HE'S A BAD MAN

During his eight seasons in New Orleans, David West was regarded as the consummate pro's pro. A pick-and-pop shooter and rugged rebounder, West averaged 16 points and seven rebounds. But late in his final season with the Hornets, he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. Heading into free agency, West chose the Pacers over the Celtics, which helped legitimize the team.

If you were making a list of the people in the NBA that no one messes with, David West would be the captain. A 10-year vet with a deep baritone and broad shoulders, West is as likely to drop a well-timed elbow in his opponent's stomach as he is to step out and drain an 18-footer, and he makes a lot of jumpers. He's a tough guy in the classic sense, a no-nonsense badass who handles his business and doubles as a big brother for his younger teammates.

"There's a seriousness to his approach that resonated among everybody in the locker room," Vogel said. "It's not by anything he says or does, but by his mere presence. Very few players in the NBA or pro sports can do that with just their presence, but David West does."

Hibbert is the anchor of the team's signature top-rated defense. George is the emerging superstar and the biggest reason why the Pacers are legitimate contenders. But this is West's team, and everyone knows it.

"David is the real reason why this locker room is the way it is," George said. "The second he came here he had everyone playing as a team and giving himself and sacrificing himself for the betterment of the team. That just flew throughout the whole locker room. He's so wise. It's beyond basketball, some of the conversations that we have."

In the locker room, his voice is the unquestioned authority. He's the one who decides when the joke has gone too far or whether the music should be turned down. "When he speaks," Hibbert said, "you listen."

Naturally, West shrugs off the suggestion that he is the team's de facto leader.

"We don't walk around labeling, you're this or that. Everybody's got a voice in the locker room because everybody's got to be held accountable," West said. "We're asking you to do a job defensively. That's what we expect of you. Our coach will go off and get mad when he has to, our assistants the same way. But first and foremost it comes from us. We police each other so we make sure we're holding each other accountable. Everybody has a voice. Everybody can say what needs to be said so when we get out there to play we're all on the same page."

The Pacers were angry. Two nights earlier, they had blown a fourth-quarter lead and lost in Miami against their nemesis

The Pacers were angry. Two nights earlier, they had blown a fourth-quarter lead and lost in Miami against their nemesis. Two nights before that, they'd dropped a game at home against Detroit, which is the kind of thing that happens during the NBA season as one game blends into the next. Not to this team, however.

"Every night we're playing for home-court advantage," Indiana coach Frank Vogel told me as we walked down the hallway following his pregame media scrum, not long before his team took on the Houston Rockets in late December.

I asked Vogel if he had any worries about how his team would bounce back from that Heat loss, a crushing three-point defeat that ended with Paul George howling about an uncalled foul from LeBron James on the game's final play. George may have had a case, but he wasn't getting that whistle against LeBron. Not in King James' building, anyway. Get Miami in Bankers Life Fieldhouse in a Game 7 in front of an Indiana crowd, and who knows what might happen?

"We really feel like every night we're playing for a championship."

Vogel looked at me like I was crazy. That play was the whole point of the Pacers' season. Losing two in a row wasn't just poor form. It was a refutation of everything they wanted to stand for as a team.

"We really feel like every night we're playing for a championship," Vogel said. "A lot of teams can't say that about their regular-season nights. There's a lot of ‘Just Another Night's' in the NBA. But not with our team."

* * *

Immediately after losing Game 7 in Miami last spring, the Pacers started talking about home-court advantage. They talked about it in Los Angeles over the summer during informal team workouts. It was the first thing they talked about publicly when they returned to Indiana for training camp. It was almost a dare.

"It's something that we feel that this group is mature enough to handle," said power forward David West, who doubles as the team's conscience. "From day one."

And so the pissed-off Pacers took the court against the Rockets in front of a raucous sellout crowd -- their seventh in 13 games -- and won by 33 points. Their defense was impenetrable and George took over in the third quarter; he also helped harass James Harden into a 3-for-14 shooting night. "It's a good feeling," George said. "Because when we're at our best, we feel like we're unstoppable."

For most of this season the Pacers have been unstoppable. They opened with a nine-game winning streak, then reeled off seven more. At the rejuvenated Bankers Life Fieldhouse, they ended 2013 with a 15-1 record and an average margin of victory of better than 14 points a game. Attendance is, quite reasonably, booming.

That last part is important. Because while it's a common complaint among the Pacers that the national attention they've earned has been woefully late in coming -- they were, for instance, not one of the 10 teams featured on Christmas Day -- they had to get their own fans back first.

"Winning back our city and our fans and our state is as much a part of our goals as winning basketball games," Vogel said. "This is a Pacers town and there was a time they cared less about the Pacers, for good reason. A lot of our goals were centered around delivering to our fans a team they could fall in love with."

After years of neglect from a basketball mad community, the Pacers are once again a beloved institution. Season ticket sales are up 34 percent from last year, the second straight season they have enjoyed a better than 30-percent rise. Over their first 16 home games, attendance has increased by more than 3,000 per game. They had already matched last season's sell-out mark with 10 before the calendar had even flipped to 2014.

South Africa sweep series with easy win

Clinical South Africa sweep series with easy win

	Shahid Afridi could not last long enough to make an impact © AFP Enlarge

Another day, another batting collapse from Pakistan. They were shot out for 120 and it was too little to defend even for their talented bowling attack. Their spinners posed a brief threat but South Africa shut them out to seal a 2-0 series win. Graeme Smith's 38 wasn't a fluent effort but he fought on to push South Africa close before Colin Ingram and JP Duminy applied the final touches.

When a struggling Smith was stumped off Saeed Ajmal, South Africa needed 53 from 40 balls, raising the possibility of an improbable twist in the tale. Ajmal had 3.4 overs left in his spell and there were two new batsmen in the middle but Ingram killed the contest with admirable coolness. He pulled Umar Gul for four before collecting three boundaries off Shoaib Akthar in the 17th over - a smashed six over long-on and two fours dragged to square-leg - to push South Africa ahead in the chase. He fell, holing out to long-on, but Duminy stayed put till the end.

Nothing went right from the start for Pakistan. Shahzaib Hasan continued to be a walking wicket and his exit, to an ugly slog across the line, opened the floodgates. Imran Farhat, who was bowled going for an over-ambitious heave, left one wondering whether the selectors were being too harsh on Imran Nazir. Like yesterday, it was Lonwabo Tsotsobe who removed the openers.

Again there was no middle-order revival. Mohammad Hafeez averages just 20.01 from 53 ODIs and 16.53 from 17 Twenty20s. Today was yet another day where he played a couple of pretty shots before combusting. He was caught at the crease, pondering whether to cut or steer, and lost his stumps before he could make up his mind. Umar Akmal ran himself out following a mix-up with Misbah-ul-Haq, and Shahid Afridi scooped Rusty Theron to deep point. Abdul Razzaq improved on his performance from yesterday - he swung a couple of sixes - but tapped a full toss straight to mid-off.

It was left to Misbah to push Pakistan over 100. It was another one of his meandering knocks that seemed to go nowhere until the last couple of overs when he showed some intent. Like yesterday, he initially struggled to find his timing but fought on to hold one end up. He went for the big shots in the end - there was a neat six over wide long-on, hit on a bent knee, and a shuffled swat to the backward square-leg boundary - but it was too little and too late.

It was difficult to rate South Africa's bowling in this context. Did Pakistan's shoddy batting display make the bowling look better than it was? It would be unfair, though, to not credit them for their discipline. Tsotsobe punctuated his natural left-armer's angle with the ones that straightened to collect early wickets, Johan Botha, as ever, strangled the run-flow in the middle overs with his variations, and Theron enhanced his reputation as a death-over specialist with three wickets in the last over. Pakistan's bowlers again attempted the improbable but it was a bridge too far to cross.

Rampant Razzaq stuns South Africa

There are match-winning centuries and there are Match-winning Centuries. You will travel far and wide, maybe even go back in time, but you will struggle to find a more remarkable game-stealing hundred than the one the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi saw tonight. An outrageous 72-ball 109 from Abdul Razzaq dragged Pakistan to a series-levelling target of 287 against South Africa, one ball and one wicket left.

It was scarcely-scriptable and only when Razzaq hit his tenth six in the last over, slogging Albie Morkel over midwicket to climax an unimaginable orgy of power-hitting, was a Pakistan win even worth contemplating; until then he had played to a backdrop of impending, imminent doom. To even get to that point needing 14 was a feat because for 99 overs Pakistan looked a distant second best; a solid, now-to-be-forgotten century from Colin Ingram, hands from Hashim Amla and JP Duminy and the continuing refusal of Pakistan's top order to turn up, the distinct story till then.

Shahid Afridi and Fawad Alam had tried gamely to make something of the disaster of 70 for 4 in the 19th over. The spinners were on, Afridi was around so inevitably some fun was had. When Afridi went in the 30th, the score at 136, still the best they could hope for was an honourable scrap.

Razzaq began quietly, expressive as a stone, and even a dance-down six off Robin Peterson four overs after Afridi left felt decorative. Alam, meanwhile, was getting bogged down by his own inability to clear a field. But South Africa relaxed, the pair stuck at it. Alam suddenly got going and Razzaq smoked a couple more sixes. By the 40th over, at 200 for 5, theoretically it looked possible - in this age of Twenty20 at least - even if, in reality, it didn't feel gettable.

But for once, Pakistan timed their Powerplay right and when Johan Botha was taken for 11 in the very first, a little tension crept in. Only a little though, for Alam went soon, Morne Morkel bowled two fine overs, there was the inevitable run-out and even though Razzaq had reached his fifty, it was done and dusted.

The 47th over, bowled poorly by Charles Langeveldt, was pivotal. Razzaq launched a sequence of length balls for three sixes in his favourite areas - flat-batted over extra cover, high over long-on and down the ground. Eighteen runs but no expression. Wahab Riaz's run-out off the last ball was merely collateral damage as 53 from 24 became 33 from 18.

Razzaq had decided at the fall of Alam that if the match was to be won, it would be by him alone, so with the tail in, several singles were turned down. With 25 needed from 12, Langeveldt was lofted down the ground and then pulled with cartoonish violence to midwicket. By the time Razzaq had taken the 14 needed off the last over he had scored 63 of the last 65, effectively from the 45th over onwards. Six sixes came in the last four overs, and only at the very end, after crashing a drive through point, did he let his emotions out, dropping his bat and trying to run but not knowing where to go.

That put to shade all that went before it. South Africa's real work had been done with the bat and Ingram's second ODI century was a real old-school effort. The start was edgy, even if it contained a classy punch through midwicket. But once he jumped down the track and lofted Razzaq down the ground, nerves were shed.

Abdul Razzaq made an outrageous game-stealing 109 © AFP

Thereafter, singles and doubles rolled by and so incongruously did he go about it that his fifty, at the halfway mark, was actually a surprise. He never fully got hold of the spinners but neither did they really trouble him and a pattern emerged. There was a missed stumping, but a ball previous, he had driven solidly through covers. Five times an edge was drawn and each time a boundary was the result. He might even have been run out on 73, but so settled was he that a century never looked in serious doubt. Every time the spinners erred, he took advantage, cutting and pulling efficiently. The running was the highlight, aggressive throughout.

But it was Amla who had set the tone and allowed Ingram such comfort. His ODI batting has been a revelation since his late debut in 2008; he now has nine fifties and five hundreds in just 34 games. At a 90-plus strike rate, they don't come slowly either. But most revelatory is the persistent quality of his stokeplay, unique and utterly compelling. So quick are the hands and wrists that the feet don't need to move.

He began with a burst of boundaries, four in the first two overs, rotating his bat like a wand for flicks and cuts through point. More cuts, whips and a rare drive through the off kept coming so that even when singles dried up, the runs didn't. A fifty, off just 47 balls, was merely statistical embellishment to a wondrous hour of batting, especially on a surface slow enough to hamper timing. He is not the modern macho ODI opener, and it cannot be disputed the format needs such flair over brutality and function.

Across the desert in Dubai, as Botha was winning the toss, Mohammad Amir's suspension was not being lifted and how his absence was felt by Pakistan. In turn, they were awful, complacent, solid and special. Shoaib Akhtar and Razzaq are a different proposition altogether than Amir and Mohammad Asif, as their opening spells - short, wide and inconsistent - proved.

There came brief spells of tight work, from the spinners, but never prolonged. The best they saved for last and it came from the impressive Wahab Riaz. Just when South Africa were looking to explode in the batting Powerplay, yorkers, short balls and cutters ensured only 25 runs came, Riaz picking up two of the three wickets to fall.

It felt a relative victory then, a twinkling cameo from Duminy highlighting its hollowness. A potential target of 300-plus became 287; Pakistan's best chase against these opponents was 223 and they had only chased down 250-plus twice in the last two years. And they certainly hadn't chased them down like they finally did here.

NZ aim to put Bangladesh behind them

New Zealand were recently crushed 4-0 by Bangladesh in their one-day series and captain Daniel Vettori is hoping that the change in format to Test cricket, and the addition of new personnel for this Indian tour, will help his side erase those bad memories. New Zealand arrived in Ahmedabad today for a three-Test and five-ODI tour that begins on November 4 at Motera. It is their first bilateral visit since 2003.

"The Bangladesh tour was extremely disappointing," Vettori said. "We will try to rectify that in India. It's a fresh start for us: It's Test cricket and we have new players here and they have not been affected by what happened in Bangladesh."

"Daniel Vettori: "It's Test cricket and we have new players here and they have not been affected by what happened in Bangladesh." © AFP

New Zealand weren't allowed to shirk off Bangladesh from their psyche, or the comments from Mark Greatbatch, the selector and coach, who lashed out at his players recently, in what was otherwise a dull opening press conference. After failing to win a game against Bangladesh, Greatbatch said, "When you play badly like that you've got to front up. It's very devastating. We played like d****, really."

In an another moment of candour, he also said that, "India have only lost one of their last 13 Tests in India, so if you're gonna ask me what a good result is I would take two draws."

He was reminded of both in the press conference today. He brushed off the comments by saying that it was in the past and that the players are eager to do well in this series. He responded to his own "two draws" comment (does that mean he was looking to lose 0-1?) by saying that, "We are here to win. As Dan said, we have some new players in and this is a great opportunity for all of them. We didn't play to our standards against Bangladesh but we have to move on from there. And do well against India."

He then added, "It won't be easy." Indeed.

Nervy South Africa hang on for win

They fell apart again at the death but ultimately a hundred from Hashim Amla and four wickets from Morne Morkel were just about enough to sneak South Africa home in the third ODI in Dubai. A second death-overs meltdown in two games let Pakistan come within two runs, but a 2-1 series lead was secured.

South Africa were exceptional for 42 overs in defending 229. Pakistan had just lost Abdul Razzaq, they needed 76 on a sluggish, boundary-shy surface: game over. But Morkel, Rusty Theron and Lonwabo Tsotsobe lost their minds, nerves, lengths and lines. Fielders began to drop catches as Wahab Riaz, of all batsmen, smashed an 11-ball 21 and, with Fawad Alam, pillaged 56 runs in the Powerplay. Ultimately, despite a panic-stricken last over from Theron, Pakistan just didn't have enough batsmen. Alam remained unbeaten on 59, valiant but not deal-sealing.

Hashim Amla made his fifth ODI century of the year © AFP

Before that, Morkel and Tsotsobe had opened with sterling spells. The visitors have made light of Dale Steyn's absence, mainly because Tsotsobe has had a fine series. He is uncomplicated, using the natural left-arm angle well and has subtle changes in pace. If he hasn't bowled an outstanding spell that will stick in the mind, neither has he bowled a poor one. Today was no different.

Having Morkel at the other end, bowling with unspeaking meanness, helps. Morkel gave nothing away for long, not on width, not on length; both the pace and bounce added to an unceasing atmosphere. One over to Younis Khan was particularly good, five dot balls which left him nowhere to go but out, and he was, off the last ball.

The first ten overs ceded 23 and one boundary. With Pakistan not going anywhere, the fielding took over. In any case Imran Farhat was as lively as a library and as awake as a morgue to scoring opportunities. The arrival of Asad Shafiq got things moving but so tightly did South Africa police the field that a run-out looked inevitable. Eventually it came breaking a labored but vital 85-run stand. Soon after, a cramping Shafiq went the same way. Morkel returned, just as mean, and dismissed Shahid Afridi. He set the tone for Razzaq, bowling short or shortish, and giving him nothing remotely full and that should have been that.

But if nothing else, Amla's fifth hundred of the year, a masterful knock deserved the win. But for him South Africa would've been nowhere and we would've been lauding a match-winning spell from Shoaib Akhtar.

From the start, there were two pitches, one for Amla and another, sluggish one, for the rest. He hit nine out of his side's total 12 boundaries. Two in the first over solidified the impression that he has batted in one unbroken stretch since the first ODI. Where others couldn't time it, he glided along, utilizing the modern batsman's get-out clause - a dab to third man - liberally.

Occasionally he improvised, but mostly he just stayed cool. That helped, given the outrageous decision that sent back AB de Villiers. An important partnership had been constructed when in Afridi's first over, TV umpire Zameer Haider chose to give de Villiers out stumped when he was distinctly in. Others gave Amla some support but it was a one-man job.

A brace of boundaries paved the way for a hassle-free fifty just before the halfway mark. Then he disappeared, quietly picking off runs here and there. He emerged once on 78, when Shafiq dropped a sharp chance at cover, and again when cutting Saeed Ajmal twice to move into the 90s.

A dab to third man - what else? - brought up the hundred just before the batting Powerplay became mandatory. He then found the odd boundary, a classy drive past mid-off and a rare, ungainly pull, but most importantly he stayed unbeaten till the end, not sweating at all.

Shoaib's work thus took a back seat. Amid standard turmoil this year, Shoaib has quietly managed as impressive a comeback as any of his previous ones. He still has the pace, but the shortened run-up and seemingly permanent limp, reduces the visual a little. The smarts are very much intact.

He stifled South Africa at the start, rolling in casually and mixing up some solid length bowling with excellent changes of pace; no less a man than Jacques Kallis, returning for Robin Peterson, was deceived by one. Colin Ingram could only pop another slower one back soon after.

This was the 11th ODI in a row Shoaib has played since his return earlier this year for the Asia Cup , the longest, unbroken stretch he has had since 2002 (joint-second longest ever in his career). Any questions over his fitness were forgotten in later spells. He gave one run in two overs during the middle, even making the set-as-cement Amla jump around. He then came back to rattle and shake Johan Botha, only a poor last over to regret. Eleven came off that, important in the big picture.

World Cup 2010 - World Cup squads: The full list

Number of players in brackets. All squads must be reduced to 23 players by June 1.

Group A

SOUTH AFRICA (29): Goalkeepers: Rowen Fernandez (Arminia Bielefeld), Moeneeb Josephs (Orlando Pirates), Itumeleng Khune (Kaizer Chiefs), Shu-Aib Walters (Mariztburg United); Defenders: Matthew Booth (Mamelodi Sundowns), Bevan Fransman (Maccabi Netanya), Siboniso Gaxa (Mamelodi Sundowns), Bongani Khumalo (SuperSport United), Tsepo Masilela (Maccabi Haifa), Innocent Mdledle (Orlando Pirates), Aaron Mokoena (Portsmouth), Bryce Moon (PAOK Salonika), Anele Ngcongca (Racing Genk), Siyabonga Sangweni (Lamontville Golden Arrows), Lucas Thwala (Orlando Pirates); Midfielders: Franklin Cale (Mamelodi Sundowns), Lance Davids (Ajax Cape Town), Kagisho Dikgacoi (Fulham), Andile Jali (Orlando Pirates), Thanduyise Khuboni (Lamontville Golden Arrows), Reneilwe Letsholonyane (Kaizer Chiefs), Teko Modise (Orlando Pirates), Surprise Moriri (Mamelodi Sundowns), Steven Pienaar (Everton), MacBeth Sibaya (Rubin Kazan), Siphiwe Tshabalala (Kaizer Chiefs); Forwards: Benni McCarthy (West Ham United), Katlego Mphela (Mamelodi Sundowns), Siyabonga Nomvete (Moroka Swallows), Bernard Parker (FC Twente).

FRANCE (24): Goalkeepers: Hugo Lloris (Lyon), Steve Mandanda (Marseille), Cedric Carrasso (Bordeaux); Defenders: Bacary Sagna (Arsenal), Patrice Evra (Manchester United), William Gallas (Arsenal), Eric Abidal (Barcelona), Sebastien Squillaci (Sevilla), Marc Planus (Bordeaux), Gael Clichy (Arsenal), Anthony Reveillere (Lyon); Midfielders: Lassana Diarra (Real Madrid), Alou Diarra (Bordeaux), Jeremy Toulalan (Lyon), Florent Malouda (Chelsea), Yoann Gourcuff (Bordeaux), Abou Diaby (Arsenal); Forwards: Thierry Henry (Barcelona), Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea), Andre-Pierre Gignac (Toulouse), Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich), Sidney Govou (Lyon), Djibril Cisse (Panathinaikos), Mathieu Valbuena (Marseille)

MEXICO (26): Goalkeepers: Oscar Perez (Chiapas), Guillermo Ochoa (America), Luis Ernesto Michel (Guadalajara); Defenders: Rafael Marquez (Barcelona), Ricardo Osorio (VfB Stuttgart), Francisco Rodriguez, Carlos Salcido (both PSV Eindhoven), Hector Moreno (AZ Alkmaar), Paul Aguilar (Pachuca), Efrain Juarez (Pumas UNAM), Jonny Magallon (Guadalajara), Juan Carlos Valenzuela (America), Jorge Torres Nilo (Atlas), Adrian Aldrete (Morelia); Midfielders: Andres Guardado (Deportivo Coruna), Jonathan dos Santos (Barcelona), Gerardo Torrado (Cruz Azul), Israel Castro (Pumas UNAM), Giovani dos Santos (Galatasaray); Forwards: Pablo Barrera (Pumas UNAM), Adolfo Bautista, Alberto Medina (both Guadalajara), Cuauhtemoc Blanco (Veracruz), Carlos Vela (Arsenal), Javier Hernandez (Manchester United), Guillermo Franco (West Ham United)

URUGUAY (26): Goalkeepers: Fernando Muslera (Lazio), Juan Castillo (Deportivo Cali), Martin Silva (Defensor Sporting) Defenders: Diego Lugano (Fenerbahce), Diego Godin (Villarreal), Andres Scotti (Colo Colo), Mauricio Victorino (Universidad de Chile), Martin Caceres (Juventus), Jorge Fucile (Porto), Maximiliano Pereira (Benfica) Midfielders: Sebastian Eguren (AIK Stockholm), Alvaro Pereira (Porto), Walter Gargano (Napoli), Diego Perez (AS Monaco), Alvaro Fernandez (Universidad de Chile), Alvaro Gonzalez (Nacional), Jorge Rodriguez (River Plate, Uruguay), Nicolas Lodeiro (Ajax), Jorge Martinez (Catania), Egidio Arevalo Rios (Penarol), Ignacio Gonzalez (Levadiakos) Forwards: Luis Suarez (Ajax), Diego Forlan (Atletico Madrid), Sebastian Abreu (Botafogo), Edinson Cavani (Palermo), Sebastian Fernandez (Banfield)

Group B

ARGENTINA (23): Goalkeepers: Sergio Romero (AZ Alkmaar), Mariano Andujar (Catania), Diego Pozo (Colon); Defenders: Nicolas Burdisso (Roma), Martin Demichelis (Bayern Munich), Walter Samuel (Internazionale), Gabriel Heinze (Marseille), Nicolas Otamendi (Velez Sarsfield), Clemente Rodriguez (Estudiantes), Ariel Garce (Colon); Midfielders: Javier Mascherano (Liverpool), Juan Sebastian Veron (Estudiantes), Maxi Rodriguez (Liverpool), Mario Bolatti (Fiorentina), Angel Di Maria (Benfica), Jonas Gutierrez (Newcastle), Javier Pastore (Palermo); Forwards: Sergio Aguero (Atletico Madrid), Diego Milito (Internazionale), Martin Palermo (Boca Juniors), Carlos Tevez (Manchester City), Gonzalo Higuain (Real Madrid), Lionel Messi (Barcelona).

GREECE (30): Goalkeepers: Michalis Sifakis (Aris Salonika), Alexandros Tzorvas (Panathinaikos), Kostas Chalkias (PAOK Salonika); Defenders: Giorgos Seitaridis (Panathinaikos), Loukas Vintra (Panathinaikos), Evangelos Moras (Bologna), Socrates Papastathopoulos (Genoa), Sotiris Kyrgiakos (Liverpool), Avraam Papadopoulos (Olympiacos), Vasilis Torosidis (Olympiacos), Nikos Spiropoulos (Panathinaikos), Stelios Malezas (PAOK Salonika), Giorgos Tzavellas (Panionios), Kostas Manolas (AEK Athens), Giorgos Galitsios (Olympiacos), Stergos Marinos (Panathinaikos); Midfielders: Kostas Katsouranis (Panathinaikos), Alexandros Tziolis (Siena), Giorgos Karagounis (Panathinaikos), Sotiris Ninis (Panathinaikos), Christos Patsatzoglou (Omonia), Grigoris Makos (AEK Athens), Sakis Prittas (Aris Salonika), Lazaros Christodoulopoulos (Panathinaikos); Forwards: Angelos Charisteas (Nuremberg), Dimitris Salpigidis (Panathinaikos), Pantelis Kapetanos (Steaua Bucharest), Theofanis Gekas (Hertha Berlin), Giorgos Samaras (Celtic), Kostas Mitroglou (Olympiacos).

NIGERIA (30): Goalkeepers: Vincent Enyeama (Hapoel Tel Aviv), Dele Ayenugba (Beni Yehuda FC), Bassey Akpan (Bayelsa United), Austine Ejide (Hapoel Petah Tikva); Defenders: Taye Taiwo (Marseille), Elderson Echiejile (Rennes), Chidi Odiah (CSKA Moscow) Onyekachi Apam (Nice), Joseph Yobo (Everton), Daniel Shittu (Bolton), Ayodele Adeleye (Sparta Rotterdam), Rabiu Afolabi (Salzburg), Peter Suswan (Lobi Stars); Midfielders: Kalu Uche (Almeria), Dickson Etuhu (Fulham), John Obi Mikel (Chelsea), Sani Kaita (Alaniya), Lukman Haruna (Monaco), Ayila Yussuf (Dynamo Kiev), Peter Osaze (Lokomotiv Moscow); Forwards: Yakubu Ayegbeni (Everton), Victor Anichebe (Everton), Chinedu Obasi (Hoffenheim), Nwankwo Kanu (Portsmouth), Obafemi Martins (Wolfsburg), Ideye Brown (Sochaux), Ikechukwu Uche (Zaragoza), John Utaka (Portsmouth), Peter Utaka (Odense), Victor Obinna (Malaga)

SOUTH KOREA (26): Goalkeepers: Kim Young-Kwang (Ulsan), Lee Woon-Jae (Suwon), Jung Sung-Ryong (Seongnam); Defenders: Kwak Tae-Hwi (Kyoto), Kim Dong-Jin (Ulsan), Kim Hyung-Il (Pohang), Oh Beom-Seok (Ulsan), Lee Young-Pyo (Al Hilal), Lee Jung-Soo (Kashima Antlers), Cha Du-Ri (SC Freiburg), Cho Yong-Hyung (Jeju); Midfielders: Koo Ja-Cheol (Jeju), Ki Sung-Yong (Celtic), Kim Bo-Kyung (Oita), Kim Nam-Il (Tom Tomsk), Shin Hung-Min (Pohang), Kim Jae-Sung (Pohang), Kim Jung-Woo (Gwangju), Lee Chung-Yong (Bolton), Park Ji-Sung (Manchester United); Forwards: Park Ju-Young (AS Monaco), Ahn Jung-Hwan (Dalian Shide), Lee Seung-Ryul (Seoul), Yeom Ki-Hun (Suwon), Lee Keun-Ho (Jubilo Iwata), Lee Dong-Guk (Jeonbuk).

Group C

ENGLAND (30): Goalkeepers: David James (Portsmouth), Robert Green (West Ham United), Joe Hart (Manchester City); Defenders: Ashley Cole (Chelsea), John Terry (Chelsea), Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United), Glen Johnson (Liverpool), Ledley King (Tottenham Hotspur), Jamie Carragher (Liverpool), Matthew Upson (West Ham United), Michael Dawson (Tottenham Hotspur), Leighton Baines (Everton), Stephen Warnock (Aston Villa); Midfielders: Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), Michael Carrick (Manchester United), James Milner (Aston Villa), Theo Walcott (Arsenal), Gareth Barry (Manchester City), Joe Cole (Chelsea), Tom Huddlestone (Tottenham Hotspur), Scott Parker (West Ham United), Aaron Lennon (Tottenham Hotspur), Adam Johnson (Manchester City), Shaun Wright-Phillips (Manchester City); Forwards: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), Peter Crouch (Tottenham Hotspur), Emile Heskey (Aston Villa), Darren Bent (Sunderland), Jermain Defoe (Tottenham Hotspur).

USA (23): Goalkeepers: Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Tim Howard (Everton), Marcus Hahnemann (Wolverhampton); Defenders: Carlos Bocanegra (Rennes), Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover), Jay DeMerit (Watford), Clarence Goodson (IK Start), Oguchi Onyewu (AC Milan), Jonathan Spector (West Ham United); Midfielders: DaMarcus Beasley (Rangers), Michael Bradley (Borussia Monchengladbach), Ricardo Clark (Eintracht Frankfurt), Clint Dempsey (Fulham), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy), Maurice Edu (Rangers), Benny Feilhaber (Aarhus), Stuart Holden (Bolton), Jose Torres (Pachuca); Forwards: Jozy Altidore (Villarreal), Edson Buddle (Los Angeles Galaxy), Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake), Herculez Gomez (Puebla).

SLOVENIA (26): Goalkeepers: Samir Handanovic (Udinese), Jasmin Handanovic (Mantova), Aleksander Seliga (Sparta Rotterdam); Defenders: Miso Brecko (FC Cologne), Bostjan Cesar (Grenoble), Branko Ilic (Lokomotiv Moscow), Matej Mavric (Koblenz), Bojan Jokic (Sochaux), Marko Suler (Ghent), Dejan Kelhar (Cercle Brugge), Suad Filekovic (NK Maribor), Elvedin Dzinic (NK Maribor); Midfielders: Andraz Kirm (Wisla Krakow), Robert Koren (West Bromwich Albion), Mirnes Sisic (Giannina), Valter Birsa (AJ Auxerre), Andrej Komac (Maccabi Tel Aviv), Dalibor Stevanovic (Vitesse Arnhem), Aleksander Radosavljevic (Larissa), Rene Krhin (Inter Milan), Darijan Matic (Rapid Bucharest); Strikers: Milivoje Novakovic (FC Cologne), Zlatko Dedic (Vfl Bochum), Zlatan Ljubijankic (Ghent), Nejc Pecnik (Nacional Funchal), Tim Matavz (Groningen).

ALGERIA (30): Goalkeepers: Faouzi Chaouchi (Entente Setif), Lounes Gaouaoui (ASO Chlef), Rais Ouheb Mbouli (Slavia Sofia), Mohamed Lamine Zemmamouche (Mouloudia Algiers); Defenders: Habib Belaid (Boulogne-sur-Mer), Nader Belhadj (Portsmouth), Majid Bougherra (Rangers), Rafik Halliche (Nacional), Abdelkader Laifaoui (Entente Setif), Carl Medjani (Ajaccio), Mohamed Meftah (JS Kabylie), Djamel Mesbah (Lecce), Hocine Metref (Entente Setif), Antar Yahia (VfL Bochum); Midfielders: Djamel Abdoun (Nantes), Lazhar Hadj Aissa (Entente Setif), Riad Boudebouz (Sochaux), Adlane Guedioura (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Fouad Kadir (Valenciennes), Medhi Lacen (Racing Santanader), Khaled Lemmouchia (Entente Setif), Yazid Mansouri (Lorient), Mourad Meghni (Lazio), Hassan Yebda (Portsmouth), Karim Ziani (VfL Wolfsburg); Forwards: Amri Chadli (Kaiserslautern), Rafik Djebbour (AEK Athens), Abdelkader Ghezzal (Siena), Karim Matmour (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Rafik Saifi (Istres).

Group D

GERMANY (30): Goalkeepers: Hans-Jorg Butt (Bayern Munich), Manuel Neuer (Schalke), Tim Wiese (Bremen); Defenders: Per Mertesacker (Bremen), Heiko Westermann (Schalke), Philipp Lahm (Bayern Munich), Jerome Boateng (Hamburg), Andreas Beck (Hoffenheim), Arne Friedrich (Hertha Berlin), Serdar Tasci (Stuttgart), Marcell Jansen (Hamburg), Holger Badstuber (Bayern Munich), Dennis Aogo (Hamubrg); Midfielders: Michael Ballack (Chelsea), Sami Khedira (Stuttgart), Piotr Trochowski (Hamburg), Marko Marin (Bremen), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich), Christian Trasch (Stuttgart), Mesut Ozil (Bremen), Toni Kroos (Leverkusen); Forwards: Lukas Podolski (Cologne), Miroslav Klose (Bayern Munich), Stefan Kiessling (Leverkusen), Cacau (Stuttgart), Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich), Mario Gomez (Bayern Munich).

SERBIA (24): Goalkeepers: Vladimir Stojkovic (Sporting), Zeljko Brkic (Vojvodina Novi Sad), Bojan Isailovic (Zaglebie Lubin), Andjelko Djuricic (Uniao Leiria); Defenders: Branislav Ivanovic (Chelsea), Antonio Rukavina (Munich 1860), Nemanja Vidic (Manchester United), Neven Subotic (Borussia Dortmund), Aleksandar Lukovic (Udinese), Ivan Obradovic (Real Zaragoza), Aleksandar Kolarov (Lazio); Midfielders: Dejan Stankovic (Inter Milan), Gojko Kacar (Hertha Berlin), Nenad Milijas (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Zdravko Kuzmanovic (VfB Stuttgart), Radosav Petrovic (Partizan Belgrade), Milos Krasic (CSKA Moscow), Zoran Tosic (Manchester United), Milos Ninkovic (Dynamo Kiev), Milan Jovanovic (Standard Liege); Forwards: Nikola Zigic (Valencia), Marko Pantelic (Ajax Amsterdam), Danko Lazovic (Zenit St. Petersburg), Dragan Mrdja (Vojvodina Novi Sad).

GHANA (23): Goalkeepers: Richard Kingson (Wigan), Daniel Agyei (Liberty Professionals), Stephen Ahorlu (Hearts of Lions); Defenders: Samuel Inkoom (Basle), Jonathan Mensah (Granada), Lee Addy (Bechem Chelsea), Rahim Ayew (Zamalek), Hans Sarpei (Bayer Leverkusen), John Mensah (Lyon), Isaac Vorsah (Hoffenheim), John Pantsil (Fulham); Midfielders: Sulley Muntari (Inter Milan), Derek Boateng (Getafe), Anthony Annan (Rosenborg), Kwadwo Asamoah (Udinese), Andre Ayew (Marseille), Stephen Appiah (Bologna), Quincy Owusu Abeyie (Al Sadd), Kevin-Prince Boateng (Portsmouth); Forwards: Matthew Amoah (NAC Breda), Asamoah Gyan (Rennes), Prince Tagoe (Hoffenheim), Dominic Adiyiah (AC Milan).

AUSTRALIA (28) Goalkeepers: Mark Schwarzer (Fulham), Adam Federici (Reading), Brad Jones (Middlesbrough), Eugene Galekovic (Adelaide United); Defenders: Lucas Neill (Galatasaray), Craig Moore (unattached), Scott Chipperfield (Basel), David Carney (Twente Enschede), Luke Wilkshire (Dynamo Moscow), Rhys Williams (Middlesbrough), Shane Lowry (Aston Villa), Mark Milligan (JEF United), Michael Beauchamp (Al-Jazira); Midfielders: Tim Cahill (Everton), Mark Bresciano (Palermo), Vince Grella (Blackburn) Brett Emerton (Blackburn), Jason Culina (Gold Coast), Harry Kewell (Galatasaray), Brett Holman (AZ Alkmaar), Carl Valeri (Sassuolo), Mile Jedinak (Antalyaspor), Richard Garcia (Hull), Tommy Oar (Utrecht), Dario Vidosic (Nuremberg), James Holland (AZ Alkmaar); Forwards: Josh Kennedy (Nagoya), Nikita Rukavytsya (Twente Enschede)

Group E

NETHERLANDS (23): Goalkeepers: Maarten Stekelenburg (Ajax), Sander Boschker (Twente), Michel Vorm (Utrecht) Defenders: Khalid Boulahrouz (VFB Stuttgart), Edson Braafheid (Celtic), Giovanni van Bronckhorst (Feyenoord), John Heitinga (Everton), Joris Mathijsen (SV Hamburg), Andre Ooijer (PSV Eindhoven), Gregory van der Wiel (Ajax); Midfielders: Ibrahim Afellay (PSV Eindhoven), Mark van Bommel (Bayern Munich), Nigel de Jong (Manchester City), Stijn Schaars (AZ Alkmaar), Wesley Sneijder (Internazionale), Rafael van der Vaart (Real Madrid), Demy de Zeeuw (Ajax); Forwards: Ryan Babel (Liverpool), Eljero Elia (SV Hamburg), Klaas Jan Huntelaar (AC Milan), Dirk Kuyt (Liverpool), Robin van Persie (Arsenal), Arjen Robben (Bayern Munich)

DENMARK (23): Goalkeepers: Thomas Sorensen (Stoke City), Stephan Andersen (Brondby), Jesper Christiansen (FC Copenhagen); Defenders: William Kvist (FC Copenhagen), Simon Kjaer (Palermo), Lars Jacobsen (Blackburn Rovers), Per Kroldrup (Fiorentina), Daniel Agger (Liverpool), Patrick Mtiliga (Malaga), Simon Poulsen (AZ Alkmaar); Midfielders: Martin Jorgensen (AGF Aarhus), Christian Poulsen (Juventus), Jakob Poulsen (AGF Aarhus), Dennis Rommedahl (Ajax), Thomas Kahlenberg (VfL Wolfsburg), Thomas Enevoldsen (FC Groningen), Christian Eriksen (Ajax), Mikkel Beckmann (Randers), Daniel Jensen (Werder Bremen), Jepser Gronkjaer (FC Copenhagen); Forwards: Jon Dahl Tomasson (Feyenoord), Soren Larsen (MSV Duisburg), Nicklas Bendtner (Arsenal).

JAPAN (23): Goalkeepers: Seigo Narazaki (Nagoya Grampus), Eiji Kawashima (Kawasaki Frontale), Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi (Jubilo Iwata); Defenders: Yuji Nakazawa (Yokohama F. Marinos), Marcus Tulio Tanaka (Nagoya Grampus), Yuichi Komano (Jubilo Iwata), Daiki Iwamasa (Kashima Antlers), Yasuyuki Konno (FC Tokyo), Yuto Nagatomo (FC Tokyo), Atsuto Uchida (Kashima Antlers); Midfielders: Shunsuke Nakamura (Yokohama F. Marinos), Junichi Inamoto (Kawasaki Frontale), Yasuhito Endo (Gamba Osaka), Kengo Nakamura (Kawasaki Frontale), Daisuke Matsui (Grenoble), Yuki Abe (Urawa Reds), Makoto Hasebe (Wolfsburg), Keisuke Honda (CSKA Moscow); Forwards: Keiji Tamada (Nagoya Grampus), Yoshito Okubo (Vissel Kobe), Kisho Yano (Albirex Niigata), Shinji Okazaki (Shimizu S-Pulse), Takayuki Morimoto (Catania).

CAMEROON (30): Goalkeepers: Guy Roland N'Dy Assembe (Valenciennes), Idriss Carlos Kameni (Espanyol), Hamidou Souleymanou (Kayserispor), Patrick Tignyemb (Bloemfontein Celtic); Defenders: Patrick Abouna (Astres Douala), Benoit Assou Ekotto (Tottenham Hotspur), Sebastien Bassong (Tottenham Hotspur), Gaetan Bong (Valenciennes), Aurelien Chedjou (Lille), Geremi (Ankaragucu), Boukar Makadji (Al Nahdha), Nicolas Nkoulou (Monaco), Rigobert Song (Trabzonspor); Midfielders: Achille Emana (Real Betis), Enoh Eyong (Ajax Amsterdam), Jean Makoun (Olympique Lyon), Georges Mandjeck (Kaiserslautern), Joel Matip (Schalke 04), Patrick Mevoungou (Canon Yaounde), Marcel Ndjeng (Augsburg), Landry Nguemo (Celtic), Alexandre Song (Arsenal); Forwards: Vincent Aboubakar (Coton Sport), Eric Choupo-Mating (Nuremburg), Paul Alo'o Efoulou (Nancy), Samuel Eto'o (Inter Milan), Mohamadou Idrissou (Freiburg), Dorge Kouemaha (Club Bruges), Achille Webo (Real Mallorca), Jacques Zoua (Basle)

Group F

ITALY (28) Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Morgan De Sanctis (Napoli), Federico Marchetti (Cagliari), Salvatore Sirigu (Palermo); Defenders: Salvatore Bocchetti (Genoa), Leonardo Bonucci (Bari), Fabio Cannavaro (Juventus), Mattia Cassani (Palermo), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Domenico Criscito (Genoa), Christian Maggio (Napoli), Gianluca Zambrotta (AC Milan); Midfielders: Mauro Camoranesi (Juventus), Andrea Cossu (Cagliari), Daniele De Rossi (AS Roma), Gennaro Gattuso (AC Milan), Claudio Marchisio (Juventus), Riccardo Montolivo (Fiorentina), Angelo Palombo (Sampdoria), Simone Pepe (Udinese), Andrea Pirlo (AC Milan); Forwards: Marco Borriello (AC Milan), Antonio Di Natale (Udinese), Alberto Gilardino (Fiorentina), Vincenzo Iaquinta (Juventus), Giampaolo Pazzini (Sampdoria), Fabio Quagliarella (Napoli), Giuseppe Rossi (Villarreal).

PARAGUAY (30): Goalkeepers: Justo Villar (Valladolid), Aldo Bobadilla (Deportivo Independiente de Medellin), Diego Barreto (Cerro Porteno); Defenders: Claudio Morel Rodriguez (Boca Juniors), Denis Caniza (Leon), Paulo da Silva (Sunderland), Dario Veron (Pumas UNAM), Julio Cesar Caceres (Atletico Mineiro), Julio Manzur (Tigres), Carlos Bonet (Olimpia), Aureliano Torres (San Lorenzo de Almagro), Marcos Caceres (Racing), Antolin Alcaraz (FC Bruges); Midfielders: Edgar Barreto (Atalanta), Cristian Riveros (Cruz Azul), Osvaldo Martinez (Monterrey), Victor Caceres (Libertad), Enrique Vera (Liga Deportiva Universitaria de Quito), Jonathan Santana (Wolfsburg), Sergio Aquino (Libertad), Eduardo Ledesma (Lanus), Nestor Ortigoza (Argentinos Juniors), Marcelo Estigarribia (Newell's Old Boys);Forwards: Roque Santa Cruz (Manchester City), Nelson Haedo Valdez (Borussia Dortmund), Oscar Cardozo (Benfica), Edgar Benitez (Toluca), Lucas Barrios (Borussia Dortmund), Rodolfo Gamarra (Libertad), Jorge Achucarro (Newell's Old Boys)

SLOVAKIA (39): Goalkeepers: Jan Mucha (Legia Warsaw), Dusan Kuciak (Vaslui), Lubos Kamenar (Nantes), Dusan Permis (Dundee United); Defenders: Peter Pekarik (Wolfsburg), Martin Petras (Cesena), Martin Skrtel (Liverpool), Lubomir Michalik (Leeds United), Jan Durica (Lokomotiv Moscow), Radoslav Zabavnik (Mainz), Marek Cech (West Bromwich Albion), Tomas Hubocan (Zenit St. Petersburg), Kornel Salata (Slovan Bratislava); Midfielders: Kamil Kopunek (Spartak Trnava), Jan Kozak (Timisoara), Juraj Kucka (Sparta Prague), Miroslav Karhan (Mainz), Marek Sapara (Ankaragucu), Mario Pecalka (MSK Zilina), Stanislav Sestak (Vfl Bochum), Marek Hamsik (Napoli), Vladimir Weiss (Manchester City), Miroslav Stoch (Chelsea), Dusan Svento (Salzburg), Zdeno Strba (Skoda Xanthi); Forwards: Erik Jendrisek (Schalke), Robert Vittek (Ankaragucu), Martin Jakubko (Saturn Ramenskoye), Filip Holosko (Besiktas).

NEW ZEALAND (23): Goalkeepers: James Bannatyne (Team Wellington), Glen Moss (Melbourne Victory) Mark Paston (Wellington Phoenix); Defenders: Andy Boyens (New York Red Bulls), Tony Lochhead (Wellington Phoenix), Ryan Nelsen (Blackburn Rovers), Winston Reid (FC Midtjylland), Ben Sigmund (Wellington Phoenix), Tommy Smith (Ipswich Town), Ivan Vicelich (Auckland City); Midfielders: Andy Barron (Team Wellington), Leo Bertos (Wellington Phoenix), Jeremy Brockie (Newcastle Jets), Tim Brown (Wellington Phoenix), Jeremy Christie (Tampa Bay Rowdies), Aaron Clapham (Canterbury United), Simon Elliott (unattached), Michael McGlinchey (Central Coast Mariners), David Mulligan (unattached); Forwards: Rory Fallon (Plymouth Argyle), Chris Killen (Middlesbrough), Shane Smeltz (Gold Coast), Chris Wood (West Bromwich Albion)

Group G

BRAZIL (23): Goalkeepers: Julio Cesar (Inter Milan), Doni (AS Roma), Heurelho Gomes (Tottenham Hotspur); Defenders: Maicon (Inter Milan), Daniel Alves (Barcelona), Michel Bastos (Olympique Lyon), Gilberto (Cruzeiro), Lucio (Inter Milan), Juan (AS Roma), Luisao (Benfica), Thiago Silva (AC Milan); Midfielders: Gilberto Silva (Panathinaikos), Felipe Melo (Fiorentina), Ramires (Benfica), Elano (Galatasaray), Kaka (Real Madrid), Julio Baptista (Roma), Kleberson (Flamengo), Josue (VfL Wolfsburg); Forwards: Robinho (Santos), Luis Fabiano (Sevilla), Nilmar (Villarreal), Grafite (VfL Wolfsburg).

PORTUGAL (24): Goalkeepers: Eduardo (Braga), Daniel Fernandes (Iraklis), Beto (Porto). Defenders: Miguel (Valencia), Paulo Ferreira (Chelsea), Ricardo Carvalho (Chelsea), Bruno Alves (Porto), Rolando (Porto), Ricardo Costa (Lille), Duda (Malaga), Fabio Coentrao (Benfica). Midfielders: Pedro Mendes (Sporting), Pepe (Real Madrid), Ze Castro (Deportivo Coruna), Tiago (Atletico Madrid), Deco (Chelsea), Raul Meireles (Porto), Miguel Veloso (Sporting). Forwards: Simao Sabrosa (Atletico Madrid), Danny (Zenit St Petersburg), Liedson (Sporting), Hugo Almeida (Werder Bremen), Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Nani (Manchester United).

IVORY COAST (29): Goalkeepers: Vincent Angban (ASEC Abidjan), Boubacar Barry (Lokeren), Aristides Zogbo (Maccabi Netanya), Daniel Yeboah (ASEC Abidjan); Defenders: Souleymane Bamba (Hibernian), Arthur Boka (VfB Stuttgart), Benjamin Brou Angoua (Valenciennes), Guy Demel (Hamburg SV), Emmanuel Eboue (Arsenal), Abdoulaye Meite (West Bromwich Albion), Steve Gohouri (Wigan Athletic), Siaka Tiene (Valenciennes), Kolo Toure (Manchester City); Midfielders: Emerse Fae (Nantes), Jean-Jacques Gosso Gosso (Monaco), Abdelkader Keita (Galatasaray), Emmanuel Kone (International Curtea Arges), Gervais Yao Kouassi (Lille), Christian Koffi Ndri (Sevilla), Cheik Ismael Tiote (Twente Enschede), Yaya Toure (Barcelona), Gilles Yapi Yapo (Young Boys Berne), Didier Zokora (Sevilla); Forwards: Kanga Akale (Racing Lens), Aruna Dindane (Racing Lens), Seydou Doumbia (Young Boys Berne), Didier Drogba (Chelsea), Salomon Kalou (Chelsea), Bakary Kone (Marseille).

NORTH KOREA (23): Goalkeepers: Kim Myong-gil (Amrokgang), Kim Myong-won (Amrokgang), Ri Myong-guk (Pyongyang City); Defenders: Cha Jong-hyok (Amrokgang), Nam Song-chol (April 25), Pak Chol-jin (Amrokgang), Pak Nam-chol (Amrokgang), Ri Jun-il (Sobaeksu), Ri Kwang-chon (April 25), Ri Kwang-hyok (Kyonggongop); Midfielders: An Yong-hak (Omiya Ardija), Ji Yun-nam (April 25), Kim Kyong-il (Rimyongsu), Kim Yong-jun (Pyongyang City), Mun In-guk (April 25), Ri Chol-myong (Pyongyang City), Pak Nam-chol (April 25), Pak Sung-hyok (Sobaeksu); Forwards: An Chol-hyok (Rimyongsu), Choe Kum-chol (April 25), Hong Yong-jo (Rostov), Jong Tae-se (Kawasaki Frontale), Kim Kum-il (April 25)

Group H

SPAIN (23): Goalkeepers: Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), Pepe Reina (Liverpool), Victor Valdes (Barcelona). Defenders: Raul Albiol (Real Madrid), Alvaro Arbeloa (Real Madrid), Joan Capdevila (Villarreal), Carlos Marchena (Valencia), Gerard Pique (Barcelona), Carles Puyol (Barcelona), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid). Midfielders: Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid), Sergio Busquets (Barcelona), Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal), Andres Iniesta (Barcelona), Javi Martinez (Athletic Bilbao), David Silva (Valencia), Xavi (Barcelona). Forwards: Jesus Navas (Sevilla), Juan Mata (Valencia), Pedro (Barcelona), Fernando Llorente (Athletic Bilbao), Fernando Torres (Liverpool), David Villa (Valencia).

CHILE (25): Goalkeepers: Claudio Bravo (Real Sociedad), Miguel Pinto (Universidad de Chile), Luis Marin (Union Espanola); Defenders: Waldo Ponce (Universidad Catolica), Gonzalo Jara (West Bromwich Albion), Gary Medel (Boca Juniors), Mauricio Isla (Udinese), Pablo Contreras (PAOK Salonika), Ismael Fuentes (Universidad Catolica); Midfielders: Marco Estrada, (Universidad de Chile), Roberto Cereceda, Rodrigo Millar, (both Colo Colo), Arturo Vidal (Bayer Leverkusen), Carlos Carmona (Reggina), Jorge Valdivia (Al Ain), Matias Fernandez (Sporting Lisbon), Jean Beausejour (Club America), Gonzalo Fierro (Flamengo), Rodrigo Tello (Besiktas); Forwards: Humberto Suazo (Real Zaragoza), Esteban Paredes (Colo Colo), Hector Mancilla (Toluca), Alexis Sanchez (Udinese), Fabian Orellana (Xerez), Mark Gonzalez (CSKA Moscow).

SWITZERLAND (23): Goalkeepers: Diego Benaglio (VfL Wolfsburg), Johnny Leoni (FC Zurich), Marco Woelfli (Young Boys Berne); Defenders: Mario Eggimann (Hanover 96), Stephane Grichting (Auxerre), Stephan Lichtsteiner (Lazio), Philippe Senderos (Arsenal), Ludovic Magnin (FC Zurich), Steve Von Bergen (Hertha Berlin), Reto Ziegler (Sampdoria); Midfielders: Tranquillo Barnetta (Bayer Leverkusen), Valon Behrami (West Ham United), Gelson Fernandes (St Etienne), Benjamin Huggel (FC Basel), Marco Padalino (Sampdoria), Pirmin Schwegler (Eintracht Frankfurt), Goklan Inler (Udinese); Forwards: Eren Derdiyok (Bayer Leverkusen), Alexander Frei (FC Basel), Blaise Nkufo (Twente Enschede), Hakan Yakin (FC Luzern), Xherdan Shaqiri (FC Basel), Albert Bunjaku (Nuiernburg)

HONDURAS (23): Goalkeepers: Noel Valladares, Donis Escober (both Olimpia), Ricardo Canales (Motagua); Defenders: Sergio Mendoza, Emilio Izaguirre (both Motagua), Mauricio Sabillon (Hangzhou Greentown), Osman Chavez (Platense), Johnny Palacios, Boniek Garcia (both Olimpia), Maynor Figueroa (Wigan Athletic), Victor Bernardez (Anderlecht); Midfielders: Danilo Turcios, Ramon Nunez (both Olimpia), Hendry Thomas (Wigan Athletic), Edgard Alvarez (Bari), Roger Espinoza (Kansas City Wizards), Amado Guevara (Motagua), Wilson Palacios (Tottenham Hotspur), Julio Cesar de Leon (Torino); Forwards: Walter Martinez (Marathon), Georgie Welcome (Motagua), Carlos Pavon (Real Espana), David Suazo (Genoa)

Thursday press conference - Turkish GP - Pt.2

Questions from the floor

Q: (Dan Knutson - National Speed Sport News)

To all of you: Bernie Ecclestone has announced that there will be a US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas. I’m looking at your T-shirts and caps and I see names like Mercedes Benz, Red Bull, AT&T. How important is it for your teams’ sponsors to have a race in the US?

Mark Webber:

It’s a huge market, we know that. A lot of people live in North America and they’re very passionate about their sport. There’s naturally a lot of people involved in our business that do business in North America. If it’s of benefit for all of us to go there and hold a Grand Prix under their noses and for them to embrace Formula One racing as best they can – because obviously it’s a different kind of sport for them, let’s say – so we’ve seen in the past that it has worked OK at Indy, and it can be exciting in Texas, so let’s see how it goes. For Red Bull, we sell a lot of cans over there and it will be good if we can sell some more.

Michael Schumacher:

Certainly, it’s one of the beautiful places around the world to go to and enjoy some good times, lots of great opportunities. For me, naturally, I love to go and race there as it allows me to spend some days before the race to hang out there and enjoy it. But more important for most of the manufacturers that are involved in Formula One, America is a very important market. If you think of how many countries like Brazil, Argentina, all those countries in South America, how many we had of those guys at Indy, then we should have even more, because logistically it’s easier to go to Texas than all the way up to Indy. Hopefully, that’s the case because one of the points that we have been missing is the sort of excitement that Formula One can create and can give to the fans that are in America. Yeah, it has not fully arrived, but quite honestly you cannot expect those things to happen overnight. You have to give it continuation, and this continuation hasn’t happened for a long enough time, plus maybe we haven’t yet got a known or successful American driver in our group that would be quite helpful for this. But certainly from our point of view we are very happy to go there.

Karun Chandhok:

It’s more of the same, really. I think America is a more developed market than say India. It’s a similar thing, they are huge markets with untapped potential as far as Formula One and its partners are concerned. I think that to have a dedicated venue is a new thing. I guess Watkins Glen, so Bernie was saying, was the last time we had one. Maybe that’s what it needs, a dedicated Formula One site. I’m very excited to go there. My mum’s from San Antonio and my grandparents still live in Texas, so I’d love to go there and have a race.

Rubens Barrichello:

On a personal side I love America as a whole. I’ve also spent a lot of time there with the family, so it’s really good to be going to that side. From the manufacturers’ point of view, it’s just a great opportunity that’s back again and we should never have stopped racing there. Even though the fans don’t know Formula One, they are aware and they obviously know more of NASCAR and Indycar but it’s a great opportunity for us to show our show and get together.

Jarno Trulli:

I like going to the US, I think it’s a good market and I also think that the Formula One circus is a worldwide business, so why not? We would be more than welcome to go there.

Q: (Juha Paatalo - Financial Times Germany)

Mark, since you started your career in Melbourne 2002, this is the first time that you’re leading the championship. Can you just tell us how it has felt for the last ten days, having that experience after such a long time in Formula One?

Mark Webber:

I’m not that interested in the points at the moment. It’s nice to have quite a few but the results in the last few races have been what it’s all about, so that’s been very rewarding. We know that there’s been some missed opportunities in the past and we need to keep those to a minimum, so we’re looking forward, keep trying to do what we’ve been executing the last few events and that can be good for us in the future, but I don’t feel any different really, when I get out of bed, because all of us are pretty much on the same points anyway, so I’m not doing anything that different.

Q: (Ian Gordon - News of the World)

Michael, without referring to Monaco itself, do you think the sport’s become more safety conscious over the years and that drivers should be encouraged to overtake and not be punished? Think back to the case of Lewis (Hamilton) over the last couple of years when he overtook in Belgium and got penalised by the stewards, and the same with you. Surely the drivers want to race and the fans want to see people racing?

Michael Schumacher:

There’s no point in getting into past incidents, but the point is that if I understand the situation clearly, the FIA has identified something that happened in Monaco and they want to improve the situation, so I think that’s actually something good in the sport and I’m quite happy for this to happen.

Q: (Ian Parkes - The Press Association)

Michael, Sir Jackie Stewart remarked in an interview yesterday that given the lack of success so far in your comeback that you were damaging your legacy. Do you agree or disagree with his comments so far?

Michael Schumacher:

I guess it’s pretty fair that he has opinion and I have mine and I naturally disagree, yeah.

Q: (Alan Baldwin - Reuters)

Mark, Sebastian (Vettel) has a different chassis here this weekend. Apparently they found a defect in it from the last couple of races. I just wondered how much that would have affected his performance in the last two races, how much that might have accounted for the fact that he wasn’t really getting that close to you?

Mark Webber:

Obviously I wasn’t driving his car, so it’s difficult to know, to be honest. We’ll see.

Q: (Ronald Lewis - The Times)

Mark, during your leaner years in Formula One, did you always maintain the belief that you would eventually get a car as good as you have now? And when did you realise it was such a good car, as well?

Mark Webber:

Coming into Formula One, obviously with a small team like Minardi, moved to Jaguar and that were some exciting times there in terms of getting your first few points and starting to race towards the front which is a nice thing when you can start to do that in Formula One. Obviously we know I had some tough years after Jaguar and then a fresh opportunity at Red Bull and the clear attraction at Red Bull was Adrian (Newey). His ability to be able to produce good cars is well known, so I think that when we got the regulation change, that was something that was very attractive for our team, in our group of guys and it’s turned out that the last few years we’ve certainly been towards the front. It’s nice to be in the team after all the work we put in during those tough years, even when I first arrived at Red Bull. So you are always hopeful that you get an opportunity to drive a car which is very competitive. We know that it’s an important part of the job but also as a driver you don’t hang around this business that long if you’re not performing either. So I obviously needed to keep performing, doing my best and hopefully something one day would have come around and at that moment, for sure I’ve had the most competitive cars in the last few years, there’s no question about that.

Q: (Andrea Cremonesi - La Gazzetta dello Sport)

Two questions for Mark: are you going to use the F-duct at this Grand Prix and secondly, what advantage can that give you? Do you expect to have the same advantage that you had in Spain against the other competitors, so a huge advantage, and who will be the first challenger here: McLaren or Ferrari?

Mark Webber:

Yes, we give the F-duct a go tomorrow, we’re going to give it a chance. To answer your second question: Barcelona, clearly we were pretty competitive there, particularly in qualifying. I think it’s going to be very, very hard to do that again so, as we saw in Monaco, we know it’s a very, very different circuit completely but things tightened up there a lot, so venue to venue, things can move around and even within the race, we saw in Barcelona that things were a little bit different. Lewis was our closest competitor in that Grand Prix, so you can argue that if we had a Turkish Grand Prix after Barcelona, you might say that the McLaren might be the guys that might be our challengers here but we’re also mindful of the fact that Ferrari – and also if Mercedes have a clean weekend – there’s lots of guys that can come towards us, so we’re definitely not taking anything for granted, we know we’re working incredibly hard to get the results we have and it’s not easy to get them.

Q:

Mark, how big is the competition between you and Sebastian?

Mark Webber:

Oh, every competitor is on the grid [is competition] for all of us. We know that towards the front we have different levels of car performance, so it’s obvious that I’m not racing Jarno this weekend but there’s guys that you have more fights with throughout the season and clearly Sebastian is in a good car, he’s quick and there’s going to be a healthy competition there as always. There’s no secret that we like to beat each other and that’s how it should be. It’s healthy, very good balance within the team and Sebastian’s had his days in the past where he’s been virtually untouchable and I’m sure I hope that they don’t happen too much in the future but he’s very quick, we know that, and I’ve got to try and keep those to a minimum. So it’s a good battle.

Q: (Alan Baldwin - Reuters)

Mark, I’m wondering when the last time was that you won three races in a row. This is your chance this weekend but has it happened before in your career that you’ve done that?

Mark Webber:

I think I won a couple in F3000 but maybe not three in a row. I don’t know, probably Formula Ford.

Q: (Miran Alisic - Korpmedia)

For the four of you whose countries have qualified for the World Cup: before the next Grand Prix starts, the football World Cup will start in South Africa, so what do you think the prospects are for your countries and maybe you can include the prospects for the smallest country, which is my home country, Slovenia?

Mark Webber:

Australia, [to Schumacher] yes, we’ve qualified, yeah. We are there, we’re playing you guys actually, in the first one, we’re playing you guys in the first match, so we hope that we can get a draw against the Germans. We’ll take a draw. But we’re in a tough group. Of course I want the Australians to do well. We have a tough group with Ghana, I think, and Germany, and the other team is also strong, so if we can get through it’s good, because if we finish second and England win their group, obviously we play England and of course we want to kick their asses, so then they will have big problems in their team. I honestly hope it’s a good World Cup for South Africa. That country has gone through a lot, we’ve seen some big problems there in the past and I just hope it goes off really smoothly. As a big sports fan I hope it’s a big sporting event for the people of South Africa and it turns out to be good.

Michael Schumacher:

Obviously, we all cross fingers for our nation and, naturally, after some good results in past championships, we still hope to do a little bit better now and maybe win a final, although it’s very optimistic to say that, especially with the sad happening to one of the most important players that we have had recently. Nevertheless, I’m sure that they will keep trying and we cross fingers. I’m sorry for you Mark, but…

Rubens Barrichello:

Yeah, I’m sorry for both of you! It’s a great time for me, it’s a great time for Brazil and I agree with Mark. It’s great to have it there in South Africa, I think it’s a great opportunity to appreciate new things and I think they’ve done really well with security and everything, so it should be a great show and obviously I hope that Brazil can just keep it up.

Jarno Trulli:

I’m not really into football so much but yeah, I think we won the last World Championship in Germany and obviously we will want to be back again, to see what we can do. It’s not going to be easy but I think it’s important as everyone has said that the football World Championship is going to South Africa, it’s good for the people there and I guess it’s one of the most important sporting events in the World. We will all be watching and cheering them on and hope to see some very good days of sport. I want to see the players playing well, successfully and nicely. That’s very important for the sport.

Akinfenwa explains Cobblers exit

Adebayo Akinfenwa has revealed he decided to leave Northampton in order to spend more time with his family.

The 28-year-old, who spent two-and-a-half years at Sixfields, was commuting from his south London home every day during his time with the Cobblers.

"I'd like to get back home, closer to home," he told the Northampton Chronicle. "I've got the wife and a little kid here and that was another part of why I left Northampton.

"I wasn't spending as much time as I would have liked with my family, and my wife is having another baby so I had to bear that in mind. Where I go, the family will have to come with me, so in an ideal world I'd be able to stay here and do a little bit of travelling."

However, the striker admitted the lure of playing top-flight football in Scotland could tempt him to move away from home.

"I've had three or four Scottish Premier League clubs contact me about going there and doing something," he added. "A couple of those clubs couldn't be further away from London so I'd have to seriously think about it, but it's nice to be sought after and nice to be wanted."

Publicat de Sabin Constantin Neacsa la 05:16

Golf-PGA Tour money list

Leading money winners on the 2010 PGA Tour on Monday (U.S. unless stated):

1. Ernie Els (South Africa) $3,460,341

2. Phil Mickelson $2,677,719

3. Jim Furyk $2,588,070

4. Tim Clark (South Africa) $2,573,170

5. Anthony Kim $2,518,521

6. Robert Allenby (Australia) $2,394,057

7. Ben Crane $2,262,176

8. Camilo Villegas (Colombia) $2,118,415

9. Dustin Johnson $2,104,815

10. Steve Stricker $2,059,754

11. Matt Kuchar $1,923,700

12. Hunter Mahan $1,757,016

13. Jeff Overton $1,747,141

14. Ian Poulter (Britain) $1,711,681

15. Zach Johnson $1,687,412

16. Jason Bohn $1,667,255

17. Paul Casey (Britain) $1,618,184

18. Luke Donald (Britain) $1,600,146

19. JB Holmes $1,580,322

20. Bill Haas $1,563,720

World Cup 2010 - Facts: England bounce back

England came from behind to win for the second time in the last three internationals - having beaten Egypt 3-1 in a friendly at Wembley on March 3.

England used 25 of their 30-man squad in their two warm up matches - the only players who didn’t feature were Matthew Upson, Michael Dawson, Stephen Warnock, Gareth Barry and Scott Parker.

Four years ago, every player who featured in England’s two warm up matches for the 2006 World Cup Finals was named in the final 23-man squad.

Marcus Tulio Tanaka scored an own goal. Looking ahead to the World Cup Finals, only once before has a player scored at either end in the competition - Dutchman Ernie Brandts in the Netherlands 2-1 victory against Italy in June 1978.

Yuji Nakazawa scored the second own goal for England. This is the third own goal England have benefited from under Fabio Capello, and the first time they have had two in the same match.

Frank Lampard missed his second ever penalty for England. He had scored his previous four in a row since his only other miss - in England’s 3-1 friendly win against Hungary at Old Trafford exactly four years ago today, on May 30, 2006.

Lampard became the fifth player to miss more than one penalty for England - after David Beckham, Franny Lee, Roger Byrne and Edgar Needham.

Goalkeeper David James won his 50th cap for England - the fifth goalkeeper to reach this milestone for the country after Peter Shilton, David Seaman, Gordon Banks and Ray Clemence.

Marcus Tulio Tanaka scored his eighth international goal, and first since he netted in Japan’s 3-0 home win against Hong Kong on February 11.

Japanese goalscorer Tulio has a Japanese-Brazilian father and Italian-Brazilian mother. Brazil (5 wins) and Italy (4 wins) are the two most successful World Cup nations.

Japan lost their third consecutive match - their longest run of defeats in 12 years since they lost four in a row, including defeats during the 1998 World Cup Finals.

Robinson selects strong side

Andy Robinson has named a strong Scotland side for Tuesday's non-cap international against a Japan Select at Murrayfield.

Head coach Robinson made seven changes from the starting XV that completed a memorable RBS 6 Nations win in Ireland at the end of March for what will be his final chance to watch his players in action before the upcoming tour of Argentina.

Centre Alex Grove was recalled on the day Scottish Rugby confirmed he would join Edinburgh on loan from Worcester next season following the latter's relegation from the Guinness Premiership.

Robinson has decided to rest a number of the players who helped Glasgow reach the Magners League semi-finals, with captain Chris Cusiter and Dan Parks not in the 22.

They are replaced at half-back by co-captain Mike Blair and Edinburgh team-mate Phil Godman.

Wing Simon Danielli is also recalled, as are Warriors trio Moray Low (prop), Richie Gray (lock) and Richie Vernon (flanker).

Vernon is the only member of the Scotland A party who will set out on the defence of the IRB Nations Cup in Bucharest next month to start tomorrow.

However, two of his colleagues, Fergus Thomson and Mark McMillan, are on the bench.

Scotland team to play Japan A in non-cap international at Murrayfield tomorrow (kick-off 7pm): H Southwell (Stade Francais); S Lamont (Scarlets), N De Luca (Edinburgh), A Grove (Worcester), S Danielli (Ulster); P Godman (Edinburgh), M Blair (Edinburgh, capt); A Jacobsen (Edinburgh), R Ford (Edinburgh), M Low (Glasgow), R Gray (Glasgow), J Hamilton (Edinburgh), R Vernon (Glasgow), K Brown (Glasgow), J Beattie (Glasgow).

Replacements: F Thompson (Glasgow), G Cross (Edinburgh), S MacLeod (Edinburgh), J Barclay (Glasgow), M McMillan (Glasgow), M Evans (Glasgow), J Thompson (Edinburgh).