Doing well in the first innings is essential if Bangladesh want to compete against New Zealand in the second Test, starting in Wellington on Saturday, feels skipper Mohammad Ashraful.
   ‘At the moment it is our prime concern. If we can put some runs on the board, there is always a chance to be competitive,’ Ashraful said on Wednesday after he arrived in the New Zealand capital.
   ‘It is a problem that we are suffering in almost every game in the recent time. We did not have a decent first innings total in any Tests on our last tour in Sri Lanka.
   ‘And the same thing also happened in Dunedin,’ said Ashraful on the sideline of a reception hosted by Wellington-based Bangladeshis.
   Bangladesh were all out for 137 in the first innings in Dunedin despite having a good batting track They made some sort of comeback in the second innings making 254 thanks to a record 161-run partnership between openers Tamim Iqbal and Junaed Siddique.
   They conceded a huge 220-run deficit in the first innings, which virtually killed the game even before the openers started their dream partnership. All the Black Caps had to do was chase 35 runs.
   Most of the Bangladesh players in the dressing room felt it would have been a very difficult run chase for the New Zealanders had the Tigers scored a few more in their first innings. Because the wicket was gradually keeping low and so anything over the 200-run mark would have been challenging.
   Bangladesh’s recent slump in the first innings all started in the second Test against India at the Mirpur Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in May last year when they were all out for a mere 118 runs replying to the visitors’ 610 runs.
   Courtesy of two half-centuries of Ashraful and Mashrafee bin Murtaza, currently the captain and vice-captain of the side, Bangladesh totaled 253 runs in the second innings, but the game was all but over after the first innings.
   The trend continued in the next series against Sri Lanka, where they were all out for 89, 62 and 132 runs respectively in the first innings of three Tests, resulting in them becoming virtual no-contests.
   They scored 250-plus runs in the second innings in at least two of the three Tests in Sri Lanka, but those had no impact on the result of the games. Bangladesh lost all three Tests by an innings margin in Sri Lanka.
   ‘You may find an improvement in our performance as we avoided an innings defeat this time. But for me it means nothing.
   ‘We are still a long away from becoming competitive. We must improve our batting in the first innings to do it,’ said Ashraful.
   ‘At the moment we are only thinking about it. We haven’t seen the ground in Wellington yet and also haven’t thought about the composition of the second Test,’ he added.

India, whose controversy-scarred cricket tour of Australia is back on after numerous disputes, is the undisputed powerhouse in the sport off the field, and has been acknowledged as such by the International Cricket Council.
   It’s hardly surprising then that the ICC acceded to India’s request to remove umpire Steve Bucknor from the series to ensure the tour continues.
   And there is a distinct feeling within the game that, given the power it wields in the sport, what India wants, India gets.
   ‘India has the biggest cricket-watching population and it’s the financial powerhouse,’ ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed told reporters in Mumbai late last year.
   Clearly then, the ICC has good reason to keep India happy. The cricket-mad country, with a population of 1.1 billion, a growing middle class and booming economy, has carried the sport on its shoulders for more than a decade.
   India may not have the most powerful cricket team on the field, but its clout off it is peerless because of its financial power.
   The television industry estimates that an international cricket match featuring India draws 60 per cent of the Indian viewing audience, almost 450 million people.
   The pan-Asian ESPN-Star Sports television network, owned jointly by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp and Disney, ensured itself a financial bonanza by bringing cricket to Indian audiences around the world.
   ESPN-Star paid an astonishing 1.1 billion dollars last year for rights to ICC events like the World Cup till 2015 — double the previous deal with Murdoch’s Global Cricket Corp.
   The network even launched a 24-hour cricket channel, STAR Cricket, to satisfy India’s seemingly unquenchable thirst for the game.
   ‘I did not know how to fulfill the demand for cricket with just two channels,’ ESPN-Star chief Jamie Davis said in a recent interview.
   ‘Forty-eight hours of cricket a day is not enough.’
   The ICC’s main sponsors like Pepsi, Hero Honda, Reliance and Emirates are looking at the Indian market to get returns from the big bucks they pay to join the bandwagon.
   The ICC has acknowledged in the past that India accounts for 70 per cent of the game’s worldwide revenues.
   Delhi-based advertising executive Rajmohan Singh said brands that associate themselves with cricket are assured of high-profile returns.
   ‘Nothing unites India’s millions more than cricket,’ he said. ‘It’s the biggest reality show in town and people can’t get enough of it.’
   Singh said 10-second advertising spots for the India-Pakistan final in the inaugural Twenty20 Worlds in South Africa last September cost 30,000 dollars each and were all sold out in advance.
   Kerry Packer’s Channel Nine reportedly paid 270 million dollars to renew its rights for Australian cricket for seven years.
   In contrast, Nimbus Communications had to shell out a whopping 612 million dollars to the Indian cricket board for the rights to televise India’s home series for only four years.
   India’s powerful reach within the game is long. New Zealand cricket chiefs are struggling to keep a first-choice national squad together after a rebel Indian Cricket League offered Kiwi players five times more than what they earned playing for their country.
   Almost the entire Australian team—the undisputed best side in cricket—has signed up to play in the BCCI’s own Twenty20 League in April that offers prize money of three million dollars to the winning team.
   Naturally, there is discomfort within the game at the power India has. The Australian media wants the ICC to rein in India’s political and financial clout.
   But Cricinfo’s Charlie Austin does not see that happening in the near future.
   ‘Unless China or America starts playing cricket in a big way in the competitive arena, I don’t see it coming,’ said Austin.
   India’s influence meanwhile looks likely to increase, with BCCI President Sharad Pawar taking over as ICC vice-president in June before taking the top post in 2010.

Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal came very close to fulfilling the dream of every cricketer – scoring a century on Test debut. But the feat eluded when he was dismissed for 84 in the second innings in Dunedin earlier this week.
   However, his contribution in the match earned a place in the record books. Tamim’s 161-run stand with Juaned Siddique for the opening partnership was the best ever start for Bangladesh in Tests.
   After Mohammad Ashraful he became only the second Bangladeshi cricketer to score highest runs for the team in both innings on Test debut. Ashraful had scored 26 and 114 runs in his debut match against Sri Lanka in 2001.
   With 53 and 84 runs in second innings, Tamim became only second Bangladeshi to score half-centuries in both innings of a debut match after Javed Omar, who made 62 and 85 against Zimbabwe.
   But for Tamim who was hoping to join Aminul Islam and Ashraful as the third Bangladeshi Test centurion on debut, the performance however, outstanding, could not hide his disappointment.
   ‘I’ll never forget the moment when I got out in the second innings. It was so disappointing. I cried for 20 minutes after walking back to the dressing room,’ revealed Tamim.
   ‘Everything was going so well when I started the third day’s play. I was middling the ball without any problem. Two boundaries came almost effortlessly,’ he said.
   ‘I was thinking if can stay two or three overs it will come definitely. But suddenly I got a ball that kept low and I could not bring the bat down. It struck the inner toe of the bat and broke the stump,’ said the 18-year-old.
   ‘It took a lot of time to compose myself after the dismissal.
   I only got some consolation when I talked to my mother back in home. She said what I had done made her feel very proud,’ said Tamim, the nephew of former national skipper Akram Khan and the younger brother of opener Nafees Iqbal.
   On his way to the 161-run partnership, Tamim erased his elder brother Nafees from the record book. Nafees was involved in Bangladesh’s previous best opening partnership of 133 runs with Javed Omar against Zimbabwe.
   Tamim said he had no idea about the record and only came to know that he erased the record of his brother after the second day’s play.
   ‘It made me so proud though I don’t want to be complacent at any stage of my career. The skipper told me not to become content with anything. If I become complacent, I am going to lose my hunger for further success,’ said Tamim.
   His consistent performance in the warm-up matches and Test has made him the biggest star of the Bangladesh team in the tour, but Tamim said he does not like to be nemesis of only one team.
   ‘Yes, I love to play against New Zealand but we have eight more nations to compete at the highest level. I want to be successful against all sides,’ said the left-hander, who revealed is appreciated by almost every New Zealand player.
   They are really encouraging. I hardly found anyone sledging at me. (Brendon) McCullum always tried to pass on good advice. When I was batting in the first, he came to me and said I should hit sixers as the boundary line is too small for me,’ said Tamim.
   ‘Since our warm-up match before the World Cup, he (McCullum) knew I have a habit of going down the wicket and he tried to tempt me. But I wasn’t going to be tempted,’ smiled the southpaw.

Pakistan greats Wednesday urged the cricket world to axe the tradition of choosing neutral umpires in favour of those considered the best at the job, in the aftermath of the crisis-hit Australia-India series.
   The International Cricket Council was forced to dump veteran West Indian umpire Steve Bucknor from the third Test in Australia following Indian complaints over his performance in last week’s Sydney Test.
   ‘I would recommend the best umpires on the rankings established by the ICC and not neutral ones. What is the use of a neutral umpire when he is not the best?’ Wasim Bari, a former Pakistan captain and ex-chief of selectors, said.
   ‘Pakistan takes the credit for introducing neutral umpires but now the idea is not neutrality but the right decision,’ said Bari, who played 81 Tests for Pakistan.
   Another former Pakistan captain, Ramiz Raja, said the controversy should not be allowed to do any more harm to Australia-India team relations, and would not have happened in the first place if umpiring standards were higher.
   ‘I sincerely hope that the matter is not used as a source of confrontation, but to develop better umpires to overcome such problems in future,’ the widely travelled television commentator told AFP.
   India claimed it lost the Sydney Test, won in dramatic fashion in the final minutes of the fifth day, because of poor decisions from Bucknor.
   The series descended into acrimony after Indian captain Anil Kumble accused the Australians of bad sportsmanship and Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh received a three-Test suspension for racially abusing an Australian player.
   Raja said the incidents at Sydney were ‘deplorable’ for the game.
   ‘What happened at Syndey was sad but I think good sense prevailed after the ICC took some steps and I don’t see it as a victory for India or a defeat for the ICC,’ said Raja, who played 57 Tests for Pakistan.
   Pakistan was at the centre of an umpiring row during the Oval Test against England two years ago when they forfeited the match after Australian umpire Darrell Hair accused them of ball tampering.
   Hair’s penalty incensed then-Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq, who refused to take the field, a stance which forced the umpires to award the match to England—the first forfeit in Test cricket’s long history.
   The ICC later removed Hair from its elite umpiring panel.
   Raja said the best umpires should officiate future matches, whether they were from neutral countries or not.
   ‘There is a need to increase the number of umpires in the Elite Panel because with eight umpires you don’t give them a chance to acclimatise and maintain their performance,’ he said.
   ‘To me good umpires should officiate the match, even if it is played by his home team, so that we have the best men in the centre. The credibility factor should be taken into account while posting umpires.’

World number one Justine Henin goes into the Australian Open as the overwhelming favourite after an inspired 2007, but there are no shortage of challengers.
   Among them is superstar defending champion Serena Williams, who stunned the tennis world by winning the title last year in her comeback event following an injury-plagued 2006 that had many writing her off for good.
   Russian Maria Sharapova, last year’s beaten finalist, will also be in the hunt, as will Serena’s sister Venus, a six-time Grand Slam winner still searching for her maiden Australian Open title.
   But there are doubts over France’s Amelie Mauresmo, the 2006 champion.
   She slipped down the rankings to number 18 after a dismal injury-plagued season last year and was forced out of the Sydney International this week with a groin problem.
   Russians Svetlana Kuznetsova and Anna Chakvetadze and high-flying Serbian pair Jelena Jankovic and Ana Ivanovic are also lurking dangers.
   But Henin, who won here in 2004 and controversially walked off centre court midway through the 2006 final against Mauresmo with a stomach complaint, is the one to beat.
   The Belgian finished 2007 with 10 titles, including the Grand Slam double of the US Open and French Open.
   It was all the more remarkable as she was bouncing back from her marriage breakdown, which kept her out of last year’s Australian Open, and the emotion of a family reunion after seven years’ estrangement.
   In the process she became the first woman to earn more than five million dollars prizemoney in one season; the first in 10 years, since Martina Hingis, to win 10 titles in a season; and the first in 18 years, since Steffi Graf, to remain unbeaten post-Wimbledon.
   In an ominous warning, she said: ‘I still think my best tennis is yet to come.
   ‘I will still try to improve, tactically and technically I worked pretty hard in December—I can always get better. I believe we don’t have limits.’
   And after missing Australia last year and pulling out of 2006 final, Henin is keen to make up lost ground.
   ‘I wasn’t here last year for the reasons we all know and two years ago when I left Melbourne I was pretty sad,’ she said.
   ‘I wasn’t healthy at that time, my stomach was bothering me a lot, so it’s quite emotional for me to be back in Australia.’
   Serena Williams should be a threat if she doesn’t succumb to injury and stays focused.
   Last season she was hampered by groin, calf, and thumb problems, and was forced out of the season-ending WTA Championships. But she fought back at the Hopman Cup in Perth and said she was feeling good.
   ‘I am definitely feeling fully prepared. I feel like I am really match fit,’ she said.
   His sister Venus is also brimming with confidence after a morale boasting victory over Sharapova in the final of the invitational JB Group Classic in Hong Kong last week.
   ‘It is very exciting, especially going into the Australian, playing so well against someone of her calibre,’ said Williams, who had not played a competitive game since October before the tournament.
   The other previous winner in the field is tennis mum
   Lindsay Davenport, who lifted the title in 2000 and is a dangerous floater.
   The American took a year off because of pregnancy but returned at Bali in September and won the tournament.
   She followed that up with a semi-final berth in Beijing the following week, then won the Bell Challenge in Canada before heading to New Zealand this month where she lifted the Auckland Classic trophy.
   The Chinese charge is led by the in-form Li Na, who won the Australian Women’s Hardcourt Championships last week, and her compatriots Zheng Jie and Peng Shuai.

Bangladesh Army prevailed over Bangladesh Air Force 2-0 in the Victory Day Hockey tournament at the Hockey Stadium on Wednesday.
   Hadiuzzaman of Army put his team in front in the 18th minute and Abu Sayeed sealed the victory netting the second on 46 minutes.
   Army secured 12 points from five matches to top the league table jointly with Sonali Bank, who also have 12 points from four matches maintaining an all-win record. Sonali Bank will play the last league match today against BKSP who need to win the game by at least 9-0 goals to a book the final berth.
   In the other match of the day, Bangladesh Air Force beat Barnak Samaj 2-0 with Mortuza scoring both the goals in the either half of the match.

The opening day of the 28th National Sub-Junior (U-16) Boys’ and Girls’ Chess Championship saw thirty-nine players win their first round matches at the Bangladesh Chess Federation hall-room on Wednesday.
   Saif, Siam, Moni, Fahim, Shiblu, Shakib, Abir, Jafar, Junaed, Rakib, Masud, Moin, Arif, Masum, Sadi, Asik, Pranto, Amir, Akib, Rasel, Fahim-2, Papel, Shahriar, Raihan, Ezaz, Ariful, Sayebul, Saidul, Tanzina, Lovely, Rashed, Khadija, Tisha, Sakina, Deen, Zahid, Jamil and Asif defeated their respective opponents on the day.

Agrani Bank registered a 2-1 victory over Dhaka Wanderers in the Senior Division Football League at the Kamalapur Stadium on Wednesday.
   Pashbon scored both the goals for Agrani Bank in the 44th and 74th minutes while Monir of Dhaka Wanderers scored the consolation goal in 85th minute of the match.
   In the other match of the day, Jatrabari KC beat Wari Club 1-0. Robin slammed the match-winner five minutes before the final whistle.

New Zealand judge John Hansen has been appointed as commissioner for the appeal of Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh against the finding that he made racist comments during the second Test against Australia.
   Justice Hansen is a High Court Judge in his native New Zealand and is New Zealand Cricket’s appointment on the International Cricket Council’s Code of Conduct Commission.
   Singh was punished with a three-match ban after the commission upheld a complaint from Australian skipper Ricky Ponting that Singh insulted Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds by calling him a monkey.
   The ICC said it had received official notification of the appeal from the Board of Control for Cricket in India on Monday and appointed Justice Hansen in line with ICC Code of Conduct processes.
   No time, date or venue for the appeal have yet been fixed, but the process indicates that the appeal should be heard within seven days of the commissioner being appointed. This time period may be extended if circumstances dictate.

Anil Kumble has revealed that he had approached Australian captain Ricky Ponting after the third play’s day of the Sydney Test, requesting him to not press the charge of racism against off-spinner Harbhajan Singh.
   ‘I did make a request actually when that incident happened on that particular day,’ said Kumble, speaking in Canberra in what was the first official press conference since the Sydney Test.
   ‘I did make a request that it should be handled ... if the issues can be sorted out. But it went up to the match referee and there was a case. His response was it had already been reported. Having played cricket for this long, [i knew] such an allegation would definitely spiral into what it has now. I anticipated that.
   ‘And I envisaged that it would spiral into a larger issue. So that was the only reason. There was a hearing and now we’ve made an appeal. I’m sure things will be sorted out now.’
   However, Kumble didn’t think the incident would affect the relationships between the two captains during the third Test in Perth, which starts on January 16. ‘It’s important that Ricky and I got together and spoke about it and then get together and address it,’ he said.
   ‘It was not that the spirit of the game was attacked but the focus has been to ensure that better spirit prevails in the game. We [captains] are all equal partners to ensuring that cricket is played in the right spirit and, I’m sure moving forward, everybody will stick to that. On behalf of my team, I’m sure we’ll play in the right spirit.’
   The ICC has appointed Ranjan Madugalle to mediate between the two captains. But did Kumble think he could have a chat with Ponting in the current situation? ‘I have no problems. What’s the problem there? It was just a temporary setback. We need to move on. The game is bigger than the individual. As a nation we’ve played good cricket. I’m proud of the way Indian cricket teams have played over the years and we’ll continue to do that.
   ‘The relationship between India and Australia has always been good,’ said Kumble after the heated exchanges after the second Test. ‘It was only meant for the Sydney game. I’ve respected Australian cricketers. I have great respect and regard for all the players who have played for Australia. It was just one of those incidents which everybody has seen and if people think I had a biased opinion, there has been a poll and people who have seen the game have also said it could have been better.’
   Kumble, who had said he would want to review the captains’ agreement on low catches, said he hadn’t thought about it yet and would bring it up in discussion once the team reached Perth.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board will sit with all the premier division clubs for a discussion at the Sheraton Hotel at 4:30pm today.
   BCB president Major General Sina Ibn Jamali is expected to preside over the meeting focusing on the existing deadlock in the premier league.
   Brothers Union filed a petition in the High Court over their relegation from the top flight.
   The High Court issued a stay order on the league proceedings for two months in November. The meeting will try to reach a decision to break the stalemate.

Twenty Bangladesh U-16 footballers leave for India today for a 15-day training at the Tata Sports Academy at Jamshedpur. The training has been arranged by the Bangladesh Olympic Association. Zobayer Nipu is accompanying team as the coach.

Rafa Benitez made a last-ditch plea to Liverpool’s exasperated American owners on Tuesday, asking to be allowed to carry on as Anfield manager.
   The Spaniard’s uncertain future after three-and-a-half years at the club is high on the agenda as co-chairmen Tom Hicks and George Gillett hold a summit meeting in the US with chief executive Rick Parry.
   Having infuriated the Americans in a public clash over his role at the club, Benitez is concerned to discover that Jurgen Klinsmann and Jose Mourinho are both in the frame to replace him.
   He was keen to deny weekend speculation that he considers himself a ‘dead man walking’ at Liverpool, particularly to reassure fans who he felt backed him so strongly in the dispute with Hicks and Gillett.
   Benitez told the Liverpool Echo: ‘I was shocked when I was told about the stories and when I saw them for myself I was even more surprised.
   ‘I don’t know how many times I have to say I only see my future at Liverpool Football Club before certain people believe me.
   ‘But I will say it again, because it is really important that everyone understands this — I love the club, I love the fans, I love the city and I am very, very happy here.
   ‘I do not see my future at Real Madrid or Inter Milan or anywhere else. I see my future at Liverpool and this is where I want to stay. So to see my name linked with other clubs really disappoints me.
   ‘The fact that they said the stories had come from a source close to me is what disappoints me most.’
   He added: ‘I want to completely commit myself to Liverpool Football Club. I do not want to go anywhere else. I want to win trophies for my club and for our fans and I still believe we can do this.
   ‘The backing of the supporters has been fantastic. As I walked on to the pitch at Luton on Sunday, the fans were singing my name and that means so much to me. That is why I want to achieve even more.’
   Liverpool are expected to reveal revised plans for their new £400million stadium today following Parry’s meeting with the owners.
   Meanwhile, Luton fans have hailed Jamie Carragher’s restraint after the Anfield defender was spat at and abused by yobs as he chatted to youngsters at Kenilworth Road after Sunday’s FA Cup tie.
   Bystanders said beer was flung over the player before older supporters from a nearby executive box stepped in to
   confront the foul-mouthed gang and stop them abusing Carragher.
   Luton fan Sim Hussain, 31, said his nephew was reduced to tears by the louts. He said: ‘Jamie was making the kids’ day by coming over and meeting them. He was the perfect gentleman.
   ‘They (the yobs) were swearing at him, abusing his mother. Jamie just told them to calm down. Then someone spat at him and a drink was thrown. We had to jump into the box before it all stopped.’
   A Luton spokesman said that an incident was being investigated by the club’s safety officer.

Arsenal legend Martin Keown reckons Manuel Almunia is the answer to Fabio Capello’s goalkeeping problems.
   Keown, who won 43 caps for England, would have no problem with the Spaniard pulling on the No 1 shirt when he becomes eligible for British citizenship later this year.
   The tough-tackling ex-defender said: ‘Without doubt Manuel Almunia is an outstanding goalkeeper and he would raise the bar if he came into the England set-up.
   ‘He’s on a par, if not better, than the goalkeepers that are there at the moment.’
   England’s current No 1 Paul Robinson has come in for stinging criticism following a string of errors, while Scott Carson and David James have also blundered at the top level.
   Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has already urged Capello to take advantage of the residency ruling and make 30-year-old Almunia England’s first-choice stopper.
   And the man himself has refused to rule out the possibility of playing for the Three Lions, saying: ‘England has been very good to me. I have to be here one more year to qualify so we will have to wait and see what happens.’
   Keown believes the FA should be happy to recognise Almunia as a naturalised Englishman.
   He added: ‘If you’re asking whether it’s morally right, well the national team has a foreign manager and this type of thing already goes on in other sports like cricket and rugby.
   ‘So I’m not dead against him playing for England when he becomes eligible. At the moment the talk is a bit premature — he’s been outstanding for Arsenal but he’s only just wrestled the first-team jersey away from Jens Lehmann.
   ‘But if the opportunity came up for him to play for England, I’d not have a problem with that. Spain don’t seem to want him so their loss would be our gain.’

Paul Robinson is on a hit list of eight players boss Juande Ramos wants to kick out of Tottenham.
   Jermain Defoe on Tuesday revealed to The Sun that Ramos has told him he can go.
   The ruthless Spaniard has run out of patience with seven other stars — including England’s calamity keeper Robinson. Pascal Chimbonda, Lee Young-Pyo, Anthony Gardner, Paul Stalteri, Wayne Routledge and Hossam Ghaly are also facing the boot.
   Axe man Ramos has already started telling the players their fate, having made it clear to chairman Daniel Levy he cannot rely on the squad he inherited from Martin Jol.
   And Levy has no choice but to back his new boss, just a week after declaring: ‘Spurs are not a selling club.’
   Ramos is fuming with his squad for a string of crazy results, with his priority a new keeper. Robinson’s howler in the FA Cup clash with Reading, when he carried Stephen Hunt’s free-kick into his own net, was the last straw.
   Getafe’s Argentina star Oscar Ustari, 21, is the top Ramos pick to take over.
   But he is also looking at Valencia’s Tino Hildebrand and Bolton’s Jussi Jaaskelainen.

Shane Warne has committed his immediate future to Hampshire but will not be available for the club’s Twenty20 Cup campaign due to a poker tournament in Las Vegas.
   ‘Now that I am retired from international cricket - in fact all cricket in Australia - I am gradually moving into other areas,’ the legendary leg-spinner wrote in his column in the Times. ‘There is a deal in the pipeline with a poker company that will involve playing in certain events through the year. I can fit what I do around the cricket.’
   Warne is no newcomer to poker. In 2006 he and Zac Goldsmith, the son of the billionaire Sir James and the editor of The Ecologist, set up a high-stakes charity tournament which attracted big names, raising more than $500,000. And after retiring from international cricket 12 months ago, Warne, 38, is looking at other avenues besides cricket.
   ‘The World Series takes place in Las Vegas at the same time as the Twenty20 Cup,’ he said. ‘I definitely want to go to Las Vegas and I have not played Twenty20 for the past few seasons.
   ‘It has always come at an ideal time to take a break. I am 38 and, after 20 or so years in the game, I need a rest at some point during a six-month campaign.’

Joleon Lescott’s stoppage time own goal gave 10-man Chelsea a dramatic 2-1 win against Everton in the League Cup semi-final first leg at Stamford Bridge here Tuesday.
   Shaun Wright-Phillips put Chelsea ahead early but John Obi Mikel was sent-off for an ugly studs-up challenge on Phil Neville and Ayegbeni Yakubu took advantage with a superb equaliser.
   Avram Grant’s side refused to surrender though and Lescott, under pressure from Wright-Phillips, put into his own net to leave the holders well-placed to reach the final again in the second leg at Goodison Park on January 23.
   It was an amazing finish to a fiercely-fought tie that got increasingly spiteful in the closing stages, with Steve Sidwell lucky not to suffer the same fate as Mikel for a stamp on Lee Carsley.
   African Nations Cup commitments deprived hosts Chelsea of Didier Drogba, Michael Essien and Salomon Kalou, but Florent Malouda was back ahead of schedule after a knee injury.
   Chelsea, who have won the League Cup twice in the last three seasons, were in familiar terrority and it showed in the early stages.
   Wright-Phillips had the first sight of goal but scuffed his shot wide, then Juliano Belletti drove a fierce long range effort over the bar.
   Everton’s first League Cup semi-final appearance for twenty years had been in manager David Moyes’s mind when he rested key players for Saturday’s FA Cup defeat against Oldham.
   There was plenty of endeavour from Moyes’s men in the first half but, with Mikel Arteta suspended, precious few moments of quality.
   Mikel and Michael Ballack’s relentless pressing helped Chelsea take control and it was no surprise when they took the lead in the 26th minute.
   Malouda picked out Wright-Phillips just inside the penalty area and, as Everton’s defence backed-off, the England international took a touch before curling a sublime strike in off the far post.
   England coach Fabio Capello watching from the stands would have been suitably impressed.
   When Wright-Phillips tested Everton keeper Tim Howard early in the second-half with a stinging drive, it looked like the Blues would stay on top.
   But Everton were handed a lifeline in the 54th minute when Nigeria’s Mikel was sent off for a crude lunge on Phil Neville.
   Despite Mikel’s dismissal, Chelsea could have killed the tie when Claudio Pizarro went through but he shot straight at Howard.
   Grant’s side were made to pay in the 64th minute. James McFadden’s free-kick was turned back into the area and Yakubu pounced, unleashing a superb strike into the top corner.
   Chelsea were in disarray and McFadden went close to putting the visitors in front as he skipped past Ricardo Carvalho and hit the post with a low drive.
   But Chelsea refused to buckle and snatched a winner in stoppage time.
   Ballack hooked a hopeful cross to the far post, where Lescott was guilty of a woeful piece of defending.
   He towered over Wright-Phillips but somehow let the tiny winger pressure him into heading past Howard from close range.
   Even then the drama wasn’t over and Hilario had to save bravely at Lescott’s feet to preserve Chelsea’s lead.

Avram Grant believes Chelsea’s never-say-die spirit will help his side reach a third League Cup final in four seasons.
   The London club snatched a dramatic 2-1 win over Everton in Tuesday’s semi-final first leg at Stamford Bridge despite being down to 10 men for most of the second half.
   Shaun Wright-Phillips had given Chelsea the lead but after John Obi Mikel was sent off for a studs-up challenge on Phil Neville, Everton hit back to equalise through Ayegbeni Yakubu.
   David Moyes’ team piled on the pressure but Chelsea refused to budge and mounted a late assault which culminated in Joleon Lescott’s stoppage time own goal. It was a defiant display that proved there is no shortage of desire in the Chelsea dressing room.
   The League Cup holders will travel to Goodison Park for the second leg on January 23 confident they can avoid defeat and move closer to retaining the trophy.
   ‘With the small squad and all the problems - the injuries and the red card - the players deserve credit for the way they played,’ Grant said. ‘They showed spirit and character. I’m proud of them.
   ‘We want everybody with us but we showed what we can do. You need to do that when you miss players. You have to pay attention to the small details.
   ‘It’s not easy at Goodison Park but it’s not easy against us either. We have the advantage although it does not guarantee anything.
   ‘If we play like this 11 against 11 we have a good chance.’
   Grant hopes to sign Bolton striker Nicolas Anelka before the return leg.
   The Blues had a 10 million pounds bid for the France international turned down last week, but he hinted they are set to go back with an improved offer.
   ‘We have confirmed we have an interest in Anelka. We made a bid two days ago because we wanted him for the Everton match but I hope it will be for Saturday,’ Grant said. ‘If not we will carry on with the players we have.
   ‘We do not plan to stay with one striker. It is important to do it quickly but this is not my area. I am not negotiating with Bolton.’
   With Frank Lampard, John Terry, Andriy Shevchenko and Petr Cech all injured and Didier Drogba, Michael Essien, Salomon Kalou and Mikel away for a month on African Nations Cup duty, Grant’s squad is stretched to breaking point.
   So he will be relieved to see Wright-Phillips impress in a variety of roles in front of new England coach Fabio Capello.
   ‘Shaun is in good form,’ Grant said. ‘I think he will be in the next England squad. He started in midfield, then on the right wing and then as a striker. He got used to it very quickly and that showed he is an intelligent player.’
   Everton boss Moyes was caught between disappointment at a squandered opportunity and admiration for the way his side matched Chelsea in the second half.
   ‘We know we will have the advantage of the crowd behind us but basically we are still playing a really good team. That’s the problem. We will have to play really well to go through,’ Moyes said.
   ‘I’ve been waiting for games like this at Goodison since I arrived; a cup semi-final second leg. I’d rather be drawing or winning but we’re not out of it yet.’

The brand value of Australian cricketers is expected to suffer dramatically in India following the acrimonious second Test in Sydney, advertising experts say.
   Ponting and fast bowler Brett Lee endorse leading consumer brands in India, apart from appearing in sponsored television shows, and are among other current Australian players who write syndicated newspaper columns in India.
   Almost all the top Australian players have signed up for the Indian board-promoted multi-million dollar Twenty20 league that kicks off in April.
   ‘The whole country is against them following the cricket incident,’ Habeeb Nizamudin, growth officer of media planning agency Lodestar Universal told Reuters on Wednesday.
   ‘This is definitely going to impact their brand value. However, whether this will be sustained in the Indian mindset over a long period of time I can’t tell.’
   India, which has the fastest growing major economy after China, possesses the largest global cricket audience.
   Their cricketers are feted as pop stars in a country of 1.1 billion where top-ranked Australia also have a strong fan base thanks to their brand of entertaining cricket.
   But they have crossed the line this time, some say.
   ‘Australian cricket has always had attitude. But now that has become arrogance. They have damaged their own reputation,’ Shailendra Singh, whose firm represents Australia batsman Michael Clarke’s business interests in India, was quoted in Mumbai daily DNA on Tuesday.
   ‘You don’t want an arrogant team supporting your brand,’ added Singh, joint managing director of Percept Holdings.
   Some feel the Indian players will gain by way of advertising from this incident. ‘As far as advertising is concerned it’s bad news for Australia,’ Nandu Narasimhan, creative director, Saatchi & Saatchi told the paper.

Justine Henin, relishing the pressure on her to keep her number one world ranking, swept through to the semi-finals Wednesday at the Sydney International to line up a blockbuster against world number four Ana Ivanovic.
   The Belgian seven-time Grand Slam champion took 52 minutes to thrash Estonia’s Kaia Kanepi 6-2, 6-0 to set up a Thursday showdown with the big-hitting Serbian.
   Ivanovic kept her part of the bargain, spending almost two hours on court under a hot sun to see off Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.
   Former US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova will face Czech Nicole Vaidisova in the other semi-final Thursday. Vaidisova knocked out world number three Jelena Jankovic 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 in the remaining quarter-final.
   Henin is favourite to win the Australian Open, which gets underway in Melbourne on Monday and is the year’s first Grand Slam tournament.
   ‘I’m number one in the world and I can understand everyone seeing me as the favourite, but I can tell you that every time I wake up I know that anything can happen and I try to do the best I can,’ Henin said.
   ‘I’m really focused and I just try to be well prepared. A Grand Slam is long, there are seven matches and you need to be strong, mentally, physically; you need a little bit of luck.’
   Henin acknowledged her opponents up their game when they play her.
   ‘I can feel it, they always have a better level which is interesting and very exciting for me because it’s always a good challenge to keep my ranking and to improve.’
   Henin will face a well-prepared Ivanovic, who has been practising in Sydney for almost a month.
   ‘I’ve definitely had a good preparation and I’m really happy that I’ve won the last couple of matches and had a chance to slowly get into it,’ Ivanovic said after beating Srebotnik.
   ‘Winning a couple of matches has definitely given me some confidence and coming into the Australian Open I feel much better.’
   Second seed Kuznetsova says she needs to have more self-belief to take her tennis to the next level.
   The Russian has not won another Grand Slam since her 2004 success at Flushing Meadow despite playing in other finals, at last year’s US Open and the 2006 French Open.
   Kuznetsova showed her power on the slower Plexicushion hardcourt with a 6-4, 6-0 win over Italian Francesca Schiavone, a finalist here two years ago.
   ‘I need to be more consistent,’ she said. ‘To take the next step and win another slam I just need to play more important matches better and maybe believe in myself a little bit more.’
   Kuznetsova said she fancied her chances at the Open with the heavier balls on the slower court favouring the bigger hitters like her.

Argentine football legend Diego Maradona filed charges against businessman for stealing hundreds of memorabilia items shown around the world in his ‘Itinerant M10 Museum,’ the star’s official website said Tuesday.
   The 600 pieces of memorabilia, including the 1995 Golden Ball and gifts from Brazilian football icon Pele and Cuban President Fidel Castro, were on exhibition since 2003 but are presently tied up in customs in several countries due to the ‘organiser’s failure to meet his obligations,’ the website said.
   Maradona filed a complaint against businessman Ernesto Texo, in the matter, it added.
   The complaint said: ‘Texo and his associates improperly took possession of these objects after being tasked with organizing the Itinerant M10 Museum that visited Argentina, Italy and Mexico, among other countries.’
   The memorabilia also includes several international trophies, numerous tee-shirts Maradona—whose shirt number was 10 — exchanged after international matches with other famous football players, and other sports clothing worn by Maradona throughout his career.

Sir Alex Ferguson has challenged his Manchester United team to repeat the treble success of 1999.
   The Old Trafford boss is convinced he has the best squad of his 21 years in charge but wants them to prove it with trophies.
   United kicked off 2008 with a league win over Birmingham and then an FA Cup victory at Aston Villa.
   Fergie thinks that summer buys Carlos Tevez, Owen Hargreaves, Nani and Anderson have what it takes to deliver him another historic treble.
   United are two points off Arsenal at the top of the league and have ties against Lyon and either Tottenham or Reading in the cups.
   And the boss is out to relive the glory of 1999 when United scooped the league, FA Cup and Champions League.
   Fergie said: ‘I am looking for success in Europe as well as at home. We have the players and the back-up to do it.
   ‘We are a more mature team this season in terms of European football.’
   He added: ‘The main reason for my optimism is the way we have knitted together as a team. The new players have settled and made the kind of impact we were not entitled to expect so soon.’

The wife of Steve Bucknor, Leora, has told Cricket365 that she is saddened by the way her husband has been treated after the Sydney Test.
   Leora says her husband will return home this week after the axe fell on him. ‘He phoned me immediately after sword fell on him. He is set to return home later this week now,’ Leora said.
   ‘I visited India when my husband was felicitated for his 100th Test appearance as an ICC umpire. I witnessed the happiest moment (March 16, 2005, India vs Pakistan Test at Eden Gardens, Kolkata). Sadly, I was not there (due to my prior busy schedule) with him when he was ‘sacked’ on Tuesday morning.
   ‘I really feel sorry for him. After all he is a human being and any one can make mistakes. I wonder if the same (Indian) people who showered praise on him two years ago are after his blood now.’

The UAE national team came up with an impressive performance before going down 2-0 to World Club Championship winners AC Milan in their Emirates Challenge friendly match here on Tuesday.
   Alberto Gilardino, the Milan striker who came on in the second half, scored both the goals, following defensive errors.
   Champions League winners Milan opted to give all of their squad a run out in the game, with star names such as Ronaldo, Gattuso, Maldini, Dida and Cafu making an appearance in the first half.
   They changed their entire team for the second 45 minutes to allow Nesta, Inzaghi, Emerson, Gilardino and the World Player of the year Kaka to play the second half.
   However, the UAE defenders did reasonably well for the better part of the match, attended by a 20,000-strong capacity crowd at the Al Maktoum Stadium in Al Nasr Club.