Monday International Sports News

SouthEast Bank Junior Boxing
United News of Bangladesh . Dhaka
Ruhun Reza (BKSP), Rezaul Islam (Bangladesh Ansar), Rakib Sheikh (Rajshahi Education Board) and Mohammad Russell (Jessore DSA) moved to the semi-final in 25 kg weight category of the 20th SouthEast Bank National Junior Boxing Competition on Sunday.
In the 29 kg weight category, Sajib Hossain (Bangladesh Ansar), Robin Mia (Rajshahi City Corporation), Mohammad Asif (BKSP) and Abdul Kuddus (Rajshahi Education Board) advanced to the semis.
In the 35 kg weight category, Mohammad Aslam (BKSP), Mehedi Hasan (Rajshahi DSA), Salahuddin Tipu (Gopalganj DSA) and Shahadat Hossain (Bangladesh Ansar) confirmed their semi-final berth.
In the 42 kg weight category, Mohammad Rubel (Basabo Tarun Sangha), Shaheen Bappi (Rajshahi City Corporation), Gregory Hajda (Rajshahi DSA) and Mohin Bappi (Jessore DSA) secured the semi-final berths.


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Ganguly to now check out soccer
Agencies . Kolkata
Indian cricketer Sourav Ganguly would now be seen in another role - on the football field. He is slated to turn out for Chirag United in a match in the ongoing Kolkata Premier League.
The team is owned by the RP group - makers of Chirag brand of computers, for which Ganguly is the brand ambassador.
‘He will play in one match, may be for two minutes. His presence will motivate our players and help promote Indian football in the country and outside. Finally, he will ensure a strong fan following for us,’ said RP group chairman Koustav Roy.
However, Chirag’s efforts on Saturday to register Ganguly as their player proved unsuccessful.
Officials of the Indian Football Association - the game’s governing body for West Bengal - did not accept Ganguly’s signed registration form as he did not make a personal appearance.
‘He will sign for us on his return from Sri Lanka after playing the Test series,’ Roy added.
Ganguly, who has had a glittering cricketing career, is also known for his passion for football. In fact, Ganguly was a promising striker during his college days.
He was torn between his allegiances to football and cricket in college, but finally decided to make a career out of the willow.


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Lord’s revamp to cost £200m
Agencies . London
The cost of revamping the hallowed Lord’s cricket ground here is estimated at 200 million pounds and the project will take 10 years to complete, a media report on Saturday said.
The Marylebone Cricket Club appointed Herzog and de Meuron—a celebrated Swiss construction firm—that will now consult the London mayor’s office over the revamp plans which are expected to change the face of the ground, The Daily Telegraph reported Saturday.
The revamp plan will see a new-look ground with floodlights, extended stands, and a major new residential development along the Wellington Road. But all this will need permission from the Westminster Council since St John’s Wood is a strictly controlled conservation area.
‘There is always bound to be a bargaining process with the council,’ David Batts, the director of the masterplan, was quoted as saying by the daily.
‘Herzog and de Meuron designed the Tate Modern and that has become a destination in its own right,’ he added. ‘People go there just to have a coffee, not necessarily to look at the paintings. We hope it’s the case here, especially if we have got a hotel of our own.’
The plans were based only early working models, which will be refined before anything can be taken to Westminster Council. But they still impressed the MCC committee, especially proposals to have a suspended walkway, some 20 feet in the air, running around 80 per cent of the ground. With an extra 10,000 seats also part of the plan, there has to be some solution to the rush that develops on major match days.
One of the key ideas of the blueprint involves the development of two disused railway tunnels under the nursery ground, which are likely to be turned into a sports injury clinic in partnership with the adjoining Wellington Hospital.


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Panesar exposes Proteas
spin fallibility
London
Monty Panesar exposed South Africa’s historic fallibility against spin bowling on Saturday with four for 74 on the third day of the first Test at Lord’s.
Panesar helped dismiss South Africa for 247 in their first innings in reply to England’s 593 for eight declared. The visitors were 13 for no wicket at the close in their second innings after being asked to follow on.
Ashwell Prince was the only batsman to defy the bowling for any length of time, compiling a doggedly resourceful 101 in his first Test against England. His eighth Test hundred took six minutes short of five hours and he hit 13 boundaries and a six.
‘We had to be patient on that type of pitch,’ Panesar told a news conference. ‘We had to make it quite hard for them.’
Panesar praised Prince’s obdurate innings. ‘There was a bit of rough there but he managed to counteract that very well,’ he said.
Prince said his century in his first innings at Lord’s had been a very proud moment.
‘Having said that it would have mattered a lot more if it (the day) had been more meaningful for the team,’ he said. ‘Unfortunately we didn’t put in good performances today.’
South Africa, resuming the day on seven for no wicket, lost three of their top four batsman in the opening session to the England pace attack, although the ball did little in the air or off the pitch.
Captain Graeme Smith was caught for eight from the 12th delivery of the day at gully off James Anderson, Hashim Amla (6) edged Stuart Broad to wicketkeeper Tim Ambrose and the prolific Jacques Kallis (7) was caught at first slip by Andrew Strauss off Ryan Sidebottom.
Panesar got into the act with his first delivery after lunch.
Opener Neil McKenzie, who had stood firm while his colleagues faltered, was bowled leg-stump for 40 with a ball which turned sharply out of the rough created by the bowlers’ footmarks.
Prince and AB de Villiers partially restored their side’s fortunes with a fourth-wicket partnership of 78 which was ended by Panesar when Anderson leaped high at mid-on to catch the latter for 42.
Morne Morkel could make little of Panesar and was bowled for four through a wide gap between bat and pad and Paul Harris succumbed for six to another fine catch by Anderson, this time diving forward.
Throughout the chaos at the other end, left-hander Prince persevered with unremitting concentration on a pitch still full of runs.
He played Panesar confidently, reverse-sweeping a four and hitting the Englishman over the mid-wicket boundary two balls later.
His century was a due reward for his diligence and emphasised the failings of his team mates on a benign pitch.
At 203 for eight, the end of the South African innings seemed imminent but Dale Steyn hung on as England went on the defensive, conceding singles to Prince to give the strike to the tailender.
Sidebottom finally made the breakthrough when Prince played a tired looking shot outside the off-stump and was caught by Ambrose.
With the light failing, Michael Vaughan returned to Panesar and introduced Kevin Pietersen’s occasional off-spin. Pietersen, who had scored a century in his first Test against his native land in
England’s innings, responded by capturing the wicket
of Steyn, caught by Sidebottom for 19.
Panesar and Pietersen took the new ball when South Africa batted again to prevent the umpires asking the batsmen if they wanted to go off for bad light. Smith and McKenzie negotiated the four overs.


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