Sports digest

A round-up of today's other stories in brief

Lyons first to face the ground jury

EQUESTRIAN:ALL horses competing for Ireland in the Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials passed yesterday's first horse inspection.

Two days of dressage commence this morning at 9.30 when the first rider to come before the ground jury of President, Susan Stewart (Britain), Martin Plewa (Germany) and Jutta Koivula (Finland) will be Ireland’s Louise Lyons and the 15-year-old Andretti gelding Watership Down.

Also tomorrow, Irish riders have entries in the two Dubarry young event horses classes.

Emma Jackson is first up in the five-year-old section with her Dublin winner, the home-bred Fly Away Ferro, while Niall Griffin also competes in the morning, with Monart Garrison Guy, which is owned by the rider and racehorse trainer Jim Bolger.

Six four-year-olds represent the country in the afternoon including the Future Event Horse League winner Glenkeeran River, a Crosstown Dancer gelding ridden by Hillsborough’s Clare Abbott for Co Louth owner/breeder Maria Melvin.

– MARGIE McLOONE

Ireland come up short again

CRICKET:The Ireland women's team again came up short on the batting front as they lost their second T20 Tri-Nations match to Pakistan by eight wickets at Clontarf yesterday.

Batting first, as they had done in Tuesday’s tight loss to Bangladesh, Ireland could only muster a total of 81 for six in their 20 overs, with opening bat Cecelia Joyce top-scoring with 29 off 48 balls.

Kim Garth again struck in the first over to get rid of talented opener Qanita Jalil, but a 72-run stand between Nida Dar (46) and an unbeaten 33 from skipper Sana Mir helped Pakistan get home with 29 balls to spare.

– EMMET RIORDAN

England spinner Graeme Swann will be rested for the remaining one-day internationals against South Africa, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said yesterday. James Tredwell has been called up.

"(Swann) has admitted to carrying a long-term elbow problem in his right arm and will take the next three matches off before returning for the three-game Twenty20 series," a statement on the ECB website ( www.ecb.co.uk) said.

England captain Andrew Strauss, who oversaw back-to-back Ashes wins over Australia and took the team to the top of the Test rankings, announced his retirement from professional cricket yesterday.

England captain Strauss retires from the professional game

CRICKET:Strauss, appointed in 2009, will be replaced by one-day skipper Alastair Cook.

“It’s a very tough decision to make. For me, the drive to it all was my form with the bat and in truth I haven’t batted well for a long period of time now,” the 35-year-old opener told a news conference at Lord’s.

“For a captain to perform his role properly, it’s important that you’re not a passenger in the side but also that people aren’t speculating whether you should be in the side or not.

“It hasn’t been something that’s occurred overnight; it’s a gradual feeling that has grown over the last six or 12 months and certainly in the last few weeks it has become more apparent that this is the right time.

“I’d very much like to go out on my own terms with my head held high,” added Strauss.

Strauss was adamant the Kevin Piersen controversy had not had an impact on his decision.

Russia women's coach Ovchinnikov (43) dies suddenly

VOLLEYBALL:Sergei Ovchinnikov, who coached the Russian women's team at the London Olympics, has died, his club team Dynamo Moscow said yesterday. He was 43.

"Sergei Ovchinnikov suddenly passed away at the team's (pre-season) training camp in Croatia," Dynamo said on their website ( www.vldinamo.ru), without giving details of the cause of death.

Ovchinnikov was appointed national team coach last December and guided Russia through qualification for the 2012 Olympics.

In London, the powerful Russian team, who won back-to-back world titles in 2006 and 2010, were considered leading medal contenders but lost in the quarter-finals to eventual winners Brazil after squandering six match points.

Roche puts in one of his best time trials to retain seventh

CYCLING:Nicolas Roche successfully retained his seventh place overall in the Vuelta a Espana yesterday, pulling out a good time trial in the 39.4 kilometre test from Cambados to Pontevedra.

Historically his weakest discipline, he continued the progress he has made this year by finishing a solid 21st out of 193 riders.

He completed the distance two minute 21 seconds behind the winner Fredrik Kessiakoff (Astana Pro Team), and said afterwards the outcome was along the lines of what he was hoping for.

“That’s one of the best time trials I’ve done in a grand Tour,” he told The Irish Times.

“There seems to be progression this year . . . I rode well in the first time trial in the Tour de Suisse and was 23rd in the first long time trial in the Tour.

“That’s the only time trial in the race so we are back to the mountains.

The next stage has a steep climb at the end so I hope to perform well there. It should suit me, I think.”

– SHANE STOKES