Category: Sports

Team Squads announced for 2014 Champions League Twenty20

MUMBAI: The squads for the world’s premier Twenty20 competition were announced today and will comprise international cricket’s biggest names along with domestic players.

Eight players scheduled to take part in the competition were in high demand after being named in more than one squad, after their respective Twenty20 clubs from around the world qualified for the tournament.

Explaining the process for deciding which teams these players would represent, CLT20 Governing Council member and director of legal and business affairs Dean Kino said, “Players who have been named by more than one team have been asked to nominate which side they are going to represent. Players are free to make any decision they wish. Teams are then allowed to replace any player that has withdrawn from their squad and elected to play for another side.”

He added by saying that “CLT20 regulations state that when a player elects to play for their ‘away’ team, that team must pay the ‘home’ team $150,000 compensation per player. A ‘home’ team is classified as a team from the country a player is eligible to represent in international cricket.”

The players and their teams they have chosen to represent are marked in asterisk below:

Corey Anderson – Northern District Cricket Association /Mumbai Indians*

George Bailey – Hobart Hurricanes / Kings XI Punjab*

Patrick Cummins – Perth Scorchers / Kolkata Knight Riders*

Jacques Kallis – Cape Cobras / Kolkata Knight Riders*

Lasith Malinga – Southern Express /Mumbai Indians*

David Miller – Dolphins / Kings XI Punjab*

Kieron Pollard – Barbados Tridents / Mumbai Indians*

Dwayne Smith · Barbados Tridents / Chennai Super Kings*

The tournament will follow a format where a group stage will be preceded by a qualifier. A total of 29 matches will be played in the competition.

The group stage will be played from 17 September to 4 October 2014 and will feature 10 teams. The qualifier will be played from 13 to 16 September 2014.

At the group stage, each side will play the other four in its group once, with the top two sides from each group going through to the semi-finals. In the qualifier, all teams will play each other once, with the top two advancing to the group stage.

The top team from Group A will play the second-ranked team from Group B, and vice versa, in the semi-finals, both of which will be played at Hyderabad on 2 October 2014. Bengaluru will host the final on 4 October 2014.

Group Stage

Group A

Kolkata Knight Riders

Dolphins

Perth Scorchers

Chennai Super Kings

A team from the Qualifier

Group B

Kings XI Punjab

Cape Cobras

Hobart Hurricanes

Barbados Tridents

A team from the Qualifier

Qualifier

Q1 – Lahore Lions

Q2 – Mumbai Indians

Q3 – Northern Knights

Q4 – Southern Express

The stars participating in this league comprise MS Dhoni, Brendon McCullum, Suresh Raina, Glen Maxwell, Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo, Jacques Kallis, Daniel Vettori, JP Duminy, Hashim Amla, Tillekratne Dilshan, George Bailey and Lasith Malinga.

August 22, 2014
Ten Sports bags Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games rights

MUMBAI: After bagging the rights for the recently concluded Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, Ten Sports has done it again. The Games, which takes place once in four years, will be held in Gold Coast Australia in 2018 and Ten Sports has moved quickly to secure the Indian sub-continent broadcast rights. The games will take place from 4 to 15 April 2018.

Ten Sports CEO Rajesh Sethi commented on the acquisition, “After the enormous success of Glasgow 2014, we are very happy to extend our partnership with the Commonwealth Games Federation for the 21st edition of the Commonwealth Games. The ever increasing Indian participation and success at these Games is very encouraging and we at Ten Sports will continue delivering the best of action from the 17 sporting disciplines in the coming years.”

Ten Sports is the first private broadcaster in the Indian subcontinent to give multi-channel coverage of the games along with in depth studio analysis and build up shows to educate audiences about the different sporting disciplines and medal prospects.

Announcing the agreement, the Commonwealth Games Federation CEO Michael Hooper said, “The arrangement we have reached with Ten Sports to become another of our broadcast partners for 2018, coming as it does on the heels of the Commonwealth Games Federation’s deal announced earlier this week with Australia’s Seven Network, is testament to how popular the Commonwealth Games brand has become across the world”

Ten Sports has acquired free-to-air and pay TV subscription television rights, plus those for new media (incorporating Internet and mobile) and radio for the 2018 Commonwealth Games across a wide-ranging territory that includes India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

August 22, 2014
Hero ISL international draft sees buys worth Rs 16 crore

MUMBAI: When a sport needs to be grown, money needs to be spent. And in keeping with this, Hero MotoCorp Indian Super League (ISL) saw close to Rs 16 crore being spent on international players who were a part of the draft and were picked by eight teams in seven rounds.

Each team was given the first slot to pick their players as the rounds progressed. The football league will be played from 12 October 2014 to 20 December 2014.

Team Goa proved to be the most generous as it spent Rs 2.46 crore on seven players. Team Chennai (which is the new team introduced in the ISL after Team Bengaluru backed out) shelled Rs 2.34 crore on its seven players. Next in line was Atletico de Kolkata that selected six players for Rs 2.17 crore. Team Mumbai FC picked seven players for Rs 2.10 crore. Kerala Blasters decided to spend Rs 1.98 crore on its seven international players. Pune FC bagged five players for Rs 1.75 crore. Tying at the last spot were teams Delhi Dynamos and North East United that spent Rs 1.62 crore each on their respective five players.

IMG Global football vice president Andy Knee said, “The teams are very happy with the international players they have picked up. We are quite satisfied with the quality of football we have introduced here in India.”

A total of 56 international players, 49 from today’s draft and seven being contracted by the clubs directly, were drafted among the eight ISL clubs. Earlier, in July 2014 the clubs had selected 112 Indian players to complete the domestic players’ mandate. “The 49 players who went into the draft today have had close to 9000 games in between them,” added Knee. “It only speaks about the experience and the competition they will bring into the Hero Indian Super League,” he maintained.

All India Football Federation general secretary Kushal Das said, “Indian football needs a new dose of adrenaline. We are extremely excited and hope the Indian Super League will provide the dose of much-needed visibility to Indian football. The focus at present is on youth development and grassroots which forms the base of the pyramid. But at the same time, the dose of commerce stays quintessential at the top of the pyramid. Both are interlinked to each other,” he stated. “We hope ISL will be the game changer for Indian football,” added Das.

For Football Sports Development CEO Anupam Dutta, the international player draft has marked an important milestone in the Indian football. “A league’s success depends on the clubs and we are happy to have equally excited and committed partners in this journey. And against the backdrop of the international player draft, let’s not forget that we have a very good set of Indian players in the league as well,” he opined.

Star Sports business head Nitin Kukreja commented, “We plan to unleash a sporting revolution in India. It’s not just cricket, we plan to take football, kabaddi and other sports to greater heights too in India.”

Following are the names of the different teams along with their compositions:

FC Pune City – Bruno Cirillo, Emanuele Belardi, Ivan Bolado Palacios, Saidou Mady Panandetiguiri, Omar Andres Rodriguez Martinez, Andres Felipe Gonzalez Ramirez, Park Kwang-IL.

Atletico de Kolkata – Borja Fernandes, Jofre Mateu Gonzalez, Jose Miguel Gonzalez Rey, Arnal Llibert Conde Carbo, Sylvain Monsoreau, Jakub Podaný, Apoula Edima Edel Bete.

Kerala Blasters – Michael Chopra, Iain Hume, Victor Herrero Forcada, Erwin Spitzner, Pedro Adriano Veloso Gusm?o, Cedric Hengbart, Raphael Romey.

Mumbai City FC – Diego Fernando, Jan Stohanzl, Francisco Javier Fernandez Luque, Pavel CmovS, Johann Letzelter, Andre Matos Dias Pereira, Ilias Pollalis.

North East United – Isaac Chansa, Cornell Glen, Massamba Lo Sambou, Do Dong-Hyun, Guilherme Felipe de Castro, TomaS Josl, Luis Alfredo Yanes Padilla.

Team Chennai – Bernard Mendy, Cristian Hidalgo Gonzalez, Gennaro Bracigliano, Bojan Djordjic, Bruno Augusto Pelissari de Lima, Jairo Andres Suarez Carvajal, Eduardo Silva Lerma.

Team Goa – Miroslav SlepiCka. Jan Seda, Bruno Filipe Tavares Pinheiro, Youness Bengelloun, Miguel Bruno Pereira Herlein, Gregory Arnolin, Edgar Carvalho Figueira Marcelino.

Delhi Dynamos – Mads Junker, Morten Skoubo, Bruno Herrero Arias, Gustavo Marmentini dos Santos, Marek Cech, Pavel EliaS, Henrique Dinis Oliveira Dias.

Click here for the international players pool list

August 21, 2014
ISL central player draft to be held on 21 August

MUMBAI: The Hero MotoCorp Indian Super League (ISL) will on 21 August have its central player draft pool where 49 international players will be picked up by the eight franchises.

The comprehensive list released earlier has both experienced and upcoming talent from around the globe. The 49 international players represent a number of countries like Spain, France, Czech Republic, Brazil, Portugal, Colombia, South Korea, Argentina, Canada, Serbia, Senegal, Burkina Faso, England, Greece and Cameroon.

The League promoted by IMG-Reliance, Star Sports and AIFF has a total of 56 international players, of which 49 will be picked through the international player draft which will be held tomorrow. The other seven have already been contracted by four franchises: Delhi Dynamos FC, Pune City FC, NorthEast United FC and Atletico de Kolkata. Teams have the provision of signing a maximum of two international players on their own.

Earlier, the high octane domestic player draft which was held on 22-23 July saw Rs 24 crore being spent by teams for purchasing the players of their choice.

August 20, 2014
Aircel Chennai Open to celebrate two decades of tennis in India

MUMBAI: With Thomas Enqvist and Mark Petchey’s first tennis match, the seeds of India’s first and only ATP World Tour were sown in 1996. 20 years down, the tournament has grown into a marquee ATP tennis event in south Asia, giving birth to many a tennis champions, attracting some of the finest names in the world tennis circuit and spawning a multitude of fans across the nation.

The 2015 edition of the Aircel Chennai Open will mark 20 years since the very first game was played in India and the organisers are all set to celebrate the occasion with a host of activities in Chennai. The event is scheduled to be held at Chennai’s SDAT Stadium from 5 to 11 January 2015.

The celebration includes the launch of a special logo created to mark the occasion, a renovated SDAT Stadium that has hosted the event proudly since 1997 after it shifted from New Delhi and a host of special activities targeted at fans and tennis enthusiasts including schoolchildren and the youth, apart from exciting marketing initiatives across India.

The tournament has had a long and exhilarating journey in India, thanks to the constant support of the Government of Tamil Nadu, the Tamil Nadu Tennis Association (TNTA), the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu, the All India Tennis Association (AITA), the ATP and organisers IMG Reliance that put together their resources into developing the tournament into a bigger and better property each year.

Tamil Nadu Tennis association president M.A Alagappan said, “As we celebrate two decades of the tournament in the country, it gives us an opportunity to not just celebrate the occasion but look back with pride at our achievements and renew our focus to take the tournament to greater heights in the seasons to come. I congratulate everyone involved and thank India’s tennis community for its support.”

IMG Reliance chief operating officer Ashu Jindal commented, “The 20-year journey of the tournament has been nothing short of spectacular. The event has become a role model in the region and we are thrilled with the progress that has been made in every area of the game. Since its arrival in the city, the event has weaved itself into the fabric of Chennai and is now an integral part of Chennai’s culture. We plan to celebrate the occasion with a host of activities and it is a pleasure to have arrived at this landmark year.”

The ATP World Tour 250 event has built a strong legacy for being a ‘Springboard of Champions’, with former winners including Grand Slam champions Pat Rafter and Carlos Moya. Apart from Rafter and Moya, players to have graced the courts in the past include Rafael Nadal, Boris Becker, Richard Krajicek, Yvgeny Kafelnikov, Byron Black and India’s own Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi.

Aircel Chennai Open Tournament director Tom Annear said, “The Aircel Chennai Open has become the longest running annual tennis event in south Asia and I am glad that we are completing the 20th year in 2015. As we endeavour to set new benchmarks with each edition, this milestone gives us reason to celebrate our achievements and congratulate each stakeholder for the fantastic efforts over the years. It has been our aim to place India into the top league of tennis playing nations in the world and I am glad that we are getting closer to that with each passing year.”

Doubles Winners Source: Wikipedia

Singles Winners Source: Wikipedia

August 20, 2014
Rajasthan Royals to partner South Australian Government in exclusive cricketing endeavour

MUMBAI: Rajasthan Royals today announced its association with the South Australian Government in an exclusive cricketing endeavour that will give 15 young Indian cricketers an opportunity to travel to Adelaide, Australia to experience South Australia’s world class cricket facilities as part of Adelaide’s ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 program. Rajasthan Royals will use its expertise to select 15 young cricketers who will make up the Dream Team 15.

Youngsters born between 1st January 1997 to 31 December 1999 will qualify to enter the competition for a chance to be selected. The program will reach out to students from schools from different parts of the country while the selection trials will be held in Delhi and Mumbai in late October / early November 2014 in the search to identify a group of 15 cricketers.

South Australian Premier, The Hon’ble Jay Weatherill who is on an official visit to India today announced that Members of the Dream Team 15 will receive training from top coaches of the South Australian Cricket Association and will play matches against teams of South Australian school boys of the same age.

Addressing the media, Mr. Raghu Iyer, CEO Rajasthan Royals said, “As a team, Royals have identified, nurtured and given playing opportunities to many of India’s top young cricketers. Therefore, it is a privilege for Rajasthan Royals to partner South Australia in a unique endeavor that will help Indian school children receive fine training from top coaches of the South Australian Cricket Association. We thank the South Australian Premier, The Hon’ble Jay Weatherill for taking forward such a commendable undertaking.”

Unmukt Chand was also present from Rajasthan Royals. “I consider myself fortunate to be part of the wonderful Rajasthan Royals family. I use the word family because that’s exactly what we are like when we come together in the form of a team made up of the game’s finest experienced cricketers, fantastic management, and young cricketers like me. I am sure an exciting endeavor such as this will go a long way in inspiring young players to take up the sport professionally and one day, play for the country,” said Unmukt.

Mr Weatherill said “Our objective with this program is to harness the passion that Indians have for the game and provide an opportunity to good cricketers who have the skills and love for cricket, but have not enrolled in a formal training program.”

Adelaide Oval will host what is considered to be one of the biggest matches in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 program when defending champions India take on Pakistan on 15 February 2015. The members of the Dream Team 15 will be watching the event which is expected to be a thriller of a match and will leave an aspirational imprint on them.

Ever its inception, the team has been at the forefront in terms of nurturing and promoting new talent.

August 20, 2014
ICC Women’s Championship set for exciting start

MUMBAI: The inaugural edition of the ICC Women’s Championship starts tomorrow (Thursday) and the opening round sees Australia host Pakistan and England take on India in the multi-year, bilateral qualifying competition to the pinnacle event in women’s cricket, the ICC Women’s World Cup England 2017.

On 21 August, reigning World Cup champion Australia will face Pakistan in a three One-Day International (ODI) series in Brisbane, while three-time winner England will play host to India for its three-match series at Scarborough and Lord’s.

The hosts of the Australian-Pakistan and England-India series will livestream matches via their respective websites.

The concept, proposed by the ICC Women’s Committee and approved by the ICC Board in the January 2014 meeting, is aimed at creating more extensive and meaningful bilateral playing programme for women’s cricket. Other competing countries include New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka and West Indies.

The tournament structure will see each team will play each other in one home or away series that will include three ODIs over a two and a half year period. As such, each side is guaranteed at least 21 ODIs over the tournament period.

Two points will be awarded for a win, while points will be shared in case of a tie or a no-result. At the conclusion of the seven rounds, the top four sides will gain automatic qualification to the ICC Women’s World Cup England 2017, while the bottom four sides will get a final chance of qualification through the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier in 2017.

Looking ahead to the start of the series, Australia captain Meg Lanning said: “We can’t wait to kick off our campaign towards the ICC Women’s World Cup England 2017 when we take on Pakistan this month as part of the ICC Women’s Championship.

“As the reigning champions, we feel honoured that our first ODI will mark the official launch of the inaugural Championship.”

Lanning, who led her side to victory in this year’s ICC Women’s World Twenty20 2014, added: “The structure of the new Championship has provided us with a great opportunity to face a world-class team in Pakistan on home soil in a bilateral series. We have enjoyed some competitive matches against Pakistan in recent ICC events and I have no doubt that this series will be just as exciting.”

The 22-year-old skipper sits in fourth place in the Reliance ICC Women’s Player Rankings for ODI Batters list, which also includes three other Australians – ICC Women’s World Cup 2013 player of the final, Jessica Cameron (seventh), Alex Blackwell (ninth), and all-rounder Ellyse Perry (17th) – inside the top 20 list. Pakistan’s highest-ranked batter is Bismah Maroof in 15th position.

The top-ranked Australia bowlers in the Reliance ICC Women’s Player Rankings for ODI Bowlers are Erin Osborne (sixth) and Perry (seventh), while in the Pakistan camp, captain Sana Mir is in 10th place.

Speaking ahead of Thursday’s opener at Peter Burge Oval, Pakistan captain Sana Mir added: “This is our first bilateral series against Australia. Before this series, we have only played them in ICC Women’s World Cups. This is a wonderful opportunity for us to express our potential as cricketers; achieving our targets against the world champions will be pretty good.”

England and India will meet in Scarborough in the first ODI on Thursday. They will then play in Scarborough on 23rd August before facing each other in the third ODI at Lord’s on 26th August.

England captain Charlotte Edwards is excited to be leading her team in one of the first fixtures of the new tournament.

“As players, the new ICC Women’s Championship is a fantastic concept,” she said, adding: “It gives us real structure leading into the ICC Women’s World Cup in England in 2017, and makes every ODI series that we play between now and then significant. Whenever I step out to play for England I want to win, but now more than ever before, every result really does matter.

“I cannot wait to lead the England women’s team against India in our first round of matches in the ICC Women’s Championship this summer.”

Edwards is currently ranked seventh in the batter rankings and is one of four England batters in the top 20 who are expected to appear in the first round fixtures, with Sarah Taylor (second), Lydia Greenway (11th) and Heather Knight (14th) also anticipated to appear.

The England bowling attack will be led by veterans Katherine Brunt and Jenny Gunn, who are currently in second and fourth places, respectively. Other England bowlers inside the top 20 are Holly Colvin (ninth), Danielle Hazell (15th) and Laura Marsh (19th).

Looking ahead of the start of the ICC Women’s Championship, India captain Mithali Raj, who leads the women’s ODI batting rankings, said: “The India team and management is really excited to be playing in this inaugural competition and we are extremely focused and determined to kick off the series well in Scarborough.

“It is a new and exciting development for women’s cricket and it is great that the ICC is supporting a stronger structure for the game leading into the ICC Women’s World Cup England 2017.

“Historically, England has been an outstanding team in ODI cricket and they will be tough opponents on home soil. They have some excellent players and we know about their strength in depth. But we have a young and enthusiastic team and our players will take a lot of confidence from our win in last week’s Test match. If we can go up another level and look to improve the key areas of the game, then I know that we can be competitive.”

For India, Harmanpreet Kaur in sixth position is the other batter inside the top 10, while Jhulan Goswami (third) is the highest-ranked bowler.

In September, West Indies will host New Zealand for their three-ODI series, while Sri Lanka will host South Africa in October.

Click here to read more

August 20, 2014
Fox Sports rebranded across Asia

MUMBAI: Fox International Channels (FIC), the Asian pay-TV network, revealed that it will implement a wide-scale upgrade to its Fox Sports Asia network, effective August 15. It also announced new names for its Asian region channels, except India.

The network rebranded its portfolio of channels, which currently are Fox Sports, Fox Sports Plus HD and Star Sports to ‘Fox Sports’, ‘Fox Sports 2’ and ‘Fox Sports 3’ respectively. This does not include the Star Sports brand in India.

‘Fox Sports’ will be the flagship channel, airing the most popular sporting events for the local audience, namely La Liga soccer matches, Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC), tennis Grand Slam semifinals and finals and the main Formula One races.

Star Sports which will now be Fox Sports 2, will provide coverage of golf majors, European and Asian soccer league, Major League Baseball (MLB), Indian Badminton League (IBL) and International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF) events.

While, Fox Sports Plus HD rebranded as Fox Sports 3 will air adrenaline sports, such as motor sports, combat and extreme sports like F1, MotoGP, One FC and Extreme Games Asia.

Fox Sports News and Fox Football channel HD will remain unchanged, while Fox Sports Play and Fox Sports Mobile will continue to be the network’s non-linear play with additional fitness and yoga content.

The change takes effect in all territories across Asia where Fox Sports network channels are available.

Late last year, News Corp had revamped the Star Sports bunch of channels in India as Star Sports 1, Star Sports 2, Star Sports 3, Star Sports 4, Star Sports HD1 and Star Sports HD2.

August 16, 2014
Bojan Djordjic confirms participation for Hero ISL

MUMBAI: Hero Indian Super League confirmed the participation of former Manchester United player Bojan Djordjic for the inaugural season. The winger-cum-attacking midfielder will feature among the 49 players in the central international player draft to be held on 21 August 2014 in Mumbai.

Commenting on his association with the league Bojan Djordjic said, “Playing in the Indian Super League will be a great adventure, a chance to meet new people and help them to become stronger in a sport that has been my passion for my whole life.”

Djordjic joined United in 1999 at 17 from Brommapojkarna, a Swedish second division club near his Stockholm home. United spotted Djordjic playing in the under 17 European championships for Sweden against England. Within a year Bojan earned the rare distinction of United’s Young Player of the Year. By 2001, he was named in United’s first team squad on a regular basis.

Over the last 15 years, the now 32 year old has gained vast international experience having played competitive football in England, Scotland, Serbia, Denmark, Sweden and Hungary. Known as a creative centre midfielder and touted as a set-piece specialist, Bojan has played key role for his respective teams in winning four league titles in four different countries – the domestic doubles with Glasgow Rangers (Scotland), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia) and AIK in Sweden and won the League Championship in Hungary for Videoton FC. He was also instrumental in making Plymouth Argyle FC a strong championship side during his time in England.

August 13, 2014
Delhi Dynamos signs up Wim Raymaekers

MUMBAI: Delhi Dynamos FC, the national capital’s football team for the Hero Indian Super League, announced inclusion of 29 year old central defender Wim Raymaekers in the squad today. With the induction of the left footed Belgian, Delhi Dynamos has further beefed up its squad for the inaugural edition of the tournament.

Commenting on his induction in the Delhi club, Raymaekers said, “I am very excited and motivated to join Delhi Dynamos and I will do my very best to have an amazing experience in India.”

On Raymaekers joining the unit, Delhi Dynamos FC coach Harm van Veldhoven said, “Wim is a cool customer and is pretty adept at handling pressure when defending. While Delhi Dynamos hopes to play attacking football, having a compact defence is equally important and Wim’s entry will definitely bolster us in that area.”

Raymaekers carries with him an experience of over 200 games at the top level in Belgium and Holland. The defender began his career in the youth ranks of top Belgian club, Genk where he honed his skills. Raymaekers left Genk in 2005 to join Dutch second division side Den Bosch, where he played for two seasons, before moving back to Belgium and signing with second division team Lommel United. He shifted to RS Waasland from the same division in 2009.

OH Leuven signed Raymaekers from Waasland in 2010. A key player in the Leuven side that achieved promotion to the Belgian Pro League in 2010-11, Raymaekers quickly became a fan favourite at the club. Raymaekers is known for his resolute defending, passing skills and prowess in the air.

Delhi Dynamos FC already has two experienced international strikers in Mads Junker and Morten Skoubo. The club is in the process of getting more quality players on board to build a formidable team ahead of the tournament, which kick-starts in October this year. With an experienced coach in Harm, and alliance with Dutch powerhouse Feyenoord Rotterdam, Delhi Dynamos is working towards its mission of building football into a leading sport across Delhi and Northern India.

August 13, 2014