AFRIDI TOPS PLAYER OF THE TOURNAMENT TABLE, YUVRAJ SINGH IN HOT PURSUIT

Shahid Afridi leads the race for the Player of the Tournament award but tomorrow's final of the Twenty20 World Cup gives Yuvraj Singh, lone Indian in hot pursuit, yet another chance to pip the Pakistani to the honour.

Afridi has so far polled seven votes to top the table, but there are still four players -- including three of his teammates Misbah-ul-Haq, Younis Khan and Shoaib Malik -- who can catch up with him.

Yuvraj, along with Stuart Clark, Sanath Jayasuriya and Morne Morkel, has garnered six votes.

Afridi is the joint leading wicket-taker -- alongside Australia's Stuart Clark -- with 12 victims, and has also scored rapidly whenever he has reached the batting crease, making 91 runs from just 45 balls faced.

In contrast, Yuvraj's 134 runs came from just 57 balls, giving him the best batting strike-rate of any player with 75 runs or more 235.08 runs per hundred balls.

His total includes 12 sixes, seven during his 16-ball innings of 58 against England that included six maximums in one over from Stuart Broad, and another five in his 70 from just 30 deliveries against Australia in the semi-final.

Malik (187) and Misbah (175) are among the leading run-scorers in the tournament and only Matthew Hayden of Australia, with 265 runs, has more than Malik's total.

NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF CRICKET: SHOAIB MALIK WANTS TO BECOME AN ENGLISH GENTLEMAN

In a bid to change the image of Pakistani cricketers and become "media savvy" himself, captain Shoaib Malik has started taking English classes from a specially appointed tutor.

"Shoaib is very serious about his image and that of the country. He realises the importance of a modern day cricket captain being media savvy and having the confidence and proficiency in an international language," a source close to the 25-year-old Malik said.

Malik's endeavour has found support from the Cricket Board, which has asked other players to follow suit. The PCB, in fact, is contemplating starting classes in English for young players attending the National Cricket Academy and training camps.

Poor command over English has been a cause of embarrassment for the Pakistani players and has often put them into unwanted controversies generated by an international media unable to interpret them properly after a press conference or prize distribution ceremony.

During the World Cup in the West Indies, the Pakistani team created a stir when its media manager Pervez Mir said that captain Inzamam-ul-Haq and other players would not address press conferences in English.

Mir said he would act as a translator for the benefit of international media.

The International Cricket Council had to step in and remind the team management of the necessity to speak in English at prize distribution ceremonies for an international television audience.

NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF CRICKET: INDIA AND PAK TO CLASH TODAY AT GLASGOW

INDIA AND PAK CLASH AT GLASGOW AFTER THEIR DISASTROUS DEFEATS IN WORLD CUP
India and Pakistan, the traditional rivals who have suffered similar failures and revivals in the recent past, face off once again in an off-shore cricket one-dayer in Glasgow on July 3. The one-off tie is to raise funds for Prince Charles' charity but there would no lack of edge that goes with any Indo-Pak clash. If anything, the teams go into the match with a lot riding on the outcome than ever before. Having suffered ignominious first round exits at the quadrennial event, both India and Pakistan are experiencing a revival of sorts.
Pakistan, led by 25-year-old Shoaib Malik who succeeded Inzamam-ul-Haq, crushed Sri Lanka 2-0 in Abu Dhabi in May. India had a successful tour of Bangladesh, winning both the ODIs and Tests comfortably. And they have the momentum going into the match after a 2-1 series win over South Africa in Ireland.
Both the squads are hunting for a coach, following the tragic death of Bob Woolmer who guided Pakistan during the World Cup and Greg Chappell's decision not to renew his contract with India.

A TALE OF TWO BATSMEN: SACHIN AND YUVRAJ
India's 2-1 triumph over South Africa in the off-shore series has been a tale of two batsmen. If Sachin Tendulkar hogged the headlines at the start with his two 90-plus knocks, Yuvraj Singh put the smiles back on the Indian team by sealing victory in the last two matches.
While the return of Tendulkar's old brilliance, although in flashes, would have warmed the cackles of the Indian fans, to see Yuvraj play the crucial role of finisher to perfection would be a better reason to rejoice.
And, as if symbolising the passing of the baton, the master batsman decided to share the man of the series award with the Punjab left-hander. "It is only because of Yuvraj that we are holding this trophy," Tendulkar said.
Captain Rahul Dravid, ever the eloquent, was not at a loss for words to praise Yuvraj either. "He's got the power, he's got the skill and he's matching that power and skill with temperament, mental strength and brains. That's a deadly combination," Dravid said after the six-wicket win in the third and final one-dayer on Sunday.
"He has been a fantastic finisher for us. He is up there among the best one-day players in the world without a doubt. It's not an easy job to do under pressure and he does it really well."