Hyderabad get the better of Mohali

Hyderabad put up an all-round display to beat Mohali by a narrow margin of six runs in their IPL fixture at Nagpur.

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Irfan Pathan hit a quick half-century (60) before Symonds caught him off Jaskaran Singh.

Rohit Sharma claimed Mohali's sixth wicket in Ravi Bopara as Hyderabad bowlers kept dealing the rivals regular blows.

RP Singh took the seventh one as he packed off Piyush Chawla, with Pragyan Ojha taking the catch.

Former Mohali skipper Yuvraj Singh's poor show with the bat continued as Chaminda Vaas dismissed him at a meagre score of four runs. Herschelle Gibbs made no mistake in collecting the ball to get rid of Yuvraj.

Mahela Jayawardene also failed to impress as he contributed 14 runs before losing his stumps to a Symonds delivery.

Pragyan Ojha accounted for the fifth Hyderabad wicket in Adrian Barath.

Mohali started their 171-run chase on a low note as they lost two quick wickets in Manvinder Bisla and Kumar Sangakkara.

While Bisla was run out, Sangakkara departed without even opening his account as Vaas disturbed his timber.

After getting a good start from skipper Adam Gilchrist, Hyderabad kept losing wickets at regular intervals and put up 170/7 on board.

Andrew Symonds became the fifth Hyderabad wicket to fall. Yuvraj struck again as Bipul took the catch.

Irfan Pathan accounted for the sixth one in Chaminda Vaas. T Suman got run out next.

Herschelle Gibbs and Symonds were looking set to lead Hyderabad to a good score when Yuvraj Singh dismissed Gibbs.

Just a couple of deliveries later, Rohit Sharma lost his wicket to a run out. Anirudh Singh also followed soon on his heels as Sangakkara caught him off Bipul Sharma.

Mohali's Shalabh Srivastava accounted for the all-important wicket of Adam Gilchrist as Hyderabad skipper had just started to fire. Mahela Jayawardena took an easy catch at short midwicket to get rid of the danger-man.

VVS Laxman was looking in good stead and was at his score of 10 runs when he had to retire hurt after injuring his fore-arm.

Mohali skipper Kumar Sangakkara had won the toss and elected to field first against Adam Gilchrist-led Hyderabad.

With the absence of some key players, the onus once again will be on Mohali's Mahela Jayawardene and captain Kumar Sangakkara to lead the batting charge against Hyderabad.

With Yuvraj Singh out of form, Brett Lee back in Australia and a few other key Australian players yet to come over for the IPL, Mohali is struggling at the moment.

Despite the good form of Ravi Bopara, the Mohali team will have to improve their batting to take on the strong bowling line up of Hyderabad, which boasts of Chaminda Vaas, R P Singh and Pragyan Ojha.

Playing XI:

Hyderabad: Adam Gilchrist (C) (W), VVS Laxman, Herschelle Gibbs, Andrew Symonds, Rohit Sharma, Tirumalsetti Suman, Anirudh Singh, Chaminda Vaas, Jaskaran Singh, RP Singh, Pragyan Ojha

Mohali: Kumar Sangakkara (C) (W), Ravi Bopara, Adrian Barath, Manvinder Bisla, Yuvraj Singh, Mahela Jayawardena, Irfan Pathan, Piyush Chawla, Bipul Sharma, Shalabh Srivastava, Sreesanth

Hayden turns big chase into cakewalk

Chennai Super Kings 190 for 5 (Hayden 93, Raina 49*) beat Delhi Daredevils 185 for 6 (Sehwag 74, Manhas 32*, Murali 2-25) by five wickets.

Scorecard

India, say hello to the Mongoose, the shorter, thicker bat with the longer handle. You already knew Matthew Hayden, but might have forgotten him momentarily after his ordinary start this year. On Friday, the two combined in a deadly manner. Hayden smacked 93 off 43 balls to almost singlehandedly chase down Delhi Daredevils' imposing target. Delhi's innings featured a similarly dominant effort. If Hayden scored 93 of the 142 while at crease, Virender Sehwag pummelled 74 out of 103.

That Hayden's effort was longer meant Chennai Super Kings prevailed in the battle of superb fielding. Three good catches from Chennai's stand-in captain, Suresh Raina, and a spectacular effort at the boundary from Justin Kemp, a near replica of his ICL catch, kept Delhi under 200. Tillakaratne Dilshan took a blinder charging in from long-on to deny Hayden a century, and Chennai a jitterless finish.

Delhi, and their new captain Dinesh Karthik, will wonder if they brought Dirk Nannes back too late - in the 13th over - and why the bouncer was not tried against the Mongoose. It was not as if Hayden necessarily needed the new bat to cause wreckage.

By the time he called out for the Mongoose, Hayden had already smashed four boundaries off his first nine balls. That may have given him the confidence to call for the newest beast in town. It was not as if Hayden necessarily needed the new bat to hit the five fours and seven sixes that followed in the next 34 deliveries he faced.

His hitting was so clean that it perhaps didn't need the rumoured 20% extra bat power on most of the occasions. Only the second of three sixes in Dilshan's over - the eighth of the innings - was mis-hit, but the ball managed to sail over wide long-on. That six also brought up his fifty, off 24 balls, and by the end of the over, he had reached 61, and Chennai 85.

More down-the-ground carnage followed in the next four overs, and Hayden had reached 87 off 37 with Chennai needing just 57 off 48, when Nannes was called back. A tight over later, Hayden hit Amit Mishra powerfully down the ground, and Dilshan ran in and caught it inches off the ground. Would it have carried had it been hit with a normal bat?

Albie Morkel and Justin Kemp failed to contribute much, and the onus fell on Raina after Chennai lost three wickets for 27 runs. However, he kept picking up boundaries - six of them - whenever the equation started to look tricky, and his unbeaten 49 carried Chennai home with five balls to spare.

With the way Sehwag was going, though, Raina's team was looking at a much bigger target. His 38-ball 74 came as easy as his strolled singles, but Chennai managed to create and latch on to more catching opportunities to slow down Delhi just about enough in the last eight overs.

Sehwag's innings took about as much time as it took David Warner and Dilshan to struggle and get out, managing 21 off 32 between them. Sehwag was in the scoring zone right from the first ball he faced, flicking it neatly to midwicket. He found the middle of the bat and the gaps started appearing from the second ball on. In the first eight overs, he displayed almost the whole array of effective Twenty20 shots: hits down the ground, through extra cover, over wide long-on and midwicket, and the square-cut.

The first over he faced from Muttiah Muralitharan, though, was the highlight. He came down the track first ball, Murali bowled flat, he checked his shot. Anticipated a flat delivery next up, he stayed back and opened the face to beat short third man. The standout shot came later in the over when he waited even more and took the ball from in front of stumps, guiding it to the left of short third this time. By the end of that over, eighth of the innings, Sehwag had scored 61 off 28, out of the team's total of 79.

Just in time, Kemp produced the moment of inspiration, jumping at the right time and taking a left-handed catch behind his body at the long-off boundary. Immediately before and after that, Raina produced two good catches to get rid of Dilshan and AB de Villiers.

With 7.3 overs still to go, there was time enough for either side to win or lose. Although the balance was retained, the 78 that Karthik, Mithun Manhas and Rajat Bhatia added proved to be inadequate when compared to Hayden and his Mongoose.

Mature Clarke seals satisfying century

Australia 316 for 4 (Clarke 100*, Katich 79, North 52*) v New Zealand.

Scorecard

Michael Clarke has had to display a lot of patience over the past fortnight and he applied an unflappable, measured approach as his century steered Australia into a strong position. Clarke showed no lasting effects from the break-up of his engagement, which forced him home to Sydney last week, as he paced his innings perfectly.

His timing was so good he brought up his hundred in the last over of the day as he swung his side to 316 for 4. Clarke entered with Australia at a sticky 115 for 3 and locked down with Simon Katich, whose responsible 79 was also crucial against a disciplined local attack.

Only 70 runs came in 28 overs between lunch and tea as the tourists were restricted and Clarke needed 32 deliveries for his first two singles. However, once Marcus North, who helped confirm his spot at No.6 with 52, was set in the final session, Clarke started to accelerate and quickly undid the excellent work of the hosts.

The speed at which Clarke improved the situation from delicate to in control was impressive. For a couple of hours he had defended and clipped, playing a nice cut for four off Daryl Tuffey, but also being struck in the helmet attempting a pull off Chris Martin. His first sign of intent came when he charged at Daniel Vettori and lifted him for six to long-on, part of his collection of 91 in the last session.

Four overs later, having added three fours and launched Vettori over the sightscreen, he was 68 and Australia were suddenly purring. The second new ball came and Clarke continued to find the boundary, with two fours off Brent Arnel taking him to 98 with a dozen balls remaining.

The century came with a tight single from the first ball of the last over and he ran with his bat in the air as he accepted the applause. At stumps he was 100, with 10 fours and two sixes from his 142 balls, and had proved his ability to cope under an extreme spotlight.

The upbeat partnership with North of 140 at almost five an over sent the day Australia's way. After a few worrying early moments, North gained confidence and was also batting more freely than at any time this year.

His place is under pressure from Steven Smith, the batsman-legspinner, but if he goes on the spot will be his until he has to negotiate his next elongated slump. A straight drive for four from Arnel steadied him and he felt more comfortable after swiping Vettori for six over midwicket. The contribution allowed all of the tourists to relax.

Australia knew life against New Zealand was going to be harder than their home summer of success and they were forced to battle for much of the day. Life was tough before lunch when the pitch was offering more help, but Arnel's first wicket, which came from his fifth ball on debut, was the only break though. However, when Australia lost Ricky Ponting to a run-out on 41 and Michael Hussey (4) to a sharp catch from BJ Watling there was some concern.

Katich, Australia's ideal man for the difficult situation, was less inclined to chase boundaries than his team-mates, although he eventually forced himself to become more adventurous to Vettori. A hook behind square off Arnel brought up his half-century and he slog-swept Vettori for an awkward six, but mostly he nudged, chipped and glanced.

His reward was a 191-ball stay that gave him more batting time but not a century. While New Zealand missed him twice in the lead-up to tea, Katich did not last long after the break and was lbw shuffling across the crease to Arnel, who was operating around the wicket.

Arnel, a 31-year-old right armer, was brought in for his debut in a four-man seam attack and he delivered a tricky opening spell of seven overs. He picked up a slashing Phillip Hughes (20), who did not take advantage of Shane Watson's hip injury, and showed his pace and movement was worthy of a promotion. Arnel's first Test day ended in figures of 2 for 70 but he and his team-mates were disappointed to have let Australia off.

The ball swung throughout to disrupt the batsmen's rhythm and Martin was a problem when he curled it into the right-handers and away from the lefties. It was a delivery across Hussey that resulted in his fatal edge and he returned 1 for 63.

New Zealand's major problem was they couldn't sustain the effort until the end. Vettori was attacked before the second new ball was taken but Tuffey, who gave up 13 runs from his first 11 overs, regained some control to finish with 0 for 35 from 15. Despite their commitment, Clarke's brilliant burst left them with ground to recover.

Fulham 4 Juventus 1; agg 5-4

The Europa League game between Fulham and Juventus at Craven Cottage on Thursday March 18 2010.

He had talked the talk and, on Thursday night, gloriously, irrepressibly, he walked the walk. Bobby Zamora led Fulham to an exhilarating, improbable, fabulous victory in the Europa League, trouncing and traumatising a shell-shocked Juventus. At Craven Cottage the Old Lady had an attack of the vapours.

Zamora had spoken of how he was going to give Fabio Cannavaro a hard time.

It wasn’t an empty threat. He did just that. Except then the veteran Italian international got himself sent off, a straight red card, perhaps harshly, perhaps a moment when his cynical play finally caught up on him, for bundling over Zoltan Gera with an hour to go. That lit the touch-paper on an already raucous response from Fulham.

At the final whistle, having over-hauled a deficit that, at one stage stood 4-1 in favour of the Italians after their first-leg 3-1 victory, and who were eventually reduced to nine-men, with Jonathan Zebina’s injury-time dismissal for kicking out at Damien Duff, the disbelieving Fulham players went on an exhausted lap of honour. Alessandro Del Piero tried to escape but Simon Davies caught him to swap shirts — and who could blame him?

This was, probably, surely, the greatest night in Fulham’s history and everyone who was here, except for the shell-shocked, silenced Juve supporters, will recall it time and time again.

They will recall the way in which Zamora, the much-maligned, much-criticised, and, at times, lumbering striker out-muscled the canny Cannavaro — using some of the defender’s own dark arts to create space — to chest down and volley past 39-year-old, third-choice goalkeeper Antonio Chimenti who went on to have an horrific evening.

They will recall two goals from Zoltan Gera and they will recall, above all, the way in which Clint Dempsey shimmied along the edge of the penalty area to drift the most exquisite of right-foot chips up and over Chimenti and into the top corner of the net.

As the ball arced through the air, it was unerring. It was almost as if time stood still for the breathless Fulham supporters and how their team deserved such a brilliant goal to win a brilliant match and cap a brilliant performance, a brilliant comeback.

They march on into the quarter-finals of this competition, with the draw on Friday, but it’s almost immaterial. An adventure that started last July in Lithuania and appeared to have died last week in Turin goes on and on.

Exhausted limbs are being dragged from match to match and this will be a season to remember. Juventus may be a pale-shadow of the side which once dominated Europe, twice winning the European Cup, but they are still studded with big names.

This was a big scalp with Fulham having already knocked out the holders, Shakhtar Donetsk and they did it without a dozen or so injured or suspended players.

None of the clubs left in the competition will want to play them such is the spirit, the organisation, the belief, instilled by manager Roy Hodgson whose reputation grows and grows. He was exuberant, disbelieving himself but when he looks back over what just happened he will know it was a match in which he out-coached Alberto Zaccheroni and his team out-played their much-vaunted opponents who simply had no answer, no response.

And to think, Juve had gone ahead after precisely 90 seconds with the kind of goal that crushes spirits. But not for Fulham. When Stephen Kelly and Brede Hangeland made a hash of clearing a routine cross, the ball broke to David Trezeguet and he swept it into the net. Silence.

And then a response. Despite the goal, Fulham sensed a vulnerability. Juve creaked in defence and Chimenti, playing only his second game in two years, having conceded three goals at the weekend, looked shaky. So when Paul Konchesky crossed, Cannavaro went to ground and Zamora, in front of England manager — and former Juve coach — Fabio Capello scored.

The striker then spun in the centre-circle to slide a pass to Gera who, as he collected the ball, and through on goal, was bundled into by Cannavaro.

Red card number one from referee Bjorn Kuipers. It looked harsh and the Italians were furious while Chimenti clawed away Zamora’s free-kick. Fulham won another. This time Simon Davies lofted it against the cross-bar and the rebound struck Zamora and was scrambled away. From the corner, Dickson Etuhu smacked a header against the outside of the post.

But Fulham were relentless and in the move of the match Konchesky played the ball into Zamora who cleverly flicked the ball up to Davies who squared it low for Gera to stab it in at the near post.

Fulham sensed something special and soon after the re-start Gera hared down the right, back-heeling a pass into the path of Duff whose cross struck Diego’s hand. Unintentional but unmistakeably so and Kuipers pointed to the spot. Gera, calmly, side-footed home the penalty. Little wonder the Hungarian pointed to the heavens.

Having levelled up the tie Fulham, inevitably, lost a little momentum. It had taken some effort to get this far but, finally, they went again.

Chimenti beat out a snap-shot from Davies, Dempsey, on as a substitute, had a header pushed away before the goalkeeper repelled Gera’s shot.

As improbable as it seemed at kick-off, extra-time loomed. But not so. There was then Dempsey’s wonderful intervention after Etuhu rolled the ball into his feet and the Juve defenders, suicidally, stood off. What a goal, what a tie, what a night.

Fulham’s greatest moments

1932 Fulham win Division Three South with a club record 111 goals, including a memorable 10-2 win over Torquay, then the club’s record victory.

1949 Fulham finally reach the top flight when, in 1949, they finish top of the old Second Division, finishing just a point ahead of West Bromwich Albion.

2001 A 2-1 win at Huddersfield thanks to a Louis Saha penalty and winner from Luis Boa Morte confirms promotion to the Premiership for the first time, with five games remaining.

1975 Fulham reach their first – and only – FA Cup final by beating Birmingham in the semi-final replay, thanks to a John Mitchell goal in extra time. But a side including Bobby Moore and Alan Mullery lose 2-0 in the final to West Ham.

2002 Fulham win the InterToto Cup, beating another Italian side, Bologna over two legs. After a 2-2 draw in Italy, Jean Tigana’s side win 3-1 at Loftus Road to qualify for the Uefa Cup and reach the third round.

Liverpool 3 Lille 0, agg 3-1

The Europa League game between Liverpool and Lille at Anfield on Thursday March 18 2010.

Far from a sinking ship, the ferry across the Mersey showed no sign of being holed below the waterline whatever Albert “Dock’’ Riera might think. It was never plain sailing but goals from Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres allowed Liverpool to steam into the quarter-finals of the Europa League on Thursday night.

Following his intemperate outburst on life under Rafa Benitez, Riera might not have a future at Liverpool, barring a Kopite keelhauling, but Liverpool certainly have a future in the Europa League. They are deservedly in Friday’s draw courtesy of well-taken goals by their usual powerhouses and a dynamic midfield display from a slightly unlikely source, Lucas. The Brazilian excelled, proving a far more adventurous force than normal, embodying Liverpool’s hunger to stay in this competition.

News of momentous events at the Cottage had been announced over the Tannoy before kick-off, drawing an ovation from the Kop, and generating further belief in overturning a first-leg deficit.

The faith of Liverpool’s fans was reflected in the players’ brisk movement during the warm-up; there was a real intensity to their practice that was maintained with a high-tempo start, which brought Gerrard’s ninth-minute penalty and continued with Torres’s fine finish shortly into the second half.

For Liverpool’s first, Lucas won the kick, showing skill and pace to drag the ball away from Yohan Cabaye and racing into the Lille area. As Adil Rami unfurled a leg, Lucas accepted the invitation, ensured contact was made and went crashing to the floor.

After consulting his additional assistant referee, Nicola Rizzoli pointed to the spot. Gerrard made no mistake, sending Mickael Landreau the wrong way, much to the Kop’s delight.

An early goal was exactly what Benítez had ordered to settle any nerves. Anfield was quick to show its appreciation for Benítez, whose pre-match preparations had been complicated by Riera’s ill-timed outburst. No dissent could be found in the body language of Benítez’s players, who looked utterly focused on turning their manager’s game-plan into reality.

Benítez’s captain, Gerrard, was certainly in the mood, storming into a challenge on Aurelien Chedjou that was 60-40 against the Englishman. The spinning ball was swiftly seized on by Torres, who almost conjured up a magnificent second. Running at Emerson Conceicao, Torres nutmegged Lille’s left-back in a wonderful movement missing only a large shout of “Ole’’. As Chedjou then dived in, Torres let fly, his shot angling just wide.

Liverpool were now playing with all the confidence they have lacked for long spells this season, moving the ball with the accuracy and assertiveness that characterised Monday’s pummelling of Portsmouth, giving hope for Sunday’s trip to Old Trafford.

Even with assorted absentees, Maxi Rodriguez (ineligible), Alberto Aquilani (under the weather) and Riera (out in the cold), Liverpool were fluid and forceful.

Benítez’s players had known how much this meant, how the Europa League was their one shot at glory. They had also known that footballing royalty was in the house, Diego Maradona causing a wave of excitement as he took his seat in the directors’ box. In front of the Hand of God, Liverpool had the upper hand, almost adding a second on the half-hour. After the live wire Torres won a corner, Gerrard swerved the ball over. Daniel Agger, timing his arrival and rising well, flicked a header goalwards which Landreau eventually claimed. Dirk Kuyt then invited Lucas to run at Lille’s defence again. The Brazilian, a positive influence throughout, forced Landreau into a low save.

Yet there is class in this Lille side, a greater confidence patently evident in French teams this season. Rudi Garcia’s side soon began responding to the exhortations of their 2,500 supporters. Florent Balmont, short of hair but long on ambition, started dribbling and passing from the deep, often switching play. Eden Hazard, who so troubled Liverpool in northern France, almost struck a valuable away goal shortly before the break, darting through the middle, his shot hitting Pepe Reina and diverting over. Anfield sighed in relief.

Resisting this flurry of threat from Lille, Liverpool urgently sought a second. One strong Gerrard charge was ended by Rio Mavubu, whose father played for Zaire in the 1974 World Cup against the watching Kenny Dalglish. Mavubu’s usual anchoring shift had the additional responsibility of shadowing Gerrard, an onerous assignment as the England midfielder kept raiding forward in support of Torres.

Kuyt was also in constructive mood, lifting over a cross from the right. Leaping high above a sea of white shirts was Torres, who seemed to hang in the air as the ball came over. The Spaniard met the ball well enough, sending it back across Landreau in textbook fashion but it glided just over.

Torres’s disappointment was not to last long. Three minutes after the restart, Ryan Babel drilled a long ball forward and it should have been meat, drink and petit fours for Rami. Lille’s centre-half made a dog’s dinner of it, letting the ball bounce over him, gifting Torres possession.

Liverpool’s No 9 accelerated towards goal, checking momentarily to deceive Chedjou, and then beating Landreau with the most confident of finishes, the ball placed expertly past the Lille goalkeeper.

There were some nervous moments still to negotiate. Lille’s substitute, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, wasted a good opportunity after 73 minutes. The Kop grew anxious, chanting “attack, attack, attack’’. Torres needed little encouraging, and was soon embarking on a lengthy run that climaxed with Insua chipping the ball over Landreau’s goal.

Yet still the atmosphere creaked with anxiety. Seeking to shake up his attacking options, Benitez withdrew Babel and sent on Yossi Benayoun. Liverpool made it 3-0 on the night when Gerrard’s shot was saved and Torres played the poacher. The sinking ship is still going places and Maradona joined in the standing ovation for Torres.

Sporting Lisbon 2-2 Atletico Madrid

Sergio Aguero struck twice as Atletico Madrid progressed to the quarter-finals of the Europa League with an away-goals triumph over Sporting Lisbon.

All four goals in the second leg at the Estadio Jose Alvalade came in the first half, with Aguero twice putting Atletico ahead and Sporting hitting back through efforts from Liedson and Anderson Polga.

Neither side could force a winner in the second half, leaving Atletico as the victors and still on course for a cup double having also reached the final of the Spanish Copa del Rey.

In the goalless first leg Atletico failed to break down a Sporting side reduced to nine men following the dismissals of Leandro Grimi after 31 minutes and Tonel (89), but it took them less than three minutes to breach a full-strength Lisbon outfit here.

Sporting failed to clear their lines sufficiently from one attack, and when Antonio Lopez regained possession and drove in a low cross, the unmarked Aguero stole in at the near post to side-foot past Rui Patricio.

Atletico could not have asked for a better start, but they enjoyed their advantage for just 15 minutes before Sporting drew level through Liedson.

The Brazil-born forward came the closest to a goal during the first leg when he hit the crossbar from 25 yards out, but there was no denying him from four yards tonight as he powerfully headed in Miguel Carlos Saleiro's dinked cross.

Atletico went back in front in the 32nd minute.

A good move resulted in Jose Antonio Reyes playing in Aguero inside the area, and the stocky Argentinian turned inside Anderson before coolly slotting a shot inside the far post with the outside of his foot.

Reyes then came within inches of putting Atletico 3-1 up with a superb 25-yard free-kick, but there was to be another setback for the Spanish side on the stroke of half-time as Sporting drew level for a second time.

Miguel Veloso fired a free-kick into the area and Anderson got the faintest of touches to help the ball on its way past David De Gea.

That was just the breakthrough Sporting would have been hoping for prior to the interval, but ultimately it would not be enough to save them.

Sporting almost got a perfect start to the second half when De Gea was called onto make a brilliant one-handed save from Saleiro, while Liedson put an opportunity wide at the far post soon after.

The home side would not create many better openings after that, however, and it was Atletico who were celebrating at the end.

Marseille 1-2 Benfica

Alan Kardec came off the bench to inflict last-minute heartbreak on Marseille as his late goal sent Benfica through to the Europa League quarter-finals.

The game seemed destined for penalties after Maxi Pereira swiftly levelled following Mamadou Niang's 70th-minute opener.

However, Kardec's last-gasp goal, just three minutes after coming on and his first for Benfica, put the Portuguese team through.

There was further misery for Marseille when Hatem Ben Arfa was dismissed in stoppage time, seconds after coming on, for lashing out at the Benfica goalscorer.

The game started cautiously but Benfica should have taken the lead in the 23rd minute when Oscar Cardozo's 25-yard thunderbolt smashed off the right upright.

That seemed to spark the hosts into life and they came close to going in front five minutes later as Benoit Cheyrou evaded two Benfica defenders before releasing Fabrice Abriel who served Brandao but he headed over.

Angel Di Maria could have put the visitors in front in the 35th minute but Marseille goalkeeper Steve Mandanda did well to collect his low rasping shot.

As half-time approached Marseille began to step up a gear and Julio Cesar pulled off a good save to deny Brandao before former Porto player Lucho Gonzalez sent his effort inches wide.

Benfica came close to breaking the deadlock shortly after the hour mark when Fabio Coentrao took advantage of space on the left flank before putting in a delightful cross which evaded Mandanda and which an ideally-placed Javier Saviola should have done better with.

The visitors were completely dominating the tie and it seemed a matter of time before they took the lead but they continued to waste a plethora of chances and it was Marseille who took the lead against the run of play.

Niang flicked on Cheyrou's free-kick towards Brandao who returned the favour and the Senegal international tapped the ball home.

But their lead lasted only four minutes before Pereira's 35-yard free-kick took a slight deflection off Cheyrou before flying into the back of the net.

And worse was to come for Marseille as in the final minute Pablo Aimar's free-kick found its way through to Kardec, who lashed it past Mandanda to send the travelling fans into raptures.

There was still time for Ben Arfa, Marseille's last-minute hero in the first leg, to be handed a straight red card moments after coming off the bench, for kicking out at Kardec.

Standard Liege 1-0 Panathinaikos

Dieudonne Mbokani scored the only goal of the game as Standard Liege completed a comfortable passage into the last eight of the Europa League with a home win over Panathinaikos.

The Belgian champions had done most of the hard work in the first leg in Greece when they won 3-1 and dominated the return to deservedly progress.

Mbokani claimed his goal in first-half injury time when goalkeeper Sinan Bolat's long clearance was allowed to run through to the Congo striker to slide home from 12 yards.

In the build up to the match Pana coach Nikos Nioplias claimed his side were better than Standard and that they could overcome the two-goal deficit to progress.

But the Greek side rarely threatened in the opening half as Standard stamped their authority on the game.

Pana goalkeeper Alexandros Tzorvas was kept busy in the early stages, making his first save after three minutes when he tipped a Mehdi Carcela-Gonzalez shot from the centre of the area past the post.

Tzorvas then pushed a header from Mbokani wide five minutes later before clearing the ensuing corner to safety.

The visitors' first shot on target arrived after 12 minutes when Kostas Katsouranis headed into the arms of Bolat.

Standard replied with a string of chances with Mbokani firing wide before Tzorvas saved long-range efforts from Igor De Camargo and Wilfried Dalmat.

Despite Standard controlling possession, they almost fell behind three minutes before half-time.

France striker Djibril Cisse won a free-kick just outside the area and Giorgos Karagounis' pin-point delivery picked out Dimitris Salpingidis.

His header came back off the post before Karagounis saw his follow-up strike tipped wide by Bolat.

Standard deservedly led at the break following some slack defending from the visitors.

There was little danger when Bolat cleared from his own half, but the ball was allowed to run through to Mbokani, who made full use of the defence's hesitation to fire his side ahead from 12 yards.

It took the sting out of Pana heading into the second half and Standard sat back and comfortably defended their advantage.

Gilberto Silva and Sebastian Leto both forced saves from Bolat, but the home side were never in any danger of failing to secure their place in the quarter-finals.

Werder Bremen 4-4 Valencia

David Villa scored a hat-trick as Valencia advanced to the Europa League quarter-finals on away goals after a thrilling draw against Werder Bremen tonight.

Valencia grabbed the lead after two minutes through Villa and Juan Manuel Mata made it 2-0 with just quarter of an hour gone.

Hugo Almeida pulled a goal back for the hosts in the 26th minute before Villa grabbed his second just before the interval.

Torsten Frings scored from the penalty spot in the 57th minute and Marko Marin made it 3-3 just five minutes later, but Villa completed his hat-trick in the 65th minute and Claudio Pizarro's strike six minutes from time was not enough for the home side.

Valencia jumped ahead just two minutes into the game after a poor headed clearance which landed right at the feet of David Silva. The Spain international found Villa in space on the left and he beat Bremen goalkeeper Tim Wiese with a shot into the far corner.

Bremen had two fine chances through Aaron Hunt and Claudio Pizarro but it was Valencia who scored again on 15 minutes as Silva was the provider once more, finding Mata who fired past Wiese.

That prompted Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf to bring on another striker, Miguel Almeida, in place of midfielder Tim Borowski after just 21 minutes.

And Almeida cut the deficit just five minutes after coming on, slotting home Pizarro's fine cross.

The German side continued to push forward and Hunt and Almeida both failed to take advantage of chances nine minutes from the break.

And Villa silenced the Bremen crowd just before half-time, firing home from eight yards after Silva's pass from the touchline.

The gap was back to one after 57 minutes as Bremen captain Frings converted a penalty after Jordi Alba brought down Marin in the area.

Frings' shot was hit directly at Valencia goalkeeper Cesar Sanchez but he could only punch the ball into his own goal.

Marin equalised five minutes later with Mesut Ozil setting up the young German international to beat Sanchez.

However, Valencia held their nerve and Villa collected a long diagonal pass from Mata before beating Wiese and completing his hat-trick after 65 minutes.

Bremen refused to give up and Pizarro equalised with a header in the 84th minute for his ninth goal of the competition, but the home side could not score the vital winner in five minutes of stoppage time.

Wolfsburg 2-1 Rubin Kazan AET

Christian Gentner scored in the 119th minute as Wolfsburg advanced to the quarter-finals of the Europa League with a home victory over 10-man Rubin Kazan in the last 16.

After a 1-1 draw in the first leg in Russia, Alan Kasaev gave Rubin the lead after 21 minutes. Obafemi Martins equalised for the German champions Wolfsburg in the 58th minute.

Rubin went a man down after 109 minutes as Cesar Navas was shown a second yellow card, and Gentner scored the match-winner a minute before the end of extra-time.

The first good chance of the game came after 15 minutes for the hosts. Edin Dzeko fought his way through the left side and crossed into the box where Ashkan Dejagah could not beat Rubin goalkeeper Sergey Ryzhikov from five yards.

The Russian champions grabbed the lead six minutes later on a counter-attack. The ball went to Aleksandr Bukharov, whose pass picked out the run of Kasaev for a blast past Wolfsburg goalkeeper Marwin Hitz from six yards.

Rubin nearly doubled the lead with a counter-attack in first-half stoppage time but Wolfsburg defender Alexander Madlung twice got in the way of shots - first by Bukharov from 14 yards and Hasan Kabze from 16 yards.

Wolfsburg pushed forward after the break with Dzeko heading over the crossbar from 12 yards and Dejagah's attempt from seven yards sailed over the goal after 55 minutes.

Wolfsburg finally equalised three minutes later. Jan Simunek headed a free-kick at the right post across the face of goal to an unmarked Martins, who headed in from two yards out to make it 1-1.

Gokdeniz Karadeniz pulled a shot wide just after the hour mark for Rubin while Martins' header was too centrally placed and Ryzhikov held after 66 minutes.

Ryzhikov was forced to make an excellent save on Martins two minutes into stoppage time. The Rubin goalkeeper produced a stunning save just seconds later, blocking away Zvjezdan Misimovic's shot from seven yards. But the ball went to Dzeko, who slotted home but was ruled offside.

Wolfsburg again were close after 101 minutes but Macbeth Sibaya was in the way of Marcel Schafer's blast. Cesar Navas' header went just wide left two minutes later for the Russians.

But the Spaniard was sent off in the 109th minute for his second warning.

Martins set up the winner, streaking down the right side before crossing to the left edge of the area, where Gentner blasted a shot into the lower right-hand corner from 16 yards.

Anderlecht 4-3 Hamburg

A goal 15 minutes from time from Mladen Petric sealed Hamburg's place in the last eight of the Europa League after a thrilling clash with Anderlecht.

The Germans had appeared to be cruising through with the game goalless approaching half-time, before it sprang to life with three goals in as many minutes.

Jerome Boateng put Hamburg 4-1 ahead in the tie in the 42nd minute but Romelu Lukaku headed home to pull one back and Matias Suarez then converted an injury-time penalty.

Marcell Jansen restored Hamburg's two-goal aggregate lead but Anderlecht responded through Lucas Biglia before Mbark Boussoufa, back from a knee injury, made it 5-5 on aggregate.

However, Petric struck on 75 minutes to break the home side's resistance.

Early on the game offered little in terms of clear-cut chances, with Frank Rost untested in the Hamburg goal until the 34th minute when he dealt with Ondrej Mazuch's shot from the right.

Anderlecht were putting Bruno Labbadia's side under little pressure and the match was devoid of creative spark until just before the break.

Hamburg appeared to put the tie beyond doubt when Boateng sent a right-footed shot into the top corner three minutes before the break.

However, the hosts pulled one back two minutes later when Boussoufa's cross from the right was headed home from close range by Lukaku.

Ariel Jacobs' side then rounded off a remarkable spell when Suarez coolly converted a penalty after he was fouled by Boateng.

Such a breathless end to the first half was followed by a tentative start to the second period until Hamburg restored their two-goal aggregate lead.

Ruud van Nistelrooy sent in a cross from the right for Marcell Jansen to convert but again the Germans could not hold onto their lead and Anderlecht restored their lead on the night five minutes later when Biglia scored from the centre of the penalty area.

Just seven minutes later and the hosts were back in it, Boussoufa slotting home Lukaku's left-wing cross from the six-yard box to put Anderlecht 4-2 ahead on the night and making it 5-5 on aggregate.

Hamburg were not to be denied though, and nine minutes later Petric restored their lead in the tie and booked a place in the quarter-finals.

Jankovic through to final eight

Jelena Jankovic took an hour and 42 minutes to defeat Alisa Kleybanova 6-4 6-4 to reach the quarter-finals of the BNP Paribas Open.

The Serbian was rarely troubled and was broken only once as she saw off the plucky challenge of the 20-year-old, seeded 23rd.

Jankovic had won their previous meeting this season, in her country's Fed Cup tie against Russia, but Kleybanova went into the clash able to draw on the confidence of two victories over her more illustrious opponent last year.

The youngster had a first-serve percentage of 83% in the first set and forced four break points, but she paid for her failure to convert any of them as Jankovic took her only opportunity - and with it the set.

Jankovic was dominant on her own serve throughout both sets, and two breaks to Kleybanova's one earned her the second and a place in the last eight.

Ljubicic thunders past Monaco

Ivan Ljubicic faced only one break point in three sets as he beat Juan Monaco to reach the semi-finals of the BNP Paribas Open.

The Argentinian, seeded 21st, made a bright start and, despite winning just eight points on the Ljubicic serve in the first set, managed to string enough together to earn a break of serve and take the set 6-4.

But Ljubicic came back in style, winning 16 of 19 service points in the second set to prevail 6-2 and level the match.

And the 20th seed was just as dominant in the third, breaking twice more to complete a 4-6 6-2 6-1 triumph in one hour and 47 minutes.

He will face the winner of tonight's clash between third seed Rafael Nadal and Czech Tomas Berdych, seeded 19th.

Cheltenham Festival 2010: Big Buck's and Ruby Walsh canter to World Hurdle win

Big Buck's won back-to-back renewals of the Ladbrokes World Hurdle with an effortless victory under Ruby Walsh.

Walsh's mount was hard on the bridle throughout and try as Time For Rupert might, he could never put the 5-6 favourite under enough pressure.

War Of Attrition made most of the running but Time For Rupert took over turning into the straight, although Walsh could be seen travelling ominously well.

The Cheltenham Festival's winning-most jockey had a leisurely look around for dangers but they were non existent and after a slightly scrappy jump at the last. Big Buck's was pushed out with hands and heels for a three-and-a-quarter-length win.

Powerstation was back in third, the same position he filled 12 months ago.

Walsh said: "He's a special horse. He's absolutely bolted in.

"He's a horse that doesn't want to be in front too long. I knew the ones I fancied, like Karabak, would follow me though.

"He's got a terrific engine and that was a good round of jumping, he jumped better today than he ever has done."

Winning trainer Paul Nicholls said: "He's a hugely talented horse. It's unbelievable. I worked the horses on Saturday morning - Poquelin, Master Minded, Kauto Star, the lot. They all worked well but he worked like a hairy goat.

"That's just him and I lost confidence a bit and I was sweating beforehand.

"He never hit a flat spot today. We were keen to get him fresh and you have to get into his head a bit more than anything. He's very good."

Dominant Bangalore crush Rajasthan

Royal Challengers Bangalore 93 for 0 (Kallis 44*, Pandey 42*) beat Rajasthan Royals 92 (Kumble 3-9, Praveen 3-18) by 10 wickets .

Scorecard

A superlative bowling performance by Royal Challengers Bangalore, including a hat-trick by Praveen Kumar, decimated Rajasthan Royals to a paltry 92 and set up a huge win. The match lasted just 30.3 overs as Bangalore strolled home by 10 wickets to call it an early night, and also seal the second-most comprehensive victory in terms of ball to spare.

The bowlers stuck to a plan of bowling quick, short deliveries, which contributed to an abject batting performance by a weakened Rajasthan. The batsmen struggled to find a weak link to exploit. Although Praveen hogged the limelight with the first hat-trick of IPL 2010, it was the combined bowling performance that set the platform for back-to-back wins at home.

The Bangalore bowlers focused on bowling as straight as possible and tucking the batsmen up. The batsmen looked out of depth from the beginning, playing and missing and failing to find gaps. The first five overs produced only two fours and 27 runs, quite an antithesis to the Twenty20 brand of cricket.

The pressure began to tell on Rajasthan, and the urgency to push on cost them three early wickets. Jacques Kallis struck with his first delivery when he had Naman Ojha splicing to cover-point. Michael Lumb, the Hampshire left-hand batsman, had a testing IPL debut, particularly against Dale Steyn, who got the ball to skid through and fizz past the outside edge on a few occasions. He tried his luck against Anil Kumble by chipping down the track to a slow flighted delivery, but failed the read the googly and was stumped by yards.

Even the experienced Damien Martyn looked out of sorts. The rustiness of not having played too much competitive cricket since retirement began to show against some sharp bouncers from Kallis. The dismissal of Abhishek Jhunjhunwala - chopping Kallis onto the stumps - heralded the arrival of Yusuf Pathan, the best man to get them out of jail.

There wasn't to be an instant manic revival. Yusuf struggled to put bat on ball early on. Realising his weakness against the short ball, Bangalore persisted with back-of-a-length deliveries, and Yusuf kept swishing at thin air. Between the seventh and 11th over, the run-rate did not cross four and even their most attacking batsman was in inertia.

However, the bowlers were made to pay when they bowled fuller, as Yusuf demonstrated with consecutive thumps over deep midwicket off Vinay Kumar. He was dropped twice - on 19 and 24 - off thick top edges, but it didn't cost Bangalore much as he was sent packing with an athletic direct hit by Virat Kohli, diving forward.

Praveen used three different deliveries to get his hat-trick, the seventh in the tournament's history. A sluggish Martyn struggled to break free and lost his middle stump when Praveen returned for a new spell. Praveen followed the yorker with a short delivery to Sumit Narwal, who top-edged it down fine leg's throat. Paras Dogra faced the hat-trick ball, but had his middle stump pegged back to a length delivery, trying to swipe him across the line. The procession of wickets stamped Bangalore's authority on the game, which was all but sealed at that point.

Going by the way Manish Pandey and Kallis closed out the game, only a double hat-trick could have saved Rajasthan. Kallis was at his elegant best, clipping the ball off his pads, tearing into his countryman Morne Morkel for 20 in his first over. Pandey showed scant respect to his countryman, Munaf Patel, muscling the ball down the ground. He also planted one over deep midwicket off Sumit Narwal. The only time Rajasthan looked like taking a wicket was when Pandey sliced the ball to mid-off, and replays couldn't confirm if Morkel took it cleanly.

Rajasthan looked deflated and lost for ideas as Kallis and Pandey threatened to finish the game within 10 overs. Bangalore went to second place in the points table, behind Mumbai Indians.