Twittering Hughes needs to learn lessons

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

There’s absolutely no harm in using the social networking sites as means of communicating thoughts to a wider audience but one has to draw a line what’s to be shared publicly and what’s to be strictly avoided.

Even the celebrities, besides the stars in the making, now consider such sites being of some use to them but the wiser ones are selective in sharing their thoughts because the idea, more often than not, is to gain popularity rather than start a controversy.

I am not too sure what exactly was in the mind of Phillip Hughes, a 20-year-old Australian opener into his first year in international cricket, when he chose Twitter, one of the most popular social networking sites, to ‘break’ the news of his axing from the playing eleven for the third Test against England at Edgbaston quite a few hours before the start of the game in wet conditions on July 30.

What Hughes had probably overlooked is the fact that the matters discussed in the team meetings are for their own consumption only and the stories need not to be told outside the dressing room or the hotel wherever they assemble for the brainstorming.

Neither the decisions taken in team meetings are meant to be announced by the individuals. It’s the responsibility of the team manager or the media manager to take care of hassles. A cricketer is meant to concentrate only on his own game and contribute to the team in the best possible manner.

Hughes might have been a bit too upset by the decision of the Australian team management to sideline him after the failures in the first couple of Tests in the ongoing Ashes battle. With the Australians trailing in the series one can surely understand their eagerness to catch up before it’s too late.

Hughes has to learn his lessons quickly. He not only needs to improve his technique with the bat in order to regain his place in the team but he also has to acquire wisdom before he’s caught in even greater mess.

The premature disclosure of Hughes that he was being replaced by Shane Watson for the Edgabaston Test appears to have caused embarrassment to Cricket Australia as well and it remains to be seen if the enterprising left-handed opening batsman faces any disciplinary action or he’s just issued a warning.

His manager, Neil D'Costa, who looks after the Twitter for Phillip Hughes, has come out with an explanation that the time difference between the countries led to the confusion and created the controversy.

D’Costa clarified that he was in India while the Twitter matters were being handled in Australia and the Test match in question was being held in England. Well he should now exercise more caution not only in selecting the right contents but also crosscheck abut the timings.
Hughes has to improve as well with coach Tim Nelson not mincing words: "He does need to go away and work at his game. He probably exceeded our expectations initially with the success he had in South Africa, and the way he played.”

Hughes, who was being hailed as the new Mathew Hayden after the dream start to his career in South Africa, has to work exceptionally hard now to score the heaps of runs at the international level in the manner he had done for New South Wales and Middlesex.

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Dreamworld Cue Sports complete 10 years

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Driving to the Dreamworld Resort & Golf Club, located on the outskirts of Karachi in the vicinity of the Northern Bypass, has always been a pleasure. Even though the roads throughout the metropolis have been ruined by the one devastating spell of rain on July 18, there’s always a temptation to visit the Resort.

The finals of the 10th Dreamworld Cue Sports Championship 2009 were held on July 26 and as expected there was a sizeable crowd at the venue. Probably there was a bigger crowd at the Dreamworld Billiards Parlour than the one at the Karachi Gymkhana where the final of the Al-Haram Snooker Cup National Ranking Tournament was being played the same day.

The Dreamworld Cue Sports Championships, launched a decade ago, have been attracting good crowds since inception and it remains one of the showpiece events in their calendar. There has been greater coverage in the media for the last two years now since they have framed the policy of inviting them for the finals.

Shahid Nazir Minhas lived upto the billing in the 10th Dreamworld Cue Sports Championship by retaining the pool as well as snooker titles. 

The curtain on the 10-day event fell here at the club’s billiards parlour on July 18 with the snooker final and the prize distribution ceremony in which Mohammad Yousuf, a former world champion, was the chief guest.

The tall and well-built Shahid Nazir, having appeared in the national ranking tournaments for quite a few years in the recent past, continued to dominate the snooker as well as the pool events of the Championship being organized by the Dreamworld Resort.

Shahid, however, was given a run for his money in the snooker final of Mohammad Umar. The best of seven encounter lasted four and a half hours with Shahid having had to bring all his expertise into play to clinch the contest 4-3 with the frame scores of 71-44, 32-72, 53-41, 47-70, 76-41, 40-50, 51-40.

He was not all that stretched in the nine-ball pool final, played on a fast pace, in which he raced to 5-3 victory over Rashid Habib.

Saba Zubair Abbasi emerged triumphant in nine-ball pool for ladies as she overpowered Maliha Athar 3-1 in the final.

Syed Saud Hassan ran away with the top honours in the nine-ball pool for seniors, over the age of 45 years. He outclassed Abdul Sattar Shah 5-2 in what turned out to be a one-sided final.

The marathon snooker final delayed the presentation ceremony but the participants of the championship showed great enthusiasm that was acknowledged by Tournament Director, Abdul Qadir Siddiqui, in the welcome address.

The legendary Mohammad Yousuf, the only World and Asian champion to be produced by the country, was highly appreciative of the efforts being made at the resort for the promotion of cue sports. Cash awards of Rs 5,000 each were presented, alongwith trophies, gifts and certificates, to the winners of all the four events.

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Ijaz Butt on the way out

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

There are some strong indications of late that Ijaz Butt, who was appointed the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) last October, may not be able to complete even one year in office.

Having promised much and delivered little, the PCB Chairman is likely to lose his job in not too distant future until and unless there are some dramatic moves and change of mind at the Presidency.

The ouster of Ijaz Butt will not come as a surprise. Neither would anyone feel hurt when he is booted out mainly because of his attitude problem that has cost him some of his nearest and dearest friends lately.

It’s quite amazing to find him ditching his trusted friends. He is not even sparing those mates who stood by him when he was not in power. He is believed to be misbehaving and annoying his closest of friends who have become increasingly fed up with him and might part ways soon.

Ijaz Butt may have committed blunders in his life but his latest act of humiliating his trustworthy friends could cost him much more than the job at the PCB. May be he considers the chairmanship of the Board as the most important thing for him but I am sure he has missed a trick here.

By the look of things one gets the impression that Ijaz Butt has an assurance from his brother-in-law, an influential leader of the ruling party, of his job being secure and he’s not afraid to overlook and ignore all others around him.

Even the Federal Sports Minister, Pir Syed Aftab Hussain Shah Jilani, who was not only one of the key figures in having him installed as the PCB Chairman but also defended him out way whenever he committed mistakes, appears to have quietly withdrawn the support.

Pir Aftab Jilani, who is such a thorough gentleman, has not expressed his displeasure openly yet but one can read between the lines that the Federal Minister has not been accorded the respected he deserved by the sitting PCB Chairman.

Everyone is not as forgiving as Pir Aftab Jilani and there are a few hard nuts to crack in the corridors of power reportedly moving against Ijaz Butt after being offended and shown disrespect.

The stories have started doing rounds that Ijaz Butt could soon face the wrath of the PCB Chief Patron and the President of President of Pakistan, Asif Ali Zardari, who is unhappy with his performance.

Sources in the sports ministry and the government have already confirmed that a comprehensive report on the performance of the PCB during Ijaz Butt's tenure would be submitted to the Chief patron soon.

The newspapers have started reporting that there’s a lot of disappointment in the Presidency and Ministry over the way cricket matters are being handled by Ijaz Butt.

The feeling in the officialdom is growing that Ijaz Butt is too old and does not have the temperament to represent Pakistan in international cricket forums or foster better relations with member countries. In simple words they are now convinced that he’s not the man for the job.

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Shoaib Akhtar’s international career yet not over

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

I incline to disagree with former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram who has reckoned that fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar's international career is virtually over. In Pakistan cricket nothing could be taken for granted. His career would have been over many years ago if he belonged to some other country. 

Wasim was absolutely right in having pointed out that the warning bells had been sounded with Shoaib's omission from Pakistan's list of probables for the forthcoming Champions Trophy, to be staged in South Africa. 

But what Wasim has overlooked is the fact that Shoaib has had many such situations in the recent past when one thought it was all over for him. But he has this knack of being in the news for whatever reasons. Obviously this works to his advantage and prolongs his career without even taking to the field.

"I don't think he has got a chance, unless and until some miracles happen. Even though it depends on the captain and selectors, I think Shoaib has fallen out with the selectors and the board itself. The board still supported him and he went to Abu Dhabi and played two of the five games against Australia before getting injured again. We all saw that,” Wasim, arguably the greatest-ever left-arm fast bowler to have played the game, was quoted as saying in a recent interview.

Having been in the thick of things for so many years in Pakistan, Wasim should have known that logic is probably the last thing that’s taken into account in matters relating to cricket in particular in this part of the world where it’s about the clout and public relations.

He should rather compliment Shoaib for making the most of the system or the lack of it that’s kept the injury-prone fast bowler in the limelight despite having played negligible cricket for the last many years.

Shoaib has been surviving over the years primarily because of his rapport with the media and the weaknesses in the officialdom. He knows better than anyone else now as how to manipulate things from outside the ground. He has been in the limelight many times without having done anything of note, thanks to his new found abilities of hitting headlines.

Shoaib should have been a thing of the past many seasons ago, if merit was the sole criterion for selecting the national team. He was provided numerous opportunities even when half-fit and he continued deserting the team at will. 

Give credit to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) or hold them responsible for compromising on national interest the fact remains that Shoaib was never questioned as to why he took the team for a ride for his personal gains.

History is witness to the fact that Shoaib has been a great fast bowler in his prime youth but he has been found wanting as a team man. There’s also a feeling that the Rawalpindi Express could not do justice with the potential he possessed mainly because of fitness problems.

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Habib University Foundation’s I-Lead programme gets off to a flying start

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The launching ceremony of Habib University Foundation’s I-Lead programme organized at the Habib Public School’s Sports Auditorium in Karachi on July 14 was quite an outstanding effort.

Well begun is often considered half done. The management of the Habib University Foundation deserved credit for having got off to a flying start. If this was an indication of things to come then we can surely expect another great institution in the making by the name of Habib University.

It was quite a privilege having attended the launch of their I-Lead programme. The state of the art facilities at the Sports Auditorium of the famed Habib Public School came handy in providing I-Lead the platform for a perfect start. 

The exciting basketball matches between the school outfits, the thought-provoking presentations and the enlightening panel discussion highlighted the launch of the I-Lead programme.

The sporting icons very rightly pointed out during the panel discussion that professional management and sound planning held the key in arresting the decline and leading the revival in the field of sports.

Former hockey Olympians Samiullah Khan and Qamar Ibrahim and ex-Test opening batsman Shoaib Mohammad lauded the joint efforts of the Habib University, the provincial government and the British Council in having planned a comprehensive programme for the promotion of sports.

The other panelists, Nain Abidi, vice captain of Pakistan women cricket team, Yasir-ur-Haq, a power lifter, Rishad Mahmood, Sports Editor Daily Dawn, also appreciated the implementation of the visionary idea of integrating education, sports and youth. Ehsan Qureshi, the leading all-round sports journalist of the country, moderated the lively discussion.

Syed Faisal Ali Subzwari, Sindh Minister for Youth Affairs, who was the chief guest in the ceremony, expressed the resolve that his department was committed to make its contribution in projects aimed at the promotion of healthy activities in which sports was a major factor.

Syed Wasif Rizvi, Chief Executive Officer, Habib University Foundation, delivered a presentation on value of sports and physical education for a society while Yasmeen Bano, Manager I-Lead Project, deliberated on institutionalizing sports and physical education besides throwing light on the salient features of the I-Lead project.

Samiullah Khan, an architect of many hockey conquests, spoke about the importance of keeping the youth motivated by engaging them in sporting activities round the year and providing them the desired facilities at their schools and colleges.

He reckoned that the youngsters need guidance and counseling besides the motivation to excel in the field of sports that’s becoming increasingly competitive. He urged the athletes to keep working hard to accomplish their goals.

Qamar Ibrahim, one of the many hockey Olympians produced by the Habib Public School, acknowledged the role of his Alma Mater in letting him polish his skills and make it to the national team.

Shoaib Mohammad, the only Test cricketer to have been produced by Habib Public School, also saluted his sports teachers for having groomed him from an early age leading to his elevation at the international level.

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Sangakkara’s negative mindset denies his team clean sweep

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The decision of the Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara to go off the field when at a striking distance to complete a rare clean sweep in the Test series looked mind-boggling to say the least. It were the Pakistanis who were on the defensive on the fifth and final day of the third Test and they must have heaved a sign of relief at having avoided an embarrassment.

The Sri Lankans needed less than run a ball going into the last 20 overs. With six wickets in hand and two well set batsmen at the crease the platform was set for the home side to complete their third successive win in the Test series.

The pitch at the SSC, as the Pakistan captain Younis Khan and the recalled leg-spinner Deanish Kaneria stated after the game, had flattened on the final day and there was hardly any encouragement for the bowlers unlike the earlier days.

Only one wicket had fallen in the first couple of sessions and the Pakistan bowlers were obviously tired and disheartened. The situation was ideal for Sri Lanka to attempt the biggest chase of Test history. But they chose not to go for it and settle for a draw.

Sri Lankan could still have drawn the game had they lost a few wickets in the process of forcing the pace. It’s hard to imagine in these days of Twenty20 cricket any team disinterested in going for a target of less than run a ball in the last 20 overs of a Test match.

The explanation of the Sri Lankan captain didn’t make sense. Not many people would accept the excuse his decision to abandon the chase was largely dictated by the injury concerns over Tillakaratne Dilshan.

"If Dilshan was fit we could have tried a few things out. We could have gone for a few more runs after tea, although they [Pakistan] bowled wide off the crease to cut the run supply and set defensive fields. When the 15 overs came up, we were in a position where we couldn't say either way, so we took the option of drawing the match. We planned to bat out session by session," Sangakkara said.

"The closer we were getting to their total, time was also running out and it became slightly easier to manage. I am pretty happy the way everyone played. This whole innings of ours as a team showed that we were starting to play proper Test cricket. We weren't really thinking about going for totals, we were trying to bat and enjoy our time out in the middle. If you are batting to save a game you really can't go too negative, that plays into the opposition's hands,” he added.

What the Sri Lankan captain was forgetting was the fact that his team had won emerged triumphant in the earlier couple of Tests and the momentum was with him. He was in an ideal position to press home the advantage in the third Test to make it 3-0 but he opted to be content with a 2-0 lead.

Younis Khan must thank his stars because it would have been a much greater humiliation had his team been whitewashed in the Test series soon after the triumph in the ICC Twenty20 Championship in England.

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Azeem Sarwar delighted with accomplishments of his trainees

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Azeem Sarwar, without any shadow of doubt, is the greatest all-round broadcaster produced by the country. He has been equally versatile as a producer and seldom would one find so many outstanding qualities in a single person.

Azeem Sarwar has been blessed with a distinct voice that hangs in memory for a lifetime. That’s why people across the globe still talk of his radio programmes that echoed from every transistor set even decades ago.

His contribution to the media in Pakistan is unparalleled. Besides blessing the legendary radio programmes with his voice and also producing them, he has done a great service to sports journalism by having groomed a crop of youngsters who are now among the bigwigs of the profession.

Azeem Sarwar was the man who conceived the idea of producing a sports programme for Radio Pakistan on a daily basis in Urdu. He had visualized that having a radio programme that broadcasts the news and reports of the latest sporting action all over the world will catch the imagination of the listeners who otherwise didn’t have an access to timely information.

He was absolutely right. It turned out to be a master stroke. It was for the first time in Radio Pakistan’s history that such a programme had been planned. There had been odd radio shows on sports in the past but no one before him could envision having a daily sports programme of international standard.

The popularity of the programme ‘Alami Sports Round Up’ exceeded all expectations. Launched in 1985, the programme became an instant not only in Pakistan but all across the sub-continent wherever the transmission could be heard.


‘Alami Sports Round Up’ revolved around Azeem Sarwar but being a shrewd leader, he kept inducting the youngsters who had the passion for sports and possessed the talents to transcribe and broadcast. Being a hard task master, he never compromised on quality and kept his teammates motivated at all times.

Being a true leader of men, he instilled confidence in those youngsters and urged them to do better in order to make a name for themselves in the profession of writing and broadcasting. He himself was the role model for all his teammates who always looked forward to him for guidance and support.

Azeem Sarwar’s initiatives not only popularized ‘Alami Sports Round Up’ but a whole group of young and upcoming journalists received an early boost to their career. Almost all the members of his team have been occupying key positions in their profession for a number of years now.

I consider myself extremely fortunate to have been a part of his team because I was able to learn a lot by getting an opportunity to work alongside him. He’s the man who provided me the confidence to improve my skills. It was after his training that I joined the mainstream journalism and the rest is history.

Azeem Sarwar is a thorough gentleman whose sporting spirit remains a source of inspiration. An enlightened person, he is not afraid to acknowledge the people, senior or junior, having worked with him. 

It was such a great pleasure to have him speak in the launching ceremony of ‘Cricket Fever’ on July 17. Besides sharing his views on the Indo-Pak cricket matches he recalled the glories of ‘Alami Sports Round Up’ and told the audience that he’s proud of the accomplishments of his members of the team, three of whom were sitting on the stage, including the author of the book.

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Younus Rizwani highlights Karachi Gymkhana’s sporting heritage

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The President of the Karachi Gymkhana for the current year (2009), the soft-spoken Younus Rizwani, takes pride in mentioning his more than a century old club as a hub of sporting activities.

“Karachi Gymkhana offers many other facilities with sports being an area that has made us proud in particular. We are thrilled to be recognized as the leading sports club of the country, having made significant contribution to national sports,” Younus Rizwani remarked in his speech during the launching ceremony of ‘Cricket Fever’ at the Banquet Hall of the Karachi Gymkhana on July 17.

“I am pleased that Karachi Gymkhana today is the venue of the launch of a historic book on Indo-Pak cricket. We have a history of promoting sports. Our club has been engaged in sports promotion for over a century now,” he noted.

“As you all know Karachi Gymkhana has a prominent place in Pakistan's cricket history. It was at our ground where Pakistan overpowered MCC to convince the ruling body of the game that we were worthy of Test status. The scorecard of that memorable match is prominently displayed at our cricket ground even today,” the Karachi Gymkhana President remarked.

“Besides cricket we have been extending support to the promoters of nearly every sport in the national interest. It’s probably for the first time in history that a couple of national ranking snooker tournaments are being hosted by our club during the year. We had played host to the National Snooker Championship 2009 earlier this year and now we are staging the Ranking Cup Snooker Tournament with the collaboration of the Pakistan Billiards & Snooker Association (PBSA),” Younus Rizwani informed the audience.

“We endeavour not only to provide the best possible sporting facilities to our members but we remain committed to play our part proactively in the promotion of national sports,” he added.

“The mood of whole nation changed with the success of our team in England where we won the ICC Twenty20 World Cup. It was after 17 long years when we have become the world champions in cricket again. We look forward to such triumphs much more regularly so that the nation could keep celebrating more often,” he hoped.

“The cricket matches between Pakistan and India have always been of incredible interest. The people in both countries are crazy about cricket and every cricket match is treated as special. Despite the long breaks, the Indo-Pak series are the ones the cricket followers look forward to. Cricket comes alive whenever these two teams are pitted against each other in any corner of the world. There is indeed something magical in Indo-Pak matches,” Younus Rizwani reckoned.

“Syed Khalid Mahmood’s Cricket Fever is a nice effort. He has thrown light on every series between the two countries during the last 57 years. He has written a chapter on every bilateral tour and they are 16 in all. I congratulate him on writing the book. I am really delighted to note that this actually is his 10th book,” he concluded.

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