Karachi: Pakistan has been forced to send seasoned middle-order batsman Misbah-ul-Haq to New Zealand ahead of the second Test after its top order failed to click in the series opener in Dunedin Thursday.

Brisbane: Australia took their foot off West Indies throat in the first Test at the Gabba here on Thursday, failing to ram home an advantage

Lahore: Former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad has supported the new referral system Umpires Decision Review System (UDRS) saying it will help reduce umpires’ mistakes considerably.

Lahore: Out of form Pakistan middle order batsman Misbah-ul-Haq would be leaving for New Zealand on Saturday (November 28) to join the team for the three match Test series.

Lahore: Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram’s wife Huma Akram died due to the negligence of her doctors in Lahore, an inquiry report has revealed.

New Delhi: The Indian Cricket Board is under pressure from the Congress party to revoke the life ban on former skipper Mohd Azharuddin for his alleged involvement in the 2000 match-fixing scandal.

New Delhi: Fast bowler Ashish Nehra, who made an impressive return to international cricket after four years, was rewarded with a Grade B retainership while Irfan Pathan was demoted to Grade C by the Indian cricket board Wednesday.

Brisbane: The West Indies will take on Australia in the first Test at the Gabba without the services of key middle order batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan who suffered a back injury.

Melbourne: Australian left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Johnson admitted that a bitter row with his mother led to his meltdown during this year's Ashes which Ricky Ponting's men lost.

Dubai: The International Cricket Council's controversial Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS) which is being opposed by the BCCI, will go into operation tomorrow with the start of the Test series between New Zealand and Pakistan Test in Dunedin.

Speculation that Michael Schumacher is planning a full return to Formula One is continuing to build.

LONDON: Mercedes have played down, without completely dismissing, media speculation that seven times Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher could come out of retirement as Jenson Button's replacement.

Experts and pundits are questioning the wisdom of Jenson Button's reportedly likely move from Brawn/Mercedes to McLaren for 2010.

Jenson Button made a final farewell visit to Brawn's Brackley headquarters this week, prompting "sadness and anger", according to the Daily Telegraph.

LONDON: Jenson Button will partner Lewis Hamilton at McLaren next season in an all-British line-up of champions, the Formula One team said on Wednesday.

London: Two-time champion Fernando Alonso is already dreaming of winning the Formula One world title with Ferrari.

LONDON: Formula One champions Brawn will compete as Mercedes Grand Prix next season after the German carmaker announced a takeover on Monday along with the sale of their stake in McLaren.

LONDON: Twice Formula One world champion Fernando Alonso made his first public appearance with his new Ferrari team at an event in Valencia, Spain on Sunday.

London: Formula One champion Jenson Button has met McLaren officials, sparking off fresh rumours about McLaren having an all-British team alongside Lewis Hamilton.

LONDON: India's Karun Chandhok says he has a real chance of racing in Formula One next year after talks with all the new teams due to enter.

LONDON: Avram Grant has been named manager of Portsmouth to replace Paul Hart who was sacked earlier this week, the Premier League club said on Thursday.

Manchester: Manchester United's 23-match unbeaten home record in the Champions League stretching back to 2005 was ended by Besiktas who won 1-0 at Old Trafford on Wednesday.

London: After staying out for over an year, Manchester United midfielder Owen Hargreaves has fully recovered from his knee operation but the club is not rushing him into kicking the football.

Budapest: Five-time winners Liverpool were knocked out of the Champions League on Tuesday despite a 1-0 victory over Debrecen in Group E.

Barcelona revived its chances of holding onto the Champions League title with a 2-0 victory over Inter Milan on Tuesday night, while Fiorentina and Arsenal advanced to the second round and Liverpool was eliminated.

Hey Wait! Look right behind you!

London: Arsenal secured their place in the knockout phase of the Champions League for the 10th successive season when a comfortable 2-0 win over Standard Liege secured them a top spot in Group H with a game to spare.

Madrid: Fernando Gago and Ruud Van Nistelrooy are both considering leaving Real Madrid in January, according to reports in the Spanish media Tuesday.

Rome: His motto quoted from his own website, states that he would play at AC Milan even as a goalkeeper.

Paris: Thierry Henry considered ending his France career over the uproar that surrounded the striker's blatant handball in last week's World Cup playoff victory over Ireland.

LONDON: Andy Murray called on umpires to get tough on players taking too long between points on Thursday after being made to work hard for victory against a determined Fernando Verdasco at the ATP World Tour Finals.

London: Indian ace Leander Paes and his partner Lukas Dlouhy suffered a straight-set defeat against Bob and Mike Bryan of the United States. This rules them out of contention for a semifinal spot in the ATP World Tour Finals.

London: World number two Rafael Nadal lost 6-1 7-6 to Russian Nikolay Davydenko on Wednesday to become the first player to exit the ATP World Tour Finals.

London: Roger Federer rebounded from a poor start to crush Andy Murray at the ATP World Tour Finals on Tuesday, claiming a 3-6 6-3 6-1 victory that ensures he will end the year as the world's top ranked player for a fifth time.

London: India's Mahesh Bhupathi and Mark knowles of the Bahamas overcame a tough challenge from the Polish pair of Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski to win 3-6, 6-3, 10-7 in a Group A doubles match of ATP WOrld Tour Finals here

London: Robin Soderling returned to haunt Rafael Nadal with a 6-4 6-4 victory in their opening Group B round-robin clash at the ATP World Tour finals.

Don't forget to put it in the Washing Machine!

London: Novak Djokovic claimed his 11th victory in a row with a 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 comeback over Nikolay Davydenko to start the ATP World Tour Finals.

London: World number one Roger Federer started slowly but finished like an express train on Sunday as he beat Fernando Verdasco 4-6 7-5 6-1 in his opening match at the ATP World Tour Finals.

London: Andy Murray marked the beginning of London's five-year hosting of the ATP Tour Finals with a 6-3 3-6 6-2 win over U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro in front of 17,500 fans inside the spectacular o2 Arena on Sunday.

New Delhi: Should India bid for the 2020 Olympics as the Indian Olympic Association is known to be keen to do? Sports Minister M.S. Gill doesn't quite think so.

Hyderabad: Ng On Yee the 19-year old prodigy from Hong Kong, expectedly won the women's title in the ONGC-IBSF World Snooker championship with a convincing 5-1 win against 49-year old Kathy Parashis of Australia here Tuesday.

Monte Carlo: Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt who became one of the world's most recognised athletes and American women's 400 metres world champion Sanya Richards were named IAAF world athletes of the year.

Hyderabad: Ace cueist Geet Sethi squandered crucial chances to suffer a shock 3-4 defeat against unheralded Costas Konnaris of Cyprus in the Masters category quarterfinals to put an end to India's challenge in the World Snooker Championship here.

Jeetay Raho! Germany's Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy perform during the closing gala of the Skate Canada figure skating competition in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada.

Hyderabad: Kamal Chawla, the 30-year-old from Bhopal, emerged India's unlikeliest hero as he qualified for the quarter-finals in the ONGC-IBSF World Snooker championship here Sunday that witnessed the ouster of Pankaj Advani along with other home hopes Manan Chandra and Aditya Mehta besides Yasin Merchant.

New Delhi: Unfazed by the speculation on his rift with some players, Indian hockey coach Jose Brasa today said he is aiming for nothing less than the title at the Champions Challenge-I tournament in Argentina next month.

New Delhi: The controversy surrounding Sandeep Singh's fitness has finally been put at rest. The drag flicker has now been ruled out with a back problem from the Champions Challenge hockey tournament, thus confirming the fears of coach Jose Brasa, whose announcement about Sandeep's fitness raised a storm.

From Thackeray's comments on Sachin Tendulkar to Theirry Henry's controversial confession. MSN India presents the seven best quotes from the week gone by.

Hyderabad: Ace Indian cueist Geet Sethi pulled off a stunning win over Chuchart Trairattanapradit of Thailand to enter the quarterfinals of ONGC-IBSF World Snooker Championship here today.