Pakistan name Waqar Younis bowling, fielding coach

KARACHI: Pakistan have appointed former captain and renowned paceman Waqar Younis as a bowling and fielding coach for their tour
of Australia Waqar Younis starting later this month, an official said on Wednesday.

"Waqar has agreed to serve as fielding and bowling coach for the tour of Australia after we requested his services for the job," Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) spokesman Nadeem Sarwar said.

Pakistan dropped about half a dozen catches in their first Test defeat against New Zealand at Dunedin last month. They also grassed three crucial catches in their series-levelling win at Wellington
last week.

Pakistan play three Tests, five One-Day Internationals and a Twenty20 international on the tour of Australia, starting December 26 in Melbourne.

Waqar, who has settled in Australia and works as a television commentator, left the bowling coach job in 2007 after a dispute with the former PCB leadership. He also blamed then-captain Inzamam-ul-Haq for his ouster.

During an illustrious career, Waqar took 373 wickets in 87 Tests and 416 in 262 One-Day Internationals. He also led Pakistan in the 2003 World Cup before retiring the next year.

TOI

Akthar's contract not to be renewed: PCB

Embattled Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar's career has been dealt another blow with the Cricket Board deciding not to renew his central contract as he is neither playing for the national team nor competing in the domestic circuit.

Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Ejaz Butt said no fresh contract would be issued to the fast bowler, whose career has been marred by injury breakdowns, a dope scandal and disputes with the authorities.

Shoaib's current contract expires at the end of this month.

Butt said only those players are given contracts and monthly salaries who are playing for the country or competing at the domestic level.

"Unfortunately in both cases, Shoaib has not played for a while now so from next month he will not be getting anymore salary from the board," he said.

Shoaib is placed in the category A of the central contracts, which allows him to draw a salary of Rs 250,000 per month from the board.

The troubled bowler has kept a low profile since returning from England after undergoing a knee surgery two months ago.

He also had a liposuction in Islamabad to remove excess fat from his body but has not spoken to the media or played any competitive cricket.

Shoaib has had a troubled time in the past two-three years and has played only a handful of matches for Pakistan.

Butt said the fast bowler was given a central contract last time as he was active and the PCB wanted him to play regularly for the team provided he was fit and in form.

Talking about Younis Khan's non-availability for the Australian tour, Ejaz Butt said he was disappointed with the senior batsman.

The Pakistani selectors yesterday announced the squad for the tour, retaining Muhammad Yousuf as captain for the Test and one-day series in Australia.

Younus, who had pulled out of the ongoing tour of New Zealand due to personal reasons and lack of form, didn't make himself available for the Australian tour.

"I had spoken to Younus in England and had told him to play some domestic cricket and make himself available for the Australian tour," Ejaz Butt said.

"I am disappointed that he didn't listen to my advice because I feel he is our top batsman and should have been going to Australia. But since he didn't make himself available there is nothing the selectors could do," he added.

The PCB Chairman said despite several attempts by the PCB to contact Younus, nothing had come out of it.

"At present we don't even know where Younus is as he has not gotten back to us as yet," he stated.

© PTI

ICC might scrap the home-and-away system

As per the new details of the post-2012 FTP, ICC President David Morgan said that the current home-and-away concept could be scrapped.

The present FTP works on a system of all teams playing each other twice in Test and one-day series over a six-year cycle.

Speaking to Cricinfo, Morgan said that the cycle could be reduced to one series and can be either a home or an away series.

"The process is similar but the results will be different. I can't elaborate, but at the moment it's a requirement that in any six year cycle each full member has to play the other home and away in a minimum of two Tests and three one-day internationals," Morgan said.

"I believe there will be a relaxation of that. Perhaps not in the number of games, but there's the possibility of instead having to play everybody home and away in a fixed cycle, you may either play them away or home."

"The FTP essentially is a basket of bilateral agreements between the ten full members with some consideration given to the more proficient associate countries like Ireland and the Netherlands. That set of bilateral arrangements is continuing."

"I firmly believe that it is very important to consult with the players. Where FICA [Federation of International Cricketers' Associations] is recognised, which is in the majority of countries, we are very happy to liaise and discuss things with Tim May and his team. I find them a responsible body," added the ICC president.

Last month, the FICA had advised the ICC to do away with the FTP system and had asked them to create a new scheduling system.

Cricbuzz

Yousuf retained as captain for Australia series

Pakistan were forced to retain Mohammad Yousuf as captain for their three-Test series in Australia after Younus Khan remained unavailable, selectors announced Tuesday.

Younus, appointed captain until the 2011 World Cup, pulled out of Pakistan's tour to New Zealand over lack of form and has since been unavailable. He did not play in any domestic match, which was a prerequisite for his selection.

"He (Younus) has not been in touch with us at all since returning home and he didn't inform us about his availability for the Australian tour. So we didn't consider him for the series," chief selector Iqbal Qasim said.

Qasim said Younus would have to play some domestic cricket in order to prove his form before being considered for national selection again in the future.

"He had withdrawn from the test tour of New Zealand because of his poor form, so he has to play in some domestic matches to get his touch back," Qasim said.

Last month, PCB had asked Yousuf to lead the side in the ongoing test series against New Zealand after Younus withdrew his name from the tour citing poor form with the bat.

Younus had said that he wants to take a break from the international cricket to recoup his form and passion for the sport.

But since returning from Abu Dhabi where the team lost the ODI series to New Zealand under his captaincy, Younus had maintained distance from the media and was also not in touch with the board or selectors.

"Yousuf has done enough to be made captain for tests and ODIs as the Chairman of the board didn't agree at the thought to have separate captains for tests and ODIs," a board official said.

Yousuf will also lead the team in the five-match one-day series that follows the Tests. Shahid Afridi, not in the Test squad, will lead the team in the one Twenty20 to be played after the one-day matches.

Two players on the current New Zealand Test tour -- Yasir Arafat and Sarfraz Ahmed -- will return home to trim the squad for the Australia tour to 16.

The first Test starts in Melbourne from December 26.

Squad: Mohammad Yousuf (captain), Salman Butt, Khurrum Manzoor, Imran Farhat, Shoaib Malik, Fawad Alam, Faisal Iqbal, Misbah-ul-Haq, Kamran Akmal (wk), Danish Kaneria, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Aamir, Abdur Rauf, Umer Akmal.

© AFP

No Pakistan players in IPL-3

Pakistani cricketers will not play in the Indian Premier League III as their board has failed to obtain their visas before the deadline for confirmation of participation, IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi said on Monday.

"We have been informed by PCB that they have not been able to obtain the visas as of now. So we are not being able to extend the deadline. Today is the absolute deadline for confirmation of Pakistani players (to take part in IPL). The exchange window is day after tomorrow," Modi said.

"Unfortunately, the Pakistani players are out and they will not be allowed to take part in the next IPL because we are handicapped by the fact that the exchange window is day after tomorrow. We are informing the teams that they now can go for the replacement of the Pakistani players," he told the Times Now channel.

The Indian Premier League III will be played at various venues in the country in March-April.

© PTI

Yuvraj sacked as Kings XI captain

There have been reports doing rounds that the Kings XI skipper Yuvraj Singh has been sacked from the captaincy by the team management.

Reports said that the team coach Tom Moody was unhappy with Yuvraj's attitude which apparently led to his sacking. The report also stated that Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara would take over as the captain of the Punjab team during the 3rd edition of the IPL.

Sangakkara, however, rubbished these reports and said, "I already have my hands full with the Sri Lanka job. I cannot take another one and I feel an Indian should lead an Indian franchise."

Praising Yuvraj Singh, Sangakkara said, "He is a very good captain and I enjoyed playing under his leadership in the IPL. I haven't heard anything of this sort"

Cricbuzz

Messi or Ronaldo?

ZURICH, Dec 8: Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo was given a chance to defend his World Player of the Year title on Monday when he was named on the shortlist for this year’s accolade.

Argentina’s Lionel Messi, Brazil’s Kaka, the 2007 winner, and Spanish pair Andres Iniesta and Xavi completed the shortlist for the title which will be awarded by soccer’s governing body FIFA on December 21. All five nominees play for Spanish clubs—Ronaldo and Kaka for Real Madrid and Xavi, Messi and Iniesta for Barcelona.

It’s time for the slam bang stuff

NAGPUR, Dec 8: Having crowned themselves the number one team in Test rankings, India would look to assert their supremacy in the shortest format as well when they clash against Sri Lanka in the first Twenty20 International on Wednesday.

The 2-0 triumph and the number one Test ranking also gives India a psychological edge over the visitors, who are still licking their wounds after being spanked by an innings by the home team in two consecutive Test matches.

India have made a few changes in their squad, resting pace spearhead Zaheer Khan and off-spinner Harbhajan Singh and calling up youngsters Ashok Dinda and R Ashwin. With Test specialists Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman not considered any more for the limited-over clashes, Suresh Raina, Yusuf Pathan and Rohit Sharma would shore up the middle-order along with Yuvraj Singh and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Oz media slams BCCI ‘India rule Test arena while trying to kill it’

Melbourne, Dec 7: In a scathing attack on the Indian cricket board, Australian media on Monday said the financially strong Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is doing every bit to kill Test cricket even as their team has taken the top spot in the traditional format.

“India rule Test arena while trying to kill it,” a Sydney Morning Herald header screamed.

“It is incredible that India, long seen as promoting the death of Test cricket by driving the proliferation of Twenty20 matches, has reached the sport’s pinnacle.”

India played only six Test matches this year, an away series against New Zealand in March followed by the just concluded three-Test series against Sri Lanka after a gap of seven months.

Sangakkara stands in India’s way

MUMBAI, Dec 5: India were on the threshold of becoming the number one team in Test rankings as they closed in on an emphatic victory in the third and final Test against Sri Lanka despite captain Kumar Sangakkara’s gritty unbeaten century on Saturday.

After conceding a mammoth 333-run first innings lead, the visitors were struggling at 274 for six at close on the penultimate day which was marked by Sangakkara’s resilient unbeaten 133 under immense pressure.

The Lankans are still trailing by 59 runs at the end of the day and will have to bat out of their skins to achieve the near-impossible task of saving the game on a last-day Brabourne track which was expected to assist the bowlers.

The Indians, on the other hand, will look to wrap up the remaining four wickets quickly on Sunday and clinch the three-match Test series with a 2-0 margin.

Jwala-Diju in Super Series Masters finals, Saina loses in semis

Johor Bahru, Dec 5: India’s Valiyaveetil Diju and Jwala Gutta scored a sensational 21-19, 21-11 win over Poland’s Robert Mateusiak and Nadiezda Kostiuczyk to storm into the mixed doubles final of the World Super Series Masters Finals badminton at the Johor Bahru City Stadium here on Saturday.

However, top-seeded Indian Saina Nehwal went down 18-21, 18-21 to Juliane Schenk of Germany in the women’s singles semifinals. It was a strong comeback from world No 7. Jwala and Diju who had lost their opening Group match.

Dhoni hits ton, India firmly in driver's seat

MUMBAI: For Sri Lanka, it might have seemed like they had been granted a free showing of Pulp Fiction just when they were dreading the thought of Dhoni hits ton, India firmly in driver's seat watching any further bloodshed.

The whole of Friday was Prime Time, a Tarantino-like thriller that had Indians gleefully munching popcorn as the Lankans looked for a place for hide.

No sooner did the ball land on the roof of Brabourne's clubhouse in the final half an hour of the third day's proceedings, Mahendra Singh Dhoni raised his bat for a well-struck 100 and ran back to the dressing room acknowledging the cheers. He wanted Sri Lanka to pad up and play as many overs as possible while chasing India's impressive 333-run lead.

Dhoni declared at 726/9, his innings bringing the curtains down on an extremely boisterous show that Sehwag had started. Sri Lanka will remember this batting genocide for a long time. It left the visitors nursing multiple bruises as the Indians registered their highest-ever total in Tests, surpassing their previous best of 705 at Sydney in 2004.
For Lanka, it couldn't have been more torturous after Sehwag had virtually battered the opposition.

No sooner did Friday begin, though, the high expectations that Sehwag would become the first batsman to score three triple tons in Tests fell flat. Muttiah Muralitharan allowed himself to grin for the first time in this Test match, coming round the wicket and sending down one with enough loop for the batsman to tap it right back. Caught and bowled for 293, seven excruciatingly painful runs short of 300, Sehwag returned to a standing ovation.

At least for the next 36 years - that is how long Brabourne yearned for a Test match - it will easily remain the most pleasing memory here. Soon, Dravid left too, missing his century after scoring 74 runs and for just that moment, it began to seem doubtful if batting once would be enough for the hosts.

Often, in Mumbai, when a match is on and regardless of whether Sachin Tendulkar is playing in it or not, it is a given for the crowd to keep chanting his name. 'Sachin, Sachin,' they go on, and he needn't actually be there. So, it was just about normal that India at 487/3, with Sehwag having set the tone, Tendulkar walked out to a rapturous welcome and scored 53 in the middle of a decibel level that made Lanka cringe further. Along with Laxman's 62, these were important runs though India were still quite far from reaching the 700-run mark until Dhoni had finished.

On Saturday, when play begins, each delivery bowled, every wicket taken, will be with the sole intention of wrapping this Test up as soon as possible. India's race to the Number One spot in the ICC Test rankings has begun and they might as well reach there in style.

For all the runs accumulated, every bit contributed by those playing the second fiddle to Sehwag was pleasing to the eye. If his smacking Sri Lanka all over the park was a Thursday special, Dhoni hitting his sixes all over the clubhouse roof time and again made for Friday's blockbuster.

With 15-odd minutes left for the day's play to end, Lanka faced three overs, scored 11 runs and surely got a taste of things to come. India had begun attack with off-spinner Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha from each end.

TOI

South Africa to play Mexico in FIFA World Cup opener

CAPE TOWN: Brazil and Portugal were sent on a World Cup collision course when the final draw was made on Friday while Lady Luck smiled on England


The Brazilians and Portuguese will clash in Group G and will be joined by top African side Ivory Coast and unknown quantities North Korea in what will inevitably be dubbed the 'group of death'.

England coach Fabio Capello had reason to be happy as his men drew the United States, Algeria and Slovenia.

Ironically it was David Beckham, who plays for the Los Angeles Galaxy, who pulled out the ball which paired up the Americans with England in the World Cup for the first time since 1950 when the United States pulled off a shock 1-0 win.

Hosts South Africa were given a tough assignment, getting 1998 winners France, Central America powerhouse Mexico and Uruguay.

Group B has Argentina, South Korea, Nigeria and Greece, with Germany, Australia, Ghana and Serbia making up Group D.

The Netherlands have Japan, Cameroon and Denmark in Group E. Italy has New Zealand, Paraguay and Slovakia in Group F while in the final Group H, European champions Spain go up against Honduras, Chile and Switzerland.

The draw, which saw the 32 qualified teams split into eight groups of four for the first round stage of the June 11-July 11 tournament, laid down the battle lines for what will be the first World Cup to be played on African soil.

With the eyes of the footballing world firmly focused on this historic city perched on the southern tip of the continent, it was an evening full of symbolic significance both for Africa and for South Africa, coming as it did just 15 years after the end of the apartheid era.

After a show that featured both traditional and modern African music, the stage was handed over to South African-born Academy Award winning actress Charlize Theron who took on the duties of main presenter to be joined on stage later by other sporting celebrities including Beckham.

First, as pre-arranged, out of the seeded Pot 1 were hosts South Africa who will be playing in just their third World Cup and who, at 86th in the world, are the lowest-ranking team in the competition.

They were followed in turn by heavyweights Argentina, England, Germany, Netherlands, Italy, Brazil and Spain.

It was then a question of who would go up against them from the three remaining pots which had been carefully assembled to ensure that teams from the same continent would be kept apart as far as possible.

The four Asian qualifiers, three North and Central American teams and minnows New Zealand, representing Oceania, came out of Pot 2. First out was Mexico putting them into the opening match against South Africa in Johannesburg on June 11.

The five remaining African sides and three remaining South Americans were allocated from out of Pot 3 leaving the remaining eight European teams from the final Pot 4.

The latter contained the two most dangerous floaters in the draw - France and Portugal - and when Portugal were flung in with Brazil the atmosphere turned electric in the main auditorium of the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

Group A - South Africa, Mexico, Uruguay, France
Group B - Argentina, South Korea, Nigeria, Greece
Group C - England, United States, Algeria, Slovenia
Group D - Germany, Australia, Ghana, Serbia
Group E - Netherlands, Japan, Cameroon, Denmark
Group F - Italy (holders), New Zealand, Paraguay, Slovakia
Group G - Brazil, North Korea, Ivory Coast, Portugal
Group H - Spain, Honduras, Chile, Switzerland

TOI

add add * Bandra-Worli Sea link part of Mumbai Marathon route

STAFF WRITER 20:39 HRS IST

Mumbai, Dec 3 (PTI) Runners participating in the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon on January 17, 2010 will run on the Rajiv Gandhi Bandra Worli Sea link, which will be part of the 42.1 km course, organisers said here today.

The seventh edition of the race which will have 14,500 runners taking part in full marathon and half marathon will offer USD 3,10,000 in prize money, an increase of USD 60,000 from last year.

For the first time in seven years there will be a separate start for half marathon which will commence at Bandra and end at CST.

The change has been necessitated by the need to avoid convergence of the runners of the two categories and give the participants of the full marathon a clear route from start to finish, the orgainsers said.

Saina named Sports Illustrated Sportsperson

NEW DELHI, Dec 3: India’s badminton sensation Saina Nehwal was on Thursday declared the Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year for her stupendous show in 2009. The Hyderabadi shuttler became the first Indian to have won a Super Series title when she triumphed in Indonesian event in June. She also broke into the top-10 zone this year. India cricketer Virat Kohli was adjudged the Young Player of the Year while India’s Davis Cup Squad was named as the Team of the Year. Jamaican super sprinter Usain Bolt, a Beijing Olympic gold medallist, was chosen as the International Sportsperson of the Year while the Lifetime Achievement award will be given posthumously to former BCCI president Raj Singh Dungarpur. “These individuals have shown supreme grit and determination in their endeavours to excel. The awards are our way of providing further encouragement and support to these men and women,” Sundeep Misra, editor-in-chief of the Sports Illustrated India, said through a press release. “Saina Nehwal’s achievements this year make her stand out like a colossus in the history of Indian sport. Breaking into the world’s top-10 in a sport dominated for years by the Chinese and South-East Asians is no mean feat. “Saina’s focus is her strength and it is this focus that saw her claim the Indonesian Super Series; an achievement worthy of being celebrated not just by Saina but the whole nation,” Misra added. (PTI)

Sehwag mauls the helpless Lankan Lions

MUMBAI, Dec 3: Virender Sehwag clobbered a breath-taking unbeaten 284 as India rode on his brutal assault to take complete control of the third and final cricket Test against a hapless Sri Lanka on Thursday.

Replying to Sri Lanka’s first innings total of 393, the 31-year-old Sehwag set the Brabourne stadium ablaze with a stunning display of strokeplay as the hosts raced to a record score of 443 for one at close on an extraordinary second day’s play.

Sehwag plundered runs at will as he not only notched up his 17th Test ton, his sixth 200 plus total, but laid the platform for India to push for victory which would take them to the number one position in the ICC Test rankings. THE SENTINEL

WI should be barred from Tests: Hughes

MELBOURNE, Dec 1: With a skipper who doesn’t even want to play Test cricket, the West Indies are in complete disarray and should be barred from the longer version of the game until they prove themselves worthy, feels former Australian captain Kim Hughes.

After their humiliating innings and a 65 runs defeat to Australia in opening Test in Brisbane, Hughes said the Caribbeans’ shoddy performance was a poor advertisement for Tests which is already battling dwindling spectator interest.

Focus on winning series: Dhoni

MUMBAI, Dec 1: Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, on Tuesday, said that his team was not giving much thought to the prospect of becoming world’s number one Test side as it would only add to the pressure when they take on Sri Lanka in the third and final match starting on Wednesday.

Leading 1-0 in the series, a win in the match starting, on Wednesday, would catapult India to the top of the ICC list but Dhoni said thinking about the rankings would not let the side focus on the task at hand.

Focus on winning series: Dhoni

MUMBAI, Dec 1: Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, on Tuesday, said that his team was not giving much thought to the prospect of becoming world’s number one Test side as it would only add to the pressure when they take on Sri Lanka in the third and final match starting on Wednesday.

Leading 1-0 in the series, a win in the match starting, on Wednesday, would catapult India to the top of the ICC list but Dhoni said thinking about the rankings would not let the side focus on the task at hand.

“Winning the series is important but at the end of the day, if we do that, it will reflect in the ratings. We are not thinking about the ratings because we don’t really want to play under pressure,” Dhoni said on the eve of the third and final Test at the Brabourne Stadium.

“You want to play your natural game, the whole team wants to play according to the game-plan. We don’t really think about the ratings because we know that if we keep winning the games, if we keep playing well, the ratings will take care of themselves,” Dhoni said.

Even a drawn encounter would clinch the series for the hosts after their comprehensive victory by an innings in the second match at Kanpur. The high-scoring first Test at Ahmedabad was drawn.

Dhoni said the first session of play would be crucial as the seam bowlers are expected to get some help.

Guwahati to host national powerlifting

GUWAHATI, Dec 1: Guwahati will host the Rajiv Gandhi Junior and Masters National Power Lifting Championship from January 6. The tournament, to be organized by the North East Powerlifting Association, would be concluded on January 10. The president of the North East Powerlifting Association, Kailash Sarma said that around 1000 players from 32 states would take part in the meet. Dronacharya awardee coach Bhupinder Dhawan would likely to be present in Guwahati during the championship.