Sports Bulletin

ABDUL JABBAR FAISAL ISLAMABAD (October 11, 2020):-Defending champions Northern reached in the top-four stage of the National T-20 Cup 2020 after beating Southern Punjab by five runs in a last over thriller played at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Sunday evening. Southern Punjab now need to not only win each of their remaining four matches, they would also need help from some other favourable results to sneak through to the semi-finals. In-form fast bowler Haris Rauf (man-of-the-match) continued his golden run in the tournament with a fiery four wicket burst to take his tournament wicket tally to 14 in six matches while ensuring the defence of the below-par 145-run total that Northern had set Southern Punjab. Haris removed Southern Punjab captain Shan Masood (4) and Umar Siddiq (0) in his opening burst while Northern captain Imad Wasim accounted for the danger man Sohaib Maqsood for 19 to reduce Southern Punjab to 26 for three in seven overs. Haris then returned to account for Hussain Talat (12) while Southern Punjab suffered a major blow when Khushdil Shah who scored a 35-ball century against Sindh in the previous game, ran himself out in search of a quick single for 26 (20 balls, two sixes).   Zeeshan Ashraf, who batted at number six, fell for 25, Haris then bowled Dilbar Hussain (1) on the final ball of his spell to return figures of four for 23 in four overs. Aamer Yamin kept the hopes alive for Southern Punjab as he brought the equation down to 15 off the last over with some lusty blows, Imad conceded a mere nine runs in the final over while accounting for Mohammad Ilyas. Aamer remained unbeaten on 33 off 19 balls (three fours and two sixes) Southern Punjab ended their 20 overs at 140 for eight. Reflecting on his performance, man-of-the-match Haris Rauf said: “I want to thank the Almighty, it was a full team effort and we were well led by our captain. We all gave it our all and it worked for us. I was giving my full effort and trying my hardest, I was a bit disappointed when Khushdil Shah was dropped off my bowling, aggressive bowling is my style and I try and maintain the same approach and help my team with my fast bowling and positive attitude.” Earlier, Southern Punjab opted to bowl first after winning the toss. Northern were rocked early in their innings on a pitch that offered some help to the fast bowlers in the opening overs. Umar Amin (4), Zeeshan Malik (6) and Rohail Nazir (9) were all sent packing in the first nine overs leaving Northern tottering at 50 for three at a run-rate of less than six runs per over. Northern were then dealt a body blow when Sohail Akhtar who had looked in fine touch fell for 35 (32 balls, five fours) to Ilyas in the 11th over which left Northern 63 for four. Asif Ali and Shadab Khan who had been contributing crucial middle-order runs in the earlier games fell for 28 and nine respectively as Northern kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Imad remained unbeaten on 26 off 18 balls (three fours) as Northern finished on 145 for seven in their 20 overs. Ilyas (2 for 22) and Hussain Talat (2 for 28) took two wickets each while Mohammad Abbas (1 for 17) and Aamer (1 for 21) bowled economical spells to stifle the free scoring Northern batsmen. Scores in brief Northern 145-7, 20 overs (Sohail Akhtar 35, Asif Ali 28, Imad Wasim 26 not out; Mohammad Ilyas 2-22, Hussain Talat 2-28, Mohammad Abbas 1-17) Southern Punjab 140-8, 20 overs (Aamer Yamin 33 not out, Khushdil Shah 26, Zeeshan Ashraf 25; Haris Rauf 4-23, Imad Wasim 2-33) Result – Northern won by five runs Man-of-the-match – Haris Rauf (Northern) Monday’s fixtures: 1500 PST – Khyber Pakhtunkhwa v Southern Punjab. Shozab Raza and Saqib Khan (on-field umpires), Asif Yaqoob (third umpire), Ahsan Raza (fourth umpire); Ali Naqvi (match referee). 1930 PST – Balochistan v Central Punjab. Rashid Riaz and Imtiaz Iqbal (on-field umpires), Imtiaz Jawed (third umpire), Ghaffar Kazmi (fourth umpire); Mohammad Anees (match referee)

SPORTS REPORT ISLAMABAD (October 11, 2020):-Pakistan will launch its bid to qualify directly for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 by taking on Zimbabwe in the three ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League matches in Rawalpindi on 30 October, 1 and 3 November, the Pakistan Cricket Board confirmed today. The ICC has introduced the Super League to provide context to ODI cricket and will serve as a qualification for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 with the hosts and other top seven sides automatically booking their spots for the India event. Featuring 13 teams, the 12 Test playing countries and the Netherlands, the Super League will see each side play four home and four away three-match series. The three ODIs were originally scheduled for Multan, but have been moved to Rawalpindi due to logistical and operational challenges. The change in the venue also means Lahore will now stage the three Twenty20 Internationals on 7, 8 and 10 November. These matches were initially planned to take place in Rawalpindi. Explaining the changes, PCB Director – International Cricket, Zakir Khan said: “After Multan became unavailable due to logistical and operational reasons, we took the opportunity to revisit the entire schedule and have come up with an itinerary that is suitable for the teams, match officials, broadcasters, event staff and other support agencies. “In the meantime, we are also in regular touch with the Metrological department and seeking their forecast for smog during November. We will continue to liaise with the Met Office and monitor the situation, and, if required, will make necessary changes. “The availability of Rawalpindi has ensured there is no uncertainty for our ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League matches as we aim to collect maximum points from this series to achieve our target of qualifying directly for the ICC’s pinnacle 50-over event.” Zimbabwe last visited Pakistan in 2015 for three ODIs and two T20Is. However, they now return after international cricket has resumed in Pakistan with full force following the successful tours of Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in the 2019-20 season. In addition to this, HBL Pakistan Super League, for the first time in its young history, was staged in Pakistan until the last four matches were postponed on 17 March due to Covid-19 pandemic. These matches of the fifth edition will be staged in Lahore on 14, 15 and 17 November. Revised schedule (start time to be confirmed in due course): 20 Oct – Zimbabwe arrival in Islamabad 21-27 Oct – Isolation period & practice 28-29 Oct – Practice at Pindi Cricket Stadium 30 Oct – 1st ODI, Pindi Cricket Stadium 1 Nov – 2nd ODI, Pindi Cricket Stadium 3 Nov – 3rd ODI Pindi Cricket Stadium 4 Nov – Travel to Lahore 5-6 Nov – Practice at Gaddafi Stadium 7 Nov – 1st T20I Gaddafi Stadium 8 Nov – 2nd T20I, Gaddafi Stadium 10 Nov – 3rd T20I, Gaddafi Stadium 12 Nov – Zimbabwe departure for Harare

ABDUL JABBAR FAISAL ISLAMABAD (October 10, 2020):- A massive innings by opener Awais Zia (92) helped Balochistan to to claim a comfortable victory against Khyber Pakhtun Kawa (KPK) to move a step closer to securing a semi-final berth in the 17th match of the National T20 Cup for First XI teams at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on Saturday. Awais faced a mere 49 balls (10 fours, four sixes) in his brilliant effort that ensured Balochistan’s six wicket victory with 20 balls to spare. Balochistan lost two early wickets as Shaheen Shah Afridi continued his stunning bowling form by dismissing newcomer Abdul Wahid Bangalzai for a duck and Bismillah Khan for 18 in a pacy opening spell. Imran Butt fell for nine while Balochistan lost their captain Haris Sohail for one run before Awais was joined by Akbar-ur-Rehman in what turned out to be a match winning unbroken partnership of 88 runs for the fifth wicket. Akbar scored 24 off 22 balls, he hit three fours. Shaheen took two wickets for 38 runs in his four over spell but found little support at the other end as Balochistan batsmen especially Awais dominated the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa attack with sustained stroke play. Reflecting on his performance, man-of-the-match Awais Zia said: “My start wasn’t bad in Multan but I was struggling a bit to convert my starts, I was a bit unlucky. Today the responsibility was on me with Imam’s absence as my opening partner and I am happy that I made it count. My management and captain Haris Sohail were supporting me throughout and kept sending me messages that I needed to stay at the wicket since I can score quick runs whenever the opportunity comes.” Earlier, Balochistan opted to bowl first after winning the toss. Their bowlers produced a commendable job to restrict the powerful Khyber Pakhtunkhwa batting line-up to 154 for six in 20 overs. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa lost captain Mohammad Rizwan (5) and Mohammad Hafeez (4) cheaply. Fakhar Zaman (33 off 34 balls, two fours, three sixes) added 38 runs for the third wicket with Shoaib Malik. Malik then added 69 runs for the fourth wicket with Sahibzada Farhan who contributed 12 runs to the partnership. The seasoned Malik became the first Pakistan batsman (third overall) to reach the milestone of 10,000 runs in T20 cricket. Malik appeared in his 395th T20 match today, he joined the 10,000-run club mark when he reached 47. Malik held the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa innings together before falling to Umar Gul for 74. His innings included eight fours and two sixes and came off 44 balls. Left-armer Akif Javed with two wickets for 20 runs was the most successful Balochistan bowler. Scores in brief Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 154-6, 20 overs (Shoaib Malik 74, Fakhar Zaman 33; Akif Javed 2-20) Balochistan 156-4, 16.4 overs (Awais Zia 92 not out, Akbar-ur-Rehman 24 not out; Shaheen Shah Afridi 2-38) Result – Balochistan won by six wickets Man-of-the-match – Awais Zia (Balochistan) Sunday’s fixtures: 1500 PST - Northern v Southern Punjab. Shozab Raza and Imran Jawed (on-field umpires), Imtiaz Iqbal (third umpire), Asif Yaqoob (fourth umpire); Mohammad Anees (match referee). 1930 PST – Balochistan v Sindh. Ahsan Raza and Saqib Khan (on-field umpires), Ghaffar Kazmi (third umpire), Rashid Riaz (fourth umpire); Nadeem Arshad (match referee)

SPORTS REPORT ISLAMABAD (October 10, 2020):-The high quality cricket action in the ongoing National T20 Cup continues to enthral the fans as the high scoring match between Southern Punjab and Sindh at the Pindi Cricket Stadium on Friday, the opening day of the second-leg of the tournament, saw record-books rewritten. As many as 433 runs were scored on the back of 21 sixes and 40 fours in a contest in which the record for the fastest T20 century by a Pakistan batsman was made in the second highest successful run-chase ever in the history of the National T20 Cup. Over the course of the match, the fans were treated with some exceptional power-hitting. That Sindh posted a daunting 216 for three was because of a blazing 58-ball 108 by Khurram Manzoor, who embellished the first innings of the match with his six sixes and 10 fours. Southern Punjab, in search of change of fortunes hoped for an extraordinary batting display from their batsmen, as they headed towards what would have been their fifth defeat in as many matches. They were saved by Khushdil Shah, whose spectacular 36-ball 100 provided Southern Punjab a most unexpected victory considering their state in the match. The 25-year-old smoked nine sixes and eight fours to register his first triple-digit score in just 35 balls and set a record for the fastest century in the format by a Pakistan batsman, which was previously held by Ahmed Shehzad, who had scored a century from 40 balls in a Bangladesh Premier League match in 2012. Khushdil, who made his Pakistan debut in last November at Perth in a T20I against Australia, said: “This knock has provided me a lot of confidence and my aim is to build on this innings. I am a natural power-hitter and the experience of spending time with men’s national team in England helped me to learn a lot more about batting. The coaches worked a great deal on me and I used to stay in ground with them from sunrise to sunset.” Khushdil arrived at the crease with his side struggling at three for 32 in five overs, but that did not deter the Bannu-born from expressing himself. He started to deal in boundaries from the third ball he faced as he dispatched Mir Hamza for back-to-back fours. “My favourite shots are the ones which bring me my first boundaries in an innings as they provide me confidence to build an innings,” he said. “I try to learn from the best in business and adopt their practice routines. I used to watch David Miller and then I saw Eoin Morgan in England on how he constructs his innings.” Khurram is amongst the many admirers Khushdil has earned. “It was a wonderful innings,” Khurram told PCB Digital. “I have very rarely seen such innings. Shahid Afridi had scored a century off 37 balls. I saw Khushdil’s innings unfold in front of my eyes at the ground yesterday. He turned the match around on his own and changed the game completely.” After 16 matches of the National T20 Cup for First XIs, the 34-year-old Khurram leads the batting charts with 253 runs at an average of 50.60. He has a century and two half-centuries from five innings in the tournament and is the leading run-getter in the National T20 Cup history. Reflecting on what was his fourth T20 century, Khurram said: “We had lost the toss and were asked to bat. With the teams able to chase big scores, my plan was to score as much runs as possible for my team by putting up a strong partnership with Asad Shafiq, who provided a great support. “With the moisture in the pitch, there were some problems early on. I stuck with what I have learned throughout my career which is, attack is the best defence. I enjoy paddle sweeping the fast bowlers as it is a difficult shot to execute. But, I enjoy that challenge.” Sindh and Southern Punjab currently sit at fifth and sixth positions on the points table as both have two points each. Khurram is hopeful that unlike last year, Sindh will be able to secure a semi-final berth in this edition. “I am hopeful that we will progress to the semi-finals as we still have five matches. We need to play good quality cricket and field well.”

SPORTS REPORT ISLAMABAD (October 10, 2020):-Sindh have been fined PKR25,000 for maintaining a slow over-rate during their Friday’s National T20 Cup fixture against Southern Punjab. In the stipulated time, Sindh were two overs short of their target after taking into account time allowances and, as such, were charged under Article 2.22 of the PCB’s Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel that deals with minimum over-rate offences. The charge was levelled by on-field umpires Ghaffar Kazmi and Rashid Riaz, third umpire Asif Yaqoob and fourth umpire Saqib Khan. Sindh captain Sarfaraz Ahmed pleaded guilty and accepted the sanction proposed by match referee Nadeem Arshad.

SPORTS REPORT ISLAMABAD (October 10, 2020):-Central Punjab fast bowler Naseem Shah has been withdrawn from the National T20 Cup after complaining of a niggle in groin. He has been replaced in the Central Punjab squad by left-arm fast bowler Waqas Maqsood. Naseem will now report at the National High Performance Centre in Lahore where the PCB medical panel will carry out a detailed and complete investigation on his injury. Director – Medical and Sports Sciences, Dr Sohail Saleem: “Naseem is an asset who needs to be handled with care. As soon as he showed discomfort, we decided to withdraw him from the tournament and bring him to Lahore so that we can investigate the injury.” The PCB will provide further updates on Naseem’s injury in due course.

SB NEWS KARACHI (October 9, 2020):-A women player has tested positive in the second round of Covid-19 testing ahead of the National Women’s High Performance Camp and, as such, she has been put in self-isolation, while a player and a player support personnel have also been withdrawn from the bio-secure bubble as a precaution after they showed symptoms of Upper Respiratory Tract Infection. The three squad members' progress will be regularly monitored by the PCB’s medical panel. They will be allowed to reintegrate with rest of the squad after complete recovery subject to retesting with negative results as per PCB Domestic Covid -19 SOPs. The National Women’s High Performance Camp, which commences at the National Stadium on Saturday, has been set-up to help the players in their skill and match fitness. The camp serves as an opener of the women’s domestic and international cricket season 2020-21. Meanwhile, two officials have not joined the Bio-secure bubble yet. One official's second test was conducted today in the evening and the other official's second test will be conducted on Sunday morning. If their second test come out negative, they will join the squad accordingly and will be included in the Bio-secure Zone.

ABDUL JABBAR FAISAL RAWALPINDI (October 9, 2020):-Central Punjab led of Babar Azam outclassed Northern by eight wickets in the National T-20 Super Cup at Pindi Cricket Stadium Rawalpindi on Friday. Babar played an unbeatable innings of 86 runs played vital for the winners. Fahim hit 52. Earlier, Northern decided to bat first after winning the coin battle at the batting track of Pindi Cricket Stadium. Set a 166-run victory target, Central Punjab coasted to 167 for two in a mere 17 overs with Babar returning unbeaten with a typically elegant 86 off 52 balls (11 fours, two sixes). Faheem followed his four-wicket bowling spell to make 52 off 26 balls; his innings included two sixes and seven fours. The two added 105 runs for their unbroken third wicket partnership in a mere 51 balls. Central Punjab had lost Kamran Akmal for 21 and Abdullah Shafiq for three when Faheem joined Babar at the crease. Reflecting on his performance, Faheem Ashraf said: “My performance today is due to prayers, especially since I was struggling recently. Our team’s mindset today was to try and win the game, my aim when batting with Babar was to ensure that we bat till the end, Babar asked me to stay till the end as that will ensure a comfortable victory for us.” Batting first after winning the toss, Northern made a fine recovery to post 165 for nine after their top-order was removed by an inspired spell of pace bowling by Faheem who took three wickets in his two over opening burst conceding a mere seven runs. Faheem sent back Zeeshan Malik (9), Sohail Akhtar (17) and Rohail Nazir (4) to leave Northern tottering at 52 for four. Left-armer Sohaibullah had made the first breakthrough when he dismissed Umar Amin for a duck. Northern were rescued by an 87-run (56 balls) stand for the fifth wicket between Asif Ali and Shadab Khan. Asif hit five sixes and four fours in his 40-ball 67-run effort. Shadab scored 39 off 25 balls, striking five fours in his innings. Northern were however finished a few runs short at the end as the lower-order failed to sustain the momentum provided by Asif and Shadab. Faheem added Hammad Azam’s wicket in his second spell to finish with four wickets for 18 runs. Usman Qadir (two for 36) and Ehsan Adil (two for 37) were the other main wicket-takers for Central Punjab. Meanwhile for Northern captain Imad Wasim and Sohail Akhtar made their first appearances of the tournament while Haris Rauf was brought back in the playing eleven. Scores in brief Northern 165-9, 20 overs (Asif Ali 67, Shadab Khan 39; Faheem Ashraf 4-18, Usman Qadir 2-36, Ehsan Adil 2-37) Central Punjab 167-2, 17 overs (Babar Azam 86 not out, Faheem Ashraf 52 not out, Shadab Khan 2-39) Result – Central Punjab won by eight wickets Player of the match – Faheem Ashraf (Central Punjab) Saturday’s fixtures: 1500 PST - Balochistan v Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Ahsan Raza and Imtiaz Iqbal (on-field umpires), Rashid Riaz (third umpire), Imran Jawed (fourth umpire); Nadeem Arshad (match referee). 1930 PST – Central Punjab v Sindh. Asif Yaqoob and Saqib Khan (on-field umpires), Shozab Raza (third umpire), Ghaffar Kazmi (fourth umpire); Mohammad Anees (match referee)

ABDUL JABBAR FAISAL RAWALPINDI (October 9, 2020):-The second phase of the National T-20 Cricket Super Cup kicked off here at Pindi Cricket Stadium on Friday, where an empty international cricket ground welcomed the top national players because common people were was allowed to enjoy the game of cricket in the stadium owing to Covid-19 pandemic. It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had postponed the PSL due to breakout of coronavirus across the county. Now, rest of the PSL matches will be played in November at Qaddafi Stadium, Lahore. International cricket stadium Pindi has capacity of over 15000 spectators but the seats are empty and covered with the advertising banners all around the stadium. Today corona pandemic is a wet blanket not only for Pakistan but for all over the world. Despite uncontrolled circumstances, cricket controlling authorities took a great and an appreciable step after starting the National T-20 Cricket Cup 2020. No doubt, all credit for this initiative goes to Chairman PCB Eshan Mani and his team. PCB became the first cricket board in the world that chalk-out the domestic cricket season 2020-21. National T-20 commenced on September 30, 2020 at Multan Cricket Stadium Multan in which including defending champions Northern six top national teams are showing their muscles. It was a bitter taste for the cricket lovers, who are not able to watch their heroes in stadiums and clam in the stadium also bites the handful people of media and officials. The final will be played on October 18, 2020 at Pindi Cricket Stadium under the floodlights behind the door. People will enjoy the game at home on TV screen and will back their heroes too.   It’s good, there is no large number of check posts of different intelligence agencies, as the local people are moving easily without any restrictions, which they were facing during the Pakistan Super League (PSL) and Test matches against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh few months back in the beginning of year 2020. The support the surrounding areas people was also great, as their support helped the Pakistan to restore international cricket, which was halted the Lahore incident in which Sri Lankan players targeted by the terrorists in March 3, 2009.    

SB REPORT LAHORE (October 8, 2020):-Central Punjab bagged the Second XI National T20 Cup title with a seven-wicket win over Northern in the last match of the single-league event at the Gaddafi Stadium on Thursday. The Nauman Anwar-led side topped the six-team points table with four wins from their five matches, while win-less Northern finished on the last spot. An unbeaten 57-ball 66 by Junaid Ali set the comfortable victory as Central Punjab overhauled the 134-run target with 11 balls to spare. The wicketkeeper-batsman took the lead role in the innings after Nauman, who made a quickfire 26 from 13 balls hitting four fours and a six, was dismissed by Athar Mehmood, who took two wickets for 36 runs. Northern, who failed to win a single match, managed a meagre 133 for eight after their captain Nauman Ali elected to bat. Aamer Jamal’s 24-ball 38 not out, which included four sixes, provided some respite to the defending champions, who had half of their batting line-up back in the pavilion for just 37 runs. Sarmad Bhatti was the other notable run-getter in the innings as he hit a six and two fours for his 33 off 28 balls. Reflecting on Central Punjab’s run in the event, Nauman Anwar told pcb.com.pk: “It has been an exciting journey and we got to play some quality cricket despite the Covid-19 protocols in place. We have really enjoyed our time over the last two, three weeks. That each and every player of our team raised his hand when the situation demanded and delivered is the reason behind our success in this event. “The most memorable match for us was our opening match, which was against Sindh [which Central Punjab won by four wickets]. The Central Punjab-Sindh rivalry always brings out the best amongst from all the players involved in such contests and what made it further exciting was the fact that it went deep into the last over.” During the tournament, as many as four bowlers picked up eight wickets each – the most in the event – and the two bowlers with the best average amongst them belong to Central Punjab. Kamran did it for 13.25 runs a wicket, while Waqas’ wickets were earned at 15.75. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Sameen Gul took eight wickets for 18.50. Northern’s Athar, the 21-year-old right-arm pacer, gave away 19.63 runs for his eight wickets. Balochistan’s Abdul Wahid Bangalzai, Southern Punjab’s Zain Abbas and Central Punjab’s Mohammad Akhlaq finished as the top three run-getters with 235 at 47, 193 at 96.50 and 185 at 61.67 respectively. Based on their brilliant runs, all three earned call-ups for the second-leg of the First XI National T20 Cup, which will start in Rawalpindi on Friday. Twenty-year-old Akhlaq – who scored three half-centuries, the most in the competition – will travel to Rawalpindi to integrate with the First XI squad. About his consistent run, Akram Raza, the head coach of Central Punjab Second XI team, said: “Akhlaq possess all the desired skills to thrive at the top level and he has been impressive throughout this competition. I have high hopes from him. “It is great to see players graduate from the Second XI teams to top. Akhlaq will be our second player to reach the First XI team after Abdullah Shafiq, who has earned admirers all over. I have been working extensively with most of these players since the last year and I can comfortably say that these players have a great potential and a lot of hunger to progress.” Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Southern Punjab, locked at six points each, finish at number two and three positions. Sindh and Balochistan end their Second XI National T20 Cup on fourth and fifth position. Scores in brief: Northern 133-8, 20 overs (Aamer Jamal 38 not out, Sarmad Bhatti 33; Waqas Maqsood 3-23, Kamran Afzal 2-14, Mohammad Ali 2-30) Central Punjab 134-3, 18.1 overs (Junaid Ali 66 not out, Nauman Anwar 26; Athar Mehmood 2-36) Result – Central Punjab won by seven wickets