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Pakistan’s return to the IPL remains on hold with the PCB confirming it has not received any letters of invitation from the tournament organisers

Cricinfo staff21-Nov-2009Pakistan’s return to the IPL remains on hold with the national board (PCB) confirming it has not received any letters of invitation from the tournament organisers to its players to initiate the visa process. The deadline set by the IPL for receiving No Objection Certificates (NOCs) and visa paperwork was November 20, but a day after that PCB COO Wasim Bari has said he received no intimation about a step forward.”As far as I am concerned not a single player, who is interested in the IPL gave me an invitation letter of the IPL,” Bari told . “Though the PCB chairman Ijaz Butt has already been in contact with the government to seek guidelines on this issue, whether to allow the players to play in the IPL or not, an invitation from the IPL is nevertheless mandatory.”I only want an invitation letter from the players and the guideline of the government and that is all from my side.”Pakistan’s players were absent from the second IPL, held earlier this year in South Africa, after their government did not allow them to travel to India – where the tournament was originally to be held – for security reasons.The PCB and the league have been in contact to clear the paperwork required for players to return after a one-year gap. Last week Bari told told Cricinfo that the PCB had sent NOCs to the IPL and requested the management to sent invitation letters.The third edition of the IPL will held in March-April next year.

Chris Gayle has added to Nathan Hauritz’s worries before the Perth Test by saying the offspinner doesn’t turn the ball much

Cricinfo staff14-Dec-2009Chris Gayle has added to Nathan Hauritz’s worries before the Perth Test by saying the offspinner doesn’t turn the ball much and is “like I’m facing up to myself”. Hauritz will line up in just his third first-class game at the WACA in Wednesday’s series-deciding encounter.Gayle, the West Indies captain, wasn’t concerned about the inclusion of Hauritz on a wicket that has taken more turn since it lost its pace over the past few years. “I hear the Aussies look like they are going to play Nathan Hauritz here in Perth,” Gayle said in the Herald Sun. “At the moment when Hauritz is bowling to me, it’s like I’m bowling to myself. He really doesn’t turn the ball too much that is for sure. Occasionally he might get the odd one to spin.”Hauritz knows how hard it can be in Perth and hopes to gain some drift from the afternoon sea breeze. “It can be pretty tough, it can be pretty brutal out there at times,” he said in the Australian.He will speak to Marcus North, the Western Australia captain, about bowling at the WACA and has also chatted to Greg Matthews, the former Test spinner, about various strategies. In two games at the ground for Queensland he managed 2 for 216 but felt he had fared better in one-day matches.”Four-day cricket hasn’t been real good, I think I have hardly taken a wicket here when I have played,” he said. “I haven’t played here much. I played two games here for Queensland and haven’t played a game here for New South Wales. One-day cricket is always really good, the bounce, the drift and that sort of thing has been really good.”

Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook completed the first leg of England’s survival bid in the third Test at Newlands, successfully negotiating a typically hostile new-ball onslaught from Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn

The Bulletin by Andrew Miller06-Jan-2010Close England 273 (Prior 76, Morkel 5-75) and 132 for 3 (Trott 24*, Anderson 8*) need another 334 runs to beat South Africa 291 (Kallis 108, Anderson 5-63) and 447 for 7 declared (Smith 180, Amla 95)

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAlastair Cook’s dismissal was the key moment of the fourth day•Getty Images

For 36.2 overs and 101 runs, history appeared to be within England’s grasp, but the loss of three key wickets in the final hour of the fourth day at Newlands left South Africa firm favourites to complete a comfortable series-squaring victory in the third Test. By the end of a riveting session, England were floundering on 132 for 3, with Jonathan Trott and the nightwatchman James Anderson digging in for all they were worth. England’s victory target of 466, or 334 in 90 remaining overs with seven wickets still in hand, seemed a long, long way away.South Africa know a thing or two about miraculous run-chases, having hunted down 414 to beat Australia in Perth last December, and England have proven quite adept at defending fourth-inning targets of late, as demonstrated by their Ashes victories at Lord’s and The Oval. But today the roles were reversed, and while Alastair Cook and Andrew Strauss made Graeme Smith sweat for two-and-a-half hours as they compiled their seventh century stand as an opening combination, both men had fallen by the close, along with the massive scalp of Kevin Pietersen, whose Midas touch continued to elude him as he was pinned lbw by Dale Steyn for 6.In truth, England were up against it from the very start of play, when South Africa resumed on their overnight total of 312 for 2, a lead of 330, with their captain Smith bristling with intent on 162 not out. He eventually holed out for a magnificent 183, but thanks to a solid 46 from Jacques Kallis and cameos from AB de Villiers, JP Duminy and Mark Boucher, South Africa were able to declare 40 minutes after lunch on 447 for 7.But in keeping with the pattern of the match, in which run-scoring has appeared to get easier with every passing day, Strauss and Cook completed the first leg of England’s survival bid by reaching tea on 38 for 0, and in so doing they negotiated a hostile onslaught from Steyn and Morne Morkel to beat 16 overs-worth of shine off the new ball, and set a base from which they were able to flourish in an unexpectedly serene alliance.Their opening gambit was not without alarms, however. Strauss, on 1, edged Steyn inches short of Smith at first slip before being pinned on the shoulder by a rapid bouncer that nearly knocked him into his stumps, but he eased the pressure both on himself and his team by driving Steyn handsomely through the covers for three fours in a row. Cook, meanwhile, resumed the watchful approach that had earned him a century and a fifty in his previous two innings, as he left diligently outside off, while picking off his runs with flicks, sweeps and aggressive pulls through the leg-side.In the end, however, it was the pull that proved to be Cook’s downfall. Friedel de Wet is considered to be a doppelganger for Steyn, but there’s clearly something subtlely different about his approach, as he skidded down a bouncer in the first over of his second spell, and Cook’s anxious flap steepled off a top-edge to give Boucher behind the stumps his 100th dismissal in Tests against England.Three overs later, and Strauss was gone as well. Paul Harris had been comfortably played by both batsmen, with Strauss particularly willing to advance down the wicket in a sign of confidence and also of his lack of extravagant spin. But on 45, and closing in on his second fifty of a tough series, he attempted to flick an off-stump delivery to leg, but Hashim Amla under the helmet was on hand to intercept a bobbling inside-edge, and hand South Africa a massive boost going into the final phase of the day’s play.And as the shadows began to lengthen, South Africa bagged the big one. Pietersen’s series has been among the quietest of his career, but such is his reputation, no opponent ever dares to discount his threat until he has been successfully dislodged. De Wet believed he had bagged him second-ball, when umpire Harper upheld an lbw appeal that was clearly shown on review to have taken an inside-edge, but Pietersen could not make his let-off count. He had added just five more runs in 20 balls before Steyn – recalled for a final burst – slipped in a full, flat, stump-to-stump delivery, and this time Pietersen realised there was no point in seeking a second opinion.Anderson, on a king pair, came out as a reluctant nightwatchman, and dug out a series of yorkers at the death, while Trott continued to frustrate his former countrymen with his dallying between deliveries, as between them they ate up 3.4 overs before the close. But it’ll take a massive effort from all of England’s remaining batsmen to maintain their series lead as the finale in Johannesburg looms next week.The late cluster of wickets was vindication for an atypically aggressive declaration from Smith, whose forthright approach with the bat is not always matched by his instincts in the field. But he gambled on leaving England an attainable final-day target, and held his nerve as Cook and Strauss made the going look improbably easy. Sometime tomorrow, he ought to have squared the series, and in some style.

The West Indies captain has said he is fully motivated for the upcoming limited-overs series against Australia

Cricinfo staff03-Feb-2010West Indies captain Chris Gayle has said he is fully motivated for the upcoming limited-overs series against Australia. It’s been a over a month since West Indies returned home after being beaten 2-0 in the three Test series in Australia, but Gayle stayed behind to represent Queensland Bulls in the Twenty20 Big Bash. However, he said he was focused on coming out trumps in the five ODIs and two Twenty20 internationals.”I am feeling really good. I’m happy to be back in the groove and representing the West Indies,” Gayle told . “We are without two key batsmen, Shiv [Chanderpaul] and [Ramnaresh] Sarwan but this is a chance for other players to grab the opportunity and make a name. It will be a challenging tour but I know we are capable of winning.”With injuries also sidelining bowlers Fidel Edwards and Jerome Taylor, West Indies have been forced to turn to more untested players. Fast bowler Kemar Roach has played just seven ODIs, while fellow seamer Ravi Rampaul has played 36 games over a six-year span. Another paceman Gavin Tonge has managed just five.However, Gayle believed the unit possessed enough quality and backed them to perform against the in-form Australians. “The Aussies are a good team and they played well against Pakistan, but they are beatable,” he said. “We have been watching the series and we have seen what the Australians have to offer.”On our side we have a lot to offer. We have depth, and we have players who are capable match-winners. Everyone knows what is required.”West Indies have just one warm-up match before the series kicks off in Melbourne on Sunday and Gayle said the team was taking the tour game, against a Matthew Hayden-led Prime Minister’s XI at Manuka Oval tomorrow, very seriously.”We know the Aussies will come hard against us and we know we have to be on the money,” Gayle said. “We need a good start and we will be looking to start well against the Prime Minister’s XI. This will be a very serious game for us. We want a solid start and we want all the players to be in the right frame of mind when we take to the field on Thursday.”

Ottis Gibson, West Indies’ incoming coach, believes there is sufficient talent in the region to turn the fortunes of Caribbean cricket around

Andrew McGlashan23-Feb-2010Ottis Gibson, West Indies’ incoming coach, believes there is sufficient talent in the region to turn the fortunes of Caribbean cricket around, despite the ignominy of their bruising one-day tour of Australia, in which they failed to win a single match in either the 50 or 20-over format.Gibson, who arrived in Antigua this week to meet with WICB officials, has had a number of conversations with the captain Chris Gayle ahead of taking up his position for the visit of Zimbabwe, which starts with a Twenty20 in Trinidad on February 28. He joins a threadbare team stripped of key players through injury, which has won just two of their last 24 matches since reaching the World Twenty20 semi-finals in June, amid the lingering threat of disputes between the board and players’ association.But Gibson wants to leave the conflicts behind and draw on the qualities that made West Indies the dominant force in world cricket for nearly two decades. He is realistic enough to know that it is too much to ask to replicate that success, but wants the current crop of players to show the same determination which can bring a region of sovereign countries together as one group.”In West Indies the key is unity and strength and it always has been,” Gibson told Cricinfo. “During the 1980s and 1990s when West Indies were strong, I’m sure there were differences within the team, but the players pulled together and Clive Lloyd, way back in the 80s, was able to get them to come together for a common cause.”It worked and the players went on to create a piece of history for West Indies cricket, and that’s my message to this generation of players. If we can find that unity and strength, get together as a region and be strong, there’s no reason why we can’t start again to forge our own little place in history for this group of players. They are very talented and we need to let our cricket come to the fore.”The team that was humbled in Australia was virtually a shadow side, with the list of absentees leaving vast holes. Shivnarine Chanderpaul has now returned to domestic action and is on track for a comeback, as is Ramnaresh Sarwan, but Gibson is also hoping the pace duo of Jerome Taylor and Fidel Edwards can return to the set-up before too long. Throw in the allround talents of Dwayne Bravo and suddenly there is a strong nucleus for a competitive team.While admitting the recent one-day results have been tough to watch, Gibson would rather draw on the encouraging performances the team produced in the Tests against Australia, when they pushed the home team hard in Adelaide and Perth having been soundly beaten in Brisbane.”That was part of the reason why I was happy to take the job in the first place,” Gibson said. “People will see what has happened now and think we are struggling, and we are, but at the same time if you look at the players we have out injured, if those guys get fit again, then it will make a huge difference.”You take players like that out of any side and the team will struggle, but when they get home we will sit down and do a bit of a review, put the series to bed, then look forward to the series against Zimbabwe and the Twenty20 World Cup.”Gibson also sees cause for optimism in the young talent coming through the system, after West Indies finished third at the recent Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand. Now his challenge is to ensure there is a system in place to nurture those players and prevent them from drifting away from the game.”When I was going around the region last year with England I saw a lot of talent,” he said. “There’s a view around the world, certainly in England, that there’s not a lot of talent but I don’t subscribe to that. I saw first-hand the amount of skilful young players and West Indies just went to the Under-19 World Cup and came third so there’s a lot to be encouraged by. But obviously what is happening at the moment will dampen spirits and we need to accept where we are and where we need to go. It’s not going to be easy, but it’s nice a challenge to have.”Despite an international career that was limited to two Tests and 15 one-day internationals Gibson has forged a strong reputation in the coaching world. He has been credited with the development of England’s current bowling attack, but admitted the chance to work back home was something he had always aspired to. Within two weeks of returning from England’s tour of South Africa he had informed the ECB of his intentions.”Obviously since August, when John Dyson left the post, I knew it was vacant and once the call came I had to speak to the right people in the ECB and let them know my interest in doing the job,” he said. “They were very good and said ‘We won’t stand in your way, we understand it’s West Indies and you can have some input over there’.””As early as when I first started coaching back in 2001 I’ve looked at this job,” he added. “I think it’s always the view of every international coach to work for your own team at some time, so when that opportunity came I’d been preparing myself for it for the last couple of years.”I know the last few coaches have been from outside the region and people were crying out for a regional coach, but at the same time when you aren’t winning whoever is in charge of the team will come under pressure. We need to stabilise the situation at the moment, stabilise the team and stop the run of defeats and then we can move on from there.It won’t be long until Gibson has the chance to try and put one over his former colleagues when West Indies meet England in the World Twenty20 on May 3. Four days before that, he will have gone head-to-head with Ireland, who have the former Windies opener Phil Simmons as their head coach.”I’m sure the England game will be interesting, catching up with all the guys that I worked with and all the support staff,” he said. “In the last couple of Twenty20s, West Indies have managed to get on top of England. I’ll let the players do the talking on the field and make sure I can prepare them as best I can.”I’ve spent a lot of time with the guys both on and off the field and I’ll look forward to catching up with them, I won’t say over a beer because I’m in the Caribbean now, but over a rum and coke.”

The PCB has received evidence from the ICC regarding the involvement of Pakistan players in match-fixing. Ijaz Butt, the chairman of PCB, said the evidence concerned old cases

Osman Samiuddin26-Feb-2010Pakistan cricket plunged itself into wholesale confusion as the sniff of match-fixing rolled around once again, this time as a particularly nasty smell. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) initially seemed to indicate that two players from the current squad were involved in match-fixing, but later insisted that the players, cases and incidents were old ones and that nobody from the current squad was involved. An ICC spokesperson though, told Cricinfo, “The ICC is unaware of the existence of any such reports.”The day began with a report in the , a Pakistan daily, that a player from the current squad was being investigated by a six-man inquiry committee over allegations of match-fixing on Pakistan’s recent tour to Australia. Ijaz Butt, the board chairman, was asked about the story at a press conference in Lahore later in the afternoon. Butt said that he would only comment once the inquiry committee had completed its report and presented its findings.Having sensed something, journalists began to throw match-fixing questions at Butt. To one query, asking whether he believed match-fixing was now eradicated, he said, “I don’t say match-fixing is over or is not happening. I just said that it is very difficult to prove.”Butt then talked about two players against whom the ICC had provided the PCB with definitive proof that they had been involved in match-fixing, without specifying whether they were from the current squad or not. Despite persistent queries he refused to provide further details.One of the journalists, thinking the players were active ones, asked whether the board would take action against them. “You think we haven’t taken action against them?” Butt responded, the implication that the players were current ones, seemingly lost on him. “When we took action, the public accepted that and from my friends sitting around here, no one commented on it.”However, when contacted by Cricinfo, Butt categorically denied that the players and cases he was referring to were current ones. Butt said by bringing up the cases, 10-12 years old, he was merely trying to clarify how the ICC procedure on incidents of match-fixing works between the body and boards.”I was telling them of the procedure the ICC has evolved about how such cases work,” Butt said. “I was telling them that proving match-fixing charges and allegations can be very difficult. One of our friends in Islamabad made allegations against Younis Khan without any proof and look how that has destroyed his career almost.”If there is any match-fixing allegation you can ask the ICC about them and we did verbally. They communicated the two names to us and showed us incontrovertible proof of it. But I can confirm that the players are not from the current squad. The cases I am referring to are old ones and they didn’t happen under our administration.”There remains no clarity on whether the present administration asked the ICC for proof – and thus what sparked the need for such a query – or whether this is an old report sent to a previous PCB administration.The last nine months in Pakistan have witnessed persistent rumours of match-fixing. They first surfaced during Pakistan’s tour of Sri Lanka last year, where the team – or members of it – were allegedly seen in the company of suspected bookies who were in the same hotel, albeit inadvertently. Pakistan’s spectacular batting collapses, resulting in two Test losses from positions in which it looked difficult to lose, fuelled the speculation.Then, after returning from a semi-final loss in the Champions Trophy in South Africa, Jamshed Dasti, a member of parliament and head of a committee on sports, levelled allegations against Younis Khan and his team, summoning them to a meeting in which Younis handed in his resignation.Speculation has since continued, centering more often than not around the Sydney Test loss in January and a few other performances in Australia. And just recently, Butt made the same revelations – though about two officials, not players – at a senate committee hearing, though that wasn’t as widely reported at the time.

Plays of the Day from the IPL game between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kings XI Punjab at the Chinnaswamy Stadium

George Binoy at the Chinnaswamy Stadium16-Mar-2010
Anil Kumble was in the firing line while bowling to Ravi Bopara•Associated Press

Bisla who?
Manvinder Bisla made 2 off six balls against Delhi Daredevils, so the question from a clueless spectator was one most fans at the Chinnaswamy Stadium would have had. They knew soon enough, though, for after a streaky four against a Dale Steyn lifter, Bisla drove Praveen Kumar to the cover boundary and cracked Jacques Kallis for a flat six over point. He hit the innings’ first eleven boundaries and had scored 75 out of Punjab’s 129 by the time he was dismissed.Ouch, ouch
Anil Kumble has often bowled despite pain during his days as India’s leading bowler and Ravi Bopara tested if that fighting spirit still burns in retirement. He smashed a ball back at Kumble who got his body behind the ball to prevent a certain boundary. Bopara drilled the next one again back at Kumble, who once again stuck his hand out to take the pace off a scorcher. This time he was in pain and needed the physio’s attention.Late starter
Bopara was getting edgy. It was already the ninth over and he had faced only 17 balls and scored 10. His fiercest shots had been thwarted by Kumble, who was prepared to bowl after receiving treatment for his hand. Bopara decided to go aerial this time, charging Kumble and depositing him over the long-on boundary. It kick started an innings during which Bopara would win the Orange Cap, only to lose it to Jacques Kallis before the evening was over.Hare and faster hare
Kallis was on 27 off 24 balls when Manish Pandey’s dismissal brought Robin Uthappa to the crease. He unleashed an assault so fearsome that he needed only 16 deliveries to overtake Kallis, who had moved on to 44 off 36 balls by that time. Uthappa moved ahead of his partner with a flick to the square-leg boundary off Sreesanth, who was so disoriented after conceding 24 runs off five balls that he thought the over was completed and had begun to walk away to his fielding position.Time-out
Most teams have opted to let the time-out be taken by default at the end of the stipulated interval – between overs six and eight for the bowling team, and between 11 and 16 for the batting side. Not today. Uthappa had been dismissed off the last ball of the 14th over, Virat Kohli had already walked in, and Kumble was standing a yard or two inside the boundary, frantically signalling for a time-out.The umpires seemed to decide it was too late to interrupt play, and gave him the interval after the 15th over was completed. Kumble strode purposefully out on to the field, followed by Ray Jennings, Mark Boucher, Eoin Morgan and Rahul Dravid. Discussions followed and what was said worked. Bangalore needed 55 off 30 balls when play resumed, Kallis and Kohli finished it in 23.Mismatch of the day
Several IPL matches have instances of a legendary cricketer taking a novice apart. Adam Gilchrist did it to Sudeep Tyagi in Chennai and today Kallis picked on obscure Punjab left-armer Bipul Sharma. Bangalore needed 34 off 18 balls when Kallis decided Sharma had to go. He launched three massive sixes into the ecstatic fans beyond the deep midwicket boundary and ended the over with a cut to the point fence. Kallis had reduced the equation to 11 off 12 and the contest was over.

Jamie Clifford has been appointed as Kent’s new chief executive. He had been in an acting role since Paul Millman’s retirement last year

Cricinfo staff29-Mar-2010Jamie Clifford has been appointed as Kent’s new chief executive. He had been in an acting role since Paul Millman’s retirement last year.”Jamie has been a tremendous asset to the club over the last few years and his wealth of knowledge and experience will prove crucial as the redevelopment project starts to take shape,” said George Kennedy, Kent’s chairman. “Not only does he have a detailed understanding of our business but he possesses the necessary drive and determination to bring about further growth.”Clifford, 34, became director of cricket development at Kent in 2002 and later combined the role with that of director of business development. He will have tough job at running a county with severe financial problems, but has been a key figure in the club’s development plans.

A round-up of the Clydesdale Bank 40 games between Hampshire and Warwickshire at Southampton, and Middlesex and Gloucestershire at Lord’s

16-May-2010Ian Bell’s fourth Clydesdale Bank 40 half-century of the season maintained Warwickshire’s 100% record with a convincing six-wicket victory over Kent at Edgbaston. The England batsman contributed a stylish 55 from 71 balls before the Group C leaders – unbeaten in 40-over cricket since August 2008 – wrapped up their fifth straight win in the competition. The margin would have been greater but for a substantial Kent recovery after 6ft 8in pace bowler Boyd Rankin had taken three wickets in five balls in their collapse to 73 for 7 after 19 overs.Scotland produced a stunning performance to send Leicestershire crashing to a four-wicket defeat in a nail-biting finish at Grace Road.Chasing a victory target of 218 the Saltires reached it with two balls to spare, helped by half-centuries from George Bailey and Richie Berrington. But it was Neil McCallum who clinched the victory for the Saltires in their opening game of the campaign, hitting 27 off 19 balls with two boundaries plus a massive six off Matthew Hoggard’s final ball of the 39th overStephen Moore returned to haunt his former county by hitting an undefeated century in Lancashire’s crushing nine-wicket win over Worcestershire at New Road. The 29-year-old made 105 not out and put on an unbeaten 191 in 31 overs with Paul Horton, who made an undefeated 78. Their combined efforts enabled Lancashire to easily reach their 209-run victory target with 5.3 overs to spare.Half-centuries by captain Keith Parsons and Josh Knappett set up a famous 58-run victory for the Unicorns over Glamorgan at Dene Park in Bournemouth. It was the part-timers’ first victory in the competition at their fourth attempt as a good all-round effort sent the Welsh county to an embarrassing defeat. The county side were bowled out for just 173 with five overs remaining in reply to the Unicorns’ 231 for 8, which came after Glamorgan captain Jamie Dalrymple put them in to bat.Samit Patel’s second limited-overs hundred of his career propelled Nottinghamshire to a 12-run victory over winless Hampshire. Former England one-day all-rounder Patel, 25, started slowly but accelerated in the later stages of the Nottinghamshire innings to finish unbeaten on 108, as the hosts posted a competitive total of 265 for 8, Alex Hales making 46.A fine innings by former England batsman Owais Shah counted for nothing when
rain arrived at Lord’s to wash out Middlesex’s clash
with the Netherlands. Shah had reached an unbeaten 74 from 89 balls with six fours
and a brace of sixes when persistent rain arrived for a second time with the
Middlesex score on 185 for 4 after 32.3 overs. Gareth Berg posted a 37-ball 50 with seven boundaries, fell lbw to what transpired to be the final ball of the game.

Waqar Younis, the Pakistan coach, echoed captain Shahid Afridi’s call for the inclusion of young talent for the upcoming Asia Cup and the tour of England

Cricinfo staff02-Jun-2010Waqar Younis, the Pakistan coach, has echoed captain Shahid Afridi’s call for the inclusion of young talent for the upcoming Asia Cup and the tour of England. The squad for the Asia Cup is expected to be announced on Thursday, and Waqar said a rotation policy had to be put in place to try out new players in a packed schedule for Pakistan in the next few months.”We are starting a hectic period with the Asia Cup but I think the England tour is very important for the team, where we need to adopt a rotation policy and I think some new players will come into the fray,” Waqar told reporters in Lahore. “I think the objective behind naming a number of youngsters is to encourage them and it is important that players be rotated because we have a series against South Africa in October-November this year as well.”Waqar backed Afridi as captain for the Tests, even though he hasn’t led Pakistan in the format. “Afridi has not led Pakistan in Tests before,” Waqar said. “But he conducted himself well in the World Twenty20 and unity and fighting spirit would be the key to success and he can achieve both from the team.”Waqar added Pakistan needed the services of Mohammad Yousuf, but admitted he couldn’t be forced out of retirement. Yousuf quit international cricket following an indefinite ban imposed on him by the PCB. “Yousuf seems to be adamant on his retirement and although we need him for Tests, we cannot force him out of retirement,” Waqar said.Pakistan have also included Younis Khan and Shoaib Malik, two players penalised by the PCB in the aftermath of a winless tour of Australia, as well as Shoaib Akhtar in a preliminary squad of 35 for Asia Cup and the tour of England.