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Maldives stumbled on the first block as spirited Nepal came back from behind to hold the defending champions 1-1 in a Group B match of the SAFF Championship at the Bangabandhu National Stadium on Saturday.
   Maldives were totally disorganised and looked tired while Nepal played a fighting brand of football from the very beginning to unsettle their opponents. Maldives took the lead against the run of play but Nepal’s attacking attitude paid off and they earned a creditable draw.
   Nepalese midfielder Rohit Chad got the first chance in the 6th minute as he sneaked through the Maldives defence with a long ball but saw his grounder roll past the side post.
   Maldives, cornered by the pressure of their Himalayan opponents, relied on counter-attack strategy and in the 36th minute Ibrahim Fazeel’s fierce drive was punched to safety by Nepal shot-stopper Bikash Malla.
   Nepal continued their onslaughts after the half-time and Chetan Ghimire, the speedy Nepalese forward, tested Maldives keeper Mohammed Imran twice but failed to find the net.
   Maldives took the lead with a swift counter-attack in the 61st minute as Ashfan Ahmed dashed down the right flank and gave a nice cross to Ahmed Thoriq who rounded his marker and the Nepalese keeper before placing the ball at the far post.
   Nepal refused to give up and restored parity in the 69th minute through Jumanu Rai. Substitute midfielder Yogesh Shreshta gave a long pass to Jumanu in the 18-yard box and the striker reacted quickly to volley the ball past Imran at the keeper’s far post.
   Imran saved his team in the dying minutes with an acrobatic save punching Anil Gurung’s 20-yarder for a corner.

Big-spending Gazi Tank Cricketers crashed out of Super League race after conceding their sixth defeat, this time against Victoria Sporting Club, by 11 runs at the BKSP on Saturday.
   With their sixth win Victoria secured their Super League berth with a match in hand joining up with Mohammedan, Abahani, Biman and Kalabagan. Three teams – CCS, BKSP and Old DOHS – remained in contention for the last available slot with a match still to play.
   CCS beat DOHS by three wickets at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium while BKSP beat already-relegated Partex SC by three runs at Fatullah stadium.
   
   Gazi Tanks v Victoria
   Mohammad Sharif displayed an all-round performance to give Victoria the unexpected berth in the elite phase as Gazi Tanks were restricted to 211-8 in 50 overs replying to Victoria’s 222-9.
   Arman Hossain scored 78 off 85 balls before Sharif struck 71 off 63 balls to lift Victoria to the respectable total. Nazmul Hossain, Farhad Reza and Alok Kapali took two wickets each for Gazi Tanks.
   Sharif later grabbed 4-35 to halt Gazi’s progress. Shahriar Nafees scored 37 runs for Gazi Tanks before Kapali (49), Naeem (30) and Farhad (32) all made decent contributions but fell to Sharif.
   
   CCS v DOHS
   Middle-order batsman Taposh Ghosh slammed an unbeaten 86 off 125 balls with 11 fours and a six as CCS raced to 186-7 in 47.1 overs after their bowlers had restricted DOHS to 185-8.
   Taposh added 84 runs for the second wicket with Pakistani cricketer Shahbaz Butt, who chipped in with 45. Nasiruddin Faruque claimed 4-13 for DOHS. Earlier, Taibur Rahman made highest 36 not out for DOHS.
   
   BKSP v Partex
   BKSP rode on 74 off 113 balls from Tanvir Haider to score 181 runs in 49.4 overs despite Mohammad Azim claiming 4-47 for Partex.
   Partex were firmly on course for their first victory with Pakistani Rashed Hanif making 59 runs, but Zakaria Masud took 4-27 late on for BKSP to derail their chase and dismiss them for 179 runs with 13 balls still to play.

Both Bangladesh and Pakistan will hope their attacking line will fire on all cylinders when they face off in a crunch Group A match of the Bangabandhu SAFF Championship at the BNS at 7:00pm today.
   Bangladesh boosted their morale with a 4-1 win over Bhutan in their opener while Pakistan went down 0-1 to Sri Lanka in their first game.
   Pakistan at least have to salvage a draw to remain alive in the eight-team regional tournament. Bangladesh will seal a last four place if they win the crucial tie and a draw in the game will also keep them on course.
   Bangladesh and Pakistan had met twice in the SAFF Championship and Bangladesh won both the games – a 4-0 victory at Goa in 1999 and a 1-0 win in Karachi in 2005.
   Bangladesh attackers tormented Bhutan and kept them at bay with an attacking brand of football. Pakistan with their powerfully-built physique tried to impose themselves on Sri Lanka but they lacked the finishing touch.
   The attacking line of Bangladesh with Emily and Enamul up front and Ujjal and Mamunul in the midfield along with constantly-overlapping Nasir and Wali Faisal through the flanks formed a lethal combination.
   Pakistan, on the other hand, relied on the skills of Arif Mehmood and Adnan Farook in the forward zone while Shabir Khan and substitute Reis Ashraf provided the thrust from the midfield.
   Bangladesh coach Shahidur Rahman Shantoo has told his players to stay calm and cool ahead of the crucial tie.
   ‘The main thing is to stay focussed on the task, the match against Bhutan was special as it was the first match of the meet and we passed it with distinction.
   ‘But as a coach I have to say that we still have to improve in every department, the journey has just started and the destination is still far away,’ said the coach.
   Shantoo dubbed Pakistan as a stronger opponent than Bhutan. ‘They are fit and well built, they play a speedy counter-attack based game. I have to talk to the players about the mistakes they made in the first match.
   ‘I have every belief that the players are aware of their commitments,’ said the Bangladesh coach.
   George Kottan, the coach of Pakistan, was trying to motivate his players to believe in themselves.
   ‘We are down but not out, if I win the match we will return to the semi-final track.
   ‘I have asked my players to play their normal game focusing on a win, not the result of the last match,’ said the Austrian.
   ‘I have every belief that we can beat Bangladesh, in the first match my team was a little disorganised.
   ‘I hope to overcome the shortcoming against Bangladesh. The hosts will definitely enjoy the advantage but we have the firepower to counter the challenges,’ said Kottan. The former Bangladesh coach, who won the SAFF title in 2003 in Dhaka, wiped out any sentimentality ahead of the match.
   ‘I am a professional coach, my heart beats for the team which I train presently, no chance of any emotional break down,’ said Kottan.

Mohammad Asif took all three wickets as New Zealand managed just 70 of the 405 runs required for victory in the second Test against Pakistan in Wellington.
   The hosts bowled Pakistan out for 239 in their second innings on the third day, but lost the wickets of Daniel Flynn, Tim McIntosh and Martin Guptill.
   New Zealand are 335 runs short of what would be the fourth-highest winning fourth innings score in Test history.
   Pakistan, however, will feel confident of levelling the three-Test series.
   Asif finished the day with three wickets for 19 runs from his 11 overs, McIntosh (two) lasting just four balls before being trapped lbw.
   Guptill (15) and Flynn (20) added 32 runs for the second wicket before Guptill inside edge onto his stumps, and Asif struck once more in the next over when Flynn edged to wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal.
   It could have been worse for New Zealand but for some poor fielding by Pakistan, for whom captain Mohammad Yousuf and Misbah-ul-Haq both dropped simple catches.
   Ross Taylor, who took 14 balls to get off the mark with a well-timed boundary, and Peter Fulton survived to the close, and will resume on 15 and 12 respectively on Sunday.
   Earlier, Misbah (33) was the only Pakistan batsman to fall in the opening session as the visitors resumed their second innings on 64-2, having skittled New Zealand for just 99 on Friday.
   Misbah’s thick edge found Brendon McCullum off the bowling of Iain O’Brien, bringing Umar Akmal to the crease for a quickfire half-century from just 32 deliveries.
   However, Umar holed out off the next ball for 52, and New Zealand set about doing damage with the new ball.
   Chris Martin took the wickets of Mohammad Aamer (nine) and Yousuf (83), after a review overturned umpire Rudi Koertzen’s initial rejection of New Zealand’s lbw appeal for the latter.
   Martin found himself on a hat-trick after new batsman Danish Kaneria got a thick edge to the slips first ball, but Asif survived to remain nought not out as O’Brien wrapped up the Pakistan innings, Umar Gul holing out to Fulton in the deep.

Sri Lanka’s captain Kumar Sangakkara scored an unbeaten century to delay India’s victory bid in the third and final Test here on Saturday.
   The tourists, trailing by 333 on the first innings, survived a middle-order collapse in the post-lunch session to move to 274-6 in their second knock by stumps on the fourth day.
   Left-handed Sangakkara returned undefeated on 133, his highest score in the series, with Sri Lanka still needing 59 more to avoid a second successive innings defeat with four wickets in hand.
   India, who won the Kanpur Test by an innings and 144 runs, will leapfrog leaders South Africa and number two Sri Lanka to become the top-ranked Test side if they win the series 2-0.
   Sri Lanka lost four wickets for 25 runs in the post-lunch session to slip to 144-5, before Sangakkara led a revival to take the match into the fifth day.
   The skipper put on 64 for the sixth wicket with wicket-keeper Prasanna Jayawardene (32) and 66 for the unbroken seventh with Nuwan Kulasekara, who was unbeaten on nine.
   Sri Lanka, starting the day at 11-0, lost key batsman Tillakaratne Dilshan (16) to an umpire’s mistake for the second time in the match when he was given out leg-before to Harbhajan Singh before lunch.
   Australian umpire Daryl Harper raised his finger as Dilshan padded up to a ball that spun sharply from the middle-stump and hit the batsman’s front leg.
   Television replays showed the ball missing leg-stump by at least six inches.
   In the first innings, Dilshan’s century knock was cut short by English umpire Nigel Llong, who ruled the batsman caught at forward short-leg even though the ball bounced off the pad.
   The umpires’ referral system, which allows a batting or bowling team to appeal for a review of an on-field decision, is not being used in the series.
   Tharanga Paranavitana and Sangakkara put on 90 for the second wicket but India hit back with quick wickets after lunch.
   Seamer Shanthakumaran Sreesanth broke the stand by trapping Paranavitana leg-before for 54 — an easy decision for Llong to make as the batsman played back and was hit in line of the middle stump.
   Pace spearhead Zaheer Khan had Mahela Jayawardene (12) edging a rising delivery to wicket-keeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
   Two overs later, Zaheer forced Thilan Samaraweera to edge a low catch to Venkatsai Laxman at second slip before the batsman had scored.
   Left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha struck with the last delivery before tea when Angelo Mathews hung his bat out and edged an easy catch to the wicket-keeper.
   Prasanna Jayawardene became Ojha’s second victim midway through the final session when he was leg-before to a ball that did not spin away from the bat. But Kulasekara walked in to hold his ground until stumps as the Indian fielding wilted under the hot sun.

Brendan Nash and Ravi Rampaul helped the West Indies to a good first innings total against Australia with a record last-wicket stand.
   The duo broke the 30-year-old record for a West Indies last wicket pair in Australia as they made 66 out of their team’s total of 451.
   Nash resumed his innings after retiring hurt on day one and made 92, while Rampaul was unbeaten on 40.
   Australia closed on 174-0, with Shane Watson on 96 and Simon Katich on 71.
   Having started the day on 336-6, the West Indies added 69 runs to their total before lunch for the loss of three wickets.
   All-rounder Darren Sammy returned to the pavilion after the first ball of the day, after the video replay found he was out plumb lbw to the bowling of Peter Siddle for 44 runs.
   Sulieman Benn made 17 in a stubborn 80-minute stay at the crease, putting on 44 with Nash before he was also out lbw, to Nathan Hauritz, after another referral.
   Kemar Roach was caught behind for two, which brought together Nash and Rampaul for their last wicket heroics. Australian opening pair Watson and Katich made up for lost time when they finally got to the crease, having reached 66 off 15 overs when tea was taken.
   All-rounder Watson has come in for some criticism recently but provided the perfect riposte with an unbeaten 96 to leave him within touching distance of his first Test century.

The 4th Citi Cup Golf Tournament ended at the Kurmitola Golf Club on Friday with the participation of around 400 golfers from Dhaka.
   Finance minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith distributed the prizes among the winners in a colourful ceremony attended by all participants and invited guests of Citibank
   Earlier Taifiq-E-Elahi, power, energy and mineral resources adviser to the prime minister, inaugurated the event while Suk Bum Park, ambassador to Bangladesh, republic of Korea and Mamun Rashid, managing director and Citi country officer, Bangladesh were also present on the occasion.

England captain Andrew Strauss hailed his players’ willingness to play a more attacking brand of cricket after his team clinched their one-day international series against South Africa when the fifth and final match was rained out at Kingsmead on Friday.
   England won the series 2-1, with two matches abandoned because of rain.
   Australia had been the only team previously to win a bilateral series in South Africa, where the host country had won 21 out of 24 home series, including the most recent 15 in succession.
   ‘It’s a big step forward for the group,’ said Strauss. ‘To be only the second team to win out here is an achievement to be proud of.’
   Strauss said it had been a team effort. ‘The players had to buy into trying to play a slightly more attacking brand of cricket and at the same time to up our fielding and to be more consistent with the ball.
   ‘I think the guys have enjoyed having the shackles taken off them to a certain extent. A lot of our one-day cricket over the last few years has been played like men under a lot of pressure. A lot of the players were under pressure, playing for their places and because the results weren’t very good.’
   Strauss said, though, that much work still needed to be done by England.
   ‘It’s encouraging to know we are going in the right direction but I’d be the last person to say we’re the finished article.’
   England’s Paul Collingwood was named man of the series. He scored 193 runs at an average of 96.50, took important wickets and was one of his team’s best fielders.
   ‘It’s been a great series for us and for me on a personal note,’ said Collingwood.
   South African captain Graeme Smith said England deserved their series win. ‘England outperformed us in the majority of the games,’ he said.
   Smith said his team needed to absorb the lessons from the England matches.
   ‘Our next one-day series is in India where the (2011) World Cup is going to be played.
   ‘Hopefully by then we will have a fully-fit squad and a squad which has developed from here.’
   South Africa will meet England in a four-match Test series, starting in Centurion on December 16.
   ‘There’s a break now and there will be a few new faces in our squad,’ said Smith. ‘
   ‘The last two years have been really terrific for us in Test cricket and we want to carry it on. England have an Ashes-winning Test squad so it bodes well for a good series.’
   Strauss said the Test series would be a ‘huge challenge’ for England. ‘It will be a series between two very good Test match sides but we can take some confidence from the one-day series.’

Spain were on course to claim their second consecutive Davis Cup title after David Ferrer came back from two sets down to beat Radek Stepanek and leave the hosts 2-0 up here on Friday.
   Earlier, world number two Rafael Nadal cruised past Tomas Berdych 7-5, 6-0, 6-2 in the opening singles match.
   Ferrer, by contrast, did it the hard way.
   Stepanek, ranked 12 in the world, comfortably claimed the first two sets, before the Spanish world number 18 clawed his way back to take the next three in a heroic performance that lasted four hours and 17 minutes.
   Ferrer eventually came out the winner 1-6, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4, 8-6 in the third consecutive five-set meeting between the two.
   ‘It was one of the most tense matches of my career,’ said the 27-year-old Ferrer.
   The Czechs must now win Saturday’s doubles in which Jan Hajek and Lukas Dlouhy face Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco. The reverse singles rubbers on Sunday pitch Nadal against Stepanek and Ferrer against Berdych.
   After an awkward start to his match, world number two Nadal compensated for a tense exchange of service breaks in the first few games of the match by winning 13 straight games from 5-5 in the first set.
   Berdych, ranked 20th in the world, faded badly and was powerless to stop the match deteriorating rapidly during the 2 hour 29 minute encounter.
   ‘I was a bit nervous at the start,’ said Nadal. ‘I played shorter than I normally do on clay.
   ‘The first set was the key, and afterwards everything changed. I found more depth... I made fewer mistakes and I think Tomas was more tired than me.
   ‘Personally, I think he lost his way because I was playing better from the end of the first set. With the public behind me, I was confident and I started to play the tennis I normally play on clay.’
   Berdych lamented his missed chances in the first set.
   ‘At 5-5 there was a very long game when I didn’t serve well. There were only long exchanges,’ he said.
   ‘But you have to congratulate Rafa. The way in which he played those last two sets was simply incredible.
   ‘It’s tough to lose 13 games on the trot. I tried to find some answers to come into the net a little more but nothing really worked.’

Former Pakistan batsman Basit Ali believes that young batting sensation Umar Akmal is not the right man to bat at the number three position.
   In an interview to PakPassion.net, Ali said that although Akmal has been successful batting at number three and scored some vital runs for his team, he is ‘too flashy’ to be batting at that key position.
   Ali said the senior batsman like Younus Khan or Mohammad Yosuf should be the first choice for that position.
   ‘Younus Khan in my opinion is the right man to be batting at three for Pakistan, but if he is not available then it has to be Yousuf who takes the responsibility on his shoulders and bats at number three.
   ‘There is no point in chopping and changing the batting order and having makeshift number three batsmen,’ he said.
   Commenting on the on-going second Test match against New Zealand, Ali said he is expecting leg-spinner Danish Kaneria to weave his magic to help Pakistan win the encounter to level the three match series 1-1.
   ‘I would expect Danish Kaneria’s wrist spin to lead Pakistan to victory. Danish looked very impressive in the first innings and he could be the most penetrative bowler in the second innings for Pakistan,’ he said.
   When asked that who he thinks would lead the side during the forthcoming Australia tour, Ali said its hard to judge board’s (PCB’s) stand, as it keeps on changing.
   ‘I think it’s a simple case of if Pakistan wins the series in New Zealand, then the Board will retain Yousuf.
   ‘However if Pakistan were to lose the test series in New Zealand and Younus not to make himself available for the tour of Australia, then it’s anyone’s guess who could be captain,’ he said.
   ‘There seems to be very little foresight from the Board at the moment, you win one series and you are flavour of the month, you lose one series as captain and you are discarded and that is exactly what could happen to Yousuf,’ added the former batsman.

Two more Australia legends, Clarrie Grimmett and Greg Chappell, were formally inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame during the tea interval on the second day of the second Test between Australia and West Indies at the Adelaide Oval here.
   ICC president David Morgan presented commemorative cap to Grimmett’s son Victor while Cricket Australia Chairman and ICC Director Jack Clarke presented the cap to Greg Chappell who was then driven around the outfield in a motorcade to allow the crowds to show their appreciation.
   The Hall of Fame, run in association with the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA), recognises some of the truly great players from cricket’s long and illustrious history.
   The late Grimmett was one of Australia’s greatest spin bowlers and took 216 wickets in 37 Tests, including five wickets in an innings 21 times and 10 wickets in a match on seven occasions.
   Born on Christmas Day 1891 in Dunedin, New Zealand, Grimmett went to Australia on a short working holiday in 1914 and ended up spending the next 66 years of his life in the country and playing cricket for it.
   Grimmett holds the record for reaching the fast 200 Test wickets. He claimed his 200th wicket in his 36th Test. The next quickest to reach the milestone of 200 Test wickets, is fellow Hall of Famer Dennis Lillee who accomplished the feat in his 38th Test.
   Making his debut for Australia at the age of 33, Grimmett is only the second bowler (the other being India’s Dilip Doshi) to have made his Test debut after the age of 30 and still end up with 100 or more Test wickets. Doshi took 113 wickets in 33 Tests.
   Also inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame today was Greg Chappell whose elder brother Ian was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame during the Ashes series in England in July.
   Born in August 1948, Chappell appeared in 87 Tests for Australia, scoring 7,110 runs with 24 centuries and 31 half-centuries. He captained Australia in 48 Tests, winning 21 Tests.
   Chappell is one of the four batsmen to have scored centuries in his first and last Tests. He scored 108 on his debut against Australia in Perth in 1970 and signed off on his illustrious career by hitting 182 against Pakistan in Sydney in 1984.
   The other three batsmen to have achieved the rare distinction are Mohammad Azharuddin of India, Reginald Duff and William Ponsford (both Australia).
   In 74 ODIs, Chappell made 2,331 runs at an average of 40.18 while in 321 first-class matches he scored 24, 535 runs, including 74 centuries. He was named Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1973.
   After receiving his cap from ICC Director and Cricket Australia Chairman Jack Clarke, Chappell said: ‘It is obviously a great honour to be named in the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame alongside so many greats of the game and the ones who I particularly looked up to when I was just starting my career.
   ‘I am particularly pleased to be receiving my cap today here in Adelaide as both my mother and my elder brother Ian are here to share this special moment with me.’
   Victor, after receiving his father’s cap from ICC President David Morgan, said: ‘I am honoured to be here today to accept the cap on behalf of my father.
   ‘Dad was quite shy and reserved, but he was a lovely man who would have been delighted with this award. This is very special.’
   The cap presentation ceremony is a key part of the celebrations to mark the ICC’s centenary year as it acknowledges the greats of the game and the contributions they have made to ensure cricket is a great sport with a great spirit.

South African skipper Graeme Smith has said that England batsman Kevin Pietersen is fair game for crowd abuse.
   Smith reckons that the boos directed at Pietersen five years after he first returned to the country of his birth are part and parcel of the game and the star batsman should just get on with it.
   “Kevin has got a history through things that he has done and said and people here are still getting over those emotions.
   “You want the cricket to make the headlines, but it hasn’t quite gone that way and the crowds have been quite vocal towards Kevin and ultimately it is his job to get on with it and deal with it,” The Mirror quoted Smith, as saying.
   The South African captain further highlighted that crowd abuse is the same over the world for international cricketers, and said:
   “It happens around the world these days. I watched Ricky Ponting getting booed consistently in England and it happens all over the world, I think a couple of England fans booed me on Sunday.
   “It is just something you become used to as an international cricketer touring around the world. Fans are biased towards their teams and you have to learn to have a thick skin.”
   It is ten years to the day since Pietersen made his first impression on English cricket, representing KwaZulu Natal against England on their 1999 tour, scoring a then career best of 61 not out and picking up four wickets with his off-spin.
   One of the reasons behind Pietersen facing time with the crowd is for his departure to England in 2000, after complaining about the transformation programme in South African sport.

Ace golfer Tiger Woods now has five more flings to his credit and one of them includes a sexy British telly presenter.
   According to a golf insider, the married superstar’s tally of affairs has now reached eight.
   ‘He would hook up with her when he went to the UK,’ the Sun quoted the insider as saying.
   ‘She’s really sexy and very well-known.
   ‘A very famous golfer - a good friend of mine - told me about it years ago.
   ‘His fling with a British TV presenter was the talk of the PGA,’ he added.
   The source, a sports marketing executive who has known Woods for years, revealed that the mystery beauty was single at the time but is now married.
   ‘Both will be hoping this one doesn’t come out. It will take the scandal to a new level,’ said the insider.
   The troubled golfer, 33, who is battling to save his marriage after confessing to being a love rat, was said to have also bedded a sex-hungry ‘cougar’ in her 40s.
   He and the wealthy single mum met in a Florida bar - and would romp in his office.
   Woods even bedded a ‘trailer trash’ neighbour in his hometown of Orlando.
   Reports suggest that he romped with two party girls he met up with on nights out in Las Vegas.
   ‘Both are sexy and work on the club scene,’ said a Sin City nightspot insider.
   Tiger’s squeaky-clean image was wrecked when he crashed his car last Friday after a blazing row with his Swedish wife Elin, 29.
   And in a few days he was accused of bedding New York socialite Rachel Uchitel, 34, LA cocktail waitress Jaimee Grubbs, 24, and Vegas club worker Kolika Moquin, 27.

A peeved Andrew Hall has vowed not to play for unsanctioned Indian Cricket League unless he gets his dues paid.
   The South African all-rounder is among the several international cricketers, who are still waiting to be fully paid by the ICL.
   A disgruntled Hall, who played for the Chandigarh Lions, told the Afrikaans daily Beeld that the ICL people will never see him again in their tournament.
   ‘They will never see me again. I would not set my foot in India for them unless the ICL pays me full in advance for a new contract,’ Hall said.

Cameraman Abu Jahed of the Chittagong office of Channel-i will be able to watch the final and one semi-final matches of the FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2009 as the winner of a quiz competition jointly organised by Emirates and Bhorer Kagoj.
   Ten others also received Emirates gift hampers as winners of the competition.
   The FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2009 will take place in the city of Abu Dhabi from December 9 to 19.
   Husain Al Safi, Emirates’ acting area manager Bangladesh, presented the tickets to the winner at the Bhorer Kagoj office on December 3. Shyamal Dutta, the editor of Bhorer Kagoj, was present on this occasion.

The scene is set for World Cup 2010 and already the mind games have begun.
   Group of Death or not Group of Death, no easy draws, one match at a time – the 32 national team coaches were the most sought-after personalities in Cape Town after Friday night’s draw here.
   England’s Fabio Capello is a keen student of football past and present and, even though born in Italy, he is aware that one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history took place in 1950 when a ragtag team of Americans defeated mighty England 1-0.
   He will be determined to avoid any hints of complacency this time around with England drawn against the United States, Algeria and Slovenia which even the most wary of observers would grant is a tasty offering for any top-class side.
   ‘The USA are strong physically and technically they are good enough. I saw the game against Spain when they won and it will be no easy game,’ he said.
   Similar sentiments from Marcello Lippi, coach of defending champions Italy, who also knows something of World Cup catastrophe dating back to 1966 when they amazingly lost 1-0 to North Korea to crash out of the competition.
   This time the danger comes in the not-too-frightening forms of Paraguay, Slovenia and minnows New Zealand.
   ‘The more you think a group will be easy the more difficult it becomes,’ Lippi said thoughtfully.
   ‘Paraguay were top of the South American qualifying group for a long time before being overtaken by Brazil at the end.
   ‘Slovenia are improving, they have players we know well, also some who play in Italy and they beat some good teams to get here.’
   Nothing about New Zealand then, who won through by defeating the likes of Fiji and Vanuatu to take the Oceania crown before edging Bahrain in a play-off.
   For others though the boot was on the other foot, with the underdogs talking up their chances of mixing it with the big boys.
   Take hosts South Africa, the lowest ranking team qualified for the June 11-July 11 finals, and eager to avoid the ignominy of being the first home nation to fail to make it out of the group stages.
   Their Brazilian coach, Carlos Alberto Parreira, who has tasted the ultimate in World Cup glory by leading Brazil to the crown in 1994, must make it past Mexico, Uruguay and France to reach the hallowed land of the last 16.
   ‘The greatest challenge is getting to the second phase. South Africa must work hard but I’m confident we will get there,’ he said.
   ‘I hope that with the backing of home fans we will reach the quarter-finals and after that the sky is the limit.’
   Also looking to the sky was Slovenia skipper Robert Koren, who sounded non-plussed about the prospect of going up against England.
   ‘We are very happy with this draw and very confident,’ he said. I can assure you that we will travel to South Africa full of confidence.’
   For some though what the draw threw up hardly mattered at least not that they would let on.
   France’s notoriously taciturn coach Raymond Domenech for one raised a bushy eyebrow when asked if he agreed that his side would be favourites to make it out of the South Africa group.
   ‘It just isn’t as simple as that. Everyone will have us down as favourites, but I don’t know what they base that on. We will see how that stands when it is all over.
   ‘The groups are well balanced and there is no real Group of Death this time. You can never be sure. We have seen so many surprises in the past.’
   The mind games have begun then and it is unlikely they will stop until South Africa kick the show off against Mexico in Johannesburg on June 11.

News-papers here gloated Saturday over England’s draw for the World Cup, saying it gave them a clear path to the knockout stages and was the ‘best English group since The Beatles’.
   Fabio Capello’s squad were placed in group C with the United States, Algeria and Slovenia in Friday’s draw, with their opening match against the Americans in Rustenburg on June 12.
   The Times called it ‘one of the most favourable draws in England’s history’, the Daily Express called it an ‘open passage into the knockout stages’, while the Daily Mirror headlined: ‘The Dream is On!’
   ‘Best English group since The Beatles’ was The Sun’s verdict. The tabloid added that the first letters of the group C teams – England, Algeria, Slovenia and the Yanks (United States) – spelled out Capello’s EASY task ahead.
   ‘I think it is probably the easiest of the World Cup groups,’ Jack Charlton, who played for England when they last won the tournament in 1966, told the paper – although he noted the United States had knocked England out before.
   The United States won the only previous World Cup meeting between the two countries and their 1-0 win in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, in 1950 still ranks as one of the greatest shocks in the history of the tournament.
   The Guardian said that although there were some challenges ahead, the draw should mean a ‘gentle beginning’ that could be of ‘profound benefit’ to players still recovering from the Champions League.
   Because the task facing England once they got through the group stages was a tough one.
   ‘England’s route to Soccer City could be a last 16 encounter against Germany, a quarter-final against France and a semi-final against the mighty Brazilians,’ said the Daily Mail.
   ‘If they did then conquer Spain in the final, they really could consider themselves the best team in the world.’

European champions Spain, favourites for the World Cup, will have a firm eye on potential opponents in the last 16 after being drawn with Honduras, Chile and Switzerland in Group H.
   The Spanish, whose best World Cup performance was a fourth-place finish in 1950, will be making their 12th tournament appearance and have never lost to any of their three group rivals.
   And the trio will likely suffer should Spain’s exemplary qualifying prowess continue.
   Spain, along with the Netherlands, were one of only two teams to qualify from the European zone unbeaten, notching up 10 wins, scoring 28 goals and conceding just five in the process.
   The team’s success has been based on quality and balance throughout a side dripping class.
   Captain Iker Casillas is one of the world’s finest goalkeepers, while Xavi is vital to Spain’s fluid one-touch style with his inch-perfect passing and vision. Up front, Europe boasts no finer finishers than David Villa and Fernando Torres.
   Rafael Callejas, head of the Honduran football federation, said much preparation lay ahead for his team, ranked 38th in the FIFA standings and set for only their second World Cup participation after their 1982 appearance when they went out in the first round.
   ‘We face very high level teams in Spain, Switzerland and Chile,’ he said. ‘Honduras must prepare itself very well.’
   Honduras reached the finals in dramatic fashion thanks to a last-second equaliser in the USA’s clash with Costa Rica, and will look to the professionalism of Colombian coach Reinaldo Rueda and evergreen striker Carlos Pavon to guide them through their pool campaign.
   Fellow Hispanophones Chile, ranked 17th by FIFA and boasting the youngest average age of all the South American teams, make a return to the World Cup after a 12-year absence.
   Coached by Argentinian veteran Marcelo Bielsa, Chile qualified behind Brazil in the South American zone with their steely resolve mirrored in an impressive away record.

World Cup venues

   South Africa will use 10 venues in nine cities to stage the 2010 World Cup, with the opening match and final at Soccer City near Soweto.
   BLOEMFONTEIN
   Name: Free State Stadium
   Capacity: 48,000
   Completed: 1952
   World Cup construction: medium upgrade
   Occupants: Free State Cheetahs (rugby union) and Bloemfontein Celtic (football)
   Fixtures: five first round, one second round
   CAPE TOWN
   Name: Cape Town Stadium
   Capacity: 70,000
   Completed: 2009
   Construction: new
   Occupants: none
   Fixtures: five first round, one second round, quarter-final, semi-final
   DURBAN
   Name: Moses Mabhida Stadium
   Capacity: 70,000
   Completed: 2009
   Construction: new
   Occupants: AmaZulu (football)
   Fixtures: five first round, one second round, semi-final
   Special feature: Cable car which rises on arch to 106 metres about pitch
   Note: Mabhida was a former commander of African National Congress armed wing and general secretary of South African Communist Party who died in 1986
   JOHANNESBURG
   Name: Ellis Park
   Capacity: 61,000
   Completed: 1982
   Construction: minor upgrade
   Occupants: Orlando Pirates (football) and Golden Lions (rugby union)
   Fixtures: five first round, one second round, quarter-final
   JOHANNESBURG
   Name: Soccer City
   Capacity: 94,700
   Completed: 1987
   Construction: major upgrade
   Occupants: none
   Fixtures: five first round, one second round, quarter-final, final
   Note: fixtures include opening match on June 11 and final on July 11
   NELSPRUIT
   Name: Mbombela Stadium
   Capacity: 46,000
   Completed: 2009
   Construction: new
   Occupants: none
   Fixtures: four first round
   PRETORIA
   Name: Loftus Versfeld
   Capacity: 50,000
   Completed: 1906
   Construction: upgrade
   Occupants: Kaizer Chiefs, Mamelodi Sundowns and SuperSport Utd (football) and Blue Bulls (rugby union)
   Fixtures: five first round, one second round
   POLOKWANE
   Name: Peter Mokaba Stadium
   Capacity: 46,000
   Completed: 2010
   Construction: new
   Occupants: none
   Fixtures: four first round
   PORT ELIZABETH
   Name: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium
   Capacity: 48,000
   Completed: 2009
   Construction: new
   Occupants: none
   Fixtures: five first round, one second round, quarter-final, third place play-off
   RUSTENBURG
   Name: Royal Bafokeng Stadium
   Capacity: 42,000
   Completed: 1999
   Construction: minor upgrade
   Occupants: Platinum Stars (football) and Platinum Leopards (rugby union)
   Fixtures: five first round, one second round