Games – Page 524 – Newswire Pakistan

August 17, 2021August 18, 2021

Pakistan to begin ICC Men’s T20 World Cup campaign with India fixture

Lahore, August 17, 2021 (PPI-OT):Babar Azam’s side will begin their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 campaign on 24 October with the much-anticipated, high-octane clash against India at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. This was revealed after the ICC today announced the fixtures of the global event.

The two neighbours will come face-to-face for the first time since their 2019, 50-over World Cup fixture at Manchester, and this will be the sixth time they will compete in the global T20 tournament.

Two days later, Pakistan, the champions of the 2009 edition, will play Kane Williamson’s New Zealand at the historic Sharjah Cricket Stadium, before returning to Dubai to play Afghanistan for the first time in a T20 World Cup on 29 October.

Pakistan and Afghanistan have played only one T20I against each other, to date, which the former won in 2013.

In their last two matches of the Super 12 stage, which will feature top-eight ranked T20 teams and four teams who secure qualification from Round 1, Pakistan, who have played the most matches (36) in the UAE for an international side and have won 21 of them, will play the runner-up of Group A and winners of Group B on 2 and 7 November at Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium and Sharjah Cricket Stadium, respectively.

The two semi-finals will be played on 10 and 11 November, before the final on 14 November in Dubai.

Pakistan featured in semi-finals of the first four editions. They played the final in the inaugural edition in 2007, before lifting the trophy at the iconic Lord’s in 2009.

Pakistan captain Babar Azam said: “The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 schedule announcement brings us one step forward in our preparations for this much-awaited global tournament. We will utilise the build-up period by playing in home series against New Zealand and England and will not only aim to fine-tune our final outlook but also win as many matches as possible so that we can carry that winning form and momentum to the United Arab Emirates.

“For Pakistan, the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 is like a home event as the UAE has been our venue for more than a decade. We have not only nurtured our talent and developed our side in the UAE but have also beaten the top sides in these conditions to peak to number-one in the ICC T20I Team Rankings.

“All the players are excited, motivated and enthusiastic, and view this tournament as an opportunity to showcase our prowess and re-establish our superiority in the shortest format of the game in conditions that suit us best.

“From a personal point of view, this will be my first ICC Major Event as Pakistan captain. I tasted success in 2017 and suffered disappointment in 2019 when we missed out on a semi-final spot by a fraction of a point despite beating both the finalists in league matches. I remain focused in inspiring my side with my performances so that we can become the first Pakistan side to win an ICC Major Event in Asia.”

For more information, contact:
Media Manager,
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)
Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore 54600, Pakistan
Tel: +92-42-5717231-4
Fax: +92-42-5711860
Website: www.pcb.com.pk

August 17, 2021August 18, 2021

Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh attends Independence Day exhibition hockey event at International Gojra Hockey Stadium as Chief Guest

Lahore, August 17, 2021 (PPI-OT):Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh said Sports Board Punjab is going to organize a top level Academies Hockey Championship for the promotion of hockey among the young generation of the province in near future; he said this while talking to the media as a chief guest at an Independence Day male and female 5-a-side floodlight exhibition hockey event organized at International Gojra Hockey Stadium here on Monday.

Director Sports Hafeez Bhatti, Assistant Commissioner Gojra Sumera Ambreen, District Sports Officer Toba Tek Singh Ch M Jameel, coach Khawar Javed and other officials were also present on this occasion. Hockey coach Khawar Javed was the organizing secretary of the event.

Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh also cut a cake to celebrate the Independence Day of the country in the presence of large number of young male and female hockey players and officials.

Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh was warmly received by the organizers of the event. He was also introduced to all the players and officials of participating teams on this occasion. Later, he distributed prizes among the top performers of the exhibition hockey matches.

The matches of Independence Day male and female 5-a-side floodlight hockey event were played between AC XI and DC XI. In the female match, AC XI defeated DC XI by 4-1 while AC XI outplayed DC XI by a huge margin of 5-2 in male hockey match.

Talking to the media, Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh said the Academies Hockey Championship will play a key role in further popularizing game of hockey in the far-flung areas of the province. He announced that Sports Board Punjab will provide all necessary facilities at Gojra Hockey Stadium for the growth of Pakistan’s national game. “We will provide all missing facilities to talented youth of Gojra besides installing a scoreboard at Gojra Hockey Stadium”.

Director General Sports Punjab Adnan Arshad Aulakh said: “Gojra is blessed with immense hockey talent and Sports Board Punjab is making effective efforts to nurture this talent so that young players of Gojra can represent national hockey team in future and play their due role for the revival of hockey in the country”.

For more information, contact:
Sports Board Punjab
Government of the Punjab
National Hockey Stadium, Ferozepur Road, Lahore, Pakistan
Tel: +92-42-99232501, +92-42-99232502
E-mail: info@punjabsportsboard.com
Website: http://sportsboard.punjab.gov.pk

August 17, 2021August 18, 2021

Secretary Sports and Youth Affairs Punjab Fuad Hashim Rabbani plants sapling outside NPSC Gymnasium Hall as part of Monsoon Tree Planting Campaign

Lahore, August 17, 2021 (PPI-OT):Secretary Sports and Youth Affairs Punjab Fuad Hashim Rabbani planted a sapling outside Nishtar Park Sports Complex Gymnasium Hall as part of Monsoon Tree Planting Campaign here on Monday.

Additional Secretary Sports Maria Tariq and administrator Nishtar Park Sports Complex Gymnasium Hall Mustfa Shah were also present on this occasion.

Talking on this occasion, Secretary Sports and Youth Affairs Punjab Fuad Hashim Rabbani said the Monsoon Tree Planting drive is under way in accordance with the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan. “Trees help a lot in cleaning the environment and we can combat with climatic challenges in a befitting manner through this campaign. Every citizen of the province must take part in this campaign with full dedication.”

Secretary Sports and Youth Affairs Punjab Fuad Hashim Rabbani said this drive will prove to be a key factor in developing a clean and green culture across the country. “Thousands of trees also being planted in all cities of the province under the banner of Sports and Youth Affairs Department Punjab,” he added.

August 17, 2021August 18, 2021

ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 schedule announced

Dubai, August 17, 2021 (PPI-OT):Defending champions, the West Indies, will take on England in their first game of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 at the Dubai International Stadium on 23 October, it was confirmed today as the ICC unveiled the complete schedule of the 16-team event.

The West Indies will look to get the defence of their title off to a winning start in what will be a re-run of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2016 final at Eden Gardens, which saw them snatch the title from England thanks to Carlos Brathwaite’s four consecutive sixes in the last over.

South Africa and Australia join West Indies and England in Group 1 of the Super 12s along with two yet-to-be-determined qualifiers from Round 1 for this year’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. The West Indies will also play South Africa on 26 October at the Dubai International Stadium followed by playing the winners of the qualifying round 1 on 29 October and 4 November. West Indies will also play Australia on 6 November at the Abu Dhabi International stadium.

Sri Lanka, champions in 2014, and Bangladesh, Ireland, Namibia, Netherlands Oman, PNG and Scotland, feature in Round 1 of the 16-team tournament, being hosted by India in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman through to 14 November.

Abu Dhabi will be the venue of the first semi-final on 10 November while the other semi-final (11 November) and the final (14 November) will be played in Dubai. All day matches are scheduled for 14h00 local time and the day-night matches are slated for 18h00 local time (+4 GMT).

West Indies captain Kieron Pollard said: “We are excited to begin defence of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup title later this year.”

“T20 cricket is dynamic, and the international scene is highly competitive, with players constantly pushing the boundaries of innovation and we are expecting a spectacular event in the UAE and Oman.

“We have particularly interesting Super 12 group, which sees us come up against Australia, England and South Africa. We can’t wait to get started!”

“West Indian cricketers have always played an exciting brand of cricket and I am sure our fans in the Caribbean and all over the world are highly anticipating seeing us in action”.

England Captain, Eoin Morgan said: “The ICC World T20 is going to be brilliant. The standard of T20 cricket around the world is improving exponentially and every nation has a chance of becoming World Champions. It should be one of the closest and most competitive world tournaments to date and we can’t wait to get started.”

South Africa Captain Temba Bavuma said: “The 2021 ICC T20 World Cup is of vital importance to the Proteas and South Africa as a nation. Not only is the T20 format a key part of Cricket South Africa’s strategy to introduce new fans to the game of cricket, but this tournament will also be the first of three opportunities for us to claim our first-ever ICC World Cup trophy.”

“The group that we are in is an exciting one and we’re looking forward to facing off with everyone in it as we go about our mission to reach the final and the ultimate championship. We have an exciting team that we are building with a lot of raw talent, coupled with the experienced hands that will guide and lead the youngsters.”

“We have spent the greater part of the year preparing for this contest and I look forward to leading our country in my first world showpiece as captain.”

Australian wicketkeeper and batter Alex Carey said: “I think the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is really exciting! We have waited an extra twelve months for this one and to have it now in the schedule and see the draw that Australia has got is truly exciting.”

“Anytime we get to play against England is exciting, we know how dominant they have been in the white ball format over the last few years. Coming up against the West Indies recently, we know how tough that can also be. So, we are really looking forward to this tournament.”

The groupings:

Round 1

Group A: Sri Lanka, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Namibia

Group B: Bangladesh, Scotland, Papua New Guinea, and Oman

(Top two teams from each group advance to Super 12s)

Super 12s

Group 1: England, Australia, South Africa, West Indies, A1 and B2.

Group 2: India, Pakistan, New Zealand, Afghanistan, A2 and B1.

(Top two teams from each group advance to the semi-finals)

Complete schedule:

Round 1

17 Oct: Oman v Papua New Guinea, Muscat (14h00); Bangladesh v Scotland, Muscat (18h00)

18 Oct: Ireland v Netherlands, Abu Dhabi (14h00); Sri Lanka v Namibia, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

19 Oct: Scotland v Papua New Guinea, Muscat (14h00); Oman v Bangladesh, Muscat (18h00)

20 Oct: Namibia v Netherlands, Abu Dhabi (14h00); Sri Lanka v Ireland, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

21 Oct: Bangladesh v Papua New Guinea, Muscat (14h00); Oman v Scotland, Muscat (18h00)

22 Oct: Namibia v Ireland, Sharjah (14h00); Sri Lanka v Netherlands, Sharjah (18h00)

Super 12

23 Oct: Australia v South Africa, Abu Dhabi (14h00); England v West Indies, Dubai (18h00)

24 Oct: A1 v B2, Sharjah (14h00); India v Pakistan, Dubai (18h00)

25 Oct: Afghanistan v B1, Sharjah (18h00)

26 Oct: South Africa v West Indies, Dubai (14h00); Pakistan v New Zealand, Sharjah (18h00)

27 Oct: England v B2, Abu Dhabi (14h00); B1 v A2, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

28 Oct: Australia v A1, Dubai (18h00)

29 Oct: West Indies v B2, Sharjah (14h00); Pakistan v Afghanistan, Dubai (18h00)

30 Oct: South Africa v A1, Sharjah (14h00); Australia v England, Dubai (18h00)

31 Oct: Afghanistan v A2, Abu Dhabi (14h00); India v New Zealand, Dubai (18h00)

1 Nov: England v A1, Sharjah (18h00)

2 Nov: South Africa v B2, Abu Dhabi (14h00); Pakistan v A2, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

3 Nov: New Zealand v B1, Dubai (14h00); India v Afghanistan, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

4 Nov: Australia v B2, Dubai (14h00); West indies v A1, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

5 Nov: New Zealand v A2, Sharjah (14h00); India v B1, Dubai (18h00)

6 Nov: Australia v West Indies, Abu Dhabi (14h00); England v South Africa, Sharjah (18h00)

7 Nov: New Zealand v Afghanistan, Abu Dhabi (14h00): Pakistan v B1, Sharjah (18h00)

8 Nov: India v A2 , Dubai (18h00)

10 Nov: Semi-final 1 (A1 v B2), Abu Dhabi (18h00)

11 Nov: Semi-final 2 (B1 v A2), Dubai (18h00)

14 Nov: Final, Dubai (18h00)

About the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021

The seventh edition of the tournament comprises 16 teams and is being hosted by India in the United Arab Emirates and Oman

The tournament is being played at four venues – Dubai International Stadium, Oman Cricket Academy (Muscat), Sharjah Cricket Stadium and Zayed Cricket Stadium (Abu Dhabi)

Hosts India and nine other top teams in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings as of 31 December 2018 got direct entries

The top eight were placed directly in the Super 12s and the next two – Sri Lanka and Bangladesh – joined six other teams coming through a Qualifier event in the group stage

Two teams each from the group stage, consisting of four teams each, will join the eight direct entrants to complete the Super 12s line-up.

If Sri Lanka and Bangladesh qualify from the first round, they will retain the seedings of A1 and B1 respectively for the Super 12s

The top two teams from each group of the Super 12s will make the knockouts, the matchups being – A1 v B2 and B2 v A1

For more information, contact:
Headquarters,
International Cricket Council (ICC)
Street 69, Dubai Sports City,
Sh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road, Dubai, UAE
Phone: +97-143828800
Fax: +97-143828600
E-mail: enquiry@icc-cricket.com
Website: www.icc-cricket.com

August 17, 2021August 18, 2021

First Test is a great example of Test cricket’s beauty: Waqar Younis

Kingston, August 17, 2021 (PPI-OT):Bowling Coach Waqar Younis praised the high quality competition in the thrilling first Test between West Indies and Pakistan while addressing a virtual media session with Pakistan media from Kingston, Jamaica on Tuesday.

“We would not get a better advertisement for the beauty of Test cricket. Both teams fought very well but unfortunately we didn’t avail some good opportunities at a crucial stage of the match which cost us at the end.”

“The pitch was conducive to seam bowling and our pacers bowled really well. Undoubtedly, It was a low target that we had to defend yet we fought really hard and it was only some dropped catches that took the game away from us.”

Waqar Younis also admired the efforts of his bowlers, “I am very proud of my bowlers. Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali bowled brilliantly. I have full confidence on the abilities of Mohammad Abbas. He was very impressive in the match but unfortunately he didn’t get many wickets.” Waqar is also hopeful that Pakistan will stage a better show in the last Test match against the host nation commencing from 20 August.

“We must admire Babar Azam the way he kept his nerves and took some good decisions as captain in the last match.” “Leggie Yasir Shah is a match winner and we are fortunate to have Nauman Ali as a good back-up spinner.” “We will go with a positive mindset in the second game and try to do better.”

For more information, contact:
Media Manager,
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)
Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore 54600, Pakistan
Tel: +92-42-5717231-4
Fax: +92-42-5711860
Website: www.pcb.com.pk

August 16, 2021August 17, 2021

ICC Men’s T20 World Cup schedule to be revealed on digital show

Dubai, August 16, 2021 (PPI-OT):The complete schedule of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021, being hosted by India in the United Arab Emirates and Oman, will be announced during a digital show to be broadcast via T20worldcup.com and the ICC Cricket app from 09h00 Dubai time (+4 GMT) on Tuesday, 17 August.

The show will be compered by former England cricketer Isa Guha, who will discuss the prospects of different teams, notable matchups and highlight the key players in the 16-team tournament with Daren Sammy and Dinesh Karthik.

Guha, who played more than 100 internationals and was part of the squads that won the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup and the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in 2009, says she is thrilled to be presenting Tuesday’s show.

Isa Guha: “I have enjoyed watching and commentating on T20 cricket from around the world, and I’m really excited to be part of a show around the schedule announcement of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. It will also be a good opportunity to catch up with my friends and colleagues on the circuit – Daren Sammy and Dinesh Karthik, as we look ahead to the tournament and discuss all the match-ups.”

Sammy, who led his team to victory in the 2012 and 2016 editions of the tournament, backs the West Indies to do well in the seventh edition.

Daren Sammy: “The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is a pinnacle event in the T20 format. We’ve had the pleasure of lifting the trophy twice and I’m sure the West Indies will be one of the favourites to win once again. I know fans back home and in the rest of the world are waiting with enthusiasm for this event. I look forward to being a part of this show and discussing the schedule.”

Dinesh Karthik, who has turned out in more than 150 international matches across the three formats of the game and was a member of the India team that won the inaugural edition in 2007, feels the schedule launch will increase anticipation among fans.

Dinesh Karthik: “The schedule announcement takes us one step closer to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and is the point from where teams start chalking out their final plans. Players in the T20 format have only gotten more skillful over the past five years since the last edition, and I bet we are in for some scintillating performances and nerve-wracking thrillers.”

For comprehensive coverage around the T20 World Cup fans can head to the T20 World Cup website and ICC Cricket app or have their say on the highly anticipated event across social media using the hashtag #T20WorldCup.