Australia sets target of 275 for West Indies to win

Adam Voges smashed 112 unbeatable against West Indies:

Adam Voges scored his maiden international century to push Australia to a very competitive total of 5 for 274 as they aimed to complete a 5-0 series clean-sweep in the fifth ODI against West Indies in Melbourne. Tino Best rattled Australia with two wickets in the first three overs of the game and later the Australians were wobbling at 4 for 82 but a century partnership between Voges and Brad Haddin launched the recovery before James Faulkner joined Voges for some quick late runs.

Voges finished unbeaten on 112 and Faulkner on 31 and during their partnership the wheels really fell off for West Indies, who leaked 100 runs in the final ten overs. Singles and twos were far too easy and Voges was also finding the boundary, including with a crunching six over long-on against Best in the 50th over. Voges had brought up his ton from his 97th delivery with a hastily-run two and he celebrated like a man who thought the moment would never come.

That would be understandable, for Voges made his one-day international debut nearly six years ago and since then has been almost permanently on the fringes of the national side, playing 17 ODIs but never more than three in a row. He made West Indies pay for giving him a life on 7, when he was put down at slip by Darren Sammy off the spin of Sunil Narine, and given the way Australia were struggling at the time it might prove to be the defining moment.

Voges found the gaps well and showed the form that he had displayed for Western Australia recently, prompting the selectors to give him one more chance at international level. His half-century came from 64 balls and he had good support from Haddin during a 111-run fifth-wicket stand that prevented West Indies capitalising on their impressive start. Eventually Haddin was caught at deep midwicket top-edging a swivelled pull off Kemar Roach but by then Australia were well set.

The match had started so well for West Indies as Best made Sammy's decision to send Australia in look good from the very first ball, which resulted in the wicket of Australia's captain Shane Watson. Best banged the ball in short and Watson tried to leave it alone but was surprised by the amount of bounce, and the ball ricocheted down from his bat onto the stumps.

In Best's next over he got rid of Aaron Finch for 1 with another bouncer, which was pulled straight to Narine right on the boundary at fine leg. Australia were 2 for 2 and it took a steadying 61-run stand between Phillip Hughes and Shaun Marsh to avoid a collapse. Hughes took until his 19th ball to get off the mark and finished with 29 from 61 balls when he was sharply caught by Kieron Pollard at point.

Hughes slashed hard at Dwayne Bravo and Pollard thrust his hand up and knocked the ball up in the air, allowing him to complete the take comfortably on the second grab. Another fine catch ended the innings of Marsh, who was playing his first ODI for nearly a year and a half. On 40, Marsh edged Bravo and was well caught by the wicketkeeper Devon Thomas, diving in front of first slip.

It was the 150th ODI wicket for Bravo, who was the third-quickest West Indian to the milestone, even faster than the great Courtney Walsh. But West Indies didn't have much more to celebrate after that.

Ajmal Shehzad shows his interest for PSL

Ajmal Shehzad keep an eye on Pakistan Super League:

Ajmal Shahzad, who only two years ago was regarded as a integral part of England's fast-bowling future, is the most notable English county player seriously considering whether to sign up for the planned Pakistan Super League.

Pakistan are so anxious to attract overseas players that they have offered life insurance of $2 million (£1.25m) as well as 24-hour personal security for a tournament which would offer competitive cricket immediately ahead of the English county season. 

That has been enough for Shahzad to toy with the possibility of making himself available, along with three other county players with Pakistani antecedents: Lancashire's Kabir Ali, Mooen Ali of Worcestershire and Kadeer Ali, who is currently a free agent since being released by Gloucestershire in 2010. 

That they would eventually accept offers, though, is far from certain. Players' associations including the international body, FICA, and their England equivalent, the PCA, have warned players that they should not visit Pakistan on security grounds and there is a general acceptance that overseas players will be immensely difficult to attract. 

But players with a Pakistan background, and of Muslim religion, are naturally more willing to consider any offers than most, privately feeling that their safety, although impossible to guarantee, might be less compromised.

Shahzad, who is forging a new career with Nottinghamshire after sharing a troubled 2012 season between Yorkshire and Lancashire, said: "It's still early doors but if the PSL is set up professionally and becomes official and the security is top notch then I would think about it. My first commitment is to Notts but the fixtures don't clash with the English season." 

Nottinghamshire have taken a firm line against the involvement of their players in the IPL because it clashes with the England season, but their director of cricket, Mick Newell, emphasised that there would be no automatic objection to any overseas T20 tournament which took place in England's close season. 

He counselled: "We would advise players to have full discussions with the PCA before making a decision about any overseas T20 tournament so they were fully aware of any issues, but we would not automatically block an NOC if it was requested." 

Lancashire are confident that they have dissuaded Kabir from making the trip. "We haven't granted an NOC for any of our players to go forward to the PSL auction," a Lancashire statement said, giving the impression that the subject was closed. 

Kabir, though, had been among the keenest to make the trip, despite an unnerving experience with terrorist violence, this time in India, more than four years ago. When attacks on Mumbai forced the suspension of India's tour of India, In November 2008, Kabir was due to have dinner at the Taj Palace, where England were also shortly due to stay, on the night of the attacks. He changed his mind at the last minute and went to the cinema and the shootings began shortly afterwards. 

Worcestershire's director of cricket, Steve Rhodes, said that Mooen Ali has also not yet applied for an NOC certificate. Such applications would be premature, however, as details of the PSL have not been finalised. Mooen is believed to have more reservations about the tournament than many others under consideration.

South Africa won from last ball's six

South Africa won after a tough fight:

South Africa nearly messed up another run chase, but Ryan McLaren's six off the final ball ensured they avoided their first limited-overs whitewash on home soil by securing a gripping one-wicket victory in Potchefstroom. Graeme Smith's tenth ODI hundred was guiding the innings only for another uncertain display from the middle and lower order to mean the game was never dead and it came down to needing three off the last ball.

James Franklin, who the ball before had Dale Steyn caught at deep midwicket, tried to bowl wide of off stump and McLaren responded by scooping him over fine leg. Still, while the crowd went wild, South Africa's celebrations, after the initial relief, were muted as they had still come second best in this series and, barring Smith, their batting performance was again one to raise concerns.

New Zealand never gave up and deserve immense credit for how they turned their fortunes around during this one-day series. For a side that fielded outstandingly, though, they will regret one moment when McLaren, on 6, was dropped at deep midwicket by Jimmy Neesham who approached the catch far too casually.

While Smith was at the crease the chase, while never simple, was under control. He had brought up his hundred with consecutive boundaries off Kane Williamson but attempting to loft the same bowler down the ground picked out long-on with 32 still needed from 26 balls. Rory Kleinveldt and Aaron Phangiso then both fell swinging across the line at Mitchell McClenaghan to set up the grandstand final over where eight were needed with two wickets in hand.

But Smith's innings deserved to be a matchwinner. During the course of his 130-ball stay he moved second in the list of all-time run-scorers for South Africa in ODIs, now just behind Jacques Kallis and Herschelle Gibbs. Early on he was given plenty on the pads to pick off, but the cover drive, not often a shot associated with Smith, twice made an appearance.

His opening stand of 83 with Quinton de Kock laid the ideal base to chase 260 but after de Kock misjudged his pull against Franklin the innings stalled as New Zealand applied pressure. Nathan McCullum's offspin was hard to score off and when South Africa called for the Powerplay in the 27th over Colin Ingram pulled the first ball of it to midwicket.

More loose shots followed, with Smith watching on from the other end. Faf du Plessis also picked out midwicket against Kyle Mills, Farhaan Behardien chipped a catch back to Williamson who did well to hold on while colliding with Smith and David Miller played a hot-headed hoick across the line shortly after Smith had reached his hundred. At 205 for 5 in the 42nd over New Zealand were back in contention and when they removed Smith the whitewash was on the cards, but McLaren managed to keep his cool.

New Zealand had earlier recovered impressively to reach 260, after familiar problems at the top of the order left them 68 for 4, with Grant Elliott, Colin Munro and Franklin hitting half-centuries. South Africa will again be concerned about how they could not finish off an innings with the ball as well as they had started.

Elliott, who played an important innings in Kimberley, began binding the innings together. Munro grew as his stay progressed and at one stage lofted Steyn for six having already taken debutant Phangiso for three boundaries in an over during a maiden international fifty. He had been given lbw against McLaren when he had 2 but he correctly reviewed as the ball had pitched outside leg and also took an inside edge.

Eventually, however, both batsmen fell to Lonwabo Tsotsobe who had made the early breakthroughs with the new ball. Elliott was the second wicket of the innings to be caught at third man and Munro edged a slower ball. New Zealand, though, benefited from their deep batting order which has been key throughout this series. South Africa, who were again slow with their overs but escaped punishment from match referee David Boon, also gave a helping hand by conceded 17 wides.

Losing regular wickets meant Franklin could not cut loose, but he took the innings as deep as he could with some smart batting. He managed to keep the strike after the ninth wicket fell in the 48th over and the final 11 balls of the innings brought 26 runs, including a six off the penultimate delivery to reach his fifty. It was enough to set up an engrossing finish.

Pakistan ready to attack on South Africa

Pakistan will need Younis Khan to use all his experience on lively South African pitches:

There are some places Pakistan have not played cricket in for even longer than their home country. South Africa is one of them.


Having last played a Test here in 2007, India is the only other place Pakistan have not featured in whites for the last six years although they played a one-day series in India recently. South Africa remains an uncharted territory for much of the squad. It has been so infrequently visited that none of the current Test bowling attack have played a Test in the country.


They have missed out. Known for their pace and bounce, South African surfaces are among the favourites of quicks the world over and Pakistan's pack cannot wait to get stuck in. "Junaid Khan would love to bowl in these conditions and Mohammed Irfan will do well if he can put the ball in the right areas," Misbah-ul-Haq, the Pakistan captain, said after arriving in Johannesburg.


The closest Junaid has got to South Africa is its neighbour, Zimbabwe, where he made his debut in September 2011. He played second fiddle to Aizaz Cheema in that match but has since overtaken Cheema with three five-wicket hauls from eight matches. Being a left-armer he may have half an eye on Graeme Smith with the South Africa captain having been susceptible to many southpaws over the years.


At 7' 1", Irfan had caught the eye of the South African media well before Pakistan's arrival in the country. Knowing the kind of bounce Morne Morkel can extract from surfaces, the hype around what someone eight inches taller may be able to do has grown.


So has the expectation over how South Africa's batsmen will deal with Saeed Ajmal. They have seen him once before, in a Test in 2010 in Dubai when he took three wickets but he has since developed into the magician that ran circles around the then No.1 ranked England. Facing Ajmal will be South Africa's first significant test against spin since becoming the No. 1 team.


Misbah suspects that Ajmal will also enjoy what South Africa has to offer. "Saeed Ajmal is the world's top spinner and in these conditions you get turn and bounce especially on the fourth and fifth days," he said.

While the bowlers are looking forward to assistance, the batsmen are readying themselves for a much sterner examination. South Africa is regarded as one of the toughest places to score runs, especially for the top-order. Of Pakistan's line-up, Taufeeq Umar, Misbah, Younis Khan and Mohammed Hafeez have all batted in South Africa before but the younger players such as Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali and Nasir Jamshed will have their first taste of these conditions.


The pace of the pitches will take some getting used to. Shafiq has played in New Zealand, West Indies and the subcontinent while Jamshed, who starred in the one-dayers against India, has yet to make his Test debut. With limited touring opportunities because of their schedule, Misbah conceded that preparations have not been ideal although they have made the best of what they have.


"We have to bat well. Whenever we go abroad, we try to practice against bounce and pace. We use different tactics for that and we make sure we get ready before the Test matches," he said. "It's really difficult when you are not playing a format on a regular basis. You really have to work hard. But that's how it is. We are not playing more Test matches. But we have to adjust because we are professionals."


Dav Whatmore, Pakistan's coach, suggested batting could be rewarding for those who employ some patience. "It can be difficult, because of the general consistency of the slightly higher bounce and the pace might be more than normal," he said. "But if you get over that they're pretty good batting conditions as well, a bit like Australia. Our young guys who get through that will be in for good times."


Pakistan will play a three-day warm-up match against a fairly strong South African Invitation XI in East London where the surface is traditionally sluggish. That could be South Africa's way of softening the batsman up especially as historically the hosts have prepared seamer-friendly pitches against subcontinent sides and tried to scare their batsmen out. They may be wary of trying the same thing this time because Pakistan have a good attack of their own.


While pre-series talk will rage about how competitive a less "unpredictable," as Smith called them, Pakistan will be against South Africa, there is also an undercurrent of a campaign running through the visitors' camp. It is both a drive to show off their consistency and resolve and to talk openly about promoting the return of cricket to their home.


"Every stadium was full at the T20 tournament in Pakistan. There were no concerns and everyone enjoyed the game," Misbah said. "Ten of the players in the current Test side played in the final and there were no issues. Pakistan is such a big cricketing nation and the world really has to think about bringing cricket back there. Stadiums are full and nothing is happening."

The former ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat, who is a South African, has been doing some consultative work for the PCB on the matter as well.

Pakistan beat India first time in T20I at Banglore

Pakistan won 1st T20I by 5 wickets and leads series by 1-0:

Two of Pakistan's experienced hands guided them to victory in their first game in almost three months, and their first bilateral tour of India in five years. An early burst from debutant Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who began his international career with a fabulous display of swing bowling, rattled the Pakistan top order but the calm presence of Mohammad Hafeez and some enterprising batting from Shoaib Malik put a chase of 134 back on track.

Pakistan had another scare at the death, losing two in quick time when victory appeared secure, but Malik ultimately saw them through in the final over, sealing the game with a six. The hosts were a specialist bowler short, as the Pakistan pair targeted the non-regulars, but a more significant factor in India's loss was their implosion with the bat, when they lost nine wickets for 47 runs in 46 balls.

A 36,000-strong crowd had been silenced during an impressive display of bowling backed up by some excellent ground fielding that had helped Pakistan fight back after India's openers had laid a strong foundation in an attractive stand of 77 in under 11 overs. The decibel levels at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, however, hit their peak when Bhuvneshwar swung it this way and that, setting up two of this three victims with outswingers before nipping one back in to dismantle the stumps. At 12 for 3, Pakistan were reeling; their rebuilding was steady, and resulted in 24 boundary-less deliveries, but Hafeez and Malik pounced in at the right time.

Virat Kohli was one of the part-timers used by India, and Hafeez slogged him for two boundaries in the 11th over, at the start of which the required-rate had hit almost nine an over. Yuvraj Singh dragged the ball too short on occasion and was heaved for two sixes by the pair and they each stepped out to Ravindra Jadeja to dispatch him for maximums over his head.

The return of India's seamers didn't immediately check Pakistan, as the equation was brought down to 16 off the last three overs, but Ishant Sharma dismissed Hafeez and conceded just two in an over in which he had Malik caught off a no-ball for height. Ashok Dinda was given the penultimate over and he left Pakistan needing 10 off the last, which Malik helped achieve with a straight six off a Jadeja length delivery to win with two balls to spare.

Australia has won first test match against Sri Lanka

Starc & Siddle keeps Australia at victory stand:

At last, Michael Clarke must have thought. At last Australia have tasted victory this summer. It took until the fourth Test of their home campaign, and into the final hour at that, but Mitchell Starc and Peter Siddle delivered a 137-run win for Clarke and their team-mates as Sri Lanka's tail-enders narrowly failed to hold on for a draw at Bellerive Oval. Despite the best efforts of Kumar Sangakkara and Thilan Samaraweera in particular, Sri Lanka will walk out on Boxing Day at the MCG 1-0 down.

As the gloom began to close in, Australia entered the final hour needing two more wickets; Sri Lanka's victory target of 393 had become irrelevant during the morning. Starc delivered precisely what his captain required. All the Twenty20 cricket he has played over the past year began to pay off. He viewed the task as similar to bowling at the death in the short format, sending in yorkers and mixing it up with the occasional shorter delivery. And unlike in T20, he had the luxury of catching men everywhere.

After a few yorkers narrowly missed the stumps, or hit the pads on their way down the leg side, Starc finally directed one that bowled Rangana Herath to leave Sri Lanka at 9 for 250. In his next over, Starc banged one in shorter and Shaminda Eranga couldn't work out how to play it, in the end offering a fend of sorts that was edged through to Matthew Wade. Starc had 5 for 63. Sri Lanka were out for 255. And Australia had won the fourth Test of their home season, the first time since 2001-02 it had taken them so long to register a win.

There was a sense of inevitability about the victory, at least, after Samaraweera and Sangakkara had departed. Unlike in the Adelaide Test last month, where the South Africans held off Australia's bowlers to survive for a draw, this time the pitch was tougher for batting, the weather was much cooler and allowed the bowlers some respite, and importantly, it wasn't all left to Siddle. It was him who provided the spark, though.

Now it's time for BCB to do it

The PCB is yet to issue Pakistan players NOCs to play in the upcoming Bangladesh Premier League:

The auction for the upcoming season of the Bangladesh Premier League, which is set to happen on December 20, has become the Pakistan Cricket Board's bargaining chip with the Bangladesh Cricket Board over their 'written commitment' to tour Pakistan. The PCB is yet to handover No-Objection Certificates to its players to participate in BPL 2013, and without them the tournament will be without 20 of its star overseas players from the inaugural edition.

The PCB and BCB have been discussing a short tour of Pakistan, which would mark the return of top-flight international cricket to the country for the first time since the March 2009 attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in Lahore. The PCB is seeking an official announcement from the BCB, regarding the proposed tour. A window has been created by the PCB to accommodate an ODI and T20 between January 10 and 15 ahead of the BPL, which starts from January 17.

"Onus is on Bangladesh now, whether they want to honour their commitment or not as we have already honored out commitment [by nominating Bangladesh's candidate for the ICC presidency]," a top PCB official. "We did everything to ensure our full support to Bangladesh every time, now it's time for BCB to do it.

"The Bangladesh delegation was satisfied with the security plan [for the proposed tour] and we are committed to give them the best security. The window is open for the series of two matches, preferably when we return back from the India tour."

Earlier, Bangladesh was all set to tour Pakistan in April this year after a deal had been cut between the two boards, by which the PCB would back the BCB president Mustafa Kamal as the nominee for the ICC vice-presidency and Bangladesh would tour Pakistan in 2012. However, the tour was postponed after a Dhaka court order embargoed the series.

In view of the tour, the ICC had introduced a special dispensation, to be made in exceptional circumstances, by which bilateral series can take place even if the ruling body determined it unsafe to appoint its officials for the series. As per the dispensation, such series could be manned by "non-neutral match officials".

Stuart Broad could miss the Twenty20s against India

Stuart Broad has been sent for scan on his left heel:

Fast bowler Stuart Broad has been sent for scan on his left heel and is a doubt for England's two T20 matches against India.

Broad suffered a recurrence of the heel injury that threatened his involvement in the first Test of the series during training at the VCA Stadium on Tuesday, ahead of the fourth and final Test of the series that starts on Thursday.

While Broad is unlikely to win a recall to the side for that game, he remains a key player in England's T20 side. His absence would also necessitate England naming a new captain for the two games. Eoin Morgan would appear to be the likely replacement.

It may be an inexperienced looking England squad assembled for the T20 games. Not only have experienced players such as Graeme Swann and Kevin Pietersen been rested, but senior coaches Andy Flower, Graham Gooch and the team manager Phil Neale are also going home immediately after the Test. Richard Halsall, the assistant coach, will take charge.

The training session also afforded England their first look at the Nagpur pitch. While it has not been used recently, unlike the tracks used in Mumbai and Kolkata, it looks white and dry. The curator has been asked by the BCCI not to talk to the media, but those close to him suggest the groundstaff stopped watering the pitch a couple of days ago and expect it to start assisting spinners on the second day. The outfield, however, is lush and green which may not aid the seamers on either side as they search for reverse swing.

 There have only been three Tests at this ground and none of them have ended in a draw. On all three occasions, the side winning the toss has batted first - as they surely will again - and on two of those occasions they have gone on to win the game.

Shahid Afridi is dropped from ODI team squad

Abdul Razzaq & Shahid Afridi dropped from team:

Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan allrounder, has been dropped from the one-day squad for the tour of India in December, one of six changes made to the team that lost 1-2 to Australia in the UAE in August and September. Afridi retained his spot in Pakistan's Twenty20 squad, which also had six changes made to the outfit that went to Sri Lanka for the World Twenty20.


Apart from Afridi, the players cut from the ODI squad that went to the UAE were: left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman, fast bowlers Aizaz Cheema and Sohail Tanvir, and allrounder Shoaib Malik. Asad Shafiq was also left out because of injury.


They were replaced by Younis Khan, Haris Sohail, Wahab Riaz, Umar Gul, and Zulfiqar Babar. Younis and Gul were making comebacks after being axed for the series against Australia. Fast bowler Riaz was returning to the squad after last playing in the Asia Cup in March, while batsman Sohail and left-arm spinner Babar received their maiden call-ups to the one-day squad.


"Dropping Afridi was a difficult decision," Pakistan's chief selector Iqbal Qasim said at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. "He is no doubt a great player and has the ability to win a game, but the decision has been taken in the interest of the team. We did retain him in the T20 squad and if he performs well he can win back his ODI place in the future. Meanwhile, we are looking for a youngster as Afridi's replacement and I am sure we will find the right man soon from the domestic circuit."


Pakistan lost the World Twenty20 semi-final to Sri Lanka and from that squad allrounders Abdul Razzaq and Yasir Arafat, and opening batsman Imran Nazir were left out. Shafiq and left-arm spinner Raza Hasan were injured.


Fast bowler Junaid Khan , who was a surprising omission from the World T20 campaign, returned to the squad, and Ahmed Shehzad, Babar, Asad Ali , seven-foot tall Mohammad Irfan and Umar Amin were the other inclusions.

Irfan had been selected in 2010 for an ODI series against England, but conceded 37 and 40 in first two matches and was dropped for the rest of the series. He has been on the domestic circuit since then and in this season's President's Trophy, he took 27 wickets in eight matches. He also took 11 wickets in the Faysal Bank T-20. He has been preferred ahead of Under-19 fast bowler Ehsan Adil, who was the second highest wicket-taker in the President's Trophy after Babar, with 53 wickets. Adil also took 10 wickets in four domestic T20 matches.

"Irfan is a surprise package," Qasim said, while explaining why Irfan was preferred over other notable performers. "Nobody is discouraged, I know we have Ehsan Adil and Imran Khan on the bench waiting for the call but they will be considered soon. They are our future prospects. Irfan currently is in good form and he has the height advantage and could be our surprise package. I am sure he will live up to our expectations and will perform very well."

"India's performance against England hasn't been good and their chips are down. Compared to our side, they have always relied heavily on their batsman and we were more effective with the ball. So, we have selected a balanced mix with the consensus of both the captains and the coach. We have always beaten them when we are consistent with the batting, with bowling as an advantage, so I hope these teams will have good results on the tour."


Pakistan are scheduled to play two Twenty20 internationals and three ODIs in India from December 25 to January 6. The players will assemble for a seven-day camp in Lahore between December 14 and 22 before leaving for India on December 22.


ODI squad: Nasir Jamshed, Mohammad Hafeez, Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Haris Sohail, Kamran Akmal, Saeed Ajmal, Wahab Riaz, Junaid Khan, Umar Gul, Imran Farhat, Umar Akmal, Anwar Ali, Zulfiqar Babar.


Twenty20 squad: Mohammad Hafeez, Nasir Jamshed, Kamran Akmal, Umar Akmal, Umar Amin, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal, Mohammad Irfan, Junaid Khan, Sohail Tanvir, Umar Gul, Asad Ali, Zulfiqar Babar, Ahmed Shehzad.

Cricket South Africa will-possibly appoint Balck African selector

CSA will soon possibly appoint Black African selector:

Cricket South Africa will soon - possibly as early as next year - appoint a black African selector in accordance with their transformation policy, in an attempt to better represent the country's demographics. South Africa's population is more than 80% black African but they are largely under-represented in cricket.

 "We want to transform and reflect the demographic of our country as best as possible. A black African selector is needed to help address representation on all levels, which includes management," Jacques Faul, acting CSA chief executive.

He clarified that the move should not be seen as one which will push the case for black players only. "Just as white selectors don't only select white players, so would black selectors not only select black players," Faul said.

Ntini was quoted saying reserve wicketkeeper Thami Tsolekile would have played for the national team if he was white, but Tsolekile brushed off the remarks. Despite being nationally contracted in February and identified as the replacement to Mark Boucher, Tsolekile has not played a Test because AB de Villiers has been promoted to the role of the permanent keeper.

In Perth, South Africa played their 200th Test since readmission but in that time, only five black Africans have represented the country. Of those, Ntini played 101 Tests but the other four: Mfuneko Ngam, Monde Zondeki, Tsolekile and Lonwabo Tsotsobe have less than 20 between them and South Africa have not fielded a single black African in Test cricket in the past year.

It is a record CSA wants to change. "I don't think people realise what a big gap Ntini left when he retired from international cricket. He was a great role model and obvious choice for the Test team," Faul said. "It is important for us to improve on this statistic. We hope that in the next 200 Tests we will be able to do that."

CSA does not enforce a quota system but state in their policy they intend to make cricket a "truly national game." They fund an academy at the University of Fort Hare which Ngam runs, exclusively for black African cricketers to further that aim. Ntini was due to start an academy in the Mdantsane township in the Eastern Cape for the same purpose but has not been able to secure sufficient funding to get the project off the ground.

Failed endeavours like that are what CSA hopes to avoid in future. Their transformation policy thus "recognises the fact that, although now all South Africans are equal under the constitution, serious inequalities still exist in terms of creating opportunities and providing facilities and adequate coaching for cricketers of colour. The transformation charter carries the responsibility of capacity building in all communities and thus making cricket a truly national game."

Faul said CSA are encouraged by the "black African talent within the franchise system." Players such as batsman Khaya Zondo from the Dolphins Temba Bavuma, left-arm spinner Aaron Phangiso from the Lions and wicketkeeper batsman Mangaliso Mosehle from the Titans are on the national radar, with Phangiso likely to be picked in the Twenty20 squad to play New Zealand.

The new selector will not be in place in time to pick those squads, though. South Africa are expected to name their T20 and Test squad for the New Zealand series on Thursday.

India ruled out Zaheer,Yuvraj and Harbhajansingh

India changed his team after 2nd defeat:

India have dropped Zaheer Khan, Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh for the Nagpur Test. Delhi fast bowler Parvinder Awana and Saurashtra allrounder Ravindra Jadeja have received their first call-ups, and legspinner Piyush Chawla replaced Harbhajan.

Zaheer's is the biggest fall. This is the first time he has been dropped from the Test side after his rousing comeback in 2006-07. He has taken 15 wickets in eight Tests in 2012 at a strike rate of 98 balls per wicket. In this series, he has taken four scalps at a strike rate of 133. Moreover, his fielding has been below par for some time. His replacement, Awana, took 5 for 81 against Karnataka in a Ranji Trophy match a day before the selection meeting. Reputed to be brisk, Awana has taken 21 Ranji wickets at an average of 21.57 this season.

Yuvraj, called back after a double-century in the Duleep Trophy was deemed enough to prove his fitness, did not take his chance either. He scored 125 runs in five innings in the series. He has now played 40 Tests over various comebacks for three centuries and an average of 33.92.

Yuvraj's replacement, Jadeja, recently scored his third first-class triple-century in 13 months. He was dropped from India's limited-overs squads earlier this year, but the two triples in one month this season and 18 Ranji wickets at 23.72 have put him ahead of Rohit Sharma and Manoj Tiwary in the queue for a middle-order slot. Even as the squad was being debated, Tiwary was busy rescuing Bengal with 55 out of Bengal's score of 112. Four of their wickets, though, fell to Jadeja. Tiwary retired-hurt with a pulled muscle, but that happened after the squad was announced.

Harbhajan was recalled for the Tests without any improvement shown in domestic cricket, but a lacklustre show in Mumbai means he will be stuck on 99 Tests for a while. Not that his replacement, Chawla, has set the domestic scene on fire, with nine wickets at an average of 48.33.

Awana and Jadeja made it to the T20 side too. Uttar Pradesh allrounder Bhuvneshwar Kumar joined them in place of the injured Irfan Pathan. Virender Sehwag and Zaheer, left out of T20 squad, were unavailable for reasons the BCCI didn't state. Ajinkya Rahane took Sehwag's place. Harbhajan has been dropped for T20s as well.

Squad for Nagpur Test: MS Dhoni (capt & wk), Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja, Cheteshwar Pujara, R Ashwin, Ashok Dinda, Pragyan Ojha, Ajinkya Rahane, Piyush Chawla, Ishant Sharma, M Vijay, Parvinder Awana.

Squad for T20Is: MS Dhoni (capt &wk), Gautam Gambhir, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Manoj Tiwary, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Piyush Chawla, Ashok Dinda, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Laxmipathy Balaji, Parvinder Awana.

West Indies tried hard but lost

Bangladesh won the ODI series:

Bangladesh's batsmen held it together, but only just. After failing to chase 211 last night, they overcame three difficult phases in their pursuit of a target of similar proportion, to win a series they had led 2-0 but almost let slip out of their grasp. Twenty-four hours after their fans exited Shere Bangla in despair, the stadium was a venue of riotous celebration, as Nasir Hossain carved the winning boundary to drag his team to a two-wicket victory and claim the series against West Indies 3-2.

There was chaos at the finish. With one run needed, Nasir smashed the ball over cover and raised his arms in triumph as he completed the winning run. His partner, the No. 10 Elias Sunny, however, did not make it to the other end because he thought the ball had gone for four. The fielder in the deep returned it and Kieran Powell uprooted a stump amid the celebrations. Darren Sammy's protests that a run had not been completed prompted the umpires to check. No run had indeed been completed; nobody was run out either. Everyone took their positions again and Nasir's slashing bat sparked off another round of celebrations.

The confusion in those final moments was in contrast to the calm with which Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah and Nasir steered a tense chase, after Bangladesh's bowlers had recovered admirably from a Kieron Pollard battering.

Chasing 217, Tamim Iqbal was bowled playing across the line, Anamul Haque fended a rising delivery to point, and Jahurul Islam nicked one that burst off a length to the wicketkeeper. Kemar Roach had Bangladesh were 30 for 3 in the ninth over. The previous evening, the collapse ended only when the hosts were shot out for 136, but not in this deciding contest.

Pakistan Blind Cricket Team's captain was in big trouble

Zeeshan Abbasi drank chemical by mistake at Bangalore:

The captain of Pakistan's visually challenged cricket team, Zeshan Abbasi, who is in Bangalore to play the T20 Blind Cricket World Cup, was hospitalised on Saturday after accidentally drinking phenyl at the team hotel. He was discharged later in the day, and was 'absolutely fine' according to the doctors.

Abbasi had sipped the contents of a plastic bottle left on the table during breakfast, mistaking it for mineral water. He was taken to hospital, where was treated and kept under observation before being discharged a few hours later.

"Abbasi was discharged at 4.30pm. He is absolutely fine", the president of the hospital, Dr Shetty, was quoted. He said Abbasi had had an endoscopy and all the results were normal.

Pakistan team manager Sultan Shah said the hotel had apologised for the incident, but they wanted it probed further. "We want to know from the hotel management, who have orally apologised to us, how such an incident happened and who is responsible for such negligence," Shah said. "It has to be ensured that such incidents do not recur. Otherwise, we are happy with the arrangements here."

SP Nagesh, the president of the All Indian Cricket Association, also called for an investigation: "[The hotel must] tell us how such a lapse occurred. We are awaiting their reply."

Victory in Colombo was Ross Taylor's last act as New Zealand captain

Brendon McCullum has been appointed New Zealand's captain:

Brendon McCullum has been appointed New Zealand's captain in all three formats after Ross Taylor declined an offer to stay on as leader of the Test side in a split-captaincy scenario. Taylor has also chosen to make himself unavailable for the upcoming tour of South Africa, although New Zealand are hopeful he will be back in the side for the home series against England early next year.

The confirmation of the change came at a press conference in Auckland on Friday morning where David White, the New Zealand Cricket CEO, said he regretted the way the captaincy debate had played out in the public spotlight. McCullum, who has previously led New Zealand in eight ODIs and 12 Twenty20s, will become the country's 28th Test captain when the series against South Africa begins on January 2 in Cape Town.

There had been much speculation this week about the future of Taylor since the squad returned from Sri Lanka despite their impressive series-leveling victory in Colombo. In that match Taylor, who took over as captain in 2011 after being preferred to McCullum for the role, scored 142 in the first innings, but it was one of few highlights in a disappointing year for New Zealand, whose only other victory came in the first Test of the year against Zimbabwe.

They lost Test series against South Africa, West Indies and India before the draw in Sri Lanka while they have slipped to ninth in the one-day rankings below Bangladesh. They were also knocked out in the Super Eights of the World Twenty20. It was after the review of that tournament, as well as the tours of India and Sri Lanka, that the coach Mike Hesson recommended splitting the captaincy.

"Mike Hesson proposed a split captaincy that was endorsed by me as CEO and agreed by the board," White said. "The original recommendation was for Ross Taylor to be retained as Test captain and Brendon McCullum to be short-form captain. We regret that Ross Taylor has declined the opportunity, therefore Brendon McCullum has been appointed as Black Caps captain for all three forms of the game.

"I met with Ross ... for about three hours yesterday and we considered a number of different options. One of them was ... for him to go to South Africa and even just play the Test matches if he wanted to do that. But he thought about it long and hard and he said that he would like a break and to spend time with his family and we've agreed with that and we respect that. It's not ideal and we would be a stronger team with Ross Taylor in it."

England has tighten the grip on 3rd test

Neither the old ball nor the new one swung: 

The feeling of helplessness that enveloped much of India's horrendous tours of England and Australia descended again on MS Dhoni's side on the third day at Eden Gardens, as two of the most bloody-minded batsmen in world cricket, Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott, set about grinding down toothless bowling in the morning. After lunch, India managed to dismiss both of them, but that didn't alter England's dominance of the match as Kevin Pietersen and the lower order stacked up some quick runs to stretch the lead towards a comfortable 200.

The moment typifying India's ineptness was Ishant Sharma putting down an absolute dolly off his own bowling when Cook was on 156. A rare Cook mistake sent the ball looping towards Ishant at waist height and at slow pace, but Ishant contrived to fluff that chance, the ball missing his palm and hitting the wrist. Ishant was left scratching his head in disappointment, while MS Dhoni maintained his famously expressionless demeanour.

Neither the old ball nor the new one swung, and though there was some uneven bounce - Cook was once surprised by a lifter from Ishant that struck the bat handle - the batsmen weren't tested much by the quicks as they wiped out the deficit.

India's spinners turned in a much-improved effort after Thursday's disappointing show, bowling accurately with the old ball in the first hour before getting some bounce and turn with the shiny one. In the second session, they got some help from the pitch as well, spinning the ball past the outside edge several times, and asking questions of the well-set Cook and Trott.

Ricky Ponting never took a backward step

Viv Richards had always been impressed with Ricky Ponting:

Viv Richards has hailed Ricky Ponting's brashness and "show-no-fear" attitude as among his greatest traits, and Shane Warne has lauded Ponting's habit of making runs when Australia most needed them. Ponting farewelled Test cricket with Australia's loss to South Africa in Perth this week and on Thursday, Warne and Richards, in Melbourne in the lead-up to Friday night's Big Bash League opener, reflected on Ponting's 17-year Test career.

"Certainly he's up there with the very best," Richards said. "What I love about him more than anything else, you look at the way he walks out to the crease. He always has presence. There is a tenaciousness about him. He walks out and believes. He's not going to be intimidated by no one. I would like guys like that. I appreciate seeing guys who come out and have a particular presence."

The same words could have been used to describe Richards, one of Wisden's five cricketers of the century, a man who never wore a helmet and stared down fast bowlers all over the world while nonchalantly chewing his gum. Although the careers of the two men did not overlap - Richards retired from Test cricket four years before Ponting made his debut - Richards saw plenty of Ponting's batting and was impressed by the attitude he displayed from his very first match in 1995.

"A young batter who wants to make it, you cannot feel like you have one foot in and one foot out," Richards said. "You've got to make that crease your house. Ricky always made the crease his house. I've always been in his corner as a player because of that brashness, he's an in-your-face sort of guy. Show no fear. Batsmen sometimes can be intimidated by a guy from how far he runs up, but you just put that at the back of your mind and bat with what you have. Ricky, to me, certainly did that."

Richards is part of the BBL this year as a batting mentor for the Melbourne Stars, who are captained by Warne, a man who played 85 Tests alongside Ponting. Although Warne was not always enamoured with Ponting's captaincy decisions, he said Ponting's ability to score runs when Australia faced potential trouble was one of the reasons the team was so successful.

 "It was fun to play with Ricky Ponting," Warne said. "I met him as a 16-year-old at the cricket academy in Adelaide. He was a guy who was pretty tough and an uncompromising sort of player. He will definitely go down with Greg Chappell and Allan Border and Bradman as the greatest batsmen Australia have had, and he'll hold up well on the international stage.

Finn Push himself for England Test Squad

Finn declared himself fit to select for England: 

Steven Finn has declared himself fit for selection for the third Test and looks set to displace Stuart Broad in England's team.

Finn, who suffered a thigh strain in the first warm-up game of the tour, bowled two spells in the nets at training at Eden Gardens on Monday without discomfort and then stated: "If I'm needed on Wednesday, then I'll be ready to go. I feel in good rhythm. I'm in a good place."

Finn could face a tough return at Eden Gardens. For all the talk of the pitch - and the Eden Park curator, Prabir Mukherjee, has certainly talked a good game over recent days - it seems that the India captain, MS Dhoni, is going to receive exactly what he requested. Recently used - the last Ranji Trophy match on it ended on November 20 - it will offer, on the evidence of the practice pitches on the same square, far more to spinners than seamers. The England seamers struggled to get the ball to bounce above hip height in the nets which, according to Mukherjee, are much like the Test pitch. Finn may have extra pace but, on such surfaces, his control and skill will be even more important.

"If I'm picked as part of a two-man seam attack, I might be used in a strike-bowling capacity," Finn said. "There is a little bit of pressure, but you don't change your plans or the way that you bowl. Just because you're being used as a strike bowler doesn't mean you start bowling bumpers and yorkers all the time searching for wickets. You still have to have a degree of patience and use your skills wisely."

South Africa won 3rd test match against Australia

Australia lost 3rd test match by 309 runs:

To crib a line from E.T.'s Elliot, this is reality. South Africa embossed their No. 1 ranking with a fearful hiding of Australia in the series-deciding third Test in Perth, and not even the torrent of goodwill sent Ricky Ponting's way on his final day as an international cricketer could prevent resounding confirmation that the hosts remain a long way short of genuine aspirations to be the best team in the world. Three-hundred-and-nine runs short, in fact.


Ponting made an emotional last appearance at the Test match batting crease - fittingly afforded a guard of honour by Graeme Smith - but his final tally of eight was as unsatisfying as the rest of the day for Australia, as they failed completely to cope with the dimensions of a world-record run chase, or alternatively the need to bat for two days to save the match. The Ponting episode was a brief interlude in a day characterised by South Africa's unrelenting attack on the batsmen.

Ricky Ponting's internatinal cricket career ended

Ricky Ponting now got retired from test cricket:

For a moment, Ricky Ponting was a kid again. As he sat in the WACA gym and spoke one last time as a Test cricketer, the emotion finally got the better of him. Ponting, perhaps the toughest competitor of his cricketing generation, fought back tears as he thanked his family for all of their sacrifices. His wife Rianna was there with his daughters Emmy and Matisse. His parents, Graeme and Lorraine, were there too. It was a rare glimpse of the human side of one of sport's hardest men.

To understand Ponting, you have to understand his roots. Australia's most prolific run scorer was raised in working-class northern Tasmania and when he was nine or ten, he used to ride his BMX all around Launceston and the surrounding areas to watch the Mowbray Cricket Club play. He would sit in the change-rooms, rummage through the players' bags when they were on the field and try on their gloves, hold their bats. He helped run the scoreboard at the NTCA ground when Tasmania played there, for a few dollars a day.

At 11, Ponting was playing third-grade cricket with his father; when he became a first-class player, he financed new club-rooms with his first sponsorship payment. He learnt the value of the baggy green when his uncle Greg Campbell, Lorraine's brother and also a Mowbray player, played Test cricket briefly in the late 1980s. Ponting now lives in Sydney but has never changed clubs; if he was to play a club match again it would be for Mowbray.

Ponting walked off the WACA on Monday afternoon having equalled Steve Waugh's record of 168 Test appearances. Nobody has been part of more victories than Ponting. He has played 560 international matches in 15 countries around the world, or 24 if the individual nations that make up the West Indies are taken into consideration. As Ponting sat back and for the first time reflected on his 17-year international career, he became emotional when he considered where it all started.

"I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the opportunities I was given by them at an early age," Ponting said of his parents. A cough, as he held back the tears. "It's getting a bit harder". Sniff. "The Mowbray Cricket Club, if they see me up here like this at the moment they'll be all over me. That's the place I learnt the game and the person I am was moulded from my background and my upbringing. What you've seen over 17 years is a result of my early days at the Mowbray Cricket Club. Thanks to the boys back there."

Tough as they make them in Mowbray, there wouldn't have been a dry eye there either. Ponting still keeps a close eye on his club's scores. In fact, he keeps a close eye on everything related to the world of cricket. The kid who sat in the change-rooms and listened to the first-grade players tell stories about the match they'd just played still exists. That's what will make retirement so difficult for Ponting. Cricket has been his life.

It is no surprise that he will play on for Tasmania this season, like a junkie being weaned off slowly. From Perth, he will fly to Tasmania to start training for the Hobart Hurricanes. The Big Bash League starts later this week and Ponting will be part of it. Always renowned as a realist, the dreamer in Ponting came through when he considered watching Australia's next Test, against Sri Lanka in Hobart, and joked about warming up with the Test players and earning a late call-up.

"You ask the boys in the dressing room, they reckon I don't miss a ball that's bowled anywhere around the world," he said. "Of course I'll keep an eye on it because I'll miss not being out there. I'll be interested to see who comes in and slots into the No.4 spot and I'll be interested to see what the bowling attack looks like for Hobart.

"The way it works out I'll probably be down there anyway. I've got some training to do for the Hurricanes, leading up to that game, so I'll probably be in Hobart just before that. Who knows, I might even be around for the first day of the game. If I am, I might even join in the warm-up with the boys and see if there's just one more chance!"

There's that kid in the change-rooms again. Pick me! Let me play!

But for all of his cricket passion, Ponting knew the time was right to walk away from the international game. His scores over the past few weeks have confirmed it. Not that he had given up hope of ending with a match-winning hundred.

"I had a bit more of a fairytale ending in my own eyes than what's happened this week," Ponting said. Just then, the pipes in the WACA gym began to squeal, almost drowning out his voice. "Still things are going badly for me here as well! It's been one of those weeks."

Apart from when discussing his family, Ponting was relaxed in retirement. He joked about the standing ovation he had received, and the one given to his nightwatchman Nathan Lyon on the first day. He thanked the media for promoting the game and held no grudges about the criticism levelled on him in recent times. He finished with a brief thought about his legacy.

"Hopefully my impact and input on Australian cricket has left something behind. Thank you."

Faysal Bank T20 Cup 2012's Teams

,All team squads of Faysal Bank T20 Cup 2012:

Abbottabad Falcons:

Younas Khan (Captain),Yasir Hameed,Junaid Khan,Adnan Raees,Yasir Shah,Ahmed Jamal,Mir Azam,

Haroon,Syed Hammad Ali Shah,Sohail Akhtar,Rameez Ahmed,Zeeshan Jadoon,Waseem Akhtar,Khalid Usman,Amjad Waqas,Inaam Khan,Fazal-E-Rabi,Babar Khan,Fakhre Alam (Manager),Sajjad Akbar (Coach)

Multan Tigers:
Zain Abbas,Usman Liaquat,Saeed Anwar Jr.,Naveed Yasin,Sohaib Maqsood,Aamer Yamin,Rameez Alam,

Muhammad Imran,Abdul Muqeet,Rahat Ali,Muhammad Irfan,Abdul Rauf (Captain),Rizwan Haider,Zulfiqar Babar,Muhammad Rameez,Adeel Hanif,Gulraiz Saddaf,Maqbool Ahmed,Ejaz Ahmad (Manager),Waseem Haider (Coach)

Peshawar Panthers:
Fayyaz Ahmad,Israrullah,Riffatullah Mahmand,Iftikhar Ahmad,Akbar Badshah (Captain),Jamaluddin Afghani,Shoaib Khan,Mehran Ibrahim,Nawaz Ahmad,Imran Khan,Waqar Ahmad,Azizullah,Nasir Ahmad,Zohaib Ahmad,Aslam Qureshi,Sajjad Ahmad,Rizwan Ahmad,Gohar Ali,Haji Rozamin Khan (Manager),Abdur Rehman (Coach)

Sialkot Stallions:
Shoaib Malik (Captain),Imran Nazir,Shakeel Ansar,Haris Sohail,Shahid Yousaf,Ali Khan,Mansoor Amjad,Nayyer Abbas,Rana Naveed ul Hassan,Bilawal Bhatti,Raza Hassan,Umaid Asif,Ali Aslam,

Shahid,Muzaffar Awan,Kamran Younas,Yasir Aziz,Faisal Naveed,Adeel Malik,Naeem Akhtar (Manager),

Ijaz Ahmad Jr. (Coach)

Faisalabad Wolves:
Misbah ul Haq (Captain),Asif Ali,Ali Waqas,Khurram Shahzad,Naveed Latif,Muhammad Salman,Waqas Maqsood,Samiullah Niazi,Asad Ali,Saeed Ajmal,Ehsan Adil,Hassan Mahmood,Sabir Hussain,

Jehandad,Farrukh Shahzad,Asif Hussain,Imran Khalid,Tariq Fareed (Manager),Naveed Anjum (Coach)

Lahore Lions:
Nasir Jamshaid,Muhammad Hafeez,Ahmed Shahzad,Umar Akmal,Muhammad Yousaf (Captain),Kamran Akmal,Abdul Razzaq,Wahab Riaz,Zia ul Haq,Aizaz Cheem,Mustafa Iqbal,Imam ul Haq,Raza Ali Dar,Tanzeel Altaf,Abdul Ghaffar,Sohail Ahmad,Adnan Rasool,Muhammad Waqas Sr.,Shahid Hamid Butt (Manager),Mohsin Kamal (Coach)

Islamabad Leopards:
Umar Gul (Captain),Raheel Majeed,Rao Iftikhar Anjum,Zohaib Ahmad,Shan Masood,Afaq Rahim,Umair Khan,Bazid Khan,Moeid Ahmed,Faizan Riaz,Immad Wasim,Naeem Anjum,Nasrullah Khan,Hamza,

Nadeem Abbasi,Junaid Nadir,Sarmad Bhatti,Sajid Ali,Salman Ghias,Nasir Iqbal (Manager),Taimoor Azam (Coach)

Lahore Eagles:
Abid Ali,Imran Farhat,Taufiq Umar (Captain),Azhar Ali,Babar Azam,Sami Aslam,Usman Salahuddin,

Kamran Sajid,Junaid Zia,Imran Ali,Muhammad Khalil,Qaisar Ashraf,Saad Naseem,Adnan Akmal,Asif Raza,Hafiz Muhammad Zohaib,Waqas Aslam,Farooq Aslam,M. Ijaz Butt (Manager),Manzoor Elahi (Coach)

Rawalpindi Rams:
Shahid Ahmed,Awais Zia,Babar Naeem,Umar Amin,Hammad Azam,Jamal Anwar,Sohail Tanvir (Captain),

Yasir Arafat,Muhammad Nawaz,Samiullah,Muhammad Ramiz,Naveed Malik,Umer Waheed,Zahid Mansoor,Saad Altaf,Nasir Malik,Adnan Mufti,Adil Gulbahar,Asif Islam Rasool (Manager),Sabih Azhar (Coach)

Quetta Bears:
Atta ur Rehman,Abdullah Jan,Mohibullah,Sardar Wali,Ramiz Raja,Muhammad Farhan,Mir Wais Khan,

Sabir Hussain,Shah Mureed,Umar Qasim,Noshad Irshad,Jalat Khan,Hamal Wahab,Arun Lal,Gohar,Faiz (Captain),Nazar Hussain,Naseer Khan,Sher Ali,Muhammad Khair (Manager),Arshad Khan (Coach)

Hyderabad Hawks:
Sharjeel Khan (V. Captain),Azeem Ghumman,Aqeel Anjum,Rizwan Ahmad (Captain),Lal Kumar,Mir Ali Talpur,Shahzad Haider,Kashif Bhatti,Hanif ur Rehman,Farhan Ayub,Nasir Owais,Rehan Riaz,Rehan Nizamuddin,Zeeshan Gul,Mohammad Shahroz,Aslam Sattar,Jawad Ali,Muhammad Owais,Shakil Ahmad (Manager),Shaukat Mirza (Coach)

Bahawalpur Stags:
Usman Tariq,Kashif Siddique,Hamid Ali,Bilal Khilji (Captain),Moinuddin,Zaka ur Rasheed,Muhammad Ali Haider,Kamran Hussain,Muhammad Talha,Ataullah,Muhammad Mudassar,Ansar Javed,Ahmed Raza,Imranullah,Faisal Elahi,Jehanzeb,Waqas Khan,Zulqarnain Haider,Nadeem Hussain (Manager),Shahid Anwar (Coach)

Karachi Dolphins:
Shahid Khan Afridi (Captain),Anwar Ali,Asad Shafiq,Atif Maqbool,Azam Hussain,Behram Khan,Fawad Alam,Hafiz Asad Baig,Khalid Latif,Khurram Manzoor,Mir Hamza,Misbah Khan,Muhammad Sami,Sarfraz,Ahmad,Shahzaib Hassan,Sohail Khan,Syed Saad Ali,Tanvir Ahmad,Khalid Nafis (Manager),Tauseef Ahmad (Coach)

Karachi Zebras:
Adeel Malik,Ahmed Iqbal,Asif Zakir,Haris Ayaz,Daniyal Ahsan,Fahad Iqbal,Faisal Iqbal,Faraz Ahmad,Javed Mansoor,Muhammad Waqas,Ramiz Aziz,Ramiz Raja (Captain),Ruman Raees,Saeed Bin Nasir,Shaharyar Ghani,Tabish Khan,Tahir Khan,Uzair ul Haq,SMA Naqvi (Manager),Azam Khan (Coach)