Star cricketer Mohammad Hafeez on Thursday denied receiving a show cause notice from the Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) amid reports that the tax collection body is probing him for alleged concealment of assets. “I am unaware of any notice from the FBR,” Hafeez told Geo News. “I have no idea why such a news is being spread.” Hafeez also appeared …

Pakistan fast bowler Hassan Ali has made significant progress in his recovery from a back injury, although no time frame has been set yet for his return to competitive cricket. According to Dr Sohail Saleem, the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) director medicines and sports sciences, Hassan’s recovery can be ascertained at “80 per cent” and the pacer is on track …

DHAKA: Mominul Haque says he was stunned to be named Bangladesh Test captain in place of the banned Shakib Al Hasan but is relishing the chance to take on Virat Kohli’s side in India. Shakib was banned last week by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for two years, one of them suspended, for failing to declare attempts to bribe him. …

LUCKNOW: Shai Hope and Roston Chase struck half-centuries to power West Indies to a seven-wicket win over Afghanistan in the first one-day international in smog-hit Lucknow on Wednesday. Chase and Hope put on a key 163-run stand for the third wicket as West Indies reached their target of 195 in 46.3 overs to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match …

RAJKOT: The Twenty20 International format can be used to groom young talent and prepare them for One-day Internationals and Tests while not distracting players from winning games, stand-in India skipper Rohit Sharma said on Wednesday. Sharma, who is captaining the side in the second T20 International against Bangladesh in Rajkot on Thursday with Virat Kohli rested for the series, is …

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tennis Federation in its appeal against International Tennis Federation’s decision of shifting the Pakistan-India Davis Cup tie from Islamabad to a neutral venue, will ask the ITF if thousands of Indian Sikh pilgrims can visit Pakistan, then what went wrong for a 10-member tennis team, PTF president Salim Saifullah said on Wednesday. “Every year, many Sikhs come …

CANBERRA: Australia coach Justin Langer said selectors will likely resist mixing up the Twenty20 team for the series finale against Pakistan in Perth despite his side holding an unassailable 1-0 lead. Australia’s dominant seven-wicket win over Pakistan in Canberra on Tuesday means the hosts cannot lose the series but Langer insisted a series win remains their priority. “We’ve got a …

ISLAMABAD: The World Bank-funded $400 million project is aimed at creating a sustainable increase in the country’s tax revenue, raising the tax-to-GDP ratio to 17 per cent and widening the tax net to 3.5m active taxpayers by 2023-24. A World Bank team led by Vice-President for Equitable Growth, Finance and Institutions (EFI) Ceyla Pazarbasioglu on Wednesday informed Finance Adviser Hafeez …

ISLAMABAD: The parliamentarians on Wednesday opposed government’s proposed move to centralise sales tax on services on the grounds of it being against the constitution and asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to relax economic targets set under the $6 billion extended fund facility that was adversely affecting the country’s businesses and the people. The IMF mission, however, showed its satisfaction …

ISLAMABAD: The Eco­no­mic Coordination Comm­ittee (ECC) of the cabinet on Wednesday approved rescheduling of about Rs167 billion power sector debt. A meeting of the ECC, presided over by PM’s adviser on finance and revenue, Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh increased sale margins of oil marketing companies (OMCs) and dealers and ordered release of 1,107 imported vehicles imp­ounded at ports for months. …