| Mumbai, January 3 2006 – CricInfo, the world’s best-known name in online cricket publishing, is venturing into print with the launch of Cricinfo Magazine, a monthly title that will hit the newsstands tomorrow – January 4th 2006. Primarily aimed at an Indian readership – both in India and overseas – Cricinfo Magazine is published by the Infomedia group, India’s dominant publisher of special-interest magazines and business directories, under a license agreement with the Wisden Group.
The first issue runs to 124-pages, with a special 32-page preview supplement on the eagerly anticipated India-Pakistan series. Cover features include a wide-ranging conversation with Indian captain Rahul Dravid, who shares his vision for Indian cricket, and national coach Greg Chappell talking about his methods. There’s a special 20-page feature on fast bowling down the years, where the likes of Wasim Akram, Allan Donald, Wes Hall, Shoaib Akhtar, Javagal Srinath, John Snow and Andy Roberts talk about their craft. The lead-up to the Pakistan series features an analysis of how Pakistan have grown as a team in the recent past, and an exclusive interview with the team’s coach, Bob Woolmer. Other features include interviews with Chaminda Vaas, Ian Healy and Virender Sehwag, a look back at one of Garry Sobers’s classic innings, and a critique of the world of the cricket autobiography in the light of Steve Waugh’s memoirs. The magazine is a five-course affair. ‘Shots of the Month’ offers a selection of the best photographs from the month gone by. ‘The Score’ features short interviews (the inaugural issue has Simon Taufel and Dwayne Bravo), columns, quotes, stats, trivia, offbeat pieces, and humour. The mid-section presents essays, long interviews, profiles and other features. ‘Replay’ revisits the previous month’s on-field action, with an emphasis on the bigger picture rather than rote match reports. And ‘Pavilion’ serves up a palette of reflective articles, reviews and other features that capture the beauty and romance of the game. Cricinfo Magazine is edited by Sambit Bal and produced by the editorial team behind Wisden Asia Cricket. The new magazine is priced at Rs. 40 and, while retaining the core values of its admired predecessor, will contain more pages and additional features. Regular contributors include Harsha Bhogle, Sanjay Manjrekar, Mukul Kesavan, Peter Roebuck and Gideon Haigh. “Cricinfo Magazine will share the values that have made the website so successful,” Tom Gleeson, CEO of the Wisden Group said, “but it will also enable us to showcase the finest cricket writing and photography in the best possible format.” Prakash Iyer, MD, Infomedia India, said: “Cricket is India’s number one passion, and given that there is no specialist magazine of real quality in India catering to cricket lovers, we are looking to fill the void with Cricinfo Magazine.” “The world’s largest and most passionate cricket audience deserves a truly world-class magazine. We will ensure that Cricinfo Magazine becomes the Indian fan’s can’t-put-down-companion”, he added. |
Tag: Allan Donald
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Infomedia launches CricInfo Magazine in India
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BBC launches website to play on cricket frenzy
MUMBAI: UK broadcaster BBC has announced the launch of its website – bbcnews.com/cricket to coincide with the ongoing cricket World Cup.
The site, according to the Beeb, will have accurate reporting and lively debate. Aimed at supporters, sports fans and cricket lovers, it brings up-to-date news, views and features plus a number of unique items, including audio and video replay clips, live dynamic scorecards for each match, and three interactive cricket-based games.
BBC’s Managing Editor for South Asia Sam Miller says, “We’ve seized the opportunity to take the site beyond straight match reports. Informed and accurate news information remains at the heart of our offer, but we are also encouraging people of all age groups to interact with the BBC’s cricket experts. You can ask trivia questions through Ask Bearders, pick up important tips on how to improve your game through the Academy, and there are some great games to play – Sticky Wicket, Last Man Standing and Fantasy Cricket.
We have also lined up some of the best names in cricket to write exclusively for us in English and on our Hindi and Urdu sites. Allan Donald, Imran Khan, Arun Lal and Richard Pybus have centuries of experience between them and will bring very personal insights into our match reports. We are the only international media organisation to provide tri-lingual coverage of cricket’s biggest event.”
The BBC has also teamed up with Mumbai’s GO 92.5 FM to deliver pre- and post-match reports live from BBC correspondents in South Africa. BBC’s weekly chart countdown show UK Top 20 is also re-broadcast on 93.5 RED FM as well as short wave frequencies across India.