Salman Ahmed

A bomb attack in Pakistan's largest city Karachi on Sunday killed at least 23 people, including women and children, and wounded 50 others, police said.

Deprived of hosting international matches since a deadly attack on the Sri Lankan team bus three years ago, Pakistan hopes a high-profile new Twenty20 league can lure back overseas players.

Taliban ambushed a Pakistani school bus on Tuesday, killing four boys and the driver in a hail of bullets and rocket fire on the outskirts of the northwestern city of Peshawar, police said.

Pakistan coach Waqar Younis said on Wednesday he hoped to use the upcoming tour of the West Indies to bring on new cricketing talent for the years ahead.

Pakistan selectors Tuesday included spot-fixing suspect Kamran Akmal in a preliminary 30-man squad for the World Cup but left out former captain Shoaib Malik and leg-spinner Danish Kaneria.

For millions of dirt-poor Pakistani boys, a professional cricket career is an escape route into a world of glamour, celebrity and untold riches.