Indians ready for Twenty-20 Party....

"Well done Tendulkar, you are a youngster," complimented Virender Sehwag as the 34-year-old sprinted across, bent down to field the ball with just one hand and brought about a flat throw.
One can sense that liveliness in this batch, that extra zest, those little jokes against each other, those huge peals of laughter; the serious men have all left and the boys are all having a big party. This is India's one-day team, a unit of all youngsters geared in blue, and Tendulkar- with all his child-like enthusiasm for the game, and in his ability to pull a fast one still intact- fits in very neatly.
The Indian team arrived in Melbourne today afternoon with Harbhajan Singh being 'protected' by policeman on his way out of the airport-the Indian team management denied any extra security requests and soon after arrival, rushed for practice.
There has been enough off-field drama and Mahendra Singh Dhoni would want his boys to concentrate completely on cricket now. All 14 except Munaf Patel and Ishant Sharma were there. Munaf has yet to arrive from India after replacing injured RP Singh, and fast bowler Ishant Sharma was given a day off from practice.
It's nice and cool here in Melbourne. But dark clouds are hovering and there is possibility of light showers through the evening. Team India sweated it out in a prolonged and concentrated fielding session that followed the light nets.
On Friday night, a 90,000 sell-out crowd is expected to watch the Twenty20 match between T20 world champions India and one-day champions Australia at the MCG-interestingly, in this format India have a reputation to live up to while Australia come with a point to prove.
Tendulkar though, looks unlikely to make his Twenty20 debut yet-there are indications that Tendulkar might opt out of the shortest version of the game, take a break and keep himself fresh for the ODI tri-series while the team goes back to its original T20 batting order of opening with Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir with Robin Uthappa at number three.
However, there can be a change in that, especially since Yuvraj Singh has been ruled out after failing to recover in time for the T20 fixture, leaving the No. 4 spot vacant in the batting line-up.
Dinesh Kaarthick, India's first Man of the Match in this format, is also a prime contender to fill in for Yuvraj. The Indian vice-captain, who trained lightly with the team before consulting a knee specialist here today along with physio John Gloster, has been declared available before the second ODI.
Harbhajan Singh, relieved at being freed of racial charges, looked calm, despite the local media hitting out at his acquittal, and was ignorant of what Justice John Hansen had said in his findings. The off-spinner, however denied there was any celebration. "Why celebrate? We haven't won the series. I am happy that's it," he said.
There are reports that Harbhajan Singh would be spoken to by BCCI officials to keep his behaviour and on-field conduct appropriate, but the team management denied knowledge of that.

SRK says no to minister's plea!....

Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss' appeal to movie stars not to smoke on screen as it encourages the youth to pick up the cancerous habit has been rejected by superstar Shah Rukh Khan.
Ramadoss recently appealed to matinee idols Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan to stop smoking in movies. However, King Khan Sunday rejected the appeal, saying cinema was all about creative freedom and it should not be curbed by censorships.
'I think there is a huge amount of creative freedom and in the field of art and cinema we should be allowed that. One should not go around picking on little things - because that's just cinema, its make believe and we should not have huge censorship on that,' Shah Rukh was quoted as saying.
'I wish Ramadoss prays that I stop smoking in real life because that's worse. In movies, we just do it for make-believe,' Shah Rukh added.
But the health minister begs to differ. 'The movies are most responsible (for encouraging smoking). When I said movies should not have smoking scenes, we have statistics to show that 52 percent of children have their first puff of a cigarette because of movie celebrities,' the minister told a private news channel.
He was also critical of Shah Rukh for smoking at a cricket match.
Sources close to the actor say he is an incorrigible smoker. The 'Chak De! India' star says those who want him to stop smoking will have to make smoking illegal so that he can be penalised.
'Tell me how many people you have sued in the last two years for smoking in public. I would like to know the number. I feel very bad that I am an icon for the youth and I have a bad habit,' Shah Rukh said.
'I would like to tell people not to do it, but having said that, it is my life, if you want me to change it then make it illegal. I don't do drugs; I don't drink, I don't run red lights; I don't do anything that is illegal,' the actor told a newspaper last year before his birthday.

Aussies are fuming for letting Bhajji off the hook!...

Cricket Australia bore scathing attack from its furious players and local media for bowing down to the BCCI's "money power" and letting Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh off the hook with minimal punishment.
The ICC-appointed appeals commissioner John Hansen on Tuesday overturned the charge of racial abuse against Harbhajan but held the Indian guilty of using offensive language against Australia's Andrew Symonds.
"The thing that pisses us off is that it shows how much power India has. The Aussie guys aren't going to make it up. The players are frustrated because this shows how much influence India has, because of the wealth they generate.
Money talks," an unnamed Australian player was quoted as saying by the Sydney Morning Herald.
The BCCI had on Tuesday threatened to pull out of the tri-series if the racial abuse charge levelled by Symonds on the Indian spinner during the Sydney Test were not withdrawn.
'Cricket's Day of Shame' cried a headline in the paper and the report said the players were dismayed to hear "Harbhajan had avoided any meaningful punishment".
The report also said that CA caved in to India's muscle flexing as it was anxious to save the tri-series because it feared to be sued for a figure understood to be about $60 million if India quit the tour.
India's broadcast partner, ESPN, owns the lucrative contract to beam cricket from Australia into the subcontinent.
The report claimed that CA told the cricketers that "if ESPN sued successfully, it could take 10 years to recoup the losses."
The Australian also said "the players wanted Harbhajan convicted of something because he had allegedly broken his word, lied and twice called Symonds a "monkey".
"When the offer for Harbhajan to apologise in return for the lesser charge was made to the BCCI it was rejected out of hand."
"Billionaire superpower of world cricket threatened for the second time in a month to go home if it didn't get its way, while its players refused to continue with the tour and remained in the luxury team hotel in Adelaide.
"The Indians also held the tour to ransom by pulling the same stunt after the Sydney Test, when Harbhajan was convicted," the report in The Australian said.
Another leading newspaper The Daily Telegraph said "India executed an astonishing political power-play when they achieved a courtroom compromise in the Harbhajan Singh race row in Adelaide".

Aamir Khan is Vadivelu’s fan!

“I don’t have fan clubs. Each and every family is my fan club. Their ration card is the ID card of the fan club”, says Vadivelu, who enjoys being the most lovable comedian of our times.
Vadivelu, who met the media persons in a press meet organised on January 28, informed the reporters about his new fan. It is none other than Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan.
The distinctive actor has the habit of relaxing himself amidst hectic work schedule by viewing Vadivelu’s comedy scenes. Mind you, Aamir doesn’t know Tamil but that doesn’t prevent him from enjoying the amazing facial expressions and hilarious body language of the comedian. Aamir Khan has shared this information to Murugadas, who directs his Gajini in Hindi.
Even censor board members have become his fans. The officers, after seeing his ‘Indiralogathil Na Azhagappan’ have appreciated him for his awesome performance in three different roles in the film. The film has been given U certification.
The leading comedy actor is quite excited about his forthcoming film ‘Indiralogathil Na Azhagappan’ that is to be released on February 1. He is confident that the people would appreciate his and the team’s hard work.