World Cup 2014: All you need to know about giant-killing Costa Rica

June 21, 2014

Rio de Janeiro, Jun 21: When Group D earned the moniker of the Group of Death the 2014 World Cup, nobody gave a thought to little Costa Rica. They were assumed to be collateral damage as the three former champions in the group – Italy, England and Uruguay - did battle for the right to progress to the second round.

costa ricaExcept someone forget to tell Costa Rica they should just lie down and play dead. The Central American team that could made sure the group lived up to its moniker by beating Uruguay and Italy to go through to the knockouts for only the second time in its history. That means England is already out of the tournament and either Italy or Uruguay will soon follow.

Here are 10 things you need to know about the Costa Rican football team:

- Costa Rica were ranked 28th in the world coming into the tournament. Their three opponents in the group are all ranked in the top 10.

- They finished second in their qualifying group for the 2014 World Cup behind the United States.

- Costa Rica last made the second round in 1990, the year they qualified for the World Cup for the first time. This is the team’s fourth World Cup, which makes them the most successful team from Central America.

- Costa Rica is also the first Central American team to win a game at the World Cup, beating Scotland 1-0 in 1990. They finished second in their group behind Brazil that year before losing to Czechoslovakia in the round of 16.

- Costa Rica is the third most successful team in the CONCACAF region, after Mexico and the United States. They have won the CONCACAF tournament three times –1963, 1969 and 1989.

- According to the International Business Times, the total market value of the Costa Rican team is 32 million euros, ranking them 29th out of the 32 teams in the World Cup. In comparison, Italy’s market value is 350 euros, England’s is 362 million euros and Uruguay’s 236 million euros. Clearly, money doesn’t always buy better football.

- Joel Campbell, who is on contract at Arsenal, is the only Costa Rican player in any of Europe’s top five leagues. Bryan Ruiz, who scored the winner against Italy, used to play for Fulham but is now with PSV Eindhoven in the Dutch Eredivisie

- The foundation of Jorge Luis Pinto’s side is a stingy back line. Costa Rica have conceded just seven goals in their qualifying campaign. They have conceded just one in two games so far in this World Cup.

- Costa Rica finished 31st out of 32 teams in the 2006 World Cup, the last time they played in the tournament.

- This is Columbian coach Pinto’s second spell with Costa Rica. He coached them the first time in 2004-05, with much less success.

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Agencies
May 31,2020

London, May 31: "Jacques Kallis, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli," replied umpire Ian Gould when he was asked to name the three best batsmen he loved watching when he was officiating as an umpire.

The former ICC elite umpire said that he was unlucky to not watch Ponting bat as much as he would have liked to.

"Jacques Kallis. I loved watching Jacques. He was a very, very fine player. Sachin. And probably Virat. I was unlucky in some respects. I didn't see the best of Ricky Ponting. He was an outstanding character, outstanding captain, such a proud Australian," ESPNCricinfo quoted Gould as saying.

"But his career was just starting to wane as I came on the scene. But he was incredibly helpful, so I'm disappointed I have to leave him out. Jacques Kallis, I could sit and watch all day, Virat, the same. And Sachin, if you want someone to bat for your life, he was the man," he added.

Gould had retired from the ICC's panel of elite umpires in 2019, after standing in more than 250 international matches over a 13-year career.

Over the years, comparisons between Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar have been growing and many have picked the current Indian skipper to break the records set by Tendulkar.

Tendulkar called time on his career after registering 100 international centuries, while Kohli has 70 centuries across all formats.

While, Kallis played 166 Tests, 328 ODIs and 25 T20Is for South Africa and he is often viewed as the greatest all-rounder the game has seen.

Many pundits of the game find it hard to pick between him and Sir Garfield Sobers.

Across his career, Kallis scored 25,534 runs in his career and he also managed to take 577 wickets.

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Agencies
March 13,2020

New Delhi, Mar 13: The remaining ODI series between India and South Africa has been called-off amidst the rising concerns over the coronavirus pandemic.

"The second and third ODI between India and South Africa in Lucknow and Kolkata respectively are called off," the BCCI source told media persons.

The first match of the series was abandoned due to rain and wet outfield without a toss at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) stadium on Thursday.

The second and third ODI was scheduled to be played at Lucknow and Kolkata on March 15 and 18 respectively. Earlier on Thursday, the BCCI has decided to play the remaining two ODIs behind closed doors.

"After holding discussions with the MYAS and MOHFW, the BCCI on Thursday announced that the remaining two One-day Internationals (ODIs) of the three-match series of South Africa tour of India, 2020, will be played without any public gathering, including spectators," the BCCI had said in a statement.

The Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry has advised all the federations to avoid large gatherings.

World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday had declared the coronavirus outbreak a 'pandemic' and expressed deep concerns.

The coronavirus disease was first detected in Wuhan in China's Hubei province, in late December, and has since spread worldwide.

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News Network
January 24,2020

Auckland, Jan 24: K L Rahul and Shreyas Iyer smashed quick-fire half-centuries, while skipper Virat Kohli made 45 as India defeated New Zealand by six wickets in the first T20 International to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series here on Friday.

Chasing a challenging 204-run target, Rahul smashed 56 off 27 balls and together with Kohli shared 99 runs for the second wicket to lay the foundation for the chase.

Later, Iyer (58 not out off 29 balls) and Manish Pandey (14 not out) remained unbeaten as India chased down the target with an over to spare.

Earlier, Colin Munro, Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor smashed scintillating half-centuries to power New Zealand to a challenging 203 for five.

Opener Munro blasted six fours and two sixes in his 42-ball 59, while skipper Williamson treated the Indian bowlers with equal disdain, hitting them out of the park four times in his 26-ball 51.

Taylor then clobbered an unbeaten 54 off 27 balls. His innings was laced with three sixes and as many fours.

Opener Martin Guptill also chipped in with a 19-ball 30.

Earlier, India skipper Virat Kohli won the toss and decided to field.

For India, Jasprit Bumrah (1/), Shardul Thakur (1/44), Yuzvendra Chahal (1/32), Shivam Dube (1/24) and Ravindra Jadeja (1/18) snapped one wicket each.

Brief Score:

New Zealand: 203 for 5 in 20 overs (Colin Munro 59, Kane Williamson 51, Ross Taylor 54; Jasprit Bumrah 1/31).

India: 204 for 4 in 19 overs (Shreyas Iyer 58 not out, K L Rahul 56, Virat Kohli 45; Ish Sodhi 2/36).

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