BIPIN DANI The current political tension in Afghanistan will not hamper Afghan cricketer Rashid Khan's performance on the field, believes Biju George, who till last year was his coach with the Sunrisers Hyderabad IPL team. Speaking exclusively to DC over telephone, he says, "Rashid Khan and Nabi's performance will not be affected. I have known these players well. They are thorough professionals and will overcome situations". Rashid Khan is currently playing for Trent Rockets team in The Hundred in England. The captain of the T-20 side has also been named as part of the team for the upcoming series against Pakistan in Sri Lanka. (The bilateral series is yet to get the green signal due to the current scenario.) "Rashid Khan will play the IPL. He is mentally tough though the current situation in Afghanistan will obviously be a concern for him and his family," says Biju. "We are not sure whether the Taliban are cricket-lovers, but Rashid and Nabi are national heroes and everyone in their country respects them," he added.  Meanwhile, Rashid Khan has begun raising money through crowdfunding to help his countrymen in this dire situation. In a recent Instagram story, he urged netizens to offer financial support to his country using a link. He said thousands of innocent people, including children and women, were losing their lives every day and their properties destroyed. "Don’t leave us in chaos. Stop killing Afghans & destroying Afghanistan. We want peace,” he tweeted. "The players and their families are safe in Afghanistan", the Afghanistan Cricket Board CEO Dr. Hamid Shinwari said.

ABDUL JABBAR FAISAL Islamabad (August 20, 2021):-The first Five-A-Side Women's Hockey Championship will be commenced from September 7 under the banner of Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) at National Hockey Stadium Lahore. As many as five provincial and four departmental teams will take part in the three-day championship that will conclude on September 10, 2021. According to media spokesman for PHF, the PHF Women's Hockey Activity Event will be played from September 7 to 10 at the National Hockey Stadium, Lahore. Nine teams including Punjab, Khyber Pukhtunkawa (KPK), Sindh, Balochistan, Islamabad, Pakistan Army, WAPDA, Railways and Higher Education Commission (HEC) will compete for the title. Only Under-25 players will be eligible to participate in the event. Women hockey players under the age of 25 by January 1, 2021 will be able to participate in the PHF Five-A-Side Women's Hockey Championship. Each team will consist of nine players and two team officials. The participating teams have been instructed by the PHF to bring the original identification documents of the players.

SPORTS REPORT Lahore (August 20, 2021):-The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) today announced coaches for the 42 sides across six Cricket Associations for the 266-match 2021-22 domestic season. The appointments have been made after carrying out a 360-degree comprehensive performance review process, keeping in view the needs of the upcoming players across all rungs of the game and to further upskill the coaches by challenging them in different environments. A number of coaches who had favourable performance assessments are rewarded with promotions, while some coaches have been awarded the opportunity to step up to head coaching at various levels. The coaches were primarily assessed around two key objectives ·       Putting their team in contention to win ·       Development of players After leading Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to all three titles – Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, National T20 Cup and Pakistan Cup – in the 2020-21 season, former Pakistan all-rounder Abdul Razzaq has been tasked with leading the coaching staff of Central Punjab’s First XI, which includes former Pakistan internationals Akram Raza and Humayun Farhat – both promoted to First XI from Central Punjab’s Second XI coaching set-up – as assistant and fielding coaches. Shahid Anwar, who coached Central Punjab First XI in the last season, has been appointed as the head coach of Southern Punjab First XI. His staff includes Aizaz Cheema and Irfan Fazil as assistant and fielding coaches. For the 2021-22 domestic season, Abdul Rehman has moved to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after heading the Southern Punjab coaching staff. The seasoned coach is joined by Riffatullah Mohmand and Muhammad Siddiq as his assistant and fielding coaches. Ijaz Ahmed Jnr is appointed as the head coach of Northern’s First XI team. Ijaz, a former international batter with more than 13,000 runs and 171 scalps in first-class cricket, has coached Central Punjab First XI in the 2019-20 domestic season. He is joined by former Pakistan fast bowler Samiullah Niazi, who was the assistant coach of Central Punjab First XI last season, and Fahad Akram, who earns promotion to Northern First XI after serving as assistant coach of the Cricket Association’s U19 team last season, as a fielding coach. Former Pakistan batters Basit Ali and Faisal Iqbal will continue in their roles as head coaches of Sindh and Balochistan First XI teams. At Sindh, Mohammad Masroor replaces Iqbal Imam, who moves to Southern Punjab Second XI as a head coach, as the assistant coach and Hanif Malik, last season’s Sindh U19 assistant coach, has earned a promotion and will be the fielding coach of the First XI team. Balochistan’s assistant coach, along with the head coach of Southern Punjab’s U19 and U16 sides, will be appointed following a merit-based, robust recruitment process. Hussain Khosa will continue as Balochistan First XI’s fielding coach. The 360-degree review process was carried out by Grant Bradburn, the head of high performance coaching at the National High Performance Centre, following which he submitted his recommendations to Director – High Performance, which were subsequently approved by the Chief Executive. Grant Bradburn: “It is very important that we continue to upskill our coaches by providing them constructive feedback regularly, while challenging them in different environments, which we are hopeful will continue to grow our coaches to become contenders for Pakistan roles in the future. “This will not only help us in boosting our pool of Pakistan coaching candidates, but also develop strong self-reliant players by learning from multiple coaches who are ready to take on different challenges from the early stages of their careers. “Abdul Razzaq had a fantastic debut season as a head coach and as such he has been asked to take up the coaching role of the Central Punjab’s side. This move will bring new challenges for Razzaq and I have no doubts that he will embrace them. “The same logic was behind our decision to appoint Shahid Anwar and Abdul Rehman, who are the two experienced, valuable assets in our coach pathway, with the Southern Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa sides, respectively. Under the guidance of Shahid, Central Punjab scripted one of the most incredible tales in first-class cricket by staging an epic comeback in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy to share the silverware with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Under Rehman, Southern Punjab played the final of the National T20 Cup after putting up a miraculous run-chase in the semi-final and he had been with the side for two years. “Basit Ali and Faisal Iqbal coached the First XI teams for the first time in the last season and have been given another season with Sindh and Balochistan as they continue to build their sides. We remain invested in supporting them, while they establish themselves as coaches who can create a winning environment, while exposing our players to rich learning.” Director – High Performance Nadeem Khan: “I want to congratulate everyone who has been appointed as a coach for what promises to be an exciting and action-packed 2021-22 domestic cricket season. These merit-based appointed have been made after considering the demands of our ever-evolving sport. “Many coaches have earned promotions based on their performances in the 2020-21 season. As it is the case for the cricketers, this set-up also provides a clear pathway to the coaches to graduate to the top-level as we continue to strive to develop a strong pool of coaching staff. “This year, there is also an increase in the number of coaches at the domestic level with every Cricket Association fielding two U19 and U16 teams. This move will continue to generate opportunities for former cricketers, after we appointed coaches for the 93 City Cricket Association teams, to remain attached to the game by taking up coaching roles, which is in harmony with our objective to create more and more employment opportunities for our former cricketers. “To further challenge our coaches at the top-level, we have shuffled the First XI coaching panel. As it was promised last year that the PCB will continue to benefit from Ijaz Ahmed Jnr’s vast experience, he has returned to First XI coaching set-up as the head coach of Northern after that position was vacated by Muhammad Wasim following his appointment as the chief selector of our national men’s side. “I am hopeful that these changes will further enhance the quality of cricket at top-tier and we will continue to expand and strengthen our pool of coaches.” The team managers will be announced in due course. Cricket Association coaches (2021-22 domestic season) Balochistan First XI – Faisal Iqbal (head coach), To be appointed (assistant coach), Hussain Khosa (fielding coach) Second XI – Habib Baloch (head coach), Shoaib Khan (assistant coach) U19 Red – Aslam Sheikh (head coach), Mazhar Deenari (assistant coach) U19 Blue – Hussain Khosa (head coach), Aqil Baloch (assistant coach) U16 Red – Raj Hans (head coach), Sher Hassan Jogazai (assistant coach) U16 Blue – Shoaib Khan (head coach), Qamar din (assistant coach) U13 – Aman ullah Dehpal (head coach), Barkat Ali (assistant coach) Central Punjab First XI – Abdul Razzaq (head coach), Akram Raza (assistant coach), Humayun Farhat (fielding coach) Second XI – Wasim Haider (head coach), Aamir Sajjad (assistant coach) U19 Red – Humayun Farhat (head coach), Khurram Shehzad (assistant coach) U19 Blue – Muhammad Ashraf (head coach), Ashraf Ali (assistant coach) U16 Red – Muhammad Ashraf (head coach), Intikhab Alam (assistant coach) U16 Blue – Humayun Farhat (head coach), Mansoor Amjad (assistant coach) U13 – Khurram Shehzad (head coach), Faisal Khan (assistant coach) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa First XI – Abdul Rehman (head coach), Riffatullah Mohmand (assistant coach), Muhammad Siddiq (fielding coach) Second XI – Aftab Khan (head coach), Muhammad Aslam Qureshi (assistant coach) U19 Red – Saqib Faqir (head coach), Muhammad Siddiq (assistant coach) U19 Blue – Sajid Shah (head coach), Shoaib Khan (assistant coach) U16 Red – Muhammad Siddiq (head coach), Saqib Faqir (assistant coach) U16 Blue – Jamaluddin (head coach), Waqar Ahmed (assistant coach) U13 – Waqar Ahmed (head coach), Ahmed Said (assistant coach) Northern First XI – Ijaz Ahmed Jnr (head coach), Sami Ullah Niazi (assistant coach), Fahad Akram (fielding coach) Second XI – Fahad Masood (head coach), Afaq Raheem (assistant coach) U19 Red – Hafiz Majeed (head coach), Fahad Akram (assistant coach) U19 Blue – Kamran Khan (head coach), Jawad Hameed Haq (assistant coach) U16 Red – Saeed Anwar Jnr (head coach), Tahir Mehmood (assistant coach) U16 Blue – Raheel Majeed (head coach), Hafiz Majeed (assistant coach) U13 – Mujahid Hameed (head coach), Haseeb Azam (assistant coach) Sindh First XI – Basit Ali (head coach), Mohammad Masroor (assistant coach), Hanif Malik (fielding coach) Second XI – Ghulam Ali Ansari (head coach), Zafar Iqbal (assistant coach) U19 Red – Azam Khan (head coach), Hanif Malik (assistant coach) U19 Blue – Tahir Mehmood (head coach), Syed Mohtashim Ali (assistant coach) U16 Red – Zafar Iqbal (head coach), Asim Rizvi (assistant coach) U16 Blue – Saeed Bin Nasir (head coach), Naeem Tayyeb (assistant coach) U13 – Rizwan Qureshi (head coach), Abid Ali Qureshi (assistant coach) Southern Punjab First XI – Shahid Anwar (head coach), Aizaz Cheema (assistant coach), Irfan Fazil (fielding coach) Second XI – Syed Iqbal Imam (head coach), Zahoor Elahi (assistant coach) U19 Red – Bilal Ahmed (head coach), Azhar Shafiq (assistant coach) U19 Blue – To be appointed (head coach), Irfan Fazil (assistant coach) U16 Red – Zulfiqar Babar (head coach), Rehan Rafiq (assistant coach) U16 Blue – To be appointed (head coach), Bilal Ahmed (assistant coach) U13 – Masood Anwar (head coach), Aamer Atta (assistant coach).

SPORTS DESK Islamabad (August 20, 2021):-The International Cricket Council announced that the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2021 will be held in Zimbabwe from 21 November to 5 December. The 10-team tournament, the schedule for which will be announced in due course, decides three qualifiers for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 to be held in New Zealand from 4 March to 3 April, joining five teams who have already qualified through the ICC Women’s Championship – Australia, England, India, South Africa and hosts New Zealand. The three qualifiers as well as the next two teams will also ensure places in the next ICC Women’s Championship (IWC) along with the top five from last time, as the number of teams in the third cycle of the IWC goes up from eight to 10 teams. The teams that will be seen in action in the fifth edition of the tournament are Bangladesh, Ireland, the Netherlands, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the United States, the West Indies and Zimbabwe. ICC Head of Events Chris Tetley said: “The ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier is an extremely important event in our calendar as it not only provides teams with a chance to qualify for the World Cup but will also determine the final two participants in the next edition of the ICC Women’s Championship. “I’m sure Harare will be witness to some keenly contested matches. I thank Zimbabwe Cricket for agreeing to host the tournament and wish teams all the best in their preparations for this important event.” Zimbabwe Cricket Chairman Tavengwa Mukuhlani said: “Firstly, I wish to express our heartfelt thanks to the ICC board for their magnanimous gesture in allowing us the privilege of hosting the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2021. “On our part, we will leave no stone unturned to ensure this prestigious global event stands out as a unique event that celebrates Zimbabwe in all its magnificent splendour, richness, vibrancy, diversity and glory. “I believe being granted the right to host this tournament is a vote of confidence in what we as ZC are doing and what we are hoping to do. “You can rest assured we will not disappoint. We will not disappoint the nation of Zimbabwe and we will not disappoint the game of cricket.”

SPORTS NEWS Torino (August 20, 2021):-As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC) and the Chinese Mountaineering Association (CMA) are disappointed to announce the cancellation of two world cups in China at the tail-end of the 2021 season. The IFSC Lead and Speed World Cup in Xiamen from 15 to 17 October, and the IFSC Boulder and Speed World Cup in Wujiang from 22 to 24 October, will no longer take place. Therefore, the World Cup in Kranj, Slovenia, will see the closing of the Lead season from 3 to 4 September, and the Boulder season will conclude in Seoul, South Korea, from 1 to 3 October. The finale of the shortened Speed season remains undisrupted, from 30 to 31 October in Jakarta, Indonesia. IFSC President Marco Scolaris said, “After a disrupted 2020 season, thanks to the efforts of our staff, officials, event organisers, athletes, and National Federations, the 2021 season has been able to go ahead successfully so far. However, the pandemic is still very real and therefore, we’re disappointed that due to COVID-19 the world cups in Xiamen and Wujiang will not go ahead in October. We thank our friends at the CMA for their support and hope that Sport Climbing will return to China in 2022.”

By BIPIN DANI Joe Root, the captain of the England team, was the second international batsman to have survived the two hat-trick balls in the same Test innings. Last week, at Lord's he faced India's Mohammed Siraj after dismissal of Dom Sibley and Haseeb Hameed with successive balls in the 15th over of England's first innings, and later faced up to Ishant Sharma's next ball after he'd removed Moeen Ali and Sam Curran in his previous over (the 111th). The other lucky survival is Bangladesh's Mohammad Ashrtaful (versus India, in Dhaka in 2004), when he thwarted Irfan Pathan on two separate occasions during a defiant 60 not out. "Obviously, the batsman facing the 3rd ball of the same bowler after seeing the two wickets falling successively at the other end comes under pressure and if more pressure will be on him if it happens one more time in the same innings", the former captain Ashraful, speaking exclusively over the telephone from Dhaka, says. "In my case, Irfan Ppathan was the bowler on both the occasions and his bowling was terrific at the time. He was bowling at a very high speed as a champion bowler. Only a genuine batsman could have survived his bowling. I took it as a challenge and survived both times". "In the recent Test against India, Joe Root could also survive twice because Root is a very good, seasoned and experienced batsman. Only a good batsman can defend the hat-trick ball in a pressure situation like this", Ashraful signed off.  

SPORTS REPORT Islamabad (August 19, 2021):-With just two months to go for the start of the event, the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 Trophy Tour, driven by Nissan, begins its virtual journey around the globe today, inviting fans to take it to places it has never been before. Carlos Brathwaite, the star of the last ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, whose four consecutive sixes in the last over of the final against England helped the West Indies claim the title in 2016, will launch the Trophy Tour on Thursday, 19 August, reciting a poem that aims to capture the essence of T20 cricket and celebrate the dreams and hopes of aspiring cricketers globally. The poem, written by Birmingham Poet Laureate, Casey Bailey, is voiced by Brathwaite. Given the disruption caused to our world by the global pandemic a globe-trotting Trophy Tour was not feasible, instead this year every cricket fan on earth can get involved in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 Trophy Tour, driven by Nissan, as we ask fans to take the trophy to more cricket playing nations than ever before. The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Trophy can be accessed virtually through a 3D augmented reality filter, housed on the official T20 World Cup Facebook and Instagram pages. Through this filter, fans are encouraged to get creative and take control of the tour, taking the trophy wherever they would like to. This could be their backyard, local cricket club or even a popular landmark in their city. The best of the fan-generated content will be collated and celebrated weekly on the T20 World Cup’s social media channels where fans can also win signed event merchandise. Speaking on the tour, Carlos Brathwaite, the star of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup-winning team in 2016 said: “This trophy brings back memories of one of the best nights of my life and so it gives me great joy to be associated with this unique trophy tour, where fans get to take it to places it has never been. Imagine taking it to the Eiffel Tower? Or the Taj Mahal? I am personally looking forward to all the exciting content fans are going to create and would encourage everyone to channel their inner creativity and get involved.” Tommaso Volpe, Nissan Global Motorsport and Sponsorship Director commented, “After a long wait we are looking forward to the start of the Trophy Tour and the build up to what will be an exciting ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. We want to bring the iconic trophy to as many fans as possible in a time when we cannot do this physically. We’re excited to see how creative the fans can be and where the trophy will get to around the world” Fans can track and stay up to date with the tour’s journey through the Trophy Tour section of the #T20WorldCup website, which will serve as a one-stop destination for all the content generated by fans and the ICC throughout the duration of the Trophy Tour. Following the trophy’s virtual journey, the ICC is also launching a new weekly show featuring the 16 teams participating in the #T20WorldCup titled: Around the Wicket and will be available to view across the ICC’s digital and social media channels. The light-hearted show will be hosted by Indian comedian and digital content creator Danish Sait, and will celebrate everything we love about T20 cricket, including its heroes. Around the Wicket will also invite fans to get involved and ask questions to some of their favourite T20 cricketers.

JAMIL SIRAJ Melbourne, Australia (August 19, 2021):-The National Selection Panel (NSP) has today named a 15-player Australian squad for the ICC Men's T20 World Cup in Oman and the UAE, Aaron Finch will lead the Australian team in the 16-nation cricket showpiece. Chair of Selectors George Bailey said: “We are confident this squad has the ability to take the side deep into what will be an extremely competitive tournament. “We have some of the best players in the world in their respective roles combined with the collective experience to succeed against the very best T20 sides in the world.”Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner and Pat Cummins return to the squad having missed the tours of the West Indies and Bangladesh. Steve Smith returns from an elbow injury while captain Aaron Finch is recovering well from recent knee surgery. “We look forward to having all of these players available both from a playing perspective and the experience they bring to International tournaments,” Bailey said. Names of players: Aaron Finch (c) (Victoria)Ashton Agar(Western Australia), Pat Cummins (vc) (New SouthWales)Josh Hazlewood (New South Wales) Josh Inglis(WesternAustralia) Mitchell Marsh (Western Australia) Glenn Maxwell (Victoria) Kane Richardson (South Australia) Steve Smith (New South Wales) Mitchell Starc (New South Wales)Marcus Stoinis (WesternAustralia) Mitchell  Swepson(Queensland) Matthew Wade (Tasmania) David Warner (New South Wales) Adam Zampa (New South Wales) Travelling reserves: Dan Christian (New South Wales), Nathan Ellis (Tasmania),Daniel Sams (New South Wales).    

SPORTS REPORT Islamabad (August 18, 2021):-England captain Joe Root’s valiant 180 not out in the first innings of the Lord’s Test has taken him to within striking distance of top-ranked batter Kane Williamson in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s Test Player Rankings. Root, who started the series in fifth place and overtook Virat Kohli after the first match against India, has risen another two slots to second position after the second Test. Root, a formerly top-ranked batter in the format, is on 893 rating points, only eight less than Kiwi skipper Williamson. Player of the Match Lokesh Rahul is another batter to gain after helping India to a 151-run victory and a 1-0 lead in the five-Test series. The 29-year-old opener, whose career-best is the eighth position he attained in November 2017, has gained 19 slots to reach 37th place with a knock of 129 in the first innings. The bowlers to gain from the Lord’s Test include James Anderson, who has gained one spot and is sixth after a five-wicket haul in the first innings while other England pace bowler Mark Wood and India’s Mohammad Siraj have made significant gains to reach 37th and 38th positions, respectively. Wood has gained five slots with five wickets in the match while Siraj’s four wickets in each innings see him gain 18 places. The latest weekly update, which includes performances in the first Test in Kingston, sees Pakistan captain Babar Azam move up two slots to eighth position among batters after scores of 30 and 55 while Faheem Ashraf and Fawad Alam have gained four slots each to reach 48th and 55th positions, respectively. For the West Indies, who won by one wicket, Jermaine Blackwood has gained nine slots to reach 35th position after getting 22 and 55. All-rounder Jason Holder is up five places to 43rd and captain Kraigg Brathwaite, who missed a first-innings century by three runs, has advanced 18 places to 45th. Holder has also moved into the top 10 for bowlers, his four wickets in the match lifting him two places to ninth position. Fast bowler Jayden Seales has soared 39 places to 58th after his eight-wicket match haul that earned him the Player of the Match award while Kemar Roach is another gainer, moving up two places to 11th. For Pakistan, left-arm fast bowler Shaheen Afridi has gained four slots to reach 18th position after taking four wickets in each innings and Faheem is up four places to 71st.

By BIPIN DANI Mohammed Siraj is known to wear his heart on his sleeve. The fast bowler on the Indian cricket team has several times drawn attention by publicly expressing emotion. But now, his restrained gesture of putting a left-hand finger on his lips after claiming a wicket has caught the public eye.   “It’s just his way of celebrating after taking a wicket I would say,” Arjun Yadav, who was his Under-23 coach, says. “It’s just a message to all the people who did not believe in his ability, and to silence his critics,” the son of former Indian spinner and ex-BCCI president Shivlal Yadav adds. In the last Test, Siraj was able to grab four wickets in each innings. Had he got one more in either innings, his name would have been up on the Honours Board at Lord’s.   “Of course, it is a chance he missed, but I am sure Siraj will be happy, as his four wickets in the second innings gave the Indian team victory. I know him well, and he believes team victory comes over all personal goals and achievements,” says Yadav, signing off.