Germany humiliate Brazil 7-1 to reach World Cup final

BELO HORIZONTE: Brazil's World Cup dream was smashed into oblivion as majestic Germany ran riot to win an extraordinary semi-final 7-1 and send the South American hosts crashing to their worst ever defeat in their 100-year footballing history.

Sixty-four years after Brazil was plunged into national mourning after their loss in the 1950 final, the hosts were torn apart in a defeat likely to be every bit as traumatic as the fabled "Maracanazo. "Germany advanced to Sunday's final in the Maracana after a brilliant first-half blitz which included a burst of four goals in six devastating minutes.

Waqar Younis appointed new Pakistan head coach

LAHORE: Former captain and fast bowler Waqar Younis has been named as the new head coach by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), the board announced on Tuesday.

The appointment of Younis, who has been given a two-year contract, comes merely days after Sethi's interview to a local newspaper in which he hinted that a deal between the two parties was all but done.

Broad bowls England to Ashes series win

CHESTER-LE-STREET: Stuart Broad bowled England to a stunning 74-run fourth Test win over Australia with more than a day to spare as they took an unbeatable 3-0 lead in the five-match Ashes series.

Australia, set 299 to win on Monday's fourth day at Chester-le-Street, were well-placed at 168 for two but slumped to 224 all out as paceman Broad took six wickets for 50 runs for a Test-best match haul of 11 for 121.

The victory means England, who had already retained the Ashes, have won three successive Test series against Australia for the first time since the 1950s.

Shooter Ronjan Sodhi picked for Khel Ratna

Trap shooter Ronjan Sodhi was on Tuesday recommended for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, while cricketer Virat Kohli was among the 14 sportspersons picked for the Arjuna award by the selection committee headed by billiards legend Michael Ferreira.

Badminton player P.V. Sindhu, triple-jumper Renjith Maheshwary and golfer Gaganjeet Bhullar were also in the list of 14 sportspersons picked for the Arjuna award, sources told PTI.

No proof against Gurunath, Kundra, says BCCI probe panel

KOLKATA/NEW DELHI: Exactly 58 days after he "stepped aside" as BCCI president, the decks have been cleared for N Srinivasan's return to the helm of the richest cricket body in the world.

A report submitted by a two-member panel that probed allegations of betting and spot-fixing against Srinivasan's son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan, India Cements Ltd (owner of Chennai Super Kings) and Jaipur IPL Pvt Ltd (owner of Rajasthan Royals), found no direct evidence of wrongdoing on the part of any party. The panel consisted of two former judges of the Tamil Nadu high court, Jayaram Chouta and R Balasubramanian.

Narine and Bravo brothers level series

West Indies were unusually generous in the field but their batting showed signs of returning to form and Sunil Narine roared back to his best as they overcame Pakistan in Providence to level the series at one-each. West Indies themselves had been helped by a sloppy effort from Pakistan's bowlers, who conceded a whopping 38 extras in a low-scoring game.

Darren Bravo provided the stability at the top of the order and, though Pakistan's naggingly accurate trio of spinners choked the scoring in the middle overs, Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard played some big shots towards the end of the innings to lift West Indies to a competitive 232 on a slow surface.

Rahul Dravid to be made witness in IPL spot-fixing case

New Delhi: Rahul Dravid, captain of Rajasthan Royals, has recorded his statement with the Delhi Police in the IPL spot-fixing scandal and will be made a prosecution witness.

According to media reports, the special cell of Delhi Police went to Bangalore on July 10 and under section 161 of the CrPC, Dravid’s statement was recorded.

Besides Dravid, Rajasthan Royals coach Paddy Upton will also be made a prosecution witness once he returns to India.

Shahid Afridi's all-round heroics helps Pakistan crush West Indies by 126 runs

Georgetown:  All-rounder Shahid Afridi returned to international cricket with a blistering half century and a career-best 7-12 as Pakistan recorded a thumping 126-run victory over West Indies in the first one-day international on Sunday.Afridi, recalled after missing last month's Champions Trophy due to poor form, scored 76 off 55 balls to pilot Pakistan to 224-9. Afridi then skittled West Indies out for 98 in 41 overs to record the second-best ever bowling figures in one-day internationals after Sri Lanka's Chamina Vaas' 8-19 against Zimbabwe in 2001.

Andy Murray beats Novak Djokovic to win Wimbledon

Andy Murray won his first Wimbledon title and ended Britain's 77-year wait for a men's champion with a hard-fought victory over world number one Novak Djokovic.

The Scot, 26, converted his fourth championship point in a dramatic final game to win 6-4 7-5 6-4 and claim his second major title.

Tharanga, Jayawardene cane India

"Can't seem to win a toss," Angelo Mathews said suggesting he can't catch a break nowadays when Sri Lanka were inserted on a track that has responded to West Indies quicks better than best of butlers. Four hours later, we had the first instance of an innings in a 50-over international ending with just one wicket down. Upul Tharanga and Mahela Jayawardene made a mockery of the teams' suspicion of the damp surface with their 213-run opening, Sri Lanka's second-best stand against India. Under the pressure of the mountain of runs, India huffed and puffed past… Upul Tharanga's score of 174.

Brazil humiliate Spain 3-0 in Confederations Cup final

RIO DE JANEIRO: A young and inexperienced Brazilian side led by 21-year-old striker Neymar crushed world and European champions Spain 3-0 win in the Confederations Cup final here on Sunday.

Playing effective and assertive football, Brazil steamrolled over the football powerhouse Spain in front of 78,000 fans at the Maracana to win the Confederations Cup for the fourth time. With this victory, Brazil sent a message to all its rivals: under Luis Felipe Scolari, the host country will be a strong contender for the World Cup title in 2014.

Ex-Bangladesh captain Ashraful admits fixing - official

DHAKA: Former Bangladesh cricket captain Mohammad Ashraful was suspended from the sport on Tuesday after he confessed his involvement in fixing, a top cricket official said.

The International Cricket Council's Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) has been probing allegations of match-fixing during the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), a Twenty20 competition.

“As Ashraful has confessed his involvement in fixing to the ACSU team, so he should not be allowed to play any level of cricket until we get a full report of the investigation,” Bangladesh Cricket Board president Nazmul Hassan told reporters.

Sreesanth, others in judicial custody till June 18, MCOCA invoked

New Delhi: There is more trouble for arrested cricketers S Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan in the IPL spot-fixing case. They have been sent to judicial custody till June 18 along with 21 others.

Prosecution has invoked the harsh Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act against them. But the police have not decided on whether MCOCA will be applicable to all those arrested in the case.

MCOCA is one of the most stringent laws. It provides for any confession made in front of the DCP in Delhi or the SP in any other state to be accepted as evidence.

Efficient Pakistan ease to facile win

Pakistan 207 for 4 (Farhat 56, Hafeez 54 retired) beat South Africa 202 for 9 (McLaren 55, Duminy 43, Wahab 3-30, Asad 3-30) by six wickets.

There were enough Pakistan supporters at The Oval to give the impression that this warm-up ahead of the Champions Trophy mattered, but in essence it was pointless, not just in terms of the group stages but also in the general scheme of things.

Pakistan will claim a psychological advantage after breezing to a six-wicket victory against South Africa with more than four overs to spare, they were vastly superior throughout and their supporters celebrated a well-drilled victory with their usual enthusiasm, but it will not much matter in the morning.

Srinivasan steps aside temporarily; Dalmiya to run BCCI affairs

N Srinivasan will not carry out his duties as BCCI president until the commission appointed to conduct an inquiry into the betting and spot-fixing charges in IPL 2013 completes its task. During this period Jagmohan Dalmiya, a former BCCI president and current head of the Cricket Association of Bengal, will run the daily affairs of the board.

David Miller special fashions Punjab's thrilling win over Bangalore

David Miller scored the third-fastest century in Indian Premier League history and single-handedly powered Kings XI Punjab's remarkable chase and keep alive their hopes of qualifying for the playoffs. His unbeaten 101, off just 38 balls, helped Punjab to a six-wicket victory over Royal Challengers Bangalore at the PCA Stadium in Mohali on Monday.After being asked to bat, half-centuries from Chris Gayle and Cheteshwar Pujara ensured that Bangalore put up 190 for 3. But, in response, Punjab couldn't string together a big enough partnership.

Narine spins Kolkata to win in opener

In 2008, Brendon McCullum had set the inaugural edition of the IPL alight with a whirlwind century that stands out for its audacity after more than 300 games in the tournament over five years. Not many will remember the exploits of his team in the opening game of IPL 2013 five years from now, but Kolkata Knight Riders' performance was a dominating one for the conditions they played in as defending champions. On a slow Eden Gardens track that didn't always cater to power-play, Sunil Narine and Rajat Bhatia restricted the Delhi Daredevils batsmen and captain Gautam Gambhir anchored the bulk of the chase.