ICC Marking on the Transportation Issue ahead of the World Cup Cricket 2007

ICC (International Cricket Council) chief Malcom Speed focuses on the transportation issue during the upcoming World Cup Cricket 2007. The tournament is going to be staged from the 11^th of March. The tournament will be hosted in nine countries of Caribbean region. So, ICC is now thinking about the transportation system of the region as the officials and spectators have to roam around the venues within a very short time and there will possibly have a heavy rush in the air planes.

Hardbeat News reported:

Chief executive Malcolm Speed, in an interview with Reuters, admitted “there will be logistical problems” during the March 13-April 28 tournament across nine Caribbean nations. “There will be problems for spectators as it is difficult to get about the Caribbean on normal commercial flights,” Speed was quoted as saying.

But he advised, “I think we need to bear in mind the size of the undertaking of playing a major sporting event in nine countries. Each country is different to each other, they do very little together but have all come together to host this World Cup.”

Still the ICC chief spoke glowingly about the venues and the grounds, predicting they will be “excellent.”

“They are working very hard to get the pitches and the playing fields up to standard,” he stated. “I am quite confident the work that’s gone into the planning for the venues has been outstanding and that anyone who goes to these venues will be very impressed with what they see.”

It has also been reported that there will be about 100,000 spectators in the host countries during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007. However, making some good and effective plans can be the right way to solve the transportation problems. The concerned authorities can come up with some extra vehicle and flight which are badly needed in order to have a nice World Cup Cricket 2007. I hope the tournament will be successful.

Preparations for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 Going on with Much Enthusiasm

The preparation ahead of the World Cup Cricket 2007 is now going on with full pace. All the departments are getting ready for the biggest stage of the world cricket. The stadiums are excellent and the security system will be amazing. So the preparation for the tournament is in the right track and is going to be a successful tournament in the Caribbean region. Nine host venues of the Caribbean region are now waiting for the fascinating tournament of the cricket.

India Times reported:

Completion of the Kensington Oval, venue for the April 28 final, has been put back a month but organisers are confident cricket's showpiece event will be a resounding success.

"Things are going very well and we are in the final straight of a process that started many, many months ago," Stephen Alleyne, chief executive officer of the Barbados World Cup local organising committee, said.

"The West Indies has developed a reputation for being one of the most enjoyable and sought-after tours and I believe the World Cup will fit into exactly the same bracket.

"Of course, you always get some doubts when something has never been staged in a region before but I have every confidence the tournament will run smoothly.

"The Barbados government has recognised a significant opportunity with this World Cup and has worked hard to make ready various other components of the country -- such as the international airport, the seaport and the roads.

So, I think all can hope for an excellent tournament with some memorable incidents. I hope ICC World Cup Cricket 2007 will be a success story in the cricket world.

Marlon Samuels Found to have been associated with a Book Maker

West Indian all-rounder Marlon Samuels has been accused of having contact with a bookie during the ODI series between India and West Indies recently. Nagpur police recorded some telephone conversation involved Samuels and Mukesh Kochar, a bookmaker.

Aljazeera.net reported:

Kumar alleged Samuels had five conversations with Mukesh Kochar, the bookmaker identified in the calls, however there was no evidence that any money had changed hands.

West Indian captain Brian Lara won the toss in the January 21 match and sent the home side in to bat in what appeared to be excellent batting conditions, before India amassed 338 for 3 from their 50 overs with off-spinner Samuels conceding 53 runs without taking a wicket from his ten overs.

In reply, the West Indies managed 324 for 8 with opener Shivnarine Chanderpaul smashing an unbeaten 149 and Samuels contributing 40 runs from 60 deliveries as the Caribbean side lost by 14 runs.

"We have recorded information that Samuels leaked important team information to Kochar from his hotel room in five telephone calls on January 20 and 21," Kumar told reporters on Wednesday.

"Kochar is a known associate of underworld figure Dawood Ibrahim."

Police has requested both BCCI and ICC to go through the controversy. BCCI said that ICC will investigate the matter. The star cricketer of West Indies team has rejected such allegation and said that the West Indies Cricketers’ association will go through the matter if they think it is needed.

This is a bad news for the entire cricket world as the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 is just a month away and no true cricket lover wants to have any impact of bookies in the upcoming World Cup Cricket. The tournament will be started from the 11^th March.

New Pavilion in the Queen’s Park Oval Stadium Inaugurated

Queen’s Park Oval Stadium has recently got a new pavilion ahead of the World Cup Cricket 2007. The pavilion has recently been opened in festive mood through in the presence of some of the famous personality of the Caribbean region. This pavilion will be used in the World Cup Cricket 2007.

News Day reported:

The event was chaired by media personality Anthony Harford and was attended by the President of Trinidad and Tobago Professor George Maxwell Richards and his wife Dr Jean Ramjohn-Richards; former President and Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago Arthur NR Robinson; President of the West Indies Cricket Board Ken Gordon; President of the QPCC, Willie Rodriguez.

Also present were former First Lady Zalyhar Hassanali, President of the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board Deryck Murray; CEO of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the 2007 Cricket World Cup Anand Daniel as well as other distinguished guests.

President of the QPCC, Willie Rodriguez in his opening remarks said the pavilion marked a new era for the club and has even added to its rich history.

“The new pavilion was a necessity due to the growing competition for hosting Test matches since in the last 20 years there have been modern international venues developed in St Lucia, Grenada, St Kitts and other islands around the Caribbean,” said Rodriguez.

He explained that the new structure was equipped with all the modern technology with spacious accomodations for players, a lounge for members and on the top floor the Presidential Box. Rodriguez added that the pavilion when fully completed will be outfitted with a restaurant, statellite and cable communication, banquet hall, spa, library and museum.

I think this is a good occasion to open something new as the World Cup Cricket 2007 is a month away to be held in the Caribbean region. I hope the pavilion will be an extra attraction during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 which will be started form the 11^th of March.

The ODI Series between India Vs. Sri Lanka: The Last Chance for Virendra Shewag?

Virender Shewag, one of the most common names of Indian cricket in the recent years, is now under the threat of being irregular. This hard hitter dashing batsmen has played some of the crucial and excellent innings in both ODI and Test Cricket. However, now-a-days he is struggling for runs and could not do well in the last two series which has eventually made him out of the team for the last series between South Africa and India. However, the owner of the highest run scorer in an innings for India has again called for the ongoing Sri Lanka-India series In the last 10 matches he has just a half century and his batting average in the last 10 innings is not even 20 whereas his career average is about 39.

So, it is clear that the series against Sri Lanka is very crucial for the opening batsman and the last chance to prove his form before the World Cup Cricket 2007. That is why, it can easily be said that this right handed benevolent batsman is now under a huge pressure. However, I think he has already proven his class and skill as a batsman and now what is needed now is that to repeat some of his previous performance. Good luck Shewag.

The authority Working Hard in order to Present a Successful World Cup Cricket 2007

Organizers of the Upcoming World Cup Cricket 2007 are now working hard from dawn to dusk ahead of the biggest stage of world cricket. The warm-up matches will be started from the 5^th of March which is now lass than a month away. So, the authority now mainly focuses on the warm-up matches and opening ceremony first.

Jamaica Observer reported:

"CWC staff throughout the region work seven days a week and the momentum is gathering. It's pretty close now - crunch time. A number of event stakeholders have set up office in the Caribbean and are working alongside the LOCs (Local Organising Committees) and CWC.

"The general public seems to be getting a real feel for the event as they can see evidence of more and more preparations and advertising taking place," she said.
"City dressing is going up in the Host Venues and soon CWC colours will be flying from street poles and hanging in airports and sea ports throughout the nine countries. Sponsor marketing activity has begun worldwide."

Adding that there's a lot currently happening, Roach listed the ICC Venue Tour, Match Day Integration workshops and meetings between Event Authority - the International Cricket Council (ICC) - and CWC later this week among the myriad CWC activities. CWC's Board of Directors will also meet in Trinidad on Friday for the final time before the tournament.
"CWC's Accreditation headquarters is now open at Sabina Park and the entire team has relocated to the stadium. They are operating at a great pace and it's the venue for training of the Accreditation managers and Media Services managers starting from tomorrow," she disclosed.”

I think the authority should come forward with promotional activities so that the people can know about the tournament and thus their ticket selling will get a special speed in ticket selling.

An ODI Series between India and Sri Lanka to be started from Feb 8 tomorrow

Ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007, both India and Sri Lanka will try to work out the problems in the ODI series they are going to participate. The series will be started from tomorrow at the Eden Garden cricket ground, one of the traditional cricket grounds in the history of world cricket. Both the team will give the last chances to the young stars and also the players who are struggling with their forms. Suppose, Virender Shewag these days are in off form, but this time he will be given a chance to come back to his own form.

Daily India reported:

National selectors' chief Dilip Vengsarkar has said unambiguously that he wants to field his best eleven for the series to help them prepare for the World Cup and keep the winning streak undisturbed.

Tom Moody, Sri Lanka's coach, has said his team is pretty sure of the brand of cricket they want to play at the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean next month and the Indian tour will be used to boost their confidence.

'There is nothing that we have to work on in India. We have crystallised in our minds the brand of cricket we want to play. What we want to get out of India foremost is to have a successful tour and go to the World Cup with the momentum of a few wins under our belts,' said Moody.

As the teams prepare for the dress rehearsal to the World Cup, the two captains will have their work cut out.

Rahul Dravid will be keen to repeat the team's tremendous success against Sri Lanka in the last home series when they defeated the emerald islanders in a tennis match like score of 6-1.

Dravid has repeatedly said he is unwilling to take any risk before the World Cup and will like to see the series as a stage to fix the winning combination. Virender Sehwag and Munaf Patel are making a comeback in this series. Sehwag was rested after a string of poor performance and Munaf is recovering from an ankle injury.

With the match Sourav Ganguly will play his first match in his home ground after coming back to the team. I think this will inspire Sourav Ganguly to play a master innings tomorrow. There are some other players who have just come back into the team such as, Munaf Patel, Virender Shewag. I hope they will able to work out the problems during this tournament and will play well in the World Cup Cricket 2007.