Pakistan says head coach to scout for cricketing talent in domestic event after dismal performances

Pakistan's cricketers attend a training session at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi on August 28, 2024, ahead of their second and last cricket Test match against Bangladesh. (AFP/File)
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Updated 07 September 2024
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Pakistan says head coach to scout for cricketing talent in domestic event after dismal performances

  • Pakistan have been reeling after their first-ever Test series loss to Bangladesh this month, the latest in a string of poor performances
  • The defeat came hard on the heels of chastening losses against Afghanistan and United States in the ODI and T20 World Cups respectively

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s head coach Gary Kirsten will be scouting for cricketing talent in the upcoming Champions Cup, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said on Saturday, following a series of dismal performances by the national side.
Pakistan have been left reeling after their first-ever Test series loss to Bangladesh this month, the latest in a string of poor performances which have seen the game hit rock bottom.
The cricket-mad nation was left in despair after losing the second Test in Rawalpindi by six wickets on Tuesday as Bangladesh swept the series 2-0. It was the 10th winless home Test in a row for former powerhouses Pakistan.
However, the PCB has set its sights on the inaugural Champions One-Day Cup, due to take place at Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad from September 12 to 29, to find new cricketing talent in the country.
“Pakistan’s white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten will be arriving on 12 September to witness the entire Champions One-Day Cup and it will surely be exciting for him to work in the domestic circuit in order to look into the young talent with an eye on the upcoming white-ball assignments in Australia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, followed by the home tri-national series and the ICC Champions Trophy 2025,” Nadeem Khan, a senior PCB official, was quoted as saying by the board.
“The Champions One-Day Cup will help us unearth future white-ball prospects for the Pakistan’s white-ball teams, also marking the start of the preparation for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025. Having the Champions Cup in September will allow us to give an extended opportunity to the top performers of this tournament in International cricket before the mega-event commences home.”
Team mentors of the five sides in the tournament include Misbah-ul-Haq (Wolves), Saqlain Mushtaq (Panthers), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Dolphins), Shoaib Malik (Stallions) and Waqar Younis (Lions). The PCB also announced captains and provisional squads on Friday.
The tournament featuring top players from across the country will be a 50-over competition played on a single-league format. All matches will start at 3pm, except for the match between Lions and Panthers on September 16, which will begin at 9:30am.
Pakistan’s loss to Bangladesh came hard on the heels of chastening losses against Afghanistan and the USA in the ODI and T20 World Cups respectively.
Pakistan also have a dismal record in Tests at home in the past three years — six defeats and four draws, including England’s first-ever 3-0 series sweep there in 2022.
Ominously, in-form England are Pakistan’s next visitors and will play three Tests beginning in Multan on October 7.
Pakistan are not faring any better away from home and lost all three Tests in Australia earlier this year — their sixth successive whitewash there since 1999.
Analysts say frequent changes at the top of the PCB, which has had five chairmen in the past three years, have impeded progress. There have also been constant switches of captains and coaching staff while the domestic system of tournaments has had countless overhauls.
PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi himself called for “surgery in the system” after the T20 World Cup exit.
“We need to fix our problems,” he said last month. “But when we look at how to resolve them, we don’t have any solid data or player pool which we can draw from.”
Ex-skipper Wasim Akram echoed Naqvi’s analysis.
“The quality of our cricket has gone down with no grassroots activity, so we do not have proper back-ups,” he said recently. “We have a lot to work on.”


Italian aircraft carrier arrives in Pakistan on maiden voyage to boost defense cooperation

Updated 9 sec ago
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Italian aircraft carrier arrives in Pakistan on maiden voyage to boost defense cooperation

  • Three-day visit to enhance maritime collaboration between both navies, says Pakistan Navy
  • Pakistan Navy regularly conducts defense agreements, training and joint exercises with counterparts

ISLAMABAD: The Italian Navy’s Carrier Strike Group comprising an aircraft carrier and a frigate arrived in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi this week, the navy confirmed, for a three-day visit to enhance regional maritime security and defense cooperation between the two countries. 

The visiting Italian fleet comprises aircraft carrier Cavour and the Alpino frigate, which arrived in Karachi on Monday. The group was welcomed by Pakistan Navy’s senior officials and Italian Ambassador to Pakistan Marilina Armellin upon their arrival.

The visit marks the first ever by an Italian aircraft carrier to Pakistan. 

“The Italian Navy Carrier Strike Group comprising Aircraft Carrier Cavour and frigate Alpino arrived in Karachi on a three-day visit followed by a bilateral exercise,” the Pakistan Navy said in a statement on Monday. 

A delegation led by Armellin and Rear Admiral Stefano Barbieri called on Pakistan Fleet Commander Rear Admiral Abdul Munib to discuss “matters of mutual interest including interoperability and avenues for future collaboration,” the Pakistan Navy said. 

Karachi Commander Vice Admiral Muhammad Faisal Abbasi also visited Cavour where he was briefed about the aircraft carrier’s capabilities by Italian Commanding Officer Captain Francesco Fagnani. 

During the media brief, the Italian officials “endorsed the role of Pakistan Navy in regional maritime security and highlighted the importance of interoperability between the two navies,” Pakistan Navy said. 

The Italian defense industries’ capabilities were also showcased in a Defense Industries Exhibition held aboard the warship Alpino. 

In September, Italian Navy ship Morosini visited Karachi to conduct a bilateral exercise with the Pakistan Navy to bolster interoperability between the two forces. 


Babar-less Pakistan head into second England Test with spin-laden lineup

Updated 28 min 44 sec ago
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Babar-less Pakistan head into second England Test with spin-laden lineup

  • Pakistan head into second Test in Multan against England without star batter Babar Azam and pacers Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi
  • Pakistan playing XI includes three specialist spinners in Zahid Mehmood, Sajid Khan and Noman Ali, with Aamer Jamal only pace option

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan captain Shan Masood will depend on three spinners to run circles around England on Tuesday as he takes on Ben Stokes’ side without the likes of stellar batsman and former captain Babar Azam, and pacers Naseem Shah and Shaheen Shah Afridi. 

In a shocking development announced earlier this week, Pakistan dropped Azam, Shah and Afridi after a string of lackluster performances by the trio. Azam has not scored a fifty in his last 18 Test innings and managed just 30 and five in the first Test which England won on Friday after piling up 823-7 declared. Pakistan’s defeat was the latest in a string of humiliating Test losses at home, with the South Asian country becoming the first nation to suffer an innings defeat after scoring more than 500 runs in its first innings. 

“We are confident that this break from international cricket will help these players regain their fitness, confidence and composure, ensuring they return in top shape for future challenges,” Aqib Javed, the newly inducted member of the selection committee, said in a statement earlier this week. 

“They remain some of our finest talents with much more to contribute to Pakistan cricket. We are fully committed to supporting them during this period so they can come back even stronger.”

Pakistan announced their playing XI on Monday, with Aamer Jamal their only fast bowling option in the squad. The selection committee has named spinners Sajid Khan, Noman Ali and Zahid Mehmood in the playing XI, marking a huge shift in Pakistan’s tactics that have mostly relied on fast bowlers. Haseebullah Khan, Mehran Mumtaz, Khan and batter Kamran Ghulam were the other names included in the 16-man squad for the second and third Test matches. 

Masood will be under added pressure as Pakistan remain winless in the last 11 Test matches at home. Since captaining the Test side for the first time ever in January this year, Pakistan have lost six Test matches on the trot. The South Asian country suffered a 2-0 humiliating Test series whitewash against Bangladesh at home last month. 

Squad:

Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Saim Ayub, Shan Masood (captain), Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan, Salman Ali Agha, Aamer Jamal, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Zahid Mehmood.

England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (captain), Jamie Smith (wk), Brydon Carse, Matthew Potts, Jack Leach, Shoaib Bashir.


Family members on trial for murder of British-Pakistani girl

Updated 47 min 50 sec ago
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Family members on trial for murder of British-Pakistani girl

  • 10-year-old Sara Sharif was found dead in bed at family home in Woking on Aug. 10, 2023
  • Day before body was found, Sara’s father, step-mother and uncle left UK for Pakistan

LONDON: The body of a 10-year-old British-Pakistani girl whose death sparked an international manhunt was found with burn marks believed to have been made by an iron, a prosecutor told a London court on Monday.

Sara Sharif was found dead in bed at her family home in Woking, southern England, on August 10, 2023.

The discovery triggered a manhunt in which Interpol and Britain’s foreign ministry coordinated with authorities in Pakistan.

The day before Sara’s body was found, her father, 42-year-old taxi driver Urfan Sharif, step-mother Beinash Batool, 30, and uncle Faisal Malik, 29, left the UK for Pakistan with Sharif’s five other children.

All three adults are on trial for her murder.

A post-mortem examination found “signs of traumatic head injury,” apparent scald burns on the inside of her ankles and bite marks — five to her left lower arm and one to her inner thigh — that were “probably human.”

Sara’s stepmother Batool has refused to provide a dental impression for comparison with the bite marks, the prosecutor said.

Other injuries included to Sara’s ribs, shoulder blades, fingers and 11 separate fractures to the spine, he added.

The jury was played a recording of a “calm” phone call on the evening of August 8, 2023, in which Batool asks about booking flights to Islamabad.

Sara’s body was found in the family’s empty house after an emergency call, apparently from Pakistan, alerting officers was made by a man identifying himself as the father.

A note from her father found next to her body appeared to contain a confession, the prosecutor told jurors.

“Love you Sara,” said the note, which was shown to the jury.

A second page added: “Whoever see this note its me Urfan Sharif who killed my daughter by beating.

“I am running away because I am scared but I promise that I will hand over myself and take punishment.”

Another page read: “I swear to God that my intention was not to kill her but I lost it.”

A handwriting expert who analyzed the note concluded it was written by Urfan Sharif.

The three defendants — arrested in September last year after disembarking from a flight from Dubai — all deny murder and causing or allowing the death of a child.


Pakistan gears up to host regional leaders for key SCO summit in Islamabad today

Updated 58 min 31 sec ago
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Pakistan gears up to host regional leaders for key SCO summit in Islamabad today

  • Prime ministers, key officials from China, Russia, India and Iran to attend two-day SCO summit in Islamabad 
  • Summit takes place with heightened security measures in place in Islamabad after recent surge in militant attacks 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will host leaders from Russia, Iran, India, China and other regional nations today, Tuesday, for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s (SCO) 23rd Council of Heads of Government summit in Islamabad where important discussions related to multilateral cooperation in economy, trade and militancy is expected to take place. 

Pakistan’s capital Islamabad has been in lockdown ahead of the two-day conference scheduled for Oct. 15-16, with some its main arteries blocked amid heightened presence of police and paramilitary forces in various parts of the city. The government has announced a three-day public holiday in Islamabad starting Monday, with schools and businesses closed due to security concerns ahead of the meeting. 

The SCO is sometimes touted as an alternative to the Western-dominated NATO military alliance. The prime ministers of Russia, China, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are expected to take part in the summit while India’s foreign minister and Iran’s first vice president are also expected to attend the regional event. Mongolia’s prime minister will attend the event as an observer while the deputy chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers and foreign minister of Turkmenistan has been invited as a special guest.

“Pakistan is all set to host meeting of the Council of the Heads of Government of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Islamabad on Tuesday and Wednesday,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan said in a report. 

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will chair the CHG session and is expected to hold meetings with regional leaders on the sidelines of the event. SCO leaders will adopt important organizational decisions to further enhance cooperation among member states and approve the inter-governmental body’s budget during the summit. 

Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang arrived in Islamabad on Monday to attend the SCO meeting, marking the first time in 11 years that a Chinese premier visited the country. Qiang oversaw the signing of several cooperation agreements with Pakistan on trade and investment and virtually inaugurated a China-sponsored international airport in the port city of Gwadar. 

PAKISTAN’S SECURITY WOES

Pakistan is wary of security troubles ahead of the key regional summit, with the South Asian country witnessing a surge in attacks recently. A suicide attack in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi on Oct. 6 killed two Chinese engineers and injured 10 others, raising questions over Islamabad’s ability to host the conference.

Pakistan army troops will be responsible for the security of the capital’s Red Zone, the location of the parliament and a diplomatic enclave and where most of the meetings will take place, according to the interior ministry.

A decades-long insurgency in Balochistan by separatist militant groups has led to frequent attacks against the government, army and Chinese interests in the region to press demands for a share in mineral-rich regional resources. China has frequently urged Pakistan to ensure security for its citizens.

Islamabad is also battling a surge in militancy in its northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province bordering Afghanistan where Pakistani Taliban or the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants have increased attacks against security forces since November 2022 after a fragile truce between both sides broke down. 

Pakistan blames the Afghan government for sheltering TTP militants who launch attacks on its soil, a charge Kabul has repeatedly denied.


Ex-PM Khan party calls off Islamabad protest, wishes for a successful SCO summit

Updated 15 October 2024
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Ex-PM Khan party calls off Islamabad protest, wishes for a successful SCO summit

  • Khan’s party announced the protest over a ban on meeting jailed leader
  • The party says it has cancelled the protest 'for the betterment of Pakistan'

ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has called off its protest in Islamabad today, Tuesday, over a ban on meetings with its jailed leader, a senior PTI member said, as Pakistan welcomes foreign dignitaries arriving in the capital for a regional summit.

Pakistan is hosting a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s (SCO) Council of Heads of Government in Islamabad on Oct. 15-16, at which participants are expected to discuss issues relating to trade, economic cooperation, security and regional stability.

Khan’s PTI last week announced a protest on the D-Chowk square in the federal capital after the Punjab provincial administration restricted meetings with inmates at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, where the ex-premier is imprisoned on multiple charges, in view of a threat alert issued by authorities in the lead-up to the summit.

But in a statement issued in wee hours of Tuesday, Sayed Zulfikar Bukhari, a former federal minister and Khan aide, said the party had postponed its protest in Islamabad after being urged by political allies and embassies of friendly countries to do so in view of the SCO summit in Islamabad.

“We have called off this protest for the betterment of Pakistan, for the betterment of Imran Khan, for the betterment of PTI,” Bukhari said. “We wish all the countries here a very successful summit.”

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Chinese Premier Li Qiang are among senior regional government officials attending the two-day conference on Tuesday and Wednesday.

In the weeks leading up to the summit, Pakistan’s authorities cracked down hard on dissent, banning an ethnic nationalist movement and introducing new laws that restricted protest in the capital. They also arrested hundreds of Khan supporters who attempted to march in Islamabad earlier this month.

Islamabad also authorized the deployment of troops on the streets for the duration of the summit.

“When summits happen or conventions happen, protests happening at the same time in the country are very normal across the world,” Bukhari said.

“Let it be the US, let it be the UK and Pakistan shouldn’t be treated any differently. Our intention was never to harm the ongoing summit.”

PTI’s last protest led to clashes between its workers and law enforcement personnel, leading to dozens of arrests and injuries to a large number of cops one of whom died after being subjected to alleged torture by the protesters.

Khan, jailed since August last year, was ousted from the PM’s office in 2022 in a parliamentary vote of no confidence after what is widely believed to be a falling out with Pakistan’s powerful military, which denies being involved in politics.

Since his removal, Khan and his party have waged an unprecedented campaign of defiance against the military.