It would require immaculate planning and perfect execution if the team is to win its first Test series in New Zealand in 40 years, Indian cricket captain

Mahendra Singh Dhoni said here on Wednesday.

"It's going to be a tough tour, but every place has its challenges. Foreign players come here and struggle against spin and bounce. We would focus on planning well and in executing those plans. The results will follow," said the wicketkeeper-batsman at a pre-departure media conference.

Coach Gary Kirsten too expressed confidence in the team's ability to do well in conditions that are vastly different to what the players are used to at home.

"We have a very balanced team -- in batting, pace and spin bowling. We are capable of playing in any condition. Conditions will be vastly different and the weather would be cold with a bit of rain. But we have the players to overcome these," Kirsten said.

India have not won a Test series in New Zealand since their first and only triumph, by a 3-1 margin under Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi in 1967-68. They commence the 47-day tour with two Twenty20 Internationals which are to be followed by five ODIs and the three-Test series.

The team is departing on Thursday morning.

Kirsten was not worried about the lack of any practice games ahead of the Twenty20 opener on February 26 as he said the team had four days to practice before getting into the contest

Allen Stanford, the billionaire cricket impresario, has been charged with a “massive ongoing fraud” worth up to $8 billion by the American financial authorities.

Federal agents stormed into the office of the Stanford Financial Group in Houston, Texas, this morning after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused Mr Stanford of major fraud in the sale of billions of dollars of financial derivatives.

The SEC - the Wall Street watchdog - filed charges at the Federal District Court in Dallas this morning claiming that Mr Stanford and two colleagues had misrepresented the safety and liquidity of investments in their Antigua-based Stanford International Bank Ltd (SIB), which has about 30,000 clients.

Mr Stanford, who built his own cricket stadium on his adopted home of Antigua, staged a $1 million-a-man cricket tournament featuring the England team last autumn. The Twenty20 tournament was criticised for poor playing conditions, while Mr Stanford was thought to have upset many of the losing England players by seemingly flirting with their wives and girlfriends on the sidelines.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) responded to the accusations in the US by immediately calling off talks over future events with Mr Stanford.

An ECB statement read: “Following allegations made today by the US Securities and Exchange Commission and their decision to apply for a temporary restraining order which was filed in a Dallas /Fort Worth court, the England and Wales Cricket Board and the West Indies Cricket Board have suspended negotiations with Allen Stanford and his financial corporation concerning a new sponsorship deal.”

Stanford Financial Group is now “under the management of a receiver,” according to a sign taped today to the window of the firm’s Houston headquarters, an eyewitness told news agencies.

“We are temporarily closed. The company is still in operation but under the management of a receiver.”

The main product of Mr Stanford's massively successful bank is a certificate of deposit (CD) – a fixed-term investment, usually over three months, six months or for between one and five years – on which a fixed rate of interest is paid.

Watchdogs were thought to be puzzled as to why SIB had continued to pay out above-average rates to customers for so long.

BusinessWeek reported that SIB’s CDs, which require a minimum investment of $50,000, offer a rate of 4.5 per cent on a one-year deposit – compared with an average of just 2 per cent at American banks. It says that a year ago, Mr Stanford was selling five-year CDs offering a yield of 7.03 per cent, while the industry average was just over half that level.

The SEC’s outgoing enforcement chief Linda Chatman Thomsen alleged today that Mr Stanford and his family and friends “perpetrated a massive fraud based on false promises and fabricated historical return data to prey on investors".

We all know that Preity Zinta owns a part of the 20Twenty team Kings XI Punjab along with boyfriend Ness Wadia. But not many know her actual reason for joining the IPL.

“I had originally planned to start a special sports school in memory of my father, but then I put off that idea due to lack of funds. However, determined about starting something sports-related, I chose to get into the IPL.” revealed the dimpled actress,

She further stated, “My father was very interested in sports. In Northern India, he used to organize the Durganand Zinta Football Tournament. He used to sponsor poor children who were interested in sports. After his death, I decided to start a school that pays special attention to sports. It was to be a huge project. But I didn’t have the resources to start it just yet. So I put that dream on hold. And thought to myself, ‘Why not get into the IPL?’. I’d been hearing a lot about it. And that’s how it happened.”

Australia got New Zealand restricted to 244 for eight in the fourth One-Day International here on Tuesday.

Ross Taylor waged a lone battle to save New Zealand from a middle order collapse. Taylor played a determined knock of 76 with six fours and two sixes from 71 balls.

New Zealand, after electing to bat, were off to a steady start. Guptill was the first man to go in the 18th over for 45. Two quick wickets after a short gap reduced the visitors to 86-3.

Ross Taylor and G Eliott put some resistance for a while. They added 55 runs for the fourth wicket before Eliott was dismissed, thanks to a brilliant catch by David Hussey.

To add to their woes, CD Cumming went for a duck in the very next over. With Kiwis on the backfoot, Australians were targeting to restrict New Zealand below 200. But some late efforts by the tail helped New Zealand to post a respectable total.

Mitchel Johnson took three wickets for 51 as Hopes got two. Bracken, Hilfenhaus and Clarke scalped one each.

New Zealand are already leading the five-match series 2-1. One more victory will ensure the series for them.

Teams:

Australia: MJ Clarke, BJ Haddin, RT Ponting, MEK Hussey, DJ Hussey, CJ Ferguson, CL White, JR Hopes, MG Johnson, NW Bracken, BW Hilfenhaus

New Zealand: BB McCullum, MJ Guptill, PG Fulton, LRPL Taylor, GD Elliott, NT Broom, KD Mills, DL Vettori, CD Cumming, TG Southee, IE O'Brien

India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and star off-spinner Harbhajan Singh will get special honours during the annual BCCI Awards Ceremony scheduled in Mumbai on February 18.

BCCI secretary N Srinivasan said in a statement that Dhoni, who received the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award and Padma Shri, will get a special award.

Similarly, Harbhajan too will be felicitated for taking 300 Test wickets and receiving the Padma Shri.

The function will commemorate the outstanding performers of the 2007-08 season.

The BCCI had earlier announced that former Test star GR Viswanath will receive the CK Nayudu award, while opener Virender Sehwag will get the Polly Umrigar Award.

This year's Madhavrao Scindia Award Will go to Saurashtra run-machine Cheteshwar Pujara and Uttar Pradesh pacer Sudeep Tyagi, with each getting Rs one lakh.

The BCCI also announced the M A Chidambaram Trophy for under-15, under-17, under-19 and under-22 categories with the winners getting Rs 50,000.

Former India captain Mithali Raj was named Best Woman Cricketer while M D Thirushkamini of Tamil Nadu won the award in the junior category. Both will get Rs 50,000 each.

List of the awardees:

CK Nayudu Award: G R Viswanath (Rs. 15 lakhs)

Polly Umrigar Award: Virender Sehwag (Rs 5 lakh)

Madhavrao Scindia Award (Batsman): Cheteshwar Pujara

Madhavrao Scindia Award (Bowler): Sudeep Tyagi

M A Chidambaram Trophy (Under-15): Ankit Bawane (Maharashtra)

M A Chidambaram Trophy (Under-17): Mandeep Singh (Punjab)

M A Chidambaram Trophy (Under-19): Bhuvneshwar Kumar (UP)

M A Chidambaram Trophy (Under-22): Rahul Dewan (Delhi)

M A Chidambaram Trophy (Best Woman Cricketer): Mithali Raj

M A Chidambaram Trophy (Best Junior Woman Cricketer): M D Thirushkamini.

Special Awards:

Maharashtra: Best Overall Performance in the 2007-08 season.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni: For receiving the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award and Padma Shri.

Harbhajan Singh: For taking 300 Test wickets and receiving the Padma Shri.

Indian Premier League Commissioner and Board of Control for Cricket in India vice-president Lalit Modi has said he would more than pleased to have troubled all-rounder Andrew Symonds participate full time in the second edition of the IPL, which is slotted for April-May this year.

Despite the former Test star's off-field controversies, Modi said Symonds would not be blacklisted from competing in the 20-over extravaganza.

"If he is not picked in the Australian team, I would like to see him here for the whole tournament. That would be great," Modi said.

"He would be a wonderful asset. If there was a ban on him by the ICC, that is one thing, but he has not made any derogatory comments or done anything wrong as far as the IPL is concerned. He is a contracted player to the Deccan Chargers and I see no reason why he shouldn't be able to play," Modi added.

Symonds will be almost a million better off if Cricket Australia rules him unfit for the limited-overs series against Pakistan in April.

Even as he embarks on a counselling programme, according to Fox Sports, he stands to profit handsomely if his exile is extended beyond the tour of South Africa.

Any decision by CA to block Symonds will allow him to be available for the duration of the cash-crazy Indian Premier League.

His deal with the Deccan Chargers is valued at 1.47 million dollars and he will pocket every cent if he plays out the six-week tournament.

But if he is cleared to play five one-dayers against Pakistan, Symonds will have only a two-week window to appear in the IPL, slashing his earnings potential to 490,000 dollars.

A five-match stint against Pakistan will earn Symonds 30,600 dollars in match fees - meaning his prospective recall to the national set-up will cost him about 949,400 dollars.

The financial advantages of the IPL have fuelled speculation Symonds could walk away from Australian cricket in favour of an annual six-week cameo in India.

Cricket Australia spokesman Peter Young said the governing body would not force Symonds to sit out the IPL if deemed unfit for the Pakistan series.

The enigmatic Queenslander has just over a month to convince CA he is in an appropriate state of mind to return to the Australian fold.

The Indian cricket squad for two Twenty20 internationals and five One-Dayers against New Zealand, commencing this month, would be picked on February 13.

"The squad would be selected at the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association's premises in Chennai," Cricket Board sources said on Monday.

The squad for the following three-Test series, scheduled from March 18 to April 7, would be chosen later.

Former BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah has been nominated as the team's manager for the first part of the tour.

The team is set to depart for New Zealand from Mumbai in the early hours of February 19 after the BCCI's annual awards function on February 18 evening, the BCCI sources added.

New Zealand tour itinerary:

Feb 20: India arrive in New Zealand

Feb 25: Twenty20 International, Christchurch

Feb 27: Twenty20 International, Wellington

Mar 3: Ist ODI, Napier

Mar 6: 2nd ODI, Wellington

Mar 8: 3rd ODI, Christchurch

Mar 11: 4th ODI, Hamilton

Mar 14: 5th ODI, Auckland

Mar 18-22: 1st Test, Hamilton

Mar 26-30: 2nd Test, Napier

April 37: 3rd Test, Wellington.

It was a great day for India at Melbourne Park. First Mahesh Bhupathi and Sania Mirza won their quarterfinals without much trouble. They beat their Canadian opponents Alexandria Wozniak and Danial Nestor to move into the mixed doubles semi-final of the Australian Open. Bhupathi and Sania, who were broken twice in the first set, came back to draw level with three break of serve before wrapping up the match in one hour and 15 minutes. They next play Czech pair Iveta Benesova and Lukas Dlouhy, who received a walkover from French Alize Cornet and Brazilian Marcelo Melo. Then Leander Paes and Lukas Dlouhy also made their way into the men's doubles semi-final.

They were comfotable 6-1, 7-6 winners over Simone Bolelli and Andreas Seppi of Italy in the quarterfinals. Paes-Dlouhy defeated Bolelli and Seppi in an hour at Melbourne Park. They won the first set breaking the Italians twice. The second set saw no break of serve from either pair before Paes and Dlouhy prevailed over the tie-break to win in little over an hour. They will now play against the winners of the all-American quarter final between second-seeded brothers Bob and Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish and John Isner. In the boys singles, Yuki Bhambhri stamped his authority over Marcan, breaking him seven times to win the pre-quarterfinals in 78 minutes. He next plays German Richard Becker, who overcame a stiff challenge from Japanese Yasutaka Uchiyama to beat him 6-7(8), 6-4, 6-3.