New Delhi, May 18 (IANS) Gaurav Kapur, who is hosting after-match shows of the Indian Premier League (IPL), said that he was glad to see the Twenty20 matches being played to packed stadiums in South Africa.
“It was great to see that on a lot of occasions the tickets were sold out and the audience was not just Indians but scores of locals,” Gaurav said.

“Definitely the numbers there are less because a normal ground in South Africa can accommodate 14,000-20,000 people, while in India it is four times more. But the popularity is the same,” said Gaurav, who is a self-confessed cricket fan.

Gaurav said that even though the glamour quotient at this year’s tournament was less since the venue was changed, still Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan and Shilpa Shetty added spice to the show.

“Bollywood presence at the IPL this year is definitely low as compared to last year. But I think the only reason is the change of venue. However, the audience in South Africa were not disappointed and were extremely excited to see Shah Rukh and Shilpa,” Gaurav, who is back from South Africa, told IANS over phone from Mumbai.

“Whenever there used to be a Kolkata Knight Riders’ match or a Rajasthan Royals’ match, people used to go mad with excitement.”

Shah Rukh is the owner of Kolkata Knight Riders, while Shilpa is the co-owner of last season’s winner Rajasthan Royals. The inaugural edition of the IPL was held in India but the second version was shifted to South Africa as the dates clashed with the general elections in the country.

Gaurav will host the rest of the tournament from studios in Mumbai. The finals of the eight-team tournament will be played May 24.

Talking about his on-field experience, the former MTV VJ said: “My experience at the IPL was mixed. The games days were brilliant but the off days were boring since all I wanted was watch cricket all the time. No shopping, no sight seeing for me.”

Among the teams, Gaurav picks Deccan Chargers and Chennai Super Kings as his favourites.

“I like the Chennai Super Kings. I got a chance to hang around with them a little. They are really nice as people and as players. I even like the way Deccan Chargers have done a complete turn around this year. In fact, it will be great to see Chennai and Deccan playing the final.”

The actor, whose last venture “Bad Luck Govind” failed at the box-office, is also focusing on a Pritish Nandi Communication film comedy called “Salunn”.

Durban, May 20 (IANS) Defending champions Rajasthan Royals’ semifinal hopes came to an agonising end as they collapsed to a four-wicket loss to bottom-placed Kolkata Knight Riders in a low-scoring Indian Premier League (IPL) thriller here Wednesday.
Rajasthan Royals, needing a win from the last league match to stay in the semi-final race, managed only 101 runs after being put to bat.

Led by an inspiring Shane Warne, Royals fought back to reduce Knight Riders to 45 for six, before Laxmi Ratan Shukla arrested the slide with a fighting unbeaten 48. Together with Ajit Agarkar (13), he added 57 runs to register the team’s second successive and third overall win.

Knight Riders had been long out of the tournament, but turned out to be the party spoilers for Royals, who finished their campaign on 13 points.

Surprisingly, Royals, who had shown nerves of steel and pulled off tense finishes, were let down by some sloppy fielding towards the end and wasted as many as three run out opportunities.

Brendon McCullum hit Munaf Patel (2-24) for two successive fours in the first over and looked to carry the imperious touch that downed Chennai Super Kings. An off-colour Ganguly fell in Munaf’s last ball and then McCullum was out in the first ball of the second over off Amit Singh.

Royals took control of the match with some disciplined bowling and Knight Riders lost four more wickets in quick succession.

Shukla remained calm at one end to revive the innings. He played 46-balls hitting two sixes and three fours and got an able ally in Agarkar.

Royals, playing without Graeme Smith, again cracked at the top with Knight Riders churning out their best bowling performance bolstered by the inclusion of South African Charl Langeveldt (3-15), who surprisingly made his debut in their last league match.

There was high drama in the first over with Rajasthan Royals opener Naman Ojha (22) hitting Brad Hodge for three sixes to plunder 22 runs after being dropped on the second ball.

Ojha swept Hodge for a six over square leg in the first ball of the innings and skied while attempting the same stroke, only to be dropped by David Hussey. He then hit two more sixes in the same over.

Hopes of a high scoring match was soon dashed as Langeveldt dismissed Rob Quiney in the second over and then ended Ojha’s 12-ball cameo to reduce Rajasthan to 3-28.

Knight Riders got hold of the situation with some tight bowling and effected three run-outs.

Royals lost wickets in heaps and Warne’s 18 took them past the 100-mark.

Bloemfontein, May 17 (IANS) Delhi Daredevils beat Rajasthan Royals by 14 runs in an Indian Premier League (IPL) match here Sunday.
Brief scores: Delhi Daredevils 150 for three in 20 overs (AB de Villiers 79 not out, Tillakaratne Dilshan 33; Munaf Patel 2-39). Rajasthan Royals 136 for nine in 20 overs (Johan Botha 37, Ravindra Jadeja 24; Amit Mishra 3-33)

Durban, May 14 (IANS) Rajasthan Royals beat Mumbai Indians by 2 runs in a thrilling Indian Premier League (IPL) contest here Thursday.
Brief scores: Rajasthan Royals 145 for seven in 20 overs (Rob Quiney 51, Ravindra Jadeja 42; Sanath Jayasurita 2-3). Mumbai Indians 143 all out in 19.5 overs (Sachin Tendulkar 40, Abhishek Nayar 35; Shane Warne 3-24, Munaf Patel 2-22).

Centurion, May 7 (IANS) Rajasthan Royals defeated Bangalore Royal Challengers by seven wickets in the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Centurion Park here Thursday.

Brief scores: Bangalore Royal Challengers 105 all out in 20 overs (Virat Kohli 15; Amit Singh 4/19, Ravindra Jadeja 3/15). Rajasthan Royals 107/3 in 20 overs (Naman Ojha 52 not out).