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.

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.   

SPORTS REPORT Peshawar (September 28, 2021):-Punjab’s Under-17 Boys and Under-16 Girls athletics teams maintained the sequence of dominating performances and won 20 medals including 9 gold, 8 silver and 3 bronze medals in the Inter-Provincial Athletics Youth Tournament 2021 in Peshawar on Tuesday. Punjab’s Under-16 Girls clinched five gold, four silvers and one bronze while the Under-17 Boys have pocketed four gold, four silver and two bronze medals. As far as points are concerned on the second day, Punjab’s boys are leading the event with 59 points followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 47 and Sindh with 14 points. On girls’ side, Punjab’s female athletes had 63 points whereas Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had 36 points till the filing of this report. Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh congratulated Punjab’s medal winning athletes on showing overwhelming performance during the first two days’ competitions of Inter-Provincial Athletics Youth Tournament. Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh said that the hard work of our professional coaches during 7-day training camp reflected in the shape of medals in Inter-Provincial Athletics Youth Tournament. “The excellent medal-winning performance of our players showed that our selection committee has selected all the male and female players purely on merit”. Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh also witnessed thrilling competitions with keen interest. He also met with medal-winning male and female athletes of Punjab contingent and encouraged them for next competitions. DG KP Asfandyar Khattak, Deputy Commissioner Peshawar Khalid Mehmood, Director Sports Hafeez Bhatti, Camp Commandant Tariq Nazir and other coaches Ijaz Abdul Khaliq, Allah Ditta Tahir, Nasreen and Sajida were also present on this occasion. Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh appreciated the brilliant performance of Punjab’s talented male and female medal winners. He directed the team management and coaching staff to prepare their athletes fully for the remaining decisive events. Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh expressed his determination that Punjab’s male and female athletes will grab top position in the medals table on the last day of the event. In the 2nd day’s competitions, Punjab’s Khadija won two gold medals in discus throw and shot put events. Rimsha Qayyum and Amina Shahzadi also won gold medals in long jump and 100m hurdles events respectively. Punjab’s Arooba (100m), Amina Shahzadi (long jump) and Rimsha (100m hurdles) also grabbed silver medals while Momina won the only bronze medal on the second day. On the other hand in Boys U-17 competitions, Punjab’s Sakhawat won two gold medals in 100m and 400m hurdles race. Abdullah and Riaz also grabbed gold medals in discus throw and long jump competitions respectively. Punjab’s Mohammad Azam won silver medals in shot put and discus throw events and Saleem Ullah got a silver medal in long jump. The only bronze medal of the day was won by Abdullah in shot put.

SPORTS REPORTER Islamabad (September 28, 2021):-As many as 16 matches were played on the second day of the Midcourt ATF Under-14 Championships 2021 Leg 2 continued at PTF-SDA Tennis Complex, Islamabad on Tuesday. In girls singles, Haniya Minhas continued her fine form and dispatched Lalarukh Sajid 6-0a and,6-0 and in boys singles, Ahtesham Humayun upset third seed Amir Mazari at 6-2 and 7-5. Results: Boy’s Singles (Second Round): Hamza Roman bt Shehryar Anees: 6-4,6-4;Ahtesham Humayun bt Amir Mazari: 6-2,7-5; Zohaib Afzal Malik bt Mohammad Aalay Bukhari: 6-0,6-0; Asad Zaman bt Ismail Aftab: 6-1,6-1; Mohammad Haider Ali Rizwan bt Mohammad Hamza Ali Rizwan: 6-2,6-3;Ali Zain bt Nabeel Qayum: 6-2,6-0; Abdur Rehman bt Hammad Kashif: 6-2,6-0; Mohammad Hussnain Ali Rizwan bt Haziq Aasim: 6-1,6-0; Girl’s Singles (Quarterfinal); Haniya Minhas bt Lalarukh Sajid: 6-0,6-0; Amna Qayum bt Mahrukh Sajid: 6-0,6-0; Fatima Ali Raja bt Mahnoor Farooqui: 6-1,6-1; Zainab Ali Raja bt Soha Ali: 1-6,6-4,7-6(3) Boy's Doubles (Quarter-Final)Mohammad Haider Ali Rizwan / Mohammad Hussnain Ali Rizwan bt Shehryar Anees/ Hamza Roman: 6-2,6-2;Asad Zaman / Ahtesham Humayun bt Zohaib Afzal Malik/ Mohammad Hamza Ali Rizwan: 6-2,6-2; Ali Zain / Haziq Aasim bt Ismail Aftab / Abubakar: 6-0,6-3;Mohammad Ibrahim Ashraf/ Amir Mazari bt Abdur Rehman / Nabeel Qayum: 6-4,6-3

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

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.

SPORTS REPORT Torino, Russia (September 27, 2021):-Elections for the International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC) Athletes’ Commission took place at the 2021 IFSC Climbing World Championships in Moscow, Russia, with Olympian Shauna Coxsey MBE, of Great Britain, elected as President. Voted into the commission as a member during the 2019 World Championships in Hachioji, Japan, Coxsey was subsequently selected as Vice President by fellow members, before being elected as President in 2021. Coxsey won the overall Boulder World Cup title in both 2016 and 2017 and has 30 IFSC World Cup medals, as well as two World Championship medals, to her name. The Brit bowed out from professional Sport Climbing with a commendable tenth place at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 this August. When asked about her election as President of the IFSC Athletes’ Commission, Coxsey said: “After 24 years climbing, and over a decade competing as a professional athlete, I feel it pertinent to use my experience and give back to the sport that’s given me so much. I have long been passionate about being a part of the positive development of our sport. Having recently retired from professional competition climbing I have both the understanding of what it takes to be up on the stage, and the distance and perspective of now being on the other side of the fence. As well, I have also spent the last two years sitting on IFSC Executive Board as the Athletes’ Commission Vice President. There are lots of opportunities as well as challenges for our sport over the coming years and I am looking forward to working closely with the IFSC to make sure the athletes voice is at the heart of our sports development.” Coxsey succeeded Canadian climber Sean McColl as President, who previously held the position after being elected during the 2016 edition of the IFSC World Championships in Paris, France. McColl will retain his seat on the commission as a member, alongside the newly elected Michael Piccolruaz of Italy, who replaces the Netherlands’ Jorg Verhoeven. Olympic bronze medallist Jakob Schubert of Austria, Anna Tsyganova of Russia, and Dmitrii Timofeev of Russia were all reconfirmed as commission members after their four-year terms following the 2016 elections drew to a close. The six athletes elected in Moscow, including President Shauna Coxsey, will join those elected in 2019 on the commission. A meeting is yet to be scheduled to select a Vice President, who will sit alongside Coxsey as athlete representative on the IFSC Executive Board. “Congratulations to Shauna Coxsey, one of our first Olympians, on her election as Athletes’ Commission President. I look forward to continuing our work together and bringing the voices of the athletes to the Executive Board,” said IFSC President Marco Maria Scolaris. “A special thanks goes to Sean McColl for the time he has dedicated to this position over the last years, and will continue to do so as a member of the commission.” The IFSC Athletes’ Commission is currently composed by the following athletes: Shauna Coxsey (GBR) – President, elected in 2021; Anna Tsyganova (RUS) – Member, elected in 2021; Charlotte Durif (FRA) – Member, elected in 2019; Dmitrii Timofeev (RUS) – Member, elected in 2021; Gregor Vezonik (SLO) – Member, elected in 2019; Ievgeniia Kazbekova (UKR) – Member, elected in 2019; Jakob Schubert (AUT) – Member, elected in 2021; Kokoro Fujii (JPN) – Member, elected in 2019; Kyra Condie (USA) – Member, elected in 2019; Michael Piccolruaz (ITA) – Member, elected in 2021; Sean McColl (CAN) – Member, elected in 2021; Stanislav Kokorin (RUS) – Member, elected in 2019; Stasa Gejo (SRB) – Member, elected in 2019.

SPORTS BULLETIN REPORT Karachi (September 27, 2021):-Defending Champions, National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) and WAPDA have qualified for the finals of the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) All Pakistan Hockey Tournament beating their opponents in the semifinals at the Abdul Sattar Edhi Hockey Stadium at Karachi on Monday. Final will be played on Tuesday at same venue. In the first semifinal, Pakistan WAPDA defeated hosts Pakistan Navy 0-3 and qualified for the final. Aleem Usman, Mubashir Ali and Atiq Arshad scored for the winning team in the 16th, 26th and 59th minutes respectively. By the end of the three quarters, Pakistan WAPDA had a two-goal lead. The third goal of the match was scored in the last quarter. Mubashir Ali was declared the best player of the match for his excellent performance. Former Olympian Mohammad Khalid gave the Man of the Match award to Mubashir Ali. In the second semi-final, National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) outplayed Mari Petroleum by two goals. Captain Abu Bakar Mahmood scored both goals for the winning team on a penalty corners. National Bank goalkeeper Mazhar Abbas was declared the best player of the match for his excellent performance. Chief of the Naval Staff Amjad Khan Niazi will be the chief guest of the final. The third and fourth position match will be played between Pakistan Navy and Mari Petroleum at 10 am. The players who receive the Man of the Match award for each match of the 3rd Chief of the Naval Staff All Pakistan will get the sports watch worth Rs 12,000. The winner of the Best Goalkeeper award will get a Honda 125cc motorcycle worth Rs. 152,000. A Honda 125cc motorcycle worth Rs. 152,000 has been allotted for the top scorer of the event. For the best player of the event, for the first time in the history of national domestic events, a valuable plot of Rs. 3 million will be given by the Pakistan Navy for the best player of the event. The winning team will be awarded a cash prize of Rs. 1.7 million with a trophy, the runner-up team will be entitled to Rs. 1.3 million with a trophy, and the third place team will be awarded a cash award of Rs. 1.0 million with a trophy. Semi-finals and third place man-of-the-match players will be entitled to a cash prize of Rs 20,000 and a sports watch, while the players of the final teams will also be given gift hampers worth Rs 250,000.

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)  

SPORTS BULLETIN REPORT Peshawar (September 27, 2021):-A 3-day Inter-Provincial Athletics Youth Tournament kicked off with a wonderful and colourful grand opening ceremony in Peshawar. Federal Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) Fahmida Mirza graced the opening ceremony as chief gurst. Zulfiqar Mirza, the husband of Federal IPC Minister, Director General Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) Asif Zaman, Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh, Director General Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Asfand Yar Khattak, Director Sports Hafeez Bhatti, top officials of other provinces and a large number of male and female players were also present on this occasion. The contingents of all provinces, Azad Kashmir and GilgitBalitistan participated in the march past where Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh led the Punjab’s contingent. In her address, Federal Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) Fahmida Mirza said that all the provinces should contribute collective efforts for the true promotion of sports in all parts of the country. “We have chalked out a compact policy which is totally focused on the welfare of sports persons and growth of sports culture. We will also organize sports events on regular basis at tehsil and club level throughout the year”. Federal Minister for IPC Fahmida Mirza congratulated Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for holding Inter-Provincial Athletics Youth Tournament. “After this event, Punjab, Gilgit Balitistan and other provinces will also organize their respective sports events in near future”. Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh also held a meeting with Federal Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) Fahmida Mirza and Director General Sports Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Asfand Yar Khattak on this occasion and stressed upon combine efforts for the growth of sports culture in country. Punjab’s Under-17 Boys and Under-16 Girls athletics teams offered wonderful performances on the opening day of Inter-Provincial Athletics Youth Tournament and won four medals. Punjab’s Zara Tariq and Sana Farman clinched gold and silver medals respectively in Under-16 Girls 800m race. In Under-17 Boys event, Punjab’s Anees and Zaman grabbed silver and bronze medal in 800m race respectively. Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh congratulated Punjab’s medal winning athletes during his meeting with the athletes. He also announced cash prizes of Rs 10,000, Rs 5000 and Rs 3000 for Punjab’s gold, silver and bronze medal winning male and female athletes respectively.