Probably my favourite day of cricket to date: Pucovski

Two days before the start of the third Test, Tim Paine had revealed to Will Pucovski that he would be making his Test debut at the SCG. "Because he was in my room a couple of days ago and he sort of asked (if he would be making his debut).

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Fans from select western Sydney suburbs to be banned from A-League match

Wanderers fans from a range of western Sydney suburbs won't be allowed to attend Friday night's clash against the Newcastle Jets, bringing the A-League partially in line with the restrictions imposed on the Test match at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

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India tour of Australia: Indian and Australian teams to celebrate New Year in Melbourne

India tour of Australia – New Year plans for both teams: It’s no secret that the Indian team is very high on confidence after a stellar performance in Melbourne and are looking forward to ushering in the new year on a very positive note. But, as usual COVID-19 has played the spoilsport as India won’t have any grand celebrations on New Year.

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Cricket Test match at SCG still going ahead with crowds but is an 'evolving situation'

The third cricket Test between Australia and India will go ahead in Sydney despite the growing COVID-19 clusters and strict new rules around social gatherings. NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian rolled out new restrictions in the past 24 hours

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James Hird

James Hird, born 4 February 1973 is a former professional Australian rules footballer and the current coach of the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League.

Nicknamed "The General", Hird played as a midfielder and half forward, but was often given free rein by former Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy to play wherever he thought necessary. Hird was the joint winner of the 1996 Brownlow Medal with Brisbane Bears' midfielder Michael Voss. A half forward, Hird is often considered one of the greatest footballers of the modern era. He is a member of the AFL Hall of Fame and was listed by journalist Mike Sheahan as one of the top 50 players of all time.

Early 2000s

2000 was a much better and successful year for Hird. Injury free, he received numerous honours, including selection to the All Australian Team, and the Norm Smith Medal for a best on ground performance in the AFL Grand Final. The Essendon team also won the Ansett Cup pre-season competition, and the regular season premiership. The team only lost one game – against the Western Bulldogs – in the entire calendar year, making it the most successful year for any team in the history of the Australian Football League.

The following season's Grand Final was a disappointment for Hird. 2002 then saw Hird's worst injury, an horrific facial injury sustained in a match against Fremantle when he collided with teammate Mark McVeigh's knee, breaking or fracturing all but a couple of the bones in his skull; Hird was in hospital for a week and missed several weeks of the season. The force of the impact radiated throughout his face, particularly to his sinuses, complicating the damage. Hird was unable to fly home to Melbourne due to the air pressure fluctuations found in an aircraft during flight creating concern for his health while the injuries healed. Other players, including Stephen Milne (also after a match in Perth late during the 2008 season) and Ted Richards suffered similar injuries later on, meaning they had to return to their home states by ground.

In 2003, despite again missing eight games through various injuries, Hird tied in the Essendon Best and Fairest with Scott Lucas. He also narrowly missed out on a second Brownlow Medal, finishing three votes behind the three joint winners Mark Ricciuto, Nathan Buckley and Adam Goodes. Despite this, he was rewarded with a place in the 2003 All-Australian team.

During one of his regular panel appearances on The Footy Show, on Wednesday 7 April, Hird launched a surprising attack on the standard of umpiring he believed that Essendon had been dealt in the previous match versus St Kilda. After previously talking to the AFL about umpiring standards, Hird later wrote, "The umpires' interpretation of our interpretation seemed to be different too often, and we felt we weren't getting fair hearing." His anger spilled out onto the AFL Footy Show, saying:

    Scott McLaren hasn't been our favourite umpire ... That's something that the club and he have to come to terms with, because at the moment there's a feeling at Essendon that he's not doing the right thing by us ... hopefully the club and he can come to some arrangement where umpiring is a bit better ... I thought the umpiring was actually quite disgraceful on Saturday night ... I just didn't think the free kicks that were there were paid and some of them were paid weren't right, I suppose ... I'm not alleging incompetence. We all have bad days; he had a bad day.

A few AFL players spoke out in the media criticizing some of the media's negative comments towards Hird. It was, according to Hird, the first time he'd ever come under media scrutiny and he was unsure how to deal with it. He later took aim at the AFL Players Association. "I don't think I was given enough support from them. I hadn't hurt anybody or been found taking something I shouldn't take, but I felt as if I was in the middle of a police investigation." Later that Friday, Hird called a press conference to apologise to McLaren. In a statement, McLaren said:

    I was surprised and disappointed by the comments he made. This has deeply affected my family and friends ... but I have every confidence with the AFL rules and regulations and that will deal with the situation appropriately ... I have enormous respect for James Hird as a footballer, but I was surprised and disappointed by comments he made on the Footy Show last night regarding my performance as an AFL umpire. I look forward to going out this weekend and calling it how I see it, impartially and without fear or favour.

The matter by-passed the AFL Tribunal – because he made the comments on a national television program, they did not need to decide whether they had been made. Instead, the matter would be directly determined by a meeting of the AFL Commission, and any punishment Hird would receive would result directly from that meeting. The Footy Show airs on Thursday evenings, and the AFL Commission was not meeting until the following week; as such, Hird was given clearance, pending the hearing, to play in the following game against the West Coast Eagles (see Memorable Games). On the following Wednesday, 14 April, the AFL Commission met, deliberated, and ultimately handed down its penalty to Hird. He was fined $20,000, and forced to contribute to a 3-year umpiring development program; the Commission decided against suspension. Hird accepted his sanction and expressed remorse for his actions. In a further controversy, Scott McLaren was one of the umpires rostered for the Essendon vs Carlton game the following Friday night. The pair shook hands at the commencement of the game, bringing closure to the issue, but Carlton fans were particularly hostile to any free kicks given by McLaren to Essendon.

On the occasion of his 300th umpiring appearance in 2008, McLaren described Hird's outburst as a "defining moment" in his career.

Probably Hird's most memorable performance is universally considered to be the Round 3, 2004 game against West Coast – the game immediately following the controversy. It was a close, high scoring game, and was particularly intense during its final quarter.

Up until three-quarter time, Hird had 19 disposals and one goal; in the final quarter, he managed 15 disposals and two goals, the latter of which was most memorable. With the scores level at 131 and very little time remaining, the ball was bounced in Essendon's forward pocket, tapped to the boundary line side, roved, and neatly handpassed by Marc Bullen to a goalward-running Hird, who, approximately thirty metres from goal, snapped from an acute angle for the game-winning goal. In the emotion of the moment, he ran to the fence and hugged the first fan he saw, a teenage Essendon fan.

Controversially, Hird did not receive any Brownlow Medal votes from the umpires for his 34 disposals; the media speculation was that the umpires deliberately snubbed him because of his earlier comments. The votes went to Matthew Lloyd (three votes, seven marks, eight goals), Ben Cousins (thirty disposals, three goals), and eventual Brownlow medallist Chris Judd (twenty-three disposals).

Hird's winning goal was the focus of a popular installment of the Toyota Memorable Moments advertising campaign,[19] and the hug is captured in Jamie Cooper's painting the Game That Made Australia, commissioned by the AFL in 2008 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the sport.
Late career

On 27 September 2005, Hird handed the captaincy to Matthew Lloyd. After Lloyd sustained a season-ending injury in Round 3 of 2006, Hird served briefly as acting captain until young ruckman David Hille was named captain for the remainder of the 2006 season.

Hird missed Essendon's first round win against defending premiers Sydney with a calf injury. In Essendon's horror 2006 season he returned one week early from a minor injury to lead his side to a drought-breaking win over Brisbane in round 17, 2006. It was Hird's first match since round 13 against the Kangaroos, the Dons' first win since April Fools' Day of the same year and Hird's first winning match since round 21, 2005.

Hird continued to be an outstanding performer in his utility role when fit, but age was forcing him to miss games through injury with increasing frequency. He suffered broken ribs and a calf strain during his 200th and 250th games, respectively.

Media career

Following Hird's retirement as a player from the Bombers at the end of the 2007 AFL season, he became a commentator and football analyst for Australian rules football on Fox Sports, a position which he held until he began his coaching career at the end of 2010. Hird also became a writer for Melbourne newspaper the Herald Sun. Former Essendon players such as Hird, Matthew Lloyd, and Scott Lucas, who had all taken up media roles since their retirements, were rumoured to be the subject of then-incumbent Essendon coach Matthew Knights's heated press conference following a win against St Kilda, in which Knights asserted that he and his players were now aware of certain people's position for or against him and the direction of the Essendon Football Club. However such comments were ultimately according to Knights, not intended towards Hird or any past player.
Honours

Hird jointly won the Brownlow Medal with Michael Voss in 1996, the award for the fairest and best player in the Australian Football League. After his retirement, Hird stated that being a member of the "Brownlow Club" was a privilege.

In 1997, the Essendon Football Club named the then-triple best and fairest winner in its Team of the Century on the half-forward flank.

In 2002, the Essendon Football Club conducted a fan-voted promotion to find the "Champions of Essendon". Hird was eventually named as the number three player on the all-time list of Essendon players.
 
Personal life

Hird married Tania Poynton on 11 October 1997 and they have four children – a daughter, Stephanie (born April 1999) and three sons, Thomas (born March 2001), Alexander (born August 2003) and William (born February 2009).Tania is the sister of former Young Talent Time performer Greg Poynton.

Hird's grandfather, the late Allan Hird, Sr., was a notable player and president for the Essendon Football Club, and his father Allan Hird, Jr. had a brief playing career with Essendon.

Hird completed a degree as a civil engineer in 1998, and in that capacity has worked as a consultant on the CityLink project. He is now involved heavily in football-related media work, but he has also spent time working for a stockbroking firm. Hird currently co-owns a restaurant called "Red Mullet Fishcaf" located in Glenferrie Road, Malvern and is an active partner in "Gemba – a sports marketing and media consultancy firm based in Melbourne.

John Tortorella

Jonathan "John" Tortorella, born June 24, 1958 is an American ice hockey coach for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Tortorella was previously the head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning and he led the team to the 2004 Stanley Cup championship. Tortorella became head coach of the Lightning on January 6, 2001 and stayed on until his firing on June 3, 2008 after six and a half seasons, having compiled a 239–222–36–38 record. The firing took place four years after the team's Stanley Cup victory.

Tortorella has been credited by East Coast Hockey League founders Henry Brabham and Bill Coffey with coming up with the name for the league during a league meeting at a Ramada Inn in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. At the time Tortorella was the head coach of Brabham's Virginia Lancers, but left the Lancers to become the assistant coach of the American Hockey League's New Haven Nighthawks before the ECHL's inaugural season in 1988.

Coaching career

Tortorella's coaching career began with the American Hockey League (AHL)'s Rochester Americans and the ECHL's Virginia Lancers. He was also an assistant coach for the AHL's New Haven Nighthawks and Rochester Americans, and the NHL's Buffalo Sabres, Phoenix Coyotes and New York Rangers. He won the Calder Cup with the 1996 Rochester Americans.

Tortorella is known for his outspoken nature—which has included criticizing his own players—and for his unusual system of regularly rotating goaltending duties during his time in Tampa Bay; a system which was discontinued when he became head coach of the New York Rangers and could use Henrik Lundqvist as the regular starting goalie.
Tampa Bay Lightning

Tortorella took over the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2000–01 as a mid-season replacement. The team won only 28% (12 of 43) of its games to end the season, finishing last in the division. The following season, the team finished third in the division but had a losing record and did not qualify for the playoffs. The 2002–03 season marked Tortorella's first winning season as an NHL head coach, as the Lightning won the Southeast Division, losing to the New Jersey Devils four games to one in the second round of the 2003 playoffs. At the end of the season he was also recognized as a finalist for the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year, losing out to Minnesota's Jacques Lemaire.

In 2003–04, Tortorella's fourth season with the team, the Lightning won their second consecutive Southeastern Division title. The Lightning were the top seed in the Eastern Conference and proceeded to defeat the New York Islanders, the Montreal Canadiens, and the Philadelphia Flyers to win the Prince of Wales Trophy and the Eastern Conference Championship. In the Stanley Cup Finals, they defeated the Western Conference champion Calgary Flames four games to three, winning the first Stanley Cup in franchise history. In doing so Tortorella became just the third American-born coach to win it and the first in 13 years. The team was in its eleventh year of existence. It was the last Stanley Cup won before the 2004–05 NHL lockout. A few days after winning the Stanley Cup, Tortorella would go on to win the 2004 Jack Adams Award as coach of the year.

Before the start of the 2005–06 season – the NHL's first post-lockout campaign – Tampa Bay's starting goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin left the team due to the newly implemented salary cap restrictions. Tortorella was hard on Lightning goaltender John Grahame for much of the 2005–06. Grahame subsequently signed with the Carolina Hurricanes before the start of the 2006–07 season. Despite the Lightning winning a 2nd-team best 44 games in 2006–07, the Lightning did not win the Southeast Division.

New York Rangers

Tortorella was named head coach of the New York Rangers on February 23, 2009, replacing Tom Renney, who was fired earlier that day.[4] On March 17, he again became the American-born coach with the most wins in NHL history, this time surpassing Laviolette.

Tortorella was suspended 1 game by the NHL for an altercation with several Capitals fans behind the bench in the third period of Game 5 in the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Replays show the fan clearly heckling Tortorella through verbal jeering, before Tortorella responded by throwing a water bottle at a fan before grabbing a stick from Aaron Voros and trying to spear the fan through a space between 2 panes of glass. He did not receive a penalty on the play despite the fact that NHL rules state any physical altercations with fans result in ejection from a game; however, the next day the NHL suspended him.

When Laviolette became coach of the Philadelphia Flyers in 2009, the rivalry between the two teams became further heated with Tortorella and Laviolette being the American-born coaches with the most wins in NHL history.
United States national men's hockey team

Tortorella was also the assistant coach of the U.S. National Men's hockey team in 2008-2009 replacing Peter Laviolette, which included leading the squad at the 2008 IIHF World Championship, where they finished sixth.

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Federal National Mortgage Association

Federal National Mortgage Association, commonly known as Fannie Mae, was founded in 1938 during the Great Depression as part of the New Deal. It is a government-sponsored enterprise (GSE), though it has been a publicly traded company since 1968. The corporation's purpose is to expand the secondary mortgage market by securitizing mortgages in the form of mortgage-backed securities (MBS), allowing lenders to reinvest their assets into more lending and in effect increasing the number of lenders in the mortgage market by reducing the reliance on thrifts.

Following their mission to meet federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) housing goals, GSEs such as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks) have striven to improve home ownership of low and middle income families, underserved areas, and generally through special affordable methods such as "the ability to obtain a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with a low down payment... and the continuous availability of mortgage credit under a wide range of economic conditions." (HUD 2002 Annual Housing Activities Report) Then in 2003-2004, the subprime mortgage crisis began. The market shifted away from regulated GSE's and radically toward Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS) issued by unregulated private-label securitization conduits, typically operated by investment banks.

As mortgage originators began to distribute more and more of their loans through private label MBS's, GSE's lost the ability to monitor and control mortgage originators. Competition between the GSEs and private securitizers for loans further undermined GSEs power and strengthened mortgage originators. This contributed to a decline in underwriting standards and was a major cause of the financial crisis.

Investment bank securitizers were more willing to securitize risky loans because they generally retained minimal risk. Whereas the GSE's guaranteed the performance of their MBS's, private securitizers generally did not, and might only retain a thin slice of risk. Often, banks would offload this risk to insurance companies or other counterparties through credit default swaps, making their actual risk exposures extremely difficult for investors and creditors to discern.

The shift toward riskier mortgages and private label MBS distribution occurred as financial institutions sought to maintain earnings levels that had been elevated during 2001-2003 by an unprecedented refinancing boom due to historically low interest rates. Earnings depended on volume, so maintaining elevated earnings levels necessitated expanding the borrower pool using lower underwriting standards and new products that the GSE's would not (initially) securitize. Thus, the shift away from GSE securitization to private-label securitization (PLS) also corresponded with a shift in mortgage product type, from traditional, amortizing, fixed-rate mortgages (FRM's) to nontraditional, structurally riskier, nonamortizing, adjustable-rate mortgages (ARM's), and in the start of a sharp deterioration in mortgage underwriting standards. The growth of PLS, however, forced the GSEs to lower their underwriting standards in an attempt to reclaim lost market share to please their private shareholders. Shareholder pressure pushed the GSEs into competition with PLS for market share, and the GSEs loosened their guarantee business underwriting standards in order to compete. In contrast, the wholly public FHA/Ginnie Mae maintained their underwriting standards and instead ceded market share.

The growth of private-label securitization and lack of regulation in this part of the market resulted in the oversupply of underpriced housing finance that led, in 2006, to an increasing number of borrowers, often with poor credit, who were unable to pay their mortgages - particularly with adjustable rate mortgages (ARM), caused a precipitous increase in home foreclosures. As a result, home prices declined as increasing foreclosures added to the already large inventory of homes and stricter lending standards made it more and more difficult for borrowers to get mortgages. This depreciation in home prices led to growing losses for the GSEs, which back the majority of US mortgages. In July 2008, the government attempted to ease market fears by reiterating their view that "Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac play a central role in the US housing finance system". The US Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve took steps to bolster confidence in the corporations, including granting both corporations access to Federal Reserve low-interest loans (at similar rates as commercial banks) and removing the prohibition on the Treasury Department to purchase the GSEs' stock. Despite these efforts, by August 2008, shares of both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac had tumbled more than 90% from their one-year prior levels.

On Oct 21, 2010 FHFA estimates revealed that the bailout of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae will likely cost taxpayers $224–360 billion in total, with over $150 billion already provided.

Business

Fannie Mae made money partly by borrowing for low rates, and lending at higher rates. It borrowed by selling bonds, and lent by creating mortgages and mortgage backed securities which it held on its own books. Since its implied government guarantee meant it could borrow at very low rates, it earned a higher profit than did the non-government companies doing the same work. This was called "The big, fat gap" by Alan Greenspan. By August, 2008, Fannie Mae's mortgage portfolio was in excess of $700 billion.

Fannie Mae also earned a significant portion of its income from guaranty fees it received as compensation for assuming the credit risk on the mortgage loans underlying its single-family Fannie Mae MBS and on the single-family mortgage loans held in its retained portfolio. Investors, or purchasers of Fannie Mae MBSs, are willing to let Fannie Mae keep this fee in exchange for assuming the credit risk; that is, Fannie Mae's guarantee that the scheduled principal and interest on the underlying loan will be paid even if the borrower defaults.

Fannie Mae's charter has historically prevented it from guaranteeing mortgages with a loan-to-values over 80% without mortgage insurance or a repurchase agreement with the lender; however, in 2006 and 2007 Fannie Mae did purchase subprime and Alt-A loans as investments.
Business mechanism
Fannie Mae headquarters at 3900 Wisconsin Avenue, NW in Washington, D.C.

Fannie Mae buys loans from approved mortgage sellers, either for cash or in exchange for a mortgage-backed security that comprises those loans and that, for a fee, carries Fannie Mae's guarantee of timely payment of interest and principal. The mortgage seller may hold that security or sell it. Fannie Mae may also securitize mortgages from its own loan portfolio and sell the resultant mortgage-backed security to investors in the secondary mortgage market, again with a guarantee that the stated principal and interest payments will be timely passed through to the investor. By purchasing the mortgages, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac provide banks and other financial institutions with fresh money to make new loans. This gives the United States housing and credit markets flexibility and liquidity.


In order for Fannie Mae to provide its guarantee to mortgage-backed securities it issues, it sets the guidelines for the loans that it will accept for purchase, called "conforming" loans. Mortgages that don't meet the guidelines are called "nonconforming". Fannie Mae produced an automated underwriting system (AUS) tool called Desktop Underwriter (DU) which lenders can use to automatically determine if a loan is conforming; Fannie Mae followed this program up in 2004 with Custom DU, which allows lenders to set custom underwriting rules to handle nonconforming loans as well.The secondary market for nonconforming loans includes jumbo loans, which are mortgages larger than the maximum mortgage that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will purchase. In early 2008, the decision was made to allow TBA (To-be-announced)-eligible mortgage-backed securities to include up to 10% "jumbo" mortgages.

Conforming loans

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have a limit on the maximum sized loan they will guarantee. This is known as the "conforming loan limit." The conforming loan limit for Fannie Mae, along with Freddie Mac, is set by Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO), the regulator of both GSEs. OFHEO annually sets the limit of the size of a conforming loan based on the October to October changes in mean home price, above which a mortgage is considered a non-conforming jumbo loan. The conforming loan limit is 50 percent higher in Alaska and Hawaii. The GSEs only buy loans that are conforming to repackage into the secondary market, lowering the demand for non-conforming loans. By virtue of the law of supply and demand, then, it is harder for lenders to sell these loans in the secondary market; thus these types of loans tend to cost more to borrowers (typically 1/4 to 1/2 of a percent). Indeed, in 2008, since the demand for bonds not guaranteed by GSEs was almost non-existent, non-conforming loans were priced nearly 1% to 1.5% higher than conforming loans.

Jon Favreau

Jonathan Kolia "Jon" Favreau, born October 19, 1966 is an American actor, director, screenwriter, voice artist, and comedian. As an actor, he is best known for his roles in Rudy, Swingers (which he also wrote), Very Bad Things, and The Break-Up. His notable directorial efforts include Elf, Iron Man, its sequel, and Cowboys & Aliens. His most prominent television role was that of Pete Becker, Monica Geller's boyfriend during season three of the television sitcom Friends.

While in Chicago, Favreau landed his first film role alongside Sean Astin as the pudgy tutor D-Bob in the classic sleeper hit Rudy (1993). Favreau met Vince Vaughn – who played a small role in this film – during shooting. The next year, he appeared in the college film PCU alongside Jeremy Piven, and also stepped into the world of television in the 1994 episode of Seinfeld titled "The Fire" as Eric the Clown. He then moved to Los Angeles, where he made his breakthrough in 1996 as an actor-screenwriter with the film Swingers, which was Vaughn's breakthrough role as the glib and extremely confident Trent Walker, a perfect foil to Favreau's heartbroken Mike Peters. In 1997, he appeared on the popular TV sitcom Friends, portraying Pete Becker, whom Monica Geller dates for several episodes, and who competes in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

He rejoined Piven in 1998 as part of Very Bad Things (1998). In 1999, he starred in the TV movie Rocky Marciano, based on the life of the only undefeated world heavyweight champion. He later appeared in Love & Sex (2000), co-starring Famke Janssen. Favreau appeared in 2000's The Replacements as maniacal linebacker Daniel Bateman, and that same year he played himself in The Sopranos episode "D-Girl", as a Hollywood director who feigns interest in developing mob associate Christopher Moltisanti's screenplay in order to collect material for his own screenplay.

Favreau also has a TV series called Dinner for Five which airs on the cable TV channel IFC. On April 28, 2006, it was announced that Favreau was signed to direct the long awaited Iron Man movie. Released on May 2, 2008, the film was a huge critical and commercial success, solidifying Favreau's reputation as a director. Favreau was the third director attached to John Carter of Mars, the film adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs' swashbuckling space hero. Robert Rodriguez and Kerry Conran were previously attached within the last two years. Mark Protosevich and Ehren Kruger have both written drafts. The Marshal in Revelation has been in development since Swingers was released. It's a western about a Hasidic gunslinger. At one time both Favreau and Vince Vaughn were to co-direct. Neanderthals is a CG animated film that Favreau will write and produce. Johnny Zero will cover the birth of the hot rod movement following World War II. Favreau will write and direct. Iron Man was the first Marvel-produced movie under their alliance with Paramount, and Favreau served as the director and an executive producer. He recently told MTV that he would like to be at the helm of an Avengers film. During early scenes in Iron Man Favreau appears as Tony Stark's loyal friend, and driver, Happy Hogan. He also wrote a mini-series for Marvel Knights titled Iron Man: Viva Las Vegas, that started in September 2008, and directed the sequel Iron Man 2.

Favreau co-starred in 2009's Couples Retreat, a comedy chronicling four couples who partake in therapy sessions at a tropical island resort, which he also wrote. The film saw him reunited with co-star Vince Vaughn, and Kristin Davis played his wife.

He voices the character Pre Vizsla in the episodes of the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars.[citation needed]

Favreau said in December 2010 that he would not direct Iron Man 3, opting to direct Magic Kingdom instead, though he will co-produce the film. He also remained an executive producer of director Joss Whedon's The Avengers.

In July 2011, Favreau was featured in a YouTube video by visual effects artist Freddie Wong (known on YouTube as the popular channel, "freddiew"), which was a spoof of his upcoming summer blockbuster, Cowboys & Aliens. He lent the gauntlet prop to Wong to use it in the short.
Personal life

Favreau married Joya Tillem on November 24, 2000. The couple have three children: a son, Max, born July 25, 2001, and two daughters, Madeleine, born April 2003, and Brighton Rose, born August 2006. Joya Tillem is a physician and is the niece of lawyer/talk show host Len Tillem.

Favreau is a very close friend of actor Vince Vaughn and the two have collaborated on several movies.

Favreau credits Dungeons & Dragons with giving him "...a really strong background in imagination, storytelling, understanding how to create tone and a sense of balance.

Sachin Tendulkar is sworn in as Indian senator

Sachin Tendulkar has become India's first active sportsperson to be sworn in as a member of parliament.

In a surprising move, the world's highest Test run scorer was nominated to the upper house, the Rajya Sabha, along with the film personality Rekha and the industrialist Anu Aga in April this year.

"In the last 22 years of my international career, cricket has given me so much," said the 39-year-old batsman after taking oath in the vice president Hamid Ansari's office.

"Today with the nomination, I am in a better position not only to help cricket but also other sports," he added.

In March, Tendulkar, who continues to play Test and one-day matches for his country, became the first cricketer to score 100 international centuries. The Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi invited Tendulkar to her residence to congratulate him on the historic feat.

Tendulkar, 39, no longer plays international Twenty20 cricket but is still one of the world's leading one-day international and Test match players and he competed in the recent Indian Premier League season.

He is the first active sportsman to serve in India's upper house and on Monday he repeated that he had no immediate plans to retire.

"I am in a better position not only to help cricket but also other sports in the country," he said. "I would be happy if I am remembered (as) someone who has contributed to all sports in India rather than just my cricket statistics."

Tendulkar has previously been careful to steer well clear of India's often bitter political world, and it remains unclear how much he will participate in parliament after his playing days are over.

When he was nominated in April, the Times of India said the gesture made "little sense" while some opposition lawmakers accused the government of crass populist politics.

Om Mathur, a member of parliament for the main opposition BJP, said at the time that Tendulkar was being used by the ruling Congress party to boost its support in the cricketer's home state of Maharashtra.

Tendulkar is the world's highest run-scorer in both Test and one-day cricket and in March became the first batsman to complete 100 international centuries - 51 in Tests and 49 in one-dayers.

The cricketing world first took notice of the child prodigy when, aged 17 and playing only his ninth Test, he hit a match-saving 119 not out against England at Old Trafford in 1990.

Since then he has been revered in India as a demi-god and has lived with the intense pressure of the cricket-obsessed public believing that every time he comes in to bat he will win the game for his team.

Despite such challenges, the "master blaster" has retained a reputation as a honest and humble family man who is involved in a variety of charity work.

His only weakness is said to be an insatiable love of fast cars which he reportedly drives around the streets of Mumbai in the early hours to avoid attracting attention.

Eddie McGuire stirs the Blues' pot by naming Mick Malthouse as a potential coach

RIVERS of gold flow through Carlton thanks to the hundreds of gaming machines gifted to the club by pokies king Bruce Mathieson.

Money isn't an issue at Visy Park.

So someone should pick up the phone today and call Peter Sidwell, the long-time manager of "resting'' coach Mick Malthouse.

Whoever makes that call will discover that Malthouse, 58, is free to coach next year and continues to pine for the cut and thrust of footy.

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None of his lucrative contracts with Channel 7, 3AW and La Trobe University are binding, meaning he can walk away and return to coaching anytime he likes.

His severance agreement with Collingwood president Eddie McGuire precluded him from coaching elsewhere this year, but not in 2013.
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Malthouse has been outstanding in his brief sojourn to the "dark side'' as a media commentator, but is not yet lost to coaching.

In betting markets, the Blues have drifted from $4.75 at the start of May to $21 at the beginning of winter to win the flag. Enter McGuire. On his morning radio show, McGuire said he sympathised with Ratten's plight but that "you're always under pressure at Carlton if you're not winning".
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That McGuire is president of Carlton's most hated rival adds an element to his suggestion that Malthouse, a man with whom he had a public stoush earlier this season, would be an ideal fit at the Blues should the role become available.

"Carlton would be a club that would have all the infrastructure, the player list, the whole thing that would I'm sure at least make him lift his eye," McGuire said.

"Greg Swann is the CEO down there (and) he's still very close with Mick. A team of that ilk would be something that maybe would get Mick's attention."

McGuire is no stranger to stirring the pot in regards to Carlton. He once likened Swann's defection from Collingwood back in 2007 to become the chief executive at Carlton as akin to him joining al-Qa'ida.

It is the type of talk that Carlton ruckman Rob Warnock, who fronted a press conference yesterday, said would "do your head in" if paid any attention.

There is no doubting Carlton's injury woes have had an impact in recent weeks, with the loss of veteran Heath Scotland to a calf injury the latest blow. It exacerbates the absence of star midfielder Marc Murphy and run-with Blue Andrew Carrazzo.

Following the shock loss to Port Adelaide, Ratten said he hoped ruckman Matthew Kreuzer, who was a late withdrawal against the Power, Lachie Henderson, Nick Duigan and Jarrad Waite would return for the Geelong match. Waite, though, was deemed just days earlier to be only a chance due to a persistent back problem.

The Cats also received a boost yesterday when dual-premiership forward Tom Hawkins signed with the club for another three years.

Seinfeld actor apologises for 'gay' cricket remark

The joke wasn't well received by gays and lesbians (and possibly cricket fans), resulting in a lengthy, almost philosophical apology from Alexander.

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In a message of amends, which he posted on the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation website, he wrote that he at first didn't grasp why some might object to the comment, but that subsequent Platonic conversations with his gay friends led him to realise his insensitivity:

"I asked a few of my gay friends about it. And at first, even they couldn't quite find the offence in the bit. But as we explored it, we began to realise what was implied under the humour. I was basing my use of the word 'gay' on the silly generalisation that real men don't do refined things and that my portrayal of the cricket pitch was pointedly effeminate, thereby suggesting that effeminate and gay were synonymous.

"The problem is that today, as I write this, young men and women whose behaviors, choices or attitudes are not deemed 'man enough' or 'normal' are being subjected to all kinds of abuse from verbal to physical to societal. They are being demeaned and threatened because they don't fit the group's idea of what a 'real man' or a 'real woman' are supposed to look like, act like and feel like.

"In comedy, timing is everything. And when a group of people are still fighting so hard for understanding, acceptance, dignity and essential rights – the time for some kinds of laughs has not yet come. I hope my realisation brings some comfort."

He also laid some of the blame at Australia's door:

"Years ago, I was hosting comics in a touring show in Australia and one of the bits I did was talking about their sports versus American sports. I joked about how their rugby football made our football pale by comparison because it is a brutal, no h hiolds barred sport played virtually without any pads, helmets or protection. And then I followed that with a bit about how, by comparison, their other big sport of cricket seemed so delicate and I used the phrase, 'a bit gay'. Well, it was all a laugh in Australia where it was seen as a joke about how little I understood cricket, which in fact is a very, very athletic sport. The routine was received well but, seeing as their isn’t much talk of cricket here in America, it hasn’t come up in years.

He wrote that, at first, he did not grasp why some might object to the comment, but that subsequent conversations with his gay friends led him to realise his insensitivity.

Alexander's remarks came when he told CBS host Craig Ferguson that aspects of cricket made it a "gay game" compared with other sports.

The actor's 1000-word-plus "message of amends" said that the joking remark played into "hurtful assumptions and diminishments" about people.

He also wrote that, as an actor with many gay friends, he "should know better".

Alexander said previous routines about sport in Australia, in which he used similar terms, had been well received.

"Years ago, I was hosting comics in a touring show in Australia and one of the bits I did was talking about their sports versus American sports. I joked about how their rugby football made our football pale by comparison because it is a brutal, no-holds-barred sport played virtually without any pads, helmets or protection.

"And then I followed that with a bit about how, by comparison, their other big sport of cricket seemed so delicate and I used the phrase, 'a bit gay'. Well, it was all a laugh in Australia where it was seen as a joke about how little I understood cricket, which in fact is a very, very athletic sport.

"When Craig mentioned cricket I thought, 'Oh, goody – I have a comic bit about cricket I can do. Won't that be entertaining?'

"And so I did a chunk of this old routine and again referred to cricket as kind of 'gay' – talking about the all white uniforms that never seem to get soiled; the break they take for tea time with a formal tea cart rolled on to the field, etc. I also did an exaggerated demonstration of the rather unusual way they pitch the cricket ball, which is very dance-like with a rather unusual and exaggerated arm gesture.

"Again, the routine seemed to play very well and I thought it had been a good appearance."

Alexander then went on to say that some of his Twitter followers made him aware that they were both gay and offended by the jokes.

French Open 2012: Victoria Azarenka knocked out by Dominika Cibulkova

Azarenka, who almost lost to Alberta Brianti in round one, went down 6-2 7-6 (7-4) against 15th seed Cibulkova.

"It's been a lot of tennis for me in the last five months - I need to rest a little," said Azarenka, who added that she does not plan to play any tournaments before Wimbledon.

Svetlana Kuznetsova , winner in 2009, was beaten 6-0 7-5 by Sara Errani.

Her exit means Li Na is the only former champion left in the draw.

Top seed Azarenka , 22, was far from convincing in her first-round meeting with Brianti and was again distinctly off key against Cibulkova.

She had beaten the Slovakian seven times in eight previous meetings - overturning a set and a break deficit in the last two.

But there would be no repeat on this occasion as the Australian Open champion joined Serena and Venus Williams, Caroline Wozniacki and Agnieszka Radwanska among the big-name casualties.

When asked what she planned to do after the defeat, Azarenka sarcastically responded: "I'm going to kill myself.

"This tournament is over for me. What's to recover from? It's [time] to really look forward and improve. That's it."

An enthralling 15-minute first game, which included six break points, went the Belarusian's way but after that Cibulkova took control.

The 5ft 3ins right-hander broke back immediately before going on to comfortably win the first set in 44 minutes.

Azarenka rallied to take a 2-0 lead in the second, but the diminutive Cibulkova showed her mental strength to run off four games in a row.

The top-seeded Belarussian was beaten 6-2, 7-6 by the Slovakian 15th seed Dominika Cibulkova and must wait to see if the Russian Maria Sharapova will claim the top spot. Sharapova, who meets the unseeded Czech Klara Zakopalova in the last 16 on Monday and has yet to drop a set in the tournament, must get to the Roland Garros final for the first time to become No1.

Cibulkova, who reached the French Open semi-finals three years ago and had lost seven times to Azarenka in eight previous meetings, collapsed on to her back, a big grin on her face, after winning the tiebreak 7-4 with a backhand crosscourt on her second match point.

The Slovakian will play either the US Open champion Sam Stosur of Australia or the American teenager Sloane Stephens in the quarter-finals.

Asked how she would recover from the defeat, a stone-faced Azarenka said sarcastically: "I'm going to kill myself!"

Analysing what went wrong, she said: "Pretty much everything, really. I don't know how to describe my performance today… I wasn't satisfied being out there playing that way but I guess it happens."

Azarenka started by winning a 15-minute opening game featuring six break points on the Cibulkova's serve but she could not sustain the pace, dropping her serve three times. She tried hard to find angles but the ball would too often land long or wide on the important points. Cibulkova put her opponent on the back foot with lengthy rallies from the baseline, taking a well deserved one-set lead after 44 minutes.

The second set was a topsy-turvy affair on a chilly afternoon on Court Suzanne Lenglen. Azarenka opened a 2-0 lead, only for Cibulkova to reel off four games in a row to close in on victory.

Cibulkova struggled to keep a check on her nerves. She double-faulted on break point in the following game and Azarenka went on to break in the 11th game when the Slovakian netted a crosscourt backhand.

Dirk Kuyt

Dirk Kuyt, born 22 July 1980 is a Dutch footballer who plays for Fenerbahçe as a forward.

Kuyt began his professional career with FC Utrecht in 1998 and quickly became part of their first team. He spent five years at the club and in his final season he won his first senior honour, the Dutch Cup, and was chosen as the season's Dutch Golden Shoe Winner. Following this, he left Utrecht in a €1 million transfer to Feyenoord. He became the club captain in 2005 and was a prolific goalscorer at the Rotterdam club; he was the club's top scorer for three consecutive seasons, the top goalscorer in the 2004–05 Eredivisie season, and the 2005–06 Dutch Footballer of the Year. Kuyt missed o bynly five games over seven seasons from 1999 until 2006 and appeared in 179 consecutive matches between 2001–06, striking up a fruitful partnership with fellow Feyenoord teammate Salomon Kalou.

He left Feyenoord after three years, having scored 71 league goals in 101 appearances, and joined Premier League side Liverpool for £10 million. He made his Premier League debut late in 2006 and became part of the first team squad. He scored in his first ever UEFA Champions League final with Liverpool against AC Milan.

Kuyt scored several important goals for Liverpool elsewhere, including seven goals in the 2007–08 Champions League, including a goal in the quarter-final against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium and in the semi-final against Chelsea, and two penalty kicks against Everton in the derby the same season. He scored his first hat-trick for Liverpool against Manchester United in March 2011. After coming on as a substitute, his extra time goal at Wembley for Liverpool against Cardiff City in the 2012 League Cup Final helped win the trophy for Liverpool, and was also his first trophy as a Liverpool player.

He made his international debut in 2004 and has represented the Netherlands at three major international tournaments, the 2006 and 2010 World Cup and Euro 2008.

Feyenoord

At Feyenoord, Kuyt immediately became a fans' favourite with his continued goal scoring success. His first season saw him net another 20 league goals. The opening game of the 2004–05 season marked Kuyt's first ever hat-trick against De Graafschap. He later went on to score three in the 6–3 victory against Den Haag and ended the season as the Eredivisie's top scorer with 29 goals—a career high.

In 2005 Kuyt was handed the Feyenoord club captaincy and went on to have a third successful season with the club, scoring 25 goals in all competitions. He formed a golden duo with Salomon Kalou, nicknamed K2.
Kuyt during his time at Feyenoord

Over the summer of 2006 Kuyt was again linked with moves to many top English clubs, most notably Liverpool and Newcastle United. Rumours started in May with Dirk Kuyt stating "I am happy at Feyenoord but I would like to play in the Premier League. Kuyt completed a move to Liverpool on 18 August for an undisclosed fee.

Kuyt missed only five games over seven seasons from 1999 until 2006, making 233 appearances. Between March 2001 and April 2006 he played 179 consecutive matches.
Liverpool
2006–07 season

Upon joining Liverpool, Kuyt stated "I only wanted to leave Feyenoord for a really big club, and that is what Liverpool are. They are a fantastic big club and it will be a real pleasure to play here.

After sitting out the first game Kuyt made his Liverpool debut as a substitute against West Ham on 26 August 2006. His first start came against PSV in the Champions League and he has been first choice in most games since. He immediately got praises for the new defensive approach by a striker. In his third start for the club on 20 September 2006 Kuyt scored his first goal against Newcastle United in a Premier League game at Anfield, and followed up with another against Tottenham Hotspur in the next game. He scored his third goal for Liverpool with his father watching the game at Anfield, contributing to Liverpool's 3–1 win over Aston Villa. Two weeks later he bagged a brace, as the only scorer in the Reds' 2–0 victory against Premiership newcomers Reading.

Kuyt won much praise for his early performances, with the Daily Mirror stating: "The Dutch striker has the look of a cult hero in the making" and The People reporting that he is "propelling himself towards iconic status. One of the reasons for his early popularity is his post match courtesy to the fans. After each match he walks to every corner of the ground, and applauds the Liverpool supporters.
Kuyt (left) with former teammate Xabi Alonso at Liverpool

On 20 January 2007, Dirk Kuyt opened the scoring against Chelsea after only 4 minutes after a Peter Crouch flick-on. Liverpool went on to defeat the champions 2–0. It was the first time Rafael Benítez had defeated José Mourinho in the Premiership. It was also the first goal scored by Liverpool against a top four club in the league in the 2006–07 season. Kuyt moved his league-goal tally into double figures by scoring the first goal in the game against West Ham on 30, January 2007.

Kuyt played a key part in Liverpool's penalty shoot-out win over Chelsea in the semi-finals of the 2006–07 Champions League. Firstly in extra-time he had a goal disallowed for offside from Xabi Alonso's strike. Kuyt also scored the winning penalty in the shoot-out, and scored a consolation goal in their 2–1 defeat to Milan in the final.

2011–12 season

On 21 September 2011, Dirk Kuyt scored his first goal of the season in a 2–1 win against Brighton & Hove Albion in the 83rd minute in the third round of the League Cup. He did not score for the rest of 2011, missing a chance to get his 50th league goal on 1 October 2011 with a saved penalty against Everton, a game Liverpool went on to win 2–0. On 8 October, Kuyt was announced as having taken up an advisory role with his first club in football, Quick Boys. Kuyt's next goal was a crucial 88th minute winner in a 2–1 victory against Manchester United in the fourth round of the FA Cup on 28 January 2012. He went on to score his 50th league goal for Liverpool the following week in a 3–0 victory over Wolves, becoming only the fifth player to score 50 or more goals for Liverpool in the Premier League. After coming on as a substitute, Kuyt scored Liverpool's second goal in the League Cup final against Cardiff City on 26 February; the game finished 2–2 after extra-time, with Liverpool winning on penalties - Kuyt scoring one of them.

International career

When Marco van Basten took over as coach of the Dutch national team he dropped many established players, including strikers Roy Makaay and Patrick Kluivert. Kuyt benefitted as in September 2004 he made his international debut in van Basten's first game against Liechtenstein. He has been a permanent fixture in the Dutch squad ever since, making the starting line-up for eleven of the Netherlands' twelve 2006 World Cup qualification matches.
Euro 2008

Kuyt was selected for the Dutch squad for Euro 2008. On 9 June, he played in their opening Group C match, a 3–0 victory over 2006 World Champions Italy, assisting in two goals, his most notable act being the header that provided the link between Giovanni van Bronckhorst's crossfield pass and Wesley Sneijder's goal to make it 2–0 on 31 minutes. On 13 June, Kuyt contributed his team's second in the next game of Group C, a 4–1 victory over 2006 World Cup finalists France by opening the scoring with a ninth minute header from a corner, taking his tally of international goals to eight. During Euro 2008, Kuyt was employed as a winger, partnering with Sneijder and Rafael van der Vaart in the midfield due to the team's change of formation from 4-3-3/4–4–2 to 4–2–3–1.

Post Euro 2008

Kuyt scored 3 goals in the 2010 World Cup qualifiers. During a friendly against England, he opened the scoring less than ten minutes after kick-off, pouncing on Rio Ferdinand's poor back pass.

2010 World Cup

Kuyt was included in the preliminary squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. On 27 May 2010, Netherlands manager Bert van Marwijk announced that the player would be part of the final squad of 23 participating in the competition.

At the finals, Kuyt scored Holland's second goal in the 85th minute of their 2–0 win over Denmark in their opening group match on a tap-in after Eljero Elia's shot hit the post. In the quarter-final match on 2 July against Brazil, Kuyt flicked a corner on to Wesley Sneijder who headed the ball into the net giving the Dutch in a 2–1 win. He also assisted the goal scored by Arjen Robben against Uruguay in the semi-finals. Kuyt started all seven matches for the Dutch who finished as runners up to Spain and finished the tournament with one goal and three assists.

Post 2010 World Cup

On 2 September 2010, Kuyt scored a penalty as Holland began their Euro 2012 qualifying campaign with a 5–0 away win against San Marino.On 12 October 2010, Kuyt injured his ankle in Holland's fourth Euro 2012 qualifier against Sweden and was out of action for four weeks with the injury. On 25 March 2011 Kuyt scored Hollands third goal in a 4–0 win against Hungary for the Euro 2012 qualifiers. Four days later he scored twice in a 5–3 win against the same opponents. On 8 June 2011, Kuyt scored a 90th minute equaliser for Holland against Uruguay, leveling the match to 1–1, with Liverpool teammate Luis Suarez netting the opening goal of the match. Holland went on to lose to Uruguay on penalties. Kuyt scored the fourth goal in Holland's record 11–0 win over San Marino. Kuyt headed in his seventh international goal of 2011 in a 3-2 loss against Sweden.

Personal life

Kuyt's wife Gertrude has found favour in the Dutch media for her down-to-earth attitude. She continued to work as a nurse in an old people's home after marrying Kuyt until their daughter, Noelle, was born. Kuyt and his wife now carry out extensive charity work off the pitch. Most notably, he and his wife set up the Dirk Kuyt Foundation to help disadvantaged children in his homeland and the Third World. One of the ways the foundation raises money is by selling DK-branded clothes.
Kuyt's father, also called Dirk, died of cancer on 29 June 2007.

Defoe ready to be England's saviour from the bench at Euro 2012

 Captain Gerrard was one of several walking wounded after yesterday's bruising 1-0 Wembley victory, in their final warm-up friendly before Euro 2012.

The Liverpool midfielder was withdrawn late on through cramp, after a typical all-action display, but he got off lightly compared to Gary Cahill, John Terry and Joleon Lescott.

The FA will shortly reveal whether England's injury jinx has struck again, with Cahill set to have a second scan on the injury he suffered last night and Terry set for a scan on his hamstring.

Lescott finished yesterday's game with a bleeding head wound bandaged up, while concerns remain over the status of Scott Parker's Achilles.

However, Gerrard shrugged off concerns yesterday's game had been too physical for comfort.

The 29-year-old could yet do the same again in Poland and Ukraine and he said: 'I'll try my best.

'It's important to have that at a tournament - not only players that actually start the game, players that can come on and make an impact - especially in tournaments when some games go down to extra time.

'You get to semi-finals and, hopefully, finals and then fatigue kicks in.'

He added: 'You've got to just stay focused on the bench. You might get a chance to win the game - you never know.

'So, it's important just to keep sharp, watch the game as you're not playing and get on and try to make an impact. I believe I can do that.'

Defoe has struggled to hold down a starting place at Spurs and may not even have been in the England squad had Fabio Capello still been manager.


Saturday's game was the frontman's first for his country for more than a year.

'It has been a while,' said Defoe after his 47th cap - a record 30 of which have been earned as a substitute

'It's always nice to play for your country. I was delighted to get on.'

He added of his close shave: 'When I got the shot off, I thought it was in. But, I suppose I'll take that. Hopefully, when I get over there, that one will go in.'

Defoe's last trip to a major championships two years ago saw England feted as one of the favourites.

Not so this time around, but he said of the current squad: 'It's probably a better mix.

'A lot of the younger lads have come through, which is really good to be honest - a lot of energy.
Main man: Danny Welbeck's goal boosted his chances of starting against France

Main man: Danny Welbeck's goal boosted his chances of starting against France

'After the season, we had a little rest - 10 days off - so I think that helps as well.

'There's always going to be pressure, not only in championships - the games in general. We're a great footballing nation. We've got great players.

'It's important for the players to just enjoy it. This is why you play football - to play for your country and to play in major tournaments.

'The manager said to us, "Go there and just enjoy it and do the country proud'.

'There's a really good feeling representing your country at a major tournament. Having played the one before, having experienced it, you just want it again.

'Hopefully, this time around, we get off to a good start and we do well because I think everyone deserves it.'

Nolan Ryan

Lynn Nolan Ryan, Jr., born on January 31, 1947, nicknamed "The Ryan Express", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He is currently principal owner, president and CEO of the Texas Rangers.
During a major league record 27-year baseball career, he pitched in 1966 and from 1968 to 1993 for four different teams: the New York Mets, California Angels, Houston Astros, and Texas Rangers. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999.
Ryan, a hard-throwing right-handed pitcher, threw pitches that were regularly recorded above 100 miles per hour (160.93 km/h). The high velocity remained throughout his career, even into his 40s. Ryan was also known to throw a devastating 12–6 curveball at exceptional velocity for a breaking ball.

While his lifetime winning percentage was a relatively pedestrian .526, Ryan was an eight-time MLB All-Star, and his 5,714 career strikeouts rank first in baseball history by a significant margin. He leads the runner-up, Randy Johnson, by 839 strikeouts. Similarly, Ryan's 2,795 bases on balls lead second-place Steve Carlton by 962—walking over 50% more hitters than any other pitcher in Major League history. Other than Jackie Robinson (whose number was retired by the entire MLB), Ryan is currently the only major league baseball player to have his number retired by at least 3 different teams: the Angels, Astros, and Rangers.
Ryan is the all-time leader in no-hitters with seven, three more than any other pitcher. He is tied with Bob Feller for most one-hitters, with 12. Ryan also pitched 18 two-hitters. Despite the seven no-hitters, he never threw a perfect game, nor did he ever win a Cy Young Award. Ryan is one of only 29 players in baseball history to date to have appeared in Major League baseball games in four decades.

n February 2008, Nolan Ryan was hired as president of the Rangers. After the 2009 season, Ryan and Chuck Greenberg partnered to place the winning bid to purchase the Texas Rangers from owner Tom Hicks. The deal was completed shortly after the start of the 2010 baseball season. At midnight on August 5, 2010, the Ryan/Greenberg group was announced as the winners of the final auction to purchase the Rangers, after final approval from Major League Baseball.
Greenberg sold his stake in the Rangers in 2011, and Ryan is now the team's principal owner.


Legacy

Nolan Ryan is often compared to the Dodgers' Sandy Koufax: they are linked by the fact that Ryan broke two of Koufax's records, for most no-hitters and the single-season strikeout mark. There are further similarities: both Ryan and Koufax started in the majors at a very young age and struggled early in their careers, and both were very reserved and private. Both had tenacious contract disputes with their owners. Ryan readily admitted the money was a large part of the reason he played as long as he did.
But there are key differences, too: Koufax pitched left-handed and Ryan right-handed; despite his early troubles, Koufax played his entire career with one team, whereas Ryan played for four. Koufax played on four championship Dodgers teams, whereas Ryan found himself on mostly mediocre teams. Ryan had an unremarkable win-loss percentage; Koufax had a stellar one, especially in his final four years. Ryan had a won-loss record only slightly better than the teams for which he played; Koufax had a significantly better percentage than his Dodger teams. Ryan, however, had one of the longest careers of any player, whereas Koufax's sterling career was cut short in its prime by arthritis and arm trouble. Nonetheless, both stand out as the best-known "power pitchers" of their times.

Comparisons to Bob Feller are probably more to the point: like Ryan, Feller was a burly, durable power pitcher, who was likely to strike out or walk any given batter, and pitched large numbers of low-hit games. Feller, however, was able to correct his wildness over time (the two are the only post-1900 pitchers to walk over 200 batters in a season) whereas Ryan had limited late success in that area. Feller, however, had a considerably better won/loss percentage than the Indian teams for whom he pitched. Feller has stated that Ryan's former Mets teammate, Tom Seaver, was a much better pitcher than Ryan, whom he says was just a thrower who had a hard time getting the ball over the plate.
Ryan played in more seasons (27) than any other player in modern major league history. Ryan ranks first all-time in strikeouts (5,714), fewest hits allowed per nine innings (6.56), and no-hitters (7). He is also fifth in innings pitched (5,386), second in games started (773), seventh in shutouts (61) and is tied for 14th in wins (324). Opposing hitters hit only .204 against Ryan during his career, though they had a .309 on base percentage against him. He also limited hitters to a .298 slugging percentage. Ryan had 15 or more strikeouts in a game 26 times, second only to Randy Johnson, who had 28. His lengthy career spanned generations, as he struck out seven pairs of fathers and sons during his career. Ryan also played during the administrations of seven U.S. Presidents - Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard M. Nixon, Gerald R. Ford, Jr., Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and Bill Clinton - equaling a 20th Century record that had been set by Jim Kaat.
Ryan also ranks high on the list for four "negative" records; he ranks first all-time in walks allowed (2,795), first in wild pitches (277), third in losses (292—most in the post-1920 live-ball era), and ninth in hit batters (158). Ryan is also one of two pitchers in MLB history to give up ten grand slam home runs, including one to Dann Howitt, the next-to-last batter Ryan faced in his career.

Bill James focuses on this dichotomy between Ryan's positive and negative statistics. While ranking him as the 24th best pitcher of all time, he notes, "Ryan has been retired almost ten years [in 2001], in another ten perhaps we will begin to get a little bit of perspective on him. Ryan's log of spectacular accomplishments is as thick as Bill Clinton's little black book; his list of flaws and failures is lengthy but dry, and will never make for good reading.
Other writers have delved more into the specifics of James' general concerns. ESPN writer Rob Neyer stated in a 2003 column that while Ryan was among the 20 best pitchers since World War II, he "often had trouble throwing strikes, [and] he wasn't any good at fielding his position. In another column, Neyer, while stating that Ryan belonged in the Hall of Fame, pointed to Ryan's record-breaking walks total and noted that his .309 on base percentage against "wasn't even close to being in the top 100
Ryan is the only major league player to have his number retired by three different teams on which he played (excluding Jackie Robinson, whose number 42 was retired by Major League Baseball for all teams after playing his entire major league career with one team, the Brooklyn Dodgers). The California Angels (now the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim) retired the number 30 on June 16, 1992; the Texas Rangers retired his number 34 on September 15, 1996; and the Houston Astros retired number 34 on September 29, 1996. His number was the first retired by the Rangers. He is also one of only eight players to have different numbers retired by two MLB teams, with Carlton Fisk (Red Sox and White Sox), Reggie Jackson (Athletics and Yankees), Rollie Fingers (Brewers and Athletics), Hank Aaron (Brewers and Braves), Greg Maddux (Braves and Cubs), Frank Robinson (Reds and Orioles), and Jackie Robinson (All MLB) being the others.

Ryan was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999, in his first year of eligibility with 98.8% of the vote (491 out of 497 possible), six votes short of a unanimous election and the second highest percentage in history, behind Tom Seaver. He chose to wear a Rangers cap for his HOF plaque to reflect his Texas heritage, as well as the fact that his 300th win, 5000th strikeout, and last two no-hitters came as a Ranger. He was the first Hall of Famer inducted as a Ranger. That year, he ranked 41st on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players and was elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. He was inducted into the Texas Rangers Hall of Fame in 2003, and named the Rangers', and Astros' Hometown Hero in 2006—the only player to be so named by two franchises.

In 1992 the United States Mint produced a $1 commemorative coin often referred to as the "Nolan Ryan dollar" and widely believed to depict him.
In 1995, the Texas State Legislature declared State Highway 288, which passes near Alvin, as the Nolan Ryan Expressway.
The Alvin Independent School District opened Nolan Ryan Junior High School, located at 11500 Shadow Creek Parkway (FM 2234) in Pearland, Texas, just a few hundred yards away from the Nolan Ryan Expressway.

Personal life
Ryan married his Alvin High School sweetheart, the former Ruth Holdorff, on June 25, 1967. They had three children, Reid, Reese and Wendy. Reid and Reese were both pitchers for the TCU Horned Frogs (Reid also pitched briefly in the minor leagues), have more recently become involved in baseball at the executive level, as part owners (along with Nolan) of the Round Rock Express entry in the Pacific Coast League, the top farm club of the Texas Rangers and the Corpus Christi Hooks, the Astros' AA affiliate.
Nolan Ryan currently resides in the Cimarron Hills community in Georgetown, Texas.

Kevin Pietersen

 Kevin Peter Pietersen, MBE, born 27 June 1980 is a South African-born English cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and occasional off spin bowler who plays for England, Surrey and the Delhi Daredevils. He was captain of the England Test and One Day International teams from 4 August 2008 to 7 January 2009 but resigned after just three Tests and nine One Day Internationals, following a dispute with England coach Peter Moores, who was sacked the same day. On 31 May 2012, Pietersen retired from all forms of international limited-overs cricket.
Pietersen was born in Pietermaritzburg, Natal Province, South Africa. He made his first-class debut for Natal in 1997 before moving to England after voicing his displeasure at the racial quota system in place in South Africa. His English mother gave Pietersen eligibility to play for England, and after serving a qualifying period of four years playing at county level, he was called up almost immediately into the national side. He made his international debut in the One Day International match against Zimbabwe in 2004, and his Test match debut in the 2005 Ashes series against Australia the following year. The England team's subsequent reliance on Pietersen since his debut resulted in only a single first-class appearance for Hampshire between 2005 and 2010. On 17 June 2010, Pietersen announced his wish to leave Hampshire . He subsequently joined Surrey on loan for the remainder of the 2010 English county cricket season after being dropped by England due to a poor run of form, before joining the club permanently from the 2011 season onwards.
Pietersen became the fastest batsman to reach both 1,000 and 2,000 runs in One Day International cricket, and the quickest in terms of time to 5,000 Test runs. He has the highest average of any England player to have played more than 20 innings of one-day cricket. He has the second-highest run total from his first 25 Tests, behind only the Australian Donald Bradman, and was the fastest player, in terms of days, to reach 4,000 Test runs.He became only the third English batsman to top the ICC One Day International rankings, doing so in March 2007.[18] In July 2008, after a century against South Africa, The Times called him "the most complete batsman in cricket". In 2012 The Guardian called him "England's greatest modern batsman".


In the 2007 Cricket World Cup, England started in Group C with a game against New Zealand in which KP made 60 before holing out. He made another 50 against Kenya but disappointedly made just 5 against Canada as England sealed qualification. He made 48 in the unconvincing win against Ireland. Pietersen made 58 against Sri Lanka before being caught and bowled by Murali. England lost that game by 2 runs before losing the next game against Australia by 7 wickets. Pietersen crafted 104 runs off 122 balls against Australia. It was the first World Cup century by an Englishman since 1996, and the first ever against Australia. His efforts in the World Cup helped him achieve the status of International Cricket Council number-one ranked batsman in the world for ODIs. He then failed making 10 against Bangladesh and 3 against South Africa. England lost to South Africa meaning that England did not reach the semi-finals. In England's final match of the World Cup against the West Indies, Pietersen made 100 from 91 balls, and effected the run-out of retiring captain Brian Lara. This century took him past 2,000 ODI runs, in doing so equalling the record 51 matches set by Zaheer Abbas. He finished the tournament with 444 runs, at an average of 55.5, and was described as shining in the England team "like a 100 watt bulb in a room full of candles".


West Indies in England

In the first test of the series he was dismissed for 26 again chasing a wide one when looking set also after 4 centuries were scored by England batsmen in the innings at Lord's,he then scored a hundred in the second innings when England were looking to accelerate. Pietersen posted his highest score of 226 in the second Test at Headingley (it was scored in 262 balls, with 24 fours and 2 sixes), surpassing his previous best of 158 which he had achieved three times. With this score, Pietersen moved ahead of Everton Weekes and Viv Richards to be the batsman with the second-highest run-total out of his first 25 Tests (behind Don Bradman). It is also the highest Test score for England since Graham Gooch scored 333 against India in 1990. This innings subjected the West Indies to an innings and 283 runs defeat, their largest against any team. Pietersen, the Man of the Match, said, "I believe the recipe for success is hard work. I've been criticised for throwing my wicket away, and I tried to make it count here".
In the third Test at Old Trafford, he carried on his bad run at the ground being bounced out twice for 9 and 68. In the second innings, Pietersen lost his wicket in a bizarre dismissal when West Indian all-rounder Dwayne Bravo delivered a bouncer which knocked Pietersen's helmet off his head and onto his stumps. He is only the fourth batsman in Test cricket to be dismissed "hit wicket" as a result of headgear falling onto the stumps. This score took him past the 8,500 first-class runs mark, and 2,500 runs in Test cricket. In the final match of the series, he registered his third duck of his Test career in the first innings and 28 in the second innings as England won the series 3–0.
In contrast, Pietersen's batting was poor in the following single innings matches; he scored a total of 77 runs in five matches (two Twenty20 and three ODI), recording a second-ball duck in the final ODI. He subsequently fell to second in the official One Day International batting rankings, behind Ricky Ponting. Pietersen himself commented that his lack of form was a result of "fatigue", and reiterated his calls for a less "hectic" match schedule.


India tour and Twenty20 Championship

Pietersen played in the first Test against India and in the first innings, he made 37 but not without controversy. He edged the ball behind of Zaheer Khan to Dhoni. He walked, but after seeing replays on the screen, he walked back to the middle and the decision was overturned. Ironically, he was out shortly afterwards caught Dhoni, bowled Khan. In the second innings he was top scorer with a knock of 134 to set up a potential England victory. Pietersen described this as his best century, in very testing conditions. In the second test, he was twice lbw to RP Singh for 13 and 19 in a defeat which subsequently cost them the series. After making 41 in the first innings, Pietersen scored his 10th Test century in the third and final Test at the Oval, helping England to draw the game with 101. In the one-day series that followed, he struggled at the start with a top score of 33 not out in the first five matches of the series. He scored two half-centuries in the final matches including 71 not out in the final match at Lord's, hitting the winning runs to give England the series.
Pietersen was also picked for and played in the Twenty20 Championship in South Africa. In England's first game against Zimbabwe on 13 September, Pietersen hit 79 runs off 37 balls, his highest Twenty20 score, including seven fours and four sixes (one of them being another switch-hit sweep for six) in an English total of 188–9. England won the match by 50 runs; however, this was to be Pietersen's largest contribution in the competition. He scored another 99 runs over four more matches, ending the series with an average of 35.60. He also scored the most England fours (17) and jointly held the record for the most England sixes (6) with Owais Shah. He also held the highest strike rate of any England batsman.


Career in 2011
Pietersen batting during his innings of 72 against Sri Lanka at Lord's
Pietersen was part of England's 15-man squad for the 2011 World Cup hosted by Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka between February and March. In the warm-up matches he was asked to open the batting in anticipation that he would assume the position for the whole tournament. He had opened the batting just six times in one-day games and never for England, although had done so for England A in 2004. Pietersen returned home early due to injury. A hernia required immediate surgery and the recovery time of around six weeks meant he would miss the rest of the tournament and potentially the IPL. Eoin Morgan took Pietersen's place in the squad. Pietersen earned some criticism after being sighted at a nightclub in London while injured, however he dismissed the criticism as unwarranted.
He returned from injury for the home series against Sri Lanka in May 2011. Pietersen was also picked to play against India in July 2011, and scored 202 not out at Lord's in the 1st Test. During the innings, Pietersen passed 6,000 runs in Tests. The feat took exactly six years, which is the fastest in terms of time taken, and 128 innings. In the fourth Test he scored 175 runs and shared a partnership of 350 runs with Ian Bell. Pietersen was rested for the ODI series against that followed the Tests.


Career in 2012
Pietersen played a pivotal role in England's tour of Sri Lanka. By scoring a century in the second of two Tests, not only did he move to 20 centuries for England, but he levelled the series at 1-1, ensuring England retain their No.1 Test Ranking status. On April 10th, Pietersen started his first match in the 2012 Indian Premier League for new team, the Delhi Daredevils. In May 2012, Pietersen was fined for a twitter outburst against Ex-England opener, Nick Knight.
On 31 May 2012, he announced his retirement from all forms of limited-overs international cricket. Remaining available for Test cricket only, Pietersen said that "with the intensity of the international schedule and the increasing demands on my body, I think it is the right time to step aside and let the next generation of players come through to gain experience for the World Cup in 2015. This announcement came on the back of his 80 against the West Indies at Trent Bridge as England took an unassailable 2–0 lead in the three Test series.


Achievements

Pietersen gained several awards for his performances in the 2005 season. He was named both the ICC ODI Player of the Year and Emerging Player of the Year in 2005, and was one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year (alongside team mates Simon Jones and Matthew Hoggard) for his role in the successful Ashes series against Australia. Along with the rest of the England team, he was decorated in the 2006 New Year Honours list, being awarded the MBE for his role in the successful Ashes series. He also played for the ICC World XI in the 2005 ICC Super Series against Australia.

Test match performance
Records:
Second-highest run-total from his first 25 Tests (behind Sir Don Bradman).
Fourth Englishman to make the top score in both innings of debut Test.
One of only twenty-five players to have a peak ICC batting rating over 900.
Achieved 5,000 test runs in the fastest time, reaching this feat in 4 years and 243 days.