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If PCB has its way, the deferred Asia Cup would be staged in September-October 2006 and a final decision in this regard would be taken in the January 4 Asian Cricket Council meeting in Delhi.
   The News quoted an anonymous Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) official as saying that the tournament, deferred after its Indian counterpart BCCI desired so, would be held in September-October 2006.
   ‘All the four Test playing nations of the ACC have some free time slots available in late September and October and we feel that is the best time to reschedule the Asia Cup,’ the official said.
   The tournament was originally scheduled from February 16 to 18 but the new BCCI set-up sought a postponement, stating that the Indian cricketers needed rest period before their home series against England in February.
   The official also admitted that with change of guards in the BCCI, cricketing relation with India would be different.
   ‘The new (BCCI) set-up is not in favour of Afro-Asian cricket or an excess of cricket between Pakistan and India and wants to schedule everything keeping in mind the ICC Future Tours Programme (FTP).’
   ‘We also believe that if we have too many Indo-Pak cricket matches it would rob the series of interest,’ he said.
   The official also admitted that future of the Asian Test Championship looked bleak because of the packed FTP.

Australia’s high-profile leg-spinner Shane Warne is a master at pressuring umpires in his appeals for a wicket, South African coach Mickey Arthur said Thursday.
   The world’s top Test wicket-taker bowled Australia close to victory in the second Test with 3-43 on the fourth day. The Proteas were 99 for six and trailing by 266 runs heading into the final day.
   Warne’s aggressive appealing has been a hot topic this summer with the touring West Indian and South African teams and Arthur was the latest to voice his opinion.
   ‘To be blatantly honest I think they (Aussies) do put pressure on the umpires and they’re masters at it,’ Arthur told reporters.
   ‘Especially Warney. He is a master of it. I guess he has an aura about him.
   ‘He is a world champion bowler and if we had guys like him we would putting pressure on them (umpires).
   ‘I can never say it’s wrong, but they do (put pressure on). Warney is good value out there and he does put pressure on umpires.
   ‘I can’t say if that’s right or wrong because if I had a guy like him I’d also be putting pressure on umpires.’
   On whether it influenced umpires’ decision-making, Arthur said: ‘No. Look, I think they’ve got it quite right today. I think you can see that they were spot on and their decisions were really good.’
   Arthur said his players were crestfallen by their second-innings collapse. The Australians are poised to take a one-nil lead in the series heading into next week’s final Test on the spin-friendly Sydney wicket.
   ‘We are pretty down about it. It has been a titanic struggle. We have knocked them but haven’t been able to get them down and they have come back harder at us,’ he said.
   ‘I guess, that’s the sign of a champion side, in that just when you think you’re going to land the killer blow, they come back harder.’
   Arthur said something has to give under the pressure applied by Ricky Ponting’s Australians.
   ‘When you play under that sort of pressure, and some of our guys are still young and are a young developing team, to play under continual pressure for eight days, something had to give.
   ‘I thought Australia took the initiative early today and held the sway for the day. I guess, the pressure gave way today,’ Arthur said.
   ‘But it’s not over yet. Anything can happen. We will go to Sydney a far stronger outfit. Our bounceability is quite strong.’

Andrew Symonds featured with both bat and ball on Thursday to propel Australia to the brink of victory over South Africa at the close of the fourth day of the second Test.
   With one day remaining South Africa were 99 for six in their second innings chasing 366 to win.
   Symonds, under pressure to retain his Test place, smashed a Test best 72 then dismissed Jacques Kallis (9) and Jacques Rudolph (4).
   He combined with Matthew Hayden (137) in a 124-run partnership off 93 balls in just 66 minutes after lunch to help Australia to 321 for seven declared.
   When South Africa batted, Symonds took two for six from four overs and leg spinner Shane Warne grabbed the wickets of A.B. de Villiers (8), Herschelle Gibbs (9) and Mark Boucher (5).
   Resuming on 110 for two, Australia lost Brad Hodge (24) and Mike Hussey (31) before Hayden and Symonds went on the offensive after lunch.
   Their assault on the South African attack, missing Makhaya Ntini who has been ruled out of the third Test with a knee injury, allowed captain Ricky Ponting to declare with 45 minutes remaining in the second session.
   Ponting had been criticised for delaying the declaration and not giving his bowlers enough time to dismiss the South Africans in the drawn first Test.
   Symonds’ first scoring shot was a six over long off then Hayden, who had been on 86 not out at lunch, scored his 25th Test century when he square cut Shaun Pollock for four.
   The pair then set about the South African attack, smashing several boundaries before Hayden mistimed a pull shot off Kallis and wicketkeeper Boucher took the steepling catch.
   Symonds, who had smashed five fours and six sixes in his 54-ball innings, was well caught by Andre Nel running around the mid-wicket boundary two balls later.
   His six sixes are a record by a batsman in a Test innings at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. India’s Virender Shewag hit five in his 195 in 2003.
   Gilchrist was the third victim in Kallis’s 11th over when he skied a catch to Prince in the deep the ball after Symonds’ dismissal. Kallis finished with three for 58.
   Smith and de Villiers began solidly but a stumping by Gilchrist of the right-handed de Villiers off Warne with the score on 39 sparked a collapse.
   Smith was caught by Gilchrist six runs later before Gibbs was bowled by Warne to leave South Africa in trouble at 58 for three.
   Kallis followed six runs later when he got a faint touch to a Symonds delivery and was caught by Gilchrist before Rudolph was bowled by Symonds with the score on 72 for five.

India’s women cricketers on Thursday began their Asia Cup defence convincingly, defeating Sri Lanka by ten wickets at the Gymkhana ground.
   India, who beat Sri Lanka in the two-nation first Asia Cup in 2003, raced to 118-0 in 27.3 overs after bundling their opponents out for a meager 115 in 48.5 overs.
   Host Pakistan, the third team competing in the double-league event, lost to Sri Lanka by 14 runs in the opening match on Wednesday.
   Off-spinner Nooshin Al-khadeer with 3-11 and leg-break bowler Reema Malhotra (3-31) rocked the Sri Lankans, who failed to build any partnership. Chamari Pologampola top-scored with 23.
   India finished runners-up to Australia in the World Cup early this year and are Asia’s top-ranked women’s team. Karuna Jain with 52 and Jaya Sharma 58 remained undefeated as they cruised to an easy win.
   India now take on Pakistan on Friday.
   All three teams face each other twice with the top two teams playing in the January 4 final.
   Pakistan is hosting its first international cricket event for women after the country’s cricket board formed a women’s section early this year.

Buoyed by a perfect 10-wicket victory in the previous match, Mohammedan Sporting Club will be hoping to break the unbeaten streak of Old DOHS when the sides meet today in the seventh round match of the Aktel Premier Cricket League at the Fatullah Stadium.
   Reigning champions DOHS are the only team in the league yet to taste a defeat having played six matches, but popular giants Mohammedans are not far behind with five victories beside their name.
   Mohammedans have been sharing the point table jointly with their neighbours Victoria, who will face Brothers Union in the seventh round. The significance of the match, scheduled at BKSP cannot be ignored as Brothers also have four wins to their credential.
   Apart from the clashes, the other four matches of the round could well be one-sided affairs considering the difference of strength between the opposing sides. Winner in four matches, Bangladesh Biman will take on Indira Road at Bogra as Abahani with three wins, play Agrani Bank at another BKSP pitch.
   Champions and runners-up in the First Division league season, Kalabagan and Sonargaon respectively, face off at Dhanmondi while City Club meet Orient at Comilla.

National batsman Aftab Ahmed will be travelling to Bangkok today to treat the Hepatitis B virus he has been suffering from for the past one month.
   The Bangladesh Cricket Board arranged his trip. He will meet Dr Abhasnee Sobhonslidsuk, an expert on gastroenterology & hepatology, at the Bumrungrad Hospital on Saturday.

Former cricket great Wasim Akram Thursday advised Pakistan to prepare bouncy tracks in next month’s home series against India to unnerve visitors’ strong batting line up.
   ‘The advantage of pitches is with Pakistan, they have a transformed Shoaib Akhtar who can rock the Indians on hard pitches,’ the former Pakistan captain told AFP.
   Akhtar, considered to be the world’s fastest bowler, took 17 wickets to help Pakistan beat favourite England 2-0 in a Test series early this month.
   ‘With his pace and accuracy Akhtar can target any Indian batsman, and more so Sourav Ganguly,’ said Akram, who took 414 Tests and a world record of 502 one-day wickets.
   Former India captain Ganguly was selected for the series against Pakistan after his ouster in the last Test match of India’s home series against Sri Lanka created a public furore.
   Akram said Pakistan would have to play positive cricket to avenge the home series defeat it suffered when India last toured Pakistan in 2004, their first since 1989-90.
   India won the Test series 2-1 and the one-day series 3-2, their first wins on Pakistani soil since they started playing against their neighbours in 1952.
   Pakistan, however, salvaged some pride by levelling a three-Test series 1-1 and beating India 4-2 in the one-day series earlier this year.
   ‘Pakistan is better organised than a year ago and can avenge their 2004 home defeat, but for that they will have to play positive,’ Akram said.
   The 39-year-old Akram, regarded as the best left-arm paceman to play the game, said Pakistan were better organised under English coach Bob Woolmer than India under Australian Greg Chappell.
   ‘Woolmer is now the number one coach in the world, he has infused fighting spirit and consistency in the team which wasn’t Pakistan’s forte two years ago,’ Akram said.
   Akram praised Inzamam-ul-Haq’s captaincy and said he had given confidence to the players.
   ‘Now every player knows that his place is secure in the team, if he has the confidence of the captain who is also at his best form.
   ‘Inzamam, Akhtar and leg-spinner Danish Kaneri are key to Pakistan’s success,’ he said.
   A five-member Indian security team returned home Thursday after inspecting the match venues and a final tour itinerary is likely to be announced shortly.
   India are scheduled to play three Tests and five one-day games.

Now he is entering his own golden years, Tiger Woods’s sights are firmly fixed on eclipsing the man known as the Golden Bear.
   Woods, who celebrates his 30th birthday today, became only the second player after Jack Nicklaus to win each of the major championships at least twice when he landed the Open at St Andrews in July.
   But it is Nicklaus’s dazzling record of 18 major titles and his widely regarded status as the greatest player in the history of the game that are Woods’s real targets.
   Even though he has already surpassed all his expectations by collecting 10 grand slam victories, moving up to third place in the all-time standings behind Nicklaus and Walter Hagen (11), Woods knows golfing immortality is within his grasp.
   ‘Man, I tell you what, when I first started playing the tour, I didn’t think I’d have this many majors before the age of 30. There’s no way. No one ever has,’ the American told reporters after his victory at St Andrews.
   ‘Usually the golden years are in your 30s for a golfer. Hopefully that will be the case for me.’
   Woods first caused a stir when he shot 48 for nine holes at the tender age of three.
   He became the youngest winner of the US amateur as an 18-year-old before going on to become the first man to win three consecutive US amateur titles.
   Woods breakthrough triumph in a major came at the 1997 US Masters. Not only did he become the youngest winner of the famous Green Jacket, his 12-shot margin of victory is also the largest in Augusta National history.
   Over the course of the next eight years, Woods played a brand of aggressive golf rarely seen before on the international stage to accumulate three more Green Jackets, two US Opens, two British Opens and two US PGA championships.
   His playing peers now believe that if anyone can surpass Nicklaus’s achievements, Tiger can.
   ‘I played with him in the US Open in 1995 at Shinnecock Hills and there was a lot of raw talent there,’ said Zimbabwean Nick Price, who won the 1994 British Open and the 1992 and 1994 US PGA championships.
   ‘Over the last two or three years, every time I’ve played with him it seems like he’s just rounding off an edge here or there. I think he’s going to continue to improve, too.
   ‘It’s just a question of...can he keep going like Nicklaus did?,’ added former world number one Price.
   ‘The way he looks right now, he’ll be able to. My hat’s off to him.’
   Colin Montgomerie, an eight-times European number one, said: ‘You have to beat Tiger (in the majors these days).
   ‘If he stays fit and healthy, he has 10 of these majors now and we all know Jack had 18 and Tiger’s over halfway now. It’s amazing.
   ‘Can Tiger achieve the impossible? He’s on his way and all credit to him.’

Former captain Waqar Younis believes the Indian selectors have taken a step back by selecting Sourav Ganguly for next month’s gruelling cricket tour of Pakistan.
   ‘I think the Indian selectors have taken a step back by picking Sourav because he is certainly not a player in form. I saw him batting in the New Delhi Test (against Sri Lanka) and he was clearly struggling to put bat to the ball’, Younis said.
   ‘I don’t think you can select any player who is in such a bad form in his career. Somehow, he does not look like capable of scoring runs,’ Younis, who played 87 Tests and 262 one-dayers for Pakistan, said.
   Ganguly was picked in the 16-man squad amid drama and suspense after being left out of the third Test in Ahmedabad despite scoring 39 and 40 in Delhi.
   The former captain did not do any good to his cause when he missed the Ranji Trophy game for Bengal against Gujarat but escaped sanctions after the BCCI accepted his explanation. He, along with three others, were allowed to play the next round of Ranji Trophy and were also granted permission to join the team in Lahore two days later.
   Younis said the Indian selectors had shown short sightedness and had also proved they could not think like the Australians. ‘The Australian selectors threw in three to four youngsters against
   South Africa instead of relying on big names. The teams are not built just on talent but how that talent is used and nurtured.’

Pakistan cricket authorities are concerned over the existing deadlock in Zimbabwe cricket and will press for a detailed discussion on this issue at the emergency meeting of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in Dubai next month.
   Shaharyar Khan, Chairman Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), told The News on Wednesday that the concern stemmed from the fact that Zimbabwe were due to tour Pakistan next season.
   ‘The situation there (in Zimbabwe) is alarming and if it persists like this then who is going to play for them? Because all their players have refused to play under the present set-up,’ Shaharyar said. ‘We need to resolve this crisis as soon as possible because the situation in Zimbabwe obviously affects the Future Tours Programme (FTP) of the ICC.’
   The ICC has constantly said it would only interfere in the Zimbabwe cricket crisis if asked to do so by that country’s cricket administration. The ICC has constantly maintained the crisis in Zimbabwe cricket is purely an internal matter of the Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU) and they were best equipped to sort it out themselves.
   Ironically, the movement by the players and provincial cricket bodies in Zimbabwe is being led against two senior ZCU officials - President Peter Chingoka and Managing Director Ozais Bvute - who, their detractors say, have destroyed the game in Zimbabwe and are involved in alleged misuse of funds.
   Tatenda Taibu, Zimbabwe captain, resigned last month and refused to continue to play for the national team followed by other players who say they will not play for the country unless the ZCU officials are removed and face an independent inquiry.
   Shaharyar said the situation in Zimbabwe was alarming for other ICC members as well and would figure prominently in next month’s meeting to be attended by the heads of all full member boards and other important figures.
   ‘I think even the ICC now wants to move forward on this issue and tackle it urgently. How they do that will be discussed at the meeting. But we want to know where Zimbabwe cricket will stand in the next eight to ten months because they are due to tour Pakistan in September next year. We’ve to look at alternate arrangements in a crisis situation,’ he added. Shaharyar also added Pakistan would back any proposal for the ICC to step in and resolve the crisis.
   He said another pressing issue to be discussed at the meeting is the concern of the ICC and member countries that its finances will be seriously reduced as a result of a decision by the Indian government to force the BCCI to make private companies share TV broadcasts.

The itinerary for India’s tour to Pakistan has undergone an alteration due to security concerns. The first ODI, to be played at Peshawar on February 6, will now be played in Rawalpindi on the same date. The second ODI, on February 8, will now be held at Peshawar instead of Rawalpindi where it was originally scheduled.
   The switch in venues has come about because of concerns that there would have been a shortage in security personnel for Peshawar on February 6. Salim Altaf, PCB Director explained to Cricinfo: ‘The first week of February coincides with Ashura, a ten-day period in the Islamic month of Muharram, which generally requires extra security manpower to be placed around Islamabad and Rawalpindi, particularly. If we had held the game in Peshawar first, there would have been a shortage of security manpower. It’s just a venue switch as it enables us to get the right amount of security for the Peshawar ODI.’
   Altaf also confirmed that this change was accepted by the visiting Indian security delegation who return to India today after a five-day trip to venues around Pakistan. The team was in Lahore to sign a Memorandum of Understanding for the tour. The request for the venue switch, say officials, was made by security agencies. Altaf said the final itinerary would now be announced only after the Indian security delegation returns and submits a final report to the Indian Home Ministry.

A spectator was ejected during Australia’s second cricket Test against South Africa here this week for making racist taunts, the Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC) said Thursday.
   Similar incidents at last week’s first Test in Perth led to Australian captain Ricky Ponting condemning the behaviour of some of the crowd towards the South African players.
   ‘A person was evicted yesterday for using racist and offensive language,’ MCC chief executive Stephen Gough told ABC radio Thursday.
   ‘I believe this is the first time this has happened at the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground).’
   A Melbourne Cricket Club spokesman said details of the latest incident had only emerged early Thursday and the organisation would be seeking further information.
   The South African team complained last week about racial slurs and chants directed at players Ashwell Prince, Garnett Kruger, Shaun Pollock, Justin Kemp and Makhaya Ntini during the third day’s play in the Perth Test.
   The tourists’ management sought extra security measures to help ensure no repetition of the abuse during the remaining two Tests in Melbourne and Sydney.
   Cricket Australia issued a statement last week saying it had a zero tolerance approach to racist behaviour by anyone involved with cricket, including spectators.
   It said spectators who made racist comments would be thrown out of the ground immediately.
   ‘There’s no room in sport for racism whatsoever,’ Ponting said after the Perth Test.
   ‘The players are all very aware of that, the crowd needs to be aware of that and enjoy the game for what it is.’

For former Wimbledon semi-finalist and world number four Jelena Dokic, time spent on court is her main focus as she resumes her comeback at the New Zealand Women’s Tennis Classic in Auckland next week.
   ‘For me, it’s important just to get some matches in—that’s my main goal,’ Australia’s prodigal daughter said on arrival here Wednesday.
   She is now ranked in the mid-300s and is minus her controversial father and former coach, Damir.
   ‘Hopefully, I’ll do that here. The first match will be the toughest. I haven’t had the feel of a tournament for a long time but I’m really looking to being here again and to playing.’
   Dokic’s last tournament was in August and her last WTA event was back in May.
   She was awarded a wildcard for the Classic, which begins on Monday, and said she was feeling no pressure because she had nothing to lose.

Indian captain Rahul Dravid was the highest ranked Indian at ninth place in the official one-day international rankings for batsmen, while Irfan Pathan and Harbhajan Singh were at seventh and 10th spot among bowlers.
   Dravid had 702 points in a list headed by Australia captain Ricky Ponting (803), according to an International Cricket Council (ICC) statement here.
   Virender Sehwag (18/677) and Sachin Tendulkar (joint 20th with Sri Lankan
   Sanath Jayasuriya with 664) were in the top 20 in the batsmen’s list.
   Pathan shared the seventh spot with Sri Lankan pacer Chaminda Vaas with 697 points, while veteran Australian speedster
   Glenn McGrath led the list with 829. Harbhajan had 684 points.
   ICC ODI Rankings:
   Batsmen:
   1 Ricky Ponting (Australia) 803
   2 Adam Gilchrist (Australia) 782
   3 Graeme Smith (S Africa) 778
   4 A Symonds (Australia) 726
   5 M Yousuf (Pakistan) 725
   6 Chris Gayle (West Indies) 718
   7 Inzamam-ul-Haq (Pakistan) 708
   8 Michael Clarke (Australia) 704
   9 Rahul Dravid (India) 702
   10 KSangakkara (Sri Lanka) 698

Nathan Astle has been recalled to New Zealand’s squad for the one-day series against Sri Lanka after captain Stephen Fleming withdrew from Saturday’s opener to be present at the birth of his first child.
   Vice-captain Daniel Vettori will now lead the side.
   ‘We wish Stephen and (his wife) Kelly all the best and look forward to Stephen’s return later in the series,’ New Zealand team manager Lindsay Crocker said in a statement.
   Vettori captained the side during the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series against
   Australia earlier this
   month when Fleming missed two contests after having a benign tumour removed from his face.
   Although he is one of New Zealand’s most successful one-day batsmen, Astle was originally dropped ahead of the four-match Sri Lanka series in order to rediscover his form in domestic cricket.
   The first match is in Queenstown on Saturday, with the following matches in Christchurch on January 3, Wellington on January 6 and Napier two days later.

Chelsea extended their Premier League lead to 11 points after Joe Cole earned the champions a 1-0 win over Manchester City and rivals Manchester United were held 2-2 by Birmingham City on Wednesday.
   European champions Liverpool ran out 3-1 winners over Everton, who finished with nine men, in the Merseyside derby at Goodison Park to close within four points of United.
   There were plenty of goals in London where Arsenal crushed Portsmouth 4-0, Fulham drew 3-3 with Aston Villa and Wigan Athletic beat West Ham 2-0. West Bromwich Albion were surprise 2-0 winners over Tottenham Hotspur at the Hawthorns.
   Chelsea, whose only league defeat last season came at the City of Manchester Stadium, had to wait until the 79th minute for the matchwinning tap-in from Cole after an Eidur Gudjohnsen shot was parried.
   'It's probably the toughest game we've had all season,' Cole told Sky Sports.
   'But we passed the ball well and in the end we deserved to win... and it was a great win tonight, especially with Manchester United dropping points.'
   Cole's fellow England midfielder Frank Lampard missed the match due to illness, meaning his record for consecutive Premier League games has ended at 164.
   It was a frustrating night for Alex Ferguson's United, who led twice against Birmingham through Dutchman Ruud van Nistelrooy and England strike partner Wayne Rooney.
   They were pegged back for a draw by a side battling relegation after a late equaliser by Walter Pandiani which left them on 41 points, compared to Chelsea's 52, from 19 games.
   'They've worked really hard for their point and we're disappointed to have given leads away twice in the game - our defending on the last one wasn't good enough,' Ferguson told Sky Sports News.
   'Overall, it was a fair result.'
   Liverpool stay third after a ninth league win in a row but closed in on United with 37 points from 17 games, three points ahead of Spurs and Wigan.
   Liverpool captain Steve Gerrard did the damage, setting up their first goal for Peter Crouch and scoring the second. James Beattie pulled one back for Everton but a solo effort by Liverpool's French striker Djibril Cisse sealed the win.
   Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez was not fully satisfied with their performance.
   'I am very happy, but at times in the first half Everton caused us problems in the air and we were not winning second balls,' he told the club's website.
   'We can play a lot better and have played better this season.'
   Everton had Phil Neville dismissed in the 68th minute and Spanish midfielder Mikel Arteta sent off in stoppage time.
   Their only consolation was that Beattie's goal denied Liverpool a club record of nine league matches without conceding.
   Tottenham coach Martin Jol, a former West Brom player, made an unhappy return to his old club as Spurs went down to two goals from Nigerian striker Nwankwo Kanu.
   Kanu's old club, Arsenal, moved up to sixth place on 32 points from 18 games with their thumping win at Highbury.
   All the goals came in the first half - with captain Thierry Henry scoring twice, including a penalty, and Dennis Bergkamp and Jose Antonio Reyes getting the others.
   Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, whose side were beaten three times in the league earlier this month, was in optimistic mood.
   'I have always said there is a lot of potential in the team and we can grow quickly because we have many young players and from month to month they're playing better,' he told Sky Sports.
   Freezing temperatures across the country put paid to three fixtures - Bolton Wanderers v Middlesbrough, Blackburn Rovers v Sunderland and Newcastle United v Charlton Athletic.

The best soccer player in the world thinks he needs to get better.
   Brazil's Ronaldinho, who won his second straight FIFA World Player of the Year award earlier this month, said Thursday that he is not completely satisfied with his game.
   'I still need to improve,' Ronaldinho told Globo TV in Brazil during the introduction of a comic book character based on him. 'I'm young, and I believe that I still can mature a lot as a player.'
   The 25-year-old FC Barcelona midfielder said he wants to get better in every area that he is 'so-so today.'
   'I'd like to shoot better with my left foot, for example,' he said.
   Ronaldinho, who helped Brazil win the 2002 World Cup title in Japan and South Korea, was awarded this year's FIFA World Player of the Year award on Dec. 19.
   'I was happy to win this second FIFA award because there were a lot of prestigious players contending,' he told the Terra Web site.
   He has also become the star of a comic book magazine named after him and launched in his homeland on Wednesday.
   Ronaldinho launched the new magazine in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul state in southern Brazil, where he was born and shot to fame playing for Gremio.
   The magazine is the creation of Brazilian cartoonist, animator and filmmaker Mauricio de Sousa, who has created over 200 cartoon characters for kids.
   Ronaldinho, both European and FIFA player of the year for 2005, 'will be close to a soccer ball most of the time in the stories, which will preserve ethical and moral values,' de Sousa said.
   This is the second comic de Sousa has launched based on a soccer star after 'Little Pele's Gang' delighted Brazilian children in the 1980s inspired by soccer legend Pele.
   The cartoonist also created the character Dieguito in the 1980s, based on ex-Argentine international Diego Maradona, and another character based on Brazilian international striker Ronaldo of Spain's Real Madrid, but the two projects did not reach the newsstands.
    'The first edition of the 'Ronaldinho Gaucho' magazine will be at the newsstands in Brazil in April 2006 with some 200,000 copies,' de Sousa said.
   He has plans to release the magazine in international markets, including Japan, which he visited in June. 'Our agent will negotiate the publication of the Ronaldinho Gaucho character with Japanese newspapers and magazines,' he said.
   Mauricio de Sousa's most famous creation is 'Monica's Gang,' which has been translated into 13 languages in 38 countries.
   Ronaldinho, 25, is spending the season's festivities at his family ranch in Eldorado do Sul in the Porto Alegre metropolitan area.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has denied that his team's success is down to spending power.
   The Blues went 11 points clear at the top of the Premiership after Wednesday's 1-0 win at Manchester City.
   'I know the image people have of us but I don't believe you will see many teams in the world fighting like we did to get this victory,' said Mourinho.
   'Some might say it is the power of money but I don't agree. This is the power of a group working together.'
   Chelsea have dropped points in only two matches all season - a defeat at Manchester United and a draw at Everton.
   And Mourinho added: 'The players have been together since the first day and are ready for anything.'
   Chelsea have won seven straight Premiership games since the 1-0 loss at Manchester United on 6 November.
   Second-placed United drew at struggling Birmingham on Wednesday to fall further behind the leaders.
   'I always say the best team wins the championship because it is over 38 matches,' added Mourinho.
   'We do not have to be worried. For us, it is about controlling the distance, getting three points or picking up one.
   'If we had drawn against Manchester City and Manchester United had won I do not think it would make that much difference.
   'The situation would have been the same. For us, it is about winning. For the others it is about waiting for our mistakes.'
   And with 52 points at the halfway stage of Chelsea's Premiership campaign, Mourinho said he was delighted with his team.
   'We are getting incredible results, it has been a fantastic effort this season and it is a bad feeling for the teams behind us,' he said.
   'We go home from this win over Man City with the feeling that we are the best team.'
   The win at City was also significant for midfielder Frank Lampard, who withdrew from the Chelsea line-up with a virus - ending a Premiership record of 164 successive appearances.
   'I want to dedicate the victory to Frank Lampard,' said the Blues boss. 'The team fought for him.
   'He was not feeling good during the day. He tried to warm up but was feeling nauseous and had a headache. He could not manage it.'

Tottenham are ready to make an audacious swoop for Swedish goal-machine Henrik Larsson.
   Boss Martin Jol is poised to pounce next month - even though Larsson has already admitted he will leave Barcelona when his contract expires in the summer.
   The 34-year-old striker cracked a staggering 242 goals in 315 appearances for Celtic but has had a difficult time since moving to Spain.
   As well as injuries, he has found his chances limited at the Nou Camp with, understandably, the first choice pairing of Samuel Eto'o and Ronaldinho in sensational form.
   As a result, Larsson has insisted he will return home to his native Sweden in July.
   But Jol - who has his sights fixed firmly on next season's Champions League believes Larsson could provide that extra touch of quality and experience vital for top class honours.
   The striker revealed earlier this week that he will listen to all offers when the transfer window opens again in January.
   He said: 'Clubs can contact my agent. I'll evaluate the offers and decide.' Larsson suffered a serious knee injury in his first season at the club and found himself behind Eto'o once he returned to full fitness.
   He has scored five goals in 20 games for Barcelona but insists he is not resentful at the way things had worked out at the Nou Camp.
   'After two years in Barcelona it feels right to go home,' said Larsson.
   'I am not bitter but everyone on the bench wants more match time. I am no exception.'
   Larsson came out of international retirement to help Sweden qualify for the 2006 World Cup finals.
   Regular first-team football with Spurs would help him cement his place in the Swedish team for Germany.
   He would cost a nominal fee for the north Londoners and they would then have a powerful quartet of strikers with Robbie Keane, Jermain Defoe, Mido and Larsson.

Dennis Bergkamp reached another magic milestone last night after racking up his double ton.
   Dutch master Bergy, 36, netted the 200th league goal of his long and illustrious career by opening the scoring for rampant Arsenal. Jose Reyes banged in No 2 before skipper Thierry Henry hammered home a double as the Gunners ripped poor Portsmouth to shreds.
   Boss Arsene Wenger said: 'For a while we lost the belief we were the best but now the confidence has come back into the side.
   'We could see it starting to come back against Chelsea. The team realised in that game that they should have won it and that they could live with the best.'
   Striker Bergkamp has now fired 86 league goals for the Gunners since he moved to North London in June 1995. Prior to that, he had hit 11 Serie A strikes for Inter Milan and an amazing 103 in 185 appearances for Ajax. A delighted Wenger added: 'Dennis is not only in the top 10 Arsenal scorers of all time now but in the top 10 players as well.
   'He scored a great goal, although he scores a few less now as he drops off more than he used to. But every time we went forward against Portsmouth we looked like scoring.
   'This team is improving but all we are trying to do is close on the pack in front of us. There are still 20 games to go and you never know what can happen.'

Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed how two lads tricked him into drinking urine when he was 11.
   The Manchester United boss said he almost vomited after the prank. But he also remembers how he took his revenge on the pair 53 years ago.
   Sir Alex said the boys - older than him - duped him into taking a sip of the liquid at a snooker hall in Govan, Glasgow.
   When he discovered what had happened he fetched a piece of wood and used it as a bat to blast two snooker balls at his tormentors.
   One of the youngsters screamed as he was smashed in the jaw. Then Sir Alex trapped them in the hall by jamming the door shut with the wood.
   The incident appears in a charity book compiled by pupils at King David Junior School, in Crumpsall, Greater Manchester - who asked celebrities for childhood memories.
   There are stories from X Factor judge Simon Cowell, U2 frontman Bono and Grand Prix ace Michael Schumacher.
   Former Krypton Factor host Gordon Burns tells how he was ordered to write out the entire Bible twice after being caught talking in class.
   And ex-Man United skipper Roy Keane, now with Celtic, reveals his head teacher branded him a pervert after catching him with 'dirty books' in school.

Thierry Henry admits he has got 'pleasure' from becoming a Barcelona target - but insists he is still focused on Arsenal.
   Talks over a new contract for the Gunners captain have stalled while Barcelona president Joan Laporta has admitted he will try to sign him next summer.
   Henry, 28, said: 'The interest shown in me gives me pleasure. But at the moment it is not even topical.
   'I am looking at this season, which is rather difficult at the moment. The Champions League is coming up and it will be necessary concentrate for that.
   'I try to continue writing history and to have exceeded the scoring record of Ian Wright just showed me what level I had reached at the club.'

Real Madrid’s record goal scorer Alfredo Di Stefano was recovering well in a Spanish hospital on Thursday after undergoing quadruple heart bypass surgery.
   A statement from Valencia’s La Fe hospital said the 79-year-old Argentine was talking and had begun to take food a day after undergoing the five-hour operation.
   It said Di Stefano was ‘progressing favourably’ and a ventilator had been removed.
   Di Stefano was admitted to hospital after a heart attack on Saturday. The hospital’s chief heart surgeon, Anastasio Montero, said on Monday the operation would be complex because of the patient’s age and because he is diabetic.

The grave of soccer legend George Best is fast becoming a place of pilgrimage for die-hard fans of the late Northern Ireland and Manchester United star.
   The 59-year-old's burial place at Roselawn Cemetery in Belfast is attracting hundreds of visitors every day, with young and old alike laying flowers, flags and wreaths at the graveside.
   Belfast City Council is now urgently considering plans for a memorial to try to divert visitors away from the cemetery, where large crowds could disturb other mourners.
   UUP councillor Jim Rodgers, the director of Glentoran football club, has said an alternative must be found, possibly a sculpture in the grounds of City Hall.

David Beckham’s tattooist on Wednesday told how he warned the Real Madrid ace of the consequences of having his wife’s name inked on his arm.
   Louis Molloy has done 13 of Becks’s tattoos but the Manchester designer had to ask the England captain twice when it came to the Hindi inscription of Victoria’s name.
   Molloy explained: ‘I said to him, ‘You must be sure you want this because if things go wrong, you are stuck with it’.’
   ‘But he said he was okay with it. I always try to talk people out of having stuff like that.’
   Molloy also denied claims the ‘Victoria’ tattoo was misspelled. He said: ‘I didn’t just walk into a curry house and say, ‘Excuse me, can you translate this for me?’ I was meticulous about it.
   ‘The translator chose the spelling because his wife was called Victoria and that was the spelling using the dialect from the part of India he came from.’
   Meanwhile, a Norwegian businessman bought a pair of British football star David Beckham’s old boots Thursday for a cool million kroner (148,000 dollars, 125,000 euros), which will go to earthquake victims in Pakistan.
   Billionaire Idar Vollvik, founder of Internet telephone company Chess, bought the boots from charity organization Norske Kvinners Sanitetsforening in a Norwegian television show.
   The Beckham boots have a history of charity fund raising. Norske Kvinners Sanitetsforening acquired them in January when the proceeds went to tsunami victims.
   Vollvik’s money will be spent on tents for people who remain homeless three months after the October 8 earthquake, which claimed 73,000 lives mostly in Pakistani Kashmir.
   Three million were left without shelter in a region where winters are usually harsh.

Australia Thursday appointed Dutch football great Johan Neeskens to their national team coaching staff under head coach Guus Hiddink ahead of next year's World Cup finals in Germany.
   Football Federation Australia (FFA) said Neeskens would provide a key support role to fellow Dutchman Hiddink, who masterminded Australia's first World Cup finals' appearance in 32 years with a play-off victory over Uruguay on penalties here last month.
   Neeskens was part of the fabled Dutch team that narrowly lost to Germany in the 1974 World Cup final and against Argentina in extra time four years later.

Kurigram in finals of JFA Cup Football
Kurigram became zonal champions and moved to the final round of the JFA Cup Under-16 Football Tournament defeating BKSP 1-0 at the Kurigram Stadium Thursday. Hasanur Rahman netted all-important goal in the 44th minute. Shankar of the winners was adjudged as the best player. Earlier, Gaibandha, Ranghamati, Satkhira, Tangail, Dhaka and Bagerhat moved to the final round becoming zonal champion in their respective zones. The other zonal round begins Friday at the Chandpur Stadium with seven teams competing.
— BDNews

Bactrol Handball starts
Menjice Krira Chakra crushed Monsoor Sporting Club by 23-9 goals in the inaugural match of the Bactrol First Division Handball League at the Handball Ground on Thursday. Asad netted seven goals for the winners while Rabiul scored five for the losers.Secretary General of Bangladesh Olympic Association Kutubuddin Ahmed inaugurated the league as the chief guest. Senior Vice-president of the sponsors, Kohinoor Chemical Company (Bangladesh) Ltd Subrata Chandra Majumdar, Vice President of Bangladesh Handball Federation Mahbubuzzaman, general secretary Asaduzzaman Kohinoor were also present on the occasion.
— New Age

Josephites and Navy face off in the final
Josephites Club and Bangladesh Navy moved into the final of the Victory Day Basketball Tournament at the Dhanmondi Basketball Gymnasium on Thursday. Josephites defeated Bangladesh Rifles in the first semi-final 79-52 after leading the first half 33-24. Leo scored 24, Raza 19 and Sejad 12 points for the winners. Ayub scored 20 and Manjil 17 for Rifles. In the other semi, Bangladesh Navy outplayed Europa Youth 71-59. The winners led the first half 66-39.
— BDNews

Partex defeat GMG
Partex defeated GMG Airlines 6-3 in the Federation Squash League at the Cadet College Club Thursday. Bhola of Partex outplayed GMG’s Anil Pramanik 9-0, 9-0, 9-3. Dipak Chouhan of Partex beat Ram Gopal of GMG 9-7, 9-5, 9-7. Masud Rana of GMG defeated Badal Chouhan of Partex by 9-1, 9-3 and 9-0 points.
— BDNews

Ntini ruled out of third Test
South Africa fast bowler Makhaya Ntini has been ruled out of the third Test against Australia starting next week after injuring his left knee. Ntini, 28, sustained a torn medial ligament during the third day of the second Test on Wednesday. He did not bowl during Australia’s second innings on Thursday. ‘It was a strange injury,’ said coach Mickey Arthur. ‘When he came off in the first innings he noticed a slight swelling just under his knee. ‘The funny thing about is that he had no pain but there was a little swelling so we thought we’d have scanned and it came back with something to do with the ligament pulling away from the hamstring.
— Reuters