In a dense and dusty neighbourhood in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi, eight young girls lined up against a cement wall, touching their hands to their faces in prayer before boxing practice began.
All-rounder Andre Russell hit a whirlwind 13-ball 42 not out, including three sixes from a Sohail Khan over, before taking three wickets with the ball to help West Indies demolish Pakistan by a huge margin of 150 runs.
Sunil Gavaskar has said India were superior to Pakistan in every aspect of the game during their World Cup win in Adelaide but said they need to work more on their bowling and fielding before they take on title-contenders such as Australia and New Zealand.
The Pakistan-born bowler made an instant impact on his return to the South Africa line-up and his team mates made sure his hard work did not go to waste as they finished the day on 128 for three wickets, a 29-run first innings lead.
Pakistan lost a few early wickets before completing a convincing seven-wicket victory over South Africa in the first Test, in Abu Dhabi, on Thursday.
Paceman Trent Boult took four wickets as New Zealand beat Pakistan by an innings and 80 runs to win the third and final Test within four days and level the series 1-1.
The leaden-footed Australians found themselves bamboozled by Pakistan's wily spinners and their trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand can expect similar treatment from Misbah-ul-Haq and his men in a three-Test series starting in Abu Dhabi on Sunday.
Mohammad Hafeez struck his maiden Test double hundred as Pakistan feasted on Bangladesh's limited bowling resources to post a commanding 537 for five wickets on day three and take charge of the opening match at Khulna on Thursday.
West Indies skipper Jason Holder is expecting plenty of entertainment against Pakistan when the two most mercurial sides in international cricket face off in the World Cup in Christchurch.
Mitchell Starc shone with bat and ball as Australia dismissed Pakistan for 163 to secure an innings and 18 run victory in the second Test on Friday, the win giving the hosts an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
A hostile trio of Pakistan left-arm fast bowlers took full advantage of a pitch freshened by rain to hand pre-tournament favourites South Africa their second defeat in the ICC World Cup.
Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal picked up two wickets in the last session to restrict Sri Lanka to 220 for 5 at stumps on the first day of the third and final Test in Sharjah on Thursday.
Pakistan batsmen Mohammad Hafeez and Ahmed Shehzad scored fluent half centuries as the first Test against Sri Lanka ended in a tame draw on the fifth day in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.
Cheteshwar Pujara was the highest-ranked Indian batsman despite dropping a rung to eighth while R Ashwin held on to his eighth position in the bowlers' chart of the ICC Test rankings.
Sarfraz Ahmed's belligerent century powered Pakistan to a strong 454 in their first innings on the second day of the first Test against Australia on Thursday.
Some strong performances with the bat will help Joe Root to surge to the top and then potentially strengthen his position in the four-Test series against Pakistan, which begins on 14 July.
Australia were staring at a 2-0 series defeat after Pakistan's bowlers exposed their frailties against spin and reverse swing on day three of the second and final test in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.
Sri Lanka took the upper hand after the third day of the opening Test at Galle on Friday, reducing Pakistan to 118-5 after Kaushal Silva's second Test century took the hosts to 300 in their first innings.
Sohaib Maqsood and Fawad Alam struck quick-fire fifties and combined in a record 147-run sixth wicket stand as Pakistan defeated Sri Lanka by four wickets with one ball remaining in the first one-day international at Hambantota on Saturday.
The 28-year-old Kohli scored 62 and six not out to move to 833 points, within 14 points of England's Joe Root in a list led by Australia captain Steve Smith.
Pakistan crushed Bangladesh by 328 runs on Saturday to win their final Test with a day to spare.
Brian Vitori grabbed five wickets and opener Tino Mawoyo scored a half-century as Zimbabwe took control of the second Test against Pakistan with a 185-run lead on Thursday.
Debutant fast bowler Bilawal Bhatti dismissed experienced duo Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene in consecutive deliveries as Pakistan strengthened their hold on the first Test against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.
In 2010, the accused chopped off Joseph's hand accusing him of hurting religious sentiments of a community through a question paper he set for his students.
Factbox on the third World Cup quarter-final between Australia and Pakistan at the Adelaide Oval on Friday.
Anderson becomes number-one ranked Test bowler
In terms of days, Dale Steyn has spent 2,320 days at the top of the ICC Player Rankings for Test Bowlers, the most by any bowler since World War II.
Murali Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara eye top 10 places while Ravindra Jadeja jumps to career-best third position among Test all-rounders.
South Africa will have to dig deep if they are to avoid defeat in the first Test after being reduced to 72 for four wickets in their second innings, still trailing Pakistan by 121 runs, in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin surged to the top of the MRF Tyres ICC Player Rankings for Test Bowlers after a superb outing in the first Test against the West Indies in Antigua which the visiting side won by an innings and 92 runs.
Virat Kohli dropped a position to 11th leaving India with no batsmen in the top 10 of the ICC Player Rankings for Test batsmen, in the latest update of the ICC Player Rankings released by the International Cricket Council on Tuesday.
The International Cricket Council released the provisional squads of the 12 teams for next year's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand on Friday. However, co-hosts Australia and minnows Ireland decided against releasing the provisional list although they submitted 30 names to the parent body within the stipulated deadline.
In the ICC Player Rankings for Test bowlers, Australia's Ryan Harris has moved up two places to second following his six wickets against India in the fourth Test at MCG.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances