Pakistan and India are favorites to win next month’s World Twenty20 tournament, as both have shown good form in the rapid-fire version of the game, Pakistan’s stand-in captain Misbah-ul-Haq said.
“Both Pakistan and India have been doing very well in Twenty20 cricket, so I think both have a very good chance of winning the World Twenty20,” Misbah said after Pakistan’s seven-wicket win over Australia on Thursday.
Pakistan, led by Misbah after regular captain Younus Khan pulled out with a fever, rode on a career-best 4-8 by paceman Umar Gul and leg-spinner Shahid Afridi (3-14) to dismiss Australia for a low score of 108.
In reply, Kamran Akmal hit a fiery 59 to help Pakistan reach their target with 3.5 overs to spare — an emphatic win that Misbah said would lift his team’s spirits ahead of the World Twenty20 starting in England next month.
“I think this win is an indicator of where we stand,” said Misbah, who scored 24 and added 85 for the third wicket with Akmal. “This win will be a great morale booster for the team,” which lost the preceding one-day series 3-2.
Misbah said he believed Pakistan’s domestic Twenty20 championship had helped to build the team.
“We have been playing a Twenty20 tournament every year and that has matured us. Fortunately, we are again playing that event in Pakistan before going to England,” Misbah said.
Besides India and Pakistan, Misbah also fancied the chances of South Africa and New Zealand in next month’s tournament.
“Any team can win a Twenty20 game but you need discipline and luck. I think South Africa and New Zealand are also two very good teams,” he said.
Australia’s stand-in captain Brad Haddin said he hoped his team’s defeat on Thursday would not demoralize them.
“You can’t judge the form of the team on one game,” said Haddin, who replaced Michael Clarke as captain after Clarke returned home for a rest.
“We were progressing well in the first five overs but then we lost track and were totally outplayed by Pakistan,” he said.
“But I hope it’s not going to affect us as we have some 20-25 days to prepare,” for the Twenty20 tournament, Haddin said.
■INDIAN PREMIER LEAGUE
AP, PRETORIA
The Rajasthan Royals and the Chennai Super Kings both had wins in the Indian Premier League on Thursday to sit tied atop the standings on 11 points.
Rajasthan continued their revival by beating the Bangalore Royal Challengers by seven wickets, while Chennai beat the Kings XI Punjab by 12 runs on the Duckworth-Lewis method in a rain-affected match.
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to