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Sunday, November 14, 2010

Afridi refuses to reveal more on missing wicketkeeper

Shahid Afridi is never short of an opinion. But yesterday, he had nothing to say when asked about wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider, who fled to London without informing the team bosses.
Shahid Afridi
Addressing the post-match conference after Pakistan lost the fifth odi by a crushing 57-run margin, Pakistan captain Afridi said: "I have nothing else to say beyond what has been stated in the release issued by the board (Pakistan Cricket Board)".

Haider decided to vanish late on Sunday after being approached by a man to play badly in the "last game".

This was according to a message posted on his Facebook page. It was not clear if Haider was referring to the fourth game when he bailed out his team to a series-levelling win by one wicket or the final game yesterday.

But the wicketkeeper, who was stepping in for regular Kamran Akmal - himself under the cloud of match-fixing -- decided to flee to London instead of reporting the matter to the authorities.

Always surrounded by some controversy or the other, Afridi did add that he wished the overseas tours went off without any incident. Pakistan have been playing out their share of the international matches in the UAE and recently in England.

"We are trying to get the team back in shape before the World Cup, but something or the other comes up. These things are affecting the team, for sure.

"So I hope the ICC and PCB solve the problem and put these things in the side and work towards building a good team and ensure that there are no such problems in every match." South African captain Graeme Smith also maintained a stoic stand.

"Nothing came into our consideration. We were focusing too much on our own things to do and our game plan. Honestly, we were not much fussed about them (Pakistan)," he said.

The spotlight, apart from Haider, will fall on the manager Intikhab Alam and coach Waqar Younis, who handed the missing wicketkeeper his passport when he asked for it on the pretext of some personal work.

Despite the circumstances that the team are finding themselves in, three players, Haider included, broke the team curfew rules and were penalised.

Who is Zulqarnain Haider?

>> Zulqarnain Haider was born on April 23, 1986 in Lahore.

>> He is generally regarded as the reserve keeper to Kamran Akmal.

>> A right-handed batsman, he made his debut for Pakistan in a Twenty20 match against South Africa in 2007.

>> He made his ODI debut in the current series against South Africa.

>> He has played only one Test ” against England at Edgbaston last August.

>> He was one of three Pakistani players fined for breaking curfew during the ongoing ODI series against South Africa. Shahzaib Hasan and Abdur Rehman were the others

"I hope Pak team will give its best to win 2011 World Cup": Afridi


Pakistan's limited-overs captain, Shahid Afridi, is upbeat about his team's World Cup chances, saying that the country can regain the title if the players live up to their potential.
"It might sound like a joke at this point in time but I'm confident that in spite of all the team's problems, we will give a good showing in the World Cup next year," The News quoted Afridi, as saying.
"But we have to work really hard in the coming months and make it sure that the boys give their best in the World Cup," he stressed.
Afridi admitted that the spot-fixing scandal had caused Pakistan a lot of trouble, and expressed hope that the tainted trio would come out clean and play in the World Cup.
"The three players suspended because of the scandal are among our key performers and it would be a big blow if they cannot play for Pakistan in the World Cup," the allrounder said.
"But our morale is still high and I hope that the team will give its best to win the title," he added.
Three of Pakistan's leading players- Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif- were suspended by the ICC last September after being accused of accepting bribes from match-fixers during the Lord's Test against England

Mohammad Amir 'desperate' for international return

Mohammad Amir, the Pakistan fast bowler provisionally suspended by the ICC for his alleged involvement in the spot-fixing controversy, has said he is "desperate" to return to the national team.
Amir's been out of action since the Lord's Test earlier this year and will learn his fate - along with Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif - after the final hearings in relation to the spot-fixing controversy are heard by the ICC's three-man tribunal in Doha in January. Amir had challenged the suspension imposed on him but his appeal was rejected last month and his PCB central contract subsequently revoked.
"I'm really missing not playing for my country and I'm absolutely desperate to return to the side once the ongoing issues have been resolved," Amir told PakPassion.net. "I pray that everything turns out well for me. I've been watching the matches against South Africa on television and it hurts so much when we lose and I can't do anything about it. This spell away from cricket has really hit me hard and I pray and hope that my pain at not being allowed to play cricket ends soon."
Despite the uncertainty over his cricketing future, Amir has been training to keep his fitness intact. "I've been training hard," Amir said. "At times alone, and other times it's with local club players. It's not been easy but I have continued to keep up my training levels and attempted to keep my morale high.
"I've been playing football to also help with my fitness and I'm also taking part in some 35-over night-cricket matches in Lahore. It's not first-class cricket or international cricket of course, but it's cricket of a decent standard and keeps me involved in the game."

Pak cricketer's Email ID's

****JUST 4 FUN****

Kamran Akmal:
Drop-a-catch@crucial-stage.

...
Shoaib Malik:
Useful-only@india-matches.com

Misbah:
Playing4free@Good-will.com

Shahid Afridi:
Over-rated@boom-boom.com

Fawad Alam:
Why-am-i-there@God-knows.com

Umar Gul:
Yorker-master@t20-only.com

Ijaz butt
Bekar-baba@aahoo.com

Yusaf
Main-ki-karan@vik-gay-saray.com



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