Too big for his boots?

clipped from news.bbc.co.uk Pietersen out as England captain Kevin Pietersen has left his position as England captain in the wake of the row between him and coach Peter Moores. BBC Sport understands Moores will also leave his post, although it is unclear whether they have quit or been sacked. "Pietersen gave an ultimatum to the ECB saying 'sack the coach or I go', BBC sports editor Mihir Bose told 5 Live. "The ECB has said 'we value you as captain but we don't take dictation from you'. So they accepted his ultimatum and he has suffered." Both their jobs were rumoured to be under threat following an emergency meeting of the England and Wales Cricket Board on Tuesday evening. Pietersen admitted last week his relationship with Moores was strained as they clashed on how to move England forward.

Red Forever?

Amazing stuff!

clipped from news.bbc.co.uk Mars rovers roll on to five years The US space agency's (Nasa) Mars rovers are celebrating a remarkable five years on the Red Planet. The first robot, named Spirit, landed on 3 January, 2004, followed by its twin, Opportunity, 21 days later. The rovers' data has revealed much about the history of water at Mars' equator billions of years ago. "We realise that a major rover component on either vehicle could fail at any time and end a mission with no advance notice, but on the other hand, we could accomplish the equivalent duration of four more prime missions on each rover in the year ahead." Spirit is exploring a 150km-wide bowl-shaped depression known as Gusev Crater. It has found an abundance of rocks and soils bearing evidence of extensive exposure to water. Opportunity is on the other side of the planet, in a flat region known as Meridiani Planum.

Good start to 2009 for Murray

Andy continues with his good form.

clipped from news.bbc.co.uk Murray fightback sees off Federer Andy Murray continued his preparation for the new season with an impressive win over Roger Federer in Abu Dhabi. The British number one came through 4-6 6-2 7-6 (8-6) and will face Rafael Nadal or Nikolay Davydenko in the final of the exhibition event on Saturday. Murray beat James Blake in his opening match of 2009 on Thursday, while both Federer and Nadal had byes. "It was great," said Murray after his semi-final win. "Every time you play Roger it's a great challenge." Murray appeared to struggle with his back in the closing stages but played down any problem afterwards, saying: "I think it's just that I haven't played a match in six or seven weeks. Today was pretty physical, I did a lot of running, so I'm sure it's just a bit stiff." Murray will wait for either Nadal or Davydenko in the final before heading to Doha next week and the start of the ATP season.

Time,Gentlemen,Please!

ALWAYS was a problem,I think!

clipped from news.bbc.co.uk Patrols target underage drinkers Extra police officers are being drafted into Wakefield city centre to catch underage revellers. West Yorkshire Police said it was taking action after receiving complaints about underage drinkers who cause disorder on nights out. On Monday 10 youths were arrested for offences including being drunk and disorderly and refusing to leave premises. Five were escorted home. Ch Insp Paula Booth said: "We will not tolerate underage drinking." She added: "During this campaign licensed premises can expect to be closed and their licences suspended if they are found to be serving drunk or underage customers. "We want people to enjoy a night out in Wakefield and responsible members of the community will have nothing to fear."