IPL 2010 Schedule: IPL Today’s match; RCB vs. MI and KKR vs. RR. There are two matches slated for today in the ongoing Indian Premiere League, season 3.

The first match is going to be between Royal Challengers Bangalore vs. Mumbai Indian at Bangalore’s Chennaswamy Stadium.

This match is going to begin at 4:PM, IST. This is one of the crucial match for the Royal Challengers Bangalore, though, if the Mumbai Indians don’t take it seriously, it won’t harm them.

In the mean time, the second match is going to be played at Kolkata’s Eden Garden’s stadium. Shah Rukh Khan’s team Kolkata Knight Riders would be taking over Rajasthan Royals here.

Though, there are less chances for the Saurav Ganguly led Kolkata team, but as this match is slated at their homeground, there would be many faces to cheer up them

Having issued a secret directive in December that U.S. diplomats should push for closeness between India and Pakistan, U.S. President Barack Obama must have been wondering if his envoys were a bit too quick to follow through when he found himself spending Sunday in Washington navigating between simultaneous visits by the prime ministers of India and Pakistan.

AFP/Getty Images
U.S. President Barack Obama, right, takes part in a bilateral meeting with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington.

For the most part, he seems to have managed the triangulation deftly enough as he prepared to host a nuclear summit, the reason world leaders had gathered in D.C.

Mr. Obama told Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that he was supportive of India’s desire for access to David Coleman Headley, the U.S. citizen who recently pleaded guilty to charges relating to the Mumbai terror attacks in 2008. At least that was according to a briefing given by Nirupama Rao, India’s foreign secretary, who is part of the Indian delegation. (The office White House “readout” of the meeting between Obama and Singh makes no mention of Headley.)

The two leaders also issued fresh pledges of agreement on things they had settled on previously — “the need for India and the United States to work together on global development issues, including economic infrastructure, food security and poverty reduction,” according to the White House statement. And Mr. Obama gave a nod to India’s participation in humanitarian and development assistance in Afghanistan while avoiding a potentially awkward blowup over Iran.

The U.S., United Kingdom and Germany are pushing for tougher sanctions against Iran. India appears to be anti, with Mr. Rao noting that sanctions targeted at ordinary people invariably fail. As disagreements go, though, it was muted. Mr. Rao added that the two sides had agreed to stay in touch over the issue.

Still, as tends to happen when these two countries try to show their closeness, you couldn’t help but notice that Mr. Obama’s choice of language was a few degrees warmer for Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. Obama opened his meeting with Mr. Gilani “by noting that he is very fond of Pakistan, having visited the country during college,” the White House said in statement.

Mr. Obama also expressed his condolences to Pakistan for the attacks last week on the U.S. consulate in Peshawar and a separate bombing the same day that killed 46. (Any condolences he may have expressed to Mr. Singh about the Maoist slaughter of 76 policemen last week in India were not mentioned by the White House.)

Of course, there was much more said in both meetings than any formal statement is going to express. And the optics of having Mr. Obama meet with Mr. Singh is important now given Indian sensibilities about being left behind China and Pakistan on the list of U.S. priorities in the region.

The White House also noted that “President Obama reiterated his commitment to visit India in 2010.” Maybe at that time Mr. Obama will tell India that he is very fond of it, too.

Twenty20 is taking off. All over the world players are swarming to participate in big competitions to represent big clubs for big money.

Not only has the IPL attracted big crowds, but has earned huge amounts of money, reportedly earning one billion dollars in its first two years.

Within five years, the IPL could be the biggest sporting competition in the world. Through this the Champions League has been established, and this provides an opportunity for domestic players from all over the world to participate in what will be one of the biggest competitions in the world.

Domestic cricket has been dead for years. As a Queenslander, the Sheffield Shield has been dead ever since we won the competition in 1994/95. Before now uncapped domestic players haven’t had the chance to play under big crowds in either India or Australia, and playing in pressure environment will lead to development of Australian players for Tests and one dayers.

T20 has already established itself in lesser known cricketing countries, such as Zimbabwe and Canada, and through this cricket will be able to expand Test playing nations and introduce better international competitions.

Last year the inaugural Champions League was held in India. In its first year the competition didn’t perform to its potential with little coverage in Australia and low crowds due to poor performances by the Indian teams. What the competitions did though was find the world’s new superstars and provided experience under pressure for the domestic players.

Expansion is what is needed for this competition to really kick off and with more games played in home countries this competition could really become a world league.

About a year ago, the IPL announced its plans to expand to a ten team competition. The growth of the game is forcing the ICC to create an IPL window where no other cricket is played, and the whole world can tune in to what could be the world biggest competition. Pune and Kochi have been announced as the two new teams.

What effects will this have on Australia and world cricket?

This will and has lead to Australia expanding its own competition to eight teams with Geelong/West Melbourne, Gold Coast, West Sydney and Newcastle the prime candidates for the two spots. Mostly the response to this has been positive, but people don’t realise the problems it could have for the Ford Ranger Cup, Sheffield Shield and the history these competitions have had.

This could lead to a drop in support for these teams. This could be a minor problem but managed properly this can be avoided. Expansion in 2011/12 will also lead to forced availability for Aussie Test players for the competition. This will guarantee increased crowds and help maintain the quality of competition expansion can destroy. Through this I would like to see a trans-Tasman competition established involving three teams from New Zealand.

This would create an 11 team competition, where each team will play each other once, with a four team finals series. The Big Bash has already overtaken the A-League and NRL in terms of average attendances, but with the establishment of this new competition like the other codes, cricket can reestablish its culture and proud support for its teams that was seen during the Sheffield Shield glory years. This will lead to memberships and rivalries that will help the game prosper in this country, having a real week to week competition.

World cricket will be affected by this through it being forced to change its playing windows. I believe that there should be less ODI’s and a similar amounts of T20s and Tests on the calendar to make way for the IPL, Champions League and other domestic competitions.

Test cricket will have to be made into a World Series to combat its decline. This World Series that ICC announced it was discussing late last year would consist of two home and away (or just at home or just away) games against each playing country over a two year period with the exception of the Ashes and other massive competitions which would consists of a four or five Test series in the home country.

This would lead to a semi final and finals series to determine the number one ranking and the world champions for that year. This could exist instead of the Test World Cup which was previously predicted to encourage support. Pakistan would play at UAE or another neighboring country until problems clear.

The competition would run like this:

Australia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, India, West Indies, England, New Zealand, South Africa each play each other four times over two years.

Points awarded:

Series win – 8
Tied series- 4
Win by one innings- 10
Win outright- 6
Win by one innings (draw) – 4
Tie – 4
Loss by one innings (Draw) – 3
Loss outright or by one innings or series loss – 0

This format would encourage aggressive play and lead to less draws and boring Test matches. This would also lead to more attention placed on Tests against Bangladesh when teams are leading, crowds may increase in expectation of an innings win. Through this Bangladesh will develop with consistent exposure at Test level, and countries will become more interested in watching matches played by their team.

Through this there will be at full strength, no rest like Andrew Strauss against Bangladesh last month, and teams will be competition to win something not just for rankings. This will also lead to at least six Test matches at home each year for each country.

Australia will have 10 in the year when they host the Ashes. This calendar will be fitted in through the reduction of ODI’s played yearly. ODI’s must be kept because they still draw reasonable crowds and the World Cup is still the ultimate goal for most cricketers. One Day cricket is also the way forward for developing nations.

With the windows to be established for T20 from mid April-the end of May (6 weeks) including: From late November to mid December, approximately 3 weeks to 3.5 weeks for Big Bash, NZ provincial, RSA provincial, etc.

A third window for the Pakistan, Sri Lankan, English and West Indian provincial competitions must be determined.

Cricket has a very promising future through the development of Test and T20 windows, but what the ICC decides to do is unknown. They have announced a World Series but its format could involve anything, one thing that is for sure though is that cricket will expand and through T20 to become one of the world’s biggest and most watched sports.

aul Collingwood smashed an unbeaten 75 off 46 balls as Delhi Daredevils beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by 37 runs in an Indian Premier League match here Sunday.

After electing to bat on a slow track, Daredevils scored 184 for five and restricted the Challengers to 147 for nine.

Daredevils got off to a good start through dashing Virender Sehwag (35) and David Warner (33) but soon lost quick wickets before Collingwood revived the innings.

Collingwood struck three fours and seven sixes on a track that was not conducive for shot making. Collingwood and Daniel Vettori (19 not out) accelerated brilliantly in the last five overs and struck 59 runs.

The Royal Challengers lost wickets at regular interval with Jacques Kallis emerging as the top scorer with 54 runs off 42 balls.

Amit Mishra and Pradeep Sangwan took three wickets each for the Daredevils.

While Watson, the reigning Allan Border medallist, is expected to shoot to number four behind Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and Mitchell Johnson, Bollinger and Harris are in line to become $1 million-a-year players.

Ponting is under increasing pressure to keep his No 1 ranking given he has retired from Twenty20 internationals and his vice-captain, Michael Clarke, has outperformed his skipper during the past two seasons.

There are precedents for captains not being the highest-ranked player, with Glenn McGrath consistently topping the list during the peak of his career.

The losers are expected to include ageing fast bowlers Stuart Clark and Nathan Bracken, who were last year listed as Australia's leading Test and one-day bowlers on the official International Cricket Council rankings.

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Others likely to lose their contracts including Brad Hodge, Graham Manou and Andrew McDonald.

Brett Lee's contract will be significantly down-graded after his ageing body forced him to retire from Test cricket, although he is in Australia's 15-man squad for the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean later this month.

So is Shaun Tait, who has a contract but creates a real quandary for the selectors as a T20 specialist who no longer plays first-class cricket for South Australia.

His Australian Twenty20 new-ball partner, Dirk Nannes, has also retired from first-class cricket, while the explosive and dynamic Dave Warner has been pegged as a T20 specialist. Neither have CA contracts.

Australian Cricketers Association chief executive Paul Marsh fears the T20 specialists are in danger of being lost to competitions such as the IPL if they are not adequately compensated with contracts.

The last Memorandum of Understanding between the ACA and Cricket Australia bracketed 50-over and 20-over cricket together as limited-overs cricket to give T20 players some standing but Marsh fears this may not be enough. "The bigger picture here is we've got guys who are Twenty20 specialists who are highly sought after in the IPL and other competitions potentially not getting Australian contracts," Marsh said.

"The best they can do in Australia is a state contract and my fear is we may not be able to hold on to these players.

"I think that Australian cricket needs to have a good look at that."

Such is the growing wealth of world cricket, driven largely by selling massive television rights to India, that the average annual payment to Australia's cricketers is now $1m, taking into account base payments along with tour and match fees and prize money.

Bollinger and Harris must charge into the top dozen and that seven-figure bracket because they are playing in the Test and limited-overs sides. They will join Ponting, Clarke, Johnson, Watson, Brad Haddin, Mike Hussey and Nathan Hauritz, along with injured pacemen Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle.

Fellow fast bowler Clint McKay also made his Test debut during the summer and has been a regular in the one-day squad but has been overtaken by Harris.

Even so, McKay is also like to gain a substantial pay rise.

Another recently upgraded player, exciting young all-rounder Steve Smith, is also likely to squeeze on to the list of 25.

Yet another upgrade, Tim Paine, is expected to replace Manou as the second wicketkeeper in the 25-man squad.

maiden 10-wicket haul has made him the first England bowler in six years to rise to second position in the ICC player rankings for Test bowlers, behind Dale Steyn of South Africa.

The 30-year-old off-spinner recorded match figures of 78.3-19-217-10 to bowl England to a 181-run victory over Bangladesh in Chittagong, giving his side a 1-0 lead in the two-Test series.

The wickets have moved Swann up three places in the rankings, making him the first England bowler to claim second position in the bowling table since Steve Harmison in December 2004.

In the past eight months Swann has played 10 Tests, taking 45 wickets, including 14 against Australia and 21 against South Africa. His total of 783 points puts him in 28th position in the all-time England Test bowlers list – the last English spinner to have more points was Derek Underwood in 1977 and the last English off-spinner with more points was Fred Titmus in 1965.

The Conservatives plan to reduce the number of free-to-air TV sporting events and will undertake an independent economic assessment study before making any changes to existing legislation if they get into power, Shadow Sports Minister Hugh Robertson has confirmed.

The Department of Culture, Media and Sport announced on Wednesday that a revised list of "crown jewel" sporting events would not be implemented before the general election on May 6, due to the time needed to finalise the bill.

The government had provisionally accepted the recommendations made by an advisory panel led by former Football Association executive director David Davies over ringfenced sporting events, but Robertson has slammed Labour for using the controversial crown jewels proposals as a vote-winning mechanism.

"I've always thought the problem with the review is that it was driven by political imperatives not sporting ones," he told Press Association Sport's www.thesportbriefing.com.

"I think when Andy Burnham (former Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport) launched the review he thought there were votes in sticking sport back on free-to-air.

"When they got the review they suddenly woke up to the fact that it is a great deal more complicated than that because there is a balance to be struck between guaranteeing as much sport as you can free-to-air but also allowing sport governing bodies the freedom to market their own rights and then invest the proceeds in grassroots sport.

"It's an immensely complicated area but the standard Conservative response is that if we win on May 6 we will review the economic evidence. We will certainly look at an independent economic assessment and then make our decision thereafter."

Robertson insists that the Tories, before making any decisions, will investigate the economic impact listing will have on sports, highlighting cricket as an example of the detrimental effect it could have.

The inquiry recommended adding the home Ashes series between England and Australia to ringfenced events, but Robertson argued such a decision "could pretty easily bring down cricket completely" as the England and Wales Cricket Board relies on broadcast revenue for 80% of its income.

The inquiry also recommended adding England's football tournament qualifying matches, golf's Open Championship, Wimbledon and the Rugby World Cup to the list of protected events, but Robertson is instead keen to decrease the number of events on the list.

"I think the general principle would be that we favour a smaller rather than a larger A-list," he added.

"I would certainly look to reintroduce the B-list - the highlights - which are scrapped altogether in the Davies review because I think that is a very good compromise.

"Then we would probably look at mandating governing bodies that are un-listed to invest a certain amount of their income in the grassroots."

The Conservatives, currently ahead in the prediction polls, are hoping to regain power from Labour after 13 years as the opposition party.

Cricket fans in the Indian state of Kerala heaved a big sigh of relief when BCCI approved the documents submitted by IPL’s Kochi franchise Rendezvous Sports World in Mumbai.

The team owners and Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will sign the contract on Saturday, putting an end to speculations that the Kochi IPL team would be scrapped.

Earlier on Friday, there were reports among a section of Indian media that the team had sold its 25 per cent stake to an ‘unknown party’.

An Indian newspaper quoted the sources as saying: ‘‘BCCI has been confidentially told that a minister, a former India captain and a cricketer who’s currently playing for India are also part of the consortium. Their names should also figure in the agreement document.’’

Kochi team CEO Shailendra Gaikwad submitted the records, which have no mention of any politician or cricketer, to the BCCI. Earlier, Kochi team’s co-owner Vivek Venugopal, while talking to Khaleej Times, termed the reports as “absolutely baseless.”

“There is no truth. Such reports are planted by vested interests,” Venugopal said.

“I don’t know who is behind spreading such baseless reports. How can it be possible to sell stakes without getting ownership status from the BCCI?

“We have followed the tender document in letter and spirit. No official statement has come to us from the BCCI on any such issue.

“The IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi has also denied any such development,” he added.

“No such thing was possible,” Modi wrote in his Twitter account.

Rendezvous Sports World, a consortium of five companies, had bagged the Kochi franchise in the bid held in Chennai last month for a staggering $333.3 million.

The Rendezvous group, Parini Developers, Anand Shah Estate, Anchor Earth Private Limited and Film Waves are the owners of the team.

Meanwhile, media reports from Kerala indicated that a prominent person in the IPL and a chief minister were behind circulating news against the Kochi team. There were efforts to woo some Gujarat-based companies in the consortium to scuttle the chances of a Kochi team, the reports said.

“I cannot say whether any lobby is behind the current issue,” TC Mathew, secretary of Kerala Cricket Association, was quoted as saying by a news agency report on Friday.
Punjab team for sale?

Meanwhile another media report from India indicated that Kings XI Punjab, who is almost out from the IPL semifinal race for the third edition, could be up for sale.

An Indian TV channel, quoting sources, said that three owners — Ness Wadia, Mohit Burman and Karan Paul — are interested in selling their stake off. However another co-owner Preity Zinta is very keen on staying on board with the team, the report said.

Mumbai: The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and Nimbus Sport International (Nimbus Sport) announced a partnership for Asia Cup cricket events from 2010 to 2014. The five-year deal will include three Asia Cup events, all commercial rights of which will be marketed globally by Nimbus Sport. The first of which, the Asia Cup 2010, will be played in Sri Lanka from the 15 to 25 June.

Each edition of the Asia Cup will see the top cricket teams of the continent (India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh) battling it out to secure the title of Champions of Asia. (Schedule enclosed)

“The Asia Cup is the region’s most sought after trophy and features some of the greatest rivalries in the history of sport. We are confident that this partnership with Nimbus Sport will help the event to continue to grow its premier status exponentially across the world and the funds raised by this agreement will go a long way in creating possibilities for more Asian nations to play at the highest level possible,” said Ashraful Huq, chief executive for ACC.

The Asia Cup will be held every alternate year -- in the years 2010, 2012 and 2014. Each event will feature the teams from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh playing each other in a league format, with the top two teams playing off in a final.

“Nimbus Sport is pleased to add the Asia Cup to its considerable portfolio of premier international events. Over the years the Asia Cup has developed into one of cricket’s biggest brands with which sponsors and broadcasters around the world queue up to associate with,” said Yannick Colaco, chief operating officer, Nimbus Sport. On their part, Nimbus Sport will market and implement a sponsorship and licensing program to ensure coverage, integration and association for their partners.

WE begins a 21-show tour of Europe today in Vienna, Austria with a Raw brand house show.

The complete tour will include 10 Raw brand shows (9 house shows & 1 TV taping) and 11 Smackdown brand house shows (10 house shows & 1 TV taping).

The Smackdown crew begins their tour on Thursday night in Berlin, Germany while Raw begins the main U.K. portion of the tour.

HartBret_ML150_25.jpg
Bret Hart is advertised for the main shows in the U.K. as a special ringside enforcer. The top matches being advertised for the tour include John Cena vs. Triple H and Randy Orton vs. Sheamus. Smackdown's top matches are expected to feature Edge vs. Drew McIntyre

Hart isn't scheduled for the Smackdown TV taping on Tuesday in London, as he's scheduled for the Raw brand house show that night in Sheffield.

Hart is also scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday's Smackdown house shows in Oberhausen and Hanover, Germany, respectively to complete the tour.

wenty-four hours has passed since the first fist thrown in Abu Dhabi at UFC 112: Invincible. Every Sports Writer, Blogger and fan with a Facebook page has voiced their opinion about Anderson Silva and the fight heard around the world.

While most of us have voiced our opinions and continued with our daily lives, one person hasn’t,

Dana White.



Dana White has made it very clear that he is not only “embarrassed” but that he is also working on a plan of action.

"I don’t know how yet, but I will make this up to the fans,"



That’s were this starts. While Fans are essential to every sport, they are even more so in the UFC.

The UFC isn’t made up of rich old men buying teams of players. This sport is Fan Driven, a “User-Generated Sport” if you will.

Take Anderson Silva off PPV.

Have Anderson fight at an Ultimate Fight Night on free TV, with a UFN paycheck to accompany. Have Anderson finish a fight with his athleticism, ability and overall, respect.

I think Anderson Silva is lacking motivation. As of a couple days ago, he was king. He could do no wrong, and he was walking into a fight that he and most of us knew, wasn’t a challenge.

For a fighter like Silva to perform, he needs to feel threatened.



Anderson should stop the games, stop the rumors and make the move, FIGHT GEORGE ST. PIERRE.

Do you owe it to us? Ummm …No

Are you required to contractually?.....No again.

Do really think any of us are going to fork out another 50 bucks to watch you dance and stand in the Octagon with your hands on your hips….Hell No.

This Business wasn’t built on free rides, or handouts, and your no exception Mr. Silva

OT SPRINGS, Ark. -- Horses based in California race on synthetic surfaces, but in this year's 3-year-old preps for the Kentucky Derby, they have shown there's nothing artificial about them.

Twice earlier in this meet at Oaklawn Park, a horse shipped in from California and won an important stakes race for 3-year-olds. But while Conveyance (Southwest Stakes) and Lookin At Lucky (Rebel) were favored, it was 17-1 long shot Line of David who stole the race, and the show, on Saturday at Oaklawn Park, leading every step of the way in the Grade 1, $1 million Arkansas Derby before a crowd of 61,531 on a sun-splashed afternoon.

Line of David ($36.80) was racing on dirt -- and appearing in a stakes race, and racing outside of California -- for the first time following previous starts on either synthetic surfaces or turf. But he has improved sharply since adding blinkers on Feb. 13, and now has won three straight, against maidens, a first-level allowance field, and on Saturday, the richest prep in North America for the May 1 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.

Line of David, under jockey Jon Court, showed grit to stave off stern bids from Super Saver and Dublin in the stretch run. He won by a neck, with Super Saver a neck in front of Dublin. Line of David completed 1⅛ miles on the fast main track in 1:49.37.

Noble's Promise, the 8-5 favorite, finished fifth after a dreadful trip that began right out of the gate, when he hopped and got squeezed between the horses starting alongside him.

John Sadler, who trains Santa Anita Derby winner Sidney's Candy, also trains Line of David. Both horses won their races in front-running fashion, giving Sadler two potential Derby starters, both with early speed.

"We're going to enjoy this now," said Sadler, who trains Line of David for owners Ike and Dawn Thrash. "We'll worry about that tomorrow."

"We wanted him to be in front," Sadler said. "When he's in front, it seems to build his confidence."

Line of David was sent aggressively from the gate by Court and led through fractions of 22.65 seconds for the opening quarter-mile, 46.26 seconds for a half-mile, and 1:10.75 for six furlongs. As the field went around the far turn, his lead began to diminish, as Super Saver and Dublin closed in.

Those three were across the track after turning into the lane, but Line of David was not about to surrender. Racing along the rail, he fought off those rivals to earn a first prize of $600,000 and a berth in the Kentucky Derby.

"We're really happy," said Sadler, who was fighting back tears. "The Thrashes are great people."

Line of David is a colt by Lion Heart and is out of the Capote mare Emma's Dilemma. Sadler said Line of David would head straight to Churchill Downs, where Sadler will have a small stable of powerful runners for the first week of the Churchill meet. In addition to Sidney's Candy, he also trains Crisp, the Santa Anita Oaks winner, who is headed to the Kentucky Oaks on April 30.

arça played at the Bernabeu with goals from Messi and Pedro," another national newspaper adds. "Barca won their title at the Bernabeu," chronicle entitled, and offers the three keys of the night
The worlds sports press is full of accolades for FC Barcelona Messi and El Clasico 2010

Barcelona, who yesterday beat Real Madrid 0-2 with goals from Leo Messi and Pedro, was clearly superior to their rival. Barca's victory, covered in many of the worlds press, shows the recognition they have throughout the football world.

"Barca wins in Madrid with a stroke of authority. Messi returns to beat Cristiano Ronaldo, he is the clear number one. Barca took the lead in the championship. Guardiola is imposed in all the battles and Xavi and Valdes dazzle ", summarized below. On the Messi-Christian debate, it says: "The Golden Shoe takes the wrong track of CR9. Messi, stitching errors, got his 7th goal in Casillas, leads with 27 in the league and 40 in total, while the Luso ended Crazy". Despite seven games remaining in the league and Barcelona is just three points clear, no newspaper today had many questions about who will win the championship.

‘Barça lead with three points. Barça played at the Bernabeu with goals from Messi and Pedro," another national newspaper adds. "Barca won their title at the Bernabeu," chronicle entitled, and offers the three keys of the night: "Real Madrid, nearly doomed the League. Xavi, Valdes and Messi lived a magical evening. The white fans, again, suffered one of their worst nightmares. " As for the confrontation between Leo Messi and Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo it says: "Leo made Christiano look ridiculous in the confrontation". As highlighted on the cover of one European paper: "He is the best. There are still 21 points available, but the title seems already decided."
"Manuel Pellegrini has both feet out of Madrid", insists one newspaper on its inside pages. "He failed in his mission to recover their style and to win (...). Barca was master of the situation at the Bernabeu, displaying their usual combination play. The reply from Madrid fell short".
The Italian sports press today dedicated a "ciao, ciao" to Real Madrid after the so-called "classic" in the Spanish League against Barcelona, whom were clearly "superior" and gave a "great performance". Although the game takes up very little space on their front pages in Italy, the attention is now focused on whether Inter Milan will lose the leadership-the two main sports dailies in the country, La Gazzetta dello Sport and Corriere dello Sport, can not escape the interest shown throughout the world for the match played yesterday at the Bernabeu. La Gazzetta devoted two pages to a wide theadline entitled "FantaBarça" (A science fiction Barça) and subtitled "Messi + Peter, what a lesson to Real Madrid." "This is the temple of Real Madrid, the sweetest place in which Barcelona can win the league, this time not given the desecration of last year, the humiliating 2-6 and the match is even normal and not exceptional as usually happens, "said the Italian daily.

In France, the prestigious L'Equipe Barca highlights the superiority of the final with a headline: "Barça had Madrid paralyzed." The London Times agreed to highlight the virtuosity of Messi: "A wonderful Messi inspires victory in the classic." Finally, the German Allgemeine just said : "Leo Messi" Who else? "

hela beats Querrey in Clay Court Championships: Juan Ignacio Chela of Argentina won his first tournament in over three years with a 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 victory against American Sam Querrey at the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championships in Houston on Sunday.

The unseeded Argentine turned aggressive in the second set and pulled away from the hard-serving Querrey for his fifth tour championship and his first since beating Carlos Moya in Acapulco in March 2007.

Chela stayed steady on his favorite surface and wrapped up the title at the first match point when Querrey returned a serve out of bounds.

Wozniacki triumphs: Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark took advantage of Olga Gorvotsova's numerous mistakes and successfully defended her title in the MPS Group Championships with a 6-2, 7-5 victory in Ponte Vedra, Fla.

Wawrinka takes Casablanca final: Top-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland beat Romania's Victor Hanescu 6-2, 6-3 to win the Grand Prix Hassan II in Casablanca, Morocco.

Pennetta earns Andalucia title: Second-seeded Flavia Pennetta of Italy defeated Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 to win the Andalucia Open in Marbella, Spain.

Andreev, Seppi advance: Igor Andreev of Russia and Italy's Andreas Seppi both advanced to the second round of the Monte Carlo Masters. Andreev had three aces in a 6-3, 6-4 win against Simone Bolelli of Italy, and Seppi was leading 7-6 (7-3) against Olivier Rochus when the Belgian player retired with a lower-back problem.

Soccer

Portsmouth beats Tottenham to reach FA Cup final: Portsmouth reached the FA Cup final, scoring twice in extra time to beat Tottenham 2-0 in a big upset. The victory came a day after the 2008 winners were relegated from the Premier League in a season in which crippling debt almost put the club out of business.

Frederic Piquionne broke the deadlock in the ninth minute of extra time. Former Spurs midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng added a penalty kick 18 minutes later.

Portsmouth will face Chelsea in the May 15 final. The defending champions beat Aston Villa 3-0 on Saturday.

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AS Roma takes lead: AS Roma moved to the top of Serie A by beating Atalanta 2-1 after goals from Mirko Vucinic and Marco Cassetti.

Panathinaikos takes Greek title: Panathinaikos captured its first Greek league title in six years, beating Iraklis 2-0 after first-half goals by Djibril Cisse and Sotiris Ninis.

Liverpool owners looking to sell: Liverpool's American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr., are stepping up efforts to sell the English Premier League club by tasking Barclays Bank with finding a buyer and appointing a new chairman
Texas Stadium dynamited: More than 20,000 people gathered at tailgate parties and other spots to watch fireworks go off one last time over Texas Stadium in Irving, Texas, before a ton of dynamite lit up the Dallas Cowboys' longtime home and brought it to the ground.

The building known for the giant hole in its roof — "so God can watch his team," according to local lore — was demolished in a planned implosion set off by the 11-year-old winner of an essay contest. The Cowboys played 38 seasons in Texas Stadium, winning five Super Bowls during that time. The local landmark also was home for the world famous Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders.

Jets acquire WR Holmes: The New York Jets have acquired wide receiver Santonio Holmes from the Pittsburgh Steelers for a fifth-round draft pick this month. Holmes, the 2009 Super Bowl MVP, is facing a lawsuit in Florida from a woman who claims he threw a glass at her, cutting her above the eye, in an Orlando nightclub.

Cycling

Cancellara wins Paris-Roubaix: Fabian Cancellara of Switzerland won the Paris-Roubaix, capturing the race for a second time and claiming his second victory in a one-day classic in eight days.

Cancellara won by two minutes after dominating a field that included three-time winner Tom Boonen of Belgium. The Swiss rider, who won the 2006 Paris-Roubaix, finished first in the Tour of Flanders last Sunday.

Thor Hushovd of Norway was second and Juan Antonio Flecha of Spain was third.

Horse racing

Unzip Me wins at Santa Anita: Four-year-old filly Unzip Me won her fourth straight and ended the downhill dominance of Gotta Have Her with a gate-to-wire victory in the $100,000 Las Cienegas Handicap at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif. Ridden by Joe Talamo, Unzip Me covered 6 ½ furlongs in 1:12.80 and paid $9.60, $5.20 and $3. Czechers returned $5.80 and $3.20. Gotta Have Her, who carried five more pounds than the winner, paid $2.10 to show in the Grade III race.

Just when you think you've seen the bottom of the barrel, they go a little lower. When you think you know how far Nike will stoop, when you think you've seen the greedy heart of Tiger Woods at its worst, you learn that you hadn't even begun to grasp what they're about.

For sheer, unbridled cynicism, I don't think we've ever seen the like of the Nike spot using the voice of Tiger's dead father to (1) polish the golfer's tarnished image and (2) sell everything Nike.

If this one isn't a 10 on your nausea meter, you've been so brainwashed that you should get a job as a lab rat and let them test future marketing ploys on you, because they obviously work.

At least once a week, someone writes (usually with several obscenities and a couple of dozen spelling mistakes) to tell me I'm cynical. I prefer to think that I'm a romantic turned realist.

It's a common fate in the world of journalism. Most sportswriters start out, as I did, loving the game. Or games. We grew up idolizing Hank Aaron and Muhammad Ali, or Rocket Richard, Gordie Howe, Jean Béliveau and Bobby Orr.

Then we start covering sports in the era of the multi-national sponsor and the steroid cheat and we become disappointed realists. We aren't cynics, because if we were really cynical, we would have gone into marketing, advertising or public relations.

Today, the realists in the world of sports media are a vanishing breed, our places taken by the cheerleaders of the new media, journalists in name only, who see themselves as extensions of the marketing and PR departments of the organizations we cover.

When the news of Woods and his chronic philandering first broke, it was hardly surprising to the realists of the sports world that Nike would stay with him.

Please see Todd, Page B7

Nike has been there from the beginning, the first to lay down a big-time bet that a golfer (a golfer!) could become the next big marketing thing after Michael Jordan.

Nike was right a second time when the company bet that no matter how many mistresses come forward, people would go right on buying Tiger Woods gear. All you had to do was listen to the lab rats cheering every Tiger swing at the Masters to know that nothing will ever change.

If anything, the numbers will go up, because there is no such thing as bad publicity. For the lab rats who like to think of themselves as independent-thinking guys, driving their SUVs while wearing Tiger baseball caps (with the sunglasses up on the bill, of course) and Tiger red shirts with a set of Tiger clubs in the back, there was no behaviour so repugnant it would turn them off.

From the beginning of this scandal, it wasn't the philandering that bothered me. (That was no surprise to anyone who has covered pro athletes for even a few years.) It was the astonishing hypocrisy of a man who had used his photogenic wife and children to help push the image of the perfect husband and the perfect father he chose to cultivate. An image as far from the truth as it is possible to be.

Still, we thought there was a limit. That there was a commercial somewhere so tasteless, so repugnant, so ghoulish that even Tiger wouldn't approve it. We were wrong. A man who will use his dead father to set himself up to earn another billion will stoop to anything.

It turns out that I was still an idealist, even when it concerned the world's most hypocritical athlete. I believed that the one thing for which Tiger Woods still possessed a degree of respect was his father's memory. I was wrong.

SSS

Meanwhile, back at the ranch - your Montreal Canadiens slip into the playoffs by losing the last game of the season, at home, to the second-worst team in the National Hockey League. "Winning" a playoff spot thanks to the absurd NHL practice of awarding a point to a team that loses in overtime.

Pardon us if we're not impressed. Something to do with that Carolina game last Thursday night, perhaps, when a team with a postseason berth on the line laid an egg that could hatch a Tyrannosaurus.

You want to talk about giveaways? "Here's your puck, Mr. Staal. Have a nice time with it, and give Mr. Halak our regards."

Surely we have seen worse performances in critical situations. We simply can't remember when.

Look for the silver lining here and all you find is the bottom line: Not good enough. A team that finished with 88 points on the season. Ditch the silly points-for-losers system and the Canadiens finished the season a thoroughly mediocre 39-43. A playoff team in name only. A squad that looked pretty good for a couple of weeks after the Olympics faded down the stretch like an old pair of jeans.

Yes, we know about the early season injuries - but the Canadiens had all their best players in uniform down the stretch and they couldn't get it done. Couldn't score, couldn't defend.

What happens now? The Canadiens get steamrolled by the Washington Capitals. There are only two possible scenarios here: Jaroslav Halak is very hot, in which case the Habs might take this first-round series as far as six games. Or Halak is merely ordinary, as he was Saturday night, in which case it's a repeat of last spring's four-and-out.

Chances the Canadiens will beat Alex Ovechkin's Caps to advance to the second round? Roughly equal to the possibility that you'll see me flinging Penelope Cruz around on Dancing With the Stars.

Translation? Won't happen.

Next season? Given Scott Gomez's contract and all the other problems with which Pierre Gauthier was saddled by the departed Bob Gainey,

it will be more of the same, as a 17-year stretch without an appearance in the third round of the playoffs stretches toward infinity.

Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/There+shame+sports/2790643/story.html#ixzz0ksPimgaf

DOHA: The first race of Moto GP season will be held here tomorrow.

In the practice session held at the Losail International Circuit, Casey Stoner (Ducati) has a proven pedigree of success.

The Ducati Marlboro rider was satisfied with his performance in the first practice in Qatar, but has underlined the need to continue to work hard as the weekend progresses.

The Losail International Circuit is a track at which Casey Stoner has a proven pedigree of success, and the Australian is going for a fourth successive win in the season opener at the venue this weekend.

On Friday evening he started the Commercialbank Grand Prix of Qatar weekend in solid style, topping Free Practice 1 with the fastest time by over half a second from Jorge Lorenzo.

Stoner’s lap of 1’55.500 on his Desmosedici GP10 of the Ducati Marlboro team was a fraction over a tenth of a second off the time which saw him top the Official Test three weeks earlier, and displayed an immediate comfort with his bike at the start of the opening round of the 2010 season.

Jorge Lorenzo of Spain won the second place while his teammate Valentino Rossi of Italy finished third.

HOUSTON: Third-seeded Sam Querrey reached the final of the US Men's Clay Court Championships with a victory over Wayne Odesnik, who was playing with the threat of a drugs ban looming.

Querrey, who said before the match that he would "refuse to lose" to Odesnik, triumphed 7-6 (7/3), 1-6, 7-5, Saturday, rallying from a third-set deficit to deny Odesnik his second straight trip to the final.

Odesnik pleaded guilty in an Australian court on March 26 to importing human growth hormone into Australia.

He has denied taking the banned performance enhancer and is playing pending an investigation by the International Tennis Federation that could result in a suspension.

Regardless of the outcome of the ITF's probe, Querrey said Odesnik owed the sport an apology.

"I think you have to wait and find the verdict at the end of it all," Querrey said. "Yeah, he should apologize."

Odesnik referred all questions about his case to his lawyer.

Odesnik, who lost in the final here last year to Australian Lleyton Hewitt, made the most of Querrey's struggles with his big serve, but surrendered the match along with his own serve in the final game.

In the final, Querrey will face Argentina's Juan Ignacio Chela, who beat sixth-seeded Argentinian Horacio Zeballos 7-5, 6-2.

Querrey, who said before the match he would "refuse to lose" to Odesnik, shook hands with his compatriot at the end of their match, but he was brusque with him during the contest.

When Querrey questioned an Odesnik ace in the first-set tiebreaker, Odesnik said, "It was good."

Querrey retorted: "I don't need your input, buddy."

When Odesnik questioned a line call in the third set, Querrey said: "It was only out a good four inches."

Odesnik had the upper hand after breaking Querrey in the fifth game of the third set, but Querrey broke back in the sixth game and overcame two double faults to hold his serve in the seventh.

"I had two double faults in that game and then it was deuce," Querrey said. "I said 'whatever, hit it as hard as I can and see what happens.' It worked."

Odesnik won only one point in the final game as Querrey closed it out with an overhead.

Querrey will be gunning for his second title of the year against Chela, who reached his first final since 2007 in Acapulco, where he beat Carlos Moya.

"It would be a big joy, it would mean a lot," Chela said of a possible title. "This would be my fifth title. It would be great to win here

Swiss top seed Stanislas Wawrinka won his second career title on Sunday when he breezed past third seeded Romanian Victor Hanescu 6-2, 6-3 in the final of the Casablanca ATP claycourt tournament.

His 77-minute victory ended a run of five successive final defeats for the world number 23 whose first title also came on clay at the 2006 Croatia Open in Umag.

Victory in Casablanca also marked Wawrinka’s first title as a father, after he and wife, Ilham became parents to daughter, Alexia on February 12.

"I've lost five finals in a row and now finally I have the trophy in my hands," said Wawrinka.

"I felt great during the whole match and never allowed Victor to get into the game. I think this was my best match of the week.

"This is a great start to the claycourt season and I hope to continue like that. Now I look forward to next week in Monte Carlo where my wife and daughter will travel with me for the first time.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH: Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki erased a 4-1 second-set deficit to defeat Olga Govortsova 6-2, 7-5 Sunday and win this WTA Tour green clay tournament for the second straight year.

The world number two from Denmark took her winning streak here to 10 matches as she denied the unseeded Belarussian a first WTA singles title.

Govortsova had a chance to even the match at a set apiece with a set point at 5-4 in the second, but her attempt to volley into an invitingly open court instead found the net.

That game lasted 22 points, and she lost it on one of her eight double faults.

"I think that broke her a little bit," Wozniacki said. "At 5-all I had the advantage that point."

Govortsova agreed.

"I got a little tired after that," she said.

Wozniacki said that allowed her to be a bit more aggressive.

"I believed that I could go for it a little more when I had my opportunity," Wozniacki said. "It was important for me that I was the one opening the court and I was the one dictating the points."

Wozniacki, 19, claimed her seventh WTA title and her first of this year. She was runner-up to Jelena Jankovic at the prestigious Indian Wells hardcourt tournament in March.

"I know I belong," said Wozniacki, who made a scintillating run to the US Open final last year. "I've got to believe I can do it and if someone wants to beat me they have to play very well."