The new diamond studded MOM trophy is a two feet tall golden trophy with around 550 diamonds on it and 785 precious stones as a symbol of the most precious player. The new launch of the trophy comes following IPL being considered more than just a sporting activity. According to Gitanjali Group executives, cricket is no longer restricted to men as women of the like sof Mandira Bedi, Preity Zinta and Shilpa Shetty have come to the forefront with the game. The new move by Gitanjali Group for an association with an IPL team is aimed at reaching out to the global audience. This apart,  Gitanjali considers this as a start and will be looking at more tie ups with many more sporting events such as this.

It has been pointed out the diamond major will soon get associated with Formula One racing in China and the IFA awards following that. This in fact means that Gitanjali is spreading its association to more than just fashion. According to a senior official, it would be not only looking at fashion or sports or entertainment in particular and as a lifestyle brand, Gitanjali would look at growing with newer opportunities. Gitanjai even took the opportunity to launch the Man of the Match diamond studded trophy to bring in the cast of a film which has cricket as its main theme. Actors Boman Irani, Kunal Khemu and Cyrus Broacha who star in 99, based on the agony of a cricketer for missing a century by a single run, were present.

Owned by actress Preity Zinta and businessmen Ness Wadia, Karan Paul and Mohit Burman, the Kings XI Punjab is captained by cricket sensation Yuvraj Singh and coached by former Australian all-rounder Tom Moody.

The squad line-up includes a number of legendary players such as Brett Lee, one of the world’s fastest bowlers, Sri Lankan pair Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara, Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan, wicket keeper James Hopes and Durban-based Yusuf Abdulla.

Kings XI Punjab’s first match is against the Delhi Daredevils in Cape Town on  April 19.

Maurice Flanagan, Executive Vice Chairman, Emirates Airline and Group, said: “Emirates is a great supporter of global sporting events, and we are very excited to announce our partnership with the Kings XI Punjab team. With cricket being the number one sport in India, it was only natural for us to form a partnership with one of the leading teams in the Indian Premier League; a tournament that invokes such passion amongst the cricket fans all around the world”.

Flanagan added that “this three-year sponsorship commitment will allow Emirates to become closer to our customer base in one of the most important regions on our network.”

The IPL is the first of three significant sporting events taking place in South Africa over the next 18 months that Emirates is involved in – the other two being the FIFA Confederations Cup in June and next year’s FIFA World Cup

In addition to the title sponsorship of the Kings XI Punjab, Emirates is also an Official Partner of the ICC and sponsor of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires and Referees.

Several state governments had earlier been reluctant to spare security forces for the protection of the IPL teams and venues as the 2009 Lok Sabha election season was also on.

BCCI top brass and IPL chief Lalit Modi has been in discussions with the Home Ministry for a couple of weeks now. But the talks were deadlocked, and the government was not amenable to the schedules suggested by the IPL. Lalit Modi had assured the media yesterday that IPL would take places no matter what – and this is the end-result.

An emergency Working Committee meeting of the BCCI which was held in Mumbai decided to take a final call on the cash-rich event could not find a way to conduct the 2009 IPL season in India despite BCCI chieftain Sharad Pawar who is also the agriculture minister in the UPA cabinet. The attitude of the government that it was not ready to spare security forces for the cricket tournament is said to have forced to take the decision.

The actual venue is unclear as yet. IPL chief Lalit Modi and the franchises have said that the venues could either be in New Zealand, South AFrica or England.

Security would not be an issue in any of those countries as it would be in India. Not just that, the matches would be telecast in India at 4 PM and 8 PM IST. So the TV audiences would still be there. While the IPL franchises would lose our on revenues from local ticket sales, ticket sales in countries with a large expatriate Indian population would be high – and ticket prices would be much higher too outside India. The franchises would save on the security costs, while the TV audience in India would remain.

It is being said that the BCCI had to shift IPL out of India for this season owing to the fact tat the state governments in Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra had changed their stance at the last moment. While the Andhra Pradesh government revoked its earlier permission, Maharashtra Chief Minister wrote a letter that the state can’t host matches in that state until 13 May, 2009. There are also hints that Lalit Modi is closely associated with some BJP leaders, and therefore the Congress government was not very keen on helping him out.

The BCCI is now in talks with other boards who are willing to host the event. However, the BCCI has assured fans that the event will be go on and fans can watch the event on television. The new venue is expected to be decided in the next 3 days.

Though the venues would change, IPL Commissioner and Chairman Lalit Modi has clarified that the number of matches, format and timing of the event will remain unchanged and the organisers would not tinker with the integrity of the tournament.  He added that dates and timings of the matches will remain the same.

Multiplexes like Cinemax, PVR, Inox, Big Cinemas are in negotiations for theatre rights to host at the least one IPL match per day during the 2009 IPL season that starts on April 10, 2009, Business Standard has reported.

The theatre rights of the IPL matches are held by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). If the multiplexes secure the IPL theatre rights then cinema goers will be able to watch the matches for as low as Rs 150 to Rs 200.

Multiplexes say that they are willing to share revenues with BCCI. Business Standard has quoted Devang Sampat, senior vice-president, Cinemax India, as saying “We prefer to pay a fixed percentage of gross collections from ticket sales for the IPL matches like we do for any movie.”

In 2008, cinemas had faced a slowdown in box office collections during the IPL season. PVR Cinemas’ revenues in the first quarter of 2008 fell by 35.3 per cent from Rs 6 crore in the corresponding quarter in 2007 to Rs 3.88 crore. During this period, occupancies fell from 42 per cent to 32 per cent.

Running IPL matches may help multiplexes to lure back viewers and stabilise revenues.

Meanwhile, SET Max which has the cable telecast and DTH rights for India, is gearing up for the IPL season with new campaigns already on air. In 2009, advertising spends on television are expected to be much higher than those in 2008. SET Max has already upped the premium on its ad spots by 30-50 per cent, according to reports.

If cinemas get the theater rights to show IPL matches, SET Max may take a hit.

On the other hand, it is debatable if it will be profitable for multiplexes to run IPL matches. For one, they will have to cancel shows to accomodate the matches. Two, they will still have to pay entertainment taxes on full occupancy rates, even if the halls are not filled to capacity as per rules for commercial telecast for non-film events.

There is also a possibility that IPL team owners may cut ticket prices. With the economic slowdown, sponsors may cut their spends, and people wouldn’t want to buy expensive tickets to watch matches in the stadiums. As of now, IPL team owners spend up to Rs 400 crores to run their IPL teams, on the wage bill, event cost,  and franchisee fee. Most of their revenues come from sponsorships of merchandise and in-stadia rights and gate receipts. If there is a decline in either or both, the IPL team owners will have to cut down on spends or find other ways of boosting revenues.

As of now it seems that SET Max has an advantage if people do not want to shell out for matches, in which case it can well afford to hike its ad rates.

Along with the trade, four temporary replacements in the first season were replaced by their respective franchisees and three young cricketers will be making their IPL debut this year.

The top trades in the list were Zaheer Khan and Robin Uthappa who were traded between The Banglore Royal Challengers and The Mumbai Indians. This trade will see both the players now play for their respective home towns, Zaheer Khan for The Mumbai Indians and Robin Uthappa for The Bangalore Royals.

Another trade took place between the Mumbai Indians and the Delhi Daredevils swapping left arm seemer Ashish Nehra for the very impressive Shikhar Dawan.

The mumbau Indians were pleased to have Dhawan in the team.

A three-way-trade took place as Jaydev Shah moves to the Mumbai Indians, Gaurav Shah of Mumbai Indians moves to the Bangalore Royal Challengers, and Pankaj Dhawan of Rajasthan Royals moves to the Bangalore Royal challengers in the upcoming season of DLF IPL.

All in all there were 84 enquiries made for 54 players, which included a search for 26 Indian players and 18 foreign players.

Since the number of foreign players that a team can have in their inventory has been increased to 10, the teams have been trying to beef up their teams by wooing overseas players during the current trading window. The franchisees have been signing young and promising upcoming players.

As a result, teams have started hunting uncapped first class players. The Delhi Dare Devils have signed up uncapped Aussies David Warner and Andrew McDonald.  Both these players showcased their talent at the recently held Test series and T-20 matches’ at the SCG against South Africa, at the start January 2009.

Delhi Daredevils COO Amrit Mathur said, “We are really delighted to have signed David. His debut game for Australia the other day has been sensational and we are hoping he will carry forward this brilliance into season 2 of the DLF IPL.”

Warner said, “I am thrilled to be joining the Delhi Daredevils, and I can’t wait to play in the IPL. My international debut has given me a taste of what it is like to score runs in front of a big crowd, and I am looking forward to more of the same in India. Playing alongside, top players from all over the world like Virender Sehwag, Glen McGrath and Daniel Vettori is going to be an amazing experience.”

Ashish Nehra will play for his home team The Delhi Daredevils.

The Deccan chargers picked up Aussie Ryan Harris, and the Mumbai Indians the Essex batsman Graham Napier.

Shahrukh Khan’s Kolkata Knight Riders have provided long-term contracts to a couple of their replacement players from last season, Srilankan spinner Ajanta Mendis and Australian Brad Hodge.

The Mumbai Indians also signed Dwayne Brava and Chennai Super Kings signed a long-term contract on Chamara Kapugedera.

DLF IPL Chairman and Commissioner Lalit Modi says, “I know that all the franchises are putting in a lot of work to ensure that their playing squads are even better than last season. The second player’s auction at Goa on February 6, 2009, will be an opportunity to sign some experienced internationals to complete their playing squads.”

Modi continues, “Following the Goa auction, I believe that we will have most of the world’s top cricketers registered to play in the DLF IPL. But, I am particularly pleased to see franchises investing in the gen-next of world cricket with the addition of many top young players. One of the most exciting aspects of last season was seeing some of the young players really develop and enhance their reputations – players like Yusuf Pathan, Shaun Marsh and Shikhar Dhawan.”

English players Steve Harmison, Kevin Pietersen, and Andrew Flintoff will be available for DLF IPL Season auction.

The DLF IPL Season 2 will start on April 10, 2009. The auctions for Season 2 will be held on February 6, 2009.

There is no doubt that IPL 2009 if nothing will be a better version of what we saw in last year.

The ongoing economic crisis may have tempered the enthusiasm a bit. But IPL title sponsor DLF assured that their commitment with the IPL is resolute for the next five years. DLF is a real estate major, an sector that has been hit hard by the economic slowdown. Rajeev Talwar, the group executive director of DLF said, “DLF will continue to play an integral part in helping develop the league into a truly world – class platform for showcasing and developing cricketing talent globally.”

As the league becomes older so do the teams. At least three franchisees have decided to pare their teams down to their essential requirements, and hence reduce the number of players they would have on their roster in 2009. What was it that made the teams take such measure? Recession would be an obvious answer, but no. With the second season of the IPL, teams have just become more mature and wiser. It seems these teams are working to a target, and know exactly what kind of team composition would help them achieve it.

With the player trade window open for one month, IPL teams are planning player transfers and new signings. The Bangalore Royal Challengers are eager to have the Karnataka captain Robin Uthappa in their team. In return, they are willing to give up the services of the left-arm seemer Zaheer Khan to the Mumbai Indians who would appreciate his inclusion in the team.

Sources say there could be a possible captaincy switch between Rahul Dravid to Robin Uthappa, if the later makes it into the Bangalore Royal Challengers.

Meanwhile Mumbai Indians have already made a trade by swapping left-arm seemer Ahish Nehra with the left handed opener Shikhar Dhawan of Delhi Daredevils with no money exchanged.

Deccan Chargers are all set to have a contract with the U P bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar after his amazing performance in the Ranji trophy, who also managed to take the wicket of Sachin Tendukar on a duck, the little master’s first in the Ranji trophy.

The IPL 2009 season might also see players from England taking part with different IPL franchisees. England Captain Andrew Strauss said that he and his players can afford to participate in the upcoming IPL season without having to compromise with their national duties. Negotiations are on between The ECB and PCA and players are eagerly waiting for things to get sorted out before the deadline of February 4 set by the IPL board. Meanwhile talks are going on between IPL and ECB for having a stable cricketing calendar. Chennai Super Kings have already started their talks with the flamboyant English all-rounder Andrew Flintoff. Reports say they are eager to buy him.

On the other hand, Cricket Australia has allowed the players to play in the IPL and will not ban any of the top players. However, they also made it clear that the players who are unfit or carry any injuries will be barred. The CA public affairs manager Peter Young thinks that the two month outing in India could be a good platform for the players to prepare for the upcoming Ashes series, despite the list of injured players they have that includes Brett Lee, Andrew Symonds, Peter Siddle and Shane Watson.

All together, the IPL 2009 tournament seems to be sumptuous and promises more breathtaking encounters. The IPL 2009 is scheduled to commence on April 10, for an absorbing two months of cricketing action till May 24.

Eight state governments in the country are getting direct benefit of Indian Premier League extravaganza. Most of the matches in the tournament are attracting large number of visitors from other part of the country. Teams from Delhi, Maharshtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andra Pradesh, West Bengal, Rajastan and Punjab are participating in the IPL tournament now. Also the governments have been getting lot of revenue from matches being held at different stadiums in these states.

The thinking among the governments is to make use much hyped and highly popular Twenty20 matches to promote tourism in their respective state. The Maharashtra government has taken first lead in this direction by proposing a entertainment tax exemption  for IPL. It has decided to waive 25 percent entertainment tax for the IPL thereby giving away revenue of at least Rs 8-10 crore per year. Maharashtra is hosting 10 matches including two semi-finals and one final in the IPL match schedule. As per the Bombay Entertainment Duty Act 1923, any show, musical, performance that’s organised with an intention of making profit need to pay entertainment tax to the state government. Also government used to levy entertainment tax on test matches and one-day internationals.

The franchise owners, mostly business tycoons and Bollywood stars, have spent crores of rupees to buy teams and players for the world’s richest cricket tournament that began on April 18.

They are now watching the Indian Premier League and England’s answer to it for clues as to whether a franchised competition would work in Australia.

There are enough hints that the Cricket Board in Australia would come out with a number of Twenty20 internationals in the next summer. Cricket Australia general manager, Michael Brown, said that a franchise system would be considered in Australia if it could help attract new fans to the game.

The new plan by the Board will be incorporated in the remodeled program for 2008-09 to be released shortly. It is said that Australia is determined to keep its head as cricket’s new revolution, Twenty20, gains pace.  Australians have voted with their feet and their remote controls to endorse the shortest form of the game, said an office bearer of Cricket Australia. The fixture for Twenty20 would be within International Cricket Council guidelines. As many Australians players are taking part in the ongoing $1 billion IPL , it has gained lot of momentum among Australian viewers.

Though English players were prevented from taking part in the cash-rich IPL, the tournament is being enthusiastically followed in England.

It is learnt that a Texan billionaire Allen Stanford is considering backing a franchised league, similar to the IPL. It is learned that Cricket Australia is now in discussion with some investors interested in franchise model of cricket clubs.

There are also chances that other prominent cricket playing nations such as New Zealand, South Africa, Srilanka and Pakistan would soon explore options to start franchisee-based Twenty20 matches.

Reports said that two Australian players have not received payment after the first IPL auction held in February. Considering complaints from different corners, the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations chief executive Tim May has begun an enquiry into the complaints. May has reportedly said that players, who haven’t received the payments could walk away from their contracts, if the problem is widespread.

A major concern for the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations is the absence of crucial documents and financial transfer associated with the contract. High competitions for the players had created a situation had led to mar transparency of the incidence in the sector. “There is a worry that some players have not been paid nor received their signed copies of contracts,” May has been quoted as saying. The association has not yet fully documented about the depth of the problem. They have only received a limited number of complaints till now.

David Hussey, who sold for US$625,000 in February, is one of the Australians who have not received the 15% payment of the auction price. He was expected to get the price before April 1, 2008. “It’s been an absolute nightmare in terms of the paperwork required to get the players there,” Hussey’s manager Rick Olarenshaw said. It is said that payment is delayed due to enormous paperwork associated with contract.

The sponsorship of Bajaj Allianz has increased the number of fans of Rajasthan Royals. With the slogan “Halla Bol” more than 300,000 Super Agents and over 25,000 employees in over 1000 offices across 900+ towns all over India have joined as die hard fans to to cheer for their team.

To build team spirit & motivation of the T20 tournament for the coming financial year, Bajaj Allianz has begun its own internal program across 1000+ offices.

Rajasthan Royals is a mix of youth, experience and emerging talent which will provide strong competition and great enjoyment to the cricket fans, said Kamesh Goyal, Regional CEO Allianz & CEO Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance.

When the IPL starts on April 18, 1000+ offices of Bajaj Allianz will become ‘Fan Stations’ as they go about cheering and building support for the team.