Afridi, Razzaq in ODI squad
KARACHI: Pakistan recalled experienced all-rounders Shahid Afridi and Abdul Razzaq to their squad on Wednesday for the one-day series against Sri Lanka later this month. Afridi, 31, was captain for the 50-over World Cup at the start of the year but then announced his retirement in May after being removed as skipper. ”I am delighted to be back in the team and I am ready to … give my full support to captain Misbah-ul-Haq,” Afridi told reporters. Razzaq, 31, has not been picked since the World Cup. He and Afridi have played 587 one-day internationals between them. Batsman Umar Akmal, younger brother of discarded wicketkeeper Kamran, is also back in the squad after missing the Test series against Sri Lanka. The teams will play five one-dayers, starting in Dubai on November 11, and a single Twenty20 match.
TEAM: Misbah-ul-Haq (captain), Imran Farhat, Mohammad Hafeez, Younus Khan, Umar Akmal, Asad Shafiq, Sarfraz Ahmed (wicketkeeper), Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq, Shoaib Malik, Junaid Khan, Umar Gul, Aizaz Cheema, Sohail Tanvir, Saeed Ajmal and Abdul Rehman. (Reuters)
Ganguly to play for Bengal today
Kolkata: Retired India skipper Sourav Ganguly would look to revive the glorious past of Bengal when they begin their Ranji Trophy Super League campaign at home against Gujarat on Thursday. Known to be the face of East Zone, Bengal’s record at the Ranji Trophy has been pathetic in the last few seasons. The two-time Ranji winners reached the final way back in 2006-07 under coach Paras Mhambrey, but after his exit that co-incided with a few in-form players’ exodus to the rebel Indian Cricket League, Bengal lost in transition. There had been experiment with coaches (Bharat Arun, Mohinder Amarnath) and captains alike at the top, but Bengal struggled to hit a purple patch at the highest level of domestic cricket, something that has been tormenting the cricket bosses of this zone. (PTI)
