IPOH, Malaysia: Pakistan defeated their arch rivals India 3-1 in a crucial match of the Azlan Shah Hockey Cup here on Wednesday. India made breakthrough when Rupinderpal Singh scored the first goal in the 22nd minute and India were leading 1-0 at the half-time. But after 27 minutes, Pakistan hit back strongly scoring three goals in eight minutes. First, Muhammad Zubair leveled the score in the 49th minute, then Muhammad Imran netted second goal in the 55th minute and two minutes later, Sohail Abbas made the third goal for Pakistan. Source Geo News

With Pakistan Vs India semi final of the world cup 2011 coming closer, the media war is on its peak. Media has already created a hype in both the countries about the match to be played between Pakistan and Indian in Mohali on 30th of this month. Have a look at the following clip with Aamir Sohail and Ravi having cross fire. Aamir Sohail replying to one of the person who called Pakistan team as auto rickshaw and Indian team as BMW.

The world cup 2011 song by famous rock singer Ali Azmat is finally here. Josh-e-Janoon is dedicated to Pakistan Cricket team. We wish Pakistan cricket team all the best.

Pakistan Hockey team has defeated Malaysia in Asian Games of 2010 in Guangzhou by 2-0 score. This long awaited victory has sparked widespread celebrations all over Pakistan. The last time Pakistan had won the Asian Games was in 1990, in Beijing when Pakistan Hockey team defeated India by 3-2.
Malaysia had gone into the final as the only unbeaten team in the competition with four wins and a draw.
This is the second Asian Games Gold medal for Pakistan in a day, interestingly Pakistan Squash team also defeated Malaysia to hold the top position on victory stand of Squash.
With this victory Pakistan has qualified for Olympics. This is the same team who was ranked at 12 in previous Hockey World Cup and Hockey was not even include in the national games of Pakistan in 2010.
Sohail Abbas was the one to score first goal in the 28th minute when he converted from a penalty corner whereas Rihan Butt scored second and decisive goal in the beginning of second half of the match when he hit a close-range goal from open play.
But Salman Akbar, goalkeeper of Pakistan Hockey team, is considered to be the actual hero and main character in this victory. He saved two definite goals for Pakistan in the final match. It was his extraordinary performance in the semi finals against South Korea who brought Pakistan in the finals when he saved 4 out of 7 penalty strokes.  He was no doubt the best player of this tournament.
Source

Bob and Mike Bryan, twin brothers from Camarillo, won their third U.S. Open doubles title and their ninth Grand Slam championship Friday, but it was the moment when Pakistani player Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi took the microphone inside a jampacked Arthur Ashe Stadium that brought the crowd to its feet and tears to Bob’s eyes.
“My parents are watching in Pakistan and I love you all,” Qureshi said. “I want to say something on behalf of all Pakistanis. It is the wrong perception that Pakistan is being a terrorist country. We are a loving, caring people and we want peace as much as you guys want it. May God love us all.”
The top-ranked Bryans beat Rohan Bopanna of India and Qureshi 7-6 (5), 7-6 (4) but the match seemed almost secondary.

Bopanna and Qureshi have been nicknamed the Indo-Pak Express as a celebration of the partnership that is trying to promote peace between their two countries that have fought three wars since 1947. Lately they’ve also begun winning, and the support Friday was vociferous; the standing ovation after Qureshi spoke was, even in New York terms, monstrous.
Then, at the post-match news conference, the U.N. ambassador from Pakistan, Abdullah Haroon, stopped by and presented the Bryans with ceremonial shawls to thank them for having donated $5,000 to Pakistani flood relief.
The brothers were teary-eyed again and for a moment doubles held sway on the grandest stage in American tennis.
India’s U.N. Ambassador Hardeep Singh was also in attendance, just as he and Haroon had been in the semifinals, an occasion that Bopanna and Qureshi had found amazing.
It was unusual that Ashe Stadium was nearly full even at noon, when the match started.
“I could see a bunch of Indians and Pakistanis out there at 10:15 when we were warming up,” Bob Bryan said. “I was looking around and I’m like, ‘We’re not going to have this whole crowd on our side for sure.’”
He also said Qureshi’s statement to the crowd choked him up.
“I could see him,” Bob said. “He was quivering a little bit. He was very choked up. Just to give that message to everyone was very heartfelt. What they are doing is a lot more important than winning the U.S. Open.”
Added Mike, “A sport can bring people together. You know, these guys are going to be great for the game for a long time.”
The Bryans said they are planning two fundraisers in the next month to raise more money for Pakistan flood relief.
Later, Qureshi expanded on what he had told the crowd.
“Since Sept. 11, every time I come to the States or Western countries I feel people have the wrong impression of Pakistan as a terrorist nation.… We want peace in this world as much as Americans want and the rest of the world wants. We all are on the same side.”
Qureshi said he understands the reasons for sadness on 9/11 and that he accepts that it is when he comes to the U.S. that he has the most trouble with immigration checks.
“I don’t think anywhere else in the world I stay three hours in immigration after a 15-hour flight. But you just can’t judge the whole country because of some group trying to spoil the whole world.”

Source

Shahid Afradi

LAHORE: All-rounder Shahid Afridi will lead the national side in Asia Cup and during England tour; thus, he will captain team in tests as well after captaincy sprint in Twenty20 and one-dayer.
Chairman Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Aijaz Butt that Afridi will lead the team in all three formats in the Asia Cup and the English tour.
He said that Afridi had the confidence of all players during the world cup and that is the reason he is made the captain now. “It is a quality of a captain that he fosters cooperation and good relations among the players while following the rules and regulations of the game. And Afridi has done all that,” said Butt.
He said that the names of the 30 players playing in the English tour will be announced in the upcoming meeting.
The training camp for the preparation for the series will start from June 1 in Lahore.
The Asia Cup will be played from 15th June to 25th June in Sri Lanka.
The series against Australia and England will be played between July and August in England. Source

Pakistan defeated India in an important match of Champion’s Trophy 2009. Pakistan has already qualified for the semi final but what’s more interesting is that Indian cricket team is looking at Pakistani cricket team for their chances to stay in the tournament.

Indian team is being criticized by Indian media same like they were criticized in the Twenty 20 world cup 2009. Check out the following video an Indian Channel.

Shahid Afradi

Lord’s cricket museum, the world’s oldest sporting museum commonly known as Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) Museum is displaying Shahid Afridi’s shirt. Afridi who played a very vital role in Pakistan’s victory in T20 world cup in England, have many world records with his name. Afridi said “he is extremely proud that the shirt he wore in the ICC World Twenty20 final against Sri Lanka will be placed in the world-famed cricket museum at Lord’s”.
Museum contains rare article used by many great crickers including a sparrow which was killed by a stroke from the bat from Jahangir Khan, father of former Pakistan captain Majid Khan, has also been preserved in this museum. Other than this articles used by Sir Donald Bradman, Brian Lara, Shane Warne and Sachin Tendulkar have also been kept in the museum of Lord’s.

LAHORE: The national hockey team returned home after bagging great victory of test series against England, Geo News reported Sunday. National team Coach Shahid Ali Khan said despite partial umpiring, Pakistan defeated England at their home ground. The national hockey team including 17 players, three officials including Coach Shahid Ali, arrived home in Lahore this morning by Pakistan International Airlines. While, Goalkeeper Salman Akbar and Asif Bajwah did not accompany the team from London. Talking to media at Allama Iqbal International Airport, Shahid Ali said the team played very well, adding the combination of junior and senior players turned out very good. The future of hockey is bright in Pakistan, he added. Captain Zeeshan Ashraf Pakistan Hockey Federation should hold matches with strong teams of Holland and Germany, so that the fitness and game of the players could be enhanced.

Source

LONDON: Pakistan hockey team has defeated England convincingly in the second test mach here by 3-2 goals, thus bagging the three-match test series by 2-0 on Friday, Geo news said.
In the thirteenth minute of the first half, Waqas Shareef scored first goal from Pakistan while Muhammad Imran, scoring second goal from Pakistan in the twenty-fifth minute of the first half, got Pakistan 2-0 lead.
The team gradually lost grip on the match in the second half but in the fifty-fifth minute of the match, Hafeez Khan made the third goal from Pakistan however, English team, coming back into the game, had managed to score two goals thirteen minutes before the final whistle of the match.
Consequently, Pakistan hockey thrashed England by 3-2 in the second test match, winning the test series by 2-0.