Yuvraj Punjab Team Kisses Victory at Last

After consecutive defeats against Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals, Kings XI Punjab won their first league match last night. With a comprehensive win over Mumbai Indians, Kings XI Punjab will now face the highly confident Delhi Daredevils tomorrow at their home ground, Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali. Yuvraj Singh, the captain of the team is motivated by the team’s performance last night. He said the team members are all excited to play against the Delhi Daredevils and are willing to perform better

BCCI sends show cause notice to Harbhajan

Temperamental spinner Harbhajan Singh was served a show cause notice by the BCCI for allegedly slapping S Sreesanth after an Indian Premier League (IPL) match in Mohali.
Harbhajan, who is the stand-in captain for the Mumbai Indians team in the absence of an injured Sachin Tendulkar, has been asked to respond by Monday, BCCI Chief Administrative Officer Ratnakar Shetty said.
The off-spinner allegedly slapped Kings XI Punjab's Sreesanth immediately after their match on Friday night.
The BCCI promptly served a show cause notice on Harbhajan asking him why disciplinary action should not be taken against him for his conduct in Mohali.
"At this point of time, we have issued a show cause notice. Harbhajan is a contracted player of BCCI. BCCI itself has a code of conduct for players. And BCCI Secretary Niranjan Shah has issued a show cause notice and he has to respond by Monday," Shetty said.
Both Harbhajan and Sreesanth tried to downplay the incident. The off-spinner said the issue has been 'sorted out' and the pacer remarked that Harbhajan is like his 'elder brother'.
"The BCCI's disciplinary committee will look into the issue and decide according to the rules of the BCCI," Shah said in a statement.
The BCCI is also awaiting match referee's report of Rajasthan Royals and Hyderabad Deccan Chargers in which some words were exchanged between Shahid Afridi and Shane Warne.
"We are waiting for match referee's report and investigation is also going on but we want to pass the message that indiscipline will not be tolerated in the IPL tournaments which we want to make world class," Shah added.
Although Sreesanth is now trying to brush aside the matter but the pacer's uncontrollable tears after the match had initially triggered off the furore.
Kings XI captain Yuvraj Singh also confirmed that an 'ugly and unacceptable' incident did take place after the match and indicated that the team would lodge an official complaint with match referee Farokh Engineer.
"This is really an ugly incident. You do not want to see such things off the field specially after such a win. I am pretty upset at what has happened. This is totally unacceptable," he said.
Harbhajan, who is often embroiled in on-field furors with the racial row with Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds being his last brush with controversy before this, has sought to steer away from any tough-talking this time.
"A lot of things happen in a family. We are part of one family. I think a lot of things which are coming out in the media, whatever have happened we have sorted out all, everything is fine now," Harbhajan said before leaving for Mumbai with his team on Saturday morning.
Sreesanth, on his part, also said everything was 'normal' between him and Harbhajan.
"Everything is normal, there is nothing between us," he said.
Harbhajan and Sreesanth may be trying to downplay the incident but IPL Chairman Lalit Modi has termed it a 'serious matter' and was not good for the Twenty20 tournament.
But Modi said the IPL committee would wait for an official report on the matter before deciding about their next action in the issue.
"It looks like a serious matter the way it's being shown on television channels but I can't say anything now. In any tournament it should not happen, it's unfortunate what happened yesterday," Modi said.
"The incident in itself is sketchy. There is no clear evidence at this moment, there are different versions about what may have happened. But at the end of the day we have to take cognizance of the fact that happened on the field. So we are waiting for the match referee and umpire's report only after which our committee will take a decision. The tournament is being played under the ICC guidelines, besides there are also tournament guidelines for the players."
IPL Governing Council member I S Bindra said the code of conduct laid by the International Cricket Council would be applicable on Harbhajan.
"As (IPL Chairman Lalit) Modi said the process has been put in place. But it is unfortunate and an ICC code of conduct will be applicable," Bindra said.
Bindra, however, refused to comment on the issue until an inquiry found out what exactly happened between the two players on Friday night.
"You were all there but I can say that only inquiry will find out what exactly happened. For anyone to comment at this stage is not right. The code of conduct has certain procedures which will be gone through. Once the process is completed, the action will follow," he said.
"At this moment, the process is sacrosanct which will be followed," he added.
Asked if there would be any time-limit to resolve the issue, the former BCCI President said, "it is a semi-judicial process, you cannot say when it will finish. The process has to run its course, we can't lay down time limit".
On the possibility of banning Harbhajan, who has developed a knack for courting controversies, Bindra said, "if that is the recommendation, IPL Governing Council will take decision according to the findings".
Bindra advised the players to strictly follow the 'spirit of cricket'.

IPL takes Bollywood to the cricket field

MUMBAI: Cricket in India has yet again attracted top dollar, this time for the Indian Premier League (IPL). In the process, BCCI has ensured that Mukesh Ambani will lock horns with Vijay Mallya while Shah Rukh Khan will face off against Preity Zinta as their teams take to the field. The Reliance Industries chairman has acquired the Mumbai franchise in IPL for $111.9 million over a 10-year period while the flamboyant chairman of UB Group has won the Bengaluru franchise for $111.6 million. Both Mr Ambani and Mr Mallya had bid more than twice the floor price of $50 million per franchise set by the board. SRK’s Red Chillies Entertainment won the Kolkata franchise for $75 million. The biggest surprise was the Chandigarh franchise, which went to Preity Zinta and Ness Wadia, together with Apeejay Surrendra’s Karan Paul and Dabur scion Mohit Burman for $75 million. IPL is yet another show of strength for cricket. Originally conceived as a riposte to Subhash Chandra’s rebel Indian Cricket League, IPL is set to become the biggest money-spinner in cricket today. The league has been modelled on other professional sports leagues like the English Premier League (EPL) and National Basketball Association (NBA). But in the years to come, it will emulate EPL and NBA when it comes to trading players and club buyouts. Some of the biggest names in international cricket today, such as Ricky Ponting, Kumar Sangakkara and Sachin Tendulkar, have all signed up to play in IPL, and so have Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath. The top 80 players in the ICC rankings will be playing in IPL, according to BCCI officials. IPL is also further proof that, in spite of a few blips, cricket still rules the roost for marketers, who want visibility for their brands. Just over two years ago, BCCI had raised a total of $945 million in media, kit and team sponsorship over four years from Nimbus, Nike and Sahara, respectively. This amount has already been eclipsed by the revenues that IPL will generate for BCCI over 10 years (but much lesser cricket time). In all, the board has raked in nearly $724 million from the franchise bids alone, and adding income from media, IPL has fetched it nearly $1.75 billion (approx. Rs 7,000 crore). This amount can only go up once the bids for title and shirt sponsorships come in.

Mumbai Indians Vs. Chennai Super Kings!

The eighth match of the DLF Indian Premiere League (IPL) is scheduled to play in between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai.
Mumbai Indians are a little worried, since they lost the first match against the Bangalore Royal Challangers. On the same side they are also worried from the fitness of the master blaster.
On the other hand Chennai Super Kings are riding on the seventh sky after defeating Kings XI Punjab in their home ground only. So a tough contest is likely to happen tonight at 8 PM IST.
On a track which was made for batting, Mumbai Indian’s skipper Harbhajan Singh won the toss and elected to field first. Chennai Super Kings started strongly with Parthiv Patel and Mathew Hayden. Hayden made 81 runs in 46 balls with 12 fours and 2 sixes. Suresh Raina also performed well and made 53 runs in 37 balls with 3 fours and 3 sixes.
Finally with the help of skipper Mahender Singh Dhoni’s 30 of just 16 balls in which he hits 4 boundaries and 1 six, Chennai Super King made 208 runs.
Mumbai Indians who were facing a target of 209 runs were almost reached to that but just felt short of a few hits. Mumbai Indians lost the match finally by 6 runs. For them Jayasuriya made 20, Uthappa made 43, Bravo made 24, Abhisek Nayar made 45 and skipper Harbhajan Singh made 28.
Mathew Hayden was elected as the Player of the match.

Who will be the IPL Twenty20 winner? Dhoni says its too early to say

Chennai Super Kings, the Chennai franchisee of DLF IPL that won their first match against Kings X1 Punjab, will lock horns with Mumbai Indians tomorrow. The match will be played in Chennai and the match will also mark Chennai Super Kings’ first home match. Playing in front of the home crowd is expected to be a big boost for the Chennai Super Kings team. Chennai Super Kings had easily defeated a the Kings XI Punjab team at Mohali on the second day of IPL matches.
Chennai Super Kings captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has said that its too early to predict which team would win the DLF IPL tournament. According to Dhoni, the team that gels well early would win the series.
MS Dhoni said, “The teams have played just one or two matches. You cannot make any assessment on this basis. There are lots of matches left. There will be ups and downs. The team which gels well throughout will be the winner.”
Dhoni has a point there. So far, the teams which looked like they were playing as a unit have won. Rajasthan Royals, Deccan Chargers have looked haphazard so far, despite the presence of some experienced players.
Chennai Super Kings vs Mumbai Indians
The main problem that worries Mumbai Indians is the fitness of their captain Sachin Tendulkar. He missed the team’s first match against Bangalore Royal Challengers because a groin injury. It is not known till now whether Sachin would be able to play in tomorrow’s game against the Chennai Superkings. Harbhajan Singh had captained Mumbai Indians in the absence of Sachin.
If Sachin Tendulkar is absent, then it would be Harbhajan Singh who would be leading the side just like the last game. All eyes would be on the ongoing rivalry between Matthew Hayden, the Chennai Super Kings batsman, and Harbhajan Singh, the Mumbai Indians spinner. Well, it is not as bad as the rivalry between Harbhajan SIngh and Andrew Symonds for sure.
According to Dhoni, the start of DLF IPL has been just perfect. “The start has been great, Brendan McCullum’s batting has been a solid one. Fans also got what they wanted. They saw some huge sixes, dance by cheerleaders, teams piling up huge scores and bowlers taking wickets. It provided excitement for the fans.”
The Chennai Super Kings captain also rubbished the possibility of him opening the innings in tomorrow’s match. On the other hand, if Sachin Tendulkar is available for play tomorrow, we may get to see tendulkar opening with Sanath Jayasuriya - that would be an explosive combination.

Rajasthan Royals to take on Kings XI Punjab today

A keen tussle is on cards when Shane Warne-led Rajasthan Royals meets Punjab Kings XI in the Indian Premier League encounter at the Sawai Man Singh stadium on Monday.Both teams have lost their opening matches and are desperate to open their account in the high-profile tournament.Though Punjab lads fought gamely, their efforts proved to be insufficient against Chennai Super Kings.On the other hand, Rajasthan Royals failed to put their act together and were largely done in by inept batting. They were restricted to 129 for 8 in 20 overs and their bowlers could not dent the formidable batting lineup of Delhi Daredevils, who marched to nine wicket facile win.

Yuvraj vs Dhoni as Chennai Super Kings take on Mohali Kings XI

VS

Kings X1 Punjab skipper Yuvraj Singh is ready to shed all his friendships when he leads his team against Chennai Super Kings on home ground for their inaugural match in Indian Premier League. The Chennai SUper Kings vs Kings XI Punjab match will take place on 19 April 2008 in Mohali.
Yuvraj’s close pal and Indian skipper M S Dhoni is also the captain and icon player of Chennai Super Kings.
Yuvraj , who is the icon player of Preity Zinta promoted Kings XI, said friendship cannot be taken to the field. Mohali is Yuvraj’s home ground.
Yuvraj Singh also said there was no issue in portraying the contest as a Yuvraj vs Dhoni tussle. The Punjab Kings XI skipper said such comparisons would only increase the popularity of the Twenty20 competition.
The dashing Indian batsman also said IPL does not make the players’ calender too crowded as there will be only 59 matches in 44 days.
Kings XI Punjab has a bunch of international players including Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara of Sri Lanka and Simon Katich of Australia.
Yuvraj’s prize catch among young Indian players include Karan Goel and Uday Kaul. Yuvraj Singh has also lined up a formidable bowling attack with Aussie pacer Brett Lee set to open with either S Sreesanth or Irfan Pathan.
This makes Yuvraj’s Mohali eleven as one of the most competitive sides among the eight teams in IPL. Yuvraj acknowledged that he was happy with the composition of the team, pointing to the fact that his bowling attack was capable of putting any opposition on the defensive.
And on the batting side Yuvraj himself is the spearhead – remember he has hit six sixes in an over in the inaugural Twenty20 ICC World Cup in South Africa last year and hopes to do it again this time in IPL.
Yuvraj Singh also agreed with Mumbai Indians’ skipper Sachin Tendulkar’s view that IPL offered an excellent opportunity for young Indian players to rub shoulders with the World’s best.
Former Sri Lankan coach Tom Moody, the coach of Yuvraj’s Mohali team, wants the team to open the IPL on a winning note. Mohali will host seven matches and Yuvraj Singh was confident that people from all over Punjab will turn up to see the matches.
The key worry for the Kings XI Punjab team is that Brett Lee will have to leave the competition after two weeks as he would have to take part in the training camp ahead of Australia’s West Indian tour.
Indian pacer and Yuvraj’s team mate in Kings XI Punjab Ifran Pathan said the seamer-friendly track would help him exploit the extra bounce.

Ishant Sharma - Indian discovery Down Under

In the lanky Ishant Sharma India have finally discovered a bowler who knows his strength lies in bowling fast and he sticks to that.Ishant delivered the fastest ball ever bowled by an Indian bowler when he clocked 152.6 kph (94.8mph) at Adelaide against Australia on February 17, 2008. Also, in the process, he became first Indian to bowl over 150 kph. He has a high arm delivery action and is able to move the ball in both directions.
The fact that Ishant sticks to his strength of bowling fast is more soothing to the eyes because before him, India have had the case of Munaf Patel who was once touted as the fastest bowler in the country but now is reduced to a mere medium fast bowler.In May 2007, Ishant was selected in the Test team for the Bangladesh tour and played as a replacement for Munaf. Later on, he was called for the tour of England in July-August 2007.Ishant got a call back in the team in the 3rd Test Match during Pakistan's tour of India in December 2007 due to injury of India's frontline pacers Zaheer Khan, Rudra Pratap Singh, and S Sreesanth.On the batting paradise pitch, Ishant toiled hard for cementing and securing his place permanently in the Indian team while picking 5 wickets during the third Test in Bangalore. This performance earned him a place in India's squad for the tour of Australia.On the Australian tour, Ishant was left out in the Boxing Day Test at Melbourne as India retained their main fast bowlers, Zaheer and RP Singh. However, in January 2008 Ishant was called to represent India once again to replace the injured Zaheer in the second Test at the SCG.Ishant started the first day of the match strongly and was involved in a controversial decision from Steve Bucknor when Andrew Symonds clearly nicked the ball to keeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni off his bowling but was given not out। He bowled beautifully in the match, however without much luck.

Although he had little success, the management knew he bowled beautifully and retained him for the third Test match at Perth.

On the fourth day of the match he bowled an exceptional spell to Australian captain Ricky Ponting that resulted in his wicket and helped India claim victory. Ishant used the pace and bounce of the WACA wicket to trouble the batsmen.In the following Test in Adelaide Ishant was impressive again picking up two wickets. He didn't bowl above 140-145 kph mark in the Test matches so that he could bowl longer spells as needed in this version of the game. He clocked a highest of 147.7 km/h (91.1 mph) at the Adelaide Test his highest till then.On February 10, 2008, Ishant bagged four important wickets in the 4th ODI of Tri-Series against Australia. He ended up with the figures of 4/38 and claimed the man of the match award.He scalped two important wickets on February 18, 2008 against Australia in the 7th ODI of Tri-Series to start the riot of Australia's batting failure.A high-arm action attacking on and around the batsman's off-stump (the corridor of uncertainty) gives Ishant the ability to nip the ball back in to right-handed batsman and also swing it through the air quite considerably, while extracting a great deal of bounce.Some critics have compared him to the 1980s' West Indian fast bowlers, especially the great Curtly Ambrose. He has also been compared to former Indian fast bowler Javagal Srinath.On the basis of his recent strong performance in Australia, Ishant was lapped up for an astounding winning bid of $950,000 by Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan for his franchise Kolkata in the player auction for the IPL Twenty20.This is the highest amount paid for any bowler in the IPL tournament.

Capt Dhoni pays tribute to team effort

Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni gave full credit to his colleagues 'for a magnificent team effort' to wrap up the crucial third and last Test match here on Sunday and ensure the parity in the series.''It was a more of a mind game between India and South Africa, and we won it,'' he said.Addressing a press conference after the match, Dhoni, who took over as the captain of the India side after the regular Test skipper Anil Kumble declared unfit ahead of the start, said all credits goes to our bowlers and specially the part-time bowlers who did a good job.''After loosing the toss, we had to go all out for the match and frequent change of bowling really did the trick and even fetched us 8 to 9 wickets in the second innings of SA'', he said.While commending Harbhajan, Sehwag, Ishant and Sreesanth for bowling out South Africa cheaply in the second innings, he said the contributions of Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman in the first innings were extremely important."It was crucial the way Sourav and Laxman batted in the first innings. On a track like this where any ball can kick and bounce, you have to be positive and keep scoring."''Our last batting pair of Sreesant and Ishant played too well and gave us a lead of 60 runs which changed the match situation while the bowlers did the rest.''When asked why he gave Harbhajan the new ball in the second innings of SA, Dhoni said he had to gamble as the hard new bowl would certainly jump with a turn and Bhajji can do it very easily.''Spinner from one side and pacer from other also created problems for the SA batsmen in the second innings, resulting in quick wickets,'' he added.Defending the pitch, he said when Australia, New Zealand and England can prepare their pitch suiting to their strengths then why can't India do it.'' It was a turning wicket and the spinners have advantage in such type of tracks,'' he said."It's not about the wicket alone as credit should be given to the bowlers and batsman."The wicketkeeper also admitted that he himself experienced some problems while collecting the ball as there were rough patches and the ball was coming very low.Reacting on the absence of Sachin Tendulkar in the match, he said the Indians really missed such a great player along with Kumble.''Had there been Kumble, the match would have ended more earlier,'' he said while admitting that playing without Sachin was never good for the team."Commenting on why he did not go for third spinner in the match, Dhoni said he knew very well that the part-time spinners like Sehwag and Yuvraj can do the work.

India sweep to eight-wicket win to level series

A match which hung in the balance after two days had a swift and incredible denouement on the third as India swept to a eight-wicket win to level the series 1-1. Ahead by just 23 with one wicket in hand when play began, India stretched their lead to 60, and then made full use of a wearing pitch, bundling South Africa out for a meagre 121. The rest was a cinch.
Either team could have won the game when the day started, but India were the side that won every session today, and convincingly. Sreesanth and Ishant Sharma lasted almost an hour in the morning, mixing solid defence with bold strokes in putting together India's second-highest last-wicket stand against South Africa. Both had several moments of good fortune: the edges eluded the slips, Sreesanth was caught off a no-ball while Ishant got away with a plumb lbw shout. That partnership ended up having a huge impact on the rest of the game - while the South Africans were suddenly up against a significant first-innings deficit on a crumbling pitch, the Indians were buoyed by that unexpected bounty, and rode on that momentum.
The pitched seemed to have eased up slightly through the first hour today, but when the Indians took the field, there was plenty of variable bounce to exploit. Harbhajan Singh started proceedings - the first time he bowled the first over in a Test innings - and while that move didn't pay off immediately, he snared Hashim Alma in his seventh over, as Wasim Jaffer hung on to a bat-pad chance. By then South Africa had already lost Neil McKenzie, trapped in front when he missed a pull to one that kept low, and at 27 for 2 at lunch there was no doubt about which team had dominated the morning session.
Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis, South Africa's two most experienced batsmen, then put together a stubborn partnership of 38. The spiteful pitch tested both - Kallis was struck on the glove by one from Ishant Sharma which reared off a good length, while Smith was troubled by Harbhajan's round-the-wicket line. Both, though, stood firm, concentrating hard and not letting the jaffas bother them. Kallis struck just one four in his 45-ball stay, but that was an emphatic blow - a flick off Sreesanth, standing tall with front leg in the air. The introduction of Piyush Chawla eased the pressure on the batsmen as well, as Smith drove and swept him for fours.
The momentum seemed to be shifting, when Mahendra Singh Dhoni turned to Sehwag, and the move turned out to be a masterstroke. Sehwag's first ball kicked up spitefully, took the edge of Kallis' bat, and went straight to Jaffer at short leg. Four overs later, there was more to celebrate for India as Smith was bowled by a full delivery which pitched outside leg and spun back sharply to strike the stumps.
The last-wicket stand of 46 between Sreesanth and Ishant Sharma turned out to be extremely crucial at the end © Getty Images

Those two wickets broke South Africa's resistance, and after tea there was a procession of wickets as six went down for 33 in 16.5 overs. With Chawla turning out to be such a disappointment, Dhoni relied on Harbhajan, Sehwag and Ishant, and the three combined superbly. Ishant angled it in from outside off, pitching it on a good length and allowing the uncertain bounce to do the rest, while Sehwag cleverly bowled at a quicker pace on the slow track, which gave the batsmen little to react to the extra bounce. After his two wickets had given India a sniff, Harbhajan took over.
Getting plenty of turn and disconcerting bounce, he forced AB de Villiers to glove a catch to VVS Laxman at backward short leg. Yuvraj Singh then muffed an easy run-out chance, when both Ashwell Prince and Mark Boucher were stranded at the non-striker's end, but that error cost India just two runs, as Ishant dug in a short one which kissed Boucher's glove on the way to Dhoni.
By now with the pitch playing plenty of tricks, South Africa's tail had no chance. Morne Morkel was defeated by one which kept low and crashed into off stump, Paul Harris' defensive prod was snaffled up at slip, while Dale Steyn fell in the desperate attempt for quick runs. Prince batted through the fall of wickets at the other end, and finally got his first four off his 70th delivery, but that was the last hurrah for South Africa, as Sehwag, quite fittingly, ended the innings by nailing Ntini.
Faced with a target of 62, India raced to victory in just 13.1 overs. Sehwag creamed Harris for two successive sixes to threaten an earlier finish, but then fell next ball. Jaffer was trapped by an indipper from Morkel, but those were mere crumbs for a South African side which failed to negotiate their final test in India after having done so well through the rest of the tour.

Advantage rests with us: Kumble

Skipper Anil Kumble is hoping for a better wicket going into the second Test in Ahmedabad.
"On hindsight, I would have played (Virender) Sehwag and Rahul (Dravid) and had seven bowlers," Kumble said, replying to a question whether he required five specialist bowlers on the flat M.A. Chidambaram Stadium track.
"That is something we can think of, but at the end of the day if there is something for the bowlers, the four bowlers would have certainly taken advantage."
Has Kumble passed on any instructions to the curator in Ahmedabad, where the next Test will be played from Thursday?
"My only message for the team is to win, which I don't give to the groundsman," said Kumble. "Whatever he prepares, we go and play on. I am hopeful it will be an even contest between bat and ball."
Even South Africa skipper Graeme Smith was hoping for a "balanced" contest.
"You've got to give credit to the batsmen. They made it count," Smith said. "Obviously, you would love a wicket that allows a little bit more for the bowlers. It will be interesting to get to Ahmedabad and see what the pitch looks like. We're hoping for a pitch that can provide a good balance between bat and ball."
Despite India conceding 540 runs in the first innings and then faltering with the bat on the fourth day notwithstanding Sehwag's whirlwind 319 and Dravid's sedate 111, Kumble said India would have the advantage going into the second Test.
"We still take advantage," Kumble said. "The toss was crucial. Probably, if we had bowled second, things would have been slightly different."
Injury concern
Once it was clear that the match was heading for a draw, Kumble and Sachin Tendulkar opted not to take field for a better part of the day's play. And Kumble admitted both were carrying minor niggles. “I had a slight niggle while I was bowling," he said. "I didn't want to take a chance. The match was probably over by then. It was important for me to ensure that I recover well for the next Test.”
However, Kumble said Ishant Sharma, who was ruled out of the first Test due "fitness concerns", was "progressing well".

Dhoni to captain India in Kanpur Test

India's ODI and Twenty20 captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has taken over the mantle of the team in place of injured skipper Anil Kumble for the third and final Test match against South Africa in Kanpur starting today. Dhoni has become the first wicketkeeper to lead India in a Test match.

India will be hoping to continue their streak in Kanpur, where they haven't lost a Test match in the last 25 years, as they need to win this match to square the three-match series. South Africa had thrashed India by an innings and 90 runs in three days in the second Test at Ahmedabad.

India has gone into the Kanpur Test with six batsmen and four bowlers -- two fast bowlers and two spinners. There are three changes in the playing XI from the second Test. Yuvraj Singh and Ishant Sharma have replaced Irfan Pathan and RP Singh in the eleven, while Piyush Chawla has replaced Kumble.

Ishant, who had missed the first two Tests because of injuries on his toe and finger, cleared a fitness test yesterday.

Kumble had been given time until today morning to gauge his fitness. He had said yesterday that he wasn't completely fit and would take a final call on his fitness before the start of the match. "I don't want to comment anything on my fitness at the moment. I will see how I feel tomorrow morning. If I am in a position to bowl, I will definitely play," he had said yesterday when asked whether it was a 50-50 chance of him playing the crucial game.

PCB bans seven Pak players for playing in ICL

LAHORE : The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has banned seven cricketers, including former skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq from playing the domestic league, for taking part in the Indian Cricket League (ICL).
“Since the ICL is not recognised by the PCB and the Indian cricket board, the players who have joined the ICL despite warnings from their respective boards will not be allowed to play in the domestic circuit,” PCB spokesman said.
Besides Inzamam, the other players banned by the PCB are Abdul Razzaq, Shabbir Ahmad, Azhar Mehmood, Taufiq Umar and Imran Farhat.
“The rebel players have tried to contact the PCB through their respective departments, but the board gave them a cold shoulder,” the spokesman said.
He said despite showing good performance in the ICL, the players would not be considered even for the national camp.
“The board is following ‘zero tolerance policy’ towards such players,” the Daily Times quoted him, as saying.
ICL announces eventful season for 2008 :
Subhash Chandra’s Indian Cricket League (ICL) which kick started its first season in November, will host 5 tournaments in 2008. The announcement was made today by Essel Group chairman Subhash Chandra and Kapil Dev, chairman of the executive board, ICL.
The second season of ICL will roll-out in February and will include 50-over matches as well.
” It is indeed heartening to see the response Indian Cricket League (ICL) has been able to generate in India and across the globe. After a successful launch in keeping with the promise made, ICL is proud to announce its cricket calendar for the coming season.” ICL conducted its first 20-20 championship at the Tau Devilal cricket stadium at Panchkula, Chandigarh from November 30 to December 16, Subhash Chandra, chairman, Essel Group said.
ICL’s 2008 event calender will begin in February with a 50-over tournament featuring domestic cricketers, to be followed by a Twenty20 triangular series. In March-April, ICL will organise the ICL Grand Championship in which 8 teams will participate in a Twenty20 tournament. By April- May, the league will open academies across cities. September-October will witness the ICL Invitation Cup (a 20 over a side tournament in which 8 teams will participate). The season will conclude in November-December with the second edition of ICL Twenty20 Indian Championship.

IPL Teams - Chennai Super Kings

Chennai Super Kings is the Chennai franchise for the Indian Premier League. The team will be led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the highest-paid IPL Player, and coached by Kepler Wessels. There is no Icon Player for the team.
Chennai Super Kings are a part of the eight club Indian Premier League. The franchise is owned by India Cements, who paid $91 million to acquire the rights of the franchise for the next 10 years. Former India test player Kris Srikkanth is the brand ambassador for the franchise, and another former Indian opener V. B. Chandrasekhar will be the chief selector. The brand ambasssadors for the team will be South Indian actor, Vijay and actress, Nayantara.
The M.A.Chidambaram stadium (often referred to as Chepauk, the place where the stadium is located) will be the home ground of the IPL team. The theme song of Chennai Super Kings, penned by Vairamuthu, is presently being composed by G V Prakash Kumar.
The name “Super Kings” is to honor the rulers of the golden era of Tamil culture, the team logo has a Lion to reflect the King of the Jungle. In addition the word “Super” is colloquially used in the state of Tamil Nadu to reflect all things thrilling and exciting and is a word of the lips of almost every one in Tamil Nadu. Incidentally the Chennai team playing in the ICL (the rebel league) is named as “Chennai Superstars”.
Players
Chennai Super Kings are one of the three franchises with no icon player. The lack of an icon player benefited the Super Kings during the bidding as they managed to bid successfully on two (Dhoni & Muralitharan) of the six A listed players.
The team plans to have twenty three players on its roster. Besides the list of players already acquired, the team will pick the remaining members from the three catchment areas - Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Railways - that have been allocated to it.

'Shoaib’s IPL contract still valid'

Banned Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Akhtar's contract with the Indian Premier League (IPL) is still valid and he will be allowed to play if he is cleared by the Pakistan Appeallate Tribunal, IPL Governing Council head Lalit Modi said on Friday.
"His contract is still valid and has not been cancelled. He is still contracted to the IPL and through it to the Kolkata Knight Riders," Modi told reporters here.
However, as per the rules of the BCCI any player who had been suspended by any other Cricket Board would not be allowed to play in the IPL, he said.
The Pakistani speedster, who was served a five-year ban by the Pakistani Cricket Board will not be allowed to play in the first IPL starting on April 18, BCCI officials had said on Thursday.
"We cannot have the situation where a player banned for any reason is harbored by the IPL," Modi said.
"Currently his contract stands since he is in the appeal process... We hope it will be resolved at the earliest. His contract is not being cancelled presently," Modi added.

IPL’s strict media accreditation policy

The inaugural Indian Premier League (IPL) starting from April 18 has outlined a strict media accreditation policy that requires photographers to use their pictures strictly as still images and not use it to support any online match-tracking report.
The accreditation policy wants the media to use the pictures strictly as still images (and not as moving images or rapid sequence streaming or refreshed images) and cannot be used to support any online match-tracking report, audio or text based commentary service.
Comment: Akhtar had it coming Special: South Africa in India 2008
For example, photographers applying for IPL accreditation will have to ensure that their clicked photos:
* appear as still images (and not as moving images or rapid-sequence streaming or refreshed images) and cannot be used to support a so-called on-line match-tracking report, audio or text based commentary service;
* are published in the relevant print media for editorial reporting purposes only;
* images are not used in association with any marks, names or logos of any third party (commercial or otherwise); no online use or publication or syndication of any such still photographic images is allowed without the express prior written consent of IPL.
These rules have already drawn flak from international media agencies like the Agence France Presse (AFP).
"We had a plan to cover but under current terms and agreement, I don't see any agency covering the matches," AFP Chief of Bureau in India Barry Parker told IANS Friday.
Full coverage: Indian Premier League Shoaib to be barred from IPL
"During the rugby World Cup in France, last year, similar restrictions were imposed. And AFP, Reuters, Associated Press (AP) with some other organisations came together to form New Media Coalition (NMC), which found a way out for helping agencies to cover the tournament.’’
"This time also NMC will be negotiating and find a way out," he added
A similar situation arose last year in Australia, which led to all three news agencies AFP, Reuters and AP boycotting the first Australia-Sri Lanka Test in Brisbane last November.
Cricket Australia (CA) refused to let photojournalists enter the Gabba after various media organisations declined to agree to new terms of the national board. The issue was resolved later.
Media houses applying to cover the IPL matches have time till Tuesday to apply for accreditation.

IPL offers Rs. 12 cr prize money

The inaugural DLF Indian Premier League (IPL) is all set to become one of the richest domestic cricket tournaments in the world offering a whopping winners' cheque of Rs 4.8 crore and an overall prize money of Rs 12 crore.
The much-anticipated and high on glamour event that has teams owned by Bollywood stars and corporate bigwigs kicks off on April 18 and will live upto its tag of being a cash-rich tourney as even the runner-up will be richer by Rs 2.4 crore and even the last-place finisher getting Rs 40 lakh.
"The Rs. 4.8 crore winners' purse makes the DLF IPL truly one of the richest events for a domestic Twenty20 league anywhere in the world," IPL Chairman and BCCI vice President Lalit Modi said.
The prize money distribution is such that even the two losing semi-finalists will earn in crores (Rs 1.2 crore) for their efforts.
The prize money will then be divided among the other teams with the team finishing fifth collecting Rs 80 lakh, while the sixth finisher will earn Rs 70 lakh.
The team finishing seventh on the league table will get Rs 50 lakh.
The IPL will kick off with Shah Rukh Khan's Kolkata Knight Riders taking on Vijay Mallya's Bangalore Royal Challengers at the Chinnaswamy Stadium at Bangalore.
The inaugural season will will have 59 matches spread over 44 days.