Stars, biz houses for OPL innings

The Indian Premier League (IPL) has spawned off its first clone in the country. The championship,which revolutionized the business of cricket, has inspired film stars and corporate houses in the state to launch their own version of the IPL — the Orissa Premier League (OPL). The state-level league is taking a leaf right out of the IPL and is all set to become a starstudded affair. The IPL,which has movie stars like Shahrukh Khan, Priety Zinta, Shilpa Shetty and business biggies like Mukesh Ambani and Vijay Mallya bidding for players, purchasing them and rooting for their teams all through the tournament, gained huge popularity due to its high glamour quotient. The OPL, on the same lines, has many Oriya actors, corporate houses, Page 3 celebrities and educational institutions queuing up to buy teams. The inaugural season of the tournament will be held between May 22 and June 5.

Ollywood stars Anubhav Mohanty, Sritam Das and many corporate houses in the state are padding up to bid for their own teams. Anubhav revealed that he is in talks with Orissa Cricket Association (OCA) officials regarding the modalities of buying a team. "I have been a cricketer myself and, like most other Indians, I just love the game. The OPL is a brilliant idea as it will provide a good platform to many budding cricketers in the state. I am keenly considering the proposal of buying a team," said Anubhav. The Olly star, however, did not divulge which team he would bid for. "I am a true-blue Oriya and every place in the state holds equal importance for me," he added. Orissa Cricket Association secretary Asirbad Behera, meanwhile, stated that many corporate houses and actors have expressed their interest in purchasing teams in the OPL, but he declined to divulge any details. "Many Ollywood stars and business firms have already started approaching us to buy teams. They are inquiring about the terms and conditions of owning a team in the OPL. The response towards the OPL has been overwhelming," said Behera.

The tournament will be played between eight teams, which will be shortlisted from 13 teams fixed by the OCA.The earmarked 13 teams are: Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, Rourkela, Berhampur, Sambalpur,Augul, Keonjhar, Jharsuguda, Puri, Kendrapara, Dhenkanal, Jajpur and Balasore. Submission of bids by aspiring franchise owners will start on May 3 and close on May 9. Bids will be opened on May 9. The players will be auctioned on May 13 and the entire auction will be telecast live on a television channel. The OCA has fixed a base price of Rs 4 lakh for any franchise to own a team. It has prepared a gradation list of the top 100 cricketers of Orissa.

The base price for a grade A player has been fixed at Rs 50,000,while for a grade B player, it stands at Rs 30,000. A grade C player's base price is Rs 20,000; Rs 10,000 for a grade D player; for a grade E player, the price is fixed at Rs 5,000. The OPL will kick off on May 22nd and will continue till June 5. A total of 27 matches will be played in the tournament including the final.The winning team will get a cash prize of Rs 3 lakh,while the runners-up will be awarded Rs 2 lakh.

Sports stars denies AV in battle of level playing fields

FORMER Yorkshire and England bowler Darren Gough is among a string of sporting celebrities who have given their backing to the “No” campaign.

Ex-Olympic rower Alex Story, who stood for the Conservatives in Wakefield in last year’s general election, was another of the 13 sportsmen and women urging people to vote No, along with former England cricket captain David Gower, double Olympic champion rower James Cracknell, Formula One team boss Sir Frank Williams, former England cricket captain David Gower and this year’s Cheltenham Gold Cup winning jockey Sam Waley-Cohen.

Tory-supporting Gough said: “I talk sport every single day, four till seven, so I know a level playing field when I see it. In cricket, you’re either in or out.

“So when I played cricket for England, when I was given out, I had to walk, I had to go. You didn’t get a second chance, so why should it be any different in politics? In cricket, we have what they call the corridor of uncertainty, and if you vote yes to AV, that’s exactly what you’re getting, but in politics.”

Mr Story said: “I, like most people, want clarity. In politics, the more opaque the system, the more the politicians win, and the more the people lose. I went to the Olympic Games and I lost, but my time as an athlete was not wasted. I took part, I’m still very proud of it, and our political system must reflect the same thing: there has to be a winner, there has to be a loser.”

Yesterday Billy Bragg was among campaigners backing the “Yes” campaign at the launch of a national advertising campaign seizing on British National Party leader Nick Griffin’s support for the current first-past-the-post system.