Cricket

The second ODI between Pakistan and South Africa is going to begin by 16:30 Indian Standard Time.

The Pakistan team is moving through a bad phase from a long time. They lost the T20 series to the South Africans. Even, they couldn’t win the first ODI against South Africa.

Live Cricket Score

Expected Teams:

Pakistan: Asad Shafiq, Mohammad Hafeez, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Umar Akmal, Shahid Afridi (c), Abdul Razzaq, Zulqarnain Haider (w), Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Shoaib Akhtar.

South Africa: Hashim Amla, Colin Ingram, AB de Villiers (w), Jean-Paul Duminy, David Miller, Albie Morkel, Johan Botha (c), Robin Peterson, Morne Morkel, Charl Langeveldt, Lonwabo Tsotsobe.

Cricket India

South Africa and Pakistan gear up for next year’s World Cup with a five-match one-day series starting from Friday, as captains Graeme Smith and Shahid Afridi urged their teams to keep focus.

South Africa are in top form after thumping a hapless Zimbabwe 3-0 in a one-day series at home and beat Pakistan in both the Twenty20 matches comfortably in a prelude to the 50-over matches.

Smith, who handed Twenty20 captaincy to Johan Botha last month to prolong his career, said development of the side is key ahead of the 2011 World Cup to be jointly hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh starting February.

“It will be the first taste of the sub-continent conditions before the World Cup,” Smith said of the series. “South Africa is keen on the development of the side before the World Cup and are excited to be here.”

South Africa, one of the top teams not to have won the World Cup, will also play two Tests in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in a series shifted to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) due to security fears in Pakistan.

Smith hoped cricket will remain in focus after Pakistan’s recent tour of England marred by spot-fixing allegations which damaged the game at international level.

“We hope cricket would be played the right way and in the end it will be cricket that makes the headlines for the performances on the field,” said Smith, whose team is playing in the UAE for the first time since 2000.

Three Pakistan players – Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer – were suspended by the International Cricket Council (ICC) over allegations of spot-fixing during August’s Lord’s Tests against England.

Afridi admitted Pakistan team will miss the three suspended players.

“There is no doubt that they are our key players and we are going to miss them, but we have plenty of talent and we will try our best to overcome that loss because World Cup is so close,” said Afridi, who played down Twenty20 defeats.

“We batted poorly in both the games, but we are a good one-day side and if we play to our potential we can beat South Africa,” said Afridi, whose team also lost both the Twenty20 matches and five-match one-day series in England.

Afridi said his players were focused and will not let the team down.

“What happened on the England tour is now past and this is a new series and a new challenge for which we are fully focused,” said Afridi.

South Africa still sweat on the fitness of fast bowler Dale Steyn and all-rounder Jacques Kallis, who both missed the Twenty20 series due to injuries.

Teams (from):

Pakistan: Shahid Afridi (capt), Imran Farhat, Shahzaib Hasan, Mohammad Hafeez, Younis Khan, Asad Shafiq, Umar Akmal, Misbah-ul-Haq, Fawad Alam, Abdul Razzaq, Zulqarnain Haider, Umar Gul, Shoaib Akhtar, Wahab Riaz, Tanveer Ahmed, Saeed Ajmal, Abdul Rehman

South Africa: Graeme Smith (capt), Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Johan Botha, Jean-Paul Duminy, Colin Ingram, Jacques Kallis, Charl Langeveldt, David Miller, Albie Morkel, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Dale Steyn, Lonwabo Tsotsobe

Umpires: Asad Rauf (PAK) and Rodney Tucker (AUS)

TV umpire: Zameer Haider (PAK)

Match referee: Andy Pycroft (ZIM)

Flamboyant allrounder Shahid Afridi was rewarded for his recent match-winning performances by being named the vice-captain of the Pakistan team for next month’s Champions Trophy.

Afridi has replaced senior batsman Misbah-ul-Haq as Younis Khan’s deputy.

“Basically Misbah has been sent out a clear message that if he does not perform in the Champions Trophy he will be shown the door from the team,” an official in the Pakistan Cricket Board said on Friday.

“In Sri Lanka when Misbah was struggling for runs, Younis had made it clear that it was difficult to drop him since he was the vice-captain and part of the tour selection committee,” the official said.

He said Afridi had captained the side well in the lone Twenty20 match in Sri Lanka and this was also a reason he was appointed vice-captain for the Champions Trophy.

Afridi has already made it clear that if the board offered him captaincy on a long-term basis, he would be interested in taking up the responsibility.

Flamboyant Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi has turned down an offer from Australian state side Tasmania as he wants to concentrate on the coming series against New Zealand, followed by tour of the Down Under.

“The former Sri Lankan player Russell Arnold spoke to me about the possibility of playing for Tasmania but I declined as Pakistan is already due to tour Australia in December,” Afridi said.

Pakistan is to play three Tests against New Zealand and then go to Australia for a three-match Test series and a ODI series in late December.

Pakistan has never won a Test series on Australian soil and Afridi said playing against the world champions in their own backyard was always a big challenge.

“I am keen on the tour to Australia and want to perform there for the team because when you perform in Australia your ranking as a player always goes up,” he said.

Afridi said another reason behind his decision to turn down the offer was based on the feedback he got from captain Younus Khan and pace bowler Umar Gul, who played in Australian domestic cricket last year.

“I have learnt a lot from them about the Australian conditions and their domestic set-up. So I was not pushed to sign-up for any state side,” he said.

Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi says the short gap between the just-completed Twenty20 World Cup and next year’s edition has robbed Pakistan of full enjoyment of its triumph.

Just days after Pakistan clinched the 2009 trophy in England, thoughts had already turned to the 2010 event in the West Indies, beginning in April.

“I fail to understand why the next World Cup will be played in nine months time,” Afridi told reporters on Wednesday.

“If it’s being organized after two years, people would have remembered Pakistan’s victory and it would have been more enjoyable.

“It should have been scheduled a bit later, but cricket is no more a sport, it’s becoming a business everywhere.”

Pakistan owed its World Cup victory to Afridi’s brilliant all-round performance – especially his back to back half centuries in the semifinal and the final.

He also tied up the world’s best batsmen with his quick leg-spinners, and got the key wickets of South Africa’s Herschelle Gibbs and AB de Villiers in the semifinal.

“We all know how important this World Cup was with so much happening in Pakistan,” Afridi said.

“The guys motivated themselves for this World Cup.” Hundreds of Afridi’s fans chanted “Boom Boom Afridi” as he arrived at the Karachi Airport with teammates Shoaib Malik and Fawad Alam. Afridi gave credit to coach Intikhab Alam, bowling coach Aaqib Javed and captain Younis Khan for the victory.

Alam was the coach of Pakistan team which won the 50-over-a-side World Cup in Australia in 1992.

“They all really worked hard with the guys and kept them united and close to each other, that’s why we had success,” Afridi said.

Flamboyant all-rounder Shahid Afridi who guided Pakistan to glory in the Twenty20 World Cup in England may soon receive an offer to play in Sheffield Shield for the Australian domestic side New South Wales.

The 29-year-old cricketer helped Pakistan win their first major title in 17 years by beating their sub-continental rival Sri Lanka by eight wickets in the final at Lord’s on Sunday.

“He is clearly one of the world’s best Twenty20 players, but also he would be a valuable addition to our dressing room, our young players would learn a lot from him.

“We would certainly consider if he could be used for other formats,” a NSW Cricket official was quoted as saying in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Afridi put up an excellent all-round performance during the tournament, scoring 176 runs in seven matches which included two half-centuries and also scalped 11 wickets with an economy rate of 5.32.

If the deal materialises, Afridi would become one of the high-profile players to join an Australian side, after NSW’s selection of Kiwi Brendon McCullum for last season’s Big Bash final against Victoria, the report said.

Pakistan have put all-rounder Shahid Afridi and pace bowlers Sohail Tanvir and Abdur Rauf on standby for the second Test against Sri Lanka.

Chief selector Abdul Qadir said the same 15-man squad named for the drawn first Test would be augmented by five reserve players for the match in Lahore which starts on Sunday.

“These reserves will not be part of the squad but depending on the pitch and if the need arises, the team management can play anyone from the reserves,” Qadir told a news conference on Wednesday.

The other two players on standby are off-spinner Saeed Ajmal and opening batsman Nasir Jamshed.

Squad:

Younis Khan (captain), Misbah-ul-Haq, Salman Butt, Khurrum Manzoor, Shoaib Malik, Faisal Iqbal, Fawad Alam, Kamran Akmal, Asim Kamal, Umar Gul, Sohail Khan, Yasir Arafat, Danish Kaneria, Ahmed Shahzad, Mohammad Talha.

Reserve players:

Shahid Afridi, Sohail Tanvir, Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rauf, Nasir Jamshed.

Pakistan’s senior all-rounder Shahid Afridi is seriously considering retiring from Test cricket after national selectors ignored him for the two-match home series against Sri Lanka starting later this week.

The 28-year-old Afridi said on Thursday that he was disappointed over his failure to impress the selectors ahead of the opening Test against Sri Lanka and added that he would retire from Test cricket if Pakistan continued to ignore him for the longer version of the game.

“I was looking forward to earning a place in the Test squad,” said Afridi, who has not been in Pakistan’s Test picture for almost three years.

“But I respect the selectors’ decision,” he stressed.

Afridi played the last of his 26 Tests in the summer of 2006 against England in Manchester. Since then national selectors have curtailed his role to ODIs and Twenty20 internationals.

Afridi shot to instant stardom on his debut as a 16-year-old in 1996 when he scored the fastest ODI century in Nairobi. He has so far played 271 One-Day Internationals, scoring 5,531 runs and taking 243 wickets. His Test career is less impressive, having scored 1,683 runs from 26 Tests with 47 wickets.

Afridi was given a lifeline by national selectors when he was picked to lead the Patron’s XI against the visiting Sri Lankans in a two-day warm-up game in Karachi on February 17-18. However, in spite of hitting a 29-ball 49, Afridi was unable to convince the selectors that he deserved a Test recall.

Pakistan’s national selection committee on Wednesday axed flamboyant all-rounder Shahid Afridi and pacer Sohail Tanvir from the 15-member squad for the first Test against Sri Lanka preferring to give rookie players Ahmed Shahzad and Mohammad Talha a chance.

The decision to drop Afridi from the squad was hardly a surprise considering that he has struggled for form in recent months despite being a regular member of the one-day squad.

But the decision to sideline left-arm pacer Tanvir comes as a surprise as after a poor one-day series against Sri Lanka, he bounced back well in domestic cricket.

The first Test between Pakistan and Sri Lanka would be played from Saturday at the National Stadium.

Chief selector Abdul Qadir said the decision to drop Afridi did not mean he was completely out of contention for the series.

“He is a very senior player and it was a very difficult decision to drop him. But we didn’t want a situation where he was in the 15-member squad and not picked in the final playing eleven. It would have been humiliating for a senior player like him,” Qadir said.

He said fast bowler Mohammad Talha and opener Shahzad deserved a chance as both had been doing well in domestic cricket.

“We need to look for some new faces to expand our choices for Test and one-day cricket and Talha is a genuine pace bowler,” Qadir said.

Qadir said Shahzad was included in the squad because he had batted well against Sri Lanka in the two-day warm up match scoring a hundred.

“He is not certain to play but he deserved to be in the squad,” he said.

Qadir said the decision to drop Tanvir and Afridi was taken in consultation with the team management.

“We had an extended debate on some players with the team management but we have tried to incorporate their views and select players with consensus,” Qadir said.

The selectors have recalled left-handed batsman Asim Kamal, who last played a Test against England in 2005 while also retaining former captain Shoaib Malik.

Pakistan squad:

Younis Khan (Capt), Misbah-ul-Haq, Salman Butt, Khurrum Manzoor, Ahmed Shahzad, Faisal Iqbal, Shoaib Malik, Asim Kamal, Fawad Alam, Kamran Akmal, Danish Kaneria, Sohail Khan, Umar Gul, Mohammad Talha, Yasir Arafat.

Former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik and senior all-rounder Shahid Afridi were on Tuesday retained in the 22-member probables list for the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka.

The probables would attend a short conditioning camp from February 17 before the first Test starts on February 21.

“We have tried to consider and reward all those players who have performed well in domestic and international cricket in the last two seasons,” Pakistan cricket chief selector, Abdul Qadir told a press conference.

However, temperamental fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar was missing from the list as he has been ruled out due to a knee injury which requires surgery.

The selectors have recalled middle-order batsmen Asim Kamal, Faisal Iqbal and Bazid Khan while calling up uncapped Saeed Bin Nasir, who has been a prolific scorer at the domestic level for the last two years.

“Our priority is to build a cushion of players for the middle-order so that we have choices ahead of us,” Qadir said.

He also defended the decision to retain Afridi in the list of probables and making him the captain for a two-day match against Sri Lanka in Karachi on February 17 and 18.

“Shahid is one of the most talented utility players we have. He has gone through a bad patch but unless we don’t have a replacement for him we have to keep our confidence in him,” Qadir said.

The selection committee meeting was also attended by captain Younis Khan, who later met Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Ejaz Butt.

The probables: Younis Khan (Capt.), Misbah-ul Haq, Shoaib Malik, Salman Butt, Nasir Jamshed, Khurrum Manzoor, Asim Kamal, Faisal Iqbal, Saeed Bin Nasir, Bazid Khan, Kamran Akmal, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Fawad Alam, Shahid Afridi, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Talha, Yasir Arafat, Sohail Khan, Umar Gul, Abdur Rauf, Danish Kaneria, Saeed Ajmal.

Squad for two day match against Sri Lanka: Shahid Afridi (Capt.), Bazid Khan, Ahmed Shahzad, Saeed Bin Nasir, Azhar Ali, Asim Kamal, Khaqan Arsal, Bilal Khilji, Sarfraz Ahmed, Yasir Shah, Mohammad Khalil, Wahab Riaz, Fahad Masood, Najaf Shah, Azeem Ghuman.