Warsaw, June 20
Portugal have rallied around captain Cristiano Ronaldo ahead of tomorrow's Euro 2012 quarterfinal against the Czech Republic here. It will be the third meeting between the two sides in the last five championships, with each side having won one apiece - the most important belonging to the Czechs in the 1996 quarterfinals on their way to losing to Germany in the final.

Czech midfielder Petr Jiracek attends a training session in Wroclaw, on the eve of the quarterfinal match against Portugal. — AFP

Paulo Bento's Portugal have got where they are thanks to their team ethic and after seeing Ronaldo finally click into gear in Sunday's game against the hapless Dutch to score both goals in the 2-1 win. They have been accused of creating a cult of personality around their 27-year-old captain but the team have circled the wagons in the face of what they see as unjustified criticism.

"The important thing is that Ronaldo is one of the most professional players I have ever come across," said midfielder Raul Meireles. "He gives his all at every training session. He is our leader and, on the pitch, there is no one who wants to win more than him.

"He scored twice in the last match; before he had drawn a blank but he had still helped us out in other ways." The Czech's outstanding goalkeeper, Petr Cech, acknowledges the Portuguese are favourites for this match and says the team is made up of more than just Ronaldo.

"They are among the world's top 10 teams. It's a team full of personalities and outstanding players and they play very well. Against the Netherlands on Sunday, they were excellent up front," said the Chelsea number one.

"They also have enough experienced players. The team has matured and it's really strong." Although they are not amongst the overall favourites here, Cech's club-mate Meireles believes Portugal can emulate Chelsea and shock Europe.

"Chelsea won the Champions League when nobody considered them as favourites," he said referring to their penalty shootout win over Bayern Munich in May. "When we began this tournament, nobody mentioned Portugal as one of the favourites. If we manage to do the same (as Chelsea) it will the realisation of a dream." They received a boost in their preparations for this match as Real Madrid centre-back Pepe resumed training on Tuesday after sitting it out on Monday with sore ankles.

The news is not so good for the Czechs, though, with captain Tomas Rosicky set to miss out as he struggles to recover from an inflamed Achilles tendon. "Will he be able to play from the start? I don't think so," said Czech team manager Vladimir Smicer. "He hasn't trained for eight days, only doing some work on a bike." Rosicky had been receiving treatment in Prague since Sunday but is now back with the squad in Warsaw.

But the Czechs are no strangers to difficulties, not least in this competition which they began by being mauled 4-1 by Russia. And much-maligned coach Michal Bilek believes the tough times they have endured together has made them stronger.

"In those two-and-a-half years, we have always managed to overcome the critical moments - and there have been quite a few," said the 47-year-old.

Portugal, finalists in 2004 when Ronaldo was the baby of the team, have also showed spirit, having started like the Czechs with a defeat - 1-0 to Germany.

But the cautious Bento dismissed the notion his side are favourites to reach the last four. "We don't claim to be favourites (against Czechs) and it won't be easy. We have to keep up our work and quality that we have shown. Then maybe we can even reach the semi-finals." — AFP

Team formations

What to look out for

Donetsk, June 20
England has scraped into the quarterfinals of Euro 2012 here after a goal-line refereeing blunder helped them to a 1-0 win over Ukraine which sent the co-hosts crashing out.

A 48th-minute header from returning talisman Wayne Rooney was enough to see England finish top of Group D yesterday and send them into a quarterfinal in Kiev on Sunday against Italy.

However Ukraine — missing injured captain Andrei Shevchenko — were desperately unlucky not to have earned at least a draw after Marko Devic had a clear goal wrongly disallowed on 62 minutes.

Devic had powered into the box and his looping shot had flown over keeper Joe Hart towards goal.

John Terry launched himself into an acrobatic clearance to hook the ball away but despite furious Ukrainian appeals no goal was given.

Television replays, however, showed the ball had crossed the line by several inches but had incredibly been missed by the additional assistant referee stationed behind the goal.

It was a goal-line controversy that echoed Frank Lampard's disallowed effort for England against Germany at the 2010 World Cup and is almost certain to hasten the introduction of goal-line technology.

FIFA is expected to approve the introduction of two systems which are currently being tested at a meeting after the European Championships. England will head to their quarterfinal meeting with Italy chastened by the knowledge that on another night they could have been heading home after being outplayed for much of the match.

England coach Roy Hodgson was proud of the way his players had battled to preserve their advantage and make it five games unbeaten since he took over. — AFP

Kiev, June 20
France qualified for the knockout stages of a major finals for the first time in six years here despite losing their final Euro 2012 Group D match 2-0 to already eliminated Sweden.

A brilliant bicycle kick by Sweden's inspirational captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic yesterday in the 54th minute gave them the lead with the outstanding Sebastian Larsson adding a second in the final minute of normal time.

It handed the Swedes not only their first points of the group stage but also their first win over France in almost 43 years dating back to October 1969.

The French, who also saw their 23-match unbeaten run ended, progress in second place in the group after England beat co-hosts Ukraine 1-0 in the other game to finish top. France — who last reached the knockout stages of a major finals in the 2006 World Cup - will play champions Spain in the last eight.

The Swedes should have gone ahead in the eighth minute as Ola Toivonen - who had replaced the injured Johan Elmander up front - was played onside and with only Hugo Lloris to beat. But he found the angle too tight and his shot hit the post.

The French pressed from the start of the second-half with Karim Benzema finding some space and curling the ball just past the far post.

However, instead of sparking the French into some urgency it prompted the Swedes into their best period of play. — AFP

New Delhi, June 20
The tennis imbroglio worsened today with Leander Paes threatening to withdraw from the London Olympics if he is paired with a lower-ranked player, forcing AITA to defer the team announcement till tomorrow. Paes has communicated to All Indian Tennis Association (AITA) that he is country's top-ranked player, placed number seven in the ATP rankings, so he is not ready to pair with a junior player just because Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna have refused to team up with him.

"If Mahesh or Rohan refuse to play with me for our country, then I am happy to play with the next best player that the AITA decides on. It would not be acceptable, if with my ranking as the best Indian tennis player, I give up the best option of partner for winning a medal for my country and am made to play the Olympics with a player ranked 207/306 in the world while the No.13 and No. 15 ranked players form another team together based on their refusal to play with me," he wrote in his letter to AITA.

The junior players referred to in the letter are Vishnu Vardhan (ranked 207th) and teenager Yuki Bhambri (306th). "If this is the case then for the sake of Indian Tennis and to relieve the AITA in regards to the selection of the team, I have no other option but to withdraw from the Olympics. This decision is not taken lightly and with any rancor. We cannot be condoning or rewarding the drama enacted by Mahesh and Rohan. This would be a bad precedent for current and future sports persons (particularly tennis players) in our country," he added.

With uncertainty continuing over the participation of three top players, the AITA decided to defer the team's announcement till Thursday, the last day to submit entries to the International Tennis Federation (ITF).

AITA officials are making last ditch efforts to persuade Bhupathi and Bopanna to abide by their decision. All three players are in London. Paes though reiterated that he is ready to partner Bhupathi or Bopanna.

"Coming back to the men's doubles, I am comfortable to partner Mahesh or Rohan for the forthcoming Olympics." Both Bhupathi and Bopanna have made it clear that they will not be Paes' doubles partner for the next month's Games. The two players insist that their combination is the best option for the country as they have prepared together for over six months.

Meanwhile, S M Krishna, the External Affairs Minister and Honorary Life President of AITA, has appealed to India's top tennis players to forget their personal disparities and play in the "interest of the nation". He said the players should never compromise the image of India for personal issues.

Krishna stepped in a day after Union Sports Minister Ajay Maken backed out from the ongoing tennis impasse.

"I have been ATP ranked at No. 1 in the world as a team and No.seven in the world individually, for the first sixth months of 2012. By virtue of this I have got a direct entry into the men's doubles at the Olympics with the right to choose my partner. I would also bring to your notice that Sania and I, by virtue of our combined ranking of No. 19 on the ATP Tour have got a direct entry in the Mixed Doubles at the Olympics." — PTI

New Delhi, June 20
Several senior hockey officials have written to Hockey India, protesting against the appointment of Australian David Ian John as the manager of the Indian team for the London Olympic Games. David John was hired by the Sports Authority of India (SAI), at the recommendation of chief coach Michael Nobbs as the exercise physiologist of the Indian team. Instead of allowing him to do the job for which he has been hired, John has been given the task of being the manager of the hockey team for London.

“Sixty-four years after India became independent, we have the ignominy of appointing an Australian citizen as the manager of the Indian team. Such a thing had not happened even when India was under the British rule,” a top Hockey India source told The Tribune.

The source pointed out that even when India were under the British rule, and the Indian Hockey Federation was headed by British Army officer, Maj. Ian Burn Murdoch, the captain and manager for the 1928 (Jai Pal Singh-captain), 1932 (Lal Shah Bukhari) and 1936 (Dhyan Chand) Olympic Games, were all Indians. “Even the National Anthem (God Save the King) was British, but the British did not foist a foreigner, neither as captain nor as manager, of the Indian team,” added the source.

The appointment of David John has created strong resentment among Hockey India officials “as the job entails the role of an ambassador of the country, upholding our values and culture, which a foreign will not be able to do”.

Interestingly, Hockey India, which will hold a reception to the Olympic-bound hockey squad here on June 24 morning, has convened an Executive Committee meeting at 4 pm to discuss the matter.

Mandi, June 20
Himachal Pradesh may have thrown up an odd sports star or two — athlete Suman Rawat, hockey player Deepak Thakur or shooter Vijay Kumar, for instance — but sports in the state are in dire straits.

Take football — Himachal players have been playing outside the state, in Punjab or Haryana, as “the state has nothing to offer them”. The state of Himachal teams is such that in national events, everyone wants Himachal Pradesh in their pool.

Suman Rawat, now Joint Director of Sports in the state, concedes this but adds that things have improved. “The facilities are far better than 10 years ago. The government has several schemes, the state associations are functioning properly,” she said. “And there are so many tournaments.”

So why’s the state lagging behind? “There is no particular reason. We are improving but the players these days are not so enthusiastic,” she said. “They want to have all the pleasures and be comfortable. They do play for other states but when it comes to their home state, they want to have all the facilities but no performance.... and there’s a major fall in the participation of players at the district and block level.”

“There’s a need to encourage sportspersons, and parents should motivate their kids to play, and play for Himachal,” she said.

Isn’t there a big shortage of coaches in the state? “There is still some shortage of staff, but we have 66 coaches (of the sports department),” she said. “Then there are the facilities given by the Sports Authority of India (SAI).”

The football players, though, feel it’s a case of just talk. “It’s only on paper,” say a lot of Himachal players when asked about these claims.

“We have no exposure at the junior level, there are few sports hostels, and the existing ones are on the verge of shutting down,” said Rajendra Gupta, former football player and organising secretary of the Mandi Football Association. “Unlike our neighbouring states, we don’t have any academies. Sports revolve only around local tournaments here.”

Harish Kumar, former JCT, Mahindra & Mahindra and Punjab Police player, says the state needs urgent attention of sports officials. “There is no base for players -- no academies, no facilities, no club, no tournaments,” he said. “Team games suffer the most because they need a large talent pool.”

Sunil Kumar, who represented the state 21 times in the Santosh Trophy, asks, “Where’s the effort to promote and encourage young players?”

“The state has qualified for the last leg of the Santosh Trophy only once,” he adds. “The game is diminishing, and that hurts. Apart from football, other sports are also suffering.”

Himachal’s Jatinder Kumar, coach of the YFC Rurka-Kalan academy, says things are getting worse. “The area’s climate is the best for sportspersons but the area needs attention,” he said. “It is the duty of officials, who’ve been given the job of finding and nurturing talent, to encourage sportspersons.”