Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
I have a bad feeling :( no younis, afridi which means raza will be back :o
Plus PCB don't have the spine to drop Sami, Woolmer indicated that much in his interview.
And finally the 2 umpires are notorious for their ahem history with Pakistan.
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
And the pitch duh, they will try to make it even flatter than the Faisalabad one.
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
**Vaughan to open against Pakistan **
England captain Michael Vaughan has confirmed he will open the batting in the third Test against Pakistan, with Paul Collingwood recalled.
Vaughan is promoted in the order after Andrew Strauss flew home to attend the birth of his first child.
“It is natural thing for me to go up to open, with Belly at three,” he said.
“I’ve done it before and I’ve often done quite well at the top of the order. Neither Ian Bell nor Collingwood has ever done it.”
Vaughan has opened the batting in 31 of his 63 Tests, and has a better batting average when opening (49.70) than overall (43.08). Collingwood will be looking to make the most of a second chance on this trip, having been dropped following a disappointing first Test.
The Lahore pitch is currently damp and conditions overcast but England have not yet decided whether to swap a spin bowler for a seamer.
“We have quite a few options, but it will be quite a tricky decision to see which we feel is the best attack to get 20 wickets,” said Vaughan.
"Jimmy Anderson is looking good in the nets, and young Liam Plunkett has really impressed with his work ethic.
“He looks as if he has a fair amount of ability as well.”
Anderson’s experience in 12 Tests is likely to gain him the edge on the uncapped Plunkett and he says he is ready to step up for England if given the nod.
“It’s important to have a generally good attitude around the camp. I’ll keep my fingers crossed that if they do go with four seamers it’s me,” he said.
“All I can do is perform as well as I can in the nets and hope that is enough.”
Meanwhile, Vaughan said his knee injury could rule him out of the five-match one-day series that follows the Tests.
He flies home on Saturday for the birth of his second child and will consult his surgeon, Dr Derek Bickerstaff, on the problem, which saw him miss the first Test.
“Nothing has been decided. I hope it won’t require an operation,” he added.
“I’ll see the specialist next Monday or Tuesday when I’m at home, and he’ll come up with what he thinks is the best thing.”
SOURCE: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/england/4475662.stm
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
Watched Inzi's interview on GEO and he said that either Asim or Raza will replace Younis and Asif will replace Sami.
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
Finally, I hope he performs good and proves to be a permanent replacement 
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
there might be a change or two in the batting line-up but this will be the 99.9% team that will play tomorrow InshAllah
1)Salman
2)Malik
3)Asim
4)Yousuf
5)Inzi
6)Raza
7)Akmal
8)Rana
9)Akhtar
10)Asif
11)Kaneria
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
Great news!!! They’ve finally decided to replace Sami!!! If it’s a choice between Asim/Raza, then it means Yasir Hameed is definitely coming in to replace Shahid Afridi.
Bringing in Asif might be a good move but a case can be made for Umer Gul since he’s tried and tested on the Lahore pitch.
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
I thought it would be appropriate to post Andrew Miller's diary on Lahore.
November 26
A city unlike any other
Lahore, Lahore! There's nowhere on earth quite like Lahore. It is, as my colleague Rahul Bhattacharya memorably wrote, a city "so sentimentalised that it sometimes seemed to curl up and rest in the air like an eternal sigh". From the poetry of Kipling to the self-contained assurance of the Lahori elite, there is something about the city that is forever painted in sepia.
A late-night drive through the cultural heart of the Punjab provided a teasing glimpse of a world apart; as we wound down the Mall, past the brooding silence of the GPO and the Wonder House, with ZamZamah - Kim's Gun - imprisoned on its traffic island like the mightiest of caged beasts.
On we continued, a sharp right taking us past the Badshahi mosque, its minarets glowing dimly against the night sky, and its sheer vastness contrasting exquisitely with the low winding labyrinths of the old city above which it towered. The pots and stoves and roof-terrace pulleys of Kookoo's Den, the most famous restaurant in the land, were a foretaste of the sensory riot that awaited in Heera Mandi, Lahore's red-light district and beating heart.
Here was a district where rickshaws and fruit stalls hugged the cobbles and where improbably grand buildings - such as the pink-bricked Missionary School and the great mosaic-walled Wazir Khan mosque - burst out of the backdrop like figures in a pop-up book. Lights and noise and impossibly narrow lanes, where money-changers crouched over pocket-sized display cabinets, and shadowy figures whispered from unseen doorways.
Onwards we progressed, stopping off at Food Street - an avenue of outdoor tables and delicious on-the-spot cookery, bookended by two huge street-signs where men and their motorbikes would come and go in a puff of exhaust fumes, usually with a female acquaintance draped over the back seat, like a permanent procession of elopers. Beyond lay Abbott Road and the derelict cinemas of the Lollywood film industry, where a succession of fading billboards depicted, in once-glorious Technicolor, the stars of a bygone era.
And talking of bygone eras, as we returned towards the Mall to complete our loop of Lahore, there was time for a quick tour of Mayo Gardens, the most exalted of the city's colonial residences. Endless acres of prime British-era real estate, vast verandahed bungalows with gardens so sprawling that neighbours would have needed to don their pith helmets in order to make the trip from one house to the next.
And then, finally, back to the raison d'etre of this tour - to Gulberg and the sprawling arenas of the Gadaffi Stadium complex, where by day the England team are preparing for the third Test but where by night, Lahore's creative community have united for an international arts festival. The amphitheatre of the Alhamra Arts complex has been bedecked in purple lighting and packed with cogniscenti, who sit in appreciative awe of the acts on display.
A French vocal group strut their stuff on a crown-shaped stage, before making way for an "ethno-rock" collaboration from the Czech Republic, who share top billing with one of Pakistan's leading Sufi soul singers, Zahid Sayed. On the concourse outside, Norwegian puppeteers and German craftsmen display their wares to the curious throng. And once again, Lahore is suffused with a knowing sense of self-worth and importance, quite unlike any other city in the land.
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
Well every place has it unique Importance and every city holds a significance in its own.
What matters most is Pakistan has their nose in front; 1-0 in a 3 test match rubber, its an unknown territory to them usually its other way around and their back is up against the wall and some unique performance is required to pull of a comeback; (Pakistan last tour or India)
The team is pretty much known and I dont think so there will be much of a surprise on the either side, however the main factor is Weather.
According to the weather forecast there will be chance of rain and cloudy sky hobbering upon the park, which makes life difficult for the Pakistani batsman.
Lahore has more swing and seam then the other ground even if they create the placid pitch ever! the conditions favour the pitch regardless of how bad the pitch, the dew factor will also come into play in the late afternoon and I am sure Flintoff and Hoggard will be a big factor in cloudy situations.
I hope they can go play as the team that they have shown us in the near past.
Goodluck to the Pakistan team 
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
5th ODI IN/SA and now Pak/Eng 3rd Test, 2 Days in a row to wake in the middle of the night, and to have to pay for it and to continue doing it for the next 4 days to come, its nothing but sheer stupidity, Thats what my wife says, I say its Cricket!!!All the best Pakistan:k:
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
Well I am not in the Hubby-wifey club, goodie good so far :p
As far as cricket goes, Its all worth it :biggthumb
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
they are not stupid, but lack something, inzi and bob, they could have brought yasir in, asim kamal has not done well at no.3 and 2 bring him and raza in in a crunch match is somewhat of a gamble, yasir recently score 174 in domestic match. yea doesent mean much but hes been playing! n e ways best of luck to raza and kamal. the right thing to do would be to yousuf put his hand up and sayim going in at 3, inzi at 4 and kamal and raza at 5 and 6, yousuf needs to b brave!
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
I dont think so that (Asim @ No:3 and Hasan @ No:6) will cause many problems, Yes agreed that Asim hasnt played well at that spot but, the question is how long A run was he given, He was not vested the trust that is given to the openers in this series. and Inzi said " we dont want a new boy who will cough up under pressure and england will come out firing all guns"
Yaar Jazba Pk, I have given up that Pakistan batsman can fill up any spot they are asked too, they are uumumm…yeah celebrity of Lollywood sports 
you cant ask MoYO to change now when all the pieces are fitting right in.
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
Why is DISHNETWORK giving me a heart attack??????
Teaser where r u?
I was just checking the program guide and there is no schedule coverage of the match. Stupid people have scheduled coverage of the match from tomorrow 11/29 at 10:45 Central Time. I just talked to the customer service rep. who was not willing to believe me that the match will be starting in couple of hours. According to him the match will start on 11/29 and DISh PPV wil also be showing it on the 11/29 . I explained him that merey chanda Pakistan is 11 hours ahead of USA central time. Than he was like OK than I guess we are not providing the live coverage of Day 1 and will be showing it from tomorrow 11/29 10:45 CST.
I have been watching cricket on Dish for the past 3 years and never heard this crap.
Lets hope it is just a program scheduling error:( and soon they relaize their f*ck up.
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
Seems like start is delayed by half an hour. Match will start at 10am.
Toss should be happening pretty soon.
Ya Allah, khayal rakhnaaa …
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
england won the toss
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
England batting first
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
Eng batting first!!!!!
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
Thats too bad, oh well I hope we can pick up a few quick wickets
Re: Pakistan V England 3rd Test Match, Lahore
oh bummer , whatever happened to Inzi’s practising toss ? 