Hand injury forces Razzaq out of Australia tour

Pakistan allrounder Abdul Razzaq has injured his hand and will be unavailable for the limited-overs leg of the tour of Australia. "I've sustained a fracture while batting" Razzaq told Pakpassion.net. "It was one of those out-of-the-blue injuries, where I was batting and the ball smashed into my hand. The hand has been plastered and I've been advised rest for one month by the medical staff. It's very unfortunate, as I was really looking forward to playing in Australia for Pakistan if selected."

Pakistan have already surrendered the Test series, with the third and final Test in Hobart still to be played, and they were hoping to make amends in the five one-dayers and lone Twenty20 international that follow.

Having played a key role in Pakistan's 2009 World Twenty20 triumph on his return from the unofficial ICL, Razzaq's all-round ability, especially his big hitting lower down the order will, no doubt, be missed by the visitors.

The 30-year-old last featured for Pakistan against New Zealand in November last year. Pakistan lost the three-match ODI series in Abu Dhabi 2-1, but swept the Twenty20 internationals in Dubai 2-0.

Pakistan take handy lead in Sydney

PAKISTAN were 331 for nine at stumps on the second day of the second Test against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground yesterday, a handy 204-run lead after Australia were routed for 127 on Sunday. Danish Kaneria was on two and Mohammad Asif has yet to score.
Earlier, openers Imran Farhat and Salman Butt set a solid platform with a 109-run first-wicket partnership.
Farhat – having reached his 13th Test half-century – was the first to go. He tried to sweep Nathan Hauritz, but a top edge gave Brad Haddin a comfortable catch. Butt followed 35 runs later, induced by Mitchell Johnson to drive, but late away swing fooled him. He ended up nicking the ball straight to Haddin. Butt faced 164 balls for his 71, including nine boundaries.
Going into lunch on 190 for two, Pakistan then managed to lose seven wickets after the break. Faisal Iqbal was the first to go, adding only three runs to his 24 at tea. Mohammad Yousuf tried to guide a delivery through the slip cordon but Haddin dived to his right to collect a beautiful catch, and the captain departed for 46.
Umar Akmal added a quick 48-ball 49, but Doug Bollinger struck him on the pad and the "not out" decision was referred. With the aid of Hawkeye, the on-field call was overturned.
Bollinger sent Misbah-ul-Haq and Kamran Akmal back in quick succession, and Shane Watson collected the next two wickets as Haddin completed five catches behind the wickets. — SuperSport

SYDNEY: Pakistan captain Mohammad Yousuf on Monday rued throwing away his wicket in their second Test here, saying that his team could have finished on a stronger position at stumps on the second had some of the batsmen avoided playing bad shots.

Yousuf said that Pakistan could have almost batted Australia out of the Test had they gained a first innings lead of 350 but said that some rash shots from a him and a couple of other batters means the tourists still have some hard work ahead.

“We could have taken ourselves to a stronger position,” he told a group of Pakistani reporters here at the Sydney Cricket ground (SCG) on Monday. “A bigger lead would have brought Australia under a lot of pressure.”

Yousuf blamed himself and three other middle-order batters – Faisal Iqbal, Misbah-ul-Haq and Kamran Akmal – for playing rash strokes. “I lost my own wicket because of a bad shot. A few other batsmen also got out needlessly.”

Pakistan finished day two at 331-9, 204 runs ahead. At one stage they were placed at 237-3 and seemed set for a huge lead over the Aussies.

Yousuf, who is hoping to lead his team to its first win over Australia since 1995, said that he expects his bowlers to do well again.

“They bowled superbly on the first day and I’m sure they can do that again in the second innings.”

Watson and Hughes lead Australia's fightback

Australia's openers capitalised on a flattening pitch and a Pakistani reprieve to advance to 0 for 86 in their second innings, reducing to 120 the tourists' overall lead. Shane Watson raised his 1000th Test run with a lofted pull stroke that Danish Kaneria, fielding at fine leg, dropped over the boundary rope on a morning that saw the hosts restore a degree of parity to proceedings.

Pakistan added just two runs to their overnight first-innings total as Doug Bollinger (4 for 72) snuffed out Kaneria with his fifth ball of the morning. That took Pakistan's lead to 206 - their second-highest first-innings advantage over the Australians in 54 years of competition between the two countries - although with the SCG pitch nowhere near as threatening as the opening day, the Australians would not have entirely counted themselves out of the contest.

The hosts began their second-innings riposte in nervous fashion, with Watson french-cutting Mohammad Asif's second legal delivery milimetres from his leg-stump and Phillip Hughes slashing extravagantly at a wide Mohammad Sami offering the next over. The SCG crowd applauded when Hughes shouldered arms to his next delivery, and the young opener appeared to take the message to heart as he shelved his attacking instincts to see off four maiden overs before the first drinks break.

Watson, meanwhile, adopted a more aggressive mindset and peppered the boundaries with a series of authoritative drives and pull strokes. He was granted two reprieves - Kaneria's dropped catch and, on the stroke of lunch, a bizarre run-out opportunity that saw Kamran Akmal fail to remove the bails with the batsman well short of his ground - but rode his luck to register his eighth score in excess of 50 from 14 innings as a Test opener. Of Watson's 1030 runs scored by the lunch break, 773 had come since his elevation to opener. Clearly, the view at the top agrees with him.

A more circumspect Hughes headed to the break unbeaten on 31 from 71 deliveries. His measured approach was precisely what was required for both the batsman and the team following an inglorious duck in the first innings that preempted a broader Australian collapse.

Sohail Tanvir Targets One day Series in Australia

Speaking exclusively to PakPassion.net, Pakistan pace bowler Sohail Tanvir expressed his disappointment at missing out in playing in the ongoing Twenty/20 Big Bash series for the Victoria Bushrangers.

“I was really looking forward to playing in the Twenty/20 competition in Australia and competing against some of the world’s best players, but unfortunately the knee injury has ruined my plans. It’s just been a spate of bad luck of late when it comes to injuries, with firstly my back problems during and after the Twenty/20 World Cup and now the knee injury” stated Tanvir.

Tanvir who was man of the series in the inaugural IPL Twenty/20 competition, helping the Rajasthan Royals to victory, explained that the injury was one that occurred at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore. “I was working on some fielding routines and dived for the ball and felt my knee give way. I wasn’t sure how serious the injury was at first, but was advised afterwards that I had minor ligament damage. I could have taken a risk and played for Victoria, but at the end of the day my priority is to play for Pakistan and I didn’t want to cause any long term damage to myself and jeopardise my career”.

Tanvir hopes to be back soon though for international duty and has his sights firmly set on being selected for the Pakistan one day squad for the series in Australia. “I’m very hopeful that I will be fit for the one day series in Australia. I’m very positive and believe that I will be 100% fit soon and put all the injury problems behind me. At the moment the doctors have told me to rest the injury but I’m very confident that I will be available for selection in what should be a very hard fought and exciting series against Australia”.

The Pakistan selectors are expected to announce the one day squad shortly before the start of the third test and Tanvir faces a race against time to be fit for the squad.

Yousuf searching for 'elusive' Test all rounder to improve Pakistan's performance

Islamabad, Jan 4 (ANI): Mohammad Yousuf, who is playing his fourth Test as Pakistan's skipper and might lead the team for a longer tenure than earlier expected, has outlined a few grey areas to improve the team's performance in the future.
With Younis Khan, who Yousuf replaced as captain last November, unlikely to return to his role and no other suitable candidate in sight, the experienced batsman could get confirmed as Pakistan's regular skipper.
But to ensure it, he needs to bring about some noticeable improvement in his team's performance graph, especially in Test cricket, The News reports.

One of the key areas, Yousuf has identified, apart from improving the standard of fielding, is to find a good Test all-rounder.

Pakistan has many players to fill up that role when it comes to One-day and Twenty20 cricket, but cannot find a single all rounder for Test cricket.

Shoaib Malik performed that role, but he doesn't bowl much any more while Abdul Razzaq has almost retired from the longest format of the game.

Pakistan have to rely on just four bowlers and have faced criticism from some experts, who believe that they should show more aggression and play with five specialist bowlers to achieve better results.

"How can we do that. It would mean dropping one batsman. It would further weaken our batting," Yousuf said.

"What we need right now is an all-rounder. He could be our fifth bowler," he said.

Speaking on a different issue, Yousuf was non-committal when asked whether he was disappointed when the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) ignored his request to send Younis to Australia.

"I can't say anything about it. It's been many days since I made the request. It's not my call. It's up to the Board and the selectors to make the decision," he said. (ANI)

Pakistan move into powerful position

Half-centuries to openers Salman Butt and Imran Farhat have Pakistan well positioned to establish an imposing first-innings lead over the Australians. After an attritional second session on Monday, the tourists' supreme application at the crease was rewarded with a total of 2 for 190 and a 63-run advantage over Australia's meagre first-day tally.

The hosts would do well to analyse the manner in which Farhat and Butt set about their respective innings on the second day. The Australian top-order, minus Shane Watson, fell to forceful strokes on a seaming wicket in their ill-fated first innings; a direct contrast to the cautious and patient approach of the Pakistani openers. Content to accumulate rather than dominate, Farhat and Butt shelved their cross-bat strokes and successfully repelled threatening spells from Doug Bollinger, Peter Siddle, Mitchell Johnson and Shane Watson to post their third career century stand and first against Australia.

Farhat and Butt have emerged as a dependable solution to Pakistan's problematic opening slot. Their stand of 109, which took their first-wicket partnership average to a robust 47.43, built upon the foundation laid by Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Sami the preceding day to deliver the tourists to a position of dominance in the match. The union was not without its anxious moments, most notably when Farhat was dropped by Marcus North to a regulation slips chance off the bowling of Siddle on 11, but both stood firm on an improving pitch.

The Australians had several other chances to remove Farhat before the lunch break, though less orthodox than North's second dropped catch of the series. In a rare moment of overt aggression, Farhat attempted to charge a Watson delivery that beat the oustide edge. The batsman made no immediate effort to return to his crease, and a direct hit from Brad Haddin would have sent him back to the pavilion. Hawk-Eye later showed that a half-hearted Nathan Hauritz lbw appeal would also have resulted in Farhat's dismissal, however the Australians declined to challenge the original not-out verdict from the on-field official.

Farhat went on to raise his 13th half-century before skying an attempted sweep off the bowling of Nathan Hauritz shortly after the lunch break. Butt also fell in the second session, edging a full-length delivery from a deserving Johnson, however Faisal Iqbal and Mohammad Yousuf ensured there were no further setbacks with an unbroken 46-run third-wicket partnership heading into tea. Yousuf looked to increase the tempo of Pakistan's steady-paced innings by adding 27 in almost even time, including five boundaries, while Iqbal continued the grinding approach of Pakistan's openers to frustrate the Australian bowlers.

The hosts were guilty on occasion of bowling too straight a line, but were nonetheless probing and beat the outside edge on numerous occasions in the first session. Batting conditions improved over the course of the afternoon with the sun intermittently piercing the clouds and the wicket drying, making all the more puzzling Ricky Ponting's decision to bat first on a Sydney green-top.

Shahid Afridi : "Rajasthan and Kolkatta would be my preferred choice in the IPL"

Speaking exclusively to PakPassion.net, Pakistan's Twenty/20 captain Shahid Afridi confirmed that his preferred choice of teams in the Indian Premier League would be either inaugural IPL winners Rajasthan Royals or Shah Rukh Khan's Kolkatta Knight Riders.

"There are a number of franchises that would interest me in the next season of IPL and lets wait and see what happens at the all important auction, but my preferred destinations would be either The Rajasthan Royals or the Kolkatta Knight Riders" stated Afridi.

Both the Rajasthan Royals and Kolkatta Knight Riders employed Pakistani players in the first IPL tournament, with Kamran Akmal and Sohail Tanvir starring for tournament one champions Rajasthan, whlst Salman Butt, Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Akhtar represented Kolkatta.

Afridi who boasts a strike rate of over 146 in Twenty/20 internationals is currently taking part in the Twenty/20 Big Bash for South Australia and has lit up the tournament with 2 Man of the Match performances in both his outings. Afridi was also a key member of the Pakistan squad that lifted the Twenty/20 World Cup tournament last year in England.

"The Big Bash is going live to India so it's a great opportunity for those players in the IPL player list to show potential bidders what they can do for their teams" added the flamboyant all rounder.

Afridi who is widely regarded as one of cricket's great entertainers feels that his time in Australia playing for South Australia, will be beneficial to Pakistan in the forthcoming one day series and Twenty/20.

"The Big Bash is an important tournament obviously for South Australia and myself but also it can be beneficial for Pakistan. I'm really focussed on helping South Australia qualify for the Champions League. It's tough and very competitive cricket out here and there are a lot of good players, but I'm up for the challenge. I also feel that getting used to conditions out here at the various venues will put me in a good position for the forthcoming 5 match one day series for Pakistan and the Twenty/20 match at the MCG" stated Afridi.

29 year old Afridi says he's settled in well in Australia and is thoroughly enjoying his cricket. "We've got a great bunch of lads at South Australia. The morale of the team is high and everyone is working hard and backing each other up. The weather is fantastic and I'm staying in a lovely apartment with Kieron Pollard".

South Australia who have won both their matches so far, next entertain Victoria on 7th January at Adelaide.

Pakistan move into powerful position

Half-centuries to openers Salman Butt and Imran Farhat have Pakistan well positioned to establish an imposing first-innings lead over the Australians. After an attritional second session on Monday, the tourists' supreme application at the crease was rewarded with a total of 2 for 190 and a 63-run advantage over Australia's meagre first-day tally.

The hosts would do well to analyse the manner in which Farhat and Butt set about their respective innings on the second day. The Australian top-order, minus Shane Watson, fell to forceful strokes on a seaming wicket in their ill-fated first innings; a direct contrast to the cautious and patient approach of the Pakistani openers. Content to accumulate rather than dominate, Farhat and Butt shelved their cross-bat strokes and successfully repelled threatening spells from Doug Bollinger, Peter Siddle, Mitchell Johnson and Shane Watson to post their third career century stand and first against Australia.

Farhat and Butt have emerged as a dependable solution to Pakistan's problematic opening slot. Their stand of 109, which took their first-wicket partnership average to a robust 47.43, built upon the foundation laid by Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Sami the preceding day to deliver the tourists to a position of dominance in the match. The union was not without its anxious moments, most notably when Farhat was dropped by Marcus North to a regulation slips chance off the bowling of Siddle on 11, but both stood firm on an improving pitch.

The Australians had several other chances to remove Farhat before the lunch break, though less orthodox than North's second dropped catch of the series. In a rare moment of overt aggression, Farhat attempted to charge a Watson delivery that beat the oustide edge. The batsman made no immediate effort to return to his crease, and a direct hit from Brad Haddin would have sent him back to the pavilion. Hawk-Eye later showed that a half-hearted Nathan Hauritz lbw appeal would also have resulted in Farhat's dismissal, however the Australians declined to challenge the original not-out verdict from the on-field official.

Farhat went on to raise his 13th half-century before skying an attempted sweep off the bowling of Nathan Hauritz shortly after the lunch break. Butt also fell in the second session, edging a full-length delivery from a deserving Johnson, however Faisal Iqbal and Mohammad Yousuf ensured there were no further setbacks with an unbroken 46-run third-wicket partnership heading into tea. Yousuf looked to increase the tempo of Pakistan's steady-paced innings by adding 27 in almost even time, including five boundaries, while Iqbal continued the grinding approach of Pakistan's openers to frustrate the Australian bowlers.

The hosts were guilty on occasion of bowling too straight a line, but were nonetheless probing and beat the outside edge on numerous occasions in the first session. Batting conditions improved over the course of the afternoon with the sun intermittently piercing the clouds and the wicket drying, making all the more puzzling Ricky Ponting's decision to bat first on a Sydney green-top.

ICL returnees, 26 Pakistan players register for IPL auction

Ninety-seven players, including 26 from Pakistan and several latterly with the ICL, have registered for the third IPL auction, which will be held on January 19. The list also includes four players from Associate countries - Rizwan Cheema and Khurram Chohan (Canada), Ryan ten Doeschate (Netherlands), Niall O'Brien (Ireland) - as well as former Zimbabwe nationals Murray Goodwin and Ray Price.

Prominent among the players who were part of the unofficial ICL are Shane Bond, who recently retired from Test cricket, Damien Martyn, Chris Cairns, Saqlain Mushtaq and Justin Kemp.

The Pakistanis - the current world Twenty20 champions - include Mohammed Aamer and Umar Akmal, and the list also includes the exciting West Indian Kieron Pollard.

Merely registering, however, does not guarantee the player will be included in the auction list. The IPL will send the list of 97 names to the franchises who will then select those players they would like included in the auction. The selected players will be informed of their inclusion by January 5.

The number of overseas players a franchise may have on its roster is capped at ten and at present it is unclear how many slots are available. In 2009, over 100 players registered for the auction out of which 50 went under the hammer to fill 17 available overseas slots. The IPL said it expected the number of places to be substantially lower this time.

The list sets a "preliminary expected availability" date against each player's name and, intriguingly, those from Australia and South Africa have been marked as free from the conclusion of their domestic competitions - the Sheffield Shield, in the case of Australian players, and the Standard Bank Pro20 series for South Africans. This suggests that the league has shifted from its earlier stated position, that players would have to put the IPL above their domestic tournaments and be available for the entire season.

That decision, taken in November, said defaulting players would face penalties including termination of player contracts and a ban on future participation, although Lalit Modi, the league's chairman, told Cricinfo that this would only happen in a worst-case scenario.


Registered players



Pakistan: Mohammed Aamer, Shahid Afridi, Shahzad Ahmed, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Akmal, Fawad Alam, Yasir Arafat, Mohammad Asif, Salman Butt, Imran Farhat, Mohammad Hafeez, Yasir Hameed, Faisal Iqbal, Asim Kamal, Danish Kaneria, Mohammad Khalil, Abdur Rauf, Khalid Latif, Azhar Mahmood, Shoaib Malik, Khurram Manzoor, Saqlain Mushtaq, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, Imran Nazir, Abdul Razzaq, Mohammad Sami.

Sri Lanka: Malinga Bandara, Indika de Saram, Chinthaka Jayasinghe, Thilina Kandamby, Chamara Kapugedera, Nuwan Kulasekera, Suranga Lakmal, Jehan Mubarak, Thisara Perera, Dammika Prasad, Muthumudalige Pushpakumara, Suraj Randiv, Rangana Herath, Gihan Rupasinghe, Upul Tharanga, Kaushalya Weeraratne, ChanakaWelegedara.

South Africa: Yusuf Abdulla, Nicky Boje, Zander de Bruyn, Tyron Henderson, Justin Kemp, Rory Kleinveldt, Andre Nel, Wayne Parnell, Vernon Philander, Lonwabo Tsotsobe, Johan van der Wath, CJ de Villiers.

New Zealand: Shane Bond, Ian Butler, Chris Cairns, Brendon Diamanti, Grant Elliott, Martin Guptill, Nathan McCullum, Daryl Tuffey, Lou Vincent.

West Indies: Carlton Baugh, Tino Best, Daren Ganga, Wavell Hinds, Kieron Pollard, Kemar Roach, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Lendl Simmons.

Australia: Brad Haddin, Phillip Hughes, Ashley Noffke, Jason Krejza, Ben Laughlin, Graham Manou, Damien Martyn, Clint McKay, Adam Voges.

England: Tim Bresnan, Anthony McGrath, Eoin Morgan, Monty Panesar, Adil Rashid, Jonathan Trott Usman Afzaal, James Foster.

Bangladesh: Shakib Al Hasan, Shahriar Nafees.

Canada: Rizwan Cheema, Khurram Chohan.

Zimbabwe: Murray Goodwin, Ray Price.

Ireland: Niall O'Brien

Netherlands: Ryan ten Doeschate