BCCI to now produce all its matches

For the first time in its 84- year- old history, the BCCI has added an in-house television production unit and it will make debut with the home Test series against New Zealand next month.

The BCCI Broadcasting Services will not only do the production for international home series, but also the Indian Premier League ( IPL) and Champions League T20.

“Yes, a decision has been taken and the BCCI will do the production now, starting with the New Zealand series. We decided at a working committee meeting to go ahead with it,” BCCI president N Srinivasan told M AIL T ODAY . The two- Test series against New Zealand begins on August 23 in Uppal, Hyderabad. The Kiwis will also play two Twenty20 Internationals in a packed season in which England and Australia — and possibly Pakistan — too will visit India.

Till now, the company that held the BCCI media rights also used to do the production work, too, in return for a fee. Nimbus Communications held the previous contract.

But after terminating its contract on December 12 last year, for regularly defaulting on payments, the BCCI did not hire anyone to do the production for international matches as well as domestic tournaments.

SRINIVASAN declined to give reasons for breaking the traditional practice.

“ Instead of tendering it, we decided to do production ourselves. What were the reasons behind this decision, I do not want to disclose,” he said.

However, a top BCCI official said that the world’s richest cricket board decided against floating tender as it was confronting “ a lot of problems”, and they resulted from extremely limited options in the market.

“ It is a fact that the Indian market for this kind of production work is very limited. There are only a handful of companies that have the expertise. And the BCCI has been finding it difficult to deal with them,” the official told Mail Today.

When the BCCI terminated Nimbus’ contract, more than two years were left in the 2010- 2014 deal. The BCCI then floated tenders, inviting companies to bid for a total of six years — two years left in the Nimbus contract plus a separate four- year ( 2014- 18) block.

The Rupert Murdoch- owned STAR India Ltd., which was one of the only two bidders, quoted ` 3,851.52 crore ($ 757.6 million) to bag the six- year deal that includes the television, mobile and internet rights. It, however, did not hire STAR India Ltd. for production.

The BCCI assured STAR India Ltd. of 96 international matches in addition to select domestic tournament matches. Multi Screen Media ( Singapore) bid ` 3,700.032, only to lose by a huge difference of ` 151.488 crore.

In 2005, Lalit Modi, then a Board vice- president, and IS Bindra, president of the Punjab Cricket Association, had announced that the BCCI would launch its own cricket channel. But it never materialised.

The BCCI official said that Srinivasan himself raised the issue of inhouse production at a recent working committee meeting.

“ He told the gathering that only a handful of production houses were available and emphasised that the BCCI was finding it difficult to deal with its production partners,” he disclosed. “ Srinivasan invited members’ opinion on the proposal that was on the table. The proposal was prepared by BCCI’s Broadcasting Services director James Rego.” The official revealed that Srinivasan then requested IPL chief operating officer Sundar Raman, who was a special invitee at the working committee meeting, to explain the proposal in detail.

“He said that if the BCCI has an in- house production unit, the quality of telecast could be maintained,” he said. “ BCCI will also produce IPL and Champions League T20. The house approved the proposal unanimously.” Sources say that the BCCI has no plans to purchase expensive equipment straightaway, but will instead hire cameras and other gadgets for production, to be overseen by Rego, who joined the BCCI in 2009 from Nimbus. A few more old Nimbus hands have also joined the BCCI Broadcast Services.

“After the working committee approved the proposal, the top guns of the BCCI Broadcast Services have been calling a variety of professionals to hire them for the New Zealand series and the domestic season that begins on September 21 with the Irani Cup.” In all probability, the same freelance professionals who did duty for Nimbus will turn out for the BCCI too.

BCCI president N Srinivasan confirms the decision but declines to give reasons for departing from traditional practice

Tendulkar, Zaheer static in ICC Test rankings

Dubai: Veteran batsman Sachin Tendulkar and pace spearhead Zaheer Khan remained static at their respective 12th spots to be the highest-placed Indian cricketers in the latest ICC Test rankings issued on Wednesday.
While Tendulkar is the only Indian in the top-20 of the batting list, Zaheer has company in the form of spinner Pragyan Ojha, who held onto his 20th spot, in the bowling chart.
Meanwhile, South African Jacques Kallis led the charge of his country's batsmen up the rankings after his side's stunning innings-and-12-run victory against England on Monday.
Kallis, who scored an unbeaten 182 and also took 2 for 38 in England's first innings, not only moved up two places in batting rankings to second place but also unseated Shakib Al Hasan of Bangladesh as the number one ranked Test allrounder. Kallis has also moved up one rung in the rankings for Test bowlers to 31st place.
Hashim Amla's reward for his unbeaten 311, which was South Africa's highest ever individual Test score, was not only the 'Man of the Match' award but also a jump of three places in the batting rankings.
His overall rating of 872 is a career best to date for Amla - just two behind second-placed Kallis. Graeme Smith, South Africa's captain, moved up four places after his 131 in South Africa's mammoth 637 for 2 declared.
Smith is sixth in the batting table with AB de Villiers, who did not bat at The Oval, dropping to fifth because of the moves by Amla and Kallis.
Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara remained the top-ranked batsman and the only scant consolation for England was that Alastair Cook moved up one place to eighth - courtesy his first innings 115.
In the rankings for bowlers, Dale Steyn's seven-wicket haul in the match - including a second innings 5 for 56 - confirmed his place at the top and edged him ever closer to the magical 900-point mark.
He has 896 - just six short of his career best mark of 902 achieved against Sri Lanka at Centurion in 2011.

1st Test: Pitch the focus as NZ aim to change fortunes

New Zealand will look to change their fortunes when they take on West Indies in the first Test in Antigua on Wednesday. The tourists badly performed in the ODIs in the Caribbean and the Twenty20s in Florida, and this two-match Test series is their last chance to put things back in order.
West Indies’ captain Darren Sammy has already begun playing mind games, saying it would take a lot beating to deal with Narine in Caribbean conditions. The surface at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium at North Sound, which hosted the three-day tour match between the New Zealanders at the West Indies Cricket Board’s President’s XI, saw 17 of 28 wickets fall to spin. Shane Shillingford, the West Indies offspinner, took five wickets in the tourists’ second innings and Daniel Vettori six in the home team’s only innings, so Sammy’s talk of Narine being tough to play is understandable.
Narine, 24, has taken 20 wickets in his last seven limited-overs games against New Zealand, and none of the Kiwi batsmen looked comfortable against his guile and variety. Considering the Kiwis were left to play catch-up throughout the three-day practice game, there is enough reason to believe a turning wicket will be on view in Antigua.
Adding to New Zealand’s worries is the return of Chris Gayle, who hasn’t played a Test match since December 2010, and the No. 1 Test batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who missed the third Test against England due to a side strain last month. With Marlon Samuels also coming off a strong series in England, West Indies have a strong batting order though they will miss the services of the recovering Darren Bravo at No. 3. His replacement is likely to be Assad Fudadin, who made his Test debut in the final match of the England tour, but the fact that Narsingh Deonarine bowls handy spin could push his case for selection.
As far as West Indies’ fast bowling attack is concerned, tear-away pacer Kemar Roach will be the spearhead ahead of Ravi Rampaul and Tino Best.
For New Zealand, the fast bowler Trent Boult and the wicketkeeper-batsman BJ Watling have been ruled out of the first Test due to injuries, leaving 13 players available for selection for the Test. Watling’s injury means South Africa-born Kruger van Wyk will get a fourth Test cap and
the leading candidate to be picked as the third quick bowler is left-arm quick Neil Wanger, who took 3 for 65 in the tour game and scored crucial runs down the order. The 26-year-old could likely complete a three-man pace attack led by Chris Martin and Doug Bracewell.
"He has had to wait his time. He's got a very good first-class record and bowls with a lot of aggression," said New Zealand captain Ross Taylor of Wagner. "Neil Wagner has got a big chance to make his Test debut here in Antigua. He's an aggressive left-arm bowler who will be dangerous with the older ball as well, reversing it."
Taylor has a big responsibility on his hands to revive a dispirited bunch and he will need plenty of support from Daniel Vettori and Brendon McCullum, who played in the last two one-dayers but couldn’t do much. Vettori, returning to the side after a rest of three months, can cancel out Narine’s effect if he comes up with the performance he is capable of. His massive experience of 111 Tests is key to the visitors’ chances in the two-match series.
There is an outside chance that Vettori could have a spin partner for this Test in rookie legbreak bowler Tarun Nethula. But it is a slim possibility.
All said and done, West Indies will walk on to the field with the favourites’ tag on Wednesday. This is a golden opportunity for them to win a Test series against a proper team. In their last 10 home series, they have been victorious just once - against Bangladesh.
Probable XIs:
West Indies: 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Adrian Barath, 3 Assad Fudadin/Narsingh Deonarine, 4 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 5 Marlon Samuels, 6 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 7 Darren Sammy (capt), 8 Kemar Roach, 9 Ravi Rampaul, 10 Tino Best, 11 Sunil Narine
New Zealand: 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Daniel Flynn, 3 Kane Williamson 4 Ross Taylor (c), 5 Brendon McCullum, 6 Dean Brownlie, 7 Kruger van Wyk (wk), 8 Daniel Vettori, 9 Neil Wagner, 10 Doug Bracewell, 11 Chris Martin

Styris does an Afridi: century in 37 balls

New Zealander Scott Styris matched Shahid Afridi's record of fastest century on Tuesday, with the only difference being that Afridi did it in one-day international cricket while Styris' 37-ball ton came for Sussex.
Styris smashed a century from 37 balls in the Friends Life T20 quarter-final against Gloucestershire, taking Sussex through to the finals day. Styris was particularly severe on Gloucestershire bowler James Fuller when he smashed him for 38 runs in the 18th over of the innings - the costliest over in professional cricket
Fuller's first two balls of that over were not only no-balls but also crossed the ropes, followed by a six off the first legitimate ball of the over. It was followed by a six and a four off the next two deliveries before Fuller managed to keep the fourth ball to a dot. The fifth ball landed inches short of the boundary for a four and the last ball was sent sailing into the crowd as well.
With this innings, Styris probably also sent a signal to his IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings who have been reluctant to include the New Zealand allrounder in their playing XI.

Dhoni points finger at Hambantota pitch

Hambantota: Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni blamed the unpredictable pitch for his team's abysmal batting performance in the lost second ODI against Sri Lanka, rejecting suggestions that rash shots led to the stunning collapse.
India were last night bowled out for 138 in 33.3 overs - their fourth-lowest ODI total in the past five years - by the host team, which chased down the target in under 20 overs. The five-match series is now tied at 1-1.
"The pitch was next to the wicket we played on last time but it behaved in a completely different way," Dhoni said referring to the track used for the opening ODI in which India posted a 300-plus score. "Initially the wicket was slightly on the slower side. Once Virat [Kohli] got out, we lost a couple of more wickets very quickly.
"Before the batsmen could assess the wicket, we lost two wickets played on. I thought after that it was too much for batsmen like Irfan [Pathan] and [Ravichandran] Ashwin to come in and take us out of trouble," he added.
But his opposite number, Mahela Jayawardene, disagreed with Dhoni insisting that the wicket was not that bad. "Probably a touch slower; there were quite a few good balls as well. We bowled in good areas, created pressure, maybe a couple of bad shots as well, but I will take that any day. The important thing with the Indian batting line-up is picking up wickets and that's the only way we can control things and that is what we did today," he said.
Dhoni defended his batsmen's shot selection, refusing to call them rash. "I don't think they were shots that were really rash. People were looking for singles. If you see Rohit's ball [the one off which he was dismissed], the shot was on. But he got an inside edge and it went onto the stumps.
"It could have been his lucky day if it hadn't hit the stumps and he was still there to carry on with his innings. It is part and parcel of the game and a big learning curve. Hope the batsmen learn and they assess the wicket very quickly [in the next game]," Dhoni explained.
The wicketkeeper-batsman said the wicket here lacked pace and was difficult to bat on. "Over here the wicket was slightly different, it [the ball] was stopping before coming on. I don't think there was too much swing for the bowlers, though there was a bit of breeze - meaning you can swing it a bit - but nothing unusual. I just thought the pace of the wicket was not really coming onto the bat and that's the reason why we lost too many wickets initially."
India now move to Colombo for the third game of the series and Dhoni said that his team has learnt some important lessons from the Hambantota stay. "The boys adjusted well to the conditions whether it was the bowling or the batting department. Today [Tuesday] the performance wasn't so good but still the kind of wind we faced here was the kind that one usually gets to see in Wellington in New Zealand," he said.
"I think given the amount of time we had, we adjusted pretty well. So I am quite happy; [it was a] decent performance. Slowly and gradually you will see all the youngsters learning, especially about the importance of the middle overs, because that is where most of the cricket is played - right from the 15th-20th over onwards till the 40th over," he added.
Meanwhile, Jayawardene lauded his team-mates for putting up a near-perfect show in every department of the game. "We were much more focussed in executing some of the game plans," Jayawardene said. "I told the guys that we are capable of performing at the highest level, so let's try and execute the game plan. That's what we did," he added.
Thisara Perera, who took 3 for 19 in eight overs, said he was keeping it simple. "I just bowled on one side of the wicket as Mahela wanted," he said.

Defeat has left sour taste, says Strauss

England captain Andrew Strauss was left with a "sour taste in the mouth" after his team suffered a crushing innings and 12-run defeat by South Africa in the first test on Monday.
In a battle between the world's top two teams, and with England's number one ranking on the line, Strauss had expected his men to flourish in the familiar conditions but instead floundered as South Africa dominated the contest to go 1-0 up in the three-match series.
"Most of my regrets are that we did not come out with a draw," Strauss told reporters. "We should have done that."
Strauss especially rued how England lost wickets at times in the match when he thought they could have done better like on Friday morning when they plummeted from their overnight 267 for three to 385 all out.
In the second innings on Sunday, England lost four key batsmen to close 102 for four, en route to being 240 all out.
South Africa had far less trouble on a placid batting surface at The Oval, as they posted a huge total of 637 for two. Hashim Amla broke the national batting record with 311 not out.
"Losing four wickets last night was a body blow for us," said Strauss.
"The South Africans did get it reversing today and with more wickets in hand we could have batted out the day.
"There are a number of areas where we are frustrated. We did not deal better with those conditions and losing four wickets last night in placid conditions made life difficult for us today. There are regrets there but we will learn the lessons and come back strong next week."
The teams meet again in Leeds on Aug 2, before the final clash at Lord's on Aug 16. Strauss was keen not to panic by the defeat and said he still had faith in his team, especially the batsmen, who have flourished in home conditions “for a long period of time.

'Shoaib brands Sami 'mentally weak athlete who buckles under pressure'

Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar has described his one-time new ball partner Mohammad Sami as a "mentally weak" bowler who is unable to handle pressure.
"Sami is a mentally weak athlete and he can't take pressure. Efforts were made to make Sami into the Karachi Express. He was constantly told that your competition is with Akhtar for a place in the team," the Daily Times quoted Akhtar, as saying.
"I played a lot with Sami and my observation is he tried to compete hard and lost discipline in bowling. When we bowled together we could put a lot of pressure on the batsmen and in such circumstances he bowled well," Akhtar said.
The former pacer said luck also plays a big role in any cricketer's career.
"Sami was an unlucky bowler as well many times straight forward catches were dropped off his bowling while in some instances umpires didn't give decisions in his favour," he said.
Akhtar said he believed that compared to Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, Sami was a mentally weak bowler.
"He has been playing for 11 years but if you tick him off once he loses focus and comes under pressure. He has the ability and I wish he does well now but for this he has to be assigned a role in the team and pressure must be put on him to perform as a frontline strike bowler," Akhtar was quoted, as saying.
The national selectors and team management have come under criticism for retaining Sami in the Twenty20 squad announced for the upcoming Australia series and the T20 World Cup, after he failed to make an impact on the Sri Lanka tour.
Sami's selection was a debatable one, with critics pointing to his abysmal Test record of 85 wickets in 36 matches at an average of 56. His performances in ODIs and T20 matches is better since he has captured 121 wickets in 85 matches at an average of 28 and 10 wickets at 14 in five T20 games, the paper said.