JEREZ DE LA FRONTERA: A wounded world champion roared back on Friday, Francesco Bagnaia lowering his own lap record in practice at Jerez for this weekend’s Spanish MotoGP.

The factory Ducati rider, champion in 2022 and 2023, won the opener in Qatar yet has subsequently fallen to fifth in the championship standings coming into this fourth round of the season.

But the Italian sent out a warning to the pretenders to his crown by dominating the Friday practice with a sizzling late lap of 1min 36.025 to better his own previous best time at the circuit in Andalusia of 1min 36.170 set in 2022.

He topped second practice ahead of Maverick Vinales, the Aprilia rider on a cloud after his heroics at the Grand Prix of the Americas, where he won both the sprint and the race itself off a record pole.

In third came Marc Marquez, who briefly led the US race before abruptly parting company with his Ducati satellite Gresini bike.

Jorge Martin, who leads this season’s championship by 21 points (30 clear of Bagnaia), posted the fifth fastest time, four tenths of a second quicker than teenaged rookie sensation Pedro Acosta.

The top 10 automatically go through to the second qualifying session shaping the first four rows of the grid on Saturday, this group joined by the two fastest riders from the first session.

Saturday qualifying is followed by the 12 lap sprint race, with the 25-lap main event on Sunday where Bagnaia is seeking a third consecutive win.

In the championship Martin leads on 80 points, from Enea Bastianini (59 pts), Vinales (56), Costa (54) and Bagnaia (50).

Published in Dawn, April 27th, 2024

LAHORE: The upcoming T20 World Cup remains Pakistan focus despite their loss to a depleted New Zealand side in the fourth Twenty20 International here at the Gaddafi Stadium on Thursday.

The result confirmed the hosts would not be able to win the five-match series even if they trump New Zealand in the final match at the same venue on Saturday. A victory for Pakistan would see the series end 2-2, with the two teams sharing the winners’ trophy.

After their seven-wicket defeat in the third match in Rawalpindi, Pakistan had gone into the first fixture in Lahore with five changes, with mainstays Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah not featuring.

While the changes may have had a role in Pakistan’s four-wicket loss, for the national side’s management, testing less experienced players to strengthen the bench means more with the World Cup less than two months away.

“When your main players don’t play it does make a difference,” Pakistan batter Fakhar Zaman, whose effort of 61 off 45 went in vain on Thursday, admitted. “But we are focusing on the World Cup, which is why we’re making changes in every match.”

New Zealand are touring Pakistan with their first-choice players absent, majorly due to their involvement in the ongoing Indian Premier League. Led by off-spinner Michael Bracewell, the BlackCaps contingent are being considered as second, if not third-string. Their opponents’ standing has made defeats in the last two matches embarrassing for Pakistan.

“No one likes to lose a match at the international level but again for each one of us the World Cup and finding the right combination for it matters the most,” Fakhar noted. “Meanwhile, we will try our best to win the next match.

“Both things are important, the World Cup comes after a long gap, but it is also important to win individual matches at the international level.”

A newly-formed selection committee and a revamped coaching setup ahead of the New Zealand series has adopted a rotation policy focused on preparing Pakistan for the World Cup — to be held in the United States and the West Indies in June.

The management, Fakhar revealed, has clearly communicated to players about their roles and the number of opportunities they will be provided.

“If I talk about myself, the management had informed me before the series that I will not play the first three matches,” said the flamboyant southpaw. “Similarly, each player was given clarity over the matches they will feature in and the ones they won’t play.”

MARGINAL ERRORS

Pakistan head coach Azhar Mahmood, who has taken up the role on a consultancy basis only for the New Zealand series, believed the two teams were separated in the fourth match only by margins.

The former all-rounder pointed out at intricate details that gave New Zealand the edge throughout the match, while hoping Pakistan will work on their shortcomings.

“There were a few positives for us as we scored more boundaries than New Zealand,” Azhar said. “We also bowled more dot balls but they just took more doubles than us. These are areas of concern for us and we’re constantly working on it.”

The 49-year-old was did not seem to be worried about Pakistan losing three wickets in the powerplay, which saw Saim Ayub and Usman Khan — both being tested as potential first-choice players — along with captain Babar Azam depart early.

For Azhar, the intent to score mattered more than keeping wickets in hand.

“We always talk about showing intent,” he observed. “The way Usman Khan showed intent today was pleasant to watch. He played some good shots but couldn’t perform the way we wanted him to. But intent-wise, he was spot on.”

While Pakistan will be desperate to win the final match and draw the series, there are chances of rain playing spoilsport. Clouds hovered over the city after a storm followed by a spell of rain on Friday.

New Zealand were to go for an optional practice session but that was also called off due to rain. Meanwhile, Pakistan chose to rest on Friday.

Published in Dawn, April 27th, 2024

ATHENS: Greece on Friday handed over the Olympic flame of the 2024 Games to Paris organisers in a ceremony at the Athens marble stadium where the competition was revived nearly 130 years ago.

Hellenic Olympic Committee chairman Spyros Capralos handed the torch to Paris Olympics chief organiser Tony Estanguet at the Panathenaic Stadium, where the first modern Olympics were held in 1896.

Estanguet in a speech said the goal for Paris was to organise “spectacular but also more responsible Games, which will contribute towards a more inclusive society.”

Organisers want to ensure “that the biggest event in the world plays an accelerating role in addressing the crucial questions of our time,” said Estanguet, a member of France’s Athens 2004 Olympics team who won gold in the slalom canoe event.

A duo of French champions, Beijing 2022 ice dance gold medallist Gabriella Papadakis and former swimmer Beatrice Hess, one of the most successful Paralympians in history, carried the flame during the final relay leg into the Panathenaic Stadium.

Nana Mouskouri, the 89-year-old Greek singer with a worldwide following, performed the anthems of France and Greece at the ceremony.

After spending the night at the French embassy in Athens, the flame on Saturday will begin its journey to France on board the 19th-century three-masted barque Belem.

On Sunday, the ship will pass from the Corinth Canal — a feat of 19th century engineering constructed with the contribution of French banks and engineers.

The Belem is set to reach Marseille — a city founded by ancient Greek colonists around 600 BCE — on May 8.

Over 1,000 vessels will accompany its approach to the harbour, local officials have said.

French swimmer Florent Manaudou will be the first torch bearer in Marseille. His sister Laure was the second torch bearer in ancient Olympia, where the flame was lit on April 16.

Ten thousand torchbearers will then carry the flame across 64 French territories.

It will travel through more than 450 towns and cities, and dozens of tourist attractions during its 12,000-kilometre (7,500-mile) journey through mainland France and overseas French territories in the Caribbean, Indian Ocean and Pacific.

On July 26, it will form the centrepiece of the Paris Olympics opening ceremony.

A French historical monument launched just weeks after the Athens 1896 Games were held, the Belem carried out trade journeys to Brazil, Guyana and the Caribbean for nearly two decades.

Hours before the handover ceremony, the flame passed from Marathon, the town where the classic 42-kilometre endurance race, a key Olympic event, sets off annually.

The torch harks back to the ancient Olympics when a sacred flame burned throughout the Games. The tradition was revived in 1936 for the Berlin Games.

During the 11-day relay on Greek soil, some 600 torchbearers carried the flame over a distance of over 5,000 kilometres (3,100 miles) through over 50 towns and cities.

Published in Dawn, April 27th, 2024

LAUSANNE: The under-fire World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said on Thursday it would launch an independent review over its handling of a case that allowed 23 Chinese swimmers who tested positive for a banned substance to avoid punishment.

The investigation will be led by Swiss prosecutor Eric Cottier, a former attorney general of the canton of Vaud, who WADA said will have access to all files and documents related to the case and will be free to consult any independent experts.

Cottier will begin his work in the coming days and is expected to deliver findings under two months.

“WADAs integrity and reputation is under attack,” said WADA president Witold Banka.

“In the past few days, WADA has been unfairly accused of bias in favour of China by not appealing the CHINADA case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport,” he said. “We continue to reject the false accusations and we are pleased to be able to put these questions into the hands of an experienced, respected and independent prosecutor.”

Calls for an independent investigation have gro­wn since a New York Times report on Saturday said 23 Chinese swimmers had tested positive for the banned drug trimetazidine (TMZ) months be­fore the Covid-delayed Tokyo Olympics in July 2021.

The swimmers avoided sanctions after an probe by Chinese authorities ruled the adverse analytical findings, or AAFs, were the result of being inadver­tently exposed to the drug through contamination.

A report determined all the swimmers who tes­ted positive were staying at the same hotel where traces of trimetazidine (TMZ), which is found in heart medication, were discovered in the kitchen.

WADA has defended its handling of the case, saying it had no evidence to challenge China’s findings and that external counsel had advised against appealing them.

The United States Anti-Doping Agency has led the call for an independent investigation along with an overhaul of WADA to restore confidence in the global body ahead of the Paris Olympics.

USADA chief Travis Tygart has accused WADA of being involved in a “potential cover-up” and the global anti-doping has responded by threatening legal action.

The New York Times reported that the White House had also called for an inquiry as have the anti-doping authorities of Britain and Australia.

In addition to the independent prosecutor, WADA said it will send a compliance audit team to China to assess the state of its anti-doping program and will invite independent auditors from the bro­ader anti-doping community to join the mission.

“While not one shred of evidence has been presented to support any of the allegations made against WADA, we wish to deal with the matter as quickly and as comprehensively as possible so that the matter is appropriately handled in advance of the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games,” said WADA director general Olivier Niggli.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2024

ISLAMABAD: Scores of enthusiastic fans caught a glimpse of the ICC Twenty20 World Cup Trophy, some clicking pictures with it as well as it arrived on a three-day tour of Pakistan on Thursday as part of its world tour ahead of the cricketing extravaganza in the United States and the West Indies in June.

Fans took selfies as the trophy was displayed for public viewing at the Pakistan Monument.

“I’m really happy to see it up close,” Islamabad resident Rashid Hussain told Dawn. “I wish the Pakistan team brings it back after winning the World Cup.”

Earlier, the trophy travelled to the Lake View Park, the Prime Minister Office and President House before being taken to Faisal Mosque for a photo shoot. After its public unveiling at Pakistan Monument, it was taken to the Shalimar Cricket Ground.

The trophy will continue its journey across Pakistan over the next two days, going to Abbottabad on Friday before travelling to Lahore, where it will be displayed at the National Cricket Academy before being on display during the fifth and final Twenty20 International between Pakistan and New Zealand at the Gaddafi Stadium on Saturday.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2024

ISLAMABAD: At last, common sense prevailed with the two rival factions of the Pakistan Hockey Federation deciding to end the separate training camps of the national team with an agreement reached that the players will attend the camp underway in Islamabad after the government brought them to the table.

The training camp will be supervised by Dutchman Roelant Oltmans, who will also head a three-member selection committee that will finalise the squad for next month’s Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in Malaysia.

The selection committee will also comprise the Pakistan Sports Board director general and a representative of the Pakistan Olympic Association, Prime Minister’s coordinator on Youth Affairs Rana Mashood Ahmed Khan said after he listened to both rival groups at the PM Office on Thursday.

Mashood, who was empowered by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to resolve the issues surrounding the PHF, said matters pertaining to the leadership of the country’s hockey governing body — with one faction led by Tariq Bugti and the other by Shehla Raza — will be decided in the next two days.

The government’s intervention to resolve the PHF matter comes a day after the International Hockey Federation (FIH) had written a letter where it had set a deadline of Thursday to decide on one team that would represent Pakistan at the Azlan Shah Cup.

Oltmans had been appointed by the Bugti group while Shehla’s group was holding a camp in Karachi and had announced a 20-member team for the Azlan Shah Cup.

“Once the team is announced by the selection committee, a camp will be set up in Islamabad ahead of the team’s departure for Malaysia on April 2,” Mashood said in a video message.

“We will resolve the issue of the two factions in the next two days,” he added, while lamenting the downfall of the national game which he attributed to mishandling of hockey affairs by the PHF. “There is a pressing need for a new policy to restore Pakistan hockey to its former standing in the game.”

Alongside Mashood, meetings with both rival groups were also attended by PSB director general Shahid Islam, Higher Education Commission director Javed Memon and Olympian Khawaja Junaid.

Bugti, who was nominated as the PHF chief by interim Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar before getting the required votes from the PHF Congress, presented his case alongside the secretary general of his faction, Rana Mujahid.

Shehla, who was accompanied by the secretary general of her faction Haider Hussain, argued that the interim PM had no power to nominate the PHF chief and was elected by the Congress.

Despite the training camp being held by Bugti’s faction getting the nod by Mashood, a government officer close to the situation said that “nothing had been decided yet”.

“Either the PM can decide which faction to go with or he can reject both and opt for a new PHF chief,” he told Dawn.

Another official, highlighting Pakistan’s rapid decline in international hockey — the national team has failed to qualify for three successive Olympics — said it was time for change.

“The power-hungry people at the helm of the PHF have destroyed the national game,” the official told Dawn. “And therefore, those who have had any role in the PHF during the last two decades should be barred from any future role.”

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2024

Experienced allrounder Jimmy Neesham kept his cool to defend six off the last ball to clinch a four-run victory for New Zealand on Thursday in the fourth Twenty20 international against Pakistan in Lahore.

Pakistan needed 18 off the last over in their chase of 179 but Neesham came out in flying colours despite being hit for a boundary off the first ball, giving a packed Gaddafi Stadium crowd heartbreaks.

Opener Tim Robinson hit a maiden half-century to lift New Zealand to 178-7 in 20 overs before pacer William O’Rourke claimed 3-27 to keep Pakistan down to 174-8.

Returning allrounder Imad Wasim (22 not out) managed to hit the last ball for a single as New Zealand took an unassailable 2-1 lead in the five-match series with the last game on Saturday, also in Lahore.

Pakistan also lost the third match by seven wickets after winning the first by the same margin while the first match was abandoned after just two balls — all three in Rawalpindi.

The defeats are a jolt to a full-strength Pakistan side in their preparations for the Twenty20 World Cup to be held in the United States and the West Indies in June.

New Zealand, missing a host of players due to Indian Premier League, injuries and unavailability, can feel elated at their bench strength going into the World Cup.

Pakistan sensed they were in with a chance when Fakhar Zaman, who made 45-ball 61 with three sixes and four boundaries, lifted Pakistan from 79-4 with a 59-run stand for the fifth wicket with Iftikhar Ahmed who made a 20-ball 23.

But O’Rourke, playing only his fourth T20I, dismissed Ahmed to add to his wickets of Babar Azam (five) and Saim Ayub (20) to give New Zealand a boost. Fellow pacer Ben Sears (2-27) claimed Zaman’s wicket with 33 needed off 14 balls.

Earlier, Robinson batted with aggression.

Robinson’s 36-ball 51 with two sixes and four fours lifted New Zealand — who were sent in to bat — to 93-1 in 10 overs before Abbas Afridi’s career-best 3-20 helped Pakistan pull back.

New Zealand started briskly with Robinson and Tom Blundell, who made 28 off 15, putting on 56 for the opening stand in five overs.

But from 94-1 New Zealand lost three wickets, including that of dangerman Mark Chapman for eight, as Pakistan’s fielders held catches to back some good bowling by Abbas.

Dean Foxcroft chipped in with 34 off 26 deliveries and skipper Michael Bracewell added 27 to keep the scoreboard ticking as New Zealand managed 43 in the last five overs.

Pakistan were forced to make five changes as wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan and Muhammad Irfan Khan were injured while they rested Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Abrar Ahmed.

Opener Tim Robinson hit a maiden half-century before Pakistan kept New Zealand down to 178-7 with a three-wicket haul by pace bowler Abbas Afridi in the fourth Twenty20 international in Lahore on Thursday.

Robinson’s 36-ball 51 with two sixes and four fours lifted New Zealand — who were sent into bat — to 93-1 in 10 overs before Abbas’s career-best 3-20 brought Pakistan back into the match at Gaddafi Stadium.

New Zealand started briskly with Robinson and Tom Blundell, who made 28 off 15, putting on 56 for the opening stand in five overs.

But from 94-1, New Zealand lost three wickets, including that of dangerman Mark Chapman for eight, as Pakistan’s fielders held catches to back some good bowling by Abbas.

Dean Foxcroft chipped in with 34 off 26 deliveries and skipper Michael Bracewell added 27 to keep the scoreboard ticking as New Zealand managed 43 in the last five overs.

Both teams are preparing for the T20 World Cup to be held in the United States and West Indies in June this year.

Pakistan were forced to make five changes as wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan and Muhammad Irfan Khan were injured while they rested Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Abrar Ahmed.

New Zealand also made three changes, with the series tied at 1-1 with one match abandoned.

Former Pakistan Women’s captain Bismah Maroof has announced her retirement “from all cricket with immediate effect”, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in a press release on Thursday.

“I have decided to retire from the game I love the most. It has been an incredible journey, filled with challenges, victories, and unforgettable memories,” the batter said in a statement published on the PCB website today.

Maroof extended her thanks to the PCB for “believing in her”, citing the support by the board to be “invaluable, particularly in implementing the first-ever parental policy for me, which enabled me to represent my country at the highest level while being a mother”.

“I am deeply grateful to the fans whose unwavering support has been a constant throughout my career, wherever and whenever I represented my country,” she stated.

She also went on to express her gratitude to her teammates, adding that “the camaraderie we shared both on and off the field is something I will cherish forever”.

Maroof represented Pakistan in 276 international matches — the most by any Pakistani women cricketer, as noted by the PCB. Additionally, she has scored 6,262 international runs, which include 33 half-centuries, and has 80 international wickets with her right-arm leg-spin.

She was named Pakistan’s all-format captain in September 2017 and had the best win/loss ratio amongst all the regular players to lead the country in One-Day Internationals (1.000) and T20 Internationals (0.843).

“During her illustrious career, Bismah was part of the women’s team that won the Gold Medal twice in the Asian Games, in the 2010 and 2014 editions,” the PCB said.

Mallick thanks Bismah for her commitment

“As Bismah Maroof bids farewell to international cricket, we are all indebted to her immense contributions to Pakistan women’s cricket,” head of women’s cricket Tania Malick said, wishing the former captain “heartfelt gratitude for her commitment and invaluable services to the team and the country”.

“I wish Bismah all the best in her future endeavors, and may her journey ahead be as rewarding and fulfilling as her cricketing career has been,” Mallick’s statement read.