All Sports Update: 5 Mar 2012

Monday, 5 March 2012

Asian hopefuls face moment of truth

Asia's concluding Round Three matchday sees eight nations hunting four remaining berths with continental elite Korea Republic still not safe as outsiders such as Lebanon, Thailand and Oman seek breakthrough success.

Rejuvenated Roddick Stuns Federer In Exhibition

Serbia's Janko Tipsarevic has become the second Top 10 player in the South African Airways ATP Rankings to confirm his participation at the 2012 Power Horse World Team Cup in Dusseldorf, which will be contested between 20-26 May.

[[More Tennis News on ATPWorldTour.com]]

Why McLaren should renew Hamilton contract

Simple answer? There isn’t anyone else onÂ theÂ grid that could team with Jenson button better, take the car to the limit better or provide an opportunity to win races better than Lewis Hamilton. All those rumors of his brain-fade in 2011 may be true and perhaps his new management team know more about finding the next

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Vettel / Red Bull: Boon or bane of Formula One?

If you’re looking for a mixed up grid and unpredictable Formula One season in 2012, this may not be the year for you. According to some, the Red Bull Racing RB8 car looks like a comprehensive evolution to the world championship-winning RB7 which was an evolution of the world championship-winning RB6. That is always a

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Formula1blog.com Podcast #253

Join Grace, Paul and me as we discussÂ theÂ week in Formula One andÂ erroneouslyÂ call it podcast #252 when itÂ clearlyÂ is podcast #253…hey, we’re human like that. We talk about Marussia, HRT, Williams testing, Rubens, Ferrari and more. We even have awards and much more so join us, won’t you? Fashion Award winner right here

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Pattinson returns at Harris' expense

James Pattinson has been recalled to Australia's ODI squad at the expense of Ryan Harris after proving himself fit to return from more than a month out of action due to a foot injury

USA set to face untried Italian strikeforce

After a slow start Jurgen Klinsmann has guided USA to a three-match winning streak but that run will be given a rigorous examination as the Stars & Stripes face Italy in Genoa on Wednesday

EURO hopefuls face final auditions

With fixtures running out before UEFA EURO 2012 gets underway, coaches around Europe have another opportunity to examine their players this week. FIFA.com looks ahead to the latest round of international friendlies.

Sharapova tops Wozniacki at MSG; McIlroy plays

NEW YORK (AP)â€"Maria Sharapova beat Caroline Wozniacki in an exhibition at Madison Square Garden on Mondayâ€"though she lost the only point she played against Wozniacki's boyfriend, top-ranked golfer Rory McIlroy.

With the Dane a game away from losing 6-3, 6-4, she invited McIlroy onto the court just hours after he won the Honda Classic in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., to ascend to No. 1 in the world for the first time.

Roger Federer and Andy Roddick were set to play another exhibition later Monday night in the BNP Paribas Showdown.

Wozniacki has been ranked No. 1 for 67 weeks in her career, though she's currently down to No. 4. McIlroy know he'll need to stay on top for "another couple of years" to catch his girlfriend in that stat.

Fulham seal free Diarra deal

Premier League side Fulham have agreed a deal to sign former Real Madrid midfielder Mahamadou Diarra on a free transfer until the end of the season, subject to the successful completion of a visa.

Heynckes: We must do 'dirty work'

Jupp Heynckes was delighted with Bayern Munich's 2-0 wn over Schalke yesterday, not least because of his team's willingness to work hard, something the coach wants to see for the rest of the season.

Dortmund down Hannover to move clear

Robert Lewandowski scored a double before Ivan Perisic completed the scoring for Borussia Dortmund as the Bundesliga leaders defeated Hannover 3-1 and moved four points clear at the top of the table.

PSV take advantage as AZ slip

PSV Eindhoven's push for the Eredivisie title continued as an 85th-minute winner from Zakaria Labyad saw them beat Feyenoord 3-2, while nearest-rivals AZ Alkmaar were held to a 3-3 draw by Heerenveen.

Rooney, Cleverley out of Netherlands friendly

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson today confirmed that Wayne Rooney, who has a throat infection, and Tom Cleverly have been ruled out for England's international friendly against the Netherlands on Wednesday.

Villarreal, Athletic in thrilling draw

Villarreal and Athletic Bilbao played out a lively 2-2 draw, with the Basque visitors coming from behind to take the lead, before substitute Nilmar scored a vital equaliser for the struggling hosts.

BarÃ§aâ€™s Filipino hero, 100 years on

On the 100th anniversary of his spectacular debut at the age of 15, FIFA.com pays tribute to Barcelona legend Paulino Alcantara and looks back on his contribution to the club's early history.

De Graafschap stun Roda, NEC stroll

De Graafschap shocked Roda JC as they beat their hosts 2-0 in Kerkrade to move off the bottom of the Eredivisie table, while NEC Nijmegen claimed a 4-0 victory over FC Groningen.

Levante grab late win, Malaga hit five

Levante clinched a last-minute 2-1 victory over Espanyol, while Malaga came from behind to claim an emphatic 5-1 win over Real Zaragoza, and Racing Santander finished level at 1-1 with Sporting Gijon.

Montpellier edge Bordeaux to move clear

Montpellier kept up their Ligue 1 title push with a narrow 1-0 win over Bordeaux, scoring late on through John Utaka to bag all the points and move two-points clear of Paris Saint-Germain.

Chelsea finish strong to beat Bolton

Chelsea enjoyed a comfortable 3-0 victory over Bolton Wanderers to return to the English Premier League top four, with David Luiz, Didier Drogba, and Frank Lampard all scoring in the second half.

BarÃ§aâ€™s Filipino phenomenon, 100 years on

On the 100th anniversary of his spectacular debut at the age of 15, FIFA.com pays tribute to Barcelona legend Paulino Alcantara and looks back on his contribution to the club's early history.

BarÃ§aâ€™s Filipino forward, 100 years on

On the 100th anniversary of his spectacular debut at the age of 15, FIFA.com pays tribute to Barcelona legend Paulino Alcantara and looks back on his contribution to the club's early history.

Roddick: 'People want to get rid of me'

Andy Roddick tells the Wall Street Journal that he can still be an elite player. The 29-year-old former No. 1, who has been battling injuries for the past two years, is 4-4 this year and has seen his ranking fall to No. 30, his lowest mark since July of 2001. However, Roddick only has 120 points to defend until the grass-court season begins. "Someone two years younger, at the ranking I'm at, still gets called up-and-coming," the 2003 U.S. Open champion said. "But for some reason, people want to get rid of me."

Dubai awards women's champ more than men's

The Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships awarded womenâ€™s champion Agnieszka Radwanska more prize money that it did Roger Federer. Radwanska won $446,778, while Federer took home $409,170. However, both players are believed to have received appearance fees at the tournament, and Federer is said to command at least $1 million for a week-long stint, while Radwanska may not have given more than $100,000, if that. "I think we were the first after some of the Grand Slams [to offer more money to women]," tournament director Colm McLoughlin told Arabian Business.

McLoughlin added that the ATP and WTA were both given $2 million and it was up to each organization to decide how it was distributed. Arabian Business reported that the WTA gave out $1,159,235, or 58 percent, while the ATP awarded $978,495, or 49 percent.

Del Bosque not closing door on Torres

Fernando Torres could still feature for Spain at UEFA EURO 2012 despite being dropped by coach Vicente Del Bosque, while Roberto Soldado is hoping to make the most of his chance with the world champions.

Guerrero hit with eight-game ban

Peruvian international Paolo Guerrero was suspended for eight games on Monday by the German Football Federation for his foul on the VfB Stuttgart goalkeeper during his side Hamburg's 4-0 home defeat on Saturday.

Guerrero hit with eight game ban

Trochowski: I won't write off EURO dream

Sevilla's German midfielder Piotr Trochowski speaks to FIFA.com about adapting to life in La Liga and his hopes of earning a late recall to Joachim Low's national squad for UEFA EURO 2012.

Ferrari: From bad, to worse to â€˜dissappointedâ€™

Things have gone from bad to worse at Ferrari with technical boss Pat Fry saying he is “disappointed” with the pace of the F2012 chssis and progress so far. The BBC’s Andrew Benson said that Alonso was quoted in the Spanish media as suggesting that Ferrari have a lot of work to do and must

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Tipsarevic To Lead Serbia In Dusseldorf

Olimpia comeback quells Lanus

Paraguay's side Olimpia came from behind to see off Lanus, Bolivia's The Strongest did likewise against Juan Aurich while Junior and Universidad Catolica shared the spoils in Copa Libertadores action.

Walia denies communication gap within Indian team

GS Walia, India's media manager on tour in Australia, addressed the press to try to douse reports of a communication breakdown between the senior players. His refrain was to forget all that had happened

ICC to discuss Woolf recommendations

The ICC's Chief Executives Committee (CEC) is meeting in Dubai over the next two days and its responses to the Woolf Report will be the first indicator as to how far the 65 recommendations will go

Mancini: Ten wins for title

Roberto Mancini is confident that ten more Premier League victories would be enough for his Manchester City side to win the title, while Owen Coyle faces a battle to keep Bolton Wanderers in the division.

BarÃ§a battle to beat Sporting

Barcelona survived a slow start and the sending off of Gerard Pique to defeat Sporting Gijon 3-1, with Andres Iniesta opening the scoring before Seydou Keita and Xavi put the match beyond doubt.

Mutschke: Match-fixing must be combated

Ralf Mutschke speaks to FIFA.com about his previous work developing crime-fighting strategies for the police and INTERPOL, his forthcoming role as FIFA Director of Security and the division's quest to combat match-fixing.

Top German police and security executive Ralf Mutschke appointed as FIFA Director of Security

FIFA is proud to announce that Ralf Mutschke, senior manager at the German Federal Criminal Police Office and a former INTERPOL director, has been appointed as FIFA’s Director of Security as of 1 June 2012.

Marussia unveil 2012 challenger at Silverstone

Marussia's new MR01 made its on-track debut at the UK's Silverstone circuit on Monday. The team were forced to postpone the launch of their 2012 car - and miss the final pre-season test in Barcelona last week - after it failed to pass its final mandatory FIA crash test. Â"We are very pleased to be running the new MR01 for the first time this morning,Â" said team principal John Booth. Â"It has been a long and frustrating wait for everyone in the team but we can now get back on track - literally - and start working towards the first race of the season in Australia next weekend.Â"

Drogba usurps Etoâ€™o as African king

After finishing runner-up to African Footballer of the Year winner Samuel Eto’o in back-to-back years, Didier Drogba finally got his hands on the prize to deny his rival a record fourth straight crown.

Surprises continue in Africa

Nigeria struggled to a scoreless away draw, Cameroon needed a late goal to win and Kenya beat Togo as qualifying for next year’s CAF Africa Cup of Nations got underway on Wednesday.

TV Schedule: Indian Wells

The 10th week of the 2012 ATP World Tour season features the first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament of the year at Indian Wells, California.

[[More Tennis News on ATPWorldTour.com]]

Ferrari doubtful of a podium finish in Australia

Ferrari technical boss Pat Fry has conceded that the team are unlikely to finish on the podium at the season-opening Australian race later this month. After wrapping up the final winter test in Barcelona on Sunday, Fry admitted the new F2012 had failed to meet expectations and that they must work very hard back in Maranello to extract more performance from the car before it's too late. Â"In the hunt for the podium in Melbourne? At the moment I'd say no,Â" Fry told Ferrari's official website. Â"We are disappointed with the performance level seen at these tests and I think we have a lot of work ahead of us.