IPL should involve FICA in security management: NZC

New Zealand Cricket wants the Indian Premier League authorities to involve FICA in the security management of the Twenty20 event as it feels the Black Caps will not be convinced until the international players' body is involved.

The Kiwi players are in a dilemma whether to head to India for the event starting April 10 without getting necessary safety information from the Federation of International Cricketers Association (FICA).

"If the players association is not the funnel, then how does that information get to the players?" NZC chief executive Justin Vaughan was quoted as saying by the ‘New Zealand Herald’.

"We're still trying to figure it out and it's quite an awkward position we find ourselves in, but we'll find a solution."

Seven Kiwi players -- captain Daniel Vettori, vice-captain Brendon McCullum, Ross Taylor, Heath Mills, Jesse Ryder, Jacob Oram and Scott Styris -- have signed contracts with different IPL franchises to play in the cash-rich event.

However, the recent terror attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore has raised serious security concerns for foreign players participating in the event and it has been further compounded by India's general elections that clash with the tournament.

Although, the the IPL has assured the security of players, the NZC is far from being convinced.

"India appreciate (the situation) in the wake of what happened in Lahore but just a simple 'trust us, it'll be okay', doesn't cut it," Vaughan said.

"In the end we just want to get the best for our players, get the level of comfort and information they need to be satisfied with how the IPL is going to operate," he added.

Cricket's a glam dunk business

She hasn’t had a release in some time, hits have been sparse, Hollywood offers since her controversial win of Big Brother have been notable for their absence, her relationship with beau Raj Kundra has cast her as the “other woman”, and the couple’s recent purchase of a $15.4 million stake in the Indian Premier League team Rajasthan Royals has been touted as a Valentine’s Day gift as well as a hard-headed business decision.

There’s no compelling reason for Shetty to be hogging the news — yet here she is, at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai, earning the ire of the press, many of whom had been promised “exclusives”, but who have now been lumped together for a hastily arranged press conference.

“I have a flight to catch to Jaipur, where I have a shooting scheduled for the music video for Rajasthan Royals,” she smiles prettily, by way of apology. Having battled Mumbai’s afternoon humidity and traffic, and been glared at by safari-suited security guards, I can’t help but wonder what the fuss is about. What is it about Shilpa Shetty that still commands the media into complying with her, quote, byte and action?

The leggy Mangalorean beauty made her acting debut along with two of the biggest stars, Shah Rukh Khan (in a negative role in Baazigar) and Kajol. But while Khan and Kajol went on to command the marquee, Shetty made do with mediocre films then, and even fewer films now, until Jade Goody’s “racist” remarks brought her visibility. Despite the spark of talent she showed in films such as Phir Milenge and Life in a Metro, Shetty hasn’t been busy. “That’s a conscious decision,” she says now. “I can’t handle more than one or two film projects,” she insists.

In this coming — the reason I’m here to meet her — Shetty has moved on to her latest venture, a chain of medispas, with entrepreneur Kiran Bawa as partner. Although Bawa will head the day-to-day operations of Iosis, it is Shetty who has her hands full fielding a clamouring media.

Talking in “exclusive” snatches to a few of us, she divulges that the video for the Rajasthan Royals, Halla bol — “sung by Sunidhi Chauhan and Anand Raaj Anand, and composed by Anand Raaj Anand, with Ken Ghosh as director” — has Ahmed Khan rendering her dance moves. “When it is finally aired on March 20,” she says, “I hope it becomes the anthem of cricket lovers.”

From actress to businesswoman, Shetty’s transition has been slow but steady. She claims, vehemently, that since her father was a businessman, her decision to enter the beauty spa business is not without precedent.

“I took a beautician’s course just after completing my standard 10th exams,” she discloses. “I always wanted a beauty salon,” but the glamour industry intruded on that dream, at least till recently, “when Kiran proposed this joint venture”.

Shetty will be a 50 per cent partner with Bawa, of the Bawa Group of hotels, who lays out their ambitious plans: “In the next month, we will be adding around 15 spas in Mumbai with an investment of Rs 1 crore each, and also open branches in Bangalore, Chandigarh, Delhi and Pune through franchisees.” Surprisingly, this time around Raj Kundra has nothing to do with her business. “I wanted to have a business like a wellness centre, and Kiran’s offer for medispas fitted the bill,” Shetty explains.

All of which puts a lot of pressure on her right now. “Yes, I am working on too many things at the same time,” she acknowledges, “and since my production house needs a lot of attention, I have decided to put it on hold” for now.

The actress’s production house S2 Global Productions had signed filmmaker Manish Jha of Matrubhoomi fame to direct her first home production, but is now stalled.

Can’t her staff oversee work for her production house? “I am a control freak and I need to do everything on my own. I don’t even delegate work to my sister as I want to have the final look. So, it’s best that I do one thing at a time.”

What with shooting for Desire, her first feature film in English, by Sarath Kumar, in which she will pair with Chinese star Xia Yu, and the promotional video for Rajasthan Royals, and the shooting of The Man with Sunny Deol in London, Shetty’s schedule is packed.

She won’t rise to the bait about her marriage plans, despite the glittering rock on her finger. “When the wedding bells ring, you shall hear them loud and clear,” she says with a smile.

For now, Shetty’s priorities are clear, and she articulates them for our benefit, “I’m glad that the games are happening at last... I can’t wait for the IPL to kick-start.” Nor we, honey.

Brett Lee to use IPL stint to earn Oz recall for Ashes

Melbourne, Mar 14 (ANI): Out of reckoning pacer Brett Lee has said that the short spells he will bowl in the Indian Premier League will be ideal preparation for what he hopes will be his third Ashes cricket tour of England.

Lee returns to action next month in a stint with IPL franchise Kings XI Punjab, with whom he played four matches in the inaugural season, and is intent on making the tour after surgery sidelined him from Australia's current campaign in South Africa.

He has resumed bowling after an ankle and foot surgery following the Boxing Day Test, FOX Sports reported.

Everything is going great, so I'm definitely on schedule and feeling really good. Back bowling and the ankle is feeling great, Lee said while watching Australian women lose their game against India on Saturday.

I can bowl four straight depending on how the game goes. The way I look at it, it's the perfect lead in, and so I'm actually really excited about it.

Lee has enjoyed only modest success on the last two Ashes tours, taking nine wickets at 55 in 2001, and 20 at 41 in 2005, for an overall record of 29 wickets from 10 Tests at 45.44.

With 310 Test scalps at 30.81 from 76 matches, Lee was hoping his overall record rather than just recent form would sway the selectors in his favour.

Chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch made it clear both Lee and Stuart Clark, who last week returned to action following an elbow injury, would need to show good form to break back into the team.

IPL bosses begin re-working schedule

New Delhi: With the Indian Premier League being thrown into jeopardy, the organisers have started the cumbersome process of re-working the dates in a bid to salvage the high profile Twenty20 cricket event starting next month.

The tournament, coinciding with the general elections, has run into rough weather after the Home Ministry asked the organisers to redraw the schedule as it was not feasible to hold the matches under the existing fixture because of security reasons.

IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi and CEO Sundar Raman, who air-dashed to the capital from Mumbai last night, spent the entire day here having meetings to find a way out of the imbroglio.

"We are working on a new schedule. Hopefully, everything will be sorted out", IPL Tournament Director Dhiraj Malhotra said.

But even as frantic discussions were going on, the IPL received another jolt with Bangalore Police declining to provide security cover for the tournament till May 3 and advised the organisers to hold all matches after May 4.

"We are constantly fine-tuning the schedule to address the concerns of all the states hosting the matches. It is a tight situation and if need be, we may have to have three matches on a number of days or add some new venues to complete the event within the specific dates", an IPL source said.

India’s New Obsession: Season 2 OF DLF IPL 2009 ONLY ON MAX

MAX, India’s premier entertainment and events channel will once again be the only destination for the second season of The DLF Indian Premier League (IPL), a revolutionary concept in India’s sporting arena which gripped the entire nation last year converting even the most cynical sceptics. And MAX is readying the launch pad for DLF Indian Premier League Season 2. MAX unveils its latest campaign on television this weekend with a creatively titled campaign “Ek Desh Ek Junoon” aptly capturing India’s new obsession with the IPL.

This campaign on MAX will promote the channel as the ultimate destination for entertainment for the next 45 days, starting 10th April 2009. After having broken every record in the history of cricketing entertainment last year, The DLF Indian Premier League 2009 promises to scale new heights this year and MAX’s presentation of these matches will ensure complete, compelling family entertainment this season too.

The 60 second IPL ad film is a montage of shots which shows different people from all over India, doing exactly the same thing at the same time e.g. a group of people sitting with newspapers - they all turn a page in sync. Cooks in a restaurant in Mumbai twirl a Roomali roti in the air at the same time. In a class room full of kids, all raise their little fingers to ask for permission to go to the bathroom at the same time, 500 people at VT station call out for a taxi at the same time and so on. A number of such montage shots are shown. Finally a voice over asks: Kabhi sau crore logon ko ek saath ek hi cheez karte dekha hain? This is followed by a montage of IPL shots and shots of people reacting to last year’s IPL in the same manner across the country. And the final voice over says – ‘Ek Desh Ek Junoon, DLF IPL sirf MAX par’.

Says Gaurav Seth, VP - Marketing, MAX, “The IPL is our nation’s passion. With the 2008 DLF IPL, which proved its entertainment quotient last year, there is absolutely no question about what’s going to be on India’s mind, come 10th April 2009. We have captured that obsession and passion with our campaign this year, which details how across this country irrespective of geography, ethnicity, religion, age or gender, people came together to celebrate and enjoy the sensation that is the DLF IPL. Last year, MAX kept its viewers thoroughly entertained thus creating a revolution in prime time viewing habits. This year again, season 2 of the DLF IPL only on MAX, guarantees that the entire country will say ‘Deewana bana diya’ ”.

‘Ek Desh Ek Junoon’ campaign has been conceptualised by TBWA. Rahul Sengupta, National Creative Director, TBWA India says, “We set out to create a unique piece of communication for a very unique property, which is the IPL. We had been through more than twenty ideas and just picked one out of that - which was difficult to imagine and equally nightmarish to execute. Either the magic would fall really flat or else turn out exceptionally. I think we’ve achieved the latter.”

The film has been shot by Footcandles and directed by Ayyappa, of ‘Bingo Mad Angles’ fame. Given that the entire country is excited about this tournament, the campaign will be aired across all markets in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada languages. In addition to the film being aired on SET network channels as well as other GECs, it will also be aired on news channels, music channels and regional channels all across India. MAX will promote the campaign in 150 towns through on-ground activities. These will involve contests, merchandising and other activities. Outdoor advertising, radio and the Internet will form a crucial part of the promotional mix.

Max in IPL marketing spree

MUMBAI: IPL broadcast partner Max has set the ball rolling with its latest television campaign for the multi-million Twenty20 game under the "Ek Desh Ek Junoon" title.

The campaign will be aired across all key markets in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada languages. It will also be run on Set network channels and various other GECs.

Says Max VP - marketing Gaurav Seth, "Our target is to reach out to at least 50 channels across all languages and genres in India. This includes all the general entertainment channels, kids' channels, regional and music channels and, of course, news channels."

Apart from television, Max will also promote the campaign in 150 towns through on-ground activities, contests and merchandising. Outdoor advertising, radio and the internet will form a crucial part of the promotional mix.

"We will be launching our radio and outdoor campaign during the last week of March. While we plan to tie up with select radio stations in over 50 cities, out-of-home will spread across 60 cities with 3 lakh square feet outdoor canvas," Seth says.

The channel will be using the internet platform to target viewers directly. Explains Seth, "We will also be actively engaging the social media space through communities and blogs to promote this high profile game."

Brains behind the TVC

Conceptualised by TBWA, the commercial has been directed by Ayyappa of 'Bingo Mad Angles' fame. Footcandles is the producer of the TVC.

Says TBWA India national creative director Rahul Sengupta, "We set out to create a unique piece of communication for a very unique property, which is the IPL. We had been through more than 20 ideas and just picked one out of that - which was difficult to imagine and equally nightmarish to execute. Either the magic would fall really flat or else turn out exceptionally. I think we've achieved the latter."

IPL releases list of final playing squads

Mumbai: Even as a final decision on the fate of the second edition of the IPL is awaited, the franchisees on Friday announced their squad lists for the second season.

Despite the financial downturn this year, the franchises have bolstered their squads. Kolkata Knight Riders announced the biggest pool of players with 57 while Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab have 24 to choose from.

There are a total of 189 Indian players participating this season with 80 international players accompanying them.

"The finalisation of the playing squads by each of the eight franchises is truly a major milestone for Season II of the Indian Premier League," IPL commissioner Lalit Modi said.

"I am particularly pleased by the fact that all the franchisees have invested in grooming young Indian talent, who will undoubtedly benefit immensely from their experiences with the international players and their interactions with the India seniors."

Squads:

Bangalore Royal Challengers: Jacques Kallis, Mark Boucher, Dale Steyn, Dillon Du Preez, Cameron White, Nathan Bracken, Ross Taylor, Kevin Pietersen, Jesse Ryder, Roelof van der Merwe, Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble, Robin Uthappa, Praveen Kumar, Virat Kohli, Wasim Jaffer, Manish Pandey, Sreevats Goswami, Suteesh R, Pankaj Singh, Vinay Kumar, Bhuvnesh Kumar, Karan Sharma, Saurav Bandekar, Tinu Yohanan, Bharat Chipli, B Akhil, Devraj Patil, J Arun Kumar, K P Appanna, Sunil Joshi, Gaurav Dhiman, Jitendra Patil, Udit Patel, Mithun A, Aravind S, Kedar Jadhav, Gautam C M, Raju Bhatkal, Rajesh Bishnoi, Ishank Jaggi, Rohit Sabharwal.

Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (captain), Muttiah Muralitharan, Matthew Hayden, Michael Hussey, Albie Morkel, Makhaya Ntini, Jacob Oram, Stephen Fleming, Thilan Thushara, Andrew Flintoff, George Bailey, Parthiv Patel, Suresh Raina, S Badrinath, L Balaji, Murali Vijay, Joginder Sharma, Manpreet Singh Gony, Sudeep Tyagi, Viraj Kadbe, Shadab Jakati, R Ashwin, Abhinav Mukund, Anirudha Srikkanth, Sivaramakrishnan Vidyut, Palani Amarnath, KB Arun Karthik, Nepoleon Einstein, Suresh Kumar.

Delhi Daredevils: Virender Sehwag (captain), AB de Villiers, Daniel Vettori, Owais Shah, Paul Collingwood, David Warner, Andrew McDonald, Dirk Nannes, Glenn McGrath, Farveez Maharoof, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Gautam Gambhir, Dinesh Karthik, Manoj Tiwary, Rajat Bhatia, Mithun Manhas, Avishkar Salvi, Ashish Nehra, Yo Mahesh, Pradeep Sangwan, Umesh Yadav, Yogesh Nagar, Tejaswi Yadav, Amit Mishra.

Hyderabad Deccan Chargers: Adam Gilchrist, Herschelle Gibbs, Scott Styris, Andrew Symonds, Ryan Harris, Fidel Edwards, Dwayne Smith, Chamara Silva, Chaminda Vaas, Nuwan Zoysa, VVS Laxman, Rohit Sharma, RP Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Venugopal Rao, Dwaraka Ravi Teja, Tirumalasetti Suman, Arjun Yadav, Doddapaneni Kalyankrishna, Paidikalva Vijay Kumar, Abhinav Kumar, Manvinder Bisla, Jaskaran Deep Singh, Harmeet Singh, Sarvesh Kumar, Haladhar Das, Syed Mohammad, Shoaib Ahmed.

Mumbai Indians: Sachin Tendulkar (captain), Lasith Malinga, Jean-Paul Duminy, Graham Napier, Ryan McLaren, Dilhara Fernando, Sanath Jayasuriya, Dwayne Bravo, Mohammad Ashraful, Kyle Mills, Luke Ronchi, Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh, Shikhar Dhawan, Abhishek Nayar, Dhawal Kulkarni, Jude Singh, Jaydev Shah, Raahil Shaikh, Yogesh Takawale, Pinal Shah, Ajinkya Rahane, Chetanya Nanda, Rohan Raje, Saurabh Tiwary.

Rajasthan Royals: Shane Warne (captain), Graeme Smith, Shane Watson, Dmitri Mascarenhas, Morne Morkel, Robert Quiney, Tyron Henderson, Shaun Tait, Shane Harwood, Lee Carlesdine, Mohammad Kaif, Munaf Patel, Yusuf Pathan, Siddharth Trivedi, Swapnil Asnodkar, Niraj Patel, Mahesh Rawat, Anup Revandkar, Ravindra Jadeja, Dinesh Salunkhe, Naman Ojha, Siddharth Chitnis, Paras Dogra, Amit Singh, Ahad Malek, Raphi Vincent Gomes, Kamran Khan, Ashraf Makda, Paul Valhaty, Srideep Mangela, Mohammad Arif, Gajendra Singh, Atul Sharma, Pratmesh Salunkhe, Pushkarraj Chavan.

Kolkata Knight Riders: Sourav Ganguly (captain), Chris Gayle, Brendon McCullum, Brad Hodge, Ricky Ponting, David Hussey, Angelo Mathews, Moises Henriques, Mark Cameron, Mashrafe Mortaza, Ajantha Mendis, Debabrata Das, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Wriddhiman Saha, Ashoke Dinda, Ajit Agarkar, Ishant Sharma, Murali Kartik, Iqbal Abdullah, Cheteshwar Pujara, Yashpal Singh, Aakash Chopra, Anureet Singh, Rajesh Verma, Aditya Dole, S Niyaz, Ishwar Chaudhury, Mohnish Parmar, ME Sanauth, Sheldon Jackson, Amit Das, Sanjib Sanyal, Avik Chowdhury, Sachin Rana, Sunny Singh, Gaurav Chhabra, Nataraj Behera, Shatrunjay Gaekwad, Shoaib Sheikh, Rohan Prem, Sanjay Bangar, Gnaneshwar Rao, Bhavik Thakkar, Kedar Jadhav, P Prashant, Prashant Parmeshwar, Kshemal Waingmankar, Murtaza Hussain, Sourav Sarkar, Arindam Ghosh, Ameya Shrikhande, Chetan Suryavanshi, Abhishek Banerjee, Anustup Mazumdar, Dhiran Salvi, Sanju Samson, Vinit Indulkar.

Kings XI Punjab: Yuvraj Singh (captain), Brett Lee, James Hopes, Shaun Marsh, Luke Pomersbach, Simon Katich, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Burt Cockley, Ravi Bopara, Jerome Taylor, Irfan Pathan, S Sreesanth, Ramesh Powar, VRV Singh, Piyush Chawla, Karan Goel, Uday Kaul, Wilkin Mota, Ajitesh Argal, Tanmay Srivastava, Sunny Sohal, Ryan Ninan, Yash Gandhi.

Shilpa Shetty`s royal IPL bash

Life has been one long party for Shilpa Shetty of late.

From winning Celebrity Big Brother, to finding herself the man of her dreams, UK-based entrepreneur Raj Kundra, to being gifted a stake in Rajasthan Royals, the team that won the inaugural IPL championship, she has had plenty of wish-I-threw-everyone-a-bash moments.

But the lady has been rather selective in humouring her wishes.

The day before Holi, the festival of colours, though was too good to miss, providing as it did the perfect opportunity to throw the IPL party to rival all IPL parties.

And with Hrithik Roshan, Vivek Oberoi, Lalit Modi and Shilpa, the hostess, herself in attendance, it did turn out to be a right royal bash.

Image: Going for gold – that will be Shilpa, seen at her glittering best, her boyfriend Raj Kundra, smiling in the background, and the defending champions Royals, in whose honour the duo threw the party, when IPL 2009 finally gets underway.

Chattisgarh offers to host IPL matches

Raipur: The Chhattisgarh government has offered to host a few matches of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and assured full security cover despite the schedule clashing with the general elections, an official said here on Saturday.

"We are very keen to host some IPL Twenty20 matches at the newly-built stadium on the outskirts of Raipur. Chief Minister Raman Singh spoke with IPL commissioner Lalit Modi on Friday and formally made the offer," Chhattisgarh State Cricket Sangh (CSCS) president Baldev Singh Bhatia told IANS.

"The chief minister has assured full security cover to the players and officials if Chhattisgarh is given a chance to host the matches," he added.

He claimed that Raipur has better cricketing facilities than several other venues in the race to host IPL matches in April-May.

Chhattisgarh's first ever international cricket stadium, with a seating capacity of 60,000, was inaugurated in September last year.

The stadium is built at Parsada village in Naya Raipur, 20 km from here.

The CSCS claims that the stadium is the second best in the country after the Eden Gardens in Kolkata in terms of seating capacity and facilities available to the crowd and players.

The stadium complex is spread over 50 acres. It has an electronic score board, nine pitches and a car parking which can hold 6,000 four-wheelers besides 11 ticket plazas, Bhatia said.

Lee ready for IPL return

Australia fast bowler Brett Lee is looking forward to returning to action in the upcoming Indian Premier League.

The 32-year-old has been sidelined since Christmas after undergoing surgery on his troublesome ankle for a fifth time, but is hoping to regain his form and fitness ahead of this summer's Ashes series.

And the strike bowler believes the IPL gives him the perfect opportunity to get back into the swing of things when he represents the Kings XI next month.

"I actually reckon it is ideal," said Lee. "I can bowl four (overs) straight, depending on how the game goes. The way I look at it, it's the perfect lead in - so I'm actually really excited about it.

"That will be my first opportunity to bowl in a competition, so I'll be back bowling (in the) IPL and getting over there and enjoying sub-continent cricket again.

"Everything is going great. The ankle is feeling great, and I'm definitely on schedule."

Track Record

Lee has been impressed with the young Australian seam attack that has helped the tourists take a 2-0 Test series lead against South Africa, but believes his track record will help him regain his place in the side in time for the trip to England in July.

"I think it's very healthy for Australian cricket," he said. "I always keep a note on what's happening overseas, the guys have been playing extremely well.

"But I know what I have to do and I'm excited. I'm only 32 years of age, so I'm looking forward to getting back on the park.

"I enjoyed my last tour over there (in England). I thought I had a pretty good tour.

"Unfortunately we couldn't come home with the goods, but I've always enjoyed playing in England.

"I've played in two Ashes there, and I will be looking forward to getting back and making the third one even better. I'm just hoping my record speaks for itself."

SET may sign 9 brands as associate sponsors for IPL

NEW DELHI: Even as the home ministry has raised objections on the revised schedule for Indian Premier League (IPL), broadcaster SET Max has managed to close some of its associate sponsors deals for on-air advertisements. The company, which has the broadcast rights for the domestic cricket league, is expected to sign eight to nine brands as associate sponsors.

Coca-Cola, Airtel digital television, Vodafone and Havells have become associate sponsors, said a senior executive with SET, who didn’t wish to be quoted. He added that besides these firms, SET has received commitment from another three-four companies to become substantial advertisers for IPL, though these deals have not been inked yet.

Car maker Hyundai and Max New York Life Insurance confirmed that they will be substantial advertisers for IPL, but it is not clear whether they will be associate sponsors. When contacted, Max New York Life executive vice- president (marketing) Anisha Motwani, said: “At this stage, I can only say that we are going to be a substantial sponsor for IPL.” SET is also negotiating with other firms such as LG, Samsung, ITC and Godrej.

Most of these sponsors are looking to break specific campaigns on IPL. Electrical products maker Havells, which has an annual advertising budget of Rs 70-80 crore, will spend atleast Rs 30 crore on IPL. “We are foraying into industrial products and want to break our campaign on IPL to reach out to our target audience,” said Havells joint managing director Anil Gupta. He added that as long as IPL is organised in the same season, the sponsorship deal will stand.

“If the dates are rejigged to an extent that there could be three matches a day, then the number of ad spots available during prime time would reduce, which could create a problem,” Mr Gupta said. SET Max executive VP and business head Sneha Rajani said: “We have closed some deals and hope to sign 8-9 brands as associate sponsors.”

Meanwhile, the ministry of home affairs on Friday said the league would have to reschedule match dates for the second time because many regional governments had said they would find it tough to spare security forces who would be busy due to the poll.

IPL gives top priority for security arrangements

The Lahore incident has proved that terrorists are no cricket lovers as was told by former Pakistan captain Imran Khan. Terror spares no one. That it has happened much before the IPL has made the authorities think very seriously about the security arrangements. Given the professional management that was witnessed in the first edition of the IPL, there is no reason to feel that they would not beef up the security in the tournaments commencing next month.

Though the IPL has to have the security clearance from the various state governments, it would be foolish to rely totally on the various states’ security measures. Had the security measures of the states in combating the deadly attacks been perfect, a lot many lives would not have been lost. It is not a criticism of the state’s security but a fact that not all forces of the states are adequately trained and that is a major worry.

Not only the IPL will have to engage the state security at a phenomenal cost but all their demands will have to be met without having the liberty to waive off costs if they fail. This is where the IPL has decided to involve a professional security agency and as Lalit Modi said will be paid more to ensure all aspects of the security are covered.

It was in 1983 that the Kolhapur Cricket Association in Maharashtra was asked to hold the West Indies’ West Zone match. Though the association had no previous experience of managing foreign teams, the core committee of former India players Madhav Mantri, Polly Umrigar and Bapu Nadkarni all experienced administrators decided to involve the Territorial Army Battalion from Belgaum.

Despite the fact that there was no threat of terrorists, they ensured that no person without any security clearance was allowed either near hotel or in the ground. In fact, the Mayor of the town too was not spared. The state security would not have been able to stop the politicians the way Battalion personnel did.

There is a need to enforce confidence building exercise within the security agency appointed by the IPL. If the security measures are publicised, the people and the foreign cricketers will not react on heresy. Giving assurances and making security plans public are two different things. The Pakistan Cricket Board assured state-level security to Sri Lankan team but when the team attacked, there was no security in the bus.

It is going to be a Herculean task for Lalit Modi and his band of committed workers. It will be a tension-filled forty days for them. The Home Ministry having given the permission will be equally concerned about the security and the IPL security forces will have to work closely with the state security so that in the eventuality of terrorist attack, both the agencies are in a position to effectively combat it.

Bengal gives conditional nod to IPL

The uncertainty over IPL matches scheduled for Kolkata continues after the state government on Thursday decided to place two crucial conditions before the Union home ministry on security arrangements.

The state government told the home ministry that the match scheduled for May 4 can only be held provided 30 companies of Central paramilitary forces are sent to Kolkata on that day to provide security for the match.

Also, the other matches on April 11, 14, 16, 21, 26 and May 2 can be held provided Kolkata Police personnel are not sent for poll duty outside the city. During the elections, the Centre forms a pool and police personnel can be sent anywhere outside the city limits to elsewhere in the state and even to other states on election duty.

Since the IPL matches are being held concurrently with the elections, the state government is working out the availability of forces so that the security of the players, viewers and the poll process is not compromised.

Chief secretary Ashok Mohan Chakrabarti will write to the home ministry on this after the decisions were taken at a high-level meeting at Writers' Buildings. Besides the chief secretary, home secretary Ardhendu Sen, director-general of state police A B Vohra, director-general (coordination) Bhupinder Singh, city police commissioner Gautam Mohan Chakrabarty and IG (law and order) Raj Kanojia were present.

According to the CP, if 30 companies of Central forces are not sent for the May 4 match, it cannot be held. Or, it can either to be brought forward or postponed beyond May 16, the day election results would be announced. In both cases, Kolkata Police personnel cannot be sent outside Kolkata for poll duty.

Elections in Bengal are scheduled on three days April 30, May 7 and May 13. Kolkata goes to the polls on May 13.

"A 4,000-strong force is usually required for a cricket match with 3,000 needed at the match venue itself," the chief secretary said.

The CP also added that IPL organisers would be asked to foot the bill for police deployment. He said the organisers had paid only a part of last year's bill.

Except for Delhi, all the states want central forces even if they get adequate gaps between poll and match dates.

Referring to the states' demand, home ministry officials wondered how they could spare additional paramilitary forces to that extent when collective requirement would not be less than 6,000 to 7,000 personnel for the IPL.

It is learnt that home minister P Chidambaram, who couldn't go through the states' response as he was not in the capital, is likely to take the final call after reviewing the matter with officials on Friday.

Ambani calls on Chidambaram over IPL?

Industrialist and owner of one of the Indian Premier League cricket teams, Mukesh Ambani, on Saturday met Home Minister P Chidambaram and is understood to have discussed the schedule of the league's second edition.

The meeting assumes importance as eight states have expressed their inability to provide security cover for the gala cricketing event in view of the dates overlapping with the general elections beginning April 16.

Ambani, who owns the team Mumbai Indians, is also believed to have apprised Chidambaram about the losses that team franchises could suffer if the league were to be postponed, sources said.

When contacted, the spokesperson of Ambani-run Reliance Industries declined to comment.

In a statement on Friday, the Home Ministry said that it "may not be feasible to hold the matches as per the revised schedule submitted by them (IPL organisers)."

The league was first postponed after the attack on Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore earlier in March and as per the revised schedule was to be held between April 10 and May 24. But elections start on April 16.

Ambani had earlier paid a courtesy visit to senior BJP leader L K Advani.

Karnataka declines to host IPL till May 4

What looked like a simple affair after the grand success of its inaugural edition, the Indian Premier League is struggling in its second year for a smooth take off.

A day after Union Home Ministry rejected the new IPL schedule and asked the organisers to re-work on it, the tournament got another blow as Bangalore police declined to provide any security before May 4.

Karnataka Home Minister VS Acharya said that the state was ready for IPL between May 4 and May 14. During this period, the state would provide security even without the central security help.

The poll dates in the state are on April 23 and 30 and the counting of votes will take place on May 16.

However, the organizers are trying their best to have the T20 event on schedule with minor changes. They are keen to go ahead with the tournament, as it's not possible to postpone the dates as the cramped international cricket calendar does not allow it.

IPL chief Lalit Modi was in Delhi on Saturday to try and salvage the high-profile event that has thousands of crore riding on it.

IPL authorities said they were ready with the revised schedule. According to them, the third schedule was ready for the tournament that's less than a month away.

Rahul Gandhi likely to pad up during IPL slam bang

NEW DELHI: Political parties, especially the Congress and its youth icon Rahul Gandhi, are pushing to get a piece of the biggest television show round the corner—the Indian Premier League (IPL).

The Congress, which has roped in the country’s biggest media-buying house Group M-owned Mindshare to buy air-time to advertise as a run-up to the elections, is very keen to sign a big advertising deal with IPL broadcaster Sony Entertainment’s SET Max channel.

According to a ruling by the IPL committee inked some time back, political parties can’t advertise on IPL, but an official closely involved with the developments told ET: “Since there is a lot of pressure from political parties to lift the ruling, the IPL committee is relooking at this clause.”

Since now IPL seems well in place despite the home ministry’s original concerns on security, the pressure on the IPL committee to alter its rule is gaining ground.

It is learnt that the Congress wants to spend about Rs 20-25 crore for advertising on SET Max during the IPL alone, which could either be in the form of a bulk ad deal or through spot buys. The party’s total communication spend is about Rs 150-180 crore and it has assigned two agencies—JWT and Crayons—for its communication.

Two officials close to the developments told ET: “The Congress wants to advertise heavily on IPL featuring Rahul Gandhi and other Youth Congress members. They want to project their party as a brand, and since IPL’s TRPs broke records last year, the party believes it’s an ideal platform to reach out to the electorate. They are just waiting to get a clear picture from the IPL management to finalise plans.” IPL CEO Sundar Raman could not be reached for comments despite repeated attempts.

Sony Entertainment could earn Rs 50-60 crore from election-based advertising by all political parties put together. A Sony official, who did not want to be identified, said: “We are obviously keen to block advertising deals with interested political parties—it would provide incremental revenues at a time when regular advertisers are negotiating hard to extract the most cost-effective ad deals.”

Revised IPL schedule to be announced on Tuesday

New Delhi, Mar 9 (ANI): The Indian Premier League (IPL) will announce its revised schedule for the second session of the tournament on Tuesday.

IPL commissioner Lalit Modi will announce the schedule in Mumbai.

The IPL commissioner has tried to avoid a clash with polling dates.

The rescheduling follows after the intervention from the home ministry and apprehensions of the various state governments over the dates clashing with the general elections.

Modi has earlier assured the cricket fans that IPL was on and there was no question of the IPL moving to a foreign country.

Various media reports had claimed that the UAE and some Western countries are ready to host the cash-rich Twenty20 event.

Modi also thanked Home Minister P. Chidambaram for receiving assurances on security.

Earlier, the Home Ministry had urged the IPL to alter the dates as they were clashing with the election schedule. (ANI)

The show must go on - Sunil Gavaskar Column

The Indian Premier League is a domestic tournament. Let us get that clear right at the start. It may have overseas players participating in it but it is still a domestic event of the BCCI in the latest format of the sport; the T20. The BCCI also has other tournaments like the Ranji Trophy and Duleep Trophy which are first class tournaments recognized by the International Cricket Council too. This year the BCCI had allowed overseas players to participate in the Ranji tournament and the odd overseas player did play though they were not high profile or star players. So it is not as if there are no foreign players in India's domestic tournament.

After the attack on the Sri Lankan team and ICC match officials in Lahore, suddenly questions are being asked about the feasibility of having the IPL in India at the same time as the general elections. Last year when the Karnataka assembly elections were held, the IPL matches in Bangalore were shifted away and rescheduled so as not to clash with the election dates there and the tournament went on smoothly and ended up on a high with a last ball finish in the finals. With the general elections to be held in various phases and on different dates, there is similar scope for the matches to be rescheduled in such a way that security for the tournament is not compromised.

On most days there will be at best two matches played at different venues and these venues will not clash with the elections. With eight teams in the IPL there are 8 match centres and maybe they may have to be increased so as to ensure that there is no clash with elections and so there really should not be any issues at all.

Of course in today's world, no security can be foolproof anwhere in the world including England but does that mean sport should come to a standstill? More crucially, the question is if it was the Ranji Trophy clashing with the general elections would there be such a big issue made out of it as is being done with the IPL? Are we to presume that overseas lives are far more precious than Indian lives?

The reason that this question is being asked is that just like the Ranji Trophy, the IPL is also a domestic tournament albeit with overseas players in it. Don't our Ranji players play in cities and states where terrorist activities have taken place? Those games were not cancelled, were they? What signal are we trying to send? That a terrorist attack in Lahore can destabilize our domestic tourney? What picture does it paint of our security and intelligence agencies? The Indian cricket lover is looking forward to the IPL and there is no doubt that there is likely to be a voter backlash if he is deprived of watching his favourite stars and backing his favourite team.

The sad part is that instead of helping our domestic event it is us Indians who are trying to put spokes in the wheels of what is the cricketing world's envy. A cancellation will give opportunities to other countries like England to stake a claim for holding similar events and despite there being instances of terrorist activities there too and no guarantee of total safety, the very same people who are screaming themselves hoarse about having tournaments in India will be gung-ho about having it outside.

There are reports too about how some overseas players are having second thoughts about coming to India in the wake of the Lahore attacks but then they are naive to think that India and Pakistan are the same. The England team, God bless them, came back to India within a fortnight after Mumbai's two iconic hotels were savaged and played a two Test series with no problems whatsoever. Sure they had done due dilligence on the security and only after they were satisfied did they resume the tour and it was incident free and they went back with more Indian supporters than since the time they were ruling the world.

Quite simply, if overseas players don't come it is their choice and they will be the losers and not the tournament. The event last year brought many an unknown Indian talent to the fore and that is exactly what any withdrawals will do. Give more chances to the Indian players and save the franchises paying some who are overrated and thus overpaid. By the way, have you noticed that none of the support staff, many of whom have come in thanks to their countrymen's influence over the franchises have expressed any concern about coming to India. They know they are on to a good thing but it will only be for another year due to the contract with the franchises and they are not fools and will know when they are being taken for a ride. Already some of the franchises have laid off support staff after seeing the nepotism and chicanery of the hired ones last year. However, that is a story for another day.

IPL wants to hold two T20 matches in Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad , Mar 9 The Indian Premier League (IPL) is willing to organise two matches of this season&aposs T20 championship in Ahmedabad provided the Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) gets clearance from the state government.

"We have received an email from IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi, who has asked us if two of the matches for this season could be held in Ahmedabad after the Lok Sabha elections in the state,"GCA President Narhari Amin told PTI.

" Modi has asked to get necessary government clearance for organising the matches. We have faxed a copy of the email to the Chief Minister along with a request letter to allow IPL matches in Ahmedabad ," Amin said.

Doubts had been raised over the second edition of the IPL in wake of the deadly terror attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore and the general elections which coincide with the league that starts on April 10 and concludes on May 24.

The five-phased Lok Sabha elections are scheduled to be held between April 16 and May 13.

However, following talks with the Central Government over security issues, IPL chief Modi had declared that the T20 championship will be held with a few modifications in the schedule.

UFO upgrades technology for IPL theatrical projection

MUMBAI: Digital cinema company UFO Moviez is gearing up to provide technological services to stream live Indian Premiere League (IPL) cricket matches to cinemas in India. The company will be investing Rs 20 million (Rs 2 crores) for additional hardware and bandwidth for the same.

IPL will be held from 18 April to 1 June and companies such as UTV, Group M and some others are said to have put in tenders by invitation for bidding of theatrical rights. The final names will be declared on 13 or 14 March. According to information available with Businessofcinema.com, the bidding price is in the range of Rs 250 million (Rs 25 crores).

The company, which bags the distribution rights, will further commission the rights to cinemas on a revenue share or minimum guarantee (MG) basis.

However, UFO Moviez is not involved in the bidding of the rights and will only provide the technological service to the company that bags the rights. “We are in the business of content projection in cinemas and not in bidding of rights. We would like to believe that the company, which bags IPL theatrical rights will reach out to us for the projection of match in cinemas, as we are equipped with satellite projection systems for live streaming,” UFO Moviez COO Vishnu Patel tells Businessofcinema.com.

UFO has approximately 1400 installations in screens countrywide, but all its screens will not play the IPL matches. Additionally, some non-UFO cinemas, which want to air the match will have to lease the projection and satellite system in order to do so.

The ticket price to view an IPL match in a cinema may be higher than the normal movie ticket rates, as the duration of a match is more than that of a movie. “Initially we plan to keep nominal ticket rates, but the prices may increase from semi- final onwards,” says a multiplex officer.

Through this live IPL match screening UFO stands to gain a commission on the total business generated in each cinema or a fixed fee for the projection for each match at a cinema, negotiation for which are currently on with respective cinemas. “We are estimating a total of 1000 -1200 screens to stream live IPL match in their cinemas,” concludes Patel.

IPL matches will not be held: Home min sources

New Delhi: There seems to be another hitch to season two of IPL. Home ministry sources tell CNN-IBN, that eight police chiefs say matches cannot be held in April or May in its present form.

They say that police chief want more spacing between matches, currently there is no match 72 hours on either side of poll dates.

Elections in Bengal are on 30th April, 7th and 13th May. As of now- IPL matches in Kolkata are slated for May 2nd, 6th, 8th, and 13th

In Delhi, voting is scheduled for May 7 and IPL matches in Delhi are scheduled on the 5th, 11, 14 and 16th.

Maharashtra and Karnataka Schedule of polls and IPL matches also clash. The Punjab and Andhra police too want the IPL dates to be changed.

Home ministry also says that more than 72 hours are needed for deployment of C49SF and CRPF. The Intelligence bureau is also likely to advice against holding the matches.

Earlier, state governments have expressed their inability in providing security for the IPL, which coincides with the Lok Sabha elections.

"I did not say IPL should be postponed,” said Chidambaram. "IPL and election schedules are overlapping. I don't blame the IPL management at all. They finalised their dates earlier. But once the election commission announced the election dates, I saw that the election and IPL schedules were completely overlapping."

The Minister said that the "IPL has come up with another schedule now after I asked them to. We will try to help the IPL to the overcome all issues in holding matches."

Chidambaram added that some rescheduling of IPL matches "seems unavoidable", but "the government is ready to help as much as it can".

"Cricket must be played in India; cricket is always safe in India. We will ensure safety when the matches are played," the Home Minister added.

The IPL organisers have conveyed to the Home Ministry that they do not require any central forces for the security.

The Home Ministry has passed on the new schedule to the states and is waiting for their response as to whether they need para-military forces for matches or not.

No South African players for IPL if security seen insufficient

Johannesburg (IANS): South African cricketers will not be allowed to go to India for their IPL commitments if the security conditions there are deemed insufficient, the company responsible for their safety told the Afrikaans weekly Rapport.

"We are in daily contact with the Indian authorities and even though we are not in charge of stadium safety, we do look after the protection of the players," said Robert Nicholls, director of Nicholls, Steyn and Associates, which controls player security during the IPL.

"If we feel that it does not comply with the standards, we will not allow the players to play there."

Nicholls said the attacks on the Sri Lankan side in Lahore last week had been "a wake-up call for everyone."

"Until recently, cooperation with Indian authorities was practically non-existent, but hopefully this will now change."

Nicholls said one of the "biggest headaches" was the national elections taking place at the same time as the IPL, as there may not be enough security personnel to handle both events simultaneously.

"The problem with the law enforcers on the subcontinent and especially in India is that as soon as you ask them to heighten security measures, they just make more police officers available.

"Eventually you can have 60,000 officers, but it will help very little against a suicide bomber."

South African captain Graeme Smith told Rapport that no "hasty decisions" would be taken. "We will rely heavily on the advice of Cricket South Africa and the safety consultants, but it is understandable that the guys do not want to return to the continent.

"There is an important tour to India for us next year and the IPL is just around the corner. Although there are serious objections to playing in places where you often risk your life, we must first wait to have all the information (before deciding),"Smith concluded.

Even though the IPL is very lucrative for South African players such as J P Duminy, who was snapped up for $1m by Mumbai Indians recently, Rapport quoted an unnamed player as saying that they would rather stay at home.

"I know of no player who is still seriously considering participation in the IPL. It's not just Pakistan where you are constantly a target, but in many sub continental countries - just look at what happened in Mumbai (in November 2008)."

CSA has no objection in sending players for IPL

Durban (PTI): Players around the world are getting jittery about playing in the Indian Premier League in the wake of Lahore terror attack but Cricket South Africa on Monday said it has no objection in sending the country's players for the Twenty20 event.

The second edition of the cash-rich event will kick off on April 10 in Mumbai.

England players Andrew Flintoff, Kevin Pietersen and New Zealand all rounder Jacob Oram have hinted they might skip the event on security grounds.

Cricket South Africa spokesperson Michael Owen-Smith said CSA has no objection "whatsoever" to their national cricketers playing in the IPL.

"Cricket SA has taken no decision objecting to our players being involved in the IPL. Any suggestion to the contrary is not true," Owen-Smith told PTI.

Owen-Smith said safety of players is a matter for the players and their teams concerned.

IPL: Ray of hope for city

JAIPUR: With the state government deciding to write to BCCI assuring all support and security for the upcoming league and the cricket’s governing body acknowledging their support, there seems to be a prominent silver lining in Pink City’s chances of hosting Indian Premier League (IPL) matches now. But a twin stance taken by the state government of assuring all security but the inability of the government to clarify why in the same letter it has requested for more central security personnel leaves a element of doubt.

Responding to chief minister Ashok Gehlot’s letter to the BCCI, president, Shashank Manohar, BCCI, vice-president and IPL chairman Lalit Modi said, “We welcome the governments initiative and if the security concern is met, Jaipur will have its share of IPL matches.” He further added that IPL was never against hosting matches in Jaipur and security was its only concern, rest everything else was mere speculation.

With the IPL revised schedule expected to be out on Tuesday, the Rajasthan Royals should confirm the IPL in writing that adequate security will be provided to the teams after obtaining a validated clearance from the state government. When contacted the Rajasthan Royal officials denied an official comment, however they maintained that the their interaction with the state government and Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) have been positive and that the developments are taking in the right direction.

In his letter to the BCCI president, CM mentioned that IPL won’t host the matches on May 4,5,6,7, 8 and 9 as the state goes to polls on May 7. He further stressed that barring these dates the state government is ready to host IPL matches and he even said that the city should host all seven matches including the inaugural.

Gehlot had also asked the BCCI, if one IPL match could be hosted in Jodhpur, as the ground has all the required facilities and if there were any shortcomings they can be fulfilled. Speaking on the issue Modi said, “Jodhpur is neither a BCCI nor an ICC approved venue for hosting an ODI match and, for the time being, can’t host an IPL match in the near future.”

Jodhpur hosted an international match last in 2001 when India played Zimbabwe, but RCA sources said that preparing the ground in such a short notice is mammoth task.

Chennai Template to be followed for IPL 2: Lalit Modi

Lalit Modi.

Mumbai: Even after the terror attack on the Sri Lankan team at Lahore, IPL Chairman and Commissioner, Lalit Modi and BCCI officials did not let their aplomb diminish to conduct the IPL Season II from April 10 to May 24.

The Home Minister P. Chidambaram’s positive statements last Friday helped matters after the IPL agreed to reschedule the event so that the Twenty20 programme dates do not clash with the Lok Sabha election dates in order to get adequate security personnel at IPL venues.

In this interview to The Hindu Mr. Modi says the Chennai Template for the India-England Test series would be the yardstick for security provisions.

It’s not been a particularly good week for you; first the RCA elections, then the shocking events in Lahore that put the spanner in the works on the IPL season II.

The events that transpired in Lahore were indeed shocking. Thank God all the Sri Lankan cricketers are safe and back home with their loved ones.

The RCA election is now in the past and I have moved on. Just to set the record straight, the development and good work done during the last four years at the RCA is evident and visible for everyone to see. What transpired in Jaipur on March 1 had political connotations to it.

We were always aware of the upcoming general elections and the importance of the same for a vibrant democracy such as ours. And so were prepared to work around the polling dates to ensure that there was no clash of IPL matches with the election dates. So there is no question of any nightmares.

The BCCI stuck its neck out through Mr. Shashank Manohar’s statements that the IPL must go on. Security — quite lax at a number of centres last year — ought to be a top priority now?

The support of the BCCI President — Mr. Manohar — was indeed important and special. Security has always been accorded the highest priority by the BCCI.

Immediately after the Mumbai attacks last year the BCCI undertook a comprehensive security review and has worked towards creating a security template in conjunction with an external agency that is widely known as the best in the field.

It’s on the Chennai Security Template that we were able to convince the ECB for England to return to India. We will apply this same template for player and spectator security during the IPL Season II.

The security for the entire tournament has been handed over to South African firm Nicholls Steyn and Associates. We will also work closely with the Union, State and local authorities to ensure the smooth and successful conduct of the tournament.

The Home Minister’s clarification must have eased matters a bit. All said and done there are people who attempt to break rules to get close to the players, dressing rooms and also at hotels. How do you intend to deal with this sensitive issue? IMG has pointed out shortcomings?

I have thanked the Home Minister and his clarification on Friday helped quash the media frenzy that took place over the previous days. The key now is to revise the schedule.

As for the player dressing room issue, I reiterate that the IPL will be played under the New Playing Guidelines and all our franchisees and officials will simply have to abide by the same.

As far as the IMG report is concerned, we took action based on it last year as a post season report and all recommendations were approved at the Bangkok Conference. We will be implementing the same this season.

The IPL had gone into the last season without knowing what to expect and wanted to ensure we had checks and balances in place for the future and thus asked IMG for each areas to be reported and also what needs to be done.

Will the BCCI and IPL launch a campaign to educate spectators (similar to the ICC’s anti-racism campaign) that their co-operation would go a long way in the ultimate success of the IPL?

Awareness of the things around you would definitely be an integral part of our campaign to promote safety and security during the IPL. The Mumbai Police recently launched a similar awareness campaign named ALERT MUMBAIKAR to urge people in the island city to be more aware of their surroundings. I think a similar campaign would be the order of the day.

Are you going to talk to the other Boards to encourage/persuade their players to participate in the IPL. Many players, especially from New Zealand have expressed reservations?

India is a safe country! I think we do not need to go out and explain that fact to anyone. However, we do understand the concerns of players and their families on coming down to India for the IPL.

Would you say that the franchise owners too would have to take their share of responsibility?

Each and every member of the IPL family including our franchisees will play their part in ensuring the safe conduct of the league in 2009.

Is there a likelihood of stricter measures planned for spectators’ access to the venues?

Life will definitely not be the same, of that I can assure you. Take the example of the United States where post 9/11, things have changed quite dramatically.

Would the security deployment for IPL 2 and 3 (2010) be a dry run for the 2011 World Cup?

The BCCI’s Chennai Template should help us set the standard for safety and security in world cricket.

Cricket in India safe, but IPL must be rescheduled: PC

Union Home Minister P Chidambaram has said that the government will help authorities in organising the Indian Premier League but rescheduling of matches is unavoidable.

"Cricket in India is completely safe, but dates for IPL need to be rescheduled," said Chidambaram.

The Union Home Minister is in Hyderabad for a two-hour review meeting on the security situation in Andhra Pradesh, with Chief Minister Y S R Reddy, state home minister and senior police officers.

The meeting takes place in the backdrop of concerns over the election and IPL dates clashing and whether foolproof security can be provided to both.

Sources say that the Home Ministry will put forward a suggestion to the IPL organisers to crunch the total number of matches. So, lesser venues would mean less travelling.

They will also suggest dividing the eight teams into two groups and conduct the tournament. The police can then look at the possibility of providing security.

Earlier, almost all the eight states, which were match venues, had said they could not guarantee security for the matches.

Meanwhile, IPL and BCCI officials are meeting in Mumbai on Friday to try and shuffle dates.

Modi: IPL on, with revised schedule

Mumbai: Lalit Modi, Chairman and Commissioner, Indian Premier League (IPL), has said the IPL season II will be played in April-May, but with a revised schedule, taking into account the dates of the Lok Sabha elections that will be held during that period.

“The BCCI office-bearers met some IPL officials and we are extremely thankful and grateful to Home Minister P. Chidambaram for clarifying that security will be provided for the IPL Season II,” said Mr. Modi.

Mr. Modi said the IPL and the BCCI were in touch with all States that would host matches on the matter of security and would soon announce the new schedule.

He said:

“We assure the fans, sponsors and others that the IPL is on. There’s no question of moving it overseas as has been speculated by some sections of the media.

“There will be black-out dates. We will take into account the dates of the general election when preparing the schedule.

“Reworking the schedule is a cumbersome process and hence wait for the official communication from the IPL and do not speculate. There are 14 cities available for the IPL matches, but we will have to shortlist those to eight. The number of days would remain the same.”

The reworking of the schedule would lead to two or three franchise owners foregoing their right to stage all the seven matches in their designated home city.

Strict demands puts IPL matches in jeopardy

AIPUR: It's official that Pink City won't host the Indian Premier League opening extravaganza. After IPL chairman Lalit Modi, in Mumbai
confirmed the decision to take the inaugural out of Jaipur, the state government after citing security concerns on Thursday said, it was willing to host the IPL inaugural and other matches if some rescheduling are done.

Lalit Modi, chairman, IPL, said, "The venue has been shifted due to logistic reasons. Due to elections and movement of the television crew etc, the decision has been taken."

To this Shanti Dhariwal, home minister, Rajasthan said, "The state government has no issues in hosting the IPL inaugural ceremony. We are more than willing and ready to provide all the support. We have an issue with three dates and if they are adjusted we will extend full support in hosting the IPL matches."

However, going by the conditions which the state government has put forward for hosting this mega-event, it seems that the state was also in the league of other host states which have categorically refused to guarantee security during the matches.

Late on Thursday evening, in a high-level meeting, presided by chief minister Ashok Gehlot, it was decided to shoot a letter to the Center demanding a rescheduling of three of the IPL matches which are scheduled to take place on April 26, May 6 and May 9 in Jaipur and the deployment of at least four companies of Central forces consisting of about 400 security personnel. The state is scheduled go to general elections on May 7. The state has also said that it would not be able to provide security for the April 26 match in Jaipur, as it would start the poll preparations that day.

But with the Union home ministry already expressing its helplessness in providing more than 100 security personnel from central forces the plight of the other matches in the city is under scanner.

"The Center had asked us to give in writing whether we would be able to host the matches without any need for deployment of Central forces. In response to this, we have shot a letter to the Center demanding at least four companies of Central forces," said a senior home ministry official.

Amidst the statement crossfire’s the move to take inaugural out of Jaipur hasn't gone too well with the people in the capital who were looking forward to the gala event. While fans would miss out on the glitz that the inaugural brings along, officials at Rajasthan Cricket Association feel it's a fall out of Modi's loss at the RCA elections. Commenting on the news of shifting the inaugural venue RCA president Sanjay Dixit said, "It's a regrettable decision and the reasons given for shifting the venue are not valid." He further added that the move reflects that the RCA defeat is looming large on his (read Modi) mind.

Another RCA official on condition of anonymity said, "It seems he was waiting for a chance to take the mega event out of Pink city and the security issue gave him a chance to do so. One never knows if other matches will follow the suit."

When contacted the Rajasthan Royals officials declined to comment on the developments saying they are yet to hear from IPL and only after discussing with their management team will they be able to comment on the same.

While allegations were levied against Modi for taking the inaugural out of the Pink City, the IPL chairman said, "People can have their views, but we will do what is best for out tournament."

Gehlot to write to BCCI for IPL matches

JAIPUR: A day after Jaipur lost the Indian Premier League inaugural to Mumbai, chairman and joint owner of Rajasthan Royals, Manoj Badale, met chief minister Ashok Gehlot requesting proper security for the event, so that the remaining IPL matches could be held in the city.

According to sources, Gehlot not only assured adequate security for the matches here, but also called a meeting of senior police and adminstrative officials on Sunday to review the situation.

"The meeting will take stock of the situation and come up with what best the state can do to ensure that the security for the IPL matches are not compromised at all. The details will be discussed threadbare so that the state is able to put its best foot forward," said an official.

Going a step further, Gehlot told Badale that the government and the Rajasthan Royals would write a joint letter to the BCCI, requesting as many matches as possible in Jaipur.

Badale was accompanied by vice-president of Rajasthan Royals, Ranjit Barthakur. Union minister for environment and forests Namo Narayan Meena and PCC president CP Joshi were also present.

Earlier in the day, a visibly worried Rajasthan Royals team began their IPL season II campaign announcing their strategies, and addressing the question: How many matches will the Pink City host?'

"The change of venue is sad news for the Royals. For us, Jaipur is our home and if the decision to host matches is left to us, we will play all our matches here," said Badale. To this, new co-owner Shilpa Shetty added: "We expect a few matches to be played on our home ground. We are waiting for the revised schedule."

Badale was asked whether the franchisee owners failed to push the case of Jaipur for hosting the inaugural or whether it was a fallout of IPL chairman losing the RCA elections.

But all that Badale said was: "We put our best foot forward, but people should understand that we (franchisees) are a part of a bigger organization (IPL) and there are certain decisions that are beyond us."

Pietersen admits he is considering his IPL future

The ICC said yesterday it could not guarantee the safety of cricketers anywhere in the world as the former England captain Kevin Pietersen admitted he was having doubts about his participation in the Indian Premier League next month.

When asked if the ICC was unable to ensure player security at the 2011 World Cup, where games are scheduled to take place in Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, the chief executive Haroon Lorgat said: "That would be the attitude to any event anywhere in the world."

Lorgat confirmed that the ICC will, in due course, be issuing a more extensive response to last week's attack in Lahore. "We are all aware of how that is likely to change the landscape on security assessments going forward and the kind of threat we might face, not just in cricket but in all sports," Lorgat said. "That's because, in my view, that is a barrier that has been breached and once you cross over something of that sort, I think things will change forever. We will respond in a manner that will be responsible and proper."

Lorgat said the Australian umpires Simon Taufel and Steve Davis, who along with the English referee Chris Broad were critical of the Pakistani security forces, needed time "to be more rational" about the Lahore attack. "I am mindful of the experience they have gone through and it is a difficult time for them," he said.

Pietersen has admitted he could pull out of the IPL if security experts warn him against playing and will make his decision following the conclusion of the fifth Test against West Indies after he consults with the Bangalore Royal Challengers, who paid $1.55m (£1.1m) to secure his services.

"If I don't think it's right then I'll not be going," he said. "Hopefully the security will come right for India but if everybody pulls out of the IPL then it would be a disaster, a catastrophe, and world cricket would really be on a down."

Pietersen added that he thought it unlikely that tours of Pakistan will take place in the near future, despite reassurances from the Pakistan Cricket Board president, Ijaz Butt.

"I think at the moment it is unlikely people will be comfortable travelling there," said Pietersen. "It is very, very sad – I feel sorry for the Pakistan cricketers. I feel sorry for everybody in Pakistan."

Butt believes, however, that an international team could tour Pakistan within months and is confident the PCB will be able to co-host the World Cup in 2011.

"I would expect that teams will tour here again as soon as possible. I would give it six to nine months to get things organised. I would want us to get security to a level that would be a guarantee from my government that no such incident like this could happen again, or I will not invite anybody. I cannot give that guarantee, but my government can."

IPL is not about national pride

Should the Indian Premier League tournament go ahead as scheduled, or should it be postponed due to security considerations?

The national debate on this question is sought to be influenced more by commercial considerations arising from the profit-making urge of the corporate entities owning the participating teams and the money-making urge of different sections of the media and the advertising community, than by security considerations which have assumed an added importance in view of the recent terrorist strikes in Mumbai and Lahore.

The importance of ensuring the security of life and property of the common citizens is sought to be subordinated to catering to the money-making urge of these sections with a vested interest in seeing that the IPL tournament goes ahead as scheduled. One also has valid reasons to suspect that electoral considerations -- the anxiety of the Congress not to step on the toes of Sharad Pawar, who apart from being an influential member of the Union cabinet wears a second hat as the czar of the commercial cricket world -- are also playing a role in preventing a totally professional judgement on the issue.

The IPL organisers should have known that elections to the Indian Parliament were due before May 2009. This is a Constitutional requirement which has to be fulfilled. Making security arrangements for the elections in the rural and urban areas is always a very difficult task. This is going to be even more difficult this year in the wake of the wave of terrorist strikes since May 2008 -- in Jaipur, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Assam and Mumbai. Home Minister P Chidambarm was quoted on TV as saying that one has to be prepared for a possible terrorist strike as the elections approach.

In view of this, one would have expected that in getting a window of dates for the IPL tournament approved by the concerned international cricketing authorities, the IPL organisers would have seen that the tournament dates did not clash with the likely election dates. Even if there was no terrorist threat, making simultaneous security arrangements for two major events such as the general elections and a cricket tournament of tremendous public interest would have been an uphill task for our security agencies, the police and paramilitary forces.

Even in the absence of possible threats from terrorists, there would have been tremendous pressure on their manpower resources. It is not just a question of finding the required manpower. It is also a question of giving adequate rest in between polls and cricket matches to the forces that would be deployed to provide security. A tired member of the security forces cannot reasonably be expected to be alert enough to prevent a threat to security.

The security arrangements are likely to be more difficult and complex this year due to the recently-emerged threat from terrorists. Before the attempt by a group of terrorists to blow up New York's World Trade Centre in February 1993, the conventional wisdom among terrorism analysts was that terrorists would not indulge in mass casualty terrorism as that could antagonise public opinion. The February 1993 attempt disproved this and showed that a new group of terrorists has arrived who are not bothered about the impact of their actions on public opinion.

Before the Lahore terrorist attack of March 3, 2009, the conventional wisdom was that terrorists would not target a cricket match in the subcontinent because that could antagonise millions of the cricket-loving public of the subcontinent. This too now stands disproved. The terrorists attacked the Sri Lankan team without bothering about the impact on public opinion and on the cricket-loving public. Shockingly, the cricket-loving public of Pakistan too has not condemned the attack. It has chosen to keep quiet.

The terrorists have seen, firstly, how their actions have not had an adverse impact on the minds of the cricket-loving public and, secondly, what kind of publicity they got all over the world.

Any sensible member of the security community anywhere in the world would take the lessons from Lahore into consideration while drawing up security plans for sports events. The first lesson from Lahore is that it is more difficult to make route security arrangements than security arrangements at the hotel and in the stadium. The second lesson is that even the best of security can break down in the face of determined commando-style attacks. This is a modus operandi to which an appropriate response by the security forces is yet to be found.

By their totally unwise action in fixing the dates of the tournament at the same time as the elections, the IPL organisers have placed the government and its security bureaucracy in a cruel dilemma. If they suggest a postponement of the tournament, they might give the impression that they have allowed themselves to be intimidated by the terrorists. Such an impression could give added oxygen to the terrorists. If they go ahead with the tournament, despite its clashing with the general elections and despite the deterioration in the security situation, they could be playing with the security of the lives and property of the citizens of this country.

Faced with this dilemma, it is important that the government goes purely by the professional assessment and advice of the security bureaucracy in deciding whether the IPL should go ahead as scheduled. Unwarranted arguments such as "national pride" etc should not be allowed to indluence the decision. Commercial and electoral considerations should not be allowed to prevail over security considerations. Professional views are more important than the views of vested commercial interests.

Cricket: Security-conscious NZC may stop IPL players

New Zealand Cricket would consider pulling contracted players out of the Indian Premier league next month if security assurances are insufficient.

Allrounder Jacob Oram felt the decision would come down to individual choice but NZC chief executive Justin Vaughan said under the terms of the collective contract NZC could insist the seven players stayed home.

Captain Dan Vettori (Delhi Daredevils), Brendon McCullum (Kolkata Knight Riders), Jacob Oram (Chennai Super Kings), Kyle Mills (Mumbai Indians), Scott Styris (Deccan Chargers), Ross Taylor and Jesse Ryder (Bangalore Royal Challengers) are due to join their franchises after the India tour.

Stephen Fleming, player-coach for Chennai Super Kings, is no longer contracted by NZC.

"We cannot unreasonably prevent players from participating in other competitions but if we could see there was a direct security risk that would not be unreasonable grounds."

Players' Association boss Heath Mills said he was not sure if that reasoning could apply but it would be discussed in the next month.

Vaughan was confident there would be no stand-off. NZC would likely seek security advice to assess any threat in the wake of the Lahore attack on the Sri Lankan team last week in which seven policemen were killed, and the attack in Mumbai in November when 170 died.

The federation of players' associations, FICA, was also engaging security advice. Vaughan said it would be more effective coming from a national body because "the BCCI doesn't recognise players' associations".

After Lahore, the Indian Government asked that the IPL be postponed as security forces would be stretched because of the impending general election.

The IPL rejected that proposal.

The BCCI has indicated IPL security will be sufficient but Vaughan said he owed it to his players to "dig a little deeper". On whether that might risk offending the prickly BCCI, Vaughan said it would be acceptable coming from a national board rather than the players' association. "I think they recognise the need for us to be 'over-sure' if you like."

Mills said the BCCI's refusal to work with players' associations was immature and he would insist on comprehensive independent security reports before recommending his members joined their franchises.

"We will not be relying on any security advice that is not independent and comprehensive. It is not good enough to just simply take the assurances from the BCCI or IPL at face value or any assurance they might give Justin," said Mills.

"When it comes to security the BCCI and IPL can no longer suggest they are not going to work with player associations. The international players have every right to have their representatives assess the security around this event as we do in all other situations."

Players should take their own decision on IPL: Vettori

Christchurch: Skipper Daniel Vettori has said that New Zealand players should take their own decisions on going to India to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) next month.

Overseas players in the IPL are apprehensive of playing in the league post the terror attacks on Mumbai and the Sri Lankan cricketers in Pakistan.

Vettori's team mate Jacob Oram, who plays for the Chennai Super Kings, has already expressed doubts over his participation in the lucrative Twenty20 competition. Vettori called Oram's comments "a very individual thing".

"Jacob probably spoke from the heart and he is that sort of guy. A lot of the other players will trust from what New Zealand Cricket does and the Players Association says about security around all sub-continent tours in the future," Vettori was quoted as saying by The New Zealand Herald Saturday.

The captain added that the players should take heed of the security experts' opinions.

New Zealand Cricketers' Association boss Heath Mills said the world players' body FICA had been trying without luck to get information on security plans from the Indian board for IPL set to start April 10.

"Once and for all, this (Lahore attack) ought to have put safety and security as the No 1 priority for the International Cricket Council," said Mills.

"They must immediately implement world benchmark safety standards. We can't have situations where independent security consultants aren't involved."