Cricket
PCB accepts resign of Wasim Khan
SPORTS BULLETIN REPORT
Lahore (September 29, 2021):-The Board of Governors of the Pakistan Cricket Board today met via videoconference in which they unanimously accepted the resignation of Chief Executive Wasim Khan, who had had joined the PCB on a three-year contract on 1 February 2019.
Following the meeting, PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja said: “During his time with the PCB, Wasim Khan provided excellent leadership, particularly following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic when very little information was available and precise decision-making was required to ensure cricket remained unaffected and continued to be played at the domestic and international levels.
“The PCB owes Wasim Khan a debt of gratitude for his good leadership and we wish him well in his future plans and career endeavours.”
Wasim Khan: “It has been an honor and a privilege to serve the Pakistan Cricket Board and hugely satisfying to see the resumption of Test cricket with Sri Lanka playing Tests in Rawalpindi and Karachi, and the homecoming of the HBL Pakistan Super League during the last two years.
“When I arrived in 2019, there was a real need to build relationships and restore and enhance the global image and reputation of the PCB and Pakistan cricket. With decisive and strategic decision-making, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic, we succeeded in earning the goodwill and respect of the global cricketing family, which I am hopeful will lead to increased international cricket being hosted in Pakistan in future.
“With a five-year strategy in place, new domestic structure in its third season and the investment in women’s cricket in an upward direction, I feel it is the right time to move on and reunite with my young family. They have sacrificed a lot so that I could fulfill my dreams of contributing to Pakistan cricket, which will always remain very close to my heart.
“I am grateful to have worked with all our fantastic commercial partners and the passionate people at the PCB. I would also like to thank each and every one of my staff for supporting me as well as the Pakistan men and women players, and the Pakistan cricket fans.
“Lastly, I want to wish PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja the very best during his tenure, I am sure there will be exciting times ahead for Pakistan Cricket under his leadership.”
National T20: Seating capacity doubled for Pindi matches
ABDUL JABBAR FAISAL
Rawalpindi (September 29, 2021):-Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Wednesday announced to increase the seating capacity from 25 % to 50 % the rest of matches at Pindi Cricket Stadium of National T20 Cup 2021 after the approval of National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC). It is pertinent to mention here that the ratio of corona patients has been decreasing day by day in the twin cities Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
According to PCB media department, only fully-vaccinated individuals will be allowed to buy the tickets and gain access to the stadium. Fans can continue to buy the tickets through www.bookme.pk, Bookme's mobile application and M&P courier offices across Pakistan.
Tickets can also be bought through Bookme’s helpline by 0313 7786 888. Spectators are requested to strictly adhere to government-mandated SOPs by wearing masks and maintaining social distancing when in the enclosures.
Terms & Conditions for spectators:
-Only vaccinated individuals will be allowed to purchase the tickets.
-NADRA-issued Vaccination Certificates must be shown at the time of purchase and when gaining access to the stadium.
-Original ID cards are mandatory.
-People under 18 are not allowed.
-Wearing of mask will be mandatory.
-Tickets are non-transferable.
-Anyone violating Bio-Secure protocols is liable to be evicted out of venue.
-All of the above terms will apply for complimentary and hospitality ticket holders as well.
Krunal Pandya wins hearts
By BIPIN DANI
Despite his poor performance in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL), Krunal Pandya won the heart of his fans when he withdrew the appeal to run out K.L.Rahul, the captain of the Punjab Kings team.
In the 42nd IPL (night) match in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, Krunal Pandya bowled a yorker to Chris Gayle, and the batsman's straight drive hit non-striker Rahul and ball then ricocheted to bowler Krunal Pandya who not only whipped off the bails and appealed.
Realising his act of appealing against the spirit, Pandya withdrew the appeal.
"It (withdrawing the appeal) was in good spirit of the game because Rahul would not have attempted a run. Mumbai Indians are not in great form this year and it is indeed a creditable gesture Krunal has shown on the field", Krunal Pandya's mentor and former India stumper and selector, Kiran More said.
Incidentally, it was Kirn More who spotted talent in both Pandya brothers (Krunal and Hardik).
Krunal’s family was based in Surat with his (late) father Himanshu Pandya running a successful car business. But having watched his 6-year-old son Krunal enjoy the game so much, he decided to shift base to Baroda since Surat had no good cricket opportunities back then. He joined the famous Kiran More Cricket Academy there.
"Krunal has always been a sportsman".
"Now the game of cricket is being watched by millions of people and his recent sportsman spirit will be a good lesson for the young boys who are dreaming to be the cricketers", More added.
Kings Punjab skipper Rahul gave a thumb up to Krunal's gesture.
ICC and BCCI invite World Cup participating team representatives to discuss Biosafety Plan
By BIPIN DANI
The International Cricket Council (ICC) and the Indian cricket board have invited the representatives of all the World Cup participating nations to attend an online briefing on Thursday, where the Strategic Biosafety Plan will be discussed, it is learnt here.
"The strategic objective of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Biosafety Plan is to develop straightforward easily understood protocols, that are objectively rational and strictly enforced to safeguard the wellbeing of participants, spectators and the communities of the UAE and Oman", one of the sources, speaking exclusively, said.
The ICC has formulated the Biosafety Scientific Advisory Group of five members and India's Dr. Abhijit Salve is the Event Chief Medical Officer. The ICC event is being hosted by the Indian cricket board.
Dr. David Musker (ICC's Covid Compliance Officer), Prof. Joe Toressi (Independent Biosafety Scientific Advisor), Dr. Peter Harcourt (Chairman of the ICC Medical Advisory Panel) and Dr. Gurjit Bhogal (Independent Medical Chair) are the other members of the group.
Following representatives will attend the briefing, which is scheduled to take place at 2.30 pm (UAE time).
Kate Beerworth & Alex Kountouris (Australia), Prasanth Panchada (Afghanistan), Debashish Chaudhary (Bangladesh), Dr. Nick Peirce & Moiz Moghal (England), Daminda Attanayake (Sri Lanka), Dayle Shackel (New Zealand), Dr. Shuaib Manjra (South Africa & ZW), Mark Rausa (Ireland), O. Gulston (West Indies) and Riaz Ahmed (Pakistan).
The ICC's other officials, Vanessa Hibkirk and Lorraine D'Souza will also attend the briefing, it is learnt.
Cricket Associations Championship begins on Wednesday
SPORTS BULLETIN REPORT
Lahore (September 28, 2021):-Sindh will start their title defence when the opening round of the Cricket Associations Championship (three-day event) begins across three Punjab cities on Wednesday.
Faisalabad’s Iqbal Stadium and Saeed Ajmal Academy, Rana Naveed Academy in Sheikhupura and LCCA Ground in Lahore will host matches from 29 September to 14 November.
Sindh who recently won the Cricket Associations T20 tournament in Quetta will take on Central Punjab at the LCCA Ground in the opening round of the tournament. Balochistan will take on Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad, while Southern Punjab will face Northern at the Rana Naveed Academy in Sheikhupura.
The Cricket Associations Championship will be played on a double-league basis with each team playing the other twice. The final round of the tournament will be held from 12 to 14 November. The team accumulating the most points will be declared winners.
Balochistan Second XI captain Azeem Ghumman: “Our preparations for the three-day tournament are good. We had some practice sessions recently and we are hopeful of doing well.
We have a good combination of young and experienced players in the squad. We have good all-round players available in our team and with three to four experienced batters in our squad we look to do well in batting department.”
Central Punjab Second XI captain Ali Shan: “We are fully prepared to do well in the red-ball tournament. We had couple of good sessions before the start of the tournament and we are eager to perform on the ground.
Our fast bowling department is very strong and with seasonal batters in the squad, we are looking to produce some good performances in the tournament.”
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Second XI captain Waqar Ahmed: “We had a good one week preparations camp to get ourselves ready for the tournament. We have a young and energetic squad who are excited to perform in all three departments of the game.”
Northern Second XI captain Umar Waheed: “The preparations for the tournament are well on track as we have worked hard to rectify mistakes made in the last season. The combination of the team is well balanced with good spinners, the players know each other well which will help us to do well on the ground.”
Sindh Second XI captain Saifullah Bangash: “We have prepared well from the last season and are looking forward to doing well this season to become champions again. The players are relaxed; they have no pressure on them after winning the opening tournament (Cricket Associations T20) of the season. The players are ready to play quality cricket in the tournament.
We have good young players in the batting and bowling line-ups who are all set to showcase their talent on the field.”
Southern Punjab Second XI captain Moinuddin: “We have adjusted well to the conditions before the start of the tournament. We worked tirelessly on our skill level and we are aiming to produce good results when we go on the field.
“We have almost the same players that played in the recently concluded T20 tournament and we are looking to dominate in the red-ball tournament.”
First-round fixtures:
Balochistan vs Khyber Pakhtunkhwa – Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad
Central Punjab vs Sindh – LCCA Ground, Lahore
Southern Punjab vs Northern – Rana Naveed Academy, Sheikhupura
Tania Mallick appointed Head of Cricket for Women
SPORTS REPORT
Lahore (September 28, 2021):-Former national badminton champion Tania Mallick has been appointed as the PCB’s Head of Women’s Cricket and will assume charge on 01 October. Tania has replaced Urooj Mumtaz, who relinquished the additional responsibilities in May to focus on selection matters only.
Tania holds a Masters degree from the LUMS University, has represented Pakistan in the 1986 Seoul Asian Games and was the national champion in 1987-88.
She is the vice-president of the Punjab Olympic Association since 2010, vice-president of the Punjab Squash Association and is currently serving as a member of Pakistan Olympic Association’s Education and Women’s Commissions.
She has also worked in World Bank Women Development Projects besides working in multinational organisations.
National T20: Three teams loan five players
ABDUL JABBAR FAISAL
Islamabad (September 27, 2021):-As many as three teams loaned five players for the rest of 25 matches of the ongoing National T20 Cricket Cup 2020-21 after deliberations between the head coaches of the six First XI Cricket Association teams on Monday.
According to Media Department of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Balochistan, who are placed fifth in the six-team points table with one win, have strengthened their top-order with the inclusion of Abdullah Shafique and Sohail Akhtar.
Abdullah, 21, started his T20 career with a century in the 2020 edition of the National T20 and averages 39.90. The right-handed batsman has accumulated 399 runs at a strike-rate of above 130. Sohail has one century and six half-centuries in the format and has made 1,571 runs, to date.
Balochistan’s decision to take leg-spinner Mohammad Mohsin onboard has come in the wake of an an injury to Yasir Shah who has been ruled out of the tournament for at least next 10 days. Yasir sustained a hairline fracture in his right hand during his side’s victory against Southern Punjab on Sunday after he was hit by the ball.
Central Punjab have opted for 22-year-old Sameen Gul, who has snared 27 T20 wickets at 29.48 runs apiece to provide the youngster an opportunity to display his skills and talent in front of the HD-broadcast cameras, which are beaming the National T20 action across the globe through traditional and new media.
Southern Punjab have added further enhanced their spin-bowling arsenal with the inclusion of leg-spinner Usama Mir, who is four shy or breaching the 50-T20-wicket milestone. The process was overlooked by Muhammad Wasim, the national men’s chief selector, and High Performance Director Nadeem Khan.
The National T20 will resume on Wednesday after two-day gap with the top-ranked Sindh playing Balochistan and fourth-placed Northern taking on bottom-placed Southern Punjab.
Loaned players:
To Balochistan: Abdullah Shafique (from Central Punjab), Mohammad Mohsin (not in any squad), Sohail Akhtar (from Northern)
To Central Punjab: Sameen Gul (from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa)
To Southern Punjab: Usama Mir (not in any squad)
Central Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa fined for maintaining slow over-rate
SPORTS BULLETIN REPORT
Rawalpindi (September 27, 2021):-Central Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have been fined PKR 40,000 and PKR 25,000, respectively for maintaining a slow over-rate in the ongoing National T20.
Central Punjab were three overs short in the match against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Sunday at the Pindi Cricket Stadium, while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were two overs short of their target in their match against Southern Punjab on Saturday.
Both teams were charged under Article 2.22 of the PCB Code of Conduct for Players and Players Support Personnel that deals with minimum over-rate offences.
Central Punjab captain Babar Azam pleaded guilty to the charge proposed by on-field umpires Ahmed Shahab and Aftab Gillani and accepted the sanction leveled by match referee Iqbal Sheikh.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa captain Mohammad Rizwan pleaded guilty to the charge proposed by on-field umpires Ahmed Shahab and Imran Jawed and accepted the sanction leveled by match referee Iqbal Sheikh.
In two separate incidents, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Shaheen Shah and Southern Punjab’s Azam Khan have been fined 40 per cent and 25 per cent of their match-fees, respectively for breaching the PCB Code of Conduct for Players and Players Support Personnel during their teams matches against Southern Punjab and Balochistan, respectively in the National T20 at Pindi Cricket Stadium.
Both players were found to have violated Article 2.8 of the PCB Code of Conduct (Level 1), which reads as: “Showing dissent at an Umpire’s decision during a Match.”
Azam and Shaheen pleaded guilty to the charges. Azam accepted the sanction proposed by on-field umpires Ghaffar Kazmi and Imran Jawed and leveled by match referee Nadeem Arshad.
Shaheen accepted the sanction proposed by on-field umpires Ahmed Shahab and Imran Jawed and leveled by match referee Nadeem Arshad.
Vaccination incentives for LPL fans
By BIPIN DANI (September 27, 2021):-Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) board is considering opening gates for the fans for the forthcoming Lanka Premier League (LPL) matches, according to Prof. Arjuna de Silva, the chairman of the medical unit.
"We may allow 25% of spectators to watch the LPL matches with a condition that they all are fully vaccinated", he said over the telephone from Colombo on Monday morning.
The second edition of the LPL, Sri Lanka's biggest domestic T20 tournament, will run from December 4 to 23.
"The tournament is still more than two months away and we are assessing the situation and will then seek the country's health ministry approval for fans' entry".
"This will be a sort of an incentive for the people to get the required doses of vaccination. Young fans of the age group between 20-30 years are still concerned and this opportunity (entry at the stadium) will force them to be vaccinated", de Silva added.
Hussain Talat stars as Central Punjab outplay defending champions
SPORTS BULLETIN REPORT
Rawalpindi (September 26, 2021):-All-rounder Hussain Talat made a contribution with the bat, ball and in the field to spearhead Home City Central Punjab’s 43-run win over the defending champions Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the eighth fixture of the National T20 played at the Pindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi on Sunday night.
After scoring an enterprising half-century, Hussain took two superb catches in the outfield before rounding-off his day with the crucial wicket of Sahibzada Farhan to ensure a much-needed win for his side.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were pegged back at the start of their 172-run chase as openers Israrullah and Mohammad Rizwan fell cheaply. Adil Amin and Musadiq Ahmed both fell ducks as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa crashed to 19 for four inside the first five overs.
Farhan (34 off 30 balls, three fours, one six) and Iftikhar Ahmed (22) tried to rescue the side with a 49-run fifth-wicket alliance, Iftikhar was dismissed by Wahab Riaz after hitting him for three consecutive boundaries.
All-rounder Mohammad Wasim Jnr used the long handle effectively in his 34 0ff 19 balls (three fours, three sixes). Wasim was also dismissed by Wahab who followed that up by sending back Asif Afridi in the same over.
Shaheen Shah Afridi was the last wicket to fall with Ahmed Shehzad taking a smart catch in the outfield, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were bowled out for 128 with 10 balls left unused.
Wahab took three wickets for 21 runs.
Earlier, Central Punjab captain Babar Azam won the toss and opted to bat first. Babar and Ahmed got the team to a flying start, the 42-run partnership ended with Babar’s dismissal for 16.
Ahmed scored 40 off 36 balls (four fours, one six). Muhammad Akhlaq contributed 24 off 19 balls (three fours).
Hussain took the attack to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa bowlers and after surviving a drop catch played a series of attacking shots all around the wicket. The left-hander added 75 runs for the fourth-wicket with the seasoned Shoaib Malik who was making his first appearance for Central Punjab. Hussain was dismissed by Shaheen for 51 off 26 balls (five fours, three sixes).
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa bowlers tightened the screws in the last two overs as Central Punjab could only add 10 runs while losing three wickets. Shoaib made 24 off 20 balls, Shaheen finished with two wickets for 39 runs. Israrullah, Asif, Wasim Jnr and Arshad Iqbal took a wicket apiece.
Meanwhile, the tournament enters a two-day break from tomorrow. A transfer window would be opened tomorrow (Monday) through which the coaches of the six teams can swap players who have not yet made an appearance in the tournament. The coaches will make the transfers in a meeting on Monday. The transfer window process will be supervised by Director High Performance Nadeem Khan and Chief Selector Muhammad Wasim.
This move has been designed to ensure maximum participation of players especially the ones who have warmed the bench so far.
Scores in Brief:
Home City Central Punjab beat Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by 43 runs.
Home City Central Punjab 171-6, 20 overs (Hussain Talat 51, Ahmed Shehzad 40, Muhammad Akhlaq 24; Shaheen Shah Afridi 2-39)
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 128 all out, 18.2 overs (Mohammad Wasim Jnr 34, Sahibzada Farhan 34; Wahab Riaz 3-21)
Player of the match: Hussain Talat
Wednesday’s matches:
Sindh vs Balochistan -3pm
Northern vs ATF Southern Punjab -7:30pm
Most Popular
