Sports

New Delhi/ Belo Horizinte (Brazil), Jun 22: The way Iran was defending, it was always going to take a little magic from Lionel Messi to send Argentina into the second round of the World Cup. Until stoppage time on Saturday, Messi had been stifled by Iran's solid back line. Then, out of nowhere, the Argentina captain produced something very special, as he has done so many times for Barcelona, by

Brazil, Jun 22: Miroslav Klose hit a World Cup record-equalling 15th goal as Germany fought back to claim a 2-2 draw with Ghana on Saturday. Veteran striker Klose had only been on the pitch as a substitute for two minutes when he jabbed home the equaliser and joined Brazilian great Ronaldo on top of the all-time scoring charts. The 36-year-old Lazio striker struck in the 71st minute of a thrilling

Rio de Janeiro, Jun 21: When Group D earned the moniker of the Group of Death the 2014 World Cup, nobody gave a thought to little Costa Rica. They were assumed to be collateral damage as the three former champions in the group – Italy, England and Uruguay - did battle for the right to progress to the second round. Except someone forget to tell Costa Rica they should just lie down and play dead

New Delhi/Salvador (Brazil), Jun 21: France are on the brink of reaching the World Cup last 16 after their emphatic 5-2 win over Switzerland on Friday kept them in control of Group E. The French backed up their opening 3-0 win over Honduras by racing into a 2-0 lead as Olivier Giroud's 16th-minute header was followed by Blaise Matuidi's goal just 66 seconds later. Diminutive right-winger Mathieu

Rio de Janeiro, Jun 20: Luis Suarez scored twice to give Uruguay a 2-1 victory over England at the World Cup on Thursday, making an instant impact on his return from injury to revive his team's Group D campaign. The Liverpool striker, who hadn't played since undergoing surgery on his left knee last month, lashed in the winner in the 85th minute, after seeing his first-half opener canceled out by

Mirpur, Jun 19: Having recorded an improbable victory, a confident Indian team would look to go for the kill by completing a 3-0 rout when it meets an out-of-sync Bangladesh in the final one-dayer on Thursday. Defending a paltry 105 with an astounding show, the ‘Men In Blue’ will be on cloud nine as they gear up for a ‘Whitewash’ of Mushfiqur Rahim and Co. More than dismissing Bangladesh for 58

Rio de Janeiro, Jun 19: It took 11 games, three world cups and 64 years, but Chile has finally defeated its colonial master in the beautiful game and, in doing so, sent the reigning world champion Spain crashing out of Brazil 2014. Predictions of a “kamikaze” style offensive Chile looked spot on in the opening minutes as “La Roja” talisman Alexis Sánchez created two genuine chances in the opening

Rio de Janeiro, June 18: Argentine football legend Diego Maradona expressed anger after he wasn't allowed to attend his country's match against Bosnia and Herzegovina Sunday at the Maracana Stadium, which Argentina won 2-1. Maradona said he had been "deliberately" prevented from attending the match despite having a valid media accreditation card which allows him to attend all World Cup matches

Brasilia, June 18: Defending champions Spain will face the 'suicidal' attacking style of Chile at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday aiming to get their World Cup bid back on track and avoid an embarrassingly early exit. Spain were ripped to shreds in a morale-sapping 5-1 defeat by the Netherlands in their Group B opener on Friday - their worst World Cup loss since a 6-1 mauling by Brazil

Fortaleza, Jun 18: Guillermo Ochoa threw up an impenetrable shield around his goal as stubborn Mexico frustrated World Cup hosts Brazil to earn a 0-0 draw on Monday. Ochoa pulled off an incredible diving stop from a Neymar header and a series of other incredible saves, holding up Brazil's march toward qualification from Group A. The 28-year-old Ochoa, who plays in France for AC Ajaccio, produced