The Press Box

[Pinch hitter]

Cricket board of India proudly announced Champions league kind of tournament, which will bring Domestic one-day format champions and A-Class teams from different countries together for Ultimate glory... More details coming soon...​

 

[RUDI]

CRICKET SOUTH AFRICA DOMESTIC SEASON REACHES HALFWAY MARK!



STANDINGS AFTER ROUND 5

Teams​	Played​	Won​	Lost​	Drawn​	Points​	NRR​
Westerns Province	5	4	1	0	8	0.69
Northens	5	4	1	0	8	0.54
Boland	5	2	3	0	4	-0.13
Free State	5	2	3	0	4	-0.18
Eastern Province	5	2	3	0	4	-0.48
Gauteng Lions	5	1	4	0	2	-0.39

 

[RUDI]

Standings after 9 Rounds

Teams​	Played​	Won​	Lost​	Drawn​	Points​	NRR​
Northens	9	7	2	0	14	0.53
Free State	9	4	4	1	9	-0.11
Westerns Province	9	4	5	0	8	0.15
Boland	9	4	5	0	8	-0.05
Gauteng Lions	9	4	5	0	8	-0.20
Eastern Province	9	3	5	1	7	-0.30

Round 10 - RESULTS Free State v Westerns Province at Mangaung Oval, Bloemfontein - Free State wins by 8 wickets Gauteng Lions v Eastern Province at New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg - Eastern Province wins by 7 runs Northens v Boland at Centurion Park, Centurion - Boland wins by 5 wickets

CRICKET SOUTH AFRICA DOMESTIC SEASON - WE HAVE OUR SEMI-FINALISTS!

Standings after Final Round

Teams​	Played​	Won​	Lost​	Drawn​	Points​	NRR​
Northens (Q)	10	7	3	0	14	0.41
Free State (Q)	10	5	4	1	11	-0.04
Boland (Q)	10	5	5	0	10	0.03
Eastern Province (Q)	10	4	5	1	9	-0.26
Westerns Province	10	4	6	0	8	0.08
Gauteng Lions	10	4	6	0	8	-0.19

 

[pillowprocter]

VCF slammed for organizing "borefest" domestic competition
​

The VCF has recently come under scrunity for the organization of their domestic competition. Many fans have noticed a lack of intensity on the field, with international players supposedly treating it as a "centre-pitch net session".

The decision to make it a 4-day competition has also been criticized. One fan said, "The top international teams all run 5-day competitions. We've only gotten 1 result so far out of 4 matches. Interest is dwindling and I think 5-day cricket would make it more interesting and force results." The VCF cited financial constraints, but all WCC members reportedly get the same funding.

Ticket sales are plummetting and VCF will do well to correct it's mistakes next season, and in the upcoming Vanuatu Blast.

 

[World Cricket Conference]

Müller Schwanstegger assumes World Cricket Conference presidency
Many within the World Cricket Conference believe Müller Schwanstegger to be a corrupt, money-grubbing, slimy politician gravely addicted to power​

Müller Schwanstegger will take over the presidency from Arjun Prasad Hoodbhoy © Associated Press, June 31, 2000​

Indian administrator and juror Arjun Prasad Hoodbhoy had been elected the first-ever president of the World Cricket Conference for a one-year term in June of 1999. With his term reaching completion, German beaurucrat and Executive Board Müller Schwanstegger will assume presidency.

Arjun Prasad Hoodbhoy was the key figurehead in WCC's discussions with the International Olympic Committee regarding cricket's inclusion into the Olympics.

Arjun Prasad Hoodbhoy's entire presidency dutifully served WCC following their formation and expanded the game beyond its traditional 'Test-playing' nations. He played a pivotal role in cricket's expansion during his term, which saw a massive influx of nations into the World Cricket Conference. Currently, there are 27 full-member nations part of the conference – a far cry from the 12 full-member nations that were originally part of WCC when the organization formed.

Apart from admitting new nations and expanding the horizons of the World Cricket Conference, Arjun Prasad Hoodbhoy has been instrumental in globalizing the sport in markets that were not really renowned for cricket, with the sport finding a stronghold in Europe, which is now the residence of 11 new full-member nations. The game has expanded in all regions and continents under his leadership, but none more so than in Europe.

This sudden inflow of new member nations led to the creation of three confederations – governing bodies overseeing the sport of cricket in separate continents, accredited and recognized by the World Cricket Conference. With the three confederations overseeing the continents of Asia, Europe and Oceania – WCC successfully found their own outreach programme of sorts to further establish their presence in parts of the world previously unexplored by them.

Under Hoodbhoy, WCC properly structured the international calendar into an organized Future Tours Programme Cycle, imposed over the course of a 4-year period. New global events were added to the agenda with the introduction of the Nations League – a World Championship for Test cricket – being the most prominent inclusion. WCC held the inaugural edition of their shiny new Knockout Trophy two months before his term expired, and with cricket set to be officially played at the 2002 Commonwealth Games, there is no doubt Arjun Prasad Hoodbhoy is leaving an indelible mark on the sport.

But unfortunately for Arjun Prasad Hoodbhoy, his term came to its conclusion during WCC's ongoing discussions with the IOC over cricket's inclusion into the Summer Olympics. While a verdict was originally expected by the start of this year, things got delayed due to WCC's bid for cricket's inclusion hitting a logistical roadblock. Even with Hoodbhoy being afforded a month-long contract extension, WCC could not come to a resolution with the IOC.

Müller Schwanstegger had been serving as a member of the Executive Board since the very beginning before taking over the Presidency over from Hoodbhoy. Müller Schwanstegger is believed to have worked very closely with Hoodbhoy and is considered by many to be his closest confidante. With WCC heading into a determining moment in time for the future of the game, Müller Schwanstegger will helm the Conference and be at the forefront of whatever comes next.

Many within the World Cricket Conference believe Müller Schwanstegger to be a corrupt, money-grubbing, slimy politician who is gravely addicted to money and power. Whether or not his leadership 'capabilities' result in WCC's ever-growing expansion coming to a screeching halt remain to be seen however.

 

[Neo 7]

The current series which Norway is playing , is the last for this year . Therefore our players would be free & open throughout this year going forward . If any nations want Overseas players for their domestic tournaments , they may approach us ...

 

[World Cricket Conference]

Cricket's Olympic ambitions hit by logistical roadblock
“The bid, supposedly, included 20 teams playing a tournament consisting of 47 games in the span of 16 days”​

Müller Schwanstegger (R) reiterates cricket's Olympic ambitions while talking to the press © Associated Press, August 1, 2000​

The newly appointed World Cricket Conference (WCC) President Müller Schwanstegger met his International Olympic Committee (IOC) counterpart Juan Antonio Samaranch alongside representatives and the logistical committee overseeing cricket's bid for the Summer Olympics. Both organizations, in detail, discussed WCC's bid to include cricket in the 2004 Summer Olympics. WCC announced their aspirations of seeing the sport of cricket be made part of the Summer Olympics for the first time in history, in 1999.

Originally met with apprehension by the IOC, the WCC continued their PR blitz to force the Athens 2004 Local Organizing Committee to include cricket in its provisional list for games to be played at the event. But failing to prepare a bid in time left WCC requesting for an extension, which was rather graciously granted by the IOC. At the start of this year, the Athens 2004 Local Organizing Committee was tasked to finalize the names of all games that were to be played at the event, but WCC's haphazard approach delayed the process. As a result, cricket was not included in the initial list published by the IOC, which contained a grand total of 301 events across 28 sports (in 40 disciplines).

However, IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch reassured the World Cricket Conference that cricket would be included should the WCC present a finalized bid before the end of the year. It is being reported that a bid was presented to the IOC in late-July, but it was rejected after having been met with a 'logistical' roadblock. The bid, supposedly, included 20 teams playing a tournament consisting of 47 games in the span of 16 days. With the format of the matches being ODI – a format of the game that takes up an entire day – it was perceived as an impossible task, even by Summer Olympics standard.

Müller Schwanstegger and World Cricket Conference were met with a hard rejection on logistical grounds by the IOC, but with still a few months left in the year, the WCC still have an opportunity to revise their bid and come up with something more logical and plausible. It is an unlikely scenario considering the fact that this determining moment in time is being helmed by Müller Schwanstegger, but officials within the World Cricket Conference are optimistic regarding the eventual outcome of this monumental strive.

 

[Pinch hitter]

ZEE Nation Cup and Inclusion of Seventh team to the Indian domestic cricket

Union Zone representing Indian union territories will be the seventh team added to the Indian domestic cricket... Today in press conference, Cricket Board of India unveil there 2000-01 season road map to media, They gave details about 7th team inclusion to there domestic structure... Puducherry born Pramod Krishnakumar and Chandigarh cricketers Yashraj Singh, Milkha Singh will move from there respective teams and represent Union Zone from new season...

ZEE Nation Cup is all set to start from May 14... Zonal One-Day champions Central Zone, India Red and India Green will face each other 2 times before the Finals which played on May 28th at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore... Milkha Singh is named captain for India Red team and Indian Captain Vijay Kambli will lead India Green...

CENTRAL ZONE
Charlie D'Souza [ʀʜʙ]
Kshitij Patwardhan [ʟʜʙ]
Ashok Yadav [ʟʜʙ]

Varun Muzumdar [ʀʜʙ]
Kedarnath Pandey [ʟʜʙ]
Balram Sahu [ʀʜʙ]
Anant Bajpai [ʟʜʙ|sʟᴡ]
Dinesh Bundela [ʀʜʙ|ʀᴍ]

Kaif Ali Khan [ʀʜʙ]
Pranshu Tiwari [ʀʜʙ]
Devendra Hirwani [ʀʜʙ|ᴏs]
Ramsevak Khurasiya [ʀʜʙ|ʀғ]

Zeeshan Khan [ʀʜʙ|ʟғ]
Parth Mhambrey [ʀʜʙ|ʀᴍ]
Eshwar Kumar [ʀʜʙ|ʀᴍ]

Pankaj Kumar [ʀʜʙ|ᴏs]
Ramakant Achrekar [ʀʜʙ|ʟs]
Shabir Ali Murtaza [ʟʜʙ|ʟᴀs]

INDIA RED
Ⓢ Sridharan Sreeram [ʟʜʙ]
㊞ David Lalhlansanga [ʟʜʙ]
Ⓔ Shubman Kotak [ʀʜʙ|sʟᴡ]

Ⓢ Anvay Dravid [ʀʜʙ]
Ⓔ Ronit Parida [ʀʜʙ]
Ⓔ Dhruv Saxena [ʀʜʙ]
Ⓝ Sachin Jha [ʀʜʙ]
Ⓝ Nitesh Darjee [ʀʜʙ|ʀᴍ]

Ⓝ Swapnil Dev [ʀʜʙ|ʀᴍғ]
Ⓢ Mayas Kumble [ʀʜʙ|ʟs]
㊞ Achinta Borah [ʀʜʙ|ᴏs]

Ⓝ Milkha Singh [ʀʜʙ|ʀᴍғ]
Ⓔ Sajjad Karim [ʀʜʙ|ʀᴍғ]
Ⓝ Alister Anthony [ʀʜʙ|ʀғ]
Ⓦ Tanmay Patel [ʟʜʙ|ʟᴍғ]

INDIA GREEN
Ⓢ Kannaur Lokesh [ʀʜʙ]
Ⓔ Sanjoy Roy [ʟʜʙ]
Ⓝ Vijender Sehwag [ʀʜʙ]
Ⓦ Vijay Kambli [ʟʜʙ]

Ⓦ Surajkumar Yadav [ʀʜʙ]
Ⓦ Harshad Pandya [ʀʜʙ|ʀᴍ]
㊞ Mithun Parag [ʀʜʙ|sʟᴡ]
Ⓝ Sukhandeep Singh [ʟʜʙ]

㊞ Vikas Samant [ʀʜʙ]
Ⓝ Abhishek Singh [ʀʜʙ|ᴏs]
㊞ Sajan Sahani [ʀʜʙ|ʀᴍғ]
Ⓝ Asif Zaidi [ʀʜʙ|ʀᴍғ]

Ⓔ Anubhav Mohanty [ʀʜʙ|ʀғ]
Ⓝ Arush Nehra [ʀʜʙ|ʟᴍғ]

Ⓢ Srihari Menon [ʟʜʙ|ʟᴀs]

 

[Pinch hitter]

Super League will be played in the month of September 2000... We like to invite all domestic One-day Champions to our 'Super League' through this media announcement... We also like to host 'A Team' from a nation where domestic cricket not established yet... For further details please contact @Pinch hitter​

 

[NaviN GandhI]

NETHERLAND CRICKET TO LAUNCH TWO NEW DOMESTIC TOURNAMENTS FROM 2001


4days First Class - 3 Match Per Round - Double Elimination


35Overs - Double Elimination

More matches to Entertain and Engage

RDCA Official Website​

 

[Paranoid Kendroid]

Knockout Cup winner Niels Håkansson
retires from all professional cricket
​

Following the Snakes' loss against Dolphins in the eliminator of Guernsey's OD Grand Championship, former Danish captain and top-order batsman Niels Håkansson bids adieu to the sport of cricket. Besides Oscar Evans, Håkansson was the only Snake batter who showed any resistance to Dolphins' quality bowling. He missed out on his maiden List-A hundred by just 2 runs but perhaps played his best List-A innings in his final game. The scorecard perfectly defines what Niels had to offer as a player - always fighting irrespective of how bad the situation was.

Niels had announced his international retirement at the start of the year. Following Denmark's victorious campaign in the Knockout Trophy, which ended with them becoming the no.1 ODI team, Håkansson plied his trade as a freelancer. He played domestic cricket in Morocco and Guernsey, winning one trophy (the Moroccon Cup) out of a possible four. When asked about his experience, he replied, "It was lovely! Both nations were very welcoming in their hospitality and I thank the respective boards. The players were the right mix of friendly and competitive. I enjoyed my time and would have loved to continue but I want to spend more time with my family."

Håkansson received a round of applause from both his teammates and opposition.
​

On being asked if he would be up for a coaching gig or an administrator job in the near future, he answered, "Certainly. I have had talks with the DCU and few other cricketing boards as well. It is something that I really want to venture into. And don't be surprised if you find me in such setup in 2-3 years of time. I love the sport and want to help players develop their game." Does he regret not getting his maiden List-A hundred? "Not really. I have had scored my fair share of hundreds in 50-over games back when Denmark didn't have member status. For me, what matters is contributing to win and even though we lost, I was satisfied with my performance."

 

[Umair7]

Cricket Israel OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED!!

Cricket Israel President Sir. Tim Paine welcomes everyone to the inauguration of Cricket Israel. #LETSSSGOOOOO

Logo Unveiled:



Captain Named:

The highly rated Asher Golan will lead his country.
A. Golan: I am honored to be named captain & hopefully I can take the team to new heights.

Coaching Staff Announced:

Coach: Alyssa Healy
Assistant Coach: Ellyse Perry
Batting Coach: Travis Head
Bowling Coach: Todd Murphy
Fielding Coach: Georgia Redmayne
Physio: Brie Spilchen

Stadiums:
​

​	​	​
Sammy Ofer Stadium, Haifa (Excellent)​	Teddy Stadium, Jerusalem (Normal)​	Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv (Poor)​

 

[Pinch hitter]

⬢ SUPER LEAGUE ⬢​

9 Champions, 13 Matches, 14 Days, 2 Upgrade Points for Grab... Yes you read it right, Super League got official recognition from WCC... First ever Super League will see 9 Champions teams from India, Netherlands, Vanuatu, Morocco, Denmark, New Zealand, Japan, South Africa and Canada... Unfortunately champions from Guernsey can't able to play this season of Super League due to there Domestic leagues schedule... But good news is, Guernsey Cricket Board are keen to make room for Super League in there cricketing calendar from the year 2001 onwards...

All 9 Champions are equally divided in 3 groups... Each team gets 2 matches in group stage... At end of group stage, Top 2 second ranked team face each other in qualifier... Winner from qualifier match will join Top ranked team from all 3 groups in the Semis... Ultimately, Super League winners grab 2 WCC upgrade points...

 

[World Cricket Conference]

World Cricket Conference gets Olympic go-ahead following the introduction of a new ‘Twenty20’ format
“Müller Schwanstegger-helmed committee pitched the winning bid after a string of failures by his predecessors at the World Cricket Conference.”​

IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch (L) and WCC President Müller Schwanstegger (R) during a detailed briefing for the 2004 Athens games © International Olympic Committee, December 25th, 2000​

After years of turmoil with the International Olympic Committee, World Cricket Conference gets the go-ahead to include cricket at the Summer Olympics, starting in Athens 2004. Müller Schwanstegger-helmed committee pitched the winning bid after a string of failures by his predecessors at the World Cricket Conference.

The revised and ultimately winning bid was more or less the same bid that was rejected earlier in August on logistical grounds, but with one major distinction - the pitched format was something cricket has never seen before. A format that would support WCC's ambition of having a massive 16-team event be included in a long, drawn-out competition within the two or so weeks the Olympic Games are usually played for. Even with a 48-game tournament format, the format of the cricket being played has been deemed 'logistically feasible' by the Athens 2004 Local Organizing Committee.

The pitched format is supposedly a brainchild of Müller Schwanstegger himself. The new format is being called the 'Twenty20', where each innings consists of only 20 overs. Not exactly poles apart from the standard 50-overs format, officially called a One-Day International. But the shorter format does require lesser time to complete, making it ideal for an event like the Olympics. An ODI typically takes about 7-8 hours to complete, whereas a Twenty20 will supposedly take less than half of that. A major part of what made WCC's pitch successful was having teams be able to play in back-to-back games at the same venue on the same day. Nothing unheard of, but also not something that's a norm in the world of cricket by any means.

Moreover, the format will be classified as its own entity and the records will not be compiled with ODIs by World Cricket Conference.

Currently, the format of the tournament is locked-in as a 16-team event with four groups of four teams each, followed by straight knockouts inclusive of a third-place playoff to determine the Bronze Medalists. A 32-game affair scheduled for 16 days with two rest days included. Venues will be usable for two games on the same day, therefore the plan is to have four games take place each day during the group stage. Two venues being used to host four games in a single day does mean that not all games will be televised/broadcasted to the general public, especially if some of the venues used are non-cricket stadiums lacking accreditation from WCC.

Being termed as 'KFC cricket', the Twenty20 format has turned eyeballs in the cricketing fraternity and not in a positive manner. However, WCC seem all in on the prospect of a potential third format for cricket with the advent of Twenty20. Its long-term future depends on its execution during cricket's most ambitious crossover – at the Olympics, in its birthplace of Athens no less.

 

[pillowprocter]

ESPNcrickintel blows up​

ESPNcrickintel, who claim to be the world's first and best website dedicated to cricket news and scores, have reported an ungodly amount of traffic in the past few months. They plan to launch a new series, "Through the Gate" in which they interview cricketers and get to know them more. Stay tuned, the first episode is almost ready to launch!