Mumbai, February 16
Embroiled in a series of legal battles and facing dissent in his home association, IPL chairman Lalit Modi today threatened to shift the Twenty20 matches out of Jaipur, saying the recent FIRs lodged against him were "politically motivated".

Modi said he has been authorised by the IPL Governing Council to decide on the venue of IPL matches and shifting them from Jaipur was an option being considered.

"It is going to deter the IPL management from staging matches (in Jaipur). The Governing Council has already taken a decision authorising me to decide whether we should be able to hold matches anywhere, whether it's one place or x, y, z," Modi told reporters here.

"The option to move matches (out of Jaipur) is available to us. We are looking at alternate venues without doubt. If any government anywhere is going to deter the IPL management from staging matches we would take away those matches and hold them elsewhere," he added.

A case of cheating was lodged against Modi at a Jaipur police station yesterday for alleged failure to deposit the entire Rs six crore he publicly promised for the city's blast victims in the Chief Minister's Relief Fund.

Modi, however, dismissed the accusations as the state government's ploy to harass him. "The FIR against me specifically in relation to IPL yesterday is ill-conceived and looks to be politically motivated. Nowhere are complaints registered in the morning and turned into FIRs in the afternoon," Modi said.

"Every time they file one it is without substance," he fumed. He said the IPL was only a facilitator towards donating the Rs 6 crore promised by the League's franchises and other sponsors and it cannot be held responsible for any lapses.

"Already a sum of Rs 5.2 crore has been deposited into the CM's Relief Fund and others who had pledged to do so in the wake of the Jaipur bomb blast, I'm told, are doing so," said Modi, also President of Rajasthan Cricket Association.

"We all felt sorry for what happened and wanted to help. The IPL is only a facilitator." The FIR was lodged by an NGO Nagrik Morcha.

Modi is also facing charges for allegedly acquiring a piece of land in Nagaur district through unfair means. He has been questioned by police in this regard.

He is also embroiled in a power struggle in the RCA against secretary Subhash Joshi and few district associations which have put up a united front against him.

Modi said Rajasthan Royals, by virtue of winning the IPL in the first season, were given the choice of hosting the final at a venue of their choice and they have opted for Mumbai and specifically the Cricket Club of India.

"From this year the IPL would be directly dealing with the final and semifinals and we have a revenue sharing formula with the franchises. Rajasthan Royals have opted for Mumbai to host the final and their first choice is CCI and the second option we have given is D Y Patil Stadium (in Navi Mumbai)," he said.

The IPL chairman said in case the CCI, which is to decide on the issue through an EGM on February 27, is ruled out and Royals do not want to host it at D Y Patil then they can conduct the match outside Mumbai.

Modi said as far as league ties were concerned, the respective franchises will take away the entire gate collections and they were fully authorised to deal with the match staging authorities like the CCI.

Modi said currently IPL was looking at 11 venues, two in Mumbai and one each in other seven home cities of the franchisees, apart from Cuttack and Ahmedabad.

"Currently there are 11 venues. There are two in Mumbai and one each in other seven cities (Jaipur, Chennai, Mohali, Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore and Hyderabad). One franchise is looking out for another venue within India or overseas," he said. — PTI

St John’s, February 16
A half-century from Paul Collingwood helped England build on their healthy overnight score to reach 391 for four at lunch on the second day of the third Test on Monday.

West Indies picked up the early wicket of nightwatchman James Anderson, caught behind off Fidel Edwards, before Collingwood and Kevin Pietersen shared an unbroken 80-run partnership. Collingwood was on 50 at the interval with Pietersen on 47.

The West Indies bowlers caused few problems with the new ball on a wicket which the England batsmen have been comfortable on throughout.

England were 301 for three overnight after captain Andrew Strauss struck an excellent 169 on the first day.

Earlier, the Antigua Recreation Ground has been the scene of some magnificent batting performances and while Andrew Strauss’s 169 was not of the magnitude of some, the value of the innings to England was immeasurable.

After the tourists were dismissed for a woeful 51 in their innings and 23-run-defeat to West Indies in Kingston last week, the team and their captain badly needed a convincing performance in the rescheduled third Test of the series.

At a venue that has witnessed Brian Lara’s sensational 400 and 375, as well as Chris Gayle’s blistering 317 four years ago, Strauss’ knock of 24 fours and a six in 90 overs was nowhere near as dynamic but the tonic he and his team required yesterday.

“We’ve had a hard couple of weeks,” Strauss told reporters as England ended the first day on 301 for three after being asked to bat.

“After being bowled out 51 in the last Test you want to come out and play positively and prove to everyone that as a batting unit we have a lot of good players. In that respect, it’s very satisfying.

“As a captain, it is always important to get runs and lead from the front but I have felt in pretty good form all tour so I knew that if I backed my game plan that runs would come.”

He may have had that self-belief but his delight was visible as he punched the air and raised his bat to all corners of a ground that, like England, was enjoying a second chance.

Strauss’ innings was punctuated with moments that displayed his determination, first a clenched fist for his 50 after surviving when home skipper Gayle dropped him at slip off Sulieman Benn.

Then he brought up his team’s 100 without loss in defiant fashion by smashing Benn for a six over long-off and into Factory Road.

Scoreboard

England (1st innings):

Strauss c & b Edwards 169

Cook c Smith b Gayle 52

Shah run out 57

Pietersen not out 47

Anderson c Ramdin b Edwards 4

Collingwood not out 50

Extras: (b-6, w-1, nb-5): 12

Total (four wickets; 119 overs): 391

FoWs: 1-123 2-276 3-295 4-311.

Bowling: Taylor 18-4-53-0, Edwards 21-2-65-2, Powell 21-3-77-0, Gayle 12-1-35-1, Benn 24-4-73-0, Hinds 16-2-61-0, Nash 7-2-21-0. — Reuters

Sydney, February 16
With Test cricket's number one position at stake, Australia skipper Ricky Ponting feels South Africa will be under more pressure than them when the two sides clash in the return Test series.

Australia, who were humiliated 1-2 at home by Greame Smith's men last December, have a slender five-point lead going into the three-match Test series starting in Johannesburg from February 26.

South Africa, following their series triumph over Australia in the one-dayers Down Under, have already cornered the top spot in the shorter version of the game.

They now have a chance to snatch the top Test ranking also if they beat Australia in the home series.

"They have probably been striving for a long time to be the number one or recognised as being the number one Test team in the world," Ponting said prior to the team's departure for South Africa.

"Maybe, that will weigh on their minds more than on ours," he said, stepping up the mind games started by rival captain Smith who in his column wrote he saw an opportunity "to open a few cracks" if his team played well in the first Test.

Ponting made it clear they would do everything possible to stop Smith's men from attaining the Test double and said the burden of expectations could go against the hosts.

"With them being favourites and with a lot of expectation from their people and the crowds, then who knows, things could turn against them pretty quickly," Ponting told Australian Associated Press.

He also felt winning this series in South Africa would rank alongside the 5-0 Ashes whitewash of England.

"I've been around a long time, I've played a lot of games, but this will be as big a series for me as any I've every played in, I think," he said.

The skipper also pinned his hopes on pacers Mitchell Johnson, Peter Siddle, Ben Hilfenhaus and Doug Bollinger to make a mark in the rainbow nation.

"It's a great opportunity here for a Siddle or a Hilfenhaus or a Bollinger to really make a name for themselves and forge their own identity at international level," said Ponting and hoped Bryce McGain's spin could unsettle the Proteas.

"It's always nice to have a very good and highly skilled leg spinner in your side, which Bryce is. There's every chance he could be that factor that we need over there."

Ponting also said they have plans in place to nullify the threat of middle-order batsman J P Duminy.

"We've had an opportunity to have a good look at him (Duminy) for a long period of time. We've got some things up our sleeve that we will be able to execute well when we get the opportunity against him over there." — PTI

Mumbai, February 16
The Indian Premier League (IPL) today rejected the request of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to advance the date of commencement of the one-year ban imposed on pacer Mohammad Asif for returning a positive dope test from September 23 to July 15, 2008.

"We have received a request from the PCB to prepone the ban on Asif from September 23 to July 15, 2008. We cannot do so. The ban was imposed by the IPL Drug Tribunal comprising Sunil Gavaskar, Dr Ravi Bapat and Shirish Gupte," said IPL chairman Lalit Modi at a media conference here.

Modi explained that Asif had the option to go in for an appeal against the ban, imposed for one year by the IPL Tribunal for testing positive for banned drug Nandrolone in the first season of the League, but chose not to do so.

"I do not know why the ban was imposed for one year. He could have appealed against it and then the Appeals Tribunal would have looked into it. He did not do so. The ban stays from September 23, 2008," he said.

Modi said he presumed that the commencement of the ban was fixed from September 23 as Asif had asked for his 'B' sample too to be tested for the banned drug and it was done only in September. — PTI

Lahore, February 16
Acknowledging the Indian batsmen's prowess against spin, Sri Lankan skipper Mahela Jayawardene has asked Ajantha Mendis to come up with new tricks if wishes to sustain at the top level.

He said Indians have always been good batsmen against spin and there was no point to lose heart for the battering that Mendis received by them but instead advised the tweaker to work on reading the batsmen's mind.

''India is one of the top sides today and they played very well against us. We have played them a lot in recent times and I think they played Mendis very capably,'' Jayawardene said.

Jaywardene said it was not astonishing to see Indian batsmen going after Mendis who was battered by Mahendra Singh Dhoni's team in Sri Lanka's 1-4 loss to India.

''He now has to realise that the surprise element is out and he now has to become a much smarter bowler and come up with new tricks and learn to read the mind of the batsmen. ''He has got Muralitharan with him who is a very good teacher,'' he added.

The Lanka captain, who will step down as the skipper of the team after the three-Test series against Pakistan, however, chose to remain silent on who his successor would be. — UNI