Category: Sports

Tickets for five-match T20 international series between Pakistan and New Zealand have been made available for purchase at 36 designated centers of a courier company. These centers are located in Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Multan, Peshawar and Karachi. The fans can visit any designated center and buy physical tickets for the T20I series. Additionally, the pre-booked online tickets can also be picked from the same centres. First match of the five-match series will be played in Rawalpindi on 18th of this month. Source: Radio Pakistan

Installation of the floodlights in Jinnah Stadium has been finally completed ahead of the Pakistan men's national football team's clash with Saudi Arabia in Group G of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers Round 2 on June 6. Around 225 floodlights have been installed in the stadium to meet the requirements of FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) delegation who inspected the Jinnah Stadium on April 6. FIFA's standard for floodlights in a stadium is 1800 lumens and according to sources, the latest floodlights meet the requirement of the apex football body. Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) had previously assured the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) that the floodlights would be installed before the highly anticipated clash in Islamabad. However, the process had been delayed ever since the match between Cambodia and Pakistan was held at Jinnah Stadium due to which the PFF had to ask for three extensions from FIFA for the submission of the venue for the match against Jordan. In January 2024, a rift was visib le between the Pakistan Sports Board and the Haroon Malik-led PFF that forced the federation to search for alternative venues away from home. Work is in progress regarding the installation of seats in the VIP area and reportedly around 300 seats will be installed to catapult the seating arrangement of the stadium before the FIFA World Cup qualifiers. It is a great sign for football in the country considering that Pakistan will host three more matches following the Saudi Arabia match, that will be held next year in the last round of the AFC Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers. Source: Pro Pakistani

Mohsin Naqvi-led Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) still has not cleared the dues of former team director Mohammad Hafeez who was appointed under Zaka Ashraf's tenure on a four-year contract in November. The former Test captain's first assignment after his appointment was the grueling Australia series away from home, resulting in a 3-0 whitewash, followed by a 4-1 defeat against New Zealand in the five-match T20I series. Hafeez's stint as the team director lasted only for two months as soon as Zaka Ashraf resigned as the PCB chairman because the board wanted a foreign coach and team director and wanted to take a new path. This led to PCB's decision to part ways with the former Pakistan all-rounder and in February they announced on social media that he was no more a part of their setup. According to reports Hafeez tried to meet Mohsin Naqvi to sort out the matter regarding his wages but the PCB chairman has not met him due to his busy schedule and latest visits to the Kakul training camp. The former Pakistan skipper is still awaiting the clearance of his allowances for Australia and New Zealand tours from the apex cricket board and reportedly the cricketer wants to have a meeting with the PCB chairman in this regard. Nowadays, Mohammad Hafeez is working as a pundit and cricket analyst on various local TV shows and he was also covering the PSL season 9 recently. Hafeez has continuously reiterated the point that why every position in the PCB faces an abrupt change whenever there is a change in the hierarchy of the board and that is a question that might never be answered. has Source: ProPakistani

Two Pakistani cricketers Bismah Maroof and Ghulam Fatima sustained minor injuries in a car accident following a training camp session in Karachi on Friday. Despite the injuries the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has released a statement that both cricketers are in stable condition. According to the statement by the PCB, both players were provided with immediate first aid and their recovery process is being monitored under the vigilant care of the cricket board's medical staff. Both the cricketers are an integral part of the Pakistan team training camp which has been set up to prepare for the West Indies series at home where the national women's team will play three ODI fixtures and five T20I matches at National Bank Arena in Karachi. Bismah Maroof is regarded as Pakistan's most prolific batter and she was the first female cricketer to surpass 2,000 runs in T20Is and ODIs for Pakistan while Ghulam Fatima is a lethal leg-spinner of the team who recently notched up 6 wickets in the ODI series against New Zeala nd. Pakistan will host the last leg matches of the ICC Women's Champions Trophy 2022-2025 this year and in the quest to qualify for the ODI World Cup they need to acquire a Top 8 position in the rankings. All the matches of the Pakistan vs West Indies women's series will be played in Karachi and the series will commence on April 18 while the Windies women's team will arrive on April 14. Here is the Schedule: Date Fixture Venue April 14 West Indies women's team arrival in Karachi National Bank Arena, Karachi April 18 1st ODI (ICC Women's Championship) National Bank Arena, Karachi April 21 2nd ODI (ICC Women's Championship) National Bank Arena, Karachi April 23 3rd ODI (ICC Women's Championship) National Bank Arena, Karachi April 26 1st T20I National Bank Arena, Karachi April 28 2nd T20I National Bank Arena, Karachi April 30 3rd T20I National Bank Arena, Karachi May 2 4th T20I National Bank Arena, Karachi May 3 5th T20I National Bank Arena, Karachi Source: ProPakistani

According to reports, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is set to appoint Mohammad Yousuf and Abdul Razzaq as temporary coaches ahead of the T20I home series against New Zealand. The five-match T20 series is set to begin on April 18 in Rawalpindi. Former Pakistan captain Mohammad Yousuf is expected to be appointed as the head coach and former Pakistan all-rounder Abdul Razzaq is set to take on the assistant coach role in the setup. According to sources, negotiations with Gary Kirsten and Jason Gillespie are going on a positive track while the PCB is trying to convince Gillespie to take the role of the head coach of Pakistan's Test cricket side as well. Both the coaches are expected to be integrated into the team after the New Zealand series and the Mohsin Naqvi-led cricket board will go with local coaches in the home series against the Kiwis. In addition to this, PCB is also looking for local assistant coaches ahead of the five-match T20I series against New Zealand they have two coaches on the radar Umar Gul and Saeed Ajmal who have two years remaining on their PCB contracts. It will be interesting to see whether the board will utilize their services in important coaching roles or not. New Zealand has already announced their squad for the series while Pakistan is still awaiting fitness reports of certain players in Kakul camp as they want to ensure optimal fitness of players before the series. Pakistan will play the first three matches of the T20I series in Rawalpindi while the last two matches will be held in Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore. Here is the full schedule: Date Match Venue 18 April 1st T20I Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium 20 April 2nd T20I Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium 21 April 3rd T20I Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium 25 April 4th T20I Lahore, Gaddafi Stadium 27 April 5th T20I Lahore, Gaddafi Stadium Source: ProPakistani

India's Minister of Sports, Youth Affairs and Minister of Information and Broadcasting and Ex-Chief of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Anurag Thakur has clearly stated in a media briefing that India would maintain its decision to not send the Indian cricket team to Pakistan for the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy. Indian Sports Minister did not refrain from making political statements in sports and termed Pakistan as a country that propagates terrorism in the region of South Asia. 'When I was the head of the BCCI, my position was clear that two things cannot go together, you spread terrorism in India, shoot bullets, attempt to plant bombs, and then talk about playing cricket. First, stop shooting bullets and end terrorism in your own country, then your stadiums will be filled.' He emphasized that the Indian cricket team should not go to Pakistan to play cricket at any cost and that the BCCI should negotiate with the ICC for a hybrid hosting model once again. Last year, Pakistan co-hosted the Asia Cup with Sri Lanka and initially, Pakistan was supposed to be the sole host of the event, but due to India's refusal to play in Pakistan, matches had to be organized at an alternate venue. India played all its matches in Sri Lanka while Pakistan had to travel to and from from their home country to Sri Lanka throughout the tournament which caused a lot of fatigue to the players. India is going to conduct its general elections as well this year so there is no surprise that they will disseminate the anti-Pakistan propaganda through their ministers but one thing is clear sports will suffer in the end because of these political standpoints. Source: ProPakistani