Cricket

[Super Falcon]

South Africa to host IPL

Alex Brown and Ajay S Shankar

March 24, 2009

South Africa has edged out England to be named host nation of the 2009 IPL. The decision was made after a meeting between the IPL commissioner, Lalit Modi, and the Cricket South Africa chief executive, Gerald Majola, in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

Modi and Majola have scheduled a press conference for 3pm GMT, where an official announcement will be made. Cricinfo understands that the IPL's opening ceremony will be held in Cape Town, and the tournament will commence on April 18, a week later than initially scheduled. Johannesburg, Durban, Centurion, Port Elizabeth, East London and Cape Town will be announced as host venues.

South Africa had been considered the warm favourite to host the IPL's second season since IPL officials voiced concerns over the effect England's springtime weather might have on the tournament. England also faced issues in the form of cost, scheduling and the likelihood of conflict between television rights holders.

There had been much speculation as to where the IPL's second season would be based after Cricinfo identified South Africa as a possible destination last Friday. Senior officials from the IPL and CSA denied the report at the time, but have since been locked in intense discussions to finalise the unprecedented move.

With the decision now made, the real work begins. Security arrangements - which forced the tournament out of India - will need to be arranged, and an estimated 400 players and officials will require visas and accomodation. In all, 59 matches will be held over a six week period. Given the severe time constraints, it seems unfeasible that this year's IPL will possess the bells and whistles of 2008.

Modi was initially scheduled to fly to London on Tuesday night to meet with ECB officials, but it is unclear whether he will adhere to those travel plans. With time of the essence, logistical issues delayed the opportunity for a coherent response from the ECB, whose chairman, Giles Clarke, and chief executive, David Collier, had been on opposite sides of the world in Australia and Guyana respectively, when contacted by IPL officials last week. The pair reconvened for the first time at Lord's this morning, by which stage discussions with CSA were well underway.

"At no stage have we regarded this as a competition [to host the tournament]," Clarke told reporters at Lord's. "We were contacted by our Indian friends to find out whether we were in a position to help, because this was a very important tournament for cricket. We talked about the question of whether we were in a position to help."

More to follow

 

[batmannow]

better option than england i think sharjah is better than england

but, i guss! playling in engld will going to boost our, quality of players!
sharjah, having dead wickets, no results makes players, & the public... dejected.
english wickets, can bring adventure & interst for players & public?
putting players in the desert type of conditions, for no results.... is just simply destrying them!

 

[leonblack08]

Yousuf parting with ICL?
CricInfo, undated

Mohammad Yousuf and a few other Pakistan players may be heading towards a tricky legal wrangle with the Indian Cricket League (ICL) after reports have emerged that they are planning to end their association with the unauthorised Twenty20 league and return to international cricket.

Yousuf, Abdul Razzaq, Imran Farhat, Imran Nazir, Mohammad Sami and Navedul Hasan are the players who might walk away from the ICL, the News reported. The Pakistan establishment, led by Younis Khan, the captain, is keen that Yousuf, in particular, returns to the national team as early as next month for the one-day series against Australia starting on April 22 in Abu Dhabi, the report said.

Yousuf had rejoined the ICL last year after developing serious differences with Shoaib Malik, the then Pakistan captain. But the situation appears to have changed after Younis, known to be close to Yousuf, became Pakistan captain this year. The News quoted sources as saying that "the breakthrough was achieved following a series of meetings between Yousuf and Younis".

When contacted by Cricinfo, ICL officials said they have had no contact with Yousuf in this regard but added their contract with the Pakistan batsman enables him to play for the national team. The problem, of course, arises if Yousuf and the other players insist on cutting all ties with ICL, which is what the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has insisted on if they are to be considered again for the national team. In such a situation, the ICL might take the legal route, officials suggested, particularly because Lahore Badshahs, the ICL team for which these cricketers play, is one of the main attractions of the league.

Another reason why the Pakistan players are said to be considering such a move is that the ICL has suspended its March-April tournament and is looking at restarting their international programme only in October. The ICL took this step in February due to the deepening economic recession and the Pakistan government's refusal to let any player from that country play in India following the Mumbai terror attacks.

The players fear that the current freeze in political ties between India and Pakistan would prevent them from playing in India in the near future.

The report also claimed that if the Pakistan players part ways with the ICL, they could be immediately included in the national team for the one-day series against Australia -- the squad is expected to be named early in April.

Yousuf, in particular, has had a troubled relationship with the ICL after initially signing a three-year-contract with the league and then trying to pull out in favour of the IPL. However, he was not picked up by any IPL team and returned to the ICL on a fresh contract after both sides agreed to call off a legal case that had been lodged on the issue. "It's a personal call that he has to take now," an ICL official said.

Players associated with the ICL have been barred from all official cricket in most countries, especially in India where the BCCI has adopted a hard-line stance against the private venture, and the league's request for recognition is still pending with the ICC.

The Daily Star - Details News

 

[sms]

Ganguly retained as sole skipper of KKR

Sourav Ganguly was retained as the sole skipper of the Kolkata Knight Riders bringing to end the week-long controversy. New Zealand wicket keeper Brendon McCullum has been appointed the vice-captain of the team.

Sources close to the team told news channel CNN-IBN that Ganguly will be retained as skipper and his performance will be evaluated after the first few games.

Sourav Ganguly was in Mumbai on Tuesday and met with team owner Shah Rukh Khan along with coach John Buchanan.

Shah Rukh told the media it was a matter of miscommunication which led to the issue being blown out of proportion.

"I think there is a lot of over-reaction and rumors about him being removed from captaincy.But that is completely untrue," the Bollywood star said.

Earlier, Shah Rukh Khan had said "Let me tell you, there is no Kolkata Knight Riders without Dada (Ganguly). We love him".

Shahrukh said that the decision to have different captains was in no way meant to disrupt Ganguly's position and status as an iconic player.

This announcement comes a day after it was announced that the KKR's squad and captain for the IPL were to be decided in South Africa and not India. The team's director Joy Bhattacharya, after the conclusion of the 6 day conditioning camp, had mentioned "I don't want to disclose the names of the players who would be going to South Africa now as we want to keep all options open". "We might take the whole squad which took part in the conditioning camp to South Africa. Nothing has been finalised right now. The final team for KKR would be announced in South Africa", he added.

Blazing fast live cricket score, commentary at par with live action, Indian Premier League, IPL

 

[sms]

I Like the statement from SRK "Let me tell you, there is no Kolkata Knight Riders without Dada (Ganguly). We love him"

 

[sms]

Andrew Flintoff's Hatrick leads England to historic triumph

Andrew Flintoff grabbed a hat-trick to lead England to a 26-run victory over West Indies on Friday and a first ever one-day international series triumph in the Caribbean.

Flintoff claimed his hat-trick when he removed Denesh Ramdin, Ravi Rampaul and Sulieman Benn off successive balls in the 27th over, before finishing with career-best figures of five wickets for 19 runs from five overs.

His spell swung the match decisively, as England bowled West Indies out for 146 in 28 overs in a match reduced to a 29-over-a-side clash after rain delayed the start of the fifth and final game at the Beausejour Stadium by four hours.

The result meant that England won the series 3-2.

Blazing fast live cricket score, commentary at par with live action, Indian Premier League, IPL

 

[Jako]

I Like the statement from SRK "Let me tell you, there is no Kolkata Knight Riders without Dada (Ganguly). We love him"

he was left wid no options,no dada means no acceptance of kkr in kolkata........

 

[EagleEyes]

Anybody excited about Aussies VS Pakistan. I think we will beat them 5-0 given that the squad is nice and stable. We need young and experienced. Not losers.

 

[Jako]

Anybody excited about Aussies VS Pakistan. I think we will beat them 5-0 given that the squad is nice and stable. We need young and experienced. Not losers.

yes u can,da present aussie side sucks........de got rolled over in india last year....thnx

 

[Rafael]

Anybody excited about Aussies VS Pakistan. I think we will beat them 5-0 given that the squad is nice and stable. We need young and experienced. Not losers.

i doubt that for a simple reason, our boys didnt play too much of cricket for about 1.5 years.

 

[sms]

Anybody excited about Aussies VS Pakistan. I think we will beat them 5-0 given that the squad is nice and stable. We need young and experienced. Not losers.

Ha ha ... Oz are not doing good does not mean that Pakistan team can write them off. How much cricket did you play and win in last 2 yrs? Pls. check

3-2 may be 40% chance, 5-0 will be called day dreaming... But if its between Oz & Pakistan I'll support subcontinent ..

 

[Super Falcon]

abdur razzzaq,rana naveed ul hassan,imran nazir has been included in the possible T20 team for pakistan but pcb still waitting for icc clearance which i dont think so pcb has to do it they broken their contract with icl or in verge of braking they are nationals of pakistan and they have not comitted any crime i hope they should be included in pak team if we have them i dont think so even world eleven T 20 have any guts to beat pakistan but their is one more probleum india always trying to isolate pakistan in any field so as they cricket and they will put pressure on icc to not to give clearance to those pakistani players as they was in doing in srilankan tour any way if we get them im sure we gonna beat every team in t 20 with ease specially indians who think that they are on sky high

 

[Super Falcon]

ICC World Twenty20 2009

Pakistan drop ICL players from World Twenty20 list

Cricinfo staff

April 7, 2009



Saeed Ajmal makes a late entry to the list of probables © AFP




The Pakistan Cricket Board has backed out of a potential face-off with the ICC and the BCCI by dropping three ICL players from its list of 30 probables for the ICC World Twenty in June.

In a face-saving measure, the PCB has placed Abdul Razzaq, Imran Nazir and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan on standby pending ICC approval. They have been replaced by Saeed Ajmal, Zulfiqar Jan and Mohammad Hafeez. However, it's understood that the ICC is highly unlikely to grant any such approval when its board meets in Dubai on April 17-18 to decide on the issue.

"We have written a letter to the ICL to get status of their contracts, whether these [contracts] have been rescinded permanently or rescinded temporarily, but we have yet to get any reply on that," said the PCB chief operating officer Salim Altaf.

However, sources told Cricinfo that the ICL trio insisted they would be able to provide only a temporary release from the unauthorised league unless the board provided them with central contracts.

The PCB on Monday officially broke ranks with the Indian board, a traditional ally, by naming the three ICL players without approval from the ICC, the tournament organisers. The 17 ICL-contracted players from Pakistan were allowed to participate in domestic cricket after the Sind High Court temporarily lifted the ban in February.

Wicketkeeper Zulfiqar is the only uncapped player among the three replacements. Ajmal, the offspinner, last played in the third ODI against Sri Lanka in Lahore this January while batsman Mohammad Hafeez hasn't represented his country since October 2007.

Pakistan Squad: Younis Khan (capt), Salman Butt, Nasir Jamshed, Khalid Latif, Shahzaib Hasan, Ahmed Shehzad, Umar Amin, Misbah-ul-Haq, Faisal Iqbal, Fawad Alam, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, Sohail Tanvir, Yasir Arafat, Kamran Younis, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul, Rao Iftikhar Anjum, Aizaz Cheema, Mohammad Aamer, Wahab Riaz, Imran Ali, Danish Kaneria, Abdul Rehman, Yasir Shah, Kamran Akmal (wk), Sarfraz Ahmed, Saeed Ajmal, Zulfiqar Jan, Mohammad Hafeez

 

[Super Falcon]

Inzamam slams 'unprofessional' Pakistan board

Ajay S Shankar

April 10, 2009



Inzamam-ul-Haq: "If the PCB didn't have an ICC clearance, it had no right to name these players in the list and then tell them after a day that 'Look, we don't respect you'" © ICL




Inzamam-ul-Haq, the former Pakistan captain, has slammed the Pakistan Cricket Board's "unprofessional thinking" for dropping three ICL players from its list of probables for the World Twenty20 in June after initially naming them in the squad. Inzamam, who is also captain of ICL's Lahore Badshahs, said the Pakistan board and the selectors should have shown more respect to the three players who have represented the country.

Inzamam also criticised the ICC's move to implement stringent guidelines on unofficial cricket from June 1 to prevent future ICL models, and said the governing body was only scared of losing sponsorship money to independent organisers.

On Tuesday, the PCB backed out of a potential face-off with the ICC by dropping three ICL players - Abdul Razzaq, Imran Nazir and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan - from its list of 30 probables for the ICC World Twenty20 in June. Nazir and Naved-ul-Hasan played under Inzamam last season and Razzaq appeared for ICL's Hyderabad Heroes.

"The Pakistan board should not have announced the list if they were not clear about all aspects of the selection," Inzamam told Cricinfo. "One day they announced the list, and the next day they reversed it. This is the result of unprofessional thinking by the board and the selectors. If the PCB didn't have an ICC clearance, it had no right to name these players in the list and then tell them after a day that 'Look, we don't respect you'."

Asked about the ICC's move to crack down on unofficial cricket, including imposing stricter rules and a proposed cooling period for players who want to return, Inzamam accused the governing body of adopting double standards.

"The ICC is just scared that the money they generate from the game should not go to others," Inzamam said. "The ICC is bothered only about that. During the days when there was not so much money in cricket, players used to play in tournaments which had no official status in countries like Bangladesh; the ICC had no problems. The ICC is just worried that their sponsorship money would splinter. The ICC is worried about ICL only because of the money, otherwise they know these players are only playing cricket and not committing any crime."

Reacting to reports in the Pakistani media that Younis Khan, the Pakistan captain, was keen to include ICL players in the national team, Inzamam said it was the right way for a leader to think. "If Younis feels that with the return of ICL players, his team will get better or stronger, it's absolutely the right thought," he said. "The presence of players like Mohammed Yousuf, Nazir, Razzaq and Naved-ul Hasan will only strengthen the Pakistan team."

Pakistan's next international engagement is a five-match ODI series and a Twenty20 against Australia in Abu Dhabi from April 22-May 7.

 

[Super Falcon]

Malaysia, Ireland and Scotland have emerged as surprise contenders to host future Pakistan "home" series. Ijaz Butt, the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, confirmed that those nations, along with England and the United Arab Emirates, could become the Pakistan team's foreign base while the domestic security risk remained high.

While stressing his desire for cricket to make a prompt return to Pakistan, Butt said his board would announce in the next month neutral venues for impending international series. Butt has already held discussions with Giles Clarke, chairman of the ECB, regarding the feasibility of England hosting next year's Test series between Pakistan and Australia, and will soon decide where other matches will be based.

"We have a number of alternatives before us, and we are investigating their suitability as host venues," Butt told Cricinfo. "We have spoken with the ECB, and we will speak again with Giles Clarke when we all get together for the next ICC meeting in Dubai. There are other alternatives too. Kuala Lumpur, Ireland and Glasgow are among those. Nothing has been finalised at this stage but we will hope to make a decision in the next month."


Pakistan will return to competitive cricket this month when they play Australia in a five-match one-day series, followed by a one-off Twenty20 match, in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. They have not played since the terror attack on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore on March 3, and now face an uncertain future with teams unwilling to tour in the immediate future due to the security risk.

England and the UAE have previously been discussed as potential foreign bases for the Pakistan team, but Malaysia, Ireland and Scotland emerged as new contenders. In 2006, Kuala Lumpur's Kinrara Academy Oval hosted a triangular one-day series featuring India, Australia and West Indies. Ireland and Scotland, meanwhile, host international cricket on a more regular basis, as their respective national teams attempt to ascend from the Associate ranks.

"Some have contacted us, and others we have inquired about," Butt said. "We are investigating all possibilities. We want teams back in Pakistan as soon as possible, but for now it is important that we ensure matches still progress."

Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of Cricket Ireland, confirmed he had held preliminary discussion with the PCB's chief operations officer, Salim Altaf, and was amenable to the idea of hosting Pakistan matches.

"Our aim is to heighten interest in cricket in Ireland," Deutrom said. "We are trying to build an argument that we are a sufficiently viable cricket nation to make the step up to the elite level. To be able to host Pakistan in limited overs and even Test matches could only help us in attracting more interest in the sport. We would be more than happy for Pakistan to play here."