Dravid, Charu ignored players I wanted: Mallya
New Delhi, May 12 : The internal bickering of the Bangalore Royal Challengers came out in the
open on Monday with team owner Vijay Mallya lashing out at captain Rahul Dravid and sacked
CEO Charu Sharma for the side's pathetic show in the Indian Premier League.
Sharma, however, dismissed Mallya's strong attack saying he had no role in the selection of
players.
Mallya made it clear that he was not happy with the squad, currently languishing at the bottom of
the IPL points table, which has been ridiculed as a Test team in Twenty20 jersey.
The liquor baron said he had some players in mind but Dravid and Sharma completely ignored
them and went ahead with their own plan during the IPL auctions.
"I had my own list (of players) but the fact is Rahul Dravid and Charu Sharma had their own list
and at the end of the day, I decided to take the back seat," Mallya told NDTV.
"I was very tempted to bid for players whom I wanted but they held me back. Obviously things
have turned out differently," he said.
He said Sharma backed Dravid to the hilt and even in the second auction, where the captain was
not present, the former CEO discouraged Mallya to buy players of his choice.
"When Rahul Dravid was not present in the second auction, I wanted to acquire some players but
Charu Sharma was very tentative about them. I mean I bought Misbah-ul Haq because I was
determined to do it. There were other players I was discouraged about," Mallya said.
Kings XI inflict nine-wicket drubbing to Royal Challengers
Mohali, May 13 : Bangalore Royal Challengers slumped to a humiliating nine-wicket loss against
Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 match here Monday.
Riding on an unbeaten 74 from Shaun Marsh, Kings XI achieved the target of 144 in just 15.4
overs by losing the wicket of James Hopes (27). Luke Pomersbach was not out on 34 to
compliment the brilliant efforts of his team's bowlers who wrapped up the Royal Challengers for
143 for the loss of eight in 20 overs. Shaun was also elected as the Man of the Match.
With the loss, troubles don't seem to end for the Royal Challengers, who are plagued by off-field
controversies, and now it seems that the bottom-placed side is all but out of the semi-finals. The
Mohali team after their sixth win from nine matches are placed second.
The pressure was clearly on the Royal Challengers as they were desperately looking for a win.
Their batting crumbled and Kings XI pacers made the best of the little assistance they got from the
pitch.
Sreesanth and Irfan Pathan swung the ball both ways and were too hot to be handled by the
Bangalore batsmen. Sreesanth did most of the damage, picking up three for 29 from his four overs
and also accounted for the important wicket of Pakistani Misbah-ul-Haq (21).
Sreesanth also gave the home team the first breakthrough by picking up Arun Kumar in the first ball
of the second over and Mahela Jayawardene completing a straightforward catch at first slip.
Misbah, who replaced Shivnarine Chanderpaul, showed some flashes of brilliance and with Virat
Kohli (21) looked to give the beleagured Royal Challengers a good start after the opening set-
back.
India beat Belgium to stay in reckoning
Ipoh (Malaysia), May 12 : India warded off a spirited second half resurgence by Belgium to script
a 6-4 victory and keep themselves afloat in the Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Tournament here on
Monday.
The Indians opened up a flattering 5-1 lead by the half time but their opponents fought back
brilliantly to score three goals in the second session. But the young Indians managed to hold on their
lead to record their second successive win in the seven-nation tournament.
Shivendra Singh and Sandeep Singh rammed in two goals while SV Sunil and Diwakar Ram
chipped in with a goal each in the fast paced contest which saw India frittering away a few scoring
opportunities.
Alexender de Sadeleere, Jerome Trueyns, Thomas Briels and Charles Vandewgheles were the
scorers for Belgium who very nearly caught up with the Indians in the second session.
India have now garnered six points from four matches and have shown signs of an improvement
after losing their first two matches against New Zealand and Argentina.
The team, mainly comprising of juniors, started off with a flourish by scoring as many as five goals
in the opening session, but seemed to lose their rhythm after the interval with the forward line failing
to break through the rival defence.
IPL introduces Purple Cap for bowlers
New Delhi, May 12 : The Indian Premier League on Monday announced the introduction of the
Purple Cap, which will be awarded to the bowler with most cumulative wickets to his name.
The move comes days after the IPL introduced the Orange Cap for the batsman with most
cumulative runs against his name.
According to an IPL statement, at the end of the season, the holder of the Purple Cap will receive
recognition on the final day of the IPL.
In the event of a tie at any given time, the holder will be determined by superior economy rate.
"We have seen over the course of the inaugural season of the DLF Indian Premier League so far
that bowlers have just as important a role to play in winning T20 matches as batsmen do.
"DLF IPL has created a distinction for the highest wicket taking bowler in the 'Purple Cap'. The
purpose of this initiative is to continue to be innovative, create a further unique piece of history that
sets the DLF Indian Premier League apart form the crowd, and to acknowledge outstanding
performance by the bowlers," Lalit Modi, IPL Chairman and Commissioner said.
Samuels faces ban on match-fixing charges
Port of Spain, May 12 : West Indies cricketer Marlon Samuels Monday was found guilty of
bribery charges and could face a two-year ban from international cricket.
Radio Jamaica reported that the West Indies Cricket Borad (WICB) found sufficient evidence
against Samuels for allegedly passing on team information to Indian bookie Mukesh Kochar during
the first one-day international between the West Indies and India in Nagpur, Jan 21,2007.
The hearing was conducted by WICB Code of Ethics and Disciplinary Committee and was chaired
by former acting Chief justice of eastern Caribbean, Adrian Saunders and also had players like
Courtney Walsh and Richie Richardson as members.
The cricketer was also suspended from bowling after independent analysis of his action in January
revealed that his off-break and faster deliveries exceeded the 15-degree level of tolerance
permitted under regulations.
ICL will be successful in future: Razzaq
Karachi, May 12 : Pakistani allrounder Abdul Razzaq believes the unofficial Indian Cricket League
has a bright future and should be credited for popularising Twenty20 cricket.
Razzaq, one of the few players to sign for the ICL in its early days, said the Essel group-backed
venture had slowly established itself as a successful private league and would do better in future.
"Their second season was better with more interest from people. Advertisers and sponsors are also
taking more interest in it. So I feel the ICL has a good future," he said.
Razzaq said he had no regrets about his decision to play in the ICL despite the strong stand taken
by the Pakistan Cricket Board against players aligning with the rebel league.
"The ICL is just like any other private league or tournament. And their main aim appears to be
promoting cricket and offer employment opportunities to more and more players."
Razzaq, one of the most prolific performers for Pakistan in ODI cricket, said the ICL would get
recognition some day.
Safina pulls out of Italian Open
Rome, May 12 : Dinara Safina pulled out of the Italian Open on Monday due to a back injury. The
14th-ranked Russian won the biggest title of her career yesterday, beating Elena Dementieva in
three sets at the German Open.
Two years ago, Safina reached the Italian Open final but lost to Martina Hingis. Top-ranked
Justine Henin and two-time champion Amelie Mauresmo previously pulled out of this clay-court
warmup for the French Open, which begins in less than two weeks.
Sybille Bammer became the 19th-seeded player and lucky loser Ekaterina Makarova entered the
draw in Safina's place.
New Delhi, May 12 : The internal bickering of the Bangalore Royal Challengers came out in the
open on Monday with team owner Vijay Mallya lashing out at captain Rahul Dravid and sacked
CEO Charu Sharma for the side's pathetic show in the Indian Premier League.
Sharma, however, dismissed Mallya's strong attack saying he had no role in the selection of
players.
Mallya made it clear that he was not happy with the squad, currently languishing at the bottom of
the IPL points table, which has been ridiculed as a Test team in Twenty20 jersey.
The liquor baron said he had some players in mind but Dravid and Sharma completely ignored
them and went ahead with their own plan during the IPL auctions.
"I had my own list (of players) but the fact is Rahul Dravid and Charu Sharma had their own list
and at the end of the day, I decided to take the back seat," Mallya told NDTV.
"I was very tempted to bid for players whom I wanted but they held me back. Obviously things
have turned out differently," he said.
He said Sharma backed Dravid to the hilt and even in the second auction, where the captain was
not present, the former CEO discouraged Mallya to buy players of his choice.
"When Rahul Dravid was not present in the second auction, I wanted to acquire some players but
Charu Sharma was very tentative about them. I mean I bought Misbah-ul Haq because I was
determined to do it. There were other players I was discouraged about," Mallya said.
Kings XI inflict nine-wicket drubbing to Royal Challengers
Mohali, May 13 : Bangalore Royal Challengers slumped to a humiliating nine-wicket loss against
Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 match here Monday.
Riding on an unbeaten 74 from Shaun Marsh, Kings XI achieved the target of 144 in just 15.4
overs by losing the wicket of James Hopes (27). Luke Pomersbach was not out on 34 to
compliment the brilliant efforts of his team's bowlers who wrapped up the Royal Challengers for
143 for the loss of eight in 20 overs. Shaun was also elected as the Man of the Match.
With the loss, troubles don't seem to end for the Royal Challengers, who are plagued by off-field
controversies, and now it seems that the bottom-placed side is all but out of the semi-finals. The
Mohali team after their sixth win from nine matches are placed second.
The pressure was clearly on the Royal Challengers as they were desperately looking for a win.
Their batting crumbled and Kings XI pacers made the best of the little assistance they got from the
pitch.
Sreesanth and Irfan Pathan swung the ball both ways and were too hot to be handled by the
Bangalore batsmen. Sreesanth did most of the damage, picking up three for 29 from his four overs
and also accounted for the important wicket of Pakistani Misbah-ul-Haq (21).
Sreesanth also gave the home team the first breakthrough by picking up Arun Kumar in the first ball
of the second over and Mahela Jayawardene completing a straightforward catch at first slip.
Misbah, who replaced Shivnarine Chanderpaul, showed some flashes of brilliance and with Virat
Kohli (21) looked to give the beleagured Royal Challengers a good start after the opening set-
back.
India beat Belgium to stay in reckoning
Ipoh (Malaysia), May 12 : India warded off a spirited second half resurgence by Belgium to script
a 6-4 victory and keep themselves afloat in the Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Tournament here on
Monday.
The Indians opened up a flattering 5-1 lead by the half time but their opponents fought back
brilliantly to score three goals in the second session. But the young Indians managed to hold on their
lead to record their second successive win in the seven-nation tournament.
Shivendra Singh and Sandeep Singh rammed in two goals while SV Sunil and Diwakar Ram
chipped in with a goal each in the fast paced contest which saw India frittering away a few scoring
opportunities.
Alexender de Sadeleere, Jerome Trueyns, Thomas Briels and Charles Vandewgheles were the
scorers for Belgium who very nearly caught up with the Indians in the second session.
India have now garnered six points from four matches and have shown signs of an improvement
after losing their first two matches against New Zealand and Argentina.
The team, mainly comprising of juniors, started off with a flourish by scoring as many as five goals
in the opening session, but seemed to lose their rhythm after the interval with the forward line failing
to break through the rival defence.
IPL introduces Purple Cap for bowlers
New Delhi, May 12 : The Indian Premier League on Monday announced the introduction of the
Purple Cap, which will be awarded to the bowler with most cumulative wickets to his name.
The move comes days after the IPL introduced the Orange Cap for the batsman with most
cumulative runs against his name.
According to an IPL statement, at the end of the season, the holder of the Purple Cap will receive
recognition on the final day of the IPL.
In the event of a tie at any given time, the holder will be determined by superior economy rate.
"We have seen over the course of the inaugural season of the DLF Indian Premier League so far
that bowlers have just as important a role to play in winning T20 matches as batsmen do.
"DLF IPL has created a distinction for the highest wicket taking bowler in the 'Purple Cap'. The
purpose of this initiative is to continue to be innovative, create a further unique piece of history that
sets the DLF Indian Premier League apart form the crowd, and to acknowledge outstanding
performance by the bowlers," Lalit Modi, IPL Chairman and Commissioner said.
Samuels faces ban on match-fixing charges
Port of Spain, May 12 : West Indies cricketer Marlon Samuels Monday was found guilty of
bribery charges and could face a two-year ban from international cricket.
Radio Jamaica reported that the West Indies Cricket Borad (WICB) found sufficient evidence
against Samuels for allegedly passing on team information to Indian bookie Mukesh Kochar during
the first one-day international between the West Indies and India in Nagpur, Jan 21,2007.
The hearing was conducted by WICB Code of Ethics and Disciplinary Committee and was chaired
by former acting Chief justice of eastern Caribbean, Adrian Saunders and also had players like
Courtney Walsh and Richie Richardson as members.
The cricketer was also suspended from bowling after independent analysis of his action in January
revealed that his off-break and faster deliveries exceeded the 15-degree level of tolerance
permitted under regulations.
ICL will be successful in future: Razzaq
Karachi, May 12 : Pakistani allrounder Abdul Razzaq believes the unofficial Indian Cricket League
has a bright future and should be credited for popularising Twenty20 cricket.
Razzaq, one of the few players to sign for the ICL in its early days, said the Essel group-backed
venture had slowly established itself as a successful private league and would do better in future.
"Their second season was better with more interest from people. Advertisers and sponsors are also
taking more interest in it. So I feel the ICL has a good future," he said.
Razzaq said he had no regrets about his decision to play in the ICL despite the strong stand taken
by the Pakistan Cricket Board against players aligning with the rebel league.
"The ICL is just like any other private league or tournament. And their main aim appears to be
promoting cricket and offer employment opportunities to more and more players."
Razzaq, one of the most prolific performers for Pakistan in ODI cricket, said the ICL would get
recognition some day.
Safina pulls out of Italian Open
Rome, May 12 : Dinara Safina pulled out of the Italian Open on Monday due to a back injury. The
14th-ranked Russian won the biggest title of her career yesterday, beating Elena Dementieva in
three sets at the German Open.
Two years ago, Safina reached the Italian Open final but lost to Martina Hingis. Top-ranked
Justine Henin and two-time champion Amelie Mauresmo previously pulled out of this clay-court
warmup for the French Open, which begins in less than two weeks.
Sybille Bammer became the 19th-seeded player and lucky loser Ekaterina Makarova entered the
draw in Safina's place.