Jones in contention for Pakistan cricket coach's job

MELBOURNE : Former Australian batsman Dean Jones has confirmed applying for the post of Pakistan cricket coach.Jones hasn't got an official information from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) but he is reported to among the five men shortlisted for the job along with former England all-rounder Dermot Reeve and local applicant Aaqib Javed.I believe I am in the last five," Jones was quoted as saying in The Age. "I have always wanted to coach and the opportunity came along so I put my hand up pakistan cricket off late has been rocked by terrorism and the spot-fixing scandal.But Jones feels there is a lot of talent in Pakistan and that together they can achieve a lot of things.Ultimately it comes down to the defensive part of their game that needs to be worked on, and that just comes down to proper drills and attention to detail," Jones said.Take out what has happened with the betting scandal, take out the security problems, everyone in the world who knows cricket knows they have always had a wonderful pool of talent. It's just a matter of getting the culture right, getting them to take ownership of their actions, working together and who knows, they could win a World Cup in three years time.The fellow countryman Geoff Lawson sacked as Pakistan coach in 2008, but that has not deterred Jones."There's always obstacles in any job," Jones said. ''I'm careful of those (political) factors that might come into it. They (the PCB) are passionate, they don't like losing and they tend to be reactive instead of proactive on decisions but if you paint the picture early as to where we want to go - we've got to find stability, pick our best 16 or 17 players and work with them for the one-dayers and Tests - I think they will do very well.Mohsin Khan, Pakistan's chief selector, will double as interim coach for the next series against Sri Lanka in the United Arab Emirates.

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Nabi leads Afghanistan's strong reply

An unbeaten century by Mohammad Nabi (108 not out: 173b, 9x4, 5x6) led Afghanistan's strong reply on the second day of the four-day ICC Intercontinental Cup match against United Arabd Emirates at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Thursday.Afghanistan ended the second day's play at a healthy 242 for three in reply to UAE's first innings score of 462.Resuming at its overnight score of 361 for eight, the UAE tail wagged a little longer than what Afghanistan would have hoped for.The last two wickets of UAE added in all 107 runs as Afghanistan struggled to dislodge them.Amjad Javed (76: 90b, 7x4, 3x6) led the charge for UAE. He added 105 runs for the ninth wicket with Ahmed Raza (46: 72b, 6x4, 1x6).Mohammad Nabi picked up the last two wickets to end UAE's resistance, but Afghanistan had a lot of hard work to do to stay alive in the contest.Afghanistan lost couple of early wickets and slipped to 30 for two. It seemed like a major struggle from thereon.But young opener Javed Ahmadi (80: 165b, 13x4, 1x6) added 127 runs for the third wicket with Mohammad Nabi. The partnership had reached 157 for two when Ahmadi was snapped up by Fayyaz Ahmed (3/86).Towards the end of the day's play, Nabi added a further 85 runs for the fourth wicket with wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Shahzad (37 not out) to ensure Afghanistan did not suffer any further damage.With just two days to go in the match, Afghanistan needs to push for a first innings lead to ensure that it takes maximum points

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Salman Butt agreed to bat maiden over: prosecutor

LONDON : Former Pakistan cricket captain Salman Butt agreed to score no runs in an over during a Test match against England last year as part of a 'spot-fixing' scam, a court in London heard on Thursday.Prosecutors said Butt, 26, confirmed in a telephone call with his agent a conversation recorded by an undercover journalist that he would bat out a maiden in the third Test at the Oval in August 2010.Butt is on trial with fast bowler Mohammad Asif, 28, on charges of conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments, and conspiracy to cheat at gambling. They have both pleaded not guilty.Prosecutor Aftab Jafferjee told Southwark Crown Court that Butt's agent Mazhar Majeed rang the journalist from the now-closed News of the World tabloid, after an earlier arrangement for no-balls to be bowled in exchange for 10,000 pounds ($15,500, 11,600 euros) fell through.In what Jafferjee said was "potentially damning evidence concerning Salman Butt directly", a plan emerged for Butt to bat out a maiden in the first full over he faced.The journalist said that could happen in any case and that he wanted proof, so Majeed called Butt on his other phone and put it on loudspeaker so the reporter could hear."You know the maiden we were doing in the first over?", Majeed said.Yeah", Butt replied. Majeed then tried to get him to do another in his third over, but Butt did not want to, the jury heard.The following day Majeed met the journalist, then texted Butt four times to remind him to tap the middle of the pitch after the second ball he faced as a signal that he would bat out that over.Jafferjee said that that day, "as events transpired at The Oval, matters were somewhat out of Butt's control", as he had come in to bat earlier than expected, faced a new ball and had to take a single run.The journalist had pressed Majeed on why the promise he had paid for had not materialised. Majeed explained and the reporter said he wanted a no-ball or something from Butt.Majeed said he could have two 'brackets' for 150,000 pounds in the next Test at Lord's. A bracket is where bets are made on incidents during a certain period of play, for example 10 overs."As events would prove, he got a bit of both no-balls from Asif and Aamer which could not have taken place without Butt's complete involvement," Jafferjee said.Young Pakistan bowler Mohammad Aamer and Majeed have also been charged with the same offences but are not standing trial alongside Butt and Asif

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Cricket: Quaid Trophy set to kick off today

KARACHI : The first round of the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy, Pakistan’s premier domestic tournament, starts today and features 12 teams and top national cricketers battling it out for the coveted title.While the teams vie for the Division I title, a total of 10 sides will fight for the Division II trophy. At the end of the tournament, a region and a department finishing at the bottom of the table will be demoted to Division II for next year’s tournament.HBL, led by former Pakistan captain Younus Khan, will defend their title after they defeated PIA in the final last season, which was played under lights and with an orange ball at the National Stadium.This year, the final of the tournament is scheduled to be held from December 20 to 24 while the venue is yet to be announced.Yousuf to miss event Meanwhile, former captain Mohammad Yousuf will be a notable absentee from the event. According to the list of teams provided by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), the experienced batsman, who also skipped the Faysal Bank T20 Cup, is not included in any of the competing teams.Pakistan captain Misbahul Haq (SNGPL), former captain Shahid Afridi (HBL), Umar Gul (HBL), Shoaib Malik (PIA) and Kamran Akmal (NBP) are among the top players who will represent their respective regions and departments.Pakistan players, selected for the three-match Test series against Sri Lanka, are expected to take part in the first round.“We have advised the players to play in the first round,” said interim coach Mohsin Khan. “It would be good warm-up for them before the short camp.Event all set to goMeanwhile, a PCB official said all the things were in place for the tournament. “The event is all set to start,” said the officials before adding that precautionary measures have been taken to counter the dengue threat. “We started the preparations much before the tournament and everything is ready now.

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UAE makes strong start on opening day

United Arab Emirates made a strong start to its ICC Intercontinental Cup match against Afghanistan on the opening day of the four-day contest at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.After opting to bat first, UAE posted 361 for eight in 96 overs. The key scorers for the UAE first were opener Bakthiyar Palekar (76: 60b, 12x4, 2x4) and Swapnil Patil (61: 141b, 7x4).Patil and skipper Khurram Khan (52: 114b, 5x4) then added 98 runs for the fourth wicket. Amjad Ali (49) added a further 44 runs for the fifth wicket with Patil.Later, Vikrant Shetty (57: 77b, 10x4) played a cameo to help UAE end the day in a strong position.Dawlat Zadran (4-74) and Samiullah Shenwari (2-79) were the key wicket-takers for Afghanistan.

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Former England fast bowler Graham Dilley passes away

ECB Chief Executive David Collier today paid tribute to the former England fast bowler Graham Dilley who has died aged 52 after a short illness.The former Kent and Worcestershire bowler played 41 Test Matches and 36 One-Day Internationals for England during a ten year international career which encompassed two Ashes wins in 1981 and 1986-87.One of the quickest bowlers of his generation, he took 138 Test wickets at 29.78 for his country but his best remembered contribution to the England cause came with the bat - supporting Ian Botham in a 117-run partnership which helped England to a famous Ashes Test win over Australia at Headingley in 1981.After retiring, he moved into coaching and enjoyed spells as an Assistant Coach with the England Men's team and Bowling Coach to the England Women's team before taking up a position as Head Cricket Coach at Loughborough University.ECB Chief Executive David Collier said: "Graham made a life-long contribution to the game of cricket at all levels and we are deeply saddened by the sad news this morning . He will be fondly remembered for his contributions both as a player and a coach ."Graham inspired many young cricketers through the University programme and was a highly respected coach to our representative teams. Few will forget his contribution during the historic Ashes win at Headingley in 1981 and the part he played in two Ashes series victories. Graham will be sadly missed by all his friends throughout cricket and ECB sends our deepest condolences to Graham's family. "ECB Managing Director - England Cricket Hugh Morris said: "This is very sad news for Graham's many friends and colleagues in cricket both in this country and overseas. As well as being a bowler of the highest class, Graham made an immense contribution to our game as a coach and his ability to impart his knowledge and wisdom to future generations of young cricketers will be sorely missed

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Being coach for the Sri Lanka series is a big challenge: Mohsin Khan

g on the role of coach on a long term basis? "After God, you are your own best judge, therefore I would want to judge myself after the series against Sri Lanka, so let's see how that series goes before looking too far ahead," Khan said.Khan added that my aim is to serve my country in whatever way possible. "I was asked to perform the role of chief selector and I am doing that to the best of my ability, now the board has asked me to take on another commitment and that is the role of coach for the series against Sri Lanka and I will look to also meet this challenge," said Khan.The Test series against Sri Lanka commences on October 18 at Abu Dhabi and concludes in Sharjah, with the final Test beginning on November 3.I'm hopeful that we will have a successful series against Sri Lanka and I look forward to working with the captain, players, the team management and all of the other support staff on that tour, so that we can all build on the momentum gained by Pakistan cricket recently."It is my utmost desire to see Pakistan cricket continue to improve further and I will do my best to make that happen," Khan said.

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'Rampant corruption' in spot-fixing case: prosecutor

LONDON : Pakistan players took bribes to bowl deliberate no-balls during a match against England in a case that exposes "rampant corruption" at the heart of international cricket, a court heard Wednesday.Former captain Salman Butt, 26, and fast bowler Mohammad Asif, 28, deny charges of conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments, and conspiracy to cheat at gambling, relating to the fourth Test at Lord's in August 2010.A third Pakistan player, prodigal young bowler Mohammad Aamer, and Butt's British agent Mazhar Majeed have also been charged with the same offences but they are not standing trial alongside Butt and Asif in London."This case reveals a depressing tale of rampant corruption at the heart of international cricket, with the key players being members of the Pakistan cricket team," prosecutor Aftab Jafferjee said in his opening statement to Southwark Crown Court."It is the prosecution's case that all four men were involved and by the time the last Test match at Lord's took place each of them was well at it -- the two bowlers being orchestrated by their captain, and the captain's agent Majeed, to bowl three no-balls at a pre-arranged point in the game," he said.Jafferjee added: "Their activity represents, say the Crown, a betrayal by them of their own team, their own board of cricket, and most damaging of all a betrayal of the sport of cricket itself and all for greed.The allegations of so called "spot-fixing" stem from an investigation by the Rupert Murdoch-owned News of the World tabloid, which was closed down in July when it became engulfed in Britain's phone-hacking scandal.The paper's former undercover reporter Mazher Mahmood  nicknamed the fake sheikh" for sometimes wearing Arab dress learned of allegations that Majeed was involved in fixing and decided to investigate while posing as a member of a betting syndicate, Jafferjee said.The case showed the influence of the betting industry and that the "vast" sums of money it deals with were threatening the integrity of the game, prosecutor Jafferjee said That which underpinned all of this activity was the betting industry -- primarily the betting industry overseas, which in turn was centred in the Asian sub-continent -- involving India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, and the Far East.He said the amounts of money turned over in the sub-continent were "simply breathtaking... in the region of $40 and $50 billion (30 to 37 billion euros)" per year.Asif sat in court wearing a brown pinstripe suit and a white shirt, with a white folder on his lap. He listened to an Urdu-speaking translator who sat to his left.Butt sat to Asif's right wearing a charcoal grey jacket and blue jeans.Butt told British police in an interview that the timing of the no-balls exactly when Majeed told the journalist they would be bowled was "a series of freakish occurrences the prosecutor said.Asif told detectives it was "just chance", he added.The case started late after a new jury had to be sworn in on Wednesday when a member of the previous jury fell sick. Butt and Asif stood in court to confirm they had no objection to the jurors.In his statement, Jafferjee also sought to play down concerns about the News of the World's involvement in the case."Whatever views one might hold about that publication," Jafferjee said Were this investigation not to have been permitted, the activity of 'fixing' would almost certainly have continued unabated, unaccountable  and beyond the reach of the law."He added that he had to assume that some members of the jury did not know the rules of cricket, especially the no-ball rule, and showed them a diagram featuring the popping crease line A no-ball is called if the bowler's front foot lands ahead of it, he said, adding: "Which is why it is so attractive to fixing, because the answer is 'whoops.'"The charges against the pair carry maximum sentences of seven years and two years in prison respectively.At the time of the alleged offences, Butt was captain of Pakistan's Test side and had won plaudits for his leadership of the team.Asif was the team's senior pace bowler, while teenage left-arm swing bowler Aamer was regarded as one of the hottest properties in world cricket

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