Sports Bulletin

Khurram Shehzad Awan Islamabad:-The cricket spectators of the twin cities Rawalpindi and Islamabad did not show any interest in the National Cricket T20 Cup at Pindi Cricket Stadium that commenced on August 30, 2022 under the banner of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), as its second Leg will take place at Multan Cricket Stadium from September 10. T20, a most popular cricket format failed to attract the audience and to bring the youth in the stadium that has capacity of over 18,000. Owing to lack of planning, common people rejected the national t20 fixture at Pindi, as the youth were busy in the schools and colleges while adults were on their jobs and had no time to visit the stadium. If there would be day/night cricket it would be possible for the people to enjoy the game of cricket and witness the entertaining contests among the top six national teams. Also, there was no need to sell the tickets. Except the VIP enclosures rest of all should be free for the cricket lovers. It is also important to mention here that there was no shade in the stadium to protect the spectators from hot weather, mostly in Rawalpindi the temperature remained around 35. In the dog days of August and September it was not possible to sit under the sun the whole day. PCB should rethink its policies regarding domestic cricket, especially the National T20 Cup, which is the most popular annual fixture of cricket. Chairman PCB Ramiz Raja should take notice of this negligence to make the domestic tournament valuable for the future. 

Sports Bulletin Report London (UK):-Nottinghamshire batter Alex Hales has been called up to England's ICC Men's T20 World Cup squad as a replacement for Yorkshire's Jonathan Bairstow after a left ankle injury sustained last week ended his chances of playing in the tournament. Hales, 33, represented England in March 2019, has also been added to the IT20 squad for the tour of Pakistan. England T20 Squad for World Cup: Jos Buttler (Lancashire+ Captain), Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), Harry Brook (Yorkshire), Sam Curran (Surrey), Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire), Chris Jordan (Surrey), Liam Livingstone (Lancashire), Dawid Malan (Yorkshire), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Phil Salt (Lancashire), Ben Stokes (Durham), Reece Topley (Surrey), David Willey (Yorkshire), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham) Travelling Reserves Liam Dawson (Hampshire), Richard Gleeson (Lancashire), Tymal Mills (Sussex) England T20 Squad for Pakistan Tour: Jos Buttler (Lancashire+ Captain), Moeen Ali (Worcestershire+ Vice-Captain), Harry Brook (Yorkshire), Jordan Cox (Kent), Sam Curran (Surrey), Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire), Liam Dawson (Hampshire), Richard Gleeson (Lancashire), Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire), Tom Helm (Middlesex), Will Jacks (Surrey), Dawid Malan (Yorkshire), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Phil Salt (Lancashire), Olly Stone (Warwickshire), Reece Topley (Surrey), David Willey (Yorkshire), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Luke Wood (Lancashire), Mark Wood (Durham) ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2022 – England's Group Fixtures: England v Afghanistan, Saturday 22 October 2022, Perth Stadium, Perth England v Qualifier (B2), Wednesday 26 October 2022, MCG, Melbourne England v Australia, Friday 28 October 2022, MCG, Melbourne England v New Zealand, Tuesday 1 November 2022, The Gabba, Brisbane England v Qualifier (A1), Saturday 5 November 2022, SCG, Sydney England Men's Pre-World Cup tour of Australia: 1st IT20: Australia v England, Sunday 9 October, Perth Stadium, Perth 2nd IT20: Australia v England, Wednesday 12 October, Manuka Oval, Canberra 3rd IT20: Australia v England Friday 14 October, Manuka Oval, Canberra England Men's IT20 Tour of Pakistan: 1st IT20: Pakistan v England, 20 September, National Stadium, Karachi 2nd IT20: Pakistan v England, 22 September, National Stadium, Karachi 3rd IT20: Pakistan v England, 23 September, National Stadium, Karachi 4th IT20: Pakistan v England, 25 September, National Stadium, Karachi 5th IT20: Pakistan v England, 28 September, Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore 6th IT20: Pakistan v England, 30 September, Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore 7th IT20: Pakistan v England, 2 October, Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore

Sports Bulletin Report Dubai (UAE):-The wicket-keeper batter becomes only the third Pakistan player to be No.1 in the MRF Tyres ICC Men's T20I Batting Rankings after Babar Azam and Misbah-ul-Haq. Nissanka, Mendis, Sharma, Kohli, Rahmanullah and Najibullah among others to move up in latest weekly update Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan has overtaken his opening partner and captain Babar Azam to seize the top position among batters in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings after the weekly update carried out on Wednesday. Rizwan followed up his Player of the Match effort of 78 off 57 deliveries in an Asia Cup Group A match against Hong Kong with a crucial 71 off 51 against India in a Super Fours match in Dubai, to move from 796 rating points to a career-best 815 and claim the top position for the first time. Rizwan is only the third Pakistan batter to be No. 1 in the T20I batting rankings after Babar, who has been at the top of the table for 1,155 days in all, and Misbah-ul-Haq, who was at the top for 313 days, from 20 April 2008 to 27 February 2009. Meanwhile, Mohammad Nawaz’s match-winning 42 off 20 in the same match sees him move up 142 slots to 358th in the rankings. India’s Suryakumar Yadav has dropped to fourth place in the latest update even as a host of players from Sri Lanka and Afghanistan have made their way up after some fine performances in the Asia Cup. Sri Lanka openers Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis have made notable progress after scoring half-centuries in a memorable win against India on Tuesday. Nissanka is up one place to eighth while Mendis has advanced 63 places to 41st position. Dasun Shanaka (up 11 places to 39th) and Bhanuka Rajapaksa (up 31 places to 68th) have also moved up the rankings for batters while off-spinner Maheesh Theekshana has progressed five places to eighth among bowlers. Afghanistan opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s Player of the Match effort of 84 off 45 balls that helped beat Sri Lanka in a group match, has helped him progress 14 places to 15th while Najibullah Zadran has moved up two places to 28th after scoring 43 against Bangladesh. Spinners Mujeeb ur Rehman (up three places to sixth) and Mohammad Nabi (up two places to 32nd) have also gained in the latest update. India captain Rohit Sharma has gained four slots to reach 13th position after scoring 72 against Sri Lanka in their Super Fours match while former captain Virat Kohli has gained four places and is 29th in the list after scoring 60 against Pakistan. Ravichandran Ashwin (up eight places to 50th) and Arshdeep Singh (up 28 places to 62nd) have also progressed. In the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s ODI Player Rankings updated after the second and third Australia versus Zimbabwe matches and the first Australia versus New Zealand match, Australia’s David Warner has moved up one place to sixth position among batters and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson up one place to 10th.

Sports Bulletin Report RAWALPINDI:-Qasim Akram’s Central Punjab finally opened their account in the Kingdom Valley National T20 Cup 2022-23 with an 11-run win over Sindh, thanks to Shoaib Malik’s all-round performance, at the Pindi Cricket Stadium on Tuesday. Aamir Jamal’s exceptional performances with bat and ball – 47 not out off 17 and three for 27 – sealed a thriller for Northern as they beat Southern Punjab by five runs. Shoaib Malik leads Central Punjab to maiden win Experienced all-rounder Shoaib Malik blasted 54 not out off 33 (four fours and two sixes) to lift Central Punjab to 188 for five and then got the crucial wicket of dangerous-looking Saim Ayub in his one for 16 off two overs in Central Punjab’s 11-run triumph over Sindh. Shoaib and Irfan Khan Niazi, who scored a blazing 33 not out off 14 hitting four sixes, added 64 runs in the last 29 balls to help Central Punjab post a towering score. Central Punjab were dealt serious blows in the first and third over as Sohail Khan accounted for openers Abdullah Shafique and Mohammad Akhlaq, but a solid 67-run partnership between Mohammad Faizan and Tayyab Tahir rescued the side from a collapse. Faizan was instrumental in the attacking partnership with his brilliant 55 at a staggering strike rate of 229. He struck four sixes and six fours in his 24-ball knock before falling to leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed, who also dismissed Central Punjab captain Qasim Akram. Tayyab, the top-scorer in the tournament, made 33 off 28, hitting two fours and a six. Sarfaraz Ahmed top-scored in the match with an unbeaten 62, compiled at a strike rate of 168, but the lack of support from the other end allowed Central Punjab to earn their first win after four defeats. Sindh looked on track of scaling down the target but the dismissal of Saim in the seventh over altered the course of the match. Sindh, at the time of Saim’s wicket were cruising at 62 off just 6.3 overs. Saad Khan was bowled by Usama Mir in the next over and in the 15th over he sent Omair Bin Yousuf (37 off 29) and Danish Aziz back to the pavilion as Sindh slipped to 122 for five. Usama finished with three for 34. Aamir Jamal’s quick-fire 47 not out, 3-27 hand Northern thrilling win All-rounder Aamir Jamal was the star for Northern as his brilliance with bat and ball won Northern a thriller against Southern Punjab by five runs. Aamir’s swashbuckling 47 not out off 17 – studded with four sixes and five fours – lifted Northern to 187 for eight after his captain Umar Amin, who stroked a half-century, elected to bat. Northern were in a spot of bother with openers Zeeshan Malik and Hasan Nawaz dismissed in the first two overs, but a 51-run partnership for the third wicket between Nasir Nawaz (13 off 17) and Umar (52 off 42) rescued the innings and provided a platform to Mubasir Khan (34 off 18) and Aamir to go berserk in the latter half. When it came to defending the total, Aamer, later named player of the match, with the dismissals of Zain Abbas, Sharoon Siraj and Zeeshan Ashraf across his eight deliveries derailed Southern Punjab’s innings despite a promising beginning after Zain (81 off 46) and Mohammad Shehzad (28 off 24) added 111 runs for the first wicket. Zain’s 81 was studded with six sixes and as many fours, while Muhammad Imran, with 12-ball 24, provided Southern Punjab fans a glimpse of hope, but was dismissed by Zaman Khan in the 18th over. Zaman, like Aamir, also took three wickets, while experienced all-rounder Sohail Tanvir took two wickets for 39. Scores in brief: Central Punjab beat Sindh by 11 runs Central Punjab 188-5, 20 overs (Mohammad Faizan 55, Shoaib Malik 54 not out, Irfan Khan Niazi 33 not out, Tayyab Tahir 33; Abrar Ahmed 2-34, Sohail Khan 2-55) Sindh 177-8, 20 overs (Sarfaraz Ahmed 62 not out, Omair Bin Yousuf 37, Saim Ayub 35, Anwar Ali 20; Usama Mir 3-34, Mohammad Ali 2-32) Player of the match – Shoaib Malik (Central Punjab) Northern beat Southern Punjab by 5 runs Northern 187-8, 20 overs (Umar Amin 52, Aamir Jamal 47 not out, Mubasir Khan 34; Sameen Gul 3-27, Ali Majid 2-22) Southern Punjab 182 all out, 19.5 overs (Zain Abbas 81, Mohammad Shehzad 28, Mohammad Imran 24; Aamir Jamal 3-27, Zaman Khan 3-38, Sohail Tanvir 2-39) Player of the match – Aamir Jamal (Northern)

Sports Bulletin Report RAWALPINDI:-Balochistan and Northern have been fined PKR10,000 for maintaining slow over rate during their Kingdom Valley National T20 Cup 2022-23 match at the Pindi Cricket Stadium yesterday. Both teams were one over short of their target after taking into account time allowances and, as such, were charged under Article 2.22 of the PCB Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which deals with the minimum over-rate offences. Yasir Shah and Umer Amin, captains of Balochistan and Northern, accepted the sanctions proposed by match referee Mohammad Anees. The charges were levelled by on-field umpires Faisal Afridi and Aalay Haider, third umpire Saqib Khan and fourth umpire Nasir Hussain.

BIPIN DANI "I'm not here to fit into your world. I’m here to make my own noor'' the message with a flower emoji reads on Noor Qadri's social media account. The 21-year-old Karachi-based girl, now living with her parents in the UAE, has body controlling issues, which started at her age of 10. Before that, she was walking, running and playing with other kids like a normal girl. She now needs a little support to walk but this disability has not hampered her desire to grow her business of online selling of Pakistani clothes.  Recently, she came to the stadium to watch the Indo-Pak match. She watched the full match and enjoyed the fighting spirit of the Indian team. Last week, she came to meet his favorite Indian cricketer, Virat Kohli, who was attending the net sessions at the ICC Cricket Academy. "My daughter was excited to see Kohli coming near to him", the father Talart Qadri, who himself is a businessman in the UAE, says. "Kohli asked Noor, :how are you ? '' They clicked some selfies, but then Virat suggested to my elder daughter (Nosheen) to change the directions towards the light from the lamp post to get more and better pictures". "It was my daughter's dream to meet Kohli. She was excited to have been with Kohli for a few minutes. We waited there for about two hours for Kohli to come out from his training". Noor is an English literate educated girl, who is computer oriented and does her social media activities independently. After getting her wish of meeting Kohli fulfilled, her wish is to meet more Indian celebrities. Karthik Aryan, Varun Dhawan and Shahrukh Khan are his favorite actors, Neha Kakkar and Shriya Ghosal her favorite female singers and will not miss to hear male singers- Arjit Singh and Guru Randhwa.

Bipin Dani Indian pacer Arshdeep Singh’s parents expected their son to face heavy criticism on social media the moment India lost their Asia Cup match to Pakistan on Sunday. Arshdeep, 23, could not hold on to the catch offered by Pakistani batsman Asif Ali off Ravi Bishnoi and was the one who bowled the final over in which Pakistan reached their target for a five-wicket win. Arshdeep’s parents have urged their son to ignore messages circulating on social media. “We have advised him not to pay any attention to such criticism, but concentrate on his next game,” Arshdeep’s mother, Baljit Kaur told mid-day from Chandigarh. Arshdeep’s father Darshan Singh, mother, sister and uncle were at the ground on Sunday. “We could not stay there longer owing to some emergency work here, but have promised Arshdeep that we will be back for the final. We will watch Tuesday’s match against Sri Lanka on TV.” While Arshdeep has been trolled on social media, the young gun has received support from other quarters. “Arshdeep has received good support not only from his India teammates but Pakistani players as well. When we were in Dubai, the Punjab minister [for education, Gurmeet Singh Hayer] called to extend his support to our son. He has also promised to receive Arshdeep when the team return with the Asia Cup,” Balit Kaur signed off.  

Sharjah (UAE):-Saturday marked another red letter day in the history of the Sharjah stadium. The 28th T20 between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan made it the number one venue for staging internationals, nudging out the Sydney Cricket Ground from the top position. Sharjah has now hosted 244 ODIs, 9 Tests and 28 T20s giving it a total of 281. Reacting to this distinction Abdulrahman Bukhatir said it was a very satisfying feeling and thanked all those thousands who have enjoyed the games these past 40 years. The match was also record-breaking in many ways, as the Sri Lanka completed the highest ever run-chase on the ground and the highest ever chase against Afghanistan in T20s. (Press Release)

Sports Bulletin Report RAWALPINDI:-Khyber Pakhtunkhwa continued their excellent run in the Kingdom Valley National T20 Cup 2022-23 recording their fourth straight win when they defeated Southern Punjab by seven wickets at the Pindi Cricket Stadium in a contest reduced to five overs because of wet outfield. In the second match of the day, Hussain Talat’s three for 17 pipped Sohail Tanvir’s highest T20 score (74 not out) in Balochistan’s third win of the tournament. Following the completion of the 12th match, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are perched at the top of the table and are followed by Balochistan, who have six points from three wins. With four points – coming from two wins – Southern Punjab and Sindh are placed at third and fourth. Northern are fifth with one win, while winless Central Punjab are placed at the bottom. Mohammad Imran’s guile too good for Southern Punjab batters Left-arm pacer Mohammad Imran made the most of the variations in his arsenal and denied any scoring opportunities to Southern Punjab batters as his 12 balls leaked only 13 runs and accounted for Hassan Khan. Southern Punjab, asked to bat, could muster 41 runs for the loss of four wickets in five overs, which, in the end, proved to be a cakewalk for defending champions Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Aamer Azmat, unbeaten on 14 off 10, dragged Khyber Pakhtunkhwa over the line with three balls spare and seven wickets in hand. Right-arm pacer, Mohammad Ilyas, accounted for Sahibzada Farhan and Sarwar Afridi and was the only bowler in the match to take two wickets. Hussain bowls Balochistan to 19-run win Hussain Talat dismissed Rohail Nazir and Umar Amin in the sixth over and sent Hasan Nawaz packing in the eighth over in an extraordinary batting collapse that formed the basis of Balochistan’s third win of the tournament. Sohail Tanvir registered his highest T20 score with 74 off 42 and hit six sixes and three fours, but such was the magnitude of the top order collapse that it couldn’t save Northern. Aamir Jamal with 35 off 21 was the other batter to show some resistance but all Northern could manage was 162 for seven. Hussain returned three for 17, while his fellow pacer Khurram Shahzad picked up two wickets for 28. It was a solid half-century at the top of the order from Haseebullah and blistering knocks from Shan Masood (45 not out at a strike rate of 155) and Haris Sohail (34 at a strike rate of 179) that lifted Balochistan to 181 for three after they were asked to bat. Haseebullah and Asad Shafiq (34 off 28) added 62 runs for the first wicket in 8.4 overs. Young Haseebullah continued to play the anchor’s role till he was dismissed by Sohail Tanvir on the first ball of the 15th over. Balochistan were 109 at that point. Shan and Haris made their experience count and added 72 runs at a run rate of over 11. Shan hit six fours in his 29-ball knock and Haris’ 19-ball innings was studded with four fours and a six. Scores in brief: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa beat Southern Punjab by 7 wickets Southern Punjab 41-4, 5 overs (Mohammad Ilyas 13 not out; Imran Khan Snr 1-12, Mohammad Imran 1-13) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 44-3, 4.3 overs (Aamer Azmat 14 not out; Mohammad Ilyas 2-14; Sameen Gul 1-15) Player of the match – Mohammad Imran (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) Balochistan beat Northern by 19 runs Balochistan 181-3, 20 overs (Haseebullah 52, Shan Masood 45 not out, Haris Sohail 34 not out, Asad Shafiq 34) Northern 162-7, 20 overs (Sohail Tanvir 74 not out, Aamir Jamal 35, Hasan Nawaz 24; Hussain Talat 3-17, Khurram Shahzad 2-28) Player of the match – Haseebullah (Balochistan) and Sohail Tanvir (Northern)   Points table     Teams P W L Points NRR 1 Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 4 4 0 8 0.633 2 Balochistan 4 3 1 6 0.132 3 Southern Punjab 4 2 2 4 0.906 4 Sindh 4 2 2 4 0.365 5 Northern 4 1 3 2 -0.368 6 Central Punjab 4 0 4 0 -1.434  

Sports Bulletin Report Dubai (UAE):-Australia’s Commonwealth Games gold medallists Tahlia McGrath and Beth Mooney are shortlisted following their triumph in Birmingham alongside India’s Jemimah Rodrigues. Multi-format heroics are honoured in the men’s shortlist, where all-rounders Sikandar Raza, Mitchell Santner and Ben Stokes are in contention for the award. Heroes from Australia’s gold medal winning Commonwealth Games performance are honoured in the shortlist for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month for August 2022. Tahlia McGrath and Beth Mooney starred with bat and ball on the way to winning the inaugural edition of women’s cricket on the event programme of Birmingham ‘22. India’s Jemimah Rodrigues is the third name shortlisted for the award following notable contributions at the crease in her side’s surge to the landmark final at Edgbaston. The nominees for the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award pay tribute to some of memorable performances registered across all three formats in August. Sikandar Raza becomes the first Zimbabwe player to be nominated since Sean Williams back in March 2021, thanks to a series of outstanding contributions with the bat against Bangladesh and India. New Zealand all-rounder Mitchell Santner demonstrated his multi-format capabilities with bat and ball in August during his side’s series against Netherlands and West Indies, while Ben Stokes completes the lineup following his heroics at Old Trafford in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) second Test which saw the England skipper restore parity for his side against South Africa. ICC Women’s Player of the Month Nominees for August: Tahlia McGrath (AUS) McGrath was a key member of Australia’s gold medal winning team, taking five wickets at an average of 13.40 and scoring 114 runs throughout August. Despite a quiet showing in the final itself, her star performance came in the victory over Pakistan, where she scored 78 not out, took three wickets and registered a run out. This run of performances also helped her reach her career-high ranking of 12th among all-rounders in the MRF Tyres ICC Women’s T20I Player Rankings. Beth Mooney (AUS) Mooney is a player for the big occasion, and her nomination for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month Award is no surprise following an outstanding array of performances to secure her side’s gold medal. She registered a remarkable 167 runs in her three T20Is during August, and followed up her half-century in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Final victory back in April with a match-winning score of 62 against India in the final of the Commonwealth Games. Jemimah Rodrigues (IND) August was a prolific month for India’s young batter, and despite falling agonizingly short at the final hurdle, Rodrigues played a crucial role in helping her side celebrate silver medal success at Birmingham ’22. Her score of 33 in the final got her side within touching distance of the top prize, but it was perhaps her vital contribution of 44 not out against England in the semi-final which was most important during the tournament, ensuring India took to the field in the first-ever appearance of women’s cricket at the Commonwealth Games. ICC Men’s Player of the Month Nominees for August: Sikandar Raza (Zim) Zimbabwe’s star all-rounder has enjoyed a sensational 2022 so far and continued his magnificent form in August during his side’s contests against Bangladesh and India. Raza was instrumental in claiming the ODI series victory for his side against Bangladesh thanks to unbeaten scores of 135 and 117 which came during two superb run-chases. He followed this up with a fine 115 against India in the final ODI in Harare albeit in a losing cause. In addition to his batting feats, he took seven key wickets during August, cementing his growing all-round credentials and seeing him rise to a career-high position of fourth in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s ODI Player Rankings. Mitchell Santner (NZ) So often known for his bowling prowess in the shorter formats, Santner finds himself on the shortlist for the ICC Men’s Player of the Month for the first time after solid performances during his side’s recent series in Netherlands and West Indies. A fine 77 not out in the Netherlands saw his side claim victory in the second T20I before he was unleashed on the West Indies batters in the ODI and T20I series that followed. Bowling superbly throughout, Santner finished the month having taken seven wickets at an average of 17 in T20Is, with a further four wickets across ODIs at an average of 21. Ben Stokes (ENG) Following a humbling defeat in the first Test, England’s talismanic skipper produced another memorable performance to help his side level the series in the WTC battle against visiting South Africa. Amassing 143 runs throughout the month and claiming seven wickets including the prized scalps of Rassie van der Dussen, Keegan Petersen and Aiden Markram, his most notable contribution came with his commanding century at Old Trafford, securing a comfortable victory and ensuring the series is in the balance ahead of the final showdown at the Oval this week.