Tag: T20 world cup

LAHORE: Pakistan’s 18-men contingent has left Pakistan for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to play the upcoming mega ICC T20 World Cup, starting from October 17. 

Led by Babar Azam, the squad left Pakistan today at 12 pm from Allama Iqbal International Airport. All the players and supporting staff have cleared their COVID-19 tests here. They will be tested again on their arrival in Dubai after which they go in quarantine for a day.

Players are accompanied by their families as per allowed by the ICC for the extravaganza.

Earlier, the team did practice sessions and played scenario matches to prepare themselves for the mega event under the supervision of interim head coach Saqlain Mushtaq and bowling consultant Vernon Philander. Batting consultant Mathew Hayden will join the team in the UAE.

READ: Archer includes Shaheen in his ‘T20 World Cup Players to Watch Out’

KARACHI: Former West Indian cricketer and currently a commentator, Ian Bishop put weight on Haider Ali’s inclusion in Pakistan’s T20 World Cup squad. 

Taking to Twitter, Bishop wrote that he was happy to see Haider’s selection in Pakistan’s squad for the mega event. “Happy for Haider Ali. I hope he makes the best use of the opportunity. Please!!!” he wrote.

Happy for Haider Ali. I hope he makes best use of the opportunity. PLEASE!!!

— Ian Raphael Bishop (@irbishi) October 8, 2021

Pakistan squad

Babar Azam (captain, Central Punjab), Shadab Khan (vice-captain, Northern), Asif Ali (Northern), Fakhar Zaman (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Haider Ali (Northern), Haris Rauf (Northern), Hasan Ali (Central Punjab), Imad Wasim (Northern), Mohammad Hafeez (Central Punjab), Mohammad Nawaz (Northern), Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Mohammad Wasim Jnr (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Sarfaraz Ahmed (wicketkeeper, Sindh), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and Shoaib Malik (Central Punjab)

Traveling reserves – Khushdil Shah (Southern Punjab), Shahnawaz Dahani (Sindh) and Usman Qadir (Central Punjab)

Player Support Personnel: Mansoor Rana (manager), Saqlain Mushtaq (interim head coach), Shahid Aslam (assistant to head coach), Matthew Hayden (batting consultant), Vernon Philander (bowling consultant), Cliffe Deacon (physiotherapist), Drikus Saaiman (strength and conditioning coach), Abdul Majeed (fielding coach), Talha Ejaz (team analyst), Col (retd) Muhammad Imran (Security Manager), Ibrahim Badees (media and digital manager), Dr Najeeb Soomro (team doctor) and Malang Ali (Masseur)

LAHORE: Experienced cricketer Shoaib Malik has replaced injured Sohaib Maqsood in Pakistan’s T20 World Cup squad, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Saturday. 

The decision came after Maqsood was ruled out from the squad following medical advice to take a rest due to a back injury.

Malik captained Pakistan in the inaugural T20 event in 2007 and was a member of the side that won the tournament in 2009. After missing the West Indies event in 2010, he featured in 2012, 2014, and 2016 tournaments.

Pakistan Squad:

Babar Azam (captain, Central Punjab), Shadab Khan (vice-captain, Northern), Asif Ali (Northern), Fakhar Zaman (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Haider Ali (Northern), Haris Rauf (Northern), Hasan Ali (Central Punjab), Imad Wasim (Northern), Mohammad Hafeez (Central Punjab), Mohammad Nawaz (Northern), Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Mohammad Wasim Jnr (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Sarfaraz Ahmed (wicketkeeper, Sindh), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and Shoaib Malik (Central Punjab)

Traveling reserves – Khushdil Shah (Southern Punjab), Shahnawaz Dahani (Sindh) and Usman Qadir (Central Punjab)

Player Support Personnel: Mansoor Rana (manager), Saqlain Mushtaq (interim head coach), Shahid Aslam (assistant to head coach), Matthew Hayden (batting consultant), Vernon Philander (bowling consultant), Cliffe Deacon (physiotherapist), Drikus Saaiman (strength and conditioning coach), Abdul Majeed (fielding coach), Talha Ejaz (team analyst), Col (retd) Muhammad Imran (Security Manager), Ibrahim Badees (media and digital manager), Dr Najeeb Soomro (team doctor) and Malang Ali (Masseur)

READ: ‘Ready to serve Pakistan team in any capacity’ Rizwan

LAHORE: Wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan doesn’t care about the role in the national team, he only wants to contribute where and when needed. 

While responding to a journalist in a virtual conference, Rizwan said he is ready to move his batting number if the team requires it.

“I am ready to move wherever the team wants me to. Even, I am ready to play as an off-spinner, fast bowler, or just a fielder. I always want to contribute to the team when and where needed,” Rizwan said when asked about openers being dropped due to him.

While talking about playing the first ICC event for Pakistan, Rizwan said he is excited and mentally prepared to take up the challenge. “See, even when you play club cricket, you get yourself completely ready for it. So, it is World Cup, now the preparations will be of a high standard,” he said.

READ: ‘Looks like a very serious squad’ Akhtar confident Pakistan will do well now

LAHORE: Middle-order batter Sohaib Maqsood has been ruled out from T20 World Cup after suffering from back pain, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) shared on Saturday. 

According to the PCB, their chief medical officer Dr. Najib and national team’s physio Cliffe Deacon examined Sohaib’s back injury on early Saturday. After examining, Dr. Najib advised him to rest, hence he was ruled out from the upcoming T20 World Cup.

Sohaib’s replacement will be announced in due course. Experienced cricketer Shoaib Malik’s inclusion is expected in T20 World Cup squad following his performance in National T20 Cup.

READ: Sindh knock Southern Punjab out of National T20 Cup with 45-run win

LAHORE: Former Test cricketer Saqlain Mushtaq will be the interim head coach of the national team in the T20 World Cup, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Friday. 

Just hours before the national team was about to enter the bio-secure bubble for the event, few changes were announced by the PCB. Sarfaraz Ahmed replaced Azam Khan, Haider Ali replaced Mohammad Hasnain, while Fakhar Zaman, who was originally named as a travel reserve, has swapped places with Khushdil Shah.

Meanwhile, PCB also confirmed that Saqlain will be the interim coach of the national team, accompanied by Shahid Aslam (assistant head coach), Matthew Hayden (batting consultant), Vernon Philander (bowling consultant), Cliffe Deacon (physiotherapist), Drikus Saaiman (strength and conditioning coach), Abdul Majeed (fielding coach), Talha Ejaz (team analyst), Col (retd) Muhammad Imran (Security Manager), Ibrahim Badees (media and digital manager), Dr Najeeb Soomro (team doctor) and Malang Ali (Masseur) in the team management.

READ: Fakhar, Sarfaraz, Haider included in T20 World Cup squad

LAHORE: Players, who are part of Pakistan’s T20 World Cup squad, have left National T20 Cup to join the bio-secure bubble here at a local hotel ahead of the mega event. 

According to the details, all players are supposed to report at a local hotel by 7 pm on October 8 (today). The players and their families will undergo COVID-19 testing after which they will enter isolation for a day.

After the COVID-19 test result, the players will be allowed to start training here at Gaddafi Stadium’s National High-Performance Centre (NHPC). Later on, the players will do training sessions at Lahore City Cricket Association (LCCA)’s ground followed by a scenario-based practice match.

The national team is scheduled to travel to UAE via chartered plane on October 15. They will transfer from one bio-secure to another which is made for the mega event by the ICC.

Meanwhile, two-three changes are expected in the national squad as chief selector Mohammad Wasim is in talks with the management. Bowling consultant Vernon Philander will join the team here whereas batting consultant Mathew Hayden will join in the UAE.

In National T20 Cup, Wahab Riaz will lead Central Punjab (CP) whereas Umar Amin will replace Shadab Khan as skipper for the rest of the tournament.

READ: Pakistan’s Aleem, Ahsan named among T20 World Cup umpires

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)’s chairman Ramiz Raja said he will not talk about changes in the national team for T20 World Cup. 

While talking to the media on Thursday, Ramiz said he is excited about the mega event and hopes that the national team will do wonders.

“I will not talk about changes. I am looking forward to the event and I hope Pakistan will play strongly in the event,” he said.

“It’s not about any particular match. I am excited about the whole world cup. Yes, Pakistan vs India is always a much-awaited contest,” he responded.

Meanwhile, in his appearance before Senate Committee, PCB chairman briefed on his plans to make cricket financially strong in the country.

“We need to change the whole system. We need to make things financially strong for us,” Ramiz told the committee.

“India is playing a major role in getting revenue for ICC. We get fundings from ICC, which means we are also running our things with Indian money,” the chairman added.

Ramiz said domestic cricket needs to be strong in Pakistan. “We increased players’ salary up to one lac. We aim to give 40 lacs each to players in domestic cricket yearly. I hope no player will be forced to do odd jobs to meet their ends,” he concluded.

READ: Four Balochistan players test positive for COVID-19

DUBAI: International Cricket Council (ICC) has named match officials for the upcoming T20 World Cup, starting from October 17 in UAE and Oman. 

In a press release, ICC revealed 16 experienced umpires and four-match referees for the multi-nation event.

From Pakistan, Aleem Dar and Ahsan Raza are included in the umpire’s panel. Others are Chris Brown, Kumar Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Michael Gough, Adrian Holdstock, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nitin Menon, Paul Reiffel, Langton Rusere, Rod Tucker, Joel Wilson, Paul Wilson.

Match Referees: David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Ranjan Madugalle, Javagal Srinath.

It must be noted here that T20 World Cup is scheduled from October 17 to November 14 in Oman and UAE. The tournament will start with qualifiers followed by the main event from October 23.

READ: Governor Sindh meets PCB Chairman, agrees to promote talent in province

Muscat: The chairman of Oman’s cricket board told Reuters he would have had to wave “Goodbye” to the Twenty20 World Cup had a deadly storm that ripped through the Gulf state on Sunday taken a slightly different path.

Eleven people were killed as heavy winds and rain swept through the country after tropical storm Shaheen made landfall in Oman.

The Gulf state will host six Group B matches at Al Amerat near Muscat, including three involving their own team, and Oman Cricket Chairman Pankaj Khimji said they were “very fortunate” to have missed the worst of the storm.

“We were so close to being virtually wiped out,” he told Reuters.

“We had the cyclone only a few nautical miles north. It made the landfall there and it’s devastated that whole region and flooded the whole plain over there.

Read: 70% fans allowed at UAE venues as tickets go on sale for T20 World Cup

“Had this had happened over here in this area, I’d have said ‘Goodbye’ to the World Cup.”

While a handful of hospitality tents bore the brunt of the storm, the organisers were pleased with the greener look of the outfield following the intense rain.

“We got about three to four inches of rain,” said Khimji. “And that made the ground even more lush and greener, it looks even prettier now. It washed off all the dirt and sand.”

The tournament was moved to the United Arab Emirates and Oman from India due to a COVID-19 surge and Khimji said it was a huge honour for minnows of the cricket world to stage such a prestigious event.

“This cricket coming to Oman is gigantic,” he said.

“To think that there will be tens of millions of people watching the first game, it’s overwhelming to an extent.

“How often will an associate country get a chance to host and play in the World Cup at the same time? This is unreal, I’m living a dream.”

Zeeshan Maqsood will lead a bunch of Omani amateurs in the tournament and Khimji was hopeful they could make the Super 12 stage with a top-two finish in Group B, which also includes Bangladesh, Scotland and Papua New Guinea.

“They have been fantastic. These are rank amateurs, they have a job which they do nine-to-five, and they’ve taken a month or two off just to compete in this World Cup.”

England arrived in Muscat on Tuesday to begin their 10-day preparatory camp before the Super 12 stage in the United Arab Emirates.

The World Cup gets underway on Oct. 17.