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Tuesday 9 August 2011

No central contracts for Shahid Afridi, Kamran Akmal,Shoaib Malik

By Cricket Addiction ,



Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal do not figure in the latest list of PCB central contracts. Younis Khan, who was banned for disciplinary reasons following a winless tour of Australia in 2009-10 and was out of last year's list, has been awarded a Category A contract this time along with current captain Misbah-ul-Haq, allrounder Mohammad Hafeez, spinners Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman, and fast bowler Umar Gul - the only player retained in the top category from last year's list.


Afridi had retired "conditionally" from international cricket following his removal as captain after the tour of West Indies, while Kamran, who also was in Category A last year, has been ignored since the World Cup. Afridi was involved in a legal battle with the Pakistan board after he hinted at differences between him and coach Waqar Younis during the West Indies tour; these were confirmed by Waqar and team manager Intikhab Alam in their tour report. Afridi has said he will not go back on his decision as long as the present PCB regime remains in power.
Middle-order batsman Umar Akmal and opener Imran Farhat were retained in Category B. Also included in that grade werere Abdul Razzaq, demoted from grade A last year, middle-order batsmen Asad Shafiq and Azhar Ali, who have been impressive finds for Pakistan in the last couple of years. Left-arm seamer Wahab Riaz, who took a five-for against India in the World Cup semi-final, also featured in grade B.
As expected, there was no place for Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Amir and Salman Butt , the three cricketers banned for their involvement in the spot-fixing controversy, while Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Yousuf and Danish Kaneria, who were not picked for the World Cup, have been ignored. Malik and Kaneria are yet to be cleared by the PCB's integrity committee. Kaneria has not played for the national team since August 2010, after the PCB tightened its anti-corruption programme following the spot-fixing controversy and Kaneria's own entanglement in a corruption case in Essex. Kaneria was cleared by a police enquiry in Essex, but is yet to be cleared by the PCB; he has petitioned against his continued non-clearance.
"As long as Malik and Kaneria are not cleared by the PCB integrity committee, a meeting of which is scheduled for August 15, they will not be considered for the contracts," Intikhab, also the PCB's director, said at a press conference in Lahore.
In Category C were seamer Tanvir Ahmed, who picked up six wickets on Test debut against South Africa, wicketkeeper Adnan Akmal, and the trio who have been picked in the squad for the tour of Zimbabwe - Yasir Shah, Sohail Khan and Rameez Raja. Aizaz Cheema, who has also been picked, was placed in the stipend category.
The contracts are for a duration of six months - July 1 to December 31 this year.

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Sunday 7 August 2011

Shoaib Malik set to return to Pakistan team

By Cricket Addiction ,





Former captain Shoaib Malik is all set to make a comeback into the national team for the upcoming Zimbabwe tour once he is cleared by the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) integrity committee on August 15.
According to sources, PCB’s integrity committee is satisfied with Malik’s reply on the 90,000 pounds lying in one of his bank accounts.
“Things are finally looking up for him (Malik). There are indications that the board is satisfied with the reply he has sent to them regarding the mystery surrounding the amount in one of his bank accounts,” a close aide said.
“The indications are that the integrity committee of the board, that has called him on August 15 for a hearing, will clear him and he will be available for the Zimbabwe tour,” the aide added.
Anticipating that the former captain would be cleared by the integrity committee, the national selectors have already named Malik among the reserves for the Zimbabwe tour, which begins in last week of this month.
Malik, who has not played international cricket since last August, will play for PIA in the Moin Khan Ramazan night tournament that begins on Saturday in Karachi but will join the star-studded National Bank side after the event.
Iqbal Qasim, who heads the NBP sports division, confirmed that Malik had joined the bank in a senior position.
Insiders also say that Malik stands a very strong chance of regaining the national team captaincy by next year as PCB chairman Ijaz Butt and national selectors believe he is an automatic choice forODI and T20 cricket.
“He has been out of the team only because of the issue with the integrity committee, not because of any cricketing reasons,” one source said.
“He appears to be a good choice to replace Misbah-ul-Haq when the right time comes,” the source added.

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Friday 5 August 2011

Shoaib Akhtar to take part in Singapore event

By Cricket Addiction ,




LAHORE -  Former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar will be seen in action during an invitational T20 event in Singapore. Pakistan opener Imran Farhat and some other Pakistani players left Wednesday night to take part in the event that will also feature leading players from other countries.
"I don't know much of the details but yes Shoaib Akhtar is playing as is Shane Warne," Farhat reported to have said. Farhat said that having been out of touch with the game for a while, he looks to event as warm up for the domestic season. Shoaib, who announced his retirement during the World Cup after a reported tiff with the team management over disciplinary issues, had pulled out of the Sri Lankan Premier League before it was watered down.
The fast bowler had said in June that he wanted to focus more on his business and less on cricket that is why he had pulled out of the Sri Lankan Premier League. The enigmatic player has always remained a big draw despite the controversies that have surrounded his career. The invitational event is being organized at the Singapore cricket club.

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Pakistan's off-spinner Saeed Ajmal spins Royals to victory

By Cricket Addiction ,




Worcestershire climbed off the bottom of the Clydesdale Bank 40 Group A as Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal bowled them to a 23-run victory over Derbyshire under the County Ground floodlights.

Ajmal took 4-24 in seven overs as Derbyshire lost their last five wickets in 19 balls chasing the Royals' 197-8 in a game reduced to 36 overs a side by rain.

Vikram Solanki made 84 from 77 balls - his best one-day score of the season - but Wes Durston pegged Worcestershire back with 3-7 in two overs.

The Royals lost five wickets in 23 balls and the Falcons were well placed with Martin Guptill scoring 64 from 72 balls but, despite a run-a-ball 45 from Wayne Madsen, they had no answer to Ajmal and were bowled out for 174.

Worcestershire had also started well, with Solanki and skipper Daryl Mitchell (41) adding 78 in 11 overs, but they were unable to build on that platform and lost wickets trying to clear the ropes.

The Royals should easily have passed 200 but good catching in the deep allowed Durston to prey on over-ambition in the closing overs.
Imperious drives

Derbyshire lost Chesney Hughes to a well-judged catch by a back-pedalling Ajmal in the third over but Guptill unleashed some imperious drives to put the Falcons on course.

The New Zealander drove Jack Shantry over long-on for six and with Durston easing the ball around, Derbyshire reached the halfway point needing 106 with nine wickets in hand.

But Durston drove Moeen Ali to deep mid-wicket and Guptill made his first and last mistake when he chipped the all-rounder into the hands of long-on.

The asking rate was starting to climb and although Madsen drove Solanki over long-on for six in an over which cost 13, the pressure was starting to tell on the Falcons.

Smith was bowled trying to run Mitchell to third man and Ross Whiteley edged a slash at Ajmal, who then had Clare caught at deep mid-wicket for a duck.

Derbyshire's fading hopes were snuffed out when they lost three wickets in the 34th over including Madsen, who was run out trying to steal a single to short third man.

Ajmal then yorked Tony Palladino to claim his fourth wicket and the game ended when Mark Turner was run out by a direct hit to give the Royals only their second victory in the competition with nine balls to spare.

Source:skysports

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Thursday 4 August 2011

Yasir Shah vows to fill Afridi’s boots

By Cricket Addiction ,





“I will try my level best to perform well on the Zimbabwe tour and will use all my skills to justify my selection,” he said while addressing a function arranged in his honour here on Tuesday.
Yasir, who boasts an impressive record of 148 wickets in 46 first-class matches, said while there will be lot of pressure in the absence of seasoned spinners Danish Kaneria and Shahid Afridi, he will try and rise to the occasion during the Zimbabwe series and shoulder the burden in the spin department.
“They [Afridi and Kaneria] are fantastic bowlers and their absence will be felt. But I will put in my best effort to dent the opposition on the tour,” said a confident looking Yasir.
Yasir, born to a farmer in May 1986 at Gohati (Swabi) started playing domestic cricket in 2003 and soon graduated to the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa team. He went from strength to strength from then on, representing Abbottabad Rhinos and the Pakistan Customs teams. He is currently playing for the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited in domestic cricket.
Besides that, Yasir has also represented Pakistan in the Under-15, U-17, U-19 and U-21 outfits.
Aamir Nawab Khan, president of the Abbottabad Regional Cricket Association and member of the PCB’s Governing Board, on Tuesday lauded Yasir’s selection in the Pakistan team and said the spinner thoroughly deserved the berth.
Aamir, who is also the president of Swabi District Cricket Association, said Yasir had a great chance to display his skills in international cricket because he had worked very hard on his game during the past few years.
“Yasir can make the most of his selection in the absence of Afridi and Kaneria,” said Aamir.
He added that with the selection of many youngsters in the 16-member squad for Zimbabwe it was evident that the PCB was encouraging newcomers to come forward and showcase their talent at top level.
Yasir becomes only the second player to represent Swabi in the national team after young pacer Junaid Khan who was part of Pakistan’s World Cup squad in February this year.
Junaid also played ODIs and Tests on the recent West Indies tour.

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Wednesday 3 August 2011

Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh will miss the rest of the series against England

By Cricket Addiction ,



Batsman Yuvraj Singh and bowler Harbhajan Singh will miss the rest of India’s Test cricket series against England with injuries.
Yuvraj has a fractured left index finger and will be out about four weeks, while Harbhajan’s strained abdominal muscle will sideline him three weeks, the Board of Control for Cricket in India said in a statement on its website.
They will be replaced by batsman Virat Kohli and spinner Pragyan Ojha, the BCCI said.
India has lost the first two games in the four-Test series, which resumes Aug. 10 at Edgbaston in Birmingham. The final Test is Aug. 18-22 at the Oval in London.
Fast-bowler Zaheer Khan and opener Gautam Gambhir both missed the last Test with injuries and their status for the third game isn’t yet known. Opening batsman Virender Sehwag, who hasn’t played since having shoulder surgery in May, will join the team in England today.
England can replace India as No. 1 in the International Cricket Council rankings with another victory or by drawing the final two matches. The teams will also play one Twenty20 match and five one-day international games following the Test series.

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Tuesday 2 August 2011

Afridi: I was reduced to zero after World Cup heroics

By Cricket Addiction ,




Speaking to the media at the launch of his new business venture ‘Fashion Valley’ the seasoned all-rounder stated that he was reduced to a ‘zero’ only a few days after being hailed as a national hero following the spirited performance of the team in the World Cup.
Afridi, who announced his retirement from international cricket in controversial circumstances after his abrupt removal from captaincy by the PCB at the end of the West Indies tour, was replaced at the helm by Misbah-ul-Haq for the ODI series against Ireland. Besides that, Afridi was also fined Rs4.5 million by the Board’s disciplinary committee which had earlier canceled his NOC for participation in the English T20 competition where he was to represent Hampshire.
The flamboyant big-hitter on Monday expressed dismay at PCB Chairman Ijaz Butt’s attitude during the entire retirement controversy and said it was unbecoming of a chairman and had caused him great distress.
Afridi reiterated his stance of not playing under the present regime of the cricket board. “I cannot play with people who conspired against me and worked against the team, they have their personal interests paramount to them and they are only damaging the team.”
He added that he had his heart in representing his country and did not want to let down millions of fans who reposed their confidence in him time and again.
“I have always maintained that playing for Pakistan is my priority, I would always prefer representing my country over any offer from anywhere in the world,” said an emotionally charged Afridi.
He thanked his fans and said that he had earned the respect of the nation due to his forthright attitude and passion for the game.
Afridi, who captained the team to ODI series win over the West Indies, dispelled the notion that his behaviour had cost the team the last two matches of the series.
“I did not take part in the selection meeting on the eve of the last two matches. The team was selected by coach Waqar Younis and Intikhab Alam and I had no input in the selection of the playing eleven.”
Afridi insisted that the national selection committee needed to be consistent in its policies of inducting new players in the team but should refrain from over-experimenting. “A pool of players need to be groomed for the years to come to raise a solid playing XI for Pakistan,” he said.

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