Muhammad Wasim to lead KRL

Islamabad, Sept 16: Test batsman Mohammad Wasim will lead Khan Research Laboratories team that includes two star performers of Pakistan World Cup squad, Rawalpindi-express Shoaib Akhtar and allrounder Abdul Razzaq, for the forthcoming National One-Day Cricket Championship commencing on Sept 20 at various centres of the country.

The KRL, Redco, Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Peshawar are the five teams in pool-D. One team will qualify for the second knock-out stage of the tournament. Each team will figure in one floodlight fixture to be played at Gadhafi Stadium.

For speedster Shoaib Akhtar this event will his first assignment with KRL after he had joined the department last season. Apart from retaining seasoned campaigners like Nadeem Abbasi, Naseer Ahmed, Naeem Akhtar, Shakeel Ahmed, Tassawar Hussain the 25-man list also includes three new faces. The department has hired left-arm under-19 spinner Roa Naeem Hanif from Lahore, wrist spinner Rizwan Ahmed from Hyderabad and experienced wicket-keeper Atiq-ur-Zaman from Karachi.

Meanwhile, the KRL team management named Mohammad Wasim skipper of their side following Pakistan Cricket Board's Probe Committees decision to permit the batsman to play in the one-day event. However, the probe committee headed by Javed Zaman, has maintained that the lifting of ban was with the condition that the final investigation report to be completed in ten day's time would also prove the batsman innocent. It was stated that Wasim has been allowed to participate in the one-day championship since the preliminary report conducted by a magistrate had ruled the batsman innocent.

The official, however, was more concerned about the number of matches awarded to The KRL stadium. It may be added here that initially KRL, a venue where international fixtures have been regularly held, was not given a single match compared to Redco cricket ground which has only recently been prepared. A new-look KRL stadium will now have a seating capacity of over 5,000 spectators as the two new block with players enclosures, media centre, cricket offices have been completed.

The KRL will play its openers against Redco at Redco ground on Sept 26.

The squad is: Mohammad Wasim (captain), Shoaib Akhtar, Abdul Razzaq, Nadeem Abbasi, Naseer Ahmed, Naeem Akhtar, Asif Mehmood, Tassawar Hussain, Muazzam Ali Shah, Arif Butt, Intikhab Alam, Iftikhar Hussain, Basit Niazi, Shakeel Ahmed, Iftikhar Asghar, Roa Naeem Hanif, Jaffar Nazir, Faisal Khan Afridi, Irfan Bhatti, Rizwan Ahmed, Azeem Mansoor, Atiq-ur-Zaman, Maqsood Ahmed, Murtaza Hussain, Mohammad Sarfraz.