UltraTech Cement Limited, the single largest cement brand in the country humbly announced its alliance with the defending champions of Indian Premier League 2008, the Rajasthan Royals. Through this involvement, UltraTech will be the Official Team Sponsor of the Jaipur based IPL Team.

Shilpa Shetty and boyfriend Raj Kundra were present at the event that announced Ultratech Cement Limited as a major contributor to the Rajasthan Royals. Due to their busy schedule, Shilpa Shetty Raj Kundra, co-owners of the Rajasthan Royals will not be present at the IPL opening on April 18. Encouraged leadership, originality, professionalism and a well thought out strategic advance lead the team to win India’s first IPL. By essential roles explicitly and delegating task, the Rajasthan Royals came together as a unified entity, finally rising as champions. This nation completely blends with UltraTech cement who is known to be leaders and champions in its own field.

Ever since February, Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty and boyfriend Raj Kundra who is a London-based businessman announced that they had bought a 12 percent wager in the Indian Premier League team, the Rajasthan Royals.

‘The team’s success story last year was an inspiration for me. That’s why I am investing in this team,’ Kundra said at a press conference that month. The couple had invested $15.4 million in the team. Shilpa called it a strategic business investment and said: ‘I completely relate to Rajasthan Royals. My story is similar to the team’s journey to the top. It is an honor to be a part of Rajasthan Royals.’ Ever since then, the couple had become proud owners of this winning team.

Shilpa’s heartening words and support charged up the ambience and certainty of the players.

Shilpa said, “Rajasthan Royals is a heady mix of youth, experience and emerging talent and the same even holds true for UltraTech. Through this association we will be cementing our relationship, a definite ‘Best Choice’ for us!”
Source – desihits.com

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

Rajasthan Royals:-

Owner – Emerging Media, Shilpa Shetty & Raj Kundra
CEO – Manoj Badale
Captain – Shane Warne (Australia)
Assistant Coach – Harish Joshi
High Performance Coach – Jeremy Snape (England)
Director Of Coaching – Darren Berry (Australia)
Performance Analyst – Mohsin Sheikh (India)
Physiotherapist – John Gloster (South Africa)

Batsman:-
Graeme Smith (South Africa)
Yusuf Pathan (India)
Ravindra Jadeja (India)
Robert Quiney (Australia)
Mohammad Kaif (India)
Dinesh Salunkhe (India)
Swapnil Asnodkar (India)
Raiphi Gomez (India)
Niraj Patel (India)
Lee Carseldine (Australia)

Bowlers:-
Shaun Tait (Australia)
Munaf Patel (India)
Shane Warne (Australia)
Morné Morkel (South Africa)
Shane Harwood (Australia)
Sumeet Khatri (India)
Anup Revandkar (India)

All Rounders:-
Shane Watson (Australia)
Siddharth Trivedi (India)
Tyron Henderson (South Africa)
Dimitri Mascarenhas (England)

WicketKeeper:-
Mahesh Rawat (India)

Past experience of having played in Australia would help him adjust to the pitches in South Africa which will host the second edition of IPL from April 18, Rajasthan Royals pacer Siddharth Trivedi said in Mumbai on Tuesday.

“This would be my first visit to South Africa. I have not made any special preparations. I read what Glenn McGrath has said that conditions in South Africa would be similar to the Australian ones. I have played in Australia and that experience would help me”, Trivedi told reporters on Tuesday.

Retired Australia pace great McGrath told reporters in Delhi on Monday that the conditions in his country and SA were similar which will help him get adjusted in time for the IPL.

“I did enjoy the fan support and playing in Delhi (for Delhi Daredevils) last year but if I just think about the conditions, I feel it would be bouncy and quick, somewhat similar to what we have in Australia. I feel we can adjust to the conditions quite quickly,” McGrath said.

The 26-year-old Trivedi, who made his first class debut in 2002-03, has visited Australia for a five-week training stint at the Australian Cricket Academy under the Border-Gavaskar scholarship in 2003.

The lanky right-arm Gujarat Ranji Trophy bowler was also part of the India A team that visited Australia last year for the Emerging Players’ tournament and in 2006 for the Top End series.

Trivedi, who would be again playing under another Australian legend Shane Warne for his IPL franchise outfit, praised the leg spin great for the motivation he provided as captain-coach in 2008.

“I have been playing for seven years and had some good experience before IPL. Playing under Warne was a different experience. He always used to tell me ‘you have lot of variations’ and give a lot of encouragement”, said Trivedi, who picked up 13 wickets in 15 IPL ties in 2008.

“I worked a lot on my yorkers and slower ones. In this format you have to be unpredictable (to the batsmen). Warne told me my job, when I came on to bowl after six overs, was to contain the run flow and not take wickets”, he said.

Trivedi and his Gujarat and RR teammate Niraj Patel both welcomed their franchise outfit’s partnership with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) as the technology partner by saying the deal would help them in ironing out their own deficiencies through video analysis.

The Rajasthan Royals team is set to depart tonight for South Africa and their opening match is scheduled on April 18 against Bangalore Royal Challengers.
Source – expressindia.com