9th south asian judo championship from today

ISLAMABAD: Players from six countries would test their mettle in the ninth South Asian Judo Championship, scheduled to start from Tuesday at the Liaquat Gymnasium Sports Complex.
Shujaat Rana, the president of the Pakistan Judo Federation, said players from Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan would appear in the four-day event.

Curtsy by Dawn.

Great britian edge pakistan 3-2 in Azlan shah cup

KARACHI: Pakistan’s two-match winning streak was brought to an end on Sunday as they squandered chances and lost to Great Britain 3-2 at the Azlan Shah stadium in Ipoh, Malaysia.

Great Britain opened the scoring in the 8th minute through Robert Moore. After that, Pakistan struggled to create chances in the first half, with Shakeel Abbasi missing a chance to equalise in the 24th minute.

Simon Mantell came close to making it 2-0 for Great Britain in the 25th minute but his shot was saved by Pakistani keeper Imran Shah.

Pakistan’s first penalty corner came in the 27th minute and the opportunity was wasted but soon enough, Sohail Abbas scored the equaliser for Pakistan through their second penalty corner in the 31st minute.

In the second half, Great Britain once again took the lead over Pakistan through Jonathan Clarke in the 39th minute.

Pakistan got another chance to equalise but the shot from the penalty corner was saved by Great Britain’s keeper, while Umar Bhutta also missed a sitter for Pakistan in the 55th minute.

Great Britain increased their lead in the 63rd minute as Clarke scored his second goal and the score stood at 3-1. Pakistan quickly caught up and made the score line 3-2 as Abdul Haseem Khan scored in the 64th minute.

Pakistan were given another penalty corner in the 67th minute but failed to convert it into a goal as Sohail sent it wide.

Pakistan defeated New Zealand and South Korea in the first two matches with impressive performances and will now face Australia on May 9.

India vs Australia

Earlier, India and Australia’s match ended in a 1-1 draw.

AFP reports, world champions Australia were held to a 1-1 draw by India thanks to a superb defensive performance against a second-half onslaught from the world’s leading team.

Both teams now have four points after a win and a draw, but the Indians have played a game more, losing to South Korea.

Just six months ago India were thrashed 0-8 by Australia in the Commonwealth Games final in New Delhi and Australian coach Ric Charlesworth said the result was disappointing.

“But I am not surprised… India played good hockey but I think we too were responsible as we did not take our chances,” he said.

It was a resilient performance by India who had to absorb tremendous pressure in the second-half as the Australians pushed for victory after being pegged back from a 14th minute lead.

Australia created early opportunities with Glenn Turner and Jacob Whetton having good shots at goal saved by India’s Adrian D’Souza.

The Aussies took the lead through Whetton, who scored with a field goal after dribbling into the D.

India had several chances but the best opportunity came in the 19th minute when Shivender Singh missed the final touch.

But Indian pressure paid off in the 23rd minute, equalising from their first penalty corner.

Rupinderpal Singh, who scored three penalty goals in the match against Britain, flicked home the ball for his fourth goal of the tournament.

Australia, the World Number one, responded by going on the offensive, dominating play for much of the second-half. But the Indians managed to hold out for the draw, ably clearing the ball from defence.

Both teams were unhappy with the umpiring claiming it was inconsistent and that decisions had gone against them.

News covered by Dawn Sports.

PCB to take action against afridi over waqar comments

Local media last week reported that serious differences had emerged between Afridi and Waqar during this year's World Cup. -Photo by AFP

KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Monday demanded Shahid Afridi explain why he criticised coach Waqar Younis, saying the one-day captain had violated the code of conduct.
Afridi criticised Younis for interfering in team selection during the 3-2 one-day series win over the West Indies.
“Waqar interferes with the team selection and everyone should do his job,”Afridi said on his return from the West Indies Sunday.
“PCB has taken notice of the statements made by Afridi in the media about the differences within the tour management in West Indies. It is a violation of code of conduct on part of Afridi,” the PCB said.
“An explanation has been sought from him for the reasons to make such statements publicly. PCB will take appropriate action after submission of the tour-report at the conclusion of the tour.”
Pakistani media last week reported that serious differences had emerged between Afridi and Waqar during this year’s World Cup.
Pakistan reached the semi-finals in the tournament, jointly hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, before being beaten by India who went on to win the championship

Afridi makes differences with waqar public

“Although the differences with the coach are not such which could not be solved... I must say that everyone should do his job and need not interfere in other's work.” -Photo by AP

KARACHI: Pakistan one-day captain Shahid Afridi on Sunday criticised coach Waqar Younis for interference in team selection, saying that he would take up the matter with the country’s cricket chief.
Pakistani media last week reported that Afridi and Waqar did not get on during the 3-2 one-day series win against the West Indies.
Afridi, not happy with selection matters, on his return home early Sunday lashed out at Waqar.
“Although the differences with the coach are not such which could not be solved… I must say that everyone should do his job and need not interfere in other’s work,” Afridi told reporters.
Afridi said he will soon meet Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ijaz Butt to take up the matter before giving further details to the media.
With a relatively young string, Pakistan won the first three matches comfortably before going down in the last two matches against the West Indies who were also depleted by the non-selection of senior players like Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Shivnarine Chanderpaul.
Afridi regretted his team lost a good chance to win all the matches.
“We should have clean sweet the West Indies but the defeat in the last two matches left a bad taste in the mouth, we flopped in batting and that’s why I must say we need a batting coach,” said Afridi, who admitted he was also below par in the series.
“I played average cricket because I was tired after the World Cup and only played the series on the advice of some friends and former players.”
Afridi managed just two wickets in five matches and scored 28 in three innings

change a gears ass pakistan take on guyana today

Pakistan will be eager to get themselves ready, since the series is widely regarded as their best chance to win their first-ever Test series in the Caribbean. -Photo by AFP

GEORGETOWN, Guyana: Pakistan continue their sojourn through the Caribbean with a two-day match against host nation Guyana, starting on Sunday at the Bourda Oval.
The Pakistanis will look to transition from the limited-overs mode of the game, as they prepare to face West Indies in the first Test of two, starting on Thursday at the Guyana National Stadium.
The visitors won the preceding one-day international series 3-2, but they sputtered in the last two matches, when West Indies were able to fight back to finish on a high note.
Misbah-ul-Haq will take over the reins of captaincy of the Test side from Shahid Afridi, and the visitors will welcome two pairs of fresh legs into the squad, with the arrival of former captain Younis Khan and key fast bowler Umar Gul.
Both Younis and Gul were rested following a challenging tour of New Zealand, which preceded a gruelling World Cup in Asia.
They will be the only two players that would need to get acclimatised to conditions in the Caribbean, since the rest of the squad has spent the last few weeks in the Caribbean.
Pakistan will be eager to get themselves ready, since the series is widely regarded as their best chance to win their first-ever Test series in the Caribbean.
Guyana are likely to be weakened, after batting heroes Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan were named in a West Indies 15-member training squad, which will take part in a two-day match practice match of its own at the neighbouring Demerara Cricket Club.
The side however, does include left-hander Narsingh Deonarine, who has a chance to remind the West Indies selectors about his ability, after losing his place over the last six months.
Squads:
Guyana (from): Shemroy Barrington, Ronsford Beaton, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Derwin Christian, Narsingh Deonarine, Assad Fuddadin, Trevon Griffith, Leon Johnson, Keon Joseph, Amir Khan, Zaheer Mohammed, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Gajanand Singh
Pakistan (from): Misbah-ul Haq (captain), Abdur Rehman, Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali, Hammad Azam , Junaid Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Salman, Saeed Ajmal, Tanvir Ahmed, Taufiq Umar, Umar Akmal, Umar Gul, Wahab Riaz, Younis Khan
Umpires: Nigel Duguid, Clyde Duncan
Match refree: Colin Stuart
Reserve umpire: Shannon Crawford

Pakistan beats south korea for second straight Azlan shah win

Pakistan's Shakeel Abbasi vies for the ball in the match against South Korea. —Photo courtesy Azlan Shah Cup

KARACHI: Pakistan showed their credentials as one of dark horses at the Azlan Shah Cup by defeating a strong South Korean side on Friday.
In their second match of the tournament, Pakistan came back from a goal down to register a 4-2 win over their Asian Games semi-final rivals.
South Korea dominated the opening moments of the match, as Jang Jong Hyun sent a defence-splitting pass but Kim Young Jin failed to convert it. The move was enough to awaken Pakistan, who started to string together passes into the Korean half.
Pakistan had their first chance in the sixth minute, but Muhammad Zubair’s cross to Muhammad Umar Bhutta did not achieve the desired outcome.
Korea earned their first penalty corner in the 12th minute but failed to score. However, their second corner, which came a minute later, was met with success as Hyun Hya-sung converted to give his side a 1-0 lead.
Pakistan were unable to hold back the Korean attack following the goal, as they made several basic errors in their tactics.
The first penalty corner for the green shirts came in the 18th minute, which was followed by another a minute later but both remained unsuccessful as captain Muhammad Imran failed to score.
Veteran striker Rehan Butt brought Pakistan their first goal in the 21st minute from open play to make the score 1-1, which remained unchanged until half-time.
Ten minutes into the second half, South Korea earned two penalty corners in the space of a minute, the second of which was converted by Sung for his second goal of the match.
With ten minutes to go until full time, Pakistan launched a series of attacks in the Korean half but were unable to get a clear shot on goal. It was left up to penalty corner maestro Sohail Abbas to bring his side level as he convert in the 61st minute.
Two minutes later, Abdul Haseem Khan slotted home to give Pakistan a 3-2 lead and a chance of scoring yet another win over their Asian rivals. Pakistan’s attack remained relentless in the dying moments of the match and a goal from Waqas Akbar from the team’s fourth penalty corner sealed the win for the Asian Games champions in the last minute.
Pakistan will play Great Britain in their third match on Sunday

Mohammad hafeez,saeed ajmal improve ODI ranking

Mohammad Hafeez is now ranked sixth in ODI all-rounders' rankings. —Photo by AFP

KARACHI: Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal, on Friday, broke into the top three of the International Cricket Council (ICC) player rankings for one-day international (ODI) bowlers for the first time in his career.
Ajmal reached the third spot during the recently concluded ODI series against the West Indies.
The 33-year-old from Faisalabad, who took six wickets in the series which Pakistan won by 3-2, has climbed 16 places and now sits in third position, five points behind Zimbabwe’s left-arm spinner Ray Price.
Ajmal’s rise means the top four spots are now occupied by spinners with New Zealand’s Daniel Vettori leading the field and England’s Graeme Swann sitting in fourth position.
With Ajmal reaching the third spot, he has now become Pakistan’s highest-ranked bowler with captain Shahid Afridi dropping out of the top 10 after a disappointing series, with just two wickets in the five matches and is now ranked 14th.
Meanwhile, Mohammad Hafeez has also improved his ranking after claiming six wickets in the series at 23.50 and has moved up seven places to number 27.
Hafeez, who was the second most successful batsman in the series with 267 runs, has improved his ranking by 17 places and is now in 49th position. Misbah-u-Haq’s series contribution of 184 runs has helped him move up three places to 31st spot while Umar Akmal has achieved a career-best ranking of 23rd after rising four places.
Hafeez’s all-round performance in the series has also helped him become the sixth-ranked all-rounder in the world. His 267 runs and six wickets in the series have helped him climb six places in the rankings for ODI all-rounders.
In the ODI Championship table, Pakistan had started the series with a difference of 35 ratings points relative to West Indies. This gap had meant Pakistan were expected to win the series convincingly. As such, because the rankings are weighted to reflect this difference, Pakistan’s failure to win comfortably has meant they have dropped points.
Despite losing the series 3-2, the West Indies have earned four ratings points which puts them five points clear of ninth-ranked Bangladesh, while Pakistan have dropped three ratings points to open the gap with fifth-placed England by five points

Mohsin hassan khan makeup with PCB

Mohsin Hasan Khan has taken back his resignation threats. —File photo by AFP

KARACHI: Chief selector Mohsin Hasan Khan resolved his differences with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) after a meeting with board chairman Ijaz Butt on Thursday.

The meeting resulted in Khan withdrawing his threat to resign as the chairman of the national selection committee, following a row emerged over the composition of Pakistan’s Test squad for the series against West Indies.
“I am pleased to inform that there are currently no unresolved issues between PCB and Mohsin Hasan Khan,” PCB chief Ijaz Butt said in a statement.
The meeting, which was termed ‘fruitful’ by Butt, focused on the role and functioning of the national selection committee.
Earlier, Khan had said he would step down on Wednesday if some of his player choices were not included in the 15-member squad for the series, which starts at Guyana on May 12.
The PCB followed Khan’s statement by warning that any such action would be against the board’s code of conduct. However, after Thursday’s meeting, the board said it had decided against taking any further action.

South asian judo championship in pakistan next week

South Asian Judo Championship in Islamabad, May 9 to 14. —File photo courtesy Creative Commons

ISLAMABAD: While Pakistan faces indefinite delays to host mainstream sports like cricket and hockey, the country’s capital is set to host the South Asian Judo Championship next week.

The championship, scheduled to be held from May 9 to 14 will be hosted Pakistan Judo Federation (PJF) at Islamabad’s Liaquat Gymnasium.
Apart from the hosts, five other countries, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka will be part of the championship.
The categories, divided by weight limits will be under-48, under-52, under-57, under-63, under-70 and under-100 kilograms for the female athletes. The male athletes, meanwhile, will compete in the following categories: under-60, under-66, under-73, under-81, under-90, under-100 and over-100 kilograms.
The federation wants to give its athletes international exposure through the six-nation and expects to gain points that will help them qualify for the London Olympics.
With the help of the International Judo Federation and Asian Judo Federation, Pakistan could develop young judo players and promote the game, a PJF official said

Pakistan slump to quickfire defeat in fifth ODI

West Indies' bowler Devendra Bishoo, left, is embraced by teammate Darren Bravo after he took the wicket of Pakistan's Usman Salahuddin, right, who was trapped LBW for 8 runs, during their fifth and final one-day international cricket match which was won by West Indies in Georgetown, Guyana, Thursday, May 5, 2011. – Photo by AP

PROVIDENCE, GUYANA: Pakistan’s batting was undermined by West Indies’ three frontline seamers and their bowling upstaged by another blistering innings from Lendl Simmons in a 10-wicket loss in the fifth one-day international on Thursday.
A fluent 55 off 83 balls from Mohammad Hafeez failed to inspire the Pakistanis, and their batting crumbled for the first time in the series as they were all out for 139 in 41.2 overs after they chose to bat on an unpredictable Guyana National Stadium pitch.
The visitors’ bowlers found it difficult to defend such a modest target as Simmons hit a career-best, unbeaten 77 from 73 deliveries, and fellow opener Kirk Edwards supported with 40 from 71 ball to guide the hosts to victory with 159 balls remaining.
Pakistan however, won the five-match series 3-2, with comfortable victories in the first three matches, securing the result.
“It is a disappointing end to the series for us because it was not a pitch on which we should have been dismissed for 139,” said Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi.
“Our batting has been struggling for a long time, and I think we need someone to help us with situations like this.” “We all wanted to bat on this pitch and that is why the management and I decided to bat, but we did not play well. The thing that I always keep stressing – building partnerships – we did not build any partnerships and this is what was missing.” Afridi added: “The series victory is important for us. We are not playing any cricket at home, so winning this series is very important and will keep the morale high, and I think for the future it will be good for us.” Hafeez and Umar Akmal were the only Pakistani batsman to pass 20 as Ravi Rampaul up-ended the visitors batting with four for 45 from his allotted 10 overs.
West Indies captain Darren Sammy grabbed three for 30 from 10 overs, and Dwayne Bravo supported with two for 16.
“It is a good feeling to have won again, but it’s been well-played in the last two games for the boys,” said Sammy.
“We played as a team, and got the result that we wanted. This was the type of performance for which we have been searching for a very long time. It showed the good work that we have been doing at practices has finally transferred to the game, and it was good to see everybody taking part, and it was a total team effort.” He added: “The way we have chased down totals in the last two games, I guess it may be fair to say that our guys are more comfortable doing this. But throughout the series, we created several opportunities to win it, but we did not put enough runs on the board.” Hafeez dropped Simmons on 31 at slip off Saeed Ajmal before the West Indies opener knocked a short delivery from Afridi to long-on to bring up his 50 from the same number of balls in the 16th over.
He then carried West Indies over the threshold when he punched a delivery from Ahmed Shehzad to point, and stole a second run from an overthrow.
The two sides now contest two Tests, starting next Thursday at this same ground, and from May 20 to 24 at Warner Park in St. Kitts.
Pakistan contest a two-day, practice match on Sunday and Monday at Bourda Oval – the previous international venue here

Afridi wants winning end to ODI series

PROVIDENCE: Pakistan will be looking to give unshakeable proof that the West Indies were fortunate to gain a victory in their One-day International series, when the final match is contested on Thursday at the Guyana National Stadium.
The Pakistanis were upstaged by rain and a blistering innings from Lendl Simmons to lose the previous match last Monday at Kensington Oval by one run under the Duckworth-Lewis Method.
The visitors have an unbeatable 3-1 lead in the series, following victories in the first three matches, but they will want to sign-off with a strong performance to knock West Indies back down a few notches, particularly with the two-Test series looming.
Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi said that though the conditions they contested the previous match were difficult, his side should have still performed much better.
“We started on a difficult pitch, but the way Mohammad Hafeez batted, we thought we would have scored 270 to 275,” he said.
“But I think we missed that chance, and we did not bat well in the end. It was disappointing because we missed an opportunity to score a big total, and we have to do much better, and show more consistency in the future.”
Afridi said though the Pakistanis wanted to give some of the less experienced players an opportunity to play, he still felt that they were good enough to help the side finish the series on top.
“I am pretty happy with our boys, and the way they have played in this series, so I think we can be proud,” he said.
“We set a total in the previous game, and in the conditions, and with our attack, I felt it was a decent target, but the weather played a role, and we lost.”
West Indies Darren Sammy was relieved to get a victory over a Test-playing nation other than Bangladesh for the first time in two years, but he is looking forward to the final match, and hoped there are no interruptions to prove that the hosts are the genuine article.
“It has been a long time since we have beaten a top side, but we took the opportunity, and came through in the end,” he said.
“We needed that victory, and it was good to win against a top side, and the guys will take the positives from this game, and we will look to take confidence from it, and put it into play here.”
BANGKOK: Thailand have been kicked out of the 2012 men’s Olympic qualifying competition round for fielding an ineligible player, local media reported on Tuesday.
The Football Association of Thailand (FAT) told the Bangkok Post they would appeal after being thrown out following a first round penalty shootout victory over Palestine.
The Thais were set to face Bahrain in the next round of regional qualifiers for next year’s London Olympics before the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) stepped in, according to the paper.
The AFC punished Thailand for fielding suspended player Sucharit Chanthakul during the first leg in February, the report added.
“We have been formally informed by the AFC about the matter,” FAT secretary general Ong-art Korsinkha told the paper.
“We are appealing.”
Neither the AFC or FAT were immediately available for comment.
Soccer’s governing body FIFA would not confirm or deny Thailand’s expulsion but said an investigation was under way.
“FIFA has a case open with Thailand,” FIFA told Reuters in an email, adding that it could not comment further

BANGKOK: Thailand have been kicked out of the 2012 men’s Olympic qualifying competition round for fielding an ineligible player, local media reported on Tuesday.
The Football Association of Thailand (FAT) told the Bangkok Post they would appeal after being thrown out following a first round penalty shootout victory over Palestine.
The Thais were set to face Bahrain in the next round of regional qualifiers for next year’s London Olympics before the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) stepped in, according to the paper.
The AFC punished Thailand for fielding suspended player Sucharit Chanthakul during the first leg in February, the report added.
“We have been formally informed by the AFC about the matter,” FAT secretary general Ong-art Korsinkha told the paper.
“We are appealing.”
Neither the AFC or FAT were immediately available for comment.
Soccer’s governing body FIFA would not confirm or deny Thailand’s expulsion but said an investigation was under way.
“FIFA has a case open with Thailand,” FIFA told Reuters in an email, adding that it could not comment further