Honestly, I was a bit surprised to see Brett Lee playing today for the Kings XI Punjab.

Not because he was in Dubai 36 hours ago, but because he replaced Yusuf Abdullah.

At the half way stage of the IPL, Abdullah was the leading wicket taker. He's still right up there, only placed 2nd.

Then here comes a pacer - who has just returned from injury, who 2 days ago played his first cricket match after half a year, who had lost the art of taking wickets before his lay-off, who is no longer the premier fast bowler of the country he represents - and he replaces one of the best bowlers on show at the IPL?

Fair?

With Kings XI suffering this season, surely they should have gone in with their best team.

Maybe playing Lee and Abdullah both would have made sense.

Sure Katich scored a 50 last game, but he's not exactly cut out to be a 20-20 cricketer.

Was it Lee's reputation that got him the game?

Maybe it was Priety Zinta who calls the shots and gets her favorite players in - Lee, after all did call her his favorite bollywood star.

Or is it that the Kings XI (read Tom Moody) who are doing Australia a favor by providing Brett Lee much needed match practice before the ICC World Twenty20?
____________________________________________________________________

Addendum after the match:

In hindsight, I guess they played Brett Lee so that he could bat, hit that 6, and those winning runs!

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!

Shaun Marsh, son of the Aussie opener Goeff Marsh, has just been signed up by Priety Zinta's Mohali franchise for the IPL.

Its been quite a week for the young Aussie - after being named in the ODI squad for the Windies tour, earlier today he received his first contract from Cricket Australia.

Whats interesting is that Shaun Marsh joins Luke Pomersbach in the Mohali team - the 2 Western Australians were suspended earlier this season for a late night drinking binge by WA. One can expect some late nights then in and around Punjab once the IPL kicks off.

Marsh and Pomersbach will have to be wary though as Mohali is coached by Western Australia coach Tom Moody who has Trevor Penney as his assistant, also his assistant at WA.

Dominic Thornely, another successful Australian domestic cricketer, was also lapped up today by the Mumbai Indians, who had earlier signed on the Western Australian wicket keeper Luke Ronchi.

Glenn McGrath is one of the first international cricketers to arrive in India for the IPL and has already started training with the Delhi Daredevils. Delhi's coach, the Victorian Greg Shipperd, has also arrived in India and held the team's first training session yesterday.

Aussies have definitely taken the IPL by storm.

• Shane Warne is the only non-Indian captain the IPL has.
  
• 4 of the 8 IPL coaches are Australian - John Buchanan, Tom Moody, Greg Shipperd, and Shane Warne.
  
• Australia is the only country from where the largest pool of domestic cricketers have signed on with the IPL - those mentioned above along with the Victorians David Hussey and Cameron White. There are a couple of others that I'm forgetting right now.

Despite such an Aussie dominance in the IPL, Uncle J Rod refuses to believe that it will be a success. Forget Aussie dominance Uncle J, they've got Victorians here as well.


The IPL kicks off in 9 days.

The teams are ready; they've all got their names, their captains, their coaches, their players, their multi colored uniforms; the players have started arriving, training sessions have started, the schedule is in place, and arragements for the opening ceremony are being finalised !!

It sure will be quite an extravaganza !!!