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PCB Hunts Down On Pakistan Superstars Playing In USA; Takes Harsh Steps
Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Round-up: September 27-30
Pujara's concentration level and focus at the crease are one of the best: Rizwan
Rizwan compared Pujara's patience and determination to the likes of Younis Khn and Fawad Alam
Kane Williamson to lead ICC Test team of the year, three Indians including Pant make the XI
The International Cricket Council on Thursday announced the ICC Test team of the year 2021 and three Indians including Rishabh Pant, Rohit Sharma and Ravichandran Ashwin were selected in the playing xi. Apart from India, Pakistan also had three representatives in the team and New Zealand had two and one each from Australia, England and Sri Lanka completed the team. Sri Lanka’s skipper Dimuth Karunaratne, who scored 902 runs in 7 matches at an average of 69.38 with four centuries will open the innings alongside India’s Rohit Sharma who hit 906 runs in the calendar year at an average of 47.68 with two centuries. At number three the ICC have chosen Aussie Marnus Labuschagne who cemented his place at number three in the year gone by. The 27-year-old who finished 2021 at the top of the charts of the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings for batting, hit 526 runs in 5 matches at an average of 65.75 with two centuries. The position at number four will be taken by the highest run-scorer of this calendar year and the third-highest ever, Joe Root. The England skipper might not have desired results as a captain and team but personally, it was a great year for him. He scored 1708 runs in 15 matches at an average of 61 and also hit six tons. New Zealand skipper and winner of the inaugural ICC World Test Championship, Kane Williamson has been chosen as the leader of this pack. Not only as a leader but as a player also Williamson was on the mark in whatever little that he plated this year. The Kiwi scored 395 runs in 4 matches at an average of 65.83 with one century. Pakistan’s Fawad Alam was the only batter from that side to have made it to the Test team of the year. At the age of 36, Alam was at his very best this year, scoring 571 runs in 9 matches at an average of 57.10 with three centuries. The wicketkeeper of the team is India’s, Rishabh Pant. among all choices available, he only had tough competition from Mohammad Rizwan as the rest of the wicketkeepers didn’t really perform well. In total, the 24-year-old scored 748 runs in 12 matches at an average of 39.36 with one memorable ton against England at Ahmedabad. He also had to his kitty 39 dismissals in 23 innings, with his glovework continuing to improve. With seven proper batters, the team also has four quality bowlers with Ravichandran Ashwin being the lone spinner. Ashwin was in top form this year, scalping 54 wickets in 9 matches at an average of 16.64. Apart from his brilliant work with the bat, Ashwin was also very handy with the bat and chipped in with 355 runs at an average of 25.35. The other bowler in the side who could handle the willow well is New Zealand’s latest fast bowling sensation Kyle Jamieson. The tall fast bowler, who was also Player of the Match in the WTC Final, picked up 27 wickets in 5 matches at an average of 17.51. He also scored 105 runs at an average of 17.50. The other two bowlers are the Pakistani pace duo of Hasan Ali and Shaheen Afridi. While Hasan picked up 41 wickets in 9 matches including his career-best bowling figures in a match of 10/114. On the other hand, Afridi picked up 47 wickets in 9 matches at an average of 17.06, including three five-wicket hauls. ICC Test team of the year 2021 Dimuth Karunaratne (SL), Rohit Sharma (IND), Marnus Labuschagne (AUS), Joe Root (ENG), Kane Williamson (c) (NZ), Fawad Alam (PAK), Rishabh Pant (wk) (IND), Ravichandran Ashwin (IND), Kyle Jamieson (NZ), Hasan Ali (PAK), Shaheen Afridi (PAK)
BAN vs PAK | 2nd Test: Bangladesh reel at 25-4 as Sajid cleans up top order
The second Test match between Bangladesh and Pakistan has been in the limelight mainly because of the persistent rain which had not allowed the play to go on for a larger period of time. However, on day four, things changed drastically as Pakistan declared their innings at 300-4 and invited Bangladesh to play crucial 10 overs before Tea. The declaration did the trick as Sajid Kahan made use of the turning wicket and removed the two Bangladesh openers in Shadman Islam and debutant Mahmudul Hasan Joy. While Islam made three runs, Joy would now have to carry the burden of being out on a duck in his debut international innings. Skipper Mominul Haque who failed in both innings of the first Test continued to dwell in bad form as he was run out two just before Tea. Just at the time of writing this copy, the Tigers lost their oldest warhorse in Mushfiqur Rahim who literally threw his wicket away. Rahim tried to go for an extravagant slog sweep and handed a simple above head catch to Fawad Alam at mid-wicket. In only 14 overs, Bangladesh are now 42-4 with Najmul Hussain Shanto and last match hero Liton Das at the crease. Earlier in the day, both Babar Azam and Azhar Ali, the overnight batters were removed by Khaled Ahmed and Ebadot Hussain respectively. But Fawad Alam and Mohammad Rizwan, the two men that joined afterwards made sure that runs flew swiftly and took Pakistan to 300, picking their respective fifties on the way while remaining unbeaten.
All Pakistani batsmen must learn perseverance from Fawad Bhai: Babar Azam
Pakistani skipper Babar Azam credited veteran Fawad Alam for the win that the team registered in the second last Test of the two-match series against West Indies at Sobaina Park in Jamaica. He lauded the spirit of the cricketer who tiled in domestic cricket for a long time before proving his potential at the highest level. “I always say this about Fawad Bhai that he is an experienced player and has scored a lot of runs in First class, around 10,000, which is huge. The way he applied himself under such tough conditions and so much pressure and built his innings was outstanding,” Bar said in a video uploaded by the Pakistan cricket Board on their official Twitter handle. “All the batsmen must learn from him the way he has shown his potential and proved himself on the big stage,” added the 25-year-old. Fawad Alam came to bat at such a situation where the team was three down for only two runs on the board. He worked with Babar himself and with a hundred, got the team to a position from where they could fight. Lauding the team for its performance, Babar revealed the plans of the unit to get West indies out as quickly as possible in the first innings and then make them play the last few overs on day four of the Test having lost one day to rain already. “It’s an effort of the whole team. We lost early wickets and then me and Fawad Bhai put on a good partnership and thankfully we finished around 320. After that, the way Shaheen Shah bowled, was outstanding. We pushed them on the backfoot and that was the plan,” said Babar. “Then when we batted in the third innings, we had at the back of our minds that we must make West Indies bat the last 20-25 overs on the fourth day and we did so,” the skipper revealed further saying that this move helped them on the final day of the Test. With the help of Nauman Ali and Shaheen’s bowling efforts, Pakistan were able to bowl out the Windies batting lineup and thereby win the Test by 109 runs to level the series 1-1. “We benefitted a lot from that move as we could bowl the whole fifth day to them and were able to get them all out,” said Babar.
Son, you will score a century today: Fawad Alam credits mom’s blessings for Sabina Park ton
Whan Fawad Alam got the hundred by pulling a bouncer from Kyle Mayers towards the square leg boundary, it was his fifth Test century in Test cricket and fourth in a span of just eight Tests and 10 months. Crediting his mother for her blessing, Fawad said it was because of his parents that he has been able to fight it out and never give up on the dream to play for Pakistan again. “First of all, I would like to inform all that my mom called before the start of the first day of this second Test. It was eight am here and six pm back home, and she just said in Urdu, ‘Jao aaj tum century banaoge’, today you will score a century,” Fawad said in a video uploaded by the Pakistan Cricket Board on their official Twitter handle. “So I don’t know what got into her, but I guess it’s all because of her blessings,” he added. But it wasn’t only his mother said the 35-year-old as he went on to describe a chant he had with his father on the same day. “I also talked to my father on the and he said, ‘West Indies me bhi ek dafa ball lehrao yaar’ ‘make a century in the West Indies too man’. So you know, these feelings that you get from your loved ones, these are very strong feelings,” he said. Fawad, who is now the 23rd Pakistan player to make five-Test centuries and the fastest among them all to do so, said, “When you have the blessings of your parents, especially your mother, you sail through all obstacles no matter what.” The southpaw after playing his first three Tests way back in 2009, didn’t get a chance to feature in another Test for Pakistan until 2020. Talking about his motivation during such times, Fawad said, “My father had been cricketer during his time and knew about the ups and downs of a sportsperson’s career. So he helped me in having a levelled head.” “There are others too who kept on encouraging me. They never said that your tome is up, they kept on saying, keep playing your time will come, and Inshallah it has worked,” Fawad continued. Talking about his unique celebration style which is inspired by the Turkish show Ertuğrul Gazi, Fawad said, “When I and Azhar Ali were playing a four-day match in New Zealand, then we decided on our celebrations that we would do if we scored a century in the New Zealand series. Luckily I did and hence the celebration has carried on from there. It is the victory sign of Gazi as you know.”
WI vs PAK | Day 3 - Fawad Alam’s calm, Shaheen Afridi’s aggression puts Pakistan in commanding position
The day might have taken a lot of time to get going with wet outfield playing party pooper at Sabina Park in Jamaica on Day three of the second Test between West Indies and Pakistan. But once it did get going, Pakistan over all over it. Thanks to an unbeaten 124 from Fawad Alam, who came to bat once again after being retired hurt for on Day one and Shaheen Afridi’s ferocious spell in West Indies’ first innings, Babar Azam’s men ended the third day in a commanding position, leading by 263 runs with West Indies reeling at 39-3 in reply Pakistan’s 302-9 declared. Starting their innings, the Windies were cautious, but against a deadly speel of Shaheen where he was able to bring the ball back and take it away from the batter from the same length, it didn’t really take much time before the openers folded. Both Kraigg Brathwaite and Kieran Powell were dismissed by Shaheen. Roston Chase played few beautiful dhows before he was cleaned up by an inswinger from Faheem Ashraf when the team score had reached 34 for the West Indies Nkruma Bonner and Alzarri Joseph, who walked in as nightwatchman made sure that no more wickets and fell and the Men in Maroon would come back on Day four at 38-3. Earlier in the day, Pakistan didn’t have a good start either as it lost three crucial wickets in a span of span 13 runs from the day’s start. But then Fawad, who reached his fifth Test hundred, fourth in a span of just 10 months and eight Tests, got together, first with Hasan Ali and then with Shaheen Afridi to guide Pakistan past 300. Both Kemar roach and Jayden Seales picked three wickets each while Jason holder got the wickets of Mohammad Rizwan and Nauman Ali and Hasan Ali got run out.
WI vs PAK | 2nd Test: Day 2 abandoned due to rain, wet outfield in Jamaica
The second day of the second Test match between Pakistan and the West Indies got washed away due to rain in Jamaica. The visitors had a dismal start to the proceedings on Day 1 after they were reduced to 2/3 before captain Babar Azam and Fawad Alam resisted against the West Indies bowling and stitched a stand of 158 runs. But the Pakistan side then suffered a blow when Fawad had to walk back to the pavilion after getting retired hurt as he had fallen to humidity while he was batting on a personal score of 76. Later, Babar departed for 75 when the team score read 168 and the visitors had two new batsmen at the crease in Mohammad Rizwan and Faheem Ashraf. The two batsmen made sure that Pakistan didn’t lose any further wickets in the middle. While Rizwan was at 22, Ashraf had scored 23 before the stumps were called on Day 1. For West Indies, it was Kemar Roach who returned with a three-for at the end of the day’s play. The second day of the play was abandoned without a ball being bowled due to rain and wet outfield but in the latest update, Fawad Alam is fit and would bat again. The home side is leading the two-match series 1-0 after they clinched a victory by 1 wicket in a nail-biting finish.
WI vs PAK | 2nd Test | Day 1: Babar Azam, Fawad Alam help Pakistan recover after dismal start
Pakistan were back on track in the second Test of the two-match series against West Indies in Jamaica on the first day of the encounter, courtesy a brilliant stand between captain Babar Azam and Fawad Alam. After being put into bat, the visitors had a disappointing start to the first innings as they lost Abid Ali, Imran Butt and Azhar Ali early in the proceedings. Both the openers only managed to score one run each while Azhar was dismissed for a 6-ball duck and the visiting side was reduced to 2/3 in the fourth over. But it was Babar and Fawad who came in for the rescue and steadied the ship for Pakistan. The two batsmen stitched a partnership of 166 runs for the fourth wicket but Pakistan suffered a blow when Fawad was retired hurt in the 54th over for a personal score of unbeaten 76. He had fallen to humidity and walked off the field. The skipper Babar eventually departed for 75 after being caught by Jason Holder off Kemar Roach. Later, wicket-keeper batsman Mohammad Rizwan who had replaced Fawad in the middle and Faheem Ashraf made sure that there were no more fall of wickets till the end of the day. Pakistan were 212/4 at the end of first day’s play with Rizwan (22*) and Ashraf (23*) still at the crease. . For West Indies, it was Kemar Roach who was the pick of the bowlers as he returned with a three-for while Jayden Seales scalped a wicket during the course. The hosts lead the series 1-0 at the moment after they etched a win by just one wicket in a nail-biting first clash in Jamaica.
WI vs PAK | 2nd Test Preview: Windies bank on pacers to deliver series win over battered tourists
When teams are touring countries across the world, the theme and objective of the tours have been the preparation for the upcoming ICC World T20. But, India are touring England for a full-fledge Test series, Pakistan are there in the West Indies for a full series comprising of two Tests as well. There could have been a narrative that the flow and wider reach of the high-profile series between England and India will overshadow the West Indies vs Pakistan series. However, all those concerns and narratives were put down to rest when the Kraigg Brathwaite’s men snatched victory from the jaws of defeat against Babar Azam’s men who were equally competent to deserve a Test victory at the iconic Sabina Park in Jamaica. The win by the barest of a margin through the bat of Kemar Roach sparked fans of the game to discuss the flow of that game albeit there was a high-octane clash between India and England were underway at Lord’s. The first Test was dominated by pacers across the sides and the game went in the favour of the side that batted least bad across both innings of the game. Both the skippers were some of the few bright spots with the bat but they did not find ample support from their teammates to bat their sides into a comfortable position. It’s unlikely that the second Test of the series will be any different with the quality of pace attack on both sides and the inconsistency of the batting lineup. The tourists will be hopeful of their star duo Babar Azam and Mohammed Rizwan to stand up with the bat while the hosts will love to see the likes of Nkrumah Bonner and kyle Mayers regain the touch that made them heroes right at the start of their career. West Indies vs Pakistan: Match Details Match Number- 02 Date and Time: August 20-24, 2021, 08:30 pm IST, 11:00 pm Local, 03:00pm GMT Venue: Sabina Park, Jamaica Live Stream: FanCode Pitch Report The pitch at Sabina Park is expected to give a lot of assistance to pacers and the sides will be looking forward to strong performances from their batsmen. There will be the pace and carry for the pacers and if the bowlers will pitch in the right areas around the off stump line, there will be more and more trouble for batsmen on either side of the fence. Team News West Indies The hosts will be tempted to give Shai Hope a chance at the top of the order after Kieran Powell failed in both in the innings of the last Test. However, there is no certainty that Brathwaite will overlook the difficult batting conditions and the struggles of the other batsmen as well while making that decision. Jomel Warrican produced a subdued performance in the first game and the hosts could be tempted to bring the raw seam bowling option of Alzarri Joseph in his place. Rest nine players select themselves for the Test which the hosts will be desperate to win to clinch the series which will be a happy end of the season for them after suffering massive defeats at the hands of South Africa. Probable XI Kraigg Brathwaite (C), Shai Hope, Nkrumah Bonner, Jermaine Blackwood, Roston Chase, Kyle Mayers, Jason Holder, Joshua Da Silva (WK), Alzarri Joseph, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales Pakistan The visitors were in the game right till the last ball of the game which Kemar Roach hit through the infield to win the game, and in all fairness, they played their best possible playing XI. The result did not go their way but they are unlikely to make any change in their playing XI except for some untoward problems right close to the start of the game. Probable XI Abid Ali, Imran Butt, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam (C), Fawad Alam, Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Yasir Shah, Mohammad Abbas, Shaheen Afridi Fantasy XI M Rizwan (WK), F Alam, K Brathwaite, J Blackwood, R Chase, K Roach, Hasan Ali, M Abbas, J Seales Captain: Babar Azam Vice-captain: Jason Holder
WI vs PAK | 1st Test | Day 1: Pakistan fight back after getting bowled out for 217
West Indies had a struggling start in the first innings of the first Test against Pakistan after they were reduced to 2/2, trailing by 215 runs before the stumps were called at the Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica. Opener Kieron Powell was the first batsman who was sent back to the pavilion by Mohammad Abbas for a 6-ball duck while Nkrumah Bonner followed him for a golden duck on the very next delivery after, getting trapped in front of the stumps by Abbas. He returned with figures of 0/2 in two overs at the end of the day’s play. Earlier, the visitors were bundled out for 217 after Jayden Seales and Jason Holder ran through the Pakistan batting line up. The two bowlers shared a total of six wickets between themselves. Pakistan had a disappointing start to the proceedings as they lost Imran Butt for 11 after he was cleaned up by Kemar Roach. The visitors then lost wickets at regular intervals and were 101/5 when Fawad Alam and Faheem Ashraf steadied the Pakistan ship. The two batters put on a stand of 85 runs for the sixth wicket before Ashraf departed for 44. The 35-year-old Alam went on to score 56 runs, which would also be his maiden half-century in Test cricket having previously scored four hundred in 11 matches. He was undone by Holder for 56. The pacer eventually returned with impressive bowling figures of 3/26 in 15.3 overs. The right-hander talked about his preparations and performance after the first day. “I had a few days to prepare (after white-ball cricket) and for me, it's just about getting my rhythm back in this format and it wasn't a bad transition, we had a good day as a bowling unit. It was slower than expected and we had to be a little fuller and make them play as much as possible,” he said.
Satisfied after successful tours, Misbah-Ul-Haq says not worried about my future as head coach
Pakistan head coach Misbah-Ul-Haq has lashed out at his critics for questioning the state Pakistan cricket team after a successful tour of South Africa and Zimbabwe. Misbah said that he does not care about criticism based on results as that is beyond his hands. He also said that the question over the future does not bother him one bit. ”I don’t care about them and their criticism. We can only work and try hard. The bottom line is that results are not in our hands. As the head coach, I have not thought about my future and will not start doing that now either,” Misbah said in a virtual press conference. Speaking of the tours to the African nations, Misbah expressed satisfaction over consistent performances from players and series wins one after another. He commended the trio of Fawad Alam, Azhar Ali and Hasan Ali for putting their hands up and capitalizing on opportunities with hundreds and five-wicket hauls. “We had great results in both series. Winning in different and tough conditions was important for the team. The openers performed well during the Test series against Zimbabwe. Fawad and Azhar Ali also made centuries. We performed better in the field as well. Hasan Ali performed extraordinarily. We would like to continue this momentum in England,” he said. However, he pointed out that the middle order in the ODIs and T20Is have appeared to be a concerning factor for which the team needs to find a solution immediately. “We are just concerned about our middle-order in white-ball cricket. We have to do something in that regard,” Misbah added. Misbah set his goal on the twin series against England after a successful tour of Africa for which he said the focus will be just about getting the preparation right for the ICC World T20. Hence, only players who stand a chance in playing the World T20 will be taken on the tour of England unlike the tour of South Africa and Zimbabwe where they carried a jumbo squad due to Covid-19. “Due to the exceptional conditions because of Covid-19 we have been able to take extended squads and have a close look at the available talent. But on the coming tour to England we will only pick those players who have a chance of playing in the World T20 Cup this year,” he said. Misbah was holding two responsibilities for the Pakistan team— of a chief selector and the head coach. He walked away from the selection table and carried on with coaching the men in green from the close quarters.