Ajmal optimistic of playing till 2015 World Cup

 

Heroes Of Pakistan Cricket

Book name "Heroes of Pakistan Cricket Team. Complete bio-data of 36 stars Pakistanis  cricketers . A gift for those, whose love cricket on the occasion of ICC World Cup 2011.

Download link:-   http://www.mediafire.com/?8nxf58wu2qaq07a.

Paul Collingwood.

Paul David Collingwood MBE (born 26 May 1976) is an English cricketer. He has been a regular member of the England Test side, was captain of the One Day International (ODI) team 2007–2008. He is also vice-captain of his county, Durham County Cricket Club.[Collingwood is a batting all-rounder, whose batting combines natural strokeplay with great tenacity. He also bowls reliable medium pace. Described as a "natural athlete", he is also regarded as one of the finest fielders of his timeusually fielding at backward point or in the slips, he has also deputised as wicket-keeper for England.His first class debut was in 1996, and he made his first appearance for England in One Day International cricket in 2001 and made his Test match debut in 2003. For two years he remained an occasional Test player, but after selection for the final Test of the 2005 Ashes, he secured a regular place. His 206 during the 2006–07 Ashes was the first double century by an England batsman in Australia for 78 years. A series of three consecutive match-winning performances by Collingwood at the end of the 2006–07 Commonwealth Bank Series in Australia brought him enthusiastic approval in the British media. His "allround [sic] display of incredible nerve and tenacity" helped to secure the trophy for England.[8] In 2010 he led the England team to their first ICC Trophy, the 2010 World Twenty20. He is England's most capped ODI cricketer and leading ODI run scorer.[He announced his retirement from Test cricket in January 2011, during the 5th Test of the 2010–11 Ashes series.He finished on a high, becoming a three-times Ashes winner as England won a series in Australia for the first time in 24 years, with three innings victories contributing to a 3-1 win.Collingwood was born and brought up in Shotley Bridge, near Consett, County Durham by parents David and Janet, along with his elder brother Peter, and was educated at Blackfyne Comprehensive School, now known as Consett Community Sports College.Introduced to cricket "on the playing fields of Blackfyne Comprehensive School", Paul was able to "force his way into Shotley Bridge's Under–13s team at the age of just nine".As a teenager, his father, who still remains a member of the Shotley Bridge Cricket Club,persuaded him to give up football and concentrate on cricket.Collingwood still makes regular visits to his old cricket club, "...he is a brilliant role model for the kids and his success is an aspiration to follow...".He currently lives in Northumberland with wife Vicky, whom he married in February 2005 in Cape Town, South Africa, and their three daughters Shannon (born September 2006), Keira (born 24th February 2008),and Hannah Mae (born 9 February 2011).He is a fan of Sunderland AFC.His nicknames are Colly, Weed and Shep; the latter is an apparent homage to the famous Blue Peter Collie dog, Shep.Paul Collingwood signed for Durham, his local county side, in 1995, playing first in List A one-day cricket.When he first came to Durham's attention, Collingwood was regarded "as a bowler who batted a bit". According to coach Geoff Cook's 2006 assessment it was Collingwood's determination, rather than his talent, that shone through.Paul had talent... but I don't think he had any more [talent] than a number of lads who came through with him at the time...He had terrible luck with his back, he missed an awful lot of cricket, and a lesser character could well have decided to call it a day. To his credit, Paul came back and worked harder than he'd ever done before. He couldn't bowl as much at the start, so he did an awful lot more batting and, straight away, there were obvious signs of talent there. By the time he forced his way into the Under-19 team he was batting at the top of the order and the following year he was offered a professional contract.Collingwood made his first–class debut against Northamptonshire in 1996, at Durham's Riverside Ground. He made an immediate impression by taking the wicket of former England all-rounder David Capel with his first ball, and scoring 91 in his first innings. However, his early years as a first-class player were characterised by steady and relatively modest performances with bat and ball: in each season from 1996 to 2000, his batting average was between 20 and 30 and his bowling average was between 30 and 60.His breakthrough began in 2000, when he was voted Player of the Year by the Durham members, particularly for his one-day efforts.[His form varied following a back injury, but he hit his stride in 2001, when he excelled both in the county championship and in the one-day game.In the six English seasons from 2001, Collingwood has exceeded a batting average of 40 four times and achieved a bowling average of less than 40 on three occasions.Recognising his need to improve his all-round game Collingwood took himself off to Australia for their 2000-01 season where he played for the long-established Richmond Cricket Club in the tough Melbourne Premier League. At the end of the season Collingwood was awarded the prestigious Jack Ryder Medal for the best player in the league (an award he shared), and was the first - and so far only - Richmond player to ever receive it.Durham only achieved first-class status in 1992.In the 15 years since then, their best performances in the two league championships (the First-class County Championship and the List-A (One-Day) National League) both came in 2006 (finishing sixth and eighth respectively). Following in 2007 with the Friends Provident Trophy, beating Hampshire by 125 runs, Collingwood picking up 22 runs and bowling figures of 3/33.However, Collingwood's involvement was severely limited by his England commitments and he made no appearances at all in either competition.Collingwood made his first–class debut against Northamptonshire in 1996, at Durham's Riverside Ground. He made an immediate impression by taking the wicket of former England all-rounder David Capel with his first ball, and scoring 91 in his first innings. However, his early years as a first-class player were characterised by steady and relatively modest performances with bat and ball: in each season from 1996 to 2000, his batting average was between 20 and 30 and his bowling average was between 30 and 60.His breakthrough began in 2000, when he was voted Player of the Year by the Durham members, particularly for his one-day efforts.[His form varied following a back injury, but he hit his stride in 2001, when he excelled both in the county championship and in the one-day game.In the six English seasons from 2001, Collingwood has exceeded a batting average of 40 four times and achieved a bowling average of less than 40 on three occasions.Recognising his need to improve his all-round game Collingwood took himself off to Australia for their 2000-01 season where he played for the long-established Richmond Cricket Club in the tough Melbourne Premier League. At the end of the season Collingwood was awarded the prestigious Jack Ryder Medal for the best player in the league (an award he shared), and was the first - and so far only - Richmond player to ever receive it.Durham only achieved first-class status in 1992.In the 15 years since then, their best performances in the two league championships (the First-class County Championship and the List-A (One-Day) National League) both came in 2006 (finishing sixth and eighth respectively). Following in 2007 with the Friends Provident Trophy, beating Hampshire by 125 runs, Collingwood picking up 22 runs and bowling figures of 3/33.However, Collingwood's involvement was severely limited by his England commitments and he made no appearances at all in either competition.With England players free to participate in the second season of the Indian Premier League, Collingwood was signed by the Delhi Daredevils for $275,000 during their second player auction.In the 2011 auction, he was signed up by Rajasthan Royals for US$250,000.but could not take part in IPL4 due to a knee injury that he picked up during the World Cup.Collingwood made his first–class debut against Northamptonshire in 1996, at Durham's Riverside Ground. He made an immediate impression by taking the wicket of former England all-rounder David Capel with his first ball, and scoring 91 in his first innings. However, his early years as a first-class player were characterised by steady and relatively modest performances with bat and ball: in each season from 1996 to 2000, his batting average was between 20 and 30 and his bowling average was between 30 and 60.His breakthrough began in 2000, when he was voted Player of the Year by the Durham members, particularly for his one-day efforts.[His form varied following a back injury, but he hit his stride in 2001, when he excelled both in the county championship and in the one-day game.In the six English seasons from 2001, Collingwood has exceeded a batting average of 40 four times and achieved a bowling average of less than 40 on three occasions.Recognising his need to improve his all-round game Collingwood took himself off to Australia for their 2000-01 season where he played for the long-established Richmond Cricket Club in the tough Melbourne Premier League. At the end of the season Collingwood was awarded the prestigious Jack Ryder Medal for the best player in the league (an award he shared), and was the first - and so far only - Richmond player to ever receive it.Durham only achieved first-class status in 1992.In the 15 years since then, their best performances in the two league championships (the First-class County Championship and the List-A (One-Day) National League) both came in 2006 (finishing sixth and eighth respectively). Following in 2007 with the Friends Provident Trophy, beating Hampshire by 125 runs, Collingwood picking up 22 runs and bowling figures of 3/33.However, Collingwood's involvement was severely limited by his England commitments and he made no appearances at all in either competition.With England players free to participate in the second season of the Indian Premier League, Collingwood was signed by the Delhi Daredevils for $275,000 during their second player auction.In the 2011 auction, he was signed up by Rajasthan Royals for US$250,000.[] but could not take part in IPL4 due to a knee injury that he picked up during the World Cup.Collingwood's form for Durham in 2001 earned him a call-up to the England One Day International (ODI) squad, selected for the NatWest Series against Pakistan and Australia that summer,becoming the 162nd to play for England in One Day International (ODI) cricket.He was not particularly successful on his ODI debut in June 2001, scoring only two runs and taking no wickets against Pakistan at Edgbaston,[and doing poorly (20 runs in four innings and no wickets) in the rest of the series.[Despite this, the selectors showed confidence in him by choosing him for the 2001–02 one-day tour of Zimbabwe, where he took his first ODI wicket, that of Dion Ebrahim in the Third ODI at Harare Sports Club.He starred with the bat in the Fourth ODI at Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo, with a match-winning 77, and made an unbeaten 56 in the final ODI, also in Bulawayo, helping England secure a 5–0 whitewash.Collingwood made his first–class debut against Northamptonshire in 1996, at Durham's Riverside Ground. He made an immediate impression by taking the wicket of former England all-rounder David Capel with his first ball, and scoring 91 in his first innings. However, his early years as a first-class player were characterised by steady and relatively modest performances with bat and ball: in each season from 1996 to 2000, his batting average was between 20 and 30 and his bowling average was between 30 and 60.His breakthrough began in 2000, when he was voted Player of the Year by the Durham members, particularly for his one-day efforts.[His form varied following a back injury, but he hit his stride in 2001, when he excelled both in the county championship and in the one-day game.In the six English seasons from 2001, Collingwood has exceeded a batting average of 40 four times and achieved a bowling average of less than 40 on three occasions.Recognising his need to improve his all-round game Collingwood took himself off to Australia for their 2000-01 season where he played for the long-established Richmond Cricket Club in the tough Melbourne Premier League. At the end of the season Collingwood was awarded the prestigious Jack Ryder Medal for the best player in the league (an award he shared), and was the first - and so far only - Richmond player to ever receive it.Durham only achieved first-class status in 1992.In the 15 years since then, their best performances in the two league championships (the First-class County Championship and the List-A (One-Day) National League) both came in 2006 (finishing sixth and eighth respectively). Following in 2007 with the Friends Provident Trophy, beating Hampshire by 125 runs, Collingwood picking up 22 runs and bowling figures of 3/33.However, Collingwood's involvement was severely limited by his England commitments and he made no appearances at all in either competition.With England players free to participate in the second season of the Indian Premier League, Collingwood was signed by the Delhi Daredevils for $275,000 during their second player auction.In the 2011 auction, he was signed up by Rajasthan Royals for US$250,000.[] but could not take part in IPL4 due to a knee injury that he picked up during the World Cup.Collingwood's form for Durham in 2001 earned him a call-up to the England One Day International (ODI) squad, selected for the NatWest Series against Pakistan and Australia that summer,becoming the 162nd to play for England in One Day International (ODI) cricket.He was not particularly successful on his ODI debut in June 2001, scoring only two runs and taking no wickets against Pakistan at Edgbaston,[and doing poorly (20 runs in four innings and no wickets) in the rest of the series.[Despite this, the selectors showed confidence in him by choosing him for the 2001–02 one-day tour of Zimbabwe, where he took his first ODI wicket, that of Dion Ebrahim in the Third ODI at Harare Sports Club.He starred with the bat in the Fourth ODI at Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo, with a match-winning 77, and made an unbeaten 56 in the final ODI, also in Bulawayo, helping England secure a 5–0 whitewash.Collingwood played in all seven matches of the 2002 NatWest Series against India and Sri Lanka, ending on the losing side in the final to India.With the selection of pace bowler James Anderson for the Third Test, Collingwood was dropped.Although unable to establish a regular place in the 11–man team, his all–round ability and fielding strengths made him a regular on England's overseas Test tours as 12th Man.He retained his place in England's one-day side throughout the summer of 2004 despite a knee injury, and scored an unbeaten 79 in the second match of the NatWest Challenge against India at The Oval, with England winning the series 2–1.[ Collingwood was also England's second highest run-scorer in the 2004 ICC Champions Trophy, scoring 141 runs at an average of 70.5,[48] which included an unbeaten 80 in the opening game against Zimbabwe. He played in all 11 ODIs against Zimbabwe and South Africa,[and was then named in the England Development Squad in May 2005and the 14-man squad for the NatWest Series against Bangladesh and Australia and the NatWest International Twenty20 against Australia that summer.Collingwood made his first–class debut against Northamptonshire in 1996, at Durham's Riverside Ground. He made an immediate impression by taking the wicket of former England all-rounder David Capel with his first ball, and scoring 91 in his first innings. However, his early years as a first-class player were characterised by steady and relatively modest performances with bat and ball: in each season from 1996 to 2000, his batting average was between 20 and 30 and his bowling average was between 30 and 60.His breakthrough began in 2000, when he was voted Player of the Year by the Durham members, particularly for his one-day efforts.[His form varied following a back injury, but he hit his stride in 2001, when he excelled both in the county championship and in the one-day game.In the six English seasons from 2001, Collingwood has exceeded a batting average of 40 four times and achieved a bowling average of less than 40 on three occasions.Recognising his need to improve his all-round game Collingwood took himself off to Australia for their 2000-01 season where he played for the long-established Richmond Cricket Club in the tough Melbourne Premier League. At the end of the season Collingwood was awarded the prestigious Jack Ryder Medal for the best player in the league (an award he shared), and was the first - and so far only - Richmond player to ever receive it.Durham only achieved first-class status in 1992.In the 15 years since then, their best performances in the two league championships (the First-class County Championship and the List-A (One-Day) National League) both came in 2006 (finishing sixth and eighth respectively). Following in 2007 with the Friends Provident Trophy, beating Hampshire by 125 runs, Collingwood picking up 22 runs and bowling figures of 3/33.However, Collingwood's involvement was severely limited by his England commitments and he made no appearances at all in either competition.With England players free to participate in the second season of the Indian Premier League, Collingwood was signed by the Delhi Daredevils for $275,000 during their second player auction.In the 2011 auction, he was signed up by Rajasthan Royals for US$250,000.[] but could not take part in IPL4 due to a knee injury that he picked up during the World Cup.Collingwood's form for Durham in 2001 earned him a call-up to the England One Day International (ODI) squad, selected for the NatWest Series against Pakistan and Australia that summer,becoming the 162nd to play for England in One Day International (ODI) cricket.He was not particularly successful on his ODI debut in June 2001, scoring only two runs and taking no wickets against Pakistan at Edgbaston,[and doing poorly (20 runs in four innings and no wickets) in the rest of the series.[Despite this, the selectors showed confidence in him by choosing him for the 2001–02 one-day tour of Zimbabwe, where he took his first ODI wicket, that of Dion Ebrahim in the Third ODI at Harare Sports Club.He starred with the bat in the Fourth ODI at Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo, with a match-winning 77, and made an unbeaten 56 in the final ODI, also in Bulawayo, helping England secure a 5–0 whitewash.Collingwood played in all seven matches of the 2002 NatWest Series against India and Sri Lanka, ending on the losing side in the final to India.With the selection of pace bowler James Anderson for the Third Test, Collingwood was dropped.Although unable to establish a regular place in the 11–man team, his all–round ability and fielding strengths made him a regular on England's overseas Test tours as 12th Man.He retained his place in England's one-day side throughout the summer of 2004 despite a knee injury, and scored an unbeaten 79 in the second match of the NatWest Challenge against India at The Oval, with England winning the series 2–1.[ Collingwood was also England's second highest run-scorer in the 2004 ICC Champions Trophy, scoring 141 runs at an average of 70.5,[48] which included an unbeaten 80 in the opening game against Zimbabwe. He played in all 11 ODIs against Zimbabwe and South Africa,[and was then named in the England Development Squad in May 2005and the 14-man squad for the NatWest Series against Bangladesh and Australia and the NatWest International Twenty20 against Australia that summer.Collingwood deputised as England wicket-keeper for an injured Matt Prior in the second home Test against the West Indies in May 2009; he enjoyed the experience and was generally successful, including effecting a catch from an edge by Shivnarine Chanderpaul.Collingwood's form in the 2009 World Twenty20 tournament wasn't good: in five innings, managing just 63 runs. More important, however, was his form in the longest version of the game, in which he had attained something like a peak. Going into the 2009 Ashes, indeed, he was relishing his best-ever run in the Test side, having hoarded three centuries in his last twelve innings.In the first Test of the 2009 Ashes at the SWALEC Stadium in Cardiff, Collingwood scored 64 in the first innings as England totalled 435. On a flat wicket, however, this was put into context by the Australians, who amassed 674 for 6 declared, with four centurions; Collingwood bowled nine overs, and claimed the wicket of Brad Haddin caught at deep midwicket. In reply, England slid to 70 for 5 and seemed certain to succumb to an innings defeat. In response, Collingwood stayed at the crease for 5¾ hours (nearly the whole of the final day) and top-scored for England with 74 runs from 245 balls. He was ninth man out, edging Peter Siddle to gully, but final pair James Anderson and Monty Panesar blocked out the final 11½ overs of the match to secure an improbable draw.In the second Test at Lord's Collingwood succumbed to a loose first-innings dismissal, chipping part-time spinner Michael Clarke to mid-on for 16 (and earning the ire of his captain Andrew Strauss, who went on to score 161); England, poised at 302 for 3 before Collingwood's dismissal, subsided to 425 all out. Nonetheless, England's seamers bowled Australia out for 215, and in the second innings Collingwood scored a measured 54, acting as foil to the aggressive strokeplay of Matt Prior (their partnership adding 86 in twelve overs) and Andrew Flintoff (51 in eight overs). As Flintoff and Graeme Swann combined to bowl England to victory, Collingwood contributed two fine slip catches.

After Lord's, however, his form tailed away considerably: tormented by Australia's seam-bowling attack, his scores for the rest of the series were 13, 0 and 4, and 24 and 1, bringing his batting average for the five-match series down to 27.78. Collingwood's difficulties with the bat seemed to affect his usually high-class catching, and he dropped three chances of varying degrees of difficulty on the final day of the series at the Oval, though he did take a sharp catch to dismiss Mitchell Johnson for a duck off Steve Harmison as part of England's surge to a 197-run victory in the match, and a 2–1 victory in the series.

Against South Africa in November 2009, Collingwood surpassed Alec Stewart's record of 170 ODIs to become England's most capped player.
In early 2010, Collingwood led the England Twenty20 team to the 2010 World Twenty20 championship. Collingwood appeared in all seven games, struggling with the bat as he scored only 61 runs at 10.16, with the ball he only bowled one over for ten runs, however his prowess in the field continued - his four catches the joint highest with the wicket keeper, Craig Kieswetter, for the England team.[It was Collingwood's captaincy that was most praised, as he led England to their first ever ICC trophy, hitting the winning runs in their seven-wicket victory over Australia in the final.Collingwood was then rested for the home Test series against Bangladesh, however returned for the five-match ODI series against Australia in June. During the second match, he overtook Alec Stewart's record to become England's all-time leading runscorer in the format. Following poor batting performances in the 2010–11 Ashes series, he announced his retirement from Test cricket.

Shaid Khan Afridi(BooM BooM).

Sahibzada Mohammad Shahid Khan Afridi (Urdu: صاحبزادہ محمد شاہد خان آفریدی) (born 1 March 1980 in Khyber Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, Pakistan[

popularly known as Shahid Afridi (Pashto: شاهد ‏افریدی), is a Pakistani cricketer. Between 1996 and 2011, Afridi played 27 Tests, 325 One Day Internationals, and 43 Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) for the Pakistani national team. He made his ODI debut on 2 October 1996 against Kenya and his Test debut on 22 October 1998 against Australia.

He is known for his aggressive batting style, and holds the record for the fastest ODI century which he made in his first international innings, as well as scoring 32 runs in a single over, the second highest scoring over ever in an ODI.[3] He also holds the distinction of having hit the most number of sixes in the history of ODI cricket.

Afridi considers himself a better bowler than batsman, and has taken 48 Test wickets and over 300 in ODIs. Currently Afridi is the leading wicket taker in the Twenty20 format taking 53 wickets from 43 matches.

In June 2009, Afridi took over the Twenty20 captaincy from Younus Khan, and was later appointed ODI captain for the 2010 Asia Cup. In his first match as ODI captain against Sri Lanka he scored a century however Pakistan still lost by 16 runs. He then also took over the Test captaincy but resigned after one match in charge citing lack of form and ability to play Test cricket; at the same time he announced his retirement from Tests. He retained the captaincy in limited-overs form of the game and led the team in the 2011 World Cup. In May 2011, having led Pakistan in 34 ODIs Afridi was replaced as captain. Later that month he announced his conditional retirement from international cricket in protest against his treatment by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
In October 1996 at the age of sixteen Afridi was drafted into the ODI team during the four-nation Sameer Cup 1996–97 as a leg spinner as a replacement for the injured Mushtaq Ahmed.He made his debut on 2 October against Kenya, however he didn't bat and went wicketless.In the next match against Sri Lanka, Afridi batted at number three in the role of a pinch-hitter. In his first international innings, Afridi broke the record for fastest century in ODI cricket, reaching his hundred from 37 balls. The eleven sixes he struck also equalled the record for most in an ODI innings.[8][nb 1] Aged 16 years and 217 days, Afridi became the youngest player to score an ODI century.Pakistan posted a total of 371, at the time the second-highest in ODIs, and won by 82 runs; Afridi was named man of the matchTwo years after appearing on the international scene, Afridi made his Test debut in the third game of a three-match series against Australia on 22 October 1998By this point he had already played 66 ODIs, at the time a record before playing Tests.He opened the batting, making scores of 10 and 6, and took five wickets in the first innings.[ He played his second Test the following January during Pakistan's tour of India; it was the first Test between the two countries since 1990 Again opening the batting, Afridi scored his maiden Test century, scoring 141 runs from 191 balls. In the same match he also claimed three wickets for 54 runs.After winning the first match by 12 runs, Pakistan lost the second to draw the series.

In 2001, Afridi signed a contract to represent Leicestershire. In five first-class matches he scored 295 runs at an average of 42.14, including a highest score of 164, and took 11 wickets at an average of Afridi also played 11 one day matches for the club, scoring 481 runs at an average of 40.08[and taking 18 wickets at 24.04. His highest score of 95 came from 58 balls in a semi-final of the C&G Trophy to help Leicestershire beat Lancashire by seven wickets.Derbyshire County Cricket Club signed Afridi to play for them in the first two months of the 2003 English cricket season.[In June 2004 Afridi signed with English county side Kent to play for them in three Twenty20 matches and one Totesport League match.Afridi made his presence felt in the third Test against India in March 2005, scoring a quick-fire second-innings half-century and taking five wickets in the match (including Tendulkar twice) to help Pakistan to win the game and register a series draw.[ In April Afridi struck what at the time was the equal second-fastest century in ODIs; he reached 100 off 45 deliveries against India, sharing the record with West Indian Brian Lara.

Afridi was more consistent with his batting and bowling throughout 2005, starting with the tours of India and West Indies and through to the England tour. The Pakistani coach Bob Woolmer helped Afridi to reach a fuller potential by improving his shot selection and giving him free rein over his batting attitude.

On 21 November 2005, Shahid Afridi was banned for a Test match and two ODIs for deliberately damaging the pitch in the second match of the three-Test series against England. TV cameras pictured him scraping his boots on the pitch scuffing the surface when play was held up after a gas canister exploded. Afridi later pleaded guilty to a level three breach of the ICC code of conduct relating to the spirit of the game. Inquiries were made and Afridi's antics came into view. He was investigated and banned after the day's play, along with receiving a huge amount of criticism from the cricketing world for bringing the game into disrepute. Match referee Roshan Mahanama said: "This ban should serve as a message to players that this type of behaviour is not allowed." On this Afridi accepted his fault and said that a "senior player like me should set good examples to others because they see us to learn." His behaviour was also condemned by the Pakistan Cricket Board.
On 12 April 2006, Afridi announced a temporary retirement from Test cricket so that he could concentrate on ODIs, with a particular focus on the 2007 World Cup, and to spend more time with his family. He said he would consider reversing his decision after the World Cup. Afridi had played ten Tests since being recalled to the side in January 2005, averaging 47.44 with the bat including four centuries.However, on 27 April he reversed his decision, saying that "[Woolmer] told me that I am one of the main players in the team and squad and that Pakistan really needed me".Before Pakistan toured England in July to September, Afridi played for Ireland as an overseas player in the C&G Trophy.[In six matches, he scored 128 runs[and took seven wickets.[England won the four-match Test series 3–0; Afridi played two matches, scoring 49 runs and took three wickets. It was the last Test cricket Afridi played until 2010.Shortly after Pakistan won the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 the captain Younis Khan announced his retirement from Twenty20 cricket the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) subsequently announced that Shahid Afridi had taken over as captain in T20Is; the appointment was initially for one match, with a decision on the permanent replacement to be made laterOn 31 January 2010, Afridi was caught on camera biting into the ball towards the end of the 5th Commonwealth Bank ODI series in Australia.[38] Later Afridi pleaded guilty to ball tampering and he was banned from two Twenty20 internationals.[

In March 2010 the board announced that Shahid Afridi had been appointed ODI captain in place of the sacked Mohammad Yousuf he led Pakistan in the 2010 Asia Cup and during his first three matches as ODI captain he scored two centuries against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh he finished as the tournaments highest runscorer with 384 runs from 3 matches.

On 25 May 2010, Afridi was appointed captain of the national team in all three formats, after he announced his return to Test cricket.
In July 2010, Afridi captained Pakistan in the first Test of the series at Lord's against England. He scored 31 off 15 deliveries in the first innings and 2 in the second but was dismissed succumbing to rash strokes in both the innings. After the match, he announced retirement from Test cricket again citing lack of temperament for Test cricket as the reason. Afridi was officially removed from the Test squad on the England tour, but after the spot-fixing scandal saw Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Amir and Test captain Salman Butt temporarily suspended by the International Cricket Council, he stated that he might return to Test cricket if "the team needs it".[42] According a representative of Afridi, he had voiced his concerns about Mazhar Majeed – who had approached Pakistan's players – in June.[

Majeed also confirmed that he approached Afridi, Abdul Razzaq, Younis Khan and Saeed Ajmal but all off them refused to be affiliated with him of his fixing menace. Worth mentioning is that the four names given above were not associated in the original scandal and that no disciplinary action have been taken against them by the sports governing body the International Cricket Council.[44]

In October, Afridi stated in an interview with Express News that the squad had been selected without his consultation; the PCB gave him an official warning for the interview.
Coach Waqar Younis also expressed his unhappiness at having no input in selection, however Mohsin Khan, the chief selector, defended the decision, stating "it is not written down in the PCB constitution that the coach and captain(s) must have a say in the selection of any squad".Pakistan lost the series 3–2.The team toured New Zealand between December 2010 and February 2011 for two Tests, six ODIs, and three T20Is. Pakistan lost the first two T20Is but won the third; in final match Afridi became the first cricketer to reach 50 international wickets in the format. When Pakistan's squad for the 2011 World Cup was announced no captain was named; Afridi, the incumbent ODI captain and Misbah-ul-Haq, the Test captain, were the front runners for the position.Pakistan lost the first match against New Zealand by 8-wickets, the second match got rained out and in the third Mohammad Hafeez scored a century and Afridi scored a blistering 65 from just 25 balls. The following match was a tight game but Pakistan prevailed by two-wickets thanks to three boundaries from Sohail Tanvir, the match was setup by a 93 not out from Misbah-ul-Haq. The fifth ODI was won for Pakistan by 43 runs courtesy of a maiden ODI-century from Ahmed Shehzad. Afridi helped in the lower order by scoring 24 and taking two crucial top order wickets to help guide Pakistan to a 43-run victory and their first ODI series win in two years.After gaining victory as a captain against New Zealand, the PCB declared Shahid Afridi as Pakistan's captain for the 2011 World Cup. In Pakistan's opening match of the tournament, Afridi took 5 wickets for 16 runs against Kenya, giving him the best bowling figures by a Pakistan bowler in a World Cup.In the following match against Sri Lanka, which Pakistan won, Afridi claimed for more wickets to help his side to victory and became the second player to have scored 4,000 runs and taken 300 wickets in ODIs.[nb 2] He claimed 17 wickets from 6 matches in the first round of the Cup, including a five-wicket haul against Canada,[ as Pakistan finished top of their group and progressed to the next stage.Pakistan beat West Indies in the quarter-final by ten wickets, with Afridi taking four wickets.[] Pakistan were knocked out of the semi-finals in a 29-run defeat to India.[55] Afridi was the tournament's joint-leading wicket-taker with 21 wickets, level with India's Zaheer Khan, even though Afridi had played one match less than him.Soon after the World Cup Pakistan toured the West Indies for a T20I, five ODIs, and two Tests. Pakistan lost the only T20I[57] but won the ODI series that followed 3–2.[Afridi took two wickets and scored 28 runs in the series.[59][60] After the series, on 19 May the PCB replaced Afridi as ODI captain with Misbah-ul-Haq for the two-match ODI series against Ireland later that month. In 34 ODIs as captain, Afridi led his side to 18 wins and 15 defeats.[61] Afridi subsequently withdrew from the touring squad, citing the illness of his father.On 30 May Afridi announced his conditional retirement from international cricket in protest against his treatment by the PCB. The condition on his return was that the board be replaced. The PCB suspended Afridi's central contract, fined him 4.5 million rupees ($52,300), and revoked his no-objection certificate (NOC) which allowed Afridi to play for Hampsire. Afridi filed a petition with the Sindh High Court to overturn the sanctions. On 15 June, Afridi withdrew his petition after an out of court settlement and the PCB reinstated his NOC.[64] When the PCB's central contracts were renewed in August, Afridi's was allowed to lapse.His general style of batting is very aggressive and attack oriented and has earned him the nickname "Boom Boom Afridi". Moreover, out of the seven fastest ODI centuries of all time, Afridi has produced three of them.As of 19 April 2011, he has an ODI strike rate of 113.88 runs per 100 balls, the fourth highest in the game's history.[

This attitude has been transferred to Test cricket as well, with Afridi scoring at a relatively high strike rate of 86.97. He has an approach to batting that can change the tempo of a game and inspire the mood of an audience, as shown when a mass exodus of spectators occurred in Pakistan in late 2005 following his dismissal from the crease.

He hits many sixes long and high, favouring straight down the ground or over midwicket and hit the longest ever six in the history of ODIs against Australia. His trademark shot is a cross-batted flick to the leg-side to a ball outside off stump.
However, his aggressive style increases his risk of getting out and he is one of the most inconsistent batsmen in cricket. This is reflected by the fact that he is the only player to score more than 6,000 ODI runs at an average under 25.[Afridi has moved about the batting order, and this lack of consistency has made it difficult for him to settle. In the Indian subcontinent, where the ball quickly loses its shine, he prefers to open the batting however elsewhere he prefers to bat at number sixHaving started as a fast bowler, Afridi decided to start bowling spin after he was told he was throwing. He modelled himself on Pakistan leg-spinner Abdul Qadir.[ Afridi began his career as primarily a bowler, however after scoring the fastest century in his maiden ODI innings more was expected of him with the bat. He considers himself a better bowler than batsman. While he is renowned for his aggressive batting, he is also a handy leg-spinner capable of producing a good mix of wicket taking balls. He has over 300 International wickets, most of which are from the ODI format. While his stock ball is the leg break, his armoury also includes the conventional off break and a 'quicker one' which he can deliver in the style of a medium-pacer, reaching speeds of around 130 kilometres per hour (80 mph).[He bowls at a high speed for a spinner, resulting in lesser turn, and relying more on variations in speed. He occasionally sends down a bouncer to a batsman, which is very rare for a spin bowler.

Inzamam-ul-Haq.

Inzamam-ul-Haq (Saraiki, Punjabi, Urdu: انضمام الحق; born 3 March 1970 in Multan, Punjab Province, Pakistan), also known as Inzamam, nicknamed Inzy, is a former Pakistan international cricketer who was national captain between 2003 and 2007. He is a right-handed batsman who has been regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of his era. He rose to fame in the semi-final of the 1992 world cup, in which he scored 60 of 37 balls against a potent Kiwi side.On 5 October 2007, Inzamam retired from International cricket following the second Test match against South Africa, falling three runs short of Javed Miandad as Pakistan's leading run scorer in Test cricket. Following his retirement, he joined the Indian Cricket League, captaining the Hyderabad Heroes in the inaugural edition of the Twenty20 competition. In the ICL's second edition, he captained the Lahore Badshahs, a team composed entirely of Pakistani cricketers.

Inzamam made his One Day International (ODI) debut in a home series against West Indies in 1991, and made a good start to his career by scoring 20 and 60 runs in two matches against West Indies. This was followed by 48, 60, 101, and 117 runs against Sri Lanka.

Handpicked by former Pakistan captain Imran Khan for the 1992 Cricket World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, 22-year-old Inzamam was relatively unheard of before the tournament. To the surprise of many he was persevered with throughout the tournament, coming in at various positions in the batting line-up, despite not being very successful early on. Yet it was his performances at the most crucial stage of the competition that made fans and summarisers take note. Inzamam rose to fame in Pakistan's dramatic semi-final against New Zealand at Auckland. With his side in a precarious position, chasing 262 against an impressive New Zealand side, he hit a fiery 60 run innings from just 37 balls to rescue his side and guide them into the final.
The innings was regarded as one of the finest World Cup performances.[5] He hit a massive six in that match which was described by David Lloyd as the shot of the tournament.Inzamam made an equally vital contribution in the final of the World Cup, scoring 42 runs off just 35 balls, helping Pakistan reach a score of 249 after a sluggish start.

These innings established Inzamam's billing as a big-game player, although he was unable to replicate his World Cup success in later tournaments.

Inzamam regard his best least highlighted innings of 90 not out against west indies when Pakistan won their first ODI in the West
Indies on 27 March 1993.In total, Inzamam set a record for scoring the most half centuries in One Day Internationals, 83 – though this is now surpassed by Sachin Tendulkar.He also became the second batsman to score 10,000 runs in One-day Internationals (again after Tendulkar) and was named in the ICC World XI for both Tests and One-day Internationals in the 2005 ICC Awards. In his final ODI for Pakistan, playing against Zimbabwe in the 2007 Cricket World Cup, he took three catches whilst fielding, including the last one of the match, ending his One Day career.Inzamam made his Test debut in 1992 against England at Edgbaston. However, he got little opportunity to make an impact in that match – he was not out with a score of 8. However, in subsequent matches he demonstrated a vulnerability against swing bowling which resulted in him being dropped for the final Test of the series after averaging a lowly 13.20 runs per innings. Pakistan went on to secure a famous win in the match, taking the series 2-1.[After the England series, Inzamam aimed to establish himself in the Test side and he achieved this brilliantly, helping his side to many memorable victories.[11] One of particular note came against Australia in Karachi, 1994, when he made 58 not out with the tail and helped Pakistan to a one-wicket victory and a 1-0 series win. As well as helping his side to become the top-ranked side in the world for a brief period. He achieved personal success by becoming ICC's number one ranked batsman in 1995He later went on to reclaim top spot in the rankings in 1997. He remained amongst the top 20 ranked batsmen up until his retirement. He was the number one batsman in the world three times and held the title of the 3rd best batsman several times in his career including an extensive run from 2004–2006 the last time being after his twin fifties at Lords against England in 2006The tour of England in 1996 was a particular success for both Inzamam and Pakistan, where Inzamam transformed his batting against seam bowling, averaging 64 runs per innings, with scores of 148, 70, 65, and 35.His Test career highlights include 329 against New Zealand in Lahore in the 2001-02 season, which is the second highest Test score by a Pakistani and the twelfth highest overall. He also scored a century (184 runs) in his 100th Test, becoming only the fifth player to do so (after Colin Cowdrey, Alec Stewart, Gordon Greenidge and Javed Miandad; Ricky Ponting subsequently emulated the feat). Inzamam made a century in each innings of the second Test match against England in 2005, to become Pakistan's leading centurion with 24 centuries, breaking Javed Miandad's record. His 25th century in the 2nd Test against India on 22 January 2006 made him the 10th player to score 25 or more centuries. He also managed 138 not out when the team was on the brink of a humiliating defeat against Bangladesh, eventually saving the Test match and leading his team to victory. His 92 not out against South Africa in late 2006 again showed his ability to bat in a crisis in a match winning manner.[ He scored twin half centuries when all appeared lost to draw the first test in Mohali against India in 2005, and also scored 184 runs in his 100th test match in the same away series causing the series to be drawn.[He still holds the record for most consecutive half centuries against a country with nine in nine innings against England. This streak started from 31 May 2001 and lasted till 13 July 2006.[After announcing that he will retire after the second Test against South Africa, at the stadium where he made his international debut, Inzamam needed 20 runs to surpass Javed Miandad for the record of most runs for a Pakistani Test cricketer.Inzamam made his debut in English county cricket in August 2007 at the age of 37. He joined Yorkshire County Cricket Club[as a replacement for Younus Khan who left to play for Pakistan in the 2007 ICC World Twenty20. He was disappointing on the whole, making eight on debut at Scarborough's North Marine Road against Warwickshire before making nine and seven in his opening Pro40 games.

In 2007, Inzamam joined the unsanctioned Indian Cricket League. In the inaugural competition, Inzamam captained the Hyderabad Heroes and scored 141 runs in 5 matches. In the 2008 competition in March, Inzamam captained the Lahore Badshahs, composed entirely of Pakistani cricketers. Lahore Badshah managed to win the ICL T20 tournament in 2008/09.

The move to the ICL has proved to be a controversial one for Inzamam. The PCB's stance on players joining unsanctioned leagues has meant that he has been banned from playing in any domestic competitions in Pakistan or any involvement with the international team.[27] However, given Inzamam's recent retirement, this is unlikely to affect him.

It is reported that he was paid Pakistani Rs. 10 Crore (US $1,100,000) which was the highest salary for any player participating in the league along with the likes of Brian Lara.

Inzamam has been known to be a very destructive batsman in both One Day Internationals (ODIs) and Test matches. He has the ability to pick the length of a delivery very early and play very late. His footwork is generally considered to be fast, enabling him to position himself early for shots. He averaged just under 50 runs per innings in Tests and nearly 40 runs in ODIs, with a strike rate of 54.03 and 74.23 respectively. Inzamam is especially strong when playing shots off his legs and has been considered to be amongst the best employers of the pull-shot in world cricket.

His batting style has brought him fans from all over the world. He was called "the best batsmen in the world against pace" by Imran Khan, because "he seems to have so much time on his hands before the ball reaches him".[citation needed]

Inzamam does, however, have a reputation for being a poor runner between the wickets. He has the dubious distinction of being run-out the second highest number of times in ODIs having been run-out 40 times [behind Marvan Atapattu (41 times)].

Inzamam captained Pakistan in thirty Tests, winning eleven, drawing nine and losing ten. Only three players have captained Pakistan in more Test matches, but all have better win-loss records and only Imran Khan has a lower win percentage than Inzamam. Although the Oval Test match in 2006 was poised as a victory for Pakistan before the controversy took place and had it not occurred, Inzamam's record would have had a win more and a loss less. However, Inzamam held the captaincy until March 2007, the longest captaincy tenure since 1992, when Imran Khan retired.

Captaincy had a positive effect on Inzamam's batting, often leading by example in pressure situations, averaging greater as a captain (52) than without (50). In ODI's Inzamam also held the highest average as captain in ODI's

and is currently third on that list behind the current Australian skipper Ricky Ponting and the Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. After early failures in Australia, he took a depleted Pakistan side to India in 2005 and played an important role in securing a draw by winning the final test match from an unlikely position with an innings of 184 runs. He subsequently lead his side to an ODI success against West Indies (away), England (home) and Sri Lanka (away) as well as Test Series victories against England (home), India (home), Sri Lanka (away). Inzamam had seemed to have united the Pakistan side and victories lead them to 2nd place in the ICC Test Rankings and 3rd place in the ICC ODI Ranking. The latter part of Inzamam's tenure as Pakistan captain was less successful and the team was embroiled in many controversies culminating in a disappointingly early exit from the 2007 Cricket World Cup at the hands of lowly ranked Ireland.

In the 2007 Cricket World Cup, Inzamam captained the Pakistani team to its first loss to associate ICC member Ireland (on St Patrick's Day). This result and their previous loss to West Indies, led to them being knocked out of the tournament. A day later he announced his retirement from One Day International Cricket and resignation as Test captain. The announcement was made the same day that Bob Woolmer, Pakistan's coach, died in his hotel room in Kingston, Jamaica. He dedicated his final ODI to Woolmer to whom he shared a good relationship with for three years and affectionately called 'The Bob'.

Allan Lamb.

Allan Joseph Lamb (born 20 June 1954 in Cape Province, South Africa) is a former England cricketer and captain who played for the first class teams of Western Province and Northamptonshire, the latter as an Overseas player. He joined Northamptonshire so he could enhance his career and eventually play Test cricket for England, as his native country South Africa were to be banned from International cricket due to the apartheid régime. He retired in 1995 at the age of 41 and currently works for Sky Sports and other foreign T.V cricketing broadcasts as an analyst.Allan Lamb was born to British parents in Langebaanweg, South Africa. His father Mickey was a journeyman club bowler and his mother Joan was an ardent spectator who never willingly missed a match. He attended Wynberg Boys' High School and Abbots College where he played cricket to an 'outstanding' level.In January 1973, Allan made his first team debut at the tender age of 18 when he played for the Western Province in the Currie Cup. He batted at number three and made 59 and 36 against the Eastern Province.[1] He then had a two year absence from the game and joined the National Service in the South African Air Force building airfields before returning to the club. Western Force then experimented with Allan as an opener, at 5 and 6 but 4 was always his true and regular position in the batting order for Western. Lamb then had one year playing for Orange Free State where he scored his highest first class score of 294, before moving back to the Western Province for the rest of his South African domestic career.

Lamb came to England along with two young other cricketers, Peter Kirsten and Garth le Roux, in search of fame and a county contract and it was Northamptonshire who signed Lamb as a relatively unknown overseas player in 1978. He went on to become a fixture in the side for 17 years, 13 as an England international, winning the 1980 Benson & Hedges Cup Final and the 1992 NatWest Trophy, and in his final season as captain in 1995 he very nearly took Northamptonshire to their first County Championship with 12 wins in their final 17 matches.

In 2001, Northamptonshire honoured him by naming a room in the club's Indoor Centre 'The Allan Lamb Room'.
In 1970, South Africa were banned from international cricket indefinitely because of its government's policy of apartheid, an overtly racist policy, which led them to play only against the white nations and field only white players. This stopped Lamb from playing International cricket unless he emigrated to another nation. It was while in England that he was persuaded to play for them and his obvious talent led him to be selected for the national team only four years after moving there. He made his test debut against India in 1982,

and had also made his ODI debut a few days earlier.

Lamb, who would go on to play a total of 201 international matches for England (79 Tests, 122 One-Day Internationals), was regarded as a fine player of fast bowling, but like a large number of South African-born batsmen he had a comparative weakness against spin, and his final average of 36 in Tests from over 4,500 runs did not do justice to his ability. Of his 14 Test hundreds, 6 of them came against the West Indies in 22 matches, when he came up against some of the game's finest fast bowlers from Joel Garner and Malcolm Marshall to Courtney Walsh, Curtly Ambrose and Ian Bishop. However, only one of those centuries, in Jamaica in 1990, was in a winning cause, the other 5 seeing England fall to defeat.

Lamb was a member of two successful Ashes campaigns (in 1985 and 1986-87), but did not score a century in either series. In fact his sole Ashes century came at Headingley in 1989 in yet another losing cause. In 20 Ashes matches he scored 1138 runs at an average of over 34. He captained England in three Tests with disappointing results.

Lamb had considerably more success as a One-day player, averaging a shade under 40 with over 4,000 runs and being one of only fifteen Englishmen to play in over 100 matches. He played in two World Cup Finals in 1987 and 1992, but perhaps his most famous innings came in the 4th match of the 1987 Benson & Hedges World Series Cup against Australia, where England needed 17 runs to win off the final over to be bowled by Bruce Reid, who was a whole foot taller than him. Lamb hit Reid for 18 runs in 5 balls (2,4,6,2,4) to seal an
improbable victory.That over would be the subject of a cheeky banner used for the next match between the two sides which read "Can Bruce Reid please call Allan Lamb on 24624". England, who had earlier won the Ashes and the four-nation Perth Challenge, would go on to round off their triumphant tour by winning the tournament, which also featured the West Indies.Since retiring from all forms of cricket in 1995, Lamb has published his Autobiography called 'Silence of the Lamb', which he released in 1996. He has also done a lot of television work including working on the British TV channels Sky Sports and Channel 5 as an analyst. He alongside Ian Botham, have teamed up with English Beef and Lamb Executive to create an advertising campaign for Quality Standard Beef and Lamb in which they use their names, 'Beefy' and 'Lamby' and cartoon characteristics as a selling point. He was also a contestant on a special Cricketers Edition of the Weakest Link, where he was voted off in the second round.

Shane Warne.

Shane Keith Warne (born 13 September 1969) is a former Australian international cricketer widely regarded as one of the greatestbowlers in the history of the game.In 2000, he was selected by a panel of cricket experts as one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Century, the only specialist bowler selected in the quintet and the only one still playing at the time. He is also a cricket commentator and a professional poker player.Warne played his first Test match in 1992, and his 708 wickets was the record for the most wickets taken by any bowler in Test cricket, until it was broken by Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan on 3 December 2007. He took over 1000 international wickets (in Tests and One-Day Internationals)—he was the second bowler to reach this milestone after Muttiah Muralitharan.[

A useful lower-order batsman, Warne also scored over 3000 Test runs, and he holds the record for most Test runs without a century. His career was plagued by scandals off the field; these included a ban from cricket for testing positive for a prohibited substance, charges of bringing the game into disrepute through accepting money from bookmakers and marital infidelities.

As well as Australia, he also played Australian domestic cricket for his home state of Victoria, and English domestic cricket for Hampshire. He was captain of Hampshire for three seasons, from 2005 to 2007.

He retired from international cricket in January 2007, at the end of Australia's 5–0 Ashes series victory over England. Three other players integral to the Australian team at the time, Glenn McGrath, Damien Martyn and Justin Langer, also retired from Tests at the same time which led some, including the Australian captain, Ricky Ponting, to declare it the "end of an era"
Following his retirement from international cricket, Warne played a full season at Hampshire in 2007. He had been scheduled to appear in the 2008 English cricket season, but in late March 2008 he announced his retirement from playing first-class cricket in order to be able to spend more time pursuing interests outside of cricket.n March 2008, Warne signed to play in the Indian Premier League for the Jaipur team, Rajasthan Royals in the first edition of the tournament, where he played the roles of both captain and coach. He led his team to victory against the Chennai Super Kings in a cliffhanger of a final match on 1 June 2008. After the innings defeat of Australia in Adelaide in Ashes 2010, a website was launched by fans calling for his comeback.