From Spain to Germany, farmers warn of fresh food shortages
In his three decades growing strawberries and blueberries, Cristobal Picon has learned how to grapple with problems ranging from droughts and driving winds to floods and freezes. But this year, the coronavirus outbreak has proven too much.Every spring, Picon’s fields in Huelva, on the Atlantic coast of Spain tucked between Seville and the border with Portugal, are normally teeming with some 200 workers mostly from Morocco and Romania pulling the delicate berries from the plants and packing them for shipment. But this year, there are fewer than 100, largely locals — and Picon has no clue how he’s going to get the harvest in.“You can cushion a bad crop, but when you have 80% of your production ready to be picked and no one to do it, you feel powerless,” Picon said. “We don’t know how this is going to end.” France expects some 200,000 workers will fail to show up this year. Coldiretti, an association of Italian farmers, estimates the country will be short as many as 100,000 foreign laborers. Germany typically has 30,000 migrant farm workers in March and 80,000 by May, but this year only a fraction of that number have shown up, according to Agriculture Minister Julia Kloeckner. On Thursday, the country closed its borders to migrant laborers from outside the European Union’s visa-free travel zone.“The labor situation along the entire food supply chain is under immense strain,” Kloeckner told reporters in Berlin Thursday. “The number of workers from neighboring countries is falling fast.”With restaurants, hotels, and shops mostly shuttered due to the pandemic, governments are hoping people from those sectors, or students facing months without classes, will fill the void. French Agriculture Minister Didier Guillaume on March 24 asked anyone who’s out of work to step up “so we can all eat.”Germany has created a website listing thousands of unfilled agricultural jobs. A similar initiative in Austria has seen 7,000 people sign up since eastern European butchers and pickers headed home en masse as borders slammed shut a week ago, but the government says the country needs three times that number.Topics : From Huelva to Hamburg and Newcastle to Naples, Europe’s farmers are struggling to find people to bring in rapidly ripening fruits and vegetables, which frequently must be hand-picked, usually within a window of just a few days. They typically rely on seasonal workers from eastern Europe or northern Africa, but fears of the coronavirus are keeping hundreds of thousands of migrant laborers from leaving home, and controls on once-unfettered borders are stopping many of those willing to make the trip.Strawberries and asparagus are already being left to rot in Spain, Italy, and southern France. Farther north, producers of everything from salad greens and tomatoes to onions and peas are fretting about what to do as the spring and summer growing season picks up.The labor problems have some in the business worried that urban shoppers could face produce shortages. The concern is that even crops that get picked won’t reach consumers because outdoor markets are closed and transport links are iffy.“The cities may soon start to lack fresh fruit and vegetables,” said Sebastien Heraud, a farmer in the Dordogne region of southwestern France and a leader of Coordination Rurale, an agricultural union. “Even those of us who can harvest have trouble selling.”
Six provinces have declared siaga (alert) status for forest and land fires, National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spokesman Raditya Jati said on Monday.“The BNPB has asked administrations at the provincial, regency and city level to increase their preparedness against forest fires, such as by imposing emergency alert statuses,” he said in a press statement on Monday.The length of the emergency period varies among each province, located in Sumatra and Kalimantan islands, he added. Read also: COVID-19 presents new challenges in forest fire controlThe six provinces are Riau, where forest and land fires are predicted to last from Feb. 11 to Oct. 31, South Sumatra (May 20 to Oct. 31), Jambi (June 29 to Sept. 26), West Kalimantan (July 2 to Nov. 30), Central Kalimantan (July 1 to Sept. 28) and South Kalimantan (July 1 to Nov. 30).According to Environment and Forestry Ministry data, South Sumatra had 336,798 hectares affected by fires, while Central Kalimantan 317,749 ha, West Kalimantan 151,919 ha, South Kalimantan 137,848 ha, Riau 90,550 ha and Jambi 56,593 ha.Raditya said prevention could be carried out if both the ground and air task forces could extinguish hot spots as soon as possible.The BNPB has deployed a total of 6,000 personnel, with 1,000 personnel in each of the six provinces. The agency has also prepared three helicopters in Jambi for water bombing, 11 in South Sumatra, eight in Riau, one in West Kalimantan and five in Central Kalimantan. Topics :
Currently, almost every Dutch scheme has an ESG policy based on the sector’s code for pension funds and the Pensions Act. The latter requires schemes to report on how they take the environment, climate, human rights, and social relations into account.In practice, however, every pension fund lays the emphasis in a different way, depending on industry, sponsor, or occupation of its participants.The Pensions Federation said it would seek a covenant “matching the sector’s diversity and offering added value to the pension funds and society”.It added that it wanted to use the OECD’s directive for multinational companies, as well as the UN’s Principles for Responsible Investment and “guiding principles” for companies and human rights for its ESG agreement.The €382bn civil service scheme ABP said that pension funds could benefit from each other’s experience and added that joint definitions and standards would help them operating more efficiently.ABP, however, emphasised that agreements must be clear, measurable, and feasible.Meanwhile, a separate study by GRESB and consultant Finance Ideas has suggested that only the largest pension funds, such as ABP and the €185bn healthcare fund PFZW, deploy all available tools for ESG policy.The study, which examined 171 pension funds, found that only the largest schemes took part in impact investing and had set reduction targets for carbon emissions.“Small funds have insufficient staff to implement ESG,” said Piet Eichholz, professor of finance at Maastricht University, who guided the survey. “Moreover, they are often passive investors.”In his opinion, increased co-operation could enable smaller pension funds to increase their potential for ESG policy.The researchers also concluded that the richer a pension fund is, the more attention it pays to social and responsible investment.Eichholz said they did not find a difference in ESG approach between the large sector schemes and company pension funds.GRESB – which leads ESG efforts in the real assets space – and Finance Ideas looked at nine different ESG criteria, ranging from impact investment to full exclusion.According to Eichholz, all pension funds had excluded companies from investment, such as manufacturers of cluster munitions.Six out of 10 schemes reported extensively about their ESG efforts, with half of the surveyed pension funds using engagement and voting during annual general meetings. The Dutch Pensions Federation plans to draw up an environmental, social, and governance (ESG) covenant for pension funds, which would also involve government and societal organisations.The agreement, for “international corporate social responsibility” (IMVO), is aimed at improving co-ordination and the exchange of expertise between pension funds, which should result in shared definitions and standards, according to the federation.A spokesman said that 70 pension funds – representing 84% of Dutch schemes’ assets – had already signed the declaration of intent for the covenant.The federation indicated that it was still assessing which organisations it would approach for the agreement.
Anderson, In. — Hoosier Park Racing & Casino has officially announced its 2018 Epic Summer of Music lineup. Kicking off on June 23 with Randy Bachman, the series will also feature Martina McBride on July 27, George Thorogood and The Destroyers with Foghat on August 3, and Aaron Lewis on Sept. 2. Tickets go on sale to the public May 4, with a special Club Centaur pre-sale event on May 2.Advance ticket sales are available to Club Centaur members on May 2 at Hoosier Park and Indiana Grand Racing & Casino box offices located in Shelby’s Gifts. Tickets go on sale to the public on May 4, and are available at respective box offices or through Ticketmaster.All concerts start just after the end of live racing for the evening and will take place on Hoosier Park’s outdoor music center stage.Setting the stage for the summer on June 23, Randy Bachman is the founding member of Bachman Turner Overdrive and The Guess Who. He is known as the most celebrated musician in Canadian history, and is famous for 1970s rock hits like American Womanand Roll On Down the Highway.Country music singer-songwriter Martina McBride, taking the stage on July 27, has two greatest hits albums and has sold more than 14 million records. Known for hits like Independence Day and My Baby Loves Me, McBride has won Country Music Association’s Female Vocalist of the Yearaward four times and Academy of Country Music’s Top Female Vocalistaward three times.On August 3, George Thorogood And The Destroyers will perform their high-energy blues and rock show with hits like Bad to the Boneand Who Do You Love. Opening for them are classic rock favorites, Foghat. Thorogood has released more than 20 albums, with two certified as platinum and six certified as gold. In 2014, his band celebrated their 40thanniversary of performing and this year has seen the acclaimed release of George’s first-ever solo album, Party Of Oneon Rounder Records.Back by popular demand, country music star Aaron Lewis will close out Hoosier Park’s summer concert series on September 2 as a part of a special Labor Day weekend celebration. Well known for his hit single That Aint Country, Lewis’s indoor show in October of 2017 at Hoosier Park sold out within an hour of going on sale. Lewis is also well-known as a founding member and lead singer of rock band Staind.In addition to the ticketed shows this summer, Hoosier Park’s annual Fourth of July celebration will be held on Wednesday, July 4 and will feature live harness racing, a free outdoor concert by The Duke Boys and the largest fireworks show in the Indianapolis area.“Each and every summer, we work to build a first-class concert lineup offering an entertainment experience that is second to none,” said Centaur Gaming President and COO Jim Brown. “Each of these shows bring a different flavor to the outdoor music center, and we’re looking forward to an epic summer of music with our guests.”The 2018 Epic Summer of Music Series is presented by American Elevator, Inc., Barcardi, Gigi’s Cupcakes, The Herald Bulletin, Maker’s Mark, Hudson Rentals, Modern Trailer Sales, Piazza Produce & Specialty Foods, and Deem Mechanical and Electrical.The Hoosier Park outdoor music center accommodates up to 4,500 reserved ticket seats. The music center features a wide variety of ticket options, including premium VIP seating and private party decks complete with personal beverage service.
The 29-year-old told Spanish newspaper Marca last week he did not know whether he would be returning to Swansea this summer to see out the final year of his contract – and Monk was also giving few clues when the subject was raised ahead of Everton’s Barclays Premier League visit on Saturday. “I’m sure we will make contact with Michu before the end of season,” Monk said. “But we’ll let his season finish and our season finish before we sit down at some point to discuss the future. “I know he’s had a difficult time with injury and his concentration right now is on getting back to fitness. “He’ll want to finish the season off strong there and I’ll speak to him in the summer. “I’ll get his side of things and where he wants to take his future and I’ll assess it from my side as well.” Michu scored only twice in the Premier League last season before joining Napoli and Monk made it clear that the player was determined to head to Italy. “I had a good discussion with him last summer and this was the way he wanted to go with Napoli,” Monk said. The once-capped Spain striker has spent a frustrating season on loan at Napoli where injury has seen him make just five appearances for Rafa Bentitez’s Serie A giants. Michu scored 22 goals in his first season at Swansea after signing from Rayo Vallecano for £2.2million in July 2012 and broke into the Spain squad, but two injury-riddled campaigns since have raised doubts about his future in south Wales. Press Association “But he’s coming back to full fitness now and hopefully he will have a good end to the season there. “I’ve got a good relationship with Michu, we were team-mates before I became manager, and I was fine with how he wanted to go. “I’ve kept an eye on him and it’s our duty as a club to understand what’s exactly going on with Michu on a game to game basis. “He hasn’t had a sustained period where he’s been fit and it’s always hard as a player when that happens. “He’s been unfortunate, but if he get can a sustained period of fitness I’m sure you’ll see the quality we’ve seen here.” One player who has been fit and firing, however, is French striker Bafetimbi Gomis who has scored three goals in his last two appearances as Swansea have recorded back-to-back wins over Aston Villa and Hull to move within a single point of their best Premier League haul with seven games still remaining. Gomis had a difficult first half to the season playing second fiddle to Wilfried Bony but the Ivorian’s initial £25million sale to Manchester City has seen him become the club’s first-choice striker and he has grasped the opportunity in recent weeks. “When Wilfried left and he was starting games Bafe was probably too eager to do well,” Monk said. “His effort and commitment have always been great but he was trying too hard to score goals. “He’s kept that effort and commitment but he’s probably more relaxed now, he’s showing his composure in games now and that is vitally important.” Swansea manager Garry Monk says he will listen to Michu before deciding whether the Spaniard has a future at the Liberty Stadium.
Southampton manager Ronald Koeman heaped praise on Sadio Mane after his record-breaking hat-trick kicked off an “amazing afternoon” against Aston Villa. Press Association This has been a remarkable season for Saints but one which looked to be petering out after a downturn in performances left them winless in four matches. Back-to-back defeats at struggling Sunderland and Leicester were particularly uninspiring, but they hit back in some style as FA Cup finalists Villa were swatted aside 6-1 at St Mary’s. “I speak a lot to Sadio because first of all an important thing for the player is he has to know what his best quality is and the rest of the players have to know what the best qualities of Sadio (are). “Sometimes I have a discussion and say ‘you sometimes go down too much when backing in. You need to make movements in the space and then you are so dangerous because nobody is so fast as you’. “He is a scorer. If you go down or to the midfield you are a long way from the goal of the opponent and you have to use your qualities. “Today he demonstrated what we expect from Sadio. He’s a great player, a great run player in front. “We know for some players it’s the first season in the Premier League but you have to learn and still he’s a young player and he can do much better than he did. I believe that.” Few foresaw this result given recent results and the upturn in fortunes Tim Sherwood has overseen. However, Villa capitulated during a remarkable first half and were unable to get back into the game, with Christian Benteke’s fine header on the stroke of half-time merely a consolation goal. “I am disappointed – disappointed that the 45 minutes of football there was not good enough,” Sherwood said. “Credit to Southampton, they punished every mistake we made. We made quite a few as a group. “I’m not just talking about defenders, midfielders, attackers – the coaching staff, everyone who was involved at this football club has to take responsibility and we do. It wasn’t good enough. “We feel very sorry for our travelling fans who stuck with us right until the end and Aston Villa fans around the country and around the world. “Since I’ve been in the club those are the only 45 minutes I can complain about. We have to not get too carried away and put it behind us as we have no choice but to move on to our next game which is Burnley at home. “We’ve still got enough in us to get results to stay in the Premier League which was the objective.” “I enjoyed it very much like all the fans because we play great football,” Koeman said. “We had great spirit from the beginning and that was the difference between the last away games and today, and some help from Aston Villa who played offside, high defending, (gave us) a lot of space and then you have to punish that. “It was an amazing afternoon. You don’t expect that to be honest but I was expecting a reaction of the team after the last two games. “It was great because it’s our last home game and the fans deserved this one because they had an amazing support of the team. It was a very enjoyable afternoon.” The result is a timely boost in Southampton’s fight for a Europa League berth and one which certainly brings a feel good factor back to St Mary’s. Saints move onto their best-ever Premier League points tally of 60 after a win in which Shane Long’s brace and a Graziano Pelle volley complemented a memorable contribution from Mane. The Senegal international’s treble early in the first half was wrapped up in two minutes and 56 seconds – the quickest in Premier League history, beating the record of four minutes and 33 seconds set by Liverpool’s Robbie Fowler in 1994 against Arsenal. “It’s not normal to score a hat-trick in two or three minutes, not in the Premier League, Holland or the worst league in the world,” Koeman said of Mane, signed from Red Bull Salzburg for £10million last summer. 
Share this:FacebookRedditTwitterPrintPinterestEmailWhatsAppSkypeLinkedInTumblrPocketTelegram Britain’s Andy Murray celebrated his rise to world number one by beating American John Isner 6-3 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 to win his first Paris Masters title.The victory brought Murray his sixth ATP title of a memorable 2016.The Scot, 29, also added his second Olympic and Wimbledon titles on his way to the top of the rankings.Today he will be officially confirmed as Britain’s first singles number one since computerised rankings were introduced in 1973.Murray’s ascent was confirmed by Milos Raonic’s withdrawal from Saturday’s semi-final with a leg injury, but the hype around his accomplishment did nothing to knock his concentration.He now heads to the season-ending World Tour Finals as top seed for the first time – but if previous number one Novak Djokovic wins every match at the Finals he will reclaim the top ranking he held for 122 weeks.The draw for that competition takes place today at 15:00 GMT.After double-faulting on the first point of the first game, Murray soon clicked into gear, breaking for a 4-2 lead, and showing watertight defence to close the door on Isner when the American created two break points of his own in the next game.Murray managed only six points on his opponent’s serve in the set, but that was enough to take it in 35 minutes.The unseeded Isner continued to put pressure on Murray in the second, showing an increasing deftness at the net to take the second set to a tie-break.And the 6ft 8in 31-year-old had too much for the Scot in the decider, serving imperiously to take the breaker 7-4.Twice in Isner’s first two service games of the third set Murray saw break points snatched away by his opponent’s huge serve.But Murray was not be denied, and he finally forced a break at 5-4, firing in a rapid backhand that Isner could only dig into the net, to take the third set and the match.
Published on April 17, 2014 at 2:10 am Contact Dylan: dmsegelb@syr.edu | @dylan_segelbaum Facebook Twitter Google+ Regardless of the merits of a federal agency’s ruling that football players at Northwestern University can unionize, Syracuse University should begin planning if the decision is upheld, according to an advisory budget committee.That statement is included in a 12-page, wide-ranging report from the University Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Affairs, which was presented on Wednesday. The senate is an academic governing body made up of faculty, staff, administration and students.The budget committee’s report said the March 26 decision from a regional director of the National Labor Relations Board’s Chicago office has “serious potential implications” for athletic departments at private universities, though it is too early to speculate what will eventually happen with the ruling. Those implications include more resources being spent on football and basketball — something that would disrupt how sports that do not make money are financed, according to the report. The labor board’s decision would also require that questions about paying athletes in these “non-revenue” sports be addressed.Football and men’s basketball generated the most revenue out of SU’s different sports last year, according to numbers reported to the U.S. Department of Education. Football generated $33,213,622 in revenue and men’s basketball took in $26,039,030. That’s compared to $22,663,307 and $13,788,271 in expenses, respectively.SU Athletics chief communications officer Joe Giansante did not return four calls and an email about the budget committee’s report.AdvertisementThis is placeholder textHerman Frazier, deputy athletics director and chief of staff, talked briefly about unionization on Tuesday in a REL 103: “Religion and Sports” class that was open to the public. He cited possible concerns with taxes and “employee relations” — such as if 50,000 tickets were sold to an event and athletes did not show up.At SU, Frazier said, student-athletes are getting an education valued at more than $200,000. They will also not leave school with a medical bill from a sports-related injury and have access to tutoring, he said. Comments
It was important for Syracuse to begin the second half strong, to pull away from Pittsburgh and not turn the ball over. Nearly four minutes later, the Orange did not score a point. The crowd remained on its feet, clapping until Elijah Hughes nailed a 3 from the top of the key.“We have supreme confidence in our self right now,” said Brissett, who scored 11 points and added four assists. “It shows. We’re playing like it. The first half, we kind of got separated there, playing a little selfish, but we were able to pick it up in the second half.”But the momentum began to shift. Pittsburgh’s offense regressed, and Syracuse jumped on the opportunity. It came from all over the court. A left-wing 3 from Frank Howard. A slam dunk from Chukwu followed by a baseline one-handed slam from Hughes. Battle’s 3 from the top of the key forced the Panthers to call a timeout, the Orange ahead, 45-30. Battle would add a corner 3 and a breakaway dunk off a steal to cap off a 22-3 Syracuse run.The Panthers were unable to battle back like they had in the first half. They led for just 2:20 total, and turned the ball over 17 times. Whenever Pittsburgh chipped away at the lead, someone on SU had an answer.Brissett and Battle were able to get theirs, as both finished in double digits with Battle adding a team-high 22 points. But an unexpected spark from the offense came from freshman Buddy Boeheim, who has long struggled to find his stroke. He added four 3s and career-high 13 points.“We were making 3s, getting in the paint, kicking it back out, finding the open man” Battle said. “The pick-and-rolls were working well for us. They were either doubling me, which left Paschal wide open, or they didn’t come up and that led to a pull up for me.”As conference play heats up, Syracuse has its hands full. No game will come easy in the gauntlet that is the ACC. The margin for error became ever-so-slim after a surprising loss at home to Georgia Tech, and an opportunity for another defensive team to stymie the Syracuse offense arose in the form of Pittsburgh.Instead, the opposite happened, and the Orange picked up a much-needed win on their home court. Published on January 19, 2019 at 4:17 pm Contact Charlie: csdistur@syr.edu | @charliedisturco Facebook Twitter Google+ Tyus Battle found Oshae Brissett cutting by the left wing with just over five minutes left. Brissett caught the pass, took a few steps and rose toward the rim. He went in for a layup, but a push from the side gave him the extra couple of inches he needed to flush it home.The Carrier Dome crowd erupted as Brissett let out a scream and walked toward the edge of the court near the student section. He let out a smile as Syracuse took a 12-point lead.For the first time in conference play, Syracuse looked in complete control. Its offense wasn’t stagnant, and a mixture of pump fakes and quick passes consistently opened up holes in the Pittsburgh defense. Just five days after defeating No. 1 Duke, Syracuse (13-5, 4-1 Atlantic Coast) made a statement at home, downing Pittsburgh (12-6, 2-3) 74-63 on Saturday afternoon. Once again, it was Battle serving as the steady hand and guiding Syracuse, a team that led by just one at the half, to a double-digit win.“We battled hard, they’re a tough, physical team,” Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said. “It was a good, solid win. I told the players, every game in this league is going to be like this. Nothing easy. It’s going to be difficult every time you come to play.”This was a game that brought an eerie similarity to Syracuse’s matchup with Georgia Tech a week ago. It was one between two defensive-oriented teams, where Syracuse entered after a strong conference win.AdvertisementThis is placeholder textThe Yellow Jackets shut down SU, and handed the Orange a shocking home loss. After four nonconference losses, a number Syracuse has never made the NCAA Tournament with, a loss to GT put yet another blemish on the resume. The future looked bleak having to travel to Duke on a two-day turnaround.Between that loss and the upset over No. 1 Duke, something changed for Syracuse. The offense took a step forward, shooting 44 percent from both the field and 3 against the Blue Devils. Syracuse now had a marquee win, one that might be the difference maker for the Tournament committee.Expectations were raised tenfold heading into Saturday for an up-and-down Syracuse team that couldn’t miss one game, then shot terribly the next. Winning easier conference matchups, especially at home, became crucial.“We didn’t want to play bad today,” Brissett said, “want to keep up the same intensity, same focus as if we’re playing Duke again. Doesn’t matter who we play, we know every game is going to be a tough game.”Max Freund | Staff PhotographerIt was a message well-received by the Orange, as they came out of the gate strong and seemed as though a possible let-down loss had been put to rest. The offense didn’t struggle to score. Again, like at Duke, 3s came much easier — even against a Panthers defense that ranked No. 8 in the country at defending the 3.The Pittsburgh offense, meanwhile, struggled with SU’s patented 2-3 zone. Turnovers came often, and at times that proved costly. When the Panthers didn’t turn the ball over, the shot clock winding down would lead to a forced shot.With under three minutes left in the first half, Syracuse led by 11 and began running away with the game. But, sloppiness stepped in.A block from Oshae Brissett that erupted the Dome crowd was quickly silenced by an errant Paschal Chukwu pass and 3 from Jared Wilson-Frame. A layup from Brissett missed on the opposite end, and Pittsburgh pushed the tempo. Xavier Johnson laid the ball in off the glass as Wilson-Frame belted out “Money!”All of a sudden, a once-double-digit lead had been cut to three at the half. Syracuse committed five turnovers in the final 3:23, giving Pittsburgh the momentum it needed to claw its way back in.More Coverage:Solid defense, 3-pointers and more takeaways from Syracuse’s 74-63 win over PittsburghGallery: Syracuse defeats Pittsburgh, 74-63 Comments
“I’m happy to be back in the city of my forefathers. These games are a first step in a long journey. I fully expect these games will continue and hopefully, multiple players will come out of India and play in the NBA. And hopefully, we will have more arenas to play these games,” Ranadive told reporters ahead of the matches. “I believe basketball will be the second-most popular sport in this country. Of course, cricket is the national pass time and it’ll be hard to replace in the land of (Sachin) Tendulkar and (Mansoor Ali Khan) Pataudi but basketball and India are meant to be together. This is a game that can be played indoors and outdoors, by boys and girls, in cities and villages and by the rich and poor,” explained the 61-year-old. Written By Vivek Ranadive acknowledges his roots whenever someone mentions Mumbai. He may have left the city 40 years ago, but Ranadive still calls himself a true Mumbaikar. After all, the American multimillionaire who founded TIBCO – a real-time computing company – and former co-owner and vice-chairman at Golden State Warriors, is back in Mumbai for the NBA India Games as his Sacramento Kings team will square off against the Indiana Pacers on October 4 and 5. LIVE TV Last Updated: 4th October, 2019 16:28 IST NBA India Games: Kings Owner Vivek Ranadive Hopeful Of Indians In NBA NBA India: Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive expects the Mumbai crowd to get behind his Kings side when the two NBA teams grace the court on Friday Shivam D READ | First-Ever NBA Game In India To See 3000 Students Being InvitedNBA India Games: Basketball will be popularRanadive has previously made several trips to India but this will be the first time he will travel in the country as a team owner for a pre-season game. When he initially took over Sacramento, he had planned to make the games global. After spending nearly six years as the owner of the franchise, Ranadive is now confident that basketball will become the second most popular sport in India after cricket.READ | NBA India Games: 5 Things You Need To Know About The Basketball League The Kings owner is hopeful that the presence of NBA teams in the country will motivate Indian hoopers. “I hope this is the first step in a long journey. I fully expect these games will continue and in 10 years we will have multiple players coming from India and making it to the NBA system,” said Ranadive, who was born in Juhu. 
WATCH US LIVE READ | NBA In India: 2019 Tour Dates, Venue, Tickets And Schedule Details COMMENT The games are upon us and Ranadive expects the Mumbai crowd to get behind his Kings side when the two teams grace the court on Friday. “I expect every Mumbaikar to be cheering for Sacramento Kings. The Indiana Pacers owner Hebert Simon is a good friend, so I would like people to cheer for his team but I hope the loudest cheer is for my team,” he concluded.READ: NBA India Games: Sacramento Kings To Fly Down To India Via Air Drake First Published: 4th October, 2019 16:28 IST SUBSCRIBE TO US FOLLOW US