Mayweather-Pacquiao bout headed for Vegas

LAS VEGAS: Promoters of the Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather jnr bout cancelled a trip to Dallas on Wednesday, an apparent sign that the new Cowboys Stadium won’t host the mega-bout next year.

The trip was called off at the last minute because Mayweather’s promoter apparently decided he didn’t want the fight at the new billion-dollar stadium that is home to the Dallas Cowboys NFL team.

The move left the MGM Grand arena in Las Vegas as the favourite to host the fight, expected to take place on March 13.

Co-promoter Bob Arum said he was surprised by the decision from Mayweather’s promoter, Golden Boy chief executive Richard Schaefer, to call off the trip to Texas.

Both fighters have reportedly agreed to terms for the bout, but neither has signed contracts.

Jones said last week he hoped to bid for the fight for his stadium in suburban Dallas, while representatives of the Superdome in New Orleans were also interested.

An official of Staples Center, home of the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers, told the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday that the arena had made a 20 million-dollar offer to host the fight.

However, the Los Angeles venue would likely need to offer more than a Las Vegas venue because California imposes state taxes that the fighters would have to pay, and Nevada doesn’t.

Mayweather, 40-0 with 25 knockouts, was regarded as the world’s top pound-for-pound fighter before a 19-month layoff that ended last September.

Pacquiao, 50-3 with 38 knockouts, staked his claim on the pound-for-pound crown in Mayweather’s absence by knocking out England’s Ricky Hatton in the second round last May and stopping Miguel Cotto in the 12th round last month.

The Pacquiao-Mayweather showdown could bring record profits to break the mark set by Mayweather’s split-decision victory over Oscar de la Hoya in 2007.

The fight is expected to be officially launched with a press conference in January in New York.

Pacquiao is running for congress in his homeland and elections are in May, which scuttled plans for a May date for the fight.

The Filipino star is expected to begin training in his homeland and complete his workouts at trainer Freddie Roach’s Hollywood gym.

Only professionals can raise squash standard: Jansher

ISLAMABAD: Former player Jansher Khan sees a bleak future for squash in the country unless the Pakistan Squash Federation utilises services of former greats.

‘It’s quite unfortunate that the country, which ruled the game for decades in the past, has no player even in the top 20 now,’ Jansher said on Saturday.

‘But it does not mean that there is scarcity of talent. I am confident that the guys we have at present can be as great as we were in the past. But what they lack is proper coaching, guidance and provision of facilities,’ he added.

Referring to Egypt, he said that they had four to five players in top seedings and that was mainly because they were taking advantage from the services of their former players.

‘We are fortunate enough to have the likes of Jahangir Khan, Qamar Zaman, Mohibullah and Gogi Alauddin, who are internationally regarded as squash legends. They have a very rich history, but unfortunately their services are not being utilised,’ he said.

To a question Jansher said he was also ready to disseminate his skills to youngsters.

‘I have been made several offers from other countries to train their boys, but so far I have rejected all these. I want to serve my own country and wish to see it at the same height where it was in the past,’ he added.

Jansher, who won the World Open for a record eight times and the British Open for six times, said he would be a proud man if someone in the country excelled in the game due to his guidance.

‘Squash gave me respect and it hurts when I see Pakistan squash on the decline,’ he said.
He advised the squash federation to seek guidance from any player of its choice if it did not want his (Jansher’s) services.

He noted Pakistan was the only country which produced seven world champions and there could be many more if the affairs of the game were handed over to professionals.

Jansher said his nine-year-old son, Ali Sher Khan, had great talent and interest for the game and would be a true professional in the future.—APP

New Zealand edge Pakistan to take BDO hockey title

SALTA, Argentina: The final of the BDO Champions Challenge in Salta, Argentina, as predicted, turned out to be a high-octane encounter. The match pitted the individual flare of Pakistan against the tight, tactical game of the New Zealand which eventually won the Kiwis the trophy 4-2.

Anyone following the India-Pakistan semi-final on Saturday would have noticed how both teams attacked throughout the game leaving their defence split and wide-open. The Black Sticks definitely caught on to it as they scored most of their goals on the counter attack, in some instances having to contend with on two Pakistan players in their D.

Pakistan got on the scoring sheet first with a penalty corner earned in the seventh minute. Sohail Abbas scored it in his trademark style although New Zealand goalie Kyle Pontifex managed to get a hand on it. New Zealand's reply was swift and smooth and also came by means of a penalty corner. Ryan Archibald scored it with a skilful deflection. Abbas and the Pakistani team would benefit from practicing similar drills in their training, as they missed the next five penalty corners that they earned in the game.

New Zealand took the lead in the 20th minute with a full-length dive by captain Phillip Burrows to guide the ball in just as it seemed to have passed him. The Pakistan launched spirited attacks then onwards but somehow failed to penetrate the compact defensive line put up by the Black Sticks.

But just as it seemed the Kiwis would go in for the break with the lead, Pakistan's 29-year-old maestro, Rehan But, pulled off a stunner. It left the opposition and the South American crowd awestruck for it definitely had shades of Samba about it. Running with the ball into the D, up against two fullbacks and the goalkeeper, he turned at the last moment shielding the ball while gently dribbling it. With his back to the goal post and standing perhaps only 7-8 feet away he gently flicked the ball between his legs, ala Roger Federer on the return, and managed to penetrate the slight gap left between the sturdy legs of the goalkeeper.

That little bit of magic gave Pakistan the much needed confidence going into half time and their fans something to cheer about.

Unfortunately for the supporters of the Green Shirts they did not have much to cheer about when they came out in the second half as it was the Kiwis all the way.

They displayed how maintaining a strong defensive line and quick passing and control of the ball can eventually lead to breaks. The game also highlighted the importance of finishing when chances are hard to come by. Pakistan missed out on as many as three penalty corners in the second half but when New Zealand got an opportunity they made sure they made it count.

It came first through Steven Edwards on the break in the 65th minute and then Burrows in the 66th. It sealed the match for them as the Pakistanis looked deflated and without any answers.

Team work and perseverance paid off for the Kiwis who in the process also qualified for the 2010 Champions Trophy.

New Zealand - Pakistan 4:2

PAK 7mn Sohail ABBAS (PC) 0:1

NZL 15mn Ryan ARCHIBALD (PC) 1:1

NZL 20mn Phillip BURROWS (FG) 1:2

PAK 35mn Rehan BUTT (FG) 2:2

NZL 65mn Steven EDWARDS (FG) 3:2

NZL 66mn Phillip BURROWS (FG) 4:2

Final Standings: 1) New Zealand (qualify for the 2010 Champions Trophy) 2) Pakistan 3) India 4) Argentina 5) South Africa 6) China 7) Belgium 8) Canada

Individual Awards:

Player of the Tournament: Sardar SINGH (India)

Goal-keeper of the Tournament: Kyle PONTIFEX (New Zealand)

Top goal scorer: Pedro IBARRA (Argentina), 8 goals

Fair Play: Argentina

Pakistan down India in BDO Challenge hockey semi

SALTA, Argentina: The second semi-final of the BDO Champions Challenge between India and Pakistan being played in Salta, Argentina, turned out to be a classic encounter, as is always the case when the two sides lock horns. In sharp contrast to the more sedate first semi-final between hosts Argentina and New Zealand, which ended in a 3-2 win for the Kiwis, the second game produced fast, end-to-end hockey and kept the crowd in it till the final buzzer.

Pakistan started the game off in typical crash-and-bang style and opened the scoring within two minutes of play through the experienced forward Rehan Butt. Butt seemed to have imparted some back spin on the ball with a reverse shot that trickled between the legs of the Indian goalie Adrian D'Souza.

Less than two minutes later, Prabhjot Singh and Muhammad Irfan were sent off with yellow cards. With another Pakistani player seating off a green card, India forced a penalty-corner and Dhananjay Mahadik made full use of it to reset the scores level in the 8^th minute.

From that point on India seemed to control the game, slowing it down and keeping possession. The men in blue easily looked the better of the two sides during that little period and send a barrage of shots down Pakistani goalkeeper Salman Akbar's throat. But Akbar, easily the best stopper in the tournament, always managed to keep the shots out.

The game between the two subcontinent sides was different for another reason. Just as Brazil and France seem to have that individual flare in world football, so do Pakistan and India in hockey. It is what makes South Asian hockey special but at the same time leaves them in a little bit of a muddle when facing European teams with tight defensive lines.

Rehan Butt at the top of the circle displayed exactly that, with a phenomenal shot from the top of the circle in the 29th minute. Butt had such a tight angle to work with to get the ball into the top right that it even left Adrian D'Souza amazed. He shrugged his shoulders as if to say 'that was impossible.'

In the 32nd minute Pakistan, now looking to press that advantage, forced a penalty corner. Sohail Abbas made it look extremely easy with a drag-flick that fizzed by the Indians and thudded in the post and gave the Green Shirts a 3-1 lead and some positive momentum going into the break.

India seemed a bit lethargic coming out for the second period but they soon found their footing and some excellent work by Rajpal Singh on the back line forced a penalty-corner. Unfortunately for India they could not convert it.

But the missed chance seemingly buoyed them and they went on the offensive. They pushed deeper and deeper in the Pakistan circle with quick passing and physical agility but somehow could not find the finishing touch

The attack, however, left their their defense completely vulnerable and Haseem Khan made the Indians pay with an opportunistic goal in the 58th minute, pushing the Pakistani lead to 3 goals.

The end of the game saw a succession of goals at both ends (4 goals in 8 minutes), first Dhananjay Mahadik on penalty-corner, then the 2008 Asian Player of the Year Rehan Butt completing his hat-trick of field goals, then another penalty-corner for India this time by Diwakar Ram and finally Sohail Abbas converting a penalty-stroke after his last penalty-corner was stopped illegally.

Pakistan's 6-3 win will give them immense confidence going in to Sunday's final against New Zealand, who judging by the semi-final against Argentina, seem to be in peak physical condition.

Second Semi-final

India - Pakistan 3:6
PAK 2mn Rehan BUTT (FG) 0:1
IND 8mn Dhananjay MAHADIK (PC) 1:1
PAK 29mn Rehan BUTT (FG) 1:2
PAK 32mn Sohail ABBAS (PC) 1:3
PAK 58mn Haseem KHAN (FG) 1:4
IND 62mn Dhananjay MAHADIK (PC) 2:4
PAK 64mn Rehan BUTT (FG) 2:5
IND 67mn Diwakar RAM (PC) 3:5
PAK 70mn Sohail ABBAS (PS) 3:6

LAHORE: Due to the 2010 World Cup preparation, the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) has postponed the 57th National Hockey Championship, which was scheduled to be held from Dec 18, 2009 to Jan 2, 2010 here at the National Hockey Stadium.

The World Cup will be held in New Delhi, India from Feb 28 to March 13.

A PHF spokesman said the postponement of the national championship was necessitated in view of the long duration of training camps of the national squad for the World Cup.

The championship now will be held after the World Cup.

Wapda crush Quetta Whites in Women’s Hockey Cup

LAHORE: Defending champions Wapda, Karachi, Railways and Faisalabad won their respective matches on the first day of the final round of 25th National Women’s Hockey Championship at the National Hockey Stadium on Friday.

Wapda crushed Quetta-Whites 17-0 after establishing a 13-0 lead in the first half. Neelam Hussain and Azra Nasir were the key scorers with five goals each.

Nazia Rehmat and Amna Mir scored two goals each, while Rabia Qadir, Beenish Hayat and Uzma Lal earned one goal apiece.

Earlier, a solitary goal from Madiha in the 41st minute helped Karachi beat Gujranwala 1-0. Madiha converted a penalty-corner.

Railways slammed Quetta-Colours 12-0. The score at half time was 8-0 in favour of the winners. Ayesha Bashir and Hina Kanwal fired four goals each while Shahida Raza added two goals and Muqadas and Sanam Yousaf chipped in with one goal each.

Faisalabad carved out a 2-1 win against Sukkur. For the winners, who led the first 1-0, Iram Shahzadi (39th minute) and Maria (59th minute) were the scorers. Carol scored the only goal for Sukkur in the 31st minute.

Tiger Woods takes 'indefinite break' from golf

LOS ANGELES: Golf superstar Tiger Woods announced Friday he was taking an ‘indefinite break’ from the sport as he admitted for the first time being unfaithful to his wife and asked for forgiveness, AFP reported.

‘I am deeply aware of the disappointment and hurt that my infidelity has caused to so many people, most of all my wife and children.

‘I want to say again to everyone that I am profoundly sorry and that I ask forgiveness,’ he said in a statement posted on his website.

‘After much soul searching, I have decided to take an indefinite break from professional golf. I need to focus my attention on being a better husband, father and person,’ he added, asking for privacy ‘during this difficult period.’

Ten women have been romantically linked to the billionaire golfer, whose private life has come under the glare of public scrutiny since he crashed his car in late November after an apparent domestic dispute.

Woods was taken to hospital on November 27 after crashing into a fire hydrant and a tree, two days after a tabloid reported he was having an affair with New York club hostess Rachel Uchitel.

Reports suggested he had been drinking before that accident and allegedly also taking prescription medications.

Woods, who turns 34 on December 30, was first linked to Uchitel, who has denied the affair despite a TMZ.com report that a friend of his flew her to Australia when Woods was there for a tournament.

Cocktail waitress Jamiee Grubbs, 24, played a Woods’ voicemail to support her claim they had a 31-month relationship.

Also on a list compiled by the FOX news are porn star Holly Sampson, 36; Kalika Moquin, 27, a Las Vegas club manager; model Jamie Jungers, 26; Mindy Lawton, a 33-year-old waitress from Orlando; and three unidentified women, two from British reports and another waitress from Orlando.

Woods is arguably the biggest sporting personality in the world — with a bank balance to match.

The world number one earned an estimated 118 million dollars last year in prize money and endorsements.

According to Forbes business magazine, Woods is the first athlete to have broken through the billion dollars earnings mark.

Fourteen majors championships have made Woods a sporting icon and his earning power and accompanying fame have snowballed since.

Aged just 25, he became the first man to win the US Open, the British Open, the USPGA and the Masters on a roll to make him the first simultaneous holder of all four major championship titles at the same time.

The media promptly dubbed the achievement the ‘Tiger Slam,’ as opposed to a Grand Slam given that the wins straddled 2000 and part of 2001.

In 2002, he emulated Nick Faldo and Jack Nicklaus in winning back-to-back Masters Tournaments.

Born in Cypress, California on December 30, 1975, Tiger Woods is the son of Earl Woods, a lieutenant-colonel in the US Army, and Thai-born Kultida.

His parents christened him Eldrick, but his father nicknamed him Tiger in honor of a Vietnamese soldier who had been a good friend.

New F1 points scoring system approved

LONDON: The World Motor Sport Council has approved a new points system for the expanded 13-team Formula One championship from next season.

Race winners will earn 25 points instead of 10 and the top 10 will all be receiving points instead of eight.

The change, which was proposed by the F1 Commission and ratified by FIA on Friday, is to accommodate the three extra teams on the grid.

Second-place drivers will earn 20 points, and then it will go 15, 10, 8, 6, 5, 3, 2 and 1. This year, it went 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1.

On the other hand, Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina circuit will host the final grand prix of the 2010 Formula One season after the International Automobile Federation (FIA) announced a change to their race schedule.

A provisional calendar had listed Abu Dhabi as the penultimate race before Brazil, but the sport’s governing body decided to give the United Arab Emirates capital the Nov 14 season finale, after the Brazilian Grand Prix on Nov 7.

The season begins with the Bahrain Grand Prix on March 14.

Formula One will have four new teams next year after the withdrawal of Toyota and BMW, whose team will continue as Sauber.—Reuters

Qamar equaliser helps Wapda hold HBL

KARACHI: Qamar Zaman’s equaliser helped Wapda hold Habib Bank (HBL) 1-1 in the Pakistan Premier Football League at People’s Sports Complex on Friday.

Although the bankers got off to a fine start with an Amjad Yousuf strike in the 15th minute, Wapda equalised through Qamar seven minutes later.

Pakistan Army meet Karachi Port Trust, while PIA face Khan Research Laboratories on Saturday.

Federal Sports Minister Jillani removed

KARACHI: Hours after his tirade against the Indian cricket administrators, Federal Sports Minister Pir Aftab Shah Jillani was removed from his post on Thursday by the central government.

A hurriedly made announcement said that Ejaz Hussain Jakhrani would assume charge as the new Sports Minister, having previously held the position of Health Minister.

‘Ejaz Hussain Jakhrani will replace Aftab Shah Jillani as sports minister. Jillani has been appointed as Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination,’ a government official said.

While no reason was given for the change in guard but in the last few days, Jillani had been critical of the Indian cricket board and the Indian Premier League, terming their attitude towards Pakistani players and Pakistan cricket as insulting.

He told the media on Thursday that the Pakistan board needed to review its policy of allowing players to go to India for the IPL and said he had concerns about the players’ safety in India.

Jillani’s comments came on the day the Indian government also gave clearance for the issuance of visas to four Pakistani cricketers for the IPL.—Agencies

LAHORE: Pakistan thrashed last year’s semi-finalist Bhutan 7-0 in the Group ‘B’ clash of the 8th SAFF Championship at Dhakas Bangabandhu National Stadium on Tuesday.

Pakistan, who also beat Bhutan 2-1 in their first meeting at Dasharath Stadium, Kathmandu, during the South Asian Games in 1999, recorded the second biggest win in the entire history of the SAFF Championship after Maldives 9-1 win against Afghanistan in Karachi on Dec 7 in 2005.

According to the information received here, Mohammad Essa-led Pakistan opened the mission in offensive style by getting a corner in the second minute but Essa’s powerful shot was parried away by keeper Tenzi. Essa came close again in the fifth minute but his free-kick failed to yield a goal.

Requiring a 5-0 win against Bhutan in order to pressurize Bangladesh, Pakistan opened the scoring in the 21st minute when Essa utilised the gap created after fine work from Arif Mahmood and Amjad Iqbal. Two minutes later, another British-based player Reis Ashraf came into action to score his first-ever international goal in order to make the score 2-0.

Born at Newport Pagnell, England, the 20-year-old Reis from Leamington FC, punished a defensive blunder by Bhutan’s skipper Pema and the Multan-born Arif Mahmood dashed through the middle to fire the ball into the back of the net.

Pakistan’s frontrunners and midfielders completely dominated their opponents and the score line was 4-0 in the 36th minute. A collision between Bhutans keeper and Essa allowed Arif to score his second goal in the 36th minute.

Another British recruit Shabir Khan, a defender for Worcester City, made it 5-0 with a fierce close-range drive on the stroke of interval.

The second session began with Bhutan replacing their keeper Tenzin with Tshering Dhendup. But Dhendup, too, was a beaten man in the 53rd minute when he violated rules by collecting a back pass with his hands and Essa made no mistake in driving the ball in. Despite getting six goals, Pakistan went looking for more.

Arif completed the rout when his sparkling 66th minute goal brought the score to 7-0. Arif thus completed a well-deserved hat-trick, the seventh in the history of the event.Wednesday’s fixtures: Afghanistan v Nepal at 2.00pm; Maldives v India at 4.45pm.

PARIS: Holders Barcelona and Inter Milan secured their places in the Champions League knock out stages at the last throw of the dice on Wednesday.

Joining this pair on the final batch of group games were Stuttgart and Olympiakos to complete the 16-team cast-list for the second round starting in February.

Barca had the luxury of travelling to Dynamo Kiev knowing that even a defeat would not necessarily spell a premature end to their pursuit of a fourth European crown.

In the end they won 2-1 with goals coming from Xavi and European Footballer of the year Lionel Messi to top Group F.

‘It was a match of unique importance for us and I’m happy that all my players showed true understanding of that fact,’ Barcelona manager Josep Guardiola said.

‘We did our best to take our group’s top spot and I’m happy we finished in pole position. It was really hard but our next matches will definitely be even tougher. But we are all ready for it.’

Inter faced a must-win game at home to Russia’s Rubin Kazan, and duly completed the mission with former Barcelona star Samuel Eto’o producing the opener in their 2-0 win.

That sealed Inter the runners-up spot and potentially shored up Jose Mourinho’s position as manager with rumours before kick-off that he could be out at the end of the season if Inter didn’t go througt.

Mourinho downplayed the pre-match speculation about his job saying: ‘No-one at Inter has said anything to me, not before the game and not after it.’

Elsewhere Arsenal, already confirmed as Group H winners which theoretically means a more favourable second round draw, lost 1-0 at Olympiakos with the Greeks grabbing the runners-up spot.

‘We had a positive attitude — they tried to catch us on the break but it was down to a lack of experience not quality,’ the Gunners’ manager Arsene Wenger reflected.

‘I am happy with the performance,’ he insisted.

All that was left to decide in Group E was which of Fiorentina and Lyon would emerge as table toppers.

The French ended their first round campaign on a high, routing Debrecen 4-0 but lost out on the number one place after Fiorentina grabbed a late goal to beat Liverpool 2-1 at Anfield.

Yossi Benayoun’s first half header had given the hosts a 43rd-minute lead against the run of play before Martin Jorgensen levelled for the Italians after half time.

Alberto Gilardino’s stoppage time winner then ensured Liverpool ended a disastrous Champions League campaign with only the Europa League to keep their minds off domestic battles.

Reds skipper Steven Gerrard admitted Liverpool only had themselves to blame for their plight.

‘If you look at the whole campaign, it was not good enough from our point of view but now we need to try to qualify for the same competition next year,’ the England midfielder said.

‘It wasn’t our strongest team tonight but we gave a good account of ourselves. We were a bit unlucky to lose in the end.’

In Group G already qualified Sevilla took top spot and were joined in the next round by Stuttgart.

The Germans responded to a change of manager — with former Tottenham boss Christian Gross replacing Markus Babbel this week — in suitably positive fashion, racing to the quickest 3-0 lead in Champions League history.

Six first 11 minutes was all it took for Stuttgart to kill off their tie against Romanians Unirea Urziceni, who got one back for a 3-1 defeat.

‘That was a fantastic start and it was great to take a 3-0 lead so quickly,’ said goalkeeper Jens Lehmann.

‘It is a paradox that we are the 16th best side in the Bundesliga and we are also amongst the best 16 teams in Europe.’

Tuesday’s programme saw Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, AC Milan and CSKA Moscow seal their second round passage.

The second round draw is scheduled for December 18.

SALTA: Pakistan failed to break Argentina’s winning streak as the hosts beat them 3-1 in the Champions Challenge Cup-I hockey tournament while denting their chances for a semi-final qualification at Popeye Baseball Club here on Tuesday.

Pakistan, which beat Canada 2-1 in their opening match, need a clear win against South Africa on Dec 10. A draw can eliminate them from the event.

Argentina, which routed South Africa 6-2 earlier, has already qualified for the semi-finals. It was Pakistan’s third successive defeat at the hands of Argentina in international hockey.

They have beaten them 1-0 in the World Cup in 2006 in Germany, followed by a 2-1 win in the Azlan Shah Cup in Malaysia in 2007.

The home team jolted the former world champions with a goal in the first minute that was scored by Facundo Callioni.

Argentina enhanced Pakistan’s worries by folding the first half with a 2-0 lead in the 31st minute when they converted their first short corner through penalty-corner specialists Pedro Ibarra.

Pakistan’s penalty-corner expert Sohail Abbas also appeared out of touch when he converted a lone short corner out of the five.

Pakistan received another blow in the 52nd minute when Pedro Ibarra scored in an indirect conversion drill to change the scoreline to 3-1 and making possibilities of a comeback for Pakistan next to impossible.—APP