World Cup 2011: Rs 45 crore tax waiver to ICC questioned by Maken, other ministers

The government's decision to give a Rs 45-crore tax waiver to the ICC for the World Cup has been questioned by some Ministers, including Sports Minister Ajay Maken , who felt the cash-rich cricket body did not need it and such a step should have been taken to promote other sports.

Maken, supported by Minister for Poverty Alleviation Selja and Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni, raised questions when the matter of waiver came up at the Union Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here yesterday, sources said today.

The sources said the Sports Minister forcefully highlighted that while such sops were being given to cricket, which is already cash-rich sport, the funds for his ministry had been slashed.

He batted for more support to non-cricket sports, saying they also needed to be taken care of and promoted through financial help, the sources said.

While arguing his case, Maken pointed out that his ministry was planning to organise Panchayat-level sports events aimed at promoting sporting activities at the grassroots level which needed financial support, they said.

Maken was supported by Selja, who felt that his point was valid and needed to be considered.

Soni also backed Maken. She went on to question why private electronic media was being barred from covering the World Cup, referring to the stand-off between the broadcasting media and the ICC.

Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar , who is also ICC President, was present during the meeting but did not say anything, the sources said.

Proponents of the tax exemption, including Heavy Industries Minister Praful Patel, however, argued that the law provided for such a measure and not granting it would amount to violation of the law.

The income tax exemption was granted to the ongoing cricket World Cup as it qualified criteria specified under the amendment of the Income Tax Act, 1961, in 2005 in wake of ICC Championship Trophy 2006.

To avail the tax exemption, an event has to be recognised by a global body governing the sport and there should be participation of more than two nations. Moreover, the specified income has to be notified by the government.

Mohali match ticket prices soar high

It's more than three days now since tickets were sold out in Chandigarh and Mohali, but fans are still waiting in a hopeless quest for tickets at the Mohali stadium.
"I have come from Andhra to watch this match, but there is no ticket here. I have been waiting here since morning, but there is nothing available yet," said a cricket fan from Andhra Pradesh.
All in all, 16,000 tickets were released to the public - which were all sold out within hours. They were all snapped up so quickly that fans believe tickets were grabbed by black marketers.

Tickets in black have gone up to as high as Rs 1 lakh for a Rs 15,000 ticket while a Rs 10,000 ticket is now being sold at Rs 50,000. Tickets worth Rs 250 are fetching between Rs 15000 to Rs 20,000 each. Even lawmakers - used to getting VIP treatment, have sidelined.

There are no more tickets at sale at the Mohali stadium, but black marketing of tickets is ramphant. The police has arrested a person trying to black market the tickets. Nonetheless, the supply is so limited and demand is so high that there is no chance of anybody getting the tickets through the ticket counters here.

India v Pakistan, 2nd semi-final, World Cup 2011, Mohali Misbah not worried by batting numbers

Misbah-ul-Haq is not impressed by statistics and he doesn't care about history either. That helps, particularly with an India-Pakistan match due to break out at the World Cup within three days.

One of the anchors of Pakistan's batting and the man with the team's top score in the World Cup so far - 83 not out against Sri Lanka - Misbah said numbers could be meaningless if they did not agree with the results column. Pakistan's certainly don't.

Umar Akmal is their heaviest run-scorer in this World Cup, but he is placed as low as 28th in the list of top run-getters. Never mind the batsmen from Test-playing nations, Umar follows players from Netherlands, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Canada in the table.

Umar has scored 211 runs from five innings, with a single half-century. Among his team-mates, he is followed by Misbah (192), Kamran Akmal (188), Younis Khan (172), Mohmmed Hafeez (172), Asad Shafiq (124 from two innings) and Abdul Razzaq (101). Of the batsmen, only Misbah and Younis have scored more than one fifty in the tournament, and the team have managed nine overall. When compared to India, those are paltry figures: India have five centuries, ten fifties and five India batsmen have scored more runs than Umar.

Yet Pakistan finished at the top of their group and, regardless of the weakness of some of its Associate opposition, had the more emphatic first four weeks of the tournament between the two teams. In Mohali, after a lengthy round of football, fielding and then the conventional nets, Misbah deconstructed the numbers down to their bare basics. "According to me, the most important thing for any team is winning. If we don't score a hundred and win the World Cup, then that is very good for us. If we score centuries and get knocked out of the tournament, then it's no use."

In India, Misbah's public persona is built on the image of the man who tried the scoop shot and failed, handing India the World Twenty20 title in 2007. In person, he carries himself with gravitas; he speaks slowly but certainly. He will be beaten in any short words-per-minute contest by his captain Shahid Afridi or Younis. Like he has done through his career, though, Misbah is the man for the long haul. He has been central to Pakistan's progress in the World Cup, where their batting may not look like a strong suit, but its main thread is holding firm.

"It's really a plus for teams whose batsmen are in form, are scoring centuries and are in the top 20 run-scorers, but winning is important," Misbah said. "If you score a fifty or even a timely twenty or thirty that is vital for a victory, then that's good enough for the team." This under-the-radar cricketing approach has worked for Pakistan, particularly after the horrors of the England tour now called the 'spot-fixing series.' Pakistan have won 14 of their 31 ODIs since the 2010 Asia Cup, their batsmen have managed totals of more than 250 the same number of times, with Pakistan winning nine of those games.

The Pakistan batsmen could find the best batting conditions they have encountered so far in the tournament in Mohali, after spending five weeks grinding it out on slow, low tracks in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The lack of pace off the pitches has been, Misbah said, a "struggle". In some parts of the subcontinent, contrary to the stereotype, "runs don't come easy," Misbah said. "The ball is turning, the bounce is low, so just like when we go outside these conditions and struggle against bounce and pace, scoring runs here on these wickets is an art too. And those who know how to play on low-bouncing wickets, they can do well and score runs. But batting can be a struggle." It is why this has been far from a batsman's World Cup.

In Sri Lanka, Misbah said, batsmen required a "tightness" of play. "The new ball seams, the spinners get help later and you have to work as a batsman, because the tracks help bowlers of both types." In Bangladesh, he said, batsmen needed to be patient, to adjust. "Because of both low bounce and turn, batting requires you to really spend time and build an innings."

Pakistan's players have watched several of the World Cup matches held in India, and Misbah said the variety he saw across venues meant there never really was one defined 'type' of Indian pitch.

Once upon a time Mohali had a 'type': quick, bouncy and friendly for the fast men. That legend has faded and it is what India, in particular, will be pleased about, as batsman for batsman and numbers for numbers, they will believe they are better than their semi-final opponents.

Pakistan need not have bothered to haul over a slab of black stone to be put to use in the nets. The throwdowns given to every batsman on one of the practice pitches were made to pitch on the stone, Misbah explained, to generate bounce that the practice wickets did not quite contain. The real wicket probably won't contain it either.

Of the World Twenty20 final which he had all but snatched away from India before that last-over shot, Misbah said: "You can't just stick to the past. Every game is a new game, it's not like this game is important because of that match. To us every game is special. This one especially; this is the World Cup, it is a semi-final. I really want to do well."

Memory is a meaningless ghost for a cricketer like Misbah, who has had an up-and-down career, at one stage dropped from the Test and one-day squads only to return as Test captain. There was speculation that he may have been handed the role of one-day captain as well for the World Cup, but the selectors stuck with Afridi, who is never under the radar, but in this World Cup has not come through as the destructive batsman the world knows he can be. He has only 65 runs at 10.83 in the tournament, but the strike-rate monster that lurks within him may just light up at the sight of the handkerchief-sized ground in Mohali.

From being under the radar for over five weeks, Misbah and his team will now face the floodlights in a World Cup semi-final at a stadium which may have a low capacity, but will have a heavy-duty crowd.

World Cup 2011 Lorgat defends World Cup schedule

Haroon Lorgat, the ICC chief executive, has come out in strong support of the format of the ongoing World Cup, which has been criticised for being longwinded and not beneficial for teams looking to build momentum.

Lorgat defended the ICC's formula, stating that it was the only way organisers could keep interest alive in the first World Cup to involve 14 teams. "In the current schedule there was no other way we could do it with 14 teams participating and us wanting every match to be a flagship match. So we were not keen to duplicate matches on the same day," Lorgat said.

During the group stages teams played six matches over the course of a month, which led to Ricky Ponting and Kevin Pietersen questioning the format's relevance. Early on in the tournament, Pietersen called England's schedule "ridiculous". In his column in the Australian this week, Ponting had criticised the format saying: "The lead-up to this point has been long and trying, too much waiting around and not enough cricket. You like to build up to your best form in a tournament like this, but the way this one has gone it has been almost impossible for us to get up any momentum."

Lorgat said, however, that the feedback he had received contradicted the opinion of some players. "I have also got feedback from a number of teams that they are satisfied with the schedule, and that it allowed them to recover from little niggles. In fact, I recall MS Dhoni in particular being pleased with this schedule. So any professional sportsman who values a big competition will accept the schedule and play to the best on the day that is required."

The other point of debate that has carried on through this World Cup is the future of the Associates in the wake of the ICC's decision to limit the number of teams to 10 in the next edition of the tournament in 2015. But Ireland's convincing display in this tournament, which included their upset win over England, has raised questions about the viability of the ICC's decision. Lorgat said in the light of Ireland's performance, the issue of the 'qualification' process of the World Cup would be debated logically by the ICC board.

"That is still a significant topic to consider in terms of qualification for what we have said would be a 10-team World Cup. In that debate we will consider all possibilities. In the second-tier teams Ireland have featured very well, they have done themselves proud. And we want more teams. We want higher levels of competition. One of the reasons was to balance between the quality of the tournament versus the number of teams. And that was the reasoning behind that original decision. That debate is not complete because we still have to decide which ten teams will participate." 

Last month Lorgat had told ESPNcricinfo that the ICC would meet in May to draft out the structure of the World Cup from 2015 and beyond, incorporating an ODI league and a clause regarding promotion and relegation into the tournament that could radically alter the course, not merely of the ICC's flagship event, but the 50-over format of the game itself. At the meeting the board would finalise a cut-off for eligibility for the 10 teams due to take part in the 2015 World Cup.

Asked if the ICC's stand on the World Cup qualification process would be supported by full member nations, Lorgat said he would not speculate about what would happen in May. "I don't want to speculate on a debate that is sitting with a sub-committee and coming through the board in due course. I have let the board and the chief executives involved to take a robust approach to their debate and consider the thing fairly."

If there are only ten teams then the World Cup does become compact but the disadvantage is there would be no quarterfinals, a phase that has added intrigue in this editon and re-ignited interest that seemed to have waned during the middle stages of group games. "Those are the balancing acts you have to put together - either you accept the length of the tournament and the beauty of qualifying over a period of four weeks or you expect a short compact tournament where every game counts from the very beginning," Lorgat said.

Meanwhile Lorgat has assured the Pakistan fans and media that, in the event that Shahid Afridi's men make the semi-finals and travel to Mohali, the ICC has put a structure to simplify their visa process. "From the outset we have committed to do the very best to expedite visa issues. We have got processes in place for accredited media and ticket holders to obtain visas." 

India vs West Indies: Big high & the losses that hurt

In the last decade, India vs West Indies contest has provided thrills galore. TOI lists three games that left a mark in the memory of cricket lovers.

Royal chase

Venue: Motera Ahmedabad | Nov 15, 2002

When Chris Gayle hit a blistering 140 in company of Ramnaresh Sarwan (99*) to take West Indies past 300-run mark, the writing was clearly on the wall for India. However, Rahul Dravid's unbeaten 109, Laxman's classy 66 and Sanjay Bangar's cameo saw India chase down the target of 325 with 14 balls to spare despite a minor collapse.

Brief Scores: West Indies 324-4 in 50 overs (C Gayle 140, R Sarwan 99*, C Hooper 36, Harbhajan 1-30, 1-49) lost to India 325-5 in 47.4 overs (R Dravid 109*, Laxman 66, S Bangar 57*, M Dillon 2-65)

Real thriller

Venue: Kingston, Jamaica | May 20, 2006

Under Rahul Dravid, the Indians were on a roll before being stopped by Brian Lara's men in Jamaica. Ramnaresh Sarwan's 98 gave Windies something to bowl at. Indian batting crumbled before Yuvraj and Raina steadied the ship. However, Dwayne Bravo broke Indian hearts castling Yuvraj with a slower one when India needed two off three balls.

Brief Scores: West Indies 198 in 50 overs (R Sarwan 98*, I Pathan 3-45, A Agarkar 2-25, R Powar 2-38) bt India 197 in 49.4 overs (Yuvraj 93, Raina 27, I Bradshaw 3-33, J Taylor 2-49, M Samuels 2-30)

The big upset

Venue: Motera, Ahmedabad | Oct 26, 2006

Tipped as favourites to lift the Champions Trophy India flattered only to deceive. Their poor run against West Indies continued. Dhoni and Dravid's knocks gave India some respectability, however, 223 wasn't enough. Gayle rocked while Chanderpaul, Sarwan and Runako Morton then guided them home.

Brief scores: India 223-9 in 50 overs (MS Dhoni 51, R Dravid 49, I Bradshaw 3-30) lost to West Indies 224-7 in 49.4 overs.

India vs West Indies STATBOX : ICC Cricket World Cup 2011

Facts and figures relating to the Group B World Cup match between India and West Indies at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Sunday.

Head-to-head record: West Indies lead 54-38 (Tied: 1; NR: 2)

In the World Cups: Tied at 3-3

In the sub-continent: West Indies lead 32-22 (NR: 1)

* The most memorable showdown between the countries was perhaps the 1983 World Cup final, where India caused a stunning upset by preventing the mighty West Indies from completing a hat-trick of wins.

* India (LWWTW) have hardly lived up to their favourite billing as they have yet to play a match where all their disciplines have clicked. In their two matches against top nations -- England and South Africa -- India wasted flying starts and lost a heap of wickets. The co-hosts were slammed by fans and pundits alike after surrendering their last nine wickets for 29 runs against South Africa.

* West Indies (LWWWL) appeared to have sealed their place in the last eight when they were cantering towards victory against England before they slipped up with the finishing line in sight, losing by 18 runs.

* India openers Virender Sehwag (327 runs) and Sachin Tendulkar (324 runs) have been very successful but the much famed middle order has not quite clicked yet, with Gautam Gambhir (197 runs) and Yuvraj Singh (171 runs) being somewhat among the runs. Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni will have to decide whether to play Suresh Raina or Yusuf Pathan.

* Devon Smith (212 runs) has been the most successful West Indian batsman so far, while Kieron Pollard (178 runs) has been destructive. India need to fear the classy Darren Bravo and Chris Gayle.

* With Kemar Roach (13 wickets at economy of 3.88) and Sulieman Benn (12 wickets at economy of 4.69) in the top 10 wicket takers, along with India's Zaheer Khan (12 wickets at economy of 4.31), both teams have wicket taking abilities. India's biggest problem has been the absence of any spinner among the leading wicket takers, with Yuvraj Singh providing some respite with seven wickets but at a rather expensive economy rate of 5.09.

Canada v New Zealand, World Cup 2011, Group A, Mumbai

Ashish Bagai showed grit, determination, patience and character trying to add respect to Canada's pursuit of a massive target. Unfortunately cramps and a mounting asking rate took their toll on Canada's captain. It was sad that Bagai missed out on a becoming the first centurion for Canada in this World Cup on a day they made their highest score against a Test-playing country. It was a sore miss. But looking at the broader picture, Bagai will be more disappointed at the rubbish fielding on display when New Zealand's batsmen built their domination. All those qualities Bagai brought to his batting, Canada's fielders neglected. It only cast them in poor light.

The frustrating part was the errors were mostly to do with the basics of fielding: positioning, lining up, being pro-active, backing up to throws, holding catches with soft hands, improvising... the list of things Canada's fielders failed in doing was longer than the longest boundary at the Wankhede. Take for example Henry Osinde, who was standing at short fine-leg when Brendon McCullum, on 71, swept Balaji Rao and tried going for a single. Osinde, a tall man no doubt, failed to cleanly collect the ball initially because he had failed to take a start. Then when McCullum was casual in returning to the crease, the Canadian failed to throw back the ball or worse go for a direct hit. Fielding coaches like Mike Young have always drilled this into a fielder: when the doubt exists whether or not to throw at the stumps, do so. It only builds an aggressive mindset.

It was just not the ground fielding. Even straightforward catches like Zubin Sarkari, failing to latch on to a low catch from Jesse Ryder, John Davison shelling a return catch from Kane Williamson when the batsman was on 1 only dented the confidence of the bowlers. Williamson survived another chance when Harvir Baidwan managed to let one slither through his hands and between his feet. The New Zealander, playing his first match, finished unbeaten on 34. But the worst mistake came when Rizwan Cheema, standing at long-on, failed to improvise trying to hold on to the big hit from Ross Taylor. It was a difficult chance as Cheema, standing on the edges of boundary, had to intercept the ball's flight while making sure he did not touch the rope or cross over. Teams now have customised training sessions for such catches and make sure fielders understand the right methods to carry out such catches in order to avoid any mishaps during a match.

Of all the three departments of cricket, fielding is one area where every team stands at par - there is absolutely no distinction in the quality between Test-playing countries and the Associates. Fielding is a discipline that can only be sharpened by working hard on it, by finding ways to exert pressure, by training specialist fielders for specific positions. You don't need experience or exposure. What you need is a presence of mind, more than a little bit of agility, reflexes and to remain pro-active. The best fielders don't react, they just put themselves in a spot where they can make a difference.

Bagai was honest about admitting that Canada were terrible in the field. "It was very, very frustrating to me. I will be very honest. It was probably the worst effort we had in a very long time in the field," Bagai said after the 100-run defeat. "The catches and the ground fielding were awful. That put us back and put is in a hole chasing 350. We did not put any pressure on them by letting couple of guys having singles and twos in the outfield. It was a collective poor fielding effort by the team."

Automatically if the fielders are alert sometimes even a bad ball can be offset. The biggest advantage is it puts pressure on the batsman, who is then forced to change his gameplans. Otherwise, as Canada found out today, batsmen can even sleepwalk and get away with the crime.

World Cup 2011: Vettori to miss Canada game

Daniel Vettori, the New Zealand captain, will miss his team's next game against Canada on March 13 because of a knee injury. Vettori hurt his right knee during the game against Pakistan and is now hoping to be fit for New Zealand's last league game against Sri Lanka on March 18 in Mumbai.

"At the moment Dan's staying with us," opener Martin Guptill said. "I think he is probably going to miss the next game. But he is staying with us for the rest of the tournament which is good for us." Guptill said the team had not decided who will take Vettori's place yet. "Not too sure what they are going to do. We haven't had a selection meeting yet. The decision will be taken tomorrow."

Vettori's movements appeared to be seriously restricted after a diving effort for an attempted catch at mid-on in the sixth over of Pakistan's innings, and two balls later he limped slowly from the field. At the time, he struggled to walk around the boundary, being helped along by the support staff, and had ice treatment in the changing room while the vice-captain Ross Taylor oversaw the 110-run win.

Ellery Tappin, the New Zealand media manager, said Vettori had strained a ligament in his right knee. "It's not a tear or something significant. He is targeting the Sri Lankan game."

ICC Cricket World Cup 2011- Online travel operators gain momentum now!

New Delhi: With the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 being hosted in the subcontinent after a long span of 15 years, cricket fans and enthusiasts are heading towards the subcontinent to catch the matches and cheer for their favorite teams.

Numerous fans are busy confirming their travel reservations, and booking tickets for matches.

Online tour operators and travel agents are benefitting from this as they are witnessing great holiday bookings during the world cup.

The maximum bookings have been made for the India vs. South Africa match on March 12 in Nagpur and the India vs. West Indies battle at Chidambaram stadium in Chennai on March 20.

These travel agents are offering special travel packages which comprises of air travel, hotel stay, match tests, meals and transfers in India.

Gautam Kaul, COO, Inbound – Yatra Exotic Routes, Yatra.com stated, “Travellers coming in for 15-20 days to cheer for their team playing four matches would also look forward to travel to nearby destinations in between.”

He said further, “People are either choosing to travel for 3-4 days or for a longer duration of 6-7 days pre or post the tournament. Between February 20 and March 15, we expect to handle at least 100-120 foreign travellers.”

Much prior to the Cricket World Cup, online travel service providers such as Cleartrip and MakeMyTrip have witnessed an increase in the booking of hotels and air tickets.

Keyur Joshi, Co-Founder and COO, Makemytrip.com stated “While we have been receiving queries from Australia, UK and UAE for World cup and many travellers extending their holiday to explore rest of India.”

Joshi said further, “But there still hasn’t been a huge jump in traffic due to world cup. We think it’s an opportunity loss for tourism in India.”

He said further, “World cup is an event big enough for the government to attract foreign tourists to India, which has not been marketed well.”

India v Ireland, Group B, World Cup 2011, Bangalore

Like everyone in the world of work, William Porterfield is heading into a weekend and wants to forget about what the middle of the week was like. Unlike for everyone else, Sunday will not be a day of rest for him, and he thinks putting the past behind is mandatory. "First of all, we have to put Wednesday behind us," the Ireland captain said, just over 24 hours from the time he will walk out with India captain MS Dhoni for the toss of the World Cup game at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Porterfield's Wednesday was made up of the match that has put Ireland's cricketers on the front pages of their newspapers back home and top of the mind of the cricketing public, particularly in the heated heart of the tournament's biggest hosts. A match that should have been a regulation two points for one team has suddenly turned into a contest between a high-profile, high-coverage outfit regarded as among the biggest favourites to lift the World Cup and a squad who, from the tournament's warm-up games up to Wednesday, have never left the field without a scrap. Victory over their historic and cultural rivals England on Wednesday has suddenly made Ireland genuine contenders for a quarter-final spot but Porterfield wants to brush all that under his team's suddenly-airborne carpet.

"We put in a good performance on Wednesday and created a wee bit of history there. Now we've got to start all over again," Porterfield said. His voice carries the vocabulary and echo of Ireland's strong, north-western 'Derry' accent that makes listeners from other parts of the cricket world lean forward, mouths open, in an attempt to both concentrate and comprehend. There is possibly no other cricket captain in the world who speaks in Porterfield's quick bursts of rapid speech or can use the word 'wee' on the way to sounding tough and purposeful.

He said, "We have a bigger challenge ahead of us, we're playing India, we must take good things from the [Wednesday] game and the biggest things for ourselves is to go out fresh on the pitch and concentrate on what's at hand."

The team, he said, wouldn't be daunted by going out before a 39,000-strong crowd in Bangalore because their opening World Cup game in Dhaka had given them useful practice. "When we started the competition we knew we were playing two of the home nations in the group stage and they were going to be massive games." Indian support in Bangalore he thought would be similar to the "pretty fanatical supporters" Ireland had encountered in Dhaka. "I don't think that India's going to be too different from that; there's going to be a few more in tomorrow [Sunday] night than what there were in Bangladesh." He paused for the briefest of seconds saying. "India in India is a pretty special occasion but it's a challenge we are looking forward to."

What Ireland have braced themselves for is the possibility of a large 300-plus chase and Porterfield said it was why his team had chosen a long batting line-up, something facilitated by their many bowling options. The return of Andre Botha, their best death-overs bowler who was out of the England game due to an nth hour groin injury, would help the balance of the team but his absence now is not seen as critical as it may have been before the England match.

"It didn't really affect us because we've got so many options with the ball. Whoever comes up with the goods on the day, we just go with that. It could be that someone doesn't bowl, but as long as the team is doing well players just have to deal with that." He mentioned Paul Stirling's ten overs versus England as an example of making the team's options work. "He too pace off the ball, and bowled very well for us and it has kind of gone without mentioning. He took 1 for 45 off his ten through the middle overs which was crucial in helping restrict England."

Stirling is Porterfield's opening partner, and was used as a bowler in the England match ahead of the team's regular batting allrounder Kevin O'Brien, who went on to have what Porterfield would no doubt call a "wee" hand to play in the victory. With a poker face, Porterfield went on, "I don't think Kevin was too upset with that [not bowling]. He would take 100 off 50 balls and not having to bowl any day."

Questioned several times about the pressure of the crowd, Porterfield was quick, bald and revealing in his summary of what he expected. "If you can't go out there and get up for a game in front of 40-50,000 people, then I think there's something wrong with you. Whether they are for you or against you, it doesn't matter."

Win or lose on Sunday, Porterfield would want his team to hijack the name that the US' University of Notre Dame gives all its sports teams. They call them the Fighting Irish.

Big Bazaar appointed as authorized dealer of Cricket World Cup 2011!

ICC has appointed Big Bazaar as the authorized dealer of special merchandise for World Cup 2011 in India.

The cricket merchandise designed for men, women and children will be available within a price range of Rs 199 to Rs 499.

The range of apparels will comprise of sports attire and accessories like active dry tees, shorts, sports tees, track pants, sweatshirt, head bands and caps.

Along with the usual sports range, Big Bazaar will also offer a graphic range of merchandise bearing cricket-inspired messages and soft toys tagged with the official mascot of the ICC CWC 2011 called “Stumpy”.

All this are available on display at all Big Bazaar outlets.

Pepsi prepares for World Cup 2011!

PepsiCo India is planning to “Change the game” in World Cup 2011. The cola company has launched a 360 degree campaign- January 15, 2011 in two phases. The campaign will end in the first week of April.

According to the reports, Pepsi will be launch five television commercials which will have innovative shots like the Helicopter shot, the Switch Hit, the Upper Cut, the Discoop and the Doosra, that have either been discovered by the youth or the players.”

Reports said further that Conceptualised by Taproot India, the TVC will feature cricketers like Virender Sehwag, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Kevin Pietersen discovering the shots and making them a part of their game.

The TVC will be on air from January 15, 2011 and will continue in phases till the first week of April.

Sandeep Singh Arora, executive vice-president, marketing, cola, PepsiCo India, said, “Change the Game is big idea in the context of the game of cricket. With this campaign, we hope to inspire the youth to change the game, be innovative, take risks and do things differently.”

World Cup 2011- Cricket enthusiasts are upgrading from a CRT to LCD

New Delhi: With the commencement of the World Cup, cricket fans and enthusiasts are switching over to LCD TVs. They are opting for sleek flat panels.


Deputy MD of Samsung India R Zutshi stated “Many people are upgrading from a CRT to LCD. The upgrade market has seen a strong pick-up because of attractive entry-level pricing.”

He said further, “Many first-time buyers have planned their purchases around the World Cup anticipating good deals.”

Samsung 32” and 40” LCDs and LED TVs available within the price range of Rs 30,000 and Rs 65,000 are very much in demand these days. There has been a rise in the sales of LCD TVs after a lull.

Philips is also offering good deals on LCD TVs as a part of its special promotion. On the purchase of 46” Philips LCD TVs, the company is offering a free 24” LCD TV.

Masaru Tamagawa, managing director, Sony India stated “We plan to consolidate our position in flat panel TVs with a target of 40% share during the World Cup season.”

The company has made Rs 100 crore multi-media campaign with their brand ambassador Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

TV Ratings continue to set higher benchmarks at World Cup

The ICC Cricket World Cup, which began with the India-Bangladesh match on February 19 in Dhaka, continues to touch new highs in terms of viewership and ratings as quality encounters enthrall viewers across the country.

By the end of March 10, the World Cup (including the opening ceremony and match telecast), has been sampled by a record 127 million individuals. This is 64 per cent of the total C&S audience in the country as per the latest ratings issued by research agency TAM.

The live matches alone have been watched by 115 million viewers (ESS bouquet + Doordarshan) and 106 million viewers on STAR Cricket and other ESS channels alone.

The first 10 matches have delivered a solid average of 3.1 TVR which is a significant jump from the previous edition in 2007. Match 10 between Pakistan and Sri Lanka was rated highest amongst all non-India matches with a rating of 4.6, followed by 2.5 in the Netherlands v/s England game.

The live streaming on www.espnstar.com/cwclive has been a huge hit. The website had served 6.9 million video streams till March 1. The high-octane India-England encounter played on Sunday, which ended in a thrilling tie, drew as many as 1.45 million video streams. Over 5 million Unique Visitors have enjoyed the World Cup matches online with ESPN STAR.

"The ratings for the non-India matches are very healthy and point towards increasing viewer interest in the tournament as a whole. Credit must also be given to the teams who are dishing out such exciting fare and our advertisers are lapping it up.

"We expect the trend to continue as the tournament progresses towards the second phase as teams get into top gear to qualify for the knock-out stages," said Sanjay Kailash, executive VP - Ad Sales and New Media, ESPN Software India Pvt Ltd.

ICC Cricket World Cup 2011: Pakistan vs Canada live streaming on ESPNStar

COLOMBO: After winning all their matches till now the mercurial Pakistanis are aiming high. Their next target is Canada, the minnows that has failed to make its presence felt in the tournament. Will this match change its fortune?

For that to happen: Canada has to beat Pakistan. Looking at the way Pakistan has played in its two matches the task seems an arduous one. But looking at the way things proceeded Wednesday between England and Ireland nothing can be said for sure.

But Canada veteran opening batsman John Davison acknowledges the threat being faced by Pakistan’s bowlers who are masters of reverse swing. The Thursday’s match will be a big test for Canada. Till now its performance has been poor in the tournament.

In the first clash with Sri Lanka, the young Canadian team was unable to lift their game. Canada had forfeited that game to Lankans with a huge margin of 210 runs. It was expected that they would bounce back in their next game against the Zimbabweans.

But they failed to click as they were mauled by 175 runs. Will they be able to stand the might of the juggernaut Pakistan in this World Cup?

The 40-year-old Davison, the oldest player in this World Cup, said: "We haven’t played them before but know that they are a great team with a very varied attack and, besides reading their spinners, the big challenge in the sub-continent is to play reverse swing. We saw in the Kenya game that pace is lethal for guys not used to it, so we have to have plans.”

ICC Cricket World Cup 2011: The World Cup in numbers

About two weeks into the ICC World Cup 2011, ratings for the first 10 matches of the series have been released by TAM Sports. So far, the top rated matches have been the India-Bangladesh opening match and the last of the TAM Week 9’11 bunch, the Pakistan-Sri Lanka match played on Saturday, February 26, which rated a 3.28 TVR in CS-4 plus all India markets.

As per the data, the tournament is seeing a viewership interest ranging from 1 to 1.5 plus TVR in All India markets in games that have strong teams and audience following such as England, Pakistan, Australia and Sri Lanka.

Matches such as Netherlands versus England, which left audiences at the edge of their seats until the last over, has rated the third highest, with a peak rating of 4.8 TVR, tying on an All India level with West Indies versus South Africa at 1.68 TVR. Another such a crowd pulling match was that between Bangladesh and Ireland that left audiences glued through the game, drawing a peak rating of 3.12 TVR.

In the next batch of highly viewed matches came in Australia versus Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka versus Canada, and Pakistan versus Kenya, scoring ratings of about 1.3 to1.5 TVR, despite some being on weekdays in the 2 pm time slot. Primetime scheduling of matches has not attracted substantial viewership as was the case with the Kenya-New Zealand or New Zealand-Australia matches, which have scored about 1 TVR.

As of February 26, 2011, among the ratings for the 10 matches of the tournament, the highest rated match has been the opening match of India versus Bangladesh at 7.47 TVR, peaking at 12.2 TVR.

Industry heads have been positive about the format this season and the strong points of the ICC World Cup 2011 have been highlighted by many industry watchers. For starters, many measures have been taken by the BCCI and ICC to ensure India’s presence late into the series. What are the strong points in the tournament? exchange4media spoke to media planners and buyers to decode the success formula chalked out this time...

Cut to Fit Formatting
Commenting on the tailor-made format cut out for the World Cup this year, Rajneesh Chaturvedi, National Director, MEC Access, said, “Non-India matches have always delivered low on numbers. It will be interesting to see how much these matches deliver this time around. Most of the matches are Day/ Night games and these would end in the prime time. The timing of the matches should help in the ratings specially the non-India ones.”

“There will be little interest during some of the non-India matches, but it isn’t as bad. Barring the last seven matches (quarters, semis & final) and six India matches, there are about eight good matches (likes of Sri Lanka versus Pakistan), about 18 average matches (likes of Bangladesh versus South Africa) and about 10 matches that involves the minnows. About 20 per cent matches are likely to be of minimum interest. If we get desired response from the 80 per cent matches, those 20 per cent will be averaged out,” reasoned Vidyadhar Kale, Client Leader, Maxus Mumbai.

“I would not term it as low, but lower than India matches,” said Sushma Jhaveri, Senior Vice President, Carat. According to her, there was no surprise about lower interest in non-India matches given the disparity in ratings. “The strength of tournament lies in the fact that it happens once in four years and in the Indian Sub-continent. Unlike the last World Cup, this time the matches are also on during primetime and then there is the Sachin factor,” she added.

Speaking to exchange4media, Sanjay Kailash, Executive Vice President, Advertising Sales and New Media, ESPN Software India, said, “Format change is one key game changer, but the event coming to India is the biggest factor that has given the thrust. Timings are more suited to Indian audiences, noise around the event has been huge and the choice of getting to see your country play live is a huge attraction. This year, many things have been revised with the number of groups being collapsed to two, matches scattered in such a manner with India matches almost till the end of the tournament and scheduled on weekends. The Indian team will also be well rested and the Day/ Night timing is well suited. India forms up to 85 per cent of cricket viewership worldwide and the BCCI and ICC boards are well aware of suiting the needs to the market. The format helps stronger teams come to quarter and semis; earlier, if you lose one match, it may be difficult to stay on in the tournament, whereas this time, consistent teams will remain till the end.”

Indian board files umpire referral system complaint

The Indian board (BCCI) called the system "inadequate" and also said it resented the ICC's criticism of India captain Mahendra Dhoni.

Dhoni complained about a let-off for England's Ian Bell during the thrilling tie between the two teams on Sunday.

But ICC general manager Dave Richardson said Dhoni should have known the rules.

"The inadequacy of the Umpire Decision Referral System (UDRS) has been exposed in the Cricket World Cup," BCCI secretary N Srinivasan wrote in a letter to ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat.

"The group stage match between India and England was a case in point which clearly brought out the inadequacy of the system.

"The ICC in consultation with Hawkeye formed playing conditions which specifies when the umpire can rely on Hawkeye and when he cannot.

"This itself is an admission on the question of reliability of the system including ball tracking technology."

During the extraordinary group match between India and Englandl which ended in a tie, Bell survived a close lbw call from a Yuvraj Singh delivery, which was turned down by umpire Billy Bowden.

India subsequently referred the decision to the third umpire but they were denied his wicket because, even though the ball tracking device showed the ball had hit Bell's pads in line with the stumps, it was considered to have been too far down the pitch.

Leg-before-wicket decisions by the referral process can only be given if the ball hits the player within 2.5 metres of the stumps. Outside that perimeter the technology is considered inaccurate.

Following the controversy, England batsman Bell went on to score 69 from 71 balls, helping his team secure the target of 338 runs on the final ball.

Dhoni criticised what he called the "adulteration of technology with human thinking" and Richardson was subsequently quoted in the Indian media, saying Dhoni would not have criticised UDRS had he been aware of the rule.

"BCCI takes strong objection to Mr David Richardson criticising the Indian captain M S Dhoni," the letter continued. "Mr Richardson's comment that the Indian captain should know the rule is out of place.

"The Indian captain only highlighted the inadequacy of the system and rightly so. It was there for the world to see.

"For an ICC representative to criticise a player for his post match press conference while the World Cup is being played is tantamount to pressurising the player. Mr Richardson has no right to do so.

"BCCI has strong reservations about the statement made by Mr Richardson. He should be instructed not to react in this fashion."

Cricket fans can now follow World Cup on iPhone

CHENNAI: This Cricket World Cup, fans can follow favourite teams and stars right on the iPhone. The sleek free-to-download iPhone app, WC2k11 Cricket, offers match scores, tweets from cricket stars themselves, news from across the venues, videos, match schedules besides venue stats and records. Does a cricket fan need anything more?

Keep a tab of the tournament on your iPhone - the scores are briefly shown on screen and clicking the link leads to the detailed page on cricinfo. The headlines are pulled from cricinfo, yahoo and other news sources.

Social media addicts can follow the tweets of Michael Clarke, Shane Warne, Andrew Flintoff, Yuvraj Singh, Harsha Bogle, Sanjay Manjrekar, Kumar Sangakkara among others. Love something you read or see, share it on Facebook.

In all, a handy guide to the World Cup Cricket, WC2k11 Cricket will delight fans who want their daily dosage of the cherry and the willow during the ODI World Cup.

"The cricket fever has gripped Indians worldwide and we launched this to help cricket buffs across the world keep a tab on their favourite game," says Jude Ramayya, CEO - Impiger Technologies.

So whether you're an Indian, Aussie, English, South African or a Sri Lankan, follow your favourite team right on your iPhone.

Ind vs Eng: Sachin Tendulkar falls after record World Cup ton

NEW DELHI: James Anderson had Sachin Tendulkar caught by Michael Yardy in the covers as India lost their third wicket with 236 runs on the board in their World Cup clash at the M Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore on Sunday.

Scorecard | Photos | Points Table

Tendulkar's 120-run knock came off 115 balls and was studded with 5 sixes and 10 fours.

Tendulkar hit his 47th century off 103 balls as India crossed the 200-run mark in the 35th over.

This is Tendulkar's fifth World Cup century - the most by any player in the world. Tendulkar achieved the landmark with a boundary to fine leg off Tim Bresnan.

This was after England off-spinner Graeme Swann clean bowled Gautam Gambhir (51) to place India at 180/2 in 29.4 overs.

Tendulkar and Gambhir added 134 runs for the second wicket as they got hold of the proceedings in the middle.

Tendulkar reached his fifty in style with a big heave over mid-wicket and once again it was Collingwood at the bowling end.

Tendulkar took India past 100-run mark with a fine lofty six, the first of the match, over mid-off on Collingwood's delivery.

Paceman Tim Bresnan provided England crucial breakthrough as he got rid of dangerous looking Indian opener Virender Sehwag in his first over of the day.

Sehwag was sent back to the pavilion with a fine diving one-handed catch by wicketkeeper Matt Prior.

Sehwag, who scored a quickfire 35 off 26 balls, slammed six boundaries during his short stay at the crease. Sehwag also became the third Indian to score 1000 ODI runs against England.

Opting to bat, Indian openers Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar got off to a fine start against England.

Dashing opener Sehwag got a few close calls in the first over itself but he was lucky enough to survive.

Sehwag slashed the very first ball of the innings, which kissed Graeme Swann's hand at the third slip on its way to the boundary. Sehwag got another leading edge on James Anderson's delivery but it landed safely.

The explosive Sehwag continued his attack as he welcomed seamer Ajmal Shahzad with two more boundaries in the second over.

Earlier in the day, England seamer Stuart Broad was ruled out of the World Cup clash against India after being confined to bed for two days.

Seamer Ajmal Shahzad has been pencilled into the playing XI in pacer Stuart Broad's place while in the batting line-up, Michael Yardy has come in for Ravi Bopara.

On the other hand Piyush Chawla replaced S Sreesanth in India's playing XI, with Indian team going into the match with two specialist seamers and spinners.

"Good luck lads, gutted I'm not there. Will be watching from the bed I've not left for 2 days.... Never felt worse," Broad wrote on his Twitter account.

ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 - Day 8: Preview & Prediction

Trivandrum: Sri Lanka and Pakistan face-off on a Slam-bang Saturday in the World Cup, and the match at the Premadasa stadium in Colombo, has no clear favourite heading into it. Both teams have strong line-ups suited for subcontinent conditions and there will be numerous match-winners on show during the day-nighter.

Both sides got off to a smashing start in the tournament, with Lanka comfortably seeing off Canada and Pakistan thrashing Kenya in their respective Group A openers. There were plenty of similarities between the performances of both teams in those matches that took place at Hambantota.

Batting first, the openers of both teams got off to a sluggish start and then it was down to the middle-order to pull them back. If it was Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene who starred for Lanka, then it was Umar Akmal and Misbah ul Haq who did the star turn for the Pakistanis.

Then both teams put in brilliant bowling performances under lights to ensure wins by large margins. These two sides, probably, have the most lethal bowling attacks in the tournament and it will be interesting to note how they fare against each other.

IPL Kochi stars Thisara Perera and Muttiah Muralitharan,  Nuwan Kulasekara, and Ajantha Mendis did the job for co-hosts Lanka in their first match, but the return of Lasith Malinga will be the crucial element for Sangakkara’s men against Pakistan. Whether Lanka bowl first or second, Malinga with his ability to mix up deliveries at will and his slinging action, will be a handful for the entire Pak batting.

For the men in green, Shoaib Akthar, Umar Gul and Abdul Razzaq form a formidable trio of pacers, each one unique in what they bring to the team. The pace of Akthar and the movement and guile of Razzaq, make them a potent new ball combination, while Gul will get the ball to swing early on and to reverse towards the death.

Skipper Shahid Afridi picked up a fifor in the match against Kenya and his fast variety of spinners will be a huge threat for a Lankan middle -order that has a slightly fragile look to it if the openers and then Sangakkara and Jayawardene, stumble early on.

Abdur Rehman or Saeed Ajmal, whichever of them plays, will be difficult customers on a helpful Premadasa deck. Also, not to discount is all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez, who is quite handy with his off-breaks.

Sri Lanka, playing their group games at home, and backed up by noisy fans, are one of the definite favourites for the title, and Pakistan are for sure, a solid outside bet to go all the way.

Both teams can blow hot and cold at times. Eventually, the volatile nature of Pakistan’s middle-order, up against a Malinga-led Lankan attack, could be the deciding factor in the game. If the likes of the Akmal brothers, Afridi, Misbah, Razzaq and Younus Khan fire, then Lanka could have their hands full. But very easily, the above mentioned six, could fall like a pack of cards as well.