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Meanwhile, Karachiites have been exempted from ban on pillion riding on 11th and 12th Rabiul Awwal.

Prominent Ulemas held meeting with Governor Sindh Dr. Ishrat-ul-Ebad Khan earlier on Thursday to review law, order and security arrangements ahead of 12th Rabiul Awwal. The meeting was also graced by the presence of Sindh Home Minister Manzoor Wasan.

Dr. Ebad said all the Muslims are one like a closed fist and will remain so always.

Manzoor Wasan said security plan has been chalked out to ensure foolproof security to people during celebrations on 12th Rabiul Awwal.

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Mohammad Ijaz said the family was delighted that the 19-year-old had been freed after serving half a six-month sentence for spot-fixing in one of the biggest scandals to rock Pakistan cricket.

“We are all very happy, my parents especially are very happy,” Ijaz told AFP by telephone.

“He will be back home in the next two to three weeks. I talked to him yesterday. He was very happy and asked me to convey his best wishes to his parents and family members.”

“He will announce his future plans once he returns home. I don’t know when he will be able to play cricket again for Pakistan because of the five-year ban,” Ijaz added.

Amir was one of three Pakistan players jailed by a judge in London in November over their roles in a plan to bowl deliberate no-balls during a Test against England at Lord’s in August 2010.

He is also serving a five-year ban imposed by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Amir’s father suffers chronic stomach problems and is “desperate” to see his son back in the humble family village of Changa Bangial, Ijaz said.

The family house was closed on Thursday. Neighbours told reporters that they had gone to the eastern city of Lahore, but other relatives living in the community said they did not want to talk to media.

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No team has ever registered a clean sweep in the 58 years of Pakistan-England cricket and Misbah’s team has a good chance of creating history after their compreshenive ten wicket win in the first Test and by 72 runs in the second.

England, who will also be in danger of losing their world’s top rankings if they lose here, will have to find a quick solution to counter Pakistani spinners Saeed Ajmal (17 wickets) and left-armer Abdul Rehman who has 12 in two matches.

Misbah said Pakistan will look for an encore in the third Test.

“It will be a big achievement for the team (winning 3-0),” said Misbah of the clean sweep which Pakistan last achieved against Bangladesh at home in 2003, while their last against a top Test nation was beating West Indies 3-0 in 1997.

“The way the team is performing with consistency, if we play well like we did in the first two games good results will come but we will not take that extra pressure (of clean sweep),” said 37-year-old Misbah.

Since taking over as captain in the aftermath of spot-fixing scandal during which Pakistan lost 3-1 to England in 2010, Misbah has led Pakistan to eight wins with one defeat and five draws.

Misbah said England were still a good team and winning the last Test will not be easy.

“No doubt, England is a good team, they are number one in the world and it will not be easy because they will be more prepared, but we will try our best,” said Misbah, who praised Ajmal and Rehman.

Ajmal took a career best 7-55 in the first Test here and Rehman registered his best 6-25 in the second in Abu Dhabi, feats which Misbah said were extraordinary.

“I think both have been bowling well for quite some time now and they create pressure on the batsmen and never give any opportuinty to let them out of that and on top of that England batsmen were low on confidence,” said Misbah.

Misbah hinted about keeping the same combination, although Pakistan have the option of using the bench player in paceman Wahab Riaz in place of Junaid Khan.

“I am a firm believer in the balance of the team because the first priority is to win and I think we will go with whatever is the best combination for the team,” said Misbah, predicting the Dubai stadium pitch will help batsmen more than in the first Test.

England captain Andrew Strauss admitted the key would be countering Pakistan’s spinners.

“That’s one of the crucial things about playing spin, you have to adapt your game according to the surfaces you play on. I am very optimistic, you’ll see people a bit clearer in what their gameplan is and how they are looking to play, which is a good starting point,” said Strauss.

“These conditions are slightly different, so it’s more about adapting your game to the conditions than going right back to square one and saying ‘right, I need to change everything’. That’s a dangerous route to go down.

“It’s a setback (2-0 down) in the sense that we didn’t want it to happen, and we didn’t want to lose a series. But that’s gone, finished – and in some ways, maybe it’s a good lesson for us that if you’re five percent off your game against the majority of sides you’re going to come unstuck.”

“We desperately want to avoid losing the series 3-0; we desperately want to come back and show we’re better than we have shown so far in the series. I think there’s a feeling among the whole squad that we can and should come back and do that.”

Strauss added that middle-order batsman Ian Bell was fit after suffering stomach problem which forced him to miss practice on Wednesday.

The only question remaining is whether England will play with two spinners or drop one from Graeme Swann or Monty Panesar.

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Replacing its previous travel warning dated April 8, 2011, the State Department Thursday asked its citizens to avoid protests and large gatherings which are happening in Pakistan after the November 26 cross-border fire.

“There have been widespread demonstrations and large political rallies condemning drone strikes and Pakistan’s ongoing energy crisis.

“These protests are likely to continue. US citizens in Pakistan are strongly urged to avoid protests and large gatherings,” it said.

The State Department said presence of al-Qaida, Taliban elements, and indigenous militant sectarian groups poses a potential danger to US citizens throughout Pakistan.

Terrorists regularly attack civilians, government, and foreign targets, it said.

“Threat reporting indicates terrorist groups continue to seek opportunities to attack locations where US citizens and Westerners are known to congregate or visit, such as shopping areas, hotels, clubs and restaurants, places of worship, schools, and outdoor recreation events,” it said.

“Terrorists have disguised themselves as Pakistani security personnel to gain access to targeted areas. Some media reports have falsely identified US diplomats – and to a lesser extent US and other Western journalists and non-governmental organization workers – as being intelligence operatives or private security personnel,” the travel alert said.

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According to sources, security forces pounded militants’ hideouts in Upper Orakzai that destroyed 2 compounds and killed six militants.

Sources of security forces told that one soldier was martyred and four others sustained injuries in Tehsil Bara of Khyber Agency when militants attacked a security check post in Dolat Khel.

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Catch the latest eye catching Winter Kurta Collection 2012 By Aijaaz Aslam that promises to adorn men with the beautiful winter kurtas.

Aijaaz Aslam Winter Kurta Collection 2012 is a prismatic kurta line consisting of soul capturing designs and patterns. Modeled by Aijaaz Aslam, Faisal Qureshi and Ayyan, the Kurta Collection is tremendous with detailed collar, shoulder and back embroidery. Men, looking for a chic kurta, must grab a piece out of the wide range of Winter Kurta Collection 2012 By Aijaaz Aslam.

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In the past 15 years or so, Pakistan has seen an explosion in musical talent. These days it’s hard to swing a dead cat in a room without hitting someone who plays guitar. So I figured I’d put my own two cents out there and see where the chips fall.

It’s a tough assignment, for art is as subjective as anything can be. Just for this reason, using the immense resources here at Dawn.com, I’ve devised a secret but scientifically calibrated formula to weigh each guitarist according to a few criteria of technique, musicality, body of work and the oh-so-essential intangibles.

So without further ado … here goes nothing!

7: Omran Shafique

Lovingly known as ‘Momo’ by his peers, Omran made his bones with his Texas-based band Mauj and their funky tune Peheliyan. With his star rising, he found himself as a permanent fixture for the Coke Studio house band as well as a stint with Uth Records. He’s one of a long line of new comers cementing his name as a solid guitar player with a penchant for funky, bluesy licks. From what I’ve heard he’s a great pocket player, but at the same time possesses the good sense of when to restrain himself. In addition there’s a lot of personality in his playing, which is refreshing given the ocean of distorted guitars that make up our music scene. Given what he’s done so far, I’m looking forward to what he has in store for us in the coming months and years.

6: Shallum Xavier

In many ways Shallum is somewhat of a veteran of the Pakistani music industry. He’s climbed his way up working as a hired gun for the likes of Hadiqa Kiani, until he hit the big time with his band Fuzon. As a guitar player, he’s easily one of the most technically complete players in Pakistan. He’s capable of all the guitar pyrotechnics that one can imagine and his work in Fuzon is still his best. Ankhian, probably Fuzon’s greatest hit was a catchy track with a great riff and a quick-fire solo that’s perfect for the song. That said I do find his playing to be a touch too mechanical. It’s almost clinical to the extent that you could replace it with a computer and you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.

5: Faraz Anwar

One of the true shredders of the country, Faraz is the quintessential guitarist’s guitarist. It’s clear that he’s spent a lot of time listening to the likes of shred kings Joe Satriani and Allan Holdsworth. His stints in Mizraab and Dusk were great efforts in getting a true heavy metal scene going and garnered a decent cult following. Mizraab’s single Insaan is a really well-written hard rock song. But over the years I’ve lost the appetite for the kind of guitar playing that once made me tear up when I was simply trying to figure out Barre chords. Sure virtuosity is great to a certain extent, but what I look for is heart. And sometimes a few sweetly played notes are more expressive (think B.B. King) than blazing through the guitar neck at superhuman speed. But there’s no denying his ability, which is why he’s on this list.

4: Amir Zaki

I can already hear the Zaki-philes screaming bloody murder. For the past 20 years, Zaki has been regarded as the best guitar player the country has produced. He is without doubt one of the most talented musicians around. His breadth of knowledge about music is the stuff of legend. His skill ranges all genres from rock and blues, to jazz and classical and everything in between. He’s the kind of musician you’d want to hang out with and watch him as he impresses your socks off. But sadly it seems that his reputation has far exceeded his body of work. There’s been little music after his debut album Signature was released in 1995, and whatever I’ve heard since has been disappointing by his lofty standards. Hence, it’s a bit of a stretch to anoint him king when there’s not much to show for it. Most of what I have heard of his music was at a concert I went to a few years ago. He’s by far a tremendous guitar player on stage, which shows that he’s more of a seat-of-the-pants guitar player than a songwriter, and to be fair, there’s nothing wrong with that.

3: Asad Ahmed

The long-haired axeman from Awaz and Karavan, and more recently the resident guitar player for Coke Studio is probably to most fun guitar player on this list. A true and blue rocker by heart, Asad doesn’t fret (!) too much about technique or playing a gazillion notes per second. His mainstay has always been pedal-to-the-metal, riffy and bluesy rock ’n’ roll. To be honest, Awaz were a tad too poppy and Karavan just never hit the mark for me. But I’ve never doubted Asad’s integrity. He’s always done what he enjoys when it comes to music. Give him a nice groove and he’ll hammer out some bluesy and crunchy guitar parts. With his current stint at Coke Studio he’s been able to show his versatility and maturity as a musician, proving that he’s not just another guy with a Les Paul and a few pentatonic licks in his quiver.

2: Mekaal Hasan

Here’s a guy who really doesn’t dilly dally around. Having spent some time at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, there’s no questioning his musical knowledge. In essence Mekaal is a musician’s musician. With his critically acclaimed Mekaal Hasan Band, he managed to take a genre of fusion and made it palatable to generations of music lovers all over Pakistan. There’s an academic air to his playing — it’s almost like watching a mathematician play guitar. Everything he does is deliberate and seems completely calculated, even when it’s not. Despite his facility with the guitar, you’ll never see him over play. His solos and compositions all reflect a philosophy that regards the song more highly than its individual parts.

1: Salman Ahmed

Salman, along with Ali Azmat and Brian O’Connell, basically changed the face of music in Pakistan. Junoon’s brand of Sufi Rock struck a chord in people all over the country making the band the biggest rock act in Asia. And the reason is simple. Junoon had the ability to craft beautiful and catchy songs without compromising their musical integrity. I’ve recently rekindled my inner Junooni and listening to them with a more discerning ear, I’m amazed at how great all their compositions are. As a guitar player Salman has been the only one in my book who’s been able to walk the fine line between technique and musicality. Case in point is a song like Bheegi Yaadein. Starting with the simple but gorgeous acoustic riff, the solo to the song is one of the most well written solos I’ve heard. It’s beautifully phrased and lyrical to the point of almost being a song within itself.

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