DHAKA: Inspired by the unique painted rickshaws which pack the streets of the Bangladesh cities, the logo for the ICC World Twenty20 2014 was unveiled on a star-studded evening here on Saturday tonight.

At a glittering gala in the presence of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Vice President AHM Mustafa Kamal and Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) President Nazmul Hassan the logo for the tournament was launched exactly one year ahead of the tournament finals. The event will run from March 16 to April 6, 2014.

KARACHI: Pakistani colts clinched the second Under-16 Hockey Asia Cup title, beating Bangladesh 5-2 in the summit clash in Singapore on Sunday. Muhammad Atiq scored twice, while Sikandar Mustafa, Shan Irshad and Adeel Latif scored one goal each for the victors.

Coach Rehan Butt showered praises on his team’s young players and said that the boys played brilliantly throughout the tournament and deserved the title. “Throughout the tournament our players played with great determination and I think they deserve the event’s title,” said Olympian Rehan Butt, who has started his coaching stint with the young team but is yet to retire from international hockey.

Pakistan recorded huge victories throughout the tournament and in many matches scored more than dozen goals. “The five-a-side format offers players gaps and if a team plays as one unit than they get a lot of chance to score. Our players played as a team, which was the reason they were able to pull off big victories and eventually win title,” he added.

“I believe these players in the years to come will be able to help lift the performance of the national team,” Rehan said.

Chief coach and manager Tahir Zaman also said that young players worked hard to prepare for the tournament.

The other eight teams that participated in the tournament were Japan, China, Sri Lanka, Chinese Taipei, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore and Kazakhstan.

COLOMBO: DAV College Chandigarh became Campus Cricket World Final champions, defeating University of Karachi by 49 runs in the final at the Premadasa Stadium here Sunday.

Chandigarh were reduced to 2 for 3 in the fourth over after being put in to bat. Meer Hamza took two of those wickets. They were soon 36 for 4 from 7.1 overs but captain Kunal Mahajan led a startling recovery with a 73 off 36 balls. Chandigarh finished on 170 for 8 from their 20 overs.

Karachi lost two wickets in the powerplay and were unable to rebuild thereon. Opener Ammar Hasan provided the early impetus with a 49-ball 58, but could not find a good partner. Rattan Singh finished with 3 for 16 and Gurinder Singh had 4 for 20. Karachi were all out for 121 in 19 overs.

PUNE: Kings XI Punjab’s accurate seam bowling was complemented by an all-round fielding display as they raced to an eight-wicket win over Pune Warriors here on Sunday.

It was the first time Punjab began an IPL season with a victory and they took just 12.2 overs to chase the target and hand the home side their second successive loss.

Two run-outs and Gurkeerat Singh’s spectacular catch were the highlights as Kings XI took control of the game very early.

The four-man seam attack hardly gave the Warriors batsmen a chance on a pitch that perhaps misled them into batting first.

Manish Pandey’s hesitant prod started Warriors’ slide and they struggled in the Powerplay overs. T Suman, who replaced the injured Yuvraj Singh, added 20 for the second wicket with Robin Uthappa, but both fell trying to push the run-rate. Suman skied Azhar Mahmood, while Uthappa fell to leg spinner Piyush Chawla.

Mandeep Singh then ran out Marlon Samuels with a terrific throw from the deep midwicket boundary. Chawla later ran out Rahul Sharma with a direct hit from long-off.

Had Mitchell Marsh and Abhishek Nayar not added 25 for the seventh wicket, Warriors would have had to defend fewer than the 99 they got in the end.

Kings XI captain Adam Gilchrist took fourteen runs off the first over of the chase. After Gilchrist’s fall, little known Manan Vohra made a spectacle of his IPL debut. The No 3 batsman smashed four out of five fours in the fourth over bowled by Ashok Dinda. Mandeep and Vohra added 58 for the second wicket with the debutant making 43 off 28 balls.

LONDON: Chelsea leapfrogged Tottenham Hotspur into third place in the Premier League on Sunday after coming from behind to beat Sunderland 2-1.

Chelsea’s fight back enabled them to take advantage of Spurs’ 2-2 draw with fellow Champions League hopefuls Everton at White Hart Lane, where Gylfi Sigurdsson scored a late equaliser to rescue the hosts in a pulsating game.

Rafa Benitez’s Chelsea moved up to third place with 58 points from 31 games, ahead of Spurs on goal difference but witha game in hand. Fifth-placed Arsenal are two points behind, while sixth-placed Everton have 52.

Chelsea had fallen behind just before halftime when Cesar Azpilicueta steered Sunderland defender John O’Shea’s header into his own net.

The visitors returned the favour two minutes after the restart with an own goal of their own by Matthew Kilgallon following a dangerous move by Chelsea substitute Fernando Torres before Branislav Ivanovic sealed victory in the 55th minute.

Earlier in the day, Liverpool lost ground on the group chasing Champions League spots when they were held to a 0-0 draw by West Ham United at Anfield, leaving them in seventh place with 49 points from 32 games.

The draw boosted West Ham’s chances of avoiding a relegation battle as they are now seven points clear of the drop zone in 12th place.

Newcastle United also pulled themselves further away from trouble with a 1-0 win at home to Fulham thanks to Papiss Cisse’s stoppage-time winner. Victory lifted them to 13th place with 36 points, a point behind West Ham.

League leaders Manchester United, who are 15 points clear, host second-placed champions Manchester City on Monday (today).

SECOND FASTEST

Fans were still taking their seats at White Hart Lane when Adebayor struck with just 34 seconds on the clock — the second fastest Premier League goal of the season after Robin van Persie’s 31-second effort for Manchester United against West Hamin November.

The Togo striker stuck out his leg to meet a low cross from Jan Vertonghen on the left to put Spurs in front.

Everton, whose dreams of playing in Europe’s elite club competition next season are alive but becoming faint, did not let the early setback get to them too much and Phil Jagielka pulled one back in the 15th minute with a header.

The England defender rose high from a Leighton Baines corner and headed the ball down through the legs of Spurs keeper Hugo Lloris.

That early goal was forgotten when Everton went ahead in the 53rd minute through Kevin Mirallas, who weaved his way through the Spurs defence to net in a second successive game after scoring the winner in last weekend’s 1-0 win over Stoke City.

Spurs chased an equaliser with midfielder Mousa Dembele hitting the bar with a deflected shot before Adebayor also rattled the woodwork and the rebound gifted Sigurdsson the 87th-minute goal.

“We left it late which didn’t give us a chance to go for the third (goal),” Spurs manager Andre Villas-Boas told a TV channel.

“We had to battle very hard to get the draw. We believe it (Champions League qualification) is going to go down to the wire.”

Mumbai:  Young Indian batsman Unmukt Chand on Sunday said he learnt a few trick of the trade by watching Australian opener David Warner bat against Rajasthan Royals in their last IPL match.

"I am spending some good time with Warner. It's been a great learning experience, seeing the way he started his innings and the way he progressed. He did not take tough chances initially and then as the game progressed, he started playing more aggressively. All these things teach you," Chand said.

The Under-19 World Cup winning captain was referring to the diminutive left-hander's brilliant knock of 77 runs.

Chand said Warner had been giving him useful tips too.

"He has been telling me to just be there and wait for the loose balls. It has been very helpful."

Chand, who got out first ball to retired Australian speedster in the opening game at Kolkata against the Knight Riders, rued he could not capitalise on the good start he got against the Royals.

"In the first match I got out off the first ball. I did better in the second match than the first, but can do even better. I got a good start in the last match but could not capitalise," he said.

The Delhi youngster said star England batsman Kevin Pietersen, who is accompanying the team even though he is unable to play because of a knee injury, has also been very helpful with his tips.

"He's been a great help and keeps chipping in when anyone goes to him. Very nice bloke and is easily approachable."

Chand said he wanted to carry the confidence he got with his inclusion in the 30-strong India probables list for the Champions Trophy in June into his IPL campaign.

"It feels great to see that I have been named in the squad of probables. It has boosted my confidence and I hope this confidence carries into the IPL as well."

Chand said he was keen to strike a correct balance between playing his natural game and improvising in the T20 event.

"T20 is a game of improvisation but you have to strike a balance between improvising and sticking to your own style. I want to balance it out even more in playing my natural game and improvising as well so that it does not get too much one sided.

Chand was also confident that the Daredevils will bounce back soon.

"It's only the initial part of the tournament and we are capable of turning things around. There's a long way to go.

Apart from Chand, Johan Botha, Jeevan Mendis, Ben Rohrer, Venugopal Rao, Sidharth Kaul, Pawan Negi, Kedar Jadhav and C M Gautam took part in the training session on Sunday.

In terms of putting their limited resources to best use, there can't be a more tactful team than Rajasthan Royals.

They may not have the big impact players like Chris Gayle or Kieron Pollard, but Rahul Dravid, their captain, proved in the team's opening Indian Premier League 2013 game that star power alone doesn't guarantee victory. Dravid showed he still had enough hunger in him when he became the second-oldest cricketer to score a half-century in the Indian Premier League, in the process inspiring Rajasthan to victory over Delhi Daredevils. It is this confidence Rajasthan would look to carry forward when they clash against Kolkata Knight Riders, also coming off a fine win against Delhi, at Sawai Man Singh Stadium in Jaipur on Monday (April 8).

The Rajasthan team management would have breathed a sigh of relief that Dravid, who didn't field in that game due to a calf injury, has been declared fit, while the team will also be boosted by the availability of Shane Watson, the Australian allrounder, who in all likelihood will be drafted into the playing XI straightaway. Dravid had earlier hinted that Watson would bowl at some stage in the tournament, but it is likely that he will play as a specialist batsman for the moment. Watson's inclusion would mean Kusal Perera, the Sri Lankan wicketkeeper-batsman, may have to sit out.

Among the Indian players, the team management would take heart from the form displayed by Stuart Binny, the Karnataka allrounder, whose promotion in the batting order proved to be a masterstroke as he smashed a 20-ball 40 to bring some power-hitting into the Rajasthan effort.

However, the Rajasthan batting unit, as a whole, will have to guard against the threat of Sunil Narine, who foxed Delhi once again with his canny variations.

The bowling unit, which was perceived as the weaker suit for Rajasthan, proved more than a handful against Delhi, with S Sreesanth leading the pack. He bowled with purpose and troubled the batsmen with late swing in both directions, while Kevon Cooper's contribution at the death turned the game around. With the pitch in Jaipur still untested, seeing that this will the first game at the venue, it is unlikely Rajasthan will tinker with the line-up.

Kolkata, meanwhile, would have had their batteries fully charged following a four-day break in the lead-up to the match. The bowling unit, led by Brett Lee and Narine, and a strong showing from Rajat Bhatia, showed its class by skittling Delhi out cheaply before the batsmen went about the modest run chase in clinical manner.

At the forefront of the chase was Gautam Gambhir, the captain, who struck form with an attractive 41 to set the tone. Brendon McCullum's unavailability due to a hamstring injury means Kolkata will rely on Jacques Kallis, as they always have, to provide steel up front.

Even though the lower-order batsmen didn't spend too much time in the middle, the form displayed by the likes of Eoin Morgan and Manoj Tiwary was enough indication that the Kolkata batting is well oiled.

Kolkata have also been served well by the fringe players like Bhatia, Laxmi Ratan Shukla and Manvinder Bisla, who've chipped in with handy contributions time and again.

With the curator promising a belter of a pitch, what could have a bearing on the outcome of the game is the toss, given there has been a fair amount of dew at night.

Teams (from)
Rajasthan Royals: Rahul Dravid (capt), Ajinkya Rahane, Shane Watson, Ajit Chandila, Ankeet Chavan, Ashok Menaria, Brad Hogg, Brad Hodge, Dishant Yagnik, Fidel Edwards, Harmeet Singh, James Faulkner, Kevon Cooper, Kumar Boresha, Kusal Perera, Owais Shah, Pravin Tambe, Rahul Shukla, S Sreesanth, Sachin Baby, Samuel Badree, Sanju Samson, Shaun Tait, Sreevats Goswami, Siddharth Trivedi, Stuart Binny, Vikramjeet Malik.

Kolkata Knight Riders: Gautam Gambhir (capt), Brett Lee, Brad Haddin, Debabrata Das, Eoin Morgan, Iqbal Abdulla, Jacques Kallis, Laxmipathy Balaji, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Manoj Tiwary, Manvinder Bisla, Shami Ahmed, Pradeep Sangwan, Rajat Bhatia, Ryan McLaren, Ryan ten Doeschate, Sachitra Senanayake, Sarabjit Ladda, Sunil Narine, Yusuf Pathan.