BCCI gets new Officials, Shashank Manohar is the new President

Putting all speculations and rumours into rest, the BCCI finally announced the names of its new office bearers. Shashank Manohar has been unanimously elected as the new President of BCCI. Krishnamachari Srikkanth has been named as the Chairman of the newly-formed Selection Committee. Here are the new officials of BCCI:

President - Shashank Manohar

Vice Presidents - Arun Jaitley (North), Lalit Modi (Central), Chirayu Amin (West); Shivlal Yadav (South) and Arindam Ganguly (East).

Secretary - N Srinivasan

Vice Chairman, IPL - Niranjan Shah

Treasurer - MP Pandove

Joint Secretary - Sanjay Jagdale

Chairman, Selection Committee - Krishnamachari Srikkanth (South Zone)

Selection Committee Members - Yashpal Sharma (North Zone), Narendra Hirwani (Central Zone), Surendra Bhave (West Zone) and Raja Venkat (East Zone).

BCCI's revenue increases to Rs. 1,000 cr in 2007-08

The BCCI's revenue has increased significantly to reach Rs. 1,000 cr during the period 2007-08. In 2007-08, the board's revenue stood at Rs. 1,000.41 crore, as compared to Rs. 651.81 crore in 2006-07. It was revealed during the 79th AGM of BCCI today. Most of BCCI's revenue came from sale of media rights. Read more here.

Rest of India beat Delhi to lift Irani Trophy

Rest of India beat Ranji champion Delhi by 187 runs in the final in Vadodara to lift the Irani Trophy on the fourth day. Chasing a victory target of 378, Delhi bundled out for 190 in the second innings. Gautam Gambhir fought the lone battle and scored 91. For Rest of India, Harbhajan took 4 wickets, Anil Kumble took 3 wickets.

Scores - Delhi: 177 & 190 and Rest of India 252 & 302

BCCI launches new Website - www.bcci.tv/

Breaking News! The BCCI formally launched its own website - www.bcci.tv/ . The new website was launched by new BCCI President Shashank Manohar, who took over from outgoing President Sharad Pawar. The change of guard in the BCCI was announced at the end of its 79th AGM.

The BCCI website - http://www.bcci.tv/, will be open to millions of cricket fans across the globe. They will get deferred streaming video and mobile content along with the live scoreboard of all matches. The website will also contain player interviews, profiles, statistics and interaction between fans. The BCCI website is produced and maintained by Global Cricket Ventures (GCV). The agreement between the BCCI and GCV is signed for a period of 10 years.

Munaf Patel fined for abusing Sehwag, Akash Chopra

Breaking News! India's fast bowler Munaf Patel has been fined 75 percent of his match fee for abusing Delhi's Akash Chopra and Virender Sehwag during the Irani Trophy match. The decision was taken by match referee Rajendra Jadeja. He took the decision to fine Munaf on the basis of Delhi captain Sehwag's official complaint.

Sehwag accuses Munaf Patel of verbal abuse

In a shocking development that could vitiate the atmosphere in Indian dressing room during the most important test series against Australia, Delhi's skipper Virender Sehwag lodged a complaint against Rest of India's Munaf Patel. Sehwag accused Munaf of abusing him during the ongoing Irani Trophy.

According to Sehwag, Munaf had also abused Ishant Sharma during the match. The complaint was lodged with match referee RR Jadeja. The match referee is expected to take a decision after the match tomorrow.

Tendulkar declared fit for First Test against Australia

Breaking News! Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar has been declared fit for the first test match against Australia to be played on October 09 in Bangalore. Sachin will join the camp at Bangalore from September 30. Tendulkar got himself injured during the third test in Sri Lanka and could not play the ODI series. He also had to sit out of Irani Trophy.

Meet the 5 New National Selectors of Indian Cricket

The BCCI formally announced the names of five former cricketers who have been appointed as the national selectors. Krishnamachari Srikkanth will be the Chairman of the Selection Committee. He will represent the South Zone. Narendra Hirwani will be from Central Zone, while Yashpal Sharma represent the North Zone. Raja Venkat and Surendra Bhave will represent the East Zone and West Zone respectively. The selectors will now receive Rs.2.5 million a year as compensation.

Let's meet the five new Indian selectors:

Krishnamachari Srikkanth (South Zone)

Krishnamachari Srikkanth hails from Tamil Nadu. He made his ODI debut against England in Ahmedabad in 1981, and Test debut against England at Mumbai in the same year. He played 43 Tests for India, scoring 2,062 runs at an average of 29.88. He also played 146 ODI matches to score 4,091 runs at an average of 29.01. He also took 25 wickets at a very good average of 25.64.

Yashpal Sharma (North Zone)

Yashpal Sharma is from Punjab. Yashpal made his ODI debut in 1978 and test debut in 1979. He played 42 ODIs and scored 883 runs at an average of 28.48. Yashpal also played 37 tests and made 1606 runs at a good average of 33.46. He took one wicket each in ODI and test cricket. He was the member of India's '83 World Cup winning team. Yashpal has already served as a national selector a few years ago.

Narendra Hirwani (Central Zone)

Narendra Hirwani belongs to Madhya Pradesh. He made his dream debut against West Indies at Chennai in 1987 . Hirwani took 16 (8 in each innings) wickets in the match. He took 66 wickets in 17 test matches he played. He also took 23 wickets in 18 ODIs. Hirwani could not play longer for India, as his magic faded out sooner than expected.

Raja Venkat (East Zone)

Raja Venkat is from West Bengal. He did not get a chance to play for India, but played several matches for Bengal and proved himself in domestic matches. Raja Venkat narrowly missed a Indian cap due to tough competition and regional quota system.

Surendra Bhave (West Zone)

Surendra Bhave is from Pune, Maharashtra. He has been a great scorer for Maharashtra in domestic matches. However, he could not make it to Indian team. Bhave had played for India A in the 1990s.

Kapil Dev joins Territorial Army as Lieutenant Colonel

Legendary cricketer Kapil Dev joined the Territorial Army with the rank of honorary Lieutenant Colonel . He was honoured by the Army Chief, General Deepak Kapoor at a colourful ceremony at Army Headquarters in New Delhi. An emotional Kapil Dev said it was a proud moment for him and he would try to do his best in the second innings.

Kapil Dev will now become a part of the 150 Territorial Army (Infantry) battalion of the Punjab Regiment. He will also act as a "brand ambassador" for the armed forces.

India - Australia Series - Complete Schedule

The Australia team have arrived in India to play a four-test match series against India. Here's the complete schedule of the Australian team in India:

September 27-28: Australia vs RCA's Centre of Excellence (Jaipur)
October 2-5: Warm up match in Hyderabad
October 9-13: 1st Test at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
October 17-21: 2nd Test at Mohali, Chandigarh
October 29-November 2: 3rd Test at Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
November 6-10: 4th Test at VCA Ground, Nagpur

Krishnamachari Srikkanth to be Chariman of Selection Committee

Breaking News! Former Indian test player Krishnamachari Srikkanth is all set to become the Chairman of Selection Committee. He will replace outgoing Chief Selector Dillip Vengsarkar, who completed his term yesterday. All other old selectors including Ranjib Biswal, VP Raju won't be considered for another term.

While Krishnamachari Srikkanth will represent South Zone, he may get the full backing of the board. Raja Venkat may get the nod as a selector from East Zone. According to sources, Yashpal Sharma is being given the post of the selector from North Zone for the second time. Narendra Hirwani has emerged as the front runner for the selector's job from the Central Zone, while Surender Bhave will represent the West Zone. The BCCI will make a formal announcement in this regard soon.

Watch Live Action, Grab the ICC World Twenty20 Tickets

Twenty20 has become the latest buzzword in cricket circles. Most prefer want to watch Twenty20 cricket rather than spending 5 days in watching a test match or a full day in watching an ODI match. The second World Twenty20 tournament will be held in England in 2009. ICC World Twenty20 Tickets have already been rolled out. If you want to have your share, then don't delay, go and grab the tickets to watch live action of your favourite teams.

All ICC Twenty20 matches will be held in group formats. There are four groups. Reigning champion India, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe are placed in Group A. Group B features England, Pakistan and an Associate member. Australia, Sri Lanka and West Indies are placed in Group C, while Group D features South Africa, New Zealand and another Associate Member.

Two teams from each group will qualify for the Super 8. There is no doubt that there will be mad rush for ICC World tickets super eight. If you are assured of your team making it to Super eight, then it's better to buy tickets now than later.

From our last experience during the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 Cup and IPL, we can say beyond doubt that every Twenty20 match is as exciting as a grand finale. the Twenty20 cricket has become so popular that World twenty20 ticket sales have witnessed a sharp rise in the last few months. People don't bother whether it's a league match or Super 8 or final. They just want to enjoy the every moment of a Twenty20 match. Twenty20 is all about cricket, excitement, fun and glamour. Why miss the live action? Let's go, grab the tickets today and have fun!

Australian Cricket Team arrives in India

Putting all speculations and rumours into end, the Australian cricket team arrived in India today. Australia will play a four-test match series against India, starting in Bangalore from October 9. The team arrived in Mumbai and took a direct flight to Jaipur, where they will play a couple of practice games. Later, they will proceed to Hyderbad to play a warm match from October 2.

The 15-member Australian cricket team is led by Ricky Ponting. Andrew Symonds is not included in the squad. He was sent back home from Bangladesh series last month due to indiscipline. India is yet to announce their squad for the first test match in Bangalore. The Indian team would be announced after the Irani Trophy tie.

Australian Team:

Ricky Ponting (c), Doug Bollinger, Michael Clarke, Brad Haddin, Matthew Hayden, Stuart Clark, Phil Jaques, Michael Hussey, Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson, Simon Katich, Bryce McGain, Peter Siddle, Shane Watson and Jason Krejza.

ICC Awards 2008: Dhoni, Yuvraj win Top Awards

In a glittering award function in Dubai, the ICC Awards 2008 were announced. Indian ODI skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the "Best ODI Cricketer of the Year" award, pipping Sachin Tendulkar, Nathan Bracken and Mohammad Yousuf in the race. Dhoni's deputy Yuvraj Singh became the inaugural winner of the "Twenty20 International Performance of the Year".

Shivnarine Chanderpaul of West Indies won the coveted "2008 ICC Cricketer of the Year". He beat other nominees Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene, South Africa skipper Graeme Smith and South African fast bowler Dale Steyn. Sri Lankan spinner Ajantha Mendis pipped India's Ishant Sharma to win the "Emerging Player of the Year" award. While Dhoni and Tendulkar found a place in the "ICC ODI Team of the Year", Virnder Sehwag was the only Indian player to find a place in the "ICC Test Team of the Year".

Ganguly, Yuvraj dropped from Rest of India squad for Irani Trophy

In a surprising development, the Indian selectors dropped out-of-form Sourav Ganguly and Yuvraj Singh from the Rest of India squad for the Irani Trophy. The Irani Trophy will be held between Rest of India and Ranji Trophy champions Delhi at Vadodara on September 24 - 28. Ganguly had a very ordinary test series in Sri Lanka. He hasn't been able to score a century in 2008.

There is little doubt that Ganguly won't be picked for the upcoming test series against Australia at home. Ganguly's international cricket career could come to an abrupt end, if we believe the sources. The selectors have included Mohammed Kaif in place of Sourav Ganguly.

Irani Trophy team: Anil Kumble (C), Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, V V S Laxman, Wasim Jaffer, M S Dhoni, Mohd Kaif, Harbhajan Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Zaheer Khan, Munaf Patel, R P Singh, Parthiv Patel and Ashok Dinda.