Award-winning sports journalist Eric Young has joined Sportsline, ESPN STAR Sports‘ (ESS) daily sports news programme.

Sportsline, which was launched in September 2000, is broadcast on the STAR Sports India network.

The New Zealand-born journalist is a veteran of sports reporting, with more than 20 years experience in radio, print and television. He has been both the New Zealand Sports Writer of the Year and the New Zealand Sports Broadcaster of the Year, according to a press release issued on Thursday.

Eric Young‘s appointment boosts the strength of the Sportsline team: he joins veteran ESS presenter John Dykes and former Indian national squash player Misha Grewel to present viewers with the latest international and regional sporting news from an Indian perspective. The programme is broadcast live three times a day.

Scotching media speculation to the contrary, WSG Nimbus asserted on Wednesday that it continued to hold the commercial rights for international cricket to be played in Sri Lanka over the next three years.

A company release said WSG Nimbus had honoured all its obligations to the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL). While admitting that there had been differences between the two parties, WSG Nimbus said they were due to evidence of tour confirmations not being made available by BCCSL as earlier agreed upon.

BCCSL and Nimbus have now modified their agreements to the mutual satisfaction of both parties and have signed a fresh deal which vests commercial cricket rights of Sri Lanka international cricket 2001-2003 with WSG Nimbus, the release said.

It was in November 2000 that WSG Nimbus bagged the rights for international cricket in Sri Lanka for a period of three years. The deal covered 14 tours and involved 180 days of international cricket.