Masti Point

It came, it flourished and it conquered. With all the criticism and skepticism, T-20 is here to stay. Pakistan immediately fell in love with this blistering format but never forgot to carry their “unpredictable” tag along with them.

Not many would be aware that the T-20 match Pakistan played against Bangladesh on 29^th November at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium was their 50^thouting – most by any international outfit – in this shortened layout. It has been a topsy turvy love affair between the Green Shirts and their fans, as the Green Shirts have gifted them both delights and heartbreaks. Here is a look at some of Pakistan’s exceptional games that remain stuck in one’s memory for one reason or another.

21 years after Miandad hit Chetan Sharma out on Sharjah highway, Pakistan and India played a thrilling tie at the inaugural T-20 World cup. The McGrath like Asif skittled the Indian batting giants with his classic mastery of the seam, reducing them to 36 for 4. In stepped Robin Uthappa shouldering the innings with a diligently crafted 50 but still India were restricted to 141.

Pakistan’s story was no different when it came to their batting. Seemingly shaky at 47 for 4, once Afridi departed, they were in a hopeless situation needing 39 from 15 balls. This was however the time for a new star to be noticed. Misbah-ul-Haq emerged as the unlikely hero holding the fort when all was crumbling. A six and a four off Harbhajan Singh in the 18^th over left the Indian crowds silent and gave Pakistan a fragile hope of winning. The last over required 13, Misbah did everything right till the last ball where Yuvraj refused to let him bat his crease.

It was a tie and the result would come through a bowl-out. India prevailed with Sehwag, Harbhajan and Uthappa hitting the stumps with deadly accuracy while Yasir Arafat, Gul and Afridi forgot their target. As Captains, it was Shoaib Malik’s first heart-break and Dhoni’s first international win.

Just 10 days after the delirious scenes at Kingsmead, the Sub-continent giants locked arms in perhaps the best fought final in cricket history. India batted first and thanks to an inspirational 75 from Gautam Gambhir, managed a merely defendable 157. Malik’s men were merciless in the field with Gul denting the Indians thrice.

With one hand on the cup, Pakistan fans relished themselves champions when Imran Nazir smacked two sixes and two fours from Sreesanth’s opening over. But wickets kept tumbling and at 77 for 6, Pakistan appeared out of contention needing a massive 54 from 24 balls. Misbah was still there and so were the hopes and when he smashed Harbhajan for three sixes in the 17^th over, the improbable seemed possible.

Once again Pakistan needed 13 off the last over and ice-cool Misbah was on strike. After lofting Joginder Sharma for six on long-off, Misbah did the unthinkable, moving across the stumps and handing Sreesanth at fine leg his most important catch ever. Indian fans went ecstatic while Pakistanis lost their pulse. Indian media slammed Misbah with the undesirable tag, “Mr. Almost”.

Trend Bridge turned out to be for Afridi what Eden Park served for Inzimam in the 92 World Cup. Pakistan had disastrous outings in both tournaments and barely made it to the last four, and once there they needed individual heroics to sail ashore. The unbeaten proteas were the favorites for the match and did everything to stand by their clinical approach; little did they know that heavens were finally ready to give Afridi his overdue recognition.

Moved up in the order, Afridi made a clinical 51 off 34 balls. Even defying his own swashbuckling approach, and yes the famous flying kiss that left Kallis fuming his nostrils. South Africa fought hard to restrict Pakistan to 149.

Kallis (64) gave the proteas a solid start and threatened to take the match away. Afridi once again blocked their way with his wrist magic shaking the stumps twice sending Gibbs and De Villiers packing, it was time to think about the final once again.

21^st June 2009 was a time that was critical for both the team and the nation. A young team needed a win to establish its credentials while a nation needed it to come together. It happened for both. On the other side was Sangakara who had to fight 11 spirited souls, with Afridi once again waiting to be the knight in shining armor. The Islanders never actually stood up in the match. The moment Aamir removed Dilshan in the opening over; bugles were already blowing in streets back home.

Restricted to 138, Sri-Lanka needed heaps of luck to stop the Pakistani juggernaut. Shahzaib and Kamran gave Pakistan the ideal start and Afridi with years of experience on his shoulders made sure he took the trophy home with a career best 54. The moment the winning run arrived, Afridi raised arms high in his trade mark style and a crowd of mostly Pakistani fans erupted fanatically, showing how much this victory meant to them, Lords had a new Lord.

This was a match that was supposed to be fought between two great teams, but in the final overs, it turned out to be about between two great players, the one with stronger nerves came out victorious. Pakistan started brilliantly with two dazzling 50’s from the Akmal brothers, Umar in particular showed the range of his talent by smacking Mitchell Johnson for three sixes. Pakistan posted a mountainous 191 for Clarke’s men to climb.

In response, Aamir rocked the Aussie top order with sufficient support from Abdur Rehman. With six wickets down and 48 required off 18 balls, it was left to Mr. Dependable Michael Hussey to pull it off, and what a miraculous act he displayed. Afridi gambled the last over with Ajmal and Hussey with three thunderous sixes made the ground look small, reminding the crowds that T-20 is not always a young man’s game.  Pakistani fans were deserted and people apart from his mother saw Ajmal break down in tears.

Having lost the earlier match to England, Pakistan was desperate to level the series. Their bowlers did a decent job by restricting England to 148 on a flat track with Yasir Arafat bagging three wickets. However, fellow batsmen made a mess of their efforts by slumping to 78 for 5, thanks to a brilliant spell from Graeme Swann.

But Abdul Razzaq at the other end shifted games plans and showed his team mates that aggression was the best way to victory. Razzaq, nick-named Popeye for his love of spinach slammed five sixes to re-establish his role as a sheet anchor and give Pakistan their first victory in 11 international outings.

While we are still trying to digest the shameful seventh position at the Champions Trophy, our team manager, Khawaja Junaid cracks the mother of all jokes while saying he is satisfied with the team’s performance.

According to the manager and captain of the team, Pakistan kept improving with each game throughout the tournament. A 2-1 loss to England, 4-2 against Spain, 6-1 surrender to the Aussies and a 5-0 humiliation at the hands of Germans. Indeed we improved each time! Even a blind eye can see the upgrading.

In the Champions Trophy, Pakistan picked up right from where they had left off in the World Cup last year; rock bottom. And if they continue with the same pace of improvement, God help us at the Olympics.

 
I was excited about the Champions Trophy. Pakistan had stepped up in the coveted event as the Asian Champions who had a four month long European tour and a triumph in Australia. Hockey fans had every reason to cheer for Pakistan. Sadly, most were only reading the results and not watching the action on TV. A clash with the big tigers of world hockey made us look like shivering lambs. You don’t need to be a hockey wizard to judge the performance. One look at the score line and even my 70 year old Dadi Jan would feel let down with such a dismal show.

 
So what went wrong?

 
“Everything”, says former great Waseem Feroz.

 
“I was particularly disappointed with the forward line. Compared with the super fit and skilled Europeans, our boys appeared dead in speed and stamina. Forwards are expected to go for the kill in the first 15 minutes but here they appeared in defensive mode. Secondly the ball possession was largely captured by the opponents. Our forwards held the ball for hardly 20 minutes. You can’t expect to win matches with such loose control.”

The role of goal-keepers Salman Akbar and Imran Shah was also criticized, but legendry custodian Mansoor Ahmed is quick to their defense.

 
“No-doubt the goal-keeper is the back bone of any team, but tell me how many goals are you going to stop if you face attacks every second minute. Trust me both these guys did a great job otherwise the results could have been much worse. It’s the defense that needs to step up and stop the attacks before they enter the 25 yards.”

 
Olympian Sameer Hussain stands right behind Mansoor and highlights another defense flaw,

 
“With the off-side rule gone, an opponent forward always tries to remain inside your D in a scoring position. We failed to mark that forward in every game, Just look at the clips and you will see this deadly mistake. The forwards was left un-marked and scoring for them was as easy as eating an apple pie. M. Imran being the senior defender should have stepped up for marking. Sadly he didn’t, and the ball kept finding the net.”

 
We saw all these mistakes happen but the troubling part was that they were all re-accruing ones, right from the first till the last game. So the big question is: Was there anyone out there telling the boys what was going wrong and how to correct it?

 
Yes there was. Head coach Michel van den Heuvel.

 
You would expect a coach to come out and accept defeats and cherish wins. Take Ric Charlesworth and Morris Hendricks for example. Interestingly the Hockey Federation has kept Michel well hidden while public relations expert, manager Khawaja Junaid is left to tackle the consequences. Hockey fans are hugely disappointed with the results and demand an answer for the below par performance. However, what sort of explanation do you expect when the captain and coach term such an outing satisfactory?

 
Champions Trophy was a show piece event before the Olympics where all the major powers displayed their muscles. Where we stand in this race is for anyone to guess. We won the Asian Games, but is that the only prize to bag in world hockey? Team management has time and again reiterated its statement that we have learned a lot from the Trophy and have seven months to improve before the Olympics. I would humbly remind Khawaja Sb that the bracket of improvement is not just reserved for his team – Do you really think the Europeans would come to London unprepared?

 
Experience has taught me that success is a result of hard work and consistent planning; you don’t just work hard for a few months and achieve accolades. The Europeans have been focused and determined with their planning while we are still juggling our options. Some of us die-hard fans will still show optimism and say that miracles do happen – let’s just hope God has one last miracle in stock for Pakistan Hockey.

Till about 2 years ago, a double century in the ODI’s was unheard of and deemed impossible, given the number of overs available. But then came along the Little Master, Sachin Tendulkar – some call him the greatest willow yielder to have ever graced the game – and stroked a masterful double hundred against South Africa. After that spectacular display of batsman-ship, everyone thought that it would be pretty difficult to break his record but some 20 months down the line, Tendulkar’s clone, Sehwag, shattered his record with such aplomb that it is hard to imagine why it took him so long.

Characteristic of the batting approach that is associated with Sehwag, it was a brutal knock with 25 hits for four and 7 hits over the ropes. The only thing uncharacteristic in the whole knock was the dive he took to avoid being run out, considering that he never dives.

Before the match, there were several questions being asked about Sehwag’s form as he hadn’t done anything noteworthy since March of this year. Sehwag however, shrugged those questions off with nonchalance as he raised his hundred off just 69 balls and finished with 219 off 149.

It was not a chanceless innings by any stretch of imagination. Sehwag could have gotten out on at least 4 occasions but he survived two run out chances and two dropped catches; one of them was when he was batting on 170 as Darren Sammy put down a sitter.

Unlike Tendulkar’s innings, Sehwag was never batting against time. He scored his double ton in the 44th over of the game and got out in the 47th. Had he lasted the full quota of 50 overs, a score of 250 would not have been out of sight for him. Sehwag has never batted out 50 overs in his ODI career. The last time he batted till the 47th over, he had scored 175. This time it was 219. One can just imagine what his score would be the time he ends up unbeaten.

I still remember Saeed Anwer’s 194 against India back in 1997. That was a graceful innings as he managed to take apart the Indian bowling attack. But, his performance pales when compared to the brutal knock that Sehwag played yesterday.

Another opener who likes to hit the leather hard – Chris Gayle – tweeted this about Sehwag:

For now the only man who can challenge the 219 in ODI’s is Sehwag himself, and it may only be a matter of time before he goes about wreaking havoc again!

He is the golden boy of Pakistan cricket. For 15 years, he has been making his country proud, and still Shahid Afridi has a long way to go. The all-star Pakistani gave one of the best performances of his career as Pakistan revived the magic of Sharjah, and won the series against Sri Lanka.

What makes Shahid Afridi different from the other players in the side? Never ever has his name been linked with match fixing, in fact it was he who blew the whistle on the whole scenario in England last year. It was Afridi’s bold decision to quit playing under former Chairman of Pakistan Cricket Board Ijaz Butt that gave him the chance to stay back and assess his pros and cons, and that’s what helped him come back as a better player. So far in this series, he has scored 119 runs at a strike rate of 126 and an average of nearly 40 (better than his career strike rate of 114 and average of nearly 24) whereas has taken 12 wickets which is 2 more than Pakistan’s spin ace Saeed Ajmal.

No cricketer has had a comeback like that of Shahid Afridi is enjoying. He was declared Man of the Match for his bowling in the first one dayer on his return, and in the fourth one, single handedly won the match for his team. His 65-ball 75 and later 5 wickets for 35 runs proved too hot for the Sri Lankans to handle. He also becomes the first all-rounder to achieve the ‘fifty and five wickets’ feat in one dayers for the second time in his career. The last time he did so was against England in Lahore 11 years back. Pakistan won both the matches, and Afridi won the man of the match!

Shahid Afridi’s comeback performance brings out a million dollar question: Is captaincy really a burden on the skipper? Yes it is because since his twin centuries last year in the Asia Cup, Shahid Afridi’s batting form has gone down. Now it is Misbah ul Haq’s turn who looks a shadow of his old self ever since becoming captain.

As for the series, Pakistan has taken an unassailable 3-1 lead, with one more match to go, after which the teams will play a T20 match. Pakistan is due to leave for Bangladesh directly from United Arab Emirates, and one thing is certain. Shahid Afridi will be on that plane!

Pakistan lost the plot and the second one dayer against Sri Lanka
during the ongoing series in United Arab Emirates. It was an
eye-opening defeat for those who thought Sri Lanka was never ‘in it to
win it!’ Similarly, for the fans of the greenshirts, the defeat was
shocking. They had the better bowlers and batsmen… then why did they
lose?

Fielding proved to be the main difference between the two sides. For a
side missing the mighty Muttiah Muralitharan and Sanath Jayasuriya
(due to retirements), and being spearheaded by an out of sorts and out
of practice Lasith Malinga, Sri Lanka managed to compensate for their
losses by being accurate in the field. They caused run outs and held
on to their catches when it mattered the most. Had Umar Akmal’s catch
not been taken or Shahid Afridi’s run out not been caused, Pakistan
would surely have been ahead by 2 nil, instead of 1-1.

Pakistan, on the other hand, didn’t do justice with their batting
line-up and also with the fact that they faltered with the power play
decisions. In order to win the next match to be played on Friday,
Pakistan needs to do many things right. Apart from improve their
fielding, the Pakistani captain Misbah ul Haq will have to wear his
thinking cap, and act aggressively. Pakistan has three spinners in
Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal and Mohammad Hafeez. They can go for Abdur
Rehman and open the bowling with a spinner from one end. Otherwise
they should opt for youngster Junaid Khan who caused problems for the
Sri Lankans in Tests instead of the aging Aizaz Cheema. Umar Akmal
should be asked to bowl as per a plan, otherwise he too can sit out so
that Sohail Tanvir can get his chance.

As for the batting lineup, the hosts will have to innovate like never
before. Shahid Afridi should be made to bat in the top three because
his hitting can give the team the boost they require at the start of
the innings. Just 2 years back, he won the Twenty20 World Cup for
Pakistan by batting at number 3 and there is no reason why he
shouldn’t do so again. The openers need to consider the new rules of
one day cricket and bat slowly at first, and aggressively later when
the ball gets old. Although Umar Akmal batted aggressively for his 91
in the second match, he should be asked to bat sensibly this time.

And finally, a point to ponder! Pakistan hasn’t batted first on the
tour as yet and they must bat first if they win the toss on Friday,
because to bat first in the middle of the series always helps. Suppose
Pakistan doesn’t bat first in any of the matches, then Sri Lanka will
have the option to put Misbah XI to bat first in the last 2 matches,
and then the pressure will be with us, instead of the visitors who
will use it as an advantage.

Last weekend, the sporting world had been abuzz with stories and controversies about Pakistani pacer Shoaib Akhtar’s autobiography,Controversially Yours. The book has made a lot of claims that are startling and have surprised the entire sporting world. It has gained a lot of attention in the sub-continent and has managed to bring retired Rawalpindi Express back into the limelight. The content of the book leads one to think, if this is what Shoaib wanted all along; the attention that he is getting right now.

Throughout his career, Shoaib has been a walking, talking, high speeding controversy. From multiple doping charges, to ball tampering allegations; from sexually transmitted diseases to lashing out against his own cricket board, he acts like a magnet to all possible controversies. His new autobiography supports this very view itself. There is nothing wrong with a person speaking their mind or having a final word on what they have been through, but some of the facts that he states were the kind that were bound to bite back at him.

For one, Shoaib claims that arguably the greatest batsmen and holder of almost all batting records, Sachin Tedulkar, is scared of his bowling. We can all agree that Shoaib is fast, in fact he is the fastest known bowler in the world, but to claim that a batsman of Tendulkar’s standards is afraid of him is committing cricketing blasphemy. This has caused uproar in India and very rightfully so. He claims that a bouncer he once bowled didn’t even touch Sachin yet he walked off because he was too scared before him. Sachin is renowned for his gentlemanly temperament in which he does not wait for the umpire to give the decision if he has nicked the ball. To claim that he walked away because he was scared is just spitting in the face of the respect that the great man shows his opponents during the game. After stating this he even goes on to say that Sachin and Dravid do not know how to win games. To counter that, Shoaib needs to be shown their batting records and consider the fact that they have lasted so long in the international arena because they know how to win games; Dravid is called The Wall for a reason. His game winning and never-give-up temperament is unmatched to others cricketers.

Furthermore, the speedster goes on to criticize Wasim Akram for being a bad captain and forcing him out of the team. Shoaib is a good player, but Wasim, is a great player; a legend. He might have his share of flaws, but he was a man of character, and is respected throughout the country for not only the acclaim that he brought to Pakistan but also because he was a good human being. I don’t know how much of it is true, but Shoaib’s claims that Wasim threatened to walk out with half the team if Shoaib were selected seem unfounded. It is said Dr Nasim Ashraf, then Chairman of PCB supported Shoaib over Wasim but how much truth this news has is hard to say. If untrue, it would be appalling to know that Shoaib would go to such extents to be in the limelight.

When Shoaib retired, it was an emotional moment for Pakistani cricket. He didn’t bow out in the greatest of fashions but he was surely going to be missed. His constant need for attention however, might tarnish his reputation or do the opposite and catapult it to stardom. All this remains to seen but barring the better parts of this negligible memoir it just goes to show Akhtar’s longing desire to gain attention, and that it has done; congratulations Shoaib!

Imran Khan is our equalizer. For a long while, he has been Pakistan’s sole beacon of pristine integrity on the international stage. He is a commoner’s compensation to incessant adversity. Post retirement from a magnificent cricketing career which was ordained with unparalleled all round performances, Imran has become the voice and soul for Pakistan’s poor, sick and underprivileged. Yet, despite Khan’s stellar achievements as a philanthropist and a political activist, it’s his cricketing exploits I wish to discuss.

In the very recent past, cricket’s premier website, ESPN cricinfo, undertook the monumental task of compiling an all time world eleven. Their task was to assemble a cricket team that combined freakish sporting skills with mind-numbing statistics. Some of the more distinguished former players and revered cricket authors were assigned this dream job. A valid question should be, was it really a Dream Job? Given the complexities involved in short listing eleven men from the list of greatest ever players to play the game it may as well be termed a very tough job. However, to someone like me who was sitting on the other side of the fence it was a dream job indeed.

Frankly speaking, the world jury, as they were labeled, came up with a team closest to perfection. I don’t mean to dwell on the jury’s selection criterion and their eventual decision but my only point of contention is Imran’s exclusion from the world eleven. Of course he got an honorable mention in the second eleven chosen by the same jury, yet I believe this was simply not good enough for a once in a lifetime cricketer like Imran. Let me clarify that I pose this argument being as neutral as I can be. Any tinge of bias towards Pakistan is only natural, but my feverish proposal to induct Khan in the all-time playing eleven (and I do not care if the jury had bumped Marshall or Lille out) is based on pertinent reasoning and not bias alone.

Imran was a unique, once in a lifetime cricketer. He was a mentor, a coach and a guide to an oft fractious team. Leading a group of men prone to infighting can be a nerve-wracking experience. Khan did it with unmatched serenity. Once, a doomed world cup campaign headed north was rotated 360 degrees east by his electrifying ‘cornered tiger’s’ speech. India, England and Australia were rolled over in the test arena. The then mighty West-Indians were nudged all the way to the finishing line. Test matches contested in the hostile cauldrons of Antigua, Trinidad and Barbados were termed as some of the most epic games played in the modern era.

The culmination of this fantastic episode in sport’s leadership annals was the incredible, come from behind world cup triumph in 1992. Imran, the skipper, had risen above all challenges, foreign and domestic. He had taken the best of the opposition teams head on, and pulverized them into submission.

Statistically too, he bears little comparison in the history of the game. For a few magical years, he was arguably the greatest fast bowler in the game and a middle order batsman par excellence. In the last fifty one test matches of his illustrious career, Imran averaged a monumental fifty with the bat and a miserly nineteen with the ball. Amongst the four great all round cricketer’s of the 1980′s (Hadlee, Kapil and Botham being the other three), Imran’s career statistics stand out. He ended with a test batting average of 38 and a bowling average of 22. Equally impressive were his one day statistics, averaging 33 with the bat and 26 with the ball. Name me another player in cricket history who can rival all round statistics of such ‘bradmanesque’ proportions?

And then of course, Imran could have been selected into the best cricket team of all-time purely on the basis of his charisma, looks and dignified persona. Tim de Lisle, the famed Wisden editor, once aptly remarked, ‘Imran should be made captain of an all-time eleven.’ Instead, he was assigned a consolatory position in a second eleven. Quite Reminiscent of an Olympic sprinter denied a gold medal by 0.001 of a second. Label me a biased-zealot or whatever you like; Imran is certainly amongst the top ten cricketers of all time.

He is our equalizer; the architect behind many a Pakistani triumph, on the field and off.

It was the Holy month of Ramadan in which Imran Khan’s tigers were crowned World Champions of one day international cricket in 1992. Two years later, the hockey team was crowned World Champion while Pakistan continued its success in squash with Jahangir Khan and Jansher Khan into the 90s. Sadly, as soon as Jahangir and Jansher aged out of professional squash, the game went into a decline while occasional good performance is what Pakistan could give in cricket and hockey.

Ever since coming into being, Pakistan has had a good rapport internationally in sports. Athletes from the newly-born country participated in the first Olympics Games held after its inception while the country gained Test status in cricket within 5 years of being independent. Yet after ruling the world in some games and doing well in others, the progress has come to a halt. Athletes have started moving abroad like Snooker player Saleh Mohammad who represented Afghanistan in the last Asian Games in Doha while hockey players like Sohail Abbas prefer playing league hockey in Europe over national commitments, since it pays well.

There are many reasons for the decline in sports in the country, with education being one of them, since plays an important part in grooming athletes. A well educated, groomed athlete can have a different effect on those who participate against him/her or even come to watch them in action. A young girl in England is believed to have answered a question about Pakistan’s location in the 50s as the country where Fazal (Mahmood) lives. Such was the impact of the superstars of yesteryears, something which is missing in the current stalwarts.

Former Pakistan captain, hockey Olympian and one of the greatest sportsmen produced by Pakistan, Samiullah Khan feels that the standard of sports in the country have gone down due to many reasons. “In the past, we were among the few nations in the world that were crowned champions in as many as 4 different games. We have won 3 Olympics Gold Medals, multiple World Cups, Asian Games, Asia Cup and the Champions Trophy while came at number 4 in Asia as well due to our achievements and standards. In those days, the government supported the federations and sincere and honest people used to head them. Sadly, the sincere people have been replaced by controversial individuals who are not at all interested in improving the standard of the game.”

The Flying Horse might be right because in his days, losing a match was a big news. But now, winning against any side, be it strong or weak, is considered a bonus. “It is sad to see the game losing popularity due to the team’s recent performance,” continues Sami. “We came at the last position in the last World Cup, and despite that serving as a warning, the one responsible are still there, doing nothing and we are losing each and every event and tournament we are participating in. We don’t have any major title at the moment and if the government doesn’t appoint sincere administrators, we might never be able to regain lost glory in the game.”

Badminton may not be one of the medal-winning games for Pakistan any more yet Pakistan’s past in the game has been good, if not great. Palwasha Bashir, last year’s national champion and international player concurs. “In the last 60 years, Badminton has been through ups and downs. Currently, the scenario is anything but ideal since we don’t have sponsors while lack of funds is the norm of the day. Our past was glorious due to quality players like Javed Iqbal, Hasan Shaheer and Naqi Mohsin who were supported by the government as well, yet due to unavailability of funds and proper sponsorships, we have failed to move forward. Currently, we can’t beat teams like Sri Lanka against whom we used to have a good record.”

Although games are followed religiously in India and Pakistan, the pay standard is quite high in the former when/if compared. While the cricket stars in the country are getting paid in millions of rupees, the Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Sachin Tendulkar are raking up in billions, because of their huge market, access and performance with the national side.

Recently the Indian skipper signed up with an Indian sports management company that would handle his endorsements, merchandise, corporate profile, patents and digital rights, as well as visibility on social networking sites. All for $42 million, and such a deal can not even be dreamed in Pakistan, because of lack of financial support, as well as due to the failure of international teams visiting the war-torn country.

Palwasha Bashir feels money as well as organizing events locally can benefit Badminton. “Badminton players like myself need to compete internationally to improve our rankings. Recently, we backed out of an international event since we couldn’t afford the lodging facilities, which very well can tell you the true picture of the game. We have good coaches and players as well, all we need is support – financially and morally – so that we can compete internationally. We need to have month long training camps where coaches of international repute can help us better our skills.”

Golfer Shabbir Iqbal feels the game needs to be promoted in a better manner otherwise new players will not come forward. “Pakistan has many talented individuals who are capable of doing well for the country. Yet there is no respect for the current players, something that needs to be looked after. New players will not come forward if the seniors are treated shabbily, and the current situation of the game is far from being ideal.”

The country has been grateful to the athletes by providing them a platform from which they can go and reach the sky. But sadly, some athletes haven’t been grateful to themselves as well as to the country in return. Athlete Naseem Hameed is one such example. After winning the gold medal in South Asia Games this year, she gave the victory-starved people of Pakistan a star, a reason to be proud of. Yet after receiving accolades from all quarters including the President and the Prime Minister, she forgot her duty to the nation and started pulling out of national and international events, the reason being lack of practice. Had she been in some other country than Pakistan, she would have been penalised for doing so, yet by winning once, she has immortalized herself as a superstar. No matter how she fares in the coming events, provided she participates, she will remain an athlete who could have done more. But she doesn’t know that the more you do for the country, the more it does for you!

There used to be a time when the first name written down in the Australian batting order was of Ricky ‘Punter’ Ponting at No. 3 and then the rest of the slots were filled. At one time he used to be the most feared batsman in the game to walk in at number 3, leaving bowlers and captains holding their heads in their hands. He would dismiss deliveries from his presence with disdain; a king of the batting world. He would pull anything short or driving anything full towards the boundary.

But, alas, that time has passed.

He is no longer a young player without fear but is approaching (and some even say is past) retirement age. The reflexes have slowed down and he is no longer the force he used to be. The mind is still at work but the body is not responding as it should and that shows up on the scorecard. He has failed to reach three figures in the test arena for over a year now. And today he lost the coveted number 3 spot to Shaun Marsh. Marsh took over the responsibility of coming one down in the second test match between Sri Lanka and Australia as Ponting was home attending the birth of his second child and scored a magnificent hundred. And that perhaps persuaded the management having one eye on the future to retain him at that spot, although Ponting is back for the third test. This marks the end of an era and is a sad day for cricket.

Ponting was a majestic sight to behold for any cricket fan. His batting was easy on the eye and left one in awe. He became only the third Australian cricketer to have gone past the mark of 10,000 runs in test cricket after Border and Waugh and then overtook them as country’s leading run scorer. He is the most successful cricketer to ever play test cricket with 100 wins to his name and is the most successful captain to ever lead a test side. His ODI record is illustrious as well.

But reputation counts for little when it comes to selection of the Australian team. Selectors are ruthless as former greats have found out. Ponting hasn’t been piling up scores of late and has looked a shadow of his former self.
And today, a statement has been made. The best batsman of the side usually bats at number 3. Ponting is no longer regarded as the best batsman in the Australian lineup and has been told that in no uncertain terms!
He has expressed his desire to play on but I think he should reconsider. It is always good to leave on a high rather than wait till the last nail has been hammered into your coffin.