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DLF Indian Premier League
McCullum finds encouragement from Agarkar, Vettori
JOHANNESBURG: He set the tone for DLF Indian Premier League with a blitzkrieg in the opening game last year. But a year on, Brendon McCullum has been a mere shadow of the man who slammed Royal Challengers Bangalore all over the M Chinnaswamy Stadium so much so that he has been the biggest disappointment of IPL 2009.
These have been the most forgetful few weeks of his cricketing career, runs coming in a trickle, his leadership skills coming under the microscope. To make matters worse, his team, Kolkata Knight Riders have also not been performing to potential.
Kolkata Knight Riders have been virtually out of the race for the semifinals for a long time now. But in this hour of crisis, his teammates are sticking by him and are hoping that he would turn the corner in the final stretch. "That's (McCullum's form) been the biggest loss for us in the tournament," said teammate Ajit Agarkar in an interview to iplt20.com. "He is such a dangerous and explosive player. I hope he hits top form in the next four games and strikes purple patch."
Support has also poured in from McCullum's New Zealand teammates too. The Black Caps captain Daniel Vettori says the wicket-keeper is just one knock away from being among the runs. "As soon as he get those runs, he will be up again. He has worked quite hard. There has not been a single good cricketer ever who hasn't been through what he has seen," said Vettori.
The Knight Riders camp believes that bad luck has dogged McCullum. "He had a couple of poor decisions, a bad one on Sunday. Then, he was unlucky he hit a long hop straight to point. These things happen with any cricketer," said Agarkar. McCullum said pretty much the same as he courageously faced the flashlights after another loss in the tournament. The situation that he finds himself is far removed from what was expected at the start of the tournament. Along with Chris Gayle, McCullum was supposed to provide firepower to propel Knight Riders into the top four.
But that did not happen. "The kind of players Chris and Brendon are, we expected them to give us the edge," Agarkar said. "But there are four more games and even though we may make the semifinals, Brendon is a key player for us and we hope he can turn it around."
But has McCullum the batsman affected the McCullum the captain or the other way around? "Not at all. I am sure he is the feeling the pinch because he wants to perform and lead by example," Agarkar said. "In fact, if anything, he has tried even harder on the field. We are all hoping that he will set the record straight in the final stretch."
DLF Indian Premier League
McGrath dismisses Buchanan's theory
New Delhi: Delhi Daredevils spearhead Glenn McGrath on Tuesday categorically rejected John Buchanan's multiple-captain theory while endorsing the importance of the captain.
Speaking on the sidelines of a programme to mark the team's send-off to South Africa for the second edition of DLF-Indian Premier League, McGrath said: "I have played under Buchanan and I know he has a lot of theories. Perhaps, this is another one. I don't know why he (Buchanan) has come up with this idea. I like a single captain idea."
"A good captain is one who uses his experience and takes the inputs and suggestions from other younger players of his team as well. But at the end of the day he should be the leader and accountable for his decisions," the Australian legend said. Former Australia World Cup winning coach Buchanan, who is now manager of Kolkata Knight Riders, had suggested the multiple-captain theory, ruffling a few feathers including that of the team captain Sourav Ganguly and Indian great Sunil Gavaskar.
Talking about the challenges of the second edition of IPL, McGrath said conditions in South Africa would be similar to Australia and hoped to acclimatise soon. "I did enjoy the fan support and playing in Delhi last year but if I just think about the conditions, I feel it would be bouncy and quick, somewhat similar to what we have in Australia. I feel we can adjust to the conditions quite quickly," McGrath said.
He said it was a tough decision for him to play in the second edition of IPL considering he has to take care of his children after losing wife Jane last year. "It was a tough decision for me to play in the IPL. I have to take care of my kids, now that Jane is no more with us. But I enjoyed playing IPL last year and this is something special which I wanted to do for myself."
The 39-year-old, who emerged as the most economical (6.61) bowler for his team last season, reckoned India vice-captain and Delhi Daredevils skipper Virender Sehwag as one of the most destructive batsman he has ever bowled to and rated him highly as a captain. "I have always enjoyed bowling to Sehwag. As a skipper also I rate him highly, I have played under him and I hope this time we help him to win the cup," he said.
DLF Indian Premier League
Fastest 100s in IPL
DURBAN:AB de Villiers became the first batsman to score a hundred in IPL 2009. His hundred came off just 51 balls which puts it among the fastest IPL hundreds.
Adam Gilchrist set the standard by reaching the milestone off 42 deliveries in the match between Deccan Chargers and Mumbai Indians in Mumbai. Sanath Jayasuriya (Mumbai Indians) has a 45-ball effort against Chennai Super Kings on home ground while Andrew Symonds (Deccan Chargers) plundered a 47-ball century against Rajasthan Royals in Hyderabad. Mike Hussey (Chennai Super Kings) played a 50-ball hundred against Kings XI Punjab in Mohali.
Brendon McCullum (Kolkata Knight Riders) reached the landmark off 53 deliveries in the inaugural match against Royal Challengers Bangalore in their home base while Shaun March (Kings XI Punjab) made his 100 off 58 deliveries against Rajasthan Royals in Mohali.
DLF Indian Premier League
All about the Super Over
1. Subject to weather conditions the Super Over will take place on the scheduled day of the match at a time to be determined by the IPL Match Referee. In normal circumstances it shall commence 5 minutes after the conclusion of the match.
2. The Super Over will take place on the pitch allocated for the match (the designated pitch) unless otherwise determined by the umpires in consultation with the ground authority and the IPL Match Referee.
3. Each team elects three batsmen and one bowler prior to the commencement of the Super Over.
4. The nominated players are given in writing to the IPL Match Referee using a standard form.
5. The umpires shall stand at the same end as that in which they finished the match.
6. The umpires shall choose which end to bowl and both teams will bowl from the same end.
7. Each team’s over is played with the same fielding restrictions as those that are in place for the last over of a normal match.
8. The team batting second in the match will bat first in the Super Over.
9. The same ball (or a ball of a similar age if the original ball is out of shape) as used at the end of the team’s innings shall be used for the Super Over.
10. The loss of two wickets in the Super Over ends the team’s Super Over innings.
11. The team scoring the most runs in the Super Over shall be declared the winner. In the event of the team’s having the same score after the Super Over has been completed, the team that hit the most number of sixes combined from its innings in the main match and in the Super Over shall be the winner.
12. If the number of sixes hit by both teams is equal, the team that hit the most number of boundaries (fours and sixes) from its innings in the main match and in the Super Over will be declared the winner
DLF Indian Premier League
EXCLUSIVE: Sachin debunks T20 as young man's game
PORT ELIZABETH: Experience, they tell us, separates the men from the boys. It gives a whole new perspective to life. And it is points at the best way forward. But when it comes to Twenty20 cricket, these words of wisdom do not always apply. Or, so they started saying, when the shortest format of cricket gained popularity around the world.
Very quickly T20 was passed off as a young man's game, without anyone offering any definite reason so. Fielding was an important factor as were running between the wickets and agility.
But one look at the top performers in DLF Indian Premier League in South Africa and you could start asking if T20 is really a young man's game. Why else would you have the over-30 players topping the batting charts. Even in the bowling department, a certain Anil Kumble started off as the Purple Cap winner. The wise heads have managed to show their younger rivals how to bat on the tracks in South Africa.
Obviously, one of them is master blaster Sachin Tendulkar who is showing that T20 is as much about big-hitting as it is about copybook cricket. Both Tendulkar and his partner Sanath Jayasuriya, who is pushing 40, handed out a stern lesson to one and all in Mumbai Indians' win against Kolkata Knight Riders.
At the end of it all, Tendulkar and Jayasuriya also put up the highest opening partnership of the tournament. Just earlier in the day the other senior pros, Matthew Hayden, Adam Gilchrist and Herschelle Gibbs showed just why they are still feared.
Let's hear the maestro himself if T20 a really young man's game? "I don't know who says that it's a young man's game. Clearly, he doesn't know much about cricket. It's a cricketers' game so it really doesn't matter whether you are young or old. It is a cricketer's match," Tendulkar told iplt20.com .
Tendulkar certainly showed while batting just why he believes T20 is for all. The cheeky shot that he played off Chris Gayle certainly showed that age has nothing to do with this format. He scooped the ball from close to the short third man and got himself a boundary.
If T20 is about innovation, Tendulkar certainly ticked that box with that shot. "That was an innovative stroke. I wouldn't say it is the most innovative one ever that I have played. But it was something different," said Tendulkar.
Tendulkar shared a stand worth 127 with Jayasuriya and certainly cannot stop praising his old comrade in arms. "It's fantastic, even last year I enjoyed batting at the other end and it was fantastic. He has got excellent hand-eye co-ordination, very quick feet, very quick hands. Needless to say that he is one of the best strikers in the world," said Tendulkar.
Tendulkar lived by the sword and also perished by it as Mumbai Indians pushed the scoring along. He missed out on a hundred but did not seem too hassled about it. "I am not playing for 100s, I am playing for the team. And, if I score a hundred even better for the team. The idea is not to chase a 100. If it comes my way it's fine. As long as my contribution is there for the team, that is what matters. If it has helped us to get to a good total, I am a happy person.''
Tendulkar is climbing up the Orange Cap charts and is just 52 runs behind the leader Hayden at the moment. His innings on Monday took him close to Hayden's but the man played his individual contribution down. "It was not the most important innings, all the innings are important. I would put this as one of the important ones because we needed to win today.''
DLF Indian Premier League
Players and owners flaunt beliefs and idiosyncrasies
NEW DELHI:The game may have evolved to such an extent that Tests cricket co-exists with Twenty20, umpires blend harmoniously with modern technology like HawkEye and Snickometer and Strategic Breaks, which have added a new dimension to the DLF Indian Premier League, find place alongside superstitions.
How else can you explain the fact that Rajasthan Royals all-rounder Yusuf Pathan's conscious bid to always wear his right pad first when getting ready to bat. "Whenever we start something good, we use our right hand or the right foot. I always follow that,"he explains.
Let us take a quick look at what some of the players are doing at DLF IPL:
Rajasthan Royals fast-medium bowler Siddhath Trivedi carried a handkerchief in each of his trouser pockets
Kolkata Knight Riders fast bowler Ishant Sharma wears religious threads given by his mother.
Mumbai Indians skipper Sachin Tendulkar straps his left pad first before coming to play
Rahul Dravid makes it sure that he puts his right foot forward-literally-when he comes to bat
Deccan Chargers' pacer Chaminda Vaas, who still has to play this season, starts his run-up by crossing his heart
Mumbai Indians opener Sanath Jayasuriya touches all his equipment before taking guard
Kings XI Punjab batsman Mahela Jayawardene keeps kissing the bat while batting
Deccan Chargers opener Herschelle Gibbs keeps mum when coming in to bat.
The idea does not stop with the players. Team owners like Preity Zinta (Kings XI Punjab) offers 'prasad' to her team members before they enter the ground. Rajasthan Royals co-owner Shilpa Shetty wore wristwatches in either hand during her team's victory over Delhi Daredevils."I wore two watches as they are my good luck charms," she said.
Call them superstitions or call them idiosyncrasies, none of these folks sees any point in denying them or in trying to rationalise them.
"It is magical thinking which more often found in children," says Sitaram Bhartiya Research Centre's Dr. Amit Sen, "Some of these beliefs are ritualised to custom and culture the way we are. Believing in quirks, talismans or superstition gives them a sense of comfort, that much extra bit of luck or zest they need.
"Where there is unpredictability and fortunes can turn dramatically, magical thinking takes place, you imagine the outcomes yourself. The essence of it is irrational, something which we can't relate with the players," he says.
Senior psychiatrist Dr. Jitendra Nagpal reiterates that."Commanding rituals that acknowledge there are limits to what a person can control," he says. "It is a coping-mechanism. They build confidence and are ways to feel in control of factors that are really uncontrollable," he says.
Yusuf makes me nervous when watching, competitive when bowling: Irfan
PORT ELIZABETH: Yusuf Pathan is the toast of DLF Indian Premier League. He continues to make headlines for his showing for the second successive season.No wonder his team regards him as their most valuable player. But when he is batting, his own family too is on tenterhooks just as fans are drawn to the edge of their seats .
Yusuf's key rival and younger brother Irfan Pathan likes to watch his brother in action. They are obviously very close toone other as can be seen in the way Irfan was excited about watching his brother dismantle Delhi Daredevils at Centurion."Did you watch his knock?" he asked a few of us before settling down for dinner in Durban.
But the left-handed all-rounder cannot handle Yusuf's edge of the seat stuff. "I get very nervous while I am watching him bat. I just don't want him to get out," Irfan told iplt20.com. Like everyone else, Irfan completely agrees when the Rajasthan Royals man is called a ‘paisa vasool’ cricketer.
It has so happened that in the last two seasons, whenever Yusuf has had a starring role, Rajasthan Royals have won the game. Either he has won the game with the bat or the ball or both. In this tournament thus far, Yusuf's role in the tied encounter against Kolkata Knight Riders is etched in everyone's mind. It is believed that Yusuf''s knock in the Super Over was one of the best pieces of power-hitting in cricket.
Irfan agrees and rates it as one of his best efforts ever. "No one will ever forget that Super Over. The way he batted that day was simply superb. The whole scenario around the over was tremendous, so Yusuf's effort was amazing," he says.
The Pathan brothers' parents are in South Africa and will spend time watching their sons play. So who do they support if Irfan and Yusuf play against one other? "That you must ask them." says Irfan with a smile. For Irfan though, it will be crucial as he prepares to face Yusuf in the second round clash later this week.
Having confessed that he gets nervous watching his brother, what happens to Irfan when Yusuf is batting opposite him? "Then it’s a different matter," he smiles.
For Yusuf, it was just another nonchalant day at work, as he revived a comatose Rajasthan Royals in Port Elizabeth. As soon as the last ball was bowled, he was off for a team-building exercise at the Shamwari game reserve en route Durban for their next encounter. This was just another day in the life of Yusuf Pathan, who continues to be the most sought after cricketer of IPL.
DLF Indian Premier League
Hope Dhoni was watching my hat-trick:Rohit Sharma
CENTURION: His swagger suggests he knows he is immensely talented. He knows he is the heir apparent, if you will.. Rohit Sharma knows that the world is aware of his talent and it is finally coming out in the open. Whether it is with the bat or on the field, he has the uncanny ability to look a class apart. You can never miss him in the heat of the battle.
And if you add a hat-trick to his CV, then you suddenly have a man for the future or the torchbearer for the present. He knows his statistics better than anyone else. And , he remembers the struggle of his early years very well and especially the hard yards put in when growing up.
Wednesday will be remembered for his hat-trick spread over two overs but Rohit Sharma still remembers his first hat-trick for his school Swami Vivekananda when he was 14. "I also scored 123 in that game. I still have a huge newspaper cutting. But the high point was the hat-trick,: he smiles as he reminisces his early years.
But Rohit Sharma does not idolise any of the great off-spinner, past or present. He just remembers bowling at the nets in the school.
The new-found stardom sits pretty easily on his shoulders. In fact he doesn't stop gloating the fact that he has achieved only the second hat-trick in DLF IPL 2009 and also his second hat-trick in his career.
He uses this platform to quietly send out a message for those who matter at the highest level. His hat-trick on Wednesday also meant that he was taking his bowling seriously unlike what may have been perceived.
"Obviously yes, I am a good bowler. I have been working hard at my bowling. I didn't get enough opportunities at the international level of bowling that well. I have been bowling well in whatever opportunities I have been getting. I have been doing well. I am very happy with the fact that I came out with a hat-trick," Rohit told iplt20.com.
But the bigger agenda of the evening was to reach out to Team India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and ask him to watch out for him. Rohit Sharma has been in and out of India's limited-over squad. He has never staked a regular place, with his new found love for off-spin bowling, he is hoping to win over Dhoni and the think-tank. "I hope he (Dhoni) watched the game... Maybe... yes... he may have," Rohit Sharma says.
Still to get over the heady events, Rohit Sharma's head is still spinning about the fact that he got a hat-trick. "I never thought so, to be honest. I was lucky to get a hat-trick. I never thought I would get wickets, so let alone get a hat-trick. So quite surprising actually,'' he says.
Ask Rohit Sharma to recall the three wickets, he does a good job of it. He came in to bowl when a partnership had just been broken and was required to pit his skills against his best mate, Mumbai Indians' Abhishek Nayar. The all-rounder came into bat when the game could have swung either way.
Rohit tied down Nayar and he knew that a wicket was coming his way. "The first wicket was Nayar. I know a lot about him, what he does. So my plan was to bowl up right at his boot. So that's what I did, he was trying to be very cheeky. Unfortunately, he missed the ball and got bowled. I will now meet him and see what he has to say,'' says Rohit.
Then a senior from the India ranks, Harbhajan Singh, walked in. "For Bhajji, I thought, I will just bowl a normal ball and he missed it and got bowled." The over ended and Rohit got involved with his fielding. And then when he came onto bowl, JP Duminy was on strike.
First ball of a new over, Rohit Sharma struck again. "Same with Duminy, I just bowled a normal off-spinner, it was nothing, it was quite unfortunate the way he got out but I was very happy with hat-trick,'' Rohit describes his feeling.
Even the players can be a bit confused when you have a hat-trick of the kind Rohit Sharma had as it spread over two overs. It needed Ryan Harris to come over and tell him that he had snapped up a hat-trick. "I started running all over the ground and I enjoyed it."
Earlier, it was his batting which held Deccan Chargers together but now Rohit Sharma had found a new way to contribute to team's win with his bowling. So can we now call Rohit Sharma an all-rounder? "I think so maybe, you can call me that now" he says.
DLF Indian Premier League
When Sachin met Tendulkar in rainbow nation
EAST LONDON: Sachin Tendulkar is a household name in India. But chances are, everywhere he travels, he comes across a Sachin named after him.
During India’s tour of New Zealand, Tendulkar met a seven-year-old from Christchurch – Sachin Austin named after him. Cut to the rainbow nation. During the on-going DLF Indian Premier League in South Africa, Tendulkar has found another Sachin. A South African kid who is just six will became a star in just a day’s time.
The kid’s name is Sachin Murali which is named after the Mumbai Indians skipper Sachin Tendulkar. An avid cricket fan, he follows his idol whenever he takes field and is busy hitting the bowlers world over. Vimla and Yogi Murali, his proud parents, have an Indian ancestry and are the diehard Sachin Tendulkar;s fans.
So, they named their son Sachin.
“It was during the 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup when I was expecting Sachin,“ says South African Police Superintendent Vimla Murali. “It was March 28 and Tendulkar was playing well in the tournament. Then we discussed on what name the baby should be given. We knew it is a boy. My two other sons and I said in unison – Sachin.
“It is such a nice name. He is such a great man. I may seem as a traitor to South Africa by saying that when it comes to Sachin and cricket – I support India. It was an ideal name to chose for my son,” she says. “Sachin Tendulkar is worshipped all over the world. And it is an honour to have his name. His name stands for honesty and purity.
“I am an ardent cricket fan. And thankfully I am involved in the security for the Indian Premier League. So, I got an opportunity to get my son meet Sachin Tendulkar,” she says.
On whether her husband supported the decision, she says: “It was a mutual decision. Yogi smiled when I first suggested this name. He asked me if I was sure about the name but me and my other two sons – Mahesh and Shakeel – were unanimous in our decision.”
Sachin Murali got a chance to take Sachin Tendulkar’s autograph during on the matches here when Mumbai Indians took on Kolkata Knight Riders. “I am happy to have got this autograph and I am proud to have his name. I want to be a cricketer when I grow up,” is all he says, his mother prompting a bit. “I also like him when he bowls. But the best thing is his batting.”
On being asked whether he would like to play for South Africa or India, he said: “I will play for South Africa. I also like Graeme Smith. He is my captain.”
DLF Indian Premier League --- About the IPL
The leafy suburb of Wimbledon in South West London is synonymous the world over with the game of tennis, but it was here that a massive new idea for the sport of cricket was conceived.
In late June last year, while the rain that marked the 2007 English summer was disrupting the famous Championships, two men met in a nearby house to discuss a very different event.
Lalit Modi, Vice-President of the Board of Cricket Control for India, spoke to Andrew Wildblood of the International Management Group (IMG), a company with a vast experience in the whole area of sports management.
Modi, who studied in America and had long since wanted to re-energise the Indian domestic game, was seeking a view on whether it would be possible to put together a Twenty20 cricket league based on the model of the franchise system commonplace in the United States.
“Funnily enough, it was similar to an idea we had already kicked around informally within our office,” recalls Wildblood, Senior Corporate Director of IMG India. “I thought that with a combination of BCCI resolve and IMG’s expertise we could find a way.”
A second meeting took place in a London hotel before Modi moved on and it was decided there and then that the vision could become a reality in 2008.
Wildblood smiles at the memory: “I remember going home that night and telling my wife and her saying to me ‘How on earth are you going to do that?’ “
The truth is that the daunting timescale was not lost on either Wildblood or Modi, who knew that they were going to face a formidable race against time to start the whole project from scratch and get it ready in time for April this year.
Most sports leagues grow gradually and organically, but the DLF Indian Premier League has had to emerge from an idea to a fully structured operation in less than nine months. For something of this scale it is, quite simply, unprecedented.
Now, after teams of people both in London and India have worked tirelessly together, often late into the night and through the weekend, the IPL has arrived.
It has involved an enormous creative and logistical effort and action on all the fronts required to put together a major sporting entity, whose franchises ended up being sold collectively for US$723.6 million.
Underpinning it, however, was one particular principle. “We realised from the start that we had to look at the sporting model and get the fundamentals absolutely right,” says Wildblood.
“Sport is about winning and losing and fair competition within a proper context – to start selling something you have got to have all that in place.”
So it was decided that the basis of the league would be eight teams playing each other home and away with semi-finals and final, and from that the commercial model and therefore the investor context, could be built.
Time was of the essence and there has been the constant need to steer around potential potholes. Astute judgement, very thoughtful planning and boundless energy have been the key components, but in September last year there was also some good fortune to help the adventure along its way.
In the slightly unknown quantity that was the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 staged in South Africa, India won, beating arch-rivals Pakistan in the final. The whole event was a success and it captured the public imagination all over India.
The game’s most economically powerful nation had been relatively slow to take to the shortest form of the game, but now 76 per cent of the respondents in one poll said that this was the way they preferred their cricket.
“Lalit and I always believed in it anyway and have always kept encouraging each other to go for it, but there is no doubt this was a stroke of luck. Twenty20’s profile suddenly went sky high.”
The franchise tender process began in December and on January 24 came the deadline for the bids to be received.
“I was in Mumbai and sitting next to Lalit while people were coming in and out carrying the envelopes with the bid details and thinking it was incredibly exciting,” continues Wildblood. “There was always the hope that the Mumbai franchise might achieve in excess of one hundred million dollars and it did.”
Among the bidders were some of India’s richest and most powerful names, from industrialists to film stars, which has only added to the event’s lustre.
February saw the frantic player auction, something that has never been remotely witnessed in cricket before as the game’s top stars commanded sums that would have been unthinkable for any cricketer a few years previously.
The player auction created a media frenzy. Camera crews and photographers feasted on the big names in attendance, while the pundits speculated about who had done the best business.
By the end of May, when 59 matches will have been played out, that much will be known. The start date was set at April 18 in Bangalore. It had been a long road, speedily travelled, from Wimbledon to there.
Shahrukh Khan's Kolkata Knight Riders may be struggling at the bottom in the second season of Indian Premier League, but in terms of brand value it is the richest team of the twenty-twenty cricket tournament, whose collective valuation has been now pegged at $2 billion. At the same time, Rajasthan Royals, partly owned by another Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty, has emerged as the best team in terms of return on investment, although it is ranked third in terms of brand value.
The valuation exercise of the entire IPL franchise, along with the individual teams, have been conducted by UK-based international brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance Plc. "The entire enterprise is valued at $2.01 billion," Brand Finance said, adding, its methodology took into account various revenue lines such as broadcasting, IPL sponsorship, team sponsorship, merchandising and gate receipts as well as the effect of performance, the presence of iconic players, etc. KKR has been ranked the most valued team with a brand value of $42.1 million, followed by Mumbai Indians ($41.6 million).
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