MUMBAI: World Series Hockey (WSH), the initiative by Nimbus Sport and IHF which kicks off today, faces a potentially difficult task of getting in good viewership. That is because national players who were part of the Olympic Qualifiers will probably not take part.

Hockey India (HI) is holding a camp in Bangalore in preparation of the Olympics from 6 March. It has named a list of 48 probables for the camp. Reports indicate that players are putting the country over the league when deciding which way to go.

FIH president Leandro Negre had earlier urged HI and the IHF to join forces. He had said that while players can take part in WSH, it is an unsanctioned event. At the same time, WSH does have international players like Brent Livermore as well as local players taking part.

GroupM ESP managing partner Hiren Pandit said that the situation would create an unnecessary controversy and it would be better if the two bodies resolved their differences. "Viewership would be impacted if players who were part of the Olympic Qualifiers do not take part in WSH," he said. That is because national players who were part of the Olympic Qualifiers will probably not take part.

Hockey India (HI) is holding a camp in Bangalore in preparation of the Olympics from 6 March. It has named a list of 48 probables for the camp. Reports indicate that players are putting the country over the league when deciding which way to go.

FIH president Leandro Negre had earlier urged HI and the IHF to join forces. He had said that while players can take part in WSH, it is an unsanctioned event. At the same time, WSH does have international players like Brent Livermore as well as local players taking part.

GroupM ESP managing partner Hiren Pandit said that the situation would create an unnecessary controversy and it would be better if the two bodies resolved their differences. "Viewership would be impacted if players who were part of the Olympic Qualifiers do not take part in WSH," he said.

MUMBAI: The fifth season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will commence in Chennai on 4 April 2012.

The season will revert to the ?home and away? format, with each of the nine franchises playing 16 matches. There will be four Play-off matches - a total of 76 matches.

The Play-off matches will be held in Bangalore and Chennai, with the final to be played in Chennai on Sunday, 27 May 2012.

The 2012 Player Auction for the players who used to play for the Kochi Tuskers Kerala franchise will be held in late January / early February. Each franchise will have an auction purse of $2 million to spend on players in the 2012 auction.

For the 2012, 2013 seasons, the maximum squad size will be increased to 33, and the cap on the number of overseas players in the squad increased to 11.

The regulation that only four overseas players may be in the playing XI is unchanged. The trading window will open on 15 December 2011 and run through to 20 January 2012. There will be a short second trading window after the Player Auction.

The trading regulations will be as per previous seasons. There will be no financial cap on trading. Franchises can only add to their squad, by way of trading, a maximum of four players who were bought in the 2011 Auction, and they must stay within the squad composition regulations at all times.

MUMBAI: A few months after announcing its World Series Hockey (WSH) initiative, Nimbus has concluded the franchise allocation process and announced Chennai Sports Organisers (CSO) as the franchisee owner for Chennai.

A multi-city franchise-based league, WSH will make all the franchisee announcements over the next few days. The inaugural edition of the league will comprise seven more teams out of Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Pune, Bhopal, Punjab, Ranchi and Rourkela.

The Chennai Sports Organisers director LT Nanwani is also the director and promoter of Jubilee Granites, a mining company in South India that exclusively owns products like ?Black? and ?Black Galaxy? granite. The company?s initial investment in WSH is worth Rs 200 million over 15 years.

Nanwani said, "It is a matter of great pride to own a franchise in the prestigious World Series Hockey. Chennai has always had a strong sports culture and we are committed to strengthen the talent pool of hockey players. Extensive research has revealed that speed is a key attribute of the sport and hence our team is going to be aptly called Chennai Cheetahs."

"India has a strong hockey legacy and we will strive towards bringing the glory back. This is the first step for CSO and in the near future, we will expand our sports business by investing in multiple sports to create greater local connect with the fans. The main concern is to revive hockey our national sport. We have been speaking to Nimbus for a year about this."

He adds that CSO is talking to companies for sponsorship.

Nimbus Sport COO Yannick Colaco added, "WSH has been very selective in identifying franchise owners who are passionate about hockey and share the common vision of creating a strong and viable ecosystem for the sport in India. We are delighted to welcome Nanwani to the WSH family. His deep rooted understanding of the local Chennai market coupled with his keen interest in hockey will definitely create a strong fan base in the catchment area."

The WSH will be held from 17 December to 22 January, 2012 and will involve 200 Indian and international players, showcasing their talent in 61 matches.