Sports Bulletin ISLAMABAD:-Captain Chamari Athapaththu produced a superb all-round effort to help Sri Lanka score a fine 22-run victory over Bangladesh and win the ICC Commonwealth Games Qualifier 2022 at the Kinrara Oval in Kuala Lumpur on Monday. The last match of the five-team tournament, played to decide the final qualifying spot at this year’s Commonwealth Games, saw Athapaththu score 48 runs to propel Sri Lanka to 136 for six before returning figures of three for 17 to restrict Bangladesh to 114 for five. The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) will announce the cricket line-up in due course, once Sri Lanka are officially confirmed as the eighth team in Birmingham, joining Australia, Barbados, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa, who have already qualified for the Games. Athapaththu did everything right today right from winning the toss in the crucial fixture. Electing to bat, Sri Lanka were kept quiet by opening bowlers Salma Khatun and Soraya Azmim in the first few overs. Azmim was rewarded for consistently hitting hard lengths when Vishmi Gunaratne lobbed her to Fargana Hoque at mid-off to leave Sri Lanka at 14 for one in the fourth over. A few balls later, Athapaththu slashed Azmim over the infield for four before unleashing a barrage of sweep shots against Bangladesh’s spinners, two of which cleared the ropes for six. Off-spinner Salma Khatun, the only bowler up to that point to keep Athapaththu in check, was brought back into the attack. She responded by trapping Hasini Perera plumb in front with the score 61 for two in the ninth over. Athapaththu muscled Rumana over extra cover for six as she approached what could have been her third half-century of the tournament. However, she missed out on her fifty when she tried to repeat the shot, only managing an edge through to Shamima Sultana behind the stumps. Unsurprisingly, the fall of Athapaththu’s wicket allowed Bangladesh’s spinners to claw back before Nilakshi de Silva and Anushka Sanjeewani helped Sri Lanka accumulate 42 runs in the last five overs to take the score to 136 for six. In reply, Bangladesh benefitted from a dropped catch and four overthrows in the first couple of overs. Shamima Sultana was caught in the circle by Udeshika Prabodhani off the bowling of Ama Kanchana to leave Bangladesh at 18 for one in the third over. However, left-handed opener Murshida Khatun continued her fine form by clearing the infield for boundaries on three occasions during a Powerplay that fetched Bangladesh 46 runs. However, Sri Lanka’s spin quartet of Athapaththu, Inoka Ranaweera, Sachini Nisansala, and Kavisha Dilhari put the squeeze on Bangladesh, who could not score a single boundary in the next six overs. Athapaththu’s arm ball trapped Murshida in front to leave Bangladesh at 71 for two after 12 overs, requiring a further 66 runs off 48 balls for victory. Despite a dropped catch that went for four and a no-ball from Athapaththu, Bangladesh were unable to fight back as Sri Lanka completed a comfortable victory. Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana identified what went wrong for her team. “They managed to score extra boundaries in the last three overs. And we could not do well with the bat,” she said. Athapaththu was particularly impressed with her bowlers in this game. “I had complete confidence in our experienced bowling attack. The plan was to bowl lots of dot balls to exert pressure,” she said. Athapaththu was awarded the Player of the Match and Player of the Tournament awards. “I wanted to bat through, but I’m reasonably happy with the start I got today, giving a platform for the other players to compile a challenging total,” she said. Brief Scores: Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh by 22 runs. Sri Lanka 136/6 in 20 Overs; Bangladesh 114/5 in 20 Overs. Player of the Match: Chamari Athapaththu

Sports Bulletin ISLAMABAD:-As part of the 2021 edition of the ICC Awards, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced Pakistani pacer Shaheen Afridi as the recipient of the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for the ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year 2021. Afridi has had a fabulous 2021 across all three formats of the game. He took 78 wickets in 36 internationals at an average of 22.20. His contribution in the Test and T20I formats of the game was phenomenal. At the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, Afridi took seven wickets in six matches aiding Pakistan formidably to make it to the semi-finals of the tournament. In the Test format, Afridi remained consistent and claimed 47 wickets in only nine matches at a staggering average of 17.06. His most memorable performance was at the high stakes game against India at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. He claimed three wickets in that match which included the wickets of opening pair Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul and that of India captain Virat Kohli in the death overs. Commenting on receiving the honour Shaheen Afridi, said: “I feel truly honoured and privileged to become the first Pakistan cricketer to win the prestigious Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for the ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year. I had always dreamt of doing something unique and special for Pakistan. In this background, I am elated and thank Almighty for blessing me with this respect. “I also feel humbled to join a galaxy of legends who have previously won the Garfield Sobers Trophy. I have grown up watching the exploits of these cricketers and now to be bracketed with them is a matter of great honour and pride for me, my family, my teammates and my country. “This award is a testament to the high quality of cricket we played as a group during another difficult and challenging year. This required a lot of mental and physical toughness on a consistent basis, and I am glad we all were able to maintain the high standards to live up to the expectations of our fans. “Every performance I gave for Pakistan was enjoyable and memorable and was made possible through the support of my teammates. But to me, the standout performances remained the three wickets against India in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021, and the 18 wickets I took in the two-Test series against the West Indies in Jamaica. “I look forward to 2022 with optimism and hope I will be able to contribute regularly in Pakistan’s successes as at the end of the day, it all depends how we perform as a team and unit.”

Aamir Ali Janjua DUBAI:-As part of the 2021 edition of the ICC Awards, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced Lizelle Lee of South Africa and Babar Azam of Pakistan as the ICC ODI Cricketers of the Year 2021across women’s and men’s international cricket respectively. Lizelle Lee has had an outstanding year in ODI cricket. She scored 632 runs in 11 matches at an average of 90.28 that included a century and five half-centuries. Lee also finished as the highest run-scorer in 2021 in fifty over format. In South Africa’s tour of India, Lee was unstoppable, contributing with big runs in the 4-1 series win for her team. With 288 runs, including a hundred and two fifties, she ended the series as the highest run-scorer and was also awarded the Player of the Series. Lee scored the highest individual ODI score of her career at 132* in the third match of the series against India. She carried her form over to the series against West Indies and was once again the top run-getter in the series. Commenting on receiving the honour Lizelle Lee, said:  “I am very privileged and honoured to have been awarded the ICC Women’s ODI Cricketer of the Year. I honestly didn’t expect this. It is a privilege just to be nominated, anyone could have won this award. It is truly an honour! “There are so many that I would like to give credit to not just on the field but off the field too. Firstly, I would like to thank my family which has been my number one support system, my parents and my wife, our coaching staff, and teammates, without whom none of this would have been possible.” In the men’s category, Pakistani skipper Babar Azam has had an impressive 2021 across all formats of the game. He scored a total of 405 runs in six matches at an average of 67.50 which included two centuries. Babar was the second-highest run-scorer with 228 runs and was also the Player of the Match in both matches that Pakistan won against South Africa. Commenting on the honour Babar Azam said: “I feel humbled to have been voted as the ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Year a few days after being adjudged by the PCB as their ODI Cricketer of 2021. Recognition by the parent and then the world administrative bodies means a lot and gives me tremendous satisfaction and happiness. “It has been an excellent year for Pakistan cricket across all formats and I am delighted to have been part of an outstanding bunch of players who displayed their very best, both on and off the field that, in turn, earned them well deserved respect and acknowledgement from the opponents and fans alike.

Sports Bulletin LAHORE:-Bismah Maroof will lead the national side in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup in New Zealand as the national women’s selection committee announced the squad for the tournament to be played from 4 March till 3 April. The event will mark Bismah’s return to international cricket after two years as she took break from the game for the birth of her first child in December 2020. She will be accompanied by a support person, as part of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s parental policy, to help her look after the newborn, while keeping her focus on cricket. Asmavia Iqbal-led selection committee that includes Saleem Jaffar and Taufeeq Umar has called up leg-spinner Ghulam Fatima, who last played for Pakistan in 2018, and opener Nahida Khan, whose last outing in Pakistan colours was last January, after impressive performances in practice matches during the recent Karachi camp. Chair of women’s national selection committee Asmavia Iqbal: “I want to congratulate every player who made it to the squad for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup. We considered the conditions and challenges our team will encounter in New Zealand along with the current form of players and the team’s balance while putting together this squad. “While we have retained majority of the players who have been on the national duty recently, we have called back Nahida Khan and Ghulam Fatima. Nahida brings with her experience that every team seeks going into a World Cup and Fatima has had an incredible run in Karachi. She has done well to enhance her fitness and has been in good form in domestic cricket of late. Bismah Maroof: “It is a great honour for me to lead my country into another World Cup. I am thrilled to be back in action and do what I love and have dedicated my life to. “The recent selection matches proved to be fruitful for me and the whole side as we got some match practice under competitive and challenging environment leading into the mega event. The aim is to reach the World Cup semi-finals and I believe this team has the potential to pull it off.” The Pakistan squad will begin the final phase of their preparations with a 10-day pre-departure camp in Karachi from 27 January. They will depart for NZ on 8 February. Pakistan squad: Bismah Maroof (captain), Nida Dar (vice-captain), Aiman Anwar, Aliya Riaz, Anam Amin, Diana Baig, Fatima Sana, Ghulam Fatima, Javeria Khan, Muneeba Ali, Nahida Khan, Nashra Sandhu, Omaima Sohail, Sidra Amin and Sidra Nawaz Traveling reserves: Iram Javed, Najiha Alvi and Tuba Hassan Player support personnel: Aisha Jalil (team manager), David Hemp (head coach), Arshad Khan (assistant coach), Kamran Hussain (assistant coach), Saboor Ahmad (strength and conditioning coach), Zubair Ahmad (analyst), Ahsan Iftikhar Nagi (media and digital content manager) and Rifat Asghar Gill (Physiotherapist) Pakistan’s fixtures at ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022: 6 March – Pakistan v India at Bay Oval, Tauranga 8 March – Pakistan v Australia at Bay Oval, Tauranga 11 March – Pakistan v South Africa at Bay Oval, Tauranga 14 March – Pakistan v Bangladesh at Seddon Park, Hamilton 21 March – Pakistan v West Indies at Seddon Park, Hamilton 24 March – Pakistan v England at Hagley Oval, Christchurch 26 March – Pakistan v New Zealand at Hagley Oval, Christchurch

Bipin Dani Death over refers to the final overs in a limited match. Often the batting side would bat aggressively to gain more runs and increase their score. This will take place during the last five to ten overs of a team’s innings in a match. Former India cricketer, who has been a regular commentator has requested commentators all over the world not to use the term "Death Overs" while on air. "Request to all commentators please don't say Death Overs". Either call it slog overs or end overs", he has appealed. Explaining the reason for this appeal, the former googly bowler says, "we are going through a tough time. Death is not a nice word. The last ten overs are definitely important overs but one doesn't die if it doesn't go the team's way". Obviously, the veteran bowler’s words were directed at the ongoing COVID crisis.

Lausanne, Switzerland (Sports Bulletin Report):-The Africa Cup of Nations saw a week of exciting hockey action culminate in a double victory for South Africa, giving the top ranked teams in both the men’s and women’s competition automatic qualification for the respective FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar and Rourkela and the FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup, Spain and Netherlands 2022. Although South Africa men’s and women’s hockey teams continue their dominance at this event, both finals were tough contests. The women went behind to a well-organised and hard-working Ghana team before rallying and winning 3-1. The men were held to a 1-1 scoreline by a resilient and skilful Egypt, but held their nerve to win the shoot-out by a 3-1 scoreline. In the women’s final, the host nation was hoping that home advantage would serve the players well as they faced South Africa in the final. This was the fifth consecutive final in which the two teams had faced each other, with South Africa emerging the victor on each of the previous occasions. Both teams had shown good form going into the final: South Africa were unbeaten and had conceded no goals to that point. Ghana had drawn with Nigeria and won their other two matches with ease. An early goal from Elizabeth Opoku – following the award of a penalty stroke against South Africa – gave Ghana the lead in the sixth minute. The noise levels among the spectators rose as they sensed the opportunity for an upset. However, South Africa responded well and were 2-1 ahead at half-time, courtesy of goals from Charne Maddocks and Kristen Paton. The match was put beyond doubt in the final quarter when Lillian du Plessis scored a penalty stroke to give her side a 3-1 lead. Tarryn Glasby of South Africa was the competition’s overall top scorer with nine goals. Speaking after the match, she said: ‘It is nice to get a win in Ghana. As a striker you are supposed to score goals, so I am happy to be the top scorer. Looking forward to the World Cup, it is all about trusting our processes.’ The captain of Ghana women, Nafisatu Umara, said: ’We are impressed with our performance. We took the lead in the first quarter, which shows how much we have really improved. We now have the courage to carry the ball, so we are happy with our performance. The last time we played South Africa we lost 6-0, so this was a big improvement. We will look at what happened today, we will do our homework and next time we will beat them.’ South Africa’s Head Coach Inky Zondy said: ‘I am really excited and really happy with the game. It was a tough game, so thank you to Ghana. We have really enjoyed our week here. We are a team that has changed, so we have to learn from what has happened this week and represent Africa well at the World Cup.’ In the men’s final, it was a repeat of the previous five editions, with reigning champions South Africa facing Egypt. Any hope Egypt had of hitting South Africa hard in the early stages was dashed when Matt Guise-Brown stepped up to fire home a penalty corner in the 12th minute. South Africa looked comfortably in control of the game for much of the first half but they failed to capitalise on a number of chances. With seven minutes of the half remaining, Egypt’s Ziad Adel took the opportunity to even the scores with a well-taken goal that eluded Siyavuya Nolutshungu in the South African goal. The teams continued to probe and seek a breakthrough throughout the third quarter but neither team could find the goal. With 15 minutes left, South Africa turned up the pressure a notch. An early penalty corner attempt flew wide and a devastating run from Nqobile Ntuli ended with a tame shot. Egypt continued to dig deep defensively and the team’s resilience paid off as the final whistle blew and the match went to shoot-out for the first time since 2005 [when South Africa beat Egypt 3-2 on penalty strokes]. Clinical finishing by the South African attackers and some great goalkeeping by Nolutshungu saw the higher ranked team finally break down their Egyptian rivals as South Africa won the shoot-out 3-1. Speaking after the match, South Africa’s Head Coach Gareth Ewing said: ’I’m shattered. That was too close for comfort. Ghana is such a great host, there was such a great atmosphere in the stadium, it was great to win. Based on tonight’s performance, we have a lot to do before the World Cup.’ Captain of South Africa, Tim Drummond said: ’We are ecstatic. That was tough but we are missing some players so that shows that we have depth in the squad. There is a long way to go before the World Cup but we hope to make a lot of improvement and finish in the top ten.’ Egypt’s Head Coach Zaman Tahir, said: ‘That was heartbreaking for all the boys. South Africa’s experience to handle this sort of pressure is huge. Shoot-out is down to nerves and South Africa had an advantage. Losing on shoot-out - it could have been any one’s game.’ South Africa’s penalty corner specialist Matthew Guise-Brown was top goalscorer with six goals. Earlier in the day, Kenya women had taken third place after they beat Zimbabwe in a tense match that had finished goalless at full time. Kenya’s goal keeper Milicent Adhiambo performed heroics to keep the Zimbabwe attackers at bay and the Kenyan team were able to finished one place higher than their previous fourth place in 2017. In the men’s match to decide third place, Nigeria put in an energetic performance to defeat Kenya 4-2. Goals from Sunday Godwin, Emmanuel Sunday, Benjamin Ibrahim and James Samaila sealed the bronze medal and the highest ever finishing position for Nigeria. Final positions at the Africa Cup of Nations. Women’s Africa Cup of Nations 1. South Africa - qualified for the FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup, Spain and Netherlands 2022 2. Ghana 3. Kenya 4. Zimbabwe 5. Nigeria 6. Namibia 7. Zambia 8. Uganda Men’s Africa Cup of Nations 1. South Africa - qualified for the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar and Rourkela 2. Egypt 3. Nigeria 4. Kenya 5. Ghana 6. Uganda 7. Namibia

Abdul Jabbar Faisal ISLAMABAD:-The veteran chess player, Shahid Hussain has won the title of the 3rd Islamabad Open Rapid Chess Tournament that held on Sunday at the Main Hall of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ICCI) office G-8/1 Islamabad. According to an official of Islamabad Chess Association (ICA), a-day chess tournament was held by ICA in collaboration with ICCI in which over 60 players took part and showed their mental strength. Shahid Hussain claimed top position in 9 rounds fixture while Abdullah Waris remained second and Mohammad Uzair Masood grabbed third position. Anastasiia, a 13-year old girl was on top position in the women’s event. In the Under-15 event, Hamza Zaka Mustafa got the top position while Raja Hattam was second and Ahmed Khan Wazir was on third spot. At the end, chief guest president ICCI Shakil Munir distributed the prizes among the players. Also, Joint Secretary SAFRON Agha Wasim Ahmed graced the occasion as guest of honour. All top officials of ICA and ICCI were present on this eve. Secretary ICA Raja Gohar thanked all guest on this occasion. Position holders were awarded prize money along with trophies and medals. First position holder pocketed 5000 cash while 3000 and 2000 respectively given to second and third position holders.  

Sports Bulletin KARACHI:-Karachi Tennis Association (KTA) will organize 2nd Reza Mirza Tennis Academy (RMTA) Tennis League 2022 from Saturday (January 29) at RMTA Tennis Court, Civil Line near Frere Hall Karachi. According to an official, Reza Mirza Tennis Academy will sponsor this two month long Round Robin League (RRL) tennis fixture. Men's Singles and Boys Under-15 Singles events will be the part RRL. Matches shall be played only on Saturday. Names of Men's singles invited players: Farhan Altaf, Omer Shahid, Ibrahim Iltifat, Nadir Mirza, Noor e Mustafa, Aqeel Shabbir, Eibad Sarwar and Mohammad Ali. Names of Under-15 invited players: Ahsan Ahmed, Nael Mirza, Dhuraf Das, and Abdullah Razaq, Soyam Kumar Three players shall be selected through trials.

Bipin Dani World's leading women cricketers have signed to play in the FaiBreak Invitational 2022 tournament to be held in May this year, it is learnt. The latest to sign are : Bangladeshi fast bowler Jahanara Alam, Sri Lankan captain Chamari Atapattu and UAE opener Esha Oza. Jahanara, an outstanding fast bowler was the first Bangladeshi female cricketer to take a five-wicket haul in a single T20 match. Chamari has been a mainstay in Sri Lanka's batting attack for over a decade. According to the sources in Malaysia, where she is participating in the ICC's Women's Commonwealth Games Qualifiers, the organizers have recently signed her for this six-team tournament. There will be nineteen matches played for 15 days. Leading players from other foreign countries and Asian nations including India and Pakistan will also participate in the tournament, which is sanctioned by the ICC. It will take place on May 1-15 this year in Dubai in conjunction with Cricket Hong Kong. Owing to the current pandemic, Hong Kong airport is not operational for airlines from all countries and therefore the decision has been taken to play the matches in Dubai.  and the leading healthcare group Gencor has come forward to be the main sponsor. Interestingly, this is the world's first privately funded tournament in women's cricket history.

Sports Bulletin KARACHI:-Defending Champion Shabbir Iqbal retained the title of Sindh Open Golf Championship 2022 after winning the 23rd edition of top national golf showpiece, as the championship concluded at Airmen Golf Club Karachi on Sunday. Pakistan’s ace Golfer Shabbir Iqbal clinched the title with 208 under par 8 score by maintaining the lead from the first round of the Sindh Open Golf Championship 2022. Mohammad Naeem of PGC remained runner up with 215 one under par and Mohammad Ashfaq of AGC with 216 at par claimed third position. Speaking to media, Shabbir Iqbal who has completed 194 titles, said, “I am thankful to Al-Mighty Allah for winning the Sindh Open Golf 2022. Loosing title at last week’s Rashid D Habib was my bad luck, however now I played carefully. I am well prepared for Pakistan Open, Chief of Air Staff Tournament and DHA Open.” Mohammad Saqib of LGG with seven over par secured first position in Junior Professionals. Second position in this category is jointly shared by Abdul Wadood from MTG and Nabeel Khan of Airmen Golf Club. In the senior professional category Tahir Naseem from GYM stood first with four over par while Mohammad Akram was runner up with eight over par. Salman Jehangir from LG lead Amateurs category with two over par. Yashal Shah and Saim Shazli of KGC secured second and third positions. Omar Khalid of DHA succeeded fourth position with Gross 240 at par. President Sindh Golf Association- Khurram Khan distributed prizes and trophies amongst the leaders of final day. Khurram said, “The strong winds during the last two days did challenged the golfers, however they accepted the challenge. We will continue promoting Golf players in Pakistan.”