First teams arrive in Poland for Euro 2012

Warsaw, Poland: The Czech Republic and Greece on Sunday became the first teams competing in Euro 2012 to arrive in Poland, a UEFA official said, with the opening matches in the tournament less than a week away.

Both teams have been drawn with tournament co-hosts Poland and Russia in Group A, with the first matches on Friday. Poland take on Euro 2004 champions Greece in the opener in the capital Warsaw, while Russia play the Czech Republic in the southwestern city of Wroclaw.

A UEFA official told AFP that the Czech Republic arrived in Wroclaw from Prague in a specially-chartered high-speed train, with the locomotive pulling the squad decked out in the red, white and blue livery of the team colours.

"I don't even remember the last time I caught a train," defender Theodor Gebre Selassie was quoted as saying on UEFA.com before boarding the service that took them over the border.

"It could be when I was small and went to visit my grandfather. It's certainly more convenient than going by bus. I hope a lot of our fans will follow the same tracks to come and support us for a few days.

The Czech team had a scare last week after reports suggested there were traces of the potentially-deadly Legionella bacteria at their training camp hotel but Polish health inspectors later declared the venue safe.

Fernando Santos' Greece, surprise winners of the tournament eight years ago in Portugal, also jetted in on Sunday and will be based near Warsaw. They beat Armenia 1-0 in a friendly in Austria last week.

Dick Advocaat's Russia, fresh from a 3-0 warm-up win over Italy in Zurich on Friday, were due to arrive in Warsaw on Sunday evening.

Their central Warsaw hotel, Le Meridien Bristol, has been at the centre of a diplomatic spat because of concerns about a scheduled rally on June 10 by Poland's Moscow-critical opposition.

Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski even stepped in last month, saying he had no problem with the Russians staying at the five-star hotel after sports minister Joanna Mucha had suggested they move.

The Russian football federation and Advocaat refused, dismissing the concerns as a media exaggeration.

Poland, who beat Andorra 4-0 in a warm-up game on Saturday, meanwhile held a public training session at Polonia Warsaw's ground on Sunday in front of several thousand good-natured fans, an AFP reporter at the scene said.
Article Source: http://sports.ndtv.com/euro-2012/news/item/191234-first-teams-arrive-in-poland-for-euro-2012

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Kevin Pietersen quits ODIs, T20 internationals

Kevin Pietersen, the England batsman, has announced his retirement from all limited-overs international with immediate effect. Pietersen, who has scored 4184 One-day International runs at an average of 41.84, also managed 1176 runs from 36 T20 Internationals at an average of nearly 38.

When making his decision public, Pietersen cited an increasingly busy international calendar as his primary reason to focus purely on Test cricket. "After a great deal of thought and deliberation, I am today announcing my retirement from International One Day Cricket," said Pietersen on Thursday. "With the intensity of the international schedule and the increasing demands on my body, approaching 32, I think it is the right time to step aside and let the next generation of players come through to gain experience for the ICC World Cup in 2015."

Pietersen made it clear that he hoped to play Test cricket for England and it was understood that his retirement would not affect his commitment to the Delhi Daredevils, who he plays for in the Indian Premier League.

It was also clarified that Pietersen would take no part in the forthcoming ICC World T20 in Sri Lanka as the England and Wales Cricket Board had decided that long-term planning in ODIs and T20Is was closely interlinked. "Pietersen, who discussed his position with the ECB during the recent Test against the West Indies at Lord's, accepts that his current contract will continue to run through to September 2012 but that the contract will be downgraded to reflect the fact that he will only be selected for Test match cricket for the remainder of his current contract," an ECB spokesperson said. "The terms of the central contract state that any player making himself unavailable for either of the one-day formats automatically rules himself out of consideration for both formats of the game as planning for both formats is closely linked."

While accepting the ECB's position, Pietersen clarified, "For the record, were the selection criteria not in place, I would have readily played for England in the upcoming ICC World Twenty20."

Hugh Morris, managing director of England Cricket, said: "The ECB is disappointed by the timing of Kevin's decision less than four months before we defend our ICC World Twenty20 title. Kevin is a world-class player and I would like to take this opportunity to thank him for his efforts and we look forward to his continued contributions to the Test match side.

"As the programming and planning for ODI and T20 format cricket are very closely linked we have a selection policy that means that any player making himself unavailable for either of the one day formats, rules himself out of consideration for both formats. The selectors will now replace Kevin in both the ODI and the T20 squads."

Pietersen, who was born in Pietermaritzburg in South Africa, made his international debut against Zimbabwe in Harare in 2004. While he has emerged into a dominant force as a Test batsmen, Pietersen's returns of 10 centuries from 137 ODIs is disappointing for a player who has the ability to take apart any bowling attack. Pietersen's highest score in ODIs, 130, came against Pakistan in Dubai earlier this year.
Article Source: http://sports.ndtv.com/cricket/news/item/191020-kevin-pietersen-retires-from-international-limited-overs-cricket?pfrom=home-cricket

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UEFA.com to deliver unparalleled EURO coverage

UEFA has confirmed the official 23-player squad lists for UEFA EURO 2012 and all 16 are now available on UEFA.com as the tournament's official website gets into gear for next month.

UEFA has today confirmed the official 23-player squad lists for UEFA EURO 2012, and the full lists are now available onUEFA.com, the official website for the final tournament in Poland and Ukraine.

UEFA.com will deliver comprehensive coverage of the tournament to fans worldwide on a variety of platforms and in 12 languages. The site will be the ultimate online resource for live match coverage, official tournament news, player information, official statistics, video highlights, injury updates, and venue and travel information.

Among the innovative features for the final tournament, which kicks off on 8 June, are an improved customisableMatchCentre – including expert commentary, live photos, tweets, videos, polls, statistics, lineups and heat maps – and an exclusive player browser, allowing users to compare and contrast the 16 squads and consult editorial and data profiles of all 368 players.

The site will also feature the Tournament Map, the definitive in-depth, interactive guide to UEFA EURO 2012, allowing fans to chart a team's route to the final, watch exclusive video content and find out about the eight host cities.

It's all about you! UEFA.com intends to give a voice to fans with more opportunities than ever to get involved on the site as well as on Facebook, Foursquare, Google+, Twitter and YouTube. Interactive, inclusive and personalised, the website will adapt itself to the user's wishes by having a unique timeline highlighting the day's main events, by taking the tournament to fans on social media and by inviting everyone to contribute to UEFA's live coverage.

Users can connect, show their support, share event photos, tag themselves in match Fancams, play for their country and voice their opinion. Fans will also help set the site agenda by asking players and key figures their questions in the continuing#Ask feature that has already featured Xavi Hernández, Steve McManaman and Pierluigi Collina this year.

Video coverage during the event will include live match streaming coverage provided by the UEFA EURO 2012 Broadcast Partners and on-demand coverage of all 31 matches, live streaming of press conferences, free match highlights, and a daily video podcast, while news and interview coverage will also be offered on the official UEFA.com YouTube channel.

UEFA.com will likewise provide a comprehensive mobileservice to allow fans to get all the latest information on the go, including the official UEFA EURO 2012 mobile app from UEFA and Orange, which is available free on eight mobile platforms including iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry, Bada, and Java, and a mobile-friendly site at m.uefa.com.

With reporters embedded at each of the team basecamps – working alongside the UEFA Host Broadcasting team – and an editorial team based in Warsaw, UEFA.com will be the place to be for live and news coverage, including daily player updates, team blogs, rolling daily live Continental match previews and live and comprehensive updates from the training camps.

Fans will also get the chance to play and win with McDonald's Fantasy Football and the Hyundai Predictor, vote for the Carlsberg Goal of the Day and Man of the Match, follow the race for the adidas Golden Boot, peruse a rich array of Castrol statistics and view, vote and share in the Canon Photos section.

UEFA.com and UEFA EURO 2012:

• Content is delivered for all UEFA digital/mobile platforms and publications in 12 languages. Over 160 journalists, correspondents, editors, photographers, coordinators, web producers, translators and interpreters are working across the eight host cities.

• The International Broadcast Centre (IBC) in Warsaw will be the main editorial, coordination and production hub, the central point of control for editorial content from all venues. Coordination will be carried out with UEFA Host Broadcasting and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for hosting and live applications, including live streaming.

• The lead editorial team in Kyiv is responsible for press-kit production and final coverage.

• Polish and Ukrainian language sites were added in 2010 and are produced from Warsaw and Kyiv.

• The French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish sites are managed from the IBC and produced and monitored at the respective agencies based in Lyon, Munich, Milan, Lisbon, Riga and Madrid. The Chinese, Japanese and Korean sites will be taking the finals to Asian markets.

• The live and replay video services are operated from production facilities in London and Turin.

• 24 reporters and 16 camera crews are following the 16 finalists to provide fans with the latest on-the-ground insights and data via text, video, audio and social media.

©UEFA.com 1998-2012. All rights reserved.

Article Source: http://www.uefa.com/uefaeuro/news/newsid=1802358.html

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KKR beat defending champions CSK to win maiden IPL title

We have a new IPL titlist. Inspired by Manvinder Bisla and Jacques Kallis' divergent half-centuries in a cracker of a final at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Kolkata Knight Riders roared to their maiden IPL trophy with a memorably tense chase of 190 against the defending champions Chennai Super Kings.

There were three charismatic innings of contrasting styles on show at Chennai's home ground and, ultimately, it was Bisla's fluency and Kallis' unflappability that helped KKR overcome the challenge set by Suresh Raina's display of bottom-handed slog-sweeping. Following the loss of Gautam Gambhir in the opening over, Bisla kick-started Kolkata's run-chase by hitting Albie Morkel for four boundaries and kept the pace going through to his highest IPL score of 87.

Kallis was restrained during his half-century, brought up off 39 balls, and his 136-run stand with Bisla helped end Chennai's superb run in the 2012 playoffs in dramatic fashion and denied them a hat-trick of trophies. Chennai didn't give up and took the match into the final over, but Manoj Tiwary finished the deal with two leg-side hits with two balls remaining.

Kolkata's chase of 191 started poorly, with Gambhir bowled in the opening over by Ben Hilfenhaus. Bisla took four boundaries off the fourth over bowled by Morkel, each slapped fiercely through the offside, and Kolkata had 36 on the board. R Ashwin was then driven for consecutive sixes, down the ground and over mid-on, and the chase was on. With the 50 up in the sixth over, Bisla accelerated further in the next by driving Dwayne Bravo for six over mid-off. MS Dhoni tried the left-arm spin of Shadab Jakati after the time-out, but Kallis greeted him with an edged four. Bisla reached his half-century in 27 balls in the same over, and in Bravo's second he collected his fourth six.

By the halfway mark, KKR were 100 for 1, meaning they needed 91 from 60 balls, and Bisla's intensity and strike-rate did not relent. In Jakati's second over, he hit two more fours, then collected a sixth six by slamming Ashwin over extra cover.

Kallis' contribution was vital too, for his 69 off 49 balls eased the pressure on Bisla. Kallis relied mainly on dabs into the offside, but opened up once Bisla slapped a simple catch to point. Jakati was pummeled over the in-field for consecutive boundaries as Kallis reached fifty off 39 balls and then perfectly bisected two men in the deep for a boundary after Laxmi Ratan Shukla ate up six balls for three runs. Kallis was given a moment of luck, too, when Michael Hussey held a leaping catch on the boundary but fell across to concede six.

The tension was ratcheted as Yusuf Pathan got a leading edge off Ashwin, at which point KKR needed 27 off 17. Kallis then cramped up to add to the excruciating mood, which also meant that singles and doubles were tough to handle. With 20 to defend off 12 balls, Hilfenhaus sent down two full tosses in a row ��" the first Kallis slapped straight to sweeper cover to be out for 69, but the next was deemed to be above Shakib Al Hasan's waist. The result? Three runs and an extra ball, which Shakib excellently scooped to fine leg for four. The error proved costly for CSK.

Needing nine from six balls, Shakib and Tiwary exchanged singles before Tiwary swung Bravo over short fine leg for four. Tiwary finished it with another pull through the same region, and then pumped his firsts in celebration as the adrenaline flowed and his team-mates raced from the dug-out in joy.

Such a chase had been difficult to envision after Chennai surged to 190. Having been given first use of the batting deck, Hussey and Murali Vijay launched an 87-run stand in 10.2 overs. That start provided the impetus for Raina to come out blazing, and he collected his first fifty of the season to push the defending champions to a strong total.

After two tidy overs that cost 12, Chennai took 48 off the next four. Brett Lee was taken for two boundaries in the third over, Shakib was hit for six first ball, and Lee's third over went for 19 as each opener struck a fluent six. There were plenty of shots that flew wide of fielders, but such was Chennai's attitude that they weren't going to hold back. Following Vijay's dismissal, Hussey was a bystander as Raina tore into the bowling. The left-hander employed the slog-sweep against spin and pace, staying in the crease and muscling five sixes. After heaving Kallis for a six off his fourth ball, Raina tucked into Yusuf for two fours and another six. Lee and Sunil Narine were thumped for big sixes, the massive 105-metre shot off Narine giving Raina his half-century off just 27 balls.

Hussey was eventually bowled for 54 attempting a heave against Kallis in the 17th over; his contribution to a 73-run stand had been just 13. Narine was swung for another six by Raina, after which Shakib bowled an eight-run final over that ended with Raina slogging to Lee in the deep for a 38-ball 73. Unfortunately for Chennai, Bisla and Kallis played better innings.

Article Source: http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/sports/kkr-beat-defending-champions-csk-to-win-maiden-ipl-title_709711.html

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Fernando Torres: Champions League winner with nowhere to go

Fernando Torres wants to keep Several weeks but Roman Abramovich says the 50 thousand lb man is going nowhere. So what does the long run carry for the one-time Speaking language hitman?

Poor Fernando Torres. Two times after successful the Winners Group, including team football's top honor to his Western Tournament and Community Cup awards, he's unveiled how disappointed he is at Several weeks. In the beginning gambling, he's 1.2 to leave Stamford Link september but the Doldrums structure have said that Torres is going nowhere.

Didier Drogba, the man who began one more before Spaniard, obtained his crew's equaliser and successful charge in the shootout, is almost certain to go to Shanghai Shenhua. Torres says that being known as instead against Bayern Munich was, "Perhaps the greatest frustration in my lifestyle." A jarring declaration from a man who comes from a nation with a 50 % younger generation lack of employment amount.

Perhaps that's unjust. In the lifestyle of a footballer, being snubbed for a 34-year-old in the Winners Group last has got to harm. Spain's gamers can carry their infamous inhabitants some much required joy september by successful a successive Western name and, at 3.85, Betfair gamblers are support them to do so. You can get 38.0 on Spain/Torres in the winner/top goalscorer industry but that's probably one to prevent because Torres has an uncommon connection with wonder.

In 2008, following a amazing period with Luton, he obtained the victorious one in one more but that was one of only two competition objectives and he was overshadowed in advance side by Mark Property. Two decades later, when The nation won the Community Cup, Torres never ranking and missing his position in the beginning line-up for both the semi-final and last. He cut a desolate determine during Spain's parties as he discovered himself in an uncommon position - it was local plumber in his nation's baseball record and yet he had sustained one of the most befuddling several weeks of his profession.

He has never retrieved and Luton, for all their following problems, were right to take 50 thousand for him in Jan 2011. He has decreased off as Andriy Shevchenko did before him at Several weeks and Juan Sebastian Veron at Stansted U. s.. It's agonizing for all worried and you'd need a center of rock to wish a decrease as extraordinary as Torres' on any sportsman.

If he does keep Several weeks, where will Torres go? He may quit on Britain and it's unlikely that any of the few organizations who can manage his income would bet on him. Stansted Town's rip-roaring assault doesn't need reducing down by a gamer who's brief of assurance, Several weeks wouldn't provide to Tottenham and Arsene Wenger is dedicated to another summer period of austerity. Veron and Shevchenko gradually came back to the organizations where they began their professions - Estudiantes and Generator Kyiv respectively - where they still perform nowadays.

Is Torres set for obscurity and ignominy? Probably not, but he might advantage from a stint in the comfortable location, at a team where he is still recognized. Atletico The city, though, have just won the Europa Group thanks to Radamel Falcao's reviewing achievements. Would you alternative a man who created 24 objectives in 34 looks last period for one who handled 11 in 46? If Several weeks provide Atletico a wad of money to products under the bedding as well as Torres, you never know.

But there is one Leading Group administrator who might harbor a smooth identify for Torres. Sir Alex Ferguson was an beginning admirer and Stansted U. s. were the British team most likely to area Torres before Rafael Benitez convinced his compatriot to be a part of him at Anfield. Ferguson, who is set to get rid of both Dimitar Berbatov and Eileen Owen september, will be viewing Torres' shows at Dollar 2012 with attention.

Best Odds on Sportsbook: www.m88.com

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Kolkata go through to IPL 5 last as Delhi get the collection wrong

No question affected by their achievements against Punjab in Dharamshala, Delhi decided for a four-pronged speed assault. The shift backfired horribly on the Sahara arena monitor, where a dash of lawn hidden the slowly personality of the message.

The Kolkata batsmen, with leader Gautam Gambhir major from the top side as frequent, utilized the communicate speed of the Delhi bowlers to the hilt, publishing a complicated 162 for four.

Then, assisted by their amazing range of more slowly bowlers, Kolkata limited Delhi to 144 for eight.

For Delhi, the group of Morne Morkel, Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron, all go-karting in unwanted of 140 kmph, admitted 122 operates between them - three-fourth of the Kolkata complete - in come returning for just one wicket.

Aaron's last over of the innings price 21 operates. The method speed of Irfan Pathan (1-20) and the left-arm whirl of Pawan Negi (1-18) were more efficient.

Interestingly, in the group go with against Pune at the same location, Delhi had selected two rewriters, enjoying left-arm rewriter Shahbaz Nadeem instead of Aaron.

On Thursday, Kolkata had three rewriters in their collection with Shakib Al Hasan giving the new tennis ball with Laxmipathy Balaji. Shakib (1-36), Sunil Narine (2-24) and Iqbal Abdullah (1-25) arranged at frequent durations to pierce Delhi's desires.

It also assisted that they won the throw. When the money dropped in his give preference to, Gambhir had no uncertainty in hitting frist. The skipper created a quickfire 32 off just 16 golf paintballs to help Kolkata get off the prevents easily. Yusuf Pathan offered the completing variations with an unbeaten 40 from 21 golf paintballs.

Brendon McCullum (31), Jacques Kallis (30) and Laxmi Ratan Shukla (24 n.o.) too performed their tasks to efficiency. Delhi ran to 24 operates in two overs before being set returning by the dismissals of Virender Sehwag (10) and Mark Warner (7).

Kolkata had a frighten when Balaji limped off after go-karting just two overs. But his solutions were not necessary.

Predict today's win between CSK or MI at www.m88india.com

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Clinical Knights glide to easy win over Punjab

Gautam Gambhir scored an unbeaten 66 while Jacques Kallis remained not out on 30 as clinical Kolkata Knight Riders thrashed Kings XI Punjab by eight wickets in an IPL 5 match at the PCA Stadium in Mohali on Wednesday. A disciplined bowling and fielding performance helped Kolkata restrict Punjab to just 124 for 7 and then skipper Gambhir led from the front to make sure Kolkata reached the target with 3.3 overs to spare.

Gambhir's match-winning innings included seven fours and one six. Brendon McCullum looked dangerous early on but failed to capitalise on the good start as he fell cheaply to Chawla scoring 15. Chawla also picked up his second wicket four overs later when Manvinder Bisla (11) dragged a delivery on to his stumps.
Soon, Kallis joined the captain in the middle to finish off things and did it in style with a huge six. He stayed unbeaten by scoring 30 off 23 balls. The duo shared an unbeaten 53-run stand as KKR cruised to an easy win.

Earlier, Punjab won the toss and elected to bat, but the home team lost Paul Valthaty in the third over, as Brett Lee made early inroads for Kolkata. Shaun Marsh (33) then joined Adam Gilchrist in the middle, but the latter was forced to leave the field due to a hamstring pull when he was on 28.
After six overs, Punjab were well placed at 45 for 1 with Marsh and Mandeep Singh (6) in the middle. After Gilchrist's exit Punjab struggled to score freely and Mandeep was the second man to fall as he gave away his wicket to Laxmipathy Balaji who had him caught at the third man. Soon he was joined by Marsh in the middle when Lee struck to get him caught behind. Though, Marsh's dismissal in the 14th over, however, turned out to be a little controversial.

Punjab then lost David Hussey (10) immediately in the next over for a poor judgement of a run and to leave the team reeling at 87 for 4 in the 15th over. Punjab failed to get a substantial partnership after that as Dimitri Mascarenhas (9) and Paras Dogra (6) departed in quick succession. Gilchirst returned in the 19th over to try and add some late runs, but by then the Kolkata bowlers had already done the damage. The Punjab skipper clubbed a six in the final over to take his team to 124 and remained unbeaten on 40.

For Kolkata, wily West Indian offspinner Sunil Narine (2 for 24) and Brett Lee (2 for 26) starred with the ball. Laxmipathy Balaji and Rajat Bhatia also picked up a wicket each for the visitors.
Source: http://cricketnext.in.com/live/news/clinical-kkr-cruise-to-easy-win-over-punjab/65204-13.html

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