Posts for 'Players' Category

Pakistan's one-day captain, Shahid Afridi, has issued a remarkable public apology on behalf of the three players at the centre of cricket's betting scandal. "I think it is very bad news," he said. "On behalf of these players – I know they are not in this series – but on behalf of these boys I want to say sorry to all cricket lovers and all the cricketing nations."

Afridi was at pains to distance himself from those implicated in the betting scandal – the Test captain, Salman Butt, and the fast bowlers Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif – as he arrived at nets ahead of Pakistan's Twenty20 game against England in Cardiff tomorrow.

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World champions England did their best to put cricket's week of crisis behind them as they returned to the Twenty20 format with a five-wicket victory over Pakistan.

Captain Paul Collingwood was delighted with a "100%" performance which owed much to an unbroken sixth-wicket stand of 67 between Eoin Morgan and Michael Yardy, to aid the recovery from a mid-innings wobble in reply to 126 for four at the SWALEC Stadium.

"I'm absolutely delighted," said Collingwood. "Our strategies seem to be working in the Twenty20 form of the game. It has been a tough week. But the guys focused 100% on their cricket, and we enjoyed our win.

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England beat Pakistan by five wickets today in the opening Twenty20 cricket international in Cardiff, securing victory with almost three overs remaining.

Eoin Morgan hit the winning runs, striking a boundary to finish unbeaten on 38. Michael Yardy was 35 not out, while wicketkeeper Steve Davies hit 33 runs.

England reached 129-5 from 17.1 overs after restricting the tourists to 126-4. The teams play again in Cardiff in two days, with a five-match one-day series starting Sept. 10. England won the Test series 3-1.

Earlier, Umar Akmal top-scored with an unbeaten 35 for Pakistan. Graeme Swann was the pick of England’s bowlers, taking 2-14. Shoaib Akhtar and Shahid Afridi each claimed two wickets in the England reply.

Pakistan was without three players at the center of an alleged betting scandal, who were suspended and charged with breaches of the sport’s anti-corruption laws last week.

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Pakistan's former captain, Imran Khan fears that the menace of spot-fixing in cricket could be a much more malignant problem then it is being perceived to be after the allegations and suspension of three Pakistani players in England.

Imran said in a television interview that he believed that spot-fixing/betting might be going on uninterrupted in many countries and was not just a problem confined to Pakistan cricket.

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Match Fixing Scandal: Tainted Pak Trio Will Meet Scotland Yard Today: Pakistan's tainted trio of Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir will on Wednesday face another round of questioning from the Scotland Yard for their alleged involvement in the 'spot-fixing' scandal that has rocked international cricket even as England's Players' body demanded their ouster from the Twenty20 and ODI series here.

The trio, which has been implicated in the scandal after a sting operation by a British tabloid, is set to be quizzed by the Scotland Yard for the second time but they are not in danger of being arrested, a Pakistan Cricket Board official said.

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Debutant Zulqarnain Haider kept England at bay with a superb 88 as Pakistan at last restored some pride in the second Test at Edgbaston on Sunday. Pakistan at the close of the third day, were 9-291 a lead of 112 and with an outside chance of pulling off what would be an astounding victory.

They would have been in an even better position, but England off-spinner Graeme Swann removed Zulqarnain shortly before stumps on his way to a Test-best haul of 6-60 runs in 36 overs - 20 of them maidens.Pakistan had been dismissed for just 72 -- their lowest total against England - in the first innings, a woeful performance which made Sunday's fightback even more astonishing.

Zulqarnain and Saeed Ajmal put on 115 for the eighth wicket, with the recalled off-spinner making exactly 50 to give him Test-bests with both bat and ball this match after he took 5-82 in England's first innings 251. Ajmal fell shortly before the close caught at slip by Paul Collingwood to end a gutsy 79-ball innings featuring seven fours.

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Andrew Strauss Failed with the bat but that is the peril of facing new ball against such good bowlers. Iffy shot in first innings but got an unplayable delivery in the second. 6/10 Alastair Cook Struggling with technical issues against swinging ball. Tall men tend to struggle with balance and his footwork is a bit out of kilter 5.

Jonathan Trott Undone by a stinker that kept low and bowled him in the second innings but did show the application you need in Test cricket in both knocks. 5 Kevin Pietersen Lack of cricket obvious from the impatient way he approached both innings attempting to dominate without putting in the hard work first. 5

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The Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Aamer was warned about his conduct after clashing with the Australia captain Ricky Ponting on the first day of the Lord's Test yesterday. Aamer was spoken to by the match referee Chris Broad at the close of play after he had collided with Ponting as he celebrated dismissing the Tasmanian for 26.

"Aamer is a young, exciting, talented player full of enthusiasm for this great sport and that is to be celebrated and nurtured," said Broad. "But there are a few things he still has to learn in relation to how to conduct himself on the field of play.

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The 26-year-old has been included in a 16-man squad for the three-Test series which starts in Galle on July 18. Malinga, who last played in a Test in November 2007, has been limited to one-day competition over the last two years due to struggles with injury.

Fellow pace bowler Dilhara Fernando also earns a recall into the Test squad but spinner Ajantha Mendis has been left out by the selectors.Instead, 32-year-old slow left-arm orthodox Rangana Herath has been included to compliment the retiring Muttiah Muralitharan and off-spinner Suraj Randiv.

Muralitharan will bring the curtain down on his career in the longest form of the game after the contest in Galle and although Mendis has been labelled as his heir apparent, there is no place in the squad for the 25-year-old.

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Pakistan have solved their disciplinary problems and head into tomorrow's first Test against Australia as a united force confident of victory, said the new Pakistan captain, Shahid Afridi. The 30-year-old Afridi came out of a four-year Test retirement to pick up the pieces after Pakistan's dismal tour of Australia this year ended in bitter recriminations.

The two previous captains, Mohammad Yousuf and Younus Khan, were both banned indefinitely for alleged infighting as part of widespread punishments dished out by the Pakistan Cricket Board following the 3-0 Test series whitewash, plus defeats in all six limited-overs internationals.

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