Author: ali.hassan

KARACHI: Former Pakistan captain and star all-rounder commented on the decision of dropping left-handed middle-order batter Fawad Alam from the squad for the upcoming home Test series against England.

Afridi talked to the media amid a private event and expressed his disbelieve over Fawad’s removal from the Pakistan Test squad, whose snub from the red-ball squad irked many cricketing fans.

“Fawad Alam’s performance has been very good before. Dropping him is a surprising decision,” said Afridi.

The left-handed batter only managed to accumulate 33 runs in four innings during the Benaud-Qadir Trophy between Pakistan and Australia, while he could score 35 runs in the first Galle Test against Sri Lanka.

Following a dip in his form, the southpaw was rested from the second Galle Test and later dropped from the home Test series against England.

Meanwhile, star all-rounder Afridi also commented on Shaheen Shah Afridi’s injury and asserted the latter was completely fit to partake in T20 World Cup 2022.

“Shaheen was fit and that is why he played. His injury has been for quite some time now but hopefully, he will recover soon,” Afridi said.

The former Pakistan captain also commented on the ongoing FIFA World Cup and also coined Germany as his favourite team.

“It is good to see great matches in the FIFA World Cup as there have been a lot of upsets this time though I am supporting Germany,” shared Afridi.

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LAHORE: Pakistan Hockey team is set to miss a golden opportunity to mark a comeback in the Olympics Games as Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) has been unable to send the team to the upcoming FIH Nations Cup due to a severe lack of funds.

According to the sources, the governing body of the country’s national sports has not received any funding despite making numerous requests to the higher authorities and even the Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif.

Meanwhile, the ministry of Inter-Provincial Harmony is awaiting directions from the PM secretariat in this regard.

Earlier, premier Shehbaz had congratulated the national hockey team for securing the bronze medal in the recently concluded Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Cup in Malaysia.

Pakistan Hockey squad is supposed to depart for South Africa on November 22 to participate in the inaugural FIH Nations Cup, but the federation does not have adequate funds to purchase tickets and arrange accommodation for the contingent.

However, if Pakistan fails to feature in the event, FIH could take severe action against the side which includes a team ban and up to 15 thousand Euros worth of penalty.

It is important to note here that FIH Nations Cup provides a chance for promotion to the  FIH Pro League. The winning teams from the FIH Hockey Nations Cup, men’s and women’s, will be promoted to the FIH Hockey Pro League for the 2023-24 season.

Whereas, The FIH Pro League champions in 2023-24 and 2024-25 will earn direct qualification to their respective 2026 Hockey World Cups. The winners in 2025-26 and 2026-27 will then qualify for the 2028 Olympics.

The FIH Hockey Men’s Nations Cup will be contested between eight teams split into two pools from November 28 to  December 4 in Potchefstroom, South Africa.

Pakistan are placed in Pool A alongside France, Ireland and hosts South Africa. Meanwhile, Canada, Japan, Korea and Malaysia are part of Pool B.

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IPOH: Pakistan hockey team clinched their first victory in the ongoing six-team Sultan Azlan Shah Cup on Monday as they beat Egypt 4-1 in their last game of the round-robin stage. 

After two defeats and two draws in the first four matches, the Umar Bhutta-led national side has already lost its contention for the title.

Rana Abdul Wahid opened the scoring for the Green Shirts with a penalty stroke in the 12th minute before Muhammad Sufyan Khan doubled the lead in the second quarter on a penalty corner.

Men in Green aggravated their attack in the third quarter as Liaquat Arshad scored a superb field goal in the 38th minute before Sufyan hit the nets for the second time within the next five minutes to steer the side to a dominant 4-0 lead in the game.

For Egypt, Mohamed Ragab scored a consoling goal on a penalty corner in the 50th minute. 

Following their lone win of the tournament, Pakistan finished in fourth after the conclusion of the round-robin stage and will now take on Japan in the 3rd-4th placing match on November 9 (Wednesday).

Meanwhile, Korea will face the hosts Malaysia in the final on November 10 (Thursday).

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LAHORE: One of the country’s most iconic stadiums – National Stadium Karachi – will now be known as the National Bank Cricket Arena.

The development came under the light of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP).

The five-year MoU signing resulted in NBP acquiring the stadium’s naming rights.

“Besides the naming rights agreement, the PCB and NBP will also collaborate and partner on sponsoring initiatives to promote and develop grassroots cricket across the country, including supporting the PCB initiatives of scouting local talent in the rural areas of Pakistan,” the PCB said in a press release.

Amid the MoU signing ceremony, the chairman of PCB Ramiz Raja extended his gratitude to the NBP for joining hands with the cricket board.

“I want to welcome National Bank of Pakistan back in the PCB family after having supported Pakistan cricket in the past. NBP again partnering with the PCB is a great news as this reflects that prestigious organisations are willing to be associated with the Pakistan cricket brand as they see a lot of value in it for themselves,” said Raja.

“Additionally, I am grateful to the National Bank of Pakistan for also extending support to the PCB Pathways Programme. I have always emphasised on creating processes for the raw talent that can be professionally channelized into the national framework. In this background, this partnership with NBP is a significant movement in that direction,” he added.

NBP President and CEO Rehmat Ali Hasnie, on the other hand, seconded Ramiz’s remarks and expressed delight for partnering with the PCB.

“We are delighted to partner with the Pakistan Cricket Board. The National Stadium, Karachi is one of the most iconic cricket venues in the world and has hosted some of the legends of all eras since Test cricket was first played there,” said Hasnie.

“We are honoured to associate with such an incredible cricket venue, our endeavour during the next five years would be to help the PCB further uplift the venue while making contributions to Pakistan cricket across the country at the grass root level simultaneously,” he concluded.

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LAHORE: Umar Bhutta has been named as captain of the national hockey team as the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) on Monday announced a 17-member squad along with six stand-by players for the Sultan Azlan Hockey Cup in Malaysia.

Pakistan are set to participate in the tournament, scheduled from November 1 to 10,  for the first time after 9 years hiatus.

According to PHF, Bhutta-led national squad also comprised Abdullah Ishtiaq (Goalkeeper), Akmal Hussain (Goalkeeper), M. Abdullah, Sufyan, Arbaaz Ahmed, Aqeel, Ehtsham, Murtaza Yaqub, Rana Abdul Waheed, Rooman Khan, Hanan Shahid, Junaid Manzoor, Arshad Liaquat, Afraz, Shahzaib Khan, Usama Bashir, Mohammad Imran.

Meanwhile, Waqar, Abdullah Sheikh, Abuzar, M. Imad, Abdul Wahab and Saad Shafiq have been included in the stand-by players’ list.

It is pertinent that six teams will feature in the event including the hosts Malaysia, Pakistan, Japan, Korea, South Africa and Egypt.

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CAPE TOWN: National shooter Mohsin Nawaz has once again made his presence felt in the international championship as he collected five medals in the recently-held Bisley Long Range Shooting Competition.

Mohsin, who was the lone representative of Pakistan in the competition, dominated the top three standings for the majority of the event with his remarkable performance and brilliant precision.

His brilliance earned him five medals in the competition – three gold and two silver – taking his overall international competitive shooting medals tally to seven.

In his previous international championship, Mohsin won gold in NRA USA 600 meters, held in 2018.

Following his incredible run in the event, Mohsin is gearing up for the world long-range championship where he will be solely representing Pakistan.

It is pertinent to mention that Mohsin has equally been successful in national events as he won different long-range competitions 25 times.

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TOKYO: The iconic Japanese professional wrestler, Antoni Inoki, widely known for his match with Muhammad Ali, has died aged 79, after years of fighting a rare ailment.

New Japan Pro-Wrestling – the company Inoki founded in 1972, took to Twitter to announce the passing of their pioneer.

“New Japan Pro-Wrestling is deeply saddened at the passing of our founder, Antonio Inoki,” NJPW stated on Saturday.

“His achievements, both in professional wrestling and the global community are without parallel and will never be forgotten.

“Our thoughts are with Inoki’s family, friends and fans.”

New Japan Pro-Wrestling is deeply saddened at the passing of our founder, Antonio Inoki.

His achievements, both in professional wrestling and the global community are without parallel and will never be forgotten.

Our thoughts are with Inoki’s family, friends and fans. pic.twitter.com/n8zA9hj78e

— NJPW Global (@njpwglobal) October 1, 2022

 

Inoki rose to fame globally after competing in a mixed martial arts match against the legendary boxer Muhammad Ali – booked as “the bout of the century”.

The highly-anticipated fight between the two legends, however, ended in a draw and the result of the fight had long been debated by the fans.

In 1976, Inoki was challenged by Pakistani wrestler Akram commonly known as “Akki” and came to Pakistan for the match scheduled at National Stadium Karachi, which saw 50,000 fans coming to witness the bout.

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LAHORE: Pakistan’s young fast bowler Naseem Shah will not be available for the fifth T20I as well after he missed the last three matches against England during the ongoing series. 

Naseem was taken to the hospital last night as he suffered a viral infection, but he is feeling better now, confirmed Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) spokesperson.

“Naseem was taken to hospital on Tuesday night with a viral infection and will not be available for Wednesday’s match,”  said PCB spokesperson.

Moreover, the right-arm pacer’s availability for the last two T20Is of the seven-match series will be decided after assessing his medical reports.

The 19-year-old played the first T20I of the ongoing series and returned unimpressive bowling figures of 0/41.

The T20I series is currently level at 2-2 after the completion of the Karachi leg of England’s historic tour of Pakistan.

Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium will now host the remaining three matches.

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KARACHI: National Taekwondo team received a warm reception on their return after a successful run in the recently concluded Mount Everest International Open Taekwondo Championship held in Nepal. 

Pakistan finished with overall 15 medals including six golds, three silver and six bronze medals at the event.

According to the details, the taekwondo team reached the Jinnah International Airport on Tuesday where they were warmly received and presented souvenirs by the officials of the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) and Pakistan Taekwondo Federation (PTF).

Pakistani athletes bagged three golds, two silver and two bronze medals in the Kyorugi event along with three golds, a silver and four bronze medals in the Poomsae event of the championship staged in Pokhara, Nepal.

Speaking on the occasion, women gold-medalist Mehrun Nisa stated that she had a wonderful experience competing in the championship and the coaches had put in a lot of effort into the players.

Furthermore, she expressed hope that the team would continue to win more medals for the country in the future as well.

Meanwhile, Kyorugi gold-medalist Hamza Umer Saeed, who defeated his Indian opponent in the final, said that he fought with the sole intention of making the country proud and it was an honour for him to bag the medal for Pakistan.

Talking about the support extended by the federation to the participants of the championship, executive member PTF, Zubair Macha, asserted that the federation had provided every possible facility to the players for the event.

“We will try to maintain this winning streak in the future as well,” he hoped.

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KARACHI: England white-ball head coach Mathew Mott reiterated that the side would not take undue risks with Jos Buttler ahead of ICC T20 World 2022 in Australia. 

England white-ball captain Buttler, who has been recovering from a calf injury, has not played so far in the ongoing seven-match series against Pakistan.

Mott, while speaking at a post-match press conference, expressed that Buttler might get a chance in the last two matches of the series.

“With regard to Jos (Buttler), he’s still a while off, he’s not a player we want to take a risk on at this stage, so close to the World Cup, and it was a reasonably significant injury that he had,” he said.

“But we’ll just try and see how we go and maybe in the last game or two we might give him a chance,” he added.

Talking about the nail-biting fourth T20I between the two teams, the England coach called it an ‘amazing game of cricket’ and ‘fantastic opportunity’ for the player to learn how to play under pressure.

Pakistan defeated England by just three runs in the final over after a sensational display of pace bowling by pacer Haris Rauf in the 19th over.

“When we sent them (Pakistan) to batting, we were expecting 200 but they made that (167-run target) enough” he maintained.

Pakistan have levelled the series 2-2 following their win on Sunday with the fifth game scheduled at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium on Wednesday.

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