Champions League or IPL 2.0?

At its core, the Champions League T20 is a brilliant idea; the top T20 sides around the world, congregating for an International-domestic tournament. Two weeks of slap-happy cricket, throwing a spotlight on players of the future, or in some cases, players who may have only ever been renown within their nation’s fan following. It can be a great yardstick as to the depth of the national pool of T20 players, or perhaps just an example of some local sides with strong with a weight talent. However, the 2012 CLT20, more than the previous two seasons, has seemed a little more like IPL 2.0.

Team Qualification: In the first two editions of CLT20, three IPL teams played, compared to the two from Australia and South Africa, and a sprinkling of single teams from other nations. In the third year, Kolkata Knight Riders were able to compete for one of the open slots, successfully making four IPL teams in 2011. This year, four of the eight automatic qualification slots have been given to the IPL sides. This now means sides from New Zealand, Sri Lanka, the West Indies, England and Pakistan, make the tournament only if they secure one of the two remaining spots. While the BCCI is the major stakeholder in the CLT20 (along with the Australian and South African cricket boards), having so many teams from the one domestic group takes the sheen off the international appeal. 

IPL vs Home Conundrum: Easily the most contentious aspect of the CLT20 is player allegiance. In this day, when T20 Leagues represent a good financial opportunity for a player, it is not unusual for someone to be signed to multiple domestic sides. One would think that the player would automatically play for their home province. Unfortunately, players have the luxury of choice, and more often than not, are picking their IPL sides over their home franchises. Who can blame them? With so much prize money up for grabs, the player wants to ensure their best chance of winning the tournament. For the health of cricket, the triumvirate of cricket associations must come together, and alter this rule. The exodus of T&T players, the Morkel brothers and Brett Lee (just to name a few) from their local sides dilutes the intended purpose of the competition.

Home-grown players: Here lies an issue with both the IPL and SLPL sides. Within their respective leagues, IPL and SLPL sides are allowed to field a maximum of four and five international stars respectively. However, with most other T20 competitions, this is a maximum of two. The effect here is twofold. It not only gives the IPL and SLPL sides the possible advantage of fielding a side with more quality cricketers, but once again contradicts the concept of the domestic team. It may even trivialise the contest, for if the Sydney or Perth sides played Chennai Super Kings, it may be possible for 14 of the 22 players appearing to be Australian. Whether the other nations are allowed more, or IPL and SLPL sides are restricted to fewer, all sides competing in the CLT20 should have a standardised number of allowed international (that is foreign) players allowed in one side.

As stated, the Champions League is an exciting tournament, and one which will no doubt provide a great spectacle from start to finish. The only qualms, keep it even, and keep it domestic… in an international sense.

SOURCE:http://blogs.espncricinfo.com/inbox/archives/2012/10/putting_the_champions_back_in.php

Afghanistan give India scare but run out of gas

India 159 for 5 (Kohli 50, Raina 38, Shapoor 2-33) beat Afghanistan 136 (Nabi 31, Balaji 3-19, Yuvraj 3-24, Ashwin 2-20) by 23 runs
Scorecard

	Shapoor Zadran's lively first spell, in which he removed India's openers, set the tone for Afghanistan © AFP  Enlarge

Bubbling with enthusiasm and energy, Afghanistan gave India a scare with the ball and a half with the bat, but 20 overs proved to be too long a time for them to sustain that quality and keenness. They could have had India at 79 for 5, but dropped Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina within eight deliveries only for the two to add a total of 53 further runs. They also conceded 16 extras to facilitate India's recovery to 159 runs, but Mohammad Shahzad, Nawroz Mangal and Mohammad Nabi chased with spirit and with gusto, taking them to within 43 with four overs to go, but R Ashwin dismissed Nabi for a 17-ball 31 to kill the chase.

Two sides turned up at the R Premadasa, the underdogs who were clearly enjoying their day on the world stage, and the fancied team who seemed to have the weight of the world on their shoulders. With India's bowling and fielding nearly conceding 160 against an Affiliate team, MS Dhoni surely has the weight of the world firmly on his shoulders. Bigger tests await India, but tonight was about Afghanistan putting up the first show for a minnow in this tournament.

It was the tall left-arm seamer Shapoor Zadran who gave Afghanistan an intentful start. The first ball he bowled, the first of the match, was dug in short even if wide outside off. By the end of that over he was beating Gautam Gambhir for pace. The official broadcasters recorded it at 150.3kmph. In his next over he got one to stop a touch, and Gambhir played on. That earned Shapoor a third over at the top, and he finished his job on Virender Sehwag: beaten twice outside off before edging through.

At 22 for 2 in the fifth over, Kohli respectfully expressed his inability to do anything wrong, reaching a sixth fifty in his last six international innings. When he lofted Gulbodin Naib for a straight six in the eighth over, the run-rate crossed six for the first time since the innings first achieved some shape. The spinners, though, put a lid on that momentum. Yuvraj Singh edged a cut to short third man off Karim Sadiq in the 11th over.

Sadiq and Nabi proceeded to exert pressure on new man Raina who soon lobbed straight back to Nabi, but perhaps in his eagerness to celebrate he let it spill. In the next over, Sadiq nearly got his second but the hit burst through Samiullah Shenwari's hands at long-on. From a possible dominating position, Afghanistan had now let indiscipline creep in both their fielding and bowling. Shapoor came back to go for 14 in his last over that included a typical extra-cover drive from Kolhi and a high full toss to Raina.

In the next over, Raina was dropped again. Dawlat Zadran came back to get Kohli a ball after he had reached his fifty, but he undid his good work with six wides in the 19th over that also incuded three lovely yorkers. Nabi bowled a superb 20th over full of yorkers until providing Dhoni with two low full tosses that he sent for four and six.

That wasn't about to dent Shahzad's spirit, who had promised a Dhoni-style helicopter shot in the lead-up to the match. He duly delivered it, off a full ball from Zaheer Khan no less, and Afghanistan were 24 for 0 in three overs, just the rate they needed. L Balaji stopped that rot for India by getting Shahzad with a bouncer, but Afghanistan were far from giving up.

Mangal hit Balaji and Irfan Pathan for a six and a four, sending Dhoni to his magic man Yuvraj, who delivered immediately with an lbw off a straight delivery. When he took two in two in the 12th over to reduce Afghanistan to 75 for 4, the game seemed over. India's bowling weakness, though, was about to raise its head. Nabi hit Zaheer's length bowling for 16 in the 16th over, and if India didn't quite panic they couldn't have been far off.

In the next over, though, Ashwin did Nabi in with a long pause before delivering, and getting him to mis-hit to long-off. That flattened the chase, but it was an effort that a lopsided tournament so far badly needed.

Tough, competitive, and memorable

It's the day after the Under-19 World Cup final and Townsville feels different. Flinders Street bears no sign of the Indian party the night before, and the cafés on Palmer are missing the groups of young cricketers who've been ever-present over the last two weeks. For the 240 players who've left the city, the fortnight gone by has been probably the most revealing, instructive and emotional of their teenage lives.The 2012 Under-19 World Cup was the time of Reece Topley and Anamul Haque, of William Bosisto andUnmukt Chand, the stars of a stage protected by age. Whether it is they, or someone who was hidden in obscurity during the last two weeks, who will succeed in greater arenas, it is much too early to tell. Most of the cricketers who came to Brisbane, Sunshine Coast and Townsville will never return again, but perhaps the time they spent here will be the making of some of them.source:-http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc-under19-world-cup-2012/content/current/story/579642.html