Would you pay Rs 42 lakhs (approximately $94,786) for a cricket bat? Well, that’s what the bat Sachin Tendulkar used to score 163 against New Zealand in an ODI in Christchurch in 2009 fetched at an auction in Mumbai, the proceeds of which went to the NGO ‘The Foundation’. Tendulkar’s bat, along with other personal items donated by 25 sportspersons from India and abroad, went under the hammer at a sports auction for an NGO called ‘The Foundation’. Rahul Dravid’s bat, with which he scored a century in each innings against Pakistan in the Kolkata Test in 2005 fetched Rs 20 lakh (approximately $45,136). Sunil Gavaskar’s bat, which was signed by all the 1983 World-Cup winners, went for Rs 17.5 lakh (approximately $39,494). The jersey that Anil Kumble wore when he equalled Jim Laker's record of taking all ten wickets in an innings, against Pakistan in Delhi in 1999, and the Test cap that he wore between 2004 and 2006 went for Rs 11.5 lakhs (approximately $25,953).

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Friendly banter from Australians is often misinterpreted overseas and the pre-Ashes stunt to beam images of Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke on London’s Big Ben could lead to legal action. “Don’t forget to pack the urn,” was the message from Ponting and Clarke to England’s departing players from the top of the clock.

But the marketing exercise has upset Westminster city council’s deputy leader Robert Davis, who said the act was a criminal offence. James Sutherland, Cricket Australia’s chief executive, dismissed the threat of legal action, calling the streaming “a little bit of friendly banter between Australia and England”.

“It’s reciprocating what happened a couple of years ago when England shone something on to the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It’s just harmless fun and I hope nobody takes it too seriously.” Last year Richard Branson’s image was projected on to the landmark with him saying, “Good luck, Ricky, you’ll need it.”

Davis said the Palace of Westminster was part of a Unesco world heritage site. “It's both inappropriate and insulting for this important location and its buildings to effectively be abused in this manner,” he told the Guardian. In the event of a conviction, the fine is £2500. Given the strength of the Australian dollar, it’s now spare change.

They seek him here, they seek him there. India’s police, customs, cricket administration and media seek Lalit Modi everywhere, with little success to date (even his Twitter status is “everywhere”). Yet on November 3 he will be at Twickenham, part of an elite group of sports administrators and entrepreneurs at the International Sports Event Management Conference. Modi – famously called ‘Moses’ by Ravi Shastri not so long ago - will be sharing space with, among others, the IOC’s executive director, the man who organized the 2010 football World Cup, the man who will run the 2012 London Olympics and the chief of the 2014 Winter Olympics.

It’s rich in irony: Modi is persona non grata in the world of cricket – just ask Kevin Pietersen – but gets top billing at the event, where he is introduced as “Founder, IPL and Champions League”. And the topic he will be speaking on: “cultural and structural issues raised by Delhi’s hosting of the recent Commonwealth Games”. For those who came in late, it was only the monumental chaos and alleged corruption of the CWG that pushed the monumental chaos and alleged corruption of the IPL off the front pages. It should be an interesting speech.

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Don't forget to pack the urn. That was the message confronting Londoners when Big Ben was turned into a monumental Ashes taunt overnight. The faces of Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke peered out over the city as England's players prepare to fly out for Australia.

“Winning the urn back from our age-old rival is the most prized achievement for Australians and we just wanted to send them a reminder not to leave the urn behind," Ponting said. “Our message is clear – we’re prepared and we’re ready so bring on the Ashes!”

Mind you, with the world's most famous timepiece on his side, Ponting will have no excuse for slow over-rates this year.

If you thought owning a part of the Marylebone Cricket Club’s (MCC) history was beyond you, well, think again. Or better still, be at Christies, in South Kensington, London on November 17. Going under the hammer will be valuable memorabilia from the MCC, a selection of cricket bibliography comprising poems, score-books and cricket publications. The 100 available lots are estimated to be each worth between 500-40,000 pounds, with the MCC hoping to raise more than 300,000 pounds. The lots on offer are duplicates of the original collection and the proceeds will be used by the MCC to sustain and care for core antiquities and acquire more cricket-related trivia. The centrepiece of the sale will be a reproduction of a portrait of "The Young Cricketer - Portrait of Lewis Cage" by artist Katharine Lloyd, which has hung in the pavilion at Lord’s for the past 60 years. Other highlights include a complete set of Wisden’s almanack which has been in print since 1864.

The Barmy Army - that merry group of travelling England fans - are facing a hindrance to their expected revelry in Australia during the Ashes from unexpected quarters, the currency market. The Australian dollar appreciated considerably against major international currencies recently, and a British pound is now worth just A$1.60, compared with more than A$2 last year. The trip to Australia will now cost 36% more for England fans, according to a report in the Guardian. It means pricier hotels, meals, transport, match tickets and, crucially, beer.

Dave Peacock, one of the founding members of the Barmy Army, was unfazed and said the relative weakness of Australia's team made up for the increased strength of its dollar. "The dollar might be lot stronger, but the Australian team is nowhere near as strong as it was four years ago, and our team is on the way up. This is probably the best opportunity we've had since 1986-87. People aren't going to like paying £5 a pint. I think they will still go to Australia, but maybe cut down on a couple of pints a night."

Four years ago, 30,000 England fans travelled to Australia to watch their team getting thrashed 5-0.

The Parsis are about to make a comeback on the cricket field. Parsis, India’s Zoroastrian community, dominated the game in Mumbai for over a hundred years. But the sport has waned in the community over the last half-century. Farokh Engineer, a genuine star behind the stumps in the 1970s, was the last Parsi to play for India, and there has not been a Parsi in the Mumbai Ranji Trophy side since Zubin Bharucha in the 1990s.

Dinshaw Mehta, head of the Bombay Parsi Panchayet (BPP), the community’s legal body, blamed the malaise on the internet, saying today’s youngsters spend more time on Facebook than they do on sports grounds.“Once upon a time, we had cricketers like [Nari] Contractor and [Rusi] Surti. Now, there is not a single Parsi cricketer on the horizon,”

That could change in the near future. The Parsee Gymkhana, the Parsee Cyclist Club and former India captain Contractor have come together to revive the sport in the community, according to the DNA. The BPP will provide grounds at its housing colonies and Bharucha will coach the trainees, the first batch of whom will be chosen at a selection camp on Saturday morning. The Rustomjee Group, the sponsors, have created pitches and training enclosures and also provided kits and nets.At the project’s inauguration on Sunday, Contractor said, “The long-cherished dream of providing some facility to the young generation has come true, which we were planning for past seven years.”

It was a traditional Homecoming weekend for the college of Wooster in Ohio - well, almost. The only ritual missing was the football game, when the home side usually plays a college from the same region; with no football opponent available, it was time for bails, stumps, the red cherry and the willow – time to play some cricket. And set a record at the same time. Nine hundred and sixty seven fans watched Wooster’s college club take on a team of local expats, more than double the previous record of 400. “It's what makes us distinctive,” Wooster president Grant Cornwell said. “Not only does it illustrate the college's spirit, but it also shows that we have a sense of humour.” And the final result? Wooster College’s team captain Maaz Khan “delivered a dramatic game-winning hit with just one out remaining to give the college team an exciting 143-141 victory.”

An irate father has had a police complaint registered against him in Delhi after roughing up a selector over his son’s non-selection for an Under-19 side in the upcoming Cooch Behar Trophy. Tarang Gupta was left out of the squad, leading his father to push and slap selector Vinay Lamba according to the Indian Express, leading the Delhi and Districts Cricket Association vice-president, Chetan Chauhan, to call the police. This was not the first time Tarang's father has been involved in a spat. Similar complaints were registered against him during the selection of the Under-16 state team.

Deputy commissioner of police, Jaspal Singh, said that his department was looking into the matter. “Vinay Lamba had no physical injuries at the venue. He was asked to accompany for a medical examination but he refused. Anyway, the case has been registered and further inquiries are on,” Jaspal said.

What does Hugh Jackman have to do with cricket? Er, good question, actually. But he is a fan, and thus Cricket Australia have enlisted his help to count down to the first ball of the Ashes series.

There are 50 days left until until the contest kicks off at the Gabba and Jackman, in a video message on the CA website, says the wait is agonising. "It's kind of like watching the English bat, really," he says, "just waiting for something to happen."

He's pretty confident the urn will return to Australian hands. But if they don't regain the prize, a few of their players could become ex-men.

A 15-year old Indian schoolboy has entered the record books with a marathon innings in an inter-academy tournament conducted by the Vidharba Cricket Association. Ali Zoren Khan’s unbeaten 461 helped Nagpur Cricket Academy to a mammoth 1025 for 5 in 120 overs against the Reshimbag Cricket Club. Ali, who finished the first day on 364, knew there was a record to be broken when he returned to the crease on the second morning. He faced 308 balls for his runs, hitting 64 fours and 12 sixes before the declaration came. "I could have scored 500,” Ali said later about his innings, “but we had a plan to bat till lunch as we needed enough time to bowl them out twice. So no regrets.”