SPORTS Wednesday, 25 November, 2015c
pcb seeks government clearance on IndIa serIes LAHore
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Agencies
AKISTAN’S cricket chief said on Tuesday he had sought their government’s permission for a bilateral series with India on an unspecified agreed neutral venue. Sri Lanka is the likeliest venue to host a shortened bilateral series between the arch-rivals after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) refused a request from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to play in United Arab Emirates, Pakistan’s adopted home because of security fears at home. The move came after PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan met BCCI president Shashank Manohar in Dubai on Sunday. “We have sent the report to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and has sought permission to play India on a neutral venue,”said Khan, without confirming Sri Lanka as the venue of the series. “After the Dubai meeting both BCCI
and PCB have said that the final decision rests with the respective governments, so in the next three to four days we expect a final decision,” said Khan. With time running out, as India have to travel to Australia for a limited over series starting
from January 12 and Pakistan visit New Zealand in the same period, the full series of two Tests, five one-day and two Twenty20 is likely to be reduced. It is likely that both countries will agree to play three one-day and two
Twenty20 internationals. Sri Lanka Cricket interim committee head Sidath Wettimuny confirmed Pakistan has contacted him to arrange the matches. “I received a call from the PCB asking about the possibilities of hosting the series. We are now looking at it very seriously,” Wettimuny said. “Nothing is confirmed as yet as we have to get back to them on schedules and availability, but we are very excited by the request. I think this is a great opportunity for us to support Pakistan and India. They have always supported us,” Wettimuny added. Pakistan and India have not played a full series since 2007. India stalled bilateral series with Pakistan in the wake of 2008 terrorists’ attacks on Mumbai, which New Delhi blamed on militants based across the border. But last year both the boards signed a memorandum of understanding under which they are scheduled to play six series between 2015 to 2023 but all subject to government clearance.
PAKISTAN WITHDRAWS FROM 2015 SAFF CHAMPIONSHIPS fIfa’s ethIcs commIttee wants lIfe ban on platInI pArIS Agencies FIFA’s ethics watchdog wants Michel Platini to be banned for life over a suspect payment, the European football chief’s lawyer declared on Tuesday. Platini is serving a 90-day suspension on corruption charges over a $2 million payment he received from FIFA president Sepp Blatter who is also suspended. Platini’s lawyer Thibaud d’Ales described FIFA’s life ban demand as a “scandal” and “excessive”. Blatter’s representatives refused to comment on whether the same request has been made against the Swiss official. FIFA’s investigatory chamber announced Monday that it has opened a case and a decision is expected to be handed down next month. Until then Platini is forbidden to take part in the race to become Blatter’s successor as president of FIFA. He is one of five official candidates to run football’s scandal-hit ruling body with the election scheduled for February 26.
SportS DeSk Pakistan will be withdrawing from the South Asian Football Federation (Saff) Championships 2015 that will begin in Kerala on December 23, while the registration for the event will close on Tuesday. A Pakistan Football Federation official confirmed that the country cannot register for the event in time and the federation does not have the funds to hold a camp to prepare the team. Meanwhile, All India Football Federation General Secretary Kushal Das also confirmed that Pakistan has withdrawn from the Championships without giving any reason. “We have been informed that Pakistan has pulled out of the SAFF Championships. They did not give any reason for the withdrawal,” said Das on Tuesday. Das further said that teams will be given walkover who were scheduled to play against Pakistan in the Championships. “There will be no change in the schedule of the tournament and it will begin from December 23. India will get a walkover against Pakistan,” said Das. Earlier, National striker Saadullah said that Pakistan would need to
field a full-strength squad including players who are part of foreign leagues if they are to win the SAFF Championships. Also, former national team captain Muhammad Essa Khan criticised the government for creating the mess that he thought
could lead to Pakistan’s failure to participate in the event. Pakistan have never won the SAFF Championships. Out of the total 10 events, India has been victorious six times while Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Maldives and Afghanistan have won it once each.
IslahuddIn calls for matches agaInst european gIants ISLAMABAD Agencies Olympian Islahuddin Siddique on Tuesday urged the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) to organise youth team tours to Europe in order to prepare them for next year’s Junior Hockey World Cup in India. “After watching the performance of the junior team in the recent Hockey Asia Cup, I can say our team, stands at No 2 position in Asia as they lost the final to India. But they still have a long way to go to be a contender at the world level,” said Islah. “Pakistan junior team will have to put up a lot of hard work against European sides,” he said. Islahuddin said PHF should arrange matches against the likes of Australia, New Zealand, Argentina and also the European sides in order to groom its talent. “A total of 20 to 25 matches should be organised for the team against these sides.” Islahuddin, who represented Pakistan from 1967 to 1978, said the juniors did not show enough fighting spirit in the final against India. “Our goal-keeping was very poor and needs improvement.” He advised PHF to set up a goal-keeping camp to improve this department. “PHF should call in the expertise of Shahid Ali Khan, Mansoor Ahmed and Ahmed Alam for the camp,” he said adding the full-backs should also be called in for the training camp. Islahuddin called on the PHF to also focus on the improvement of the the senior team, currently ranked 10th in the world.
Pakistan to defend second position in rankings against England SportS DeSk The Shahid Afridi-led Pakistan side will be defending its second position in the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Twenty20 rankings when they take on England in a three-match series starting from Thursday in the UAE. Pakistan bagged the Test series 20 under Misbahul Haq’s captaincy, while England beat Azhar Ali and co 3-1 in the ODIs. The T20 series will announce the ultimate winner in the tour. Pakistan are 14 points ahead of the eighth-placed England which means Afridi must lead the team to victory to ensure that they stay put on the second position. Sri Lanka is on top of the table right now as the reigning world champions. If Pakistan beat England 2-1, then both sides will remain as they are on the rankings table. However, if England beat Pakistan 2-1 then Eoin Morgan-
led T20 side will jump up to the sixth position and Afridi and his men will drop down to fourth. In another case, if Pakistan win 3-0 they will join Sri Lanka on top of the points table with 125 points but will still remain on the second position by a fraction of a point. Meanwhile, if England beat Pakistan 3-0 then the men in green will drop down to the sixth position and England will jump up to the fourth position. In the ICC Player Rankings for T20I Batsmen, England’s Alex Hales will start off as the highestranked batsman from either side in third position. The 26-year-old Nottinghamshire batsman trails India’s Virat Kohli in second place by four, and number-one ranked Aaron Finch by 13 points. ‘ICC investigating England’s third ODI win over Pakistan for alleged corruption’ Captain Eoin Morgan (eighth) and Jos Buttler (47th) are the other England batsmen to feature
inside the top 50. Pakistan has no batsman inside the top 10 but in Ahmed Shehzad (14th), Umar Akmal (16th), Mohammad Hafeez (24th) and Shahid Afridi (35th), it boasts four batsmen inside the top 50. In the ICC Player Rankings for T20I Bowlers, England has no bowler inside the top 75, while Pakistan has four bowlers inside the top 75. These include Shahid Afridi (ninth), Sohail Tanvir (16th), Shoaib Malik (68th) and Mohammad Irfan (75th). Sunil Narine leads the bowlers’ table, which also includes his West Indies team-mate Samuel Badree in second spot and Sachithra Senanayake of Sri Lanka in third place. Shakib Al Hasan of Bangladesh is on top of the all-rounders’ category, but Pakistan’s duo of Hafeez and Shahid are within striking distance. Second-ranked Hafeez trails Shakib by 47 points, while Shahid is another four points behind. Published by Arif Nizami at Plot # 7, Al-Baber Centre, F/8 Markaz, Islamabad.
CMYK