'I'm thinking of not playing Surya till the 23rd to keep his form'
Imam-ul-Haq and Abdullah Shafique made a solid start to set up a thrilling final day in the deciding third Test
Pakistan snatched a thrilling five-wicket victory over India in the first Twenty20 International to record its first win in shortest format against arch rivals, whose bad streak continued close on the heels of their disastrous series against England.
Pakistan's batting finally came good as they successfully chased down a competitive total posted by Sri Lanka to win by six wickets in an inconsequential final round robin league encounter of the Asia Cup Twenty20 cricket tournament in Mirpur on Friday. Batting first, Sri Lanka could manage a decent 150 for four, riding on a century opening stand between TM Dilshan and Dinesh Chandimal. In reply, Pakistan produced a collective batting performance to win the match in 19.2 overs. Umar Akmal (48 off 37 balls) and veteran Shoaib Malik (13 not out) added 56 runs in 6.1 overs to take Pakistan home. Akmal's innings had four boundaries and two huge sixes. Mohammed Hafeez (14) hit three boundaries before off-spinner Shehan Jayasuriya dismissed him off a delivery that stopped as the batsman failed to check his shot. Left-hander Sharjeel Khan hit five boundaries and a six, in his 31 off 25 balls as he added 35 quick runs for the second wicket with Sarfraz Ahmed (38).
World Twenty20 champions England celebrated their first international since winning the World Cup in Barbados this year with a five-wicket win over controversy-hit Pakistan on Sunday.
Umar Gul and Shahid Afridi shared the bowling honours as Pakistan defeated Australia by seven wickets in a Twenty20 match in Dubai on Thursday.
Pakistan head coach Waqar Younis left the press conference after his team's hard fought 29-run win against a formidable South Africa in Auckland.
Shaun Tait fiery spell ensured Australia complete the clean sweep, as the hosts beat Pakistan by two runs in the one-off Twenty20 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday.
A record-breaking batting display from centurions Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers took South Africa to a 34-run win over Pakistan in the third One-Day International on Sunday.
Pakistan's experienced batsman Younis Khan dug deep for his 24th Test century and his seventh against Sri Lanka to rescue his struggling side who closed on 261-4 on the opening day of the first Test on Wednesday.
Babar Azam hit his maiden century while spinner Mohammad Nawaz grabbed four wickets as Pakistan thrashed the West Indies by 111 runs on the Duckworth-Lewis method in the first day-night international on Friday. Azam's rapid-fire 139-ball 120 helped Pakistan post a challenging 284-9 in a match reduced to 49 overs a side due to a 70-minute floodlight failure at Sharjah Stadium in the UAE. West Indies -- set 287 to win -- never got close and folded at 175 in 38.4 overs.
Sri Lanka claimed the extra half-hour at the end of the fourth day to complete a 209-run rout of Pakistan in the first Test on Monday. The visitors, chasing an unlikely victory target of 510, were bowled out for 300.
'I know we've got a big series but we can worry about that in a couple days' time. You only get a few of these moments in your career where you can sit back, acknowledge a pretty special achievement and that's one of these times.'
Dale Steyn's career-best bowling figures propelled South Africa to a comprehensive 211-run victory over Pakistan on day four of the first Test at the Wanderers on Monday.
Pakistan were set 159 runs to win from 32 overs according to the Duckworth-Lewis calculation.
James Anderson claimed four wickets as England made an excellent start to the third and final Test in Sharjah by bowling out Pakistan for 234 on Sunday.
Younis Khan's superb 218 put Pakistan in a strong position before they picked up four England wickets to take complete control on the third day of the fourth and final Test at The Oval on Saturday.
Pakistan beat India ny 25 runs after twin tons by Salman Butt (129 retired hurt) and Younis Khan (108) propelled them to 315 for three, India faltered early in their chase and eventually folded for 290 in 48.2 overs.
Mohammad Yousuf scored his 20th Test hundred as Pakistan ended Day 2 in the first Test against the West Indies in a strong position.
Pakistan made 39 for one after pacer Umar Gul took five for 65 to help skittle out West Indies for 206 on day one of the first Test.
Mohammad Hafeez became the first batsman given out for obstructing the field under new rules on Thursday before Pakistan defeated South Africa by three wickets to level their one-day series 2-2.
Pakistan pulled off a thrilling three-wicket victory over hosts Bangladesh to storm into the finals of the Asia Cup cricket tournament, knocking India out of the title race. Shahid Afridi's blistering 59 off 25 balls helped Pakistan set up a summit clash against Sri Lanka. Here are the statistical highlights from the Asia Cup One-dayer played between Pakistan and Bangladesh in Dhaka on Tuesday.
Electing to bat, Hong Kong folded for a paltry 116 in 37.1 overs, courtesy Usman's 3 for 19 and two-wicket hauls by Shadab Khan (2/31) and Hasan Ali (2/19).
A fiery fourth-wicket partnership of 83 runs between Abdul Razzaq and Rana Naved-ul Hassan, helped by butter-fingered World XI fielders, powered ICL Pakistan to a convincing six-wicket win in their do-or-die league match of the 20s World series in Ahmedabad on Wednesday night.
Ahmed Shehzad became the first Pakistani batsman to hit a Twenty20 International century as the 2009 champions crushed Bangladesh by 50 runs in a Group Two match to keep alive their semi-final hopes in the World Twenty20 on Sunday.
India, led by a superb unbeaten 78 from Virat Kohli, kept their Twenty20 World Cup hopes alive with an empathic eight-wicket win over arch-rivals Pakistan in the Super Eights on Sunday.
England's Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann were the scourge of Pakistan as they bagged six wickets to reduce the hosts to 256 for 7 on the first day of the second Test in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
New Zealand's batsmen picked up the pace way too late as Pakistan survived some tense moments before beating them by 14 runs in their Group D clash of the World Twenty20 in Pallekelle on Sunday.
The opening batsman was unbeaten on 192 as India amassed 352 for 3 on Day 1 of the second Test against Pakistan.
Harbhajan Singh smashed a six to help India beat Pakistan by three wickets with one delivery to spare in a thrilling finish in the fourth match of the Asia Cup, in Dambulla, on Saturday. India's run-chase was set up by half-centuries from Gautam Gambhir and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who added 98 runs in 108 deliveries for the third wicket.
Virender Sehwag returned to form with a cavalier 73 as India won the second ODI and shared the DLF Cup series.
Shoaib Malik said his team's batting failure was responsible for their six-wicket defeat against India.
The 34-year-old took the prized wickets of Imam-ul-Haq, Azhar Ali and Babar Azam to end Pakistan's resistance and finished with figures of 5-83 in Pakistan's second innings.
New Zealand's batting tail wagged to take them to 403 in their first innings before they returned to dismiss Pakistan's openers on the second day of the second Test in Dubai on Tuesday.
Australia won the Under-19 cricket World Cup, beating Pakistan by 25 runs in the final at Bert Sutcliffe Oval in Lincoln, New Zealand, on Saturday.
South Africa's pace bowlers laid the foundation for a crushing nine-wicket victory over Pakistan in the first Twenty20 international at Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.
