Mumbai Indians Fixtures Wallpaper featuring Sachin Tendulkar

IPL Fixtures 2009

Recession..... Whats That??

Recently, the American Federal Reserve Chairman, Alan Greenspan, was hoping to extend his term, saying that, 'Where else would I get a job in this economy?'
And even with all this talk of recession, pink slips and pay cuts hovering around, the Mumbai Indians management do not seem overly concerned.

Abhishek Nayar, the Mumbai all-rounder, has been rewarded for his domestic performances with an upraisal of his IPL contract with the Indians. Nayar, who previously received approximately US$40,000, will now get $100,000.

In the four Ranji matches he played this season, Nayar scored 233 runs at an average of 58.25, which included a 99 in the Ranji Trophy final. Wasim Jaffer, the captain of the Mumbai Ranji team was quoted saying that, "He [Nayar] has earned the benefit for performing during the IPL last season"

But Nayar is not the only one who's coming out on pay day with a smile on his face. Contracts have also been upgraded for Dhawal Kulkarni, Yogesh Takawale and Rohan Raje, who also received $40,000 for 2008.

Kulkarni, who was Mumbai's leading wicket-taker in the Ranji Trophy will get $70,000 and Takawale, the Maharashtra wicketkeeper, will get $75,000. Rohan Raje, yet to make his first-class debut for Maharashtra, will receive $50,000. We think that the American Federal Reserve Chairman should seriously consider trying his hand at cricket.

Player Profile: Rahil Shaikh

Unlike most cricketers who start young, Rahil Shaikh of Young Mohamedan had only played tennis ball cricket till he turned 22. When Young Mohamedan picked him for the Kanga league, it turned out to be a dream debut. Bowling with the new ball, Rahil took a wicket with his second delivery and capped it with a five wicket haul. Rahil was fortunate to get a break immediately as his talent was noticed by the experts at the Cricket Star Series.

The six foot, four inch pacer generates good speed and was clocked at 142kmph at the competition. After his fathers demise a few years ago, Rahil had to take up the job of a supervisor at the cleaning drive being carried out at the Mithi River. Fortunately, his uncles came to his rescue and realized his cricketing potential allowing him to focus on his cricket.

Rahil Sheikh, who made his Ranji debut in late 2008 with Mumbai, put his talent out on display claiming four wickets as he ran through the Punjab
batting line-up with a devastating spell.

Meet Mumbai Indians Latest Signings

Pace the Music.

With India’s tour of New Zealand right around the corner, all this talk of the country’s miserable failure on the previous excursion in 2003 has come into the spotlight. Team India was outdone in every department of the game by the kiwis and besides a couple of performances from Sehwag there was nothing positive that could be taken away from the tour. But things are different now. We are a different squad, hounding for the “number one team in the world” spot with only two hurdles in the way. One is South Africa who is currently holding the pole position. The second, is that it remains to be seen whether this rejuvenated squad, under the leadership of Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, can cope with the speed and bounce of the wickets in New Zealand, which tortured every preceding Indian side. The pitches back home have never been speed friendly­. This is why the vast majority of sub-continental batsmen hit the wrong notes when they travel out of the tropical terrain and also the reason why most captains playing in the country opt for the additional spinner versus the paceman.

Back in Mumbai, things are stirring up as the IPL auctions have come to a close and the squad has been announced. Contrary to popular belief, the Mumbai Indians bowling line up consists largely of pace bowlers- Zaheer Khan, Lasith Malinga, Kyle Mills, Dilhara Fernando, Dwayne Bravo, Dhawal Kulkarni, the new guys – Ryan Mclaren who took a hat-trick in England’s domestic T20 final against Gloucestershire and Graham Napier whose T20 best is 3 for 13 and averages a minimal 23.86. Abhishek Nayar and Rohan Raje also turn their arms at a respectable speed. Looks like our owners really went all out in finding a replacement for veteran Shaun Pollock!

It’s tough to pin down which of these will have to sit on the bench. Zaheer will obviously lead the bowling attack. Dwayne Bravo is arguably our best all-rounder and too strong not to make it to the squad. Graham Napier, besides his bowling has scored 152 not out from 58 balls. The innings set a number of records, notably the highest individual score in a T20 innings in England, and in the domestic Twenty20 competition. Spinner- Harbhajan is also likely to start unless he gets Sreesanth singing to his tunes again and it’ll be unlikely that Abhishek Nayar is dropped after a strapping all-round performance last season and through the year. Adding to this, Surya will also bowl his usual, unfortunately leaving Malinga, Mills, Fernando, Ryan Mclaren and Kulkarni fighting for one spot. Adding to this, the team selectors are going to face the pressure of making sure that the owners’ heavy investments don’t lie latent on the bench. A rotational policy seems to be on the cards, which only a handful of teams have used successfully because the mantra has always been to stick with the winning combination so as to keep the momentum going and the spirits high. It will be interesting to see if the selectors will have to face the music when the “fat lady sings”.

Dhawal Kulkarni in Test Squad !!

Mumbai Indian Dhawal Kulkarni has earned a spot in India's test squad for the New Zealand tour starting on 25th February, 2009. A right-arm medium pacer, Kulkarni first claimed a place on the cricket firmament with his outstanding performance for the Mumbai Under-17 team in the Vijay Merchant Trophy (2005-06).

The 20-year-old came into the limelight last year with his dazzling performances in the Indian Premier League, and has consistently done well in the domestic circuit since.

In the 13 first-class matches Dhawal has played so far, he has not disappointed MI Captain Sachin Tendulkar's faith in him. He claimed 49 wickets, with an economy rate of 2.94. His figures of 5 / 76 in the second innings of the Ranji Trophy Final were a huge contribution towards Mumbai's 38th Ranji Trophy title. He was also the highest wicket taker in the Ranji Trophy season wherein he took an astounding 42 wickets. 

Player Profile - Jean-Paul Duminy

Jean-Paul Duminy, often shortened to JP Duminy, (born 14 April 1984 in Cape Town) is a South African cricketer. He is a left-handed batsman and a right-arm off spin bowler. Duminy, was raised in the Western Cape plays domestic cricket for his home team, the Cape Cobras.

Duminy is a successful batsman generally occupying the top or middle order, and a skilled fielder. He became known during the South African under-19s tour to England in 2003 and in the 2003-04 domestic season, where he averaged over 72 two years after breaking into South Africa's Western Province side. Though he bowls less frequently in One Day Internationals, he has also found success with the ball, making his One Day International debut in 2004 against Sri Lanka.

Replacing injured vice-captain Ashwell Prince, Duminy made his Test debut against Australia at the WACA in Perth on December 17, 2008, scoring 50 not out in the second innings by hitting the winning runs in the match after putting on an unbroken century partnership with AB de Villiers. His performance was lauded by numerous critics, including Peter Roebuck. In the next Test match, beginning on Boxing Day, Duminy combined with the tailenders to score his maiden Test century of 166. South Africa were more than 200 runs in arrears when they lost their seventh wicket in the first innings. In the process, he and Dale Steyn (76) put on 180 and surpassed Graeme and Peter Pollock's South African ninth wicket partnership record against Australia. South Africa ended with a 62-run lead and converted it into a nine-wicket win. This sealed the series, the first time that South Africa had won a Test series in Australia, and Australia's first home Test series loss in 16 years.

As far as the Indian Premier League is concerned, JP is slated to play for the Mumbai Indians. He was bought for a whopping $ 950,000 in the auction held in Goa on 6th February, 2009. Our Mumbai Indians Captain, Sachin Tendulkar was extremely pleased with this signing.