October 04 Friday 2002
Simon Jones rues Shoaib Akhtar's absence

LONDON: England and Glamorgan pace bowler Simon Jones says he is disappointed that the world's fastest bowler Shoaib Akhtar will not be playing in Wales this weekend.

Shoaib was due to play for the Rest of the World side in a one-off game of Power Cricket at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium on Friday (today) and tomorrow. Jones was hoping to compare notes with the Pakistan star and pick up a few tips before heading out with England for the Ashes tour in Australia.

But the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) have told Shoaib to stay away.

Jones said: "He's obviously one of the quickest bowlers in the world. He bowled very quickly in the ICC Champions Trophy and it would have been nice to meet him, have a chat and get some ideas off him."

Despite Shoaib's absence, there will certainly be no shortage of world-class cricketers on show under the Millennium Stadium roof. The England side, captained by England skipper Nasser Hussain, features five members of the current England Ashes squad and Glamorgan favourites Robert Croft and Matthew Maynard. Their opponents include some of the finest current One-day Internationals, as well as West Indies legend Courtney Walsh.

"I can't wait to play at the stadium," said Walsh. "I have fond memories of playing Test and county cricket in England, but not the time spent in pavilions waiting for the rain to stop."

Power Cricket is a shortened version of the one-day game played on an artificial pitch. The match is divided into four 15-over innings where the batting team is rewarded with extra runs for reaching designated scoring areas. Big hits will therefore be the order of the day, an ideal proposition for the likes of Alistair Brown and Shahid Afridi.

England squad: Nasser Hussain (capt), Alistair Brown, Dominic Cork, John Crawley, Robert Croft, Mark Ealham, Matthew Fleming, James Foster, David Fulton, Adam Hollioake, Ronnie Irani, Simon Jones, Rob Key, Matthew Maynard, Martin Saggers, Robin Smith.

Rest of the World: Stephen Fleming (capt), Shahid Afridi, Mushtaq Ahmed, Wasim Akram, Saeed Anwar, Nathan Astle, Shane Bond, Andy Flower, Mahela Jayawardene, Amjad Khan (Denmark), Azhar Mahmood, Muttiah Muralitharan, Aravinda de Silva, Kumar Sangakkara, Yuvraj Singh, Javagal Srinath, Courtney Walsh.