Sports Bulletin

Mohammad Nabi (38 runs not out) guides Afghanistan to claim a six-wicket win Sports Bulletin Report Sharjah (UAE): Thanks to Mohammad Nabi 38 runs unbeaten innings that helped Afghanistan to post the first ever victory against Pakistan in an international encounter at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, United Arabs Emirates (UAE) on Friday night. Hosts won the first T20 of the series by six wickets to go up 1-0 in a three-match rubber. Chasing a modest 93 runs to win, the home side chased down the target in 17.5 overs, losing four wickets in the process. Mohammad Nabi was the star performer for Afghanistan, scoring an unbeaten 38 runs to guide his team to victory. Najibullah Zadran remained not out on 17 runs. The pair knitted a 53-run unbroken stand for the fifth wicket after Afghanistan were reeling at 45 for four in the 10th over. For Pakistan, the debutant Ihsanullah was the most successful bowler, taking two wickets for 17 runs. Earlier, the tourists won the toss and opted to bat first. Pakistan gave T20I debuts to four players, including left-handed opening batter Saim Ayub, Tayyab Tahir, Ihsanullah, and Zaman Khan. Pakistan's batting struggled to gain momentum as they lost wickets at regular intervals. Imad Wasim top-scored for Pakistan with 18 runs off 32 balls, while Saim scored 17 off 15 balls which included two fours and a six. However, the rest of the Pakistani batters failed to make significant contributions, and the team was eventually ended up scoring 92 runs for the loss of nine wickets in their 20 overs. Afghanistan's spin duo of Nabi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman, and left-arm fast Fazalhaq Farooqi  picked up two wickets each, while skipper Rashid Khan,  Azmatullah Omarzai and Naveen-ul-Haq took one wicket each. Afghanistan’s Mohammad Nabi was named the player of the match for his all-round performance. The second T20I of the series will be played at the same venue on Sunday. Scores in brief: Afghanistan beat Pakistan by six wickets Pakistan 92-9, 20 overs (Imad Wasim 18, Saim Ayub 17, Tayyab Tahir 16; Mujeeb-ur-Rahman 2-9, Mohammad Nabi 2-12, Fazalhaq Farooqi 2-13) Afghanistan 98-4, 17.5 overs (Mohammad Nabi 38 not out, Najibullah Zadran 17 not out; Ihsanullah 2-17) Player of the match – Mohammad Nabi (Afghanistan)

Sports Bulletin Report MULTAN: A total of 27 women’s emerging cricketers will undergo skills and fitness training at the Inzamam-ul-Haq High Performance Centre, Multan, in the Emerging High Performance Skills Camp, which begins on 25 March. Over the course of the 13-day camp, these 27 players will train under the supervision of the academy coaches. The camp will be headed by former Test cricketer Mohsin Kamal and other academy coaches include Mauhtashim Rashid and Muhammad Kamran Hussain. This camp serves an opportunity to the coaches to work on the skills of emerging cricketers and identify players for the forthcoming ACC Women’s Emerging Teams Asia Cup to be staged in June this year. Head of Women’s Cricket, Tania Mallick: “Skill camps provide opportunities for young and emerging players to hone their cricketing skills under the guidance of experienced coaches. The camp will help identify and develop talented young players at the grassroots level, and can help in creating a pipeline of players for the national team. “The objective of this camp is to upskill the players so we are in a position to select a squad for forthcoming ACC Women’s Emerging Teams Asia Cup.” Names of Players: Aleena Shah (Peshawar), Amber Kainaat (Lahore), Anoosha Nasir ( Karachi), Areesha Noor (Lahore), Asma Amin (Faisalabad), Ayesha Bilal (Lahore), Ayesha Irfan (Lahore), Dua Majid (Lahore), Eyman Fatima (Lahore), Fatima Khan (Lahore), Fatima Shahid (Lahore), Gull Feroza (Lahore), Gulrukh (D.G.Khan), Lubna Behram (Lahore), Maham Manzoor (Karachi), Maham Tariq (Karachi), Najiha Alvi (Karachi), Neha Shermeen (Karachi), Sadaf Shamas (Lahore), Saima Malik (Quetta), Saiqa Riaz (Lahore), Shawaal Zulfiqar ( Lahore), Syeda Aroob Shah ( Karachi), Syeda Masooma Zahra (Karachi), Umm-e-Hani (Lahore), Yusra Amir (Karachi) and Zunera Shah (Karachi) Supporting Staff: Mohsin Kamal (head coach), Muhammad Kamran Hussain (assistant coach), Mauhtashim Rashid (fielding coach), Shakir Qayyum (regional coach), Asiya Khan (manager), Rabia Siddiq (Physiotherapist), Mohammad Usman Shahid (Performance Analyst) and Ramzan Silachi (Strength and Conditioning Coach)

BIPIN DANI Former Sri Lankan top order batter Thilina Kandamby will make his debut as a "Specialised Coach" for the national team on Saturday. On Friday, the 40-year-old Thilina Kandamby, who has played 39 ODIs and 5 T-20Is, was sent to New Zealand to be associated with the team and had its first training session with Dasun Shanaka and his white ball-team boys.  The first D/N ODI between the New Zealand and the visiting Sri Lankan teams will begin at the Eden Park in Auckland on Saturday. Kandamby, who has reached New Zealand with the limited over-team members, will also stay with the T-20 squad. Kandamby has been a successful coach with the Jaffna Kings team in the LPL and is also a coach for the junior boys in Sri Lanka. "I retired at the age of 33 with the intention of becoming a coach", he had said in the video prepared by the JK team at the end of the LPL in 2022. Former and current Sri Lankan players have praised him a lot and see him to be associated with the national team soon. "I have known him for a long time and is a wonderful character and all players respect him", Jehan Mubarak said. Dhananjaya de Silva, Avishka Fernando, Dunith Wellalage and Maheesh Theekshana have all expressed their happiness and want him to be a regular coach for the senior team. SLC's top management team has sent him to New Zealand with an eye on him to be with the seniors.   

Sports Bulletin Report Sharjah (UAE): Pakistan have named a dynamic XI for the first of the three T20Is against Afghanistan at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Friday. Opener Saim Ayub, middle-order batter Tayyab Tahir and right-arm pacer Zaman Khan and Ihsanullah will make Pakistan debuts. Top-order batter Abdullah Shafique, all-rounders Faheem Ashraf and Imad Wasim, and Azam Khan made their returns to the Pakistan side. These eight players were named in the 15-member squad for this T20I series after a string of impressive performances in the domestic circuit and the recently-concluded HBL Pakistan Super League 8. The series comes with an opportunity for these players to carry their form in international cricket. Karachi-born 20-year-old Saim will open with Mohammad Haris, who has played five T20Is for Pakistan and announced his arrival in the last ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia with his blazing strokeplay and bold intent, and has batted with him in Peshawar Zalmi during the HBL PSL 8. Saim comes into the side after a highly impressive run for Sindh and Peshawar Zalmi. The left-hander played an integral role in crowning Sindh the National T20 champions as he made 416 runs in 12 matches at a strike rate of 155.22. He smashed 341 runs – that included five half-centuries, the joint-most in the season with Babar Azam – at a strike rate of 165.53 for Peshawar Zalmi in this HBL PSL at the top of the order. Abdullah and Tayyab make number three and four respectively. Abdullah, who has played three T20Is with his last being in December 2020 in New Zealand, comes into the side after making 268 runs at 144.08 for champions Lahore Qalandars. He scored two half-centuries, the last being in the final against Multan Sultans. Tayyab has been in good touch over the last year. He marked his HBL PSL 8 debut with a whirlwind 65 and made 137 runs at 144.21 and was the best batter of the Pakistan Cup that concluded in January. He also bagged player of the final award for his match-winning 71 for Central Punjab. He made 708 runs in first-class Quaid-e-Azam Trophy at an average of 59 and recorded four centuries and one half-century. Azam scored 282 runs at a staggering 161.14 for Islamabad United this HBL PSL. His highest score of 97 came against Quetta Gladiators at the National Stadium Karachi. This will be 24-year-old’s fourth T20I. Faheem, Azam’s HBL PSL teammate, provided balance to the side with his contributions with bat and ball. He made 215 runs at 149.30 and took eight wickets at an economy of 9.50 – in a league that has had the best run rate (9.20) in the last one year for any major T20 tournament around the world. Imad’s nine wickets for Karachi Kings came at an average of 28.22 and an economy of 7.93, but it was his sensational batting that turned heads as the left-hander scored 404 runs at a phenomenal average of 134.66 and a staggering strike rate of 170.46. The 34-year-old has an experience of 58 T20Is in which he has 55 wickets at an average of 23.49. His economy is 6.33. Experienced speedster Naseem Shah will spearhead the pace attack that includes newcomers Zaman and Ihsanullah. Zaman was outstanding with the new and old ball in the Powerplay and death overs and he is expected to execute the same role in Pakistan colours on Friday. He moves the ball in the air at the start of the innings and keep the batters guessing in death with his wily variations. He defended 13 off the last over to help Lahore Qalandars to their second straight HBL PSL title and took 15 wickets at 23.60 runs per dismissal and an economy of 8.53 in the recent season. In Ihsanullah, Pakistan have a reliable pace bowler to carry them through the middle-overs. The right-arm pacer’s thunderbolts kept batters on backfoot throughout the HBL PSL 8 as he peppered every opposition with lethal bouncers. Ihsanullah was the first bowler in the tournament to pick a five-wicket haul and he went on to finish the tournament as the best player and best bowler for taking 22 wickets (the second most) at only 15.77 runs apiece and he leaked only 7.59 runs in the 45.4 overs he bowled, the most for a bowler with top-five wickets. Pakistan XI for first Afghanistan T20I: Saim Ayub, Mohammad Haris, Abdullah Shafique, Tayyab Tahir, Shadab Khan (c), Azam Khan (wk), Faheem Ashraf, Imad Wasim, Naseem Shah, Zaman Khan and Ihsanullah

Sports Bulletin Report Sharjah (UAE): Pakistan will take on Afghanistan in the opening fixture of the 3-match T20I Cricket Series on Friday (March 24, 2023) at Sharjah Cricket Stadium, United Arab Emirates (UAE), as the match will get underway at 8:00 pm local time. The rest of the two matches of the series will be played on March 26 and 27 at the same venue. Afghanistan is hosting this vital series, as it was scheduled after the refusal of Australia to play against Afghanistan a few months back. Shahdan Khan will lead Green Shirts while Rashid Khan will lead Afghanistan first time in the history of Afghan cricket. Pakistan Squad: Shadab Khan (Captain), Abdullah Shafique, Azam Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ihsanullah, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Haris (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Wasim Junior, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shan Masood, Tayyab Tahir, Zaman Khan Reserves: Haseebullah, Usama Mir, Abrar Ahmed Afghanistan Squad: Rashid Khan (C), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Usman Ghani, Sediqullah Atal, Najibullah Zadran, Afsar Zazai, Karim Janat, Mohammad Nabi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb Ur Rehman, Fareed Ahmad, Fazal Haq Farooqi and Naveen Ul Haq. Reserve players: Nangyal Kharoti, Zahir Khan, Nijat Masoud Series Schedule March 24, 2023: T20I, Sharjah Cricket Stadium March 26, 2023: 2nd T20I, Sharjah Cricket Stadium March 27, 2023: 3rd T20I, Sharjah Cricket Stadium

Sports Bulletin Report Dubai (UAE): New Zealand’s premier batter Kane Williamson has moved back towards the top spot in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s Test Player Rankings while Australia’s Josh Hazlewood is the new No. 1 ODI bowler with India’s Mohammad Siraj slipping to third. Williamson, a formerly top-ranked batter, has moved up four slots to take second position in the list led by Australia’s Marnus Labuschagne after top scoring with 215 in an innings victory over Sri Lanka in Wellington that helped seal their two-match ICC World Test Championship series 2-0. Henry Nicholls, who scored 200 not out and featured in a triple-century partnership with Williamson, has also made rapid progress, moving up 20 places to 27th position. Captain Tim Southee (up one place to 11th) and Matt Henry (up four places to 31st) are the Kiwi players to advance in the bowling rankings. For Sri Lanka, captain Dimuth Karunaratne is in the top 10 with scores of 89 and 51 while Dinesh Chandimal has moved up one slot to 17th with scores of 37 and 62. In the ODI rankings, which considers performances in two matches each of the India-Australia, Bangladesh-Ireland and South Africa-West Indies series, as well as the first match between Zimbabwe and the Netherlands, Siraj has slipped behind Hazlewood and New Zealand’s Trent Boult after India’s 10-wicket loss to Australia in Visakhapatnam. Hazlewood, whose career best second position was attained for the first time in June 2017 and which he had kept since August 2022, is No. 1 in ODIs for the first time. Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc’s eight wickets in the two matches against India see him go to joint-third position with Siraj. Other bowlers to move up the ODI rankings include West Indies’ Alzarri Joseph (up eight places to 11th), India’s Mohammad Shami (up five places to 28th) and Netherlands’ Fred Klaasen (up 22 places to 52nd). In the batting rankings, Quinton de Kock, Shubman Gill and Steve Smith have made marginal progress within the top 10 while Shai Hope and Mushfiqur Rahim have advanced after smashing fine centuries this past week. Hope’s 128 not out in East London has lifted him two places to 12th position while Mushfiqur has gained four slots to reach 18th position after smashing Bangladesh’s fastest ODI century, a 60-ball 100 not out in Sylhet. The South African pair of Heinrich Klaasen (up 13 places to 30th) and Temba Bavuma (up 17 places to 33rd), Lokesh Rahul of India (up three places to 39th) and Australia’s Mitchell Marsh (up 24 places to 55th) have also moved up in the batting rankings.

Sports Bulletin Report KABUL: Afghanistan Cricket Board’s Selection Committee on Tuesday announced a 17-member National squad for the home three-match T20I series against Pakistan, which will be played from 24 to 27 March in Sharjah. Tall left-handed opener Sediqullah Atal has been added to the squad. He could be a potential debutant for Afghanistan in the series. In addition, senior all-rounder Mohammad Nabi, who led Afghanistan at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup last year, has been recalled to the squad. Nijat Masoud and Zahir Khan who were part of the Afghanistan squad during the UAE tour last month have been kept as reserves, whereas Rahmat Shah and Hazratullah Zazai have been dropped from the squad. ACB CEO Naseeb Khan said: “Our team has been working hard in training camp and selectors have selected the best available players for the series. I am confident that our team will perform at their best and make our nation proud. We wish our team the best of luck for the series and hope to see them emerge victorious.” “In addition, we look forward to an exciting competition between two great teams. Both nations have passionate fans who support their teams with enthusiasm and pride. As neighbors, we have a special bond and we hope to showcase not only our cricketing skills but also the spirit of friendship and sportsmanship. We wish both teams the best of luck and hope that cricket fans around the world will enjoy the games.” He added. Afghanistan Squad: Rashid Khan (C), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Usman Ghani, Sediqullah Atal, Najibullah Zadran, Afsar Zazai, Karim Janat, Mohammad Nabi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb Ur Rehman, Fareed Ahmad, Fazal Haq Farooqi and Naveen Ul Haq. Reserve players: Nangyal Kharoti, Zahir Khan, Nijat Masoud Series Schedule 24th March – 1st T20I, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, UAE 26th March – 2nd T20I, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, UAE 27th March – 3rd T20I, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, UAE

Sports Bulletin Report KABUL: Nangarhar B provincial team put on an outstanding all-round performance in the final to beat Kabul comprehensively by 101 runs and win the 14th edition of the Wazir Mohammad Akbar Khan (WAK) Provincial Grade I Tournament 2023. Nangarhar B were put into bat earlier in the morning, but the call was welcomed by the hosts as they posted a huge total of 287 runs in fifty overs. Abid Mohammadi scored 114 whereas Mohammad Ishaq returned with 54 runs to his name. Allah Mohammad picked two wickets for Kabul. In reply, Kabul did not capitalize on their batting as they lost wickets regularly, only managed to score 186 runs to fell short by 101 runs in the end. Islam Zazai was the only batter to cross the 50-run barrier as he finished unbeaten on 54*. Abid Mohammadi backed up his batting effort with a terrific bowling display as well as he picked up 4 wickets. Mohammad Ibrahim also bagged three, whereas the young Sohail Khan picked two wickets. Abid Mohammadi was adjudged the player of the match for his 114 runs and 4 wickets. Baheer Shah Mahboob, who had scored a mammoth 386 runs at 128.66 with 2 hundreds and a half-century, was awarded the best batter of the tournament. A young leg spinner Ahmad Wali was named the best bowler of the event with 19 scalps in 6 innings. Additionally, Sohail Khan was named as the emerging player of the tournament for picking 13 wickets in his debut season, whereas Abid Mohammadi was named the best player of the event for his terrific all-round performance in the event. He scored 338 runs and has also picked up 12 wickets to help side to the glory. The Wazir Mohammad Akbar Khan Provincial Grade I tournament 2023 was the 2nd activity of the domestic cricket department in the year, which will be followed by the Shpageeza Cricket League and the regional three-day event in May and June respectively.

Faraz Ahmed Kayani ISLAMABAD: The road to the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup is heating up as hosts Namibia will be joined by the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Papua New Guinea, Canada and Jersey in a round-robin format where the top two teams will earn a place at the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Qualifier that will be hosted in Zimbabwe from 18 June - 9 July. The Playoff, which is two steps away from the World Cup, features the teams who placed in the bottom four places of the Men’s CWC League 2 and the top spots in the CWC Challenge League A and B respectively after four years of hard-fought competition and is the final opportunity at booking a place in the Zimbabwe Qualifier. Schedule: 26 March 2023 Namibia v USA 09h30, Wanderers Cricket Ground 27 March 2023 UAE v PNG 09h30, Wanderers Cricket Ground Jersey v Canada 09h30, United Cricket Club Ground 29 March 2023 Canada v USA 09h30, Wanderers Cricket Ground PNG v Namibia 09h30, United Cricket Club Ground 30 March 2023 Namibia v Jersey 09h30, Wanderers Cricket Ground USA v UAE 09h30, United Cricket Club Ground 1 April 2023 UAE v Canada 09h30, Wanderers Cricket Ground PNG v Jersey 09h30, United Cricket Club Ground 2 April 2023 PNG v USA 09h30, Wanderers Cricket Ground Namibia v UAE 09h30, United Cricket Club Ground 4 April 2023 Canada v Namibia 09h30, Wanderers Cricket Ground USA v Jersey 09h30, United Cricket Club Ground 5 April 2023 Jersey v UAE 09h30, Wanderers Cricket Ground Canada v PNG 09h30, United Cricket Club Ground

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and New Zealand Cricket (NC) have unanimously agreed to make tweaks to the New Zealand men’s cricket team’s tour of Pakistan for five ODIs and five T20Is, as the opening match of the series will be played on April 14, 2023 at Qaddafi Stadium Lahore. Kiwis will now arrive in Lahore and will play three T20Is from 14-17 April, before traveling to Rawalpindi where the final two T20Is and first ODI will be played from 20-26 April. The tour will culminate in Karachi with the remaining four ODIs to be played from 30 April to 7 May. Pakistan v New Zealand (schedule): April 14, 2023: 1st T20, Lahore April 15, 2023: 2nd T20, Lahore April 17, 2023: 3rd T20, Lahore April 20, 2023: 4th T20, Rawalpindi April 24, 2023: 5th T20, Rawalpindi April 26, 2023: 1st ODI, Rawalpindi April 30, 2023: 2nd ODI, Karachi May 3, 2023: 3rd ODI, Karachi May 5, 2023: 4th ODI, Karachi May 7, 2023: 5th ODI, Karachi