Pakistan’s dashing all-rounder Shahid Afridi and former New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori have been named to lead two provincial sides in Sri Lanka’s Premier League Twenty20 competition (SLPL).

Afridi will lead Nagenahira while left arm spinner Vettori has been chosen to captain Uthuru, representing the North Eastern provinces which were isolated from the sport because of the three-decade old war.

Vettori is captain of the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL tournament which also features Sri Lankan stars Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardena and Tillekeratne Dilshan.

The event organisers, Somerert Entertainment Ventures (SEV) have found a window for the IPL-style tournament between Sri Lanka’s tour of England and Australia’s tour of Sri Lanka, according to the ‘Daily Mirror’.

Six national captains, including four from Sri Lanka - Sanath Jayasuriya, Jayawardena, Sangakkara and Dilshan - will lead seven Provincial teams in the upcoming tournament.

The seventh will be former Sri Lanka vice-captain, Chaminda Vaas. The Sri Lanka T20 Premier League will feature almost 35 international cricketing stars and will be the first of its kind in Sri Lanka.

The 18-day event will kick off on July and will feature 24 matches, including the semifinals and final, at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.

Dilshan will lead Basnahira, Sangakkara (Kandurata), Jayawardane (Wayamba), Jayasuriya (Ruhuna) and Vaas (Uva).

Five overseas players could be registered to a provincial team but only four will be allowed to play in a match. Sri Lankan national selectors and cricket authorities have agreed to blood as many youngsters and almost 70 Sri Lankan cricketers will be registered in the seven team tournament.

Almost all Pakistani national cricketers will be invited to play in the SLPL.

In addition to that, Chris Gayle and the Bravo cousins (Dwayne and Darren) from West Indies, Pathan brothers (Irfan and Yousuf) from India, Herschelle Gibbs, David Warner and Shaun Tait will be seen in action on Sri Lankan soil.

The availability of retired great Muttiah Muralitharan is not yet confirmed but some unconfirmed sources revealed that he is eager to play in the series.

Milind Rege, the tournament manager of the 2011 cricket World Cup will be in charge of all cricketing matters of the tournament. Rege is a former Ranji Trophy captain for Mumbai and recently retired from TATA corporation as a managing committee member.

The classified ad might read: "Sports car seeks permanent home, very good condition, one lady owner."

Oh, and another important point: "Made of wool."

After traveling the world for the past five years, British artist Lauren Porter is seeking a permanent home for her knitted red Ferrari sports car.

The arty auto sculpture is named "12 Miles of Yarn" because, well, it took that much wool to knit.

Porter told AOL News the inspiration for her work was the mix of macho high-tech sports car with delicate ladylike handcraft.

"The sculpture is more or less to scale and took about 10 months to build," said Porter, who shuns more traditional knitting projects such as scarves and socks.

"I involved family and friends knitting squares," she explained. "I made a frame out of metal poles which are welded together in sections. The whole piece is flat packable. Being a sculptor, this was the interesting part for me, designing and building the piece.

"The knitting is made up mostly of squares, around 250. I made paper patterns from the frame and knitted and crocheted the other shapes and details by eye. I have never followed a pattern and would be lost if I had to knit a pair of socks!"

"12 Miles of Yarn" has been exhibited in London, Paris and Amsterdam and at both car shows and fine-art galleries. The time has probably come, however, for this particular Ferrari to go up on the blocks.

"It has traveled around over the last five or so years [and] I am now ready to find it a permanent home," Porter said. "I would ideally like it to be on display and enjoyed by the public but am open to any ideas."

Knitting is a central theme in much of Porter's work. Her wool Ferrari was inspired by an earlier series titled "Home Comfort" that featured a knitted chair, woolen toilet and sink.

"I was originally inspired to knit the chair after working with an elderly lady who sat and knitted all day," Porter said.

"Developing that, the toilet and sink were a take on the decoration of covers in the home and the way in which people cover their spare toilet papers with knitted doilies with dolls in them."

What's next?

After a series of sculptures based on hunting trophies -- inspired by a trip across Canada -- Porter is working on a series of quilted British birds.

Pakistan and India have never had smooth diplomatic ties and are obviously insecure about each other; their rivalry is so intense that it has brought them to the brink of nuclear armament.

So what can a game of cricket do for two countries that are not friends? Not much.


The Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has invited President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani to watch the Pakistan versus India showdown on March 30in Mohali, India.

The arch-rivals have not played each other in India since the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai and the outcome will surely be construed as a diplomatic victory.

The frustrations that both sides have developed towards each other ever since they separated in 1947 are often vented through cricket matches.  It’s not just a game. The untimely death of a match-predicting parrot who predicted Pakistan’s victory is just a recent example of what a Pakistan India clash means.

This match will help India generate cash by selling tickets, issue around 5,000 visas to Pakistanis and create economic activity for hotels but apart from this, I don’t think it can help diplomatic ties. I highly doubt that Mr Singh and Mr Gilani will discuss human rights violations in Kashmir on the pitch.

Security concerns for Pakistani cricketers and visiting fans remain very real ahead of the match on Wednesday. The fact that cricket fans on both sides celebrate each other’s defeat with no less happiness than they cheer their triumphs gives an impression that another Pakistan India war will take place in Mohali on the 30th.

I wonder what it was that led Shahid Afridi to fantasise about Pak-India relations improving as a result of this match.  Both countries would have to play cricket almost every day before they can sit down and tackle issues crucial to the security and survival of their people.