Pokhrel shines in NRT win:

LALITPUR: Naresh Pokhrel scored both the goals as New Road Team (NRT) defeated Mahendra Police Club 2-0 in the Nepal Bank Junior (U-14) League Football Tournament here today. In other match, Niraj Rana Magar scored a late equaliser to earn Boys Union Club a 1-1 draw against Jawalakhel Youth Club. Santosh Maharjan had put JYC ahead in the 28th minute. On Sunday, it’s Friends vs Mahabir, and Three Star vs Sankata. — HNS

Nepal take on Qatar today:

KATHMANDU: After losing to Fiji by three runs in Friday’s semi-final which dashed their hopes of playing in the 2007 World Cup, Nepal will take on Qatar in the third-place match on Sunday at the ICC World Cup Qualifying Series Division II Cricket Tournament in Kuala Lumpur. In their earlier encounter in ACC Trophy 2004 in Malaysia, Qatar defeated Nepal. Fiji will play Papua New Guinea in the championship match, and the winner will join 11 other nations in the ICC Trophy 2005, which sends top five teams to the 2007 World Cup. — HNS

Inter-municipality soccer:

UDAYAPUR: Triyuga Municipality and Udayapur District Football Association are jointly organising the King Birendra Memorial Eastern Regional Municipality Level Football Competition in Gaighat from March 11. Teams from Dharan, Itahari, Inaruwa, Biratnagar, Mechinagar, Bhadrapur, Damak, Ilam, Rajbiraj, Lahan, Siraha, Dhankuta, and Triyuga municipalities are taking part in the competition, said executive officer of the Triyuga Municipality Bijayaraj Subedi. The final of the event is scheduled for March 24. — RSS

Balaji, Nehra return:

MUMBAI: India on Saturday named four fast bowlers in a 14-member squad for the opening Test against Pakistan, with Laxmipathy Balaji and Ashish Nehra making comebacks after recovering from injuries. Zaheer Khan and Irfan Pathan are other pacemen in the squad, to be led by Sourav Ganguly. The opening Test of a three-match series begins at Mohali on March 8. The remaining two Tests will be played at Kolkata and Bangalore. Pakistan, who arrive in India on Monday, will also play six one-day internationals. — AFP

Valencia fire Ranieri:

MADRID: Claudio Ranieri was fired as coach of Valencia on Friday, a day after the defending UEFA Cup champion was knocked out of the competition by Steaua Bucharest. Valencia president Juan Soler announced the move after an emergency meeting of Valencia’s board. “We understand, and Claudio has understood as well, that the team’s results and dynamics of the last few weeks were not the most appropriate and moved us away from the objectives we had set,” Soler said. Ranieri will be replaced by Antonio Lopez, a former assistant coach at Valencia. — AP

Soto set for IBF title bout:

LAS VEGAS: Omar Soto of Mexico took a 12-round unanimous decision over former world champion Daniel Reyes of Colombia in their IBF mini-flyweight title elimination bout on Friday. The win puts Soto in a title bout later this year against IBF champion Muhammad Rachman of Indonesia. Soto blunted Reyes’ superior power with a steady barrage of combinations and timely counter-punches. There were no knockdowns in the bout. — AP