Another Yuvraj classic gladdens hearts

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

There’s hardly anything more recreational than watching Yuvraj Singh play a long innings. He has his own style of doing things. Since he is in complete control of the situation more often than not it’s always a great fun to have him at the crease. 

The cricket-crazy community of Kingston, Jamaica, witnessed the mighty full flow Yuvraj in full flow for the first time. The old-timers must have in their memory the dazzling stroke-play of the likes of Gordon Greenidge, Vivian Richards and Clive Lloyd but they might not have witnessed the home bowlers at the receiving end at the Sabina Park.

In the past the Indian bowlers used to be at the mercy of the giant West Indian batsmen who had the capacity to destroy all varieties. Yuvraj’s magnificent knock on June 26 brought to light the fact once more than it has become a different ball game now and the balance of power has shifted from the shores of the Caribbean somewhere towards the other side of the globe.

One was getting reminded of the era when the West Indian master blasters toyed with the Indian bowlers and the speed merchants from the Caribbean gave no chance to any batsman to have a crack at them. Now it was completely the other way round as Yuvraj smashed spearhead Jerome Taylor to all parts of the Sabina Park at will. 

Hardly there ever had been a precedent when a genuine fast bowler from the West Indies was being attacked in such a decisive manner in the Caribbean when Yuvraj took on Taylor in the batting powerplay overs.

Yuvraj was looking good for many more when he glanced a delivery that would have most probably been declared a wide had he not made a contact. Dwayne Bravo could not believe his luck when the ball was collected by wicketkeeper Dinesh Ramdin to signal the end of one of the best one-day innings in the Caribbean.

It was a soft dismissal as well as an unfortunate one. Yuvraj could have hammered the ball anywhere but the leg glance landed in the hands of Ramdin instead. He made 131 off 102 balls but one knew that India could still lose their way after his departure.

That very nearly happened once more. With Bravo proving more lethal than Michael Holding and Andy Roberts, there was a feeling that the Indians might be bundled out well inside 50 overs even after the heroics of Yuvraj.

India played out their quota of overs without causing the kind of destruction that any other side would have done after raising 250 for the loss of only three wickets in the 37th over. They finished with 339, instead of posting something well past 350, and as it was discovered a few hours later they had to sweat it out to defend their eventual total.

The Indians, as usual, were up against it even against the lower-order batsmen of the West Indies, who otherwise have pathetic records. There were quite a few anxious moments for the Indian fans until the contest was finally over with 20 runs separating the two sides.

Yousuf Pathan, who had batted well in the closing overs to prevent a collapse, came to India’s rescue with the ball too by picking up three wickets. Left-arm quickie Ashish Nehra also picked up three wickets to complete the job in the penultimate over.

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Younis under fire for arrogance, misbehaviour once more

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Younis Khan has had this habit of being in the news for the wrong reasons. His talents as a free flowing top-order batsman have seldom been in doubt but he has left a lot to be desired when it has come to conducting himself off the field.

It’s really strange and mind-boggling as well that the Pakistan captain has chosen to behave so unprofessionally and even unreasonably after having returned triumphant from England where his team stunned everyone by clinching the ICC World Twenty20 title.

Younis has not only been guilty of misbehaving with his fans of late but his attitude with the local media has also been hostile and unworthy of the captain of the national cricket team particularly at a moment when the country was celebrating the unexpected victory.

Even more unfortunate is the fact that Younis is encountering problems in dealing with the media corps who had backed him out of way when he was appointed the Pakistan captain in place of Shoaib Malik during the home series against Sri Lanka earlier this year.

The recent episode has opened the eyes of the people who were treating Younis with the kind of respect that he probably never deserved in the first place. Even the media professionals, who generally have eagle eyes and sense things more quickly than ordinary mortals, not realize having erred in their assessment as far as the Pakistan captain was concerned.

Younis was being supported overwhelmingly by the media backed despite the fact that he had been a reluctant leader all along. They were misled by his smiles and some of his polite remarks. Even then some wise persons had warned not to believe him completely because, according to them, the skipper was very good at acting too.

Younis, by his recent acts, has proved that it was indeed a terrible mistake to have trusted him and flashed his headlines, photographs, footages etc to promote his image. He himself has now shown his true picture and embarrassed the people who were in the forefront in doing his image building.

There is little to suggest that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), to whom he is contracted, or the Habib Bank Limited (HBL), where he is employed, will take any action at this point of time or for that reason at any other time because no institution might muster the courage even to question the rampaging cricketers who are generally considered above the law in the country.

What these institutions might not realize is the fact that Younis is setting a bad example and his ‘adventures’ at a time when the entire nation was basking in the glory of the Twenty20 title win will make the people realize sooner or later that these guys are not worthy of the status being accorded to them.

What Younis is forgetting conveniently while rubbishing his fans that more than the talents of the team it were the prayers of the nation that helped them in annexing the title against the heaviest of odds. Will somebody stand up to tell the Pakistan captain where he’s going wrong or he will be allowed to bring about his own downfall only time will tell.

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Habib Bank trio does the trick for Pakistan

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Cricket in Pakistan has flourished mainly because of the proactive role of a few financial institutions and corporations, who have braved the deficiencies in the system besides the recession to keep the game afloat in testing times. Their role needs to be acknowledged at the time of the glory because they are the ones who make it possible.

At a time when the Pakistan cricket team has made the entire nation proud by annexing the ICC Twenty20 World Championship in England we must not forget the contribution of the institutions and the individuals whose untiring behind the scene efforts helped in accomplishing a gigantic task.

It’s not mere coincidence that Younis Khan, Shahid Afridi and Umar Gul, who were the architects of the title win, belonged to one organization, the Habib Bank Limited (HBL) with whom they have been associated for quite sometime now.

Yes the skipper of the winning team, as well as the best all-rounder and the best bowler of the tournament are the proud products of one institution. The HBL management deserves the credit for having groomed the champion stuff.

The oldest as well as the biggest bank of the country, the HBL has been in the forefront as far as the development and promotion of sports are concerned for a number of decades now. They have not withdrawn their support to sports even when many of their competitors did it under the cover of curtailing costs.

In fact, the HBL management has strengthened its relations with sports during the last eight or nine years. Sports remained in their list of priorities and their President, Zakir Mahmood, himself a leading bridge player, withstood the pressures to sustain the support. Another person who was instrumental in keeping the candle lit was Zafar Aziz Osmani, who has had great passion for sports.

The duo of Zakir Mahmood and Zafar Osmani managed to ensure the desired support even when the bank was denationalized and a new board was constituted. The credit should also go to the new HBL management, particularly their Chairman, Sultan Allana, for not having compromised on sports.

The HBL management should now have the reasons to feel delighted because their persistence has earned laurels for the country at a critical time. They have invested heavily on the cricketer and the results have now been delivered.

The Pakistan cricket has been in turmoil over the years. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has been in the news for the wrong reasons more often than not in the recent past. In these circumstances the role of the departments and the affiliated units of the PCB becomes even more important.
The cricket boards over the years have not been able to do justice with the various departments who have been their all-weather friends. Some of the board officials, obviously with the vested interests, have also discouraged and humiliated the departments but fortunately they didn’t succeed in their plans.

It’s celebration time now. The mood of the entire country, from Karachi to Khyber, has changed and some positive vibes are coming for a change. Let us salute the heroes the ones who were visible and those who preferred to remain invisible like the HBL management. But their contribution was no less invaluable than those having done it on the field.

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MCG repeated at Lord’s

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Quite a few scenes witnessed at Lord’s on June 21, 2009 resembled to the ones at the Melbourne Cricket ground (MCG) on March 25, 1992. There was only a change of personnel besides the venue of course.

It was Imran Khan whose team had staged a comeback from nowhere to win the World Cup against all odds in 1992 and now it was the side captained by Younis Khan having exceeded all expectations by annexing the Twenty20 crown.

Younis had been talking of Imran from the moment he was handed over the leadership earlier this year. The enterprising right-handed batsman has tried himself to model on the legendary all-rounder who’s also considered the greatest-ever captain produced by the country.

But even Younis, an optimist of the highest order, himself had never spoken of claiming the World Twenty20 title in England in the summer of 2009. His cherished goal remained winning the World Cup in 2011.

This clearly reflected that Pakistan stood no chance whatsoever when they landed in England. Yet they would be returning home with the trophy in their baggage much to the delight of their countrymen who have had very little to celebrate over the years.

The final of ICC World Twenty20 at Lord’s looked like progressing on a predictable course from the moment Kumar Sangakkara elected to bat after winning the toss. It was the only thing the Sri Lankan captain could have expected to ‘win’ on a day when everything was destined to go Pakistan’s way.

It became evident from the very first over that Sri Lanka, the most consistent of all the participating teams, would struggle to find their feet in the final that they would have almost certainly dominated if their opponent was someone else.

Tillakaratne Dilshan, the tournament's most prolific scorer having played the innings of his lifetime in only the previous outing, must have discovered it’s a different ball game playing Pakistan in such an environment when everyone seemed to have taken for granted that Sri Lanka were bound to fail.

Dilshan was named the Player of the Tournament but even he couldn’t contribute a single run when it mattered the most. His early dismissal opened the floodgates as the Sri Lankan batsmen were unable to master the bowling. 

Sri Lanka’s average score in the six Powerplay overs leading to final was 53 for one but they had crashed to 34 for four in the final. The skipper tried his best to repair the damage that saved his team from the embarrassment of getting bowled out for a very low total.

Sangakkara’s fighting knock also ensured that the final would not be over quickly although the manner in which all the Pakistani bowlers were getting their acts together his effort was truly outstanding.

Sri Lanka, with the most potent bowling attack in the business, would have fancied their chances of defending the total of 138 against any team but mind you it was Pakistan who could have even surpassed 238 in the prevailing circumstances.

As it turned out, Sri Lanka’s bowling resources proved inadequate and they could never repeat their performance of the earlier games. The likes of Muttiah Muralitharan, Ajantha Mendis and Lasith Malinga were made to look ordinary as the day belonged to Shahid Afridi and his team. 

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Dilshan, master spinners earn Sri Lanka a date in final with Pakistan

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Unlike the previous semifinal the previous day, the one at The Oval on June 19 followed the predictable course and Sri Lanka emerged triumphant over the West Indies by a comfortable margin of 57 runs to cruise into the final.

With Pakistan as their opponent in the final, the Sri Lankans must be aware of the fact that they can’t take any for granted although they remain the only unbeaten side in the competition now besides having downed them in their Super Eight clash.

Sri Lanka’s win over the West Indies in the semifinals has ensured one thing in particular. The final between Pakistan and Sri Lanka at Lord’s on June 21 is unlikely to be a one-sided affair now. It could have been a no-contest that the West Indians entered the final instead because the islanders from the Caribbean have a consistent record of failing against Pakistan for the last many years.

The Sri Lankans have proved themselves the strongest team to have entered the tournament but it remains to be seen if they would be able to overcome who always remain a threat even though they have lost a couple games on their way to entering the final.

Younis Khan, soon after the upset semifinal win over South Africa, had stated that it won’t matter to him or his team which ever team took on Pakistan in the final. It reflected arrogance more than anything else. 

Pakistan are the most difficult team to beat for every opponent because they have the knack of bringing about miracles. The Sri Lankans are playing wonderful cricket of late, having dominated all their rivals but would they be able to tame Pakistan in the final is a million dollar question.

The Sri Lankans, as expected, proved too good for the West Indies even though some of their top-order batsmen failed to fire on a pitch where it was not easy to blast every delivery. Tillakaratne Dilshan played the innings of his lifetime to guide his team to total they were also capable of defending successfully with the strong bowling line-up at their disposal.

Dilshan batted brilliantly and his unbeaten knock of 96 allowed Sri Lanka to reach of 159 in the allotted 20 overs. It was far too many under the circumstances and they had become the clear favourites when the West Indians began their reply.

Chris Gayle was the man the West Indians looked forward to for doing the impossible. But the task looked beyond him also to be honest from the outset. The Sri Lankan attack was always going to prove lethal and there was only one way the match could have gone.

Gayle carried his bat but he was unable to change the course of the proceedings. All the five bowlers were bang on target and there was not much he could do with wickets falling at regular intervals after the nightmarish start to their innings.

Medium-pacer Angelo Matthews jolted the West Indians with a triple strike in the very first over and then came the mysterious spinning duo of Ajantha Mendis and Mutiah Muralitharan who bamboozled the middle-order with another exhibition of magnificent bowling. 

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South Africa choke again to let Pakistan enter final

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

History repeated itself at Trent Bridge on June 18 when South Africa crashed in the semifinals of the ICC World Twenty20 and Pakistan lived to the reputation of bringing about the downfall of the team of the moment.

South Africa, with their terrific all-round performance, had proved themselves the team of the tournament. They had remained undefeated and there was very little chance of them biting the dust as far as this event was concerned.

Pakistan, on the other hand, were banking more on the divine help and the luck factor because on paper South Africa stood head and shoulders above them in every department of the game.

Pakistan had done it to many fancied outfits in the past and now it was the turn of South Africa to face the music. It doesn’t really matter how strong and well prepared you are when Pakistan are on song.

People well versed with the Pakistan cricket or for that matter any other sport, know are aware of the fact that this team can never be written off. Irrespective of their weaknesses or the lack of depth they can still conquer the world.

Shahid Afridi, who appeared to have lost his ability to clear the field at the start of the tournament, has suddenly become the batting hero once more. He was being talked about as someone who hits the ball after closing his eyes but he went on to play a match-winning knock against South Africa of all teams.

South Africa also had a jinx to overcome. They have become infamous for running out of steam in the crucial matches. They could have been better off confronting any side other than Pakistan.

It was amazing how the South Africans lost the script. They had performed so consistently in the earlier games but they just couldn’t put their acts together in the do-or-die encounter. They conceded far too many runs to Pakistan considering the variety and punch in their bowling.

The only phase of the match when the South Africans appeared to be in the process of pulling it back was in the closing overs of the Pakistan innings. Not a single boundary in the last five overs reflected great discipline in bowling backed by very agile fielding.

But as it turned out the damage had been done earlier and the Pakistan batsmen knew that they already had enough. Younis Khan and Abdul Razzaq didn’t take undue risks even in the final over because the idea seemed to be to get whatever runs that were available without thinking of big shots.

Graeme Smith, while returning to the dugout, looked a relieved man thinking as if his team would get to the target of 150 without much hassles. But he himself was found wanting in coming to terms with the Pakistan bowlers and so were the likes of Herschelle Gibbs and A B de Villiers.

Jacques Kallis and J P Duminy fought gallantly but the battle was won by the Pakistan spinners and the South Africans were thrown out of the tournament one more time just when looking set to lay hands at the trophy.

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Khurshid Hadi quits, Tariq Rasheed takes over

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

There is a change of guard at the Pakistan Bridge Federation (PBF) following the resignation of three-time President Khurshid Hadi and the appointment of Honorary Secretary Tariq Rasheed Khan as Acting President till his formal ratification by the Board at their next meeting.

It has been officially announced by the PBF informed that Tariq Rasheed, having taken over from Ashfaq Yousuf Tola as the Honorary Secretary of the PBF four years ago, will be the caretaker President and he is expected to convene a Board of Directors meeting in a couple of weeks time.

There is not much element of surprise behind the move. Khurshid Hadi was having a quiet time from his own high standards of late and his last tenure didn’t bring about the kind of turnaround that was being anticipated.

Khurshid Hadi has had the reputation of doing things on a fast track but for some reasons he was unable to make things happen as far as bridge was concerned in the recent past. He’s not one man who was going to hang around without making a worthwhile contribution.


In fact he had made it clear to one and all at the time of accepting the office of the President of the PBF for the third time that he will only continue if he was successful in getting things done in a big way.

Khurshid Hadi, in the official handout, has cited his responsibilities as head of the Mind Sports Association of Pakistan (MSAP) as his main focus of attention and that the PBF needed someone who could devote focus and single-minded effort to promote the game and monitor the organization.

Khurshid Hadi himself stressed that Tariq Rasheed is unquestionably the right man to succeed him and that the head of all regional associations had fully endorsed his decision.

The PBF spokesman has announced that the continued collaboration with the MSAP for the development of bridge at college levels would ensure Khurshid Hadi's active involvement in bridge activities.

Khurshid Hadi, the spokesman revealed, is to be voted as President Emeritus of the federation in recognition of his contribution to the sport of bridge in particular. He had first become the President of the PBF in 1998 after having organized the landmark Golden Jubilee Independence Day International Bridge Championship in 1997.

He was re-elected by consensus as the President of the federation following the resignation of Rehana Saigol soon after the BFAME Championship 2007 that was also very well organized.

Tariq Rasheed had earlier been appointed as the officiating President of the PBF last year in the absence of Khurshid Hadi, who remained abroad for quite a few months.

Tariq Rasheed has proved himself an outstanding bridge administrator in a very short span of time. His visionary project of the Pakistan Bridge University (PBU) has gone a long way in promoting the mind sport from the grassroots level. In fact the PBU has now become the lifeline for the Pakistan bridge.

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Dismal India squander yet another opportunity

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

It’s very difficult to describe or assess India’s dismal performance in the ICC World Twenty20 2009. The tournament will conclude with the final on June 21 but it’s all over for the defending champions who couldn’t even find their way into the semifinals.

It’s beyond my comprehension how the free-flowing Indian batsmen got so much entangled against the South African spinners while chasing a low score of 130. It should have been a cakewalk win for the Indians, particularly after the brilliant start provided by the opening pair of Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma.

There was a golden opportunity for the Indians to have finished the tournament on a winning note even after being out of the race for the semis. It would have been just a consolation but it might have comforted the millions of their depressed and disappointed followers back home.

Cricket is indeed a funny game and it can’t get funnier when the Indians are in the self-destructing mode. Can it be a mere coincidence that they only win the title when they are the no-hopers?

"Everyone was new to Twenty20 cricket internationally in 2007 and India just had a young and very explosive team while everyone was finding their feet," Gary Kirsten, the India coach, said after the debacle in England.

"I think what's happened now is that other teams have got clever, they've worked out what they need to do, and we've been matched in all departments. There are definite holes in our Twenty20 set up which we are exploring," the former South African opening batsman was quoted as saying.

"We were not 100%, our performance was not up to the international standard. Your key players have to be in form for a tournament like this. That never really happened for us," skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni believed.

"I am not consistently clearing the park that is for sure. I am here to admit that and I am working hard on it. I feel cricket is not only about hitting sixes because there are quite a few players in our team who have to play different roles in Twenty20 or the one-day format,” he admitted.

"Gautam Gambhir is doing the job at the top of the order, and I am supposed to do it in the late middle-order. That was the plan but it never worked throughout the tournament. I would like to get back to hitting sixes but I don't think my cricket stops at hitting sixes," Dhoni said.

Obviously just as no captain can set a field for poor bowling no management can plan a strategy if the executioners are shaky in approaching things. No tutor would be able to teach these highly-rated Indian batsmen if they are unwilling to meet the challenge themselves.

They were found wanting in tackling the short-pitched bowling of Fidel Edwards and Jerome Taylor in their first Super Eight fixture against the West Indies. They failed to cope with the swing bowling of Stuart Broad and Luke Wright against England and it was the spin duo of Johan Botha and Roelof van der Merwe who did the trick for South Africa.

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