Tag Archives: akmal

World Twenty20 2012: Umar Gul blasts Pakistan to victory over South Africa

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Gul blasts Pakistan to victory over South Africa in low-scoring encounter

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UPDATED:

14:02 GMT, 28 September 2012

Umar Akmal and Umar Gul led a superb fightback as Pakistan snatched a two-wicket victory against South Africa in a thrilling opening Group 2 match of the World Twenty20 Super Eights.

Despite chasing a modest 134 for victory, Pakistan looked destined for defeat as they slumped to 76 for seven in the 15th over, needing 58 runs off the final 30 balls.

However, Akmal and Gul joined forces to turn the game on its head in an eighth-wicket partnership worth 49 in just 4.3 overs.

Gul force: Umar Gul smashed three sixes in his 32

Gul force: Umar Gul smashed three sixes in his 32

Gul force: Umar Gul smashed three sixes in his 32
SCORECARD

Click here for the full scorecard from Colombo

Man of the match Gul provided much of the
momentum as he smashed three sixes and two fours in a 17-ball 32 before
falling to the final ball of the penultimate over.

That left Pakistan needing nine off the last over and Akmal clubbed a
Morne Morkel full toss for six off the second ball before Saeed Ajmal
sealed the victory with a guided four off the fourth.

Akmal finished unbeaten on 43 off 41 deliveries, having also struck four other boundaries to go with that maximum.

The triumph leaves Pakistan at the top of Group 2 ahead of Friday afternoon's match between Australia and India.

Winning moment: Saeed Ajmal (left) and Umar Akmal celebrate Pakistan's win

Winning moment: Saeed Ajmal (left) and Umar Akmal celebrate Pakistan's win

Winning moment: Saeed Ajmal (left) and Umar Akmal celebrate Pakistan's win

South Africa were earlier limited to 133 for six after suffering a poor start in Colombo.

They lost Hashim Amla (six), Richard Levi (eight) and Jacques Kallis
(12) as they struggled to 28 for three after six overs, before JP Duminy
and AB de Villiers led a recovery.

Duminy put on 38 for the fourth wicket with Farhaan Behardien (18)
before adding 44 with captain De Villiers to help South Africa into
three figures before both fell in the closing overs.

The Proteas' total looked below par, and Pakistan were quickly making
in-roads into their target as captain Mohammad Hafeez and Imran Nazir
put on a rapid 24 for the first wicket.

Top scorer: JP Duminy hit 48 runs earlier in the day for the Proteas

Top scorer: JP Duminy hit 48 runs earlier in the day for the Proteas

Key man: Ajmal took the wicket of Richard Levi

Key man: Ajmal took the wicket of Richard Levi

However, South Africa hit back in emphatic fashion with three breakthroughs in seven balls.

Paceman Dale Steyn made the first, having Nazir caught behind by De
Villiers for 14, before spinner Robin Peterson struck twice in his first
over, bouncing back from being smashed for six off his opening delivery
by having Hafeez (15) and Nasir Jamshed (nought) stumped.

That was the start of a collapse that saw Pakistan in all sorts of
trouble but, just when it appeared as though South Africa were cruising
to victory, Akmal and Gul combined to dramatic effect.

World Twenty20: Pakistan beat New Zealand

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New Zealand scrape into Super Eights despite 13-run loss to qualifiers Pakistan

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UPDATED:

14:54 GMT, 23 September 2012

New Zealand progressed to the Super Eights stage of the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka despite suffering a 13-run defeat to Pakistan in Pallekele.

Mohammed Hafeez's side ran up 177 for six with Nasir Jamshed claiming four sixes in a confident 56, with New Zealand responding valiantly to post 164 for 9, but the Black Caps were unable to emulate the swashbuckling batting of their opponents.

Despite the loss, New Zealand qualify for the Super Eights on net run rate, while Pakistan will confirm their own progression with victory over Bangladesh on Tuesday.

Accomplished: Pakistan's Nasir Jamshed plays a shot against New Zealand in Pallekele

Accomplished: Pakistan's Nasir Jamshed plays a shot against New Zealand in Pallekele

Pakistan v New Zealand

Click here for the scorecard

Pakistan have only lost once at this
tournament having scored 150 or more when batting first and remain the
only team to reach the semi-finals every time of asking.

There was a nervous start for Pakistan
as they opted to bat first, Hafeez being dropped for nought by Ross
Taylor, but they soon began to rack up the runs.

It was not until the sixth over that Tim Southee caught and bowled Imran Nazir for 25 but Pakistan continued to score freely.

After Hafeez hit an 87-metre six in
the ninth over, Pakistan reached the halfway stage at 92 for one and
Jamshed brought up his 50 with a four and a single in the 13th over.

New Zealand took three wickets in
three overs, Hafeez (43) first to go in the 14th over having been clean
bowled by James Franklin.

Kamran Akmal slashed Jacob Oram's
delivery to Kyle Mills for just three runs and Brendon McCullum caught
Jamshed off Daniel Vettori's bowling soon after.

Take that: New Zealand's Tim Southee celebrates after taking the wicket of Imran Nazir

Take that: New Zealand's Tim Southee celebrates after taking the wicket of Imran Nazir

Umar Akmal went for a big six in the
19th over but the ball dropped before crossing the boundary and Brendon
McCullum made the catch.

Kane Williamson repeated the trick as
Shahid Afridi went long with the final ball of the innings, with
Pakistan closing on 177 for six.

New Zealand made an impressive start,
with Rob Nicol and Williamson bringing up 47 in six overs, before Afridi
clean bowled the former in the seventh.

Williamson followed swiftly, run out
for 15 by Hafeez, and by the end of the 10th over, the Black Caps had
been restricted to just 66 for two.

New Zealand needed 86 from the last six overs and Brendon McCullum soon hit a huge six after Daniel Vettori survived a stumping.

But Vettori fell in the next over as he directed Ajmal's ball to Jamshed for 18.

Delight: Umar Gul celebrates after taking the wicket of New Zealand's Brendon McCullum

Delight: Umar Gul celebrates after taking the wicket of New Zealand's Brendon McCullum

Brendon McCullum edged Umar Gul's
delivery against his pads and subsequently onto the stumps to go for 34
from 31 balls and Oram followed as he missed a big sweep at an Ajmal
ball.

Ajmal dropped an ambitious effort from Franklin before Taylor stepped up to fire a six over cow corner.

Franklin went down swinging as he
edged a slower Sohail Tanvir ball to Jamshed in the deep, with Taylor
soon run out for 25 on review.

New Zealand needed 19 runs from the
last six balls but Gul caught Southee for one, Nathan McCullum fell to
Ajmal for just five, with Mills and Adam Milne not able to score as
Pakistan claimed victory.

Pakistan v England: First Twenty20, Dubai

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Pakistan v England: Follow the latest score from the first Twenty20 match in Dubai

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England begin preparation to defend their World Twenty20 crown with a three-match series against Pakistan.

Stuart Broad's side are looking to build on the momentum gained after their 4-0 whitewash in the one-day series which came after a 3-0 drubbing in the Tests.

The series with Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates has been notoriously difficult to predict so far, but both teams will see this as vital practice ahead of the tournament in Sri Lanka this September.

The first two matches take place at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium with the final match of England's series for Abu Dhabi.

Click HERE for live scorecard

England won the toss and elected to bowl first.

Pakistan: Hafeez, Zia, Shafiq, U Akmal (wk), Misbah (c), Afridi, S Malik, Azam, Gul, Ajmal, Cheema.

England: Pietersen, Kieswetter (wk), Bopara, Morgan, Bairstow, Buttler, Patel, Broad (c), Swann, Dernbach, Finn.

Umpires: Ahsan Raza (Pakistan) and Shozab Raza (Pakistan)

Pakistan v England: Third ODI live scorecard

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Pakistan v England: Follow the latest score from the third ODI in Dubai

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England are out to wrap up the series when they take on Pakistan in the third one-day international in Dubai today.

Leading 2-0, victory will hand them the series to make up for the whitewash in the Test matches.

Alastair Cook lost his first toss of the series, though, and England therefore found themselves beginning with ball rather than bat for the first time too.

Click HERE for the live score from Dubai

Pakistan: Mohammad Hafeez, Imran Farhat, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq, Misbah-ul-Haq (captain), Umar Akmal, Adnan Akmal, Shahid Afridi, Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Aizaz Cheema.

England: Alastair Cook (captain), Kevin Pietersen, Jonathan Trott, Ravi Bopara, Eoin Morgan, Craig Kieswetter, Samit Patel, Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, Steven Finn and James Anderson.

Umpires: Aleem Dar, Pakistan, and Simon Taufel, Australia.

TV umpire: Kumar Dharmasena, Sri Lanka.

Match referee: Jeff Crowe, New Zealand.

Pakistan v England: Second ODI live scorecard

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Pakistan v England: Follow the latest score from the second ODI in Abu Dhabi

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England return to the Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi looking for more of the same after beating Pakistan by 130 runs in the ODI series opener on Monday.

Alastair Cook hit a career-best 137 before Steven Finn ripped into the Pakistan top order as England laid down an early marker in the four-match series.

England won the toss and chose to bat.

CLICK HERE FOR THE MATCH SCORECARD

Pakistan
Mohammad Hafeez, Imran Farhat, Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq
(capt), Umar Akmal (wk), Shahid Afridi, Abdur Rehman, Umar Gul, Saeed
Ajmal, Aizaz Cheema

England
Alastair Cook (capt), Kevin Pietersen, Jonathan Trott, Ravi Bopara,
Eoin Morgan, Craig Kieswetter (wk), Samit Patel, Stuart Broad, Graeme
Swann, James Anderson, Steven Finn

England v Pakistan, day three, first Test, Dubai

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LIVE: England v Pakistan – The action on day three of the first Test as it happens in Dubai

Stay up to date with all the action on
day three of the first Test between England and Pakistan with
Sportsmail's unrivalled team. We'll deliver over-by-over coverage as the
action unfolds at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium while our brilliant team of writers
will update with their insights from the ground.

England v Pakistan: Essentials

England: Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook,
Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior (wk),
Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, James Anderson, Chris Tremlett.

Pakistan:
Mohammad Hafeez, Taufeeq Umar, Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq
(capt), Asad Shafiq, Adnan Akmal (wk), Abdur Rehman, Umar Gul, Saeed
Ajmal, Aizaz Cheema.

Umpires: Billy Bowden (New Zealand) and Bruce Oxenford (Australia)

England won the toss and elected to bat

Click here for a full scorecard

Sportsmail's Paul Newman in Dubai writes: Morning from the desert. Huge day today, one that could decide this whole series, not just the first Test. England ended on such a high last night that they think they can pull off a great escape here but the big question is how they will play Saeed Ajmal second time. First they have to get rid of Pakistan's last three wickets quickly.

105th over: Pakistan 288-7 (Akmal 24, Umar Gul 0)

So, wrap up these three wickets nice and early and then set about the business of reducing the deficit and building a lead. Piece of cake, no James Anderson has three deliveries to finish off the over which was interrupted by the late wicket of Abdur Rehman. Nowt much going on.

5.50: Right, 10 minutes to go before play restarts, time enough to have a read of Martin Samuel's thoughts on yesterday's events. Nothing much to report… unless you love cricket.

5.45: The other essentials you need ahead of the resumption of play are: Nasser's observations (He thinks England have done well, but Saeed Ajmal remains key) and – of course – Bumble's musings on events so far.

5.38: Playing catch u-up on the action in Dubai Have a read of Paul Newman's report of the action on day two to bring you right up to speed.

5.30am: It's such things as two wickets in the final two overs on which Test matches can turn.

England's travails in the field on day two paid dividends. But they were made to wait for it.

After England posted 192 in the first-innings Pakistan looked primed to bat Andrew Strauss's side out of the game.

But some very disciplined work with the ball maintained England's competitiveness and the two late strikes mean a game which looked lost now remains firmly in the balance.

James Anderson and Graeme Swann took the key wickets late on and with Pakistan having just three wickets remaining England will hope to keep the deficit around the 100 mark.

And then it's up to the World's No 1 Test side to bat with the kind of confidence and dominance we have been accustomed to over the past 18 months or so. Simple, right

I'll bring you the action from 6am and you can direct your thoughts thusly: EMAIL or TWITTER. Many thanks.

Late gains: England struck twice in the closing stages to give them fresh hope heading into day three

Late gains: England struck twice in the closing stages to give them fresh hope heading into day three

David Lloyd: Saeed Ajmal is just like Ashley Giles

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Bumble at the Test: Ajmal's new delivery It's just like watching Gilo!

Pioneer: Ashley Giles

Pioneer: Ashley Giles

It was right for England to bat first but they suffered from poor execution of their shots.

So Pakistan spinner Saeed Ajmal has a new delivery, does he Well, I think it should be called the ‘goes on-er’, a variation perfected by Ashley Giles, because it just looks straight.

There's no-one here…

This is a fantastic stadium but it is in the back end of nowhere. There is no public transport to get out here, either. No wonder there was such a small crowd, especially on a working day. The economic downturn has left this area totally under-developed. All the cranes are going rusty…

Alfalah jazzes it up

The teams are playing for the Bank Alfalah Jazz Cup in this three-match series. I was half expecting Lancashire comedian John Thomson to open proceedings in a puff of smoke with his Fast Show character Louis Balfour… ‘Welcome to the Jazz Cup. Nice.’

The Akmal's keep coming

There was yet another Akmal – Adnan – behind the stumps for Pakistan. There are seven brothers in all, which makes me think they should be a circus act – The Flying Akmals.

At least this lad is better than older brother Kamran, who waved them through in 2010.

Family affair: Adnan Akmal is keeping wicket for Pakistan

Family affair: Adnan Akmal is keeping wicket for Pakistan

It's an old man's game

Only two members of the 2010 Pakistan side remain, which suggests their new broom had swept in youngsters. But they are making a comeback by turning to old hands like captain Misbah-ul-Haq. And they have one of the oldest Test debutants, at 32, in Aizaz Cheema.

Monty call was not wrong

Debate rages over whether Monty Panesar should have played here and fuel was added to the fire by the way Matt Prior again batted. Can Prior bat at six And if so, which batsman drops out For what it’s worth I think they picked the right side but played poorly.

12th man: Some argued Monty Panesar (centre) should be in the XI

12th man: Some argued Monty Panesar (centre) should be in the XI

Stick with skip

The captain of Pakistan changes more often than a chameleon with a hot flush but they have found a steady one here in Misbah. He has moulded a team who are difficult to beat and was confident enough to bring on an off-spinner in Mohammad Hafeez for the sixth over. My advice would be to stick with him, lads.

Pakistan bring in Riaz and Akmal for England Test matches

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Pakistan bring in Riaz and Akmal for England duel but ex-skipper Malik is axed

Pakistan have recalled fast bowler Wahab Riaz and batsman Umar Akmal for next month”s three-Test series against England.

Former captain Shoaib Malik has been dropped from the 16-man squad after he failed to impress in the last three one-day series against Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. He scored only 35 runs and took five wickets in his last eight ODIs.

Back in the fold: Pakistan Umar Akmal

Back in the fold: Pakistan Umar Akmal

Pakistan Test squad

Misbah-ul-Haq (captain), Mohammad Hafeez, Taufeeq Umar, Imran Farhat, Asad Shafiq, Younis Khan, Umar Akmal, Adnan Akmal, Azhar Ali, Umar Gul, Aizaz Cheema, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Talha, Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Junaid Khan.

Riaz, the left arm paceman, last played against the West Indies earlier this year. Akmal also did not feature in the test series against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh due to poor form, but returns to face the top-ranked test team.

Pakistan has performed well despite the loss of three key players – Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, who were given prison sentences for their part in a spot-fixing scandal.

Under the captaincy of Misbah-ul-Haq, Pakistan has won three test series and drew 1-1 against the West Indies since reaching the semifinals of the World Cup this year.

While it defeated Sri Lanka 1-0 in the United Arab Emirates, the other two wins came against lowly ranked teams Zimbabwe and Bangladesh.

Chief selector Mohammad Ilyas said that the series against England will be tough, but hoped Pakistan would keep its winning momentum going.

Another chance: Wahab Riaz

Another chance: Wahab Riaz

“It”s a very tough competition,” he said. “But we will give you good surprise.”

Pakistan has been forced to play its home series mainly in the United Arab Emirates since gunmen attacked a Sri Lanka team bus at Lahore in 2009, killing six police officials and a van driver.

Dubai will host the first and third tests starting on January 17 and February 3, respectively, while Abu Dhabi will host the second starting on January 25.

Ilyas said the Pakistan team for the five-match one-day series and three Twenty20 matches against England will be named after the second Test.