KATHMANDU: Nepali cricketers Prithu Baskota and Hari Shankar Shah on Wednesday left for the United Kingdom to play for Bristol Bangladeshi Cricket Club for three months. Baskota, former U-19 skipper, is out of the national team as he continues to recover from injury, while Shah last played in the ACC U-19 Premier held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in May 2013. According to Cricket Association of Nepal, the players will be with the team until September 1. The affiliation of the two players in the UK-based club will not only help the cricketers to develop and grow as cricketers but also aid in the development of the sport in long run,” CAN added. — HNS

U-16 in Sylhet

KATHMANDU: South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) confirmed the date and venue for the U-16 Championship, on Wednesday. According to SAFF, the championship will be held in Sylhet, Bangladesh from August 7- 16. All Nepal Football Association Academy U-16, which was finalised on July 3, will be representing the country in the championship. All eight members of SAFF will compete in the championship. — HNS

Manandhar falters

KATHMANDU: Swimmer Yasif Manandhar finished in the 69th position in the 71-player field in the 28th Summer Universiade in Gwangju, South Korea on Wednesday. In the 50m breaststroke event, Manandhar completed the distance in 39.01 seconds, two second more than his personal best time of 37.81 seconds. Another Nepali swimmer Jeetzwolly Maharjan will compete in 50m freestyle on Thursday. In table tennis, Nepali players — Nabita Shrestha, Deep Saun, Jyaki Maharjan, Anita Maharjan, Binesh Khaniya — lost their matches in singles, doubles and mixed doubles categories. — HNS

Fossati back to Qatar

DOHA: Uruguayan Jorge Fossati, who steered Al Sadd to the AFC Champions League title in 2011, has returned to the Qatar Stars League to take charge of Al Rayyan. The 62-year-old, who had been in charge of Penarol in his homeland, was presented by the club’s officials late on Tuesday. Fossati, a former goalkeeper, won all four domestic titles with Al-Sadd during two successful stints and he had high ambitions for more glory with Al Rayyan, who won promotion to the top flight last season. “I am happy to be back and coaching Al Rayyan, it is a privilege,” said Fossati, who has also managed Uruguay and Qatar as well as a host of clubs in South America and the Middle East.  — Reuters

Alderweireld inks deal

LONDON: Tottenham Hotspur have signed Atletico Madrid defender Toby Alderweireld on a five-year contract, the Premier League club said on Wednesday. He spent last season on loan with Southampton, making 26 Premier League appearances, and had been linked in media reports with a permanent move to St Mary’s. But the Belgium international will join countrymen Jan Vertonghen, Moussa Dembele and Nacer Chadli at White Hart Lane after joining Spurs for a fee reported in British media to be around 11.5 million pounds. “I’m very proud to be a Tottenham player. I’m happy to be here and hope to have a wonderful time with this team,” the club’s twitter said. — Reuters