May ` 50/- DIAMOND.

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1 Robin Uthappa, Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron, Mayank Agarwal, Sameer Kochhar, Shibani Dandekar, Gaurav Kapoor, Archana Vijaya May ` 50/- DIAMOND Work map for Fletcher Pietersen deserves more Bangladesh Minnows No Longer IPL

2 The True Sense of Reality Indian Premier League, the biggest extravaganza of T20 cricket, had a spectacular opening ceremony for its fifth edition. From Bollywood star presence to Hollywood singers, there was enough entertainment for everyone. However, looking at the IPL as a whole, it has finally found a ground of its own. Right from the first edition in 2008, IPL was always considered a money making machine which, one believed, could make money for an indefinite period of time. But things have changed drastically over the last four seasons and the current on-going edition depicts the true picture of this Indian venture. For those money minded looking owners, IPL may not be the picture of their desire anymore as the returns are becoming less in comparison to huge expenditures. Also for those who are seeking a way out to redeem their investment, the IPL presents a grim but a steady picture of how it has shaped finally. The returns can no longer be ballooned in projections and IPL will eventually have to balance its cost-benefit ration in more realistic proportions. BCCI and the franchise owners will have to take some initiatives in order to keep the fans interest going, who are the real ambassador of the game. Something needs to be done in consolidating the schedule, which has become way too long and there is no way one can spend hours on daily basis. Nevertheless, everything is not gloomy for the Indian Premier League. It is still considered as one of the most anticipated tournament across the globe and as long as people love cricket, IPL will feature on the agenda despite its negatives and positives. Apart from the Indian Premier League, world cricket has seen the revival of two major playing nations. Bangladesh played superbly in the recently concluded Asia Cup and their journey into the finals was commendable. They comfortably defeated the world champions India and the runners up Sri Lanka. They even came close in the title battle against Pakistan but missed the opportunity by a whisker. Bangladesh can't be called minnows anymore and their challenge should be taken seriously by all the other major playing nations. West Indies is the other team which has shown remarkable improvement in the shorter versions of the game under the skillful captaincy of Darren Sammy. With T20 world cup a few months away, the team from the Caribbean nation stands a chance of winning their maiden trophy in the shortest version. The current Caribbean team has the best talent available when it comes to slam bang cricket. The composition of the team is superb and the presence of some fierce all-rounders makes West Indies a team to watch out for the upcoming mega event in Sri Lanka. They just have to maintain the unity and should play as a unit rather than following their own personal agendas. Apart from this, there is much more to read about cricket and other sports as well. Have fun reading the issue. For day-to-day updates on cricket and cricketers join us on Facebook and Twitter. Or visit our website: EDITORIAL BOARD Editor Manish Verma Managing Editor Rakesh Pandey rakesh@dpb.in Sub Editor Mohd. Asim Contributing Editors S. Pervez Qaiser, Sreelata S Yellamrazu, Haresh Pandya Graphic Designer Lalita Adhikari, Anoop Ranjan Das Media Relations Officer Monica Bhardwaj Production Co-ordinator Sunil Chaudhary Photos A.P., Fotocorp, Narender Kumar, Raj Kumar, Rahul Gulati pressrelease@dpb.in BUSINESS OFFICE DIAMOND MAGAZINES PVT. LTD. X-30, Okhla Ind. Area, Ph-2, New Delhi-20, Tel Fax (011) Director (Mktg.) Manish Verma, manish@dpb.in ADVERTISING OFFICES Delhi Vivek Parashar, M. P. Singh, Tarun, Mohd. Faisal (011) Mumbai Praveen Chandra, C. Garima Kolkata Biswajit Dasgupta Bangalore Pratap Kumar Kanpur Sundhaya Tewari Indore Ramesh C. Nagar, Kanta Nagar Nagpur Mrs. Khisti Chennai Sathish C. Anand Hyderabad Vijay K Viswanadha Ahmedabad Madan Menon Bhopal S.B. Sharma Raipur V. Sridhar Punjab Puneet Arya Pune Prasad Datar Mangalore Sanjay Mudbidri Total Pages 108 with Cover Copyright 2005 "Cricket Today" is a registered trademark of The Diamond Group. All rights reserved. No Part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopied, recorded or otherwise, without prior permission. Printed & Published by Manish Verma and Edited by Manish Verma on behalf of Diamond Magazines Pvt. Ltd. Printed at Best Photo Offset Printers, A-81, D.D.A. Shed, Okhla Industrial area, Phase-II, New Delhi-20 4 Cricket Today May 2012

3 MAY 2012 CONTENTS From Indian Premier League to Brad Hodge s hard luck, Lara Bingle s insecurity to Duncan Fletcher s work map, Cricket Today s May Issue unfolds all the latest happenings in the world of sports. 68 Top Story Test Cricket : A real romance of cricket 94 Sports Safari Marriage over in seconds 72 Feature Work map for Fletcher 100 Scoop of the Month Is Lara Bingle insecure? new ball 104 Sports Round Up Long Rally Dazzling opening ceremony launches IPL 2012 IPL : From intoxicating to sober savouring No shine without the stars? When losing out on stars proved costly middle muddle The auction blunders Our first goal is to come in the top four - Robin Uthappa Warner can hit the ball miles away - Varun Aaron Favorites of Umesh Yadav Extraaa Innings Black out in the IPL Age doesn t matter in T20 The league of awards View Point Brad Hodge : A product of hard luck & politics death overs 76 WI for T20 Tracing a winning combination Opinion Pietersen : A genius who deserves more Talking Point Switch hit : Innovative or ambivalence? Face Off Mayank Agarwal s favorite mobile is Blackberry Torch. Hotel Chandan Madan s favorite hotel is Trident. Willowy Words Mike Coward : A highly erudite, insightful writer Cricket s Lighter Side How Solkar became Durani s son 6 Cricket Today May 2012

4 NEWS ROUND UP By Girish Singh Yuvi credits mom Cricket is a passion and like any other sports, this gentleman s game too produces some unexpected happenings on and off the field. From records to milestones... Yuvraj Singh, who recently came to India after successful treatment of his cancer in USA, has credited his mother Shabnam in making him strong. No one can be like your mother. Any mother will be devastated to learn that her son has cancer, but she is stronger than me. Hats off to her. She took care of me the way she must have done when I was a little kid. Even if I would sneeze at 4 am, she would run for me and would run till the evening, said Yuvraj, recalling his time in America where he underwent chemotherapy. Amir appears in video Disgraced Pakistan cricketer Mohammad Amir has appeared in an official video from the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit of the International Cricket Council warning players of the dangers of corruption. The five minute video has been posted on the official ICC website. In the ACSU video, Amir, speaking in clear English, made no specific references to other cricketers but instead issued a general warning. Baseball helps in throwing skills Cricketers can take help from a fielding coach with a strong baseball background like Mike Young to improve their performance on the field especially throwing skills, former South Africa player Jonty Rhodes said. The impact baseball can have and (the advantage) in having a guy like Mike Young (with you), is that you can improve your throwing. I think baseball can make a huge contribution to the way cricket players throw, said Rhodes. Sania hits ace She may not be the brightest star on the tennis circuit currently, but Sania Mirza is surely making waves on what is an altogether new front for her. Trashed ruthlessly for her garish fashion sense over the years, Sania now seems to have developed a more elegant and flattering dressing style. The tennis player was recently seen in a refreshing casual chic avatar at a movie theatre in Mumbai. Looking cosy on the arm of cricketer-husband Shoaib Malik, Sania wore a pair of dark denims, which she teamed with a pop art T-shirt, a trendy white cape and thong sandals. Whether it s thanks to hubby Shoaib or all the free time on her hands, Sania s slow and steady makeover in the style department is for all to see. 8 Cricket Today May 2012

5 Tough stand Controversial Pakistani actor and model Veena Malik has come forward against cricket betting. Cricket is the most favorite game among people but again some people make cricket a platform of business which is unusual, said Veena. Whoever is found guilty of betting from any country such as South Africa, Australia, India and Pakistan, he/she should be punished, she added. Swann named MVP Graeme Swann has been named as England s Most Valuable Player over the winter, according to the ranking system used by the Professional Cricketers Association (PCA). Swann s 10-wicket haul against Sri Lanka in the month of march helped England to a first Test win in five matches and took his tally to 39 wickets in all formats. Swann held off Kevin Pietersen, who scored 151 as England leveled the two-test series with Sri Lanka at 1-1, to win the FTI MVP award, which includes a cheque for 2,000 to be given to the charity Lowe Syndrome Trust. Swann has previously been England s MVP twice before - after the tours to South Africa and Bangladesh in and following the 2010 English summer. Sachin to feature in movie After showing his magic with the bat, master blaster Sachin Tendlkar is reportedly making his silver screen debut in filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra s Ferrari Ki Sawari. The news of Tendulkar s joining Bollywood, spread like a fire in jungle. Director Anees Bazmee said that he would love to see the little master in movies. Tendulkar was recently spotted chatting with Vidhu at Mukesh Ambani s bash and it s assumed that Sachin finally agreed to play a cameo role in this upcoming venture Broad s Secrets He attended Oakham School and gained 3 grade B A levels. He was offered a place at Durham University but opted to play cricket for Leicestershire instead. Stuart has previously dated Miss England Laura Coleman and actress Kacey Barnfield. He supports Nottingham Forest FC and Leicester Tigers. He is a foodie and likes dining out in a nice Japanese restaurant. Glenn McGrath Shaun Pollock and Curtly Ambrose are his role models. Loves playing FIFA, Call Of Duty and the new Formula One game on his play station.