IPL Top 10 Batsmen

1. Shaun Marsh - Kings XI Punjab - 616 Runs
2. Gautam Ghambir - Delhi Dare Devils - 534 Runs
3. Sanath Jayasuriya - Mumbai Indians - 514 Runs
4. Shane Watson - Rajasthan Royals - 472 Runs
5. Graeme Smith - Rajasthan Royals - 441
6. Adam Gilchrist - Hyderabad Deccan Chargers - 436 Runs
7. Yousuf Pathan - Rajasthan Royals - 435 Runs
8. Suresh Raina - Chennai Super Kings - 421 Runs
9. MS Dhoni - Chennai Super Kings - 414 Runs
10. Virender Shewag - Delhi Dare Devils - 406 Runs

“IPL is nothing but business”: Congress

As the elections are closer, closer are the controversies surrounding IPL & Politics. Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the Congress, in a bid to downplay the IPL controversy, today hit back saying the IPL was just “commercial cricket” and not a national tournament. The BJP, meanwhile, had tried to score political points claiming that the UPA government was unable to provide security to popular cricket tournaments in India. The Congress strongly opposed the BJP and asked it not to “politicize” the issue.

Aamir Khan Might Endorse IPL next Year!

Aamir Khan the ultimate perfectionist is likely to give a thumbs up for Indian Premier League. Who has often positioned himself in an altogether different league when compared to his contemporaries? The man who made Cricket 'entertaining' for the masses in Lagaan, is apparently all set to see his team achieve triumph in real life too. A source, who happens to be Aamir's production person, revealed that Aamir Khan was all set to be a brand ambassador of a cricket team in Indian Premier League's next season.

"There was just too much money riding on the tournament and cancelling it was easier said than done."-Shilpa Shetty

Shilpa Shetty, co-owner of the Rajasthan Royals, has backed South Africa to host the Indian Premier League Season Two. England and South Africa were declared front runners to host the mega event after the Board of Control for Cricket in India decided to shift the twenty20 tournament out of India due to security concerns.

IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi was due to arrive in Johannesburg today for discussions with Cricket South Africa and with South African government officials, while a separate team was on its way to England for similar discussions with the England and Wales Cricket Board. "Whichever place is suitable for the game and will make the game entertaining should be chosen," Shetty told NDTV."England seems difficult at the moment because of the weather and South Africa seems more likely."

The BCCI moved the tournament out of India after state police refused to provide security during the Indian general elections.Shetty said the choice of moving the tournament was a hard one, but it was the right decision.” If the choice had to be no tournament and a tournament in a different country, I would choose the latter - clearly choose the latter," she said.” I think Modi has taken the right call and we can all breathe a sigh of relief that the tournament is going ahead.

Controversies, More Controversies for IPL…

Last few weeks have been tough for IPL. First the brutal attack on the Sri Lankan cricketers then the location change which created stir in the nation amongst the cricket fans & now the latest bubble is that Kolkata Knight Riders will have more than one captain! What a journey it has been for the IPL over the last few weeks. It has been one rutted boulevard.

March 2: The election commission announced the dates for the 16th Lok Sabha elections.

March 3: Sri Lankan cricketers attacked in Lahore.

March 4: Home Minister P Chidambaram drops the bombshell, tells CNN-IBN that providing paramilitary forces for IPL matches during general elections will be difficult.

March 5: Government-IPL decides to review dates to save the event. IPL bosses get into action to salvage the billion dollar event.

March 6: Lalit Modi says IPL to roll on schedule, Mumbai not Jaipur to host inaugural match.

March 7: IPL submits fresh schedule to Home Ministry.

March 9: Ministry of Home Affairs asks states to respond and the ministry puts the ball into the State Governments' court.

March 10: Lalit Modi addresses a press conference in Mumbai claiming IPL will take care of its own security

March 12: Deadlock continues as states demand central forces for IPL.

March 13: Ministry of Home Affairs asks for a further revised schedule.

March 14: IPL starts to work on yet another schedule

March 15: Government asks IPL to consult states on revised dates.

March 16: Home Ministry officials and BCCI meet in North block but fail to find a solution

March 17: A third revised schedule sees Delhi and Jaipur omitted from the list of venues as IPL.

March 18: New schedule is then send to Home Ministry with Mumbai as a main centre hosting as many as 14 matches.

March 20: A huge blow for the IPL as reports of Mumbai backtracking from their earlier approval comes through.

March 21: The final nail in the coffin with the Maharashtra Government refusing on grounds of security in a written letter to the IPL.

March 22: IPL shifted out of India.

March 24: Lalit Modi pulls the rabbit out of the hat, takes IPL to South Africa.

March 25: Kolkata Knight Riders decide to have Multiple Captains.

The Journey of Controversies continues….

Ciao India, South Africa I Am Coming Baby!

The summer has just begun & the heat is already reached its maximum. IPL Season II has raised the temperature in India. Finally the word is out. IPL will no longer be played in India but South Africa as confirmed by Lalit Modi, BCCI Head. IPL’s second season; IPL 2009 finally gets home, to be played across six cities in South Africa starting April 18th. “The overwhelming reason we chose South Africa is primarily its weather.” Says Lalit Modi ostensibly.

England & South Africa were the two prime options for ipl cricket match this year. However England was chalked out primarily due to its cold & wet climate. Another issue is security concerns; England government cannot provide such A-list security in such a short span of time. The ipl t20 match timings will however not be changed & Indians can heave a sigh of relief. The timings will be 4pm to 10pm. However the Indian cricket fans our bitterly disappointed & our voicing their opinions on various social networking websites like Face Book, Orkut, and MySpace etc. One of the IPL Community member Nilesh Rane on Face Book bursts out, “This shows how unstable system we have. Shifting of IPL proves that our State runners are in doubt on India's security.

How safe are we?”

Interestingly, the IPL will be played across six cities & that has only forced Modi to not allocate home bases to the eight teams. “This was a very sensitive & delicate issue (providing a home base for each team). But because we will be playing at six venues we’ve decided that no team will have a home base during the tournament. The matches will be evenly distributed with every team playing equal no of times on each venue.” Modi quoted. Last but not the least news is that even after the venue change Pakistan Cricket Team will not play for IPL because the squads have already been finalized.