Sports Bulletin

By BIPIN DANI Former South Africa captain late Hansie Cronje's father, Ewie Cronje passed away at his residence in Bloemfontein on Monday afternoon. "My dad went to be with Lord at 2:05 pm this afternoon. He was at peace and we are so thankful for the full life he had and wonderful dad that he was", his elder son Frans Cronje, who has sent a note to his friends including this reporter, said. "From my mom, my sister and me, thank you so much for all the wonderful messages of the last few months. We will not be able to answer phone calls today, but will read every Whats App and other message. With much love...". "We decided, due to Covid 19 not to have any funeral at this stage. We will notify friends and family of any future arrangements", he note further said. The family has also sent a photograph, which was taken in January this year, when he said goodbye's to the family. "Yes, he had kept the photo my younger brother Hansie just above his bed", Frans added.  

Sports Desk ISLAMABAD (May 12, 2020):-The Guyana Amazon Warriors have announced the West Indian players they will be retaining for the 2020 Hero Caribbean Premier League. International retentions and signings will be announced at a later date. This year teams can retain as many players from their 2019 squads as they wish. They could also transfer players to other teams and sign emerging players. The Amazon Warriors have chosen to retain six local Guyanese players, three regional West Indian players and they have signed a Guyanese player as one of their Emerging West Indies players ahead of the CPL draft.  The following are the Local and Regional players retained and signed by the franchise for CPL 2020: Nicholas Pooran (Trinidad & Tobago) Shimron Hetmyer (Guyana) Brandon King (Jamaica) Keemo Paul (Guyana) Sherfane Rutherford (Guyana) Romario Shepherd (Guyana) Chandrapaul Hemraj (Guyana) Kevin Sinclair (Guyana)* Odean Smith (Jamaica) Anthony Bramble (Guyana) Guyana Amazon Warriors Team Operations Manager, Omar Khan, commented on the retentions and signing: “The Guyana Amazon Warriors Franchise has and will always be committed to the continued development of our local and regional players. From the inception of the CPL we included young Guyanese players in our squad as part of the franchise’s mandate to provide opportunities to young aspiring Guyanese cricketers to assist in their overall development as professional cricketers. Shimron Hetmyer, Keemo Paul and Sherfane Rutherford have all benefitted from these opportunities prior to them becoming full-fledged members of our team. “We are extremely delighted that we were able to retain the majority of our local and regional players, including Nicholas Pooran and Brandon King, both of whom have been hailed by the cricket pundits as potential future stars of West Indies cricket and who were members of our team last year. The Guyana Amazon Warriors wish all of the retained players great success in the CPL 2020." The CPL is scheduled to take place between 19 August and 26 September but the tournament organisers are currently watching the current situation with COVID-19 closely and are liaising with medical advisors and governments. A decision on whether the tournament can proceed as planned, or at a different time, will be made as soon as possible.

Sports Desk ISLAMABAD (May 12, 2020):-The International Cricket Council (ICC) has today announced the postponement of two further qualifying events due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier and the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup Qualifier Europe Division 2. As part of the ICC’s comprehensive contingency planning process and after consultation with Members and with the relevant government and public health authorities, the decision has been taken to postpone the qualifier to the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2021 and the start of the qualification pathway to the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup 2022. The ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier was due to take place in Sri Lanka between 3 and 19 July, where three teams were to qualify for the 2021 event in New Zealand. The start of the journey to the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup 2022 was scheduled to begin with the European Regional Qualifier in Denmark between 24 and 30 July. The ICC will work with all participating Members to identify when these events will be able to be staged. ICC Head of Events, Chris Tetley said: “In light of the continuing travel restrictions, global health concerns and government and public health authority advice we have decided to postpone two further upcoming qualifying events due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier and the Europe qualifier to the U19 Cricket World Cup 2022 have both been impacted. “Our priority during this difficult period is to protect the well-being of players, coaches, officials, fans and the whole cricket community and we will take well-informed, responsible decisions in relation to both postponing events and resuming international cricket. “These are both important events with the Women’s CWC Qualifier one step away from New Zealand 2021 and the Europe qualifier which signifies the start of the U19 Cricket World Cup 2022 pathway. We will work in partnership with the Members to find an appropriate window to reschedule these events as soon as is safe and practical to do so. I would like to thank the Members for their cooperation and continued support.” The two remaining ICC U19 Cricket World Cup Regional Qualifier Division 2 events are being monitored and kept under review: the Africa event is due to take place in Tanzania between 7 and 14 August and the Asia event between 1 and 9 December in Thailand. The Division 1 events in all five regions are scheduled to take place in 2021.

SB Report ISLAMABAD (May 8, 2020):-Chairman of the Independent Disciplinary Panel, Justice (retired) Fazal-e-Miran Chauhan, late Thursday afternoon submitted his detailed judgement on the Umar Akmal case to the Pakistan Cricket Board. Justice Chauhan has imposed a ban of three years for each of the two charges of violating the PCB Anti-Corruption Code, which will be deemed to have come into effect from the date of Umar Akmal’s suspension i.e. 20 February 2020. Both periods of ineligibility will run concurrently, meaning Umar Akmal will now become eligible to return to cricket activities on 19 February 2023. Umar Akmal was charged with two breaches of Article 2.4.4 of the PCB Anti-Corruption Code in two unrelated incidents on 17 March. On 9 April, the PCB referred the matter to the Chairman of the Independent Disciplinary Committee after the batsman opted not to request for a hearing before the Anti-Corruption Tribunal. Justice Chauhan in his remarks said: “It appears that he (Umar Akmal) is not prepared to show remorse and seek apology, make admission that he failed to fulfill his responsibility under Anti-Corruption Code, Article 2.4.4, rather he tried to take refuge under the pretext that in the past whenever any such approaches were made, the matter was reported by him. “As far as Charge No.1 is concerned, I do not see any circumstances to mitigate the nature of offence, particularly, when the participant (Umar Akmal) has not cooperated with the PCB Vigilance and Security Department and the investigating team. “In view of the admission of the participant (Umar Akmal) that he failed to disclose to PCB Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Department, the details of the approaches and invitations extended to him without unnecessary delay. The charge as framed is proved and the participant (Umar Akmal) has rendered himself liable to be punished for breach of Article 2.4.4. “Charge No.2, breach of Article 2.4.4 of the Code by failing to disclose to the PCB Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Department of the PCB, full details of the approaches and invitations received by you (Umar Akmal) to engage in corrupt conduct under the Code in respect of matches in PSL 2020. “It is also admitted by him (Umar Akmal) that he failed to report the approaches and invitation to the PCB Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Department, as required by the PCB Code, Article 2.4.4. In view of the above charge as framed, stood proven and participant has rendered himself to be punished under Article 6.2 of the PCB Code.”

Staff Report ISLAMABAD (May 6, 2020):-Dr Fehmida Mirza Federal Minister for Inter Provincial Coordination (IPC) distributed cheques among the players of Athletics Federation of Pakistan, who won medals during 13th South Asian Games held in Nepal from 1-10 December, 2019, on Wednesday here at Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) in a ceremony. Athletics players won 5 Gold, 2 Silver and 6 Bronze medals. Athletes Arshad Nadeem won (Javelin Throw gold), Uzair Rehman won (200 M, gold; 4x100 M relay bronze), Mohammad Naeem won (110 M hurdles gold, 4x100 M relay bronze), Mehboob Ali won (400 M hurdersls gold, 4x400 M relay bronze), Shams-ul-Haq won (discuss throw bronze),  Sami Ullah won (100 M bronze, 4x100 M raley bronze), Umar Sadat won (4x400 M relay bronze), Abdul Moeed won (4x400 M relay bronze), Nokar Hussain won (4x400 M relay bronze) and Mohammad Shahbaz won (4x400 M relay bronze). In women events, Najma Parveen won (400 M hurdles gold, 200 M silver, 4x400 M relay silver, 4x100 M relay bronze), Sahaib-a-Asra won (4x400 M relay silver, 400 M  bronze, 4x100 M relay bronze), Aneela Gulzar won (4x400 M relay silver, 4x100 M relay bronze), Rabia Ashiq won (4x400 M relay silver) and Esha Imran won (4x100 M relay bronze). In line with approved cash award policy, gold medalists were given Rs.1.000 million each, silver medalists got Rs.500, 000 while bronze medalists received cheques of Rs.250, 000 each. Total cash awards amounting to Rs.11.250 million have been awarded to the shining starts both male and female. Parliamentary Secretary Ministry of IPC Saima Nadeem, Secretary Ministry of IPC Mohammad Ali Shahzada, Mohammad Zafar Secretary General Athletic Federation of Pakistan and Mohammad Azam Dar Deputy DG PSB were present on the occasion.       Talking to the players, Dr. Fehmida Mirza Minister for IPC/President PSB congratulated not only the medal winners, who are ambassadors of Pakistan, but also thanked parents of the players who encouraged and supported their children to take part in the games. She informed that a series of meetings and thorough deliberations were held to select the contingent on merit enabling to ensure value for government exchequer and achieve better results. She shared the proud moments of the prize distribution ceremony when flag of Pakistan was hoisted and national anthem was played in Nepal. The President PSB also highlighted the role of Ministry of IPC for arranging training of athletes in China before their participation in the SA Games to gain professional skills, international exposure and match temperament. Dr. Fehmida Mirza especially appreciated Arshad Nadeem for his outstanding achievements leading to qualify in the Tokyo Olympic Games as he is the 1st ever Pakistani in the history to qualify directly in the Olympics. In other session with women players, Minister for IPC also appreciated the women players for taking active part in sports and brining glory for the country. The President PSB valued Najma Parveen for her achievements in national and international competitions. The President PSB also assured that every possible support will be rendered to the Athletic Federation and players to excel in the mega international events and their future endeavors despite limited role and transfer the subject of sports to the provinces under 18th amendment. The Secretary General Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP) Mohammad Zafar on behalf of his President Maj. Gen. (R) Mohammad Akram Sahi and Federation thanked Dr Fehmida Mirza and   PSB for her untiring efforts and timely rewarding the players at this critical time. Zafar also acknowledged the role of Dr. Fehmida for making arrangements of the SA Games and encouraging the players at the venue which was a great source of inspiration for the players. Participating players thanked and highlighted their achievements before the Minister. They also emphasized that like federal government respective provincial governments may also come forward to support the players enabling them to set high goals and continue achieving laurels for the country through collective efforts.

Sports Desk ISLAMABAD (May 6, 2020):-The St Kitts & Nevis Patriots have announced the Caribbean players they will be retaining for the 2020 Hero Caribbean Premier League. International retentions and signings will be announced at a later date. This year teams can retain as many players from their 2019 squads as they wish. They could also transfer players to other teams and sign emerging players. The Patriots have chosen to retain or sign seven Caribbean players ahead of the CPL draft, including signing Denesh Ramdin from the Trinbago Knight Riders: Evin Lewis (Trinidad & Tobago) Fabian Allen (Jamaica) Sheldon Cottrell (Jamaica) Denesh Ramdin (Trinidad & Tobago)+ Rayad Emrit (Trinidad & Tobago) Alzarri Joseph (Leeward Islands) Dominic Drakes (Barbados)* The Patriots have also announced that it will be Rayad Emrit who will captain the team and Australian Simon Helmot will be the Head Coach for the 2020 season. Speaking on his appointment as captain, Emrit said: “I am very excited to be part of the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots for a second season. I think that the team that is selected this year is going to be a very exciting one. I am very excited to be named as captain. It's always an honour and a privilege to lead a franchise. Our new coach, Simon Helmot, knows the CPL and he knows how to win titles. He and I are going to work very hard to get the team to the finals.” The CPL is scheduled to take place between 19 August and 26 September but the tournament organisers are currently watching the current situation with COVID-19 closely and are liaising with medical advisors and governments. A decision on whether the tournament can proceed as planned, or at a different time, will be made as soon as possible.

By Abdul Jabbar Faisal ISLAMABAD (May 6, 2020):-PCB’s Dream Pairs series for Test players has gained great popularity among the fans, current and former players, pundits and journalists. The campaign entered its fourth phase on Tuesday, 5 May, with the fans asked to name two spin bowling pairs of their choice. Former Test off-spinner Tauseef Ahmed named his former colleague and co-hero of the famous 1987 Bangalore Test victory Iqbal Qasim as his dream partner from yesteryears before naming former leg-spinner Mushtaq Ahmed as his other partner. Tauseef Ahmed, who took 93 wickets in a 34-match-long Test career, said: “I am very lucky that in my career I played with the likes of Abdul Qadir and Iqbal Qasim. If asked to pick one spinner as my partner, I would go for Iqbal Qasim who partnered with me in the famous 1987 Bangalore Test win. “The performance we gave in that Test match is for all to see and remember. Iqbal remained very helpful and mentored me throughout my career. “I would also like to choose Mushtaq Ahmed as my other partner. Although, I didn’t play much with Mushtaq, I always admired his skills and temperament. Mushtaq was a very exciting player and never used to get fazed by any situation. He was an attacking bowler who used to take on the batsmen and crack jokes while bowling. We played together for UBL and Mushtaq’s temperament and bravery always stood out for me.” Mushtaq meanwhile thanked Tauseef for nominating him as his spin bowling partner and named former off-spinner Saqlain Mushtaq and the leading Pakistan leg-spinner Yasir Shah as his two dream bowling partners. Mushtaq Ahmed, who took 185 wickets in 52 Tests, said: “I want to thank Tauseef Ahmed for his complements for me. When I started playing for UBL he was there as a mentor, role model and  someone who always supported me. “Among former cricketers I would like to name Saqlain Mushtaq as my bowling partner. Although I played a few matches with Abdul Qadir,I chose Saqlain as Qadir and I were similar bowlers while Saqlain being an off-spinner provided variety. “Saqlain and I featured in a lot of matches and were part of many victories. Among recent cricketers, I would want to bowl with Yasir Shah. Yasir has sped his way to 200 wickets in Test cricket and has broken many records. It would be an honour for me to bowl with Yasir.” The criterion for selection of the spinners is a minimum of 75 Test wickets. The activity acknowledges the services of former and present stars of Pakistan cricket. Before the spinners, the campaigns for fast bowlers, openers and middle-order batting pairs received tremendous response. Among openers, the 90s batting greats Saeed Anwar and Aamir Sohail (qualification minimum 1,000 runs as opener) came out as the most popular pair. The famed left-handed pair was followed by Saeed Anwar’s paring with Majid Khan, regarded as one of the most stylish and productive openers produced by Pakistan. Among middle-order batsmen (qualification minimum 2,500 runs in middle-order, batting positions three to seven) the famed middle-order batting duo of Pakistan highest Test run-getter Younus Khan and Mohammad Yousuf emerged as the most popular pair followed by Inzamam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Yousuf, a pair that remained the backbone of Pakistan Test batting in recent history. The legendary fast bowling duo of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis who shared 787 Test wickets between them was rated as the most popular fast bowling pair in Pakistan Test history, while Mohammad Asif was chosen to share the ball with Wasim as the second most popular fast bowling pair. The two-day long spinners’ campaign will be followed by dream pair of all-rounders and most popular wicketkeeper and captain.

Sports Desk ISLAMABAD (May 5, 2020):-The Trinbago Knight Riders have announced the Caribbean players, as they will be retaining for the 2020 Hero Caribbean Premier League. International retentions and signings will be announced at a later date. This year teams can retain as many players from their 2019 squads as they wish. They could also transfer players to other teams and sign emerging players. The Knight Riders have chosen to retain or sign 10 Caribbean players ahead of the CPL draft: Dwayne Bravo (Trinidad & Tobago) Kieron Pollard (Trinidad & Tobago) Sunil Narine (Trinidad & Tobago) Darren Bravo (Trinidad & Tobago) Lendl Simmons (Trinidad & Tobago) Khary Pierre (Trinidad & Tobago) Jayden Seales (Trinidad & Tobago)* Amir Jangoo (Trinidad & Tobago)* Tion Webster (Trinidad & Tobago) Akeal Hosein (Trinidad & Tobago) Making the announcement, Venky Mysore, Director of TKR said: “Over the last 5 years, TKR has built the franchise by consciously bringing back players from Trinidad & Tobago and also developing local talent. We are delighted that all ten of our Caribbean players in the TKR squad for 2020 are from Trinidad & Tobago.” The CPL is scheduled to take place between 19 August and 26 September but the tournament organisers are currently watching the current situation with COVID-19 closely and are liaising with medical advisors and governments. A decision on whether the tournament can proceed as planned, or at a different time, will be made as soon as possible. ABOUT THE HERO CARIBBEAN PREMIER LEAGUE: First started in 2013, the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) is a franchise-based T20 format cricket tournament that combines two of the most compelling aspects of Caribbean life – dramatic cricket and a vibrant Carnival atmosphere. There was a combined broadcast and digital viewership of 312million during the 2019 season to make it one of the fastest growing leagues in world cricket. In 2019 the tournament made a positive economic impact across the Caribbean of US$136million. Barbados Tridents are the current Hero CPL champions and the other competing teams are Trinbago Knight Riders, Guyana Amazon Warriors, St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots, St. Lucia Zouks and Jamaica Tallawahs. The 2020 tournament is scheduled to take place between 19 August and 26 September.

By Abdul Jabbar Faisal ISLAMABAD (May 4, 2020):-PCB’s Digital Pairs series for Test players has gained great popularity among the fans, current and former players, pundits and journalists. The campaign entered its third phase yesterday Sunday, 3 May, with the followers asked to name two fast bowling pairs of their choice. Asked to choose a bowling partner to form a dream pair both from the list of former bowlers and the current lot representing Pakistan in Test cricket, Shoaib Akhtar (hailed as one of the fastest bowlers in the history of the game) named Imran Khan and Naseem Shah as his partners. Shoaib Akhtar said: “If I pick a former fast bowler, I feel I would have been very fortunate if I would have bowled with Imran Khan with both of us at the peak of our bowling careers. If we would have bowled together we would have had the same mindset of attacking the stumps relentlessly. “Among the present lot, I feel Naseem Shah can replicate my bowling attitude and passion. Naseem and I would have made a fine pair with the same attacking attitude.” The criterion for selection of the bowlers is a minimum of 75 Test wickets. In 46 Tests, Shoaib took 178 wickets at 25.69. Despite not making the list (Four Tests - 13 wickets), Naseem has been chosen by Wasim and Shoaib as a future star. Naseem, the youngest to record a Test hat-trick taker, thanked Shoaib for choosing him as his bowling partner and is thrilled by the legendary bowler’s confidence in his abilities. Naseem Shah said: “Delighted to get Shoaib Akhtar’s recognition following acknowledgment by Wasim Akram. I want to thank Shoaib for nominating me as his bowling partner, these bowlers were my idols and getting recognised by them is nothing short of a big honour for me. “I agree that attitude and aggression are the keys to success for a fast bowler, I hope that I would live up to Shoaib’s expectations of me.” Pakistan’s Test fast bowling mainstay Mohammad Abbas named Wasim and Hasan Ali as his former and current partners, like Naseem, Hasan also does not meet the 75 wickets criteria but has been picked as a future star by his Test bowling partner Abbas. Mohammad Abbas said: “It is a great initiative by PCB; it isn’t easy to choose a pair considering the abundance of fast bowling stars. However since we have to choose one I name Wasim Akram as my bowling partner among former stars and Hasan Ali as my pair from the current lot.” The aim of the activity is to acknowledge the services of former and present stars of Pakistan cricket. Before fast bowlers, the campaign for openers and middle-order batting pairs received tremendous response. Among openers, the 90s batting greats Saeed Anwar and Aamir Sohail (qualification minimum 1,000 runs as opener) came out as the most popular pair. The famed left-handed pair was followed by Saeed Anwar’s paring with Majid Khan, regarded as one of the most stylish and productive openers produced by Pakistan. Among middle-order batsmen (qualification minimum 2,500 runs in middle-order, batting positions three to seven) the famed middle-order batting duo of Pakistan highest Test run-getter Younus Khan and Mohammad Yousuf emerged as the most popular pair followed by Inzamam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Yousuf, a pair that remained the backbone of Pakistan Test batting in recent history. The two-day long fast bowlers’ campaign will be followed by dream pairs of spinners, all-rounders and most popular wicketkeeper and captain.

By Abdul Jabbar Faisal ISLAMABAD (May 3, 2020):-To help players learn from the cricket’s elite and remain focused on the game during the Covid-19 lockdown, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has organised online sessions for the Pakistan national women’s team with the legendary Wasim Akram and Babar Azam. The interactive sessions will be held via videoconference calls in which around 35 women cricketers – current internationals and emerging players – will be provided insights about how to strategize and approach the game in different conditions. ICC hall of famer and the highest wicket-taker in Test cricket from Pakistan, Wasim Akram, on Monday, will share his experiences and provide an overview about his learnings over the course of his extraordinary 18-year-long international career. Wasim had delivered a similar session to Pakistan men’s and a selection of emerging team players last week. The session with Babar Azam – whose stratospheric rise has seen him at the top of the T20I rankings, number three in ODI rankings and number five in Test rankings – will be attended by women batters in which the captain of the national men’s T20I side will shed light on the art of batting by sharing how he gears up for different conditions and situations. Sharing her excitement about the opportunity to learn from Wasim Akram, Aliya Riaz said: “I have grown up watching videos of Wasim Akram and how he brought laurels for Pakistan with both bat and ball from some adverse of situations. “It is a great opportunity for me and I am eager to learn from the great of the game and understand his work ethic which made him stand apart from the rest.” Looking forward to the session with Babar Azam, Omaima Sohail said: “Babar Azam is a top batsman and a session with him will help all the batters to understand what makes him different than the others and reflect on how we can continue to improve ourselves. “I will be looking to hear from Babar how he establishes his innings and navigates during the tough phases. I am sure this session will prove to be helpful.” Urooj Mumtaz, the chair of the national women’s selection committee, said: “It is extremely important that the players continue to develop during this phase when cricket is on hold and these sessions are certainly going to be beneficial in that aspect. “We keep looking for ideas to keep the players engaged and motivated. Fitness plans have been provided to both the senior and junior group of players and they have been working at home to ensure they are ready once the situation normalises.” “Sessions with Wasim Akram and Babar Azam will provide the players an opportunity to listen and learn from the best, helping them in improving their game. Pakistan has produced some of the most extraordinary cricketers in the history of the game and we will continue to bring them on board for the benefit of our players.”