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Pakistan Team announced for Westindies ODI T20 squad

Abdul Razzak & Kamran Akmal have been axed from Pakistan's combined ODI & Twenty20 squad for the upcoming tour of West Indies, while senior players Umar Gul & Younis Khan have been rested. Shahid Afridi remains in charge of a team that will feature a brand new wicketkeeper, Mohammad Salman.

The Check squad will be named at a later date & it is expected that Gul & Younis - the former had asked selectors for a rest from the limited overs portion of the tour - will return.

Kamran's wicketkeeping has been a source of concern for some time now, though various selectors have persisted with him in the belief that his batting provides the side with flexibility. But a poor World Cup campaign, with bat & gloves - the low hit in the game against New Zealand where he dropped centurion Ross Taylor times, including once early on, as well as fluffs in games against Sri Lanka & the semi-final with India - have finally proved much. Coach Waqar Younis had hinted that it was time for a brand new wicketkeeper to be blooded, & Salman got the nod.

With 103 first-class games to his name, the Karachi-born Salman, 29, has been on the fringes of choice for some time. A few years ago he was thought by lots of to be the best wicketkeeper in the land though in recent times, he had been overlooked behind Sarfraz Ahmed, Zulqarnain Haider & Adnan Akmal.

"He is the best of the lot," Rashid Latif, former Pakistan captain & wicketkeeper, told ESPNcricinfo. Salman was Latif's deputy at Allied Bank Limited (ABL) in 2000 & worked with him later as well. "He came in to ABL as my deputy wicket keeper & I worked with him then. After that they both joined Port Qasim Authority team in 2006, me as coach & Salman as a main wicketkeeper. He is an athletic man & a lovely batsman for all formats."

Though the Check squad has not yet been announced, it is likely Kamran's more youthful sister Adnan will retain his spot in the side as the wicketkeeper.

Pakistan have also embarked on a search for a brand new allrounder, with the highly-rated Hammad Azam drafted in to replace Razzaq. The veteran Razzaq had a unusual World Cup, playing all matches but  as a spare part in the XI, taking only wickets & making 104 runs.

He did not complete his quota of ten overs even two times, & managed only a single half-century, though he usually batted as low as number two. He was often given the new ball, but taken off after short opening spells to make way for Gul & the spinners. After the first couple of games, he had expressed a desire to play a bigger part in Pakistan's World Cup campaign, but continued to play a peripheral role.

"At the moment there is no place for Abdul Razzaq & Kamran Akmal in the team," chief selector Mohsin Khan told reporters. "We need to try out few babies & that is why they have picked those players who have performed outstandingly in the domestic circuit."

Azam was a central figure in Pakistan's last U-19 World Cup campaign & was chosen in the squad for the World T20 in the Caribbean last year, but he did not feature in a single game.

The tour kicks off with a warm-up game from April 18, while the only Twenty20 will be played on April 21 in St Lucia. The five-match ODI series will start on April 23, & the Check leg of the tour will commence on May 12.

Lefthand opening batsman Taufeeq Umar, who recently worked his way back in to the Check side, is another surprise inclusion for the shorter formats. Aizaz Cheema, the 31-year-old seamer who plays for Punjab, has also received a call-up to replace Gul. Cheema has 221 wickets from 62 first-class matches, & will tussle for the new ball with Wahab Riaz, Tanvir Ahmed & Junaid Khan. Usman Salahuddin, another youngster who made an impression at the Under-19 level, also got the selector's nod for the tour. Salahuddin scored 927 runs in the Quaid-e-Azam trophy last year & will fight for a middle-order spot.

Squad: Shahid Afridi (capt), Mohammad Hafeez, Ahmed Shehzad, Taufeeq Umar, Usman Salahuddin, Misbah-ul-Haq, Asad Shafiq, Umar Akmal, Abdur Rehman, Saeed Ajmal, Tanvir Ahmed, Wahab Riaz, Junaid Khan, Hammad Azam, Aizaz Cheema & Mohammad Salman (wk)

Reserves: Rameez Raja (jnr), Sadaf Hussain, Asif Zakir, Sohail Khan, Zulifqar Babar

Yuvraj Singh: Man of the World Cup 2011

A highly emotional Yuvraj broke down before 33,000 people at the Wankhede stadium and millions watching on tv as they watched his captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni hit the winning four in last night's final against Sri Lanka.

MUMBAI: Dropped from the Indian team only last year, a transformed Yuvraj Singh turned out to be the man with the Midas touch in India's campaign to win the World Cup.

Yuvraj said it was difficult to control his emotions after the victory and had tears in his eyes for the first time, terming the moment as a "dream come true" for the team.

"I think it was the first time I was one times in tears because everybody were in tears," Yuvraj said.

"All through the match I desired to win it for him because what they has given to Indian cricket nobody has. The things they has achieved is exceptional. I always prayed to the Almighty that you ought to give it to him before they retires."

The dashing all-rounder, who had a dream run in the high profile match with 369 runs and 15 wickets, said they desired to win the coveted title for Sachin Tendulkar.

Despite being a regular in the ODI team, Yuvraj has never been able to cement a place in the Check team, which they has often said is the final dream of any cricket player.

It's been a exceptional change of fortune for the elegant left-hander who, a few months back, was struggling to retain his place in the team owing to poor form.

The retirement of former captain Sourav Ganguly provided him with the chance to cement a place in the Check team but they could not grab the chance with both hands.

Yuvraj was in and out of the Check team till they was finally dropped for the home Check series against Australia in October last year and was even left out of India's Asia Cup ODI squad in June.

"Since the loss in T20 World Cup I went through plenty of criticism. Getting dropped from the Indian team after 7-8 years was a large jolt for me. Then I decided I only need to make things better, so I started working additional because there's occasions when you need to step up the paddle," they explained.

In the run-up to the World Cup, Yuvraj was dogged by persistent injuries and his form was also not nice.

Yuvraj admitted they was not in the best of form before the beginning of the match.

"As a team it was a dream to win the World Cup. Since Gary (Kirsten) came and in the last one years they have been emphasising on the World Cup and how they going to go about it and by tiny, tiny steps they have achieved what the whole of India wanted. It is a dream-come-true for every individual," they added.

Being dropped from both the Check and ODI teams and battling one injury after another was very frustrating and Yuvraj describes that phase as the "toughest period" of his career.

"I was not in the best of form (at the beginning of the match). Things started happening for me. I started bowling well, batting well, fielding well. I worked hard on my game since last year. I was one times wondering why I was one times getting injured so badly."

"It was hard time for me. I think that was the toughest period for me in the last 10 years. There was a time when I asked myself, 'do I require to continue'? Seriously, I thought, 'do I require to play anymore or not'? There was lot of negativity around me," they had said in an interview earlier.

Ajmal still baffled by Tendulkar lbw reversal

Pakistan offspinner Saeed Ajmal has said that he is still not definite how the Decision Review Method (DRS) overturned on-field umpire Ian Gould's lbw ruling against Sachin Tendulkar in the work of the World Cup semi-final against India in Mohali. Gould ruled Tendulkar lbw off Ajmal in the 11th over, but the batsman reviewed the decision. Replays showed that the ball pitched in line but according to Hawk Eye the ball was missing leg stump & the decision was overturned.

"I don't know how the TV replays showed my delivery turning towards the leg side because I had bowled an arm ball & it went straight," Ajmal told AFP on the team's arrival in Lahore. "I was 110% confident when the referral was made that the batsman was out." Tendulkar was on 23 at that point, & survived two dropped chances before he was dismissed after making an important 85 that earned him the Man of the Match award.

Ajmal picked up six wickets & said that he was happy along with his bowling performance but disappointed that Pakistan lost the high-voltage clash to India by 29 runs. "All of us were very disappointed at losing the match because there was a lot interest & hype attached to it. But in cricket one team has to lose & one has to win," he said.

The pick of the Pakistan bowlers in that game was left-arm seamer Wahab Riaz who picked up his first five-wicket haul in ODIs & had India in trouble at 205 for 6 before Suresh Raina's cameo. "The wickets of [Virender] Sehwag & Yuvraj [Singh] were most memorable for me as they are very unsafe players of pace & spin," Riaz said. Riaz had Sehwag lbw for 38 & accounted for Yuvraj Singh for a duck with a swinging, dipping full toss.

Pakistan manager Intikhab Alam praised the team spirit & said the way the team had gelled together & played as a unit through the event was the most satisfying aspect of the campaign. "My main task was to unite the team & make it perform collectively & I think they achieved that to a great extent & that is satisfying for me."

Pakistan were warmly welcomed by their fans when they arrived in Lahore & captain Shahid Afridi, who landed in Karachi, was mobbed by joyful fans on the way to his house. Opening batsman Mohammad Hafeez, who made a quick-fire 43, urged the Pakistan fans to have faith in the team. "This team has plenty of capability & will get better leads to the future," he said.

Pakistan next travel to West Indies to play Twenty20, two one-dayers & six Tests. That tour begins on April 18.

Nehra Doubtful for final show

Ashish Nehra picked up three wickets against Pakistan

Ashish Nehra has fractured the middle finger on his right hand putting a query mark over his choice for the final match against SriLanka on Saturday. Ranjib Biswal, the Indian team manger, confirmed the development but said the team would only take a call on Friday about whether or not they could play. "Nehra has a fractured finger, which was revealed from the scans taken this morning," Biswal said.

Since the injury was on his non-bowling hand, Nehra could get through seven more overs in the match. However, there's worries they won't be able to field.

Nehra picked up the injury while trying a catch in the semi-final against Pakistan. They was fielding at deep midwicket when they tried to pick up a pull by Shahid Afridi against Yuvraj Singh. Nehra, not known a lot for his deftness in the field, charged forward to pick the ball that was dying on him at the final minute. Replays confirmed the ball had bounced in front of him but Nehra's attempt drew applause from his team-mates as well as the fullhouse. Regrettably, Nehra was grimacing in pain and immediately had his finger taped.

It was a small bit of a surprise to see Nehra in the first XI in the coursework of the semi-final, given that the man they replaced, R Ashwin, had been impressive in the three matches they had played in the event. Despite Nehra's performance of 2 for 33, and Munaf Patel's 2 for 40, India captain MS Dhoni said after the game that India had misjudged the pitch and ought to have played another spinner.

Ashwin may well have returned in lieu of either Nehra or Munaf for the final in any case, and will  definitely be in the side if Nehra does not recover. The only other pace option India have is Sreesanth, who has been left on the sidelines since the first game of the event.

Nehra had missed the first three matches of the event with a sore back and was brought in for the group-stage game against Netherlands. Against South Africa in Nagpur, they went for 65 runs in 8.4 overs, 16 off which were scored in the last over of the game, consigning India to defeat. They was then left out for India's next three games, before returning for the semi.

Indians response to Pakistan lost to India in Cricket World Cup 2011

Posted by  Ashish Ratna on (March 31 2011, 02:22 AM GMT)

Very good match and very well played Pakistan. I hope pakistani public will appreciate what this team achieved by reaching till semi finals. Congrats team India, and good luck for 2nd April.

Posted by fanindiancricket on (March 31 2011, 02:18 AM GMT)

Congratulations to my India for reaching finals. My commendations for the Pakistan team for a wonderful World Cup performance. In this semifinals too they tried there best, but then one team had to win and move forward. This Pakistan team looks very promising with great talent. I am sure they would do well in coming years.

Posted by Xosh on (March 31 2011, 02:17 AM GMT)

Afridi great great sportsman and the best captain.

Posted by  Versatile Mani on (March 31 2011, 02:03 AM GMT)

Thank you Afridi and Waqar. You have set this World Cup alight and it has been a thrill to watch Pakistan play with all the verve and panache. Thank you!

Posted by  Anuj Tandon on (March 31 2011, 01:39 AM GMT)

I think Afridi is reffering to paks overall performance in this torunament cause from what I saw last night, apart from patel nehra and riaz and a couple of pks spinners- everyone else was very ordinary including sachin

Posted by  Abhishek Sinha on (March 31 2011, 01:32 AM GMT)

Afridi -- you are a real champion -- both on and off the field. You have won more hearts with your humility than anyone would have ever imagined. I don't know how people in Pakistan will treat Afridi XI but you brought us tears by saying sorry. Dude you have made everyone proud ! You have healed a wounded team and played your part in healing a wounded subcontinet. We're proud of you !

Posted by  Ramshankar Subramanian on (March 31 2011, 01:27 AM GMT)

Afridi has earned a lot of Indian fans (though I am already one) after his post-match talks. Hats off to him for graciously accepting!!!! That great attitude was lacking for many who were always adamant. Pakistan were always in the game till the end. Will be missing these kind of high-tense matches in the coming years!!!! Thanks for the entertainment. You had our nerves till the last over.