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Germany beat comeback kings Turkey to reach Euro final

AFP, Basel

Defender Philipp Lahm's late strike put three-times European champions Germany in Sunday's Euro 2008 final and sealed a 3-2 win to knock out injury-ravaged Turkey.

Lahm's 90th minute goal made sure Vienna will be Germany's final destination after Turkey's Semih Senturk had forced an equaliser just four minutes from time to make it 2-2 to set up another dramatic finish.

Germany striker Miroslav Klose had nudged his side into the lead on 79 minutes after Bastian Schweinsteiger's first-half goal had cancelled out Ugur Boral's early strike as Turkey had taken a shock lead.

Klose said the three-times European champions must raise their game if they are going to win the Euro 2008 crown in Sunday's final.

Germany will face either Russia or Spain in Sunday's final and after a lacklustre first-half performance in Basel, Klose said they must fight much harder if they are to add a fourth European crown.

"We're near the summit, but it remains to be seen if we can make it to the top," said the Bayern Munich striker who scored Germany's second goal with a bullet-like header.

"I think we need to make a bigger effort in the final.

"The Turks played with real fire, they had real belief.

"I think it showed our strength that we still made a comeback, and scored several goals with so few opportunities.

"We had a lot of lows in the game, we didn't convert our chances, we didn't go hard in the personal battles and hung back from the challenges."

This was Germany's first win over Turkey since May 1992 and Fatih Terim's battered side used their never-say-die spirit forced the Germans to work hard.

"It is an immense happiness that I am feeling," said 48-year-old Loew.

"That was a battle in which we have expended a lot of energy.

"We weren't very good in the first-half and in the second we weren't that good either, but we gritted our teeth and we wanted the victory.

"The Turks played really well, they chased after the ball a lot and maybe they ran after it very well and we had heavy legs and the heat didn't do us any favours."

For Terim it was a case of so near but so far.

"I am very sad to have got so close to the final and not made it," said the 54-year-old, who guided Galatasaray to the UEFA Cup trophy ahead of Arsenal in 2003.

"The players would have deserved it. Unfortunately we have a habit of conceding too many goals too easily. However, the team has honoured the Turkish people."

Lahm was extremely relieved that he had made up for a glaring error that had led to the Turkish second goal.

"It is one of the most beautiful moments of my career," said the 24-year-old Bayern Munich star.

"We didn't play well. Turkey believed in themselves and made life difficult for us. We fought for the goal till the end. I should not have committed the error that led to the second goal. That is why I am happy to have helped the team to win the match."

Having reached Basel's St Jakob-Park semi-final by forging a reputation as the tournament's come-back kings with last-gasp wins over Switzerland, the Czech Republic and Croatia, Turkey threatened Germany with the same treatment.

Terim had said he wanted to put his team on the map and their battling spirit has reminded the footballing world again what Turkey can do having reached the 2002 World Cup semi-final.

Turkey were without the banned quartet of keeper Volkan Demirel, Middlesbrough's Tuncay Sanli, Arda Turan, who scored their last gasp winner against the Swiss, and Emre Asik.

And captain Nihat Kahveci, whose pair of late goals sank the Czech Republic, was missing with a thigh injury.

In contrast, Germany had all 23-men fit and ready to go having responded to their shock 2-1 defeat by Croatia in the group stages by knocking-out much-fancied Portugal with an impressive 3-2 defeat here last Thursday.

Germany coach Joachim Loew played the same line-up and 4-5-1 formation he had used against Portugal for the semi-final, but it was the Turks who dominated the first-half chances with Kazim Kazim driving a shot against the bar on 14 minutes.

And Turkey took a deserved lead when Kazim again hit the cross-bar before Fenerbahce's Ugur Boral fired at Jens Lehmann who watched helplessly as the ball trickled over the line on 22 minutes.

Germany's reply was immediate as attacking midfielder Lukas Podolski slid in a cross which Portugal's tormentor Bastian Schweinsteiger flicked into the net on 26 minutes for his second goal in two games.

Lehmann was in action again as he punched clear Hamit Altintop's free-kick just after the half-hour mark one of nine first-half chances Turkey created compared to Germany's one.

At the break Simon Rolfes made way for Torsten Frings in Germany's midfield and match-winner Lahm was unlucky not to have won a penalty when he was brought down on the edge of the area by Sabri Sarioglu on 52 minutes.

In a much-tighter second half, Turkey kept the pressure on with Altintop bossing the midfield against his Bayern Munich colleagues in Germany's ranks.

But the break through came in the 79th minute when Bayern striker Klose rose above three Turkish defenders and goalkeeper Recber Rustu to score his second goal in two games.

Turkey pulled a late goal out of the bag for the fourth time in succession when Semih slipped marker Per Mertesacker to stab home Sabri Sarioglu's cross on 86 minutes to equalise.

But Lahm put German fans in seventh heaven with his 90th-minute strike to send his side to Vienna.

"It was a very exciting match," enthused watching German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has followed the team's progress closely.

Pioneer Football: Golam Mostafa Lane win over Lalbagh

Sports Reporter

Golam Mostafa Lane Kishore Sangha beat Lalbagh Tarun Sangha by a solitary goal in the play-off match of the Dhaka City Corporation Pioneer Football League at the Kamalapur Bir Sreshtha Shaheed Sepoy Mohammad Mostaf Stadium on Thursday.

After a barren first half Kayes of Golam Mostafa Lane scored the all-important goal in the 60th minute of the play.

Matuail Milon Smriti Sangsad win the title of Div 1 Kabaddi League

Sports Reporter

Matuail Milon Smriti Sangsad clinched the title of the First Division Kabaddi League when they beat runners-up Dhaka Wanderers Club by 32-27 points with one lona in the entertaining final at the Kabaddi Stadium on Thursday.

The winners trailed the first half by 11-20 points.

After the final match General Secretary of Bangladesh Kabaddi Federation Md Nazrul Islam distributed the prizes among the winners as the chief guest. Secretary of the Tournament Committee Md. Rafiqul Islam was present at the time.

If it's not broken, don't fix it: Aragones

AFP, Vienna

Luis Aragones insisted on the eve of Spain's crucial Euro 2008 quarter-final against Russia on Thursday that he has no need to change his winning side.

Spain had won nine straight matches - equalling their all-time record - prior to Sunday's victory over Italy on penalties - which counts in records as a draw - and Aragones said he will change neither personnel nor tactics.

Russia impressed everyone with their fitness against the Netherlands in the quarter- finals but Aragones has no plans to take that into account.

"No we're not going to change. Their physical condition is their top quality but we also have ours," he said.

"What we need to know is what works for us. I believe that they are physically better than any other team in the competition, not just us, but we need to find their weaknesses and take advantage of those.

"But there's no denying they're fitter and stronger. They haven't played many matches (Russia are in the middle rather than at the end of their season).

"If this was happening in March other teams would be fitter, it's an unavoidable fact, but we're intelligent enough and we have to maximise our virtues and make the most of their mistakes."

Aragones has long stuck to the tried and tested players and for their three matches here where they needed to win - their final group match against Greece had nothing riding on it - he picked an identical XI.

Asked why he hasn't changed anything he replied: "That's because no-one is injured.

"Things can change but the players are doing well and if a coach sees the team doing well, why should he change things.

Aragones also insisted that he is convinced his team will win, despite the improvement Russia have shown since losing their opening group match to the Spaniards 4-1.

And the 69-year-old said he was pleased to be coming up against a side that played attacking football having played against a very defensive Italy in their last game.

"Russia play a more open football, in one way that might be better for us," he said.

"But their players are very fast, unbelievably fast. There's nothing else we can do than try to cope with that.

"They've shown that physically they are the best team here so far but I trust my team, I'm sure we will win.

"We have to work very hard, put in a big effort but we'll make it to the final."

Twenty20 no problem for Kapil's Devils

AFP, London

India's 1983 cricket World Cup- winning side would have fared well in Twenty20, the new and faster-paced form of the game, members of the triumphant team said.

With the entire squad reuniting at Lord's Cricket Ground for a dinner to commemorate 25 years since their stunning victory over a powerhouse West Indies side in the final at the London ground, opener Sunil Gavaskar and all-rounder Ravi Shastri both said the team would have adjusted to the more frenetic style of Twenty20.

"I think they would have done very well," Gavaskar told AFP. "The biggest advantage of this 1983 side is the all-rounders they have.

"If you have a look at the all-rounders we have-Mohinder Amarnath, Kirti Azad, Madan Lal, Roger Binny and," he said, nodding towards then captain Kapil Dev, "above all, Kapil t which meant we had the flexibility to keep on making bowling changes.

It was Amarnath and Lal, in particular, who rescued India in the final against the West Indies, with each taking three wickets -- Lal snatched the prized scalp of Vivian Richards, while Amarnath was named man-of-the-match.

That depth and flexibility would have served the team well in Twenty20, Gavaskar noted: "If somebody was getting a pasting, because of the all-rounders, you can give that bowler a bit of a break."

Shastri, meanwhile, said he believed the best sides would always emerge, regardless of the format, telling AFP that "a good side is a good side", describing the World Cup-winning XI as "one of the greatest teams ever."

"They (the 1983 side) would have adapted. If they could have adapted to 50-50 (a one-day international), then why not Twenty20?"

Dev agreed, noting that "if you can play 50 overs, then you can play 20 overs."

Twenty20 cricket, which features just 40 total overs, has proved to be a crowd- puller.

While some observers believe it threatens the long-term future of Tests and one- day internationals, Gavaskar joined the likes of England great Ian Botham in saying they are all complementary.

"Just the same way that 50 overs cricket impacted positively on Test cricket, made it far more attractive, made it far more result-oriented t I think Twenty20 will make 50 overs a lot more attractive," the former India captain insisted.

"You'll probably see more 300-plus scores regularly now in 50 overs than ever before, or maybe even 350," Gavaskar, who recently stepped down as chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC) cricket committee added.

The ICC said last week it would explore options to preserve interest in five-day Tests in the face of Twenty20's growing popularity.

The options, including proposals to hold a Test championship, will be discussed by the governing body when its board meets in Dubai from June 29.

After speaking to reporters, Dev's men gathered to once again hoist aloft the 1983 World Cup trophy, which has been on display in the Lord's museum.

Safin thanks Wimbledon for life in slow lane

AFP, London

Marat Safin summoned the spirit which once made him the most feared player in the world to send Novak Djokovic crashing out of Wimbledon.

He celebrated by thanking the All England Club for the slow courts while admonishing them for the spiralling price of the traditional strawberries.

"Thanks for making the courts slower," said the enigmatic Safin after his stunning 6- 4, 7-6 (7/3), 6-2 win on Wednesday over Djokovic, the third seed and Australian Open winner.

"The courts have been getting slower. They are not like they were eight years ago when they were really fast. Now you can play from the baseline and nobody even gets close to the net," said the 28-year-old.

But Safin still has his reservations over Wimbledon where his best performance remains a run to the quarter-finals in 2001.

"The strawberries are too expensive. It's true. They don't have enough for dessert," he said.

For Safin, a former world number one who captured the 2000 US Open title and the Australian Open five years later, Wednesday's victory was just like old times.

He fired backhand winners down the line, was consistent and accurate on his first serve and showed a lightness of touch with the volley.

Where Wednesday's win came from is anyone's guess.

Until this year's Wimbledon, Safin had won back-to-back matches only twice all year with his ranking having slumped to 75 in the world.

In contrast, Djokovic came into the tournament as a Grand Slam champion, a runner-up at Queen's and a serious threat to Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

"I was starting to get a little bit desperate because I've been working really hard week after week," said Safin.

"The results were not coming. It's a little bit sad to see other people winning and working only part of the time that I'm doing."

Despite his stunning win, Safin isn't expecting a return to Centre Court for his third round clash against Italy's Andreas Seppi and is prepared for the schedulers to send him to the outer reaches of the All England Club.

"I once played on Court 11, which is almost in another club," he smiled.

"I'm 75 in the world and I'm playing against an Italian guy. So these matches you need to get through. You don't have any challenges out there, (you don't have) the Hawk Eye system. The chair umpire may be half sleeping."

The 21-year-old Djokovic, whose 10th and last double fault handed Safin victory, admitted he may have been in awe of the Russian with whom he practiced as a junior.

"When I was a junior I looked at him as an idol. He was top of the world. I have a lot of respect for him. Maybe that played a role today," said the Serbian.

"He's known for his mental instability in some ways. But he's still a great player. He's still not too old. He's playing well. He's moving well. He wants to step it up again and try to get far in a major."

Premier Bank has given Tk. 15 lakh to Bangladesh Basketball Federation

Sports Reporter

The Premier Bank Limited, the official sponsor of Bangladesh Basketball Federation (BBF), has given Tk. 15 lakh to BBF to run the three upcoming basketball meets, which will be arranged by Bangladesh Basketball Federation.

Marking the sponsorship programme, a press conference was held at the conference room of National Sports Council on Thursday. Secretary General of Bangladesh Olympics Association Kutubuddin Ahmed, Managing Director of the Premier Bank Limited Khondker Fazle Rashid, Director of the bank Abdus Salam Murshedi, Director and CEO of Bangladesh Olympic Association Colonel (Retd) Wali Ullah, General Secretary of Bangladesh Basketball Federation AK Sarker, Joint Secretary of BBF Masud Ahmed Mobaroki were present at the conference, among others.

Bangladesh Basketball Federation will launch National Basketball Championship in Rajshahi in July. A total of 24 districts teams and services teams will take part in the basketball competition. The expenditure of the basketball meet has been estimated at Tk seven lakh.

Bangladesh Basketball Federation will commence First Division Basketball League in November. The budget of the basketball meet has been estimated at Tk two lakh.

Bangladesh Basketball Federation will arrange the National School Basketball Tournament across the country in January 2009.

Besides, BBF will organise some training programmes under auspices of the Premier Bank Limited.

Managing Director of the Premier Bank Limited Khondker Fazle Rashid assured BBF to give all sorts of co-operation to run their activities smoothly. Fazle Rashid also assured them that they would continue their financial support in future to BBF.

Later, Khondker Fazle Rashid handed over a cheque of Tk.15 lakh to AK Sarkar in front of a good number of journalists.

US expects to send its greatest Olympic squad to Beijing

AFP, Eugene

Setting a sensational target for the Beijing Olympics, US women's Olympic athletics coach Jeanette Bolden predicted that the 2008 American track and field Olympic squad will be the greatest yet.

Two days ahead of Friday's opening events at the US team selection meet here at Hayward Field, Bolden boldly said this year's men and women have the talent to surpass the 25 medals won by US athletes at the 2004 Athens Olympics.

"This will be our best Olympic Games because it will be a mix veteran athletes and up and coming athletes," Bolden said. "Wearing red, white and blue will bring everyone together." The Americans, who won 26 medals at last year's world championships in Osaka, have a hungry group of veteran competitors being pushed by rising young challengers, Bolden said.

"We want as many medals as possible," she said.

"You have some athletes that are veterans I anticipate will make the team that may have not medaled before. They are veterans now and have more to focus on."

Reigning 100- and 200-meter world champion Tyson Gay and Allyson Felix, who won the 200 world title and helped two women's relay crowns, will lead more than 1,000 athletes seeking a place on the US team.

Jeremy Wariner, the reigning world and Olympic 400 champion, and Sanya Richards are 400 favorites while reigning world champion Brad Walker and world number two Jenn Stuczynski are the people to beat in the pole vault.

Kenyan-born US star Bernard Lagat, the world champion at 1,500 and 5,000 meters, will try to book a chance for a double at Beijing. So will Shalane Flanagan, who owns the US record in her events, the 5,000 and 10,000.

"Our bread and butter would have to be our sprint events," Bolden said. "We're definitely making some inroads in our distance events." The top three in most events at the Olympic trials will qualify for Beijing, provided they meet performance standards. Failure on the wrong day could leave a star sitting home no matter how impressive their history.

"That's what is exciting about our trials and our system.

They can blow it like anyone else in the final," Bolden said. "Your opportunity to go to the Olympic Games is on your shoulders. Your destiny is in your hands."

An illness or injury on the wrong day could spell doom for a lifetime's work for even such stars as Gay or Felix.

The US Olympic athletics team will be revealed July 13, a week after the conclusion of the meet and five days after USA Track and Field submits names.