Samuels hits 260 as WI take command

KHULNA (Bangladesh): Marlon Samuels smashed a magnificent 260 to guide the West Indies into a commanding position against Bangladesh on the third day of the second and final Test in Khulna on Friday.

Scorecard

The 31-year-old Jamaican notched his maiden double century, putting on a 326-run stand for the third wicket with Darren Bravo (127) and another 177 for the fourth wicket with Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who ended the day 109 not out.

Denesh Ramdin finished not out on four.

The run-feast gave the West Indies a healthy 177-run lead over Bangladesh's first innings total of 387 -- a position of strength from where they will look to force a series win after taking the first Test in Dhaka by 77 runs.

Samuels thrived on a lifeless pitch before being caught at point off a rising delivery from paceman Rubel Hossain, falling just one short of Ramnaresh Sarwan's 261 not out -- the highest by a West Indian batsman against Bangladesh -- made at Kingston in 2004.

The right-handed batsman hit 31 fours and three sixes during a dominating 455-ball knock.

The seasoned Chanderpaul was not left far behind, as he reached his 27th Test hundred in the dying moments of the day when he steered spinner Sohag Gazi for a single towards mid-off, following up on his 203 not out in the first Test.

The 146-Test veteran has so far hit ten fours and a six off 206 balls.

The Samuels-Chanderpaul stand also improved the previous best for a fourth wicket against Bangladesh, erasing the 176-run stand involving Samuels and Sarwan in Dhaka ten years ago.

Samuels survived a confident leg-before shout off paceman Hossain's first over after lunch before steering the same bowler for a single to complete his double hundred.

Earlier, Samuels and Bravo continued to punish the hapless Bangladeshi bowlers after the West Indies resumed at 241-2.

Bravo hit Hossain for two boundaries in one over for his scored to enter the 90s before taking a couple and a single to complete his fourth Test hundred.

In the last over before lunch, Bravo was adjudged leg-before off spinner Gazi as he tried to cut the ball, which hit the pad first and then the bat. Bravo hit ten boundaries during his 288-ball innings.

Bangladeshi bowlers were found wanting on the slow track and their problems were compounded by edges falling short and a dropped catch in the slips by Naeem Islam off paceman Abul Hasan when Samuels was on 117.

Samuels took full advantage of the lapse and bettered his previous highest Test score of 123, which he made against New Zealand in Kingston earlier this year.

Gazi and Hossain finished with two wickets apiece.

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Pujara, Ashwin guide India to 266/6

MUMBAI: Cheteshwar Pujara cracked his second consecutive Test century as India recovered from a precarious situation to restore the balance in the second cricket Test against England on Friday.

Scorecard | Match In Pics

Pujara, who had scored a double century in the first match, notched up his third Test century to remain unbeaten on 114 on a turning track at the Wankhede Stadium and steered the hosts to a far more comfortable 266 for six at close on an eventful opening day.

Pujara found an able ally in Ravichandran Ashwin (60 batting) as the duo put on unfinished 97-run partnership for the seventh wicket to bail them out after the hosts were reeling at 119 for five at one stage.

Barring Pujara and Ashwin, none of the batsman in the star-studded line-up could make an impression on a track that started turning from the second session onwards and which was exploited by left-arm spinner Monty Panesar who claimed four wickets.

Coming to the crease after the second ball dismissal of Gautam Gambhir, the 25-year-old Pujara kept one end going by showing superb judgement against the spinning ball to pull India out of a deep hole after the home team opted to bat first on winning the toss.

Pujara stayed for just over six hours in which he had faced 279 balls and struck ten fours. Ashwin faced 84 for his valuable knock.

Pujara came into the game on the back of his unbeaten knocks of 206 and 41 in the two innings of the opening Test at Ahmedabad, which fetched him the Man of the Match award and paved the way for his team's comprehensive nine-wicket victory.

Panesar, who took four for 91 by the end of the day's day, was played with a lot of assurance by Pujara.

It was the Rajkot-born youngster's third 100-plus knock in his last four Test matches, having scored a maiden century (159) against New Zealand in August.

Pujara, who has been dismissed only in the warm-up game for Mumbai A after making 87, continued to prosper against the visitors with his exemplary concentration and shot selection.

He gave one chance, when on 60, when he edged Panesar but James Anderson could not latch on to it.

When on 94, England needlessly appealed against him for a catch at midwicket, which was referred to the third umpire and the replays showed the ball had bounced in front of the short leg fielder.

The early part of the day belonged to England who sent back Gambhir (4), Virender Sehwag (30) -- in his 100th Test -- Sachin Tendulkar (8), Virat Kohli (19) and Yuvraj Singh (0).

Barring Gambhir and Yuvraj, who fell to Anderson and Graeme Swann, the others were dismissed by Panesar.

Pujara and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who mixed caution with aggression before becoming Panesar's fourth victim for 29, put on a partnership of 50 runs in 128 balls.

England's hopes of slicing through the Indian tail, though, came to naught with Ashwin scoring his second fifty.

With some more batting to come in the form of Harbhajan Singh -- drafted into the eleven as the third spinner after more than a year's gap -- Zaheer Khan and Pragyan Ojha, India would fancy their chances of taking the score past 300.

In the morning and soon after lunch, England applied the screws on India and made the hosts struggle on a turning track on which the ball gripped the surface and also bounced.

Panesar, who was left out of the first Test, was the destroyer-in-chief, with a splendid spell of 23 overs on either side of lunch for the wickets of Sehwag, Tendulkar and Kohli before coming on for another spell for the wicket of Dhoni.

Anderson and off-spinner Swann packed off Gambhir (4) and Yuvraj (2) in two balls apiece.

Gambhir, who flicked Anderson to midwicket off the first ball, missed the next to be rapped in front.

After pushing India on the back foot in the pre-lunch session, England continued the good work with a two-wicket burst in successive overs in the first hour of the post-lunch session.

Panesar, who sent back Sehwag and Tendulkar in successive overs before lunch, got his third victim by dismissing Kohli.

After disturbing the stumps of Sehwag and Tendulkar with sharply turning balls, Panesar induced Kohli to attempt a drive with a ball that drifted in and turned big on pitching to take the leading edge for Nick Compton to bring off a good diving catch.

Kohli had cover-driven the left-arm bowler and his spin partner Swann for attractive boundaries in successive overs before he was lured by the crafty Sikh.

The slow bowler made the ball drift in to the right-handers and extracted sharp turn off the track.

He could have had the confident-looking Pujara too when the batsman, batting on 60 in a team score of 135 for five, edged the bowler to the left of Anderson who could not latch on to the catch at short gully.

Had it been taken India would have been in deeper trouble.

Prior to this slice of luck Yuvraj, who made 74 on his Test comeback in Ahmedabad, had departed for a second-ball duck, clean bowled by Swann. Swann had been brought on for a new spell by skipper Alastair Cook soon after the left-hander arrived at the crease, and the move paid off.

The hosts lost these two wickets in successive overs for the addition of just one run to be tottering at 119 for five and the loss of Pujara, easily the best Indian batsman against the turning ball in this match, would have been a major blow to their hopes of putting up a fighting total.

Dhoni came to the crease and started to attack the two spinners with his drives and cuts.

He was lucky on 22 in a score of 149 for five when he stepped out against Swann, missed a big heave but luckily the ball clipped the top of his pad and got deflected before wicketkeeper Matt Prior could stump the batsman.

Dhoni was later out, caught off the gloves in the close-in cordon, off Panesar. Pujara and Ashwin, however, held fort.

Even the second new ball, taken after 80 overs, did not benefit England.

Pujara pulled Anderson for a four to complete his 100 in 248 balls, before Ashwin struck the bowler for three fours in an over to race to 50 in 67 balls.

The off-spinner has hit a century at this ground an year ago, against the West Indies.

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'Pujara's run-appetite was phenomenal'

MUMBAI: R Ashwin's support was crucial in young batsman Cheteshwar Pujara scoring a century on Friday and the India spinner says it would have been a "shame" had his colleague missed out on a hundred.

Pujara was going strong while other top-order batsmen struggled but the young batsman found an able ally in Ashwin, who supported him well with a magnificent 60.

Ashwin had joined Pujara when six top Indian batsmen were cooling their heels back in the pavilion and stayed with him till the end of the play.

Ashwin lauded Pujara's technical efficiency and his controlled knock.

"I thought it was a brilliant knock. The amount of time he trusted his defense and kept on defending was brilliant. He eased the nerves as he batted on, defending beautifully. I thought it was a very well paced knock and it would have been a shame if he had not got a hundred," said Ashwin after the first day's play.

Pujara, who came into the second Test with an unbeaten double hundred (206) and 41 not out in the first Test, ended the day with an unbeaten knock of 114.

The 25-year-old's knock rescued India from deep trouble as India were struggling at 119 for 5 at one stage and ended the day at a more comfortable 266 for 6.

Pujara and Ashwin (60) shared a partnership of 97 for the unfinished seventh wicket.

Ashwin said Pujara's run-appetite was phenomenal. "He has great temperament, he is in great form and he keeps on grinding the runs and even in domestic cricket he does not get small hundreds, he gets big ones," said Ashwin, adding they knew each other from teenage.

"We have played together since 16-17 years old. We have been at the national cricket academy and all that," he said.

Ashwin, who scored his second half-century, said though his team was not out of trouble, they can put pressure on England by piling on more runs on Saturday.

"We batted pretty well to be at the position where we are. There is lot of work to be done. We are not totally out of the woods. We need gather a few more runs. The morning session will be crucial, we need to just pass the 350 mark and I think we have the game really on," Ashwin said.

The wily off-spinner also praised the strip saying it something for both the spinners and fast bowlers.

"The wicket has more bounce than Ahmedabad which was low and slow. There is enough bounce to encourage fast bowlers who can bend their backs as was shown even at the end of the day's play. It is one of the best wickets in the country and when it starts spinning, it becomes quite tough to bat on unless you get through the first 15-20 minutes," he said.

Talking about his own knock, he said he did not do anything different. Ashwin batted confidently and was even aggressive as he struck England pace spearhead James Anderson for three fours in an over with the second new ball.

"I just batted the way I know to bat. I have always batted like this. I used my feet up and down. We don't go into any Test with any particular total in mind," he explained.

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Delighted with Sachin's wicket: Panesar

MUMBAI: Delighted at dismissing Sachin Tendulkar, England left-arm spinner Monty Panesar on Friday said that out of the four wickets he took on the first day of the second Test against India, it was the wicket of the veteran batsman that he cherished the most.

"Obviously for me it has got to be the prince of India, Sachin Tendulkar. I was absolutely delighted with that," said Panesar, who pushed India on to the backfoot by sending back Virender Sehwag and Tendulkar in the space of 11 balls before the hosts fought back in the last session.

This was the third time that Panesar had dismissed Tendulkar. Previously it was at Nagpur in 2006 and at Lord's in 2007.

Panesar, who ended with the figures of four for 91 in 34 overs, said he had worked hard with England bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed to get his action right and that paid rich dividends at the Wankhede stadium on Friday.

"During the practice session I have worked quite a lot with Mushy bhai in trying to get my action right. The previous ball, I remember, I got my action slightly wrong and dropped it. The next ball, I thought, I have to make sure that I get all the process I worked with Mushy bhai right. It seemed to click," said Panesar.

"I got my action right and got my fingers nicely around the ball. These kinds of things obviously work and it came out nice. Mushy bhai has been valuable for us. He has played a lot of cricket in the subcontinent. He understands the rhythm of the game out here and he helps us -- me and Swanny (Graeme Swann) -- a lot to understand the type of cricket that Indians play out.

"And you have got to adjust to that, adjust to the conditions, to the heat, to the crowd noise. All of that comes into play when you are a spin bowler. You have to adjust to the flamboyant shots that they play and accept that and keep bowling the next ball," he added.

Panesar was confident that his team could restrict the hosts, who ended the first day at 266 for six, to 300 on Saturday morning.

"They (Ravichandran) Ashwin and (Cheteshwar) Pujara obviously built a good partnership. So what we are hoping is to restrict them to 300 tomorrow morning, and that will be good for us. That kind of partnership has obviously given the momentum to India but overall I don't think they expected us to dominate the first two sessions like that.

"I thought we struck really well out there. We, especially, applied lot of pressure early on Indian batters, it was something that the Indian team didn't expect. They won the toss and thought they would only have a few wickets down with may be 300 plus score. But we as a team put pressure on them, and having five wickets down early on is a testament on how we applied pressure to the team out there," he explained.

Stating that there was a plenty of turn in the wicket, Panesar said, "Me and Swanny both provided each other a good platform. They have already played a Ranji Trophy match there so the wicket is already been used. There is obviously turn and bounce in the wicket. They have prepared a pitch, on which a four-day match (Ranji Trophy tie between Mumbai and Railways) was played on, so they have prepared a pitch that is going to turn and bounce.

"Bowling at all these world class cricketers, I probably will need every help down in the pitch to get them out and that obviously helped me. Those are the kind of balls you need to bowl at these players to get them out. They are very good players in their own conditions."

Panesar, who was brought on to bowl his first over after just six overs of pace, said he enjoyed bowling with a hard ball.

"I have got various responsibilities with the new ball and sometimes you have to do holding role, sometimes I do attacking role. I just want to do them to the best I can and try and get the best for the team out there.

"I knew there was an option where the captain may want to use me with the new ball and I was kind of prepared for that. It is something that I quite enjoy. It is something new that I have gone into but I do enjoy bowling with new ball. I have obviously had the experience in the Pakistan series in Dubai, when I bowled with the new ball," said the bowler.

The spinner, who was surprisingly omitted from the opening game that England lost in Ahmedabad, said he was certainly upset at not having played in the series opener.

"Obviously there was a slight disappointment I didn't play, but I am happy to be playing in this match. It would have been nice to play but I am delighted to be playing this one," said Panesar.

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2nd Test: Samuels, Bravo steady Windies

KHULNA: Marlon Samuels hit a defiant half-century to help the West Indies recover to 146/2 at tea on the second day of the second and final Test against Bangladesh in Khulna on Thursday.

Scorecard

An unfinished 103-run stand between Samuels (62) and Darren Bravo (41) rescued the visitors after the home side had them struggling on 43/2 in reply to Bangladesh's first innings of 387.

Paceman Rubel Hossain gave Bangladesh an early breakthrough when he had Kieran Powell caught at square leg off a short delivery. Powell, who scored a century in each innings in the first Test, managed just 13.

Off-spinner Sohag Gazi removed Chris Gayle for 25, as the left-hander's attempted sweep was well caught by wicket-keeper Mushfiqur Rahim down the leg side.

But Samuels has so far hit eight fours and a six in his 18th Test fifty, on a pitch which has yet to offer the bowlers any help.

Earlier, Bangladesh added 22 to their overnight score of 365/8.

Abul Hasan, who on Wednesday became only the second man in 135 years of Test cricket to score a debut hundred while batting at number ten, was last man out.

The 20-year-old left-hander hit 14 boundaries and three sixes during his 163-ball knock before being caught in the slips off a short Fidel Edwards' delivery.

Mohammad Mahmudullah was dismissed in the third over of the day when he gave Darren Sammy a return catch after scoring a solid 76.

He had helped Hasan add 184 runs for the ninth wicket to lift the home team from a precarious 193-8 on the first day.

Their partnership fell just 11 short of the world record ninth-wicket partnership by South African pair Mark Boucher and Pat Symcox against Pakistan in Johannesburg in 1998.

Mahmudullah hit nine boundaries during his almost three-hour stay.

Edwards was the pick of the bowlers with 6-90, his 12th five-wicket haul in Test matches. Sammy chipped in with 3-74.

The West Indies lead the two-Test series 1-0 after their 77-run win in the first Test in Dhaka.

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Clarke marches on as Aus pummel SA

MUMBAI: Australian captain Michael Clarke scored his second successive double century and Mike Hussey added a second century in successive innings against the Proteas Castle Lager squad to lead the home side to an extraordinary total of 482-5 on a record-breaking first day of the second Test, at the Adelaide Oval, on Thursday.

Scorecard

Clarke became the first player in the history of the game to record four double centuries in a calendar year and finished unbeaten on 224 from 239 balls with 39 fours and a six. Hussey's 18th Test century finished on 103 from just 137 balls when Dale Steyn bowled him with the final ball of the day.

The day followed an eerily similar pattern to Australia's innings in the first Test at the Gabba almost two weeks ago when three quick wickets were followed up with a century from an opening batsman and two more from Clarke and Hussey.

The only difference this time was the ferocity of David Warner's century compared to the more measured three figures from partner Ed Cowan in the first Test.

Warner backed his natural, attacking game despite the fall of three wickets in the space of 15 balls which reduced the home side from 43 without loss to 55-3.

Cowan (10) departed to a Jacques Kallis return catch, Rob Quiney (0) edged Morne Morkel to Graeme Smith at slip and Kallis struck a second time when Ricky Ponting (4) was bowled with his third ball.

But the day soured rapidly for the tourists from the moment Kallis left the field midway through his fourth over with a hamstring strain and Warner struck the ball with increasing ferocity to reach his third Test century from a mere 93 balls as the bowlers maintained an erratic line on both sides of the wicket.

The stocky left-hander was eventually removed for 119 courtesy of Smith's second catch at slip off Morkel but there was no respite as Hussey and Clarke relentlessly plundered runs to post the second highest first-day total in Test history, just short of the 494-6 Australia scored against South Africa in Sydney 102 years ago.

It was also the first time three players have scored centuries on the opening day of a Test match.

South Africa's hopes of remaining a competitive force in the Test received a further blow after the close of play when coach Gary Kirsten confirmed that Kallis was "unlikely to play any further part in the match" - although his condition will continue to be monitored.

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West Indies 241/2 at stumps on Day 2

KHULNA (Bangladesh): Marlon Samuels hit a fighting century to help the West Indies reach 241-2 at the close on the second day of the second and final Test against Bangladesh on Thursday.

Scorecard

The 31-year-old Jamaican was 109 not out and added 198 runs for the unfinished third wicket stand with Darren Bravo (85 not out) to help the tourists recover from the early loss of the openers at Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium.

The tourists, who lead the series 1-0 after winning the first Test in Dhaka by 77 runs, are now 146 behind Bangladesh's first innings total of 387.

Samuels, a star in West Indies's World Twenty20 triumph in Sri Lanka last month, drove spinner Shakib Al Hasan towards cover for his 11th boundary to complete his fifth Test hundred -- and his third this year.

By the end of play he had hit 13 boundaries and a six during his 231-ball resistance-filled knock after Kieran Powell (13) and Chris Gayle (25) were dismissed in the pre-lunch session.

Bravo, who hit seven boundaries during his sedate 197-ball knock, helped Samuels set a new record for third wicket against Bangladesh, beating the 179-run stand between Brian Lara and Ramnaresh Sarwan at Kingston in 2004.

Powell, who scored a century in each innings in the first Test, was caught at square-leg off a short delivery from paceman Rubel Hossain, while Gayle was well caught by wicket-keeper Mushfiqur Rahim off spinner Sohag Gazi.

Earlier, Bangladesh added 22 to their overnight score of 365-8.

Abul Hasan, who on Wednesday became only the second man in 135 years of Test cricket to score a debut hundred while batting at number 10, was last man out.

The 20-year-old left-hander hit 14 boundaries and three sixes during his 163-ball knock before being caught in the slips off a short Fidel Edwards delivery.

He fell just four short of equalling the highest ever individual score by a number 10 batsman set by Walter Read for England against Australia at The Oval in 1884.

Mohammad Mahmudullah was dismissed in the third over of the day when he gave Darren Sammy a return catch after scoring a solid 76.

He had helped Hasan add 184 runs for the ninth wicket to lift the home team from a precarious 193-8 on the first day.

Their partnership fell just 11 short of the world record ninth-wicket partnership by South African pair Mark Boucher and Pat Symcox against Pakistan in Johannesburg in 1998.

Mahmudullah hit nine boundaries during his almost three-hour stay.

Edwards was the pick of the bowlers with 6-90, his 12th five-wicket haul in Test matches. Sammy chipped in with 3-74.

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'Dhoni's demand for turner is mindgame'

MUMBAI: Australian spin legend Shane Warne reckons Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni's demand for turning tracks in the ongoing Test series against England is merely a ploy to create doubts in the minds of visiting batsmen.

"You know it's a red soil. You know it is going to spin. I don't like captain specifically asking for it. Asking the curator if we can have a big spin. I don't think you should be asking for it. We know it is going to spin.

I think he is playing a few mind games with England batsmen," Warne said.

"I think the groundsman will prepare whatever wicket he wants to prepare. I am sure Dhoni hasn't even spoken.

He just put some doubts in the English batsmen's mind that we are getting huge turning wicket. But I am sure the pitch will be just the same. It is just mind games," the legendary spinner said.

Warne's comments came in the wake of Dhoni's explicit demand for turning tracks after a nine-wicket win over England in the opening Test in Ahmedabad.

The flamboyant Aussie said he does not approve of captains asking for specific pitches as it's a job best left to groundsmen.

"I don't think the captain should be asking. It should be upto the groundsmen. the groundsmen will take pride in producing the best Test wicket.

And both teams will then have a look at the wicket and work out the team combination and work out whether they want to bat or bowl first.

"There is a contest between the bat and the ball. I don't think anyone is interested in flat wickets with 700 runs. It's boring. But in India you have to expect turning wickets," he said.

Warne said the host team is likely to win the series and toss would be crucial to England's chances.

"I think the toss will be really important in this Test match for England more than India. If England can win the toss and bat when conditions are at their best and post some big score, that will help their confidence.

"If they lose the toss and India score big in the first innings, then they will have the wickets turning and it will be hard work. The toss I think will be super important in this Test match," Warne said.

"I think India will win the series. What the scoreline will be? I need to see three more Test matches. But I think India will win (the series)," he added.

Warne said the visitors need to adapt to the conditions as the wickets here are different from elsewhere.

"Playing spin in India is completely different from playing spin in any other country. The way how it comes onto the pitch slowly. It took us a while to play here.

I think you will see improvement in England with this test match," he said.

"England obviously struggle against spin. They have got some players who can play spin but as a group they have struggled. We saw that against Pakistan, we saw against India in the first test match.

England do struggle but now they have to come out now and show their character. Otherwise anywhere they go, they are going to struggle against spinners," he added.

He also defended South African-born English batsman Kevin Pietersen, who did not impress much in the opening Test. "Kevin Pietersen plays spin pretty well. But some one is going to get you out.

He bats in the middle order, so spinners are generally going to get him out. I think he is one of the most dangerous batsmen in the world. I don't think he has a problem with the spin," he said.

Warne praised the Indian spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha.

"I think Ashwin's flight, his variations, his consistency, his accuracy is very good. Ojha gets a good turn on the ball. I thought he was pacing ball slow and traditional left arm spin was nice to see.

I always thought the best combination was to get one bowler bowling off spin and the other bowling leg spin."

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Pepsi bags IPL title sponsorship rights

MUMBAI: Soft drink giants Pepsi pipped leading telecom communications provider Bharti Airtel to become the new title sponsors of the Indian Premier League with a whopping winning bid of Rs 396.8 crores for the next five seasons, starting 2013.

Airtel had offered Rs 316 crores, in the bid for the title sponsorship of the Twenty20 tournament, owned by the Indian Cricket Board (BCCI).

Farooq Abdullah, the chairman of the BCCI's marketing committee, announced that the rights had been won by PepsiCo over the next five seasons.

"The BCCI is very pleased to welcome PepsiCo as a central partner of the IPL. The value of the winning bid reflects the growth and success of the IPL," Abdullah said.

The bids were opened in front of the representatives of the only firms which took part in the process though four other parties had bought the Tender to Invitation from the Board, said IPL governing council chairman Rajeev Shukla.

Shukla said that the title-sponsorship contract was for a five-year period and will end in 2017.

Realty firm DLF ended its five-year-long association with the IPL as the title sponsor in August and the BCCI floated the tenders last month. DLF paid Rs 200 crore for the five year period of 2008-12.

"PepsiCo's bid is double of the Rs 200 crore paid by DLF in the first five seasons of the IPL. It is almost double than what DLF were giving us. DLF were giving 40 crores per year and Pepsi will be giving us on an average 79 crores per year," he said.

"So far our records of selling various properties of IPL has been very good. We have doubled, tripled or quadrupled the amount while selling some of the properties," Shukla said, adding that the fact that the bid by Pepsi was double that of DLF shows the grand success of IPL.

"PepsiCo are one of the largest sponsors in world sport and we look forward to working with them over the next seasons," he added.

Deepika Warrier, the executive director marketing of Pepsico Beverages, said she was happy that the company has reaffirmed its commitment to cricket.

"We have been associated with cricket for the last 20 years. The IPL is a tremendous product. It is a brand which rivals any other sporting brand across the world," she said.

"I think it's an absolutely game changing format. The kind of eyeballs, interest and viewership that the IPL gets in India and across the world is of great interest to us.

"We are very happy with the kind of investment and are confident of getting returns from our investment we are making in the IPL and in cricket in India over the next five years.

"The deal is the reaffirmation of Pepsi foods in India as a market and it's also our absolute commitment to cricket. Together with BCCI, we will take cricket to greater heights in India. It's a leadership stance from Brand Pepsi," she added.

The title sponsor rights include a number of branding and other marketing benefits to be received by the title sponsor at every IPL match during the season as specifically outlined in the Invitation to Tender.

The BCCI had made it clear in its tender notice that the companies which intend to sell off the rights after winning the bid are ineligible to apply in the first place.

Only corporate entities, whether in India or abroad, which are interested in placing a bid for themselves and/or their holding or subsidiary company(ies), for the purpose of the advertisement and promotion of their own brands within their primary product or services categories were eligible to participate in this tender process and to submit bids.

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Navjot Sidhu takes dig at Steve Waugh

NEW DELHI: Former India cricketer turned commentator Navjot Singh Sidhu on Wednesday came down heavily on ex-Australia skipper Steve Waugh, who criticised India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni for demanding tracks that turn from the very first day.

"Ask Steve Waugh whether the Indian team gets a turning track when we visit Perth?," asked Sidhu.

"Does Waugh wants that we gift the Test series to England? The track will be same for both teams," he added.

Sidhu also said that the hosts, in order to win the Test series 4-0, should go for the turning tracks.

"We are not here to give comfort to the English side. We would like to win this series. When we go to England, do they make tracks that offer turn? It is important for India to win this series," Sidhu said.

Dhoni, after winning the first Test against England at Ahmedabad, expressed his displeasure at the Motera wicket and said that "We wanted the curators to prepare the pitches that will turn from day one."

The second Test in Mumbai is scheduled to start from Friday where ball is expected to turn a lot and Sidhu suggested the Indian team go to with an extra spinner in Harbhajan Singh, in addition to Ravichandran Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha.

"I have been saying since day that their strength is swing and ours is spin. More the number of spinners, better it is. If we play Harbhajan in Mumbai, then England will feel psychologically bogged down," he concluded.

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