The New Nation - Internet Edition

Chanderpaul tops list of ICC award winners

AFP, Dubai

West Indies batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul was named as the 2008 International Cricket Council (ICC) Cricketer of the Year at an awards ceremony here on Wednesday.

The 34-year-old left-hander, a mainstay of his side's batting for over a decade, was chosen ahead of his three fellow nominees - Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene, South Africa skipper Graeme Smith and Proteas fast bowler Dale Steyn.

During the voting period, the gritty Guyanese played eight Test matches, scoring 819 runs at an average of 91.00, including three centuries and six fifties, all of which were against the top seven teams in the world.

"I am honoured to be given this prestigious award tonight and I am very thankful to God for blessing me with the talent that I have," Chanderpaul said upon receiving his award.

Chanderpaul, who follows India's Rahul Dravid, all-rounders Andrew Flintoff (England) and Jacques Kallis (South Africa), the joint winners in 2005, and two-time ICC Cricketer of the Year Ricky Ponting, the Australia captain, in taking the award, also played 13 ODIs during the voting period.

He finished top of the averages with 74.75 having scored 598 runs, a haul that included a century and five fifties. He is currently ranked number one in the ICC Test batting rankings and sixth in the list for ODI batsmen. There was a consolation for Steyn when the paceman was named Test player of the year.

During the 12-month voting period, Steyn took 86 wickets at an average of just 18.10 in the 14 Test matches he played.

No other bowler took more than 58 wickets in the same period and he was the only bowler to earn an average less than 21.50 (of those who played more than three matches).

"I have had a pretty decent year I suppose but I didn't think about winning this award until the past few days," said Steyn.

"I don't really know how I feel. Perhaps tomorrow morning it will have sunk in for me because obviously this is a huge award and it's massive for me," added the bowler, who recently helped South Africa win their first Test series in England since 1965.

India's Mahendra Singh Dhoni was named as the one-day player of the year, while his team-mate Yuvraj Singh won the inaugural international Twenty20 performance of the year award after striking six sixes off an over from England quick Stuart Broad during last year's World Twenty20 in South Africa.

Sri Lanka's 'mystery' spinner Ajantha Mendis was chosen as the emerging player of the year while England captain Charlotte Edwards was named as the women's player of the year.

Australia's Simon Taufel, the only man ever to win his award, was named as umpire of the year for the fifth time in a row.

Dutch all-rounder Ryan ten Doeschate won the Associate player of the year award for those outside the Test elite.

Sri Lanka, for the second year in a row, won the spirit of cricket award presented to the team which, in the opinion of the ICC elite panels of umpires and match referees, has best conducted itself on the field.

Chanderpaul and Steyn also featured in the ICC Test team of the year chosen by the ICC selection panel chaired by former West Indies captain Clive Lloyd and including Australia batting great Greg Chappell, recently retired South Africa all-rounder Shaun Pollock, Sidath Wettimuny, the former Sri Lanka opener and former Bangladesh batsman Athar Ali Khan.

Australia fast bowler Brett Lee was the only player included in both the ICC's Test and one-day teams of the year.

Mighty Al-Ahly top list of semi-finals candidates

AFP, Johannesburg

Star-studded Egyptian club Al-Ahly head a list of four clubs who could seal African Champions League semi-finals slots this weekend.

Ahly need only draw a Cairo showdown with bitter domestic rivals Zamalek Sunday to advance from Group A and ASEC Mimosas of Ivory Coast can join them provided they overcome Dynamos of Zimbabwe in Abidjan a day earier.

Leaders Cotonsport Garoua of Cameroon visit Tout Puissant Mazembe of the Democratic Republic of Congo and second-placed Enyimba of Nigeria host Al-Hilal of Sudan in Group B on Sunday knowing maximum points will take them through.

Decades-long adversaries Ahly and Zamalek share the record for African Champions League titles with five each, but the similarity ends there as the former have been dominant at national and international level for five years. When the clubs clashed last June in the opening round, Ahly triumphed 2-1 via goals from Angola striker Flavio Amado and Egypt captain and midfielder Ahmed Hassan.

A week later it was 2-0 to Ahly in the pre-season Egypt Super Cup with veteran Hassan, a mid-year signing from Belgian club Anderlecht, again on target.

Zamalek coach Reiner Hollmann is unperturbed by these reverses, telling the club website: "Our chances to advance to the semi-finals are equal to those of our group competitors."

But the grim reality facing the German is that if Ahly take even one point from a match likely to draw a 70,000 sell-out crowd and resurgent ASEC triumph, it will be all over for Zamalek.

After losing to Dynamos and drawing with Ahly, ASEC took four points off Zamalek from a draw in Cairo and win in Abidjan to move a point ahead of the Egyptian "White Knights' and two in front of the Zimbabwean 'Glamour Boys'.

Enyimba welcome back leading 2008 African Champions League scorer Stephen Worgu from suspension as they try to recover from a 3-0 mauling at Mazembe two weeks ago that saw them slip to second place a point behind Cotonsport.

While the Peoples Elephant also lost at Hilal, ironically to a late goal from Nigerian Ifeanyi Onigbo, they are formidable in their Aba fortress with five qualifying and group matches yielding 17 goals.

Teenager Worgu, who has hit the target 12 times in African combat this year, offers no secret for his success: "I just want to win and win well and that is all I have in mind when I play," he told a Nigerian magazine.

Hilal, favoured to reach the semi-finals after reaching that stage last year, surrendered the advantage of a bright mini-league start by taking a solitary point from a possible six against Cotonsport.

The club from the north west Cameroon town of Garoua have been the revelation of the pool phase despite the resignation of French coach Denis Lavagne after a late goal brought a home win over Mazembe three months ago.

However, should a Mazembe team inspired by captain and striker Mputu Mabi match the form that overwhelmed Enyimba, Cotonsport may have to try for a semi-finals place again next weekend when the final fixtures are staged.

Bangladesh Army, Comilla DSA take lead in National Taekwondo Championship

UNB, Dhaka

Bangladesh Army and Comilla DSA are leading in the Trust Bank 8th National Senior and Junior Taekwondo Championships securing four gold medals each on the second day of the three-day meet at the National Sports Council gymnasium on Thursday.

Bangladesh Rifles followed the leaders with three gold medals.

Deputy Managing Director of the meet's sponsor Trust Bank Limited Ishtiaque Ahmed Chowdhury witnessed the 2nd day's competition and later he distributed the prizes among the day's winners.

A total of 13 competitions of different weight categories were decided on the 2nd day today, (Thursday).

Gold winners of the 2nd day's competitions: Men's Senior -54 kgs - Wahid (Army), Men's Senior 68-72 kgs -Palash (Army), Men's Senior -Mizan (Army), Men's Senior + 84 kgs - Russell (Army),

Men's Senior 54-58 kgs -Shah Alam (Rifles), Men's Senior 58-62 kgs -Shariful (Rifles), Men's Senior 62-68 kgs - Mahfuz (Rifles).

Men's Junior -47 kgs - Monir (Comilla), Men's Junior 51-55 kgs -Alamgir (Comilla), Men's Senior 72-78 kgs -Sohel (Ansar), Men's Junior 30-40 kgs - Zahidul (Narayanganj), Men's Junior - 47-51 kgs - Mamun (Rajshahi), Women's Junior - Miss Maria (Dhaka).

The six gold winners of the first day (Wednesday): Women's 40-42 Kgs -Miss Shahnaz (Rajshahi DSA), Women's 44-46 Kgs -Miss Priti (Comilla DSA), Women's 46-48 Kgs -Miss Sonia (Chittagong DSA), Men's 63+ Kgs- Saddam (Comilla DSA), Men's 55-59 Kgs-Salahuddin (Sirajgong DSA) and Men's 59-63 Kgs - Mehdi (Sirajgong DSA).

Some 550 competitors, including 250 women from 27 districts, clubs and universities are taking part in the 42-weight categories meet, organised by Bangladesh Taekwondo Federation.

New Zealand Cricket team arrives Sept 30

UNB, Dhaka

The New Zealand Cricket team will arrive here on September 30, instead of earlier announced October 4, on a month-long tour to Bangladesh.

During the tour, the visitors will play three ODIs, and a two- match test series against the Bengal tigers.

The Kiwis will also play a warm-up match here on October 7 against a local selection.

As per the revised schedule, the New Zealand team will start their Bangladesh campaign with ODI matches -- the 1st on Oct. 9 and the 2nd on Oct. 11 at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur. They will play the 3rd and last ODI on Oct. 14 at the Bir Shreshtha Shaheed Ruhul Amin Stadium in Chittagong (BSSRAS).

After the ODI matches, the tourists will play the two-match test series -- the 1st test on Oct 17-21 at BSSRAS in Chittagong and the 2nd test on Oct 25-29 at SBNS in Mirpur.

Danish smash and grab shocks Portuguese

AFP, Lisbon

Denmark came from behind with two goals in injury time to shock Portugal 3-2 in their World Cup Group one qualifier in Lisbon on Wednesday.

A penalty from Chelsea star Deco four minutes from time looked to have secured a routine win for the Portuguese, coached by former Manchester United assistant manager Carlos Queiroz, after Arsenal's Nicklas Bendtner had levelled the hosts opener on 42 minutes from United winger Nani.

But in a frantic finale the Danes, surprise European champions in 2002 but who have been virtually off the radar since, turned the match on its head as Christian Poulsen netted in the 90th minute and Daniel Jensen scored the clincher in the second minute of time added on.

The win gives Morten Olsen's side a massive boost after they could only draw their first match away to Hungary while the Portuguese, still badly missing the injured Cristiano Ronaldo, won 4-0 at little Malta.

Mexican striker Blanco retires from international play

AFP, Mexico

Cuauhtemoc Blanco announced his retirment from international football Wednesday as Mexico defeated Canada 2-1 in a 2010 World Cup qualifier.

Blanco had made his intentions known before the match, in which he went on in the closing moments for Fernando Arce to make his 100th appearance for the national team.

The 35-year-old, who scored 34 goals for Mexico in his international career, admitted he would have liked to make his final appearance at famed Azteca stadium, but said it was time to make way for younger players.

"The decision was already made," he said. "I'm content. I believe that my time in the selection is done," said the talented player who is beloved by Mexican fans.

Blanco made his debut for Mexico on February 1, 1995, in a friendly against Uruguay.

He played in two World Cups, in France in 1998 and South Korea and Japan in 2002, and helped Mexico win the Confederations Cup in 1999. He is currently playing for the Chicago Fire in North America's Major League Soccer.

Pakistan stands by Champions Trophy hosting

AP, Islamabad

Pakistan will not give up its right to host next year's Champions Trophy despite being advised by the International Cricket Council's former president to do so, a Pakistan Cricket Board official said Thursday.

Former ICC chief Ehsan Mani was quoted in Pakistan media saying the PCB should have asked the ICC to allocate a major future event in lieu of hosting the biennial Champions Trophy.

The ICC had to postpone the Champions Trophy for 13 months after four leading countries - England, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa - expressed security concerns about touring Pakistan.

"I was surprised that till the last the PCB was sticking to its guns to host the Champions Trophy t. it should have given up on the hosting rights and allowed it to shift to some other venue,"

Mani was quoted by Dawn newspaper. The PCB reacted sharply to Mani's advice.

"It's his point of view but as far as we are concerned, we are not going to the surrender the hosting rights of Champions Trophy,"

spokesman of the cricket board Mansoor Suhail told the Associated Press.

The Champions Trophy was put back to October 2009, but India's cricket board has expressed reservations over those proposed dates, because it had planned a seven-match one-day international series against Australia at that time.

"These (dates) are all procedural issues which could be resolved with mutual understanding," Suhail said.

Sri Lanka was the alternate venue to host the Champions Trophy, but Pakistan refused to entertain a switch.

Mani, who is a Pakistani, said the ICC could have earned $50 million and every participating team would have received $3.75 million had the tournament gone ahead with a different host.

"Since it was known much before time that some teams were not comfortable about touring Pakistan for the Champions Trophy, the PCB should have taken the initiative by asking the ICC to shift it to an alternate venue instead of postponing it to avoid the financial losses," Mani said.

The ICC's board is scheduled to be meet in Dubai on Thursday, where there will be further discussion on the matter.

Saudis come from behind to gain key win

AFP, Abu Dhabi

Hosts United Arab Emirates' dreams of qualifying for the 2010 World Cup received a major blow when they slumped to a 2-1 defeat Wednesday to neighbours Saudi Arabia in an ill-tempered match both sides were determined to win.

At the Asian Group B qualifier at the Bin Zayed Stadium, Saudi Arabia came from a goal down to take the points to add to a home draw in their opening match against Iran.

Subait Khater scored from a brilliant corner kick in the 23rd minute of the first half to put the hosts ahead, but four minutes of mayhem undid most of the good work they had done in the first half.

Abdoh Autef restored parity for the Saudis when his powerful shot from outside 25 yards clipped the outstretched knee of defender Rashid Abdulrehman and deflected past the helpless UAE goalkeeper Majed Naser in the 68th minute.

Four minutes later, Ahmed Al Fraidi sealed the win for the Saudis, who are hoping to make their fifth successive World Cup finals, with a measured shot after weaving through the hosts' defence.

The result meant Saudi go on top of Group B alongside North Korea with four points, while UAE are at the bottom of the table, yet to open their account.

A delighted Saudi captain Yasser Al Kahtani, who came in as a substitute in the 46th minute, said: "This is a wonderful result for us, especially after the draw against Iran. It was a superb performance from the team to come back from one goal behind.

"The UAE were playing really well and putting us under a lot of pressure."

The UAE dominated the first half, and were rewarded for their efforts when Khater's corner kick bounced perfectly between two defenders and then sailed past Saudi goalkeeper Waleed Ali into the far corner of the net.

Bruno Metsu's men could have easily increased their lead in the 43rd minute when Ismail Mattar hit a gem of a forward pass which beat the Saudi defenders, but Ahmed Khalil, who only had to beat Waleed, shot wide.

Saudi looked a much more organised team with Al Kahtani in the second half. They had several shots on goal, but their best attempt came in the 62nd minute when UAE's goalie Naser had to effect two reflex saves in succession.

One of those saves was a full-blooded piledriver by Abdoh Autef.

The Saudi Arabian was not to be denied for long and another of his long-range attempt from the left got his team the equaliser. And Al Fraidi, who came in for Mohammad Al Shlhoub in the 62nd minute, set off wild celebrations in the bench with the winning goal in the 72nd minute.

Prantik, T&T register wins

Sports Reporter

Prantik KC blanked Kadamtala Sangsad 3-0 in the day's first match of the Second Division Football League at the Kamalapur Bir Sreshtha Shaheed Sepoy Mohammad Mostafa Stadium on Thursday.

Sabuj, Sagor, Rubel scored one goal each for the winners.

In the day's other match, T&T Club of Motijheel beat Bassabo Tarun Sangha by a solitary goal at the same venue.

Jewel netted the match-decider for te victorious team.

Today Sadharan Bima KS will face Matuail Udayan Sangsad while Gazir Chat SC will meet Friends Social Welfare Organisation at the same venue.

Refreshers course for handball referee

Sports Reporter

Bangladesh Handball Referees Association will arrange a handball referee refreshers course at the office room of Bangladesh Handball Federation from September 17 to September 20. The course will be held everyday from 2.30 PM to 4.30 PM.

All handball referees have been requested to enlist their names by September 16 at the federation office.

BCB Academy 441 all out in 1st innings against Sri Lanka on day 2

UNB, Dhaka

Visiting GP-BCB National Cricket Academy team piled up 441 runs all out in 122.3 overs against Sri Lanka Development XI on the 2nd day of the 1st four-day match at Dambulla in Sri Lanka on Thursday.

Shamsur Rahman scored 125 runs and Marshal Ayub made 78. Later Farhad Hossain's useful 54, Suhrawadi Shuvo's 29, Mahbubul Alam's 28 and Ashiqul Islam's 12 helped the touring side reach a handsome total.

S Prasanna was the most successful bowler for Sri Lanka Academy XI as he grabbed six wickets for 116 runs in 33 overs, while MM Suraj captured two for 547 runs.

In reply, Sri Lanka Academy XI started their 1st innings, but failed to open their innings account in 0.4 overs at stumps on the day.

Openers, KY de Silva and TSM Masmullah were at the crease without any run.

Bahrain hold Qataris

AFP, Doha

Qatar's World Cup qualifying campaign hit a snag when they were held 1-1 by neighborhood rivals Bahrain in their Group A clash on Wednesday.

Qatar, who made other teams in Asia sit up and take notice during their 3-0 demolition of Uzbekistan last Saturday, failed to take advantage of several chances, including a penalty, to allow the Bahrainis take a valuable point from their away match.

Sebastien Soria put Qatar ahead as early as the fifth minute after receiving a long pass from deep, but the Uruguay-born striker, who has shouldered most of Qatar's burden in the forwardline throughout the qualifying phases, failed to put away a penalty later in the first half.