Sports

Noman derails South Africa to 216-6 in first Pakistan Test

Published

2 weeks ago

October 13, 2025

Spinner Noman Ali grabbed four wickets to restrict South Africa to 216-6 at the close of play on day two of the first Test in Lahore on Monday, despite a fighting half century from Tony de Zorzi.

Spinners dominated on a turning Gaddafi Stadium pitch as all the day’s 11 wickets went to slow bowlers, with South African left-armer Senuran Muthusamy taking a career-best 6-117 to dismiss Pakistan for 378.

Zorzi was holding the fort at the close with 81 not out and Muthusamy on six as South Africa trail by 162 runs in the first innings.

Zorzi batted with guts, knocking nine boundaries and a six, combating Noman, who claimed 4-85.

South Africa started off well with 45-0 on the board when Noman removed touring skipper Aiden Markram for 20 and Wiaan Mulder for 17 – both caught behind by wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan.

Ryan Rickelton, who scored a punishing 71 with two sixes and nine boundaries, and Zorzi added 94 for the third wicket, taking on the spinners with some aggressive shots.

It was part-timer Salman Agha who broke the stand by forcing an edge from Rickelton with Babar Azam taking a smart low catch in the slips.

Noman returned for his third spell to get Tristan Stubbs caught behind for eight and Kyle Verreynne leg-before for two while Sajid Khan removed Dewald Brevis for a golden duck.

“We need to get them out as early as possible, and a 120-run lead would help us win this Test,” said Noman.

“This pitch will further help spinners in the coming days so it’s good for us.”

Earlier, it was Noman’s like-for-like left-armer Muthusamy who destroyed Pakistan after they resumed on 313-5, losing their last five wickets for just 16 runs.

Muthusamy, who bettered his previous Test best of 4-45 against Bangladesh in Chattogram last year, said: “It was really nice to add value to the team by getting wickets.

“It was not ideal to have lost a wicket close to stumps, but we will fight back tomorrow.”

Agha hit five fours and three sixes in his 93 and was last man out, caught in the deep off spinner Prenelan Subrayen, who took 2-78.

Agha added 49 with Rizwan to take their sixth-wicket stand to 163 before Muthusamy ripped out the middle order with three wickets in the 12th over of the day.

Rizwan was the first to go, for 75, when he edged a sharply turning ball to wicketkeeper Verreynne after a knock containing two fours and two sixes.

Two balls later, Noman went without scoring, bowled when he played down the wrong line, and then Sajid Khan followed first ball, caught in the slips.

It became 378-9 when Muthusamy bowled Shaheen Shah Afridi, on seven, for his sixth wicket.

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Babar Azam picked as Fakhar Zaman’s replacement for South Africa T20Is, says Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson

Published

48 minutes ago

October 26, 2025

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After staying out of favour in the Twenty20 International format for Pakistan’s last five assignments, former skipper Babar Azam was picked for the upcoming three-match series against South Africa only after Fakhar Zaman’s decided to skip it, white-ball head coach Mike Hesson said on Sunday.

Since Hesson took over the role in June, Babar hasn’t featured for Pakistan in T20Is with the national side playing series against Bangladesh, the West Indies and a tri-nation series followed by the Asia Cup during that period.

Hesson had cited the right-hander’s low strike-rate as the reason for his absence. But Babar’s selection for the series, which starts in Rawalpindi on Tuesday raised suggested a change of mind for the coach before the New Zealander clarified it.

“I certainly endorse his selection,” Hesson said of Babar while speaking to reporters on the sidelines of Pakistan’s training session at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. “We’ve sent him (Fakhar) back to first-class cricket after a conversation with him.

“He wanted to focus on improving his technique for one-day cricket, so we gave him a bit of a break from T20s. That’s created an opportunity for another top-order player.”

Hesson confirmed that Babar will take the number three spot instead of the batter’s preferred opening position, where he flourished for Pakistan for a substantial period before eventually falling in form and then out of favour.

The coach, however, has expectations from Babar to make a strong comeback and suggested he saw him in Pakistan’s plans for the T20 World Cup, which is set to be held in February-March next year in India and Sri Lanka.

“It’s a great chance to have Babar back,” said the coach. “He’s likely to bat at number three, a role I’m confident he’ll perform well in.

“It also gives our squad some flexibility ahead of the [T20] World Cup.”

‘Haris needs to work’

Babar’s unexpected return also coincided with the axing of wicket-keeper-batter Mohammad Haris from the Pakistan squad even after he received ample backing from the team management across Hesson’s tenure so far.

The 24-year-old proved his mettle with a century against Bangladesh back in June but gradually lost form amid frequent change of batting positions.

Hesson believed Haris needed to go back to the drawing board to fix his issues.

“Haris has had a number of opportunities recently, and he’d be the first to admit he hasn’t made the most of them,” he said. “But he’s still young and developing, so I wouldn’t say his career is over.

“He needs to work on his decision-making with the bat. Even in domestic T20s, he averages around 17, similar to international cricket, so that’s an area for improvement.”

Haris has been replaced by Usman Khan — who last year gave up on a career in the United Arab Emirates to play for Pakistan before being eventually dropped. He emerged out of nowhere and Hesson said he sees the right-hander, who keeps wickets as well, as a good player of spin.

“We see our wicket-keeper batting more through the middle rather than at the top, especially with spin being such a big factor in Sri Lanka during the World Cup. That’s why Usman has been given this opportunity.”

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FIFA announces new ASEAN Cup for Southeast Asia

Published

3 hours ago

October 26, 2025

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A new tournament, the FIFA ASEAN Cup, will be launched as part of an agreement between FIFA and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), aimed at boosting the development of football across the region.

The announcement was made during the 47th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday, where FIFA President Gianni Infantino and ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn signed a renewed Memorandum of Understanding.

The tournament will bring together national teams from all ASEAN member states in a format inspired by the Arab Cup, which was first organised by FIFA in 2021.

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“This will be a great addition to the regional football calendar,” Infantino said.

“Through the FIFA ASEAN Cup, we are uniting countries together, and this competition will be a huge success as it will help boost national team football in the ASEAN region and support the development of our sport across all of Southeast Asia.”

World football’s governing body will work with regional stakeholders including the Asian Football Confederation, the ASEAN Football Federation, and the relevant FIFA member associations to finalise the tournament’s format.

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