No fear factor for Indian cricket

Gone are the days when India would be afraid of going on tour to Australia or the West Indies for fear of on-field humiliation. Things are different now. Now the home teams are wary of the confident Indians. India U-19's successful trip Down Under, where they won 3-2 in the five-match series, proved that Gen Y do not fear any team and know what they are capable of, feels coach Chandrakant Pandit.

"The youngsters nowadays are pretty confident of themselves and know how to handle the pressure. There was a time when players would be wary of touring countries like Australia and the West Indies where pacers dominate. Now the mindset has changed and I could sense that before taking off," the former India wicketkeeper told DNA.

"The boys were excited to play there and the confidence was evident in the style of cricket they played. We dominated the first two games," he said. Pandit, however, admitted that over-confidence was the reason behind the two losses. "They were very aggressive in their approach from the start and got carried away a little... some over-ambitious shot selection did us in. We got a convincing start and could have swept the series. Adaptability is the key and it will only come with experience," he said.

So what is it that gives the boys so much confidence?

"The youngsters get good exposure these days. They get good facilities and get to play on different surfaces. Also they get to see a Tendulkar, Sehwag, Dhoni or a Yuvraj bat 10 times in a month which gives them confidence. The game has changed completely due to the three formats. The teams now play fast in Test matches too and set big targets." Pandit is known for his experiments in the domestic circuit and he did that in Australia too by shuffling the batting order.

"I wanted them to play in tough situations. They will get mature after more match experiences. I think the BCCI should organise at least two tours a year," he said.
The director of coaching, MCA Indoor Cricket Academy, said there are some impressive players who could make it big in the future. "I think junior cricket is shaping up well. I was impressed by some of the players' talent and dedication. Avi Barot has good technique and can be a good longer version player. Mandeep Singh and Mayank Agarwal are aggressive. Skipper Ashok Menaria is good and is a very good fielder."

Pandit feels that some of the players are good enough to play in the U-19 World Cup to be held next year. "There are 7-8 players who are good enough."

Mumbai will house the 2011 World Cup

Mumbai will house the 2011 World Cup secretariat and India will host 29 of the 49 matches after the event's Central Organising Committee reallocated the games on Tuesday following the ICC decision to drop Pakistan as a co-host of the tournament.

Accordingly, the opening match of the 10th edition of the quadrennial tournament would be held as scheduled in Bangladesh on February 19, 2011, while the final would be held in India.

The opening ceremony of cricket's showpiece event would also be held in Bangladesh on February 18.

"The Central Organising Committee, which continues to have Sharad Pawar heading it, has reallocated the matches by which India would host 29 games across eight venues, Sri Lanka 12 games across three and Bangladesh eight at two venues," ICC CEO Haroon Lorgat said here.

"Bangladesh would play host to two quarter finals while one quarter final each would be held by India and Sri Lanka who will also split the two semi finals equally. The final would be held in India (in March, 2011)," Lorgat said.

The reallocation of matches was necessitated by the ICC's decision to take away co-hosting rights from Pakistan due to security concerns. Pakistan was slated to host 14 ties, including a semifinal, while Lahore was named the home of the secretariat.

"The Central Organising Committee was also reorganised and will continue to be headed by Sharad Pawar with representatives from the three World Cup hosting countries and a representative of the ICC," Lorgat said.

The World Cup Organising Committee also relocated the Secretariat from Lahore to the BCCI's headquarters in Mumbai, besides appointing BCCI chief administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty as the Event managing director.

"Prof Shetty will be the Event managing director while I S Bindra, the special adviser to the ICC, would be a key person in the management of the World Cup. The secretariat will be in Mumbai in the offices of the BCCI", the ICC CEO said.

There would also be a venue inspection group to oversee the preparation for the mega event in which BCCI secretary N Srinivasan and Shetty, along with Bangladesh's Mahbubul Anam, are members, Lorgat said.

Lorgat assured that the security concerns of the various members of the ICC and the players would be addressed with the formation of a special committee, headed by BCCI president Shashank Manohar, to oversee the security details.

"The security arrangements are very important and a special committee with Mr Shashank Manohar at its helm would put together security plans for the successful conduct of the World Cup in 2011", the ICC official said.

"It will be an ongoing process till World Cup 2011, and we will do our best to convince players and other countries in addressing security issues," Lorgat said.

He also said that the ICC has not received any communication, in writing or otherwise, from the Pakistan Cricket Board about their team not wanting to play any World Cup tie in India.

"We have nothing on the table. We would cross the bridge when we reach it. I don't think Pakistan would object (to playing matches in India)," he maintained.

Lorgat did not read much into the decision of the Indian Premier League not to have members of the ICC's Anti-Corruption Unit overseeing its running of matches.

"It's the BCCI's prerogative whether to ask for ICC's Anti-Corruption Unit's assistance or not in the IPL," he said.

The meeting was attended by Pawar (chairman), Bindra, Manohar, Srinivasan and MP Pandove (all from BCCI), Lt Gen Sina Ibn Jamali, Mahbubul Anam and Shafiqur Rahnan (all from Bangladesh Cricket Board), DS De Silva, Nishantha Ranatunga, Sujeewa Rajapakse and Duleep Mendis (all from Sri Lanka Cricket Board) and Lorgat.

British air stewardess sacked for refusing to wear an Islamic robe

A British air stewardess was sacked for refusing to fly to Saudi Arabia after she was ordered to wear a traditional Islamic robe and walk behind male colleagues.

Lisa Ashton, who worked for BMI, was told that she was expected to wear in public in Saudi Arabia the abaya, a long black robe that leaves only the face uncovered.

She was also told that she should walk behind male colleagues irrespective of their rank, in order to conform with the social codes of the conservative country, The Telegraph reports.shton was instructed to consider the abaya as part of her uniform when flying to Saudi Arabia, but she informed her managers that she considered the requirement discriminatory, and was worried that Saudi Arabia was not safe to travel to because of the danger of terrorist attacks.

"It's not the law that you have to walk behind men in Saudi Arabia, or that you have to wear an abaya, and I'm not going to be treated as a second-class citizen," Ashton said.

"It's outrageous. I'm a proud Englishwoman and I don't want these restrictions placed on myself," she added.

Ashton, 37, had been working for the airline for nine years when they began their service to Saudi Arabia in 2005.

She was earning 15,000 pounds a year and flying to India, the Caribbean and the United States from her base in Manchester, but was horrified to read details of the regulations for staff orking on the new route.

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