The New Nation - Internet Edition

Premier Kabaddi begins today

Sports Reporter

The Pran Juice 11th Premier Division Kabaddi League begins today at the Kabaddi Stadium. Reigning champions Bangladesh Rifles will take on Bangladesh Navy in the inaugural match, which starts today at 3.00 PM. Bangladesh Kabaddi Federation will arrange the Kabaddi competition.

Director (Administration) of National Sports Council ABM Abdul Fattah will formally open the Kabaddi meet as the chief guest while Executive Director of Pran RFL Group Ilias Mridha will be present as the special guest.

A total of 12 teams splitted into two groups will take part in the Kabaddi competition. Bangladesh Rifles, Fire Service and Civil Defence, Sonali Bank Club, Azad Sporting Club, Dilkusha Sporting Club, Bangladesh Navy have been billed in Group A while Bangladesh Police, Bangladesh Army, Jurain Janata Club, Bangladesh Air Force, Jatrabari Faruque Smriti Sangsad, Shaheed Mozzafor Smriti Sangsad have been taken place in Group B.

To mark the forthcoming kabaddi meet, a press conference was held at the conference room of National Sports Council on Thursday. General Secretary of Bangladesh Kabaddi Federation Nazrul Islam, Secretary of the League Committee Mohammad Yousuf Ali, Convener of the League committee Md Abdul Haque, Executive Director of Pran RFL Group Md Ilias Mridha, Assistant General Manager of Pran RFL Group Md Mahbubul Wahid were present at the conference, among others.

The budget of the league is Tk one lakh and twenty-five thousand while Pran RFL Group has given Tk eighty thousand to Bangladesh Kabaddi Federation.

The league will come to an end on March 11.

Hayden 'obnoxious' barb reignites hostilities

AFP, Sydney

Claims and counter-claims flew today after senior Australian batsman Matthew Hayden was officially reprimanded for calling Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh an "obnoxious little weed."

Tensions continue to simmer in a summer of cricket acrimony ahead of Sunday's first final in the tri one-day series here between the two fiercely-competitive rivals.

Cricket Australia's code of behaviour commissioner Ron Beazley late Wednesday upheld a charge that Hayden had breached the code of conduct with his public comment about Harbhajan and issued a reprimand.

Hayden pleaded his innocence and escaped a possible suspension and fine.

The Hayden incident is the latest in a series of controversies, and follows a racism row, threats by India to leave, and players fined for aggressive behaviour.

The fall-out continued Thursday with Harbhajan claiming Hayden was one of the most disliked figures in world cricket.

"I don't want it to be a slanging match, but you only need to speak to international cricketers and international teams to know in what opinion they hold Hayden," Harbhajan told Sydney's The Daily Telegraph newspaper.

Harbhajan also accused Australia of trying to cover up their on-field sledging by hiding among their team-mates to avoid being detected by television cameras.

Another unnamed Indian player told the Hindustan Times that Hayden was "insane" and vowed to give him "the fight" the tourists believe he is asking for.

"It's not strategy, it's insane and asking for a fight. And if he wants that, we'll give it to him," the player told the newspaper.

"He will not stop making sarcastic or plain rude remarks, whether he is fielding or batting. It is very difficult to not get upset and we don't see why he is allowed to get away with his constant barbs."

The latest controversy has again reactivated hostilities between the two teams.

"Matthew Hayden was charged for simply saying what most Australians feel about Harbhajan Singh," The Daily Telegraph said Thursday.

"What is wrong with calling Harby an obnoxious little weed? It's not racist, it's not all that rude and it's certainly not bad for the game."

The Australian newspaper described Hayden's comments as "foolish."

"Named one-day player of the year, Hayden foolishly said on Brisbane radio before the presentation what many in the team think about Harbhajan," the newspaper said. "While it was meant to be a light-hearted radio interview, Hayden's lack of diplomacy has poured petrol on a bush-fire and has given the Indians something substantial to complain about."

Melbourne's Herald-Sun said Australian captain Ricky Ponting had to show leadership in the potentially-explosive best-of-three match ODI finals series.

"If there is a fight on hand, he won't shy away from it. To a certain extent, that's what leadership is all about," the newspaper said.

"Leadership, too, is about remaining calm and letting your actions tell the story.

"Ponting must learn to do this and encourage his men to follow, otherwise the tri- series finals will be lost. Match referee Jeff Crowe must also take control."

Abahani Limited play City Club in final of Premier Div twenty20 league

UNB, Dhaka

High-flying Abahani Limited will battle for the Dhaka Metropolis Premier Division Twenty20 Cricket League crown with City Club, a surprise finalist, but the date of the final match is yet to be finalized.

Abahani Limited smartly reached the final of the League with all-win record eliminating Surjotarun Club by seven wickets in the first semi-final at the Narayanganj Osmani Stadium in Fatullah on Thursday morning.

Sent in to bat first, Surjotarun Club scored 106 runs for 7 wickets in stipulated 20 overs with opener Shakil Haider making 48 off 52 balls that included four fours.

Two down Nayeem Islam scored 33-ball 26 runs while one down Shamsur Rahman made 15 off 16 balls with one boundary.

Pacer Talha Jubaer grabbed three wickets for 21 runs in four overs while Rezaul Karim took two for 25 runs in four overs.

In reply, popular sky-blue Dhanmondi outfit Abahani, riding on half century by Mahbubul Karim, easily reached their target of 107 runs for the loss of three wickets in 17.4 overs.

After the dismissal of opener Jahirul Islam (15) for 22 runs in 4.3 overs, another opener Mahbubul Karim pairing with one down Nazimuddin carried the team total to 103, just four runs away from victory, contributing 81 runs in the 2nd wicket stand.

Mahbubul Karim hammered match highest 65 runs off 52 balls with three fours and three sixes to be adjudged man of the match, while Nazimuddin contributed 21 runs off 35 balls with a boundary.

Monwar Hossain, Delwar Hossain and Mohammad Sharif took one wicket each for 12, 18 and 19 runs respectively.

In the day's other semis, City Club upset all-win Victoria SC with a narrow five runs at the same venue in the afternoon.

Sent in to bat first, City Club posted moderate 96 for 8 in quota 20 overs.

Middle order Arafat Salauddin scored a run-a-ball 38 with three boundaries. Later, he was adjudged man of the match.

Skipper cum opening batsman Imran Ahmed contributed useful 26 runs off 40 balls with three fours.

National spinner Enamul Haque Jr claimed three wickets for 16 runs in four overs while pacer Mohammad Shahzada took two wickets for 9 runs in four overs.

In reply, Victoria SC, which reached the semi-final as Group B champions with all-win run, played out their 20 overs scoring 91 runs for 6 wickets, handing a five-run victory to City Club.

Victoria SC lost four top order batsmen -- Gazi Salauddin (7), Nasiruddin (8), Farhad Hossain (9) and skipper Ehsanul Haque Sezan (0)-- for only 32 runs in 9.2 overs. Although Mahmudullah Riyad pairing with Dhiman Ghosh put up 44 runs in the 5th wicket stand, but failed to avert the defeat.

Wicket-keeper Dhiman Ghosh scored 28 runs off 32 balls with a boundary while national cricketer Mahmudullah Riyad made 23 off 30 balls with one four.

Arafat Salauddin of City Club, who scored match highest 38 runs and also grabbed two wickets for 19 runs, was adjudged man of the match.

Apart from Arafat Salauddin's two-wicket haul, Shafaq Al Jabir also captured two wickets for 10 runs in four overs.

Mancini joy at lucky Roma draw

AFP, Rome

Inter Milan coach Roberto Mancini couldn't contain his joy after his side scraped a 1-1 home draw against AS Roma to maintain their nine- point lead at the top of Serie A.

Francesco Totti gave Roma a deserved first-half lead with a near post flick from a sumptuous left-wing cross from Max Tonetto.

Inter were reduced to 10 men just past the hour mark after Brazilian left-back Maxwell was stretchered off just moments after Mancini made his third substitution.

But following the late and harsh dismissal of Roma's French centre-back Philippe Mexes, Inter captain Javier Zanetti rifled home a right-foot volley two minutes from time to earn a share of the spoils the league leaders didn't deserve.

It means they still lead Roma by nine points at the top with Juventus, who drew 0-0 at home to Torino in the Turin derby on Tuesday, third a further four points back.

"It's a draw that's worth a victory for the way it was earn," Mancini told Sky Sport.

"Totti scored with their first chance on goal and then that shaped the course of the match. It was very difficult for us with 10 men."

Roma coach Luciano Spalletti was livid with the sending off of Mexes, whose second booking looked ridiculously harsh.

"Speaking reasonably and without anger I have to say that one of Mexes's (bookings) was definitely not a foul," he said.

"It was unfair because the second booking wasn't deserved. Did that turn the game? Well, a goal followed on from it," Spalletti said before suggesting Inter forward Hernan Crespo's theatrical tumble to the ground under minimal contact from Mexes had duped the referee.

In Sicily European champions AC Milan were held to a 1-1 draw by Catania and lost fourth place to Fiorentina who beat Livorno 1-0 at home, thanks to a goal from Senegal forward Ndiaye Papa Waigo.

It was a strange match in Catania. After an insipid first half with little action and no goals, it sprung to life after the break.

Teenage Brazilian forward Pato gave Milan the lead with a long range shot that Cirlo Polito should have saved.

Substitute Gionathan Spinesi salvaged a draw for Catania but they had two goals disallowed, Milan also had one chalked off and eight yellow cards were dished out by the referee.

Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti was disappointed at the two dropped points.

"We've missed an opportunity here, we went in front but we didn't manage to see out an important result," he said.

"I'm sorry about the situation we created for ourselves. We were taken by surprise by the goal."

Ancelotti complained that tiredness was starting to get to his players, who have played three more league matches since the turn of the year than any of their Serie A rivals, due to a fixture backlog related to their involvement in the Club World Cup in December.

"We can't do any more at the moment, we have too many matches and we can't manage them all. Some of our most important players need to rest, that's the point.

"The team is not firing on all cylinders at the moment."

Grouping of 5th SAFF Championship in Male finalized

UNB, Dhaka

Groupings of the eight-nation 5th SAFF Championship was finalized on Thursday through ceremonial draw at the Paradise Island Resort in Maldives with Bangladesh placed in Group B.

The 15-match SAF Football Championship, to be known as World Cup of South Asia, will be co-hosted by Sri Lanka and Maldives on June 3-14 this year.

Bangladesh, runners-up in the 4th SAFF Championship in Karachi in December 2005, have been placed in Group B with co-host Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Afghanistan.

Another co-host Maldives have been placed in death group A with four times SAFF champions and holders India, Pakistan, and Nepal

The draw ceremony was held in presence of the representatives of all eight South Asian countries with BFF vice-president and SAF secretary Sirajul Islam Bachchu and BFF acting general secretary Manjur Hossain Malu representing Bangladesh.

Football Association of Maldives (FAM)'s interim committee Chairman Ahmed Shahir and South Asia Football Federation president Ganesh Thapa from Nepal conducted the day's draw.

The Group A matches will be played at the National Stadium in Male, while the Group B matches at Sugathadasa Stadium in Colombo. The final match will also be held in Colombo.

The champion team will receive US$ 50,000 while the runners-up will get US$ 25,000 as prize money.

The four semi-finalists will also receive US$ 10,000 each.

Youngmen's Club blank Dipali Jubo Sangha 2-0

UNB, Dhaka

Youngmen's Club Fakirerpool beat Dipali Jubo Sangha by 2-0 goals in a match of the Metropolis Senior Division Football League at the Bangabandhu National Stadium (BNS) on Thursday.

Sakhawat Hossain Rony struck twice for the winners - in the 16th and 18th minutes.

In the day's other match, Dhaka Wanderers Club played to a goalless draw with Jatrabari KC at the Bir Shreshtha Shaheed Sepoy Mohammad Mostafa Stadium at Kamalapur.

Friday's match: Arambagh KS vs Badda Jagarani Sangsad at BNS at 3:30 pm.

Holyfield in talks with Tyson for re-match

AFP, London

American boxer Evander Holyfield said in an interview published today that he was in talks with Mike Tyson for a re-match of their infamous 1997 fight.

Speaking to The Guardian, Holyfield, who failed in his quest to regain a version of the world heavyweight title in October, said: "There has been some talk between us.

"Mike had Jeff Fenech, who's been training him, call me a few months ago. Jeff says Mike wants to fight me again-but he needs to know if I would agree to it. I said, 'It all depends on what they gonna give us-because I'm gonna catch a lot of flak if I say I'm fighting Mike Tyson again. I've already said I don't want to fight Mike no more'.

"Jeff says, 'What if Mike gets in proper shape?' I told him that's ok but I can't be part of it if Mike's going to pull out. Jeff said, 'The main thing Mike wants to know is if you would be willing to fight him again?' I said, 'Yeah, if the price is right, I probably would'."

In their 1997 fight, the second between the two boxers, Tyson, now 41, bit Holyfield, now 45, twice and ripped off a chunk of his ear, which he spat onto the canvas.

Ahmed Bawany Academy reach final

UNB, Dhaka

Ahmed Bawany Academy smartly reached the final of the Dhaka Bank Shaheed Smriti School Hockey Tournament crushing Narayanganj High School by 13-0 goals in the 1st semi-final at the Maulana Bhasani National Hockey Stadium on Thursday.

Shawon and skipper Faisal Hossain scored four goals each, while Raihan Ahmed and Sagar both struck twice, and Shishir Hossain netted one goal for the winners, who led the first half 6-0.

In the 2nd semi-final on Friday, Armanitola Govt. Boys School faces Mirpur Academy at the same venue.

The final match will be held on March 2.

Chittagong reach zonal final with 1-0 win over Feni DSA in semis

UNB, Dhaka

Chittagong DSA moved into the zonal final of the 4th JFA Cup Under-15 Football Championship eliminating Feni DSA by a solitary goal in the semi-final at the Cox's Bazar Stadium on Thursday.

After a barren first half, Saiful scored the all-important goal for Chittagong DSA in the 69th minute.

Jabbar Memorial Tennis competition begins today

UNB, Dhaka

Jabbar Memorial Tennis Competition, organised by Engineers Recreation Center (ERC), Dhaka, begins today (Friday) at 4 pm at the Ramna tennis court of ERC (former Engineers Club).

Chief Adviser's Special Assistant for Post & Telecommunication Brig Gen (retd) engineer MA Malek will formally open the weeklong meet as chief guest.

The competition has eight events -- men's singles and doubles, women's singles, boys' singles (16-year), boys' singles (14-year), mini tennis, team event (above 35 year) and engineers' doubles.

Nineteen teams are taking part in the competition.

An amount of Tk 250,000 has been estimated for the competition, which will be borne entirely by the organisers.

ERC general secretary Engr Golam Mohammad Alamgir disclosed the details at a press conference at the ERC conference room this (Thursday) afternoon.

Bangladesh Tennis Federation general secretary Sanaul Haq was also present.

Amateur Golf Sri Lanka clinch team event title

Sports Reporter

At the end of the two-day stroke play, Sri Lankan team has confirmed team championship trophy of Cotton Group 23rd Bangladesh Amateur Golf Championship 2008. Bhutan, Malaysia, Myanmar, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and host Bangladesh were the participating countries in the Championship. Sri Lanka team comprising of Mithun and Chandradasa aggregated a two-day total of 280=136+144 to claim top honors for their team.

Hosts Bangladesh and Myanmar jointly emerged in the second position with a total score of 290 each for runners up trophy. Bangladesh 'B' team finished third with 298 while Malaysia finished fourth at 302. India and Pakistan secured 4th and 5th position respectively.

Overnight leader Bo Bo Lay of Myanmar is in the first position after two rounds and maintained his lead playing the best round of the day and turned out to be the best individual score with 139, while Mithun and Chandradasa of Sri Lanka are jointly in the second position with 140 each. Jamal Mullah of Bangladesh is in the 4th position with 142.

Ladies team from Myanmar, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and host Bangladesh are participating in 36 holes competition for both team and individual trophy from today.