Sports Bulletin

The West Indies are heading to the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 in a good space, the like of which I have not seen for a long time. A lot of that is down to the coaching staff. Courtney Walsh took over as head coach in 2020 and the impact that he and his team have made has been huge. They have been able to teach us things that we were just completely unaware of previously. It makes you wonder what sort of players we could be if we had learned some of these things sooner. What sort of player would I be if I knew at the age of seven or eight, what I know now? I have worked a lot with our batting coach Robert Samuels on trying to avoid slipping in bad habits. I never used to be one to watch videos very much, but now I try to film net sessions to make sure I’m avoiding those old habits. Robert has been working hard on building up our middle order, and I hope that we will be able to show that our depth has improved during the tournament in New Zealand. The aim is to be stronger in that area, and that then relieves the pressure on individual players when they get to the middle. We still have a few players from the 2017 World Cup, and players like Deandra Dottin and Hayley Matthews are in good form. But there are also a lot of youngsters who we have been able to integrate into the side. For those playing their first World Cup, my advice to them is to enjoy themselves. There will be nerves, there is no way around that, but they just need to enjoy the opportunity. It has not been the easiest build-up for me because I was hit on the head during the series against South Africa. It was the first time I had been hit on the head by a cricket ball, or at all, and I am still recovering from the concussion. Apparently, I was speaking a lot of nonsense after it happened, and light affected my eyes initially, so I spent a lot of time with glasses on. Hopefully, I can be ready for the opening warm-up game down in Christchurch. We start the tournament against New Zealand, so we know that will be a challenge taking them on in their own backyard. But at a World Cup, every game is tricky so we just need to make sure we focus on our strengths. If we are to make the semi-finals, we will need players to step up in the big moments and it cannot just be one or two of them. We need to play well across all three phases. Our fast bowling depth is looking good with Shamilia Connell in good form, and that could be very useful in the conditions over here. We are just really excited to get started because the team is in a really good space.

The Women’s World Cup is a platform where stars are born, and it is the ultimate stage where cricketers of the day can leave ever-lasting legacies. For Pakistan, the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 is an opportunity to leave a mark and break the glass ceiling. We arrive in New Zealand well prepared, with our eyes set on one of the four semi-final spots. We have never made it to the knockouts of any World Cup across the two formats, but that does not mean that that time will never come. With the experience of Javeria Khan, Nida Dar, Diana Baig and Anam Amin; the extraordinary talent of Fatima Sana and Ghulam Fatima; and the grit of Aliya Riaz and Omaima Sohail, this team has all the ingredients to make history in this beautiful country. We have put together a strong squad, which not only covers all bases but also provides the right balance required for a tournament as lengthy and demanding as this World Cup will be. We have a perfect mix of talent and experience in both departments, and a team eager to push the limits and make its fans and supporters proud. Since the last edition in 2017 of the event, our team has had its share of ups and downs. Through sheer hard work, grit and determination, we established ourselves as a force to reckon in the ICC Women’s Championship 2017-20 cycle. We achieved many firsts, thanks to the unrelenting passion of the girls. It was no mean achievement for a side which had finished seventh or second-last in the inaugural edition of the ICC Women’s Championship just two years ago and failed to win a match in the following World Cup to break into the top four of the table, before finishing fifth due to a series cancellation. And that momentum translated in our victory against the West Indies in our ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 opener. The team’s performances, however, since our return to cricket after a covid-induced hiatus have not been up to the mark, There have been some outstanding individual performances. But the overall results have been below par and there is a strong realisation in the camp that the last year does not justify the collective potential and talent of this side. There is an urge to undo the mistakes of the last year in every individual. During our preparations in Karachi in the lead-up to this tournament, every player has put in the hard yards to prepare for the challenges that await us in New Zealand. The World Cup format provides all the sides much-desired exposure and experience as each team is pitted against all the participating sides. With each team playing seven matches, only a side that displays quality cricket on a consistent basis will progress. We will take one match at a time and focus on the task at hand. The challenge to be among the top four sides can overwhelm one, but when that challenge is broken down into small, achievable goals one gets motivated to achieve it. We start our campaign by facing India, which promises to be a great occasion for women’s cricket in the subcontinent. It will surely be an exciting contest. Pakistan v India is a rivalry that attracts record eyeballs across the globe. In our part of the world, it becomes the talk of the town when the two neighbours face off. I am sure millions of girls will tune in to watch this game and will leave inspired to take up the game. I am thrilled to be here in New Zealand, finally, for this World Cup and thank the Pakistan Cricket Board for their support that helped me in returning to the game I love, smoothly. The introduction of the maternal policy has made the game more inclusive for women. It is a great initiative, which will definitely see more girls follow their passion. With my daughter, Fatima, in the picture, I am excited to see how the next couple of months will pan out. Covid has had an impact on women’s game around the world, but this tournament promises a new beginning and comes with a ray of hope of us getting back to normal life. Good luck to all the participants! Here is to making this World Cup a memorable one.

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-Pakistan Blind Cricket Council (PBCC) has announced 17 players for the monthly honorarium who had performed notably well in the recent Blind Cricket competitions. According to an official of PBCC, the players will receive monthly honorarium for the term of next six (6) months from January 2022 to June 2022 in (3) three categories. Category A players will pocket Rs. 17,500 per month while Category B Rs. 14,500 and Category C Rs.12, 500 per month. Name players: 1. Nisar Ali (A) Rs=17,500 2. Badar Munir (A) Rs=17,500 3. Zafar Iqbal (B) Rs=14,500 4. Mohammad Rashid (B) Rs=14,500 5. Mohammad Akram (B) Rs=14,500 6. Anees Javed (B) Rs=14,500 7. Riasat Khan (C) Rs=12,500 8. Moeen Aslam (C) Rs=12,500 9. Fakhar Abbas (C) Rs=12,500 10. Mati Ullah (C) Rs=12,500 11. Shahzeb Haider (C) Rs=12,500 12. Haroon Khan (C) Rs=12,500 13. Mohammad Safdar (C) Rs=12,500 14. Israr Hassan (C) Rs=12,500 15. Ayub Khan (C) Rs=12,500 16. Faisal Mehmood (C) Rs=12,500 17. Sana Ullah Khan (C) Rs=12,500

Playing in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup is a long-awaited dream comes true for all of us. We have played three T20 World Cups but have never played an ODI one, so we are very excited and very eager to perform on the biggest stage. We want to make the most of this opportunity and make it count. We have never played against England, Australia or New Zealand in ODIs, so it will be a new experience. We have followed them on the TV and the internet as we knew that someday we would play against them, and our analysts have given us information about their strengths and weaknesses to help us prepare. Generally, the outlook of Bangladesh cricket changed after our Asia Cup win in 2018. People are showing more interest now because they know the Bangladesh women’s team exists - before that, some people may not even have known that a Bangladesh women’s team existed. Now, people are showing interest and they want to know where and how we're going to play. The media is showing interest and when we qualified for the World Cup, the whole nation was very happy – you could see that through the reception on social media. Bangladesh is a cricket-loving nation and now they are also there for the women’s team. This brings some pressure but it’s good pressure, as we feel a desire to do well for them as well. This competition is a huge opportunity for us because we can show we have potential and we are improving as a team. If we do well here, more teams will be interested in playing against us, more international cricket will come to the country and the Bangladesh Cricket Board will try to increase domestic matches as well. From there, they will try to find more young talented cricketers because of the need to have a pipeline of new players coming through. The cricket board is working on the under-19s, under-17s and the emerging side so there are a lot of cricketers there who are eager for us to do well here because they know if we do well, they will have a good future. Of our current squad, openers Murshida Khatun and Sharmin Akhter Supta played well in the qualifiers and are in very good touch. Rumana Ahmed has always been there when our team needed her and Salma Khatun is one of the best all-rounders in the world. In the bowling attack, we have added a fast young bowler, Suraiya Azmin, who the cricket world hasn’t seen very much of yet, and Fariha Trisna offers a left-arm option. We have three former captains – Salma, Rumana and Jahanara Alam – in our team, who are helping me a lot and I’m taking on board all their advice. On a personal level, it is a great opportunity for me to lead the team into our first ever World Cup. If we could do well here, it’s going to be a great historical moment for all of us.

Aamir Ali Janjua DUBHI:-Australian quick Josh Hazlewood returned his best-ever T20I figures in the series opener against Sri Lanka, taking 4-12 in a spell, before capping another haul of 3-22 last week, with a match-sealing Super Over that went for just five runs. He is now number two among the T20I bowlers, just one point behind South Africa’s Tabraiz Shamsi in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings. This week’s ratings come after the first three Australia v Sri Lanka matches and the second and third India v West Indies games. In the series against Australia, Wanindu Hasaranga took five wickets in the first two matches, but having missed the final match, it wasn’t enough for him to continue onto the top spot, as he dropped to the third place in the T20I bowling rankings. His teammate Maheesh Theekshana was up 16 places to 29th. In the batters list, Sri Lanka’s Pathum Nissanka topped the run-scorers in the T20I series with Australia with 125 runs across the three games to move up 42 places and become joint 21st. Dipendra Singh Airee from Nepal was the leading run scorer in the Quadrangular T20I tournament held in Oman with 142 runs which helped him up 63 places to 53rd with the bat. Chirag Suri of the UAE also moved up the table thanks to his unbeaten 84 against Nepal, which was the highest individual score in the competition. In bowlers again, Oman’s Bilal Khan proved to be very economical, conceding just 62 runs in his 12 overs, to move to his career best position of 18th in T20I in the series. In the fifty over format, the Indian pair of Shreyas Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav have made strides up the table.  Yadav scored 64 in the second ODI against the West Indies whilst Iyer made an 80 in the third to help the home side complete a 3-0 series win. Their teammate Rishabh Pant added a half-century in the third match to move to a career best of 469 points at the 71st place. Indian pacer Prasidh Krishna was the leading wicket-taker across both sides with nine wickets at just 7.55 to gain 50 places from 94th to 44th in the ODI bowlers list, whilst Alzarri Joseph took two wickets in each of the three matches to earn himself a place in the top 20 bowler’s list.

Sports Bulletin Report OMAN (Muscat):-The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifier A, supported by Dream 11, begins at the Oman Academy grounds in Al Amerat on Friday. A lot is at stake for the eight participating nations – Ireland, Nepal, UAE, Canada, Germany, Philippines, Bahrain, and hosts Oman – as they vie for the two spots available at the Qualifier A from 18 to 24 February. Fixtures: February 18th, Friday: 10:00 (local time start): Oman Academy 1: Oman v Nepal, Oman Academy 2: Canada v Philippines; 14:00: Oman Academy 1: Ireland v UAE, Oman Academy 2: Germany v Bahrain. February 19th, Saturday: 10:00: Oman Academy 1: Oman v Canada, Oman Academy 2: Nepal v Philippines;  14:00: Oman Academy 1: UAE v Germany, Oman Academy 2: Ireland v Bahrain. February 20th, Sunday: Rest Day. February 21st, Monday: 10:00: Oman Academy 1: Ireland v Germany, Oman Academy 2: UAE v Bahrain; 14:00: Oman Academy 1: Nepal vs Canada, Oman Academy 2: Oman vs Philippines. February 22nd, Tuesday: 10:00: Oman Academy 1: A3 vs B4 (3rd in Group A v 4th in Group B), Oman Academy 2: B3 v A4 (3rd in Group B v 4th in Group A); 14:00: Oman Academy 1: Semi-Final 1 (winner Group A v Runner-up Group B), Oman Academy 2: Semi-Final 2 (Winner Group B v Runner-up Group A). February 23rd, Wednesday: Rest Day. February 24th, Thursday: Oman Academy 1: 10:00: 5th and 6th Play off (Winner of A3 v B4 v Winner of B3 v A 4), Oman Academy 2: 7th and 8th Play off (Loser of A3 v A4 v Loser of B3 v B4). 14:00: Oman Academy 1: Final (Winner of A1 v B2 v Winner of B1 v A2), Oman Academy 2:3rd and 4th Play off (Loser of A1 v B2 v Loser of B2 v A1). Participating squads: Bahrain: Shahbaz Badar, Junaid Aziz Mohd Aziz, Waseeq Ahmed, Imran Javed Anwar, Prashant Kurup, Muhammad Younis, David Keelan Mathias, Umer Imtiaz, Sarfraz Ali (captain), Veerapathiran Sathaiyah, George Aaron Aaxtel, Haider Ali, Shahid Mahmood, Faiz Ahmed. Canada: Navneet Dhaliwal (captain), Rayyan Pathan, Matt Spoors, Harsh Thaker, Ravinderpal Singh, Saad Zafar, Hamza Tariq, Shreyaas Movva, Salman Nazar,Junaid Siddiqui, Rishiv Joshi, Dilon Heyliger, Jatinderpal Matharu, Kaleem Sana. Germany: Venkat Ganesan (captain), Michael Richardson, Dieter Klein, Fayaz Nasseri, Dylan Blignaut, Justin Broad, Nooruddin Mujadady, Vijay Shankar, Faisal Mubashir, Shoaib Azam Khan, Muslim Yar Ashraf, Sri Vishnu Baratheon, Talha Khan, Rasul Ahmadi. Ireland:  Andrew Balbirnie (captain), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Shane Getkate, Josh Little, Andy McBrine, Barry McCarthy, Simi Singh, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Craig Young. Nepal: Sandeep Lamichhane (captain), Sharad Vesawkar, Gyanendra Malla, Dipendra Airee, Kushal Bhurtel, Arif Sheikh, Asif Sheikh, Abinash Bohara, Jitendra Mukhiya, Kamal Airee, Bibek Yadav, Lokesh Bam, Sagar Dhakal, Gulshan Jha. Oman: Zeeshan Maqsood (captain), Syed Amir Kaleem, Muhammad Naseem, Jatinder Singh, Khawar Ali, Muhammad Nadeem, Ayaan Khan, Sandeep Goud, Kashyupkumar Prajapati, Kaleemullah, Bilal Khan, Ahmed Fayyaz Butt, Shoaib Khan, Khurram Khan. Philippines: Jonathan Hill (captain), Dan Smith, Henry Tyler, Grant Russ, Richie Goodwin, Jordan Alegra, Sachin Biddappa, Vimal Kumar, Siva Mohan, Huzaifa Mohammed, Gurbhupinder Chohan, Muzammil Shahzad, Miggy Podosky, Hern Isorena. UAE: Muhammad Waseem, Chirag Suri, Vriitya Aravind, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Ahmed Raza (captain), Zohoor Khan, Alishan Sharafu, Raja Akifullah, Karthik Meiyappan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Zafar Farid, Muhammad Boota, Mohammad Usman, Rahul Bhatia.

Bipin Dani Sri Lanka's top order batsman Bhanuka Rajapaksa is available for the upcoming India tour, it is learnt, after he passed the required fitness tests. "He did the fitness tests on Monday at the Sugathadasa Stadium. He completed the 2-km run in 8 minutes and 35 seconds,” a source close to the player said. "He appeared for all the fitness tests including running and skin-fold.” Rajapaksa was not considered for the Australia tour where a series of five T20Is is being played, having announced his retirement from international cricket, only to reverse it days later after meeting Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa. "Though most of the players are scheduled to travel to India directly from Australia, selectors are giving thought to sending him from Colombo and he may be selected for the three T20I to be played ahead of the two Test matches,” another source in Sri Lanka, said. Interestingly, Bhanuka Rajapaksa is the only batter from Sri Lanka selected to play in the IPL. The other four players who were bought are predominantly recognized for their bowling.

Bipin Dani Nepal's 21-year-old wicketkeeper Aasif Sheikh has earned great praise and appreciation for refusing to run out Ireland’s Andy McBrine, who fell mid-pitch after colliding with the bowler while running a single. In the recent Oman Quadrangular T20I series involving Ireland and Nepal saw a sporting gesture as Sheikh gave McBrine a reprieve even though the batter was well short of the crease when the wicketkeeper collected the ball. "Actually, the batsman was running in his own line and our bowler accidentally got crashed into him but then I decided not to run him out", Aasif Sheikh, speaking exclusively over the telephone from Oman, said. "I have been playing cricket for many years and the only thing I have learnt is to play fair cricket, no matter if we win or lose. For us, the results don't really matter, we will play fair cricket in any situation". There are altogether six in his family and his elder brother (Mohammad Aarif Sheikh) also plays for the national team. "Our parents have played the most vital role in our cricket journey. It would not have been possible without their support. They gave us everything we needed.  We were not that financially strong but somehow they managed to provide us with a cricket kit so that we could focus on our game", Aasif Sheikh signed off.

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABADA:-New Zealand batter Amy Satterthwaite has moved up to number three in the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s ODI Player Rankings after a fine effort in the opening match of their five-ODI series against India in Queenstown, less than three weeks ahead of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022. Satterthwaite, who smashed a 67 ball 63 and was involved in an important 98 run third wicket partnership with opener Suzie Bates, has overtaken Australia’s Beth Mooney with a gain of 13 rating points. She is now 15 rating points behind India captain Mithali Raj, who is second with 744 in the list led by Australia opener Alyssa Healy who is 749 rating points. Bates’ 11th ODI hundred, which helped her team take a 1-0 lead in the series and won her the Player of the Match award, has lifted her into the world’s top 20 batters in ODIs for the first time in six months. The former captain has advanced five places to 17th position in the latest weekly update that includes the last match of the Australia-England series. Australia completed their Ashes triumph with another comfortable victory in the final ODI in Melbourne last week. Tammy Beaumont returned to form for England with a half-century, as did Meg Lanning with an unbeaten 57, allowing both batters to gain three places for their efforts. Beaumont and Lanning are now in fourth and fifth positions, respectively, with just one rating point separating them. In the bowlers’ list, England spinner Sophie Ecclestone was a bright spark in the final ODI, bowling her 10-over allocation and conceding just 18 runs while dismissing Rachael Haynes, taking an an excellent catch off her own bowling. She has moved a place up to second, closing in on the opportunity to top both the ODI and T20I bowling rankings at the same time. Ellyse Perry’s return to all-round excellence also enabled her to gain three places with the ball and increase her lead over second placed Nat Sciver in the all-rounders’ table to an impressive 87 rating points. New Zealand’s Lea Tahuhu is up four places to 13th and India’s Rajeshwari Gayakwad is up five places to 16th. Both bowled economically in the Queenstown ODI to move up in the world’s top 20 ODI bowlers. In the T20I rankings, Beth Mooney is back in her third stint as the top ranked batter with captain Meg Lanning also gaining a slot to reach second position. India opener Shafali Verma is now third in the list. New Zealand bowlers Amelia Kerr is up five places to eighth and Jess Kerr is up 16 places to 34th also making notable gains in the T20I rankings.

Bipin Dani More than six members of the touring Afghanistan squad have tested positive in Bangladesh, it is learnt, here. According to the highly placed sources in the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), more than six players and a support staff-including Indian team physio Pranchada have tested Covid-19 positive. "They are isolated", one of the sources, speaking exclusively over the telephone from Bangladesh. "The 23-member squad arrived from Doha to Dhaka on Saturday and reached Sylhet on Sunday. Their testing was done on Sunday and results came on Monday", the source added. The visitors are scheduled to play three D/N ODIs' beginning on 23rd February, and two T-20Is thereafter. "At present, the visiting team has five support staff members consisting of manager, head coach Navroze Mangal, physio, trainer and masseur. Few more coaching staff members are also likely to join from Kabul, it is understood. "At present, there has been no plan to change the itinerary", the source also added.