Category: Sports

Lahore (NUT-DESK)

Former Pakistan captain and Boom Boom all-rounder Shahid Afridi Monday recalled the day his “dreams come true” when he smashed a record-breaking 37-ball century against Sri Lanka, effectively announcing his arrival in international cricket.

When Pakistan came out to bat against Sri Lanka in Nairobi on October 4, 1996, nobody knew the carnage that was about to follow, least of all the Sri Lankan bowlers.

Shahid Afridi was relatively unknown at the time. However, after Pakistan batted first and played their inning, the right-handed batsman had made headlines around the world.

Afridi smashed his way into the record books by scoring the fastest ODI century in the history of the game, achieving it in 37 balls. Afridi hit the ball out of the park frequently during his inning, smashing 11 sixes and six fours to score 102 runs off 40 balls before he was sent back to the pavilion.

The stylish Saeed Anwar also put up a strong performance, scoring 115 off 120 balls. However, the day belonged to Shahid Afridi.

A day I will never forget! To all my fans around the world, do remember, dreams do come true! 💚 https://t.co/eCo5N5guXb

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) October 4, 2021

In the tweet, Shahid Afridi said he would never forget the day he shattered the world record for the fastest ODI century.

“To all my fans around the world, do remember, dreams do come true!” he tweeted.

Pakistan won the match by 82 runs after handing Sri Lanka a mammoth 372-run target. The Sri Lankans batted well but fell short of the target, as they were bowled out for 289 with only one ball to spare.

Shahid Afridi picked up one wicket from his 10 overs as well. Fast bowler Waqar Younis was the pick of the bowlers, taking five wickets while Saqalin Mushtaq took four wickets too.

 

 

Lahore (NUT-DESK)

Pakistan’s captain Babar Azam added another feather to his cap when he became the top T20 centurion from Pakistan by scoring his 6th T20 hundred during Central Punjab’s National T20 Cup match against Northern on Thursday. Babar smashed three 6s and stroked 11 shots to the fence to score an unbeaten 105 off 63 to help his team post 200/2 in 20 overs. This was Babar’s sixth T20 century — the most by a Pakistani batsman in the format.

He is followed by Ahmed Shahzad and Kamran Akmal, both have 5 centuries against their names, apiece. Khurram Manzoor has scored 4 while Sharjeel Khan and Mukhtar Ahmed have scored 3 centuries, each. Babar is also the 9th batsman in the world to score at least six T20 centuries. The most numbers of centuries, 22, are scored by West Indian Chris Gayle.

The Pakistani batsman reached this milestone in the 185th inning of his career.
In these 185 innings, Babar has a total of 64 scores of 50 or more (that also include 6 hundreds) putting him fifty/inning ratio to 2.89 – the best among all the leading batsmen. Babar is now eyeing to break Chris Gayle’s record of quickest to 7,000 runs. He needs 16 runs in 6 innings to break the record set by Gayle by reaching 7000 runs in 192 innings. Babar currently has 6984 in 185 innings.

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Lahore (NUT-DESK)

England Cricket Board chief Ian Watmore has tendered an apology after controversially cancelling the team’s tour of Pakistan.

England, who were scheduled to feature in two T20Is on October 13 and 14, called off their tour citing concerns of mental and physical well-being of players and support staff. The women’s cricket team was also set to play two T20Is and three ODIs from October 13 to 21 in Rawalpindi.

“I’m very sorry to anyone who feels hurt or let down by our decision, particularly in Pakistan,” Watmore told Daily Mail. He reiterated that the decision was made with the primary consideration being the welfare and mental health of our players and staff.

Watmore announced that ECB is looking forward to a proper tour of Pakistan next year. “We’ve recommitted to a proper tour and we will have longer to plan that trip,” he added.

Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry also welcomed ECB’s decision, stating that it is a welcome step.

Lahore (NUT-DESK)

Renowned sports presenter Zainab Abbas on Tuesday announced that she is pregnant with her first child with husband Hamza Kardar.

Zainab Abbas turned to Instagram late on Tuesday and shared pictures of herself cradling her burgeoning baby bump with a stadium in the background. “My travel partner this past year,” she said in the caption.

“Feels more like a test match rather than a T20, but managed to weather the storm and carry on working through out,” quipped Zainab, furter adding, “Hoping this new journey is as rewarding as the previous one.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CUFTj9UMjcm/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Zainab, who has previously served as the official presenter for the ICC World Cup 2019 and the Pakistan Super League, also shared a selfie from the same day later on Wednesay, jokingly sharing, “The effort required to get ready in life has doubled.”  The 33-year-old tied the knot with Hamza Kardar in November 2019 in a stunning Nikkah ceremony in Lahore.

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Lahore (NUT-DESK)

In a bid to boost the morale of the cricketers after England and New Zealand called off their Pakistan tours, Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is also the patron-in-chief of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), will meet the national T20 World Cup squad on Wednesday (tomorrow).

The arrangements were being finalised for the meeting between the premier and Pakistan’s T20 squad. During the meeting, Imran Khan, the 1992 World Cup-winning captain, will share his experiences and give tips to the players. He will also give the players a motivational lecture as well.

Besides all the members of the T20 team, PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja and other senior officials of the board will be among the attendees of the meeting.

 

Lahore (NUT-DESK)

Pakistan are all set to host New Zealand for a three-match one-day international series after a gap of 18 years, as the two teams finally square off today at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.

The tourists will play their first match on Pakistani soil since 2003, with  today’s matchset to be the fourth encounter between the two sides at the Rawalpindi stadium, with Pakistan having a 3-0 edge over the Black Caps.

The two sides last faced off in 2019 during the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in Birmingham where Babar Azam guided his side to a six-wicket victory with a heroic century.

New Zealand, the top-ranked ODI team in the ICC Rankings and the 2019 World Cup finalists, will take to the stadium today with the confidence of a 3-0 sweep against Bangladesh in March. The Kiwis will be looking to continue their winning streak.

Pakistan captain Babar Azam expressed his excitement over the series taking place between the two sides in Pakistan after over a decade-and-a-half.

“Finally, the day has arrived and our entire camp is very excited to play New Zealand at home. We have practiced hard for this series and I am sure we will take full advantage of our home conditions,” said Babar in his pre-series media conference held online.

“We have a balanced squad and I remain optimistic about our chances in what promises to be an exciting series. I am sure fans at the stadium and millions watching us on screens will enjoy these matches.”

New Zealand captain Tom Latham reciprocated Babar Azam’s excitement.

“We know it is special for Pakistan to have cricket in their country and we are excited to be here. Pakistan are a quality side and they have some talented white-ball players in their line-up,” said Tom.

“We have the desired fire-power in our ranks to win this series and I am sure our batters and bowlers will rise to the occasion and make this historic series memorable for us.”

 

Lahore (NUT-DESK)

Pakistan cricket team is set to tour Bangladesh after five years, and PCB has announced the tour schedule.

The Men-in-Green will play three T20Is and two ICC World Test Championship matches after the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, PCB said. The T20I series will be staged at Dhaka’s Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, on 19 November. The second and third T20Is will be played on 20 and 22 November.

The two teams will then travel to Chattogram for the first of the two Tests at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium from 26-30 November. This match will see the two sides face-off in the apex form of the game on Bangladeshi soil for the first time since May 2015, when Pakistan won the two-match series by completing a win in the final Test by a mammoth 328 runs.

The two teams will return to Dhaka to play the final Test, which will start from 4 December.

Fixtures:

19 Nov – First T20I, Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka

20 Nov – Second T20I, Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka

22 Nov – Third T20I, Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka

26-30 Nov – First Test, Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chattogram

4-8 Dec – Second Test, Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka

Lahore (Muhammad Yasir)

Faysal Islami, the Best Emerging and fastest growing Islamic bank of Pakistan, has signed Shaheen Shah Afridi, one of the world’s best fast bowlers, as its corporate brand ambassador.

Shaheen Shah Afridi who is Pakistan’s ace strike bowler has also been recently nominated as the ‘Player of the Month’ by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Mr. Jaudat Hussain, Head Retail Banking Faysal Bank said, “Alhamdolillah, as a relatively young and fast-growing Islamic bank, we are proud to announce our partnership with Shaheen Shah Afridi as he is among the youngest, most consistent and reliable Pakistani fast bowlers. He shares these attributes with our Bank and the winner services/products that we provide to our customers. With him onboard as our brand ambassador, we look forward to promoting the Islamic banking landscape in the country and expediting our journey to bringing innovative Shariah compliant products and services to our customers.”

Shaheen Shah Afridi, while expressing his thoughts at the union, also added, “Faysal Bank’s transformation to Islamic banking is remarkable and exemplary, reflective of its strong commitment and dedication. I am extremely pleased with the association and look forward to representing the Bank as their brand ambassador.”

Faysal Bank Limited is one of the leading commercial banks of Pakistan and is on track to one of the largest conversions of a conventional bank to an Islamic Bank, on global basis.