United News of Bangladesh

Manuel Ugarte scored the winning goal in the fifth round of the shootout and Uruguay advanced to the Copa America semifinals with a 4-2 victory over Brazil on penalty kicks after the teams played to a scoreless draw Saturday night. The teams combined for a tournament-high 41 fouls and just four shots on goal during a bruising, choppy match with little of the impressive soccer for which both South American powerhouses are known. Uruguay’s Nahitan Nández was sent off after a red card in the 74th minute for a dangerous tackle on Rodrygo, but Brazil couldn't break through its 10-man opponent in the ensuing 21 minutes. Uruguay led 3-1 after three rounds of the shootout when goalkeeper Sergio Rochet stopped Éder Militão and Douglas Luiz hit the post. Alisson Becker saved José María Giménez's shot in the fourth round to keep Brazil alive, but Ugarte banged home the clincher. After the third penalty shootout in four Copa America quarterfinal matches, Uruguay advanced to face Colombia in the semifinals on Wednesday night in Charlotte. Colombia routed Panama 5-0 earlier Saturday, extending its unbeaten streak to 27 consecutive matches. Defending champion Argentina faces Canada in the other semifinal Tuesday in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The final is July 14 in Miami Gardens. Brazil played without Real Madrid star Vinícius Júnior, who watched from the stands under suspension after accumulating two yellow cards. The Seleção already are without Neymar, who hasn’t played since tearing a knee ligament last fall during Brazil’s loss to Uruguay in a World Cup qualifier. That victory was Uruguay's first over Brazil in 13 meetings since 2001, but famed coach Marcelo Bielsa's Uruguay has now beaten Brazil in back-to-back matches for the first time since 1992.

England beat Switzerland 5-3 in a penalty shootout to reach the semifinals of the European Championship after a 1-1 draw in extra time on Saturday. England converted its first four penalties before Trent Alexander-Arnold won the game with the fifth. England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford earlier saved from Manuel Akanji, who took Switzerland's first penalty kick. Canada beat Venezuela in extra round of penalty kicks, reaches semifinals in 1st Copa America England, which lost the 2021 Euros final to Italy in a penalty shootout, goes on to play Turkey or the Netherlands in Dortmund on Wednesday for a spot in the final. The game went to extra time after England forward Bukayo Saka scored with a shot off the post in the 80th minute to cancel out Breel Embolo's goal five minutes earlier for Switzerland. Kylian Mbappé is enduring a tough Euro 2024. It might not stop France winning the title The Swiss had the better chances to win in extra time, including substitute Xherdan Shaqiri hitting the frame of the goal direct from a corner.

Canada hasn't scored much on the way to the semifinals of its first Copa America. Don't look for apologies from American-born coach Jesse Marsch. Ismaël Koné scored in the sixth round of the shootout right after a third save by Maxime Crépeau and Canada moved on with a victory over Venezuela on Friday night. The Canadians won 4-3 on penalty kicks following a 1-1 draw in the quarterfinals, keeping Venezuela from advancing to the Copa America semifinals for the first time since 2011. Just the fourth team to advance out of group play by scoring just one goal, Canada is moving on again following a 0-0 draw against Chile that sent it to the elimination round. Kylian Mbappé is enduring a tough Euro 2024. It might not stop France winning the title “People will talk about should we score more goals or whatever,” Marsch said. “We should score more goals. But those are two pretty strong performances against very good opponents. You can see that this team is building.” Jacob Shaffelburg scored in the 13th minute for Canada before Salomón Rondón got the equalizer in the 64th minute for Venezuela. The victory earned 48th-ranked Canada a rematch with Lionel Messi and Argentina, the world No. 1 and defending Copa America champion, on Tuesday night at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Argentina beat Canada 2-0 in a group play opener. Each team scored three times in the five rounds of the shootout, forcing the extra session. After Crépeau silenced the pro-Venezuelan crowd of 51,080 at the home of the Dallas Cowboys by stopping Wilker Ángel, Koné eased his shot past Rafael Romo for the win. “I heard some of the guys saying afterward I should have had him shoot earlier because he’s got ice in his veins,” Marsch said of the 22-year-old. “They were right. Probably should have had him shoot earlier. But when we needed him, he stepped up.” Argentina reaches Copa America semifinals, beating Ecuador 4-2 on penalty kicks after 1-1 draw With 54th-ranked Venezuela trailing 1-0, Jon Aramburu sent a long pass from his own penalty box, leaving just Rondón and Moïse Bombito battling for the loose ball near midfield. Just as Rondón gained possession, Crépeau realized he was too far out and sprinted toward his net. It was too late. Rondón's lofted shot over the scrambling Crépeau bounced 2 yards in front of the net and in. Shaffelburg scored on an assist from Jonathan David after David scored Canada's previous goal in a 1-0 victory over Peru on a helper from Shaffelburg, who right-footed a pass from David between the right post and Romo. After scoring, Schaffelburg held over his head the No. 17 jersey of Tajon Buchanan, who broke the tibia in his lower left leg in practice three days before the meeting with Venezuela. Rondón had two early chances on headers turned away, and it wasn't long after his goal that Shaffelburg took another dangerous shot from just inside the penalty box that Romo deflected away. Before Rondón's equalizer, Eduard Bello redirected a corner kick from across the toward the net, but the ball landed on top of the net after a leaping deflection from Crépeau. Venezuela is in position to be a first-time qualifier for the 2026 World Cup, which will be held in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. A World Cup-high nine games will be at AT&T Stadium. But La Vinotinto fell short in trying to reach the final four of Copa America for just the second time. Venezuela finished fourth 13 years ago. Ronaldo vs. Mbappé: Clash of generations at Euro 2024 has just been given some extra spice “I think that we need to continue working and to set an objective for ourselves,” Venezuela coach Fernando Batista said through a translator. “This is a long process. We have a huge dream that we’re going for. All Venezuelans want to qualify for the World Cup, and the Copa America gave us the possibility of strengthening our squad.” Not long after Rondón's goal, Liam Millar got a shot past Romo, but it went wide right. Millar had Canada's first miss of the shootout, sending a shot way over the crossbar right after Yangel Herrera was wide left for Venezuela. The teams traded misses again in the fourth round of the shootout before a pair of makes set up the extra session. “We were the better team,” Marsch said. “We deserved to win that match. The penalties, it’s most a flip of the coin. But we were the better team on the day.”

Former national cricketer Shathira Jakir Jesy will be the first Bangladeshi umpire to officiate the eight-nation ACC Women's Asia Cup Cricket 2024 beginning in Dambulla, Sri Lanka on July 19. Jesy confirmed this in a post in her facebook page on Saturday. Earlier in March, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) for the first time appointed two women's  umpires--Shathira Jakir Jesy and Mishu Chowdhury --to officiate the cricket matches. Later, the ICC also included five Bangladeshi for the first time in their umpiring development panel. Of them, four umpires--Shathira Jakir Jesy, Rokeya Sultana, Doly Rani Sarkar and Champa Chakma and one match referee--Supriya Rani Das. Bangladesh put in Group B of the ACC Women's Asia Cup 2924 with hosts Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Thailand while Group A team consists of India, Pakistan, Nepal and UAE. Bangladesh will start their campaign taking on host  Sri Lanka on July 20. Earlier, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced a 15-member final squad of Bangladesh for the ACC Women’s Asia Cup '2024. Bangladesh women's team : Nigar Sultana Joty (Captain), Nahida Akter (Vice Captain), Murshida Khatun, Dilara Akter, Jahanara Alam, Rumana Ahmed, Ritu Moni, Marufa Akter, Shorna Akter, Rabeya Khan, Sultana Khatun, Rubya Haider Jhelik,  Shorifa Khatun, Ishma Tanjim and Sabikun Nahar Jesmin Four stand by cricketers are: Taj Nehar, Fahima Khatun, Sobhana Mostary and Puja Chakrabortty

Sikandar Raza picked 3-25 as Zimbabwe beat India by 13 runs on Saturday in the opener of their five-match series. Raza led the way for his young team that bowled and fielded with great energy to stun the newly crowned T20 World Cup champion, which fielded a second-string side. Tendai Chatara picked 3-16, while Wellington Masakadza and Blessing Muzarabani took one each as India was bowled out for 102 runs in 19.5 overs. This was after Zimbabwe scored 115-9 in 20 overs despite wrist spinner Ravi Bishnoi picking 4-13 in four overs. It was the lowest T20 total defended in Harare as India’s 12-match unbeaten run came to an end. Chasing a low total, India was in trouble early on as its top order failed to get going. Debutant opener Abhishen Sharma was out caught for a four-ball duck, while Ruturaj Gaikwad was dismissed off Muzarabani for 7. Riyan Parag, another debutant, was out for 2 with hard-hitting Rinku Singh gone for a two-ball duck. Both fell to Chatara in the fifth over as India was down to 22-4. Skipper Shubman Gill scored 31 runs to stem the collapse and put on 21 off 29 balls with Dhruv Jurel (7) for the fifth wicket. Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan in same ICC Champions Trophy group: reports It didn’t last long as Luke Jongwe broke through. Thereafter, Raza’s off spin took over. Gill survived a close lbw shout via DRS, but Raza bowled him in the 11th over. It was the turning point as India was 47-6 in 10.2 overs. Thereafter, Sundar marshaled the lower order but the asking rate kept climbing as Raza picked two more wickets. Avesh Khan scored 16 off 12 balls with three fours. The Zimbabwe skipper was named player of the match. “I am very happy about this win and we need to take this series one game at a time,” Raza said. “They are world champions and play like that, so we need to be ready for the next game. Our catching and fielding was amazing but there is room for improvement. The fans also lifted us with their energy.” Shoriful joins Lanka Premier League as third Bangladeshi pacer Sundar made 27 off 34 balls, including a six and a four, yet was unable to finish the job with 16 runs needed off the final over. Earlier, Zimbabwe was 40-2 in the powerplay after being put into bat. It lost regular wickets but in comparison to India’s innings, its batters were able to make vital starts. Clive Madande top-scored with 29 not out off 25 balls to shepherd the score past 100. He hit four fours. Dion Myers (23) and Brian Bennett (22) contributed vital twenties as did opener Wessly Madhevere (21). Sundar picked 2-11 in his four overs, putting in an all-round show, but was unable to prevent India’s first defeat in T20s in 2024. BCB boss struggles to explain Bangladesh’s World Cup failures

Nawabpur Krira Chakra earned a 2-1 goals victory over Mohakhali Ekadosh in the Bashundhara Group Senior (First) Division Football League 2023 -24 at the Bir Shrestha Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Dhaka's Kamalapur on Saturday afternoon. Toriqul Islam and Mohammad Habibullah scored for Nawabpur KC, one in each half. Sr Division Football: Jatrabari Jhotika Sangsad beat Mugda Somaj Kallyan OKS Apon Chandra Roy netted the lone goal for Mohakhali Ekadosh in the 2nd half. Ekramul Haque of Nawabpur KC got a matching order after receiving 2nd yellow card in the match. In the day's other league match, Badda Jagoroni Sangsad played to a goalless draw with East End Club at the same venue on Saturday afternoon. Bangladesh’s Pakistan tour for two Tests finalized The day's other league match between Bangladesh Boys Club and Motijheel T&T Club also ended in a goalless draw at the same venue Saturday morning.  

He has a broken nose that requires him to wear a vision-limiting face mask. He is managing fitness issues stemming from the end of the club season. He has scored only one goal — from the penalty spot. The European Championship is hardly going to plan for Kylian Mbappé and he knows it. “These are the vagaries of the footballer,” the France captain said after his latest below-par par performance at Euro 2024. He doesn't really care, though, as long as he is lifting the Henri Delaunay Cup in Berlin on July 14. Mbappé was so fatigued, so knocked out of his stride after a couple of bashes to his protective mask, that he asked to come off at halftime of extra time against Portugal in the quarterfinals in Hamburg on Friday. Ronaldo heading home as France beats Portugal 5-3 in a penalty shootout in Euro 2024 quarterfinals It meant giving up a likely penalty in the impending shootout — which France won 5-3 because of Joao Felix's miss — but Mbappé simply couldn't continue. France coach Didier Deschamps confirmed his captain asked to be replaced, for the good of the team. “He is always very honest with me and the team. When he feels he doesn't have the capacity to accelerate then we can't risk it, even a player like Kylian,” Deschamps said. “With all that has happened to him — the issues he has had, the trauma with his nose — he is hanging in there. He is not in his top form. He felt very tired indeed.” Mbappé accepted before the Portugal game that he wasn't in prime shape and needed a “good pre-season to be at 100%.” That will come at Real Madrid, which he has joined after running down his contract at Paris Saint-Germain. Getting his nose broken in France's opening group game at Euro 2024 threw him off kilter, too, restricting a part of his game because of his lack of peripheral vision. Euro 2024: Misfiring England faces on-form Switzerland for a semifinal spot His best performances so far might have come in France's news conferences, where he has been vocal in urging French people to vote in the snap elections while warning about the dangers of the far right getting into power. On the field, Mbappé is part of a France team that heads into a semifinal match against Spain on Tuesday having scored three goals this tournament — two own-goals and his penalty against Austria. No France player has scored a goal from open play yet. Like Greece in 2004, France is looking to reach the final pretty much entirely based on its mean defense and team structure. Except the talent in this France squad far outweighs what was at Greece's disposal 20 years ago. “In the locker room, we weren’t thinking that we still hadn’t scored a goal in the game,” said Mbappé, who netted a hat trick in the 2022 World Cup final. “But yes, we will look into the question (of France's lack of efficiency in attack) while maintaining this defensive solidity. "I've only scored one goal"," he added, “but we’re in the semifinals and I’m very happy.” Argentina reaches Copa America semifinals, beating Ecuador 4-2 on penalty kicks after 1-1 draw Mbappé didn't much like watching the penalty shootout from afar, either. “It’s worse than shooting,” he said, laughing.  

France's heartache in penalty shootouts is over. So is Cristiano Ronaldo's last-ever European Championship. In a clash of the soccer superstars, it was Kylian Mbappé — and not Ronaldo, his idol — advancing to a semifinal match against Spain as France beat Portugal 5-3 in a shootout following a 0-0 draw on Friday. Portugal substitute Joao Felix hit a post with the only miss in the shootout and Theo Hernández showed no sign of pressure by converting the clinching kick into the top corner. It was a record sixth and final European Championship for the 39-year-old Ronaldo, who scored Portugal's first penalty in the shootout and ended up consoling fellow veteran Pepe afterward as the 41-year-old defender cried on his captain's shoulder. “We need to go through this moment of our loss, which is very painful,” Pepe said. Ronaldo's 20-year career in the Euros included the title in 2016 — when Portugal beat France in the final — and it remains to be seen if the five-time world player of the year will continue playing for his country through to the 2026 World Cup, when he will be aged 41. “Everything is too raw,” said Portugal coach Roberto Martinez, when asked if that was Ronaldo's last game for his country. “We are suffering a defeat as a team — there are no individual decisions at this point.” The victory ended the recent heartbreak of Mbappé and France in shootouts, having lost in them at their last two major tournaments — in the last 16 at the Euros in 2021 and in the 2022 World Cup final. Before that, the French were also defeated on spot kicks by Italy in the 2006 World Cup final so it had been 26 years — since beating the Italians in the quarterfinals of the World Cup in 1998 — that Les Bleus had been victorious in a shootout. Mbappé didn't even take a penalty this time, having been substituted during halftime of extra time following a couple of knocks to his broken nose that was covered by a protective mask. France coach Didier Deschamps said his captain was tired, too. Les Bleus didn't need their star player, as Ousmane Dembele, Youssouf Fofana, Jules Kounde and Bradley Barcola all found the net in the shootout — held at the end housing Portugal's vocal fans — before Hernández's coup de grâce set off jubilant scenes for the French inside the stadium in Hamburg. “It wasn’t easy," France goalkeeper Mike Maignan said. “We didn’t always play that great, it was a complicated game. “We got to the penalty shootout and didn’t waver. We can be proud of ourselves.” France will play Spain in the semifinals after its extra-time win over Germany in Stuttgart earlier Friday, with Les Bleus staying on course for a third European Championship title after 1984 and 2000. Deschamps' team has reached the last four despite no France player having scored from open play so far in the tournament. Fortunately for Les Bleus, they have been excellent at the other end, conceding just one goal — a retaken penalty by Poland's Robert Lewandowski in the group stage. “We are solid and exemplary in defense and that is essential at a major tournament,” Deschamps said. "When you don’t score a lot of goals, it’s best not to concede a lot of goals, either. “But we need to score more goals .. we are at the mercy of our opponents.” Portugal exited having failed to score in either of its knockout games — the team beat Slovenia on penalties in the last 16 — and its final group match, leaving Martinez plenty of questions to answer. “From our side, we deserved to win,” the Portugal coach said. “But we are talking playing against the best players in Europe. It’s a sad night.”

Spain and its fans celebrated as if they’d won the European Championship. After eliminating tournament host Germany in a thrilling quarterfinal, Luis de la Fuente's team has a great chance to lift the trophy in Berlin next week. Spain snatched a 2-1 win in extra time on Friday thanks to substitute Mikel Merino's header in the 119th minute. Merino celebrated by running around the corner flag, mimicking his father Miguel Merino's celebration after he scored in the same stadium for Osasuna in the UEFA Cup against Stuttgart in 1991. “I knew that there was very little time left and that it was one of the last attacks we would have,” Merino said. “I didn’t believe that it had gone in until a couple of seconds later. When you get 30 slaps on your back it sinks in real quick. “I am very happy for me and the entire team. It all comes down to one moment (the goal), but there is so much work behind it, all the training, the hope, the faith, and the belief in ourselves.” Extra time came only after Florian Wirtz’s equalizer in the last minute of regulation. Dani Olmo, who set up Merino’s winner, netted the opener early in the second half. All three goals came from substitutes. Spain defender Dani Carvajal was sent off late in extra time for a second yellow card and will be suspended from Tuesday’s semifinal against France. Fellow defender Robin le Normand will also miss that match after picking up another booking. France knocked out Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo in a penalty shootout 5-3. Spain eliminated the host of a major tournament for the first time in 10 attempts. Germany players were morose and coach Julian Nagelsmann looked on with his hands on hips and his face etched with disappointment. “We were so close, that’s what makes it so bitter,” Germany midfielder Toni Kroos said after the final match of his excellent career. The 2014 World Cup winner had said he was retiring when Germany's campaign ended. “We all had a big goal that we wanted to achieve together,” Kroos added. “And this dream we all had has been simply shattered now.” Teammates who might also have played their last international included captain İlkay Gündoğan, Thomas Müller and Manuel Neuer. Despite the disappointment and the “hurt,” Nagelsmann managed to crack a joke during his news conference: “It’s hurting also that we have to wait two years to become world champion." The quarterfinal pitted the Euros' only three-time champions, the teams who have played the best soccer at Euro 2024, and it didn't disappoint. There was a blistering pace from the start with crunching tackles and end-to-end action. Kroos was lucky not to be booked for a mistimed challenge that upended Spain midfielder Pedri. Another hefty challenge moments later forced Pedri to leave injured and in tears. He was replaced by Olmo in the eighth minute, the fastest replacement in Euros history. “Pedri is in pain. It deserved a red card," De la Fuente said. He added it was too early to know if the young Barcelona midfielder would recover by Tuesday. From the resulting free kick, Lamine Yamal almost became the youngest ever goal-scorer at the tournament but the 16-year-old’s effort flashed past the right post. Yamal did have a hand in the opener as he cut inside from the right and rolled the ball across for Olmo to hit it first time into the bottom left corner. It was Yamal’s third assist of the tournament, the most by a teenager at a Euros. Substitute Nico Füllkrug hit the post in a late desperate onslaught by Germany, which was rewarded just in the nick of time. Joshua Kimmich nodded Maximilian Mittelstädt’s cross back to Wirtz, whose effort went in off the far post. The teams had more chances to win in extra time and Germany was incensed in the first period when referee Anthony Taylor didn’t give a penalty after Jamal Musiala’s shot smashed against Marc Cucurella’s hand. Nagelsmann called for a change in rules for handball so that a penalty would be given if the shot was on target, removing the interpretation of intent. “There are 50 robots that bring us coffee, so there must be an AI that calculates where the ball will go,” he said. Just as a shootout was looming, Merino leapt high to head in Olmo's cross and send the Spanish fans behind the goal into a frenzy. “They always tell you to enjoy the moment, but when you get to minute 105 it is impossible not to think about the penalties," Spain goalkeeper Unai Simón said. "And as the minutes ticked down, I couldn’t help but think that (Kai) Havertz, Füllkrug, and Toni were out there. Mikel saved us from a real bind.”

After their disappointing T20 World Cup campaign, the Bangladesh team is now set to begin their new season with a two-match Test series against Pakistan, starting in the third week of August. The first Test of the series, which is a part of the ICC Test Championship, will be played in Rawalpindi from August 21, and the second Test will take place in Karachi from August 30. It’s still not clear yet when the Bangladesh team will arrive in Pakistan for this series. Nafees Iqbal suffers stroke, airlifted to Dhaka Bangladesh last visited Pakistan in 2023 to take part in the Asia Cup, which was played across venues both in Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Pakistan was the actual host, but due to their uneasy diplomatic relation with India, the last Asia Cup was also played in Sri Lanka to confirm India’s participation. Before the Asia Cup, Bangladesh’s last Pakistan tour for a bilateral series was in 2020, when Bangladesh played both Test and T20Is. It will not just be Bangladesh, but Pakistan will also host England for a three-match Test series later this year. After England, West Indies and New Zealand will also visit Pakistan early next year. Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan in same ICC Champions Trophy group: reports Following these bilateral series, Pakistan will host the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, in which a total of eight teams will participate, including India. However, their participation is not guaranteed yet.