Loud Thinking

Archive for January, 2014

“There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle, or you can live as if everything is a miracle.”

— Albert Einstein

Believe is to have confidence in the truth, existence, or reliability of something.

“Dreams come true; without that possibility, nature would not incite us to have them.”

John Updike (1932-2009);
American novelist

Is There a Gap Between IT and Your Business?

In many companies there’s a chasm between information technology (IT) groups and business teams, which don’t always consider IT a major player. Businesses would be better served by leveraging every byte of knowledge IT can bring.
Give IT a fair chance. When a company changes systems, people often blame IT for imposing something on them. Or business silos complain that “systems don’t talk,” when the root issue is that siloed departments don’t talk. It’s easy to blame IT, but matters are rarely that simple.
Business teams should ask, “How do we expect IT to help us compete?” Critical investment in technology is about building organizational capabilities. Few information technologies qualify as strategic — they will likely be out of date in five years — but developing the ability to keep pace with the technology curve must be viewed as a strategic goal.

Adapted by HBR from “Bridging the Gap Between IT and Your Business” by Thomas C. Redman and Bill Sweeney.

Pakistan annoyed at US bill linking aid to Dr Afridi’s release
APP and DAWN.COM

Link:-
http://www.dawn.com/news/1081551/pakistan-annoyed-at-us-bill-linking-aid-to-dr-afridis-release

As they say, one can only be insulted to the extent he permits. If the government of Pakistan is really hurt, by the US governments’ decision to make conditional, the release of assistance worth$33 million, with the release of Dr. Shakil Afridi, then the expression of mere disappointment, is just an eye wash, for the consumption of the Pakistani public.

The issue is not the withholding of the US assistance. Never ever, in the diplomatic history of the world, any nation had the guts and the guile to demand extradition of a spy, who was NOT its citizen. Rather, the spy was the very citizen of his own country, against which he acted as a traitor.

Pakistani government must NOT act and behave as a client country of the US. Even the government of a banana country would be ashamed of this Luke warm and dud reaction.

Here we should remember that India is going ahead with the trial of the two Italian navy men, on murder charges of its citizens, despite hue and cry of the entire EU and the West. Moreover, how India stood behind on its stance in the case of its female diplomat in the US, knowing very well that she clearly violated the law of the land. And in this regard, how India stripped PERMANENTLY, US diplomats of many traditional facilities, they enjoyed since ages.

Pak government must warn the American government that any further poking in our domestic matter, may result in the immediate revoking of the permission, granted for the extension of the US embassy in Islamabad and its consulates in Karachi and Lahore.

Cricket South Africa is the only MALE among all the other Eunuch ICC board members..!

ICC’s revamp plans

CSA demands ICC proposals withdrawn
David Hopps
January 20, 2014
Comments: 4 | Post yours as Syed Nayyar Uddin Ahmad | Text size: A | A

CSA president, Chris Nenzani (left), has written an open letter to the ICC’s Full Members © Getty Images
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Related Links
News : Boards silent on ICC revamp consequences
News : NZC not worried over power takeover – Snedden
News : Big Three could control revamped ICC
Players/Officials: Haroon Lorgat | Alan Isaac
Teams: South Africa
Sites: Cricinfo ICC Site
Cricket South Africa has become the first national board to call for the ICC to withdraw the draft proposal that would put power in international cricket in the hands of India, England and Australia.

South Africa have been identified as the big losers in the potential changes, which, if adopted, could be viewed as a power grab by the three nations that bring most revenue into the international game. Calling the plans “in breach of the ICC constitution”, CSA has now made its opposition clear.

The “position paper”, drawn up by a working group of the ICC’s Finance & Commercial Affairs (F&CA) committee, is due to be put to the ICC Executive Board at its quarterly meeting in Dubai on January 28-29. The proposals would need seven votes out of ten to pass.

Despite South Africa’s position as the No. 1-ranked Test side in the world, if the proposals were adopted, their projected share of future revenues at every stage would fall below than even that of the Pakistan board.

South Africa’s relationship with India has declined markedly since they appointed Haroon Lorgat as chief executive of their own board. It was Lorgat, as ICC chief executive, who championed the Woolf report, which proposed placing the ICC in the hands of independent directors. Lorgat’s subsequent feud saw him ousted at the ICC and cold-shouldered by the BCCI, which refused to deal with him as India undertook a much-reduced tour of South Africa last year.

CSA has now become the first board to publicly state its opposition to the ambush proposals, calling for a more consultative and “constitutionally ordained” process to take place.

The meeting on January 9, where Full Member boards were presented with the paper, was unscheduled and “came out of nowhere”, according to the head of one board. Nazmul Hassan, president of the BCB, said that Bangladesh “can’t doing anything on our own”, while NZC director Martin Snedden suggested the BCCI-ECB-CA plans were not necessarily a bad thing for world cricket.

CSA responded in a statement, saying: “Without addressing the merits of the proposal insofar as it concerns constitutional amendments and changes to ICC competitions, these proposals should first be referred to the relevant ICC committees or sub‐committees for proper consideration and to make recommendations to the ICC Board.”

The open letter, copied to ICC Full Members and media outlets, was written not by Lorgat, but by Chris Nenzani, CSA’s president and board chairman, directed to ICC president Alan Isaac.

“Although there is nothing to prevent a review of the ICC funding model or finances, the proposal self-evidently is inextricably tied up with a fundamental restructuring of the ICC, which has far‐reaching constitutional implications,” Nenzani said.

“The draft proposal is, therefore, fundamentally flawed as regards the process and, therefore, in breach of the ICC constitution.

“In the circumstances we propose that the draft proposal be withdrawn immediately, given that the proper procedures have not been followed.

“In our respectful opinion, a more considered, inclusive/consultative, and properly constitutionally ordained approach is required.”

Isaac, a former chairman of the New Zealand board, whose business career involved 35 years with the global accounting firm KPMG, is now facing the most problematic task of a low-key term as ICC president. It is questionable whether he will welcome the attention. The presidential role will officially become a ceremonial role once he steps down in 2014 and he has already done much to hasten that transition.

Tony Irish, chief executive of the South African Cricketers’ Association, had previously defined the document as, “concerning,” saying it will have “significant implication for cricket, particularly for smaller countries of which South Africa is one – revenue wise.”

David Hopps is the UK editor of ESPNcricinfo

Feeds: David Hopps
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.

Pakistan required only 53 runs from the final 60 balls of the match and had six wickets in hand. Sri Lanka routinely placed at least seven – but up to nine – fielders on the fence during those overs, with Pakistan hitting 41 runs via singles, twos and threes in that time.

This is also the highest run rate by any team for a fourth-innings total of more than 205. With a 200-run cut-off, there are two instances of better scoring rates, both by England: they scored 205 in 35.3 overs (rate 5.77) against South Africa at The Oval in 1994 to win by eight wickets. Like this game, that was also the third and last Test of the series, and England’s win helped them draw the series 1-1. Against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo in 1996, faced with a target of 205 to win, they scored 204 for 6 in 37 (rate 5.51), which meant the Test ended as a draw with scores level.

Pakistan cricket team establishes a new world record, by scoring in a winning cause, fastest over 300 runs, in the forth innings of a Test match when they beat SL at Sharjah on 20 Jan, 2014.

Batting | Bowling | Fielding | All-round | Partnership | Team | Umpire and referee | Aggregate/overall
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Innings by innings list
Team Score Overs RPO Lead Inns Result Opposition Ground Start Date
Pakistan 302/5 57.3 5.25 1 4 won v Sri Lanka Sharjah 16 Jan 2014
West Indies 344/1 66.1 5.19 3 4 won v England Lord’s 28 Jun 1984
England 315/4 73.2 4.29 1 4 won v Australia Leeds 16 Aug 2001
Australia 334/6 79.1 4.21 4 4 won v South Africa Cape Town 8 Mar 2002
India 387/4 98.3 3.92 1 4 won v England Chennai 11 Dec 2008
West Indies 348/5 69.0×8 3.78 4 4 won v New Zealand Auckland 27 Feb 1969
Australia 362/7 101.0 3.58 4 4 won v West Indies Georgetown 31 Mar 1978
Australia 310/8 86.5 3.57 1 4 won v South Africa Johannesburg 17 Nov 2011
Australia 404/3 114.1 3.53 1 4 won v England Leeds 22 Jul 1948
South Africa 414/4 119.2 3.46 1 4 won v Australia Perth 17 Dec 2008
West Indies 317/2 93.1 3.40 1 4 won v Pakistan Georgetown 13 Mar 1958
West Indies 418/7 128.5 3.24 1 4 won v Australia St John’s 9 May 2003
South Africa 340/5 104.5 3.24 6 4 won v Australia Durban 15 Mar 2002
Australia 369/6 113.5 3.24 1 4 won v Pakistan Hobart 18 Nov 1999
Sri Lanka 352/9 113.3 3.10 1 4 won v South Africa Colombo (PSS) 4 Aug 2006
New Zealand 324/5 107.0 3.02 1 4 won v Pakistan Christchurch 24 Feb 1994
Pakistan 315/9 106.1 2.96 2 4 won v Australia Karachi 28 Sep 1994
Australia 342/8 87.2×8 2.93 4 4 won v India Perth 16 Dec 1977
Australia 307/7 107.0 2.86 1 4 won v Bangladesh Fatullah 9 Apr 2006
Sri Lanka 326/5 113.5 2.86 1 4 won v Zimbabwe Colombo (SSC) 14 Jan 1998
India 406/4 147.0 2.76 4 4 won v West Indies Port of Spain 7 Apr 1976
West Indies 311/9 120.1 2.58 4 4 won v Australia Bridgetown 26 Mar 1999
Australia 315/6 134.0 2.35 1 4 won v England Adelaide 17 Jan 1902
New Zealand 317/7 137.5 2.29 1 4 won v Bangladesh Chittagong 17 Oct 2008
England 307/6 146.4 2.09 3 4 won v New Zealand Christchurch 14 Feb 1997
England 332/7 159.5 2.07 1 4 won v Australia Melbourne 29 Dec 1928
Australia 336/5 123.6×8 2.03 1 4 won v South Africa Durban 20 Jan 1950
Page 1 of 1 Showing 1 – 27 of 27 First Previous Next Last
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Statsguru includes the following current or recent Test matches:
Pakistan v Sri Lanka at Sharjah, 3rd Test, Jan 16-20, 2014 [Test # 2115 – Live]
» Pakistan 302/5 (57.3 ov, Asad Shafiq 1*, Misbah-ul-Haq 68*, RMS Eranga 1/68) – Match over
Pakistan v Sri Lanka at Dubai (DSC), 2nd Test, Jan 8-12, 2014 [Test # 2114]
Australia v England at Sydney, 5th Test, Jan 3-5, 2014 [Test # 2113]

Profound congratulations to Pakistani cricket team, team management, PCB and the Pakistanis all over the world over really historical and memorable Test match victory over SL at Sharjah cricket stadium.