India will have an edge over Pakistan: Akram

DUBAI: India will have the edge over its traditional rivals Pakistan in the upcoming home series, though Shoaib Akhtar can become a thorn in the flesh for India if he gets his ‘rhythm and swing’ right, believes former Pakistan skipper Wasim Akram.

The Sultan of Swing said, “Indians are favourites in India as it is very difficult to get them out on those wickets. Shoaib Akhtar’s return to the Pakistan side may have an impact if he can get his rhythm and swing.”

Akram, gives fifty-fifty chance to both the teams in the one-day series, but tilts the balance immensely in favour of India in the longer version of the game.

“In the one-day series, both the teams will be evenly balanced. But in the Test series the Indians could be far ahead of Pakistan.”

The 41-year-old Akram, considered by many as the best left arm bowler ever to play the game, felt that the absence of Inzamamul Haq will be an important factor in this series.

“The vacuum created by Inzamam will be felt greatly during the Indian series. The middle order will feel the pressure of his absence, especially on those flat wickets,” he said.

The left arm speedster also said it would be interesting to see two young rival team captains who will go all out to prove themselves during the India-Pakistan series. “Both (Shoaib) Malik and (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni have proved to be quick learners of the game.

 There will be a lot of pressure on Malik in India. Apart from playing good cricket, he will also have to handle Indian media, and that could put extra pressure on him,” he was quoted as saying by the Gulf News.

About Irfan Pathan, Akram said, “Pathan is now bowling well. In fact, every second ball that he bowled against Australia was a leg break. But that was on Indian wickets, on Australian wickets he might suffer. He needs to concentrate more on his swing and improve it.”

Dismissing the rebel cricket series in India, Akram said, “Rebel league will not do well because most of the retired players will feature in it.” Akram revealed that he ‘hated’ his bowling partner Waqar Younis during their playing days. “We hated each other so much that we were not even on talking terms, both on and off the field, but the fact is that Pakistan benefited from our rivalry,” remarked Akram.

Their rivalry was so intense that “every time Waqar took wickets, I too would get charged up to do the same,” Akram revealed, while adding that it were the opponents who actually suffered from their rivalry. Age seemed to have mellowed down Akram who admitted that they were good friends now.

Akram went on take 916 wickets from Test and one-day matches while Younis had 789 wickets from both forms of the game. The 1993 Wisden Cricketer of the Year, was all praise for Pakistan coach Geoff Lawson. “Lawson is doing a good job. When I met the players a few weeks ago, they seemed happy with their progress.”

When asked if all-rounder Abdur Razzaq was treated shabbily by the Pakistan selectors? Akram remarked, “Pakistan needed him as a bowler who can bat and not as a batsman who can bowl. But his bowling form had slipped. I hear that he has come back from his retirement, but Razzaq should be selected only if he bowls well in first class cricket.” agencies

Paul Nixon signs up for Indian Cricket League

Paul Nixon today confirmed he will be play in the Indian Cricket League next month.

The Leicestershire captain, England’s wicketkeeper at the World Cup earlier this year, will line up with his former Grace Road team-mate Darren Maddy and other international stars in the Twenty20 competition in India.

The 37-year-old has resigned himself to the fact his brief international career is over. He was selected by England for the Commonwealth Bank Series in Australia and then the World Cup in the Caribbean.

But despite emerging from those two tournaments as one of the success stories, Nixon was not chosen by new England coach Peter Moores for the summer’s international programme at home and was overlooked when his successor Matt Prior was injured during the recent World Twenty20.

Consequently, he has accepted the offer to feature in the month-long league which will run from mid-November and features Brian Lara, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Damien Martyn and Chris Cairns.

It will compete with the Indian Premier League, the competition officially sanctioned by the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

“This is an exciting opportunity to end what has been a remarkably eventful year for me,” said Nixon.

“I would never have imagined 12 months ago that I would get the opportunity to go on two England tours, and I always saw that as a bonus and a tremendous honour to play for my country.

“I am a realist though, I’m 37 years old and England have chosen to look forward in the selections they’ve made.

“I now have two big goals to look forward to in my career, playing in this Twenty20 League and the captaincy of Leicestershire.

“This is perfect timing because India is the mecca of cricket and interest in the Twenty20 game is extremely high due to the success of the national team in becoming world champions.”

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Pakistan’s Lawson says India series bigger than Ashes

LAHORE, Pakistan (AFP) — Pakistan’s Australian coach Geoff Lawson said he was looking forward to the challenge of touring India and that clashes between the great rivals were “bigger than the Ashes.”

Pakistan fly out to India on Thursday to play five one-day internationals and three Tests. It will be only the fourth Test series between the cricket-obsessed neighbours since they resumed sporting ties in 2004.

“Having toured India on a number of occasions I know people follow an Indo-Pakistan match with extreme passion and at times it is little bit more than the sport, bigger than the Ashes, so I look forward to it,” Lawson told AFP in an interview.

The former paceman, who played in five Ashes series between Australia and England in the 1980s, took over as Pakistan coach in July. He replaced Englishman Bob Woolmer, who died during the World Cup in Jamaica in March.

Lawson, 49, said Pakistan “would have been better off” for the India tour had they beaten world number two team South Africa in their recent home one-day series. Pakistan also lost the Test series, one-nil.

South Africa won the one-day series with a sensational 14-run victory in the fifth and final match in Lahore on Monday. Chasing 234 to win, Pakistan were cruising nicely at 199-4 before losing their last six wickets for 20 runs.

“Five overs of bad cricket spoiled our good work in the series, but it gave us lessons which we need to learn and work hard on the India tour, which will be tough,” said Lawson, who took 97 wickets in 21 Ashes Tests.

Lawson said both Pakistan and India had progressed well after their disastrous showings in the 50-over World Cup in the West Indies, in which both were knocked out in the first round.

“India played tough cricket on their tour of England and both Pakistan and India did well in the Twenty20 (world championship),” said Lawson of September’s event, which India won by beating Pakistan in the final.

“The exciting thing is that new stars are replacing the superstars in both the teams. There are a couple of exciting newcomers, so all in all it’s good progress for both the teams,” said Lawson.

Lawson predicted a close one-day series between the arch rivals, which starts with the first game at Guwahati on Monday.

“India have a balanced squad with a combination of good spinners and fast bowlers and Pakistan match them. I think a good bowling spell, a great innings or a few good catches can make the difference in the one-day series.”

Lawson praised both Pakistan’s Shoaib Malik and India’s Mahendra Singh Dhoni as captains of Pakistan and India.

“Both bring fresh ideas, which is great for their teams and you need that. Both have brought their teams forward and are doing great work, performing well and both are learning as captains.”

Lawson said the return of paceman Shoaib Akhtar, after ending a 13-match ban for hitting teammate Mohammad Asif with a bat last month, is a good omen.

“Akhtar realises it is his last chance. If he is fit and at the peak of his form then he will be a dominant force in the India series.”

He described coaching Pakistan — a talented but often fractious side that has been constantly embroiled in controversy over the past 18 months — as an adventure.

“It has been very busy because when I came we had the Twenty20 (world championship) followed by the South African series. There was a lot of day-to-day work and other cricket matters to be done,” he said.

“Time flies but I have been able to set a good relationship with the team and look forward to the important tour of India. It has, so far, been exciting and adventurous.”

Pak team to arrive in Delhi

The Pakistani cricket team arrives in Delhi on Thursday for five one dayers and three Test matches.

This time the hype around India-Pakistan matches is not as much as it used to be. After all, the two sides have played each other in nine Tests and 22 one dayers in the last 3 years.

However, its still India and Pakistan the biggest rivals in international cricket.

In terms of administrative matters the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) are equally lackadaisical.

The PCB named Younis Khan as the vice-captain for the tour of India. He’s the third vice captain for the team since the World Cup.

New Pakistan skipper

After Mohammad Asif and Salman Butt, Younis seems to be a strange choice given that he refused the captaincy earlier, which is why Shoaib Malik is the current compromise candidate.

“Shoaib is an intelligent cricketer but only time will tell whether captaincy will benefit him or not. Leadership can be a boon as well as a bane,” said Imran Khan, former Pakistan captain.

So far, Malik has had a fairly mixed bag as captain. Pakistan lost the Test and one day series against South Africa at home – a result that has them slumping to fifth in the one day rankings and 7th in the Test rankings.

All that seems to have erased memories of the great run that Pakistan had in the Twenty20 World Cup – a run that ended with a loss to India in the finals. On that occasion, the captain didn’t endear himself to many people when he spoke at the presentation ceremony.

“First of all I want to say something, I want to thank Pakistan and Muslims all over the world,” he had said.

That might have been a case of a poor choice of words but what was far worse was when Malik admitted that his team had not been aware of the bowl out rules in the Twenty20 game – that was after Pakistan lost to India in the league stage of the World Cup.

Knowing the rules is one thing but what about knowing how to manage his team. Not much can be said as yet about how Malik will handle the more difficult members of his squad especially Shoaib Akhtar.

Still early days for the 25-year-old, who has been in charge for just eight one dayers and three Tests. Naturally a series against India will be a big test but at least the all rounder knows that he’s been in top form against the arch rivals.

ICL in talks with LG, Maruti and Airtel

NEW DELHI: Subhash Chandra’s Indian Cricket League (ICL) seems to be doing all it can to steal the thunder from BCCI’s high-profile rival, Indian Premier League (IPL).

The Essel group promoted ICL, which will kick off its maiden Twenty20 championship on November 30, is learnt to be in talks with LG Electronics and Airtel for ground sponsorships. The Essel group is hoping to raise Rs 15 crore from four ground sponsors, and another Rs 15.6 crore from six team sponsors.

The group has floated an asking rate of Rs 3.75 crore per sponsor for ground sponsorships, and Rs 2.6 crore per sponsor for city-wise team sponsorships. However, it is not giving away title sponsorship and the title holding rights will remain with the ICL.

A formal announcement of the sponsorship details is expected early next week. When contacted by ET, Zee Sports president Satish Menon said, “We are in the process of signing up our team and ground sponsors. We will announce the names on November 4 or 5.”

Sources close to the developments, however, maintain that the actual signing rates are likely to be much lower than what Essel group is asking for. “Many sponsors and advertisers are apprehensive of joining hands with ICL since they don’t want to irk BCCI. That’s why, ICL is taking time getting sponsors to come on board, that too at its asking rates,” a source said.

Meanwhile, explaining the format of the sponsorship process, Mr Menon said, “We have decided to give the team sponsors merchandise rights of the players’ jerseys and they can utilise players for their brand-related activities. They will be allowed to use players of a specific team in clusters of three-four instead of using them as individuals.”

Unlike the BCCI, which has put together an extensive bidding process to sign on sponsors ‘or team owners’ to be held across eight cities, Indian Cricket League is signing up sponsors and partners through presentations. Zee Sports, which will broadcast the tournament exclusively, will begin selling airtime to advertisers around November 10, Mr Menon indicated. var RN = new String (Math.random()); var RNS = RN.substring (2,11); b2 = ‘ ‘; if (doweshowbellyad==1) bellyad.innerHTML = b2;

BCCI tighten security for Pakistan series

Concerned by the crowd behaviour during the Australia series, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is not in a mood to take chances against the touring Pakistani team.

“Obviously the behaviour of certain sections of the crowds against some of the Australian players was all but good. They probably uttered a few words which weren’t in good taste,” BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah told rediff.com on Wednesday.

“That doesn’t mean the security wasn’t tight at those venue. But you can never be sure how the crowds will behave sometimes regardless of the venue and the country.

“We don’t want to take any chances and will take all the necessary steps to provide full security to the Pakistani players. Actually, whenever a foreign team visits India, we try our best to look after the players’ security. And this applies to Australia, Pakistan or any other overseas squad.

“As always, the Home Ministry also steps in when it comes to making security arrangements for a visiting team from abroad.”

Shah emphasised that considering the tense relations between India and Pakistan, and also the “zeal and passion” with which the spectators follow the cricket between these two arch-rivals anywhere in the world, every hosting association has been given “special instructions” to ensure “full-proof” security measures for Shoaib Malik’s team. 

Pakistan is scheduled to play five One-Day Internationals and three Test matches.

When Pakistan played in Kolkata in 1999 during the inaugural Asian Test Championship, there was crowd trouble at Eden Gardens when Sachin Tendulkar was declared run out after he collided with Shoaib Akhtar in the second innings (Akhtar had bowled Tendulkar for a golden duck in the first).

The police and security personnel had a tough time to drive away the troublemakers. In the end, the Test had to be completed in an empty stadium with Pakistan winning by 46 runs.

Fortunately, the last India-Pakistan series in 2005 in India was free of any controversy.

But the BCCI is “extra watchful” this time at all the venues, including Kolkata, according to Shah.

“It isn’t the BCCI but the local police that provides security to the players. We haven’t anything to do about it. It’s the responsibility of the police,” was the response of BCCI chief administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty.

Shah, though, reiterated that private security personnel would be deployed in addition to the local police force at each venue to provide the “necessary security cover”.

“Heads of the associations hosting ODIs and Tests against Pakistan are working in collaboration with the local police authorities to take the best of security measures. There will be tighter security both at the stadiums as well team hotels throughout Pakistan’s tour of India,” reassured Shah.

Easy pickings for India in 2009 T20 World Cup

Defending champions India were today placed in an easy group A — alongside Bangladesh and Zimbabwe — for the 2009 ICC Twenty20 cricket World Championships in England.

The grouping for the second edition of the event was decided in a two-day ICC Board meeting, which concluded here today.

The early decision on the matter was taken on the request of hosts England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), who want to proceed with the venue event bidding process which would allow match tickets to go on sale at the earliest.

Since not enough matches have been played in the shortest format of the game to allow viable official rankings, the Board decided to group teams on the basis of their finishing positions in the inaugural edition of the championship this year.

ODI world champions Australia have been placed in group C along with Sri Lanka and West Indies.

The Groups:

Group A: India, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe

Group B: Pakistan, England, Associate 1

Group C: Australia, Sri Lanka, West Indies

Malik promises inspired performance from Pakistan

Ahead of the high-voltage tour to India, Pakistan skipper Shoaib Malik today vowed to make-up for the disappointing home series loss to South Africa by winning the series against their arch-rivals.

The Pakistan cricket squad leaves tomorrow for what is expected to be a highly charged and exciting tour of India with Malik promising an inspired performance from his players.

“We know people are disappointed at the way we lost the final one-dayer to South Africa and also the series. But we also know a repeat performance against India will not be acceptable to the people,” Malik said a day before the scheduled departure from Lahore to Delhi.

Pakistan will play five ODIs and three Test matches with the first one-day international scheduled in Guwahati on November 5.

“We all felt bad at the way we had gifted the match to South Africa and we want to make amends in India,” Malik said.

The young Pakistan captain assured he had played enough international cricket to be able to handle the pressures that comes with an Indian tour.

“I have played against India and been there before, so I know what it is all about. So I am not going to take any extra pressure on this tour. We had a brain storming session yesterday and we all know that whether we play India or any other team we have to give our best,” he said.

Malik said he was disappointed at losing the home series to South Africa but dispelled the impression that his team, still trying to establish themselves in international cricket, could not handle the pressure in the big matches.

“Look we handled the pressure games in the Twenty20 World Cup. The final was a close affair and it could have gone either way,” Malik said.

“Even against South Africa we came back to level the series 2-2 and controlled 90 percent of the game but lost because of irresponsible and poor cricket. I am confident my players can handle the pressure well in India.”

Pakistan has picked a 16-member squad for the five one-day games in India. The squad include three openers, Imran Nazir, Salman Butt and Yasir Hameed with Shahid Afridi and Kamran Akmal also having opened against South Africa.

Malik conceded the form of openers would be the key to the performance in India.

“If the openers do well we have the depth in our middle and lower order to get big scores. I am counting that since the pitches are similar in Pakistan and India the openers will settle down quickly and get the runs.”

Critics, however, remain sceptical pointing out that Nazir, Butt and Yasir have all failed in recent matches and they also question the necessity of taking three specialist openers to India for a five-match series when this job can be done by Afridi and Akmal.

Malik said if required even he was not shy of opening and would bat at any position for his team.

Younis Khan named vice-captain today for the tour said that in India bowlers and batsmen can both do well.

“They use the SG balls which grip well and help the pacers and spinners well while the pitches are good for the batsmen as well. Once you settle in you can get runs. So it should be an evenly contested series,” Younis said.