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Shoaib Malik

KARACHI: Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik said on Monday that series against Sri Lankan team would be stirring and Pakistani team would wrap up the home series.

Talking to newsmen here, captain Malik said that last 11 would be selected only after probing the arena conditions in the first one-day international. “We will pasture four fast bowlers if wicket has some bounce, otherwise, team will play with three pacers,” Malik said.

To a question, he said that team would be selected after consulting the coach and vice captain. “All players are in good form and they will try their level best to win the series against Islanders,” he added.

Mohammad Yousuf

“After so many years of service to Pakistan cricket I could not accept the humiliation and packed my bags and left camp,” he said.

Shoaib Malik

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has proclaimed to reward central agreement to 26 players here on Tuesday.

Moreover, Test match payment of the players included in the ‘A’ category of the central contract has been raised to Rs 350,000 and with that Shoaib Malik has been appointed captain of the national team for an imprecise age.

Chief operating officer PCB Saleem Altaf told at a news conference in Lahore that 26 players have been awarded central contract with raised fee in all three categories.

However, no change has been made in the perks of the players, he said.

Names of the players awarded central contract are given below:

Category ‘A’: Shoaib Malik, Shoaib Akhtar, Younus Khan, Danish Kaneria, Shahid Afridi, Kamran Akmal, Misbah-ul-Haq, Salman Butt, Umar Gul.

Category ‘B’: Yasir Hameed, Faisal Iqbal, Mohammad Hafeez, Sohail Tanveer.

Category ‘C’: Rao Iftikhar Anjum, Abdul Rehman, Yasir Arafat, Fawad Alam, Khurram Manzoor, Saeed Ajmal, Sohail Khan, Wahab Riaz, Samiullah Khan Niazi, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Nasir Jamshed, Umar Amin and Azhar Ali.

The players placed in ‘A’ category would get Rs 250,000 while the category ‘B’ players would be given Rs175,000 and the category ‘C’ players would be paid Rs 100,000.

Saleem Altaf told that chairman PCB Ijaz Butt has appointed Shoaib Malik as captain for an indefinite period by exercising his powers as the governing body is presently inactive in the absence of six technocrats.
He said that Justice Ejaz Yousuf, Aslam Sanjrani, Moeen Afzal, Lt Gen Muneer Hafeez, Ali Raza and Farooq Rehmat are not any part of the governing body.

Shoaib Malik

KARACHI: Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik said Sunday his team were disappointed about India’s cancellation of a much-anticipated tour here but were keen to face “tough” replacements Sri Lanka.

India last week pulled out of their January tour of Pakistan over the Mumbai attacks, forcing the hosts to arrange a stop-gap series with Sri Lanka.

“We are disappointed that India decided not to tour us,” Malik told reporters. “India has been doing well so it would have been a good series, but Sri Lanka is also a good team and we are ready for them.”

“When India and Pakistan play each other, there is huge public interest in both countries, but that will now not come about,” he added.

Sri Lanka have agreed to a tour that will include three Tests, three one-dayers and a Twenty20 match. The tour is expected to begin after Sri Lanka complete a tour of Bangladesh on January 16.

Shoaib Malik, who was appointed captain last year, said his team would have to play its best cricket to defeat Sri Lanka.

“We have not been playing much international cricket so we have to do a lot of hard work, while Sri Lanka have been doing well at the international level and will be tough opponents,” he said.

Malik said he hoped more international teams would follow in Sri Lanka’s footsteps.

“Their visit will give us some good cricket and hopefully more teams will come to Pakistan in the future,” he said.

Malik singled out sensational Sri Lankan spinner Ajantah Mendis as his team’s main challenge.

“Sri Lanka have two quality spinners in Muttiah Muralitharan and Mendis, but we have played Murali a number of times and now need to master Mendis, who has been doing very well,”the Captain said.

Shoaib Malik

Shoaib Malik has said he would use his visit to India for the Twenty20 Champions League to convince Indian players to tour Pakistan for the Test series early next year.

The Pakistan skipper told reporters in Lahore on Tuesday that he was convinced that conditions were conducive for India to tour Pakistan in January-February and play their series as per schedule.

Malik will be leading the Sialkot Stallions in the Champions League in India next month and said this would give him a good opportunity to exchange views with the Indian players, media and even officials.

“I will do my best to convince them it is safe to tour Pakistan. I will let them know how important it is for India to tour Pakistan on schedule,” he said.

Malik said his Sialkot team was preparing hard for the USD four million Champions League and were confident about their chances against the champion Twenty20 sides from the Indian Premier League, Australia, England and South Africa.

“We have prepared hard and well for the tournament and we have some good players so we do fancy our chances of doing well,” he said.

He said the fact that Sialkot had done well in Pakistan’s domestic Twenty20 competition and won it thrice had added to the confidence of the players.

Sialkot will miss the services of Imran Nazir, Rana Naved and Mohammad Asif for various reasons in the Champions League. While Nazir and Naved have signed up for the Indian Cricket League and can’t play for Sialkot, Asif is presently suspended by the Pakistan board over a doping offence.

Malik said India’s tour to Pakistan would help revive the sport in the country after a troubled year for the country’s cricket.

“The Indians have to realise what this tour means to us. It can be played at neutral venues but the impact of India being in Pakistan is very very important for us as a country, Malik added.

Shoaib Malik

Pakistan cricket captain, Shoaib Malik has dismissed claims of his senior colleague Muhammad Yousuf that his manner was one of the factors which forced (Yousuf) to join Indian Cricket League (ICL).

“ It is not a pale decision on division of Yousuf as he is the senior most player of the squad and I always respected him and had his opinion on cricketing matters related to team “, he told media on Tuesday after influx of the team from Abu Dhabi where it won 3-0 a one day series against West Indies.

Shoaib said he always consulted senior players on team matters and valued their opinion and suggestions. “ I think Yousuf has given this statement without a fair and thorough analysis of the circumstances and it is his wrong thought and claim that he joined the ICL because of my attitude “, he added.

He said every cricketer is free to decide his fate or playing career and he is surprised to read Yousuf’s statement of joining ICL because of his attitude. “ I think it is smart way to make an excuse and I do not agree what he has said.”

Pakistan captain said under his leadership the team has showed good results in the past two years.

“ I am satisfied the way I have done as a captain and I am not bothered if I am not retained as a captain because I am enjoying playing cricket and I will do the same even as an ordinary member of the team”, he said.

“ I am very much satisfied that we have made some progress in our ranking, from sixth to fourth place in ODIs, and we must have this point under consideration that we had lesser opportunities to play international cricket in the past one year which led to cancellations of some events at home “, he said.

He said despite all these adverse circumstances he endeavored to justify in the role of a captain and gave his best as an all-rounder. “ If captaincy is a pride it also brings heavy responsibility and challenge and so far I have done my best to rise to the expectations”, he added.