KARACHI: International Cricket Council (ICC) has included Pakistan’s two star all-rounders in its World XI squad for T20i against West Indies. Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Malik have confirmed their participation and will be playing against West Indies at Lord’s on 31 May. According to ICC, the match is being organized to raise funds for stadia…

New Delhi: Virat Kohli says he is keen to play county cricket to get used to conditions on English soil ahead of India’s tour of the country later this year. The Indian skipper — the second-ranked Test batsman in the world and the best in one-day internationals — had an uncharacteristically ordinary spell during the…

Colombo: South African Nic Pothas has ended his coaching contract with Sri Lanka to spend time with his young family, the island nation’s cricket board said Tuesday. The 44-year-old joined Sri Lanka in 2016 as fielding coach but was unexpectedly elevated to the top job after Graham Ford’s abrupt exit in June last year. Under his…

Kabul, Afghanistan: Trouble-prone Afghanistan wicketkeeper Mohammad Shahzad has been fined after he was caught playing for a Pakistani cricket club without permission, an Afghan official said Monday. Shahzad has been ordered to pay 300,000 Afghanis (about $4,400) and return to Afghanistan after taking part in a local tournament in Peshawar, a Pakistani city near the…

LONDON: South Africa great Hashim Amla and Australia batsman Hilton Cartwright both fell in the 30s as rain played havoc with the start of the 2018 English County Championship season on Friday. Wet outfields meant no play was possible in four of the scheduled six fixtures, with not a ball bowled in the First Division…

LAHORE: Pakistan all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez will undergo a bio-mechanics bowling test in England on April 17. Hafeez will be tested for his bowling action at the Loughborough University bio-mechanics lab under the supervision of experts. The experienced opening batsman was reported for suspect bowling action for the third time in the third one-day against Sri…

By Shoaib Jatt LAHORE: Fakhar Zaman and Faheem Ashraf are poised to make their Test debut in the upcoming series against Ireland and England that is slated to take place in May and June.   According to sources, selectors are scheduled to name a 16-member Test squad for the England series on Sunday. Fakhar Zaman…

LAHORE: The International Cricket Council has created a dispute resolution panel to hear Pakistan’s compensation claim against arch-rival India for refusing to play a bilateral series. Sporting ties between the cricket-mad South Asian neighbours have suffered in recent years amid rising political tensions, and Pakistani cricket authorities say their Indian counterparts have violated a 2014…

KARACHI: Pakistan Tuesday announced its initial 25-member squad for the upcoming tours of Ireland and England, with fast bowler Wahab Riaz out of favour and key spinner Yasir Shah ruled out with injury. The probable team members will join a training camp in Lahore from April 18-22 before leaving for the UK a day later…

New Delhi: Protesters burned merchandise and jostled with police outside a cricket stadium in Chennai on Tuesday, demanding Indian Premier League matches be cancelled as the southern city reels from a water crisis. Hundreds of demonstrators, some wearing black t-shirts and waving black balloons, gathered near the venue shouting slogans ahead of the Chennai Super…

LAHORE: Pakistan suffered a stinging setback Monday ahead of their Test tours of Ireland and England after key leg-spinner Yasir Shah was ruled out with a hip bone injury. The 31-year-old has been key to Pakistan’s Test wins since 2014, having taken 165 wickets in 28 Test matches. Chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq confirmed the spinner will…

International Pakistani cricketers will play in the upcoming Kashmir Super League, according to the league’s chairman Masood Khan.  Masood Khan held a press conference in which he said that the league will be played from April 28 to May 2 in Muzaffarabad. He said that 12 Pakistani international cricketers had agreed to play in the…

KARACHI: Pakistan cricket team captain Sarfaraz Ahmed reacted to Indian media’s coverage of him singing Mauka Mauka after returning victorious to Pakistan following ICC Champions Trophy 2017.  Sarfaraz was speaking to Shoaib Jutt in SAMAA TV’s program Sports Action during which he reacted to Indian media criticising him for singing Mauka Mauka. “The way they created sensation out of…

SYDNEY: Retired cricket Test captain Michael Clarke on Sunday offered to play for Australia for free to help the team recover after the downfall of his successor Steve Smith over a ball-tampering scandal in South Africa. Smith and vice-captain David Warner were stripped of their leadership roles and banned from the sport for one year…

Pakistan’s cricket chiefs hope the country can host a full series by 2020, after a successful tour by the West Indies sparked hopes of an international revival. The three-match series against the World Twenty20 champions, staged in the once militancy-wracked port city of Karachi, was accompanied by a wave of optimism, with enthusiastic fans braving…

Brisbane: Australia’s top cricket chiefs Friday ruled out stepping down after a ball-tampering scandal that shocked the nation, saying it was “not the time for a witch-hunt” as a review into player conduct was announced. The sport has been engulfed in one of its biggest crises after former captain Steve Smith, his deputy David Warner…

LAHORE: Pakistani cricketers must maintain their fitness or they will be fined. The national team’s coach, chief selector and captain are on the same page on the decision.  Players who took part in the PSL and domestic cricket will be tested for fitness. The fitness tests will be taken on April 9 and 10. Captain…

DUBAI: Pakistan extends lead at the top in team rankings; Windies slip from fifth to seventh Pakistan opener Babar Azam has reclaimed the number-one batting ranking. Spinner Shadab Khan has vaulted into second position for the first time in his career in the latest MRF Tyres ICC T20I Player Rankings, which were released on Wednesday…

New Delhi, India: India’s cricket board is set to break the billion dollar barrier in its new media rights deal after two days of intense bidding between rival firms, which are scheduled to end Thursday. Bidding hit $926 million Wednesday in the fight between Star India, Sony and Reliance Jio for television and digital rights for…

Babar Azam emerged as the main support for Green Shirts in three-match Twenty20 series versus West Indies played at National Stadium, Karachi. His brilliant performance earned him Man of the Series award.

Sarfaraz Ahmad, captain of Green Shirts, said it would be wrong to say that a weak West Indies side visited Pakistan for the three-match Twenty20 series. “It is vital to give credit to Pakistan for good performance in the series against Windies,” said the captain while talking to media after the third and final match….