CricInfo Home
News Home

NEWS FOCUS
Rsa in Pak
NZ in India
Zim in Aus

Domestic
Other Series

LAHORE, March 1: Fourteen cricketers out of the 15 called for the Test against Sri Lanka reported at the Gaddafi Stadium on Monday. The match is part of the Asian Test Championship and will be held at this very venue from March 4 to 8.

Only absentee is star batsman Inzamam-ul-Haq, who was recently married in Multan.

Former Test paceman Sarfaraz Nawaz, popularly known as ``Big Saf'' among friends, has also been asked by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to assist in training the players along with the former Test batsman Javed Miandad. Sarfaraz could not reach Lahore because he had gone to Chitral.

PCB secretary Waqar Ahmad told Dawn on Monday afternoon that he received a telephone call from Sarfaraz Nawaz on Monday intimating that he would be reaching Lahore soon. The former Test paceman was supposed to be married in Northern Areas on February 25 but could not reach there on that day.

However, he caught the flight for Chitral on February 27 and got married there. Sarfaraz had married before but this is his first marriage since the death of his wife, film star Rani.

The cricketers did physical exercises and net-practice at the Gaddafi Stadium from 9 am to 2 pm. The regimen will be continued till the beginning of the Test on March 4 (Thursday). The national coach Javed Miandad and physiotherapist Dr Dan Kiesel supervised the training of players. Mian Muhammad Munir, who was Associate Manager of the Pakistan team which toured India, also watched the players.

The following 14 reported at the Gaddafi Stadium:

Wasim Akram (captain), Moin Khan (vice-captain), Saeed Anwar, Imran Nazir, Wajahatullah Wasti, Yousaf Youhana, Shahid Afridi, Azhar Mahmood, Muhammad Wasim, Shoaib Akhtar, Arshad Khan, Fazle Akbar, Saqlain Mushtaq, Shahid Nazir.