Pakistan defeat West Indies in second T20 international Cricket Match

Pakistan outclassed world champions the West Indies by 16 runs in the second Twenty20 match in Dubai on Saturday to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-game series. Pakistan scored 160-4 in their 20 overs after they were sent in to bat with skipper Sarfraz Ahmed (46 not out), Khalid Latif (40) and Shoaib Malik (37) amongst the runs. They then restricted the West Indies to 144-9 with left-arm paceman Sohail Tanvir taking 3-13, also completing 50 wickets in the shortest format. Medium pacer Hasan Ali grabbed 3-49. Andre Fletcher made 29 while Sunil Narine top-scored with 30 for the West Indies. Pakistan won the first match — also in Dubai — by nine wickets on Friday. Both teams kept the same eleven from Friday's first match which Pakistan.

Barca to miss injured Messi: Zidane

Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane insists it is obvious rivals Barcelona will miss the injured Lionel Messi during a three-week layoff, but has injury concerns of his own ahead of Saturday’s trip to Las Palmas. The five-time World Player of the Year is set to be sidelined for Barca’s trips to Sporting Gijon, Borussia Moenchengladbach in the Champions League and Celta Vigo in the next week due to a groin strain. “Messi is Messi. We all know what he can bring to this team,” Zidane said on Friday. “Obviously, Barca are a different team when he is not there.” However, Madrid have been struck by a double injury blow of their own with a huge Champions League clash at Borussia Dortmund to come on Tuesday. Brazilian duo Marcelo and Casemiro will miss both trips to Las Palmas and Dortmund as well as Eibar’s visit to the Santiago Bernabeu next weekend. Both are also expected to miss Brazil’s World Cup qualifiers against Bolivia and Venezuela early next month. Marcelo limped off in the first-half of Real’s 1-1 draw with Villarreal on Wednesday and is expected to be out for at least two weeks. “He has been diagnosed with a grade two muscle strain in the soleus muscle of his right calf,” Madrid said in a statement on Friday. “It is always worrying when someone gets injured, even more so when they are first choice players,” Zidane said. Midfielder Casemiro has been diagnosed with a hairline fracture of his left fibula picked up in Sunday’s 2-0 win at Espanyol which will rule him out for three weeks. Casemiro has become a vital player in balancing Madrid’s midfield since Zidane took over as coach in January to balance the more attacking roles enjoyed by Luka Modric and Toni Kroos. “There is no other player who plays like Case,” added Zidane. “Hopefully the injuries aren’t severe and they return as soon as possible. We have a big squad.”

Pakistan defeat West Indies in first T20 International Cricket Match

Pakistan enjoyed the first T20 international cricket match against West Indies and won by 9 wickets after spoiling the opponent team on 115/10 in 19.5 overs.  The green-shirts are in good form after smashing England by nine wickets in the only Twenty20 game, which was wicket-keeper Sarfraz Ahmed’s first match as skipper, on their last tour. On the other hand, the West Indies will hope to forget their off-field confusion and underline their status as World Twenty20 champions. Sarfraz, who replaced Shahid Afridi following Pakistan’s first-round exit in the World Twenty20, hopes his team won’t be discouraged by the champions. “We didn’t think England were World Twenty20 finalists when we beat them at Manchester,” said Sarfraz. “We will do the same here, go out and play hard because the team which plays well on the ground wins a T20 match.” He added: “Even without Gayle and Russell, West Indies is strong and a T20 match is not won with big names only.”

Fast bowler Mohammad Amir joined the squad after his wedding on Tuesday and will spearhead a spin-cum-pace attack. Opener Mohammad Hafeez and lanky paceman Mohammad Irfan are out through injury. Middle-order batsman Umar Akmal will be in focus after being recalled following his axing on the England tour over disciplinary issues. Umar smashed a fiery century in a national Twenty20 event to force his comeback. The supremely talented but troubled West Indies side have arrived in the United Arab Emirates after sacking coach Phil Simmons and without all-rounder Andre Russell, who is facing a doping hearing. The Windies are also missing flamboyant big-hitter Chris Gayle, who complains of injury problems and makes only sporadic appearances for his country. Gayle also missed the West Indies’ one-run Twenty20 win over India in Florida last month, while Russell will front a hearing into claims he missed three drugs tests in a 12-month period, an offence which could trigger a two-year ban. Carlos Brathwaite stunned England when he smashed Ben Stokes for four consecutive sixes to clinch the West Indies’ second World T20 title in April. Brathwaite will now captain the side in UAE while towering former fast bowler Joel ‘Big Bird’ Garner replaces Simmons, who repeatedly clashed with the West Indies board. Brathwaite hopes his team will show their huge talent in the humid conditions in the United Arab Emirates, where they also trained ahead of the World Twenty20 in India. “It wasn’t as hot early in the year, but, apparently, we’re smack dab in the middle of their summer, so it can get very, very hot,” said Brathwaite. “It’s for the players to prepare well, manage themselves well off the field, rehydration-wise, get enough rest, and each and every one of us is a professional, and evidently performing well when the games come.” Brathwaite’s uncapped players — including wicketkeeper-batsman Nicholas Pooran, all-rounder Rovman Powell and fast bowler Kesrick Williams — will also want to fire against a dangerous Pakistan side.

The West Indies will rely heavily on their T20 specialist spinners Samuel Badree and Sunil Narine, who shared five wickets to spark a 22-run win in a warm-up game on Tuesday. The second match will follow at the same venue on Saturday with the third in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. The teams will also play three One-day Internationals and three Tests.