The much-hyped Indian Premier League cricket tournament still continues to face the ire of Telangana activists, despite an assurance from the Telangana Rashtra Samithi and its sponsored outfit Joint Action Committee.
Apparently realising that the Deccan Chargers management had “bribed” the TRS leadership to ensure that there is no disruption to the IPL matches in Hyderabad, the Telangana students under the banner of the Telangana Research Scholars’ Forum threatened that they would not allow any IPL matches to be held in Hyderabad.
“The matches will only divert the attention of the people from Telangana movement to cricket. The people of Telangana are worried about the separate state demand and not the cricket matches,” the forum leader said.
The Telangana activists further said the Hyderabad Cricket Association was turning a blind eye towards Telangana players and was only encouraging Andhra players and children of businessmen. What is worse, crores of rupees was being looted from Telangana in the name of betting, they alleged.
IPL, IPL LIVE SCORES, IPL HOT NEWS, IPL NEWS, PAK IN IPL,
Showing posts with label PAK IN IPL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PAK IN IPL. Show all posts
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
IPL match: Telangana JAC to write to Lalit Modi
The all-party Telangana Joint Action Committee (JAC) will write to Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Lalit Modi to assure him that there would not be any trouble from its side if the inaugural match of the third edition of IPL which was scheduled to be played in Hyderabad was gone ahead.
Amidst IPL’s reported decision to shift the venue of the match from Hyderabad to Mumbai in view of the turmoil in the State capital on account of separate Telangana agitation, the joint secretary of Hyderabad Cricket Association Venkat and another official on Monday called on JAC convenor C. Kodandaram to seek the latter’s intervention in a bid to see that the match was held here. Mr. Kodandaram told The Hindu that he promised to them that he would write to Mr. Modi on Tuesday to reconsider the decision.
IPL, IPL HOT NEWS, IPL NEWS, PAK IN IPL, IPL LIVE SCORES, hyderabad city, hyderabad events, hyderabad hot news,
Amidst IPL’s reported decision to shift the venue of the match from Hyderabad to Mumbai in view of the turmoil in the State capital on account of separate Telangana agitation, the joint secretary of Hyderabad Cricket Association Venkat and another official on Monday called on JAC convenor C. Kodandaram to seek the latter’s intervention in a bid to see that the match was held here. Mr. Kodandaram told The Hindu that he promised to them that he would write to Mr. Modi on Tuesday to reconsider the decision.
IPL, IPL HOT NEWS, IPL NEWS, PAK IN IPL, IPL LIVE SCORES, hyderabad city, hyderabad events, hyderabad hot news,
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Cable operators' association in Pakistan set to boycott IPL
There was an outpour of strong reactions in many parts of Pakistan yesterday after Pakistani cricketers were ignored in the player auction of the Indian Premier League.
A file picture of Pakistani fans watching the India vs Pakistan World T20 final which India won in Johannesburg, 2007. PIC/AFP
Reactions came from government officials, the Pakistan Cricket Board, players and the general public in what many perceive as a planned strategy to humiliate Pakistani cricketers and the country by the IPL.
"We will boycott the telecast of IPL matches this year. No cable operator in the country will air the action as a show of solidarity," said a spokesman of the All Pakistan Cable Operators' Association.
The announcement by the association is significant as 80 per cent of television viewers depend entirely on cable operators for their daily television dose.
Even on the streets and in offices, the discussion mainly centered around the way Pakistani players were snubbed in the IPL auction. There was also a strong reaction from the Chairman of the PCB, Ejaz Butt, who told the media in Lahore that Lalit Modi let him down badly.
Clearance
"The efforts we made to get government clearance and visas for our players was because Modi had assured me the IPL would welcome our players," Butt said.
"Had we known that this was the way they would treat our players, we would never have bothered to go to such lengths to get clearance for our players to play in the IPL," he said.
Butt was upset that despite trying to get in touch with Modi, he had not got a response from the IPL commissioner. "I have been trying to call him for last two hours and he is not responding to my calls, but we will be taking up this matter at the highest level," he said.
Pakistan's federal minister for sports, Ali Ejaz Jakhrani said the government would look into the matter.
'I can't accept the fact that when 11 of our best players were available in the auction, no franchise took interest in them. It all seems a conspiracy to me and it does not help improve relations between the two countries," Jakhrani said.
He said the snub to Pakistani cricketers was an insult to the Pakistani people as well.
"If they (IPL) didn't want our players to play in the IPL for whatever reason, they should have been clear about it and not staged this drama," he said.
Jakhrani said the government only gave clearance to the players after the PCB assured them the IPL franchises were keen on signing on Pakistani players this year.
A file picture of Pakistani fans watching the India vs Pakistan World T20 final which India won in Johannesburg, 2007. PIC/AFP
Reactions came from government officials, the Pakistan Cricket Board, players and the general public in what many perceive as a planned strategy to humiliate Pakistani cricketers and the country by the IPL.
"We will boycott the telecast of IPL matches this year. No cable operator in the country will air the action as a show of solidarity," said a spokesman of the All Pakistan Cable Operators' Association.
The announcement by the association is significant as 80 per cent of television viewers depend entirely on cable operators for their daily television dose.
Even on the streets and in offices, the discussion mainly centered around the way Pakistani players were snubbed in the IPL auction. There was also a strong reaction from the Chairman of the PCB, Ejaz Butt, who told the media in Lahore that Lalit Modi let him down badly.
Clearance
"The efforts we made to get government clearance and visas for our players was because Modi had assured me the IPL would welcome our players," Butt said.
"Had we known that this was the way they would treat our players, we would never have bothered to go to such lengths to get clearance for our players to play in the IPL," he said.
Butt was upset that despite trying to get in touch with Modi, he had not got a response from the IPL commissioner. "I have been trying to call him for last two hours and he is not responding to my calls, but we will be taking up this matter at the highest level," he said.
Pakistan's federal minister for sports, Ali Ejaz Jakhrani said the government would look into the matter.
'I can't accept the fact that when 11 of our best players were available in the auction, no franchise took interest in them. It all seems a conspiracy to me and it does not help improve relations between the two countries," Jakhrani said.
He said the snub to Pakistani cricketers was an insult to the Pakistani people as well.
"If they (IPL) didn't want our players to play in the IPL for whatever reason, they should have been clear about it and not staged this drama," he said.
Jakhrani said the government only gave clearance to the players after the PCB assured them the IPL franchises were keen on signing on Pakistani players this year.
Inside story: All IPL teams agreed to shun Pak players
What was suspected after Tuesday’s auction of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is now confirmed - there was indeed a consensus among the team franchisees that none of them would bid for the Pakistani players.
Underlying this consensus were ambiguous signals from officialdom. Union sports minister MS Gill went on record on Wednesday insisting that neither his ministry nor the government had in any way nudged IPL teams to treat Pakistani players as untouchables. However, sources in the Indian cricket board (BCCI) gave TOI details of what transpired in the run-up to the auction, which suggest a more nuanced reality.
According to the sources, the BCCI initially told the franchisees that they could bid for Pakistani players and treat them just like cricketers from any other part of the world. Around the middle of December, the board also assured the teams that it would chip in with help for visas and other diplomatic clearances from the government.
However, when team owners asked the board "what guarantee will the franchisees have?", the board spoke to some government officials in the last week of December and reverted with the message that the government - understandably - couldn’t give "any guarantee". The prospects of possible terror attacks clearly contributed to this message.
Hence the IPL teams ignored the Pakistan players in auction as there was "no guarantee" from the government that these players would get visas and other clearances.
Also adding to the jitters of the IPL teams were apprehensions of possible disruption of IPL matches by parties like the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and Shiv Sena in the event of Pakistani players participating. With Mumbai slated to host a major chunk of IPL matches in the forthcoming season - including seven home matches of the Mumbai Indians in the league and some knock-out matches - this became a major concern.
In fact, team managements said they were already getting calls from Australian players asking how seriously they should treat the threat by the Shiv Sena that it would not allow Australians to play in India in retaliation for the racist attacks on Indians Down Under.
"Security is a huge factor and it’s only the team owners who will have to take up the responsibility. BCCI is not responsible for internal security in the IPL. The board had asked the government if the Pakistanis would be safe in a place like Mumbai. The answer wasn’t too convincing with a senior state government functionary pointing out that barely a year had elapsed since the 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai," a BCCI insider told TOI on Wednesday.
"There was no direction from the board. The indication from the board was that the Pakistani players are shortlisted and you guys can bid for them. But they may not be welcomed in a place like Mumbai," a team official added. That, it appears, was enough to spook the franchisees into steering clear of Pakistani players.
The reputation of some of the Pakistani cricketers who had participated in the first season of the IPL in 2008 didn’t help either. The Delhi Daredevils were put off by Mohd Asif’s antics, while Shahid Afridi did not have a great relationship with Deccan Chargers.
The sources also said the ‘boycott’ of Pakistani players was likely to continue for similar reasons till such time as India and Pakistan resume bilateral cricketing ties. In other words, despite the homilies often trotted out about separating sports and politics, this is one case where politics will remain a determining factor.
IPL,IPL NEWS,PAK IN IPL,IPL HOT NEWS, cricket news,
Underlying this consensus were ambiguous signals from officialdom. Union sports minister MS Gill went on record on Wednesday insisting that neither his ministry nor the government had in any way nudged IPL teams to treat Pakistani players as untouchables. However, sources in the Indian cricket board (BCCI) gave TOI details of what transpired in the run-up to the auction, which suggest a more nuanced reality.
According to the sources, the BCCI initially told the franchisees that they could bid for Pakistani players and treat them just like cricketers from any other part of the world. Around the middle of December, the board also assured the teams that it would chip in with help for visas and other diplomatic clearances from the government.
However, when team owners asked the board "what guarantee will the franchisees have?", the board spoke to some government officials in the last week of December and reverted with the message that the government - understandably - couldn’t give "any guarantee". The prospects of possible terror attacks clearly contributed to this message.
Hence the IPL teams ignored the Pakistan players in auction as there was "no guarantee" from the government that these players would get visas and other clearances.
Also adding to the jitters of the IPL teams were apprehensions of possible disruption of IPL matches by parties like the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and Shiv Sena in the event of Pakistani players participating. With Mumbai slated to host a major chunk of IPL matches in the forthcoming season - including seven home matches of the Mumbai Indians in the league and some knock-out matches - this became a major concern.
In fact, team managements said they were already getting calls from Australian players asking how seriously they should treat the threat by the Shiv Sena that it would not allow Australians to play in India in retaliation for the racist attacks on Indians Down Under.
"Security is a huge factor and it’s only the team owners who will have to take up the responsibility. BCCI is not responsible for internal security in the IPL. The board had asked the government if the Pakistanis would be safe in a place like Mumbai. The answer wasn’t too convincing with a senior state government functionary pointing out that barely a year had elapsed since the 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai," a BCCI insider told TOI on Wednesday.
"There was no direction from the board. The indication from the board was that the Pakistani players are shortlisted and you guys can bid for them. But they may not be welcomed in a place like Mumbai," a team official added. That, it appears, was enough to spook the franchisees into steering clear of Pakistani players.
The reputation of some of the Pakistani cricketers who had participated in the first season of the IPL in 2008 didn’t help either. The Delhi Daredevils were put off by Mohd Asif’s antics, while Shahid Afridi did not have a great relationship with Deccan Chargers.
The sources also said the ‘boycott’ of Pakistani players was likely to continue for similar reasons till such time as India and Pakistan resume bilateral cricketing ties. In other words, despite the homilies often trotted out about separating sports and politics, this is one case where politics will remain a determining factor.
IPL,IPL NEWS,PAK IN IPL,IPL HOT NEWS, cricket news,
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