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  • US media praises Pakistani female footballer for her social work amid COVID-19 pandemic

    US media praises Pakistani female footballer for her social work amid COVID-19 pandemic

    A 23-year old footballer, Karishma Ali, is winning praise for the exemplary social work she has been doing in her hometown in Chitral Valley. The COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown had badly affected the lives of the people in the area.

    Ali is the first girl from her area to have played football at a national and international level. Last year she was also listed among Forbes’ ’30 Under 30′ in Asia, along with the tennis star Naomi Osaka and K-pop band Black pink.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B94glcEJDiI/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

    After being admired for her football talent, Ali has been profiled by CNN for her selfless philanthropy work in her area.

    According to the report, when the COVID-19 pandemic handicapped the lives of many, Ali would spend hours driving on bouncy, mountainous roads with her father and uncle distributing essential supplies to the local hospital and underprivileged villagers. She raised money via social media to buy those items.

    “As of August, they had supplied one month’s worth of rations to 300 families and donated 155 N95 masks, 53 goggles, 250 PPE suits, 650 surgical masks, 400 pairs of surgical gloves and 76 face shields to the DHQ Hospital Chitral,” the report stated.

    Ali, while discussing how things changed in her area when the lockdown was imposed, said: “The men work as daily wage laborers in different cities in Pakistan and what happened after the lockdown, many industries and businesses shut down, they had to return home, and people were finding it difficult, a lot of families were in need.”

    The footballer hopes to empower women through education and skills. Sharing her dreams and futures plans, Ali said, “Ten years from now I want to see at least 10-20 more girls like myself who come back here [Chitral] after they’ve achieved their dream and work for the other girls that I was not able to reach out to and, slowly, I see a progressive society where men and women are working equally, where women do not have to stress about traditional customs and be able to freely do what they can and see that I was part of all of this change.”

    “I want to see more women in leadership positions and then sit back and enjoy. This is what I wanted to fight for,” she added.

    Ali has represented Pakistan at the Jubilee Games in Dubai. Her team was the first women’s team from Pakistan to participate in the AFL International Cup. Ali is also the founder of the Chitral Women’s Sports Club.

  • Israeli footballer becomes first to join Arab football league

    Israeli footballer becomes first to join Arab football league

    An Israel footballer, Diaa Saba will become the first player to compete in Arab league after signing a two-year contract with Dubai’s Al-Nasr SC football club.

    Dia Saba 27, who was born in Majd al-Krum, an Arab town located in Galilee in Israel’s Northern District, posted an image of himself on Saturday on a Dubai-bound Emirates flight, confirming his transfer from China’s Guangzhou R&F football club.

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    The news came after the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Israel signed an accord on 15 September to normalise relations during a ceremony at the White House in the United States (US)

    Al-Nasr’s Twitter account wrote “Welcome to Diaa Saba at the Blue Citadel” on Sunday, accompanying the tweet with a video of the player wearing a number nine jersey in the Al-Maktoum stadium.

    According to media reports, the transfer fee for Saba was $2.9m. Saba has scored 87 goals in 255 appearances in all competitions and currently has 10 caps for the senior Israeli national team.

    Last month, an Emirati businessman linked to an investment company owned by UAE Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan made an offer to invest in Israel’s most controversial football club, Beitar Jerusalem, notorious for its to the Israeli far-right and ruling Likud party, and for its racist anti-Arab and anti-Muslim sentiments.

    The investment company, the Abu Dhabi United Group for Development and Investment, has a majority stake in the City Football Group, which controls football clubs on four continents, including Manchester City.

  • VIDEO: ‘Family Guy’ features Lahore Qalandars vs Karachi Kings joke in new episode

    VIDEO: ‘Family Guy’ features Lahore Qalandars vs Karachi Kings joke in new episode

    With the fifth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) approaching, knockouts and the final of which had earlier been suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic, excitement surrounding the star-studded cricketing tournament is once again on the rise.

    As cricketing fans eagerly wait for the tournament to return in November, it has emerged that its fever has also made its way to mainstream American television.

    The Lahore-Karachi rivalry, which the PSL has taken to a new high with nail-biters between Lahore Qalandars and Karachi Kings, has been featured on the very popular animated series “Family Guy”.

    The 19th season opener of the sitcom started with a joke about PSL’s Lahore and Karachi, which came as a surprise for many Pakistani fans.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    Over the course of five years, the matches between Lahore Qalandars and Karachi Kings have attracted large crowds, and massive viewership as fans anticipate the same with bated breath.

    Lahore and Karachi are the two biggest cities of the country and are also known globally for nurturing Pakistani cricketers.

    The animated series, which has widely been acclaimed since its premiere nearly two decades ago, centers on the Griffins, a family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children, Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog, Brian.

    The show is set in the fictional city of Quahog, Rhode Island, and exhibits much of its surreal and dark humor in the form of metafictional cutaway gags that often criticise American culture.

  • Australian cricket legend and PSL champ Dean Jones passes away in Mumbai

    Australian cricket legend and Pakistan Super League (PSL) champ Dean Jones passed away from a heart attack on Thursday.

    Jones, 59, was in India for the coverage of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the time of his demise. 

    He was a two-time winner of the PSL with Islamabad United in 2016 and 2018. The last position he held in the league was the head coach of Karachi Kings in PSL 2020.

    He was looking forward to visiting Pakistan for the remainder of the PSL 2020 and even said that all of his side’s foreign players were ready to do the same.

    Jones played 52 Tests and 164 ODIs for Australia in a career that began in 1984 (coincidentally against Pakistan) and ended in 1994.  

    He averaged 44.61 in ODIs – a number unheard of in those times, and is widely thought of as one of Australia’s greatest batsmen in the 50-over format.

    In 2019, he was inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame.

  • VIDEO: Shaheen Afridi scripts history with four wickets in four balls

    Pakistan’s young and talented paceman Shaheen Afridi has scripted history by claiming four wickets in four balls.

    During Sunday’s Vitality Blast — professional Twenty20 cricket competition for English and Welsh first-class counties — fixture between Hampshire and Middlesex, the left-arm pacer took a wicket with each of his last four balls as he finished with figures of 6-19 from his four overs.

    It’s just the sixth time in T20 history that a bowler has taken four wickets in four balls, which is known as a double hat-trick, and Afridi’s figures are the best ever by a Hampshire bowler and the equal-third best by a Pakistani.

    Chasing 142 to win, Middlesex were in with a chance of victory when Afridi started his fourth and final over, with the visitors needing 23 to win from 18 balls with four wickets in hand and No.5 John Simpson on 47 not out.

    But having conceded a single from each of his first two balls of the over, Afridi shattered Simpson’s stumps with an in-swinger from over the wicket before he set his sights on the Middlesex tail.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    Switching to around the wicket, he cleaned up Steve Finn first ball with a nearly unplayable yorker before he secured the hat-trick as No 10 Thilan Walallawita had a swipe across the line and was also bowled.

    Afridi then produced another full delivery that knocked over Tim Murtagh’s middle stump to finish the match and ensure his final act in his stint with Hampshire was a memorable one.

  • VIDEO: Three-time champion Novak Djokovic defaults out of US Open after hitting line judge with ball

    VIDEO: Three-time champion Novak Djokovic defaults out of US Open after hitting line judge with ball

    Novak Djokovic’s charge to his 18th Grand Slam title ended on Sunday after the Serbian defaulted following his petulant swipe at the ball that hit a line judge in the throat that resulted in the world number one’s disqualification from the US Open.

    The dramatic moment came when the overwhelming title favourite reacted angrily to going 5-6 down to Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta in the first set of their fourth-round encounter at an empty Arthur Ashe Stadium.

    What would have been an innocuous incident had the ball flown a foot either side of the official instead left her lying on the ground, clutching her throat and screaming in pain.

    There was no question that Djokovic hit her inadvertently, and he quickly rushed to apologise, but it was a clear breach of Grand Slam rules forbidding the physical abuse of anyone within the tournament precincts.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MF46cTBL8s

    Tournament referee Soeren Friemel came out and spoke to chair umpire Aurelie Tourte and Andreas Egli, the Grand Slam supervisor, before a long chat with the three-times US Open champion.

    Djokovic, who was clearly making the point that he had not intended to hit the official, was overheard saying “she doesn’t have to go to hospital for this” but after 12 minutes of pleading his case his fate was sealed.

    “I don’t think that there was any chance of any opportunity or any other decision than defaulting Novak,” Friemel later told reporters.

    “The facts were so clear and so obvious … (the line judge) was clearly hurt and Novak was angry, he hit the ball recklessly, angrily back.”

    A tournament spokesman told Reuters the line judge appeared to be okay and was “not brought off-site”. Her identity is not known. Djokovic eventually walked over to shake hands with a stunned Carreno Busta and trudged off the court before leaving the grounds without attending a press conference.

    The 33-year-old Serbian later posted an apology on Instagram.

    View this post on Instagram

    This whole situation has left me really sad and empty. I checked on the lines person and the tournament told me that thank God she is feeling ok. I‘m extremely sorry to have caused her such stress. So unintended. So wrong. I’m not disclosing her name to respect her privacy. As for the disqualification, I need to go back within and work on my disappointment and turn this all into a lesson for my growth and evolution as a player and human being. I apologize to the @usopen tournament and everyone associated for my behavior. I’m very grateful to my team and family for being my rock support, and my fans for always being there with me. Thank you and I’m so sorry. Cela ova situacija me čini zaista tužnim i praznim. Proverio sam kako se oseća linijski sudija, i prema informacijama koje sam dobio, oseća se dobro, hvala Bogu. Njeno ime ne mogu da otkrijem zbog očuvanja njene privatnosti. Jako mi je žao što sam joj naneo takav stres. Nije bilo namerno. Bilo je pogrešno. Želim da ovo neprijatno iskustvo, diskvalifikaciju sa turnira, pretvorim u važnu životnu lekciju, kako bih nastavio da rastem i razvijam se kao čovek, ali i teniser. Izvinjavam se organizatorima US Opena. Veoma sam zahvalan svom timu i porodici što mi pružaju snažnu podršku, kao i mojim navijačima jer su uvek uz mene. Hvala vam i žao mi je. Bio je ovo težak dan za sve.

    A post shared by Novak Djokovic (@djokernole) on

    “This whole situation has left me really sad and empty,” he wrote. “I’m extremely sorry to have caused her such stress. So unintended. So wrong.

    “I apologise to the (US Open) and everyone associated for my behaviour.”

  • Messi has decided to leave Barcelona after 19 years but which teams could he join?

    Lionel Messi dropped a bombshell on Tuesday when he requested a transfer out of Barcelona, with the talk of the soccer world immediately turning to where the superstar will end up.

    Messi intends to activate a release clause that would allow him to join any club in the world without paying a transfer fee to Barca, although the Catalan club disputes the validity of the clause — meaning lawyers for both sides could get involved.

    Regardless of what happens, it appears that Messi’s exit from the club with which he’s spent his entire professional career is much closer than anyone could’ve anticipated, and although he’s now 33, he’ll still have suitors from around the world lined up for his services.

    Imagining Messi not wearing Barca’s iconic Blaugrana jersey is tough, but there are some teams that could be great fits should he ultimately leave Catalonia.

    Manchester City

    The English giants are the favourites to sign Messi for one reason: coach Pep Guardiola. OK, two reasons, Guardiola and the fact they are disgustingly rich. Backed by Sheik Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, whose net worth is a nudge over $30 billion, the Citizens are one of the few clubs who could actually afford Messi’s wages. He is currently paid $1.8 million a week, according to Football Leaks. That’s just under $100 million a year, not including bonuses. So you can see why only a limited number of clubs in the world could afford to lure him.

    Inter Milan

    Another strong contender linked with Messi is Internazionale di Milano. In a sporting sense, this makes sense. Inter finished second in Italy’s Serie A behind Juventus, which has won the last nine titles and narrowly lost the Europa League final. The club has been building its squad in recent seasons and is hungry to knock Juventus off its perch domestically, and for success in Europe. The addition of Messi, joining an already exciting forward line of Lautaro Martinez and Romelu Lukaku, would almost guarantee this. And the club has a history of ambitious, big-money signings, including breaking the world-record transfer fee to bring in Brazilian superstar Ronaldo in 1997.

    Paris Saint-Germain

    It’s impossible to talk about ultra-wealthy clubs without mentioning arguably the wealthiest. PSG has shown willingness to use its financial might in order to lure high-profile stars to the French capital, and in Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Angel Di Maria it currently boasts the most expensive attacking trio in the history of the sport.

    If money’s the deciding factor, then Messi’s chances of landing in Ligue 1 are extremely high. If it’s not, the opportunity to reunite with Neymar could still influence Messi’s decision — Barca’s recent efforts to reacquire the Brazilian after PSG spent a world-record fee to lure him away from Camp Nou have been in part to placate Messi, who was unhappy to lose Neymar as a teammate three years ago.

    Juventus

    This is much more of a Football Manager-style dream rather than a real possibility. For the better part of 15 years, Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have been considered 1 and 1A in terms of who’s the world’s best player — indeed, they’ve entered the realm of Greatest of All Time with their consistent attacking exploits — so even with both now in their mid-30s, the prospect of the two GOATs lining up as teammates is mouthwatering.

    Let’s file this one under “unlikely to happen, but would be amazing if it did”.

    Rumours of Messi’s unhappiness had been swirling since Bayern Munich humiliated Barcelona 8-2 in the Champions League quarter-final earlier in August, ending a season that saw the club fail to win any trophies. 

    Following that match, a source told Goal they had never seen Messi so dejected and frustrated, which the Argentine immediately communicated to several club executives. 

  • Athletics Federation of Pakistan invites boy who jumped over 11 motorcycles for further training

    Athletics Federation of Pakistan invites boy who jumped over 11 motorcycles for further training

    The Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP) has invited the aspiring long jumper, whose video went viral on social media, for further training, journalist Faizan Lakhani has shared. The boy, Asif Magsi who hails from Thatta can be seen jumping over 11 motorcycles in the video.

    Federal Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination Dr Fehmida Mirza also shared that the Athletics Federation is in touch with him.

    According to details, AFP President Major General Akram Sahi (retired), who himself was the long jump champion of Pakistan, contacted the 21-year-old and invited him for further training to Lahore.

    Sharing his thoughts on the young talent, General Sahi said: “This is a great moment for me as I was also the champions of Pakistan in the long jump. I am impressed with his talent and he could be a great asset for Pakistan.

    “He has great potential,” he added.

    General Sahi also said that the first question he asked him was if he ever got injured.

    “Thankfully, his answer was no, and I have advised him to stay safe till we meet in Lahore, as I have already invited him.”

    Meanwhile, Asif while speaking to various media outlets said he developed the skill while making Tik Tok videos. He said he wanted to make different videos which have the potential to go viral.

    “I wanted to join the Pakistan Army since childhood. So I started making videos based on national songs, and with each passing day my passion for jumping increased as have my jumps.”

    He said that he aims to set a new world record and make his country proud. The world record for the long jump is currently 8.95 meters while the Asian record is 8.33 meters.

    The video of the boy was originally shared by journalist Mohi Shah and soon went viral on social media. It even caught the attention of multiple Olympic award-winning athlete Carl Lewis, who remarked that “with his lack of fear, he has the perfect mindset”.

    The video also caught the attention of several public personalities including Minister of Maritime Affairs Ali Haider Zaidi, former Governor Sindh Mohammad Zubair and Fahad Mustafa who urged the Sports Board to take notice of the boy and train him.

    Other Twitter users also urged the Sports Board of Pakistan to hone this raw talent.

    Later, a video of the young man jumping over a canal also went viral on social media.

  • Ex-Indian cricketer recalls when ‘shy’ Imran Khan didn’t leave his hotel room to play Holi

    Ex-Indian cricketer recalls when ‘shy’ Imran Khan didn’t leave his hotel room to play Holi

    Former India wicketkeeper Kiran More has recalled the time when Pakistani and Indian cricketers celebrated the festival of Holi together in Bangalore.

    Pakistan toured India in 1986-87 for five Tests and six ODIs, and after the first four Tests ended in a draw, More’s mind harked back to the time when the players from both teams, except then Pakistani skipper and now prime minister (PM), Imran Khan, got together ahead of the final match in Bangalore and “painted the hotel red”.

    “We were really fighting hard for that whole series, but in that Test match, I’ll never forget that Holi we played on the rest day, with the Pakistani team and Indian team,” More said on ‘The Greatest Rivalry‘ podcast.

    “[It was] at Bangalore’s Westin hotel, I still remember. The whole hotel was painted red. The swimming pool, all the rooms, every corner of the hotel was painted red. And we had a great time. Both Pakistani and Indian cricketers were trying to get Imran Khan out of his room. He was the captain, and he was a shy character. We were also trying to get into his room to put colour on him.”

    More further revealed how Javed Miandad kept the party going even after the Holi celebrations were done with. A day before the final Test, players of both teams had a ball, but despite repeated efforts, were unable to get a shy Imran out of his hotel room.

    “He didn’t come out. Javed [Miandad] was instrumental in that Holi time, the whole day, we did Holi together, we had lunch together. Had bhangra music, there were a few friends of ours who joined that party. We had a great time, and next day, we were playing a Test match again,” More added.

    “On the field, both teams wanted to win, and sledging was huge that time from both sides. Off the field, it was a great time that we had. I’ll never forget that Holi.”

  • ‘Sri Lanka sold World Cup 2011 final to India,’ claims former sports minister

    ‘Sri Lanka sold World Cup 2011 final to India,’ claims former sports minister

    Sri Lanka “sold” the 2011 World Cup final to India, the country’s former sports minister said on Thursday, reviving one of cricket’s most explosive match-fixing controversies.

    Mahindananda Aluthgamage, who was sports minister at the time, is the second senior figure to allege the final was fixed, after 1996 World Cup-winning skipper Arjuna Ranatunga.

    “I tell you today that we sold the 2011 World Cup finals,” Aluthgamage told Sirasa TV. “Even when I was sports minister I believed this.”

    Aluthgamage, sports minister from 2010 to 2015 and now state minister for renewable energy and power, said he “did not want to disclose” the plot at the time.

    “In 2011, we were to win, but we sold the match. I feel I can talk about it now. I am not connecting players, but some sections were involved,” he said.

    Sri Lanka lost the match at Mumbai’s Wankhede stadium by six wickets. Indian players have strongly denied any wrongdoing.

    Ranatunga, who was at the stadium as a commentator, has previously called for an investigation into the defeat.

    “When we lost, I was distressed and I had a doubt,” he said in July 2017. “We must investigate what happened to Sri Lanka at the 2011 World Cup final.”

    “I cannot reveal everything now, but one day I will. There must be an inquiry,” added Ranatunga, who said players could not hide the “dirt”.

    Sri Lanka batted first and scored 274-6 off 50 overs. They appeared in a commanding position when Indian superstar Sachin Tendulkar was out for 18.

    But India turned the game dramatically, thanks partly to poor fielding and bowling by Sri Lanka, who were led by Kumar Sangakkara.

    Sri Lankan cricket has regularly been involved in corruption controversies, including claims of match-fixing ahead of a 2018 Test against England.

    Earlier this month, the Sri Lankan cricket board said the International Cricket Council (ICC) was investigating three unnamed former players over alleged corruption.

    Sri Lanka introduced tough penalties for match-fixing and tightened sports betting restrictions in November in a bid to stamp out graft.

    Another former sports minister, Harin Fernando, has said Sri Lankan cricket was riddled with graft “from top to bottom”, and that the ICC considered Sri Lanka one of the world’s most corrupt nations.

    Former Sri Lankan fast bowler Dilhara Lokuhettige was suspended in 2018 for corruption relating to a limited-overs league.

    He was the third Sri Lankan charged under the ICC anti-corruption code, following former captain and ex-chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya, and former paceman Nuwan Zoysa.

    Jayasuriya was found guilty of failing to cooperate with a match-fixing probe and banned for two years. Zoysa was suspended for match-fixing.