Man United tops Barcelona 3-1 in International Champions Cup

July 26, 2015

Santa Clara (California), Jul 26: Wayne Rooney scored on a header in the eighth minute off Ashley Young's corner kick, and Manchester United kept the pressure on all afternoon to beat Barcelona 3-1 and stay unbeaten during its preseason tour in the United States.

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Jesse Lingard added the Red Devils' second goal on a cross by Tyler Blackett in the 65th, just two minutes after coach Louis van Gaal subbed out his entire starting 11 to play the second team yesterday.

Adnan Januzaj scored for Man United in the 90th minute, some 30 seconds after Rafinha got Barcelona on the board in the 90th.

The Red Devils improved to 3-0 in the International Champions Cup, this time getting the best of Luis Suarez and Barca while playing under clear skies for a sellout crowd of 68,416 at the USD 1.3 billion home of the San Francisco 49ers.

Rooney raised his arms in delight after his goal, and coach Louis van Gaal got a good look at what he hinted would be his starting 11 for the Premier League opener Aug. 8 against Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford.

Van Gaal subbed his entire team in the 63rd minute as planned. Now, his team will wrap up its preseason tour against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday at Chicago's Soldier Field. UEFA Champions League winner Barcelona will look back on its missed chances.

Luis Suarez hit long shots off each post, and Ivan Rakitic's ball just skimmed the top of the net in the 59th. Suarez had a goal negated for being offside in the 61st, though it appeared he was fouled in the box by Daley Blind moments earlier.

And in the sixth minute, Sergi Roberto went 1-on-1 with Man United goalkeeper David De Gea, who made a charging stop. De Gea returned after missing the first two matches of the tour with an undisclosed injury.

Barca beat the Los Angeles Galaxy 2-1 on Tuesday night in front a record 93,226 at the Rose Bowl in the team's first game of its preseason tour in the U.S. Barcelona will face Premier League champion Chelsea on Tuesday at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland.

The La Liga champion is playing without Lionel Messi and Neymar as both are skipping the three-game tour to be fresh for games that count.

Rooney got away from defender Adriano for an open look on his goal.

Young had fouled early in the match leading to a free kick for Barca. Suarez's ball from 20 yards hit the right post in the fourth minute, then off the left post in the 43rd. De Gea stopped another Suarez shot from about 6 yards just more than a minute later.

In the 28th minute, Young found himself open for a nice look but Barca goalkeeper Marc Andre Ter Stegen blocked the ball away. And the Reds threatened again in the 32nd with a flurry of chances.

Both teams passed well in creating first-half opportunities. Manchester United nearly had another in the 68th minute when Januzaj sent a shot just wide of the left post.

The field received new sod during the past week following a pair of recent concerts.

Levi's Stadium had numerous problems with the grass during the NFL team's inaugural season here last year, and chunks of sod and sand came loose Saturday.

Man United newcomer Bastian Schweinsteiger of Germany sat out with a minor injury van Gaal said he sustained in training.

Schweinsteiger had appeared in the two previous exhibition games as a second-half substitute after joining his new team.

Van Gaal had said expected Angel Di Maria to join the club Saturday but he wasn't on the sideline. Van Gaal had previously said he wouldn't play.

"I have heard that he is not on the plane," van Gaal said without expanding further.

Defender Marcos Rojo also didn't make it as planned but was listed on the roster. Van Gaal said he had "passport issues."

Forward Javier Hernandez did join Man United after receiving time off following play in the Copa America and Gold Cup.

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News Network
July 16,2020

Kolkata, Jul 16: BCCI president Sourav Ganguly on Wednesday went into home quarantine after his elder brother and Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) joint secretary Snehasish Ganguly tested positive for Covid-19.

Snehasish, a former Bengal first-class player, has been admitted to the Belle Vue hospital in Kolkata after his COVID report came positive.

"He was suffering from fever for the last few days and his test report came positive today. He's been admitted to Belle Vue Hospital," a CAB official said.

"The reports arrived late in the evening. As per health protocols, even Sourav will have to be in home quarantine for a stipulated period," a source close to the BCCI President added.

Snehasish had shifted to their ancestral house, where Sourav is based, in Behala after his wife and in-laws at his Mominpur residence tested positive for the dreaded virus.

The former India captain was, however, unavailable for a comment on the development.

Recently, during an interview to India Today, Sourav had spoken about how life around him has changed, making people more vulnerable.

"My brother visits our factories everyday and he is more at risk," the former batting star had said

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News Network
May 4,2020

May 4: Yuzvendra Chahal is among the best leg-spinners in international cricket right now but he can be more effective with better use of the crease, says former Pakistan spinner Mushtaq Ahmed.

Ahmed picked Chahal, Australia's Adam Zampa and Pakistan's Shadab Khan among the top leg-spinners in white-ball cricket.

"Chahal as been impressive. He is definitely among the top leg-spinners of the world. And I feel he would be more effective if he uses the crease a lot more," Ahmed said.

Ahmed, who has coached all around the world and is currently a consultant for his native team, said India's ability to take wickets in the middle-overs in the limited overs format through Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav has been a game-changer for them.

Both the wrist-spinners were brought into India's limited overs set-up following the 2017 Champions Trophy. Though, of late, both Chahal and Kuldeep havn't been playing together.

"He (Chahal) can go wide of the crease at times. You got to be smart enough to understand pitches. If it is a flat pitch, you can bowl stump to stump," said Ahmed, one of the best leg-spinners Pakistan has produced.

"If the ball is gripping, you can go wide of the crease because you can trouble even the best of batsmen with that angle. That way your googly also doesn't turn as much as the batsman expects and you end up taking a wicket."

Chahal has taken 91 wickets in 52 ODIs at 25.83 and 55 wickets in 42 T20s at 24.34. He is not a huge turner of the ball but uses his variations very effectively.

Ahmed also feels the likes of Chahal and Kuldeep have benefitted immensely from former captain M S Dhoni's advice from behind the stumps.

"You have got to be one step ahead of the batsman. You should know your field position as per the batsman's strength. I always say attack with fielders not with the ball. If you understand that theory, you will always be successful," the 49-year-old, who played 52 Tests and 144 ODIs, said.

"India has become a force to reckon with in all three formats as it uses its bowlers really well. Dhoni was a master at getting the best out of his bowlers in limited overs cricket and now you have Virat Kohli."

He also said the art of leg-spin remains relevant more than ever.

"You need leg-spinners and mystery spinners in your team as they have the ability to take wickets at any stage of the game. I see a lot of them coming through in the next 10-15 years.

"Most batsmen now like playing express pace but with a good leg-spinner in the team, you are always in the game," added member of the 1992 World Cup-winning squad.

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News Network
February 10,2020

Potchefstroom, Feb 10: India's under-19 cricket team manager Anil Patel says the ICC has taken a serious view of the aggressive celebrations by Bangladesh players after their World Cup triumph and will be reviewing the footage of the final game's "last few minutes".

Some Bangladeshi players got carried away while celebrating their historic three-wicket win over India in the final on Sunday. While their captain Akbar Ali apologised for the "unfortunate incident", his Indian counterpart Priyam Garg said their reaction was "dirty".

"We don't know what actually happened," Patel told 'ESPNCricinfo' on Sunday.

"Everybody was in a shock, absolutely, but we don't know what happened exactly. The ICC officials are going to watch the footage of the last few minutes and they are going to let us know," he said.

Even when the match was on, the Bangladesh players were overly aggressive while fielding and their lead pacer Shoriful Islam sledged the Indian batsmen after every delivery.

As soon as the match ended, it became tense with Bangladeshi players rushing to the ground and displaying aggressive body language. The two teams nearly came to blows before the situation was defused by the coaching staff and on-field officials.

Patel claimed that match referee Graeme Labrooy met him and expressed regret at what transpired on the field.

"The referee came to me. He was sorry about the incident. He clarified the ICC is going to take very seriously what has happened during the match and the last session. They are going to witness the footage and they will tell us in the morning (Monday)."

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