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Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Shehzad century steers Pakistan to victory

Updated at: 0236 PST,  Tuesday, April 26, 2011
GROS ISLET: Opener Ahmed Shehzad struck his second one-day international hundred to anchor Pakistan to a confident seven-wicket victory over West Indies on Monday.Shehzad hit seven fours and one six in his 102 from 148 balls as Pakistan successfully chased 221 for victory in the second ODI at the Beausejour Cricket Ground.Umar Akmal carried the visitors over the threshold with 12 balls remaining when he lofted a delivery from Dwayne Bravo to long-off for the final boundary of the match.The result means that Pakistan take a 2-0 lead in the five-match series after winning the first game by eight wickets on Saturday at the same ground.Pakistan have now won their last seven ODIs against West Indies, a sequence spread over the last four years."We made a plan at our team meeting and our guys stuck to it and that was good," said Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi."Shehzad is a very talented guy and he showed that he is capable of performing. He took his time, but chasing a small total, he could afford to do that and we won the game."I think our bowlers are doing a great job, and the fielding has improved because it is a very important area for us. Our batting has shown responsibility and we hope to maintain this discipline right throughout the series."The visitors' spin bowling trio of Saeed Ajmal, Mohammad Hafeez and Afridi had dominated on another docile pitch.After Pakistan chose to field, West Indies were dismissed for 220 in their 50 overs - one less than the total they made in the first ODI. Ajmal, Hafeez and Afridi shared six wickets for 102 runs in 30 overs between them, and only West Indies opener Lendl Simmons looked close to getting on top of them, leading the way with 51 from 48 balls, which included four fours and two sixes."We didn't make use of the key moments in the match," said West Indies captain Darren Sammy. "We could have tried to squeeze their batsmen more and when we batted we got a good start, but did not capitalise on it. "The spinners continue to bog us down, and we could have got a lot more on the board. It seems that whatever approach we have taken, we seem only able to get the same kind of total on the board. We have a lot more work to do."Shehzad shared three successive half-century partnerships with Mohammad Hafeez, Asad Shafiq and Misbah-ul-Haq that put Pakistan firmly on course for their victory.He glanced a delivery in the 44th over from Dwayne Bravo to deep fine leg for a single to reach his milestone from 143 balls."We tried to keep wickets in hand. It was not a huge total so I knew that I had to control my stroke-play and not get carried away," said Shehzad.He was fortunate on 30 when he came close to being run out after pulling a delivery from Bravo to mid-wicket and Hafeez turned down the chance of going for a single. Sammy fired his throw from mid-wicket wide of the stumps and the opener was able to regain his ground.By the time he became the second wicket for leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo in the 46th over, Pakistan required just 30 from the final 28 deliveries which came with little trouble.The third and fourth matches of the series will be played on Thursday and Monday at Kensington Oval in Barbados, with the final game coming three days later at the Guyana National Stadium

Pakistan bowl out Windies for 220 runs

 Updated at: 2224 PST,  Monday, April 25, 2011
GROS ISLET, Saint Lucia: Pakistan spinners Saeed Ajmal, Mohammad Hafeez and skipper Shahid Afridi restricted West Indies to a modest 220 all out in the second one-day international on Monday. The three exploited another docile Beausejour Cricket Ground pitch after Pakistan, who won the first game on Saturday by eight wickets, chose to field. Ajmal, Hafeez and skipper Afridi shared six wickets for 102 runs in 30 overs between them, and only West Indies opener Lendl Simmons looked close to getting on top of them, leading the way with 51 from 48 balls, which included four fours and two sixes.Hafeez made the first breakthrough when he trapped left-handed opener Devon Smith lbw for 16 in the sixth over, and Ajmal struck with his first delivery when Darren Bravo was caught at slip for 12 to leave West Indies 58 for two in the 12th over.From there the pressure mounted on the West Indies batsmen once Afridi employed an all-out spin attack and wickets continued to tumble at regular intervals.Marlon Samuels made 29 and Kemar Roach, batting at nine, scored 24, but no other West Indies batsman passed 20.Pakistan fielded an unchanged 11 but West Indies brought leg-spinner Anthony Martin in for his international debut to replace fast bowler Andre Russell.The third and fourth ODIs will be played this coming Thursday and next Monday at Kensington Oval in Barbados, with the final match of the series three days later at the Guyana National Stadium.Pakistan have won their last six ODIs against West Indies spread over the last four years, with the hosts most recent victory a 54-run triumph in the opening match of the 2007 World Cup staged in the Caribbean at Sabina Park in Jamaica.

Pakistan win toss, put Windies into bat in 2nd ODI

Updated at: 1839 PST,  Monday, April 25, 2011
GROS ISLET, Saint Lucia: Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi won the toss and elected to field against West Indies in the second One-day International on Monday at Beausejour Cricket Ground here.Pakistan are unchanged, but West Indies have brought leg-spinner Anthony Martin in for his international debut to replace fast bowler Andre Russell.Pakistan lead the five-match series 1-0, after winning the first ODI by eight wickets last Saturday at the same ground.The third and fourth ODIs will be played this coming Thursday and next Monday at Kensington Oval in Barbados, with the final match of the series three days later at the Guyana National Stadium.Pakistan have won their last six ODIs against West Indies spread over the last four years, with the hosts previous victory a 54-run triumph in the opening match of the 2007 World Cup staged in the Caribbean at Sabina Park in Jamaica.Teams:West Indies: Darren Sammy (captain), Devon Smith, Lendl Simmons, Darren Bravo, Marlon Samuels, Kirk Edwards, Dwayne Bravo, Carlton Baugh Jr (wk), Anthony Martin, Kemar Roach, Devendra BishooPakistan: Shahid Afridi (captain), Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Asad Shafiq, Umar Akmal, Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammad Salman (wk), Hammad Azam, Wahab Riaz, Saeed Ajmal, Junaid KhanUmpires: Asoka De Silva (SL), Norman Malcolm (WI), TV umpire: Peter Nero (WI)
Reserve umpire: Gregory Brathwaite (WI) Match referee: Jeff Crowe (NZ)

Zulqarnain Haider returns

Updated at: 1502 PST,  Monday, April 25, 2011
ISLAMABAD: Runaway former wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider returned home from Britain on Monday after receiving government assurances about the safety of his family.Haider, who turned 25 on Saturday, fled the Pakistan team's hotel in Dubai on November 8 for the United Kingdom after saying he had received demands that he fix a one-day match against South Africa under the threat of death.He arrived by plane in Islamabad on Monday and was escorted by security officials to Interior Minister Rehman Malik's office where he met the minister, who had guaranteed his safety."I am happy to return. There were solid reasons behind my going to London and I am sure everyone realised that no one can put his career at stake for nothing," Haider told reporters after the meeting.With his younger daughter on his lap, Haider added: "I am happy the way I was given full security. I want to spend some time with my family and then meet PCB (Pakistan Cricket Board) chairman (Ijaz Butt) which I will share with you.""Haider will be given full security as promised," Malik said. "He is a citizen of Pakistan so there is no restriction on his movement. He has told us some facts which at this point of time we cannot share with the media."Wearing a casual shirt and jeans, Haider was earlier whisked away by security officials to avoid a scrum at the airport, where he also met his wife, daughters and brother, witnesses said.The wicketkeeper was part of the Pakistan team in the series against South Africa in the United Arab Emirates when he went missing on the day of the fifth and final one-day match on November 8.He fled to London and announced his retirement from international cricket. A week later he applied for asylum there.Last week Haider met Malik and, after receiving promises of safety for himself and his family, agreed to return home. He said he had also decided to withdraw his asylum request.After his disappearance the PCB terminated his contract and formed a committee to establish the facts surrounding the dramatic departure.But the three-member committee said there were no clear motives behind his disappearance and also declared him "mentally ill".After meeting Malik last week, Haider also said he would return to cricket."Since I have been given full assurances of safety, I have no reason to continue with my asylum application and after returning home I want to resume my cricket career," he said.The PCB said Monday that Haider had not yet been in touch with them."If he makes a contact, then only we will have to decide whether he will have to appear before the committee. He didn't submit details sought by the fact-fixing committee last year," PCB spokesman Nadeem Sarwar said.Haider played one Test, against England at Birmingham last year, as well as four one-day and three Twenty20 internationals in a short career.On his Facebook page Haider had also promised to name Pakistani players involved in match-fixing, but he never supplied the names.British media reported that Haider was questioned by the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU), the International Cricket Council (ICC) wing that deals with match-fixing claims, in London last year but that the unit did not find anything substantive to back up his allegations. 

Zulqarnain leaves London, heads back to Pakistan

Updated at: 0404 PST,  Monday, April 25, 2011 LONDON:
Former wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider has left London to return to Pakistan, Geo News reported. He would arrive in Islamabad on Monday morning.The wicketkeeper stunned the cricket world last November when he fled the team hotel in Dubai during series against South Africa. He spent nearly six months in England. On reaching London where he applied for asylum, Zulqarnain claimed that he fled the team hotel because of threats from unknown person to cooperate in fixing the matches or face dire consequences. He had also announced to quit cricket.Later, Zulqarnain withdrew his asylum application with the British home office and planned to return home

Mumbai beat Deccan by 37 runs

Updated at: 2105 PST,  Sunday, April 24, 2011
 HYDERABAD, India: Mumbai Indians gifted birthday boy and skipper Sachin Tendulkar a 37-run victory in an Indian Premier League match against Deccan Chargers on Sunday.Middle-order batsman Rohit Sharma and fast bowler Lasith Malinga were the stars of Mumbai's fifth win in six matches of the Twenty20 tournament.Sharma smashed three sixes and five fours in his 34-ball 56 not out and Malinga took 3-9 off four tight overs as Mumbai restricted Deccan to 135-8 after scoring 172-4 in Hyderabad.Skipper Kumar Sangakkara top-scored with 34 for Deccan, who suffered their fourth defeat in six matches. The Sri Lankan had been batting well before being bowled by compatriot Malinga.Amit Mishra (25 not out) and opener Shikhar Dhawan (25) were the other main scorers for Deccan.Mumbai were earlier tottering at 70-4 before Sharma led the recovery with a 102-run stand off just 65 balls for the unfinished fifth wicket with Australian Andrew Symonds, who scored an unbeaten 44 off 33 balls.Sharma's three sixes came in the last over, bowled by Australian seamer Daniel Christian, as Mumbai plundered 40 runs in the last two overs. Symonds hit one six and four boundaries in his 33-ball innings. Mumbai were comfortably placed at 70-1 following brisk knocks from openers Davy Jacobs (32) and Tendulkar (28) before losing three wickets at the same score, with leg-spinner Amit Mishra taking two wickets in one over.Tendulkar, who turned 38 on Sunday, cracked four boundaries in his 24-ball knock before being caught at long-on by South African Dale Steyn while attempting a big shot off Mishra.But the master batsman, the world's leading scorer in both Test and one-day cricket, skipped his birthday celebrations following the death of his spiritual guru Sathya Sai Baba in the morning.Brief scores:Mumbai Indians 172-4 in 20 overs (R. Sharma 56 not out, A. Symonds 44 not out, D. Jacobs 32, S. Tendulkar 28; A. Mishra 2-14) beat Deccan Chargers 135-8 in 20 overs (Kumar Sangakkara 34, A. Mishra 25 not out, S. Dhawan 25, D. Christian 21; L. Malinga 3-9) by 37 runs.