Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur says it's time to move on from captain Sarfraz Ahmed's four-match ban for a racial taunt and concentrate on finalizing the team for the Cricket World Cup.
Sarfraz was reaffirmed on Tuesday as captain to the end of the World Cup in July, despite the Pakistan Cricket Board saying its policy was to name the captain on a series-to-series basis.
Pakistan media have questioned the Sarfraz decision, including whether it was a political riposte at the ICC for banning Sarfraz. Private broadcaster Geo News wondered whether the PCB did a U-turn or succumbed to pressure from unnamed quarters.
Pakistan's batsman Babar Azam watches his shot during the third T20 cricket match between South Africa and Pakistan at the Centurion Park in Pretoria, South Africa, Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. (AP PhotoThemba Hadebe)
On the national team's return on Friday from the tour of South Africa, Arthur said PCB chairman Ehsan Mani talked with him and chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq before reappointing Sarfraz as captain.
"We've made that decision because we are very comfortable with Sarfraz leading this team forward," Arthur said in Lahore. "There's clarity, there's no more speculation."
Sarfraz was banned for racially taunting South Africa allrounder Andile Phehlukwayo in an ODI last month in Durban. He returned home and missed the last two one-day internationals and the entire three-match Twenty20 series.
"What he did was wrong and it was worked through," Arthur said. "Saffy took it on the chin, he apologized, he moved forward, everything was handled properly."
Arthur believed Sarfraz's main job is wicketkeeping, and he was not worried about his captain's dip in batting form.
"He (Sarfraz) has dropped eight balls in four and a half months, so he is not out of form in his core job," Arthur said. "I'm not, and I want to reiterate, not worried about Sarfraz Ahmed's (batting) form."
Pakistan lost the test, ODI, and T20 series in South Africa.
While Arthur acknowledged Pakistan needed to improve a lot in test matches, he was disappointed to lose the ODIs 3-2 and the T20s 2-1.
"We thought we were as good as South Africa in those conditions," he said.
Arthur criticized the test pitches as none of the games went to the fifth day. But Arthur said Pakistan was not the only team which has struggled in South Africa.
"I don't think there's any coincidence that no Asian team has won a test series in South Africa," he said. "So we know we've got a lot of work to do with our test side."
He picked out Babar Azam for praise, for becoming the batting mainstay in white-ball cricket.
"South Africa is the toughest place to bat ... to see Babar Azam's development across all formats on this tour was simply amazing and I think was something to be proud," he said.
The South African-born Arthur said he had a pool of about 20 players from which the final 15 will be picked for the Cricket World Cup in England and Wales.
"We're probably ahead of lot of other teams ... we have condensed our pool and now have to finalize it after the Australia tour (in March), so we are pretty much on track."
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NEW YORK (AP) — The WNBA will have its first million dollar players after the league and its players’ union reached a deal in principle on a transformational new collective bargaining agreement early Wednesday morning.
Specifics still need to be finalized over the next few weeks as lawyers on both sides work on the new CBA. A term sheet should be done in the next day or two. It will then need to be ratified by the players and then approved by the league’s Board of Governors.
“I just want to say we have aligned on key elements of a new collective bargaining agreement together. We still need to finalize a formal term sheet, but the progress made in these discussions marks a transformative step forward for players and the league,” WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said. “It underscores a shared commitment to the continued growth of the game. So, we’ll share additional details as they become available.”
The landmark deal is expected to greatly increase player salaries, with top stars potentially making a supermax of $1.4 million in the first year, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the discussions.
The salary cap for the 2026 season is expected to be $7 million with average salaries more than $585,000, according to the person. The minimum salary would be around $300,000 as the league enters its 30th season. This would increase salaries fourfold from last season.
“For the first time player salaries are tied to a truly meaningful share of league revenue, driving exponential growth in the salary cap, increasing average compensation beyond half a million dollars and raising the standard across facilities, staffing and support,” union president Nneka Ogwumike said.
The agreement is set to reflect the league's skyrocketing growth and popularity. Attendance, viewership and investment from stakeholders has increased to historic levels over the past few years.
“The deal is going to be transformational,” union vice president Breanna Stewart said. “It's going to build and help create a system where everybody is getting exactly what they deserve and more from on the court and off the court aspects.”
The deal came after the two sides spent the past eight days in intense in-person negotiations that lasted for more than 100 hours. They came to the agreement at about 2:20 a.m. Wednesday after spending more than 10 hours of discussions on Tuesday.
“This is historical for women’s sports. I told Cathy it’s not just for the players that are entering the league or the players that aren’t already here,” Ogwumike added. "We’re just really grateful to be able to come to a deal. We’re proud of ourselves."
WNBA leadership and the union met with reporters together in the lobby of a New York hotel shortly before 3 a.m.
The deal comes 17 months after the players opted out of their previous agreement and five months after the previous deal was initially set to expire, with talks often becoming contentious.
“We opted out because what we were giving to this league and what we were getting back didn't match,” union executive committee member Alysha Clark said. “You could feel the growth everywhere, but it wasn't showing up for the players the way it should. So we stayed with it until it did.”
Revenue sharing has been the biggest hurdle over the course of the negotiations. Other key issues that were slowing down getting a deal done included housing and franchise tags on players.
“I hope young girls and women see this and feel it, to know their voice matters, their value matters, and they don’t have to settle for less than that,” executive committee member Brianna Turner said. "Now, we get back to the game. Back to competing, back to that feeling, and back to being out there with our fans.”
Now, the league will have a sprint over the next two months to get to opening day on May 8. An expansion draft for new teams in Toronto and Portland needs to take place. Also, teams will need to negotiate with the more than 80% of players who are free agents this offseason. Training camps are set to open on April 19 — six days after the college draft.
AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
FILE - Seattle Storm forward Nneka Ogwumike (3) plays against the Las Vegas Aces in Game 2 of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff game Sept. 24, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)
FILE -WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert speaks prior to Game 1 of a WNBA basketball final playoff series between the Las Vegas Aces and the Phoenix Mercury, Oct. 3, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher), File)
