Sports Bulletin

Sports Bulletin ReportColombo (Sri Lanka): India outclassed hosts Sri Lanka by 10 wickets in the Asia Cup 2023 final here on Sunday, as Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj singlehandedly outfoxed the Sri Lankan batting line-up to secure the title win for his side. By getting six wickets in the game, four of which came in one over, Siraj completely dominated the opposition, who had no answers for his menacing bowling.After winning the toss, Sri Lanka chose to bat first, hoping to gain the advantage in Colombo. However, after opener Kusal Perera fell to Jasprit Bumrah in the first over, the tone was set. Siraj, who had been playing second fiddle to Bumrah, came into the attack and completely turned the game in India’s favour after he got four wickets in one over; Pathum Nissanka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka and Dhananjaya de Silva.Sri Lanka failed to recover from the battering received in just the fourth over of the match. Kusal Mendis, the last hope for the home-side also fell to Siraj in the 12th over. The rest of the batting was cleaned up by Hardik Pandya, who got a three-wicket haul in turn. Sri Lanka were effectively bowled out for 50 runs in 15.2 overs.The Indian openers for this match, Ishan Kishan and Shubman Gill, were able to chase the asked score of 51 in just 6.1 overs, attaining their eighth Asia Cup title.Scores in brief:India win by 10 wicket (263 balls remaining)Sri Lanka: 50 all out in 15.2 overs (Kusal Mendis 17; Mohammed Siraj 6-21, Hardik Pandya 3-3)India: 51-0 in 6.1 overs (Shubman Gill 27*, Ishan Kishan 23*)Player of the match: Mohammed Siraj (India)Player of the tournament: Kuldeep Yadav (India) 

Sports Bulletin ReportColombo (Sri Lanka): Right-arm fast bowler Zaman Khan has replaced Naseem Shah in Pakistan’s 17-player squad for the ongoing Men’s ODI Asia Cup 2023. Zaman joined the team in the morning today and will train with the squad at the RPICS in the evening.Naseem injured his right shoulder during the match against India. He continues to be monitored by the team’s medical panel that is taking all necessary precautions keeping in mind the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023.Haris Rauf, who did not bowl on the reserve day of Pakistan v India contest as a precautionary measure, continues to recover well after he felt discomfort in his right flank on the first day of the match.Team doctor Sohail Saleem: “These two fast bowlers are our assets and the team’s medical panel will provide them the best possible care ahead of the all-important World Cup.”Fast bowler Shahnawaz Dahani will join the team on Thursday morning.

Sports Bulletin ReportColombo, Sri Lanka (September 10, 2023): Pakistan Captain Babar Azam won the toss and decided to field first against traditional foes India in Asia Cup 2023 cricket match at R Premadasa Cricket Stadium in Colombo Sri Lanka on Sunday.Pakistan are unchanged playing XIs, who had defeated Bangladesh by 7 wickets on September 6 at home Qaddafi Stadium Lahore. Rohit Sharma is leading India in the crucial fixture of the tournament, which has an extra day to reach on result.Pakistan (Playing XIs): Babar Azam (c), Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen AfridiIndia (Playing XIs): Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumraj, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh KrishnaMatch Officials:Field Umpires: Chris Gaffaney (New Zealand), Ruchira Palliyaguruge (SriLanka)TV Umpire: Richard Illingworth (England)Reserve Umpire: Masudur Rahman (Bangladesh)Match Referee: David Boon (Australia). 

Sports Bulletin ReportDubai (UAE): The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the 20 match officials for the League Round of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 in India.Umpires Paul Reiffel and Paul Wilson share a laugh during the ICC Men's T20 World Cup match between England and Sri Lanka at Sydney Cricket Ground on November 05, 2022 in Sydney, Australia.Sixteen umpires will officiate the 13th edition of the tournament, including all 12 of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires and four members of the ICC Emerging Umpire Panel, they are: Chris Brown, Kumar Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Michael Gough, Adrian Holdstock, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nitin Menon, Ahsan Raza, Paul Reiffel, Sharfuddoula Ibne Shaid, Rod Tucker, Alex Wharf, Joel Wilson and Paul Wilson.The experienced list includes three of the four umpires who were appointed for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019 final at Lord’s - Dharmasena, Erasmus and Tucker – with only Aleem Dar missing, who stepped down from the Elite Panel in March of this year.The Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees is represented at the event by a quartet of former international cricketers, namely, Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Richie Richardson and Javagal Srinath.Srinath will take charge of the tournament opener between the last event’s finalists, England and New Zealand on 5 October in Ahmedabad. Menon and Dharmasena will be the standing umpires, with Paul Wilson as TV umpire and Saikat taking on fourth umpire duties.The officials have been named for the entirety of the League segment, with the selections for the semi-finals and final of the tournament to be named in due course.Wasim Khan, ICC General Manager – Cricket, said: “To deliver an event of this magnitude you require high performing individuals at every level. The ICC Elite panel of umpires, referees, and emerging group of umpires involved will bring immense skills, experience and world class standards to this World Cup. We are delighted with the group that we have assembled for this tournament”.“The ICC Cricket Operations department takes great pride and effort in operating a robust and meritocratic selection procedure with the help of our Member Boards. Our competitive pathway system continues to see the development and emergence of high-quality match officials across the game. We are pleased that four members of the ICC Emerging Umpire Panel have earned the opportunity to be part of this showcase event and we wish them, and all the other match officials involved all the very best for the tournament.”Sean Easey, ICC Manager – Umpires and Referees said: “We are pleased to announce the match officials who will be overseeing the biggest ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup ever. This group is the best from around the world and will be ready to perform a challenging job, with the eyes of the global cricketing community focussed on the event.“We are confident that they will do an excellent job and wish them all the best of luck for what promises to be a World Cup to remember.” 

Sports Bulletin ReportColombo, Sri Lanka (September 10, 2023): The Asia Cup 2023 cricket clash between India and Pakistan will spring into action at 2:30 Pakistan Standard Time (PST) at R Premadasa Cricket Stadium in Colombo Sri Lanka, as the toss will be important for the both skipper. The winner will likely opt to bat first.Pakistan have announced the playing elevens unchanged, who had defeated Bangladesh by 7 wickets on September 6 at home Qaddafi Stadium Lahore. Rohit Sharma will lead India in the crucial fixture of the tournament, which has an extra day to reach on result.Pakistan (Playing XIs): Babar Azam (c), Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen AfridiIndia Squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumraj, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna

Sports Bulletin ReportColombo, Sri Lanka (September 10, 2023): Favorite Pakistan and India will meet in the afternoon in the Top-Four Round of the Asia Cricket Cup 2023 today at R Premadasa Cricket Stadium in Colombo Sri Lanka.Pakistan have announced the playing elevens unchanged, who had defeated Bangladesh by 7 wickets on September 6 at home Qaddafi Stadium Lahore. Rohit Sharma will lead India in the crucial fixture of the tournament, which has an extra day to reach on result.Pakistan (Playing XIs): Babar Azam (c), Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Shaheen AfridiIndia Squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumraj, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna

Sports Bulletin ReportLAHORE: The 2023-2024 domestic season is set to commence on 10 September with both the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy and the Hanif Mohammad Trophy to be played concurrently. A total of 18 regional teams have been slotted in this domestic structure with eight teams playing in the premier first-class tournament Quaid-e-Azam Trophy and 10 teams featuring in the Hanif Mohammad Trophy, a non-first-class four-day tournament. This will be the first domestic season played after the PCB revived the PCB 2014 Constitution according to which regional and departmental teams return to the domestic circuit.Abbottabad, Lahore, and Rawalpindi will be hosting the QeAT, with 29 matches slotted between four venues across the three cities. Peshawar, Karachi Whites, Lahore Blues, Rawalpindi, FATA, Multan, Lahore Whites, and Faisalabad are the teams playing first-class cricket. The opening round of the QeAT will begin on 10 September. Lahore Whites will be facing Lahore Blues at Gaddafi Stadium, while Peshawar and Karachi Whites will be facing each other at Abbottabad Stadium. Faisalabad vs. Multan will be held at Shoaib Akhtar Stadium in Rawalpindi while FATA vs Rawalpindi will be staged at Pindi Cricket Stadium. The second round of matches will begin on 16 September. A total of seven rounds will take place with each team playing the other once before the top two sides meet in the final scheduled at the Gaddafi Stadium from 22 to 26 October.With the revamped domestic structure, the new financial model will also be implemented. According to this, a player featuring in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy will get a match fee of PKR 80,000, and players participating in the Hanif Mohammad Trophy will get PKR 40,000 per game. The non-playing members of a first-class team will get PKR 40,000. Adding to that, twenty players, selected by the regions according to the predefined criteria, will be assigned categories as outlined; A+ will get PKR 300,000, A PKR 200,000, B PKR 185,000, C PKR 170,000, D PKR 150,000, E PKR 100,000, F will pocket PKR 50,000. Hanif Mohammad TrophyThe Hanif Mohammad Trophy will have 26 matches, with the 10 teams divided into two groups. The ten teams featuring in the tournament are Abbottabad, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Bahawalpur, Dera Murad Jamali, Hyderabad, Karachi Blues, Larkana, Quetta, Sialkot and Islamabad. The tournament will see the top two sides from each group at the end of the group stage qualify for the Super 4 stage, where each team in that stage will play three matches. At the end of the Super 4 stage, the top side will qualify for next year's Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. The first round of matches will be played between Islamabad and AJK in Muzaffarabad and Larkana and Sialkot in Mirpur for Group A.For Group B, the first round of matches will be played between Hyderabad and Karachi Blues in Multan and Bahawalpur and Dera Murad Jamali in Rahim Yar Khan. The aim of the Hanif Mohammad Trophy will be to serve as a pathway for the regional sides to qualify for the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. This domestic structure has been structured by the PCB Cricket Technical Committee. The structure has replaced the previous model, that was introduced in 2019 – which focused on six cricket association teams. The new domestic structure incorporates a larger pool of players with up to 360 cricketers set to benefit from increased earning opportunities.The previous edition of the QeAT was won by Northern, led by captain Umar Amin. Northern had defeated Sindh in the final at Gaddafi Stadium by an innings and 55 runs. Northern’s dominance in the season was highlighted by the way players like Muhammad Huraira and Mubasir Khan headlined the season. Sindh’s bowler Abrar Ahmed too had an extraordinary season, bagging 43 wickets in 12 innings.

Sports Bulletin ReportLAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board today (September 6) unveiled the schedule for seven tournaments which includes two U19 tournaments in the upcoming 2023-24 men's domestic cricket season.The 2023-24 cricket season will commence with 29 matches of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy starting on September 10 and concluding on October 26. The eight-team regional tournament will begin at Gaddafi Stadium, with Lahore Region Whites facing Lahore Region Blues on Sunday, September 10 while the other first-round matches include Peshawar Region vs Karachi Region Whites at Abbottabad Stadium, Faisalabad Region vs Multan Region at Shoaib Akhtar Stadium KRL Rawalpindi and FATA Region vs Rawalpindi Region at Pindi Cricket Stadium. The final will also be staged at the iconic Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium from October 22 to 26.The non-first-class tournament, Hanif Mohammad Trophy, will also start concurrently with Quaid-e-Azam trophy on September 10, featuring 10 regions in two groups. The top two sides from each group at the end of the group stage will qualify for the Super 4 stage, where each team in that stage will play three matches. At the end of the Super 4 stage, the top side will qualify for next year's Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. The matches of the Hanif Mohammad Trophy will be played in Mirpur, Multan, Muzaffarabad, and Rahim Yar Khan.The one-day tournaments, Pakistan Cup and Hanif Mohammad Cup, will follow the conclusion of the red-ball tournaments, both starting on November 1. Pakistan Cup will be hosted in Abbottabad, Islamabad, and Rawalpindi. The semi-finals will be played on November 16 and 17 at the Pindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi, while the final will take place on November 19 at the same venue. Meanwhile, the Hanif Mohammad Cup will begin on November 1 and will be hosted in AJK, Faisalabad, Multan, and Rahim Yar Khan. Like the Hanif Mohammad Trophy, the winner of the Hanif Mohammad Cup will be the side topping the Super 4 stage.The two-leg National T20 will be held in Karachi from November 24 to December 10. In the first leg, all 18 regional sides will compete to qualify for the Super 8, which will be played from December 1 to 8. The semi-finals of the tournament will be played on December 9, while the final will take place the next day. The venue for the three knockout matches will be Karachi's National Bank Stadium.Meanwhile, the two U19 tournaments – National U19 Championship (three-day) and National U19 Cup (one-day) will take place from 15 September to 13 November. Both tournaments will be held simultaneously, with a one-day gap between both formats in every round. The 18 regions will be divided into three groups, with the top team of each group qualifying for the triangular stage. The top two sides from the triangular stage will play the final of the National U19 Championship at the Rana Naveed Academy in Sheikhupura from 10 to 13 November. The final of the National U19 Cup will be played at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad on 26 October.PCB 2023-24 men’s domestic cricket calendar:10 Sep-26 Oct – Quaid-e-Azam Trophy; Abbottabad, Lahore and Rawalpindi10 Sep-25 Oct – Hanif Mohammad Trophy; AJK, Multan and Rahim Yar Khan15 Sep-13 Nov – National U19 Championship (three-day)19 Sep-26 Oct – National U19 Cup (one-day)1 Nov-19 Nov – Pakistan Cup; Abbottabad, Islamabad and Rawalpindi1 Nov-16 Nov – Hanif Mohammad Cup; AJK, Faisalabad, Multan and Rahim Yar Khan.24 Nov-10 Dec – National T20; Karachi

Sports Bulletin ReportKARACHI: Pakistan women cricket team created another history by winning T20 Series against visitors South Africa 3-0, as they won the final T20 of the series by 6 runs in Karachi on Monday night.The South African captain, Laura Wolvaardt, won the toss and opted to field first. After completing two chases thus far, Pakistan was put into bat first for the first time this series. Pakistan had a steady start, scoring 41 in the powerplay, with both Shawaal Zulfiqar and Sidra Amin contributing to the scorecard.Even after the partnership was broken by Nonkululeko Mlaba, who got Shawaal out, the Pakistani scorecard did not stutter for long. A 49-run-partnership between Sidra and Bismah Maroof, and then another 49-run-partnership between Bismah and Nida Dar ensured that Pakistan got to 150.Considering that the hosts had chased 151 twice in the series, defending the same score felt like a big ask, especially considering the batting prowess of the visiting side. A magnificent 72 by Laura allowed South Africa to remain in the game till the last over. However, the South African captain’s efforts were not matched by other batters that came to the crease. The second-highest score on the South African batting was 20*, coming off Nadine de Klerk’s bat.The left-arm spin duo of Nashra Sundhu and Sadia Iqbal, who have had much success throughout the series, proved too heavy for the South African batters. With two wickets each to their name, Nashra and Sadia made sure that 151 remained unsurmountable for the visitors.With the T20I series comfortably completed in favour of the hosts, all eyes will now be on the ODI series. The first ODI will be played on 8 September 2023 at 3:30 pm (PST).Scores in brief:Pakistan win by 6 runs.Pakistan: 150-5 in 20 overs (Sidra Amin 39, Bismah Maroof 39; Tumi Sekhukhune 2-24)South African: 144-5 in 20 overs (Laura Wolvaardt 72, Nashra Sundhu 2-16, Sadia Iqbal 2-25)Player of the match: Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa)Player of the series: Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa)

Ghani Ur RehmanPESHAWAR: A rising and talented junior cricketer of Peshawar, Mohammad Zaid Khalji has been touching the heights of cricket by showing his performance by scoring 6 tons and 24 half centuries in the current season.This talented cricketer, who plays in the Student Cricket Academy Gymkhana under the supervision of Coach Fakhar Alam, Mohammad Zaid Khalji has created a big name in a short period of time. Zaid Khalji, who is known for being a run machine, scored 142 runs with the help of 3 sixes and 16 fours against the Tribal Cricket Academy like every match. He surprised everyone by scoring runs.Zaid Khalji expressed his determination that he would make the name of Pakistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa bright in the field of cricket. He said that he was very fond of cricket, if Allah wills, he will surely get success one day.Regarding Zaid Khilji, Coach Fakhr Alam said that Zaid Khilji was completely different from the children who play in the Student Academy and the entire Gymkhana Ground, as his style and skill with which he plays, it seems that this child will be successful in his mission.