Love to play more prominent role in Pak cricket: Afridi hints at PCB entry

Veteran cricketer and probably the greatest Pakistan all-rounder in terms of numbers, Shahid Afridi has said that he would like to play a prominent role in Pakistan cricket’s rise in the near future.

"I haven't thought too much about it (joining PCB) right now, but yes, why not?" he said when asked of venturing into administrative positions in near future.

"Someday, I would like to play a more prominent role in Pakistan cricket and give something back to the game. I would do anything to see Pakistan cricket at the top of world cricket in all formats," he added.

Talking about the recent captaincy change in the Pakistan Test outfit, the 40-year-old said that Azhar Ali (the outgoing captain) fell out of favour from the management due to consecutive series losses.

"I don't want to be too harsh on Azhar but despite his hundred against Sri Lanka and win against both Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, the series loss to Australia and finally the loss to England perhaps didn't go down too well with the management," he said.

The man who has represented Pakistan in a record 524 international games in his 18-year-old international career feels that Babar Azam, the 25-year-old batting Talisman must be given due chances to prove himself as a captain.

"Babar has a good T20 captaincy record too, so let us give him a chance and see if he is capable of handling the pressure of captaining Pakistan," said Afridi.

Even after scoring more than 11,196 runs and taking 541 wickets in international career and having played for more than 25 domestic teams in T20 cricket, the original ‘Lala’ is still going strong and would be plying his trade for Galle Gladiators in the upcoming Lankan Premier League starting 26 November in Hambantota. When asked about the secret of his energy, Afridi replied, "It feels good to be loved. Inshallah! I am really fortunate that people have never stopped showing their love to me, no matter whether I have performed or not.”

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RSA vs ENG: Chris Jordan feels taking the Knee is personal choice

The watershed moment of the Black Lives Matter Movement (BLM) in cricket came when the English and West Indian cricketers took the knee in support of the movement in late July. But the matter has been raised once again as the South African coach Mark Boucher refused the proposal of taking the knee in the upcoming series against England. Reacting to it, Chris Jordan, the English all-rounder of Bajan origin said that the decision and the situation to form that decision depends upon the individual and he too is of the opinion that real change would come from the acceptance of reality, long conversations, and change within. “The situation is very individual; a lot of the honest work going on around the matter will be done in private. The real change will come through conversations one-on-one with people. If that is what they (South Africa) as an organization believe in then I don’t think it should be judged from any other point of view than it is a personal decision. We can move on.” Although the England team stopped the practice of taking the knee since the Australian series, Jordan, 32, still believes that taking the knee was beneficial for the spread of the movement through visual media. “One hundred percent yes,” he said on whether taking the knee useful. “But I am quite open-minded around the topic in terms of the different types of work that can be done. Taking the knee is something very visual that people see especially when they turn on sport,” he added. Boucher, the South African coach had earlier said that they might wear a black armband, but that would for a large range of issues including covid-19, gender sensitivity, and racial discrimination as well, but not particularly for BLM. “It's not something that we have to continue to show. It's something that you have to live. That is exactly what we are trying to doing our dressing room at the moment with a big squad. If guys who brought it up are happy with it, that's great, but if they feel we have to do more, that will be a chat and that they are open to express their opinions,” he said about the BLM. England are in South Africa to play two limited over series (T20Is and ODIs) of three-match each, starting with the first T20I in Newlands, Capetown on 27th November.

World Number -1 doesn’t guarantee a place in England Squad: Dawid Malan

The number one ranked T20I player, England’s Dawid Malan feels that the ranking is of no importance when you are competing for a place in a team like England, especially at the top of the order. "It is not something I am really looking at right now. It doesn't guarantee runs; it doesn't guarantee you a spot in the team. It's something that, the day I retire, I will look back on it with fond memories,” Malan told reporters in a Press Conference via a zoom meeting from Newlands, Capetown. The South Africa-raised batsman though is aware of the fact that the higher one’s rankings are, the more they are looked to and the more pressure is on them. “That's something I am trying to not let affect me, by not worrying where I am in terms of No. 1, or 20, or 100 in the world." The 33-year-old, who was selected into the national team as early as 2016 but couldn’t really get a permanent place, will be going into the series with 682 runs under his name at an average of 48.71, including seven fifties and a hundred, as well as a strike rate of 146.66. Yet he is unsure of whether he will make the cut or not. "I can't control selection. All I can do is put in the work in the nets and if I get the opportunity to play, keep scoring as many runs as I can to put pressure on the guys that have the spots.” Saying that he would ‘like to start in the playing XI’ the former Middlesex man asserts that he has ‘no idea’ on whether he will or not. “That's a question for the selectors, the coaches, and Eoin Morgan,” he said. Malan has been part of the last seven T20Is, but that has only happened due to the absence of established names like Jason Roy and Ben Stokes. Now as they are back, it would become difficult for him to get a place in the team and he is well aware of that. "I don't think it's ever just given on a plate. If you look at the limited opportunities I've had since I was in the first Twenty20 squad in 2016, I've only played 16 games. You obviously look back and think you probably didn't get as much of a run, but that's understandable because of the quality of players England have had - they won a World Cup and been absolutely fantastic,” he said.

Mohammed Siraj loses his father to lung cancer

Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj’s father Mohammed Ghouse, 53, died due to a lung ailment in Hyderabad. He had been admitted to a hospital in Hyderabad for a long. “My dad’s wish was always this – mera beta, Desh ka Naam Roshan Karna (my son, you should make my country proud). And, I will do that for sure,” Sportstar quoted Siraj as saying from Sydney. Siraj, 26, who has represented India in three T20Is and a single ODI so far said that his father always wanted him to play for his country and he is happy that he could at least fulfill this wish of his father while he was alive. “I lost the biggest support of my life. It was his dream to see me play for the country and I am glad that way I could realize that and bring joy for him,” he said. The Hyderabad pacer has done well in this year’s IPL playing for RCB. It was during one of the matches in the league after which he revealed that his father’s lung condition is worrisome. “My dad is unwell these days. His lungs are in bad shape so he has difficulty breathing. I am really worried about that. I can’t even go home to meet and motivate him. I talk on the phone but whenever I do, he starts crying,” he had said. “I can’t even talk for longer hours because I don’t like seeing him crying. So I disconnect the phone early because I can’t hold myself for long. So, I pray to God for his good health. He was admitted to the hospital before the last game. I was really concerned that dad was in the hospital,” the Hyderabad born who has been chosen for the Test series which begins on 17th December added.

New Zealand’s Greg Barclay one vote away from becoming next ICC Chairman

The elections for the new chairman of the International Cricket Council, the governing body of the game worldwide is in full swing after the chair has remained vacant without a permanent chief for long after Shahashank Manohar’s term end in July this year. Greg Barclay, New Zealand Cricket's representative on the ICC board, is one of the favorites for the position which is currently being held by Shashank’s deputy and Interim Chair Singapore’s Imran Khwaja. In fact, Barclay is just one vote away from becoming chair of the global governing body with a 10-6 lead after the first round of voting concluded on Wednesday. With two more rounds of voting to go, the Kiwi needs one more vote to get a 2/3rd majority and hence the ICC chair. According to the new rules in the ICC constitution, a two-thirds majority is required to overthrow the sitting Chair. Barclay, who joined the ICC as the NZC representative in 2014, has the backing of the BCCI, Cricket Australia, and the ECB - the "big three" in the game and was introduced as an Independent candidate after Colin Graves, former ECB president couldn’t find much support. Khwaja's position is however backed by PCB president Ehsan Mani and the ICC chief executive Manu Sawhney. While Khawaja is an advocator of having more ICC tournaments and thereby more money coming the way of ICC and getting distributed among the nations that need it, Barclays would likely go the way of the big three which want more bilateral tournaments to boost their coffers.