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Ash in Mumbai colours

Sports Reporter
Bangladesh captain Mohamma d Ashraful left the capital yesterday with a promise to live up to his billing as a "pocket dynamo* for his star-studded side Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League (IPL) that starts in South Africa from April 18.
The exciting right-hander might have scored only 10 for Gazi Tank against Partex in what was the last day of the competition on Sunday, but with a century and five consecutive fifties under his belt he looks really focused to turn his unbridled talent into deeds in the second edition of the IPL
The ace batsman said that South African conditions suits his style of play as it favours batsmen who are good at playing side shots.
"I like playing square on either side of the wicket and it would be nice as long the ball comes on to the bat. I believe the tournament organisers will most likely prepare batting friendly wickets to give maximum entertainment to the spectators because of so much money and hype (that is) involved in it," said Ashraful prior to his departure to Mumbai yesterday.
"We have a very good team with the likes of Sachin (Tendulkar), Sanath Jayasuriya, J-P Duminy, Shaun Pollock, Dwayne Bravo, Zaheer (Khan) and Harbhajan Singh so if we play to our abilities we stand a real chance to win the title," said Ashraful adding that given the opportunity he would grab it by both hands.
The Mumbai Indians,
which is owned by the world's seventh richest man Mukesh Ambani will be based in Durban, which has a huge Indian concentration making the city as good as home for his team.
"Durban has quite a big Indian population and that is why it was chosen to be our base. We should be getting a lot of support and encouragement from the crowd and it might well seem like we are playing in India," said Ashraful describing the possible mood at Africa's busiest port city in the coming weeks.
Although the Mumbai Indians will be based in Durban they play their first match, which is also the opening match of the IPL, at Newlands in Cape Town against last year's runners-up Chennai Super Kings.
Talking about Mumbai Indians coach-cum-player Shaun Pollock, Ashraful said that his home condition would be the biggest advantage of his job.
"Shaun (Pollock) is a marvellous all-round cricketer who has vast knowledge of all forms or the game ana it you observe around new coaches are the ones who are doing well nowadays. Look at what Gary Kirsten has done to the Indian side. He had no international coaching experience prior to his Indian appointment but delivered nothing less than an absolute pro. On top of that Shaun will be the best bet in the coaching position as it is in his home country we will be playing in," explained the 25-year-old.
Ashraful along with his team will leave for South Africa on April 7 from Mumbai.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh vice-captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza also flown out to Kolkata to join his team Kolkata Knight Riders yesterday evening and will leave for South Africa in the early hours today.
The Kolkata Knight Riders will be based in Bloemfontein, South Africa and play their first match on April 19 against the Deccan Chargers.