SB News  ISLAMABAD (January 14, 2020):-The 5th Begum Kulsum Saifullah Khan National Ranking Tennis Tournament-2020 commenced at the Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) Tennis Complex, Islamabad on Tuesday after delay of one day due to heavy rain in the twin cities Rawalpindi and Islamabad. A total number of 42 matches were played on the opening day in the Men’s and Under-18 Singles qualifying round. A large number of players shown their interest and submitted their entries from all over Pakistan. The main draw matches will start from Wednesday (15th January) at 9-30 am at same venue, where the top ranked players will be seen in action. Results (Men’s Singles Qualifying Round-I): Ibrahim Umer beat Uzair khan: 6-2 Kashan Umer beat Waqas Baig: 6-3 Ibrar ul Haq w/o Mohammad Adil Adnan Rashid Khan w/o Zalan Khan Abbas Khan beat Farhan Ullah 6-4 Farman Shakeel w/o Waseem Shahid Hasheesh Kumar beat Pooyan Shateri 6-2 Irfan Ullah beat Azan Sajid 6-0 Ikram Ullah beat Hammad Hamayun 6-1 Mian Bilal w/o Haris Rauf Nalian Abbas w/o Zakirullah  Jehanzeb Khalil w/o Dr. Nasir Mohammad Asim w/o Mohammad Bilal  Talah Saqib w/o Khurshid Abbasi Aqib Hayat beat Saim Danish 6-2 Tahir ullah Khan w/o Ahmed Wazir  Jabran Ul Haq w/o Saood Masood  Sikandar Hayat w/o Kashif Ahmed  Ahmed Asjid Qureshi beat Hasan Ali: 6-0 Mahatir Muhammad beat Hassan Ishaq: 6-0 Subhan bin Salik beat Hasam Khan: 6-1 Sami Zeb beat Walid Qureshi: 6-2 Mohammad Abdullah beat Abdullah Rehman: 6-0 Mubarak Shah beat Azeem Khan: 7-5. Men’s Singles (Qualifying Round-II) Mujahid Khan beat Sikandar Amin: 6-1 Kamran Khan beat Zain Chaudhary: 6-0 Ibrahim Omer beat Kashan Umer: 6-1 Adnan Khan beat Ibrar ul Haq: 6-1 Abbas Khan beat Ahmed Murad: 6-0 Hashish Kumar beat Farman Shakeel: 6-1 Irfan Ullah beat Abdullah Kareem: 6-0 Mian Bilal beat Ikram ullah: 6-2 Nalain Abbas beat Jehanzeb Khan: 6-2 Talha Saqib beat Mohammad Asim: 6-2 Aqib Hayat beat Jabir Ali: 6-0 Jabran ul Haq beat Tahir Ullah: 6-0 Ahmed Asjid beat Sikandar Hayat: 6-1. Men’s Singles (Qualifying Round II): Kamran Khan beat Mujaid Khan:8-1 Ibrahim Omer beat Adnan Khan:8-2  Abbas Khan beat Hasheesh Kumar: 8-5 Mian Bilal beat Irfan ullah : 8-3 Nalain Abbas beat Talha Saqib: 8-1  Jibran ul Haq beat Aqib Hayat: 8-1 Boys’ Under-18 Singles (Qualifying Round):  Hassan Ali, Hasam Khan, Mohammad Hamza, Jabir Ali, Azan Sajid, Haider Ali Rizwan, Ibrahim Bin Sohail and Faisal Khazi advanced in to the main draw after winning their qualifying rounds respectively. 

By Abdul Jabbar Faisal ISLAMABAD (January 14, 2020):-The Qatar Cricket Association (QCA) appointed Aysha as the captain of the national team for the forthcoming 4-Nation International Women’s T20 International Tournament that will be kicked off from January 17, 2020. Hosts Qatar will take on Omen in their opening fixture of quadrangular international women’s cricket showpiece. According to available information, Shahreen Nawab Khan Bahadur will be the deputy of captain Aysha. The Women’s T20 International Tournament, to be held at the Asian Town Stadium in Industrial Area from January 17-22, 2020, as hosts Qatar, China, Kuwait and Oman will compete for the top honour. Final will be played on January 21, 2020 at same venue. President QCA Yousef Jeham Al-Kuwari also announced that Issa al-Yacoub would be the Event Coordinator while Gul Khan Jadoon would perform the duties of Tournament Director during the five-day fixture. As many as 10 matches will be staged during the tournament including semifinals and finals. A play-off match will be played for third position. He also added, “The QCA has selected a 14-player squad for the Four-Nation Women’s T20 International Tournament after an extensive training-cum-selection camp. Also we have selected three reserve players. The Qatar women are is excited to return to the international cricket and would be keen to produce remarkable performance in the tournament. The QCA has good wishes for all players and participating teams,” he said. “The preparations are going on at a hectic pace and given final touches to make this event historic and we are committed to deliver a strong and memorable event to local fans, who are very supportive to any event that we stage in Qatar,” Al-Kuwari maintained. Team Manager Shivani Mishra, who is also the Qatar Women’s Cricket Development Officer, organised the preparations of the national team and selection. Aftab Ahmad is the coach of the team. Qatar squad Aysha Senior (captain), Shahreen Nawab Khan Bahadur (vice-captain), Aisha Abdur Rahman, Nahan Arif, Angeline Mare, Trupti Kale, Aleena Khan, Rochelle Sherlene Quyn, Akshata Arjun Sanguelkar, Saachi Dhadwal, Sabah Nawab, Apsara Weerasekara Bamunumudiyanselage, Sincy Sara Sherin, Khadija Ahmad Imtiaz Reserves: Khulood Omran Hussain, Krishnendhu Bindhu, Bandhana Puthalapattu Team officials: Shivani Mishra (team manager), Aftab Ahmad (coach), Sabeeja Adiyeri Panayan (trainer), Paramjeet Kaur Bhullar (coordinator), Issa al-Yacoub (event coordinator) and Gul Khan Jadoon (tournament director).

SB News ISLAMABAD (January 13, 2020):- Peshawar Board, Multan Board, Technical Board Peshawar and Gujranwala Board qualified for the semifinals of badminton event of Inter Boards Sports Gala on Monday here at Rodham Hall, Pakistan Sports Complex. In first match BISE Peshawar beat Mardan by 2-0 while in the second BTE Peshawar beat Sahiwal by 2-0. In the third match Gujranwala beat Faisalabad by 2-1 while in the fourth quarterfinal match Multan beat Mirpur Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) by 2-0 to qualify for the semifinal.   BISE Peshawar beat Swat Board by 2-0 in the final of table tennis. In the third position match, Technical Education Board Peshawar defeated the Intermediate Board Karachi  by 2-0.

By Abdul Jabbar Faisal ISLAMABAD (January 13, 2020):-Duo players from Punjab Mohammad Umer Khan and Ahsan Razman set their clash in the final of the Under-18 National Juniors Snooker Championship 2020 after beating their respective opponents in the semifinals at Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) Billiard and Snooker Hall on Monday. In the first semifinal Mohammad Umer Khan defeated Shehryar Khan from Sindh 4-0 in a single sided affair in a seven frames contest. In the third frame Umer displayed excellent skill of the game and made a 106 points break. He was too good his challenger and he faced not any hurdle to move in the championship fixture that will be taken place on Tuesday at same place. Meanwhile, in the second semifinal, Ahsan Ramzan, who is also from Punjab, outclassed his teammate Shehryar Abbas in similar style 4-0. In the second frame Abbas showed some resistance to his rival, however, rest of whole match was in the pocket of Ahsan. The winner of the semifinal played some beautiful and classic shorts and ease to reach in the final.    Results (semifinals): Mohammad Umer Khan (Punjab) beat Shehryar Khan (Sindh) 4-0 (70-31, 73-43, 106-08(106), 59-17) Ahsan Ramzan (Punjab) beat Mohammad Shehryar Abbas (Punjab) 4-0 (70-07, 63-49, 71-41, 60-1) Results (quarterfinals): Mohammad Umer Khan (Punjab) beat Zubair Tahir (Punjab) 4-0 (59-2, 67-41, 60-2, 58-18) Shehryar Khan (Sindh) beat Malik Muzammil Khan (KPK) 4-1 (56-30, 57-52, 35-68, 85-0, 55-43) Ahsan Ramzan (Punjab) beat Mohammad Hamza Ilyas (Punjab) 4-0 (66-44, 83-65, 74-09, 76-48(64)) Mohammad Shehryar Abbas (Punjab) beat Kamran Albert Masih (KPK) 4-2 (50-60, 65-32, 65-03, 62-13, 60-61, 71-30).

SB News KARACHI (January 13, 2020):-A 121-run stand for the second-wicket between Muneeba Ali and Bismah Maroof led PCB Challengers to an eight-wicket win over PCB Blasters in the fifth match of the National Triangular T20 Women’s Cricket Championship at Karachi’s National Stadium on Monday. PCB Challengers chased down a 125-run target in 17.1 overs as Bismah, the captain of the Challengers, top-scored with an unbeaten 62 off 47 balls. The Pakistan captain cracked eight fours and was named player of the match. Muneeba followed up her 108 with run-a-ball 56, which was studded with seven fours. After Challengers’ lost Ayesha Zafar (0) without any runs on the board, the two denied any further inroads to the opposition bowlers and set up a comfortable win for their side. For Blasters, spinners Anam Amin and their captain Rameen Shamim picked up a wicket each for 22 and 23 runs respectively. Earlier, Blasters, after winning the toss and opting to bat, scored 124 for five in 20 overs on the back of Javeria Khan’s 67. The opener smashed 10 fours in 63 balls and stitched a 59-run partnership for the second-wicket with Javeria Rauf (27). Syeda Aroob Shah, Fatima Sana and Nida Dar took a wicket each for Challengers. In the last group match, PCB Challengers play PCB Dynamites on Tuesday at the National Stadium. Scores in brief: PCB Blasters 124-5, 20 overs (Javeria Khan 67, Javeria Rauf 27) PCB Challengers 125-2, 17.1 overs (Bismah Maroof 62 not out, Muneeba Ali 56) Result PCB Challengers win by eight wickets

SB News LAHORE:-Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP) organizinged a 5-day Technical Officials Education and Certificate System (TOECS) Level – I Course in with the collaboration and support of World Armature Athletics Federation (IAAF) and Area Development Centre (ADC) Jakarta at Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) Coaching Centre Lahore.  Five days TOECS course concluded Sunday. The participants of course gain a lot of knowledge from this course.  On the occasion of closing ceremony of TOECS course Major Gen (Retd) Mohammad Akram Sahi, President Athletics Federation of Pakistan and Vice President Asian Athletics Association distributed the certificates among the participants of course. As many as 24 Technical Officials from all affiliated units of AFP attended the TOECS Level 1 course. Wg Cdr Pervaiz Saeed Mir has conducted this course.

By Our Special Correspondent ISLAMABAD:-The Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), hsan Mani will meet Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) President, Nazmul Hassan, in Dubai this week on the sidelines of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Governance Review Committee meeting. According to media department of PCB, on this occasion, the head of the PCB will provide further updates on Bangladesh men’s national cricket team’s upcoming tour of Pakistan. The Dubai meeting is a continuation of the discussion process, which the PCB has followed to reach a consensus with the BCB on its national men’s cricket team’s tour itinerary.    

By  BIPIN   DANI  Sri Lankan pace bowler Suranga Lakmal returns to the national Test squad which has been chosen for the forthcoming Zimbabwe tour. According to the highly placed sources, the 33-year-old right arm fast bowler will replace Ashita Fernando. "Otherwise it is the same team that toured Pakistan (for the two Tests in Rawalpindi and Karachi in December) will be in Zimbabwe", the source at the SLC, said. Incidentally, Lakmal was originally chosen for the Pakistan tour but had to be last-minute dropped because of the dengue illness and Ashita Fernando was included in the side. The late comer Ashita Fernando, however, was not included in the final eleven. In the meantime, it is also learnt that Sri Lanka's tour of Zimbabwe is not hastily arranged as reported in certain section of the press. "It was already in pipe line and even the selectors had picked the Zimbabwe-bound team before recent India tour (where the T-20I series was lost)", the source added. The team has been sent for the sports minister's approval. Dimuth Karunratne's  team is scheduled to play two Tests (not to be recorded in World Test Championships) in Harare on January 19-23 and 27-31). The team with the same support staff members will leave (via Dubai) on wee hours on Thursday.   

SB News ISLAMABAD:-Singer Vera Blue (Celia Pavey) has announced as one of four Australian artists set to entertain crowds as part of a spectacular pre-game celebration at the opening match of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020. Blue will be joined by First Nations performer Mitch Tambo, DJ Dena Amy and Indian-born musician Harts (Darren Hart). The crowd at Sydney Showground Stadium for the blockbuster between hosts Australia and India under lights on Friday 21 February will be treated to a celebration of music, dance and cricket. The event will also be broadcast to a global TV audience. The line-up showcases a diverse mix of Australian artists and complements the earlier announcement that global pop superstar Katy Perry will perform at the final of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday 8 March, International Women’s Day. Vera Blue is a singer-songwriter who combines her love of folk music with moody electronica. A leading artist on the music festival circuit, Blue recently featured on the chart-topping track ‘Rushing Back’ with Australian electronic producer Flume. Mitch Tambo, a proud Gamilaraay man is renowned for his didgeridoo playing and deeply committed to his First Nations culture and the people he represents. Mitch and DJ Dena Amy will together open the celebrations, performing a traditional welcome to country as part of an energetic set. Likened to Prince and Jimi Hendrix thanks to his singular blend of funk, jazz, blues, psychedelic rock and indie electronic, Harts (Darren Hart) is the voice behind the ICC T20 World Cup 2020 campaign song, ‘You’ve Gotta Get Up and Dance’. A re-record of the ‘70s hit from English rock-band, Supercharge, the song is available on streaming platforms, including Spotify. Vera Blue said:   “I’m super excited to be performing alongside some other amazing Aussie artists. It’s not very often you get to be performing at the opening celebration of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. This is going to be really different for me and everyone else performing there, but I think it’s going to be really fun. “I love that this tournament is about showcasing the world’s best female cricketers. It’s really cool that the fans get the chance to see them play here in Australia. “As an artist and a performer, I always look up to those paving the way for me. It’s important for young girls, and boys, to see that there is a pathway for them in many aspects of life, including professional sport. It’s going to be amazing.” ICC T20 World Cup 2020 Local Organising Committee CEO, Nick Hockley says fans will be treated to something special on opening night. “What better way to celebrate the opening night of ICC Women’s T20 World Cup – the first of two T20 World Cups Australia is hosting in 2020 – than with some of the nation’s most exciting music talent. The opening celebration will set the tone for world-class cricket action to follow and encourage fans from all the competing teams to get up and dance.” Acting New South Wales Minister for Sport, the Hon. Dr Geoff Lee, says: “In just over a month we will have the world’s best cricketers in our own backyard ready to entertain and excite the crowds. Kids will be cheering on their heroes and being inspired to become the next generation of superstars,” Dr Lee said. “And the entertainment announced today is first class too, making sure the spectacle will be big for our fans in NSW as well as cricket audiences watching on televisions around the globe.” World renowned live entertainment company Michael Cassel Group is producing the pre-match show, and are promising fans a thrilling, contemporary production led by producers Julie Brooks, Ric Birch and Michael Cassel. Acclaimed director and choreographer Mitchell Woodcock is the Creative Director. “The opening celebration is going to be huge! We’re incredibly proud to have such a formidable line-up of talented Australian artists who are sure to get people excited and ready for the ICC T20 World Cup 2020. Without giving anything away, cricket fans can expect a really energetic, dynamic show which is sure to get the party started!" said Michael Cassel, Producer and CEO of Michael Cassel Group.

SB News ISLAMABAD:-Badar Mohammad Khan, PCB’s Chief Financial Officer, has tendered his resignation after more than eight years in the role and will be departing at the end of the month. Badar Mohammad Khan said: “After serving under five PCB Chairmen since starting in July 2011, it is now time to move on and explore other opportunities. It has been a pleasure to be a part of the PCB and not only contribute in the financial and commercial growth of the company, but also meet and work alongside some of the best professionals. “I want to thank all my past and present colleagues for their support and wish the PCB future success.” PCB Chairman Ehsan Mani said: “Badar has been an important member of the PCB Senior Management Team. On behalf of the PCB, I want to thank him for his contributions and wish him well in his future endeavors.” The PCB will soon start the process to find Badar M. Khan’s successor.