tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post6731831494449643523..comments2024-03-27T15:36:44.737-07:00Comments on Haq's Musings: ICC World Cup 2015: Australia's Discipline; Pakistan's DisappointmentRiaz Haqhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-82608608122987390972015-11-23T07:59:59.176-08:002015-11-23T07:59:59.176-08:00#Pakistan's talented cricket team’s success ma...#Pakistan's talented cricket team’s success marred by nepotism: Geoffrey Boycott http://tribune.com.pk/story/996729/pakistan-cricket-teams-success-marred-by-nepotism-geoffrey-boycott/ …<br /><br />“What has happened at times is that if you were dropped and you had an influential uncle then you’d phone him up and he’d interfere and try and get you back into the team. It’s very difficult when you have all that going on and the environment it creates is not a healthy one.<br /><br />Former England captain Geoffrey Boycott said on Monday Pakistani cricketers have always had raw talent despite having lesser access to good facilities but nepotism is weakening its roots and is causing instability.<br /><br />“What is important is that there is stability from the PCB chairman and the committee and that hasn’t always been the case in Pakistan and that hasn’t helped the players,” Boycott told PakPassion in an interview.<br /><br />“There’s usually been trouble at mill and I’ve always felt that if you were in the Pakistan team long enough you’d get dropped, reinstated and at some stage you would become captain, because at one stage everybody got a chance to become captain and that isn’t a recipe for success. You need to have stability behind the scenes and not have all this in-fighting going on in the background. What is happening behind the scenes is important for what happens on the field.<br /><br />“What has happened at times is that if you were dropped and you had an influential uncle then you’d phone him up and he’d interfere and try and get you back into the team. It’s very difficult when you have all that going on and the environment it creates is not a healthy one.<br /><br />“Look at the example of Younis Khan, how many times has he been dropped, then recalled, then made captain. He’s had a very up and down career despite being one of Pakistan’s best players.”<br /><br />Boycott also said that Pakistan’s rise in Test cricket despite being able to play at home was praiseworthy.<br /><br />“My view on Pakistan cricket has never changed going back to the days when I played. Pakistan has always had youngsters who come through and who nobody has ever heard of, but who have got raw talent,” said Boycott.<br /><br />“They come from humble beginnings and despite not very good facilities, they have this raw talent and desire to play well and they play very well on surfaces like those in the UAE which are similar to what they have back home in Pakistan. I’m not surprised that Pakistan keeps producing world-class cricketers as the country is very passionate about cricket.”Riaz Haqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-33484801168813148672015-05-28T14:41:05.995-07:002015-05-28T14:41:05.995-07:00International #CricketComesHome in #Pakistan: Play...International #CricketComesHome in #Pakistan: Play resumes. #Zimbabwe http://econ.st/1J8wYVG via @TheEconomist<br /><br />UNDER normal circumstances, a visit from Zimbabwe, the world’s lowest-ranked Test side, is not a prospect to make cricket fans’ lips smack. But last week, when Hamilton Masakadza marked his guard at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore to face the opening ball of their series in Pakistan, the crowd’s anticipation had been brewing for six long years.<br /><br />Zimbabwe are the first international side to play in Pakistan since 2009—an eternal wait for a cricket-obsessed nation. Tours to the country were halted when that year the Sri Lankan team was subjected to a horrifying attack on their way to the same stadium. Islamic terrorists, equipped with AK-47s and rocket launchers, opened fire on the team’s bus, and that of the match officials which was following behind. Six policemen and two civilians were killed. As the players and umpires cowered on the floor of their vehicles for 20 minutes while the bullets flew, several received shrapnel wounds. If it were not for the bravery of the driver, who sped through a hail of bullets hitting his windscreen, things might have been even grimmer.<br /><br />The attack was particularly shocking because until then it was felt that cricket, one of the few unifying pleasures in a polarised country, was an unlikely target for terrorists. Afterwards, no team wanted to play there. Pakistan was forced to play its “home” international series in the United Arab Emirates. Even worse, it lost the right to co-host the 2011 World Cup. Most of the games that were scheduled to be played there went to India, the country’s bitter rival, instead. For good measure, India also beat Pakistan in the semi-finals. Some wondered whether Pakistani cricket could ever fully recover.<br /><br />In such circumstances, the arrival of Zimbabwe has been a huge boon. The tour is only to last a week, with two Twenty20 matches and three one-day internationals. Naturally, security has been tight. One estimate puts the number of guards assigned to watch over the tour at 3,500. The Zimbabwe players will see little of the country other the Gadaffi stadium, where all the matches are to be played and where they are also staying.<br /><br />Despite this, the Zimbabwe players, none of them world stars, say they have been blown over by the welcome from ordinary Pakistanis. For Pakistan itself, an uneventful tour off the pitch will be a step towards redemption. Shuja Khanzada, the home minister of the Punjab, describes it as a “test case”. “We are hopeful to prove our abilities for hosting and providing foolproof security to any international team,” he says.<br /><br />Cricket fans around the world should wish him luck. Played in Pakistan, the sport is like none other. With its fervent crowds, and its production line of frighteningly fast bowlers, mysterious leg-spinners and elegant batsmen, it has always seemed the most vibrant of cricket’s many homes. There are no signs that any of the big international sides are yet keen to follow Zimbabwe’s lead. But one thing seems certain: given the reception that one of the game’s minnows has received, should they eventually return, they can be sure of a warm welcome.<br /><br />http://www.economist.com/blogs/gametheory/2015/05/international-cricket-pakistanRiaz Haqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.com