Category: 6. Sports

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is expected to announce the national squad for the upcoming T20I tour of Bangladesh later this week, sources confirmed.

The team is scheduled to play a three-match T20I series against Bangladesh from July 20 to 24 in Dhaka.

According to reports, no major changes are anticipated in the squad, though a surprise inclusion is likely, with left-arm spinner Sufiyan Muqeem expected to be part of the touring party.

The training camp for the Pakistan T20 squad will commence at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi from July 7 to prepare for the series.

Regular stars Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Afridi – who were rested for the previous home series against Bangladesh – are currently not part of the plans for an unspecified period.

It is pertinent to mention that the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) confirmed all three T20Is will be played at the Shere-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka, starting at 5:00 PM Pakistan Standard Time.

The Pakistan team is set to arrive in Bangladesh on July 16.

The opening match will be played on July 20, followed by the second and third fixtures on July 22 and 24, respectively.

The two sides last faced each other in a T20I series in May, where Pakistan secured a dominant 3-0 whitewash at home.

The series began with Pakistan bowling out Bangladesh for 164 after posting 201/6, securing a 37-run win. In the second game, the hosts defended an identical total, restricting Bangladesh to 144 to clinch a 57-run victory.

Bangladesh showed resistance in the third match by setting a challenging target of 197, powered by Parvez Hossain Emon’s explosive half-century.

However, Pakistan comfortably chased down the total with three wickets down and 16 balls to spare, courtesy of a scintillating century by wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Haris.

KARACHI:

“1.8 billion rupees – that’s a huge amount. If India doesn’t participate, then the Asia Cup might not even happen.”

This question was posed in surprise by a Pakistani TV channel representative to an Indian broadcaster, who replied, “Don’t worry, the tournament will be held in September. Our team will also participate.” This conversation took place recently. Currently, there are four sports channels in Pakistan. One is state-owned and financially struggling. Another was previously blacklisted and is now barely surviving by airing old footage. A third is newly affiliated with an international sports network, and one more media group is also competing for broadcasting rights. Our market is not that large, so recovering billions in broadcasting fees is an uphill battle.

But that’s not our main topic. The positive takeaway here is the encouraging signals surrounding the Asia Cup. After suffering setbacks during the recent conflict, the Indian media began spreading rumors that their team would not participate in the Asia Cup. However, the BCCI officially rejected such reports.

Recently, India and Pakistan were placed in the same group for the Women’s World Cup by the ICC, and there was no backlash in India. Pakistan has also been invited to participate in the Junior Hockey World Cup. Media management works differently in both countries. In India, cricket board officials rarely appear publicly. Instead, they leak information through journalists using anonymous sources – like they did during the Champions Trophy.

In contrast, PCB officials occasionally speak directly to the media. Indian media is no longer reporting negatively about the Asia Cup, which indicates they, too, have received assurance from the BCCI that the tournament will go ahead.

Last year, the Asian Cricket Council’s 8-year media rights were sold to an Indian media group by Jay Shah for $170 million. This includes four Asia Cups and other women’s and junior events, with at least two guaranteed India-Pakistan matches in each tournament. Sources say Sony has now also been told by the BCCI not to worry – India will play in the Asia Cup.

No matter how strained the bilateral ties, India has never refused to play Pakistan in ICC events. The only reason is the lucrative media rights, mostly held by Indian broadcasters. With billions invested, it’s not feasible to waste that money. At such times, politics is conveniently set aside. It’s safe to assume politicians also benefit from these massive deals, so they don’t object either.

Fortunately, Pakistan doesn’t politicize sports. Our government doesn’t dictate which countries we should or shouldn’t play against. This clear policy gives the board flexibility in decision-making.

This time, India is the official host of the Asia Cup, and reports suggest they’ve spoken with the Emirates Cricket Board to hold matches there. The tournament is expected to be held from September 12 to 28. Previously, the Asia Cup has also been held in Dubai, so it’s feasible again.

India and Pakistan have agreed not to travel to each other’s countries, and instead play at neutral venues. This will also apply to the Asia Cup.

Credit goes to Mohsin Naqvi for bringing balance to Pakistan-India cricket relations. His clear stance before the Champions Trophy forced India to agree to terms. In the past, Pakistan used to travel to India for ICC events, but India wouldn’t reciprocate. Now, the BCCI is aware that any hard stance will be met with stronger reaction from Pakistan.

Therefore, it appears increasingly likely that the Asia Cup will be played in September, to determine Asia’s cricketing champion. However, India is unpredictable – they could cause trouble at the last moment. So Mohsin Naqvi, as the Asian Cricket Council chief, must have a Plan B ready. After all, India has realized, especially after the recent war, that the only way to appease their public is by defeating Pakistan in a cricket match – or making films with actors like Akshay Kumar or Ajay Devgn, showcasing fictional victories.

Whatever happens, matches between these traditional rivals always capture fan interest. Pakistani fans are especially eager for cricket. It’s surprising that a series was held just before the PSL, exhausting players, and now there are no matches at all. If Bangladesh hadn’t agreed to play three additional T20s in July, this off-season would’ve been even longer. For future tours, Pakistan must work hard on its FTP (Future Tours Programme). Since Sameer Syed doesn’t know much about cricket, experienced officials should guide him.

Stadiums look good only when active. No matter how many training camps are held, nothing beats actual match practice. The Asia Cup, followed by the T20 World Cup, are crucial. Beating Bangladesh won’t be enough preparation – the more we play against stronger teams, the more we will benefit.

Pakistan girls netball team continued its brilliant winning streak here on Monday when they cruised past a strong Japan netball outfit by 79-39 goals, scoring their fourth successive win in the prestigious Asian Youth Girls Netball Championship-2025 which is being played at Jeonju Hwasan Gymnasium, Jeonju-si, South Korea.

The players who stood out for Pakistan on the court were Leya Raza Shah, Alisha Naveed, Haleema, Sarina Hussain, Jasmine Farooq, Farah Rasheed, Amani, Parisa, Sumayya Ahmed and Alina.

Japan girls netball team also displayed a competitive game and scored at regular intervals against Pakistan. However, Pakistani girls proved to be superior in skills and stamina as they bounced back in all the four quarters to maintain their lead.

Chairman, Pakistan Netball Federation, Mudassar Arian, President, Sameen Malik, Secretary General, Muhammad Riaz congratulated the Pakistan girls netball team for their brilliance and hard work in the match.

Pakistan is now on top of Pool- B of this mega event and will play their next match against Maldives on Tuesday (today).

Eleven teams are participating in the championship which are divided into two groups;

Group-A; Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Hong Kong and India.

Group-B; Chinese Taipei, Japan, Korea, Pakistan, Maldives and Saudi Arabia

The Asian Youth Netball Championship 2025 is being played from

June 27 to July 4, 2025, under the auspices of Asian Netball Federation.

Ally Lemos

While such suggestions may seem far-fetched to some, a more flexible approach is something global players’ union Fifpro is now calling for after what it calls the “wake-up call” of the Club World Cup.

At a news conference on Monday, its medical director Dr Vincent Gouttebarge said extended half-time breaks of 20 minutes in extreme heat to keep players’ core temperatures within their normal range should be considered.

Alexander Bielefeld, Fifpro’s director of policy, claimed the weather was of “increasing concern”, and that while postponing matches for heat was “slightly trickier” than in a domestic league “we clearly believe that from a health and safety perspective this is something that must take priority over commercial interests.”

Fifa guidelines currently rely on the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT), a measure of heat stress combining temperature and humidity. If the WBGT exceeds 32C, short ‘cooling breaks’ are mandatory in both halves of a match.

In contrast, Fifpro believes breaks should be introduced once the WBGT goes above 28C, and that if it exceeds 32C matches should be delayed. On this basis, so far at the Club World Cup both PSG v Atletico Madrid in Pasadena and Chelsea v ES Tunis in Philadelphia “should have been postponed to a better place in the day and, if not available (another slot), then rescheduled”.

“We are partially happy, because Fifa have been quite responsive once the tournament was underway [and] have actually modified how they’ve been dealing with heat during matches, based on our input,” said Fifpro general secretary Alex Phillips.

“Obviously it would have been better if that had happened in advance, but they’ve put in place measures such as additional water and towels around the pitch.

“There’s a question at some point [over] what the industry sees as a precautionary threshold to players, but also to spectators, to potentially delay kick-off later on. You can apply so many pragmatic measures, such as shading, hydration, cooling, etc. At some point, that probably won’t be enough. And that’s a discussion which we need to have, even though this is a difficult conversation based on commercial interests.”

Earlier this year, researchers from Queen’s University Belfast warned the temperatures at 14 of the 16 stadiums being used for the 2026 World Cup could exceed potentially dangerous levels, with Miami and Monterrey posing the greatest risk as they do not have air-conditioned stadiums.

While Dallas and Houston do have cooling systems, it said there was still a risk to spectators if games were played in the afternoon. Significantly, the report also suggested afternoon games be avoided in New York, along with Kansas City, Boston and Philadelphia.

Fifpro says any afternoon kick-offs at six venues; Kansas City, Miami, Monterrey, Houston, Dallas and Atlanta carry an “extremely high-risk” of a “heat-stress injury”. Only two; San Francisco and Vancouver are rated “low-risk”.

When asked if Fifpro will make recommendations to Fifa before the World Cup when it comes to kick-off times at certain venues, Phillips said, “We have absolutely no power to force them to, we can only use informal pressure.

“We will use common sense arguments. We can use the MLS [Major League Soccer] protocols. They don’t play matches at midday in Florida, for example, and haven’t done for a number of years. So those kind of arguments are strong.”

However, with more matches next year (104) than at any previous World Cup, Fifa may feel its ability to adapt scheduling and postpone matches is limited.

The emptiness of the courts is noticeable on Centre Court and Court One, where the vast space behind the baseline is now occupied only by the ball kids.

Britain’s Cameron Norrie said it “looks cool” with the line umpires in place and contributes to the “tradition” of the tournament.

“Obviously there’s a lot of jobs and people that love tennis, which will definitely be missed from them,” he said.

But while many players agree line judges are part of the spectacle, few can argue with the accuracy of the calls.

“As a player it’s pretty black or white with the calls,” added Norrie.

“In, out… there’s no mistake, nothing happening. Definitely you’ve got to feel for those linesmen and those people. That’s a bit tough for them, but it’s pretty black or white with the calling.”

The theatre of players challenging the calls has also been a notable absence with fans unable to get involved with the drama of a close call being replayed on the big screen.

American 12th seed Frances Tiafoe said he would have liked to see Wimbledon keep line judges.

“I actually like [it] with them [line judges] on the court, because I think for fanfare it’s better,” he said.

“If I were to hit a serve on a big point, you go up with the challenge, is it in, is it out? The crowd is, like, ‘ohhh’. There’s none of that.

“If I hit a good serve now and they call it out, you may still think it’s in, but it doesn’t matter. I think that kind of kills it.”