Tag: PCB

  • PSL 5 opening ceremony to cost Rs210 million

    The opening ceremony of the fifth edition of the Habib Bank Limited (HBL) Pakistan Super League (PSL) will cost around Rs210 million, as the cricketing tournament, unlike its previous editions, is held entirely in Pakistan.

    According to Cricket Pakistan, the colorful and extravagant opening ceremony will be held at National Stadium in Karachi, following which Quetta Gladiators and Islamabad United will play the first match of the tournament.

    The two are also the only teams guaranteed to be at the event as according to Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials, the teams that are scheduled to compete the following day will not be able to take part in the opening ceremony where popular local singers, including Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Abrarul Haq, Sajad Ali, Sanam Maarwi, Aima Baig, Abu Mohammad, Fareed Ayaz and Soch band are expected to perform.

    Contrary to PCB officials’ statement, Peshawar Zalmi management has said that the team would also be present at the stadium.

    QUETTA VS ISLAMABAD:

    Led by former Pakistan skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed, Gladiators will look to kick off the fifth edition of the tournament with a bang.

    Despite the fact that the new of teenage pace sensation, Naseem Shah, is out of at least two matches of the tournament, the Gladiators, with a host of international and local players, will be a force to be reckoned with this season.

    With top run-scorer Shane Watson and his Australian counterpart Ben Cutting, along with England’s Jason Roy and fast bowlers Tymal Mills and Windies Keemo Paul, the Quetta-based franchise will want to start the tournament with a win.

    Among the national players are batsmen Ahmed Shehzad, Khurram Manzoor and Sarfaraz, and bowlers Sohail Khan, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz.

    They will be without the services of middle-order batsman Umar Akmal who was banned by Pakistan Cricket Board from participating in domestic tournaments on Thursday. 

    Taking on the Gladiators will be two-time champions Islamabad United, led by leg-spinner Shadab Khan. Adding to the mix is South African pacer Dale Steyn who joins his Proteas team-mate Colin Ingram. Luke Ronchi, Colin Munro, Phil Salt and Dawid Malan make up the remaining international players for United.

    Not to be left behind are the national superstars Asif Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Muhammad Musa, Rumman Raees and Hussain Talat, who just might give United the edge to lift up a third PSL title this year.

    The match between Quetta Gladiators and Islamabad United starts at 7 pm.

  • Daren Sammy’s honorary Pakistani citizenship request sent to President Alvi

    Daren Sammy’s honorary Pakistani citizenship request sent to President Alvi

    Daren Sammy, one of the first cricketers who agreed to play the PSL 2 final in Pakistan in 2017, might just get honorary Pakistani citizenship. The owner of the PSL team Peshawar Zalmi, Javed Afridi, requested the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board to help get his team captain a green passport.

    Sammy, who is active on Twitter, tweeted about how great it was to be back in Pakistan

    “We requested honorary citizenship for Daren Sammy and it is almost on the table of president,” Afridi said during the unveiling of PSL 2020 trophy in Karachi. Afridi also said that the request might be approved if the PCB Chairman pushes for it or ‘makes a phone call’.

    Afridi also said that he has Sammy’s voice notes that are, ‘too emotional for Pakistan”. A formal request has been made to the President and a decision is pending.

    Sammy is often referred to as ‘Daren Sammy Khan’ because of his loyalty to the team from Peshawar.

    Recently he tweeted in Urdu using google translate which got him into some fun trouble.

    Sammy has played international cricket for the West Indies and is a two time T20 World Cup winning captain. He plays as a right-handed batsman and a fast-medium bowler. 

  • ‘PCB owes me Rs40-60 million,’ report quotes Younis Khan as saying

    Former national cricket team captain Younis Khan has claimed that Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) owes him Rs40 million [Rs4 crores] to Rs60 million [Rs6 crores], but he is ready to join forces with them and work towards the betterment of the sport in Pakistan.

    Khan, who is the country’s all-time leading run-getter in Tests, also said that he had never asked for money from the board as “it had never been an issue”. “In terms of money, PCB owes me 4-6 crore rupees if you look back. But I have never demanded money, money is never an issue,” he reportedly said.

    “It’s destiny from Allah, you get what is destined for you so you should never run after money, I never ran after money and have always been willing to work with PCB. I was one of the few players who retired and left, players rarely do that. I have 17-18 years of services for Pakistan and PCB.”

    “I don’t know why we can’t come on board together. I played cricket so I want to help in the field of cricket. Why we don’t come on board… perhaps PCB doesn’t change or Younis Khan doesn’t change.”

    “I don’t think anyone in Pakistan would be so personal that he wouldn’t want to work with Younis Khan. Even if I was a big critic of Younis Khan, I would like to still work with Younis Khan. What things are there with my demeanour or what is it with PCB that doesn’t allow us to come on one page,” he added.

     The statement was also tweeted by renowned sports journalist Saj Sadiq, who is also the editor of the media outlet that reported it.

    Younis also reportedly gave his thumbs up to the work done by head coach cum chief selector Misbahul Haq, whom he claims has gotten Pakistan cricket team back on track.

  • 2019: Blunders & Pakistan Cricket

    The year 2019 has seen many questionable calls by Pakistan cricket managemnet, including several mistakes and blunders, Geo News reported,

    The departing year had the Pakistan Super League (PSL), the World Cup and a home Test series after a long drought of ten years. The year saw a plenty of action but at the same time it saw the equal amount of mistakes as well.

    The contributers of these mistakes not only included the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), the cricket management, but the captain(s) — former and present — as well as the players.

    Fakhar Zaman’s presence in the team, despite poor form

    Everyone, except the cricket board selectors knew that the opener Fakhar Zaman had been out of form since the summer of 2018. Over a 26-game block before the World Cup (WC) 2019, the average score of the batsman was 29.34 runs. Despite having knowledge of the stats and clear signs that the left-handed was not performing well, the board went into the WC with just him and Imam-ul-Haq as their only two openers.

    Fakhar performed even worse and averaged even less at the tournament, with his 23.25 runs per innings often leaving Pakistan team short of a solid opening foundation which in-turn placed unwanted pressure on the middle-order to make up.

    Trusting Misbah with dual role

    Despite having much bigger and better cricketing setups, Australia, India and England had neither thought of ditching their chief selector and handing the additinoal job to their team’s head coach. But PCB still went for it.

    The move was criticised by many who considered it to be an ill-thought decision and the board weeks after former captain’s appointment itself realised that he would need a coordinator as well.

    PCB later appointed former Test spinner Nadeem Khan as the Coordinator of the National Selection Committee following a recruitment process.

    Sarfaraz Ahmed’s ill-timed replacement

    After Pakistan teams poor performance in the World Cup and failing to even qualify for the semi-finals, the cricket board brought many changes in the team after the tournament except for the captain Sarfaraz Ahmed. Replacing Sarfaraz then would have made more sense at the time but PCB flinched and missed the opportunity.

    Later in October 2019, once the time had passed, the board eventually decided to go for it. It was clear that Sarfaraz had been sacked after severe criticism from the team and the public which he received after the defeat from the hands of Sri Lankan team.

    The sacking in October was then termed unjustified and criticised by many as an ill-timed move.

    Naseem Shah’s selection for Australia tour

    The board selected fast-bowler Naseem Shah in the Pakistan squad for the first time against Australia knowing that the talented Mohammad Asif had earlier struggled alot on his debut tour of Australia. Yet, the 16-year-old pacer and the 19-year-old Muhammad Musa were picked against a stronger english side.

    Choosing Haris Sohail over in-form Fawad Alam

    PCB selected Fawad Alam for Sri Lanka Test series after his excellent performance and multiple centuries in the domestic tournament. The decision was lauded by cricket lovers but sadly, he was not picked in either of the two Test matches.

    Instead, the board retained out of form Haris Sohail, saying that he can also bowl. Sohail bowled a grand total of 10 overs over two Tests and scored a small amount of nine runs on the only occasions he got to bat.

  • Aleem Dar breaks world record of umpiring in most Tests

    Aleem Dar breaks world record of umpiring in most Tests

    Pakistani umpire Aleem Dar has surpassed Steve Bucknor’s record for umpiring in most number of Test matches as he walked on to the field to officiate his 129th Test match between Australia and New Zealand at Perth, a private news outlet has reported.

    According to the details, the 51-year-old, who took up umpiring after a decade of playing first class cricket in Pakistan is standing in his 129th Test match as on-field umpire breaking Bucknor’s record of umpiring 128 test matches.

    Dar first umpired in a Test match in Bangladesh when England toured the country in 2003 and he also needs only two more ODIs to break former South African umpire, Rudi Koertzen’s record of umpiring in 209 ODI matches.

    Dar made his international debut in 2000 in a home ODI against Sri Lanka and has also officiated 46 T20Is in his career which spans over 2 decades.

    Talking to the ICC before the match, Dar said, “This is one milestone I had never thought of when I began my umpiring career. It is a truly amazing feeling and a high point of my life when I take the field here in Australia”.

    “Steve Bucknor was my idol and it is only sinking in now that I will have officiated in more Test matches than him”, Dar added.

  • ‘Misbah was made chief selector, coach on Maulana Tariq Jamil’s recommendation’

    Pakistani journalist Sohail Warraich has claimed that Misbahul Haq was given the role of both chief selector and head coach on the recommendation of famous religious scholar Maulana Tariq Jamil.

    The journalist has made these claims in his latest column, in which he has said that no one in this country knows cricket better than Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan and claimed that every change in Pakistan cricket is happening on PM Imran’s order.

    Sohail said that Maulana Tariq Jamil is one of Pakistan’s most loved personality and rejecting his orders is considered as a grave sin, therefore PM Imran while honouring his love with Maulana Tariq “gave these responsibilities to Misbah”.

    Warraich further claimed that batsman Babar Azam was made the captain of cricket team on Imran Khan’s order.

    “Khan appointed Misbah as coach and chief selector and Babaq Azam as team’s captain, but he [Imran] shouldn’t be held responsible for their poor performance”, Sohail added.

    Earlier, Pakistan Tehreeke Insaf (PTI) Senator Faisal Javed had said that PM Imran Khan will now focus on improving sports, especially cricket.

    “The premier could not concentrate on cricket earlier as he was focused on stabilising the economy and strengthening the institutions, which were in shambles”, reports quoted Faisal Javed as saying.

    The statement from the senator came after Pakistan cricket team’s poor performance against Australia and Srilanka in Test and T20 series, respectively.

  • Sindh High Court reminds PCB of players’ sheesha controversy, seeks answer

    Sindh High Court reminds PCB of players’ sheesha controversy, seeks answer

    The Sindh High Court (SHC) has resent a notice to Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on a petition regarding its inaction against former national team skipper Shoaib Malik and other cricketers for violating team rules, Geo News reported. 

    Prior to a crucial match against arch-rivals India at the World Cup 2019, batsman Malik was snapped at a cafe in London along with two other players — Wahab Riaz and Imamul Haq, as an unidentified person consumed sheesha on their table. 

    According to the details, petitioner Abdul Jalil Marwat had claimed that the players were spotted consuming sheesha at a cafe in England the night before the match with India on June 16. 

    He further alleged that Malik, Wahab and Imam performed poorly, perhaps as a result of their disregard for rules and regulations, which resulted in Pakistan’s loss.

    After the cricket board had failed to take any action against these players, Marwat had requested the court to direct the PCB to explain why the players were not punished for violating the team management rules and regulations.

    A division bench of the high court, headed by Justice Mohammad Ali Mazhar, observed that no one had appeared in court on behalf of the PCB despite the issuance of notice.

    The court has now resent the notice to PCB through a district and sessions judge in Lahore and adjourned the hearing of the case till a later date that is yet to be determined. 

  • Sarfaraz sacked on PM Imran’s order: report

    Sarfaraz sacked on PM Imran’s order: report

    Pakistan cricket team’s wicket-keeper batsman and former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed was removed from his position on direct orders from Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, Cricket Pakistan reported.

    According to the details, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) wanted to retain Sarfaraz Ahmed in the same role till the T20 World Cup next year, however, Imran Khan was unhappy with him and forced the decision of his eventual removal.

    Not only this but PCB had earlier also blamed PM Imran for nullifying the No Objection Certificates (NOCs) granted to its players to feature in the upcoming T10 League.

    When players protested against the decision, they were told that the instruction had come from the PM’s office.

    Moreover, according to website ESPNcricinfo, PM Imran had instructed PCB Chairman Ehsan Mani to avoid the T10 League due to the involvement of Indian owners and financial benefactors. The same report cited a probable mutiny by the players in this regard as well.

    Reports further reveal that a PCB official leaked the news to media personnel so that the government could be blamed for the decision. The Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) is also unhappy with the attitude of the PCB on this matter.

    In this regard, the International Cricket Council (ICC) might also begin investigations to find out if the government is influencing PCB’s decisions.

  • PCB announces probables for Pak-Sri Lanka series

    PCB announces probables for Pak-Sri Lanka series

    Head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq has named 20 probables for the training camp, which will commence at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore from Wednesday.

    In a press release, PCB has announced that the camp is being set-up to prepare the side for the upcoming ODI and T20I series against Sri Lanka, which will be held from 27 September to 9 October.

    Sarfaraz Ahmed has been retained as captain for the series, while Babar Azam has been named as vice-captain.

    The appointments were confirmed by PCB Chairman Ehsan Mani, following the recommendations made by Misbah-ul-Haq and the PCB Cricket Committee.

    Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik have not been named in the probables as they have been granted NOC until 12 October to participate in the Caribbean Premier League.

    Following are the names of the Probables:

    Sarfaraz Ahmed (captain), Babar Azam (vice-captain), Abid Ali, Ahmed Shehzad, Asif Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Sohail, Hasan Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan, Umar Akmal, Usman Shinwari and Wahab Riaz.

  • Najam Sethi trolls Imran Khan with ‘Relukata’ tweet

    Najam Sethi trolls Imran Khan with ‘Relukata’ tweet

    Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Najam Sethi has trolled Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan after it was reported that various Sri Lankan players had opted out of the proposed Sri Lanka tour of Pakistan.

    Sethi took to Twitter to mock PM Imran for his comments on international players who took part in the Habib Bank Limited (HBL) Pakistan Super League (PSL) in 2017.

    “Imran Khan should guide the PCB on how to make sure Sri Lanka doesn’t send a “Relukata” team to Pakistan!” Sethi tweeted.

    The former chairman was highly crticised in 2017 for bringing in second tier players for the HBL PSL final which was held in Lahore.

    Adding to the criticism Imran Khan called the international players ‘phateechar’, ‘rallukatta’ and ‘from Africa’. The former World Cup winning captain believed that these second tier players could have been called to play in the country regardless of the security conditions.

    These terms used by Imran Khan were classified as derogatory and racist during the time and he also received massive backlash for the comments and had to justify his stance accordingly.

    Sethis’s remarks come at a time when the PCB is still striving to get international cricketers to play in Pakistan.