Pakistan include five uncapped players for Lanka Test

KARACHI: Pakistani selectors on Wednesday included five uncapped players in a new-look 15-man squad for the first Test against Sri Lanka starting on Saturday.

Chief selector Abdul Qadir said opener Ahmed Shahzad was picked after batting a brilliant 100 in the two-day tour match against Sri Lanka.

"Shahzad was not selected in the initial squad of 22 but I said last week that we can pick a player from outside the first list, so after hitting a 100 against Sri Lanka we could not ignore Shahzad," Qadir told reporters.

Pacemen Mohammad Talha and Sohail Khan, opener Khurram Manzoor and all-rounder Fawad Alam were selected after domestic match performances.

The 20-year-old Talha, who hails from Faisalabad, has impressed with his quick pace and wicket-taking ability in domestic matches.

Left-handed middle-order batsman Asim Kamal was also included in the team after breaking into the initial list.

The 32-year-old left-hander played the last of his 12 Tests against England in 2005 before losing his place due to poor form.

All-rounder Shahid Afridi and paceman Sohail Tanveer were omitted.

With frontline paceman Shoaib Akhtar ruled out of the series because of an injured knee, Umar Gul will lead the fast bowling attack with Sohail, Talha and Yasir Arafat as back-up.

Arafat played his only Test against India at Bangalore in December 2007, picking up five wickets in the innings. Leg-spinner Danish Kaneria is the only regular spinner in the squad.

Squad: Younis Khan (captain), Salman Butt, Khurram Manzoor, Ahmed Shahzad, Shoaib Malik, Misbah-ul-Haq, Faisal Iqbal, Asim Kamal, Fawad Alam, Yasir Arafat, Danish Kaneria, Kamran Akmal, Umar Gul, Mohammad Talha, Sohail Khan

Soruce: http://cricket.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Pakistan-drop-Tanvir-and-Afridi-for-Sri-Lanka-Test/articleshow/4150709.cms

Ganguly and Gul end Kolkata's campaign on a high

Kolkata Knight Riders 175 for 7 (Ganguly 86*, Gul 24) beat Kings XI Punjab 174 for 6 (Sangakkara 64, Marsh 40, Gul 4-23) by three wicketsScorecard and ball-by-ball detailsHow they were out Umar Gul inspired the Kolkata Knight Riders to a thrilling final-over win over Kings XI Punjab.
The Kolkata Knight Riders' final game of the season provided Sourav Ganguly and his team a chance to redeem themselves in front of their home fans. An insipid performance in the field and for three-fourths of the chase suggested the campaign would end on a low note but, after Umar Gul sparked life into the chase, Ganguly did the rest to upset Kings XI Punjab's winning momentum ahead of the knockout stages.

After 15 overs, Kolkata were stumbling at 104 for 5, needing an improbable 71 more. Two runs and three balls later they lost Aakash Chopra and in walked Umar Gul, who had taken 4 for 23. After playing the first ball from James Hopes back to the bowler, he proceeded to smash the next two for six - he connected the first in the nick of time for a pull and the ball surprisingly sailed into the stands, the second was sent over long-on.
That seemed to inspire Ganguly, who made Yuvraj Singh rue the decision to bowl Piyush Chawla. Ganguly launched a straight six, swept one for four, and sent one flying over midwicket. Twenty-eight runs had come in the space of five balls, and the chase was back on track.

Sreesanth had delivered a probing first spell but Gul took his chance, and 16 runs off the over - a six and two fours, off the bat and off the leg - brought the equation down to 23 off two.

VRV Singh bowled the penultimate over, removing Gul and giving away only eight runs, leaving 15 needed off the final six balls. The stage was set for Ganguly and he didn't disappoint the Kolkata faithful. The first ball from Irfan Pathan was whipped over the square-leg boundary, followed by a two and another six straight down the ground to tie the score before a single sealed the win.

Punjab, who had clinched two consecutive games in the final over, would have felt their total of 174 - the highest total at Eden Gardens - was enough. Their innings was dominated yet again by their top order. Kumar Sangakkara and Shaun Marsh continued from their partnership against the Deccan Chargers, and Punjab punished Kolkata's lacklustre effort in the field - barring Umar Gul's splendid effort with the ball, there was hardly any spark in Kolkata's performance.

Sangakkara showed off his silken touch and found the boundaries effortlessly. Along with deft touches, he managed to improvise as well; he moved across against Laxmi Ratan Shukla, and swatted the ball over short third man with ease. Marsh wasn't to be outscored, and hit Sri Lankan spin sensation Ajantha Mendis for fours. He then smashed two sixes, premeditating a slog-sweep over midwicket off Shukla, before depositing David Hussey over the straight boundary. But another charge against Mendis landed straight into the hands of Chopra at long-on.

Unfortunately for Sangakkara, a dodgy leg-before decision went against him. Kolkata's fielding was woeful, with several misfields going for fours and a few spilled chances. Yuvraj has been struggling for form in the tournament but he was given a reprieve. He got a top-edge, and Ganguly ran back from midwicket to get under the skier, but Chopra, coming in from deep called and was better placed to take it; the two collided, and the ball popped out of Ganguly's hands.

Yuvraj added insult to injury by smashing three fours in Ishant Sharma's final over, and the IPL's most expensive bowler, who has had a disappointing tournament, ended with 49 runs from four overs. But Gul, a steal at US$150,000 considering his World Twenty20 heroics, managed to fire in the yorkers, and after he gave just eight in his first spell, removing James Hopes, he came back to remove the set Sangakkara, who was readying to tee off. Only four came off the final over he bowled, with two scalps, and his 4 for 23 ensured Punjab's score wasn't out of Kolkata's reach.
Source: © Cricinfo Mathew Varghese is an editorial assistant at Cricinfo