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India get Olympic boost with Azlan Shah bronze

June 4, 2012
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India ended a three-match losing streak against Great Britain by beating them 3-1 at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament on Sunday to secure a bronze medal, which is exactly the kind of boost Michael Nobbs's men needed ahead of the Olympics in July-August.

India went into the match having lost to the Britons thrice - twice at the London Olympics test event and once in the league phase here. But the team showed no nerves whatsoever in a display of attacking hockey to exact a sweet revenge.

Shivendra Singh, Sandeep Singh and Tushar Khandker were on the score sheet for India, after Ashley Jackson had put his team ahead in the first half which ended at 1-0 in favour of Great Britain.

India started off with a dominating intent, with Shivendra getting two opportunities in the first 10 minutes to put his team ahead. But on both the occasions, the final touch eluded the star Indian striker. Continuous forays into the British circle resulted in a penalty corner for India, but Danish Mujtaba erred with his stop and the opportunity was wasted.

Shivendra and SK Uthappa came close to scoring past the 15-minute mark but were again left to rue a missed chance. Great Britain got their first penalty corner, against the run of play, in the last minute of the first half, which Jackson converted neatly to put his team in the lead.

Jackson almost scored again in the opening minutes of the second half but the shot was deflected wide by a rushing Indian defence.

India then started getting a few moves together that gave them an equaliser through Shivendra in the 43rd minute. Shivendra was the beneficiary of a pass from Uthappa, who made the goal possible with an amazing display of speed, skill and control. A second penalty corner came India's way in the 52nd minute that put them ahead, courtesy the conversion by Sandeep.

In a desperate move to find the equaliser, the Britishers took their goalkeeper off in the last three minutes and replaced him with another attacker up front. However, the move proved fatal as Sandeep's cheeky scoop in the 69th minute found an unmarked Khandker lurking in the circle, and he just had to tap the ball into the empty goal to make it 3-1.


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News Network
May 27,2020

Bengaluru, May 27: Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar has revealed that he was never able to dismiss Inzamam-ul-Haq in the nets.

The Rawalpindi Express praised the former Pakistan skipper and said Inzamam could see the ball one second earlier than the rest of the batsmen could.

"Honestly, I don't think I could ever get him (Inzamam) out, he had the time and I always felt he saw the ball a second earlier than the rest of the batsmen because I had a complicated action unlike Brett Lee, I felt I could never dismiss Inzamam-ul-Haq," Akhtar told Sanjay Manjrekar in a videocast hosted by ESPNCricinfo.

"I couldn't get him out in the nets, I think he could see the ball a second before anyone else," he added.

Inzamam played 120 Tests and 378 ODIs for Pakistan.

He finished his career with 20,569 runs across all formats.

The right-handed batsman called time on his career in 2007 and he played his last Test against South Africa in Lahore.

On the other hand, Akhtar played 224 matches for Pakistan in international cricket and took 444 wickets across all formats.

The Rawalpindi Express last played an ODI in 2011 as he played against New Zealand in the 50-over World Cup.

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Agencies
February 7,2020

Sydney, Feb 7: "I received a message from Brett Lee," said former India cricketer Sachin Tendulkar on Friday when asked as to who recruited him to take part in the Bushfire relief fundraiser match.

Tendulkar will be coaching the Ponting XI in the upcoming Bushfire Bash on Sunday, February 9 at the Junction Oval.

"I received a message from Brett Lee. Brett said that Kevin (Roberts, Cricket Australia's chief executive) would like to be in touch with you. It was a no-brainer. From the moment I was asked, I said, 'yes I'm more than happy to come here," cricket.com.au quoted Tendulkar as saying.

Bushfire Bash was originally slated to be played at Sydney on Saturday but weather forecast prompted Cricket Australia to reschedule the game to ensure the best possible pitch and outfield conditions for the final of Big Bash League.

The match will be played to raise funds and all match profits will go to the Australian Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery Fund.

"This is an alarming situation, it's catastrophic - that's an understatement. You see the number of lives it has affected, not only humans but also wildlife which sometimes people don't talk about. That is equally important. I'm so happy I'm here in whatever way to support the cause, to raise money," Tendulkar said.

Ponting XI: Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting (c), Elyse Villani, Brian Lara, Phoebe Litchfield, Brad Haddin (wk), Brett Lee, Wasim Akram, Dan Christian, Luke Hodge. Coach: Sachin Tendulkar

Gilchrist XI: Adam Gilchrist (c & wk), Shane Watson, Brad Hodge, Yuvraj Singh, Alex Blackwell, Andrew Symonds, Courtney Walsh, Nick Riewoldt, Peter Siddle, Fawad Ahmed (one more to be announced). Coach: Tim Paine

The Bushfire Bash exhibition match will be a 10-overs-per-side contest, with a five-over Powerplay, no bowling restrictions, and batters unable to get out from the first ball they face.

Bowlers will not have over limits, fielders can sub on and off as it suits, while captains will have the ability to sub batters in and out during an innings.

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Agencies
July 31,2020

Northamptonshire, Jul 31: Mexican Formula One driver Sergio Perez has tested positive for coronavirus, and as a result, he will miss the British Grand Prix.

The Racing Point driver was absent from the circuit on Thursday after self-isolating following what his team called an "inconclusive" test. Perez then re-tested later in the day and it returned positive.

Formula 1 is following a strict testing regime as part of the safety protocols put in place when racing resumed earlier this month, and this is the first time a driver has tested positive.

"Perez has entered self-quarantine in accordance with the instructions of the relevant public health authorities, and will continue to follow the procedure mandated by those authorities," Formula 1 and the FIA said in a statement.

"With the assistance of the local organiser of the British Grand Prix, local health authorities and the FIA COVID-19 delegate, a full track and trace initiative has been undertaken and all close contacts have been quarantined," the statement added.

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