Sakib, Nasir miss the cut in ICC awards

New Age, 30 august 2012

Sakib al Hasan and Nasir Hossain missed the cut in the shortlists for ICC Annual Awards that was announced at a press conference in Colombo on Thursday.
Sakib was one of the 16 nominees for the ODI Cricketer of the Year award but only MS Dhoni (India), Virat Kohli (India), Lasith Malinga (Sri Lanka), Kumar Sangakkara (Sri Lanka) were named on the shortlist.
Nasir was among the nominees for the Emerging Cricketer of the Year but he fell behind Doug Bracewell (New Zealand), Dinesh Chandimal (Sri Lanka), Sunil Narine (West Indies), James Pattinson (Australia), who made the shortlist in this category.
An independent 32-member panel comprising former players and representatives from the media, match referees and umpires drew up the shortlists. New Age sports editor Azad Majumder and former national captain Naimur Rahman represented Bangladesh on the voting panel.
Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara was nominated in four categories including player of the year.
The 34-year-old batsman-wicketkeeper will compete with South Africans Hashim Amla and Vernon Philander and Australian Test captain Michael Clarke for the Garfield Sobers Trophy.
All four have also been nominated for the Test cricketer of the year, while Sangakkara also features in the shortlist for the one-day and people’s awards. The winners will be announced in Colombo on September 15.
Cricketers receiving the highest number of votes from the panel will be adjudged the winners.
Performances over a 12-month period that ended on August 6, 2012 were taken into account.

Invitation from Boca Juniors

The Daily Star, 30 august 2012

The Bangladesh Football Federation has been invited to send a team of fifteen players to participate in Argentinean club Boca Juniors’ project titled ‘for all the youngsters of the world’.

The BFF received the invitation letter yesterday through the Youth and Sports Ministry after Bangladesh High Commission in India received it from the Argentina Embassy in India.

“According to the letter, we have been requested to send 15 booters of 10-years above and two proper guardians with them,” said BFF’s acting general secretary Abu Nayeem Shohag.

Shohag however informed that they are not aware of the details of the project as there is nothing specific mentioned in the letter but that they would try to learn the details from Boca Juniors.

It has however been mentioned in the letter that the project aims to promote sports, international trade, and tourism in Argentina, opening doors of the club to host of boys and girls, who want to experience the passion that football generates in Argentina.

Hawking to star in Paralympics opening

The Daily Star, 30 August 2012

A spectacular opening ceremony starring acclaimed British scientist Stephen Hawking was set to ring in the biggest ever Paralympic Games on Wednesday, aiming to transform ideas about disability and champion the human spirit.

Hawking, author of the best-selling “A Brief History of Time” and described by organisers as “the most famous disabled person anywhere in the world”,

will make a rare public appearance to narrate parts of the ceremony at the Olympic Stadium.

Organisers said Hawking, who has motor neurone disease and has been paralysed for most of his life, would guide a central character on a journey of discovery in a story inspired by William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest”.

“What came through to us was the humanity and humour of Professor Hawking,” said Bradley Hemmings, the ceremony’s co-artistic director.

“He’s a fun guy.”

Hawking, who speaks using a voice synthesiser, will deliver a series of messages about “the origins of the universe and how humanity has tried to understand how everything is ordered,” Hemming’s co-director Jenny Sealey said.

The ceremony, involving 3,000 performers, many of them with disabilities, brings the curtain up on the highest-profile Paralympic Games in the event’s 52-year history.

Lampard eyes Chelsea job

The Daily Star, 30 august 2012

Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard wants to manage the European champions once his playing days are over.

Lampard, 34, has been at the Premier League side since 2001 and is in the final season of his current deal.

“I am thinking about my coaching badges now but there is only one club I want to manage,” Lampard was quoted as saying in The Sun newspaper on Wednesday.

“I know it might sound a bit big-headed or selfish but I wouldn’t want to go through ‘showing myself’ with a lower club.”

Chess Olympiad Fortunes swing for BD

The Daily Star, 30 August 2012

Fortunes continued to swing for Bangladesh men’s and women’s chess teams in the 40th Chess Olympiad as the women’s team recorded a straight 4-0 victory over Trinidad and Tobago while the men’s team were trailing 0-2 against Armenia, when this report was filed.

The women’s team, who were beaten 4-0 by top-seed China on the opening day of the Olympiad in Istanbul, turned the tables as they beat lowly T&T. Sharmin Sultana Shirin beat Nikielia Chuniesingh, WIM Rani Hamid beat Aditi Soondarsingh, WFM Zakia Sultana beat WCM Javanna Smith and Nazrana Khan Eva beat Gabriella Johnson to complete the clean sweep. The women’s team have two points from two rounds after this victory.

The men’s team on the other hand who started with a 4-0 win over Papua New Guinea on the opening day, were facing defeat against third-seed Armenia as GM Ziaur Rahman lost his board to GM Aronian Levon and GM Abdullah Al Rakib lost his board to GM Akopian Vladimir. GM Enamul Hossain Razib was playing against GM Sargissian Garriel while GM Niaz Murshed was playing GM Peterosian Tigran when this report was filed.

Lisandro out for several weeks

The Daily Star, 30 august 2012

Lyon’s Argentine striker Lisandro Lopez has been ruled out for between two and three weeks with a thigh muscle injury, his club announced on Tuesday evening.

The 29-year-old injured himself during Lyon’s 1-1 draw at Evian in Ligue 1 on Friday.

Lyon also announced that new recruit Fabian Monzon, another Argentine, will be unavailable for between two and three weeks due to a groin problem.

The 25-year-old left-back joined Lyon from Nice on Sunday.

Aussies overcome Pak spin threat

The Daily Star, 30 august 2012

Mitchell Starc took 5-42 and Michael Clarke and George Bailey hit fifties to help Australia beat Pakistan by four wickets in the first limited overs international here on Tuesday.

The lanky left-armer’s best one-day figures helped Australia keep their rivals down to 198 in 45.1 overs before they fought hard against Pakistani spinners to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series at Sharjah Stadium.

Australia owed their run chase to some responsible batting by skipper Clarke (66), who added an invaluable 54 with Bailey for the fifth wicket before Baily-Glenn Maxwell (38) put on 63 for the sixth to see off the target in 48.2 overs.

Pakistan had attacked through their much-vaunted spinning trio of Saeed Ajmal (3-30), Mohammad Hafeez (2-29) and Shahid Afridi (1-37) but Australian batting was led by Clarke and finished by Bailey with an unbeaten 88-ball 57.

Clarke hit five boundaries during his 95-ball knock.

Ajmal struck with his first ball of the match, trapping a nervous Michael Hussey (five) infront and then had David Hussey (three) caught in the slip off his last ball of the second over.

Bailey hit a six in the penultimate over before taking a single to seal the match.

Hafeez had dismissed David Warner (five) and Afrridi had Matthew Wade (10).

Earlier left-arm paceman Mitchell Starc took a career best 5-42 and James Pattinson (3-19) to derail Pakistan, who won the toss and batted.

SCORES IN BRIEF
PAKISTAN: 198 all out (Jamshed 23, Shafiq 56, Misbah 26, Akmal 52; Pattinson 3-19, Starc 5-42)

AUSTRALIA: 199 for 6 (Clarke 66, Bailey 57 not out; Maxwell 38; Hafeez 2-29, Ajmal 3-30)

Result: Australia won by four wickets.

Man-of-the-match: Mitchell Starc.

Bayern snap up Martinez

The Daily Star, 30 August 2012

Spain midfielder Javier Martinez looks set to sign for Bayern Munich on Wednesday after passing the obligatory medical in the Bavarian capital, according to reports in the German media.

The 23-year-old has been a Bayern target for weeks and the Bavarian giants are reported to be set to pay a Bundesliga record fee of 40 million euros (US$50.2m) for him.

German Sky broadcast images of Martinez, who currently plays for Athletic Bilbao, arriving in Munich at midnight on Tuesday, having trained with his Spanish team earlier that day, with the transfer window set to close on Friday.

The defensive midfielder has made eight appearances for Spain and he came off the bench for Spain briefly at both the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012.

Bayern have already strengthened their squad this season with midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri arriving from FC Basel, striker Mario Mandzukic from Wolfsburg and Brazilian defender Dante from Moenchen-gladbach.

Nafees not in BD A squad

The Daily Star, 30 august 2012

Shahriar Nafees was ignored when the selectors picked an 18-member preliminary Bangladesh A squad for the training camp ahead of their home series against the West Indies High Performance team.

“You know Nafees was sent back home from India during Bangladesh A’s last tour and after that we didn’t get any guideline from the board about whether he should be considered for selection. We gave a note to the board regarding this issue,” explained chief selector Akram Khan yesterday when asked about Nafees’s omission from the squad even though he was captain on the last tour.

“We will consider him if the board gives the clearance,” he added.

The left-hander was sent back home due to misconduct before the third group game in Bangalore in the Shafi Darashah tournament

The training camp will start tomorrow and the selected cricketers have been asked to report to A Team head coach Stuart Barnes at 8:30am on the same day at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur.

The West Indies High Performance team will arrive in Dhaka on September 12 and the next day they will travel to Khulna to play the first four-day match against the National Cricket Academy team from September 16 to September 19 at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium.

They will play the second and final four-dayer against Bangladesh A from September 22 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur where they are also scheduled to play three one-day matches — on September 28, September 30 and October 2 — and two T20 matches on October 4 and October 5 against the same opponents.

SQUAD
Nasiruddin Faruque, Arafat Sunny, Imrul Kayes, Enamul Haque, Marshal Ayub, Saqlain Sajib, Naeem Islam, Shahadat Hossain, Shamsur Rahman, Robiul Islam, Farhad Hossain, Delwar Hossain, Rokibul Hassan, Dollar Mahmud, Mithun Ali, Taskin Ahmed, Shuvogoto Hom and Dhiman Ghosh.

Bojan joins Milan

The Daily Star, 30 august 2012

Bojan Krkic is to be unveiled as AC Milan’s latest signing after the Spain international announced his move to fans via his official Facebook page on Tuesday.

Bojan, who had been on loan at AS Roma from Barcelona, said he was ready to play his part under manager Massimiliano Allegri.

“I’m already in Milan, tomorrow I will be presented footballer of AC Milan!’, posted the winger, who celebrated his 22nd birthday on Tuesday.

“I’m ready for everything and can not wait to play the first game. Thank you all for the welcome and for the birthday wishes. See you tomorrow, Forza Milan.”

His arrival follows on from Tuesday’s signing of highly rated France under-21 striker M’Baye Niang from Caen.

Niang’s transfer was announced by the club on their website after the 17-year-old passed a medical.