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KARACHI - Pakistan's Olympic Committee has postponed the annual National Games due to the uncertain security situation in the country.

It was the first major national sporting event in Pakistan to be postponed due to security fears, although foreign teams and athletes have refused to tour the country for those reasons.

The Games were due to held in Peshawar in the troubled North West Frontier Province starting on Nov. 15.

"The Games have to be postponed due to circumstances beyond our control. The participating units had concerns after the recent terrorist attacks in Peshawar and Rawalpindi," a Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) statement said.

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Labels: Pakistan Olympic Association, Pakistan's Olympic Committee

Karachi: Dismissing suggestions that umpiring in the Champions Trophy semi-final between Pakistan and New Zealand was biased, ICC elite panel umpire Aleem Dar said mistakes were bound to happen from match officials as they too are human beings.

The Pakistani umpire also came in support of his colleague Simon Taufel, who was openly criticised by a senior member of the Pakistan Cricket Board and accused the Australian of favoring New Zealand in the vital match.

"Umpires are human beings and can make mistakes. I don't think Simon Taufel gave a wrong decision on purpose. Anyone can make mistakes, even I have made errors on the field," Dar told reporters at a function organised by the PCB to felicitate him for winning the ICC Umpire of the Year award.

Dar was presented with a cash award of half million rupees and a special souvenir by PCB Chairman Ejaz Butt at the function held at the National Cricket Academy.

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Labels: ICC Champions Trophy, National Cricket Academy, Pakistan Cricket Board

Kolkata: Former India captain Sourav Ganguly today expressed surprise over Rahul Dravid's exclusion from Team India for the upcoming One-day series against Australia this month.

"I don''t know whether this is experimentation or what. Don't think the selectors will experiment in a series against Australia," he said when asked to comment on the squad picked for the first two ODIs of a seven-match series.

"But I am a little surprised at the decision (of dropping Dravid). But it's a decision by the selectors and they know what is better for the side."

Ganguly, himself a victim of selectors' decisions on several occasions, said. On the ICC Champions Trophy debacle, the southpaw said, "It's sport and there will be ups and downs. It's important to support them (the team) when they are not doing well. I hope they will be back to their winning ways against Australia.

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Labels: Champions League Twenty20, ICC Champions Trophy

KARACHI - Younus Khan and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) failed to reach agreement on Thursday over his decision to resign as captain.

Younus quit on Tuesday in protest at match-fixing allegations against the team and he met with PCB chairman Ejaz Butt to discuss the situation.

Sources close to Younus said he had told Butt he would only withdraw his resignation if certain conditions were accepted by the board.

"Younus has made his position clear and the ball is now in the court of the PCB," a source said.

Younus submitted his resignation to the PCB chief during a hearing of the National Assembly standing committee on sports.

The hearing was convened after committee chairman Jamshed Dasti told television channels he would investigate reports that Pakistan had deliberately under-performed against Australia and New Zealand in the Champions Trophy.

But sources said there were other issues behind Younus's decision to resign, including his relationship with team mates.

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Labels: Champions League Twenty20, ICC Cricket, ICC Twenty20 World Cup 2009

Hyderabad: A battle of nerves will unfold when Trinidad and Tobago and New South Wales Blues - the two unbeaten sides in the event so far - clash in a League A match of the inaugural Champions League Twenty20 tournament here tomorrow.

The Caribbean side surprised everyone with their impressive show in the group stage where they ousted Indian Premier League II champions Deccan Chargers last night.

Riding on a strong all-round performance, Trinidad and Tobago humbled Somerset in their opening group encounter. Even though, the Caribbeans started as underdogs, they have shown they are not just paper tigers as they have quite a few match-winners up their ranks.

Skipper Dwayne Bravo, who has been more successful with the ball so far, taking seven wickets in two matches, is due for big runs as he is yet to explode with the bat. However, somebody or the other from both the top and lower order have chipped in with useful contribution in times of crisis to help Trinidad and Tobago's cause.

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Labels: Champions League Twenty20, Deccan Chargers

NEW DELHI - Venkatesh Prasad and Robin Singh were sacked as India's bowling and fielding coaches on Thursday just over a week before the home one-day series against Australia.

Former India paceman Prasad and all-rounder Singh had come under pressure after first-round exits in two successive limited overs events. They took up the roles after the team's first- round elimination in the 2007 one-day World Cup.

"The BCCI has decided to discontinue the services of bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad and fielding coach Robin Singh, with immediate effect," Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary N.Srinivasan said in a statement.

India's sloppy fielding has let the team down and was in focus during the first-round eliminations from the Twenty20 World Cup, and the ICC Champions Trophy in South Africa this month.

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Labels: ICC Champions Trophy, ICC Twenty20 World Cup 2009, World Cup

Karachi, Younis Khan Thursday asked the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for a captaincy tenure till the 2011 World Cup besides more powers, if it wants him to retract his resignation.

Younis tendered his resignation Tuesday during a meeting of the National Assembly's standing committee on sports in Islamabad. The meet was held to look into the allegations that Pakistan's matches against New Zealand and Australia had been fixed.

A source told IANS that Younis had a meeting with PCB chairman Ijaz Butt in Lahore, where he was asked to reconsider his decision to resign as Pakistan captain.

Younis, who led Pakistan to the World Twenty20 title in England last June, said he wanted to be assured that the board will support his captaincy till the next World Cup. The sources said Younis also asked the PCB chief to remove senior team officials including Pakistan manager Yawar Saeed.

The match-fixing charges had been levelled by Jamshed Dasti, the standing committee's chairman, and asked Younis, Butt and other senior team officials to attend the Oct 13 meeting at the Parliament House.

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Labels: Pakistan Cricket Board, World Cup, World Twenty20

New Delhi, Oct 13 (IANS) Wayamba Elevens skipper Jehan Mubarak said his side's big loss to Delhi Daredevils in the opening match proved to be their bane in the Champions League Twenty20.

The Sri Lankan side Tuesday won their second Group D match against Victoria Bushrangers by 15 runs but lost out a spot in the second stage due to a poor run-rate. Delhi Daredevils and Victoria Bushrangers qualify for the next stage.

Mubarak said his team took more time to adjust to the low and slow conditions here.

'It's a mixed emotions. Just when we began to click as a team, we find ourselves out of the tournament. Adapting to the conditions is crucial and we were slow in doing that,' Mubarak said in the post-match press conference.

'The loss against Delhi proved costly for us.'

The Bushranger's fast bowler and man-of-match Shane Harwood, who claimed three for 14, said they wanted to qualify to the next stage with a win.

New Delhi, Oct 13 (IANS) Victoria Bushrangers qualified for the Super Eight stage despite a 15-run loss to Wayamba Elevens in the Champions Trophy Group D match at the Ferozeshah Kotla stadium here Tuesday.

Mustering 118 for nine after winning the toss and batting, Wayamba needed to stop the Bushrangers within 83 runs to have a realistic chance of qualifying to the next stage. The Australian side, however, crossed the barrier, managing 103 for four. Delhi Daredevils are the other team to qualify from the group.

Wayamba must have fancied their chances when Bushrangers were tottering at 73 for four in the 17th over, but Andrew McDonald 27 (not out) was the man who made the difference.

The all-rounder, who took 2-38, bludgeoned three fours and a six off Kaushal Lokurachchi in the 18th over to ensure his side qualify to the next level on the basis of better run-rate.

It was an important match for both teams. The Sri Lankan side had lost by 50 runs to Delhi Daredevils, which had outclassed Bushrangers in the first match.

The Australian team were chasing a small total, built around Michael Vandort (42) and Jeevantha Kulatunga (41), but the subcontinent team had their hopes rested on a low and slow wicket.

Victoria suffered a set-back on the third ball of the innings when Chanaka Welegedra took a stupendous single-handed catch in his follow through with no score on the board.

The Sri Lankans were sharp on the field and got their second wicket when Welegedra took his second wicket in Aiden Blizzard, reducing Bushrangers to 17 for two. And when Maharoof castled off David Hussey's bails in the 11th over, the Sri Lankan camp erupted in rapture.

But opener Brad Hodge (44 not out) and McDonald batted with purpose to cross the important target of qualifying for the next stage.

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Labels: Delhi Daredevils, ICC Champions Trophy, ICC Cricket

Trescothick was the leading first-class run scorer in county cricket

Marcus Trescothick has been named as the Professional Cricketers' Association's Player of the Year.

The Somerset opener has been in superb form all season, scoring 2,934 runs in all competitions, scooping the PCA's most valuable player award last month.

The 33-year-old, who quit Test cricket in 2008, is in India with his county for the Twenty20 Champions League.

Leicestershire batsman James Taylor was voted Young Player of the Year after scoring 1,177 runs in 16 matches.

The 19-year-old held off stuff competition from 2007 winner Adil Rashid and England Ashes-winning fast bowler Stuart Broad.

Taylor's progress was one of the few positives to come out of Leicestershire's season having finished bottom of the second division.

Trescothick and England captain Andrew Strauss, who collected the Special Merit Award, were named in the PCA Team of the Year alongside England stars Broad, Graham Onions and Jonathan Trott.

2009 PCA Awards:

Player of the Year: Marcus Trescothick (Somerset)

Young Player of the Year: James Taylor (Leicestershire)

ECB Special Award: Michael Vaughan

Special Merit Award: Andrew Strauss

Umpire of the Year: Richard Kettleborough

Sixes League: Dwayne Smith

Impossible is Nothing Award: Graham Stevenson

Team of the Year 2009: Marcus Trescothick (Somerset), Andrew Strauss (captain - Middlesex & England), Jonathan Trott (Warwickshire & England), Ed Joyce (Sussex), Ian Blackwell (Durham), Craig Kieswetter (Somerset), James Foster (wicketkeeper - Essex), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire & England), James Tredwell (Kent), Graham Onions (Durham & England), Steve Kirby (Gloucestershire).

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