Sports

KARACHI: Qatar will get the first action of the FIFA World Cup it hosts in about three-and-half years’ time on June 11 after it was announced that Pakistan will play the home leg of its first-round qualifier for the 2022 showpiece against Cambodia in Doha. The announcement came in the early hours of Thursday by the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) …

All the usual suspects have gathered for the World Cup at the home of cricket, and yet something is missing. The rest of the world. When the first ball is bowled at The Oval on Thursday, only 10 teams will be vying to be world champion, the smallest number since 1992. After the hugely popular, successful, and entertaining 2015 World …

The head of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) anti-corruption unit said on Friday he had been in direct contact with around 12 “corruptors” to warn them off the World Cup. Match fixing or spot fixing, where gamblers try to influence specific incidents in a game, remains one of the biggest problems facing cricket, particularly in countries such as India, the …

Comparisons with Virat Kohli have been a stumbling block for many batsmen in world cricket but Pakistan’s Babar Azam has embraced the challenge wholeheartedly and will carry his country’s hopes at the upcoming World Cup. Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur first mentioned Azam, the world’s top-ranked Twenty20 international batsman, in the same breath as Indian skipper Kohli early last year, …

Afghanistan emerged victorious as they chased a moderate target of 263 runs with three wickets in hand in a warm-up match against Pakistan on Friday ahead of the upcoming International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup. Hashmatullah Shahidi (72) was Afghanistan’s top scorer who remained on the crease till the end. Earlier, Babar Azam had managed to resuscitate a crumbling Pakistani …

St. John’s, Antigua and Barbuda: Can the West Indies take the form that has made them such a potent force in Twenty20 cricket into the World Cup? That is the question confronting Jason Holder’s side as they head into the one-day showpiece in England and Wales that starts on May 30. The Caribbean team, who open their campaign against Pakistan …

London: World Cup hosts England will kick-start the tournament with everything seemingly in place to finally win a trophy that has eluded them for the competition’s entire 44-year history. Captain Eoin Morgan, no slouch with the bat himself, can call on a clutch of experienced matchwinners in a star-studded batting line-up featuring Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes. England are hoping …

 During the Captain’s Media Day ahead of the ICC World Cup 2019, Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed expressed his confidence in the team’s bowling attack after a change in the squad. The wicketkeeper-batsmen during the presser with captains of all ten playing teams in the ICC World Cup 2019, revealed that he has high expectations from Wahab Riaz and Mohammad Amir …

COLOMBO: Pakistan’s Under-19 cricket team arrived in Sri Lanka on Thursday evening to take part in five 50 over matches. Pakistani players were given a warm welcome Sri Lanka Cricket at the BIA airport. The first game of the tour will be played on the 26th May at MRICS, Hambantota.

BRISTOL: After ten straight ODI defeats, Pakistan will be keen to gather some upward momentum ahead of the 2019 Men’s Cricket World Cup in England & Wales with a strong performance against dark horses, Afghanistan. Match starts at 02:30 pm The first warm-up match is set to be an intriguing one, as we get a close look at both sides …