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Suraiya Azmin and Fariha Trisna have been left out

Mohammad Isam04-Sep-2022Bangladesh have made two changes to their 15-member squad for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier to be held later this month. Sanjida Akter and the uncapped Marufa Akter have been included in place of Suraiya Azmin and Fariha Trisna, but the core of the side that played in this year’s Commonwealth Games Qualifier and Women’s World Cup has been kept intact.The eight-team Qualifier will be held in Abu Dhabi from September 14 to 25. Bangladesh have been drawn in Group A alongside USA, Ireland and Scotland. All three of Bangladesh’s group matches will be held at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.Sanjida is a left-arm orthodox spinner who has played four T20Is since making her debut in 2019. She was in the Commonwealth Games Qualifier squad, but wasn’t in the World Cup side. Marufa is an uncapped medium-pacer who was the second-highest wicket-taker in the Women’s National Cricket League T20s last month.These two players have replaced medium-pacer Suraiya and left-arm seamer Trisna, who was surprisingly left out despite taking 12 wickets in the same T20 competition as Marufa.The squad will travel to Abu Dhabi on September 8 for a pre-event conditioning camp which will go on for five days.Bangladesh squad: Nigar Sultana (capt & wk), Sharmin Akter, Shamima Sultana, Fargana Hoque, Rumana Ahmed, Ritu Moni, Lata Mondal, Salma Khatun, Sobhana Mostary, Nahida Akter, Murshida Khatun, Jahanara Alam, Fahima Khatun, Sanjida Akter, Marufa Akter

“There’s no point wasting two days, scoring quick fifties and coming out. We’d rather have them do two sessions, get into Test match zone and prepare the wickets the way we want to,” India’s captain said

Firdose Moonda30-Dec-20172:15

Prepared to face balls that may surprise us – Kohli

The search for high-quality practice time in order to acclimatise to South African conditions was behind India’s decision to cancel their warm-up match ahead of the three-Test series. Instead of facing a South African Invitation side, which may have comprised players with scant franchise experience, as was the case against Zimbabwe 10 ten days ago on a flat, slow deck in Paarl, India have opted for two high-intensity training sessions at the Western Province Cricket Club, where they will try to replicate Test-match conditions.”If you look at the wicket that we are playing on right now, it’s not even 15% of what we are going to get in the game,” Virat Kohli said, at the team’s first media engagement since arriving in the country two days ago. “We understand that. There’s no point wasting two days, guys going in, scoring quick fifties and coming out. We’d rather have them do two sessions like today, get into Test match zone, test ourselves, try and prepare the wickets the way we want to.”If you’re playing a two-day game, there’s no room to change the wicket at different times of the day. Here we have the freedom to put more water on the wicket, roll it, make it harder, come tomorrow’s practice session and then we have conditions that we want. You are never sure of whether you are going to get quality practice games or not. We would rather have practice sessions that are in our control, done the way we want to run them.”India’s reasoning only confirms what is expected: that surfaces will be sporting, with plenty of pace, bounce and seam movement, maybe even a little more than usual given that the last time South Africa were in India, at the end of 2015, they were outspun on rank turners. “We come to South Africa knowing the wickets will be different from back home. The last time that we played, there was a lot of talk about us getting bounced out and struggling against the short ball,” he said.”The most important thing is not to get surprised by the pace and bounce. We have convinced ourselves that it’s going to be much quicker and much bouncier than back home and you are going to get balls that may surprise you every now and then. The most important thing is to put it in the past, put it behind you and focus on the next ball. That’s something that we did last time as well. You can’t afford to think there is too much pace and bounce. You rather take it on, believe in your abilities and take it head on. That’s key to playing conditions that are different from your own.”BCCI

The age-old issue of adapting to foreign conditions is an obvious starting point for the build-up to this series, but the narrative is slightly different because India believe they can do better than they have before. To date, their best result in South Africa is a drawn series in 2010-11. “This team is up for the challenge, If you asked me four years ago, I would have said no but this team has gained in experience,” Ravi Shastri, India’s head coach, said. “For us, every game is a home game. Even this is a home game at Newlands. You see the pitch and you adapt. No excuses, no complaints. Two teams have to play on that surface. If you want to be rated as a side, you adapt to those conditions. It’s as simple as that. Leave all the other crap aside. Just get out there and go and compete.”That may seem like big talk considering India have not played outside the subcontinent or West Indies since 2015, when they toured Australia. Their home series against Sri Lanka ended on December 24, which meant they could not play a Boxing Day Test in South Africa. They only arrived in South Africa on December 28, so they were also not able to start the New Year’s Test on its usual first day, January 2.Instead, the match begins three days later on January 5. With many still in holiday mode, and the second and third days falling on a weekend, Cricket South Africa don’t have too much reason to worry because big crowds are still expected. They can prepare for what Shastri predicts will be a “good contest” against an Indian side that want to start bossing opposition away from home, having done it so confidently in their own backyard for the last nine series.”We are looking forward to this period of playing away from home. We feel we have the skill set to do well in any place in the world. Now is our opportunity because of the average age of the group and the amount of cricket we are going to play together,” Kohli said. “We know exactly what we need to do, if we need to bounce back, how we need to do it or if we want to create chances, how we need to create them.”There is sense of intelligence and awareness that has crept in in the last four years and that provides the excitement we are talking about. We know exactly what we need to do come game time. It’s not like we are going to go out there and explore. We are not in that frame of mind. We know how to win Test matches now. I think that’s very good knowledge to have.”

England quick proud of role in fightback, and primed for possible role with the bat

Andrew Miller04-Jun-2022Stuart Broad says that England will carry their new-found positive approach into the clutch moments of their 277-run chase, after Joe Root’s unbeaten 77 and a streaky but vital half-century for Ben Stokes had taken the fight to New Zealand on an absorbing third day of the first LV= Insurance Test at Lord’s.Broad himself instigated a key momentum shift in the morning session, as New Zealand’s final six wickets fell for 49 runs in 12.3 overs. The first three of those came in a row in his third over of the day, including the run-out of Colin de Grandhomme, as England battled back from a chastening second afternoon to restrict New Zealand to 285.And as Root and Ben Foakes put together an unbroken sixth-wicket stand of 57 to reduce England’s final-day requirement to a further 61 with five wickets standing, Broad acknowledged that his work in this match could yet be far from done.”It’s been a really enjoyable Test match, really exciting and hard to know what is going to happen from hour to hour,” he said. “It’s great to be coming [back] knowing either team could win.”In Test cricket you’re constantly saying ‘it’s a big hour’, and I feel like we’ve said that every single hour here. The hour with Rooty and Foakesy before the new ball is going to be crucial to try and get the runs down as low as we can.”There’s been times we’ve had to soak up pressure, but we’ve got to have a really positive mindset leading up to the new ball. The way Rooty and Stokesy played after a bit of luck with the no-ball showed the way this team want to go about it.”After a relatively quiet performance with the ball in the first two days, Broad’s ebullient display was typical of the game-changing displays that he has made his calling card down the years, and after Daryl Mitchell and Tom Blundell had turned the tide of the game with a 195-run fifth-wicket stand, he admitted that it had come at a critical moment for the team.”It was huge,” he said. “We were a bit disappointed yesterday afternoon…they played really well for their runs. We knew we had to strike with the new ball because the Test match was riding on it. If New Zealand get 340-350 it’s a different game. I really enjoyed the feeling of getting the crowd going, lifting the energy in the stadium. The crowd responded brilliantly and so did the players.”In his 153rd Test, Broad has seen most situations that the game can serve up, and with Covid restrictions now lifted, he said he was looking forward to taking his mind off the game – and his probable role with the bat – by enjoying a night out for his fiancée’s birthday.Related

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“Gone are the days of 20 beers to relax yourself. That was my dad’s [former England opener, Chris] trick. I think it’s important for all of us to take our mind off the game tonight.”It’s actually Molly’s birthday today. Happy birthday Molly. So we’re going out for dinner with a couple of her friends which will be great, and I’ll next think about [the match] when I arrive at the ground tomorrow and practice specifics in the nets.”There’s no point just having throwdowns, with me not focusing on how I want to play in the middle,” he added. “Obviously my situation might change depending if I’m in in the first ball or the 10-15th over, or whatever, but it’s runs we need. There’s no point blocking and waiting for a draw. It’s runs we need.”Whatever transpires, however, Broad knows that England have achieved one of their primary aims of this game already, by setting out to entertain.”A win would be great, it would cap off a fantastic Test match,” he said. “But there’s no-one who’s come to watch this game over the last three days who would leave disappointed, I don’t think.”It’s had a bit of everything. It’s up to us as a group of players to do everything we can to get over the line, and it would be very special, but if it doesn’t work that way we step up to the plate in Nottingham.”But I’ve got a really good feeling about tomorrow. Joe Root is one of the calmest, England’s best ever batsmen, and Foakesy I thought settled really nicely, and then it’s going to be up to the lower order to chase these runs, so it’s set up to be a brilliant morning.”

Left-arm spinner Bhargav Bhatt took four wickets to hurt Tripura at home, while in Cuttack, Odisha’s batsmen frustrated Tamil Nadu for more than 100 overs

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Nov-2017Half centuries from Manisankar Murasingh and Gurinder Singh proved inadequate as Tripura conceded an 87-run first-innings advantage to Andhra on day three of the Ranji Trophy fixture in Agartala. The visitors then played out the remaining 17 overs to finish on 51 for 1 in their second innings.Tripura’s day began as badly as it ended as they lurched from their overnight score of 68 for 1 to 111 for 5. And even with the No. 7 and No. 8 batsmen Murasingh and Gurinder clobbering identical scores of 81, they fell well short of parity. Left-arm spinner Bhargav Bhatt returned figures of 4 for 93 from his 28 overs while medium-pacers David Vijaykumar and Bandaru Ayyappa took a combined four wickets for 106 runs.Andhra’s first-innings centurion DB Prasanth made 29 before he fell to Dutta in the fifth over before stumps. Srikar Bharat (21) and Hanuma Vihari (1) were the batsmen left unbeaten.A 128-run opening stand between Sandeep Pattnaik and Natraj Behera headlined Odisha‘s fightback in Cuttack as the went to stumps on 286 for 4 in response to Tamil Nadu‘s 530 for 8 declared.While Pattnaik peppered 11 fours in his 127-ball 66, Behera hit 13 fours and a six, falling nine short of his ninth first-class hundred. He was trapped lbw by left-arm spinner Rahil Shah. Washington Sundar’s double-strike in the 62nd over accounted for Govinda Poddar and Subhranshu Senapati before Shantanu Mishra and Biplab Samantray stitched together an unbeaten 78-run stand for the fifth wicket. Odisha have now lasted more than 100 overs, but still trail Tamil Nadu by 244 runs.

Jarvis’s return will be the completion of work started by Zimbabwe’s convener of selectors Tatenda Taibu, to bring prominent internationals who chose to further their career elsewhere home

Firdose Moonda26-Sep-2017Pace bowler Kyle Jarvis is leaving Lancashire before the end of his current deal to resume his international career with Zimbabwe.Jarvis’ return will be the completion of work started by Zimbabwe’s convener of selectors Tatenda Taibu, to bring prominent internationals who chose to further their career elsewhere home. Last week, Brendan Taylor left Nottinghamshire in order to return to Zimbabwe, where he was immediately re-signed on a national deal. Taylor is expected to make his comeback in the two Test series against West Indies in October, two-and-a-half years after he signed a Kolpak deal at the end of the 2015 World Cup.Jarvis’s absence has been much longer. He left for Lancashire in 2013, just two years after making his debut. At the time, Zimbabwe Cricket was experiencing one of its myriad financial crisis and players had not been paid. Jarvis sought a county deal in the hope of financial security and established himself as one of the club’s most valuable players. Zimbabwe would say the same.Though they have had several bowlers come through, injuries to Tinashe Panyangara, Tendai Chatara, Brian Vitori and Chris Mpofu over the years have meant they have been unable to establish a regular opening pair. With Zimbabwe set to play more matches, especially Test matches, and the World Cup qualifiers ahead of them, Jarvis will be seen as someone who can fill that role.”I have absolutely loved my time at Lancashire over the last four years,” Jarvis said. “It’s a very special place and I have made some fantastic friends here. I am immensely proud to have played a part in the history of this great club. I would like to thank everyone that for making me feel part of it.”In eight Test, Jarvis has taken 30 wickets at 31.73 alongside 27 at 45.22 in ODIs and 10 wickets in nine T20Is.

Birmingham’s trio of young batsmen Ed Pollock, Dominic Sibley and Adam Hose all stood out before a nerve-jangling last-over finish

ECB Reporters Network18-Aug-2017Dominic Sibley is making an impression at Birmingham•Getty Images

Ed Pollock, Dom Sibley and Adam Hose all starred with the bat to help nervy Birmingham Bears into the quarter-finals of the NatWest T20 Blast as they beat Lancashire by two wickets with three balls to spare at Emirates Old Trafford.Victory justified Birmingham’s decision to omit their captain and former England batsman, Ian Bell, for the final match in response to an unproductive T20 season – but it was a close-run thing.Chasing 164 on a used pitch, left-handed opener Pollock smashed 49 off 24 balls, including four sixes, to get things started.New Bears signings Sibley and Hose then shared 84 in 10 overs for the second wicket to advance from 61 for one in the sixth before the Bears slipped from 145 for 1 in the 16th to 160 for 8 after 19, losing seven wickets in 23 balls.Sibley finished 53 off 37 balls, while Hose added 49 off 35. They hit five sixes between them before Olly Stone hit the winning runs with four needed off the last over.Hose and Sibley have only arrived at Edgbaston from Somerset and Surrey within the last month, and Pollock is in his maiden summer of first-team cricket.For Lancashire, who have failed to qualify for the last eight since winning the Blast in 2015, they had to win and hope other results went their way to qualify.The Bears are now targeting their second title in four years.The Lightning would have been reasonably happy at halfway with their 163 for 4, underpinned by Jos Buttler’s 58 off 42 balls. The England man’s second half-century in three days was another measured effort and included two sixes after being inserted.Having hit 36 without a boundary in Wednesday’s win over Worcestershire here, Liam Livingstone (39) guided his very first ball from Stone to the third-man fence. He pulled two huge leg-side sixes, including the latter off leg-spinner Josh Poysden, which went out of the ground and onto the Brian Statham Way.Buttler was elevated to No 3 and hit Sibley’s leggies for a straight six in the 13th over to move into the twenties. By that stage, Lancashire were 100 for 2. He also hit Stone over long-off for six and shared 86 in 10 overs with inventive South African Dane Vilas, who made 30. Buttler miscued Stone to long-on in the 19th.Poysden and Stone were the only two Bears wicket-takers with two apiece, with the former the pick as he conceded 28 from his four overs.He hit Ryan McLaren for three sixes in the power play, including two over long-leg, before slapping a short ball from the seamer to cover with the score on 61 midway through the sixth over.Sibley and Hose both offered relatively simple catches on 18 and 31 to Matt Parkinson at short fine-leg and Jordan Clark at long-off.Hose hit 76 on his Bears debut in the win over Lancashire at Edgbaston late last month, and he demonstrated his power again by hitting three sixes over long-on.But the Bears stumbled dramatically with victory in sight as Livingstone struck twice in two balls. Junaid Khan and Arron Lilley also claimed two wickets apiece, but Lancashire’s success with the ball came too late.

The left-arm quick will miss the start of the tournament due to quarantine requirements

Tristan Lavalette02-Dec-2021Tymal Mills, who starred for England in the recent T20 World Cup before succumbing to injury, has committed to Perth Scorchers for the upcoming BBL, in a late signing coup for last season’s runner-up.Mills, the left-arm quick, replaces compatriot Brydon Carse, who was ruled out of the tournament following a knee injury sustained last month less than 24 hours after the quick signed with Scorchers. Mills adds serious punch to the Scorchers’ fast bowling stocks headed by stalwarts Jason Behrendorff and Andrew Tye.He helps offset the expected lengthy absence of in-form Jhye Richardson, who is likely to be tied up with Ashes duties. Mills arrives in Sydney on Monday after playing in the Abu Dhabi T10, meaning he will miss the Scorchers’ opening two matches due to quarantine rules.Related

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“When they got in touch, I was extremely keen,” Mills said. “They’re a great franchise with some great players. It’s exciting to get the opportunity to play in big competitions.”Mills, who has battled a back condition throughout his career, was a key part of England’s strong start to the T20 World Cup with figures of 2 for 17 against West Indies and 3 for 27 against Bangladesh. His pace, left-arm angle and ability to bowl through the middle and at the death helped him balance England’s attack until Mills’ campaign cruelly ended when he suffered a right thigh strain against Sri Lanka.It was a similar injury to the one he sustained in 2018, which also ruled him out of the rest of that English season. Mills finished the T20 World Cup with seven wickets at 15.42 in his four matches, at an economy-rate of 8.00, and his absence was particularly felt in the semi-final against New Zealand, where England were unable to contain the rampaging batters at the death.Tymal Mills had a big impact for England before injury•Getty Images

Scorchers also announced the signings of emerging players Nick Hobson and Cooper Connolly, while quick David Moody – the nephew of ex-Australia player and renowned coach Tom Moody – has been confirmed as Richardson’s replacement.Left-handed batter Hobson played for Scorchers in BBL08 and gave his selection chances a timely boost with a sparkling 90 from 59 balls during the team’s practice match at the WACA on Wednesday.Scorchers start their season against Brisbane Heat on December 8 at Optus Stadium, where they currently only have two fixtures confirmed due to Western Australia’s strict border controls.

Use of saliva for ball-shining, and batters changing ends during dismissals also amended

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Mar-2022The new batter being on strike even if the players crossed while a catch is taken, a reframing of the law for running out non-strikers while backing up, and a permanent ban on using saliva to shine the ball are among the changes to MCC’s Laws that will come into effect later this year.An updated code of the Laws was approved by the MCC’s main committee this week. The changes will also allow greater leeway to the bowler in the judging of wides when a batter has moved across the crease, and see the introduction of penalty runs for the batting side should a fielder be deemed to have moved unfairly.The decision to change the Law for caught dismissals comes as a result of its trialling in the Hundred. Previously, if the two batters crossed before a catch was taken, the new batter would go to the non-striker’s end; now they will always be on strike – unless it is the end of the over – in a move that was proposed as a way of further rewarding the bowler for taking a wicket.The wording that covers a player being run out by the bowler while backing up – often referred to as Mankading – has been moved from Law 41 (Unfair play) to Law 38 (Run out), in a further attempt to remove some of the stigma around such dismissals.”The bowler is always painted as the villain but it is a legitimate way to dismiss someone and it is the non-striker who is stealing the ground,” Fraser Stewart, MCC Laws Manager, told the . “It is legitimate, it is a run-out and therefore it should live in the run-out section of the laws.”The prohibition of saliva as a means of shining the ball came about through changes to playing conditions during Covid, with MCC’s research suggesting it had had “little or no impact” on bowlers’ ability to generate swing. Making this the default position was felt to remove any ambiguity around the use of mints or sweets to change the condition of the ball – something that was already banned.The rewording of Law 22.1, meanwhile, means that wide calls will “apply to where the batter is standing, where the striker has stood at any point since the bowler began their run-up, and which would also have passed wide of the striker in a normal batting position”.Further changes have been agreed governing the use of replacements, the Laws governing dead balls, and the legality of trying to play the ball once it has gone off the cut strip.Updates to the Laws are usually incorporated throughout the game, from international down to club level, although governing bodies around the world have the ability to ignore certain changes by reference to competition-specific playing conditions.”Since the publication of the 2017 Code of the Laws of Cricket, the game has changed in numerous ways,” Stewart said in an MCC press release. “The 2nd edition of that Code, published in 2019, was mostly clarification and minor amendments, but the 2022 Code makes some rather bigger changes, from the way we talk about cricket to the way it’s played.”It is important that we announce these changes now as part of the club’s global commitment to the game, giving officials from all over the world the chance to learn under the new Code ahead of the Laws coming into force in October.”

Earlier, Brett Lee picked up 3 for 18 to restrict Maharajas to a sub-par total

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Mar-2023Chris Gayle’s 46-ball 57 made light work of World Giants’ chase of 137 after Brett Lee (3 for 18) bowled a game-changing penultimate over against India Maharajas on Wednesday. World Giants completed the chase with eight balls to spare to complete a routine win in Doha.Gayle was clear about his intent from the start of the innings. He smashed six boundaries in the first three overs to pile misery on Maharajas’ bowlers, and was particularly harsh on Ashok Dinda. In the sixth over, he hit him for 4, 6, 4 and 4 off consecutive deliveries.Shane Watson added to the momentum with some vintage shots in his quickfire cameo. After taking two fours off Pravin Tambe in the seventh over, he smashed stand-in India Maharajas captain Harbhajan Singh for two consecutive boundaries in the next.Tambe temporarily stalled Giants’ cruise, bowling a dream delivery to dismiss Watson as the ball beat him on the outside edge and dislodged the off bail.That dismissal, along with a few wickets as the innings progressed, forced Gayle to take a cautious approach in the chase. Having reached his half-century in 26 balls, he managed only seven in the next 20. His innings was cut short by Suresh Raina, who surprised him with a length ball that didn’t bounce much and trapped him right in front.Even though World Giants continued to lose wickets after that dismissal, cameos from Samit Patel and Morne van Wyk carried them over the line.Earlier, in the absence of their regular captain and in-form opener Gautam Gambhir, India Maharajas were desperate for a strong start. Robin Uthappa, coming off a spectacular fifty on Tuesday, did not look in control against Samit even though he had found a boundary off his second delivery. Two balls later, Samit dismissed him with an arm ball, with the batter mis-hitting it to Aaron Finch at midwicket.Raina tried to increase the scoring rate, hitting Monty Panesar for two back-to-back sixes in the eighth over. First, he picked up a back-of-a-length delivery and pulled it over deep midwicket and then stepped out to smash the next over the bowler’s head.However, Maharajas’ innings followed the pattern of solid partnerships followed by quick wickets throughout. After a 60-run stand between Raina and Manvinder Bisla, they lost Yusuf Pathan and Stuart Binny off consecutive deliveries.Irfan Pathan’s cameo of 25 off 20 balls carried them for a while but Lee’s two wickets in the 19th over restricted them to a sub-par total.

The former Pakistan batter played two Tests, in 1969 and 1975

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jan-2022Aftab Baloch, a domestic giant from the 1970s, maker of Pakistan’s second domestic quadruple ton, and a batter who could have played more than his two Tests for Pakistan, has died. He was 68 years old.Baloch is probably best remembered for the 428 he made as captain of Sindh against Balochistan in Karachi during the 1973-74 Quaid-e-Azam trophy. He added 174 for the fifth wicket in that game with a young Javed Miandad, playing only his eighth first-class game. It remains the only 400-plus score made by a Pakistani in first-class cricket other than Hanif Mohammad’s legendary 499, made 15 years before that.But there was much greater pedigree to Baloch beyond that one innings. His father Shamsher Baloch had played for Gujarat and Maharashtra in the Ranji Trophy in pre-partition India. And Aftab’s first-class debut as a 16-year-old was testament to his talent: he scored an unbeaten 77 batting at number nine, and took 12 wickets in an easy win for PwD (Public Works Department) over Hyderabad Blues in August 1969 in the Quaid-e-Azam trophy.Miandad’s presence in the 428 match, however, was significant in that it was testament to the depth in Pakistan’s batting during that decade, a depth that kept Baloch out of the side. Between the 1972-73 season and the 1977-78 season, Baloch was at his peak: he scored 5025 runs in Pakistani first-class cricket, averaging nearly 55 with 14 tons.At the same time, Pakistan had a batting order built around Sadiq Mohammad, Majid Khan, Zaheer Abbas, Asif Iqbal and Mushtaq Mohammad – and then, eventually, Miandad himself. It was among the strongest batting line-ups Pakistan has ever had in Tests.In those peak years Baloch enjoyed considerable success as captain of a strong National Bank side. He led them to the Patron’s Trophy title in the 1974-75 season and then a double of the Quaid-e-Azam trophy and the Patron’s Trophy again the very next season. The next season he again led them to the finals of both tournaments, though this time they lost both (on first-innings scores rather than outright defeat). Baloch scored three hundreds across all those finals.In the midst of that run, he did at least get a Test, against the visiting West Indies at Gaddafi Stadium in February 1975. It was his second, after a debut in 1969, and he did well: he hit an unbeaten 60 in the second innings against a pre-great West Indies attack that still included Andy Roberts and Lance Gibbs. It was to be his last Test, in a side that would two years later become a serious force on tours of Australia and West Indies.”I am deeply saddened to hear the passing of Aftab Baloch, who was one the most popular cricketers when I was growing up,” PCB chairman Ramiz Raja said in a statement. “I not only had the privilege of watching him in action, but also played against him in the twilight of his career.”As he was a close friend of my late brother Wasim Hasan Raja, I knew him well outside the field of play and always admired him for his passion, love and understanding of the game. He was gentle, friendly and caring, and had qualities that made him a widely respected and loved person.”