Author: shahzad.malik

MULTAN: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Friday, announced free entry for fans for the upcoming three-match T20I series between Pakistan and South Africa.

“Free entry for fans. Come and watch the #PAKWvSAW T20I series as Multan hosts women’s international cricket for the first time,” wrote PCB across its social media platforms.

The three-match series will run from September 16 to 20 with all the matches scheduled to be held at the Multan Cricket Stadium.

Earlier today, the South African side touched down at the Allama Iqbal International Airport in Lahore and reached Multan by road, where the series will be played.

South Africa women’s cricket team was warmly welcomed in a traditional manner at the local hotel in Multan.

The visiting team rested today while the Pakistan women’s team held a training session at Inzamam-ul-Haq Cricket Academy.

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Notably, the three-match series will serve as the preparation for the upcoming ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, scheduled to be played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from 3 to 20 October.

To ensure all three matches are broadcast live and give exposure to women’s cricket, the matches on 16 and 18 September will start at 7 pm, while the match on 20 September will begin at 10 am.

After the series, South Africa will depart for the UAE on 21 September, while Pakistan will leave on 23 September.

Pakistan is in Group A of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024, along with Australia, India, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka, while South Africa is grouped with Bangladesh, England, Scotland and the West Indies.

Pakistan squad for Women’s T20 World Cup and South Africa series

Fatima Sana (c), Aliya Riaz, Diana Baig, Gull Feroza, Iram Javed, Muneeba Ali (wk), Nashra Sandhu, Nida Dar, Omaima Sohail, Sadaf Shamas, Sadia Iqbal (subject to fitness), Sidra Amin, Syeda Aroob Shah, Tasmia Rubab and Tuba Hassan.

READ: Gary Kirsten reaches Faisalabad for Champions One-Day Cup

FAISALABAD: Pakistan’s white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten reached here for the Champions One-Day Cup, being held here at the Iqbal Stadium from September 12 to 29.

According to the details, Kirsten touched down here on Friday night and was accompanied by high-performance coach David Reid.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) also shared the footage of Gary Kirsten’s arrival.

“Pakistan white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten and high-performance coach David Reid arrive in Faisalabad to witness the Champions One-Day Cup,” wrote PCB in the caption.

 

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In the video, Kirsten can be seen greeting Pakistan men’s team’s selectors Mohammad Yousuf and Asad Shafiq before joining them in watching the ongoing clash between Mohammad Haris-led Stallions and Shaheen Afridi-led Lions.

Details further suggested that Kirsten will witness every match of the Champions One-Day Cup as he is assigned to build a strong pool of players, who will go on to represent the national team in future including the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.

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During his visit to Pakistan, Kirsten will also attend a high-profile meeting and workshop to discuss the future of the national cricket team as well as all-format captaincy.

The meeting, dubbed the “Connection Camp” is likely to be held on September 22 and will be presided by PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who will also attend the workshop.

In the Connection Camp, Kirsten will be accompanied by Pakistan red-ball coach Jason Gillespie and the heads of international, domestic, and high-performance departments while senior cricketers, coaches and PCB officials will also be in attendance.

Pakistan red-ball head coach Gillespie is scheduled to reach Pakistan on September 22.

In the first match of the Champions One-Day Cup, Kamran Ghulam’s century propelled Markhors to a thumping 160-run victory over the Panthers.

READ: Former captain thinks Rizwan’s age “only criticism” for his captaincy

FAISALABAD: The glittering trophy for the upcoming Champions One-Day Cup was unveiled at the Iqbal Stadium here on Wednesday.

The five-team tournament will commence on 12 September with Mohammad Rizwan-led Markhors (previously Wolves) facing Shadab Khan-led Panthers in the opening match. Meanwhile the final is scheduled to be played on 29 September.

The Champions One-Day Cup will feature the country’s top cricketers. This 50-over tournament will be played in a single-league format, where five teams will be mentored by stalwarts such as Misbah-ul-Haq (Markhors), Saqlain Mushtaq (Panthers), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Dolphins), Shoaib Malik (Stallions) and Waqar Younis (Lions).

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The winners of the Champions One-Day Cup will receive PKR 30 million, while the runners-up will take home PKR 15 million.

Except for the 16 September match between Lions and Panthers, which will commence at 9.30 am local time, all other 13 matches will begin at 3 pm.

Champions One-Day Cup Schedule

12 Sep – Markhors v Panthers

13 Sep – Stallions v Lions

14 Sep – Dolphins v Panthers

15 Sep – Markhors v Stallions

16 Sep – Lions v Panthers

17 Sep – Dolphins v Markhors

19 Sep – Stallions v Dolphins

20 Sep – Lions v Markhors

21 Sep – Panthers v Stallions

22 Sep – Dolphins v Lions

24 Sep – Qualifier (Team No.1 v Team No. 2)

25 Sep – Eliminator 1 (Team No.3 v Team No.4)

27 Sep – Eliminator 2 (Losing Qualifier v Winning Eliminator 2)

29 Sep – Final

READ: Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan rise up in ICC Test Rankings

LAHORE: The National Men’s U19 three-day Championship and One-Day Cup are set to begin on Tuesday, 10 September.

Each round of the three-day games will be followed by the One-Day games. As such, a total of 98 matches each will be played over a 61-day period.

Eighteen teams of 16 regions will participate in the tournament, whose one-day final will be held on 22 October and the three-day final from 6-9 November. Venues of the final will be announced in due course.

The 18 regional teams will be equally divided into three groups with the matches to be played on a single-league basis till 12 October.

The next phase will include one-day matches between three group toppers on a single-league from 16-22 October, followed by three-day matches between the group toppers again on a single-league basis from 25 October to 9 November.

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Peshawar will defend the three-day title, while Karachi Whites are the reigning one-day champions.

The squads have been selected following the Regional Inter-District U19 Tournament from 23 May to 10 June in which 104 district sides had participated.

The National Men’s U19 Championship and Cup is expected to provide the budding and emerging teenagers to prove their mettle and stake a claim in the Pakistan U19 team for the upcoming tri-nation 50-over series in November in UAE, which will be followed by the ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup 2024.

Groups:

Group A (matches in Karachi): FATA, Islamabad, Karachi Whites, Larkana, Multan and Quetta regions

Group B (matches in Abbottabad, Charsada, Peshawar and Risalpur): Abbottabad, Bahawalpur, Faisalabad, Karachi Blues, Lahore Blues and Rawalpindi regions

Group C (matches in Faisalabad, Sargodha and Sheikhupura): Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Dera Murad Jamali (DM Jamali), Hyderabad, Lahore Whites, Peshawar and Sialkot regions.

READ: Nissanka hits ton as Sri Lanka stun England in third Test

LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi shared that the national selectors and coaches will decide regarding the appointment of the Pakistan men’s team’s captain.

Naqvi, in an interaction with the media after inspecting the ongoing construction work at the Gaddafi Stadium here, revealed that he has entrusted the decision regarding the potential shift in Pakistan’s captaincy to the selectors and coaches.

“The decision regarding captaincy will be made after consultation with the coaches, mentors and selection committee,” said Naqvi.

“A workshop is scheduled for September 22, where everyone will be invited to give their suggestions, and decisions will be made afterwards,” he added.

“I know that if there is any mistake, it falls on me. If the team does not perform well, if there is a selection mistake, or if the coach loses, it will all reflect on me,” he added while revealing that he is meeting the selection committee today as well.”

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Earlier today, it was reported that the PCB has decided to call a high-profile meeting on September 22, dubbed “Connection Camp”, to discuss the future of Pakistan cricket which includes the captaincy of the national men’s teams.

The high-profile meeting will feature the current head coaches of the Pakistan red-ball and white-ball teams, Jason Gillespie and Gary Kirsten respectively, accompanied by the heads of international, domestic, and high-performance departments while senior cricketers, coaches and PCB officials will also be in the attendance.

Details further suggested that the future of Pakistan white-ball captain Babar Azam and Test captain Shan Masood will come under discussion and there is a chance that the former may get removed from the position ahead of Pakistan’s tour to Australia later this year.

Mohsin Naqvi further shared that the Test series between Pakistan and England will be played in Multan and Rawalpindi.

He further shared that the PCB is in contact with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the latter is satisfied.

“The home Test series against England will be held in Multan and Rawalpindi,” said Naqvi.

“We are in touch with the England board and they are satisfied,” he added.

The three-match series, part of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC), is scheduled to run from October 7 to 28.

READ: PCB chairman Naqvi opens up on India’s participation in Champions Trophy

LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi addressed the concerns regarding the availability of the venues for the upcoming three-match Test series between Pakistan and England.

Reports emerged earlier this week that the second Test of the three-match series between Pakistan and England, originally scheduled to take place at the National Stadium, Karachi may likely be shifted to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) due to the ongoing renovation at the country’s major stadiums.

England head coach Brendon McCullum also commented on the issue on Thursday while speaking to reporters at The Oval ahead of the third Test against Sri Lanka, stating that the management can not pick a team until they are aware of the playing conditions.

“We don’t really know (what is happening in Pakistan) but we can’t pick a team until we know where we’re going to play,” he said.

“It would be nice if, over the next couple of days, we found out.”

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The former New Zealand captain added: “Then we’ll sit down and make sure we’ve got the right team for the right conditions and the right opposition.”

Meanwhile, PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi in a media interaction here at the Gaddafi Stadium, revealed that the Test series between Pakistan and England will be played in Multan and Rawalpindi.

He further shared that the PCB is in contact with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the latter is satisfied.

“The home Test series against England will be held in Multan and Rawalpindi,” said Naqvi.

“We are in touch with the England board and they are satisfied,” he added.

The three-match series, part of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC), is scheduled to run from October 7 to 28.

READ: PCB chairman Naqvi opens up on India’s participation in Champions Trophy

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi on Saturday, asserted that the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025 will be held in Pakistan despite the uncertainty regarding arch-rivals India’s participation in the tournament.

The ICC Champions Trophy 2025  is scheduled to take place in Pakistan from February to March, however, India’s participation in the tournament is uncertain as the BCCI seeks the government’s approval to visit the country.

Meanwhile, PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, in an interaction with the media after his visit to oversee the ongoing renovation work being done at the Gaddafi Stadium here, revealed that he has been in contact with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary regarding the global eight-team tournament.

“Champions Trophy will be held in Pakistan, we are in touch with the BCCI Secretary,” said Naqvi.

“[We are] also in contact with the boards of the teams participating in the Champions Trophy,” he added.

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Mohsin Naqvi further commented on the appointment of BCCI Secretary Jay Shah as the new Independent International Cricket Council (ICC) Chairman, stating there is no concern.

“There is no problem with Jay Shah becoming ICC Chairman,” Naqvi stated.

The PCB chief then shared that the renovations of the stadiums will be completed before the commencement of the Champions Trophy.

“The basement of Gaddafi Stadium will be constructed by September 30. Each floor will be completed in a three-week period. The front building would consist of a steel structure. The main building of Gaddafi Stadium will be completed by December 31,” said Naqvi.

“Pindi Stadium will have to be completely demolished and rebuilt, the seats will be installed in the stadium before the Champions Trophy.

“The renovation at Karachi’s [National Stadium] will also be completed before the Champions Trophy,” he concluded.

READ: PCB to hold high-profile meeting to discuss Pakistan team’s future, captaincy

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has decided to hold a high-profile meeting and workshop to discuss the future of the national cricket team as well as all-format captaincy.

According to the sources, the meeting, dubbed the “Connection Camp” is likely to be held on September 22 and will be presided by PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who will also attend the workshop.

The high-profile meeting will also feature the current head coaches of the Pakistan red-ball and white-ball teams, Jason Gillespie and Gary Kirsten respectively, accompanied by the heads of international, domestic, and high-performance departments while senior cricketers, coaches and PCB officials will also be in the attendance.

Notably, Kirsten had left for South Africa after submitting his report regarding the Pakistan cricket team’s performance in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 whereas Gillespie left for Australia after the conclusion of the two-match Test series against Bangladesh this week.

Details further suggested that the future of the current Pakistan white-ball captain Babar Azam will come under discussion and there is a chance that he may get removed from the position ahead of Pakistan’s tour to Australia later this year.

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Babar, who relinquished all-format captaincy following the national team’s dismal run at the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023, was reinstated as white-ball captain in March this year.

He led Pakistan in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 where the former champions suffered gut-wrenching defeats against United States of America (USA) and arch-rivals India, which eventually resulted in them failing to qualify for the Super Eights stage for the first time in the tournament’s history.

Meanwhile, Shan Masood’s captaincy as Pakistan Test captain has also come under scrutiny.

Remember, Shan, who was given the leadership of the Pakistan Test side in November 2023, is yet to lead the national team to a victory. He has lost five matches as Pakistan Test captain, three against Australia and two against Bangladesh.

READ: Ashwin sympathizes with Pakistan cricket after Bangladesh whitewash

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) today announced the captains of the five Champions One-Day Cup teams, as well as provisional squads for the tournament, which will be held in Faisalabad from 12-29 September.

The captains were appointed by the five team mentors: Misbah-ul-Haq (Wolves), Saqlain Mushtaq (Panthers), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Dolphins), Shoaib Malik (Stallions) and Waqar Younis (Lions).

Pakistan’s Test vice-captain Saud Shakeel has been appointed captain of the Dolphins, former Pakistan T20I captain Shaheen Shah Afridi will lead the Lions and the Panthers will be skippered by former white-ball vice-captain, Shadab Khan.

Pakistan Shaheens’ captain Mohammad Haris will lead the Stallions, while ex-all-format vice-captain Mohammad Rizwan will captain the Wolves.

The Champions One-Day Cup will feature the country’s top cricketers. This 50-over tournament will be played in a single-league format.

All matches will commence at 3 pm, except for the Lions vs Panthers match on 16 September, which will start at 9:30 am.

The tournament will conclude with three playoff matches over four days, culminating in the final on Sunday, 29 September.

The PCB has also announced provisional squads for the five teams. These were selected by the team mentors through a draft process from a pool of 150 players, which was provided by the PCB following fitness tests—one of the primary selection criteria for domestic contracted players.

The centrally contracted players will undergo fitness tests in Faisalabad on 7 and 9 September.

Out of the 150 players, 125 were leading performers from the past three domestic seasons. The remaining 25 players were wildcards, selected based on their experience and performances for Pakistan, Pakistan Shaheens and Pakistan Under-19 teams over the last three years.

Each team includes existing centrally contracted players. These are:

Dolphins: Saud Shakeel, Faheem Ashraf and Sarfaraz Ahmed

Lions: Abdullah Shafique, Aamir Jamal, Imam-ul-Haq and Shaheen Shah Afridi

Panthers: Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan and Usama Mir

Stallions: Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Haris, Shan Masood, Tayyab Tahir and Zaman Khan

Wolves: Fakhar Zaman, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Salman Ali Agha and Shahnawaz Dahani

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Centrally contracted players who are not part of the squads include Mohammad Nawaz (personal reasons), Imad Wasim (unavailable), Arshad Iqbal, Hasan Ali, Ihsanullah and Mohammad Wasim Jnr (undergoing rehabilitation).

In addition to Imad Wasim, who is currently playing in the CPL, the following players have made themselves unavailable for the Faisalabad tournament: Ahmed Shehzad, Azam Khan (CPL), Haris Sohail, Mohammad Amir (CPL), Mohammad Abbas (County cricket in the UK), Mohammad Ilyas and Umar Akmal.

Fakhar Zaman, who is also playing in the CPL, is due to return on 10 September.

Other players undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) include Ahsan Ali, Athar Mahmood, Rizwan Hussain, and Zeeshan Zamir, in addition to Arshad Iqbal, Hasan Ali, Ihsanullah, and Mohammad Wasim Jnr.

Nine domestic contracted players were excluded from the Champions One-Day Cup squads after failing their fitness tests.

They are Ali Shafique, Ali Zaryab, Arif Yaqoob, Danish Aziz, Mohammad Rameez Jnr, Saad Baig, Rameez Aziz, Sharjeel Khan, and Shawaiz Irfan.

Four cricketers, returning to competitive cricket after successfully passing their fitness tests and completing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy, are Hunain Shah (Lions), Sameen Gul, Sufiyan Moqim (both Dolphins), and Shahnawaz Dahani (Wolves).

Champions One-Day Cup Squads (to be reduced to 15 players on 10 Sep)

DOLPHINS: Saud Shakeel (captain, Karachi), Aftab Ibrahim (Karachi), Asif Ali (Faisalabad), Awais Ali (Gujranwala), Faheem Ashraf (Kasur), Kashif Ali (Rawalpindi), Mir Hamza (Karachi), Mohammad Huraira (Sialkot), Mohammad Abbas Afridi (Peshawar), Muhammad Akhlaq (Kamoki), Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (Karachi), Muhammad Riazullah (Peshawar), Noman Ali (Hyderabad), Qasim Akram (Lahore), Sameen Gul (Jamrud), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Karachi), Sahibzada Farhan (Peshawar), Sufiyan Moqim (Kotli), Umar Amin (Rawalpindi) and Usman Qadir (Lahore)

Mentor – Sarfaraz Ahmed

LIONS: Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain, Peshawar), Abdullah Shafique (Sialkot), Aamir Jamal (Islamabad), Aamer Yamin (Multan), Faisal Akram (Multan), Hassan Nawaz (Islamabad), Hunain Shah (Lahore), Imam-ul-Haq (Lahore), Imran Butt (Lahore), Khushdil Shah (Bannu), Mohammad Asghar (Karachi), Muhammad Irfan Khan (Mianwali), Mohammad Taha (Karachi), Omair Bin Yousuf (Karachi), Rohail Nazir (Islamabad), Shahab Khan (Mardan), Sharoon Siraj (Sahiwal), Sirajuddin (Bajaur) and Waqar Hussain (Okara)

Mentor – Waqar Younis

PANTHERS: Shadab Khan (captain, Islamabad), Abdul Wahid Bangalzai (Quetta), Ahmed Bashir (Lahore), Ali Asfand (Faisalabad), Ali Raza (Sheikhupura), Amad Butt (Sialkot), Arafat Minhas (Multan), Azan Awais (Sialkot), Haider Ali (Attock), Mohammad Hasnain (Hyderabad), Mohammad Umar (Karachi), Mohammad Zeeshan (Faisalabad), Mubasir Khan (Rawalpindi), Rehan Afridi (Khyber), Rizwan Mehmood (Hyderabad), Saim Ayub (Karachi), Umar Siddiq (Lahore), Usama Mir (Sialkot), Usman Khan (Karachi) and Usman Salahuddin (Lahore)

Mentor – Saqlain Mushtaq

STALLIONS: Mohammad Haris (captain, Peshawar), Abrar Ahmed (Karachi), Adil Amin (Peshawar), Azam Khan (Peshawar), Babar Azam (Lahore), Haris Rauf (Islamabad), Hussain Talat (Lahore), Jahandad Khan (Rawalpindi), Junaid Ali (Lahore), Maaz Ahmad Sadaqat (Peshawar), Mehran Mumtaz (Rawalpindi), Mohammad Ali (Sialkot), Mohammad Amir Khan (Swat), Saad Khan (Hyderabad), Shamyl Hussain (Islamabad), Shan Masood (Karachi), Tayyab Tahir (Sarai Alamgir), Ubaid Shah (Lahore), Yasir Khan (Rawalpindi) and Zaman Khan (Mirpur)

Mentor – Shoaib Malik

WOLVES: Mohammad Rizwan (captain, Peshawar), Fakhar Zaman (Abbottabad), Abdul Samad (Faisalabad), Akif Javed (FATA), Ali Usman (Multan), Bilawal Bhatti (Muridke), Haseebullah (Pishin), Iftikhar Ahmed (Peshawar), Kamran Ghulam (Peshawar), Mohammad Faizan (Faisalabad), Mohammad Imran Jnr (Peshawar), Mohammad Sarwar Afridi (FATA), Muhammad Imran (Khanewal), Naseem Shah (Lahore), Nisar Ahmed (Lahore), Salman Ali Agha (Lahore), Shahnawaz Dahani (Larkana), Zahid Mehmood (Dadu) and Zain Abbas (Multan)

Mentor – Misbah-ul-Haq

READ: Brendon McCullum eager to make England white-ball teams ‘bulletproof’

The Regional Inter-District senior cricket tournament is set to commence on Thursday, 5 September in six regions across the country including Abbottabad, Bahawalpur, Hyderabad, Karachi, Multan and Sialkot Regions.

Meanwhile, the tournament will kick off on 8 September in eight other regions including Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Dera Murad Jamali, FATA, Faisalabad, Islamabad, Larkana, Peshawar and Quetta Regions.

The inter-district senior tournament matches in Rawalpindi Region and Lahore Region will begin from 12 September. A total of 103 district/zonal teams will play 255 matches across the 16 regions in the country while over 1500 players will participate in the tournament.

The tournament will provide talent for the upcoming Quaid-e-Azam Trophy and the National T20 Cup 2024-25 where 18 teams of the 16 regional sides will take on each other.

The Regional Inter-District senior cricket tournament is part of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) initiative to bridge the gap between domestic and international cricket by providing a tougher, more competitive and high-pressure cricket playing environment, and creating better and enhanced earning opportunities for its future stars.

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The cricketing body also announced the addition of three Champions tournaments as part of the PCB Men’s Domestic Cricket Season 2024-25.

The Champions One-Day Cup, Champions T20 Cup and Champions First-Class Cup will join the National T20 Cup, Quaid-e-Azam Trophy (regional first-class tournament), President’s Trophy (departmental first-class tournament), President’s Cup (departmental 50-over event), and HBL Pakistan Super League 2025 in the 2024-25 domestic cricket season, expected to run from 1 September 2024 to 5 August 2025.

With the addition of three Champions tournaments, the PCB will now organise a total of 261 matches across eight men’s senior tournaments. This includes 131 first-class matches in three events, 40 50-over matches in two events and 97 T20 matches in three events.

In the 2023-24 season, the PCB had organised 203 matches in the six men’s senior tournaments, including 51 first-class matches in two tournaments, 55 50-over matches in two events and 97 T20 matches.

READ: Sarfaraz Ahmed advises “talented” Umar Akmal, Ahmed Shehzad