Pakistan begins its first full tour of Bangladesh with a one-off T20 International against the home side at Dhaka on Tuesday. Pakistan are riding high on their impressive win against Sri Lanka across all formats. On the other hand, Bangladesh have shown glimpses of talent but are a side struggling to make a lasting impression, often falling away at crucial times.
An unusual serenity and calmness surrounded the Pakistan team when it arrived in Dhaka. Usually embroiled in controversies, Misbah’s men have looked a calm and collected unit off late. The fans alike have started believing in the team, even more so after coming out on top of difficult situations in the recent series win against Sri Lanka.
The team flew directly from UAE, and only injuries have brought changes to the squad. All-rounder Abdul Razzaq and left-arm pacer Junaid Khan will both miss the tour due to injuries. Fast bowler Mohammed Khalil has come in the side. Skipper Misbah has indicated that they will field a full-strength side, rubbishing any impressions that they are taking Bangladesh lightly. The task will not be easy for their opposition, with Pakistan boasting of the three highest wicket-takers in T20 International history.
Bangladesh have made improvements through leaps and bounds in recent years. At times they take the world by a storm, while at others, even their staunchest supporters are left saving face. The team should use the recent win against West Indies in the T20 as a morale-boosting example and continue to believe that they can, on their given day, overcome even the best sides in the world. And realistically, the T20 format presents their best chance at achieving so.
In terms of their squad, former captain and experienced batsman Mohammad Ashraful has been axed owing to consistently poor performances. All-rounder Farhad Reza returns to the national side after three years, during which he signed with the breakaway Indian Cricket League and was thus banned by the BCB. Wicket-keeper Mushfiqur Rahim will lead the side, and Shakib al Hassan will pose the greatest threat to the opposition.
The two sides have met four times in the shortest format of the game, with Pakistan winning each time.
Showing posts with label twenty20. Show all posts
Showing posts with label twenty20. Show all posts
Monday, November 28, 2011
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Sri Lanka look to end tour on a high note
After comprehensively outplaying Sri Lanka throughout the tour, Pakistan will look to reign supreme in the shortest format of the game as well when the teams clash in Abu Dhabi for their one-off Twenty20 International. Surprising as it may sound, Pakistan are ranked seventh in ICC T20 rankings – a format they seem best suited for. On the other hand, Sri Lanka are ranked second on the table, and the only notable success they have had since World Cup has come in T20s only.
Sri Lanka look extremely out of ideas to arrest their woeful slide. While the unpredictable nature of T20 cricket gives them their best chance on tour to rectify it, their chances of doing so look slim against a Pakistan side gaining momentum with each win. Pakistan, on the other hand, are hungry for more wins, not only to put aside their off-field controversies behind them, but also to improve their seventh-placed ICC T20 ranking – something that took Misbah ul Haq by a shock. Of the last 10 T20 matches, Pakistan have won only three, two of them against the minnows Zimbabwe.
Injuries have depleted both sides with valuable talent, though Sri Lanka’s loss is more damaging on two counts. First, injuries to key players hamper the team’s hopes of change in fortunes. Secondly, their bench strength does not possess the same firepower and abundance in talent as Pakistan’s.
Mahela Jayawardene, who missed the last ODI as well, will be missed at the top of the order. In addition, skipper Tillakaratne Dilshan will wait on his fitness to decide whether he plays or not. For Pakistan, Abdul Razzaq had already been ruled out. In addition, Junaid Khan also suffered an abdominal tear during the last ODI and has been ruled out for six weeks. Such injuries will allow both sides to blood more youngsters into the side. Sri Lanka are likely to give Kosala Kulasekara and the experienced Ajantha Mendis a go. For Pakistan, Umar Akmal is likely to keep wickets again.
The match is scheduled for a late evening start on the weekly holiday of Friday. Therefore, a packed house should not be surprising. Interestingly, Pakistan have lost both their previous T20 games at this ground and will be hoping to set that record straight.
Sri Lanka look extremely out of ideas to arrest their woeful slide. While the unpredictable nature of T20 cricket gives them their best chance on tour to rectify it, their chances of doing so look slim against a Pakistan side gaining momentum with each win. Pakistan, on the other hand, are hungry for more wins, not only to put aside their off-field controversies behind them, but also to improve their seventh-placed ICC T20 ranking – something that took Misbah ul Haq by a shock. Of the last 10 T20 matches, Pakistan have won only three, two of them against the minnows Zimbabwe.
Injuries have depleted both sides with valuable talent, though Sri Lanka’s loss is more damaging on two counts. First, injuries to key players hamper the team’s hopes of change in fortunes. Secondly, their bench strength does not possess the same firepower and abundance in talent as Pakistan’s.
Mahela Jayawardene, who missed the last ODI as well, will be missed at the top of the order. In addition, skipper Tillakaratne Dilshan will wait on his fitness to decide whether he plays or not. For Pakistan, Abdul Razzaq had already been ruled out. In addition, Junaid Khan also suffered an abdominal tear during the last ODI and has been ruled out for six weeks. Such injuries will allow both sides to blood more youngsters into the side. Sri Lanka are likely to give Kosala Kulasekara and the experienced Ajantha Mendis a go. For Pakistan, Umar Akmal is likely to keep wickets again.
The match is scheduled for a late evening start on the weekly holiday of Friday. Therefore, a packed house should not be surprising. Interestingly, Pakistan have lost both their previous T20 games at this ground and will be hoping to set that record straight.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
The Champion-less Lalit Modi Show
The first edition of Champions League came to an end after 16 days of cricket - some polar mismatches while others producing nail-biting finishes. The tournament, with all its flavor and happenings, seems certain to stay. Despite the positives, the tournament fell short on two accounts. First, the overbearing presence of the mastermind of Champions League - Lalit Modi and, second, the absence of a Pakistani team.
First coming to Lalit Modi, or Mr. Lalit Modi should I say? As we saw in the Indian Premier League (IPL), the broadcasters seemed more like slaves of Lalit Modi than a media firm which has rightfully paid and brought the TV rights for an exorbitant amount. Constantly flashing Lalit Modi's face with a wide smile stamped on his face as if he's auditioning for a toothpaste advert left the viewers at home bitter, specially the audiences in England and West Indies where IPL was not followed as keenly due to the absence of their players for a major chunk of the tournament. And as if Lalit Modi's speech at the closing ceremony of IPL Season 2 wasn't embarrassing enough for the Indians (he was thanking his wife and children for supporting as if he had won an Oscar!), he made a mockery of himself once again - this time by being present at the post-match ceremony of the final and claiming that he wants to make Champions League even bigger than UEFA Champions League. Good joke Modi. Firstly, UEFA Champions League is football - the most followed sport of the world. Cricket enjoys only a fraction of its following. Secondly, UEFA runs Champions League as a system, not as a one-man show. You don't see Michael Platini unnecessarily on the screen, and he also does not make boastful and misplaced speeches at the ceremonies.
Another interesting observation about the tournament was the absence of a Pakistani team. A team which deserved to be a part of the Champions League more than anyone else was Sialkot Stallions. Out of the five domestic T20 competitions that have been held in Pakistan, Stallions have won every time except the first one. The decision to eliminate a Pakistani team was taken way back in January, much out of shortsightedness. Lalit Modi assumed, in the aftermath of the Mumbai attacks, that Pakistani players will not be allowed to travel to India by the Pakistani government. Mr. Modi, how did Yasir Arafat then travel with Sussex Sharks to India, and that too on a Pakistani passport? If one person can travel to India, so can 15 others. The financial greed surely reflected in Modi's statement when he said that that they cannot risk to invite a Pakistani team to such a high-profile tournament when their government might not allow them to travel at the last moment. Therefore, he took the safe option - eliminated Pakistan, inducted a third Indian team in Delhi Daredevils, and made the sponsors, broadcasters and home associations happier as all of them were sure to earn more revenues with the presence of a third Indian team.
So, was this really 'Champions League', with its tagline 'Only the Champions'? Not really. Even the runners-up were playing. In fact, even third-placed finishers were included. Home advantage, no? Was the tournament as successful as the Champions Trophy? I doubt. Audiences in England were least bothered. Moreover, its the media that plays an integral part in building the hype of a tournament. With stringent checks over media coverage requiring news agencies to pay high sums of money to cover the event, there was hardly any coverage by AFP or Reuters. Even Cricinfo has only one photo per match. The same happened with IPL. And the same happened with Champions League. Mr. Modi, perhaps you have something to think about now instead of preparing speeches!
First coming to Lalit Modi, or Mr. Lalit Modi should I say? As we saw in the Indian Premier League (IPL), the broadcasters seemed more like slaves of Lalit Modi than a media firm which has rightfully paid and brought the TV rights for an exorbitant amount. Constantly flashing Lalit Modi's face with a wide smile stamped on his face as if he's auditioning for a toothpaste advert left the viewers at home bitter, specially the audiences in England and West Indies where IPL was not followed as keenly due to the absence of their players for a major chunk of the tournament. And as if Lalit Modi's speech at the closing ceremony of IPL Season 2 wasn't embarrassing enough for the Indians (he was thanking his wife and children for supporting as if he had won an Oscar!), he made a mockery of himself once again - this time by being present at the post-match ceremony of the final and claiming that he wants to make Champions League even bigger than UEFA Champions League. Good joke Modi. Firstly, UEFA Champions League is football - the most followed sport of the world. Cricket enjoys only a fraction of its following. Secondly, UEFA runs Champions League as a system, not as a one-man show. You don't see Michael Platini unnecessarily on the screen, and he also does not make boastful and misplaced speeches at the ceremonies.
Another interesting observation about the tournament was the absence of a Pakistani team. A team which deserved to be a part of the Champions League more than anyone else was Sialkot Stallions. Out of the five domestic T20 competitions that have been held in Pakistan, Stallions have won every time except the first one. The decision to eliminate a Pakistani team was taken way back in January, much out of shortsightedness. Lalit Modi assumed, in the aftermath of the Mumbai attacks, that Pakistani players will not be allowed to travel to India by the Pakistani government. Mr. Modi, how did Yasir Arafat then travel with Sussex Sharks to India, and that too on a Pakistani passport? If one person can travel to India, so can 15 others. The financial greed surely reflected in Modi's statement when he said that that they cannot risk to invite a Pakistani team to such a high-profile tournament when their government might not allow them to travel at the last moment. Therefore, he took the safe option - eliminated Pakistan, inducted a third Indian team in Delhi Daredevils, and made the sponsors, broadcasters and home associations happier as all of them were sure to earn more revenues with the presence of a third Indian team.
So, was this really 'Champions League', with its tagline 'Only the Champions'? Not really. Even the runners-up were playing. In fact, even third-placed finishers were included. Home advantage, no? Was the tournament as successful as the Champions Trophy? I doubt. Audiences in England were least bothered. Moreover, its the media that plays an integral part in building the hype of a tournament. With stringent checks over media coverage requiring news agencies to pay high sums of money to cover the event, there was hardly any coverage by AFP or Reuters. Even Cricinfo has only one photo per match. The same happened with IPL. And the same happened with Champions League. Mr. Modi, perhaps you have something to think about now instead of preparing speeches!
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