The Australia national women's cricket team are known as the Southern Stars.
The Southern Stars were a cricket team that featured in Kenya's short lived Sahara Elite League.
2008 squad
* Davinder Bharij (Team Manager)
* Alfred Njuguna (Coach)
* Kennedy Obuya (Capt) (Stray Lions)
* Nehemiah Odhiambo (Swamibapa)
* Rajesh Bhudia (Kanbis)
* Hiren Varaiya (Nbi Gymkhana)
* Peter Kituku (Stray Lions)
* Ashwin Prabhakar Jaffery Sports Club (although not picked for the 20-20 and One Day tournament, played in the 2 Day Contest.)
* Alpesh Bhudia (Kanbis)
* Darshit Shah (Nbi Gymkhana)
* Amit Shukla (Ruaraka)
* Ashish Bhatt (Swamibapa)
* Brijal Patel (Aga Khan)
* Jai Trivedi (MSC)
* Rajesh Varsani (Kanbis)
* Stewart Kayne (Aga Khan)
* Dharmendra Mepani (Kanbis)
* Zahir Abbas (MSC)
The 2008 Sahara Elite League
The Southern Stars made a rather poor start to the only edition of the Sahara Elite League losing all 3 of their Twenty20 matches to finish last in the four team competition .
They showed more fight in the one day competition by winning their first match against Western Chiefs . Nonetheless this proved to be a false dawn as they lost their subsequent two matches to finish bottom of that competition as well.
The Southern Stars were a cricket team that featured in Kenya's short lived Sahara Elite League.
2008 squad
* Davinder Bharij (Team Manager)
* Alfred Njuguna (Coach)
* Kennedy Obuya (Capt) (Stray Lions)
* Nehemiah Odhiambo (Swamibapa)
* Rajesh Bhudia (Kanbis)
* Hiren Varaiya (Nbi Gymkhana)
* Peter Kituku (Stray Lions)
* Ashwin Prabhakar Jaffery Sports Club (although not picked for the 20-20 and One Day tournament, played in the 2 Day Contest.)
* Alpesh Bhudia (Kanbis)
* Darshit Shah (Nbi Gymkhana)
* Amit Shukla (Ruaraka)
* Ashish Bhatt (Swamibapa)
* Brijal Patel (Aga Khan)
* Jai Trivedi (MSC)
* Rajesh Varsani (Kanbis)
* Stewart Kayne (Aga Khan)
* Dharmendra Mepani (Kanbis)
* Zahir Abbas (MSC)
The 2008 Sahara Elite League
The Southern Stars made a rather poor start to the only edition of the Sahara Elite League losing all 3 of their Twenty20 matches to finish last in the four team competition .
They showed more fight in the one day competition by winning their first match against Western Chiefs . Nonetheless this proved to be a false dawn as they lost their subsequent two matches to finish bottom of that competition as well.
Neil Blower is a British born novelist, screenwriter and poet whose debut novel Shell Shock: the Diary of Tommy Atkins was released on 1st October 2011.
Born in Salford, Manchester, Neil Blower joined the British Army in 1999 and served with the royal Tank Regiment, for five years serving in Kosiovo and in the invasion of Iraq in 2003 (Op Telic).
Due to his military service, Neil Blower developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and upon diagnosis was advised to undertake a create persuit to help cope with the symptoms of the condition. This lead to him taking up writing as a hobby which went on to Blower starting a degree in creative writing and English Literature at the Univerity of Salford.
Whilst at the University of Salford, it was also discovered that Neil Blower suffered from Dyslexia on the Autistic Spectrum.
His debut novel Shell Shock: The Diary of Tommy Atkins tells the story of a young British soldier and his struggle adjusting to civilian life, while struggling to cope with PTSD.
Neil Blower's writing has been compared to other war novelists such as Ernest Hemmingway, Pat Barker and British poets such as Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen. This is due to his ability to convey both moving and accurate portrayals of the consequences of war.
Neil Blower has also contributed seven poems to the anthology Eduring Freedom, which comemorates ten years of British involvement inside of Afghanistan.
Born in Salford, Manchester, Neil Blower joined the British Army in 1999 and served with the royal Tank Regiment, for five years serving in Kosiovo and in the invasion of Iraq in 2003 (Op Telic).
Due to his military service, Neil Blower developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and upon diagnosis was advised to undertake a create persuit to help cope with the symptoms of the condition. This lead to him taking up writing as a hobby which went on to Blower starting a degree in creative writing and English Literature at the Univerity of Salford.
Whilst at the University of Salford, it was also discovered that Neil Blower suffered from Dyslexia on the Autistic Spectrum.
His debut novel Shell Shock: The Diary of Tommy Atkins tells the story of a young British soldier and his struggle adjusting to civilian life, while struggling to cope with PTSD.
Neil Blower's writing has been compared to other war novelists such as Ernest Hemmingway, Pat Barker and British poets such as Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen. This is due to his ability to convey both moving and accurate portrayals of the consequences of war.
Neil Blower has also contributed seven poems to the anthology Eduring Freedom, which comemorates ten years of British involvement inside of Afghanistan.
Traditional Indian cricket bats are wooden bats made in India, in regions of Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab ,Haryana, Gujrat and Rajasthan. In Kashmir it is made out of willow found in northern India whereas, trees like teak and saal wood are used in making these bats in north-western region of country. Some bats made in Kashmir are of international standards and are/were used by many national players in India such as Sunil Gavaskar ,Virender Sehwag ,Yuvraj Singh,etc .Bats made in other regions are generally of lower quality and mainly used in non-professional games of cricket such as tennis ball cricket which are played in streets and neighborhoods across India.
Kashmiri Willow Bats
The willow used in making these bats was brought in by the British, who ruled India, during the 1920's. The villages nestled high in the mountains which were abundant with willow of Kashmir accounted for the majority of the world's cricket bats during 1970's when its manufacturing started. These bats are not only popular in India ,but also in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Srilanka .The cost range of these bats is from a mere Rs.500 to Rs.10000. Generally considered to be heavier than English willow bats ,these bats are preferred by players of the sub-continent who prefer the greater speed generated off these bats. Traditional methods are still used by the industry established in Kashmir, whereby bats are shaped by hand and eye measurements, combining traditional tools with modern technology.
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Kashmiri bats require constant knocking and oiling for making the bat good enough to use in a cricket match.Knocking is done so as to make the fibres of the willow blade compress together which helps the bat bear the impact of the ball. The best way is to use an old ball or bat mallet. Constant knocking for six hours is required so that the edges of the bat are well shaped. Another major aspect of taking care of such bats is Oiling .Oil is applied on the back, toe , front and edges of the bat to make it more durable and the fibers get knitted properly.Some of the disticts were these bats are made in Kashmir are as follows :
*Anantnag
*Baramula
*Pahalgam.
Few of the companies that produce Kashmiri Bats are as follows:
* Sareen sports Industries
* SG Cricket
* BDM Cricket bats
* Syndicate Sports Goods
Problems of Bat Industry in Kashmir
The bat industry these days in Kashmir is facing a number of problems and are losing their market shares not only in India ,but internationally. The constant competition from the English Willow and Kookaburra bats, which are used by many international players such as Ricky Ponting, are proving to be tough competition for Indian made bats. For the time being, Kookaburra bats are withdrawn from the market, but still continue to pose a treat to the Kashmiri Bat industry.Kashmiri willow is also regarded to be of inferior quality to English willow bats as it is considered to be of lesser quality in terms of grain quality and structure.
Another major problem is that of terrorism and constant unrest in the Kashmir valley which is causing losses in the region of Rs.30 crore to the industry .The hub of bat manufacturing is done around the seven villages—Charsoo, Hallmullaha, Bijbehara, Sangam, Sethar, Pujteng and Mirzapor in the South Kashmir, are the ones who have been badly hit .
The bat factories located in the villages ,which, according to traders, used to make nearly five lakh bats per year have been torn apart by turmoils.
A new ray of hope was seen for this industry during the IPL seasons. The emergence of Indian Premier League is proving to be a positive effect on the cricket bat manufacturing industry in Kashmir. Also during the the Cricket World Cup 2011, the sales figures of these bats rose from 15% to 18%
Other Areas and bats
Generally bats in other parts of country are made from the local wood found in the areas. These bats are of low quality and do not require as much care or knocking. These bats are made by local bat-makers,and sell them at a price range of Rs.200-300. One such establishment of bat-makers are from Gandhinagar, who migrate during the summer to different parts of the nation. They can even be seen selling the new mongoose cricket bats and are preferred by casual players of the game.
Kashmiri Willow Bats
The willow used in making these bats was brought in by the British, who ruled India, during the 1920's. The villages nestled high in the mountains which were abundant with willow of Kashmir accounted for the majority of the world's cricket bats during 1970's when its manufacturing started. These bats are not only popular in India ,but also in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Srilanka .The cost range of these bats is from a mere Rs.500 to Rs.10000. Generally considered to be heavier than English willow bats ,these bats are preferred by players of the sub-continent who prefer the greater speed generated off these bats. Traditional methods are still used by the industry established in Kashmir, whereby bats are shaped by hand and eye measurements, combining traditional tools with modern technology.
.
Kashmiri bats require constant knocking and oiling for making the bat good enough to use in a cricket match.Knocking is done so as to make the fibres of the willow blade compress together which helps the bat bear the impact of the ball. The best way is to use an old ball or bat mallet. Constant knocking for six hours is required so that the edges of the bat are well shaped. Another major aspect of taking care of such bats is Oiling .Oil is applied on the back, toe , front and edges of the bat to make it more durable and the fibers get knitted properly.Some of the disticts were these bats are made in Kashmir are as follows :
*Anantnag
*Baramula
*Pahalgam.
Few of the companies that produce Kashmiri Bats are as follows:
* Sareen sports Industries
* SG Cricket
* BDM Cricket bats
* Syndicate Sports Goods
Problems of Bat Industry in Kashmir
The bat industry these days in Kashmir is facing a number of problems and are losing their market shares not only in India ,but internationally. The constant competition from the English Willow and Kookaburra bats, which are used by many international players such as Ricky Ponting, are proving to be tough competition for Indian made bats. For the time being, Kookaburra bats are withdrawn from the market, but still continue to pose a treat to the Kashmiri Bat industry.Kashmiri willow is also regarded to be of inferior quality to English willow bats as it is considered to be of lesser quality in terms of grain quality and structure.
Another major problem is that of terrorism and constant unrest in the Kashmir valley which is causing losses in the region of Rs.30 crore to the industry .The hub of bat manufacturing is done around the seven villages—Charsoo, Hallmullaha, Bijbehara, Sangam, Sethar, Pujteng and Mirzapor in the South Kashmir, are the ones who have been badly hit .
The bat factories located in the villages ,which, according to traders, used to make nearly five lakh bats per year have been torn apart by turmoils.
A new ray of hope was seen for this industry during the IPL seasons. The emergence of Indian Premier League is proving to be a positive effect on the cricket bat manufacturing industry in Kashmir. Also during the the Cricket World Cup 2011, the sales figures of these bats rose from 15% to 18%
Other Areas and bats
Generally bats in other parts of country are made from the local wood found in the areas. These bats are of low quality and do not require as much care or knocking. These bats are made by local bat-makers,and sell them at a price range of Rs.200-300. One such establishment of bat-makers are from Gandhinagar, who migrate during the summer to different parts of the nation. They can even be seen selling the new mongoose cricket bats and are preferred by casual players of the game.
U2BB(Ubiquitous Ultra Broadband), the future-oriented architecture of communication network, it can support the ubiquitous 20-100M internet access end to end, and have the ability of long-term evolution.
The traditional network was designed based on 1-4M access, and mainly for triple play, while the OTT and cloud computing application developed rapidly in recent years, the broadband access have to reach 20-100M to fulfill the basic requirement of people, and corresponding traffic will grow more than 100 times in next 5 years. With current architecture, the cost of upgrade of network increased fast,while the reliability reduced as more and more complicated network, obviously, the current architecture can not support coming ubiquitous ultra-broadband era.
The U2BB is characterized by the following fundamental aspects:
* Any media access(Fiber,Cooper,Cable,etc)
* 20-100M bandwidth for each terminal.
* Flexible and intelligent adapting to business and service change.
* QoS assurance for IP Video end to end.
:
The traditional network was designed based on 1-4M access, and mainly for triple play, while the OTT and cloud computing application developed rapidly in recent years, the broadband access have to reach 20-100M to fulfill the basic requirement of people, and corresponding traffic will grow more than 100 times in next 5 years. With current architecture, the cost of upgrade of network increased fast,while the reliability reduced as more and more complicated network, obviously, the current architecture can not support coming ubiquitous ultra-broadband era.
The U2BB is characterized by the following fundamental aspects:
* Any media access(Fiber,Cooper,Cable,etc)
* 20-100M bandwidth for each terminal.
* Flexible and intelligent adapting to business and service change.
* QoS assurance for IP Video end to end.
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