UAE in valiant Olympics debut against Uruguay

July 27, 2012

UAE

Ajax Amsterdam’s Nicolas Lodeiro played the perfect substitute when he struck a second half match-winner to help former two-time champions Uruguay get off with a 2-1 win over debutants UAE in the football competition of the 2012 London Olympics here on Thursday.


Led by Liverpool striker Luis Suarez and the likes of Edinson Cavani of Napoli, Liverpool’s Sebastian Coates and Nicolas Lodeiro of Botafogo, the much fancied ‘Le Celeste’ were matched well by the UAE till the 56th minute strike from Lodeiro that gave them full points.


The UAE took the lead through skipper Esmail Mattar in the 23rd minute, only to see the South Americans – gold medalists in 1928 and 1932 – equalise in the 42nd minute from a Gaston Ramirez free kick.


The UAE took their time at settling down early in the match and could have taken the lead in the fifth minute itself when captain Esmail Mattar guided the ball wide after receiving from Ahmad Khalil.

Five minutes later, Omar Abdul Rahman came up with some classy display inside the area, but tripped after getting past Liverpool defender Sebastian Coates.


Better ball possession

Though the UAE enjoyed better ball possession it was Uruguay who continued pressing with four of their five corners coming in the opening 20 minutes.


Mattar rightfully opened the scoring on the evening in front of the 40,000 plus crowd when he accepted a lovely through ball from Omar Abdul Rahman, beat the off-side trap and placed into an open goal.


Two minutes later, the UAE could have doubled their lead had Khalil not taken that extra second to shoot at goal after receiving from Rashid Eisa.


Content with the lead, the UAE kept possession even as Napoli striker Cavani and Suarez fell behind to assist.


Near to second goal

The UAE nearly got a second goal in the 39th minute when a Mattar header travelled just wide off the upright following a cross from the left by Omar Abdul Rahman.


Three minutes from half-time the South Americans got the equaliser when Bologna’s Gaston Ramirez curled a free kick over the UAE defensive wall.


Uruguay re-trooped well in the second session and did well to take the lead in the 56th minute when Lodeiro hammered home from close after being set up by captain Suarez’s run down the line.


The UAE could have got a much-needed equalizer in the 78th when Khalil guided an Omar Abdul Rahman pass wide with goalkeeper Martin Campana beaten.


Uruguay then held possession and denied the UAE any further attempt on goal, barring a lame try from substitute Esmail Al Hammadi towards the end that changed nothing for the Uruguay.



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Agencies
March 6,2020

Mumbai, Mar 6: Former India batsman Virender Sehwag expressed excitement over the upcoming Road Safety World Series and said he is looking forward to playing with Sachin Tendulkar again.

"I am very excited about this tournament because I will get another chance to play with Sachin. We have played many international matches together and there was a gap and then we played an All-Star match and now again getting a chance. I am looking forward to playing with Tendulkar," Sehwag told media persons.

In the opening match of the Road Safety World Series, India Legends will play against West Indies Legends on March 7. The main aim of the Series is to create awareness about road safety and change people's mindset towards their behaviour on the roads.

Sehwag hailed the initiative of Road Safety World Series and said: "I think it is a very good initiative by the government that they are working towards creating awareness regarding road safety. Awareness regarding road safety is important for everyone."

Road Safety World Series, a five-nation T20 cricket tournament, will showcase some of the biggest names in cricket from India, Australia, Sri Lanka, West Indies, and South Africa.

Players who will feature in this series include Tendulkar, Sehwag, Brian Lara, Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Brett Lee, Brad Hodge, Jonty Rhodes, Muttiah Muralitharan, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Ajantha Mendis and many more. Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar is the Commissioner of the Series.

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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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News Network
January 18,2020

Hobart, Jan 18: In a dream start to her second innings after a two-year break, Sania Mirza lifted the WTA Hobart International trophy with partner Nadiia Kichenok after edging out Shaui Peng and Shuai Zhang in the final, here on Saturday.

The unseeded Indo-Ukrainian pair pipped the second seed Chinese team 6-4, 6-4 in one hour 21 minutes.

Playing her first tournament after giving birth to son Izhaan, the 33-year-old Sania has begun well in the Olympic year as she warmed up for the Australian Open in style.

It is Sania's 42nd WTA doubles title and first since Brisbane International trophy in 2007 with American partner Bethanie Mattek-Sands.

Sania did not compete on the WTA circuit in the entire 2018 and 2019 seasons to start a family with Pakistani cricketer husband Shoaib Malik.

Sania and Nadiia began by breaking the Chinese players in the very first game of the match but only to drop serve in the next.

The two pairs played close games towards the end and at 4-4, 40-all, Sania and Nadiia got the crucial break, earning the opportunity to serve out the set.

There was no twist in 10th game with Sania and Nadiia comfortably pocketing the first set.

The second set could not have started better for them as they broke the Chinese rivals to take early lead and consolidated the break with an easy hold.

The game of the Chinese was falling apart as they dropped serve again in the third but broke back immediately to repair some damage.

Sania and Nadiia were now feeling the heat at 0-30 in the sixth game but Peng and Zhang let them hold serve for a 4-2 lead. The Chinese though kept fighting and made it 4-4 with another break in the eighth game.

The Indo-Ukraine team raised its game when it mattered as it broke Peng and Zhang for one final time in the ninth and served out the match in the next game.

Sania and Nadiia split USD 13580 as prize money and eared 280 ranking points each for their winning effort.

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