Afridi optimistic of good show in World Cup despite controversies
Despite being hit by a handful of controversies, the Pakistan skipper Shahid Khan Afridi is adamant that his team will perform in front of the fans and will be one of the favourites in the coveted upcoming One Day International World Cup 2011. The event is being co-hosted by India, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 was dropped as a host nation following the terrorist attacks on the touring Sri Lankan team in Lahore.
Pakistan cricket has been rocked by allegations of corruption and the spot fixing scandals in recent days, with the latest blow falling in on them on Tuesday, when a previously unseen footage of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Mazhar-c75448 Majeed surfaced on a local TV news channel. In the footage, Majeed is seen naming seven Pakistani players as being involved in spot fixing. The ICC has already barred three of those seven players from playing international cricket, while the other four have now come in the crosshairs.
Afridi rated India as one of the strongest teams on the circuit today, and the possible winners of the World Cup which will start from 19th February next year. He also cautioned that the one dangerous player to watch out would be Sachin Tendulkar. The Pakistani skipper also appeared confident of making it to the semi-finals of the World Cup stating that the four teams in the semis would include Pakistan, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750, Sri Lanka and Australia.
After having played South Africa in the UAE, the Pakistani team will embark on a tour of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754 which will see them play three T20s, two test matches, and six One Day Internationals. The tour is scheduled to be held from 26th December to 5th February giving the Pakistani and the Kiwi side valuable practice before the commencement of the World Cup.
Pakistan has been dogged by a spate of controversies in the past six months. Initially, the spot fixing scandal arose in the team’s summer tour of England, followed by the suspension of three players which included the team’s captain Salman Butt, and bowlers Muhammad Amer and Asif. Then they were stung by the sudden and inexplicable desertion of wicket keeper batsman Zulqarnain Haider, who was subsequently seen in London claiming political asylum due to threats received to rig matches. And finally, the naming of four additional players as being involved in spot fixing has gotten heads spinning all across the world.
In view of such negativity, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 have displayed. To label the Pakistan side as one of the favourites in the upcoming World Cup seems to be based on a far-fetched premise. However, the cricketing world’s bad boys have never failed to surprise with flamboyance before and it still remains to be seen whether this World Cup will bring the best of the worst out in them.
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