The Sport Review: “Bernie Ecclestone admits Bahrain GP could be cancelled” plus 4 more

Bernie Ecclestone admits Bahrain GP could be cancelled
Wembley Champions League final tickets prices highest ever
Jack Wilshere thrilled after his ‘best day’ in an Arsenal shirt
Cricket World Cup: Favourites India must deal with pressure
Serie A: Inter defeat Fiorentina to close gap on AC Milan

Bernie Ecclestone admits Bahrain GP could be cancelled

Posted: 17 Feb 2011 12:52 PM PST

bernie ecclestone

The fate of Formula 1's season-opening grand prix in Bahrain will be decided next week in the wake of unrest in the country.

F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has already conceded the event may have to be cancelled but hopes the trouble will subside allowing the race to go ahead as planned.

After the GP2 Asia Series event at the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) was cancelled on Thursday, the decision on whether to cancel the grand prix rests with Ecclestone, FIA president Jean Todt, race organisers in Bahrain and Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.

"It’s not good, is it?" Ecclestone said. "We'll have to keep our eye on things and make a decision quickly.

"I spoke to the Crown Prince this morning. He doesn't know any more than you or I, but they're monitoring exactly what is going on. Next week we will make a decision on what we are going to do."

A statement on behalf of the organisers read: "The safety of all Bahraini nationals, expats and overseas visitors is a priority at all times in the Kingdom and, at the Bahrain International Circuit."

"Our focus at the present time remains on delivering another successful event in the form of the 2011 Gulf Air Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix.

"We continue to monitor the situation very closely indeed in association with the relevant authorities.

"Our priority at this time is ensuring the wellbeing of everyone associated with this event, and we will respond appropriately to any further developments."

Virgin Racing team principal John Booth added: "If the local government, along with FOM, and the FIA say it is safe to go, then we go.

"We will trust their judgment. They will have people on the ground assessing the situation all the time, and I'm sure they are well informed of the risks.

"The only complication is the test, with most of us out there for 16 days, so a decision will need taking by the 25th when the freight goes out, and a week after for the race."

The BIC was also due to host the F1 teams for the final pre-season test from 3-6 March but that is now expected to be cancelled following a meeting of the Formula 1 Teams' Association in Barcelona on Friday.

The final test is crucial to the development of the new cars, and the teams will be keen to ensure they get one final four-day run-out ahead of the season opener.

It has been suggested that other circuits, including Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina and Singapore's Marina Bay, would be happy to accommodate the teams.

Wembley Champions League final tickets prices highest ever

Posted: 17 Feb 2011 10:22 AM PST

uefa champions league

General sale tickets for this year's Uefa Champions League final at Wembley are set to go on sale next Thursday – but they will be most expensive in the tournament's history.

Fans will be able to apply for up to two tickets per person from an allocation of 11,000 between 24 February and 18 March, but the cheapest tickets for this season's final in London will cost £176.

For fans of the clubs involved in the final however, the cheapest tickets are expected to be priced at around £80.

Applications for the general sale tickets must be completed through Uefa’s website, and despite the huge price tag, demand is still expected to exceed supply, and a ballot will be used to decide who is successful.

The tickets will be priced at: Category 1 – £300, Category 2 – £225 (or £338 for an adult and child package), Category 3 – £150 and Wheelchair – £80, along with a £26 booking fee.

Uefa’s director of competitions Giorgio Marchetti defended the vast costs at the ticket launch at London’s City Hall on Thursday.

He said: "The prices are based on the type of event and when you compare it to other events we don’t think that the Champions League final is overpriced.

“We do not want to squeeze every single penny out of the market. We have to benchmark this event against other comparable events, like for example the final of the Euros and the World Cup.

“Last year there was already a significant increase compared to the previous editions but it’s nothing to do with being in London and it is still priced below comparable events.”

Jack Wilshere thrilled after his ‘best day’ in an Arsenal shirt

Posted: 17 Feb 2011 09:25 AM PST

jack wilshere

Jack Wilshere hailed his “best day” in an Arsenal shirt following the gunners’ 2-1 victory over Barcelona on Wednesday night.

Two late strikes from Robin van Persie and Andrey Arshavin cancelled out David Villa’s first-half opener to give Arsène Wenger’s men a slender advantage to take to the Camp Nou in three weeks' time.

Wilshere, 19, excelled in midfield, winning the ball cleanly and distributing with consummate ease all night as he proved himself capable of competing with two of the world's finest in the form of Spain duo Xavi and Andrés Iniesta.

“It has been a crazy last couple of weeks and this probably tops it,” said Wilshere afterwards. “This has been my best day as an Arsenal player by far. It is not over yet. We have got the second leg and we have to go there and get a result and go through to the quarters.”

The England youngster added: “They had a spell of 20 minutes in the first half when we couldn’t get the ball off them. We knew they were going to be like that, we just had to hold out and defend well and hit them on the counter-attack, and that’s what we did.”

It is the second time in a week that Wilshere has won plaudits for a mature performance after England manager Fabio Capello earmarked the youngster as a key part of the national team’s future following the 19-year-old’s showing during his side’s 2-1 win in Denmark.

Capello said: “The style of Arsenal is a lot of passes. Wilshere wins back the ball, he passes, he turns, dribbles, goes and shoots. I saw everything. The style of Arsenal is touch, touch, touch, touch. Like Barcelona.

“Wilshere is the best young player. He now plays all the time with Arsenal. If you play with Arsenal, you are a really good player because Arsène Wenger likes good players.”

Cricket World Cup: Favourites India must deal with pressure

Posted: 17 Feb 2011 06:25 AM PST

india odi cricket team

India kick off the 10th one-day ICC World Cup on Saturday and start the tournament as favourites yet while many have automatically assumed it is a given that they will be crowned champion's in Mumbai in seven weeks' time, it is far from decided.

The fact that India are co-hosting the tournament with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka undoubtedly gives them an advantage. Yet, it should not be forgotten that because of the Indian Premier League many of the world's best stars come into this tournament with plenty of experience of sub-continent conditions.

Many believe that India's current crop have the ability to finally end the cricket-mad nation's 28-year wait for a major trophy – and they may be right. The most exciting aspect of this Indian team is its potent mix of experience and youth.

The likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Vivinder Sehwag have done it all before and will look to guide talents such as Virat Kohli, Yusuf Pathan and Suresh Raina.

In the bowling department, however, India lack variety and have potentially left themselves too reliant on Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan to take wickets. The unpredictable Munaf Patel has potential but lacks consistency, while surprise choice Piyush Chawla is a virtual unknown yet may come up trumps.

The biggest test for India will be how they deal with the pressure. The expectation is high and this could cripple the team if things don't go according to plan.

Having reached the semi-finals on both occasions in which the tournament has been held in the sub-continent, India should at least get that far again.

The beauty of this tournament is that while India are favourites they are by no means unbeatable – as their recent 3-2 series defeat against South Africa showed.

Their co-hosts Sri Lanka will also fancy their chances and will be relying on the likes Tillakaratne Dilshan, Angelo Matthews and Lasith Malinga to guide them to the latter stages of the tournament.

Sri Lanka, runners-up in 2007, perform well in big tournaments and who would begrudge spin-legend Muttiah Muralitharan the chance to end his glittering international career with another trophy in the cabinet?

According to the rankings, defending champions and the world's top ranked one-day side Australia, who recently recorded a 6-1 series win over England, are the team to beat – but stats count for little when play gets under way.

The loss of Michael Hussey and Nathan Hauritz will be a big blow to Ricky Ponting's men who, despite the flattering score-line against England, still have serious questions to answer. Is their captain Ponting up to the task? Can they handle spin? And who will replace Hussey in the top-order and Hauritz in the bowling department.

The reason why this tournament won't be an anti-climax like the last World Cup, where games were often too pedestrian and the action on the pitch failed to live up to the beauty and flair of the West Indian surroundings, is that you could make convincing cases for England and South Africa to be victorious come 2 April.

Yet the dark horses for the tournament are Pakistan. They come into the competition a wounded animal and will be looking to rebuild their international standing after the match-fixing scandal.

Their volatility and unpredictability is embodied in their captain, Shahid Afridi, but even he has mellowed since being given the captaincy. In recent months they have been more united and stable and certainly have the motivation to do well after being stripped of their co-host status in the wake of the 2009 terrorist attacks in Lahore.

In teenager Ahmed Shehzad and Misbah Ul-Haq they have two in-form batsmen who should see them through to the quarter-finals and, if luck is on their side, possibly further.

They also come into the tournament full of confidence having secured their first one-day series win in two years and will be looking to build on this.

Rajvir Rai is the founder of Sport Asia Online.

Serie A: Inter defeat Fiorentina to close gap on AC Milan

Posted: 17 Feb 2011 04:23 AM PST

inter milan

Giampaolo Pazzini scored the winner as Inter Milan closed the gap on Serie A leaders AC Milan to five points with a 2-1 win over Fiorentina on Wednesday night.

Leonardo’s Inter took the lead within six minutes when Samuel Eto’o's cross was deflected past former Celtic goalkeeper Artur Boruc.

But La Viola struck back on the half-hour mark through full-back Manuel Pasqual. The 28-year-old’s intended cross evaded the entire Inter defence, who were preoccupied by the presence of Fiorentina front-man Alberto Gilardino, and crept past Júlio César to level the match.

The Nerazzurri then secured a vital victory at the Stadio Artemio Franchi thanks to new signing Pazzini’s fourth league goal since signing from Sampdoria.

Eto'o dribbled past two Fiorentina defenders on the right wing before squaring a ball to Inter’s number seven who steered the ball past Boruc after 61 minutes.

The result pushes Inter back into third place and five points behind Serie A pacesetters and derby rivals AC Milan. The result provides the perfect remedy for the defending champions after their disappointing 1-0 defeat to Juventus last Sunday in the Derby della Italia.

“Tonight was important to take the 3 points, especially after the defeat of Juventus, to get back in the race,” said Inter’s assistant manager Giuseppe Baresi after the match. “We met one of the fittest teams in the league but we played well and we were compact.”

Speaking about the Serie A title race, he added: “We are behind and we must recover, playing every game like a final.”

Meanwhile, Fiorentina boss Siniša Mihajlović admitted his disappointment at the result after a match that the Serb felt his side deserved to win.

“I prefer to win and play well, but I think we got half of that right this evening,” Mihajlovic said after the match.

“We didn't deserve to lose today, as Inter scored with their only chance of the first half, while we created a great deal. Unfortunately, you pay for your first mistake against the Nerazzurri.

The 41-year-old added: “My team gave their all and played well, so it hurts to suffer a defeat like this.”