Cricket's return to Pakistan most welcome

Pakistan is too good a country for cricket not to be played there. From the time they joined the Test playing league, they have played some wonderful cricket and produced some of the greats in the game whose names are too numerous to mention.

It is a lovely country to play cricket in and they have some of the best stadiums. The Karachi Cricket Stadium, the stadium in Hyderabad and the stadium in Lahore is as the good as the Lord's Cricket Ground in England.

When Sri Lanka was admitted to elite league of Test cricket in 1981 and after the inaugural Test match against England at the Colombo Oval, the first tour that Sri Lanka made was to Pakistan for a Three Test series in 1982.

First journalist

I had the privilege of being the first journalist to accompany the team and cover the Three Test series for the 'Times of Ceylon' and 'Daily Mirrror'. Salim Malik made a debut century for Pakistan in the First Test in Karachi and Imran Khan came back for the final Test in Lahore and dismantled the Lankan batting with some wonderful seam and swing bowling.

For Sri Lanka, if my memory serves me right, Sidat Wettimuy stroked the first century in Hyderabad and former Sri Lanka Cricket Chairman and Sri Lankan leg spinning all-rounder D.S. de Silva nearly bowled us to our first Test victory.

Also on that tour I met two famous Pakistani journalists Qamar

Ahmed and Salahuddin. I also had privilege of doing expert comments on radio in the final Test in Lahore with Wasim Tariq a reputed Pakistani cricket commentator.

Cricket on the up and up

Pakistan cricket has always been a force to be reckoned with and now its cricket after a few hiccups, is on the up and up under the able leadership of Misbah Ul Haq as their victories over Sri Lanka and England in Dubai and the Asia Cup in Bangladesh, prove.

Now comes the good news that cricket will resume in Pakistan once again after a three year lull. Cricket could not be played in Pakistan for a three year period after militants attacked the Sri Lanka team bus during the Lahore Test in 2009.

The first country to tour there will be Bangladesh who has agreed to play a 50-over game and Twenty20 on April 29 and 30. Bangladesh must be hailed for their sporting act.

Great leveler

It is said that sport is that great leveller. Bangladesh are firm believers in this adage and when they tour must be provided with water tight security so that they will feel free to play the game.

Interior Minister Rehman Malik has promised to put in place stringent security measures for the tour. 'We will leave no stone unturned and put in place the best possible security for the Bangladesh team as per our promise and make the tour an exemplary one so that other teams also tour us', Malik told AFP.

Former Pakistan captain and all-rounder Intikhab Alam and now PCB's Director of International cricket has said that the Bangladesh tour could prompt other cricket playing nations to tour Pakistan again. But sadly the Bangladesh tour has been postponed.

Stuart Law quits as coach

Bangladesh gone on tour to Pakistan, the sad news for Bangladesh would have been the sudden quitting of their Australian coach Stuart Law. Law signed a two year contract but has decided to quit after one year citing family reasons.

Law has not confirmed that he will go with the team to Pakistan and has reiterated that it was not security reasons that prompted him to quit as coach. He was Sri Lanka's coach before taking on the Bangladesh job.

Law enjoyed his best moment when Bangladesh beat both India and Sri Lanka to enter the Asia Cup final in Dhaka, which final they were unfortunate to lose to Pakistan. Law played one Test match and 54 one-day internationals for Australia.

Ajinkya Rahne amazing

Watching the Indian Premier League game between Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Chinnawamy Stadium on Carlton Sports Network, we were amazed at the batting wizardry of 23-year old Madhukar Ajinkya Rahne for RR. With this fantastic century, he became the first batsman to make a three figure score in this tourney, beating several other reputed batsmen who are figuring in this tourney.

Rahne's 103 which came off 60 balls with 12 fours and 5 sixes had to be seen to be believed. His stroke-play was not simply wild hitting. He played perfect and technically correct strokes.

None of the Royal Challengers bowlers which included Daniel Vettori and Muttiah Muralitharan could have him on a leash. He cut, drove, hooked and pulled in grand style.

Sixes in six balls

Batsmen of the calibre of Sir Garfield Sobers, Ravi Shastri, Yuvraj Singh and Herschelle Gibbs hit six sixes in six balls, but this is the first time that a bowler had been taken for 6 fours in 6 balls in the IPL. The bowler to suffer was S. Arvind. That distinction belongs to Rahne. I am told that in a Test match India's Sandeep Patil hit England's Bob Willis for six fours in an over.

The right hand batsman at 23 shows that he has matured and is now in the frame to play for India. With Virender Sehwag now coming to the end of an illustrious career as an opener, Rahne has done enough for the Indian selectors to take note of and pick him in the squad for the World Cup Twenty20 to be played in Sri Lanka in September/October.

In this game, it was sad to see Royal Challenger' dashing opener Tillakaratne Dilshan sitting on the bench, probably dropped for poor batting form. He and Chris Gayle would have been the best openers to watch in the IPL with their ruthless hitting. But poor form would have forced the RC selectors to drop him.

[email protected]