Tag: PSL

KARACHI: Quetta Gladiators’ captain Sarfaraz Ahmed is aiming to benefit from his exceptional form with the bat as the wicketkeeper batter announced to bat up the order for his side in the upcoming eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL).

Sarfaraz, in a media interaction on Thursday, shared that he wants to lead the Gladiators from the front and set an example by taking responsibility himself and thus announced that the right-handed batter will promote his batting order in the upcoming season.

“I will be batting at number three or four this season for Gladiators and will try to give my best for the team,” shared Sarfaraz.

The former Pakistan captain also expressed his hope for a better performance by his side, who has failed to make it to the Playoffs for three consecutive seasons after winning the title in 2019.

“We are hopeful of a better overall effort by the team. We are lucky to have many talented players in our squad this season. We have a good combination of local and foreign players,” Sarfaraz added.

It is pertinent to mention that the much-anticipated PSL 8 will commence with a glittering opening ceremony in Multan on February 13. The home side Multan Sultans will take on defending champions Lahore Qalandars in the curtain raiser.

READ: Pakistan team departs for Al Fujairah Open Taekwondo championship

LONDON: England all-rounder Moeen Ali has opted to withdraw from the upcoming eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) to focus on this year’s ICC World Cup, English news outlet The Mirror reported.

Despite several English players prioritizing the lucrative PSL over their team’s scheduled tour of Bangladesh, the white-ball vice-captain, however, has opted to put his national duty before his club.

Moeen had the busiest of schedules over the winter playing 36 games of cricket across three formats. Thus, with the upcoming World Cup being the priority, the all-rounder believes their upcoming tour of Bangladesh is crucial for their side’s title defence in India.

The report further suggested that the all-rounder also seeks to enjoy a couple of weeks at home before his national duty in Bangladesh.

It is pertinent to mention England will tour Bangladesh for three T20Is and as many ODIs from March 1-14, while the PSL will take place from February 13 to March 19.

READ: Babar Azam shows off his ICC accolades

LONDON: More England cricketers are likely to follow Alex Hales’ footsteps of prioritizing franchise league cricket over their side’s scheduled tour of Bangladesh due to lucrative contracts, English newspaper The Telegraph reported.

According to the report, three more English players – Lahore Qalandars’ Sam Billings and Liam Dawson and Karachi Kings’ James Vince – are likely to offer their full participation in the ongoing eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) instead of preferring national duty.

England will tour Bangladesh for three T20Is and as many ODIs from March 1-14, while the PSL will take place from February 13 to March 19.

“Alex Hales will not be included in the squad for Bangladesh as he is set to remain at the Pakistan Super League where he has a lucrative deal. It is understood Sam Billings, Liam Dawson and James Vince will do the same,” the report stated.

“England are happy for their non-contracted players to pursue franchise opportunities with the likes of Billings, Dawson and Vince having spent plenty of time around the England setup since 2015, without being regulars in the XI.

“Players opting not to play for England has raised further questions over England’s contracting structures and, with franchises increasingly powerful, whether greater weight should be given to tour and match fees (currently around £5,000 and £2,500 for ODIs and T20Is respectively) rather than retainers.”

The report added that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) selection committee will name the squad for the tour of Bangladesh, this week.

It is pertinent to mention that the much-anticipated PSL 8 will commence with a glittering opening ceremony in Multan. The home side Multan Sultans will take on defending champions Lahore Qalandars in the curtain raiser.

READ: National Women’s Amateur Golf Championship to kick off on February 3 

England’s dynamic opener Alex Hales has opted to partake in the Pakistan Super League season 8 instead of accompanying the England team for their upcoming tour to Bangladesh in March, reported English Media on Tuesday.  

According to the Telegraph, Hales will “honour a lucrative £145,000 contract” with Islamabad United for the upcoming edition of Pakistan’s marquee league.

England will play three T20Is and as many ODIs in Bangladesh between March 1 to 14. The tour is set to clash with the PSL which will run from February 13 to March 19.

“To leave a portion of the PSL and represent England in Bangladesh, Hales would lose a significant sum of money, with England match fees for players without national contracts — in the region of £5,000 and £2,500 for ODIs and T20Is — worth considerably less than franchise payments,” the report said.

The explosive opener made his comeback to the national side in September last year after a three-year hiatus and played a pivotal role in England’s T20 World Cup victory.

Hales remains firmly in the national team’s plans going forward. England are highly understanding of the situation and have not put pressure on Hales. Indeed, the national team have become increasingly aware that the franchise circuit now pays more, with a series of cricketers who would have been picked for the Lions — the national second-string — this winter not selected so that they could play in franchise leagues instead,” the report added.

Earlier, Hales also confirmed his availability for the PSL8 in a statement released by the United on its Twitter.

“The first time I came to play PSL in Pakistan was with Islamabad United. This is my fifth season with the franchise,” said Hales as quoted by the United. “Everyone talks about how we operate like a family and how everyone looks after each other. Last season, the franchise stood by me in a tough situation and respected my decision hence I had no qualms about returning for the playoff games.”

“This year as well, I have made myself available because I love this team and the free brand of cricket we play at Islamabad United,” he added.

#HaleStorm @AlexHales1 is excited about playing in Rawalpindi.

Read More: https://t.co/BZdkdVm5wU#UnitedWeWin #ProbablyNothing #HBLPSL8 pic.twitter.com/U9wFqqtlTt

— Islamabad United (@IsbUnited) January 30, 2023

It is important to note here that the PSL 8 will kick off in Multan on February 13 with the defending champions Lahore Qalandars locking horns with hosts Multan Sultans in the opener.

READ: Camello decider help Rayo Vallecano edge past Villareal in LaLiga

KARACHI: Star all-rounder Shahid Afridi will represent Babar Azam-led Peshawar Zalmi in an exhibition match against Quetta Gladiators at Quetta’s Bugti Stadium on February 5. 

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) in collaboration with the Balochistan government, opted to host an exhibition match between the two Pakistan Super League (PSL) teams in a build-up to the upcoming eighth edition.

According to the details, Zalmi’s newly-appointed captain Babar Azam will be joined by star all-rounder Afridi, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Haris, Danish Aziz and Saim Ayub.

The King of the North returns to #YellowStorm⚡@SAfridiOfficial will represent Peshawar Zalmi once again in an exhibition match 💛

Stay Tuned‼#Zalmi #ZKingdom #ZalmiDeluxe pic.twitter.com/JgijS0LNih

— Peshawar Zalmi (@PeshawarZalmi) January 27, 2023

 

Whereas, the Gladiators’ side will feature skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed, Umar Akmal, Iftikhar Ahmed, Naseem Shah and Mohammad Hasnain.

Notably, the chairman of the PCB management committee Najam Sethi had announced to host the PSL 8 matches in Quetta’s Bugti Stadium, subject to clearance from law enforcement agencies.

However, Sethi then announced that Quetta’s Bugti Stadium could not get time to be fully prepared to host PSL matches but the PCB will arrange a couple of exhibition matches in the city.

Consequently, the Gladiators will now be in action in front of their home crowd for the first time on February 5, which is observed as Kashmir Day in the country.

It is pertinent to mention that the upcoming eighth edition of PSL will embark on February 13 with defending champions Lahore Qalandars taking on former champions Multan Sultans in the curtain-raiser. The final of the marquee event will take place on March 19 in Lahore.

READ: Conway, Mitchell help New Zealand down India in T20 opener

LAHORE: All six Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchises beefed up their squads in the replacement draft that took place over a conference call on Wednesday.

The six teams added players to their squads in the third and fourth supplementary pick rounds before naming replacements for the players who were partially or fully unavailable. Each side could pick a maximum of one foreign cricketer in the two supplementary rounds.

Peshawar Zalmi, who had reserved their pick in the second supplementary round in the HBL PSL 8 Player Draft in December, picked fast bowler Khurram Shahzad.

In the first pick of the third supplementary round, Peshawar Zalmi picked Haris Sohail, who recently made a comeback to the Pakistan ODI side.

Lahore Qalandars, who had the second pick, named Ahsan Bhatti, a left-arm spin all-rounder and product of their player development programme. Islamabad United and Karachi Kings picked Tom Curran and Ben Cutting, who played for Peshawar Zalmi last season, respectively. Quetta Gladiators and Multan Sultans, who had the fifth and sixth picks, included Qais Ahmed and Kieron Pollard, who has previously turned out for Karachi Kings.

The fourth supplementary round followed the reverse order in which Multan Sultans took Ammad Butt, who was with Peshawar Zalmi in the last edition. Quetta Gladiators picked Saud Shakeel. Karachi Kings and Islamabad United picked Musa Khan, who was previously in Islamabad United, and Zafar Gohar, while Lahore Qalandars and Peshawar Zalmi reserved their picks.

Teams strengthen rosters in #HBLPSL8 replacement draft.

Read more: https://t.co/Si21yM9WIS#SabSitarayHumaray pic.twitter.com/i6trwKRF8o

— PakistanSuperLeague (@thePSLt20) January 25, 2023

The six franchises also named replacements for the players who are partially or fully unavailable.

In the Platinum category, Lahore Qalandars picked Sam Billings for Rashid Khan; Peshawar Zalmi replaced Rovman Powell with Richard Gleeson; Islamabad United picked Gus Atkinson and Tymal Mills for Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Alex Hales. Multan Sultan replaced David Miller with Izharulhaq Naveed. Quetta reserved their pick for Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga.

In the Diamond category, Islamabad United and Peshawar Zalmi reserved their picks for Fazalhaq Farooqi and Mujeeb ur Rehman; Quetta Gladiators picked Dwaine Pretorius and Will Jacks for Odean Smith and Jason Roy.

Multan Sultan reserved their replacements for Akeal Hosein and Tim David in the Gold category.

In the Silver category, Quetta Gladiators and Lahore Qalandars replaced Naveen ul Haq with Nuwan Thushara and Harry Brook with Shane Dadswell.

In the supplementary picks, Lahore Qalandars’ Jordan Cox was replaced with Kusal Mendis, Multan Sultans’ Adil Rashid with Wayne Parnell and Karachi Kings’ Tabraiz Shamsi with Faisal Akram. Islamabad United reserved their pick for Moeen Ali.

Rovman Powell, David Miller, Odean Smith, Akeal Hosein and Tabraiz Shamsi will potentially be unavailable to their franchises from 8 March onwards due to bilateral limited overs series between the West Indies and South Africa.

Adil Rashid, Moeen Ali and Jason Roy are potentially unavailable because of the England versus Bangladesh limited overs series to their franchises from 26 February till 14 March. Alex Hales will join the HBL PSL 8 from 26 February onwards. Tim David will join the tournament from 3 March. Jordan Cox will be available to Lahore Qalandars from 21 February as he is on the England Lions tour of Sri Lanka. Wanindu Hasaranga will leave the tournament from 3 March.

Afghanistan cricketers may become unavailable to their teams for brief duration due to potential international commitment.

Supplementary and replacements picks on Wednesday (25 January 2023):

Peshawar Zalmi – Supplementary: Khurram Shahzad and Haris Sohail. Replacement:  Richard Gleeson

Lahore Qalandars – Supplementary: Ahsan Bhatti. Replacement: Sam Billings, Shane Dadswell and Kusal Mendis

Islamabad United – Supplementary: Tom Curran and Zafar Gohar. Replacement: Gus Atkinson and Tymal Mills

Karachi Kings – Supplementary: Ben Cutting and Musa Khan. Replacement: Faisal Akram

Quetta Gladiators – Supplementary: Qais Ahmed and Saud Shakeel. Replacement: Dwaine Pretorius, Will Jacks and Nuwan Thushara

Multan Sultans – Supplementary: Kieron Pollard and Ammad Butt. Replacement: Wayne Parnell and Izharulhaq Naveed.

LAHORE: All six franchises of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) have strengthened their squads for the upcoming eighth edition in the Players’ Draft held here today.

SUPPLEMENTARY

Round 3

Peshawar Zalmi: Haris Sohail

Lahore Qalandars: Kusal Mendis

Islamabad United: Tom Curran

Karachi Kings: Ben Cutting

Quetta Gladiators: Qais Ahmed

Multan Sultans: Kieron Pollard

Round 4

Multan Sultans: Amad Butt

Quetta Gladiators: Reserved

Karachi Kings: Musa Khan

Islamabad United: Zafar Gohar

Lahore Qalandars: Ahsan Bhatti

Peshawar Zalmi: Khurram Shehzad

Partial Replacements

Multan Sultans: Wayne Parnell, Izharulhaq Naveed

Islamabad United: Tymall Mills, Gus Atkinson

Lahore Qalandars: Sam Billings, Shane Dadswell

NOTE: Franchises are arranged in accordance with their pick order in each category.

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Tuesday announced that fans will be able to nominate their favourite personalities for the ‘Hamaray Heroes’ awards for the forthcoming edition of the HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL).

As per the PCB press release, fans can submit nominations by filling out a nominations form available on the HBL PSL website for various fields such as sports, education, healthcare, art, culture, music, social work, social entrepreneurship, and technology, and submitting it by the 25th of January.

The final list will then be submitted to a panel of members of the PCB Board of Governors and the top candidates will then be rewarded during the tournament.

The campaign, which honoured notable Pakistan talents such as Imran Butt and Arslan Ash, was introduced in the PSL 6 and received an overwhelming response.

The PSL 8 will kick off in Multan on February 13 with the defending champions Lahore Qalandars locking horns with hosts Multan Sultans in the opener. Whereas, the final of the tournament will take place on March 19 in Lahore.

READ: Sadio Mane returns to training with Bayern Munich

LAHORE: The Replacement Draft for the upcoming Pakistan Super League (PSL) season 8 will take place on January 24, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Friday.

After analyzing the international cricket schedule, the PCB management committee decided to hold the replacement draft on Tuesday, January 24.

Meanwhile, PCB also revealed that the franchises had also requested the cricket governing body to increase the pool of players. PCB, consequently, approved their proposal and the franchises will now add two more players in the supplementary category to complete a squad of 20.

“Meanwhile, on the request of the franchises, the PCB has agreed to increase the number of players per side to 20, allowing each franchise to pick two additional Supplementary players,” said PCB in a statement.

“The Supplementary players will be picked in the Replacement Draft, which will take place on Tuesday, 24 January,” the statement added.

Earlier, the chairman of PCB Najam Sethi held a press conference here and unveiled the complete schedule of the PSL 8.

The extravaganza will be held from February 13 to March 19 across four different venues – Karachi, Lahore, Multan and Rawalpindi – with Multan getting the opportunity to host the opening ceremony of the marquee league for the first time.

Furthermore, the eighth edition of the PSL will be held in two different phases with Karachi and Multan splitting up matches from 13-26 February before the action shifts to Lahore and Rawalpindi.

The two cities – Rawalpindi and Lahore – will then host 20 matches from February 26 to March 19 while the latter will host the final of the event.

READ: Is Ali Sethi performing PSL 8 anthem? Najam Sethi settles the dust

LAHORE: The chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) management committee Najam Sethi hinted at limiting the participation of top national players in foreign leagues in a bid to prevent them from injuries.

Sethi, while interacting with the media after unveiling the complete schedule of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) season 8 responded to a question regarding players’ fitness woes and thus hinted at taking precautionary measures to avoid them.

“When I was the chairman of the PCB in 2017-18, we established a rule that no player can participate in more than two leagues. So, after coming back, I enquired about whether that rule is being followed or not, I did not get a satisfactory response,” revealed Sethi.

“Despite the rule in place, the players somehow get permission to participate in different leagues. So, that rule is not being followed,” he added.

Mr Sethi further revealed the proposal he received from PSL franchises regarding players’ availability ahead of the PSL 8 before categorically stating that the PCB will not risk their fitness at any cost.

“Recently, some of our players were wanting to partake in the Bangladesh Premier League including those who are going to be involved in the PSL. So, I asked management committee member Haroon Rashid as he was monitoring such cases to get feedback from their respective franchises if they will permit their players,” said Sethi.

“And if they get injured there and later ruled out of the PSL, who will be responsible for this and what should the policy be for it so we got a suggestion from the franchises that 15 days prior to the commencement of the PSL all the selected players should return to the country,” he maintained.

“So that is the proposal for us and I am ensuring you that definitely we will take action on this because we can’t risk it. There is so much cricket being played so we have to protect our players. It is true that players need financial assistance but not by risking national duty,” he added.

It is pertinent to mention that the eighth edition of the PSL will kick off on February 13 with hosts Multan Sultans taking on defending champions Lahore Qalandars in the curtain raiser.

Karachi, Multan, Lahore and Rawalpindi will host the 34-match marquee event with each city-based franchise will play five matches in front of their fans and supporters – one against each side.

The PSL 8 will be held in two legs with Multan Cricket Stadium and National Bank Cricket Arena splitting matches from 13-26 February before the action shifts to the Gaddafi Stadium and Pindi Cricket Stadium where the matches will be played from 26 February to 19 March including playoffs and the final.

READ: Is Ali Sethi performing PSL 8 anthem? PCB chairman settles the dust