Gagan Ajit to return for World Series Hockey
Former India player Gagan Ajit Singh will return to competitive hockey after being picked in the second players' draft for the US $2 million World Series Hockey, which commences on February 29. The former India forward was picked by the Sher-e-Punjab franchise during the second round of the player draft in which 27 Indian players, from a pool of 42, were chosen by various franchises.

PHOTOS: Australia edge past Sri Lanka in Perth
Australia edged Sri Lanka by five runs in an enthralling One Day International of the tri-series in Perth on Friday.

IPL-5: How the teams weigh after the auction
Little-known West Indies spinner Sunil Narine was undoubtedly the deal of the auction; he was bought by Kolkata Knight Riders for a massive $700,000, 14 times his base price of $50,000.

Henry's loan at Arsenal cannot be extended: Wenger
Thierry Henry, Arsenal's all-time leading scorer, will return to New York Red Bulls next week as his loan spell cannot be extended past the agreed date, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said.

Give me England job so I can relegate them: Ferguson
If England want a new manager with a glittering record they need look no further than Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson, who would love to take the job just so he could sabotage the team.

Mathews heroics in vain as Aus edge Lanka
Sri Lanka, riding on the heroics of Angelo Mathews, fell short of what would have been a sensational victory over Australia by just five runs in the tri-series match in Perth on Friday.

Hijab ban driving women away from soccer
Muslim women are being driven away from soccer by FIFA's ban of the hijab, with more likely to follow if rulemakers fail to reverse the decision at a meeting next month, Prince Ali Bin Al-Hussein of Jordan said.

Tour winner Ullrich found guilty of doping by CAS
Retired former Tour de France winner Jan Ullrich has been found guilty of doping in relation to a blood-doping scandal that engulfed his sport six years ago and has been banned for two years.

Giggs extends Man United contract for another year
Ryan Giggs, who made his United debut in March 1991, has made a club record 898 appearances, scoring 162 goals.

Pattaya: Sania ousted in singles, enters doubles SF
Sania Mirza's singles campaign at the Pattaya Open ended on Friday with a 5-7, 3-6 quarter-final defeat to Chinese Taipei qualifier Su-Wei Hsieh. The Indian ace, however, stayed in contention in the doubles by entering the semi-finals.

Sachin might be rested, but will rotation work for India?
Senior batsman Sachin Tendulkar is set to be rested for India's next ODI tri-series match against Australia in Adelaide on Sunday. But, going by past record, the move could end up hurting the beleagured team.

Has the BCCI taken our cricketers for a ride?
Why does the richest cricket board in the world pay its players peanuts for official matches, thus paving the way for making IPL their real cash bonanza, asks Sanjay Jha

Every corner is blind for devoted French fan
How a corner sounds matters more to the 29-year-old French Formula One fan Charaf-Eddine Ait Taleb, who lost his sight 10 years ago due to a genetic condition, than any controversy over the new "ugly" noses on the 2012 cars.

Schumacher plays down title chances
Mercedes have decided not to run their 2012 car until the second pre-season test in Barcelona later this month to give them as much development time as possible.

THE TOP SPORTS PHOTOS OF THE DAY
Canada's new Olympic Hall of Fame and Museum glows during dusk in Calgary, Alberta.

'We've seen so many young guys come in and do well for Australia'
Australian captain Michael Clarke says his team's on-the-rise pace battery, which brought a formidable Indian batting line-up to its knees, will truly be considered intimidating after it performs on foreign pitches.

Recovering Yuvraj posts bald pic
Undergoing chemotherapy for a malignant lung tumour, Yuvraj Singh has gone bald and the Indian cricketer has posted his latest picture showing the after-effects of the treatment on social networking site Twitter.

Let's see how the pacers perform overseas: Clarke
Australian cricket captain Michael Clarke says his team's on-the-rise pace battery, which brought a formidable Indian batting line-up to its knees, will truly be considered intimidating after it performs on foreign pitches.

NBA: 'Linsanity' has the New York Knicks riding high
Jeremy Lin's sudden rise from obscure reserve to the toast of Broadway could not have come at a better time for the New York Knicks.

Nadal slams French 'campaign' to discredit Spain
Rafa Nadal has hit out at what he called a "general campaign" in France to discredit Spanish athletes by implying their success is due to the use of illegal drugs.

NBA: Lakers cool red-hot Celtics in overtime
Pau Gasol came up big for the Los Angeles Lakers as they beat the red-hot Boston Celtics 88-87 in overtime for a rare road win on Thursday.

Rice would have ditched season but for Olympics
Triple Olympic champion Stephanie Rice would have ditched this season out of sheer frustration at her shoulder injury were it not for the London Games, the Australian said after her first race of the year on Friday.

PCB steps in to solve confusion over Malik's selection
The Pakistan cricket Board had to step in to avoid a big confusion over the selection of former captain Shoaib Malik in the Pakistan squad for the One-day series against England after captain Misbah-ul-Haq insisted on wanting Malik in the side.

Formula One: Vettel ticking all the boxes for Red Bull
Formula One World champion Sebastian Vettel drove his new Red Bull for the first time on Thursday with the team saying they were on course to tick all the right boxes in pre-season testing at Jerez.

Lee, Johnson, Wi set Pebble Beach pace
New Zealander Danny Lee recorded two eagles in near-perfect scoring conditions to soar into a tie for the first-round lead at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am on Thursday as Tiger Woods made an encouraging start.

Pearce takes charge as England mull over successor
Stuart Pearce will take temporary charge of England for this month's friendly against the Netherlands while the search for Fabio Capello's permanent successor as boss gets underway ahead of June's European Championship.

Khan - Peterson rematch set for May 19
Amir Khan will fight Lamont Peterson on May 19 in Las Vegas after the Briton was granted his wish for a rematch after his controversial loss to the American last December, his promoter said on Thursday.

The Expert replies: Kapil was never run-out in Tests!
If you have a question relating to cricket and did not know who to ask, bounce them off to Rajneesh Gupta. Each week he will pick questions readers send him and provide answers.

African Nations Cup: Under-rated Zambia reach final
Zambia, a team currently without a national stadium, have emerged from the shadows at the African Nations Cup to grab an unexpected place in Sunday's final against the Ivory Coast.

Jeev shoots flawless 67 on perfect day at Dubai Classic
Jeev Milkha Singh making his 14th appearance at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic shot a superb bogey-free five-under 67 that put him inside the top-10 on the opening day of the last event on Middle East Swing of the European Tour.

Controversy hits BPL: Mortaza gets spot-fixing approach
The Bangladesh Premier League got its first dose of controversy as Mashrafe Mortaza reported to his franchise, Dhaka Gladiators, an approach from a fellow-cricketer to indulge in spot-fixing during the tournament.

Sunil Gavaskar inducted into ICC Hall of Fame
Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar was formally inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame on Wednesday in Dubai, when he received his commemorative cap from fellow-Hall of Famer and team-mate Kapil Dev.

FICA concerned about plight of Kochi, Pune IPL teams
Federation of International Cricketers' Associations CEO Tim May has expressed concern over Sahara India's withdrawal of its franchise, Pune Warriors, from the Indian Premier League.

Media gag on Pak players after Ajmal controversy
Stung by the controversy created by Saeed Ajmal's recent interview, the Pakistan Cricket Board imposed a media gag on its players, making it mandatory for them to make statements only in the presence of the team manager.

Pattaya Open: Sania in singles and doubles quarter-finals
Sania Mirza dug deep into her reserves to overcome a fighting Anne Keothavong 6-4, 7-5 and progress to the singles quarter-finals of the $ 220,000 Pattaya Open, on Thursday.

Is Rohit Sharma being made the fall guy?
After two successive failures in India's first two matches in the triangular series, talented middle-order batsman Rohit Sharma wears the expression of a man who is waiting to be shown the door any time.

Sri Lanka's big guns need to fire against the Aussies
Sri Lanka's top order batsmen will have to deliver when they go into their second tri-series cricket match against formidable Australia in Perth on Friday, hoping to revive their fortunes after a series of indifferent shows of late.

McCullum blazes ton as New Zealand trounce Zimbabwe
Captain Brendan McCullum smashed his fourth One-day International century off 79 balls as New Zealand completed a sweep of their three-match series against Zimbabwe with a 202-run victory at McLean Park in Napier on Thursday.

THE TOP SPORTS PHOTOS OF THE DAY
Denver Nuggets' Chris Andersen (left) kicks the ball from Delonte West (right) of Dallas Mavericks during their NBA Basketball game in Denver, Colorado.

FA Cup: Sunderland's Sessegnon sinks Middlesbrough
Stephane Sessegnon struck deep into extra-time as Sunderland booked their place in the FA Cup fifth round with a 2-1 replay win over second-tier rivals Middlesbrough on Wednesday.

Afghanistan cricket set for next chapter
Less than four years after playing their first tournament against teams including Japan and Norway, Afghanistan will write a new chapter in their remarkable rise with a One-day International against Pakistan on Friday.

Bracken accuses CA for premature end to his career
Former Australian pacer Nathan Bracken has accused Cricket Australia of negligence, arguing their doctors and lead physiotherapist can't provide "competent" medical advice to elite athletes.

Tri-Series: Watson on road to recovery
Coach Mickey Arthur is hopeful of Shane Watson returning to the Australian One-day fold in the latter part of the ongoing tri-series, but he is hesitant to put a definitive time frame on the all-rounder's return to the national team.

African Nations Cup: Ivory Coast to meet Zambia in final
Top-ranked Ivory Coast lived up to their billing by reaching the African Nations Cup final as the tournament delivered yet another surprise on Wednesday when Zambia also reached Sunday's deciding match.

NBA: Parker scores 37 as Spurs top 76ers
San Antonio's Tony Parker scored 37 points to continue his hot scoring stretch and lead the Spurs to a 100-90 road win over the Atlantic Division-leading Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday for their sixth successive victory.