World Cup 2014 : German football quake magnitude 7 strikes, epicentre Brazil

July 9, 2014

Germani won

Belo Horizonte, Jul 9: Brazil's World Cup dream crumbled in spectacular fashion on Tuesday in a record 7-1 semi-final defeat. Here is is a blow-by-blow account of a Germany's night of triumph:

ONE (Thomas Mueller 11')

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Brazilians wondered how their team would cope without the injured Neymar, but the absence of captain Thiago Silva, such a reassuring presence at the back, was just as big a blow.

The Brazilian defence was hopelessly exposed at the opening goal, as Toni Kroos floated in a corner from the right and Thomas Mueller found himself completely unmarked at the back post to slot home his fifth goal of the tournament.

However, the movement by Mueller and the German players was intelligent as David Luiz, who should have been marking the goalscorer, found himself blocked off and unable to make a challenge.

TWO (Miroslav Klose 23')

German2

The crumble really began as Fernandinho failed to cut out a pass from the German right, and Kroos and Mueller combined to cut through the middle of the Brazil defence.

Klose collected the ball inside the area and saw his shot from close range blocked by Julio Cesar, but he still reacted the quickest to convert the rebound.

The veteran striker confirmed himself as the greatest poacher in the history of the competition, scoring a record-breaking 16th World Cup goal to move one clear of the Brazilian Ronaldo, compounding the hosts' misery.

THREE (Toni Kroos 24')

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Almost immediately after the restart, Germany scored again through a combination of poor defending and marvellous finishing.

Nobody cut out Philipp Lahm's low centre in from the German right, and even after Mueller mis-hit his shot, the ball came to Kroos.

The Bayern Munich man's connection, first-time on the half-volley with his left foot from the edge of the area, was marvellous and Julio Cesar could do nothing.

FOUR (Toni Kroos 26')

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Fernandinho was hopelessly caught in possession just outside his own area, and Kroos and Sami Khedira took advantage to break into the area.

Khedira returned the ball to Kroos, who this time simply could not miss.

FIVE (Sami Khedira 29')

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The culmination of an extraordinary first-half burst that will go down in history came as Mats Hummels sliced right through the heart of the Brazilian team, riding unchallenged deep into the opposition half.

Germany simply walked the ball into the net this time, with Mesut Ozil providing the assist and Khedira applying the finish.

SIX (Andre Schuerrle 69')

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Brazil attacked after the break in a doomed attempt to rescue some pride, but they still had six defenders in their own area when Germany went on to add a sixth goal midway through the second half.

Schuerrle, who had replaced Klose 11 minutes earlier, still found himself in space in the box to convert Lahm's cutback, as Brazil were yet again found wanting on the left-hand side.

SEVEN (Andre Schuerrle 79')

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Mueller turned provider this time to set up Schuerrle to score again, and his delightful control was followed by an arrowing left-foot shot on the half-volley that beat Julio Cesar and went into the net off the underside of the crossbar.

Oscar's late reply for the hosts was irrelevant, with Brazil already having succumbed to their greatest ever humiliation.

Germani win

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Agencies
April 14,2020

Tokyo, Apr 14: Tokyo organizers said Tuesday they have no B Plan in the event the Olympics need to be postponed again because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Masa Takaya, the spokesman for the Tokyo Olympics, said organizers are proceeding under the assumption the Olympics will open on July 23, 2021. The Paralympics follow on Aug. 24.

Those dates were set last month by the International Olympic Committee and Japanese officials after the coronavirus pandemic made it clear the Olympics could not be held as scheduled this summer.

We are working toward the new goal, Takaya said, speaking in English on a teleconference call with journalists.

We don't have a B Plan. The severity of the pandemic and the death toll has raised questions if it will even be feasible to hold the Olympics in just over 15 months. Several Japanese journalists raised the question on the call.

All I can tell you today is that the new games' dates for both the Olympic and Paralympic Games have been just set up, Takaya said.

In that respect, Tokyo 2020 and all concerned parties now are doing their very best effort to deliver the games next year." IOC President Thomas Bach was asked about the possibility of a postponement in an interview published in the German newspaper Die Welt on Sunday.

He did not answer the question directly, but said later that Japanese organizers and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe indicated they could not manage a postponement beyond next summer at the lastest.

The Olympics draw 11,000 athletes and 4,400 Paralympic athletes and large support staffs from 206 national Olympic committees.

There are also questions about frozen travel, rebooking hotels, cramming fans into stadiums and arenas, securing venues, and the massive costs of rescheduling, which is estimated in Japan at 2 billion- 6 billion.

Tokyo 2020 CEO Toshiro Muto addressed the issue in a news conference on Friday. He is likely to be asked about it again on Thursday when local organizers and the IOC hold a teleconferene with media in Japan.

The other major question is the cost of the delay; how much will it be, and who pays? Bach said in the Sunday interview that the IOC would incur several hundred million dollars in added costs. Under the so-called Host City Agreement, Japan is liable for the vast majority of the expenses.

This is impossible to say for now, Takaya, the spokesman said.

It is not very easy to estimate the exact amount of the games' additional costs, which have been impacted by the postponement."

Tokyo says it's spending 12.6 billion to organize the Olympics. But a Japanese government audit published last year says the costs are twice that much. Of the total spending, 5.6 billion in private money. The rest is from Japanese governments.

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Agencies
August 5,2020

New Delhi, Aug 5: Indian cricketers Suresh Raina and Harmanpreet Kaur were on Wednesday appointed as the global brand ambassadors of the WTF Sports.

Raina is also joining the brand as a Strategic Partner. WTF Sports, a fantasy sports gaming platform, was today formally launched in India and globally.

The announcement was made through a web conference with prominent cricket host, Vikram Sathaye moderating and hosting the webinar and Vinit Bhatia, Manit Parikh and Yash Kadakia Co-Founders - India and Global, WTF Sports introducing the cricketers as the Global Brand Ambassadors.

Kaur said it was a perfect fit for her and she can use her strategy and experience while playing.
"WTF Sports was the perfect fit with me, I can use strategy and my experience while playing, I've actually learnt to strategize better as I've played along. Additionally, when we were under lockdown and I couldn't really practice, it was fun to come on the platform and feel like I'm still playing," Kaur said in a statement.

On the other hand, Raina said, "It is exciting to be a part of a fantasy sports platform like WTF Sports not just as an ambassador but also as the strategic partner, it is everything that I embody and what I believe in, it's fierce, fun and competitive."

The app currently hosts three major sports, multiple playing modes, and exciting contests, ensuring that sports fans can get more skillful by letting them strategize and use their sports knowledge into rewarding behaviour.

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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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