SMS game introduced in IPL withdrawn

New Delhi, May 12 (PTI) The controversial SMS game introduced in the IPL, which evoked strong criticism for promoting to gambling, was today discontinued with the games' inventors taking note of the apprehensions expressed by Sports Minister M S Gill and many former cricketers.

Although no pressure was put for the game to be withdrawn, the organisers decided to stop it with immediate effect.

"There was no formal complaints about the game but the Sports Ministers' views were taken into account and the organisers have withdrawn the game," senior BCCI official and a member of the IPL Executive Board Rajiv Shukla told PTI.

Gill had last week denounced the SMS game in which fans made ball by ball predictions for cash prizes, saying it amounted to gambling.

"I see the commercial use of cricket for business gains, that is going on. I am concerned, at knowledgeable comments, from serious followers of cricket about the latest venture of encouraging viewers to make ball by ball predictions of runs scored for economic gain in the shape of cash prizes," Gill had said in a statement.

"This is viewed as 'openly encouraging gambling and betting', which official bodies do not resort to, even in countries where betting is legal; all this 'to make money and enlarge their TV viewership base'," the minister had added.

South African Airways to add 6 flights between India and SA

To cash in on the heightened cricket frenzy among Indians amid the ongoing IPL Twenty20 tournament, South African Airways (SSA) will deploy six additional flights between India and South Africa from May 18 to May 26.

"Seeing a sudden escalation in the demand for the India - South Africa route this season, due to heightened cricket craze among Indians, South African Airways has taken this strategic step to accommodate the growing passenger traffic," the airline said in a statement.

The additional flights will cater especially to the semi-finals and final matches of the tournament.

South African Airways' Acting Head for South East Asia Tauseef Khan said: "Our aim is to offer the best to our customers and thus we will continue working closely with the tour operators to offer the most affordable packages to South Africa for IPL (Indian Premier League)”.

The airline carries more than 7 million passengers a year and connects 34 cities in 26 countries. It has a fleet of 58 aircraft.

10,000 expected for final of IPL

Johannesburg: "The heat is on" is the catchword on Indian Premier League (IPL) hoardings strewn across Johannesburg. The IPL fever has caught on in South Africa and all seats for the semifinals and finals are sold out. But the selling point, going by the billboards, is not Sachin Tendulkar or Mahendra Singh Dhoni or Virender Sehwag. Instead, the focus is on Shane Warne, Kevin Pietersen, the South African who earned his spurs playing for England and Andrew Flintoff.

Durban has a 1.5 million strong African-Indian community. The Kolkata Knight Riders are a big hit among those of Indian origin. Shah Rukh Khan fans are contributing to the popularity of the Black and Gold team. Unfortunately because of KKR's dismal performance people are switching loyalties.

Tendulkar's Mumbai Indians are also a hot favourite and so is Adam Gilchrist's Deccan Charges and last year's champions Rajasthan Royals. "I have been trying to get a ticket for the semifinal but it has been impossible,'' said the cashier at the Hyatt Regency, a young boy of Indian origin.

Most South Africans are thrilled that the IPL is being held in their country rather than England or for that matter India. "Please don't think it is only in India that people are mad about cricket. We South Africans are as passionate about the game as the Indians," he said. IPL organisers hope at least 10,000 people will fly in from India for the finals but Cricket South Africa is more realistic and expects not more than 5,000, most of them celebrities and well-heeled fans.

Pak players not to travel to S Africa for IPL pay dispute

Karachi: The four Pakistani cricketers, who were supposed to meet Indian Premier League officials in South Africa to resolve their pay dispute, have changed their plan and will stay back to attend the camp for the Twenty20 World Cup. Instead, officials of the sports management company representing them will pursue the issue on their behalf in South Africa.

According to the sports management company representing the players, Shoaib Malik, Sohail Tanvir, Salman Butt and Kamran Akmal would not be traveling to South Africa now. The players have decided to give priority to national duty and attend the conditioning camp at Bhurban from Thursday, an official of the company said on Tuesday. He said that the company representative would now travel to South Africa to meet with IPL officials and the franchisee owners who had contracted the Pakistani players.

Apart from those four Pakistani players, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul and Misbah-ul-Haq also had their IPL contracts cancelled or suspended after the Pakistan government advised the players not to travel to India for the second edition of the Twenty20 league, which was later shifted to South Africa because of the elections in India. The players claimed that the IPL authorities neither

allowed them to play in second IPL, nor explained why their contracts were either suspended or cancelled. The players also claim the IPL owes them outstanding contractual money.

Incidentally, the company representative is in London at present to meet with the President of the Federation of International Cricketers (FICA) Tim May to seek his advice on the dispute with the IPL. The company had earlier said four of the players, including Malik, Tanvir and Butt, would be traveling to South Africa this week to meet with the IPL and franchise officials. Malik said the players had authorised the company to negotiate with the IPL and franchisees on their behalf as they wanted to be financially compensated for missing out on the IPL and over the non-professional way the IPL had handled the contractual issues.

A press release issued by the company quoted Malik as saying that the players hoped that the IPL and their franchisees would be fair towards them and resolve the issues.

IPL launches 6UP; world’s first innovative cricket skills game

DELHI: The Indian Premier League recently launched 6UP the world’s first innovative cricket skills game at Durban. Set to revolutionize the way cricket will be watched by billions of fans across the globe, 6UP is a new innovation which will reward the skill and intuition of a cricket fan in real time while watching a live game of cricket.

Fans will now be able to play SMS mobile games through 6UP attempting to predict the outcomes of a LIVE game being played during Season 2009 of the DLF Indian Premier League here in South Africa and win prizes while doing so. Powered by IPLAYUP, fans will not only play exciting games like 6UP, but will also be able to interact with players, celebrities, experts and other fans during Season 2009.

6UP was launched by Lalit Modi, Chairman & Commissioner, Indian Premier League, legendary Australian spin king and brand ambassador for 6Up Shane Warne and the promoter of IPLAYUP George Tomeski.

Played on a mobile phone, 6UP is not only engaging, but also provides thrilling interactivity and can be played real time by cricket fans. It brings fans closer to the game they love by inducing a greater level of interactivity. The greater a cricket fans knowledge about the game and its nuances, the higher the probability of that fan reaping rich rewards in rupees that can be redeemed by them.

Lalit Modi, Chairman & Commissioner, Indian Premier League at the launch of 6UP said, “It is our endeavour to make the excitement of the DLF Indian Premier League available to our fans through multiple platforms and mobile is definitely one of the fastest growing platforms in the world. Through this new innovation we hope to enhance the excitement level and interactivity with our fans as the appeal for 6Up will cut across all segments of our viewers irrespective of age and gender.”

Spin legend - Shane Warne and Steve Waugh one of the most successful Australian captains are both significant supporters of IPLAYUP. Shane Warne, ambassador for IPLAYUP-6UP said “Cricket is a religion in India and through a game like 6UP, passionate Indian fans can use their knowledge and have fun while watching us play.”

6up can be played at only Rs 5 for an entry, thus contributing to a prize for the over, as each over has a minimum prize of Rs 10,000 that grows with each SMS. The important thing is the Rupee prize is won or shared by the player or players that demonstrate the greatest level of skill in an over. In addition IPLAYUP as part of its commitment to community will give part of the earnings to a charity.

Mr George Tomeski, Managing Partner 6UP, added “We are delighted to introduce our maiden venture 6UP, our proprietary skill game to India with the DLF Indian Premier League. This game is for the fans of cricket designed by fans themselves. We are providing entertainment against live cricket that is new, thus with 6UP have become pioneers of exciting new age of live sports entertainment.”

IPL cricket hit by 'gambling and betting' slur

NEW DELHI (AFP) — Indian Premier League chiefs were defending themselves on Sunday against government charges that the lucrative Twenty20 event in South Africa was "encouraging gambling and betting."

Sports minister Manohar Singh Gill was especially critical of an IPL mobile phone SMS competition in which participants win cash prizes for correctly guessing the sequence of runs scored in the subsequent over of the match.

"I see the commercial use of cricket for business gains that is going on," Gill, a former federal chief election commissioner, said in a statement.

"I am concerned about the latest venture of encouraging viewers to make ball-by-ball predictions of runs scored for economic gain in the shape of cash prizes.

"This is viewed as openly encouraging gambling and betting which official bodies do not resort to, even in countries where betting is legal -- all this to make money and enlarge their TV viewership base."

The IPL, already suffering dwindling viewing figures across India after the tournament was shifted to South Africa for security reasons, downplayed the sports minister's charges.

"A lot of effort has gone into this concept (the SMS contest) and into making this possible," IPL commissioner Lalit Modi was quoted as saying in South Africa by the Times of India.

"It's a valid point (made by Gill). But the margin of something like that happening is one in a million. If this game works, fine. If not, then we will leave it aside."

Gill warned the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which owns the IPL, of the repercussions the contest could have in a country where betting is illegal, keeping in mind the match-fixing scandal of 2000.

"We have already had a match-fixing scandal in the game," he said.

"It seems the ICC (International Cricket Council) had expressed concerns about such possibilities in the IPL... the game has to be protected for future generations."

A spokesman for the BCCI, Rajiv Shukla, said: "SMS games are there in every sport all over the world. If there is any report of gambling within the game, we will look into it."

The tournament, which began on April 18, is due to end on May 24.

Fans root for 'Fake IPL Player' identity, vote in thousands

New Delhi (IANS): Even as the general elections head towards a climax, there's another poll unfolding — in cyberspace.

Between Saturday and Monday evening, nearly 29,000 readers of fakeiplplayer.blogspot.com — an Indian Premier League (IPL)-related blog that has spawned a cult following within the country and the Indian diaspora — have cast their vote to decide whether the mystery writer should reveal his identity or not.

The unknown blogger may not have turned out even once for his Kolkata Knight Riders team owned by actor Shah Rukh Khan, his rib-tickling posts have endeared him to thousands of fans, and attracted coverage by prestigious newspapers such as Britain's The Telegraph and The Independent.

"You rock, dude", is one of the most common refrains among fans, an overwhelming bulk of whom now wants to know who the cricketer-writer is, or if he is a cricketer in the first place, given his "mastery" over the English language.

Interestingly, the poll process has been initiated by the blogger himself, who goes by the moniker FIP (Fake IPL Player) and describes himself as a no-hope bench-warmer in a team that is at the bottom of the IPL heap with three measly points from 10 outings.

The voting follows a May 9 post headlined "It's decision time folks", where FIP wrote: "I had mentioned (in an earlier piece) about my decision to reveal my identity at the end of IPL... Whether FIP's identity should be disclosed or not, or how it should be taken forward, is as much as your decision as mine. I am putting up a poll on the right side. Pls take a few seconds to make your decision."

Alongside the post, FIP put up six categories, against any of which the blog's fans are required to mark their votes:

Yes, stick to your word man (to reveal his identity)

Yes, I'd like to see your a** kicked

No, let it (identity) remain a mystery

No, I fear for your safety

No, I want this to continue

Who cares a f***?

Till a little before 8 p.m. on Monday, nearly 19,000 blog fans or 64 per cent of the total "voters" till then had plugged for the faceless writer's identity to be revealed.

Wrote a fan under the pseudonym "Anonymous", echoing thousands of others: "of course! want your identity to be revealed. be a sport man! ppl wl love u all the more!"

There are others who noted his "celeb status", and advised him to hire a consultant to guide his career post-cricket, while another — clearly a die hard groupie — appeals rather plaintively: "If you reveal your identity and get your a** kicked, how can you do this next year?"

The popularity of the posts, most of which have attracted over 500 comments, stem from FIP's wicked wit, tongue-in-cheek sexual innuendoes, juicy details of players' drinking binges or womanising, and outrageous nicknames for fellow cricketers, the support staff, team owners including Shah Rukh, and IPL bosses and commentators.

Wrote he after a particularly humiliating loss that fuelled talks of staff sackings: "While our fielding coach was busy browsing naukri.com, our Throwing Coach accusingly glared at our wicketkeeping coach every time Skipper and Buddhiman Baba (Brendon McCullum and Wriddhiman Saha, both wicketkeepers) had their slip-ups in the outfield."

Then, not contented with taking a dig at these two coaches, FIP went for chief coach John Buchanan, referred to as "Bhookha Naan" in the blog: "I am waiting for the day Bhookha blames global warming for our performance."

Understandably, FIP's team management is livid, but the readers find the blog "awesome". Little wonder that the online edition of Britain's Telegraph newspaper ran a story under the headline "Fake IPL Player lights up Kolkata Knight Riders camp in South Africa".

And light up it has, and promises to do so for at least four more days —when polling ends.

Taylor trumps McCullum in IPL cricket battle

CENTURION, South Africa (AFP) — Ross Taylor triumphed in the battle of the New Zealanders against Brendon McCullum Tuesday as Bangalore defeated Kolkata by six wickets in an Indian Premier League thriller.

McCullum struck an unbeaten 84 at Centurion Park as bottom team Knight Riders reached 173-4 from 20 overs only to be passed by Royal Challengers, who made 176-4 in 19.2 overs with unbeaten 81-run Taylor the hero.

Friend and foe praised Taylor after one of the most exciting finishes in the five-week Twenty20 tournament as teams chase a top-four finish and a place in the semi-finals next weekend.

"Ross was fantastic and took the game away from us after I thought our total would be good enough to secure victory," said McCullum of official man-of-the-match Taylor.

Bangalore and South Africa wicketkeeper Mark Boucher added: "The innings of Ross was as good as it gets. We were under a lot of pressure to win and he pulled us through."

Taylor said: "The innings was a relief as I have been struggling in the IPL this season. I desperately wanted to repay the faith shown in me by the coaching staff."

McCullum struck two sixes and 10 fours as he stayed at the crease from start to finish of a Kolkata innings that gathered momentum in the second half after labouring to 69-2 by the 10-over 'tactical break'.

The Kiwi also pulled off the catch of the tournament so far to send South African Jacques Kallis packing after his opening partnership with Kiwi Jesse Ryder had yielded 58 runs for Bangalore.

Ryder departed five runs later and after Bangalore were in run-rate trouble for several overs, Taylor let loose and his five sixes and seven fours steered the team home.

Victory lifted Bangalore two places to fifth on the eight-team standings, one point behind defending champions Rajasthan Royals with three round-robin fixtures to play.