Sports

Babar Azam confident of Pakistan’s prospects in World Cup 2023

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

Babar’s remarks comes amid doubts over Pakistan’s particpation in World Cup.
“We can’t say anything about that, but wherever we get a chance to play, we will play,” he says.
Pakistan beat a depleted New Zealand 4-1 in the five-match series.

KARACHI: Skipper Babar Azam assured the cricket fans that the “dominant” one-day series win over New Zealand has set Pakistan up nicely for the World Cup.

Babar’s remarks comes amid doubts over Pakistan’s participation in the World Cup in October-November because of tensions with hosts India.

Despite the looming uncertainty and defeat in the final match on Sunday, Babar was in buoyant mood.

A day earlier, Pakistan beat a depleted New Zealand 4-1 in the five-match series and on their way briefly reached the top of the one-day rankings for the first time.

Pakistan scored 337 in the second match — their second-highest successful chase in one-day internationals — and Babar became the fastest player to 5,000 ODI runs en route to his 18th century in the format.

Opener Fakhar Zaman meanwhile achieved the distinction of hitting hundreds in three successive ODIs, firmly establishing his place in Pakistan’s top three, which also includes opener Imam-ul-Haq.

“Winning the series is great and so is achieving number one ranking that has set us in a good position for the World Cup,” said the skipper.

Asked if the uncertainty over participation was worrying for the Pakistan team, Babar said: “We can’t say anything about that, but wherever we get a chance to play, we will play.”

The stand-off started last year when India announced it would not send a team to Pakistan for the Asia Cup in September, a month before the World Cup.

In response, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has threatened to pull out of the World Cup.

There are signs of a thaw, however. Last week Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari visited India to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in Goa — the first visit by a senior Pakistani official in years.

No easy win

Babar refused to accept that in missing eight of their top players — mostly due to Indian Premier League duty — New Zealand were easy to beat.

“You don’t play an international team thinking that they are a junior team,” said Babar.

“You have to give 100% to win against an international team, so we played better and dominated.”

Pakistan won the first two matches by five and seven wickets in Rawalpindi before clinching the next two by 26 and 102 runs in Karachi.

New Zealand took the final game by 47 runs, also in Karachi.

Stand-in New Zealand skipper Tom Latham said the series was useful despite the results.

“We wanted to expose players to different roles and I think it was a great opportunity for all of them to experience these conditions,” he said.

New Zealand are sweating on the fitness of regular skipper Kane Williamson, who injured his knee during the IPL and looks likely to miss the World Cup.

New Zealand were runners-up in the last two World Cups, in 2015 and 2019.

Latest News

Tickets for the Pakistan-India match were sold out in a matter of minutes.

Published

1 day ago

Farwa

The International Cricket Council (ICC) reports that tickets for the much awaited Pakistan-India encounter in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which is set to take place in Dubai, were sold out in a matter of minutes.

The tremendous demand for the Pakistan-India match underscores the fierce rivalry and excitement surrounding the tournament, even though tickets for the semi-finals are currently on sale.

Pavilion-specific ticket prices ranged from 500 AED for regular pavilion tickets to 1,200 AED to 5,000 AED for premium seats. The price of the elite Grand Lounge VIP packages was 12,500 AED, or roughly PKR 500,000.

On Tuesday, tickets will also go on sale for India’s first semi-final in Dubai as well as their final two group matches. Tickets for general stands are available for purchase online with prices for general stands starting at 125 AED.

Latest News

ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Today marks the start of the second phase of ticket sales.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Today marks the start of the second phase of the ICC Champions Trophy ticket sale.
Tickets for the opening match of mega event between Pakistan and New Zealand already sold out in the first Phase.
Following the Online sale of Tickets Last week, Physical Tickets for the Eight-Team competition will go on sale from Today.
Tickets for Matches in Pakistan including Group Stage Fixtures and the second Semi-Final will be Available at 108 Outlets of courier Service across the Country.
The Physical Tickets will be available to fans in 26 Cities of Pakistan.

For the ten matches that will be held in Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi, general stand tickets will start at 1,000 Pakistan Rupees, while premium seats in various categories will start at 1,500 Pakistan Rupees.
Tickets for the India matches scheduled for February 20 and 23 and March 2 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, will be made available as soon as possible.

Latest News

Will the Champions Trophy 2025 miss an opening ceremony?

Published

6 days ago

Farwa

The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 may commence without the traditional opening ceremony or captains’ press conference due to a modified arrival schedule for the participating teams.

This year, the England and Australia cricket teams will arrive in Pakistan nearer to the commencement of the event.

Sources inside the International Cricket Council (ICC) have verified that teams, including England and Australia, will arrive in Pakistan following their separate tours.

England is set to complete its tour of India by February 12, but Australia will conclude their series in Sri Lanka on February 14.

Consequently, both teams have retracted from the warm-up matches, a decision aligned with prior ICC events, where tardy attendance hindered practice matches.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) indicated interest in staging an opening ceremony; but, logistical issues related to the teams’ arrival dates resulted in its postponement.

The PCB stated that although the occurrence was not officially verified, it has consistently been regarded as a potentiality.

Although the opening ceremony and press conference have been cancelled, the PCB is dedicated to organising an alternative event to commemorate the importance of hosting the ICC Champions Trophy for the first time in 29 years.

The inaugural match of the tournament, featuring Pakistan and New Zealand, is set for February 19 in Karachi.

The PCB has stated that a celebration for fans will be organized ahead of the match to highlight the excitement surrounding the event.