Sportsday Live - Thursday 18 August 2011

England close at 75-0 on a rain-hit first day of the fourth Test against India, Tony Fernandes completes QPR takeover, Andy Murray beats Alex Bogomolov Jr in Cincinnati, plus more.

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LATEST UPDATES (all times BST)

1800: That's all from Sportsday Live for now. Live text commentary of Thursday's Europa League matches is now up and running. Our breaking news service will resume on Friday at 0800 BST.

1755: TENNIS - British number one Andy Murray beats Alex Bogomolov Jr 6-2 7-5 to reach the quarter-finals of the Western & Southern Open, where he will face David Ferrer or Gilles Simon.

1753: FOOTBALL - A decision from Uefa on Arsene Wenger's alleged communications with the Arsenal bench while serving a touchline ban during Tuesday's Champions League qualifying play-off first lef against Udinese is now expected Friday, BBC Sport learns.

1750: OLYMPICS/FOOTBALL - BBC Sport's Olly Foster on Twitter: "UKA Chair Ed Warner tells me governemnt backed 2017 world champs secures 2012 athletics legacy despite #thfc legal challenge."

1746: TENNIS - British number one Andy Murray relinquishes the break of serve he had in the second set against Alex Bogomolov Jr. The score is currently 6-2 5-5 in their third-round match at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati.

1735: RUGBY LEAGUE - Warrington's Phil Bentham will referee his first Challenge Cup final when he takes charge of Leeds v Wigan at Wembley on Saturday 27 August. "I have refereed in many big games during my career, including internationals, but the Challenge Cup is the most historic and prestigious competition in rugby league, so to have the privilege of refereeing the final at Wembley is something very special," says the 40-year-old.

1724: FOOTBALL - Striker Peter Odemwingie signs a new contract with West Bromwich Albion, committing himself to the club until 2014.

1715: TENNIS - British number one Andy Murray leads Alex Bogomolov Jr 6-2 3-1 in round three of the Western & Southern Open in Cincinatti. The winners will face David Ferrer or Gilles Simon in the quarter-finals.

1710: CRICKET - Play abandoned for the day at The Oval due to rain, with England 75-0 against India on day one of the fourth and final Test.

1705: FORMULA 1 - Robert Kubica is scheduled to undergo more surgery later in August as he continues his fight to make a successful return to the sport. The Renault driver suffered life-threatening multiple injuries in a crash at the Ronde di Andora Rally in February. His senior doctor Riccardo Ceccarelli said he will need another operation on his right elbow before he can move into a more intensive period of rehabilitation work.

1654: FOOTBALL - Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas indicates the club will not be held to ransom over Tottenham midfielder Luka Modric as he continues to explore alternatives to the club's number one transfer target. "We have approached Tottenham before regarding the player," says Villas-Boas. "I don't know if it's viable or not and to what extent we can go regarding his price because we are speaking about a high amount and nothing else basically. End of story."

1645: ATHLETICS - Sports minister Hugh Robertson believes hosting the 2017 World Athletics Championships would be the perfect legacy for the London Olympic Stadium. "The demand for London 2012 athletics tickets proves the level of public support that exists for world class track and field," says Robertson. "Hosting the 2017 World Athletics Championships would be a wonderful legacy from London 2012 and help us fulfil a commitment made during the bid."

1632: FOOTBALL - Two-time world player of the year Ronaldinho is back in the Brazil squad for the first time since November 2010. Coach Mano Menezes includes the 31-year-old playmaker for the friendly against Ghana at Craven Cottage on 5 September.

1626: CRICKET - We're unlikely to see any more play at The Oval, where England reach 75-0 on day one of the fourth and final Test against India.

1620: CRICKET - India clarify that Praveen Kumar has been ruled out of the fourth Test at The Oval against England with an ankle injury. It had been thought the seamer was unavailable after bruising his right thumb while batting during India's defeat at Edgbaston, but an India statement said it was a problem in the bowler's right ankle.

1613: FOOTBALL - Blackburn boss Steve Kean reveals the club are close to signing three players and could even have a new face available for Saturday's trip to Aston Villa. "Last week we had active bids out there and that's progressed," says Kean. "There are bids that have been accepted. We're at a point of having medicals today and tomorrow so that's positive, because it's been slow."

1605: FOOTBALL - Tune into BBC Radio 5 live with Mark Chapman from 1900 BST for sports news followed by commentary of Hearts v Tottenham in the Europa League third qualifying round first leg, plus all the other scores.

1558: FOOTBALL - Bristol City manager Keith Millen says Leicester City are still interested in signing summer target Nicky Maynard. The striker scored twice against them as Bristol City beat them 2-1 on Wednesday. Read more on the BBC Sport website.

1550: BMX - Three-time world champion Shanaze Reade says the BMX Olympic test event is the most important race of her year. Read more on the BBC Sport website.

1543: FOOTBALL - Blackburn Rovers are closing in on the signing of Sporting Lisbon forward Simon Vukcevic, reports Sky Sports.

1535: HOCKEY - Reading hockey star Richard Mantell tells BBC Sport he is looking forward to defending the European Championship trophy that England won two years ago. "It is a good opportunity for us to play in a high-pressure situation," says Mantell.

1525: FOOTBALL - An agent mediating in negotiations between Inter Milan and Anzhi Makhachkala over the transfer of Samuel Eto'o says the deal has stalled, reports Agence France Presse. Representatives of both clubs have been meeting all week but have failed to come to an agreement on a transfer fee.

1520: FOOTBALL - New Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku has described his move to Stamford Bridge as a "dream come true". "It's amazing to arrive here in a big club with big ambition. It was just what I was searching for," he told Chelsea's official website.

1508: EQUESTRIAN - Britain has won the European team dressage title in Rotterdam, the first time GB's riders have ever won gold at this level. Led by Carl Hester on Uthopia, the four-person squad set a European record score to finish ahead of Germany in the biggest remaining championships for Britain before the Olympic Games.

1450: CRICKET - It's still raining at The Oval, with England looking strong at 75-0 on day one of the fourth and final Test against India.

1445: MOTO GP - BBC presenter Matt Roberts reflects on the chequered career of rider John Hopkins as he faces another spell on the sidelines through injury.

1430: ATHLETICS - UK Athletics confirms it will bid to host the 2017 World Athletics Championships at the new Olympic Stadium in London.

1412: FOOTBALL- QPR manager Neil Warnock has describes Tony Fernandes's takeover as a "momentous day", adding: "Everybody connected with QPR should be excited."

1359: CRICKET - Rain stops play at the Oval with England 75-0 against India in the fourth Test.

1352: FOOTBALL- Chelsea complete the signing of Anderlecht striker Romelu Lukaku. The 18-year-old will be available for the club's match against West Brom on Saturday.

1343: FOOTBALL- Daily Mirror chief sports writer Oliver Holt: "Fernandes takeover is great news for QPR and for Warnock. Warnock has already established decent relationship with new owner. Warnock position also strengthed by return of his ally Amit Bhattia as vice chairman. QPR chances of staying up just got whole lot better."

1336: FOOTBALL- Fernandes has bought a 66% stake in the club and will work alongside the Mittal family who have retained a 33% share. "I've always wanted to be involved in football and the appeal of a London club, like QPR, was too good an opportunity to turn down," said Fernandes.

1331: FOOTBALL- Malaysian businessman Tony Fernandes completes his takeover of QPR

1328: CRICKET-Worcestershire's tail are battling hard in the first innings of their County Championship match against second-placed Lancashire at Blackpool. Resuming on 77-5, the visitors have pushed on to 164-8 at lunch.

1318: GOLF - Irishman Peter Lawrie is clubhouse leader at the Czech Open after a six-under-par 66. Frenchman Victor Dubuisson and England Richard McEvoy are the best placed of the players left on the course on three under.

1308: CRICKET - England reach 75-0 at lunch on day one of the final Test against India at The Oval. Openers Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook are on 38 and 34 respectively.

1304: FOOTBALL - Times football correspondent Oliver Kay: "Bad news for Chelsea. Petr Cech out for 3-4 wks with knee injury. Thibault Courtois on loan to Atletico. Hilario it is..."

1301: FOOTBALL - Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech has been ruled out for three to four weeks after suffering a medial ligament injury in training.

1259: RUGBY UNION -Ryan Jones, who had been set to equal Ieuan Evans' 28 games as Wales captain, is out of Wales' final World Cup warm-up game on Saturday against Argentina with a calf injury.

1255: RUGBY UNION - England manager Martin Johnson has insisted that the team's 19-9 loss to Wales last weekend has not dented his confidence heading into the World Cup. "The defeat has not fundamentally shaken my belief in what we're trying to do," he said.

1248: FOOTBALL- Hull have started the process to terminate midfielder Jimmy Bullard's contract.

1244: RUGBY UNION- Italy coach Nick Mallett has made 11 changes to his starting line-up for Saturday's World Cup warm-up match against Scotland at Murrayfield with Sergio Parisse, Tommaso Benvenuti, Leonardo Ghiraldini and Andrea Lo Cicero surviving from last weekend's 31-24 win over Japan in Cesena.

1237: FOOTBALL-The confrontation between the Barcelona and Real Madrid squads in the closing stages of last night's Spanish Super Cup has dominated the Spanish sports press. "Deplorable Madrid, deplorable Mourinho," read a headline in Barcelona-based sports daily Mundo Deportivo, while Marca spreads the blame further reporting "Mourinho and Guardiola's assistant Tito Vilanova were also deplorable protagonists in the final free-for-all."

1227: CRICKET- BBC Radio 5 live's Alison Mitchell on Twitter: If I was an India fan I'd be feeling increasingly disheartened by their early showings today...

1224: CRICKET-England reach 50-0 against India on the first day of the fourth Test against India at The Oval.

1218: FOOTBALL- The latest 5 live Football Daily podcast includes David Pleat and Steve Claridge discussing Tottenham's pursuit of Emmanuel Adebayor as well as the situation across North London at Arsenal. You can also hear from Gus Poyet as Brighton continue their perfect start to the Championship season.

1213: CYCLING-Simon Gerrans will leave Britain's Team Sky to join new Australian outfit GreenEDGE for the 2012 season.

1206: FOOTBALL-Manchester United are to sell off a significant stake in the club in Singapore to partly pay off their £515million debts, BBC Sports Editor David Bond reports. It is understood the club have now lodged a listing application with the Singapore Stock Exchange and could float by November.

1201: FOOTBALL- The Liverpool Echo reports that Liverpool striker David Ngog is close to a £4m move to Bolton. The deal is not linked to the Reds' attempts to sign defender Gary Cahill from the Reebok.

1155: CRICKET- Former test batsman Ijaz Ahmed has been appointed as assistant coach of Pakistan.

1146: CRICKET - England have made an assured start to their innings at The Oval on the first day of the fourth Test against India. Openers Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook have 11 runs apiece with England 25-0.

1138: FORMULA 1 - F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone is confident Dehli is on course to hold the maiden Indian Grand Prix in October. "It will be one of the nicest circuits and will be completed in time," he said.

1129: RUGBY UNION - New Zealand have rested star names Dan Carter and Richie McCaw for Saturday's Tri-Nations game against South Africa.

1125: GOLF- Cho Min-gyun and Steven Conrad share the lead at the Kansai Open on six under par after both shot 65 in the opening round.

1113: RUGBY LEAGUE - Harlequins have bolstered their pack for 2012 with the signings of experienced Australian forwards Shane Rodney and Antonio Kaufusi from Manly Sea Eagles and Newcastle Knights respectively.

1108: FOOTBALL - QPR, who are expected to announce Tony Fernandes as the club's new majority owner later today, have bid £4m for West Ham midfielder Scott Parker according to Sky Sports News.

1100: RUGBY LEAGUE - Castleford have renewed the contracts of front-row forwards Paul Jackson and Nathan Massey. Former Huddersfield prop Jackson, has signed a new one-year contract while academy product Massey, 22, has been handed a two-year deal.

1055: DIVING - 2009 world diving champion Tom Daley on Twitter: "Ok got the results!!!! Maths B, Spanish A and Photography A*:) gonna retake one of my maths modules but kinda happy:)"

1047: CRICKET - Andrew Strauss names an unchanged line-up with James Anderson fit despite a minor thigh injury. Ravi Bopara will again bat at number three in place of the injured Jonathan Trott. India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni leads a side missing Praveen Kumar because of the thumb injury he sustained in the third test at The Oval. RP Singh will replace him. For live updates: BBC 5 live sports extra, BBC Radio 4 Long Wave & the BBC Sport website.

1041: FOOTBALL - John Obi Mikel's agent says 'sizeable' demand has been made for the release of Mikel's kidnapped father but denies ransom is £80,000.

1034: CRICKET - England have won the toss and decided to bat against India in the fourth and final Test at the Oval. You can follow live ball-by-ball Test Match Special commentary on BBC 5 live sports extra, BBC Radio 4 Long Wave & the BBC Sport website. There will be a live video scorecard on Red Button (not Freeview) and live text commentary on the BBC Sport website & mobile. You can also watch the action live on Sky Sports (subscription required).

1027: CRICKET - Test Match Special cricket commentator Simon Mann on Twitter: "James Anderson is playing. England unchanged "

1022: FOOTBALL - BBC Sport journalist David Ornstein on Twitter: "Nasri latest: #mcfc pushing to get it done asap, #afc holding out for best poss deal. SN was not in Manc yet, will train as normal today."

1015: RUGBY UNION - South Africa have suffered a blow to their rugby World Cup when flanker Juan Smith was ruled out after failing to recover from an Achilles tendon injury. "This is a huge blow to me. The rugby World Cup is the pinnacle of any player's career and I was looking forward to our attempt to become the first team to win the title in successive tournaments," Smith said in the statement.

1007: ATHLETICS - South African 800 metres world champion Caster Semenya has shrugged off talk of injury, weight issues and a rift in her camp to declare herself ready to defend her title in Daegu.

0957: CRICKET - Former England captain Michael Vaughan on Twitter: "Overcast but dry at the oval.. The ball will swing today...I think both captains might have bowl.. #Barmyarmy"

0951: PARALYMPICS - With just over one year to the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games on 29 August 2012, over 100 British hopefuls from 11 sports are taking part in at "simulation camp" at the University of Bath. Tim Hollingsworth of Paralympics GB says: "The scale of a Paralympic Games is so different to what athletes are used to at their major international competitions. So we aim to familiarise them with what to expect."

0942: CRICKET - Tillakaratne Dilshan is confirmed as Sri Lanka's captain in all forms of the game for the rest of the year, the cricket board said in a statement. Dilshan, had been appointed skipper on a series-to-series basis after Kumar Sangakkara stepped down following Sri Lanka's defeat in the World Cup final against India in April.

0935 FOOTBALL: - Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny on Twitter: "Just wanted to say thank you to the Arsenal fans for their great support vs undinese! Keep it up please!"

0928: FOOTBALL - Midfielder Leon Britton says Swansea must beat teams such as Wigan if the Welsh side want to survive in the Premier League. The Swans host the Latics on Saturday. Read more on the BBC Sport website.

0923: CRICKET - Victory in the third Test has already assured England their place as the number one Test side in the world. BBC Sport's Sam Sheringham takes a look at some of the unsung heroes in the team's rise to the top.

0917: CRICKET - The fourth Test between England and India gets under way at 1100 BST at the Oval today. You can follow live ball-by-ball Test Match Special commentary on BBC 5 live sports extra, BBC Radio 4 Long Wave & the BBC Sport website. There will be a live video scorecard on Red Button (not Freeview) and live text commentary on the BBC Sport website & mobile. You can also watch the action live on Sky Sports (subscription required).

0910: FOOTBALL - A timely reminder to watch Football Focus on Saturday (BBC One & the BBC Sport website from 1215 BST), which includes an interview with Everton midfielder Mikel Arteta , who says it is vital the club resist the temptation to sell players like Phil Jagielka and Jack Rodwell if they want to achieve anything this season.

0901: FOOTBALL -Everton chairman Bill Kenwright insists the club's inability to borrow any money from their bank is to blame for a lack of transfer activity this summer, reports Sky Sports.

0853: FOOTBALL -Derby County manager Nigel Clough tells BBC Radio Derby his team put in a "complete" away performance in their win 1-0 over Blackpool.

0845: RUGBY UNION - South Africa confirm that Juan Smith will miss the World Cup as the flanker has not fully recovered from the Achilles tendon surgery he had in February.

0839: FOOTBALL - Sources inform BBC Sport that a takeover of QPR will be announced at 1330 today on the club website - with Tony Fernandes owning 66% of the club, and Lakshmi Mittal owning the other 33%. Mittal will return as vice-chairman, while Fernandes will be chairman. Manager Neil Warnock will be given money to spend by the new board and has their full backing.

0833: FOOTBALL - A recap of Wednesday night's Championship results: Blackpool 0-1 Derby, Cardiff 1-3 Brighton, Leicester 1-2 Bristol City, Millwall 2-2 Peterborough. Read more on the BBC Sport website.

0825: CYCLING - Mark Cavendish's HTC-Highroad team target victory in Saturday's opening team time trial at the Vuelta a Espana, which would probably put the British sprinter in the leader's red jersey at the start of the final Grand Tour for the team. HTC-Highroad has announced it will fold at the end of the season.

0819: FOOTBALL - Everton, Blackburn and QPR have made bids to sign Manchester City defender Nedum Onuoha, according to his representative Kia Joorabchian. "I'm not surprised at this level of interest, because Nedum has proven that he's a very good player," Joorabchian told BBC Sport's Simon Austin.

0813: TENNIS - Andy Murray says his performance was average but gives himself "10 out of 10" for beating David Nalbandian 6-4 6-1 in the second round of the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati.

0807: FOOTBALL - Former Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas made his Barcelona debut as a late substitute and helped the Catalans beat Real Madrid in a stormy Spanish Super Cup at the Nou Camp. Fabregas's new side won 3-2 on the night and 5-4 on aggregate.

0800 BST: Top transfer stories from Thursday's gossip column:

Chelsea have had a £22m bid for Valencia winger Juan Mata rejected by the Spanish club. (Daily Mail)

Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp has admitted for the first time that midfielder Luka Modric, a target of Chelsea, could be sold. (Daily Mirror)

Manchester United have switched their attention to £20m rated Borussia Dortmund midfielder Mario Goetze after becoming frustrated in their attempt to sign Inter Milan's playmaker Wesley Sneijder. (Daily Express)