All posts by h716a5.icu

India’s Central Information Commission (CIC) has asked the BCCI and all its 29 member units for details about the land and buildings occupied by them and the Commission will hear the matter on July 25 and 26

Jasvinder Sidhu24-Jul-2013India’s Central Information Commission (CIC) has asked the BCCI and all its 29 member units for details about the land and buildings occupied by them, including information on stadiums allotted by state governments, the annual rent paid by the BCCI, and its units and copies of lease deeds as part of their agreement. The Information Commissioner has constituted a full bench of the CIC to hear the case on July 25 and 26 in New Delhi.The CIC is a government body formed to effectively shed light on the working of India’s traditionally opaque public institutions by entertaining petitions from the public under the country’s relatively new Right to Information Act (RTI); a ruling earlier this month sought to bring political parties within its purview. Under the law, the Central and State Information Commissions have the same powers as a civil court.The CIC’s issuing of a notice to the BCCI is yet another step by the Indian government to establish the BCCI as a public body. The BCCI is currently registered as a private society. In its notice, dated July 10, the CIC has directed the BCCI and all of its affiliated units to attend the hearing either personally or through authorised representatives.The CIC’s deputy registrar K L Dass, who is the signatory on the notice to the BCCI, said: “The question here is whether the BCCI is a public authority or not and [to this end] the CIC wants to check if the BCCI is getting any government funding? This is why [the] CIC has asked the BCCI and its units to provide details.”The CIC has also instructed the BCCI and its member units to provide information regarding income tax, customs duty, entertainment tax exemptions, if any, for the last five years from the 2007-08 fiscal year. The full bench is also expected to examine the security expenses incurred by states government for organising cricket matches during the same period.The petitioner, Delhi resident Madhu Agrawal, says that bringing the BCCI under the RTI Act is a matter of national importance because the BCCI conducts cricket matches with various teams under their purview, and utilises facilities offered by the federal and state governments.Agrawal’s petition is a redrafted version of an existing petition filed by her husband Subhash Agrawal, a well-known RTI activist. That petition is pending before a one-member bench of the CIC. Agrawal told ESPNcricinfo that it was filed in his wife’s name because RTI rules give priority to petitions filed by women senior citizens – a full bench of the CIC is required to take up such cases “sooner than any other case.”The CIC has also been hearing a petition against the BCCI, following a 2005 case concerning its public function. The BCCI has submitted a copy of the Supreme Court’s judgment of 2005 in the Zee Telefilms v Union of India & others, which said the BCCI was not defined as a ‘state’. The BCCI also argued it didn’t take any financial help from the Indian Government. In February, 2011 though, the Supreme Court upheld a Kerala High Court decision and stated that officials of the Kerala Cricket Association are ‘public servants’.

Australia A’s bowlers showed their Ashes potential as they ripped through Scotland’s batsmen in Edinburgh, wrapping up a win by 360 runs with a day to spare.

Callum Stewart at The Grange09-Jun-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsJames Pattinson took seven wickets in the match•BCCIAustralia A’s bowlers showed their Ashes potential as they ripped through Scotland’s batsmen in Edinburgh, wrapping up a win by 360 runs with a session to spare.Only four Scottish batsmen made double figures as Chadd Sayers and James Pattinson impressed with both pace and swing to share seven wickets between them.It was a dismal Scotland second innings but rather than the first innings when the Scots got themselves out, this innings was much more down to the prowess of the bowling and fielding.Moises Henriques and Ashton Agar built on Australian A’s overnight lead, both claiming half centuries, before their second declaration of the match put the Scots in to bat before lunch. By the break they had lost three wickets and it only took another 19.1 overs for the tourists to wrap up victory in the afternoon session.Sayers claimed three wickets, taking a good catch off his own bowling to remove Josh Davey. He also induced a drive from Richie Berrington that he edged to second slip and gave Moneeb Iqbal a pair by trapping him lbw.Pattinson took four, taking two top order batsmen, including Matt Machan with a yorker, before cleaning up the tail. He ended up thanking the Scots for being such great hosts, and said he is looking forward to the rest of the tour.Calum MacLeod top scored for Scotland again, finishing with an unbeaten 30, hitting Nathan Lyon for four boundaries.Australia A now head off to Ireland for a four-day game, joined by the much-hyped Fawad Ahmed who arrived in Edinburgh today after a long journey from Melbourne via Dubai and London for a net session.

Tim Ambrose said he was “enjoying cricket and enjoying life” after making a first century since opening up about his battle with depression

Alex Winter at Edgbaston19-Apr-2013
ScorecardTim Ambrose crashed a century from 122 balls to put Warwickshire in a dominant position•Getty ImagesTim Ambrose said he was “enjoying cricket and enjoying life” after making a first century since opening up about his battle with depression. His dashing 105 gave Warwickshire a big lead and a chance to push for victory on the final day.Last September was the first time that Ambrose had revealed the troubles that saw him miss almost half the 2010 season. But now almost entirely free from the “soaking wet duvet” that had covered him, he is in a good place and part of a lower-order that makes Warwickshire extremely hard to kill off.Ambrose was needed to claw his side back from 64 for 4 as Warwickshire’s top-order again showed its fragile nature. They lost a fifth wicket with the lead at 225 but Ambrose and Rikki Clarke shared a century stand in 138 balls that whipped away the opportunity Durham sensed after their morning’s work.For Ambrose, it was a century dedicated to his grandfather Nick who underwent a recent heart operation. The news was positive and Ambrose will Skype him with his own good news.”I’m enjoying cricket and enjoying life and that’s the important thing for everyone,” Ambrose said. “I felt good all pre-season. As soon as I picked a bat up in late February I’ve felt in great nick. I said to the guys on the first morning of this game, is it wrong that I want someone to get out so I can have a bat? I haven’t had a hit, in Abu Dhabi the guys piled on the runs and against Derby the rain got in the way so now that I’ve had the chance, it’s nice to convert it.”Ambrose was usurped by Matt Prior at both Sussex and in the England Test side and it was his exclusion from the England team in 2009 that triggered his lowest ebb. He played 11 Tests and made a century against New Zealand, averaging just under 30. His last match came when Prior flew home from the West Indies when his wife was pregnant, cementing Ambrose’s place as Prior’s perennial understudy.International cricket is now as much of an issue to deal with as his depression and he can focus on delivering another title for his county. His runs last year, 623 at 44.50, were part of a lower order that was essential to their success.”We’ve talked among ourselves about the engine room,” Ambrose said. “With myself, Rikki, Chris Woakes and Keith Barker, there are a lot of runs there and it’s something we’re very proud of. When we get into trouble we’ve got the guys to get out of it.”Ambrose and Troughton ensured disaster was averted but Ben Stokes produced a quick, reverse-swinging spell from the Pavilion End that reignited Durham’s hopes. Stokes found an edge from Ambrose that narrowly evaded first slip and trapped Troughton lbw. But Clarke survived the burst and struck two fours in three balls to see Stokes off and end Durham’s best hope of a target within range.It was disappointment for the Durham head coach, Geoff Cook, who chose to praise Warwickshire’s lower order rather than his bowlers who had put the match on an even keel at 64 for 4. Ian Westwood and Will Porterfield fell to good deliveries that swung just enough before Varun Chopra was strangled down the leg side from Stokes’ first delivery. And when Laurie Evans pulled to mid-off the engine room was being revved up for duty.They delivered. Warwickshire reached a safe position through Ambrose and Clarke but, given the way runs have been accumulated with ease and at pace on all three afternoons of the match when the ball has softened, Troughton was very cautious in his declaration and ensured that Durham would have to score at over four-an-over to chase 413.They pulled out with five overs remaining in the day and with the seventh ball of the innings, Chris Wright found a little movement back into Keaton Jennings to trap him for a golden duck.

Khulna Royal Bengals, led by Shahriar Nafees’ 71, claimed their first victory in five games as they beat Duronto Rajshahi by seven wickets in Mirpur

The Report by Mohammad Isam08-Feb-2013
ScorecardShahriar Nafees played a responsible knock for Khulna Royal Bengals yet again•Bangladesh Cricket BoardKhulna Royal Bengals claimed their first victory in five games, beating Duronto Rajshahi by eight wickets. Chasing 139 to win, the Royal Bengals, led by Shahriah Nafees’ 71, sauntered to victory in 19.2 overs.Nafees, like in the previous two wins by his team, was the key contributor in the victory. He struck eleven boundaries in his 52-ball knock, finishing the match with a six off Ben Edmondson with five runs required for victory. He guided the chase with two partnerships; he added 63 for the second wicket with Travis Birt, who made 23 off 26 balls with two fours and a six, and followed this up with a 54-run stand in 6.4 overs with Jehan Mubarak, who remained unbeaten till the end for a 27-ball 30.Earlier, Rajshahi had recovered to post a fighting total after they had slipped to 64 for 6 in the 11th over. Mukhtar Ali and Sean Ervine added 42 for the seventh wicket, and Mukhtar remained unbeaten on 41 to lead them to 138. Mukhtar hammered four boundaries and two sixes during his 30-ball innings.For the Royal Bengals, Krishmar Santokie took three wickets while left-arm spinner Sanjamul Islam and legspinner Noor Hossain picked up two each.Both teams played with different captains today; Lou Vincent led the Royal Bengals despite Nafees being in the playing eleven, and Tamim captained Rajshahi in place of Chamara Kapugedera.

George Bailey could be “working in a coalmine or flipping burgers at McDonald’s” if not for the money poured into cricket by Channel Nine, according to the network’s executive producer of cricket, Brad McNamara

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jan-2013George Bailey could be “working in a coalmine or flipping burgers at McDonald’s” if not for the money poured into cricket by Channel Nine, according to the network’s executive producer of cricket, Brad McNamara. Bailey last week defended the Australia side he was leading from criticism it was a “B-team”, but said he could understand such talk coming from Channel Nine as the network enters a new negotiating period over cricket’s television rights.The Australians rested Michael Clarke, David Warner and Matthew Wade from the first two ODIs against Sri Lanka, which led to criticism from Channel Nine’s head of sport, Steve Crawley. However, in a stinging rebuke on Thursday, McNamara said Nine was not guilty of disparaging the one-day format and that ratings had been good for the first two ODIs in Melbourne and Adelaide.”Nowhere has Channel Nine ever talked the one-day game down, nowhere have we ever said this is a ‘B team’,” McNamara said on Sky Sports Radio. “It’s rubbish and George should stick to playing cricket and leave rights to the people who know what they’re talking about. I reckon he’s got his hands full as it is. He needs to concentrate on staying in the side.”And he needs to understand where his money’s coming from. Without the TV rights deal, George is probably working in a coalmine or flipping burgers at McDonald’s. All this talk about the death of one-day cricket, it’s not coming from us. Given we were lacking star quality, we were very happy [with the ratings].”Bailey has been Australia’s leading run scorer in ODIs in the past six months and made an impressive 89 during the win at the MCG last Friday. He has handed control of the one-day team back to Clarke for the third match against Sri Lanka, to be held in Brisbane on Friday.

Philander scooped three major awards at the CSA’s annual gala dinner on Wednesday night, including the main prize – Cricketer of the Year

Firdose Moonda06-Jun-2012Of the achievements Vernon Philander has to his name – the second-fastest man to 50 Test wickets in cricket’s history and six five-wicket hauls in seven matches – a hat-trick is not one of them. Until now. Philander scooped three major awards at the CSA’s annual gala dinner on Wednesday night, including the main prize – Cricketer of the Year.He was the obvious choice from a list of nominees that also included his bowling partners Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel and batsmen AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla. Never in South Africa’s cricket history has a Test player been more successful after seven matches. His feats include a match haul of eight for 78 on debut against Australia, which included five for 15 in an innings that saw the opponents bowled out for 47. He also claimed a five-for in the next Test against Australia to be named man of the series. He took 16 wickets in two Tests against Sri Lanka and 21 wickets in three Tests in New Zealand, including 10 wickets in the second Test in Hamilton. Currently, Philander’s Test average sits at 14.15.Philander’s dream start to Test cricket came after he was dropped from the limited-overs side after a shaky start in 2007. He spent two intense seasons in the domestic game during which he claimed 96 wickets and began his Test career with the lowest averages among all bowlers who had taken more than 250 first-class wickets – 20.04. Philander was given the new ball for South Africa and he used it to devastating effect, combining his ability to move the ball both ways with unrelenting accuracy. For his efforts, he was also adjudged Test player of the year and Fans’ Cricketer of the Year.As he does on the field, Philander left few rewards for the rest to share at the prize-giving. New limited-overs captain de Villiers was named ODI Cricketer of the Year for his 475 runs in eight matches against Sri Lanka and New Zealand, including two centuries. De Villiers’ creative leadership and never-ending enthusiasm also saw him chosen as Players’ Player of the Year. Record-breaking Richard Levi, who holds the highest T20I individual score – 117 – won the Twenty20 award while young quick Marchant de Lange, who took seven for 81 on Test debut, was recognised as international newcomer of the year.There was a familiar name among the list of domestic winners. Opening batsmen Alviro Petersen was named first-class cricketer of the year for topping the SuperSport Series rankings charts. Petersen was dropped from the national side at the beginning of the 2011-12 season and fought his way back into the team with 816 runs at an average of 62.76, including three centuries.Batsmen completed the list of domestic awards. Dean Elgar, who was selected for the national squad to play in ODIs against Sri Lanka but had to withdraw because of an injury, won the 1-Day Cup player of the year prize. He scored 567 runs in 10 matches for the Knights and was the top run-scorer in the competition. Farhaan Behardien, who has been included in the Twenty20 squad for this month’s unofficial tri-series in Zimbabwe was named domestic Twenty20 player of the year. He beat another player who has been included in that squad, Chris Morris, to the title.For winning both the SuperSport Series and the Twenty20 competition, the Titans’ Matthew Maynard was judged coach of the year, in his first season at the franchise. When Maynard was unveiled last September, he was jokingly told he had to win seven trophies in three seasons and he started off well in that quest.Earlier in the day, CSA honoured the amateur cricketers, handing out prizes to, amongst other, the top women’s cricketer, Shandré Fritz and under-19 Cricketer of the Year, Quinton de Kock. There was also a special lifetime achievement award which was given to Ewie Cronje, for his years of service to Free State Cricket. Cronje, father of the former captain Hansie, has been involved in the province’s structures since their formation in 1969.Cronje, in the words for former national coach Corrie van Zyl, took Free State from “a Cinderella province to a team that could win.” He famously predicted Free State would win the 1989 Benson and Hedges 45-over Cup, which they did. On receiving his prize, Cronje said he was willing to “forecast” two more events. He told Test captain Graeme Smith that South Africa would return from England as the No.1 ranked Test side in the world and limited-overs captain De Villiers, that in three years’ time, he will lift the World Cup.Complete list of awards:
INTERNATIONAL AWARDS:
Newcomer of the Year: Marchant de Lange
International Twenty20 Cricketer of the Year: Richard Levi
One-Day International Cricketer of the Year: AB de Villiers
Test Cricketer of the Year: Vernon Philander
KFC “So Good” Award: Richard Levi
Fans’ Cricketer of the Year: Vernon Philander
Players’ Player of the Year: AB de Villiers
Cricketer of the Year: Vernon Philander
DOMESTIC AWARDS:
1-Day Cup Cricketer of the Year: Dean Elgar
Twenty20 Cricketer of the Year: Farhaan Behardien
SuperSport Series Cricketer of the Year: Alviro Petersen
Fairplay award: Sunfoil Dolphins
Coach of the Year: Matthew Maynard
Domestic Newcomer of the Year: Eddie Leie
South African Cricketers’ Association MVP award: Morne van Wyk
Domestic Players’ Player of the Year: Faf du Plessis

Round-up of the ICC World Cricket League Division Four matches in Kuala Lumpur

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Sep-2012Singapore registered a comprehensive 112-run win over Malaysia, thanks to Christopher Janik’s 106 and Munish Arora’s half-century that took them to 230 for nine in their innings. Janik, who struck eight boundaries and two sixes, and Arora put on 138 runs for the fifth wicket, the defining and the only productive stand of the innings. Their first four wickets fell for 35 runs, and the last five collapsed for 29; the fifth wicket stand and a couple of other small partnerships took them past the 200-run mark.Malaysia too stumbled in their innings, except that there wasn’t any batsman to stage a recovery. They slipped to 14 for four and a partnership of 25 which followed proved to be their highest one, the chase of 231 looking beyond them. At 91 for 8 in 29 overs, Singapore’s victory was confirmed as the players walked off due to rain. The major damage was done by fast bowler Pramodh Raja, who took three wickets.Tanzania suffered a similar collapse to be bowled out for 82 and lost to Nepal by eight wickets in a match that spanned only 51.2 overs. Issa Kikasi’s 33 was the only score of note, as wickets kept falling regularly, courtesy seamer Paras Khadka and Basanta Regmi, who shared seven wickets between them. Tanzania were in danger of being bowled out for a far lower total as they were reduced to 19 for 5, but Kikasi and Benson Mwita briefly led a recovery.Nepal reached their target in the 20th over with Gyanendra Malla and Subash Khakurel scoring 28 and 20 respectively.Fast bowler Aftab Ahmed’s initial strikes were followed by offspinner Bashir Shah’s three wickets to help Denmark restrict USA to 86 for five, giving them victory by 56 runs (D/L) in a rain-shortened match. After having raced to 40 for no loss in the fifth over, they fell to 71 for 5 in the 20th over, as the Denmark bowlers bowled economically. Michael Pedersen, especially, kept a tight leash on the USA batsmen, giving away nine runs in his five overs.Denmark’s innings revolved around fifties by No.3 Andreas Lambert and Pedersen. The innings started slowly, and after being reduced to 57 for 3 in the 18th over, Lambert and Freddie Klokker, who scored 39, put on 65 runs in even time. A couple of wickets fell in the 38th over to leave them in a tricky position at 167 for seven, but Pedersen and Bashir added 60 in less than nine overs to take them close to the 250-run mark.

Junaid Khan, the Pakistan left-arm fast bowler, has received a no-objection certificate from the PCB, paving the way for his return to Lancashire for this season’s Friends Life t20

Umar Farooq21-Apr-2012Junaid Khan, the Pakistan left-arm fast bowler, has received a no-objection certificate from the PCB, paving the way for his return to Lancashire for this season’s Friends Life t20.The decision was delayed as PCB wanted to ensure that the seamer had fully recovered from his patella (knee cap) injury. The PCB has released the bowler just for the Twenty20 tournament, to manage his workload and make sure he remains in the best shape for Pakistan’s forthcoming tours. He was cleared after appearing in a two-day fitness test and will be applying for his UK visa next week.Junaid sustained a fracture of the patella during the Twenty20-leg of Pakistan’s series against England in UAE in February and has been out of action since then. Junaid, 22, debuted for Pakistan in April 2011 but his fledgling career has been hurt by injuries in the last few months. Junaid was selected for the England series after he had recovered from the abdominal tear he picked during the ODI series against Sri Lanka last year, which ruled him out for six weeks.Pakistan’s next international assignment is a full series in Sri Lanka followed by the ‘home’ series against Australia, also to be played in Sri Lanka, before the ICC World Twenty20.Apart from his promising international career, Junaid excelled on county debut in last year’s Friends Life t20, taking 12 wickets in eight games for Lancashire at an economy-rate of 6.00.Recruited last season on the recommendation of Wasim Akram, Junaid made a big impact on the FLt20 and helped Lancashire reach finals for the first time in four years, only to miss the climax of the competition after being selected for Pakistan’s tour of Zimbabwe.”Junaid showed last season his ability to win a game from almost any situation,” Peter Moores, the Lancashire head coach, said. “His strength at bowling in Powerplays and at the end of the innings in one-day cricket adds another dimension to the squad and it will be great to have him back.”Edited by Devashish Fuloria

New Zealand batsman Kane Williamson led Gloucestershire’s resistance to make sure their County Championship Division Two match at Derbyshire finished in the dullest of draws.

ESPNcricinfo staff05-May-2012
ScorecardGloucestershire ground it out on the final day to make sure their County Championship Division Two match at Derbyshire finished in the dullest of draws.Although the spectacle offered no warmth to the few souls who braved the weather, Gloucestershire did all they needed to do by seeing out the remainder of a game in which they struggled from the start.With New Zealand batsman Kane Williamson (128) and his compatriot Hamish Marshall (90) taking their third-wicket partnership to 166 in the morning, there was little chance of Derbyshire being able to press for victory on a flat wicket.Gloucestershire, who were made to follow on after trailing by 182 in the first innings, finished on 408 for 4 in their second innings.They began the day with a small lead of 37 and Derbyshire needed to make early progress if they were to wrestle back control of the contest.The second new ball, available after only eight overs of the morning session, offered them their best chance and Derbyshire thought they had made their breakthrough in the third over with it when they appealed for a catch behind the wicket with Marshall on 53 and were crestfallen when umpire David Willey was unmoved.They were made to wait until shortly before lunch for their first wicket, which came when Jon Clare beat the defensive push of Williamson and wicketkeeper Tom Poynton took the catch. Williamson, a rising New Zealand batsman, at 21, faced 272 balls and hit 16 fours.The main focus of the afternoon was whether or not Marshall would get his first century for the county in almost three years but he fell 10 runs short when Tim Groenewald had him lbw. Ian Cockbain (63 not out) and Will Gidman (33 not out) comfortably batted out the remainder of the game.Derbyshire’s wicketkeeper, Tom Poynton, was the only Derbyshire not to have a go at bowling before a Gloucestershire declaration 10 minutes before the start of the final hour signalled the end of the match.

Mickey Arthur, the Australia coach, believes his side have progressed further than he expected them to at the moment

Brydon Coverdale16-Jan-2012Mickey Arthur, the Australia coach, believes his side have progressed further than he expected them to at the moment as they work towards their twin long-term goals of regaining the Ashes and becoming the world’s No.1-ranked side again. Regaining the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Perth was a positive step for Australia, although Michael Clarke, the captain, said after the victory that his side had much left to achieve.But the emergence this summer of new Test players like David Warner, James Pattinson and Ed Cowan, as well as the improvement shown by more experienced men like Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle, has impressed Arthur and Clarke. Since Arthur took over as coach ahead of December’s series against New Zealand, Australia have won four Tests and lost one, and the performances of the newer members of the side have pleased him.”I’ve been hugely impressed by the leadership of Michael Clarke,” Arthur said. “I’ve been hugely impressed by the way the players have embraced what we wanted to do. I do think we’re a little bit ahead of where I thought we’d be at this particular time. But as I said when I took the job, Australian cricket is in a very healthy place.”Australia’s immediate goal is to complete a 4-0 demolition of India when the teams head to Adelaide for next week’s final Test. That will be followed by a Test tour of the West Indies, but Arthur said the plan was for this Australian group to continue building towards the 2013 Ashes series in England, when Australia will try to regain the urn for the first time since losing it in 2009.”It [the Ashes] is the ultimate goal,” Arthur said. “Every series for us is big along the way. As I said after Sydney, we’ve prioritised series. This Indian series was a world championship cricket series for us. The South African series here, early next summer, is going to be a huge series and you know we need to be able to win those series against those types of opponents, opponents ranked higher than us in the world in order to go back to England and challenge.”I guess winning back the Ashes is at the forefront of everybody’s mind and I’d be lying if I didn’t say that we’re trying to build a really competitive team to go back and win them in 2013. But not at the detriment of any other series because all those other series are very important to us.”One of the most impressive aspects of Australia’s success against India has been the way their bowlers have suffocated the visitors with a constant build-up of pressure. Hilfenhaus has developed into a bowler who can swing the ball late and has taken 23 wickets in three Tests as a result, while Siddle, Pattinson, Ryan Harris and Mitchell Starc have all had success thanks to their strong work together.That has been a significant change from the Australian attack that was humiliated by England last summer, when the batsmen knew they would not have to wait long for a loose ball or a bad over. The work of the bowling coach Craig McDermott has been important behind the scenes, but Arthur praised the ability of the bowlers to put McDermott’s advice into action.”As much as you bat in partnerships, you bowl in partnerships,” Arthur said. “It’s about having the ability to stop the game. It’s about having the ability to build pressure, because pressure takes wickets. That’s been our mantra in the dressing room. The bowling partnerships that the guys have employed all summer, really, have been outstanding.”I just look back at the work of Peter Siddle [in Melbourne and Sydney]. James Pattinson bowled outstandingly well and got all the rewards, but he needed a Peter Siddle at the other end stopping the game as well. Siddle and Pattinson were tremendous together. That’s been our mantra. That’s how you build pressure, and pressure equals wickets. We’ve been able to execute that for long periods of time.”