Mark ready for Asian adventure

MARK Butcher has confirmed he would be interested in competing in the Indian Cricket League – if an approach was made for his services.

And the Surrey captain believes that the club would not block him playing in the competition, which begins after the English domestic season finishes.

Legendary West Indian batsman Brian Lara has already agreed a deal, reputed to be worth £300,000, to compete in the lucrative tournament, which will initially comprise just six teams, with the victorious side winning a cool $1million.

Butcher is quick to point out that he has not been offered a contract by the ICL – and was bemused when a national newspaper stated he was being targeted.

But he told the South London Press: “If I was approached I’d have to talk to Surrey about it and find out if there were any reasons why I shouldn’t go, or if it would compromise anything here,but if that was not the case I would be very interested.

Five WI players on list for renegade Indian League

FIVE WEST Indian cricketers – other than former captain Brian Lara – have been approached by the Indian Cricket League (ICL) to take part in their inaugural season.

This was revealed by a source close to the West Indies team on Wednesday. “The ICL has approached five players who are currently on the West Indies team to play in their league,” the source said. “Contracts from the ICL were offered to all and the players are currently looking at the offer.”

The source was, however, quick to add that the players have not yet made a decision as to whether they will take up the offer. It is understood that the Essel Group, the owners of the league, has offered between US$350,000 and US$500,000 to the players as inducement to join the ICL.

Top name players

The ICL has attracted many top name players from around the world and one of the first players to sign was Lara. Last week, it was revealed that Pakistanis Abdul Razzaq, Inzamam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Yousuf have all taken up offers to play in the three-week long Twenty20-styled tourna-ment. Both the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) have imposed bans on players who take part in the league.

It is understood that the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has taken no position on the ICL matter because of the fact that no player has approached the regional governing body for approval to participate in the league.

The International Cricket Council (ICC), the sport’s world governing body, has thrown its weight behind the BCCI in the latter’s stand-off with the ICL.

The ICC noted that the Indian board was the ‘only recognised body’ to administer the sport in India.

World Cup Qualifiers Our Next Target: Baichung

With the Nehru Cup victory under his belt, Indian football captain Baichung Bhutia has now trained his guns on the World Cup qualifying matches against Lebanon next month.

‘Our next target is World Cup qualifiers and I am confident that the Indian team will put up a better performance than what they did in earlier years,’ Bhutia said at a press conference here Thursday.

India play their away match against Lebanon on Oct 8 and the home tie on Oct 28.

India Wednesday defeated higher-ranked Syria 1-0 in the final of the Nehru Cup at New Delhi’s Ambedkar Stadium, greatly boosting their confidence levels.

Bhutia termed the victory as a ‘dream come true’ and his most ‘cherished’ cup in his long career.

Rating chief coach Bob Houghton as the best he knew, Bhutia said, ‘I have worked under a lot of coaches at the club, state and national levels, but Houghton is the best. He is way above the rest.’

He said there would several Baichungs coming up as ‘a fine system is now in place. Steven Dias, Subrota Paul, Syed Rahim Nabi and Sunil Chettri were extremely talented and they have a bright future,’ he said.

Bhutia asserted that there was no dearth of soccer talent in the country but the need of the hour was to nurture them properly.

‘We have to harness them properly. We need a proper infrastructure and then I am confident we will do well and once again become the best in Asia,’ he maintained.

Indian Hockey Team Shaping Up Well: Coach

The Asia Cup hockey tournament gets underway here early Friday but all eyes will on the India-China Pool A tie later in the evening, with the Indian coach saying the home side is shaping up well.

Old rivals Malaysia and Singapore clash in the Pool B tournament opener at 7.30 a.m. at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium in the heart of this southern metropolis.

‘Nobody said it would be easy (but) the team is shaping up well and playing cohesively,’ coach Joaquim Carvalho said when asked about India’s prospects.

‘The Bangalore (coaching) camp was good for us. We are playing faster, passing with intelligence and aiming better. Instead of making tall claims, I can say this much: We will give everyone a good, competitive game,’ he added on a note of optimism.

The Bangalore camp, however, had one piece of bad news in the form of injury to penalty corner specialist Sandeep Singh, whose place has been taken by V Raghunath.

In more ways than one, the Indian hockey team has sent the ghosts of last year into the bottles where they belong with its bronze medal finish at the Azlan Shah tournament in May.

The sorry tales of the World Cup and the Asian Games have been forgotten, thanks to Carvalho’s inspiring presence as a father figure. He has systematically been ironing out the creases in the Indian team.

But as Carvalho said, it is going to be tough as India is placed in the tough Pool A, where they have to contend with South Korea and the ever-eager Chinese.

It remains to be seen whether the Chinese team, under the watchful eye of experienced South Korean coach Kim Sang Ryul can repeat the surprises at the Doha Asian Games when they sank the better ranked India and Pakistan to take the silver medal.

The late entry of Pakistan means that there will more than passing interest in the Pool B matches featuring Japan, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Thanks to the pull of TV audiences, India and Pakistan – despite being in different pools – will be playing their matches during prime time.

Pakistan has won the tournament thrice, starting with the inaugural year in 1982 and then in 1985 and 1989. South Korea lifted the cup twice in 1993 and 1999. India has won it only once – at Kuala Lumpur in 2003 – and will most certainly be trying for an encore.

Pool A: India, China, South Korea, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

Pool B: Malaysia, Japan, Pakistan, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Kiran More Gung Ho About ICL Training Camp

It is rather apt that the rebel Indian Cricket League’s inaugural training camp is being held at Mayajaal, a resort-cum-movie multiplex here whose name translates into English as make-believe, where special facilities have been created for the players.

ICL chief selector Kiran More was gung ho about the 21-day exercise. ‘Apart from the experienced players there are several young fast bowlers whom the people at large have not heard about,’ More maintained.

Nearly 60 players have assembled for the camp. They include former India stars Dinesh Mongia, Hemang Badani and Tamil Kumaran and all of them are training hard for an upcoming 20Twenty tournament.

More felt the camp would increase the bonding between players.

‘We are paying special attention to fitness for not only Indian players but also for those who are coming from abroad. Our trainers and physios will ensure that by October, when our season begins, the players will in peak condition and raring to go,’ More said.

Among the coaches who will handle the players are former Test stars Balwinder Singh Sandhu and Pranab Roy.

‘Here cricket is with the cricketers’

Kapil Dev is very confident of the success of the Indian Cricket League. He speaks to Vijay Lokapally on the new venture’s goals and its future.

 

 

Kapil Dev, one of India’s greatest cricketers and the man who led India to World Cup victory in 1983, is optimistic about the future of ICL. “The new venture offers plenty of opportunities to the players, umpires and coaches. There is place for a cricketer in ICL, which is not always the case with the BCCI, where you have to be in the good books of the officials to get an opportunity,” he says.

The excerpts:

Question: Are you optimistic about ICL’s future?

Answer: If I was not optimistic I would not have joined this venture. I did it because I believed in myself. But let me tell you one thing: not everything is in my hands. We need the financial backing for the venture to take off in a b ig way. As cricketers we need to take care of ourselves because the BCCI has always made the players feel insecure.

What are the gains of having a league like ICL?

There are lots of positives. A cricketer can improve his quality of life. The youngsters with ICL are very committed, very brave. They know how to stand up for their rights because they know their rights. It is so different from my times. They also respect their seniors a lot.

What do you expect of the cricketers who have joined ICL?

They need to perform. They know they need to play well in order to survive. In this country sportsmen are not treated well. God has been kind to me; I can look after my family very well. But I am disturbed when I meet some of my old colleagues, when they hold my hand and plead for some job, some security in life. It pains me to see guys who played with me struggling to look after their family. I don’t want to name them, but there are some who retired at 35 and have no work. Money is not everything in life but dignity is.

How far do you think ICL can go?

We can sustain it for three years, but that’s not the aim. I appreciate Mr. Subhash Chandra. More than a decade ago he started a music talent search show, which has now grown big and has discovered a number of talented youngsters who sang their way to celebrity status. The same help is being extended to the cricketers through ICL.

Some BCCI officials have said that you joined ICL only for money…

Are these BCCI officials working for free? Why don’t they allow us to work for the betterment of the cricketers? We are not snatching any money from the BCCI. It is this kind of thinking of these officials that has harmed the game in the country. Who doesn’t want money? They (BCCI officials) talk as if they work for free.

How different is the ICL set-up when compared with the BCCI?

ICL is a new venture that offers plenty of opportunities to the players, umpires and coaches. There is place for a cricketer in the ICL, which is not always the case with the BCCI, where you have to be in the good books of the officials to get an opportunity.

ICL also plans to start cricket nurseries and academies. We will involve more cricketers. I would seek guidance from former cricketers. I would love to see Tiger Pataudi come forward and help the boys. At ICL, cricket is with the cricketers.