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ICC pitch consultant Andy Atkinson has held the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) responsible for last years Ferozeshah Kotla...

Atkinson blames DDCA for pitch

ICC pitch consultant Andy Atkinson has held the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) responsible for last years Ferozeshah Kotla pitch fiasco while absolving curator Daljit Singh. Atkinsons report comes after he visited the stadium to suggest corrective measures for the pitch,deemed too dangerous during an India-Sri Lanka match which was eventually abandoned in December last year. …the decision to use Perennial Rye grass was the only option left at a very late stage in an attempt to obtain some grass cover for the ODI on the 27th December and was recommended by Mr Daljit Singh (Chairman BCCI Pitches Committee) quite correctly as an emergency measure, Atkinson wrote in his report published by Cricinfo website.

Talkatora to be open to boxers

The Talkatora Indoor Stadium was inaugurated on Wednesday and will be thrown open to Indian boxers preparing for the Commonwealth Championships by March 1 to help them get a feel of the arena ahead of the March 10 to 18 event. The Indian boxers had asked that the stadium be made available to them at least a week ahead of the championship.

Murray knocked out in Rd 2

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Andy Murrays first tournament since reaching the Australian Open final was ended in the second round of the Dubai Championships by Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia 7-6 (3) 4-6 6-4 on Wednesday. Tipsarevic evened his record at 3-3 against Murray,whos never had an easy time with the Serb.

Ref banned for matchfixing links

UEFA has banned Bosnian referee Novo Panic for life because of his links to a European match-fixing ring. But European footballs governing body has cleared top Bulgarian official Anton Genov of allegations that he helped fix an international friendly. UEFA said on Wednesday that Panic was banned from any football activities after an investigation on the basis of evidence uncovered by German police. It also suspended Croatian assistant referee Tomislav Setka until July 2011,and Ukrainian ref Oleh Orekhov for 30 day.

Nadal worried about injuries

Rafael Nadal is worried about his constant injuries although the former top-ranked player is confident of getting back to his best form,according to Spains Davis Cup captain Albert Costa. He is worried about his physical state but hes working every day to get better, Costa said on Wednesday. Nadal has been plagued by injuries since November 2008,when tendinitis in his knees forced him to miss Spains Davis Cup win over Argentina.