Observer & Busness 27 Mar 2012 - Oman Daily Observer

Woods ends
PGA Tour
title drought
Page 17
TUESDAY, MARCH 27, 2012
SA extend lead
after Taylor
breaks arm
Syria, Uzbekistan in crucial Asian play-offs clash for Olympics
Pressure is on them, says Rui de Almeida We have advantage, claims Abramov
From A Seshagiri Rao in Hanoi
AFTER surviving a scare against
Oman on Sunday, Syria go into
the crucial clash of the Asian playoffs
for London Olympics against formidable
Uzbekistan at the My Dinh National
Stadium today.
The second of the three play-off
matches, which will see the top team earn
a right to challenge African side Senegal
for a place in the London Games, will also
have a bearing on the fortunes of Oman.
The Sultanate side were unlucky not
to win full points on Sunday when they
let 10-man Syria fight back for a 1-1 draw
and that dramatic fightback is providing
the much-needed motivation for the Syrians
as they square off against highly rated
Uzbeks today. “We fought well against
Oman despite being down to 10 men and
behind by a goal. That itself provides us
the motivation for our match against the
Uzbeks,” said Syria’s coach Rui Miguel
de Almeida.
“The fact that we are in these play-offs
in itself is a big motivation for our boys.
Big teams like Australia and Saudi Arabia
couldn’t make it but we are still here fighting
for a berth in the Olympics,” the Portuguese
coach said at the match-eve press
conference at Sheraton Hanoi yesterday.
“We will fight for qualification and I
am confident we can spring a surprise
against Uzbekistan,” he said, adding the
pressure will be on their rivals.
“We came through a tough match. That
boosted our confidence. But tomorrow the
pressure will be on Uzbekistan. They are
among the top five in Asia so they have to
maintain that status,” he said.
“As I said we fought with ten men
against Oman and tomorrow we will have
11 players giving their best.”
Asked whether he will miss the services
of striker Omar al Suma, who was
red-carded for getting physical with his
own team-mate during the break against
Oman, the Portuguese coach said: “We
did not play that match with one player.
It’s a team game and it will be the same
against the Uzbeks.”
Asked about the unimpressive show
against Oman, he said: “In football we
live in the present. There are no ‘ifs’ and
it is ‘now’ that matters. It is not the time
to put pressure on the players. As I said
before, I am proud of my players and the
way they fought against Oman.”
Uzbek coach Vadim Abramov, meanwhile,
said his side will have an advantage
though ‘Syria are a strong side’.
“They are very strong side. We played
against them in Tashkent a few days ago
and since that time we know their game. We
KARACHI — Cricket's governing
body in Asia yesterday
rejected a complaint from
Bangladesh that one of their
batsman was obstructed by a
Pakistani bowler in their recent
Asia Cup final defeat.
The complaint was rejected
on the grounds that it was not
reported by on-field umpires,
an official said.
Ashraful Huq, chief executive
of the Asian Cricket
Council (ACC), said Bangladesh
officially complained
about the last over of the final,
which Bangladesh narrowly
lost.
"We had received Bangladesh's
complaint but since
Page 19
ACC rejects Bangladesh Cup objection
SYDNEY — Australia captain
Michael Clarke has confirmed
he is in talks to join Indian
Premier League (IPL) franchise
Pune Warriors, reports
said yesterday.
Clarke told reporters before
leaving on Sunday to join the
Australian team in the West
Indies that his management
was negotiating with Pune to
play in the IPL.
The Australia skipper
stayed behind and missed the
one-day series in the Caribbean
to treat a hamstring injury.
"That opportunity has been
the incident was not reported
by the on-field umpires nothing
can be done," Ashraful
said.
Bangladesh had appealed
to the ACC to review the final
over, accusing Pakistani paceman
Aizaz Cheema of deliberately
blocking batsman Mahmudullah
Riyad from taking a
second run.
Pakistan beat Bangladesh
by two runs to lift the four-nation
Asia Cup after a thrilling
final on Thursday.
The Pakistan Cricket Board
had expressed disappointment
over Bangladesh's complaint,
calling it an "after thought"
after defeat.
presented to my management
company and I," Clarke was
quoted in newspapers yesterday.
"Right now they're discussing
it. We will continue to talk
about that and make a decision
in due course.
"But my focus right now
is to make sure I get back and
play some good cricket for
Australia."
Clarke has so far resisted
the lure of playing in the rich
competition but came close
in 2009 before withdrawing
from the IPL auction to focus
on playing for Australia.
also had the opportunity to watch Oman-
Syria match. Now we got an idea about this
Syrian team,” he said. “But we will have a
slight advantage as we are fresh whereas
the Syrians had just one day to recuperate
after a tough match against Oman.”
Asked about the element of luck involved
in these matches, he said: “We
were not lucky to have qualified directly
for the Olympics. I don’t know whether
Oman were unlucky or the Syrians were
lucky in the last match. Tomorrow we will
see who will be lucky or unlucky.”
Captain Al Hadri confident of Oman giving their best against Uzbekistan
OMAN’S French coach Claude le Roy giving tips to his wards before the training in Hanoi yesterday. PICTURE RIGHT: Le Roy and Oman Football Association chief Sayyid Khalid al Busaidy during Oman team training.
From Our Sports Reporter
HANOI — Oman have overcome the disappointment
of not winning full points
against Syria on Sunday and are now fully
focused on achieving a good result in a
make-or-break final Asian play-off for the
London Olympics against Uzbekistan on
Thursday.
This was message conveyed by the
Omani captain Hussain al Hadri who is
confident of his team raising their game to
match that of fancied central Asians in the
crucial match. The Sultanate squad wasted
a first-half lead and went on to share the
points with 10-man Syria conceding the
equaliser in the final seconds of the first
of three play-offs. Now their fortunes also
depend on the outcome of today’s Syria-
Uzbek clash.
Speaking to the Observer a day after
the disappointing draw against Syria, Al
Hadri said: “Yesterday’s was a very difficult
match. We deserved to win but
missed quite a few chances. But we are
putting that disappointment behind us.
The concentration is now on our next
match against Uzbekistan.
“Though we are disappointed with the
draw, we are not mentally down. In fact,
all my team-mates are in good spirits.
That is very important for us,” he said,
“Uzbekistan are a very strong side. We
have played a couple of friendlies against
them in the recent times, including one in
Uzbekistan which ended in a draw. So we
know their players and their game. So we
will be ready for them and give our best
against the Uzbeks.”
‘NO CAPTAINCY PRESSURE’
Al Hadri, who earned and converted
a penalty against the Syrians, missed a
handful of scoring opportunities in that
match. Asked whether the burden of leading
the team is affecting his game, he replied
in the negative.
The captain’s arm band was handed
over to him after Frenchman Paul le Guen
took over the reins from Hamad al Azzani
following a dismal show against South
Koreans in the previous round. He led the
team in their final game of the Preliminary
Muamba
watched
team-mates
in action
on TV
LONDON — Fabrice Muamba
watched his Bolton
Wanderers team-mates playing
local rivals Blackburn
Rovers on a television highlights
programme — but fell
asleep before the end of the
match.
Muamba dozed off with
Bolton 2-0 up in a match
they won 2-1 on Saturday
— their first fixture since the
23-year-old midfielder collapsed
with a cardiac arrest
during the previous weekend's
FA Cup quarterfinal
against Tottenham.
The former England
Under-21 international was
"effectively dead" for 78
minutes but a series of encouraging
medical bulletins
have indicated he is making
a recovery, although he remains
in intensive care.
Bolton manager Owen
Coyle, speaking yesterday,
said: "Fabrice is able to recognise
people and answer
questions.
"He also watched Match
of the Day on Sunday morning,
which shows he is making
progress, although he did
fall asleep with the score at
2-0."
Shortly after Muamba's
collapse towards the end of
the first half at Tottenham's
White Hart Lane ground,
the match was abandoned
and the player taken to the
nearby London Chest Hospital,
where he has been ever
since.
The re-arranged FA Cup
tie will take place at White
Hart Lane today and Coyle
said a group of players
would visit Muamba in hospital
ahead of the match.
"It will give us a chance
to thank the Tottenham fans
because last Saturday it was
almost like a sixth sense had
taken over," said Coyle.
"There was a real sense
of unity.
"Is it going to be tough?
Yes." — AFP
Round 3 against Saudi Arabia, which resulted
in a draw leading to Oman’s qualification
for the play-offs.
But against Syria on Sunday, Al Hadri
struggled in front of the goalmouth.
Dismissing suggestions of playing
with any pressure, he said: “I am not under
any pressure in leading the team. I am
a team player and I am trying to give my
best and get the best out my team-mates.
There is no pressure on me as I still consider
Mansoor al Naimi as my captain.
But the coach picked me for the job and I
am happy about it.”
The team underwent a light training
session at the My Dinh Stadium yesterday
evening but assistant coach Mohanna Said
revealed the players are likely to be given
a break today before they resume their
training tomorrow.
“The players need to relax a bit,” he
said, adding “We are lucky with the fixtures.
The players will get enough rest
before the next match against Uzbekistan.
But our rivals will get just one day rest before
we take on them,” he said.
Sadoline Schools Football Championship
EIGHT teams will be participating in the Sadoline Schools Football Championship to be
held from April 10 to 23. The teams will be divided into two groups with three teams
each from the Muscat and South Batinah governorates.
Ashraful, who also hailed
from Bangladesh, said the
International Cricket Council
(ICC) had also turned down
the complaint.
"It could have happened
then and there, in the final
but since umpires and matchreferee
did not take any action
then, so the matter is closed,"
said Ashraful.
"I think the Bangladesh
team played so well in the
whole tournament, beating
India and Sri Lanka — World
Cup 2011 finalists — was no
mean achievement and although
they lost the final, the
Bangladesh team won millions
of hearts." — AFP
Clarke discussing IPL playing deal: reports
Last week former India
Test captain Saurav Ganguly,
who is the Pune club skipper,
confirmed that the franchise
was poised to secure the services
of Clarke in May.
Australian Test players
will miss the first three weeks
of the Indian domestic tournament
but will be available for
the final month of May.
Clarke said he had come
through an intense couple
of weeks of physiotherapy
in great shape and would be
ready for the first Test against
the West Indies in Barbados,
starting on April 7. — AFP