Viv Richards is my hero: Sachin

Kolkata: Sachin Tendulkar regards West Indies batting legend Vivian Richards as his hero, though he has never played against the Caribbean at the international level.

“I had played against him only at the county level. He was then playing for Glamorgan and me for Yorkshire. He is my hero and playing against him is a special moment in my life. I cherish that”, Tendulkar said at a photo exhibition, pointing to a snap showing him playing chess with Richards.

The exhibition of photos clicked by noted lensman Sumon Chattopadhyay on Indian cricket, had one that captured a young Tendulkar playing on the lane before his house in Mumbai.

The photo seemed to have turned the Mumbai batsman nostalgic and he exclaimed that even today he enjoyed playing cricket before his Bandra residence.

“It’s great to play on the road. It’s a time to relax and meet a lot of old friends. Even on Tuesday, I played on the road before my house,” said Tendulkar as fellow international cricketers Sourav Ganguly, Yuvraj Singh and Dinesh Karthik heard him in rapt attention.

About another photo taken just after his marriage and showing him walk with his bride Anjali, Tendulkar said “it’s an extremely special moment of my life with my life partner walking with me”.

Then he turned to Yuvraj Singh, and said with a smile “I want to wish Yuvraj all the best when he gets married”.

The entire gathering broke into spontaneous applause and there were peals of laughter all around.

All spectators to be photographed at Eden Gardens

Kolkata: An unprecedented three-layered security ring, comprising 5,000 police personnel, new gadgets and sniffer dogs will be thrown around the Eden Gardens for the second India-Pakistan Test starting here on Friday, Police Commissioner Goutam Mohan Chakrabarty said on Wednesday.

In view of the security threat to the players and also the volatile political situation in Bengal, the Kolkata Police is taking strict measures, including photographing every spectator in the 100,000-capacity stadium.

“We are taking no chances with the police arrangements in view of the threats. We are deploying more than 5,000 police personnel, both in uniform and plainclothes,” Chakrabarty told IANS.

“All 5,0000 personnel will be from the Kolkata Police. We are taking help from all our other sources to acquire electronic gadgets, bomb disposal equipment and the sniffer dogs. Of course, we have got these units with us, but we want to strengthen the security by taking help from other agencies too,” he said.

Chakrabarty said there would be multi-layered security and thorough frisking.

“There will be three layers of security checking and frisking and the movement of the spectators will be photographed by hidden cameras,” he said.

Since the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president Prasun Mukherjee is Chakrabarty’s immediate predecessor, the task of making security arrangements much easier and hassle-free.

Security has been beefed up after a TV channel received threatening e-mails targeting Pakistani players.

Docs say Akhtar’s OK, the man says he’s not

New Delhi: “I am feeling quite sick and very weak,” said Shoaib Akhtar, speaking in an unusually feeble, raspy mumble as he was transferred back to the team hotel in Kolkata on Wednesday evening, after a 24-hour stay in hospital.

The Apollo Gleneagles Hospital spokesperson — where Akhtar was admitted on Tuesday evening with a severe chest infection — declared on Wednesday that the star Pakistan paceman had shown great signs of improvement and that the infection was under control. But Akhtar himself sounded both unsure and stressed when quizzed over whether he would be absolutely fit for the second Test. “No, I really cannot say I am feeling better,” he told the Hindustan Times over phone from Kolkata, even though medically, according to doctors, he is better.

Akhtar, who was on drip until the morning, was non-committal when asked if he would be in a position to lead the Pakistan bowling attack in the Eden Test, which begins on Friday. He said it would depend on how he felt on Thursday. “Let’s see how it goes,” he said, even while Pakistan team sources confirmed that they were extremely worried about what they would do if Akhtar were not fully fit.

It would be a difficult decision to make. As things stand, even if he is given the go-ahead by doctors, Pakistan might opt to not play him if not fully fit, as there would be a question mark over whether he would be able to last out the game. “We are hoping that Shoaib will be fully fit,” said a senior Pakistani player, “if he’s not, things will be very difficult.”

Yes, they would. Even with Akhtar bowling his heart out, Pakistan lost Delhi with almost a full day to space; without him, it could spell calamity in Kolkata.

England team hold firm despite bomb blasts

England’s cricket team refused to hit the panic button and alter their tour itinerary for the Test series in Sri Lanka, despite yesterday’s bomb blasts in Colombo.

Michael Vaughan’s team were travelling overland to Kandy for the opening Test on Saturday when the first, a suicide bomb, killed one and injured two others. Later a remote- controlled device was exploded outside a clothing store causing multiple fatalities.

	Determined: Michael Vaughan’s side will keep to the tour itinerary

“Our security officer, Reg Dickason, has spoken to the British High Commission in Sri Lanka in light of the bombings and there has been no change in the travel advice we have received from them, and no effect on the tour arrangements,” said Andrew Walpole, a spokesman for the team.

“We do always keep the tour itinerary and security arrangements under review and we won’t be complacent during the trip.” According to reports the suicide bomber was a disabled woman who mingled with crowds outside the house of welfare minister Douglas Devananda, in the southern suburbs. The blast killed his personal secretary and injured two security men.

The authorities are blaming the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for the explosion. Civil war between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government has raged for 24 years with little hope of settlement. But while most of the fighting has been contained in the northern part of the island, bomb blasts in the major cities are not uncommon.

In 1987, a car bomb went off outside the New Zealand team hotel, killing many people. The tour was cancelled setting a precedent for other countries to follow. Both Australia and West Indies refused to play here during the 1996 World Cup, however both have toured since.

Kapil Dev insists Indian league will succeed

Former India captain Kapil Dev admits he will be nervous prior to the start of tomorrow’s Indian Cricket League because, in his own words, the event is a baby he has helped father.

	Positive: Kapil Dev feels people have the wrong impression of ICL

Since its inception the ICL has met with obstacles, most notably the Board of Control for Cricket in India, who view the competition as one that is raping the country of ‘their’ revenue streams. They instructed players, administrators, sponsors and even the media to have nothing to do with it.

The BCCI then announced their own version, the Indian Premier League, only this event is sanctioned by the International Cricket Council and just about any body that is deemed ‘official’. The ICL has been painted as the black sheep of world cricket.

The negativity has not deterred West Indies batting great Brian Lara, Pakistan World Cup winner Inzamam-ul-Haq and a slew of fringe or fading England players like Darren Maddy, who will play for Calcutta Tigers.

Kapil feels people have the wrong impression of the ICL, similar to when Kerry Packer unveiled the World Series Cup in the late Seventies.

“ICL is our baby and we are hoping everything goes off well,” Kapil said. “It’s not the black sheep of cricket.Was Kerry Packer the black sheep of cricket? That was a good thing that happened and this is also a good thing.

“We are giving jobs to hundreds of cricketers, administrators, television people, umpires. How can it be wrong to give jobs to people? Are we not promoting cricket? Are we not putting money into the game? If I thought we were spoiling the game I would walk out.”

Delhi Jets and Chandigarh Lions will launch the ICL at a ground in Panchkula, near Chandigarh, converted from a football venue in six weeks.

Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik is doubtful for the second Test against India, starting on Friday in Calcutta, after failing to recover from an ankle injury.

Malik twisted his ankle during a soccer game after his side’s defeat in the first Test. Team-mate Shoaib Akhtar was yesterday recovering well from a viral infection and fast bowler Umar Gul is on the mend from his back injury.

Steve Elworthy, the former South Africa seam bowler, has been chosen as tournament director for the ICC World Twenty20 2009 in England and Wales.

ICL camp upbeat ahead of launch

Walk into the Tau Devi Lal Stadium in Panchkula and you’d think a rock concert is about to hit town. Volunteers go about their work in a relaxed atmosphere – light towers being set up, temporary stands erected, lawn-mowers puffing away – and it’s tough to miss a big dais mounted at the end of the ground. Listen carefully and names of Bollywood actresses like Kareena Kapoor and Yana Gupta, and pop groups like Band of Boys float in the air.

However, cricket tournaments, especially massively-hyped, apparently path-breaking, ones like the Indian Cricket League, deserve better. The stadium is too small – almost like one used for college games – and the outfield dangerously patchy. The organisers prefer to take refuge in the “weather hampering our plans” line but that couldn’t have been true for seven months.

The vibes, though, are all gung-ho. Sandeep Patil, the former Indian middle-order batsman currently coaching the Mumbai Champs, says it’s a “miracle” that the stadium has been ready in 28 days and adds, “its the same outfield for all teams”. Himanshu Modi, the ICL business head, is also upbeat. “We kept in mind many things while building the stadium. We needed to make allowance for scaling it up later. It’s an architecturally well-designed stadium.”

Late in the afternoon, Brian Lara, clothed in a garish orange Mumbai Champs suit, walked onto the outfield, one which was being treated with urea and other fertilisers. There was some doubt over Lara’s participation in the tournament, with the talk of him shifting to the BCCI’s Indian Premier League. Modi, however, laughed off these suggestions. “The reason I kept quiet was that I know our friends [BCCI] were trying to reach him out. I was having a daily laugh with him on the phone. And they tried whatever they could but a contract is a contract. And people want to honour it.”

This isn’t Modi’s first run-in with the Indian board. In fact what irks some in the ICL camp is the board’s interference with every step. “How will you feel if someone was constantly stopping you from doing something interesting?” says Erapalli Prasanna, the former Indian offspinner who’s currently a match referee at this tournament.

Modi says the BCCI’s actions only endorse the good work that the ICL is doing. “It’s almost like they’re saying, ‘What they do, we will also follow’. We did ICL, they did IPL. They are endorsing our own format. We keep getting these individual comments in the press – from Rajeev Shukla, Lalit Modi, IS Bindra, Niranjan Shah – but officially from the BCCI has ICL got a letter till date? Not one. Have I written letters to them? Yes, three. I’ve not got a single official reply signed from their secretary. We’re just asking them to take an official stance. Officially our members have heard only from their state associations. Like the Cricket Association of Bengal not allowing entry into their stadium etc. But nothing from the BCCI.”

A few fans mill about near the impressive practice area, most waiting to get a glimpse of Lara. He has a few knocks against throw-downs from Rajesh Chauhan, the former Indian offspinner. “We’ve had a positive response to ticket sales,” said Modi, hoping that the presence of international stars will attract an audience. “I’m sure the response will only get better because people who come for the first game will see the Bollywood entertainment that is planned.

“We’ve invited filmstars, politicians and other VIPs. The Haryana chief minister is the chief guest on the opening day. He will be addressing the audience. Kareena Kapoor will be dancing too. Yana Gupta is scheduled to perform on one of the days. We’ll have our Sa Re Ga Ma Pa stars (winners of the television reality show) too. The Band of Boys will play almost every day.”

There promises to be some entertaining cricket shows as well. One of the members of the commentary team, former Australian left-arm bowler Mike Whitney, said he might be moving around in the crowd and “having a bit of fun chatting to the spectators”.

Modi makes no qualms about entertainment being their USP. “It’s like our singing contests. We make money out if it but provide singers with a platform to showcase their talents. We hope the cricketers take the chance.” At the end of it all Modi and team will hope they can turn around to the spectators and repeat what Lara asked on the day he retired: “Did I entertain you?” In the answer may lie the success or failure of this tournament.

‘We need a spinner for Test cricket’

AS STUART MacGill consulted a specialist about his hand in Sydney, his Australian teammate Mike Hussey said Australia should continue to employ a frontline spinner for the Boxing Day Test. Moreover, he hopes that spinner is MacGill.

MacGill saw a specialist about the hand and wrist problem that caused him to experience numbness during the Hobart Test and will have scans on Monday.

As the national selectors consider confronting India with a four-pronged pace attack on a bouncy drop-in wicket at the MCG, the senior Australian batsman strongly endorsed a more traditional structure.

“I’m sure they will look at it, but if it were me personally making the decisions I believe we do need a spinner in Test match cricket. The game is not just played on the first day when the ball is brand new, it’s played over five whole days and the pitch deteriorates,” Hussey said.

“There is definitely a place, I think, for a top-class spinner to play a huge role in the Australian team, and I’m hoping it is Stuart MacGill. I hope he can get himself as close to 100% fit as possible because Stuey at 100% is a damn fine bowler and his record speaks for itself.”

MacGill is also battling a degenerative knee injury and deciding whether to have surgery that would rule him out of the India series but, he hopes, have him fit for the closing stages of the domestic season and the Test tours that follow. Should he be unavailable for Boxing Day, the selectors would either call on Brad Hogg or opt for a pace quartet of Brett Lee, Stuart Clark, Mitchell Johnson and one of Shaun Tait or Ben Hilfenhaus.

Australia last entered a Test with a pace quartet and no recognised spinner against India in 1991-92 in Perth when Sachin Tendulkar made a defiant century in a 300-run loss when Shane Warne was dropped after his first two Tests.

ICL Twenty20 promises to be a winner with star performances

Chandigarh :  The opening ceremony of the Indian Cricket League Twenty20 Cricket Championship on Friday promises to be a spectacular show. The event, to be held at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium in Panchkula will see performances by filmstars like Kareena Kapoor, Yana Gupta, Aamir Khan and Akshay Kumar just before the first match between Chandigarh Lions and Delhi Jets.

Also flying in to attend the gala will be Reliance-Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group owner Anil Ambani, Union Minister for Railways Lalu Prasad Yadav and industrialist Shashi Ruia. Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda will be the chief guest for the occasion.

Essel Group’s Executive Vice-President Ashish Kaul said the tournament will be kicked off with performances by Kareena Kapoor and Yana Gupta.

Then there will be daily appearances by music group Band of Boys, dancing cheerleaders, tattoo artists, mehndi artists, face painters, karaoke singers, magicians, stick walkers and dhol artists.

Master at work
When the legendary Brian Lara took to the nets he made his intentions very clear. He was out there to bat like a champion. Lara displayed class cricket while batting at the nets.

Students’ favourite
Besides practicing at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium, teams like Chandigarh Lions, Delhi Jets and Hyderabad Heroes also had practice sessions at the DC Model School grounds in Panchkula. Young cricket fans cheered the players. Hyderabad Heroes emerged as the most popular side among youngsters.
As soon as the practice session ended, the team members were surrounded by students for autograph.

All set for the D-Day
With just a day to go for the start of the ICL Cricket Championship, the stadium was all decked up for the occasion. Floodlights have been installed, stands are in position and the stadium has an all new pitch.

Venturing out
Players like Harmish Marshall, Hemang Badani, Ambati Rayadu and JP Yadav went out to the Sector 10 market opposite Hotel Mountview, where they are staying.
They were seen enjoying milk shake at one of the shops in the market.

Aamir, Akshay and Kareena add to glamour ICL

Chandigarh  - The Indian Cricket League (ICL) is conceived as package of cricket and entertainment and nothing can add more punch to an evening of fun and frolic than the presence of film stars.

The ICL, a venture of Essel Group, will have a touch of glamour when their Twenty20 tournament gets under way at the 7,000-capacity Tau Devi Lal Stadium in nearby Panchkula, Friday.

The organisers have roped in filmstars Aamir Khan, Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor and others to be here during the tournament. Top industrialist Anil Ambani is also expected to be here.

Among the popular cricketing names present for the tournament here, though not as players, are former Australian Michael Bevan, who is coach of the Chennai Superstar team to be led by fellow-Australian Stuart Law.

Former Indian batsman and coach Sandeep Patil, who is the coach for Mumbai Champs and his one-time team-mate Madan Lal, will coach Delhi Jets.