South Africa - Venue For the Indian Premier League Cricket (IPL) Tournament

First played at county level in England during 2003, Twenty20 is the latest version of the ancient English game of cricket. An innings consists of 20 overs and bowlers can only bowl a maximum of four overs each. The action packed game lasts three hours and is shorter than a baseball game.

Fears for the safety of players in India has presented cricket fans in South Africa with a golden opportunity. The second series of the Indian Premier League Cricket tournament will be played in SA from 18 April - 23 May 2009 and the economy could be improved by a much needed R 100 million, according to economists. An estimated 400 players and Indian officials visiting SA for five weeks will inject about R 12 million into hotel turnover, and that's not counting the numerous fans who will travel from India to support their teams. Around 30 000 hotel rooms will be occupied during the 59 matches while domestic flight between the host cities will probably be overbooked. South Africa will be one of the few countries where tourism is not in the doldrums in 2009.

Together with the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup which kicks off in SA in mid-June this year, the IPL Cricket constitutes a fantastic dress rehearsal for the FIFA 2010 World Cup. It gives South Africans an opportunity to test the accommodation arrangements, airports, public transport as well as the often criticized safety and security aspects of hosting such large sports events. But IPL's Lalit Modi said that the Indians had complete confidence in the security situation in SA. England was considered as a possible venue but its unpredictable weather made South Africa the obvious choice. The SA public loves cricket and SA hosted the first Pro20 World Cup successfully, which counted in South Africa's favor.

The matches in SA will be spread over six venues countrywide with the opening match scheduled for Newlands in Cape Town. Ticket prices will be extremely affordable with the most expensive tickets costing around R 220.

All said this tournament promises to be a cricket bonanza for local and international fans alike.

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Michael Owen Out of 2010 Soccer World Cup in South Africa!

Imagine that you are a talented football player but struggling to retain your place in the national football team. You find out there is a football match coming up where you will be playing and the coach of the national football team will be watching you from the stands! What better opportunity can you ask for?

Well, you cannot ask for a better chance to impress the coach than that. The Manchester United striker Michael Owen had a similar chance the other night against Wolfsburg in Manchester United's champions league fixture. And though it was the best chance to impress the coach,Michael Owen had a disastrous time in the field. He was seen limping off the ground in front of Fabio Capello, the English National team's coach. This happened when Owen had been on the field for only 20 minutes.

Manchester United's coach Alex Fergusan blamed the wet surface for Owen's injury. He also revealed that that Michael Owen had suffered a slight groin injury after training for the UEFA champions league fixture on Sunday. He pointed out that even though these things happen to footballers and he was not really worried about it, the injury would still keep Owen out for two to three weeks. He will therefore miss Manchester United's English Premier League fixtures against Bolton and Sunderland.

The most worrying part of the whole Owen episode is that Owen will be unable to take part in England's World Cup qualifiers against Ukraine and Belarus. Many fear this will mean that Owen might not become a part of Capello's plans for the World Cup in South Africa next summer.

This is not only frustrating for Michael Owen, but also for his fans who thought the striker would find his old flair after arriving at Manchester United's Old Trafford Stadium. The future doesn't look good for Michael Owen. The most frustrating part of this all is that Michael can only wait and see how his fate is decided.

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