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Time
for bust or boom
Brazil sack coach Dunga
‘No win, no party’
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The one and only Leander
Paes steady, Sania drops in rankings
Senior National Men’s Hockey C’ship
Pune IPL team appoints Marsh as coach
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Uruguay's players won't accept being called underdogs for tomorrow's match at Cape Town's Green Point Stadium, despite only making the last four thanks to Luis Suarez's hand ball on the line in the dying seconds of extra time in the quarterfinal against Ghana. "I suppose the press have made the Netherlands favorite. I wouldn't like to say that, it's a World Cup semifinal," captain Diego Lugano said. "The
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Rio De Janeiro, July 5 “The CBF announces the dismissal of the technical commission of the Brazilian team. The new commission will be announced at the end of July.” Dunga, 46, who skippered Brazil to the 1994 World Cup, had been national team coach since 2006. He had already said that he was intending to step down after four years following the five-time champions 2-1 defeat to Holland in the quarter-finals in Port Elizabeth last Friday. However, on his arrival home yesterday, Dunga did not rule out staying in the job. “I am going to rest before meeting, in one or two weeks’ time, the president of the CBF, Ricardo Teixeira to talk about it (extending his stay in charge),” Dunga told a news conference before the CBF quickly shattered his optimism. Brazilian media immediately started speculating on the identity of Dunga's successor whose job will be guiding the team on home soil at 2014 World Cup. The favourite is Scolari, who won the World Cup in 2002, although he has ruled himself out saying he intends to honour his contract with Palmeiras which runs until 2012. “I have a contract with Palmeiras and it is here that I am going to work,” Scolari told El Dorado radio. “It would be great to finish my career coaching a team at the World Cup to be staged in Brazil, but I cannot respond to any offer until after 2012.” Other names being mentioned are Mano Menezes, currently coach at Corinthians, and ex-AC Milan boss Leonardo. Jorginho, who was Dunga's assistant in South Africa, is also believed to be in the running. Brazilian players were met with insults and pushing and shoving from angry fans amid a welter of recriminations for their poor World Cup showing when they arrived in Rio. Aside from Dunga, the target for much of their ire was Felipe Melo, who deflected in Wesley Sneijder's opener for the Dutch and then got himself sent off. The Brazilians landed after a 10-hour flight from South Africa and fans immediately vented their anger, judging Melo one of the “fathers of defeat.” — AFP
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Supporters in Germany have been gathering in huge numbers at 'Fan Fests' to show their mass support for the team and — as in 2006 and 2008 — the players are expected to show up at the Brandenburg Gate after the finals in South Africa to thank them. "Going back to Berlin to celebrate in front of hundreds of thousands was special. In 2006 we finished third and in 2008 we were second so it is clear that something is missing and we hope to fill that gap," said Schweinsteiger. "I don't want to go back there with nothing to show — I've done that twice already," he said. The Germans were outclassed in the European Championship final two years ago but Schweinsteiger believes that while Spain remain the top European team, Germany have closed the gap. "Losing a final always causes frustration and disappointment but Spain were definitely the better team," he said. "Even though they only won 1-0 they had lots of chances and to be honest after the 70th minute we might as well have called it a day because we had no way to respond." "If you look at it on paper there is no doubt they are the better side but maybe now we have a better chance," he added. "Now we have fresh faces and different characters — an unencumbered state of mind. Spain have not changed so much. Sergio Busquets in for Marcos Senna is maybe the only real change whereas we have many, many newcomers. "Spain haven't really dazzled in the way that their fans might have hoped but they have still been winning. We need another tactical masterpiece," said Schweinsteiger. — Reuters
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He is one of the very few tennis players in the world, and the only Indian so far, to win a Grand Slam tournament at the age of 37. He is possibly the only one who has done so after battling a brain tumour, writes
MS Unnikrishnan
Leander Adrian Paes has been carrying the baton of Indian tennis for over two decades, and at the age of 37, he’s still being counted. His record 12 Grand Slam titles is a testimony to his resilience, discipline and focus. He has now to his credit six men’s doubles and as many mixed doubles Grand Slam titles from 23 final appearances, which is an incredible feat, for not many players have survived the circuit this long, least of all an Indian. For a player who made his Davis Cup debut at the age of 16 years at Chandigarh in the India vs Japan tie in 1990, Leander has come a long way. One of the greatest doubles players, he is presently ranked No. 6 in the world. Sport runs in the family as his father, Dr Vece Paes, is a former hockey Olympian who represented the country in the 1972 Munich Olympics and mother Jennifer represented the country in basketball. Though Dr Paes and Jennifer split when Leander was in his teens, that did not affect the tennis career of the young boy, who enrolled at the Britannia-Amritraj Tennis (BAT) Academy in Chennai, where Vijay’s mother Maggi Amritraj took personal care of Leander, as she would do to her own three sons. Tennis was not Leander’s first choice. He was passionate about football and excelled in it too, but an on-field knee injury forced him to shy away from body-contact team sport. Dr Paes felt tennis would suit Leander’s aptitude and temperament best, and his hunch proved right when Leander quickly adapted to the racquet sport and started winning laurels. He was truly launched into the world stage when he won the junior Wimbledon singles title - the third Indian to do so after Ramanathan Krishnan and son Ramesh Krishnan - in 1990. He then went on to win the US Open junior title as well, to become the No. 1 junior in the world. Over the years, Leander has accumulated 43 doubles titles overall, which include three titles with Mahesh Bhupathi (1999 and 2001 French Open and 1999 Wimbledon). But Leander’s crowning glory was when he lifted the singles bronze medal in the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. The Olympic bronze gave a big boost to Leander’s financial health as big-time sponsors started looking to him as a viable commodity. Asian Games golds at Busan (Korea, 2002) and Qatar (2006) cemented Leander’s image as the best in the business in Asia. A grateful nation honoured Leander with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, the highest sporting award in the county, for his success in Atlanta. Only a player of Leander’s indomitable spirit could have bounced back from a debilitating illness, which posed a severe threat to his life in 2003. A few weeks after he teamed up with Martina Navratilova to win the mixed doubles title at Wimbledon that year, the world seemed to crash around Leander as he was admitted to MD Anderson Cancer Centre at Orlando (US) for a suspected brain tumour. For one and a half years, Leander battled with the disease, but as always, he had the last laugh and became fit to compete in the 2004 Athens Olympics, where he reached the doubles semifinals with Bhupathi. Leander won two golds for India in the Doha Asiad with Mahesh Bhupathi in doubles and Sania Mirza in mixed doubles. Early this year, Leander partnered Cara Black to lift the mixed doubles crown in the Australian Open, and he has maintained that momentum by capturing their second Grand Slam title of the season. Though Leander has had a colourful off-court life, dating many a beauty, he’s now happily settled with Art of Living exponent Rhea Pillai and their daughter Ayana. A fitness freak, Leander does not smoke or drink, and he hopes to last till the 2012 London Olympics to bring that elusive Olympic gold to India. Leander’s longevity on the tennis court has been the envy of his peers, but another legend of Indian tennis, Vijay Amritraj, aptly put his success in perspective; “To be able to play as competitively as he does at this age is because of his fitness and desire to do well.”
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Paes steady, Sania drops in rankings
New Delhi, July 5 Paes, who partnered Zimbabwean Cara Black to lift his sixth mixed doubles Grand Slam yesterday in London, has 5,960 points in the doubles rankings. With the Wimbledon triumph, Paes went one better than his estranged partner Mahesh Bhupathi in the number of Grand Slams titles and he maintains that upper hand even in rankings. Bhupathi, who along with Belarussian partner Max Mirnyi made a third-round exit from the Wimbledon, is seventh on the chart with 5,110 points. In the WTA list, the dip continues for Sania, who made a first-round exit from the Wimbledon. From last week's 111, Sania has now dropped to 132nd spot with 497 points to her credit. The Hyderabadi, however, remained steady on the doubles chart at 92nd with 857 points.
— PTI
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Senior National Men’s Hockey C’ship
Bhopal, July 5 Vikash Choudhary of MPSHA scored five field goals including a hat-trick, while the remaining two goals were hit by Shailendra Bundela. Choudhary scored two goals in the first half in the 16th and 24th minutes, while Bundela pushed the ball in the net at 23rd and 29th minutes through penalty corners and took a 4-0 lead for their team. The lone goal for Goa was scored by Rahbar Khan through a penalty corner in the 34th minute. At the breather, MPSHA Bhopal led 4-1. In the second half, MPSHA Bhopal played an attacking game which helped Choudhary hit a hat-trick by scoring goals in the 44th, 53rd and 64th minutes and won the match 7-1. Earlier, in the opening fixture of the tournament, Hyderabad defeated Bihar by 3-2. Hyderabad scored two field goals in a span of four minutes through Mohammad Azharullah Khan and R Shivakumar in the 10th and 14th minutes respectively. At half time, Hyderabad led 2-0. In the second half, Bihar bounced back and hit two brilliant field goals through Mohammad Riyazuddin and Deepak Kumar in the 41st and 48th minutes and levelled the score 2-2. However, TN Sudhir of Hyderabad converted a penalty corner into a goal in the 61st minute and ensured his team's victory by 3-2. — PTI
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JCT players, coach to train with Wolves
Chandigarh, July 5 After almost two years of planning, finally the project has started to beat fruit, due to the diligence and perseverance of the two clubs. As per the agreed plan, JCT’s head coach Parminder Singh, along with five young players left for Wolverhampton on Sunday to start a rigorous training programme at the Wolves Academy. During the course of the training, the coaches of both sides will share knowledge and various technical skills. The other aspects of this programme are to gain: Training-Technical / Tactical and Sports Science Review from experts of an English side. The players, who have been selected to get this special training are playing in the I-League and other major tournaments as well, so it would be quite useful for them to execute this knowledge and skill in the forthcoming outings. The players are Pawan Kumar (goalkeeper), Amarwant Singh (defender), Amandeep Singh Bains (midfielder), Balwant Kumar (striker), Parveen Kumar (striker).
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Pune IPL team appoints Marsh as coach
Lucknow, July 5 Team owner and Sahara India Pariwar Chairman Subrata Roy said players from Uttar Pradesh would be given priority while choosing the squad for his side which would make its debut next year. Marsh played 50 Tests for Australia between 1985 and 1992 and featured in 117 ODIs from 1986 to 1992. — PTI
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Rio De Janeiro, July 5
Durban, July 5
Netherlands and Uruguay play differently but we are at this stage on merit and we'll just have to see what happens in the match." Van Marwijk and his Uruguay counterpart Oscar Tabarez are both having to fill holes in their starting lineups caused by injuries and suspensions.
Chief among them will be the suspended Suarez, who knows all about scoring against Dutch defences -- he scored 43 times in 39 games for Ajax Amsterdam last season in the Eredivisie. Full back Jorge Fucile also is suspended after picking up a second yellow card against Ghana, while central defender Diego Godin missed that game with a left thigh problem and remains in doubt. Uruguay captain Diego Lugano also is fighting to be fit after injuring a right knee ligament against Ghana. "The risk of pain is the last thing on my mind," Lugano said. "Everybody wants to play in these games but the question is whether I'm physically 100 percent to be able to play a game at this
level." — AP
CAPE TOWN: Uruguay must overcome the absence of two key players when they meet Netherlands in the World Cup semi-final at Green Point Stadium on Tuesday. Striker Luis Suarez is suspended and captain Diego
Lugano, the mainstay of one of the tournament's toughest defences, is almost certain to miss the game through injury. The Uruguayans must find a way to cope with the attacking midfield trio of Arjen
Robben, Wesley Sneijder and Dirk Kuyt if they are to record their first World Cup win over European opposition since 1970, when they beat the Soviet Union. The Dutch will have to put the shackles on striker Diego
Forlan, who has looked unstoppable in South Africa.
Van Persie is the lone Dutch striker. He has not had a great World Cup although even when he does not play well he has an important role as a distraction to defenders who also have to deal with the Kuyt-Sneijder-Robben trio just behind him. 
Mark Van
Bommel. One of the Oranje's unsung heroes in South Africa, Van Bommel and fellow midfield enforcer Nigel De Jong have frequently done the Dutch dirty work - breaking up play to allow the creative talents of Dirk
Kuyt, Wesley Sneijder and Arjen Robben to flourish. The Bayern Munich man is proficient at doing the simple things such as passing and intercepting effectively and played a crucial role in keeping Kaka quiet in the second-half against Brazil. This time around he will be charged with keeping Forlan at bay and if he manages to stifle Uruguay's
dangerman, Netherlands have a great chance of progressing.
Edinson Cavani. After struggling to a dour 0-0 draw with France in the opening game, the introduction of Cavani to the starting line-up has drastically improved Uruguay's fortunes. Despite not finding the net in South Africa, Cavani has proved the perfect foil to strike partner Luis Suarez and has allowed talismanic captain Diego Forlan to drop deep and influence proceedings, playing behind the front two. Cavani's movement off the ball, passing and work-rate have been impressive, but with Suarez suspended, the Palermo forward must now step out of his shadow and prove his goalscoring credentials.
The suspension of Uruguay left-back Jorge Fucile has given Oscar Tabarez a huge defensive dilemma: who should be charged with shackling Netherlands star turn Arjen
Robben? The Bayern Munich winger has been in sparkling form since returning from injury and the loss of
Fucile, who was expected to provide a stern test after proving one of Uruguay's most impressive performers in South Africa, is a big blow. Alvaro Pereira, who has been deployed as a left winger during the tournament, has displayed his ability at left-back for club side Porto and will have the pace, if not the defensive
nous, to track Robben. The other options are dependent on the fitness of captain Digeo Lugano and fellow
centre-backs Godin and Victorino; if the former is fit than one of the latter two may switch to the left and take up a man-marking job on Van Marwijk's most explosive weapon.
Erasmia, July 5