Sports Bulletin

BIPIN DANI Former Nepal captain Gyanendra Malla received the highest civilian award in his country. The 31-year-old top order right-hand batter received this "Prabal Janasewa Shree Award from Government of Nepal this week. Speaking exclusively over the telephone, he said, "I would like to thank the Nepal Government for honoring me with this award. I am feeling really proud and honored". "It's always a great feeling that the Government puts value and recognizes my effort and contribution for Nepal as a cricketer for more than 17 years with the highest civilian award". "This is one of the biggest achievements of my life. Proudest moment for me and my family", he added. Paras Khadka, Somnath Kami were among the other cricketer-recipients of this award in the past. Sandeep Lamichhane had recently replaced Gyanendra Malla as Nepal captain.

Sports Bulletin Report LONDON:-Joe Root has today stepped down as England Men's Test Captain. Root holds the record for the most number of matches and wins as England Men's Test Captain. His 27 victories put him ahead of Michael Vaughan (26), Sir Alastair Cook, and Sir Andrew Strauss (24 each). After being appointed as Sir Alastair Cook's successor in 2017, Root led the side to a number of famous series victories, including a 4-1 home series win over India in 2018 and a 3-1 triumph away to South Africa in 2020. In 2018 he became the first England Men's Captain to win a Test series in Sri Lanka since 2001, a feat he went on to repeat with a 2-0 victory in Sri Lanka in 2021. He is already England’s second highest Test run scorer of all time behind only Cook and scored 14 centuries as Captain. His tally of 5,295 runs as skipper is the highest by any England Captain and puts him 5th in the all-time list behind only Graeme Smith, Alan Border, Ricky Ponting and Virat Kohli. Joe Root, said: “After returning from the Caribbean tour and having time to reflect, I have decided to step down as England Men’s Test Captain. It has been the most challenging decision I have had to make in my career but having discussed this with my family and those closest to me; I know the timing is right. "I am immensely proud to have captained my country and will look back on the past five years with enormous pride. It has been an honour to have done the job and to have been a custodian of what is the pinnacle of English cricket. "I have loved leading my country, but recently it's hit home how much of a toll it has taken on me and the impact it has had on me away from the game. "I want to take this opportunity to thank my family, Carrie, Alfred and Bella, who have lived it all with me and been incredible pillars of love and support throughout. I thanked all of the players, coaches and supporting staff that helped me during my tenure. It has been a great privilege to have been with them on this journey. "I would also like to thank all the England supporters for their unwavering support. We are lucky to have the best fans in the world, and wherever we play, that positivity is something we always cherish and admire, which is a huge drive for all of us out there. "I am excited to continue representing the Three Lions and producing performances that will enable the team to succeed. I look forward to helping the next Captain, my teammates and coaches in whatever way I can." Tom Harrison, ECB Chief Executive Officer said: “Joe has been an exceptional role model during his tenure, balancing the demands of Test captaincy whilst continuing to shine brilliantly through his own personal performances. He has led by example, and that has resulted in more Men's Test wins than any other England Captain, alongside a number of famous series home and away victories. “Joe’s leadership qualities were exemplified by how he led the team through some of the most difficult and uncertain times we have known, playing during the pandemic all over the world, which speaks volumes for him as a leader and as a person. “I know that every single person who has played or worked under Joe’s captaincy will speak of his integrity and humility as a person, as much as his determination and example as a leader. “Off the field, Joe has been no different. It has been a privilege and a huge pleasure to have worked with him in his capacity as our Men's Test Captain, and I know he’ll continue to drive English cricket forward as a senior player, offering his wealth of experience and advice to support his successor.”

Ali Ahmed LAHORE:-Pakistan men’s national cricket team is scheduled to play seven Tests, 17 ODIs and a minimum of 25 T20Is in the next 12 months as the Pakistan Cricket Board confirmed and unveiled their upcoming international commitments. The seven ICC World Test Championship fixtures will be against three opponents – Sri Lanka (2), England (3) and New Zealand (2) – while the 12 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League matches will be versus West Indies, Sri Lanka, Netherlands and New Zealand (three each). In the shortest format of the game, Pakistan men’s side will feature in the ACC Asia Cup T20 in August/September and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Australia 2022 from 15 October to 15 November where they are guaranteed a minimum of five T20Is each. Outside the two events, their other T20Is will be against England (seven), West Indies (three) and New Zealand (five). New Zealand, in addition to the five ODIs in April 2023, will also play five T20Is. The women’s national side have a demanding but exciting and challenging 12 months, which will provide them more opportunities to improve and excel as well as to showcase their talent and potential to the world. The women’s side will feature in three ICC Women’s Championship series matches against Sri Lanka, Ireland (both home) and Australia (away), the Birmingham Commonwealth Games, the 19th Asian Games in Guangzhou, the ACC Women’s T20 Cup (venue TBC), the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup 2023 South Africa and the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 South Africa. In addition to this, Pakistan women will take on Ireland and Australia in a triangular T20 series in Belfast in the lead up to the Birmingham Games. At this stage, Pakistan Shaheens’ participation in the 19th Asian Games is confirmed, though efforts are being made to add a few more series for the Shaheens so that there are more opportunities for players who are knocking at the doors of the national side. While there is more international cricket for the men’s and women’s sides as compared to the 2021-22 season, Pakistan is set to host more international cricket in the coming season. West Indies, England and New Zealand men’s sides will tour Pakistan twice each, while Sri Lanka and Ireland women will visit Pakistan in May/June and October/November. This exciting and back-to-back international cricket will be in addition to the 2022-23 domestic cricket season, which will run concurrently to the international season. In the 2021-22 season, the PCB delivered 314 matches in 12 tournaments between September 2021 and April 2022. Pakistan international commitments (May 2022 to April 2023): 24 May - 5 June - Sri Lanka Women in Karachi (3 ODIs & 3 T20Is) 5-12 June - West Indies Men in Rawalpindi (3 ODIs) Jul-Aug - Pakistan Men to Sri Lanka (2 Tests & 3 ODIs) 12-24 Jul - Pakistan Women to Belfast for tri-series (4T20Is) 25 Jul-8 Aug - Pakistan Women for Birmingham Commonwealth Games (7 T20Is) Aug – Pakistan Men to Netherlands (three ODIs) 1-17 Sept – Pakistan Men to Sri Lanka for ACC T20 Cup (5 T20Is) 10-25 Sep – Pakistan Women and Pakistan Shaheens to Gangzhou, China, for 19th Asia Games Sep-Oct – England Men to Pakistan (7 T20Is) Oct - ACC Women’s T20 Asia Cup (8 T20Is, venue TBC) 15 Oct-15 Nov - ICC Men's T20 World Cup in Australia, (5 T20Is) 30 Oct-19 Nov - Ireland Women to Lahore/Karachi (3 ODIs & 3 T20Is) Nov-Dec - England Men to Pakistan (3 Tests) Dec-Jan - New Zealand Men to Pakistan (2 Tests & 3 ODIs) 4 Jan-1 Feb - Pakistan Women to Australia (3 ODIs & 3 T20Is) Jan - West Indies Men to Pakistan (3 T20Is) Jan-Feb - ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup, South Africa 2-26 Feb - ICC Women's T20 World Cup, South Africa Apr-May – New Zealand Men to Pakistan (5 ODIs & 5 T20Is)

BIPIN DANI Malaysia's Virandeep Singh, who took five wickets in five balls (against Push Sports Delhi) in Nepal Pro-Club Championship has "no regrets" on not being able to grab 6 in 6. The 23-year-old, who is also the opening batter (and wicket keeper) but also bowls spin grabbed five wickets in five balls but one batter was run out in the second ball of his last over on Monday. Speaking exclusively over the telephone from Nepal, he said, "no regrets. I’m happy I took 5 in 5 balls". "To be honest with you, I didn’t know I had taken 5 wickets in that over. Only when I was going for the Man of the Match presentation did they tell me I had taken 5 and there were 6 wickets in the entire over". "I was told to bowl the 20th over of the match by the captain and my only goal was to restrict them to as low as I could, I wasn’t really thinking about wickets at that time but the goal was to contain. It just happened for me, the wicket was very supportive for spinners and I guess it was meant to be for me", he added. "It’s an amazing feeling to achieve such a feat. I never had that in mind, as I was just focused on doing the job for my team, but of course it’s a massive confidence boost for me now as a bowler and I hope to contribute more as a bowler to the national team". "The opposition team coach was my coach during the Everest premier league when I played for Chitwan tigers last year and he had put an Instagram story the night before our match saying something along the lines of ‘when your next match is against Viran and he’s on top of his game’. It was a photo of him looking worried. He actually meant that for my batting, as I’m primarily a batsman. And the next day when this happened, he came up to and said ‘I had prepared for your batting, but what was this all about. And we just had a laugh about it". "Overall, a memorable day for me, my family, my team, and the country as well", Malaysxia-born Virandeep Singh, whose foremothers were Indians, signed off. 

BIPIN DANI Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, the recipient of the Padma Bhushan Award, who made his Test debut five decades ago (against West Indies at Port of Spain on March 6, 1971) will be felicitated in the United States of America (USA), it is learnt. This was confirmed by P.K. Guha, an ardent follower and promoter of cricket in the USA. Speaking exclusively over the telephone on Wednesday, he said, "Yes, we are going ahead with our plan to host Sunil’s 50th anniversary of Test Cricket debut celebration". Incidentally, the celebration was scheduled to be held last year in 2021 but had to be postponed because of Covid restrictions.   "The event is scheduled for July 30 (Saturday) in Farmington Hills, a Detroit suburb here". "Kapil Dev, Gundappa Vishwanath, Clive Llyod and Farokh Engineer are scheduled to join the event, other than Sunil himself", Guha further added. Vishy and Sunil are brothers-in-law. Viswanath is married to Gavaskar's sister Kavita. Gavaskar, with Vishy, Kapil Dev and Engineer have played against Clive Llyod's Windies team. In 2015, Guha had organized the biggest cricket event in Michigan by hosting cricket legends such as Gavaskar, Vengsarkar, Wadekar, B.S. Chandrasekhar,  Engineer, Chetan Chauhan, Karsan Ghavri and Padmakar Shivalkar. Guha had a special bond with the late Chetan Chauhan. Cricket fans in the metro Detroit area enjoyed interacting with the cricket stars at a sold-out show in Troy, Michigan.

Aamir Ali Janjua Dubai (UAE):-The International Cricket Council (ICC) has thanked hosts New Zealand Cricket for the successful delivery of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022. The event, which has been one of the most competitive Cricket World Cups ever, saw Australia crowned as champions after 31 games. With eight teams competing across six host cities, Christchurch, Wellington, Auckland, Hamilton, Dunedin and Tauranga, the event was brilliantly and safely delivered with Australia lifting the trophy for a record fifth time. ICC Chair Greg Barclay said: “We are delighted with the way the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 has been staged. It has been the most wonderful advertisement for cricket with closely fought competitive matches on superb pitches at beautiful venues. “I’d like to thank New Zealand Cricket and the Local Organising Committee for their commitment and dedication, often in challenging circumstances with COVID impacting on all areas of the event. Thanks too, to the ICC staff for once again delivering such a high-quality global cricket event and to the Match Officials for doing such a great job. “The New Zealand cricket loving public have done our sport proud, packing the Hagley Oval to make the final a great spectacle. Of course, our biggest thanks must go to the players who have made this event so memorable.” “Finally congratulations to Australia for winning the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 in outstanding fashion.”

Ali Ahmed LAHORE:-Chairman, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Ramiz Raja has congratulated both Australia and Pakistan cricket teams for producing enthralling, exciting and competitive cricket throughout the 38-day historic tour. “The three-Test series was combative and engrossing going into the last hour of the 15th day to find a winner, while white-ball cricket confirmed the high billing and calibre of both the sides. The camaraderie and respect demonstrated by the two sides during high-pressure cricket was exemplary and a massive advertisement for our sport,” Mr Ramiz Raja said. “Players from either side, through their on and off the field behaviour, significantly enhanced the values and spirit of cricket, which is exactly what this great sport is all about. “After witnessing and experiencing firsthand what this great country has to offer, I am confident the Australia players and officials will take home fond memories and become bigger advocates and goodwill ambassadors for Pakistan than before. “World cricket is proud and thankful to both sides for the way they played this series and won the hearts and minds of the cricket fans within and outside Pakistan. There is no doubt Pakistan and world cricket is now better placed than it was before this historic series. “I would like to place on record my heartfelt thanks to Cricket Australia who made this series possible by sending their best available players, as well as the PCB staff who delivered an outstanding and flawless series at the backend of HBL PSL 7. “I am also grateful to our enthusiastic and energetic Pakistan cricket fans who made this series a big success by thronging the three venues to appreciate and support both the sides. They got behind the players and teams whole-heartedly and appreciated strong performances, images of which continue to dominate the new and traditional media. “I would also like to thank all the security agencies, local and federal governments, our valued commercial partners and the broadcasters, who ensured things worked smoothly and excellent pictures went out for the global viewers and fans.”

Aamir Ali Janjua Dubai (UAE):-Men’s Test captains Babar Azam (Pakistan), Kraigg Brathwaite (West Indies) and Pat Cummins (Australia) have all been shortlisted for the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award for March 2022 following their supreme efforts during a month which was packed with outstanding individual performances around the globe. The women’s shortlist for March is comprised of stars from the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup in New Zealand. England bowler Sophie Ecclestone, and run-machines Rachael Haynes (Australia) and Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa) are in the running to scoop the award following stellar performances during the month against the world’s best. The ICC Player of the Month nominees for March were announced on Wednesday, based on performances across formats and including matches from the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup held in New Zealand, amongst others. An independent ICC Voting Academy* and fans around the world can now vote to decide the winners, which will be announced next week. Fans can register via icc-cricket.com/awards and are invited to cast their votes until Sunday 10 April. ICC Men’s Player of the Month Nominees for March: Babar Azam (Pakistan) Pakistan’s skipper played an integral part in his side’s batting during the recent series against Australia. Despite not ending the World Test Championship (WTC) three-match series victorious, Babar amassed 390 runs during the month in Tests, including a record-breaking 196 in the second Test to salvage a draw against the odds. In addition, his efforts at the crease in the two ODI matches during the month saw Babar score 57 and 114 respectively, with the latter helping his side chase down an imposing target of 349 set by Australia. This is the second time he’s featured on the shortlist for the ICC Player of the Month award, after winning in April 2021. Kraigg Brathwaite (West Indies) The West Indies’ Test captain and opening batter led from the front during the recently concluded successful WTC series against England, scoring 341 runs at an average of 85.25. Brathwaite’s resolve and determination at the crease was best characterized by his monumental 160 from 489 balls in the second Test in response to England’s big first innings total. This mammoth innings ensured a drawn second Test and provided the platform for his side to clinch the series by winning the final showdown in Grenada. Pat Cummins (Australia) In a WTC Test series which was dominated by run scoring, Cummins stood out for his bowling performances in unforgiving conditions. He led his side, and the bowling attack, to victory in Pakistan playing a pivotal role in clinching the series thanks to a match-winning spell, taking 5 for 56 in the first innings and following up with 3 for 23 in the second innings of the final test. Taking 12 wickets at an average of 22.50 helped him secure his first nomination in the ICC Player of the Month awards. ICC Women’s Player of the Month Nominees for March: Sophie Ecclestone (England) Ecclestone’s outstanding bowling performances during the month helped steer her side to the Women’s Cricket World Cup final in New Zealand. Her spin bowling caused problems throughout the tournament for opposition batters, taking 20 wickets during the calendar month at an average of 12.85. Her prowess was capped by a magnificent spell in the victory over South Africa in the semi-final, taking 6 for 36 to ensure a 137-run victory. This is the second time she has been nominated for the ICC Player of the Month accolade (previously shortlisted in June 2021). Rachael Haynes (Australia) Scoring 429 runs in the eight matches she played during the month, Haynes was at the forefront of Australia’s unbeaten run through to the Women’s Cricket World Cup Final. Averaging 61.28 during the month, along with a healthy strike rate of 84.28, her stellar performances came at crucial times – 130 against England in their opening match and 85 in the semi-final victory over the West Indies. Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa) Wolvaardt’s endeavours for South Africa were critical to her team reaching the semi-finals of the Women’s Cricket World Cup in New Zealand. Up to the end of the semi-finals, she was the tournament’s leading run-scorer, amassing 433 runs at an average of 54.12, passing 50 on five occasions and proving a thorn in the side of many opposing teams.

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE:-Australia produced a world champions-like performance when they wrapped up their historic tour of Pakistan with a three-wicket victory in the one-off T20I in front of a packed-to-capacity Gaddafi Stadium on Tuesday night. Aaron Finch finally produced a sparkling performance after three consecutive 50-over failures to hit 55, his 16th T20I half-century in 89 matches. Josh Inglis hit a 15-ball 24, Travis Head clubbed three fours and a six in a 14-ball 26, Marcus Stoinis belted five fours in a nine-ball 23 and Ben McDermott scored a 19-ball 22 not out as Australia achieved the 163-run target in 19.1 overs. Finch faced 45 balls and hit six fours. He put on 40 runs for the first wicket with Head, another 44 runs for the second wicket with Inglis, while his sixth wicket partnership with McDermott yielded 29 runs. In their run-chase, Australia had a couple of minor blips. They were first reduced from 83 for one to 129 for five and then lost two wickets in the penultimate over as they required four runs off the last over. But McDermott ensured there were no late twists to the tale. Australia needed just over eight runs per over from the very outset and were always ahead of the target. They scored 63 runs for one wicket in the PowerPlay overs, 95 for two at the halfway stage and 138 for five after 15 overs. For Pakistan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jnr and Usman Qadir picked up two wickets apiece conceding 21, 30 and 33 runs, respectively. Earlier, Pakistan threw away a 67-run opening start in 7.3 overs to slip to 148 for eight in 18.2 overs before finishing at 162 for eight. Hard-hitting Fakhar Zaman (0), Iftikhar Ahmed (13), Khushdil Shah (24) and Asif Ali (3) collectively contributed run-a-ball 40 runs between them as Pakistan managed only 82 runs in their last 10 overs, including 50 runs in the last five overs. Pakistan will be thankful to No.10 batter Usman Qadir to helped them cross the 160-run mark. The left-hander slapped two fours and a six in a rapid six-ball 18 not out. Pakistan captain Babar Azam was once again his side’s top-scorer with a brilliant 46-ball 66 that included six signature fours and two sixes. This was Babar’s 26th T20I half-century in 74 matches. Mohammad Rizwan scored 23 off 19 balls with a four and a six. For Australia, fast bowler Nathan Ellis was the pick of the bowlers. Playing only his third match, Ellis returned figures of 4-0-28-4. Scores in brief: Pakistan 162-8, 20 overs (Babar Azam 66, Khushdil Shah 24, Mohammad Rizwan 23, Usman Qadir 18 not out, Nathan Ellis 4-28) Australia 163-7, 19.2 overs (Aaron Finch 55, Travis Head 26, Josh Inglis 24, Marcus Stoinis 23, Ben McDermott 22 not out; Shaheen Shah Afridi 2-21, Mohammad Wasim 2-30, Usman Qadir 2-33) Player of the match – Aaron Finch (Australia)

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE:-Babar Azam and Imam-ul-Haq stitched an unbroken 190 runs second wicket partnership after fast bowlers Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr and Shaheen Shah Afridi shared eight wickets between them to hand Pakistan a thumping nine wickets victory over Australia in the third and final One-Day International at the Gaddafi Stadium on Saturday night. Haris took three for 39, Wasim picked up three for 40 and Shaheen scooped two for 40 to dismiss Australia for 210 in 41.5 overs after Babar had won the third successive toss and maintained consistency by electing to field. Babar then led the run-chase with a superlative 105 not out, his 16th century in 86 matches, while Imam provided an excellent support to his captain by returning undefeated on 89 as Pakistan raced to victory in 37.5 overs to annex their first ODI series over Australia since 2002. Babar is now just four centuries behind Saeed Anwar, who stroked 20 centuries in 247 matches. Pakistan batting coach Mohammad Yousuf stroked 15 centuries in 281 ODIs. World No.1 Babar struck 12 sweetly time boundaries in a highly-entertaining and stroke-full 115-ball innings as Australia paid a heavy price for giving a second life to the champion batter when Travis Head dropped him at mid-wicket when he was still in single digit. Babar, who scored 57 and 114 in the previous two matches, reached his half-century from 57 balls with seven fours, while he reached the magical three figures with an exquisite cover-drive off Marnus Labuschagne from 110 balls with 12 fours. Babar was later adjudged player of the match as well as player of the series. No.10 ranked Imam followed up his knocks of 103 and 106 with another eye-catching innings of 89 not out that will certainly vault him into the top-five of the ICC ODI batting charts when the latest rankings are released on Wednesday. Imam faced 100 balls and his innings was punctuated with six fours and a six. The left-hander completed his 11th career half-century from 55 balls with five hits to the fence. Earlier, Shaheen Shah Afridi provided a dream start to Pakistan in the winner takes all match when he clean bowled Head on the first delivery of the match. Haris then struck twice by trapping a struggling Aaron Finch in front of the wickets and then getting Labuschagne caught in the slip as Australia slipped to three for six. Australia plunged to 67 for five when Marcus Stoinis (19) and Ben McDermott (36) fell to Zahid Mahmood and Mohammad Wasim Jnr, respectively. Alex Carey (56, 61 balls, 6x4, 1x6) and Cameron Green (34) put on 81 runs for the sixth wicket to put Australia back on track. However, their departure in a space of seven runs ended all hopes of the tourists putting up a decent score and it was only due to Sean Abbott’s 40-ball 49 with six fours and a six that the visitors were able to reach 210 in 41.5 overs. Abbott was particularly ruthless against Shaheen when he took the Pakistan speedster for 21 in an over, but was just the delay of the inevitable. By virtue of winning the series 2-1, Pakistan has moved to eighth on the 13-team ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League on 60 points. In the ICC ODI Team Rankings, Pakistan are sixth, five points behind South Africa.