Wozniacki boosted by McIlroy major tips

MELBOURNE: World number one Caroline Wozniacki says she has picked up tips on her mental approach to tennis from her golf major-winning boyfriend, Rory McIlroy, as she pursues her hunt for a maiden grand slam title.

Speaking after she reached the third round of the Australian Open, Wozniacki — who revealed she has also taken up golf — said McIlroy had passed on nuggets of wisdom based on his experiences on the golf course.

The Northern Irishman, whose game collapsed at the US Masters last April when he was within sight of victory, bounced back to win the US Open in style in June.

“Well, it’s just about you can’t really do anything about the past. You just need to look forward. You have a tournament now, and you want to do the best you can. That’s it,” she said, explaining McIlroy’s advice.

“Then if it goes well, it’s great. If not, you have the next one. It’s like tennis. So, you know, it’s just important not to dwell too much in the past.”

The 21-year-old Dane admitted that golf was not as easy as it looked.

“I’ve been out playing a little bit,” she said. “It’s good when you have someone there saying, OK, remember these few key points. Then I can hit it far.

“Once I’m out there alone and have to start playing, it goes right and left and up and down. I get so frustrated. Feel like I just want to break the clubs and go home.”

And she said the mental side of golf was even more demanding than tennis.

“It’s not so easy as it looks on TV,” she said. “It’s not just hitting a ball, standing still. It’s a lot of mental.

“I think it’s more mental than tennis actually. You do one wrong movement and the ball goes in the trees or somewhere and it’s difficult. So definitely it has surprised me how mentally strong you need to be.”

McIlroy also dabbles in tennis, she said, but without taking it seriously.

“I think both of us don’t want to, I mean, be too serious in the other sport. It’s just for fun. Yeah, have a bit of fun.” AGENCIES

Akbar Khan to play Saddam Hussein

Akbar Khan, who was recently seen playing Chandan Roy Sanyal’s strict dad in F.A.L.T.U, will now be seen playing the character of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in a film directed by Suresh Kohli.

The docu-drama titled From President to Prisoner focuses on the last few years of Saddam’s fight against US imperialism. Akbar Khan in the past has been associated with epics like Tipu Sultan and Taj Mahal-An Eternal Love Story and it will be interesting to see how he manages to portray one of the most well-known names in history.

Termites eat millions of rupees in bank

According to police, an army of termites munched through 10 million Indian rupees in currency notes, stored in a steel chest at a bank, in Barabanki, a town 30 kilometres southwest of Lucknow.

Police officials said that the bank manager discovered the damage when he opened the reinforced room in an old bank building. The currency was equivalent to about US$ 250,000.

The police have registered a case of negligence against bank officials. The termites had damaged bank furniture and documents in the past.

Snow, rain disrupt routine life in AJK

MUZAFFARABAD: After a break of four days, rain and snowfall returned to Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) on Saturday.

The latest spell of snow and downpour led to blockage of several roads, paralyzing the normal life in many parts of AJK.

The main road of Neelam Valley continues to remain blocked for the past one week.

It is feared that the continued blockage could cause temporary food shortage in the area. TrendPK

Facebook founder Time’s Person of the Year

NEW YORK: Facebook founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg was named Time’s “Person of the Year” for 2010 on Wednesday, joining the ranks of winners that include heads of state and rock stars as the person the magazine believes most influenced events of the past year.

Time’s “Person of the Year” is the person or thing that has most influenced the culture and the news during the past year for good or for ill.

In naming Zuckerberg, Time cited him “for changing how we all live our lives”.

In a posting on his Facebook page, Zuckerberg said that being named Time’s “Person of the Year” was “a real honor and recognition of how our little team is building something that hundreds of millions of people want to use to make the world more open and connected”.

“I’m happy to be a part of that,” the posting added.

Zuckerberg, who owns about a quarter

Ghazi Baba’s shrine attacked, 3 killed

PESHAWAR: Gunmen attacked the shrine of Sufi saint Ghazi Baba on Tuesday and shot dead three of its caretakers in Badbeer, Peshawar, said police.

A passerby has also been injured.

Suicide bombers have attacked Sufi shrines here in the past.

The bodies of the caretakers and injured were taken to the hospital soon after the attack. TrendPK

Rajkumar Hirani directs Shah Rukh Khan in an ad film

Not too long ago, the ace director Raj Kumar Hirani made news when he decided to rope in his star from 3 Idiots, Kareena Kapoor, for an advert. The director who ventured into films following a successful career in advertising has now shot an ad with none other than SRK.

It is being said that the director has apparently shot an ad with King Khan for a fairness product. The two were in the past supposed to work together for 3 Idiots but the deal didn’t work out and the rest as they say is history.

The said commercial was shot in Filmistan studio in Mumbai yesterday and it will go live on air in few weeks.

Dev Anand joins Twitter

MUMBAI: After Amitabh Bachchan, Shammi Kapoor, Asha Bhosale and Lata Mangeshkar, its Dev Anand who”s now available on a micro blogging site.

Sticking to his tradition of moving ahead with times and keeping himself abreast with the latest, the veteran actor has become the senior most Bollywood actor to have joined a micro blogging site. We hope Dilip Kumar is listening!

Dev Sahab”s fans couldn”t be happier! The legendary actor who reigned the Hindi cinema for decades as a romantic hero and then as a visionary director and producer is planning to share his passion for filmmaking and life with his fans through the site.

After thanking ”Amit” (Amitabh Bachchan) for a warm welcome, Dev Sahab revealed, “This sudden tweeting is for my well wishers to know that release of my latest film “CHARGESHEET” is planned for early next year – To quickly follow an outstandingly colorized cinemascope version of my double role “HUM DONO” Rangeen releasing on Jan 28th 2010. Watch the guy you”ve enjoyed in all eras of this country, Dev Anand of 1961 in CHARGESHEET celebrating 61st year of Navketan.”

Dilip Kumar”s coloured ”Naya Daur” was loved by his fans so the coloured remake of Hum Dono is bound to please Dev Anand fans.

Being his ardent fans ourselves we couldn”t stop ourselves from asking Dev sahab which happens to be his favourite Dev Anand romantic song? To which he reverted, “Phoolon Ke Rang se from Prem Pujari”.

Dev Anand”s Publicist since the past 15 years and former senior journalist Peter Martis revealed, “Dev Anand is one actor who can achieve anything in life. I have not seen an actor as passionate about life and cinema as him. Few days back he learnt all he wanted to know about emails and faxes! Age is just a number from him. I have known him for the past 40 years now! He is one man who moves with the times and knows that the only thing that remains constant is ”change”. I am glad he is on Twitter now!

We welcome you Dev Sahab and are sure you will rule the virtual world with your charm, just the way you have ruled the silver screen for so long.

US-S.Korea drill delay not due to China: Pentagon

WASHINGTON: The Pentagon on Monday rejected assertions in South Korean media that a decision to postpone a planned U.S.-South Korean naval exercise in the

Yellow Sea was due to protests from China.

“We were unable to come to a scheduling agreement,” Colonel Dave Lapan, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters.

“Our decision to postpone had nothing to do with China. As we’ve said in the past, these exercises are directed to send a message to North Korea and the Chinese should have no concerns with these types of exercises in international waters.” AGENCIES

Obama to hold meeting in White House on Afghan, Pakistan

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama has convened a monthly Situation Room meeting with his top national security aides at the White House wherein peace talks with the Taliban and Pakistan’s actions in the war against terrorism are expected to be discussed.

“I anticipate, as in the past, that will be a big topic tomorrow,” the White House press secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters at his daily news conference.

“Reconciliation, led by the Afghans, has been a topic of many of the past meetings. I expect that we’ll get an update from General David Petraeus (Commander of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan), (US) Ambassador (to Afghanistan, Karl) Eikenberry, and others on where they see the progress on those talks and their hopes for seeing that progress continue,” Gibbs said.

The meeting is likely to be attended by secretary of state Hillary Clinton, National

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