Pakistan snooker calendar for 2009 announced

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The new leadership of the Pakistan Billiards & Snooker Association (PBSA) has done a fabulous job by releasing the annual calendar of events on the eve of a new year.

An Executive Committee meeting of the PBSA was held at the Conference Room of the Karachi Club on December 31 in which among other things the schedule for the year 2009 was discussed and finalized. Most importantly it was released to the media within an hour.

The PBSA has planned to hold all the four national ranking tournaments in 2009 besides sending the outfits to the Asian Snooker Championship and the World Snooker Championship.

The PBSA office-bearers are confident that they would succeed in implementing their plans despite the crunch situation.

They could not organize the Latif Masters in the fall of 2008 and it was for the first time in 21 years that the annual event could not be held.

Alamgir Anwar Shaikh, President, PBSA, sounded positive and remarked unlike last year, it would be ensured that all the ranking tournaments are held in accordance with the original schedule.



According to the cue sports calendar for 2009, approved by the PBSA Executive Committee, the 34th National Snooker Championship will be held at Karachi in February to be followed by the second ranking event in the very next month at a venue that is yet to be finalized.

The third national ranking tournament is scheduled for the month of June at Islamabad while the Latif Masters, the fourth and final national ranking tournament of the year, will be taking place in Karachi in September.

The first major event of the year, however, will be the second edition of the NJI National Junior (Under-21) Snooker Championship to be held at the Karachi Club later this month. The event was launched with great fanfare early last year.

Besides organising the national events, the PBSA will be facilitating the participation of the cueists in the World Under-21 Snooker Championship, Asian Snooker Championship, 6-Red International Snooker Tournament and the World Snooker Championship to be held in February, April, May and November respectively.

Meanwhile the federal government will provide financial assistance of Rs 2.5 million to the PBSA in their pursuit for further development of cue sports in the country.


Federal Minister of Sports, Pir Aftab Shah Jilani, who met with the office-bearers of the PBSA at the Karachi Club on December 31, made the announcement while talking to the media corps.

“The Federal Sports Ministry would be arranging a grant of Rs 2.5 million for the PBSA to help them meet their estimated expenses of Rs 5 million for the year 2009. The first installment of the grant would be released to them shortly in order to let them prepare for the National Snooker Championship to be held in February,” Pir Aftab Shah said.

“The PBSA officials informed me that their total expenditure for the year 2009 would be Rupees 5 million that would cover the costs of four national ranking tournaments as well as facilitating the participation of Pakistan’s cueists in the Asian Snooker Championship as well as the World Snooker Championship,” he revealed.

“Half of the amount they plan to raise through sponsorship while they have sought financial assistance of the balance amount from the government. Our Ministry has accepted their request of arranging for the funds of Rs 2.5 million,” Pir Aftab Shah, himself a former first-class cricketer, added.

The assurance from the Federal Sports Minister has not only gladdened the hearts of the PBSA but is also great news for the snooker lovers all over the country. The Pakistan cue sports authorities thoroughly deserve the assistance from the government.

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South Africa, India most likely to rule cricket world in 2009

New Year Special

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The curtain has fallen to the year 2008 and a new year, 2009, has dawned. This could be a year where changes in the world cricket rankings at the top look imminent. In other words the world order of cricket is to be revised. This may happen very quickly too.

South Africa, the most consistent of all Test teams in 2008, appear on verge of displacing Australia from the top of the tree. It could happen as early as the first week of the year because on current form South Africa are the favourites to roll over the Aussies in the third and final Test at Sydney.

South Africa, after having triumphed in 11 of the 15 Tests in 2008, certainly deserve to be crowned as the new leaders. They established total supremacy over Australia in the first two Tests and there seems no why they should not be completing a whitewash at Sydney.

A combination of factors has stretched Australia and it seems a matter of time before they surrender the position they have held for so many years. They have lost the cutting edge in the bowling department with the simultaneous exit of Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, two of the greatest bowlers of the game. The retirement of Adam Gilchrist, the most destructive wicketkeeper-batsman, destabilized their batting.

Great cricketers like McGrath, Warne and Gilchrist are born after decades if not centuries. Obviously the Australian line-up lacks the power to knockout the opponents in their non-presence.

The departure of Warne in particular has hurt Australia deeply. Hailed as the greatest spin bowler of all time, he had the rare ability of winning matches on his own on any kind of surface. He foxed the batsmen and created the kind of pressure that used to demoralize the best of teams.

While Australia have lost three of its legendary cricketers, a couple of teams have improved in leaps and bounds during the same period. South Africa and India have emerged on the scene as the most powerful outfits. Lately they have proved too good for Australia as well.

Ricky Ponting now finds life difficult because teams like South Africa and India have greater self-belief and resilience as we have witnessed during the past few months. Another team that could also punish Australia is Sri Lanka with two ‘magical’ spinners in their ranks.



Unlike South Africa and India, Sri Lanka don’t possess a particularly potent pace attack an area they need to work on if they have to come good on hard and bouncy pitches.

South Africa hold the advantage in the fast bowling department with their spearhead Dale Steyn, in terrific form, enjoying the support of the likes of Makhaya Ntini, Morne Morkel and Jacques Kallis. Paul Harris may not be a match-winning spinner yet but he complements the pace battery with his ability to dry up the runs.

India have the most balanced bowling attack in world cricket at the moment and the variety allows skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni to work on different options. With explosive openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir in the middle of a purple match India would be expected to win Test matches more regularly abroad than ever before.

So South Africa and India are the two teams looking ahead to the immediate future with great hopes. Australia may be forced to bring in some more new faces while Sri Lanka would be searching for a couple of quality fast bowlers strong enough to carry the burden at the international level.

England enjoyed slightly better record than Australia in 2008 but they could still face an uphill task as far as recapturing the Ashes is concerned. The traditional rivals had a great series in the summer of 2005 and we can witness some tense battles this summer too.

New Zealand and the West Indies continue to be in the phase of transition and they keep struggling in finding a trustworthy combination. Too much experimentation in both these teams has not helped their cause either.

Pakistan, unfortunately, didn’t get an opportunity to play a Test match in 2008 but hopefully they will not long to make their presence felt once they re-enter the scene in early 2009.

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Bangladesh offer incredible resistance to Sri Lanka

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Not many people would have thought of the first Test between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur, entering the fifth and final day when the visitors had declared their second innings on the fourth morning setting an improbable target of 521.

The kind of cricket Bangladesh had mostly played after being pushed into the Test arena rather prematurely there was little to suggest the match going into the final day. Obviously you couldn’t have expected the team having folded for 178 in a matter of 60 overs in their first innings to do much better on a wearing pitch in their second outing.

Bangladesh surprised even their own supporters by their grit and determination in their second innings while chasing a monumental target of 521. Their top order batsmen played their natural game and they had every reason to feel delighted at having given the champion Sri Lankan bowlers a run for their money.

The hosts already had enhanced their reputation by having finished the fourth day at 254 for five, having negotiated 78 overs. Nobody expected them to go anywhere close to the target when the proceedings began on the final day but there was a hope that they might bat out the time to save the game.

Skipper Mohammad Ashraful and all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan picked up from where they had left the previous evening and by scoring freely they ensured that the pressure was also shifted on the heads of the Sri Lankan bowlers.

The home side was still 229 runs short of their target when Ashraful perished soon after having notched up another hundred. It must have been one of his greatest knocks in Test matches if not the best one.

Then came the brilliant century partnership between Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim that really opened up the game and millions of cricket lovers all over the world became interested.

South Africa had only recently successfully chased down a target of 414 in Australia and who knew Bangladesh were on the verge of rewriting history.

One knew that Murali Muritharan was capable of snaring the remaining four wickets in an over but the growing seventh wicket partnership made the contest much more absorbing than was being anticipated.

Not surprisingly Bangladesh did lose their last four wickets in a rush but not before having scared the mighty Sri Lankans. The hosts suffered a 107-run defeat but they had the satisfaction of going down fighting against a very tough opponent.

South Africa had emerged triumphant by scoring 414 in the fourth innings of the game at Perth but Bangladesh lost the encounter by 107 runs despite aggregating 413 at Mirpur. It was amazing performance by the home side and the resilience they have shown should do their confidence a world of good.

Scoring in the excess of 400 in the last innings of the game is an incredible accomplishment and the Bangladeshis should be complimented for having produced such an outstanding performance against all odds.

The magnificent batting performance by Bangladesh overshadowed another ten-wicket haul from Muttiah Muraitharan, who was chiefly responsible for preventing an embarrassing defeat for Sri Lanka.

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Steyn, Duminy help South Africa seize series at Melbourne

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

What a moment for the South African cricket! Their come from behind win in the second Test at the historic Melbourne Cricket Ground has allowed them to seize the series with a game in hand.
It’s their first-ever series win in Australia. More than anything, as the victorious skipper Graeme Smith recognized in the presentation ceremony, it was the self-belief of the South Africans that powered them to a convincing nine-wicket wicket on the final afternoon after being precariously placed just a couple of days ago.
The record ninth wicket partnership between J P Duminy and Dale Steyn on the third day led the turnaround and they didn’t look back once they had regained control. Like any other great team the South Africans went very hard at their opponents and forced them to submission.
It was quite an extraordinary Test match, befitting the occasion. It was a typical Boxing Day Test with big crowds and they were treated to cricket of the highest quality on all five days. You couldn’t have expected greater entertainment. 
There was plenty to cheer for the Australians on the first couple of days but they clearly became the second best side in the field after the rearguard action of the South African led by Duminy who got overwhelming support from the lower-order batsmen.
Continuing with the second best, South Africa find themselves at a striking distance of displacing the Aussies from the top slot in the ICC rankings. Australia would be relegated to the second position and South Africa would be crowned as the new world leaders if the result of the third and final Test at Sydney is not any different from the first couple of games.
It would come as little surprise if South Africa do complete the whitewash at Sydney. In fact they appear to be in a very good position to do some more damage to the stature and reputation of Australia.
Ricky Ponting is in all sorts of trouble. He has continued to bat well in crunch situations but his teammates have lacked the consistency to trouble the South Africans who have stamped their authority with hints of conviction.
Ponting must have learnt that it’s a different ball game against motivated sides like South Africa and India. Earlier in the season his team was whacked in the Test series in India and now South Africans have humbled them in their own backyard. The Australian skipper must have wished there was a longer series against a team like New Zealand where they could dictate terms and relax.
It would be quite a challenge for Australia to prevent a whitewash in the series in the present scenario. The South Africans have an edge over Australia in every single department of the game and they would dearly love to complete a clean sweep at Sydney.

Coming to the success of the South Africans, on verge of becoming the top ranked side in the world, they have discovered an immensely gifted middle-order batsman in the shape of the left-handed J B Duminy who has class as well as character. His magnificent century in the pressure-cooker situation in only his second Test announces the arrival of another star on the horizon.
Dale Steyn, the lion-hearted fast bowler, has performed exceptionally well throughout the year and there’s every indication to suggest that he would continue hitting headlines in the years to come. His ten-wicket haul, besides that fighting knock, has earned him the Man of the Match award in the Melbourne Test.

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Declining standards in New Zealand-West Indies series

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Watching the recent contests between New Zealand and the West Indies makes one feel little disconsolate. There was plenty of entertainment in both the Twenty20 Internationals but the inconsistency of performance would not have pleased either side.
The ground fielding as well as the catching was pathetic to say the least when the West Indies came out at Seddon Park, Hamilton, in the second game after having narrowly won the first one at Eden Park, Auckland, a couple of days ago.
The two New Zealand openers, Jesse Ryder and Brendon McCullum, took full advantage of the sloppy work in the field that blunted the enthusiastic West Indian bowling.
The 130-run opening stand in just eleven and a half overs between Ryder and McCullum, both of whom blasted quick half-centuries, had set the platform for a real big total.
Once the belligerent opening partnership was broken it was the turn of the New Zealand batsmen to demonstrate their lack of skills. They lost nine wickets in the 8.2 overs to finish with 191 in 20 overs.
The West Indians had pulled it back nicely after their dreaded spell in the field in the first half of the New Zealand innings. Once the fielding was lifted with Xavier Marshall’s catch the visitors looked a different side altogether and New Zealand could not cope with the pressure.
Although containing the hosts to 191 for nine represented a grand recovery, their batsmen still had a mountain to climb. The having failed to reach the target of 156 in the first game despite the heroics of skipper Chris Gayle had to do something sensational to get to 192 even against a bowling attack not so menacing.
Gayle lived upto his reputation of being Mr Inconsistent and the West Indians were in disarray even before getting started. To their credit tourists succeeded in getting past 150 once more, 155 to be precise. So for the second time running they managed to score 155 batting second and on both occasions it was not enough.
Ramnaresh Sarwan, promoted to open the innings, gave the impression of being a master blaster while hammering 53 off 36 balls but one is not sure if he would continue to deliver for long, such has been the unpredictability of the West Indians.
His team would have easily won the first game had he scored even half of these runs at a time when his captain was in full flow and the target was getting progressively easier.


The West Indians should have easily won the Boxing Day encounter after having restricted the hosts to 155. Gayle’s swashbuckling knock had provided the best possible opportunity for the middle-order to knock off the runs without worrying for the run-rate.
Their self-destruction allowed the hosts to stage a comeback from no where and the match looked wide open in the final over. An edged boundary by Sulaiman Benn had given the West Indies the upper end but he couldn’t connect properly on the last ball and the match was tied.
Since it was a Twenty20 encounter a tie-breaker was to be witnesses. A new method called ‘Eliminator’ was used according to which both the teams were allowed to bat for one over each. Gayle’s magnificent hitting won the day for the West Indies but it was a most unsatisfying win and they were beaten neck and crop in the following game.

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Gautam Gambhir comes of age

Golden Jubilee article

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

This is a special article for some reasons. Number one my niece, Sameen Tariq, who is not even eight years old yet, instantly complained to me after going through my blog for the first time the other day that why I had not written on Gautam Gambhir whom she had watched on television receiving the Man of the Match award against England only a few days ago.

I was pleasantly surprised with the depth of cricket knowledge possessed by the tiny tot and as a reward I promised her that my very next article will be on Gambhir, who has indeed come of age with his consistent performance in every form of the game during the year drawing to a close.

Another reason for treating this write-up as special is that it would be my 50th article for the blog. The Golden Jubilee of my articles has been reached here and I am really delighted about it.
The coming of age of Gautam Gambhir means a lot to the Indian cricket. This left-handed opener has provided the much needed relief to his flamboyant partner, Virender Sehwag, and together they form the most destructive opening pair in world cricket today.

Sehwag and Gambhir complement each other remarkably well. They have the best possible understanding as both of them have been playing together for Delhi for quite sometime. Their excellent running between the wickets reflects how precisely they read each other’s movements.

I think this is for the first time in India’s history that they have a pair of attacking openers. They did have a few aggressive opening batsmen in the past as well but never did they possess a set of openers who could do the business from both ends.

Sehwag has been around for quite sometime, having demonstrated his prowess literally in every corner in the world. The only cause of worry for him had seemed to be the change of partners at regular intervals. 

With Gambhir in full flow now, Sehwag has the liberty of taking the fight to the opponents from the word go being aware of the fact that his partner will carry it on after his departure something that was missing in the past.

Gambhir had made his Test debut four seasons ago but was unable to deliver and he was then considered more of a one-day specialist. He kept scoring prolifically in the limited overs games that didn’t allow the selectors to write him off at any stage.

Not surprisingly it has his phenomenal success in the limited overs fixtures that brought him in the limelight and led to his return in the Test line-up. He was one of the star performers in the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup held in South Africa last year, helping his team annex the trophy against the heaviest of odds.

The triangular series in Australia early this year saw him grow in stature with every game. His outstanding run against Sri Lanka and Australia helped India win the series for the first time in 27 years. He then excelled in the Indian Premier League, scoring consistently and heavily in the T20 games for Delhi.
 
Gambhir has now cemented his place in the Test team by his magnificent run of big scores in the current season. His superlative knocks have been instrumental in guiding India to victories over Australia and England. He has proved that he has the skill and the temperament to play long innings.

Early in his career he was guilty of taking too many risks. He still likes to take the aerial route but he has become wiser in shot selection and there is marked improvement in his technique in letting the ball go.

Attacking play his forte but he has shown that he can also hang around. He has the rare ability to adjust to all versions of the game and he is a welcome addition to the Indian batting line-up already studded with quality performers.

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Old India’ reminiscent in Mohali Test

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Mahendra Singh Dhoni has stunned many of his staunch supporters by adopting tactics that belied his attacking instincts and positive approach. The world had recognized Dhoni as a standout captain who lifted the morale of the side with his wisdom combined with aggression.

Dhoni had entered the Mohali Test with a very good chance of making it five out of five. Having led India to victories in his first four Tests as captain the stage was set for him to extend the brilliant run.

The England team was running short of confidence after conceding the first Test from an advantageous position and there was hardly any life for the visitors to group before rushing for the second and final Test of the series.

The Indians were basking in the glory of the successful run chase in the previous game in which they had turned it around against heavy odds. The momentum was with them and they were ideally placed to double their lead at Mohali.

Dhoni did his team a favour by winning the toss. Virender Sehwag, whose whirlwind knock in the second innings of the Chennai Test had helped India’s cause immensely, perished without scoring this time and that brought in Rahul Dravid to join Gautam Gambhir.

Dravid had been struggling to get runs on the board but Gambhir was in the middle of a purple match. They did build a partnership to deny England further success for more than a day but it wasn’t the kind of stuff that would have enhanced their reputation. They added 314 for the second wicket but consumed nearly 108 overs.

If it was not enough all the batsmen following the marathon partnership also went into their shells. It was hard to believe what was happening. It was difficult to imagine why the dead-batting was carried out in such a dominating position.

Dravid faced 328 balls for his 136 and VVS Laxman made a 24-ball duck. It was the time when India needed their stroke-makers to fire after the strong base provided by Dravid and Gambhir. Even the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Yuvraj Singh refused to bat with any sense of urgency. Dhoni wasn’t an exception either. The normally free-stroking skipper was content in killing time rather than scoring runs.

India played out 158.2 overs to score 453 in their first innings. They could have easily scored over 550 after occupying the crease for so long. They were also aware of the fact that the play was to be curtailed every day in the prevailing weather conditions. They needed to score briskly in order to make up for the loss of time but their intentions caught people by surprise.

The manner in which the England batsmen scored on the third day despite losing two wickets for literally nothing it became clear that the Indians had intentionally slowed down the game on the first couple of days and there was nothing wrong in the pitch.

The Indian bowlers fought back to earn 151-run first innings lead. Still there was time to force a result but the Indian batsmen chose to bat out time instead of putting runs on the board to get England in again.

The late declaration on the fifth and final day simply confirmed that the Indians were not interested in going for a win. These were the tactics the Indian teams of the past used to adopt once they had taken an early lead in the series but it was not expected from the Indian team of modern times that has set high standards and brought glory more regularly than ever before.

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Australia at receiving end in a record chase

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

“Unlike the past, it could be the Australians at the receiving end this time round. The first Test is to be played at Perth where the pitch is known to have extra bounce and zip. With the presence of the fast bowlers like Dale Steyn, Makhaya Ntini and Morne Morkel in their ranks, South Africa have the edge over the hosts in the pace bowling department and they stand a very good chance of going one-up in the series.”

I had made the above observation in my write-up captioned ‘South Africa on a mission to tame Aussies’ on December 7. I have been proved right. It’s South Africa, not Australia, having drawn the first blood in the series between the top two sides of the world at the moment.

The South Africans have done it in style. They did let Australia off the hook so many times during the game but they had the last laugh. Their bowlers did the job of dismissing the hosts two times but it were their batters in the second innings who stole the limelight. They won the game so comfortably in the end even while chasing a record target of 414 on Australian soil.

It was the second highest successful run-chase in the history of the game but the highest-ever in Australia. More than anything it was the self-belief of the South Africans that helped them rewrite the history.

The record-breaking performance of the South Africans at Perth has put them in a commanding position and it would come as no surprise if they wrap up the series in the very next Test.

The Australians, still the top ranked side, has had the knack of fighting back in the recent past but one should not lose sight of the fact that they are not the team they used be in the days of Steve Waugh, Mark Waugh, Justin Langer, Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath. Their batting still has considerable depth and experience but the same cannot be said about their bowling.

The South Africans are ideally poised to apply further pressure on the Aussies and knock them down in their own backyard. Ricky Ponting and his men would be eyeing a comeback in the series but the momentum is with Greame Smith who is leading his team by example.

It was the skipper himself who set up the record chase. His positive outlook yielded the results. He had lost his opener partner Neil McKenzie early on but he kept attacking and his brilliant hundred kept his teammates motivated. They were on a mission to accomplish something never done before.

At the start of their innings it was hard to imagine South Africa could get to the target of 414. But Smith’s 108 had brought the target down to 187 with seven wickets in hand, something that looked achievable.

A B de Villiers played the innings of his lifetime on the final day and he got the desired support from the vastly experienced Jacques Kallis and the debutant Jean-Paul Duminy. Their combined effort took South Africa to the record target and Duminy, playing in the place of the injured Ashwell Prince, had the satisfaction of hitting the winning runs.

It was quite extraordinary to find the South Africans reach the target with remarkable ease in the end. Mark Boucher looked tense padded up but he was not even required to bat. A magnificent unbeaten from the ever-improving de Villiers and an equally important half century by Duminy prevented any panic and the historic match was won so comprehensively by the visitors.

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