Tribe wants Afridi back as cricket captain

PESHAWAR, June 1: Reacting to the resignation of former cricket team captain Shahid Khan Afridi from international cricket, the elders of Khyber tribal region have demanded removal of Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt.

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, elders of Afridi tribe led by Haris Khan Afridi said that resignation of Shahid Afridi was against the interests of the country.

They said that PCB had failed to select players on merit as all the decisions were taken by Ijaz Butt. The PCB usually selected players on basis of personal relations for international cricket team and sidelined experienced sportsmen, which was totally unfair and in violation of procedure and criteria, they alleged.

Owing to inexperienced sportsmen, they said, cricket morale of team was declining day by day. The selection on basis of favouritism and nepotism had caused a sense of deprivation among young and talented players, they said.

They alleged that PCB chairman created disputes among players since he had resumed charge of his office. Three captains had been changed during his three-year tenure, whereas the cricket team of neighbouring India was captained by Mahindra Singh Dhoni for the last five years.

The tribal elders claimed that cricket lovers were fans of Shahid Afridi as he was an honest and experienced player, who had never indulged in match fixing and kept the team united under his captaincy.

The unity and full concentration enabled the team to face its staunch rival India in the semi-final, they added.

They said the Shahid Afridi had tendered resignation owing to pressure from Ijaz Butt otherwise he wanted to play in the team. They demanded removal of PCB chairman and rejection of Afridi`s resignation.

The tribal elders threatened to launch a protest movement if government failed to remove PCB chairman.

Meanwhile, Afridi Students` Union also staged a protest demonstration against the resignation of Mr Afridi. The protesters termed the player an asset for the team.

Shahid Afridi takes Pakistan Cricket Board to court for suspending him

Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi Tuesday began a court battle against the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) when he filed a petition in the Sindh high court against the board's decision to suspend his central contract.

"On behalf of Shahid Afridi, we have filed a petition in the Sindh high court against the sanctions on our client and have appealed for a stay order against the sanctions," Afridi’s lawyer Mahmood Mandviwalla said.

Afridi returned home from London Sunday night after the PCB suspended his central contract and blocked his participation in the English Twenty20 event by revoking a No Objection Certificate (NOC) granted to him following the player’s outburst against the Board last week.

At a press conference here at the Karachi Press Club Monday, Syed Ali Zafar and Mahmood Mandviwalla of the legal firm Mandviwalla & Zafar contended that the PCB has violated article 10-A of the 18th amendment by 'punishing' Afridi without giving him a fair trial.

Flanked by his lawyers, Afridi was defiant at the crowded press conference as he vowed to fight for his rights.

"I'm not here to fight. I'm a cricketer and want to play cricket,” said the former Pakistan captain. "I want my rights. I want my NOC. I want justice,” he stressed.

Later Monday evening, Afridi called on the Sindh governor, who hailed the allrounder as a national hero.

“Shahid Khan Afridi is a national hero and his fame is not confined to the country,” said Sindh governor Ishratul Ebad when Afridi called on him at the Governor’s House. Sindh sports ministerMuhammad Ali Shah was also present on the occasion.

The governor said that matters pertaining to the players and the cricket board were purely a domestic affair and should be treated as such. He said that making such differences of opinion public not only marred the image of the national heroes but it also created a negative image of the cricket board.

Ebad said that right now all eyes were on Pakistan and “it is up to us to project a positive image of the country to the world”. He said that both the board and the players should create an environment of mutual trust and harmony.

Afridi withdraws case against PCB

KARACHI – Former skipper of Pakistan cricket team Shahid Khan Afridi on Wednesday withdrew the petition filed against Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) from the Sindh High Court (SHC).
Counselling on behalf of the all-rounder Shahid Afridi, Mehmood Mandviwala Advocate appeared before a division bench comprising Justice Sajjad Ali Shah and Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi, and submitted an application to withdraw from Afridi’s petition.
Moving with the plea, the counsel submitted that both the parties have agreed for the settlement of the matter out of the court. The court granted his application. Afridi did not appear in court himself and was represented by his lawyer, who had moved with the plea to take the petition back.
Later, Afridi’s lawyer Mandviwala told the media representatives that his client has withdrawn the petition after the agreement between both the parties, and he has also decided to appear before the PCB’s disciplinary committee likely today (Thursday), wherein he will defend himself.
"We didn't want to go to court but were forced. Now I hope Afridi will get the NOC (no-objection certificate) and will be able to play in England and Sri Lanka," he added.
After withdrawal of the petition, the rift between the national cricket governing body and former captain Afridi ended. Afridi went to court after the PCB punished him for allegedly breaching a code of conduct by announcing his retirement after he was dumped as one-day captain, and for levelling allegations against the board.
It suspended his central contract and revoked all his no-objection certificates (NOCs). In his constitutional petition Afridi had challenged the PCB’s decision regarding imposition of ban and taking disciplinary action, while termed the disciplinary actions and show-cause notices issued by the PCB as illegal, and pleaded to restrain the board to do so.
The petitioner had expressed his dissatisfaction on the PCB’s three-member disciplinary committee, and stated that the committee had been formed with mala find intention. Chairman PCB and federal sport secretary were cited as respondents in the petition.
The petitioner had pleaded that the PCB’s decision regarding imposing of ban on him and revoking his no-objection certificate (NOC) be nullified, and restrain the board from taking other disciplinary actions.

PCB under fire for paltry allowances in Super Eight T20

KARACHI: The players participating in the ongoing Faysal Bank Super Eight T20 have blasted the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) over a meagre daily allowance which has forced them to fulfill their daily needs from their own pockets.

All the teams participating in the event are being boarded at Serena Hotel in Faisalabad, which is very expensive, and the players are not impressed by PCB’s planning as they are being paid just Rs 750 daily.

“We can’t even afford proper refreshment from the daily allowance we are getting because if we order tea twice a day, it costs us Rs 700-800. Having lunch or dinner is out of question,” a Multan Tigers player told ‘The News’.

Meanwhile, another added that although the board has provided the players with a good stay, it counts for nothing because players cannot eat properly.

“I am not impressed by the poor planning of the PCB. They are terrible when it comes to boost our domestic cricket because they do not have any sort of vision on how to improve our domestic structure to attract top players of the country. Who would pay Rs 250 for a bottle of mineral water?” he said.

The complaints don’t end there as players are also paying more than they are getting for their laundry. Several players told ‘The News’ that they had given their clothes to the laundry and that cost them Rs 1000.

Top stars like Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq, Saeed Ajmal, Umar Gul, Abdur Razzaq decided against playing in the T20 tournament and according to some players, their decision was right as the PCB is not good enough to facilitate them.

“I think people like Afridi, Razzaq and Ajmal did right by deciding to play in England because their allowance for a single day would be three times of what we will earn after playing the whole tournament,” a player of the Karachi Dolphins said.

The PCB has thought about introducing a top T20 league like the lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL). PCB Chairman Ijaz Butt recently said that they are waiting to have the right expertise before which they will move forward with the league in which international players will also participate.

But the players and members of the team management rejected such plans as ridiculous.

“It is a joke that the PCB will introduce a lucrative league and international players would take part in it. One cannot see that happening in near future because the board has failed to satisfy its own domestic players while being unable to attract their centrally-contracted players in what is the biggest tournament of the country which is being beamed throughout the world,” said a player.

When ‘The News’ tried to contact Director Domestic Cricket Sultan Rana and Manager Umpires and Referees Shafiq Ahmed Papa over the matter, they did not receive the call.

Meanwhile, another senior player hit out at Dolphins’ sponsor Chawla Aluminum as they haven’t received even a single penny from them.

“The sponsors’ names are associated with us without any reason as they have not given a single penny to the players. The sponsors should understand their responsibility. They are more interested in their own publicity instead of facilitating the players of their team,” he said.

Home or away Afridi just wants to win

Hampshire attempt to break new boundaries at the Rose Bowl tonight.

South-coast rivals Sussex Sharks pay Giles White’s Royals a visit in the Friends Life t20 (7.10pm).

The two sides are locked in combat at the top of the south group, with the visitors ahead of the Royals courtesy of net run-rate alone.

Hampshire, though, are on a hot streak.

They have not been beaten in a t20 fixture on home turf since they entertained Middlesex on July 16 last season.

They followed up that thumping eight-wicket reversal with a 45-run win over tonight’s opposition.

Dominic Cork & Co went on to lift the domestic t20 crown on home turf before a flying start to the defence of that title has seen them stretch their winning streak to seven matches.

It is a record home run for the club in the popular competition, which began back in 2003 with their five-run victory over the Sharks.

Skipper Cork has often spoken of turning Hampshire’s home ground – which hosted its first-ever Test match earlier this month – into a fortress.

The Royals’ only defeat in t20 this summer came last Thursday against Essex Eagles at Chelmsford – a ground well known for striking fear into visiting sides through the partizan home support. They bounced back just 24 hours later as Shahid Afridi produced a match-winning display with the ball against Gloucestershire.

The Pakistan all-rounder’s five for 20 crushed the Gladiators and ensured Hampshire rejoined Sussex at the top of the table as the race to qualify for the knockout stages begins to hot up.

An eighth straight home win will see the Royals resume pole position with an outright lead in the group.

And that would be a remarklable feat given the two-point pitch penalty they were hit with after a disastrous clash with Somerset at the Rose Bowl last season.

Afridi would love to see Hampshire continue to delight their home fans and set a new record with a derby success tonight. And while he recognises the need to perform well in front of the home faithful, the 31-year-old leg-spinner believes his new club are a match for anyone wherever they play.

‘Every game we play is important to us,’ said Afridi.

‘Obviously if you are playing at home it is important to do well for the crowd.

‘They seem to be enjoying their cricket at the moment.

‘But definitely if you are able to win matches away from home then it can really boost the team as well.

‘It is a very good sign if you can perform well and win a game away from home. So I’ll be trying my level best to win cricket matches for Hampshire, whether they are at the Rose Bowl or outside.’

Cricket-Australia appoints Rixon as fielding coach

SYDNEY, June 28 (Reuters) - Former test wicketkeeper Steve Rixon has been appointed Australia's new fielding coach and promised to set new standards for a country which has lost its reputation as the world's best in that department.

Rixon, who played 13 tests and six one-dayers for Australia in the late 1970s and early 1980s before going on to coach New Zealand and New South Wales, will accompany the team on tours of Sri Lanka and South Africa over the next six months.

Once one of their greatest strengths, the decline in Australia's fielding standards contributed to their humiliating Ashes defeat at the turn of the year.

"Fielding skills play such an important role in the modern game and often proves the difference between winning and losing," Rixon, 57, said in a news release.

"The Australian team has long been known as one of the best fielding sides in world cricket and my job will not only be to maintain the good work done before but about setting the benchmark for opposition sides."

Sunny slams ICC ban on runners

Soon after the International Cricket Council's chief executive committee (CEC) announced the abolishing of runners in One-day Internationals (ODIs), former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar flayed the new rule. Former India Captain Sunil Gavaskar is not too impressed with the new ICC rule banning runner

s for injured batsmen. Clearly miffed, Gavaskar told NDTV that then even bowlers should not be allowed water.

He said that traditionaly, the players are not supposed to question umpires decision, if there are only a couple of reviews, a batsman down the order may forget and appeal leading to a fine. He said that abolishing runners was not a good idea.

Meanwhile, West Indies skipper Darren Sammy has welcomed the introduction of Umpires Decisions Review System ( UDRS) across the world though he mentioned that it seemed to produce a lot more leg before decisions.

"My experience is that it minimises errors. It's a good thing that ICC has brought it into place, it lessens mistakes in a game," stated Sammy ahead of the second Test in Barbados on Tuesday.

The ICC has also recommended restricting the elective powerplays to between the 16th and 40th overs of each innings.

"CEC agreed with the ICC cricket committee's recommendations for the further enhancement of international 50-over cricket with the restriction of the elective powerplays to between the 16th and 40th overs of each innings and also to the use of two new balls per innings -- one from each end. This will come into effect from 1 October," ICC said in a statement.

CEC agreed with the cricket committee's recommendation to abolish runners in international cricket.

ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said: "Even though the success of 50-over cricket during the World Cup was universally acknowledged, the CEC rightly supported the enhancements recommended by the Cricket Committee to strengthen the format further, including encouraging members to trial some specific innovations in their domestic cricket."

These innovations include a review of the maximum number of overs that a bowler can bowl; an increase in the number of short balls permitted per over from one to two; no compulsory requirement for close catchers; and a maximum of four fielders outside the 30-yard circle during non-powerplay overs.