Wasim Akram urges Pakistan not to panic after New Zealand loss – ICC World Cup 2011 news

Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram has advised Pakistan cricket team not to panic following their morale-sapping 110-run defeat at the hands of New Zealand on Tuesday in the ongoing ICC World Cup 2011 group stage.

Akram has urged that the team captain, Shahid Afridi must have a plan B ready for every game if things do not work in the pre-planned manner.

“I think there is a clear need for the captain to handle the pressure on the field when the situation changes,” said Akram in an interview with a leading sports channel of Pakistan. “At times I get the feeling that everything is decided before hand and when things to start go wrong there is no change of mind or the inclination to take decisions as the situation warrants.”

Talking about Tuesday’s game between New Zealand and Pakistan, Akram said that the main reason behind Pakistan’s collapse was that their think-tank panicked and exhausted the crucial overs of all the key bowlers including death overs specialist Umar Gul.

The pace bowling great of Pakistan feels bowling is still Pakistan’s strength and they should rely more on it and remain in attacking mode.

Akram said that the team is good and if the management picks the right combination in the next game, they have the potential to go a long way in the tournament reiterating that they do not need to panic.

He also asked the crazy cricket fans of Pakistan not to overreact at the defeat against the Kiwis.

“I would like to appeal to our people not to take any defeat or bad performance to heart and react like the Bangladeshi fans did,” said the former Pakistan captain who played cricket for 19 years. “Our team is a good team but in sports the other team also comes into win. We must learn to be patient and back our players all the way.”

Wasim also expressed disappointment over the attack of fanatic Bangladesh fans on the West Indies team bus in Dhaka.

Shahid Afridi backs Umpire Decision Review System – ICC World Cup 2011 news

Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi has given thumbs up to the Umpire Decision Review System after the technology helped Pakistan in the clash against minnows Canada on Thursday.

Afridi requested the International Cricket Council to increase the number of UDRS appeals allowed to the teams. He believed that the system was working well in the ongoing ICC World Cup 2011 which is being played in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

While giving an interview to a Pakistani channel he said, “The use of the UDRS is a positive development and it would not be a bad idea if its use is increased in the remaining matches of the World Cup and even after that.”

The flamboyant Pakistan skipper pointed out the fact that the system has reduced the chances of poor decisions made by the on field umpires which at times have cost teams crucial matches. He reckoned that most teams in the world were in favour of the new technology.

Pakistan took full advantage of the system against Canada when many decisions by the on-field umpires Nigel Long and Darrel Harper were turned in favour of the Men in Green by the new technology. Had there been no UDRS in that particular match, Pakistan might have become the second team to lose to minnows after England lost to Ireland a day before.

But unlike Pakistan, India are perhaps the only team in the World Cup who want the UDRS to be scrapped.

Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni criticised the system after they were denied the wicket of England’s Ian Bell who looked plumb leg-before-wicket in the television replays. However, new rules of the UDRS gave Bell another chance. Dhoni’s dejection was not appreciated by the ICC which suggested that the Indian skipper was not completely aware of the rules and regulations of the system.

This statement almost sparked a controversy when the Board of Control for Cricket in India reacted strongly against the ICC and came out in support of Dhoni. The BCCI argued that their skipper was right in questioning the credibility of the system.

Meanwhile, Afridi reiterated that the match against Canada was a narrow escape for Pakistan and the rest of the team needed to shape up quickly otherwise they would be heading home soon. Pakistan almost lost the match to the minnows when their batting collapsed against a bowling attack that could not be considered among the best in the world. Pakistan managed just 184 runs in 43 overs while batting first.

In reply, the Canadians just needed to keep wickets in hand to reach home quite easily but Afridi’s heroics in the later stages of the Canadian innings denied them a World Cup victory. The flamboyant skipper took his second five-for of the tournament to register Pakistan’s third consecutive victory in the event.

Pakistan now face New Zealand on 8 March, 2011 at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in their next group game.

Shahid Afridi shines as top World Cup wicket-taker with two 5-wicket hauls

With 14 wickets in three World Cup games, Pakistan cricket team skipper, Shahid Afridi, stands as the tournament’s top wicket-taker.

After yesterday’s match against Canada, Afridi has also become the world’s seventh bowler to take three consecutive four-wicket hauls in One Day International (ODI) cricket.

He has the honour to be the first Pakistani bowler and the fourth overall to take five-wicket hauls twice in a ICC Cricket World Cup. Moreover, Afridi is the first skipper to mop up a five-wicket haul.

All these honors were conferred upon Afridi after he completed his second five-wicket haul of the ongoing World Cup against Canada on Thursday March 3, 2011.

His first five-wicket haul came against Kenya on 23 February, 2011 in their World Cup opener. With 5 for 16 against Kenya and 5 for 23 against Canada, Afridi has made history as the first skipper to take two 5-wicket hauls.

Before Afridi’s feat, Abdul Razzaq, Waqar Younis, Shane Warne, Vasbert Drakes, Kurram Chohan and Narendra Hirwani have achieved three consecutive five-wicket hauls. Afridi is the seventh to have this honour.

Afridi is likely to surpass former Pakistani pacer, Wasim Akram’s 18 World Cup wickets in 10 World Cup games in 1992, provided he keeps his from intact. Afridi’s overall World Cup record is marvellous with 21 wickets in 15 games at an average of 16.67 with a strike rate of 23.0.

With his 220 wickets in 177 ODIs, Afridi has emerged an excellent spinner cum skipper in the world of cricket. He has won 24 ‘Man of the Match’ tittles including two in the ongoing World Cup. With his excellent leg break googlies, Afridi confuses the facing batsmen and his bowling drifts and skids into the wicket.

Afridi has vindicated the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) decision to appoint him as skipper. The PCB lingered on the matter of naming a skipper for Pakistan’s World Cup squad despite severe pressure from the International Cricket Council (ICC).

There had been two nominees for the rank of captaincy, Afridi and Misbah-ul-Haq, the former being the standing captain, while the latter had led the team in Test cricket. Following Pakistan’s 3-2 win in an ODI series against New Zealand shortly before the World Cup, Afridi stood as a captain.

Initially his international career begun as an aggressive batsman. Now, Afridi is gradually emerging as an excellent all-rounder. Due to his aggressive and emotional batting-style, he often scores inconsistently.

Team coach, Waqar Younis, and some other former Pakistani players have advised him to focus on bowling and Afridi is following their advice successfully.

It has also been reported that shortly before the start of yesterday’s match, Pakistan’s 1992 World Cup triumph hero, Imran Khan, called him up and asked Afridi to thrive on the bowling front.

ICC Cricket World Cup 2011: Pakistan Defeat Sri Lanka by 11 Runs

Exciting cricket took place in Columbo RPS in the day/night ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 match between Pakistan and Sri Lanka on Saturday 26th February 2011.
Pakistan set Sri Lanka a total of 277 for 7 from their 50 overs, to which Sri Lanka could only manage 266 for 9 in response, which meant that Pakistan won by 11 runs.
The win came down to two excellent Pakistan performances, as Shahid Afridi, Pakistan’s captain, excelled with the ball once again in this tournament – he took 4 for 34 off his 10 overs – and Misbah-ul-Haq added a vital 83 Not Out with the bat.
Pakistan won the toss, and elected to bat, and were soon off to good start as runs came at a good rate, though Sri Lanka kept themselves in touch by producing regular wickets, to reduce their rivals to 105 for 3. With the match finely balanced, Misbah-ul-Haq (83 Not Out) and Younus Khan (72) did the main damage of the innings, by putting on a partnership of 108 runs for the fourth wicket.
Five overs remained for a couple of quick-scoring cameo appearances from U Akmal (10 from 15 deliveries) and Shahid Afridi (16 from 12 deliveries) thanks to the steady ship Khan and Misbah had set up.
Those runs would later prove vital, as Sri Lanka, despite getting off to a great start – putting on 76 runs without loss – could not quite get the run rate up in the middle part of the innings.
A flurry of wickets arrived, once Tharanga (33) was caught by Shahid Afridi from the bowling of Mohammad Hafeez, before the captain took over the wicket taking, by bowling the other opening batsman, Dilshan, on 41 runs.
When Jayawardene (2), who was bowled by Shoaib Akhtar, was quickly followed into the pavilion by Samaraweera (1), stumped by K Akmal from the bowling of Afridi, Sri Lanka had fallen to 96 for 4 wickets.
Sangakkara (49) and Silva (57) then put on an important partnership of 73 runs, which looked to be inching Sri Lanka towards the finishing line, before Shahid Afridi got Sangakkara one short of a deserved half century – the catch was taken by Shehzad.
The same combination took out Mathews (18) and put Sri Lanka on 209 for 6 wickets, with only a handful of overs remaining, and the run-rate required creeping ever higher.
When Perera (8) – bowled Shoaib Akhtar – was followed just one run later by Silva (57) – stumped K Akmal bowled Rehman, the task seemed to become much sterner.
However, Kulasekara had a good go at saving the day for Sri Lanka, in knocking up a super-fast 24 runs – featuring one six and two fours, from just 14 deliveries. When he was dismissed, caught U Akmal, from the bowling of Gul, Sri Lanka appeared to be – and were indeed – out of batting options.
Time ran out for Sri Lanka, with the required score just 11 runs away when the 50 over point arrived.
Pakistan will be thankful, once again, to their captain Shahid Afridi, who was absolutely instrumental to their success today: his 16 runs and 4 wickets proved to be very much the difference between winning and losing this entertaining cricket match.
Sri Lanka will be bitterly disappointed to have lost this game, having come so close, but must console themselves with the fact that, but for one very good performance from one of the world’s best, they could easily have got over the line today.

Sri Lanka v Pakistan – ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 Scorecard

Pakistan 1st Innings			Runs	Balls	4s	6s
Shehzad	c Sangakkara	b Perera	13	23	2	0
Mohammad Hafeez	run out (Muralitharan)		32	31	4	1
K Akmal	st Sangakkara	b Herath	39	48	5	0
Younus Khan	c M Jayawardene	b Herath	72	76	4	0
Misbah-ul-Haq	not out		83	91	6	0
U Akmal	c Dilshan	b Muralitharan	10	15	1	0
Shahid Afridi	c Dilshan	b Mathews	16	12	3	0
Razzaq	c Sub	b Perera	3	4	0	0
Extras		5w 4lb	9
Total		for 7	277	(50.0 ovs)
Sri Lanka Bowlers	O	M	R	W
Kulasekara	10	1	64	0
Perera	9	0	62	2
Mathews	10	0	56	1
Muralitharan	10	0	35	1
Herath	10	0	46	2
Dilshan	1	0	10	0

Sri Lanka 1st Innings			Runs	Balls	4s	6s
Tharanga	c Shahid Afridi	b Mohammad Hafeez	33	43	6	0
Dilshan		b Shahid Afridi	41	55	5	0
Sangakkara	c Shehzad	b Shahid Afridi	49	61	2	1
M Jayawardene		b Shoaib Akhtar	2	10	0	0
Samaraweera	st K Akmal	b Shahid Afridi	1	4	0	0
Silva	st K Akmal	b Rehman	57	78	5	0
Mathews	c Shehzad	b Shahid Afridi	18	20	2	0
Perera		b Shoaib Akhtar	8	6	1	0
Kulasekara	c U Akmal	b Gul	24	14	2	1
Herath	not out		4	10	0	0
Muralitharan	not out		0	1	0	0
Extras		2nb 16w 1b 10lb	29
Total		for 9	266	(50.0 ovs)
Pakistan Bowlers	O	M	R	W
Shoaib Akhtar	10	0	42	2
Razzaq	5	1	23	0
Gul	9	0	60	1
Mohammad Hafeez	6	0	33	1
Shahid Afridi	10	0	34	4
Rehman	10	1	63	1

Pakistan is the most dangerous team, claims Afridi

DHAKA: Pakistan’s One Day International captain, Shahid Khan Afridi, started a psychological campaign against the teams participating in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 on Saturday claiming Pakistan is the most dangerous team in the competition.

Afridi upbeat on his team's World Cup chances. Courtesy: Getty Images

Addressing a press conference after landing in Bangladesh city of Mirpur, Boom Boom Afridi said, “We all know how important the competition is for my country. This is a message for the other teams: No one can underestimate us. And when I said dangerous, [I meant] don’t underestimate the Pakistan team. We are with a very good bunch of youngsters and experienced players. It is good to see Kamran Akmal back in the team, Misbah-ul-Haq too is in good form and so is Younus Khan. We also have two genuine spinners and a fast bowler like Shoaib Akhtar.”

Pakistan Captain's Press Conference. Courtesy: Getty Images

Admitting to have been disturbed by a spate of controversies in the recent past, Afridi said, “I think we’re really going through a very tough situation. But I am very happy because we are trying to rebuild the team and keep the morale high. I am confident the team is in very good shape now. We all know how important the World Cup is for us and for our country. The message for other teams is that no one should underestimate us.”

Pakistan are placed in Group A with Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Canada and will play two warm-up matches, one against Bangladesh on Feb 15 and the other against England on Feb 18 both in Dhaka.

Afridi and his men train hard ahead of World Cup. Courtesy: Reuters

The Afridi-led Pakistan will kick-start their World Cup campaign with a match against Kenya in the Sri Lankan town of Hambantota on February 23.

Pakistan’s media has recently been reporting news of rifts in the team but Boom Boom Afridi dispelled all the reports saying, “They feel hungry to win a big event and want to play good cricket and the recent wins in New Zealand had bolstered the team’s morale.”

2011 ICC World Cup - Pakistan Captain's Press Conference. Courtesy: Getty Images

“Fans would see a vastly improved Pakistan in the World Cup. Inshallah (God willing), we will achieve our goal,” Afridi said.

Afridi also put his hand right on the pulse of the cricket-mad Indo-Pak fans when he said he wanted to see Pakistan and India playing in the final of the world cup at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on April 2.

Pakistan is the most dangerous team, claims Afridi

DHAKA: Pakistan’s One Day International captain, Shahid Khan Afridi, started a psychological campaign against the teams participating in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 on Saturday claiming Pakistan is the most dangerous team in the competition.

Afridi upbeat on his team's World Cup chances. Courtesy: Getty Images

Addressing a press conference after landing in Bangladesh city of Mirpur, Boom Boom Afridi said, “We all know how important the competition is for my country. This is a message for the other teams: No one can underestimate us. And when I said dangerous, [I meant] don’t underestimate the Pakistan team. We are with a very good bunch of youngsters and experienced players. It is good to see Kamran Akmal back in the team, Misbah-ul-Haq too is in good form and so is Younus Khan. We also have two genuine spinners and a fast bowler like Shoaib Akhtar.”

Pakistan Captain's Press Conference. Courtesy: Getty Images

Admitting to have been disturbed by a spate of controversies in the recent past, Afridi said, “I think we’re really going through a very tough situation. But I am very happy because we are trying to rebuild the team and keep the morale high. I am confident the team is in very good shape now. We all know how important the World Cup is for us and for our country. The message for other teams is that no one should underestimate us.”

Pakistan are placed in Group A with Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Canada and will play two warm-up matches, one against Bangladesh on Feb 15 and the other against England on Feb 18 both in Dhaka.

Afridi and his men train hard ahead of World Cup. Courtesy: Reuters

The Afridi-led Pakistan will kick-start their World Cup campaign with a match against Kenya in the Sri Lankan town of Hambantota on February 23.

Pakistan’s media has recently been reporting news of rifts in the team but Boom Boom Afridi dispelled all the reports saying, “They feel hungry to win a big event and want to play good cricket and the recent wins in New Zealand had bolstered the team’s morale.”

2011 ICC World Cup - Pakistan Captain's Press Conference. Courtesy: Getty Images

“Fans would see a vastly improved Pakistan in the World Cup. Inshallah (God willing), we will achieve our goal,” Afridi said.

Afridi also put his hand right on the pulse of the cricket-mad Indo-Pak fans when he said he wanted to see Pakistan and India playing in the final of the world cup at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on April 2.

Afridi plays down World Cup hopes

Shahid Afridi, Pakistan's ODI captain, has said Pakistan does not have high expectations for the World Cup since their preparations have been hampered by the spot-fixing allegations against a number of their players.

"I am not 100 % satisfied with the team's preparations for the World Cup," Afridi told AFP. "We've had problems on every tour, and although there aren't high expectations [of winning the World Cup], as captain I'm positive and will keep on motivating the team."

His comments came one day after manager Intikhab Alam said Pakistan was capable of winning the World Cup, which will be jointly hosted by Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka from February 19 to April 2, 2011.

The trio of Salman Butt, Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif have been suspended by the ICC over charges of spot-fixing that arose on Pakistan's tour of England in August. On their subsequent tour of the United Arab Emirates to play South Africa, Pakistan seemed to have regained some form levelling the ODI series 2-2. But on the eve of the deciding game, wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider fled to England, due to alleged threats to his life from bookmakers, and has since retired from international cricket. Pakistan ended up losing the game.

For Pakistan's upcoming tour of New Zealand, wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal and Shoaib Malik have been left out of the Twenty20 and Test series after the PCB did not clear them, and Afridi said he did not know why they were not included.

"You should ask the PCB and selection committee about why Kamran and Malik were not picked," he said. "Both are good players and have been doing well in domestic matches." Kamran and Malik have both expressed disappointment at not being picked for the New Zealand tour.

Pakistan has until December 19 to select a provisional 30-man World Cup squad, which should be trimmed down to 15 by January 19. Pakistan is placed in Group A of the 14-team competition along with defending champions Australia, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Canada, New Zealand and Zimbabwe.