Sports

KARACHI: Pakistan captain Babar Azam on Wednesday admitted the unfamiliar conditions of Zimbabwe offer a new challenge for his side in red-ball cricket when the two-match Test series begins in Harare on Thursday. Addressing a virtual media conference on eve of the first Test at the Harare Sports Club, Babar expressed optimism about Pakistan doing well over the course of …

Zimbabwe won the toss and chose to bat in the first Test against Pakistan at the Harare Sports Club on Thursday. The home team gave three players their Test debuts for the series opener: batsmen Milton Shumba and Roy Kaia and left-arm seamer Richard Ngarava. Zimbabwe captain Sean Williams is sidelined with injury, as is fellow batsman Craig Ervine. Former captain Brendan …

Karachi: Pakistan’s Team TG has started preparations to take part in Free Fire World Series, scheduled to take place in Singapore from May 22-29. The five-member ‘Team TG’ topped the Free Fire Pakistan League last month and qualified for the event. The top 12 teams from Pakistan battled it out for a prize pool of 25 Lakh PKR in a …

Karachi: Wicket-keeper batsman Mohammad Rizwan, after his player of the series performance in Zimbabwe, has helped him enter in the top 10 of the ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings. The 28-year-old Rizwan gained five slots to reach 10th position, overtaking the likes of England captain Eoin Morgan and India opener Rohit Sharma. Rizwan is the now second-highest ranked Pakistan batsman in the list, …

MUNICH: Bayern Munich on Tuesday signed RB Leipzig coach Julian Nagelsmann to take over from Hansi Flick next season on a five-year contract, bringing to Munich one of Europe’s most sought after young managers. The 33-year-old took the reins at second-placed RB Leipzig in 2019 and led them to the Champions League semi-finals last year. Flick is leaving Bayern at …

LONDON: The Wim­bledon Championships will become a 14-day tournament from 2022, with matches set to be played on Middle Sunday, traditionally a day off at the grasscourt Grand Slam, the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) said on Tuesday. The first Sunday of Wimbledon is normally a rest day, on which tournament organisers work to get the courts back into …

KARACHI: The group led by Ashfaq Hussain Shah is willing to negotiate with the Pakistan Football Federation Normalisation Committee in order to overturn the suspension the global football governing body FIFA has imposed on Pakistan. Ashfaq’s group of officials, who came to power after a PFF election held by the Supreme Court in December 2018, seized control of the PFF …

NEW DELHI: India’s cricket board, the BCCI, on Tuesday told players it will ensure their safe return home once the ongoing Twenty20 tournament is completed, in a charm offensive as the Covid-19 pandemic grips the country, local media reported. Australia’s Adam Zampa, Kane Richardson and Andrew Tye have cut short their IPL season and gone home, while India off-spinner Ravichandran …

Karachi: England’s pacer Saqib Mehmood will not be part of Peshawar Zalmi for the remaining matches of Pakistan Super League (PSL) season six. The 24-year-old Saqib announced that due to his commitment with Lancashire County, he can’t join 2017 PSL champion. “Really enjoyed my time with Peshawar Zalmi in PSL 6 earlier this year but given the timing of the …

Karachi: Pakistan’s batting maestro Javed Miandad has rated the current national team’s skipper Babar Azam as the best in the first. The 63-year-old Miandad, on his YouTube channel, hailed Green Shirts T20I series win over Zimbabwe on Sunday. “He’s a superb player and after a long time, Pakistan has got such a player. I rate him on a very high …