Pawar says counties can play ICL rebels

New Delhi: There's a new twist in the BCCI versus English counties battle over rebel ICL players participating in the proposed Twenty20 Champions League.

BCCI President Sharad Pawar says that all teams participating in the event have the freedom to include players of their choice. But there is a rider. Pawar says the BCCI would then take its own decision on the matter.

That turns back the heat on the ECB, the only board to allow rebel players to play in domestic competition.

IPL chairman and commissioner Lalit Modi had earlier said that any team with ICL players will be automatically disqualified.

The ECB has said that it would wait for the rules to be framed before taking a stand.
Meanwhile, The Indian Express has learnt that the International Cricket Council has been advised by lawyers to amend some of its existing rules in order to prevent more leagues like the ICL from coming up and challenge its authority.

The Indian Cricket League, owned by the Zee Group, is already two T20 tournaments old and has long applied to the ICC to recognise it as "official". While the ICC had indicated that the ICL had to seek the same via the Indian Cricket Board, the BCCI has only furthered its plight by deeming it "rebel".

The ICL organisers have already indicated that they will go to court against the BCCI and the ICC.

Sheridans, a UK-based law firm, has reportedly advised the ICC to amend its rule pertaining to the "official and unofficial status" of cricket events, because the original rules were made for events relating to "one-off testimonial and exhibition matches (such as Asia XI versus Rest of the World XI)".

Cricket's governing body has been recommended to amend those regulations to "deal with domestic T20 events and rebel domestic leagues expressly."

The paper has also learnt that even the BCCI has asked the ICC to amend these regulations.

http://www.cricketnext.com/news/bcci-allows-counties-to-play-icl-rebels/32268-13.html

By V Veera Kumar

Mumbai: After witnessing the highly successful Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 tournament, backed by the cash rich Indian Cricket Board (BCCI), their parallel body the Indian Cricket League (ICL) is all set to launch a bigger and better Twenty20 tournament in October.

"We have lots of innovative plans for this edition of the ICL and we are planning a bigger and better Twenty20 tournament for sure some time in October. Everything is still at the planning stages and it will be disclosed to the media in due course of time," former Indian stumper and one of the ICL board members Kiran More told Cricketnext.com on Monday.

"Due to the rainy season, we can only plan things right now as the next three months will not be conducive for any serious cricket but I am sure we will have lots of innovative ideas for the third edition of our tournaments though everything is at the planning stage right now, we are hopeful of finalizing most of the activities within the next ten days," he added.

Speaking about the stupendous success of the IPL, More said, he enjoyed every minute of the inaugural event while watching with his family and friends and was happy that IPL had done a world of good for all the youngsters who showcased their talents.

"Twenty20 has really caught up with cricket buffs everywhere and I personally enjoyed watching the matches. To me, a battle royal between two good teams in any sports is worth watching especially when you can witness it in the comforts of your drawing rooms," he pointed out.

"I sincerely hope like the youngsters in IPL, the ICL players too get recognised one day as the main intentions of both the leagues is to popularise the new format," More observed.

Source: http://www.cricketnext.com/news/bigger-better-icl-t20-in-october-more/32058-13.html

Teams have to think on their feet

Kris Srikkanth Saturday, May 10, 2008

Teams have to think on their feetThe IPL schedule leaves no time for thought. Teams have to rework strategies quickly as otherwise their approach will become so well known that opponents will be better prepared with counter-strategies. Chennai Super Kings were forced to rethink their tactics after three successive losses and they came up with a winning formula in New Delhi in a thriller. It is pretty obvious that a flying start is a necessity in the format. But teams hitting from both ends have found themselves in a hole because they have lost too many wickets in too short a space. S. Vidyut, who has shaped a fantastic limited-overs career for himself, was the fire starter while Fleming played the foil superbly against the Daredevils. Vidyut gave Chennai the confidence that the chase was on after Gautam Gambhir had given the Daredevils a better than average total. Full credit to Dhoni for taking some hard decisions in what was a crunch match for Chennai by winning which they have returned to the top of the table. The skipper was not afraid to put people on the bench. The tactic of chasing also worked because you can expect a Kotla pitch to play the same way in the entire duration of a match. Two or three hitters in the top five or six are sufficient. If they are kept apart in the order, they seem to exert more pressure as Albie Morkel took over Vidyut's role when Dhoni himself was struggling to get the ball away. One great over of Morkel's hitting was enough to close the gap after which Dhoni played smart cricket by ensuring his side would have batsmen left to fight to the end. Morkel's assault put so much pressure on Sehwag that he seemed to stop thinking and so messed up his end overs strategy. He had to virtually toss a coin to decide whether he would bowl the last over or ask Shoaib Malik to handle it. Actually, neither of them should have been bowling that over which should have gone to a seamer. Saturday's clash between the Chennai Super Kings and Punjab Kings XI becomes crucial for both teams. The winners can expect to get away from the bunch towards a semi-final slot. The key to Chennai's strategy would be to take on Sreesanth and Irfan Pathan without losing too many wickets in looking for a flying start. Not to charge at both bowlers would be the best way to go about it. The key to Chennai staying at the top is the team does not push the panic button. This confidence seems to flow from the skipper who is never hassled. With the race for the semi-finals hotting up now after the halfway mark, the table leaders will know that their being at the top will put pressure on the others. Chennai Super Kings, Rajasthan Royals and Punjab Kings XI have the early mover advantage.

Source: http://in.sports.yahoo.com/cricket/ipl/columns/columns_20080510_2.html

T20 History

English cricket has for long had a fuddy-duddy image. The traditional stereotype is of the elderly ex-Army type in blazer and tie snoozing off in the Lord’s pavilion after a heavy lunch.The Marleybone Cricket Club and their home of Lord’s do indeed continue to display the stiff upper lip so typical of the British Establishment. But the land where cricket was born should also be credited with bringing in revolutionary ideas.

It was in 1963 that the first domestic limited overs competition, the Gillette Cup, was launched in England with each side bowling 60 overs.

Five years later came the John Player League and now the quota was reduced to 40 overs. England also staged the inaugural limited-overs World Cup in 1975 and that was a grand success. Now, English cricket has another feather in its cap. For it was the first to launch a 20/20 competition in 2003 and just four years later the inaugural 20/20 World Cup gave a much-needed shot in the arm to world cricket after the fiasco of the 50/50 World Cup in the Caribbean.

Stuart Robertson, the ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board) marketing manager at the time is widely credited with being the brains behind the concept. But it was a close thing.

According to Robertson, the idea of a 20/20 competition was first raised in 1998 against the backdrop of an alarming drop in attendances at cricket grounds around England. But the idea was abandoned before being resurrected in 2001.

Finally, in April 2002, it was approved by the narrow margin of 11-7 among the 18 voting county teams.
Average attendances had dropped to 1,200 per game and it was hoped this would double in the first year of the new event. Instead, it simply skyrocketed.

On July 13, 2003 the inaugural Twenty20 Cup was launched and crowds averaged 5,000, which is impressive considering the small grounds around England. It rose higher the following year and Lord’s was packed to capacity (27,500) for the Middlesex v. Surrey match. That was the seal of approval it needed. If Lord’s, the bastion of cricket tradition, could warm to the new concept, the rest of England would surely follow.

Initially, the pop groups and carnival atmosphere were a big draw, bringing in family groups. But as the game evolved, the need for such side acts diminished and today in England, at least there are passionate fans that are more interested in the cricket rather than the entertainment.

Soon, other countries introduced domestic 20/20 competitions and it began to take off all over the cricket world.

The first T20 International was played at Eden Park, Auckland on 17 February 2005 with Australia beating hosts New Zealand by 44 runs. But the players were yet to accept it as a legitimate form of cricket and the whole game was played in a lighthearted carnival atmosphere with the Kiwis turning up in their vintage beige outfits of the 70s and in retro hairstyles.

The Aussies had their nicknames on the back of the shirts, something they continue to do, much to the annoyance of Sunil Gavaskar among others! There was nothing lighthearted though about the first T20 World Cup staged with such fanfare and success in South Africa. The ICC learned from their mistakes at the 50/50 World Cup earlier in the year and unlike in the West Indies, allowed the festive South African spirit its full reign at the venues. It was a party atmosphere all right, but the cricket was played in deadly earnest and there were some great contests.

India’s first match against Pakistan was a tie, necessitating a bowl-out while on the opening day of the tournament hosts South Africa beat the West Indies despite Chris Gayle recording the maiden T20I century.
Yuvraj Singh’s six sixes in an over against England set the tournament alight and it all climaxed magnificently with India beating Pakistan by five runs in a pulsating final at Johannesburg.

Twenty20 cricket had indeed arrived and is here to stay.

- Gulu Ezekiel
Source: http://www.sparklive.in/sports/196/t20-history