London  - A second-half goal from Carlos Villanueva helped Blackburn Rovers reach the fourth round of the FA Cup with a 1-0 win Monday at non-league Blyth Spartans.

The Chilean midfielder curled in a free kick 13 minutes into the second half to seal Blackburn's place in the last 32 of the competition.

Rovers will now play at Sunderland in the fourth round.

"It was very comfortable until the last five to 10 minutes, but having not converted our chances they were bound to get a chance at some stage," Blackburn manager Sam Allardyce said.

London - English Premier League Middlesbrough said on Monday that Stewart Downing will not be leaving the club and that none of their senior players would be sold in the transfer window.

England winger Downing reportedly handed in a transfer request, just a year after signing a new five-year contract, and Tottenham Hotspur have made a bid for him, which was rejected.

Manager Gareth Southgate said Downing would be staying at the north-east club.

"In the situation we are in right now, we don't feel it would be right to let Stewart go," Southgate told Middlesbrough's official website.

Taipei - Taiwan, aiming at advancing to the top eight in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, on Monday announced the preliminary selection of players for the tournament.

The Chinese-Taipei Professional Baseball League announced the names of 48 players, including 11 who are playing for US teams and six playing for Japanese teams.

Wang Chien-ming, the Taiwan pitcher serving the New York Yankees, cannot play for Taiwan in the 2009 World Baseball Classic because Yankees refused to let him take leave.

Brisbane, Australia (dpa) - The confidence of former Australian Open finalist Marcos Baghdatis took a minor hit on Monday as the Cypriot crashed out 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 to Finn Jarkko Nieminen in the first round of the Brisbane International.

Nieminen preyed upon the injury-hit Baghdatis, who changed coaches in the off-season as he desperately tries to rescue his game.

Baghdatis, the 2006 Melbourne finalist against Roger Federer, admitted that he's not fully recovered from back and other injuries which compromised his 2008 season.

Lahore, Jan 5: Pakistani pace bowler Mohammad Asif wants a quick resolution to his playing status, which is effectively in limbo after he tested positive for the banned substance nandrolone during the Indian Premier League (IPL) last year.

Asif has appealed against the result, but was suspended by the previous Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) administration from all forms of the game pending the outcome of the IPL inquiry.

That is a status the current administration has not changed, the Daily Times reported.

London, Jan. 5: Phil Taylor broke his own record for a major final when producing a brilliant display to hammer Raymond van Barneveld 7-1 in the World Darts Championship to take his 14th world title in London last night.

Taylor had not won the title for three years, but the result was never in doubt as he racked up a brilliant three-dart average of 109.76 at Alexandra Palace, reports The Independent.

The 48-year-old, who took advantage of some poor finishing from Van Barneveld, has now won 12 of the 16 PDC championships.