Sports Bulletin

Sports Bulletin Report FAISALABAD: Punjab and Baluchistan registered their victories on the Day-4 of A S Ali Blind Cricket Super League 2023, Faisalabad at two different cricket venues on Monday. Baluchistan beat KPK by 5 wickets Venue: Cricket Ground of Sports Complex Chak No 8 Faisalabad In the morning Balochistan won the toss and asked KPK to take guard. KPK posted a competitive total of 404 runs on the board for the loss of 3 wickets in allotted 40 overs. Mati Ullah played a wonderful innings of unbeaten 188 runs not out (off 124 balls) and Anees Javed scored 100 runs (off 70 balls). In Reply, Balochistan reached the target in 40th over of the inning for the loss of 5 wickets. Faisal Mehmood played a fabulous innings of unbeaten 185* runs (off 115 balls) helping his side to beat KPK by 5 wickets. Moain Aslam made 45 runs (off 23 balls).  Matiullah, Abdul Manan and Arslan claimed 1 wicket each. Result: Balochistan won by 5 wickets Man of the Match: Faisal Mehmood Punjab beat Islamabad-AJK by 2 wickets Venue: Boranwali Cricket Ground Faisalabad The 8th match of the event was played between Islamabad-AJK and Punjab. Punjab won the toss and decided to bowl first. Islamabad’s Captain Nisar Ali played terrific innings of 215 runs (off 112 balls). He was well supported by Mohammad Salman; he made 110 runs (off 56 balls). Islambad-AJK set the huge total of 500 runs on the board for the loss of 5 wickets in allotted 40 overs. Safder, Sanwal and Fakhar shared a wicket each. Punjab in reply chased down the target of 501 runs on the last ball of the innings in a nail-biting finish for the loss of 8 wickets. Badar Muneer once again played an outstanding innings of 213 runs (off 98 balls) and Mohammad Safdar chipped in with 93 runs (off 47 balls). Mohammad Salman was the pick amongst the bowlers he claimed 3 wickets while Haroon, AKram and Sajid Nawaz took 1 wicket each. Result: Punjab won by 2 Wickets Man of the Match: Badar Munir  

Sports Bulletin Report Faisalabad:-Baluchistan and Punjab have won their matches of the A S Ali Blind Cricket Super League 2023, after beating Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkawa (KPK) respectively at two different venues here on Sunday. Baluchistan beat Sindh by 45 runs Venue: Boranwali Cricket Ground Faisalabad 1st Match of the day was played between Balocchistan and Sindh. Sindh won the toss and decided to bowl first. Balochistan set the competitive total of 387 runs on the board for the loss of 8 wickets in allotted 40 overs. Moain Aslam was the top scorer with 77 runs (off 59 balls), and Faisal Mehmood made 67 runs (off 34 balls). Husnain Shamim took 2 wickets while Mohsin and Babar claimed 1 wicket each. In reply, Sindh were bowled out on 342 runs in 38.1 overs. Mohammad Rashid was the leading scorer with 90 runs (off 54 balls) and Kamran Akhter scored 64 runs (off 49 balls). Shahzeb Haider bowled splendidly well and took 4 wickets while Israr fetched 3 wickets for Baluchistan. Result: Baluchistan won by 45 runs Man of the match: Shahzeb Haider Punjab beat KPK by 105 runs Venue: Sports Complex Chak No 8, Faisalabad In 2nd match of the day, KPK won the toss and asked Punjab to bat first. Punjab set the gigantic total of 541 runs on the board by losing 2 wickets in allotted 40 overs. Badar Munir played aggressively and scored a magnificent 323 runs (off 138 balls) M Ayyaz chipped in with 70 runs (off 55 balls). Ayoub Khan took 1 wicket for KPK. KPK in reply made 436 runs for the loss of 4 wickets in stipulated 40 overs. Ayoub Khan was the highest scorer with 157 runs (off 90 balls) and Anees Javed scored 82 runs (off 67 balls). Ayyaz took 1 wicket. Result: Punjab won by 105 runs Man of the Match: Badar Muneer

Sports Bulletin Report Cape Town (South Africa): Cape Town’s Table Mountain was the backdrop for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Captains’ Day, setting the tone for an exciting month of fast-paced and high-energy cricket as the World Cup comes to South African shores for the very first time. Australia’s Meg Lanning said: “It’s great to be here, we’ve been looking forward to this tournament for a while. We’ve spent a couple of days getting used to the new climate – it’s pretty hot here – and there’s some amazing things to see and experience. We’re pumped to be here, World Cups are always massive to be a part of and we’re looking forward to taking on everyone else in our pool and hopefully, playing well.” New Zealand’s Sophie Devine said: “It’s such an awesome experience. Taking part in a World Cup is such a special moment and honour to represent your country. This is an awesome opportunity to show off our beautiful game to the rest of the world.” South Africa’s Sune Luus said: “I’m extremely excited to be here as part of this historic moment for South African cricket, hosting a women’s T20 World Cup for the very first time. As a team, we’re really excited to be representing our nation here at home and we’re looking forward to doing everything we can to keep the trophy here at home. The excitement that we’ve experience from people here in Cape Town and all over the country, telling us how excited they are to support us and the tournament has been really humbling and we just want to go out there and do our best for them. Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu said: “In Sri Lanka, a lot of young girls are beginning to play cricket because they are looking up to myself and our team. The support we have been getting has been really great from back home and we are excited to play in this T20 World Cup and play for our country.” Bangladesh’s Nigar Sultana Joty said: “It’s great to be here and we are so happy to qualify for this tournament. So many of us have played cricket for many years, but this is only our fifth T20 World Cup. We have never gotten a win, but we are looking forward to trying our best for this one.” India’s Harmanpreet Kaur said: “After watching the U19 World Cup, we are motivated to do what they have done. They have motivated us to do well, they have done it and we have not done it yet. It was a very special moment for all of us and after watching the U19s many of the girls back home will also want to play cricket and that’s always our aim to motivate young girls who can come and play cricket.” Pakistan’s Bismah Maroof said: “We have improved as a team over the years and this tournament gives us another opportunity to test ourselves. We are all pumped up and we’re excited to put in our best efforts to create good results for our team.” England’s Heather Knight said: “Our job as a team is to play the group games in front of us and to try to get out of the group stages. Everyone starts on the same page, we’re pretty clear as a team how we want to go about things and in a T20 World Cup, you don’t have much chance to slip up and our sole focus is on that. Us as a squad we’ve brought in a few young players (from the U19 team) which has kept us old girls on our toes and we’ve got that real nice balance of youth and experience. The amount of young players coming through, it’s great to see cricket as a real option for young girls around the world.” Ireland’s Laura Delany said: “After we didn’t qualify for the last World Cup cricket in Ireland has changed massively over the last three or four years and the introduction of full-time contracts has now allowed us to train on a full time basis but now guarantees us games against the best sides in the world and as a team that’s the only way we’re going to grow and develop. We’re looking forward of the next couple of weeks, we know it’s going to be a tough challenge but it’s one that we welcome.” West Indies’ Hayley Matthews said: “We’ve had the tri-series between ourselves, india and South Africa and it was a really great opportunity to be down here and get acclimatized to the conditions and see where we’re at with our game as well. A good opportunity for us to get out there in a T20 World Cup in a place we’ve been quite a lot over the last couple of years.”

Sports Bulletin Report FAISALABAD: Islamabad-AJK and Punjab posted wins in the Blind Cricket Super League 2023 after beating their respective opponents here at two different venues on Saturday. Syed Sultan Shah (President World Blind Cricket Ltd and Chairman Pakistan Blind Cricket Council) and Rana Hammad Iqbal Regional Sports Officer (RSO) Faisalabad inaugurated the event. Syed Salman Bokhari (Director PBCC), Dr Anwar Ali Sial (Director PBCC) were the other dignitaries present on the occasion. Islamabad-AJK beat KPK by 30 runs Venue: Boranwali Cricket Ground Faisalabad 1st Match of the day was played between Islamabad-AJK and KPK. KPK won the toss and decided to bowl first. Islamabad-AJK set the massive total of 472 runs on the board for the loss of 2 wickets in alloted 40 overs. Nisar Ali played an excellent innings of 236 runs (off 124 balls) and Sana Ullah made 133 runs (off 85 balls). Ayoub Khan took 1 wicket. KPK in reply made 442 runs by losing their 8 wickets in stipulated 40 overs. Mati Ullah was the highest scorer with 131 runs (off 80 balls) and Ehtisham scored 89 runs (off 60 balls). Nisar Ali took 2 wickets while Sajid Nawaz fetched 1 wicket for Islamabad. Result: Islamabad won by 30 runs Man of the match: Nisar Ali Punjab beat Sindh by 6 wickets Venue: Sports Complex Chak No 8, Faisalabad In 2nd match of the day, Punjab won the toss and asked Sindh to bat first. Sindh made par score of 420 runs by losing 4 wickets in allotted 40 overs. Niamat Ullah was the leading scorer for his side with 117 runs (off 77 balls) M Rashid chipped in with 95 runs (off 64 balls). Akmal, Ayyaz, Fakhar and Badar took 1 wicket each for Punjab. In Reply, Punjab reached the target in 34.3 overs by losing their 4 wickets. Badar Muneer played an extraordinary innings of 253 runs (off 118 balls) and Mohammad Safdar scored brilliant 89 runs (off 47 balls). Mohsin and Babar shared 1 wicket each.  Result: Punjab won by 6 wickets Man of the Match: Badar Muneer

Bipin Dani The Sri Lankan women's team which departed on Thursday to participate in the ICC T20 World Cup in South Africa has been advised to play like a champion. The advice came from Olympic silver medalist Susanthika Jayasinghe. The 47-year-old Jayasinghe, one of the most decorated athletes produced by Sri Lanka and the only female athlete to win an Olympic medal for her country and the only Asian woman athlete to have won an Olympic medal in sprint events, came to greet and motivate the players before they left on Thursday night. "Yes, I tried my best to address and motivate the gatherings for about 10-15 minutes", speaking exclusively over the telephone from Colombo, she said. "The players listened to me very carefully. I narrated my experience and told the players to believe in their own skill and play the game. Cricket is a team game and all players have been asked to give more than 100%". "My message was simple: Play the game in the right spirit and accept the challenges. I told them not to come under pressure on the eve of the match". Susanthika Jayasinghe also had a personal chat with the captain. "I told her (Chamari Athapaththu) to treat every player friendly and treat all equally and keep them motivated throughout the tournament".  The Olympic medal winner also added, "all outdoor games require running. In cricket also, the fielders have to chase the ball, batters run between the wickets and so on...So cricketers have to keep chasing and running in this sport".  The medal winner has travelled to many European and Asian countries, but is not sure whether she would travel to South Africa for the first time during this Women's World Cup but is certain to motivate players time and again. Susanthika has been appointed for one year. "I will work with the players at district, province and national levels. My job will be to promote the women's game in the .Sri Lanka, I was looking out for this challenge for the last 13 years and now it is my turn to deliver", she signed off.

Sports Bulletin Report Faisalabad:-Sindh and Punjab claimed victories on the opening day of the A S Ali, Blind Cricket Super League (BCSL) 2023 Faisalabad on Friday. Sindh beat AJK by 7 wickets Venue: Cricket Ground of Sports Complex Chak No 8 Faisalabad The 1st match of the event was played between Islamabad-AJK and Sindh. Sindh won the toss and decided to bowl first. Islamabad-AJK were bowled out on 371 runs in 39.5 overs. Nisar Ali played excellent innings of 129 runs (off 72 balls) and Mohammad Akram made 62 runs (off 39 balls). Mohsin Khan took 2 wickets while Kamran and Husnain Shamim claimed 1 wicket each. Sindh in reply chased down the target in 38.5 overs for the loss of 3 wickets. Riasat Khan played an outstanding innings of 122 runs (off 91 balls) and helped his side to beat Islamabad-AJK by 7 wickets. Mohsin Khan scored 114 runs (off 80 balls). Haroon, Akram and Talha shared 1 wicket each. Result: Sindh won by 7 Wickets Man of the Match: Mohsin Khan  Punjab beat Baluchistan by 5 wickets Venue: Boranwali Cricket Ground Faisalabad In the morning Punjab won the toss and asked Balochistan to take guard. Balochistan made par score of 343 runs by losing 8 wickets in allotted 40 overs. Irfan was the top scorer for his side with 62 runs (off 43 balls) Mohammad Ejaz chipped in with unbeaten 60* runs (off 53 balls). Akmal Hayyat claimed 3 wickets and Mohammad Ayyaz took 2 wickets. Punjab reached the target in 34.2 overs by losing their 5 wickets. Sanwal Shahzada played wonderful innings of 116 runs (off 69 balls) and Mehtab Khalil scored brilliant unbeaten 67* runs (off 53 balls). Irfan took 2 wickets.   Result: Punjab won by 5 Wickets Man of the Match: Sanwal Shahzada

Bipin Dani Nepal's two international cricketers have been arrested for spot-fixing in the recently concluded Nepal T20 League played in the county. It is reliably learnt. According to highly placed sources in Nepal, several other foreign and local players and support staff are being investigated for their role in the alleged spot-fixing in the matches. The two, who have been arrested for the investigations are (1) Mohammad Aadil Alam and (2) Mahaboob Alam. Mohammad Aadil, who is also known as Aadil Ansari is a young current player. The 19-year-old Aadil is a right-arm medium pacer and a lower order batter having played six ODIs and eight T-20Is. In the recently concluded Nepal T-20 League, he was playing for Janakpur Royals. The other player Mahaboob Alam is a former cricketer who was the star player of the World Cricket League Division 5 tournament that took place in Jersey in May 2008. He became famous by taking all ten wickets in the match against Mozambique. The 41-year-old all-rounder Mahaboob Alam. In the recent Nepal League, he played Provincial matches for Nepal. The names of about six other people (players and support staff), who are being ICC Anti-Corruption radar are not revealed yet.

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE: Bahawalpur have won the title of 5th LCCB T20 Blind Cricket Tournament after beating Islamabad by 4 runs in the final at Aleem Dar Cricket Academy Lahore on Thursday. Islamabad won the toss and elected to bowl first. Bahawalpur set the total of 220 runs on the board for the loss of 4 wickets in allotted 20 overs. Mohammad Rashid was the highest scorer with 92runs while Zafar Iqbal made 40 runs for Bahawalpur. Anees and Shahzaib took 1 wicket each. Islamabad scored 216 for 4 runs in 20 overs. Matiullah was the star batsman with 104 runs and well supported by Shahzaib who scored 36 runs. Mohammad Rashid was declared player of the match on his excellent innings in the final. Many famous celebrities like (R) Chief Justice Saqib Nisar, Chairman PBCC Syed Sultan Shah, Film star Fawad Khan, International umpires Aleem Dar and Ahsan Raza, Test cricketers Azhar Ali and Abid Ali, Singer and Politician Abrar-ul-Haq, Comedian Ali Meer and other dignities attended the closing ceremony.

Bipin Dani Sri Lankan cricket team is advised to be trained at the Radella Cricket Ground ahead of their tour of New Zealand. The suggestion has come from Prof. Arjuna de Silva, the chairman of the medical panel of the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).  It is a cricket ground in Sri Lanka situated in Radella, which is a village close to Nuwara Eliya. "We are planning to use this ground after many years and I am happy to recommend this to the SLC", de Silva, speaking exclusively over the telephone from Colombo, said on Wednesday. "It is important to use this ground as the conditions there are similar to what it would be in New Zealand. This cricket ground is considered unique in the sense it is situated at the altitude of 1,200 m (4,000 ft). Very few cricket grounds are situated 1,200m above Mean Sea Level (MSL). It can easily be compared with any of the most picturesque cricket grounds in the world". Regarding fitness of the players, Prof. Arjuna was confident of sending Dushmantha Chameera to New Zealand. The 31-year-right arm fast bowler had suffered a grade two tear in the calf of his left foot in October. Dushmantha Chameera is the spearhead of our bowling. We have him back in the attack soon". "Kusal Perera is also on a recovery path. It is up to the selectors. We will be sending the full-strength team". Sri Lanka is scheduled to play two Tests, 3 ODIs' and 3 T-20I in New Zealand in March, April. "Dasun Shanaka seems to play best in India in the World Cup", de Silva concluded.

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE: Islamabad and Bahawalpur have confirmed their potion in the final of 5th LCCB T20 Blind Cricket Tournament after winning their respective matches at two different venues here on Wednesday. Lahore beat Sargoda by 8 wickets Venue: Aleem dar is Cricket Academy, Lahore 1st Match of the day was played between Lahore and Sargoda. Lahore won the toss and decided to field first. Sargoda set a competitive total of 177 runs on the board in the allotted 20 overs by losing 8 wickets. Gulsher was the top scorer with 61 runs.  Mohammad Salman took 2 and Sanwal shared a wicket. In reply, Lahore Mohammad Rizwan was the top scorer, as he made 74 runs and Mohammad Salman played a superb inning of unbeaten 72 runs not out that helped his side to beat Sargoda by 8 wickets. Result: Lahore won by 8 wickets                          Man of the Match: Mohammad Salman Islamabad beat Bahawalpur by 10 wickets Venue: Aleem Dar Cricket Academy Lahore The second match of the day was played between Bahawalpur and Islamabad Bahawalpur won the toss elected to bat first. Bahawalpur set the total of 255 runs on the board for the loss of 4 wickets in allotted 20 overs. Mohammad Moein was the highest scorer with 60 runs while Zafar Iqbal made 58 runs for Bahawalpur. Hasnain took 2 wickets and Kashan took 1 wicket Islamabad in reply reached the target with ease in 17.3 over for the loss of without any wickets. Matiullah wass the star batsman with 118 runs and well supported by Shahzaib who scored 105 runs. Result: Islamabad won by 10 wickets Man of the Match: Mati Ullah