Shilpa knows how to make right use of her blog. Apart from promoting her team Rajasthan Royals, she is also offering clarifications about the news reported in newspapers. It was reported that Shilpa will tie the knot in October but the actress claims that she has marriage on her mind with beau Raj Kundra but is yet to decide the date.
She said, “I am looking forward to getting married sometime after October…But haven’t thought of a month or a date.” Shilpa’s extremely content the way things are happening in her life. After foraying into IPL with Rajasthan Royals, Shilpa has recently launched her beauty spa and is also working on her Indo-Chinese project, Desire. “It is difficult to concentrate on everything at a time that’s the reason I have kept my production on hold.”
Coming to her marriage Shilpa says, “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.” She signs off.
Source – movies.indiatimes.com
Last year’s IPL champions Rajasthan Royals have tied-up with Tata Consultancy Services as their technology partners for a period of three years.
TCS’s Global Marketing Head, Jayant Pendharkar, told a media conference today that Rajasthan Royals’ champions status as well as the importance they give to technology were some of the reasons they were preferred from among the eight IPL teams in fray for season 2 of the IPL commencing on April 18.
“Over the years TCS have partnered sports events. We are connected with the Ferrari team, NBA and the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon,” he said.
“One of the reasons for choosing Rajasthan Royals is their champion status and we like to deal with champions. The second reason is the importance they give to technology,” Pendharkar said.
“TCS will help Rajasthan Royals with analysis of player performance, simulation and other things,” he said, adding that TCS logo would be embossed on the caps and helmets of the Jaipur IPL franchise owned by Emerging Media.
Rajasthan Royals Vice Chairman Ranjit Barthakur revealed that this year the IPL first edition champions have roped in a total of nine sponsors which was more than in 2008.
Both Pendharkar and Barthakur refused to divulge the financial details of the three-year deal between TCS and Rajasthan Royals.
Source – cricketnext.in.com
The Rajasthan Royals claimed the inaugural Indian Premier League title last year when they beat the Chennai Super Kings by three wickets in the final in Mumbai.
The team is led by legendary Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne, who is also the coach.
Warne is the only non-Indian captain in the competition. South African captain Graeme Smith and fast bowler Morne Morkel, as well as Pakistan wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal and Australian all-rounder Shane Watson are some of the stars who play for the Royals.
Smith topped the batting averages for Rajasthan last year, scoring 441 runs in 11 innings at an average of 49. Watson scored the most runs (472 in 15 innings) at an average of 47.2 and a strike rate of 151.76.
Pakistan’s Sohail Tanvir picked up the most wickets for the Royals and was the leading wicket-taker in the tournament, with 22 wickets in 11 games. Warne followed closely with 19 wickets in 15 matches.
The Emerging Media Group owns the side that won 13 of their 16 games in 2008.
Many of the world’s leading cricketers are packing their bags at present, but none quite on the scale of Shane Watson. Like his Rajasthan Royals team-mates, Watson is preparing to fly to South Africa to defend the IPL crown won in dramatic circumstances last year. But, equally as pressing, Watson is in the process of relocating from Brisbane to Sydney, where he hopes a change of scenery will also lead to a change of cricketing fortune.
Continuity is a luxury Watson has seldom been afforded since his international debut in 2002. Flashes of brilliance have invariably been followed by periods of injury, resulting in a career spent as much in transition as the spotlight.
Never was that spotlight brighter than last year, when Watson – picked up by Rajasthan for a relatively modest $US125,000 in the second auction of 2008 – was named player of the inaugural IPL. The Queensland allrounder was pivotal to Rajasthan’s title push, finishing fourth in the tournament for runs (472 at 47.20 with a powerful strike-rate of 151.76) and wickets (17 at 22.52), and was rewarded with an immediate recall to the Australian one-day side for the tour of the Caribbean.
But then came injury. Following a strong Test tour of India, Watson returned to Australia full of hope and optimism, only to be struck down by back stress fractures. Forced to the sidelines for the eagerly anticipated Test series against South Africa, Watson made his comeback in the final few weeks of Queensland’s season, and then only as a batsman. A return to bowling remains weeks away.
And, so, Watson has been left to plot yet another ascent from base camp. The move to NSW, born out of a desire to live closer to his partner, will be symbolic only if injuries remain at bay. But the IPL represents an immediate opportunity to again pit himself against the world’s leading players, and move a step closer to realising his ultimate goal: a long, uninterrupted run at international level.
“The IPL was one of the most amazing experiences I’ve ever had in my life,” Watson told Cricinfo. “To be involved in something brand new and on such a grand scale might be something I’ll never have the chance to do again. And to do as well as I did at what was a pivotal moment in my career made it even more special. To be able to help Rajasthan to the title and then to catch the attention of the Australian selectors again was fantastic.
“I’m not exactly sure how it will play out this year. I’ve had some chats with [Rajasthan coaches] Warney and Darren Berry. The last time we talked about me playing as a batsman, but I’m not sure if anything has changed in their thinking since then. Graeme Smith will be available, so there will be competition for spots with so many international batsmen around. I’ll hopefully get a spot as a batsman in the first half of the tournament. It will be interesting to see how they balance it.”
Though Rajasthan will be denied Watson’s bowling services for the opening rounds of the tournament, the defending champions could be in for a surprise when the ball is finally thrown his way in May. Watson has been working with Dennis Lillee and Troy Cooley over the past few months in a bid to improve his swing bowling. The early signs, he says, are promising.
“The one good side of having time away from playing is that it gives you an opportunity to work on different parts of your game,” Watson said. “Last year, I used the injury time to work on some technical aspects of my batting and I was really pleased with what I came up with. And the opportunity to work with Truck [Cooley] and Dennis on my bowling this time has been great.
“It’s progressing really well. I’ve been restricted in what I’ve done so far, but will build up that workload during the IPL. Once I get the repetition going I’m confident that I will be able to achieve that goal of being able to swing the ball on a consistent basis. In the first week of May I should be close to full capacity again. I’ll be playing as a batsman for the first few weeks.”
Beyond the IPL, the Ashes looms large on Watson’s to-do list for 2009. Three years ago, the allrounder was all but guaranteed the No. 6 position in the Australian batting order for the first Ashes Test at the Gabba, but was ruled out days before the match with a hamstring injury that opened the door for Andrew Symonds.
The competition will be even greater this time around – incumbent allrounders Marcus North and Andrew McDonald both played important roles in Australia’s recent Test series victory in South Africa – and Watson is open to the idea of a county stint to enhance his selection prospects. Should that eventuate, a reignition of the controversy that surrounded Stuart Clark’s sigining with Kent is all but assured.
“It is obviously more difficult now with the new restrictions on overseas players,” he said. “If I went over it would not be to play a huge amount of cricket. County cricket is fun, but it is definitely a hard slog and there’s no way you want to be burning out this year. Six or seven weeks would be good, but we’ll see what happens.”
Source – content.cricinfo.com
With the Indian Premier League (IPL) season two moving to South Africa, a ding-dong battle is on between sponsors and team franchisees over the value of sponsorship deals.
While sponsors are looking out for long-term deals with lower fees, team franchisees are opting for one–year deal if the sponsorship fee is less attractive.
“Sponsors believe that the shift of venue and ongoing recession would result in 20-40% dip in response. They are renegotiating and trying to reduce the sponsorship fee or going for short-term commitments,” said Ranjit Barthakur, vice-chairman, Rajasthan Royals.
“Had it been held in India, which is likely to be the most recession-insulated place, the response would have been great. While a few previous sponsors are pulling out, new ones are joining in,” Barthakur added.
However, the defending champions Rajasthan Royals hopes to equal the number of sponsors they had in last season. “We had seven or eight sponsors last year. We would have the same number this year too. Being champions, we are getting premium as well,” Barthakur said without disclosing the likely revenue generated through sponsorships.
Apart from that, the team has also resorted to cost cutting measures to maximise revenue. “We have cut down 20% of our cost by cutting down on traveling and squeezing the advertising budget. We have also reduced the number of officials flying with the team,” said Utkarsh Singh, business development head, Rajasthan Royals.
Sensing a drop in ticket sales, the defending champions are striving to rope in big players as its merchandise partners. “We are looking at partnerships in different categories like FMCGs, linen and kids products. They would use Rajasthan Royals’ branding to come out with product formulations.” Barthakur said.
“We already have tie-ups with PUMA in sports apparel, Kids Media India (KMI) in kids’ products and GlaxoSmithkline in energy drink. There are around five major tie-ups in line, which we will announce next week,” Barthakur added.
The team franchisee is also in talks with South African sponsors and partners to expand its fan base and provide maximum value to its Indian sponsors.
“We have tied up with a South African television channel Supersport and sports magazine Sports Illustrated, to connect with local fans. We have also launched a massive school contact programme in SA to garner support from young fans,” Barthakur said.
Source – televisionpoint.com
