Raikkonen close to Citroen rally deal!

Finland’s 2007 Formula One champion Kimi Räikkönen could be close to agreeing a deal with Citroën to compete in the World Rally Championship next year.

The WRC website reported on Friday that nothing was signed yet but quoted a source close to the former McLaren and Ferrari driver saying only small details remained to be tied up before an official announcement. It said the 13-event programme was believed to be funded by energy drink company Red Bull, a Citroën sponsor which also has its own Formula One teams.

Citroën could offer Räikkönen a competitive car, with Frenchman Sébastien Loeb having taken the rally world title for the past six years.

Räikkönen had said he was planning to take a year out of Formula One after being replaced at Ferrari by Spain’s double world champion Fernando Alonso and failing to reach an agreement with McLaren.

The Finn has made it clear he would not race for a Formula One team that could not offer him a chance of fighting for the championship, but his management has said he is open to offers from Mercedes.

Mercedes has taken over championship-winning Brawn GP and still has a vacancy alongside young German Nico Rosberg after world champion Jenson Button went to McLaren.

Räikkönen, 30, has previous WRC experience having competed in this year’s Finnish round in a Fiat after also entering three non-championship events.

Red Bull, Formula One runners-up this season, could also have a seat for him in Formula One in 2011 with Australian Mark Webber out of contract at the end of next season.

Check out all latest sports information on Onlinesports blog!

Blistering McIlroy takes Ireland clear!

A storming finish from young hotshot Rory McIlroy propelled hotly fancied Ireland into a three-shot lead over Argentina as they ended the first day of the World Cup in style on Thursday.

Twenty-year-old McIlroy, who finished second on the European money list, sank a 20-foot putt for eagle at the par-five 15th and missed repeating the feat on the par-four 16th by a whisker, settling for a birdie.

The world number ten then sank a putt for birdie on the 17th before partner Graeme McDowell sank a 12-footer on the last for another birdie to take Ireland to a 14-under-par total of 58, just one off the World Cup record for fourballs.

“We got off to a great start today and we birdied the holes that we knew we had to on the front nine,” said McIlroy.

“There’s three par-fives on the front nine and it’s a pretty gentle start and we got off to a good one. And from there, we just kept it going.

“We birdied a few holes where I’m sure not a lot of teams were birdieing, and you know, no mistakes on the card. We had a look at two birdies most holes, and you know, most of the time we took one of them.

“It was great team play today, but you know, no one really put each other under pressure. I think that showed in the way the scores went.”

McDowell, ranked 51, said Ireland were aware they had made a good start but said Friday’s foursomes were a “tougher format.”

“We could probably play the course either way around tomorrow and it would be pretty good. We just have to keep doing more of the same really. It’s not really going to change our game plan at all,” he said.

Japan were a shot adrift of Argentina at ten under, with Italy, Canada, South Korea and defending champions Sweden two shots further back on eight under after the opening fourball round in this $5.5-million-tournament.

Defending champions Sweden, who include Henrik Stenson and Robert Karlsson, hit six birdies in their opening nine holes on the bunker-strewn Olazabal Course but failed to maintain their momentum.

England’s Ian Poulter and Ross Fisher finished on six under while last year’s runners-up Spain ended on a disappointing three under, with world number eight Sergio Garcia struggling to make an impact.

A Rafa Echenique eagle on the 15th helped take Argentina, also featuring Tano Goya, to their total of 11 under par.

“We were pretty solid today. We hit a lot of greens, a lot of fairways today, as well. So I think we make a really good combination,” said Goya.

“The times he was in trouble, I was there and the times I was in trouble, he was there. That’s the good thing about the fourball/best ball; that it’s important for one to make it really good.”

Japan’s Ryuji Imada said: “I think we gelled really well. The holes that I struggled, he made pars or birdied and vice versa, and we got it to 10 under,” referring to team-mate Hiroyuki Fujita.

Italy’s Edoardo Molinari, playing with his brother Francesco, said he felt confident after his win at the Dunlop Phoenix tournament in Japan on Sunday, in which he beat Karlsson in a play-off.

“Winning in Japan was a great boost for the confidence because it was a great field last week, almost like a European Tour event,” he said.

The Omega Mission Hills World Cup, taking place near Shenzhen in southern China, is a 72-hole event with each team comprising two players.

The first and third days are fourball, in which four balls are used and the player with the fewest shots takes the hole for their team. The second and final days involve foursomes play, where the teams compete using only one ball per pair.

Check out all latest sports information on Onlinesports blog!

Nadal crashes; Soderling crushes Novak Djokovic!

Rafael Nadal will not be carrying home any fond memories from his trips to London this year after he became the first player to be knocked out of the ATP World Tour Finals on Wednesday.

Five months after limping out of Wimbledon without defending his title due to aching knees, the Spaniard bore little resemblance to the player who once terrorised his opponents as he slumped to a 6-1 7-6 defeat by Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko.

“I fought a lot. I tried my best all the time but it wasn’t enough to win these matches. That’s it, no?” summed up Nadal, who lost both of his Group B clashes in straight sets.

While Nadal was left to lick his wounds, Swede Robin Soderling became the first qualifier for the semifinals when he battered world number three Novak Djokovic 7-6 6-1 for his second major shock of the tournament.

Soderling, only competing in the year-end showpiece at London’s O2 Arena after Andy Roddick’s injury-enforced withdrawal, backed up his opening win over Nadal with another magnificent exhibition of power and precision.

It was the kind of display Nadal would have been proud of but instead the Spaniard spent more time shaking his head in frustration than producing winners during a lopsided first set against Davydenko that flashed by in 27 minutes.

Trailing 4-2 in the second set, Nadal appeared to be heading towards one of the worst defeats in his career when a child’s voice boomed out from the darkened arena: “Wake up Rafa, remember you’re the number two in the world.”

Nadal appeared to heed the call and thumped his chest as he twice came from a break down to force Davydenko into a tiebreak, though after a tight battle featuring long rallies, crafty angles and thumping smashes, the Russian managed to seal victory.

Nadal has no chance of progressing any further in the elite eight-man event even if he beats Djokovic in his final round-robin match on Friday.

Djokovic has played almost 100 ATP matches this year and it showed as he appeared to throw in the towel in the second set.

The Serb, winner of the tournament 12 months ago when it was held in Shanghai, barely had enough energy afterwards to answer questions and he will have to pick himself up quickly for his match against Nadal if he is to reach the semis.

“I didn’t enjoy playing today’s match, that’s for sure,” Djokovic, told reporters. “I’m just fatigued from the whole season.

“He absolutely deserved to qualify for the semifinals. I think he’s the best player so far in the tournament.”

The only surprising thing about the match was that Djokovic managed to drag the first set into a tiebreak, which the Swede sealed with a big first serve.

Soderling won a tremendous baseline exchange to seal the first service break of the match at 1-1 in the second set, splintering Djokovic’s resolve in the process, and raced away with the second set in just 29 minutes.

“There are top nine guys in the world here and I’ve won two matches in straight sets against the number two and three in the world,” Soderling said.

“I couldn’t have asked for anything more.”

Check out all latest sports information on Onlinesports blog!

India close in on victory over Sri Lanka in the 2nd Test Match!

Sri Lanka were staring at defeat after losing 14 wickets and being forced to follow on during a dire third day of the second test against India in Kanpur on Thursday.

India paceman Shantakumaran Sreesanth marked his return to the test team by snaring 5-75 to help bowl out the visitors for 229 in their first innings.

After following on, Sri Lanka were 57-4 in their second innings at stumps, still 356 runs from making India bat again, after the hosts made 642 in their first innings.

Wilting under pressure, Sri Lanka lost Tillakaratne Dilshan (11), Tharanga Paranavitana (20), Mahela Jayawardene (ten) and captain Kumar Sangakkara (11) in the last session as India’s bowlers tightened their grip on the match. Thilan Samaraweera (one not out) and Angelo Mathews (two not out) will resume on Friday with the task of trying to stave off what appears almost certain defeat.

Playing his first test for two years, Sreesanth troubled the Sri Lanka batsmen with his swing, claiming five wickets in an innings for only the second time in his 15-test career.

He dismissed opener Paranavitana (38), Sangakkara (44) and Samaraweera (two) in the first session, and went on to add the wickets of Prasanna Jayawardene (39) and Rangana Herath (11) to his haul after lunch.

Debutant left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha (2-37) and offspinner Harbhajan Singh (2-54) claimed the other wickets on Thursday after the tourists resumed at a decent overnight score of 66-1.

Sri Lanka were quickly in trouble on day three, when Sreesanth removed overnight batsmen Paranavitana and Sangakkara.

Paranavitana was caught behind by Mahendra Singh Dhoni after adding just eight runs to his overnight score of 30, while Sangakkara played a seaming Sreesanth delivery onto the stumps.

Prasanna Jayawardene contributed 39 in his 60-run partnership for the sixth wicket before becoming Sreesanth’s fourth victim, nicking an outswinger to wicketkeeper Dhoni, while Rangana Herath soon followed, bowled for 11.

Mathews (13) was bowled by Harbhajan, and Ojha claimed his first test wicket when Mahela Jayawardene (47) was caught by Tendulkar in trying to loft a shot over mid-on. Jayawardene had a lucky escape earlier, edging a ball between wicketkeeper and slip to get off the mark.

Ojha went on to trap Muttiah Muralitharan (six) lbw after tea and Sri Lanka’s innings ended when Harbhajan got an lbw decision against Chanaka Welegedara (seven).

Sreesanth returned to trouble Sri Lanka again in the second innings, inducing an edge from opening batsman Tillakeratne to Dhoni.

Part-time spinner Virender Sehwag (1-4) trapped Paranavitana lbw and Harbhajan (1-14) bowled Sangakkara, while Mahela Jayawardene got run out as to leave Sri Lanka in tatters.

Check out all latest sports information on Onlinesports blog!

Giant-killer Soderling beats Novak Djokovic!

Robin Soderling claimed his second big scalp at the ATP World Tour Finals as the Swede defeated reigning champion Novak Djokovic 7-6 (7/5), 6-1 in London on Wednesday to reach the semifinals.

Soderling is only competing in this prestigious season finale because of an injury to Andy Roddick, but his victory over Rafael Nadal in his opening match made it clear he is determined to take advantage of his good fortune.

The 25-year-old, ranked ninth in the world, underlined the point by making Djokovic the latest victim of his impressive form this season.

Soderling, who ended Nadal’s four-year reign as French Open champion with a shock win en route to the final earlier this year, had lost his five past meetings with Djokovic, with his most recent defeat to the Serb coming just two weeks ago in the Paris Masters.

That run came to an end in emphatic fashion in this Group B clash.

After a marathon three-set victory over Nikolay Davydenko that didn’t finish until close to midnight on Monday, Djokovic must have been relieved to see his match scheduled in the more sociable early slot.

Whatever time of day the world number three plays, Djokovic has been in supreme form of late, winning 19 of his last 20 matches.

But Djokovic never found any rhythm against the ruthlessly efficient Swede. A hard-fought set looked to have swung Soderling’s way when Djokovic gifted him three set-points at 4-5.

Djokovic, defending superbly at the back of the court, clawed back all three and the set went to a tie-break.

Again it was Soderling who took control at the crucial moment as he hit a perfect volley to earn two more set points. His nerve held this time and he converted the second set point to move into the lead.

The Swede is widely regarded as one of the world’s best indoor players and he kept the pressure on Djokovic in the second set.

Djokovic hardly helped himself though, attempting a drop-shot on break point that he flunked completely and gave Soderling a 2-1 lead.

That was enough to send the Serb into something of a meltdown.

He had already been gesturing angrily towards his coaching team in between points and his composure disappeared completely as Soderling broke again to finish the contest.

Check out all latest sports information on Onlinesports blog!

India tighten grip after Rahul Dravid ton!

Rahul Dravid completed his 28th test century and moved into fourth place on the all-time scorers list to give India the upper hand in the second test against Sri Lanka in Kanpur on Wednesday.

Dravid made a superb 144 before India were 642 all out after tea, succumbing to left-arm spinner Rangana Herath’s strikes either side of the interval.

Herath grabbed five for 121, his fourth five-wicket innings haul in tests, as India’s last six wickets fell for 29 runs.

Sri Lanka lost opener Tillakaratne Dilshan for a first-ball duck before they reached 66 for one at stumps. Opener Tharanga Paranavitana and skipper Kumar Sangakkara were on 30 each.

Dravid became the third Indian player to score a hundred after the hosts resumed on their overnight 417-2.

Vangipurappu Laxman scored 63 and Yuvraj Singh 67 and raised 102 runs together for the fifth wicket to further build the score after openers Gautam Gambhir (167) and Virender Sehwag (131) had laid the foundation on the first day.

Dravid batted beautifully before he was run out at the non-strikers end. Herath dropped a return catch from Laxman but deflected the ball on to the stumps with Dravid short of his ground.

In sublime form following his 177 in the drawn first test in Ahmedabad, Dravid hit 15 fours and a six in his 226-ball knock.

Check out all latest sports information on Onlinesports blog!

Button is a worthy champion – Lauda!

Jenson Button’s credentials to wear the world drivers’ crown were praised on Wednesday by a man who won three Formula One titles – Niki Lauda.

Lauda brushed aside suggestions that Button did not deserve the honour after limping to the title without a win in the second half of the season.

The 60-year-old Austrian told the sport’s official website: “Worthy or unworthy is the wrong approach. A world champion is a world champion. You might argue about the manner in which he won, but history has shown that in some years you have guys who win everything, and then you have guys – and I count myself among these – who win with a half point lead in the last race.

“There are many ways to win a championship. He put in a good season: starting very strong at the beginning to forge ahead and then keeping the lead through difficult times of constantly losing points, but still staying in front. Yes, the 60th Formula One world champion is a worthy champion.”

With Button quitting Brawn GP for a seat alongside his compatriot Lewis Hamilton at McLaren reports have surfaced about a possible return by seven-time champion Michael Schumacher.

The German Formula One legend has been linked to Button’s vacant seat at Mercedes GP, formerly Brawn, alongside recently signed up German Niko Rosberg, but Lauda was dismissive of a Schumacher comeback in 2010.

“I don’t believe that there is one single grain of truth in them (the rumours),” he said. “There was a window of opportunity after Felipe’s (Massa’s) accident and had Michael been fit he would have taken up that chance to race for three or four races – to prove himself, get the adrenaline rush, and see where he stood in the pecking order, but I cannot believe that he would be up for a full season. Why then he did stop racing in the first place?”

Briatore hearing starts in Paris!

Former Renault chief Flavio Briatore’s appeal against a lifetime ban for ordering Nelson Piquet junior to crash at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix began in the High Court in Paris on Tuesday.

The flamboyant Italian, who is also seeking one million euros in damages from motorsport’s governing body the FIA, did not appear in person at the hearing before the Tribunal de Grande Instance.

Pat Symonds, Renault’s former chief engineer who is appealing his five year ban from Formula One, was also absent on day one of the case.

A verdict is expected on 5 January.

Briatore and Symonds were targeted as the main culprits in the affair that rocked F1 when the FIA’s World Motor Sport Council met in Paris to rule on the case in September.

The scandal centered on former Renault driver Piquet junior’s claims that he had been ordered to deliberately crash at Singapore last year to enable teammate Fernando Alonso, who started from 15th, to win the race.

Briatore’s lawyer, Philippe Ouakrat, told the court: “My client vigorously and utterly contests having been aware of such a conspiracy. The FIA has to overturn its decision… because it’s an illegal order in terms of its results and the manner in which it was carried out.”

Jean-François Prat, representing the FIA, countered by insisting there was a definite link between Piquet’s crash, and Briatore.

“He (Piquet) accepted to do it (crash) because he wanted to see his driver’s contract renewed for the next season and it was Flavio Briatore who was in charge of these questions.”

Briatore’s responsibility was therefore “obvious”, Prat told the court.

In a statement released last month when Briatore announced he was challenging his ban he described his punishment as “a legal absurdity” and expressed confidence that the High Court in Paris would find in his favour. Spelling out the main grounds for his action Briatore listed the FIA’s “deliberate breach of rights of the defence, a breach of the rules of natural justice and the FIA’s manifest excess and abuse of power.” Briatore is challenging what he claimed was the FIA’s lack of impartiality and the disproportionate and illegal nature of an indefinite boycott.

He said: “In this case the FIA has been used as a tool to exact vengeance on behalf of one man. This decision is a legal absurdity and I have every confidence that the French courts will resolve the matter justly and impartially.”

Thornton leads Clips to 91-87 win over T’Wolves!

Los Angels : Baron Davis was having one of his poorest shooting nights as a pro, missing his first nine shots and coming within 8.5 seconds of playing an entire game without a field goal for the first time in eight seasons.

But with the Clippers holding a precarious two-point lead on the dreadful Minnesota Timberwolves, the 11-year veteran point guard drove the lane for a clinching layup to help Los Angeles escape with a 91-87 victory Monday night and send the T’Wolves to their 13th straight loss.

Davis’ streak of 468 consecutive regular-season games with at least one field goal was in jeopardy until that key basket. The last time he failed to make a field goal was Feb. 25, 2002—against the Timberwolves—when he played 12 minutes for the Charlotte Hornets and missed both shots before leaving after one quarter with a bruised chest. His other 11 games without a field goal were during his rookie season in 1999-00.

“Baron is the consummate professional. And when we needed him the most, he rose to the occasion,” teammate Marcus Camby said. “That was a big layup down the stretch to put us up four. I don’t think he was frustrated. It’s not about how you start, but how you finish. He’s one of our go-to guys down the stretch. We went to him, and he made a key play.”

Al Thornton scored 31 points and Camby had 18 rebounds along with 12 points for the Clippers, who beat the Timberwolves 93-90 at Staples Center on Nov. 2 for their first win of  the season after an 0-4 start.

Davis, who committed two turnovers in a 1:17 span on bad passes early in the third quarter, was benched by coach Mike Dunleavy with 8:40 left in the period and didn’t return to the floor until 7:10 remained in the game. By then, the Clippers had turned a five-point deficit into an 81-77 lead with former T’wolves guard Sebastian Telfair leading the way.

“The game wasn’t going the way Baron wanted it to, but he was still on the sideline cheering,” Camby said. “Sebastian’s been playing great the last couple of ballgames. That’s the luxury of having a guy like him, because we don’t have to extend Baron a lot out there on the court. Sebastian came in and ran the team, got some big buckets for us and gave us some good quality minutes.”

Rookie Jonny Flynn led Minnesota with 17 points, one of five players in double digits, and Al Jefferson added 13 points and 13 rebounds. The Timberwolves have been held under 88 points in six consecutive games since their 145-105 loss at Golden State on Nov. 9.

“We were taking sloppy shots during the fourth quarter and we were not executing,” coach Kurt Rambis said. “We tried to do too much at one time. We play as individuals and not as a whole team, and that’s when we get into trouble. We are working on that, and I have faith that this young team will get better and win these games.”

Minnesota hasn’t won a game since beating the still-winless New Jersey Nets by two points on opening night, and has matched the worst 14-game start in the franchise’s 21-year history (1993-94). The T’Wolves’ longest losing skid was 16 games in 1991-92, and they are one loss away from matching their longest of last season.

Minnesota took a lead into the fourth quarter for the first time this season, albeit a one-point margin. Telfair opened the quarter with back-to-back jumpers from 13 and 18 feet to give Los Angeles the lead for good and Thornton’s dunk with 6:17 remaining gave the Clippers their biggest lead, 85-77. Minnesota got no closer than two on a 3-pointer by Ryan Gomes with 1:05 to play.

Clippers guard Eric Gordon sat out his eighth straight game because of a groin strain, but was on the bench in uniform after scrimmaging with his teammates on Sunday. He is hoping to play on Wednesday when the team plays in his hometown of Indianapolis.

NOTES: The victory was Dunleavy’s 200th as Clippers coach during the regular season—against 307 losses—and put him within two wins of 600 overall. He is one of only four coaches to guide the Clippers to the playoffs during their 26 years in Los Angeles, including Larry Brown and Bill Fitch. … Clippers TV play-by-play man Ralph Lawler and analyst Michael Smith were back behind the microphone following a one-game suspension by the Fox Sports Prime Ticket network on Friday. They were reprimanded for some off-the-cuff remarks they made on the air last Wednesday at Memphis about Grizzlies Iranian-born center Hamed Haddadi.

Force India to test Di Resta, Hildebrand!

Britain’s Paul di Resta, the cousin of IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti, will test for Force India in Spain next week along with young American J.R. Hildebrand, the Formula One team said on Tuesday.

Team owner Vijay Mallya said both were being considered for a permanent role as test and reserve driver next season.

Di Resta, 23, competes for Force India’s engine partners Mercedes in the German touring car championship. The Scot has also twice tested for McLaren.

Hildebrand, 21, is the Indy Lights series champion and the Californian will be the first American to test a Formula One car since Scott Speed was at Toro Rosso in 2007.

Mallya said both had stood out in tests in the McLaren simulator.

“We will be looking at their performance on track very closely and should they perform well, as we are confident they will, we will look at a permanent role for one within the team in 2010, potentially as a test and reserve driver,” he added.

“As a young team we are looking for drivers who can grow with us. As we’ve always said, nationality isn’t the primary selection criteria — it’s talent and dedication to the cause and we have seen enough to know that these two have both.”

The Jerez tests will be the first since the season ended this month and are designed to give young drivers more experience.

“F1 has always been my dream and I feel this is taking me one step closer to achieving it,” said Di Resta.

“I’m realistic that I’ve got a lot to prove and that I need a bit more experience of the cars and the F1 environment before getting a permanent seat but this is just the beginning of what I hope will be a very bright future with Force India.”

Hildebrand said he was up for the challenge.

“As an American we don’t necessarily have the culture of F1 but anything that’s so impressive and cutting-edge demands respect. I hope I can do the car and myself justice,” he added.