Sports

PCB announces match officials’ panel for 2023-24 season

Published

11 months ago

June 14, 2023

admin

PCB announces match officials' panel for 2023-24 season

The Pakistan Cricket Board has announced its panel of match officials for the expanded 2023-24 cricket season, which will see the return of regional and departmental cricket after four years, thus, substantially increasing the number of matches.

Ninety-seven First XI matches were held in the 2022-23 cricket season alone, but following the restoration of the PCB Constitution 2014, around 200 First XI matches will be held in the 2023-24 season.

To cater for the enhanced requirement and following an annual appraisal process, the PCB has increased the number of match officials in each category. This will provide more opportunities to the match officials under the current system and also increases the earning chances after the PCB decided to increase the monthly retainers of the elite and supplementary panel by 20 per cent.

Additionally, the PCB has also increased match fees, daily allowances and retirement benefits of the match officials by 20 per cent.

In the elite panel of match referees, the PCB has added seven officials to raise the tally to 13. The seven new officials, who have been promoted, are: Aleem Khan Moosa, Athar Laiq, Bilal Khiljee, Kamran Chaudhry, Khalid Jamshed, Mohammad Aslam and Sohail Idrees.

Similarly, and envisaging eight first-class matches will run concurrently, the PCB had increased the pool of elite umpires from 14 to 23. The nine match officials, who have been promoted from the supplementary to elite panel are: Abdul Moqeet, Aslam Bareach, Farooq Ali Khan, Ghulam Sarwar, Imranullah Aslam, Kashif Sohail, Majid Hussain, Qaiser Khan and Zulfiqar Jan.

In the supplementary panel, which will be involved in non-first-class and pathways cricket matches but will also be available to cover for the elite match officials in First XI matches, the PCB has promoted nine match referees. This includes Saman Zulfiqar, who becomes the first women’s match referee to rise to this level. Others are: Abu-al-Hasnat Rao, Allah Ditto, Fazal Akbar Shah, Ghulam Mustafa, Inamullah Khan, Muhammad Amiruddin Ansari, Samiul Haq and Sohail Khan.

Meanwhile, the PCB has also confirmed women’s and international panel of match officials.

The women’s panel of umpires includes, Afia Amin, Humairah Farah, Nazia Nazir, Riffat Mustafa, Sabahat Rasheed, Saleema Imtiaz and Shakila Rafiq, while the international panel of match officials is Aleem Dar, Asif Yaqoob, Rashid Riaz Waqar, Faisal Khan Afridi (all umpires), Muhammad Javed Malik (Multan) and Ali Naqvi (both match referees).

The PCB group that reviewed the match officials’ last season’s performances and decided on the 2023-24 panel included: Shakil Ahmed Shaikh (Chair – Domestic Restructuring Committee), Aizad Syed (Acting Director – Academies), Haroon Rashid (Chair – Selection Committee and Acting Director – Domestic Cricket), Saqib Irfan (Senior Manager – Domestic cricket), Bilal Qureshi (Manager – Umpires & Referees) and Abdul Hameed (Assistant Manager – Umpires and Referee).

PCB PANEL OF MATCH OFFICIALS 2023-24

PCB Elite Panel of Match Referees (13) – Aleem Khan Moosa (Karachi), Ali Naqvi (Lahore), Athar Laiq (Karachi), Bilal Moinul Haq Khiljee (Lahore), Iftikhar Ahmed (Karachi), Kamran Chaudhry (Lahore), Khalid Jamshed (Lahore), Muhammad Anees (Lahore), Muhammad Aslam (Quetta), Muhammad Iqbal Sheikh (Hyderabad), Muhammad Javed Malik (Multan), Nadeem Arshad (Faisalabad) and Sohail Idrees (Lahore)

PCB Elite Panel of Umpires (23) – Abdul Moqeet (Lahore), Aleem Dar (Lahore), Aley Haider (Karachi), Asif Yaqoob (Islamabad), Aslam Bareach (Quetta), Faisal Khan Afridi (Sargodha), Farooq Ali Khan (Abbottabad), Ghulam Sarwar (Sibi), Imran Jawed (Karachi), Imranullah Aslam (Bahawalpur), Kashif Sohail (Khanewal), Majid Hussain (AJK), Muhammad Asif (Lahore), Muhammad Sajid (Charsadda), Nasir Hussain (Lahore), Qaiser Khan (Lahore), Rashid Riaz Waqar (Lahore), Saqib Khan (Abbottabad), Shozab Raza (Lahore), Syed Imtiaz Iqbal (Karachi), Tariq Rasheed (Lahore), Waleed Yaqub (Lahore) and Zulfiqar Jan (Charsadda)

PCB Supplementary Panel of Match Referees (11) – Abu-al-Hasnat Rao (Lahore), Ahmer Saeed (Karachi), Ali Gohar (Karachi), Allah Ditto (Islamabad), Fazal Akbar Shah (Peshawar), Ghulam Mustafa (Kasur), Inamullah Khan (Lahore), Muhammad Amiruddin Ansari (Karachi), Saman Zulfiqar (Sheikhupura), Samiul Haq (Faisalabad) and Sohail Khan (Lahore)

PCB Supplementary Panel of Umpires (28) – Abdul Karim (Naseerabad), Aftab Hussain Gillani (Bahawalpur), Ahmed Nadeem (Peshawar), Ahmed Shahab (Lahore), Aqeel Aadil Khan (Karachi), Asif Farooq Awan (Gujranwala), Dilshad Ali (Multan), Haroon Malik (Sargodha), Hashim Ali (Lodhran), Hassan Mahmood (Lahore), Irfan Haider (Islamabad), Kamran Khalil (Lahore), Khalid Mehmood Snr. (Karachi), Mir Dad (Islamabad), Muhammad Basit (Lahore), Muhammad Fayyaz (Peshawar), Muhammad Imran (Sargodha), Muhammad Irfan Dilshad (Lahore), Muhammad Kaleem (Lahore), Muhammad Waqas (Lahore), Qaiser Waheed (Lahore), Rafiq Ahmad (Dadu), Rana Muhammad Arshad (Faisalabad), Raza Asghar (Sheikhupura), Saleem Butt (Rawalpindi), Sultan Mahmood (Loralai), Syed Fahim Ahmed Bukhari (Karachi) and Waqar Ahmed (Islamabad)

PCB Development Panel of Umpires (40) – Aamer Atta (DG Khan), Abdul Qayoom (Karachi), Abdul Wasay (Kohat), Abrar Ahmed (Kasur), Adnan Rashid (Lahore), Ajmal Khan (Swat), Akhtar Ali (Karachi), Anser Mahmood (Pattoki), Asim Alvi (Karachi), Farooq Anwar Bajwa (Faisalabad), Farooq Jan (Charsadda), Ghayyur Hussain (Peshawar), Hameed Khan (Quetta), Hidayatullah (Pishin), Jaffar Hussain (Peshawar), Jamshid Hussain (Peshawar), Khalid Mahmood Jnr. (Quetta), Khalil Ahmad Siddiqi (Kasur), Maqbool Ahmed (Faisalabad), Mesam Turabi (Gujjar Khan), Muhammad Aamir Sharif (Kohat), Muhammad Arif (DI Khan), Muhammad Yousaf (DG Khan), Mumtaz Ali (Loralai), Munir Ahmed (Kasur), Naik Muhammad (Kohat), Nasar Khan (Mardan), Naseer Ahmed (Chakwal), Naushad Khan (Peshawar), Naveed Khan (Nowshera), Noor ul Hakam (Buner), Raweed Khan (Charsadda), Sagheer Ahmed (Lahore), Saifullah Khan (Sargodha), Shahid Qayyum (Faisalabad), Shamim Ansari (Karachi), Sohail Khan (Charssada), Sohail Zaman Khattak (Peshawar), Waqas Zeb (Lahore) and Zeeshan Arif (Mirpur, AJK)

PCB Women’s Panel of Umpires (7) – Afia Amin (Lahore), Humairah Farah (Lahore), Nazia Nazir (Lahore), Riffat Mustafa (Kasur), Sabahat Rasheed (Lahore), Saleema Imtiaz (Karachi) and Shakila Rafiq (Kasur)

ICC International Panel of Match Officials (6) – Aleem Dar (Lahore), Asif Yaqoob (Islamabad), Rashid Riaz Waqar (Lahore), Faisal Khan Afridi (Sargodha) (all umpires); Muhammad Javed Malik (Multan) and Ali Naqvi (Lahore) (both match referees)

Post Views: 78

Sports

World champion Brecel excited by new ‘golden ball’ format

Published

2 months ago

March 6, 2024

admin

World champion Brecel excited by new 'golden ball' format

World champion Luca Brecel is excited to be among those looking to complete the first ever 167 break after the new golden ball was introduced at Saudi Arabia’s first professional snooker event this week.

The opening season of the Riyadh World Masters of Snooker offers players the chance to win a prize of $500,000 if they can complete a maximum 147 and then pot the golden ball.

The golden ball, worth 20 points, sits on the top cushion during the frame for as long as a player can still complete a maximum and is removed when the chance is gone.

The event, which runs until Wednesday, features players such as Ronnie O’Sullivan, Shaun Murphy, Mark Williams and Ding Junhui.

“Yeah, it’s exciting the golden ball. Obviously it’s a big prize and well, it’s going to be very difficult. It’s a nice challenge and I’d love to have a go at it. Even if I don’t make it I would just like to have a try,” Brecel told Reuters on Tuesday.

“The 147 in itself is really difficult but now you need to be perfect on the black as well to go to the golden ball which is even more difficult.” Former world champion Judd Trump is also enjoying the challenge.

“It’s something cool. I think it’s always good to kind of push new ideas and I think the challenge of making a different break, a 167 here, would be very special,” Trump said.

“I think the 167 is just that little bit harder now and with that comes a bigger prize. So, I think that 167 is very special for the first time.”

Following the announcement last month of the creation of a Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters which will become the ‘fourth major’, Brecel said it was good to see the sport expanding into new countries.

“(It’s) very good for us and for snooker. It’s nice to be able to come to these countries and hopefully maybe Qatar and Dubai will follow and in the future maybe go up to the U.S. as well and make snooker really, really big in all the countries in the world,” he said.

With a 10-year deal agreed, the tournament’s first edition will take place in Riyadh from Aug. 31 to Sept. 7. It will be a ranking event open to all tour players, plus six local wild cards.

Post Views: 83

Sports

Scaled-back opening ceremony for Paris Olympics to offer 326,000 tickets

Published

2 months ago

March 6, 2024

admin

Scaled-back opening ceremony for Paris Olympics to offer 326,000 tickets

A total of 326,000 tickets are set to be sold or given away for the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics on the River Seine, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said Tuesday, giving the exact number for the first time. Security fears have seen the size of the waterborne parade dramatically reduced.

“We will have 104,000 spectators on the lower bank who have paid for a ticket,” Darmanin told a hearing in the Sénat. “Then you have 222,000 people on the higher banks (with free tickets).”

Darmanin estimated that another 200,000 people would watch the event along the river from buildings that overlook the Seine, with an additional 50,000 in fan-zones in the capital.

Resistance from French security services and worries about potential terror attacks saw the number of spectators downgraded from as many as two million people.

However the event is still set to break records in terms of its size, with all previous opening ceremonies taking place in an athletics’ stadium.

The open-air ceremony on boats is in keeping with promises to make the Paris Olympics “iconic”, with the local organising committee keen to break from past traditions in the way it stages the world’s biggest sporting event.

A total of 180 boats are set to sail around six kilometres down the Seine, of which 94 will contain athletes, the top security official for the Paris region, Marc Guillaume, told the same hearing.

Darmanin added: “No country has informed us that they do not want to take part … They have confidence in our organisation.”

Special security

The executive in charge of planning and risk management at the Paris organising committee told AFP last week that special security measures would be considered for high-risk delegations such as those from the US or Israel.

“Every delegation has its own unique circumstances, and we’ll look at solutions that are adapted to the risk,” Lambis Konstantinidis said.

The Olympics have been targeted with attacks in the past, notably Munich in 1972 and Atlanta in 1996.

France was placed on its highest alert for terror attacks in October after a suspected Islamist burst into a school in northern France and stabbed a teacher to death.

The country has been consistently targeted by Islamic extremists over the last decade, particularly from the Islamic State group, while Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza is seen as exacerbating domestic tensions.

Around a million people are set to be screened in advance by French security forces for possible security risks, including the athletes, journalists, private security guards and people who live close to key infrastructure.

Post Views: 84

Sports

Sinisterra signs long-term deal with Bournemouth

Published

3 months ago

February 9, 2024

admin

Sinisterra signs long-term deal with Bournemouth

Luis Sinisterra has made his move to AFC Bournemouth from Leeds United permanent, signing a long-term deal with the Premier League team on Friday.

Bournemouth reportedly agreed to a £20 million fee with Championship (second-tier) side Leeds.

The 24-year-old Colombian had been impressive since joining Bournemouth in September on a loan spell from Leeds United, with three goals and three assists in his 17 appearances.

“I’m really happy to make this move. I’m excited to play for Bournemouth for the long term,” Sinisterra said. “I feel really comfortable here and the fans are really nice. When I meet them in the streets, they show the love.”

Andoni Iraola’s team are 12th in the table on 27 points, but are winless in their last four games. They play Fulham at Craven Cottage on Saturday.

Post Views: 119