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DARYL'S DIARY | UMPCAM | CROWCAM | ASK A QUESTION WHO'S THIS? | STATISTICS | CONTACT | LINKS | HEADS & TALES | HOME |
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Photos available at UMPCAM Can I answer your question? Go to ASK A QUESTION NORMAL SERVICE IS RESUMED Sunday, 14th March 2010 CHENNAI, INDIA Greetings from the third Indian Premier League...IPL 2010. I am in Chennai about to officiate later this evening in the fifth game of this series...in a match between the Super Kings and the Deccan Chargers. The first three games have been concluded with plenty of action, excitement and thrills. Yousuf Pathan smashed one of the most exciting centuries ever seen in any cricket format...and that includes in the backyard at mum's. Last night in Mumbai he took only 37 balls to reach three figures with eight big hits into the crowd, and another nine strokes reaching the fence. He surpassed the IPL record of 42 deliveries taken by Adam Gilchrist for Hyderabad, also against Mumbai in 2008. This innings was breath-taking but was in vain. His Rajasthan Royals team mates needed six runs from the final delivery and Lasith Malinga wasn't about to be slogged out of the park with his final delivery. The Indian Premier League has returned to Indian soil after a late transfer to South Africa in 2009. It appeared to be highly successful in South Africa but the crowd involvement here has to be heard to be believed. These spectators ride on every delivery and love to express their delight and sometimes their disappointment. When one of the icon players is dismissed in front of his home crowd, the silence is deafening. It's exactly the opposite if the same icon player is dismissed when playing away. It doesn't matter if he is Indian or an imported star, the locals support the local team with a passion. I was most interested to examine Matthew Hayden's new bat at the Chepauk Stadium yesterday. It has a much longer handle and shorter blade. Obviously it conforms to the legal requirements but it will be intriguing to see how it performs. If he isn't successful with it, he might consider using it for Dragon Boat Racing. It looks more like an oar than a cricket bat!
Examining Matthew Hayden's Dragon Boat oar at Chepauk Stadium... It's chai time with old mate Hariharan Krishna who debuted in Tests at Lord's with me in 2005...
It's a pleasure for the umpires to be invited back to India for the third series. I have been most fortunate to be involved in all three and last October I also enjoyed the Champions League. On that occasion, the New South Wales Blues, inspirationally led with bat and ball by King's XI Punjab's Brett Lee won the inaugural final when they defeated the previously unbeaten Trinidad and Tobago team. Cheers Daryl [Old snaps ..][New diary Entries Here...] COMING UP
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