Who Will Be The New T20 Champion

 Clinical Sri Lanka will test their skills against the flamboyant West Indies when both sides battle for their maiden World Twenty20 title in a mouth-watering final in Colombo on Sunday.

A sell-out crowd of 35,000 at the Premadasa stadium will offer boisterous support as Mahela Jayawardene's home team attempt to reverse fortunes after losing three finals in major meets since 2007.

Standing in the way will be the destructive West Indies batting led by opener Chris Gayle, who crushed Australia in Friday's semi-final with a scintillating 75 of 41 balls.

The West Indies recorded their biggest T20 victory when they beat the Aussies by 74 runs after posting the highest total in this edition of 205-4.

Gayle, Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo and Marlon Samuels made light of the slow pitch that was regarded as unsuited to aggressive batting, helping themselves to 55 runs in the final three overs.

Sri Lanka defeated the West Indies by nine wickets in a practice game before the tournament and again by the same margin in the Super Eights, but Gayle was confident of ruining the hosts' party on Sunday.

Simon Taufel: No1 umpire in world cricket

Umpiring India-Pakistan World Cup semi was my most exciting moment: Simon Taufel

Australian umpire Simon Taufel, who is set to stand in his final international game during tomorrow's ICC World T20 final, termed the 2011 World Cup semi-final between India versus Pakistan as the "most exciting match" of his career.

"When I look back, there are many memorable moments but I can instantly remember the India versus Pakistan game at Mohali during the 2011 World Cup semi-final as the most exciting one," Taufel said during his interaction with media at the Premadasa Stadium today.

"The Prime Ministers of the two countries were present and it was more than just a game of cricket. I believe there were two finals in 2011 World Cup. The semi-final and the final," he added.

The 41-year-old Australian said that the "toughest match" of his career was a Test match between India and England in Mumbai which were the "longest five days as I was not well. I was bitten by the stomach bug in Mohali. It was a physical as well as mental Test."

Asked about what it takes to make a good umpire, Taufel replied, "It requires all kinds of personal skills, man management, technique. It really is a different challenge. There is a responsibility towards broadcasters, to the people who watch it on TV."

Taufel didn't want to answer a question on the uniform implementation of DRS.

"I don't wish to comment. It is a matter that Dave (Richardson) is taking up with the various cricket committees. My job is to see how technology has a role in the game and also develop and educate future match officials.

Khali: The Great Kisser

The Great Khali is a great kisser: WWE diva Eve Torres

 The Great Khali is incredible. He is an international superstar and a movie star too. He is at the centre of attraction everywhere he goes. People are amazed by his huge size. He is a great competitor and a great kisser. I have kissed him on several occasions on Friday Night Smackdown. We have a good connection. said EVE Tores

 

    

RoAmInG cHaRgEs EnDeD fRoM nExT yEaR

No roaming charges from next year!!!!

 

Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal today said that mobile phone subscribers will not have to pay roaming charges from next year.

"From next year. Our secretary has told you that it will be free from next year," Mr Sibal said in response to a query on the timing of removing roaming charges as proposed in the National Telecom Policy (NTP) 2012.

The Minister was speaking to the media on the sidelines of the curtain raiser event of India Internet Governance Conference.The Minister was speaking to the media on the sidelines of the curtain raiser event of India Internet Governance Conference.

NTP 2012, approved in May, aims to abolish roaming charges and allow mobile phone subscribers to use same number across country without having to pay extra charges for services once they are outside their telecom circle.

Meanwhile, Telecom Secretary R Chandrashekhar said the Department of Telecom (DoT) is working on Notice Inviting Applications for spectrum auction after which it will work on unified licence (UL) guidelines - also a part of the NTP 2012.

"We are first going to attend to all issues linked to auction. The moment NIA is issued this week, we will focus on UL. After details of full UL is worked out, the modalities for free roaming will follow," he said.

Harbhajan Singh Comes Back with GREAT Performance

Harbhajan Singh has been out of the Indian side for over a year. On Sunday, he was drafted in to face the might of defending champions and the veteran bowler fired on all cylinders to blow the opposition into smithereens. His four in four for twelve saw England crash to their lowest T20 total ever.
Defending 170, the start was made by Irfan Pathan who took two early wickets. Harbhajan soon took over and showed that having him in the side in place of R Aswhin was a decision that could linger going further into the tournament. He lofted, bowled short, tried full and offered every other bit of variation only to have English batsmen walking back, almost in a trail-like march.
For someone who has been criticised as a player who is past his prime, Harbhajan showed being 30 is good and if a spin-friendly track is laid out in front, the ball can be at his command just as well as in the hands of any other.
To give the pitch the credit though would be unfair. Credit however was also due to the other bowlers, especially Piyush Chawla who took over from the other end and kept the pressure up.
Harbhajan claimed the man-of-the-match award for his efforts and said it was great to be back in the thick of things. " Today was one of those days that everything went my way. I would like to thank everybody who supported me. I would also like to thank all at Essex," he said at the post-match conference. He played for Essex earlier this year as part of his county stint.
"It has been a tough year. I was injured and did not have a great IPL or Ranji. Then, I went to Essex and that was a right thing to do. Thankfully, today I got my reward."

Deepika Kumari settles for silver in Archery World Cup

India's top archer Deepika Kumari settled for a silver medal after losing to World No.1 Bo Bae Ki of South Korea in the World Cup Final here Sunday.

Deepika, who slipped to the number two spot in the rankings following her shocking first round loss in the London Olympics last month, gave the South Korean a tough fight before going down 4-6.

It turned out to be a low-scoring tie with Ki's 28 in third end being the highest score. Deepika shot a 27 in the second end for her best score in the match.

Another South Korean, Hyeonju Choi, secured the bronze defeating America's Jennifer Nichols 6-4 in the third place play-off.

Deepika had beaten Nichols in the semifinals following her win over Miki Kanie of Japan in the last eight stage.

India Thrashed Egland by 90 Runs

You cannot keep him out of the celebrations of an Indian dugout. It was a dream comeback for Harbhajan Singh who has seen lots of ups and downs in the last one year. But he once again proved how impactful he is in the shorter format of the game. Rohit Sharma was back in form as well and MS Dhoni now has an uphill task ahead with the problem of plenty with the spinners.