Peshawar to defend Quaid-e-Azam trophy (Jang)

[waquas_uk]

KARACHI: The 48th Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Cricket Championship 2005-06, the symbol of Pakistan’s national title in this sport, is all set to begin at six different centres of the country from October 16. All matches are of four days’ duration each, with the two finals of either league to be spread over five days.

Peshawar, who had won the competition only once before in 1998-98, were crowned the national champions last season also. In the final they dethroned Faisalabad, by virtue of a first innings lead result, the new runners-up earlier having clinched the title for the first time in 2003-04.

The Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Championship has been bifurcated into two separate divisions this time round, one called the Gold League and the other Silver League. Both leagues will enjoy first-class status though, but the winners of the Silver League will get promoted to the Gold League of the subsequent season while the latter’s bottom team will be relegated to the Silver League circuit of the next season.

The Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Championship was introduced 52 years ago in 1953-54, basically to choose the Pakistan team for the 1954 summer’s tour of England on the basis of performances in the inaugural competition. As the tournament could not be held in some later seasons, this year’s championship is actually only the 48th in line.

All 11 cricketing regions of the country — including the two new ones, Abbottabad and Islamabad — are represented in this season’s Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Championship. Karachi and Lahore have been allowed to field two outfits each, so there are 13 teams in all.

There are seven teams in the Golden League, including holders Peshawar and last season’s second-placed side Faisalabad. The other outfits are Rawalpindi, Sialkot, Multan, Karachi Urban and Lahore Shalimar.

The six teams in the Silver League are Lahore Ravi, Karachi Harbour, Hyderabad, Quetta, Islamabad and Abbottabad.

Several days before the start of the tournament, it has been hit by a controversy over the schedule. The Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA) has asked the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for a postponement of their first-round matches as a practice four-day game between the Pakistan XI and Karachi starts here at the National Stadium from October 16, the same day the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Championship gets underway.

The practice match has been arranged as part of a two-game series — the first one is set to be played at Peshawar’s Arbab Niaz Stadium from October 8-11 — in view of the England team’s tour of Pakistan that begins from the 26th of this month.

On the opening day of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Championship, the Karachi Urban team has been scheduled to start its four-day match in the Gold League against last season’s champions Peshawar at the Arbab Niaz Stadium. Karachi Harbour are due to play from the same day against Lahore Ravi in the Silver League at the LCCA Ground in Lahore.

Two new grounds will make their debut at the first-class level, both in the competition’s Silver League. These are the Diamond Club Ground in Islamabad and the Mirpur Cricket Stadium in Azad Jammu & Kashmir.

The Silver League final is scheduled to be held at a venue yet unspecified over five days from November 21 to 25. The Gold League final will be played from December 3 to 7, of which the venue and other details will be disclosed later.

[fair_play]

To defend this trophy, the Peshawar Cricket Association is going to concentrate on nutritional needs anticipating a hard fought battle.

They have arranged for better quality naswaar for this team, and in a patriotic gesture, have sent Bob Woolmer 100 kilos to get him through the coming series against England.

Woolmer, as is well known, is keen on physical fitness and has hence banned Inzamam's hukka from the dressing rooms.

Inzamam has protested and said he has no respect, and never once has he been told to leave his hukka outside the stadium. But being a team man, he said he would be happy to shift his addiction to naswaar in the interests of Pakistan cricket.

Bob Woolmer was asked for his reply but was unable to answer because he did not realise that you dont roll a naswar ball in both cheeks. Inside sources say that this is the reason for his new found reticence and chipmunk appearance.

Meanwhile, Javed Miandad has stated that Woolmer's chipmunk appearance was another sign of the tremdous gulf that existed between cultures. To prove his point, Miandad opened his mouth and let this corresspondent have a deep and intimate look.

This correspondent can confirm that his mouth was full of paan, choona, katha, chaliya, and tambakoo. It is difficult to doubt Miandad's sincerity in the face of such open mouthed patriotism, and Woolmer's chipmunked appearance is changing the face of pakistan cricket.

[fair_play]

bump for Nadeem and Farhad!

[nadeem]

Ahahhahahahaha nice one FP.