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■ CRICKET
Murali to miss Twenty20
Sri Lanka's prolific spinner Muttiah Muralitharan was yesterday ruled out of the inaugural World Twenty20 Championships next month due to an elbow injury. Leg-spinner Malinga Bandara is expected to replace Muralitharan in the tournament to be played in South Africa from Sept. 11-24. Sources said Muralitharan complained of muscle pain between his right elbow and shoulder after bowling 30 overs in an English county match for Lancashire against Kent on Wednesday. Muralitharan later consulted Sri Lankan team doctors in Colombo over the telephone and was advised to rest, sources said.

■ SOCCER
`Scapegoat' defender quits
Dinamo Bucharest central defender Valentin Nastase quit the club on Wednesday after he was made the scapegoat for the Romanian side's Champions League elimination. Dinamo were beaten 3-1 by Lazio in Bucharest on Tuesday, losing the third qualifying round tie 4-2 on aggregate. Nastase was heavily criticized by Dinamo fans, media and clubs officials for conceding an early second-half penalty which allowed Lazio to cancel out Florin Bratu's first-half goal, before going on to seal a place in the group stage. "I'm not a coward but I'll immediately quit Dinamo," Nastase said. The 33-year-old former international was upset after Dinamo coach Mircea Rednic said he would "never forget Nastase" at a post-match news conference. "I'm responsible for the huge error I made, but it's not normal to be executed for that," Nastase said.

■ SOCCER
Drama continues for Foxes
Leicester City were involved in a second major drama in less than 24 hours on Wednesday when manager Martin Allen left the club the day after defender Clive Clarke suffered a heart attack during a match. Allen, who joined the second division side in the close-season from Milton Keynes Dons, had been in charge for just three league matches and Tuesday's League Cup match at Nottingham Forest which was abandoned at half-time. A statement on the Leicester City Web site said Allen had left by mutual consent. Chairman Milan Mandaric was quoted as saying that a difference in opinion about the future of the club had led to a breakdown of their relationship. Clarke suffered a suspected cardiac arrest at the end of the opening 45 minutes at the City Ground on Tuesday. The 27-year-old, who joined Leicester on loan from Sunderland two weeks ago, was in hospital in Nottingham but was expected to make a full recovery.

■ RUGBY LEAGUE
Star admits to drug caution
Former Australian rugby league captain Andrew Johns admitted yesterday that he was issued with a caution for possession of an ecstasy tablet in London. Johns was arrested but not charged by police on Sunday, a statement from his management company said. "Following an interview with police he was told the misdemeanor did not warrant being charged and instead was given an official caution," the statement said. "Johns said today he recalled an unknown person pushing a tablet into his jeans at a crowded entertainment venue last Sunday." Johns had been coaching some of Australia's rugby union kickers ahead of the World Cup in France. The Australian Rugby Union said yesterday that Johns would not be working further with the Wallabies.


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