31.01.10 / Cricket / Author: timepasss / Comments: (0)
NAGPUR: The South African cricket team
arrived on Sunday for a two-day practice match followed by the first Test of the
two-match series against India.
The Proteas, who arrived in the wee
hours in Mumbai, reached here by a morning flight and were accommodated in a
luxury Hotel on busy Wardha road.
The visitors will commence their
short tour with a two-day warm-up game beginning February 2 against the Board
President’s XI led by Mumbai middle-order batsman Rohit Sharma.
This
would be followed by two Tests – Nagpur (February 6-10) and Kolkata (February
14-18) – and three One-dayers in Jaipur (February 21), Kanpur (February 24) and
Ahmedabad (February 27).
While the practice match would be held at
old Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) stadium, the Test will be held at VCA’s
new stadium in Jamtha, about 15 kms from Nagpur.
The Graeme Smith-led
squad will have net practise on Monday followed by a press briefing in the
evening.
They are likely to turn up at the old VCA stadium later on
Sunday for some practice.
The Proteas have come here after
controversies over the resignation of coach Mickey Arthur and sacking of
selection panel headed by Mike Procter.
Former South African fast
bowler Corrie van Zyl has taken over as the interim coach.
SQUAD:
Graeme Smith (Capt), Hashim Amla, Johan Botha, Mark Boucher (wk), AB de
Villiers, JP Duminy, Paul Harris, Jacques Kallis, Ryan McLaren, Morne Morkel,
Wayne Parnell, Alviro Petersen, Ashwell Prince, Dale Steyn, Lonwabo Tsotsobe.
Coach: Corrie van Zyl.
30.01.10 / Bollywood / Author: timepasss / Comments: (0)
Director Vivek Agnihotri, who is best known for his ‘mysterious-than- thou’ kind of suspense film Chocolate, and also India’s first ever football-centric film Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal (which was also his last release), has been ‘out of the picture’ for quite sometime now. Well, the good news is that the man is back with his next film, a biopic titled Freedom. And the news is that he has signed R. Madhavan as the main lead for the film.
While Maddy, who is on a roll after the immense success of 3 Idiots, remained unavailable for comment, Vivek Agnihotri told Bollywood Hungama, “Yes, I have signed Madhavan for my next film titled Freedom. And I am planning to approach yet another southern superstar Mohanlal.”
Meanwhile, Vivek is also planning a film titled 12. Says Vivek, “12 is a film that will be based on the famous Hollywood classic ’12 Angry Men’. And I am scouting for 12 talented actors from all across the country. I am planning to announce the film officially in the month of March.”
30.01.10 / Bollywood / Author: timepasss / Comments: (0)
After being awarded the Padma Shree honour by the Government of India, Saif Ali Khan is on cloud nine. The suave actor now wants to strengthen his presence and foothold in the industry and has appointed leading talent management firm, ‘Carving Dreams’ to manage his brand and all his other business interests
Commenting on this move, Saif Ali Khan says, “Carving Dreams has earned a tremendous reputation in the industry and given their expertise & strong credentials, I am confident that the association will prove to be a fruitful one. I look forward to working with them.”
Meanwhile Afsar Zaidi (CEO of Carving Dreams) also seemed delighted with this association and said, “We are fully geared to manage this responsibility and as a group, we are committed to extend the scope of celebrity management in this country. We look forward to this partnership with Saif Ali Khan.”
30.01.10 / News / Author: timepasss / Comments: (0)
The body of a former truck driver’s assistant who won $17m in a lottery in 2006 has been found buried under a concrete slab in a backyard in Florida.
Abraham Shakespeare, who was barely literate, went missing nine months ago after complaining of being exploited by hangers-on who tried to take his money.
His body was found on Friday behind a home belonging to the boyfriend of a woman who befriended him in 2007.
Police believe he was murdered, but have not yet arrested anyone.
Hillsborough County sheriff’s detectives used fingerprints to identify Mr Shakespeare’s body, which they found covered by a concrete slab in a backyard in Plant City.
Police do not yet know how he died, but they believe the woman, named Dorice Donegan “Dee-Dee” Moore, may be able to shed light on what happened.
‘Better off broke’
A tip-off led detectives to the grave behind the home of Ms Moore’s boyfriend Shar Krasniqi.
Mr Shakespeare bought the winning ticket at a store in the town of Frostproof but his brother, Robert Brown, said he often wished he had never won.
“‘I’d have been better off broke.’ He said that to me all the time,” Mr Brown said.
Samuel Jones, a childhood friend of Mr Shakespeare’s, said: “He really didn’t understand it at all. It was moving so fast. It changed his life in a bad way.”
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When he won the lottery, he forgot about being saved
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Mr Jones said his friend would tell him: “I thought all these people were my friends, but then I realised all they want is just money.”
Among the new acquaintances was Ms Moore.
Property records show her company, American Medical Professionals, bought his home for $655,000 a year ago.
Not long afterward, detectives said, she helped him open a company and gave herself the ability to sign for money.
She withdrew $1m and later told detectives Mr Shakespeare gave her the cash as a gift. She bought a Hummer, a Corvette and a truck, and went on holiday.
Mr Jones said his friend lived a humble life, and just before he bought the winning ticket he joined a church and was baptised.
“When he won the lottery, he forgot about being saved,” Mr Jones said.
Mr Shakespeare’s friends and family said when he went missing, they had hoped he was on a beach somewhere in the Caribbean.
30.01.10 / News / Author: timepasss / Comments: (0)
Russia is to supply Libya with small-arms and other weapons to the value of $1.8bn (£1.1bn, 1.3bn euros), Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has announced.
The contract is worth nearly a quarter of the Russian state arms exporter’s entire sales last year, which were put at $7.4bn.
Mr Putin said the deal had been signed on Friday during a visit by the Libyan defence minister.
There was no immediate word from the Libyan side on the deal.
Abu Bakr Yunis Jaber, Libya’s defence minister, has been in Moscow for several days, meeting defence officials.
Keeping busy
Mr Putin gave no details of the arms covered by the contract. Russian media speculated earlier that it might include fighter planes.
“Yesterday a contract worth 1.3bn euros was signed,” Mr Putin announced at a meeting near Moscow with the director of the Russian small-arms manufacturer Izhmash, which makes the Kalashnikov assault rifle.
“These are not just small-arms.”
Mr Putin gave no further details. However, according to a military diplomatic source quoted earlier by Russian news agencies, the deal included fighter aircraft, tanks and a sophisticated air defence system.
Rosoboronexport, Russia’s state-owned arms export monopoly, announced on Thursday that its 2009 sales had seen a 10% increase on the previous year.
Customers included India, Algeria, China, Venezuela, Malaysia and Syria, with air force weaponry making up 50% of sales.
