LONDON: Christian Gross hopes that Zamalek’s 2-1 victory over Al-Hilal in Riyadh in the first Saudi-Egyptian Cup final since 2003 can spur the team on to recapture the Egyptian league title for the first time since 2015.
The former Tottenham Hotspur boss left Jeddah giant Al-Ahli in 2017 and moved to Cairo to take over the 12-time Egyptian champions in August.
Al-Hilal had plenty of chances win the match in front of their own fans on Friday but could not make their dominance count when it mattered.
“I never expected to be winning a trophy so soon after coming to
Zamalek,” Gross said.
Hamdi Nagguez opened the scoring with a header. The Tunisian full-back then provided the cross for Kabongo Kasongo from Congo to score from close range as the visitors rode out the early storm to take a commanding half-time lead.
Syrian striker Omar Khribin pulled one back soon after the break but Zamalek held on, though it was touch and go in the final moments when Al-Hilal had a goal disallowed for offside after the referee consulted VAR.
The star of the show was Zamalek goalkeeper Mahmoud Abdel Rahim, who made a number of fine saves to keep out Al-Hilal.
“It was a fine goalkeeping performance but that is the kind of goalkeeper he is, and he proves that every week. He and Nagguez played really well and stood out in what was a strong team performance all round.”
Gross has led Zamalek to first place in the Egyptian Premier League after eight games this season. He acknowledged that there is still a long way to go but is happy with the confidence-boosting win.
“I hope now that we can use this success and build on this to have a good season at home,” Gross said.
“Al-Hilal is a strong team and it is very difficult to come to Riyadh and win.”
Defender Mahmoud Alaa expects the win will give Zamalek energy and belief going forward.
“This was a big game for us and we showed our determination to win. We came under serious pressure but we kept fighting to the end and it will drive us on to further success.”
There was some worrying news for Al-Hilal ahead of kick-off as star striker Bafetimbi Gomis picked up a muscle injury in the pre-match warm-up build-up with tests to determine how serious the knock is. There was still plenty of firepower in the team, however, and Carlos Eduardo and Salem Al-Dawsari were also guilty of missing chances.
The result was even more impressive as it was the first time this season that Al-Hilal failed to win. Under new coach Jorge Jesus, the Riyadh giants have been on a winning streak and the Portuguese boss was named manager of the month in September. The defending champions have won all four games in the Saudi Pro League so far, defeated Al-Ittihad in the Saudi Super Cup final in London and also beat Oman’s Al-Shabab in the Arab Club Championship.
Perhaps because of that success, new Al-Hilal president Prince Mohammed bin Faisal, who took the position in September, was philosophical about the defeat.
“We enjoyed the excitement and organization in this event and the strong match between the two teams,” he said. “We faced a great competitor, the Zamalek club, which was an excellent experience for us.”
The boss added that the injury to Gomis was a major factor in the defeat given the chances that were missed.
“We faced some adverse conditions like Gomez’s injury. Our fans understand that we played well and we created many opportunities. We were missing our main striker and we dominated against a good team.”
Coach Jesus has given the players three days off before training resumes on Wednesday with a number of players away on international duty.
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Christian Gross wants surprise win to act as springboard for Zamalek
Christian Gross wants surprise win to act as springboard for Zamalek
Decision to boycott India match puts pressure on Pakistan at the Twenty20 World Cup
- Pakistan government has instructed the national team to boycott its Feb. 15 Group A game against its sporting and political archrival
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will be in the spotlight more for its decision to boycott its marquee Twenty20 World Cup group-stage game against India rather than how well the team performs in the 20-team tournament starting Saturday.
The Pakistan government instructed the national team to boycott its Feb. 15 Group A game against its sporting and political archrival, a decision that shook the cricket world. It was announced moments after Pakistan had swept title contenders Australia 3-0 at Lahore in its final preparation for the tournament.
“It’s not our decision, we can’t do anything,” Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha said in reference to Pakistan’s boycott. “We will do whatever our government and the chairman (Pakistan Cricket Board) tell us.”
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday confirmed the boycott was a way of showing solidarity with Bangladesh after it was ousted from the tournament.
One of the three Pakistan opponents in Group A is the United States, which eliminated Pakistan after the group stage of the 2024 tournament in Texas with its thrilling win in a super over. Netherlands also has a history of surprising much tougher opponents when in 2022 it beat South Africa.
Six current players — Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, wicketkeeper-batter Usman Khan, Naseem Shah, Shadab Khan and Shaheen Shah Afridi — were in the playing XI in that game against the US.
Namibia is the other Associate country in the group, and Pakistan can’t afford a loss against any of its opponents after already conceding two points to India if it proceeds with the boycott.
Pakistan opens its tournament against Netherlands at Colombo, Sri Lanka on Saturday. It plays the United States next Tuesday, Feb. 10, then potentially has an eight-day break — the India game was scheduled for Feb. 15 — until it takes on Namibia on Feb. 18.
Pakistan’s squad has been transformed under coach Mike Hesson, a New Zealander who took over last year, and has since introduced an aggressive brand of cricket to compete against stronger T20 nations.
In the last two series, captain Agha showed plenty of intent to score at a brisk pace at No. 3 in Sri Lanka and at home against Australia.
Babar’s strike rate of 128.38 saw the leading run-scorer in the shortest format missing out on a large part of Pakistan preparations for the T20 World Cup before he was recalled in the home series against South Africa in late October.
Babar’s experience of batting on slow pitches earned him a place in the squad despite a below-par run for Sydney Sixers in Australia’s Big Bash League, where he scored 202 runs in 11 games.
Pakistan plans to continue with its tried and tested opening pair of Saim Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan while Babar could anchor the innings at No. 4.
Pakistan is scheduled to play all its games in Sri Lanka, including semifinals and the final if goes that far in the tournament. And with the wickets expected to help the spinners, Pakistan has loaded its 15-member squad with variety of slow bowlers.
Spinner Usman Tariq has a unique bowling action and his long pause just before delivery of the ball surprised the Australians. Leg-spinners Shadab Khan and Abrar Ahmed; left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawaz and the offspin of Ayub in the power play will give Pakistan plenty of options.
Pakistan left out Haris Rauf, despite the fast bowler finishing among the top wicket-takers in Australia’s BBL, because selectors believe it’s the spinners who will be playing a dominant role in Sri Lanka.
Shah, Afridi and Salman Mirza are the three specialist fast bowlers in the squad with all-rounder Faheem Ashraf the other seam option.
Pakistan has a rich history in the T20 World Cup and it could be a team to watch despite the off-field distractions. It has featured in three finals, winning the title in 2009, and also reached the semifinals three other times.
The Pakistan government instructed the national team to boycott its Feb. 15 Group A game against its sporting and political archrival, a decision that shook the cricket world. It was announced moments after Pakistan had swept title contenders Australia 3-0 at Lahore in its final preparation for the tournament.
“It’s not our decision, we can’t do anything,” Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha said in reference to Pakistan’s boycott. “We will do whatever our government and the chairman (Pakistan Cricket Board) tell us.”
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday confirmed the boycott was a way of showing solidarity with Bangladesh after it was ousted from the tournament.
One of the three Pakistan opponents in Group A is the United States, which eliminated Pakistan after the group stage of the 2024 tournament in Texas with its thrilling win in a super over. Netherlands also has a history of surprising much tougher opponents when in 2022 it beat South Africa.
Six current players — Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, wicketkeeper-batter Usman Khan, Naseem Shah, Shadab Khan and Shaheen Shah Afridi — were in the playing XI in that game against the US.
Namibia is the other Associate country in the group, and Pakistan can’t afford a loss against any of its opponents after already conceding two points to India if it proceeds with the boycott.
Pakistan opens its tournament against Netherlands at Colombo, Sri Lanka on Saturday. It plays the United States next Tuesday, Feb. 10, then potentially has an eight-day break — the India game was scheduled for Feb. 15 — until it takes on Namibia on Feb. 18.
Pakistan’s squad has been transformed under coach Mike Hesson, a New Zealander who took over last year, and has since introduced an aggressive brand of cricket to compete against stronger T20 nations.
In the last two series, captain Agha showed plenty of intent to score at a brisk pace at No. 3 in Sri Lanka and at home against Australia.
Babar’s strike rate of 128.38 saw the leading run-scorer in the shortest format missing out on a large part of Pakistan preparations for the T20 World Cup before he was recalled in the home series against South Africa in late October.
Babar’s experience of batting on slow pitches earned him a place in the squad despite a below-par run for Sydney Sixers in Australia’s Big Bash League, where he scored 202 runs in 11 games.
Pakistan plans to continue with its tried and tested opening pair of Saim Ayub and Sahibzada Farhan while Babar could anchor the innings at No. 4.
Pakistan is scheduled to play all its games in Sri Lanka, including semifinals and the final if goes that far in the tournament. And with the wickets expected to help the spinners, Pakistan has loaded its 15-member squad with variety of slow bowlers.
Spinner Usman Tariq has a unique bowling action and his long pause just before delivery of the ball surprised the Australians. Leg-spinners Shadab Khan and Abrar Ahmed; left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawaz and the offspin of Ayub in the power play will give Pakistan plenty of options.
Pakistan left out Haris Rauf, despite the fast bowler finishing among the top wicket-takers in Australia’s BBL, because selectors believe it’s the spinners who will be playing a dominant role in Sri Lanka.
Shah, Afridi and Salman Mirza are the three specialist fast bowlers in the squad with all-rounder Faheem Ashraf the other seam option.
Pakistan has a rich history in the T20 World Cup and it could be a team to watch despite the off-field distractions. It has featured in three finals, winning the title in 2009, and also reached the semifinals three other times.
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