Team Pakistan manager wants players to remain cool against England

Naveed Akram Cheema, the Pakistan team's manager, hopes that the upcoming series against England will be a controversy-free and friendly event; a series they want to play in the right spirit of the game, and avoid any sort of untoward incident. Cheema revealed that the Men in Green will be given special lessons regarding the International Cricket Council’s laws about spot-fixing during their training camp at Lahore. This is being done in order to avoid a repetition of the spot fixing scandal that emerged at Lord's. According to the manager, the players will also be told not to lose their cool, whether it be the pavilion or the ground, and to treat the English team with respect, dignity and create a peaceful atmosphere throughout the tour. He did emphasise that the Cornered Tiger should prove themselves via their performances.

The manager touched upon the atmosphere while speaking to the media. “I want this series to be played in the right spirit. In the training camp for the tour, we will be instructing our players to maintain their cool and not get provoked in any situation.” He further said, “What happened in the last series between the two teams is in the past and I am confident that the upcoming matches will be played in a friendly atmosphere. The players will be asked to show aggression only on the field through their performances and I'll be asking them to avoid any sledging to ensure a friendly atmosphere.” During the last Pakistan-England Test series in England, three Pakistani players, Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir were implicated for spot-fixing, which brought dishonour to the Pakistani team. This left a bitter taste at the end of the tour. Controversy is no stranger to Pakistan-England series; from Shakoor Rana and Mike Gatting fighting on-field, to Inzimam refusing to re-enter the field of play after tea, in 2006 at the Oval, over allegations of ball tampering. The current series consists of 3 Tests, 4 One Day Internationals and 3 T20I; fans and the team management will be hoping that the tour can finish without any major controversy.

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Khawaja Hussain Sayed blames PCB for degradation of cricket in Pakistan

Pakistan historian, Khawaja Hussain Sayed believes that the current and past PCB managements should be held accountable for the decaying state of cricket in the country. Pakistan cricket has suffered the brunt of wrong decisions made by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

“Twenty years ago, nobody can criticise Pakistan team in Sharjah but the present management brought the Pakistan team at a stage where they are only on receiving ends,” Khawaja Hussain Sayed claimed, before prophesying that cricket will suffer the fate of hockey if effective policies were not enforced.

He was disappointed at Pakistan’s defeat against India in the ICC World Cup 2011 and condemned the government for bestowing honour upon the players after such a crucial loss.

India stormed into the World Cup finals after handing Pakistan a 29-run defeat in the semi-final clash at Mohali.

“PCB and government honouring players despite the semi-final loss against arch-rivals India which is a very shameful thing while the players are busy in minting money and left country’s interest behind,” he criticized.

Meanwhile, cricket analyst Chaudhary Javed Elahi claimed that Pakistan team can never forget the honour they received from Sri Lanka during the World Cup 2011. He was grateful to the Sri Lankan government and nation for their hospitable treatment towards the Men in Green.

He urged the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to organize a reception dinner in honour of the Sri Lankan Consul General to return the favour.

According to Javed Elahi, a change of faces in the cricket board will not prove advantageous for the squad’s performance. A revolutionized system is however, imperative for the betterment of players and development of the sport.

Javed Elahi criticized Shahid Afridi as the skipper of the Pakistan team, saying that he lacks the leadership abilities. Rendering him an incapable captain, Javed added that Afridi cannot make timely on-field decisions when the situation of the match changes.

He concluded that the Pakistan cricket fans want to see the game back in Pakistan, urging PCB management to chalk out important strategies and take crucial steps to improve the state of cricket in Pakistan.

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Mohsin Khan cites West Indies tour as an opportunity for Pakistan youngsters

Pakistan team chief selector, Mohsin Khan, cited the West Indies tour as an opportunity for the young players on the team to display their cricketing prowess and prove their mettle. He advised the youngsters to fully avail the chance as they are the future assets of Pakistan cricket.

“I hope every youngster whether he is a batsman or a bowler will get full advantage of the chance he is given as it will be very useful for the future of Pakistan cricket,” Mohsin maintained.

Lauding the squad’s performance against the West Indies in the ongoing One Day International series, he said that the boys are expected to perform brilliantly throughout the series. The former cricketer however said that the Caribbean side should not be taken lightly as they have the potential for a comeback in the series.

Praising the middle-order batsman, Asad Shafiq, he said that the youngs batsman’s performance curve has shown significant improvement. He further went on to appreciate opener Ahmed Shehzad who failed to make an impact on the International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup 2011 but sealed a scintillating century in the second One Day International match.

“Asad is showing improvement every passing day as far as maturity is concerned, and Ahmed, after his failure in the World Cup, got another chance and his century in the second ODI was a responsible knock. He will be very useful for the team if he continues his good performance,” Mohsin Khan claimed.

The chief selector noted a positive development in the team’s progress as far as unity amongst the players is concerned. He also showered praise on the captain and the team’s management.

He acknowledged the team’s efforts of playing strictly according to a game plan in the first two One-Dayers. He cited significant improvement in the side’s batting, bowling and fielding line ups. Mohsin maintained that the fast bowlers are having a tough time on the slow Gros Islet wicket which does not have much to offer to the pacers.

Admiring the senior members, Shahid Afridi, Misbah-ul-Haq and Mohammad Hafeez, he said that the cricket champions are fulfilling their responsibilities. The cricket veteran hopes that they will continue to display a promising performance throughout the series.

Pakistan is leading the five-match ODI series 2-0 after winning the first two fixtures by considerable margins. The tourists won the first One-Day by eight wickets with 51 balls remaining and prevailed in the second ODI by seven wickets, with 12 balls remaining.

Mohsin informed that the roster for the first two games of the three-match Test series will be announced during the next week.

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PAKISTAN CAPTAIN SHAHID AFRIDI SETS HIS SIGHT ON ICC WORLD TWENTY20 2012

After facing a terrible defeat at the hands of archrivals India in the ICC World Cup 2011 semi-final recently, Pakistan’s limited-over captain Shahid Afridi has set his sight on the next ICC World Twenty20 tournament scheduled to be played in Sri Lanka in 2012.

“The only way I can really overcome the disappointment of our defeat against India is by winning the Twenty20 World Cup,” Afridi said in an interview.

Afridi has said that he is focusing on World T20 2012, because he does not have any idea whether he will be able to play ICC World Cup 2015 to be co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia.

“I would love to be around for the 2015 World Cup but that’s like four years away. That`s why I`m just focusing on the Twenty20 World Cup in Sri Lanka and want us to take the right steps to ensure that we raise a team that is good enough to win that tournament,” the flamboyant all-rounder added.

Pakistan reached the final of the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 in 2007, where the Men in Green fell to old rivals India, but Afridi emerged as Pakistan’s number one player in the tournament. Later in 2009, the blistering all-rounder played a pivotal role in his team’s title-winning triumph in the second edition of the event.

Moreover, Afridi was leading the side in the third edition of the World T20 championship in 2010, whenPakistan lost to Australia in the semi-final from a seemingly winning position.

Afridi believes his team has a huge chance to go all the way in the fourth edition of the hugely popular competition. “We have won the Twenty20 World Cup before and we can do it again,” the captain added.

The skipper, however, made it clear that it would not be an easy task for the team. He stated that the players have to learn from their mistakes they made in the recent ICC World Cup 2011.

• He explained that India won the recent World Cup because they started preparing for it two years before. Afridi added Pakistan need to put things back on track now. He further cited batting woes as the team’s biggest problem, which needs to be addressed.

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