Afridi say his dream of winning World Cup for Pakistan become a reality

Pakistan's limited-overs captain Shahid Afridi has said that his dream of winning the coveted World Cup trophy for his country is on its way to becoming a reality as he led his team to a thumping victory against the West Indies in the quarterfinal on Wednesday.
"It's my dream to do something for my country. It's my dream to help Pakistan win the World Cup and today all of us are extremely happy that we have taken another step towards that direction," The News quoted Afridi, as saying.
He expressed his confidence that his team, which registered a 10-wicket win against the Windies in the knockout stage, would maintain its golden form in the March 30 semi-final match.
"I'm confident that the team will maintain its form in our next match," said the seasoned allrounder.
Afridi took four wickets for 30 runs to take his tally in the tournament to 21, becoming Pakistan's most successful bowler in a World Cup. Former Pakistan captain Imran Khan owned the previous record with 17 wickets in the 1987 tournament.
But the skipper made it clear that personal goals were not important to him.
"It's all about the team and Pakistan," he said. "We are here to give the best for our country and each and every player in our team is trying to do that."
Pakistan may encounter archrivals India in the semi-final stage, if the co-hosts beat Australia in Thursday's quarterfinal in Ahmedabad.
Expectations are high in the cricket-crazy region for a mouth-watering Pakistan-India clash for a slot in the World Cup final match to be held at Mumbai on April 2, but Afridi said that he would not be losing sleep over it.
"It doesn't matter if we play India or Australia in the semifinal," he said.
"The good thing for us is that we are going to Mohali and now our aim is to win a place in the final. I'm confident that the team will maintain its form in our next match," he added.

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I am playing for very special person: Yuvraj

AHMEDABAD: Yuvraj Singh, who has had a dream run in the World Cup, says that he is playing the tournament for a mysterious "someone special" whose name he did not disclose.

"I am playing for a very special person that comes in my mind and whenever things are not going well I think of that person and things work out," man-of-the-match Yuvraj said after India's five-wicket win over Australia in the quarterfinals in which he made an unbeaten half-century and grabbed a couple of wickets.

His dream of guiding India to a win over Australia in the World Cup realised, Yuvraj said he is now focussing on the semifinal against Pakistan, saying the much-anticipated game would be a battle of equals.

Looking ahead to the clash in Mohali on March 30, Yuvraj, who collected his fourth man of the match trophy in the ongoing World Cup, said it would be another dream game.

"The India-Pakistan game is going to be another dream game after India-Australia. It's a great victory for India today. We would be playing our best cricket against Pakistan. They know our game we know theirs both teams are equal. They have had a very good tournament and have beaten West Indies and Australia," Yuvraj told reporters here after India's five-wicket win over the defending champions.

"We don't want to think about the Pakistan game now. It has been a high-pressure game for us (against Australia) and lot of our system has been drained. We would like to relax for a couple of days and then make plans about Pakistan game," he added.

Yuvraj it was very difficult to keep his emotions in check in the high-octane quarterfinal.

"Over the last one year I have been dreaming of staying till the end and taking the team to victory against Australia in the World Cup and the moment has come. This is the moment I have lived for as a cricketer," he said.

He admitted that it was a tough situation with enormous pressure on him and any small mistake on his part could have thrown India out of the World Cup.

"It was very hard to control emotions. It was difficult to control oneself in such a situation as one mistake and you will be out of the World Cup. I tried to just watch the ball, play down the ground and not lift the ball in the air," said the left-handed batsman.

Yuvraj conceded that the dismissal of Gautam Gambhir, who was run out due to a misunderstanding with him, and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni in quick succession had put the team under pressure but Suresh Raina lived up to the challenge in crucial stages.

"When Gambhir got out I thought I will get a good partnership going with MS (Dhoni) but when MS got out I knew I was in trouble. When Raina came in I told him to take his time and let's get 20-30 run partnership. He has shown nerves in a crucial stage and this will boost his confidence also," he said.

He said he had already apologised to Gambhir for the mix-up that resulted in his partner getting run out today.

"I have apologies to Gautam for the miscommunication on the field. We have not played together much. I think it was probably my fault," said Yuvraj.

Though he got his fourth man-of-the-match award in the tournament, Yuvraj sounded modest and said the team effort was crucial.

"I feel good to have contributed to the team but the victory cannot be achieved by one person, it's a team effort," he said.

He said though he cherished the centuries he had scored in his career, even scores like his 52 not out last night were special as they resulted in the team winning a crucial tie.

"Though centuries are very special for a player, when you are able to contribute 20 or 30 runs which help the team win crucial matches they also become special," he said.

Looking back at the past one year which had seen him being axed from both the ODI and Test teams, Yuvraj said he was very happy that things have turned around for him.

"Last year everything I touched turned into mud. This year it has been a good year," he said.

Praising coach Gary Kirsten for the contribution he has been making, Yuvraj said that was the vital difference from 2007 when the team was knocked out in the first round of the World Cup.

"In 2003, the team was very great (when it made the final). I don't want to talk about 2007. In 2011 with Gary coming in, our confidence in each other has grown. Players confide in each other and the way Gary keeps the team like a family that shows in our performance," he pointed out

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India Will Beat Pakistan In Mohali??

With India registering a famous five-wicket win over Australia in the quarter-finals, the stage is now set for the ‘Mother and Father of all battles’ in Mohali on March 30.

India and Pakistan come face-to-face for the fifth time in the history of the mega-event. Although there is still nearly a week left for this mega semi-final clash, the anticipation for this high-voltage encounter started the minute Team India booked their place in the last-four with a tense win in Ahmedabad on Thursday.

Interacting with journalists at the Sardar Patel stadium after his team crashed out of the mega-event, Aussie skipper Ricky Ponting made his prediction for the Mohali encounter. “If you look at the bowling attacks of both teams, they are quite similar. Pakistan and India, of late, have been using a two-pronged pace and two-pronged spin attack. But India’s batting gives them an edge. I think India will beat Pakistan in Mohali,” said Punter.

India and Pakistan have faced each other four times before in ICC Cricket World Cups. The Men in Blue have emerged victorious in all the encounters played in the 1992, 1996, 1999 and 2003 editions.

Cricketing ties had all but normalized between these two nations in this decade with regular bilateral series taking place. But after the Mumbai terror attacks in 2008, the arch-rivals have faced-off on the cricket field only twice. While Pakistan beat India in the ICC Champions Trophy 2009 encounter at Centurion, Team India took revenge for that loss with a thrilling three-wicket win in an Asia Cup match at Dambulla last year.

Hero of Thursday’s victory Yuvraj Singh mentioned that it was important for the team to relax and take some rest for a couple of days before they turn their attention on this mega-encounter. “The Australia match was a high-pressure game. So, we will take some time off before we start making plans for the Mohali match. We have played a lot of cricket against Pakistan except for the last two years, so we are aware about what their strengths and weaknesses are. I am sure the same is the case vice-versa as well,” said the Punjab southpaw.

Pakistan coach Waqar Younis, after his team’s crushing 10-wicket win over West Indies in Mirpur on Wednesday, had expressed his desire to face India in the semis. Now that his wish has been fulfilled, what kind of performance will the Men in Green come up with against their arch-rivals?

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Mirza,Malik at odds over Pakistan-India Tilt

India’s top women’s tennis player Sania Mirza, and her husband, former Pakistan cricket captain Shoaib Malik, will likely not be sharing the same room to watch Tuesday's highly-anticipated semifinal between the two neighbouring countries on television in Miami where she is playing in a tournament.

“I support India and Shoaib will support Pakistan as usual! The war is on,’’ said Sania Mirza.

“Be ready baby it’s on lol hahaha,” added Malik on Twitter. India’s tennis doubles star Mahesh Bhupathi also tweeted his best wishes to the Indian team.

“There we go:) enjoy it boys.. You’re half way there... We are dancing in Miami.”

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India's bowling still a concern : Gavaskar

Former skipper Sunil Gavaskar believes India's bowling is still a concern and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni will have to add some sting to their attack ahead of World Cup semifinal clash against Pakistan.

"Bowling is still a concern. Zaheer Khan is bowling well but there is still some sting missing in the second new-ball bowler. Munaf Patel is trying but he has just not been able to get any success," Gavaskar told ESPN STAR Sports. "With R Ashwin and Harbhajan Singh bowling the way they are and Yuvraj picking up wickets, a bad spell or an off day for a regular bowler is camouflaged. But now with the rounds moving to the semi-finals and the finals, India as a team cannot afford too many bad overs," he said.

Yuvraj Singh, who was the hero of India's five-wicket victory over Australia last night, has so far taken 11 wickets and scored 341 runs in the World Cup and Gavaskar feels the talented left-hander deserves to be called India's genuine all-rounder.

"He deserves the tag of being India's genuine all-rounder. He is picking up wickets. He is back to his favourite backward-point fielding position. He is a rejuvenated cricketer," Gavaskar said.

"When India were in South Africa prior to the World Cup, he looked a little out of sorts. But he has come back strongly and whatever he did in that break before the World Cup, that seems to have worked wonders for him. He is now a serious contributor in this World Cup," he added.

Gavaskar also backed Dhoni's decision to pick left-hander Suresh Raina ahead of Yusuf Pathan for the crucial encounter.

Raina scored 34 of 28 balls and added 74 runs with Yuvraj in the successful chase of 261 on a slow and dry Motera track last night.

"His inclusion for the Australia clash proved right. He is a finisher. We have seen Raina bat at five or six in the one-day games and he has gone on to finish the innings, be it batting first or chasing.

"He gives India the thrust and when the team needed to move on, Raina stepped up to the plate. When he came in to bat, and a wicket had fallen, then Australia would have clawed back into the game.

"Although Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan can bat, the pressure could have been just too much for them. So Raina played his part. Not to forget his fielding too was crucial," added Gavaskar.

Former cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar, meanwhile, said the India-Pakistan semifinal might turn out to be a no-sweat contest for the hosts.

"It might turn out to be a one-sided game. India is a far better team and Pakistan have come through to the semifinals against all odds. The Pakistanis are undisciplined in many areas of their game. And to expect them to win three big matches successively is expecting too much," Manjrekar said.

"I would be surprised if they win against MS Dhoni's men. I expect India to win this match a lot more comfortably than they did against Australia," he added.

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