World T20, 2nd Semi-Final

India vs West Indies

at Mumbai, Mar 31, 2016

West Indies 196/3 beat India 192/2 by 7 wickets

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)

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BCCI Cricket News 2009

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Indian Team selection for Sri Lanka series

Sreesanth, Khan back in India test team

Pace spearhead Zaheer Khan expectedly returned to the squad after recovering from a shoulder injury, while temperamental fast bowler Sreesanth, who was only last month given a final warning by the BCCI to mend his ways, has been the surprise inclusion. The 26-year-old Sreesanth will return to the Test fold after more than a year having played his last Test in April 2008 against South Africa in Kanpur. Pacers Ashish Nehra and Munaf Patel were ignored.

The experienced test batting duo of Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman were included after being ignored for the one-day series against Australia. Batsmen Suresh Raina and Virat Kohli, all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and pacer Praveen Kumar, who are playing in the ongoing series against Australia, were not considered for selection for the three-match Test series.

The Indian team play the first Test in Ahmedabad followed by two more Tests in Kanpur (November 24 to 28) and Mumbai (December 2 to 6).

Indian team: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Captain), Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, V V S Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Amit Mishra, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, M Vijay, Pragyan Ojha, S Sreesanth and S Badrinath.

Team Sponsorship

BCCI invites global bids for team sponsors

The BCCI opened its global bidding process by inviting bids from various companies to sponsor the four national teams - the India senior men's, India A, India men's under 19 and India women's team.
BCCI's existing men's team sponsorship deal with Sahara India Pariwar concludes at the end of March next year.

The bid documents cost Rs five lakh a copy, which is "non-refundable and non-adjustable", and the BCCI has the right to "cancel or amend the entire bidding process at any stage and to reject any and all bids without providing any reason". The bidding process would end at 5 p.m. on November 24, and the bid documents would be opened at the BCCI office in Mumbai on November 25 at 2 p.m.

India Premier League (IPL)

IMG regains rights to conduct IPL

IMG retained the rights to conduct the IPL after it reduced the annual charges by Rs.60 million. BCCI accepted th fresh proposal of the IMG during its Annual General Meeting at their Cricket Centre in Mumbai.
The Indian cricket board’s working committee termintated the IMG’s contract in August after it had failed to submit a revised proposal. BCCI also decided that the Corporate Trophy would be named after former BCCI president Raj Singh Dungarpur, who passed away this month.

Team Selection

Dravid dropped for Australia Series

36-year-old Indian batsman Rahul Dravid was dropped for the first two home matches against world champions Australia starting later this month. After spending nearly two years in the wilderness, he was recetly recalled for a tri-series in Sri Lanka last month and also played three more matches in the recent Champions Trophy in South Africa, during which period he scored 180 runs in five matches.

Dashing opener Virender Sehwag and all-rounder Yuvraj Singh returned to the squad after recovering from injuries while all-rounders Yusuf Pathan and Abhishek Nayar, batsman Dinesh Karthik and paceman Rudra Pratap Singh were dropped. Ravindra Jadeja, Munaf Patel and uncapped Sudeep Tyagi have been brought in to the 15 member squad.
The first of a seven-match series against Australia is scheduled to be held in Baroda on October 25.

India Squad: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain/wicket keeper), Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra, Praveen Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Virat Kohli, Amit Mishra, Munaf Patel, Sudeep Tyagi.

Prasad and Robin sacked from coaching roles

Former Indian players Venkatesh Prasad and Robin Singh have been sacked as India's bowling and fielding coaches by the BCCI beacuse of the team's below par performance in the last two tournaments - the ICC World Twenty20 and the ICC Champions Trophy. A statement from BCCI secretary N. Srinivasan said the board had terminated their services with immediate effect, without providing any reasons.
Since replacements haven't been named, Indian coach Gary Kirsten and mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton will take the additional responsibilty during the seven ODI match series against the Australia.

Prasad and Singh were appointed around two years back, during the 2007 tour of Bangladesh, just after the disastrous 2007 World Cup campaign. They were working without formal contracts.
Prasad has played in 33 Tests, claiming 96 wickets besides 196 scalps in 161 one-day internationals. He is currently the bowling coach for Chennai Super Kings in Indian Premier League (IPL). Robin Singh has represented India in 136 ODIs, scoring 2336 runs at 25.75 and picking up 69 wickets at 43.26. He is currently the coach for Mumbai Indians in IPL.

BCCI related news

India had a hand in Pakistan's Champions Trophy defeat: Pak minister for Sports

Muhammad Ali Shah, the minister for Sports and a member of the Pakistan Cricket Board governing council, accused India of influencing umpires to get Pakistan ousted from the Champions Trophy semifinal in South Africa. He has blamed India's role in the sub-standard umpiring, leading to Pakistan's defeat against New Zealand. "Definitely, it is clear that India were miffed at not qualifying for the semi-finals after Pakistan lost to Australia and they took their revenge in their own way. They influenced the umpires to favour New Zealand," Ali Shah told reporters. "Unfortunately Pakistan are not as strong as India. Remember how India pressured the ICC into replacing the umpire, Mr Steve Bucknor, in Australia after he had given a couple of bad decisions against them?" he added, while saying that the International Cricket Council must impose at least a one-year ban on Australian umpire Simon Taufel, who had wrongly adjudged Umar Akmal leg-before-wicket at a crucial stage of the Semifinal against New Zealand.

IMG-IPL contract terminated

The BCCI has terminated its contract with sports management company International Management Group (IMG), which helped it launch the lucrative Twenty20 Indian Premier League. The Board was not happy over the price that IMG was charging. The BCCI had entered into a 10-year preliminary agreement with IMG in 2008, promising a 10 per cent payout of the tournament's gross revenue as commission.
BCCI will have to shell out Rs 33 crore to the IMG for the conduct of this year's tournament, according to Board sources.
The Times of India newspaper said Narainswamy Srinivasan, secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, sent a letter informing IMG of the contract's termination because of a disagreement over payment terms.

BCCI happy with Kirsten, to extend contract till 2011

The Indian Cricket Board will be extending coach Gary Kirsten's contract till the 2011 World Cup that will be played in the subcontinent, sources have told CNN-IBN.
The BCCI seems to be satisfied with the feedback it has got from players on Kirsten as well as the performance of the team under him. Gary Kirsten: In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 14:00, June 18, 2009
Gary Kirsten (born 23 November 1967 in Cape Town) is a former South African cricketer, and current coach of the Indian cricket team. He played 101 Test matches and 185 One-day internationals for South Africa between 1993 and 2004, mainly as an opening batsman.
During his tenure as Coach of India, Indian cricket team won a home series against Australia beating them 2-0. Apart from clinching the Border-Gavaskar trophy, he also coached India to its first bilateral series win in Sri Lanka against Sri Lanka and India's first One-Day International series victory against New Zealand in New Zealand after 40 years. A highly accomplished batsman himself, he has brought in a considerable amount of improvement in the batting performances, which is largely associated with his ability to instill better confidence among younger players.

Sahara BCCI Corporate Trophy unveiled

In a function that brought together cricketers and corporates, the BCCI launched the trophy for the inaugural Sahara BCCI Corporate tournament in Bangalore on Thursday night.
The trophy, that will be given to the winner along with the prize money of Rs. one crore, was jointly unveiled by N. Srinivasan, BCCI Joint Secretary Sanjay Jagdale and Sahara Group official Abhijit Sarkar.

BCCI launches anti-doping education programme

In an attempt to spread awareness about World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada)’s code, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Wednesday conducted its first of a series of workshops for the physios of the state teams.
A statement from the BCCI said that the participants were briefed on the various points about the anti-doping code and were given copies of handbooks provided by the National Anti-Doping Agency to the BCCI.

Sehwag meets Jaitley; Delhi players' mutiny likely to be over

News channel CNN-IBN quoted its sources as saying Delhi District Cricket Association (DDCA) president Jaitley has assured Virender Sehwag that all issues will be sorted apart from an assurance that selection will be fair and performance-based. With this development, it is likely that the mutiny by Sehwag and other senior Delhi players will come to an end.Last week, Sehwag had claimed that some selectors group together to force a player of their choice into the side, leaving the captain and selection committee chairman powerless. He had also alleged manipulation in the selection of Delhi under-16 and under-19 teams. His allegations were backed by his domestic and national team mates Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma, Ashish Nehra and also by other Delhi cricketers.

Ganguly to head CAB’s cricket development panel

Former Indian captain Saurav Ganguly was nominated as the chairman of Cricket Association of Bengal's cricket development committee. Making the announcement after a working committee meeting, which Ganguly attended for the first time, CAB president Jagmohan Dalmiya said the panel will draw up a master plan for developing and improving the game in the state.Former Indian team players Ashok Malhotra, Pranab Roy and Arun Lal are the other members of the committee, which will also review reports of the selectors at both the junior and senior levels.

Neo Cricket gets rights to telecast BCCI's Corporate Trophy

Neo Cricket will air the BCCI Corporate Trophy from 1-8 September, in which 12 corporates will take part involving several Indian national players who are employed by these companies. The event will take place in four venues - Mohali, Vishakapatnam, Dharamsala and Bangalore. Neo Sports broadcast is BCCI's broadcast partner.

Robin Uthappa the costliest player in KPL

The players’ auction of the Twenty20 Karnataka Premier League - promoted by the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) - on Friday turned out to be a drab affair as none of the 48 cricketers could fetch the maximum price of Rs.700,000. India’s one-day player Robin Uthappa was the costliest player at just Rs.325,000 and was bought by Bangalore Urban Team, owned by leading realtor Brigade group. Stuart Binny, son of former India all-rounder Roger Binny, was the second costliest player at Rs.320,000 and will play for Gulbarga team. Veteran spinner Sunil Joshi went for Rs.205,000 for Hubli-based Dharwad team.The KPL will be held in Bangalore and Mysore Sep 9-23 with eight teams taking part in the Twenty20 tournament.

BCCI allows ex-ICL players to take part in IPL

The BCCI paved the way for the entry of ex-Indian Cricket League (ICL) players numbering over 75 in the third edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) starting on 12 March at Hyderabad after a board meeting in Mumbai today (Thursday).
“The ex-ICL players who have been granted amnesty are eligible to play the IPL in the next season (2010) with a cap on the payment being a maximum of Rs20 lakh,” BCCI secretary N Srinivasan said in a media statement. Players like Dinesh Mongia, against whom match-fixing chargers have been levelled by ICL, would not be allowed to play in IPL.

BCCI Grants Rs.25 Crores To All India Football Federation

The BCCI has decided to grant All India Football Federation (AIFF) Rs. 25 crores over the course of the next two years for the development of the game in India.

WADA clause on BCCI agenda

BCCI will continue its stand on backing Indian players, and has decided to consult the Attorney General on legal aspects of the controversial 'whereabouts' clause in the WADA anti-doping code. BCCI's stand is that the 'whereabouts' clause is an invasion of the players' privacy, a risk to their security and a breach of their constitutional rights to privacy under Indian law.
In Australia and England, the cricket boards are required by law to be WADA compliant as this a precondition to receive government funding. However BCCI is the richest board in the world, and receives no funding, nor subsidies, from the government and is not affiliated to the Indian Olympic Association.

IPL says no to rebels for League

The Indian Premier League (IPL) confirmed Tuesday that those teams that have ‘rebel’ Indian Cricket League (ICL) players in their squad would not be allowed to compete in the 2009 Champions League Twenty20.
Twelve teams, including the winners and runners-up of England’s national T20 championships, are in the fray in the 2009 Champions League.

Pak govt may ask PCB to boycott 2011 World Cup

After skipping the logo unveiling ceremony of the 2011 World Cup held in Mumbai recently, speculations are rife that Pakistan could boycott the mega event also.
According to sources, the government is seriously considering to ask the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to boycott the 2011 World Cup in protest against the ICC’s decision to shift the World Cup matches from Pakistan.The Indian government is being blamed for influencing the ICC’s decision and trying to alienate Pakistan. The Central Organising Committee of the 2011 World Cup on Tuesday had recommended India to host eight of the 14 matches that were earlier allotted to Pakistan.

India to host 29 2011 World Cup matches

The Central Organising Committee of the 2011 World Cup on Tuesday recommended India to host eight of the 14 matches that were earlier allotted to Pakistan. The COC met in Mumbai to recommend the ICC Board as to where, within Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka, the 14 matches originally allocated to Pakistan should be staged and where the tournament secretariat would be based.
While India got eight, Sri Lanka will host the remaining four matches and Bangladesh two. India will now host 29 matches, Sri Lanka 12 and Bangladesh eight.The COC also recommended that Bangladesh would stage two of the four quarter-finals, with India and Sri Lanka hosting one each. The two semi-finals will be staged in India and Sri Lanka, with the final in India.

BCCI plans lectures to develop players

The Board of Control for Cricket in India will hold personality development lectures for national players to help them deal with the constant pressure from media and passionate fans.
"We're planning a series of sessions on personality development, dealing with pressure and other things, where we'll bring in experts to talk to the players and help them," BCCI chief administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty told the Hindustan Times.
Former skipper Ravi Shastri, chairman of the National Cricket Academy (NCA), said the training would also help them tackle the the stress of having to stay away from families.

Dravid, Sachin among Champions Trophy probables; Irfan missing again

Former Indian Captain Rahul Dravid, who last played in a One Day International in October of 2007, was named in the preliminary squad for the Champions Trophy in South Africa in September. He was named along with Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag after a young Indian batting unit struggled against short pitched bowling at last month's Twenty20 World Cup in England and recently in the Caribbeans.
The seniors, including Saurav Ganguly, were unceremoniously booted out of the team by selectors who pitched for youth with an eye on the 2011 World Cup to be staged in the sub-continent. Saurav has since retired. Indian Squad: Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Yusuf Pathan, Abhishek Nayar, Ishant Sharma, Zaheer Khan, Rudra Pratap Singh, Praveen Kumar, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra, Pragyan Ojha, Ravindra Jadeja, Dinesh Karthik, Munaf Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Murali Vijay, Dhawal Kulkarni, Virat Kohli, Subramaniam Badrinath, Amit Mishra, Ajinkya Rahane, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Wriddhiman Saha, Pankaj Singh.
The 30-man squad will be reduced to 15 before the tournament.

BCCI to reconsider Deodhar Trophy's fate after Shiv Sena threats

The Indian cricket board is contemplating to accommodate the Deodhar Trophy tournament, the current List A cricket competition in Indian domestic cricket, in a cramped 2009-10 schedule following threats from the Shiv Sena.
The tournament didn't find a place in the 2009-10 schedule released by the BCCI's Tour Programme and Fixtures Committee Wednesday as the board decided to scrap it and instead go for a national Twenty20 series. Shiv Sena staged a demonstration in front of the Cricket Centre at the Wankhede Stadium against the dropping of the tournament. A Sena leader said, “BCCI has planned Indian Premier League (IPL) matches in Maharashtra at the cost of Deodhar trophy tournament. The Board has insulted Marathi pride by cancelling the tournament named after Prof D B Deodhar”.The tournament was introduced in 1973-74, named after Prof. D. B. Deodhar, also known as the Grand Old Man of Indian cricket. It is a 50-over one-day competition played on a league basis among the 5 zonal teams - North Zone, South Zone, East Zone, West Zone and Central Zone.

Team Selection for West Indies: Tendulkar and Zaheer rested for West Indies tour, Irfan axed!

BCCI Secretary N Srinivasan announced a depleted Indian squad for the one-day tour of West Indies starting later this month, just days after the holders were knocked out of the Twenty20 World Cup.
The squad will be captained by Mahendra Singh Dhoni with Yuvraj Singh as his deputy. The team was selected in London after a teleconference between Chairman of the committee Krishnamachari Srikkanth, East Zone selector Raja Venkat, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and coach Gary Kirsten (in London) and three selectors — Yashpal Sharma, Surendhra Bhave and Narendra Hirwani - in Mumbai. While Sachin Tendulkar opted out, Zaheer Khan, Virender Sehwag and Suresh Raina are out because of injuries, while Munaf Patel and Irfan Pathan were dropped for unknown reasons. Delhi left-arm seamer Ashish Nehra (who has played 72 ODI matches, taking 92 wickets) is back in the team after a long gap of four years - his last match was in in September 2005, while 25-year-old Mumbai all rounder Abhishek Nayar, RP Singh, all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, Tamil Nadu opener Murali Vijay (who has played one Test against Australia) and middle order batsman Subramaniam Badrinath (who has played three one-day internationals against Sri Lanka) also found place in the squad based on their superb performance in the IPL.
The four matches against West Indies will be played from June 26 to July 5 in Jamaica and St. Lucia. India Team for West Indies: MS Dhoni (captain/wicketkeeper), Yuvraj Singh (vicecaptain), Gautam Gambhir (specialist opener), Rohit Sharma, Harbhajan Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Yusuf Pathan, M Vijay (specialist opener), S Badrinath, RP Singh, Praveen Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Abhishek Nayar, Ashish Nehra, Ravindra Jadeja, Dinesh Karthik.

BCCI slams Kirsten, "not forcing any player to play any series or tournament"

Reacting to Team India coach Gary Kirsten's comments that the IPL was one of the reasons for India's early exit from the T20 World Cup, the BCCI today said it had not forced anyone to play in the IPL and players were free to ask for rest if they feel fatigued.
"BCCI has made it clear that whenever a player feels he is fatigued, he can always let it be known to the board and he will be given rest. After rest and if he is fit, he can be considered for selection again," BCCI Media and Finance committee chairman Rajiv Shukla said. "We are not forcing any player to play any series or tournament," he added. Earlier, Gary Kirsten, former South African player and Indian coach, had said "IPL is a domestic competition, a club competition in many respects. Whilst you have international players in the team you've got first-class cricketers making up the rest. There was a reasonably big gap between what is happening at IPL and what is happening internationally and that is only natural."
"We had a bunch of cricketers who arrived quite tired. We have had a demanding schedule and we never got ourselves to the required intensity for the standard and quality of the international game, which is higher than IPL. We weren't an energetic team."

BCCI behind Dhoni, "concentrating on West Indies series"

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) came out in support of skipper Dhoni after their shocking ouster from the T20 World Cup. Keeping with its tradition of "concentrating on the future," BCCI’s Media and Finance Committee Chairman Rajiv Shukla said that though it is a big loss yet all is not lost and that the upcoming tour of the West Indies should now be the priority. “We must concentrate on the upcoming West Indies series,” said Shukla. You will very well remember the "building the team for the future" slogan that the board kept up for the better part of the last two decades.
He also said that Sehwag’s absence was a major reason for India’s early exit from the tournament, adding “Sehwag not playing was a big loss”
Shukla also said that Dhoni is a great captain and that the team possessed the ability of bouncing back.

Sehwag flying back, Karthik named replacement

The BCCI in a statement said that the Indian opener Virender Sehwag has been ruled out of the World Twenty20 cricket due to a shoulder injury and will return home after consulting medical experts in England. Sehwag sustained the injury while playing in the second edition of IPL held in South Africa.
BCCI has named Dinesh Karthik, a batsman-wicketkeeper, as Sehwag's replacement. India, which plays Ireland at Trent Bridge on Wednesday, has already qualified for the Super 8 stage after beating Bangladesh in its opening game.

BCCI team concludes Meghalaya visit

The two-member BCCI team comprising senior umpire S.K. Bansal and games development manager Stanley Saldanha after concluding the two-day visit to Shillong said the BCCI would consider releasing development funds to boost infrastructure. They also assured the Meghalaya Cricket Association that the apex cricketing body would help the players and coaches of the state in every possible way.
The BCCI team also conducted a four-day National Cricket Academy Level-I course for the umpires of Assam from May 24 to 27, which was attended by 25 umpires.

CCI Curators’ meet

The two-day meeting of the BCCI curators from all over India began at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium on Monday. The meeting is chaired by the Board’s chief curator Daljit Singh.
It is learned that the BCCI is considering maintaining separate grounds and wickets for the conduct of junior cricket.

ICC rejects Pakistan’s charges on BCCI

The International Cricket Council has refuted Pakistan’s charge on the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). ICC Chief Executive Officer Haroon Lorgat on Thursday said that Pakistan has showed irresponsible behavior by giving such statements. Pakistan had earlier alleged that BCCI has forced the committee of World Cup 2011 to remove Pakistan as a co-host for World Cup 2011.
He further added that it is ICC Board’s sole decision to shift matches from Pakistan due to security concerns and if Pakistan had done even half of what it is doing, the situation could have been better.

PCB studying UAE as 2011 World Cup venue

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Ijaz Butt has conducted a preliminary study on whether it would be able to stage the 2011 World Cup matches in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Ijaz met Dilawar Mani, new Chief Executive of the Emirates Cricket Board. ‘We are willing to provide all support for Pakistan and host their matches. We are willing partners and give them all facilities,’ Mani told Gulf News.
Pakistan was stripped of co-hosting its 14 2011 World Cup matches by the International Cricket Council (ICC) board in the wake of terrorist attack on Sri Lankan team last March in Lahore.

BCCI Quash Zaheer Talk

BCCI has dismissed reports about the likely non-availability of speedster Zaheer Khan for next month's ICC World Twenty20.
"No such decision has been taken (to leave out Zaheer). It's all speculation," sources in the Board said after a meeting in Mumbai.
Zaheer suffered an injury on his bowling shoulder during the early part of the Indian Premier League while playing for the Mumbai Indians. Zaheer stayed back in South Africa at the end of Mumbai Indians campaign while his parents joined him there, sources in Mumbai Indians team revealed.

BCCI offers amnesty, ICL says league on

The Board of Control for Cricket in India has offered a general amnesty to the players associated with breakaway Indian Cricket League (ICL). The so called 'rebels' have been given one month to come back to the BCCI fold on the condition that they would forfeit international cricket for one year.
"We have decided to grant amnesty to all players, support staff and anyone else connected with the ICL provided they cancel all their existing contracts with the league by May 31," BCCI president Shashank Manohar said after the Board's working committee meeting. The players, Manohar said, would be allowed to play in the domestic league.
The ICL said the league will go ahead and those who want to can go. "We have already announced our programme for the Season III. It will be held in October," an ICL spokesman said.

BCCI announces Rs 15 lakh for each player

The BCCI on Tuesday announced a bonus of Rs 15 lakh for each player after the India team's historic Test and one-day series victory in New Zealand. India, under Dhoni, clinched the three-match Test series 1-0 after the final Test in Wellington ended in a draw on Tuesday. India won the first Test in Hamilton by 10 wickets and the second in Napier ended in a draw. This was India's first Test series victory on New Zealand soil since Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi's team achieved that feat in 1967-68.

India had earlier clinched the five-match one-day series 3-1, also their first series win in the shorter version of the game in New Zealand.

IPL 2009 in South Africa

The decision to move the Indian Premier (IPL) League 2009 to South Africa was "one of the hardest decisions that the BCCI has ever had to take," Lalit Modi, chairman and commissioner of the IPL, told a press conference in Johannesburg as he jointly announced the decision with Cricket South Africa (CSA) chief executive Gerald Majola.
The series is expected to start April 18, with details of venues and other logistics, including a schedule, to be finalised within the next two days.

BCCI decides to hold IPL second season outside India

After weeks of meetings, manoeuvring and behind-the-scenes negotiations, the decision to move out of India, and host the IPL 2009 in England or South Africa was taken by the BCCI. Once the Centre refused to provide extra troops for the IPL's security, keeping in mind the manpower required for the general elections, BCCI's options were limited.

Home minister P Chidambaram slams BCCI

A day after Indian Premier League organisers decided to take the tournament out of India, home minister P Chidambaram on Monday said BCCI remarks regarding security issue for IPL are unwarranted. He assured cricket in India is totally safe. His statement said, "As of today only three states and one union territory — Andhar Pradesh, Karnataka, Punjab and Chandigarh, have given their comment in writing. He came down heavily on Gujarat chief minister Narender Modi, saying Modi's statement was provocative. Chidambaram said that the Gujarat riots are a national shame, not IPL being moved out.
The Gujarat chief minister had earlier blamed central govt for IPL’s decision of moving out of the country. "Reputation of India as a safe country in the world has been shattered today by the attitude adopted by the central government on the security issues of IPL," Modi had said in a statement.

ICC seek BCCI and ICL agreement

International Cricket Council president David Morgan and chief executive Haroon Lorgat will on Monday attempt to broker an agreement in the long-running dispute between the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Indian Cricket League (ICL).
"I've long regarded it as a priority to bring together the BCCI and the owners of the ICL and I'm pleased to say we have fixed a meeting to take place in Johannesburg on Monday," said Morgan.
The ICL, which is bankrolled by India's largest media group, Zee Television, is not recognised by the BCCI or the ICC, unlike the Indian Premier League (IPL) which has paid fantastic sums to lure players to its tournament. "I hope we might be successful in coming to a mutually acceptable conclusion. I can't be certain that will be the case but I hope we can at least make a start in bringing about a settlement," added Morgan.
Earlier this week, a Pakistani court lifted domestic bans on the country's last six active players who had joined the ICL.

Viswanath gets lifetime achievement award

Legendary batsman Gundappa Viswanath told India skipper MS Dhoni's team to forget about rankings. "You are playing good cricket and if you continue to play like this, nobody can stop you," Viswanath, 60, said after receiving the CK Nayudu lifetime achievement award, instituted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
The BCCI's awards for 2007-08 were presented at a function at Mumbai on Wednesday and the team members, who are scheduled to fly out to New Zealand in the early hours of Thursday, attended the function. Present and former board officials and cricketers also attended the function.
Virender Sehwag was presented the Polly Umrigar award for being the best Indian cricketer on the international stage during the period September 2007 to October 2008. On the occasion, Dhoni and Harbhajan Singh were also felicitated for being awarded the Padma Shri.

Team India gets new ODI jersey

Team India’s jersey sponsors Nike unveiled a new cricket kit for India on Wednesday, as the team prepares to leave for the New Zealand tour.
The new jersey, this time, changed for the second time in two years. Team India skipper M S Dhoni, pacer Zaheer Khan, Yuvraj Singh, Dinesh Karthik, Pragyan Ojha and Rohit Sharma unveiled the jersey.
The occasion became more special when former players like Venkatesh Prasad, Vinod Kambli, Robin Singh and Laxman Sivaramakrishnan were also present wearing the old blue jersey of the Team India.
This time the colour of the jersey is totally different from the traditional colour, which the players were wearing. Skipper MS Dhoni also praised the new jersey.

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Board of Control for Cricket in India

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BCCI, India

The Board of Control for Cricket in India, or BCCI, is the governing body for cricket in India. This is India's richest sporting body. The President of BCCI is Sharad Pawar (elected 29 November, 2005). Niranjan Shah is the secretary.
All the office-bearers for the year 2004-05, were elected at the annual general meeting of the Board held in Kolkata.
On January 10, 2005, the Supreme Court of India ordered the removal of Jagmohan Dalmiya from the post of patron-in-chief of BCCI and also asked the board to complete its annual general meeting (AGM) which had been adjourned on September 30, 2004.
The legality of the office-bearer's election at the board's annual general meeting (AGM) held on September 29, 2004 is subjudice.