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Rayo Vallecano are finally in a position to dream of La Liga survival. Photograph: Javier Etxezarreta/EPA In the middle of Rayo Vallecano's dark days, when they'd been beaten 15 times in 20 games and the goals were flying in; when they'd let in five from Atlético Madrid, five from Málaga, five from Villarreal, four from Espanyol, four from Sevilla, four from Barcelona, three from Madrid, three from Osasuna, and three from Valladolid; when they plummeted to 19th and stayed there for 11 long weeks; when the only reason they didn't fall further was that Betis were even worse; when even a glimmer of hope, a 4-1 win over Málaga, immediately gave way to a six-goal hammering; and when relegation wasn't an "if" but a "when"; there was a phrase that got repeated over and over: Paco Jémez will die with his ideas. Paco Jémez, though, had other ideas. Not because Rayo's coach was going to back down on his principles - "any club that signs me knows what it's getting," he insisted - but because he didn't have any intention of dying at all. Even when Rayo were a disaster, Jémez had his defenders. Off the pitch, that is. Last season, only two teams in Europe had the ball more than Rayo did: Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Early this season, when Rayo played Barcelona, they had more possession than them, the first team to manage it in 316 games. They threw men into attack, they were fun to watch, and parading the touchline in a dizzying array of multicoloured elbow patches and waistcoats, pink shirts and purple ties, Jémez urged them forward, always. In a country that values the aesthetic, or in which some do, he was eulogised for the way his teams played de tú a tú: as equals. Rayo didn't simply defend - sometimes they didn't defend at all - but instead they went for it. And, mostly, they lost. Rayo took the ball off Barcelona and Jémez declared himself "very proud". But they were beaten 4-0. They went to the Camp Nou where they were praised by Barcelona's

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With ongoing One Day International Cricket matches, we are observing quite a feeling of sportsmanship from the players on the field. Whether it be batting or fielding, players are giving their best to break the record of the highest score of ODI cricket ever. With every four years in which the One Day International (ODI) matches are played, every team tries their best to attain the position of highest scorers. As we can observe, some have successfully achieved that position more than one time. While certain teams have never made it to the list. But it is interesting to anticipate which team will hold the position of highest scorers in coming years.

Playing a crucial innings or taking wickets at the right intervals are the real match finishers in one day cricket. In a few months Cricket World Cup is about to start and all the teams are working hard to get the right team selected for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015. Every team wants a match finisher which will take their team over the winning line. MS Dhoni of India leads in the list of top match finishers as he has a knack of winning games in the last crucial overs making him the best finishers of modern times.

The 2019 World Cup starts from May 30 onwards in England and Wales. All the 10 teams will be raring to have a crack in the group stage. Only four teams will enter the semis. Captaincy is a huge factor that can determine teams. Here we rate the captains of SENA countries, besides India and Pakistan.

Kings XI Punjab are one of the eight teams that were a part of the inaugural edition of the Indian Premier League and are also one of the two teams that have not won the desired title. Their record over the years in the IPL hasn't been the greatest. The team from Punjab played the finals of the IPL only once, back in 2014. Kolkata Knight Riders got the better of them on that occasion and since then, they've finished last, twice(2015 & 2016) and 5th last year. Can the team from Punjab win the title this year? Let's glance at the Kings XI players from the 2018 IPL auctions and also at 5 key players for KXIP who can make a difference this year.

Official ICC Rankings for Test Cricket. Rank, matches, points and rating for the top 10 teams. Reliance ICC Test Ranking for Cricket teams.

Official ICC Rankings for Test Cricket. Rank, matches, points and rating for the top 10 teams. Reliance ICC Test Ranking for Cricket teams.

Ahead of the World Cup, the Indian cricket team has sent BCCI a list of their requests while on tour. Earlier, the CoA had granted the wives and girlfriends of players to join them on tour after a period of 10 days. Now, the team has some more requests, and one of them is quite bizarre.

The post WrestleMania excitement is yet to sink in as the Superstar Shakeup 2019 gets underway. While the stars get ready for a possible brand reshuffle, former superstar Paige raised a few eyebrows when she said that she would be bringing a new tag-team to the women's division. With fans wondering who could that tag-team possibly be, we analyze a few names.

Roger Federer combined with Germany's Alexander Zverev to claim a hard-fought doubles victory over Jack Sock and Denis Shapovalov at the Laver Cup. Their win gave Europe a 3-1 lead over Team World after the opening day of the third Laver Cup in Geneva. This is a crucial moment for Team Europe.

Despite taking lead by 2-0 over the rival hockey squad from Australia, Indian team raised the swirl of hopes that wanted assurance for the host team to storm into the semis on Wednesday in Major Dhyan Chand Stadium, New Delhi. But the hopes sank at the end when the rival team banged 7 goals at the net of Indian side.

The tweeted message on twitter of Australia's legendary spinner Shane Warne conveyed that he is considering over the proposal of succeeding Andy Flower, who has been a coach of England cricket team. Andy is team director of England's cricket squad and the proposal has been offered to Warne for taking his place after his retirement since the team faced loss to Ashes by 5-0.

Up in Scotland there's a nice little football team called Dunfermline Athletic (The Pars). Yes, I admit it they're "my" team. I'm pulling my hair out, like most of our fans, because in the league progress has been downwards for most of the last five-ish years and after half-threatening to push for promotion back to the Scottish Premier League (SPL) we are now again flirting with relegation.Dunfermline Athletic Logo Yet in the the cups we're giants; world beaters; nay SUPERHUMAN! Well, almost. Why is that?

AFC Leopards have been fined Sh500,000 after the club fans caused the abandonment of their Kenyan Premier League game against Thika United a fortnight ago. The KPL Leagues and Competitions Committee also awarded two goals and three points to Thika United for the match that was abandoned in the 83rd minute. Thika were leading by a solitary goal by the time of abandonment. (READ: Fans disrupt AFC, Thika United league match) According to KPL Chief Executive Officer Jack Oguda, the committee found Leopards guilty of causing the abandonment of the game after their fans invaded the pitch before the end of the match. Referee Nassur Doka tried to restore normalcy but when it became clear it was becoming a security risk, he decided to call off the game. The chaotic Leopards fans engaged the police in running battles in and out of the Nyayo Stadium causing damage to private and public property. "The verdict is out and Leopards will have to pay Sh500,000 and forfeit the match. Thika United have been awarded the three points and a 2-0 win margin," said Oguda. The decision means Leopards remain 12th on the 16-team KPL log with 14 points from 13 matches after the league body opted not to dock the 13-time Kenyan champions points. Last week, Leopards Secretary General George Aladwa demanded that KPL awards the club three points claiming that Thika United, being the home team, failed to ensure there was enough security during the game. "Thika United were the home team, they should have provided enough security. Their players also refused to return to the field of play even after calm had been restored," said Aladwa. "We therefore demand that AFC Leopards be awarded the three points," he added.

The all-rounders in cricket play a crucial role in the team and are the real game changers for any team . In one day cricket , teams want a lot of all rounders on their squad as they can bowl and bat as well. ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 will be the big tournament where all rounders can show their skills at the world level. India , ICC 2011 World Cup Champions , has Ravindra Jadeja and Yuvraj Singh as allrounders but will their wicket to wicket off spin bowling work on the fast pitches of Australia and New Zealand is to watch out for. Shane Watson from Australia leads the table of all rounders in cricket.

Each team wants its opening pair of batsmen to click and take on the fast bowlers . In next year ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 opening batsmen pairs will play a crucial role on the super fast pitches. Indian opening pair Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma are to watch out for as both the batsmen are capable of scoring 200 each. Another team opening pair that could cause an upset to other teams is the host New Zealand , where the big guns BB McCullum, JD Ryder would have an advantage of playing in their own country.

The ICC World Cup 2019 is almost a month away and the excitement among fans is increasing with each passing day. The event in England and Wales will see 10 teams participating. India and England go in as the favorites to clinch the trophy. Every nation will be banking on its most prized asset. We pick the Most Valuable Player (MVP) from each team.

Indian skipper Virat Kohli expressed his satisfaction after winning the first one day match with the huge difference against South Africa. According to the skipper it was much needed for the team to rebuild their confidence. Virat Kohli and his team are now backing in form. They are ready to give the tough fight to the Proteas and win the victory as well.

Bangladesh U-19 cricket team flew to Christchurch, New Zealand to play a bilateral series. This is the nation's first tour since their first team Test players narrowly escaped the deadly mosque attacks in Christchurch earlier this year. A 15-member squad left Dhaka to play five youth ODI matches.

World Cup Team Jerseys & Uniforms are out for sale . ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 would be the most watched event in the sports history and the tickets of most important matches of India vs Pakistan and India vs South Africa are all sold out . Well the fans can still go crazy and buy their teams jerseys and watch the matches in full spirit with their friends and families.