1st Semi-Final:
Delhi Daredevils v/s Rajasthan Royals at Mumbai - May 30, 2008 (20:00 local, 14:30 GMT)
2nd Semi-Final:
Chennai Super Kings v/s Kings XI Punjab at Mumbai - May 31, 2008 (20:00 local, 14:30 GMT)
Lalit ModiThe high profile commissioner of the Indian Premier League, Lalit Modi, was convicted of possessing drugs, kidnapping and assault in the US during his days as a university student. The conviction came after Modi confessed to committing the offences before a North Carolina court.
In his defence, Modi’s lawyers say he did not serve the two-year jail sentence as he was let off on probation, and the Durham County Court did not give a final decision on his sentencing for drugs possession.
The Supreme Court has been hearing a petition challenging Modi’s position as a cricket official since 2005. But the case has acquired urgency lately after the petitioner asked for a quick resolution, either way.
Despite repeated attempts to contact him for a response through calls and SMSes, and despite explaining the story to him on SMS, Modi, though polite, indicated he would not comment.
Documents available with HT show Modi had pleaded guilty to possessing cocaine, abduction and assault in the state of North Carolina in 1985.
These documents are included in the petition being heard by the Supreme Court, challenging Modi’s election as president of the Rajasthan Cricket Association on the grounds that its rules do not permit anyone convicted of a criminal offence to hold the post of an office-bearer. The petitioner is Kishore Rungta, who was defeated by Modi in the elections.
If the court upholds the petitioner’s plea, Modi’s position as vice-president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India may also become untenable.
In 1985, General Court of Justice, Durham County, had charged Modi with kidnapping, assault and possession of 400 grams of cocaine, court documents show. He then entered a ‘plea bargain’, which is permitted under the US law and allows a reduced punishment without a trial if the accused confesses to his or her crimes.
“Since the case was reported in the press, in order to avoid further publicity, embarrassment, protracted litigation in a foreign country, heavy costs and consequent intervention with his academic career, he entered into plea bargaining,” Modi’s lawyers wrote in a submission to the Supreme Court.
The Durham County Court accepted Modi's plea bargaining application and found him guilty of kidnapping and assault. The court sentenced him to two years imprisonment and fined him $10,000.
On Modi's request, the court placed him on a five-year probation, asking him to undergo 100 hours of community service. The decision on sentencing for possession of drugs was deferred for five years on the condition that a $50,000 cash bond was deposited with the court. This is a normal practice in North Carolina for first-time offenders.
Modi moved the court again in 1986 -- after graduating from Duke University -- seeking permission to move to India on health grounds. The court ordered: "As a fact the defendant has been hospitalised. His doctors indicate that a return to his home in India would facilitate his recovery… The said probation be modified to unsupervised probation. As a condition, the defendant is to perform 200 hours of community service by 1990. He may return to his home…"
Modi's lawyers say the US court did not pass any final judgment on the drugs charge in the next five years and the cash bond was also discharged. North Carolina rules allow first-time offenders in drugs cases to be given the benefit of deferred sentences.The issue of Modi's conviction has been haunting him regularly. A public interest litigation in the Mumbai High Court in 2007 challenged his election as BCCI vice-president on the same ground. (See accompanying box)
Though the court refused to unseat Modi, it asked the BCCI "to implement stringent regulatory measures so that those involved in criminal cases, not just illegal drugs but other serious charges have no place in administration".
There are no indications so far that the BCCI paid any heed to the Bombay High Court's suggestions.
source : www.hindustantimes.com
New Delhi (PTI): The agonising wait for Rajasthan Royals' last-ball win over Mumbai Indians that booked them a place in the IPL semifinals turned out to be quite enjoyable for the Delhi Daredevils, who found a perfect getaway from the tension at teammate Tillakaratne Dilshan's wedding here on Monday night.
The 31-year-old Dilshan got married at a city hotel on Monday night and the Daredevils came out in full force to wish the Sri Lankan all-rounder and his bride.
The marriage was conducted under Hindu rituals and turned out to be a refreshing experience for the team's other foreign recruits.
"It was mesmeric. The music, the clothes that they wore, the atmosphere was completely a new experience for me. I had a good time," said Australian pacer Brett Geeves.
And while they were enjoying the wedding, the Daredevils' happiness was doubled by the arrival of the news that Rajasthan beat Mumbai in a last-ball humdinger.
Needing three runs of the last ball, Rajasthan benefited from a misfield and a spilt run-out chance to romp home and continue with their winning streak.
Karachi (PTI): Though Shoaib Akhtar is not among the contracted player of the Pakistan Cricket Board, the maverick pacer has been told to appear in a dope test along with national team members.
PCB's decision to ask Shoaib, despite he not being a contracted player of the Pakistan board, undergo the test comes on the heels of media reports claiming syringes were found in his bag before his departure for the Indian Premier League.
While there is nothing extraordinary with the contracted players being put through a dope test, the decision to ask Shoaib too undergo it has created a stir.
Shoaib is already fighting a five-year ban for his comments against the board. He was granted one month reprieve by an appellate tribunal to allow him play in the IPL.
Akhtar's ban, which disallowed him playing anywhere in Pakistan or for Pakistan, will be reinstated from June 4 when appellate tribunal resumes hearing on his appeal against the ban imposed by the board.
Questions are being asked whether this has something to do with reports that custom officials had allegedly found large quantity of empty syringes in his luggage at the airport before leaving for India.
No board official was available to confirm or deny the development as the officials are in Colombo for the Asian Cricket Council meeting, but sources say the pacer would undergo the test even if he is under ban.
Punjab Police Senior Superintendent of Police Mr RS Khatra and Ness Wadia. It is learnt that the Punjab Police Officer has filed a complaint against Ness Wadia for using derogatory language with him and alleging the Punjab Police of selling tickets for IPL matches and allowing unofficial entry into the stadium to hundreds of persons without tickets. Ness Wadia is also learnt to have accused the Punjab Police of stealing liquor bottles and T Shirts from the Punjab team.IPL is a private body and the deployment of such a large police force for security duties can anytime come under the scanner. Approximately 1000 police personnel are known to have been deployed in the Mohali Stadium. However the Punjab Police is already one up on this issue. They are learnt to have already floated a bill of Rs 18 Million as charges for security. In a letter to the Mohali Deputy Commissioner the Punjab Police has asked for the payment of the charges by the PCA and IPL immediately. They have also stated that no security will be provided for the next match if the charges were not paid.
In view of the security situation in the country this is a fine recipe for disaster. The issue needs to be resolved above parochial interests of both the parties in the interest of the game and the nation.
source : www.newsline365.com
New Delhi: It seems like Kolkata Knight Riders owner Shah Rukh Khan has not got over the fact that he was warned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) to stay away from the dugout even after Indian Premier League (IPL) Chairman and Commissioner Lalit Modi clarified on the issue.Sounding miffed at being treated as a 'bookie' Shah Rukh said," I have paid my players to win. Will I pay them now to lose? This is illogical. The IPL has set its set of rules & regulation and I am a law-abiding person. But why pick on me? Other team owners are seen near their players. Is it because I am a celebrity & vulnerable?"
On Thursday, Shah Rukh sent a SMS to his team saying that he would boycott the remaining matches of the IPL till the League clarified the code of conduct and cricketing authorities.
The superstar on Sunday had also expressed disappointment with the ICC Anti-Corruption Unit for barring him from going to the team dugout and dressing room.
The Anti-Corruption Unit officials had cautioned Shah Rukh about going into the dressing room and the team dugout during the IPL match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings.
source : www.ibnlive.com
Kings XI Punjab gripped their confidence and spirit for the semi final as they thrashed out Hyderabad Deccan Chargers by six wickets at the Punjab Cricket stadium, Mohali. | Team | Mat | Won | Lost | Tied | N/R | Pts | Net RR | For | Against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rajasthan | 11 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 18 | +0.950 | 1708/201.1 | 1586/210.2 |
| Punjab | 11 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 16 | +0.436 | 1779/200.2 | 1741/206.1 |
| Chennai | 12 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 14 | -0.209 | 1892/225.0 | 1837/213.1 |
| Mumbai | 11 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 12 | +0.663 | 1633/193.1 | 1649/211.4 |
| Delhi | 12 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 12 | +0.350 | 1822/213.3 | 1855/226.4 |
| Kolkata | 12 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 10 | -0.167 | 1670/223.0 | 1544/201.4 |
| Bangalore | 12 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 6 | -1.317 | 1690/235.4 | 1914/225.3 |
| Deccan | 11 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -0.463 | 1742/210.0 | 1810/206.4 |
The Chennai Super Kings are a part of the eight club Indian Premier League. The franchise is owned by India Cements, who paid US$91 million to acquire the rights to the franchise for the next 10 years. Mr. N. Srinivasan who
is the Vice-Chairman and Managing Director of India Cements Ltd., is the defacto owner of the Chennai Super Kings, by means of his position within the company. He is also the treasurer of the BCCI.
Former captain of the Indian Cricket Team, Krishnamachari Srikkanth, is the brand ambassador for the franchise, and former Indian opener V. B. Chandrasekhar is the Chief Selector. The star ambassador for the team is the Kollywood film star, Vijay. Film actress Nayantara was initially appointed as a co-brand ambassador, but was later fired as she was unable to meet the commitments of regular match appearances.
The name "Super Kings" honours the rulers of the golden era of Tamil culture. The team logo, a Lion, was the insignia of the Pallava dynasty which ruled Southern India including the areas that constitute present day Chennai. In terms of branding, the name "Super Kings" possibly refers to 'Coromandel Super King cement', a brand of cement promoted by the India Cements Group. There is also another side to the story which says that South Indian business man Chetan Babu's cigarette brand "Super Kings" has sponsored the team to acquire the naming rights.
Incidentally the Chennai based team playing in the ICL (the rebel league) are called the "Chennai Superstars".
Chennai Super Kings are one of the three franchises with no icon player. The lack of an icon player benefited the Super Kings during the bidding as they managed to bid successfully on two (Dhoni & Muralitharan) of the six A listed players.
the team is currently sponsored by Aircel and Reebok.
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Royal Challengers Bangalore (also referred to as RCB) is the team representing the city of Bangalore in the Indian Premier League, the inaugural Twenty20 cricket tournament to be held in India. The team is owned by the liquor magnate Vijay Mallya, the chairman of UB Group. Brijesh Patel is the CEO of the team and Rahul Dravid, the captain of the team is the Icon Player. Martin Crowe, the former New Zealand captain, is the CCO (Chief Cricketing Officer) of the management team.Indian Premier League is a cricket tournament being organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI - the governing body for cricket in India), and backed by the International Cricket Council. For the inaugural tournament to be held in Apr-Jun 2008, the BCCI had finalised a list of 8 teams who will be participating in the tournament. The teams representing 8 different cities of India, including Bangalore, were put up on auction in Mumbai on 20 February 2008 and the Bangalore team was won by Vijay Mallya, who paid US$111.6 million for it. This was the second highest bid for a team in the IPL, next only to Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries' bid of $111.9 million for the Mumbai. Bollywood actresses Katrina Kaif and Deepika Padukone, and Sandalwood film stars Ramya and Upendra are the brand ambassadors of the team
Despite the large amount of money spent and buzz around the team, the franchise experienced some turbulent times very early on in its existence. The team won only 2 of its first 10 matches in the Inaugural IPL Season. In addition, the composition of the team was heavily criticized for resembling a Test Team more than a Twenty20 squad. As a result of these issues, the CEO of the team, Charu Sharma was unceremoniously sacked only months into his position. The owner of the franchise, Vijay Mallya later blamed team captain Rahul Dravid as one of the main causes of the team's poor performance. Mallya cited Dravid's poor captaincy, his inability to adapt to the T-20 format and differences between them over team selection during the player auction. The team eventually failed to enter the semifinals.
On top of the team's poor performance, the team also had their struggles off the field. On 16 May 2008, it was reported that Praveen Kumar, one of the team's strike bowlers, physically assaulted a doctor in his hometown of Meerut. It is alleged that at the time, Praveen was inebriated and being very difficult. Charges have yet to be imposed by the BCCI.
Vijay Mallya wanted to associate one of his top-selling liquor brands, either No. 1 McDowell's or Royal Challenge with the team. The latter was chosen, hence the name. The jersey colours of the team are red and golden yellow, the same as the Karnataka state flag, and the logo consists of the RC emblem with "Royal Challengers Bangalore" in standard format.
A theme song called "Thakkath Geete" has been composed in support of the Red & Yellow team, with the help of TV9.
The players in the team (except for Rahul Dravid, who was the Icon Player), were selected in an auction conducted by BCCI on 20 February 2008. South Africa's Jacques Kallis at $900,000 became the costliest player to be selected to play for the Royal Challengers. This meant that Rahul Dravid, being the Icon Player would be paid $1,035,000 (15% more than the highest bid player in the team). Other players selected included the Indian Test cricket captain Anil Kumble along with his team-mates Praveen Kumar and Zaheer Khan, West Indian Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Aussies Nathan Bracken and Cameron White, South Africa's Mark Boucher (Wicket Keeper) and Dale Steyn.
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Islamabad, May 21 (IANS) Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi is in a sombre mood as Kolkata Knight Riders - his favourite team for which Pakistani pacer Shoaib Akhtar plays - has little chance of making it to the semi-finals of the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament. “The team I was rooting for has been knocked out,” said the Oxford-educated Qureshi in one of the lighter moments at a joint press conference with his Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee after their talks Wednesday.
Continuing their winning streak, Rajasthan Royals became the first team to book a semi-final spot after beating Kolkata Knight Riders by six wickets in an Indian Premier League match at Eden Garden on Tuesday night.
Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland yesterday confirmed plans for Australia to host its version of the Indian Premier League as early as the 2009-10 season.
Sutherland said CA wanted to upgrade its two-week Big Bash domestic Twenty20 competition, and one way to tap into the game's latest cash cow would be to follow the lead of the IPL.
As revealed in the Herald Sun last week, CA is considering allowing teams to be privately owned franchises with salary caps and overseas talent to ensure lucrative TV coverage appeals internationally.
"In our review, leading into the 2009-10 season we will be launching our own Twenty20 competition that we believe will really significantly enhance what already is a good, strong KFC Big Bash competition," Sutherland said.
CA is frustrated that it does not share in the spoils of the IPL, despite providing some of the competition's drawcards.
There is a possibility governing boards will receive a handout if the IPL finds an exclusive spot in the international fixture next year.
This would mean nations would need to be reimbursed for missing out on revenue from Test and one-day international series.
But a sure way to tap into the Twenty20 boom is to host a major tournament, which England is also considering in conjunction with billionaire Allen Stanford.
"We are under no illusions that our market is a different size.
''We need to tailor our product to our market, but we still see a tremendous benefit of being able to play Twenty20 that will bring new people to the game," Sutherland said.
Speaking at the launch of next summer's international program, Sutherland also said:
THE traditional New Year's Test in Sydney, against South Africa, will begin a day later than usual on January 3 so players would have more rest after the MCG Test.
A TWENTY20 "Champions League" tournament featuring the two best teams from Australia, England, South Africa, India and Pakistan could still be held later this year.
CRICKET Australia was working with the CSIRO to find a ball suitable for staging Test cricket at night.
source : www.news.com.au
Evidently all the cricket based drama is not taking place on the field but at the box office too. At least the Bhatts would have you believe it.
Deccan Chargers is the franchise that represents the city of Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League. The team is led by V.V.S. Laxman and coached by Robin Singh, presently the fielding coach of the Indian cricket team. There is no Icon Player for the team.The Deccan Chargers franchise is owned by Deccan Chronicle. The media group acquired the franchise from IPL for $107 million on January 24, 2008. Group M later picked a 20% stake.
The Chargers were among the most aggressive bidders during the first Indian Premier League player auction. The franchise added a lot of explosive power in batting by acquiring some renowned big hitters like Adam Gilchrist, Andrew Symonds, Shahid Afridi, Scott Styris and Herschelle Gibbs. In addition to all these players, the franchise also includes the Indian test player V.V.S. Laxman, who is a Hyderabad local. They are also employing the services of well-known pacers R.P. Singh, Nuwan Zoysa and Chaminda Vaas. It's been announced by the franchise that Laxman will captain the side during the tournament.
V.V.S. Laxman was supposed to be the Icon Player for the Deccan Chargers, but this meant that the players mentioned above could not be bought as Icon Player's earn 15% more than the next highest earner in the team. However, VVS Laxman relinquished his Icon Player Status, and instead of earning $1 million like other Icon players he earns $375,000, which allows the team to buy the big names and still remain under the salary cap.
The Deccan Chargers are represented by a charging bull, the mascot for the chargers which signifies strength, power and aggression while the red and gold bands on the flag stand for dominance and victory.
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Shane Warne has moved to the top of the Indian Premier League wicket-taking charts, claiming three scalps to guide the Rajasthan Royals to a 65-run win over Bangalore in Jaipur.
The legendary Australian legspinner's 3-23 off four overs took his tally to 14 wickets in 10 matches, while helping restrict Bangalore to 9-132 off 20 overs chasing Rajasthan's handy 1-197.
Queensland's Shane Watson continued his phenomenal form in the lucrative tournament, smashing an unbeaten 46 off 26 balls for the Royals, though his innings proved more of a support role to man of the match Graeme Smith's 75 not out off 49 balls.
India stalwart Rahul Dravid, much-maligned for his slow scoring in Test cricket, hammered six sixes and six fours in a 36-ball 75 not out to lead Bangalore but he had little support.
Victoria captain Cameron White was quiet for Bangalore, scoring 10 off 16 deliveries, while not being called upon with the ball.
In today's other match, Queensland allrounder James Hopes claimed 2-2 in a stunning one-over spell as Kings XI Punjab defeated Delhi Daredevils by six-runs in Delhi.
The Daredevils batted first and rocketed to 4-118 off 11 overs thanks to an explosive, unbeaten 51 off 26 balls from India opener Virender Sehwag before rain stopped play.
The match was reduced to 11 overs a side and West Australian Luke Pomersbach scored a quickfire 25 not out off 12 balls in the chase, sharing an unbroken 63-run partnership with Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene (36no off 17).
When the rain came again and eventually brought an end to the match, Kings XI were 3-94 off eight overs and ahead of the required run-rate under the Duckworth-Lewis method.
Interestingly, Jayawardene hit a six over mid-on off the last ball before the final stoppage which ultimately proved the difference.
Had it been a dot ball, the match would have ended in a tie.
Source : Sydney Morning Herald, Australia
A report in the Nation said that prior to boarding the flight to Mumbai en route to Kolkata the custom officials had questioned Shoaib on an inordinately large supply of syringes in his luggage-reportedly as many as three dozen in number.
Rajasthan Royals is the franchise that represents the state of Rajasthan in the Indian Premier League. The team is led and coached by Shane Warne. There is no Icon Player for the team. It is the only IPL team to have a foreign captain and playing coach. The team's mascot is a lion named Moochu Singh. The team anthem, 'Halla Bol', has been sung by Ila Arun. Leicestershire spinner Jeremy Snape has signed with the Rajasthan Royals as high-performace coach.The Rajasthan Royals franchise is owned by Emerging Media group under Lachlan Murdoch. The group acquired the franchise for $67 million. Incidentally, this was the least expensive franchise in the Indian Premier League and also the least fancied team in the league.
The team was initially considered as the weakest team in the IPL, as it was not having any icon or star players, but now as more than half of IPL tournament is over, the team has emerged as the top ranker. Although the team lost its initial match against Delhi Daredevils, the winning campaign started by defeating Kings XI Punjab and continued to thrill the top teams, which led them on the top of the IPL rankings.
Rajasthan Royals was the least active franchise during the player auction. The team does not have a designated icon player, which saved a lot of cap space for the franchise. However the franchise was surprisingly low key during the auction, and in the end got penalized by the IPL organizing committee for failing to meet the minimum bidding criteria of $3.3 million. The highest bid by Rajasthan Royals was for the Indian middle order batsman Mohammad Kaif, who came off the board at $675,000. Shane Warne has been named the coach and captain of the side. The Royals are unique as they are the only side to have an English cricketer in their squad, Hampshire's all rounder Dimitri Mascarenhas. The Rajasthan Royals also selected Justin Langer and Morne Morkel in the player auction, but both declined to instead play county cricket.
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Mumbai Indians is a team in the Indian Premier League. The team is led by Sachin Tendulkar, who is also the Icon Player for the team. The team is coached by Lalchand Rajput, the former manager of the Indian Cricket Team. The team is owned by Mukesh Ambani, Chairman of Reliance Industries.
Reliance Industries Limited through its subsidiary Reliance Retail Ltd purchased the rights for the Mumbai franchise of Indian Premier league for a total of $111.9 million during the auction on January 24, 2008. The RIL bid has made the Mumbai Indians the most expensive franchise in IPL. The team was unveiled on the 17th of April,2008 in Mumbai.
The team logo has the Sudarshana Chakra with the team's name engraved in it. The team's colour is blue. The team's jersey is a two-tone blue with three stripes in orange.
Bollywood superstar Hrithik Roshan is the brand ambassador of the team.
During the player auction, the Mumbai Indians successfully bid for 7 players, including two members of the Indian Twenty-20 World cup winning side in Harbhajan Singh and Robin Uthappa. Sanath Jayasuriya, Lasith Malinga and Shaun Pollock were other cricketers who were successfully bid for by the franchise.
{Team of Tashan Anil Kapoor & Kareena Kapoor, Supporting Mumbai Indians}
Outside of the player auction, the franchise has also signed up Ajinkya Rahane and Abhishek Nayar (from Mumbai), Yogesh Takawale (WK-Batsman from Maharashtra) and Pinal Shah (WK-Batsman from Baroda). Saurabh Tiwary and Manish Pandey, the members of the U-19 world-cup winning team were the random picks drafted in during the BCCI held second auction. Dominic Thornely was also signed by the Mumbai Indians for a sum of 25000 USD.
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Kings XI Punjab is a sports franchise based in Mohali in the eight team Indian Premier League. The team is led by Yuvraj Singh who is also the Icon Player. The team is coached by Tom Moody, the former Australian all rounder.The owners of the franchise include Preity Zinta, Ness Wadia (Bombay Dyeing), Karan Paul (Apeejay Surendera Group) and Mohit Burman (Dabur). The group paid a total of $76 million to acquire the franchise.
India middle order batsman Yuvraj Singh is the designated icon player for the franchise and will also captain the team. In addition to Yuvraj, the team also contains the promising Indian allrounder Irfan Pathan, maverick Indian pacer S. Sreesanth, Aussie speedster Brett Lee and the Sri Lankan duo of Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara in its ranks.
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During the franchise auction for the Indian Premier League teams, the GMR group acquired the rights for the Delhi franchise for $84 million.
{From left, Virender Sehwag, Akshay Kumar with other players of Delhi Daredevils at a team launch function}
