BBADMINTONADMINTON | Page 4 RUGBY | Page 5 Prannoy 12-try All Blacks upsets crush Samoa Chen Long to in Lions enter semis warning Saturday, June 17, 2017 TENNIS Ramadan 22, 1438 AH Berdych joins seeds’ GULF TIMES Stuttgart exodus aft er defeat to Lopez SPORT Page 3 CRICKET Amir confi dent of being fi t for Champions Trophy fi nal ‘I bowled in the nets and felt no discomfort and since we have one more day (to prepare), I hope the recovery will be complete’ AFP FOCUS London akistan fast bowler Moham- ed Amir believes he is “fast gaining fi tness” ahead of the Champions Trophy fi nal India openers inspire Pagainst arch-rivals India. The 25-year-old left-armer missed Pakistan’s shock eight-wicket semi-fi - nal win over tournament hosts England in Cardiff on Wednesday with a back Kohli ahead of fi nal spasm.But after bowling in the nets at AFP number of runs do not matter at this labelled “shambolic”, they bounced the Oval — the venue for Sunday’s fi nal Birmingham stage. I’m really enjoying the process. back to beat top-ranked South Africa. — yesterday, Amir told AFP: “I am fast “The way Rohit and Shikhar bat- Pakistan then held their nerve to gaining fi tness. ted, it just gave me so much confi dence beat Sri Lanka in what was a virtual “I bowled in the nets and felt no dis- ndia captain Virat Kohli heads into heading out of the changing room. quarter-fi nal in Cardiff on Monday. comfort and since we have one more a Champions Trophy fi nal against Those two guys really dent the opposi- Two days on, they raised their game day (to prepare) I hope the recovery will arch-rivals Pakistan back on top of tion mentally,” he explained. still further to infl ict a crushing eight- be complete,” explained Amir, who took the one-day international batting That India had a below par total to wicket defeat of previously unbeaten none for 32 in Pakistan’s 124-run de- Irankings. chase owed much to Kohli’s decision tournament hosts England in a semi- feat by India in the teams’ tournament But the star batsman insists it is the to bring on unheralded spinner Kedar fi nal in the Welsh capital. For all that opener at Edgbaston on June 4. form of the title-holders’ opening duo Jadhav. He only had six ODI wickets India’s margin of victory was greater, “I look forward to playing as it’s a that is giving him confi dence in the prior to this match yet dismissed both Pakistan’s last-four success was argu- big occasion,” added Amir, now fi rmly lead up to Sunday’s clash between the Bangladesh top-scorers Tamim Iqbal ably even more impressive given they back in the international fold after his sub-continent cricket giants at the (70) and Mushfi qur Rahim (61) on his bowled England out for just 211. career was halted by a ban and jail sen- Oval. The 28-year-old Kohli is also top way to fi gures of two for 22 in six overs. “The turnaround has been magnifi - tence for his part in a 2010 spot-fi xing of the tournament batting averages The Tigers’ third-wicket duo had cent,” said Kohli of Pakistan’s progress. scam during a Test against England at with a scarcely credible mark of 253 — a given India something to think about “They’ve beaten sides that looked Lord’s. fi gure that owes much to the fact that while adding 123 but once they were really strong against them.” Amir, who took two wickets, includ- three of his four innings so far have both out the innings fell away. “He For Bangladesh their fi rst major ing that of all-time batting great Sachin been not outs. Kohli was undefeated bowled really well, credit to him,” said semi-fi nal was a reality check. Tendulkar, when Pakistan beat India again as India crushed Bangladesh by Kohli of Jadhav. Having been spared all but certain at Centurion in the 2009 Champions nine wickets in a commanding semi- “He doesn’t bowl much in the nets, elimination when rain washed out their Trophy, starred with both bat and ball fi nal victory at Edgbaston — the venue but he’s a smart cricketer. He knows match with Australia, the Tigers got to in the virtual quarter-fi nal victory over where they won the 2013 Champions where the batsmen get into trouble, the knockout phase with just one win, Sri Lanka in Cardiff on Monday. Trophy title — on Wednesday. and if you can think like a batter when albeit their defeat of New Zealand was a He took two for 53 in 10 overs as Sri His 96 not out saw Kohli end the you’re bowling, it’s obviously a bit of well-deserved success. Bangladesh all- Lanka were held to 236 and then made match with nearly 10 overs to spare by an advantage to any bowler.” rounder Shakib Al Hasan was left la- an unbeaten 28 as he and Pakistan cap- hitting a four off Sabbir Rahman. menting the fact his side had been “no- tain Sarfraz Ahmed (61 not out) steered But Rohit Sharma was 123 not out at ‘Turnaround’ where near their best” against India. their side to a tense three-wicket win the other end, having shared an unbro- India will now fi nish the tournament “I thought we were in a very good with an unbroken stand of 75. ken stand of 178 with his skipper. By against Pakistan having started their ti- situation to score 300-320, that would But he was hardly missed on the time Kohli came in, however, India tle defence with a 124-run thrashing of have been a diff erent game,” said Shak- Wednesday, with fellow left-arm pace- were well on their way to chasing down their traditional foes in Birmingham un- ib. “Losing those two wickets to an oc- man Rumman Raees, despite making a modest victory target of 265 thanks to der a fortnight ago. While it may be one casional bowler obviously didn’t help. his one-day international debut, taking a brisk opening partnership of 87 be- of cricket’s oldest cliches to label Paki- “With our runs and that wicket, we two for 44 as England were skittled out tween Sharma and left-hander Shikhar stan “unpredictable”, they’ve done their knew it was very hard for our bowlers, for just 211. Dhawan, who made 46. best to live up to it during this tourna- but still I think we were nowhere near Amir, however, has once again be- “I’m really enjoying the way I’m bat- ment. After a performance against In- our best today, especially in our bowl- come a mainstay of the Pakistan team ting,” Kohli told reporters. “For me the dia even Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur ing and fi elding.” since returning to the side early in 2016, appearing in 47 of the team’s 57 match- es across all international formats fol- lowing his comeback. As well as bowling in the nets on Friday, Amir received treatment from the Pakistan team physiotherapist and bowling coach Azhar Mahmood told reporters: “He bowled today without any problem whatsoever. “The back spasm took two days to get over, and he’s better now,” the former Pakistan all-rounder added. “We will go with Amir if he is fi t. But we don’t mind — if he is not fi t, then we Pakistan’s Mohamed Amir during a net session yesterday in London. (Reuters) move on with Rumman Raees.” Azhar added: “We have the bench “But the way Rumman Raees came and such an ability that they can per- strength. Last match, when Amir was in and bowled, it showed we have the form on any stage. It is just a matter of not there, people were worried about bench strength. self-belief and confi dence. I think any- India’s Shikhar Dhawan (second from left) celebrates with Rohit Sharma as MS Dhoni congratulates Virat Kohli (second from our main strike bowler not playing. “We have guys who have such skill one can replace anyone.” right) after defeating Bangladesh in Champions Trophy semi-final in Edgbaston on Thursday. (Reuters) It’s personal — fi ve India-Pakistan spats There is never a dull moment when India and Pa- moments in international cricket. India won the group eventual winners Sri Lanka in the semi-final. Gambhir’s drinks clash with Akmal Pakistan again came to the fore in the 2010 Asia kistan clash in cricket. Ahead of their showdown match, but Pakistan won the title. Gambhir was in the thick of controversy again in 2010 Cup clash. Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh and in the Champions Trophy final tomorrow, here Gambhir, Afridi sledgefest when he clashed with wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal Shoaib Akhtar exchanged abuse in Punjabi, are five of their most memorable spats: Prasad’s perfect send-off Pakistan’s tour of India in 2007 is remembered during an Asia Cup game at Dambulla. Tempers a language they both speak, after the Indian In their 1996 World Cup quarter-final in Bangalore, for Indian opener Gautam Gambhir and Paki- boiled over after Akmal’s confident appeal for caught hit the ‘Rawalpindi Express’ for a massive six. When Miandad mimicked More Pakistan opener Aamer Sohail aggressively went stan’s Shahid Afridi nearly coming to blows dur- behind was denied by the umpire. During the drinks Harbhajan had the last laugh when he hit the Indian wicketkeeper Kiran More angered Pakistan’s after India’s opening bowlers.