Global Sport — Healy in Australian A team but no room for Taylor

Stuart Law, who divides his cricket seasons between Queensland and English county Essex was appointed captain of Australia A.

Courtney Walsh hints at retirement

KARACHI: West Indies captain Courtney Walsh said today after a three-nil whitewash that he might have played his last Test against Pakistan. “It has been tremendous playing against such a marvellous side but I think it is my last series against them,” he said.

Pakistan now tour the West Indies early in 1999 and Walsh said “Two years is a very long time. I don’t think I will be there.”

“I have not decided about my future as it depends on the authorities back home. If they want me, I will be available,” said Walsh, the most successful West Indies bowler with 14 wickets.

Ambrose to miss Sharjah tourney

KARACHI: Injured West Indies pace bowler Curtly Ambrose will miss the four-nation Champions Trophy starting in Sharjah on December 11, team manager Clive Lloyd said today.

Lloyd said Ambrose was flying home for treatment on a back injury which had kept him out of the team’s third Test match against Pakistan which ended today.

Fifa shortlists four for Player of Year

ZURICH: Brazil’s Ronaldo, soccer’s 1996 Player of the Year, was yesterday named by Fifa as one of a four-man shortlist for this year’s award. Joining the Inter Milan forward at the award cermonies at Disneyland Paris on January 12 will be another Brazilian, Real Madrid defender Roberto Carlos, another striker, Arsenal’s Dutchman Dennis Bergkamp, and Juventus’s French midfielder Zinedine Zidane.

Spanish coach revels in criticism

MADRID: Javier Clemente, the notoriously dour Spanish coach seems to revel in criticism from fans and press alike.

Clemente’s career had hardly begun when it was cut short by injury, and some people think that bitterness from this incident has carried over in to his managerial style.

Nevertheless, Clemente took longer than most would have liked to call up young Real Madrid star Raul, and he was still not picked Barcelona playmaker Ivan de la Pena.

Clemente is frequently criticised for favouring players from his Basque homeland, amongst them much-criticised veteran keeper Andoni Zubizarreta.

Foreman plans to fight at 50

LAS VEGAS: George Foreman ended his latest retirement after 16 days, saying he wants to fight one more time here at the age of 50.

The former world heavyweight boxing champion lost a controversial decision to Shannon Briggs on November 22 in Atlantic City but said he plans to fight at least one more time before hanging up his gloves.

“In 13 months from today, I’ll be 50 years old. I would like to have one last boxing match in Las Vegas before calling it quits,” Foreman said. “But someone’s really got to give me a good whooping. I don’t want anyone to slap me around and abuse me. I want a whooping.”

Former boxing champ Gomez arrested

SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO: Former three-time boxing champion Wilfredo Gomez was arrested and charged with cocaine possession.

Police said yesterday they found Gomez using cocaine in his car along a stretch of public beach near the town of Loiza . Officers confiscated six small bags of the drug.