By Syed Khalid Mahmood
What a pity that Australia have been allowed to run into a 2-0 lead in the seven-match series of One-day Internationals by England, who appear the more balanced as well as versatile side in comparison to their traditional rivals.
The present Australian outfit is a mere shadow of the great one-day sides they used to field until the recent past. There are more bits and pieces cricketers in their eleven now than the specialists.
England have themselves to blame for having squandered the opportunity in both the games. They had the Australians on the mat for quite sometime but their own batting fared pathetically and the advantage was surrendered.
In both the matches the Aussies barely managed par score, batting first. With the hosts having packed their side with one-day all-rounders, they were the ones who appeared the favourites to seal the fate of the match at the start of their chase on both the occasions. Surprisingly, however, they lost their way in both the games and even the depth in their batting could not cover for the follies of their top batters.
The Australians also had their share of problems in the batting department but they somehow made up by the late flourish in both the encounters. Callum Ferguson was chiefly responsible for keeping them afloat after the unconvincing performance of their established batsmen.
Australia faced the danger of being bowled out for a low total, even after Ferguson’s half-century in the second match at Lord’s. They had barely crossed 200 when their eighth wicket fell and England had all cards in their pocket with James Anderson and Ryan Sidebottom bowling splendidly in the death overs.
It was Mitchell Johnson, of all people, who rescued Australia with a flurry of big hits that yielded runs at brisk pace and all of a sudden England had to chase down a target of 250 instead of 210 or 215.
Left-handed Johnson's late assault actually revived Australia. He swung his bat at everything to score an unbeaten 43 off 23 balls. He was helped by some ordinary fielding as well, adding 41 off the last four overs and a bit with Nathan Hauritz. England’s wicketkeeper Matt Prior was guilty of letting go two boundaries that should have been stopped.
England, however, regained control with a solid opening partnership between skipper Andrew Strauss and the enigmatic Ravi Bopara. The Australians, at that stage, were running out of options as a cakewalk victory for the hosts looked more likely than anything else.
But England collapsed in the unlikeliest of circumstances. They were on top of the game when the self-destruction began. Michael Clarke must have heaved a sigh of relief watching the England batsman commit the kind of mistakes that would have embarrassed even the schoolboys.
Paul Collingwood fought a lone battle in the end but he was let down by his partners at the other end. The asking rate was very much manageable and the powerplay overs were at their disposal. But England didn’t have wickets to cash in and they eventually lost the match by 39 runs.
September 7, 2009
Australia double lead without ever looking convincing
Labels: Natwest Trophy 2009
September 5, 2009
Return of Bond propels New Zealand
Labels: Shane BondBy Syed Khalid Mahmood
Three wickets for 18 runs off four overs. These are the figures that would surely make every bowler proud in any form of the game. The analysis will be considered even better if it’s achieved in a limited overs contest. These would obviously be recognized as exceptional figures in the shortest version of the sport.
In that context the bowling performance of New Zealand’s spearhead Shane Bond, making a return to international cricket, was better than the best as he powered his team to a magnificent 22-run win over Sri Lanka in the second Twenty20 International at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on September 4.
Although Jesse Ryder ran away with the Man of the Match award, for his half century as well as outstanding fielding, it was the superlative spell of fast bowling from Bond that sealed the fate of the game as well as the series.
New Zealand, having sneaked a narrow victory in the previous game, had done well to reach a total of 171 but the target could never have been considered out of reach of the Sri Lankans on a pitch where slower bowlers were more likely to do the business.
With Bond back to take the new ball the bowling attack of New Zealand gained more potency and purpose. It’s always a huge advantage to have a quality fast bowler attack with the shining ball rather than having an ordinary mortal spraying in different directions with the intent on containment.
There is no better way of controlling the rate of scoring than take wickets. That is exactly what New Zealand are more likely to do when they have someone like Bond having the ball in his hand.
I think it was Bond more than anyone else who made the difference. He dismissed the dangerous Tillekaratne Dilshan in the very first over to open the floodgates. Kyle Mills, who shared the new ball with him, was also lifted and he responded with two quick wickets to deny the hosts the kind of flying start they needed to be ahead to chase down a target of 172.
Mahela Jaywardene and Kumar Sangakkara revived Sri Lanka with an enterprising fourth wicket partnership but the New Zealanders knew they always had a chance when they broke through.
Daniel Vettori looked a more confident leader, after the nightmarish two-Test series in which his team was blanked. He deserved the credit for having kept the motivated after the debacle and his inspirational captaincy was instrumental in bringing about the turnaround.
New Zealand, who lost the Test series 0-2, have won the Twenty20 series 2-0. They have lifted their game considerably and their rejuvenated outfit would be a threat to both Sri Lanka as well as India in the upcoming series of One-day Internationals.
New Zealand, who looked pedestrian in the Test matches due to the lack of firepower in their bowling attack, have come to life of late. Bond has helped their cause immensely, providing Vettori a much-needed attacking option.
readmore »»
Three wickets for 18 runs off four overs. These are the figures that would surely make every bowler proud in any form of the game. The analysis will be considered even better if it’s achieved in a limited overs contest. These would obviously be recognized as exceptional figures in the shortest version of the sport.
In that context the bowling performance of New Zealand’s spearhead Shane Bond, making a return to international cricket, was better than the best as he powered his team to a magnificent 22-run win over Sri Lanka in the second Twenty20 International at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on September 4.
Although Jesse Ryder ran away with the Man of the Match award, for his half century as well as outstanding fielding, it was the superlative spell of fast bowling from Bond that sealed the fate of the game as well as the series.
New Zealand, having sneaked a narrow victory in the previous game, had done well to reach a total of 171 but the target could never have been considered out of reach of the Sri Lankans on a pitch where slower bowlers were more likely to do the business.
With Bond back to take the new ball the bowling attack of New Zealand gained more potency and purpose. It’s always a huge advantage to have a quality fast bowler attack with the shining ball rather than having an ordinary mortal spraying in different directions with the intent on containment.
There is no better way of controlling the rate of scoring than take wickets. That is exactly what New Zealand are more likely to do when they have someone like Bond having the ball in his hand.
I think it was Bond more than anyone else who made the difference. He dismissed the dangerous Tillekaratne Dilshan in the very first over to open the floodgates. Kyle Mills, who shared the new ball with him, was also lifted and he responded with two quick wickets to deny the hosts the kind of flying start they needed to be ahead to chase down a target of 172.
Mahela Jaywardene and Kumar Sangakkara revived Sri Lanka with an enterprising fourth wicket partnership but the New Zealanders knew they always had a chance when they broke through.
Daniel Vettori looked a more confident leader, after the nightmarish two-Test series in which his team was blanked. He deserved the credit for having kept the motivated after the debacle and his inspirational captaincy was instrumental in bringing about the turnaround.
New Zealand, who lost the Test series 0-2, have won the Twenty20 series 2-0. They have lifted their game considerably and their rejuvenated outfit would be a threat to both Sri Lanka as well as India in the upcoming series of One-day Internationals.
New Zealand, who looked pedestrian in the Test matches due to the lack of firepower in their bowling attack, have come to life of late. Bond has helped their cause immensely, providing Vettori a much-needed attacking option.
September 3, 2009
Bridge legend Masud Saleem passes away
Labels: Masud Saleem, Pakistan BridgeBy Syed Khalid Mahmood
Bridge legend Masud Saleem has passed away, after a protracted illness, in Karachi. He was 69. He was a diabetic patient for the last many years and both his legs had to be amputated due to gangrene.
He died on August 31 and was buried at the Chiniotis graveyard in North Nazimaad the same afternoon. He has left behind a widow, two sons and two daughters for mourning besides a large circle of friends, admirers and duplicate bridge players, holding him in high esteem.
He was the first partner of Zia Mahmood, and a key member of Pakistan’s bridge team that made history in 1981 by entering the finals of the World Bridge Championship in its maiden appearance in Bermuda Bowl.
Masud was born on May 1, 1940 in Chiniot. He first appeared on the bridge horizon in 1962 as the organizer of a tournament at St. John’s Club. It’s a matter of history that this was the largest participated bridge tournament in Pakistan with 62 teams.
He won first tournament of Karachi Club in 1971 for Zaman IV, playing as a partner of Nishat Abedi and Waheed Bux Quadri. He won five Zonal Championships for Pakistan besides innumerable ranking bridge tournaments. He won national championships as many as seven times.
For almost three decades, his outstanding achievements for Pakistan in the bridge arena, both at home and abroad have had no parallel in the history of sport in Pakistan.
Right from 1978, when Pakistan first burst upon the international bridge scene, as runners-up in the Far East Bridge Federation Championship despite the handicap of two walkovers to Taiwan, Masud’s prolific abilities led to a string of staggering bridge victories to Pakistan.
Having finished runners-up, in the very first appearance by Pakistan, in the Bermuda Bowl World Championship held in 1981, Masud was rated as the most gifted bridge player in world with a remarkable in born natural talent that led him to be distinction of having won the most laurels for his country in bridge.
His artistry in handling problems of bidding, play and defence was legendary for, as he combined his natural ability of card handling with his profound knowledge of the game backed by a phenomenal memory.
“Masud was foremost a friend and a special one. In all the 40 years of our friendship I do not recall a harsh word or a mean gesture from him,” Khurshid Hadi, President Emiretus, Pakistan Bridge Federation (PBF), observed.
“Even the most intense discussion on bridge was usually conducted in short mainly inaudible bursts followed by a shrug of the shoulders as if to say ‘I said what I had to now its up to you to agree or not.’ Masud was a wonderfully gifted player,” he added.
“His last years have been full of difficulties which he shouldered with dignity. It will not only be the bridge world that will miss an outstanding player but the world will miss an exceptional man,” Khurshid Hadi reckoned.
Rehena Saigol, a former President of the PBF, also paid glowing tributes to Masud Saleem, describing his as one of the greatest bridge players produced by the country.
“He had been laid low by illness in the last few years of his life and the PBF did hold a few benefit events for him. He has made outstanding contribution to the sport of bridge in Pakistan that can never be forgotten,” she thought.
The former PBF President recalled that Masud was outshone by his more flamboyant partner, Zia Mahmood, but the former also played a most significant role in putting Pakistan on the bridge map of the world.
readmore »»
Bridge legend Masud Saleem has passed away, after a protracted illness, in Karachi. He was 69. He was a diabetic patient for the last many years and both his legs had to be amputated due to gangrene.
He died on August 31 and was buried at the Chiniotis graveyard in North Nazimaad the same afternoon. He has left behind a widow, two sons and two daughters for mourning besides a large circle of friends, admirers and duplicate bridge players, holding him in high esteem.
He was the first partner of Zia Mahmood, and a key member of Pakistan’s bridge team that made history in 1981 by entering the finals of the World Bridge Championship in its maiden appearance in Bermuda Bowl.
Masud was born on May 1, 1940 in Chiniot. He first appeared on the bridge horizon in 1962 as the organizer of a tournament at St. John’s Club. It’s a matter of history that this was the largest participated bridge tournament in Pakistan with 62 teams.
He won first tournament of Karachi Club in 1971 for Zaman IV, playing as a partner of Nishat Abedi and Waheed Bux Quadri. He won five Zonal Championships for Pakistan besides innumerable ranking bridge tournaments. He won national championships as many as seven times.
For almost three decades, his outstanding achievements for Pakistan in the bridge arena, both at home and abroad have had no parallel in the history of sport in Pakistan.
Right from 1978, when Pakistan first burst upon the international bridge scene, as runners-up in the Far East Bridge Federation Championship despite the handicap of two walkovers to Taiwan, Masud’s prolific abilities led to a string of staggering bridge victories to Pakistan.
Having finished runners-up, in the very first appearance by Pakistan, in the Bermuda Bowl World Championship held in 1981, Masud was rated as the most gifted bridge player in world with a remarkable in born natural talent that led him to be distinction of having won the most laurels for his country in bridge.
His artistry in handling problems of bidding, play and defence was legendary for, as he combined his natural ability of card handling with his profound knowledge of the game backed by a phenomenal memory.
“Masud was foremost a friend and a special one. In all the 40 years of our friendship I do not recall a harsh word or a mean gesture from him,” Khurshid Hadi, President Emiretus, Pakistan Bridge Federation (PBF), observed.
“Even the most intense discussion on bridge was usually conducted in short mainly inaudible bursts followed by a shrug of the shoulders as if to say ‘I said what I had to now its up to you to agree or not.’ Masud was a wonderfully gifted player,” he added.
“His last years have been full of difficulties which he shouldered with dignity. It will not only be the bridge world that will miss an outstanding player but the world will miss an exceptional man,” Khurshid Hadi reckoned.
Rehena Saigol, a former President of the PBF, also paid glowing tributes to Masud Saleem, describing his as one of the greatest bridge players produced by the country.
“He had been laid low by illness in the last few years of his life and the PBF did hold a few benefit events for him. He has made outstanding contribution to the sport of bridge in Pakistan that can never be forgotten,” she thought.
The former PBF President recalled that Masud was outshone by his more flamboyant partner, Zia Mahmood, but the former also played a most significant role in putting Pakistan on the bridge map of the world.
August 31, 2009
WANTED: A representative body of sports journalists in Pakistan
Labels: Pakistan SportsBy Syed Khalid Mahmood
The first seed of the Sports Writers’ Association (SWA) in England was sown in November 1947 with that legendary statement: "It is desirable that an association of sporting journalists be formed.
Historically it were half a dozen representatives of the national sporting press who had made the historic decision over the lunch and five of them formed an exploratory committee that met in a Fleet Street about a month later.
The Association was founded on 15 April 1948 with 21 members on board. The first annual dinner was held in 1949 and the following year the first ballot was held among members, by then numbering nearly 100, to determine which six men had contributed most to Britain's international sporting prestige - still the criterion on which annual awards are made.
As they entered the 21st century, and after the Association merged with the Professional Sports Photographers' Association and began to represent an ever widening range of sports journalists across all media, the SWA changed its name to Sports Journalists' Association (SJA).
It’s the Britain's voice at the annual congress of the Association Internationale de la Press Sportive (AIPS). It’s also affiliated to the Union European de la Presse Sportive (UEPS).
Today the sports journalists’ fraternity of Pakistan needs a similar platform more than ever before. It’s high time for the working journalists of the country to rise above the self and join hands to lay the foundation of a body that could become Pakistan’s voice in international sports journalism affairs.
Regrettably the element of unity has been found missing in the ranks of the sports journalists in Pakistan and the efforts made once in while by a few individuals have not yielded the desired results.
How could one expect to get the results if the objectives are not clearly spelled out or when the people attending the meetings to form the Association are shy of reporting it in their newspapers or broadcasting it on air?
Not a single working sports journalist in Pakistan might disagree with the observation that a vibrant national body is so desperately needed now that could represent the national sports media on the Pakistan Olympic Association's press advisory committee, and offer advice to members covering other major events. The body, once formed, could also act as a consultant to organizers of major events who need guidance on media requirements.
The absence of a truly representative body is costing the working journalists dearly. A battery of journalists is sent to the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games and South Asian Games by the POA but less than half of them actually go out there for the coverage of the event. The POA has its priorities and they don’t have a mechanism that could allow them to sponsor the genuine journalists only and discard those going for joyrides.
The proposed body should have an essential service for all sports journalists-writers, sub-editors, photographers, presenters, producers, cameramen and editors-working in national and regional press, radio, television and websites.
A few individuals have attempted to form a national body with the hidden and at times even not so hidden objective of furthering their own vested interests.
The Pakistan Sports Writers Federation (PSWF) was founded and run by S M Naqi, Farooq Mazhar and Ali Kabir who considered themselves above board and dared doing things in the manner they pleased. The body revolved around these gentlemen, two of whom have now passed away and the third one has been laid low by illness. Unsurprisingly the body has remained dormant for the past one decade.
It was in the late 1980s when another group, led by Anisuddin Khan, emerged by the name of the Federation of Sports Journalists of Pakistan (FSJP) and they held a couple of meetings at the YMCA in Karachi that were very well attended. But the FSJP could not take off, primarily due to the lack of vision of its leaders who just couldn’t set the ball rolling.
The most significant step yet towards the formation of a truly representative body was witnessed in 2006 when Ehsan Qureshi mustered the support of the majority of the working journalists to form the Sports Journalists Association of Pakistan (SJAP). He did a lot of running around to establish the Association on solid footing but the move was sabotaged by hypocrisy.
There have been a couple of initiatives of late but unfortunately neither of them might be able to serve the purpose and it’s an extremely unlikely to have anything like the SJA of England coming up.
Amjad Aziz Malik and Zahid Farooq Malik, who somehow made their way to Milan, Italy, earlier this year to attend the AIPS Congress, have set off to revive the PWSF, albeit in a controversial and undemocratic manner.
The Maliks mobilized their resources to organize a two-day seminar/workshop at the Pakistan Sports Complex in Islamabad on August 15 and 16 but they very conveniently omitted the open debate session that deprived the participants the chance of putting forward their suggestions about the election process.
Instead of discussing the matter out in the open, the Maliks deemed it proper to close deals with the persons of their own choice and they came on stage only to announce the names of the people having been nominated for various assignments.
It was a wonderful idea to have invited the sports journalists from every nook and corner of the country. But by sharing the key posts between themselves and not even bothering to seek vote of confidence from the house undid their own good work.
Fingers have also been pointed towards both the Maliks about their standing in the profession of sports journalism in particular. They have not won friends by avoiding elections and declaring themselves as the President and the Secretary of the self-proclaimed PSWF.
If they were sincere to the cause of the profession and serious in reviving the body they should have simply formed a committee of three to five members to carry out the nationwide membership drive after which elections could have been held.
Soon afterwards the ‘bigwigs’ of sports journalism in Karachi met over tea but they were unable to come to any conclusion either. The organizers were short of concrete ideas and one was unsure about the purpose of the hastily arranged meeting.
It was disappointing to listen to the remarks of the veterans of the profession, who appeared confused and double-minded. If they were unable to resolve whether to form a national association or restrict themselves to a city body it was a clear reflection of lack of homework or division of opinion.
Abdul Majid Bhatti and Shahid Akhtar Hashmi, who conducted the proceedings, were unclear about the issue either. Waheed Khan, for reasons beyond comprehension, was not prepared to look beyond Karachi while Anisuudin Khan tried to impose his thoughts in the usual manner of his.
Although quite a few big names of the profession were in attendance in the meeting at the Karachi Club, besides the young guns, a consensus could not be developed and by the look of things yet another opportunity was wasted.
readmore »»
The first seed of the Sports Writers’ Association (SWA) in England was sown in November 1947 with that legendary statement: "It is desirable that an association of sporting journalists be formed.
Historically it were half a dozen representatives of the national sporting press who had made the historic decision over the lunch and five of them formed an exploratory committee that met in a Fleet Street about a month later.
The Association was founded on 15 April 1948 with 21 members on board. The first annual dinner was held in 1949 and the following year the first ballot was held among members, by then numbering nearly 100, to determine which six men had contributed most to Britain's international sporting prestige - still the criterion on which annual awards are made.
As they entered the 21st century, and after the Association merged with the Professional Sports Photographers' Association and began to represent an ever widening range of sports journalists across all media, the SWA changed its name to Sports Journalists' Association (SJA).
It’s the Britain's voice at the annual congress of the Association Internationale de la Press Sportive (AIPS). It’s also affiliated to the Union European de la Presse Sportive (UEPS).
Today the sports journalists’ fraternity of Pakistan needs a similar platform more than ever before. It’s high time for the working journalists of the country to rise above the self and join hands to lay the foundation of a body that could become Pakistan’s voice in international sports journalism affairs.
Regrettably the element of unity has been found missing in the ranks of the sports journalists in Pakistan and the efforts made once in while by a few individuals have not yielded the desired results.
How could one expect to get the results if the objectives are not clearly spelled out or when the people attending the meetings to form the Association are shy of reporting it in their newspapers or broadcasting it on air?
Not a single working sports journalist in Pakistan might disagree with the observation that a vibrant national body is so desperately needed now that could represent the national sports media on the Pakistan Olympic Association's press advisory committee, and offer advice to members covering other major events. The body, once formed, could also act as a consultant to organizers of major events who need guidance on media requirements.
The absence of a truly representative body is costing the working journalists dearly. A battery of journalists is sent to the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games and South Asian Games by the POA but less than half of them actually go out there for the coverage of the event. The POA has its priorities and they don’t have a mechanism that could allow them to sponsor the genuine journalists only and discard those going for joyrides.
The proposed body should have an essential service for all sports journalists-writers, sub-editors, photographers, presenters, producers, cameramen and editors-working in national and regional press, radio, television and websites.
A few individuals have attempted to form a national body with the hidden and at times even not so hidden objective of furthering their own vested interests.
The Pakistan Sports Writers Federation (PSWF) was founded and run by S M Naqi, Farooq Mazhar and Ali Kabir who considered themselves above board and dared doing things in the manner they pleased. The body revolved around these gentlemen, two of whom have now passed away and the third one has been laid low by illness. Unsurprisingly the body has remained dormant for the past one decade.
It was in the late 1980s when another group, led by Anisuddin Khan, emerged by the name of the Federation of Sports Journalists of Pakistan (FSJP) and they held a couple of meetings at the YMCA in Karachi that were very well attended. But the FSJP could not take off, primarily due to the lack of vision of its leaders who just couldn’t set the ball rolling.
The most significant step yet towards the formation of a truly representative body was witnessed in 2006 when Ehsan Qureshi mustered the support of the majority of the working journalists to form the Sports Journalists Association of Pakistan (SJAP). He did a lot of running around to establish the Association on solid footing but the move was sabotaged by hypocrisy.
There have been a couple of initiatives of late but unfortunately neither of them might be able to serve the purpose and it’s an extremely unlikely to have anything like the SJA of England coming up.
Amjad Aziz Malik and Zahid Farooq Malik, who somehow made their way to Milan, Italy, earlier this year to attend the AIPS Congress, have set off to revive the PWSF, albeit in a controversial and undemocratic manner.
The Maliks mobilized their resources to organize a two-day seminar/workshop at the Pakistan Sports Complex in Islamabad on August 15 and 16 but they very conveniently omitted the open debate session that deprived the participants the chance of putting forward their suggestions about the election process.
Instead of discussing the matter out in the open, the Maliks deemed it proper to close deals with the persons of their own choice and they came on stage only to announce the names of the people having been nominated for various assignments.
It was a wonderful idea to have invited the sports journalists from every nook and corner of the country. But by sharing the key posts between themselves and not even bothering to seek vote of confidence from the house undid their own good work.
Fingers have also been pointed towards both the Maliks about their standing in the profession of sports journalism in particular. They have not won friends by avoiding elections and declaring themselves as the President and the Secretary of the self-proclaimed PSWF.
If they were sincere to the cause of the profession and serious in reviving the body they should have simply formed a committee of three to five members to carry out the nationwide membership drive after which elections could have been held.
Soon afterwards the ‘bigwigs’ of sports journalism in Karachi met over tea but they were unable to come to any conclusion either. The organizers were short of concrete ideas and one was unsure about the purpose of the hastily arranged meeting.
It was disappointing to listen to the remarks of the veterans of the profession, who appeared confused and double-minded. If they were unable to resolve whether to form a national association or restrict themselves to a city body it was a clear reflection of lack of homework or division of opinion.
Abdul Majid Bhatti and Shahid Akhtar Hashmi, who conducted the proceedings, were unclear about the issue either. Waheed Khan, for reasons beyond comprehension, was not prepared to look beyond Karachi while Anisuudin Khan tried to impose his thoughts in the usual manner of his.
Although quite a few big names of the profession were in attendance in the meeting at the Karachi Club, besides the young guns, a consensus could not be developed and by the look of things yet another opportunity was wasted.
August 29, 2009
Salman Khan may or may not own an IPL team
Labels: IPLBy Syed Khalid Mahmood
There are contradicting reports whether the Bollywood icon, Salman Khan, is going to own a team in the future editions of the Indian Premier League (IPL) or his recent meeting with the IPL Commissioner, Lalit Modi, was nothing more than a courtesy call.
It was reported the other day that Salman Khan had shown interest in buying a franchise in the IPL but brother Sohail Khan denied the news.
"It's not true. Salman is not buying any IPL team. Yesterday when he was shooting for Dus Ka Dum I called up bhai and asked him whether it was true and he denied it," brother Sohail was quoted as saying.
The speculation grew from the moment Salman had a meeting with Modi at a suburban Mumbai hotel and it was Modi who broke the news of Salman’s interest in owning a cricket team which he was going to introduce in 2011.
"He has been interested in buying a team for quite some time. Today, we had a brief meeting and I explained how to go about with the task. I can assure you that Salman is not the only star who is thinking of buying a team. I have had around 28 queries and the list will surely go up," Modi announced.
But the sources close to Salman indicated that it was just an informal meeting and the Bollywood star did not meet Modi with an aim to own a team, he just asked him what's happening with the IPL and some other details.
If Salman in indeed interested and does make a successful bid, Salman will join an impressive list of Bollywood stars who own IPL teams. Shah Rukh Khan and Juhi Chawla have a shareholding in Kolkata Knight Riders while Preity Zinta and Shilpa Shetty have invested in King’s XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals respectively.
The IPL, launched to cash in on the popularity of Twenty20 cricket following India’s conquest in the inaugural World Cup of the shortest version of the game, brought in huge sums of money.
The multi-million dollar Twenty20 series featured almost all top international players and it became an instant hit with the entertainment element and the overwhelming official support from the movers and shakers of the game.
Lalit Modi is the man behind the show and he remains eager to lure the celebrities to explore how they could join the bandwagon. Obviously the stars of Bollywood prove more than useful tool in selling cricket as well. The greater number of stars that the tournament attracts certainly helps in further boosting the profile of IPL.
It remains to be seen if Salman Khan, with his preoccupations, does decide to have a go at the IPL. Apart from Salman, Ajay Devgan and Sanjay Dutt are also reportedly interested in owning IPL teams.
"He (Salman) is aware of the price of a franchise, which will be between US $200 to US $300 million. He has been keen for some time now, so he was curious about the process of auctions and the money involved,” Modi claimed in a television interview.
The request for proposal and tender for the two new teams will be floated by December and the auction will take place in January 2010. This is done to give the new owners enough time to set up a team and participate in the auction for IPL 4 for the new players.
readmore »»
August 27, 2009
Ponting may lose limited overs captaincy for good
Labels: Ashes 2009By Syed Khalid Mahmood
Ricky Ponting has become the first Australian captain since Billy Murdoch to have surrendered the Ashes in England two times. It was a closely fought series in 2005 and the hosts were in possession of a very strong and balanced outfit led by the inspirational Michael Vaughan.
Ponting had a younger outfit at his disposal when he returned to defend the Ashes, after having snatched it most emphatically at home in the interim period, in the summer of 2009. England too had a relatively inexperienced side with Andrew Strauss having taken over the reigns of captaincy only last winter.
Many experts rated Australia as the favourites to win the Ashes battle despite the fact that Ponting’s boys had not been all that inconsistent during the past one year. They were finding it difficult to regain supremacy in the absence of the stalwarts like Shane Warne, Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Adam Gilchrist and Glenn McGrath.
The Australians did possess a formidable bench-strength but their management probably overestimated the youngsters on the basis of their performance in the domestic competitions or in the limited opportunities at the international level.
Obviously Ponting would also have been a pat of the strategy to get the old guard replaced with new blood. But there is a thin line between confidence and over-confidence. The Australians were ruling the world because they had been blessed with an outstanding team and the captain didn’t have much role to play in motivating or guiding the tried and trusted campaigners.
I maintain that it was a blunder on part of the Australians to have let go all their champion characters so quickly. There was still a lot of cricket left in them when the impression was being created that they were over the hill.
Australia, I reckon, would have been a much stronger proposition if people like Warne, Hayden and Gilchrist were still around. Their outstanding performance in the Indian Premier League was a clear reflection of them being in fine shape.
Ponting should share the blame for fast-tracking the exit of the veterans. Being the captain he should have batted for them even if the management had the plans to replace them.
Now it’s Ponting’s turn to face the music. There are many people who desire his head to be put on the chopping block. Although the Board has come out in his support, besides some of his teammates, the feeling has frown that his days in office are numbered.
Ponting has said that he’s is open to the idea of handing deputy Michael Clarke the leadership responsibilities for the Twenty20 and one-day teams, and preserving himself for Test cricket. He has no other options either. He must have realized that the countdown has begun and it’s the beginning of the end for him.
Ponting himself got the one-day leadership in 2002 while Steve Waugh was doing the business in Test cricket. They shared the captaincy until Waugh quit the game 2004. Since then Ponting was the first-choice captain of Australia's Test, ODI and Twenty20 sides.
Now Clarke is most likely to be handed over the reigns for ODI and T20I with Ponting to lead the team in Tests only.
readmore »»
Ricky Ponting has become the first Australian captain since Billy Murdoch to have surrendered the Ashes in England two times. It was a closely fought series in 2005 and the hosts were in possession of a very strong and balanced outfit led by the inspirational Michael Vaughan.
Ponting had a younger outfit at his disposal when he returned to defend the Ashes, after having snatched it most emphatically at home in the interim period, in the summer of 2009. England too had a relatively inexperienced side with Andrew Strauss having taken over the reigns of captaincy only last winter.
Many experts rated Australia as the favourites to win the Ashes battle despite the fact that Ponting’s boys had not been all that inconsistent during the past one year. They were finding it difficult to regain supremacy in the absence of the stalwarts like Shane Warne, Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Adam Gilchrist and Glenn McGrath.
The Australians did possess a formidable bench-strength but their management probably overestimated the youngsters on the basis of their performance in the domestic competitions or in the limited opportunities at the international level.
Obviously Ponting would also have been a pat of the strategy to get the old guard replaced with new blood. But there is a thin line between confidence and over-confidence. The Australians were ruling the world because they had been blessed with an outstanding team and the captain didn’t have much role to play in motivating or guiding the tried and trusted campaigners.
I maintain that it was a blunder on part of the Australians to have let go all their champion characters so quickly. There was still a lot of cricket left in them when the impression was being created that they were over the hill.
Australia, I reckon, would have been a much stronger proposition if people like Warne, Hayden and Gilchrist were still around. Their outstanding performance in the Indian Premier League was a clear reflection of them being in fine shape.
Ponting should share the blame for fast-tracking the exit of the veterans. Being the captain he should have batted for them even if the management had the plans to replace them.
Now it’s Ponting’s turn to face the music. There are many people who desire his head to be put on the chopping block. Although the Board has come out in his support, besides some of his teammates, the feeling has frown that his days in office are numbered.
Ponting has said that he’s is open to the idea of handing deputy Michael Clarke the leadership responsibilities for the Twenty20 and one-day teams, and preserving himself for Test cricket. He has no other options either. He must have realized that the countdown has begun and it’s the beginning of the end for him.
Ponting himself got the one-day leadership in 2002 while Steve Waugh was doing the business in Test cricket. They shared the captaincy until Waugh quit the game 2004. Since then Ponting was the first-choice captain of Australia's Test, ODI and Twenty20 sides.
Now Clarke is most likely to be handed over the reigns for ODI and T20I with Ponting to lead the team in Tests only.
August 26, 2009
Flintoff signs off on a high
Labels: Ashes 2009By Syed Khalid Mahmood
Andrew Flintoff’s Test career has come to an end rather prematurely. The versatile England all-rounder was having serious fitness over the past few years and he probably made the right decision to quit the longer version of the game.
He was a potentially great cricketer but somehow could not do justice to his talents. He couldn’t produce the kind of consistency which the champion all-rounders like Tony Greig and Ian Botham had done for the country before him.
Yet Flintoff was a colossus for the team and his presence in the field was certainly a source of encouragement and inspiration for his teammates. He was one of those tough characters who awed the opponents.
Andrew Strauss and his team could not have wished a better sendoff for the big all-rounder than the massive win over Australia in the fifth and final Test at The Oval that allowed England to regain the Ashes.
Ideally Flintoff would have loved contributing more substantially in his farewell Test but he would obviously be delighted with the end result. It was a comprehensive victory over the Aussies and more importantly it enabled England to lay their hands on the Ashes that has not stayed for long with them during the last couple of decades.
Flintoff, however, had a hand in bringing about the victory on the penultimate day of the decisive game. With Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey on song, the Australians were cruising in the afternoon session and there were hints of the contest getting tighter than was being anticipated at the start of the innings.
It was Flintoff’s brilliant direct hit that found Ponting short of his crease and ended the threatening partnership. The run out of the Australian skipper opened the floodgates and England cashed in to seal the fate of the game.
It was a magnificent piece of fielding that not only brought to an end the dangerous partnership but also boosted the morale of the side whose shoulders were beginning to drop during the onslaught.
Flintoff was a tough guy on the field but he knew the importance of human qualities. "I would rather be regarded as a decent bloke rather than any sort of cricketer I might have been. That is far more important to me. Whatever you do on the cricket field is one thing, but being able to face yourself in the mirror every day and say 'You're not a bad egg', that is far more important. Cricket is one thing, but I want some friends afterwards,” he observed rather modestly.
"I don't think I ever achieved greatness and I don't profess to. I was asked, 'have you been a great cricketer', and the obvious answer is no. That's the Bothams, the Sobers, the Imran Khans, the Tendulkars, the Ricky Pontings, who achieved greatness over a long period of time by playing Test after Test after Test,” he added.
"I have had an Ashes victory twice, I have had a Test career where I have played 79 Test matches, and hopefully I will go on playing one-day internationals, so from a professional point of view I am happy. For the bulk of my career I have played through pain and with injury, so to be out on the field was an achievement in some ways. But is that greatness? No," Flintoff conceded.
August 25, 2009
Strauss made the difference
Labels: Ashes 2009By Syed Khalid Mahmood
If anybody deserved to claim the coveted Ashes trophy at The Oval on August 23 it was Andrew Strauss. The England captain had only led from the front but he also contributed the most significantly to the success of his team.
Although there was a Man of the Series from either side, I have little doubt in my mind that Strauss would have edged out Michael Clarke if there were a single award. So awesome was the contribution of the England skipper who gave a perfect exhibition of leading by example.
Strauss was rewarded for his persistence and leadership qualities. He changed gear at will at top of the order to provide a stable platform for his teammates who must have felt motivated by the consistency of their captain.
Strauss was able to execute his plans nearly to perfection primarily because he was scoring runs in nearly every outing in the middle. Conversely it certainly becomes a different ball game when the captain of a team is unable to perform.
He scored close to 500 runs in the five-match series at an average of over 50. The second highest scorer in the series from England, Matt Prior, was way behind the skipper. Prior made 261 while Strauss aggregated 474.
England would have been in deep trouble without the contributions from Strauss, let alone coming anywhere close to Australia and they could have been in danger of facing another massive series defeat.
Strauss held the key to England’s fortunes in their bid to regain the Ashes and he rose to the occasion splendidly to engineer the most famous win of his career yet.
"For me, I suppose it is better than 2005, because I've captained the side. But we've moved forward from then, there are different personalities involved, and a different management team as well," Strauss observed.
"It's one of those situations that you can't prepare yourself for, and you don't let yourself think about that moment in case it never comes. We were all just running around like idiots, to be honest. That's as special a moment as you'll get on a cricket field - 2005 will live long in my memory, and these two moments are as special as anything I'll go through," he added.
“We went through so many emotions today. "Hope, frustration, worry... despair at times when we didn't look like taking a wicket. You don't realise how hard it is to get over the line until you do actually get over that line," he said while recalling the tension and excitement of the day when the Ashes came into his grabs.
"It feels pretty special to be standing here right now. It feels like a lot more than seven or eight months ago when I took over. There's been a lot of water under the bridge, because we were in a pretty bad state, to be honest with you. But it's an amazing day, and one that seemed a long way off after Headingley. But all credit to the guys, because they had to dig deep. An Ashes series forces a player to dig deep, and the guys have done that and come out fighting. It's a special moment for all of us," the England captain reckoned.
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If anybody deserved to claim the coveted Ashes trophy at The Oval on August 23 it was Andrew Strauss. The England captain had only led from the front but he also contributed the most significantly to the success of his team.
Although there was a Man of the Series from either side, I have little doubt in my mind that Strauss would have edged out Michael Clarke if there were a single award. So awesome was the contribution of the England skipper who gave a perfect exhibition of leading by example.
Strauss was rewarded for his persistence and leadership qualities. He changed gear at will at top of the order to provide a stable platform for his teammates who must have felt motivated by the consistency of their captain.
Strauss was able to execute his plans nearly to perfection primarily because he was scoring runs in nearly every outing in the middle. Conversely it certainly becomes a different ball game when the captain of a team is unable to perform.
He scored close to 500 runs in the five-match series at an average of over 50. The second highest scorer in the series from England, Matt Prior, was way behind the skipper. Prior made 261 while Strauss aggregated 474.
England would have been in deep trouble without the contributions from Strauss, let alone coming anywhere close to Australia and they could have been in danger of facing another massive series defeat.
Strauss held the key to England’s fortunes in their bid to regain the Ashes and he rose to the occasion splendidly to engineer the most famous win of his career yet.
"For me, I suppose it is better than 2005, because I've captained the side. But we've moved forward from then, there are different personalities involved, and a different management team as well," Strauss observed.
"It's one of those situations that you can't prepare yourself for, and you don't let yourself think about that moment in case it never comes. We were all just running around like idiots, to be honest. That's as special a moment as you'll get on a cricket field - 2005 will live long in my memory, and these two moments are as special as anything I'll go through," he added.
“We went through so many emotions today. "Hope, frustration, worry... despair at times when we didn't look like taking a wicket. You don't realise how hard it is to get over the line until you do actually get over that line," he said while recalling the tension and excitement of the day when the Ashes came into his grabs.
"It feels pretty special to be standing here right now. It feels like a lot more than seven or eight months ago when I took over. There's been a lot of water under the bridge, because we were in a pretty bad state, to be honest with you. But it's an amazing day, and one that seemed a long way off after Headingley. But all credit to the guys, because they had to dig deep. An Ashes series forces a player to dig deep, and the guys have done that and come out fighting. It's a special moment for all of us," the England captain reckoned.
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