I read an article on Cricinfo that really touched me. It's about the NZ pacer from the 80s - Ewen Chatfield. I remember him well - his thin frame and signature mustache can not be easily forgotten.

It seems that life after cricket has not been too great for him:

It hasn't been a great time after retirement. He coached his minor association, Hutt Valley, for a long while, only to lose the job when Hutt Valley merged with Wellington. His last job before the current one with Corporate Cabs, was that of a lawn-mower. Then two successive wet winters came.

"There was no income. I got frustrated that I couldn't do enough in summer without killing myself to make up for that." And just like that he called Corporate Cabs, because he "liked driving around". He got the licence and was employed. In between he has worked as a courier, a salesman at a chip shop, and has driven a dairy van. "One of your compatriots," he says of the dairy owner.

"I start at 5.30 in the morning, and I am only allowed to work for 13 hours a day. That's all. You think that's enough? Thirteen hours a day?"

He is not in touch with any of his team-mates. He claims he doesn't get nostalgic, doesn't watch old tapes ("I haven't even seen the 50-run partnership with Jeremy Coney, against Pakistan, to win the match"). There's no bitterness either. [LINK]

I am filled with so much respect for the man. This really is true character. To be content with what you have, to work hard regardless of circumstances, and to hold no grudges or bitterness - now that's a role model.

I know it's not necessarily the responsibility of the cricket boards to take care of the post-cricketing career of its players, but I'm sure they can help out through their contacts and influence. Sure Chatfield is no Hadlee, and he's not had the success of the Crowe or Cairns families either. But he represented NZ with pride and dedication. He played more than 40 Tests and more than 100 ODIs.

This story reminded me of a random encounter I had back in 1999. My mom was visiting me in Atlanta and she wanted to buy some stuff for my home. I dropped her off at a Home Depot Expo (home furnishings) store and came back a little later to pick her up. She said a very nice employee was helping her out and was bringing out the stuff from the backroom. She said he was from the West Indies and was talking about cricket and Pakistan with her.

So when this person came out with the stuff, he started talking cricket with me too. After a bit he said: "You know Ijaz, Wasim, Malik? I played with them." Played with them??? I took a look at his name badge and it said "Lambert". A lightbulb went off in my head, and I asked him, "Are you Clayton Lambert?" And sure enough it was him!

Really enjoyed talking to him, what a wonderful guy. Later I found out he totally dominated the Atlanta cricket league - he even slammed a friend of mine for six after six, on his way to a double century in a 40 over game. Lambert also eventually made it to the US team, and played an ODI for them.

There are so many cricketers I wonder about. Would love someone to do a "where are they now" style show for some of the lesser known cricketers of the 80s and 90s.

The reality is that cricket has not been typically a financially rewarding sport. And in any sport really, there's a small percentage who are well set for life, whereas the majority will have to rough it out like the rest of us. And given that so many sportsmen don't have a solid educational background, things are often tougher for them.

I really could not believe this when I read it:

The Indian board faces an embarrassing situation after letting Sachin Tendulkar appear for a Masters Twenty20 match in Wellington on Friday where he will play alongside Hamish Marshall, the former New Zealand batsman who featured in the unauthorised ICL last year.

...

Niranjan Shah, the Indian team's manager in New Zealand, said the BCCI would take up the issue with Justin Vaughan, the NZC chief executive. "No Indian player will play for a team that has an ICL player," Shah said. About Marshall, Shah said that it "would not be a problem" if the batsman is no longer an ICL player. [LINK]

For goodness sakes! This is an exhibition match with no official recognition! Are the ICL players classified as untouchables now? Grow up BCCI, seriously grow up. Start thinking slightly beyond the DLF maximums and Citi moments of success,* and realize that players are humans, not just contracts. The fact that this is even an issue is just reflective of the sad state of affairs in cricket, and indicative of the corporate shill that BCCI has become.

I know the BCCI is all-powerful at this point, but turning that power into arrogance is going to cost them dearly in the long run.


* Isn't it slightly ironic that Citi, a company that is so involved in the financial disaster, should sponsor "moments of success!" ;)

I was surprised to find myself upset at the fall of Phil Hughes' wicket in the first over.

Over the last 15 years, I have never been upset at the fall of an Australian wicket. However, today, I am shocked at how upset I was while watching Hughes, Katich, and Hussey walk back to the pavilion.

Despite the fact that I have admired how the Australians have played cricket over the last decade and a half, I have never left it a secret that I've hardly ever supported them - only to see someone spring up an upset.

There is something about the underdog, isn't there?

I was firmly behind South Africa, despite my hatred for them, when they toured Australia. I was delighted to see South Africa win the first 2 tests and wanted to see them dislodge the Aussies from the number 1 spot in tests.

Coming into this series, Australia are definitely the underdogs. South Africa the firm favorites.

And strangely, I find myself supporting Australia.

I don't want to see them lose.

I smiled and sighed with relief when Ponting pulled Ntini for four in the 2nd over.

Hughes didn't have a memorable debut, but I'm hoping North will.

Not since Australia had to beat the West Indies in 1992 to ensure Pakistan get a spot in the World Cup Semi Finals, have I supported Australia.

Till yesterday I was looking forward to witnessing Australia's continuous fall from the top.

This morning, however, all that changed.

I don't know what it was - a hapless 20 year old failing on debut, a vulnerable captain walking out in the 1st over to save a sinking ship, McKenzie pulling of an Australiaesque catch at gully, or the mortalization of Mike Hussey - but something triggered this change of heart.

Here's hoping the Aussies beat the South Africans.

Related post by me - Debutant Openers & Jo'burg is like Karachi.

I couldn't help but do a 4th consecutive post on Younis Khan when a friend of mine emailed me about a comment that he read on cricinfo's ball-by-ball.

The comment was:

Kevin Johnson: "We Aussies love Khan. He played for our state SA and scored a century. He is a role model for us budding cricketers. Our club in Adeliade shows his videos as his style is perfect and we are so happy that he made captain. Our best wishes are with him and his team."

Thank you for the wishes Kevin Johnson.

I know Younis got a 70 odd for South Australia, but not sure about the century. Nevertheless, it always feels good to hear about good wishes for your country from around the world.

And South Australia shows videos of Younis Khan for their batsmen to emulate?

Wow! Maybe Pakistan should start doing that now.

I know both my posts today have been regarding Younis Khan, but I couldn't leave it at that.

There has been 24 hours of play in this test match and Younis has been on the field for 22 of those hours.

I'm sure Shahrukh Khan will have no objection now to calling him King Khan.

Before I sign off for the day, I just want to point out one more thing.

Damith, my Sri Lankan friend over at Flyslip, pointed out that Pakistan's spinners bowled 82 overs between them for 310 runs and picked up 5 wickets.

That doesn't look all that bad now Damith, does it?

Your Murali and Splendid Mendis: 115 overs, 300 runs, and 2 wickets.

Not bad I say from Danish and Malik.

And you can't really compare Danish and Malik, who is merely a part timer, to the leading wicket taker in the world and Splendid, can you?

I don't know of many international captains who would walk out to bat with an over and a bit to go before stumps.

Younis Khan did.

I don't know many international batsmen who would play the reverse sweep regularly in a test innings.

Younis Khan did.

I never thought any batsman will dare to attempt the reverse sweep when on 299.

Younis Khan did.

All those things that Younis did were while facing Murali & Mendis.

That fact just adds another dimension to his achievement.

Till now, 'King Khan' is a title that remained exclusive to one bollywood actor.

Now, Younis Khan deserves it just as much.

Shahrukh Khan might respond by saying "Younis might be the King, but I am the real Badshah", but with all due respect SRK (I am a major fan), Younis has done that not many others have.

1st Pakistani captain to score a triple century, 3rd Pakistani cricketer to score a triple century, and 6th international captain to score a triple century.

KING KHAN!

With an over and a bit to go, two days ago, out walked Younis Khan to face Murali and Mendis.

Pakistan were trailing by over 600 runs at that time and the captain did not use a nightwatchman and had decided to face the music himself.

That too a captain in his first test in charge. First of the current tenure.

At that time, it could have been either a courageous decision, or a foolish one.

Two days later, 400 plus Pakistan runs later, 240 plus Younis Khan runs later, it shows what a determined, courageous, and dedicated decision that was.

I don't know many other Pakistani captains who would have done that. Shoaib Malik, Inzamam, Javed Miandad, Saleem Malik, none of them.

Let alone, Pakistani captains, I doubt many international captains would have done that.

Mahela Jayawardene - Probably not.

Ricky Ponting - No way in hell.

Daniel Vettori - With all due respect to his batting prowess, I don't think he would have required one.

Mohammad Ashraful - I doubt it.

MS Dhoni - He might have walked out himself, though can't say for sure.

Graeme Smith, Andrew Strauss, Chris Gayle - Being openers, they would have had no choice but to walk out to face an over or two.

The only international captain I can think of who would have walked out to bat when Younis did, is Steve Waugh.

And even Imran Khan, for that matter.

Not bad examples to follow for Younis.

Nor a bad precedent to set.

Flat track or not, facing up to the leading wicket taker in tests, and one who just last year destroyed the best players of spin bowling in the world, is quite a task.

Younis Khan has done it for almost two full days!

What's more, he has lived up to his promise of scoring more than the opposing captain, Mahela Jayawardene.

And he wasn't dropped twice on his way there.

Well done Younis.

There's a bigger story out there than the fact that Pakistan is playing its first test in 14 months and hosting its first for 16.

Even bigger than Umar Gul's wicket in the first over of the series.

It is the two umpires standing in this test match.

Its two AUSTRALIANS!!!

Simon Taufel and Steve Davis.

My my how did Cricket Australia and the ICC allow that? Or even that player's association that Tim May runs?

And what exactly is the message that these "authorities" are giving here?

To me it says that the lives of Simon Taufel and Steve Davis are not as valuable as those of the Australian international cricketers.

Why else would neither the Australian Government, nor its cricket board, nor its cricketers association have a problem with two Australian umpires visiting a country with "severe security issues".

What's more is that I don't think Taufel or Davis even had an issue with this.

Maybe the Australian cricketers need to learn a thing or two from these men.

The 1st test between Pakistan and Sri Lanka starts in less than 4 hours.

I am so excited that I still haven't slept.

Despite my love for test cricket, I am never really excited about 2-test series. But Pakistan is playing a test match after so long that the propsect of watching a new look batting line up and a few rookie pacers in white with the red leather has not allowed me to sleep.

Younis Khan has said that he's not going to use makeshift openers, hence Khurram Manzoor is garanteed a debut.

Even though I wanted Nasir Jamshed instead, I'm looking forward to watching Khurram in a test match.

He has performed exceptionally well in first class cricket for the last two domestic seasons. He was second only to Nasir in the run charts last season. I've seen every single one of his 7 ODI innings and I've always mentioned that he seems more suited for tests.

Hopefully Salman and Khurram will forge something others haven't been able to do since Imran Farhat and Taufeeq Umar.

Younis also said that Asim Kamal, Fawad Alam, and Ahmed Shehzad were out of the reckoning for the first game.

I wonder how Abdul Qadir feels about this.

That statement closes the speculation around the number 6 batting spot, which goes to Faisal Iqbal.

Now not many people will be happy about this and will blame it on nepotism, but guys whose nepotism? Javed Miandad is no longer with the board.

Faisal has been unfortunate. He is not considered an ODI player, hence is confined to test matches, which Pakistan don't play much of.

He had a very good debut many years ago, and he followed that up with some good performances.

Remember the 83 against Australia and how he took Warne apart?

Due to the presence of Younis, Yousuf, and Inzamam; Faisal could never find a permanent place in the line up, hence he only played when one of the big 3 was injured.

The 2005-06 domestic season was a very succesful one for Faisal as he topped the run charts, which included a streak of 7 consecutive centuries. The same season he filled in for an injured Inzamam against India in Karachi.

Remember the innings of 130 odd?

He's a capable batsman. And he was always considered as the long term number 4 or 5 for Pakistan when Inzamam retired.

Unfortunately for Faisal, by the time Inzi left, another Ul Haq had emerged. So still no permanent place.

But then Malik injured his ankle in India, the last test series Pakistan played, and yet again Faisal filled in.

He did alright. Even scored a last day 50 to ensure a draw.

And he's not only in this team because of his 50 in the last test Pakistan played. He's had a more than decent domestic season that includes a string of half centuries and a career best unbeaten 200.

Now with Yousuf gone, Faisal has another chance. And I'm glad someone has given it to him. And for some reason, I believe, this time Faisal is not going to let go of it.

On the bowling front, Kaneria and Gul are a certainty. As is Yasir Arafat, considering his only test performance, in Pakistan's last test.

Whether the 4th bowler is Sohail Khan or Mohammad Talha, its going to be a sight watching either one run in.

Talha is one of the leading fast bowlers this domestic season, while Sohail was last year's top wicket taker when he raked in a record number of wickets in Pakistan's domestic history.

Both have pace and swing and the ability to trouble batsmen.

As I've said before - a new captain, a new look batting order, two debutants including a rookie pacer, and a test after 15 months will make for enthralling viewing.

I'd urge all Pakistan supporters to wish the team the best, and hope rather than expect.

I'm backing you men in green... !!!

I've been watching the last day of this test between West Indies and England since the day's first ball.

For the last 10 overs, I've seen the last West Indian pair try and negotiate play till the end of the day and secure a draw.

They're still out there.

The lights are going, the spinners are on, and every single ball is being cheered by the crowds - both West Indians and the English.

The umpires are checking the lights, the players are tense, the crowd is tense, and even a neutral like me is tense.

Its an amazing battle out there.

And thats what test cricket is all about!

And the West Indies have managed to hold on for a draw!

What drama.

Spare a thought for Andrew Flintoff.

Spare two for these West Indians who have managed to show quite some fight!

Some time back, the ICC celebrated their 100 years of existence and announced a hall of fame list, which we reported about on Well Pitched.

The ICC set up a new website as a part of their centenary celebrations and it was named "Catch the Spirit".

Remember?

Yeah well, the website has a blogs section, which, like all blogs has a blogroll.

And, Well Pitched is on that blog roll.

That's satisfying.

I'd like to know who in the ICC was responsible for getting us on that roll. I would like to thank them.

Thak you Jrod, for pointing it out to me.

Som, Homer - you guys are on it too.

One team is hoping to give a resounding farewell to their captain, while the other is trying to regroup under a new captain.

One team is coming from a hectic international schedule with non stop cricket for the last 24 months, while the other is gearing up to play their first test in 15 months.

One team has the leading wicket taker in the world, while the other will comprise of a bowler who is 1-test old and atleast one other making his debut.

One team has an established batting line up, while the other will comprise of a debutant opener and atleast two others, making their comeback or debut.

One team has arguably the best keeper in the world, while the other has decided to stick with the worst one in the world.

That's the story of the upcoming test series between Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out which team is which.

Even though the Patron's XI easily beat the Sri Lankans in a warm up tie, the test match will be a different story altogether.

After pleasantly surprising me last week, the Pakistan selectors yet again did what they do best - make blunders.

The biggest one being the inclusion of Kamran Akmal in the 15-man squad for the 1st test.

Why? Why? Why?

What will it take for the selectors to realise that Kamran's butter gloves cost Pakistan matches?

Apparently, the chief selector has said that it was the captain's decision to keep Kamran on board.

Younis Khan?

If that is true, that should shut all those up who had been complaining that Kamran remained a part of the team due to his closeness to Shoaib Malik.

Eat crap all of you.

The other blunder is the omission of Nasir Jamshed.

I thought it had been decided that Nasir was going to partner Salman in the 1st test.

I can understand that it was difficult to ignore a 17 year old who smashed an unbeaten 146 against the Lankans, but why would you pick Khurram Manzoor ahead of Nasir?

Its great for Ahmed Shehzad's confidence, who has been veru successful at the U19 level and has tasted some domestic success as well, but isn't it a bit too early to blood the youngster?

This musical chairs with openers has hurt Pakistan in the past and destroyed many careers. The selectors have failed to learn from those mistakes.

Don't they understand the concept of a pekking order?

Nasir is line first, then Khurram, then Khalid Latif, then Azhar Ali, then Umar Amin, and then Ahmed Shehzad.

All these guys are young and they can wait for their chances so stick to two of your best who have deserved their chances through exceptional domestic performances.

Sohail Tanvir's exclusion was not an entirely a surprise as he was suffering from poor form and had also rubbed some people the wrong way with his attitude. Hopefully he will comeback stronger and better.

The probable team now for the first test looks like: Salman Butt, Khurram Manzoor, Younis Khan, Misbah Ul Haq, Asim Kamal, Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal, Yasir Arafat, Umar Gul, Danish Kaneria, Sohail Khan.

That includes a debutant opener, a debutant attack bowler, a 1 test old pacer, a batsman making his comeback as Mohammad Yousuf's replacement.

Saying its going to be tough for Pakistan is an understatement.

...that will be the 2011 World Cup. A few months back I had cast my doubts on Pakistan's participation as a host country. The ICC chief seems to be laying down the groundwork for that eventuality:

"It [alternate venues] is a consideration we have to give attention to," Lorgat said at a meeting in New Delhi on Tuesday to discuss preparations for the tournament. "This is not something we discussed today, except to ask the organisers to consider alternate host city venues within the country as well as alternate country venues in the event something is not favourable in one of the particular host countries."

I'm not surprised really - I expected this to happen.

Regardless of Pakistan's hosting status, I am very uninterested in the 2011 World Cup. Mainly because I think the World Cup format is pathetic this time round (once again we have too many teams and too many meaningless games, and are going back to the terrible quarter-final format). But also because there are too many host countries, and the preparations are at least a year behind schedule. It's a disaster waiting to happen. But I will be happy to be proven wrong.

Looks like Allen Stanford is being targeted by the authorities in the US. Things are not looking pretty for him.

The Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and the Federal Bureau of Investigations are looking into the eccentric money man for alleged fraud involving his Stanford International Bank, which claims to have $8.5 billion in assets and some 30,000 investors.

Sir Stanford--he was the first American to receive knighthood from the government of Antigua and is infamous for his efforts to revive West Indian cricket--has managed to report shockingly consistent returns for years. Even in 2008, when Wall Street was hit across the board, he managed to make a 6% profit on his portfolio.

Regardless of whether he remains involved, he certainly did inject life into cricket, especially Windies cricket. It remains to be seen whether he can continue in some capacity, or whether someone can pick up from where he left off.

Its been a while since Pakistan has played test cricket.

Quite a while.

14 months to be exact.

They played none in 2008 for more reasons than one.

The drought is about to break though as Sri Lanka come back to Pakistan for 2 tests.

A test series involving 2 games has never made sense to me. But in these times, even a series of 1 test match would make sense.

So thank you Sri Lanka.

The selectors yesterday announced a list of 22 probables for the test matches, which will be trimmed to 14 or 15 after a short training camp.

I am not sure what the reaction of the general public is regarding the 22 probables but I was surprisingly pleased.

For once the selectors came up with a list of players, within which I did not have a single objection.

Nor did I think that some deserving player had been left out.

I'm not sure whether I should be pleased with Abdul Qadir, the chief selector, or the newly appointed Pakistan skipper, Younis Khan.

We are well aware that Younis asked for a say in selection, though how involved he was in selecting the 22, I'm not too sure.

Either way, a job well done.

Lets take a look at the list.

Openers: Salman Butt, Khurram Manzoor, Nasir Jamshed.

Salman Butt has been Pakistan's 1st choice opener for some time now and he deserves to be. He has had several successful seasons in both ODIs and Tests.

However, his partner has been the subject of much debate.

The last time Pakistan played test cricket, Yasir Hameed opened with Salman, not with much success though.

Since then Pakistan have tried Nasir Jamshed and Khurram Manzoor in ODIs, both of whom have registered decent performances.

Nasir seemed to have established himself as Salman's partner before an injury gave Khurram a chance who grabbed it with both hands. Though I prefer Nasir at the top as he is more aggressive and had a wider range of strokes than Khurram, but the latter has been in fine touch this first class season.

Khurram is one the leading run scorers this season and he was among the leading batsmen last season as well.

Its good that the selectors are keeping both Nasir and Khurram in mind. In my view, either one will make an able partner for Salman.

Middle Order: Younis Khan, Misbah Ul Haq, Shoaib Malik, Asim Kamal, Faisal Iqbal, Saeed Bin Nasir, Fawad Alam, Bazid Khan

8 batsmen, 4 batting spots, 2 taken.

Thats the story of Pakistan's middle order.

Besides Younis Khan and Misbah, none of the other batsmen can be garanteed a spot in the top 6. Plus with Yousuf out of the picture, its quite a task for the selectors and the captain to fill the gap.

Before Shoaib Malik became captain, he was still trying to cement a place in Pakistan's test team, and not in the middle order but as an opener. Bob Woolmer believed in Malik's ability as a test opener as did Inzamam.

Malik had a successful stint as Pakistan's test opener with several good knocks, however, once he became captain he dumped opening for a place in the already crammed middle order.

Though Malik has been a valuable player in the shorter version of the game, he still has a long way to go to establish himself as a test player.

Faisal Iqbal has been a regular feature in Pakistan's test team and he was long considered as Inzamam's replacement in the middle order. Faisal has a string of good scores in the tests he has played including a match saving 50 in the last test Pakistan played.

However, he has been going through a rough time in domestic games and hasn't played any international cricket since that test match as he is not a regular on the ODI front. Its a good thing the selectors did not forget about him.

Asim Kamal has been on the wrong side of many selectorial blunders. His test record proves that he should have been a permanent fixture for test matches, however why he was dropped despite a string of good scores is beyond me. Recalling Kamal is probably the best decision this selection committee has made.

Fawad Alam has been a regular feature in Pakistan's ODI squad but he hasn't got enough chances to prove himself. For 4 first class seasons now, Fawad has time and again proved his worth as a capable middle order batsman.

Fawad averages more than the likes of Younis, Misbah, and Yousuf in first class cricket and his tour with academy to Kenya and Zimbabwe last season proved his abilities as a reliable middle order bat.

He faces tough competition for a spot in the middle order, however, for me he should be the first one to be pencilled in.

Saeed Bin Nasir and Bazid Khan have been rewarded for being consistent at the domestic level. Both batsmen have more than one successful domestic season behind them and provide able replacements if any of the above are unavailable.

Wicketkeepers: Kamran Akmal, Sarfraz Ahmed

Kamran's batting has time and again come to his rescue. I will be the first one to admit that he has played many match saving and match winning knocks for Pakistan in test cricket, hence it has been difficult to drop him despite his troubles behind the stumps.

However, if he is persisted with then the likes of Kaneria and Afridi will leave every match with 2-3 wickets less than they should have had.

Its time for change and Sarfraz Ahmed's recent batting form suggests that he will be upto the task for Pakistan. For his form behind the stumps, there is no comparison - he is leaps and bounds ahead of all keepers in Pakistan.

Spinners: Danish Kaneria, Saeed Ajmal, Shahid Afridi

I believe Afridi can be a valuable addition to Pakistan's test team. I have more faith in his wicket taking abilities than Kaneria's, but Kaneria for a long time has been Pakistan's number 1 spinner.

No matter how much I would like to see Afridi play test cricket, I don't see it happening.

Kaneria has been weighed under a lot of expectations. With the premier fast bowlers suffering from a variety of problems, Kaneria has had to bear a huge burden.

He has not exactly let down people, but he hasn't done as well as had been promised by him or of him.

Ajmal remains a potent option for ODIs and a decent back up for the tests.

Fast bowlers: Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir, Sohail Khan, Abdul Rauf, Mohammad Talha, Yasir Arafat

Pakistan's pace bowling looks weak without Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif, however these 6 are the best pace options available to Pakistan.

Its going to be a tough task for Younis Khan in his first assignment as full time captain of Pakistan.

Finding an opening partner for Salman, filling in the gaps in the middle order left open by Inzamam and Yousuf, blooding a new keeper, and choosing your first choice pacers is going to be one hell of a task.

And this only gets you the 11 for the game. Leading them on the field, making plans for the Lankans, and executing them will be quite a job.

I don't have high expectations and I would urge the Pakistan public not to have many either.

Consider this as the start of a new age and be ready to see a new look Pakistan team take the field. Give them time and they may get you the results. If you don't, they may never get enough chances to get you the results.

My Test XI: 1. Salman Butt 2. Khurram Manzoor / Nasir Jamshed 3. Younis Khan 4. Misbah Ul Haq 5. Asim Kamal / Faisal Iqbal 6. Fawad Alam 7. Sarfraz Ahmed 8. Sohail Tanvir 9. Umar Gul 10. Danish Kaneria 11. Sohail Khan

If it isn't today then it should have been.

The Husseys did it for the Aussies, while the Pathans did it for the Indians.

From 101-3, the Husseys took the Australians to 216 leaving them less than 30 to get off the next 34 deliveries.

The Pathans bettered that.

Chasing 172 in 20 overs, India looked down and out at 115-7 in 15.1 overs.

But such is the confidence of this Indian team that despite losing Jadeja on the 1st ball of the 16th over, Yusuf Pathan smashed 17 off the next 5 deliveries.

Imagine that.

The Pathans added 59 off only 25 deliveries to take India home with 4 balls to spare.

A day for the Husseys. A day for the Pathans.

A day for the Brothers!

As a kid, Pietersen would have dreamt about playing for South Africa.

He would have dreamt about playing alongside the likes of Jacques Kallis and Mark Boucher.

He would have dreamt about captaining South Africa.

He could never do that.

But now Vijay Mallya has come to KP's aid and provided him with the opportunity to realise his childhood dreams.

No I'm not talking about the $1.55 million.

I'm talking about playing for and captaining South Africa.

KP is a strong captaincy candidate for the Royal Challengers.

Boucher is being mentioned as his possible deputy.

Kallis also plays for the Royal Challengers.

As does the premier South African bowler - Dale Steyn.

Thats almost like captaining South Africa.

And he gets to play with his childhood heroes - Kallis & Boucher.

What a happy team.

Mallya should change his slogan to "Bangalore Royal Challengers - making dreams come true!"

There was a time when aspiring cricketers use to try and and register performances for their schools, colleges, clubs, departments, and age-group and grade cricket teams in order to become a permanent fixture in a domestic side.

The objective to get into a domestic team was to perform, get big scores, get a bundle of wickets and get into the eyes of the selectors for a break into the national team.

That used to be the path to international cricket.

In England its the B teams of counties and clubs through which you can make it into a county. In Pakistan its the thousands of clubs, associations, zones, and departments that get you a ticket for a place in a regional team. In Australia its club and grade cricket that gets you into one of the state sides. The same is surely the case in other nations.

Its all changed now.

With the IPL being an international extravaganza and witnessed by audiences including fans, selectors, boards, and the likes across the world, aspiring cricketers seek an opportunity to display their credentials in the Indian league to make it into the international league.

Or even to become a permanent fixture in their domestic side.

Kings XI Punjab's latest signing is an Australian by the name of Burt Cockley, who thinks that playing in the IPL will provide him the chance to play more for New South Wales.

This what he said on hearing about his signing: "I hope that playing in the IPL will improve my chances of playing more for NSW."

Imagine that. A young boy wants to play in the IPL to play more for his domestic side to achieve the ultimate goal of appearing for his country.

Who would have thought that in only its second year since inception, the IPL would have such a reputation.

Lalit Modi must be jumping up and down and doing cartwheels on his water bed after reading this. Or maybe having a joint in celebration.

Coming back to Cockley, he has played 5 first class games and 2 List A games and as many as ZERO 20-20 games! And his record shows nothing of note.

Then what made the Kings sign him on?

Maybe his name - Cockley. Its most appropriate for the team he joins that is led by a very cocky Yuvraj Singh.

Cocky Cockley under cocky Yuvraj's cocky IPL team.

Well done Preity Zinta.

If you're wondering how Zinta or the Kings heard about Cockley, the answer is their coach, Tom Moody.

Moody says that Cockley bowls at over 140ks and that is what made the Kings sign him on despite having no experience of 20-20 cricket.

Cockley is the Kings' 6th Australian signing after Brett Lee, Shaun Marsh, James Hopes, Luke Pomersbach, and Simon Katich.

With Lee injured, Cockley might even get to play a few games, if not all of them.

After Shaun Marsh and Shane Watson, here's another Aussie looking to enhance his reputation through the IPL.

I'm still wondering about the name. COCKLEY!

What can you do with $3.1 million?

One can buy a beautiful 5 bedroom villa on the Palm Island in Dubai.

I can spend a lifetime without working with that amount in my bank account.

KP and Freddie, on the other hand, can sit and laugh about how they played Modi and the IPL.

Played not meaning playing cricket, but playing. You know what I mean.

The English players didn't appear in IPL's 1st edition for a number of reasons. The ECB did not want their county season disrupted. It would have clashed with some of England's international games. And so on.

Reportedly there were a number of dicussions between the board and the players on finding a way to appear in the IPL.

BCCI were also keen on getting the English on board and after many months of persuading and convincing, the English were there for the taking.

There is no denying the talent of KP and Freddie, but are they really worth the $1.55 million dished out for each of them by their respective franchises?

I didn't think so either.

England as a team has done nothing of note in either versions of the shortened game. Within a weak team, KP and Freddie stand out as lone shining stars.

A glance at their T20 stats reveal more than decent good records.

A batting average nearing 30 and a strike rate of almost 150, and a bowling average of only 17 and an economy rate of below 6.5 highlight a very good T20 record in my opinion.

But then KP and Freddie are not the only ones with records like that.

Then why was so much money shelled out for them?

To put it into perspective their collective pay check is more than the combined pay check of Ricky Ponting, Matthew Hayden, Glen McGrath, Brett Lee and Shane Warne!

That is half the the team that dominated all sorts of cricket for over a decade.

Sure T20 is different and the IPL even more different where the brand value and marketing abilities of cricketers also play a part in determining their price, but shouldn't talent be the first and foremost driving factor?

Rajasthan Royals have already shown that it should be.

Bangalore was in a dire need to not only change the image of its team but also to add a dynamic batsman among the ranks of test players.

In other words, they were desperate for someone like KP.

Chennai though were not really as desperate for a Freddie. They are last year's runners up, something they managed without many big names. But Dhoni really wanted Freddie for reasons best known to him.

Maybe it was also to not allow Freddie to get into the hands of Warne or anyone else.

Think about this for a while - had the English been available for the IPL last year, would then KP and Freddie secured bids for $1.55 million each?

We all know the answer.

So, albeit unknowingly, the ECB and hence the English players have truly played the man who has been playing the entire cricket world - Lalit Modi.

We all know the advantages of playing hard to get.

Here's living proof for you.

About a week or so ago I read somewhere that Darren Powell had predicted a 3-0 win for the West Indies in the test series against England.

At that time, I thought Powell had probably smoked something he shouldn't have. I wondered whether he had met Shoaib Akhtar or Mohammad Asif recently.

After watching Jerome Taylor destroy England, I am wondering again.

If this is what Taylor is capable of and if this is the kind of batting form, or rather lack of, England are in then Powell wasn't really off the mark.

My apologies to Powell for laughing over his remark, which at that time seemed quite absurd.

It was anything but that.

The West Indies have been on top throughout this test match.

At the end of day 1, Kevin Pietersen said that with over 250 odd on the board for the loss of 5 wickets, England were the happier dressing room.

On day 2 Gayle and Sarwan showed how wrong Pietersen was.

England have been completely outplayed in this match.

Its not over. Flintoff and Sidebottom are still there. But it really is over.

Gayle, Sarwan, Nash, Taylor - all were outstanding.

I left Big Benn out of there for special mention. He just got his 7th wicket of the match as Sidebottom was ruled out.

Benn has bowled his heart out in this match and how he has bowled.

I don't know many 6'7 guys who would pursue a career bowling spin. At that height he could have been a star at the NBA. He could have been the Joel Garner, Micheal Holding, Curtley Ambrose, Courtney Walsh of this generation.

Instead Sulieman Benn is a left arm spinner. And what a left arm spinner.

West Indies have been awesome and Powell may as well prove to be right.

England, on the other hand, have been atrocious. I'm not going to take anything away from Taylor. He was unplayable out there, but to be 7 down at 20 odd is sin.

I have seen Pakistan a bit too many times in situations like this and I can surely say that all is not well in that England dressing room.

The opposition can be good, but you just cannot be this bad unless something is very very wrong among the players.

Flintoff bowled by Edwards as I write this and the West Indies are 1 wicket away from an innings defeat and 33% of their way towards proving Powell correct.

The England - all I would like to tell you is that boys, the Ashes seems a long shot. Sure Australia lost their last 2 test series, which made you really happy and confident about the coming summer, but remember that Australia lost to the top 2 sides in the world. While you, I don't even want to say.

Benn gets his 8th of the match and England are all over for 51.

The West Indies - you have been AWESOME!

I know one blogger who would be really pleased with the Windies performance.

Powell's bold prediction.

IPL's second edition is two months away but with the auction taking place today the teams have started to shape up.

So what are the chances of the 8 franchises?

I plan to review all 8 in a series of posts starting with this one. No better way to start than with the team that will be defending the title.

We all made the same mistake last year when we proclaimed that the Rajasthan Royals were the weakest team in the IPL.

We all know how that turned out.

With Watson and Tanvir, two of the stars of their successful campaign last season, missing from action this time round, the word is that the Royals have been severely depleted.

Would you dare call them weakened?

Repeat the same mistake you made last season?

With Warne at the helm, no team can be discounted.

Their two picks in today's auction were Tyron Henderson and Shaun Tait.

Henderson who? Henderson is the leading wicket taker in all 20-20 cricket and he hits the ball a fair distance. He played an instrumental role in guiding Middlesex to the T20 title last summer.

An apt replacement for Watson then I would say. With Warne's magic touch, Henderson could very well be the player to watch out for this season.

Shaun Tait is ideal for 20-20 cricket. 4 over bursts of extremely fast bowling. With Warne guiding him, Tait can even eclipse what Tanvir did last season.

With Watson and Tanvir's absence easily covered, the Royals are hardly weaker than last time
round.

Instead I would say they may even be a stronger unit.

Their Indian players, though not the heavyweights of Indian cricket, are more than handy players.

Last season saw all of them up their game a notch. Thats what Warne does to you. Yusuf Pathan, R Jadeja, Mohammad Kaif, Munaf Patel, Swapnil Asnodkar, and Siddarth Trivedi will be back this season.

Back better than they were last season.

Pathan has since become a regular feature in India's ODI team and his reputation has been significantly enhanced.

Jadeja had an outstanding Ranji season, which resulted in his promotion to India's ODI squad.

Remember Warne calls him the future superstar of Indian cricket.

Definitely a stronger unit in my view.

With Graeme Smith guiding the batting and Mascarenhas also available for the entire season, the team has shaped up well.

Before the auction Warne had roped in Justin Langer and Morne Morkel to his roster, both of whom could be trump players for the Royals.

Langer could fill in, in case Smith goes away and gets that surgery he's been talking about. While Morkel, along with Tait, provides with potent pace attack.

Teams will make a huge mistake if they under estimate the Royals.

The Core Team: Shane Warne, Graeme Smith, Justin Langer, Dmitri Mascarenhas, Mohammad Kaif, Yusuf Pathan, Swapnil Asnodkar, R Jadeja, Siddarth Trivedi, Munaf Patel, Tyron Henderson, Shaun Tait, Niraj Patel, Mahesh Rawat, Morne Morkel, Shane Watson.

Prediction: Its going to be a tough task defending the championship as the other teams look much stronger than last season. But then strong players don't make a strong team as the Deccan Chargers taught us last season. A semi final berth atleast should be expected of the Rajasthan Royals unless something goes terribly wrong with Shane Warne's man management skills. As long as Shilpa Shetty is considered as the motivation and not the distraction, I see the Royals as one of the semi finalists. Surely.

You would think that bagging contracts worth $1.55 million each would have made KP and Flintoff the richest IPL cricketers, however that is not the case.

Or so I believe.

Remember the icon players?

Yeah the Sachin Tendulkars, Rahul Dravids, Saurav Gangulys, Virender Sehwags, and Yuvraj Singhs.

The icons of the IPL.

Remember their deal?

The deal was that the icons would get paid 15% more than the highest paid cricketer of the franchise.

Rahul Dravid bagged a contract worth $1,035,000 because Vijay Mallya bought Kallis for $900,000, God knows why!

This morning Mallya dished out $1.55 million for Kevin Pietersen.

Which implies that being the icon, Dravid's remuneration just went up to $1,782,500!

This still has to be confirmed by the IPL or Mallya but according to how the icons are defined it only makes sense.

Dravid - the highest paid IPL cricketer. Who would have thought?

Whoever they were, they all need to be told to pack their bags and go home. Forever.

Shakib Al Hasan, the best allrounder in the world, the player of last year and this year, Bangladesh's star, the man who will lead Bangladesh to glorious heights, the boy who single handedly dominated Pakistan, New Zealand, South Africa, and Sri Lanka, all in one season, remained unsold.

Can you believe that?

No franchise picked up Shakib Al Hasan at the auction.

Why?

Ashraful and Murtaza bagged contracts but Shakib didn't.

How does that happen?

Dwayne Smith, Collingwood, Bopara, Henderson, some George Bailey were bought, but Shakib wasn't.

What were the franchises thinking?

We can't have the IPL this year without Shakib. Thats just wrong!

Or was that the case the 2nd IPL auction held earlier this morning in Goa?

As expected the IPL got two new millionnaires - Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff, each bagging US$ 1.55 million and pushing Dhoni from being the most expensive IPL player to the 3rd expensive one.

Bangalore Royal Challengers

As I had expected a couple of days back it was Mallya who pocketed KP's services. Bangalore desperately needed a flamboyant player and they not only got KP, but Jesse Ryder, the hard hitting New Zealander as well.

KP and Ryder make a hell of a pair to pick up in one auction.

What's more interesting though is that KP joins the same team as Boucher, Kallis, and Steyn. What a happy bunch of South Africans!

Chennai SuperKings

Dhoni had wished for Flintoff and he got him.

What a rich team the Chennai SuperKings are now - 2 players earning at least $1.5 million. Deep pockets that.

Adding Flintoff to a line up that already included Hayden and Micheal Hussey just made the SuperKings even more super.

Add to that Dhoni, Raina, Albie Morkel, and Muralitharan and you are looking at probably the next IPL Champions.

Rajasthan Royals

The defending IPL champions had the toughest job at the auction as they had to find replacements for last year's player of the tournament and bowler of the tournament.

Shane Watson and Sohail Tanvir played an instrumental role in the Royals' march to the title last year. This year though, both are unavailable.

Their replacements - Tyron Henderson and Shaun Tait.

Henderson, from what I hear, is an allrounder and replaces Watson, while Tait, we all know about.

The Royals have a tough season ahead.

Kolkata Knight Riders

Missing Umar Gul, the Riders wanted a fast bowler and they bagged one in Mashrafe Murtaza, the Bangladeshi striker.

Surprisingly it wasn't Shakib or KP or Flintoff who generated a bidding war this morning.

It was Murtaza, who starting from a base price of $50,000 was bagged by the Riders for 12 times that amount - $600,000.

Despite not having the services of Salman Butt and Shoaib Akhtar this season, the Riders did not buy any other player but then when one has the likes of Gayle, Ponting, Hodge, David Hussey, and Mendis on the roster to go along with Ganguly and Ishant Sharma, you don't really need anyone else.

Kings XI Punjab

Priety Zinta's Kings were only looking for a replacement for Brett Lee and they managed an able buy in Jerome Taylor.

The Kings also bought Ravi Bopara to add to the list of hard hitters in Shaun Marsh, Pomersbach, Hopes, Jayawardene, and King Sanga.

Not to mention Yuvraj Singh!

Formidable team that.

Delhi Daredevils

As if David Warner, Dirty Dirk, and all the other Australians that the Daredevils has been buying were not enough, they bought Owais Shah and Paul Collingwood as well.

The Daredevils just keep getting stronger with every new pick of theirs.

Shah and Collingwood just adds to their strength.

They've already got Sehwag and Gambhir. And AB De Villiers and Dilshan. And Manoj Tiwary and Dinesh Karthik.

Not to mention McGrath, Mahroof, Nehra, Geeves, and Vettori!

Mumbai Indians

They didn't have to replace anyone.

They had Sachin, Jayasuriya, Bravo and they recently traded for Zaheer Khan, an able replacement for Shaun Pollock.

Still, they had a busy auction bagging the flavour of the year, JP Duminy, who also generated quite a bidding war eventually selling for $950,000 - 3 times more than his base price of $300,000.

They also bought Kyle Mills and the Bangladesh skipper, Mohammad Ashraful.

Sachin has quite a team this year.

Deccan Chargers

The team ended bottom of the league last year.

Their CEO yesterday said he was no longer their CEO, but the owners denied it.

They replaced Laxman in the off season with Gilchrist as their captain.

Afridi is no longer available, not that that would make a difference. But the troubled cricketers, Gibbs and Symonds, both going through some sort of rehab, are there.

The Chargers have had nothing going for them.

The auction didn't do them much good either. Not to discount the abilities of Fidel Edwards and Dwayne Smith, but surely they should have tried harder.

The auction is over. The teams are stronger. The defiending champions are weaker. But they have Warne. Another has Warner. KP & Flintoff are on board as well. Exciting IPL season ahead!

Muralitharan 503 ODI wickets.

Finally!

Finally, I don't have to hear how Murali needs these many wickets to beat Wasim Akram's record.

He has done it!

Thank you Gautam.

Murali, you can retire in peace now. We don't want to hear of when you will get the 1,000th!

"I don't think anybody is ready to pay that kind of price. The reality is in front of him. He didn't want to be unsold in the auction and so decided to pull out. We asked him to reduce the price but he was unwilling."

WHAT !! ?

That is what Lalit Modi said about Micheal Clarke pulling out of the IPL auction, to be held tomorrow.

Read the last sentence again.

Modi says that they asked Clarke to reduce his price but he was unwilling.

The IPL asked Clarke to reduce his price?

Does that even make sense?

I mean, its the players who decide their price?

Are you kidding Mr. Modi?

So it was Clarke who decided that his base price was going to be US$ 1 million?

And it was KP who decided that his base price was going to be US$ 1.35 million?

So then why did Ponting only decide to base himself on US$ 300,000?

Didn't Ponting think he was worth more than that?

And did Clarke really think he was worth a million dollars?

And then when he didn't think anyone would pay that sum he pulled out. Why didn't he lower his base?

This just sounds so absurd. I know why no one would be willing to pay a million for Clarke, but isn't it the IPL who decides these base prices?

If its really the players then someone needs to consult Shakib and tell him that he's worth way more than a mere $75,000!

Modi needs some explaining to do.

All those who were thinking that Younis accepted the captaincy unconditionally and that he did what was best for Pakistan and that he was a changed man and what not ... think again!

Pakistan is one place where no one gives anything without asking for something in return.

Younis knew that Pakistan needed him and like he has done in the past, he asked for a few things in return.

What you ask?

A say in selection matters.

That ain't so bad is it.

Imran Khan had it. Wasim Akram had it. Waqar Younis had it. Inzamam ul Haq had it.

So then why not Younis Khan?

Well because after the World Cup 2007 when everyone blamed Inzamam for being a dictator, PCB's new policy was to give as few powers to the captain as posssible.

The PCB then wanted a dummy who will do as they say. Who will play with the team they give him. Who will dance to their tunes.

Younis Khan was not going to be that.

So the PCB found the perfect fit in Shoaib Malik.

That is all what Malik was for the last two years - a pupper in the hands of first Nasim Ashraf, and then Ijaz Butt.

Malik never got a say in selection.

Malik never got the XI he wanted.

Malik never got the men he wanted and throughout he played with men who didn't want him.

Those are the key reason's for Malik's demise.

It wasn't his fault. If he had his way, a very different Pakistan would have been playing for the last two years.

Moving back to Younis.

When Younis Khan was offered the captaincy after the Sri Lanka series, he knew he could get his way because the PCB were desperate. Pakistan were desperate.

Abdul Qadir, in his statement yesterday, said “We will give enough room to Younis. As captain, he is our general in the field and should have a say in selection matters.”

Well then Qadir, you don't have much of a choice do you. Younis Khan would not be captain if he wassn't given this room by your selection committee.

Don't try to make us believe that you are giving this room out of choice. You have been ordered to do it.

Now this isn't all that bad.

Pakistan cricket has flourished whenever the captain has been behind the team selection.

The simple reason for this is that the captain selects "his men" and they respond to him since they are "his men".

It's not a bad thing.

But, it begs to ask why Shoaib Malik was not allowed this liberty? The poor guy captained a team where he had no supporters. He was bound to fail.

Younis will have his team, and its the first steps towards going back to the days of Pakistan cricket being run by one man - the captain.

Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Inzamam Ul Haq, they all did it.

Its Younis' turn now.

Are they seriously blind?

The video is out there for everyone to see.

So what are Ponting and Haddin smoking?

I mean seriously.

Do they not see what happened? Do they really think the world is blind?

Don't they realise what this is doing to their credibility?

Not that Ponting had much of it anyway, but with the kind of statements he's making, what is he trying to prove?

And why haven't the match officials taken any action?

Rashid Latif got banned for 5 matches and stripped of the captaincy for doing something similar.

India would have been threatening to cancel the tour if it were there wicket keeper who had done something like that.

If it were a subcontinental player, the Australia and English media would have been full of remarks about cheating.

I can't believe that Haddin can actually come out and say that Vettori's claims are poor and low.

How can he do that?

We all saw his reaction after the team was celebrating. Its obvious that he knew what happened. So what does he think of the public?

And whats all this with Ponting claiming that Vettori apologised?

The Aussies are crumbling and how.

Sad, just sad.

Haddin needs to be banned and Ponting, while away on his leave, needs to be told to shut up.

If the newspapers were to be believed, Murali should have taken away the record from Wasim Akram during the series against Pakistan.

Yet, the series after that is over the half way mark and Murali still doesn't have the record.

And we live another day to hear that Murali needs 1 more wicket to become the highest wicket taker in ODI cricket.

DO IT ALREADY!!!

I am tired of repeatedly hearing the same thing.

Its a plea to the Indian batsmen, please give him a wicket!

She's a well known Bollywood actress.

It happened again today.

For the umpteenth time in the last fortnight or so I have heard: "Muralitharan needs x wickets to get past Wasim Akram and become the leading wicket taker in ODIs".

I was reminded of that by at least 5 different sources today.

Will he get there already.

Please Murali, I know the Indian batsmen are great but please, please get to the record.

I can't bear listen to that statement again.

Just do it already.

This season's cricketers' auction for the IPL gets underway in 4 days and it promises to be as exciting as last year's auction.

The players' base prices were revealed today and with KP's base at US$ 1.35 million, the highest paid IPL cricketer is going to be a different one this season.

With all 8 franchises expected to fight for KP, MS Dhoni's US$ 1.5 million will be left far behind once the dust settles over KP's IPL salary.

But who is going to get KP is the big question. Here I take a look at the chances the 8 franchises have over winning a bid for KP's services.

Deccan Chargers
With Gilchrist, Gibbs, Symonds, and Afridi collectively not firing the first time round, I doubt this team needs additional firepower or an additional ego amongst its ranks. The powers that be though could feel that adding KP to an already powerful batting line up could change their fortunes in the 2nd season. I doubt it though. I think the Chargers will keep the money at home and not spend big on KP.

Bangalore Royal Challengers
With the likes of Dravid, Jaffar, Kallis, and Chanderpaul in its ranks, this team is in desperate need of some big hitters. Pietersen could just be the tonic the Royal Challengers need to give them a boost before the start of their 2nd IPL campaign. But Kallis, Boucher, Steyn, and KP in the same team? Who would have thought. I expect them to bid hard for KP.

Rajasthan Royals
If one though Warne and Graeme Smith in the same team wasn't enough, Warne, Smith, and KP has all the makings of a bollywood masala flick. Imagine Smith and KP in the middle trying to win a game for the same team. Talk about irony, talk about the IPL. I've heard that Warne is looking to get his mate KP on board, however bidding big for KP will go against the Royals' previous strategy where they avoided spending big on stars and built a team. On the flip side, that means they have more money lying around than other franchises. You could expect them to be part of the bidding war on KP.

Kolkata Knight Riders
With Gayle, McCullum, Ponting, Hodge, and David Hussey already in the batting ranks, it doesn't look likely that SRK will be looking for KP's services. Ganguly doesn't seem too interested either. Expect the Knight Riders to give KP a miss at the auctions.

Chennai SuperKings
How KP would like to play for a team called the SuperKings. Justifies his ego to the hilt. Though with Hayden and Hussey in the line up, it doesn't look like Chennai are looking to add to their batting prowess. Plus, Dhoni has already hinted at wanting Flintoff in the team so going for two players over a million is something that won't be possible. Doesn't look like KP will get to play for the SuperKings.

Delhi Daredevils
The Daredevils have already spoken about their batting plans revolving around Sehwag, Gambhir, Tiwary, and Warner. Add to this Dilshan and AB De Villiers and the Daredevils batting doesn't need a KP. Plus they have been banking on a lot of Australian firepower and may have already exceeded their foreign player quota. They seems to be out of the race as well.

Kings XI Punjab
Will Yuvraj captain someone who called him a pie chucker? Sure would be interesting to see. Yuvi and KP in the middle would a sight! However, the Kings XI also seem to have a well settled batting line up with Marsh, Pomersbach, Hopes, Jayawardene, and King Sanga in the fold. Not to forget the skipper Yuvraj Singh. Preity Zinta might want KP on her side, but they will be better off with a Flintoff or another pacer to cover for Brett Lee rather than a batsman.

Mumbai Indians
Sanath Jayasuriya, Sachin Tendulkar, Kevin Pietersen. He fits in well I think. The Mumbai team lacked the batting depth last season and the addition of KP to their ranks looks likely, especially since they will be without Pollock this time round. I would expect Mumbai to bid hard for KP. They need him, probably as much as the Royal Challengers.

Exect a 3 way bidding war between the Royal Challengers, Rajasthan Royals, and the Mumbai Indians with the Challengers and Indians taking it to the end. I would expect KP to turn up for one of the two richest businessmen in India - Mallya or Ambani.

One would promise him the women and the other the private jet.

Which one would KP get? I think he would want the latter, but we'll find out soon enough.

And I expect him to get close to US$ 2 million.

Afghanistan's that is.