Banned former captains Mohammad Yousuf, Younus Khan and Shoaib Malik, as well as maverick pacer Shoaib Akhtar, were dropped from the list of players awarded central contracts by the Pakistan Cricket Board. The PCB, however, gave central contracts to Shahid Afridi, Kamran Akmal and Umar Akmal, who were fined after a probe into Pakistan's disastrous tour of Australia in January-February.
Former Pakistan captain Imran Khan has asked the national team's World Cup skipper Shahid Afridi to get prepared to play its knockout stage matches in India.
Shahid Afridi is making all the difference to Pakistan's challenge in the 2011 World Cup with 14 wickets at an economy rate of just 2.6. He now has a phenomenal MVPI of 506. Only two other Pakistanis, Umar Akmal (181) and Misbah-ul-Haq (180), make it to the top 50 MVP list.
Pakistan ODI captain Shahid Afridi reckons that the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS), increasingly common in Test cricket, should also be introduced in one-day international format.
Former South African skipper Shaun Pollock on Wednesday said if poor performance was criteria for handing out bans to Pakistani cricketers then the punishment is a "bit harsh".
Images from the World Cup match between Pakistan and Canada played in Colombo on Thursday.
Shahid Afridi struck with the ball once again to help Pakistan score what was eventually a comprehensive win over Canada in the World Cup match at the Premadasa stadium on Thursday.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) put an end to the international careers of former captains Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan besides imposing a one-year ban on Shoaib Malik in the wake of the team's disastrous tour of Australia.
Statistical highlights of the World Cup match between England and Ireland in Bangalore.
Coming hard at the suspended trio of Salman Butt, Mohammad Aamir and Mohammed Asif, Pakistan's ODI and T20 captain Shahid Afridi on Sunday said they should be kept away from the dressing room in the best interest of the team.
Pakistan defeated Kenya comfortably in their first match of the World Cup but skipper Shahid Afridi said his side will have to play with lot more energy if they desire to beat mighty Sri Lanka in front of their home crowd on Saturday.
Images from the Woorld Cup match between Pakistan and Kenya, played in Hambantota, Sri Lanka, on Wednesday.
Pakistan's ODI captain Shahid Afridi said his team was trying to keep its morale high in the wake of the spot-fixing scandal and was looking forward to their practice game against Somerset on Thursday.
Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi has emphasised that bowling during the final powerplay will play a crucial role in the outcome of the matches in the World Cup and his side is paying special attention to this area.
He felt humiliated when Pakistani cricketers were snubbed by the Indian Premier League franchisees this year but all-rounder Shahid Afridi has not ruled out the possibility of playing in the lucrative Twenty20 league next year.
Pakistan is struggling in the ongoing tour of England because the team lacks players with the "right temperament" for Test cricket but it will do better in the shorter versions of the game, feels One-day and Twenty20 captain Shahid Afridi.
The PSL had entered the knockout stages and semifinal matches were due to be played on Tuesday in Lahore and final on Wednesday. The PCB had already shortened the league by four days considering the worsening scenario around the coronavirus.
Pacer Dirk Nannes on Tuesday rubbished Pakistani all-rounder Shahid Afridi's allegation that all teams indulge in ball-tampering and said bowlers can achieve success without twisting laws.
A repentant Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi tendered an unconditional apology to the country and the cricket world after being penalised by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for ball tampering, saying he would not repeat the "mad thing" again in future.
Shahid Afridi is likely to be retained as the One-day captain for the ICC World Cup 2011 after chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Ijaz Butt held discussions with the team management in New Zealand and chief operating officer in Lahore.
Shahid Afridi has said that the Indian Premier League (IPL) fiasco could have been avoided had the T20 league organisers and franchises restrained themselves from allowing politics to influence their decision.
Pakistan's tainted former skipper Salman Butt has called on the Cricket Board (PCB) to appoint senior batsman Misbah-ul-Haq as captain for the World Cup to be held in the sub-continent next month.
Rashid Khan destroyed the West Indies batting line-up with amazing figures of seven for 18 to bowl Afghanistan to a stunning 63-run victory.
Pakistan's One-day skipper Shahid Afridi has said that he is under no threat regarding the World Cup captaincy issue as he had never run after the captaincy in his entire career.
Former skipper Shoaib Malik is set to replace Shahid Afridi in Pakistan playing eleven for the second Test against Australia at Headingley, which is also likely to see the return of off-spinner Saeed Ajmal.
Salman Butt on Saturday became the seventh Pakistan Test captain in three years after being handed the job for the second game against Australia and the subsequent four-match series against England.
Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi made a dramatic announcement on Friday that he will quit Test cricket and captaincy after his side's second five-day game against Australia next week. After Australia beat Pakistan by 150 runs in the first Test at Lord's Afridi said the second and final match, starting at Headingley on July 21 would be his last.
Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi believes that he was handed over the responsibility to lead the side, as the selectors had no other choice.
Pakistan's ability to conjure unity from discord and disarray will be tested to the full in the first of two tests against Australia starting at Lord's on Tuesday.
Contrary to Mohammed Yousuf's assumption that Twenty20 cricket would eventually destroy Test cricket, Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi says it has actually made the five-day games more result-oriented.
It was Adam Gilchirst's sensible and aggressive captaincy that changed the fortunes of the Deccan Chargers in IPL-II, Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi said on Tuesday.
It will be a battle of attrition when archrivals India and Pakistan resume cricketing rivalry after eight months in the Asia Cup on Saturday.
Mohammad Yousuf will lead Pakistan for the Test and One-day International series against Australia starting this month.
Lasith Malinga's fiery spell upstaged Shahid Afridi's blazing century as Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by 16 runs in the opening match of the Asia Cup in Dambulla, on Tuesday. Set 243 for victory, Pakistan looked on course after Afridi smashed 109, but Malinga thwarted all their plans by claiming five for 34.
Shahid Afridi may have realised a long-cherished dream to captain Pakistan in all formats of cricket but he would have a tough time dealing with the pressure that the job brings with it, feels former skipper Rameez Raja.
Pakistan's iconic former captain Imran Khan is not sure whether Shahid Afridi has the ability to pull through a team in shambles but conceded that if there is anyone capable of achieving something extraordinary, it is the swashbuckling current skipper.
Opener Salman Butt is all set to be named as Pakistan vice-captain for the forthcoming Asia Cup in Sri Lanka and the subsequent tour to England, according to PCB sources.
Newly appointed Pakistan Test captain Shahid Afridi wants former skipper Younis Khan as his deputy during the upcoming Asia Cup and the 'home' Test series in England.
Feisty off-spinner Harbhajan Singh is the lone Indian to make any substantial gain in the ICC One-Day rankings, jumping 11 places to joint eighth in the bowling chart even as batting stars like Yuvraj Singh and Gautam Gambhir lost ground in the latest list.
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