New Zealand coach John Wright’s entirely backing batsman Martin Guptill’s decision to make down the cash from the Indian Premier League.
Guptill’s turned down a contract with a side in the lucrative Twenty20 tournament in 2012, deciding instead to return to Derbyshire to play across three forms of the game.
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Rahul Dravid has been appointed the new skipper of Rajasthan Royals. Dravid succeeds Shane Warne, who captained Royals in the initial four IPLs and led them to the championship in the league’s first season. Dravid has been purchased by Royals in the 2011 IPL public auction for $500,000, after playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore for that first three years. One of the reasons Dravid was signed by Royals was his tested leadership abilities.
“I am honored to lead the Rajasthan Royals and look forward to the valuable inputs from my team-mates who are already leading their own national sides and clubs,” Dravid stated. “My goal will be to get the best out of an extremely good team and invoke the same team spirit which won the franchise the very first IPL, and has been a trademark on the Rajasthan Royals since that time.”
Warne announced the retirement from the IPL following the 2011 tournament and Royals had a number of gamers with leadership experience from which to choose his successor. The team consists of present New Zealand skipper, Ross Taylor, and former overseas Twenty20 captains Johan Both and also Paul Collingwood. Shane Watson, the Australia all rounder was an additional prospect but in the end Dravid’s qualifications were too robust too ignore.
“No one in the team possesses Rahul Dravid’s prominence,” Raghu Iyer, Rajasthan Royals spokesperson told. “He is likely one of the world’s best ever. Very tough not to appoint him as skipper.”
Warne accented Dravid’s leadership ability. “He is not only one of the world’s greatest batsmen, but a leader par excellence. The Royals team is a group of incredibly enthusiastic and talented players who understand their roles perfectly and I am certain that they will thrive under Dravid’s impressive leadership.”
In his debut season with Royals earlier this year, Dravid have scored 343 runs in 12 matches at an average of 31.18 and a strike-rate of 109.23. The team accomplished sixth in the points table, and were in the hunt for a play-off spot for most of the season before fading at the end.
The IPL (Indian Premier League) structure is coming to golf. Appear in March 2012, Bangalore’s Karnataka Golf Association will play host to the Louise Philippe Cup – a tournament which was announced few days back by the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI).
In all, eight teams, each comprising of the three leading specialist golfers from each city/region – Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Gurgaon, Lucknow and Chandigarh – are going to be participating in the $ 250,000 prize money competition. From the three members, two will be selected based on the PGTI 2011 final position as of end December and the 3rd participant will be a team choice.
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Cricket Australia unveiled its Big Bash League yesterday but, at the rear of the hype, came a dose of reality from Melbourne Renegades skipper Andrew McDonald.
Asked if the Twenty20 BBL could hope to compete with the Indian Premier League, McDonald said the key factor would be obtaining India’s big names engaged.
The BBL is going to have aging Aussie greats Shane Warne (Melbourne Stars) and Matthew Hayden (Brisbane Heat) for action this summer.
But courting the Indian market, to enhance a list of imports which includes West Indies pair Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo, would be another thing again.
McDonald wore a red shirt to promote the Renegades, alongside his Victorian captain Cameron White, in the green of Melbourne Stars. The pair will play in Victoria’s Sheffield Shield games versus
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The IPL Governing Council met in Hyderabad discussed various matters related to Indian Premier League 2012.
The Governing Council has requested the Management team to return with choices for the format and structure for the 2012 season of the tournament.
The Governing Council also authorized various operational items for the approaching IPL season.
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