PCB names 30-man ICC CWC 2011 preliminary squad

PCB names 30-man ICC CWC 2011 preliminary squad

Mohammad Yousuf has been named in the preliminary squad

The Pakistan national selection committee met on Tuesday at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore to finalise the preliminary squad for World Cup 2011.

Commenting on the occasion Chairman, national selection committee, Mohsin Khan said: "We are satisfied that we have selected the best squad from amongst the available players. The Selection Committee met on multiple occasions and only then decided on the names. I request the whole nation to back the selected players who need all the encouragement to win the World Cup."

Commenting on the media reports regarding ‘clearance’ of certain players, Chairman PCB, Ijaz Butt said "There is a lot of speculation in the media regarding clearance or otherwise of players by Integrity Committee of PCB. The Integrity Committee has given its views on some players to the Selection Committee which has taken into consideration that input and has selected the 30 players for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011.”

The squad for the New Zealand ODI series will be announced next week.

Preliminary squad:

Openers: Muhammad Hafeez, Ahmed Shahzad,Taufique Umer, Nasir Jamshed

Middle-Order batsmen: Mohammad Yousuf, Younus Khan, Misbah ul Haq, Umar Akmal,Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq, Naveed Yasin

WicketKeepers: Kamran Akmal, Sarfraz Ahmed, Salman Ahmed

All Rounders: Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq, Yasir Arafat, Rana Naveed

Spin Bowlers: Abdul Rehman, Saeed Ajmal, Yasir Shah, Zulfiqar Babar

Fast Bowlers: Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul, Wahab Riaz, Sohail Tanveer, Tanvir Ahmed, Junaid Khan, Aizaz Cheema, Asad Ali

Source: http://icc-cricket.yahoo.net/newsdetails.php?newsId=12702_1294145940

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PCB to lodge complaint with ICC

PCB to lodge complaint with ICC

Indian Premier League 2010

Cricinfo staff
January 22, 2010

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has decided to appeal to the ICC regarding the exclusion of all 11 Pakistani players from the IPL after the auction in Mumbai this week. Since the IPL is a domestic tournament, it is outside the ICC's purview and so it is unlikely cricket's ruling body will be able to do much about it, but the matter continues to rage on in Pakistan.

"We will be lodging a complaint with the ICC and I will personally table this issue at the next meeting of the ICC executive board on February 10," said Ijaz Butt, the PCB chairman, after a meeting with the country's sports minister in Lahore. "The IPL may be a private and commercial enterprise but this issue involves the pride of a nation and we are going to pursue it with the ICC."

Pakistan's players have reacted with anger and attributed the blackout to politics and Butt had already expressed his disappointment. Echoing these views, Pakistan sports minister Ijaz Jhakrani has now termed the exclusion of Pakistan players "a serious issue."

"How can they [IPL franchises] avoid bidding for players from the world champion team?" he said after meeting the PCB chairman. "It's our unanimous decision to take up this issue at the highest forum and lodge our protest at the ICC." As a sign of protest against the snub to Pakistan's cricketers, the speaker of the lower house had also stopped a parliamentary delegation from traveling to India.

The Indian government was quick to distance itself from the results of the IPL auction, while N Srinivasan, the BCCI secretary and owner of the Chennai Super Kings franchise, has said has said the Indian board and government had nothing to do with the player selections.

Butt, however, said these were excuses without substance. "They should tell us if franchises had reservations about signing Pakistani players because they were worried about security issues and availability of the players why were our players included in the auction in the first place," he said. "If IPL franchise have so many issues with signing our players then why did the IPL first approach us to send them government clearances for the players." (www.cricinfo.com)

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Bowlers hand Australia 3-0 clean-sweep

Bowlers hand Australia 3-0 clean-sweep

Australia v Pakistan, 3rd Test, Hobart, 5th day

The Bulletin by Brydon Coverdale at Bellerive Oval
January 18, 2010

Australia wrapped up their 12th consecutive Test victory over Pakistan on the final afternoon in Hobart, where Khurram Manzoor's fighting half-century was not enough to salvage a draw for the visitors. Nathan Hauritz added to his growing reputation as Test bowler by picking up the key wicket of Manzoor and finished with three, while Peter Siddle also grabbed a trio of victims.

Despite showers being forecast, the only sprinkling of rain came during the lunch break and it wasn't enough to delay Australia's charge to a series clean-sweep and a fifth Test win of the summer. Australia have now equalled the record for the most consecutive Test wins by any country over any other nation, matching the 12-game streak currently held by Sri Lanka over Bangladesh.

The only slight concerns for Australia came during a 66-run seventh-wicket stand between Manzoor and Mohammad Aamer. Manzoor, who came in for this Test at No. 3, enhanced his chances of keeping his place in the side with a patient 77 from 239 deliveries that gave Pakistan, for the morning at least, a tiny sniff of saving the game.

Manzoor showed impressive resolve for most of his innings but it didn't hold, and soon after an injudicious swipe against Hauritz he slashed at a cut against the spinner and was caught behind. The rest of Pakistan's resistance fell away and Hauritz had Umar Gul brilliantly caught at slip by Michael Clarke for a duck, before Mohammad Asif (0) was bowled by Mitchell Johnson.

Hauritz finished with 3 for 30 and was comfortably the leading wicket-taker for the series, with 18 at 23.05. Siddle was also happy with his 3 for 25, which was his best return of a lean summer, and he wrapped up the victory with the second new ball when Danish Kaneria played on for 1.

Pakistan's victory target of 438 was not the issue for Australia, they simply needed to grab the remaining wickets while the weather held up. Showers had been tipped on the final day but the Tasmanian local Ricky Ponting, who was confident in his knowledge of the state's weather, had his decision not to enforce the follow-on vindicated.

Australia began the day impressively wth Shoaib Malik caught behind off Siddle for 19, after adding only one to his overnight score. That was the key breakthrough for Australia as it opened the way into Pakistan's lower order, and the wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed finished his debut Test with a disappointing batting return when he was caught at slip off Hauritz for 5.

Sarfraz departed in strange circumstances, when his edge clipped the gloves of Brad Haddin, went through the hands of Clarke and onto his boot before bouncing up for Clarke to complete the catch. If Pakistan had made their catches stick throughout the series it might have been a more enjoyable tour for them. Now they must wait until the two Tests in England in July to redeem themselves. (www.cricinfo.com)

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Shaky Pakistan hope for rain after Katich ton

Shaky Pakistan hope for rain after Katich ton

Australia v Pakistan, 3rd Test, Hobart, 4th day

The Bulletin by Brydon Coverdale at Bellerive Oval
January 17, 2010

On a day of inevitabilities, Australia moved within six wickets of completing a clean-sweep against a disappointing Pakistan. Simon Katich scored his first century of the summer, Ricky Ponting recorded his highest aggregate in a Test and Pakistan's top order looked shakier than the few yachts brave enough to take to the Derwent River on a gloomy, windy and eventually rainy Hobart day.


Since Pakistan's capitulation in Sydney, it seemed inevitable that they would struggle to lift themselves for the dead rubber at Bellerive Oval. At the start of the fourth day, the most likely scenario was for Australia to add quickly to their overnight score and bat until after lunch, and Pakistan's batsmen to struggle and rain to play a part as the afternoon wore on. And so it unfolded.

Pakistan entered this Test with only two men averaging more than 40 for the series and until Salman Butt's first-innings century the best score by any of their players was his 71 at the SCG. Australia fancied their chances against the Pakistan order despite the forecast showers, and gave them a victory target of 438 from just under five sessions.

A win for Australia would be their 12th consecutive triumph against Pakistan, equalling the record for any team over any other Test side, which is currently held by Sri Lanka over Bangladesh. It came closer when Pakistan lost both openers within the first ten overs, then the captain and best batsman Mohammad Yousuf with the score on 61, and the young star Umar Akmal with the total at 4 for 83.

When the rain came an hour before the scheduled close, Pakistan were 4 for 103, needing an extremely unlikely 335 more for victory, with Khurram Manzoor on 23 and Shoaib Malik on 18. Yousuf and Akmal both fell lbw to Shane Watson, both had their decisions reviewed, and neither finished with the result he desired. Earlier, Butt failed to keep out a Doug Bollinger delivery and was bowled for 9, before Peter Siddle drew an edge behind from Imran Farhat (14) to begin Pakistan's slump.

The day had been yet another ugly one for them even before their innings began. Ponting and Katich added 141 in a brutal opening session as Pakistan continued to set defensive fields and waited for a declaration. Katich has had trouble reaching triple-figures this season and had posted scores of 92, 80, 99 and 98.

He hadn't scored a hundred since the Ashes opener in Cardiff and when he moved to 99, Pakistan tried to increase the pressure, but he found an easy single behind square on the leg side to register his century from 137 deliveries. In the next over, Katich holed out to deep midwicket off Danish Kaneria and departed for an even 100, his ninth Test century.

Playing with the freedom of having a hefty buffer, Katich took a more aggressive approach than normal and struck 13 fours in his 138 balls. Ponting also went after the bowling during their 191-run stand and was happy to be inventive, driving in the air over fielders and taking balls from outside off to the leg side.

Ponting failed to become the seventh batsman in Test history to score a double-century and a century in the same match when he departed for 89 on the fourth ball after lunch. He tried to sweep Malik and was taken down the legside by Sarfraz Ahmed, and the umpire's not-out decision was overturned on review when Hot Spot showed the ball brushed Ponting's glove.

He did finish with his best aggregate of runs in a Test match, scoring 298 and beating by ten his previous best set against India in Melbourne in 2003-04. After his dismissal, Brad Haddin and Mitchell Johnson came in as pinch-hitters but failed to have any impact and Australia lost 4 for 27 starting with Katich.

It didn't matter. Ponting already felt he had enough and declared at 5 for 219, setting Pakistan 438 to win. Yousuf's men need either a deluge of rain or runs to save them and only their most ardent fans could expect it to be the latter. (www.cricinfo.com)

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Twenty20 will 'finish' Pakistan cricket - Mohammad Yousuf

Twenty20 will 'finish' Pakistan cricket - Mohammad Yousuf

Pakistan in Australia 2009-10

Osman Samiuddin in Melbourne
December 31, 2009

Mohammad Yousuf has issued a stark warning of the impending dangers of too much Twenty20 cricket, insisting that it is "necessary" that Pakistan plays as little of the format as possible. Otherwise, the Pakistan captain told Cricinfo, he believes the format will "finish Pakistan's cricket."

Yousuf's counsel comes in the wake of Pakistan's defeat to Australia in the first Test in Melbourne, where their batsmen struggled on a placid pitch in a 170-run loss. Australia declared twice in the Test, but Pakistan were bowled out for 258 and 251 - the second after being 170-3. But his words come in a broader context: those totals continued a long run of sub-par performances by the batsmen in the Test arena; in 14 Test innings now, they have crossed 350 only twice.


They have struggled with their openers and their No.3 batsmen, and have been caught in a number of Test collapses through the year in Sri Lanka, New Zealand and now Australia. As in Melbourne, a number of batsmen have settled in, before getting themselves out. The failure, Yousuf believes, comes from Twenty20 cricket.

"It [batting failures] used to happen before but now because of Twenty20 cricket no player knows how to stay at the wicket anymore," Yousuf told Cricinfo. "Batsmen are finding it very difficult. I know the format has money, players get it and boards do but if Pakistan hypes up Twenty20 too much, Test and ODI cricket will really go down."

Pakistan are the reigning world champions in the format, having won the World Twenty20 in a stirring display in June in England. They reached the final of the inaugural World Twenty20 in 2007 and have the best win-loss ratio of all nations in the format. In Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Shahid Afridi and Abdul Razzaq they have, arguably, the format's sharpest game-changers.

They were also one of the first countries to adopt the format domestically, holding wildly successful events in Lahore and Karachi in 2005 and 2006, and the first three years of the tournament attracted what many believed to be the largest domestic crowds ever in Pakistan. Additionally, a number of their players had successful first seasons with the IPL; they weren't allowed to participate in tournament's second edition, but a number of them are very keen to be involved next season and over 12 players have applied for a place in the auction. Afridi, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Gul and Sohail Tanvir have all played, or are playing Twenty20 cricket, for Australian state sides as well.

Most Pakistanis are brought up on a diet of 20-over cricket at club and street level. That, Yousuf believes, has left much of the current crop unsuited to the longer, unique demands of Test cricket and even ODI cricket. "Both in Tests and ODIs we have problems," Yousuf said. "We struggle to bat 50 overs. Against New Zealand [in Abu Dhabi] we couldn't make 212 in 50 overs. Everyone played shots and got out.

"Twenty20 is easy for Pakistanis because they know how to hit, nobody knows how to defend. Until players do not play with discipline and play ball to ball and leave balls they are supposed to we will struggle in ODIs, let alone Tests. If you see a ball, hit it because you have to score. But if you are going to slog all the time what is the point? I could have hit jumping out but unless you get a ball to hit what is the point? That is the point of Test cricket. It is necessary that Pakistanis, the media, the board, the fans realise that we play as little Twenty20 as possible.

"One domestic tournament is enough and a World Cup apart from that, but my belief is that you have to reduce Twenty20 heavily. They shouldn't play it in club cricket - even there you play 20 overs, not 40-over matches. I only have 2-3 years left in my career but I worry Twenty20 will finish Pakistan's cricket."

Yousuf himself has a strained relationship with the format. He was incensed at being dropped from Pakistan's squad for the inaugural World Twenty20 in 2007 in South Africa. Having criticized the selectors for not picking him, he aligned himself with the ICL, before being lured back into the Pakistan fold by the board. But once he was overlooked for another multi-nation Twenty20 tournament in Toronto in August 2008, he signed up with the ICL again, playing a few unsuccessful games for the Lahore Badshahs, before finally quitting and coming back to the Pakistan side earlier this year.

Alongside Younis Khan, Yousuf has been Pakistan's most reliable and successful Test batsman during and after the Inzamam-ul-Haq era. And with Younis and Javed Miandad, he is the only Pakistan batsman with a 50-plus Test average. His worries are the pre-eminent factor behind his request for Younis on this tour, though authorities in Pakistan have yet to accede to that.

"You look at England, South Africa and Australia. They give Test cricket and ODIs the attention they deserve," Yousuf said. "Until we do the same, we will not progress. They also play Twenty20 but they do it in a controlled way. In our country we only want to play Twenty20 and no Tests. I think we have given up on Test cricket: either we look for the money or we look to revive Pakistan cricket." (www.cricinfo.com)

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