BERLIN: German midfielder Michael Ballack, who missed the World Cup because of an ankle injury, is not fit enough to play in next month`s friendly against Denmark, his Bayer Leverkusen coach said on Tuesday.The former Chelsea midfielder, who joined the German club during the summer, began

BARCELONA: Russian teen Stanislav Emelyanov produced an upset in the men`s 20km walk to take the first gold of the European Athletics Championships and push favourite Alex Schwazer of Italy into second here on Tuesday.The 19-year-old is the latest walker to emerge from the successful

NEW DELHI: Suspended Indian Premier League (IPL) chief Lalit Modi called an investigation into him a "witch hunt" ahead of a second hearing of an inquiry set up by the country`s cricket board.Modi, 46, said he was unwilling to co-operate with the board`s current disciplinary panel because

RIO DE JANEIRO: Brazil`s new coach, Mano Menezes, said Monday he intended to build a side capable of achieving his nation`s football "dreams," as he was officially presented in his new job.The successor to Dunga, who was axed after Brazil was knocked out of this year`s World Cup in the

MADRID: Real Madrid`s talismanic striker Raul bid an emotional farewell to the La Liga club on Monday after 16 seasons and said he was eyeing a move to the Bundesliga or the English Premier League. The 33-year-old, a huge favourite among Real fans and a club captain, had tears in his

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene revelled on their favourite hunting ground to send India chasing leather in the second cricket Test on Tuesday.Sangakkara hit 219, his seventh double-century, and Jayawardene made 174 as Sri Lanka declared at 642-4 on the

MILANInter: Milan and AS Roma will not meet in next May’s Italian Cup final after the pair were placed in the same half of the draw on Monday.The two sides have clashed in five of the last six Italian Cup finals with Inter prevailing last season on their way to a treble.Juventus are

MANCHESTER: Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini admits he is ready to bid for Fernando Torres if the Liverpool striker shows interest in moving to Eastlands.Mancini was given hope that he may be able to sign Torres when new Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson revealed the Spain star has a

LONDON: Gavin Grant, a former Millwall and Bradford striker, will serve at least 25 years in prison for his role in the gun murder of an old friend.Grant was given the sentence at the Old Bailey after being convicted of murdering Leon Labastide, 21, outside his parents\\\' home in

BEIJING: A Chinese fan enraged by two quick red cards shown to the Qingdao Chinese Super League club at the weekend register his annoyance by launching a karate kick at the referee and shoving a linesman.The incident dealt another blow to the image of          Chinese soccer,

COLOMBO: Tharanga Paranavitana and Kumar Sangakkara tormented India`s bowlers for a second time in a row to help Sri Lanka consolidate on the opening day of the second Test on Monday.The left-handed duo, who hit centuries in the victorious first Test in Galle, put on 136 for the unbroken

SYDNEY: Inexperience playing on the sub-continent will make Australia`s bid to topple top-ranked India in the October`s Test series even tougher, senior batsman Simon Katich said on Monday.The two-Test series in October will precede the Ashes home defence against England, which starts the

MADRID: Real Madrid have called a news conference for striker Raul to say goodbye to colleagues and fans after 18 years with the La Liga club.The 33-year-old is poised to join Bundesliga club Schalke 04 on a two-year deal, local media have reported.Real president Florentino Perez and

LEEDS: Pakistan`s victory in the second Test against Australia here at Headingley has left one businessman hoping the team will return to exploit their fan-base among the local expatriate community.Leeds and the adjoining city of Bradford, often called `mini Pakistan`, are home to some

LEEDS: A Pakistani who was once world cricket`s top administrator has accused the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) of dragging its feet in the bid to restore international matches to the country.Pakistan became a no-go area for cricket`s leading nations after an armed attack on the Sri Lanka

PARIS: Barely a week after being denied a move to Fulham, Ajax coach Martin Jol must prepare his team to face Greek side PAOK Salonika in the Champions League third qualifying round on Wednesday.Jol guided four-time European champions Ajax to a second-place finish behind FC Twente in the

LONDON: England captain Andrew Strauss is hoping he doesn`t again find himself witnessing a dispute involving Pakistan as the teams prepare for their first Test since a `ball-tampering` row in 2006.Matches have between the sides have generated plenty of flashpoints, be it Shahid Afridi

ARBIL: The Iraqi Football Association on Sunday decided to postpone elections for its board until further notice amid divisions which threaten to see Iraq barred from international competition.The election, originally set for Saturday, has been held up because the IFA`s governing

MADRID: Real Madrid midfielder Guti is leaving the La Liga giants after a quarter of a century and mulling an offer from Turkish club Besiktas.The 33-year-old former Spain international, who joined Real`s youth setup in 1985 and made his first-team debut a decade later, helped Real win

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka will look to their third `M` to bring victory over India in the second test as they bid to replace the visitors atop the ICC test rankings.Already 1-0 up in the series, a win over India in the second test starting Monday would propel them to top spot and, according to