ICC Champions Trophy 2009 in South Africa from 22 Sep 2009

ICC Champions Trophy 2009 (CT 2009) - a One Day International (ODI) competition is all set to start in Johannesburg from tomorrow (22-Sep-2009) with the inaugural match that will be played South Africa (SA) versus Sri Lanka (SL).

The CT 2009 is a 15 game tournament in which teams of eight countries will play. Two groups A and B have been setup with 4 teams in each group...

Group A - Australia, India, Pakistan, West Indies
Group B - England, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka

Each team will 3 games to qualify for the semi-finals, ie. 12 (6 each group) qualifying matches to decide the top 2 teams. These 12 match of the 2 groups in CT 2009 will be played between 22-Sep-2009 to 30-Sep-2009.

The top 4 teams - (2 from each group) will play the semi-finals on 2-Oct-2009 and 3-Oct-2009 and the winner of the semi finals will play the finals on 5-Oct-2009.

On Sunday, many eyebrows went up when BCCI President Shashank Manohar went public over the out-of-competition testing norms of WADA (World Anti Doping Agency). He had said that the "whereabout" clause was an infringement of the privacy of the players and also posed security risks for the them.

A new angle over the "whereabout" clause of the WADA agreement has been presented by Sports Minister M. S. Gill.

In the latest development our own Sports Minister M. S. Gill has spoken in the matter.

He has dismissed the claim by BCCI chief and asked the cricketers to fall in line without cribbing. He was surprised at the stand of the cricketers especially after the fact that most sportspersons across the world have already signed it.

Gill said that the world is concerned about doping and we should support WADA in its cause.

New Zealand stops Dhoni's Men

After a streak of wins in the Twenty20 (T20) games, New Zealand has finally brought the Indian winning spree to a grinding halt - 2 consecutive matches lost. Much to the disappointment of the cricket fans from India, there favourite team India has lost 2 games in succession to the New Zealand team.

Yeah! Yeah! I know! No team can go on winning all the games they play, but one cannot stop expectations from building up when we see our countrymen winning game after game, match after match. This time, too, the team had left for New Zealand after a successful tour of Sri Lanka.

Quite naturally, expectations from the team are at a long time high.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the team's captain, has demonstrated praiseworthy leadership. He has received a lot of recognition for being able to maintain his cool even in the toughest of times and this particular trait of his has been attributed to be the main reason behind team's improved performance in the last few series.

But then, I believe it is good for the team to lose a match or two once in a while. It reminds everyone that they are not unbeatable and must keep up the practice and hard work at all times.

I would only like to say to the team - "Don't get disheartened by a couple of lost matches, there are many more to come where you can prove that you have it in you. You must go out and prove that we are the best."

Is this financial clout?

BCCI seems to have done it again. It has once again used its clout to affect the judgement of one more disciplinary action in the international cricketing circles.

This time it has used its clout to have the suspension of Shoaib Akhtar suitably suspended so that he could play for Shahrukh Khan's team - Kolkata Knight Riders. The day the judgement against Shoaib had been announced Lalit Modi had gone public saying that he would ensure that Shoaib plays in the Indian Premier League.

He has moved subtlely but surely and done what he had promised.

I am not against Shoaib Akhtar playing in the IPL matches. He is a good player and it would be a pleasure to watch him in action. However, it surely surprises me how the Indian cricket board is using its clout to influence the way the game is governed internationally.

On one hand it has initiated proceedings against Harbhajan Singh and suspended for striking fellow player Shreesanth and at the same time it has apparently coaxed and influenced another country's cricket board, that too in a very similar case where the judgement had been passed against Shoaib for entering into a brawl with his fellow teammate.

The board had used its clout only recently when Harbhajan Singh had been suspended by the match referee in Australia for the alleged racist comments passed by him during an arguement with Andrew Symonds.

IPL Season starts soon - monetizing of cricket

That's it folks - its time to see the real show!

A lot has been said and promised by the Board of Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) and its Indian Premier League (IPL). We have witnessed a string of auctions and bidding processes in the media for a sporting event that is expected to revolutionize the way we look at sports in the country.

India's richest sport - CRICKET - is all set to launch the first tournament of its much glamorized Indian Premier League (IPL).

Starting 18 April 2008 at Bangalore with the first match that will be played between Vijay Mallya's Royal Challengers and Shahrukh Khan's Knight Riders. The tournament will culminate at Mumbai on 1 June 2008.

It is time to see, on the ground, the actual sport of the event that has hogged so much media space, for more than the last couple of months, for its sensational auctions and high value bids. I am waiting to see whether the event is able to meet the expectations of its organizers. Whether it is able to gain the level of popularity and kind of viewership that its sponsors are dreaming for.

A lot of money has already been put in and a lot is at stake in the tournament. Several thousands of crores of rupees have been pumped in at various stages by the franchise owners and sponsor partners.

I don't think anyone is spending so much money for charity. Each and every one of those involved has made an investment and is out to make money. One can expect these parties to utilize every gimmick possible to motivate cricket fans to loosen their purse strings and shell out money. Considering the amount of investment done it is obvious that they are looking forward to making a lot of money.

Could the Indian Premier League be the trigger that the national economy is looking for? Presently, grapling with inflation and facing a industrial slowdown coupled with an global financial turmoil the economy is desparately seeking a stimulus to put it back on the growth track.