Wasim Akram Career's Best Bowling

Cricket: Mentor backs banned Pakistani Amir

After earning himself a career-threatening, five-year ban and a prison sentence for match fixing, disgraced Pakistani paceman Mohammad Amir has at least one supporter who believes he can return to international cricket.

The 19-year-old Amir, along with team captain Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif were sentenced to jail in London earlier this month on corruption charges for spot-fixing by bowling predetermined no-balls in a test against England last year.

But despite the massive setback to a once promising cricketing future, Asif's mentor Asif Bajwa is right behind his student.

Bajwa, a former domestic cricket wicketkeeper, was the man who honed the skills of promising youngsters at his academy from 2003-2007, around the time he brought in the talented Amir from a small village outside Rawalpindi.

"I want to see him playing for Pakistan again and I am confident he will make a comeback," he said.

The International Cricket Council had already said that it would not reduce the suspension of five years, but the big question is whether a convicted cricketer would ever be considered by the Pakistan Cricket Board?

There's no doubt Amir was rated as the next Wasim Akram the legendary Pakistan left-arm fast bowler before those two dreaded deliveries he chose to bowl at Lords in London last year.

Amir was reportedly paid just 1,500 British pounds for his efforts, discounting greed as his motive and leading many to speculate the youngster was pressure but Butt to become involved in the scandal.

The then captain's pressure on Amir could easily be gauged from the fact that when coach Waqar Younis had asked Amir "what the hell" he was doing bowling a huge front foot no-ball, Butt was quick to respond that it was his order.

Amir, who became the youngest player to take 50 wickets in just 14 test matches, he was neither spared by the game's governing body nor judge Jeremy Cooke was impressed with the acceptance of fast bowler's guilty plead.

While their families and friends continue to protests the crickets' innocence, the sentiment of fans on the streets of Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad Pakistan's three largest cities was unanimous in the belief that they got a deserved punishment.

"It's a shame," says Hamza Sultan, an Islamabad high school student. "I don't care whether we lose Amir, Asif or Butt, the bottom line is that our cricket should be cleaned from this menace of fixing."

Cricket writer Abdul Majid Bhatti, who works in Pakistan's leading media company, Jang Group of Publications, also said there should be no opening for the trio.

"On moral grounds these three should not return to international cricket," Bhatti told The AP. "In the past we have suffered a lot because we didn't take any action against any player.

"Now it's the right time to send a strong message and move on," he added. "I have no doubt that we will get lots of Amirs and Asifs in the near future. ... You just wait and see in two year's time we will have at least three more."

While the international careers of Butt and Asif seem to be over, there appears to be some sympathy for Amir.

Pakistan great Imran Khan says he has not seen such a talented cricketer and it was sad for Pakistan to lose such a promising player.

Pakistan cricket is no stranger to scandal, with cricketers detected taking banned steroids and being fined for throwing bats at each other in dressing rooms.

Former captain Salim Malik and Ataur Rehman were banned for life by Justice Malik Mohammad Qayyum in 2000. However, Malik got his ban overturned by a civil court in 2009.

Well known cricketers like Akram, Younis and Mushtaq Ahmed were fined by Qayyum for not cooperating with a cricket commission.

Whether Bajwa's protege makes a comeback after five years only time will tell.

Best last over by Imran Khan 1990 vs Australia

Pakistan Women lead Group B table on ICC World Cup Qualifiers

Pakistan Women have managed to mark the summit of their Group B table, after handing over an impressive 8 wickets rout to the Ireland Women, during the competition’s 6th game on Tuesday, November 15, 2011, at the Narayanganj Osmani Stadium, in Fatullah, Bangladesh.

The victory comes as the side’s second consecutive one, since their tournament opening outing against the Bangladeshi hosts, where Pakistan Women sealed a 73 runs triumph, complements to the team’s off-break bowler, Nida Dar, who bagged an imposing haul of 4-wickets, reducing the opponent’s batting roster to fall short of the chase.

On the other hand, Pakistan’s top order batter, Bismah Maroof, came out with her share, after batting a top score of 79 runs, leading her roster to pile up 197 runs, after losing all wickets in 50 overs.

As for the squad’s recent fixture against team Ireland, Pakistan Women, under the imperative Captaincy of Sana Mir, came out with another impressive show, under each department, snatching a worthy win at the Fatullah venue.

The bout began after Ireland’s Skipper, Isobel Joyce, won the toss and regrettably opted to bat first, sending in top order batters, Cecelia Joyce and Clare Shillington, against Pakistan’s new ball bowlers, Qanita Jalil and Masooma Junaid.

Unfortunately for the batting side, Ireland lost Shillington in the opening over of the game, thanks to Qanita’s well constructed delivery, forcing the batter to produce an easy catch for fielder, Kainat Imtiaz.

The top order batters managing to stall the early session for past the ten overs mark, Pakistan Women came out with another swift blow, snatching some consecutive Irish wickets, thanks to the prime damage delivered by the side’s orthodox bowler, Sadia Yousuf, who led the squad to wrap-up the opponent’s line-up, snatching a superb haul of 4 wickets – leading the Ireland Women to post an accessible chase of 141 runs.

With a fair task ahead of them, Pakistan’s opening order responded with a steady batting stance, earning an tally of runs, after losing Qanita Jalil in the 10th over.

Suffering their second and final loss on the line-up, the match-winning partnership of Javeria Khan and Bismah finally steered the Ladies in Green to earn an 8 wickets triumph, in 32.2 overs.

We have to present right image of Pakistan cricket: Misbah

KARACHI: Skipper Misbah-ul-Haq has admitted that there was added responsibility on the national team players to present the right image of Pakistan cricket after the spot-fixing trial.

"What has been going on in London is difficult, but we are all mentally very tough and we will not let it affect our performance," Misbah said.

He said that Pakistani cricketers had shown mental strength and resolve in the last one year to put spot-fixing issues at the back of their minds and focus on playing good cricket.

"Pakistani cricketers now have an added responsibility and we must ensure that we are sticking to the responsibilities that one would expect of an international cricketer. We have to perform well and ensure that we present the right image of Pakistan cricket," he told told 'Pakpassion.net website'.

Misbah who has now led Pakistan to Test wins over New Zealand, West Indies, Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka since being appointed captain last October, said he had told the team that the most important thing is to focus on performance.

"The team must focus on our cricket and only on our cricket. The last year and a half the team has done very well in all formats of cricket. The priority and attention has to be on playing good cricket and that is what we have been trying to achieve. All the players are putting other things to the back of their minds and concentrating only on cricket."

Misbah also conceded that he would have liked to see his team win the Test series against Sri Lanka by a better margin than 1-0.

"We played some very good cricket in the first Test and it was disappointing not to come away from the three-match series with more than a one-nil margin. We were on top for large periods of the first Test match but fielding lapses cost us."

Misbah also conceded that Sri Lanka had suffered because of the retirements of Muttiah Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas.

"It is bound to affect a team when you lose bowlers who have served the team for more than 10 years. It's very difficult to replace those sort of bowlers and you do not see bowlers of that class very often.

"Pakistan found that out when Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis retired. However with Pakistan we just keep on producing good bowlers. I'm not saying that we are producing bowlers of the calibre of Wasim and Waqar regularly, rather we are producing bowlers who are very good and can perform well in international cricket, take wickets and maintain pressure on the opposition.

I think when comparing with other teams around the world, Pakistan continue to have this habit of producing very good bowlers."