News Update Place

Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, Indian spinners, put Pakistan under pressure in the first test as the tourists made their way to 212 for 5 at stumps on the third day, an overall lead of 167 runs.

The spin duo shared the on a Ferozshah Kotla pitch where the ball did not keep as low as on the first two days in New Delhi.

Pakistan could have been in more trouble as Misbah-ul Haq, who top-scored with 82 in the first innings, was dropped on one, and went on to be one of the not-out batsmen on 29, putting together a handy 51-run partnership for the sixth wicket with Kamran Akmal, who was on 21.

The spinners did most of the damage on day three of the first Test in New Delhi

“We are capable of chasing any target because we have quality and experienced batsmen in our side,” said Harbhajan. (more…)

South Africa, rugby world champions, gave outgoing coach Jake White the perfect send off in his last Test, by defeating Wales 34-12 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.

John Smit, Springbok captain, received the inaugural Prince William Cup from the eldest son of Prince Charles, Britain’s heir to the throne.

Ruan Pienaar scores South Africa’s fifth try against Wales in the Prince William Cup

Winger JP Pietersen, one of nine World Cup winners in the Springbok starting side, was in superb form, scoring one of South Africa’s five tries and setting up two for centre Jaque Fourie. (more…)

Steven Gerrard, Liverpool captain, made up for his midweek England disappointment with a virtuoso performance to inspire his side to a 3-0 English Premier League thrashing of Newcastle United at St James’ Park.

Later, Everton had a day out at home in a 7-1 thrashing of Sunderland at Goodison Park, while Bolton upset Manchester United 1-0.

In Newcastle, Gerrard was booed by sections of the home crowd in a backlash against England’s failure to qualify for Euro 2008 but he responded with a thunderous opening goal and also had a big hand in the other two.

Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard, centre, unleashes an unstoppable swerving shot to open the scoring

(more…)

As Dick Pound strolled the lobby of the Palacio de Congress in Madrid, all eyes turned toward him, and as he passed the whispers often began.

Some sports stars will be happy to see the back of Dick Pound, while others commend his work

Some were no doubt derisive, some complimentary, but the delegates to the third international World Anti-Doping Agency conference always paid attention to him and always knew when he was in the room.

One of the most influential men in sport, Pound is the former Olympic swimmer, and Montreal lawyer who has run the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) with an uncompromising, and at times unpopular, stance for the last eight years.

On December 31, his tenure will end as WADA president, and he will pass the baton to Australia’s John Fahey.
(more…)

The Iraq national football team is “in chaos” as they prepare for 2010 World Cup qualifying, just four months after uniting their war-ravaged country by winning the Asian Cup.

Goalkeeper Noor Sabri says ‘nothing is working out’ for Iraq ahead of the 2010 World Cup qualifiers
(more…)

Venkatsai Laxman and Mahendra Singh Dhoni both scored composed half-centuries to pull India out of trouble on the second day of the opening Test against Pakistan in New Delhi.

India’s VVS Laxman, left, is congratulated on his half-century by opponent Shoaib Akhtar, right
After dismissing Pakistan for just 231 early on day two, India slumped from 71 for 1 to a shaky 93 for 5 in the space of seven overs before Dhoni and Laxman counter-attacked to put on 115 for the sixth wicket.

India reached 228 for 6 at stumps, just three runs behind Pakistan’s first innings score with four wickets in hand and Laxman still at the crease on 57 with new captain Anil Kumble on seven.

After posting a modest total, the tourists bounced back into the match when fast bowlers Shoaib Akhtar and Sohail Tanvir shared four quick wickets to put India on the back foot in the afternoon.

However wicket-keeper Dhoni restored the balance with his hard and clean hitting under pressure in the last session, outscoring Laxman during their big stand and reaching his seventh half-century before his experienced partner.

Dhoni eventually fell for 57 after attempting a big shot off leg-spinner Danish Kaneria, but not timing it properly and being caught behind.

Laxman looked solid at the other end, patiently waiting for loose deliveries to punish, and there was never a moment of uncertainty during his 30th half-century.

Laxman’s stand with Dhoni came at the right time for India, whose top-order batsmen found Akhtar and debutant Tanvir too hot to handle even on a good pitch.

Top order collapse

Akhtar rattled the hosts when he had Dinesh Karthik caught behind for nine in an incisive opening spell before trapping Wasim Jaffer leg-before for 32 in his second spell.

The hosts suffered a setback when Sachin Tendulkar was run out for just one when he went for a second run only for batting partner Rahul Dravid to send him back.

Tendulkar slipped and then turned back, but failed to beat a Mohammad Yousuf throw to the wicket-keeper.

Tanvir, a left-arm seamer with a wrong-footed action, removed former captains Sourav Ganguly for eight and Dravid for 38 in successive overs, with both batsmen out bowled playing a wrong line.

Misbah falls early

Earlier, Pakistan added 21 to their overnight total of 210 for 8 before being all out for 231 with tail-ender Mohammad Sami remaining unbeaten on 28.

India were fortunate to break a stubborn 87-run stand for the ninth wicket between Sami and middle-order batsman Misbah-ul-Haq, who was run out for an impressive 82 after adding 11 runs to his overnight score.

Misbah tried to beat a Kartik throw from point, but both his feet and bat were in the air when the ball hit the stumps at the non-striker’s end.

India would have been relieved to see the back of Misbah, who had defied the hosts’ attack for more than five hours, hitting one six and six fours in his 243-ball knock.

Leg-spinner Kumble ended the innings when he bowled last-man Kaneria for a duck to finish with first innings figures of 4 for 38 in his first Test as captain

India were held up by a rearguard action from Pakistan’s Misbah-ul-Haq after taking control on the opening afternoon of the first Test in Delhi.

Ganguly (far left) took a key wicket when he had Yousuf trapped lbw

After Pakistan had won the toss and batted, paceman Zaheer Khan took 2-36 and skipper Anil Kumble claimed 3-38.

India had their arch rivals reeling at 142-8 at the tea interval.

But Misbah (71 not out) and Mohammad Sami (20 not out) then added an unbeaten 68 as Pakistan reached 210-8 before bad light curtailed play.

India went into the series knowing they will move up to third place in the ICC Test rankings if they win the series 2-0 - and will overtake second-placed England if they win all three Tests.

Pakistan handed a Test debut to left-arm seamer Sohail Tanvir after paceman Umar Gul was ruled out with a back injury, while India recalled spinner Harbhajan Singh after a year out of the Test side.

The visitors have struggled to find a consistent opening partnership in recent months, and Salman Butt had made just one before he was bowled by an inswinger from left-armer Zaheer.

Younus Khan followed Butt back to the pavilion when he was caught at fine leg by Munaf Patel as Zaheer claimed his second wicket, recording impressive figures of 2-25 from his first eight overs.

Pakistan were then in trouble at 59-3 when Butt’s opening partner Yasir Hameed became Kumble’s first victim as India captain.

The new skipper marked his elevation to captaincy with a superb display of leg-spin, and all his three wickets were clean bowled.

It did not get much better for the visitors in the afternoon session as Sourav Ganguly’s gentle medium pace had the dangerous Mohammad Yousuf trapped lbw, while captain Shoaib Malik was caught behind for a duck to leave his side struggling at 83-5.

Misbah and keeper Kamran Akmal staged a partial recovery, adding 39 for the sixth wicket, but when Akmal was bowled by a quick one from Kumble that kept low, it left Misbah batting with the tail.

Debutant Tanvir was adjudged lbw to Harbhajan, while paceman Shoaib Akhtar was completely deceived as Kumble claimed his third wicket.

But in the evening session, Sami helped Misbah with a doughty display of crease occupation as Kumble rotated his bowlers and took the second new ball late on but could not make the breakthrough.

Misbah took 204 deliveries in his unbeaten 71, although he nearly departed two overs before the close when he smashed Patel hard to Harbhajan at square leg, and the spinner got a hand to it but was unable to hold on to a fierce chance.

Misbah led a rearguard action during the evening session

Sami was content to play a supporting role, though he did cut loose when he hoisted Ganguly for a huge straight six.

India pace bowler Zaheer Khan:
“The wicket is getting slower and slower, so it’s hard work and obviously we were bowling with an old ball. So it’s not easy.

“Anil Kumble’s first day in office has been good - in the first two sessions we got eight wickets.

“What else can a captain expect on the first day of a Test match when you know that the wicket is going to play really well?

“We’ll look to get them out as early as possible and then put runs on the board.”

Pakistan coach Geoff Lawson:
“The pitch showed variable bounce but some of the batsmen played shots they would surely reconsider.

“Misbah was at his fighting best and he and Sami played according to instructions.”

THE TURIN OLYMPICS DREW the lowest ratings of any such Games in almost four decades — at least on TV. On the Internet, the Olympics drew more viewers than ever. So the challenge for NBC, which televised the Games and has the broadcast rights to the Olympics through at least 2012, is clear: Unless it wants to lose another ratings battle to “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” the network needs to learn how to harness the growing enthusiasm for the online version of the Games. And then it can decide whether that lesson applies to other programming as well.
Before proclaiming “TV is dead, long live the new TV,” keep in mind that the average audience for the television broadcasts was 20 million, while the website attracted 1.5 million people on its best day. Nevertheless, the trends point to both the risks and the opportunity emerging not just for NBC but for the entire TV industry.
First, TV networks can’t keep events secret, even if they happen half a world away. NBC presented many tape-delayed Olympic events as suspenseful dramas, but news outlets online and on cable had already given away the endings. The lack of mystery drained some of the entertainment value for people with only a casual interest in the events. That’s one reason the prime-time Olympics lured so few viewers away from hit shows on other networks, such as Fox’s “American Idol” or ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy,” which walloped the Games in the ratings. Meanwhile, Olympic fans were getting an immediate fix from the Web.
Second, Olympic events often have distinct audiences. The vast majority of people who tune in for ice dancing, for example, are going to switch to “American Idol” — or even a test pattern — when curling comes on. That’s a problem for broadcast TV but not for a website or a cable TV video-on-demand service. As the music industry has learned, dividing a product into segments creates more chances to attract an audience. Why shouldn’t the Olympics be sliced and diced as well? The networks are experimenting with online distribution already, selling episodes of several popular shows on the Internet right after they air and offering downloadable segments of their news programs. The Summer Olympics in 2008 in Beijing could be a proving ground for more such approaches.
Third, networks have been reluctant to put valuable programming on the Internet before it hits the airwaves for fear of losing TV advertising revenue. But advertisers follow viewers, and they’re spending more and more each year to sponsor video online.
More important, the networks don’t have much choice. With digital technologies giving viewers more options and control than ever before, the key for companies such as NBC isn’t to drag people back to their couches during prime time. It’s finding a way to deliver programming when and where people want it.

Thursday’s Prime-Time Perfect Storm — in which the Winter Olympics on NBC battled not just Fox hit “American Idol” but also no-slouches “Dancing With the Stars” on ABC and CBS’s “Survivor” — left everyone bloodied but some happier than others.
“Idol” snagged far and away the biggest audience in the 8-to-9-p.m. hour — 23.4 million viewers. Now, that’s the smallest audience for this edition of “Idol,” but it catapulted Fox to its biggest Thursday night in 13 years.
Though the Games once again got pounded by “Idol” in head-to-head competition, snaring fewer than 18 million viewers in the hour, NBC recovered by holding back all the taped women’s figure skating play until after “Idol” and running until nearly midnight. In prime time, NBC averaged nearly 24.5 million viewers — the biggest Thursday prime-time audience for any network this season.
But NBC’s Olympics coverage wound up with about a third fewer viewers (nearly 13 million) than the prime-time night of the women’s figure skating finals at Nagano in ‘98.
Of, course, at Nagano, women’s figure skating did not face “American Idol,” “Survivor” and “Dancing With the Stars.” The competition faced a repeat of the flick “Maverick,” a repeat of the flick “Speed” and the memorable Muppets special “Elmopalooza.”
At Nagano, the women’s figure skating finals — always the most watched Winter Olympics competition — were held on Friday, protected from NBC’s extremely powerful Thursday lineup.
CBS’s “Survivor” took a hit this Thursday night, copping its smallest audience ever for a regular episode — fewer than 15 million viewers.
“Dancing With the Stars” fumbled nearly 2 million compared with the previous week but, in the expanded two-hour block, it produced ABC’s biggest Thursday audience with regular programming in more than five years.
Viewers were happy with the Thursday bloodshed. According to Nielsen, about 11 million more people watched television — broadcast and cable — that night than usually tune in.
That said, the combined prime-time averages of all six English-language broadcast networks — ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, UPN and the WB — only slightly exceed the 73.5 million who watched the women’s figure skating finals from Lillehammer in 1994 — aka the Nancy Kerrigan vs. Tanya Harding Games.