Messi on fire while Bale back on target in Spanish La Liga

Agencies
December 10, 2018

Madrid, Dec 10: Leo Messi was at his mercurial best, scoring two free kicks and setting up Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele for further goals as FC Barcelona extended their lead at the top of La Liga with a 4-0 win away to local rivals Espanyol on Sunday.

Messi opened the scoring with a magnificent free kick in the 16th minute and created space for Ousmane Dembele to curl home Barca's second of the game.

Luis Suarez added a third on the stroke of halftime to virtually assure the win and Messi put the icing on the cake with another brilliant free kick with 25 minutes left to play.

Sevilla remain second after drawing in Valencia, but Pablo Machin's side will see the 1-1 draw as two points dropped after taking the lead through the excellent Pablo Sarabia and seeing Andre Silva hit the post with just a defender on the line to beat before Mouctar Diakhaby scored a 92nd minute equalizer for Valencia with a powerful header.

The late goal did little to satisfy the Valencia fans who protested against their tea
m's recent performances by waving white handkerchiefs from the stands.

Atletico Madrid are level on points with Sevilla after a comfortable 3-0 win at home to Deportivo Alaves.

With Diego Costa out for two months following a foot operation, Nikola Kalinic's first goal for Atletico came at the right time as he opened the scoring in the 25th minute.

Antoine Griezmann then sealed the win with a typical goal on the break as Alaves searched for an equalizer and Rodri rounded off the scoring in the closing minutes.

Real Madrid made hard work of their visit to play bottom of the table Huesca, with Gareth Bale's eighth minute goal - his first in over 800 minutes of league football, giving them a 1-0 win, although goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois also played a big part with several important saves.

Huesca remain without a home win all season, while Real Madrid move up to fourth place in the table ahead of Alaves.

Eibar and Levante shared eight goals in a thrilling 4-4 draw with Eibar fighting back from 2-1 down to take a 4-2 lead, only to see Levante pull back thanks to an own goal and Borja Mayoral's first goal since joining on loan from Real Madrid.

Valladolid got back to winning ways after four games without a win with a 2-1 victory away to Real Sociedad. Laureano Villa Suarez and Antonito put Valladoild 2-0 ahead and they did well to defend their lead after Mikel Oyarzabal equalized with just under half an hour remaining.

A penalty from Giovani Lo Celso just before the hour and a right foot shot from central defender Sidnei gave Betis a relatively straightforward 2-0 win at home to second from bottom Rayo Vallecano.

Celta Vigo deepened Villarreal's relegation worries with a 3-2 win in Villarreal's Estadio de la Ceramica.

Brais Menzez, Okay Vokusli and Maxi Gomez put Celta 3-0 ahead , but goals from Carlos Bacca in the 83rd and 87th minutes for Villarreal kept the game on a knife-edge until the last minute.

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Agencies
July 30,2020

New Delhi Jul 30: After Pakistan cricketer Umar Akmal's ban was reduced to 18 months, Danish Kaneria criticised Pakistan Cricket Board's (PCB) policies and said that the 'zero tolerance policy' applies only to him.

"Zero Tolerance policy only apply on Danish Kaneria not on others, can anybody answer the reason why I get life ban not others, Are policy applies only on cast, colour, and powerful background. I am Hindu and proud of it that's my background and my dharma," Kaneria tweeted.

Earlier on Wednesday, Akmal's three-year suspension was reduced to 18 months by an independent adjudicator, former Pakistan Supreme Court judge, Faqir Mohammad Khokhar.

On April 27, the Chairman of the Disciplinary Panel, Justice (retd) Fazal-e-Miran Chauhan, had banned the wicketkeeper-batsman for three years after finding him guilty of breaching the PCB's Anti-Corruption Code in two separate incidents.

Akmal, on May 19, filed an appeal against the three-year ban imposed on him, seeking a reduction in the duration of the sanction. He will remain suspended effectively from February 2020 till August 2021.

The batsman said he might appeal again to get the ban "reduced further".

"I am thankful to the judge for listening to my lawyers properly. I will decide about the remaining sentence and try to get it reduced further. For now I am not satisfied and will consult my lawyers and family how to take this ahead," ESPNcricinfo had quoted Akmal as saying.

"There are many players before me who made mistakes and just look at what they got and what I got. So all I say right now is thank you very much," he had added.

On the other hand, Kaneria was found guilty of spot-fixing while playing for English club Essex and was banned from the sport.

Earlier this month, Pakistan's cricket governing body 'advised' Kaneria to approach England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) if he wants to play domestic cricket after the cricketer had appealed to the PCB, seeking permission to play domestic cricket. 

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News Network
March 27,2020

New Delhi, Mar 27: India skipper Virat Kohli on Friday made a heartfelt appeal to the citizens of the country, asking them to follow social distancing as a precautionary measure against the coronavirus pandemic.
He also went on to say that over the past few days, he has seen some people still taking to the streets, and added that if people still continue to venture out, then they are not being honest with the country.
Kohli released a small video clip on Twitter, making the public appeal and captioned the post as: "Please wake up to the reality and seriousness of the situation and take responsibility. The nation needs our support and honesty"
"Today, I am talking to you as a citizen of the country. Whatever I have seen over the past few days, I have seen people not following the lockdown, it has made me feel that some people are taking the battle against COVID-19 very lightly. I request you all to please follow social distancing, whatever the government is asking you to do, please follow it," Kohli said in the video released on Twitter.
"Think about what can happen to your family members because of your negligence. Our medical experts are fighting this battle day in and day out. If you are still going out to the streets, then I don't think you are being honest to your country," he added.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi decided to impose a 21-day lockdown in the country as a precautionary measure against coronavirus.
According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of COVID-19 positive cases have risen to 724 in India (including 640 active cases, 66 cured or discharged people) and 17 deaths.
The World Health Organisation had termed the coronavirus outbreak as a pandemic on March 11. 

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News Network
March 12,2020

Miami, Mar 12: The NBA has suspended its season "until further notice" after a Utah Jazz player tested positive Wednesday for the coronavirus, a move that came only hours after the majority of the league's owners were leaning toward playing games without fans in arenas.

Now there will be no games at all, at least for the time being. A person with knowledge of the situation said the Jazz player who tested positive was center Rudy Gobert. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because neither the league nor the team confirmed the test.

"The NBA is suspending game play following the conclusion of tonight's schedule of games until further notice,'' the league said in a statement sent shortly after 9:30 p.m. EDT. "The NBA will use this hiatus to determine next steps for moving forward in regard to the coronavirus pandemic.''

The test result, the NBA said, was reported shortly before the scheduled tip-off time for the Utah at Oklahoma City game on Wednesday night was called off. Players were on the floor for warmups and tip-off was moments away when they were told to return to their locker rooms. About 30 minutes later, fans were told the game was postponed ``due to unforeseen circumstances."

Shutdown for two weeks?

Those circumstances were the league's worst-case scenario for now -- a player testing positive. A second person who spoke to AP on condition of anonymity said the league expects the shutdown to last a minimum of two weeks, but cautioned that time-frame is very fluid.

"It's a very serious time right now," Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "I think the league moved appropriately and prudently and we'll all just have to monitor the situation and see where it goes from here."

The Jazz released a statement saying a player -- they did not identify Gobert -- tested negative earlier Wednesday for flu, strep throat and an upper respiratory infection. That player's symptoms diminished as the day went along, but the decision was made to test for COVID-19 anyway. That test came back with a preliminary positive result.

"The individual is currently in the care of health officials in Oklahoma City," the Jazz said, adding that updates would come as appropriate.

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