Former world champion Yousuf not to feature in Snooker Nationals 2009

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
Mohammad Yousuf, a former world champion, will not be taking part in the NJI 34th National Snooker Championship 2009, to be held at the historic Karachi Gymkhana from March 16 to 21.

The President of the Pakistan Billiards & Snooker Association (PBSA), Alamgir Anwar Shaikh, has confirmed that Yousuf was not considered for a wild card entry because he didn’t submit any such request in writing to take part in the upcoming National Championship.

“Yousuf was not an automatic qualifier for this year’s Nationals since he had lost his place in the top 16 last year. He could have re-entered the national circuit by playing the provincial cup that he didn’t do. We would have certainly considered his request for a wild card entry if he had approached us,” the PBSA President said.

“We have awarded wild card entries in the national ranking tournaments in the past as well to the leading cueists like Saleh Mohammad, Naveen Perwani and Farhan Mirza,” he added.

Alamgir Shaikh, having taken over the leadership of the PBSA only last year, clarified that the Association did not hold any grudge against Yousuf or any other cueist. 

Having won the national snooker title on the highest number of occasions, Yousuf will be missing the National Championship only for the second time in his long career.

The only Pakistani to have won the World Championship as well as the Asian Championship, Yousuf, acclaimed as a master craftsman, had last absented in 1999 when he had been banned for the whole year by the PBSA on disciplinary grounds. 

It was the same year when Saleh Mohammad had completed a grand slam by winning all the four national ranking tournaments.

Yousuf had bounced back in style and regained the national title after the layoff. He then went on to annex World Seniors Snooker title. It remains to be seen if he will make another comeback. 

Meanwhile the winner of the NJI 34th National Snooker Championship 2009 will be collecting a handsome purse of Rs 90,000 alongwith a glittering trophy. The details about the six-day event, being sponsored by the New Jubilee Insurance (NJI) having become the major sponsors for snooker events, were unveiled in a media briefing here at the Karachi Gymkhana on March 12.

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Younis optimistic about early return of international cricket in Pakistan

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The Pakistan captain Younis Khan remains convinced that the international cricket will be returning to the country in not too distant future while urging all the stakeholders to play their part in a proactive manner.

“At the moment the foreign teams appear hesitant to play in Pakistan. Even the governing body of the game, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has some reservations on this issue. But this perception can change quickly and we could be having more action than before,” the skipper said in a one-to-one chat with this scribe just before leaving for Faisalabad to lead his employers Habib Bank Limited (HBL) in the One-day National Tournament.

“To make things happen we need a collective effort at all fronts. Our former cricket greats should visit the various Test playing nations to convince their movers and shakers to come to Pakistan where cricket is the passion of the masses,” he suggested.

 “We have to convince the international community that the attack on the visiting Sri Lanka cricket team in Lahore was an odd incident and our nation was peaceful and cricket loving by nature. Our great cricketers and diplomats should join hands in lobbying for Pakistan at all fronts,” Younis, having moved to the top slot in the ICC Test rankings after his triple century in the recent home series against Sri Lanka, added.

He believed that the ICC has a positive outlook and their officials could be helpful in reviving international cricket in Pakistan.

“In every ICC meeting we are advised not to do anything that would send a negative image to the youngsters in particular. In the same spirit the ICC should be considerate towards Pakistan’s case as cricket is the passion of the youngsters in Pakistan who may take up other habits if they are not encouraged to pick up their bats and balls,” Younis pointed out. 

“The ICC should also take into account the fact that cricket is the unifying force and it’s a more than useful tool in promoting peace and harmony. The ICC should play its role in persuading its member countries to tour Pakistan,” he urged.

“If international cricket is not played in Pakistan for sometime it might have very negative affects on the youth of the country. The ICC and its member countries must help in saving our youth from going into unhealthy activities,” Younis said.  

“Pakistan has been one of the most active members of the ICC for a number of years. Our cricketers enjoy iconic status in many countries of the world. A friend in need is a friend indeed. It’s the time for the ICC to come to Pakistan’s rescue,” he pleaded. 

He did not mince words in stating that the attack on the Sri Lanka team on March 3 while proceeding to Qaddafi Stadium, Lahore, was a very unfortunate one.
“It was indeed the saddest day of our sports history. But things have to move forward and the show has to go on. The international cricket must return to Pakistan the sooner the better,” Younis concluded.

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Sehwag powers India to maiden ODI series victory in New Zealand

100th Article on this Blog

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

India managed to overcome the inconsistent weather and the unpredictable hosts at the Seddon Park in Hamilton to record their maiden win in a series of One-day Internationals in New Zealand.

As on so many occasions in the past, India had to keep an eye on the external factors besides controlling the game in the field. They had been defeated by the weather in the second game after having dictated terms in whatever cricket that could be played.

Well there’s no doubt in one’s mind about this Indian side being far too superior to the hosts, who continue making life more miserable for themselves by sticking to their policy of fielding uncapped players.

The current Indian outfit hardly has any faults therefore it’s extremely unlikely to be floored and that too by an inexperienced and unsettled combination like the New Zealanders have at the moment.

The Indians, after having been scared for a few moments in the previous ODI where they just lost the focus for no rhyme or reason while defending a mammoth total, didn’t commit that many mistakes and their victory march was only threatened by rains.

Virender Sehwag batted in the same manner as he has done throughout his career. This charismatic opener is mentally so strong that he’s not afraid of the reputation of the bowlers or the state of the pitch. He has only one word in his vocabulary. That is to dominate from the moment he sets his feet on the ground.

Sehwag is so immensely gifted that he rarely has to change the gears. If the ball lands in his zone he will go for it. His hand-eye coordination is exemplary and there is no more exciting sight in world cricket than watching him on song. He toys with the bowling literally every time he goes out with the bat in his hand.

No record appears out of his reach when he is on song. The New Zealanders can only hope that he himself would commit mistake early in his innings otherwise they should be prepared for another hammering in the field.

There is no element of surprise in watching him post India's fastest ODI hundred reaching the magical three figures off only 60 balls. If anybody has the capacity and the talent to break Shahid Afridi’s world record of fastest hundred it’s Sehwag.

His opening partner Gautam Gambhir also contributed his bit in the unbeaten double century stand that broke all hopes the hosts had of making a match of it even with the D/L system.

Earlier in the day New Zealand got off to a decent start once again through the opening pair of Jesse Ryder and Brendon McCullum but the rate of scoring dipped with the arrival of the spinners.

Yuvraj Singh and Yousuf Pathan offered little width to the batsmen who got frustrated and threw away their wickets. Harbhajan Singh was also very economical in his earlier overs and New Zealand had to take the batting powerplay earlier than anticipated to lift the tempo.

The move backfired as the pace duo of Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma were bang on target and their wicket-taking abilities allowed India to gain control. It was a wonderful exhibition of quality fast bowling from both ends.

India, however, had to pay dearly for the let off to Peter McGlashan, who was dropped first ball by Mahendra Singh Dhoni off Ishant Sharma. He rode his luck as did Grant Elliott as they somehow gathered 95 runs off the last 10 overs. 

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New look Australia whip South Africa and West Indies finally clinch a Test series

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

March 10, 2009 will go down as one of the most dramatic days in the history of the game when as many as two Test series were decided. Having won the first Test comprehensively, the Australians pocketed the second game by even bigger margin at the Kingsmead, Durban, to reclaim the series before the third and final encounter. 

The story was different altogether at the Queens Park Oval in Port of Spain where the West Indies had to battle it out grimly to save the game against England that enabled them to retain the 1-0 lead and win a Test series for the first time in five years.

Starting from Durban, the pair of Jacques Kallis and A B de Villiers had given the South Africans some hope after grinding the Australian bowlers on the penultimate day of the match. The hosts had eight wickets in hand entering the final day and although the task of getting a further 302 to win the fixture looked extremely unlikely there were realistic hopes of them drawing the game that would have kept the series alive.

But the Australians exerted more pressure on the final morning and the South African batsmen succumbed. Skipper Ricky Ponting led from the front as he normally does and there was no escape route available to the hosts.

Ponting deserves the credit for having delivered with an inexperienced battalion at his disposal. He marshaled his troops so well and at no stage did the Australians lose intensity.

The Australians have proved the point that they have more than adequate bench strength to cover up for the seasoned guys some of whom have retired from the international cricket recently while the others are on the injury list.

The success of the youthful Australian side augurs very well for the future. The 20-year-old opener Philip Hughes has already made history. He has become the youngest batsmen to score two centuries in a Test match, having eclipsed the record of the great George Headley of the West Indies.

Continuing with the West Indies, they have continued to improve lately after having endured testing times in the not too distant past. The present lot has been showing more grit under the leadership of Chris Gayle and it were their fighting qualities that earned them a draw in the fifth and final Test.

The pitch had started to misbehave on the final afternoon and the England spin duo of Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar, as expected, caused untold problems for their batsmen. With James Anderson reversing the ball so craftily the home batsmen were kept on their toes all the time.

Wickets kept on falling at regular intervals to keep the match alive which was not called off until Fidel Edwards had safely negotiated the penultimate ball. It was Edwards again who didn’t wilt under pressure to save the day for his team, a fact duly acknowledged by his captain in the presentation ceremony.

Denesh Ramdin, having hit his maiden century in the previous game, batted so responsibly in the closing overs to steer his team to safety. He handled the pressure very well while scoring an unbeaten 17 off 87 deliveries.

Andrew Strauss might be asked a few questions about the timing of the declaration but he could not be criticized for the delay because he had to ensure a decent target. He would have been probed further had he set a smaller target and the West Indies achieved it. He led the side admirably in his first assignment as captain.

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India just manage to sneak a win after compiling record total in New Zealand

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The Indians were mixed bag in the third One-day International against New Zealand at the AMI Stadium in Christchurch on March 8. After compiling the highest-ever ODI total of 392 for four on the New Zealand soil, the tourists appeared to have lost the plot while defending it. 

Pathetic bowling, horrible fielding and unimaginative captaincy almost cost India the game that should have been in their bag without any frightening moments. It was amazing to find Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who was been very impressive as a leader throughout his career, commit blunders in position of strength.

Dhoni, who has always been showered with praise for being so cool and creative even when the chips are down, was guilty of making a mess of it when he should have actually closed the issue.

A higher score had been chased down successfully in the ODI history before but that was done by an exceptionally powerful South African batting line-up. The New Zealanders were not all that well equipped to cause that kind of sensation and the bowling they were confronting had the variety as well as the punch to keep them well and truly in control.

The Indians did have the history of allowing their most unfancied of rivals to do something monumental and this might have been one factor that prompted the New Zealanders to be positive when they came out in pursuit of the target of 393 in 50 overs.

Brendon McCullum, who was leading the home side in the absence of Daniel Vettori, and his opening partner Jesse Ryder must have realized within minutes that the Indians were not going hard at them and the intensity in the field was low.

It was shocking to find the Indian fielders letting the ball go between their legs straight to the boundaries. Even more horrible were the two dropped catches in successive overs. Skipper Dhoni missed a regulation catch and soon afterwards Yousuf Pathan floored a sitter in the deep.

The New Zealand openers cashed in and they started to blast the bowling fearlessly. Even the champion off-spinner Harbhajan Singh was guilty of losing the focus and the runs kept flowing. 

The 166-run opening partnership was finally broken when McCullum was found well short of his crease while attempting another risky single. Wickets started tumbling and one hoped that the Indians will force the issue quickly after a superb spell from Zaheer Khan.

Just when Indian appeared to have taken complete control of the proceedings they were again shred into pieces by Kyle Mills and Tim Southee who smashed 83 runs in a matter of seven overs. 

It was unbelievable to find the Indians getting so ragged in the field at this stage. Dhoni made some strange moves and his decision to continue with Munaf Patel reflected the pressure having gone to his head. In normal circumstances he would have never that.

It turned out to be a blessing in disguise for India when Munaf was ordered by the umpires to quit the bowling crease after those two high full tosses both of whom had the batsmen caught. Dhoni was prompted to toss the ball to Yousuf at last to complete that unfinished over.

Yousuf followed three dot balls with a wicket on his last ball to break the partnership that had brutally exposed chinks in India’s armour. One wondered why Dhoni had not used him earlier when all the other bowlers were being put to sword.

India were indebted to Sachin Tendulkar and Yuvraj Singh for setting up the platform for a huge total. Tendulkar was simply brilliant while notching up his maiden ODI hundred in New Zealand. Skipper Dhoni and Suresh Raina also contributed their bit to take the total close to 400. 

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Chris Broad under fire for going overboard once more

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Chris Broad, the former England opening batsman turned commentator and match referee, has had the habit of hitting the headlines for the wrong reasons. It’s an open secret that it was his temperament more than form or fitness that curtailed his career as an international cricketer.

Unlike England’s cricket board, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has been generous enough to overlook Broad’s follies so far. But he may have to face the music now after the Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Ijaz Butt, has accused him of lying in connection with the recent attack on the visiting Sri Lankan team and the match officials.

Broad, who was the ICC match referee for the Pakistan-Sri Lanka series, had lashed out at the security arrangements and went on to the extent of considering the attack in Lahore as a death knell for cricket in Pakistan.

The outspoken Broad appeared to have gone overboard while talking to the media upon his return in England. It would have been more appropriate if he communicated his observations directly to the ICC instead of publicly expressing his anger and dismay.

“I'm angry with the Pakistani security forces. We were promised high level security and in our hour of need that security vanished. There was not a sign of a policeman anywhere. They had clearly gone, left the scene and left us to be sitting ducks,” Broad was quoted as saying. 

"I raised my concerns with the ICC before the tour started and they passed on those concerns to the Pakistan board. They assured me through e-mail that all security would be taken care of, presidential-style security. And clearly that didn't happen,” he thought.

"When we were in the van we weren't aware of what was going on outside. But after the incident when you watch the TV pictures you can clearly see the white van we were in, next to the ambulance in the middle of a roundabout, with terrorists shooting into our van and past our van and not a sign of a policeman anywhere," he charged.

The charges, however, have been denied by the top functionary of the PCB. "It is a big lie that there were no policemen. A commando jumped over Broad and saved his life. The commando was hurt so if there was no policeman, how come Broad was saved? All his statements are false.

He has now made obnoxious comments. That a gentleman of his stature is saying this is unfortunate," Ijaz Butt, Chairman PCB, stated during the media briefing in Lahore on March 5.

 "He said that there wasn’t any policeman there. I think there could be no bigger lie than this because six policemen died and ten are injured. Our people have also been injured. We lost six policemen who were trying to protect the cricketers and the match officials. So if some one is complaining about just a scratch, then it is very sad," Ijaz Butt, known for calling a spade a spade, asserted.

He has also announced that the PCB would lodge a formal protest with the ICC against Broad, who has remained a controversial figure in the past as well. One hopes that the ICC would take some action on the matter.

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India do justice to themselves in first ODI against New Zealand

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

After having flopped in the two-match series of the Twenty20 Internationals, awesome India finally showed glimpses of their brute force in the first One-day International against New Zealand at the McLean Park, Napier.

India, the reigning world champions in the shortest version of the game, had been overpowered by the hosts in both the T20 games that made everyone unsure about the outcome of the ODI series to be spread over five matches, weather permitting.

India, standing head and shoulders above their opponents in every department of the game, had lived to the reputation of failing against New Zealand in the T20 series but they did play to their abilities in the first ODI and the result was seldom in doubt.

Thankfully from the viewpoint of the millions of their supporters and well wishers in different corners of the world the Indians did justice to their talents in the game and there was hardly any chance for the hosts to think in terms of stealing another win.

The present Indian side is so much superior to New Zealand in terms of experience as well as talent. The gap between the two teams is simply too much and only self-destruction on part of the Indians can allow the hosts to come close in any form of the game on any kind of surface.

Rains did disrupt the proceedings in the first ODI but it couldn’t prevent the Indians from controlling the game all along. One can’t expect the inexperienced and youthful New Zealand outfit to come to terms with the mighty Indians whose every member of the team is a match-winner in his own right. 

It are mainly the outside factors that derail the Indians, more so against New Zealand, so let us keep our fingers crossed about the remaining games. It remains to be seen if Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his inspired lot will continue dominating the ODI series or it will be otherwise.

There was nothing extraordinary in the first ODI where it was business as usual for the Indians. Virender Sehwag got India off to a cracking start in his typically flamboyant style. Sachin Tendulkar was happy to play the second fiddle to Sehwag and then the skipper arrived himself at number three.

Dhoni has proved many times that he has the capability to bat up the order as he has the rare ability of changing gears at will. After Sehwag’s departure there was a period when Yuvraj Singh got bogged down much to the disappointment of his fans. 

But Suresh Raina provided the skipper the kind of support that was needed to raise the total substantially and India’s final score of 273 off 38 overs gave them a very solid platform.

The New Zealanders lost early wickets and they were always behind the clock. They had moved to 111 for four in the 21st over when the rains came again. They needed 105 off 43 balls when the play resumed, a task that was beyond their reach.

The form of the champion off-spinner Harbhajan Singh must have gladdened the hearts of the Indians. Extracting appreciable turn, he grabbed three wickets in four balls after having been smashed for boundaries on first two balls by Martin Guptill who topscored for the hosts with 64.

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Sri Lankan cricketers attacked on Pakistan’s darkest hour in sports history

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

March 3, 2009 will go down in Pakistan’s sporting history as the darkest day. It was for the first time in Pakistan when the sportspersons were directly targeted. The visiting Sri Lankan cricketers were attacked when they were on their way to the Qaddafi Stadium on what was to be the third day of the second and final Test.

Half a dozen Pakistani policemen sacrificed their lives in the process of protecting the lives of the Sri Lankans, five of whom were among 19 wounded, in the daylight attack.

Skipper Mahela Jayawardene, his deputy Kumar Sangakkara and the mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis received minor injuries but star batsman Thilan Samaraweera and opener Tharanga Paravitarana were seriously injured.

The Test match was abandoned right away and the tour was called off. The Sri Lankan squad, having endured nightmarish moments earlier in the day, must have heaved a sigh of relief after safely landing in Colombo.

The Sri Lankan captain was quick to point out, upon his arrival in Colombo, that it was their own terror background that helped them in saving their lives when the bus carrying them to the stadium was ambushed.

"We have been brought up in a background of terrorist activities. We are used to hearing, seeing these things - firing, bombings. So we ducked under our seats when the firing began. It was like natural instinct," he was quoted as saying.

Jayawardene, very sportingly, also said that the attack on the team could have happened anywhere and could not be pinned down to Pakistan.

The other teams might have panicked in such circumstances that would have obviously caused greater damage. The Sri Lankans handled the situation very well during and after the attack.

Sri Lanka, after having piled up a total in the excess of 600 in the first innings for the second Test running, must have believed that they had a realistic chance of winning the game which would have also given them the series.

Thee march towards victory was in their thoughts when they boarded the bus at 8.30 am. As Sangakkara wrote in his diary they were all looking forward to the third day's play and trying to win the series. 

He added: The bus was full of the normal banter. Players traded stories, mostly about Lahore shopping, and cracked jokes. Others chatted about the cricket and the crucial first session. Then, as we approached the large roundabout before the Gaddafi Stadium, we suddenly heard a noise like a firecracker. The bus came to a halt and some of the guys jumped out of their seats to see what was happening. Then came the shout: "They are shooting at us!" 

“The truth is we owe our lives to the courageous Mohammad Khalil, the driver. I will forever be grateful to him. The tyres of the bus had been shot out and he was in grave personal danger, exposed to gunfire at the front of the bus. But he was hell-bent on getting us to safety and, somehow, he got us moving again. Had Khalil not acted with such courage and presence of mind most of us would have been killed,” Sangakkara acknowledged like a true sportsman. 

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