ICL Teams

Chandigarh Lions

Chris Cairns - Captain
Coach - Balwinder Sandhu

After a dominant performance in their own backyard in the inaugural ICL 20s tournament at Panchkula, the Lions are one of the formidable sides in the forthcoming Grand Championship. Dinesh Mongia, TP Singh & Chetan Sharma ably supported by their charismatic captain Chris Cairns forms the batting backbone for the Lions.

The inclusion of the solid opening Australian batsman Mathew Elliott into their batting fold is expected to bring consistency to the Lion's bating line up. The bowling led by the accurate Daryll Tuffy, Andrew Hall backed by the all round skills of Cairns & Dinesh Mongia, gives the Lions side a well balanced look.

Chennai Superstars

Stuart Law - Captain
Coach - Michael Bevan

Undoubtedly the Kings of league cricket in India, Chennai Superstars have defined new parameters in the twenty over format. The batting revolves around the impressive Ian Harvey, ably supported Hemang Badani, Russel Arnold & Stuart Law. With the inclusion of the internationally acclaimed wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Parore, it will further strengthen the already formidable superstar batting line up. The bowling for the Superstars has been a critical weapon for their winning the first two editions of the ICL in the inaugural ICL20's & the domestic ICL 50's.

A success story of the ICL philosophy, the Superstars bowling firepower displays the successful paring of an international Shabbir Ahmed with the impressive Indian players T Kumran & G Vignesh. In Michael Bevan, the Superstars have a coach who arguably was the best One-Day cricketer of his time. The ICL 20's Grand Championship in March will see the Chennai Superstars trying to maintain their supremacy in the ICL.

Delhi Giants

Marvan Atapattu - Captain
Coach - Madan Lal

The Giants boast of maximum players from their lineup in the Top rankings of the ICL stats for both the batting and bowling departments in the recently concluded ICL 50's. Their impressive performance in the previous editions makes the capital city team one of the main contenders for the March edition of the ICL 20s Grand Championship. The Delhi Giant's batting revolves around the Sri-Lankan maestro, Marvan Attapatu ably supported by the impressive JP Yadav, MD Mishra & Abhinav Bali.

The inclusion of attacking left hand opener Avishka Gunawardane & wicket keeper batsman Nic Pothas makes the giant batting lineup the most inform lineup leading to the tournament. Shane Bond's entry into the ICL with the Delhi Giants side will surely stir & shake a few opposition batsmen at the Grand Championship. Bond's partnership with Abid Nabi & spin sensation Ali Murtaza ably supported by the off breaks of the experienced Dale Benkenstien gives the Giant's bowling attack all the right ingredients to breakthrough any opposition batting. With the team at their disposal, the Giants would look to lay their hands on the Grand Championship trophy which they have narrowly missed in the two previous editions.

Hyderabad Heroes

Chris Harris - Captain
Coach - Steve Rixon

With a history of producing some of the most stylish batsmen in the game, the Hyderabad Heroes is represented at the ICL by the supremely talented prodigal batsman Ambati Raydu. The strength of the side lies in the internationally acclaimed all-rounders of the likes of Abdul Razaq, Chris Harris & Nick Boje & ideally suited for the twenty over format. The signing of South African international Justin Kemp known for his explosive batting in crunch overs in the international circuit makes him one of the most exciting players plying his trade at the ICL.

With domestic players like left hander Shashank Nag & medium pacer Kaushik Reddy coming good in the recently concluded ICL 50s , the Heroes will prove to be tough opponents for rival sides at the Grand Championship.

Royal Bengal Tigers

Craig McMillan - Captain
Coach - Daryll Cullinan

The city of joy is represented by the spirited Royal Bengal Tigers. Led by the combative Craig Macmillan who led the Tigers by example during the inaugural tournament held in Panchkula. The Tiger's batting will revolve around captain Macmillan & the two impressive domestic players, Rohan Gavaskar & the prodigal Abhishek Jhunjhunwala.

Their impressive all-rounder player list with the likes of Lance Klusner & Deep Dasgupta will receive a shot in the arm with the inclusion of the hard hitting bowling all-rounder Andre Adams from New Zealand. The bowling attack for the Tigers will be lead by the pacy Nantie Hayward & spinner Upul Chandana ably supported by the impressive domestic left arm pacer Eklak Ahmid.

Mumbai Champs

Nathan Astle - Captain
Coach - Sandeep Pati

The home of Indian cricket is represented by the Mumbai Champs in the Indian Cricket League (ICL). Led by the legendary Brain Lara, the Champs would look at improving their performance in comparison to their two previous outings at the Indian cricket league. The batting department for the Champs has clicked so far with some high scores in both the inaugural ICL 20s championship & the ICL 50s but it's their bowling which has led them down.

With the inclusion of the fiery West Indian pacer Tino Best and the accurate Michel Kasprowicz, the bowling looks beefed up to take on the competition. With promising all-rounders Robin Morris and Kiran Powar & the inform batsman Dheeraj Jadhav in their line up, the Champs look all set to restore their supremacy in the Indian Cricket League.

Lahore BadshahsInzamam

Ul Haq - Captain
Coach - Moin Khan

Led by the legendary batsman Inzamam Ul Haq & coached by the combative Moin Khan, the Badshahs are all set to induct the great India-Pakistan rivalry into the ICL. The batting line up with the explosive opening batsmen Taufeeq Umar, Imran Farhat & Imran Nazir revolving around the great Inzi makes it a world class spectacle of batting prowess on display for the ICL fans at the ICL 20s Grand Championship.

The pace attack led by the talented MD Sami & Riyaz Afridi, supported by the internationally acclaimed spin trio of Saqlain Mushtaq, Mushtaq Ahmed & Arshad Khan will present challenge for every opposition batsman. Every time the Badshahs step on the field at the ICL 20s Grand Championship, the fans will surely be treated to the great India-Pakistan rivalry at its best.

Ahmedabad Rockets

Damien Martyn - Captain
Coach - John Emburey

The Rockets represent one of the important cricketing regions (Gujarat) in the ICL. They will look to display their rich cricketing legacy on the ICL platform. The Rocket's batting will be lead by world class stylish batsman Damien Martyn ably supported by the explosive opening bat Wavell Hinds, Murray Goodwin & promising domestic batsmen like Sachin Dholpure, Sriram Sridharan & Anshu Jain.

The Pace battery with Jason Gillespie, Heath Streak & India international Rakesh Patel would surely earn the respect of any batting side. The presence of John Emburey (former England spinner) as coach of the Rocket side will help the spin duo of Abhishek Tamarkar & Sumit Kalia

Bollywood & Babes for Ishant Sharma

Bollywood calling
Ishant Sharma is surely a high achiever. After making a splash in international cricket and the Indian Premier League, the guy seems to be focussing on making some filmi waves now. He has recently signed Ajit Pal's Victory, where he will be sharing screen space with actor Harman Baweja. Reveals his manager, RS Sehrawat, "Ishant will be working in Victory. It is a cricket-based film. While the shoot dates have not been finalised till now, it will most likely take place around June 15 in Mumbai at the Wankhede Stadium."

While Ishant will be making only a small appearance in the film, it is definitely a start। Says the excited cricketer, "I never imagined that I would be doing a movie. It is very exciting and all the more challenging." (PTI Photo)

News Source : IPL Times Of India

IPL players will be bartered, not traded

JAIPUR: The Indian Premier League is thinking of an innovative idea to overcome the problem posed by the $5 million-cap plus the three year contracts that each player has signed.

The eight franchises, instead of trading their cricketers, will be asked to "barter" them with each other in the transfer window that opens in February next year.

According to IPL sources, however, the five icon players — Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh and Virender Sehwag — cannot be bartered. Any of the other players can be exchanged, if the parties concerned — that is, both the franchises and the player himself — are agreeable. Which means Mumbai Indians or Delhi Daredevils will continue have Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag battling it out for their city teams only, at least in the coming year.

However, from the third year onwards, the IPL is going to introduce a "trading window" to transfer the players.

Sources also indicated that the IPL governing council is against removing the $5 million spending cap on teams. "We don’t want disparity of income among the players. It’s good that the players are getting their due but if only a handful of them get millions, then it’s a problem. Cricket is, after all, a team game. As far as we are concerned, the $5 million cap will not be removed for the present," a top member of the IPL governing council told TOI on Monday.

"A team like Hyderabad lacked some good bowlers in their line-up. If they wish to swap Shahid Afridi with (Bangalore’s) Jaques Kallis, for example, and their franchises are willing to do so, the barter will take place.

"If IPL-winning captain Shane Warne does not want to play for Team Jaipur and his owners are willing to trade him, there is no problem whatsoever as long as there are takers for him. But it’s unlikely that players like Shane Watson and Yusuf Pathan will be bartered, unless the franchisee has a different plan," a top IPL official explained.

This development will be a huge relief for those "non-performing assets" who have got shabby treatment from their owners.

"But from the third year onwards, we are going to introduce trading windows and the players will get a certain portion of the extra money, which will be generated during the transfer. It’s too early to talk about the third year. There are a lot of calculations to be done. We will also take the opinion of the franchises to see how it works," the IPL official said.

When TOI contacted a couple of the franchises, they were okay with the idea. "There are people who can afford wealthy teams, but as far as we are concerned, we don’t have any problem with the barter. The idea looks okay to us. But we have to sit with the IPL to learn more about the transfer," a CEO of a franchise said.

News Source : IPL Times Of India

Money, mass & madness: IPL rules!

The new addiction!
Jaya Drona/TNN: This summer, India was hooked on to the blockbuster of the decade. It was on at a stadium near you and had the cricketers as the main attractions. Add cheerleaders, special performances, stars amongst the audience and a few controversies, and IPL managed to pip films, telly and all other forms of entertainment to the post. Now that the cricket event is over, it is time to crunch some mammoth numbers!

To begin with, over four million spectators watched IPL matches in stadiums. Even on TV, the TRP of these matches was a mind boggling 8.2 in the first two weeks, 8 at others and was always above 5. That's when saas-bahu soaps like Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi have averaged at 5, and SRK's Paanchvi Paas has seen TRPs of 4. (TOI Photo)

News Source : IPL Times Of India