ICC World Cup T20

Sri Lanka win toss, invite Australia to bat

2009-06-08T10:51:00.000-07:00

Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara won the toss and invited Australia to bat in this crucial Group C match of the ICC World Twenty20, here today.
Teams: Australia: Shane Watson, David Warner, Ricky Ponting (cap), Michael Clarke, Brad Haddin, David Hussey, Mike Hussey, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Nathan Hauritz, Nathan Bracken.

Sri Lanka: Tillakaratne Dilshan, Sanath Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara (cap), Mahela Jayawardene, Jehan Mubarak, Chamara Silva, Angelo Mathews, Isuru Udana, Muttiah Muralitharan, Ajantha Mendis, Lasith Malinga

Ireland beat Bangladesh, reach Super 8 in T20 World Cup

2009-06-08T10:50:00.000-07:00

O'Brien brothers -- Niall and Kevin's scintillating knocks fashioned Ireland's six-wicket victory over Bangladesh and propelled them to the Super Eight stage of the ICC Twenty20 Championship, here today.
Niall blasted a 25-ball 40, studded with three fours and as many sixes while Kevin fired an unbeaten 17-ball 39, smashing four fours and a couple of sixes to help Ireland reach the target with 10 balls to spare.

Earlier, all-rounder Trent Johnston's three-wicket haul restricted Bangladesh to 137 for eight in their Group A match.

Niall stitched a 55-run partnership for the first wicket with skipper William Porterfield (23) to lay the foundation of the win before the left-handed batsman was dismissed by Shakib Al Hasan in the 10th over.

Ireland then lost two quick wickets in Porterfield and GC Wilson (10) before Kevin steadied the ship and forged a 49-run stand in 24 balls with John Mooney (17), to set the tone for a deserved victory.

For Bangladesh, Mashrafe Mortaza took two wickets for 30 runs, while Shakib and Abdur Razzak bagged one each.

Earlier, Johnston ripped through the Bangladesh top-order, removing opener Junaid Siddique (13), skipper Mohammad Ashraful (14) and Shakib (7) after Ireland skipper Porterfield had won the toss and invited Bangladesh to bat. PTI

Pakistan need to win match by 25 runs for S8 round

2009-06-08T10:49:00.000-07:00

Pakistan’s fate in the ICC World Twenty20 Cup hangs in balance as they meet The Netherlands in their do or die Group B final game at the Lord’s on Tuesday, a match they must win by at least 25 runs to qualify for the Super 8 second round.

The Dutch side which got better of England on Friday on the last ball of the match are equal on points table with the home side that comprehensively defeated Pakistan by 48 runs at The Oval on Sunday.

Pakistan’s destiny is to be decided through a permutation and calculation of the scoring rate which is lower than their two group counterparts.

Pakistan, finalists at the 2007 inaugural tournament in South Africa, will have to significantly improve their performance in the outfield given their sloppy display against England.

The side dropped four catches at various points during the England innings with Saeed Ajmal (twice) and Yasir Arafat and Salman Butt (one apiece) being the main culprits.

Butt was the comfortably the worst fielder and captain Younis Khan did not hide his anger and disappointment. “Even if Butt scored 28 as an opener we’ll have to think about him for the next game because of his fielding.”

Pakistan were playing only their second Twenty20 in seven months and the rustiness was quite patent. They lost both their warm-ups and seem to be grappling with the cold conditions in the UK.

None of the Pakistan bowlers, apart from the inexperienced off spinner Ajmal, came to their team’s rescue, against England as they built on the platform laid by Kevin Pietersen early on.

In the Tuesday’s game Pakistan need to win with about three overs to spare to qualify for the second round. Younis has put the onus on his senior batsmen like Shahid Afridi, Misbah ul Haq, Shoaib Malik and himself.

The Netherlands experience of international T20 competitions in restricted to the matches played at the qualifier in Belfast last year when it shared top honours with Ireland.

However, regarded as minnows the way they upstaged England show that the Dutch side is equally capable of pulling off surprises and Pakistan can ill afford to lower their guard.

Dirk Nannes, who will spearhead Dutch bowling has been described by Indian opener Virender Sehwag as the fastest bowler he had ever faced.

He was born and brought up in Australia but when he was omitted from Australia’s 30-man squad he accepted Holland’s invitation, qualifying on the back of his parent’s Dutch heritage.

Nannes has played with Middlesex in the UK, Victoria in Australia and Delhi Daredevils in the Indian Premier League. In addition to Nannes, Netherlands will be looking to their best player Ryan ten Doeschate of Essex to do some damage with the bat and ball with support from young Worcestershire batsman Alex Kervezee and the Man of the Match against England Tom de Grooth.

Captain Jeroen Smits will direct proceedings from behind the stumps while Peter Borren and Darren Reekers will provide valuable support to keep Dutch hopes alive.

The teams (From)

Pakistan-Younis Khan (captain), Salman Butt, Kamran Akmal, Ahmed Shahzad, Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal, Fawad Alam, Mohammad Aamer, Iftikhar Anjum,Yasir Arafat, Umar Gul, Shahzaib Hasan, Shoaib Malik, Sohail Tanvir, Misbahul Haq.

The Netherlands- Joeren Smits (captain), Peter Borren, Mudassar Bokhari, Tom De Grooth, Maurits Jonkman, Alexei Kervezee, Dirk Nannes, Ruud Nijam, Darron Reekers, Edgar Schiferli, Pieter Seelar, Eric Szwarczynski, Daan Van Bunge, Bas Zuiderent.

Qadir quits, fresh crisis for Pak cricket

2009-06-08T10:47:00.000-07:00

Pakistan cricket plunged into fresh crisis today with chief selector Abdul Qadir resigning in mysterious circumstances.

The announcement of the resignation came out of the blue and a day after Pakistan was trounced by England in the ICC World Twenty20 tournament.

Incidentally, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Ejaz Butt wasted no time in accepting Qadir's resignation.

"We don't know the reason for his decision to resign but the Chairman, Ejaz Butt has accepted it," Saleem Altaf, the PCB chief operating officer, told PTI.

Qadir was not available for any comments as he switched off his cell phone but rumours were gathering momentum that the former test leg-spinner was told to resign or get the boot.

"Butt called him to his office and told him either he should resign or he will be sacked," one source in the board said.

Other sources said that the reason for Butt's sudden decision to get rid of Qadir might have something to do with rumors of corruption in the selection of the national team and Pakistan A squad for Australia.

But no board official, including Altaf, was willing to comment on the rumours.

"We only know he decided to resign that is all. We are as blank as everyone else why he decided to resign," Altaf said. Speculation was rife that Qadir faced a lot of scrutiny from the board over his insistence on selecting some players in the national and A sides.

Incidentally, even during the tenure of the last selection committee headed by Salahuddin Ahmed, a member of his selection committee was accused by a Pakistan player of indulging in corruption.

Sources said that Butt had asked Salahuddin to take action against the selector but the chief selector deemed it fit to resign himself in defence of his selector.

There were also reports about serious differences that Qadir has developed with captain Younis Khan and coach Intikhab Alam in recent weeks which even led to arguments between them.

Qadir also had differences with former player Aamer Sohail, who is director, game development in the board and Ejaz Butt over the selection of the Pakistan A team for Australia.

The board started paying monthly salaries to the national selectors since last year and Qadir was paid around Rs 250,000 a month besides other perks.

Interestingly, the PCB has now also asked former opener Shoaib Mohammad to choose between his job as national selector or his position with the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) where he is manager sports.

Twenty20 World Cup Betting: England win shows they can win the tournament

2009-06-08T10:45:00.000-07:00

Frank Gregan talks medieval jousting and underwater bingo as he assesses England's mixed start to the Twenty20 World Cup...

The Jekyll and Hyde of cricket were at it again at the weekend as England discovered new levels of embarrassment when losing to the Dutch in the Twenty20 World Cup.

Cricket in Holland is not very popular, having the same kind of following as medieval jousting and underwater bingo! Matches are watched by a couple of tulip sellers and a few old blokes wearing clogs, yet England managed to slump to a defeat against a side that Somerset, Wiltshire or the Isle of Wight would be competitive against.

It was a desperate loss and could have cost England dearly. As soon as stumps were drawn the hosts faced the prospect of not qualifying for the super eight had they lost to Pakistan. Qualification was no longer in their hands, it was up to the likes of Michael Fish and co and there would have been much checking of the web weather forecasts on Saturday night. A washout would have been a disaster but fortunately it never happened and Collingwood and his men were given the chance to redeem themselves.

Pakistan were the opposition, a serious heavyweight in World Cricket and with about eight million supporters for every Dutchman that follows the game. Nothing short of a stellar performance would suffice and, given that this English side blows more hot and cold than an air conditioner in a Tenerife nightclub, nobody quite knew what team would turn up.

It was their 'A' team with their 'A' game and it was a great performance and a victory that keeps their hopes of winning the trophy on home soil alive. But how on earth did they find themselves in that position? How could they lose to Holland?

It's because of the format and with that the same old - same old is debated as to whether this form of cricket should be played at international level. It's an argument I've had many times with many different people; I am a great fan of this short game and defend it resolutely. It's cricketing Marmite - you either love it or hate it but one thing is for sure - Holland would not beat England in a five day game. It's the unpredictability that makes it riveting!

It's only the fourth day of the tournament and already there have been shocks galore dished up because of the format. There is no recovery time - if you have a bad spell then your team will have a bad result. And if you put together back to back poor performances, the tournament is over.

Incredibly, Australia could find themselves out of the competition if they don't manage to overcome Sri Lanka today. Even a win might not be enough because of their poor net run rate after their seven wicket defeat by a West Indian side that looked as if they had been seized by aliens and reincarnated. One guy was seen shaking the West Indian skipper by the shoulders and shouting: "Who are you and what have you done with Chris Gayle?"

New Zealand were almost humbled by Scotland after a weather adjustment meant that the game took on the format of a school yard match. It was over in a flash and you couldn't help wondering if they were going to invoke the "one handed catch off the wall" rule in conjunction with the "tip and run' that both sides played. Great entertainment!

Betfairians can't make their mind up who is going to win this event and it's a belting market because of that. It's time to build up a portfolio and keep working the market in play. I backed England before the Pakistan game at odds of 17.0 - they are currently at 10.0 but they are still a back because if they make the semis their odds will halve.

The West Indies are 10.5 to back and if they continue in the same vein of form that they displayed against Australia that is a massive price.

The Australians have lost their last four Twenty20 internationals and have little appetite for this format, referring to it as "a hit and a giggle" because they have been unable to master it. However, they have a massive competitive streak and the 9.2 currently available will shorten dramatically if they roll Sri Lanka.

It's a tough call but I'm going to recommend England and pray that they replicate their form against Pakistan rather than Holland for the remainder of the tournament. It's a great tournament and it is promoting the format in a very positive manner.

I was having a heated debate about Test cricket v Twenty20 at the weekend with a mate and defending the shorter version I was well on top. That was until he threw in an absolute gem which won him the argument. "So what have you been looking forward to most this summer, the Twenty20 World Cup or the Ashes?"

England stay alive, beat Pakistan easily

2009-06-08T10:44:00.000-07:00

England stayed alive in the Twenty20 World Cup when their regained their composure, and put their defeat against the Dutchmen as bad dream and beat the Pakistanis by 48 runs at the Oval, here on Sunday.

After making 185 for five, England bundled the Pakistanis for 136. Had England lost this one, they would have tumbled out and it would have been galling to them and a terrible setback considering that they were playing in their own backyard.

The Pakistanis put pressure on themselves by their shoddy fielding which enabled the Englishmen to a big score. Pakistan will certainly rue their, which they could have turned to victory if they fielded better.

When the Pakistanis began their chase, they lost wickets at regular intervals and no batsmen really could get going Big guns Saman Butt, Kamran Akmal, Shoaib Malik who made 20 off 21, the highly rated Sahid Afridi and Misbah Ul-Haq all failed to fire and that was that. Only skipper Younus Khan batted with purpose to make 48 in 31 balls. Stuart Broad the villan in the previous game took 3 wickets.

Pakistan gave one of the most shameful fielding displays in this game. They seemed to be ignorant of fundamental in fielding and that is that catches win matches. They dropped nearly five catches and their ground fielding too was atrocious.

England battled their way to a strong 185 for 5 in 20 and it was a score that they had to defend to stay afloat in the tournament.

The wicket was a good one for batting with the England batsmen determined to bat better than they did against the Dutchmen where after opening stand of over 100 by Ravi Bopara and Luke Wright, they squandered it all by losing their way in the middle England's team in the that game they lost felt the absence of Kevin Pietersen.

He was injured and quickly recovered to play in this game which was sink or swim game.

England also made the right decision in giving Dimitri Mascarhenas a game. His allround ability was what England needed. His dropping came as a surprise andr condemnation all round.

When England batted they lost the high scoring Ravi Bopra very early.

But Kevion Pietersen showed that he had lost form, as he began to cut loose and make thye bowlers suffer. He made a top score of 58 in 38 balls.

Others who supported him were Luke Wright with 34 and Ovis Shah with 33.

Umer Gul and Ajmal had 2 wickets each.

Sri Lanka tighten noose around Australia

2009-06-08T10:42:00.000-07:00

Nottingham: Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara won the toss and elected to bowl in a bid to knock Australia out of the ICC World T20 at Trent Bridge on Monday.

Sri Lanka, playing their first game in the competition, handed a Twenty20 international debut to all-rounder Isuru Udana. Australia, who lost their first match to West Indies, replaced James Hopes with off-spinner Nathan Hauritz.

Teams:

Australia: Ricky Ponting (capt), David Warner, Shane Watson, Michael Clarke, Brad Haddin, David Hussey, Mike Hussey, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Nathan Bracken, Nathan Hauritz.

Sri Lanka: Kumar Sangakkara (capt), Sanath Jayasuriya, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Mahela Jayawardene, Jehan Mubarak, Chamara Silva, Angelo Mathews, Isuru Udana, Ajantha Mendis, Lasith Malinga, Muttiah Muralitharan.

Twenty20 has set the cricket world alight

2009-06-08T10:41:00.000-07:00

It’s cold here in England and occasionally windy as well. Perfect weather for cricket. The Poms love wearing an anorak to Lords or The Oval, a thermos of tea and a cheese sandwich tucked under the arm on the Bakerloo Line or Northern Line.

When they arrive at the grounds, they can buy a plastic bucket of beer to see them through the action.

The World Twenty20 Cup is up and running under dripping skies and temperatures in the teens. Somehow, after the first three days, all fixtures have managed to be completed, albeit the Scotland Vs New Zealand game being a total of 13 overs.

Despite the crush on the tube and the multiple layers of clothing, the shortest form of the game has set alight the generous crowds.

The sixes and fours from reverse sweeps and ‘ramp’ shots over the ‘keeper have people buzzing. They like this fluffy improvised stuff, a lot.

Perhaps, like the rest of the world, we have had enough soccer to last several lifetimes (England four Kazakhstan-nil on Saturday, if you missed the score from Almaty).

England’s shock, horror, “we are England and deserve to beat the guys across the Channel who play in clogs,” was appropriately played on the anniversary of D Day, but more closely evoked memories of Dunkirk.

England soon put the unthinkable in the past tense by thrashing a Pakistan team who have returned to the bad old days of inappropriate selections, dreadful fielding, and eclectic leadership.

Pakistan now have to beat the mighty Netherlands by more than 50 runs to avoid the elimination that pursued England.

Meanwhile, the Australians, unsettled by further alcohol fueled antics by the man with more comebacks than Dame Nellie, also need to win against a fairly handy Sri Lankan team on Monday evening in Nottingham to escape the ignobility of a two week training camp in Leicestershire while the nearest they get to the winner’s presentation is the TV set in their hotel rooms.

And all this in the first 72 hours!

Chris Gayle must have mistaken Brett Lee’s bowling for the first tee at St Andrews as he hit the Lazarus bowler over the five story high Bedser Stand, a couple of bounces on the slate into the surrounding streets.

Lee bowled all four of his allocated overs, a poor piece of captaincy in itself (or are the Australians still not treating a twenty over World Tournament as a fitness trial for the July 8 Test match?), going for 56 runs.

Mike Hussey didn’t get his hands on a high catch for the second time and wafted luckily with the blade. He continues to look like a man past his best.

Brad Hodge must be dizzy from shaking his head in disbelief.

Whether Australia make it past Sri Lanka and into the second round may be a moot point as the selectors must already be reconsidering their decision to select an under-done, out-of-form, aging bowler lacking any type of meaningful cricket since Christmas in the Ashes squad.

It makes a mockery of Doug Bollinger’s outstanding domestic form and palatable but limited international experience.

Slow bowling is proving its worth already in the Twenty20 and Australia select none.

The English media and fans lapped up the Australian loss as if gifted from the cricket gods. If their own team could lose to the Dutch, then it was good medicine for the locals when the Aussies to lose to anybody.

Ponting may not have his boys thinking or uttering the magic “Ashes” phrase, but any stumble by the men from down under is highlighted and magnified, often with the distortion that only the English tabloids can utter.

Ricky Ponting was not expecting to be under pressure this early in the northern sojourn. That may have come late in July and early August if a Test or two were lost.

The Twenty20 may be fun for some, but just ask the teams that lose if they feel like smiling.

By Monday, 8:30 pm local time, a new scenario will develop when the result of the Sri Lankan clash is known. The forecast is for more rain and no rise in the mercury.

If the game gets rained out, Australia are out of the Cup and into Leicester. But then, it never rains when you want it to.

Pakistan keeping the faith

2009-06-08T10:40:00.000-07:00

Intikhab Alam is confident Pakistan can resurrect their ICC World Twenty20 campaign by claiming the comprehensive victory they need against the Netherlands to progress.

Despite entering the tournament with the highest win ratio in Twenty20 internationals, Pakistan are facing an early exit from the event following Sunday's 48-run defeat to England.

The damage inflicted to Pakistan's run-rate by their Oval defeat was such that they now need to beat Holland handsomely at Lord's on Monday to qualify for the next stage.

Targets

Pakistan can secure qualification either by reaching their victory target within 16 overs or restricting Holland to 75 per cent of their total, and Alam believes those are both realistic targets.

"It's a big game and we've worked out what we need to do and it's not impossible, but it is a do-or-die situation for us," admitted Pakistan coach.

"Holland are a good side and they have some good cricketers, but if we play to our potential with the match-winners we have then I'm sure we will get through.

"We were not surprised by Holland because in Twenty20 cricket anything can happen and we saw that when West Indies beat Australia.

"West Indies have been here in England for three months and nothing has gone right for them and all of sudden they come into this tournament and the captain plays a fantastic knock."

Determination

Defeat to Ireland in the 50-over World Cup saw Pakistan fail to progress past the first round in 2007 and Alam is determined not to see another such humiliation.

"It would be a big blow to go out because nobody wants to go out at the first stage," Alam added.

"In the last World Cup we didn't qualify for the Super Eight and we don't want to repeat that history.

"I'm sure the boys are okay, they are not down and they will go out there and do their jobs properly. We were all disappointed with the result against England but that's over now and you have to move forward."

Pakistan will make at least one change from the line-up which lost to England with seamer Yasir Arafat already been ruled out of the Dutch contest due to a hamstring strain.

Left-arm swing bowler Sohail Tanvir is expected to be drafted in as his replacement having surprisingly been overlooked for their opening game despite being the leading wicket-taker with 22 victims in the 2008 Indian Premier League.

All-rounder Fawad Alam may also come into contention for the must-win encounter to strengthen Pakistan's batting line-up.

It'd be miraculous if India retains T20 WC title: Shastri

2009-06-08T10:38:00.002-07:00

Trent Bridge: Former India skipper Ravi Shastri feels it would be nothing short of a miracle if India retains the ICC World Twenty20 Championship title given the fickle nature of cricket's shortest format. "It would be miraculous if India indeed goes on to defend its crown," said the former all-rounder when asked about India's chances at the event.

Meanwhile, rival teams are busy planning a blueprint against defending champions India as critical Super Eight clashes of the ICC World Twenty20 loom later this week. India has all but sailed through to the second round and in their three clashes, could meet Australia/West Indies (June 12), England (June 14) and South Africa (June 16) to go within two matches of defending their crown.

In a format as fickle as Twenty20, legendary Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar is inclined to term India as only "marginally favourites." Dhoni, on his part, has only encouraged his rivals by putting all his cards on the table. Opposition could thus work on a few areas which could be India's Achilles' heels.

Dhoni has espoused his concern about the manner his bowlers are bowling in the first six and final 2-3 overs of the innings. In the match against Bangladesh, the opponents had 50 on the board within the first six overs. Then, in the last two overs of the innings three sixes were hit from five balls by Bangladesh for a losing cause. That the poor start and terrible finish is still being taken care of is a reflection on india's vice-like grip on the middle overs.

Dhoni presses into service his three key men between the 7th and 16th over pacer Ishant Sharma and spinners Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha. These three men picked up six of the eight wickets to fall and were the only ones to finish with their quota of four overs each. Bangladesh effectively lost the match to these three highly proficient young men.

Another of Dhoni's method also wouldn't have gone unnoticed to hawk-eye planners of other teams. Dhoni is averse to losing wickets in middle overs and doesn't mind if the scorecard moves at a snail's pace in that stretch. Thus Gautam Gambhir and Dhoni himself preferred to be extremely conventional in this stretch against Bangladesh which led to jst 121 runs being cored of 16 overs.

But since only two wickets were lost, the platform was perfect for big hitters like Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Yusuf and Irfan Pathan to hit out with gay abandon and India could finish at 180 for 5.

The tournament would only get harder for Ishant, Harbhajan and Ojha as rivals would try to take them on and force Dhoni to think out of the box. In batting, more and more firepower of rivals would be seen between the seventh and fifteenth over of India's innings. The opposition would try their best to clinch wickets in middle overs and deny India the advantage of a sound platform and relentless hitting during the closing stages.

Ireland beat Bangladesh, reaches Super 8 in T20 World Cup

2009-06-08T10:38:00.001-07:00

Niall blasted a 25-ball 40, studded with three fours and as many sixes while Kevin fired an unbeaten 17-ball 39, smashing four fours and a couple of sixes to help Ireland reach the target with 10 balls to spare.

Earlier, all-rounder Trent Johnston's three-wicket haul restricted Bangladesh to 137 for eight in their Group A match.

Niall stitched a 55-run partnership for the first wicket with skipper William Porterfield (23) to lay the foundation of the win before the left-handed batsman was dismissed by Shakib Al Hasan in the 10th over.

Ireland then lost two quick wickets in Porterfield and GC Wilson (10) before Kevin steadied the ship and forged a 49-run stand in 24 balls with John Mooney (17), to set the tone for a deserved victory.

For Bangladesh, Mashrafe Mortaza took two wickets for 30 runs, while Shakib and Abdur Razzak bagged one each.

Earlier, Johnston ripped through the Bangladesh top-order, removing opener Junaid Siddique (13), skipper Mohammad Ashraful (14) and Shakib (7) after Ireland skipper Porterfield had won the toss and invited Bangladesh to bat.

Win ICC World Twenty20 tickets for Trent Bridge Super8s

2009-06-08T10:36:00.000-07:00

To celebrate Reebok as the official sponsor of the ICC World Twenty20 tournament, Mirror.co.uk has teamed up with Reebok to give away four pairs of tickets to the New Zealand v Ireland and South Africa v England Super Eight stage matches at Trent Bridge on Thursday 11 June 2009.

The summer’s most eagerly anticipated cricket tournament has now spun into action and the next couple of weeks sees 12 international teams in the men's tournament and eight teams in the women's competition go head to head at three of the UK’s most famous cricket grounds – Lords, the Oval and Trent Bridge.

With a world class line up including England, Australia, India and South Africa the tournament is guaranteed to knock you for six. For more information on Reebok cricket go to www.Reebok.com

For your chance to be one of the four lucky readers who will each win a pair of tickets to Trent Bridge, simply answer the question below correctly by noon on Wednesday 10 June. Please include your phone number so we can contact you on Wednesday afternoon if you are a winner. Tickets will be sent overnight by next day delivery.

Qadir steps down as chief selector

2009-06-08T10:35:00.000-07:00

Abdul Qadir has resigned as Pakistan's chief selector, barely six months into his stint. The move comes the morning after a dispiriting defeat to England in the ICC World Twenty20 in England, but it is believed that was not the spur for the decision.

"Abdul Qadir has handed in his resignation to the chairman of the board and it has been accepted," Salim Altaf, chief operating officer PCB, told Cricinfo. "No reason has been given to us by Qadir."

Wasim Bari, the board's HR head, also confirmed that no reason had been provided by Qadir. "All we know is that he handed in his resignation and it was accepted," he said. The status of the other members of the three-man selection committee, ex-Test cricketers Salim Jaffer and Shoaib Mohammad, is for the moment unaffected. "Only Qadir has handed in his notice," Bari said.

Cricinfo understands, however, that differences had arisen between the chairman of the board, Ijaz Butt, and Qadir. In particular, a recent selection committee meeting in Lahore to pick Pakistan's A squad for their tour to Australia is said to have been pivotal in Qadir's eventual decision.

During the meeting, it is believed Butt and Qadir developed differences over the squad's composition. One source said that Qadir had been irked by Butt's less than tactful dealings with him and was disturbed by interference in selection matters. Butt is said to have taken serious objection to some of the selections in the squad.

Qadir's tenure may have been short on time, but it was not short on news. A unique thinker on the game and a straight talker, Qadir was increasingly a voracious media's dream. Soon after the squad for the Twenty20 World Cup was finalised, Qadir publicly expressed his concerns over the composition, in particular Saeed Ajmal's inclusion. The selection of Shahzaib Hasan - though not opposed at the time - also did not go down well with Qadir.

Soon after he was appointed, his ideas on how Pakistan would warm up for the Sri Lanka series in January - with a series of practice matches among themselves instead of domestic cricket - also attracted the public ire of PCB officials.

His relationship with Younis Khan, Pakistan's captain, began rockily but is said to have improved over the months. The deterioration in his relationship with Butt, however, appears to have been more critical, leaving Pakistan looking for its fourth chief selector since the 2007 World Cup.

Surprise eliminations will spoil the Twenty20 Cup

2009-06-08T10:33:00.000-07:00

As I write this on Monday afternoon, I sense the possibility of high-powered teams Australia and England being eliminated from the World Twenty20 Cup.

Netherlands dropped the first bombshell, defeating the in-form home team, England, at Lord’s barely four hours after the official opening of ICC World Twenty20.

England fought back by defeating Pakistan on Sunday. If Netherlands upsets Pakistan, then England will be in Super-8.

But lightening does not strike twice.

If Pakistan wins, as per expectations, then there will be three teams with two points each. And it will hang on net run-rates.

The defeat of Australia by the West Indies on Saturday was not exactly an upset but the thrashing was. The way the Windies’ skipper Chris Gayle toyed with the Aussie bowlers is a cause for concern.

On Monday, Ricky Ponting’s men play Sri Lanka, a strong team in any form of the game but particularly brutal in Twenty20s.

A loss to Sri Lanka would mean the virtual end of Australia in the World Twenty20.

Even a win against Sri Lanka does not guarantee the Aussies an entry in the Super-8 stage. Then it will depend on the Sri Lanka–West Indies clash and will come down, again, to net run-rates.

Too many ifs and buts.

The system is at fault. Three teams in one group can lead to surprise eliminations. One shock defeat and a strong team is left gasping for breath.

There is hardly an escape route.

I suggest that in the future World Twenty20, there should be three groups of four teams each, rather than four groups of three teams each.

Then a shock loss can be compensated as there are two more matches to play and just not one more.

The current system (only three teams in a group) can result in the ‘sudden death’ of strong teams like Australia and England.

ICC, please take note of these suggestions for the future. Especially in Twenty20 cricket, where a minnow has more chances of swallowing a shark than in a three or five day match.

Bangladesh eye India upset

2009-06-05T08:25:00.000-07:00

Bangladesh will look to repeat the success they enjoyed against India in the 2007 World Cup when the two sides lock horns in the ICC World Twenty20 at Trent Bridge, Nottingham on Saturday.
On that occasion the Tigers forced their mighty opponents into submission at the preliminary round of the showcase event in Trinidad. And the very nature of cricket's newest format suggests Bangladesh could spring another surprise as West Indies found out to their peril at the New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg.
However, the India side of 2009 may prove a hard nut to crack as the most of their players are battle-hardened having come through a tough Indian Premier League. But Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful and vice-captain Mashrafee Bin Mortaza, who both spent much of their time on sidelines for their respective sides in the IPL, will want more than ever to trip India up as they bid to confirm a Super Eight place before Bangladesh play Ireland two days later.
Having arrived in England early, Ashraful and company played five warm-up matches, of which they went down to Australia, Sri Lanka and New Zealand but not before showing their spirited displays that must have lifted their confidence.
"We need to play to our potential and if we do that, we can surprise a lot of teams," said the Bangladesh skipper.
Bangladesh reached the Super Eights of the inaugural World Twenty20 in South Africa in 2007 after scoring a surprise win over the West Indies, and Ashraful hoped his team can do it again.
"Reaching the Super Eights is our first goal," he said. "But we are not looking that far yet. We are just gearing for the India game."
To repeat the Trinidad feat, the team management will definitely bank on top order -- Tamim Iqbal, Junaed Siddique, Ashraful and Shakib Al Hasan -- whose run rate in the first six overs (power-play), is higher than India, even Sri Lanka and Pakistan.
Left-handed opener Tamim, whose 51 off 53 deliveries in Trinidad set up the run chase on way to beat India, will again no doubt have to show the way with his stylish destroying approach, but he must need to be careful of staying long at the middle.
Tamim was also aware of it and wanted to do something in the tournament.
"I'm getting the starts but I need to go on and continue my innings longer," Tamim was quoted as saying by Reuters. "I'm feeling confident and if I can bat for 15 overs against India I know it will be good for our team."
The Twenty20 generally follows go all out from the beginning or keep wickets in hand and launch an attack at the end and Bangladesh's approach suggests the first one with its nature and if Bangladesh opening duo can perform accordingly, then something can be achieved against India.
Apart from them, down the order Ashraful and Shakib will be in main focus before Mahmudullah Riad, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mashrafee Bin Mortaza come in to the middle.
On the other hand, India have been sweating on the fitness of their key players hard-hitting opener Virender Sehwag and pacer Zaheer Khan, both suffering from shoulder injuries, and may miss Saturday's match and Bangladesh should avail the opportunity.
However, the likes Gautam Gambhir, Yuvaraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Suresh Raina and Yousuf Pathan are good enough for Bangladesh although the Indian captain seemed worried over his bowling attack, which could not do well in the beginning as well as at the end.
Rohit Sharma, who came in for Sehwag to blaze a 53-ball 80 in a warm-up match on way to India's nine-wicket win over Pakistan, proved a point that the absence of Sehwag would not affect them much.
After the match against Pakistan, Indian captain Dhoni hinted that he would likely to play two specialist spinners, who are considered to play vital roles in the tournament.

Gayle relishing Twenty20 showpiece

2009-06-05T08:24:00.000-07:00

Chris Gayle believes the second World Twenty20 tournament is the ideal stage for up-and-coming players to showcase their worth.
West Indies captain Gayle, who recently caused a stir by revealing a preference for 20-over cricket over more traditional forms of the game, is excited by the exposure of the second global gathering in England this month.
"It's a huge thing," said Gayle. "It's good for players to be able to make a name for themselves in this format of the game. You never know what the future might hold for them."
West Indies are in the toughest of all groups and take on Australia on Saturday at the Oval as well as Sri Lanka.
Gayle's hundred against South Africa two years ago remains the only one in Twenty20's short international history and he will be employing his usual method of brute force rather than adopting any of the trendy flicks and sweeps of his contemporaries.
"The only extra option for my game is to try to pick up more singles," Gayle said. "I am not too much into the fancy strokes.
"I try to stick to my strength, which is power: once I get it right I will clear the boundary, so I have to back myself in certain situations.
"I am an attacking person, and hopefully that can bring a lot of joy and smiling in the crowd.
"The environment is brilliant when Twenty20 is going on. When Test match cricket is going on it is a bit more laid back and quiet."
Gayle sat out the warm-up thrashing by England in midweek after blitzing seven sixes in an unbeaten 88 against Scotland - and will return to lead a team including fellow Indian Premier League players Dwayne Bravo and Fidel Edwards.

Sehwag set to miss World T20 opener

2009-06-05T08:21:00.000-07:00

Vice-captain Virender Sehwag looks set to miss India's opening encounter of the ICC World Twenty20 against Bangladesh at Trent Bridge, Nottingham, on Saturday.
Coach Gary Kirsten made it clear that while Zaheer Khan showed signs of improved fitness after a good session in the nets, the dashing opener could miss the match because of an old injury.
"No decisions have been made. Zaheer is looking good though and Virender is still doubtful. No final decisions have been made yet and we are going to give the guys the last possible opportunity to get fit when play starts at 5.30 tomorrow [2200 IST, Saturday]; but it is looking good from Zaheer's point of view," Kirsten said on Friday.
Sehwag came to the ground on for practice on Friday, but after a light warm-up did not take part in the batting session. Both he and Zaheer picked shoulder injuries during last month's IPL and are looking to regain full fitness ahead of the Super Eights stage of the tournament.
"He [Sehwag] has got a Grade 1 tear in his shoulder... and I don't know if that has been projected in the media. So it isn't that the injury doesn't exist. It started in the IPL and we are monitoring that.
"It is a type of injury that we can't make a decision on yet. He has had injections and we will see how he responds to that and take a decision from there.
"So it is still open with regards to Viru at this moment," India's coach added.
Asked why India took a gamble by including a half-fit Sehwag and Zaheer in the squad, Kirsten replied: "He [Sehwag] was picked in the squad and then he got this injury... and we felt that this injury was not serious to miss the whole tournament. If a player of the calibre of Virender Sehwag can be available for any part of the tournament we want to keep him there."

Kumble to start new innings with ESPN STAR Sports

2009-06-05T08:19:00.000-07:00

Former India Test captain Anil Kumble will join his former teammate Sourav Ganguly behind the microphone as an expert analyst for ESPN Star Sports in the ICC World Twenty20 which begins in England today.The ace Indian spinner, who retired from international cricket after carving his name on 619 Test wickets in a career spanning 17 years, will join the ESPN STAR Sports commentary panel which also includes Ian Chappell, Ian Bishop, Wasim Akram, Sanjay Manjrekar, Harsha Bhogle and Nasser Hussain.
"I have always wanted to contribute to the game of cricket whether on or off the field. My association with ESPN STAR Sports poses an interesting challenge for me as I have never tried serious analysis before," Anil Kumble said.
"The T20 format does not leave much of a breathing space for both the player as well as the viewer as the match situation changes really fast. This fast format will surely open up many facets and nuances for the TV expert which I am sure will prove to be an enjoyable experience," he added.
The announcement comes close on the heels of the signing of former skipper Ganguly on Wednesday.
"Anil is one of the greatest spin bowlers of all time. He has recently hung up his boots but the wealth of experience in handling all the great batsmen of the last two decades will surely come in handy when he is behind the mike," said RC Venkateish, Managing Director of ESPN STAR Sports.

Kumble to don a new role as commentator

2009-06-05T08:18:00.000-07:00

Former India cricket skipper Anil Kumble, like his team mate Sourav Ganguly, will start a new innings as a commentator and will make his debut with the Twenty20 World Cup.
Both Kumble and Ganguly will be part of ESPN STAR Sports commentary team as expert analysts for the tournament.
Kumble said: “I have always wanted to contribute to the game of cricket whether on or off the field. My association with ESPN STAR Sports poses an interesting challenge for me as I have never tried serious analysis before. I am looking forward to this unique opportunity with its mouth-watering prospect of rubbing shoulders with so many greats from the game of cricket.
"The T20 format does not leave much of a breathing space for both the player as well as the viewer as the match situation changes really fast. This fast format will surely open up many facets and nuances for the TV expert which I am sure will prove to be an enjoyable experience.”
R.C. Venkateish, managing director of ESPN Software India Pvt. Ltd, said “Anil is one of the greatest spin bowlers of all time. He has recently hung up his boots but the wealth of experience in handling all the great batsmen of the last two decades will surely come in handy when he is behind the mike. His understanding of match situations as well as inputs on bowling psychology will give a definitive edge to the illustrious roster of experts for the tournament.”
Besides Ganguly and Kumble, the panel will also have Wasim Akram, Sanjay Manjrekar, Alan Wilkins, Harsha Bhogle, Nasser Hussain, David Lloyd, Ian Chappell, Simon Doull, Kepler Wessels, Ian Bishop, Ranil Abeynaike and Athar Ali Khan.

White 'shocked' at late call-up

2009-06-05T08:17:00.000-07:00

A series of late-night and early-morning telephone calls didn't leave too many smiling faces among the Cricket Australia hierarchy over the past two days. But the one man to profit from Andrew Symonds' latest blunder was Cameron White, who was named as his replacement for the ICC World Twenty20 and flies out for London on Friday night.
"Obviously a bit of a shock to get a call this morning," White said in Melbourne on Friday. "It's been a bit of a rush since then, packing a few bags and things like that. What's happened has happened. It's pretty disappointing for the team and Andrew as a person and a mate. Hopefully we can move on."
White edged out his Victoria team-mate Brad Hodge for the late call-up but it could yet be a whirlwind trip. He will barely have time to make it through customs and to the Oval for Australia's first match against West Indies and, if Australia should fail to progress past the group stage, he could be on a plane home as early as Tuesday.
"I arrive in the country about an hour before the first game, so it'll be interesting if I get a call-up there," he said. "I feel as though I'm ready to play so if I get the opportunity hopefully I can make the most of it.
"Coming from the IPL, I didn't play much there but I had a good chance to train with some of the best players going around. I've done a fair bit over the last couple of weeks so I feel as though I'm ready to play."
White began training with the Victoria squad this week and was planning to relax with a few games of golf and as an AFL spectator over the next fortnight. He had already put behind him the disappointment of slipping out of Australia's squad over the past couple of months.
He was part of the limited-overs group in South Africa in March but was overlooked for Australia's series against Pakistan in the UAE and most disheartening was being omitted from the ICC World Twenty20 squad. White made his name as one of the world's best players in the shortest format in 2006 when he blasted a then-record 55-ball century for Somerset.
"I always thought I was around the mark with the Twenty20 stuff," he said. "I was always hopeful of originally getting picked in this squad when it was first announced. I was a little bit disappointed but you move on. I've moved on and hopefully I get another opportunity."

White replaces Symonds in Australia T20 squad

2009-06-05T08:16:00.000-07:00

The International Cricket Council's technical committee allowed Australia to replace Andrew Symonds with Cameron White in their squad for the Twenty20 World Cup.All-rounder Symonds was yesterday sent back home after he was found to have been involved in an alcohol related problem, putting a question mark on his career.
Explosive middle-order batsman White, who was left out when the Australia squad was announced, was named as replacement and the ICC last night approved the change.
"The ICC has confirmed the event technical committee of the ICC World Twenty20 2009 has approved Cameron White as a replacement player for Andrew Symonds in Australia's squad for the tournament," an ICC release stated.
"The committee decided that given the particular circumstances of this case it would grant Cricket Australia the right to replace Symonds in the squad," it read.
The 25-year-old White has played seven Twenty20 internationals for Australia so far, scoring 152 runs at an average of 38.
Australia face the West Indies in their World Twenty20 opener at the Oval tomorrow.

Andrew Symonds sent home from World Twenty20

2009-06-05T08:14:00.001-07:00

Andrew Symonds will be sent home from the World Twenty20 after alcohol-related breaches of Australian team rules, with Cameron White, the Victoria all-rounder, being called up to replace him.
"He [Symonds] will come home this evening," James Sutherland, the chief executive of Cricket Australia, said. "The decision has been made due to Andrew, over the last 24-48 hours, breaking a number of team rules.
"In isolation the breaches that I am talking about are not serious, but in the scheme of things, in the scheme of history, they are enough for it to be the final straw.
"I am disappointed in Andrew and also disappointed for Andrew."
"It's alcohol related and other issues related to team rules," Sutherland added. "It's about Cricket Australia taking responsibility for its employees.
"We understand Andrew has had his share of issues and it's a constant balancing act but today it has tipped too far."
Sutherland added: "The decision was made by the Cricket Australia board tonight following recommendation from management.
"The recommendation from management was made following recommendation from the leadership group, who were unanimous in recommending this course of action."
"We will continue to support Andrew in his rehabilitation and whatever other support he needs from us," he added. Australia will now seek to call a replacement player into their 15-man squad for the World Twenty 20.
"We'll go through the appropriate course of action with the ICC. One would hope the ICC would look favourably on our application," said Sutherland.
Four years ago Symonds was banned from the Australia team for two matches for turning up for a one-day international against Bangladesh in Cardiff drunk. The team went on to suffer a shock defeat.
Symonds' career hit the crossroads again just over nine months ago when he was sent home from Darwin for going fishing instead of attending a team meeting. After missing the October tour of India, Symonds was recalled to the Australia team for the Test series against New Zealand but again found himself in hot water after an altercation with a fan at a Brisbane pub.
Cleared of any wrongdoing in that instance, Symonds missed the latter stages of the Australian summer with a knee injury that required surgery and, while he was on the comeback trail, he was again disciplined by CA. He was then reprimanded for hurling drink-fuelled abuse at Brendon McCullum, the New Zealand wicketkeeper, in a radio interview.
Symonds was left out of Australia's Ashes squad last month, a decision endorsed by Ricky Ponting, the captain.

Team India Faces Injury Problems ahead of ICC T20 World Cup

2009-06-05T08:13:00.001-07:00

Injuries to aggressive opening batsman Virender Sehwag and pace spearhead Zaheer Khan has left Indian team skipper M S Dhoni worried ahead of T20 World Cup that gets underway on Friday.
Speaking to reporters, Dhoni said he was unsure when Sehwag would be fit enough to play.
However, he expected the explosive opener to be in the side for team's second match of the tournament against Ireland on June 10.
Sehwag and Zaheer returning to the playing 11 is also likely to affect team's winning combination.
Rohit Sharma who replaced Sehwag and Praveen Kumar who led Indian bowling attack in Zaheer's absence during two practice matches, gave good performance in the games.
Besides, reports of tiff between Dhoni and Sehwag are haunting defending champions India who clinched the inaugural competition held in South Africa in 2007.

Dhoni slams 'false and irresponsible' Indian media

2009-06-05T08:12:00.001-07:00

Rubbishing all talk of a rift between himself and Virender Sehwag [Images], India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni [Images] on Friday came out with his entire squad, including support staff, for the pre-match press conference in Nottingham ahead of the team's World T20 opener against Bangladesh, and lashed out at a "false and irresponsible" Indian media.
Dhoni said: "This message is for the people of India and Indian cricket fans from worldwide who care for the whole team. That's why we are all here.
"As we prepare for the T20 World Cup, we are a unified team. The team spirit is as good as it has ever been, with each individual supporting each other both on and off the field.
"Recent reports in the Indian media of a rift between myself and Sehwag amounts to nothing but false and irresponsible media.
"Our fans and supporters can take confidence from the wonderful unity that continues to exist in the team.
"We thank our fans for this continued support and look forward to entertaining you during this tournament which we go into well-prepared, unified as Team India and confident.
"Thank-you."
Finished, Dhoni and the entire squad stormed out of the conference, leaving the Indian media miffed.
The media immediately lodged a complaint with the ICC's [Images] Communications Officer Sami-ul-Hasan, saying that since it is an ICC event it is mandatory for the captain or a team member to address the media ahead of a match.
Hassan agreed, saying ICC rules are certainly in place, but it has no control over how teams conduct their briefing.

Rohit to replace Sehwag as opener

2009-06-05T08:10:00.000-07:00

Star batsman Virender Sehwag was on Friday ruled out of India's opening ICC World Twenty20 match against Bangladesh slated to be played on Saturday. Rohit Sharma will replace him.
The swashbuckling opener who is battling a shoulder injury, was out of the team in the two warm-up matches against New Zealand and Pakistan ahead of the tournament.
Sehwag's injury happened soon after the team's arrival in England, forcing captain MS Dhoni to gamble with the 22-year-old Sharma at the top of the order along with Gautam Gambhir.
Sharma shone in Wednesday's warm-up game against Pakistan at the Oval, masterminding India's emphatic nine-wicket win with a superb 80 off 53 balls that was studded with two sixes and six boundaries.
The youngster's 140-run opening stand with Gambhir delighted Dhoni, who said the problem of plenty was a blessing for the team.
India play Bangladesh in their opening game at Trent Bridge in Nottingham on Saturday.

Dhoni giving Viru the cold shoulder?

2009-06-05T08:09:00.000-07:00

LONDON: The team management clams up and the players have fingers on their lips. But reports about simmering tensions between Indian captain MSDhoni and ViruDhoni and vice-captain Virender Sehwag are fast threatening to undermine India’s defence of the ICC World Twenty20, which begins on Friday. ( Watch )
Blog: Why Dhoni's Men in Blue are not in pink of health
Rumour mills are abuzz that the two had an ugly faceoff during a team meeting, though it could not be independently confirmed if it was over the status of Sehwag’s shoulder injury.
Though neither protagonist is willing to come on record, Dhoni’s responses after India’s nine-wicket win in their second warm-up game against arch-rivals Pakistan were a giveaway. "I don’t want to make any comment about it," Dhoni said on his deputy’s fitness. "Maybe you should ask the physio to issue a press release."
Dhoni’s response to questions on Virender Sehwag’s shoulder injury at the media conference on Wednesday added to the rumours that all is not well in Camp India.
After Rohit Sharma’s match-winning 80 against Pakistan, and the Mumbai batsman’s second impressive innings as an opener (he had scored 36 against New Zealand in the first warm-up match), Dhoni addressed a packed and hungry media gathering.
There were a barrage of questions about Rohit continuing as an opener and the status of Sehwag’s batting position. Every question on Sehwag and his fitness or availability was treated with disdain.
"It is always good to have a problem of plenty and it gives us options for the opening slot," Dhoni said.
Sehwag had recently made statements about him not being an opening batsman and Rohit’s performance certainly does make the captain’s job a bit easier if Sehwag, on his return, is still reluctant to open. So what happens when Sehwag returns?
"It’s tough for me to comment on that. All I can say is I’m glad to have talented players who are performing in my side," Dhoni stressed.
Will the cold war mean that Sehwag has lost his place in the playing XI for good in this tourney? Wil he be a certainty in the team when he returns? "I said before, I don’t know when he will get fit. And whether he is a certainty once he gets fit, I don’t know. We’ll have to wait and see how the team is shaping up," Dhoni said. So how long will it take for Sehwag to get fit?
"It’s a bit of a gamble with injuries. Maybe he will get fit for the game against Bangladesh (June 6) or against Ireland (June 10). I’m not really sure about it," he said, advertising his disinterest.
Interestingly, Indian captains and vice-captains have always had a testy relationship, be it Kapil-Gavaskar, Azhar-Sachin or Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid.

2009 ICC WORLD TWENTY20 BETTING TIPS

2009-06-05T08:07:00.000-07:00

The big tournament gets underway tomorrow and William Hill has pulled out all the stops to make this one of the most rewarding betting opportunities of the entire summer cricket season. How's this for value? If you put a £20 wager on the outright winner of the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 you get a FREE £5 bet on England's top tournament batsman! Drop that on Ravi Bopara or Luke Wright and you're laughing!
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Currently, India have taken a drop in price and can be backed for the outright win at 11/4. South Africa have also taken a drop and carry a 3/1 price. The Aussies have lengthened from their previous listing of 9/2 and are now just a step behind at 5/1. England's price dropped dramatically with a previous listing of 13/1 after the Scotland game now switched to 8/1 alongside Pakistan, Sri Lanka and New Zealand.
West Indies were hammered yesterday and are available at 12/1- the last semi-plausible team to win. Bangladesh are listed at 40/1 with Ireland at 300/1, Netherlands and Scotland share a 500/1 price.
William Hill is also running each-way betting with 1/3 odds on places 1 and 2.
You can bet on Group winners with India being the biggest tip at 1/10 ahead of Bangladesh (7/1) and Ireland (14/1). Pakistan and England are both odds on to take their group over Holland, each carrying a 5/6 price against Holland's gargantuan 28/1. Group C has some value there with the Aussies at 5/4 to win against Sri Lanka's 7/4 and West Indies 5/2. This is the most competitive group. South Africa comes up trumps in Group D with a 1/2 price compared to New Zealand's 6/4 and Scotland's 33/1.
If you're looking for the most profitable market in the whole tournament, you've got to check out the Top Tournament Batsman betting. Graeme Smith is the current favourite with a whopping 14/1 pricetag. There aren't many chances in life to back a favourite at 14/1 so I say get in there while the getting's good if you're going to back the G-Unit.
Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag are both listed at 16/1 for top batsman while Saffer AB De Villiers sits alongside a lengthy cluster of players listed at 20/1. They include Shane Watson, Kevin Pietersen, Tillekeratne Dilshan, Ravi Bopara, Kumar Sangakkara and Rohit Sharma who had an impressive outing yesterday.
Brendon McCullum is always worth a look and at 22/1 is solid value alongside Ricky Ponting, Suresh Raina and Ross Taylor. Herschelle Gibbs, Yuvraj Singh, Jacques Kallis, Salman Butt and Chris Gayle are all sitting at 25/1 odds.
Other notables include Brad Haddin and Jesse Ryder at 28/1, Mahendra Singh Dhoni at 33/1, Luke Wright at 33/1, Shivnarine Chanderpaul at 40/1, Owais Shah and Paul Collingwood both sit at 50/1.
William Hill is offering up 1/4 odds on places 1, 2, 3 and 4.
WILLIAM HILL HAS EXCELLENT ODDS AND IN-RUN WAGERING ON THE WORLD TWENTY20!

Luke Wright and Stuart Broad set to set ICC World Twenty20 alight

2009-06-05T08:06:00.001-07:00

Cricketing sons of the borough Stuart Broad and Luke Wright could both start as England kick off their ICC World Twenty20 bid today.
Both played in the two warm-ups win against Scotland and West Indies ahead of the official curtain raiser against Holland at Lord's.Broad, who played youth cricket with Egerton Park, is almost certain to feature having established himself as an England regular in all formats of the game.Wright, from Bottesford, whose dynamic batting have propelled him up the ranks in the limited overs game, should also feature after starring in the nine-wicket victory against the West Indies. He carried his bat with an unbeaten 75 which included five sixes, three of which came off successive balls.Wright (24) lost his place in the England one-day side for the series against West Indies earlier this year, but has started the domestic season well and took his maiden five-wicket haul against Lancashire.Broad (22) will be keen to make his mark in the tournament and erase the painful memory of being hit for six sixes in one over by Indian tyro Yuvraj Singh at last year's World Twenty20 event in South Africa.England face their second group match on Sunday when they take on Pakistan at the Oval. The Super Eight stages follow from June 11 to 16 should England finish in the top two in Pool B with semi-finals taking place on June 18 and 19 ahead of the grand finale back at Lord's on Sunday, June 21.

Dutch ready to make their mark

2009-06-05T08:05:00.000-07:00

Holland captain Jeroen Smits reckons his players' lack of recognition in this country is sufficient motivation when they face hosts England in the World Twenty20's opening match on Friday.
The Dutch, who have qualified for three World Cups in a row and are one of three associate countries in this 20-over tournament, are sore that their performances on the world stage have not been recognised by an invite to play in English domestic cricket.
"Everyone is always talking about Ireland and Scotland, especially over here in England," said wicketkeeper Smits ahead of the Lord's contest. "They play in the Friends Provident Trophy and I can't find any sporting reasons why we are not in that competition."
Until 2005 Holland participated in the C & G Trophy but a revamp of the England and Wales Cricket Board's one-day competitions resulted in their departure and increased involvement for Ireland and Scotland.
"Our record is far better than both those teams over the last decade. So it must be another reason," Smits added.
"We are not really happy about it - we don't know the exact reason for that - but it gives us a bit of extra motivation.
"The ECB has decided for themselves who is playing in their competitions but we will show the ECB we can play a bit of cricket."
Smits, 36, leads some familiar faces in former Middlesex left-armer Dirk Nannes and Essex all-rounder Ryan ten Doeschate. But the majority of their side are here as amateurs, on unpaid leave from work, to take on players who earned hundreds of thousands of pounds for a few weeks at the Indian Premier League.
"It is a big commitment but we love the game, we don't make a living out of it," said Smits. "Maybe if we do well in these kind of tournaments we will."
"It is a privilege to play in this tournament. It is the reason we are playing cricket, and we are having fun, that's for sure."

Smits relishing Lord's outing

2009-06-05T08:04:00.000-07:00

Jeroen Smits fulfils a childhood dream when he leads the Netherlands into their ICC World Twenty20 clash with England at Lord’s today.
The 36-year-old was awe-struck by the famous ground when he accompanied his parents to see the Dutch national side lose to Zimbabwe in the 1986 ICC Trophy final.
“I was really impressed with the stadium, all the facilities, but I really wanted to play for the Dutch team from that point onwards,” said Smits. “My parents loved cricket, so it was a good occasion to come over - a Dutch team playing the final at Lord’s.”
The present-day Dutch have qualified for three World Cups in a row and are one of three associate countries in the 20-over tournament. However, there remains a gulf between them and England.
The vast majority of those bedecked in orange are here as amateurs, on unpaid leave from work, to take on an elite, some of whom earned hundreds of thousands of pounds for a few weeks at the Indian Premier League.
“It is a big commitment but we love the game, we don’t make a living out of it,” said Smits. “Maybe if we do well in these kind of tournaments we will.
“It is a privilege to play in this tournament. It is the reason we are playing cricket, and we are having fun, that’s for sure.”
The only sense of equality between the teams is in their International Cricket Council daily allowance hand-out of $100 - a flat rate received by all players once the

Counting on IPL exposure

2009-06-05T08:03:00.000-07:00

London: With not many Twenty20 matches under their belt, South African skipper Graeme Smith is looking to cash in on his players’ IPL experience during the ICC World Twenty20 starting here on June 5.
“Most international cricketers have not played a lot of international T20 cricket to date and the matches in the recent IPL has given them the chance to formulate new ideas and plans,” Smith said.Lot to prove
“(Jacques)Kallis probably is the player with the most to prove. He has worked out how he wants to play this form of the game and he had an excellent IPL season which means he comes into this tournament full of confidence,” Smith said.
Kallis was left out of the South African side for the inaugural edition in 2007.
Smith hopes the all-rounder will continue his form to become the mainstay of his side in the World Championship.
Stating the current South Africa team the best side he has led till the time, Smith said fusion of youth and experience has made it “Twenty20 fit” and now he is aiming nothing less than the title.
“We have an exciting squad with pace, swing and spin in the bowling department and plenty of depth in our batting. In terms of talent, flair and confidence this is the strongest team South African side that I have captained.
“We are very well balanced both in terms of youth and experience and in terms of having all our bases covered regardless of whether the conditions favour swing or spin,” he said.

Twenty20 takes centre stage

2009-06-05T08:01:00.000-07:00

Top-billing in this summer's cricket calendar is already secure with the latest instalment of England and Australia's contest for a small urn of bail remains.
But in the hype surrounding England's quest to regain the Ashes, another potentially spectacular event has been somewhat unfairly relegated to the undercard.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) may well have summer's hottest property on its hands. It just might not be the event that most would expect.
For three weeks from 5 June, the ICC World Twenty20 will see the shortest form of the game return in all its glory to its spiritual home in England.
Tournament director Steve Elworthy has spent over a year planning it down to the last detail and the former South Africa international cannot be accused of lacking ambition for his project.
"There is such hype around where Twenty20 cricket is right now, and we've seen the explosion of it since 2007," Elworthy, who also oversaw organisation and planning for the inaugural 2007 tournament in his native South Africa, told BBC Sport.
"Everything we've been doing has been to try to ensure that this is one of the great sporting tournaments."

Yuvraj's six sixes in Durban was the highlight ofthe 2007 tournament
A benchmark was set by the first World Twenty20 in South Africa with a tournament that ticked every box.
Coming off the back of an unmemorable 50-over World Cup in the West Indies (a seven-week, 51-game marathon), the new, shorter kid on the cricketing block was a revelatory breath of fresh air.
It attracted one of the biggest audiences ever outside a football World Cup or Olympic Games, along with moments that will live long in the memory: Yuvraj Singh taking Stuart Broad for six sixes in an over; Chris Gayle's blistering 57-ball 117; Sri Lanka smashing Kenya for 260 and India's thrilling last-over victory over Pakistan in the final.
The 2009 tournament will use three venues - Lord's, The Oval and Trent Bridge - allowing more freedom for player and supporter-friendly fixtures.
"There are going to be a lot more double-headers," said Elworthy.
"In South Africa there were three matches on a day, including one at 10 in the morning which makes it very difficult to fill with no school holidays and people at work.
"And we don't want the players to have to fly and then play the next day as in 2007."
As one of the most multicultural societies in the world, England should make the ideal hosts for the tournament.
"The uniqueness that England brings is that, and it's a term I've heard people use, they say every country can play in front of a home crowd, because of the diverse ethnic nature," said Elworthy.
"You've got India, who are defending champions, you've got South Africans, you've got Australians, you've got New Zealanders and all of those games are extremely well-supported.
"From a home nation support point of view, and with it being a big summer for the ECB, it would be fantastic for the event if England do well.
"But there's such support I think the event will gather its own momentum regardless of however any of the teams do."
If tickets sales of about 85% are anything to go by, the event appears to have caught the public imagination, despite prices - ranging from £20 to £90 - that are somewhat challenging current financial climate.
But with the proliferation of Twenty20 competitions across the globe - P20, England's two-tier equivalent of the successful Indian Premier League is set to start next summer - is there a danger of draining the well dry?

"When it becomes 'ugh, another Twenty20 match' that's where you've got to the point of no return," said Elworthy.
"I think there needs to be, at the end of a season, or the end of a tournament, the sense of not being able to wait until next season, not the sense of having so much of it you don't want to come back.
"It's just a case of managing that bubble and that expectation and keep the anticipation and exclusivity around it so that spectators are still hungry for it."
The immediate priority though is satisfying expectation by providing a fantastic showpiece and a major key to gauging this is what the tournament leaves in terms of legacy.
"Twenty20 is a format of the game which reaches and attracts new people to the game," explains Elworthy.
"From an ECB point of view it is vital that we attract new spectators and create a new fan-base of cricketers in the UK and hopefully, ultimately get them to play the game and keep it young and healthy."
Whilst the Ashes remains this summer's must-have cricket ticket, audiences shouldn't be fooled into turning up late for the show.
After all, there's every chance the warm-up act could steal the main attraction's thunder.

World T20 raises hopes of revival in England

2009-06-05T08:00:00.000-07:00

LONDON: June 13, 2003 to June 2009 has been a long journey indeed. Twenty20 had just saved English domestic cricket from the sport that is No.1 to 10 in Britain - football.
Stuart Robertson, who was the marketing manager of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), introduced the format to bring in new and young audience into cricket stadiums. It soon became a raging hit.
Many thought that as England had introduced the format and actually allocated some weeks for it in its domestic calendar, English cricketers would be the best and most proficient in it. But it didn’t quite turn out that way. Like One-Day Internationals, which were first played at the county level, England have turned out to be laggards at T20 too. They didn’t qualify for the semi-finals in the inaugural edition held in South Africa.
Now, with the ICC World Twenty20 coming back to its roots, there is a semblance of hope amongst the ECB and English fans that it’ll see a revival of fortunes for the hosts when it comes to their performances in the game’s shortest format. More importantly, the ECB would hope that it will revive interest in cricket, something which was a given when Andrew Flintoff turned in an inspirational all-round performance to help England win back the Ashes in 2005. But as the performances dipped, so did the interest levels.
The format pioneered by England has almost been hijacked by India. The Indian Premier League has captured the imagination of most cricket lovers and even the most grudging Englishman and ECB member would admit that Lalit Modi has won the battle of securing global eyeballs and media attention. The Twenty20 Cup, which is England’s domestic Twenty20 event, almost pales in comparison to the IPL.
And it’s not just the IPL that the ECB is competing with. IPL’s bastardised version, the Indian Cricket League (ICL), too, has been successful in taking away talent from England and other countries. For a brief period, the ICL also did enough to attract media attention from all over the cricketing globe. Now, there are already plans in place for another money-spinning league, the American Premier League (APL) and it can only erode whatever fan base the ECB has for Twenty20 cricket.
With more exciting Twenty20 cricket coming up in the form of Champions LeagueT20 (October 8 to 23 in India) and IPL chairman Lalit Modi’s adventurous claim to have two IPLs a year, one each in India and abroad, the ECB can start counting its troubles. ECB is planning a rival to the IPL called P20, which is a franchise based model involving 18 teams, from 2010. Will that bring back the interest? As P20 will compete with Twenty20 Cup, won’t it dilute the competition and format in England even further and thus reduce interest even more?
What will definitely bring back the crowds is a little bit of dynamism from Paul Collingwood’s men. If they play with the same enterprise as Kevin Pietersen and his men during their 4-0 triumph over South Africa in an ODI series and lift the trophy on June 21, it’ll be a moment of epiphany for the English.
But if the calls for ‘‘bravery’’ from Collingwood to his side aren’t paid heed to, the ICC World Twenty20 could only turn out to be an unappetising starter for what is surely the main course of the English summer, The Ashes. It seems that’s all that the locals and even the media and ex-England cricketers are waiting for.

Mahayudh: India favorite to retain ICC World Twenty20 title but can they do it?

2009-06-05T07:58:00.000-07:00

London - The ICC World Twenty20 cricket tournament is set to kick off today with India emerging as bookers' favorite.
And why not? The team boast of big hitters like Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh (who hit six sixes in a row off England's Stuart Broad in the inaugural tournament), Yusuf Pathan, Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma, who on their day, can alone take India's total beyond 180 runs, while Harbhajan Singh, Ishant Sharma, Zaheer Khan, Praveen Kumar, Irfan Pathan, R.P. Singh and Pragyan Ojha are enough to provide the fire power needed to not only restrict the opposition's total but also send them packing. And, of course, how can we forget India's "Captain Cool" M.S. Dhoni who is deadly with the bat.
However, it will not be a cakewalk for the Men in Blues and the team will be under tremendous pressure to perform because there are other solid teams too who will be looking to puncture Team India's ego.
So, can India rise up to the challenge? According to cricket pundits, complacency could become India's biggest enemy as they have been grouped with minnows Bangladesh and Ireland in the first round of the tournament.
One must not forget that the two teams proved to be more than a handful for India and Pakistan, sending the latter teams packing from the early rounds in ICC World Cup 2007 held in West Indies.
"We have to guard against complacency and be on our toes," Indian skipper M.S. Dhoni said.
"They have nothing to fear and can be very dangerous on their day. If they bat aggressively and set us a target of 180, we will come under pressure," he said.
Indeed, Bangladesh is more than capable of destroying reputations and given the unpredictable nature of Twenty20, even Ireland, Scotland and the Netherlands cannot be taken lightly.
As for the favorite tag, Dhoni brushed it off, saying every team enters the tournament as a favorite. "People think just because we have won the last event in South Africa and a lot of Indian squad members have played in the IPL, we are the favorites. But it's all on paper. It's a question of having one offday and we could be thrown out of the tournament," he said.
Agrees former India Test skipper Anil Kumble. According to Kumble, India begins as favorites but Australia and South Africa can pose a threat to India's title defence in the ICC World Twenty20

Gilly puts money on Suresh, Rohit

2009-06-05T07:57:00.000-07:00

Calcutta: Adam Gilchrist and Yuvraj Singh head an all-star cast on the first edition of the International Cricket Council Cricket World audio show which is online at the ICC’s official website from Thursday.
Gilchrist tipped Indians Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma as two of the players set to shine in the World T20. Gilchrist said: “They will be two India players of the highest quality for years to come.”
Yuvraj said he is “pretty confident” of repeating their success. “The Twenty20 format is very unpredictable and you never know what’s going to happen but the team we have is very solid and we’re confident to defend it (title),” he said.
PTI adds from Bangalore: Former India Test captain Anil Kumble Thursday offered his best wishes to the Indian team on the eve of the World Twenty20 which begins in England Friday.
“I wish the Indian team all the best for the T20 World Cup. I hope the all the players do well in England,” he said at a book launch function here.
To a query on out-of-form Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan, who suffered a shoulder injury in the second edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Kumble said: “This is no cause for worry.”

World Twenty20: Win tickets with Emirates

2009-06-05T07:54:00.000-07:00

After the successful debut of the ICC World Twenty20 in South Africa in 2007, the event makes an eagerly-anticipated return to the international stage with 12 teams set to thrill spectators at Trent Bridge, the Oval and Lord’s with some explosive, exciting cricket.
Taking part will be great cricketing nations such as Australia, Pakistan and South Africa, as well as reigning champions India and host nation England. The established cricketing countries will also be joined by emerging forces such as Ireland and Holland in what will surely be a fascinating few weeks of Twenty20 cricket.
For a chance to win, simply send your name, address and daytime/evening contact telephone numbers to sportfeedback@telegraph.co.uk (subject line 'Emirates T20 competition').
Competition closes Sunday June 7 2009 at 23.59. Competition entrants must be able to organise their own transport to and from the ground.
Emirates currently operates 98 return flights per week from the UK non-stop to Dubai offering convenient connections to an extensive global network stretching to over 100 destinations on six continents. For more information on Emirates’ sports portfolio or for more information on Emirates flights visit www.emirates.com/uk.

Transition from IPL to World T20

2009-06-05T07:51:00.000-07:00

While covering 37 days of non stop Twenty20 cricket during the hot months of April and May, I thought that the IPL has the most hectic schedule in the world. There was no breathing space between match days and we used to treasure the single header days as only single headers gave us some respite. Well, being paid to watch and comment on cricket has no parallel but then, 37 days on the trot? I always thought that the action in the IPL is pretty fast and it takes a lot to sit through 80 overs of cricket a day at a frenetic pace, even with the 7.5 minute long strategic time-out after 10 overs and a good 20 minute innings break.
The cooling period between the IPL and the World Twenty20 was as much essential for us as it was for the cricketers. All our commentators took to their methods of cooling off. Booze, bikes, babes, beaches et al. When I set off to warm up for the ICC World Twenty20, I was caught off guard. It looked like suddenly all my misconceptions were clearing up. Suddenly IPL seemed to be a lot less hectic. The pace at which the warm-up match went on, I was taken aback. I was consistently trailing by a ball or two. Initially, I thought that perhaps the cooling period has cooled me down a bit too much and my fingers will get accustomed with some exercise. But when things were not normal even after covering 8 overs, I was a bit worried. But I realized that there was nothing wrong with me when my dear friend Shirshendu was feeling the heat too.
Then it struck me, that perhaps it has got something to do with the match itself. Then it struck to me, that perhaps I should write something about this. Actually, the IPL, no matter how hectic it seems, is a slowish tournament. The general pace of the game, the goings on are not as quick as one associates Twenty20 cricket with. The proceedings are slightly relaxed. Add a 7.5 minute strategic time out to that and things become sluggish. However, this is the big stage, this is the biggest tournament Twenty20 cricket can think of. Here, there is a totally different sense of urgency amongst teams. They are always on their toes. The difference was gauged in the very first few overs of the Australia-Bangladesh warm up match. Overs were rattling through and cricket was played at a frenetic pace, the pace that is the USP of Twenty20 cricket. The fact that the Bangladeshi spinners bowl their overs very quickly may be one of the reasons why I felt so but then, I was covering the first 8 overs, only three of which were bowled by the spinners. If this was the pace for a warm up game, I wonder what will happen when the actual action begins on the 5th of this month!
Another reason why I feel that ICC World Twenty20 will give a feeling of being more fast and furious than the IPL is the duration. While the IPL seemed to go on and on for over a month, the T20 World Cup will be all over in a span of 16-17 days. It is pretty obvious that we will feel that the tournament in general is pretty fast and action packed. And as far as the pace of the matches is concerned, well only time will say that whether my perception on Day 1 of the World Twenty 20 is correct or not. But one thing is for sure, the general feel that I got from the first day, makes me like the advertisement of the tournament like even more. The tag line, "Ab shuru hoga asli Twenty20" (The real Twenty20 begins now), seems to be perfectly accurate.

The ICC World Twenty20, England, 1-21 June

2009-06-03T08:25:00.000-07:00

The adverts for the ICC World Twenty20 show an elderly MCC member sporting a Panama and the obligatory bacon-and-egg striped tie. He also has a St George cross daubed on either cheek, underneath the caption "Everybody's game". It's hogwash, of course. Cricket traditionalists hate Twenty20. It's vulgar, vacuous, dazzling and only lasts for an evening. Which of course means that everyone else loves it. Twenty20 works.

The first World Twenty20 in South Africa in 2007 was a conspicuously rare success for the ICC. Only five months earlier they had contrived to organise a World Cup in the Caribbean that was a strong contender for being the worst major sports tournament ever staged. The World Twenty20 was the perfect antidote.

Tickets were as low as £1.50 so attendances were good even for the most obscure fixtures. There were shocks - Zimbabwe beat Australia - and the organisers got their ideal final, India defeating Pakistan by five runs. The TV audience on the subcontinent made the final the 10th most-viewed sports event of 2007. No wonder they decided to stage another one just 20 months later, this time in England.

The format is, again, irritatingly contrived to ensure the biggest teams have the best chance. The 12 sides are divided into four groups of three, with the top two from each progressing to a Super Eights stage. The organisers do not like costly upsets and there's only one group in which the likely qualifiers are not already obvious - C, which includes Australia, the West Indies and Sri Lanka. The top four from the Super Eights enter the semi-finals. In all, there are 27 matches, played at just three venues - Lord's, the Oval and Trent Bridge. The eight-team Women's World Twenty20 is running simultaneously, with all pool matches at Taunton.

The World Twenty20 will be a test of the public's continuing hunger for the game. There are no £1.50 tickets this time, with prices for the final as high as £90. Still, the matches are being staged in pairs, back-to-back, so if anyone does get momentarily bored, it's no worry. Another match, another six, another wicket will be along soon enough.

Short form heroes: four to watch

Shahid Afridi, Pakistan

Oddly, Afridi, one of the most dashing players ever to have held a bat, is one of Geoff Boycott's favourite cricketers. In his first international innings he set the record for the fastest one-day century. It took just 37 balls. He has become one of the game's most exciting stars in the 13 years since.

Ellyse Perry, Australia

The England team are the current world champions, but Perry is the golden girl of women's cricket. She made her international debut in 2007, aged 16, and quickly became the pin-up of the Australian team. A tall, fast-bowling all-rounder, she also plays international football.

Mitchell Johnson, Australia

Johnson's form will shape the course of the summer, with the World Twenty20 just a warm-up to the Ashes. A left-arm fast swing bowler who recently scored his first Test century, his contribution to the Twenty20 will show England just how worried they should be.

Jesse Ryder, New Zealand

Ryder is a hellraiser who recently fell off the wagon after months of sobriety, self-imposed after he punched out a window in a nightclub toilet. His behaviour and weight are excessive, but so is his talent. He's a gifted batsman, who scored 201 against India this year.

England: who holds the Key?

England invented Twenty20 cricket so, naturally enough, are not very good at it. This time they also have the advantage of home conditions, which probably makes them especially likely to lose. In 2007 the selectors made a brave attempt to capitalise on their head-start by selecting several obscure Twenty20 specialists from the county circuit (Jeremy Snape, Chris Schofield and Darren Maddy). In the end they won just one of their five matches, beating Zimbabwe. This time they are led by Paul Collingwood and only two canny old pros have been picked, Kent's Rob Key and Essex keeper James Foster, neither of whom has played for England in four years.

The revolution by numbers

158: Most runs in an innings. Brendon McCullum, Kolkata v Bangalore, 2008

67: Most runs conceded in an innings (four overs). James Kirtley,Sussex v Essex, 2008

119m: Longest six hit in the 2007 World Twenty20. Yuvraj Singh India v Australia

260-6: Highest innings total. Sri Lanka v Kenya, 2007

4-0-14-6: Best bowling figures in an innings. Sohail Tanvir Rajasthan v Chennai, 2008

MS Dhoni dismisses fears over weary India before World Twenty20

2009-06-03T08:14:00.000-07:00

MS Dhoni, the India captain, claims his side are used to playing more Twenty20 cricket than any other country. Photograph: Anthony Devlin/PA Archive/PA Photos

Just as a team can be undercooked it is also possible to be so well done that black smoke starts billowing through the oven door. India know all about that.

Yesterday's decision by the World Twenty20 champions and favourites for this summer's jamboree to cancel their planned net session could be taken as a sign of supreme confidence before their final warm-up game against Pakistan at The Oval tomorrow night. On the other hand it could be interpreted as a need to rest the weary and the wounded.

Yuvraj Singh has food poisoning – as if to prove that something can get under his skin too – and Rohit Sharma has shown similar symptoms, although he has recovered. The fast bowler Zaheer Khan, who injured his bowling arm in the recent IPL series in South Africa, will not play today and the opening batsman, Virender Sehwag is recovering from a shoulder injury.

The players deserve sympathy for their workload, even if it has made them rich. Between them, their 15-man squad have played in 390 IPL matches in 2008 and this year and both Sachin Tendulkar and the former player Dilip Vengsarkar have warned about mental fatigue. But according to their captain, MS Dhoni: "Fatigue is part of Indian cricket. We are used to it. The plus point is that we're the most experienced side in the Twenty20 format."

However, there are concerns about their form, not least that of Dhoni himself, after pushing himself up the order, and of the openers, Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir. Their young players might also struggle against the movement of the ball in early summer and though Dhoni stresses the importance of spin bowling in Twenty20, his own twirlers will not relish bowling with cold fingers. They also lost their opening friendly against New Zealand at Trent Bridge on Monday, their fourth defeat in as many Twenty20 matches.

"When it is a Twenty20 format none of us is favourites because it is about how good you are on a particular day," says Dhoni. "But I'm reasonably satisfied. Against New Zealand we tried a few things. We wanted to bowl back of a length deliveries in the final three overs, because we have seen other teams do that. It didn't work. But we can always go back to bowling yorkers and slower balls."

The problem for India's opponents is there is so much talent in their side that two or three of them can afford to have an off day. The all-rounder Rohit Sharma was in great form in the IPL and Yusuf Pathan can be a spectacular ball striker.

Tonight's friendly match against Pakistan is a sell-out and an ICC spokesman said: "It's the most high-profile game there is even though it's not in the main body of the competition."

For Pakistan, it is more than a practice game

2009-06-03T08:13:00.000-07:00

LONDON: Just one look at the way the two captains addressed the media at Lord’s on Sunday was enough to give an indication of how they were approaching the ICC World Twenty20. While Indian skipper MS Dhoni reflected quiet confidence with every syllable that he uttered, his Pakistani counterpart Younis Khan only conveyed anxiety with his actions.

Clearly, Younis has a bigger challenge than Dhoni: he has to bring a smile on every person’s face in his troubled country by winning it this time. The Peshawar toughie, however, has more realistic goals: ‘‘It’ll be an achievement for us to finish in the top four.’’

As last year’s finalists clash in the last warm-up game at The Oval on Wednesday, there is a lot at stake, especially for Pakistan. They haven’t had any international cricket (at home) after the March 3 attacks on the Sri Lankan team outside the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. They are rusty, but also hungry, angry and focused. It’s a deadly cocktail.

Their heavy 59-run loss against South Africa at Trent Bridge on Monday would have dented their confidence somewhat, but expect them to come out all guns firing against India. Most in the Pak team and cricket board believe that it was at the behest of India that they were stripped of the 2011 World Cup co-hosting rights. Their players were barred from participating in the IPL, thanks to the 26/11 fallout and no Pak team has been invited to play in the Champions League T20 event either.

While the contests between them have always been hot, the players of all eras have got on nicely off the field. This generation is no different. Punjabi jokes (‘veg’ and ‘non-veg’) adorn their cellphone inboxes and they are circulated. But 26/11 and its after-effect has changed all that.

The World T20 seedings have been designed in such a way that India and Pakistan cannot meet before the final. So, unless the teams reproduce the performance in South Africa, Wednesday’s clash is the only Indo-Pak encounter that fans can enjoy. A win on Wednesday, even if it’s in a warm-up match, can be the beginning of Younis Khan’s endeavour to give the fans back home a reason to celebrate.

Left-handers give India edge over others in T20 WC

2009-06-03T08:12:00.000-07:00

London (PTI): Defending champions India and South Africa boast of an upper hand in the ICC World Twenty20 Championships, beginning later this week here, owing to the presence of left-handers in majority in their teams, according to statistics.

Both India and South Africa have eight left-handed specialists in their squad of 15 which leaves their right-handed brethrens in the minority.

History shows that left-handed cricketers have unfailingly ruled the roost in this treacherous format, be it the Indian Premier League (IPL) or the first edition of the ICC World Twenty20 in 2007.

The recent IPL was topped by Matthew Hayden (572 runs) and Adam Gilchrist (495) with Suresh Raina (434) at number four, not much behind to AB de Villiers (465).

As for bowling, RP Singh (23 wickets), Ashish Nehra (19) and Pragyan Ojha (18) took three spots among the top five bowlers.

The first IPL, if anything, was still more startling. The first three toppers were all left-handers: Stuart Marsh (616), Gautam Gambhir (534) and Sanath Jayasuirya (514) all proved the scourge of bowlers.

Pakistan's Sohail Tanvir (22 wickets) was the leading wicket-taker of the inaugural IPL.

All eyes on New Zealand's new crop

2009-06-03T08:11:00.000-07:00

First, the good news. The shorter the format the more competitive New Zealand become. Despite slumping to eighth on the Test rankings they have been World Cup semi-finalists in two of the past three tournaments and matched that achievement at the inaugural World Twenty20, where they were denied a place in the decider by Pakistan.

Now the bad news. Their leading performers two years ago included Craig McMillan, Shane Bond and Mark Gillespie, none of whom are there this time around. But there is an upside: since 2007 they have added a couple of more than handy names to their team with Jesse Ryder and Martin Guptill proving dangerous at international level.

And the other plus is that New Zealand have found themselves in a group with Scotland, meaning along with South Africa they should have no trouble progressing past the opening stage. Then things become less clear-cut. Will a few powerful hitters and an economical A-grade slow-bowler be enough for them to move past more imposing line-ups? Only time will tell. But it's a fool who writes off New Zealand when the 50- or 20-over tournaments arrive.

Strengths

Crafty, high-quality spin is a major weapon in Twenty20 and slow bowlers don't come any cannier than Daniel Vettori. New Zealand can all but guarantee that he will deliver four thrifty overs each match; he has done that in every one of his 14 Twenty20 internationals and the most he has ever gone for is 6.75 an over. Of men who have played ten Twenty20s for their country, only Umar Gul has a better economy rate than Vettori's 5.35.

Weaknesses

While Vettori contains at one end, the fast men will be required to keep things tight at the other. And that is New Zealand's biggest challenge. Bond, Gillespie and Chris Martin did adequately in 2007 but none is in this squad. A pace attack based around the likes of Kyle Mills, Iain O'Brien, James Franklin, Ian Butler and Jacob Oram won't strike fear into many Twenty20 batting line-ups. To compensate for a lack of firepower they'll need to bowl smart - changes of pace, yorkers, cutters - or else risk an early exit.

X-factor

According to the online Wiktionary, an x-factor is that which has "unknown or unforeseeable consequences". That's pretty much how New Zealand Cricket would define Jesse Ryder. Despite having had behavioural issues in the past and being one of the big flops of the recent IPL, Ryder hasn't often let his country down with the bat. A Twenty20 strike-rate of 137.61 shows his power and if he and the equally dangerous Brendon McCullum can get their side off to a couple of quick starts, it could be the difference between an early departure and a place in the finals.

Key players

Vettori is the most important with the ball, Ryder and McCullum could destroy attacks and Oram has the ability to finish an innings in style. But it's hard to argue that any of those men are more important to New Zealand's chances than Ross Taylor. No. 4 is a key position in Twenty20. If the openers have failed he must be steady without stalling; if they have thrived he needs to maintain or increase the momentum immediately. Taylor has the game to fill that role. He had a good IPL and his barely believable 81 off 33 balls against Kolkata Knight Riders was a highlight.

Twenty20 form guide

Warm-up wins against Bangladesh and Ireland don't reveal much, although the form of Taylor and Guptill in those games was a pleasing sign. More of a positive was New Zealand winning their two most recent Twenty20s, against the reigning champions India in February. Since then it has been an up-and-down time for their squad members. Taylor thrived at Royal Challengers Bangalore, McCullum played a couple of strong innings as captain of Kolkata Knight Riders but was in the firing line as his team failed, while Ryder, Oram and Scott Styris had largely forgettable tournaments. In the meantime, Franklin has enjoyed a productive stint with Gloucestershire and O'Brien has been acclimatising with Leicestershire.

Squad: Daniel Vettori (capt), Neil Broom, Ian Butler, Brendon Diamanti, James Franklin, Martin Guptill, Brendon McCullum (wk), Nathan McCullum, Peter McGlashan (wk), Kyle Mills, Iain O'Brien, Jacob Oram, Jesse Ryder, Scott Styris, Ross Taylor.

Ganguly begins TV stint with T20 World Cup

2009-06-03T08:09:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: India's most successful captain Sourav Ganguly is set to herald the start of a new innings behind the microphone post-retirement after he was signed by ESPN STAR Sports as an expert analyst for the ICC World Twenty20, commencing in England on Saturday.

Ganguly will be part of an ESPN STAR Sports commentary panel including the likes of Ian Chappell, Ian Bishop, Wasim Akram, Sanjay Manjrekar, Harsha Bhogle and Nasser Hussain.

Ganguly, who will start his stint with the channel from the semi-final stage, said he was excited about his new role, which also comprises interacting with his former teammates.

"I look forward to interviewing my erstwhile teammates. I am very excited about my new role as the ICC World Twenty20 is the biggest event for an analyst like me and I look forward to the semi-finals and the final where I will be commencing my stint with ESS," he said.

R C Venkateish, Managing Director, ESPN Software India Pvt. Ltd. Said Ganguly's uncanny ability to read match situations made him fit for the job.

"Sourav is recognised by the cricket fraternity globally as one of the shrewdest captains in the history of the game combined with his extraordinary leadership skills his uncanny ability to read match situations gave the national team a defining edge during his tenure.

"His analysis and his understanding of the modern day game will now lend a new dimension to the overall experience in the commentary box," he added.

STAR Cricket, the 24 hours cricket channel from the ESPN STAR Sports stable, will telecast live all the 27 matches of the tournament.

World T20 raises hopes of revival in England

2009-06-03T08:06:00.000-07:00

LONDON: June 13, 2003 to June 2009 has been a long journey indeed. Twenty20 had just saved English domestic cricket from the sport that is No.1 to 10 in Britain - football.

Stuart Robertson, who was the marketing manager of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), introduced the format to bring in new and young audience into cricket stadiums. It soon became a raging hit.

Many thought that as England had introduced the format and actually allocated some weeks for it in its domestic calendar, English cricketers would be the best and most proficient in it. But it didn’t quite turn out that way. Like One-Day Internationals, which were first played at the county level, England have turned out to be laggards at T20 too. They didn’t qualify for the semi-finals in the inaugural edition held in South Africa.

Now, with the ICC World Twenty20 coming back to its roots, there is a semblance of hope amongst the ECB and English fans that it’ll see a revival of fortunes for the hosts when it comes to their performances in the game’s shortest format. More importantly, the ECB would hope that it will revive interest in cricket, something which was a given when Andrew Flintoff turned in an inspirational all-round performance to help England win back the Ashes in 2005. But as the performances dipped, so did the interest levels.

The format pioneered by England has almost been hijacked by India. The Indian Premier League has captured the imagination of most cricket lovers and even the most grudging Englishman and ECB member would admit that Lalit Modi has won the battle of securing global eyeballs and media attention. The Twenty20 Cup, which is England’s domestic Twenty20 event, almost pales in comparison to the IPL.

And it’s not just the IPL that the ECB is competing with. IPL’s bastardised version, the Indian Cricket League (ICL), too, has been successful in taking away talent from England and other countries. For a brief period, the ICL also did enough to attract media attention from all over the cricketing globe. Now, there are already plans in place for another money-spinning league, the American Premier League (APL) and it can only erode whatever fan base the ECB has for Twenty20 cricket.

With more exciting Twenty20 cricket coming up in the form of Champions League

T20 (October 8 to 23 in India) and IPL chairman Lalit Modi’s adventurous claim to have two IPLs a year, one each in India and abroad, the ECB can start counting its troubles. ECB is planning a rival to the IPL called P20, which is a franchise based model involving 18 teams, from 2010. Will that bring back the interest? As P20 will compete with Twenty20 Cup, won’t it dilute the competition and format in England even further and thus reduce interest even more?

What will definitely bring back the crowds is a little bit of dynamism from Paul Collingwood’s men. If they play with the same enterprise as Kevin Pietersen and his men during their 4-0 triumph over South Africa in an ODI series and lift the trophy on June 21, it’ll be a moment of epiphany for the English.

But if the calls for ‘‘bravery’’ from Collingwood to his side aren’t paid heed to, the ICC World Twenty20 could only turn out to be an unappetising starter for what is surely the main course of the English summer, The Ashes. It seems that’s all that the locals and even the media and ex-England cricketers are waiting for.

IPL experience will benefit India in T20 WC: Manjrekar

2009-06-03T08:03:00.000-07:00

Former Test batsman Sanjay Manjrekar feels the experience of playing high-pressure matches in the IPL will stand the Indian players in good stead during the upcoming World Twenty20 Championship commencing on June 5 in England.

''There is nothing like match practice getting into a tournament like the ICC World T20 and India have had a lot of match practice. I also believe that India are the strongest team in the competition because of individual ability of each player and experience in this form of the game. This is beacuse of the sudden surge of T20 interest in India and the IPL,'' Manjrekar wrote in his coloumn in 'espnstar.com'.

''In the last three to four years, the Indian team has changed in nature. Earlier in the 1990's, the team depended heavily on a couple of players to win matches but with the unpredictable nature of the Twenty20 format, you need more than two or 3 match winners and that is where India's strength is. Now there are at least eight players out of a 11 who can win you matches single handedly,'' he added.

With several young Indian players coming out with standout performances during the second season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Manjrekar feels Team India stand a strong chance of defending their World Twenty20 crown.

''The emergence of Suresh Raina is also vital. He wasn't as dangerous a player in the last World T20 as he is this time round.

''I get the feeling he himself has been surprised by discovery of a new facet in his batting. The big hitting,'' he stated.

''Then there is Pragyan Ojha, who is such a handy bowler to have in the side. A spinner who wants to make difference to the side by taking wickets and not just bowl his quota of overs without incident. His grown confidence has added to India's ability as a T20 team.

''Furthermore, RP Singh's performance is good news for India. His body language looked great in the IPL and with his tail up he will enjoy bowling in England,'' he added.

The 43-year-old former right-handed batsman also praised skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's leadership qualities for India's success in the shortest format of the game.

''MS Dhoni's calm leadership is also critical. We have seen how much leadership plays a part in the success of teams in the T20.

India's leadership is what also makes India a top T20 team and worth defending champions,'' Manjrekar opined.

''Because of the unique fan following of the game in India and with it the abnormal expectation, India is getting accustomed to generally handling pressure. Also having played many high profile matches and series in the recent past, This Indian team is also now more used to playing in the big matches than some of the other top teams.'' However, the former middle-order batsman sounded a word of caution, warning that the abundance of talent in the squad is no guaratee that India will emerge T20 world champions yet again.

''Finally and most importantly having raved about India's qualities as they go into defending the title does not mean that they will. From the short history of T20 we have seen so far that all decent teams have a great shot at winning,'' he warned.

''It's a high risk sport and more things are out of your control in T20 game than a 50 over game or a Test match. So because 'you have a very good team you have great shot at the title' is a logic that would apply the least here.''

Why India will win the ICC World Twenty20

2009-06-03T08:02:00.000-07:00

India are the favourites to win the ICC World Twenty20, and with good reason. They have the match-winners, strength in depth and mentality to succeed, and as holders, know what is required to go all the way.

India have some of the best Twenty20 players in their ranks. Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni and Virender Sehwag are three of the biggest hitters in world cricket, meaning they are ideally suited to the format. Sehwag’s relatively poor record in Twenty20 cricket should be corrected in England.

Gautam Gambhir, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja and Yusuf Pathan are also capable of scoring quickly in different ways, whilst the bowling is well-covered in all areas, with RP Singh and Harbhajan Singh likely to be key performers.

However, India’s main advantage over their rivals is their experience. All 15 members of their squad featured prominently in the recent Indian Premier League, meaning their techniques are well-grooved in Twenty20 cricket . The batsmen are used to the need to score quickly from the outset and the bowlers should have the necessary variations to hand.

The scale of this advantage can be measured by the number of IPL games each squad has played between them. India’s 15 players have featured in 390 IPL games over the last two years. South Africa have had 12 participants playing 190 matches and Sri Lanka 10 playing 157 matches.

The major teams with the least exposure to IPL cricket are England, with 18 matches spread between six players, and West Indies, who have had six players involved in 40 matches between them.

The pressurised, high-profile nature of the IPL is the perfect preparation for the World Twenty20, especially as it provides the participants with regular exposure to the best players in the world.

Anything can happen in Twenty20 cricket, but India have given themselves the best chance of being the ones to do it.

Team India needs to guard against complacency

2009-06-03T08:00:00.000-07:00

The Indian cricket team needs to watch out for an unfamiliar enemy in the ICC World Twenty20 2009 World Cup- complacency. They have never before entered a World Cup as clear favourites. Not even in 1987 when they were the defending champions and ultimately lost in the semis at Mumbai to the Englishmen. In fact the Indian team looks much stronger than in 2007 when they emerged champions, but had some modest players in their ranks.

On paper they look remarkable this time, with a batting line up that reads- Sehwag, Gambhir, Raina, Yuvraj, Dhoni, Rohit, Pathan and Pathan. No other team, not even Australia or South Africa, can boast of such batting firepower in this World Cup. Each of India’s top eight batsmen has the ability to clear the field by some distance, the only question being who hits the longest sixes. In that department, Yusuf Pathan is probably the winner, closely followed by Sehwag, Raina, Dhoni and Yuvraj, in no particular order!

India’s bowling looks robust too, with RP Singh having grabbed the Purple Cap in the just concluded IPL, and also having bowled the maximum number of dot-balls in that tournament. Irfan Pathan bowled superbly in the IPL too, and picked up a bagful of wickets. Ishant Sharma bowled well in the warm-up game against the Kiwis and though India lost that match by 9 runs, they can take heart from the form of their spinners too- Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha were quite impressive. If Zaheer Khan is fit, then India’s bowling would test the very best. They also have an embarrassment of riches in the batting-all rounders department, with Yusuf Pathan, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Virender Sehwag and Rohit Sharma all proving to be capable spinners of the ball.

Their fielding looks impressive too, with only a few of the bowlers being somewhat slow in the outfield. Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina are absolute dynamite in the inner circle. While the Indians garnered invaluable practice during the IPL, top players of teams like New Zealand, Sri Lanka and South Africa benefitted immensely from the event too. In fact the South Africans are second-favourites given their all round skills and the form that their batsmen are in. Their fielding is still the world’s best, even though the Kiwis and the Aussies run them close in that area. The experience of Jacques Kallis, Mark Boucher and Graeme Smith coupled with the firepower of Dale Steyn and Albie Morkel makes them a formidable line up.

The Australians are probably next in the list of likely winners. They can never be counted out as potential champions and have the ability to raise their game in World Cups. Ricky Ponting still has a point or two to prove in this format, while Michael Hussey and his brother David, along with Michael Clarke and Andrew Symonds lend them some real class in the middle order.

Sri Lanka are next, and have in Mahela Jayawardene, skipper Kumar Sangakarra and old war horse Sanath Jayasuriya, three of the most attacking batsmen in world cricket. The bowling looks a little suspect though, despite the presence of the slingy Lasith Malinga and the ever potent Muthiah Muralitharan in their ranks.

New Zealand could well be the dark horse of ICC World T-20 2009. They have always been under estimated by opposing teams and the media at major cricketing events. In Ross Taylor they have one of the finest batsmen in the world today. Brendon McCullum.

Jesse Ryder and Jacob Oram add some serious hitting-power to their batting. Daniel Vettori is not only a wily spinner but also a cool captain.

Last time’s losing finalists Pakistan are inhibited by lack of international exposure, of late. England would enjoy home advantage but are missing Freddie Flintoff. Skipper Paul Collingwood remains their best player in this format along with the mercurial Kevin Pietersen. Their bowling is their strength, with some good seamers in the side, led by Stuart Broad.

The Windies are looking below par too, as they go into the tournament. Despite having come off a Test and ODI series in England recently, and having an edge over other visiting teams in terms of the need to acclimatize to conditions, they would need some remarkable performances from Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo.

It is extremely difficult to predict anything that has to do with T-20 cricket. Nevertheless, the ICC World Twenty20 World Cup in England would be won by the team that combines a large amount of flair with confident execution of plans, and also holds its catches. Some nail-biting action is in store for sure.

ICC Twenty20 World Cup Winners Predictions

2009-06-03T07:55:00.001-07:00

ICC World Twenty20 2009 Winners - Vote Here

12 teams divided into 4 groups (each group with 3 teams) are the fixtures for ICC Twenty20 World Cup in England 2009. Following are the groups and teams under each group.

Group A – India (A1), Bangladesh (A2) and Ireland

Group B – Pakistan (B1), England (B2) and Netherlands
Group C – Australia (C1), Sri Lanka (C2) and West Indies
Group D – New Zealand (D1), South Africa (D2) and Scotland

Super 8:

Group E –A1, B2, C1 and D2

Group F – A2, B1, C2, and D1

Watch ICC World T20 Live Streaming

2009-06-03T07:47:00.000-07:00

While all cricket fans anger to enjoy ICC T20 World Cup 2009, The next ICC T20 cricket world cup live match will be aired on Star Cricket Channel a power of ESPN in England.

While DD(Doordarshan) will be shown only India’s match including semi-final and final match of T20 World cup. DD has its own clarification panel. They will present commentary in Hindi both on Star Cricket and Doordarshan. Hindi commentary will be given by Sunil Vaidya on Doordarshan.

ESPN also broadcast the warm matched which have already started. They will broadcast live all Ten warm-up matches.

It has a big group of commentators including Nasser Hussain , Wasim Akram, Alan Wilkins, Harsha Bhogle, Sanjay Manjrekar, Ian Chappell, Simon Doull, David Lloyd, Kepler Wessels, Ranil Abeynayake, Athar Ali Khan , Ian Bishop and Jeremy Coney.

While Manjrekar and Bhogle are hosted of Star Cricket TV for ‘Cricket Extra’ and will be showing before and after match show

Here are a list to TV channels broadcasting T20 world cup 2009 live:

* India — ESPN (Live) - English

* India — STAR Cricket (Live) - Hindi

* Canada — Asian Television Network -ATN (Live)

* South Africa — Supersport (Live)

* United States — DirecTV (Live)

* Australia — Fox Sports (Live)

* Australia — Nine Network

* Europe — Eurosport2 (Live)

* Middle East —Arab Digital Distribution (Live)

* New Zealand — SKY Network Television (Live)

* Pacific Islands — Fiji TV

* Pakistan — Pakistan Television Corporation - PTV (Live)

* Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation (Live)

* United Kingdom — Sky Sports (Live)

Twenty Things about the ICC World Twenty20

2009-06-03T07:37:00.000-07:00

Yep, it was those old fuddy-duddy incompetents at the ECB that invented the game – or rather, took a form of the game well known in recreational cricket and honed it and marketed it for the professionals.
It’s the ICC World Twenty20 and not the World Twenty20 or the Twenty20 World Cup… and God save anyone from the wrath of the ICC if they forget it.
Slow bowlers – we’ll see plenty, including a lot who can bowl fast but will bowl it from the back of the hand or the side of the hand or with split fingers. The day is coming when all 20 overs will be bowled by slow bowlers, some of whom may be spinners.
Look out for David Hussey wanabees. Maybe not at this ICC World Twenty20, but possibly at the next, countries will select eleven players who aim to bowl darts that deliver 4-0-25-1, field like dervishes and smack 40 off 25 balls. Eleven David Husseys is not a pleasant thought, but they are coming.
Pre-meditating cross-bat slogs to straight balls doesn’t work on English pitches and will get you out.
Fast men and slow men are both liabilities at the death. You can’t let batsmen make the length too easily (against the slow men) nor have edges fly too quickly to the boundary (against the fast men). Mr Dibbly and Mr Dobbly at 120kmh are ideal death men.
We know that the ICC Committee men like what London’s restaurants and hotels have to offer – two out of three tournament venues in the capital is a snub to a nationwide T20 fan base.
The best batsmen will come charging in at the fall of the wicket and the best bowlers will hurry back to their mark and chivvy the batsmen on. T20 is about tempo and the side that has it will win more often than not.
Boundaries will be brought in – a shame, as a boundary catch is one of cricket’s finest sights.
Yes, despite the recession, what you can see and hear is a bunch of bankers and stockbrokers still in suits, but with ties loosened, swigging champagne.
The empty seats in the Lord’s Pavilion are reserved for MCC members many of whom don’t care for this sort of thing – and no, you can’t sit there.
“From this angle it does look like a clean catch, but from the other, it didn’t”.
“The appeal system would surely have reprieved him with that thick inside edge”.
“Yuvraj, who hit England’s Stuart Broad for six sixes in one over”.
“We apologise for that audible obscenity through the stump mic”.
Twenty20 is a family game – or it was until the families saw the price of the tickets.
“Many of this crowd will have bought tickets expecting to see England play Australia”.
The women’s semi-finals and final will be played before the corresponding men’s fixtures – with England the red hot favourites!
“This one’s going to go to the wire”.
“And we’ll meet again in 2011 to see if X can defend their trophy in er… where’s it going to be?”

ICC World Cup T20 Schedule

2009-06-03T06:59:00.000-07:00

ICC 20-20 World Cup 2009 Schedules | ICC World Twenty20 2009 Time Table and Team Fixtures.

The next 20-20 world cup of 2009 to be planning in England by The International Cricket Council.

In the Last Season of T20 World Cup of 2009, India had won the same tournament.

In the upcoming season of ICC T20 World Cup 2009, 12 teams are going to participates for the tournament and all the teams are divides in the four groups as given Below :

Group A : India, Bangladesh, Ireland

Group B : Pakistan, England, Netherland

Group C : Australia, Sri Lanka, West Indies

Group D : South Africa, New Zealand, Scotland

The ICC T20 World Cup 2009 will be starts from Friday, June 5, 2009 and the first match is between the teams England and Netherlands, which are from Gruop B at London and the same match is Day night.

The same tournament ends on Sunday, June 21, 2009 with the Final match, which helds at London.

Full schedule of the T20 World cup 2009 as Under :

Date	Teams	Type	Venue
05, June 2009	England v Netherlands	D/N	London
06, June 2009	New Zealand v Scotland	Day	London
06, June 2009	Australia v West Indies	Day	London
06, June 2009	India v Bangladesh	D/N	Nottingham
07, June 2009	South Africa v Scotland	Day	London
07, June 2009	England v Pakistan	D/N	London
08, June 2009	Bangladesh v Ireland	Day	Nottingham
08, June 2009	Australia v Sri Lanka	D/N	Nottingham
09, June 2009	Pakistan v Netherlands	Day	London
09, June 2009	New Zealand v South Africa	D/N	London
10, June 2009	Sri Lanka v West Indies	Day	Nottingham
10, June 2009	India v Ireland	D/N	Nottingham
Twenty20 World Cup 2009 - Super Eight
Date	Teams	Type	Venue
11, June 2009	D1 v A2	Day	Nottingham
11, June 2009	B2 v D2	D/N	Nottingham
12, June 2009	B2 v D2	Day	London
12, June 2009	A1 v C1	D/N	London
13, June 2009	C1 v D2	Day	London
13, June 2009	D1 v B1	D/N	London
14, June 2009	A2 v C2	Day	London
14, June 2009	A1 v B2	D/N	London
15, June 2009	B2 v C1	Day	London
15, June 2009	B1 v A2	D/N	London
16, June 2009	D1 v C2	Day	Nottingham
16, June 2009	D2 v A1	D/N	Nottingham
Twenty20 World Cup 2009 - Semi Final
Date	Teams	Type	Venue
18, June 2009	1st Semi-Final	Day	Nottingham
19, June 2009	2nd Semi-Final	D/N	London
Twenty20 World Cup 2009 - Final
Date	Teams	Type	Venue
21, June 2009	Final	Day	London

Saif Ali Khan, Deepika to promote Love Aaj Kal on T20 World Cup

2009-05-29T09:12:00.000-07:00

MUMBAI: Saif Ali Khan's debut film as producer, under the banner of Illuminati Films - Love Aaj Kal, has tied up with sports channel ESPN Star Sports to promote the movie at the upcoming ICC World Twenty20 2009 cricket tournament.

The movie stars Saif and Deepika Padukone and has been directed by Imtiaz Ali (Jab We Met). The cricket tournament is slated to begin from 5 June and will culminate on 21 June with the finals. Saif and Deepika will be travelling to England, where the tournament will be held.

Speaking to Businessofcinema.com, Illuminati Films partner Dinesh Vijan says, "The film has scope for a lot of partnerships and associations, which are beneficial for both parties provided the fit is perfect and not forced. We will be promoting the film on traditional media but we are also trying to find interesting ways to market the film. For the tie-up with ESPN Star Sports, Saif and Deepika will be going for the match as soon as we finish wrapping up things here and they will be seen cheering. What's more, Saif will also be sharing the commentary box with Harsha Bhogle."

According to information available with Businessofcinema.com, the film has been made on a budget of Rs 450 million (Rs 45 crores). Love Aaj Kal is co-produced by Eros International and has been held up from being releasing due to the on-going strike spurred by the tussle between Hindi film producers and multiplexes. While there has been almost no promotional activity around new Hindi films lined up for release (except Kal Kissne Dekha), Love Aaj Kal's tie-up with T20 World Cup will set the ball rolling in terms of promotions of movies that are slated to hit screens.

If the strike ends soon, the film is likely to release by June end.

West Indies women prepare for World Championship

2009-05-29T09:09:00.000-07:00

The West Indies Women’s Cricket Team is presently preparing for ICC Women’s World T20 Tournament.

The West Indies women’s team will have a training camp in Barbados as they prepare for the International Cricket Council’s Women’s World T20 Tournament, to be played next month in England. The 10-day began on Monday and the team will be having net sessions, gym sessions, and fitness sessions under Head Coach Sherwin Campbell, as they get ready for the inaugural Women’s World T20 event.
The team leaves for England on June 4. While in England, they will have two pre-tournament warm-up matches against Pakistan and Sri Lanka before their first tournament match on June 11. The Windies girls are drawn in Group A alongside South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
The West Indies finished fifth at the ICC’s Women World Cup (50 overs) which was played in Australia in March.
SQUAD: Merissa Aguilleira (Captain), Kirbyina Alexander (Vice Captain), Shanel Daley, Deandra Dottin, Cordel Jack, Stacy-Ann King, Pamela Lavine, Debbie-Ann Lewis, Anisa Mohammed, Juliana Nero, Shakera Selman, Danielle Small, Charlene Taitt, Stafanie Taylor; Patricia Greenidge (Manager); Sherwin Campbell (Coach), Jacqueline King-Mowatt (Physiotherapist), Shannon Lashley (Fitness and Conditioning Co-ordinator)
Match schedule. Warm-up matches. Monday, June 8: vs Pakistan at Taunton Vale— 4pm. Tuesday, June 9: vs Sri Lanka at Kings College—4pm.
Tournament Matches. Thursday, June 11: vs South Africa at Taunton – noon.
Saturday, June 13: vs New Zealand at Taunton —noon. Sunday, June 14: vs Australia at Taunton—noon. Thursday, June 18: First Semi-final at Trent Bridge—1:30pm. Friday, June 19: Second Semi-final at the Oval—130 pm. Sunday, June 21: FINAL at Lord’s—10:30am.

Ramdin ready for 20/20 challenge

2009-05-29T09:07:00.002-07:00

West Indies vice-captain Denesh Ramdin says the Caribbean side will not be deterred by the tough challenges facing them at the ICC World Twenty20 tournament.

Drawn in Group C alongside the reigning World Cup champions Australia and Sri Lanka, West Indies will open against the Aussies on June 6 at The Oval and the wicket-keeper/batsman is bracing for stiff competition.

"It definitely won't be easy. Those are the two better sides in the ODI as well as in the Twenty20 formats. They have good players who on the day can do well," Ramdin said.

The 24-year-old Trinidadian declared healthy respect for their opponents but asserted that West Indies can match them if they play to their potential.

"They (Australia and Sri Lanka) have a lot of big names but we have a good team which is capable of beating anyone on a good day. I think we have a good team going into the ICC World Twenty20 with the likes of Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, along with the young players coming through, Keiron Pollard, Darren Sammy and Dwayne Bravo returning to the side," he said.

Anxious to improve

Ramdin also admitted that the Windies will be anxious to improve on their last showing in this tournament - South Africa in 2007 when they failed to make it past the group stages of the inaugural ICC World Twenty20.

"Yes, we played some good cricket in South Africa in parts but now it's about putting our all-round game into play. We need to be a lot more consistent.

"Hopefully, if the guys come together and play well, play some great cricket, I can't see why the West Indies can't win this trophy as well," he said.

Anyone's game

Ramdin said Twenty20 cricket is anyone's game on any given day.

"Everyone says it's a batters game but, at the end of the day, the bowlers need to come on and get wickets for you.

"Taking a couple of wickets means the bowler has done his job, and now a batter can go out there hit a couple of sixes and win a game for you. A brilliant catch by a fielder can also win a game for you.

"Anything can happen on any given day, it's anyone's game."

Ramnaresh Sarwan

Akram warns of fatigue factor

2009-05-29T09:07:00.001-07:00

NEW DELHI: With the ICC World T20 approaching fast, will the Indian cricket team be able to defend the title it had won two years ago in South Africa?

Keeping in view India’s consistent performance around the world since that triumph, Mahendra Singh Dhoni & Co. appear the favourite but Pakistan great Wasim Akram thinks the defending champion can be a victim of playing non-stop cricket.

“India has more experience in T20, but has been playing for the last two years since the England tour. So, there is bound to be mental fatigue as well as injuries.

“But when you are playing the World Cup, the energy comes back and this can happen (to India),” Akram said on the occasion of the unveiling of the World T20 trophy here on Tuesday.

Handling pressure

On whether India could be able to withstand the pressure of being the defending champion, Akram cited the example of Australia and said, “Some teams have the ability to enjoy pressure situations and thrive on it.”

The former Pakistan all-rounder credited it to India’s bench strength, which made it a tough side in world cricket. “India does not depend on a single player. Earlier, we used to think let’s get Sachin’s (Tendulkar) wicket and we would win. But now they are not dependent on a Sachin or a (Virender) Sehwag. They believe in themselves as a team…”

Worthy champion

Former middle order batsman Sanjay Manjrekar thought India was a strong team on paper and “a worthy defending champion.”

Comparing India’s title defence in the 1987 World Cup to that of now, Manjrekar said, “Then India was not the best, a few other teams were above it. Now it’s the best team with lots of experience in T20 cricket.”

However, considering the unpredictable nature of T20 cricket, the cricketer-turned-commentator refrained from forecasting whether India would retain the trophy.

“If it is Test cricket I will put my money on India, if it’s 50-over game I will put my money on India. But if it is T20, I will put my money in my pocket,” he said in a lighter vein.

Concern for Gambhir

Talking on individual players, Manjrekar said opener Gautam Gambhir’s form in the Indian Premier League concerned him.

“His body language was not great. It appears his confidence level is down. But Viru (Sehwag) does not look out of form,” he said.

On last year’s runner-up Pakistan, Akram said since the team had not played much cricket in recent times it would be “more hungry” for success.

“They performed well against Australia in Dubai and won the T20 match. So Pakistan has a chance,” he said.

Big ticket brands get ready to bat in T-20 World Cup

2009-05-29T09:05:00.000-07:00

Mumbai, May 28 Big ticket brands that stayed away from IPL-2 are now readying to use the ICC Twenty 20 World Cup platform. With ESPN Star Sports offering relatively cheaper ad rates compared to the recently concluded IPL-2, new advertisers are willing to splurge on the tournament. From automobile majors such as Tata Motors and Maruti to multinationals such as HP and Intel are some of the new advertisers that did not use the IPL platform, but will now be visible on the T-20 World Cup matches beginning June 5 in England.

Speaking to Business Line, Ms Jasmin Sohrabji, Managing Director of media agency OMD, said: “We are looking at the T-20 both in terms of making spot buys and building properties as well. We were not present in the IPL-2 as it was an expensive proposition. The ad rates for T-20 are obviously lower than the IPL and we have made client specific deals.”

While the ad rates being quoted by ESPN Star Sports stand at Rs 3.25 lakh for a 10-second spot, media buyers claim that the negotiated rates are going to be way below it, estimated to start at Rs 2.75 lakh. In fact, in IPL-2 itself the average rates were between Rs 3.5 lakh and Rs 4 lakh. OMD has already signed deals for its clients such as Parle Agro (Frooti and Appy), Intel, HP and Ambuja, which were absent from IPL-2.

Meanwhile, Lintas Media has also struck ad spot deals for its client Maruti, which did not use the IPL platform. Tata Motors will be using the T-20 platform for its commercial vehicle brands such as the Ace and the Magic. “The entry cost for IPL was high so most of our clients stayed away from the property. We got a good deal for T-20 as we signed the deal almost six months in advance when the rates were relatively low,” said a media planner from Lintas Media.

Advertisers on the verge of launching campaigns have also decided to use the T-20 as a platform. “Having not used the IPL this time, we have decided to take the T-20 platform because we are on the verge of launching a new campaign. We have become the associate sponsors for the matches being telecast on Doordarshan,” said Mr Akshay Mehrotra, Head, Marketing, Bajaj Allianz.

Battery major Eveready Industries also intends using the platform for its newly released campaign for its Ultima range of powerful batteries. “Our company had not been advertising for the past two years due to high costs. But now with our new campaign we will be visible on the T-20 matches,” says Mr Partha Biswas, Vice-President, Sales and Marketing, Eveready Industries.

Interestingly, the O&M-created Zoozoos for the Vodafone brand will be missing from the tournament as there would a clash with its competitor Reliance Communications which is one of the associate sponsors for the T-20 World Cup matches.

Injured Flintoff will not play ICC T20 World Cup

2009-05-29T08:57:00.000-07:00

England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff will not play in ICC T20 World Cup starting from 5th June in England.

Flintoff was unable to recover from knee injury he received while playing a match for Chennai Super Kings in Indian Premier League.

The ECB chief medical officer, Nick Peirce said that Flintoff is fastly recovering from the injury and there is no pain or swelling in his knee.

Peirce further added that Flintoff will be fit for Ashes Series to be played against Australia starting from 8th July.

Yorkshire's Adil Rashid, a batting leg-spinner will replace Flintoff in England squad for ICC T20 World Cup.

Meanwhile, it is an excellent opportunity for Rashid to prove himself in this international form of Cricket.

Saif taking Love Aaj Kal to T20 World Cup

2009-05-29T08:54:00.000-07:00

Saif Ali Khan is all set to promote his debut film as a producer, Love Aaj Kal at the coming ICC Twenty20 World Cup 2009 cricket tournament. The film, directed by Jab We Met fame Imtiaz Ali stars Saif alongside Deepika Padukone. The cricket tournament is slated to begin from 5 June and will culminate on 21 June with the finals.

Buzz up!
Our sources reveal that the lead pair of the film, Saif and Deepika will be travelling to England, where the tournament will be held and Saif will also be sharing the commentary box with Harsha Bhogle.

Love Aaj Kal is co-produced by Eros International and has been held up from being releasing due to the on-going strike spurred by the tussle between Hindi film producers and multiplexes. Love Aaj Kal's tie-up with T20 World Cup will set the ball rolling in terms of promotions of movies that are slated to hit screens. If the strike ends soon, the film is likely to release by June end.

Biren Ghose executive director of Eros International states “Basically we see that the cricket tournament is a great platform to promote our film following our last win at the World Cup. Love Aaj Kal is one of our biggest movies and we want to mount it on a large platform. We are co-producers with Saif’s Illuminati films and we also announced the title of the film recently. Since there is tremendous cache with Bollywood and sports we decided to tie up with ESPN to promote our film at the T-20 world cup. We will be unveiling the look of the film at the World Cup.”

Zaheer fitness issue

2009-05-29T08:53:00.000-07:00

Calcutta: The national selectors haven’t been told by the BCCI to pick a replacement for Zaheer Khan. Till late on Tuesday, it is therefore assumed that the pacer is fit for the World T20 in England.

Zaheer didn’t play for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL after May 3. A shoulder injury suffered during one of the matches in the tournament kept him on the sidelines.

Zaheer apart, the Team India XV has four new-ball bowlers — Irfan Pathan, Rudra Pratap Singh, Ishant Sharma and Praveen Kumar.

The Indian squad, led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, is set to depart for England on Friday to defend their title in the World T20 Championship commencing on June 5.

However, if Zaheer has to be replaced, it will be a toss-up between Laxmipathy Balaji and Munaf Patel.

Zaheer Khan in fitness race for World T20 - report

2009-05-29T08:52:00.000-07:00

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Paceman Zaheer Khan is in a race to regain fitness from a shoulder injury to play in the World Twenty20 starting on June 5, media said on Tuesday.

The 30-year-old, India's lead bowler over the last two seasons, is undergoing rehabilitation in South Africa after he was injured during the Indian Premier League.

The IPL wound up on Sunday.

"He is working with a South African doctor and an update will be issued soon by the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India)," an unnamed member of the Indian team's support staff told the Times of India.

"(But) let me tell you his recovery is on track and he is expected to play the first game," he added.

Holders India play their first game against Bangladesh on June 6.

Zaheer Khan bound for England

2009-05-29T08:51:00.000-07:00

MUMBAI, 28 MAY: Zaheer Khan (in photo), recovering from a shoulder injury, is set to leave with India's Twenty20 squad for the World Cup in England, Board of Control for Cricket in India sources said today. “The team leave here tomorrow. If there was any question about Zaheer's fitness, we would have let it be known to the media,” the sources said.
Doubts cropped up about Zaheer's availability for the world championship when he stayed back in South Africa after the Indian Premier League for medical treatment. Zaheer, who played for the Mumbai Indians, suffered an injury on his bowling shoulder while diving to stop a drive by the Bangalore Royal Challengers' Robin Uthappa in Johannesburg.
He underwent a scan that indicated "some inflammation" and the team management said the injury was not as serious as had previously been thought. But he did not take part in the Mumbai Indians' remaining matches. The left-arm pace bowler, who was not part of the squad that clinched the title in the tournament's inaugural edition two years ago in South Africa, has been India's attacking kingpin in their recent series against Sri Lanka and New Zealand.
India favourites: Kumble
Anil Kumble today said India could retain the title in the World Twenty20 Championship, saying they had the most balanced side.
“If they play to their potential, they will win again. They're a fantastic side and all the players did well in the Indian Premier League. England, New Zealand and Australia look good too. It will be a most competitive tournament,” the former India skipper said in Mumbai. Kumble dismissed fears that the Indian players would be jaded.
“The wickets in South Africa were on the slow side and I expect the wickets in England to be similar, though perhaps helping the seamers a bit more,” said India's highest wicket-taker in Test cricket. He brushed aside concern about the form slump experienced by Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir.
“Viru was back in form in the IPL semi-final and I expect Gautam Gambhir always to do well in England,” he said.

Zaheer Khan: Injury mystery continues

2009-05-29T08:49:00.000-07:00

MUMBAI: As defending champions India embark on their England sojourn for the ICC World T20, the mystery surrounding the participation of pace spearhead Zaheer Khan seems to have deepened.

The Indian left-arm-seamer suffered a left shoulder injury while playing in the IPL in South Africa on May 3 and didn’t figure in any of the games for Mumbai Indians after that. While the Board rubbished speculations of the seamer’s non-availability, things are looking increasingly curious.

None of the selectors or members of the support staff were willing to comment on the bowler’s fitness on Wednesday.

However, a key member of the World Cup bound team management said that a decision will have to be taken by Thursday.

"There will be no fitness test, but Zaheer will be physically assessed in the team hotel at some time of the day on Thursday. We will issue an update and send the report to the Board secretary. The media should know by then," he said.

If Zaheer is declared unfit, Ashish Nehra, who had such a wonderful Indian Premier League playing for Team Delhi, could replace Zaheer.

After all, Nehra is a left-armer just like Zaheer and in English conditions where the ball moves about considerably and seams a fair bit too, he could prove to be a handful.

If Nehra, who hasn’t played for India since September 2005, doesn’t find favour with the selectors, then Zaheer’s spot could go to Munaf Patel, who played in the IPL for Team Jaipur.

ICC World T20 Preview: In Rohit Sharma, Team India finds another finisher

2009-05-29T08:48:00.000-07:00

What would you do, if your team needed 21 runs of the last over? Well sometime back Yusuf Pathan would have been an instant solution for such a situation. But Team India now has another finisher in their ranks, and this significant quality makes Rohit Gurunath Sharma Dhoni's trump card for this year's T20 World Cup.

One shouldn't have been surprised of Rohit's finishing act, as it was in this very format the Mumbaikar shot into prominence.

Rohit's unbeaten 40 ball 50 against South Africa in the 2007 T20 World Cup came before his IPL blitzkriegs. The 22 year old who took on the mantle at 61/4 powered India into the semi-finals with his match-winning innings.

A gifted player, conventional in style but contemporary in approach, Rohit's highlight in this year's IPL has been his adaptability and the manner in which he has shouldered responsibility.

Rohit has shifted gears depending on the situation and the one fifty in his 16 matches elaborates the manner in which he has paced his innings.

So when he hit 32 runs in 13 balls, Rohit pulled off an improbable victory hitting 22 runs of the last over of the match. Kolkata fell victim to another annihilation act, but such has been this maverick's domination in the death that it has shifted momentum in the space of one over.

362 runs at a strike rate of over hundred with a healthy average of close to 28 only magnifies on the role the vice-captain has played coming at No.5.

While the purists believe this 22 year old has the extra half a second when he plays his shots, they would now admit that in Rohit's armory there also exists the horizontal shots as well as the long handle which he uses at will.

At 22, one can expect Rohit to be a little moody and rash at the best of times and despite his match winning capability this free spirit does get carried away.

Soon after his heroics against Kolkata, Rohit was confronted with a similar situation against Kings XI Punjab, but needlessly fell to an irresponsible shot as Chargers lost from a winning position.

This tendency has annoyed his coaches over the years, and Rohit will need to curb his aggression and approach the situation with a thinking cap as India look to defend their crown in England.

But even if Rohit has a bad outing with the bat, don't discount him out of the match. The Mumbai all-rounder is building a reputation as a bowler even as he chipped in with 11 wickets in the IPL.

A hat-trick against Mumbai Indians only means that this talent takes his bowling seriously, and he could well play the role of a game breaker as Dhoni will look to utilise the handy tweakers of Rohit and Raina in this T20 World Cup.

One area which is turning out to be Rohit's domain is the cover region within the 30 yards circle. And what's been a delight to watch is that it's a fitter Rohit Sharma, who's shown more agility adding to his lightening fast reflexes in the field.

IPL has brought to fore this impact players' hidden talent, strengths and capabilities. And every Indian would only hope that India's latest match winning sensation carries on the good work and the form into the T20 World Cup.

So watch out for Rohit who has now become an indispensable commodity in Dhoni's scheme of things for T20 world cup; and expect the Indian captain to make optimum use of his new and ever improving utility player, the phenomenon called Rohit Sharma.

Ojha wants to shine in India colours at too

2009-05-29T08:46:00.000-07:00

KOLKATA: Instrumental in Deccan Chargers' triumph in IPL season 2, left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha is now waiting to shine in India colours if given a chance in the upcoming ICC World Twenty20 to be held in England from June 5-21.

"I am not thinking much about team selection... It's not in my hands; I had a good performance in the just-concluded IPL and I am waiting for my chance. When it comes, I will grab it in both hands," Ojha said in Mumbai.

"I will like to do well for India... the way I did for my IPL team Deccan Chargers. I hope to carry on with this momentum to England."

The Hyderbad spinner joined his India teammates who will leave for England to play for the ICC World Twenty20 this afternoon.

Ojha gave credit for his overwhelming success to Team India bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad and fielding coach Robin Singh.

"They (Prasad and Robin) helped me in and out whenever I was with the team. We used to do lots and lots of practice. I'm really grateful to them," the young spinner, who is known to be in India sidelines, said.

The 22-year-old Ojha added in the same vein, "I've learnt a lot being with the Indian team. All senior players including (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni, Yuvraj (Singh), (Rahul) Dravid are very helpful. I also used to do a lot of talking with (Anil) Kumble and Harbhajan (Singh) which really worked for me."

The young spinner, who finished with 18 wickets and took the prize scalps of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid in IPL 2, said he had matured as a bowler.

"There is not much change in my bowling. Just that, I'm more confident now. I can now give that extra loop or pace with more confidence. It is helping me get wickets," he said.

On his new found aggression that was apparent in the final, the Deccan Chargers spinner said, "I never show my aggression. Maybe for the heat of that moment, I got a bit worked up in the final."

Ojha's IPL haul put him second behind Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Kumble (21) in the best Indian spinner standings.

The IPL experience, he says, will be a boon for India players to do well in England.

"Everybody had a great experience in IPL. It will help the Indians who had a great match practice in South Africa. We will be keen to defend our title... The English summer will help seamers," said the Bhubaneswar lad.

Ojha, however said they have to deal with the hectic schedule and play like a professional.

"It is going to be hectic. But we are all professional cricketers who will play for their nation. Everything comes at a price. We are doing something for the country and I don't think the hectic schedule will affect us," he said.

Asked which side would be tough to beat, Ojha said: "In T20 cricket, it's very difficult to predict. Any team can win on a given day. In IPL, Delhi DareDevils had a superb run but only to crash in the semi-finals."

India will open their campaign against Bangladesh in the second edition of the ICC World Twenty20 on June 6. The reigning champions are clubbed with Bangladesh and Ireland in Group A.

Captain cool calls for consistency

2009-05-29T08:44:00.000-07:00

MS Dhoni believes he will be leading a side most suited to T20 when they begin their ICC World T20 title defence in England.

India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni believes he will be leading a side most suited to the twenty20 format when they begin their defence of the T20 World Cup in England.

Defending champions India left for England this morning confident of returning with the trophy they won in the inaugural edition of the tournament in South Africa in 2007.

Dhoni believes his side has the most potential and has demanded that his players deliver on it.

"We are a side which really suits the T20 format," Dhoni said.

"We have specialist bowlers and the best part is we have part-timers who have bowled really well for their respective franchisees in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

"They give us plenty of options and in this format they would be crucial because you have to keep changing your game plan.

"I'm happy with the kind of side I've got and the kind of potential there is in this side.

"In this format it's also important that you play consistently well right through because things can change very quickly.

"No team can be taken for granted. Any team can win and even beat the best of sides. It demands that you play to your full potential."

India are grouped alongside Bangladesh and Ireland in Group A and are favourites to advance to the Super Eights stage.

No extra baggage

Dhoni dismissed suggestions that carrying the defending champions tag would add extra pressure on the team.

"There is no pressure on (because we are the T20 world champions)," he said.

"In this aspect the IPL has really helped because we have played more T20 games than most other players. We have the experience and the players are exposed to different scenarios while playing for their IPL teams.

"At some time or the other in the tournament, most of our players have been put under tremendous pressure. It has helped the youngsters in handling the pressure and in the T20 game its all about handling tight situations."

T20 World Cup: Team India to Leave for England

2009-05-29T08:43:00.000-07:00

May 29, 2009: Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led Team India would leave for England to participate in ICC T20 World Cup on Friday.

Defending champions India would play their first match of the world tournament against Bangladesh on June 6.

Semi-finals would be played on June 18 and June 19, while final match is scheduled to be played on June 21 at Lords.

Speaking to reporters recently, pacer Ishant Sharma expressed confidence that the Men in Blue would clinch the trophy again in England.

Another team member Irfan Pathan too echoed Ishant's sentiments.

Background

The first ICC Twenty20 World Cup was held in South Africa between September 11 and September 24, 2007.

Twelve teams, including 10 test playing nations, had participated in the 13-day-long competition.

India had clinched the trophy beating archrivals Pakistan under the leadership of M S Dhoni.

Indian Team leave for T20 World cup

2009-05-29T08:42:00.000-07:00

Mumbai: Indian Cricket team today left for England ICC World Cup Twenty20. Before leaving skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni assured cricket fans of repeating the magic.

Mahi said that his team would deliver the best.

Addressing a press conference, he said, “The team has always put in the best efforts. We will deliver our 100 percent in the tournament and hope to retain the title.”

Looking vigorously confident Dhoni said, ‘The team is in good form and IPL has surely helped us to prepare for the World Cup.'

Dhoni had full confidence on his boys which was very well seen when he talked about them. Talking of his team, Dhoni said, ‘I am confident that our fast bowlers will help the team to perform well in the tournament. The pitches in England also facilitate fast bowlers to perform.'

Dhoni is one captain who is credited to have instilled confidence in the players in the worst of the times. He said, ‘Every team has talent but the team that can handle pressure will emerge as the winner.'

The tournament will be played from June 5 to June 21. India will play its first match against Bangladesh on June 6.

Will Team India repeat its magic of winning the ICC World Cup Twenty20? Having done so in 2007, this seems to be the biggest question dogging the minds of Indian Cricket fans and bookmakers as Team India leaves for England on Friday afternoon.

This one would be really challenging for Dhoni's brigade keeping in mind the fatigue team must be undergoing due to continuous tours. The non-stop ride began in February with a full tour of New Zealand, after which the players went to South Africa for Indian Premier League. Dhoni's team returned home just for three days after IPL when they are all set to take off for England.

The officials admit that busy schedule and heavy workload is a cause of concern for the team but the team looks high in its confidence level after playing so much of international Cricket.

India has a good Twenty20 record which makes Team India the favourites in the tournament as Dhoni's boys are well-equipped to handle pressure after having huge successes in past few years.

Team India: MS Dhoni (Captain), Virendra Sehwag (Vice Captain), Gautam Gambhir, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Yusuf Pathan, Rohit Sharma, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Praveen Kumar, RP Singh, Ravindra Jadega, Pragyan Ojha and Irfan Pathan.

Yadav wishes success to Team India for T20 Championship

2009-05-29T08:41:00.000-07:00

New Delhi (PTI): Arun Yadav, Minister of State for Sports and Youth Affairs, today wished success to Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his men in their bid to retain the ICC World Twenty20 title in England.

In his message after assuming office, Mr. Yadav said the team under Dhoni has the potential to repeat their 2007 success and return with the title.

Smith eyes World T20 trophy

2009-05-29T08:40:00.000-07:00

South Africa captain Graeme Smith believes his team are in ideal shape to challenge for the World Twenty20 title.

The Proteas are the world's top-rated team in one-day internationals, and have claimed Test series victories on foreign soil against England and Australia in the past year.

Smith said: "One of the boxes we still want to tick is to win a major ICC championship and we have two chances to do that in the ICC World T20 next month and again in the ICC Champions Trophy, which will be held in South Africa at the end of September. I have been very happy with the form our players have shown in the IPL in the run-up to the World T20, and this augurs well for a good performance."

World T20 won't repeat mistakes of World Cup

2009-05-29T08:38:00.000-07:00

Steve Elworthy: 'Exclusivity is the key'

Steve Elworthy, the ICC's tournament director, believes that the allure of international competition will enable the forthcoming World Twenty20 to rise above the fears of overkill that are currently circulating in English cricket, but warned that the ECB will have missed a trick if they fail to use the three-week event to attract a new audience to the game.

Speaking to Cricinfo on the eve of the tournament, Elworthy admitted that the game's administrators had learnt their lessons from the disastrous Caribbean World Cup in 2007, and were also mindful of overloading the calendar with too many marquee events. But regardless of the hype and glamour of the recently completed Indian Premier League, he insisted that tickets for the World Twenty20 were proving extremely popular in what he described as a "unique summer" for the ECB.

"The key point with any product is the exclusivity," said Elworthy. "You want people walking away at the end of a match wanting more, you want them to say: 'I can't wait for next season because I can't wait for the next Twenty20 competition'.

"[It's true that] there've been a couple of very big competitions in a fairly short space of time, but it'll settle down. It is a massive summer of cricket for the ECB, but it's a unique summer. It doesn't happen very often to get the Ashes and a world event in the same year and hosted by the same board."

Elworthy was appointed to his role by the ECB back in January, having successfully overseen the inaugural World Twenty20 in September 2007 in his native South Africa. That tournament was won in a thrilling final by India, who chose to return to the country to stage last month's IPL, when the competition was forced overseas by the unstable political climate in the subcontinent.

"The IPL is a fantastic domestic product and its success is widely recognised," said Elworthy. "But this is nation versus nation, and everything we are doing goes back to that pride of pulling on your shirt and representing your country. What's the hook when you're watching the match? It's the fact that you want your country to do well."

According to Elworthy, the ICC is still heeding the lessons learnt at the 2007 World Cup, which featured 47 matches in 51 days, unrealistic ticket prices and some grindingly dull cricket between ill-matched teams. The original World Twenty20 took place just six months on from that event, and was an unqualified success thanks largely to a rock-bottom pricing policy that opened the gates to a whole new audience.

"Twenty20 is deemed a development product," said Elworthy. "It is for attracting new markets and new spectators and fans, who will hopefully go on to play cricket and participate. You've got to be able to get to the youth market, because what you're trying to achieve is dictated to you by your ticket price."

Tickets for the 2007 event ranged from the equivalent of £1.50 for the opening rounds to a top-tier cost of £11 for the final, and even allowing for a stronger UK economy and the knowledge of the event's popularity, those prices are considerably lower than the ones on offer in 2009. This time around, adult tickets will range from £20 at Trent Bridge to £90 at Lord's, even though Under-16s will be able to watch the final for as little as a tenner.

"You can't have an elite ticket price and expect it to be attended by loads of families and kids," said Elworthy. "The structure of our ticket prices there was one of the key successes [of the 2007 tournament]."

While South Africa proved to be an outstanding venue for both the World Twenty20 and the IPL, England has a less auspicious track record when it comes to global cricket events. The last major tournament to be staged in the country was the 1999 World Cup, which was memorable for a fizzer of an opening ceremony and a poor showing from the host nation, who were ejected from the competition in the opening round.

Elworthy, however, is adamant that cricket fans in England will flock to the event, even though the Ashes remain the dominant attraction of the summer. "Twenty20 in this country is extremely popular," he said. "Our first set of ticket allocations went out just under a year ago, and over 100,000 tickets were sold out in 48 hours. There are still tickets available, but we expect 95-98% capacity at the key double-headers, and we are well on target in terms of our goals of over 80% attendance across the entire tournament."

"All the venues have been supportive," he added. "Our ticketing strategy didn't want to alienate the current markets and clientele that the venues have, but we wanted to reach new audiences and get new faces to the ground. All the dug-outs and DJ boxes and dance podiums, those have become part of the Twenty20 brand, and they'll be delivered at all these venues."

Saheba to officiate in World T20

2009-05-29T08:37:00.000-07:00

Calcutta: Amish Saheba, an International Panel umpire of the International Cricket Council (ICC), is the sole Indian in the match officials’ list for the World T20 Cup in England.

The ICC announced the umpire and match referee appointments for warm-up matches and opening group stage of the tournament, on Thursday. Pakistan umpire Asad Rauf, along with Billy Doctrove and Rod Tucker, will officiate in India’s warm-up match against Pakistan at the Oval on June 3.

The match referees’ responsibilities throughout the meet, including men’s and women’s matches to be staged from June 11 to 16 in Taunton, will be shared between Ranjan Madugalle, Chris Broad and Alan Hurst.

Cup meeting

Calcutta: The special meeting of the World Cup 2011 co-hosts, which was scheduled for June 3 in Dubai, has been postponed to June 15 in London.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Thursday confirmed that the meeting to discuss the ongoing issues surrounding the hosting of matches of the World Cup, has been rescheduled to ensure the availability of all the parties.

Afghan board

Kabul: Afghanistan cricket took another step towards establishing itself, when president Hamid Karzai gave the go-ahead for founding of the country’s first ever national cricket board. Afghanistan received ODI status for the first time earlier this year when they finished top six in the World Cup 2011 qualifying event.

Hall of fame

Sydney: Sir Donald Bradman’s hometown will soon become the site of an International Cricket Hall of Fame. The Bradman Foundation said on Thursday that the Hall of Fame, honouring cricketing greats from Australia, England, South Africa, Pakistan, India, the West Indies and New Zealand, will open next year as an extension of the Bradman Museum at Bowral.

Razzaq release

Karachi: Abdul Razzaq has become the latest Pakistani player to be released by the Indian Cricket League, clearing the hurdle in his return to the mainstream cricket. The all-rounder has submitted the No Objection Certificate (NOC), he got from the rebel league, with the Pakistan Cricket Board.

Sachin View

Mumbai: Sachin Tendulkar acknowledged the importance of shutterbugs in a cricketer’s life in his own modest way.

“As a cricketer, I can tell you, I have seen photographers sit under the sun on a cricket field for an entire day, waiting for that one magical moment,” Sachin said.

Diljit no more

New Delhi: Former Delhi off-spinner Diljit Singh Saxena passed away on Wednesday night following a brief illness, according to Delhi and District Cricket Association officials. Saxena made his debut in 1959.

India are favourites for T20 World Cup: Kumble

2009-05-29T08:36:00.000-07:00

MUMBAI: Anil Kumble on Thursday tipped defending champions India to retain the title at the World T20 Championships, starting in England on June 5, saying they have the most balanced side and the potential to emerge winners again.

"In my opinion India have the best balanced side. If they play to their potential they will lift the Cup again. It's a fantastic side and all the players in the team showed good form in the IPL. Playing at home England are strong while New Zealand and Australia also look good. It will be a most competitive tournament", the former India skipper said.

Kumble, who launched the new Castrol Index as part of its cricket website, dismissed fears that the Indian players would be jaded after the tour of New Zealand followed immediately by the 35-day IPL in South Africa in the run-up to the World T20.

"It was known beforehand that there was just a week's gap between the two events. As an international player it's up to you to maintain your fitness," the retired leg-spin ace said when queried whether the fatigue factor, touched upon by team coach Gary Kirsten during the IPL, could be a concern.

Kumble rated the Indian bowling attack as well rounded, strong in the pace department and well supported by spinners Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha.

"In all formats having various options is good. It's especially true about the shorter format of the game," he said.

Kumble, who took over the reins of the struggling Bangalore Royal Challengers in the IPL from Kevin Pietersen of England and brought about a dramatic turn-around in the team's fortunes by leading it to the final against Deccan Chargers, said he expected wicket conditions to be similar in England.

"The wickets in South Africa were on the slower side and I expect the wickets in England too to be similar, though perhaps helping the seamers a bit more," said India's highest wicket-taker in Test cricket.

He also brushed aside concerns over the indifferent form of Delhi Daredevils and India's opening duo of Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir in the IPL ahead of the T20 event in England.

"Viru was back in form in the semi-final with a fifty and I expect Gautam Gambhir always to do well in England," he said.

Admitting that it was perhaps a bit difficult for the International Cricket Council currently to carve out a window for the IPL, Kumble was optimistic this can be done once the ongoing Future Tours Programme of the world body runs out in 2012.

"IPL is a month and a half long and it may be difficult now. May be the ICC can look into it after the FTP ends in 2012 and work out an opening," he said.

ICC T20 World Cup 09 has wider audience than IPL: Experts

2009-05-29T08:32:00.000-07:00

The Twenty20 cricket format has been a big hit and has strengthened its position further with the recently concluded IPL2. However, it was the maiden ICC T20 World Cup that set the ball rolling, and with India winning the championship, the Cup of joy runneth over. exchange4media gauges the mood of media planners regarding the forthcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2009.

T20 has national connect, but experts caution on timings

On his views on ICC T20 World Cup 2009, Mahesh Ranka, General Manager-India, Relay Worldwide, Starcom MediaVest Group, said, “I believe the timing of the game (10 pm) can affect the viewership, it has been traditionally seen that whenever India plays against any country, and especially if it is an arch rival, the ratings are bound to go up. All in all, there could be some amount of challenge in terms of ratings and if at all the viewership can retained despite the timings.”

He continued, “Indian players are divided into the eight different IPL teams and enough action happens around these teams, whereas for a country team, T20 World Cup having a national connect has wider reach of audience as compared to IPL. However, it would not be fair to compare the two – T20 and IPL – because they are two different things as both are bigger for their own reasons, and even in viewership profile there is not much difference as they have their own element of following.”

According to Manas Mishra, Country Head, Mudra Connext, “I believe the T20 World Cup 2009 should be better than the 2007 World Cup and with India as the defending champions, the enthusiasm for the game has only doubled, but viewership will only matter depending on India’s performance. Nevertheless, on the flip side, given that a lot of cricket has already been played, there is also a lot of caution on how much cricket one can take.”

He further said, “In terms of overall net reach of IPL, viewership was a little lower, and with T20 World Cup being held after IPL might benefit because there is an expectation for India to play well in international cricket.”

Sanjay Sharma, Director, Synergy, observed, “In terms of ratings, it will be on similar levels, and while T20 was very new last year, this year the expectations are very high because India is the defending champions and since most of the players have got practice in the IPL2 itself, therefore, making consumer interest a little more higher than last year. However, to sustain that viewership, India will have to perform well.”

“I feel the audience profile could be broader, however, it is the ownership of the country is far higher as there is a sense of ownership when it comes to the Indian team and, therefore, the audience profile when it comes to a national game is much broader,” he added.

The T20 World Cup 2009 is scheduled to be held from June 5-21, 2009, in England. The success of the T20 World Cup in 2007 prompted sports broadcaster ESPN-STAR Sports (ESS) to hike its ad rates by 50 per cent for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup. According to industry sources, more than 90 per cent of the inventory has been sold.

Raised expectations

India’s victory in the ICC T-20 World Cup 2007 gave rise to the popularity of the domestic T-20 tournaments, thus giving birth to the Indian Premier League in 2008. Comparing how the two tournaments fared in terms of TVRs, a recent study by TAM Media Research found that the first season of IPL raked in 102 million viewers, while IPL 2009 with the final match to spare, had accumulated 118 million viewers.

Going by the study, IPL 2008 had the highest rating of 4.81 per cent, whereas the ICC T-20 World Cup 2007 on ESPN got merely 2.35 per cent. However, matches played by India got a rating of 6 per cent (including the finals, which garnered a rating of 8.46 per cent). Looking at league matches, India’s Group and Super eight matches in the T-20 World Cup got 4.9 per cent TVR, whereas league matches in IPL 2008 got a TVR of 4.64 per cent, while the league matches in IPL 2009 garnered 3.99 per cent TVR.

ESPN-STAR Sports, ICC’s global broadcast and production partner, recently announced that the forthcoming ICC World Twenty20 would be viewed by as many as 216 countries across the world as compared to 105 countries in 2007. Star Cricket will telecast Live all the 27 matches from the ICC World Twenty20 2009. The broadcaster will also showcase Live the semi-finals and finals of the ICC Women’s World Twenty20 2009.

In a prepared statement, RC Venkateish, Managing Director, ESPN Software India Pvt Ltd, said, “ESPN-STAR Sports had set huge benchmarks in the inaugural edition of the ICC World Twenty20, and we are confident that we will raise the bar this time again as the defending champions, India take on the best of T20 talent from all over the world.”

He further said, “We have started with a bang with international syndication rights going to as many as 216 countries. This is almost double of what we achieved in the 2007 edition. Even in terms of on-air sales, we have written 80 per cent more revenue as compared to the last edition. We have signed 10 sponsors and an additional 20 corporates for spot-buys on live as well as pre-post programming.”

Australia send mixed signals on World T20

2009-05-07T11:18:00.000-07:00

SINCE he graduated to the senior ranks at the age of 17, Australian captain Ricky Ponting has played serious cricket on more than 2000 days, getting up towards six years of bat, ball and field - not to mention training, camps and commercial obligations.

But Ponting remains something of a boy in short pants at Twenty20 cricket and, at 34, goes into next month's ICC World Twenty20 still to prove his relevance at a young man's game. Ponting has played the short-form game just 35 times, 15 of them at an international level.

Australia were knocked out of the first World Twenty20 in 2007 by eventual winners India, who went with a bright young side, in contrast to Australia's elderly Test line-up. India will take that same approach to England next month, while Australia have picked almost a Test side, with NSW blazer David Warner the only genuine Twenty20 specialist, while Nathan Bracken, James Hopes and David Hussey are one-day regulars.

Sure, Brett Lee is back, but the fast bowler, himself 32 and due to bowl against Pakistan in a Twenty20 match in Dubai on Thursday, made his priorities clear last week: "If I can be totally frank, it's the Ashes first, with all due respect to other cricket, Twenty20 World Cup, the Australian tour here [in the UAE] and the IPL."

Given their preparation has most of the squad playing one-day cricket on flat tracks in Dubai and Abu Dhabi - while the world's best players are pushing boundaries of cricket's new frontier in the Indian Premier League in South Africa - questions are being asked about how seriously Australia is taking the tournament. Matches in Australia have been played in an apparent holiday atmosphere with some players rested and others miked up for in-game television interviews. In fact, outside the last tournament, Australia have never fielded the same Twenty20 team for consecutive matches, and they go in with two recent losses in South Africa.

Coach Tim Nielsen said he and the selectors made sure players knew it was important. "You can't ignore it. The game of Twenty20 cricket has taken the world by storm, hasn't it? So to be going to a world championships thinking of it as a second-rate event would be a bit silly," he said.

"Just the way the international structure is, it's difficult to get enough Twenty20 cricket. I think we can only play six, which I think is the maximum any side can schedule in a season."

In fact, the most experienced Twenty20 international is Kiwi Brendon McCullum, with 21 matches (and 50 domestic games).

Experience in the format does count for something, although Australia have caught up, suggested Brad Haddin, who will lead Australia against Pakistan.

"I think in the last World Cup guys were still feeling their way in, trying to understand Twenty20; I don't think that's the case any more. One thing you've got to remember with Twenty20 and Test cricket: the best players in the world are still the best players in the world, whatever format of the game you play."

And fine form at the World Twenty20 could have million-dollar consequences.

Ajmal`s selection not a risk, says Alam

2009-05-07T11:16:00.000-07:00

Dubai(AFP): Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam Thursday defended Saeed Ajmal`s selection for next month`s Twenty20 World Cup despite the off-spinner being reported for a suspect bowling action.

Match officials reported Ajmal for a suspected illegal bowling action after Pakistan`s second one-day against Australia in Dubai on April 24.

Ajmal will now have to undergo a biomechanical assessment of his action, at an International Cricket Council-approved facility, before the Twenty20 starts in England on June 5.

However, "Ajmal`s selection for the World Twenty20 is not a risk," Alam told AFP.

"We will send him to either Australia and England for the assessment in the next couple of days and hope he will be cleared," he said.

The 31-year-old was reported for his "doosra," a delivery equivalent to a leg-spinner`s googly, which turns in the opposite direction to an off-spin.

Ajmal`s form has slipped since he was cited, and he took just one wicket in the three remaining matches of the one-day series, which Australia won 3-2.

But Alam said Ajmal had bowled well, albeit without much success."Ajmal has not been under pressure," said Alam, himself a leg-spinner in his playing days.

"He did not take very many wickets but he bowled well and could still play a match-winning part in the World Twenty20.

"In any case, Alam said, if Ajmal was not cleared by the biomechanical assessment, he could still be replaced.

"Under the ICC process, we can replace Ajmal if, God forbid, he is not cleared but I am sure that he will play in the World Twenty20," said Alam.

Alam said he believed spinners could play a crucial role the shortest version of the game.

"There has been a conception about spinners not being useful in Twenty20 matches but it has been proved wrong in recent matches, where spinners have taken wickets besides being economical."So, Ajmal can be a match-winner," Alam said.

Pakistan is placed in Group C of the World Twenty20 event, along with England and the Netherlands.

Karen Rolton's last blast

2009-05-07T11:15:00.000-07:00

JODIE fields will be captain in-waiting of the Australian women's team after being named deputy to Karen Rolton for the Women's Twenty20 World Cup.

Rolton has announced that she will retire following the competition in England.

Australia today named a mix of younger players to replace Rolton and other experienced women set to retire in the coming year.

The 14-player Australia women’s squad is:

Sarah Andrews NSW , Age 27

Alex Blackwell NSW 25

Jessica Cameron VIC 19

Lauren Ebsary WA 26

Rene Farrell WA 22

Jodie Fields (vc) QLD 24

Shelley Nitschke SA 32

Erin Osborne NSW 19

Ellyse Perry NSW 18

Kirsten Pike QLD 24

Leah Poulton NSW 25

Karen Rolton (c) SA 34

Lisa Sthalekar NSW 29

Elyse Villani VIC 19

The Women’s National Selection Panel has named Jodie Fields as vice-captain for the ICC World Twenty20 prior to taking the captaincy for the series against England immediately after the ICC World Twenty20 tournament. Alex Blackwell will be vice captain for the series against England.

Rolton has captained the Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars since February 2006, taking over from Belinda Clark.

Women’s NSP Chair Margaret Jennings said: “There are two inclusions to the squad with Elyse Villani coming in and Kirsten Pike returning from injury which will add both youth and experience to the team. We’ve lost Emma Sampson and Leonie Coleman to retirement and Delissa Kimmince is the unlucky player to miss out on selection for this squad.

“Kirsten’s been out for 18 months and we’re looking for her previous experience to help guide us through.

“We’ve brought Elyse Villani into the squad. She is a promising young batter who plays an extremely attacking style of game and she will get an opportunity to show what she is capable of in the short form of the game.

“Karen Rolton will captain the ICC World Twenty20 team in England but has decided that it’s time to hand-over leadership to a new generation at the conclusion of the tournament.

“Jodie Fields will be vice captain for the World Twenty20 and will then take over the captaincy from Karen for the series against England in July.

“It’s a great credit to Karen and her leadership skills that she has decided to make this decision, which would not have been easy. She has provided a great opportunity for Jodie and Alex to continue building their leadership skills and she will also be there in England to support this hand-over,” Jennings said.

Rolton, who was described by CA CEO James Sutherland as a legend of the game, noted that it was a transitional period for the team and that she was looking forward to the ICC World Twenty20 and working closely with Jodie.

“I think it’s going to be good for the team. I obviously can’t play forever, but I’ll keep playing and try to help out Jodie and others in the team where ever I can,” Rolton said.

The ICC World Twenty20 in England will be the first such event for women’s cricket and Rolton said that all the players were looking forward to the experience.

“Everyone can’t wait, all the players are particularly excited about playing in a joint competition with the men’s team and hopefully having an opportunity for both teams to play in a final at Lords. This will be an outstanding achievement for Australian cricket.”

To help with preparation for the ICC World Twenty20, the Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars will play a three-match Twenty20 Series against New Zealand in Brisbane from 1 -3 June.

Rolton to step down as captain after World Twenty20

2009-05-07T11:14:00.000-07:00

Karen Rolton will step down as captain of the Australian women's team after the World Twenty20 in England this June. Jodie Fields, the vice-captain of the Twenty20 squad, will take over Rolton's leadership role for the away series against England immediately after the tournament while Alex Blackwell will be her deputy.

"Karen Rolton will captain the ICC World Twenty20 team in England but has decided that it's time to hand over leadership to a new generation at the conclusion of the tournament," Margaret Jennings, head of the women's selection panel, said.

"It's a great credit to Karen and her leadership skills that she has decided to make this decision, which would not have been easy. She has provided a great opportunity for Jodie and Alex to continue building their leadership skills and she will also be there in England to support this hand-over."

Australia made two changes to the squad for the World Twenty20, bringing in Elyse Villani and Kirsten Pike. "There are two inclusions to the squad with Elyse Villani coming in and Kirsten Pike returning from injury which will add both youth and experience to the team," Jennings said. "We've lost Emma Sampson and Leonie Coleman to retirement and Delissa Kimmince is the unlucky player to miss out on selection for this squad.

"Kirsten's been out for 18 months and we're looking for her previous experience to help guide us through. Elyse Villani is a promising young batter who plays an extremely attacking style of game and she will get an opportunity to show what she is capable of in the short form of the game."

After the World Twenty20, Australia will play five ODIs, a Twenty20 and a Test against England and their squad for the tour was the same expect for one change - Rachael Haynes replacing Elyse Villani.

"Haynes is a talented young left-hand batter who had a good National League season for Victoria and we see her as having a big future in Australian women's cricket," Jennings said. "She's also a former captain of our national under-21 team, the Commonwealth Bank Shooting Stars so she comes in with some good experience under her belt as well.

"Although our World Cup performance didn't go according to how we planned in March, one of the good things to come out of it was that we did beat England twice which will give our squad some confidence heading into the series."

Squad for World Twenty20: Karen Rolton (capt), Sarah Andrews, Alex Blackwell, Jessica Cameron, Lauren Ebsary, Rene Farrell, Jodie Fields (vc), Shelley Nitschke, Erin Orborne, Ellyse Perry, Kirsten Pike, Leah Poulton, Lisa Sthalekar, Elyse Vilani

Squad for England tour: Jodie Fields (capt), Karen Rolton, Sarah Andrews, Alex Blackwell (vc), Jessica Cameron, Lauren Ebsary, Rene Farrell, Shelley Nitschke, Erin Orborne, Ellyse Perry, Kirsten Pike, Leah Poulton, Lisa Sthalekar, Rachael Haynes.

Proteas World Cup Twenty20 squad named

2009-05-07T11:13:00.000-07:00

Johannesburg: Cricket South Africa (CSA) on Monday named their final 15-man Standard Bank Pro20 squad for the ICC World T20 to be played in England in June.

The squad consists in the main of the players who won the two Pro20 Internationals against Australia earlier this year and contains no new caps.

"Our cricket is entering an exciting period. The players are all in good form and it is particularly pleasing to have so many quality all-rounders at our disposal. As always there are a couple of unlucky players and that emphasizes the excellent competition we have for places," Sports24 quoted chief selector Mike Procter, as saying.

"I am delighted with the squad the selectors have given me. It is a team with plenty of options - great depth to the batting and plenty of bowling options. It is also an outstanding fielding unit," Coach Micky Artur said.

The squad: Graeme Smith (captain), Johan Botha (vice-captain), Yusuf Abdulla, Mark Boucher, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, Albie Morkel, Morne Morkel, Justin Ontong, Wayne Parnell, Robbie Peterson, Dale Steyn, Roelof van der Merwe.

Pak, Aus set to clash in one-off T20

2009-05-07T11:11:00.000-07:00

Pakistan and Australia face off in a one-off T20I at the Dubai Stadium to look for some practice ahead of the ICC World T20.

The game would be the only international affair before the high-profile event kicks off in England next month. Pakistan would want to make the most of it after losing the ODI series to Australia.

"We need to take full advantage so that we know where we stand. It's good to have a match against world's top team," Pakistan skipper Younus Khan said.

However, the right-handed middle order batsman felt Thursday's game will be a well-fought encounter.

"We have to be at our best to win this match because Australia are dangerous in all forms of the game," said Younus.

Pakistan have included two teenagers in their squad of 15 for the ICC World Twenty20, left-arm paceman Mohammad Aamir and spinning all-rounder Shazaib Hassan.

However, neither of them would play against Australia Thursday.

Bangladesh and Sri Lanka Announce Squads for T20 World Cup

2009-05-07T11:10:00.000-07:00

Bangladesh's chief selector Rafiqul Alam told AFP: "Shamsur has been batting tremendously in recent years. He can bat at number three which has been a weak link in our batting. He is also a brilliant fielder. Mithun also scored heavily in the leagues. He is a hard-hitting batsman and can also double up as wicketkeeper."

20 year old Rehman first turned heard when he represented Bangladesh at the under 19 level. Averaging 29, one century and ten fifties from 28 first class matches. Mithun at 19 and has played only 13 first-class games, but has impressed with a strike rate of 104.

"If you look at the side we have picked you'll find that this is a nice blend of experience and youth. This is a good fielding unit with some explosive batsmen and proven slow bowlers," Alam said about the 15 man squad that is to be led by Mohammed Ashraful.

In the inaugural season of the World T20 Bangladesh did well, making their way to the super 8. Alam believes that the team has played good cricket shown considerable improvement over the past couple of years, and he hopes that they will repeat their success in the World Cup.

Meanwhile, in the Sri Lankan team, Kumara Sangakkara is to be the captain of the team. The World T20 will be his first series as captain since he took over from Jayawardane. Sri Lanka has also picked an uncapped allrounder Isuru Udana in the final 15.

21 year old Udana has been training under Sri Lanka’s bowling coach, Anusha Samaranayake, for over two years now. Samaranayake is pleased with how the youngster’s progress and believe he has the potential to replace Chaminda Vaas. 35-year old batsman Indika de Saram and Lasith Malinga (thanks to his excellent form in the IPL) too found a spot in the squad.

Sri Lankan Squad: Kumar Sangakkara (Capt.), Muttiah Muralitharan, Sanath Jayasuriya, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Mahela Jayawardene, Chamara Silva, Angelo Mathews, Ajantha Mendis, Nuwan Kulasekara, Thilan Thushara, Lasith Malinga, Isuru Udana, Farveez Maharoof, Jehan Mubarak, Indika de Saram.

Bangladesh Squad: Mohammad Ashraful (Capt.), Mashrafe Mortaza, Tamim Iqbal, Junaid Siddique, Raqibul Hasan, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Naeem Islam, Abdur Razzak, Shahadat Hossain, Syed Rasel, Mahmudullah, Rubel Hossain, Shamsur Rahman, Mithun Ali.

Twenty20 World Cup proves a high scorer for ESPN STAR

2009-05-07T11:09:00.002-07:00

Broadcaster has already sold 90% of airtime at 45% premium. Cashing in on the popularity of the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty 20 tournament, ESPN STAR Sports has sold 90 per cent of its on-air advertising inventory for the upcoming ICC Twenty20 World Cup cricket for about Rs 225 crore and also in record time.

The broadcaster has also been able to get a premium of more than 45 per cent over what it charged last year for a 10-second spot, at Rs 3.25 lakh.

Twelve cricket teams will take part in the second edition of this tournament that will be played in England from June 5 to 21, barely 10 days after the culmination of the IPL on May 24 in South Africa.

IPL's host broadcaster Sony SET MAX is expected to make around Rs 400 crore in advertising alone in the IPL which, however, covers 36 days against the World Cup's 16 days. The broadcaster, however, had been able to sell 10-second spots at around Rs 4 lakh for the latter stages of the tournament even before it began in South Africa.

India is the defending champion of the ICC Twenty20 World Cup tournament, having won the inaugural tournament in South Africa in 2007, defeating Pakistan in the finals. Twenty-seven matches are scheduled and they will be broadcast live to India at 6 pm and 10 pm.

ESPN is said to have roped in at least 10 advertisers, including Pepsi, Hero Honda, Maruti, Visa, Hewlett Packard, Perfetti and Nokia. There are three co-presenting on-air sponsors for the World Cup, and seven associate sponsors, sources in the advertising industry said.

The last Twenty20 World Cup in 2007 saw over 90 million viewers tuning into ESPN STAR Sports.

So far, over 70 million viewers have watched the first 12 matches of IPL2 on SET MAX, about 10 per cent more than IPL1 for the same number of matches, according to an analysis of the viewership data provided by ratings agencies aMap and TAM.

According to the advertising industry sources, ESPN is cashing in on the fact that India is the defending champion of the Twenty20 World Cup. An ESPN STAR Sports spokesperson said, "The inaugural edition of the ICC T20 World Cup caught the imagination of cricket fans across the globe. We expect the second edition to do even better and the advertiser response has been very positive till date."

The first edition of this tournament had an average rating of 15 for the Indian matches, considered extremely high for any format of a television show.

Commenting on advertiser interest in the Twenty20 World Cup tournament, Anita Nayyar, CEO, Havas Media, said: "There is definitely a lot of advertiser interest in this particular format of cricket -- however, there is also apprehension owing to the Indian timings for its telecast and also because of the uncertain English weather."

In India, most of the 27 World Cup matches will begin at 10 pm. The Indian team will play a maximum of seven matches, if the team makes it to the finals. Otherwise, India can play a minimum of five matches after its two group matches on June 6 and June 10.

According to the tournament format, the 12 teams are divided into four groups, with India in "Group A" with Bangladesh and Ireland. The top six teams (the two toppers in each group) will move to the second stage of the tournament, after which the top four teams will play the semi-finals. The final is scheduled for June 21 at Lord's, London.

Hoteliers confident of a sell-out Twenty20 World Cup

2009-05-07T11:09:00.001-07:00

SALES of hotel rooms for the ICC World Twenty20 tournament in Nottingham have disappointed hoteliers.

But tourism bosses are confident a late rush will ensure the city is full, when the tournament begins at the end of this month.

Nottingham is hosting 10 matches in the men's tournament and four warm-up games at Trent Bridge.

Lord's and The Oval are the other venues.

The competition is expected to boost Nottingham's economy by more than £10m.

The organisers expect thousands of visitors to attend matches, and stay in the city.

There is also strong local interest with three Notts players, Ryan Sidebottom, Graeme Swann and Stuart Broad, in England's 15-man World ICC Twenty20 squad.

The Evening Post, in association with Trent Bridge, is giving away 400 tickets for England's warm up match against Scotland.

However, ticket agencies, which sell packages of match tickets and hotel reservations, have failed to shift as many as expected.

Edward Mopps, sales manager at the Park Inn, on Mansfield Road, said: "We have taken some bookings and we are hopeful it will pick up nearer the time. Generally cricket is good for hotels in Nottingham."

Mr Mopps said trade had been better than expected in recent months, with conferences and city breaks doing well, but much of it was last minute. Other hotels have reported slow sales to cricket fans.

There is a general frustration at what is perceived as a lack of promotion of the event by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Dale Twigger, a tourism executive at Experience Nottinghamshire, said: "It is a bit slow on the uptake but booking is often late."

Experience Nottinghamshire is sending an email to 25,000 people who have previously shown interest in Nottingham, to encourage interest in the Twenty20 event.

Mr Twigger said overall June would be a good month for city hoteliers. As well as the cricket competition, there are two major tennis tournaments and international hockey matches in Nottingham.

Whereas major test matches always sell out hotels, the tewnty20 tournament is a one-off.

But Mr Twigger said: "Trent Bridge is a good venue to watch cricket. It should do well."

The Tourist Information Centre in Nottingham is now braced for an influx of calls from cricket fans seeking accommodation.

Neil Beardsley, customer service3 coordinator, at the centre, takes calls from fans in the run up to events to help them find accommodation. He has a good track record at finding rooms for desperate supporters.

Mr Beardsley said: "I will be getting calls, I can guarantee it."

Symmo, Lee in Australia Cup squad

2009-05-07T11:08:00.001-07:00

Calcutta: Australia named injured pacer Brett Lee and all-rounder Andrew Symonds in their 15-member squad for the ICC World T20, which was announced on Tuesday. National selection panel chairman Andrew Hilditch said: “We believe we’ve got a strong squad here that, if it plays to its potential, has the ability to win the tournament.”

THE SQUAD

Ricky Ponting (captain), Michael Clarke (vice-captain), Nathan Bracken, Brad Haddin, Nathan Hauritz, Ben Hilfenhaus, James Hopes, David Hussey, Mike Hussey, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Peter Siddle, Andrew Symonds, David Warner, Shane Watson.

ESS hikes ad rates for ICC World T20 by 50pc, but all depends on India’s performance

2009-05-07T11:06:00.000-07:00

India won the inaugural ICC World T20 in the year 2007 in South Africa and is now the defending champions for T20 World Cup 2009, which is scheduled to be held on June 5-21, 2009, in England. The success of the T20 World Cup in 2007 has prompted sports broadcaster ESPN-STAR Sports (ESS) to hike its ad rates by 50 per cent for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup.

According to industry sources, more than 90 per cent of the inventory had been sold. ESS will charge over Rs 5 lakh for a 10-second spot, and is expecting revenues of over Rs 240 crore from the T20 World Cup this year. Earlier, the sports broadcaster was selling the spot for around Rs 3-3.25 lakh.

Sanjay Kailash, Executive VP (Advertising Sales and New Media), ESPN Software, said, “Though I cannot talk specifics, we are indeed selling the balance inventory at a premium; we feel that the event demands such a premium, given the popularity of T20.” ESS has signed up more than 30 clients for the telecast related to the tournament, including 10 sponsors.

exchange4media speaks to a few media planners to find out whether T20 World Cup 2009 would see similar ratings as was seen in 2007.

Depends on how India plays

Sandeep Lakhina, COO, Starcom Worldwide, South Asia, observed, “T20 World Cup undoubtedly is a good property, but it all depends on how India plays, especially with whom. I believe the 10 pm time slot will get very good viewership to start with, but doubt how many will stay back to watch the entire match, and if India is not playing, then the interest goes down significantly. That is going to be a big challenge.”

He further said, “In 2007, the India-Pakistan finals saw overall TRP of 16.94, however, it will all depend on specific matches and whether India is playing in it or not. Advertisers’ response is definitely positive, one reason is because India is the defending champion, and secondly, a lot of Indian players are doing well in IPL as they are getting a lot of practice during the tournament and, therefore, the expectations are going to be high. Also, T20 will be a good opportunity for brands that have missed out on IPL.”

Rajneesh Chaturvedi, National Director, MEC Access, said, “T20 is certainly a good property to invest in for advertisers, especially since India is the defending champion and is expected to do well. In terms of ratings, it is expected to do well, however, I am not sure if it will be able to deliver the same kind of ratings as it did last season. The India matches are expected to deliver anywhere between 6 and 10 TRPs, nevertheless high ratings will mainly depend upon the performance of the Indian team.”

Sanjay Sharma, GM, Mediacom, noted, “In one of the 50-over World Cup matches India got wiped out in the earlier stages, so yes, there is kind of a risk for advertisers, and yes, viewership certainly depends on how high India gets in the T20 World Cup. I believe it will be very difficult for advertisers to pay more than the IPL rates, however, there is high chance of India going ahead, one of the reason being that they have got enough practice in the T20 IPL. I believe initially it won’t be a welcome move. The ratings depend on the Indian team’s performance.”

Pakistan pick unfit Shoaib for Twenty20 World Cup

2009-05-07T11:05:00.000-07:00

KARACHI: Just days after Shoaib Akhtar flopped miserably in the one-day series against Sri Lanka at home earlier this year, a senior team official rejected the controversial pacer as spent force and stressed that Pakistan will be “complete fools” if they took him to England for this June’s Twenty20 World Championships.

On Monday, the 33-year-old Shoaib was named by national selectors in a 15-man squad for the biennial spectacle in spite of the fact that the bowler failed to impress much in his team’s recently-concluded one-day series against Australia in the United Arab Emirates.

The injury-prone Shoaib played in four of the five games in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, bowled a total of 27 overs and took a combined haul of 3-152 at 50.66. In what was quite a low-scoring series, Shoaib had an expensive economy rate of 5.62.

That’s not all. He has been quite rusty and lethargic on the field and by selecting him, Pakistan have failed to fulfill their promise of keeping “fitness above everything else”. Shoaib spearheads a five-man pace attack that includes Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir, Yasir Arafat and uncapped youngster Mohammad Aamer.

Aamer, a tall left-armer, is one of the two rookies included in the England-bound squad. The selectors have sprung a major surprise by including Shahzaib Hasan, a 19-year-old Karachi opener in the touring party.

A hard-hitting batter, Shahzaib had an impressive domestic season, scoring 607 runs in ten matches for Karachi Blues in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. In one-dayers, he has scored 250 runs in seven games at a strike rate of 96.11.

Aamer replaces the more experienced Rao Iftikhar Anjum, who was snubbed after failing to take a single wicket in the two matches he played against Australia in UAE recently. Rao’s omission is surprising considering the fact that he has returned impressive ODI figures in the last 12 months, taking 21 wickets in 14 games.

Aamer was rewarded for his outstanding showing at the first-class level as he collected 56 wickets in ten games for Rawalpindi. He also took 25 wickets in 15 one-dayers and was included in the squad for last month’s tour of Bangladesh which was postponed because of security issues.

Lahore youngster Ahmed Shahzad is also in after a string of useful contributions in the series against Australia that Pakistan lost 2-3. The selectors ignored a trio of ICL rebels after initially including them as reserves in the preliminary squad for the June 5-21 World Twenty20 Championships.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had picked the previously banned trio of Abdul Razzaq, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Imran Nazir as reserves in its preliminary squad for the biennial spectacle but opted against selecting them in the final squad.

Razzaq, Rana and Imran — three of the Pakistani cricketers who defected to the rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL) — were hoping to earn a comeback to the Pakistan team. Meanwhile, Saeed Ajmal is the only specialist spinner in the squad that includes several all-rounders including former captain Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi and youngster Fawad Alam.

Ajmal, a talented off-spinner, finds a place in the squad in spite of being reported for a suspect action during the one-day series against Australia. He has to undergo an examination of his bowling action later this month and can only play if the ICC bowling action review committee clears his action.

Pakistan are eyeing the World Twenty20 title after finishing as runners-up in the inaugural edition of the tournament in South Africa in 2007 when they lost in a thrilling final against India. Pakistan will leave for England later this month and will warm up for the Twenty20 assignment by playing a couple of practice games in Nottingham and London.

On June 1, Pakistan will meet South Africa in a practice game in Nottingham followed by a mouthwatering clash against India at The Oval on June 3. Pakistan will begin their title campaign with a tough game against top Pool B rivals England on June 7 at The Oval followed by their last group game against minnows Netherlands on June 9 at Lord’s.

Pakistan squad: Younis Khan (captain), Misbah-ul-Haq, Salman Butt, Ahmed Shahzad, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, Fawad Alam, Kamran Akmal, Yasir Arafat, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Aamer, Saeed Ajmal and Shahzaib Hasan.

Bracken: Aussies set for world Twenty20

2009-05-07T11:04:00.002-07:00

Left-arm paceman Nathan Bracken believes Australia are much better prepared for next month's ICC World Twenty20 than it was for the corresponding tournament two years ago.

Australia suffered a shock five-wicket loss to Zimbabwe in the opening game of the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 in 2007, before being eliminated by eventual winners India by 15 runs in the semi-final stage of the competition after failing to chase down an imposing target of 188.

"The big thing we learnt (from the last ICC World Twenty20) is how quickly the game can change," Bracken told cricket.com.au after learning about his inclusion in the squad for next month's tournament.

The Australian team has played a host of Twenty20 matches since that disappointing night in South Africa two years ago and Bracken thinks his side will be ready to go when they face the West Indies in their opening game of the tournament at The Oval in London on June 6.

He added: "From the last tournament we learnt that if you don't get it right any team can beat you and unfortunately we found that out the hard way with a loss to Zimbabwe to start off with.

"Hopefully that doesn't happen this time and we can just go out there, play some good cricket and make sure we really put the pressure on."

There is sure to be plenty of competition for spots in the team for the ICC World Twenty20 and many players will get the chance to perform on Thursday when Australia faces Pakistan in a one-off Twenty20 clash in Dubai.

Australia just completed a 3-2 victory in a closely fought five-game one-day series against Pakistan and Bracken is expecting another hard struggle in the Twenty20 clash on Thursday.

"It is going to be a tough game and we have got to make sure we get it right," he said.

"I know it is already being compared to a warm up for the ICC World Twenty20 so for us it is about getting out there, playing some good cricket, making sure we do what we need to do and try and leave here on a winning note."

An unloved anomaly of a series

2009-05-07T11:04:00.001-07:00

Andrew Strauss and Chris Gayle prepare to do battle for the third most important prize in the English summer © Getty Images

In terms of the baubles up for grabs in English Cricket's Biggest Summer Ever ™, the Wisden Trophy languishes a distant third behind its glitzier companions, the Ashes and the ICC World Twenty20. In fact, for the average English sports fan, distracted by the culmination of the football season and notwithstanding the improbable heatwave that has settled over London in recent weeks, a start date of May 6 is simply too early to elicit a reaction.

Lord's is likely to be little more than half-full for the opening day of the series, a situation that is unlikely to have been helped by the unfamiliar Wednesday scheduling. And to judge by the late arrival of Chris Gayle, West Indies' spectacularly laid-back captain, it is not only the spectators who have been caught unawares by the earliest starting date in England's home Test history. "I'm happy he's here," said a terse coach, John Dyson, after his skipper linked up with the squad with 48 hours to spare, though you have to wonder whether those sentiments were entirely shared by the man himself.

So much for the primacy of Test cricket. This is a series that exists only to satisfy the contractual demands of the host broadcasting company, and had West Indies joined Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka in pulling out of what is proving to be a very problematic slot, then Bangladesh or the homeless Pakistanis would presumably have been rustled up in their stead. The encroaching demands of the IPL mean that in future years a window in the international schedule will surely be agreed, which in turn will bring to an end the opportunity for Test cricket in England in May. On the available evidence, few will mourn the passing of this peculiar nine-year tradition.

Nevertheless, for Andrew Strauss and his England team, chastened and revamped after a winter to forget for any multitude of reasons, beggars cannot really be choosers. Since defeating Bangladesh on this very ground in May 2005, they have failed to record a victory in the opening Test of a series for four years and 14 rubbers, a devastating shortcoming that has been instrumental in their decline as a leading power in the world game.

Not since England began clawing their way back from the bottom of the pile after losing to New Zealand in 1999 have they been ranked lower than their current standing of sixth. Since hitting the heights in the summer of 2005, the only thing graceful about their cricket has been the glider-like tranquillity of their descent. It has been slow, swooping and seemingly without a care in the world, or an end in sight. Until now that is, with the unveiling of a new-look team that might just have the wherewithal to hit the ground at long last, and embark on a new take-off run.

"The attitude and environment is fantastic at the moment," said Strauss. "The one advantage of having a few new faces around is that you get that exuberance. Those of us who've been around a while appreciate it's a massive thing to play for England, because the excitement of the new faces in the squad rubs off on all of us."

The tacit admission in Strauss's statement was that England's previous crop of players had forgotten how privileged they were, or how to enjoy the experience. He named no names, but the absence of men such as Steve Harmison and Ian Bell, whose talents were self-evident but whose tickers were called into question on a daily basis, has doubtless played as much of a part in the wake-up call as the inclusion of young thrusters such as Graham Onions and Tim Bresnan.

And then there is Ravi Bopara, whose selection at No. 3 has the makings of a masterstroke, in that it has quashed the tired old debate about the relative merits of Bell, Michael Vaughan and Owais Shah in that perpetually problematic position. "Ravi is a very impressive individual, both in terms of the talent he has but also how he handles himself," said Strauss. "He's very unfazed by things, and that more than anything leads me to believe he can play at No. 3. He's got the technique, he's got a very good mindset, and he's a good little character. That's what we are looking for, characters who when the going gets tough will come out and perform."

Nevertheless, hard as England try to lift their game at the start of a new season, still the thorny issue of the IPL threatens to prick their bubble of optimism. Andy Flower, whose influence on this squad selection is unmistakeable, admitted on Monday that his middle-order trio of Bopara, Kevin Pietersen and Paul Collingwood were "under-prepared" after their sojourns in South Africa, no-one more so than Collingwood, who sat on the bench throughout his stint with the Delhi Daredevils and has not played competitively since April 3.

Strauss felt sure they could overcome the lack of preparation by adopting a positive mindset, but even so, the conflicts of interests on show in this series are palpable. Writing in the June edition of the Wisden Cricketer, Collingwood admitted that the draw of the shorter format will only become more alluring as the rewards become greater. "If you can get 10 times the money for playing a few weeks of Twenty20 than for months of mental torture in the Ashes," he wrote, "then I'm afraid to say some people would take the first option."

Gayle has already given the impression he'd rather be elsewhere, while even Bopara, the highest-profile representative of England's next generation, has admitted to divided priorities where the relative merits of Test and Twenty20 cricket are concerned. "I remember four or five years ago, Twenty20 was regarded as a Mickey Mouse competition," he told Cricinfo, "but now it is one of the biggest things around. Test cricket is still regarded as the pinnacle, but I want to be good at both, because Twenty20 is what everybody is talking about."

And it's what everyone is talking about even on the eve of a Lord's Test, despite Strauss's best efforts to steer the conversation. "From our point of view these are two massive Test matches. Given what happened in the West Indies, we're looking for revenge, we want to win back that Wisden Trophy, and in our conditions it's important we believe we can beat anyone."

That may be so, but from the point of view of the average fan in the street, these Tests are anomalies, fool's gold ahead of the nuggets that await later in the season. It's a far cry from the situation at the start of Duncan Fletcher's reign in 2000, when England's recapturing of the Wisden Trophy after a three-decade hiatus was the result that set in motion their slow but inexorable renaissance.

This time around, for three decades, read two months - a self-defeatingly hasty turnaround. For all their new looks and new attitudes, England are damned if they do and damned if they don't in the coming fortnight. In the public perception, failure to win in home conditions would be a disgrace, but success - never mind how fleeting it has been in recent times - is likely to be met with a shrug of the shoulders. After all, there's only one series that counts this summer, isn't there?

"They are under a bit of pressure to do well leading up to the Ashes," said Gayle, prodding the sore just that little bit more. Never mind all the criticism that he has attracted for his late arrival for this contest, at least he made it through customs in the nick of time (having honed his technique for the one campaign that will really matter to his own fans back home - next month's ICC World Twenty20).

As for the England cricket team (who are expected to go missing in that tournament just surely as Collingwood, their Twenty20 captain, went missing in the IPL) we are still waiting for them to turn up for the first time since that glorious but isolated triumph four long and fruitless years ago. Which begs the question, exactly whose priorities are the ones that are skewed?

Australia's Twenty20 squad a risk for Ashes

2009-05-07T11:01:00.002-07:00

Adam Gilchrist would be back in Australian colours under John Buchanan's plan

John Buchanan, the former national coach, believes Australia should have picked a squad of specialists for the World Twenty20 instead of relying on regular campaigners in a move that could harm their Ashes defence. Buchanan, whose side Kolkata is struggling at the bottom of the current IPL, would have pushed for Adam Gilchrist or Matthew Hayden to lead the side in England next month rather than having Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke in charge so close to a major series.

"If I was a selector I would not be risking, wherever possible, key Ashes players such as Ponting, Clarke, Hussey, Hughes, Haddin, Watson, Clark, Katich, Siddle, Johnson," he told the Age. "Have them embark on a combination of rest, physical and then technical preparation for the Ashes while this tournament is underway."

Buchanan wanted more specialists in the unit, including Shane Harwood, Cameron White and Shaun Tait, while recalling old stars. "Selectors should have been talking with former players to make themselves available for this particular event," he said. "I would be looking at Warne or Gilchrist as captain."

After two seasons in charge of an IPL team, Buchanan said the current Twenty20 format was not suitable for regular international competition. "Given the ICC have chosen to cash in on the excitement of Twenty20 and the potential revenues that can be made, then Australia or any country should treat it for what it is," he said. "It is a one-off tournament that will occur periodically in the world tournament schedule, and in my opinion has little to do with long-term developments of player squads apart from the inclusion of possibly one or two under-19 or 'new' players who are included for experience around an Australian environment."

Australia's 15-man outfit was chosen on Tuesday and included Andrew Symonds, Brett Lee and Shane Watson. The opener David Warner was the only Twenty20 specialist in the line-up.

Pakistan will win Twenty20 World Cup this time around: Younis Khan

2009-05-07T11:01:00.001-07:00

Dubai, May 7 (ANI): Pakistan still regrets losing to India in the final of the ICC Twenty 20 World Cup two years ago, as captain Younis Khan has said that he will make sure that his side wins the trophy this time around.

“We’re looking forward to the event in England and we’d definitely like to take the trophy home with us. This time around we want to go all the way and win it,” The News quoted Khan, as saying.

Speaking on the sidelines of the unveiling of the World Twenty20 trophy here, Khan said his team was looking forward for the mega-event which is scheduled to be held in England in June this year.

With Pakistan and England lying in the same group for the tournament, Khan hoped that his side will do well against the hosts.

“We’re excited about playing in England. It’s always tough playing the hosts but I’m confident my side will do well,” he said.

Australian wicketkeeper Brad Haddin, who was also present on the occasion, said he was also looking forward to the tournament, and wishes to add the Twenty20 World Cup trophy to their existing list of World Cup trophies.

“We’ve got a tough group stage with the West Indies and Sri Lanka in our pool but I’m confident we’ll make it through. It would be great to be part of a team that adds the ICC World Twenty20 trophy to Australia’s existing trophy cabinet,” Haddin said. (ANI)

Pak, Australia look forward to ICC World Twenty20 2009

2009-05-07T11:00:00.000-07:00

Dubai, May 6 (ANI): Pakistan cricket captain Younus Khan and his Australian counterpart Brad Haddin moved into Twenty20 mode by saying that they were looking forward to the face-off on Thursday. They also said they were looking forward to next month's Twenty20 World Cup in England.

"We're looking forward to the event in England and we'd definitely like to take the trophy home with us. We had a good tournament in 2007 in South Africa, reaching the final but losing to India. This time around we want to go all the way and win it," Younus said.

"We're excited about playing in England and being in a group with them and the Netherlands will provide its own challenges. It's always tough playing the hosts but I'm confident my side will do well," he added.

Haddin, standing in as captain of the Australia side for tomorrow's T20I against Pakistan said: "I'm really looking forward to taking part in the summer's ICC World Twenty20 in England, the country where this format of the game was created.

"We've got a tough group stage with the West Indies and Sri Lanka in our pool but I'm confident we'll make it through. It would be great to be part of a team that adds the ICC World Twenty20 trophy to Australia's existing trophy cabinet.

"It's an impressive looking trophy and one we'd definitely like to lift in England this summer." (ANI)

'India-Pak ties must for world cricket'

2009-05-07T10:57:00.000-07:00

Abu Dhabi: Pakistan captain Younis Khan has said that cricketing ties between India and Pakistan are a must for cricket fans worldwide and both teams should play each other more frequently.

Comparing the matches between India and Pakistan with the Ashes, Khan said both the countries should also play in regular bilateral series.

"It not only provides excitement but also gives a chance to players to prove their mettle. I think India playing Pakistan is a must for world cricket," he said.

Attributing his name and fame in the cricket world to the 2005 series against India in which he scored a century in the second Test and a brilliant 267 in the third, Khan said: "Whatever fame and name I have earned is primarily after my performance against India in 2005."

He said he would appeal to Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardene and Bangladesh’s Mohammad Ashraful to join hands in the difficult situation that the region is facing currently, because of which foreign teams have been expressing reservations about touring the sub-continent.

"I will definitely meet (them) on the sidelines of T20 World Cup in England and tell them that we need to join hands, as the situation in all four countries is not good, so we must stand up for each other," The Daily Times quoted Khan,as saying.

Expressing disappointment over Pakistan not being able to host any foreign team and the ICC’s decision to shift the 2011 World Cup matches from the country, Khan said all the cricket playing nations of the region must join hands to tackle the issue together.

"The Asian countries will have to plan together, and stand up for each other in difficult times, otherwise cricket matches will not take place in our part of the world," he said.

Aamir, Shazaib in Pakistan squad for T20 World Cup T20 Team

2009-05-07T10:56:00.000-07:00

KARACHI, May 4 (APP): Teenage batsman Shazaib Hasan is most stunning inductions in the 15‑member Pakistan men team named on Monday for ICC Twenty20 World Cup being held in England from June 5. Team which was picked by three‑member selection committee headed by former test leg‑spinner Abdul Qadir with Saleem Jaffar and Shoaib Muhammad as its members, left out opener Nasir Jamshed.

19‑year‑old right batsman Shazaib of Karachi last February and had played for Karachi Zebras in Twenty20 Cup is harding batsman and batted solidly during the Patrons Trophy grade‑II for Port Qasim.

Shaazaib had played just ten first game and is prodigy of former Pakistan Captain Rashid Latif.

Rising fast bowler Muhammad Aamir was in Pakistan squad for the first test against Sri Lanka in played Karachi in February.

Express fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar and off‑break bowler Saeed Ajmal, who was reported for suspect action against ODI series against Australia have also retained their place in the national team.

Another teenager Ahmed Shahzad confirmed his place in the team with good batting against Australia in just concluded 5 match One‑Day International series.

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) which released the team, have not mentioned the name of the vice captain.

Pakistan men squad:

Younis Khan (Captain), Salman Butt, Ahmed Shahzad, Misbah‑ul‑Haq Kamran Akmal (wicket‑keeper), Fawad Alam, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi Sohail Tanveer, Yasir Arafat, Shoaib Akhter, Umer Gul, Muhammad Aamir Saeed Ajmal and Shazaib Hassan.

Pakistan All Set for the T20 World Cup

2009-05-07T10:55:00.000-07:00

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has made a few unexpected decisions while announcing its final squad of 15 for the ICC World Twenty20 in England in June.

Firstly, the board rejected three players who played for the Indian Cricket League (ICL). Abdul Razzaq, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Imran Nazir were included as reserves in its preliminary squad, but dropped from the final 15. The cricketers were hoping to make a comeback in the national circuit, and had vowed to end their ICL contracts, but no avail.

The board has also included two uncapped players in the team: Mohammad Aamer (a left arm pacer) and Shahzaib Hasan (an opener). Aamer displayed a very strong performance in the first class domestic season, taking 56 wickets in 10 games for Rawalpindi. He was part of the U-19 World Cup, but his run there was cut short by an illness. But he has been one of the most striking young cricketers this season. Hasan too has been much talked about. His debut for Karachi saw him scoring 607 runs in ten matches. In ODI cricket, his strike rate has been an astonishing 96.11.

However what was really unanticipated was that selectors favored Shoaib Akhtar despite his poor, flavourless performances against Australia earlier this year. Shoaib will lead the pace attack along with Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir, Yasir Arafat and Aamer. It is quite surprising that Rao Iftikhar Anjum, who was a leading wicket taker for Pakistan all of last year was not considered for the final 15. In the last one year he took 21 wickets in 14 games. But his poor show in the UAE was what ultimately cost him his place.

The team consists of many all-rounders like Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi and Fawad Alam, but Saeed Ajmal is the only specialist spinner. Teenager Ahmed Shehzad, who impressed with a prodigious debut against Australia in UAE also found a slot in the final squad. Younis Khan will captain the team.

After ending up as runners-up at the same tournament last year, against India, Pakistan is hoping to take their efforts one step further and win the cup.

The Squad: Younis Khan (Capt.), Salman Butt, Ahmed Shehzad, Shoaib Malik, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Kamran Akmal (wk), Fawad Alam, Shoaib Akhtar, Sohail Tanvir, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamer, Yasir Arafat, Saeed Ajmal, Shahzaib Hasan.

Selectors name two rookies, controversial Shoaib in squad for Twenty20 World Cup

2009-05-07T10:54:00.000-07:00

LAHORE: Pakistan cricket selectors on Monday included controversial fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar and two rookies Mohammad Aamer and Shahzaib Hasan in a 15-member squad named for ICC Twenty20 World Cup to be held in England in June this year. Akhtar’s inclusion came as a surprise after his pathetic performance in the recently concluded five-match one-day international series against Australia in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Australia, under Micheal Clarke, won the series 3-2.

Akhtar, who is now at 59th position after dropping four places in the ICC players rankings for ODI bowlers, didn’t once bowl ten overs in the four games he played and took just three wickets. “We have kept faith in Akhtar although his performance was not up to mark in the UAE. I think picking Akhtar is a sensible thing because he is experienced and he can manage four overs in a match,” a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) official said. Akhtar was last year banned for five years on disciplinary charges – a punishment reduced to 18 months by an appeal committee. Akhtar was part of Pakistan’s team for the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup held in South Africa in 2007 but he was expelled from the squad after he hit teammate Mohammad Asif with a bat a few days before the start of the event. Pakistan finished runners-up in the inaugural tournament, losing to India in a closely contested final. Akhtar played just four Twenty20 matches last year due to fitness problems.

Off-spinner Saeed Ajmal, who has been reported for a suspect action, is in the squad but there was no place for the three Indian Cricket League (ICL) players – Imran Nazir, Abdul Razzaq and Rana Navedul Hasan – who were initially picked in the list of probables. “The selectors have considered only those players who were eligible to play for Pakistan. Since the board has got information of only Mohammad Yousaf resigning from the ICL, no other ICL player was considered for selection,” the official added.

He pointed out the board had made it clear that players would have to resign from the ICL first before becoming eligible for consideration in the national team. The board announced recently that any ICL player could be considered for national selection once he resigns from the rebel league. But the PCB had also made it clear it would decide on case-to-case basis what penalty to impose on the ICL player before he could play for the national team again. Asked about the selection of Ajmal whose bowling action was reported during the one-day series against Australia, the selector said he (Ajmal) would be undergoing a review of his action soon and if the ICC bowling action review committee didn’t clear him in time, a replacement would be named. The selectors have packed the team with five noted all-rounders – Fawad Alam, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, Sohail Tanvir and Yasir Arafat. Pacer Rao Iftikhar Anjum, even though has been one of Pakistan’s leading ODI bowlers over the last two years in the one-dayers: in the last 12 months he has taken 21 wickets in 14 games. However, a wicketless showing in the two matches he played against Australia in the UAE ultimately hindered his case.

Uncapped players: Left-arm fast bowler Aamer was included after a very strong showing in his maiden domestic season, taking 56 first-class wickets in ten games for Rawalpindi. 17-year-old Aamer also took 25 wickets in 15 one-dayers and was initially included in the squad for the Bangladesh tour which was postponed. He was also a part of the Under-19 World Cup in Malaysia last year but his tournament was cut short by illness. For the greater part of last year, he has been – alongside Mohammad Talha – the most talked-up pace prospect in Pakistan circles, a stamp of approval from fellow leftie Wasim Akram. Hasan, 19, is a diminutive opening batsman, and he too has enjoyed very healthy returns in his debut first-class season, scoring 607 runs in ten matches for Karachi Blues at the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. In one-dayers, he has scored 250 runs in seven games at a strike rate of 96.11.

Squad:

Younis Khan (captain), Salman Butt, Ahmad Shahzad, Misbahul Haq, Kamran Akmal, Fawad Alam, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, Sohail Tanvir, Yasir Arafat, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamer, Saeed Ajmal and Shahzaib Hasan.