SYDNEY (Reuters) : The sporting world, from football giants Manchester United to glamorous tennis star Maria Sharapova, has united to help raise money for victims of Asia’s tsunami disaster.

[Top officials of five cricket bodies, including the International Cricket Council (ICC), met in Melbourne on Dec. 31 to discuss ways and means of raising more funds for the tsunami-hit people in India and other parts of Asia, Indo-Asian News Service reported.

Well over 150,000 people, including thousands in southern India, have died in south and southeast Asia in the Dec. 26 tsunami disaster.

It has been announced that the Indian cricket team would donate their fees from either a Test or a one-dayer for the rehabilitation of the disaster victims while the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has also announced a donation of Rs.10 million ($230,202).

The Australian cricket board and its players have already pledged Australian $34,000, while the Pakistan Cricket Board and the United Cricket Board of South Africa (UCBSA) are also planning to chip in with aid.]

The Sri Lankan cricket team’s tour of New Zealand was postponed last week.

“Although the logistics behind this effort are complicated, the ICC is trying to get the cricket nations to rally and raise funds for a major humanitarian cause,” Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Shaharyar Khan told Reuters.

The England and South African cricket teams held an impromptu fund-raising party on Dec. 30 after the second Test in Durban, with autographed players’ shirts, bar takings and entrance fees to the party going to charity.

The English Premier League has pledged 1 million pounds ($1.92 million) with the top 20 clubs, including Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea, all contributing at least 50,000 pounds each.

Russia’s Wimbledon tennis champion Maria Sharapova gave $10,000 to Thailand’s Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on Dec. 30 while she was in Bangkok for an exhibition match.

The ATP, the governing body of the men’s professional tennis, also announced it was joining the relief effort with a series of fund-raising activities during the Jan. 3-9 Chennai The ATP said it would donate its $25,000 fee for the tournament to UNICEF and would hold a fund-raising auction, offering autographed items including a shirt owned by defending champion and former world number one Carlos Moya.