Hamburg  - Playmaker Diego from troubled top club Werder Bremen was banned for four Bundesliga matches by the German football federation on Tuesday for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Diego, 24, grabbed SC Karlsruhe player Christian Eichner by the throat and neck during the teams' league match on Saturday which Karlsruhe won 1-0.

The incident went unnoticed by the referee but the DFB acted upon television footage. The DFB said that Bremen and Diego have accepted the ruling.

The Brazilian midfielder will miss the final match of the year on the weekend and the first three games after the winter break. He is eligible to return in late February for the match at Energie Cottbus.

Lahore, Dec. 9 : Former Pakistan captain and wicket keeper Rashid Latif has said that cricket teams around the world tour India not because of the sound security provisions, but because of the lure of money offered to them.

“The money India is putting into cricket nowadays no one can dare to refuse that. It is greed and nothing else,” Latif said as reported by The International News.

“India remains safe in the eyes of international cricketers despite terror strikes in Mumbai not because of good security but the money-making opportunities it offers to them,”Latif claimed.

Los Angeles  - Dwyane Wade was good until the very last drop.

Wade poured in 41 points, including the game-sealing free throws with 6.1 seconds, carrying the Miami Heat to its season-high fourth straight victory, 100-96 over the pesky Charlotte Bobcats on Monday night.

"It's winning time," Wade said. "This is a good Charlotte Bobcats team. They're just like us, they play until the very end."

Wade entered the home contest with a league-best 28.4 scoring average and padded it, with his 14th career game of 40 or more points, including three this season.

Mario Chalmers scored 15 points and Shawn Marion added 13 for Miami (12-9) which matched its longest streak since March 2006.

Melbourne, Dec 9 : With more public displays of affection, golden girl Stephanie Rice and ‘Home & Away’ star Lincoln Lewis have fuelled rumours that they are an item.

Reps for the pair, who was spotted being "very close" at a Sunshine Coast Christmas event this week, have again dismissed reports that Rice and Lewis are a couple.

However, according to Confidential, Lewis was desperate to front the annual Pelican Waters Christmas Carols at Caloundra after he heard the swimmer had signed on as MC.

London, Dec 9 : English all rounder Andrew Flintoff has admitted that he is fearing the prospect of playing cricket surrounded by large number of security personnel.

Five thousand police officers, including 300 highly trained commandos, will provide security cover ahead of first Test in Chennai to English players who arrived in India on Monday.

The Tamil Nadu police force has launched a major security operation unseen before in the world cricket.

London, Dec 9 : Five thousand police officers, including 300 highly-trained commandos, will provide security cover ahead of first Test in Chennai to English players who arrived in India on Monday.

The Tamil Nadu police force has launched a major security operation unseen before in the world cricket, The Telegraph reported.

The unprecedented security for England includes a total lockdown at the team hotel, the clearance of roads to and from the stadium and the use of armed guards from Rapid Action Force -- a specialist team of riot police.

“We are deploying over 5,000 people at the hotel and stadium,” said P Balasubramaniam, Joint Commissioner of Tamil Nadu Police.