Haddin ready to take gloves off for Australia

Brad Haddin is adamant he and fellow wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist can co-exist as Australia attempt to wrestle cricket's Chappell-Hadlee Trophy back from their Transtasman neighbours this month।

NSW keeper Haddin was yesterday named alongside Gilchrist in the 13-man Australian squad for the three trans-Tasman one day internationals starting December 14। The two keepers have only played together six times in Haddin's 25 international appearances, with four of those games chalked up on the recent tour of India।

Haddin emerged as one of Australia's stars in that series, finishing second in the team averages with 200 runs at 66।66, notching two 50's in his four innings।In all four of the matches they played together in India, Gilchrist wore the gloves and flamboyant Blues stroke-player Haddin was chosen as a specialist batsman because of the unavailability of captain Ricky Ponting.

"Keeping was always going to be my No।1, there's no worry about that, I'm a wicketkeeper first," Haddin said at the SCG yesterday.The last four to five years I've understood what works with my batting and started to put the performance on the board.

"So my name has been thrown up as a batsman and I've been lucky enough now to be included in the squad as a batsman।" Whilst the majority of his early international appearances came when Gilchrist was injured, Haddin was always determined to establish his place in his own right rather than act as a permanent back-up।

"It's something I've been working on for a long time now to be considered in the team on my own merits while Adam (Gilchrist) is still in the squad, it's been probably a four to five year process and it's finally come about।" Haddin heads in to the three-match clash with the Black Caps in good form, having notched 239 runs at 79।66 in domestic one-day cricket this season.

The 30-year-old said he was concentrating on performing well enough: "So the selectors find it irresistible not to pick me। "I've been lucky enough now to be included in the same squad as Adam and that's something I've worked very hard for, for a long time।"

Haddin said he hadn't honestly thought about the possibility of Test selection।He said the Australians were disappointed at losing the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy last year and expected that to be strong motivation for the upcoming series। "We really want that trophy back, we don't want our little cousins to be holding it for much longer, we'd much rather (have it) in our trophy cabinet," Haddin said.

Kirsten describes India job as real challenge

Newly appointed Indian cricket coach Gary Kirsten landed here on Friday for his first interaction with the players since taking up the high-profile job which he described as a "real challenge"।

The former South African opener, who accepted a two-year contract offered by the BCCI earlier this week, said he had played a lot of cricket in India but now that he was a part of the set up, he wanted to understand the Indian culture better।

"It's great to be back। I am looking forward to the work and am looking forward to meeting up with the guys. I've just come here to meet the players and really just to observe what they do," he told reporters at the airport.

The 40-year-old Kirsten, South Africa's batting mainstay during his playing days in the '90s, said he had not put any plan in place for the team yet।

"I m not putting any plans in place। I m just here to see how they play there cricket. I have played a lot of cricket against India but now I am a part of the set up, so now I need to see how they work and understand," he said.

The former South African player said it was a great honour to be associated with the Indian cricket।

"I am looking forward to it. It's a real challenge but it's a great honour too. I am looking forward to be a part of the Indian culture and specially from the cricket perspective how much the people love the game in this country.

Quadrangular Tournament the future of T&T cricket

BGTT public affairs manager Gail Decle, third from left, and BGTT public affairs and community relations head Aleem Hosein, second from right, display the trophy up for grabs in the BGTT Quadrangular Tournament, at the media launch held at BGTT House, St Clair yesterday, as BGTT Elite Under-15 team captain Derone Davis, left, Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board CEO Forbes Persaud, second from left, and T&T Under-17 captain Yannic Carriah look on।

The BGTT Quadrangular Under-17 Tournament, featuring teams from Guyana, Windward Islands and Trinidad and Tobago as well as the BGTT Elite Under-15 squad, seeks to fill a familiar gap in local cricket and the tournament's organisers hope it will become a permanent regional fixture।

Murray, speaking at the media launch at BGTT House in St Clair yesterday, described the tournament as "the future of T&T cricket and, by extension, West Indies cricket"।

"There is no substitute for proper preparation," he said, indicating that cricketers must be ushered into the professional realm of cricket at an early age in order for them to prepare for the rigours of the regional and international arenas।

The Quadrangular Tournament, which bowls off tomorrow, is being used as a benchmark to measure the progress of the local players, all of whom took part in the TTCB's High Performance Centres (HPC) programme, which comes to an end in the coming weeks।

This inaugural and "historical" tournament is also special as it marks the return to the cricketing fraternity for former T&T cricketer Alec Burns, who is the media manager for the BGTT team.
Murray hopes that the return of Burns will mark the beginning of former players coming back to help the new cricketers develop and assist cricket in T&T to move forward।

BGTT, who have spent approximately $87,000 in sponsorship for the tournament, remain committed to promoting youth development and participation in sport as a means of developing well-rounded citizens।

According to the company's head of public affairs and community relations, Aleem Hosein, "Sporting activities teach discipline, team building and goal-setting that could only strengthen one's character...it reorients attitude, develops mental power and is self-motivating।"

A lot has been said about an Under-15 team taking part in the competition, but Baldath Bodoe, the T&T Under-15 coach, believes the experience will be welcome as it will help the players prepare for the regional Under-15 tournament next year।

Stephen Katwaroo, of Iere High School, who took part in the 2006 regional Under-15 tournament, will feature on the BGTT team, while Yannic Cariah, who captained the Under-15s, will be at the helm of the T&T Under-17 squad।

The Guyana and Windward Islands teams will arrive today and will have no time to rest as Guyana take on the BGTT team at Inshan Ali Park, Preysal and the Windwards clash with T&T at the National Cricket Centre (NCC) in Balmain, Couva tomorrow।

The competition will take place at three venues- NCC; Gilbert Park, California; and Inshan Ali Park--and will be played on a round-robin basis, with three points for a win and one for a tie, with the team tallying the most points walking away with the BGTT Trophy.

New Windies coach Dyson to miss Zimbabwe tour

New West Indies coach John Dyson will not accompany the team on their forthcoming tour of Zimbabwe as he remains in Australia to finalise his domestic matters।

The 53-year-old former Australia batsman, who was appointed last month, was absent from the first day of the team's training camp on Monday and the chief executive of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) Donald Peters said they had met with the coach and come to an agreement on his availability।

"There are no major issues where this is concerned। Obviously for someone coming from so far there are a number of matters to settle. He will miss the Zimbabwe tour and will join the team in South Africa," said Peters.

West Indies play the first of five one-day internationals in Zimbabwe on Nov। 30 before touring South Africa where they will play three test matches and another five ODIs.

Peters said the coaches in Zimbabwe will be Henderson Springer and David Williams who will then be the assistants to Dyson in South Africa.

Former cricket captain Chappell says racism behind assault in India

Former Australian cricket captain Greg Chappell believes he was subjected to a racist attack while coaching India and that the authorities there tried to cover it up, reports said Wednesday.
He makes the charge in a documentary about his troubled two-year stint as India coach which is to be shown on national television next week, The Australian newspaper reported।

Chappell said he was punched and pushed by a disgruntled fan as the Indian team arrived in Bhubaneswar in Orissa state for a one-day clash against the West Indies in January this year.
"I got hit on the side of the head and my immediate reaction was 'he's broken my jaw'," Chappell said।

"Indians are very quick to complain about racism. There are plenty of Indian cricketers the guy could have attacked but he chose to attack me," he said.
"I don't really buy the fact that he was talking about the lack of Orissa players in the Indian team।

"If that was the case why didn't he accost the chairman of selectors or someone else who might have been involved in the selection process?
"Why would he attack one of the foreigners in the group -- me as coach? There's a bit more to it than that।"

Chappell, who left the post after India's poor showing at the World Cup, said he was still upset about the attack and the lack of action taken by officials।

"As I said to the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) in a letter, had it been one of the players who was attacked there would have been an outcry, but because it was me, no one seemed to care," Chappell told The Australian।

"The reply came back talking about my racist comments। It was quite obvious it was a serious assault. It wasn't just a push in the back as the media was led to believe. There was a cover-up. Everyone went into cover-up mode. The whole thing was played down."

The accusation by Chappell follows Australian complaints that Indian crowds racially abused black Australian batsman Andrew Symonds with monkey chants and gestures during a tour last month.

MBA graduate applies for Indian cricket coach's post

The Board for Control and Cricket in India will announce the appointment of a coach for the Indian team before the commencement of the Australian tour।

An MBA graduate with no experience in playing cricket has applied to be the coach of the Indian team, a board official said on Tuesday।

"One of the applications we have received is from an MBA graduate, despite the fact that he has not played any cricket। In the column where applicants have to state their cricketing experience, he has written that he has never played cricket," the official told IANS on condition of anonymity.

"Further, he has written that he did not think it was essential to play cricket to coach a team। He said that it required a different kind of skill to manage the team," the official said. He declined to name the individual.

Currently, the Indian team has an ad hoc coach, former Test player Lalchand Rajput.
The team has not had a permanent coach since March when the two-year contract of former Australia captain Greg Chappell ended and he decided not to seek an extension।

Board president Sharad Pawar has said that a new appointment would be made before the team's tour of Australia starts Dec 20.

Authorities rule out match-fixing ties to Woolmer's death during Cricket World Cup

The lead police investigator into the death of Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer said on Tuesday there was no evidence of match-fixing in the team's games at the Cricket World Cup in March।

Jamaica Deputy Police Commissioner Mark Shields, testifying at Woolmer's inquest, said the International Cricket Council also found no evidence linking Woolmer's death to match-fixing.
The 58-year-old Woolmer was found unconscious in his Kingston hotel room on March 18, a day after Pakistan was upset by Ireland in group play।

Jamaica government pathologist Dr। Ere Sheshiah ruled days later that he'd been strangled, setting off an international murder investigation. However, several foreign doctors concluded Woolmer died from natural causes, most likely heart disease.

Fans and media have speculated that Woolmer possibly uncovered a match-fixing scam, or been targeted by Pakistan fans incensed at their team's poor showing.

News agencies to boycott second test

International news agencies are planning to extend their boycott of Australian cricket after attempts to broker a deal over media coverage stalled.

Reuters, the Associated Press and Agence France-Presse are all expected to boycott this week's second test between Australia and Sri Lanka starting on Friday in Hobart in protest at Cricket Australia's देमंड्स.

Cricket Australia wants the media organisations to pay for the right to distribute photographs from the event but the agencies are refusing, saying it threatens journalistic integrity.
"Reuters remains adamant on its right to distribute sports news pictures freely," said Monique Villa, Managing Director of Reuters Media.

"I met with Cricket Australia last Sunday in London and nothing has really changed: they want to control our news and who can receive it, which is totally उनच्सप्ताब्ले."

The three international agencies were locked out of last week's first test in Brisbane but were hoping to find a solution in time for the second test।

Sri Lankan cricket authorities have appealed to Cricket Australia to end the dispute because of concerns it will reduce coverage of spinner Muttiah Muralitharan breaking the world record for the most test wickets।

Muralitharan is six wickets short of equalling Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne's world record of 708 test match scalps and could achieve the milestone in the Hobart test.
Reuters said Cricket Australia had conceded on the key issue of licence fees -- a fee to cover the event -- but most other points were still problematic।

"CA has withdrawn its claim for a licence fee, which shows progress, but we are at a standstill on the remaining issues," Villa said।

Those include the agencies' right to sell photographs to individuals freely and a dispute over the categories of news organisations the agencies were free to sell pictures to.
"Regretfully we will have to maintain the boycott of coverage for the next test with Sri Lanka in Hobart," Villa added.
STILL HOPEFUL
Cricket Australia spokesman Peter Young said he was still hopeful a resolution could be found.
"The good news is that the agencies are talking to us again...we were very disappointed when they wouldn't come back to the table," Young told Reuters।

"This is a complex negotiation but we're very keen to talk it through and come up with a resolution."
Cricket Australia's stance has divided the cricket community.
Indian cricket authorities say they support Australia's actions and may introduce similar restrictions on media for their home matches।

However, Australian politicians, trade union leaders and sections of the media have accused Cricket Australia of being "greedy".
"That is definitely not the case। There are a number of issues here that don't just relate to cricket but to all sports," Young said.


"The world is changing and if people want to sit down and look at the issues instead of the lurid newspaper headlines then I think they'll see that this really is a complex issue."
A coalition of New Zealand newspapers has written to Cricket Australia saying they will resist demands to limit media coverage during next month's Chappel-Hadlee series। The International Cricket Council said it hopes the dispute is resolved amicably.

The media row comes at a delicate time for cricket officials, with the game still reeling from the negative coverage over the organisation of this year's World Cup in the West Indies and global attendances and television ratings declining।

Australia are the highest ranked team in world cricket but only 55,953 people attended the five days of the first Sri Lanka test. Television viewing figures were down nearly 41 per cent on last year, according to a report in Wednesday's Daily Telegraph.

Fleming remains in doubt

He may no longer hold the captaincy, but Stephen Fleming still remains a focus of attention in the New Zealand cricket team this week।

Fleming's injured arm and thumb continue to hamper the Black Caps ahead of the second cricket test against South Africa, starting on Friday in Centurion।

Fleming's progress is troubling coach John Bracewell, as is Jacob Oram's hamstring strain, given his impact as an all-rounder who gives the team extra batting depth।

Meanwhile, there are no plans from Brendon McCullum to wear an armguard despite a peppering from the South African pace attack in the first test।

McCullum says he has faced some tough bowling over the course of his career so far and has had no real need for a guard। He says it is about the power of the mind to overcome such situations and if you have a freak accident taking your eye off the ball, there is nothing you can do.

The side has been put through an intense training session in Pretoria to try to make up for the lack of tests over the last year.

Cricket in the pink

Pink balls will be used in some cricket matches next season as experiments are conducted to see if they are more visible to players।

The MCC, the game's law-makers, are working with scientists on the new fluorescent ball this winter and it will be used in university and second XI matches early next summer.
If successful it could be extended to county cricket, with the ultimate aim of it being used in one-day internationals।

MCC head of cricket John Stephenson told The Times: "Paint tends to flake off white balls and we have asked Kookaburra to produce a batch of pink ones because these show up much better.
"The challenge is to produce a ball which retains its colour - I doubt it will be any more expensive to produce or buy।"

White balls are currently used in one-day internationals but they are changed after 34 overs due to wear and tear।

The MCC hope the pink one will prove more durable. It is not the first time the game has experimented with different coloured balls, with orange ones tried in the Refuge Assurance Cup in 1989.

Four day carnival of Durga Puja lights up in Kolkata

KOLKATA: The four day carnival of Durga Puja lights up the city and thousands throng the streets hopping from one pandal to the other worshipping goddess Durga। Kolkata explodes in a riot of colour. The euphoria that sets in during the four-day carnival brings both a resurgence of economy and faith. For the days that Durga is worshipped, Kolkata is transformed into a city enchanted.

Faith and economy are inexorably linked together with the Durga Puja। The commercialization of the Puja in West Bengal began in a big way in the 1960’s. Businessmen, from the industrialist to the hawker, saw in this annual event an opportunity to mint money.

The textile mills in Ahmedabad, Kanpur and Bombay design something new every year for customers for whom purchasing new clothes is a must in the festive season। Footwear is another important purchase for the average Bengali. While the Kanpur and the other leather units grab a chunk of the market, consumers also prefer shoes from multinational shoe companies. Innovative advertisements from companies before the Pujas have become an annual feature. The Bengali and the Hindi film industries also reserve their extravaganzas for this time of the year.

There is a proliferation of new VCDs and CDs. And sound and video equipment have a good market with manufacturers known to hold back their latest products for the Pujas.

Decrease in cotton output to help local farmers

NEW DELHI: Indian cotton exporters who are expecting 20 per cent rise in exports and a 10 per cent increase in prices will be highly benefited by a fall in cotton production in the US।

India produced has reached 280 lakh bales in October 2006-September 2007 compared to the previous season, while the production of cotton in the US has declined by 29 lakh bales to 277 lakh bales for the same period।

India recently became the second largest producer of cotton in the world after China। Due to the fall in cotton production in the US, Indian cotton exporters are anticipating an increase in cotton exports to China and other Asian nations in the current season on account of the expected fall in global cotton production. The reduced output in the US gives an edge to India to further intensify cotton exports.

Cotton exports from India have increased by 27 per cent to 60 lakh bales in 2007 compared to 47 lakh bales in 2006। The demand for Indian cotton is expected to grow further in the coming months.

Cotton farmers in the US shifted from cotton to grain crops to ease the rising prices of grain, resulting in fall of cotton acreage in the country।

The surge in Indian cotton export has also been fuelled by the diminishing price difference for the domestic cotton in the global market। Indian cotton is getting better price in the global market. The difference has narrowed down to 1-2 cents from the earlier 6-7 cents.

Indian cotton is accepted worldwide and cotton yield in India has risen significantly over the last couple of years, which will prompt more exports in the coming months।

The increased use of Bt cotton has also contributed to the rise in cotton production by reducing input costs and growers losses. The increase in the value of the rupee by 11 per cent against the US dollar this year is likely to affect profits of the exporters, experts said.

Entreprenuers seek support for apparel park

INDORE: The Madhya Pradesh governments’ claims that it will protect interest of the local industrialists and entrepreneurs have proved futile। The government seems to be hardly concerned about the plight of local investors and they are being treated like an alien in their own land.

The chief minister's recently visited Indore in connection with the global investors meet. The local industrialists raised their concern and explained the bottlenecks coming their way.
An industrialist asked for government's support for the opening of an apparel park in Indore, since the city is among top five cities in the country in the manufacturing of readymade garments.

The Chief Minister was reminded about the promise he had given about eight per cent subsidy to small-scale industries। The Chief Minister did not commit anything about the IT City project. No assurance was given by the Chief Minister about the IT Park to be opened for private investors.

At the outset for the preparations for the global investors meet, the local industrialists had approached the then industry minister Babulal Gaud apprising him of their willingness and full-fledged participation in the global investors meet so that investors could have got an opportunity to take a closer look at the existing industrial scenario in the state and instill confidence in them for making an investment in the state but then state government gave a cold shoulder to their पलास.

KRIL to stop unique discounting strategy

MUMBAI: Koutons Retail India Ltd (KRIL) is a garment retailing company and is perhaps well known as a 50 plus 40 percent discount brand with a large retail presence across the country.
The company was touted to be a leading brand in the cheaper brand category। Due to its unique low price strategy, the company could also appoint over a 1,000 franchisees stores across the country.

On the basis of its growing market positioning, during the past one year the company attracted several private equity investors. After receiving an encouraging response from financial institutions the company also recently concluded an initial public offer to raise Rs 146 crore at a price of Rs 415 a share from the public.

The company believed in fair pricing as a business philosophy and explained that any branded garment is actually priced half its maximum retail price, but is sold to consumers at a much higher price to cover dealer मर्गिंस.

The company has now decided to shelve its 50 plus 40 percent discount strategy and has instructed all the outlets to sell its branded garments at the MRP with immediate effect.

American Home Textiles Market Week offer innovations

The semi-annual market for mid-to-high-end home textiles ‘New York Home Textiles Market Week’ offers buyers and vendors exposure to new ideas, trend information and networking opportunities.
With an focus on seminars and special events taking place during the week, the week previews new designs, staying ahead of the curve, and anticipating consumer preferences।

Penny Sikalis, George Little Management, LLC (GLM) vice-president said that the week offers its buyers and vendors exposure to new ideas, trend information and networking opportunities, in addition to access to nearly 500 better home textiles resources as all this combines to make New York Home Textiles Market Week a must-attend event for retailers।

The seminars highlighted trend forecasts, color information, and insights into consumer preferences for important niche markets, including teens and newlyweds। However, the retailers and suppliers celebrate the opening of Home Textiles Market Week at a special opening reception being organised in the LICENSEtoINSPIRE STUDIO।

Th unique showcase of new products and licensing opportunities, presented by Hearst Brand Development and three of its most iconic brands - Country Living;Seventeen; and CosmoGIRL!- was unveiled during this complimentary reception।

SustainAbility: design for a better world will also showcase suppliers whose materials or production processes are environmentally-friendly, as well as companies whose corporate philosophies are socially responsible, philanthropic or fair-trade oriented।

Further, among the 200 products featured in the display are home textiles from Angela Adams, DreamSacks, Jacaranda Living, Matta New York and Merida Meridian।

Home Textiles Market Week® in New York is the pre-eminent semi-annual market for mid-to high-end home textiles, held concurrently with GLM’s New York International Gift Fair® and the showroom’s New York Gift Week. New York Home Textiles Market Week offers buyers access to nearly 500 bed, bath, linen and home fashion vendors.