Monday 10 October 2011

Umar Gul

Umar Gul Biography

Umar Gul(born 15 October 1984 in Peshawar) is a Pakistani cricketer who has played ten Test matches and 25 One Day Internationals for Pakistan as a specialist fast bowler. However, injury has prevented him from a long international career, as he was out of cricket for an entire season after his international debut. Gul was first called up for the team in April 2003, playing four one-day matches at the Cherry Blossom Sharjah Cup against Zimbabwe, Kenya and Sri Lanka, where he took four wickets, and he was in and out of the one-day team after that tournament. However, he played the whole of the 2003?04 home series against Bangladesh, making his Test debut and taking 15 wickets in the three Tests, and took the second-most wickets of any Pakistani bowler in the series, behind Shabbir Ahmed with 17. However, Shoaib Akhtar, who took 13 in third place, only played two of the Tests. Gul was retained for the ODIs against Bangladesh, taking a List A best five for 17 in nine overs in the third match, and ended with 11 wickets in the 5?0 series win. However, he could still not command a regular spot, playing three of Pakistan's nine next ODIs before finally getting dropped after one for 36 against New Zealand. He played two Tests after that, however, taking four wickets in a drawn Test against New Zealand before coming in as replacement for Shabbir Ahmed in the second Test of the three-Test series against India. After coming on as first-change bowler, Gul dismissed Virender Sehwag with his second over, and then bowled unchanged for 12 overs either side of lunch to take five Indian top order wickets - including Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar, who both had Test batting averages above 50, as did Sehwag. Gul finished with five for 31 in his spell, earning him commendation from Cricinfo journalist Dileep Premachandran, who praised his \"control of line and length\", and he was also named Man of the Match despite conceding runs at five an over in the second innings in a nine-wicket win. However, Gul was then ruled out of the third Test with a back injury which kept him out of cricket for an entire year. He returned to play two games at the 2004?05 Twenty20 Cup, and played some matches for Pakistan A and a Pakistan XI in warm-up games before the Test matches against England the following season, but he was not selected for the matches and has instead played three matches with Peshawar at the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. Gul was selected in Pakistan squad for the 2006 tour of England as a replacement to the injured Shoaib Akhtar. Gul had signed a one year contract with Gloucestershire to play in 2007, but the Pakistan Cricket Board failed to give them their permission. Gul appeared in all three of Pakistan's group matches in the 2007 World Cup taking four wickets with an economy rate of 3.13, only Shane Bond of those to deliver 100 balls was more economical. He also appeared in all of Pakistan's matches at the 2007 ICC World Twenty20 taking 3/15 of 4 overs in the semi-final victory over New Zealand. He took three wickets in the final to finish as the tournament's leading wicket-taker. In February 2008, Gul signed with the Indian Premier League and was drafted by Shahrukh Khan's Kolkata Knight Riders franchise for US $150,000. He played in six matches, taking 12 wickets at an average of 15.33, including a player of the match award in Kolkata's final game in which Gul took 4-23 and scored 24 runs from 11 balls. In December 2008 Gul signed with the Western Warriors to compete in the Australian domestic 2008-09 KFC Twenty20 Big Bash tournament. He performed very well in his debut match for the Warriors, taking 4 wickets for 15 runs in a losing side.

Umar Gul

Umer Gul (Historical Performance) in T20

Umer Gul world record

Sunday 2 October 2011

Mohammad Yousuf

Mohammad Yousuf Biography
Mohammad Yousuf (formerly Yousuf Youhana, born 27 August 1974, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan) is a Pakistani cricketer who has been a member of the Pakistani national cricket team since 1998. He is best known for his achievement in 2006 when he broke the great West Indian batsman, Sir Vivian Richards', world record for the most Test runs in a single calendar year. Prior to his conversion to Islam in 2005, Yousuf was one of the few Christians to play in the Pakistan national cricket team. He made his Test debut against South Africa at Durban and ODI debut against Zimbabwe at Harare. He has scored over 9,000 ODI runs at an average of 43.63 (2rd highest batting average among Pakistani batsmen after Zaheer Abbas and 6,770 Test runs at an average of 55.49 (highest batting average amongst all Pakistani batsmen) with 23 Test centuries. He has the record of scoring the most runs without being dismissed in ODIs, 405 against Zimbabwe in Zimbabwe in 2002-03. He has also scored a 23-ball fifty in ODIs, and a 68-ball hundred. In Tests he has scored a 27-ball fifty, which is 3rd fastest by any player. He was top scorer during the successive years of 2002 and 2003 in the world in ODIs. In 2004, he scored a memorable 111 against the Australians in the Boxing Day Test. In December 2005, he scored 223 against England at Lahore, also earning him the man of the match award. Seven months later in July 2006, when Pakistan toured England, he scored 202 and 48 in the first Test, again earning himself the man of the match award. He followed up with 192 in the third Test at Headingley and 128 in the final Test at the Oval. Yousuf was named CNN-IBN s Cricketer of the Year for 2006, ahead of the likes of Australian captain Ricky Ponting, West Indies Brian Lara, Australian spinner Shane Warne, South Africa s bowling spearhead Makhaya Ntini and Sri Lanka s Muttiah Muralitharan. He was selected as a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in the 2007 edition. Yousuf became the fourth recipient of the ICC 'Test Cricketer of the Year' award for 2007, he scored 944 runs at an average of 94.40 including five centuries and two fifties in just 10 innings and that was enough to be awarded the honour ahead of Kevin Pietersen and Ricky Ponting. Yousuf was also named in the 2007 Test team of the Year alongside compatriot Mohammad Asif. A year that started on a promising note, Yousuf carried it forward to break two world records both held earlier by West Indian great Sir Vivian Richards. The 32-year-old smashed an unparalleled 1788 runs in just 11 Test matches with the help of nine centuries his second record taking him beyond the Windies great yet again. Yousuf is known for his ability to score runs at exceptional rate through his great technique and composed strokeplay. Although capable of hitting the ball hard, Yousuf is quick between the wickets, although he is prone to being run out. Yousuf is a skillful infielder, with a report prepared in late 2005 showing that since the 1999 Cricket World Cup, he had effected the ninth highest number of run-outs in ODI cricket of any fieldsman. He is also distinguished by his characteristic celebration after hitting one hundred runs for his country, where he prostrates in thankfulness to Allah in the direction of Mecca. He has observed this act (known as the Sajdah) recently since his conversion to Islam.

Mohammad Yousuf

Mohammad Yousuf 192 - England v Pakistan 3rd test at Leeds 2006

Mohammad Yousuf 202 - England v Pakistan 1st test at Lords 2006

Shoaib Malik

Shoaib Malik Biography
Shoaib Malik did not find much opportunity to rally his bat for two long years from his debut in 1999 as he was sent mostly number ten or nine. When he was first moved to number four, he lost no time to score the team’s highest an unbeaten 111 to win the 2nd ODI over the West Indies at Sharjah in 2001/02. And that was the beginning of the saga of batsman Shaib Malik. He nailed down the New Zealanders by scoring another ton, the teams’ highest of 115 as an opener, and taking three vital wickets at Lahore in 2000. Pakistan’s experimentation with Shoaib seemed never ending sending him in all positions possible save wicket keeping. And he proved himself as an adept one. From run chase to setting up platforms for a big total, he became the most intelligent Pakistani cricketer in the present squad. He hit five centuries and 22 fifties in his 144 ODI career so far. In Tests too, he is also a match winner both with his willow and the leather. His unbeaten 148 saved the first Test Against Sri Lanka at Colombo in 2005/06. As an off spinner, he has striking similarity with the gifted Saqain Mushtaq, but his action was reported twice before he undergoing his first elbow surgery in 2004 and the second in 2005 to correct his action. He has in his kitty 105 wickets in 140 ODIs. Shoiab Malik was appointed Captain for the inaugural Twenty20 World Championship in South Africa in 2007 and he was instrumental in taking the team to the final before being beaten out by India in a nail biting finish.

Shoaib Malik

Shoaib Malik 125 vs India 2008 Asia Cup

Shoaib Malik cracking Six to Murli

Umar Akmal Biography

Born May 26, 1990, Lahore, Punjab

Major teams Pakistan, Lahore Lions, Pakistan Under-19s, Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited

Playing role Middle-order batsman

Batting style Right-hand bat

Fielding position Occasional wicketkeeper

Relation Brother - Kamran Akmal, Brother - Adnan Akmal

The runs didn't cease to flow for Umar Akmal, the younger brother of Pakistan wicketkeeper Kamran and Adnan, in his maiden first-class season. In a triumphant 2007-08 for Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited, Umar failed to score in his first outing but then went on to amass 855 runs from nine matches in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, at an average of 77.72 and an impressive strike-rate of 90.18. He showed a penchant for both brisk and big scoring, with knocks of 248 off 225 balls and 186 off 170. In January 2008, he was picked in Pakistan's Under-19 team for the World Cup in Malaysia. He was the leading run-getter - with 255 runs at a strike-rate of 123.18 - in a tri-nation tournament involving England and Sri Lanka in the lead-up to the World Cup. A successful tour of Australia with Pakistan A was followed up a maiden international call-up for the ODIs in Sri Lanka, and Umar started off with a half-century in his second game and a power-packed hundred in his third. A Test call-up was inevitable and he gave an optimistic glimpse into the future of Pakistan cricket, with a century on debut, under pressure followed by a string of consistent scores in New Zealand.

Umar Akmal

Umar Akmal's Maiden ODI Century Celebration

UMAR AKMAL vs AUSTRALIA HD

Younis Khan

Younis Khan Biography
Younis Khan is fearless, as befits his Pathan ancestry and will forever be remembered as the second Khan to bring home a world title for Pakistan: Younis was Pakistan's captain in the 2009 World Twenty20, leading a successful campaign with stark similarities to the one Imran Khan had led 17 years earlier. Younis retired from the format straight after, a graceful and dignified gesture from a complex but honest man.
It is as a batsman, and a fearless one, that he made his name first, playing with a flourish. He is especially strong in the arc from backward point to extra cover. He is prone to getting down on one knee and driving extravagantly. But this flamboyance is coupled with grit.
Though Younis was one of the few batsmen who retained his place in the team after Pakistan's disastrous World Cup campaign in 2003, he lost it soon after due to a string of poor scores in the home series against Bangladesh and South Africa. He came back for the one-day series against India, but failed to cement a place in the Test side. He is among the better fielders in Pakistan and he took a world-record four catches in one innings as substitute during Pakistan's demolition of Bangladesh in the 2001-02 Asian Test Championship.
But until his return to the side in October 2004, he wasn't a fixture. At the pivotal one-down, against Sri Lanka in Karachi, a century laid the groundwork for his emergence as a force in Pakistan cricket. He was the top run-getter in the disastrous 3-0 whitewash in Australia immediately after and on the tour of India, for which Younis was elevated to vice-captain, he blossomed. After a horror start to the series he came back strongly, capping things off with a match-winning 267 in the final Test. He credits the late Bob Woolmer, to whom he was close, for the turnaround in his career.
Since then, barring minor troughs such as the 2005-06 series against England at home, his career has been one elongated peak, scoring hundreds against India and England for fun and becoming Pakistan's most successful one-down in recent memory. More importantly, the tour to India also showcased his potential as a future captain of Pakistan and his energetic and astute leadership has impressed many people. As captain in Inzamam's absence he led the side to a disastrous loss against the West Indies in 2005 but also to a memorable win against India in Karachi in January 2006.
He blotted his book by suddenly resigning from the captaincy in Inzamam's absence for the Champions Trophy 2006, only to return a day later and lead a scandal-afflicted side to a disappointing first round exit. He was the favourite to take over the captaincy after Pakistan's ignominous World Cup ouster in 2007 but he turned it down, citing mental strain and decided to honour his commitment with Yorkshire by making himself unavailable for Pakistan. In January 2009, however, the PCB came calling a third time, after Pakistan's disastrous home ODI series against Sri Lanka, and appointed him captain in place of Shoaib Malik. Within a few months, with the Twenty20 win, Younis was looking a natural leader.
But the peace, once again, did not last long and several senior players in the team expressed misgivings over Younis' leadership. Things came to a head against New Zealand in Sharjah, after which he announced his resignation from the top-job and sought a break from the team for the tour down under. He was included in the ODI team, midway through a disastrous tour, but struggled for form and runs. His career hit its biggest controversy in March 2010 when, along with Mohammad Yousuf, he was banned by the PCB from all Pakistan teams, for causing infighting within the team, in effect ending his career.

Younis Khan

Younis Khan 60 playing for South Australia vs Queensland

T20 World Cup: Younis Khan at the Prime Minister House (SOT)

Asad Shafiq

Asad Shafiq Biography

A right-hand top order batsman, Asad Shafiq is a product of the Karachi tape ball circuit. He stormed the first-class scene in his debut season in 2007-08, scoring a double-hundred. He fell short of thousand runs that season, but attained the milestone two seasons later, when he scored 1244 runs in 12 games at 49.76. He made an impact as a limited-overs player in 2008-09, when he scored 379 runs in seven games at 54.14. The national selectors had earmarked him as one for the future in meetings and he was rewarded him with a call-up for the Asia Cup in 20.

Asad Shafiq

Asad Shafiq - Mr Solid

Brilliant run out by Asad Shafiq