BCB President’s Cup final rescheduled for Sunday
The final of the BCB President’s Cup between Mahmudullah XI and Najmul XI, originally scheduled for Friday, has been shifted to Sunday due to inclement weather.
The decision has been taken considering the inclement weather forecast over the next couple of days.
BCB CEO Nizam Uddin Chowdhury said: “This has been a very well-received tournament so far and we want to finish it in a befitting manner.
“The weather prediction is not favourable in the next two days and therefore, the final has been rescheduled for next Sunday to give every opportunity of holding a full-time game.”
The final will start at 1:30pm (local time) on Sunday with Monday being a reserved day.
Source: UNB
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Paul Pogba banned for four years for doping
Former Manchester United star Paul Pogba was provisionally suspended in September for testing positive for testosterone.
France and Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba says he will try to clear his name after he was handed a four-year doping ban.
The France international was provisionally suspended by a tribunal of Italy’s national anti-doping organisation (NADO Italia) in September after testing positive for DHEA – a banned substance which naturally raises levels of testosterone.
The 30-year-old Pogba, who has a contract at Juventus until June 2026, denied any wrongdoing.
“I am sad, shocked and heartbroken that everything I have built in my professional playing career has been taken away from me,” Pogba said in a statement on Thursday.
“As a professional athlete I would never do anything to enhance my performance by using banned substances and have never disrespected or cheated fellow athletes and supporters of any of the teams I have played for, or against.
“As a consequence of the decision announced today I will appeal this before the Court of Arbitration for Sport,” he added, referring to sport’s highest court.
Juventus did not comment but a source confirmed that the club had been notified about the decision of a four-year ban and would assess the next steps.
The Frenchman has had a torrid second spell with the Turin-based outfit due to injuries following his departure from Manchester United on a free transfer in 2022.
The 2018 World Cup winner barely played last season due to knee and hamstring injuries, as well as knee surgery, which prevented him playing for France at the World Cup in Qatar.
Source: Aljazeera
Barisal clinch first BPL crown
A stellar allround performance of Kyle Mayers helped Fortune Barishal outclass Cumilla Victorians by six wickets and in doing so sealed its first Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) T20 title at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium today.
Mayers bowled with utmost brilliance to take one wicket before hitting a match-winning 30 ball-46 as Fortune Barishal reached 157-4 for an effortless victory overhauling Cumilla's moderate 154-6 with one over to spare.
His performance was key in inflicting Cumilla its first defeat in the final as they were seeking their hat-trick and fifth title.
The fate of the match was almost sealed when Barishal's captain Tamim Iqbal won the toss. With Mirpur always assisting the team bowling first, Barishal got the psychological edge when coin favoured them.
Barishal which finished at third in the group phase won all three knock out matches to win the trophy, a feat that made their title victory even sweeter one. In every knock matches, they won the toss and put the opponents into bat first.
But credit should go to their bowlers also as they came up all guns blazing against a much-vaunted batting line up of Cumilla to restrict them to a total, which looked achievable with ease.
The highest score of Comilla came from the willow of Mahidul Islam Ankan who made 38 off 35 with two fours and two sixes.
Kyle Mayers gave the side a breakthrough, dismissing Sunil Narine (5) in the first over and bowled with tight line and length to finish at 1-26 in four overs.
James Fuller who claimed 2-43, removed Towhid Hridoy (15) and captain Liton Das (16) in his consecutive overs to leave Comilla 42-3 in the first power-play and from then on it all looked gloomy for the most successful team of the BPL history.
Obed McCoy further dented Cumilla, getting rid of Johnson Charles after he made 15.
The situation was further compounded when Moeen Ali was run out for 3 after a mix-up with Ankon.
However Ankon and Jaker Ali Anik put on 36 for the sixth wicket, the highest partnership for Comilla before the former was dismissed by Mohammad Saifuddin.
Andre Russell then bludgeoned the Barishal bowlers impeccably to help the side propel past 150-run mark.
With 147-6, Comilla were looking for Russell to final flourish in the last over. But Saifuddin bowled a magnificent last over, denying Russell any big hit. No boundary was conceded in that over, as Saifuddin gave away just seven runs.
Russell finally was not out on 27 off 14, hitting four sixes.
Captain Tamim Iqbal and Mehidy Hasan Miraz put on 76 in just eight overs to make the chase a cake-walk but Moeen Ali (2-28) removed both of them in his consecutive overs, with Tamim striking 26 ball-39, with three fours and as many sixes while Miraz making 26 ball-29.
Those two wickets seemed to change the mood in Cumilla tent as their bowlers came up with more resolve. However the fielders Jaker Ali Anik and Johnson Charles put down two catches of Mayers in the bowling of Moeen Ali.
Those misses proved to be too costly as Mayers, recovered from the shaky start to come up with all out attack on the bowlers.
He smote five fours and two sixes for his knock which edged the side closer to the victory. As Mustafizur Rahman denied him a half-century, Barishal were just 14-run away.
Mustafizur (2-31) then got the better of Mushfiqur Rahim after he scored 13 but veteran David Miller (8*) slashed Mustafizur through the cover for a boundary to bring up the victory with six balls being unused.
Veteran Mahmudullah Riyad was on the other end with 7 not out. Though his and another seasoned campaigner Mushfiqur Rahim's contribution was not big one, both of them got the opportunity to put a hand on the prestigious trophy for the first time in their long career.
Source: BSS
Aussie de Minaur repeats as ATP Acapulco champion
Australia's Alex de Minaur won his second consecutive ATP Mexican Open title on Saturday, defeating Norway's Casper Ruud 6-4, 6-4 in the final at Acapulco.
The 25-year-old from Sydney captured his eighth career ATP title after dropping four straight finals since downing American Tommy Paul in last year's final, the most recent last month at Rotterdam.
World number nine de Minaur, a two-time winner also at Atlanta, dispatched 11th-ranked Ruud after one hour and 57 minutes, improving to 2-0 against his European foe after winning their only prior meeting at the 2019 ATP NextGen Finals.
Ruud, a two-time French Open runner-up and the 2022 US Open runner-up, missed out on his 11th ATP title for the second week in a row after dropping last week's final at Los Cabos to another Aussie, Jordan Thompson.
Ruud's most recent ATP crown came last April at Estoril.
The players exchanged praise after the match, Ruud telling de Minaur: "Fantastic playing all week. Too good today. Seems like you are enjoying Acapulco quite well. You did a great job."
De Minaur replied, "Great stuff. It was hard work. Thank you for a great match."
Source: BSS
FIFA issues notice to Argentine club over Jamal's allegations
Last year, Bangladesh national team's captain Jamal Bhuiyan signed an official contract with Argentine Club social y Deportivo Sol De Mayo which is a third division football club of Argentina.
Jamal was warmly welcomed by the Argentine team as the first Bangladeshi footballer. But this time the national team's captain has complained to FIFA against the club.
Jamal's contract with Sol De Mayo was for one and a half seasons. Jamal has already played half a season for the team. According to the contract, the Bangladesh captain was supposed to get $ 12,000 per month. Jamal's notice to FIFA states that he has not received a month's salary from Sol de Mayo!
Sam Kerr pleads not guilty to 'racially aggravated offence'
Australia and Chelsea star Sam Kerr, one of the best known players in women's football, is said to have been involved in a dispute with a police officer in January.
Australian football star Sam Kerr pleaded not guilty to a "racially aggravated offense" relating to an incident in the United Kingdom.
The 30-year-old striker, who plays her club football for Chelsea, was allegedly involved in a dispute with a police officer in January 2023, London's Metropolitan Police said.
What do we know about the Sam Kerr incident?
The alleged offense occurred while a police officer was responding to a "complaint involving a taxi fare."
According to a police statement, Kerr pleaded not guilty at Kingston Crown Court on Monday after being charged in January. She is only due back in court next year.
Football Australia said it was aware of the legal proceedings, adding: "As this is an ongoing legal matter, we are unable to provide further comment at this time.
"Our focus remains on supporting all our players, both on and off the field. We will continue to monitor the situation and provide support as appropriate."
Sam Kerr — one of the biggest names in women's football
The Matildas captain has been sidelined since January after rupturing her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) during a mid-season training camp in Morocco and is a doubt for the Paris Olympics, which begins in July.
Known for her pace, agility and being lethal in front of goal, having netted 99 goals in 128 games for Women's Super League (WSL) side Chelsea, Kerr was the face of Australia's campaign during last summer's home World Cup.
The 30-year-old has lucrative endorsement deals with the likes of Nike and Mastercard and last year was on the cover of the FIFA video game alongside French superstar Kylian Mbappe.
Bangladesh storm into SAFF U-16 final
Bangladesh beat strong India by 3-1 goals in their second match to confirm their spot of final at the SAFF U-16 Women's Championship held today (Tuesday) at ANFA Complex in Kathmandu, Nepal.
With the day's win, Bangladesh reached top of the table with six points and they will play their ultimate league match against Bhutan on Friday (March 8).
Four teams are participating in round-robin league system tournament. The top two teams will play the final. With the day's successive victory in the tournament, Bangladesh reached top of the table with six points.
Nepal and India have three points each. Bhutan crashed out of the tournament after losing their two matches. The winners' between Nepal and India match will be the partner of Bangladesh in the final which will be held on March 10. If the match produces draw result, then there will be another calculation. Bangladesh-Bhutan match will be held just to maintain a formality on March 8 at the same venue.
In the first half of the match, Bangladesh took the lead through a goal by Alpi Akter in the 9th minute.
India however staged a brilliant fight back in the match when Anushka Kumari restored the parity with a shot from the right corner of the box in the 55th minute.
Bangladesh were desperately looking for a lead again and their best moment came in the 78th minute when Sauravi Akanda Prity scored the second goal with a perfect placing shot from the D-box and Arpita Biswas sealed the victory scoring the third goal for Bangladesh from a goal-mouth melee.
Earlier, Bangladesh made winning start in the tournament beating Nepal by 2-0 goals while India thrashed Bhutan by 7-0 goals in their opening match.
Source: BSS
Emma Raducanu: Briton 'not too concerned' about tournament result
Emma Raducanu says she is "not too concerned" about tournament results, as the priority this year is to develop her game.
The 21-year-old has won three matches in the four tournaments she has played since returning from an eight-month absence from the tour through injury.
She will play qualifier Rebeka Masarova in the first round at Indian Wells on Thursday.
"I want to work on becoming a better tennis player," Raducanu said.
"I think for me I'm not too concerned about this year's tournaments.
"A lot of people out there would say that I need matches, but I think that for me I want to work on my game and development.
"Taking time to do that is very necessary and not just following the crowd, or playing a lot of matches, or dropping down [to Challenger level] to do that. I want to work on developing skills," she told BBC Sport in Southern California.
Raducanu played her best tennis of 2023 in Indian Wells, reaching the fourth round having found out just before the tournament began that she was likely to need surgery on both her wrists.
"It's just a bit of a journey for me, I would say, you don't really know what to expect after being out for eight months," she continued.
"I felt like because I was so go-go-go since December, I felt like I became a little fatigued, so it was good to go back, freshen up and practise for the American swing, which I'm a big fan of."
Raducanu also told BBC Sport she is likely to play in Great Britain's Billie Jean King Cup qualifying tie in France in April, if selected by captain Anne Keothavong.
"I don't know if I'll get the call-up," she said.
"But if she asks me to, I think it makes sense because it's before [the WTA tournament in] Stuttgart [which is also] on indoor clay."
British number one Katie Boulter has had little time to prepare for Wednesday's first-round match against Italian Camila Giorgi, having won her second WTA title in San Diego on Sunday.
"I think emotionally and physically there's always going to be a little bit of wear and tear after a week like that. I've only ever played in qualifying here, I've never played main draw," Boulter explained.
The top 32 players in the world receive a bye into the second round, but world number 27 Boulter is having to play a first-round match as the seedings are based on last week's rankings.
British men's number one Cameron Norrie does have a bye into the second round and will not play until Saturday. But Jack Draper, Andy Murray and Dan Evans are all in first-round action, with Draper and Murray playing on Wednesday.
Draper has had little time to recover from a bout of food poisoning, which forced him to retire during the deciding set of Friday's Mexican Open semi-final against Alex de Minaur.
The 22-year-old plays Christopher O'Connell of Australia while Murray takes on qualifier David Goffin of Belgium on Centre Court.
Murray announced in Dubai last week that he is "likely not going to play past this summer", but says he doesn't feel any relief at sharing his plans after months of questioning.
"I've been asked about it most weeks since Wimbledon last year. I personally don't think it has much bearing on how I play or perform but I guess we'll find out on the match court. Since I arrived here, practices have been good, so let's see," the former world number one added.
Liam Broady and Harriet Dart failed to add their names to the 96-player draws when they fell in the final round of qualifying on Tuesday.
Source: BBC