October five marks the birthday of Prime Minister Imran Khan, one of the most loved former cricketer in the history.
Imran Khan has fans around the world, as his stardom isn’t limited to Pakistan alone. Cricketing legends admire him for the skipper he was, leading Pakistan to its first and only ‘World Cup’ victory back in 1992.
Imran Khan was born in Lahore in 1952, October 5, 2021 marks his 69th birthday. Pakistan has been avidly wishing its leader, while celebrities also wished their PM.
Pakistan T20 World Cup team met Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday. The cricketers were motivated after having a pep-talk with the premier.
Taking to their social media, Pakistani cricketers expressed their joy at meeting Imran Khan.
“Had a great meeting with the PM. Always a pleasure to learn from legend of the game himself,” wrote the captain of Pakistan cricket team Babar Azam on Twitter.
Mohammad Hafeez took to his Twitter and wrote: “Always inspirational to meet my Hero & PM of our country @ImranKhanPTI. Pakistan Zindabad.”
“An absolute pleasure to have attended a meeting with Prime Minister,” wrote pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi.
Hassan Ali wrote: “A great and much needed meeting with Pakistan’s greatest cricket hero of all-times. Thank you honourable prime minister @ImranKhanPTI for your time and the words of motivation. Pleasure meeting you always.”
While the PM also took to Instagram to share a picture of their meeting.
Pakistan captain Babar Azam praised his teammate and experienced batsman Fawad Alam after his side defeated West Indies by 109 runs in the second Test to level the two-match series.
Taking to Twitter, he wrote: “A remarkable victory to draw the series. Absolutely brilliant game from @iShaheenAfridi, @iamfawadalam25, and @RealHa55an. Most importantly everyone from the team chipped in and tried to give their best. More power to you guys!”
Fawad had scored an unbeaten 124 in the first innings of the Test to help Pakistan recover from 2/3 and post 309/9 in the first innings. Fawad’s inning was also backed by Babar who had scored 75.
In a post-match statement released to the media, the Pakistan captain said that his partnership with Fawad laid the foundation for Pakistan’s success in the game.
He also hailed the 35-year-old batsman and advised that all batsmen in the team should learn from him.
“It was a great team effort specially after losing quick wickets on day one. Fawad and I managed to fight back through our partnership and then Shaheen Shah bowled outstandingly to put pressure on West Indies. We played according to our plan in the second innings and added quick runs to take advantage of the last session on day 4,” Babar said in the presentation ceremony.
“Fawad Alam is an experienced player. He has scored tons of runs in first class cricket. He has handled the conditions and pressure well and set an example for all batsmen. We all must learn from him. He has proved himself which is an outstanding thing,” the Pakistan captain added.
Babar also praised young fast bowler Shaheen Shah, saying that the 21-year-old left-arm fast bowler is improving every day and showing great confidence.
“I am lucky to have a bowler like him in my squad,” he said.
“Winning a match always give you confidence as a captain. The players gave their 100 per cent and remained confident throughout the Test,” said Babar.
Pakistani fast bowler Hassan Ali has praised Arshad Nadeem for qualifying for the Javelin Throw event’s final in the ongoing Tokyo Olympics 2020.
Speaking to reporters via an online link on Wednesday, Hassan said that Arshad is the pride of Pakistan and he will reward him for winning the Olympics medal.
“I am happy for Arshad and tweeted on his achievement. He is the real face of Pakistan as he reached Olympics from a small town in Pakistan. I will give a reward to him if he wins a Gold medal in the event,” he said.
Arshad will be participating for the final contest on August 7.
Pakistani cricketers have extended best wishes to the national contingent taking part in the Tokyo Olympics.
The quadrennial sporting extravaganza, initially scheduled for summer 2020, started on Friday with an opening ceremony without spectators due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Hasnain, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shadab Khan, and Shaheen Shah Afridi and women team’s all-rounders Aliya Riaz and Nida Dar gave their encouragement and support to their fellow national athletes who would be vying for glory in nine different events.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) released a video with messages of the seven men and two women players.
Wishing good luck to the Tokyo Olympics contingent, all-rounder Aliya Riaz said: “Please enjoy yourself and give it your best shot; we are all behind you.”
All-rounder Nida Dar said she was rooting for Pakistani athletes as it was a big occasion for them and vowed to give them all the support they needed.
“I am backing the Pakistan Tokyo Olympics contingent to do well in the biggest sporting extravaganza. It is a big occasion for these athletes; we would be giving them all the support they need and would follow their progress,” she said.
Especially wishing Mahoor Shahzad, Bisma Khan, and Arshad Nadeem the best of luck, former skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed hoped the athletes would bring glory to the country.
“I want to wish Pakistan’s Tokyo Olympics contingent the very best. My best wishes are with all the athletes, especially Mahoor Shahzad, Bisma Khan, and Arshad Nadeem. I am sure you all will give it your best to bring glory to the country,” Sarfaraz said.
Shadab Khan, expressing his support, said: “My best wishes are with all the athletes who are representing Pakistan in the Tokyo Olympics. Go well.”
“Good luck to the entire Pakistan Tokyo Olympics contingent, especially Shah Hussain and Talha Talib,” pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi said.
Wishing the best for the athletes, Faheem Ashraf said: “My best wishes are with Pakistani athletes competing in the Tokyo Olympics. Good luck and go well.”
Batsman Fakhar Zaman said: “I want to wish the very best to Pakistan’s Tokyo Olympics contingent, especially Mahoor Shahzad and Najma Parveen.”
Asking the players to enjoy themselves while they are out there and assuring that the whole country was backing them, Hasan Ali expressed his confidence in the contingent.
“My best wishes are with our Tokyo Olympics contingent. Please […] enjoy yourself and give your best. The entire country is backing you,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mohammad Hasnain added: “My best wishes are with the athletes and officials representing Pakistan in the Tokyo Olympics, especially Arshad Nadeem and Bisma Khan.”
Pakistan athletes would be competing in 200 metre Athletics, Badminton – Women Singles, Judo – 100 Kg, Shooting – 10 metre Air Pistol, Swimming 100 metre Freestyle Men’s and 50 metre Women’s, and 67kg Weightlifting.
Pakistan’s last Olympics medal was the bronze the national hockey team achieved in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. The last individual medal was the bronze grabbed by boxer Hussain Shah in the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
Pakistan Tokyo Olympics contingent (athletes):
Arshad Nadeem – Javelin Throw
Bisma Khan — Swimming 50 metre Freestyle women
Ghulam Mustafa Bashir — Rapid Fire Pistol 25 metre
Gulfam Joseph — Shooting 10 metre Air Pistol
Mahoor Shahzad — Badminton Women’s Singles
Muhammad Khalil Akhtar — Rapid Fire Pistol 25 metre
Najma Parveen — Athletics 200 metres
Shah Hussain Shah — Judo 100 Kg
Syed Muhammad Haseeb Khan — Swimming 100 metre Freestyle Men’s
Talha Talib — Weightlifting 67kg
Younis Khan has finally broken his silence on a feud with Hassan Ali.
According to reports, Khan said Ali had apologised to him after their heated exchange of words, and that the two had moved past the incident.
“Hassan Ali apologised to me, and I had forgiven him,” Younis Khan said in a statement. “To play up the Hassan Ali incident [and use it] as a possible reason for my resignation comes as a surprise to me,” he added.
Speaking about his resignation, Khan said he had kept silent over the matter in the larger interest of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and Pakistani cricket. Khan clarified that it was PCB’s Strength and Conditioning Coach Yasir Malik who had requested him to speak to Hassan Ali about taking an ice bath.
“I have never looked towards the PCB for a job or for any position,” he said. “I was approached for the position [of batting coach] by the Board,” added the former batsman.
Senior Pakistan sports reporter Saj Sadiq tweeted about the spat between Younis Khan and Hassan Ali a few days ago, stating that a verbal fight between the two took place when Ali refused to take an ice bath as suggested by Khan.
As per Sadiq, the altercation got to the point where the two had to be separated by coaching staff members and other team players.
A day earlier, Sadiq spoke more about the incident, saying that Khan had allegedly locked himself in a room and refused to talk to Ali, even after the fast bowler had apologised to him.
The news of the heated exchange between the two was reported after Khan stepped down from his position as batting coach a few days ago.
Younis Khan, who recently resigned from the post of batting coach in Pakistan’s men’s cricket team, was reportedly involved in a heated exchange with star pacer Hassan Ali during the South Africa tour, sports journalist Saleem Khaliq reported.
As per details, Younis had approached Hasan over a matter outside his domain in the dressing room after the match, but the latter hit back with a strong response which left the former batting coach unhappy. Younis also remained quiet and reserved during the rest of the tour, after the incident.
No comment has been made by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on the matter yet, while Younis has not shared anything about the incident either.
PCB and Younis, on June 22, mutually agreed to part ways. A dental treatment and strained relationship between Younis Khan and the top PCB officials was the reason behind the former’s resignation as the batting coach of the Men in Green.
Younis was also allegedly accused of leaking team lineups to his friends in the media before matches.
Khan, along with former wicketkeeper Rashid Latif, made a special appearance on ARY News’ popular program ‘Har Lamha Purjosh’, where he recounted the events that took place in the dressing room during his tenure as captain in 2009 and how they used to say that the cricketer is very rude.
Rashid, while endorsing Khan’s position, revealed that the former players had a big hand in grouping the team against him.
Islamabad United have received a boost in their challenge for the PSL title this season with the news that fast bowler Hasan Ali will, after all, be available for the rest of their campaign. Ali was due to fly back on Sunday evening to attend to a personal family situation in Pakistan but decided against it after the matter was resolved.
“I was going through a personal family issue, which has been resolved thanks to my wonderful wife,” Ali said in a statement. “She assured me she will take care of it and wants me to concentrate on my cricket and my career. Hats off to such a wonderful partner. She has always stood by me through the hardest times and after consulting with her, I have decided to stay on with Islamabad United for the remainder of the PSL 6.”
Two-time winners United moved to the top of the table on Sunday evening after a convincing win over Lahore Qalandars. United were 20 for 5 at one point before recovering to 152 for 7, thanks to 75 from Asif Ali and 49 from Iftikhar Ahmed. Their bowlers then blew apart Qalandars as Musa Khan, Shadab Khan and Fawad Ahmed induced a collapse from 86 for 2 to 100 for 9.
Despite missing a game, Ali is United’s top wicket-taker this season – and fifth in the league – with 10 wickets. His PSL returns have been in line with his performances since he returned to cricket this season after a series of injuries derailed his career.
Since Ali didn’t leave the bubble, he will not need to re-enter and undergo quarantine. United are scheduled to face defending champions Karachi Kings on Monday.
Babar Azam has become the first Pakistan captain to win his first four Tests as skipper as they swept the series against Zimbabwe 2-0 in Harare Sports Club on Monday.
Azam lauded his players after they completed a successful southern Africa tour with a second straight innings victory over Zimbabwe then looked ahead to his team’s planned tour of the West Indies in July.
It took Pakistan five overs to take the remaining Zimbabwe wicket to seal a win by an innings and 147 runs on the fourth day of the second Test. With the win, Azam also became the first Pakistan captain to win his first four Tests as skipper.
Shaheen Shah Afridi had Luke Jongwe caught behind for 37 to complete a five-wicket haul. He took five for 52.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Babar said his players had shown character and he was particularly pleased with the performance of the batsmen, especially man-of-the-match Abid Ali, who scored 215 not out in Pakistan’s only innings.
Abid, with his unbeaten double ton, received the Player of the Match award.
Hassan Ali bagged Player of the Series award, after taking 14 wickets at an average of just 8.92.
“The partnership between Abid and Azhar Ali was crucial,” he said. Azhar scored 126 in a second-wicket stand of 236.
“The confidence of our batsmen will be high and we have an important series in the West Indies coming up,” said Babar.
Meanwhile, Azam has been declared Player of the Month by the International Cricket Council (ICC) following his stunning performance in the ODI series against South Africa.
Pakistan is due to play three Tests and three T20 Internationals (T20Is) in the Caribbean.
Pakistan bowled Zimbabwe out for 134 to register a win in the first Test by an innings and 116 runs. They go 1-0 up in the two-Test series.
Pakistan demolished Zimbabwe for the second time in three days just over half an hour after tea. Zimbabwe lasted all of 105.3 overs in the match while Pakistan batted 133 in their only innings.
Zimbabwean openers went on scoring 36/0 before walking out for lunch. Kasuzu was not out for 21 whereas Tarisai Musakanda remained not out for 14.
Returning from lunch, Zimbabwe started losing wickets with Hasan taking charge. The proceedings started with Hasan bagging Kevin Kasuza at 48. Tarisai Musakanda scored 48 before being run out.
Brendan Taylor tried hard to rescue his team but he managed to score just 29 runs. Regis Chakabva made 14.
Earlier, Fawad Alam got out for an unbeaten 140 that led Pakistan to gain the 250-runs lead against hosts.
Resuming Day 3 at 374-6, Pakistan lost Hasan Ali and Nauman Ali in quick succession to suffer at 395-8. Hasan scored 30 runs off 26 balls with the help of three boundaries and two sixes.
Sajid Khan got out after scoring 7 runs whereas Fawad ended his long run at 140 off 204 balls laced with 20 boundaries. Pakistan added 48 runs on Day 3 finishing their turn at 426-10.
Blessing Muzarabani bagged four wickets while Donald Tiripano took three wickets for Zimbabwe. Richard Ngarava took two wickets while Tendai Chisoro managed to take a wicket.
Meanwhile, Hassan managed to get nine wickets in the match, scores his fourth Test five-for and completed 50 Test wickets in just 12 matches. He also bagged Player of the Match award for his extraordinary performance.