Chennai Super Kings is fully geared up for IPL II . Everything is falling in place and with coach Stephen Fleming’s arrival, CSK look set to capture the heart of one and all, as it did last time. A 30-member strong team comprising players and support staff will assemble in South Africa where the team will train and play practice matches.

Most of the players including Fleming, Matthew Hayden, George Bailey, Manpreet Gony, Suresh Raina, Shadab Jakati, Joginder Sharma, Sudeep Tyagi, Parthiv Patel along with players from Tamil Nadu will leave for South Africa from the city on Wednesday. The rest will join them in the next few days.

VB Chandrasekhar (director, cricketing operations, CSK) while announcing the players list informed that Kiwi Jacob Oram will be playing the entire tournament. It is believed that Michael Hussey will play when he makes himself available.

Fleming on his first day as coach of CSK handled the media with ease.He was eager to play the new role of coach with perfection. He stated that he was clearly aware what his role should be.

Although he appeared to look gentle he made it clear that he will handle the team professionally and stressed that there was no place for sentiment.

“We have a balanced side. I am eager to perform my role to the best of my ability,” said Fleming.

The former New Zealand captain made it clear that the captain was the boss and his role would be that of a supplementary one. “I would prefer the captain to have the final say. My job would be to work with players and see to that each one gives his best and help the captain marshall resources in the best way,” said Fleming.

He also praised Dhoni for his excellent leadership skills.

When quizzed whether he believed in John Buchanan’s theory of four captains? “I do not believe in his (John’s) theory. I do not wish to make innovations for the sake of it. Things will be more or less the same like last time,” reflected the Kiwi.

On team composition, Fleming said: “We have to go there and see the conditions.

As far as I am concerned the best team would take the field according to the opposition. Reputations and names do not matter. I see this (IPL II) as excellent opportunity in particular for ‘home’ grown players to prove their mettle.” N Srinivasan, owner of CSK, was hopeful of a good show by his team.

He was happy that at last IPL II was happening and said the governing committee was doing everything to see to that the public in South Africa was aware what IPL was all about.
Source – expressbuzz.com

A HIGHLY optimistic N Srinivasan, the secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that the Indian Premier League Twenty20 cricket tournament transcends borders. Srinivasan, who owns the Chennai Super Kings announced that his team has hired renowned foreign cricketers to attain victory.

While speaking to the media, Srinivasan said, “I think, the IPL transcends borders. We only wanted the best and it does not matter which country he hails from.” He has appointed Stephen Fleming, the former captain of New Zealand as the coach of the Chennai Super Kings. His team also has South African Greg King as the trainer and Australian Tom Simsek as the physio.

On the question whether the hiring of foreign coaches and players would increase the budget of the team or not, Srinivasan replied, “We are not concerned by the budgets. Money is not the issue, but what is more important is winning. Our focus is on winning the tournament this year.” Srinivasan also declared that they have a fair idea about their finances based on last year, but the amount spend would be known only after the tournament is over.

When asked about his views on the doctrine of John Buchanan, the Australian coach of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), about having multiple captains in a single team, Srinivasan said that Shahrukh Khan, the owner of the KKR has already replied to Gavaskar on that issue. He did not wish to say anything more on that topic.

Srinivasan also expects a very good market for the Season II of IPL, though it would be held outside India this time. According to Srinivasan, the huge Asian population in South Africa would play the role of a positive catalyst in getting success there. The sale of tickets is also encouraging, he added.
Source – merinews.com

Last season’s finalist Chennai Super Kings (CSK) would prove an even stronger side in the IPL this year, said N. Srinivasan, the Vice-Chairman and Managing Director of India Cements — the franchise owner of CSK — at the official press conference of the team here on Monday.

“We missed winning the IPL by a whisker in the last edition and our aim is to win the title this year. We are focussed on this,” said Mr. Srinivasan.

He added the coming in of influential all-rounder Andrew Flintoff and the presence of several multi-dimensional cricketers such as Albie Morkel and Jacob Oram would add great depth and value to the side.

Mr. Srinivasan expected the IPL to be a success. “The fact that the tickets for the opening games in Cape Town have been sold out tells us about the interest the tournament has generated. Cricket South Africa has gone out of its way to support the IPL,” he said.

Asked about batting legend Sunil Gavaskar’s criticism of Kolkata Knight Riders’ coach John Buchannan, Mr. Srinivasan replied, “I think Shah Rukh Khan has answered.”

Stephen Fleming, CSK’s player-cum-coach, lavished praise on Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

“He’s an outstanding captain and leader. While there has been a lot of focus on his attributes as a skipper, sometimes we forget how hard it is for him to keep wickets and remain a key batsman while doing the top job. His contribution as a player is second to none. He leads by example. And he has the respect of the cricketing community.”
Source – hindu.com

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