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sPorTs Tuesday, 10 september, 2013
PcB eAger To conDUcT PAKisTAn sUPer leAgUe in 2014
this league can work as a bail-out project for the pcb, who is facing a dearth of income LAHORE STAFF REPORT
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has not dismissed the idea on conducting the Pakistan Super League (PSL) after it resumed work to create its very own franchise-based Twenty20 tournament in 2014. Officials hired to set up the league met with PCB interim chief Najam Sethi, who gave the go ahead to the league after viewing their presentation. The PSL has been in the pipeline for a few years now. There were more efforts during suspended chairmanZaka Ashraf’s regime, who wanted to bring back international cricket to Pakistan. The original tournament itself was to take place in March and April this year, but was postponed indefinitely. If Pakistan cannot host the tournament, then the UAE could be considered as a possible venue. Sources said that the authorities want to stage the PSL in February 2014, before the ICC World T20 in Bangladesh. “This is why PCB Chairman Sethi has shown interest in reviving plans for the league.” “The board has already invested at least Rs 20 million, and much of the work has already been done. Around 60 to 80 foreign players showed their desire to participate and they are still on board.”
Champions keep playing until they get it right. – Billie Jean King
UnDerPrePAreD HArAre PiTcH cAUses concern cash-strapped zc will save more than $50,000 in travel and hotel costs by playing the entire series of two twenty20s, three odis and two tests in harare HARARE
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N underprepared pitch is the biggest concern ahead of the second Test between Zimbabwe and Pakistan starting on Tuesday (tomorrow) in Harare. The groundsmen have just two-and-ahalf days after the first Test to prepare the surface after being informed last Thursday that the fixture would be moved from Bulawayo, and both Hamilton Masakadza and Misbah-ul-Haq expect a tough time in the middle. “It’s going to get a lot worse, a lot quicker,” said Masakadza, who stood in as captain in the first Test and has played most of his domestic cricket at Harare Sports Club. “It’s going to be tough for the groundsman with such a short turnaround and the spinners will definitely come into play much more in the second innings.” Turn was always predicted as a factor for the second Test, which was due to be played at Bulawayo’s Queens Club, a venue known for its flat, dry strip. However, Zimbabwe Cricket announced the match would be moved to Harare because Queens was “not in a condition to host a Test,” but it has learned the
change in venue was actually a costcutting measure. The strip being readied for the second Test is the one on the extreme right, when looking at the field from the clubhouse end of the ground. It was not used this summer and staff had begun rolling it during the ODIs against Pakistan in preparation for the domestic season. Grant Flower, the Zimbabwe batting consultant, could not recall playing any international cricket on that pitch but said he had seen it in use during the domestic twenty-over competition some time ago. While he thought the firstTest pitch “played very well,” he was also concerned about what the second one would do. “We know they will have something ready for us, we just don’t know what to expect.” Groundstaff at Harare Sports Club have hosted back-to-back Tests before, as recently as six months ago. Bangladesh played two Tests at the venue between
It’s going April 17 and 29. The to be tricky first match went only four days but we need to be which left four days of prepared — preparation for especially mentally the second Test and it seemed prepared — and we enough. Spin was not a huge factor in need to be the second match professional and 1,221 runs were scored with a highest total of 391 in the first innings. Masakadza does not think run-scoring will be as easy this time, especially with the quality of the Pakistan spinners. Saeed Ajmal took 11 wickets in the first Test and
Abdur Rehman claimed four. Prosper Utseya’s five took the total number of spinners’ scalps to 20 out of the 39 wickets that fell. Run-scoring was below three an over on average throughout the Test, partly as a result of disciplined bowling and conservative tactics but also because the surface slowed. With patient batting a skill that still needs to be honed by the younger players on both sides, Misbah said he is worried about the temperament his team will need to show if they are to whitewash their hosts. “The pitch (is a) really big concern for us,” Misbah said. “It’s going to be tricky but we need to be prepared — especially mentally prepared — and we need to be professional.”
Saeed, Younis improve ICC Test ranking star performer saeed ajmal and younis khan in the first test against zimbabwe have improved their player rankings for tests LAHORE STAFF REPORT
Off-spinner Saeed and Younis Khan, played a pivotal role in Pakistan’s 221 runs victory in the first Test against Zimbabwe at the Harare Sports Club, have gained in the Tests ranking. While Saeed’s match haul of 11 for 118 has helped him move up a place to third in
the latest ICC Ranking for bowlers and Younis got a jump of two places to sixth for his unbeaten knock of 200 in the second innings on batsmen ranking. Saeed Ajmal’s effort with the ball have helped him gain 36 ratings points to thereby regain the number-three slot from Sri Lanka’s Rangana Herath. Saeed was last ranked third at the end of the Test series against South Africa in February 2013.
If the performance in the first Test is anything to go by, then Saeed could potentially over-take South Africa’s second-ranked Vernon Philander if he delivers a similar performance in the second Test also starting in Harare, from September 10. Test bowlers ranking is still headed by South Africa’s Dale Steyn. Outside the top 20, the only other bowler to make a positive move was Pakistan’s Junaid Khan in 34th (up by four). Apart from the Player of the Match in the Harare Test, Younis Khan, Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq in 15th (up by one) is the only other batsman inside the top 20 to head in the right direction in the Test batsmen ranking.
PIa bounce back with 3-0 win over Hbl army held wapda to a 1-1 draw in the clash of giants in lahore LAHORE STAFF REPORT
Setting aside the agony of the previous two losses Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) made a strong comeback when they whipped struggling Habib Bank Limited (HBL) 3-0 in a match of the tenth edition of the Pakistan Premier Football League here at the KPT Stadium on Sunday. Meanwhile, Army held WAPDA to a 1-1 draw in the clash of giants in Lahore. PIA, who had lost their initial two matches, came out of the trouble to tame HBL convincingly. Nasrullah put PIA in front in the 16th minute before Riaz Ahmed doubled their lead in the 43rd minute. After the breather PIA kept good
ball possession and it was their striker Mohammad Ishtiaq who made it 3-0 with a nice chip in the 80th minute. But PIA coach Shamim Khan was still not happy with his team’s performance. “We should have won by at least six goals,” said Shamim, a former international. Meanwhile, HBL manager Yousuf Khan was shocked by the result. “I am really disappointed. I was not expecting this,” Yousuf told this correspondent. “Our aim was to win this match because our rivals were not that strong,” he said. Khan hoped that he would try his level best to put his side on the right track. “We also used our striker Atif in the second half and he instilled life in the frontline. I hope that a few good results in the coming few matches will help us to settle down,” said Yousuf. Meanwhile, the outing between the two heavyweights — Army and WAPDA — ended in a stalemate at the Model Town
Football Academy Ground in Lahore. WAPDA opened the scoring through Arif Mehmood in the 32nd minute before Army brought the parity through Zafarullah Javed in the 74th minute. WAPDA coach Khalid Butt said that his players were not in top physical fitness. “The players came to me on August 22, just a week before the start of the event. And still they are not in their peak fitness,” Butt said. “But still our progress is not that bad as we have got seven points from three outings,” said the coach. Under Butt WAPDA lifted Premier League titles for record four times. But a couple of years ago he was removed by WAPDA Sports Board and WAPDA’s performance in the last two seasons was disappointing. Butt was hopeful that the team would get stronger. “I have also asked for the inclusion of Mehmood Ali and Imran Niazi and we will get them soon,” Butt revealed. Army coach Major Shafqat said his
team played well. “My team played tremendously well. In the initial 15 minutes we missed a couple of easy chances. And the goal we conceded was unexpected,” he said.
IShafqat feels that he needs goalkeeper like Jaffar. “Jaffar was our precious asset and we need a keeper like him,” said the coach. “His injury is serious and he will at least need a year to recover,” he said.