Mohammad Yousuf slams Pakistan Cricket Board

Posted by Unknown on Tuesday, September 16, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

Mohammad Yousuf slams Pakistan Cricket Board
Former captain Mohammad Yousuf has slammed the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for holding the national T20 championship before the World Cup 2015.
“I don’t understand the logic behind having the national T20 event at this time when we are hardly going to play two or three T20 matches against Australia and New Zealand before the World Cup,” Yousuf said on Geo Super channel.
“It would have been more sensible to have a 50 overs one-day event at this stage instead of T20 cricket. Because we are going to play maximum one-day games before the World Cup,” Yousuf said.
The national T20 championship for regional teams is scheduled to be held from September 17 to 28th in Karachi after which the Pakistan team will fly to the UAE for its “home” series against Australia and New Zealand.
Pakistan will be playing eight ODIs against the two teams in the UAE.
Yousuf said that Pakistan was facing a real problem in its batting before the World Cup.
“All this talk about promoting youngsters has led to this problem in the batting department. I blame some of the former players and media who keep on stressing the need to have young players. My vision is clear that anyone no matter what age performs should be in the team,” he stated.
Yousuf pointed out that even in the ongoing Champions League in India, the batting had been exposed.
“Our batsmen are facing problems in staying at the wicket. For some time now our batsmen are struggling to play the full 50 overs and yet we have no one-day tournament before the World Cup,” the senior batsman noted.
Yousuf said that the youngsters had learnt nothing from their predecessors.
“In cricket you need to stay at the wicket and keep on scoring runs to do well in one-day cricket and our current form and approach in this format needs rapid improvement or we will face problems in the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand,” Yousuf said.
“And I don’t think by making the players in contention for the World Cup play in T20 format the board is helping the cause of the team.”
Yousuf said at this stage it didn’t matter who the board appointed as captain of the national T20 side.
“Right now we just need to focus on one-day cricket and I think the board needs to just give Shahid Afridi this responsibility for both formats. Shahid should also I think now make it clear he plans to retire after the World Cup if given the captaincy,” he added.
He was also critical off the disorganized manner in which the domestic event was being organized.
“Sometimes you get the feeling that no one really cares in the board what happens to Pakistan cricket,” Yousuf said.
-IBN

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New Zealand police sends ‘honey traps’ warning ahead of 2015 World Cup

Posted by Unknown on Saturday, September 13, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

New Zealand police sends ‘honey traps’ warning ahead of 2015 World Cup
With cricket’s biggest extravaganza, the ICC Cricket World Cup, scheduled to be played in Australia and New Zealand next year, a potential threat has been unearthed by the Kiwi police.
According to a report published in The New Zealand Herald, the fixers and bookies might use honey traps as a weapon during the tournament to lure them.
“We know they bring in women into the country to fraternise with players. Afterwards, they’ll ask the players to do something and if they refuse they’ll say, ‘Well, see these photographs? They will be with your wife, your neighbours, your parents,” Superintendent Sandra Manderson, police chief for the Cricket World Cup, was quoted as saying in the report.
The report also suggested about a list of match-fixers which has been compiled by the police and anti-corruption investigators in a bid to stop them at the border before the World Cup.
The World Cup will be hosted jointly by Australia and New Zealand and the police is trying its best to depose off possible threats.
Of late, cricket’s image has been tarnished with instances of fixing and spot-fixing. Kiwi cricketer Lou Vincent was the recent victim where he publicly accepted involvement in fixing
-Zee

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Thisara Perera is invited by New Zealand

Posted by Unknown on Thursday, September 11, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

Sri Lankan cricketer Thisara Perera says that he was invited by New Zealand to join their team.
Expressing his ideas to a web site he says ” they promised that they will grant me P R first and then to get me joined to their team.  But, my aim is to join the Sri Lankan team again.”
He was reluctant to talk about the activities of the Sri Lanka cricket institute and has stated that ” I will talk about it when I leave cricket.”

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Commonwealth Games 2014: Glasgow has been a celebration of sport for sport's sake

Posted by Unknown on Saturday, August 2, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

Olympic-level fervour has helped Scotland feel good about itself at a Games that have been notable for their passion and unpredictability

 The best possible rebuke to sceptics of these Commonwealth Games, and even agnostics, lay in the beatific smile of Erraid Davies.

As if to prove that Glasgow’s spectacular was for all Scotland, this 13-year-old swimmer from the Shetland Islands, afflicted with the rare hip condition Perthes’ disease, took bronze in the 100 metres para-breaststroke to become the youngest ever Commonwealth medallist and melt the most implacable resistance.

She grinned on the rostrum, bashful yet incredulous, as the tears among the Saltire-waving hordes at Tollcross pool came plentifully.

While many in Glasgow would gladly walk 500 miles to avoid hearing that dreaded anthem by The Proclaimers again, the soundtrack to Scottish success here has often been intensely moving.

The home athletes might not, in the words of Flower of Scotland, have sent proud Edward’s English army homeward “tae think again” – they trail those infernal Sassenachs by many leagues in the medal table – but to see thousands of local families lustily lauding gymnast Dan Keatings’ triumph on the pommel horse, or Lynsey Sharp’s fight through illness to claim silver in the 800m, was to recognise a country imbued with a renewed confidence.

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England cricketers spooked by 'ghosts' at London hotel

Posted by Unknown on Monday, July 21, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

Opened in 1865, the famous Langham Hotel is known as one of the most haunted hotels in the world. It was once again in news after England cricketers asked for change of rooms during their Test matches played in London.
The London-based hotel has a reputation for inducing fear among its guests with rather strange incidents.
The recent cricketer who complained about such an incident was senior England bowler Stuart Broad. He said that during his stay at the hotel, taps in his room were on and off out of nowhere.
The England pacer’s girlfriend Bealey too had a tough time staying at the hotel
Broad further stated that his England teammate Moeen Ali and his better half experienced something strange at the venue. He also said that Ben Stokes too had faced trouble during his stay at the Langham.
England bowler though said that his stay during the ongoing series against India has been relatively fine.
As reported in Daily Mail, room 333 at the hotel is believed to be the most haunted with the hotel’s own website stating:
“In 1973 a BBC radio announcer James Alexander-Gordon awoke suddenly in the night to see a fluorescent ball which slowly took on the shape of a man wearing Victorian evening wear. The announcer asked the ghost what it wanted and it began to float towards him, with its legs cut off some two feet below the ground, arms outstretched, eyes staring emptily. At this point the announcer got up and fled.”

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Brazil World Cup dreams destroyed by Germany

Posted by Unknown on Tuesday, July 8, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

Brazil’s World Cup dreams ended in humiliating and brutal fashion as Germany inflicted their heaviest defeat in the first semi-final in Belo Horizonte.
Story of the match:
  • Germany 5-0 up in 29 mins
  • Klose record World Cup scorer
  • Brazil’s biggest World Cup defeat
  • First competitive home defeat in 39 years
A thunderous occasion that began with Brazil riding a tidal wave of emotion was reduced to a nightmare as Germany were 5-0 up inside 29 remarkable minutes in front of a disbelieving Estadio Mineirao crowd.
Brazil’s players mourned the absence of the injured Neymar before kick-off, but captain Thiago Silva was an even bigger loss. The result was their first competitive home defeat in 39 years, and the end of their hopes of making it to the World Cup final at the iconic Maracana on Sunday.
Thomas Muller gave the three-time winners an early lead before a period of utter chaos saw Miroslav Klose break the World Cup scoring record, Toni Kroos add two more in the space of 179 seconds and Sami Khedira net a fifth.
Chelsea striker Andre Schurrle, on as a substitute, added two more after the break before Brazil’s followers delivered what must be regarded as the defining insult to their national team – cheering every German pass and applauding their goals.
Many Brazil supporters, swamped with such anticipation as they gathered in their thousands around the ground hours before kick-off, were reduced to tears after less than 30 minutes, and reduced to such a state of shock that it was only at half-time that they registered their first serious dissent.
This equalled Brazil’s heaviest margin of defeat, a 6-0 loss at the hands of Uruguay in the 1920 Copa America, but the impact of this reverse, not just on the world stage but in their homeland, will put this alongside the 1950 World Cup final defeat by the Uruguayans in Rio as their darkest football day.
Instead, Germany will meet either Argentina or Netherlands, who meet on Wednesday in Sao Paulo.
Muller’s early goal was a big enough setback, but the manner in which Luiz Felipe Scolari’s side crumbled in the space of seven minutes is likely to be a matter of national debate in this country for years to come.
This was Brazil’s first defeat at home for 12 years. The loss for a country built on sporting pride, and at their own World Cup, will be bad enough to take. The scale of defeat will take the inquests to a new level.
The statistics stacked up like pieces of rubble around the feet of Scolari and his players. This was the first time a team had scored seven in a World Cup semi-final, and the biggest defeat in one of these games since West Germany beat Austria 6-1 in 1954.

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World Cup 2014: Algeria ‘to donate World Cup prize money to people of Gaza’

Posted by Unknown on Friday, July 4, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

First the Palestinian flag was draped from the team bus during the team’s triumphant open-top bus tour of the capital, now it has been claimed that the Algerian national football team are to donate their entire World Cup prize fund to the embattled people of Gaza.
According to quotes attributed to Algeria’s star striker Islam Slimani, the team will give up all of the estimated $9 million (£5.25 million) they received as valiant losers in the round of 16.
Yet speaking at a reception in Algiers where the team returned to a hero’s welcome yesterday, Slimani apparently said: “They need it more than us.” The announcement was reported by the Jordanian football writer Waleed Abu Nada as well as the Dutch daily newspaper Algemeen Dagblad.
If true, the team could face accusations of bringing politics to bear in the world of sport. Yesterday, YouTube footage of the team’s open-top homecoming tour through Algiers showed at least one Palestinian flag flying from the bus by the team.
Last month, Fifa announced it was to open disciplinary proceedings against Argentina after the team unfurled a political banner prior to a friendly match against Slovenia with the phrase “Las Malvinas son Argentinas”, which translates as “The Falkland Islands belong to Argentina”.
However, if reports of the donation are true, it will see Algeria gain a whole new set of fans beyond football. They were also the only African side to make it through past the group stages – and their reported willingness to give away the prize money is in stark contrast to the reported behaviour of the Cameroon, Ghana and Nigeria teams.
Algeria has traditionally been a strong ally of the Palestinian cause in the long-running Middle East dispute with Israel.
The crisis has intensified in recent days as Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu struggles to control a frenzied reaction to the murder of three Israeli hitch-hikers, which the country blames on Hamas.
Israel has begun sending troop reinforcements to its border with Gaza and begun intensifying air strikes, while more than a dozen Palestinian rockets struck southern Israel early this morning.
-Independent

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Dinesh Chandimal axed from ODIs against South Africa

Posted by Unknown on Thursday, July 3, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

Dinesh Chandimal
Sri Lanka off-spinner Sachithra Senanayake, who was reported for a suspect bowling action during the one-day international series against England last month, has been included in the squad for the first two ODIs against South Africa.
After being reported, Senanayake underwent testing at the Cardiff Metropolitan University on June 29 and is allowed to play until the results are known.
Fast bowler Suranga Lakmal, who had to return home from the tour of England due to a hamstring injury, was also named in the 16-man squad.
Lakmal suffered a grade-two tear on his right hamstring while running between the wickets in the first ODI against England and took no further part in the tour.
Opener Kusal Perera has also been selected but his place is subject to fitness.
There was, however, no place for wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Chandimal and all-rounder Chaturanga de Silva, who both toured England.
The duo have been replaced by batsmen Upul Tharanga and Kithuruwan Vithanage.
The first match of the three-ODI series is scheduled on Sunday while the second will be played on Wednesday.
The series will conclude with the final game on July 12.

Squad: Angelo Mathews (captain), Lahiru Thirimanne, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kusal Perera, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Kithuruwan Vithanage, Ashan Priyanjan, Upul Tharanga, Sachithra Senanayake, Rangana Herath, Ajantha Mendis, Thisara Perera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Lasith Malinga, Suranga Lakmal

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Happy for Brazil to win ugly..- Neymar

Posted by Unknown on Wednesday, July 2, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

Neymar has insisted that he is happy for Brazil to win ugly as long as it gets them past Colombia in Friday’s FIFA World Cup™ quarter-final in Fortaleza.
The occasional moment of genius from Neymar aside, Brazil have rarely sparkled at these finals but they remain in contention to win the title after last weekend’s agonising victory on penalties against Chile in the last 16.
“You can’t always enjoy yourself and win 4-0 or 5-0,” the Barcelona forward told a press conference at the Brazil team’s base in Teresopolis. “Football nowadays is so difficult, so even, that the team who is most committed on the pitch ends up winning.”
I don’t want a show. That’s the last thing we are trying to do. We are not necessarily here to produce a spectacle. We are here to run to the end, until we are tired, and come out as winners.
“I would be happy to do nothing in this game if Brazil won 1-0. That would be marvellous.”
Earlier, Neymar came through training with no ill effects, confirming that he has overcome the knee and thigh knocks that he suffered against Chile.
“I am fine. You can relax,” he told journalists after a session in which coach Luiz Felipe Scolari tried out different formations ahead of the clash with Colombia.
Scolari is likely to make just the one change to his starting line-up for the match at the Estadio Castelao, with the suspended Luiz Gustavo set to be replaced in midfield by Paulinho.
However, the coach did also try out a 3-5-2 formation, with defender Henrique replacing striker Fred and Maicon replacing Daniel Alves at right-back. The chances of Brazil lining up in such a fashion against Colombia are minimal, but Neymar insisted he is ready to adapt to any tactical changes.
“I can fit into any formation. We have an excellent coach whose job it is to decide how the team will play. With or without a centre-forward, we have to play football.”
Left-back Marcelo withdrew from training early but the Brazil camp confirmed that the Real Madrid player had no problem and a full squad travelled north to Fortaleza on Wednesday afternoon.
Source: www.fifa.com

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Dhoni in fresh trouble as court issues arrest warrant

Posted by Unknown on Tuesday, June 24, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

A court in Andhra Pradesh Tuesday issued an arrest warrant against Indian cricket team captain MS Dhoni for allegedly hurting the religious sentiments of Hindus.
A local court in Anantapur issued the arrest warrant as Dhoni did not appear in the court despite three summons served in the past. It directed police to present Dhoni in the court July 16.
The case relates to a picture on the cover of a magazine.
Business Today in its April 2013 edition had carried the picture. Dhoni was portrayed as Hindu god Vishnu with a sub title “God of Big Deals” and holding products of several companies including a shoe in his hand.
Y Shyam Sunder, a local leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), had filed a petition in the court in February this year alleging that the cricketer hurt the sentiments of Hindus by denigrating a Hindu god.
The summons issued by the court to Dhoni on three occasions were returned. The court, which took up the hearing Tuesday, issued the arrest warrant.
Similar petitions against Dhoni were filed in Delhi, Pune and other cities.
-TOI

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Kumar Sangakkara sets world record

Posted by Unknown on Monday, June 23, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

Kumar Sangakkara
Sri Lankan Test Cricketer Kumar Sangakkara set a world record when he played against the English on Sunday.
Sangakkara made history for Lanka when he became the fourth cricket player in the world to score seven successive half centuries.
He went on to set his seventh successive half century by scoring 55 runs against England.
Sangakkara is now placed among players Everton Weekes (West Indies), Shivnarine Chanderpaul (West Indies), Andy Flower (Zimbabwe).
Listed below are the complete details of the half centuries scored by the above players.

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Switzerland clinches dramatic win in FIFA World Cup

Posted by Unknown on Sunday, June 15, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

Switzerland earned a dramatic, late win over Ecuador in their opening Group E match at the World Cup as substitute Haris Seferovic scored in the third minute of stoppage time.
Seferovic turned in Ricardo Rodriguez’s low cross as Ottmar Hitzfeld’s side came back from behind to claim victory.
Fellow substitute Admir Mehmedi headed Switzerland level after Enner Valencia had given Ecuador a half-time lead.
Valencia’s header from a Walter Ayovi free-kick was his fifth goal in successive games for his country.
Hitzfeld’s two substitutions were key to turning around a match that looked to be slipping away from his side after a poor first-half display.
The coach, a Champions League winner with Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, is retiring at the end of the World Cup – and has set himself the target of guiding Switzerland to their first quarter-final since 1954.
They arrived in Brazil as Group E seeds and ranked sixth in the world, but struggled in the face of an energetic first-half Ecuador performance.
They restricted Switzerland to threatening with long-range shots and set-pieces during the opening 45 minutes, with keeper Alexander Dominguez keeping out efforts from Xherdan Shaqiri, Rodriguez and Gokhan Inler.
But Ecuador’s lead was wiped out early in the second half from a near-identical set-piece as their defence switched off.
Rodriguez whipped a corner towards the near post and Mehmedi, Freiburg’s leading scorer in the Bundesliga last season, got above Carlos Gruezo to head in – 121 seconds after coming on at half-time.
Ecuador’s exciting but inconsistent winger Jefferson Montero threatened to restore their lead by sprinting past Stephan Lichtsteiner to power in a shot that keeper Diego Benaglio beat out at the near post.
Switzerland then enjoyed a good spell of pressure as their opponents appeared to tire, and Josip Drmić turned the ball into the net from a Rodriguez through-pass, but was ruled offside.
Then Bayern Munich forward Shaqiri fired wastefully into the side-netting from a tight angle with two men in support after being played in by Mehmedi.
Switzerland had to survive several scares in the closing stages, though, with Valencia almost grabbing a second after a mix-up between Djourou and Benaglio, before the keeper pushed away Michael Arroyo’s deflected free-kick.
Hitzfeld’s side pulled through and clinched victory on the break as Valon Behrami made a brilliant defensive block before Rodriguez charged down the left and crossed low for Real Sociedad striker Seferovic to convert at the near post.

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FIFA World Cup 2014 Watch Online Live Stream

Posted by Unknown on Thursday, June 12, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...


Whether you don't have a TV at home, or you need to be out during the matches of the Fifa World Cup that starts from Thursday, you needn't give up hope, because there are plenty of ways in which you can keep up with the action as long as you are online.

 Live stream link will be available soon: Please bookmark this page and stay with us.

 FIFA World Cup 2014, FIFA, FIFA 2014, 2014 FIFA, Watch online, Live stream, Live, 2014 FIFA World CUP, 2014 World CUP, 2014, Football, FIFA Live Updates, fifa world cup 2014 online

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Root and Matt Prior put England into commanding position in first Test against Sri Lanka

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Root’s 102 not out helped take England to 344 for five at stumps on the first day of the first Test after they’d been struggling at 74 for three when the 23-year-old Yorkshireman walked out to bat.
Root, who made a Test-best 180 against Australia at Lord’s last year, was well supported by Matt Prior (76 not out) in a so-far unbroken sixth-wicket stand of 135.
However, recalled wicketkeeper Prior was fortunate not be out for a second-ball duck before completing just his second 50 in 21 Test innings.
Moeen Ali (48), one of three debutants in a new-look England side following their 5-0 Ashes drubbing in Australia, had previously helped Root steady the ship during a fifth-wicket stand of 89.
“It’s a very slow wicket and hard to time when the ball goes softer,” Root told Sky Sports.
“It was a day when you had to scrap,” he added after batting for more than five hours.
“Nothing beats Test cricket in my eyes and the challenge of trying to score runs in the first Test of the summer after the winter we had was one I relished.”
Before this match, Australia great Shane Warne said England ought to have given a debut to Jos Buttler and left Prior out.
However, Root said he was delighted to have the Sussex gloveman alongside him.
“I love batting with Matty. He’s a great bloke to have in the side and to play how he has is testament to his character and his quality as a player.”
Things initially went well for Sri Lanka after captain Angelo Mathews won the toss and elected to field.
Although sunny blue skies above suggested ideal batting conditions, the pitch was a greener-looking one than usually associated with Lord’s at this time of year.
- Early double strike -
Mathews’s decision yielded a quick reward as England lost both their openers inside the first half hour.
Australia-born Sam Robson, one of England’s newcomers along with Ali and all-rounder Chris Jordan, fell for one on his Middlesex home ground when drawn forward into edging a full-length Nuwan Pradeep delivery that was well caught by diving wicketkeeper Prasanna Jayawardene.
And 14 for one became 22 for two when England captain Alastair Cook (17) edged a cut off Nuwan Kulasekara into his stumps.
But from then on things got tougher for the tourists as the pitch flattened out.
“We bowled pretty well on this wicket,” said Sri Lanka bowling coach Chaminda Vaas.
“I thought in the first few hours we bowled in some good areas,” the former left-arm seamer added.
“I didn’t expect more (than five wickets) because something happened in the wicket in the first few hours.”
England had struggled to 98 for three at lunch, also losing Gary Ballance.
But Bell was unbeaten on 41 and looked in excellent touch in his 99th Test.
After lunch, Bell drove left-arm spinner Rangana Herath for six to go to a 69-ball 50.
But he was out soon afterwards when lbw to Eranga although Sri Lanka first had to review Australian umpire Paul Reiffel’s original not out decision .
Ali began cautiously but the left-hander and Root were both 43 not out at tea.
Root subsequently completed his fifty but Ali fell when he drove loosely at Herath and was caught by Mahela Jayawardene at slip.
Prior, dropped during the Ashes, had still to score on Thursday when struck on the back leg by Herath.
Sri Lanka appealed for lbw but Reiffel ruled in Prior’s favour and, despite a review, the ‘umpire’s call’ stood after replays indicated the ball had pitched fractionally outside off stump.
Meanwhile Root cut and cover-drove Eranga for two well-struck boundaries.
Prior, who marked his Test debut with a hundred at Lord’s against the West Indies in 2007, reached 50 when he cover-drove Pradeep, bowling with the new ball, for his seventh four.
Root, obliged to be more vigilant, drove Kulasekara down the ground for just his eighth boundary to go to 96 before reaching his third hundred in 16 Tests with three off Herath.
-NDTV

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Neymar leads Brazil to win over Croatia in FIFA World Cup opener

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Neymar gave Brazil a winning start to its home World Cup, scoring twice to lead the host nation to an unconvincing 3-1 victory over Croatia in the opening game on Thursday.

In his 50th match with Brazil, the 22-year-old forward scored a goal in each half to help the hosts survive an early scare and escape disaster in front of a packed Itaquerao Stadium after Croatia had taken an early lead.

Marcelo found his own net while trying to clear a low cross by Ivica Olic in the 11th minute, but Neymar then showed why the nation’s high hopes are all pinned on him.

He equalized in the 29th minute, clearing a defender in midfield before making a run toward the edge of the area and firing a perfectly placed low shot that went in off the post.

The game turned on a controversial penalty awarded by Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura in the 71st minute when striker Fred went down inside the area under minimal contact from defender Dejan Lovren.

Neymar scored from the spot for his 33rd goal with Brazil. The Barcelona star got a standing ovation when he was substituted near the end of the match.

“It’s important to start these tournaments with the right foot, with a victory,” Neymar said. “I’m happy that I got to score, but the entire team deserves credit. We maintained our calm and showed we could battle back.”

The Croatians were furious.

“If that was a penalty, we should be playing basketball. Those kinds of fouls are penalized there,” Croatia coach Niko Kovac said.

“That is shameful, this is not a World Cup referee. He had one kind of criteria for them and another for us. The rules were not the same,” Kovac said.

As Croatia searched desperately for an equalizer, Oscar added to the lead in the first minute of injury time with a toe poke from just outside the penalty area.

Croatia had a few good chances toward the end and had a goal disallowed in the 83rd after the referee ruled Olic had fouled Brazil goalkeeper Julio Cesar.

The host nation hasn’t lost the last nine times it played in the opening match. South Africa was held by Mexico to a 1-1 draw four years ago.

A draw would have been a huge disappointment for Brazil, which had won its opening match the last eight times. The five-time champion entered the home tournament having won 15 of its last 16 games, including five in last year’s Confederations Cup, the warm-up tournament it won. The team hadn’t been held to a draw in the opener since a 1-1 result against Sweden in the 1978 World Cup in Argentina.

“The team didn’t give up,” Brazil defender David Luiz said “We knew it would be hard but we played well and got that first goal and then the victory.”

The result kept Croatia without a win in its last five World Cup matches. Its last triumph was a 2-1 win over Italy in 2002. The Croats didn’t play in South Africa four years ago.

The tournament finally got underway as planned after months of talk about the preparation problems that plagued Brazil since it was picked as host seven years ago.

The troubled Itaquerao, which wasn’t fully finished for the opener, held up without major setbacks to fans or the match itself, although part of the lights atop the pitch went out a few times for brief periods in the first half.

Despite the support from most of the more than 62,100 fans in attendance, Brazil got off to a slow start and allowed Croatia to threaten early. It opened the scoring with one of its first chances as Marcelo failed to clear Olic’s cross. The ball was slightly redirected by striker Nikica Jelavic before the Brazilian defender touched it backward into the goal.

“I stayed calm because if I let myself get down I would have hurt the team,” Marcelo said. “It’s not the first time that this has happened, so you have to stay relaxed to help the team.”

The penalty kick was awarded when Fred appeared to be tugged inside the area by Lovren. The Croats insisted Fred wasn’t touched and at least five Croatian players swarmed around Nishimura of Japan to protest.

Neymar converted his shot from the spot even though Croatia goalkeeper Stipe Pletikosa touched the ball and nearly made the save.

Neymar had received a yellow card in the 27th for elbowing Real Madrid playmaker Luka Modric.

The other Group A match will be played between Mexico and Cameroon in Natal on Friday.

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FIFA World Cup 2014 Opening Ceremony: Photos, Highlights

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FIFA World Cup 2014 Opening Ceremony: Photos, Highlights
FIFA World Cup 2014 Opening Ceremony Jennifer Lopez Pitbull

FIFA World Cup 2014 Opening Ceremony

FIFA World Cup 2014 Opening Ceremony

FIFA World Cup 2014 Opening Ceremony

FIFA World Cup 2014 Opening Ceremony






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Official 2014 FIFA World Cup app available to download for free

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The official FIFA World Cup™ app has launched with exclusive coverage from Brazil 2014, meaning fans can take the world’s biggest event with them wherever they go. The app, first released in December 2013, has been fully updated ready for the opening match of the tournament.
The official app for Brazil 2014 is the essential companion, featuring live coverage from all 64 games. Fans can stay connected with the latest news, photos, videos, real-time voting on the official Man of the Match plus the chance to win the actual kick-off ball from the games.
The official 2014 FIFA World Cup app is your virtual ticket to the global stadium. It’s the best way to #joinin with the biggest conversation on the planet.
Matt Stone, FIFA Head of Digital
The app is the virtual ticket for smartphone users to #joinin FIFA’s Global Stadium - the social, online and mobile hub for the World Cup. During the matches, fans can engage with friends, worldwide fans, players, coaches and celebrities from the in-app social media feed and could see themselves in the Global Stadium, by adding #WorldCup to their posts.
Fans can also keep track of all the tournament stats, the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking, 197 world leagues and explore how FIFA brings to life its passion for developing the game and building a better future with stories from our worldwide projects.
Matt Stone, FIFA Head of Digital, commented: “The official 2014 FIFA World Cup app is your virtual ticket to the global stadium. It’s the best way to #joinin with the biggest conversation on the planet - only the World Cup and digital can make this happen. It’s the perfect companion both for TV viewers and for audiences on the move.” 

Click here to start your 2014 FIFA World Cup journey

About FIFA’s digital platforms 
FIFA.com is the world’s official digital home of the World Cup and the online heart of football. It is also a one-stop shop for retail, event ticketing, accommodation and hospitality. 

Via our official app and social media accounts, we encourage the billions of football fans to #joinin and share the excitement of the #WorldCup in FIFA’s Global Stadium. 

Constantly updated, FIFA.com offers the latest news, live scores from 197 world leagues, video highlights, historical data, exclusive interviews, behind-the-scenes access and – through the free FIFA.com Club – a global meeting point for people who love football. 

Details of FIFA’s core social media accounts, both for the FIFA World Cup, and other competitions, can be found here.

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Sri Lanka’s tour to Pakistan uncertain

Posted by Unknown on Wednesday, June 11, 2014 | 0 comments | Leave a comment...

Uncertainty looms over the planned tours by Ireland and Sri Lankan cricket teams to Pakistan this year following the terrorist attacks at the Karachi airport here.
“We were going to sign an agreement with the Ireland cricket body on the sidelines of the ICC executive board meeting in Melbourne this month. They had agreed to come and play three one-day internationals in Lahore in September,” a senior official of the board told PTI.
“We had also got positive vibes from Sri Lankan cricket authorities about the invitation we sent them last month to come and play a short one-day series anytime this year.”
“But now, after this attack, it would be fair to say these projects appear very dim,” the official added.
He said the idea to invite Ireland came about as the board was keen to have some sort of international cricket in Pakistan.
“The English and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) Chairman Giles Clarke had played a part in helping us in this project and convincing Ireland it was safe to play in Pakistan and we would provide them top security,” he said.
“But now it appears everything has gone down the drain,” he said.
No Test team has played in Pakistan since March 2009, when militants attacked the Sri Lankan team in Lahore in which six Pakistani policemen and a van driver were killed and some of the visiting players also wounded leading to abandonment of the tour.
PCB chairman Najam Sethi had in recent press interactions hinted at giving some good news to Pakistani cricket fans and supporters and insisted the board was making serious efforts to get international cricket back to Pakistan.
Another official said the Sri Lankans had also reacted positively to the invitation sent to them.
“Now we have to start afresh and this incident also means that now when we go to the ICC meeting to sign bilateral agreements with different boards for the next five to eight years it will be hard convincing them to keep the option of playing in Pakistan open,” the official said.
He said Pakistan had negotiated well with some boards who had agreed to play bilateral series as part of the new FTP calender.
PTI

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