Choose between BCCI and IPL...

BCCI secretary N. Srinivasan New Delhi: The Supreme Court, on Thursday, sought to know whether the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary N. Srinivasan would consider giving up one of the two hats he was wearing — that of BCCI secretary and IPL franchise owner — till the Madras High Court disposed of a suit filed by former BCCI president A.C. Muthiah alleging conflict of interest in holding on to both.  A two-judge bench, comprising Justices J.M. Panchal and Gyansudha Mishra, suggested this as an interim arrangement during the course of hearing of an appeal filed by Muthiah against an interim order of the Madras High Court declining to prevent Srinivasan from contesting for the post of president in the September 29 elections. Srinivasan’s counsel Mukul Rohatgi said there was no conflict of interest in being both BCCI secretary and India Cements-owning Chennai Super Kings.  However, Justice Gyansudha Mishra demurred saying that the basic issue in this case was about eligibility and conflict of interest. She also pointedly asked the counsel to ask his client to choose whether he would be a member of the BCCI or would continue to be an owner of Chennai Super Kings.  “You can’t wear two hats. Till the main suit is decided you apply this option.” She asked Rohatgi to seek instructions from his client on this.  “You tell him to resign as member of BCCI and continue to own the IPL side or be a member of BCCI and relinquish the ownership of IPL,” she said. “You choose either of these,” she added. “You can’t continue in two capacities.”  She wondered what prejudice would be caused to Muthiah if this option was exercised in the interim. Rohatgi at this juncture clarified that Srinivasan was not the owner of Chennai Super Kings. “The owner is India Cements. I am one of the 12 directors of India Cements.” The counsel said that though Srinivasan was the managing director, he was not the “owner”. But Justice Mishra insisted that since the allegation was about him influencing the “decision-making” process, he should consider exercising this option.  Rohatgi, however, argued that the whole suit against Srinivasan was actuated by mala fide. “Grave prejudice will be caused if I am prevented from contesting to the post of BCCI president,” he argued on behalf of Srinivasan.  “That choice cannot be put to me as I am not the owner. India Cements is the owner,” he claimed. Rejecting Muthiah’s argument that the corporate veil has to be pierced to unveil the truth about Chennai Super Kings’s ownership, Rohatgi said that the corporate veil can only be lifted (by courts) as an exception in cases of fraud and some other such reason. “It cannot based on bald and vague allegations.”  Justice Mishra then sought to know how such a major decision as changing a rule was taken by the working committee (which had 10 members) as opposed to the Board (which has 30 members). “Is it not conflict of interest? You are the secretary. Can’t it be said that you influenced the decision of the working committee? “  After all, the main allegation was that the amendment was carried out without following due procedure. As per procedure all members have to have notice of the intent to change the rule before it was carried out.  However, Muthiah’s counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi in his counter-argument insisted that the suit was maintainable. The BCCI rules specified that there should be no conflict of interest either direct or indirect, he contended.  That rule was changed to exempt IPL, Champions League and Twenty20 from its purview. Muthiah initially complained to the BCCI but after his complaint was ignored went to the Madras High Court. Arguments will continue on September 21.

Champions League Twenty20, 2010 - Mumbai Indians vs Guyana, Kingsmead, Durban, Match 10

Champions League Twenty20, 2010 - Mumbai Indians vs Guyana, Kingsmead, Durban, Match 10

Match Result: Mumbai Indians beat Guyana by 31 runsMan of the match: Kieron Pollard Series Status:

Toss won by: Mumbai Indians Status : Match Ended Batted First : Mumbai IndiansBatted Second : Guyana

Total: 184  for 4 in 20.0  overs   Run Rate: 9.2
Mumbai Indians Innings

Batsman	Status	Runs	Balls	4's	6's
Shikhar Dhawan	c Esuan Crandon b Devendra Bishoo	39	37	3	1
Sachin Tendulkar (C)	st Derwin Christian b Devendra Bishoo	48	39	6	0
Kieron Pollard	not out	72	30	1	9
Saurabh Tiwary	c Christopher Barnwell b Devendra Bishoo	0	3	0	0
Ambati Rayudu (W)	b Esuan Crandon	4	5	0	0
JP Duminy	not out	14	6	2	0
Dwayne Bravo
Harbhajan Singh
Zaheer Khan
Lasith Malinga
Ali Murtaza

Extras :  7 (b - 0, w - 5, nb - 0, lb - 2, Penalty - 0)

Fall of wickets:1/82 (Sachin Tendulkar 10.5 ov.), 2/98 (Shikhar Dhawan 14.2 ov.), 3/99 (Saurabh Tiwary 15 ov.), 4/152 (Ambati Rayudu 18.3 ov.)

Bowlers	Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets	Wides	Noballs	Econ
Paul Wintz	4	0	46	0	0	0	11.5
Esuan Crandon	4	0	44	1	3	0	11
Christopher Barnwell	4	0	33	0	0	0	8.25
Royston Crandon	4	0	25	0	1	0	6.25
Devendra Bishoo	4	0	34	3	1	0	8.5

Total: 153  for 6 in 20.0  overs   Run Rate: 7.65   Target: 185

Guyana Innings

Batsman	Status	Runs	Balls	4's	6's
Travis Dowlin	c Saurabh Tiwary b Dwayne Bravo	7	18	0	0
Sewnarine Chattergoon	c JP Duminy b Lasith Malinga	1	6	0	0
Ramnaresh Sarwan (C)	c Lasith Malinga b Harbhajan Singh	46	38	6	1
Narsingh Deonarine	c Shikhar Dhawan b Dwayne Bravo	27	23	3	0
Christopher Barnwell	c Sachin Tendulkar b Harbhajan Singh	24	15	3	1
Royston Crandon	not out	16	14	1	1
Jonathan Foo	c Ambati Rayudu b Zaheer Khan	1	3	0	0
Esuan Crandon	not out	2	3	0	0
Derwin Christian (W)
Devendra Bishoo
Paul Wintz

Extras :  29 (b - 8, w - 17, nb - 0, lb - 4, Penalty - 0)

Fall of wickets:1/15 (Sewnarine Chattergoon 2 ov.), 2/45 (Travis Dowlin 7 ov.), 3/91 (Narsingh Deonarine 12.5 ov.), 4/118 (Ramnaresh Sarwan 15.3 ov.), 5/137 (Christopher Barnwell 17.3 ov.), 6/148 (Jonathan Foo 19 ov.)

Bowlers	Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets	Wides	Noballs	Econ
Zaheer Khan	4	1	17	1	3	0	4.25
Lasith Malinga	4	0	28	1	1	0	7
Dwayne Bravo	3	0	18	2	2	0	6
Harbhajan Singh	4	0	33	2	1	0	8.25
Kieron Pollard	2	0	22	0	0	0	11
Ali Murtaza	3	0	23	0	1	0	7.67

CL T20: Mumbai crush Guyana by 31 runs

Durban: Kieron Pollard's 30-ball 72 massacre, including 9 sixes and one four, helped Mumbai register their opening points in the Champions League after beating a hapless Guyana by 31 runs on Thursday at Kingsmead.

Mumbai innings - which was helped by some shoddy ground fielding and catching by the Guyanese side - looked scratchy to begin with after Sachin won the toss and elected to bat despite overcast conditions. But once the opening partnership crossed fifty, Sachin & Co. eyed a score close to what they eventually ended with.

However, an opening stand of 82 runs between the Mumbai skipper and Shikhar Dhawan followed Sachin's (48) dismissal against the run of play, when spinner Devendra Bishoo got him stumped to claim his first wicket.

Sachin's wicket led to another two in quick succession, both to Bishoo. The tweaker first had Dhawan (39) caught at mid-wicket, followed by Saurabh Tiwary who failed to disturb the scorers.

From 82 for no loss, Mumbai Indians slipped to 99/3 at the end of 15 overs. Kieron Pollard – who was promoted to No. 3 to counter an eventuality of rain interruption – remained a spectator until then, watching wickets fall around him. However, that didn't prevent the West Indian butcher to clobber a hapless Guyanese team in what turned out to be the innings of the tournament.

What followed was an uninhibited display of aerial hitting that sent Guyana on a leather hunt and shattered Ramnaresh Sarwan's dream of restricting Mumbai to under 150.

A staggering 85 runs came off the last 30 balls of Mumbai innings, taking them to an unprecedented 184 runs at the end of 20 overs.

Bishoo remained the most impressive bowler for Guyana with his three wickets for 34 runs in four overs.

An under-pressure Guyana outfit needed an inspirational innings from their skipper Ramnaresh Sarwan. But before him, the openers needed to fire, which sadly didn't happen as S Chatergoon (1) failed once again, giving Malinga and Mumbai the first wicket.

Travis Dowlin (7) too never looked in and after a scratchy partnership of 30 runs with Sarwan, fell prey to fellow West Indian Dwayne Bravo.

From that moment on, it was always Sarwan vs Mumbai. And the Guyana skipper did give Mumbai a little scare for a while with some support from Narsing Deonarine.

But that didn't last long as Deonarine (27) fell to a fabulous forward-diving catch by Shikhar Dhawan, ending a 46-run stand and giving Bravo his second victim of the match.

Sarwan continued to be the only hope, if there was any, for Guyana. And his wicket proved to be the final nail hammered in by Harbhajan Singh, when Sarwan ended up hitting straight into Malinga's hands in quest for quick runs.

With a few easy wickets on offer in the end, Zaheer picked up one whereas Harbhajan and Bravo ended with a brace each.

But Kieron Pollard's innings turned out to be difference between the two teams in search of their first win in the tournament. The hurricane he brought onto the field left Guyana clueless and they failed to come out of it, going down tamely in the end. 

Latif targets getting Test status for Afghanistan in two years time

Former Pakistan Test captain Rashid Latif, who is all set to join Afghanistan cricket team as its head coach following his resignation as the wicket-keeping coach of the National Cricket Academy, has said that his goal is to get Test status for Afghanistan in the next two years.

"My job is to train the Afghan team and prepare a back-up line for them for future," the Daily Times quoted Latif, as saying.

He pointed out that without a proper back up, any team who was getting Test status could not survive long.

Latif also said he had sorted his minor differences with the Afghanistan Cricket Association. "I have accepted the offer after sorting out differences with them."

He confirmed that he would be joining the Afghan team in Dubai on September 17 where they are preparing for Inter Continental Cup.

The 41-year-old coach will be taking over the new responsibility from compatriot Kabir Khan, who resigned over differences with the Afghan cricket authority after last month's Scotland tour.

Latif played 37 Tests and 166 one-day internationals (ODIs) in an illustrious career that also saw him campaign against corruption in the game. He had been wicket-keeping coach at the NCA since late 2008. (ANI)

Spain still the best, according to Fifa rankings

World Cup winners Spain have won the opening two matches of their European Championship qualifying campaign

Winners of the World Cup Spain stay at the top of Fifa's latest world rankings, with Germany and England rising after back-to-back wins in the European Championship qualifiers. The rankings see France, who lost a home Euro 2012 qualifier to Belarus, dropping six places to No 27 – their worst position since the rankings were introduced in 1993.

Les Bleus were seventh at the start of the year but their qualifying struggles follow a dismal World Cup performance that was overshadowed by splits in the camp leading to the bitter departure of their coach Raymond Domenech and leaving several leading players facing lengthy bans from the squad.

Spain's shock 4-1 defeat to Argentina meant their lead narrows over the Netherlands, their World Cup final opponents. Germany are third, and Brazil drop to No 4. The Argentines stay at No 5, with England now sixth ahead of Uruguay, Portugal, African champion Egypt and Chile.

Fifa updated the standings, which weigh results over a four-year cycle, using 159 international matches played over five weeks. Euro 2012 and 2012 African Cup of Nations qualifiers carried the most points.

Norway and Slovakia jump to No 14 and No 16 respectively – the Slovaks' best ever – on the back of two wins apiece while Turkey rise seven places to No 21.

The United States remain at No 18 and World Cup quarter-finalists Ghana climb three positions to No 20.

Switzerland, Australia and Russia drop out of the top 20. The Australians remain the top Asian confederation nation at No 24. New Zealand lead the Oceania nations at No 49. Montenegro rise to their best-ever ranking of 40th – up 33 places after Euro 2012 wins against Wales and Bulgaria – despite not being a recognised national team until three years ago.

The Balkan country cut its football ties with Serbia after they played at the 2006 World Cup and was admitted as Fifa's 208th and newest member in May 2007 with a ranking of 199.

Euro 2012 results also saw Lithuania, Cyprus and Northern Ireland leap at least 10 places into the top 50. Belarus jump 23 places to their best of 55th on the back of that famous defeat of France.

The summer's World Cup hosts South Africa rise eight places to No 58 – their best ranking in three years – after beating Ghana in a friendly and Niger in an African Cup of Nations qualifier. The Cape Verde Islands used a qualifying win over Mali to jump 31 places to No 77, and Guinea-Bissau's victory over Kenya in its first match since December 2007 lifted it 48 places to No 140.

Qatar, who are seeking to host the World Cup in 2022, drop six places to No 104 after a trio of drawn friendlies against Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bahrain and Oman. The organisers of Qatar's bid are to showcase a specially designed stadium this week which is supposed to keep fans and players cool while protecting the environment.

The stadium is part of organisers' efforts to convince Fifa inspectors, who are visiting this week, that the country can hold the tournament despite temperatures reaching 50C in the summer. The inspectors include six delegates, led by the Chile Football Federation president Harold Mayne-Nicholls.

Qatar is the final stop on a tour of nine countries which are bidding to host the 2018 or 2022 World Cups. Fifa will announce the winners in December.