Pak v WI (3rd Test, Day2)

PAKISTAN made early inroads into the West Indies tail on the third morning of the third and final test match at National Stadium Karachi.

Resuming on the overnight score of 191 for the loss of six wickets, West Indies lost their opener Darren Ganga with the addition of only 13 runs. Ganga was caught by Kamran Akmal off Razzak for a steady and impressive 81, his second 80-plus score of the series. With Kaneria operating from one end , Inzamam brought back Umer Gul inplace of Razzak and the change nearly paid off as Powell edged only for Akmal to floor the chance on Gul’s first delivery. The new ball was then taken and Powell inside-edged Gul on to his leg stump to give Gul his fourth wicket of the innings.

Shahid Nazir was handed the new ball with Gul and got his first wicket of the match straight after the drinks interval as Kamran Akmal held a wonderful catch to dismiss Taylor for one.

West Indies had reached 218 for nine, still trailing Pakistan by 86 runs, after the first hour of the morning’s play with Ramdin not out on 16 and Taylor having scored one.

The second day finished with West Indies 113 runs behind Pakistan’s first innings total of 304. Umer Gul rounded off a brilliant all round display by taking three wickets, including a second-ball dismissal of Brian Lara, to go with his impressive 26 earlier on in the day.

After dismissing Pakistan for 304, West Indies openers started aggressively not allowing the variable bounce or the slow pitch to hamper their progress. Pakistan’s fielding did not help matters with Imran Farhat dropping Gayle on 12 at extra cover. Going into lunch at 42 in 10 overs without losing a wicket, West Indies were hoping to capitalise on the steady start.

They looked all set until Gul returned for him second spell from the Pavilion End. A short ball tempted Gayle into a pull but only managed a loop at mid-on where Razzak held a well-judged catch albeit on second attempt. Things got worse for the visitors when Gul uprooted Brian Lara’s off-stump with a beautiful outswinger. With the West Indies captained dismissed for a duck, Pakistan were back into the game.

New man in Sarwan, recalled after being left out in the Multan test, did not trouble the scorers either as he was yorked by Gul in his next over. Captain and vice-captain sent back without scoring and Pakistan was truly on top now. West Indies had just lost three wickets without adding to their total.

If West Indies were looking for consolidation without slowing the run-rate down, Chanderpaul implemented the plan to perfection. As the partnership grew past 50, Inzamam’s field placements came under scrutiny yet again. Having Kaneria and Mohammad Yousuf, not the most agile of fielders, at point and extra cover respectively, quick singles were taken at ease. Mohammad Hafeez, one of Pakistan’s sharpest fielders, was dispatched to the third-man boundary as Chanderpaul and Ganga added 63 off only 90 balls.

Kaneria, who was introduced as early as the ninth over of the innings, got his first wicket when Chanderpaul, who was all set for a big total, middled one on the off-stump straight into the palms of Imran Farhat at short-leg. A great catch under the circumstances, Chanderpaul, scoring 36 off 49 deliveries, was unlucky to have hit that one straight at the fielder.

A flurry of leg-before decisions were turned down in the post-tea session as Ganga tried to rebuild the innings with the new-man Runako Morton. As Ganga seemed indisposable, Inzamam brought back Gul, who had every single delivery cheered on by the crowd, yet again. After scoring a patient 21, Morton was dismissed by Kaneria, caught by Farhat at short-leg yet again. The ball seemed to hit Farhat on the helmet before being caught and while Morton walked back to the pavilion, he was signaled by the dressing room to await the third umpire’s decision. With replays proving inconclusive, and the delay now over five minutes, field umpires stuck to their decision and Kaneria had his second wicket of the innings.

A boundary-draught lasting 15 overs was witnessed following Morton’s dismissal as Ganga and Bravo went on the defensive on a deteriorating pitch. With the ball not bouncing enough, Kamran Akmal even decided to stand up to Shahid Nazir for a few deliveries, a move inviting more criticism of his already under-fire glovework of late. An edge off Bravo’s bat went streaking past between Akmal and first slip with neither going for the catch. With the ball almost dying before reaching the slip fielder, it was perhaps Akmal who should have gone for that.

Kamran Akmal, however, had something to cheer about when he caught Bravo off a Kaneria googly for a patient eight off 52 deliveries. With bad light ending play prematurely, West Indies were saved from what could have been further damage as they finished the day on 191 for the loss of six wickets.

© Faras Ghani 2006

Published in The Star 29th Nov 2006

Pak v WI (3rd Test, Day1)

PAKISTAN were all out for 304 on the second morning of the third and final test against the West Indies in Karachi.

Umer Gul was the last man to go bowled by Powell for an impressive 24. Kamran Akmal started well by striking successive boundaries off Taylor in the first over of the morning. Shahid Nazir, however, had his middle stump uprooted in the following over. West Indies took the second new ball in the 93^rd over of the innings and reaped rewards straight away as Collymore bowled Kamran Akmal for 31.

Earlier Mohammad Yousuf rounded up a record-breaking penultimate innings of the year by hitting yet another century. The 102 he scored, his eight century of the year, helped him go past the record of 7 centuries held jointly Viv Richards and Arvinda de Silva. Yousuf also started his innings 148 runs shy of Viv Richards’ record of the most number of runs in a calendar year. He now needs 47 more to break that 30-year old record. Yousuf’s century was his fifth in successive matches thus equaling Jaques Kallis’ five and one behind Don Bradman’s record of six.

Apart from Yousuf’s effort on the pitch, Pakistan put on an otherwise dismal performance after winning the toss and batting first on a flat pitch that showed wear and tear right from the first morning. Mohammad Hafeez and Imran Farhat started well yet again but Hafeez’s expansive drive saw his off stump uprooted by Collymore. Younis’ aggressive 20 was ended when taking a non-existant single with the ball ending up in Powell’s follow through. Farhat struck some exquisite off-drives but succumbed to yet-another flash well outside his off stump for a 92-ball 47.

Struggling Inzamam and the in-form Yousuf shared a 68-run partnership but Inzamam’s bad run with the bat continued when he holed out to mid-off for only 18. Malik chipped in with an unspectacular 18 while Razzaq will have more criticism piled his way for an uncharacteristic, yet normal of late, seven off 50 deliveries.

In a match West Indies must win to take anything away from the test series, their vice captain Ramneresh Sarwan was brought back into the team at the surprise omission of Dave Mohammed. Pakistan, however, named an unchanged team; only the second time in their history that an unchanged team has played out the entire test series.

© Faras Ghani 2006

Published in The Star 28th Nov 2006

Inzamam & Lara press conference

THE Pakistan cricket team captain Inzamam ul Haq blamed dropped catches from both sides for a no-result in the second test at Multan.

Speaking at a press conference at the National Stadium Karachi on the eve of the third and final test match between Pakistan and West Indies, Inzamam laid emphasis on holding onto catches to ensure victory in any type of cricket.

“We put great emphasis on our ground fielding as well as catching in our practice session and its right up there with our batting and bowling,” said Inzamam.

Talking about his own poor form in the series so far, Inzamam assured fans and supporters that he will try and score this time round and contribute to the team’s success in winning the series.

Perhaps the most surprising of replies from Inzamam came when asked if the team had devised a plan to counter Brian Lara’s recent onslaught against the spinners, especially Danish Kaneria who was hit for 26 runs in an over during the Multan test. Inzamam, maybe trying to put a humorous spin on the matter, said that he will put his fast bowlers on when Lara comes in.

Talking of his pace options, Inzamam welcomed the addition of Sami to the squad.

“It is true that we are missing our two best fast bowlers but Umer Gul and Shahid Nazir have performed reasonably well in the recent past.

“Mohammad Sami’s inclusion will not add an experienced bowler to our line-up but also add some pace to our attack as he is a genuinely quick fast bowler.

“Our combination of fast bowlers is pretty new whereas if you see West Indies attack, they have been using from a consistent selection of fast bowlers recently and therefore provide the experience a team requires in test matches,” added Inzamam.

When reminded of the mauling India’s currently receiving in South Africa and that Pakistan’s next series is against South Afica, Inzamam confirmed that he would request the team arrives in South Africa at least two weeks prior to the start of the series to get acclimatised to the conditions and bouncy wickets.

Brian Lara, the West Indies captain, echoed Inzamam’s views regarding dropped catches in the previous match. He, however, confirmed that his team was going into the third test in a positive frame of mind.

“We will go onto the field tomorrow with the second test, minus the dropped catches, in our back pocket.

“If we carry on playing like we did in Multan, we can surely win this match and take something from the test series,” said Lara.

When asked if Sarawan, West Indies vice-captain who was dropped for the last match, would be considered for this crucial match in Karachi, Lara confirmed that Sarwan had as much chance of making the final eleven as anyone else.

“Ramnaresh has been one of the brightest stars for West Indies cricket to come out in the last ten to fifteen years and even though he had to sit out the last game, he is certainly in consideration for the final test,” confirmed Lara.

Lara was vary of the threat Pakistani batsmen, especially Mohammed Yousuf and Inzamam ul Haq, posed to the West Indies team.

“Inzamam has not performed well in the series so far and he is due a big score.

“We will therefore make use of his bad patch with the bat and try to get him out as quickly as possible.

“We are also aware of Yousuf approaching Sir Viv Richards’ record for the most number of runs in a calendar year. Because of that, we will do our best to get him out cheaply and ensure the record stays with Sir Viv Richards,” said Lara.

© Faras Ghani 2006

Published in The Star 27th Nov 2006

Marvellous Manchester

Manchester is a delightful blend of architectural grandeur from the past and hi-tech modern
life
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© Faras Ghani 2006

Published in Magazine (Dawn) 26th Nov 2006

The glittering weekend

The first ever Women’s Gold and Gems Exhibition 2006 – organised with the support of the city Government as well as the Pakistan Jewels and Gems Development Company – took place at a local hotel over the last weekend. However, the event, which was supposed to be a combination of exhibition and a cultural show, in the end managed just the exhibition due to a rather mediocre display of event management and organisation.

Featuring over 30 jewellers from our very own streets as well as a representative from Lahore, the hall dazzled with luminescent display of their best products donning the attractive display stands. But the cultural show were termed a confirmed event before the weekend but failed to take place due to the exhibitors and organisers failing to reach a mutual understanding.

While the organisers wanted the jewellers to lend samples from the glittering collection for models to put on while gracing the catwalk, a lucrative promotion for the jewellers themselves, lack of security and the exhibitors being content with a presence in the exhibition hall created confusion that prevailed indefinitely. The fact that even the organisers had no clue of planned proceedings and a whole bag of incorrect information being passed around cast a dark shadow over what had been a tremendous success of an event.

All-in-all, the event, barring the comical display of event management in the end, was a fantastic local initiative that won the praise and approval of almost all that came through the doors. Similar events are now being planned across the country to allow cultural and regional display of jewellery to reach the public eye.

© Faras Ghani 2006

Published in Images (Dawn) 12th Nov 2006

Modern Montessori Training graduation

THE twenty-third graduation ceremony of Modern Montessori Training (MMT) for this year’s batch was held in Karachi yesterday.

This teachers training course, offered and managed by New Century Education (NCE), was attended by over sixty students divided into morning and afternoon sessions.

Rayed Afzal, director of NCE, while congratulating the graduates on their hard work over the last eight months, laid emphasis on the fact that obtaining the diploma was only the start of the journey and not the termination.

“For the national development of a country, money is not important and neither is the presence of minerals. It is in fact the level of education that people in that country posses and part,” he added.

The ceremony comprised of a diploma distribution session that involved presentation of certificates to all graduates for the year. Special awards were then awarded to students who had perfect attendance throughout the entirety of the course as well as for having the best portfolio and the best teams in extra-curricular events organised during the course.

The level of dedication put into the course was depicted by one of the students winning the perfect attendance prize who had attended classes even on her Nikah day. Another student, Rukhsana Amir, winning the best portfolio prize as well as four other prizes, had spent late nights researching, drawing and producing the award-winning portfolio while having three children and a husband to look after.

Former MMT graduates also shared their views and their current involvement in the field of child education during the course of the evening. Family members of the recent graduates were called upon stage to share how life has changed for them and their family during the last eight months.

NCE is the only establishment providing professional Montessori-level training in Pakistan. Over the course of the last ten years, it has produced over 900 fully-trained teachers ready to impart their learning onto Montessori students.

© Faras Ghani 2006

Published in Star newspaper 13th Nov 2006