Gough omitted

LONDON: Former England fast bowler Darren Gough’s first-class cricket career came to an end on Monday after he was left out of the Yorkshire squad for their final County Championship match of the season. Yorkshire captain Gough, 38, was omitted from the 13-man party for their match away to champions Sussex starting on Wednesday, which could determine the relegation-threatened county’s status. Gough had already announced this would be his final season, after suffering a series of niggling injuries in the county championship summer. — AFP

Abdur-Rahim retires

SACRAMENTO: Sacramento Kings forward Shareef Abdur-Rahim announced his retirement, ending a 12-year NBA career that included winning an Olympic gold medal. Abdur-Rahim, 31, has been battling problems in his right knee, which forced him to miss almost all of last season. He was a member of the US Olympic Team that won the gold medal in 2000 in Sydney, Australia. He was an All-Star selection in 2002 with the Atlanta Hawks, for whom he played for 2 1/2 seasons before being dealt to the Portland Trail Blazers. — AFP

Carvalho, Deco out

LONDON: Chelsea’s Portugal international pair of Ricardo Carvalho and Deco are both set to miss matches for the London club through injury. Defender Carvalho is set to be out for up to a month after a knee injury forced him off 11 minutes into the club’s 1-1 Premier League at home to reigning champions Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. Playmaker Deco was injured during the warm-up to that match with what the Blues said was a upper thigh muscle tear and will be out for approximately two weeks, the club said. — AFP