Story ICC Battle For Supremacy - Its Fifty-Fifty! | PAK v ENG | ENG Innings

[riz7khan12]

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Sharad Pawar addressing the media​

After a long meeting in Dubai, the International Cricket Council (ICC) have decided to change the ICC Cricket World Cup and have also decided to completely revamp the format of the competition.

ICC Cricket World Cup which started in 1975 will from now on be known as the ICC Battle of Supremacy. The format has also been revamped, with only ten instead of fourteen to sixteen teams participating. Unlike in 2007, when the tournament lasted for more than month and lost interest during the Super 8 stage. The tournament will last for 25 days and will be hosted as first decided by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

The teams have been divided into two groups of five each and the top two from each will qualify for the semi-finals. India and Pakistan find themselves in the same group, along with England, New Zealand and West Indies, and the two rivals will meet on the 7th day of the tournament in a day-night game at Mumbai. Group B includes holders Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. The co-hosts India will play New Zealand in the opening game in Delhi. While the final will take place at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

Sharad Pawar the president of the ICC spoke to the press about the changes : "The changes are done for good with agreement of all the 10 Cricketing boards. The Battle For Supremacy will decide the Champion among the top 10 nations. The other nations will get to play more series' and tours and will have the time to mature before they are elected to play the Cricket's most exciting and best tournament.

There were many complaints at the end of the World Cup in 2007 that the tournament was very long and was boring. So to keep the interest of the people coming to watch we have decided to make this tournament short. This will keep the people interested in the tournament and at the same time it will be getting over within a month."

In order to keep fifty-fifty cricket alive the ICC have also decided to hike prize money for the tournament. The winners of the 2011 Battle of Supremacy will receive more then US$ 5 million in prize money after a total pool of US$ 12 million was announced for the competition.

"In order to make this ICC's main competition we have decided to increase the prize money of the tournament. We hope the quality of Cricket will reach new heights and players will play to the best of their potential," Pawar addressed the press.

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ICC Battle For Supremacy :

Fixtures | Telecasting Rights | Group A | Group B | Super Selector | The Last Battle | We are ready - Dhoni | Selection Conundrums
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Match Section :

Ind v NZ, Match 1 ; Cricket Show - Pitch Report | Toss | Mid Innings Show | Post Match Show
Ind v NZ, Match 1 ; Ind Innings - Ind 45/2 (10) | Ind 126/4 (25) | Ind 225/5 (40) | Ind 276/8 (50)
Ind v NZ, Match 1 ; NZ Innings - NZ 75/0 (10) | NZ 148/4 (25) | NZ 200/6 (40) | NZ 261/8 (49) | NZ 277/8 (50)

SL v SA, Match 2 ; Cricket Show - Pitch Report | Toss | Mid Innings Show | Post Match Show
SL v SA, Match 2 ; SA Innings - SA 48/2 (10) | SA 114/4 (25) | SA 189/4 (40) | SA 277/7 (50)
SL v SA, Match 2 ; SL Innings - SL 52/3 (10) | SL 110/7 (25) | Rain Break

PAK v ENG, Match 3 ; Cricket Show - Pitch Report | Toss
PAK v ENG, Match 3 ; ENG Innings - ENG 48/0 (10) | ENG 122/0 (25) | ENG 198/4 (40) |
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FC Section :

Standings (Match 1) | Standings (Match 2)
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Members Section :

CG123 speaks about NZ | gamerkid22 speaks about India

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Graphics :

Main Logo - Pranav | Star Cricket Banner - deathrevenge9 | Ashes Cricket 09 Stadiums - Binnu

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[Varun]

Look promising. Best of luck for this one.

 

[surendar]

Good best point which I observed from the start is SIMPLICITY. Keep it up. Combo story is not easy, but am sure that you guys can do the job exceptionally well. Looking forward to it.

 

[shantanu_rooney]

ICC Battle for Supremacy: Its Fifty Fifty!!

The most eagerly awaited clash of the tournament - India v Pakistan​

India and New Zealand will contest the opening game of the ICC Battle for Supremacy 2011 in Delhi as the fixtures were announced at an ICC event in Mumbai earlier today.

The ten teams taking part in this tournament - selected on the basis of the ICC rankings - were divided in two group of five teams each during the ICC meeting held in Dubai. And the groups are as follows:-

Group A
India

Pakistan

England

New Zealand

West Indies

Group B
Sri Lanka

Bangladesh

Australia

South Africa

Zimbabwe

Co-hosts India will play New Zealand at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi, while the most eagerly anticipated clash between the two arch rivals India and Pakistan will be played on the 25th of February. First match in Sri Lanka will be on the 2nd day of the tournament between co-host Sri Lanka and one of favourites South Africa. Dhaka will host the first match in Bangladesh between former co-host Pakistan and England. Finally Bangladesh will play their first match against fellow co-hosts Sri Lanka on the 24th of February in Kandy. The semi-finals will take place in Kolkata and Delhi respectively, while the third place play-off match will be hosted by Bangalore and the mega-final will be played in Mumbai.

Group A Fixtures

19/02/2011

India v New Zealand

@
Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi

21/02/2011

Pakistan v England

@
Sher-e-Bangla Cricket Stadium, Dhaka

23/02/2011

West Indies v New Zealand

@
Eden Gardens, Kolkata

25/02/2011

India v Pakistan

@
Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

27/02/2011

Pakistan v West Indies

@
Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali

01/03/2011

New Zealand v England

@
Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

03/03/2011

India v West Indies

@
Eden Gardens, Kolkata

05/03/2011

England v West Indies

@
Sardar Patel Stadium, Ahmedabad

07/03/2011

Pakistan v New Zealand

@
Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi

09/03/2011

India v England

@
M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore


Group B Fixtures

20/02/2011

Sri Lanka v South Africa

@
R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo

22/02/2011

Australia v Zimbabwe

@
Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur

24/02/2011

Sri Lanka v Bangladesh

@
Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Kandy

26/02/2011

Australia v South Africa

@
M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore

28/02/2011

Bangladesh v Zimbabwe

@
Sher-e-Bangla Cricket Stadium, Dhaka

02/03/2011

Sri Lanka v Australia

@
R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo

04/03/2011

South Africa v Zimbabwe

@
Chittagong Divisional Stadium, Chittagong

06/03/2011

Sri Lanka v Zimbabwe

@
Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Kandy

08/03/2011

Bangladesh v Australia

@
Sher-e-Bangla Cricket Stadium, Dhaka

10/03/2011

Bangladesh v South Africa

@
Chittagong Divisional Stadium, Chittagong


Semi Finals

12/03/2011
A1 v B2 @
Eden Garden, Kolkata

13/03/2011
A2 v B1 @
Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi


Third Place Playoffs

14/03/2011
Loser of SF1 v Loser of SF2 @
M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore


Grand Finale

15/03/2011
Winner of SF1 v Winner of SF2 @
Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

 

[Varun]

So, you two are taking one team from each group and play or just doing this as a whole?

 

[Gaurav_7]

We'll be doing the whole tournament with every match.

 

[WubbaLubbaDubDub]

First of all, really excited how this tournament goes. Second really looking forward for some great graphics as it's AC09

 

[shantanu_rooney]

ESPN STAR Sports win Telecasting Rights​

ESPN STAR Sports to telecast the tournament​

ESPN STAR Sports have bagged the exclusive Global Commercial Rights for all matches in the ICC Battle for Supremacy: Its Fifty Fifty!! for the next 10 years at a whopping cost which was not disclosed by the ICC.

The channel has secured the rights to telecast all ICC Battle for Supremacy tournaments till 2020, starting from February next year. STAR Sports, ESPN and STAR Cricket will show all the match live in the Indian subcontinent, while Sky Sports will telecast the matches in the United Kingdom, New Zealand and some parts of Europe. The people staying in Africa can watch the match live on Super Sports and finally Channel Nine will telecast all the matches in Australia.

The channels that competed for the bid of getting the rights were:-

*

ESPN

*

Star Cricket

*

Star Sports

*

Channel Nine

*

Sky Sports

*

Super Sport

ESPN STAR Sports will bring all the new technology which includes the hawkeye, hotspot, snickometer, dartfish to name a few. The ESPN Star Sports will bring top quality presentation with new scorecards, wagon wheels, partnership graphs, pitchmaps. The Live coverage of the match will be accompanied by some quality commentary done by the best commentators from across the world. So just sit back and watch the thrilling tournament between the top teams from around the world.

 

[CG123]

Channel Nine's not in NZ.

Also what's the reasoning behind BNG and ZIM being in the same group?
Normally you'd have the two worst teams in separate groups.

Nice start, I'm looking forward to seeing how the duel story works, and how NZ go.

 

[Gaurav_7]

Sky then? If not, it will come.

And yeah, actually we wanted to do it like that. Not going the typical way.

 

[surendar]

Acually I was always in assumption that ESPN-STAR would bid as one group instead of three separate groups By the way, build ups are nice.

 

[Gaurav_7]

Group A comes your way

We're just about getting closer to the start of Cricket's Biggest Carnival as 19th Feb 2011 approaches faster than ever. In the midst of all the preparations, Cricketing boards have announced the 15-men squads for the respective teams.

The squads for Group A (which seems tougher of the two) go as follows -

India
M Dhoni (C) (WK)
C Pujara
G Gambhir
H Singh
R Uthappa (WK)
Z Khan
V Kohli
P Kumar
A Mithun
A Nehra
S Raina
V Sehwag
I Pathan
S Tendulkar
Y Singh​

Indian team as always is seen as one of the threatening group with their heavy weight batting. The bowling department looks in good touch with Zaheer leading the pack along with Harbhajan Singh. Irfan Pathan has been bowling well in recent past and provides that extra batting option. Skipper MS Dhoni and selectors have surprised one and all with inclusion of Pujara. Cheteshwar Pujara is a run machine in domestic circuit but has had very less taste of international cricket. Abhimanyu Mithun is another selection many cricket pundits are vary of. Selectors though seem to have full faith on the two.

X-Factor
'The Superman from India', Ravi Shastri once said. Yes, Sachin Tendulkar will be the key player if India have to go far here. Probably his last appearance in a major ICC event and he would like to finish on a high. The man who has made almost every record his own in batting, thrives to bring the cup in India. Following his recent form, he may just well do it this time!

Watch Out
There are many that can be here. Pujara is who I'm going to put forward. Solid technique, plus a very good cricketing brain and the ability to occupy the crease are a very rare combination. Pujara has it all. In his away tours for India A, the guy has shown a lot of promise and maybe there is a possibility of us getting another 'wall'. Time will tell...

Pakistan
S Afridi (C)
A Razzaq
F Alam
I Nazir
K Akmal (WK)
M Ul Haq
M Hafeez
M Yousuf
N Ul Hasan
S Ajmal
S Akhtar
S Malik
U Akmal
U Gul
Y Arafat​

The team which always want to be in a spotlight be it Cricket or the controversies surrounding it. Pakistan are the most unpredictable side of all especially when it comes to shorter format of the game. The team now though seems to have a stable state with no restlesness and say are looking forward to the competition. Shahid Afridi as a Skipper is back along with many other players who seemed to be a 'blast from the past'. A strong looking unit and if the potential wise stats are put up, they can make any other side look ordinary.

X-Factor
Rawalpindi Express is shortly arriving at the ICC Battle of Supremacy and no batsmen would want to raise their hands to face it. Shoaib Akhtar is fit and bowling fiercely. He has shown a good temperament as well in the recent series'. He's got wickets and has been and will be in this battle Pakistan's major weapon.

Watch Out
The captain himself. Boom Boom may not be in the form of his life with the bat but can still show the ball its place. 'Any shot which goes for six' is still his favorite shot, remember. His leg spinners might well be handy especially in the sub continent where pitches tend to turn a lot.

England
A Strauss (C)
J Anderson
I Bell
R Bopara
T Bresnan
S Broad
P Collingwood
A Flintoff
C Kieswetter (WK)
E Morgan
K Pietersen
A Shahzad
G Swann
J Trott
L Wright​

English team after the triumph in World Twenty20 look more focused than ever and have the necessary fire power to do it in ODI format as well. The regular squad this put up by England selectors except for Flintoff. Though, we all know how good his cricketing abilities are. Each and everyone seem to know their positions and won't be surprising if they do well here.

X-Factor
Freddie Flintoff with no complex theories. He's making a come back after injuries and will be rearing to go. He has told that he will be bowling as well which makes him even more beneficial for the side. Will be interesting to see how he goes.

Watch Out
Kieswetter, the opening wicket keeper batsman is the one. He has already played some match winning knocks for England and has a pretty solid approach to his batting. He backs a punch as well to step on the accelerator and has the mind to curve his game.

New Zealand
D Vettori (C)
G Elliott
J Franklin
M Guptill
G Hopkins (WK)
B McCullum
N McCullum
K Mills
J Oram
J Ryder
T Southee
S Styris
R Taylor
D Tuffey
K Williamson​

The black horses of all the time, one can say. The blackcaps never enter any major ICC tournament as favorites and this time is no different. They are again the black horses this time round. The team though has a good balance between bat and ball with likes of Taylor, Ryder in the batting department and Mills and Tuffey on the bowling front. All rounders like Oram, Styris and Skipper Vettori provide the much needed balance. They can do it but they need to be vary of the spinners, if they overcome that then they are a 'Force to be reckoned with'.

X-Factor
Daniel Vettori's performance will matter a lot. He has to lead from the front which he has done in the past. The team can look upto him and can really turn it on. His batting has been decent recently and bowling ought to come good in the sub continent.

Watch Out
He started with nothing but ducks, now I say watch out for him. Kane Williamson, a young talent to catch the eye of Kiwi selectors may see this as an excellent opportunity to announce himself at the big stage. He is yet to shine but has already shown the glimpses.

West Indies
A Barath
S Benn
D Bravo
S Chanderpaul
A Fletcher (WK)
C Gayle (C)
K Pollard
D Ramdin (WK)
R Rampaul
K Roach
D Sammy
R Sarwan
L Simmons
J Taylor
G Tonge​

The underdogs certainly, Windies will look to prove everyone wrong. With star performers like Chanderpaul, Gayle and Sarwan, it would be a mistake to write them off. Pollard and Bravo add the all round explosive options to the armoury. There is still is a concern of consistency which makes them look ordinary. Bar the consistency, this team is very good on paper.

X-Factor
Kieron Pollard, who hits them long and hard will have to do it here as well for the West Indies to rise high. A specialist in the T20 version of the game may find it difficult to cope with the pressure in 50 over game but if he gets going, he surely makes others go crazy.

Watch Out
Chris Gayle has to shine for West Indies to leave a mark in this battle. His willow has been silent for sometime and one might think whether it is the 'silence before the storm'. All West Indians will be hoping the same.

 

[Bevab]

Where did you get such logos? And Pujara is a weak guy in ODI.

 

[Gaurav_7]

Logos are made in Photoshop. And, Pujara is weak in ODI? When did we see him play an ODI match?

 

[surendar]

Very good attempt to rotate the logo Just out of curiosity, was it the outcome from Kev's tutorial? [ I think I remember seeing one in GFX forums ]. Job well done.

And as far as the teams are concerned, West Indies look strong on paper. If Gayle, Chanderpaul, Sarwan, Bravo & Pollard have good time throughout this tournament, definitely it would be tough to stop the Windies. Consistency is the only thing that have put them in the poorest position.