Waqar doubts ICL players' commitment

Waqar doubts ICL players' commitment

	Waqar Younis: "It means country was not dear to you before [joining the ICL]." © Getty Images

Former Pakistan captain Waqar Younis has questioned the commitment of the Pakistan players who were keen to be part of the national team after featuring in the unofficial ICL. The players have been critical of the international ban, but Waqar said they should have put their country ahead of the ICL.

"I am a strong believer that a cricketer should be permitted to play anywhere, but in this (ICL) case I think somewhere there is a doubt," Waqar said. "It means country was not dear to you before [joining the ICL]."

Currently, all the ICL players are ineligible for their national teams as the league is in direct conflict with the officially recognised IPL organized by the BCCI. However, the future of the ICL players will come up for discussion when the ICC executive board meets in Dubai on April 17-18.

Last week, the PCB had named three ICL players - Abdul Razzaq, Imran Nazir and Naved-ul Hasan - in its list of 30 probables for the World Twenty20 in England, only to replace them the day after. While Razzaq played for the Hyderabad Heroes, Nazir and Naved helped Lahore Badshahs win the ICL 20-20 Indian Championship last season.

The dramatic flip-flop by the board highlighted the confusion regarding the status of the ICL players, which led to the administrators considering a "cooling period" ranging between six to 12 months for players who wished to return to the national fold from the unauthorised league.

The move from the PCB drew criticism from Inzamam-ul-Haq, the former Pakistan captain, and Lahore Badshahs skipper who slammed the board's "unprofessional thinking". He said the Pakistan board and the selectors should have shown more respect to the three players who have represented the country.

Asif to begin rehabilitation in England

Asif to begin rehabilitation in England

	Mohammad Asif has applied for a work permit which will allow him to play league cricket in England © Getty Images

Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Asif is set to begin his rehabilitation in England this summer and possibly play league cricket to work his way back into form and fitness before the Champions Trophy this September. Asif is currently serving a one-year ban after testing positive to the banned substance nandrolone last year.

Salman Ahmed, one of Asif's agents, said they have applied for a work permit which will allow him to train in England for at least four weeks before taking up offers with clubs in Cambridge and Greater Manchester, which have reportedly shown interest in signing him up.

"All the setbacks that have hit him in the last year or so have left Asif really exhausted," Ahmed told the News. "We have prepared a fitness regime for him that will help him recover both mentally and physically.

"We have applied for a work permit which should be ready in about a month's time. Once it's ready, we will work out a contract for him with some club in England."

Asif will have to return home in August to make himself available for selection for the Champions Trophy in South Africa. His ban runs till September 21, 2009, and the tournament begins three days later.

Asif, who already left for London on Tuesday for a two-week stint, will fly to South Africa to watch a few IPL games. He was a member of the Delhi Daredevils team for the first season but the franchise banned him for a year following an internal dope test. He was banned by the PCB as well. He is still embroiled in another controversy after being detained at the Dubai airport last year for possessing opium, a case which the PCB is still investigating.

Pakistan's absence will affect IPL following

Pakistan's absence will affect IPL following - Ramiz Raja

Former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja has said the absence of Pakistan players in the IPL in South Africa will seriously affect the television viewership of the event in the country. Though the players will miss the entire tournament, they will be engaged in a limited-overs series in the UAE against Australia starting April 22 and Ramiz hoped the interest will pick up after series ends.

"The event's moved out of India, there are no Pakistani players playing, so the interest in our country has definitely gone down," Ramiz told AFP. "With hardly any international cricket in mid-May the fans will turn towards the IPL and the GEO Super sports channel showing the matches is also drumming up the event."

The captain Younis Khan - a member of the Rajasthan Royals last season - added that the Indian fans too will miss not having them around. His team-mate Sohail Tanvir was the leading wicket-taker in the competition last year.

The Pakistan Cricket Board had earlier banned its players from participating in the IPL after the country's relations with India deteriorated after the terror attacks in Mumbai in November. When the tournament was moved out of India - over security reasons - the Pakistan players were hopeful of returning but IPL officials said it wouldn't be possible as the squads had already been finalised earlier.

"We are even willing to travel to South Africa and sort out this matter with the IPL franchises," Salman Ahmed, who is negotiation with the IPL on behalf of the Pakistani players, told AP. "The franchises have given them nothing in writing. It is in their contracts that a notice will be served before any such termination or suspension, but in this case nothing as such is indicated with any of the players."

Prior to the 2009 IPL auction, the contracts of Shoaib Akhtar, Younis, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, Salman Butt and Mohammed Hafeez were terminated by their franchises and four others - Umar Gul, Misbah-ul-Haq, Kamran Akmal and Tanvir - had their contracts "suspended", allowing their teams to replace them at the draft.

It is reported that there is a sense of resentment that the franchises did not inform them before cancelling the contracts and it is believed the players are mulling legal action.

Pakistan cricket to come alive with Australian series

The Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Ijaz Butt, having just returned from Australia, has expressed the confidence that the Australians would indeed honour their commitment of playing the ODI series against Pakistan in the Middle East.
Ijaz Butt reckons that he has had a fruitful meeting with the officials of Cricket Australia (CA) in Melbourne earlier in the week. Upon his arrival in Pakistan he has confirmed that the Australians have committed to play in Abu Dhabi and Dubai during the months of April and May.
The PCB Chairman is shortly expected to announce the dates of the five-match ODI series besides a couple of Twenty20 Internationals after consulting the local authorities in the UAE.
The weather in the UAE would not be ideal for cricket in April and May but the PCB will not mind doing it because the Australians don’t have alternate dates to squeeze a series against Pakistan.

Pakistan desperately needs more cricket and the PCB, for obvious reasons, is very eager to host the Australians. The cricket enthusiasts in Pakistan are keenly awaiting the series between Pakistan and Australia.

Cricket in Pakistan would certainly come alive with the series of ODIs and T20 Internationals. It would have been a bigger treat watching the Aussies perform on the grounds in Pakistan but in the prevailing circumstances the contests between the two sides would be welcomed even on neutral venues.

It’s not going to be the first when Pakistan would be hosting Australia in neutral territories. The bilateral Test series between the two countries in 2002 was played in Colombo and Sharjah.
A large number of Pakistani expatriates living in the UAE would certainly be most delighted with the news of the series between Pakistan and Australia taking place there. It will be a source of great entertainment for them as it would be for the millions of Pakistanis who would be following the action on television.

The upcoming series with Pakistan would certainly limit the availability of Australia's one-day players from participating in the second edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) but one should not forget the fact that the cancellation of the series between Pakistan and Australia around the same time last year had provided them the opportunity to take part in the inaugural IPL.

Pakistan’s performance in the recently held ODI series at home against Sri Lanka was not very encouraging but they would sense greater chance of scaring the Australians who themselves have had a very poor run in the ODIs of late.

Shoaib Akhtar eager to return on international stage

Shoaib Akhtar eager to return on international stage

Shoaib Akhtar is mobilizing all the resources at his disposal to facilitate his comeback in the national team. He has this habit of creating this kind of situation on the eve of every major series. He knows that he has certain news value. He wants to make the most of it by issuing statements that could keep in the reckoning and prolong his international career.

Shoaib is hitting the headlines yet again, passing the impression that he is fully fit to take on the Australians in the upcoming series to be held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

It remains to be seen if the present selectors will take another chance with the speedster. Abdul Qadir and company will have to think twice because they had gambled with him in Sri Lankan series not very long ago and faced humiliation.

The selectors will have to decide whether they can still rely on Shoaib or they can move forward by trying out a promising young fast bowler in his place. The series of One-day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals against Australia is fast approaching and it’s not going to be an easy decision.

Shoaib Akhtar, clocked as the fastest bowler of the world, has had an outstanding record at the international in all forms of the game but his level of fitness and commitment both have often been questioned. He has not been able to keep himself fit for a long duration of time much to the disappointment of the while nation.

He’s such a gifted cricketer. Known as the ‘Rawalpindi Express’ he has demolished the strongest of batting line-ups. In just 46 Test matches he has bagged 178 wickets at an average of 25.69 while he has scalped 220 batsmen in 140 ODIs at an average of 23.49. He has fared impressively in the shortest version of the game too, having taken eight wickets in six games at 20.62 apiece.

He, however, is not that far away from his 34th birthday and being a fast bowler one can’t expect much cricket left in him. He may be able regain his full fitness and form in near future but for how long one never knows.
He has become notorious for breaking down during the course of a series, a tendency that hurts the team spirit. One can only hope he would last the entire length of the series, if selected.

Javed Miandad stages another comeback

April 1, 2009

Javed Miandad stages another comeback

Batting legend Javed Miandad, who has been known and feared for his abilities to stage a comeback from the dead, has done it again. He has been reinstated as the Director General of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). He is all set to resume duties on April 1.

The former Pakistan captain had resigned from the PCB about a month or so ago in controversial circumstances at a time when the Chairman of the Board, Mr Ijaz Butt, was abroad.

It was being speculated that the PCB Chairman, upon his return home, would convince the legendary Javed Miandad right away to change his mind but he took far more time than anticipated for there appeared to be some elements in the Board who didn’t desire an amicable settlement.

As they say better late than never. The meeting between the two in Lahore on March 30 turned fruitful and Javed Miandad, who had left the office complaining about lack of powers, has agreed to return on board

The Human Resources department of the PCB, headed by Wasim Bari, another cricket great, had also come under fire during the controversy but there was a clear-cut statement issued late on March 30.

"I can confirm that Javed Miandad will be re-appointed director general of the PCB from April 1 after meeting the PCB chairman. All his terms and conditions have been settled," Wasim Bari was quoted as saying.

Javed Miandad himself was delighted to be back and vowed to help Pakistan cricket. "I never had any issues before, nor will I now. I am at the service of Pakistan cricket and will do that to the best of my abilities. I am thankful to the chairman who was kind and asked me to help him as his adviser also. I never had any terms and conditions before and there will be none now because I believe in the service of the game," he remarked.

Brad Haddin comes of age at the Adelaide Oval

The Sunday crowd at the Adelaide Oval could not have wished for a more entertaining holiday package. Australia’s new wicketkeeper-batsman Brad Haddin obliged them with a delightful maiden Test hundred that would go a long way in cementing his place in the star-studded side.

What a sight it was watching Adam Gilchrist stand and applaud what indeed was a very special hundred. It could be the first of the many centuries that are to flow from the blade of Haddin.

The expectations are far too high from the Haddin not only because he is representing Australia but the main reason is that he has taken over from a man called Gilchrist who is considered as the greatest-ever wicketkeeper-batsman in the history of the game.