid down the rankings but also slid to their fifth consecutive defeat at home.

Thursday's victory against Sri Lanka was the ninth win on the trot for the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led team, including the 5-0 verdict against England last year.

This is India's best ranking ever, while South Africa, who had toppled Australia to grab the number one position, have 125 points.

Australia (121) have been pushed to the third place while New Zealand follow on fourth rung with 117 points. Pakistan is further down the ladder at fifth while England and Sri Lanka are sixth and seventh respectively.

Australia, who have been on the decline in the last few months, have just about managed to retain their place as the number one team in the longer version of the game despite losing the Test series at home to South Africa.

In ICC Test Rankings, Australia have 126 points while second placed South Africa is 121 and would get a chance to topple Australia when they take on Ricky Ponting's men in a home series beginning later this month. India are third placed with 118 points.

The number one ODI team on April 1 will be richer by USD 175,000 with the runners-up getting USD 75,000.

Source: http://cricket.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/News/News/India_rise_to_second_spot_in_ICC_ODI_rankings/articleshow/4088569.cms

A bidding war for Mortaza

Bangladesh paceman Mashrafe Mortaza went for 12 times his base price of $50,000.

In a fierce bidding war between King XI Punjab and Kolkata Knight Riders, that lasted close to half an hour, the Shah Rukh Khan-owned outfit bought him for a whopping $600,000 (approx Rs 2.94 cr).

Knight Riders had made their interest in Mortaza known even before the bidding.

The Aussies were once again ignored with their wicket-keeper Brad Haddin failing to find a buyer.

After the second round of auction, Modi said the number of unsold players has gone up this year because of the limited slots the teams have.

"More unsold players is a result of limited slots. The teams have just 17 slots to fill," he said.

Kings XI stake-holder Preity Zinta said she desperately wanted Mortaza.

"Mortaza is a great player, an all-rounder and we wanted him. But you win some, you lose some," the Bollywood star said.

Rajasthan Royals stake-holder Shilpa Shetty was, on the other hand, was happy to have to got the players her team wanted.

"We got what we wanted," she said after Royals acquired Aussie pacer Shaun Tait and big-hitting South African all-rounder Tyron Henderson.

Soruce: http://ipl.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/quickiearticleshow/msid-4087178.cms

17 players come under the hammer

With a total of $13.59 million in their pocket, the eight Indian Premier League franchisees have the option of buying 17 players from a pool of 50.

In the auction, 18 players from Australia, seven from England, five from Sri Lanka, three from New Zealand, seven from South Africa, six from West Indies and four from Bangladesh were up for grabs.

Chennai Super Kings have a spending limit of upto $two million for two slots, the Deccan Chargers $1.9 million for two, the Knight Riders $1.21 for one, the Kings' XI Punjab $1.45 million for two, Mumbai Indians $1.76 million for three players, Rajasthan Royals $1.875 million for two and Bangalore Royal Challengers $1.945 for two slots.

Source: http://ipl.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/quickiearticleshow/msid-4087182.cms

Unlucky lots

Australian opener Phil Jaques went unsold alongwith South African batsman Ashwell Prince. Australian paceman Stuart Clark, who had a base price of $250,000 also failed to attract a buyer in the initial round of auctioning.

Another Australian Luke Wright also went unsold with the bidders not showing much interest on the Australians who were up for auction.

England all-rounder Ravi Bopara was bought by Kings XI Punjab for $450,000 (appr Rs 2.20 crore), far beyond his base price of $150,000.

New Zealand all-rounder Jesse Ryder was bought for $160,000 by Bangalore Royal Challengers while another Kiwis cricketer Kyle Mills was taken by Mumbai Indians for $150,000.

South African paceman Andre Nel went unsold. Sri Lankan paceman Nuwan Kulasekara also failed to make much of an impact with no team showing any interest on him.

Source: http://ipl.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/quickiearticleshow/msid-4087187.cms

A good buy!

Owner of Bangalore Royal Challengers Vijay Mallya said he was always keen to get the services of Pietersen as he would add value to the team.

"I was always keen to get Pietersen. He would be a superb addition to the team. We had a list of players before the auction and KP topped that list. We needed to strengthen our batting and I was prepared to pay more for him," Mallya said.

"It is a worthwhile investment and ensure the balance that we wanted in our team", he said.

South African all rounder Tyron Henderson was bought by Rajasthan Royals for $650,000 (appr Rs 3.18 crore), a massive jump from his base price of $100,000

Soruce: http://ipl.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/quickiearticleshow/msid-4087187.cms

Expensive Freddie to play under Dhoni

expectedly got a good bidding and will now feature in the same team as Dhoni who is the captain of Chennai Super Kings.

Among other players first to be auctioned, Australia's Shuan Tait was purchased by title holders of the inaugural edition Rajasthan Royals for $375,000 while upcoming South African batsman Jean Paul Duminy went to Mumbai Indians for $950,000.

West Indian paceman Fidel Edwards was bought for his base price of $150,000 by Deccan Chargers. England's Owais Shah and Paul Collingwood were bought by Delhi Daredevils for $275,000 each.

IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi said that the contracts of all the auctioned players will be for two years.

Source: http://ipl.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/quickiearticleshow/msid-4087193.cms

KP, Flintoff become the most expensive players

PANAJI, PTI: Star England players Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff became the most expensive players of the Indian Premier League after being sold for a whopping $1.55 million (appr Rs 7.35 crore) in the second edition, getting Rs 1.35 crore more than what Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni got in the first edition.

The hard-hitting Pietersen, who was England's captain till recently, was bought by Bangalore Royal Challengers while Flintoff went to Chennai Super Kings at the auction which was beamed live by most television channels.

Bangalore Royal Challenger, who had finished at the bottom half of the high-profile League in the inaugural edition, spent most of their total amount of $1.95 million on the highly talented Pietersen who had base price of $1.35 million.

Source: http://ipl.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/quickiearticleshow/msid-4087257.cms