A boldly attired Shilpa Shetty joined fiancé and business partner Raj Kundra to launch Rajasthan Royals team T-shirt at ITC Grand Maratha, Mumbai, on Tuesday, April 7.

Shilpa wore a sheer black strapless origami pleated dress exposing her white body suit. She accessorized with black T strap heels, stud earrings, a golden watch in her right arm, a yellow topaz ring in her index finger, an emerald ring in the little finger of right hand and her engagement rock in her left hand ring finger.

Her lustrous brown colored hair, styled with a side parting and out turned ends, cascaded down her back.

Shilpa appears on the cover of April issue of Indian edition of Cosmopolitan labeled ‘Shilpa Shetty: Sexy, Sporty and Stylish’. In the accompanying cover story, she reveals the secrets behind her svelte figure – proper nutrition and hard work-out.

Apart from promoting her IPL cricket team she has recently launched her beauty spa ‘Iosis’ with beauty expert Kiran Bawa. She is also filming for Indo-China project Desire.

About her marriage, the 33-year-old says her hands are full right now and she has not decided on a date yet.

“I will be more than happy to make an official announcement the day we are ready to make one but for now the congratulatory calls can be kept on hold. My hands are quite full right now juggling so many things.”
Source – news.sawf.org

AS BRETT Lee flew to South Africa in an effort to prove his readiness for a comeback, fellow fast bowler Shaun Tait still had not received permission to play in the Indian Premier League, raising fresh questions about his fitness and future as a Cricket Australia-contracted player.

Tait is in an unusual position because he is regarded as a specialist in the short forms of the game and, while he attracted a $US375,000 ($524,461) price tag from the Rajasthan Royals, has no guarantees from Cricket Australia beyond June 30, when his national contract expires.

The 26-year-old, who was troubled by hamstring soreness throughout the summer and used in short bursts at international level, last week was named in Australia’s preliminary squad for the World Twenty20 championships in England, and is expected to consult Cricket Australia medical staff in Melbourne this week seeking clearance to join Shane Warne and Graeme Smith at the Royals from April 18.

Should CA refuse to release him, the powerful paceman could come to represent the modern dilemma between club and country. He could conceivably earn more by extending his time in the IPL, without the restrictions of a national contract.

Rick Olarenshaw from the Essentially group that manages Tait said the paceman was “ready to play” but confirmed CA had not given its blessing because of concerns about his body. A CA spokesman said Tait’s rehabilitation from a hamstring tendon injury was being monitored and when he was cleared it would be for all levels of cricket, not just the IPL.

Lee is also awaiting clearance to return from foot surgery — either in this month’s limited-overs series against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates or with the Punjab Kings XI in the IPL — and he has previously declared his ambition to again grasp the new ball for this year’s Ashes.

Lee’s manager, Neil Maxwell, said the fast bowler had journeyed to South Africa with NSW physiotherapist Pat Farhart and a fitness trainer to step up his training and confer with Australian team medical staff during the one-day series against the Proteas.

“He has gone over there to do some bowling outdoors and the Australian cricket team will be in the same city at some point so he’s going to catch up with the medical staff there,” Maxwell said.

Australia’s selectors are expected to announce a squad for the Pakistan series this week, but cannot unveil the list of contracted players for 2009-10 until a new pay deal is in place. It is believed the number of contracts offered will remain at 25, but the size of the player-payment pool remains a sticking point between CA and the player union.
Source – theage.com.au

West Indies’ loss is Mumbai Indians’ gain, as Dwayne Bravo has made his way to South Africa to play in The Indian Premier League.

Bravo is feeling his way back to fitness following ankle surgery and has been deemed not fit enough to feature in Test cricket for West Indies.

As such he has been omitted from the Test series with England in early May, which has freed him up to play for Mumbai in The IPL.

“The situation is that I have been advised by doctors to get my ankle stronger before I can play five-day cricket,” Bravo told Cricinfo. “The plan is to join the [West Indian] team in England when the one-day series begins.”

The one-day series with England does not begin until May 21, meaning Bravo, who proved an astute signing by Mumbai last year, can feature in the group stage of The IPL.
Source – setanta.com

The Indian Premier League today announced a list of strategic partnerships with leading South African business vendors for the
smooth conduct of the second edition of Twenty20 event in South Africa.

“We are proud of our affiliations with some of South Africa’s leading businesses – each of whom I am certain will play an integral role in making the DLF IPL Season 2009 in South Africa a huge success,” Chairman and Commissioner of the Indian Premier League Lalit Modi said.

“All of our affiliates have hit the ground running with their teams to work seamlessly in creating and executing what will be a non-stop carnival in the Rainbow Nation across the next 36 days.

“We can guarantee that when we leave South Africa on May 25th — the DLF IPL would have redefined how to market sporting events globally,” he added.
Source – economictimes.indiatimes.com

Kingfisher Airlines today appointed three tour operators — Cutting Edge, SOTC Sports Aboard and Thomas Cook as “official tour partners” for the second edition of IPL.

The initiative aims at creating exclusive tour packages for fans intending to visit South Africa to watch the matches live.

The tour partners would take care of air travel, hotels, local sightseeing and match tickets to fans availing their package, a press release from Kingfisher Airlines said here.

The IPL 2009 season will see the eight franchises play 56 matches on 34 days at eight venues.
Source – cricket.zeenews.com