Lalit Modi banned for life by BCCI

CHENNAI: A pariah in Indian cricket for three years now, former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi was on Wednesday slapped with a life ban by the BCCI after its disciplinary committee found him guilty on eight charges of "indiscipline and misconduct".

On a day of high drama, which was marked by legal tug of war between Modi and the BCCI, a special general meeting of the Board took less than half an hour to unanimously impose a life ban on the controversial 49-year-old administrator.

"The BCCI, at its special general meeting on Wednesday considered and discussed the report of the disciplinary committee of the BCCI on the show cause notices issued to Mr. Lalit Kumar Modi, in accordance with Clause 32 (iv) of the Memorandum of Rules and Regulations," the Board said in a statement.

"...Mr. Lalit Modi is guilty of committing acts of serious misconduct and indiscipline, and therefore, in exercise of powers as per Regulation 32 of the Memorandum and Rules and Regulations of the Board, Mr. Lalit Modi be and is hereby expelled from the BCCI.

"He shall forfeit all his rights and privileges as administrator. He shall not in future be entitled to hold any position or office, or be admitted in any committee or any member or associate member of the Board," he added.

Modi, the brain behind the highly successful IPL, made a last-ditch effort to avert the impending sanction by writing a letter to the BCCI members requesting them to refrain from any decision till the matter was sub-judice.

"Not a single member in the meeting supported Modi and the House took a unanimous decision to impose a life ban," a top BCCI official said.

The BCCI disciplinary committee, comprising Arun Jaitley, and Jyotiraditya Scindia, submitted a 134-page report in July in which it had found Modi guilty on eight charges, including financial irregularities, indiscipline and "actions detrimental to the interest of the BCCI."

Wednesday's meeting could take place only after the Delhi high court vacated a lower court stay order and it turned out to be a brief since all the members had already been submitted the disciplinary committee report.

The hearing into the charges against Modi, who is currently based in London claiming a threat to his life in India, started in July 2010 and the disciplinary committee conducted several hearings over a period of two years, none of which were attended by Modi in person.

Modi was suspended under Rule 32(iv) of the Board's constitution on April 25, 2010, seconds after the IPL final held in Mumbai. The Board then slapped three show cause notices on him. He replied to all of them.

Modi's decline started after the 2010 IPL bidding which saw the creation of two new teams -- Pune and Kochi. Modi revealed the ownership details of the Kochi franchise on twitter leading to the resignation of the then Minister of State for foreign affairs Shashi Tharoor.

Modi's act allegedly breached the confidentiality agreements between the Board and the IPL franchises.

Modi was suspended as chairman and commissioner of the IPL in April 2010. A suspension notice and a 34-page letter stating 22 charges of impropriety were served via email to Modi.

He claimed innocence all through, defending himself mostly on twitter and television channels but never appeared in person to face the BCCI committee.

Initially, the three-member disciplinary committee also included BCCI President N Srinivasan but he recused himself and erstwhile IPL chairman Chirayu Amin was made a member.

However, Amin also recused himself and it became a two-member committee.

Ronaldo Nazario da Lima visits Real Madrid City

Ronaldo Nazario da Lima visits Real Madrid City

Sebastian Vettel doesn't get blues from boos

Singapore:  Runaway Formula One leader Sebastian Vettel on Thursday said he'd had to "learn to deal" with booing after fans started to get tired of his incessant winning.

The 26-year-old German, who has won the last three world titles and is on course for a fourth, was greeted by the latest chorus of boos on the podium at this month's Italian Grand Prix.

But Vettel, speaking ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix -- where he has won the last two races -- said fans should remember that Red Bull work hard for their success.

"I think you learn to deal with a situation. Obviously if you look at the fan base we have it's much bigger than two or three years ago so there's plenty of positives as well," he said.

"For sure there's some people that are tired of Red Bull winning, but we're not and we know there's no guarantee. We arrive here, we know we have a strong package but we have to work hard to be at the front.

"From the outside or with hindsight you can say 'ah yeah, they finished on the podium so many times, they won so many races'. But every race was a new challenge, that's the most important bit, that you remember how hard work it was to get there in the first place."

Vettel has won three of the last four races to take this year's championship by the scruff of the neck. He could potentially claim the title as early as next month in Japan.

But his success, reminiscent of Michael Schumacher's five titles in a row from 2000 to 2004, has begun to chafe with some fans, with "Anyone but Vettel" accounts appearing on Facebook and Twitter.

Sourav Ganguly says, Yuvraj Singh has 200 per cent chance to make India return

Kolkata:  Delighted to see Yuvraj Singh get his silken touch back, former India captain Sourav Ganguly on Thursday said the stylish left-handed batsman deserves a comeback into the national team.

"It's really great to see him bat in full flow once again. I'm not surprised that he's back again. He has 200 per cent chance to make a return," Ganguly said. (Read Blog: Yuvraj and the over that changed everything)

The national selectors are slated to meet on September 30 to pick India's squad for the upcoming ODI series against Australia at home.

"The middle-order must have Yuvraj Singh. With due respect to Dinesh Karthik, I think Yuvraj is a more deserving No 4 batsman," Ganguly added.
Under Yuvraj's leadership, India A might have lost the three-match unofficial ODI series against West Indies A 2-1 on Thursday, but Yuvraj made a big statement by scoring a blistering 89-ball 123 in the opening match and then followed it up with 40 and 61 in the remaining games. (Read: Yuvraj Singh's India A concede series against West Indies A)

N.Srinivasan wants to be BCCI chief again

Embattled but defiant nonetheless, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President N Srinivasan on Thursday declared that he will contest for the top post in the upcoming Board elections in Chennai on September 29.

"I am going to stand (for re-election as president). You are press, all of you are giving the numbers (in support and against me)," said Srinivasan after attending BCCI's marketing committee meeting here.

Srinivasan is bidding to get re-elected as the president of the BCCI for the third year running under the Board's two plus one year tenure rule after having completed two years at the helm.

Srinivasan has been under a lot of pressure since the spot-fixing scandal broke out and his son-in-law and Chennai Super Kings Team Principal Gurunath Meiyappan's name cropped up in investigations into betting during the Indian Premier League's sixth season held in April-May.

The Tamil Nadu Cricket Association's president stepped aside in June as the BCCI chief and let former president Jagmohan Dalmiya take over the day-to-day work.

However, he chaired the meeting of the disciplinary committee held in Delhi earlier this month that imposed life bans on cricketers S Sreesanth and Ankeet Chavan following a probe by BCCI's Anti-Corruption and Sceurity Unit chief Ravi Sawani for indulging in spot-fixing in IPL6.

Srinivasan also said the report of south units holding a meeting in southern region Chennai recently was not correct as the media got the venue wrong.

Two units of south zone, Goa and Andhra CA, did not attend the meeting, according to the reports.

"First of all the information is wrong. The meeting did not take place (at the venue) where media is saying," said the BCCI chief.

"I don't know what bearing it has (on the upcoming elections)," he added.

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/n-srinivasan-bcci-chief-shashank-manohar/1/310596.html

Lionel Messi matches Ronaldo's hat-trick

Lionel Messi marked his 80th Champions League match with a hat trick on Wednesday as Barcelona began its campaign in Group H with a 4-0 rout of Ajax.

The Argentina forward opened the scoring at Camp Nou Stadium with a free kick in the 22nd minute, doubled the hosts' advantage in the 55th on the break and, after Gerard Pique's 69th-minute goal, added another 15 minutes from fulltime. The goals took his cumulative tally in the competition to 62 - nine short of Raul Gonzalez's all-time record of 71 goals in 144 appearances.

Messi now stands alone as the only player to have scored a hat trick four times in the tournament.

"From (Frank) Rijkaard until now, the coaches that have come through here, every two or three games they have talked about how surprised they are by him, and I am just one more," said Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino, who will travel to his native Argentina following the death of his father on Tuesday.

Despite some lethargic moments late in the first half, Barcelona eased to the win thanks to Messi's goals and the team's near complete control of possession.

When Ajax did manage to create a scoring opportunity, Valdes was there to keep a clean sheet.

"As the game went on we adapted better as we figured out what to do," said Messi. "We couldn't put pressure on them at the beginning because they read the match perfectly."

AC Milan beat Celtic 2-0 in the night's other Group H game.

True to both teams' well-established playing styles, Barcelona and Ajax kept the ball on the turf. While Ajax was limited to former Barcelona forward Bojan Krkic's sprints down the left side, Barcelona soon focused on Neymar cutting in from the left flank.

But it fell to Messi to get the hosts going after he was fouled while dribbling across the edge of the area following a neat passing combination with Dani Alves.

From that prime spot, Messi sent a left-foot shot off the left post, with the ball beating outstretched goalkeeper Kenneth Vermeer before ricocheting into the far side of the net.

"We know that Messi can always score, and he did," said Ajax coach Frank de Boer, a former Barcelona defender. "His free kick was very good, very fast.

"I can't be happy. When you allow four goals you can't be. But I saw moments that we can build on for the games ahead."

Ricardo van Rhijn almost answered for Ajax in the 31st when Bojan picked him out with a cross, only for Valdes to smother his header.

The home crowd became nervous near the end of the first half, and Barcelona apparently took note by showing the defensive pressure Martino had said was his top priority to restore after the break.

The increased intensity paid off when Barcelona recovered the ball and Sergio Busquets spotted Messi running unmarked down the right side. Messi took his pass, cut back to bring Stefano Denswil to the ground and used his left foot to score.

Neymar, in his European debut, set up Gerard Pique to add Barcelona's third goal with a long cross.

Ajax lost possession near its area and Xavi Hernandez laid the ball off for Messi to take his time before driving it between a pair of defenders and into the corner of the net for his third goal.

Valdes had his moment of glory one minute later in the 76th when he blocked Kolbeinn Sigthorsson's penalty after Javier Mascherano fouled Thulani Serero in the box.

"We played a better second half," said Martino. "We were more comfortable than in the first and took control of the game. It was a good performance, not as brilliant as the 4-0 looks, but we won it fairly.

"Barcelona is full of individual talents. Today we can talk about Messi and Valdes, another day Xavi or Neymar. It is normal that one of them rises to the occasion."

Ajax's defeat was its ninth consecutive loss to a Spanish opponent. Ajax's last victory in Spain dates back even farther to the 1996-97 season when De Boer helped the Dutch team win at Atletico Madrid.

The two four-time champions had never met before in Europe's top-tier competition. Even so, fewer teams from different countries have stronger ties.

Dutch great Johan Cruyff led Ajax to three straight European titles from 1971-73 as a player before moving to Barcelona, where he would later return as a coach to guide it to its first European title in 1992

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/lionel-messi-hat-trick-barcelona-beat-ajax-4-0-champions-league-group-h-match-cristiano-ronaldo/1/310590.html

Chelsea lost the Champions League group stage opener for the first time

After the euphoric return, reality is biting for Jose Mourinho, and the Chelsea homecoming is quickly going sour.

Having already presided over the worst Premier League start in Roman Abramovich's decade as owner, Mourinho is now reeling from the London club losing its Champions League group stage opener for the first time.

Swiss champion Basel had never won a game in England until coming from behind on Wednesday at Stamford Bridge to beat Chelsea 2-1 in Group E.

The winner came in the 82nd minute after Marco Streller seized on slack defense at the near post to meet a corner and flick a header past goalkeeper Petr Cech.

"I am responsible for everything," Mourinho said. "Especially after a bad result."

Although Oscar lit up a drab start by curling Chelsea in front before half time, the 2012 European Cup winners and reigning Europa League champions missed a succession of chances to extend their lead after the break.

And Basel, which beat Manchester United in the 2011-12 group stage, made Chelsea pay for its wastefulness when Mohamed Salah began the comeback in the 71st by bending in the equalizer.

Streller then inflicted the loss that came exactly six years after Mourinho's first three-year Chelsea reign was ended by Abramovich following a drab Champions League draw against Rosenborg.

This was even more embarrassing for the west London club.

Not since October 2003, when Claudio Ranieri was in charge at the start of Abramovich's ownership, had Chelsea even lost a game in the group stage.

"We go home sad," said Mourinho, who wants to avoid Chelsea dropping into the Europa League to defend its title.

This setback comes with Chelsea already three points off the Premier League lead after four games, having opened with two wins, a draw and a loss to sit in sixth place.

"We still believe in each other," Mourinho said. "We need to keep together, stick together and try against Fulham (on Saturday) to get the result to wake up the team for a smile."

The shock win drew acclaim from Basel's famous fans.

"Fantastic evening for Basel supporters, wow!" tennis great Roger Federer wrote on Twitter. "I am so happy, thanks FC_Basel."

The win ended Chelsea's 13-match unbeaten home run in European competitions.

"Winning here at Chelsea against a manager like Mourinho is a great achievement," Basel coach Murat Yakin said through a translator. "But I've spoken with my players and we have to remain modest ... there is a lot ahead of us still."

Basel is only off top spot in Group E because Schalke beat Steaua Bucharest 3-0.

Winning European football elite competition remains the obsession at Stamford Bridge despite the Champions League finally being won under former coach Roberto Di Matteo in 2012.

Against Basel, there was no Fernando Torres in the starting lineup or even on the bench, and Demba Ba only came on in the second half with the teams locked at 1-1.

Instead, Samuel Eto'o, recently signed from Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala, led the attack.

But the Cameroon striker, a four-time African player of the year and the world's best-paid star while at Anzhi, couldn't even muster a shot on goal.

"Samuel maybe lacked sharpness and this doesn't surprise really when you are some years in a place that doesn't motivate you and you are out of the big stage, maybe you're there not for the right reasons and you lose hunger and appetite," Mourinho said. "Now he has that back, he has that motivation."

Chelsea's breakthrough instead came from Oscar in the 45th minute, with David Luiz, who had concerned Mourinho with his sloppiness in defense, bringing the ball forward.

The Brazil center back fed Frank Lampard and Oscar connected with a throughball before striking low past goalkeeper Yann Sommer.

After an insipid first half - the type of performance fans jeered during Rafa Benitez's interim reign last year - Chelsea discovered some spark after the break.

But, first the cross bar denied Oscar and, when he tried to curl a shot into the net from a similar position outside of the area, the ball went wide.

The pressure was increasing, but a second goal proved elusive.

A towering header from Branislav Ivanovic was saved by Sommer at close range and the defender saw another header from a free kick nodded clear.

The game really came to life when Basel finally found its stride to stun the hosts.

Slick build-up play allowed Marco Strelle set up Salah to curl in the leveler from the edge of the area.

Then, Chelsea defenders left Streller in space to meet Kay Voser's corner at the near post and compound the early anxieties for Chelsea at the start of a season that promised so much with the morale-boosting return of Mourinho.

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/jose-mourinho-basel-beat-chelsea-champions-league-opener-group-e-stamford-bridge/1/310601.html