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Bangladesh go into today’s first one-day international against Sri Lanka with the belief they can defeat any side in the world despite their poor record at the top level.
   The minnows keep reminding rivals of their greatest win in one-day history in June when they defeated world champions Australia by five wickets in Cardiff, England.
   ‘That victory against Australia has given us the confidence that we can beat any side in the world,’ said captain Habibul Bashar at the Sinhalese sports club.
   ‘It was a definite boost for our confidence and self belief.’
   Bangladesh, however, got a taste of what to expect on the current tour when they crashed to an embarrassing 10-wicket defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka’s second-string in a practice match on Sunday.
   Worse, fast bowling spearhead Mashrafee Mortaza is a doubtful starter for Wednesday after being afflicted with back spasms for the last three days.
   Bangladesh have lost 33 of their 38 Test matches since being granted Test status in 2000, their lone win coming against a depleted Zimbabwe at home last year. Four matches were drawn.
   Out of 112 one-day internationals, they have won only 10 and are the lowest ranked side in international cricket in both forms of the game.
   Sri Lanka, ranked second behind Australia in the International Cricket Council’s one-day rankings, are taking no chances and have named a full-strength squad for the three-match series.
   Sri Lanka’s Australian coach Tom Moody warned his team not to be complacent.
   ‘We got enough competition within the squad to keep the intensity levels up,’ said Moody.
   ‘Any player who comes for these matches saying that this is a foregone conclusion is in for a complete shock.
   ‘We have just seen in England where Bangladesh chased a total of 250 against Australia. They are a threat to any team.’
   Moody wants Sri Lanka to narrow the 15-point gap with Australia in the rankings.
   ‘We are building on a long-term basis and this series is an important stepping stone for us,’ he said. ‘I will be delighted if we top the points table.’
   Sri Lankan medium-pacer Farveez Maharoof passed a fitness Test on Tuesday after pulling his right hamstring and is available for selection.
   The two teams will also play two Test matches after the one-dayers.
   Sri Lanka (from): Marvan Atapattu (capt), Mahela Jayawardene, Sanath Jayasuriya, Upul Tharanga, Kumar Sangakkara, Russel Arnold, Tillekeratne Dilshan, Chaminda Vaas, Upul Chandana, Farveez Maharoof, Muttiah Muralitharan, Avishka Gunawardene, Dilhara Fernando, Dilhara Lokuhettige, Thilan Samaraweera.
   Bangladesh (from): Habibul Bashar (capt), Khaled Mashud, Khaled Mahmud, Mohammed Rafique, Javed Omer, Rajin Saleh, Mohammad Ashraful, Aftab Ahmed, Mashrafe Mortaza, Manjural Islam, Nazmul Hossain, Abdur Razzak, Tushar Imran, Shahriar Ahmed, Syed Rasel.

Mohamm-edan Sporting Club meet Muktijoddha Sangsad KC in a do-or-die match of the Premier Division Football League at the Bangabandhu National Stadium at 5:00pm today.
   Mohammedans hopes of winning the league title will be blown away if they lose the game because they will play their last match against Brothers Union who have also a game against Dipali. So the Gopibagh outfit are in a relatively comfortable position.
   Mohammedans will still have a slim chance if they draw today but will be completely out of the race if they lose.
   Muktijoddha, on the other hand, will hope to continue from their last match against Brothers Union which they won comfortably.
   The performance was the best in the league for Muktijoddha that has boosted their confidence.
   Mohammedans lost their last match against Abahani and will look to plug the loopholes that caused their downfall.
   Defence is the Achilles heel for Mohammedans and offence is also inconsistent.
   The Nigerian attacking duo of Muktijoddha, Paul Nawakuchu and Jeremiah, will cause headaches for Mohammedans and Arman with his silky touch can make the difference.
   Mohammedans have 35 points from 16 matches while Muktijoddha’s tally is 31.

The report submitted by the probe committee of the Bangladesh Football Federation about the alleged match-fixing in the premier football league will be revealed on Saturday.
   The committee was formed by the BFF on August 16 and was given 12 days’ time to submit the report.
   However, the committee sought one more day’s extension to finish their work.
   The BFF will receive the report today and will hold an emergency meeting before disclosing the findings.
   SA Sultan, the president of the federation, said, ‘We have to go through the report before disclosing it, so we hope to reveal it on Saturday.’

Australia fast bowler Brett Lee said his personal on-field battle with England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff had been one of the highlights of the ‘most exciting tour I’ve been on’.
   One of the abiding images of the Ashes encounter so far was when paceman Flintoff, who had pounded Lee with short-pitched deliveries, went up to console him after the Australian’s gutsy 43 not out so nearly denied England the two-run win that levelled the series at 1-1.
   The pair weren’t giving an inch either in the fourth Test at Trent Bridge where Lee bowled Flintoff with a brilliant delivery here Sunday in the second innings for 26 but only after the Lancashire all-rounder’s maiden Ashes hundred of 102 had created the platform for what was ultimately a tense three-wicket win.
   ‘I’ve really enjoyed batting and bowling especially against a guy like Andrew Flintoff,’ Lee told reporters at Australia’s hotel here Monday.
   ‘We’ve always known he’s a world-class player. I think he’s surprised us the way he’s batted. He’s been so aggressive, so positive,’ added Lee who has taken 19 wickets in the series.
   ‘A bloke who can hit massive sixes, play as a number three batsman would play, and then come out and bowl the way he has in the past four Test matches, is amazing.
   ‘He’s a supreme athlete, he’s definitely one of a kind and it’s great that England have found that. They probably could have found him after we left the shores of England and went back home but I can’t give ‘Freddie’ enough raps, he’s a quality player.’
   After Australia’s convincing 239 run first Test win at Lord’s the remainder of the series has produced a trio of thrilling finishes with England squeezing home at Edgbaston and Lee playing his part in a last-wicket stand in the third Test at Old Trafford that salvaged a draw. And then came Trent Bridge where England almost failed to reach their target of 129 in the face of Shane Warne’s four for 31 and Lee’s three for 51.
   ‘The last three matches have been the best three Test matches I have ever played in, the most amazing three finishes,’ Lee said.
   England, who’d won their previous five Test campaigns heading into this Ashes contest have been well beaten in their last eight Ashes series. ‘I always knew from ball one of the one-dayers we were up against a world-class side,’ said Lee.
   ‘The last two Test matches we haven’t deserved to win.’
   Australia have been plagued by no-balls throughout this series, bowling 25 alone in England’s first innings 477 at Trent Bridge and Lee said they’d struggled with the undulating nature of many English grounds. ‘When you are playing on a ground that’s got such a gradient when you are running in, it’s a bit like bowling up a ramp. It’s not something we’ve adjusted too as quickly as we could have.’
   Australia, who play a two-day game against Essex starting Saturday before the fifth Test begins at The Oval on September 8, didn’t have the best of luck with umpiring decisions in Nottingham.

Arambagh 4 Dipali 0 Arambagh virtually confirmed their stay in the Premier Division Football League by beating relegation-bound Dipali Jubo Sangha by 4-0 goals at the Bangabandhu National Stadium on Tuesday.
   With this win Arambagh took their tally to 18 points and they will play their next two matches against Sheikh Russell and Farashganj. The other contenders for seventh place, Wanderers and Fakirerpool, both have 12 points but Wanderers will face Muktijoddha and Abahani while Fakirerpool will meet Abahani and Farashganj in their last two outings. Wanderers have no chance of a win and it is almost impossible for Fakirerpool to beat Abahani. So Arambagh look to be in the safer zone.
   Experienced striker Ritu and young scorer Morshed both struck twice in either half of the match.
   Morshed scored the first in the 35th minute and Ritu doubled the margin five minutes later. Ritu made it 3-0 on 59 minutes and Morshed scored his second and the team’s fourth goal in the 68th minute. He, however, was unfortunate to miss his hat-trick two minutes from time as his headed effort was stopped by the custodian.

Real Madrid’s England striker Michael Owen has opted to return to the English Premiership with Newcastle United after a return to Liverpool broke down.
   Newcastle said Tuesday Madrid had accepted a club record bid, believed to be 16 million pounds. Newcastle paid Blackburn a club record 15 million pounds for former England captain Alan Shearer in 1996.
   Owen was to undergo a medical later Tuesday before signing a four-year deal, the Newcastle website said.
   ‘Bringing Michael to St James Park will rank alongside the signing of Alan Shearer as my proudest moment at Newcastle United,’ chairman Freddy Shepherd said.
   ‘Newcastle fans love centre-forwards and Michael is a fantastic goalscorer. He’s someone we would love to build the team around and we hope he can help us bring success to the club.’
   Owen wanted to return to his former club Liverpool but they were unwilling to pay more than the 8 million pounds Madrid paid for him last year.
   Newcastle are currently second-bottom of the Premiership without a league goal in four matches and one point out of a possible 12 and will be looking to Owen to kick-start their season.
   He will be unveiled next week after returning from international duty with England who are playing two World Cup qualifiers.
   Owen flew to England for talks with both Liverpool and Newcastle on Monday after being left out of the Real side for Sunday night’s Primera Liga match at Cadiz, where his club won 2-1.
   He had spent most of last season behind Brazil star Ronaldo and club captain Raul in the Madrid pecking order and was pushed further down when Madrid signed Brazil pair Robinho and Julio Baptista in the summer.
   And England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson told him that if he was unable to get first-team football then his place in the England squad for the 2006 World Cup would be in doubt.
   So the 25-year-old agreed his future lay with Newcastle.
   Meanwhile, Real Madrid confirmed Tuesday they had agreed a deal with Newcastle for England striker Michael Owen.
   But the Spanish giants, who paid Liverpool 8 million pounds for the player last year, did not confirm the transfer fee.

Bank Alfalah Limited, a Dubai-based bank which began its operation in Bangladesh recently, has promised to sponsor Bangladesh’s cricket in future as part of their commitment to the game globally.
   The promise was made at a press conference at a city hotel on Tuesday organised in connection with the Bangladesh-Sri Lanka one-day and Test series that starts today at the Sinhalese Sports Club ground in Colombo with the first one-dayer. The bank is the title sponsor of the series.
   Executive in-charge of the bank Parvez A Shahid and country manger of the bank Majedur Rahman spoke at the press conference where the BCB general secretary Mahbubul Anam and senior vice president Aziz Al Kaiser were also present.

Ricky Ponting has repeated his criticism of England’s continued use of substitute fielders in the Ashes series despite his fine in the fourth Test.
   The Aussie skipper was docked 75 per cent of his match fee for an angry outburst after he was run out by Gary Pratt.
   Ponting later apologised for his actions but stuck to his guns in a fierce attack on England’s policy.
   ‘I think it’s an absolute disgrace the spirit of the game is being treated like that,’ he told Australian radio.
   ‘It is within the rules, it’s just not within the spirit of the game.’
   Durham’s Pratt was on the field to replace the injured bowler Simon Jones, but Ponting feels England have manipulated the current International Cricket Council regulations to their own advantage.

Real Madrid director of football Arrigo Sacchi said on Tuesday that he was sorry to see England striker Michael Owen leave the club after just 12 months to join Newcastle United.
   ‘We are upset because we have lost a great professional, a top-class player and someone who was always very positive,’ the Italian told Real Madrid’s website.
   ‘Real Madrid were happy with him and we would like to thank him for everything he has done here and wish him the very best in the future.
   ‘He asked us if he could leave because it is a World Cup year and he wasn’t going to play here regularly. We didn’t want to loan him out and it was only when a big offer was made did that we accepted the idea of selling him.
   ‘We’ve certainly lost something with his departure, but you can’t keep a player who wants to leave and especially one has got such clear reasons. He is one of the best strikers in the world and here we have Robinho, Guti, Raul and Ronaldo and he wasn’t going to play much.’
   Real Madrid defender Ivan Helguera said he was also disappointed to see Owen leave.
   ‘He was a great team mate, a very good person and an excellent player,’ the centre-back told a news conference at Real Madrid’s training ground in Las Rozas.
   ‘It’s a shame that he’s gone because we thought a lot of him. He did a lot for Real Madrid despite the fact that he was given few minutes on the pitch and last season he made a big difference to the team.’
   Although Owen did not win the immediate confidence of any of the three coaches in charge of Real last season, he scored vital winning goals against Valencia in the Primera Liga, Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League and Leganes in the Cup before the end of the year.
   It was not until the latter stages of the season, though, that he was rewarded with a regular place in the starting line-up.
   The former European Footballer of the Year ended the season with 16 goals in all competitions and was the club’s second highest scorer behind Ronaldo.
   Real’s signing Brazilian forwards Robinho and Julio Baptista in the close season, however, pushed him down the pecking order.

Ronaldo reported to police on Monday and denied any link to a suspected drug trafficker who cited the Brazil and Real Madrid star in a conversation secretly taped by police.
   Ronaldo, who will play for Brazil on Sunday in a World Cup qualifier against Chile, was mentioned in a taped conversation by Amon Lemos, the brother of Ronaldo’s former girlfriend Livia Lemos. In the tape, Amon Lemos refers to a party in which Ronaldo allegedly consumed drugs.
   Ronaldo did not speak to reporters, but earlier denied he used drugs or had close contact with Lemos.
   ‘People use your name for their own purposes, trying to get some advantage,’ he said in a TV interview on Aug. 20.
   Ronaldo arrived on Monday from Spain and voluntarily reported to the police Drug Repression Unit in Niteroi, Rio’s sister city across Guanabara Bay.
   Police inspector Luiz Marcelo Xavier, the head of the drug unit, said Ronaldo was not facing charges and had voluntarily spoken to police as a witness.
   ‘Amon was trying to improve his standing with the gang and used his contact with the player for his own benefit,’ Xavier said in a televised interview.
   The tapes led to the arrest of Lemos and other accused members of a gang suspected of using the Internet to sell Ecstasy, a hallucinogen popular with Brazil’s middle class.
   Ronaldo, who scored a goal in Real Madrid’s 2-1 victory over Cadiz in their season-opener on Sunday, arrived in Brazil early Monday with Real team-mates Robinho and Julio Baptista, also members of the Brazil national squad.
   Ronaldo was to report on Tuesday to the team’s training camp in Petropolis, a mountain city 35 miles (60 kilometers) north of Rio.

New Zealand have joined the Twenty20 bandwagon by introducing a tournament for the 2005-06 domestic season.
   Martin Snedden, the New Zealand Cricket chief executive, announced the schedule today and said the competition would be used to gauge its popularity after successful trials in England and South Africa.
   The Twenty20 tournament will involve two pools of three teams playing a home and away game before the top qualifiers contest the final on February 6.
   ‘There was a lot of interest in the international Twenty20 against Australia earlier this year and with the availability of the New Zealand players for the state teams we anticipate high interest,' Snedden said.
   New Zealand face a relatively quiet international summer with visits from Sri Lanka and Australia for one-day series and a Test and limited-overs tour from West Indies in February and March.

Premiere, Germany's only pay-television channel, said Tuesday it had acquired exclusive broadcasting rights-for both free-to-air and pay TV-for matches in the UEFA Champions League over the next three years.
   Financial details were not disclosed, but industry sources estimated Premiere was paying around 200 million euros (244 million dollars) for all the live rights for UEFA Champions League matches for the 2006-2007, 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 seasons.
   Premiere, currently only active in pay-TV, said it had guaranteed to UEFA that it would broadcast 13 games each season 'live on a free-to-air channel to be owned or controlled by Premiere'.
   Premiere has previously signalled its desire to move into free TV, but not provided any details so far.
   If failed to fulfil that particular clause of the contract, UEFA would reserve the right to re-sell the broadcasting rights to another channel.
   So far, Premiere has shared the rights to the Champions League with SAT1, the free-to-air broadcaster owned by private television group ProSiebenSAT1.
   A spokeswoman for SAT1 said it was a 'shame' that Premiere had secured the exclusive rights, 'but we're not dependent on footfall for our viewing audience.'
   Nevertheless, the deal was bad news for the consumer, spokeswoman Kristina Fassler said.
   Elsewhere in Europe, Champions League matches are broadcast on both pay and free-TV.
   Premiere currently has some 3.3 million subscribers in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. It went public earlier this year, promising to increase that number to seven million by 2011-2014 on its soccer coverage.

Top spinner Muttiah Muralitharan, preparing for Sri Lanka’s three one-day internationals against Bangladesh, said on Tuesday he was unable to grasp the new one-day rule regarding substitute players.
   ‘The concept is interesting but it is confusing as well,’ Muralitharan said ahead of Wednesday’s first match at the Sinhalese sports club.
   This is the first time Sri Lanka and Bangladesh will play under the new experimental rule which allows teams to utilise a substitute player – named before the toss – for batting or bowling.
   Muralitharan got a taste of the new rule while representing Asia against Africa in a three-match series in South Africa earlier this month.
   ‘The advantage varies from who is batting first and who is batting second and then you don’t have the choice of putting whoever you want,’ said the off-spinner, who has 380 wickets from 245 one-dayers.
   ‘We need to play more games to get a full understanding how it will work.’
   Bangladesh captain Habibul Bashar lent his name to growing calls that the super-sub, as the substitute player is called, should be named after the toss.
   ‘I think if the teams are allowed to pick the side after the toss, it will be helpful as we can pick the super-sub according to the requirements whether we bat or bowl,’ Bashar said. Sri Lanka’s coach Tom Moody, however, felt that teams can still bend the system to their advantage.
   ‘It can be confusing if we look too deep into it,’ said Moody. ‘But if you simply take a look at it you can make use of it for your advantage.’ The new soccer-style rule, to be tried out till April, permits teams to replace a player at any stage of a one-day match.

Svetlana Kuznetsova’s reign as US Open champion ended unceremoniously on Monday, the first time in the Open era that the women’s defending champion was knocked out in the first round.
   Fellow Russian Ekaterina Bychkova, ranked 97th in the world, shocked the fifth-seeded Kuznetsova 6-3, 6-2 to reach the second round in her first Grand Slam appearance.
   Kuznetsova has struggled this season in the wake of her Grand Slam breakthrough last year. She hasn’t won a title in 2005, managing only quarter-final appearances at the Australian Open and Wimbledon.
   Kuznetsova didn’t blame the back injury that has hindered her in recent weeks, but she did feel the lack of matches may have hurt her.
   Compatriot Maria Sharapova, the top seed who advanced with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Greece’s Eleni Daniilidou, said it is difficult coping with the demands of sudden Grand Slam success.
   While Sharapova is trying to add a second Grand Slam title to her collection here, she has managed a relatively steady season with three titles to her credit.
   A strained chest muscle sidelined her in the weeks leading up to the Open, but she showed no ill effects against Daniilidou.
   Sharapova, who surrendered the world number one ranking to second seeded American Lindsay Davenport after just a week on Monday, led a string of women’s seeds into the second round, including Serena and Venus Williams, Belgian Kim Clijsters, and Russian Nadia Petrova.
   Clijsters, the fourth seed, continued the form that saw her win three of her last four starts in the build-up to the Open, dispatched German qualifier Martina Muller 6-1, 6-2.
   Serena Williams, the Australian Open champion and eighth seed, showed a little rust after her own injury layoff but emerged with a 6-1, 6-3 victory over 16-year-old Taiwanese qualifier Chan Yung-Ja.
   Williams, a two-time champion here, trailed 3-1 in the second but pulled herself together to win the last five games and take the match.
   She stayed on course for a fourth-round clash with her sister Venus, who reversed her Grand Slam fortunes with a triumph at Wimbledon this year.
   Venus Williams, the 10th seed, defeated Rika Fujiwara of Japan 6-3, 6-1. And despite missing some court time since with flu symptoms Williams said she was still energised by that triumph, which marked the first time she had moved beyond the quarter-finals at a Grand Slam since 2003.
   On the men’s side, 35-year-old two-time champion Andre Agassi and 19-year-old second seed Rafael Nadal advanced with straight-set wins.
   Agassi, who headlined the opening night session, cruised past Romanian Razvan Sabau 6-3, 6-3, 6-1, seeming a bit surprised to have it over with in just 69 minutes.
   The speedy victory was good news for the US veteran, who has been managing a troublesome sciatic nerve that has seen him forego tournaments rather than play below his best.
   Fourth seed Guillermo Coria cruised to a straight-set win over Felix Mantilla in his first US Open appearance since 2003 and 10th-seeded Mariano Puerta of Argentina defeated Israeli Noam Okun in four sets.
   American wild card Brian Baker posted the biggest early upset on the men’s side, ousting ninth-seeded Argentinian Gaston Gaudio 7-6 (11/9), 6-2, 6-4.

Progress towards a revised schedule for international cricket took a step forward following the conclusion of the ICC Chief Executives’ Committee (CEC) meeting at the new ICC offices in Dubai.
   A special scheduling summit was followed by a meeting of the CEC which enabled all of the ICC full member countries and associate member representatives to consider the implications of a move from a five-year programme to a six-year cycle of international cricket.
   Malcolm Speed, the ICC’s chief executive, said that the gathering of all those responsible for the scheduling of international cricket was critical to the effective completion of this complex task. ‘We have worked through initial drafts and all of the countries will now be given an opportunity to comment on a revised six-year plan. There is still plenty of work to be done but this was an important part of the process,’ he said. ‘Once we have received comments from the countries the matter will be considered by the ICC board at its next meeting in Australia in October.’
   As well as consideration of scheduling issues, the CEC discussed a range of other issues during the meeting.
   Super Series
   The on-field umpires will be able to ask the third umpire for help on a greater number of decisions during the Super Series one-day internationals and Test match. Run-outs and stumpings will be referred in the normal way to the TV umpire with the TV umpire making the final decision. For all other decisions the on-field umpires will have the discretion to consult with the TV umpire before making the final decision. The CEC confirmed that the only exception to this would be clean catches where the current principle that the on-field umpires should only consult the TV umpire when both on-field umpires are unsighted should apply.
   The meeting also approved the playing conditions for the Super Series, confirming that the trial ODI innovations concerning replacement players and fielding restrictions would apply. It has been decided that the Super Series matches will be officiated by the top four members of the elite panel of ICC umpires. Officials from Australia will be permitted to undertake on-field duties in the matches but no two umpires from the same country will be able to stand together in the same match.
   ICC U-19 Cricket World Cup
   The CEC approved the competition dates for the next Under-19 World Cup. Sixteen teams will contest the event in Sri Lanka from February 5 to 19, 2006.
   Twenty20 Cricket
   Discussions on the role of Twenty20 cricket in the international arena led to an agreement that ICC management should conduct an investigation and evaluation of a range of scenarios in relation to this particular format. A report will be compiled for consideration by the ICC board.
   Commonwealth Games
   The CEC reviewed a proposal from the organisers of the Commonwealth Games in India in 2010. The matter has been referred to the ICC board for further consideration at its meeting in October.
   Use of substitutes
   The issue of the use of substitutes in international cricket was raised during the meeting. In seeking to clarify the role of the 12th man, the ICC has committed to raising this issue with all full member captains and elite panel umpires during forthcoming meetings with both groups scheduled for October.

A few years ago, Matthew Hoggard, then the world’s worst Test batsman, found himself in a bizarre situation, padded up in Geoff Boycott’s living room being taught how to play the forward defensive.
   Boycott, a fellow Yorkshireman and former England opening batsman with an exemplary technique, had become so exasperated at watching Hoggard’s cack-handed attempts at batting that he invited him over to provide him with some basic building blocks.
   ‘If I was on 99 and at the other end and you got out, I’d hit you with my bat,’ Boycott had told his pupil.
   Put it down to Boycott or Hoggard, but the swing bowler’s efforts in his non-specialist subject have improved markedly since.
   Born and bred a number 11, he would probably have batted at 12 in his early years if England could have got away with it.
   Gradually, though, he turned into a competent night watchman, albeit one with no strokes to speak of, apart from that forward barn-door block learned from Boycott.
   On Sunday evening at Trent Bridge, England’s Ashes challenge hung by a thread.
   Shane Warne and Brett Lee had torn out their entire specialist batting to reduce the hosts to 116 for seven in the fourth Test. Thirteen more runs were needed for England to go 2-1 up in the series. Simon Jones, last man in, could barely walk because of an injured ankle.
   The thatch-haired Hoggard trudged out to the middle to join Ashley Giles.
   ‘Come on, let’s you and me get it done,’ grinned Hoggard.
   Was Giles happy to see Hoggard?
   ‘Reasonably,’ said Giles later through a weak smile. But he feared the worst.
   ‘All sorts of things go through your head: ‘This can’t be happening to us, we don’t deserve this, we have played some great cricket’.
   ‘I told Hoggy, ‘It’s reversing at about 95mph.’ I thought it was best that he knew.’
   Hoggard, though, was happy to be out in the middle.
   ‘It was very nervous in the dressing room. When Ashley went in, he was bricking it and I wasn’t far behind him, but as soon as you stepped over the line it was almost surreal.
   ‘Everything seemed to slow down, everything seemed calm. I was happy to be there, not watching on the balcony, it felt like it was in our own hands.’
   One thing was not slowing down, though.
   Lee’s delivery to dismiss Andrew Flintoff had cut back off the pitch and clipped the top of off stump before the all-rounder could move a muscle. Flintoff’s return to the pavilion seemed to spell disaster, even to coach Duncan Fletcher.
   ‘When he went I was a bit doubtful,’ Fletcher conceded. ‘I thought, “This could be a bit tricky”.’
   Lee tried to get rid of Hoggard with an in-swinger. Hoggard, perhaps not quite Boycott-esque, thrust his front foot down the wicket and the entire Australian team went up for lbw.
   ‘There wasn’t a lot of banter but Ricky Ponting asked me if I had hit it,’ recalled Hoggard.
   ‘I said I thought I had but I didn’t really have a clue. I have my eyes shut when Brett Lee bowls at that speed.’
   Moments later, Lee tried a yorker but over-pitched. Down came the Hoggard pad again.
   Then, for the first time anyone could remember, something strange happened. With a nano-second of thinking time, Hoggard decided to drive rather than block. Down came his bat and the ball sped to the extra cover boundary. Trent Bridge’s 16,000 capacity crowd exploded in relief.
   Moments later, Giles clipped the winning runs.
   It was Hoggard’s contribution, though, his eight runs and that one shot, which stayed in the memory.
   ‘I have been called the world’s most boring batsman so it was nice to score a few runs,’ he said. ‘Normally it takes me a session and a half to score eight.’
   Giles added, ‘I don’t think Hoggy will hit a more important cover drive in his career.’
   England head for The Oval on September 8 needing just a draw to win the Ashes for the first time since 1986-87.
   If they succeed, Hoggard’s boundary will probably find its place in cricket mythology.
   No one seems to know where that unprecedented shot came from, Fletcher least of all. Hoggard, he said, had been a ‘genuine number 11’ when he began.
   ‘You tell players there will be a game when all the hard work is worth it,’ he said, in search of answers.
   The shot came from deep within Hoggard. Perhaps it had been lying hidden for years, waiting for its moment.
   Probably its true origins can be traced back directly to a Yorkshire living room.

Flying start for Dholairpar
Defending champions Dholairpar High School made a flying start in the Pran Cola 2nd Metropolis School Football tournament with a massive 7-1 victory over Armanitola Govt High School in the zone-2 match at Kamalapur stadium Tuesday. Faisal Hossain scored a hat-trick, Rubel struck twice and Imon and Asif netted one goal each for the winners. Afsar struck the consolation goal for the losers. In another zone-2 match at the same venue, Dhaka Collegiate Govt High School recorded a solitary goal victory over Siddheshwari High School with Nahid scoring the all-important goal. In the zone-1 matches at the Brothers Union ground in Gopibagh, Khilgaon Govt High School outplayed Wari High School by 6-1 goals after dominating the first half 4-0. Apart from the Junaet hat-trick, Faisal struck twice and Ismail scored one for the winners. Shahadat netted the lone goal for the losers. Ali Ahad High School recorded a lone-goal win over Mannan High School with Parvez scoring the match-winner in the first half.
— BD News

Narinda Progati beat Mariners
Narinda Progati Boys Club registered a 31-14 victory over Dhaka Mariners Youngs Club in the Cute Premier Division Handball League at the outer stadium handball court Tuesday. Rajon and Mizan scored seven goals eachfor the winners. Ripon scored five goals for the losers. Amzad of Narinda Progati Boys was adjudged the best player of the match.
— BD News

Narinda beat Mariner
Narinda Pragati Boys’ Club beat Dhaka Mariner Youngs Club by 31-14 goals in the Cute Premier Division Handball League at the outer stadium handball court on Tuesday. The winners led the first half 13-8. Rajan and Mizan struck seven goals each for the winners while Ripon scored five and Nayan netted three goals for the losing
side.
— New Age

Messi stars on Diego talk-show
Barcelona whizkid Lionel Messi was a guest of Diego Maradona’s new talk-show in Argentina on Monday night. The Argentine teenager is already being compared with Maradona and the former Barca and Napoli star was anxious to have Messi on his show. Also guests on the night were former Uruguay international Enzo Francescoli and the singer Natalia Oreiro.
— SPORTINGLIFE

Slater calls for Hayden dumping
‘The time has come for Australia to drop Matthew Hayden,’ according to Michael Slater. Hayden, who hasn’t made a century since July 2004, still has the confidence of Ricky Ponting, but Slater, his former opening partner, said it was time for change with the Ashes at stake. ‘He’s struggled to make runs all series, as he did in 2001 in English conditions,’ Slater said in the Courier-Mail. ‘In truth, he has been out of form for 12 months.’ After struggling in the past three Tests, Australia have received a boost with Glenn McGrath, who missed Trent Bridge with an elbow injury, declaring himself fit for the series-deciding fifth Test starting on September 8. ‘I’ve improved out of sight,’ McGrath said in the Daily Telegraph. ‘Errol Alcott is again weaving his magic. If I don’t quite make the Essex match then I’ll definitely be right for The Oval.’
— CRICINFO