BLOEMFONTEIN: Switzerland coach Ottmar Hitzfeld said Friday that nerves had plagued his team as they went in search of the two goals needed to ensure they reached the World Cup knockout phase. The Swiss failed to find the net in a goalless stalemate in Bloemfontein as Spain and Chile

KIEV: The Ukrainian Security Services (SBU) announced on Friday that 10.8 million hryvnias (1.4 million dollars) set aside for the reconstruction of the main Euro 2012 stadium here have been misappropriated. The director of Kiev`s Olympic stadium and his assistant "have misappropriated

DURBAN: Portugal qualified for the second round of the World Cup after battling to an ill-tempered 0-0 draw with five-time champions Brazil in their final Group G game on Friday. In a match that was hyped as a potential showcase for the "beautiful game", there was not much samba on

LONDON: Australia`s Jarmila Groth set up a fourth round shot at Wimbledon great Venus Williams when she downed Germany`s Angelique Kerber 6-3, 7-5 on Friday. The Aussie number three reached the round of 16 at the All England Club for the first time when she beat the higher-ranked Kerber

JOHANNESBURG: Former French skipper Patrick Vieira on Friday called for a halt on the export of teenage African football talent after the poor showing at the first World Cup to be held on the continent. Amid a bout of soul-searching over the string of failures, other legends of the game

JOHANNESBURG: Tensions between the World Cup`s two top local officials erupted into the open on Friday when the organising committee`s chief executive accused the chairman of waging a war against him. After the Mail and Guardian news weekly reported his brother was cashing in on the

LONDON: Lu Yen-Hsun became the first Taiwanese man to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam when his third round opponent Florian Mayer retired during the third set here at Wimbledon on Friday. Lu had taken the first two sets 6-4 and was a break up at 2-1 in the third when Mayer

LONDON : After meeting Queen Elizabeth on Thursday, Britain`s Andy Murray will be hoping for another majestic performance when he faces Frenchman Gilles Simon in the third round on Saturday. A barnstorming demolition of Finland`s Jarkko Nieminen has raised expectations among a British

NELSPRUIT: Ivory Coast joined the exodus of African teams from the World Cup here on Friday as they could only beat already eliminated North Korea 3-0 in their Group G match. Chasing a seemingly impossible nine goals to nudge Portugal out of the last 16 - though it wouldn`t have made a

LONDON: Australia`s Lleyton Hewitt beat France`s Gael Monfils in straight sets on Friday to progress through to the men`s fourth round at Wimbledon. The 2002 champion won 6-3, 7-6 (11/9), 6-4 and was forced to dig deep in the second set before eventually triumphing in the crucial tie

LONDON: John Isner said he would be doing "anything but tennis" as he tries to recover from his record-shattering exploits at Wimbledon. Isner, who played the longest tennis match ever to make it through the first round, crashed out of the second round in straight sets as the "brutal"

JOHANNESBURG: If Mexico are to have a hope of seeing off Argentina to reach the World Cup quarter-finals they have to close off the supply to dangerman Lionel Messi, the world footballer of the year`s Barcelona teammate Rafael Marquez says. Looking forward to Sunday`s encounter Marquez

NEW DELHI: India`s cricket chiefs on Friday moved to make a new start for the scandal-hit Indian Premier League, hoping to dispel doubts over the event`s future in the absence of its creator Lalit Modi. The Indian cricket board (BCCI) met representatives of the 10 teams and held a

IRENE: Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro on Friday blamed fear for the reigning champions` ignominious exit from the World Cup following a shock 3-2 defeat to debutants Slovakia. The 36-year-old, who has now played his last match for the Azzurri and will move to Al-Ahli in Dubai next season,

JOHANNESBURG: The World Cup Local Organising Committee (LOC) said on Friday that they were not worried about potential trouble in the high-octane last 16 clash between old rivals Germany and England on Sunday. LOC spokesman Jermaine Craig said that they had been in close contact with

RUSTENBURG: Four years after sending the United States crashing out of the World Cup, Ghana`s Black Stars again block the Americans` path and are the only African team into the knockout rounds. Former US President Bill Clinton is among the American supporters who will make his way to

JOHANNESBURG: Holders Italy bombed out in the first round of the World Cup on Thursday, as South African police beefed up security for a showdown between two of Europe`s other big guns, Germany and England. The Italians` stunning 3-2 loss to Slovakia in Johannesburg was the shock of the

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama told America`s World Cup heroes Thursday that the West Wing of the White House erupted in cheers when Landon Donovan scored the dramatic winning goal against Algeria. Obama called the jubilant United States team as they prepared in South Africa for

RUSTENBURG: Japan star Keisuke Honda has backed his side to make an even bigger impression on this World Cup after a landmark victory over Denmark sent the Blue Samurai into the last 16 for the first time on foreign soil. Honda picked up the man of the match award after scoring a

WELLINGTON: New Zealanders` disappointment as the All Whites bowed out of the World Cup was quickly overtaken by pride Friday as their unfancied team ended the competition unbeaten.   The World Cup minnows` scoreless draw with Paraguay in their final pool match followed draws with