Rajasthan Royals to clash with SA T20 champs before IPL

Rajasthan Royals the victorious team last year are going to clash with the local South African team before the start of the IPL.This match is conducted for Rajasthan Royals to check there supremacy before the start of the mega event

The key players in Rajasthan Royals are the captain Shane Warne,the big hitting Yusuf Pathan,Sohail Tanweer (who will not be playing this edition since no Pak players are allowed this time),all rounder Shane Watson.Will this team play well enough to retain the title this time around.Lets wait and see...

Low ticket prices for IPL in South Africa: Lalit Modi

Ticket prices for the IPL 2009 games will be at reasonable price so that all the local people can see the matches.Lalit Modi confirmed that the pricing of the tickets will be less than the pricing of International matches.

Modi was quite confident that this IPL 2009 will be a huge success this year even though it is outside India.We have to wait and see what actually happens.

IPL schedule for the year 2009 in South Africa

April 18: Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Rajasthan Royals at Cape Town (4 pm)
Mumbai Indians vs Chennai Super Kings (8 pm) at Cape Town

April 19: Deccan Chargers vs Kolkata Knight Riders at Cape Town (4 pm)
Kings XI Punjab vs Delhi Daredevils at Cape Town. (8 pm)

April 20: Royal Challengers Banglore Vs Chennai Super Kings at Port Elizabeth.

April 21: Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians at Durban (4 pm);
Kolkata Knight Riders vs Kings XI Punjab at Durban ( 8 pm)

April 22: Delhi Daredevils vs Chennai Super Kings at Durban (4 pm)
Deccan Charges vs Royal Challengers Banglore at Cape Town (8 pm)

April 23: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Rajasthan Royals at Port Elizabeth (4 pm)

April 24: Kings XI Punjab vs Royal Challengers Banglore at Johannesburg(4 pm)

April 25: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Chennai Super Kings at Cape Town(4 pm)
Deccan Charges vs Mumbai Indians at Durban (8 pm)

April 26: Rajasthan Royals vs Kings XI Punjab at Cape Town (4 pm)
Royal Challengers Banglore vs Delhi Daredevils Port Elizabeth (8 pm)

April 27: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Mumbai Indians at Cape Town (4 pm)
Chennai Super Kings vs Deccan Charges at Durban (8 pm).

April 28: Delhi Daredevils vs Rajasthan Royals at Pretoria (4 pm)

April 29: Mumbai Indians vs Kings XI Punjab at Durban (4 pm)
Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Banglore at Durban (8 pm)

April 30: Delhi Daredevils vs Deccan Charges at Pretoria (4 pm)
Rajasthan Royals vs Chennai Super Kings at Pretoria (8 pm)

May 1: Royal Challengers Banglore vs Kings XI Punjab at East London( 4 pm)
Mumbai Indians v Kolkata Knight Riders at Durban (8 pm)

May 2: Rajasthan Royals vs Deccan Charges at Johannesburg (4 pm)
Chennai Super Kings v Delhi Daredevils at Port Elizabeth (8 pm)

May 3: MI v RCB (4 pm) at Durban; KXIP v KKR (8 pm) at East London

May 4: DC v CSK (4 pm) at Port Elizabeth

May 5: DD v KKR (4 pm) at Durban; KXIP v RR (8 pm) at Durb

May 6: MI v DC (4 pm) at Pretoria

May 7: KXIP v CSK (4 pm) at Pretoria; RCB v RR (8 pm) at Pretoria

May 8: DD v MI (4 pm) at East London

May 9: DC v KXIP (4 pm) at Bloemfontein; CSK v RR (8 pm)at Port Elizabeth

May 10: KKR v DD (4 pm) at East London; RCB v MI (8 pm) at Johannesburg

May 11: DC v RR (4 pm) at Bloemfontein

May 12: RCB v KKR (4 pm) at Pretoria; KXIP v MI (8 pm) at Pretoria

May 13: DC v DD (4 pm) at Durban

May 14: MI v RR (4 pm) at Durban; CSK v RCB (8 pm) at Durban

May 15: KXIP v DD (4 pm) at Kimberley

May 16: CSK v MI (4 pm) at Johannesburg; DC v KKR (8 pm) at Port Elizabeth

May 17: RR v DD (4 pm) at Kimberley; KXIP v DC (8 pm) at Johannesburg

May 18: CSK v KKR (4 pm) at Pretoria

May 19: DD v RCB (4 pm) at Johannesburg

May 20: RR v KKR (4 pm) at Durban; CSK v KXIP (8 pm) at Durban

May 21: DC v RCB (4 pm) at Pretoria; MI v DD (8 pm) at Pretoria

May 22: Semi Final 1 at Pretoria

May 23: Semi Final 2 at Johannesburg

May 24: Final at Johannesburg

Ganguly sacked by KKR coach John Buchanan

The latest buzz is that Sourav Ganguly will be no longer the permanent Captain of Kolkata Knight Riders.This time around the SRK owned KKR team r going for "ROTATIONAL CAPTAINS".Ganguly was very upset in hearing this.He hit back and said that he would say we need four coaches then and we will use them in rotational policy.But the decision has been taken and it is now Ganguly is following Dravid.Dravid was sacked from captaincy and it has been given to Kevin Pietersen.

The worst thing was Ganguly and Buchanan where sitting along side in the press conference.Buchanan termed that obviosuly Ganguly must be upset because of this move since he is the King of Kolkata.But Buchanan explained the idea behind this has that they had very good players in the team who are experienced enough to lead the side.We have to wait and see whether this new idea brings any fortunes to KKR in IPL 2.

I'm not afraid of terrorists, says Brett Lee

Brett Lee is very resolute and wants to prove a point in this IPL season 2 and get back his place in the Australian side.He terms that IPL is the correct platform for him to get back to form.Since in IPL the best players even of the same team compete against each other.

Brett Lee is very happy that the IPL 2 takes place.He feels that it would have been better if matches were conducted in India and he has full faith in the security provided by India.The only thing for which Brett Lee and other Australian players feel said is that if IPL was in England it would have been idle preparation for the Ashes for them.

Any way lets hope the Brett Lee makes huge contribution to his team Kings XI Punjab and gets back his place in the Australian Team.

South Africa emerges IPL frontrunner

England was the preferred venue when it was officially declared that IPL will be played outside India.But the situation has taken a Topsy turvy.There is a big buzz now that South Africa will host the 2nd edition of IPL.Lalit Modi, the IPL chairman, was flying to South Africa to meet the senior officials to take a decision.

IPL for cricket lovers will be very important whether it takes place in India or outside since most viewers watch the match on TV.We have to wait for sum more time to now where exactly this year IPL is going to take place

IPL to be played in abroad

IPL season 2 will take place as scheduled but the venue has been changed to abroad.The venue is yet to be finalised.But it is officially announced that matches cannot be conducted in India because the State Government are not in a position to provide security.The BCCI had an emergency meeting and decided upon this issue.

Franchise owners backed the decision of the BCCI to move the IPl to abroad.This would not incur any loss to the revenues.Mostly likely place where th eIPL matches will be conducted is England.But nothing is officially announced.Shah Rukh Khan owner of KKR called it a "great" decision and Mumbai Indians co-owner Nita Ambani this shifting of IPL ensured that there will not be any losses to the owners and he too backed the decision.

Pietersen replaces Dravid as Royal Challengers captain

Royal Challengers Bangalore one of the teams which finished with a low profile last IPL.They where in the bottom of the table.The change was always on the cards.Pietersen the player who was bought for the highest amount 1.55 $ is going to lead the team.He replaces Rahul Dravid has captain.

Since Pietersen will be available only for the initial phase of the IPL due to international commitments with England, the deputy who will lead the team after KP leaves for intenational duty is South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis. Dravid will continue as a playing member.

Royal Challengers Banglore is having high hopes this time around with some main changes made and some good players bought Kevin Pietersen , Jesse Ryder and Kyle Mills.Lets hope they play well to win.

Teams for Royal Challengers Banglore in IPL

The IPL 2 getting bigger and closer here is the teams ...

The squads of RCB for this IPL is as follows

ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGLORE:

Overseas players:

Kevin Pietersen,Jesse Ryder,Dale Steyn, Mark Boucher,Jacques Kallis, Cameron White, Nathan Bracken, Ross Taylor,Dillon Du Preez,and Roelof van der Merwe.

Indian players:

Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble, Robin Uthappa, Praveen Kumar, Virat Kohli, Wasim Jaffer, Manish Pandey, Srivats Goswami, Tinu Yohannan, Bharat Chipli, B Akhil, Devraj Patil, J Arun Kumar, KP Appanna, Sunil Joshi,R Suteesh, Pankaj Singh, Vinay Kumar, Bhuvanesh Kumar, Karan Sharma, Saurav Bandekar, , Gaurav Dhiman, Jitendra Patil, Udit Patel, A Mithun, S Aravind, Kedar Jadhav, C M Gautam, Raju Bhatkal, Rajesh Bishnoi, Ishank Jaggi and Rohit Sabharwal.

Sreesanth to miss IPL 2

S Sreesanth will miss the Indian Premier League's (IPL-2) due to a stress fracture in his lower back.This is information was announced by the Kings XI Punjab spokes person.
Sreesanth is right now in Sydney receiving treatment from the Kings XI Punjab physio Patrick Farhart.When Sreesanth was asked abouth thi she told that he was immensly disappointed to miss the IPL since he had thought this could be a very good platform to get back to the Indian Team but he has to wait until the next season.this time around he will be acting as Kings XI Punjab's fan mentor and communtiy face.

Mumbai Indians to train under Rhodes and Pollock

IPL 2 remained uncertain but the teams have already started there preparations.Mumbai Indians Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers Banglore are the teams which have started preparations

Mumbai Indians went to the next level of sending cricketers to Durban .These palyers will be trained by Shaun Pollock and Jonty.The franchise owner has sponsored and already sent 6 players. They are Pinal Shah,Yogesh Takawale Rahil Shaikh and Rohan Raje.Then they are sending another bunch of cricketers as next set by March 19.

No plan to enter IPL: Kareena

Kareena Kapoor confirmed that she had no plans of entering the IPL..She knows nothing how to do business as of now..She told that she wanted to concentrate on acting because that is the only thing that she knew.

Bollywood beauties Shilpa Shetty ,Preity Zinta and Juhi Chawla are trying their luck in IPL since they have realized it is a huge business.But Kareena Kapoor has opted out .Let us wait and see whether what she has done is the right move.

Karnataka declines to host IPL till May 4

IPL is facing a lot of problems and it looks the IPL II will have a tough time to start off with.To add fuel to the fire the Karnataka State Government has declined the permission of IPL till May 4.

Karnataka Home Minister said that the matches can be conducted between May 4 and May 14.The state would provide full protection during this period even without the central security support.This is mainly because of the Election that is being conducted there during that time.This has forced the authorities to go for the new schedule for the third time.

Mumbai Indians may sign $3m deal with Idea

Mumbai Indians are signing up deal with cell network Idea as lead sponsor for IPL-II. The deal is estimated to be $2 million, which could raise up to $3 million should the team make it to the semis. Pepsi is the beverage partner for Mumbai Indians and the deal has been already signed.

Mumbai Indians official spokes-person confirmed that the Mumbai Indian team players would be sporting a new jersey which has Idea logo in it since they are the major partners.He is also added that nothing is confirmed officially, and said that within one or two days official contract will be signed.

IPL revised schedule yet to be released

IPL chief Lalit Modi did not give out the revised schedule of IPL. He said the dates need to be fine tuned, but confirmed Ahmedabad and Visakhapatnam as the two new venues of the tournament.

Modi also confirmed that CSK will not be playing their seven matches at which where scheduled in Chennai .So they are working out with alternative venues.This was mainly because of elections in Chennai and terrorist threat the Chennai government has announced that it cant give the security for the matches.So any cost they are going o not comprise with the IPL season II.

KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS to loose a lot of International Players???

Ricky Ponting the Australian Captain has made himself unavailabe for the IPL season II.. Ajantha Mendis is hospitalized after the attack on the Srilankan team by the terrorist in Pakistan... The hard hitting West Indian batsman Chris Gayle is having serious fitness problem.Since no Pakistan player is allowed in IPL they don't have the speed sensation Shoaib Akthar neither do they have Umar Gul.It is also said that the David Hussey from Australia is likely to take his Captain Ricky Ponting 's foot step and make himself unavailable for this IPL 2009..This makes it clear that KKR is in a spot of bother.What can the KKR Captain Sourav Ganguly do to counter the absence of these players.

IPL to be telecasted in Multiplex

IPL matches will be telecast live at multiplexes in the country.This was announced by the IPL chairman Lalit Modi.He also said that the tender for which multiplex will telecast this match is under progress and it will be soon finalized. The only condition is that the matches can't be shown live.They are also planning to have commentary in various regional languages.For example "A person in Hyderabad can listen to the commentary in Telugu," he said.

IPL in Ahmedabad

Lalit Modi sent a mail to Gujarat Cricket Association and confirmed 2 matches will b held in Ahmedabad. Thus Ahmedabad is set to host two (IPL) matches in Season II. The new schedule will be announced only on Coming Tuesday.So Motera ground will host two matches.

Teams to Clash in IPL

Last time the IPL was really a big hit.The T20 concept was mainly taken from ICL started by the World Cup winning captain Kapil Dev which was started in a large scale by Lalit Modi.The teams which are going to clash are

1) Rajasthan Royals

2) Kings XI Punjab

3) Chennai Superb Kings

4) Delhi DareDevils

5) Mumbai Indians

6) Kolkata Knight Riders

7) Royal Challengers Banglore

8) Deccan Charges

Players have their own decision on IPL:Vettori

Vettori the NZ captain seems to be a doubtful starter and he said that the decision to play IPL depends upon each and every player. Jacob Oram another NewZeland player, who plays for the CSK(Chennai Super Kings) , has already expressed is concern and doubts over his participation in the DLF T20 this year.All the overseas players have security concerns and want to play it safe.

Vettori also confirmed that he will take the advise of the NZ board and act accordingly.If they feel it is safe and it is well and good to travel to sub continent then it seems that he has no problem whatsoever to take part in the lucrative T20.

Shilpa Shetty with new Rajasthan Royals outfit

Shilpa Shetty the co-owner of the IPL team Rajasthan Royals is seen with the media in the new outfit of Rajasthan Royals.Shipha bougth 11.7 percent of the shares of the last time winning team Rajasthan Royals lead by Shane Warne.

The noteable stars in the IPL from last time are SRK for Kolkata Knight Riders and Preity Zinta for King’s XI Punjab. Even Aamir khan wanted to get himself involved with IPL sometime ago.But finally decided against it..

Pietersen declared himself doubtful for the IPL

Kevin Pietersen the former England captain has hinted that he is doubtful for the e lucrative Indian Premier League which is starting by next month.

Pietersen, who was bought by Bangalore Royal Challengers team owner Vijay Mallya for a whopping US Dollars 1.55 million, is so much worried ans is so concerned about his own security.He said that if there is a change in his decision he will consult as many people has possible before coming to the sub-continent.He also remarked that cricket in sub-continent looks unsafe.