The BCCI has been hit with a Rs 2300 crore (approx $433m) notice from the income tax department and has asked its treasurer Ajay Shirke to suggest how to deal with the issue

Amol Karhadkar05-Feb-2013The BCCI has been hit with a Rs 2300 crore (approx $433m) notice from the income tax department and has asked its treasurer Ajay Shirke to suggest how to deal with the issue.The BCCI working committee met in Chennai on Monday and discussed the matter in detail. President N Srinivasan explained to the working committee that the tax-related issues have compounded since the BCCI changed its objectives in 2006, has reported.Since the BCCI is registered as a charitable trust, it used to get various tax exemptions on the grounds of promoting cricket as a ‘charitable activity’. But after the BCCI amended its objectives in June 2006, the government has started considering the BCCI to be earning income through ‘commercial’ means, it was explained to the working committee.The bone of contention has been the income generated through sale of IPL franchises and through sale of broadcast rights for the Twenty20 league. While the BCCI claims it distributes a “major portion” of the income generated to its affiliated units (ie the state and regional associations), the tax authorities have been reportedly seeking taxes both from the parent body as well as affiliated units.It was learnt that Shirke has been asked to chalk out the path ahead “within a fortnight” so that the BCCI can “sort out” all the impeding issues with the tax authorities.

Both sides picked three seamers but even on the opening day in Colombo the standout bowler was Ranaga Herath

The Report by Siddarth Ravindran16-Mar-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Rangana Herath took his 15th five-wicket haul•Associated Press

In Galle, the score at the end of day one was 361 for 3. At the R Premadasa Stadium, 11 wickets went down on day one. The track in Galle was so lifeless that it drove fans to boredom. The Premadasa pitch wasn’t as free-scoring, but the lethargic surface didn’t have too much in it for the bowlers either.Both sides picked three seamers – one more than they usually do in the subcontinent – but even on the opening day the standout performer was Rangana Herath, Sri Lanka’s lone spinner and their most bankable bowler of recent years.In 2011, 33-year-old Herath’s career was on the rocks with Sri Lanka seeming to have a plethora of young spinners, but improbably, over the past two years he developed into one of the leading bowlers in the world. He showcased some of that skill on Saturday, with his 15th five-wicket haul, which restricted Bangladesh to 240, and put Sri Lanka ahead in a match they desperately need to win; anything less will mean they have botched the easiest assignment going around in Test cricket.Though the Bangladesh batting subsided without putting up a testing total, the good news for their fans is that two of the younger batsmen were the highest scorers. Twenty-one-year-old Mominul Haque again showed the poise he had in his debut Test to score his second consecutive half-century, while Nasir Hossain burnished his reputation as one of their most reliable batsmen, with a battling 48 – only the second time in his last seven Test innings that he hasn’t scored a half-century.The batsmen found it difficult to time the ball on the slow pitch and the sluggish outfield meant that threes were almost as common as boundaries. Still, when Mohammad Ashraful and Jahurul Islam were comfortably playing out everything Sri Lanka threw at them in the first session, Angelo Mathews may have been pondering whether opting to bowl was the wisest move, but by tea Bangladesh had lost half their side and reached only 155.Though Bangladesh were bolstered by the return of the experienced Tamim Iqbal from injury, he didn’t last long as he missed the first ball Nuwan Kulasekara bowled from round the stumps to be trapped lbw for 10 in the seventh over.Jahurul played like an old-school opener early on, prepared to grind it out on a pitch where run-making wasn’t easy. Ashraful was also cautious, not dipping into his repertoire of flamboyant shots in his one-hour stay. Bangladesh made slow-and-steady progress to 50 for 1, and had got through the difficult early phase. Just when you thought the two settled batsmen could cash in, Ashraful threw away his wicket, with a lackadaisical bit of running. While completing a quick single, he was looking back to see where the throw from Shaminda Eranga was headed; the throw was arrowing towards the stumps and it caught Ashraful short.Mominul’s entrance picked up the tempo for Bangladesh as he and Jahurul went for their shots after lunch. With the fast bowlers attempting some short deliveries, Jahurul countered with the pull shot. For Mominul the area around point was a profitable one, and Bangladesh went along at nearly four an over early in the second session. Once again just as a partnership was developing, Sri Lanka struck. Eranga, the pick of the quicks after lunch, had Jahurul chasing a ball wide outside off, nicking to the keeper for 33.Though Mominul top socred, it wasn’t exactly a chanceless innings. Soon after Ashraful’s dismissal, Mominul could have also been run out off a direct hit, just making his ground on 5, then survived a close lbw call off Suranga Lakmal, and nearly chipped a catch back to the bowler Herath. In between though, there were some assured strokes, including a punch past mid-off for four and a take-that pull off Lakmal.Even after Jahurul’s exit, Bangladesh had moved along to a reasonable 128 for 3, but their position was quickly undermined as they lost both their captain and vice-captain before tea. Mahmudullah was smartly snapped up by Mathews at slip after the edge popped up off the wicketkeeper’s pads, and Mushfiqur Rahim was regularly troubled by Herath before being bowled for 7.When Mominul was caught-behind in the second over of the third session, Bangladesh were 163 for 6 and a quick finish to the innings loomed. Nasir and Sohag Gazi, though, went after the spinners to put on 59, the largest stand of the innings before Herath outwitted Gazi, and the new ball helped Sri Lanka polish off the tail.Bangladesh got the dangerous Tillakaratne Dilshan in the four over before stumps, but tomorrow will be a huge challenge for their three-pronged pace attack that has little in the way of Test credentials.

Lancashire have agreed what is believed to be the largest commercial deal in the history of county cricket by selling the naming rights to its Old Trafford home

George Dobell28-Feb-2013Lancashire have agreed what is believed to be the largest commercial deal in the history of county cricket by selling the naming rights to their Old Trafford home. The 10-year deal, thought to be worth up to £10m, will see the ground renamed Emirates Old Trafford and the Emirates brand appear on the front of the team’s Friends Life t20 playing kits.Lancashire have endured great financial strain in recent years. A lengthy planning battle over the £32m redevelopment of the ground saw the club declare losses of £2m in 2010 and almost £4m in 2011. Further losses are also anticipated when the 2012 figures are declared in the next few weeks.Now, however, the club can start to look to the future with greater confidence. The ground redevelopment is expected to be completed in May, the square, having been turned to avoid problems with the sun shining in batsmen’s eyes, is operational once again and commercial deals with Emirates and Tesco, who have covered around two-thirds of the cost of the development, would appear to have put the club back on an even keel. Tickets for the Ashes Test in August have also sold well – the first four days have sold out – leading the club to predict a return to profit in 2013.Of the regular international-hosting counties, Surrey, Hampshire, Durham, Glamorgan and Yorkshire have all previously sold naming rights to their grounds. Warwickshire are also hopeful of selling naming rights to their Edgbaston home in the coming months. Surrey’s five-year deal with Kia – thought to be worth around £3.5m – is believed to have been the largest commercial county deal until now. Emirates also won the naming rights to Durham’s ground, meaning the third and fourth Tests of this summer’s Ashes series will be played at grounds bearing the company’s name.”This announcement represents another major step in the redevelopment of Old Trafford,” Michael Cairns, chairman of Lancashire CCC, said. “The financial benefits of this deal are a core component of our long-term strategy for commercial sustainability. The partnership will support our intention to be regarded as one of the top County Cricket Clubs in the country and undisputed as a Category A Test Match venue. We remain committed to providing the very best facilities for our members, players and spectators.”Cairns, who made the initial contact with Emirates, was keen to stress the progress the club has made over recent years. From a situation where their crumbling ground was overlooked for a 2009 Ashes Test, they are emerging as one of the clubs best equipped to cope with the new competitive realties facing all international-hosting venues.”I can’t get to grips at times with what we have achieved,” Cairns told the . “I came on board 11 years ago when the business was struggling a little.”Then, we sat down and drew up a list of everything we wanted to achieve. And, believe it or not, we have now done 90 per cent of that list, which is amazing. We have been courageous with some of our decisions. We went £10m into debt to build The Point, but we knew it would drive the future of the business.”We turned the square, which was always going to be a difficult procedure. But in the end we knew we just had to do it. In this financial climate we have been able to raise close to £30m in cash for the redevelopment, secured £10m to build The Point and now we have signed a 10-year sponsorship deal with a leading global brand in Emirates. What we have done is fabulous.””Some aspects of commercialism don’t sit well with what members want,” Lancashire’s commercial director Geoff Durbin told the . “But equally if you don’t have a commercial approach then you don’t have a club. It is a question of balance.”Keeping Old Trafford in the name was crucial to everyone at the club. In the process of researching the marketplace there were some organisations who would have insisted on the words Old Trafford going as part of any agreement, and that was a deal breaker for us.”Our members know a lot about our club and, commercially, we want to make sure they have a club which is sustainable and which is going to be here for a long, long time to come. There are members at other clubs who don’t have that certainty right now and they would swap very, very quickly.”

Not many sides win a Twenty20 game from 83 for 6 in the first innings. Not many sides have Kieron Pollard, who once again showed how much damage he can cause

The Report by Abhishek Purohit06-Apr-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsKieron Pollard rebuilt the innings with the bat, and then took a game-clinching catch in the final over•BCCI

Not many sides win a Twenty20 game from 83 for 6 in the first innings. Not many sides have Kieron Pollard, who once again showed how much damage he can cause if he gets some time in the middle. On a pitch where both line-ups crumbled, barring both No. 6 batsmen, Pollard was the difference, although MS Dhoni almost stole the match from Mumbai Indians’ grasp with an ever more outrageous counter-attack. Fittingly, with Chennai Super Kings needing 12 off six, Pollard intercepted what looked set to be another Dhoni six on the deep midwicket boundary, sealing the game for his side with an acrobatic catch.Pollard had breathed life into a stalled Mumbai Indians innings, which had gone nowhere after Sachin Tendulkar had fallen leg-before to Dirk Nannes in the opening over for a golden duck. Ricky Ponting and Rohit Sharma soon followed Tendulkar. Although Dinesh Karthik looked in fine touch, when he departed for 37, Mumbai Indians were 59 for 4 in the ninth over and the Super Kings seamers were on top.Pollard batted quite sensibly, willing to go without scoring for several deliveries, knowing that when he wanted, he could always collect six with his power and reach. Half of the 38 deliveries he faced were dots, but he also biffed five sixes. Even when he went for the big strikes, he wasn’t taking risk. He would just lean forward to length or full deliveries and lift them over long-on.From 83 for 6, to add 65 in eight overs, with Harbhajan Singh for company, was quite an achievement. Harbhajan’s contribution, a run a ball 21, was crucial. Carefree swiping was put away and the strike was turned over. When it wasn’t, to Pollard’s disappointment in the final over, Harbhajan himself found the boundary. Pollard cracked Dwayne Bravo’s final ball of the innings over long-on to ensure there would at least be a contest in the game.There almost wasn’t one, though, as the Super Kings batsmen played a series of poor shots to leave their side gasping at 66 for 5. M Vijay walked too far across to be bowled, Michael Hussey missed a slog to be bowled, Bravo drove loosely, and S Badrinath went too far back when he should have been forward.Dhoni walked in, and the match started to turn. An upper cut appeared, a whiplash drive, a calm pull. Soon the long-on and deep midwicket boundary was being peppered with monster sixes, even as batsmen kept arriving and departing at the other end. Pollard took the most punishment, five of Dhoni’s eight boundaries coming off him.Forty needed off 18. Dhoni lashed 17 off a Pollard over. 23 needed off 12. Dhoni found the stands at deep midwicket again, this time off Mitchell Johnson, to zoom to 50 off 24. Both Pollard and Johnson sprayed a couple of wides each, such was the effect Dhoni’s assault had.First ball of Munaf Patel’s final over, Dhoni went for six more, targetting deep midwicket again, but this time, the towering figure of Pollard stood in the way, and made one final, decisive impact.

Zimbabwe remained on course for their first Test win in nearly two years, ending the third day with at 187 for 7 with a convincing lead of 442 as Brendan Taylor took charge on a bowler-dominated day

The Report by Mohammad Isam19-Apr-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsShingirai Masakadza took his first four-wicket haul in Test cricket in his second game•AFP

Zimbabwe remained on course for their first Test win in nearly two years, ending the third day at 187 for 7 with a convincing lead of 442, as Brendan Taylor took charge on a bowler-dominated day.He was unbeaten on 80 in the second innings, to add to his 171 that shaped Zimbabwe’s 389. Taylor, however, didn’t find any help from the top or middle-order, which was dismantled single-handedly by Robiul Islam. The pace bowler took the first six Zimbabwe wickets to fall, his maiden Test five-for and the first by any Bangladeshi pace bowler since June 2010.But Robiul’s 6 for 55 didn’t take away any advantages from Zimbabwe. Graeme Cremer once again offered resistance before he was run out for 43, bettering his previous highest Test score from the first innings. He and Taylor added 79 for the seventh wicket, rounding off a very good day for the hosts.Zimbabwe began the day by triggering a massive collapse in the visitors’ batting line-up. Bangladesh went on to lose nine wickets for just 32 runs, giving away their last five wickets without scoring a run. They ended their first innings on 134 runs, trailing by 255, but Taylor didn’t enforce the follow-on.Instead, he let his young pace attack put their feet up for some time, after their efforts in the morning put Zimbabwe ahead. Kyle Jarvis and Shingirai Masakadza picked up four wickets each, while debutant Keegan Meth took two in a lengthy spell.It was Meth’s medium-paced seam bowling that struck first. He ended Jahurul Islam’s promising 43 although the batsman had slowed down considerably on the third morning. He had added just five runs off 35 balls before he was trapped leg-before in the 11th over of the day. Mahmudullah prodded needlessly at an away-going delivery and dragged it back onto his stumps to give Meth his second wicket. Bangladesh’s good work from the previous evening was coming undone.Bangladesh’s over-reliance on a defensive approach, although it looked sensible at the onset, cost them dearly. The second-wicket pair between Ashraful and Jahurul added only seven runs in 10.5 overs on the third morning and soon after, the batting imploded. As soon as Jahurul and Mahmudullah fell, Shakib Al Hasan tried to up the ante but wasn’t successful.Ashraful’s poor shot was not much of a surprise with his career in mind, but in the context of his 88-ball innings it was actually a shock that he had actually pulled that ball in the same over of Shakib’s dismissal. Mushfiqur Rahim and Nasir Hossain have been Bangladesh’s saviour in many a collapse over the last two years, but it was a day when nothing worked and whenever the ball was pitched up, the Bangladeshi batsmen succumbed. The timidity goes completely against their recent approaches of solidity this season, but it was a reminder that they are still prone of collapsing in a mighty heap.Masakadza, playing his second Test, was the most successful bowler as he removed three top batsmen in the space of four overs. Shakib couldn’t keep a bouncing delivery down, guiding a simple catch to Vusi Sibanda at gully. Ashraful was out a ball later, giving an easy catch to Malcolm Waller at square-leg. It was a waste of diligence after he had batted well for more than two hours. He was dismissed for 38, the last Bangladesh batsman to get to double figures in the first innings.Mushfiqur was trapped leg-before by Masakadza, before he finished off Bangladesh’s misery with the wicket of Sohag Gazi just after lunch.Meth and Masakadza reaped the rewards of Jarvis’ superb first spell. Giving away just one run in six overs, the young pace bowler kept the Bangladesh batsmen either leaving or using the forward defence regularly. Neither Ashraful nor Jahurul could force him off the square, though they had played the same bowler with much ease in his first eight overs the evening before.Jarvis returned after lunch to remove Nasir Hossain with an away-going delivery after sucking him in with fuller balls. He added the wickets of Enamul Haque jnr and Rubel Hossain to finish with 4 for 40 from his 16 overs.Bangladesh’s reaction to the collapse came through Robiul, who took the first six wickets. He bowled a beautiful full delivery to bowl Sibanda for the second time in the match.
Hamilton Masakadza gave Robiul a simple return catch in his next over, before he got rid of Timycen Maruma with another full delivery. He took three wickets in successive overs before he added Waller’s wicket an over later as Zimbabwe slipped to 27 for four.After the tea break, Robiul had Elton Chigumbura caught at gully by Jahurul Islam to give him a first five-for at this level. Wicketkeeper Richmond Mutumbami missed a late-moving inswinger and was adjudged out leg-before off the next ball. But the Taylor-Cremer partnership rescued Zimbabwe from 85 for 6.Zimbabwe had lost their last five Tests before this match but against Bangladesh they turned into a competitive unit. The lead is handsome and should be more than enough to give them a well-deserved win but Bangladesh’s collapse said a lot about overcompensating on an approach that is relatively new to them.